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25 March 2024
Woman Facing Federal Charges for Murdering Her Two Young SonsRead the Press Release
ALBUQUERQUE – A woman is facing federal charges for murdering her two young children on the Isleta Pueblo. Mariah Zuni, 32, of Isleta Village, appeared in federal court for an initial appearance today and will remain in temporary custody pending a detention hearing, which is scheduled for March 27, 2024.
The criminal complaint alleges that on March 21, 2024, Zuni used a bread knife to slit the throats of her 5-year-old son and 9-month-old son in their residence located on the Isleta Pueblo.
If convicted of the current charges, Zuni faces life in prison.
U.S. Attorney Alexander M.M. Uballez, Uballez and Raul Bujanda, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI Albuquerque Field Office, made the announcement today.
This case is being investigated by the FBI Albuquerque Field Office with assistance from the Isleta Police Department. Assistant United States Attorney Caitlin L. Dillon is prosecuting the case.
A criminal complaint is merely an allegation. All defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
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Westbank Man Indicted for Federal Drug and Gun ViolationsRead the Press Release
NEW ORLEANS - United States Attorney Duane A. Evans announced that TYRIQUE RICHARDS, age 27, of Violet, La., was indicted on March 8, 2024, for possession with intent to distribute cocaine and marijuana, in violation of Title 21, United States Code, Sections 841(a)(1), 841(b)(1)(C), and 841(b)(1)(D), and possession of a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 924(c)(1)(A)(i).
The indictment alleges that on February 27, 2024, RICHARDS, possessed cocaine and marijuana with the intent to distribute, a handgun in furtherance of that drug trafficking offense, and a weight scale.
If convicted of possession with intent to distribute, RICHARDS faces a maximum of twenty (20) years imprisonment, a fine of up to $1,000,000.00, and at least three (3) years of supervised release. If convicted of possession a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime, he faces a minimum of five (5) years and a maximum of life imprisonment, which must be served consecutively with any other count, a fine of up to $250,000, and up to five (5) years of supervised release. RICHARDS also faces payment of a mandatory special assessment fee of $200.00.
U.S. Attorney Evans reiterated that the indictment is merely a charge and that the guilt of the defendant must be proven 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 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 the Federal Bureau of Investigation in investigating this matter. The case is being prosecuted by Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Nicholas Rayburn of the Violent Crime Unit.
Utah County Businessman Accused of Scamming $1.8M in COVID-19 Relief Funds is Arrested and Charged FederallyRead the Press Release
SALT LAKE CITY, Utah – A Utah County businessman was arrested today after he was indicted by a federal grand jury in Salt Lake City on March 20, 2024, for wire fraud. Robert Blake Molling, 41, of Lehi, Utah, is accused of fraudulently obtaining over $1.8 million in federal government disaster relief funds.
According to court documents, from March 2020 to April 2022, Molling fraudulently applied for COVID-19 Economic Injury Disaster Loan (EIDL) funds for two of his companies. These were funds Congress allocated for the Small Business Administration to provide low-interest loans to eligible small businesses going through financial disruption due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Molling lied about his criminal history – falsely claiming that he had no criminal convictions other than minor vehicle violations. In furtherance of the crime, Molling caused multiple wire transfers via interstate commerce, and fraudulently obtained some $1,868,100 in EIDL loan funds and advances he was not eligible to receive.
Molling is charged with seven counts of wire fraud. His initial court appearance on the indictment is scheduled for March 26, 2024, at 2:15 p.m. in courtroom 8.4 before a U.S. Magistrate Judge at the Orrin G. Hatch United States District Courthouse in downtown Salt Lake City.
U.S. Attorney, Trina A. Higgins, of the District of Utah made the announcement.
Special Assistant United States Attorney Sachi Jepson and Assistant United States Attorney Michael Thorpe of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Utah are prosecuting the case.
The Utah Federal COVID-19 Fraud Strike Force is investigating the case, which includes Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), the Office of Inspector General’s U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA), Department of Defense (DOD), U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), U.S. Department of Labor (DOL), and the U.S. Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration (TIGTA). The public is encouraged to share information about the abuse of the Paycheck Protection Program or other SBA programs by submitting a complaint here.
On May 17, 2021, the Attorney General established the COVID-19 Fraud Enforcement Task Force to marshal the resources of the Department of Justice in partnership with agencies across government to enhance efforts to combat and prevent pandemic-related fraud. The Task Force bolsters efforts to investigate and prosecute the most culpable domestic and international criminal actors and assists agencies tasked with administering relief programs to prevent fraud by augmenting and incorporating existing coordination mechanisms, identifying resources and techniques to uncover fraudulent actors and their schemes, and sharing and harnessing information and insights gained from prior enforcement efforts. For more information on the department’s response to the pandemic, please visit https://www.justice.gov/coronavirus and https://www.justice.gov/coronavirus/combatingfraud
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.
An indictment is merely an allegation and all defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
Two Charlotte Men Face Federal Charges for Scheme That Involved Buying and Selling Stolen High-End VehiclesRead the Press Release
CHARLOTTE, N.C. – A newly unsealed federal indictment charges two individuals for their roles in a conspiracy to buy and sell stolen high-end vehicles worth millions of dollars, announced Dena J. King, U.S. Attorney for the Western District of North Carolina. The defendants are also charged with gun offenses.
Robert M. DeWitt, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI in North Carolina, and Chief Johnny Jennings of the Charlotte Mecklenburg Police Department (CMPD) join U.S. Attorney King in making today’s announcement.
Andre Lamar Sumner, 41, and Erren Woodson, 39, both of Charlotte, are charged in a conspiracy to transport, possess, and sell stolen vehicles in interstate commerce, and to possess with intent to sell vehicles with altered Vehicle Identification Numbers (VINs). Both defendants are also charged with possession of a stolen vehicle and possession of a firearm in furtherance of drug trafficking activities. Sumner is also charged with trafficking in motor vehicles with an altered VIN.
The indictment alleges that, between 2022 and 2024, Sumner, Woodson and others conspired to buy and sell high-end motor vehicles that were stolen from car dealerships, rental car companies, and private parties across the United States, including North Carolina, South Carolina, Florida, Alabama, Maryland, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, New York and Missouri. As alleged in the indictment, Sumner operated as a “fence” in the conspiracy, buying and selling the stolen motor vehicles. A fence is someone who assists in finding or dealing with buyers for stolen properties. To maximize profits, Sumner sought to fence high-end stolen vehicles such as luxury models made by BMW, Land Rover, Porsche, Mercedes-Benz and Rolls-Royce, as well as trucks and other expensive modes from Chevrolet, Dodges, Ford and RAM. According to allegations in the indictment the conspiracy involved stolen vehicles worth millions of dollars.
The indictment further alleges that Sumner sold the stolen cars to buyers at prices significantly below the vehicles’ fair market values. To avoid detection and to maximize the stolen vehicles’ resale values, Sumner and others regularly altered the stolen vehicles’ original VINs and fraudulently registered the stolen vehicles with various state motor vehicle agencies. According to allegations in the indictment, Woodson purchased stolen vehicles from Sumner and sought potential buyers for Sumner’s stolen vehicles.
The indictment alleges that, during the scheme, Sumner and Woodson were also engaged in the distribution of narcotics and unlawfully possessed a variety of firearms, including handguns, shotguns and rifles, in furtherance of their drug trafficking activities.
The charges in the indictment are allegations and the defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond reasonable doubt in a court of law.
The conspiracy charge carries a maximum penalty of five years. Each charge of possession of a stolen vehicle and trafficking in motor vehicles with an altered VIN carries a statutory maximum penalty of 10 years in prison. The charge of possession of a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime carries a maximum penalty of life in prison.
This is the third indictment filed in U.S. District Court in Charlotte related to trafficking in stolen vehicles. Five individuals were indicted in August 2023, for stealing luxury vehicles from dealerships throughout the United States. Two additional individuals were indicted in November 2023, for orchestrating high-end auto thefts from businesses in South Carolina.
U.S. Attorney King thanked the FBI and CMPD for their investigation of the case.
Assistant U.S. Attorneys William Bozin and Daniel Ryan of the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Charlotte are prosecuting the case.
Tulsa Man Sentenced After Attempting to Light Victim on FireRead the Press Release
Today, U.S. District Judge J. Phillip Calabrese sentenced Martin Andrew Breshears, 56, Tulsa to 120 months imprisonment, followed by 3 years of supervised release for Assault with Intent to Commit Murder in Indian Country.
In June 2022, Breshears assaulted the wheelchair-confined victim on two separate occasions. The first assault was with a brick. During the second assault, Breshears kicked in the victim’s door and repeatedly hit him with a lead pipe. Then Breshears doused the house and victim with lighter fluid and lit the porch on fire. Officers detained Brehsears near the fire and he admitted to assaulting the victim. A witness saw the assault, called 911, and put out the fire saving the victim.
Breshears is a citizen of Muscogee (Creek) Nation. He will remain in custody pending transfer to the U.S. Bureau of Prisons.
The FBI and Tulsa Police Department investigated the case. Assistant U.S. Attorney Ammon Brisolara prosecuted the case.
Tucker Man Pleads Guilty to Enticement of a Minor on the Choctaw Indian ReservationRead the Press Release
Jackson, Miss. - A Tucker man pleaded guilty in federal court today to enticement of a minor.
According to court documents, Antonio Deron Wallace, 35, used Facebook Messenger to entice a minor to meet him for the purpose of engaging in sexual activity. Court records show that the offense occurred in the Tucker Community of the Choctaw Indian Reservation in 2019.
In 2021, Wallace was indicted by a federal grand jury for enticement of a minor.
Wallace is scheduled to be sentenced on June 24, 2024, and faces not less than ten years and up to life in prison. A federal district judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
U.S. Attorney Todd W. Gee and Acting Special Agent in Charge Maher Dimachkie of the Federal Bureau of Investigation made the announcement.
The Choctaw Police Department and the Federal Bureau of Investigation investigated the case.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Kevin J. Payne and Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Brian K. Burns 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 Criminal Division's Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS), Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to better locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the Internet as well as to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.projectsafechildhood.gov.
Three Individuals Admit Tax Evasion and Other Charges after Defrauding More Than 100 Victims of over $4.5 Million Dollars in Romance Fraud SchemeRead the Press Release
CAMDEN, N.J. – A husband and wife, formerly of Burlington County, New Jersey, and a third codefendant have pleaded guilty to tax evasion and other charges related to their roles in accepting millions of dollars in a romance fraud, after their conspirators met and wooed the victims on online dating sites, U.S. Attorney Philip R. Sellinger announced.
Martins Friday Inalegwu, 35, formerly of Maple Shade, New Jersey, pleaded guilty today to an information charging him with one count of conducting an unlawful money transmitting business and four counts of tax evasion. Inalegwu’s wife, Steincy Mathieu, 27, also formerly of Maple Shade, pleaded guilty on Nov. 28, 2023, to two counts of an indictment charging her with tax evasion. Oluwaseyi Fatolu, 56, of Springfield, New Jersey, pleaded guilty on Jan. 8, 2024, to a count of the indictment charging her with operating an unlawful money transmitting business. All three defendants pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Christine P. O’Hearn in Camden federal court.
U.S. Attorney Philip R. Sellinger“These defendants took advantage of more than 100 vulnerable victims, preying on their loneliness to convince them to send money to scammers the victims believed were romantic partners. In this way, they stole millions of dollars. This conspiracy involved swindling, illegal money transfers and tax evasion. Our office will always be ready to work with our law enforcement partners to root out these schemes and bring the perpetrators to justice.”
“All fraud schemes hurt victims who end up losing part or all of their hard-earned fortunes, savings or retirements,” FBI – Newark Special Agent in Charge James E. Dennehy said. “However, romance scams take on an insidious level of harm. Few of us would want to admit we fell for this type of scam, but we’re all human and scammers prey on that fact. The subjects are owning up to their crimes, but it may not provide much solace for the victims left broke and heartbroken.”
“Martins Inalegwu and his co-conspirators face serious justice for stealing hard-earned money from more than 100 victims who were unaware their relationship was part of a financial fraud or romance scam,” HSI Newark acting Special Agent in Charge Michael Alfonso said. “As always, we urge the public to remain cautious when communicating online, know the tips to recognize a scam and report any suspicious activity to law enforcement. HSI Newark, along with our law enforcement partners, remains committed to dismantling criminal networks attempting to operate financial fraud schemes.”
“Romance scams can prove costly in terms of money, but they also cause great emotional harm to victims and their families,” Tammy Tomlins, Special Agent in Charge of IRS – Criminal Investigation, Newark Field Office, said. “The defendants cheated honest taxpayers out of millions and cheated the United States government by evading their tax liability. Today’s guilty plea demonstrates how IRS – Criminal Investigation special agents and our law enforcement partners continue to use our financial expertise to identify and investigate these types of schemes.”
“Romance scams frequently target elderly or vulnerable citizens and are particularly egregious crimes,” Postal Inspector in Charge, Christopher A. Nielsen, Philadelphia Division, said. “Let this investigation put fraudsters on notice that with our law enforcement partners, the Postal Inspection Service will investigate and pursue those individuals who scam, harass, and steal from the American people.”
According to the documents filed in this case and statements made in court:
From October 2016 to May 13, 2020, Inalegwu, Mathieu and their conspirators, several of whom reside in Nigeria, participated in an online romance scheme, defrauding more than 100 victims throughout the country. The conspirators made initial contact with victims through on-line dating and social media websites, corresponded with victims via email and phone, pretended to strike up a romantic relationship with victims, wooed them with words of love, and then requested the victims send money to them, or their associates, for fictitious emergency needs. In all instances, the individuals whom the victims believed they were speaking to did not exist, and instead they were speaking to the conspirators of this scheme.
At the conspirators’ directions, victims wired money to bank accounts held by Inalegwu and Mathieu in the United States, and also mailed checks directly to Inalegwu and Mathieu. Some victims transferred money to Inalegwu and Mathieu via money transfer services, such as Western Union or MoneyGram, and others wired money to bank accounts held by conspirators overseas.
Federal law enforcement agents have identified more than 100 victims, who sent over $4.5 million directly to Inalegwu and Mathieu, and several million more to conspirators. In turn, Inalegwu and Mathieu spent the victims’ money on personal expenses, withdrew money in cash, transferred money to other bank accounts they personally controlled, and transferred money to bank accounts in Nigeria and Turkey. Inalegwu used the unlawful money transmitting service provided by Fatolu to unlawfully transfer a portion of the victim money to these foreign accounts. Inalegwu and Mathieu failed to pay any taxes on the millions of dollars they accepted from victims.
Each count of tax evasion is punishable by a maximum of five years in prison and a $250,000 fine. Each count of conducting an unlawful money transmitting business is punishable by a maximum of five years in prison and a $250,000 fine.
U.S. Attorney Philip R Sellinger credited special agents of the FBI, under the direction of Acting Special Agent in Charge James E. Dennehy in Newark; special agents of Homeland Security Investigations Newark, under the direction of Acting Special Agent in Charge Michael Alfonso; special agents of IRS-Criminal Investigation, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Tammy Tomlins; postal inspectors of the U.S. Postal Inspection Service under the direction of Inspector in Charge Christopher A. Nielsen, Philadelphia Division; and special agents of the United States Attorney’s Office, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Thomas Mahoney, with the investigation leading to the guilty pleas.
The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorney Martha K. Nye of the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Trenton.
inalegwu.sinformation.pdfThibodaux Man Indicted for Aggravated Identity Theft, Providing False Statement to a Firearms Dealer, and Providing False Statement to a Federal AgencyRead the Press Release
NEW ORLEANS – U.S. Attorney Duane A. Evans announced that on March 22, 2024, a federal grand jury indicted BRETT GABRIEL (“GABRIEL”), age 31, of Thibodaux, La., for aggravated identity theft, providing a false statement during the acquisition of a firearm, and providing a false statement to an agency of the United States.
According to court documents, GABRIEL used stolen identity information to purchase a firearm and to obtain fraudulent paycheck protection program loan proceeds administered by the federal government.
The maximum penalty for the firearm offense is ten years imprisonment and/or a fine of $250,000 or the greater of twice the gross gain to the defendant or twice the gross loss to the victim, and up to three years of supervised release. The maximum penalty for the false statement offense is five years imprisonment and/or a fine of $250,000 or the greater of twice the gross gain to the defendant or twice the gross loss to the victim, and up to three years of supervised release. As to these two offenses, GABRIEL also faces payment of a mandatory special assessment fee of one hundred dollars. For the aggravated identity offense, the penalty is a mandatory minimum sentence of two years of imprisonment, to run consecutively to any other term of imprisonment imposed.
