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Friday 1 December 2023
Essex County Convicted Felon Admits Involvement in Two Shootings, Possessing Firearm with Extended Magazine, and Possessing Heroin with Intent to DistributeRead the Press Release
NEWARK, N.J. – An Essex County, New Jersey, man admitted his involvement in two shootings, as well as illegally possessing a handgun and possessing heroin he intended to distribute, U.S. Attorney Philip R. Sellinger announced today.
Antoine Hawkins, 31, of Newark, pleaded guilty on Nov. 28, 2023, before U.S. District Judge Katharine S. Hayden to an indictment charging him with two counts of possession of ammunition by a convicted felon, one count of possession of a firearm and ammunition by a convicted felon, one count of possession with intent to distribute heroin, and one count of possession of a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime.
According to documents filed in this case and statements made in court:
On Aug. 18, 2020, video surveillance footage depicted Hawkins as he fired a gun on a Newark street, striking a victim, who survived the shooting. Hawkins was also identified as the perpetrator of another shooting in Newark on Aug. 13, 2020, and cartridge casings from the locations of both shootings were a ballistics match.
On Sept. 16, 2020, law enforcement encountered Hawkins and observed what appeared to be a firearm in Hawkins’s jacket. A subsequent search of Hawkins revealed a 9-millimeter pistol, which was loaded in an extended magazine containing 19 rounds of ammunition.
A search warrant executed at Hawkins’s residence revealed, among other items, 626 glassine envelopes containing heroin and three 9-millimeter magazines.
The firearm and ammunition offenses carry maximum potential penalties of 10 years in prison, and fines of $250,000. The count of possession of a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime carries a statutory mandatory minimum penalty of five years in prison – which must run consecutively to any other sentence Hawkins receives – and a maximum potential penalty of life in prison. The narcotics offense carries a maximum potential penalty of 20 years in prison, and a fine of $1 million. Sentencing is scheduled for April 2, 2024.
U.S. Attorney Sellinger credited the Essex County Prosecutor’s Office, under the direction of Acting Prosecutor Theodore N. Stephens II; members of the Newark Department of Public Safety, under the direction of Director Fritz G. Fragé; members of the Drug Enforcement Administration, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Cheryl Ortiz; and special agents of Homeland Security Investigations Newark, under the direction of Acting Special Agent in Charge Michael Alfonso, with the investigation leading to the charges.
This investigation is part of the Violent Crime Initiative (VCI) in Newark. The Newark VCI was formed in August 2017 by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of New Jersey, the Essex County Prosecutor’s Office, and the City of Newark’s Department of Public Safety for the sole purpose of combatting violent crime in and around the Newark. As part of this partnership, federal, state, county, and city agencies collaborate and pool resources to prosecute violent offenders who endanger the safety of the community. The VCI includes the U.S. Attorney’s Office, the DEA, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the U.S. Marshals, the Newark Department of Public Safety, the Essex County Prosecutor’s Office, the Essex County Sheriff’s Office, New Jersey State Parole Board, New Jersey State Police Regional Operations and Intelligence Center/Real Time Crime Center, and New Jersey Department of Corrections.
The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorney Benjamin Levin of the U.S. Attorney’s Office National Security Unit in Newark.
hawkins.indictment.pdfDulce Man Pleads Guilty to Domestic AssaultRead the Press Release
ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. – Alexander M.M. Uballez, United States Attorney for the District of New Mexico, and Raul Bujanda, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI Albuquerque Field Office, announced that Patrick Maestas pled guilty to assault of a spouse, intimate partner, and dating partner, by strangling, suffocating, and attempting to strangle and suffocate. Maestas, 34, of Dulce, and an enrolled member of the Jicarilla Apache Nation, will remain in custody pending sentencing, which has not been scheduled.
According to court records, on July 8, 2022, Maestas had consumed a large quantity of alcohol and began an argument with Jane Doe, the mother of his child and intimate partner. During the argument, Maestas punched a TV and pinned Jane Doe to the bed in the presence of their child. Maestas then used the collar of Jane Doe’s shirt to strangle her, causing Jane Doe to black out and causing serious bodily injury.
At sentencing, Maestas faces up to ten years in prison followed by 3 years of supervise release.
The Farmington Resident Agency of the FBI Albuquerque Field Office investigated this case with assistance from the Jicarilla Apache Police Department. Special Assistant United States Attorney Kimberly Bell is prosecuting the case.
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23-276
Drug Supplier Sentenced to 14 Years in Federal PrisonRead the Press Release
Baltimore, Maryland – U.S. District Judge George L. Russell, III sentenced Clarence Coby, age 48, of Baltimore, Maryland, to 14 years in federal prison, followed by four years of supervised release, for possession with intent to distribute fentanyl.
The sentence was announced by United States Attorney for the District of Maryland Erek L. Barron; Special Agent in Charge Jarod Forget of the Drug Enforcement Administration - Washington Division; Acting Special Agent in Charge R. Joseph Rothrock of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Baltimore Field Office; Anne Arundel County Police Chief Amal E. Awad; and Annapolis Police Chief Edward Jackson.
According to his guilty plea, in November 2019, the DEA received information about a number of drug trafficking organizations operating in and around the Annapolis, Maryland area and identified Orland Ray Coleman, Sr. as a drug trafficker responsible for distributing drugs to those organizations. Additional investigation revealed that Clarence Coby was a source of supply to Coleman, specifically providing Coleman and other Annapolis-areas drug traffickers with fentanyl and cocaine.
In mid-May 2021, several search warrants were executed on houses and vehicles associated with Coby. Investigators recovered at Coby’s house, a total of 5 guns and ammunition, more than a kilogram of cocaine and approximately 62 grams of fentanyl pills, and approximately $109,941 in drug proceeds. Investigators also executed search and seizure warrants on Coby’s vehicles and recovered approximately seven kilograms of fentanyl, 947 grams of cocaine and 264 grams of heroin hidden in secret compartments in one of Coby’s vehicles.
On October 10, 2023, Orlando Ray Coleman, Sr., age 48, of Millersville, Maryland pleaded guilty to conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute fentanyl. Coleman is expected to be sentenced to eight years in federal prison at his sentencing on January 19, 2024, at 2:00 p.m.
This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program bringing together all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve to reduce violent crime and gun violence, and to make our neighborhoods safer for everyone. On May 26, 2021, the Department launched a violent crime reduction strategy strengthening PSN based on these core principles: fostering trust and legitimacy in our communities, supporting community-based organizations that help prevent violence from occurring in the first place, setting focused and strategic enforcement priorities, and measuring the results.
This prosecution is part of the Department of Justice’s Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) Strike Force Initiative, which provides for the establishment of permanent multi-agency task force teams that work side-by-side in the same location. This co-located model enables agents from different agencies to collaborate on intelligence-driven, multi-jurisdictional operations to disrupt and dismantle the most significant drug traffickers, money launderers, gangs, and transnational criminal organizations. The specific mission of the Baltimore Strike Force is to reduce violent, drug-related, and gang crime in the Baltimore area and surrounding region. The Baltimore SF is comprised of agents and officers from the Drug Enforcement Administration, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Homeland Security Investigations, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, the U.S. Marshals Service, the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, the U.S. Secret Service, the Baltimore Police Department, the Baltimore City Sheriff’s Office, the Baltimore City State’s Attorney’s Office, the Anne Arundel County Police Department, the Baltimore County Police Department, the Maryland Department of Public Safety and Correctional Services, the Maryland National Guard, the Maryland State Police, and the Maryland Transportation Authority, and the prosecution is being led by the Office of the United States Attorney for the District of Maryland.
United States Attorney Erek L. Barron commended the DEA, the FBI, the Anne Arundel County Police Department, and the Annapolis Police Department for their work in the investigation. Mr. Barron thanked Assistant U.S. Attorney LaRai Everett, 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/project-safe-neighborhoods-psn and https://www.justice.gov/usao-md/community-outreach.
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District Man Sentenced to Sixteen Years in Prison for Armed Carjacking at Gas StationRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON – Andrew Patrick, 38, of Washington, D.C., was sentenced today to 16 years of incarceration for the September 2022 armed carjacking at a southeast gas station, announced U.S. Attorney Matthew M. Graves and Pamela Smith, Chief of the Metropolitan Police Department.
Patrick was found guilty at trial on September 27, 2023, in the Superior Court of the District of Columbia, of armed carjacking, and related firearm offenses. According to that evidence, on September 22, 2022, the victim had driven her 2005 Chevy Suburban to the Good Hope Road gas station in Washington, DC when the defendant approached her and demanded her car keys at gunpoint. The victim begged Patrick not to hurt her. In response, Patrick pushed the victim into her vehicle, grabbed her keys, and drove off in her car. The victim called 911 and immediately reported the crime. Police apprehended Patrick in the victim’s car later that day, after a license plate reader detected the victim’s tags when he drove it through Northeast DC. Police officers also found a black and grey Glock 37 inside the vehicle.
At the sentencing hearing, the victim gave a powerful and moving statement to the Honorable Lynn Leibovitz in which she explained how the defendant’s crimes had impacted her life, hurt her deep “in her soul,” and made her fear for her life. The victim specifically thanked Assistant U.S. Attorneys Gregory J. Evans and Omeed A. Assefi and Victim/Witness Advocate Christie Bloodworth for their hard work and continued support throughout the investigation and trial process.
At the conclusion of the hearing, Judge Leibovitz sentenced the defendant to 16 years’ incarceration for the armed carjacking offense, which carries a 15-year mandatory-minimum sentence. Patrick was also sentenced to five years for possession of a firearm during a crime of violence, three years for unlawful possession of a firearm by a convicted felon, fourteen months for carrying a pistol without a license, one year for possession of an unregistered firearm, and one year for unlawful possession of ammunition. The judge also ordered that defendant serve five years of supervised release after he completes his sentence.
