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16 February 2024
Former Kentucky State Prison Sergeant Convicted of Violating Civil Rights of an Inmate and Obstruction of JusticeRead the Press Release
After a four-day trial, a federal jury yesterday convicted a former Eastern Kentucky Correctional Complex (EKCC) sergeant, Eric Nantell, on one count of deprivation of civil rights for his failure to intervene to stop the assault of an inmate, two counts of obstruction for misleading state investigators and one count of making false statements to a special agent of the FBI. Six other officers previously pleaded guilty for their roles in the assault and cover-up, and three of those officers testified for the government at trial.
“The jury’s verdict closes the book on an unfortunate chapter at this correctional center,” said Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division. “All seven officers who participated in the brutal assault of an inmate or the coordinated cover-up that followed have now been brought to justice. The Justice Department will continue to hold law enforcement accountable for unlawful behavior that deprives those in our jails and prisons of their civil and constitutional rights.”
“Despite being a supervisor entrusted with the custody and care of others, Nantell stood by while officers beat a man, tried to cover up an investigation and lied to law enforcement,” said U.S. Attorney Carlton S. Shier IV for the Eastern District of Kentucky. “This disgraceful conduct not only caused injury to a victim but was an unqualified breach of the public trust and a grave disservice to law enforcement. Holding these officers accountable is an important step in restoring the public trust in law enforcement and protecting the civil rights of everyone.”
“Nantell not only took an oath to protect the inmates who were under his watch, but as a supervisor, he held a position of authority within the prison. By allowing this assault on an inmate to occur and then attempting to cover it up, he blatantly abused his power,” said Special Agent in Charge Michael E. Stansbury of the FBI Louisville Field Office. “The FBI will not stand for law enforcement officials who choose to violate the civil rights of those they are sworn to protect and, therefore, will continue to aggressively investigate allegations of wrongdoing and, ultimately, hold the perpetrators accountable.”
The evidence at trial established that the defendant was a supervisory sergeant at the facility when three officers, two of whom were members of the prison’s internal affairs department, assaulted a non-violent inmate who was lying face-down, wearing handcuffs and leg shackles and isolated in a prison shower cell. Nantell was standing at the door of the shower when the assault began, and he watched the officers repeatedly punch and kick the inmate in the head and back. After silently observing the beating for over 20 seconds, Nantell walked away while the officers continued to beat the inmate.
Within hours of the inmate reporting the abuse, supervisors of EKCC and state detectives of the Kentucky State Police opened an investigation. Nantell joined with other officers in a cover-up scheme to hide the truth. As part of that cover-up, he lied to officers of both agencies as well as a special agent of the FBI.
Six former officers have pleaded guilty in related cases. On July 26, 2023, former EKCC officer Randall Dennis pleaded guilty to one count of deprivation of civil rights based on assault of the inmate and former EKCC officer Nathan Cantrell pleaded guilty to four counts of obstruction of justice for attempting to cover up the assault.
On April 10, 2023, former EKCC officer James Benish pleaded guilty to one count of deprivation of civil rights based on his failure to intervene to protect the inmate and former EKCC supervisor Randy Nickell pleaded guilty to three counts of obstruction based on his efforts to cover up the same assault.
On Aug. 29, 2022, former EKCC officer Jeffery Havens pleaded guilty to one count of deprivation of civil rights based on his assault of the inmate.
Finally, on July 11, 2022, former EKCC officer Derek Mays pleaded guilty to four counts of obstruction of justice based on his efforts to cover up the assault.
In a separate administrative investigation, the Kentucky Internal Investigations Branch (IIB) conducted an independent review of the inmate’s allegations. IIB determined that an assault occurred and that numerous officers had been untruthful about what they saw. As a result of their findings, numerous officers who were involved with the assault were terminated, demoted or voluntarily resigned their positions with the Kentucky Department of Corrections within a year of the incident.
A sentencing hearing is scheduled for June 10. Nantell faces a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison for the deprivation of rights offense, a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison for obstructing state investigators and a maximum penalty of five years in prison for lying to the FBI. A federal district court judge will determine any sentences after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
The FBI Louisville Field Office investigated the case.
Assistant U.S. Attorneys Zachary Dembo and Mary Melton for the Eastern District of Kentucky prosecuted the case in partnership with Trial Attorney Thomas Johnson of the Civil Rights Division.
Former Illinois State Senator, Gubernatorial Candidate Sam McCann Pleads Guilty to Fraudulent Use of Campaign Funds, Money Laundering, Tax EvasionRead the Press Release
SPRINGFIELD, Ill. – During the third day of former Illinois State Senator William Samuel McCann Jr.’s bench trial before U.S. District Judge Colleen Lawless, McCann pleaded guilty to nine counts of the indictment which charged him with seven counts of wire fraud, one count of money laundering, and one count of tax evasion related to his alleged misuse of campaign funds for personal expenses.
Prior to the commencement of the trial, the Court revoked McCann’s pretrial release and ordered that he be detained. During the trial, the government’s evidence established, and McCann admitted during the plea hearing, that from about May 2015 to June 2020, McCann engaged in a scheme to convert more than $200,000 and potentially more than $500,000 in contributions and donations made to his campaign committees to pay himself and make personal purchases, and that he concealed his fraud from donors, the public, the Illinois State Board of Elections and law enforcement authorities.
Following the plea hearing, McCann requested that he be released to home confinement pending sentencing and the Court scheduled a detention hearing for today, February 16, 2024. During the detention hearing the government presented a video that McCann recorded just prior to his detainment on Friday, February 9, 2024, in which McCann referenced the government’s conspiracy against him, among other accusations. Judge Lawless noted that the video raised her concern regarding McCann’s harming himself and his truthfulness with the Court, and ordered McCann detained pending sentencing.
Following the detention hearing, United States Attorney Gregory K. Harris stated, “We want to extend our sincere thanks to the Federal Bureau of Investigations and the Internal Revenue Service for their tireless efforts in the thorough investigation and prosecution of this case.”
A sentencing hearing for McCann is scheduled for June 20, 2024, at 10:00 a.m. The statutory penalty for each count of wire fraud (seven counts) and one count of money laundering is up to 20 years in prison. For tax evasion, the statutory penalty is up to 5 years in prison.
William Samuel McCann, Jr., 54, of Plainview, Ill., served as a state senator for the 49th District of Illinois from 2011 to 2013, and for the redrawn 50th District from 2013 to January 2019. McCann formed the Conservative Party of Illinois and, in 2018, launched an unsuccessful bid for Illinois Governor. McCann previously lived in Carlinville, Ill., and owned and operated two construction related businesses.
McCann organized multiple political committees that were registered with the Illinois State Board of Elections: Sam McCann for Senate; Sam McCann for Senate Committee; McCann for Illinois; and Conservative Party of Illinois. According to the indictment, from April 2011 to November 2018, McCann and his political committees received more than $5 million in campaign donations.
During his plea hearing, McCann admitted that he used campaign funds to purchase personal vehicles, pay personal debts, make mortgage payments, and pay himself, including the following:
- McCann used more than $60,000 in campaign funds to partially fund the purchases of a 2017 Ford Expedition in April 2017 and a 2018 Ford F-250 truck in July 2018, which he titled in his own name and used for his personal travel. McCann then used campaign funds for loan payments on the F-250 and for fuel and insurance expenses for both vehicles, while at the same time using campaign funds to reimburse mileage expense claims which he did not incur.
- In April 2018, McCann used $18,000 in campaign funds to purchase a 2018 recreational travel trailer, and in May 2018, used $25,000 in campaign funds to buy a 2006 recreational motor home, both of which McCann titled in his personal name.
McCann established an online account with a recreational vehicle rental business in Ohio and listed the vehicles for rent identifying Sam McCann as the owner. McCann then established a second account with the same rental business and identified himself as William McCann, a potential renter, with a different residential address and email than those he listed as the owner. From approximately May 2018 to June 2018, McCann, while representing himself as the renter, William, rented both the travel trailer and motor home from Sam, the owner, through the RV rental business. McCann caused a total of approximately $62,666 in campaign funds be used to pay the rental cost of the vehicles. The rental business retained approximately $9,838 for commission and paid McCann, as the owner, approximately $52,827 by direct deposit to McCann’s personal checking account. McCann reimbursed the campaign accounts $18,000, resulting in more than $77,000 in campaign funds used to buy and rent from himself.
- On or about Oct. 4, 2016, McCann used a $20,000 cashier’s check funded by a campaign account and issued to himself to pay off a personal loan, including legal fees, that had originally been issued to him as an equipment loan in 2011 and was in collection by the bank due to non-payment.
- From May 2015 to August 2020, McCann used campaign funds to pay approximately $64,750 on two separate personal mortgage loans that were secured by his former residence in Carlinville and an adjoining property used as an office for his construction business.
- In November 2018, after an unsuccessful campaign for Governor of Illinois, when he was no longer a candidate for office and did not financially support any other candidate, and continuing to June 2020, McCann caused the Conservative Party of Illinois to issue approximately $187,000 in payments to himself personally and an additional $52,282 in payments for payroll taxes. Using a payroll service, McCann was able to conceal himself as the payee for the expenditures from the campaign account.
- McCann also admitted that approximately $50,000 in campaign funds were used for personal expenses including Green Dot credit card payments related to a family vacation in Colorado and other personal expenses, charges from Apple iTunes, Amazon, a skeet and trap club, Cabela’s, Scheels, Best Buy, a gun store, and cash withdrawals.
- In relation to his joint return for calendar year 2018. McCann failed to report income from his 2018 rental payments to himself for the RV trailer and motor home. In addition, in March 2018, McCann used a $10,000 check issued by a campaign account to make a down payment to a Shipman, Ill., business for a motor home. When the purchase was not completed, the business issued a $10,000 refund check payable to William McCann, which he deposited to his personal checking account and failed to report as income received.
The charges are the result of investigation by the FBI and IRS Criminal Investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney Timothy A. Bass is representing the government in the prosecution.
Former Fort Hood Texas Soldier Guilty Sentenced to 10 Years for Multiple Child Exploitation CountsRead the Press Release
BANGOR, Maine: A former Fort Hood, Texas soldier was sentenced today in U.S. District Court in Bangor on multiple counts of child exploitation.
U.S. District Judge Lance E. Walker sentenced Christopher Meza, 23, to 120 months in prison followed by five years of supervised release. Meza was also ordered to pay $16,650 in restitution. Meza had been found guilty on November 1, 2023, of one count of enticement of a child, two counts of travelling with intent to engage in illicit sexual conduct and two counts of transportation with intent to engage in criminal sexual activity. The verdict came after a two-day federal jury trial.
While sentencing Meza, Judge Walker stated, “It’s hard to put one’s mind to just how deeply disturbing the conduct was,” further describing the conduct as “debased, deviant, depraved, and craven.”
According to evidence presented during the trial, between February and December 2021, Meza interacted with a 13-year-old from Maine on a popular online gaming platform. The conversations included descriptions of sex as well as Meza’s acknowledgement of the victim’s age. Meza twice traveled from Texas to Maine to meet with the then 14-year-old victim, and on both occasions was successful in leaving the state with the child.
Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) was the lead law enforcement agency. Additional investigative resources were provided by the Department of the Army Criminal Investigation Division and multiple police departments in Maine, New Hampshire, Massachusetts, and Texas.
Reports of child sexual exploitation are increasing: In 2022, The National Center for Missing & Exploited Children (NCMEC) CyberTipline received approximately 32 million reports of suspected child sexual exploitation. That included more than 80,500 reports of online enticement of children for sexual acts and more than 31 million reports of child sexual abuse materials. Victimization can take place across every platform, including social media, messaging apps, gaming platforms, etc. To make a CyberTipline Report, visit https://report.cybertip.org/. If you are in Maine and you or someone you know has been sexually assaulted or abused, you can get help by calling the free, private 24-hour statewide sexual assault helpline at 1-800-871-7741.
Project Safe Childhood: This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice. Led by U.S. Attorneys’ Offices and the Department’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state and local resources to better locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the internet, as well as to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, visit www.justice.gov/psc.
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Former Delaware Specialty Pharmacy Chief Marketing Officer Agrees to Six-Year Exclusion from Federal Healthcare Programs for Allegations of Kickback and False Claims Act ViolationsRead the Press Release
PHILADELPHIA – United States Attorney Jacqueline C. Romero announced today that Carla Sparkler, former Chief Marketing Officer of BioTek reMEDys Inc. (BioTek), located in New Castle, Delaware, has agreed to resolve allegations that she violated the False Claims Act by paying kickbacks to patients and physicians and waiving co-pays to protect BioTek’s revenue stream. Sparkler agreed to a six-year federal healthcare exclusion, which will prohibit her from participating in any federally funded health care program, such as Medicare.
When a Medicare beneficiary obtains a prescription drug covered by Medicare, the beneficiary may be required to make a partial payment, which may take the form of a copayment, coinsurance or a deductible (“copays”). Congress included copay requirements in the Medicare program in part to serve as a check on health care costs. The Federal Anti-Kickback Statute prohibits the offering, paying, soliciting or accepting, directly or indirectly, of any remuneration – which includes money or any other thing of value – to refer or arrange for the referral of items or services payable by any federal health care program. This prohibition extends to companies that routinely waive the copays of Medicare patients without determination of financial need. The Anti-Kickback Statute also extends to the payment of remuneration to physicians in exchange for patient referrals.
In its Complaint in Intervention, the United States alleged that, from at least August 2015 through May 2020, Sparkler served as the Chief Marketing Officer of Biotek. BioTek, a specialty pharmacy that offers drugs and infusion services, routinely waived the copayments of Medicare and TRICARE patients to induce those patients to purchase its drugs and services. Many of the specialty drugs offered by BioTek were expensive and required patients to pay large copays. The government alleged that BioTek sought to avoid deterring patients from purchasing its drugs and services by engaging in a scheme, orchestrated, and implemented by Sparkler, to routinely waive these large copays, without regard for whether the patients were experiencing financial hardship.
Today’s settlement also resolves allegations that under Sparkler’s leadership, BioTek provided remuneration in the form of gifts, dinners, and free administrative and clinical support services to physicians – in particular Dr. David Tabby, who operated a neurology practice in Bala Cynwyd, Pennsylvania – to induce those physicians to refer patients to BioTek. The government also alleged that Dr. Tabby knowingly solicited and accepted this remuneration in exchange for referring numerous patients to BioTek. Dr. Tabby has separately paid $480,000 to settle these allegations, based on his ability to pay. Biotek and its chief executive officer, Chaitanya Gadde, previously agreed collectively to pay $20 million based on their ability to pay to resolve allegations that they violated the False Claims Act by paying kickbacks to patients and physicians to protect Biotek’s revenue stream.
“Ms. Sparkler allegedly orchestrated a scheme to provide improper physician inducements and to cover up kickbacks for patient referrals by waiving co-pays,” said Romero, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania (EDPA). “The six-year exclusion from participation in federal health care programs reflects my office’s commitment to holding individuals accountable for improper and corrupt business practices. BioTek’s alleged scheme, orchestrated and implemented by Sparkler to routinely waive these copays – without regard for whether the patients were experiencing financial hardship – ensured a steady revenue stream for BioTek and undermined patient care to citizens of this District. EDPA will continue to invest itself in the pursuit of health care providers, including individuals, who violate the law for personal gain.”
“This settlement resolves allegations that Ms. Sparkler orchestrated Biotek’s scheme to provide kickbacks, including the improper waiver of co-pays, to encourage doctors to use its services,” said U.S. Attorney David C. Weiss for the District of Delaware. “Those who, for personal gain, flout the rules established by federal healthcare programs raise the costs for everyone and do a disservice to their patients. They forfeit their right to participate in those programs.”
“Kickbacks impose hidden costs on the health care system and compromise medical decision-making,” said Special Agent in Charge Maureen R. Dixon for the Department of Health and Human Services Office of the Inspector General (HHS-OIG). “Alongside our law enforcement partners, HHS-OIG is committed to safeguarding the integrity of federal health care programs by, in part, holding individuals who unlawfully bill the programs accountable for their actions.”
“The settlement agreement announced today demonstrates our ongoing commitment to work with our law enforcement partners to investigate healthcare fraud and protect TRICARE, the healthcare system for military members and their dependents,” stated Special Agent in Charge Patrick J. Hegarty of the Defense Criminal Investigative Service, the law enforcement arm of the Department of Defense Office of Inspector General. “When health care companies pay physicians and submit false claims for improper referrals, they undermine the integrity of TRICARE and place an unnecessary financial burden on the program.”