U.S. Attorney Evans reiterated that the indictment is merely a charge and that the guilt of the defendant must be proven 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 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.
On May 17, 2021, the Attorney General established the COVID-19 Fraud Enforcement Task Force to marshal the resources of the Department of Justice in partnership with agencies across government to enhance efforts to combat and prevent pandemic-related fraud. The Task Force bolsters efforts to investigate and prosecute the most culpable domestic and international criminal actors and assists agencies tasked with administering relief programs to prevent fraud by, among other methods, augmenting and incorporating existing coordination mechanisms, identifying resources and techniques to uncover fraudulent actors and their schemes, and sharing and harnessing information and insights gained from prior enforcement efforts. For more information on the Department’s response to the pandemic, please visit https://www.justice.gov/coronavirus
Anyone with information about allegations of attempted fraud involving COVID-19 can report it by calling the Department of Justice’s National Center for Disaster Fraud (NCDF) Hotline at 866-720-5721 or via the NCDF Web Complaint Form at: https://www.justice.gov/disaster-fraud/ncdf-disaster-complaint-form
U.S. Attorney Evans praised the work of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives, the United States Secret Service, and the Terrebonne Parish Sheriff’s Office in investigating this matter. Assistant United States Attorney Richard R. Pickens, II of the Financial Crimes Unit is in charge of the prosecution.
The U.S. Justice Department Seeks Court Order to Stop CDCR from Requiring Correctional Officers to Violate Religious BeliefsRead the Press Release
SACRAMENTO, Calif. — The U.S. Justice Department today challenged the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation (CDCR) on its denial of religious accommodations for correctional officers of various faiths, including Sikhs and Muslims, who wear facial hair as an expression of their faith. CDCR generally prohibits correctional officers from wearing beards, and the action seeks a temporary court order allowing these officers to wear beards while CDCR fully assesses options for providing them with religious accommodations while complying with California safety regulations.
“Our district is one of the most diverse in the country, with communities of many different faiths practicing customs that are central to their beliefs. The action brought today is an important use of the federal civil rights laws to protect this religious expression,” said U.S. Attorney Phillip A. Talbert for the Eastern District of California. “My office will continue to work hand in hand with the Civil Rights Division to ensure that individuals of all faiths can receive due consideration for appropriate religious accommodations at workplaces in this District.”
“Sikhs, Muslims and employees of other minority faiths should not be forced to choose between the practice of their faith and their jobs,” said Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division. “Religious freedom and religious accommodation are bedrock principles of our democracy. We are taking action to ensure that the rights of employees of minority faiths are respected and accommodated in the workplace. As faith communities celebrate Ramadan and other important holidays across religions in the coming weeks, the Justice Department will continue to combat religious discrimination in the workplace.”
The department’s action, filed in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of California, alleges that although many officers had performed their jobs successfully for years while wearing facial hair, CDCR implemented a revised facial hair policy last year and, since then, has repeatedly denied religious accommodation requests, forcing officers to shave their beards or lose their jobs. The affected officers have been forced to violate core tenets of their faiths and have suffered shame and humiliation among their religious communities, including being shunned from houses of worship and denied participation in religious ceremonies, such as family weddings.
Since CDCR implemented its revised facial hair policy, numerous officers have filed charges of religious discrimination with the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 (Title VII). Because the EEOC’s investigation remains ongoing, the department is seeking relief in its requested court order only until the EEOC finishes its full investigation or until CDCR can otherwise show the court it has met its religious accommodation obligations under Title VII. The department’s complaint alleges that CDCR has failed to meaningfully consider the range of options proposed by the charging parties or those used by other correctional institutions to accommodate officers’ religious beliefs while meeting safety requirements. The department asks the Court to order CDCR to stop enforcing its facial hair policy against officers who request to wear a beard because of their religious beliefs and engage in good faith discussions with officers about possible reasonable accommodations that would allow officers to safely do their jobs and adhere to their religious beliefs.
Employees with complaints of religious discrimination can report them to their local EEOC office or their state or local fair employment practices agencies. The contact information for each local EEOC office can be found at http://www.eeoc.gov/field-office">www.eeoc.gov/field-office.
Trial Attorneys Alicia Johnson and Sharion Scott of the Civil Rights Division’s Employment Litigation Section and Assistant U.S. Attorney Robert Fuentes for the Eastern District of California are handling the case.
The full and fair enforcement of Title VII is a top priority of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division. More information about the Civil Rights Division and the Employment Litigation Section is available at www.justice.gov/crt/ and www.justice.gov/crt/employment-litigation-section.
usa_v_cdcr_complaint_3-25-24.pdfTangipahoa Parish Man Charged with Violating Federal Controlled Substance and Federal Gun Control ActsRead the Press Release
NEW ORLEANS, LOUISIANA – MICHAEL LACAVA, age 42, a resident of Tangipahoa Parish, was indicted on March 22, 2024, for possessing with intent to distribute fifty grams or more of methamphetamine, in violation of 21 U.S.C. §§ 841(a)(1) and 841(b)(1)(B), and possessing firearms as a felon, in violation of 18 U.S.C. §§ 922(g)(1) and 924(a)(8), announced U.S. Attorney Duane A. Evans.
If convicted of the drug count, LACAVA faces a mandatory minimum term of imprisonment of 5 years, up to 40 years imprisonment, a fine of up to $5,000,000, and at least 4 years of supervised release. If convicted of the gun count, he faces a up to 15 years imprisonment, a fine of up to $250,000, and up to 3 years of supervised release. As to each count, he also faces payment of a $100 mandatory special assessment fee.
According to court documents, on March 12, 2024, Drug Enforcement Administration agents executed a search pursuant to a federal search warrant on LACAVA’s residence. While there, they found approximately 300 grams of methamphetamine and two firearms.
U.S. Attorney Evans reiterated that the indictment is merely a charging document and that the guilt of the defendant must be proven 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 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.
This case was investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration. The prosecution is being handled by Assistant United States Attorney Lauren Sarver of the Narcotics Unit.
Stratford Man Who Sexually Exploited Girls Online Sentenced to 11 Years in Federal PrisonRead the Press Release
Vanessa Roberts Avery, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, announced that ALEXANDER DILELLA, 24, of Stratford, was sentenced today by U.S. District Judge Stefan R. Underhill in Bridgeport to 132 months of imprisonment, followed by seven years of supervised release, for child exploitation offenses related to his sexual exploitation of girls across the country through Snapchat and other online applications. Judge Underhill also ordered Dilella to pay $24,000 in restitution.
According to court documents and statements made in court, in 2020 and 2021, Dilella used various online applications, including Snapchat, FaceTime, and Omegle to communicate with at least nine minor girls across the country, some as young as 12 and 13 years old, and manipulate them to engage in sexual activity while livestreaming, and to send him explicit images and videos of themselves. Dilella also sent sexually explicit images of himself to several of minor victims.
During one Snapchat exchange with a 14-year-old victim in Colorado, Dilella referred to the girl as a “child porn slave” and demanded that she send him a sexually explicit image of herself, which she did. Dilella also attempted to meet a 16-year-old victim in Stratford to engage in sex acts with him, but they could not agree on a location. When the victim suggested they meet in her basement, Dilella declined because he felt was a “trap.”
On May 24, 2021, investigators seized Dilella’s iPhone. Analysis of the phone revealed videos of prepubescent children being sexually abused.
Dilella was arrested on May 4, 2022. On November 8, 2023, he pleaded guilty to receipt of child pornography and possession of child pornography.
Dilella, who is released on a $250,000 bond, is required to report to prison on May 15.
This matter was investigated by Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), with the assistance of the Stratford and Milford Police Departments. The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Angel M. Krull.
This prosecution is part of the U.S. Department of Justice’s Project Safe Childhood Initiative, which is aimed at protecting children from sexual abuse and exploitation. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.justice.gov/psc.
To report cases of child exploitation, please visit www.cybertipline.com.
St. Tammany Man Indicted for Federal Drug and Gun OffensesRead the Press Release
NEW ORLEANS, LOUISIANA – United States Attorney Duane A. Evans announced that RICARDO JORDAN, age 21, of St. Tammany Parish, was indicted on March 14, 2024, for distribution of fentanyl, in violation of Title 21, United States Code, Sections 841(a)(1) and 841(b)(1)(B); possession with intent to distribute fentanyl, in violation of Title 21, United States Code, Sections 841(a)(1) and 841(b)(1)(B); and possession of a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime, in violation of Title 18, United States Code 924(c)(1)(A).
According to the indictment, on August 3, 2023, August 10, 2023, and September 19, 2023, JORDAN allegedly distributed more than 40 grams of fentanyl. Additionally, on September 28, 2023 JORDAN allegedly possessed 40 grams or more of fentanyl, with the intent to distribute, as well as possessing a firearm in furtherance of that drug trafficking crime.
If convicted of the drug counts, JORDAN faces a mandatory minimum term of imprisonment of five years and up to a maximum term of imprisonment of forty years, a fine of up to $5,000,000.00, and at least four years of supervised release following any term of imprisonment. If convicted of the firearm count, JORDAN faces a mandatory minimum term of imprisonment of five years to run consecutive to any other sentence imposed, a fine of up to $250,000.00, and up to five years of supervised release following any term of imprisonment. As to each count, JORDAN also faces payment of a $100 mandatory special assessment fee.
U.S. Attorney Evans reiterated that the indictment is merely a charging document and that the guilt of the defendant must be proven 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 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.
The case was investigated by Homeland Security Investigations and the Louisiana State Police. The prosecution is being handled by Assistant United States Attorney Briana Williams of the Narcotics Unit.
Seven-Time Convicted Felon Indicted for Possession of Firearm and AmmunitionRead the Press Release
Orlando, Florida – United States Attorney Roger B. Handberg announces the return of an indictment charging Darryl James London (46, Orlando) with possessing a firearm and ammunition as a convicted felon. If convicted, London faces a maximum penalty of 15 years in federal prison. The indictment also notifies London that the United States intends to forfeit the seized firearm, ammunition, and any assets which are alleged to be traceable to proceeds of the offense.
According to the indictment, between 2001 and 2022, London was convicted of seven felony offenses. Despite knowing this fact, London possessed a Charter Arms revolver and ammunition on November 14, 2023. As a convicted felon, London is prohibited from possessing firearms or ammunition under federal law.
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 Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, with valuable assistance from the Orlando Police Department. It will be prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Richard Varadan.
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.
Seven Hackers Associated with Chinese Government Charged with Computer Intrusions Targeting Perceived Critics of China and U.S. Businesses and PoliticiansRead the Press Release
Note: Concurrent with this announcement, the U.S. Department of the Treasury imposed sanctions against two of the defendants, and the U.S. Department of State announced a Reward for Justice up to $10 million for information on these individuals, their organization, and associated entities.
See also the UK Government attribution statement; the National Cyber Security Centre statement; and the U.S. State Department's diplomatic statement from the Office of the Spokesperson.
View the indictment here.An indictment was unsealed today charging seven nationals of the People’s Republic of China (PRC) with conspiracy to commit computer intrusions and conspiracy to commit wire fraud for their involvement in a PRC-based hacking group that spent approximately 14 years targeting U.S. and foreign critics, businesses, and political officials in furtherance of the PRC’s economic espionage and foreign intelligence objectives.
The defendants are Ni Gaobin (倪高彬), 38; Weng Ming (翁明), 37; Cheng Feng (程锋), 34; Peng Yaowen (彭耀文), 38; Sun Xiaohui (孙小辉), 38; Xiong Wang (熊旺), 35; and Zhao Guangzong (赵光宗), 38. All are believed to reside in the PRC.
“The Justice Department will not tolerate efforts by the Chinese government to intimidate Americans who serve the public, silence the dissidents who are protected by American laws, or steal from American businesses,” said Attorney General Merrick B. Garland. “This case serves as a reminder of the ends to which the Chinese government is willing to go to target and intimidate its critics, including launching malicious cyber operations aimed at threatening the national security of the United States and our allies.”
“Over 10,000 malicious emails, impacting thousands of victims, across multiple continents. As alleged in today’s indictment, this prolific global hacking operation – backed by the PRC government – targeted journalists, political officials, and companies to repress critics of the Chinese regime, compromise government institutions, and steal trade secrets,” said Deputy Attorney General Lisa Monaco. “The Department of Justice will relentlessly pursue, expose, and hold accountable cyber criminals who would undermine democracies and threaten our national security.”
"Today's announcement exposes China's continuous and brash efforts to undermine our nation's cybersecurity and target Americans and our innovation,” said FBI Director Christopher Wray. "As long as China continues to target the US and our partners, the FBI will continue to send a clear message that cyber espionage will not be tolerated, and we will tirelessly pursue those who threaten our nation’s security and prosperity. This indictment underscores our unwavering commitment to disrupt and deter malicious cyber activity, and safeguard our citizens, businesses, and critical infrastructure from threats in cyberspace."
“The indictment unsealed today, together with statements from our foreign partners regarding related activity, shed further light on the PRC Ministry of State Security’s aggressive cyber espionage and transnational repression activities worldwide,” said Assistant Attorney General Matthew G. Olsen of the Justice Department’s National Security Division. “Today’s announcements underscore the need to remain vigilant to cybersecurity threats and the potential for cyber-enabled foreign malign influence efforts, especially as we approach the 2024 election cycle. The Department of Justice will continue to leverage all tools to disrupt malicious cyber actors who threaten our national security and aim to repress fundamental freedoms worldwide.”
“These allegations pull back the curtain on China’s vast illegal hacking operation that targeted sensitive data from U.S. elected and government officials, journalists, and academics; valuable information from American companies; and political dissidents in America and abroad. Their sinister scheme victimized thousands of people and entities across the world, and lasted for well over a decade,” said U.S. Attorney Breon Peace for the Eastern District of New York. “America’s sovereignty extends to its cyberspace. Today’s charges demonstrate my office’s commitment to upholding and protecting that jurisdiction, and to putting an end to malicious nation state cyber activity.”
“The recent indictments against the Chinese actors reaffirm the FBI’s relentless dedication to combating cyber threats,” said Assistant Director Bryan Vorndran of the FBI Cyber Division. “They serve as a reminder that cyber adversaries who seek to compromise our nation’s systems and target US officials cannot rely on the cloak of anonymity and will face consequences for their actions.”
“APT31 Group’s practices further demonstrate the size and scope of the PRC’s state-sponsored hacking apparatus,” said Special Agent in Charge Robert W. “Wes” Wheeler Jr. of the FBI Chicago Field Office. “FBI Chicago worked tirelessly to uncover this complex web of alleged foreign intelligence and economic espionage crimes. Thanks to these efforts, as well as our partnerships with the U.S. Attorneys’ Offices and fellow Field Offices, the FBI continues to be successful in holding groups accountable and protecting national security.”
Overview
As alleged in the indictment and court filings, the defendants, along with dozens of identified PRC Ministry of State Security (MSS) intelligence officers, contractor hackers, and support personnel, were members of a hacking group operating in the PRC and known within the cybersecurity community as Advanced Persistent Threat 31 (the APT31 Group). The APT31 Group was part of a cyberespionage program run by the MSS’s Hubei State Security Department, located in the city of Wuhan. Through their involvement with the APT31 Group, since at least 2010, the defendants conducted global campaigns of computer hacking targeting political dissidents and perceived supporters located inside and outside of China, government and political officials, candidates, and campaign personnel in the United States and elsewhere and American companies.
The defendants and others in the APT31 Group targeted thousands of U.S. and foreign individuals and companies. Some of this activity resulted in successful compromises of the targets’ networks, email accounts, cloud storage accounts, and telephone call records, with some surveillance of compromised email accounts lasting many years.
Hacking Scheme
The more than 10,000 malicious emails that the defendants and others in the APT31 Group sent to these targets often appeared to be from prominent news outlets or journalists and appeared to contain legitimate news articles. The malicious emails contained hidden tracking links, such that if the recipient simply opened the email, information about the recipient, including the recipient’s location, internet protocol (IP) addresses, network schematics, and specific devices used to access the pertinent email accounts, was transmitted to a server controlled by the defendants and those working with them. The defendants and others in the APT31 Group then used this information to enable more direct and sophisticated targeted hacking, such as compromising the recipients’ home routers and other electronic devices.