In announcing the sentence, U.S. Attorney Graves and Chief Smith commended the work of those who investigated the case from the Metropolitan Police Department. They also acknowledged the efforts of those who worked on the case from the U.S. Attorney’s Office including Assistant U.S. Attorney Noah N. Simmons, Paralegal Specialist Renee Prather, Victim/Witness Advocate Christie Bloodworth, and Litigation Technology Specialist Charlie Bruce.
Finally, they commended the work of Assistant U.S. Attorneys Gregory J. Evans and Omeed A. Assefi, who investigated, prosecuted, and tried the case.
Disbarred Queens Attorney Pleads Guilty to Defrauding His ClientsRead the Press Release
Earlier today, Hyun W. Lee, also known as Michael Lee, pleaded guilty at the federal courthouse in Brooklyn, New York to wire fraud in connection with a scheme to defraud his real estate clients and their counterparties of funds held in his attorney escrow account. Today’s proceeding took place before United States District Judge Pamela K. Chen. When sentenced, Lee faces up to twenty years in prison. Lee has also agreed to pay $3.27 million dollars in forfeiture.
Breon Peace, United States Attorney for the Eastern District of New York, announced the guilty plea.
“With today’s guilty plea, Lee has admitted that he preyed upon members of the Korean-American community by holding himself out as a licensed attorney after his suspension and disbarment, only to steal millions of dollars entrusted to him for safekeeping,” stated United States Attorney Breon Peace. “Protecting the community while holding accountable those who use their positions of trust to defraud others is, and will remain, a priority of this Office.”
Mr. Peace expressed his appreciation to the Queens County District Attorney’s Office for their assistance in this investigation.
According to court filings and facts presented during the plea proceeding, Lee induced clients and counterparties to entrust funds to him for the purchase of real estate based on misrepresentations that Lee would release the funds deposited into his escrow account. Instead, Lee misappropriated these funds and used them for his own benefit, which included gambling at casinos and to pay expenses at a restaurant that he partially owned. Lee also misrepresented that he was an attorney authorized to represent clients, including in connection with the purchase and sale of real estate, and to receive and hold funds in his escrow account in connection with real estate transactions. In reality, Lee had been suspended and was subsequently disbarred from engaging in the practice of law in the State of New York. As a result, Lee was not permitted to accept funds from clients and third parties.
In furtherance of the scheme, Lee misled clients about the status of funds held in his escrow account by fabricating documents leading them to believe their funds were secure. While documentation Lee showed to clients reflected a balance in Lee’s escrow account of nearly $3 million, in reality Lee had depleted the escrow account down to only approximately $25,000. Lee then failed to honor requests by clients and their counterparties to release funds from his escrow account, falsely claiming that he was in the process of working out an equitable way to distribute funds that remained when Lee had already spent virtually all of the funds in the account.
Victims who suffered losses as a result of the conduct of Lee, or other New York lawyers who engage in misconduct, may be eligible to receive compensation by filing a claim with the Lawyer’s Fund for Client Protection, which may be reached at (800) 442-3863 or e-mailing [email protected].
The government’s case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Hiral D. Mehta and Brian D. Morris of the Office’s Business and Securities Fraud Section with assistance from Special Agent Martin Sullivan and Paralegal Specialist Peyton Jefferson.
The Defendant:
HYUN W. LEE, also known as “Michael Lee”
Age: 51
Closter, New JerseyE.D.N.Y. Docket No. 23-CR-465 (PKC)
D.C. Man Sentenced to Federal Prison for Carrying Out Conspiracy to Impersonate Federal Law Enforcement OfficersRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON – Arian Taherzadeh was sentenced today to 33 months in prison for pretending to be a federal law enforcement officer to curry favor with members of the U.S. Secret Service, and to lease several luxury apartments for which he then failed to pay rent.
The announcement was made by U.S. Attorney Matthew M. Graves; Acting Special Agent in Charge David Geist of the FBI’s Washington Field Office Criminal Division; Inspector General Dr. Joseph V. Cuffari, of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security; and Inspector in Charge Damon E. Wood, of the Washington Division, U.S. Postal Inspection Service.
On Aug. 1, 2022, Taherzadeh, 41, of Washington, D.C., pleaded guilty to conspiracy, a federal offense, and unlawful possession of a large-capacity ammunition feeding device and voyeurism, both District of Columbia offenses, in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia. In addition to the prison sentence, U.S. District Court Judge Colleen Kollar-Kotelly ordered 36 months of supervised release and restitution of $706,218.
According to court documents, Taherzadeh and a co-conspirator, Haider Ali, 36, of Springfield, Va., operated a business called United States Special Police LLC (USSP), which was described as a private law enforcement, investigative, and protective service based in Washington, D.C. The two men represented themselves to law enforcement as investigators and/or special agents and claimed that their unit was part of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS). The company was not associated in any way with the U.S. government or the District of Columbia and had never done business with the federal or D.C. governments.
As the scheme unfolded, Taherzadeh falsely claimed at various times to be, among other things, a Special Agent with the DHS, a member of a multi-jurisdictional federal task force, a former U.S. Air Marshal, and a former U.S. Army Ranger. He used these false claims to recruit others to USSP, under the guise that it was part of a covert federal law enforcement task force, to defraud owners of three apartment complexes into providing him with multiple apartments and parking spaces for his supposed law enforcement operations, and to ingratiate himself with members of federal law enforcement and the defense community. Both Taherzadeh and Ali used these false claims to recruit others to join their “task force” or “unit,” which these individuals believed to be part of DHS and federal law enforcement.
In furtherance of the scheme, Taherzadeh and Ali ingratiated themselves with employees of the U.S. Secret Service because it provided them with cover and aided in their scheme. Beginning as early as the spring of 2020, Taherzadeh began falsely identifying himself as a Special Agent to employees of the United States Secret Service. In one instance, he falsely claimed to two Secret Service employees that he was in a gang unit. He told another that he was part of a covert task force. Taherzadeh also provided these Secret Service employees with tangible and intangible gifts. For instance, Taherzadeh provided one employee and his wife with a generator and a doomsday/survival backpack. He provided another employee with a rent-free penthouse apartment for approximately one year, worth approximately $40,200. He provided a third employee with a rent-free apartment for approximately one year, worth an estimated $48,240, as well as a drone, a gun locker, and a Pelican case.
Taherzadeh and others used assumed law enforcement personas and the business to maintain leases for multiple apartments and parking spaces for supposed law enforcement operation at three luxury apartment complexes in the District of Columbia. At one luxury apartment complex in Southeast D.C., Taherzadeh and Ali maintained several units including a penthouse where Taherzadeh and Ali possessed, among other things, a Glock handgun registered to Ali that was loaded with a large-capacity ammunition feeding device, surveillance equipment, law enforcement tactical gear and a machine capable of programming Personal Identification Verification (PIV) cards used to create false credentials. Within his own apartment, Taherzadeh possessed a Sig Sauer P229 handgun with five, fully loaded large-capacity ammunition feeding devices, containing 61 rounds of ammunition. They also used their false identification with law enforcement to obtain security footage in the building as well as a list of the building’s residents as well as their apartment numbers and contact information.
Throughout their tenancies at the three luxury apartment complexes, no rent was paid on the leased apartments or parking garage spaces. This resulted in a loss to the buildings of $698,363 and to the garage of $7,854.
Finally, Taherzadeh installed surveillance cameras outside and inside his apartment in one of the complexes. Among other places, he installed, maintained, and utilized cameras in his bedroom. He used these cameras to record women engaged in sexual activity. Taherzadeh then showed these explicit videos to third parties.
Taherzadeh and Ali, were arrested on Apr. 6, 2022. Ali pleaded guilty on Oct. 5, 2022, to a conspiracy and bank fraud, both federal offenses, and unlawful possession of a large-capacity ammunition feeding device, a District of Columbia Offense. On Aug. 8, 2023, Ali was sentenced to 68 months of incarceration followed by 36 months of supervised release and ordered to pay restitution.
This case was investigated by the FBI’s Washington Field Office, the Office of the Inspector General for the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, and the U.S. Postal Inspection Service. It was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Elizabeth Aloi and Joshua S. Rothstein of the Fraud, Public Corruption, and Civil Rights Section.
Valuable assistance was provided by Assistant U.S. Attorney Christopher Tortorice and Paralegal Specialists Quiana Dunn-Gordon, and Lisa Abbe and former Paralegal Specialist Chad Byron of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia, and Trial Attorneys Kathleen Campbell and Evan Turgeon of the Department of Justice’s National Security Division.
Cozad Man Sentenced to 10 Years in Prison for Methamphetamine and Gun ChargesRead the Press Release
Acting United States Attorney Susan Lehr announced that Christopher P. Twohig, 45, of Cozad, Nebraska, was sentenced on December 1, 2023, in federal court in Lincoln, Nebraska for possession with intent to distribute 5 grams or more methamphetamine (actual) and carrying a firearm during and in relation to a drug trafficking crime. Senior United States District Judge John M. Gerrard sentenced Twohig to 120 months’ imprisonment. There is no parole in the federal system. After Twohig’s release from prison, he will begin a 5-year term of supervised release.
On March 22, 2023, officers in Cozad, Nebraska, attempted to arrest Twohig on a state arrest warrant. Twohig was located and apprehended in a parking lot at a convenience store. Approximately 47 grams of meth was found in Twohig’s coat, along with multiple empty baggies. A firearm was also found in his vehicle with over 100 rounds of ammunition. The suspected meth was sent to the lab, and the lab determined that there was about 45.24 grams of meth, of which at least 41 grams was actual meth.