The civil settlement includes the resolution of claims brought under the qui tam or whistleblower provisions of the False Claims Act by former BioTek employees Shantae M. Wyatt and Latoya Sparrow. Under those provisions, a private party, known as a relator, may file an action on behalf of the United States and receive a portion of any recovery. The qui tam case is captioned United States of America ex rel. Wyatt et al. v. BioTek reMEDys, Inc., No. 19-6069 (EDPA). The relators in this case were represented by David A. Bocian and Asher S. Alavi of Kessler, Topaz, Meltzer & Check in Radnor, PA.
The resolutions obtained in this matter were the result of a coordinated effort among the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Delaware, the Justice Department’s Civil Division, Commercial Litigation Branch, and Fraud Section, the HHS-OIG, the Office of Inspector General for the Office of Personnel Management, and the Defense Criminal Investigative Service.
This case illustrates the government’s emphasis on combating healthcare fraud. One of the most powerful tools in this effort is the False Claims Act. Tips and complaints from all sources about potential fraud, waste, abuse, and mismanagement can be reported to the Department of Health and Human Services at 800‑HHS‑TIPS (800-447-8477).
The matter was handled by U.S. Attorney Jacqueline Romero, Assistant U.S. Attorneys Charlene Keller Fullmer and Judith Amorosa, and Auditor George Niedzwicki for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania, and Assistant U.S. Attorney Dylan Steinberg for the District of Delaware.
The claims asserted by the United States are allegations only and there has been no determination of liability.
Former Commodities Trader Charged with Multimillion-Dollar Wire and Commodoties Fraud SchemeRead the Press Release
NEWARK, N.J. – A Chicago man was charged today in a fraud scheme that defrauding victims of over $3.7 million, U.S. Attorney Philip R. Sellinger announced.
Phillip Galles, 57, is charged by indictment with one count each of wire fraud and commodities fraud.
U.S. Attorney Philip R. Sellinger“As alleged, Phillip Galles defrauded multiple victims by falsely posing as a successful hedge fund manager who would invest their money in commodity futures through his Chicago-based investment company Tyche Asset Management,” U.S. Attorney Sellinger said. “In reality, Galles made virtually no real investments, spent time working as a dog walker and not a fund manager, and misappropriated over $3.7 million in victims’ money. We will continue to work relentlessly to pursue those who prey on investors through lies and deception.”
According to documents filed in this case and statements made in court:
Galles, a former commodities trader, defrauded his victims by falsely claiming that he would invest their money in commodity futures through his purported investment company called Tyche Asset Management, based in Chicago. As part of the scheme, Galles and those working for him falsely told prospective investors that Tyche had a history of success using proprietary trading strategies, with extraordinary annual rates of return exceeding 100 percent. In reality, Tyche made virtually no legitimate investments in commodity futures or otherwise. Galles instead ran Tyche like a Ponzi scheme and used investor money to pay back other investors and for his own personal expenses.
Galles met with an undercover agent in New Jersey purporting to be an investment manager looking to make a large investment. Galles repeatedly lied during those meetings about Tyche and his own personal history. He falsely claimed that Tyche had annual returns of 336 percent, raised over $2 billion within 60 days of starting the fund, and had prominent investors, including a Kuwaiti sovereign fund and a well-known owner of a professional sports team. Galles also falsely claimed that he graduated from a prominent university in the Midwest. In total, Galles defrauded more than a dozen victims of more than $3.7 million.
The counts with which Galles is charged are each punishable by a maximum of 20 years in prison and a fine of $250,000 or twice the gross gain or loss involved in the offense, whichever is greatest.
U.S. Attorney Sellinger credited special agents of the U.S. Attorney’s Office, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Thomas Mahoney in Newark, and postal inspectors of the U.S. Postal Inspection Service in Newark, under the direction of Postal Inspector in Charge Christopher A. Nielsen, Philadelphia Division, with the investigation leading to the charges. He also expressed appreciation to the Commodity Futures Trading Commission and the National Futures Association.
The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorney Carolyn Silane of the Economic Crimes Unit in Newark.
The charges and allegations contained in the complaint are merely accusations, and the defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
galles.indictment.pdfFederal Jury Convicts Man in Armed Robbery of Westminster Gas StationRead the Press Release
DENVER - The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Colorado announces that a federal jury in Denver has convicted Dimas Alexander Munguia-Herrera for armed robbery of a Conoco gas station and for discharging a firearm during and in relation to that armed robbery, which is a crime of violence under federal law.
According to court documents and facts presented at trial, Minguia-Herrera committed the robbery of cash and other items just before he discharged a firearm at a Conoco gas station in Westminster, Colorado, on January 12, 2023. Surveillance footage at trial showed a masked Munguia-Herrera pointing the gun before he discharged it into the wall barely missing the cashier. He left the Conoco gas station in a stolen white Bronco, which was later found with evidence inside that traced back to the Defendant.
“Our office is committed to making Denver a safer place to live,” said U.S. Attorney Cole Finegan. “This prosecution is another step in the right direction.”
“The FBI continues to work with agencies like Westminster Police to target the violent criminals terrorizing communities across Colorado,” said FBI Denver Special Agent in Charge Mark Michalek. “We will continue to leverage our resources and partnerships to get the bad actors off the streets.”
United States Chief District Court Judge Philip A. Brimmer presided over the federal jury trial. Sentencing will be scheduled at a later date.
The Westminster Police Department, the Denver Police Department, and the FBI Safe Streets Task Force conducted the investigation. Assistant United States Attorneys Albert Buchman and Alison Connaughty handled the prosecution.
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.
Case No. 23-cr-105-PAB
Federal Jury Convicts Las Cruces Man of Federal Firearms OffenseRead the Press Release
ALBUQUERQUE – Alexander M.M. Uballez, United States Attorney for the District of New Mexico, and Raul Bujanda, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI’s Albuquerque Field Office, announced that on Feb. 13, 2024, a federal jury returned a guilty verdict against Jesus Coronado, 42, of Las Cruces. The jury convicted Coronado of being a felon in possession of a firearm and ammunition. Judge Margaret I. Strickland presided.
A federal grand jury returned a superseding indicted against Coronado on June 21, 2023. According to publicly available court documents, on Dec. 11, 2021, a woman was leaving a smoke shop when her former boyfriend, Coronado, pulled up next to her vehicle and brandished a firearm while making a jabbing gesture with it in her direction. Both vehicles then fled the parking lot.
Officers from the Las Cruces Police Department (LCPD) obtained an arrest warrant for Coronado and located his vehicle at a residence in Las Cruces, but the residents told officers Coronado was not there. Officers conducted sporadic surveillance of the residence for the next several days until they observed a male matching Coronado’s description in the driveway on Dec. 13, 2021. The officer commanded the male to stop, but he appeared to flee into the residence instead. Officers set up a perimeter around the residence and called for the residents to exit. Two women and another male obeyed the commands and the male told officers that Coronado had not entered the residence but had actually gone around the back. An officer holding the perimeter in the neighbor’s backyard climbed onto the fence separating the properties and observed a firearm on the roof of the residence. Sometime later, a neighbor called LCPD to report that a male matching Coronado’s description was hiding behind a wall across the street. At that time, officers located Coronado hiding behind a small cinderblock wall on a nearby property and arrested him. Subsequent DNA testing on the firearm matched Coronado’s DNA. As a previously convicted felon, Coronado knew that he could not possess a firearm and ammunition.
Coronado will remain in custody pending sentencing, which has not been set. At sentencing, Coronado faces 10 years in prison.
The FBI Albuquerque Field Office investigated this case with the assistance of the Las Cruces Police Department. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Christopher McNair and Richard Williams are prosecuting the case.
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Federal Grand Jury Indicts Paducah Man for Methamphetamine DistributionRead the Press Release
Paducah, KY – A federal grand jury in Paducah, Kentucky, returned an indictment on February 12, 2024, charging a Paducah man with distributing methamphetamine.
U.S. Attorney Michael A. Bennett of the Western District of Kentucky, Special Agent in Charge Michael A. Davis of the DEA St. Louis Field Division, Director Brendan F. Kelly of the Illinois State Police, and Chief Brian Laird of the Paducah Police Department made the announcement.
According to the indictment, Cameron D. Shumpert, 31, was charged with distributing methamphetamine in McCracken County, Kentucky on December 11, 2023, December 14, 2023, January 4, 2024, and January 18, 2024.
On February 15, 2024, Shumpert made an initial court appearance before a U.S. Magistrate Judge in the United States District Court for the Western District of Kentucky. If convicted, Shumpert faces a mandatory minimum sentence of 10 years and a maximum sentence of life in prison. The defendant remains in federal custody pending further hearings. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the sentencing guidelines and other statutory factors.
There is no parole in the federal system.
This case is being investigated by the DEA Carbondale, Illinois Post of Duty Office, the Illinois State Police, and the Paducah Police Department.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Seth Hancock, Chief of the U.S. Attorney’s Paducah Branch Office, is prosecuting this case.
An indictment 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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Federal Grand Jury Indicts Daviess County Felon for Firearms OffensesRead the Press Release
Bowling Green, KY – A federal grand jury in Bowling Green returned an indictment on February 14, 2024, charging a Daviess County felon with false statements made in acquisition of a firearm, receipt of a firearm by a prohibited person, and possession of a firearm by a convicted felon.
U.S. Attorney Michael A. Bennett of the Western District of Kentucky and Special Agent in Charge R. Shawn Morrow of the ATF Louisville Field Division made the announcement.
According to the indictment, on January 3, 2024, Ronald Joseph Philpot, 53, made false written statements intended to deceive a licensed firearms dealer, on a Department of Justice, Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives form 4473, Firearms Transaction Record. Specifically, Philpot stated he was not under indictment for a crime punishable by imprisonment for a term exceeding one year and was not a convicted felon, when in fact as he knew he was a convicted felon currently under indictment for another felony offense.
On January 9, 2024, Philpot then received, and was in possession of, a Taurus 9-millimeter semi-automatic pistol. Philpot was prohibited from possessing a firearm because he had previously been convicted of the following felony offenses.
On May 1, 2018, in Ohio Circuit Court, Philpot was convicted of possession of a controlled substance, first offense, (methamphetamine).
On April 28, 2015, in Ohio Circuit Court, Philpot was convicted of flagrant nonsupport.
On April 14, 2008, in Ohio Circuit Court, Philpot was convicted flagrant nonsupport.
On May 16, 1990, in Ohio Circuit Court, Philpot was convicted of burglary in the third degree.
Philpot was previously arrested on a criminal complaint and will make his initial court appearance on the indictment before a U.S. Magistrate Judge in the United States District Court for the Western District of Kentucky later. He remains in federal custody pending trial. If convicted, Philpot faces a maximum sentence of 30 years in prison. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the sentencing guidelines and other statutory factors.
There is no parole in the federal system.
The case is being investigated by the ATF Bowling Green Field Office.
Assistant U.S. Attorney R. Nicholas Rabold, of the U.S. Attorney’s Bowling Green Branch Office, is prosecuting the case.
This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program bringing together all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve to reduce violent crime and gun violence, and to make our neighborhoods safer for everyone. On May 26, 2021, the Department launched a violent crime reduction strategy strengthening PSN based on these core principles: fostering trust and legitimacy in our communities, supporting community-based organizations that help prevent violence from occurring in the first place, setting focused and strategic enforcement priorities, and measuring the results.
An indictment 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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Fake concert promoter and former rapper plead guilty to $1.35 million fraud scheme involving bogus music concertsRead the Press Release
MIAMI – Two men pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit mail fraud and wire fraud, and aggravated identity theft for their involvement in a bogus music concert fraud scheme.
Terronce Morris, 41, of Missouri City, Texas, pleaded guilty on Feb. 13 to conspiring with Blake Kelly, 36, of Los Angeles, California, in a fraud scheme involving bogus music concerts with famous artists, including J.B., B.E., and P.M. Kelly had previously pleaded guilty to the same conspiracy, on Jan. 9. Morris and Kelly also pleaded guilty to aggravated identity theft for forging the signature and using the identity of music artist J.B. on false and fraudulent concert contracts.
According to the factual proffer and other court documents, between December 2019 and March 2020, Morris and Kelly fraudulently obtained approximately $1,350,000 from victim J.R. Morris and Kelly persuaded the victim to give them the money for the purportedly production of a music festival, featuring J.B., P.M., B.E., and other music recording artists. Morris and Kelly created several false and fraudulent concert performance contracts forging the signatures of the music recording artists. Morris also created false and fraudulent email accounts that he used to pose as if the music recording artists themselves had sent the signed contracts to Kelly and himself. Additionally, during a video call with the victim, Morris and Kelly had an accomplice pose as J.B. to trick the victim into believing that J.B. had agreed to perform at the concert series.
Relying on Morris’s and Kelly’s false and fraudulent statements, the victim sent three wire transfers to Morris. The victim also mailed Morris a $200,000 check made payable to J.B., that Morris then deposited into his own personal account. Morris and Kelly used the fraudulently obtained money to enrich themselves and finance a lavish lifestyle for themselves and their accomplices, which included traveling, purchasing luxury goods, paying for luxurious services, and dining at high-priced restaurants.
Morris’s sentencing is scheduled for May 2, at 1:30 p.m. Kelly’s sentencing is scheduled for March 28, 1:00 p.m. Morris and Kelly face up to 20 years in prison for the conspiracy charge, as well an additional two years in prison for the identity theft charge.
U.S. Attorney Markenzy Lapointe for the Southern District of Florida, and Special Agent in Charge Jeffrey B. Veltri of FBI, Miami Field Office made the announcement.
FBI Miami investigated the case. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Roger Cruz and Joan Silverstein are prosecuting it.
Related court documents and information may be found on the website of the District Court for the Southern District of Florida at www.flsd.uscourts.gov or at http://pacer.flsd.uscourts.gov, under case number 23-cr-60118.
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FACT SHEET: Disruptive Technology Strike Force Efforts in First Year to Prevent Sensitive Technology from Being Acquired by Authoritarian Regimes and Hostile Nation-StatesRead the Press Release
One year ago, on February 16, 2023, the Departments of Justice and Commerce, alongside their partners at the Federal Bureau of Investigation and Homeland Security Investigations, launched the Disruptive Technology Strike Force to fiercely protect advanced technology from being unlawfully acquired by foreign adversaries. Together, the agencies that comprise the Strike Force have taken an all-tools approach to aggressively pursue enforcement actions against illegal procurement networks and prevent nation-state actors from illicitly acquiring our most sensitive technology.
In the twelve months since its formation, the Strike Force has successfully:
Charged 14 cases involving alleged sanctions and export control violations, smuggling conspiracies, and other offenses related to the unlawful transfer of sensitive information, goods, and military-grade technology to Russia, China, or Iran.
- Seven cases charged defendants with sending or attempting to send semiconductors, microelectronics, or other technologies to Russia in violation of U.S. law.
- In January 2024, Brooklyn- and Los Angeles-based businessman Ilya Kahn was arrested for allegedly running a years-long scheme to unlawfully export hundreds of thousands of semiconductors to a sanctioned Russian business, using networks of businesses in the China and other transshipment points to evade export controls.
- In October 2023, Brooklyn-based Salimdzhon Nasriddinov, a dual Russian and Tajik national, and Canadian nationals Nikolay Goltsev and Kristina Puzyreva were arrested for running a scheme to source, purchase, and ship millions of dollars’ worth of dual-use electronics from U.S. manufacturers to sanctioned end-users in Russia, including components used in guided missile systems and unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs).
- In October 2023, Brooklyn resident Nikolay Grigorev was arrested and Russian nationals Nikita Arkhipov and Artem Oloviannikov were charged with running a scheme to procure dual-use electronic components, including semiconductors, for companies affiliated with the Russian military.
- In September 2023, Russian citizen Maxim Marchenko was charged with using shell companies in Hong Kong to smuggle large quantities of microelectronics with military applications to end users in Russia.
- In August 2023, dual Russian-German citizen Arthur Petrov was arrested in Cyprus for his involvement in a scheme to procure U.S.-sourced microelectronics on behalf of a Russia-based supplier of critical electronic components for manufacturers supplying weaponry and other equipment to the Russian military.