The defendants and others in the APT31 Group also sent malicious tracking-link emails to government officials across the world who expressed criticism of the PRC government. For example, in or about 2021, the conspirators targeted the email accounts of various foreign government individuals who were part of the Inter-Parliamentary Alliance on China (IPAC), a group founded in 2020 on the anniversary of the 1989 Tiananmen Square protests whose stated purpose was to counter the threats posed by the Chinese Communist Party to the international order and democratic principles. The targets included every European Union member of IPAC, and 43 United Kingdom parliamentary accounts, most of whom were members of IPAC or had been outspoken on topics relating to the PRC government.
To gain and maintain access to the victim computer networks, the defendants and others in the APT31 Group employed sophisticated hacking techniques including zero-day exploits, which are exploits that the hackers became aware of before the manufacturer, or the victim were able to patch or fix the vulnerability. These activities resulted in the confirmed and potential compromise of economic plans, intellectual property, and trade secrets belonging to American businesses, and contributed to the estimated billions of dollars lost every year as a result of the PRC’s state-sponsored apparatus to transfer U.S. technology to the PRC.
Targeting of U.S. Government Officials and U.S. and Foreign Politicians and Campaigns
The targeted U.S. government officials included individuals working in the White House, at the Departments of Justice, Commerce, Treasury, and State, and U.S. Senators and Representatives of both political parties. The defendants and others in the APT31 Group targeted these individuals at both professional and personal email addresses. Additionally in some cases, the defendants also targeted victims’ spouses, including the spouses of a high-ranking Department of Justice official, high-ranking White House officials, and multiple U.S. Senators. Targets also included election campaign staff from both major U.S. political parties in advance of the 2020 election.
The allegations in the indictment regarding the malicious cyber activity targeting political officials, candidates, and campaign personnel are consistent with the March 2021 Joint Report of the Department of Justice and the Department of Homeland Security on Foreign Interference Targeting Election Infrastructure or Political Organization, Campaign, or Candidate Infrastructure Related to the 2020 US Federal Elections. That report cited incidents when Chinese government-affiliated actors “materially impacted the security of networks associated with or pertaining to U.S. political organizations, candidates, and campaigns during the 2020 federal elections.” That report also concluded that “such actors gathered at least some information they could have released in influence operations,” but which the Chinese actors did not ultimately deploy in such a manner. Consistent with that conclusion, the indictment does not allege that the hacking furthered any Chinese government influence operations against the United States. The indictment’s allegations nonetheless serve to underscore the need for U.S. (and allied) political organizations, candidates, and campaigns to remain vigilant in their cybersecurity posture and in otherwise protecting their sensitive information from foreign intelligence services, particularly in light of the U.S. Intelligence Community’s recent assessment that “[t]he PRC may attempt to influence the U.S. elections in 2024 at some level because of its desire to sideline critics of China and magnify U.S. societal divisions.”
Targeting of U.S. Companies
The defendants and others in the APT31 Group also targeted individuals and dozens of companies operating in areas of national economic importance, including the defense, information technology, telecommunications, manufacturing and trade, finance, consulting, legal, and research industries. The defendants and others in the APT31 Group hacked and attempted to hack dozens of companies or entities operating in these industries, including multiple cleared defense contractors who provide products and services to the U.S. military, multiple managed service providers who managed the computer networks and security for other companies, a leading provider of 5G network equipment, and a leading global provider of wireless technology, among many others.
Targeting for Transnational Repression of Dissidents
The defendants and the APT31 Group also targeted individual dissidents around the world and other individuals who were perceived as supporting such dissidents. For example, in 2018, after several activists who spearheaded Hong Kong’s Umbrella Movement were nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize, the defendants and the APT31 Group targeted Norwegian government officials and a Norwegian managed service provider. The conspirators also successfully compromised Hong Kong pro-democracy activists and their associates located in Hong Kong, the United States, and other foreign locations with identical malware.
The charged defendants’ roles in the conspiracy consisted of testing and exploiting the malware used to conduct these intrusions, managing infrastructure associated with these intrusions, and conducting surveillance and intrusions against specific U.S. entities. For example:
- Cheng Feng, Sun Xiaohui, Weng Ming, Xiong Wang, and Zhao Guangzong were involved in testing and exploiting malware, including malware used in some of these intrusions.
- Cheng and Ni Gaobin managed infrastructure associated with some of these intrusions, including the domain name for a command-and-control server that accessed at least 59 unique victim computers, including a telecommunications company that was a leading provider of 5G network equipment in the United States, an Alabama-based research corporation in the aerospace and defense industries, and a Maryland-based professional support services company.
- Sun and Weng operated the infrastructure used in an intrusion into a U.S. company known for its public opinion polls. Sun and Peng Yaowen conducted research and reconnaissance on several additional U.S. entities that were later the victims of the APT31 Group’s intrusion campaigns.
- Ni and Zhao sent emails with links to files containing malware to PRC dissidents, specifically Hong Kong legislators and democracy advocates, as well as targeting U.S. entities focusing on PRC-related issues.
Assistant U.S. Attorneys Douglas M. Pravda, Saritha Komatireddy, and Jessica Weigel for the Eastern District of New York are prosecuting the case, with valuable assistance from Matthew Anzaldi and Matthew Chang of the National Security Division’s National Security Cyber Section.
An indictment is merely an allegation. All defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
Seven Hackers Associated with Chinese Government Charged with Computer Intrusions Targeting Perceived Critics of China and U.S. Businesses and PoliticiansRead the Press Release
BROOKLYN, NY – An indictment was unsealed today charging seven nationals of the People’s Republic of China (PRC) with conspiracy to commit computer intrusions and conspiracy to commit wire fraud for their involvement in a PRC-based hacking group that spent approximately 14 years targeting U.S. and foreign critics, businesses and political officials in furtherance of the PRC’s economic espionage and foreign intelligence objectives.
The defendants are Ni Gaobin (倪高彬), Weng Ming (翁明), Cheng Feng (程锋), Peng Yaowen (彭耀文), Sun Xiaohui (孙小辉), Xiong Wang (熊旺), and Zhao Guangzong (赵光宗).
Merrick B. Garland, United States Attorney General; Breon Peace, United States Attorney for the Eastern District of New York; Lisa O. Monaco, United States Deputy Attorney General; Matthew G. Olsen, Assistant Attorney General of the Justice Department’s National Security Division; James Smith, Assistant Director-in-Charge, Federal Bureau of Investigation, New York Field Office (FBI), and Robert W. “Wes” Wheeler, Jr., Special Agent-in-Charge, FBI, Chicago Field Office (FBI), announced the indictment.
“The Justice Department will not tolerate efforts by the Chinese government to intimidate Americans who serve the public, silence the dissidents who are protected by American laws, or steal from American businesses,” said Attorney General Merrick B. Garland. “This case serves as a reminder of the ends to which the Chinese government is willing to go to target and intimidate its critics, including launching malicious cyber operations aimed at threatening the national security of the United States and our allies.”
“These allegations pull back the curtain on China’s vast illegal hacking operation that targeted sensitive data from U.S. elected and government officials, journalists and academics; valuable information from American companies; and political dissidents in America and abroad. Their sinister scheme victimized thousands of people and entities across the world, and lasted for well over a decade,” stated U.S. Attorney Peace. “America’s sovereignty extends to its cyberspace. Today’s charges demonstrate my Office’s commitment to upholding and protecting that jurisdiction, and to putting an end to malicious nation state cyber activity.”
“Over 10,000 malicious emails, impacting thousands of victims, across multiple continents. As alleged in today’s indictment, this prolific global hacking operation – backed by the PRC government – targeted journalists, political officials, and companies to repress critics of the Chinese regime, compromise government institutions, and steal trade secrets,” said Deputy Attorney General Lisa Monaco. “The Department of Justice will relentlessly pursue, expose, and hold accountable cyber criminals who would undermine democracies and threaten our national security.”
“The indictment unsealed today, together with statements from our foreign partners regarding related activity, shed further light on the PRC Ministry of State Security’s aggressive cyber espionage and transnational repression activities worldwide,” said Assistant Attorney General Matthew G. Olsen of the Justice Department’s National Security Division. “Today’s announcements underscore the need to remain vigilant to cybersecurity threats and the potential for cyber-enabled foreign malign influence efforts, especially as we approach the 2024 election cycle. The Department of Justice will continue to leverage all tools to disrupt malicious cyber actors who threaten our national security and aim to repress fundamental freedoms worldwide.”
“These defendants were part of a Chinese government sponsored hacking group, targeting U.S. businesses and U.S. political officials for intrusion for over a decade as part of a larger, malicious global campaign. These charges are yet another example of hostile actions taken by the PRC to attack not only American businesses and infrastructure, but the security of our nation. FBI New York is united with our partners - internationally, federally, and the private sector – to protect our common goals and ideals from antagonistic nation state actors,” stated FBI Assistant Director-in-Charge Smith.
“APT31 Group’s practices further demonstrate the size and scope of the PRC’s state-sponsored hacking apparatus,” said Robert W. “Wes” Wheeler, Jr., Special Agent-in-Charge of the Chicago Field Office of the FBI. “FBI Chicago worked tirelessly to uncover this complex web of alleged foreign intelligence and economic espionage crimes. Thanks to these efforts, as well as our partnerships with the U.S. Attorney’s Offices and fellow Field Offices, the FBI continues to be successful in holding groups accountable and protecting national security.”
Overview
As alleged in the indictment and court filings, the defendants, along with dozens of identified PRC Ministry of State Security (MSS) intelligence officers, contractor hackers, and support personnel, were members of a hacking group operating in the PRC and known within the cyber security community as Advanced Persistent Threat 31 (the APT31 Group). The APT31 Group was part of a cyberespionage program run by the MSS’s Hubei State Security Department, located in the city of Wuhan. Through their involvement with the APT31 Group, since at least 2010, the defendants conducted global campaigns of computer hacking targeting political dissidents and perceived supporters located inside and outside of China, government and political officials, candidates and campaign personnel in the United States and elsewhere, and American companies.
The defendants and others in the APT31 Group targeted thousands of U.S. and foreign individuals and companies. Some of this activity resulted in successful compromises of the targets’ networks, email accounts, cloud storage accounts, and telephone call records, with some surveillance of compromised email accounts lasting many years.
Hacking Scheme
The more than 10,000 malicious emails that the defendants and others in the APT31 Group sent to these targets often appeared to be from prominent news outlets or journalists and appeared to contain legitimate news articles. The malicious emails contained hidden tracking links, such that if the recipient simply opened the email, information about the recipient, including the recipient’s location, internet protocol (IP) addresses, network schematics, and specific devices used to access the pertinent email accounts, was transmitted to a server controlled by the defendants and those working with them. The defendants and others in the APT31 Group then used this information to enable more direct and sophisticated targeted hacking, such as compromising the recipients’ home routers and other electronic devices.
The defendants and others in the APT31 Group also sent malicious tracking-link emails to government officials across the world who expressed criticism of the PRC government. For example, in or about 2021, the Conspirators targeted the email accounts of various foreign government individuals world who were part of the Inter-Parliamentary Alliance on China (IPAC), a group founded in 2020 on the anniversary of the 1989 Tiananmen Square protests whose stated purpose was to counter the threats posed by the Chinese Communist Party to the international order and democratic principles. The targets included every European Union member of IPAC, and 43 United Kingdom parliamentary accounts, most of whom were members of IPAC or had been outspoken on topics relating to the PRC government.
To gain and maintain access to the victim computer networks, the defendants and others in the APT31 Group employed sophisticated hacking techniques including zero-day exploits, which are exploits that the hackers became aware of before the manufacturer or the victim were able to patch or fix the vulnerability. These activities resulted in the confirmed and potential compromise of economic plans, intellectual property, and trade secrets belonging to American businesses, and contributed to the estimated billions of dollars lost every year as a result of the PRC’s state-sponsored apparatus to transfer U.S. technology to the PRC.
Targeting of U.S. Government Officials and U.S. and Foreign Politicians and Campaigns
The targeted U.S. government officials included individuals working in the White House, at the Departments of Justice, Commerce, Treasury, and State, and U.S. Senators and Representatives of both political parties. The defendants and others in the APT31 Group targeted these individuals at both professional and personal email addresses. Additionally in some cases, the defendants also targeted victims’ spouses, including the spouses of a high-ranking Department of Justice official, high-ranking White House officials, and multiple United States Senators. Targets also included election campaign staff from both major U.S. political parties in advance of the 2020 election.
The allegations in the indictment regarding the malicious cyber activity targeting political officials, candidates, and campaign personnel are consistent with the March 2021 Joint Report of the Department of Justice and the Department of Homeland Security on Foreign Interference Targeting Election Infrastructure or Political Organization, Campaign, or Candidate Infrastructure Related to the 2020 US Federal Elections. That report cited incidents when Chinese government-affiliated actors “materially impacted the security of networks associated with or pertaining to US political organizations, candidates, and campaigns during the 2020 federal elections.” That report also concluded that “such actors gathered at least some information they could have released in influence operations,” but which the Chinese actors did not ultimately deploy in such a manner. Consistent with that conclusion, the indictment does not allege that the hacking furthered any Chinese government influence operations against the U.S. The indictment’s allegations nonetheless serve to underscore the need for U.S. and allied political organizations, candidates, and campaigns to remain vigilant in their cybersecurity posture and in otherwise protecting their sensitive information from foreign intelligence services, particularly in light of the U.S. Intelligence Community’s recent assessment that “[t]he PRC may attempt to influence the U.S. elections in 2024 at some level because of its desire to sideline critics of China and magnify U.S. societal divisions.”
Targeting of U.S. Companies
The defendants and others in the APT31 Group also targeted individuals and dozens of companies operating in areas of national economic importance, including the defense, information technology, telecommunications, manufacturing and trade, finance, consulting, legal, and research industries. The defendants and others in the APT31 Group hacked and attempted to hack dozens of companies or entities operating in these industries, including multiple cleared defense contractors who provide products and services to the U.S. military, multiple managed service providers who managed the computer networks and security for other companies, a leading provider of 5G network equipment, and a leading global provider of wireless technology, among many others.
Targeting for Transnational Repression of Dissidents
The defendants and the APT31 Group also targeted individual dissidents around the world and other individuals who were perceived as supporting such dissidents. For example, in 2018, after several activists who spearheaded Hong Kong’s Umbrella Movement were nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize, the defendants and the APT31 Group targeted Norwegian government officials and a Norwegian managed service provider. The conspirators also successfully compromised Hong Kong pro-democracy activists and their associates located in Hong Kong, the United States, and other foreign locations with identical malware.
The charged defendants’ roles in the conspiracy consisted of testing and exploiting the malware used to conduct these intrusions, managing infrastructure associated with these intrusions, and conducting surveillance and intrusions against specific U.S. entities. For example, defendants Cheng Feng, Sun Xiaohui, Weng Ming, Xiong Wang, and Zhao Guangzong were involved in testing and exploiting malware, including malware used in some of these intrusions. Cheng and Ni Gaobin managed infrastructure associated with some of these intrusions, including the domain name for a command-and-control server that accessed at least 59 unique victim computers, including a telecommunications company that was a leading provider of 5G network equipment in the United States, an Alabama-based research corporation in the aerospace and defense industries, and a Maryland-based professional support services company. Sun and Weng operated the infrastructure used in an intrusion into a U.S. company known for its public opinion polls. Sun and Peng Yaowen conducted research and reconnaissance on several additional U.S. entities that were later the victims of the APT31 Group’s intrusion campaigns. Ni and Zhao sent emails with links to files containing malware to PRC dissidents, specifically Hong Kong legislators and democracy advocates, as well as targeting U.S. entities focusing on PRC-related issues.
The government’s case is being prosecuted by the Office’s National Security and Cybercrime Section. Assistant United States Attorneys Douglas M. Pravda, Saritha Komatireddy, and Jessica Weigel are in charge of the prosecution, with assistance from Matthew Anzaldi and Matthew Chang of the National Security Division’s National Security Cyber Section and from the Office’s Litigation Analyst Mary Clare McMahon.