This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Nebraska State Patrol, and Dawson County Sheriff’s Office.
Costa Rican Man Sentenced to 37 Months for Smuggling over 4,000 Pounds of MarijuanaRead the Press Release
St. Croix, VI – United States Attorney Delia L. Smith announced today that Luis Orellana-Orellana, 59, of Costa Rica, was sentenced by Judge Wilma Lewis to 37 months incarceration after pleading guilty to Possession with Intent to Distribute over 4,000 pounds of marijuana on board a vessel subject to jurisdiction of the United States.
According to court documents, on November 7, 2022, while patrolling in international waters in the Eastern Pacific, 65 nautical miles South of Boca Chica, Panama, the United States Coast Guard Cutter Campbell intercepted a go-fast vessel with no physical flag flown and no registration documents onboard. Bundles of contraband were visible on the deck of the go-fast vessel and Orellana-Orellana, Keyran Coto-Lopez and Alonso Hernandez-Hernandez were found on board. One of the three men on board claimed Colombian nationality for the go-fast vessel, but the Colombian Government neither confirmed nor denied nationality of the vessel. A search of the go-fast vessel by Coast Guard officers resulted in the recovery of 4,104 pounds of marijuana. Coto-Lopez was sentenced by Judge Lewis to 48 months following his guilty plea, and Hernandez-Hernandez awaits a sentencing date.
This case was investigated by the United States Coast Guard and Drug Enforcement Administration and was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Melissa P. Ortiz. 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.
Convicted Felon on Supervised Release Charged with Possessing a Machinegun in Furtherance of Fentanyl and Heroin TraffickingRead the Press Release
PITTSBURGH, PA – A former resident of Homestead, Pennsylvania, has been charged in a superseding indictment by a federal grand jury in Pittsburgh for possession of a machinegun in furtherance of drug trafficking and other offenses, United States Attorney Eric G. Olshan announced today.
The three-count Superseding Indictment named Erik Addison, age 27, as the sole defendant.
According to the Superseding Indictment, on May 8, 2023, Addison possessed with intent to distribute a quantity of fentanyl and heroin, possessed a machinegun in furtherance of that drug trafficking crime, and also possessed a Glock pistol equipped with a part commonly referred to as a “Glock Switch,” designed to convert a semiautomatic Glock-style handgun into a machinegun capable of fully automatic fire.
As to the most serious offense, possession of a machinegun in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime, the law provides for a mandatory minimum sentence of 30 years of imprisonment with a maximum possible sentence of life, as well as a maximum possible fine of $250,000, 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.
At the time of the new alleged offenses, Addison was serving a term of supervised release following his conviction for a prior federal firearm offense in 2021. As a result, he is now the subject of separate federal court proceedings to revoke his supervised release. According to court records in the supervised release matter, it is alleged that Addison was the subject of an attempted traffic stop on May 8, 2023. Rather than complying with law enforcement, Addison allegedly fled from the traffic stop—striking multiple law enforcement vehicles as he did so—and proceeded at a high rate of speed across the Homestead Grays Bridge from Pittsburgh to the Boroughs of Homestead and West Homestead. Addison’s vehicle was subsequently located, heavily damaged and abandoned. Multiple officers from various jurisdictions responded. One officer saw Addison fleeing on foot, and while that officer pursued him, multiple shots allegedly were fired. Addison was then apprehended and found to be in possession of the firearm that is the subject of the new federal charges contained in the Superseding Indictment.
In addition to the charges returned by the federal grand jury and the alleged supervised release violations, Addison is also facing charges in the Allegheny County Court of Common Pleas, including aggravated assault and attempted murder of a law enforcement officer stemming from his alleged conduct on May 8, 2023.
“Glock switches turn handguns into machineguns,” said United States Attorney Eric G. Olshan. “Erik Addison allegedly possessed one such machinegun in furtherance of his fentanyl and heroin dealing—a lethal combination of staggering proportions. This office and our dedicated partners in law enforcement will continue our ceaseless pursuit of violent offenders in order to protect the community and ordinary citizens who just want to walk down the street without fear of deadly gunfire.”
“The conduct allegedly committed by the defendant was reprehensible, reckless and extremely dangerous to the community. Stopping individuals who utilize machineguns to facilitate the illegal drug trade is one of ATF’s highest priorities,” said ATF Special Agent in Charge Eric DeGree. “We want to thank our local partners for their diligence and courage in his apprehension, as well as the support of the United States Attorney’s Office as we continue to work to take illegal weapons off the streets.”
“This was a violent incident involving a dangerous, illegal weapon,” said Allegheny County Police Superintendent Christopher Kearns. “This arrest is a perfect example of how our work with our local and federal partners allows us to target dangerous individuals and weapons to keep our communities safe.”
Assistant United States Attorneys Douglas C. Maloney and Brendan T. Conway are prosecuting this case on behalf of the government.
The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and Allegheny County Police Department conducted the investigation leading to the Superseding Indictment in this 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.
A superseding indictment is an accusation. A defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt. Violations of the conditions of supervised release must be proven by the government by a preponderance of the evidence.
Colombian National Extradited from Colombia to the United States to Face Charges of Murder Conspiracy and Attempted Murder of U.S. Army SoldiersRead the Press Release
MIAMI – A five-count indictment, lodged against Andres Fernando Medina Rodriguez, 39, was unsealed today during the defendant’s initial appearance in federal court in Miami. Medina Rodriguez was extradited from Colombia to the United States to face federal charges. Medina Rodriguez was indicted by a Miami federal grand jury in 2022 for charges that include conspiring to murder members of the United States Uniformed Services and attempted murder of members of the United States Uniformed Services.
According to the indictment, Medina Rodriguez, in concert with other co-conspirators, planned a bombing attack against U.S. Army soldiers present at the Colombian 30th Army Brigade Base in Cucuta, Colombia. Medina Rodriguez used his status as a medically discharged Colombian Army Officer to gain access to the base where he conducted surveillance. As part of the surveillance, Medina Rodriguez took photographs and video of the areas where the U.S. Army soldiers were primarily located.
One of Medina Rodriguez’s co-conspirators instructed Medina Rodriguez to find and purchase a vehicle suitable for conducting a vehicle borne improvised explosive device (“VBIED”) attack at the base. Medina Rodriguez purchased a white SUV and Medina Rodriguez and his co-conspirators drove the vehicle to Venezuela where it was outfitted with the explosives.
On June 15, 2021, Medina Rodriguez drove the vehicle with the VBIED to the 30th Army Brigade Base in Cucuta, Colombia, where he parked it in front of the location where U.S. and Colombian military personnel were located. Medina Rodriguez pulled the detonation pin on the explosive and left the area on foot before fleeing on a motorcycle driven by a co-conspirator. As a result of the detonated VBIED, three U.S. Army soldiers were injured.
U.S. Attorney Markenzy Lapointe for the Southern District of Florida and Special Agent in Charge Jeffrey B. Veltri of the FBI’s Miami Field Office announced the unsealing of the charges.
The FBI investigated the case. The FBI, including the FBI Legal Attaché at the U.S. Embassy in Bogota, was assisted by the Colombian National Police. Assistant U.S. Attorney Randy A. Hummel, Assistant U.S. Attorney Andy Camacho, and the Justice Department’s National Security Division Trial Attorneys David C. Smith and Michael Dittoe are prosecuting the case.
The Justice Department’s Office of International Affairs and the Narcotic and Dangerous Drug Section’s Office of the Judicial Attaché at the U.S. Embassy in Bogota worked with Colombian authorities, including the Colombian Attorney General’s Office, to secure the arrest and extradition of Medina Rodriguez.
An indictment contains mere allegations, and all defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty in a court of law.
Related court documents and information may be found on the website of the District Court for the Southern District of Florida at www.flsd.uscourts.gov or at http://pacer.flsd.uscourts.gov, under case number 22-20054-CR-SCOLA/GOODMAN.
22-20054-CR-SCOLA###
Clive Man Pleads Guilty to Wire FraudRead the Press Release
DES MOINES, Iowa – On November 29, 2023, a Clive man pleaded guilty to wire fraud.
According to public court documents, Zachary James Flaherty, 47, used his position as an insurance agent and annuity salesperson to defraud elderly individuals out of their retirement savings and other monies. Flaherty admitted to engaging in a scheme to defraud some of his insurance clients, specifically, that he intended to defraud some of his clients by making false statements to those clients to obtain financial benefits for himself to the detriment of his clients. For example, Flaherty told one of the victims, referred to in court documents as Victim #10, that he would invest proceeds from the sale of her house on her behalf and for her benefit, even though Flaherty knew that his representations to Victim #10 were false. As a result of Flaherty’s false representations, Victim #10 wrote two checks, totaling $170,000, to a company Flaherty owned and/or operated. Flaherty used the proceeds of his fraudulent scheme to acquire various assets, including a boat and automobiles.
Flaherty is scheduled to be sentenced on April 12, 2024, and faces a potential sentence of up to twenty years in prison. A federal district court judge will determine the sentence Flaherty will receive after considering the United States Sentencing Guidelines and other sentencing factors.
United States Attorney Richard D. Westphal of the Southern District of Iowa made the announcement. The Iowa Insurance Division’s Fraud Bureau and the Federal Bureau of Investigation investigated the case, with assistance from the Des Moines Police Department, Clive Police Department, and the Iowa Department of Public Safety’s Division of Criminal Investigation.
