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5 April 2024
Ardmore Nurse Sentenced for Tampering with Pain MedicationRead the Press Release
MUSKOGEE, OKLAHOMA – The United States Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Oklahoma announced that Rebecca Elaine Holloway, age 33, of Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, was sentenced to 12 months in prison for one count of Tampering with Consumer Products, a violation of Title 18, United Sates Code, Section 1365.
The charges arose from investigations by the Food and Drug Administration—Office of Criminal Investigations and the Oklahoma Bureau of Narcotics.
On August 31, 2023, Holloway entered a guilty plea, admitting to stealing fentanyl and hydromorphone intended for intensive care patients while she was employed at the Intensive Care Unit (ICU) of Mercy Hospital in Ardmore, Oklahoma. According to investigators, Holloway removed the pain medication from their vials, refilled the empty vials with tap water, and returned the tampered vials to the controlled storage locker. Holloway admitted she did so despite knowing the pain medication vials were intended for patients in acute pain and distress, and that by depriving patients of the medication, she knew she was placing them at risk of death and bodily injury.
“Patients rely on the knowledge that they will receive FDA-approved medications to manage their pain,” said Special Agent in Charge Charles Grinstead, FDA Office of Criminal Investigations, Kansas City Field Office. “We will continue to pursue and bring to justice healthcare professionals who jeopardize patients’ health by tampering with their pain medications.”
“The defendant did not merely steal drugs from a hospital: she compromised the health, safety, and comfort of vulnerable patients when she tampered with their medications for her own self-serving ends,” said United States Attorney Christopher J. Wilson. “This office stands ready to prosecute those who would callously exploit medical patients, and we are grateful to the FDA and the OBN for their outstanding work in investigating this case.”
The Honorable Ronald A. White, Chief Judge in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Oklahoma, presided over the hearing. Holloway will self-report on June 6, 2024, to a designated United States Bureau of Prisons facility to serve a non-paroleable sentence of incarceration.
Assistant United States Attorney Kara Traster and Associate Chief Counsel Jason Chandler of the Food and Drug Administration represented the United States.
Albuquerque Man Sentenced for Drug TraffickingRead the Press Release
ALBUQUERQUE – A federal judge handed down a 14-year prison sentence to an Albuquerque man who was caught with more than 19 pounds of fentanyl in a hotel room.
According to publicly available court records, on October 26, 2022, officers from the Bureau of Indian Affairs intercepted a load of fentanyl destined for Albuquerque during a routine traffic stop. The driver agreed to engage in a “controlled delivery” to an individual in a Walmart parking lot in Albuquerque. Law enforcement staged around the area and observed a vehicle driven by Eric Jaramillo, 33, arrive at the designated time. Before law enforcement could immobilize the vehicle, Jaramillo drove away. Law enforcement pursued Jaramillo, who jumped out of the vehicle and fled into a water diversion tunnel.
Agents from Homeland Security Investigations discovered Jaramillo had an outstanding warrant from Arizona, so they began scouring the city for him. Several weeks later, on November 14, 2022, agents located Jaramillo at a Best Western Hotel in Albuquerque. The following day, law enforcement staged around the area. When he exited his hotel room, Jaramillo attempted to flee, but was captured when he impaled his leg on a wrought iron fence. A subsequent search of his hotel room located 8.7 kilograms -- or 19.2 pounds – of fentanyl and two firearms.
Jaramillo pled guilty in federal court to possession with intent to distribute 400 grams and more of fentanyl. There is no parole in the federal system.
U.S. Attorney Alexander M.M. Uballez and Eric McLoughlin, Acting Special Agent in Charge of Homeland Security Investigations - El Paso, made the announcement today.
Homeland Security Investigations investigated this case with assistance from the Bureau of Indian Affairs, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement and New Mexico State Police. Assistant United States Attorney Joseph M. Spindle prosecuted the case.
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Activity in the U.S. Attorney's OfficeRead the Press Release
Drug Trafficking
Brenda Lee Sutton, 38, of Carpenter, Wyoming, was sentenced to 58 months’ imprisonment for possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine. According to court documents, on Apr. 6, 2023, agents conducted a controlled purchase of approximately 56 grams of methamphetamine from Sutton. She was indicted and pleaded guilty to the charge on Dec. 13, 2023. U.S. District Court Judge Alan B. Johnson imposed the sentence on Mar. 25. This crime was investigated by the Wyoming Division of Criminal Investigation and prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Cameron J. Cook.
Cesar Aldahir Lerma Hernandez, 41, of Mexico, was sentenced to 57 months’ imprisonment for conspiracy to distribute fentanyl. According to court documents, a joint state and federal investigation showed that several individuals, including Hernandez, were acquiring large amounts of fentanyl in northern Colorado and distributing the drug in Laramie County, Wyoming. Hernandez was indicted and pleaded guilty on Dec. 18, 2023. Senior U.S. District Court Judge Nancy D. Freudenthal imposed the sentence on Apr. 4. The crime was investigated by the Laramie County Sheriff’s Office, the Wyoming Division of Criminal Investigation, and the United States Drug Enforcement Administration. The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Timothy J. Forwood.
Domestic Violence
Jonathan Michael Lee Wandel, 46, of Crystal, Michigan, was sentenced to two years of supervised probation for assault by strangulation. According to court documents, the FBI was contacted by the U.S. Air Force’s Office of Special Investigations (OSI) regarding a domestic violence incident that occurred on F.E. Warren Air Force Base. Wandel was charged and pleaded guilty on Jan. 9 to strangling the victim. U.S. District Court Judge Alan B. Johnson imposed the sentence on Apr. 4. The crime was investigated by the FBI and OSI. The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Timothy W. Gist.
About the United States Attorney’s Office
The United States Attorney’s Office is responsible for representing the federal government in virtually all litigation involving the United States in the District of Wyoming, including all criminal prosecutions for violations of federal law, civil lawsuits brought by or against the government, and actions to collect judgments and restitution on behalf of victims and taxpayers. The Office is involved in several programs designed to make our communities safer. They include:
Environmental Justice
The fair treatment and meaningful involvement of all people regardless of race, color, national origin, or income with respect to the development, implementation, and enforcement of environmental laws, regulations, and policies.
Project Safe Childhood
Project Safe Childhood (PSC) is a DOJ initiative that combats the proliferation of technology-facilitated sexual exploitation crimes against children. The threat of sexual predators soliciting children for sexual contact is well-known and serious.
Project Safe Neighborhoods
Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN) is a nationwide commitment to reducing gun and gang crime in America by networking existing local programs that target gun crime and providing these programs with additional tools necessary to be successful.
Victim Witness Assistance
The Victim Witness Coordinator for the United States Attorney’s Office for the District of Wyoming is dedicated to making sure that victims of federal crimes and their family members are treated with compassion, fairness, and respect.To report a federal crime, go to: https://www.justice.gov/actioncenter/report-crime#trafficking
4 April 2024
Worcester Man Pleads Guilty to Firearm and Drug-Related ChargesRead the Press Release
BOSTON – A Worcester man who was previously charged with unlawfully possessing a machinegun pleaded guilty yesterday to drug charges.
Jose Rivera, 24, pleaded guilty to possession of a machinegun, receipt of a firearm by a person under indictment for a felony, possession with intent to distribute cocaine and possession of a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime. U.S. District Court Judge Margaret R. Guzman scheduled sentencing for June 28, 2024. Rivera was indicted by a federal grand jury in June 2023.
During a search of Rivera’s residence on March 7, 2023, three Glock switches – including one attached to a loaded Glock .40 caliber firearm were recovered. Glock switches convert semi-automatic Glock pistols into fully automatic machineguns and are considered machineguns under federal law. Three large capacity magazines, including a 50-round drum magazine and boxes of ammunition were also seized. Rivera also possessed cocaine intended for distribution as well as scale, tray, and small plastic baggies, and $9,000 in cash. Rivera received the Glock .40 caliber firearm on or after Oct. 9, 2021, while he was under indictment in state court for felonies punishable by a term of imprisonment of over a year.
The charge of unlawful possession of a machinegun provides for a sentence of up to 10 years in prison, up to three years of supervised release and a fine of up to $250,000. The charge of receipt of a firearm while under indictment provides for a sentence of up to five years in prison, up to three years of supervised release and a fine of up to $250,000. The charge of possession with intent to distribute cocaine provides for a sentence of up to 20 years in prison, at least three years of supervised release, and a fine of up to $1 million. The charge of possession of a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime provides for a mandatory minimum sentence of five years, to be run consecutively with the sentence imposed on the other counts, up to three years of supervised release and a fine of up to $250,000. Sentences are imposed by a federal district court judge based upon the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and statutes which govern the determination of a sentence in a criminal case.
Acting United States Attorney Joshua S. Levy; James M. Ferguson, Special Agent in Charge of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms & Explosives, Boston Field Division; and Interim Worcester Police Chief Paul Saucier made the announcement today. Assistant U.S. Attorney Kaitlin J. Brown of the Worcester Branch Office is prosecuting the case.
This case is also a part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program bringing together all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve to reduce violent crime and gun violence, and to make our neighborhoods safer for everyone. On May 26, 2021, the Department launched a violent crime reduction strategy strengthening PSN based on these core principles: fostering trust and legitimacy in our communities, supporting community-based organizations that help prevent violence from occurring in the first place, setting focused and strategic enforcement priorities, and measuring the results.
Winter Springs Man Charged with Armed Robbery SpreeRead the Press Release
Orlando, FL –United States Attorney Roger B. Handberg the return by a grand jury of an indictment charging Marlon Leondre Lockhart (21, Winter Springs) with four counts of Hobbs Act robbery and four counts of possession of a firearm in furtherance of a crime of violence. If convicted on all counts, Lockhart faces a mandatory minimum penalty of 28 years, up to life, in federal prison. The indictment also notifies Lockhart that the United States intends to forfeit the Smith & Wesson 9mm pistol and associated ammunition which are alleged to be used during the commission of the offenses.
According to the indictment, between November 24, 2023, and December 14, 2023, Lockhart stole property from four local businesses. It is alleged that Lockhart stole the property by taking it from the employees of the business against their will and by actual or threatened force, violence, and fear of injury to the employee’s person. Further, it is alleged that Lockhart brandished a firearm during each robbery.
An indictment is merely a formal charge that a defendant has committed one or more violations of federal criminal law, and every defendant is presumed innocent unless, and until, proven guilty.
This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Orange County Sheriff’s Office, and the Orlando Police Department. It will be prosecuted by Special Assistant United States Attorney Rachel Lyons.
This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program bringing together all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve to reduce violent crime and gun violence, and to make our neighborhoods safer for everyone. On May 26, 2021, the Department launched a violent crime reduction strategy strengthening PSN based on these core principles: fostering trust and legitimacy in our communities, supporting community-based organizations that help prevent violence from occurring in the first place, setting focused and strategic enforcement priorities, and measuring the results.
Waterbury Man Admits Role in Bridgeport Drug Robbery AttemptRead the Press Release
Vanessa Roberts Avery, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, today announced that KAREEM PORTER, also known as “Reem,” 25, of Waterbury, pleaded guilty yesterday before U.S. District Judge Jeffrey A. Meyer in New Haven to a federal robbery offense.
According to court documents and statements made in court, on April 28, 2023, Porter, Andy Marte, and Tyrone Allen drove to a Bridgeport apartment building where they intended to carry out a robbery at an apartment in which they believed they would find drugs and drug proceeds. Marte instructed Porter and Allen, who had a crowbar, to carry out the robbery while Marte remained in the car and to serve as a getaway driver. Marte also contacted Jermaine Bethel, who arrived to participate in the robbery. After failing to enter the apartment, Porter, Allen, and Bethel returned to the vehicle where they were encountered by law enforcement. Officers searched the vehicle and its occupants and seized two handguns, which Marte had brought to the robbery, and the crowbar.
Porter pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit Hobbs Act Robbery, an offense that carries a maximum term of imprisonment of 20 years. Judge Meyer scheduled sentencing for July 2.
Porter is released on a $50,000 bond pending sentencing.
Marte, Allen, and Bethel previously pleaded guilty to the same charge and await sentencing.
This investigation is being conducted by FBI’s Bridgeport Safe Streets Task Force and the Bridgeport Police Department. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Ross Weingarten and Karen Peck.
United States Attorney Co-Hosts Anti-Fraud Coalition RoundtableRead the Press Release
PHOENIX, Ariz. – Last week, United States Attorney Gary M. Restaino co-hosted a stakeholder discussion on qui tam, or whistleblower, cases under the civil False Claims Act (FCA). The event was also hosted by The Anti-Fraud Coalition (TAFC), a public interest, non-profit organization dedicated to defending and empowering whistleblowers who expose fraud on the government and the financial markets. The roundtable was part of U.S. Attorney Restaino’s effort and commitment to working with whistleblowers, and attorneys who represent them, to pursue civil enforcement actions against those who obtain government funds through false or fraudulent claims.
Speakers included U.S. Attorney Restaino and members of the United States Attorney’s Office Affirmative Civil Enforcement Unit. Attendees included several attorneys who specialize in representing whistleblowers. The panel discussion focused on how federal prosecutors can continue to work effectively with whistleblowers and their attorneys in a successful public-private partnership as contemplated by the FCA’s qui tam provisions. A representative from TAFC moderated the discussion.
“Those who abuse government programs and contracts deprive their neighbors and communities and competitors of valuable resources,” said United States Attorney Gary Restaino. “In our affirmative civil enforcement work we protect the public fisc. We also celebrate the courage of whistleblowers, the energy, compassion and collegiality of the private plaintiffs’ bar, and the hard work and dedication of federal lawyers, auditors and investigators.”
Under the False Claims Act, individuals (known as “relators”) may file civil actions under seal on behalf of the government against companies and individuals who defraud the federal government. If the defendants pay settlements or the government is awarded judgment in these lawsuits, the relators receive a portion of those funds. Many fraud investigations and lawsuits, especially in the District of Arizona, originate with qui tam filings against health care providers, defense contractors, grant recipients, and others who commit fraud against the government.
The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Arizona has long enjoyed an excellent working relationship with qui tam relators and their counsel. As a testament to that relationship, an analysis in 2018 showed the District of Arizona had the fastest-growing qui tam docket in the nation, with filings increasing 170% from fiscal years 2008-2012 to 2013-2017. Whistleblower filings in the District of Arizona further increased in fiscal years 2018-2023. Those filings and other affirmative civil matters handled by the U.S. Attorney’s Office have resulted in significant recoveries of government funds that were intended for health care, defense contracting, relief from the COVID-19 pandemic, and other federal programs and purposes but were received by those who submitted, or were alleged to have submitted, false or fraudulent claims.
Individuals with information regarding fraud, waste, or abuse related to federal programs should contact the relevant federal agency. A list of agencies and contact information can be found at https://www.justice.gov/usao-az/agency-links.
RELEASE NUMBER: 2024-045_TAFC Roundtable
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For more information on the U.S. Attorney’s Office, District of Arizona, visit http://www.justice.gov/usao/az/
Follow the U.S. Attorney’s Office, District of Arizona, on X @USAO_AZ for the latest news.Two Individuals Indicted for the Kidnapping Resulting in Death of Two Female Minors from July 2023 MassacreRead the Press Release
SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico – On April 3, 2024, a federal grand jury returned a two-count indictment charging José Martínez-Serrano and Edwin Yadiel Flores-Tavárez with kidnapping resulting in death and possessing and discharging of a firearm during and in relation to a crime of violence, announced W. Stephen Muldrow, United States Attorney for the District of Puerto Rico.
