Western District of Washington
Press releases recorded for this federal judicial district.
Leader of multimillion-dollar tobacco tax fraud and money laundering conspiracy sentenced to prisonRead the Press Release
Seattle – A leader of a scheme to cheat Washington State out of more than $10 million in tobacco excise taxes was sentenced today in U.S. District Court in Seattle to 26 months in prison, announced U.S. Attorney Nick Brown. Hyung Il Kwon, 48, of Henderson, Nevada, was the secret owner of TK Mac, a company that owned and operated two smoke shops in Federal Way and Lynnwood, Washington. Kwon conspired with others to cheat the state out of tobacco excise taxes; he also evaded more than $850,000 in federal income taxes. At the sentencing hearing, U.S. District Judge James L. Robart noted that Kwon has a prior state conviction from a similar tobacco fraud scheme, and said, “You [Kwon] have almost no respect for the law whatsoever when it gets in the way of making money.”
“For years, Mr. Kwon repeatedly laundered cash and created false invoices to avoid paying tobacco excise taxes. This didn’t just hurt the state coffers, it gave his business a competitive advantage over other small stores,” said U.S. Attorney Brown. “Now Mr. Kwon has a substantial restitution obligation, which will follow him even after he serves his prison term.”
According to records filed in the case, between 2009 and 2017, Kwon engaged in two schemes to defraud the state of tobacco excise taxes. The schemes involved two tribal smoke shops on the Puyallup reservation which sold significant quantities of tobacco products to TK Mac, the non-tribal tobacco distributor. Most of the sales were in cash, and TK Mac failed to report the purchases to the state, thus avoiding millions of dollars in excise taxes. When TK Mac then resold the products for cash, the company had a problem, since large deposits of cash would have triggered state scrutiny of its tobacco business. So, beginning in 2013 and continuing until 2017, Kwon and his coconspirators engaged in a money-laundering scheme: the two tribal smoke shops wrote checks to TK Mac as if the tribal smoke shops had purchased tobacco products from the non-tribal store. In fact, TK Mac simply provided the tribal smoke shops with large amounts of cash equal to the checks. No tobacco products changed hands, but TK Mac received an excise tax credit. As a result of these schemes, Washington State suffered losses of more than $10 million.
The president of the company that owns the tribal smoke shops, Anthony Edwin Paul, was sentenced last month to 14 months in prison, a $5,000 fine, and $1,764,818 in restitution. Paul’s subordinate, Theodore Kai Silva, who operated the scheme on behalf of the tribal smoke shops, was sentenced today to four years of probation with six months of home confinement, plus $25,000 in restitution. Kwon’s coconspirator and business partner Tae Young Kim will be sentenced in February 2022.
“Taxes, whether state or federal, are levied for the benefit of the public. When individuals like Mr. Silva, Mr. Kwon, Mr. Paul, and Mr. Kim scheme in a flagrant attempt to evade taxes, they are hurting the communities they purport to serve with their businesses,” said Bret Kressin, IRS Criminal Investigation (IRS:CI) Special Agent in Charge, Seattle Field Office. “Today’s sentence is a reminder that those who willfully dodge their duty to pay federal and state taxes will be held accountable for their actions. IRS:CI is committed to investigating those who choose their own greed over paying their fair share of taxes for the good of the public.”
Following the indictment of various coconspirators, the government seized more than $5 million from Kwon and Kim. Today, Judge Robart imposed a $10,000 fine on Kwon and ordered him to pay $5,098,249 in restitution to the Washington State Department of Revenue, plus restitution to the IRS.
The case was investigated by IRS-CI, with assistance from Homeland Security Investigations (HSI).
The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys James Oesterle and Jonas Lerman.
Leader of Neo-Nazi group sentenced for plot targeting journalists and advocatesRead the Press Release
Seattle - Kaleb Cole, 26, a leader of the Neo-Nazi group Atomwaffen Division, was sentenced today in Seattle to 7 years in prison for his role in a plot to threaten and intimidate journalists and advocates who worked to expose anti-Semitism. At the sentencing hearing U.S. District Judge John C. Coughenour said, “We cannot tolerate his threats to silence others… To function as a democratic society, we need reliable and truthful journalists.”
In September 2021, a jury in the Western District of Washington convicted Cole of one count of interfering with a federally protected activity because of religion, three counts of mailing threatening communications, and one count of conspiring with other Atomwaffen members to commit three offenses against the United States––interference with federally-protected activities because of religion, mailing threatening communications, and cyberstalking.
“Kaleb Cole helped lead a violent, nationwide neo-Nazi group. He repeatedly promoted violence, stockpiled weapons, and organized ‘hate camps,’” said U.S. Attorney Nick Brown. “Today the community and those Mr. Cole and his co-conspirators targeted stand-up to say hate has no place here. He tried to intimidate journalists and advocates with hate-filled and threatening posters, tried to amplify their fear. Instead, they faced him in court and their courage has resulted in the federal prison sentence imposed today.”
Evidence introduced at trial showed that Cole and other members of Atomwaffen plotted to intimidate journalists and others by mailing threatening posters or gluing the posters to victims’ homes. The group focused primarily on those who are Jewish or journalists of color. Cole created the posters, which warned the recipients that “you have been visited by your local Nazis.” The posters contained threatening images, such as a hooded figure preparing to throw a Molotov cocktail at a house. The threatening posters were delivered to homes in late January 2020.
At trial, the victims described how receiving the posters impacted them. Some moved from their homes for a time or installed security systems. One purchased a firearm and took a firearms safety class. Another started opening her mailbox with a stick due to fear of what might be inside. One left her job as a journalist.
“Threats motivated by religious intolerance are antithetical to American values, even more so when they aim to intimidate journalists and others who are working to expose bigotry in our society.” said Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division. “The defendant led a multi-state plot by a neo-Nazi group to threaten and intimidate journalists and advocates who were doing important work to expose anti-Semitism around the country. The Justice Department will continue to investigate and prosecute these hateful acts.”
“The defendant sought to intimidate journalists and advocates working to expose anti-Semitism, but that effort failed,” said Assistant Director Timothy Langan of the FBI’s Counterterrorism Division. “Cole’s intended victims fought back but not with threats of violence; they fought back in a court of law. The FBI will continue to do our part by aggressively investigating cases involving threats or acts of violence.”
“Mr. Cole displayed through his actions that his beliefs were more than just rhetoric. No doubt, the exemplary work of our investigators and partners prevented Cole’s targets from becoming victims of violence,” said Donald Voiret, Special Agent in Charge FBI- Seattle.
Three other co-conspirators––Cameron Shea, Johnny Roman Garza, and Taylor Ashley Parker-Dipeppe––previously pleaded guilty and were sentenced.
The case was investigated by the FBI’s Joint Terrorism Task Forces in Seattle, Tampa, Houston, and Phoenix, with assistance from the Seattle Police Department.
The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Thomas Woods and Seth Wilkinson for the Western District of Washington, and Civil Rights Division Trial Attorney Michael J. Songer, with valuable assistance provided by Trial Attorney David Smith of the National Security Division’s Counterterrorism Section and from U.S. Attorneys’ Offices in the Middle District of Florida, Southern District of Texas, District of Arizona, and Central District of California.
Leader of Neo-Nazi Group Sentenced for Plot to Target Journalists and AdvocatesRead the Press Release
A Washington man was sentenced today to 84 months, or seven years, in prison for his role in a plot to threaten and intimidate journalists and advocates who worked to expose anti-Semitism.
Kaleb Cole, 25, a leader of the Neo-Nazi group Atomwaffen Division, was convicted by a federal jury in the Western District of Washington of one count of interfering with a federally protected activity because of religion, three counts of mailing threatening communications, and one count of conspiring with other Atomwaffen members to commit three offenses against the United States – interference with federally-protected activities because of religion, mailing threatening communications, and cyberstalking.
“Threats motivated by religious intolerance are antithetical to American values, even more so when they aim to intimidate journalists and others who are working to expose bigotry in our society.” said Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division. “The defendant led a multi-state plot by a neo-Nazi group to threaten and intimidate journalists and advocates who were doing important work to expose anti-Semitism around the country. The Justice Department will continue to investigate and prosecute these hateful acts.”
“Kaleb Cole helped lead a violent, nationwide neo-Nazi group,’” said U.S. Attorney Nick Brown for the Western District of Washington. “He repeatedly promoted violence, stockpiled weapons, and organized ‘hate camps’. Today the community and those Mr. Cole and his co-conspirators targeted, stand-up to say hate has no place here. He tried to intimidate journalists and advocates with hate-filled and threatening posters, tried to amplify their fear. Instead they faced him in court and their courage has resulted in the federal prison sentence imposed today.”
“The defendant sought to intimidate journalists and advocates working to expose anti-Semitism, but that effort failed,” said Assistant Director Timothy Langan of the FBI’s Counterterrorism Division. “Cole’s intended victims fought back but not with threats of violence; they fought back in a court of law. The FBI will continue to do our part by aggressively investigating cases involving threats or acts of violence.”
“Mr. Cole displayed through his actions that his beliefs were more than just rhetoric,” said Special Agent in Charge Donald Voiret of the FBI’s Seattle Field Office. “No doubt, the exemplary work of our investigators and partners prevented Cole’s targets from becoming victims of violence.”
Evidence introduced at trial showed that Cole and other members of Atomwaffen plotted to intimidate journalists and others by mailing threatening posters or gluing the posters to victims’ homes. The group focused primarily on those who are Jewish or journalists of color. Cole created the posters, which warned the recipients that “you have been visited by your local Nazis.” The posters contained threatening images, such as a hooded figure preparing to throw a Molotov cocktail at a house. The threatening posters were delivered to homes in late January 2020.
At trial, the victims described how receiving the posters impacted them. Some moved from their homes for a time or installed security systems. One purchased a firearm and took a firearms safety class. Another started opening her mailbox with a stick due to fear of what might be inside. One left her job as a journalist.
Three other co-conspirators – Cameron Shea, Johnny Roman Garza, and Taylor Ashley Parker-Dipeppe – previously pleaded guilty and were sentenced.
The case was investigated by the FBI’s Joint Terrorism Task Forces in Seattle, Tampa, Houston, and Phoenix, with assistance from the Seattle Police Department.
The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Thomas Woods and Seth Wilkinson for the Western District of Washington, and Civil Rights Division Trial Attorney Michael J. Songer, with valuable assistance provided by Trial Attorney David Smith of the National Security Division’s Counterterrorism Section and from U.S. Attorneys’ Offices in the Middle District of Florida, Southern District of Texas, District of Arizona, and Central District of California.
Former Puyallup, Washington, resident pleads guilty to pressuring young girls to send him sexually explicit imagesRead the Press Release
Seattle – A 23-year-old Seattle man pleaded guilty today in U.S. District Court in Tacoma to receipt of child pornography, announced U.S. Attorney Nick Brown. Nicholas Marshall, resided in Puyallup, Washington during most of the criminal conduct, pressuring young girls he met via the internet to send him sexually explicit images. Yesterday, Marshall was sentenced to 87 months in prison in Pierce County Superior Court for the exploitation of a Texas 12-year-old. The report from that victim brought the criminal conduct to the attention of law enforcement. Under the terms of the plea agreement, both sides will recommend 9 years in prison and 15-years of supervised release when Marshall is sentenced on April 1, 2022.
According to the plea agreement, between October 2018 and September 2019, Marshall communicated with various minor girls via the internet apps ‘Discord’ and ‘Snapchat.’ Homeland Security Investigations in Houston, Texas, began an investigation after the mother of a 12-year-old reported her daughter communicating with Marshall via text message and Discord, and the sexual nature of the contact. Puyallup Police investigated the case and Marshall was charged in Pierce County Superior Court for that conduct.
The investigation revealed there were at least four other victims who had been pressured or threatened into sending Marshall sexually explicit images: A 13-year-old girl residing in Washington State; a 16-year-old residing in Wisconsin; a 14-year-old residing in Texas; and a 15-year-old residing in Canada. In some cases, Marshall promised the victims money or gift cards, in others he threatened the girls or their families to get the images he wanted.
On September 10, 2019, investigators searched Marshall’s new residence in Seattle. On his electronic devices they discovered 38 videos of minors engaged in sexually explicit conduct. Marshall was arrested at his job as a security guard in Seattle.
Marshall has been out of custody on the Pierce County charges. He was taken into state custody following the sentencing yesterday. Marshall was turned over to federal custody for today’s court proceeding. Ultimately the state and federal sentences will run concurrently.
The case was investigated by Homeland Security Investigations and the Puyallup Police Department.
The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Angelica Williams in coordination with the Pierce County Prosecutor’s Office.
Tulalip Tribes member sentenced to 3 years in prison for drug and gun crimesRead the Press Release
Seattle – A 24-year-old member of the Tulalip Tribes was sentenced today in U.S. District Court in Seattle to 3 years in prison for drug and gun crimes, announced U.S. Attorney Nick Brown. Deion Kurtis Fryberg was initially charged in Tulalip Tribal Court in 2019 before the case was referred to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for federal prosecution. Fryberg was charged federally in February 2021, and pleaded guilty to possession of controlled substances with intent to distribute and possession of a stolen firearm in October 2021. At the sentencing hearing, U.S. District Judge James L. Robart imposed three years of supervised release to follow the prison term.
According to records filed in the case, in August 2019, Fryberg and an associate were arrested on the Tulalip reservation with significant quantities of methamphetamine, heroin and fentanyl pills, and with supplies to help them package and distribute the drugs, including a scale and plastic baggies. At the time of his arrest officers found that Fryberg had a loaded, stolen gun in his vehicle along with ammunition. The car had been followed and stopped by Tulalip Tribes Police officers who knew Fryberg and his associate had warrants out for their arrest. Fryberg and his associate refused to exit when ordered to do so, resulting in a brief stand-off before they were arrested.
The case was investigated by the Tulalip Police Department and the FBI’s Northwestern Washington Safe Trails Task Force.
The case was prosecuted by the Task Force’s Special Assistant United States Attorney, Stacey Fernandez.
DOJ awards more than $8.5 million to Western Washington Tribes for justice and tribal youth development programsRead the Press Release
Seattle – The U.S. Department of Justice has awarded more than $8.5 million to Western Washington Indian Tribes for improvements to their criminal justice systems and youth development programs, announced U.S. Attorney Nick Brown. The awards, to eight different tribes, are targeted for specific needs identified by each tribal community.
“It is an impressive list of projects and goals that each of these tribes outlined in their grant applications,” said U.S. Attorney Brown. “From developing programs to connect tribal youth with their culture and heritage, to upgrading facilities for tribal courts and treatment facilities, these projects strengthen our communities.”
Four tribes are receiving grants to enhance services to teens:
Quinault Indian Nation - $600,000 for a juvenile healing and wellness court program.
Squaxin Island Tribe - $508,242 for a teen development and mentoring program.
Puyallup Tribe - $508,254 for tribal youth development and justice programs.
Confederated Tribes of the Chehalis Reservation - $508,245 for tribal youth programs.
Three tribes are receiving grants to improve the physical spaces involved in tribal justice and wellness programs:
Tulalip Tribes – grants totaling $1,339,961 to expand and improve the Healing Lodge for drug treatment and expand and assess services under the Path to Wellness program.