Cleveland Man Sentenced to more than 39 Years for Selling Cocaine and Fentanyl that Caused an Overdose DeathRead the Press Release
CLEVELAND - U.S. Attorney Rebecca C. Lutzko announced that Willie Pratt, 35, of Cleveland, Ohio, was sentenced to 470 months in prison by U.S. District Judge John R. Adams after a jury earlier convicted Pratt of distributing cocaine and fentanyl that caused the death of a 42-year-old North Olmstead, Ohio resident.
According to court documents and trial testimony, on October 30, 2021, Pratt sold the victim cocaine and heroin, which was actually fentanyl. This transaction was witnessed by the victim’s friend. The victim consumed the narcotics which caused the victim’s death in Rocky River, Ohio. Authorities used the victim’s phone to identify and arrest Pratt through setting up a controlled purchase of the same narcotics. When Pratt was arrested, he had cocaine and fentanyl in his possession, as well a phone which the victim called to purchase narcotics from Pratt. In addition, Pratt was wearing a GPS ankle monitor, which confirmed that Pratt was at the location of the fatal distribution on October 30, 2021.
The investigation preceding the indictment was conducted by the Rocky River Police Department and DEA. This case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Payum Doroodian and Yasmine Makridis.
Cleveland Man Sentenced to 20 Years for Possession with Intent to Distribute Narcotics and Illegal Possession of FirearmsRead the Press Release
CLEVELAND - U.S. Attorney Rebecca C. Lutzko announced that David Powell, 67, of Cleveland, Ohio, was sentenced to 240 months in prison by U.S. District Judge Patricia A. Gaughan after earlier pleading guilty to possession with the intent to distribute fentanyl, cocaine, heroin, and methamphetamine, being a felon in possession of a firearm, and possession of firearms in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime.
According to court documents, on October 5, 2021, detectives executed multiple search warrants on residences associated with Powell, where they uncovered several kilograms of narcotics and firearms. Powell was incarcerated for a parole violation before returning to the community. Then on October 25, 2022, detectives executed another search warrant on Powell’s residence which resulted in the seizure of three kilograms of narcotics and a firearm. Powell has prior felony convictions, including a 1980 murder conviction in Cuyahoga County Common Pleas Court, which prohibited him from possession of a firearm.
The investigation preceding the indictment was conducted by the Southeast Area Law Enforcement Narcotics Task Force and the FBI. This case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Payum Doroodian.
Clayton Man Pleads Guilty to Drug and Firearms CrimesRead the Press Release
SYRACUSE, NEW YORK – Adam Cook, age 33, of Clayton, New York pled guilty yesterday to possession of cocaine with intent to distribute, possession of a firearm in connection with a federal drug trafficking crime, and manufacturing and transferring illegal “ghost gun” rifles, announced United States Attorney Carla B. Freedman, John B. DeVito, Special Agent in Charge of the New York Field Division of the United States Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF), and Kristyna Mills, Jefferson County District Attorney
As part of his guilty plea yesterday, Adam Cook admitted that he possessed 285 grams of cocaine for distribution that was recovered during a search warrant executed at his Clayton, New York residence in September 2020. He also admitted that he possessed a 12-gauge shotgun in connection with his drug trafficking crime. In pleading guilty, Cook also admitted to manufacturing and transferring illegally short-barreled unregistered .223 caliber “ghost guns.” The guilty pleas stemmed from an investigation conducted by the Metro-Jefferson Drug Task Force and ATF into drug and firearms trafficking in the Watertown, New York area.
Sentencing is scheduled April 2, 2023, in Syracuse, at which time Adam Cook faces up to 20-years in prison for his conviction for possession of cocaine with intent to distribute, a mandatory consecutive sentence of at least 5-years and up to life imprisonment for his conviction for possession of a firearm in connection with a drug trafficking crime, and up to 10-years imprisonment for making and transferring unregistered illegally short-barreled .223 caliber “ghost gun” rifles. He will also be sentenced to a term of at least 3-years of post-incarceration supervised release and may also be sentenced to fines of up to $1 million dollars. A defendant’s sentence is imposed by a judge based on the particular statute the defendant is charged with violating, the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other factors.
The case was investigated by the ATF and the Metro-Jefferson Drug Task Force, consisting of Special Agents from the U.S. Department of Homeland Security-Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), Detectives from the City of Watertown Police Department and the Jefferson County Sheriff’s Department, Investigators from the Jefferson County District Attorney’s Office, and U.S. Border Patrol Agents. Assistance was also provided by the City of Watertown Police Department, the Jefferson County Sheriff’s Department, and the Village of Clayton Police Department. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Richard Southwick.
This case was brought as part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program bringing together all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve to reduce violent crime and gun violence, and to make our neighborhoods safer for everyone. On May 26, 2021, the U.S. Department of Justice launched a violent crime reduction strategy strengthening PSN based on these core principles: fostering trust and legitimacy in our communities, supporting community-based organizations that help prevent violence from occurring in the first place, setting focused and strategic enforcement priorities, and measuring the results.
Charlotte Man Arrested for Possession of A Machinegun and Possession of A Firearm by A Felon Appears in Federal CourtRead the Press Release
CHARLOTTE, N.C. – Joshua Michael Jenkins, 20, of Charlotte, appeared in court today after he was arrested on federal charges for possession of a machinegun and possession of a firearm by a felon, announced Dena J. King, U.S. Attorney for the Western District of North Carolina. Jenkins was arrested on Thursday and his initial appearance was scheduled today before U.S. Magistrate Judge David C. Keesler. A grand jury returned a criminal indictment against Jenkins on November 14, 2023.
According to allegations in the indictment, on October 30, 2022, Jenkins possessed a machinegun, that being a Glock model 23, .40 caliber pistol, with an affixed machinegun conversion device, commonly referred to as a “Glock Switch.” The indictment further alleges that on July 26, 2022, Jenkins illegally possessed a Glock model 23, .40 caliber semiautomatic pistol, knowing he had previously been convicted of a crime punishable by a prison term exceeding one year.
Jenkins remains in federal custody. If convicted, he faces a maximum statutory penalty of 10 years in prison and a $250,000 fine for the charge of possession of a machinegun. The charge of possession of a firearm by a prohibited person carries a maximum penalty of 15 years in prison and a $250,000 fine.
The charges against Jenkins are allegations and the defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
In making today’s announcement, U.S. Attorney King thanked the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, the North Carolina Highway Patrol, the Charlotte Mecklenburg Police Department, and the Huntersville Police Department for their investigation of the case.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Regina Pack of the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Charlotte 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.
Central Ohio men plead guilty to 4 armed robberies of Postal carriers, face minimum of 20 years in prisonRead the Press Release
COLUMBUS, Ohio – Two Central Ohio men pleaded guilty in U.S. District Court today to four armed robberies of Postal carriers.
Theirno S. Bah, 20, of Columbus, was arrested in August 2023 after being charged with co-defendant Cameron D. Newton, 20, of Westerville. As part of Bah’s plea, the parties are recommending a sentence of 20 to 25 years in prison. Newton faces a minimum of 20 years and up to life in prison.
The two men are the latest of at least a dozen defendants charged in the Southern District of Ohio in 2022 and 2023 with crimes related to Postal robberies. For example, in Columbus, in August 2022, Brandon J. Campbell was sentenced to 78 months in prison for two previous armed Postal carrier robberies. Mahad S. Jama, Da’Mon D. May and Cody N. Beasley have been convicted of crimes for an April 2023 armed Postal robbery in Dublin.
According to Bah’s plea agreement, he used firearms and robbed Postal carriers of their U.S. Postal Service keys on four occasions between December 2022 and May 2023. Newton aided and abetted the aggravated robberies of mail and the use of a firearm during the crimes of violence.
Bah, who is also known as “Wopo” and “Wopoonese,” and Newton worked with others to steal service keys, which are then used to steal mail from USPS receptacles (a process known as “fishing”). Individuals then “cook” the mail by washing personal and business checks and other financial instruments to reflect new payees and new payment amounts. The defendants would then recruit third parties to deposit the newly washed checks in their own accounts and split the profit.
The alleged thefts occurred in Central Ohio on:
- Dec. 29, 2022
- Jan. 3, 2023 (two separate robberies on this date)
- May 11, 2023
Bah admitted to using a handgun to rob a Postal carrier in German Village on Dec. 29, 2022. Bah pointed the handgun at the victim’s stomach and demanded his vehicle and service keys. Newton, who was on probation and consequently wearing a GPS ankle monitor at the time, recruited two juveniles to assist with the robbery. Newton also arranged for Bah to use the handgun.
On Jan. 3, Bah pushed a Postal carrier into her mail truck while she was sorting mail in the back of the truck on East Columbus Street. He then pushed a gun into the victim’s side before stealing her keys. At this robbery, Newton provided surveillance from his vehicle nearby, using the cover of making DoorDash deliveries to evade his home confinement.
Later that day, Bah committed another armed Postal robbery, this time in Whitehall. Bah approached the victim and pushed the handgun into her stomach before stealing her personal car keys and the USPS service keys. Newton again provided surveillance in the vicinity. He also worked to arrange buyers for the stolen Postal keys.
On May 11, Bah robbed a Postal worker at the Post Office Retail Store on West Broad Street. Bah approached the victim while she was outside on a break. Bah asked the victim for her keys, and when she asked, “What keys?” he pistol-whipped her in the head with his handgun. Bah forcibly accompanied the victim into the post office to retrieve her service keys. Newton obtained another firearm for Bah to use during this robbery and picked up Bah and others near Goodale Park following the robbery. Newton then paid the robbers several hundred dollars via CashApp.