According to court documents, on July 25, 2023, the defendants, aiding and abetting each other and others, did unlawfully and willfully seize, confine, kidnap and abduct, and otherwise hold, T.D.C. and N.R.L., and shot them - resulting in their deaths. In committing and in furtherance of the commission of the kidnapping, Martínez-Serrano and Flores-Tavárez used a means, facility, and instrumentality of interstate or foreign commerce, namely a 2022 Ford EcoSport and a cellular telephone.
“As alleged in the indictment, these defendants acted together in the kidnapping and vicious murder of two young women,” said W. Stephen Muldrow, United States Attorney for the District of Puerto Rico. “We remain steadfast in our mission to bring violent criminals to justice. We will use all methods at our disposal to apprehend and prosecute those who commit such heinous acts.”
“Last summer, violent criminals took the lives of two young girls in the Piñones area. From that moment, our commitment has been to bring the criminals responsible to justice,” said Joseph González, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI San Juan Field Office. “Today, we have come a step closer to justice, but our work is still unfinished, and our teams will not stop until we can bring this case to a full conclusion. I want to thank our colleagues at the Police of Puerto Rico and Carolina Municipal Police for their nonstop efforts in this case. Today’s arrests would not have been possible without their continued support of the mission.”
The defendants are scheduled for their initial court appearances today before U.S. Magistrate Judge Marcos E. López of the U.S. District Court for the District of Puerto Rico. If convicted, they face life in prison. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
The FBI, Puerto Rico Police Bureau, and the Carolina Municipal Police are investigating the case.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Julian Radzinschi is prosecuting the case. Special Agents John Auchter and Sharon Vazquez of the Federal Bureau of Investigation are in charge of the investigation.
An indictment is merely an allegation and all defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
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Three Men Charged with Trafficking Counterfeit Luxury Watches Imported from ChinaRead the Press Release
Vanessa Roberts Avery, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, Michael J. Krol, Special Agent in Charge of Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), New England, Harry T. Chavis, Jr., Special Agent in Charge of IRS Criminal Investigation in New England, and Ketty Larco-Ward, Inspector in Charge of the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, Boston Division, today announced that IZEDIN KIMCA, 24, of Waterbury, DENIS NAKO, 24, of Worcester, Massachusetts, and his brother, KLEVIS NAKO, 23, of Worcester, were arrested yesterday on federal criminal complaints charging them with selling and conspiring to sell counterfeit luxury and designer brand watches through websites and social media accounts.
Kimca appeared before U.S. Magistrate Judge Maria E. Garcia in New Haven, and Denis Nako and Klevis Nako appeared before U.S. Magistrate Judge Robert A. Richardson in Hartford. All three were released on $50,000 bonds.
As alleged in court documents, Kimca, Denis Nako, and Klevis Nako operated various websites, Instagram pages, and Facebook pages through which they advertised and sold counterfeit luxury watches that they had imported from China. During the investigation, law enforcement made multiple undercover transactions in which they purchased counterfeit Rolex watches from several of the Instagram accounts for approximately $200 to $300 per watch. The proceeds of the sales were deposited into bank accounts belonging to Kimca, Denis Nako, and Klevis Nako.
It is further alleged that, between April 2020 to July 2022, U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) seized approximately 74 parcels addressed to Kimca, or his aliases, that contained counterfeit luxury watches, including counterfeit Rolex, Audemars, and Panerai watches, having a total estimated manufacturers’ suggested retail price of more than $16 million had the watches been authentic. In addition, between February 2021 to April 2022, CBP seized approximately 22 parcels addressed to the residence of Denis and Klevis Nako that contained counterfeit luxury watches, including counterfeit Rolex and Cartier watches, having a total estimated manufacturers’ suggested retail price of more than $3 million had the watches been authentic.
According to court documents, Klevis Nako is employed as a police officer with the Framingham State University Police Department in Framingham, Massachusetts.
It is alleged that, in January 2023, HSI agents interviewed Kimca about trafficking counterfeit watches and told him that selling counterfeit watches was illegal. Kimca also had received several notices from CBP that watches had been seized and detailing potential violations associated with the importation of the items. Kimca continued to sell counterfeit watches after the interview and after receiving the CBP notices.
The complaints charge Kimca, Denis Nako, and Klevis Nako with trafficking in and conspiring to traffic in counterfeit goods and services, offenses that carry a maximum term of imprisonment of 10 years. Kimca is also charged with engaging in illegal monetary transactions, an offense that carries a maximum term of imprisonment of 10 years.
U.S. Attorney Avery stressed that a complaint is only a charge and is not evidence of guilt. Charges are only allegations, and a defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.
This matter is being investigated by Homeland Security Investigations (HSI); the Internal Revenue Service, Criminal Investigation Division; and the U.S. Postal Inspection Service. U.S. Customs and Border Protection has assisted the investigation. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Neeraj N. Patel and Shan Patel.
Three Individuals Arrested and Charged with Access Device Fraud as Part of A Multi-District OperationRead the Press Release
OAKLAND – Three individuals were charged with the use of unauthorized access devices were filed this week, announced United States Attorney Ismail J. Ramsey and United States Secret Service (“USSS”) – San Francisco Field Office, Special Agent in Charge Shawn Bradstreet.
The three defendants—Petrica Mosneagu, 44; Ionut Sopirla, 38; and Virgil Tudorascu, 42, all of Romania—were charged with stealing Electronic Benefit Transfer (“EBT”) account information and making fraudulent cash withdrawals at ATMs using that stolen EBT information in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 1029(a)(2). The defendants were arrested in a multi-district, USSS-led operation, which resulted in several arrests this week, including in the Southern District of California.
According to the public criminal complaints, law enforcement agencies have been investigating EBT theft across California for the past fourteen months. The complaints allege that the California Department of Social Services has identified that approximately $22.8 million has been stolen from victim EBT card beneficiaries from January to March 2024 in California, including in the Northern District of California. Most of these stolen funds have been obtained by unauthorized ATM withdrawals. Furthermore, the complaints allege that victims of the scheme are largely low-income families who depend on EBT benefits to buy food and other household necessities.
The complaints allege that the defendants fraudulently withdrew cash with “cloned” cards, which are debit cards, gift cards, or other devices with magnetic strips that have been encoded with information from legitimate EBT cards. The account holders’ account information was primarily “skimmed” at ATMs or point-of-sale terminals. Skimming devices recorded victim account holder account information on the magnetic strips and log their PINs through keypad overlays. Once skimmed, the victim account holders’ account information was then loaded onto blank or repurposed debit cards, which the defendants then used to withdraw cash or make purchases.
If convicted, each defendant face a maximum statutory sentence of ten years in prison on each charge. However, any sentence following conviction would be imposed by the court after consideration of the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and the federal statute governing the imposition of a sentence, 18 U.S.C. § 3553.
Defendants Mosneagu and Sopirla made their initial appearances Tuesday morning in Oakland and will appear for their detention hearings on April 10, 2024, before the Honorable Kandis A. Westmore. Defendant Tudorascu made his initial appearance Thursday morning and will also appear for his detention hearing on April 10, 2024.
Criminal complaints only allege that crimes have been committed, and each defendant must be presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Alexis James and Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Zachary Glimcher are prosecuting these cases, with the help of Katie Turner and Kay Konopaske. These prosecutions are the result of an investigation by the USSS, California Department of Social Services, U.S. Department of Agriculture – Office of Inspector General, Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), San Francisco Human Services Agency – Special Investigations Unit, Pleasant Hill PD, Richmond PD, Oakland PD, Berkeley PD, Alameda County Sheriff’s Office, Romanian National Police, and U.S. Secret Service Bucharest.
Suburban Chicago Nurse Sentenced to Two Years in Prison for Tampering with Patient MedicationsRead the Press Release
CHICAGO — A suburban Chicago nurse has been sentenced to two years in federal prison for removing morphine prescribed to patients and replacing it with another liquid.
SARAH DIAMOND was employed as the Assistant Director of Nursing at a Chicago-area medical rehabilitation center, where she was responsible for dispensing medications to patients, including those in hospice care. In the summer of 2021, Diamond removed morphine from bottles that had been prescribed to at least five patients to manage their pain and replaced it with another liquid, knowing the diluted substance would be dispensed. Diamond removed the morphine for her own personal use and with reckless disregard and extreme indifference for the risk that the patients would be placed in danger of bodily injury. In at least one instance, a patient’s family members observed the patient suffering during what would end up being some of the final moments before dying.
Diamond, 31, of Woodstock, Ill., pleaded guilty last year to a federal charge of tampering with a consumer product. U.S. District Judge Manish S. Shah imposed the sentence Wednesday during a hearing in federal court in Chicago.
The sentence was announced by Morris Pasqual, Acting United States Attorney for the Northern District of Illinois, and Ronne Malham, Special Agent-in-Charge of the Chicago Field Office of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, Office of Criminal Investigations. Valuable assistance was provided by the Crystal Lake, Ill., Police Department. The government was represented by Assistant U.S. Attorney Heidi Manschreck.
“Patients deserve to have confidence that they are receiving the legitimately prescribed medication and not a diluted substance,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Pasqual. “Health care practitioners who illicitly tamper with prescription drugs will be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law.”
“Patients suffering from pain trust their health care providers to provide relief through effective and appropriately dosed medications,” said SAC Malham. “We will continue to pursue and bring to justice healthcare professionals who violate their position of trust and jeopardize patients’ health and well-being by tampering with their pain medications.”
St. Louis Man Sentenced to 17 Years in Prison for Six Armed RobberiesRead the Press Release
ST. LOUIS – U.S. District Judge John A. Ross on Thursday sentenced a man who committed six armed robberies in a three-month period in 2021 to 17 years in prison.
Bruce Franklin, 64, admitted robbing a Family Dollar store and cell phone stores, including two cell phone stores that he targeted twice. Franklin robbed the Boost Mobile store at 3636 Page Boulevard on August 26 and September 10, the T-Mobile at 4167 Lindell Boulevard on September 4 and September 20, the MetroPCS at 3949 Lindell Boulevard on September 17, and the Family Dollar at 11123 Bellefontaine Road in St. Louis County on October 27. Franklin stole cash from registers, and in one case, a handgun belonging to an employee.
Franklin was accompanied by Kristie Meeks during the September 17 and September 20 robberies. Meeks, 48, of Kansas City, Missouri, pleaded guilty September 27 to two counts of robbery and one count of brandishing a firearm during a crime of violence. Judge Ross sentenced her to eight years in prison in February.
Franklin pleaded guilty in October to six counts of robbery, one count of brandishing a firearm during a crime of violence and one count of being a felon in possession of a firearm.
The St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department, the St. Louis County Police Department and the FBI investigated the case. Assistant U.S. Attorney Jason Dunkel prosecuted the case.
This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program bringing together all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve to reduce violent crime and gun violence, and to make our neighborhoods safer for everyone. On May 26, 2021, the Department launched a violent crime reduction strategy strengthening PSN based on these core principles: fostering trust and legitimacy in our communities, supporting community-based organizations that help prevent violence from occurring in the first place, setting focused and strategic enforcement priorities, and measuring the results.
St. Charles County Man Sentenced to 40 Years in Prison for Soliciting Sex from MinorsRead the Press Release
ST. LOUIS – U.S. District Judge Ronnie L. White on Thursday sentenced a registered sex offender to 40 years in prison for soliciting sex from two minor victims via social media.
Thomas J. Bowles, now 48, of St. Charles County, Missouri, repeatedly contacting a female minor on social media from Jan. 1, 2020, to Aug. 20, 2020. He offered to become her “sugar daddy” and offered money, a cell phone and clothing in exchange for sex acts and for providing him pornographic pictures and videos.
Bowles also offered to be the “sugar daddy” to a second minor via Snapchat, and claimed he could mentor her in the modeling industry. In 2020, he met the victim multiple times and gave her cash, liquor, clothing and prescription drugs in exchange for sexual contact. He also made video recordings of those sex acts on two occasions.
In a victim impact statement to the court, both victims said Bowles was relentless in his attempts to contact them. “He was obsessed with me, and no matter how hard I tried to get rid of him he would always find another way,” the first victim wrote. He contacted her friends, left voicemails, drop things off at her house and drive by. “It got to the point where I felt like I was always being watched. I was scared for my life because he knew where I lived and who I hung out with,” she wrote, adding that she was in constant fear that he would kidnap or kill her.
The second victim said she had left home and was couch hopping and had no way on her own to get to work “so I was easily persuaded to cave into the nonsense that I was being fed on SnapChat by Thomas.” She wrote that she tried to stop. “I completely lost myself. I was talked into some crazy stuff that breaks my soul to live with.”
Bowles used aliases that prevented the victims from discovering that he is a registered sex offender. Both victims told Bowles that they were underage.
In court, Assistant U.S. Attorney Jillian Anderson said Bowles intentionally manipulated and exploited “particularly vulnerable children.”
Bowles pleaded guilty in U.S. District Court in St. Louis in November to one count of sex trafficking of a child, two counts of coercion and enticement of a minor, one count of production of child pornography and one count of receiving child pornography.
The FBI, St. Charles County Police Department, St. Louis County Police Department and Jefferson County Sheriff’s Department investigated this case. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Jillian Anderson and Nathan Chapman prosecuted the case.
This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice. Led by U.S. Attorneys’ Offices and the Department of Justice Criminal Division's Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state and local resources to better locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who 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.
Seven Defendants Sentenced to Federal Prison for Trafficking Methamphetamine and FentanylRead the Press Release
LITTLE ROCK—Jonathan D. Ross, United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Arkansas, announced today that seven defendants have been sentenced by United States District Judge D.P. Marshall Jr. to federal prison for trafficking methamphetamine and fentanyl. Each of the defendants previously pled guilty to conspiracy to distribute and possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine and fentanyl tablets.
On November 3, 2021, Kyle Harris and Armando Luna were indicted on three counts relating to methamphetamine trafficking. A superseding indictment filed on February 2, 2022, added Taylor, Chaney, Davis, Helms, and Kriesel. The superseding indictment added charges related to firearms and substantial drug trafficking, to include fentanyl trafficking. The defendants pled guilty to Counts 1 and 2 of the Superseding Indictment and with the exception of Davis, faced life imprisonment on one or more counts. There is no parole in the federal system.
From July 2019 through August 2021, defendants engaged in the distribution of pound quantities of methamphetamine and thousands of fentanyl tablets in Russellville, Conway, and surrounding communities. Several defendants have significant criminal histories, including prior drug trafficking convictions. Defendants Harris, Taylor, Chaney, and Davis are classified as “career offenders.”
Defendant Age City/State Plea Date Sentence Kyle Harris 36 Conway, Arkansas 8/3/2022204 months,
10 years supervised release
Armando Luna 28 Russellville, Arkansas 7/20/222156 months,
5 years supervised release
Benjamin Taylor 34 Atkins, Arkansas 3/6/2023216 months,
5 years supervised release
Zachery Chaney 36 Russellville, Arkansas 8/1/2022180 months,
10 years supervised release
Joseph Davis 52 Russellville, Arkansas 8/1/2022168 months,
4 years supervised release
Clara Helms 32 Russellville, Arkansas 8/4/202298 months,
4 years supervised release
Blake Kriesel 28 Russellville, Arkansas 8/24/2022120 months,
5 years supervised release
During the investigation, law enforcement recovered thousands of fentanyl tablets, pound quantities of methamphetamine, ounce quantities of heroin, tablets of para-Fluorofentanyl, and other controlled substances. At times, the fentanyl tablets were concealed in packaging for fruit snacks and resembled oxycodone tablets. Multiple firearms were also recovered by law enforcement.
“The scourge of methamphetamine and fentanyl continues to destroy lives and communities across our country. We will continue to use every available resource to identify and prosecute those involved with the distribution of these drugs and will not waste time developing sympathy for them. Rather, we will seek the most severe sentences under the law,” said Ross.