- In May 2023, Greek national Nikolaos Bogonikolos was arrested for overseeing a years-long operation to smuggle into Russia U.S.-origin military and dual-use technology, including sensitive components used in quantum cryptography and nuclear weapons testing.
- In May 2023, Russian nationals Oleg Sergeyevich Patsulya and Vasilii Sergeyevich were arrested for conspiring to violate export control laws and commit money laundering to obtain airplane technology for Russian airlines.
These cases were brought in partnership with Task Force KleptoCapture, an interagency law enforcement effort dedicated to enforcing the sweeping sanctions, export restrictions, and economic countermeasures that the United States, along with its allies and partners, has imposed in response to Russia’s unprovoked military invasion of Ukraine.
Assistant Attorney General for National Security Matthew G. Olsen and Assistant Secretary for Export Enforcement Matthew S. Axelrod of the Commerce Department, and five U.S. Attorneys from offices around the country, and officials from HSI and FBI announced the Strike Force’s first five cases in May 2023.-
Three cases charged former employees of U.S. companies with stealing confidential and proprietary information related to sensitive technology and attempting to take such information to China, and one case charged a defendant with seeking to obtain technology from U.S. manufacturers on behalf of Chinese end users.
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In February 2024, California resident Chenguang Gong was arrested for transferring more than 3,600 files containing proprietary information from his employer, including files with blueprints for sophisticated missile-detection technology. According to the complaint, Gong sought funding from the People’s Republic of China (PRC)-administered “Talent Programs,” which recruit individuals overseas with expertise sought after by the PRC, to develop similar technology.
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In May 2023, Liming Li of California was arrested for his alleged theft of sensitive technology related to advanced manufacturing software programs from his Southern-California-based employers and using that information to market his own competing company to businesses in China.
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In May 2023, California man and former Apple employee Weibao Wang was charged in connection with a scheme to steal Apple source code and other proprietary information related to autonomous systems. Allegedly, he left Apple to work as an engineer for a U.S.-based subsidiary of a China-based company to work on the development of self-driving cars, and, following a search of his residence, Wang left the country for China.
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In December 2023, Belgian national Hans Maria De Geetere was charged and arrested in Belgium for crimes related to a years-long scheme to export accelerometers used in aerospace and military systems from the United States to end users in China.
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Three cases charged individuals with seeking to procure sensitive U.S. technology on behalf of the government of Iran or Iranian end users.
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In February 2024, Iranian national Abolfazi Bazzazi and his son Mohammad Resa Bazzazi were charged with violating U.S. sanctions by procuring for the Government of Iran and other Iranian ends users goods and technology from U.S. companies that supply the military, aerospace, and firefighting industries.
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In January 2023, four Chinese nationals, Baoxia Liu, You Wa Yung, Yongxin Li, and Yanlai Zhong, were charged with smuggling U.S.-origin items used in the production of UAVs and ballistic missile systems through Chinese front companies to Iranian entities with ties to the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps and Ministry of Defense.
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In May 2023, Chinese national Xiangjiang Qiao was charged with multiple offenses related to a scheme to use a sanctioned Chinese company to provide high-tech materials used in the production of weapons of mass destruction to Iran, in exchange for payments made through the U.S. financial system.
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Secured the guilty plea of a defendant charged for her role in a multimillion-dollar scheme to send electronic components used in UAVs and guided missile systems and other weapons to sanctioned entities in Russia.
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In February 2024, Canadian national Kristina Puzyreva, one of three defendants charged in the case, pleaded guilty to money laundering conspiracy as part of a sophisticated sanctions and export control scheme involving two Brooklyn-based companies.
Issued Temporary Denial Orders against 29 entities, including airlines, freight forwarders, defense companies, and others to cut off their access to controlled U.S. items.
Contributed to numerous parties being placed on Commerce’s Entity List and Treasury’s Specially Designated Nationals and Blocked Persons List.
Forged international partnerships committed to preventing critical technology from being siphoned off by foreign adversaries.
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Assistant Attorney General Matthew Olsen and Assistant Secretary for Export Enforcement Matthew Axelrod traveled to Kyiv in November 2023, following prior visits by the Attorney General to Ukraine, to reaffirm the Strike Force’s close partnership with the Ukrainian Prosecutor General and commitment to curbing the illegal flow of advanced technology to Russia.
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Following the Camp David Leaders’ Summit with President Biden and the leaders of Japan and Korea, DOJ and Commerce took steps to establish a Disruptive Technology Protection Network with South Korea and Japan to expand collaboration on technology protection measures, including expanding information-sharing and the exchange of best practices across the three countries’ enforcement agencies.
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As part of the Munich Security Conference, Assistant Attorney General Matthew Olsen and Assistant Secretary Matthew Axelrod participated in a panel discussion on safeguarding disruptive technology in a new era of economic statecraft.
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During a speech in the United Kingdom, where she announced the creation of the Strike Force in February 2023, Deputy Attorney General Lisa Monaco delivered remarks about the national security risks posed by artificial intelligence and why it is a top enforcement priority for the Strike Force.
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Assistant Attorney General Matthew Olsen delivered remarks and participated in a roundtable discussion hosted by the American Academy at the U.S. embassy in Berlin, Germany. Throughout the visit, AAG Olsen reaffirmed the Department’s close partnership with foreign counterparts to stop the flow of sensitive technology to foreign adversaries.
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Assistant Secretary of Commerce for Export Enforcement Matthew Axelrod delivered remarks on international partnerships, with a focus on the Strike Force, at the Federal Office for Economic Affairs and Export Control-Bureau of Industry and Security Export Control Forum in Frankfurt, Germany.
Assistant Attorney General for National Security Matthew G. Olsen and Assistant Secretary for Export Enforcement Matthew S. Axelrod of the Commerce Department tour the Kyiv Scientific Research Institute of Forensic Expertise, which houses drones, electronic components, and other devices used by Russia and found on the battlefields in Ukraine. The two traveled to Kyiv, Ukraine from Oct. 30 – Nov. 1, 2023, to meet with counterparts about stopping the flow of sensitive technology to Russia.Fostered partnerships with the private sector, working directly with companies involved in the manufacture, sale, and shipment of sensitive export-controlled items.
- Hosted industry outreach events in Boston, Massachusetts; Houston, Texas; and Phoenix, Arizona to educate industry on the Strike Force’s work to stem the flow of sensitive technology to our adversaries, recent corporate enforcement initiatives, and tips and best practices for working with investigators on issues related to export compliance, cybersecurity, and protecting intellectual property.
- Convened roundtable discussions with compliance officials and technical experts at multiple cutting-edge tech companies, research institutions, and defense contractors.
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Toured the largest and third-largest commercial ports in the United States
Added new interagency partners to the effort and enforcement teams to the Strike Force.
- To strengthen efforts to protect defense industry technology, the Strike Force added the Defense Criminal Investigative Service as a formal Strike Force partner.
- To strategically align Strike Force presence with the location of critical technology-related industries throughout the United States, the Strike Force added enforcement teams in the Eastern District of North Carolina, the Western District of Texas, and the Southern District of Georgia.
Doctor Convicted of $2.8M Medicare Fraud SchemeRead the Press Release
A federal jury convicted a California man yesterday for his role in a scheme to defraud Medicare by billing $2.8 million for hospice services that patients did not need.
According to court documents and evidence presented at trial, Dr. John Thropay, 74, of Arcadia, was the medical director of several hospice companies, including Blue Sky Hospice Inc. located in Van Nuys, California. From October 2014 to March 2016, Thropay fraudulently certified Medicare patients of Blue Sky as having terminal illnesses that the patients did not have so that Blue Sky Hospice could bill Medicare for hospice services. In 2015, Thropay was listed as attending provider for more hospice claims paid by Medicare than any other provider in the nation.
The jury convicted Thropay of one count of conspiracy to commit health care fraud and four counts of health care fraud. He is scheduled to be sentenced on May 28 and faces a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison on each count. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
Acting Assistant Attorney General Nicole M. Argentieri of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, Special Agent in Charge Timothy B. DeFrancesca of the Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General (HHS-OIG), and Acting Assistant Director in Charge Amir Ehsaei of the FBI Los Angeles Field Office made the announcement.
HHS-OIG and the FBI investigated the case.
Assistant Deputy Chief Niall M. O’Donnell and Trial Attorney Eric C. Schmale of the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section are prosecuting the case.
The Fraud Section leads the Criminal Division’s efforts to combat health care fraud through the Health Care Fraud Strike Force Program. Since March 2007, the program, currently comprised of nine strike forces operating in 27 federal districts, has charged more than 5,400 defendants who collectively have billed federal health care programs and private insurers more than $27 billion. In addition, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, working in conjunction with HHS-OIG, are taking steps to hold providers accountable for their involvement in health care fraud schemes. More information can be found at www.justice.gov/criminal-fraud/health-care-fraud-unit.
District Men Sentenced for April 2021 Murder in Southeast WashingtonRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON – Andre Smith, 27, and Malachi McFarland, 24, of Washington, D.C., was sentenced today to 18 years and 14 years of incarceration, respectively, for the April 2021 shooting death of Kerry Odoms, announced U.S. Attorney Matthew M. Graves and Chief Pamela A. Smith, of the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD). They were sentenced by the Honorable Robert Okun of the Superior Court of the District of Columbia.
Both defendants pleaded guilty to second degree murder while armed on October 30, 2023.
According to the government’s evidence, just prior to the homicide, Kerry Odoms, 29, of Washington, D.C., was socializing on Apr. 15, 2021 with a group of people that included McFarland, in the parking lot of 3319 10th Place SE, in the Congress Heights neighborhood.
Smith approached the group and moments later, at 9:54 p.m., lunged toward Odoms while firing multiple gunshots. As Smith began shooting at Odoms, McFarland ran a short distance away, returned, and fired a second round of gunshots directly at Odoms. The gunfire from both defendants killed Odoms, who suffered eight gunshot wounds.
- In announcing the sentencing, U.S. Attorney Graves and Chief Smith commended the work of those who investigated the case from the Metropolitan Police Department. They also commended the work of Assistant U.S. Attorneys Andrea Antonelli, Jin Park, and former AUSA Steven Rickard, who investigated and prosecuted the case.
District Man Sentenced to 12 Years in Prison for Shooting a Man in Northeast WashingtonRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON – Ryan Parker, 24, of Washington, D.C., has been sentenced today to 12 years of incarceration for the March 2023 shooting of a man outside of Malcolm’s Liquors on Minnesota Avenue NE, announced U.S. Attorney Matthew M. Graves and Chief Pamela A. Smith, of the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD).
On August 8, 2023, Parker pleaded guilty in the Superior Court of the District of Columbia to charges of aggravated assault while armed and carrying a pistol without a license. The Honorable Erik Christian sentenced the defendant to 10 years for the aggravated assault charge and two years for the carrying a pistol without a license charge, with those sentences to run consecutively to each other.
According to the government’s evidence, with which Parker agreed, on March 6, 2023, Parker fired 14 gunshots at the victim, and hit him twice while the two were standing outside of Malcolm’s Liquors on Minnesota Avenue. At the plea hearing, Parker admitted that the underlying argument was over the victim’s refusal to give him a cigarette. As a result of the shooting, the victim sustained injuries to his hand and leg.
In announcing the sentence, U.S. Attorney Graves and Chief Smith commended the work of the Metropolitan Police Department officers who investigated the case. They also acknowledged the efforts of those who worked on the case from the U.S. Attorney’s Office, including Victim/Witness Advocate Latrice Washington-Williams. Finally, they commended the work of Assistant U.S. Attorney Alec Levy, who investigated and prosecuted the matter.
District Man Indicted on Enhanced Second-Degree Theft for Theft from Ross Retail Store in NortheastRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON – On Wednesday, February 14, 2024, Terri Ross (aka Terri Rosser), 38, of Washington, D.C., was indicted by a grand jury in the Superior Court of the District of Columbia on one count of felony second-degree theft stemming from events occurring on December 31, 2023, U.S. Attorney Matthew M. Graves and Chief Pamela Smith, of the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD) announced.
Ross is to be arraigned on February 26, 2024, at a hearing before a Superior Court judge.
According to the government’s evidence, on December 31, 2023, Ross took clothing items without paying from the Ross Dress for Less store in Northeast, Washington, D.C. Ross was later located and arrested after investigation by the Metropolitan Police Department.
Ross has two or more prior theft convictions, though not from the same occasion, and therefore is subject to enhanced penalties for his alleged theft, including a mandatory minimum sentence of one year in jail for each count of theft for which he is indicted.
Since September 1, 2023, including the aforementioned case, the United States Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia has indicted 24 cases involving a felony second-degree theft charge based on a defendant’s two or more prior theft convictions, not from the same occasion.
This case was investigated by the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD) and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia. It is being prosecuted by Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Lauren Gaskin.
An indictment is merely a formal charge that a defendant has committed a violation of criminal laws and every defendant is presumed innocent until, and unless, proven guilty.
Detroit Man Sentenced for $650,000 Real Estate Loan FraudRead the Press Release
RICHMOND, Va. – A Detroit man was sentenced yesterday to six years in prison for fraudulently conspiring to obtain over $650,000 in advance fees from borrowers seeking real estate loans.
According to court documents, Roscoe Copeland, 49, was the founder and CEO of Alexis Realty Solutions LLC (ARS), which purported to be an alternative funding source for prospective borrowers seeking loans for real estate purchases. ARS catered to customers who had poor credit ratings or were otherwise unable to qualify for a loan from retail banks or other traditional funding sources. ARS offered unrealistically competitive interest rates to their customers, including as low as 1% for a traditional 30-year fixed mortgage.
Copeland and his co-defendant, Dawnn Long, ARS’s chief operating officer, claimed that ARS was a private lender with no “middleman,” and that the company had access to specialized bond funding at discounted rates. As part of the fraudulent scheme, prospective borrowers paid ARS an upfront fee, typically 3% of the loan amount, to purportedly secure a bond necessary to obtain the loan. Copeland and Long also recruited individuals known as “consultants,” many of whom were real estate brokers or agents, to find prospective borrowers and direct them to ARS. Consultants were told that ARS would pay them a percentage of ARS’s proceeds after the loans were funded.
During the conspiracy, which lasted from approximately January 2017 to January 2018, Copeland and Long knowingly made repeated false statements to both prospective borrowers and consultants. These misrepresentations included that: (1) the advance fees paid by customers would be held in escrow; (2) the customers’ advance fees would be repaid in full if their loans did not fund within a set period; and (3) ARS was a private lender with no middleman.
In fact, not a single customer of ARS received a loan. Twenty-six prospective borrowers sent Copeland and Long over $650,000 in advance fees, the vast majority of which Copeland and Long spent on lavish personal expenses. Many of the victims suffered substantial financial hardship, including filing for bankruptcy, periods of homelessness, or delaying retirement, as a result of Copeland’s fraud scheme.
Jessica D. Aber, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia, and David J. Scott, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI Washington Field Office Criminal Division, made the announcement after sentencing by Senior U.S. District Judge John A. Gibney, Jr.
Assistant U.S. Attorneys Brian Hood and Kenneth R. Simon, Jr. prosecuted the case.
A copy of this press release is located on the website of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Virginia. Related court documents and information are located on the website of the District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia or on PACER by searching for Case No. 3:22-cr-152.
Denver Jury Convicts Former Corporate CFO and Wife of Wire FraudRead the Press Release
DENVER – The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Colorado announces that Michael Aaron Tew, 44, and Kimberly Ann Tew, 42, both of Denver, Colorado were found guilty for their roles in a wire fraud scheme that defrauded National Air Cargo, a logistics company and contractor for the Department of Defense. A federal jury in Denver returned guilty verdicts against the Tews on Thursday, February 15, 2024.
According to the facts established at trial, beginning in 2018, Michael Tew and Kimberly Tew conspired to defraud National Air Cargo through the submission of dozens of false invoices for services and items that were never provided. Over the course of two years, with the help of a co-conspirator, the Tews defrauded the business of five million dollars. Testimony at trial demonstrated the Tews gambled away much of the money and spent $2.4 million buying Bitcoin at Bitcoin ATMs across the Denver area. Michael Tew also failed to file federal income tax returns for tax years 2016 through 2019, on both his earned income and funds obtained from the fraud scheme.
“Financial crimes are serious, and this verdict shows there are consequences to such actions,” said U.S. Attorney Cole Finegan. “We thank both IRS CI and the FBI for their exceptional work and partnership on this long-running investigation, which helps to ensure that fraudsters are held accountable for their actions.”