The Defendants:
Ni Gaobin (倪高彬)
Age: 38
People’s Republic of ChinaWeng Ming (翁明)
Age: 37
People’s Republic of ChinaCheng Feng (程锋)
Age: 34
People’s Republic of ChinaPeng Yaowen (彭耀文)
Age: 38
People’s Republic of ChinaSun Xiaohui (孙小辉)
Age: 38
People’s Republic of ChinaXiong Wang (熊旺)
Age: 35
People’s Republic of ChinaZhao Guangzong (赵光宗)
Age: 38
People’s Republic of ChinaE.D.N.Y. Docket No. 24-CR-42 (RER)
Sacramento Resident Charged with Abusive Sexual Contact of Airplane Passenger During International FlightRead the Press Release
SAN FRANCISCO – A federal grand jury indicted Rajesh Kumar Kapoor, charging him with sexual abuse of another passenger during an international flight, announced U.S. Attorney Ismail Ramsey and Federal Bureau of Investigation Special Agent in Charge Robert K. Tripp. Kapoor was arrested this morning, appeared before U.S. Magistrate Judge Laurel Beeler for his initial court appearance, and was released pending trial.
The indictment filed March 13, 2024, and unsealed earlier today, alleges that on January 16, 2024, Kapoor, 56, of Sacramento, Calif., was aboard a flight from the Republic of Korea to San Francisco when he engaged in abusive sexual contact with another passenger. Specifically, the indictment alleges Kapoor touched the victim’s breasts and inner thigh without the passenger’s permission.
Kapoor is charged with one count of abusive sexual contact, in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 2244(b) and 49 U.S.C. § 46506(1). Kapoor’s next court appearance is scheduled for May 9, 2024, before Senior United States District Judge Edward M. Chen, for a status conference.
An indictment merely alleges that crimes have been committed, and all defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt. If convicted, Kapoor faces a statutory maximum of two years’ imprisonment and a $250,000 fine. In addition, as part of any sentence a court may order an additional period of supervised release and restitution, if appropriate; however, any sentence following conviction would be imposed by the court after consideration of the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines, as applicable, and the federal statute governing the imposition of a sentence, 18 U.S.C. § 3553.
Special Assistant United States Attorney Matthew Chou is prosecuting this case with the assistance of Tina Rosenbaum and Marina Ponomarchuk. The prosecution is the result of an investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation.
Rochester woman pleads guilty to defrauding the IRS and NYS Tax Department during COVIDRead the Press Release
ROCHESTER, N.Y. - U.S. Attorney Trini E. Ross announced today that Melanie Armstrong, 55, of Rochester, NY, pleaded guilty before U.S. Magistrate Judge Marian W. Payson to wire fraud involving national emergency benefits, filing false claims against a government agency, and transfer of a means of identification. The charges carry a maximum penalty of 30 years in prison and a $1,000,000 fine.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Katelyn M. Hartford, who is handling the case, stated that between July 2020, and August 2021, Armstrong falsely applied for New York State Department of Labor unemployment benefits under the identities of others and fraudulently collected benefits in their names. Armstrong also collected unemployment benefits in her own name by falsely representing that she had no source of income. Armstrong received $131,400.10 in benefits that she was not lawfully entitled to receive. Armstrong also applied for, but did not receive, additional benefits, resulting in a total intended loss of $250,916.
In addition, between January 2019, and April 2023, Armstrong filed 19 false income tax returns with the Internal Revenue Service for herself, and family members and associates, claiming false and inflated wages and false and inflated federal income tax withholdings. As a result, the IRS issued tax refunds to Armstrong and the others totaling $101,255. Between January 2020, and April 2023, Armstrong also filed 17 false tax returns for herself, and family members and associates, with the New York State Department of Taxation and Finance, claiming false and inflated wages and false and inflated state income tax withholdings. Armstrong attempted to obtain $45,363 in fraudulent refunds, but actually received $18,758 in fraudulent refunds.
The plea is the result of an investigation by the U.S. Department of Labor, Office of Inspector General, under the direction of Jonathan Mellone, Special Agent-in-Charge, Northeast Region, the Internal Revenue Service-Criminal Investigations, under the direction of Special Agent-in-Charge Thomas M. Fattorusso, and the New York State Department of Taxation and Finance, under the direction of Acting Commissioner Amanda Hiller.
Sentencing will be scheduled a later date.
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Pine City Man Sentenced to 29 Years in Prison for Multi-Victim Child Exploitation and Child Pornography SchemeRead the Press Release
MINNEAPOLIS – A Pine City man has been sentenced to 350 months in prison followed by 12 years of supervised release for producing, receiving, and distributing images of child pornography, and coercing and enticing minors to engage in illegal sexual activity, announced U.S. Attorney Andrew M. Luger.“For years, Caleb McLaughlin used social media to groom, sexually exploit, and abuse hundreds of minor victims. He preyed upon the most vulnerable, with some victims as young as 11 or 12 years old,” said U.S. Attorney Luger. “Protecting Minnesota children from the trauma of sexual exploitation is a critical part of our mission, and I thank all of our partners in law enforcement for their diligence on this investigation.”
“When our children are victimized, the FBI and our law enforcement partners will do everything in our power to hold the perpetrators accountable," said Special Agent in Charge Alvin M. Winston Sr. of FBI Minneapolis. "Today’s sentence demonstrates our commitment to seek justice for our most innocent victims.”
According to his plea agreement and court documents, beginning in or about January 2019, Caleb Vincent McLaughlin, 26, used multiple social media accounts to solicit and direct over 200 minor victims to produce and send sexually explicit images, of whom 26 minors have been identified between the ages of 11 and 16 years old in Minnesota and Wisconsin. McLaughlin used a variety of aliases and Snapchat IDs including “Jake Benson,” “Lift11” or “Tech4cm,” in his scheme, and sometimes purported to be 17 years old to prey on minor girls he met online in order to entice and coerce them to create sexually explicit images and videos. McLaughlin targeted minor victims not only to obtain child pornography, but also to coerce minor victims to meet him in person so he could commit hands-on sexual abuse. McLaughlin offered minors drugs, alcohol, vape pens, cash, and gift cards in exchange for sex acts. Then McLaughlin documented that abuse by producing child pornography videos. McLaughlin also distributed numerous videos and images of child pornography, some of which was self-produced and depicted him sexually assaulting minor victims.
On October 11, 2023, McLaughlin pleaded guilty to two counts of production of child pornography, one count of receipt of child pornography, one count of distribution of child pornography, and one count of coercion and enticement of a minor. He was sentenced today by Chief Judge Patrick J. Schlitz, who remarked that the sentence was one of the longest he had ever imposed and called McLaughlin’s behavior, “shocking, even to someone like me, a federal judge who has been sentencing [child sex offenders] for over two decades.”
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. Attorney’s Offices and the Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS), Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to better locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the Internet, as well as to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.justice.gov/psc.
This case is the result of an investigation conducted by the FBI, with substantial assistance from the St. Paul Police Department, Pine County Sheriff's Office, and Hennepin County Sheriff’s Office.
Assistant U.S. Attorneys Hillary A. Taylor and Rachel L. Kraker prosecuted the case.
Philadelphia Man Sentenced to 160 Months in Prison for Attempted Sale of More Than A Pound of Crystal MethamphetamineRead the Press Release
WILMINGTON, Del. – David C. Weiss, U.S. Attorney for the District of Delaware, announced that a Philadelphia man was sentenced on March 21, 2024, to 160 months in federal prison for possessing more than a pound of crystal methamphetamine with intent to distribute. U.S. District Judge Maryellen Noreika pronounced the sentence.
According to court documents, in October 2022, Raymond Talley arrived at a Delaware hotel with more than a pound of crystal methamphetamine that he intended to sell to another drug dealer. When Mr. Talley entered the hotel lobby, however, he found law enforcement waiting for him. After a brief flight, Mr. Talley was arrested, and the crystal methamphetamine was recovered.
U.S. Attorney Weiss stated, “As the Court recognized at sentencing, this amount of methamphetamine could have harmed or killed many Delawareans. My office and our law enforcement partners will continue to work tirelessly to prevent those harms from befalling our State.”
“HSI Wilmington’s First State Border Enforcement Security Task Force, along with the Newport Police Department worked diligently to bring Mr. Talley to justice,” said Special Agent in Charge of HSI Philadelphia William S. Walker. “It is critically important that law enforcement continue to fight against the scourge of methamphetamine being trafficked in our communities. Through seamless cooperation and quick action, investigators and prosecutors worked together to bring this case to a successful conclusion.”
Assistant U.S. Attorneys Meredith C. Ruggles and Benjamin L. Wallace prosecuted the case, which was investigated by Homeland Security Investigations.
A copy of this press release is located on the website of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Delaware. Related court documents and information is located on the website of the District Court for the District of Delaware or on PACER by searching for Case No. 1:22-cr-00121.
Owasso Woman Pleads Guilty to Medicaid FraudRead the Press Release
OKLAHOMA CITY – Today, MELISSA FIKE, 52, of Owasso, Oklahoma, pleaded guilty to two counts of health care fraud, announced U.S. Attorney Robert J. Troester.
On March 6, 2024, Fike was charged with two counts of health care fraud. According to the Information, in 2018 Fike contracted as a licensed behavioral health practitioner for two Oklahoma counseling service providers, located in Coweta and Tulsa. As a result, Fike was eligible for reimbursement from Medicaid for providing counseling services to Medicaid beneficiaries and would receive a percentage of the reimbursement for each claim. The Information alleges that between October 2018 and September 2020, Fike submitted to the Oklahoma Health Care Authority numerous fraudulent claims for Medicaid reimbursement, resulting in approximately $171,000.00 worth of payments from the Medicaid program.
Today, Fike pleaded guilty, and admitted to submitting Medicaid claims for services she never actually rendered. At sentencing, Fike faces up to 10 years in federal prison and fines totaling up to $250,000 for each count.
“Protecting the integrity of Medicaid is of upmost importance because many of Oklahoma’s most vulnerable citizens depend on these services to be available when they need it,” said United States Attorney Robert Troester. “We are proud to partner with the Oklahoma Attorney General’s Office in our efforts to protect Medicaid funds.”
“I am proud of the tremendous work of my office’s Medicaid Fraud Control Unit in this investigation,” said Oklahoma Attorney General Gentner Drummond. “The Office of the Attorney General takes very seriously our commitment to rooting out Medicaid fraud to ensure taxpayer dollars are used correctly and that bad actors are held accountable.”
This case is the result of an investigation by the Medicaid Fraud Control Unit of the Office of the Oklahoma Attorney General. Assistant U.S. Attorney D.H. Dilbeck is prosecuting the case.
Reference is made to public filings for additional information.
Osceola County Man Indicted for Attempting to Entice A Minor to Engage in Sexual ActivityRead the Press Release
Orlando, Florida – United States Attorney Roger B. Handberg announces the return of an indictment charging Rene Bravo (57, Kissimmee) with attempting to entice a minor to engage in sexual activity. If convicted, Bravo faces a minimum mandatory penalty of 10 years, up to life, in federal prison. The indictment also notifies Bravo that the United States intends to forfeit assets which were used in commission or are alleged to be traceable to proceeds of the offense.
According to court documents, in July 2023, Bravo began communicating with an undercover law enforcement officer (UC) whom Bravo believed to be a 13-year-old girl. Throughout the next several months, Bravo began expressing a sexual interest in the “child” over an escalating series of graphic messages. In February 2024, Bravo made plans to meet with the “child” and take her back to his home for sex. On February 29, 2024, Bravo arrived at the arranged meeting spot and was arrested.
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. It will be prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Richard Varadan.
This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by United States Attorneys’ Offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS), Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who sexually exploit children, and to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.justice.gov/psc.
North Fort Myers Man Sentenced to over 10 Years for Distributing and Possessing Child Sexual Abuse Images and VideosRead the Press Release
Fort Myers, Florida – U.S. District Judge Sheri Polster Chappell has sentenced Cody Ray Syfrett (30, North Fort Myers) to 10 years and 10 months in federal prison for distribution and possession of images and videos depicting the sexual abuse of children. Syfrett was also sentenced to a 15-year term of supervised release and ordered to register as a sex offender. Syfrett entered a guilty plea on October 17, 2023.
According to court documents, between September 28 and October 4, 2021, Syfrett was chatting with an undercover agent on a social media application. Syfrett sent videos of minors engaged in sexual acts to the undercover agent. In addition, a social media app provided a cybertip to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC) reporting that Syfrett had uploaded videos and images depicting child sexual abuse material between September 27 and October 10, 2021.
In December 2021, the FBI executed a search warrant for Syfrett’s social media account, which revealed videos and images depicting minors under the age of 12 engaging in sexually explicit conduct. On January 27, 2022, the FBI executed a search warrant at Syfrett’s residence and seized his cellphone. A subsequent forensic analysis of Syfrett’s cellphone revealed 20 images and 25 videos of child sexual abuse material. During an interview with agents, Syfrett confirmed that he utilized the social media app and confirmed his phone number and username for the app. Syfrett admitted to his conversation with the undercover agent and that he shared child sexual abuse material. Syfrett said that the youngest child depicted in the child sexual abuse material that he distributed was nine years old.
This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Fort Myers Child Exploitation and Human Trafficking Task Force, which includes the Lee County Sheriff’s Office that assisted with this investigation. It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Yolande G. Viacava.
This is another case brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by the United States Attorneys’ Offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who sexually exploit children, and to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.justice.gov/psc.
New Orleans Man with Felony Convictions Pleads Guilty to Illegally Possessing FirearmsRead the Press Release
NEW ORLEANS, LOUISIANA – JARREN LEE, age 35, a resident of New Orleans, pleaded guilty on March 19, 2024, before United States District Judge Darrel J. Papillion to violating the Federal Gun Control Act, announced U.S. Attorney Duane A. Evans.
According to court records, LEE was arrested by the New Orleans Police Department after being observed driving a stolen vehicle. When police searched the vehicle, they found two firearms, both equipped with high-capacity magazines and one of which was stolen. LEE had several prior felony convictions, including multiple convictions for drug possession.
Judge Papillion set sentencing for July 16, 2024. LEE faces a maximum term of imprisonment of 15 years, a fine of up to $250,000, up to 3 years of supervised release, and a mandatory special assessment fee of $100.
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.
The case was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives, the Drug Enforcement Administration, and the New Orleans Police Department. It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney David Haller, Senior Litigation Counsel.
Muskogee Resident Pleads Guilty to Assault of Intimate Partner by StrangulationRead the Press Release
MUSKOGEE, OKLAHOMA – The United States Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Oklahoma announced that Colby Eric Dean Ballard, age 28, of Muskogee, Oklahoma, entered a guilty plea to one count of Assault of a Spouse, Intimate Partner, and Dating Partner in Indian County.
The Indictment alleged that on or about April 4, 2023, Ballard assaulted the victim by strangulation. The crime occurred in Muskogee County, within the boundaries of the Muscogee (Creek) Nation Reservation, in the Eastern District of Oklahoma.
The charges arose from an investigation by the Muskogee Police Department and the Federal Bureau of Investigation.
The Honorable Judge Gerald L. Jackson, U.S. Magistrate Judge in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Oklahoma, accepted the plea and ordered the completion of a presentence investigation report. Ballard was remanded to the custody of the United States Marshal Service pending sentencing.
Assistant United States Attorney Edith A. Singer represented the United States.
Mexican National Pleads Guilty to Methamphetamine TraffickingRead the Press Release
SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Orlando Torres Angulo, 29, of Mexico, pleaded guilty today to conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine, two counts of distributing methamphetamine, and use of a cellphone in aid of racketeering, U.S. Attorney Phillip A. Talbert announced.
According to court documents, in February 2021, Torres Angulo conspired with other individuals in both Mexico and California to distribute methamphetamine in pound quantities. Torres Angulo arranged for the delivery of 4 pounds of methamphetamine to a customer, who was in fact an undercover officer in Fresno. Torres Angulo later delivered another 2 pounds of methamphetamine to the undercover officer in Roseville. While discussing this deal, Torres Angulo told the undercover officer that he would set aside 15 pounds of methamphetamine if the undercover officer came to his place in Tulare.
This case is the product of an investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation with assistance from the Drug Enforcement Administration, Homeland Security Investigations, and the Tri-County Drug Enforcement Team (TRIDENT). Assistant U.S. Attorney David W. Spencer is prosecuting the case.
Torres Angulo is scheduled to be sentenced by U.S. District Judge Kimberly J. Mueller on July 8, 2024. Torres Angulo faces a maximum statutory penalty of life in prison on the methamphetamine conspiracy and methamphetamine distribution counts and a maximum statutory penalty of five years in prison for his use of a cellphone in aid of racketeering. The actual sentence, however, will 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 case was investigated under the Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF). OCDETF identifies, disrupts, and dismantles the highest-level criminal organizations that threaten the United States using a prosecutor-led, intelligence-driven, multi-agency approach. For more information about OCDETF, please visit Justice.gov/OCDETF.