“The ATF is working closely with local and state police agencies to prevent firearm trafficking and the scourge of deadly drugs, including fentanyl, flooding our communities,” said ATF New Orleans Special Agent in Charge Joshua Jackson. “Alongside our partners at the U.S. Attorney’s Office, ATF is dedicated to pursuing and combating these criminals to prevent them from doing harm to our communities and neighborhoods.”
“It is admirable to see the combined efforts of all those who worked diligently to investigate and prosecute these cases with the common purpose of making the River Valley communities a safer place to live,” said David Ewing, Chief of Police for Russellville Police Department. “These drug trafficking convictions will send a strong message that we are collectively committed to that common purpose.”
“I’m proud of our local law enforcement, particularly Drug Task Forces that cooperate with Federal authorities to take drug traffickers off the streets,” said Jeff Phillips, Fifth Judicial District Prosecuting Attorney’s Office. “It normally starts at the local level and cooperation between the agencies is vital to successful prosecutions.”
The investigation was conducted by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, Russellville Police Department, Pope County Sheriff’s Office, Fifth Judicial Drug Task Force, and Conway Police Department.
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Additional information about the office of the
United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Arkansas, is available online at
https://www.justice.gov/edar
X (formerly known as Twitter):
@USAO_EDAR
Seven Charged in Theft of California Benefits for Low-Income FamiliesRead the Press Release
NEWS RELEASE SUMMARY – March 4, 2024
SAN DIEGO – Seven people were arrested and charged this week in connection with the theft of hundreds of thousands of dollars in public-assistance benefits from low-income families that need the funds to pay for food, housing and other necessities.
The defendants were taken into custody by a U.S. Secret Service-led task force as part of a three-day effort to crack down on this devastating and growing fraud in which California benefits are drained from recipients’ accounts almost immediately after the funds are dispersed by the state, typically early in the month. A simultaneous operation netted three arrests in the Northern District of California.
Marian Dogaru, Catalan Craciun, Vasile Ionita, Andrei Cristian Geangasau, Domitru Ducila Unguru, Roberto Calin and Razvan Iulian Gaspar are charged with stealing Electronic Benefit Transfer (EBT) account information and making fraudulent cash withdrawals at ATMs using that stolen EBT information.
According to the complaints, between June 2022 and February 2024, over $181 million has been stolen from EBT beneficiaries in California. Most of these stolen funds have come from unauthorized ATM withdrawals. The complaints also allege that victims of the scheme are largely low-income families who depend on EBT benefits to buy food and other household necessities.
“EBT fraud literally takes food out of the mouths of children,” said U.S. Attorney Tara McGrath. “Parents who don’t know they’ve been targeted get to the grocery checkout and discover their EBT cards have been wiped clean. We are taking proactive steps to prevent this appalling crime and punish those who take advantage of vulnerable people.”
“EBT fraud continues to be an issue in California and throughout the nation,” said Assistant Special Agent in Charge Michael Peck, U.S. Secret Service Office of Investigations. “The U.S. Secret Service will continue to investigate and arrest those responsible for EBT fraud as we seek to disrupt their networks and protect our most vulnerable communities.”
According to charging documents, here’s how the fraud works:
The Department of Agriculture’s Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) is a federally funded assistance program designed to help low-income individuals and families purchase food. In California, SNAP public assistance benefits are distributed through CalFresh and loaded to an account that a qualified recipient can access by means of an access card, similar to a debit or credit card, called the California Advantage Electronic Benefit Transfer (EBT) Card.
The Department of Health and Human Services administers the Temporary Assistance to Needy Families (TANF) program, which provides states with money to support low-income families with children. In California, TANF grant funds are used to operate CalWORKS. Families that apply and qualify for ongoing CalWORKS assistance receive money each month to help pay for housing, food, and other necessary expenses. Like CalFresh, CalWORKS benefits are distributed through the California Advantage EBT card.
To access these benefits, recipient swipe their card through a point-of-sale terminal, or insert it into an ATM, and provide their Personal Identification Number (PIN).
According to the complaints, the U.S. Secret Service has gathered evidence indicating members of what appear to be one or more criminal enterprises are stealing California EBT account information by installing skimmers on point-of-sale terminals and inside ATMs, often in communities with higher concentrations of public benefit recipients. The skimmed data is then often re-encoded onto the magnetic strips of cards that members of the conspiracy use to make unauthorized withdrawals and purchases.
These re-encoded cards are sometimes referred to as “cloned” cards. Cloned cards can be a blank white plastic card, or another debit, credit, or gift card. Cloned cards may have names or numbers embossed on the physical face of the card. A common feature of cloned cards is that the account number encoded on the card’s magnetic strip will not match the number embossed on the card’s face. To facilitate the use of the stolen EBT benefits, members of the scheme will commonly put stickers bearing the account’s PIN on the physical cards, or access devices, that are swiped at a point-of-sale terminal, along with the account balance.
U.S. Attorney McGrath thanked the many law enforcement partners whose work and dedication made this operation a success: The U.S. Secret Service, California Highway Patrol, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General, Oceanside Police Department, California Department of Social Services, Homeland Security Investigations, San Diego District Attorney’s Office, San Diego Police Department, San Diego Sheriff’s Department, U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Office of Inspector General, Los Angeles District Attorney’s Office, and the United States Attorney’s Office for the Central District of California.
If you or someone you know has had your EBT benefits stolen, San Diego County’s Department of Health & Human Services Agency requires that the theft be reported within 10 days. More information for San Diego County victims is available at:
https://www.sandiegocounty.gov/content/sdc/hhsa/programs/ssp/ebt_fraud.html.
DEFENDANT Case Number Age Hometown
Marian Dogaru 24MJ1315 38 Barlad City, Romania
Catalan Craciun 24MJ1234 36 Barlad, Romania
Vasile Ionita 24 MJ1289 22 Bucharest, Romania
Andrei Cristian Geangasau 24 MJ1289 23 Bucharest, Romania
Domitru Ducila Unguru 24MJ1298 20 Craiova, Romania
Roberto Calin 24MJ1298 19 Rome, Italy
Razvan Iulian Gaspar 24MJ1345 33 Targu Mures City, Romania
SUMMARY OF CHARGES
Use of Unauthorized Access Devices – Title 18, U.S.C., Section 1029(a)(2) (All Defendants)
Maximum penalty: Ten years in prison and $250,000 fine
Possession of Access Device-Making Equipment – Title 18, U.S.C., Section 1029(a)(4) (Dogaru, Ionita, Geangasu, Unguru, Calin, Gaspar)
Maximum penalty: Fifteen years in prison and $250,000 fine
INVESTIGATING AGENCIES
U.S. Secret Service’s Southern California Cyber Fraud Task Force
San Diego District Attorney’s Office
California Highway Patrol
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ Office of Inspector General
California Department of Social Services
San Diego Police Department
San Diego Sheriff’s Department
U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Office of Inspector General
Homeland Security Investigations
Los Angeles District Attorney’s Office
United States Attorney’s Office for the Central District of California
United States Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of California
*The charges and allegations contained in an indictment or complaint are merely accusations, and the defendants are considered innocent unless and until proven guilty.
Sacramento Man Charged with Distribution of Fentanyl and Illegal Possession of a FirearmRead the Press Release
SACRAMENTO, Calif. — A federal grand jury returned a 10-count indictment today against Antoine Lamar Davis, 27, of Sacramento, charging him with conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute fentanyl, distribution of fentanyl, possession with intent to distribute fentanyl, and being a felon in possession of a firearm, U.S. Attorney Phillip A. Talbert announced.
According to court documents, from January 2023 until March 2024, Davis conspired with another individual to distribute and possess with intent to distribute fentanyl. Davis distributed at least 40 grams of fentanyl to another person on five occasions and distributed 400 grams of fentanyl on at least one occasion. Davis was found to be in possession of three firearms. Davis is prohibited from possessing firearms due to prior felony convictions, including being a felon in possession of a firearm, obstructing a public official, and carrying a concealed firearm.
This case is the product of an investigation by the Drug Enforcement Administration and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, with assistance from the Central Valley California High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area, the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation, the Sacramento Police Department, and the Sacramento Sheriff’s Office Special Enforcement Detail. Assistant U.S. Attorney Alstyn Bennett is prosecuting the case.
If convicted, Davis faces a maximum statutory penalty of life in prison and a $10 million fine. Any sentence, however, would be determined at the discretion of the court after consideration of any applicable statutory factors and the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, which take into account a number of variables. The charges are only allegations; the defendant is presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.
This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program bringing together all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve to reduce violent crime and gun violence, and to make our neighborhoods safer for everyone. On May 26, 2021, the U.S. Department of Justice launched a violent crime reduction strategy strengthening PSN based on these core principles: fostering trust and legitimacy in our communities, supporting community-based organizations that help prevent violence from occurring in the first place, setting focused and strategic enforcement priorities, and measuring the results. For more information about Project Safe Neighborhoods, please visit Justice.gov/PSN.
Russian Nationals Admit to Illegally Sending Controlled Aviation Technology to RussiaRead the Press Release
Two Russian nationals pleaded guilty this week to conspiracy to violate the Export Control Reform Act (ECRA) in connection with a scheme to acquire and unlawfully export controlled aviation technology to Russian end users. One of the defendants, Oleg Sergeyevhich Patsulya, also pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit international money laundering.
According to court documents, Patsulya and Vasilii Sergeyevich Besedin, both of whom reside in Miami-Dade County, Florida, conspired with each other and several others to evade U.S. export laws and regulations to send aircraft technology from the United States to Russia. According to court documents, the unlawful scheme began in or about May 2022, in the wake of Russia’s most recent invasion of Ukraine and enhanced U.S. sanctions on Russia.
“These defendants smuggled sensitive aircraft technology into Russia following its unprovoked invasion of Ukraine and did so in violation of laws designed to protect America’s national security,” said Attorney General Merrick B. Garland. “Today’s guilty pleas reflect the seriousness with which the Justice Department approaches violations of the law that endanger the United States and benefit our adversaries.”
“Make no mistake, threats to U.S. economic security are threats to our national security,” said FBI Director Christopher Wray. “When adversaries steal our technology to strengthen their economies, American industry suffers. The FBI and our Disruptive Technology Strike Force partners remain steadfast in our commitment to protect U.S. jobs and innovation by preventing the illegal export of sensitive technology.”
“By their own admission, the defendants fraudulently procured millions of dollars’ worth of U.S.-origin aircraft equipment to smuggle to Russian airline companies,” said Assistant Attorney General Matthew G. Olsen of the Justice Department’s National Security Division. “These pleas are the latest example of the Department’s commitment to bringing to justice those whose crimes enrich the Russian regime.”
“Disrupting the illegal export of sensitive American goods and technologies to sanctioned foreign actors is a critical priority requiring a whole-of-government approach,” said U.S. Attorney Gary Restaino for the District of Arizona. “This case has been a textbook example of how a collaborative strike force can work together effectively and nimbly to dismantle a sanctions-evading scheme and to prosecute those individuals who profit from it.”
“These guilty pleas are just the latest demonstration of our unwavering commitment to supporting the people of Ukraine and stopping those who attempt to prop up the Russian aviation sector,” said Assistant Secretary for Export Enforcement Matthew S. Axelrod. “We continue to take aggressive enforcement against those who violate our Russia controls, including those who lie about the identities of their customers in attempts to conceal Russia as the true destination for their goods.”
Beginning in or about May 2022 through on or about May 11, 2023, Patsulya and Besedin conspired with each other and several others to obtain orders for various aircraft parts and components from Russian buyers – primarily commercial airline companies – and then fulfill those requests by acquiring the parts from the United States suppliers, including a supplier based in Arizona, and unlawfully exporting the parts to Russia. The defendants admitted to knowing the items were controlled and required a license from the Department of Commerce to export.
For example, the defendants conspired to export multiple shipments of a carbon disc brake system used on Boeing 737 aircraft. When they contacted various U.S. suppliers in efforts to obtain the brake system, Besedin and Patsulya provided false information that the parts were intended for countries other than Russia. The United States was able to detain, prior to export, multiple shipments made by the defendants containing units of the brake assembly technology.
Besedin and Patsulya further admitted that they attempted to conceal the illegal exports and avoid detection by law enforcement, including by making false representations about the identities of their true customers and using straw buyer-companies located overseas to obscure the origin of revenue. For example, on Sept. 8, 2022, Besedin and Patsulya traveled to Arizona to close a deal with a U.S. company, in which the defendants sought to purchase units of the brake assembly technology. During their discussions with the company, the defendants misrepresented that the aircraft parts were going to be exported to Turkey, when they were in fact destined for Russia. The defendants made false statements both orally to the company and in the export compliance forms. In connection with this transaction, the defendants received money from a Russian airline company to make the purchase. The funds were transferred to Patsulya’s American bank account from a Turkish bank account which had previously received the money from Russia.
In total, throughout the conspiracy, American bank accounts associated with MIC P&I LLC, a company controlled by Patsulya, received at least $4,582,288 sent from Russian airline companies through Turkish bank accounts to purchase aircraft parts and components intended for unlawful export. As part of Patsulya’s plea, he agreed to forfeit, among other assets, a sum of money equal to $4,582,288.
Both Besedin and Patsulya pleaded guilty to conspiracy to export items from the United States without a license in violation of the Export Control Reform Act, which carries a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison. Patsulya additionally pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit international money laundering, which carries a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors. Sentencing is scheduled for June 17.
The BIS Phoenix Field Office and the FBI Phoenix Field Office are conducting the joint investigation. The BIS Boston Field Office, FBI Miami Field Office, HSI Phoenix Field Office, Customs and Border Protection-Phoenix Field Office, and the U.S. Marshals Office in Miami provided valuable assistance.
Assistant U.S. Attorneys Todd M. Allison and William G. Voit for the District of Arizona and Trial Attorney Christopher M. Rigali of the National Security Division’s Counterintelligence and Export Control Section are prosecuting the case. The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Florida provided valuable assistance.
Today’s actions were coordinated through the Justice and Commerce Departments’ Disruptive Technology Strike Force and the Justice Department’s Task Force KleptoCapture. The Disruptive Technology Strike Force is an interagency law enforcement strike force co-led by the Departments of Justice and Commerce designed to target illicit actors, protect supply chains, and prevent critical technology from being acquired by authoritarian regimes and hostile nation states. Task Force KleptoCapture is an interagency law enforcement task force dedicated to enforcing the sweeping sanctions, export restrictions and economic countermeasures that the United States has imposed, along with its allies and partners, in response to Russia’s unprovoked military invasion of Ukraine.
Rockland County Drug Dealer Wayne Hicks Sentenced to 17 Years in Prison for Participation in February 2021 AssaultRead the Press Release
Damian Williams, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, announced that WAYNE HICKS, a/k/a “Weez,” was sentenced to 17 years in prison for drug trafficking and violent crimes, including a brutal beating and robbery of a victim in New City, New York, on February 28, 2021. HICKS pled guilty on August 25, 2023, in White Plains federal court to one count of conspiracy to commit Hobbs Act Robbery, one count of Hobbs Act Robbery, one count of Travel Act Assault, one count of conspiracy to distribute marijuana, and one count of possessing a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime before U.S. District Judge Cathy Seibel, who imposed today’s sentence.
U.S. Attorney Damian Williams said: “Wayne Hicks was a drug dealer who directed multiple violent attacks as retribution for drug robberies. After one such attack, he bragged and circulated gruesome videos of it to bolster his brutal reputation. The substantial sentence imposed by the court makes clear that the law has no tolerance for this kind of brazen violence. Thanks to the tenacious work of our law enforcement partners and the career prosecutors of this Office, all the participants in this attack have now been convicted and brought to justice.”