“IRS CI special agents are the federal law enforcement’s premier financial investigators, and we will continue to lead the way in investigating tax cases and financial crimes,” said Todd Martin, Special Agent in Charge, Denver Field Office. “This verdict is an example of the impressive work of our special agents and reinforces the fact that we work diligently to investigate tax crimes. We are proud to have assisted the U.S. Attorney’s Office and the FBI in unraveling the Tew’s sophisticated scheme and holding them accountable for evading their taxes and stealing from National Air Cargo.
“FBI Denver’s Complex Financial Crimes squad will continue to work with our state, local and federal partners to investigate and seek justice for when criminals cheat, lie and steal for their own personal gain,” said Special Agent in Charge Mark Michalek.
United States District Court Judge Daniel D. Domenico presided over the jury trial. Sentencing will be held at a later date.
IRS CI and the FBI conducted the investigation. Assistant United States Attorneys Bryan Fields and Sarah Weiss, and former AUSA Hetal Doshi handled the prosecution.
Case Number: 20-cr-305-DDD
Defendant Who Posed as a Lawyer Sentenced to 22 Years in Federal Prison for Fraud Related to a Debt Elimination SchemeRead the Press Release
Greenbelt, Maryland – U.S. District Judge Theodore D. Chuang sentenced Willie Lamont Hicks, a/k/a “Will Woodward” and “CW,” age 52, of Kansas City, Missouri, yesterday to 22 years in federal prison, followed by three years of supervised release, for federal charges of wire fraud and conspiracy to commit wire fraud and mail fraud related to a debt elimination and wealth management fraud scheme. Judge Chuang also ordered Hicks to pay a forfeiture money judgment of $1,649,897.33 and pay restitution of $3,281,109.38. A federal jury convicted Hicks and co-defendant Mary Ann Mendoza, a/k/a “Mary Ann Manuel,” “Trinity,” “M3,” and “Emily James,” age 51, of Gaithersburg, Maryland, of those charges on October 4, 2023.
The sentence was announced by United States Attorney for the District of Maryland Erek L. Barron; Special Agent in Charge Edwin S. Bonano of the Southeastern Region - Federal Housing Finance Agency - Office of Inspector General; Special Agent in Charge Javan Wilson of the U.S. Department of the Treasury - Office of Inspector General; Montgomery County State’s Attorney John McCarthy; and Chief Marcus Jones of the Montgomery County Police Department.
According to the evidence presented at the seven-day trial, from August 2011 to at least September 2017, Hicks and Mendoza, who represented themselves as partners and as husband and wife, held in-person trainings purporting to educate victim-debtors on how to discharge consumer debt, including mortgage debt, credit card debt, and automobile financing debt. Hicks and Mendoza also marketed wealth management services to victims, including purporting to set up a family office and to fund business opportunities.
As detailed in trial testimony, during the debt elimination classes, Hicks, who claimed to be an attorney, and Mendoza told victims that on the back of their social security cards and birth certificates, there was a number that unlocked access to a special bank account with funds owed to the victims by the U.S. government. The defendants also told the victim-debtors that they could create or use “trusts” to fulfill the wealth management or debt elimination services, or to obtain return on investment.
The evidence proved that Hicks, Mendoza, and their associates offered to facilitate the discharge of the debt held by the victims or perform other purported services for a fee, such as a percentage of the victim-debtors’ outstanding debt. The defendants accepted payment in the form of cash, wire transfers, personal and cashier’s checks, and the use of the victim-debtors’ credit. Victim-debtors also paid the defendants through the liquidation of their retirement savings, the leasing of apartments, and the purchase of vehicles and office equipment and supplies. In 2017, Hicks and Mendoza caused one victim to transfer almost $100,000 from the victim’s bank account to the accounts of fraudulent corporate entities controlled by the defendants. Trial testimony showed that victim-debtors were induced into providing the defendants with over one million dollars in cash and other forms of payment during the period of the conspiracy.
According to the evidence also presented at trial, Hicks and Mendoza used the victims’ personal identifying information without the victims’ knowledge or permission and provided the victims with fraudulent documents, including Internal Revenue Service forms, memorandums of agreement, intake forms, and other materials that the defendants claimed were necessary for discharging debt. The evidence showed that Hicks, Mendoza, and their associates mailed the fraudulent paperwork to the victim-debtors’ creditors, lenders, and the Internal Revenue Service purporting to effectuate the discharge of the victim’s debts.
As a result of Hicks’ and Mendoza’s scheme, victims suffered substantial financial harm, including foreclosure and eviction, homelessness, depletion of their retirement savings, significant downgrading of their credit scores, bankruptcy, and hundreds of thousands of dollars in fees and penalties owed to the IRS as a result of the fraudulent paperwork mailings.
Mendoza faces a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison for conspiracy to commit wire fraud and mail fraud and a maximum of 20 years in federal prison for wire fraud. Judge Chuang has scheduled sentencing for Mendoza on February 23, 2024, at 9:30 a.m.
United States Attorney Erek L. Barron commended the Federal Housing Finance Agency - Office of Inspector General, the U.S. Department of the Treasury - Office of Inspector General, the Montgomery County Police Department, and the Montgomery County State’s Attorney’s Office for their work in the investigation and prosecution. Mr. Barron thanked the United States Marshals, the Hinesville, Georgia Police Department, the Gwinnett County, Georgia Police Department, the Queen Anne’s County Sheriff’s Office, and the United States Attorney’s Offices of Western District of North Carolina, Northern District of Georgia, Eastern District of Texas, New Jersey, and the Eastern District of Pennsylvania for their assistance. Mr. Barron thanked Assistant U.S. Attorney Coreen Mao, who is prosecuting the case.
For more information on the Maryland U.S. Attorney’s Office, its priorities, and resources available to help the community, please visit https://www.justice.gov/usao-md and https://www.justice.gov/usao-md/community-outreach.
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DeKalb, Ill. Man Sentenced to 25 Years in Prison for Sexually Exploiting ChildrenRead the Press Release
ROCKFORD — A DeKalb, Ill. man was sentenced today to 25 years in federal prison for sexually exploiting children.
MARQUESE CANNON was 22 years old in 2022 when he began communicating online with a 12-year-old girl. The conversations began on Snapchat and continued through text messaging and phone calls. During these communications, Cannon enticed the victim into sending him sexually explicit photos and videos of herself. Cannon instructed the girl on what type of sexually explicit conduct should be portrayed in the photos and videos.
In addition to those videos and photos, Cannon also possessed on his phone a collection of hundreds of images of other children engaged in sexually explicit conduct.
Cannon pleaded guilty last year to a federal charge of production of child pornography. U.S. District Court Judge Iain D. Johnston imposed the prison term and ordered that it be followed by a lifetime of court-supervised release. Judge Johnston also ordered Cannon to pay $34,000 in restitution to six victims.
The sentence was announced by Morris Pasqual, Acting United States Attorney for the Northern District of Illinois, and Robert W. “Wes” Wheeler, Jr. Special Agent-in-Charge of the Chicago Field Office of the FBI. The DeKalb, Ill. Police Department provided valuable assistance in the investigation. The government was represented by Assistant U.S. Attorney Jessica S. Maveus.
If you believe you are a victim of sexual exploitation, you are encouraged to contact the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children by logging on to https://www.missingkids.org/ or calling 1-800-843-5678. The service is available 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
Corn Milling Company Officials Sentenced to Federal Prison for Their Role in Deadly Explosion that Killed Five WorkersRead the Press Release
U.S. District Court Judge James D. Peterson for the Western District of Wisconsin today and yesterday sentenced Didion Milling Inc. officials – including a corporate vice president and former food safety, environmental, and operations managers – for their role in a fatal explosion at a mill operated by Didion.
“These defendants put Didion workers in grave danger and five people tragically lost their lives, devastating their families and their community,” said Attorney General Merrick B. Garland. “Companies of all sizes should take note: failure to comply with our country’s workplace safety and environmental laws can cost workers their lives and put individual corporate managers in federal prison.”
On May 31, 2017, at around 10:30 p.m., a fire originated in milling equipment at Didion’s corn mill in Cambria, Wisconsin. The fire led to a series of combustible dust explosions in the facility, killing five workers and seriously injuring others. The explosions also damaged and caused the collapse of multiple mill buildings. An investigation into Didion’s worker and food safety and environmental practices uncovered criminal violations of law attributable to both the company and senior officials.
Grain milling generates grain dust, which must be effectively managed for workplace safety, environmental, and food safety and quality reasons. Mill operators must adhere to rules and requirements intended to minimize hazards. Grain dust is combustible, and mill operators need to maintain workplace safety through cleaning programs that remove dust accumulations from inside a mill. Mill operators must also capture dust before it is emitted into the environment as particulate matter, a kind of air pollutant. Investigations of the explosion at Didion’s Cambria mill uncovered long-standing inadequate safety measures and improper handling of grain dust that Didion and its employees concealed through falsified documents and other obstructive conduct.
In October 2023, the Justice Department secured guilty pleas from the company, Didion, and company officials, as well as convictions against two more Didion officials. Today and yesterday, three defendants were sentenced to prison time for their crimes, and another three were sentenced to probation. Sentencing for an additional defendant is scheduled for March. The company was sentenced last month.
“Workplace and environmental safety are of paramount importance,” said Assistant Attorney General Todd Kim of the Justice Department’s Environment and Natural Resources Division. “We will continue seeking to enforce regulations designed to prevent workplace disasters, and also to punish deceptive conduct that would undermine the administration of these important federal programs.”
“Didion Milling and its senior managers put corporate profits ahead of worker safety and environmental protection, with tragic consequences,” said Assistant Administrator David M. Uhlmann of the Environmental Protection Agencie’s (EPA) Office of Enforcement and Compliance Assurance. “The sentences imposed this week demonstrate that EPA and its law enforcement partners are committed to seeking justice for victims of environmental crime and their families.”
“The Didion Milling dust explosion was a tragic incident resulting from a notorious industrial hazard. Individuals considering falsifying records are on notice that making false statements and attempting to obstruct our investigation are serious crimes and will be punished as such,” said Acting Secretary of Labor Julie Su. “The court’s sentences hold the company and these individuals accountable and send a clear message that cover-ups related to workplace safety will not be tolerated.”
Didion Vice President of Operations, Derrick Clark, was sentenced to two years in prison, a year of supervised release, and a $5,000 fine. Clark was convicted in October 2023 of conspiring to falsify documents relating to dust cleaning practices in the mill and the operation of air pollution prevention equipment, and making false compliance certifications as Didion’s “responsible official” under the Clean Air Act. He was also convicted for obstructing the Occupational Safety and Health Administration’s (OSHA) investigation of the explosion at the corn mill by making false and misleading statements during a sworn deposition.
Former Environmental Manager Joseph Winch was sentenced to two years in prison, two years of supervised release, and a $10,000 fine for conspiring to falsify Didion’s environmental compliance certifications. Winch pleaded guilty to the conspiracy charge before trial, but the court’s sentencing took into consideration Winch’s effort to obstruct the trial of his co-defendants by committing perjury during his trial testimony.
Former Food Safety Superintendent Shawn Mesner was sentenced to two years in prison and a year of supervised release after being convicted in October 2023 of conspiring to commit fraud and to falsify Didion’s sanitation log. Falsification of the log was part of a scheme to mislead Didion’s customers and auditors about the company’s sanitation practices. The log also related to Didion’s compliance with worker safety protections, including the required cleanup of combustible dust, like fine grain dust, to prevent fires and explosions in grain handling facilities. The log purported to be a record of those dust cleanings. Mesner also provided untruthful testimony to OSHA during a sworn statement after the explosion.
Judge Peterson also sentenced three former Didion shift superintendents – Anthony Hess, Joel Niemeyer and Michael Bright – who were convicted of crimes relating to falsification of Didion’s sanitation log. All three pleaded guilty to felonies before trial and accepted responsibility for their actions. Hess was sentenced to a year of probation and a $5000 fine; Niemeyer was sentenced to a year of probation and a $1000 fine; and Bright was sentenced to a year of probation. A fourth shift superintendent who pleaded guilty to felonies, Nicholas Booker, is scheduled to be sentenced in March.
Didion, the company, pleaded guilty to falsifying its environmental and sanitation logs. Judge Peterson sentenced the company last month to pay $10.25 million in restitution to the victims of the May 2017 explosion and a $1 million fine, as well as to serve five years of probation with special conditions related to oversight of Didion’s operations.
Information on how to file a safety and health complaint about unsafe work conditions can be found at www.osha.gov/workers/file-complaint. Information about how to file a complaint of retaliation for having engaged in workplace safety-related protected activity can be found at the same website.
Information on how to report suspected environmental violations may be found at echo.epa.gov/report-environmental-violations Information on how to file a retaliation compliant based on protected activity under the Clean Air Act can be found at www.osha.gov/sites/default/files/publications/OSHA3784.pdf.
The EPA Criminal Investigation Division investigated the case.
Trial Attorneys Samuel Charles Lord and Joel La Bissonniere and Senior Trial Attorney Richard J. Powers of the Environment and Natural Resources Division’s Environmental Crimes Section are prosecuting the case, with logistical and victim services support from the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Western District of Wisconsin.
Columbus man sentenced to more than 14 years in prison for committing 6 robberiesRead the Press Release
COLUMBUS, Ohio – A Columbus man was sentenced in federal court today to 171 months in prison for committing six robberies in Columbus in September and October 2020.
Ronald Lee Jacobs, 46, was convicted following a jury trial in August 2023 of six counts of robbery and one count of brandishing a firearm during a crime of violence.
At the time of the robberies, Jacobs was under supervision with the State of Ohio after serving a nine-year sentence for aggravated robbery with a firearm specification.
According to court documents and trial testimony in his current case, Jacobs committed at least six recent robberies, including:
- Hampton Inn on South Hamilton Road on Sept. 5, 2020,
- Wing Snob on North High Street on Sept. 12, 2020,
- United Dairy Farmers on North High Street on Sept. 24, 2020,
- Shell Gas Station on South Hamilton Road on Sept. 30, 2020,
- Wing Snob on North High Street on Oct. 8, 2020, and
- Walgreens on East Livingston Avenue on Oct. 12, 2020.
During the robberies, Jacobs typically wore either an inside-out gray sweatshirt or a dark sweatshirt, dark pants and used a blue bandana. Jacobs was employed at a glue factory and, during multiple robberies, had visible glue splatters on his clothing. He called off work for one robbery and left during his shift to commit another one of the robberies.
In jail calls, Jacobs discussed the firearms he used and said he committed the robberies because he was “broke” and needed to pay child support.
“There’s no excuse for committing dangerous crimes,” said U.S. Attorney Kenneth L. Parker. “There are numerous resources available to assist individuals who are returning to our communities from periods of incarceration. In this case, we are grateful that no one was seriously harmed or killed by Jacobs’s actions and his sentence reflects the fact that bad choices often have serious consequences.”
Jacobs was charged by criminal complaint and arrested in November 2020. In March 2021, a federal grand jury returned an indictment against Jacobs and that indictment was superseded in September 2021.
Kenneth L. Parker, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Ohio; Daryl S. McCormick, Special Agent in Charge, U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms & Explosives (ATF); and Columbus Police Chief Elaine Bryant announced the sentence imposed today by Chief U.S. District Judge Algenon L. Marbley. Assistant United States Attorneys Elizabeth A. Geraghty and S. Courter Shimeall are representing the United States in this case.
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Collegeville Man Sentenced to 97 Months in Prison for Scheme to Sell Fraudulent Canine Cancer Drugs to Pet OwnersRead the Press Release
PHILADELPHIA – United States Attorney Jacqueline C. Romero announced that Jonathan Nyce, 73, of Collegeville, Pennsylvania, was sentenced today to 97 months in prison, three years of supervised release, and a $500 special assessment for carrying out a years-long scheme to defraud pet owners of money by falsely claiming to sell drugs that could cure canine cancer. A federal jury convicted Nyce of wire fraud and the interstate shipment of misbranded animal drugs in December 2022.