On May 18, law enforcement agents executed a search warrant at Newton’s residence and discovered $22,000 in cash, hundreds of washed and altered checks, two Postal keys and hundreds of pieces of stolen mail.
Congress sets minimum and maximum statutory sentences. Sentencing of the defendants will be determined by the Court based on the advisory sentencing guidelines and other statutory factors at future hearings.
Kenneth L. Parker, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Ohio; J. William Rivers, Special Agent in Charge, Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), Cincinnati Division; Lesley Allison, Inspector in Charge, U.S. Postal Inspection Service (USPIS); Columbus Police Chief Elaine Bryant; Westerville Police Chief Charles Chandler; and Whitehall Police Chief Mike Crispen announced the guilty pleas entered this afternoon before Chief U.S. District Judge Algenon L. Marbley. Assistant United States Attorney Noah R. Litton is representing the United States in this case.
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Cedar Rapids Man Who Produced Child Pornography Sentenced to over 15 Years in PrisonRead the Press Release
A Cedar Rapids man who sent gift cards to minors in exchange for sexually explicit videos from the minors was sentenced to more than 15 years in prison today.
Andrew Kyte, age 53, from Cedar Rapids, received the prison term after a June 22, 2023, guilty plea to one count of sexual exploitation of children.
Evidence established that from 2017 until 2019 defendant received depictions of minors engaged in sexually explicit conduct on two electronic devices. Defendant would send minors gift cards to encourage the minors to make sexually explicit videos and send those videos to him. Defendant also secretly recorded a minor through a hidden spy camera. Six minor victims were awarded restitution based on defendant’s criminal conduct.
Kyte was sentenced in Cedar Rapids by United States District Court Judge C.J. Williams. Kyte was sentenced to 240 months’ imprisonment. He was ordered to make $24,000 in restitution to six minor victims. He must also serve a 5-year term of supervised release after the prison term. There is no parole in the federal system.
Kyte is being held in the United States Marshal’s custody until he can be transported to a federal prison.
The case was prosecuted by former Assistant United States Attorney Elizabeth Dupuich and Assistant United States Attorney Matthew J. Cole and investigated by Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) and Iowa Division of Criminal Investigations.
Court file information at https://ecf.iand.uscourts.gov/cgi-bin/login.pl.
The case file number is 23-CR-4.
Follow us on Twitter @USAO_NDIA.
Casa Grande Drug Smuggler Sentenced to 10 Years for Smuggling Methamphetamine into the United StatesRead the Press Release
PHOENIX, Ariz. –Jesus Vega Perez, 22, of Casa Grande, was sentenced on Monday by United States District Judge Dominic W. Lanza to 10 years in prison, followed by five years of supervised release. Perez was convicted by a federal jury on January 19, 2023, of Possession with Intent to Distribute Methamphetamine and Importation of Methamphetamine.
On April 2, 2022, Perez drove a 2018 BMW sedan into the United States through the San Luis Port of Entry (POE) in San Luis, Arizona. At the POE, Customs and Border Protection officers discovered 30 packages hidden throughout the vehicle. The packages contained a white crystal-like substance that tested positive for methamphetamine. The combined weight of the packages was over 30 pounds. Perez presented, and the jury rejected, a duress defense at trial.
Homeland Security Investigations conducted the investigation in this case. The United States Attorney’s Office, District of Arizona, Phoenix, handled the prosecution.
CASE NUMBER: CR-22-00388-PHX-DWL
RELEASE NUMBER: 2023-190_Perez# # #
For more information on the U.S. Attorney’s Office, District of Arizona, visit http://www.justice.gov/usao/az/
Follow the U.S. Attorney’s Office, District of Arizona, on Twitter @USAO_AZ for the latest news.Carriere, Mississippi Man Sentenced to 17 Years in Prison for Possession with Intent to Distribute 56 Grams of MethamphetamineRead the Press Release
Gulfport, Miss. – A Carriere man was sentenced to 204 months in federal prison for possession with intent to distribute 56 grams of methamphetamine.
Calvin Deshun Vaughn, 48, was sentenced on November 30, 2023, in U.S. District Court in Gulfport.
According to court records, in 2015, an investigation began into a large-scale drug trafficking organization, located largely in Picayune, MS (Pearl River County). In 2019, Calvin Deshun Vaughn was identified as being part of the conspiracy. Federal agents used a confidential source to begin making purchases of methamphetamine from Vaughn. On January 30, 2019, a confidential source purchased 56 grams of 98% pure methamphetamine from Vaughn in Carriere, MS.
U.S. Attorney Todd W. Gee and Special Agent in Charge Brad L. Byerley of the Drug Enforcement Administration made the announcement.
The case was investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration and Homeland Security Investigations.
The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Erica Rose.
This case is part of an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) operation. 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.
Canadian Man Admits Cross-Country Crime SpreeRead the Press Release
ST. LOUIS – A man from Canada pleaded guilty Friday and admitted using sleight-of-hand and other ruses to steal more than $109,000 from retailers in at least 11 states during a nearly six-month crime spree.
As part of his guilty plea to wire fraud and interstate transportation of stolen property, Mohsen Akbari, 38, admitted entering the U.S. on March 1, 2023 from South Korea on a visitor visa. He then traveled to Missouri, Illinois and at least 11 other states, where he would target Walmart stores and other retailers. After making a small purchase, Akbari would use a ruse to trick store employees into handing over cash. Akbari sometimes claimed that he and his family collected $100 bills and would ask the cashier to show him those from the cash register so he could examine them. Akbari would then surreptitiously place some of the bills into his sleeve or pocket.
Locally, Akbari stole a total of $2,420 from a Walmart in St. Peters, Missouri on June 12, 2023, $6,900 from a Granite City, Illinois store on June 13, $420 from an O’Fallon, Missouri store on June 14 and $900 from a store in Warrenton, Missouri the same day. He stole $580 from a Walmart in Eureka, Missouri and $5,100 from an Arnold, Missouri Walmart on June 15.
Akbari was arrested Aug. 22, 2023 in Connecticut with $5,388 in U.S. currency and 150 Australian dollars derived from the scheme. Akbari admitted stealing a total of $109,452. Authorities seized $69,864 from two of Akbari’s bank accounts. Akbari also wired some money to Canada.
Akbari is scheduled to be sentenced March 1, 2024. The wire fraud charge carries a potential penalty of 20 years in prison, a $250,000 fine or both. The interstate transportation of stolen property charge is punishable by up to 10 years in prison and the same fine.
Homeland Security Investigations, the Eureka Police Department and the Arnold Police Department investigated the case. Assistant U.S. Attorney Kyle Bateman is prosecuting the case.
Cambria County Area Agency on Aging Agrees to Pay over $122,000 to Resolve False ClaimsRead the Press Release
PHILADELPHIA – United States Attorney Jacqueline C. Romero announced today that Cambria County Area Agency on Aging (CCAAA) has agreed to pay $122,461.53 to resolve claims arising from CCAAA’s administration of community service grants funded through AmeriCorps.
In 2016 and 2017, CCAAA administered an AmeriCorps Foster Grandparent Program (FGP) grant, which places seniors in school and community settings to serve alongside youth with exceptional needs. This program provides a small hourly stipend, based on the hours served, to the volunteers providing valuable community services to underserved children. AmeriCorps awards CCAAA grant funds to pay the stipends as well as some or all of the grantee’s administrative costs to operate the program.
From 2016 to 2017, CCAAA allegedly failed to properly administer the AmeriCorps grant by directing its FGP staff to double or triple volunteer hours on timesheets and thus pay inflated, unearned stipends to volunteers. Volunteers were also allegedly awarded “bonus” hours for service activities that they did not perform.
In addition, CCAAA allegedly charged unrelated, unsupported, and misallocated costs to the grant and inflated travel (mileage) costs attributable to grant funds. After receiving a complaint, CCAAA engaged its auditors to review the expenditures, and that review identified some of the above improper practices that diverted AmeriCorps funds. Nevertheless, CCAAA failed to timely notify AmeriCorps of the findings or return the misspent funds, as required.
“It is important for participants in federally funded programs to be transparent and honest about how those funds are used. When a grant recipient misuses funds, the beneficiaries in need, such as underserved youth here, are deprived of the opportunities those funds are meant to provide,” said U.S. Attorney Romero.
“CCAAA’s decision to use its grant to pay Foster Grandparent volunteers for hours that they did not serve deprived the community of services intended for its benefit. The non-profit’s inability to account for federal funds violated the trust that the public places in AmeriCorps Seniors grantees,” said Stephen Ravas, AmeriCorps’ Acting Inspector General. “We thank the U.S. Attorney’s Office for its partnership in protecting the integrity of national service.”
This investigation was conducted jointly by the United States Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania and AmeriCorps’ Office of Inspector General. Assistant United States Attorneys Anthony St. Joseph and Paul W. Kaufman handled the investigation and settlement.
The claims resolved by the settlement are allegations only and there has been no determination of liability.
California Men Sentenced for Conspiracy to Possess with Intent to Distribute 54 Grams of Fentanyl and 206 Grams of Fentanyl AnalogueRead the Press Release
Gulfport, Miss. – Two Irvine, California men were sentenced to federal prison for conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute fentanyl.
David Quinonez, 23, was sentenced to 87 months in prison, and Aaron Torres, 24, was sentenced to 64 months in prison.
According to court records, in March of 2022, law enforcement agents were made aware that David Quinonez was sending pills containing fentanyl to the Southern District of Mississippi. Undercover agents began communicating with Quinonez and were then able to determine that Aaron Torres was Quinonez’s source of supply. The agents arranged to purchase fentanyl pills from Quinonez in California. When they met with Quinonez, Torres was also present in the car and the pair had pills containing fentanyl that they intended to sell. The overall conspiracy involved 54 grams of fentanyl and 206 grams of a fentanyl analogue.