According to the allegations in the Superseding Indictment and other court filings and based on statements made in public court proceedings:
HICKS, a marijuana dealer, directed two separate acts of violence to support his drug business. First, in November 2020, after a marijuana dealer who worked for HICKS was robbed, HICKS arranged for a co-conspirator to shoot one of the robbers. Second, in February 2021, after JORDAN WOODBINE, another marijuana dealer who worked for HICKS, was robbed, HICKS contacted his brother, co-defendant DWAYNE HICKS, to arrange retribution. Thereafter, DWAYNE HICKS lured a victim, who the conspirators believed had participated in the robbery of WOODBINE, to a residence in New City, New York, where DWAYNE HICKS and multiple other assailants, including TNAIYA WILLIAMS, BRIAN THOMAS, and WOODBINE, physically attacked the victim. At times, WAYNE HICKS monitored the attack over video chat. The assailants forced the victim to strip naked, stole his belongings, including a quantity of marijuana the assailants believed the victim had stolen, then beat the victim with a baseball bat, belts, and their hands and feet, and repeatedly slashed and stabbed the victim with a large knife. The victim ultimately fled after being left, naked and covered in blood, in a pile of snow.
The other individuals who carried out the February 28, 2021, attack at HICKS’s direction were convicted along with HICKS. At a previous sentencing hearing for one of HICKS’s codefendants, Judge Seibel remarked that the February 28, 2021, attack was “sickening,” “vicious,” “stomach turning, and the sort of thing that you really can’t imagine how any human being could partake in.”
* * *
In addition to the prison term, HICKS, 32, of Hawthorne, New York, was sentenced to five years of supervised release.
Mr. Williams praised the outstanding investigative work of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (“FBI”), the Clarkstown Police Department, the Rockland County District Attorney’s Office, and the Westchester County Safe Streets Task Force, which is comprised of special agents and task force officers from the FBI, U.S. Probation, New York State Police, New York State Department of Corrections and Community Supervision, Putnam County Sheriff's Office, Westchester County District Attorney’s Office, Rockland County District Attorney’s Office, and the New York City, Westchester County, Yonkers, New Rochelle, Mount Vernon, Greenburgh, White Plains, Peekskill, Ramapo, and Clarkstown Police Departments.
The case is being handled by the Office’s White Plains Division. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Timothy Ly, Josiah Pertz, and Derek Wikstrom are in charge of the prosecution.
Richmond man pleads guilty after being caught with a machine gunRead the Press Release
RICHMOND, Va. – A Richmond man pleaded guilty today to illegally possessing a machine gun.
According to court documents, on March 25, 2023, Sterling Alexander Davis, 21, failed to stop at the intersection of Orcutt Lane and Kimrod Road and Richmond police performed a traffic stop. Davis told officers there were no firearms in the vehicle, but officers recognized the two passengers in the back seat and knew that they had possessed firearms in previous encounters. The officers checked both backseat passengers and found firearms in their pants.
The officers then performed a sweep of the vehicle for additional weapons and located a Glock 45 9mm handgun under the driver seat. The handgun was equipped with a laser guide and an extended magazine. The Glock also had a machinegun conversion device, or “Glock switch,” which rendered it capable of fully automatic fire, meeting the legal definition of a machine gun.
Davis is scheduled to be sentenced on July 30 and faces up to 10 years in prison. Actual sentences for federal crimes are typically less than the maximum penalties. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
Jessica D. Aber, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia, Craig Kailimai, Special Agent in Charge of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives Washington Field Division; Rick Edwards, Chief of Richmond Police; and Colette Wallace McEachin, Commonwealth’s Attorney for the City of Richmond, made the announcement after U.S. District Judge M. Hannah Lauck accepted the plea.
Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Katherine Groover, an Assistant Commonwealth’s Attorney with the Richmond Commonwealth’s Attorney Office, and Assistant U.S. Attorney Olivia L. Norman are prosecuting the case.
A copy of this press release is located on the website of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Virginia. Related court documents and information are located on the website of the District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia or on PACER by searching for Case No. 3:24-cr-32.
Repeat offenders sentenced to 10 years in prison for narcotics crimesRead the Press Release
COLUMBUS, Ohio – Two Columbus residents have each been sentenced to 120 months in prison for federal drug crimes. The defendants were previously convicted in the Southern District of Ohio in 2018.
Francisco Ruellas-Gonzalez, 31, pleaded guilty in November 2023 to possessing with the intent to distribute 40 grams or more of fentanyl and 10 grams or more of fentanyl analogue. He was sentenced in federal court today.
According to court documents, in 2022 and 2023, Ruellas-Gonzalez and his co-defendant Jaime Renteria, 33, used a residence on Clearhurst Drive as a drug stash house. The apartment had minimal furnishings and no electricity. At the time, the two defendants were residing on Athalia Drive in Columbus.
When law enforcement officers executed search warrants at the two residences and on the defendants themselves and their vehicles, they discovered approximately 448 grams of methamphetamine, 751 grams of fentanyl and/or a fentanyl analogue (including 1,449 tablets marked as oxycodone), 226 grams of heroin, and 12 grams of cocaine; five firearms and ammunition; and $28,925 in drug proceeds.
These are the defendants’ second federal drug trafficking convictions in less than five years. Ruellas-Gonzalez was sentenced in 2018 to serve 24 months in prison for distributing heroin and cocaine and was deported to Mexico for the fourth time. Renteria was sentenced in 2018 to 46 months in prison and was released early under the First Step Act in January 2022.
Renteria pleaded guilty in August 2023 to possessing with the intent to distribute 40 grams or more of fentanyl, 100 grams or more of fentanyl analogue and 100 grams or more of heroin. He was sentenced in January to 120 months in prison.
Kenneth L. Parker, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Ohio, and Orville O. Greene, Special Agent in Charge, Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), Detroit Division; announced the sentences imposed by U.S. District Court Judge Edmund A. Sargus, Jr. Assistant United States Attorney Nicole Pakiz is representing the United States in this case.
This investigation 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. More information about OCDETF can be found at https://www.justice.gov/OCDETF.
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Randolph Man Sentenced to 10 Years in Prison for Cocaine Trafficking ConspiracyRead the Press Release
BOSTON – A Randolph man was sentenced yesterday in federal court in Boston for his role in a drug trafficking organization that shipped dozens of parcels containing kilograms of cocaine from Puerto Rico to various addresses throughout Eastern Massachusetts and Rhode Island.
Cristian Junior Alvarado Deleon, 23, was sentenced by U.S. District Court Chief Judge F. Dennis Saylor IV to 10 years in prison and five years of supervised release. In January 2024, Alvarado Deleon pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to distribute and to possess with intent to distribute five kilograms or more of cocaine.
Alvarado Deleon received shipments of cocaine mailed from Puerto Rico to Massachusetts and Rhode Island. The cocaine inside these packages was typically hidden inside innocuous consumer goods, such as air fryers. Alvarado Deleon was also responsible for the return of bad batches of cocaine according to communications intercepted by a wiretap used in this investigation. In May 2021, during the execution of a search warrant at Alvarado Deleon’s apartment, he threw a firearm out of his bedroom window while his roommate threw $88,800 in cash from another window. Inside the apartment, three empty parcels that were used to ship cocaine from Puerto Rico to Massachusetts were recovered.
Acting United States Attorney Joshua S. Levy; Ketty Larco-Ward, Inspector in Charge of the U.S. Postal Inspection Service’s Boston Division; John E. Mawn Jr., Interim Colonel of the Massachusetts State Police; and Boston Police Commissioner Michael Cox made the announcement today. Valuable assistance was provided by the Drug Enforcement Administration, New England Field Division and Homeland Security Investigations in Boston. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Philip C. Cheng and James E. Arnold of the Criminal Division prosecuted the case.
This case is part of an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) operation. OCDETF identifies, disrupts, and dismantles the highest-level criminal organizations that threaten the United States using a prosecutor-led, intelligence-driven, multi-agency approach. Additional information about the OCDETF Program can be found at https://www.justice.gov/OCDETF.
The details contained in the charging documents are allegations. The remaining defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
Previously Convicted Felon Pleads Guilty to Violent Crime SpreeRead the Press Release
ALBUQUERQUE – A previously convicted felon pleaded guilty in federal court to charges arising from a violent crime spree over two months in 2021. Procopio Montoya Atkinson, 26, pleaded guilty in federal court to interference with commerce by robbery, using and carrying a firearm during and in relation to a crime of violence, assault upon a federal officer involving use of a deadly weapon, carjacking and being a felon in possession a firearm and ammunition.
According to court documents, on November 12, 2021, Atkinson robbed the Dollar General store at 201 Montano Rd NW. When the cashier opened the register, Atkinson tried to take money from the drawer, but the cashier closed the register drawer. Atkinson pulled out a firearm, discharged it into the ceiling, and demanded money. Another employee opened the register drawer and Atkinson took approximately $192.
On December 17, 2021, Atkinson forcibly assaulted a Task Force Officer with the United States Marshal Service who was attempting to arrest Atkinson on outstanding warrants. Atkinson saw the task force officer stopped on the side of a road and pointed a firearm at him as he passed by.
On December 20, 2021, Atkinson was being pursued by Belen police when he committed a carjacking. Atkinson ran out of gas and approached an occupied truck, pointed a firearm at the driver and told him to get out of the truck. During an ensuing struggle, Atkinson shot the driver. Atkinson got into the truck and tried to drive away but was blocked in by police.
In his plea agreement, Atkinson admitted that he knew that he was convicted of several felony offenses and therefore he could not legally possess a firearm or ammunition.
The Court ordered that Atkinson remain in detention pending sentencing, which has not been scheduled. At sentencing, Atkinson faces no less than 10 years and up to life in prison.
There is no parole in the federal system.
U.S. Attorney Alexander M.M. Uballez and Raul Bujanda, Special Agent in Charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, made the announcement today.
The Gallup Resident Agency of the FBI Albuquerque Field Office investigated this case with assistance from the United States Marshal Service, Belen Police Department, Bernalillo County Sheriff’s Office, Albuquerque Police Department, Rio Rancho Police Department and the New Mexico State Police. Assistant U.S. Attorney Timothy Trembley is prosecuting the case.
View the Plea Agreement# # #
Pill Distributor Pleads Guilty to Trafficking Tens of Thousands of Pills Containing Fentanyl and MethamphetamineRead the Press Release
BOSTON – A Haverhill man pleaded guilty to distributing tens of thousands of pills containing fentanyl and methamphetamine.
Angel Joel Diaz, a/k/a “Guero,” 35, pleaded guilty to one count of distribution of and possession with intent to distribute fentanyl, two counts of distribution of and possession with intent to distribute 400 grams or more of fentanyl, and one count of possession with intent to distribute 400 grams or more of fentanyl, 50 grams or more of methamphetamine and methadone. U.S. District Court Judge Richard G. Stearns scheduled sentencing for July 10, 2024. Diaz was indicted by a federal grand jury in April 2023.
In January 2023, an investigation began into Diaz’s fentanyl pill manufacturing and distribution operation. An undercover officer contacted Diaz posing as a potential drug customer seeking to buy counterfeit prescription pills containing fentanyl. On Jan. 11, 2023, Diaz provided the undercover officer with 208 pills containing fentanyl and methamphetamine. Diaz told the undercover officer that the pills were made with “fentanyl” and they were “knocking people down in New York.”
On two subsequent occasions, Jan. 27, 2023 and Feb. 7, 2023, Diaz distributed thousands of counterfeit prescription pills containing suspected fentanyl to the undercover officer. On Feb. 14, 2023, Diaz sent a photo of fentanyl pills to the undercover officer and said, “even making it with a mask makes you want to vomit and everything.”
On Feb. 15, 2023, Diaz was arrested while carrying a shopping bag containing 31,142 fentanyl pills separated into seven plastic bags. During a subsequent search of Diaz’s Haverhill residence, a pill press; thousands of pills; powder containing fentanyl and methadone; stamps used to make counterfeit pills; several masks; and chemicals used in manufacturing pills were discovered.
The charge of distribution of and possession with intent to distribute fentanyl and methamphetamine provides for a sentence of up to 20 years in prison, at least three years of supervised release and a fine of up to $1 million. The charges of distribution of and possession with intent to distribute 400 grams or more of fentanyl provide for a sentence of at least 10 years and up to life in prison, at least five years and up to a lifetime of supervised release and a fine of up to $10 million. Sentences are imposed by a federal district court judge based upon the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and statutes which govern the determination of a sentence in a criminal case.
Acting United States Attorney Joshua S. Levy and Stephen Belleau, Acting Special Agent in Charge of the Drug Enforcement Administration, New England Field Division made the announcement today. Valuable assistance was provided by the Massachusetts State Police and the Haverhill Police Department. Assistant U.S. Attorney Samuel R. Feldman of the Narcotics & Money Laundering Unit is prosecuting the case.
Philadelphia Man Indicted for May 2020 Arson of a SunRay Drugs Pharmacy Building in West PhiladelphiaRead the Press Release
PHILADELPHIA – United States Attorney Jacqueline C. Romero announced that Tyrone Wise, 34, of Philadelphia, PA, was charged today by indictment with one count of arson.
The indictment alleges that on May 31, 2020 — while both lawful protests and unlawful civil disturbances were occurring throughout the region and the country — the defendant started a fire inside 25 South 60th Street (at the corner of Ludlow and 60th Streets) in Philadelphia. The fire severely damaged a SunRay Drugs Pharmacy and multiple apartments inside the building.
If convicted, the defendant faces a mandatory minimum sentence of 5 years’ imprisonment, a maximum possible sentence of 20 years’ imprisonment, and other penalties.
The case was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and the Philadelphia Police Department and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Kevin Jayne.
An indictment, information, or criminal complaint is an accusation. A defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
Owner of Telemedicine Companies Pleads Guilty to $110 Million Medicare Fraud SchemeRead the Press Release
BOSTON – The owner of Expansion Media (Expansion) and Hybrid Management Group (Hybrid) pleaded guilty yesterday in connection with a $110 million telemedicine fraud scheme involving medically unnecessary durable medical equipment (DME), including orthotics such as back and knee braces.
Steven Richardson, 40, of Parkland, Fla., pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit health care fraud. U.S. District Court Judge Nathaniel M. Gorton scheduled sentencing for July 18, 2024. Richardson was charged by Information in February 2024.
Between March 2016 and January 2023, Richardson, through his companies Expansion and Hybrid, entered into business relationships with telemarketing companies that generated leads by targeting Medicare beneficiaries. The telemarketers then paid Expansion and Hybrid on a per-order basis to generate orders for DME for these beneficiaries. To arrange for these orders to be signed, Richardson worked with medical staffing companies—including one in Massachusetts—to find doctors and nurses who were willing to review and sign prepopulated orders, typically without any contact with the beneficiaries. The records falsely portrayed the medical providers as having performed a legitimate examination of the beneficiary. Richardson then provided the signed orders to the telemarketing companies, which sold the orders to DME suppliers. Richardson knew that these DME suppliers would use the signed orders to submit claims to Medicare for DME that was medically unnecessary, based on false documentation and tainted by kickbacks.
The charge of conspiracy to commit health care fraud provides for a sentence of up to 10 years in prison, supervised release for up to three years and a fine of up to $250,000 or twice the gross gain or loss, whichever is greater. Sentences are imposed by a federal district court judge based upon the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and statutes that govern the determination of a sentence in a criminal case.