In perpetrating the scheme, Nyce created several companies, including “Canine Care,” “ACGT,” and “CAGT,” through which he purported to develop drugs intended to treat cancer in dogs. Beginning in 2012, using various websites for these companies, the defendant marketed these “cancer-curing” medications to desperate pet owners, using the drug names “Tumexal” and “Naturasone.” The websites made numerous false and fraudulent claims regarding the safety and efficacy of these supposed drugs, including that “Tumexal is effective against a wide variety of cancers,” and, “[i]n fact, Tumexal will almost always restore a cancer-stricken dog’s appetite, spirit and energy!” In reality, these drugs were nothing more than a collection of bulk ingredients from various sources, which the defendant blended together himself at a facility on Arcola Road in Collegeville.
Further, through email and telephone conversations, Nyce induced the owners of terminally ill dogs to pay him hundreds or thousands of dollars for these drugs by touting the effectiveness of his products in treating a host of canine cancers. He also told prospective customers that their pets could become part of clinical trials, but in order to do so, they had to pay him large sums of money. Evidence presented at trial showed the defendant sold nearly $1,000,000 worth of drugs to approximately 900 different victims. The defendant’s marketing, sale, and shipment of these drugs violated the Food and Drug Administration’s Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act because the drugs were not approved by the FDA. The defendant even falsely claimed in promotional materials that his company’s research was “funded in part by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.”
“In shopping these worthless ‘drugs’ to desperate pet owners, Jonathan Nyce’s actions were both criminal and cruel,” said U.S. Attorney Romero. “He deliberately exploited people’s emotions, their love for their ailing dogs, purely for his own financial gain. Many people consider dogs members of their families, so they’re especially vulnerable to such schemes. For defrauding his victims and thumbing his nose at the FDA, justice demanded that Mr. Nyce be held accountable.”
“The FDA’s animal drug approval process ensures that our pets receive safe and effective products. Ignoring the FDA’s requirements and selling unapproved drugs to vulnerable U.S. consumers will not be tolerated,” said George A. Scavdis, Special Agent in Charge of the FDA Office of Criminal Investigations Metro Washington Field Office. “We will aggressively pursue and bring to justice those criminals who place profits above the health and safety of animal patients.”
The case was investigated by the Food and Drug Administration’s Office of Criminal Investigation with assistance from the Consumer Protection Branch of the Department of Justice and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Christopher E. Parisi.
Bridgeport Man Pleads Guilty to Federal Robbery OffenseRead the Press Release
Vanessa Roberts Avery, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, today announced that JERMAINE BETHEL, 27, of Bridgeport, pleaded guilty yesterday in Bridgeport federal court to a federal robbery offense.
According to court documents and statements made in court, on April 28, 2023, Bethel and three associates drove to a Bridgeport apartment building where they intended to carry out a robbery at an apartment where they believed they would find drugs and drug proceeds. Bethel, wearing gloves and a surgical mask, and two associates, one of whom carried a crowbar, entered the apartment building. Bethel’s third associate stayed in the vehicle to serve as a getaway driver. After failing to enter the apartment, Bethel and his associates returned to the vehicle, where they were encountered by a law enforcement. Officers searched the vehicle and its occupants and seized two handguns and the crowbar. A search of Bethel’s person revealed 45 small bags containing crack cocaine.
Bethel pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit Hobbs Act Robbery, an offense that carries a maximum term of imprisonment of 20 years. He is scheduled to be sentenced on May 7 by U.S. District Judge Jeffrey A. Meyer in New Haven.
Bethel has been detained since his arrest on April 28, 2023.
This investigation is being conducted by FBI’s Bridgeport Safe Streets Task Force and the Bridgeport Police Department. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Ross Weingarten and Karen Peck.
Bread Springs Man Charged with Assault and Federal Firearms OffenseRead the Press Release
ALBUQUERQUE – Alexander M.M. Uballez, United States Attorney for the District of New Mexico, and Raul Bujanda, Special Agent in Charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s Albuquerque Field Office, announced that Arthur Chee Pat appeared in federal court on a criminal complaint charging him with assault with a dangerous weapon and using and carrying a firearm during and in relation to a crime of violence. Pat, 68, of Bread Springs, New Mexico, and an enrolled member of the Navajo Nation, will remain on conditions of release pending trial, which has not been scheduled.
According to the criminal complaint, on January 22, 2024, John Doe and three other men were gathered in front of Doe’s residence in Bread Springs. Pat, who lived nearby, heard the four men yelling and went to see the nature of the commotion. Pat returned to his residence to retrieve a firearm and then drove to the location of the yelling. When Pat arrived, he told his son (who was one of the men gathered in Doe’s front yard) to get in Pat’s truck. Pat then brandished a firearm and fired three gunshots in the direction of one man and two more in John Doe’s direction, striking Doe once in the knee. Pat then drove away with his son.
John Doe was transported to Gallup Indian Medical Center and was subsequently transferred to the University of New Mexico Hospital in Albuquerque. Pat was detained by law enforcement at his residence soon after the incident. Officers located the handgun in the back of Pat’s vehicle.
A criminal complaint is only an allegation. A defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty. If convicted of the current charges, Pat faces up to life in prison.
The Gallup Resident Agency of the FBI Albuquerque Field Office investigated this case with assistance from the Navajo Police Department and Department of Criminal Investigations. Assistant U.S. Attorney Zachary Jones is prosecuting the case.
View the Criminal Complaint# # #
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Boston Man Sentenced to 10 Years in Prison for Distributing MethamphetamineRead the Press Release
BOSTON – A Boston man was sentenced yesterday in federal court in Boston for distributing large quantities of methamphetamine.
Joshua Westbrook, 26, was sentenced by U.S. District Court Judge Angel Kelley to 10 years in prison and five years of supervised release. In April 2023, Westbrook pleaded guilty to one count of distribution and possession with intent to distribute 50 grams or more of methamphetamine.
Westbrook was a methamphetamine dealer who sold large quantities of methamphetamine to others. In November 2021, in Dorchester, Westbrook distributed over 360 grams of pure methamphetamine to a cooperating witness. During the controlled purchase, Westbrook was observed carrying multiple knives, including a machete style knife. Later that month, a package destined for Westbrook was seized which contained over 440 grams of pure methamphetamine. An additional 500 grams of pure methamphetamine, a machete and a billy club were also seized from Westbrook over the course of the investigation.
Acting United States Attorney Joshua S. Levy; Jodi Cohen, Special Agent in Charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Boston Division; and Commissioner Carol Mici of the Massachusetts Department of Correction made the announcement today. Valuable assistance was provided by the United States Postal Service; Plymouth County and Norfolk County Sheriff’s Offices; Massachusetts State Police; and the Portland (Maine), Watertown, Waltham, Concord, Reading, Peabody and Hudson Police Departments. Assistant U.S. Attorney Alathea Porter of the Criminal Division prosecuted the case.
This case is part of an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) operation. OCDETF identifies, disrupts, and dismantles the highest-level criminal organizations that threaten the United States using a prosecutor-led, intelligence-driven, multi-agency approach. Additional information about the OCDETF Program can be found at https://www.justice.gov/OCDETF.
Ashland Man Sentenced on Child Pornography ChargesRead the Press Release
United States Attorney Susan Lehr announced that Conner Chapman, 21, of Ashland, Nebraska, was sentenced February 16, 2024 in federal court in Omaha, Nebraska, for receiving and distributing child pornography. Chief United States District Court Judge Robert F. Rossiter, Jr. sentenced Chapman to 120 months’ imprisonment. There is no parole in the federal system. After Chapman’s release from prison, he will begin a 5-year term of supervised release and register as a sex offender.
In November of 2021, Nebraska’s Internet Crimes Against Children investigation team received a Cypertip from the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC) reporting 5 video files were uploaded by a KIK user that contained child pornography. The IP address used for uploading of the files was identified as belonging to Chapman’s residence.
In September, 2022, a search warrant was executed on Chapman’s residence and a phone belonging to Chapman was seized. Chapman was interviewed and eventually admitted to viewing child pornography online. Chapman’s phone was forensically searched and 216 image files and 7 video files of child pornography were found.
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 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 was investigated by the Nebraska State Patrol.
*CORRECTED* Former Economy Inn Managers Sentenced for Conspiracy to Distribute Controlled SubstancesRead the Press Release
Gulfport, MS – Two former managers for the Economy Inn in Bay St. Louis were sentenced on February 14, 2024, for their involvement in a conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute a controlled substance.
Pernell Robert Galloway, 54, was sentenced to 131 months in prison and Cassie Louise McKenzie, 42, was sentenced to 115 months in prison.
According to court documents, in 2023, agents began investigating drug activity at the Economy Inn located on US Hwy 90 in Bay St. Louis. Agents received information that Pernell Robert Galloway and Cassie Louise McKenzie were managers at the hotel but also selling drugs from the hotel. Law enforcement began doing controlled purchases of methamphetamine from the duo. On or about June 8, 2023, a search warrant was executed at the Economy Inn where Galloway and McKenzie were located. During the search, agents located an additional 14 grams of what field tested positive for methamphetamine in two separate bags. Agents also located a firearm, digital scales, and additional unused distribution baggies.
Galloway and McKenzie were indicted by a federal grand jury and they subsequently pled guilty to conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute a controlled substance.
U.S. Attorney Todd W. Gee of the Southern District of Mississippi and Acting Special Agent in Charge Michael J. Arnett of the Drug Enforcement Administration made the announcement.
The case was investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration and the Hancock County Sheriff’s Office.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Erica Rose prosecuted the case.
*An earlier press release dated February 14, 2024, mistakenly stated the substance at issue was a mixture of methamphetamine and fentanyl. The press release should have only referenced methamphetamine.
15 February 2024
Washington Man Sentenced for His Role in South Dakota Fentanyl ConspiracyRead the Press Release
SIOUX FALLS - United States Attorney Alison J. Ramsdell announced today that U.S. District Karen E. Schreier has sentenced a Spokane, Washington, man convicted of Conspiracy to Possess a Controlled Substance with Intent to Distribute. The sentencing took place on January 29, 2024.
Jason James Brickner, 44, was sentenced to two years and nine months in federal prison, followed by three years of supervised release. He was also ordered to pay a $100 special assessment to the Federal Crime Victims Fund.
Jason Brickner and Sonny Evenson were indicted for Conspiracy to Possess a Controlled Substance with Intent to Distribute by a federal grand jury in February of 2023. Brickner pleaded guilty on October 4, 2024. His co-conspirator, Sonny Evenson, 39, also of Spokane, Washington, pleaded guilty to the same charge on December 11, 2023, and is scheduled to be sentenced on February 26, 2024.
On June 13, 2022, Brickner was driving a vehicle in which Evenson was a passenger, when the men were pulled over for a traffic violation on I-90 in South Dakota by a South Dakota Highway Patrol Trooper. Ultimately, the vehicle and Brickner were searched and the Trooper located more than 40 grams of fentanyl.
This case was investigated by the FBI and the South Dakota Highway Patrol. Assistant U.S. Attorney Elizabeth Ebert prosecuted the case.
Brickner was immediately remanded to the custody of the U.S. Marshals Service.
Utah Woman Accused of Assaulting Multiple Federal Officers is IndictedRead the Press Release
SALT LAKE CITY, Utah – A federal grand jury in Salt Lake City, Utah, returned an indictment Feb. 14, 2024, charging a Salt Lake County woman with federal crimes after she allegedly assaulted multiple U.S. Marshals, while resisting arrest.
According to court documents, Melissa Lynn Trotter, 24, of Sandy, Utah, allegedly assaulted multiple federal law enforcement officers on February 7, 2024, during the arrest of a wanted fugitive. That evening, Deputy United States Marshals and Task Force Officers of the District of Utah’s Violent Fugitive Apprehension Strike Team (VFAST) attempted to arrest a fugitive outside a CVS located in West Valley City, Utah. Trotter was in a vehicle with the fugitive when the fugitive exited the vehicle and entered the CVS. When the fugitive returned to the vehicle, officers surrounded it with their vehicles. While blocking the vehicle, officers activated their red and blue flashing emergency law enforcement lights, and some officers exited their vehicles and identified themselves as U.S. Marshals. Despite law enforcements calls to Trotter to turn the vehicle off and drop the keys outside the window, she refused to comply.
As alleged in court documents, Trotter placed the vehicle in reverse and forcibly tried to back out of the parking space. Trotter assaulted two federal officers by ramming the officers’ vehicle as they attempted to block her exit. Trotter then drove over a parking barrier and on the CVS parking lot customer sidewalk as she attempted to escape through a vacant stall. Trotter then rammed head-on into the front passenger side of another federal law enforcement vehicle, that had blocked that parking stall. A third Deputy U.S. Marshal positioned his vehicle to block Trotter from escaping. Subsequently Trotter stopped the vehicle and she and the fugitive were taken into custody.
Trotter is charged with three counts of assault upon a federal officer involving the use of a deadly weapon. Her initial court appearance on the indictment is scheduled for Feb. 16, 2024, at 11:45 a.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.
The U.S. Marshals Service is investigating the case.
Assistant United States Attorney Kevin Sundwall of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Utah is prosecuting the case.
Union County Man Sentenced to 80 Months in Prison for Receiving Child PornographyRead the Press Release
NEWARK, N.J. – A Union County, New Jersey, man was sentenced today to 80 months in prison for receiving videos and images of child sexual abuse, U.S. Attorney Philip R. Sellinger announced.
Joshua Cremosnik, 50, of Rahway, New Jersey, previously pleaded guilty by videoconference before U.S. District Judge Julien Xavier Neals to an information charging him with one count of receipt of child pornography. Judge Neals imposed the sentence today in Newark federal court.
According to documents filed in this case and statements made in court:
From April to August 2021, Cremosnik received videos of child sexual abuse via a publicly available online peer-to-peer (P2P) file-sharing program. Subsequent to a lawful search of his residence, law enforcement officers recovered numerous videos and images of child sexual abuse on Cremosnik’s laptop and electronic storage media. Cremosnik acknowledged using the P2P network to request and receive child pornography materials and stored those materials on his laptop and electronic storage media.
In addition to the prison term, Judge Neals sentenced Cremosnik to five years of supervised release and ordered restitution of $208,694.
U.S. Attorney Sellinger credited the Newark Child Exploitation and Human Trafficking Task force, under the direction of FBI Special Agent in Charge James E. Dennehy, with the investigation leading to today’s sentencing.
The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorney Farhana C. Melo of the Criminal Division in Newark.
Ukrainian National Extradited to U.S. for Alleged CybercrimesRead the Press Release
AUSTIN, Texas – A Ukrainian national was extradited to the United States from the Netherlands after being indicted for crimes related to fraud, money laundering and aggravated identity theft.
According to court documents, Mark Sokolovsky, 28, conspired to operate the Raccoon Infostealer as a malware-as-a-service or “MaaS.” Individuals who deployed Raccoon Infostealer to steal data from victims leased access to the malware for approximately $200 per month, paid for by cryptocurrency. These individuals used various ruses, such as email phishing, to install the malware onto the computers of unsuspecting victims. Raccoon Infostealer then stole personal data from victim computers, including log-in credentials, financial information, and other personal records. Stolen information was used to commit financial crimes or was sold to others on cybercrime forums.
In March 2022, concurrent with Sokolovsky’s arrest by Dutch authorities, the FBI and law enforcement partners in Italy and the Netherlands dismantled the digital infrastructure supporting the Raccoon Infostealer, taking its then existing version offline.
Sokolovsky is charged with one count of conspiracy to commit fraud and related activity in connection with computers; one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud; one count of conspiracy to commit money laundering; and one count of aggravated identity theft. He made his initial court appearance Feb. 9, and is being held in custody pending trial.
Through various investigative steps, the FBI has collected data stolen from many computers that cyber criminals infected with Raccoon Infostealer, including more than 50 million unique credentials and forms of identification. The United States does not believe it is in possession of all the data stolen by Raccoon Infostealer and continues to investigate. The FBI has created a website where anyone can input their email address to determine whether it is contained within the U.S. government’s repository of Raccoon Infostealer stolen data: https://raccoon.ic3.gov/home. Victims of the Raccoon Infostealer can find more information at www.justice.gov/usao-wdtx/victim-assistance-raccoon-infostealer.
U.S. Attorney Jaime Esparza for the Western District of Texas, Special Agent in Charge Aaron Tapp for the FBI San Antonio Division, and Special Agent in Charge Paul DelleDonne for The Department of the Army Criminal Investigation Division would also like to thank the Justice Department’s Office of International Affairs and the FBI Legal Attachés in Rome; The Hague, Kyiv, and Warsaw for their critical assistance; and the following foreign partners: Ministry of Justice of Italy; Special Unit for the Protection of Privacy and Technological Fraud of the Italian Guardia di Finanza; Procura della Repubblica di Brescia; the Netherlands Ministry of Justice and Security; Dutch National Police; and Netherlands Public Prosecution Service.