Martin County Sex Offender Sentenced to a Decade in Federal Prison after Investigators Locate His Collection Child Sexual Abuse MaterialRead the Press Release
EVANSVILLE- Ryan Watkins, 47, of Loogootee, Martin County, Indiana, has been sentenced to ten years in federal prison after pleading guilty to possession of sexually explicit material involving minors.
According to court documents, on multiple occasions between January and April of 2023, Ryan Watkins viewed and downloaded images of child sexual abuse material to his cell phone linked to an internet cloud-based data storage platform.
Investigators examined the files and found more than 600 images depicting minors under twelve years old engaged in sexually explicit conduct. Images depicting minors engaged in sexually explicit conduct were also located by investigators in a Google Chrome cache folder and download folders on Watkins’ cellphone.
In May of 2010, Watkins was convicted of felony Child Molestation, in Davies County, Indiana and was a registered sex offender at the time he was viewing the sexually explicit material involving minors.
“This previously convicted child molester chose to continue seeking gratification from the sexual abuse of children,” said Zachary A. Myers, U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Indiana, Zachary A. Myers. “He didn’t care about the trauma that was inflicted on these victims, so long as he could enjoy this heinous material. Thanks to the U.S. Secret Service, Indiana State Police, and our federal prosecutor, our children are safer, and this dangerous offender is back behind bars where he belongs.”
The United States Secret Service and the Indiana State Police investigated this case. The sentence was imposed by U.S. District Court Judge Richard L. Young. Judge Young also ordered that Watkins be supervised by the U.S. Probation Office for fifteen years following his release from federal prison and that he must pay $6,000 in restitution.
U.S. Attorney Myers thanked Assistant United States Attorney Todd S. Shellenbarger, who prosecuted this case.
This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by U.S. Attorneys’ Offices and the 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.
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Man ordered to remove shipping container and floating docks from Lake Worth Lagoon after violating Rivers and Harbors ActRead the Press Release
MIAMI – On March 22, the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida ordered a man to remove a shipping container and floating docks on which it rested from Lake Worth Lagoon near Palm Beach, Florida.
A 2021 complaint alleged that Fane Lozman violated the Rivers and Harbors Act (RHA) by placing the shipping container – which Lozman modified to include windows, doors, stairs, a rooftop deck and other additions – on floating docks in navigable waters of the United States without authorization. Since the United States commenced the action, Lozman removed several pieces of floating docks from Lake Worth Lagoon, but two floating docks and the modified shipping container remained.
Photo of floating docks and a shipping container on Lake Worth Lagoon, from United States’ Motion for Summary Judgment, Page 4 in U.S. v. Fane Lozman, case no. 21-cv-81119.
Lozman moved the floating docks and shipping container to different areas in Lake Worth Lagoon and anchored them. One of the floating docks split apart. And Lozman’s floating docks became unmoored on several occasions including once when the dock with the shipping container on it floated across Lake Worth Lagoon and beached at a public park. The floating docks together weigh over 100,000 pounds.
Lake Worth Lagoon is Palm Beach County’s largest estuary at up to a mile wide and running approximately 21 miles from North Palm Beach to Ocean Ridge, with two inlets connecting it to the Atlantic Ocean. The Atlantic Intracoastal Waterway cuts through Lake Worth Lagoon.
“The Rivers and Harbors Act provides for the safety of navigable U.S. waters,” said U.S. Attorney Markenzy Lapointe for the Southern District of Florida. “Prompt enforcement action to remove unauthorized structures is needed to protect persons and commerce in navigable U.S. waters.”
“Building or placing structures in navigable U.S. waters without authorization is a violation of the Rivers and Harbors Act,” said Assistant Attorney General Todd Kim of the Justice Department’s Environment and Natural Resources Division (ENRD). “Unlawful structures can pose increased risks of harm to others, as in this case. We’re committed to enforcing the law.”
“USACE Jacksonville greatly appreciates the expertise and support that the Justice Department brought to resolving this matter,” said District Commander Col. James Booth of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers' (USACE) Jacksonville District.
“The USACE Jacksonville regulatory enforcement program is working to deter unauthorized activities such as this, while continuously maintaining the integrity of the nation's waterways and aquatic resources,” said Compliance and Enforcement Chief Bobby Halbert of USACE’s Jacksonville District.
The USACE’s Jacksonville District referred the case to the Justice Department’s Environment and Natural Resources Division (ENRD). The Jacksonville District Enforcement Section is often aided by state and federal agencies, as well as groups and individuals who report suspected violations. To report suspected violations of the Rivers and Harbors Act, contact the Jacksonville District's enforcement program at [email protected].
Civil Section Chief Dexter Lee and Trial Attorneys Brandon N. Adkins and Rachel Martinez of ENRD’s Environmental Defense Section handled the case.
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 no. 21-cv-81119.
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Man Sentenced for Sending Death Threats to Arizona State Election OfficialRead the Press Release
An Ohio man was sentenced today to two and a half years in prison for sending death threats to an election official in the Arizona Secretary of State’s Office during Arizona’s primary and general elections.
“If you threaten violence against the public servants who administer our elections, there will be consequences,” said Attorney General Merrick B. Garland. “The right to vote, which is the cornerstone of our democracy, relies on the ability of election workers and election officials to perform their duties without fearing for their lives. The Justice Department will continue to aggressively investigate and prosecute those who threaten these public servants.”
According to court documents, between Aug. 2, 2022, and Nov. 15, 2022, Joshua Russell, 46, of Bucyrus, left a series of voicemails threatening the life of an election official with the Arizona Secretary of State’s Office (Victim‑1).
The first message, which was sent on the day of the Arizona primary elections, accused Victim-1 of failing to protect the 2020 election and committing election fraud. Russell then said, “You’re the enemy of the United States, you’re a traitor to this country, and you better put your sh[inaudible], your [expletive] affairs in order, ’cause your days [inaudible] are extremely numbered. America’s coming for you, and you will pay with your life, you communist [expletive] traitor [expletive].”
“The defendant made multiple death threats against an Arizona election official during the state’s elections. This conduct is an attack on the democratic process itself, and today’s sentence shows that perpetrators of such egregious, unlawful conduct will be held to account,” said Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Nicole M. Argentieri, head of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division. “The Criminal Division will not tolerate threats of violence intended to undermine our free and fair elections.”
Russell left another voicemail for Victim-1 on Sept. 9, 2022. In that message, Russell called Victim-1 a terrorist and a criminal, and then said that “[y]ou have a few short months to see yourself behind bars, or we will see you to the grave. You are a traitor to this nation, and you will suffer the [expletive] consequences.”
“Thorough reporting leads to prompt charging and timely deterrence of those who would disrupt democracy,” said U.S. Attorney Gary M. Restaino for the District of Arizona. “Here, a threat reported during the August 2022 primary election was charged before the end of the calendar year. Thanks to the Office of the Arizona Secretary of State for making a detailed initial report, and to the FBI for its efficient and detailed investigation.”
Finally, on Nov. 15, 2022, Russell left a voicemail accusing Victim-1 of committing crimes against America and once again threatened Victim-1’s life. In relevant part, Russell said, “[w]e will not wait for you to be drugged through court. A war is coming for you. The entire nation is coming for you. And we will stop, at no end, until you are in the ground. You’re a traitor to this nation. You’re a [expletive] piece of [expletive] communist, and you just signed your own death warrant. Get your affairs in order, cause, your days are very short.”
Russell pleaded guilty in August 2023 to one count of making a threatening interstate communication.
The FBI Phoenix Field Office investigated the case, with assistance from the FBI Boston Field Office.
Trial Attorney Tanya Senanayake of the National Security Division’s Counterterrorism Section and Assistant U.S. Attorney Sean K. Lokey for the District of Arizona prosecuted the case.
This case is part of the Justice Department’s Election Threats Task Force. Announced by Attorney General Garland and launched by Deputy Attorney General Lisa Monaco in June 2021, the task force has led the Department’s efforts to address threats of violence against election workers, and to ensure that all election workers — whether elected, appointed, or volunteer — are able to do their jobs free from threats and intimidation. The task force engages with the election community and state and local law enforcement to assess allegations and reports of threats against election workers, and has investigated and prosecuted these matters where appropriate, in partnership with FBI Field Offices and U.S. Attorneys’ Offices throughout the country. Two years after its formation, the task force is continuing this work and supporting the U.S. Attorneys’ Offices and FBI Field Offices nationwide as they carry on the critical work that the task force has begun.
Under the leadership of Deputy Attorney General Monaco, the task force is led by the Criminal Division’s Public Integrity Section and includes several other entities within the Justice Department, including the Criminal Division’s Computer Crime and Intellectual Property Section, Civil Rights Division, National Security Division, and FBI, as well as key interagency partners, such as the Department of Homeland Security and U.S. Postal Inspection Service. For more information regarding the Justice Department’s efforts to combat threats against election workers, read the Deputy Attorney General’s memo.
To report suspected threats or violent acts, contact your local FBI office and request to speak with the Election Crimes Coordinator. Contact information for every FBI field office may be found at www.fbi.gov/contact-us/field-offices/. You may also contact the FBI at 1-800-CALL-FBI (225-5324) or file an online complaint at www.tips.fbi.gov. Complaints submitted will be reviewed by the task force and referred for investigation or response accordingly. If someone is in imminent danger or risk of harm, contact 911 or your local police immediately.
Man Caught with Drugs After his Release from Prison Sentenced to 12 ½ More YearsRead the Press Release
CAPE GIRARDEAU – U.S. District Judge Audrey G. Fleissig on Monday sentenced a man caught with methamphetamine and other drugs just weeks after his release from prison to 12 ½ more years in prison.
On May 19, 2023, officers with the Southeast Missouri Drug Task Force and the Kennett Police Department conducted a court-approved search of a home in Kennett after hearing that a drug supplier had a pound of meth there. Roderick Omar Wheeler Jr. was staying at the home with his uncle after being released from the federal Bureau of Prisons on April 28, according to Wheeler’s plea agreement and a government sentencing memorandum. During the search, 90 grams of crystal methamphetamine; 280 grams of synthetic marijuana (K2), 33 tablets of ecstasy, 8 grams of fentanyl and three digital scales were found. Wheeler also had $1,520 in cash that had been used earlier by the task force to buy meth.
Wheeler, 27, pleaded guilty in December 2023 to one felony count of possession of methamphetamine with intent to distribute.
Wheeler was sentenced to 78 months in prison in 2016 on gun and drug charges after being caught after a police chase with a pistol and marijuana, the sentencing memo says. He was released in 2021 but later sentenced to 14 more months in prison after violating the conditions of his supervised release. In 2014, Wheeler was found by police in a vehicle with a brick of marijuana underneath the seat. Wheeler had one ounce of meth concealed in his underwear that was discovered while he was being booked into jail.
The Southeast Missouri Drug Task Force and the Kennett Police Department investigated the case. Assistant U.S. Attorney Julie Hunter prosecuted the case.
Local man convicted of attacking officer in downtown HoustonRead the Press Release
HOUSTON – A 37-year-old Houston resident has pleaded guilty to assault of a federal officer after damaging two downtown buildings, announced U.S. Attorney Alamdar S. Hamdani.
On Oct. 26, 2023, Justin Wade Prophet was outside the federal courthouse in Houston during the early morning hours when he smashed a window with a long metal pole. He then walked to another building across the street, broke another window with the same pole and gained entry. While inside, he attempted to assault an individual who was on his way to work. He also damaged additional property.
Authorities from the federal courthouse confronted him shortly thereafter, at which time Prophet struck one of them with the pole. The officer shot Prophet in his lower extremities. Law enforcement immediately took Prophet into custody and transported him to the hospital.
“Brandishing a long metal pole, Prophet displayed a blatant disregard for public safety,” said Hamdani. “It is my office’s mission to protect federal facilities and Houston’s citizens, and with the help of local and federal partners, Prophet is now off the streets destined for a room full of metal poles—a prison cell.”
U.S. District Judge David Hittner has set sentencing for June 20. At that time, Prophet faces up to 20 years in federal prison and a possible $250,000 maximum fine.
Prophet has been and will remain in custody pending sentencing.
The Department of Homeland Security - Federal Protective Service and Houston Police Department conducted the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney John M. Lewis is prosecuting the case.
Law Enforcement Officials Announce Violent Crime Reduction Initiative: OPERATION CEASEFIRERead the Press Release
SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico – W. Stephen Muldrow, United States Attorney for the District of Puerto Rico, together with state, local, and federal law enforcement officials, announce the implementation of a multi-agency violent crime reduction initiative – Operation Ceasefire. Each of following law enforcement agencies will allocate personnel and resources to Operation Ceasefire to jointly target, apprehend and prosecute the most prolific, violent armed criminals operating throughout Puerto Rico.
- Secretary Domingo Emanuelli, Puerto Rico Department of Justice;
- Secretary Alexis Torres, Puerto Rico Department of Public Safety;
- Commissioner, Colonel Antonio López Figueroa, Puerto Rico Police Bureau;
- Commisioner Joey Prado, Bayamón Municipal Police;
- Commissioner Rubén Moyeno, Carolina Municipal Police;
- Commissioner Jorge Hernández Peña, Guaynabo Municipal Police;
- Acting Commissioner Juan Jackson, San Juan Municipal Police;
- Special Agent in Charge Christopher Robinson, Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms & Explosives;
- Special Agent in Charge Denise Foster, Drug Enforcement Administration;
- Special Agent in Charge Joseph González, Federal Bureau of Investigation;
- Special Agent in Charge Rebecca González Ramos, Homeland Security Investigations; and
- United States Marshal Wilmer Ocasio Ibarra, United States Marshals Service.
Operation Ceasefire will build on existing anti-violent crime strategies, such as the Gang Strike Forces and the Triggerpuller program. The initiative will be coordinated through the Chief and Deputy Chief of the United States Attorney’s Office’s Gang Section, Assistant U.S. Attorneys Alberto Lopez-Rocafort and Teresa S. Zapata Valladares.
Operation Ceasefire will also draw upon the resources and collaboration of the Department of Justice’s Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN) Program and the Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) Program, as well as the Puerto Rico / U.S. Virgin Islands High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area (PRVI HIDTA) Task Force.
The OCDETF mission is to identify, disrupt, and dismantle the highest-level criminal organizations that threaten the United States, using a prosecutor-led, intelligence-driven, multi-agency task force approach. OCDETF synchronizes and incentivizes prosecutors and agents to lead smart, creative investigations targeting the command-and-control networks of organized criminal groups and the illicit financiers that support them. Additional information about the OCDETF Program may be found at www.justice.gov/OCDETF.
PSN brings together all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve to reduce violent crime and make our neighborhoods safer for everyone. PSN, an evidence-based program proven to be effective at reducing violent crime, is the centerpiece of the Justice Department’s violent crime reduction efforts. Through PSN, a broad spectrum of stakeholders works together to identify the most pressing violent crime problems in the community and develop comprehensive solutions to address them. As part of this strategy, PSN focuses enforcement efforts on the most violent offenders and partners with locally‑based prevention and reentry programs for lasting reductions in crime.
The PRVI HIDTA Task Force was established by the Office of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP) in 1994. The mission of the PRVI HIDTA is to reduce violence and crime by targeting, disrupting, and dismantling drug trafficking and money laundering organizations supported by intelligence driven investigations.
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Justice Department Sues Missouri Landlord for Sexually Harassing TenantsRead the Press Release
The Justice Department filed a lawsuit today against Jimmie Bell, a landlord in Springfield, Missouri, for sexually harassing female tenants in violation of the Fair Housing Act (FHA). Bell has managed over 100 residential rental properties in and around Springfield.
The lawsuit, filed in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Missouri, alleges that Bell subjected multiple female tenants to harassment that included making unwelcome sexual advances, offering to reduce rent or make needed repairs in exchange for engaging in sex acts, subjecting female tenants to unwelcome sexual touching and initiating eviction actions against female tenants who refused his sexual advances.
“No one should ever be subjected to sexual harassment and degradation simply to keep a roof over their head,” said Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division. “Sexual harassment in residential settings is uniquely abhorrent because one’s home should be a place of refuge. The Justice Department is committed to vigorously enforcing the Fair Housing Act’s protections against sexual harassment and holding landlords and housing providers accountable when they engage in this abhorrent conduct.”
“This Springfield landlord repeatedly took advantage of his tenants by using his position as leverage to egregiously violate their civil rights,” said U.S. Attorney Teresa Moore for the Western District of Missouri. “Today’s lawsuit illustrates the determination of the Justice Department to protect victims of sexual harassment or other types of housing discrimination and to hold their abusers accountable.”