Acting United States Attorney Joshua S. Levy; Roberto Coviello, Special Agent in Charge, Health and Human Services-Office of Inspector General; Jodi Cohen, Special Agent in Charge, Federal Bureau of Investigations, Boston Division; Ketty Larco-Ward, Inspector in Charge, United States Postal Inspection Service, Boston Division; Carol S. Hamilton, Regional Director, Employee Benefits Security Administration, U.S. Department of Labor; and Patrick J. Hegarty, Special Agent in Charge, Defense Criminal Investigation Service, North East Field Office made the announcement today. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Lauren Graber and Howard Locker of the Health Care Fraud Unit and Alexandra Brazier and Lindsey Ross of the Affirmative Civil Enforcement Unit are prosecuting the case.
Oregon Man Sentenced for Assaulting Passenger and Flight Crew MemberRead the Press Release
ALBUQUERQUE – An Oregon man pleaded guilty in federal court to assaulting a fellow passenger and flight crew member in 2021 on a Delta Airlines flight from Los Angeles to Nashville. Asiel Christian Norton, 46, of Salem, Oregon, pleaded guilty in federal court to two counts of simple assault and was sentenced to one year of probation.
According to court documents, on June 4, 2021, Norton was a passenger on Delta Airlines Flight 386. During the flight, Norton rushed to the front of the plane and assaulted another passenger by crashing into and injuring him. When a flight crew member tried to get Norton to return to his seat, Norton shoved him.
U.S. Attorney Alexander M.M. Uballez and Raul Bujanda, Special Agent in Charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, made the announcement today.
The FBI Albuquerque Field Office investigated this case with assistance from the Albuquerque Police Department. Assistant U.S. Attorney Jon Stanford is prosecuting the case.
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Oklahoma City Woman Pleads Guilty to Wire Fraud after Submitting False Information to Receive Pandemic Relief LoanRead the Press Release
OKLAHOMA CITY – Yesterday, MADINAH MALIKAH MONTGOMERY, 32, of Oklahoma City, pleaded guilty to wire fraud, announced U.S. Attorney Robert J. Troester.
On March 19, 2024, Montgomery was charged by Information with wire fraud. According to the Information, in July 2020 Montgomery claimed to be the owner of a hair and nail salon business located in Oklahoma City. During this time, in response to the COVID-19 outbreak, the Small Business Administration (SBA) temporarily expanded its Economic Injury Disaster Loan program (EIDL), to help small businesses overcome economic hardships brought on by the pandemic.
Yesterday, Montgomery pleaded guilty to wire fraud and admitted to causing an EIDL application to be submitted to the SBA on behalf of her business. She admitted the loan application falsely stated her business had 10 employees and $600,000 in gross revenue over the previous 12 months. Montgomery received $150,000 as a result of this fraudulent application. Montgomery admitted that part of the loan money she received was improperly spent on personal expenses.
In all, Montgomery received $300,000 from the SBA following her fraudulent EIDL applications.
At sentencing, Montgomery faces up to 20 years in federal prison, and a fine of up to $250,000.
This case is the result of an investigation by the United States Secret Service. Assistant U.S. Attorney Bow Bottomly is prosecuting the case.
Reference is made to public filings for additional information.
For further information on Department of Justice response to the pandemic, please visit https://www.justice.gov/coronavirus or https://www.justice.gov/usao-wdok/covid-19-fraud-0. 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
New York Man Arrested for Murder Occurring in BangladeshRead the Press Release
A Bronx man was arrested today in Manhattan on criminal charges related to the alleged 2021 murder of a man in Bangladesh.
“As alleged in the indictment, the defendant, a U.S. national, murdered another U.S. national while they were both in Bangladesh,” said Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Nicole M. Argentieri, head of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division. “When an American murders another American abroad, they will face serious consequences. The Criminal Division is committed to investigating and prosecuting violent crimes committed against U.S. nationals wherever they occur and holding perpetrators accountable for their actions.”
According to court documents, on or about June 11, 2021, Ganet Rozario, 52, of the Bronx, New York, killed Michael Rozario in Bangladesh. Ganet Rozario allegedly used and carried a firearm to carry out the murder.
“Ganet Rozario, a citizen of the United States, allegedly murdered another U.S. national in Bangladesh,” said U.S. Attorney Damian Williams for the Southern District of New York. “Today’s charges demonstrate that the reach of this office and that of our law enforcement partners is vast and that our commitment to protect the men and women of New York City extends far beyond its geographical boundaries. The message is clear: this office and its partners will be relentless in our pursuit of anyone who takes another life, even overseas.”
“The FBI devotes significant resources to investigating crimes that occur overseas which affect U.S. interests and impact American citizens,” said Acting Assistant Director in Charge Mehtab Syed of the FBI Los Angeles Field Office. “Individuals who commit crimes against U.S. citizens abroad will be held accountable through the FBI’s extraterritorial investigations, which exist to deliver justice for victims of crimes beyond U.S. borders.”
“Ganet Rozario allegedly committed the cold and calculated murder of Michael Rozario, a U.S. national, overseas in Bangladesh,” said Assistant Director in Charge James H. Smith III of the FBI New York Field Office. “It’s not up to the discretion of a single individual to take the life of another as this greatly disrupts the scales of justice. Today’s arrest emphasizes the FBI’s promise to aggressively pursue such egregious criminal acts against our citizens, even if they occur in foreign countries.
Ganet Rozario will also make his court appearance today in the Southern District of New York.
Ganet Rozario is charged with one count of foreign murder of a U.S. national and one count of use, carrying, and possession of a firearm during a crime of violence. If convicted, he faces a maximum penalty of life in prison.
The FBI Los Angeles and New York Field Offices investigated the case.
Senior Trial Attorney Frank Rangoussis of the Criminal Division’s Human Rights and Special Prosecutions Section and Assistant U.S. Attorney Christy Slavik for the Southern District of New York are prosecuting the case.
The Justice Department’s Office of International Affairs also provided assistance.
An indictment is merely an allegation. All defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
IndictmentNew Hampshire Man Pleads Guilty to Drug Trafficking ChargesRead the Press Release
BOSTON – Member of a nationwide drug trafficking ring pleaded guilty yesterday in federal court in Boston. Throughout the investigation over 160 pounds of pure methamphetamine, as well as an AK-47, a Glock with no serial number, two loaded Smith & Wesson handguns, and over 4,200 rounds of ammunition were seized. An illegal marijuana grow operation with hundreds of marijuana plants was also dismantled. On April 2, 2024, Reshat Alkayisi also pleaded guilty and is scheduled to be sentenced on July 11, 2024.
Andre Watson, 47, of Nashua, N.H., pleaded guilty to one count of the second superseding indictment charging him with conspiracy to distribute and to possess with intent to distribute 500 grams or more of methamphetamine. U.S. District Court Judge Nathaniel M. Gorton scheduled sentencing for July 16, 2024.
Watson was charged in a superseding indictment in September 2021 with conspiracy to distribute and to possess with intent to distribute 500 grams or more of methamphetamine. The superseding indictment also charged 10 other defendants with controlled substance offenses, firearm offenses, and money laundering offenses.
In approximately October 2020, investigators received information about drug trafficking activities of a large-scale methamphetamine supplier in the Boston area. In late 2020, investigators identified Reshat Alkayisi as a large-scale methamphetamine trafficker, who distributed multi-pound quantities to customers throughout the New England area. Watson was identified as one of Alkayisi’s methamphetamine customers. In May 2021, Alkayisi distributed approximately four pounds (or 1.8 kilograms) of methamphetamine to Watson. In July 2021, investigators arrested Watson and seized multiple weapons from his vehicle, as well as a loaded firearm from his residence.
Watson is the eighth defendant to plead guilty. All remaining defendants are scheduled to plead guilty.
The charges of conspiracy to distribute and to possess with intent to distribute 500 grams or more of a mixture and substance containing methamphetamine provides for a minimum sentence of 10 years and up to life in prison, five years of supervised release and a fine of up to $10 million. Sentences are imposed by a federal district court judge based upon the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and statutes which govern the determination of a sentence in a criminal case.
Acting United States Attorney Joshua S. Levy; Jodi Cohen, Special Agent in Charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Boston Division; and Stephen Belleau, Acting Special Agent in Charge of the Drug Enforcement Administration, New England Field Division made the announcement. Valuable assistance was provided by the Massachusetts Department of Correction; Norfolk County Sherriff’s Office; and Concord, Hudson, Peabody, Reading, Watertown and Waltham Police Departments. Assistance was also provided by the Massachusetts, Rhode Island, New Hampshire and Maine State Police. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Alathea Porter, Katherine Ferguson and James Arnold of the Criminal Division are prosecuting the case.
This case is part of an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) operation. OCDETF identifies, disrupts, and dismantles the highest-level criminal organizations that threaten the United States using a prosecutor-led, intelligence-driven, multi-agency approach. Additional information about the OCDETF Program can be found at https://www.justice.gov/OCDETF.
The details contained in the charging document are allegations. The remaining defendants are presumed to be innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in the court of law.
Nevada Man Sentenced to Federal Prison for Stealing Covid Relief FundsRead the Press Release
PORTLAND, Ore.—A Nevada man with a lengthy criminal history was sentenced to federal prison today for stealing more than $163,000 in Covid relief program funds while on supervised release for two separate state criminal convictions.
Justin David Goulet, 36, of Las Vegas, Nevada, was sentenced to 27 months in federal prison and three years’ supervised release. He was also ordered to pay $163,100 in restitution to the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA).
According to court documents, in late December 2020, Goulet was released from Oregon state prison after completing concurrent sentences for felony forgery and theft. Less than four months after his release from prison, in April 2021, Goulet devised a scheme to defraud SBA of funds appropriated by Congress to help businesses during the Covid-19 pandemic. Specifically, Goulet applied for two Economic Injury Disaster Loans (EIDLs) and successfully obtained one for $163,100.
To support his fraudulent applications, Goulet registered a straw company called Statement Venture Group, LLC, and falsely claimed to be doing business as an independent contractor while imprisoned in 2019. He further submitted bogus tax filings, including one purportedly created by a New York accounting firm, to the SBA to substantiate robust (and fictional) revenues and payrolls. Goulet used most of the $163,000 he obtained on travel, living expenses, cars, and illegal drugs.
On February 8, 2022, a federal grand jury in Portland returned an indictment charging Goulet with wire fraud and, on August 30, 2022, he pleaded guilty.
This case was investigated by the SBA Office of Inspector General and the FBI. It was prosecuted by Ryan W. Bounds, Assistant U.S. Attorney for the District of Oregon.
Since January 2021, more than 50 people have been charged in the District of Oregon for their roles in fraud schemes targeting federal Covid relief programs. Together, these defendants attempted to steal more than $778 million in federal funds. 23 individuals have been convicted for their crimes and sentenced to a combined total of 477 months in federal prison and 894 months of probation and/or supervised release.
Anyone with information about allegations of attempted fraud involving COVID-19 can report it by calling the Justice Department’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.
Members of Fredericksburg drug trafficking organization sentenced for distributing cocaine, fentanyl and “Molly”Read the Press Release
RICHMOND, Va. – Two men were sentenced today after pleading guilty to their participation in a large-scale drug trafficking organization operating in and around the Fredericksburg, Virginia, area.
According to court documents, task force agents with the FBI and the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) investigated the organization for over a year. From July 2022 through April 2023, Omar Jermel Dixon, 48, of Fredericksburg, supplied controlled substances, including cocaine, fentanyl, and synthetic cathinone (“Molly”), to other members of the organization.
On June 22, 2023, agents arrested Dixon and seized $11,090 in drug proceeds from his home, and a pistol from his vehicle. On Oct. 13, 2023, Dixon pleaded guilty to distribution of more than 500 grams of cocaine. Dixon was sentenced today to 10 years in prison.
On various dates throughout the investigation, Dixon supplied cocaine to Alphonso Lamont Jones, 44, of Fredericksburg, which Jones distributed and returned payment to Dixon. On June 22, 2023, agents arrested Jones at his home. On October 13, 2023, Jones pleaded guilty to conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute more than 500 grams of cocaine. Today, Jones was sentenced to five years in prison.
On various dates throughout the investigation, Dixon supplied cocaine to Ricardo Maurice Morton, aka Cardi, 49, of Ruther Glen, Virginia, which Morton distributed and returned payment to Dixon. On June 22, 2023, agents arrested Morton and seized approximately 90 grams of cocaine from his home. On Oct. 6, 2023, Morton pleaded guilty to conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute cocaine. On March 26, Morton was sentenced to five years in prison.
On April 26, 2023, law enforcement seized one kilogram of Molly from Kelsey Dean Monroe, Jr, aka Lil’ Man, 31, which had been supplied by Dixon. On Oct. 6, 2023, Monroe pleaded guilty to possession with intent to distribute N,N,-Dimethylpentylone. On March 27, Monroe was sentenced to one year and three months in prison.
Leonard Marcel Smith, aka Leonard Marcel Davis, 46, of Fredericksburg, and Lanier Anthony Jackson, aka Dewey, 54, of Spotsylvania, Virginia, served as drivers and lookouts for Dixon. Jackson also served as a driver and assistant to Morton. On Oct. 17, 2023, Smith and Jackson pleaded guilty to conspiracy to distribute and possession with intent to distribute cocaine. On March 25, Smith was sentenced to one year and nine months in prison, and on March 28 Jackson was sentenced to six months in prison.
Jessica D. Aber, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia; Stanley M. Meador, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI’s Richmond Field Office; and Jarod Forget, Special Agent in Charge for the DEA’s Washington Division, made the announcement after Dixon’s sentencing by U.S. District Judge David J. Novak.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Olivia L. Norman prosecuted the case.
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.
A copy of this press release is located on the website of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Virginia. Related court documents and information are located on the website of the District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia or on PACER by searching for Case No. 3:23-cr-73.
Member of the Gangster Disciples Sentenced to 235 Months in Prison for Role in Wide-Ranging, Prison-Based ConspiracyRead the Press Release
BIRMINGHAM, Ala – The last defendant involved in a prison-based phone scam that targeted retailers throughout the country has been sentenced, announced U.S. Attorney Prim F. Escalona and U.S. Secret Service Special Agent in Charge Patrick Davis.
U.S. District Court Judge Anna M. Manasco sentenced Otis Bowers aka “Big O,” 44, of Bessemer, to 235 months in prison for conspiracy to distribute controlled substances. Bowers smuggled controlled substances and other contraband into Donaldson Correctional Facility, which helped further the prison-based phone scam at the center of the investigation.
U.S. District Court Judge Karon O. Bowdre previously sentenced seven other defendants involved in the scheme, including the following:
On August 15, 2023, one of the organizers and leaders of the conspiracy, Ricardo Poole, Sr., aka “Raoul,” 48, of Bessemer, was sentenced to 234 months in prison. He pleaded guilty in April 2023 to conspiracy to commit wire fraud, conspiracy to commit money laundering, conspiracy to distribute controlled substances, and aggravated identity theft.
On November 20, 2023, a manager and supervisor of the conspiracy, Kortney Jovan Simon, 43, of Birmingham, was sentenced to 144 months in prison. Simon pleaded guilty in January 2023 to conspiracy to commit wire fraud, conspiracy to commit money laundering, and aggravated identity theft.
On October 3, 2023, a “skit” caller involved with the conspiracy, Terry Ray Bradshaw, aka “Skitzo,” 39, of Remlap, was sentenced to 61 months in prison. Bradshaw pleaded guilty in February 2023 to conspiracy to commit wire fraud, conspiracy to commit money laundering, and aggravated identity theft.
On June 27, 2023, Ricardo Poole, Jr., 25, of Birmingham was sentenced to 15 months in prison. Poole, Jr. pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit wire fraud and conspiracy to commit money laundering.