U.S. Attorney Todd W. Gee of the Southern District of Mississippi and Special Agent in Charge Eric DeLaune of Homeland Security Investigations made the announcement.
The case was investigated by Homeland Security Investigations.
The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Erica Rose.
California Man Sentenced to 15 Years in Prison for Conspiracy to Possess with Intent to Distribute 1342 Grams of MethamphetamineRead the Press Release
Gulfport, Miss. – A Los Angeles, California man was sentenced to 180 months in federal prison for conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute 1342 grams of methamphetamine.
According to court records, on October 31, 2019, an anonymous tipster alerted the DEA to a PODS container being shipped by Shaun Patrick Fuller, 41, to Jackson County, Mississippi. The tipster said the PODS contained drugs that were being sent from California to Mississippi to be trafficked. A canine alerted on the container and a search warrant was obtained. The search revealed 1342 grams of meth that tested at 100% purity. A controlled delivery of the PODS container took place and it was determined that the container was sent to the Jackson County residence by Fuller.
U.S. Attorney Todd W. Gee and Special Agent in Charge Brad L. Byerley of the Drug Enforcement Administration made the announcement.
The case was investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration.
The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Erica Rose.
CEO of Charity for Veterans Charged with Federal Fraud CrimesRead the Press Release
RICHMOND, Va. – A federal grand jury returned an indictment earlier this month charging a Myrtle Beach, South Carolina man with devising and executing a scheme to defraud the public through his registration and operation of a charity that purported to provide services and support to homeless and destitute veterans.
According to the indictment, James W. Arehart, 45, was a Virginia resident, and employed full-time as a government contractor, when he registered a 501(c)(3) organization in April 2018 with the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) named “Providing Hope VA.” Arehart also registered this entity in South Carolina as a charitable organization, and thereafter established a social media and online presence for the charity—including a Facebook page and website. Arehart allegedly described Providing Hope to the public as a charity whose “direct mission” was to help homeless and destitute veterans by establishing the “Providing Hope Center,” which was to be a freestanding facility that offered housing, job training, and other support to veterans. Providing Hope’s fundraising method is alleged to have involved the advertisement and sale of raffle tickets for high-end vehicles. Arehart allegedly purchased these vehicles, then raffled them off in livestreamed videos on Facebook.
Between 2018 and August of 2021, it is alleged that Arehart’s raffle sales generated more than $9 million in proceeds—all of which flowed into and through Providing Hope’s bank account, over which Arehart had complete and sole control. Arehart was Providing Hope’s president and sole board member during this time period.
In seeking to induce the public to financially support Providing Hope, Arehart allegedly made numerous and repeated false statements to the public promoting his charity. These included alleged misrepresentations regarding Arehart’s compensation and salary from Providing Hope, misrepresentations about Providing Hope’s purportedly segregated and steadily growing “Building Fund”—it is alleged that no such fund exists— and alleged misrepresentations about the purportedly tax-deductible nature of Providing Hope’s raffle ticket purchases. Arehart also allegedly used the charity’s funds for his own benefit on numerous occasions, including paying for his pet’s veterinary bills, and miscategorized those and other expenditures in Providing Hope’s tax filing in 2019 with the IRS. When confronted by federal agents investigating his activities, Arehart is alleged to have made false statements consistent with the false claims he had advanced to the public in the months and years prior.
Arehart made his initial appearance in court on Wednesday.
Arehart is charged with mail fraud, wire fraud, money laundering, and making false statements to federal agents investigating his conduct. If convicted, Arehart faces a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison. Actual sentences for federal crimes are typically less than the maximum penalties. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after taking into account the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
Jessica D. Aber, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia, Stanley M. Meador, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI’s Richmond Field Office; and Daniel Brubaker, Inspector in Charge of the U.S. Postal Inspection Service’s New York Division, made the announcement.
Assistant U.S. Attorneys Thomas A. Garnett and Kashan K. Pathan are prosecuting the case.
A copy of this press release is located on the website of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Virginia. Related court documents and information are located on the website of the District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia or on PACER by searching for Case No. 3:23cr154.
An indictment is merely an accusation. The defendant is presumed innocent until proven guilty.
Buffalo man sentenced for posting social media threat against local stores days after Tops shootingRead the Press Release
BUFFALO, N.Y.-U.S. Attorney Trini E. Ross announced today that Rolik Walker, 25, of Buffalo, NY, who was convicted of transmitting an interstate threat, was sentenced to a term of 3 years’ probation, by United States District Judge John L. Sinatra, Jr. One of the conditions of probation is that Walker must abide by the terms of an electronically monitored curfew for a period of one year.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Timothy C. Lynch, who handled the case, stated that on May 16, 2022, two days after the mass shooting at the Tops Market on Jefferson Avenue in Buffalo, Walker downloaded the IPVanish application onto his cell phone in order to mask his IP address. Walker, using IPVanish, then created a Twitter account with the handle @ConklinHero, and posted a threat about “targeting” several stores in the Western New York area and “Only looking to kill blacks.” Soon after the threat was posted, local, state, and federal law enforcement diverted resources to the stores to ensure the safety of the community, which resulted in one of the stores closing early. Although he attempted to conceal his IP address, the FBI linked the Twitter account to Walker’s residence in Buffalo.
The sentencing is the result of an investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, under the direction of Special Agent-in-Charge Matthew Miraglia and the Buffalo Police Department, under the direction of Commissioner Joseph Gramaglia.
- Baton Rouge Woman Sentenced to 48 Months in Federal Prison for Defrauding the PPP and EIDL Loan Programs and Laundering the Fraudulent Proceeds
Baltimore Man Sentenced to 19 Years in Federal Prison for His Role in the Robbery and Murder of a Drug DealerRead the Press Release
Baltimore, Maryland – U.S. District Judge Matthew J. Maddox sentenced Deron Johnson, a/k/a “DJ,” age 52, of Baltimore, Maryland, to 19 years in federal prison, followed by three years of supervised release, for conspiracy to commit a Hobbs Act robbery and for committing the robbery.
The sentence was announced by Erek L. Barron, United States Attorney for the District of Maryland; Acting Special Agent in Charge R. Joseph Rothrock of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Baltimore Field Office; and Commissioner Richard Worley of the Baltimore Police Department.
According to their plea agreements, on September 29, 2020, Johnson and co-defendants George Felds and Joseph Williams conspired to rob a 16-year-old of drugs and drug proceeds. Specifically, at approximately 4:24 a.m., Johnson and the victim pulled into the parking lot of a hotel in the 6500 block of Frankford Avenue in Baltimore, where Williams had been staying for several months, selling drugs under a fictitious name. Johnson was working as a “hack” driver and gave the victim a ride to the hotel on the ruse that the victim would be selling drugs to Williams and Fields.
As detailed in the plea agreements, Williams and Fields approached Johnson’s van and Fields held out money as though he was ready to make a purchase. Williams and Fields then began robbing the victim while Johnson walked to the rear of the van and smoked. Fields admitted that he pinned the victim down in the front passenger seat of the van and went through his pockets. The victim struggled, flailing his arms and legs. Williams admitted that he then pulled out a handgun and fired a single shot into the victim’s chest at close range. The victim stumbled away from the van and collapsed on the ground. Johnson, Williams, and Fields and then got into the van and Johnson drove away. A hotel surveillance camera captured the entire incident. The victim died later that day after being taken to the hospital. No drugs, money, or cell phone were recovered from the victim’s personal effects.
Later that morning, the conspirators returned to the hotel in Johnson’s van, while police were still processing the scene. Johnson, Williams, and Fields entered the hotel together. Police recognized the van from the hotel surveillance footage and towed the van and detained Johnson. A search warrant was executed on the van and law enforcement recovered a single bullet from the front row carpet. On October 1, 2020, Johnson’s phone was searched and was found to contain evidence of the plan to rob the victim, including: text messages between Johnson and Williams; a record of phone calls between Johnson and the victim; several calls exchanged between Johnson and phone numbers used by Williams in the hours before and after the murder; a photograph of Johnson with Williams and Fields; and Fields’ contact information was in Johnson’s contacts.
A cell phone seized from Williams at the time of his arrest revealed that Williams had been staying at the hotel, where he was also dealing drugs and that he was in dire need of money. The phone also contained messages immediately following the murder in which Williams made plans to dispose of the murder weapon and directed another individual to destroy evidence.
Co-defendants Joseph Williams, a/k/a “Blue,” age 33, and George Fields, a/k/a “Chin,” age 49, both of Baltimore, pleaded guilty to their roles in the conspiracy and were sentenced to 26 years and 25 years in federal prison, respectively.
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.
United States Attorney Erek L. Barron commended the FBI and the Baltimore Police Department for their work in the investigation. Mr. Barron thanked Assistant U.S. Attorney Kim Hagan, 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/project-safe-neighborhoods-psn and https://www.justice.gov/usao-md/community-outreach.
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Attorney General Merrick B. Garland Statement on the Passing of Justice Sandra Day O’ConnorRead the Press Release
The Justice Department issued the following statement from Attorney General Merrick B. Garland following the passing of Justice Sandra Day O’Connor:
“I was saddened to learn of the passing of my friend, Justice Sandra Day O’Connor.