Skokomish Tribe – $1,200,000 to assist with construction of a public safety building that provides police and court services.
Nooksack Tribe -$1,186,249 to assist with renovations to the Tribal Justice Center.
Finally, three tribes received grants to enhance their court systems and criminal justice related programs:
Port Gamble S’Klallam Tribe - $900,000 to enhance reentry services for previously incarcerated tribal members.
Nooksack Tribe -$891,544 to hire a tribal prosecutor, bailiff, and staff to provide court services.
Quinault Indian Nation -$900,000 to expand the adult wellness court and develop a family wellness court.
In its grant application for the wellness courts the Quinault Indian Nation noted that it “has been working to build a stronger restorative justice model. Part of this model serves to help nonviolent offenders and their families work through substance abuse issues through a variety of social services such as Chemical Dependency, behavioral health, and family services…. Establishing these courts will promote the restorative justice model and be better suited to reduced recidivism, lesson the burden on community policing, reduce jail capacity, and build stronger communities.”
Copies of the grant awards are available on request to [email protected]
Additional information about these and other FY 2021 grant awards made by OJP can be found online at the OJP Grant Awards Page.
Seattle barrel reconditioning company and owner convicted of 10-year water pollution schemeRead the Press Release
Seattle – A barrel cleaning and reconditioning operation, Seattle Barrel and Cooperage Company, and its owner, Louie Sanft, 55, were convicted late yesterday of conspiracy, making false statements, and 33 Clean Water Act violations following a three-week jury trial, announced U.S. Attorney Nick Brown. Investigators with the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) documented a conspiracy to illegally dump caustic waste into the King County sewer system, which ultimately empties into Puget Sound. The company used a hidden drain, and over ten years, lied to regulators to carry out their illegal dumping. Sentencing for Sanft and the company is scheduled in front of U.S. District Judge Richard A. Jones on March 25, 2022.
“While publicly claiming to follow environmental best practices, in private the company was illegally sending thousands of gallons of caustic wastewater into the sewer system,” said U.S. Attorney Nick Brown. “The highly corrosive wastewater can damage equipment that cleans wastewater, and further pollutes our fragile Puget Sound. I commend the investigators with EPA and King County, who uncovered this conspiracy and our team who successfully held Mr. Sanft and the company accountable.”
Seattle Barrel’s business involves collecting used industrial and commercial drums and reconditioning and reselling them. Part of the reconditioning process involved washing the barrels in a highly-corrosive chemical solution. The caustic solution had a very high pH level. According to the indictment, since at least 2009, Seattle Barrel has operated under a discharge permit that prohibits it from dumping effluent with a pH exceeding 12 to the sewer system. Effluent above pH 12 will corrode the sewer system and treatment plant, and potentially cause pass-through pollution to Elliott Bay and Puget Sound.
In 2013, King County conducted covert monitoring of Seattle Barrel, and discovered the company was illegally dumping effluent with a pH above 12 in violation of its permit. King County fined the company $55,250, but later agreed to reduce the fine when Seattle Barrel installed a pretreatment system for its wastewater. Beginning in 2016, Louie Sanft represented to King County in written monthly certifications that the company had become a “zero discharge” facility and was not discharging any industrial wastewater to the sewer.
In fact, in 2018 and 2019, additional covert monitoring by the EPA inspectors revealed that Seattle Barrel was continuing to routinely dump wastewater with a pH above 12 into the sewer system despite telling local regulators that no industrial wastewater was being discharged. Agents then installed real-time monitoring equipment that allowed them to determine when the dumping was taking place and obtained a search warrant.
Early on the morning of March 8, 2019, the covert monitors indicated Seattle Barrel was dumping high-pH material into the sewer. Agents immediately executed the warrant and entered the building. Inside, they discovered a portable pump on the floor near the tank of caustic solution. They then discovered that the pump was being used to pump solution to a nearby hidden drain that had never been disclosed to King County. The drain led directly to the sewer system. The company claims that since mid-2019, following the criminal conduct in this case, it no longer uses the caustic solution.
Louie Sanft, the owner and operator of Seattle Barrel, was convicted of conspiracy, 29 violations of the Clean Water Act for discharging pollutants to the sewer, four counts of submission of False Clean Water Act Certifications, and making a false statement to special agents of the EPA. Louie Sanft faces up to 5 years in prison on the conspiracy and false statement counts, and up to three years in prison for each violation of the Clean Water Act. His cousin, John Sanft, 53, of Issaquah, WA, the plant manager, is scheduled for a separate trial on the charges in March 2022.
U.S. District Judge Richard A. Jones will determine the sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
The case was investigated by the Environmental Protection Agency Criminal Investigation Division (EPA-CID) with significant assistance from King County Industrial Waste.
The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Seth Wilkinson and Jim Oesterle, and Special Assistant United States Attorneys Karla Perrin and Gwendolyn Russell, Regional Criminal Enforcement Counsel with the Environmental Protection Agency.
Seattle Man Sentenced to 46 Months in Prison for Assaulting Law Enforcement During Capitol BreachRead the Press Release
According to court documents, Devlyn Thompson, 28, of Seattle, was among individuals in a
crowd on the Lower West Terrace of the Capitol who were pushing against and assaulting
Metropolitan Police Department (MPD) and U.S. Capitol Police (USCP) officers in the tunnel leading
into the U.S. Capitol. Thompson and others in the tunnel yelled obscenities at police and encouraged
the continued assault. Thompson was part of a group that threw objects and projectiles at the
officers, including flag poles, and grabbed and stole the officers’ riot shields to prevent them from
defending themselves against the violence.
At approximately 2:21 p.m., Thompson personally observed police order rioters to stop,
physically push the crowd back, and deploy pepper spray in an effort to try to stop the ongoing
assault. Later, Thompson entered a tunnel on the West Front Terrace that led to an entrance to the
U.S. Capitol, where members of Congress were sheltering in place. Thompson joined rioters in that
tunnel and assisted other rioters in their assault of officers by helping them seize and use stolen law
enforcement shields for approximately 13 minutes. Thompson also helped throw a large speaker at
the front line of officers, and he later picked up a metal baton from the floor of the tunnel and swung
it overhead and downward against the police line in an apparent effort to knock a can of pepper
spray from an officer’s hand and stop the officer from pepper-spraying the rioters. After more pepper
spray was deployed by the rioters and the officers, Thompson retreated from the archway area.
Thompson pleaded guilty on Aug. 6, in the District of Columbia, to assaulting, resisting or
impeding officers while using a dangerous weapon. Thompson was arrested on that same date and
has been in custody ever since. Judge Royce C. Lamberth also ordered him today to pay $2,000 in
restitution. He also must serve a period of three years of supervised release following completion of
his prison term.
The case was prosecuted by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia and the
Justice Department's National Security Division. Valuable assistance was provided by the U.S.
Attorney’s Office for the Western District of Washington.
The FBI’s Washington Field Office investigated the case, with valuable assistance from the
FBI’s Seattle Field Office, the U.S. Capitol Police, and the Metropolitan Police Department. The FBI’s
Washington Field Office identified Thompson as #67 in its seeking information photos.
In the 11 months since Jan. 6, more than 700 individuals have been arrested in nearly all 50
states for crimes related to the breach of the U.S. Capitol, including over 220 individuals charged
with assaulting or impeding law enforcement. The investigation remains ongoing.Seattle man sentenced to prison for creation of images of sexual molestation of young childRead the Press Release
Seattle – A 53-year-old Seattle man was sentenced today in U.S. District Court in Seattle to ten years in prison with 15 years of supervised release for three federal felonies connected to his creation and possession of sexually explicit images of children, announced U.S. Attorney Nick Brown. Cameron Bennett Scott, pleaded guilty in May 2021, to enticement of a minor, possession of child pornography, and receipt of child pornography. At the sentencing hearing U.S. District Judge Robert S. Lasnik ordered Scott to serve ten years in prison with 15 years of supervised release.
“This case demonstrates how critical it is for tech companies to report images of child sexual abuse that pass through their networks,” said U.S. Attorney Nick Brown. “Thanks to the quick work of Seattle Police and Homeland Security Investigation, children both here and in Canada were rescued from abuse.”
According to the plea agreement, Scott came to the attention of law enforcement in December 2018 when an internet service provider reported an internet address to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC) for uploading suspected images of child pornography. An investigation by the Seattle Police Department Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force traced the images to Scott. The investigation revealed that he had been communicating with a woman in British Columbia, Canada, about sexually molesting her children—both under the age of ten and he received files depicting their abuse.
Law enforcement served a search warrant at Scott’s residence in August 2019, seizing two computers and his mobile devices. An examination of his mobile device revealed that he had taken sexually explicit photos of a minor child in his residence in July 2019.
“Creating and disseminating images of children being harmed is the worst kind of crime,” Seattle Police Department Chief Adrian Diaz said after Scott’s sentencing. “The sexual exploitation of children not only destroys lives as the images are recorded, but those images continue to victimize children every time they are viewed. I am grateful the dedicated members of SPD’s Internet Crimes Against Children (ICAC) Unit were able to help investigate this case and help send this defendant to prison.”
“The online nature of these heinous crimes adheres to no border,” said Special Agent in Charge (SAC) Robert Hammer, who oversees HSI operations in the Pacific Northwest. “We are proud of the collaborative relationship with our Canadian and local partners which resulted in two individuals being prosecuted and hopefully the end of the victimization for these two young children.”
The woman in British Columbia is being prosecuted in Canada for the sexual abuse and exploitation of two minor children, as a result of the Seattle Police Department and Homeland Security investigation. Her case will be resolved in Canada following today’s proceeding.
The case was investigated by the Seattle Police Department and Homeland Security Investigation (HSI) as part of the Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force. The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Cecelia Gregson.
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 Attorney’s 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.
Bellingham, Washington, woman sentenced to prison for ‘shunt’ attack on BNSF trackRead the Press Release
Seattle – A 28-year-old Bellingham, Washington, woman was sentenced today in U.S. District Court in Seattle to 12 months and one day in prison and three years of supervised release for committing an act of violence against a railroad carrier, announced U.S. Attorney Nick Brown. Ellen Brennan Reiche, was one of two people arrested on the BNSF Railway tracks near Bellingham, near midnight on November 28, 2020. Reiche was convicted September 9, 2021, of placing a ‘shunt’ – a device that interferes with train signals – on the tracks. At the sentencing hearing, Chief U.S. District Judge Ricardo S. Martinez called her offense “extremely serious.” In addition to the prison sentence, the court ordered that Reiche must complete 100 hours of community service while on federal supervision.
“Placing a shunt on active railroad tracks puts lives in danger – to drivers preparing to cross the tracks who may not get any warning lights of an approaching train, and to the homeowners in the area who could be endangered by a train derailment,” said U.S. Attorney Nick Brown. “In this case the shunt was placed just prior to the arrival of a train with 97 tanker cars loaded with crude oil. Thankfully, the device was discovered and removed before it could cause a tragedy.”
According to records in the case and testimony at trial, on the night of November 28, 2020, Reiche and co-defendant Samantha Frances Brooks, 24, were observed on video surveillance walking on the tracks near a crossing in Bellingham. Whatcom County Sheriff’s deputies responded to the scene. The defendants were detained for trespassing, and a shunt was found on the tracks near where the deputies had first encountered them. Reiche was carrying a paper bag containing wire, a drill with a brush head, a magnetic adhesive and gloves. The wire was similar to the wire used in the shunting incidents. The shunt that was placed on the tracks could have interfered with the railroad crossing warnings at Cliffside Drive in Bellingham. A train carrying crude oil, among other cargo, was scheduled to come through that area soon after this incident.
The FBI’s Joint Terrorism Task Force worked with BNSF police to investigate the placement of 41 shunts on the BNSF tracks since January 19, 2020. A shunt is comprised of wire that is stretched between the rails and often fastened with magnets, disrupting the systems that indicate a train is on the tracks. On ten occasions, shunts were placed in areas that disrupt the crossing guards where the tracks cross streets, so vehicles could have tried to cross the tracks unaware of the oncoming train. On the night of October 11, 2020, multiple shunts were placed in three different locations in Whatcom and Skagit Counties. The shunts triggered an automatic braking system on a train that was transporting hazardous and combustible material. The emergency braking then caused a portion of the train to decouple from the engine. Decoupling has the potential to cause a derailment—in this case—of tanker cars of flammable gas in a residential area.
In asking for a 27-month sentence, prosecutors wrote to the court about the danger of shunts, including the potential to cause derailments, which can be deadly and cause extensive environmental damage. “There have been at least two examples just within the past year that hit close to home. In one, an oil train derailed near Custer, Washington, causing massive fires and other damage, and in the other, a passenger train bound for Seattle derailed in Montana, killing three people and injuring dozens. Here, if a train had derailed where Reiche placed the shunt, numerous nearby homes and the train crew would have been badly affected. And even setting aside the risk of a derailment, the shunt endangered anyone crossing the tracks at Cliffside Drive. There might have been no warning from the crossing system at all.”
Co-defendant Brooks pleaded guilty July 9, 2021, to interference with a railroad signaling system. Brooks was sentenced in October to 6 months in prison and 3 years of supervised release, with Brooks ordered to complete four months of home confinement and 200 hours of community service while on supervision.
The case was investigated by the FBI’s Joint Terrorism Task Force, which includes agents from Customs and Border Protection (CBP), in connection with the BNSF Railway Police. Critical investigative assistance is being provided by the Whatcom County Sheriff’s Office.
The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Philip Kopczynski, Sok Tea Jiang, and Thomas Woods.
Nooksack tribal member sentenced to prison for sexual abuse of a minorRead the Press Release
Seattle – A 22-year-old member of the Nooksack Indian Tribe was sentenced today in U.S. District Court in Seattle to 42 months in prison and 15 years of supervised release, for sexual abuse of a minor, announced U.S. Attorney Nick Brown. Kamron Dylan Duane Cooper, was indicted in February 2020, and pleaded guilty in June 2121. At the sentencing hearing U.S. District Judge Robert S. Lasnik said that the young girls Cooper victimized will continue to suffer emotionally from their sexual abuse and that the sentence imposed recognizes the harm he has caused.
According to records filed in the case, between March 2018 and January 2019, Cooper engaged in sex acts with a 13-year-old on the Lummi Reservation. Cooper groomed the teen, persuading her to engage in sexual activity. Cooper was on supervised release at the time for juvenile offenses involving sexual assaults on two 14-year-old girls. Those assaults also occurred on the Lummi Reservation.
Cooper will be required to register as a sex offender following his prison term. As part of his 15-years of supervised release, Cooper will undergo sex offender treatment.
The case was investigated by the Lummi Nation Police Department and the FBI.
The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney J. Tate London. Mr. London serves as a Tribal Liaison for the U.S. Attorney’s Office, Western District of Washington.
President of three Puyallup tribal smoke shops sentenced to prison for money-laundering scheme to evade state tobacco taxesRead the Press Release
Seattle – A 43-year-old President of three Puyallup tribal smoke shops was sentenced late Friday, December 10, 2021, in U.S. District Court in Seattle to 14 months in prison for a sophisticated money-laundering scheme designed to evade state taxes on smokeless tobacco products, announced U.S. Attorney Nick Brown. Anthony Edwin Paul was ordered to pay $1,764,818 in restitution to the Washington State Department of Revenue, plus a $5,000 fine. U.S. District Judge James L. Robart told Paul, “Money laundering is an integral part of criminal activity…. You turned the key that starts this conspiracy.”