According to court documents, between September 2020 and May 2022, Poole Sr. led a group of inmates housed at Donaldson Correctional Facility (Donaldson), who used telephone scams called “skits” to trick employees at The Home Depot, Inc. (Home Depot) into activating pre-paid gift cards. “Skit runners” used contraband cell phones, social engineering techniques, and spoofing technology to trick retailers into transferring funds to inmates under fraudulent pretenses. The defendants would use the fraudulently activated gift cards to make purchases.
Bradshaw was a “skit runner” who was housed at Donaldson for most of the period charged in the indictment. In private Facebook messages Bradshaw referred to himself as a “hacker” and a “professional phone scam artist.” On November 21, 2020, for example, Bradshaw told a Facebook contact that he was “the best scam artist this side of [the] Mississippi.”
During the relevant period, Bradshaw worked for members of the Gangster Disciples—a violent national criminal gang, founded in Chicago, and active across the U.S., including Alabama. At all relevant times, Poole Sr., Simon, and Bowers were members of the Gangster Disciples. Poole, Jr. assisted Poole, Sr. in the carrying out the scheme.
Bradshaw targeted Home Depot and other retailers with “skit” calls. He would then provide the gift card information he obtained to other members of the conspiracy who would purchase products or take steps to liquidate the cards. In exchange for his work as a “skit runner,” Bradshaw received protection from the Gangster Disciples, luxury items like Cartier glasses, and controlled substances like methamphetamine. As Poole Sr. explained in a series of messages he sent to a co-conspirator: “I got to pay the dude that be ordering shit,” “[h]e on ice so I got to keep him hi[gh],” and “I got to pay this dude to keep this shit coming.”
In connection with this aspect of the scheme, Poole, Sr. conspired with Bowers and others to smuggle controlled substances into Donaldson, including methamphetamine and heroin. One of the ways in which members of the conspiracy smuggled contraband into Donaldson and other ADOC facilities was by paying bribes to correctional staff. At other times, members of the conspiracy smuggled contraband into Donaldson and other ADOC facilities by throwing it over the perimeter fence, i.e., the “fence play.” As Poole Sr. explained to a co-conspirator, “I can get it thrown over or I can have it placed somewhere out there and have it brought in.”
In March 2022, Bowers and Poole Sr. worked together to smuggle controlled substances and other contraband into Donaldson in a “fence play.” The scheme was interrupted by law enforcement who confronted a group of co-conspirators trespassing on state property at Donaldson. After being confronted by ADOC officers, the subjects dropped multiple bags containing contraband and fled into a wooded area near the facility. Among other things, the bags contained heroin, cocaine, fentanyl, Delta-Nine-Tetrahydrocannabinol, and over a kilogram methamphetamine. ADOC officers also recovered a Ruger, Model LC9, 9mm pistol; 15 rounds of 9mm ammunition; an extended gun magazine; five pocket knives, one canister of pepper spray; 15 packages of Suboxone, a prescription medication used to treat opioid use disorder; 7 packages of Buprenorphine, another prescription medication used to treat opioid use disorder; 18 small packages containing more than 3.2 kilograms of suspected marijuana; 27 packages of THC gummies; cell phones; cell phone chargers; cell phone cables; a mobile hotspot; memory cards; SIM cards; scales; lighters; individually wrapped cigarillos and cigar wrappers; and shoes, jewelry, and watches.
The U.S. Secret Service Cyber Fraud Task Force investigated the case. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Edward J. Canter and John M. Hundscheid prosecuted the case. Home Depot’s Asset Protection Investigations – Organized Retail Crime Group, the Alabama Department of Corrections Law Enforcement Services Division, the Drug Enforcement Administration, and the Federal Bureau of Investigation all provided significant assistance during the investigation.
Medford Man Indicted in Federal Court for Illegally Selling ExplosivesRead the Press Release
MEDFORD, Ore.—A federal grand jury in Medford returned an indictment today charging a local man with illegally possessing and selling explosives.
Wesley Allen Armstrong, Jr., 56, a Medford resident, has been charged with distributing explosives by a non-licensee, possessing with intent to distribute and distributing fentanyl, and possessing a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime.
According to court documents, in March 2024, detectives from the Medford Area Drug and Gang Enforcement Team (MADGE) notified special agents from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF) of Armstrong’s alleged possession of and desire to sell explosives. On March 27, 2024, Armstrong was arrested after selling eight cast explosives, seven non-electric shock tube detonators, and a small quantity of fentanyl. Investigators executed a search warrant on Armstrong’s vehicle and located and seized a loaded pistol and an additional quantity of fentanyl.
On March 28, 2024, Armstrong was charged by federal criminal complaint with dealing explosives without a license, possessing stolen explosives, possessing explosives as a convicted felon, possessing a firearm as a convicted felon, and possessing with intent to distribute fentanyl; made his first appearance in federal court; and was ordered detained pending further court proceedings. He will be arraigned on today’s indictment at a later date.
This case was investigated by ATF and MADGE. It is being prosecuted by Marco A. Boccato, Assistant U.S. Attorney for the District of Oregon.
MADGE is a multi-jurisdictional narcotics task force that identifies, disrupts, and dismantles local, multi-state, and international drug trafficking organizations using an intelligence-driven, multi-agency prosecutor-supported approach. MADGE is supported by the Oregon-Idaho High-Intensity Drug Trafficking Area (HIDTA) and is composed of members from the Medford Police Department, the Jackson County Sheriff and District Attorney’s Offices, the Jackson County Community Corrections, FBI, and Homeland Security Investigations (HSI).
The Oregon-Idaho HIDTA program is an Office of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP) sponsored counterdrug grant program that coordinates with and provides funding resources to multi-agency drug enforcement initiatives, including MADGE.
An indictment is only an accusation of a crime, and a defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
Maryland Man Pleads Guilty to Conspiracy to Commit Money Laundering Involving More Than $1.8 Million in Drug ProceedsRead the Press Release
Baltimore, Maryland – Gerrod Davis, age 46, of Glen Burnie, Maryland pleaded guilty yesterday to his role in a conspiracy to commit money laundering.
The guilty plea was announced by United States Attorney for the District of Maryland Erek L. Barron; Special Agent in Charge Jarod Forget of the Drug Enforcement Administration - Washington Field Division; and Chief Robert McCullough of the Baltimore County Police Department.
According to the guilty plea, as part of the drug trafficking organization, Davis handled bulk cash narcotics proceeds while his associates were responsible for street-level distribution of narcotics. Members of the drug trafficking organization shared the cash proceeds of their street-level distributions with Davis, who laundered the money on behalf of the organization. Davis conducted “money drops” in which he transported large sums of drug proceeds to an individual purporting to act on behalf of a Mexican Cartel. Davis made these transactions with the intention of promoting the drug trafficking organization and its business relationship with the Cartel as well as concealing the nature, location, source, ownership, and control of the proceeds of the drug trafficking organization. Between July 20, 2020, and May 6, 2021, the amount of money Davis laundered, or attempted to launder in furtherance of the conspiracy was at least $1,811,611.
Davis faces a maximum of 20 years in prison followed by up to 3 years of supervised release. U.S. District Judge Deborah K. Chasanow has scheduled sentencing for June 28, 2024 at 11:00 a.m. Davis and the government have agreed that, if the Court accepts the plea agreement, Davis will be sentenced to 75 months in federal prison.
This case is part of an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF) investigation. OCDETF identifies, disrupts, and dismantles the highest-level criminal organizations that threaten the United States using a prosecutor-led, intelligence-driven, multi-agency approach that leverages the strengths of federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies against criminal networks.
United States Attorney Erek L. Barron commended the DEA for their work in the investigation. Mr. Barron thanked Assistant U.S. Attorney Adeyemi Adenrele who is prosecuting the federal case.
For more information on the Maryland U.S. Attorney’s Office, its priorities, and resources available to help the community, please visit www.justice.gov/usao-md and https://www.justice.gov/usao-md/community-outreach.
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Man sentenced to 27 years in prison for production of child pornography of infant childRead the Press Release
MIAMI – On April 1, a man was sentenced to 324 months in federal prison, followed by supervised release for life, for producing child pornography of an infant child after pleading guilty in November 2023.
In 2023, while the United Kingdom authorities were examining offenders’ electronic devices, discovered a video showing Codey Allen Bates, 30, of Vero Beach, Florida, and an infant child. Law enforcement officers were able to identify Bates from the video. In the video, Bates, then living in Palm Beach County, while live streaming with an unknown person on a social networking application, produced child pornography of the child. The unknown person communicating with Bates recorded the production which was later located by law enforcement.
U.S. Attorney Markenzy Lapointe for the Southern District of Florida, Special Agent in Charge Anthony Salisbury of Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), Miami and Sheriff Eric Flowers of the Indian River County Sheriff’s Office (IRCSO) announced the sentence imposed by U.S. District Judge Robin L. Rosenberg.
HSI West Palm Beach, HSI Fort Pierce and IRCSO investigated the case. Assistant U.S. Attorney Gregory Schiller prosecuted it.
This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood (PSC), a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by United States Attorneys’ Offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals, who sexually exploit children, and to identify and rescue victims. For more information about the Project Safe Childhood initiative and for information regarding Internet safety, please visit www.justice.gov/psc.
To report online child sexual exploitation, use the electronic Cyber Tip Line or call 1-800-843-5678. The Cyber Tip Line is operated by the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children in partnership with the HSI and other law enforcement agencies.
Related court documents and information may be found on the website of the District Court for the Southern District of Florida at www.flsd.uscourts.gov or at http://pacer.flsd.uscourts.gov, under case number 23-cr-80123.
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Man Accused of Secretly Recording Women in St. Louis AreaRead the Press Release
ST. LOUIS – A man has been indicted on a federal charge and accused of secretly recording women in the St. Louis area.
Erik Elsasser, 37, was indicted in U.S. District Court in St. Louis March 27 on one felony count of distribution of child pornography. He pleaded not guilty Thursday.
The indictment accuses Elsasser of distributing images and videos containing child pornography online between August 2022 and August 2023.
A motion seeking to have Elsasser held in jail until trial says he surreptitiously recorded a partially nude 17-year-old female in a store changing room on Aug. 18, 2023. Investigators found other videos made in changing rooms, as well as nearly 200 successful or attempted “upskirt” recordings and three recordings of a woman using a residential bathroom, taken through a window, the motion says. There were also indications that some of those videos, as well as child sexual abuse material, had been distributed online via Telegram.
The distribution charge carries a penalty of five to 20 years in prison, a $250,000 fine or both.
Charges set forth in a criminal complaint are merely accusations and do not constitute proof of guilt. Every defendant is presumed to be innocent unless and until proven guilty.
The case was investigated by the Brentwood Police Department, the St. Charles County Police Department and the FBI. Assistant U.S. Attorney Michael Hayes is prosecuting the case.
This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice. Led by U.S. Attorneys’ Offices and the Department of Justice Criminal Division's Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state and local resources to better locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who 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.
Longtime treasurer charged with stealing nearly $1 million in campaign fundsRead the Press Release
COLUMBUS, Ohio – A Columbus man who served as a campaign treasurer for more than 100 candidates since the 1980s has been charged with wire fraud related to stealing nearly $1 million in campaign funds.
William Curlis, 76, was charged by a bill of information that was filed today. The United States also filed a plea document in this case today, which will be considered by the Court at a future plea hearing.
According to the court documents, from 2008 until June 2023, Curlis defrauded candidates of approximately $995,231 of campaign funds.
Curlis allegedly wrote checks from the bank accounts of certain candidates and one PAC to himself for personal use. It is alleged the defendant transferred funds between campaign accounts without candidates’ knowledge to conceal the deficit he created.
Curlis sold his home in 2016, allegedly to cover the cost of campaign expenses, to include campaign media costs and account balances, to prevent the discovery of his theft.
“As the campaign treasurer and only signatory on numerous bank accounts, Curlis took advantage of his trusted position and wrote checks to himself from the accounts of multiple candidates and one PAC,” said U.S. Attorney Kenneth L. Parker. “I urge candidates, PACs, and businesses alike to protect themselves from future fraud by examining their accounting processes for vulnerabilities and other blind spots. Embezzlement is often committed by persons who take advantage of the victim’s trust, and I encourage everyone to reassess from time to time the safeguards they have in place."
“The long-running fraud perpetuated by Curlis negatively impacted dozens of political campaigns in Ohio,” stated FBI Cincinnati Special Agent in Charge Elena Iatarola. “While Curlis stole from campaigns and worked to conceal his theft, the fraud scheme collapsed and he is now being held accountable.”
“Fraud and abuse will not be tolerated in Ohio,” said Ohio Secretary of State Frank LaRose. “When our Public Integrity Division became aware of this matter, we immediately began investigating and referred our findings directly to federal law enforcement. We will continue working alongside our partners to bring bad actors to justice and to root out any criminality in campaigns and elections.”
“This defendant believed he could outsmart his clients by shuffling funds while skimming off the top – a scheme that worked for a while, but he couldn’t outwit law enforcement,” Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost said. “Great work by BCI and our partners to unravel this embezzlement.”
Wire fraud is a federal crime punishable by up to 20 years in prison.
This case was investigated by the FBI’s Southern Ohio Public Corruption Task Force, which includes agents and officers from the Ohio Bureau of Criminal Investigations (BCI), Columbus Division of Police and Ohio Auditor’s Office. The Ohio Secretary of State’s office was also an integral part of the investigation.
Deputy Criminal Chief Jessica W. Knight is representing the United States in this case.
A bill of information is merely an allegation, and defendants are presumed innocent unless proven guilty in a court of law.
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Long Island Man Charged with Distributing Fentanyl, Heroin, Cocaine and OxycodoneRead the Press Release
Defendant Distributed Fentanyl that Caused the Death of a 49-Year-Old Man in Elmont
Earlier today, at the federal courthouse in Central Islip, a two-count indictment was unsealed charging Ryan Mueller with distributing fentanyl that caused the death of a victim (Victim‑1) and with conspiring to distribute heroin, cocaine, and oxycodone. Mueller was arrested this morning and is scheduled to be arraigned this afternoon before Magistrate Judge Anne Y. Shields.
Breon Peace, United States Attorney for the Eastern District of New York, Frank A. Tarentino, III, Special Agent-in-Charge, Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), Darren B. McCormack, Acting Special Agent-in-Charge, Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), and Patrick J. Ryder, Commissioner Nassau County Police Department (PDCN) announced the arrest and the charges.
“As alleged, the defendant purposely disguised fentanyl to look like prescription drugs and sold them to unsuspecting customers, leading to the poisoning death of a Long Island resident,” stated United States Attorney Peace. “The defendant’s callous disregard for human life in pushing deadly drugs on to the streets of Long Island concealed as prescription drugs has contributed to the alarming opioid epidemic that has continued to harm communities in this district.”
“Today’s arrest shows the commitment the DEA and our law enforcement partners have in targeting those individuals who are poisoning our communities. Fentanyl is a lethal drug that dealers mix into their product knowing the harmful effects it presents to those using it, including death” stated DEA New York Division Special Agent in Charge Frank Tarentino. “We will continue to bring those responsible for this deadly distribution to justice.”
“It is appalling how criminals attempt to profit from the distribution of fentanyl which has led to a rising number of overdose and poisoning fatalities,” said HSI New York acting Special Agent in Charge Darren B. McCormack. “HSI New York continues to prioritize investigations into individuals and organizations that intentionally misrepresent fentanyl, heroin and other dangerous opioids as prescription drugs, having a devastating impact on the health of our citizens and the safety of our neighborhoods. Together with our law enforcement partners, HSI New York is committed to crippling and dismantling the illicit drug supply chains plaguing our American communities.”