“Justice O’Connor was a person of outstanding judgment, integrity, and intellect, and a jurist of great common sense, practicality, and vision. As a Justice, she insisted on focusing on how the law and the Court’s decisions would affect people in their everyday lives. Her pathbreaking career was marked not only by her own incredible achievements, but by the way in which those achievements created space for so many others who, like her, were not represented in the legal community.
“She will be remembered by generations to come, both for her historic achievement of becoming the first woman to sit on the Supreme Court and for her many contributions to the law as a Justice.
“For those of us fortunate to have known her, she will also be remembered for her infectious wit, her unfailing kindness, and her devotion to her loved ones.
“My thoughts are with all those who loved and admired Justice O’Connor. I join them in honoring her extraordinary legacy.”
Armed Gunmen Sentenced for Attempted Carjacking in GreenvilleRead the Press Release
WILMINGTON, N.C. – Two Greenville men were each sentenced to 92 months in prison for an attempted carjacking. On August 23, 2023, Alterrik Laquan Parker aka “Al-Terrick Parker” and Gabriel Zachary Harris, both age 19, pled guilty to the charges. Previously, a third accomplice, a juvenile, was sentenced in Pitt County Superior to 80 to 108 months for attempted robbery with a dangerous weapon and 16 to 29 months custody, consecutive, for possession of a weapon of mass destruction.
“According to the Federal Bureau of Investigation, carjackings increased more than 8 percent in 2022 and nine out of ten cases involve the use of a weapon,” said U.S. Attorney Michael Easley. “And, just like this case, we are seeing more cases of carjackings that involve juveniles. Carjackers in Eastern North Carolina should be on notice that we are working with our state and local partners to investigate and prosecute these cases to hold all involved in the crime – regardless of age – accountable.”
"I am happy that we have been able to help bring closure to this investigation and for the victim. The men and women of the Greenville Police Department work tirelessly to investigate crimes that occur in our city. We strive to provide the highest service possible to those who suffer at the hands of those wishing to do harm. Violence of this kind is not tolerable, and it goes without saying that anyone committing these offenses will be held accountable to the highest level," said Greenville Police Department Chief, Ted Sauls.
According to court documents and other information presented in court, on February 23, 2023, Parker and a juvenile accomplice, wearing ski masks and armed with handguns, approached a store patron as he left an ABC store in Greenville and got into his vehicle. Parker and his accomplice told the victim, “give us everything or we’ll kill you,” while pointing their firearms at the victim. The victim exited the vehicle and dropped his phone and wallet in the parking lot. At that time, Harris approached the scene and retrieved the victim’s items from the ground and then tried to drive away in the victim’s vehicle but was unable to start the car because the key fob was still in the victim’s pocket, outside the car. The victim offered to let the three carjackers have the car in exchange for his wallet and phone. The situation escalated and multiple shots were fired at the victim by Parker and the juvenile. The victim, who was armed with a firearm, returned fire on the three assailants, striking Parker. The three assailants fled the scene, and the victim retrieved his belongings and called authorities. Responding officers from the Greenville Police Department were able to locate the suspects fleeing in a Kia. Following a high-speed chase, all three assailants were arrested, and a search of the vehicle resulted in the recovery of a 9mm handgun, multiple shell casings, and approximately three ounces of marijuana.
Michael Easley, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of North Carolina made the announcement after sentencing by Chief U.S. District Judge Richard E. Myers II. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and Greenville Police Department investigated the case and Assistant U.S. Attorney Phil Aubart prosecuted the case.
Related court documents and information can be found on the website of the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of North Carolina or on PACER by searching for Case No. 4:23-CR-00030-M-RN.
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Area Man Charged in Federal Court for Overdose Death of Portland 15-Year-OldRead the Press Release
PORTLAND, Ore.—A local man is facing federal charges today for distributing counterfeit Oxycodone pills containing fentanyl that caused the overdose death of a Portland teenager.
Nasir Overton, 20, a resident of Portland, has been charged by criminal complaint with one count each of conspiring to distribute and possess with intent to distribute fentanyl, resulting in death, and distributing and possessing with intent to distribute fentanyl, resulting in death.
According to court documents, on September 20, 2023, a detective from the Portland Police Bureau (PPB) responded to a local hospital after receiving a report of a 15-year-old who had fatally overdosed on fentanyl. The detective learned that the day prior, the teenager had ingested a single counterfeit Oxycodone pill containing fentanyl and overdosed. The teenager was pronounced dead four days later. Further investigation revealed that the teen received the fatal pill from a friend who had purchased two pills from Overton, who went by the alias “Noni.”
Overton was arrested Thursday without incident in Portland and made his first appearance in federal court today before a U.S. Magistrate Judge. He was ordered detained pending further court proceedings.
If convicted, Overton faces a maximum sentence of life in federal prison.
This case was investigated by Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), PPB, and the Oregon-Idaho High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area (HIDTA) Interdiction Task Force (HIT). It is being prosecuted by Scott M. Kerin, Assistant U.S. Attorney for the District of Oregon.
A criminal complaint is only an accusation of a crime, and a defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
Ardmore Resident Sentenced for Felony Assault and Federal Firearms OffenseRead the Press Release
MUSKOGEE, OKLAHOMA – The United States Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Oklahoma announced that Jeremy Kurt Lewis, Jr., age 26, of Ardmore, Oklahoma, was sentenced to concurrent terms of 108 months in prison for assault with a dangerous weapon and 108 months in prison for possessing a firearm after a felony conviction.
The charges arose from investigations by the Chickasaw Nation Lighthorse Police, the Ada Police Department, and the Federal Bureau of Investigation.
On October 12, 2022, Lewis pleaded guilty to the charges. According to investigators, on May 6, 2021, Lewis beat the victim with his hands and a belt and obstructed the victim’s airway with a rag. While investigating the assault, officers found Lewis, a convicted felon, in possession of a firearm.
While in custody for the May 6th assault, Lewis assaulted a jail officer during a failed escape attempt. Lewis subsequently pleaded guilty to one count of assault with intent to commit a felony in that separate case and was sentenced to 63 months imprisonment. The terms of imprisonment in the separate cases will be served consecutively.
The crimes occurred in Pontotoc County, within the boundaries of the Chickasaw Nation Reservation, in the Eastern District of Oklahoma.
The Honorable Bernard M. Jones, II, U.S. District Judge in the United States District Court for the Western District of Oklahoma, sitting by assignment, presided over the hearings in Oklahoma City. Lewis will remain in custody of the U.S. Marshal pending transportation to a designated United States Bureau of Prisons facility to serve a non-paroleable sentence of incarceration.
Assistant United States Attorney Kevin Gross represented the United States at the sentencing.
Ardmore Resident Sentenced for Felony AssaultRead the Press Release
MUSKOGEE, OKLAHOMA – The United States Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Oklahoma announced that Jeremy Kurt Lewis, Jr., age 26, of Ardmore, Oklahoma, was sentenced to 63 months in prison for assault with intent to commit a felony. This sentence will run consecutively to a separate sentence of 108 months for felony assault and a firearm offense imposed in another case.
The charge arose from investigations by the Murray County Sheriff’s Office, the Sulphur Police Department, the Chickasaw Nation Lighthorse Police Department, the National Park Service Rangers, and the Federal Bureau of Investigation.
On October 12, 2022, Lewis pleaded guilty to one count of assault with intent to commit a felony. According to investigators, on May 29, 2021, while in custody for an unrelated felony assault and federal firearm offense, Lewis assaulted a jail officer during a failed escape attempt.
Lewis subsequently pleaded guilty to the prior felony assault and federal firearm offense and has since been sentenced in that case. The terms of imprisonment in the separate cases will be served consecutively.
The crime occurred in Murray County, within the boundaries of the Chickasaw Nation Reservation, in the Eastern District of Oklahoma.
The Honorable Bernard M. Jones, II, U.S. District Judge in the United States District Court for the Western District of Oklahoma, sitting by assignment, presided over the hearings in Oklahoma City. Lewis will remain in custody of the U.S. Marshal pending transportation to a designated United States Bureau of Prisons facility to serve a non-paroleable sentence of incarceration.
Assistant United States Attorney Kevin Gross represented the United States at the sentencing.
Amarillo Man Sentenced to 20 Years for Fentanyl DistributionRead the Press Release
A violent Amarillo fentanyl distributor has been sentenced to 20 years in federal prison, announced U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of Texas Leigha Simonton.
Johnny Evrick Johnson, Jr., 30, was indicted in December 2022 and pleaded guilty in June 2023 to distribution and possession with intent to distribute fentanyl. Johnson was sentenced Thursday by U.S. District Judge Matthew J. Kacsmaryk to 240 months in federal prison, an upward variance. At sentencing, the court discussed Johnson’s use of multiple “trap houses” and the fact that Johnson provided several of his coconspirators with firearms to engage in drug trafficking and other violent acts, including robberies. The court also discussed evidence that linked Johnson to two armed robberies that occurred in July 2019.
According to court documents, on June 8, 2022, Johnson agreed to sell an undercover officer 100 fentanyl pills. On June 10, 2022, Johnson meet with the undercover officer in a parking lot and distributed the fentanyl pills. This quantity of fentanyl is only consistent with distribution.
The Federal Bureau of Investigation conducted the investigation with assistance from the Drug Enforcement Administration, Amarillo Police Department, and several state and local partners. Assistant U.S. Attorney Sean Long prosecuted the case.
Airline Employee and Passenger Sentenced on Cocaine ConvictionRead the Press Release
St. Thomas, VI – United States Attorney Delia L. Smith announced today that Ahkoy Smith 25, and Shakari Francis, 27, both of St. Thomas, were sentenced by Chief District Judge Robert A. Molloy to 20 months incarceration on their convictions of Possession with Intent to Distribute a Controlled Substance.