“This landlord’s sexual harassment is a gross violation of his position and of the Fair Housing Act,” said Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary Demetria McCain of the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD)’s Office of Fair Housing and Equal Opportunity. “People deserve to be safe in their homes.”
The matter was referred to the Justice Department after HUD received a complaint alleging that Bell had violated the FHA by sexually harassing a female tenant and retaliating against her when she rejected his sexual advances. Bell chose to have the matter decided in federal court after HUD investigated the complaint and issued a charge of discrimination. Upon receiving the referral, the Justice Department investigated further and identified additional female tenants whom Bell sexually harassed.
The department’s lawsuit seeks monetary damages to compensate persons harmed by the alleged harassment, a civil penalty to vindicate the public interest and a court order barring future discrimination. The lawsuit names Jimmie Bell as a defendant in his individual capacity and as trustee of Second Bell Trust, the owner of many of the properties Bell managed. The lawsuit also names as defendant Fourth Bell LLC, the owner of additional properties Bell managed.
Individuals who believe that they may have been victims of sexual harassment or other types of housing discrimination at rental properties owned or managed by Jimmie Bell, or who have other information that may be relevant to this case, may contact the Justice Department’s housing discrimination tip line at 1-833-591-0291. Dial “1” for English, “2” for sexual harassment cases, and “3” for the Jimmie Bell lawsuit mailbox. Individuals may also email the Justice Department at [email protected].
The Justice Department’s Sexual Harassment in Housing Initiative is led by the Civil Rights Division, in coordination with U.S. Attorneys’ Offices across the country. The initiative seeks to address and raise awareness about sexual harassment by landlords, property managers, maintenance workers, loan officers and other people who have control over housing. Since launching the initiative in October 2017, the department has filed 40 lawsuits alleging sexual harassment in housing and recovered nearly $12 million for victims of such harassment.
The FHA prohibits discrimination in housing based on race, color, religion, national origin, sex, disability and familial status. More information about the Civil Rights Division and the laws it enforces is available at www.justice.gov/crt.
Justice Department Seeks Court Order to Stop California Department of Corrections from Requiring Correctional Officers to Violate Religious BeliefsRead the Press Release
The Justice Department today challenged the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation (CDCR) on its denial of religious accommodations for correctional officers of various faiths, including Sikhs and Muslims, who wear facial hair as an expression of their faith. CDCR generally prohibits correctional officers from wearing beards, and the action seeks a temporary court order allowing these officers to wear beards while CDCR fully assesses options for providing them with religious accommodations while complying with California safety regulations.
“Sikhs, Muslims and employees of any faith should not be forced to choose between the practice of their faith and their jobs,” said Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division. “Religious freedom and religious accommodation are bedrock principles of our democracy. We are taking action to ensure that the rights of employees of all faiths are respected and accommodated in the workplace. As faith communities celebrate Ramadan and other important holidays across religions in the coming weeks, the Justice Department will continue to combat religious discrimination in the workplace.”
“Our district is one of the most diverse in the country, with communities of many different faiths practicing customs that are central to their beliefs,” said U.S. Attorney Phillip A. Talbert for the Eastern District of California. “The action brought today is an important use of the federal civil rights laws to protect this religious expression. My office will continue to work hand in hand with the Civil Rights Division to ensure that individuals of all faiths can receive due consideration for appropriate religious accommodations at workplaces in this district.”
The department’s action, filed in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of California, alleges that although many officers had performed their jobs successfully for years while wearing facial hair, CDCR implemented a revised facial hair policy last year and, since then, has repeatedly denied religious accommodation requests, forcing officers to shave their beards or lose their jobs. The affected officers have been forced to violate core tenets of their faiths and have suffered shame and humiliation among their religious communities, including being shunned from houses of worship and denied participation in religious ceremonies, such as family weddings.
Since CDCR implemented its revised facial hair policy, numerous officers have filed charges of religious discrimination with the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 (Title VII). Because the EEOC’s investigation remains ongoing, the department is seeking relief in its requested court order only until the EEOC finishes its full investigation or until CDCR can otherwise show the court it has met its religious accommodation obligations under Title VII. The department’s complaint alleges that CDCR has failed to meaningfully consider the range of options proposed by the charging parties or those used by other correctional institutions to accommodate officers’ religious beliefs while meeting safety requirements. The department asks the court to order CDCR to stop enforcing its facial hair policy against officers who request to wear a beard because of their religious beliefs and engage in good faith discussions with officers about possible reasonable accommodations that would allow officers to safely do their jobs and adhere to their religious beliefs.
Employees with complaints of religious discrimination can report them to their local EEOC office or their state or local fair employment practices agencies. The contact information for each local EEOC office can be found at www.eeoc.gov/field-office.
Trial Attorneys Alicia Johnson and Sharion Scott of the Civil Rights Division’s Employment Litigation Section and Assistant U.S. Attorney Robert Fuentes for the Eastern District of California are handling the case.
The full and fair enforcement of Title VII is a top priority of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division. More information about the Civil Rights Division and the Employment Litigation Section is available at www.justice.gov/crt/ and www.justice.gov/crt/employment-litigation-section.
Justice Department Secures Settlement with Ohio Manufacturing Company to Resolve Alleged Discrimination Against National GuardsmanRead the Press Release
The Justice Department announced today that it has resolved its lawsuit against U.S. Development Corporation, doing business as Akro-Plastics, on behalf of Ohio National Guardsman Staff Sergeant Nicholas Whitman. The department alleged that Akro-Plastics violated the Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act of 1994 (USERRA) when it failed to promote Sergeant Whitman to a human resources position based on his military service obligation and constructively discharged him on his return from military service.
“Federal law safeguards the civilian employment rights of our nation’s servicemembers and ensures that their career opportunities aren’t harmed because of their military duties,” said Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division. “Employers must ensure that servicemembers receive all career advancements that they deserve.”
“American servicemembers make great sacrifices to protect our citizens and the freedoms, liberties and civil rights that we all enjoy,” said U.S. Attorney Rebecca C. Lutzko for the Northern District of Ohio. “The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Ohio is committed to protecting all its citizens from discrimination, including servicemembers who employers discriminate against by denying them deserved workplace opportunities because of their past, present or future military service.”
According to the complaint, Sergeant Whitman started working at Akro-Plastics in June 2022. He applied for a human resources job in September 2022 and went through three interviews. Supervisors and officials knew about his upcoming three-month military deployment and repeatedly cited it as the reason for not promoting him. From December 2022 to April 2023, Sergeant Whitman fulfilled his military duties with the National Guard. Following his deployment, he returned to work for a short while before being forced to leave due to hostility from Akro-Plastic’s management. Under the settlement agreement, Akro-Plastics will pay Sergeant Whitman monetary damages. The company will also revise its polices, practices and trainings to prevent violations of USERRA.
The Department of Labor (DOL) referred this matter to the Justice Department following an investigation by its Veterans’ Employment and Training Service.
The Civil Rights Division’s Employment Litigation Section continues to work collaboratively with the DOL to protect the jobs and benefits of military members. The Justice Department gives high priority to the enforcement of servicemembers’ rights under USERRA. Additional information about USERRA can be found at www.justice.gov/crt/laws-we-enforce and www.justice.gov/servicemembers, as well as on the DOL’s website at www.dol.gov/agencies/vets/programs/userra.
Justice Department Announces Opening of Nominations for the Seventh Annual Attorney General’s Award for Distinguished Service in Community PolicingRead the Press Release
Attorney General Merrick B. Garland today announced the Justice Department is now accepting nominations for the Seventh Annual Attorney General’s Award for Distinguished Service in Community Policing. These awards represent part of the Justice Department’s ongoing commitment to support the nation’s law enforcement officers who put their lives on the line every day to keep our communities safe.
The Attorney General’s Award recognizes individual state, local, and Tribal sworn, rank- and-file police officers and deputies for exceptional efforts in community policing. The awarded officers, deputies, and troopers will have demonstrated active engagement with the community in one of three areas: criminal investigations, field operations, or innovations in policing. Within each category, an award will be given to law enforcement agencies serving small, medium, and large jurisdictions. Those agency sizes are defined as:
- Small: agencies serving populations of fewer than 50,000;
- Medium: agencies serving populations of 50,000 to 250,000; and
- Large: agencies serving populations of more than 250,000.
By acknowledging and rewarding these efforts, the Department strives to promote and sustain its national commitment to community policing and to advance proactive policing practices that are fair and effective. With the Attorney General’s Award for Distinguished Service in Community Policing, the Office of the Attorney General recognizes that the nation’s law enforcement agencies, officers, deputies, and troopers continue to work tirelessly to keep our communities safe places to live and work.
The deadline for nominations is May 6 at 8 p.m. ET. More information and the application for nominees can be found at www.justice.gov/ag/policing-award.
Jamestown drug ring leader pleads guilty as federal trial was set to beginRead the Press Release
BUFFALO, N.Y. - U.S. Attorney Trini E. Ross announced today that Rocco A. Beardsley, 38, of Jamestown, NY, pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge John L. Sinatra, Jr. to narcotic conspiracy and distribution of fentanyl causing death, which carry a mandatory minimum penalty of 20 years in prison, and a maximum of life. Beardsley pleaded guilty as jury selection was scheduled to begin in his federal trial.
Assistant U.S. Attorneys Joshua A. Violanti, Evan K. Glaberson, and Jeffrey E. Intravatola, who are handling the case, stated that between late 2018 and March 2020, Beardsley conspired with seven others sell methamphetamine, fentanyl, and other controlled substances in the Jamestown area. On April 9, 2019, Beardsley sold acetyl fentanyl and fentanyl, which resulted in the death of an individual identified as J.A. After learning of J.A.’s death, Beardsley took steps to conceal his involvement in the drug overdose, including by directing others to destroy evidence from the death scene.
Beardsley bought and sold fentanyl, and methamphetamine for profit and for his own use, utilizing social media to conduct his drug trafficking activities. Beardsley also utilized residences on Sampson Street and Cowden Place in Jamestown for his drug trafficking activities. During the investigation, law enforcement conducted five controlled purchases from Beardsley. In addition, Beardsley and his co-conspirators also participated in a series of money transfers in furtherance of the narcotics conspiracy.
During the investigation, search warrants were executed at residences associated with the drug conspiracy, during which law enforcement seized approximately 100 grams of methamphetamine, 66 grams of fentanyl, 28 grams of cocaine, 4 grams of crack cocaine, a 12-gauge shotgun, and drug paraphernalia.
Beardsley was previously convicted in Federal Court in 2007 of conspiracy to distribute crack cocaine and sentenced to serve 57 months in prison. In 2017, he was convicted in New York State Court of Criminal Possession of a Controlled Substance, and Narcotic Drug Intent To Sell.
A total of seven defendants were charged and convicted in this 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.
The plea is the result of an investigation by the Drug Enforcement Administration, under the direction of Special Agent-in-Charge Frank Tarantino, III, New York Field Division, the Jamestown Police Department, under the direction of Chief Timothy Jackson, and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives, under the direction of Assistant Special Agent-in-Charge Bryan DiGirolamo, the New York State Police, under the direction of Major Stanley Edwards III, and the Town of Ellicott Police Department, under the direction of Chief William Ohnmeiss Jr.
Sentencing is scheduled for July 23, 2024, at 2:00 p.m. before Judge Sinatra.
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International Trafficker of Counterfeit Apple Products Sentenced to PrisonRead the Press Release
NEWS RELEASE SUMMARY – March 25, 2024
SAN DIEGO – Zhiwei “Allen” Liao was sentenced in federal court today to 51 months in prison for his role as an organizer and leader of an international conspiracy to traffic in counterfeit Apple products. The defendant was also ordered to forfeit two residences along with $120,370 in U.S. currency and more than 200 Apple devices seized during the investigation.
According to court documents, Zhiwei Liao and his brothers, Zhimin Liao and Zhiting Liao, led an international exchange fraud scheme involving more than 10,000 counterfeit iPhones and iPads. The Liaos imported counterfeit iPhones and iPads from China that looked genuine and included identification numbers (IMEI and serial numbers) matching identification numbers on real iPhones and iPads that were under warranty and had been previously sold to customers in the United States and Canada. At the direction of the Liao brothers, co-conspirators traveled to hundreds of Apple Stores across the United States and Canada, and attempted to exchange counterfeit iPhones and iPads for genuine iPhones and iPads resulting in a loss of $6.1 million to Apple, Inc. Zhiwei Liao then sent the fraudulently obtained, but genuine Apple products primarily to China where they were sold at a premium.
In court today, U.S. District Judge Cynthia Ann Bashant said that a significant prison sentence was appropriate because Zhiwei Liao was the organizer and leader of an extensive international criminal organization that trafficked in counterfeit goods throughout North America for several years.
The scheme was sophisticated and dynamic, involving counterfeit devices imported from China that looked like genuine devices under warranty. Zhiwei Liao micromanaged the operations and created a moving target for law enforcement by directing counterfeit Apple products and criminal proceeds to be sent to different co-conspirators, companies, and family members throughout the scheme. Co-conspirators supported these efforts to avoid law enforcement by exchanging the counterfeit products using a variety of false names and email accounts.
The defendant’s brothers, Zhimin Liao and Zhiting Liao, who were also leaders of the conspiracy, were previously sentenced to 41 months in custody in October 2023.
This case is part of a multi-year investigation led primarily by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the San Diego Police Department that resulted in 12 felony convictions, the forfeiture of five residences in San Diego with an estimated value of more than $4.1 million, over $250,000 in cash, and more than 200 Apple products that were either counterfeit, fraudulently obtained, or used during the criminal operations.
“This was a massive, sophisticated fraud that victimized not only Apple, Inc., but thousands of Apple product owners across North America,” said U.S. Attorney Tara McGrath. “Theft of intellectual property and the sale of counterfeit goods are growing global problems with serious economic implications.”
“Mr. Liao’s sentencing closes a major chapter in a multi-year investigation that exposed an international, elaborate scheme to sell counterfeit goods worldwide,” said FBI San Diego Special Agent in Charge Stacey Moy. “This investigation would not have been successful without the unwavering dedication and persistence of our law enforcement partners. We remain diligent in the pursuit of justice to help maintain the integrity of our economy.”
This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Timothy F. Salel.
DEFENDANTS Case Number 19cr4407-BAS
Zhiwei Liao, aka “Allen” San Diego, CA Age: 34
Zhimin Liao, aka “Jimmy” San Diego, CA Age: 36
Zhiting Liao, aka “Tim” San Diego, CA Age: 33
Dao Trieu La, aka “Selena” San Diego, CA Age: 32
Mengmeng Zhang, aka “Aria” San Diego, CA Age: 31
Tam Nguyen, aka “Kelly,” San Diego, CA Age: 39
Charley Hsu San Diego, CA Age: 41
Danny Tran Chan San Diego, CA Age: 32
Phillip Pak, aka “Teddy” San Diego, CA Age: 33
Deedee Zhu, aka “David,” San Diego, CA Age: 35
Jiaye Jiang, aka “joejoekong” San Diego, CA Age: 34
Hyo Yang, aka “Will” San Diego, CA Age: 33
SUMMARY OF CHARGES
Conspiracy to Traffic in Counterfeit Goods – Title 18, U.S.C., Section 2320
Maximum penalty: Ten years in prison, $2 million fine, mandatory restitution, and forfeiture.
INVESTIGATING AGENCIES
Federal Bureau of Investigation
San Diego Police Department
San Diego County Sheriff’s Department
U.S. Customs and Border Protection
Homeland Security Investigations
U.S. Marshals
Indianapolis Man Sentenced to 35 Years in Federal Prison for Sexual Abuse and Exploitation of Children as Young as Three Years OldRead the Press Release
INDIANAPOLIS- Dustin Rose, 33, of Indianapolis, has been sentenced to 35 years in federal prison after pleading guilty to sexual exploitation of a child and possession of child sex abuse material.
According to court documents, over a four-year period, Dustin Rose engaged in sexually explicit conduct with three children and took photographs of the conduct.
In 2018, Rose took photos zooming in on the clothed genital area of a girl under the age of 16. Rose also took a photograph of himself grabbing the clothed breast of the girl, who was a relative of a woman Rose had been dating.
Between November 2020 and August 2022, Rose repeatedly fondled the breasts of another girl while she was asleep in her bedroom. This child was under the age of 12 and was a relative of a woman Rose was dating during that time.