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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U.S. Attorney’s Office Collects $2,344,556.85 in Civil and Criminal Actions in Fiscal Year 2023Read the Press Release
CHARLESTON, W.Va. – United States Attorney Will Thompson announced today that the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of West Virginia collected $2,344,556.85 in criminal and civil actions in Fiscal Year 2023. Of this amount, $2,231,245.48 was collected in criminal actions and $113,311.37 was collected in civil actions.
“This money is owed from criminal and civil penalties as well as court-ordered restitution and ultimately benefits crime victims and taxpayers,” Thompson said.
The $2,231,245.48 collected in criminal actions includes a $75,000 fine and $280,088 in restitution paid by Christopher Daniels, 54, of Parkersburg, who was also sentenced to one year and one day in prison on December 15, 2022, after pleading guilty to for filing a false federal income tax return. The criminal collections total also includes $382,449.47 in restitution paid by Dhanraj Singh, 63, of Bowie, Maryland, who was also sentenced to two years and three months in prison on December 31, 2022, after pleading guilty to interstate transportation of stolen property. The criminal collections total also includes a $25,000 fine and $175,000 in restitution paid by Michael James Peters, 43, of Concord, North Carolina, who was also sentenced to one year in prison on February 2, 2023, after pleading guilty to making a false statement to a representative of the United States Department of Agriculture. The $175,000 is part of the $1,375,000 in court-ordered restitution owed by Peters.
The U.S. Attorneys’ Offices, along with the U.S. Department of Justice’s litigating divisions, are responsible for enforcing and collecting civil and criminal debts owed to the U.S. and criminal debts owed to federal crime victims. The law requires defendants to pay restitution to victims of certain federal crimes who have suffered a physical injury or financial loss. While restitution is paid to the victim, criminal fines and felony assessments are paid to the department’s Crime Victims Fund, which distributes the funds collected to federal and state victim compensation and victim assistance programs.
Finally, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of West Virginia, working with partner agencies and divisions, collected $1,073,483 in asset forfeiture actions in FY 2023. Forfeited assets deposited into the Department of Justice Assets Forfeiture Fund are used to restore funds to crime victims and for a variety of law enforcement purposes.
A copy of this press release is located on the website of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of West Virginia.
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U.S. Attorney Announces $25.5 Million Settlement with Durable Medical Equipment Supplier Lincare Inc. for Fraudulent Billing PracticesRead the Press Release
Damian Williams, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York; Naomi Gruchacz, the Special Agent in Charge of the New York Regional Office of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Office of Inspector General (“HHS-OIG”); Brian J. Solecki, the Acting Special Agent in Charge of the Northeast Field Office of the U.S. Department of Defense Office of Inspector General, Defense Criminal Investigative Service (“DCIS”); Derek M. Holt, the Special Agent in Charge of the Office of Personnel Management, Office of the Inspector General (“OPM-OIG”); and Michael J. Waters, the Special Agent in Charge of the Eastern Field Office of the Amtrak Office of Inspector General (“Amtrak-OIG”), announced that the United States has settled a civil fraud lawsuit against LINCARE INC., a large durable medical equipment (“DME”) supplier with approximately 700 locations throughout the United States. The settlement resolves claims that LINCARE violated the False Claims Act by fraudulently continuing to bill federal health care programs for the rental of costly non-invasive ventilators (“NIVs”) when patients no longer needed or used the devices. The settlement also resolves claims that LINCARE violated the Anti-Kickback Statute by waiving coinsurance payments to induce certain Medicare and TRICARE beneficiaries to rent NIVs.
Under the settlement, which was approved yesterday by U.S. District Judge Paul G. Gardephe, LINCARE agreed to pay a total sum of $25.5 million, of which $24,228,517.96 will be paid to the United States and the remainder will be paid to various states. As part of the settlement, LINCARE also made factual admissions regarding its conduct. LINCARE admitted that it received reimbursement from federal health care programs for some NIV rental claims that did not comply with all of those programs’ billing rules and guidance. LINCARE also admitted that in some instances, it continued to seek monthly payments when it was aware that patients were not using the devices.
U.S. Attorney Damian Williams said: “When DME suppliers like Lincare knowingly seek federal funds for items that are not medically necessary and not being used, they threaten the sustainability and financial integrity of vital federal health care programs like Medicare and Medicaid. Companies will be held accountable for fraudulent billing practices that prioritize profits over legal obligations.”
HHS-OIG Special Agent in Charge Naomi Gruchacz said: “Individuals and entities that participate in the federal health care system are required to obey the laws meant to preserve the integrity of program funds and the provision of appropriate, quality services to patients. Our agency, working closely with our law enforcement partners, will continue to hold health care providers responsible for receiving improper payments from federal health care programs.”
DCIS Acting Special Agent in Charge Brian J. Solecki said: “This settlement makes clear that firms will pay a price for attempting to defraud the government. We, along with our federal partners, are committed to protecting taxpayers from companies that engage in deceptive practices.”
OPM-OIG Special Agent in Charge Derek M. Holt said: “I applaud the excellent work of our investigators and law enforcement partners on this case. We take all false claims seriously as the integrity of the federal health care programs relies on the submission of medically reasonable and necessary claims.”
Amtrak-OIG Special Agent in Charge Michael J. Waters said: “The favorable outcome in this case is a testament to the professionalism and teamwork displayed by our agents, our fellow investigative agencies, and the U.S. Attorney’s Office. We are very proud of this well-coordinated joint effort.”
As alleged in the Complaint filed in Manhattan federal court:
NIVs are a type of respiratory equipment designed to deliver pressurized air into the lungs of patients with respiratory failure. Patients frequently rent NIVs for regular use in their homes. During the period of January 1, 2013, through February 29, 2020 (the “Relevant Period”), Medicare and other federal health care programs reimbursed DME suppliers like LINCARE as much as $1,400 per month for supplying NIV rentals to patients.
When DME suppliers like LINCARE rent NIVs to federal health care program beneficiaries and seek reimbursement for such rentals, the DME suppliers must ensure that the NIVs continue to be used and that they remain medically reasonable and necessary during the rental period. For example, under Medicare, a DME supplier is required to monitor the extent to which the beneficiary is using the NIV at home and to maintain documentation to support that the device continues to be used and is medically reasonable and necessary. In addition, DME suppliers must discontinue billing federal health care programs when the NIV is no longer being used and is not medically reasonable and necessary.
LINCARE often continued to submit monthly claims for payments to federal health care programs when the NIVs were no longer medically necessary or the beneficiary had stopped using the device. LINCARE frequently did not know, or have documentation to support, that a patient continued to use or need the NIV. LINCARE nonetheless continued to seek monthly payments from federal health care programs for these NIV rentals.
LINCARE’s primary method to monitor patient usage of NIVs was by having their Respiratory Therapists (“RTs”) conduct home visits, during which RTs would evaluate the device’s settings, usage, and need for maintenance. As part of these “vent checks,” RTs were supposed to record the extent to which patients had been using the NIVs and confirm that they were using their devices as directed by their physicians. Under LINCARE’s own policy, home visits were supposed to occur at least every 60 days. However, LINCARE’s RTs frequently failed to comply with this policy; on tens of thousands of occasions during the Relevant Period, LINCARE failed to perform home visits for NIV patients as required by its policy. Further, when RTs did conduct vent checks, they often failed to record whether, and for how many hours, patients had used their NIVs. In some instances, LINCARE continued to seek monthly payments from federal health care programs when it was aware, through home visits and vent checks conducted by its RTs, that beneficiaries had stopped using their devices. LINCARE billed for NIVs in instances when the beneficiary had not used or had very rarely used the device for over a year.
Finally, in violation of the Anti-Kickback Statute, LINCARE’s Regional Vice Presidents waived, either partially or in full, the coinsurance payment due from certain Medicare and TRICARE beneficiaries in an effort to persuade them to rent NIVs from LINCARE instead of another DME supplier. These coinsurance payment waivers were not based on an individualized assessment of the beneficiaries’ financial needs.
As part of the settlement, LINCARE admitted and accepted responsibility for certain conduct alleged by the United States, including the following:
- In violation of LINCARE’s internal protocols, LINCARE’s center clinical staff frequently failed to visit NIV patients every 60 days to confirm that the patients were using their NIVs as directed by their physicians. Some centers lacked sufficient staff to adequately monitor patient progress and confirm that patients were using the devices as directed by their physicians. On many occasions, clinical staff did not perform home visits for NIV patients for several months.
- In addition to conducting patient visits, LINCARE had the ability to remotely monitor certain patients’ NIV usage for certain newer NIV models through online cloud-based platforms. However, LINCARE did not use these systems to confirm that those patients were using the devices as directed.
- LINCARE continued to seek monthly payments from federal health care programs for NIV rentals in many instances when its staff had not verified that patients were still using their NIVs or had not maintained documentation showing that the patient continued to use the devices.
- In some instances, LINCARE continued to seek monthly payments from federal health care programs when it was aware that patients were not using the devices.
- On certain occasions, LINCARE granted coinsurance payment waivers that were not based on the patient’s financial need in order to persuade patients to rent NIVs.
- As a result of the above-referenced conduct, LINCARE received reimbursements from federal health care programs for some NIV rental claims that did not comply with all of those programs’ billing rules and guidance.
In connection with the filing of the lawsuit and settlement, the Government joined a private whistleblower lawsuit that had been filed under seal pursuant to the False Claims Act.
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Mr. Williams thanked the Washington and Texas State Medicaid Fraud Control Units for their extensive collaboration in the investigation and resolution of this case, and also praised the outstanding investigative work of HHS-OIG, DCIS, OPM-OIG, and Amtrak-OIG.
The case is being handled by the Office’s Civil Frauds Unit. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Charles S. Jacob, Ilan Stein, and Amanda Lee are in charge of the case.
Two sent to prison for stealing nearly $3M in IRS refundsRead the Press Release
HOUSTON – Two men have been sentenced for their roles in a scheme to cash stolen tax checks, announced U.S. Attorney Alamdar S. Hamdani.
Benjamin Thomas, 38, Richmond, and Kuljinder Singh Hunjan, 38, Spring Valley, New York, pleaded guilty and Oct. 2 and Feb. 16, 2023, respectively.
U.S. District Chief Judge Randy Crane has now imposed a 90-month-term of imprisonment for Thomas, while Hunjan received 42 months. Both must also serve three years of supervised release following their sentences and were ordered to pay restitution in the amount of $4,483,987.89. In handing down the prison terms, Judge Crane noted they engaged in a complex and sophisticated fraud scheme.
In approximately January 2022, authorities learned of a Houston couple who never received their $2,932,446.84 IRS refund check they were expecting in the mail.
The investigation revealed Hunjan and Whitley Rachelle Carter had used fake IDs with the victims’ names, dates of birth and Social Security numbers to open accounts at Regions Bank on various dates in January 2022
On Jan. 18, 2022, Hunjan and Carter deposited the victims’ refund check into the fraudulent bank account.
Authorities were able to identify Hunjan and Carter from bank surveillance. Hunjan’s fingerprints were also found on the check. The investigation linked Carter to Hunjan and Thomas by phone calls and cash app transactions.
On April 13, 2022, authorities arrested Thomas as he was driving a stolen Lamborghini. At that time, he possessed two debit cards for fraudulently-created accounts that were used to receive the proceeds of the aforementioned refund check. These accounts were opened with stolen identities of others to launder the proceeds of the nearly $3 million check.
Thomas also had an ATM receipt showing a withdrawal of $800 from the Regions bank account that received the check.
Toll records from the cellphone Thomas possessed at the time of his arrest indicate that he contacted Hunjan numerous times during the course of the conspiracy.
Carter, 33, Houston, is set for sentencing May 21. At that time, she faces up to 30 years in federal prison as well as a possible $1 million maximum fine.
Hunjan and Thomas were permitted to remain on bond and voluntarily surrender to a U.S. Bureau of Prisons facility to be determined in the near future.
IRS Criminal Investigation, Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration, Houston Police Department, FBI and Texas Department of Public Safety conducted the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney Jay Hileman prosecuted the case.
Two Bronx Men Charged with Distributing Narcotics Out of Bronx Residence Connected to Multiple Fatal and Non-Fatal Drug OverdosesRead the Press Release
Damian Williams, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, and Edward A. Caban, the Commissioner of the New York City Police Department (“NYPD”), announced today the filing of a criminal Complaint in Manhattan federal court charging RUBINSKY PADILLA and LUIS ROSARIO, a/k/a “Gallo,” with conspiracy to distribute narcotics. ROSARIO was arrested yesterday afternoon in the Hunts Point neighborhood of the Bronx. PADILLA is currently at large. ROSARIO will be presented today before U.S. Magistrate Judge Valerie Figueredo.
U.S. Attorney Damian Williams said: “Yesterday afternoon, law enforcement conducted a Court-authorized search of a residence in the Bronx at 755 Coster Street, a home that the defendants have allegedly used for years to sell lethal narcotics. The defendants’ alleged actions have plagued the neighborhood and littered the street with drugs — endangering residents, including children. As alleged, there have been 12 fatal overdoses and 30 non-fatal overdoses within a three-block radius of this residence in the last five years. The most recent suspected fatal overdose was less than a month ago and occurred inside the house. If you or anyone you know has bought drugs from 755 Coster Street, they are considered extremely hazardous, potentially fatal, and should not be ingested under any circumstance.”
NYPD Commissioner Edward A. Caban said: “These charges underscore the gravity of the illegal drug crisis plaguing New York City and our nation. For far too long, the Bronx house from which these two men allegedly distributed their poison was a locus of tragedy that diminished quality of life for everyone in the neighborhood. I commend our NYPD narcotics investigators for their perseverance in shutting down this alleged drug operation, and I thank everyone from the Office of the U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York for their partnership in prosecuting this important case.”
According to the allegations in the Complaint charging PADILLA and ROSARIO:[1]
From at least in or about October 2022 through on or about February 15, 2024, a group of narcotics traffickers, including PADILLA, ROSARIO, and others, illegally ran an extensive narcotics distribution operation out of a house located at the street address 755 Coster Street in the Bronx, New York. Over the course of the investigation, the NYPD has established that the group is responsible for the sale of heroin, fentanyl, para-fluorofentanyl (a fentanyl analogue), and cocaine, among other drugs, at the house. Residents in the neighborhood have called 911 on multiple occasions to report continuous narcotics activity and use at the house and drug paraphernalia found outside on the sidewalk. The group continued to operate despite repeated law enforcement actions, including multiple judicially authorized searches of the house from approximately 2015 through 2024. Each search resulted in the seizure of narcotics, including, for example, heroin, fentanyl, cocaine, and cocaine base. PADILLA and ROSARIO were both arrested in April 2023 after one such search of the house resulted in the seizure of a substantial quantity of narcotics, but both continued operating the narcotics distribution operation uninterrupted from the same location.
Between approximately in or about 2018 through 2024, there have been at least 12 fatal overdoses and 30 non-fatal overdoses reported within a three-block radius of the house at 755 Coster Street. Most recently, on or about January 19, 2024, law enforcement responded to a 911 call reporting an unresponsive male in need of medical assistance at the house located at 755 Coster Street and found an individual who appeared to have died hours earlier of an apparent overdose.
On or about February 14, 2024, law enforcement searched 755 Coster Street and found ROSARIO inside. As pictured below, during their search, law enforcement found, among other things, quantities of suspected cocaine base and heroin, as well as narcotics paraphernalia, including materials designed for use in packing narcotics for distribution.
Any member of the public who has overdosed, or has knowledge of anyone who has overdosed, as a result from narcotics purchased at 755 Coster Street should anonymously call 866-874-8900.
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RUBINSKY PADILLA, 48, and LUIS ROSARIO, 67, both of the Bronx, New York, are charged with one count of conspiracy to distribute narcotics, which carries a mandatory minimum sentence of 10 years in prison and a maximum sentence of life in prison.
The statutory minimum and maximum sentences are prescribed by Congress and provided here for informational purposes only, as any sentencing of the defendants will be determined by the judge.
Mr. Williams praised the outstanding investigative work of the NYPD’s Narcotics Bureau Bronx Major Case Unit as well as the Bronx County District Attorney’s Office.