“This sophisticated scheme to avoid state tobacco taxes harms all our residents by cutting into state funds used to pay for healthcare and treatment for tobacco related illnesses,” said U.S. Attorney Nick Brown. “The scheme allowed non-tribal tobacco vendors to have a sales advantage over other retailers—encouraging tobacco use, and boosting their profit while they avoided paying state taxes.”
“Mr. Paul conspired to defraud the state for his own greed, cheating Washington State residents out of millions of dollars that otherwise would have been invested into services for the community,” said Bret Kressin, Special Agent in Charge of IRS Criminal Investigation (IRS-CI), Seattle Field Office. “Financial fraud and tax evasion are not victimless crimes, and IRS-CI will continue to investigate and bring to justice those who choose to commit these offenses.”
According to records filed in the case, between 2009 and 2017, Paul was President of three smoke shops on the Puyallup reservation that sold significant quantities of tobacco products to TK Mac, a non-tribal tobacco distributor. Most of the sales were in cash, and TK Mac failed to report the purchases to the state, thus avoiding millions of dollars in excise taxes. When TK Mac then resold the products for cash, the company had a problem, since large deposits of cash would have triggered state scrutiny of its tobacco business. So beginning in 2013 and continuing until 2017, Paul and his coconspirators engaged in a money-laundering scheme: The tribal smoke shops wrote checks to TK Mac as if the tribal smoke shops had purchased tobacco products from the non-tribal store. In fact, TK Mac simply provided the tribal smoke shops with large amounts of cash equal to the checks. No tobacco products changed hands, but TK Mac received an excise tax credit. As a result of this cash-for-check scheme, Washington State suffered losses of roughly $3.86 million. The overall scheme caused the state to incur several more million dollars’ worth of losses.
Paul had an interest in the success of TK Mac, as he had made loans to the owners of the non-tribal retail business, TK Mac, of nearly $2 million. The owners of TK Mac, Hyung Il Kwon and Tae Young Kim, have also entered guilty pleas for their roles in the scheme. One of the employees in the tribal smoke shops, Theodore Kai Silva, has also pleaded guilty. Judge Robart will sentence Kwon, Kim, and Silva in January 2022.
Following the indictment of Paul’s coconspirators, the government seized more than $5 million from Kwon and Kim. The amount of restitution left owing from the cash-for-check scheme is $1,764,818. Judge Robart ordered Paul to pay that amount as restitution (joint and several with Kim and Kwon), along with the $5,000 fine.
The case was investigated by IRS-CI, with assistance from Homeland Security Investigations (HSI).
The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys James Oesterle and Jonas Lerman.
Two Western Washington artists charged with misrepresenting themselves as Native American carversRead the Press Release
Seattle – In two separate criminal cases, Western Washington artists are charged with violating the Indian Arts and Crafts Act (IACA) by representing themselves as Native American artists, when they have no tribal membership or heritage, announced U.S. Attorney Nick Brown. The men, 52-year-old Lewis Anthony Rath, of Maple Falls, Washington, and 67-year-old Jerry Chris Van Dyke aka Jerry Witten, of Seattle, will make their initial appearance on the complaints in U.S. District Court in Seattle at 2:00 PM today.
“Our special agents investigate crimes that violate the Indian Arts and Crafts Act on behalf of the U.S. Department of the Interior and the Indian Arts and Crafts Board,” said Edward Grace, Assistant Director of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Office of Law Enforcement. “By flooding the market with counterfeit Native American art and craftwork, these crimes cheat the consumer, undermine the economic livelihood of Native American artists, and impairs Indian culture. We thank the Indian Arts and Crafts Board and the U.S. Department of Justice for their assistance with these investigations.”
The investigation of Jerry Van Dyke began in February 2019, when the Indian Arts and Crafts Board received a complaint that Van Dyke was representing himself as a Nez Perce Indian Artist, when in fact, he is not an enrolled tribal member. Investigators from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service made undercover purchases at a gallery in the Pike Place Market area of Seattle that advertised pendants Van Dyke had made as Native American Art. Van Dyke used the name Witten for these sales. When interviewed by agents, Van Dyke admitted knowing about the Indian Arts and Crafts Act, and admitted he was not a tribal member. Through the gallery Van Dyke had sold more than $1,000 worth of carved pendants represented as Native American artwork based on Aleut masks.
Van Dyke is charged with two counts of Misrepresentation of Indian Produced Goods and Products,
The investigation of Anthony Rath began in May 2019, after a complaint to the Indian Arts and Crafts Board. The investigation revealed that Rath falsely represented himself to be a member of the San Carlos Apache Tribe. Undercover agents purchased a carved totem pole and necklace from the same Pike Place Market gallery for more than $1,334. Agents noticed the gallery had other carvings by Rath that were represented as Native produced. At another shop on the Seattle waterfront agents purchased another carved totem pole and a mask, again represented to be Indian produced. The biography of the artist at both shops falsely claimed that Rath was Native American. Internet sites Rath used to sell his artwork also falsely claim he is an enrolled member of the San Carlos Apache Tribe.
When agents executed a search warrant on Rath’s Whatcom County home and studio, they found he also possessed feathers from protected birds: golden eagles and other migratory birds such as hawks, jays, owls and more.
Rath is charged with four counts of Misrepresentation of Indian Produced Goods and Products, one misdemeanor count of Unlawful Possession of Golden Eagles Parts and one misdemeanor count of Unlawful Possession of Migratory Bird Parts.
Misrepresentation of Indian Produced Goods and Products is punishable by up to 5 years in prison. The misdemeanor counts related to bird parts are punishable by up to 1 year in prison.
The charges contained in the complaints 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 cases are being investigated by the National Fish and Wildlife Service. The cases are being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney J. Tate London.
Kent, Washington, man sentenced to 12 years in prison for sex trafficking of a minorRead the Press Release
Seattle– A 27-year-old Kent, Washington man was sentenced today in U.S. District Court in Seattle to 12 years in prison for sex trafficking of a minor, announced U.S. Attorney Nick Brown. Al-Penyo Brooks, was charged federally in November 2020, in coordination with the King County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office. Brooks was identified as a suspect in May 2020, when Pierce County Sheriff’s deputies and Seattle Police Department officers worked urgently to recover a 17-year-old girl who had run away from her Pierce County, Washington home. Brooks recruited the girl online, and then encouraged her to leave home and groomed her to work as a prostitute. Brooks pleaded guilty to sex trafficking of a minor in June 2021.
At the sentencing hearing U.S. District Judge James L. Robart said “Outside of murder, this is the most despicable thing you can do…particularly given the age of the victims. The conduct is simply not acceptable… it is someone who does not belong in society.”
“Mr. Brooks has spent most of his adult life exploiting the most vulnerable, living off the prostitution profits of juveniles and young women,” said U.S. Attorney Nick Brown. “This lengthy prison sentence, with 10 years of supervised release to follow prison, are necessary to protect the public.”
According to records in the case, the girl has developmental delays, and unbeknownst to her guardian, had set up a Facebook account. Using Facebook Messenger, Brooks communicated with the girl about her interest in music and writing songs. Brooks’ communications led the girl to believe he could promote her in the music business. Even after the girl told Brooks she was seventeen, Brooks made arrangements to pick her up near her home and told her how to evade her guardian. He picked her up and had an associate change her hair and clothing. He provided her with drugs and alcohol and sexually assaulted her while she was impaired. Brooks then instructed the girl to walk the “track” on Aurora Avenue North, telling her to perform sex acts for money. The girl was ultimately taken to an apartment in north Seattle were police located her when she signed into Facebook on the IP address listed for the apartment.
In his plea agreement, Brooks also acknowledged previously recruiting a teenage runaway to work for him as a prostitute when she was fifteen years old. Brooks also acknowledged threatening to kill the girl if she did not work for him as a prostitute and to assaulting and controlling her. Brooks also acknowledged assaulting an adult female who was working for him in prostitution. In that case Brooks pushed the woman from a moving car when she told him she no longer wanted to work for him as a prostitute. A neighborhood doorbell camera captured images of the woman being pushed from the moving car and dragged under its wheels. She was treated at Harborview for significant lower body injuries.
The case was investigated by the Seattle Police Department. The King County Prosecutors Office worked closely with the U.S. Attorney’s Office on this case. The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Kate Crisham.
Southwest Washington man pleads guilty to being a felon in possession of firearmsRead the Press Release
Tacoma – A 44-year-old Battle Ground, Washington man pleaded guilty late yesterday in U.S. District Court in Tacoma to being a felon in possession of firearms, announced U.S. Attorney Nick Brown. Lynn Manley Cargile was arrested on December 26, 2019, following a six-hour stand-off with police. Cargile was indicted federally in August 2021. He faces up to ten years in prison when sentenced by U.S. District Judge Robert J. Bryan on March 18, 2022.
According to the plea agreement and other records in the case, police were called to Cargile’s home by a 9-1-1 call from his ex-wife who had been assaulted. After a lengthy wait, officers used ‘flash-bang’ devices to get Cargile to leave the house and he was taken into custody. When officers entered the home to secure it for officer safety, they noted numerous firearms. After obtaining a court authorized search warrant, law enforcement discovered a Smith and Wesson AR-15 style rifle with a swastika on the rifle butt and a Black Rain Ordinance short-barreled rifle. Investigators also found two silencers. Cargile is prohibited from possessing firearms due to prior felony convictions in Clark County Washington for attempting to elude (2002 and 2003) and illegal firearms possession (1999 and 2002).
Cargile was in state custody until August 2021 serving a 29-month prison sentence for domestic violence stemming from the same incident.
The case was investigated by the Battle Ground Police Department and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms & Explosives (ATF).
The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Angelica Williams.
Renton, Washington man charged with possession of destructive devices for role in plot to burn Seattle Police Guild building in September 2020Read the Press Release
Seattle – A 34-year-old Renton, Washington, man was arrested today in connection with the plot to burn the Seattle Police Officers Guild building in downtown Seattle in September 2020, announced U.S. Attorney Nick Brown. Justin Christopher Moore will make his initial appearance on the criminal complaint in U.S. District Court in Seattle at 2:00 PM tomorrow.
According to the criminal complaint, Moore was identified as the person carrying a box of 12 Molotov cocktails in a protest march to the Seattle Police Officers Guild (SPOG) building on Labor Day, September 7, 2020. Ultimately the marchers were moved away from the building in downtown Seattle when police smelled gasoline and grew concerned about the intentions of protestors. The box containing the 12 gasoline devices was found in the parking lot next to the SPOG building. Using video from that day and from other protests, as well as information from the electronic devices of other co-conspirators, Moore was confirmed as the person seen carrying the box of destructive devices. Moore was later arrested January 6, 2021, for breaking into the original Starbucks store in Pike Place Market.
In June 2021, law enforcement executed a search warrant at Moore’s residence. They seized clothing that is consistent with the images of what Moore was wearing when he carried the Molotov cocktails. From the basement storage area they also recovered numerous items that are consistent with manufacturing explosive devices such as a four-pound bag of bulk potassium nitrate, and Goex FFFFg black powder, consumer fireworks, chemical heaters for Meal Ready to Eat (MRE), and a 50-pack of Diamond Deluxe matchbooks. Officers also recovered a large assortment of gas masks, wrist rockets, bolt cutters, and climbing harnesses.
Unlawful possession of a destructive device is punishable by up to 10 years in prison.
The charges contained in the criminal 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, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Fireworks & Explosives (ATF), and the Seattle Police Department.
The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Todd Greenberg.
moore_justin_c_complaint.pdfJustice Department awards more than $17.5 million to support Project Safe NeighborhoodRead the Press Release
Seattle – The Department of Justice announced today that it has awarded more than $17.5 million in grants to support the Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN) Program. Funding will support efforts across the country to address violent crime, including the gun violeence that is often at its core. In the Western District of Washington, community-based organizations serving youth in South King County will be awarded funding totaling $271,101.
The Bureau of Justice Assistance, part of the department’s Office of Justice Programs (OJP), will administer the 88 grant awards, which are being made to designated fiscal agents to support local PSN projects that work in partnership with U.S. Attorneys’ Offices.
“This latest Project Safe Neighborhoods grant is critical to addressing the violent crime threatening cities and towns all across our country,” said Deputy Attorney General Lisa O. Monaco. “Ensuring the safety of all Americans is the highest priority for the Department of Justice, but when it comes to violent crime, there is not a one-size-fits-all solution. We have to work closely with local public safety agencies as well as community organizations to craft individual strategies unique to each community’s needs. Programs like Project Safe Neighborhoods and the funding it provides allow us to do just that.”
“Gun violence is a persistent public safety issue in our communities, and particularly concerning when it involves teens and young adults,” said U.S. Attorney Nick Brown. “There is a path forward, but we cannot tackle these issues without the community having a voice and being involved in the solutions. This grant will support non-profit organizations already working in Kent, Burien, and South Seattle to expand their existing programs and engage our youth in positive activities, provide mentors and connections, and show them a path away from gun violence.”
“Investing in our communities, supporting victims and building a justice system that both keeps people safe and earns their trust – these are mutually reinforcing goals that stand at the heart of Project Safe Neighborhoods,” said Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Amy L. Solomon for OJP. “The Office of Justice Programs is pleased to join with our U.S. Attorneys’ Offices, and with jurisdictions across the country, as we work together to meet the challenges of crime and violence and achieve our shared aspirations of public safety and community trust.”
In May 2021, Attorney General Merrick B. Garland announced a new effort to reduce violent crime, including the gun violence that is often at its core. Integral to that effort was the reinvigoration of PSN, a two-decade old evidence-based and community-oriented program focused on reducing violent crime. The updated PSN approach, outlined in the department’s Comprehensive Strategy for Reducing Violent Crime issued by Deputy Attorney General Monaco, is guided by four key principles: fostering trust and legitimacy in our communities, supporting community-based organizations that help prevent violence, setting focused and strategic enforcement priorities and measuring the results of our efforts. The fundamental goal is to reduce violent crime, not simply to increase the number of arrests or prosecutions.
This fall, U.S. Attorney’s Offices across the country have enhanced their violent crime reduction efforts to ensure alignment with the department’s comprehensive violent crime reduction strategy. U.S. Attorneys’ Offices have engaged in outreach to law enforcement and other agencies and organizations serving communities to identify the most significant drivers of violence in their districts. Working together with a broad coalition of stakeholders, the U.S. Attorneys’ Offices are addressing the most pressing violent crime issues in their district to make our neighborhoods safer for all.
PSN programs are led by U.S. Attorneys’ Offices in collaboration with local public safety agencies, community stakeholders and other agencies and organizations that work to reduce violent crime. In the Western District of Washington the U.S. Attorney’s Office partnered with the Kent Police Department, Burien Police Department, Seattle Police Department and the King County Prosecutor’s Office to identify the locations and the non-profit organizations for PSN support.
For a list of all grantees, please visit: https://www.ojp.gov/sites/g/files/xyckuh241/files/media/document/FY21-Project-Safe-Neighborhoods-Awards.pdf
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The Office of Justice Programs provides federal leadership, grants, training, technical assistance and other resources to improve the nation’s capacity to prevent and reduce crime, advance racial equity in the administration of justice, assist victims and enhance the rule of law. More information about OJP and its components can be found at www.ojp.gov.