In August of 2022, Rose’s relationship with that woman ended and he moved out of the house. After Rose moved out, the woman found a microSD card that belonged to Rose. The woman viewed the contents of the microSD card and found multiple sexually explicit images.
On October 19, 2022, IMPD officers arrested Rose. When Rose was taken into custody, police seized a cell phone that he was holding in his hand. Investigators found multiple sexually explicit images depicting a young girl three to four-years-old, including an image of Rose touching the child’s exposed pubic area.
An examination of Rose’s cell phone showed that he had a Dropbox account containing multiple images and videos of unknown children, including pre-pubescent children, being raped and sexually abused. In total, Rose possessed more than 600 images of child sexual abuse material.
“No child should suffer sexual abuse, especially at the hands of individuals they and their families believed they could trust,” said Zachary A. Myers, U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Indiana. “For years, this predator exploited multiple children to satisfy his criminal sexual desires. The U.S. Secret Service, IMPD, and federal prosecutors worked tirelessly to remove this offender from the community and stop the abuse. Thanks to their efforts, and those who brought the abuse to the attention of law enforcement, Mr. Rose will now spend decades in federal prison, where he cannot sexually abuse another child.”
“The U.S. Secret Service is a proud member of the Indiana Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force,” said Special Agent in Charge Jeffrey R. Adams, of the U. S. Secret Service’s Indianapolis Field Office. “The Secret Service is honored to partner with the Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department and support their work in this investigation and the pursuit of those who choose to victimize children.”
U.S. Secret Service and IMPD investigated this case. The sentence was imposed by U.S. District Court Judge James P. Hanlon. Judge Hanlon also ordered that Rose be supervised by the U.S. Probation Office for life following his release from federal prison and register as a sex offender wherever he lives, works, or goes to school.
U.S. Attorney Myers thanked Assistant United States Attorney Kyle M. Sawa and former Assistant United States Attorney Kristina M. Korobov, who prosecuted this case.
This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by U.S. Attorneys’ Offices and the 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.
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Hollidaysburg Couple Pleads Guilty to Conspiracy to Defraud the United States and Husband Pleads Guilty to Health Care FraudRead the Press Release
HARRISBURG - The United States Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Pennsylvania announced that John H. Johnson and Paula Z. Johnson, both age 62, of Hollidaysburg, Pennsylvania, pleaded guilty to a criminal information charging them with one count of conspiracy to defraud the United States. John H. Johnson also pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit health care fraud.
According to United States Attorney Gerard M. Karam, in 2016, John Johnson, a physician with specialized training in anesthesiology, entered into an agreement with other individuals to defraud health insurance programs by billing them illegally for expensive tests known as “urine drug tests.” One of the individuals that Johnson conspired with was Rodney L. Yentzer, who pleaded guilty for his role in related offenses in March 2022, and is awaiting sentencing. Johnson and Yentzer carried out this agreement through a couple different groups of pain management practices located throughout central Pennsylvania, known as Lighthouse Medical and Pain Medicine of York (“PMY”). Yentzer, who had no medical training, acquired PMY in 2014 at the suggestion of John H. Johnson, with whom Yentzer was business partners. PMY absorbed Lighthouse Medical in 2017, and PMY closed permanently in November 2019 after law enforcement agents executed search warrants at its various locations.
In 2016, Lighthouse Medical, under the direction of John H. Johnson, operated a drug testing laboratory on its own premises. This laboratory had the equipment and capabilities to perform urine drug testing (“UDT”) on site. UDT, when used legitimately, is a method for physicians to test their patients for the presence and specific amounts of various substances. A very high percentage of the patients of Lighthouse Medical (and, subsequently, PMY) were prescribed with opioid medications at each monthly visit. UDT could be used, for instance, to test whether such patients were taking their medications as prescribed or taking illegal recreational drugs in addition to their prescribed medications. Urine drug tests were typically reimbursed at a high rate by Medicare and private insurance programs.
In March 2016, Johnson and Yentzer agreed with the new owners of a rural, 25-bed “Critical Access Hospital” located near the border of Florida and Alabama to “sell” Lighthouse Medical’s UDT laboratory services to the hospital; in exchange, the hospital purchased the exclusive right to bill for payment and collect payment from patients and insurance programs. The hospital agreed to pay Lighthouse Medical a kickback of $900 per test.
As a Critical Access Hospital under federal law, the hospital received very favorable payment from Medicare and private insurance programs, including, for example, for UDT. Thus, even while paying a $900 kickback per test to Lighthouse Medical, the hospital was still able to collect and keep a significant amount of money over and above that amount. The owners of the hospital also used other laboratories like Lighthouse Medical in a similar pass-through manner. As a result, the hospital was able to bill for a number of laboratory tests that far exceeded what would normally be associated with a small facility of its kind, and Lighthouse Medical was paid far more than what it would have typically received for UDT from Medicare and other insurers. For instance, on July 12, 2016, the hospital paid Lighthouse Medical $816,300 for 907 urine drug tests. Approximately one week later, the hospital paid Lighthouse Medical $628,200 for nearly 700 tests.
In total, the owners of the hospital billed others, including private insurers, approximately $1.4 billion for various laboratory testing services that were not medically necessary. The majority of this amount was due to UDT. Lighthouse Medical received $2,341,775 in kickback payments over a four-month time period, with 85% of this amount going to John H. Johnson and the remaining amount going to Rodney L. Yentzer.
In addition to pleading guilty to conspiracy to commit health care fraud, John H. Johnson pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to defraud the United States. His wife, Paula Z. Johnson, who is also a physician from Hollidaysburg, Pennsylvania, pleaded guilty to the same offense. Together, John H. Johnson and Paula Z. Johnson conspired to evade payments to the U.S. Government that John H. Johnson was required to make for a prior criminal conviction.
In July 2015, John H. Johnson was indicted for various tax offenses in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Pennsylvania. In September 2016, John H. Johnson was charged in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida with conspiracy to commit mail fraud and wire fraud in connection with a separate health care fraud scheme. In early 2017, John H. Johnson knew that he was likely going to prison for these offenses, so he approached Rodney L. Yentzer and got Yentzer to agree to place Paula Z. Johnson, who had not practiced medicine in years, on the PMY payroll.
In June 2017, John H. Johnson was sentenced to an 84-month term of imprisonment for the various offenses with which he had been charged. He was also ordered to repay to the U.S. Government over $3 million restitution payments for fraudulent health care billing and unpaid taxes.
Even following his imprisonment, Johnson and Yentzer remained in close contact through phone and in-person visits, with Johnson providing direction to Yentzer. During conversations, Johnson and Yentzer sometimes used coded language to describe sensitive subjects, including the term “toy” to refer to money and the term “toy box” to refer to bank accounts.
John H. Johnson knew that PMY continued to be highly profitable, in large part owing to its UDT billing. Specifically, PMY billed every patient for two urine drug tests at each visit: one test a presumptive “screen” for the presence of certain substances and the second a definitive test for specific levels of 22 different substances. This testing protocol had been put in place by John H. Johnson when he ran Lighthouse Medical, and he instructed Yentzer to do the same at PMY. Yentzer followed this direction.
From mid-2017 until late 2019, PMY submitted bills just to Medicare for around $10 million in UDT, with well over $4 million being paid out. John H. Johnson, Paula Z. Johnson, and Rodney L. Yentzer devised various other ways to funnel money to the Johnsons so that they could benefit from this wealth without the money being captured for John H. Johnson’s restitution payments. Among other things, Yentzer purchased a car for the Johnsons’ son and leased an Audi Q5 for Paula Z. Johnson, at her request. Yentzer also made $28,000 in contributions to their children’s 529 college savings accounts, paid over $40,000 in legal bills for “asset and estate planning,” made over $40,000 in payments toward personal loans, and covered other large bills, all with the knowledge of both John H. Johnson and Paula Z. Johnson. On a number of occasions, Paula Z. Johnson requested these payments directly from Yentzer or his assistant.
PMY shut down abruptly in November 2019 after search warrants were executed because it was no longer able to retain medical providers to see patients. In January 2020, in a recorded prison call, Yentzer stated to John H. Johnson, that “if there’s anything left, I will make sure Paula gets, uh, a piece.” He added that “whatever’s left” after satisfying certain creditors he would “divvy up.” Yentzer made this statement despite the fact that Paula Z. Johnson had been formally terminated by PMY in November 2019.
The case was investigated by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General, Federal Bureau of Investigation, Drug Enforcement Administration Diversion Control Division, and Pennsylvania Office of Attorney General. Assistant U.S. Attorney Ravi Romel Sharma is prosecuting the case.
The maximum penalty under federal law for conspiracy to defraud the United States is 5 years of imprisonment, a term of supervised release following imprisonment, and a fine. The maximum penalty under federal law for conspiracy to commit health care fraud is 10 years of imprisonment, a term of supervised release following imprisonment, and a fine. A sentence following a finding of guilt is imposed by the Judge after consideration of the applicable federal sentencing statutes and the Federal Sentencing Guidelines.
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Harvey Man Indicted for Being Felon in Possession of a FirearmRead the Press Release
NEW ORLEANS, LA – MIGUEL KEELEN, age 35, of Harvey, La., was indicted on March 8, 2024 for being a felon in possession of a firearm, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 922(g)(1), announced U.S. Attorney Duane A. Evans.
According to the indictment, KEELEN possessed a firearm on the night of December 11, 2023. While at a Valero Gas Station on South Claiborne Avenue in New Orleans, KEELEN displayed and drew a pistol from his waistband before concealing the pistol and fleeing from police. KEELEN was prohibited from possessing a firearm due to his previous felony convictions. If convicted, KEELEN faces up to fifteen (15) years imprisonment, a fine of up to $250,000.00, up to three (3) years of supervised release following any term of imprisonment, and a mandatory $100 special assessment fee.
United States Attorney Evans reiterated that the indictment is merely a charge and that the guilt of the defendants must be proven 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 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.
This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the New Orleans Police Department. This case is being prosecuted by Special Assistant United States Attorney Nicholas Rayburn of the Violent Crimes Unit.
Halifax Straw Purchaser Who Bought Dozens of Guns for Felons Sentenced to Five Years in Federal PrisonRead the Press Release
RALEIGH, N.C. – A Roanoke Rapids man was sentenced today to 60 months in prison for straw purchasing over 30 firearms for individuals who would otherwise not be able to purchase them lawfully. On July 6, 2023, Raquel Braswell pled guilty to engaging in the business of dealing firearms without a license and knowingly making a materially false statement to a federally licensed firearm dealer.
“We are partnering with local law enforcement to square off against violent felons and the straw buyers who arm them,” said U.S. Attorney Michael Easley. “This defendant served as a one-man pipeline for firepower, buying dozens of guns for felons and other prohibited persons, endangering our community, and making our police officers’ jobs more dangerous. We will keep using our local partnerships and the new Bipartisan Safer Communities Act to put gunrunners behind bars where they belong.”
"We are extremely fortunate in the Northeastern part of North Carolina to have such a diligent and focused U.S. Attorney's Office,” said Roanoke Rapids Police (RRP) Chief Shane Guyant. “We are fortunate to have such a strong partnership with the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF). Law enforcement officers’ risk their lives daily whether it be stopping motor vehicles, answering calls for service, or serving their communities. The danger of facing a firearm increases with each public interaction. To think that individuals like this defendant would assist those convicted of violent felonies obtain so many firearms illegally is troublesome and terrifying. I fear for my officers each time they have interactions not knowing whether the person has bad intentions with a firearm. We offer a special thank you to the law enforcement officers and prosecuting attorneys who brought this case to a conclusion.”
“Straw purchasing has a tremendous impact on violent gun crime, often putting firearms in the hands of dangerous individuals and individuals prohibited from possessing a firearm,” said ATF Special Agent in Charge Bennie Mims. “Identifying straw purchasers and holding those responsible for arming prohibited individuals is critical to addressing gun crime in our communities.”
According to court documents and other information presented in court, Braswell, 25, purchased firearms for individuals who could not legally buy them between October 2, 2021, and May 30, 2022. When law enforcement caught one of his purchasers, a felon, with a gun, they discovered Braswell had bought the firearm for him just hours earlier. When agents from the ATF and RRP confronted Braswell, he initially claimed that someone had stolen his firearms. However, he later admitted to engaging in the offense. Braswell admitted being paid between $200 and $400 for each firearm he purchased and acknowledged that he knew the individuals he bought firearms for were not legally allowed to possess them.
Because his offense conduct concluded in May of 2022, Braswell was not subject to the new criminal provisions and enhanced penalties of the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act, which Congress enacted, and the President signed in June 2022. The Act is the first federal statute specifically designed to target the unlawful trafficking and straw-purchasing of firearms.
Michael Easley, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of North Carolina made the announcement after sentencing by U.S. District Judge James C. Dever III. RRP and the ATF investigated the case and Assistant U.S. Attorney Phil Aubart prosecuted the case.
Related court documents and information can be found on the website of the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of North Carolina or on PACER by searching for Case No. 4:23-CR-7-D-KS.
Four men sentenced for conspiracy to rob drug-traffickersRead the Press Release
MIAMI – On March 22, four defendants were sentenced to federal prison following their convictions for conspiracy to rob drug-traffickers of their narcotics, money, and other property.
Three of the defendants, Palacio Valdes Farley, aka BoBo, 43, Joassaint Josiah Aristil Jr., aka JoJo, 28, Jamar Brandon Nattiel, aka Debo and D-Boy, 47, were convicted by a jury in December 2023; the fourth defendant, Andrew Francois Martin, 31, pleaded guilty in November 2023.
U.S. District Judge Roy K. Altman sentenced Farley, the leader of the conspiracy, to 240 months (20 years) in prison which will run consecutively to a 169-month (14 years) federal prison sentence for conspiracies to commit drug-trafficking and money laundering offenses that he is currently serving.
Aristil was sentenced to 200 months (more than 16 years) in prison, to run consecutively to a 121-month (10 years) federal prison term for carjacking and brandishing a firearm during a crime of violence that he is currently serving.
The court sentenced Nattiel to 188 months (more than 15 years) in prison.
Martin was sentenced to 210 months (more than 17 years) in prison, to run consecutively to a 25-year Florida state prison sentence he is serving for an armed robbery that Martin and Farley committed in Daytona Beach, Florida, in April 2017.
From May 22, 2016, until Dec. 11, 2017, Farley conspired with his co-defendants to rob drug-traffickers in California. On May 24, 2016, Farley, Martin, and other unindicted co-conspirators, committed an armed home invasion robbery of two drug-traffickers, in Van Nuys, California, during which both victims were shot multiple times.
On Dec. 5, 2017, at Farley’s direction, Aristil, Nattiel, co-defendants Karen Williams and Lisa Flood, and other co-conspirators, committed an armed home invasion robbery of a drug-trafficker in Orange County, California. During the robbery, the drug-trafficker, and his wife, were restrained and held at gunpoint, while the robbers ransacked their house and stole narcotics, cash, and jewelry. Aristil, Nattiel, Williams, Flood, and another co-conspirator, then drove across the country to Miami Beach, Florida, where they delivered the stolen drugs to Farley, who was out on bond for state court charges and confined to his apartment on Collins Avenue.
U.S. Attorney Markenzy Lapointe for the Southern District of Florida, Special Agent in Charge Jeffrey B. Veltri of FBI, Miami Field Office, and Sheriff Gregory Tony of the Broward Sheriff’s Office (BSO) announced the sentences.
FBI, Miami Field Office and BSO investigated this case with assistance from the Lauderhill Police Department, Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD) and the Daytona Beach Police Department. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Dwayne E. Williams and Elena Smukler prosecuted the case.
Anyone with tips can call 1-800-CALL-FBI (800-225-5324) or visit tips.fbi.gov.
This prosecution is a part of the Justice’s Department’s Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN) and Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) programs.
PSN is the centerpiece of the Department of Justice’s violent crime reduction efforts. PSN is an evidence-based program proven to be effective at reducing violent crime. Through the PSN program a broad spectrum of law enforcement and community stakeholders work together to identify the most pressing violent crime problems in the community and develop comprehensive solutions to address them. As part of this strategy, PSN focuses enforcement efforts on the most violent offenders and partners with locally based prevention and reentry programs to reduce violence crime and gun violence, and to make our local neighborhoods safer for everyone.
OCDETF identifies, disrupts, and dismantles drug traffickers, money launderers, gangs and transnational criminal organizations through a prosecutor-led and intelligence-driven approach that leverages the strengths of federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies. Additional information about the OCDETF Program can be found at https://www.justice.gov/OCDETF.