The prosecution of this case is being handled by the Office’s Narcotics Unit. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Ashley C. Nicolas and Lisa Daniels are in charge of the prosecution.
The charges contained in the Complaint are merely accusations, and the defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
[1] As the introductory phrase signifies, the entirety of the text of the Complaint and the description of the Complaint set forth herein constitute only allegations, and every fact described should be treated as an allegation.
Turtle Creek Resident Indicted on 20 Counts of Sexually Exploiting MinorsRead the Press Release
PITTSBURGH, Pa. - A resident of Turtle Creek, Pennsylvania, has been indicted by a federal grand jury in Pittsburgh on charges related to the sexual exploitation of minors, United States Attorney Eric G. Olshan announced today.
The 20-count Indictment named Robert Bookshar, 46, as the sole defendant.
According to the Indictment, on multiple occasions from in and around August 2022 until in and around May 2023, Bookshar attempted to and did use, persuade, induce, entice, and coerce two different minors to engage in sexually explicit conduct for the purpose of producing a visual depiction of such conduct. The Indictment further charges that, on multiple occasions from in and around September 2021 until in and around February 2023, Bookshar attempted to and did receive images and videos of minors engaged in sexually explicit content, and that, on or about June 29, 2023, Bookshar knowingly possessed images and videos depicting the sexual exploitation of minors.
The law provides for a maximum total sentence of not less than 15 years and up to 440 years in prison, a fine of up to $5 million, or both. Under the federal Sentencing Guidelines, the actual sentence imposed would be based upon the seriousness of the offenses and the prior criminal history, if any, of the defendant. Bookshar is detained pending trial.
Assistant United States Attorney Heidi M. Grogan is prosecuting this case on behalf of the government.
The Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Allegheny County Police Department conducted the investigation leading to the Indictment in 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 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.
An indictment is an accusation. A defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
Troy man admits tampering with evidence in grizzly bear killingRead the Press Release
MISSOULA — A Troy man admitted today that he tampered with evidence in the shooting of a grizzly bear on his property in 2020 and discarding of the bear’s GPS collar in the Yaak River, U.S. Attorney Jesse Laslovich said.
The defendant, Othel Lee Pearson, 80, appeared today for arraignment on an amended information charging him with tampering with evidence, a felony, and with failure to report taking of grizzly bear, a misdemeanor. Pearson then pleaded guilty to both charges. Pearson faces a maximum of 20 years in prison, a $250,000 fine and three years of supervised release on the evidence tampering charge and a maximum of six months in prison and a $25,000 fine on the failure to report charge.
U.S. District Judge Donald W. Molloy presided at the plea hearing. The court will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors. The court set sentencing for June 6. Pearson was released pending further proceedings.
A plea agreement filed in the case calls for the government and defendant to jointly recommend to the court a sentence of three years of probation and an $8,000 fine, which is the restitution amount for illegally killing a grizzly bear under Montana state statute. In exchange for guilty pleas, the United States agrees not to prosecute another individual in connection with the taking of the grizzly bear, and Pearson agrees to cooperate with the United States regarding the skull of a second grizzly bear discovered on National Forest System lands near his property.
As alleged in amended court documents, on Nov. 19, 2020, Pearson shot and killed a sow grizzly bear on his residential property, using a .270 rifle. Pearson cut a GPS collar that had been fitted to the bear and discarded the collar nearby in the Yaak River. Pearson also cut paws, ear tags and an identifying lip tattoo from the bear carcass. Pearson then concealed the bear’s claws and an ear tag in a hollowed-out tree on National Forest System land near his residence. As further alleged, meat from the bear was discovered in Pearson’s freezer inside his home. Pearson attempted to and did tamper with these identifying objects to impair the criminal prosecution for failing to report taking of a grizzly bear. Pearson killed the bear either in self-defense, in defense of others or unlawfully. Pearson did not report the killing of the grizzly bear to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service within five days of occurrence.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Randy Tanner is prosecuting the case. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service conducted the investigation.
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Three Temple Gang Members Convicted of RICO, Hobbs Act ViolationsRead the Press Release
WACO, Texas – A federal jury in Waco convicted three Temple men on all counts for crimes committed in violation of the Racketeering Influenced Corrupt Organization (RICO) Act and the Hobbs Act.
According to court documents and evidence presented at trial, Atorius Marquis Williams aka Lil Man, 23, Demonta Daniels aka Tado aka Tato, 24, and Trashawn Lamar Alexander aka Mad Max, 29, were members and associates of a criminal organization referred to as Killas With Aggression (KWA), an organization engaged in and affecting interstate and foreign commerce by, among other things, conspiracy to distribute controlled substances and conspiracy to rob persons engaged in the distribution of controlled substances.
Williams, Daniels and Alexander conspired to commit four murders, multiple violent assaults, extortion, drug trafficking and armed robberies in furtherance of the criminal enterprise. Specifically, the indictment alleges four overt acts to include murder—one committed by Williams on Sept. 30, 2017, in Belton; the second, committed by Williams and Alexander on Dec. 10, 2017, in Temple; the third, committed by Williams and Daniels on Jan. 16, 2018, in Temple; and the fourth, committed by Williams, Daniels and Alexander on Jan. 31, 2018, in Temple.
Additionally, the defendants conspired to affect commerce by robbery, committing acts of physical violence and threatening to commit acts of physical violence to steal controlled substances and proceeds from persons engaged in illegal drug distribution. Williams, Daniels and Alexander were also convicted of brandishing a firearm during a crime of violence, namely robbery. Alexander was convicted of discharging a firearm during a crime of violence.
Seven other codefendants in the case have already been sentenced following guilty pleas. Dominic Johnson was sentenced in January 2023 to 70 months in prison for conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute 500 grams or more of cocaine; Desmond Wilkerson was sentenced in September 2023 to 71 months in prison for racketeering conspiracy; James Roy Whitfield Jr was sentenced on February 13 to 102 months in prison for one count of interference with commerce by robbery and one count of aiding and abetting; Jason Mayse was sentenced on February 13 to 40 months for conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute 100 kilograms or more of marijuana; Jyaraciel Whitfield was sentenced in September 2023 to 144 months in prison for one count of interference with commerce by robbery and one count of aiding and abetting; Christopher Meyers was sentenced in August 2022 to 144 months in prison for racketeering conspiracy; and Reginald Williams was sentenced in September 2023 to 96 months in prison for one count of interference with commerce by robbery and one count of aiding and abetting.
U.S. Attorney Jaime Esparza of the Western District of Texas made the announcement.
The FBI, Temple Police Department, Belton Police Department, Bell County Organized Crime Unit, U.S. Postal Inspection Service, U.S. Marshals Service, Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF), Texas Department of Public Safety (DPS), Cameron Police Department, and Hearne Police Department are investigating the case with valuable assistance from the Killeen Police Department and Bell County Sheriff’s Department.
Assistant U.S. Attorneys Christopher Blanton and Siddharth Dadhich are prosecuting the case.
This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program bringing together all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve to reduce violent crime and gun violence, and to make our neighborhoods safer for everyone. On May 26, 2021, the Department launched a violent crime reduction strategy strengthening PSN based on these core principles: fostering trust and legitimacy in our communities, supporting community-based organizations that help prevent violence from occurring in the first place, setting focused and strategic enforcement priorities, and measuring the results.
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Three Members of Northern California Drug Trafficking Groups Convicted at TrialRead the Press Release
SAN FRANCISCO – A federal jury has convicted three defendants—Luis Torres Garcia, Evan Martinez Diaz, and Timothy Peoples—of multiple drug trafficking offenses following an eight-day trial, announced United States Attorney Ismail J. Ramsey and Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), San Francisco Field Division, Special Agent in Charge Brian M. Clark. The jury convicted the defendants on all counts, rendering its verdict on February 14, 2024, after deliberating for two hours. The verdict followed a trial before the Hon. Richard Seeborg, Chief U.S. District Judge for the Northern District of California.
The evidence at trial included calls intercepted between April 2018 and February 2019 as part of a federal wiretap investigation into two drug suppliers in the East Bay. The intercepted calls established, among other things, that both suppliers received drugs from sources in Mexico. At trial, the government also presented evidence of several significant drug seizures including: 8.8 pounds of fentanyl and heroin in May 2018, valued at as much as $1.1 million, according to uncontested evidence at trial; 18 pounds of methamphetamine in August 2018; and 20 pounds of methamphetamine and one kilogram of cocaine in February 2019. The evidence at trial also established that law enforcement seized more than $300,000 in drug-related cash over the course of the investigation.
Torres Garcia, 38, of Rio Dell, California, was charged with conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine, in violation of 21 U.S.C. §§ 846 and 841(a)(1) and (b)(1)(A). The evidence at trial showed that Torres Garcia was a Humboldt County drug trafficker, who used the nickname “Guero.” Torres Garcia received methamphetamine shipments on credit from a Fairfield, California-based drug supplier. On August 8, 2018, the Fairfield supplier attempted to send about 18 pounds of methamphetamine—valued at $158,000—to Torres Garcia in Humboldt County. DEA agents and the Sonoma County Sheriff’s Office intercepted the drug courier and seized the drugs during a vehicle stop on Highway 101 near Healdsburg, California. In February 2019, the DEA tracked Torres Garcia to a meeting in Windsor, California, where Torres Garcia delivered about $13,800 in cash to a courier for his drug supplier. Although he was present throughout the trial and listened to closing arguments, Torres Garcia absconded before the jury handed down its verdict; he is now a fugitive.
Martinez Diaz, 31, of Bay Point, California, was charged with three counts—conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine and cocaine, in violation of 21 U.S.C. §§ 846 and 841(a)(1) and (b)(1)(B); possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine, in violation of 21 U.S.C. § 841(a)(1) and (b)(1)(B); and possession with intent to distribute cocaine, in violation of 21 U.S.C. § 841(a)(1) and (b)(1)(B). The evidence at trial established, among other things, that on February 9, 2019, Martinez Diaz was transporting about 20 pounds of methamphetamine and one kilogram of cocaine through a residential neighborhood in Antioch, California, when he realized he was being followed by law enforcement—which knew about the drugs through intercepted calls. Martinez Diaz began driving erratically, briefly evading law enforcement and directing a co-conspirator to discard the drugs he was carrying in the bushes on a residential street. A short time later law enforcement located the drugs, which evidence at trial established had street retail values of $177,860 (methamphetamine) and $40,000 (cocaine). After Martinez Diaz was stopped by police and released with a traffic citation, he was intercepted on a call telling his supplier that he had seen law enforcement and discarded the drugs to avoid arrest.
Peoples, 44, of Antioch, California, was arrested after law enforcement officers found cocaine in his home, and charged with two counts of possession with intent to distribute cocaine, in violation of 21 U.S.C. § 841(a)(1) and (b)(1)(B)–(C). Evidence presented at trial showed that Peoples was a regular customer of an Antioch-based cocaine wholesaler from whom he bought some 10.5 pounds of cocaine for more than $120,000 in a 90-day period. Peoples used the codeword “babies” to refer to ounce quantities of cocaine. The evidence at trial established that Peoples then sold cocaine to his own customers in smaller quantities and used his proceeds to buy expensive cars.
Judge Seeborg scheduled a sentencing hearing for June 11, 2024. Torres Garcia faces a maximum sentence of life imprisonment and a minimum sentence of 10 years in prison. Martinez Diaz and Peoples each face a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison for every count on which they were convicted. However, the defendants’ sentences will be imposed only after consideration of the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and the federal statute governing the imposition of a sentence, 18 U.S.C. § 3553.
This prosecution is part of an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF) investigation. OCDETF identifies, disrupts, and dismantles the highest-level drug traffickers, money launderers, gangs, and transnational criminal organizations that threaten the United States by using a prosecutor-led, intelligence-driven, multi-agency approach that leverages the strengths of federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies against criminal networks.
Assistant U.S. Attorneys Daniel Pastor and Joseph Tartakovsky prosecuted the case with the assistance of Erick Machado. This prosecution is the result of an investigation led by the DEA Oakland Resident Office, with assistance from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives; Homeland Security Investigations; U.S. Customs and Border Protection; U.S. Postal Inspection Service; the police departments in Fairfield, Antioch, Concord, and Oakland; the Sonoma County Sheriff’s Office; and the California Highway Patrol.
Three Accused of Nearly $350,000 Auto Loan FraudRead the Press Release
ST. LOUIS – Three people have been indicted on charges accusing them of defrauding St. Louis area lenders and others out of $348,000 with a fraudulent vehicle loan scam.
Willie Roy Carter, 74, Kizzie Davis, also known as Kizzie Lofton, 45, and Charles Davis Jr., 56, were indicted Dec. 20, 2023, with nine counts of bank fraud and one count of mail fraud. Carter appeared in U.S. District Court in St. Louis Wednesday and pleaded not guilty. The Davises, who are husband and wife, pleaded not guilty February 2.
The indictment accuses Carter of applying for nine auto loans between July 23, 2019, and Aug. 1, 2018, using fraudulent documents. In some cases, Carter allegedly used a fraudulent Illinois vehicle title. In all cases, Carter claimed the car was being sold by City Limits Auto Sales, a business name registered in Missouri in 2016 by Charles Davis, the indictment says. Carter then gave the loan checks to the Davises to deposit.
The loans totaled about $348,214, the indictment says.
Each bank fraud charge is punishable by up to 30 years in prison, a $1 million fine or both prison and a fine. The mail fraud charges are punishable by up to 20 years in prison, a $250,000 fine, or both.
Charges set forth in an indictment are merely accusations and do not constitute proof of guilt. Every defendant is presumed to be innocent unless and until proven guilty.
The U.S. Postal Inspection Service investigated the case. Assistant U.S. Attorney Linda Lane is prosecuting the case.
Two Dominican Republic Men Sentenced in 619 Cocaine Kilograms CaseRead the Press Release
St. Croix, VI – United States Attorney Delia L. Smith announced today that Fernandito Michel-Gomez, age 56, and Dennito Montero-Felix, age 48, both from the Dominican Republic, were sentenced by District Judge Wilma A. Lewis to 57 months incarceration, two years of supervised release, and a $100 special assessment on their convictions of Conspiracy to Possess a Controlled Substance with Intent to Distribute While on Board a Vessel Subject to the Jurisdiction of the United States.
According to court documents, on April 12, 2023, while on routine patrol, a Maritime Patrol Aircraft located a go-fast vessel with three occupants and multiple packages on board. The go-fast vessel was traveling at 71 nautical miles south of the Dominican Republic. The United States Coast Guard Cutter “Forward” intercepted the vessel. Neither occupant claimed to be the master nor claim nationality for the vessel. The vessel did not display any flag or other markings and was traveling in international waters. The vessel was therefore subject to the jurisdiction of the United States. A total of 23 bales totaling 619 kilograms of cocaine were later seized from the vessel.
This case was investigated by the United States Coast Guard, Homeland Security Investigations and the Drug Enforcement Administration and prosecuted by Assistant United States Daniel H. Huston. 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.
St. Louis County Woman Admits Helping Her Son Fake a DisabilityRead the Press Release
ST. LOUIS – A woman from St. Louis County, Missouri on Thursday admitted helping her son fake a mental disability for more than 13 years so he could receive government benefits.
Zella Rives, 57, of Edmundson, admitted in a plea agreement and in court that she submitted a report to the Social Security Administration in 2010 on behalf of her son, Gino Rives, that bolstered his false claims of disability. She was appointed representative payee for her son because the agency believed he was incapable of managing his money. Zella Rives fraudulently confirmed his eligibility in 2019, concealing his ownership of multiple houses and vehicles, his ability to earn income and his relationship with his girlfriend, her plea agreement says.
Between May 11, 2010, and Dec. 31, 2023, the Social Security Administration electronically transmitted more than $91,000 in benefits to Rives on her son’s behalf.
Rives pleaded guilty to five counts of theft of government funds and one count of making a false statement. She is scheduled to be sentenced June 18. The charge of making a false statement is punishable by up to five years in prison, a $250,000 fine, or both, and the theft of government funds charge is punishable by up to 10 years in prison and the same fine.
Gino Rives, 36, of Edmundson, has pleaded guilty in two separate cases, admitting both the disability fraud and his financial exploitation of two elderly women.
The Social Security Administration Office of Inspector General and the U.S. Secret Service investigated the case. Assistant U.S. Attorney Tracy Berry is prosecuting the case.