Bellevue, Washington, CPA pleads guilty to tax fraudRead the Press Release
Seattle – A 70-year-old Bellevue, Washington, Certified Public Accountant pleaded guilty today in U.S. District Court in Seattle to attempt to evade or defeat tax, announced U.S. Attorney Nick Brown. Steven G. Shimizu, owned and operated a tax preparation business, S&S CPA Corporation (“S&S Corp.”). In tax years 2013, 2014 and 2015, Shimizu admits he hid income from his business by attributing it to other entities. In this way he underpaid his taxes by more than $884,000. Shimizu faces up to 5 years in prison when sentenced by U.S. District Judge John C. Coughenour on March 15, 2022.
According to the plea agreement, Shimizu admits he used two business entities, Shimizu & Shimizu (“S&S Partnership”) and CS Medical Consultants (“CS Partnership”) to evade taxes. In the years at issue, the entities had no business activity and thus no income or expenses. However, for tax years 2013 and 2014, Shimizu attributed income that he earned from his CPA corporation, as income to S&S Partnership. He then created phony business expenses attributable to S&S Partnership. Those expenses reduced the amount of income taxes owed. In tax years 2013-15 Shimizu used the same scheme with the CS Partnership. The scheme hid income from the CPA firm, and then the creation of phony business expenses reduced the income taxes owed.
Additionally, in tax years 2013-15, Shimizu sought to record personal expenses as business expenses on the tax returns for the CPA business. Shimizu characterized withdrawals from business accounts as business expenses, but they were actually cash withdrawals for his personal benefit, personal insurance, personal legal expenses, and payments to family members.
“Tax professionals are essential to the operation of our tax system, and the public puts their utmost trust in these professionals to prepare tax returns truthfully,” said Special Agent in Charge Bret Kressin, IRS Criminal Investigation (IRS-CI), Seattle Field Office. “When individuals like Mr. Shimizu break that trust by fraudulently filing false tax returns out of greed, they put their clients and the public at risk by undermining that trust. IRS-CI is continually committed to investigating those who think they are above paying their fair share.”
Attempting to evade or defeat tax is punishable by up to 5 years in prison and a $100,000 fine. The actual sentence will be determined by Judge Coughenour after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
The case was investigated by the Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigation (IRS-CI).
The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Michael Dion.
Former insurance agent sentenced to prison for wire fraud scheme that defrauded clients across the U.S.Read the Press Release
Seattle - A 58-year-old Snohomish, Washington, insurance agent was sentenced today in U.S. District Court in Seattle to 2 years in prison and 3 years of supervised release for wire fraud for her theft of premium payments from various insurance clients, announced U.S. Attorney Nick Brown. Vicki Boser, owned and operated InsuranceTek, Inc., and pocketed premium payments from insurance clients and provided fake certificates of insurance to some of those companies. Boser used the money to support her gambling habit at area casinos. At the sentencing hearing U.S. District Judge James L. Robart likened the conduct to a Ponzi scheme saying, “The conduct is classic in terms of embezzling from clients.”
Boser pleaded guilty to wire fraud in August 2021. Boser founded InsuranceTek, Inc., in 2003, and specialized in assisting small businesses that work in high-risk fields in securing insurance policies to cover their business operations. The clients included private investigators, process servers, mortgage and field service companies, and security guard companies. Between 2014 and 2016, Boser defrauded various clients. Boser would find companies willing to insure the high-risk companies, and if necessary, find a company to finance the premium payments. Boser was required by law to collect the premium payments from the clients and pay them over to the insurance companies. Instead, she pocketed some of the payments, created false insurance certificates, and led the high-risk companies to believe they were insured. In some instances, the insurance companies cancelled the insurance for lack of payment, but Boser received the notices and hid them from the insured. The insurance premiums were tens of thousands of dollars‑‑in one case more than $100,000.
Today, Boser was ordered to pay restitution of $273,137 to 8 different companies or insurance brokers who she defrauded.
Boser had clients across the country including many small family-owned businesses that placed a great deal of trust in Boser. Court records detail the frauds regarding an Illinois-based property inspection business, and Ohio-, Tennessee-, and Texas-based businesses that maintain foreclosed homes. Some of the clients only learned their insurance policies had been cancelled when they contacted the companies directly about renewing the policies. The investigation was triggered when the Washington State Insurance Commissioner’s Office received complaints from the customers.
The case was investigated by the FBI and the Criminal Investigative Division of the Washington State Office of the Insurance Commissioner.
The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Lyndsie Schmalz.
Quileute Tribal member sentenced to prison for sexual abuse of minorsRead the Press Release
Tacoma – A 30-year-old member of the Quileute Tribe was sentenced today in U.S. District Court in Tacoma to 8 years in prison and 30 years of supervised release for abusive sexual contact, announced U.S. Attorney Nick Brown. Tyron Jackson has been in tribal, state, or federal custody since his arrest in June 2019. At today’s sentencing hearing U.S. District Judge Robert J. Bryan said he felt it is imperative to “protect the public from any further acts of this defendant.”
“Sexual abuse and sexual assault against native children and women is pervasive, and continues to plague Native American tribes,” said U.S. Attorney Nick Brown. “This case should send a message of deterrence: there will be serious consequences for the sexual abuse of Native American children.”
According to records filed in the case, the assaults occurred against two different minor victims. Between 2013 and 2015 one child was molested on Quileute Tribal land. In 2018, a second minor victim was sexually assaulted on Lower Elwha Klallam Tribal land. The two victims disclosed the abuse. In June 2019, Jackson was taken into custody. He pleaded guilty in September 2021.
The assaults were investigated by the Lower Elwha Tribal Police, the La Push Police, and the FBI.
The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Rebecca Cohen, in consultation with prosecutors from the Quileute and the Lower Elwha Klallam Tribes.
Former Netflix engineer sentenced to prison for insider tradingRead the Press Release
Seattle – A former Netflix software engineer, and his best friend and co-conspirator were sentenced today in U.S. District Court in Seattle for securities fraud for their roles in an insider trading ring that generated more than $3 million in illegal proceeds, announced U.S. Attorney Nick Brown. Sung Mo Jun, 49, of Bellevue, Washington, was sentenced to 2 years in prison and a $15,000 fine. His friend and co-conspirator Junwoo Chon, 50, of Bellevue, Washington, was sentenced to 14 months in prison and a $10,000 fine. At the sentencing hearings U.S. District Judge Richard A. Jones said he hoped the prison time would deter others. “For people in the high tech industry, they will clearly know that there are consequences – including prison time – for this activity,” Judge Jones said.
“Insider trading is a serious offense,” said U.S. Attorney Nick Brown. “Such conduct damages our financial markets and erodes public trust because the investing public needs to have faith that the markets provide an even playing field to all participants. Mr. Jun and Mr. Chon were both financially secure with good jobs and good salaries when greed drove them to break the law to increase their own wealth, at the expense of others. Such conduct, will not be tolerated.”
“Insider trading undermines our capital markets, harms companies by misusing their confidential information, and causes investors to lose faith in the fairness of the system,” said Donald M. Voiret, Special Agent in Charge, Seattle Field Office. “The actions of this trusted employee and his friend were calculated and ongoing to reap a huge profit.”
According to records filed in the case, from July 2016 to February 2017, Sung Mo Jun was employed by Netflix as a software engineer. He had access to subscriber data and had been trained by the company that such data was material, non-public information. Nevertheless, Jun disclosed that information to his brother Joon Jun, 45, of Issaquah, Washington, and his close friend, Junwoo Chon, knowing that the two intended to use the information to profit on the purchase and sale of Netflix securities. After Chon made significant profits on the securities, Sung Mo Jun asked Chon to provide Sung Mo Jun with $60,000 in cash as Sung Mo Jun’s share of the profits.
After Sung Mo Jun left Netflix, he obtained additional non-public information about subscriber data from another Netflix employee, software engineer Ayden Lee, 33, of San Jose, California. Jun not only passed that information on to his brother and Chon, he also used it to make his own trades. Between April 2017, and July 2019, Sung Mo Jun made a profit of $434,086 by trading in Netflix stock and options with this inside information. Between July 2016 and April 2017, Jun’s brother, Joon Jun, made $215,419 and co-conspirator Junwon Chon made $521,400. All told, the insider trading attributable to Sun Mo Jun in Netflix securities resulted in an illicit gain of $1,170,905. Chon is responsible for illicit profits of $1,642,855
Sung Mo Jun also obtained insider information from a “tipper” he knew at another tech company and shared this information with his brother and Chon. Their profits from trading on that inside information was less than $2,000.
In addition to the prison sentences, both men will be on one year of supervised release following prison and must complete 50 hours of community service.
As Judge Jones imposed the sentence, he told Jun “You had no reason to pursue this additional wealth, and yet you chose to engage your brother and best friend in this scheme. There is just one reason: greed.”
Jun told the court, “What I did was foolish, wrong, illegal…. I have no excuse. I disappointed many people.”
Jun is forfeiting $495,188 to the U.S. and Chon is forfeiting $1,582,885 to the U.S. The forfeiture amounts are based on the illegal gain by each defendant.
The two remaining conspirators will be sentenced next year. Joon Jun is responsible for illicit profits totaling $1,106,208. Lee is connected to illicit profits totaling $453,465.
The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has filed a separate civil enforcement action against the defendants who have each entered into settlements with the SEC. Both men still face potential penalties from the SEC.
The case was investigated by the FBI and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Justin Arnold.
Leader of prolific fentanyl trafficking ring sentenced to 20 years in prisonRead the Press Release
Seattle – Three men who were convicted at trial in August 2021, of multiple federal felonies for distributing fentanyl pills in Snohomish, Skagit, and Whatcom Counties, were sentenced to lengthy prison terms, announced U.S. Attorney Nick Brown. The leader of the drug ring, Bradley Woolard, 42, of Arlington, was sentenced today to 20 years in prison for his conviction on 28 counts involving conspiracy to distribute controlled substances, conspiracy to commit money laundering, money laundering, illegal gun possession, and possessing drugs with the intent to distribute them. Last week, co-defendants, Anthony Pelayo, 34, of Marysville, was sentenced to 15 years in prison, and a $150,000 fine and Jerome Isham, 40, of Everett, was sentenced to 10 years in prison. U.S. District Judge John C. Coughenour also sentenced all three men to 5 years of supervised release following their prison terms.
“Mr. Woolard ignored the destruction his drug trafficking caused in our community, instead being driven by the enormous profits he could generate off the addiction and misery of others,” said U.S. Attorney Nick Brown. “Even after his arrest he tried to impose his will, threatening violence against others in the case, and acting as if he is above the law.”
“This complex investigation, which involved aspects of the mysterious dark web, is an example of the innovation and cooperative law enforcement effort necessary to effectively reduce violent crime and overdoses in our cities,” said Frank A. Tarentino III, Special Agent-in-Charge DEA Seattle Field Division. “This new digital age of trafficking fake pills, potentially laced with fentanyl, signals a renewed sense of urgency and analytical approach to bring to bear all the resources of government and community to tackle the scourge of drug trafficking and gun violence.”
According to testimony and exhibits during trial, the case began in the summer of 2018, when law enforcement officers from the Drug Enforcement Administration and the Snohomish Regional Drug and Gang Task Force obtained multiple court-authorized search warrants for Woolard’s home. On July 28, 2018, they found more than 12,000 fentanyl pills designed to look like 30 mg oxycodone prescription narcotic. The pills ultimately tested positive for furanyl fentanyl, an analogue of fentanyl and a controlled substance.
The pills were pale blue in color and had “M” printed on one side and “30” on the other side. Over the course of multiple searches, law enforcement seized more than $1 million in cash and gold from Woolard’s five-acre compound, including cash hidden behind drywall, in the ceilings of outbuildings, and in a hole beneath a dishwasher. Investigators also discovered a hidden room containing 29 firearms ranging from handguns to assault rifles, including four firearm silencers and several thousand rounds of ammunition.
Testimony at trial revealed that in 2015 and 2016, Woolard began buying fentanyl and furanyl fentanyl powder from China after researching how to do so on the Dark Web. He bought a pill press and mixing materials from websites such as Amazon and eBay, and taught himself how to make homemade pills. Testimony at trial established that Woolard’s pill making operation was capable of producing more than 2.5 million pills containing fentanyl and furanyl fentanyl, and that he regularly provided thousands of pills to other conspirators for distribution. In 2017, Woolard turned the pill press operation over to Pelayo, who continued the manufacturing at a rural compound in Snohomish County. Woolard retained the role of ordering the fentanyl from China and continued to help Pelayo make and distribute the pills. Woolard continued to distribute the pills while seeking treatment for his own drug addictions at spa-like resorts in Costa Rica and Mexico, which cost him between $30,000 and $50,000 per month, which he paid for with the profits of his illicit pill operation.
Woolard was ordered to pay a $250,000 fine and will be on 5 years of supervised release following his prison term.
Jerome Isham was one of the conspiracy’s top distributors. Evidence at trial established that he was responsible for re-distributing close to 100,000 illegal fentanyl and furanyl fentanyl pills over a one-year period between July 2017, and June 2018. Isham also recruited people to receive the shipments of powdered fentanyl and furanyl fentanyl from China. Woolard and Pelayo paid for the drugs by recruiting co-conspirators to wire money to China or by paying with bitcoin.
Pelayo was also convicted of two money laundering conspiracies and multiple counts of money laundering, including using $100,000 of his cash drug proceeds to purchase a luxury RV. He was also convicted of possessing a firearm in furtherance of his drug trafficking. Woolard was convicted of being a drug user and drug addict in possession of firearms. Isham was convicted of being a felon in possession of a firearm.
This effort is part of an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) operation. OCDETF identifies, disrupts, and dismantles the highest-level criminal organizations that threaten the United States using a prosecutor-led, intelligence-driven, multi-agency approach. Additional information about the OCDETF Program can be found at https://www.justice.gov/OCDETF.
The investigation was led by the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) with assistance from U.S Postal Inspection Service (USPIS), Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms & Explosives (ATF), the Snohomish Regional Drug and Gang Task Force (SRDGTF) and the Whatcom County Drug and Gang Task Force.
A total of eleven defendants were charged in this case. Eight pleaded guilty. All but two of the defendants have now been sentenced.
The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Karyn Johnson and Mike Lang.
Seattle woman sentenced to prison for embezzling from high-end mountain bike companyRead the Press Release
Seattle – A Seattle woman who was employed as a contract bookkeeper and accountant for a high-end mountain bike company was sentenced November 19, 2021, in U.S. District Court in Seattle to 28 months in prison for wire fraud and aggravated identity theft, announced U.S. Attorney Nick Brown. Joan C. Trower, 51, pleaded guilty in August 2021. At the sentencing hearing, Chief U.S. District Judge Ricardo S. Martinez said that it is part of the Court’s “job to protect the community, especially small businesses such as the victim in this case.”