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 22-cr-20556.
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Former Pelco President Sentenced and Ordered to Pay More Than $3.6 Million in RestitutionRead the Press Release
TULSA, Okla. – Today, U.S. District Judge Terence C. Kern sentenced Phillip Barry Albert, 64, of Tulsa, to 30 months imprisonment, followed by 1 year of supervised release, for Tax Evasion. Judge Kern further ordered Albert to pay more than $3.6 million in restitution.
According to court documents, from 2004 through 2021, Phillip Barry Albert was the President of Pelco Structural (Pelco) in Claremore, Oklahoma. In 2014, Albert directed the company controller, Don Eagleton, to have the company’s payroll service provider issue “reimbursements” to Albert from Pelco, for undocumented expenses. He then had the “reimbursements” coded in the company’s financial documents in such a way that they would not appear as taxable income. He then willfully failed to pay taxes on the “reimbursement” payments. Prosecutors pointed out that Albert was previously employed as a tax preparer. Given Albert’s intelligence and the overall sophistication of the scheme, he knew the requests for “reimbursements” did not relate to any legitimate business expense.
From 2014 through 2019, Albert’s unreported income was $2,615,750. This left Albert owing more than $1 million in taxes. Because of Albert’s theft and related acts of embezzlement during his time at the company, Pelco calculates their actual total loss was more than $10 million, without taking into account the loss of business opportunities.
In a separate federal case, Don Eagleton pleaded guilty to knowingly concealing Albert’s fraudulent activity from authorities. He was sentenced to three years of supervised release and ordered to pay $1,543,000 in restitution.
Albert was permitted to remain on bond and ordered to voluntarily surrender on a specific date, to the U.S. Bureau of Prisons.
The IRS Criminal Investigation and FBI investigated the case. Assistant U.S. Attorney Thomas Duncombe and Trial Attorney Meredith M. Havekost of the Justice Department’s Tax Division prosecuted the case.
Former Loveland Police Department Officer Indicted for Sexual Assault of MinorRead the Press Release
DENVER--A former police officer with the Loveland, Colorado, Police Department was charged in an indictment unsealed on Friday for sexually assaulting a minor while he was on duty.
According to the indictment, on or about Aug. 4, 2023, Dylan Miller, 28, while on duty as a Loveland Police Department officer, sexually assaulted a minor. If convicted, Miller faces a maximum penalty of life in prison.
Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke of the Department of Justice’s Civil Rights Division, U.S. Attorney Cole Finegan for the District of Colorado, and Special Agent in Charge Mark Michalek of the FBI Denver Field Office made the announcement.
The FBI Denver Field Office, Loveland Resident Agency, and Larimer County Sheriff’s Office investigated the case, with cooperation from the Loveland Police Department.
Senior Sex Crimes Counsel Maura White of the Civil Rights Division’s Criminal Section and Assistant U.S. Attorney Alison Connaughty for the District of Colorado are prosecuting the case.
An indictment is merely an allegation. All defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty in a court of law.
Former Computer Privacy Consultant Convicted of CyberstalkingRead the Press Release
A federal jury convicted a former privacy consultant last week for a cyberstalking campaign in which he sent electronic messages and made social media posts threatening sexual assault and other violence against multiple victims.
According to court documents and evidence presented at trial, Sumit Garg, 34, of Seattle, engaged in an extensive campaign of threats and sexually explicit messaging and posts about a woman who used to share an apartment with Garg’s spouse. Using personal information Garg accessed after he moved into the apartment with his spouse, Garg threatened and tormented the former roommate in violation of a court order. Garg also used his computer skills to threaten multiple people in the former roommate’s life, including her uncle, who represented her in obtaining a civil protection order; her current boyfriend; the Seattle police detective who investigated the threats; and the deputy prosecuting attorney in King County, Washington, who filed charges against Garg for his illegal stalking conduct. Garg used his computer skills to try to conceal who was sending the threats or making the posts.
The jury convicted Garg of one count of conspiracy to engage in cyberstalking, three counts of cyberstalking in violation of a criminal order, and three counts of cyberstalking. He is scheduled to be sentenced on June 25 and faces a mandatory minimum of one year in prison and a maximum penalty of 35 years in prison. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Nicole M. Argentieri, head of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division; U.S. Attorney Tessa M. Gorman for the Western District of Washington; and Special Agent in Charge Glen Peterson of the U.S. Secret Service Seattle Field Office made the announcement.
The U.S. Secret Service investigated the case, with assistance from the Seattle Police Department.
Senior Counsel Anthony Teelucksingh of the Criminal Division’s Computer Crime and Intellectual Property Section and Assistant U.S. Attorney Andrew Friedman for the Western District of Washington are prosecuting the case.
Former Colorado Police Department Officer Indicted for Sexual Assault of MinorRead the Press Release
A former police officer with the Loveland, Colorado, Police Department was charged in an indictment unsealed on Friday for sexually assaulting a minor while he was on duty.
According to the indictment, on or about Aug. 4, 2023, Dylan Miller, 28, while on duty as a Loveland Police Department officer, sexually assaulted a minor. If convicted, Miller faces a maximum penalty of life in prison.
Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke of the Department of Justice’s Civil Rights Division, U.S. Attorney Cole Finegan for the District of Colorado and Special Agent in Charge Mark Michalek of the FBI Denver Field Office made the announcement.
The FBI Denver Field Office, Loveland Resident Agency and Larimer County, Colorado, Sheriff’s Office investigated the case, with cooperation from the Loveland Police Department.
Senior Sex Crimes Counsel Maura White of the Civil Rights Division’s Criminal Section and Assistant U.S. Attorney Alison Connaughty for the District of Colorado are prosecuting the case.
An indictment is merely an allegation. All defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty in a court of law.
Florida man and Brazilian national indicted for decade-long scheme to defraud the IRSRead the Press Release
MIAMI – On March 21, a federal grand jury in Miami returned an indictment charging Dan Rotta, of Aventura, Florida, and Sergio Cernea, of Sao Paolo, Brazil, with conspiring to defraud the United States by concealing income and assets in Swiss bank accounts. The indictment also charged Rotta with tax evasion, filing a false tax return, making a false statement and failing to file Reports of Foreign Bank and Financial Accounts. Rotta was arrested on a related criminal complaint on March 8, 2024.
According to the indictment, between 1985 and 2020, Rotta hid more than $20 million in assets in at least two dozen secret Swiss accounts at five different Swiss banks, including UBS, Credit Suisse, Bank Bonhôte and Bank Julius Baer. The accounts were allegedly held in his own name, in the names of sham structures and, in one instance, a pseudonym. Over the years, Rotta allegedly earned substantial income from these assets that he did not report on his tax returns.
From 2001 through 2017, Rotta allegedly falsely represented to the banks that he was a Brazilian citizen residing in Brazil, even though he had been a naturalized citizen and resident of the U.S. since the 1970s. During those years, Rotta and a company he controlled allegedly received millions of dollars in transfers from his secret Swiss accounts.
Starting in 2008, after it was reported publicly that UBS and its bankers were under criminal investigation for helping U.S. taxpayers evade their taxes, Rotta allegedly took steps to continue concealing his offshore assets, including by closing his UBS account and moving the funds to Credit Suisse and Bank Bonhôte.
According to the indictment, in 2011, after the IRS obtained records related to one of Rotta’s Swiss accounts, Rotta nominally changed the documentation of his accounts at Credit Suisse and Bank Bonhôte to make it appear that Sergio Cernea, a Brazilian national, owned the assets in the accounts. Despite the change, Rotta allegedly continued to control the assets and transferred millions of dollars out of those accounts for his use.
Shortly after Rotta changed the account documentation, the IRS allegedly began auditing Rotta. During the audit, Rotta allegedly falsely denied that he owned the assets in the foreign financial accounts and, instead, claimed that the millions of dollars he withdrew from the accounts were non-taxable loans from Cernea and others. Rotta allegedly provided the IRS with fake promissory notes and false affidavits from Cernea and others to corroborate his claims.
The IRS allegedly did not believe Rotta and assessed millions of dollars of additional taxes as well as penalties and interest against him. According to the indictment, Rotta sought to reverse the assessments by causing the filing of a U.S. Tax Court petition that sought a redetermination of the IRS’s assessments. In that petition, Rotta, through his attorney, allegedly falsely denied having any foreign accounts and attached the fictitious loan documents. Furthermore, Cernea and another co-conspirator allegedly traveled to the United States to retell the false loan story to IRS attorneys. In 2017, after Rotta allegedly presented evidence that the purported loans had been repaid, the IRS reversed the deficiencies and agreed that Rotta owed no additional tax. Unbeknownst to the IRS, however, the funds that Rotta purportedly repaid to Cernea and others allegedly went into accounts that Rotta controlled.
According to the indictment, as part of the conspiracy, in 2016, Rotta had attorneys create trusts in the United States that Cernea funded with the assets transferred from the Swiss accounts and held for the benefit of Rotta. In fact, the funds in the trusts allegedly belonged to Rotta, and Rotta controlled the trusts.
In 2019, Rotta allegedly became aware that the IRS would receive additional account records from Switzerland that contradicted the false claims that he had previously made. To avoid criminal liability, Rotta allegedly applied to participate in the IRS’s voluntary disclosure practice. Under that practice, taxpayers who willfully do not comply with their tax and reporting obligations can make timely, accurate and complete disclosures of their conduct, which may be a way to resolve their non-compliance and limit their criminal exposure. According to the indictment, Rotta made a number of false statements in his submission, including falsely claiming the assets in the Swiss accounts mostly belonged to Cernea and that Cernea was providing Rotta with millions of dollars because Cernea had no children when, in fact, Cernea had two.
If convicted, Rotta and Cernea face a maximum penalty of five years in prison for each count of conspiracy to defraud the United States, tax evasion, failure to file a report of bank and financial accounts and making a false statement. They face a maximum penalty of three years in prison for each count of filing false tax returns and one year in prison for each count of failing to file tax returns. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
U.S. Attorney Markenzy Lapointe for the Southern District of Florida and Acting Deputy Assistant Attorney General Stuart M. Goldberg of the Justice Department’s Tax Division made the announcement.
The International Tax and Financial Crimes group of IRS Criminal Investigation is investigating the case.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Michael Homer for the Southern District of Florida, Senior Litigation Counsels Sean Beaty and Mark Daly, and Trial Attorneys Patrick Elwell and William Montague of the Justice Department’s Tax Division are prosecuting the case.
An indictment is merely an allegation. All defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
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.
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Five Arrested in South Texas for Allegedly Trafficking Military Grade Firearms to Mexican Drug CartelRead the Press Release
SAN ANTONIO – Five individuals were arrested in Laredo, Hebbronville and Falls City Wednesday for allegedly trafficking military grade firearms to a drug cartel in Mexico.
According to court documents, Gerardo Rafael Perez Jr. aka “Jerry,” 23, of Laredo, allegedly coordinated the acquisition of more than 100 firearms throughout Texas to be smuggled across the international border and delivered to a drug trafficking cartel in Nuevo Laredo, Tamaulipas, Mexico. Perez’s organization allegedly used straw purchasers, including co-defendants Francisco Alejandro Benavides aka “Frankie,” 23, and Mark Anthony Trevino Jr., 24, to procure the firearms from a variety of sources in the Western, Southern, and Northern Districts of Texas. Court documents allege that the organization would acquire guns from unlicensed dealers of firearms, or from federal firearm licensees, where straw purchasers would make false representations to secure the firearms.
Luis Matias Leal aka “Wicho” aka “Poncho” aka “El Tio,” 30, is alleged to have provided cash and instructions to facilitate the conspiracy, while Antonio Osiel Casarez, 26, would smuggle the firearms into Mexico and return to the United States with bulk cash.
The high-powered firearms allegedly acquired by Perez’s organization included FNH SCAR rifles, Barrett .50 caliber rifles, FNH M294S rifles, and M1919 rifles.
Perez, Casarez, Leal, Benavides, and Trevino were all named in a superseding indictment filed March 6. They were arrested March 20.
The five new defendants are all charged with one count of conspiracy to traffic firearms, which carries a penalty of up to 15 years in prison, and one count of conspiracy to straw purchase firearms with a maximum penalty of 25 years imprisonment.
Perez, Casarez, Leal, and Benavides are further charged with one count of conspiracy to smuggle goods from the United States for up to five years in prison, and one count of conspiracy to possess firearms in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime for up to 20 years imprisonment. Perez faces two additional firearms trafficking charges. Leal, Benavides, and Trevino are also charged with falsifying information when buying a firearm, which carries a maximum penalty of 10 years imprisonment; and an additional count of straw purchasing. All of the charges also carry a fine up to $250,000.
Co-defendants Jose Emigdio Q. Mendoza, Gerardo Antonio Ibarra Jr. and Gerardo Corona, Jr. were initially named in an earlier indictment. Mendoza was allegedly engaged in the business of dealing firearms without a license, selling military-grade weapons to members of the Perez conspiracy. Ibarra and Corona were allegedly straw purchasers for the organization.
Several of the defendants are alleged to have contacted Mendoza to purchase the firearms, including SCAR rifles, Barrett .50 caliber rifles, and M249 rifles. Mendoza is alleged to have sold at least 22 such firearms to his co-conspirators from December 2022 to March 2023 and received approximately $169,900.00, at a markup from the retail price of the guns so he could derive a profit for himself.
Mendoza was arrested in San Antonio on March 11, 2023. Ibarra and Corona were arrested in September and October 2023.
A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
U.S. Attorney Jaime Esparza of the Western District of Texas made the announcement.
The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and Homeland Security Investigations are investigating the case.
Assistant U.S. Attorney William Calve is prosecuting the case.
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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Dunklin County Man Sentenced to 8 Years in Prison on Methamphetamine, Gun ChargesRead the Press Release
CAPE GIRARDEAU – U.S. District Judge Audrey G. Fleissig on Monday sentenced a man who was selling methamphetamine from his Dunklin County home to eight years in prison.
Anthony D. Emery, 48, of Kennett, pleaded guilty in December to one count of possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine and one count of possession of firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime. He admitted possessing methamphetamine that he intended to sell to others and a loaded firearm to protect the meth. Officers with the Kennett Police Department conducted a court-approved search of Emery’s home on May 3, 2022, after establishing probable cause that he was selling meth there. Officers found five bags of meth with a combined weight of nearly one kilogram, $4,398 in cash, digital scales for weighing drugs for sale and a loaded Smith & Wesson .38 Special Revolver.
The Kennett Police Department investigated the case. Assistant U.S. Attorney Julie Hunter prosecuted the case.
Connecticut Man Charged as Part of Drug Conspiracy in Northeast KingdomRead the Press Release
Burlington, Vermont – The United States Attorney’s Office stated that Marvin Byrd, 29, of Hartford, Connecticut, has been indicted by a federal grand jury for conspiring with others to distribute controlled substances, including fentanyl, between March and August of 2023. Byrd was arraigned on March 11, 2024 and is detained pending further proceedings.
According to a criminal complaint filed in this case in August 2022, Byrd—who used the name “TJ” while in Vermont—conspired with Britny Parris and others to distribute fentanyl in and around Orleans County. During a period of the charged conspiracy, Parris was “hosting” Byrd at her residence in Barton, Vermont, and they used the property to store, prepare, and distribute controlled substances. Byrd coordinated multiple drug transactions with customers, and he often used others such as Parris to conduct the final distribution. In November 2023, Parris pleaded to a criminal information charging her with maintaining a drug-involved premises, and she is awaiting sentencing.
The United States Attorney’s Office emphasizes that an indictment contains allegations only and that Byrd is presumed innocent until and unless he is convicted of a crime. Byrd faces up to 20 years in prison and a fine of up to $1,000,000. The actual sentence, however, would be determined by the Court with guidance from the advisory United States Sentencing Guidelines and the statutory sentencing factors.
This case is part of an ongoing collaboration of federal, state, county and local law enforcement agencies focusing on drug and gun-trafficking cases in the Northeast Kingdom. United States Attorney Nikolas P. Kerest commended the combined investigatory efforts of the Northeast Vermont Drug Task Force; the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives; Homeland Security Investigations; the Federal Bureau of Investigation; the Orleans County Sheriff’s Department; and the Newport Police Department.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Matthew Lasher represents the United States in the prosecution. Assistant Federal Public Defender Sara Puls and A.J. Ruben, Esq. represents Byrd.