“Today’s indictment of defendant Ryan Mueller for selling Fentanyl, Heroin, Cocaine and Oxycodone to numerous individuals and lead to the death of a 49 year old Elmont man is a clear message that these crimes will never be tolerated. In addition, Defendant Mueller was also in possession of numerous illegal firearms in which he is also being charged with. Law Enforcement continues to work together to bring these criminals to justice, thus keeping our communities and neighborhoods safe. I would like to congratulate all of the dedicated law enforcement professionals and their agencies for a job well done,” stated Nassau County Police Department Commissioner Ryder.
According to court filings, over the last several years, the defendant conspired with others to sell several controlled substances, including heroin, cocaine, oxycodone, and fentanyl. The investigation revealed that in December 2022, a 49-year-old individual (Victim-1) died of a drug-related overdose at his residence in Elmont, Long Island. Additional investigation showed that the fentanyl that killed Victim-1, which was in a pressed pill that made it appear to be oxycodone, was sold to the victim by the defendant. During the investigation, law enforcement officers recovered several kilos of fentanyl from the defendant’s home. Law enforcement also recovered multiple pill press parts from another location controlled by the defendant, including powder dryers, blenders, and grinders.
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the Department of Justice, in 2019, nearly 71,000 people died from drug overdoses, making it a leading cause of injury-related death in the United States. The increase in overdose deaths has been driven in large part by fentanyl, a drug that has been described as 50 to 100 times more potent than morphine. In 2019, over 14,000 people died in the United States from a drug overdose involving heroin. From 2013 to 2019, the synthetic opioid death rate increased by more than 1,000 percent. Of those deaths, over 70% involved a prescription or illicit opioid. Among New York State residents, the number of overdose deaths involving any opioid increased each year between 2010 and 2017, with an overall increase of 200.2 percent from 1,074 in 2010 to 3,224 in 2017, according to the New York State Health Department. If you or someone you know is struggling with substance abuse, please contact the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) Helpline: 1-800-662-HELP (4357) or FindTreatment.gov.
If convicted on the charges in the indictment, the defendant faces a statutory mandatory minimum sentence of 20 years’ imprisonment and a maximum sentence of life.
The government’s case is being handled by the Office’s Long Island Criminal Division. Assistant United States Attorney Adam R. Toporovsky is in charge of the prosecution.
The Defendant:
RYAN MUELLER
Age: 32
Lynbrook, New YorkE.D.N.Y. Docket No. 24-CR-134
Lodge Grass man admits meth trafficking charges in large-scale investigation centered on Crow Indian ReservationRead the Press Release
BILLINGS — A Lodge Grass man today admitted to a methamphetamine trafficking crime for his role in a large-scale, multi-state narcotics investigation that was centered on the Crow Indian Reservation, U.S. Attorney Jesse Laslovich said.
Morgan Luke Hugs, 33, pleaded guilty to possession with intent to distribute meth. Hug faces a mandatory minimum of 10 years to life in prison, a $10 million fine and at least five years of supervised release.
U.S. Magistrate Judge Timothy J. Cavan presided. A sentencing date will be set before U.S. District Judge Susan P. Watters. The court will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors. Hugs was detained pending further proceedings.
The government alleged in court documents that federal law enforcement, in collaborative effort with local and tribal law enforcement, engaged in a large-scale, multiple-state narcotics trafficking investigation centered on multiple properties on the Crow Indian Reservation. The properties, including one referred to as Spear Siding, were a source of supply of meth for both the Crow and Northern Cheyenne reservations. Hugs is one of the individuals affiliated with the investigation.
The government further alleged that from about January 2022 until March 2023, Hugs was receiving meth from Spear Siding and distributing it to others on the Crow Reservation. Hugs received meth from two main co-conspirators involved with the investigation. Hugs was fronted some drugs for sale and a source noted that Hugs was indebted to one of the conspirators. In addition, law enforcement obtained meth from Hugs in a controlled purchase in Hardin in November 2022.
The U.S. Attorney’s Office is prosecuting the case. The Bureau of Indian Affairs, Drug Enforcement Administration and FBI conducted the investigation.
This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program bringing together all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve to reduce violent crime and gun violence, and to make our neighborhoods safer for everyone. On May 26, 2021, the Department launched a violent crime reduction strategy strengthening PSN based on these core principles: fostering trust and legitimacy in our communities, supporting community-based organizations that help prevent violence from occurring in the first place, setting focused and strategic enforcement priorities, and measuring the results.
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Latin Kings Leader Sentenced to Life Plus Seven Years in Prison for the 2017 Murder of Joshua FloresRead the Press Release
Damian Williams, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, announced that JONATHAN GARCIA, a/k/a “Jayo,” was sentenced to life plus seven years in prison for the May 2017 murder of Joshua Flores. GARCIA, who was a leader in the Latin Kings gang, shot and killed Flores in front of a playground on a residential street in Queens, New York, while Flores was running away from GARCIA. GARCIA was sentenced by U.S District Judge Valerie E. Caproni after being convicted by a jury following a four-day trial in June 2023.
U.S. Attorney Damian Williams said: “Jonathan Garcia gunned down his victim, 23-year-old Joshua Flores, to gain standing within the violent Latin Kings street gang. Then, Garcia bragged about the murder for years as he advanced in the ranks of the Latin Kings and engaged in additional violence and drug trafficking with his fellow gang members. Gang violence will not be tolerated in this community. This Office remains fully committed to working with our law enforcement partners to root out gang violence from the streets of New York City.”
According to court filings and the evidence presented in court during the trial:
GARCIA is a member of a racketeering enterprise known as the Latin Kings and, specifically, the set, or “tribe,” of the Latin Kings known as the Black Mob, which operates in the Bronx, Manhattan, Queens, Brooklyn, and Long Island. In order to enrich the enterprise, protect and expand its criminal operations, enforce discipline among its members, and retaliate against members of rival gangs, members and associates of the Black Mob committed, conspired, attempted, and threatened to commit acts of violence; distributed and possessed with intent to distribute narcotics, including heroin, fentanyl, and crack; committed robberies; and obtained, possessed, and used firearms. In December 2019 and April 2021, several members and associates of the Black Mob, including its senior-most leaders, were charged with racketeering offenses, narcotics conspiracy, and firearms offenses.
GARCIA has been a member of the Latin Kings since at least 2012. On May 18, 2017, GARCIA brought a firearm to a meeting with other Latin Kings members with whom he had been arguing and who intended to revoke GARCIA’s membership in the Latin Kings. During the meeting, next to a park and playground in a residential area of Queens, GARCIA began arguing with the other gang members. When the argument escalated, one of GARCIA’s associates fired a warning shot into the air, and gang members immediately began running away. GARCIA then took the firearm from his associate and shot at the fleeing gang members, hitting Joshua Flores, who was trying to run away. The bullet went through Flores’s back, into his jaw, and killed him. The murder elevated GARCIA’s status within the Latin Kings, including the Black Mob, with whom GARCIA committed additional crimes in the years after the murder.
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GARCIA, 29, of Queens, New York, was previously found guilty of conspiracy to commit racketeering, murder in aid of racketeering, narcotics conspiracy, and use of a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking offense.
Mr. Williams praised the outstanding investigative work of the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the New York City Police Department.
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.
This case is being handled by the Office’s Narcotics Unit. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Adam S. Hobson, David J. Robles, and Patrick R. Moroney are in charge of the prosecution.
Large-Scale Methamphetamine Trafficker Is Sentenced to 16 Years in PrisonRead the Press Release
CHARLOTTE, N.C. – A large-scale methamphetamine trafficker was sentenced to 192 months in prison today, announced Dena J. King, U.S. Attorney for the Western District of North Carolina. Jeffrey Scott Ohmer, 34, of Morganton, N.C. was also ordered to serve 5 years under court supervision after he is released from prison. Ohmer’s girlfriend and co-defendant, Destiny Nicole Miller, 36, also of Morganton, has pleaded guilty to possession of a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime and is awaiting sentencing.
Bennie Mims, Special Agent in Charge of the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF), Charlotte Field Division, and Sheriff Alan C. Jones of the Caldwell County Sheriff’s Office (CCSO) join U.S. Attorney King in making today’s announcement.
According to filed court documents and court proceedings, on April 5, 2022, CCSO deputies encountered Ohmer and Miller driving in a vehicle that had been reported stolen. Ohmer was the driver of the vehicle and Miller was in the front passenger seat. A traffic stop was initiated during which deputies searched Miller, Ohmer, and the vehicle. Deputies retrieved from Miller’s waistband a zipper bag that contained methamphetamine. Deputies also located in the front seat area of the vehicle a box of quart size Ziploc bags and a set of digital scales. Both Ohmer and Miller were charged with state drug offenses.
Court records show that on October 27, 2022, CCSO deputies encountered Ohmer driving a vehicle and attempted to pull him over for a traffic violation. CCSO deputies searched Ohmer’s vehicle and located a black backpack. Inside the backpack they found 12 Ziploc bags containing methamphetamine with a combined weight of 1.3 kilograms, a handgun with an extended magazine, 29 rounds of ammunition, two bags of marijuana, and digital scales. Over the course of the investigation, law enforcement determined that Ohmer possessed over 15 pounds of methamphetamine, which he sold to other local distributors.
According to court records, on November 1, 2022, CCSO deputies learned that Miller was attempting to sell a fully automatic machine gun on Ohmer’s behalf. During an undercover operation, Miller met with an undercover officer (UC) and a confidential informant (CI) who told Miller they were interested in buying guns and drugs. Miller sold the UC a machine gun with a silencer, a pistol, and ammunition. Miller sold the CI approximately 7.8 grams of methamphetamine.
In making today’s announcement, U.S. Attorney King thanked the ATF and CCSO for their investigation of the case.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Brandon Boykin of the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Charlotte prosecuted the case.
This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program bringing together all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve to reduce violent crime and gun violence, and to make our neighborhoods safer for everyone. On May 26, 2021, the Department launched a violent crime reduction strategy strengthening PSN based on these core principles: fostering trust and legitimacy in our communities, supporting community-based organizations that help prevent violence from occurring in the first place, setting focused and strategic enforcement priorities, and measuring the results.
Laredo man admits to smuggling toddler from Mexico into South TexasRead the Press Release
LAREDO, Texas – A 27-year-old man has pleaded guilty for attempting to transport a two-year-old child from Mexico further into the United States, announced U.S. Attorney Alamdar S. Hamdani.
Julio Chavez-Olan admitted to making an agreement with another person to transport the girl in exchange for financial gain.
On Nov. 23, 2023, Chavez-Olan arrived at the Juarez Lincoln Bridge Port of Entry in Laredo driving a grey Honda sedan with a two-year-old child in the backseat. He attempted to enter the United States by claiming the girl was his own daughter and presented law enforcement with her birth certificate.
Upon primary inspection, Chavez-Olan showed family photographs to authorities, claiming the photos included the child in the backseat.
Law enforcement then referred Chavez-Olan to secondary inspection where further investigation determined the photographs did not depict the two-year-old girl and were instead of his daughter and niece.
The investigation also revealed the minor was not related to Chavez-Olan and was not accompanied by a parent, legal guardian or family member during the smuggling attempt.
U.S. District Judge Marina Garcia Marmolejo will impose sentencing July 16. At that time, Chavez-Olan faces up to 10 years in federal prison and a possible $250,000 maximum fine.
Chavez-Olan was permitted to remain on bond pending that hearing.
Customs and Border Protection conducted the investigation. Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Terence Andrew Check Jr. is prosecuting the case.
Lancaster County Man Sentenced to 140 Months’ Imprisonment for Trafficking MethamphetamineRead the Press Release
HARRISBURG – The United States Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Pennsylvania announced that on April 3, 2024, United States District Court Judge Jennifer P. Wilson sentenced Brian Johnson, age 43, of Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, to 140 months’ imprisonment for conspiracy to traffic methamphetamine. Johnson had previously pleaded guilty to this offense. Judge Wilson also ordered Johnson to serve three years on supervised release after the conclusion of his prison sentence.
According to United States Attorney Gerard M. Karam, Johnson and three co-conspirators who have also pleaded guilty distributed hundreds of grams of methamphetamine in Lancaster and Dauphin Counties between September 2020 and August 2021, operating primarily out of Columbia Borough. Johnson began selling large quantities of methamphetamine to another co-conspirator in September 2020, when Johnson was living in Philadelphia. Johnson then relocated to Columbia Borough in early 2021, and continued trafficking substantial quantities of methamphetamine until he was arrested on August 30, 2021. By the time he was sentenced, Johnson had at least eight previous convictions for other criminal offenses, including drug trafficking, assault, and unlawful firearms possession.
The matter was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation with assistance from the Pennsylvania State Police, the Lancaster County Drug Task Force, and the York County Drug Task Force. Assistant United States Attorney Christian T. Haugsby prosecuted the case.
This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program bringing together all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve to reduce violent crime and gun violence, and to make our neighborhoods safer for everyone. On May 26, 2021, the Department launched a violent crime reduction strategy strengthening PSN based on these core principles: fostering trust and legitimacy in our communities, supporting community-based organizations that help prevent violence from occurring in the first place, setting focused and strategic enforcement priorities, and measuring the results.
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Kingsport Man Convicted at Trial on Firearm ChargeRead the Press Release
Greeneville, Tenn. – On April 3, 2024, following a two day trial in United States District Court in the Eastern District of Tennessee at Greeneville, before the Honorable J. Ronnie Greer, United States District Judge, a federal jury convicted Eric Eugene Robinson, 55, of Kingsport, Tennessee, of being a felon in possession of a firearm in violation of 18 U.S.C. §922(g)(3).
Sentencing is set for July 22, 2024, at 9:00 a.m., before Judge Greer in United States District Court in Greeneville, Tennessee. Robinson faces a sentence of a minimum of 15 years, up to life, in prison, a fine of up to $250,000, and a term of supervised release of up to five years.
The evidence and testimony presented during the trial showed that in early September of 2020, surveillance was conducted at a residence in Kingsport, which determined that Robinson, a convicted felon, was in possession of a firearm. A search warrant was executed at the residence by the Kingsport Police Department and, during the search, a 9mm pistol, with a loaded magazine, was located beneath a couch in the living room of the residence. An agent with the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (“ATF”) testified that the firearm was manufactured in Brazil and imported into Bainbridge, Georgia, before ultimately arriving in Tennessee.
United States Attorney Francis M. Hamilton, III of the Eastern District of Tennessee made the announcement.
Kingsport Police Department officer Mike Slater, formerly a Task Force Officer assigned to the ATF led the investigation with assistance from agents with the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation and the ATF.
Assistant United States Attorney B. Todd Martin and Special Assistant United States Attorney AnCharlene Davis represented the United States at trial.
This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program bringing together all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve to reduce violent crime and gun violence, and to make our neighborhoods safer for everyone. On May 26, 2021, the department launched a violent crime reduction strategy strengthening PSN based on these core principles: fostering trust and legitimacy in our communities, supporting community-based organizations that help prevent violence from occurring in the first place, setting focused and strategic enforcement priorities, and measuring the results.
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Justice Department to Provide Technical Assistance Related to Next-of-Kin Death Notifications to the Jackson, Mississippi, Police Department and Hinds County Coroner’s OfficeRead the Press Release
The Justice Department announced today that it will provide technical assistance to the Jackson Police Department (JPD) in Jackson, Mississippi, and the Hinds County Coroner’s Office in Hinds County, Mississippi, concerning their policies and procedures related to next-of-kin death notifications.
The department is providing this technical assistance to JPD and the Hinds County Coroner’s Office pursuant to Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 (Title VI), which prohibits discrimination based on race, color and national origin in programs receiving federal financial assistance. The lack of timely next-of-kin death notifications resulted in deceased individuals receiving pauper’s burials in unmarked graves in Hinds County, and some reports have indicated that there may be a perception that race or other factors played a role in the process concerning next-of-kin death notifications.