According to records filed in the case, Trower worked as a contract bookkeeper and accountant for the mountain bike company from July 2015 to May 2018. Her contract was terminated when the embezzlement was discovered. Trower used a variety of schemes to steal over $150,000 from company accounts: creating checks using the company software system, forging signatures, claiming expenses and compensation she did not earn, and making transfers from company accounts to accounts she controlled in the names of phony tax accounting businesses. For example, while most employees received at most three checks per month (two for salary and one for expenses), Trower wrote as many as thirteen checks to herself in one month. Trower put false descriptions in the memo line, sometimes falsely claiming the funds were to reimburse her for an outside tax accounting firm she claimed to have hired. Trower also transferred money from company accounts to accounts she controlled—transferring more than $26,000 to her account in the span of just a few months in 2018. Trower and her boyfriend used the money to, among other things, gamble at area casinos.
Trower committed aggravated identity theft when she forged the signature of company executives on fraudulent checks and when she submitted false invoices in the name of a third-party tax accountant to justify reimbursements to Trower.
Writing to the court, prosecutors noted that the scheme was difficult to detect. Trower’s “scheme was elaborate, sophisticated, and longstanding. She created fake business entities and fake bank accounts for those entities in order to conceal the nature of her transfers of funds from the company. Ms. Trower even went so far as to create at least one alter ego email account: a fake email account that she would correspond with, apparently in an attempt to justify certain expenses or accounting maneuvers,” Assistant United States Attorney William Dreher wrote in the sentencing memo.
Trower is obligated to pay $168,597 in restitution to the mountain bike company.
The case was investigated by the FBI. The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney William Dreher.
Tacoma woman charged with wire fraud for stealing more than $550,000 from friends and acquaintancesRead the Press Release
Seattle – a 40-year-old Tacoma woman appeared today in U.S. District Court in Seattle on a criminal complaint charging four counts of wire fraud for her scheme to defraud various friends and acquaintances, announced U.S. Attorney Nick Brown. Sabrina Taylor allegedly lied about her health, her employment status, and her education to steal more than $550,000 from people who had offered to help her.
According to records filed in the case, between November 2016, and July 2019, Taylor convinced various people to provide her with large amounts of money by claiming she needed the money to purchase medicine for multiple sclerosis, or to pay her tuition for college. She also claimed to need the funds to bail her brother out of jail. In fact, Taylor was not ill with multiple sclerosis, was not paying tuition to the University of Washington as claimed, and her brother was not in jail. Taylor told other stories about how she planned to repay the loans, lying about her employment, a litigation settlement with a local bank, and funds she expected to receive from her parents.
Some of the people she defrauded she met online through shared interests such as Japanese anime, comic books, or video games.
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.
Wire fraud is punishable by up to 20 years in prison.
The case was investigated by the FBI.
The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Natalie Walton-Anderson.
Seattle Doctor Found Guilty of Fraudulently Obtaining Millions of Dollars from COVID-19 Relief ProgramsRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON – A federal jury convicted a Seattle doctor yesterday of fraudulently seeking over $3.5 million in Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) and Economic Injury Disaster Loan (EIDL) COVID-19 relief funds.
According to court documents and evidence presented at trial, Eric R. Shibley, 41, of Seattle, submitted several fraudulent PPP and EIDL loan applications to federally insured financial institutions, other Small Business Administration (SBA)-approved lenders, and the SBA, in the names of businesses with no actual operations or by otherwise misrepresenting the business’s eligibility. In the applications, Shibley falsified the number of employees and payroll expenses and concealed his own criminal history. To support the fraudulent applications, Shibley submitted fake tax documents and the names of purported employees who did not, in fact, work for the businesses for which Shibley claimed they worked. Shibley received over $2.8 million in COVID-19 relief funds as a result of the fraud.
Shibley was convicted of multiple counts of wire fraud, multiple counts of bank fraud, and money laundering. He is scheduled to be sentenced on Feb. 22, 2022, and faces 20 years for each count of wire fraud, 30 years for each count of bank fraud, and 10 years for money laundering. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
Assistant Attorney General Kenneth A. Polite Jr. of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division; U.S. Attorney Nicholas W. Brown for the Western District of Washington; Special Agent in Charge Weston King of SBA’s Office of Inspector General (SBA-OIG), Western Region; Acting Assistant Director Jay Greenberg of the FBI's Criminal Investigative Division; Special Agent in Charge Jeffrey D. Pittano of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation Office of Inspector General (FDIC-OIG), San Francisco Regional Office; Inspector General J. Russell George of the U.S. Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration (TIGTA); Special Agent in Charge Bret Kressin of IRS–Criminal Investigation (IRS-CI); Special Agent in Charge Robert Hammer of Homeland Securities Investigations (HSI) Seattle; and Special Agent in Charge Steven J. Ryan of the Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General (HHS-OIG), San Francisco Regional Office made the announcement.
SBA-OIG, the FBI’s Seattle Field Office, FDIC-OIG, TIGTA, IRS-CI, HSI, and HHS-OIG investigated the case.
Trial Attorney Laura Connelly of the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section and Assistant U.S. Attorney Brian Werner of the Western District of Washington are prosecuting the case.
The Fraud Section leads the Criminal Division’s prosecution of fraud schemes that exploit the PPP. Since the inception of the CARES Act, the Fraud Section has prosecuted over 150 defendants in more than 95 criminal cases and has seized over $75 million in cash proceeds derived from fraudulently obtained PPP funds, as well as numerous real estate properties and luxury items purchased with such proceeds. More information can be found at https://www.justice.gov/criminal-fraud/ppp-fraud.
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.
Lower Elwha S’Klallam Tribal Member Charged with Sexual Abuse of MinorsRead the Press Release
Tacoma – A 68-year-old member of the Lower Elwha S’Klallam Tribe was indicted this week on multiple counts of sexual abuse of minors, announced U.S. Attorney Nick Brown. Joseph Anthony Turrey, of Port Angeles, Washington, was arrested November 10, 2021 and will be arraigned on the federal charges on November 26, 2021. He remains in federal custody.
According to records filed in the case, one young victim recently disclosed the abuse to the Lower Elwha S’Klallam child welfare authorities. The Lower Elwha S’Klallam Tribal Police and the FBI immediately began investigating. Special forensic investigators from the National Park Service assisted with the interview of the victim. The investigation determined that another victim was sexually assaulted by Turrey as early as 2008. Both victims were as young as 6 and 7-years-old when the assaults began. The assaults occurred on tribal land, triggering federal jurisdiction.
Turrey is charged with two counts of aggravated sexual abuse of a minor and one count of sexual abuse of a minor.
Aggravated sexual abuse of a minor is punishable by a mandatory minimum 30 years in prison. Sexual abuse of a minor is punishable by up to 15 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 Lower Elwha S’Klallam Police Department, with assistance from the National Park Service.
The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Angelica Williams.
Sedro-Woolley, Washington, man charged with arson at Capitol Hill nightclubRead the Press Release
Seattle – A Sedro-Woolley area man will make his initial appearance today in U.S. District Court in Seattle, charged with the February 24, 2020 arson at Queer/Bar, a nightclub and event space in Seattle’s Capitol Hill neighborhood, announced U.S. Attorney Nick Brown. Kalvinn Jay Garcia, 24, was transferred to federal custody today from Whatcom County where he served a jail sentence for theft. The grand jury returned the arson indictment on January 21, 2021.
According to filings in the case, Garcia was seen on surveillance video in the alley behind Queer/Bar on the night the blaze was set in a dumpster next to the building. The nightclub is across the alley from the Seattle Police East Precinct and the fire attracted immediate attention. Video from both the precinct and the neighboring businesses capture Garcia near the dumpster just as the flames caught and surged up the side of the building. Officers observed Garcia a short distance away. Garcia tried to run from officers but was apprehended.
There were more than 50 people in the club and its event room at the time of the fire. The blaze scorched the brick exterior and forced the cancelation of events planned at the nightclub over subsequent days.
Garcia was originally charged in King County Superior Court with arson and a hate crime. He was released from jail due to COVID-19.
Arson is punishable by a minimum term of imprisonment of five years and a maximum term of twenty years, and a maximum fine of $250,000.00
The charge contained in the indictment is only an allegation. 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 Seattle Police Department. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Rebecca Cohen and Trial Attorney AeJean Cha of DOJ’s Civil Rights Division.
Pair indicted for defrauding COVID-19 benefit programsRead the Press Release
Seattle – A Seattle area pair was indicted today in the Western District of Washington, for more than $1 million in fraud on COVID-19 relief programs, announced U.S. Attorney Nick Brown. Bryan Alan Sparks, 40, and Autumn Gail Luna, 22, are charged in a 16-count indictment with defrauding Washington State Employment Security Division (ESD) of more than $500,000 in benefits and defrauding the Small Business Administration of approximately $520,000. The two are currently in federal custody in Washington, D.C. after being arrested at Union Station with cocaine, heroin, and methamphetamine.
According to the indictment, from March 2020 until at least January 2021, the two used stolen personal information of more than 50 Washington residents to apply for unemployment benefits. The pair had benefits loaded onto debit cards and mailed to a variety of addresses in the Seattle area where they or their co-conspirators could retrieve them. They also opened fraudulent bank accounts and had benefits paid directly to those accounts. They also used many of those same stolen identities to apply for loans under the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act. The Small Business Administration paid approximately $520,000 in Economic Injury Disaster Loan (EIDL) proceeds to the pair. The total unemployment benefits the two fraudulently obtained is more than $500,000.
In furtherance of their scheme, Sparks and Luna used the stolen personal information to create counterfeit driver’s licenses and obtain fraudulent driver’s licenses from the Washington State Department of Licensing. They maintained over a dozen phone numbers on as many cell phones, each of which were labeled with the phone number and names of stolen identities. The defendants also maintained detailed ledgers and electronic files of stolen personal information, credit card numbers, and financial transactions associated with each stolen identity.
The pair are charged with conspiracy, 5 counts of mail fraud, 6 counts of wire fraud and 4 counts of aggravated identity theft.
Conspiracy is punishable by 5 years in prison. Wire fraud and mail fraud that relate to a presidentially declared major disaster or emergency is punishable by up to 30 years in prison. Aggravated identity theft is punishable by a mandatory minimum two years in prison to run 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 investigation of this case is led by the Social Security Administration, Office of the Inspector General and U.S. Postal Inspection Service, with partners: Colusa County Sheriff’s Office (CA); Washington State Employment Security Department; Small Business Administration, Office of the Inspector General; Amtrak Police Department (D.C.); FBI (Sacramento, CA office); FBI Cyber Task Force (D.C.); Washington State Department of Licensing, Driver and Vehicle Investigations; and the Department of Labor, Office of the Inspector General.
The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Cindy Chang and Seth Wilkinson.
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.
sparks-luna_indictment.pdfUpper Skagit tribal member sentenced to 15 years in prison for assaultRead the Press Release
Seattle – A 44–year-old member of the Upper Skagit Indian Tribe was sentenced today in U.S. District Court in Seattle to 15 years in prison for three federal felonies in connection with a February 6, 2019, shooting on the Tulalip Indian Reservation, announced U.S. Attorney Nick Brown. Joseph Sam a/k/a William Earlystar Clark was convicted of conspiracy to commit robbery, robbery, and assault resulting in serious bodily injury following a four-day jury trial. U.S. District Judge John C. Coughenour imposed 3 years of supervised release to follow the prison term.
According to records filed in the case and testimony at trial, Sam participated in a conspiracy to rob the victim of an ounce of heroin. The co-conspirators’ plan was for one of them to pose as a buyer of the heroin and for Sam to then show up and rob the victim. Sam arrived at a residence where the other two co-conspirators were waiting with the victim. His face was covered to hide his identity and he had a gun. When the victim fought back, Sam shot him in the back, paralyzing him from the waist down. Following the robbery and shooting, law enforcement was able to piece together the gunman’s identity by reviewing social media posts and obtaining warrants for Facebook accounts and other electronic information. Sam was arrested on May 15, 2019, and has been in custody since his arrest.
In asking for the 15-year sentence, prosecutors noted the suffering of the victim in this case. “He is no longer self-sufficient and is forced to rely on family to assist with his basic needs…. He is in constant and severe pain. The pain medication impacts his memory and focus, making it hard to participate in classes or perform even the most routine tasks,” prosecutors wrote in their sentencing memo.
The case was investigated by the Tulalip Tribal Police Department and the FBI.
The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Rebecca Cohen and Cecelia Gregson.
Leader of tree poaching ring that started massive Olympic Peninsula forest fire sentenced to 20 months in prisonRead the Press Release
Tacoma — The lead defendant in a scheme to unlawfully harvest maple trees from the Olympic National Forest that resulted in a massive 2018 forest fire was sentenced late yesterday to 20 months in prison, announced U.S. Attorney Nick Brown. Justin Andrew Wilke, 39, was convicted in July 2021 of conspiracy, theft of public property, depredation of public property, trafficking in unlawfully harvested timber, and attempting to traffic in unlawfully harvested timber.
According to records filed in the case, between April and August 2018, Wilke conducted an illegal logging operation in the Elk Lake area of the Olympic National Forest, near Hood Canal. Wilke and a crew of associates removed maple trees from the National Forest and transported it to a mill in Tumwater, Washington. Wilke used forged permits to sell the wood. The type of maple harvested by the defendants is highly prized and used to produce musical instruments.
This prosecution was the first use of tree DNA evidence in a federal criminal trial. At the trial, a Research Geneticist for the USDA Forest Service, testified that the wood Wilke sold was a genetic match to the remains of three poached maple trees investigators had discovered in the Elk Lake area. The DNA analysis was so precise that it found the probability of the match being coincidental was approximately one in one undecillion (one followed by 36 zeroes). Based on this evidence, the jury concluded that the wood Wilke sold the mill had been stolen. The DNA evidence also concluded that Wilke had unlawfully harvested and sold wood from seven additional maple trees – but the precise locations of those trees have not been determined.
On August 3, 2018, Wilke led a group of two other individuals in deciding to cut a maple tree that contained a wasp’s nest near the base of the tree. To remove the nest, the group sprayed insecticide and likely gasoline on the nest and then lit the nest on fire. The group failed to extinguish the fire, which developed into a wildfire later named the “Maple Fire.” The Maple Fire consumed more than 3,300 acres between August and November 2018 and cost approximately $4.2 million to contain. The other two members of the poaching group testified at trial that Wilke was standing next to the nest when it was lit on fire, and therefore appeared to have set the fire. However, because the fire was set at night, they were not able to see his exact actions, and testified that they did not know exactly how the fire started. The jury did not convict Wilke of the two federal counts related to the forest fire: setting timber afire and using fire in furtherance of a felony. The jury did convict Wilke of attempting to cut down the tree where the fire was set on the night of the fire.
Prosecutors recommended a 36-month sentence, noting that Wilke led the three-person tree-poaching ring that indisputably started the fire, and that Wilke likely set the fire himself based on the testimony at trial. At sentencing, Judge Benjamin H. Settle concluded that the evidence was clear and convincing that Wilke was present when the fire was set, that a member of Wilke’s poaching crew set the fire, and that Wilke more likely than not personally set or directed one of his crew to set the fire. But Judge Settle noted that Wilke had made positive strides while on pretrial release, and that prison time is more difficult during the COVID pandemic. Judge Settle therefore imposed the 20-month sentence.
Wilke was also ordered to forfeit the proceeds of his illegal poaching. He will be required to pay restitution to the United States Forest Service. The exact amount will be determined at a later hearing.