St. Albans Couple Plead Guilty to Federal Drug CrimeRead the Press Release
CHARLESTON, W.Va. – Today, Timothy A. Ward, 41, and his wife Sarah J. Ward, 40, both of St. Albans, pleaded guilty to aiding and abetting the distribution of methamphetamine.
According to court documents and statements made in court, the Wards admitted that they distributed methamphetamine or aided and abetted each other to distribute methamphetamine to confidential informants on seven occasions in Kanawha County from October 2, 2023, through December 6, 2023. The Wards further admitted that they received money for several of these transactions, and for others received clothing that was shoplifted at their direction. The transactions included the sale of a half-ounce of methamphetamine to a confidential informant at a St. Albans bar on October 2, 2023.
Timothy A. Ward also admitted that he sold a firearm at the couple’s St. Albans residence to a confidential informant who had purchased methamphetamine from him on prior occasions on December 7, 2023. Sarah J. Ward admitted that she arranged the sale of the firearm, and that she knew her husband was a convicted felon.
Timothy A. Ward and Sarah J. Ward are scheduled to be sentenced on June 6, 2024, and each faces a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison, at least three years of supervised release, and a $1 million fine.
United States Attorney Will Thompson made the announcement and commended the investigative work of the St. Albans Police Department and the U.S. Department of Homeland Security-Homeland Security Investigations (HSI).
United States District Judge Irene C. Berger presided over the hearings. Assistant United States Attorney JC MacCallum is prosecuting the case.
A copy of this press release is located on the website of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of West Virginia. Related court documents and information can be found on PACER by searching for Case No. 2:23-cr-201.
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Southern California Drug Trafficker Sentenced to Federal PrisonRead the Press Release
EUGENE, Ore.—A Southern California drug trafficker convicted at trial for possessing with intent to distribute methamphetamine and heroin was sentenced to federal prison Wednesday, announced the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Oregon.
Pedro Keny Verganza, 39, of Los Angeles County, California, was sentenced to 75 months in federal prison and three years’ supervised release.
According to court documents, in December 2019, investigators with the Albany Police Department obtained information that an individual known as “Pelucha” was a source of supply for illegal narcotics transported by a California-based drug trafficking organization from California to Oregon for redistribution and sale. Further investigation revealed that, in mid-February 2020, a courier working with or on behalf of Pelucha was expected to arrive at a fast-food restaurant in Albany, Oregon to complete a sale of methamphetamine and heroin.
On February 15, 2020, law enforcement officers observed the courier, later determined to be Verganza, arrive at the fast-food restaurant with another individual. Law enforcement searched the pair’s vehicle and located a cardboard box containing three large heat-sealed and shrink-wrapped packages containing approximately three and a quarter pounds of methamphetamine and two and a quarter pounds of heroin. Subsequent lab tests revealed Verganza’s fingerprints and palm prints inside the box and on the packages of narcotics.
On February 16, 2020, Verganza was charged by federal criminal complaint with possessing with intent to distribute methamphetamine and, on August 19, 2021, a federal grand jury in Eugene indicted Verganza on the same charge. Later, a charge of possessing with intent to distribute heroin was added by superseding indictment. On October 13, 2023, Verganza was found guilty at trial on both charges.
This case was investigated by the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) with assistance from the Albany Police Department and Linn County Sheriff’s Office. It was prosecuted by Adam E. Delph and John C. Brassell, Assistant U.S. Attorneys for the District of Oregon.
South Dakota Man Sentenced to Federal Prison for Failure to Register as a Sex OffenderRead the Press Release
SIOUX FALLS - United States Attorney Alison J. Ramsdell announced today that U.S. District Judge Karen E. Schreier has sentenced a South Dakota man convicted of Failure to Register as a Sex Offender. The sentencing took place on February 9, 2024, in Sioux Falls, South Dakota.
Wyatt White Eyes, age 27, was sentenced to 21 months in federal prison, followed by five years of supervised release. He was ordered to pay $100 as a statutorily required special assessment to the Federal Crime Victims Fund.
White Eyes was indicted for Failure to Register as a Sex Offender by a federal grand jury in June of 2023. He pleaded on November 29, 2023.
According to court documents, White Eyes knew he was required to register as a sex offender for 25 years following a 2020 conviction for Solicitation of a Minor in July of 2020. He left his residence in Sioux Falls, South Dakota, and moved to Aurora, Missouri, on November 26, 2022. He knowingly and intentionally did not register at any address after he left the Sioux Falls residence until he was arrested in Missouri on March 15, 2023.
This case was investigated by the U.S. Marshals Service. Assistant U.S. Attorney Connie Larson 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 the U.S. Attorneys’ Offices and the DOJ’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who exploit children, as well as identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit https://www.justice.gov/psc.
White Eyes was remanded to the custody of the U.S. Marshals Service.
Six People Charged in Just over a Week in Separate Felony Strangulation CasesRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON – Between February 5 and February 13, 2024, in the District of Columbia, six people were arrested and charged with felony strangulation under D.C. Code 22-404.04 which was created through the Prioritizing Public Safety Emergency Amendment Act of 2023. They are among 26 people charged since the D.C. Council created this new criminal offense in the D.C. Code which went into effect in July of 2023.
The recent cases include:
On February 13, 2024, Lontez Williams, 40, of D.C. was arrested and charged with strangulation and child cruelty, for allegedly squeezing the neck of a three-year-old child by wrapping his arm around it, and then hurling the child victim into a couch when his family intervened to stop him. Williams was presented to a magistrate judge on February 13, 2024 and was ordered held*.
On February 12, 2024, Leonel Bonilla, 27, of D.C., was arrested and charged with strangulation and aggravated assault, for an alleged attack on a female victim in D.C. The victim reported that Bonilla escalated a verbal altercation occurring in a car when he pulled over and grabbed her around the neck so that she could not breathe and eventually lost consciousness. Bonilla was presented to a magistrate judge on February 12, 2024, and was ordered held*.
On February 10, 2024, Marc Gatling, 40, of D.C., was arrested for simple assault and charged with strangulation for an alleged attack on a female victim on February 9, 2024, in D.C., that started as a verbal altercation. The victim left the premises but returned to retrieve personal belongings. While she was there, Gatling allegedly tried to prevent her from leaving, eventually pushing her down and strangling her. Gatling was presented to a magistrate judge on February 10th and was released.
On February 7, 2024, Ronald McKinnon, 63, of Washington, D.C., was arrested and charged with strangulation and one count of kidnapping for an alleged attack on a female in his home. The victim called 911 after the defendant allegedly assaulted and strangled her and confined her in the basement. McKinnon was presented to a magistrate judge on February 9, 2024, and was ordered held*.
On February 5, 2024, Michael Alston, 58, of Washington, D.C., was arrested and charged with strangulation and assault with a dangerous weapon after he allegedly punched a 72-year old female, strangled her, and threatened her with a knife. The victim managed to escape. Alston was presented to a magistrate judge and was later released on GPS monitoring.
On February 5, 2024, Deangelo Dunn, 27, of Washington, D.C., was arrested and charged with strangulation, after allegedly strangling a female victim because she refused to give him money. Dunn was later released.
“The data shows that people strangled by an intimate partner are 800% more likely to be the victim of a homicide,” said U.S. Attorney Matthew M. Graves. “Recognizing this danger, we advocated for a felony charge for strangulation, and we are grateful that the Council passed, and the Mayor signed, emergency legislation temporarily creating a specific felony. We have aggressively charged this crime since it was enacted in July 2023. Now is the time to make the legislation permanent and to create a presumption that people who engage in this life-threatening conduct will be held in jail after their arrest.”
In addition to those cases, on January 19, 2024, Joseph Coles, 34, was arrested and charged with simple assault, a misdemeanor, involving a woman he met thru an online dating app. The victim went to Coles’s D.C. home on January 19th to bring him food. During the visit, the defendant became upset and allegedly began strangling the victim while holding her pinned against a wall. He was released on the simple assault charge and, after further investigation, was charged by superseding complaint with felony strangulation.
These cases were investigated by the Metropolitan Police Department.
Strangulation is widely recognized as one of the most lethal forms of domestic violence. A major strangulation study in San Diego, which is frequently cited, found: “Many victims suffer internal injuries, including permanent brain damage. Signs and symptoms do exist and can be documented even without visible injury… Most abusers do not strangle to kill. They strangle to show they can kill. Victims often suffer major long-term emotional and physical impacts. Surviving victims are much more likely to die later if their abuser has strangled them.” The study also noted that “…..the odds of becoming a victim of attempted homicide increased by 700%, and the odds of becoming a homicide victim increased by 800%, among women who had been strangled by their partner.”
*Defendants that were ordered held had an additional hold-eligible offense since felony strangulation is currently not hold eligible.
Sioux Falls Man Sentenced to Federal Prison for Prohibited Possession of a FirearmRead the Press Release
SIOUX FALLS - United States Attorney Alison J. Ramsdell announced today that U.S. District Judge Karen E. Schreier has sentenced a Sioux Falls, South Dakota, man, convicted of Possession of a Firearm by a Prohibited Person. The sentencing took place on February 9, 2024, in Sioux Falls.
Israel Estrada, age 29, was sentenced to one year and three months in federal prison, followed by three years of supervised release. He was ordered to pay $100 as a statutorily required special assessment to the Federal Crime Victims Fund.
Estrada was indicted for Possession of a Firearm by a Prohibited Person by a federal grand jury in May of 2023. He pleaded guilty on November 16, 2023.
According to court documents, on March 3, 2023, Estrada knowingly possessed a semi-automatic pistol. At that time, he was prohibited from possessing any firearm or ammunition, as a result of his prior felony conviction.
This case was investigated by Homeland Security Investigations and the Sioux Falls Police Department. Assistant U.S. Attorney Jeremy R. Jehangiri prosecuted the case.
This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), 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 PSN, a broad spectrum of 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 for lasting reductions in crime.
Estrada was remanded to the custody of the U.S. Marshals Service to continue serving his sentence.
Sioux Falls Man Sentenced for Possession with Intent to Distribute FentanylRead the Press Release
SIOUX FALLS - United States Attorney Alison J. Ramsdell announced today that U.S. District Judge Karen E. Schreier has sentenced a Sioux Falls, South Dakota, man convicted of Possession of a Controlled Substance with Intent to Distribute. The sentencing took place on January 29, 2024.
Brady Jon Sigler, 27, was sentenced to two years and nine months in federal prison, followed by three years of supervised release. He was also ordered to pay a $100 special assessment to the Federal Crime Victims Fund.
Sigler was indicted for Possession of a Controlled Substance with Intent to Distribute by a federal grand jury in June of 2023. He pleaded guilty on October 17, 2023.
Sigler went to a UPS store with a package containing fentanyl in the form of approximately 950 pressed M30 pills. He sent the package containing the pills to another person on behalf of a third party in exchange for $100.
This case was investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration and the Sioux Falls Police Department. Assistant U.S. Attorney Paige Petersen prosecuted the case.
Sigler was immediately remanded to the custody of the U.S. Marshals Service.
Serbian Citizen Sentenced to 14 Years in Prison for Operating the Monopoly Narcotics Marketplace on the Dark NetRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON – Milomir Desnica, 34, a national of Serbia and Croatia, was sentenced to 168 months in prison for operating the Monopoly Market, a dark net website that provided a vast online marketplace for the sale of illicit narcotics, announced U.S. Attorney Matthew M. Graves and FBI Special Agent in Charge David J. Scott of the Washington Field Office’s Criminal and Cyber Division.
In addition to the prison term, U.S. District Court Judge Carl J. Nichols ordered Desnica to forfeit cash and cryptocurrency obtained from his involvement in operating Monopoly. Desnica pleaded guilty on Nov. 8, 2023, to charges of conspiracy to distribute and possession with intent to distribute 50 grams or more of methamphetamine.
According to the government’s evidence, Desnica, of Smederevska Palanka, Serbia, entered into a conspiracy in 2019 to develop and operate a website that became Monopoly Market. According to the indictment, Monopoly grew into an international marketplace for the sale of illicit narcotics including opioids, stimulants, psychedelics, and prescription medications, among other drugs. The products were sold by individual vendors on Monopoly with Monopoly admins typically taking a 5% cut for each facilitated sale. Vendors were required to prove they had sufficient stock of their product. Monopoly would accept photographic proof of the inventory.
In 2021, law enforcement within the United States placed and received numerous orders on Monopoly for narcotics from various vendors. Authorities ordered more than 100 grams of methamphetamine on Monopoly. Through its investigation, the FBI determined that Monopoly facilitated over $18 million in narcotics sales around the world, including the sale of over 30 kilograms of methamphetamine to customers in the United States.
In December 2021, in coordination with foreign law enforcement partners in Germany and Finland, law enforcement seized the computer server hosting Monopoly and took it offline. Law enforcement analyzed the seized server and identified records of the narcotics sales, financial records documenting cryptocurrency payments on Monopoly, an online forum associated with Monopoly, communications from the Monopoly operators to vendors, commission payment invoices, and more. Desnica was identified as an operator of Monopoly through the analysis of the records. The FBI identified Bitcoin wallets used by administrators to collect commissions.
In November 2022, in coordination with the Austrian Fugitive Active Search Team (FAST) and the Public Prosecutors Office Vienna, Desnica was located and arrested in Austria. Law enforcement conducted a search of his residence and vehicle and seized electronics and cash.
On June 23, 2023, Desnica was extradited from Austria to the United States to face drug trafficking charges.
This case is being investigated by the FBI Washington Field Office’s Hi-Tech Opioid Task Force and Germany’s Zentrale Kriminalinspektion (ZKI) Oldenburg Cybercrime Unit. The Hi-Tech Opioid Task Force is composed of FBI agents, analysts, and task force partners, including special agents and officers of the Food and Drug Administration’s Office of Criminal Investigations, Drug Enforcement Administration, U.S. Postal Inspection Service, and detectives from local assisting police agencies. The task force is charged with identifying and investigating the most egregious darknet marketplaces and the vendors operating on the marketplaces who are engaged in the illegal acquisition and distribution of controlled substances, including methamphetamine, fentanyl, and other opioids.
The Justice Department’s Office of International Affairs worked to secure the arrest and extradition from Austria of Desnica and provided significant assistance. Valuable assistance was also provided by Finland’s National Bureau of Investigation; Europol; Germany’s Bundeskriminalamt; Austria’s Bundeskriminalamt Cybercrime Competency Center, FAST team, and Public Prosecutors Office Vienna; and the Republic of Serbia High-Tech Crimes Special Prosecutor.
The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Nihar Mohanty and former U.S. Attorney Andy Wang of the Violence Reduction and Trafficking Offenses (VRTO) Section of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia.
Richmond Felon Sentenced for Possessing FirearmRead the Press Release
RICHMOND, Va. – A Richmond man was sentenced today to 77 months in prison for possessing a firearm as a convicted felon.
According to court documents, Jon Terry, 38, was arrested in the Six Points area of Richmond on May 24, 2023. Richmond Police Department officers were on foot patrol and encountered three males, including Terry, trying to put air in a mini-bike. During this encounter, one of the officers observed a bulge in the shape of a firearm in Terry’s pocket. When an officer attempted to speak to him, Terry ran. After a foot pursuit, the officers detained Terry and recovered a loaded SCCY 9mm handgun.
Terry has prior convictions for distribution of cocaine, possession with intent to distribute cocaine, possession of a firearm by a convicted felon, and grand larceny.
Jessica D. Aber, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia; Jason S. Miyares, Attorney General of Virginia; Craig Kailimai, Special Agent in Charge of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives Washington Field Division; and Rick Edwards, Chief of Richmond Police, made the announcement after sentencing by Senior U.S. District Judge Robert E. Payne.
Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Ellen V. Hubbard and Assistant U.S. Attorney Olivia L. Norman prosecuted the case.
This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program bringing together all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve to reduce violent crime and gun violence, and to make our neighborhoods safer for everyone. On May 26, 2021, the Department of Justice launched a violent crime reduction strategy strengthening PSN based on these core principles: fostering trust and legitimacy in our communities, supporting community-based organizations that help prevent violence from occurring in the first place, setting focused and strategic enforcement priorities, and measuring the results.
A copy of this press release is located on the website of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Virginia. Related court documents and information are located on the website of the District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia or on PACER by searching for Case No. 3:23-cr-108.