“Families want and deserve transparency and the opportunity to make decisions about their loved ones’ burials,” said Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division. “Through technical assistance, we aim to ensure that officials are able to deliver death notifications and make decisions regarding burials in a timely and trauma-informed way that complies with federal civil rights law.”
“The department looks forward to working with city and county officials to improve the death notification system in the Jackson area so that the families of missing and deceased persons can receive all the information available about their loved ones,” said U.S. Attorney Todd Gee for the Southern District of Mississippi.
The technical assistance, which will be provided by the Civil Rights Division and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Mississippi, will examine JPD’s General Order on Missing Persons and new General Order on Death Notifications and provide recommendations on implementation and training. The technical assistance to the Hinds County Coroner’s Office will provide recommendations on policies and training related to locating next-of-kin.
The provision of technical assistance is not a finding of fault or wrongdoing by JPD, the Hinds County Coroner’s Office or any other individual or entity. JPD and the Hinds County Coroner’s Office voluntarily agreed to receive technical assistance and support from the department.
Under Title VI, the department is working to make sure that law enforcement agencies and other recipients of federal funding take affirmative steps to comply with their civil rights obligations by offering technical assistance to facilitate Title VI compliance. Technical assistance helps agencies update and/or enhance their policies and practices, while strengthening the connection between law enforcement agencies and communities of color and other stakeholders. For example, the department has provided technical assistance through its Law Enforcement Language Access Initiative, a nationwide effort to assist law enforcement agencies in meeting their obligations to provide meaningful language assistance to limited English proficient individuals.
Additional information about the Civil Rights Division is available on its website at www.justice.gov/crt.
Justice Department to Provide Technical Assistance Related to Next-of-Kin Death Notifications to the Jackson, Mississippi, Police Department and Hinds County Coroner’s OfficeRead the Press Release
The Justice Department announced today that it will provide technical assistance to the Jackson Police Department (JPD) in Jackson, Mississippi, and the Hinds County Coroner’s Office in Hinds County, Mississippi, concerning their policies and procedures related to next-of-kin death notifications.
The department is providing this technical assistance to JPD and the Hinds County Coroner’s Office pursuant to Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 (Title VI), which prohibits discrimination based on race, color and national origin in programs receiving federal financial assistance. The lack of timely next-of-kin death notifications resulted in deceased individuals receiving pauper’s burials in unmarked graves in Hinds County, and some reports have indicated that there may be a perception that race or other factors played a role in the process concerning next-of-kin death notifications.
“Families want and deserve transparency and the opportunity to make decisions about their loved ones’ burials,” said Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division. “Through technical assistance, we aim to ensure that officials are able to deliver death notifications and make decisions regarding burials in a timely and trauma-informed way that complies with federal civil rights law.”
“The department looks forward to working with city and county officials to improve the death notification system in the Jackson area so that the families of missing and deceased persons can receive all the information available about their loved ones,” said U.S. Attorney Todd Gee for the Southern District of Mississippi.
The technical assistance, which will be provided by the Civil Rights Division and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Mississippi, will examine JPD’s General Order on Missing Persons and new General Order on Death Notifications and provide recommendations on implementation and training. The technical assistance to the Hinds County Coroner’s Office will provide recommendations on policies and training related to locating next-of-kin.
The provision of technical assistance is not a finding of fault or wrongdoing by JPD, the Hinds County Coroner’s Office or any other individual or entity. JPD and the Hinds County Coroner’s Office voluntarily agreed to receive technical assistance and support from the department.
Under Title VI, the department is working to make sure that law enforcement agencies and other recipients of federal funding take affirmative steps to comply with their civil rights obligations by offering technical assistance to facilitate Title VI compliance. Technical assistance helps agencies update and/or enhance their policies and practices, while strengthening the connection between law enforcement agencies and communities of color and other stakeholders. For example, the department has provided technical assistance through its Law Enforcement Language Access Initiative, a nationwide effort to assist law enforcement agencies in meeting their obligations to provide meaningful language assistance to limited English proficient individuals.
Additional information about the Civil Rights Division is available on its website at www.justice.gov/crt.
Justice Department Secures Agreement with Dallas-Based Management Services Company to Resolve Claims of Employment DiscriminationRead the Press Release
The Justice Department announced today that it secured a settlement agreement with Riata Corporate Group LLC, a Dallas-based company that provides management services to the energy and consumer goods sectors. The settlement resolves the department’s determination that the company violated the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA) when it discriminated against an applicant by refusing to consider her for employment because she is a naturalized United States citizen.
“Discrimination against workers based on their citizenship or immigration status not only harms workers, but employers as well, because they miss out on qualified applicants,” said Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division. “Ignorance of the law is no excuse, and the Justice Department will continue to hold accountable employers that violate our nation’s federal civil rights laws.”
The Civil Rights Division’s Immigrant and Employee Rights Section (IER) opened an investigation based on a worker’s complaint and determined that, in October 2023, Riata unlawfully discriminated against her even though the company had initially recruited her for employment. After learning the worker is a naturalized U.S. citizen, the company informed her that it could not hire her because of her citizenship status. The department determined that Riata rejected the worker because it misunderstood one of its government contracts to require the company to hire only U.S.-born citizens.
The INA prohibits employers from discriminating against workers based on their citizenship or immigration status, unless the discrimination is required by a law, regulation, executive order or government contract. Although Riata had a government contract that required it to hire only U.S. citizens for certain work, the contract did not authorize Riata to exclude naturalized U.S. citizens.
Under the terms of the settlement, Riata will pay lost wages to the affected worker. The agreement also requires Riata to pay a civil penalty to the United States, train its staff on the INA’s anti-discrimination provision, revise its employment policies and be subject to monitoring and reporting requirements.
IER is responsible for enforcing the anti-discrimination provision of the INA. The statute prohibits citizenship status and national origin discrimination in hiring, firing or recruitment or referral for a fee, unfair documentary practices and retaliation and intimidation.
Find more information on how employers can avoid discrimination in recruitment and hiring on IER’s website. Learn more about IER’s work and how to get assistance through this brief video. Applicants or employees who believe they were discriminated against based on their citizenship, immigration status or national origin in hiring, firing, recruitment or during the employment eligibility verification process (Form I-9 and E-Verify) or subjected to retaliation, may file a charge. The public can also call IER’s worker hotline at 1-800-255-7688 (1-800-237-2515, TTY for hearing impaired); call IER’s employer hotline at 1-800-255-8155 (1-800-237-2515, TTY for hearing impaired); sign up for a live webinar or watch an on-demand presentation; email [email protected] or visit IER’s English and Spanish websites. Sign up for email updates from IER.
Justice Department Announces Publication of Third Volume of National Firearms Commerce and Trafficking AssessmentRead the Press Release
The Justice Department today announced the publication of Firearm Trafficking Investigations, the third volume of the National Firearms Commerce and Trafficking Assessment (NFCTA), a four-part, comprehensive examination of commerce in firearms and the diversion of firearms to illegal markets. This Volume incorporates input from the most comprehensive national survey of the special agents who conduct Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF) trafficking investigations to provide the first in-depth analysis of firearm trafficking investigations in more than two decades. This report examines 9,708 closed ATF firearm trafficking investigations initiated between CY 2017 and 2021. In April 2021, Attorney General Garland directed the ATF to undertake its first comprehensive study of criminal gun trafficking, the intentional movement of one or more firearms into the illegal market for a criminal purpose or possession.
“This report makes clear that black-market guns sold by unlicensed dealers without a background check are increasingly being found at crime scenes,” said Attorney General Merrick B. Garland. “Under the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act, the Justice Department has proposed a new rule to clarify when gun dealers must get licenses and conduct background checks. The Department is also vigorously enforcing the new provisions Congress passed in the Act to prohibit illegal gun trafficking and straw purchasing. This report reminds us of the urgency of our work, and I am grateful to the extraordinary professionals of the ATF who put their lives on the line to help keep our communities safe, and whose tireless work is responsible for the most comprehensive look at America’s crime gun data in over two decades.”
“Thanks to the hard work of ATF, we now have fresh data and cutting-edge insights on the key drivers of illegal firearms trafficking,” said Deputy Attorney General Lisa Monaco. “Among other trends, the report shows the high frequency of traffickers selling firearms without a license to evade federal law, and the widespread impact of straw purchasers concealing the true recipients of illegally diverted firearms. This report will help agents and prosecutors target investigations, prosecute offenders, and reduce gun violence.”
“This is the most comprehensive survey ever of ATF’s thousands of expert gun trafficking agents to learn about the cases they do,” said ATF Director Steven Dettelbach. “Americans need this data to understand this threat and to better address it. One striking finding from the data is that individuals illegally engaged in the business of unlicensed firearms dealing are contributing more and more to the flow of firearms into the black market, where we know that felons, gang members, and other violent offenders often get their guns. I want to be crystal clear – illegal firearms trafficking is not a victimless crime. You can’t illegally help to arm violent people and not be responsible for the violence that follows. We fight this public safety battle every day at ATF, as the thousands of ATF cases analyzed in this volume demonstrate. I commend the men and women of ATF and our truly wonderful partners for producing this important study, and also for risking everything to pursue these cases every single day.”
One of the key data-points identified in the analysis is the increased use of intelligence to initiate trafficking investigations. The use of Crime Gun Intelligence Center (CGIC) referrals increased nearly 20% from 2017 to 2021, while the use of Confidential Informants to initiative cases dropped nine percent during that time. This data underscores the value of CGICs, which are law enforcement hubs that focus exclusively on investigating and preventing gun violence in local communities. They bring together, under one roof, the expertise of state and federal investigators, firearms evidence examiners, and intelligence analysts to rapidly collect, analyze, and share information and leads about guns used in violent crimes and to take action to disrupt and dismantle firearm trafficking. ATF operates and supports more than 60 CGICs nationwide.
Another key data point demonstrates the shift in the types of supply lines, or trafficking channels, used to move firearms out of lawful commerce into the illegal market over the past two decades. Investigations involving corrupt federal firearms licensees (FFLs) decreased over the study period with the most frequent channels identified now being illegal, unlicensed firearm dealing by private persons and straw purchasing, which is when someone buys a gun for someone who is prohibited.
The report also identified source-to-market type trends. For instance, 56% of the cases examined involved intrastate trafficking, while 32% involved interstate trafficking. Intrastate trafficking was most prevalent in all regions except the northeast, where interstate trafficking was most prevalent. This reinforces the findings from Volume II, which confirmed that although most — 72% nationally — traced crime guns are recovered in the same state in which they were acquired from an FFL, certain states and cities are targets for firearm traffickers. The cross-jurisdictional nature of this issue — guns purchased in one state and trafficked to another where they’re used in crime — is what led the Attorney General to launch five firearms trafficking strike forces in July 2021.
Additional key findings from the study period include:
- The three most frequently identified violations of federal law in the investigations analyzed during this study included: (1) dealing in firearms without a license, (2) providing false information to an FFL, which is associated with straw purchasing, and (3) possession of a firearm by a convicted felon.
- Firearms trafficked through unlicensed dealers were used in shootings in 368 cases.
- Trafficked firearms were used in homicides in 265 cases, attempted homicide in 222 cases, and aggravated assaults in 446 cases.
- Over half of the firearms trafficked were handguns (nearly 56%), with rifles following in second (nearly 19%).
- The average number of firearms trafficked per case was 16.
- In nearly 58% of the cases, five or fewer firearms were trafficked.
- The majority of traffickers who directly or indirectly facilitated the movement of firearms to illegal markets were white (53%), male (84%), and U.S. citizens (95%).
- The recipients or end users of the trafficked firearms tended to be previously convicted felons (60%) and young adults aged 25 to 34 (48%).
- The annual percentage of juvenile (17 and under) end-users increased almost 10% between 2017 and 2021.
In February 2023, the Department issued Volume II of the NFCTA, Crime Gun Intelligence and Analysis, which presents and analyzes data on crime guns (firearms used in crime) recovered between 2017 and 2021. The analysis reinforces the critical importance of ATF’s unique crime gun tracing authority and highlights the value of data from ATF’s National Integrated Ballistic Information Network (NIBIN) program.
In May 2022, the Department issued Volume I of the NFCTA, Firearms in Commerce, which presents and analyzes data collected by ATF and other federal agencies related to the manufacture, exportation, and importation of firearms.
To produce the NFCTA, the ATF assembled a team of subject experts from ATF, as well as from academic and related fields. Although ATF issues a variety of public and law enforcement reports and bulletins regarding firearm commerce, trafficking, and related issues every year, it has not undertaken a joint academic study on the scale of the NFCTA in more than 20 years.
Jefferson Parish Man Guilty of Possessing Unregistered SilencerRead the Press Release
NEW ORLEANS – U.S. Attorney Duane A. Evans announced that JOSEPH METZLER, III, age 44, of Gretna, La., pleaded guilty on April 2, 2024 before U.S. District Judge Brandon S. Long, to possession of an unregistered silencer.
According to court records, federal agents learned that METZLER received unlawfully imported firearm parts from China. Agents with Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), and Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives agents, as well as Jefferson Parish Sheriff’s Department officers, executed a search warrant at METZLER’s residence. As a result, they discovered that he possessed a silencer that was not registered to him, in violation of Title 26, United States Code, Section 5861(d).
METZLER faces up to ten (10) years imprisonment, followed by up to three (3) years of supervised release, up to a $250,000 fine, and a $100 mandatory special assessment fee. Sentencing is scheduled for July 23, 2024.
This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program bringing together all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve to reduce violent crime and gun violence, and to make our neighborhoods safer for everyone. On May 26, 2021, the Department launched a violent crime reduction strategy strengthening PSN based on these core principles: fostering trust and legitimacy in our communities, supporting community-based organizations that help prevent violence from occurring in the first place, setting focused and strategic enforcement priorities, and measuring the results.
U.S. Attorney Evans praised the work of Homeland Security Investigations, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives and the Jefferson Parish Sheriff’s Office in investigating this matter. Assistant U.S. Attorney Jon Maestri of the General Crimes Unit is in charge of the prosecution.
Jackson County volunteer fire chief pleads guilty to mail fraudRead the Press Release
COLUMBUS, Ohio – The chief of the Coalton volunteer fire department pleaded guilty in U.S. District Court today to using more than $200,000 in fire department funds for personal expenses.
Johnny Baker, 37, of Wellston, Ohio, pleaded guilty to one count of mail fraud for the embezzlement, which included using fire department money to have items for his personal use shipped to his house via UPS.
Baker has worked for the volunteer fire department since 2009, filling various roles including secretary/treasurer, assistant fire chief, and as of January 2023, fire chief. Baker has been solely responsible for maintaining the department’s finances.
According to his court documents, from 2020 until 2023, Baker used a fire department credit card for personal expenses, including vacations and entertainment, sports tickets, a utility task vehicle, firearms, home utility payments, electronics and clothing. Baker was the sole user of the credit card during this time.
Baker admitted to paying the credit card bills with fire department funds that he raised from the local community through a pull-tab gaming system, which he initially implemented as a fundraiser. Several local businesses sold pull tabs to the community and sent the proceeds to Baker.
As part of his plea, Baker has agreed to pay approximately $226,000 in restitution.
Mail fraud is a federal crime punishable by up to 20 years in prison. Congress sets the maximum statutory sentence, and sentencing of the defendant will be determined by the Court at a future hearing based on the advisory sentencing guidelines and other statutory factors.
Kenneth L. Parker, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Ohio, and Lesley Allison, Inspector in Charge, U.S. Postal Inspection Service (USPIS), Pittsburgh Division, announced the guilty plea entered today before U.S. District Judge Edmund A. Sargus, Jr. Assistant United States Attorney David J. Twombly is representing the United States in this case.
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