The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Seth Wilkinson and Will Dreher.
Former metallurgist lab director pleads guilty to major fraud on USARead the Press Release
Tacoma – The former Director of Metallurgy at Bradken Inc. pleaded guilty today in U.S. District Court in Tacoma to defrauding the United States by falsifying test results that measure the strength and toughness of steel used in U.S. Navy submarines, announced U.S. Attorney Nick Brown. Elaine Thomas, 67, of Auburn, Washington, pleaded guilty to major fraud on the United States. She faces up to 10 years in prison and a $1 million fine when sentenced by U.S. District Judge Benjamin H. Settle on February 14, 2022.
According to records filed in the case, Bradken is the U.S. Navy’s leading supplier of cast high-yield steel for naval submarines. Bradken’s Tacoma foundry produces castings that prime contractors use to fabricate submarine hulls. The Navy requires that the steel meets certain standards for strength and toughness to ensure that it does not fail under certain circumstances, such as a collision. For 30 years, the Tacoma foundry (which was acquired by Bradken in 2008), produced castings, many of which had failed lab tests and did not meet the Navy’s standards. Elaine Thomas, as Director of Metallurgy, falsified test results to hide the fact that the steel had failed the tests. Thomas falsified results for over 240 productions of steel, which represent a substantial percentage of the castings Bradken produced for the Navy.
Court filings indicate there is no evidence that Bradken’s management was aware of the fraud until May 2017. At that time, a lab employee discovered that test cards had been altered and that other discrepancies existed in Bradken’s records. In June 2020, Bradken entered into a deferred prosecution agreement, accepting responsibility for the offense and agreeing to take remedial measures. Bradken also entered into a civil settlement, paying $10,896,924 to resolve allegations that the foundry produced and sold substandard steel components for installation on U.S. Navy submarines.
The Navy has taken extensive steps to ensure the safe operation of the affected submarines. Those measures will result in increased costs and maintenance as the substandard parts are monitored.
The criminal case against Thomas, deferred prosecution agreement, and civil settlement with Bradken are the result of a coordinated effort among the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Western District of Washington, the Civil Division’s Commercial Litigation Branch, the Department of Defense Office of Inspector General's Defense Criminal Investigative Service, Naval Criminal Investigative Service, and the Defense Contract Audit Agency.
The criminal prosecution is being handled by Assistant United States Attorney Seth Wilkinson.
Seattle man sentenced to 8 years in prison for child sex abuse crimesRead the Press Release
Seattle – A 33-year-old Seattle man was sentenced today in U.S. District Court in Seattle to 8 years in prison and 15 years of supervised release for three federal felonies involving sexual exploitation of children. Gary Stensland was arrested August 5, 2020, and on February 18, 2021, pleaded guilty to interstate travel with intent to engage in illicit sexual conduct, distribution of child pornography, and possession of child pornography. At the sentencing hearing Chief U.S. District Judge Ricardo S. Martinez said, “This is a disturbing and troubling case, and a very sad case…. One of the evils of the internet is how it has substantially increased the exploitation of children all around the world.”
According to records filed in the case, in September 2018, Stensland traveled to Portland to meet a 13-year-old whom he had contacted via an internet app. Stensland returned to Seattle with the minor and paid the minor for sex. Stensland then drove the youth back to Portland. The youth disclosed the abuse in summer 2020.
On August 5, 2020, the FBI, as part of the Seattle Internet Crimes Against Children (ICAC) Task Force, executed a search warrant at Stensland’s residence and seized his electronic devices. The investigation revealed Stensland sexually assaulted other minors as well as trafficked in images and videos of child sexual abuse.
Chief Judge Martinez agreed to recommend a federal prison in Texas which has a highly regarded program for treating sex offenders. “I think he is serious about wanting to make changes,” Chief Judge Martinez said. Addressing Stensland the Chief Judge said, “I hope you utilize the time (in prison) to work on these issues.”
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 is being investigated by the FBI in conjunction with the Internet Crimes against Children Task Force. The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Matthew Hampton.
Sixteen indicted in multi-state drug distribution ringRead the Press Release
Seattle – A series of arrests over the last ten days has disrupted a multi-state methamphetamine and fentanyl distribution ring. The drugs were coming up from California and were being distributed in King, Pierce, Thurston, Lewis, Mason and Kitsap counties. The 18-month investigation revealed the drug trafficking organization was also distributing drugs to locations in the Southeastern United States including Florida, Arkansas and Tennessee.
“This drug organization trafficked two of the deadliest substances we are seeing in our community – fentanyl and methamphetamine,” said U.S. Attorney Nick Brown. “Members of the ring tried to trade drugs for firearms – ones they could transport to Mexico – contributing to terrible violence south of the border. These arrests are a significant step for community safety.”
According to records filed in the case, the investigation began in February 2020. Various people working with law enforcement provided information regarding the drug distribution activities. Aware of some of the group’s trafficking, law enforcement seized 10 pounds of methamphetamine in a traffic stop on May 16, 2020. Another 44 pounds of meth were seized in a stop on April 2, 2021, and 83 pounds of methamphetamine and 20,000 fentanyl pills were seized in a traffic stop on September 28, 2021. Additionally, on August 17, 2021, law enforcement seized 22 pounds of methamphetamine that conspirators attempted to mail to Fiji.
The alleged leaders of the drug distribution ring, Jose Maldonado-Ramirez, 33, and his fiancé, Iris Amador-Garcia, 30, of Bellflower, California, were arrested October 28, 2021. During a search of the residence where Iris Amador-Garcia was living with her brother and co-conspirator, Mario Amador-Garcia, 31, and co-conspirator, Bayron Eberto Garcia-Perez, 33, agents seized a kilogram of fentanyl or heroin, 80,000 pills of suspected fentanyl, and 2 firearms. Eight additional firearms were seized at search locations in Washington and California. Four other conspirators were taken into custody last week including:
Amado Pedro Castillo, 59, Brooklyn, New York
Jose Nolberto Bernal, 28, Kent, WA
Fernando Alcides Lopez-Mendez, 37, Los Angeles, CA
Justino Cruz-Victorio, 34, Joshua Tree, CA
Today, law enforcement made additional arrests of the distribution network:
Joseph Troy Easton, 42, Bremerton, WA
Angelique Marie Easton, 51, Bremerton, WA
Curtis Robert Griffin, 42, Belfair, WA
Dwayne Douglas George, 60, Spanaway, WA
Douglas Bryan Healer, 47, Port Orchard, WA
Jerry Wayne Kohl, 59, Tacoma, WA
One additional defendant was arrested today with 2 pounds of methamphetamine, three rifles, and a shotgun. An additional four guns were recovered at other search locations. Defendant Healer engaged in an armed stand-off with law enforcement today. This afternoon he was taken into custody at his Port Orchard residence without incident.
“The objectives of this operation were to hold those accountable for the menace of illegal narcotics trafficking, and the violence associated with it, which has plagued our communities for far too long in the state of Washington and throughout the Pacific Northwest,” stated DEA Special Agent in Charge, Frank Tarentino. “The DEA and our partners are focused on the most dangerous criminals in Washington. Today’s successful operation should give members of the community a level of comfort in knowing these violent offenders, who live and walk among us, won’t be putting their lives in danger any longer.”
“These warrants represent the continued efforts of IRS Criminal Investigation (IRS:CI) to ensure the safety of our communities,” said IRS:CI acting Special Agent in Charge Adam Jobes. “We are committed to working with our law enforcement partners to stop the widespread harm these illicit substances cause our friends, families, and neighbors.”
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.
These indictments are 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 (DEA) Seattle Field Division (SFD) Tacoma Resident Office (TRO) and Bremerton Police Department (BPD), with assistance from Tahoma Narcotics Enforcement (TNET); the Seattle, Puyallup, Auburn, Federal Way, Kent, Bonney Lake, Tacoma, and Lakewood Police Departments; the Pierce County Sheriff’s Office; Washington State Department of Corrections; Joint Narcotics Enforcement Team (JNET): Centralia and Chehalis Police Departments; Valley Narcotics Enforcement Team (VNET); and Washington State Patrol; Thurston Narcotics Team (TNT), Kitsap County Sheriff’s Office, and Mason County Sheriff’s Office; United States Postal Inspections Service (USPIS), Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigation (IRS-CI), and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms & Explosives (ATF) with support from Northwest High Intensity Drug Trafficking Areas ( HIDTA).
The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Benjamin Diggs and C. Andrew Colasurdo.
Passenger who disrupted flight from Hawaii to Seattle charged with federal crimesRead the Press Release
Seattle – A federal grand jury in Seattle returned an indictment this week charging Ryan Cajimat, 21, of Kapolei, Hawaii with two federal crimes for his disruptive and violent conduct on December 24, 2020, on a flight from Honolulu to Seattle. Cajimat is scheduled to appear for arraignment on November 18, 2021.
According to records filed in the case and public reports, Cajimat was on a Delta Airlines flight from Honolulu to Seattle when he became disruptive. About two hours before landing in Seattle, Cajimat attempted to open the cockpit door and struggled with flight attendants attempting to restrain him. One flight attendant was punched in the face twice. Cajimat was restrained for the rest of the flight and was removed from the plane on arrival in Seattle.
The Federal Aviation Administration issued a $52,500 fine. Delta Airlines banned him from further travel on that airline.
Cajimat is charged with interference with flight crew members and attendants and assault within a special aircraft jurisdiction of the United States. Interference is punishable by up to 20 years in prison and a $250,000 fine. Assault on an aircraft is punishable by up to one year in prison and a $100,000 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 was investigated by the FBI. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Natalie Walton-Anderson.
Brothers indicted in firebombing of Shoreline, Washington coffee shopRead the Press Release
Seattle – Two brothers were arraigned on an indictment today in connection with the September 30, 2020, firebombing of a coffee shop on Aurora Avenue in Shoreline, Washington, announced U.S. Attorney Nick Brown. Taylor Lemay Rice, 23 and Daniel Lemay Rice 21, pleaded “Not Guilty” and were released on personal appearance bonds. Trial is set before U.S. District Judge Richard A. Jones on January 3, 2022.
The two men are charged with unlawful possession of a destructive device – in this case four Molotov cocktails. The destructive devices darkened the sides of the building, but did not extensively damage the structure. The men were identified as suspects in the early morning firebombing, after extensive work by law enforcement involving review of surveillance video and cell phone records. Both men have been interviewed by law enforcement and agreed to turn themselves in.
Information in the public record indicates the coffee shop shares the building with Bethany Community Church. The coffee shop was closed and was scheduled to reopen under new operators. The signs for the old ownership remained on the building. Speaking in court at the detention hearing, prosecutors indicated the firebombing may have been motivated by a dispute over one of the brother’s cars being towed from the area around the coffee stand a few months earlier.
Unlawful possession of a destructive device is 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 FBI, Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms & Explosive (ATF) and the King County Sheriff’s Office are all working on the investigation.
The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Cecelia Gregson.
Sequim, Washington, man sentenced to 70 months in prison for dealing methamphetamine while armed with semi-automatic pistolRead the Press Release
Tacoma– A 57-year-old Sequim, Washington, man was sentenced today in U.S. District Court in Tacoma to 70 months in prison. Kenneth Francis Simmons came to the attention of law enforcement in early 2019, as a prolific methamphetamine dealer in the Sequim area, as well as on the Lower Elwha and Jamestown S’Klallam Indian Reservations. U.S. District Judge Benjamin H. Settle noted that the sentence was aimed at protecting the community since methamphetamine is a poison that ruins lives.
“Methamphetamine not only destroys the lives of those who use it, but it also destroys the lives of the families and friends who witness the toll this drug takes on their loved ones,” said U.S. Attorney Nick Brown. “As a long-time dealer, this defendant touched the lives of long-time addicts, first-time users, and everyone in between. For community safety this sentence is an important first step.”
According to records filed in the case, the FBI and the Olympic Peninsula Narcotics Enforcement Team (OPNET) began investigating Simmons in 2019. On four occasions in July 2019, a person working with law enforcement purchased methamphetamine from Simmons. On August 16, 2019, a Clallam County Sheriff’s Deputy stopped Simmons for speeding. Ultimately, Simmons’ car was impounded, and a court authorized search revealed that he had methamphetamine packaged for resale, as well as a firearm. Due to his prior felony convictions Simmons is prohibited from possessing firearms.
On September 1, 2021, Simmons pleaded guilty to being a Felon in Possession of a Firearm, Possession of Methamphetamine with Intent to Deliver, Possession of a Firearm in Furtherance of a Drug Trafficking Crime, and Distribution of Methamphetamine.
The case was investigated by the FBI and Olympic Peninsula Narcotics Enforcement Team (OPNET).
The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney J. Tate London. Mr. London serves as Tribal Liaison for the U.S. Attorney’s Office.
Port Townsend, Washington, man sentenced to 8+ years in prison for raping child while on trip to CanadaRead the Press Release
Tacoma, WA – A 63-year-old Port Townsend, Washington, man was sentenced today in U.S. District Court in Tacoma to 102 months in prison and ten years of supervised release for raping a 6-year-old child while on a vacation in Canada. John Timothy Whicher pleaded guilty to engaging in illicit sexual conduct in a foreign place in February 2021. At the sentencing hearing, U.S. District Judge Benjamin H. Settle said, the victim “has a life sentence…. He’ll live with this. This kind of horrendous assault follows a victim through their entire life.”
“Child sexual abuse has been linked to long-term trauma, health and social problems for victims, including addiction and suicide risk,” said U.S. Attorney Nick Brown. “The conduct in this case was a shocking betrayal to the child and the child’s family. Law enforcement both here and in Canada worked collaboratively seeking justice in this case.”
According to records filed in the case and the plea agreement, in August 2017, Whicher took the 6-year-old child to Canada to stay at a family cabin in Ontario. When the child returned from the trip, the child disclosed to a parent the sexual molestation, saying Whicher said to keep it a secret. The parent confronted Whicher and reported the conduct to the Port Townsend Police.
Port Townsend Police contacted authorities in Canada. When Canada filed to extradite Whicher to face charges and forwarded the request to the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Seattle, federal prosecutors first learned of the criminal conduct. Assistant United States Attorneys worked with local and Canadian law enforcement to bring appropriate charges in the Western District of Washington.
Speaking to the court today, the mother of the victim said Whicher, “turned out to be the biggest threat in both of our lives.”
Whicher will be required to register as a sex offender following his release from prison.
The case was investigated by Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) and the Port Townsend Police Department. Canadian law enforcement provided critical assistance. The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Matthew Hampton.
Former Naturopath convicted of trafficking in misbranded drugs he claimed could treat and prevent COVIDRead the Press Release
Tacoma - A former Port Angeles, Washington, naturopathic physician was convicted late last week of a federal felony related to his misbranding of products he claimed could prevent and treat numerous serious diseases, including COVID-19 and MRSA, announced U.S. Attorney Nicholas W. Brown. Richard Marschall, 68, was convicted following a 4-day trial. The jury found Marschall guilty of Introduction of Misbranded Drugs into Interstate Commerce, his third conviction for the same crime following earlier prosecutions in 2011 and 2017. Sentencing in front of U.S. District Judge Benjamin H. Settle likely will occur in early 2022.
According to records filed in the case, in late March, 2020, Food and Drug Administration criminal investigators began reviewing complaints from the public about Facebook posts for Marschall’s products. Investigators reviewed Marschall's Facebook page which included claims that his product the “Dynamic Duo” could “crush” viruses, including the coronavirus. Marschall billed himself as a retired naturopath and “Health Coach.” Marschall’s Facebook page also claimed that his products could eliminate MRSA and other infections “even if there is antibiotic resistance.”
On March 30, 2020, an FDA investigator spoke to Marschall on the telephone in an undercover capacity explaining to Marschall that she was worried about COVID-19. Marschall told the investigator that the “Dynamic Duo” contained garlic extract and larch tree starch, and further represented that one of the substances “doesn’t boost the immune system, it just kills the virus.” Marschall represented that the second substance would boost the production of white blood cells that attack infections. The undercover agent ultimately ordered the “Dynamic Duo” for $140 plus shipping.
On the call with the FDA investigator, Marschall also referred to himself as “Dr. Rick Marschall.” His Facebook posts and other marketing materials for the “Dynamic Duo” also referred to Marschall as “N.D.” and “N.D. retired.” But Marschall did not have a license to practice naturopathy. In 2018, the Washington State Department of Health permanently revoked his credential to practice as a naturopath.
FDA investigators received Marschall’s “Dynamic Duo” products in early April 2020, along with documents. The products themselves were not made by Marschall but by other manufacturers. The manufacturers’ labels for the substances do not claim to kill viruses, but still Marschall included documents that stated the substances can “crush 30 different viral infections, including those in the Corona family, like in China Corona-19.”
The jury found that Marschall misbranded the drugs because his marketing was false or misleading and because his products were not listed with the FDA.
In 2011 and again in 2017, Marschall was convicted and sentenced in federal court for distributing misbranded drugs. For the current conviction, Marschall faces up to three years in prison and a $250,000 fine.
The case was investigated by the FDA Office of Criminal Investigation (FDA-OCI). The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Nicholas Manheim, Michelle Jensen, and Brian Werner.
Drug supplier who sold deadly fentanyl sentenced to 5+ years in prisonRead the Press Release
Seattle – A prolific drug trafficker, who sold deadly fentanyl-tainted pills, was sentenced this week in U.S. District Court in Seattle to 66 months in prison and three years of supervised release. Raoul V. Normandia, Jr., 30, was arrested April 24, 2020, near his Federal Way, Washington, residence. At his sentencing hearing U.S. District Judge Robert S. Lasnik said Normandia, “was a drug dealer…. He was making a large amount of money selling drugs…. It was a pattern of criminal activity that he chose to do.”
“Fentanyl-tainted pills are flooding Western Washington and resulting in record high overdose rates and deaths,” said U.S. Attorney Nick Brown. “Fatal fentanyl overdoses are up 82% in the first six months of 2021 as compared to 2020. We must do all we can to stop the distribution of these pills. They are made to look like oxycodone but are far more powerful and deadly.”
The investigation in this case began April 18, 2020, when a Navy sailor was found dead in his workspace aboard a Navy ship. In his pocket were two counterfeit pills that were laced with fentanyl. The Naval Criminal Investigative Services (NCIS) were able to identify former Navy sailor Ivan Armenta, 21, as the sailor who provided the pills to the sailor who died. Armenta had distributed the pills to three other sailors as well: Two became ill and one was revived by Narcan. Armenta was sentenced to 4 years in prison last month.
The investigation into the source of the pills revealed Chase Friedrich, 29, had supplied the pills to Armenta. He was arrested April 21, 2020, at his Des Moines, Washington, apartment. A search of Friedrich’s apartment revealed cocaine, a handgun, and a bag of approximately 100 counterfeit pills. Friedrich pleaded guilty in May 2021, and today he was sentenced to 3 years in prison and 3 years of supervised release.
Investigators determined that Raoul Normandia had supplied the pills to Friedrich. Law enforcement arrested Normandia in his car a few blocks from his Federal Way residence. In his vehicle was cocaine. During a court‑authorized search of Normandia’s residence, law enforcement recovered cocaine, MDMA, firearms (including an assault rifle), ammunition, body armor, narcotics, and various signs of the drug trade, including scales, baggies, heat sealers, Moneygram receipts, and twenty cell phones.
Normandia pleaded guilty in April 2021 to conspiracy to distribute fentanyl, possession of MDMA and cocaine with intent to distribute, and possession of a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime.
In asking for a 7-year prison sentence, prosecutors wrote to the court, “Counterfeit prescription pills containing fentanyl… pose a unique and substantial danger of overdose. The fact that these pills are manufactured to look like a Precocet increases the likelihood that they will be taken not only by those who intend to take fentanyl, but also by individuals who believe they are taking nothing more potent than an oxycodone. This danger is particularly acute in light of the fact that fentanyl cannot be detected by smell or taste, and someone cannot tell if there is fentanyl in a pill merely by looking at it.”
Judge Lasnik noted that it is the families of the sailor who died, and of the defendants, who suffer from the conduct. “There is so much tragedy in this case…. There’s four families that are rendered to their knees by these actions,” the Judge said. Judge Lasnik said he reduced Normandia’s sentence, in part, because Normandia has been in custody throughout the pandemic -- suffering with the illness and through long-term lockdowns in the Bureau of Prisons.
The case was investigated by NCIS and the Kitsap County Sheriff’s Office as a part of the West Sound Narcotics Enforcement Team (WestNET) and was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Lyndsie Schmalz.
DOJ awards more than $6 million in grants to state and tribal partners to provide victim servicesRead the Press Release
Seattle – Twelve tribal communities and various sexual assault and domestic violence treatment providers have been awarded DOJ grants totaling more than $6 million to support services to victims. The funding is from DOJ Office of Victims of Crime (OVC) and the Office of Violence against Women (OVW).
“As we observe Domestic Violence Awareness Month, it is important to highlight the good work being done to assist victims of violence, sexual assault, and child abuse,” said U.S. Attorney Nick Brown. “These funds are targeted at culturally appropriate services for communities that for too long have been ignored and marginalized.”
The Washington State Native American Coalition against Domestic Violence and Sexual Assault was awarded $341,347 to increase awareness and enhance response to sexual assault and domestic violence in tribal communities. Individual tribes also received funding aimed at victim services including:
Jamestown S’Klallam Tribe - $354,375
Confederated Tribes of the Chehalis Reservation - $372,817
Shoalwater Bay Indian Tribe - $354,375
Hoh Tribe - $354,375
Muckleshoot Indian Tribe -$422,695
Stillaguamish Tribe of Indians - $354,375
Puyallup Tribe of Indians -$693,278
Lummi Nation - $422,695
Suquamish Tribe - $422,695
Nisqually Indian Tribe - $412,733
The Tulalip Tribes received a $421,267 grant specifically for services to child victims of sexual assault and abuse.
Harborview Medical Center received $499,999 in funding under the Rural Sexual Assault, Domestic Violence, Dating Violence, and Stalking Program to develop services in rural areas. The Rural Program funds projects that implement, expand, and establish cooperative efforts among law enforcement officers, prosecutors, victim service providers, and other related parties to investigate and prosecute incidents of sexual assault, domestic violence, dating violence, and stalking; provide treatment, advocacy, counseling, legal assistance, or other victim services to victims in rural communities; or develop or strengthen programs addressing sexual assault, such as Sexual Assault Response Teams.
API CHAYA received $300,000 in funding under the Culturally Specific Services for Victims of Sexual Assault, Domestic Violence, Dating Violence, and Stalking Program. The funding is to support culturally specific community-based organizations in addressing the critical needs of sexual assault, domestic violence, dating violence, and stalking victims in a manner that affirms a victim’s culture.
Detailed information on use of the grant money is available from the recipient or via web resources here: https://www.justice.gov/grants
DOJ and Kaiser Foundation Health Plan of Washington settle claims it failed to provide interpreter service to patients who are deaf and deaf-blindRead the Press Release
Seattle – The U.S. Department of Justice and Kaiser Foundation Health Plan of Washington (KFHPW) today resolved allegations from several complainants that it repeatedly failed to provide interpreters to patients who are deaf or deaf-blind, in violation of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), announced U.S. Attorney Nicholas W. Brown. The settlement establishes a $1 million fund to pay claims to those patients whose rights were violated. KFHPW also agrees to update and improve procedures for evaluating the need for interpreters, contracting with interpreters, and training staff surrounding those procedures.
“When health care facilities fail to provide interpreters to patients and their families, including those who are who are deaf or hard of hearing, it creates a major barrier to safe and appropriate medical care.” said U.S. Attorney Brown. “Our investigation uncovered evidence of systemic failures to provide interpreters when necessary, leading patients to delayed care and problems with communication. This settlement is a necessary step to ensuring that people receiving care through this system are able to communicate timely and effectively about their medical needs.”
An investigation by the U.S. Attorney’s Office revealed that in approximately 400 instances over a 4-year period, an interpreter was requested by KFPW staff, but none was provided, or other problems related to effective communication were raised by patients or their companions.
Under the terms of the settlement, KFHPW will establish a third-party claims administrator to allocate the settlement funds based on the harm suffered by each complainant. The administrator will work with KFHPW records to locate claimants. The U.S. Attorney’s Office will review the allocations after the claims have been submitted and reviewed.
For a two-year period, the U.S. Attorney’s Office will review new procedures and training of KFHPW staff to ensure patients who are deaf or deaf-blind receive appropriate interpreter services at the 41 medical facilities it operates in Northwest Washington, Central Washington, Eastern Washington, the Coastal and Olympic region, and Puget Sound.
Under the settlement some of the changes include: consistent screening of patients for the need of interpreter services; contracting with two interpreter services companies per facility to better provide services; contracting with video interpreter services for those occasions when in-person interpretation is not possible. The policies surrounding interpreter services will be posted on the KFHPW website as well as in KFHPW facilities. KFHPW will keep logs of interpreter requests and how they were fulfilled.
In addition to the $1 million fund for claimants, KFHPW will pay $85,000 to the United States to resolve the allegations.
The investigation in this case was conducted by Assistant United States Attorney Christina Fogg, the Civil Rights Program Coordinator for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Western District of Washington.
DOJ and CEO of defunct medical testing laboratory settle False Claims Act and Anti-Kickback Statute civil caseRead the Press Release
Seattle – A False Claims Act/Anti-Kickback Statute civil matter was resolved today with an agreed $1.1 million payment by the former Chief Executive Officer of a now defunct medical testing lab, announced U.S. Attorney Nicholas W. Brown. Jae Lee, 50, of Bellevue, Washington, served as the CEO of Northwest Physicians Laboratory (NWPL) from January 1, 2013, until July 30, 2015. Lee has agreed to pay $500,000 within 30 days of the settlement agreement, with additional payments annually until full payment is made.
“Resolving this civil case, as well as Mr. Lee’s guilty plea in the criminal case last year, are major milestones in this health care fraud investigation,” said U.S. Attorney Brown. “The Anti-Kickback statute is aimed at protecting the public by keeping fraud from inflating our health care costs. When, as in this case, a whistleblower brings fraud to our attention the U.S. Attorney’s Office will vigorously pursue an investigation.”
The settlement with Jae Lee is the third such settlement involving the kick-back scheme and NWPL. In July 2020, the U.S. Department of Justice reached a $12 million settlement with Sterling Healthcare Opco, LLC d/b/a/Cordant Health Solutions (Cordant) of Tacoma and Denver. In December 2018,Vancouver, Washington, testing lab MTL agreed to pay $1,777,738 to settle allegations that it violated the False Claims Act by paying illegal kickbacks to obtain referrals for government healthcare insurance programs.
According to those settlements, and the one signed today with Jae Lee, between January 2013 and July 2015, both MTL and Sterling/Cordant made payments to NWPL in exchange for referrals of Medicare and TRICARE program business, in violation of the Anti-Kickback Statute. Paying remuneration to medical providers or provider-owned laboratories in exchange for referrals encourages providers to order medically unnecessary services. The False Claims Act and the Anti-Kickback Statute function, in part, to discourage such behavior. NWPL was physician-owned, and for that reason could not test urine samples for patients covered by government health programs such as Medicare, Medicaid, and TRICARE. In order to conceal the payment of the kickbacks, MTL, Sterling/Cordant and NWPL described the fees as being for marketing services; however, no marketing services were performed.
“The payment or acceptance of kickbacks run counter to the goals of Federal health care programs,” stated Steven Ryan, Special Agent in Charge with the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General. “Providers are trusted to select patient services based on medical necessity and their sound judgement, not their greed. Stamping out kickbacks in these programs remains a top priority for our agency and partners.”
“The announced settlement concludes a multi-year civil investigation that clearly demonstrates the government’s commitment to hold accountable those whose actions tainted the integrity of federal healthcare programs, including the Department of Defense's TRICARE program,” said Bryan D. Denny, Special Agent in Charge for the Department of Defense Office of Inspector General, Defense Criminal Investigative Service (DCIS), Western Field Office. “As exemplified in this case, DCIS will continually work with its law enforcement partners to defend against questionable business practices in order to protect taxpayer dollars and the health care interests of our military members and their families, as well as the American public.”
The whistleblower in this case will receive 15% of the funds as is common under the qui tam statute.
The criminal case concerning the kickback scheme remains ongoing. Richard Reid, 52, of Astoria, Oregon, Kevin Puls, 56, of Bellevue, are scheduled for trial in January 2022. Former NWPL CEO Jae Lee and MTL Vice-President Steve Verschoor have pleaded guilty and are scheduled for sentencing in March 2022. NWPL as a corporate entity was sentenced in May 2021, and ordered to pay $8,114,417 in restitution joint and several with the other defendants.
The case is being investigated by the FBI, Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General (HHS-OIG), and the Defense Criminal Investigative Service (DCIS).
The civil case was handled by Assistant United States Attorney Kayla Stahman.
A dozen Western Washington cities receive DOJ funding for crime prevention, community outreach, and officer safety equipmentRead the Press Release
Seattle – A dozen cities in Western Washington will receive funding from the U.S. Department of Justice for specific community safety needs identified by their local police departments, announced U.S. Attorney Nicholas W. Brown. The grants from DOJ’s Bureau of Justice Assistance, are aimed at preventing crime and assisting criminal justice programs based on local needs identified by the jurisdiction.
“From innovative communication APPs, to de-escalation and implicit bias training and less lethal equipment, our cities have identified ways these grant funds will make our communities safer,” said U.S. Attorney Brown. “I congratulate them on successfully competing for this federal funding.”
Both Seattle and Tacoma are receiving large grants aimed at reducing violence. Seattle will receive $771,127 under the Byrne Grant program. Tacoma will receive $303,790 to enhance their community violence intervention program. Other grantees include:
Vancouver - $107,942 to fund a crime prevention, domestic violence task force.
Puyallup - $12,968 to purchase officer safety/less lethal equipment
Kitsap County - $42,903 for training and equipment
Olympia -$25,269 for de-escalation training
Marysville -$15,768 for “stop sticks” in police vehicles
Lynnwood- $11,868 for a community engagement APP
Lakewood -$42,903 for a crime scene mapping scanner
Everett -$41,370 for equipment
Bremerton -$18,035 for the community resource unit
Bellingham -$38,736 for training in implicit bias and community policing
Additionally, Washington State received $3,644,335 in Byrne grant funding. The monies will be funneled to state and local organizations supporting a variety of initiatives including anti-gang and drug task forces, crime prevention, and officer safety.
The Byrne Grants are named in honor of New York City Police Officer Edward R. Byrne, who was killed in the line of duty on February 26, 1988. Officer Byrne was just 22 years old.
Mt. Vernon, Washington man sentenced to 8+ years in prison for dealing deadly fentanylRead the Press Release
Seattle – A 22-year-old Mount Vernon, Washington, man was sentenced today in U.S. District Court in Seattle to 100 months in prison and 4 years of supervised release for conspiracy to distribute fentanyl, announced U.S. Attorney Nicholas W. Brown. Defendant Jiovanni Nunez supplied counterfeit oxycodone pills tainted with fentanyl to an associate, who distributed them in Skagit and Whatcom Counties. The pills are connected to at least two overdoses, including the overdose death of a Bellingham 17-year-old. At the sentencing hearing Chief U.S. District Judge Ricardo S. Martinez said, “This entire case is tragic… the victim’s family continues to suffer as a direct consequence of the defendant’s actions.”
“Far too many people are dying from these fentanyl tainted pills — especially the young and vulnerable,” said U.S. Attorney Brown. “It is critical that we not only stem the flow of the drugs into our community, but also remind people that using these pills often leads to death and devastation, with families left to mourn.”
Nunez and co-conspirator, Rosaliana Lopez-Rodriguez, 23, of Mount Vernon, were arrested in late 2019 after an investigation to track down the source of the tainted pills. According to records filed in the case, a family member found the 17-year-old victim unresponsive on November 9, 2019. Despite efforts of emergency responders to resuscitate him, the victim died; his cause of death was later determined to be fentanyl overdose. Investigators found a whole and a partial pill near the 17-year-old victim. The pills were designed to look like oxycodone 30-milligram pills, with “M” and “30” stamped on them. But they were fakes tainted with fentanyl. Similar pills have been linked to other overdose deaths throughout the Puget Sound region. In fact, a friend of the 17-year-old victim nearly died after smoking one of the pills on November 2, 2019. Nunez’s co-conspirator knew of that near-fatal overdose when she sold the 17-year-old victim more pills a week later, on November 9, 2019.
During this investigation, law enforcement executed court-authorized search warrants at each defendant’s residence. At Nunez’s residence, law enforcement found a safe containing more than 900 fake oxycodone pills that matched the appearance of the fentanyl-laced pills linked to the fatal overdose. Co-conspirator Lopez-Rodriguez admitted that Nunez supplied her with the pills that killed the Bellingham 17-year-old.
Speaking to the court today, the victim’s mother talked about her son as a bright light for many people. Her son’s death left “a big hole of grief we carry that nothing can fill.” The mother noted that Nunez “knew how deadly the pills were,” and continued “dealing lethal poison in our community.”
Lopez-Rodriguez was sentenced to 84 months in prison in August 2021.
The case was investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), the Whatcom County Sheriff’s Office, the Skagit County Interlocal Drug Enforcement Unit (SCIDEU), and the Whatcom County Drug and Gang Task Force, which is made up of members of the Whatcom County Sheriff’s Office, Washington State Department of Corrections, U.S. Customs and Border Protection, and Homeland Security Investigations.
The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Jonas Lerman.
Former Buckley, Washington resident convicted of enticement of a minorRead the Press Release
Seattle – A 34-year-old former resident of Buckley, Washington, was convicted late Friday, October 8, 2021, of attempted enticement of a minor, announced U.S. Attorney Nicholas W. Brown. Taylor J. Matson was arrested in February 2019, following an undercover investigation by the Seattle Police Department Internet Crimes Against Children (ICAC) task force. The jury deliberated about three hours following a three-day trial. U.S. District Judge James L. Robart scheduled sentencing for January 25, 2022.
According to records filed in the case and testimony at trial, Matson responded to an advertisement posted on the internet ostensibly from the mother of three young children. The ad used terms to imply the children would be made available for sex with adults. The advertisement was actually posted by an undercover detective. Matson made clear, via his communication both online and via text message, that he wanted to sexually assault the fictitious 12-year-old girl. Matson met with the undercover detective at a bar to further the plan. He fulfilled various requirements posed by the detective, such as obtaining sexually transmitted disease (STD) testing, and bringing condoms to the scheduled meet. On February 6, 2019, Matson went to a hotel in south Seattle where he believed he would have sex with the child. He was arrested when he entered the hotel room.
Enticement of a minor is punishable by a mandatory minimum 10 years in prison and up to life in prison. Judge Robart will determine the appropriate sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
The case was investigated by the Seattle Police Department and the FBI.
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 prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Cecelia Gregson and Special Assistant United States Attorney Laura Harmon. Ms. Harmon is a King County Deputy Prosecutor specially designated to prosecute child exploitation cases in federal court.
DOJ and University of Washington resolve claims researcher falsified grant applicationRead the Press Release
Seattle – The U.S. Department of Justice and the University of Washington have settled allegations that a professor in the College of Engineering falsified documentation provided to the National Science Foundation associated with a grant that UW received from the Foundation. The University will pay the government $801,756, to resolve allegations under the False Claims Act, which includes restitution and a penalty.
According to settlement documents, between August of 2018 and September 2019, the principal investigator on the grant submitted false documents regarding the grant to the National Science Foundation. The grant was part of the highly competitive “Designing Materials to Revolutionize and Engineer our Future” program.
“Academic integrity demands accurate reports to grant funders,” said U.S. Attorney Nicholas Brown. “This is an expensive, but critical, lesson that researchers must accurately report who worked on a project, as well as the results from their research.”
“The National Science Foundation Office of Inspector General is committed to ensuring the integrity of our grant recipients by holding accountable those who choose to engage in false claims and misrepresentation schemes. We appreciate the efforts of the Department of Justice in pursuing this matter and will continue to vigorously pursue oversight of taxpayer funds devoted to scientific research,” said Inspector General Allison Lerner.
The investigation began with a whistleblower complaint regarding work performed under the grant and the grant application.
Assistant United States Attorneys Ashley Burns and Kayla Stahman handled the case for the U.S. Attorney’s Office.
Department of Justice Redoubles Efforts to Find and Prosecute Those Responsible for the 2001 Murder of Federal Prosecutor Tom WalesRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON – Deputy Attorney General Lisa O. Monaco today announced that the Department of Justice has doubled the $1 million reward for information leading to the arrest and conviction of those responsible for the October 2001 murder of Seattle Assistant U.S. Attorney Thomas Wales.
With the inclusion of reward funds raised by the National Association of Former U.S. Attorneys, the total reward now stands at approximately $2.5 million. Wales worked as a federal prosecutor in the Western District of Washington for 18 years before he was shot and killed in his home the evening of Oct. 11, 2001.
“The Department of Justice will never forget Tom’s contributions to the department and the cause of justice, nor will we forget the tragedy of his death,” said Deputy Attorney General Monaco. “Although two decades have passed, the Department of Justice remains committed to this investigation. Somebody knows something about this murder, and we want to do everything we can to encourage them to come forward now.”
In addition to doubling the reward, the department announced steps to redouble its efforts to pursue justice in the investigation. The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Western District of Washington will be joining the Seattle Prosecutor Murder (SEPROM) Task Force. The department will augment the prosecution effort with additional Seattle-based resources, including personnel with expertise in homicide investigations.
“The addition of these resources, including attorneys and investigators from the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Western District of Washington and FBI, will put the department in the strongest possible position to solve Tom’s murder,” said Deputy Attorney General Monaco.
The SEPROM Task Force is now a joint effort by the FBI, the Seattle Police Department, the Department of Justice, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Western District of Washington and the King County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office. The task force is also leveraging emerging and evolving technologies in the effort.
Anyone with information is encouraged to contact the FBI and can do so confidentially by phone at (206) 622-0460 or by e-mail at [email protected]. Tips can also be sent to the FBI at 1110 Third Avenue, Seattle, WA, 98101. The complete library of information, including multi-media materials for download and use, the FBI Seeking Information poster, details about the tip lines and more can be found at https://www.fbi.gov/wanted/seeking-info/thomas-crane-wales.
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U.S. Attorney Nicholas Brown participates in tree planting in memory of AUSA Tom WalesDepartment of Justice Redoubles Efforts to Find and Prosecute Those Responsible for the 2001 Murder of Federal Prosecutor Tom WalesRead the Press Release
Deputy Attorney General Lisa O. Monaco today announced that the Department of Justice has doubled the $1 million reward for information leading to the arrest and conviction of those responsible for the October 2001 murder of Seattle Assistant U.S. Attorney Thomas Wales.
With the inclusion of reward funds raised by the National Association of Former U.S. Attorneys, the total reward now stands at approximately $2.5 million. Wales worked as a federal prosecutor in the Western District of Washington for 18 years before he was shot and killed in his home the evening of Oct. 11, 2001.
“The Department of Justice will never forget Tom’s contributions to the department and the cause of justice, nor will we forget the tragedy of his death,” said Deputy Attorney General Monaco. “Although two decades have passed, the Department of Justice remains committed to this investigation. Somebody knows something about this murder, and we want to do everything we can to encourage them to come forward now.”
In addition to doubling the reward, the department announced steps to redouble its efforts to pursue justice in the investigation. The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Western District of Washington will be joining the Seattle Prosecutor Murder (SEPROM) Task Force. The department will augment the prosecution effort with additional Seattle-based resources, including personnel with expertise in homicide investigations.
“The addition of these resources, including attorneys and investigators from the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Western District of Washington and FBI, will put the department in the strongest possible position to solve Tom’s murder,” said Deputy Attorney General Monaco.
The SEPROM Task Force is now a joint effort by the FBI, the Seattle Police Department, the Department of Justice, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Western District of Washington and the King County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office. The task force is also leveraging emerging and evolving technologies in the effort.
Anyone with information is encouraged to contact the FBI and can do so confidentially by phone at (206) 622-0460 or by e-mail at [email protected]. Tips can also be sent to the FBI at 1110 Third Avenue, Seattle, WA, 98101. The complete library of information, including multi-media materials for download and use, the FBI Seeking Information poster, details about the tip lines and more can be found at https://www.fbi.gov/wanted/seeking-info/thomas-crane-wales.
Nicholas W. Brown sworn in as U.S. Attorney for the Western District of WashingtonRead the Press Release
Seattle – Nicholas W. Brown was sworn in today as U.S. Attorney for the Western District of Washington. Mr. Brown previously served as an Assistant United States Attorney in the office from 2007 to 2013. From 2013 to 2017, Mr. Brown served as General Counsel to Governor Jay Inslee, and was a partner with Pacifica Law Group in Seattle when he was nominated by President Joe Biden to be U.S. Attorney 0n July 26, 2021. Mr. Brown’s nomination was approved by the full U.S. Senate on September 30, 2021. Today, Chief U.S. District Judge Ricardo S. Martinez administered the oath of office.
“I am humbled to return to the U.S. Attorney’s Office and my outstanding colleagues, who devote their careers to seeking justice and public service,” said U.S. Attorney Brown. “The work of the office is vitally important and incredibly challenging, and the issues facing our justice system today require our full dedication. As the chief law enforcement officer in Western Washington, I am excited about working with our communities and federal partners to improve public safety and to ensure civil rights for all our residents.”
U.S. Attorney Brown leads an office comprised of both criminal prosecutors and civil litigators. The civil division is tasked with defending the government in a variety of litigation and bringing affirmative cases to protect civil rights and in cases of waste, fraud and abuse. U.S. Attorney Brown will also oversee an appellate unit that handles litigation before the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals.
In his previous five years with the U.S. Attorney’s Office, Mr. Brown handled more than 100 cases ranging from complex firearm and drug trafficking matters, to child sexual abuse in Indian Country, and financial fraud. As General Counsel to Governor Inslee, Mr. Brown was involved in a wide range of critical issues including high-priority litigation, criminal justice policy, tribal gaming and Indian law, and clemency petitions. For Pacifica Law Group, Mr. Brown focused his practice on assisting public and private clients with complex civil and regulatory litigation, public policy, municipal law, and political matters.
An Army veteran, Mr. Brown served in the Judge Advocate General Corps from 2003 to 2007 at Joint Base Lewis McChord (JBLM), Fort Bliss, Texas, and Bagdad, Iraq. He was awarded the Bronze Star Medal in 2005.
Mr. Brown has volunteered his time for a number of public service and non-profit organizations, including Seattle Ethics and Elections, the Campaign for Equal Justice, the Washington State Bar Association Leadership Institute, Seattle Works, and Treehouse. Mr. Brown is also active in the Federal Bar Association.
A Western Washington native, Nicholas Brown received his BA Magna Cum Laude from Morehouse College in 1999, and his JD from Harvard Law School in 2002. He graduated from Steilacoom High School in 1995.
Mr. Brown takes over as U.S. Attorney from Acting U.S. Attorney Tessa M. Gorman. She previously served as First Assistant United States Attorney under U.S. Attorney Brian Moran, who left the office in February 2021, with the change in administration. Ms. Gorman remains with the office.
Tacoma man sentenced to two years in prison for early morning fire in ‘CHOP’ zoneRead the Press Release
Seattle –A former Seattle resident, who prior to his arrest resided in Tacoma, was sentenced today U.S. District Court in Seattle to two years in prison for setting fire to the outside of the Seattle Police East Precinct during the occupied protest known as ‘CHOP’, announced Acting U.S. Attorney Tessa M. Gorman. Isaiah Thomas Willoughby, 36, used a can of gasoline to set the fire just feet from where protestors were camped, putting them at risk. U.S. District Judge John C. Coughenour imposed three years of supervised release to follow the prison term.
According to the plea agreement, in the early morning hours of June 12, 2020, Willoughby was wearing distinctive clothing when he was captured on surveillance video near debris piled next to the wall of the Seattle Police East Precinct. Willoughby admits he used a small gas can to pour gasoline on the debris. Willoughby steps away from the debris pile for a moment, then reappears with something that he lights on fire and tosses on the debris pile. The pile begins to burn, and Willoughby is seen walking away. The fire scorched the side of the building, but was extinguished by those nearby using fire extinguishers, and pulling the flaming debris away from the building.
After the Seattle Police Department released pictures of the arson suspect, various people recognized Willoughby and noted that the distinctive sweatshirt came from a clothing line he represents. Relatives of Willoughby reported to police that he was in Seattle in the Capitol Hill Organized Protest Zone (CHOP) at the time of the fire. Following the fire, Willoughby took steps to remove posts from his social media accounts that may have linked him to the arson. However, at least some of his Facebook posts remain, noting his anger at police and his knowledge of the East Precinct building.
Willoughby has been in custody at the Federal Detention Center at SeaTac since his arrest on July 14, 2020.
In asking for a three-year sentence, prosecutors noted that Willoughby planned the crime, posting about his anger and intent on Facebook. The fire itself put peaceful protestors in danger and they were the ones who quickly acted to put the fire out. The fire “was counterproductive to what the protestors were trying to accomplish,” Assistant United States Attorney Todd Greenberg told the court.
The case was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms & Explosives (ATF), the FBI and the Seattle Police Department.
The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Todd Greenberg.