According to court documents, on January 11, 2023, Customs and Border Protection officers observed Frances, a Cape Air employee, on an airport surveillance camera entering the men’s restroom in the departure terminal. Officers approach Francis who admitted that he was paid $2,000.00 to deliver two bricks of cocaine to Smith in the restroom. Officers later established a passenger screening station at the Spirit Airlines departure gate at the Cyril E. King Airport. As the officers approached Smith, he ran unto the active runway to escape, but was immediately apprehended. Smith was found in possession of a red “Jordan” backpack containing two bricks of cocaine.
This case was investigated by Customs and Border Protection and Homeland Security Investigations and was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Everard Potter. This prosecution is part of an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF) investigation. OCEDTF identifies, disrupts, and dismantles the highest-level drug traffickers, money launderers, gangs, and transactional 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.
18 Individuals Charged in Superseding Indictment for Drug TraffickingRead the Press Release
SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico – A federal grand jury in the District of Puerto Rico returned a 60-count superseding indictment charging 18 individuals with importation of cocaine and marijuana into the District of Puerto Rico and continental United States, and money laundering. The investigation is still ongoing. Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) and the U.S. Postal Inspection Service are in charge of the investigation, with the collaboration of the Puerto Rico Police Bureau (PRPB), U.S. Postal Service Office of the Inspector General, the Drug Enforcement Administration, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, Customs and Border Protection, CBP Air and Marine Operations, the U.S. Marshal Service, the Puerto Rico Treasury Department, and the Barceloneta Police Department. To date, law enforcement has seized over six million dollars in U.S. currency and assets, approximately ten firearms, and over two thousand kilograms of narcotics.
“Today’s announcement is a testament to the collaborative efforts of all our partners who work to dismantle these dangerous drug trafficking and money laundering organizations and stop these criminals from harming our communities,” said United States Attorney W. Stephen Muldrow.
“The leader of this organization shows no respect for authorities, continuing operations from behind bars,” said Rebecca González-Ramos, Special Agent in Charge of Homeland Security Investigations. “Today we dismantled his criminal empire, focusing on arresting all individuals involved and seizing millions of dollars in assets acquired with drug money.”
According to the superseding indictment, the defendants conspired to possess with intent to distribute cocaine and marijuana. The individuals charged in the superseding indictment are:
José Julio Rodríguez-Cumba, a.k.a. “Chambi/Chembi/Josué/Chambo/Patrón”
Bárbara Valentín-Rivera, a.k.a. “Barbara Paola”
Luis Crespo-Cumba, a.k.a. “La L”
Luis Roberto Alvarado-Reyes, a.k.a. “El Viejo”
Ricardo Lopez-Ramos, a.k.a. “Ricky”
Héctor L. Derkes, a.k.a. “El Venezolano”
William J. Pantoja-Nieves, a.k.a. “W”
Luis J. Hernández-Cruz, a.k.a. “Tampa Pana”
Edwin Daniel Gonzalez-Reyes, a.k.a. “Cotto” and “Coto”
Fernando Cortes-Flores, a.k.a. “La Bruja”
Emiliano Feliciano-Hernández
Luis Héctor Adames-Nieves, a.k.a. “Monki”
Ángel Xavier Pérez-Olivencia, a.k.a. “Chavy”
Niurka A. Rodríguez-Cumba, a.k.a. “Adela”
Marta D. Cardona-Cumba
Christian Prado
Luis Alberto Bourdon-Román, a.k.a. “El Negro Capi Bueno”
Edwin Candelaria-Ramos
According to court documents, José Julio Rodríguez-Cumba, directed a large-scale drug trafficking organization that imported and distributed multi-hundred-kilogram shipments of cocaine from South America, into Puerto Rico and the continental United States. The organization also received multi-kilogram shipments of marijuana from the continental United States for distribution throughout Puerto Rico. The superseding indictment alleges that Rodríguez-Cumba’s drug trafficking organization is involved in the distribution and sale of over two thousand kilograms of cocaine and marijuana. Rodríguez-Cumba has been designated as a Regional Priority Organization Target (RPOT) under the Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF) program.
As the alleged principal or leader of a drug trafficking organization, Rodríguez-Cumba is also charged in Count Five with engaging in a Continuing Criminal Enterprise (CCE) whose purpose was to “smuggle, import, offload, purchase, distribute, and supply controlled substances within Puerto Rico and the continental United States all for significant financial gain and profit.” In furtherance of the enterprise, Rodríguez-Cumba, in concert with his associates, including co-conspirators identified in the superseding indictment, committed and caused to be committed, a continuing series of felony drug violations, including but not limited to:
(a) Conspiracy to import cocaine into the United States;
(b) Conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute controlled substances;
(c) Importation of cocaine into the United States;
(d) Attempted importation of cocaine into the United States; and
(e) Distribution and possession with intent to distribute controlled substances.
The defendants acted in different roles to further the goals of the drug trafficking conspiracy, to include: Principal Leaders, who were responsible for the day-to-day organizational and operational decision making in Puerto Rico; Cell Leaders, who were responsible for the day-to-day organizational and operational decision making of the cells located and operating in the continental United States; Money Launderers, who were responsible for conducting financial transactions with the goal of legitimizing and disguising millions of dollars in narcotics proceeds generated by the organization; Transporters: who were responsible for the transportation of the narcotics from South America into Puerto Rico, and subsequently into the continental United States; and Enforcers or Hitmen, who were responsible for protecting and securing the assets and members of the organization from rival drug trafficking organization to include committing acts of violence on behalf of the organization. Seven defendants are also charged, in Count Ten, with possession of firearms in furtherance of drug trafficking crimes.
The superseding indictment also charges the defendants with several counts of money laundering. José Julio Rodríguez-Cumba is alleged to have made efforts to disguise the narcotics proceeds as legitimate earnings by establishing several business entities and deposits for Lottery “winnings” from:
- September 24, 2020, he deposited two winnings for $35,000 and $40,000;
- December 16, 2020, he deposited winnings for $10,000;
- December 29, 2020, he deposited winnings for $15,000;
- February 26, 2121, he deposited winnings for $10,000;
- March 10, 2121, he deposited winnings for $50,050; and
- May 14, 2121, he deposited winnings for $250,000.
In total, in a span of eight months, José Julio Rodríguez-Cumba allegedly “won” the lottery seven times for a total of $375,050 in lottery winnings. As part of the manner and means of the money laundering conspiracy, Jose Julio Rodríguez-Cumba and his co-defendants opened personal and corporate bank accounts to manage the finances from both their businesses and its drug trafficking operation, structured both cash deposits and withdrawals to evade financial transaction reporting requirements, made transfers from personal bank accounts to corporate bank accounts and vice-versa to disguise the source and nature of the funds, and used mobile payment systems to transfer proceeds from person to person and avoid detection from authorities.
The superseding indictment also includes forfeiture allegations of more than six million dollars in assets including cash, real property, and personal property, as well as firearms.
If convicted, Rodríguez-Cumba faces a statutory mandatory penalty of life in prison pursuant to Title 21, U.S.C., Section 848(b). All co-defendants charged in the drug conspiracy (Count One) are facing a mandatory minimum of 10 years of imprisonment with a statutory maximum penalty of life in prison. The money laundering offenses carry a maximum sentence of twenty years of imprisonment. The firearms offense carries a consecutive penalty of five years to life imprisonment.
Assistant United States Attorney (AUSA) and Chief of the Transnational Organized Crime Section Max J. Pérez-Bouret; Deputy Chief of the Transnational Organized Crime Section, AUSA María L. Montañez-Concepción; and AUSAs Jorge L. Matos and Ryan R. McCabe are prosecuting the case.
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-coordinated, intelligence-driven, multi-agency approach that leverages the strengths of federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies against criminal networks.
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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Thursday 30 November 2023
Violent Aryan Brotherhood Member Sentenced to Seven Years in Federal Prison for Illegal Gun PossessionRead the Press Release
INDIANAPOLIS- Barry Willis, 49, of Anderson has been sentenced to seven years in federal prison after pleading guilty to illegally possessing a firearm as a convicted felon.
According to court documents, Willis was released from the Indiana Department of Corrections to parole on January 17, 2022. He failed to contact his parole agent, and a warrant for his arrest was issued on February 17, 2022. On April 6, 2022, law enforcement officers obtained information that Willis was dealing narcotics, was in possession of a firearm, and had pointed a firearm at a juvenile.
ATF agents went to Willis’ home in Anderson to execute search and arrest warrants. Willis saw investigators arrive and barricaded himself inside the attic. Willis refused to comply with commands to surrender and A SWAT team was called in to assist and deployed chemical agents and a K9 to force Willis outside. Willis continued to resist arrest, leading to a four-hour standoff before he was finally taken into custody.
Once inside the home, agents located a loaded, green 9mm pistol under the bed. Forensic examination located Willis’ DNA on the gun’s trigger guard, magazine, and a bullet. Willis is prohibited from possessing a firearm under federal law following each of his six previous felony convictions in Anderson and Muncie between 1994 and 2017, including for dealing methamphetamine, burglary, theft, resisting law enforcement, and intimidation. Willis has an Aryan Brotherhood tattoo and has been previously established as a member of the violent, white supremacist gang.
“For decades, this defendant has been a menace to the people of East-Central Indiana. Prior convictions and prison sentences have not seemed to alter his utter disrespect for the law and public safety,” said Zachary A. Myers, U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Indiana. “The sentence imposed here demonstrates the serious consequences awaiting repeat, violent felons who continue to illegally possess firearms. I commend the ATF, Indiana State Police, and our federal prosecutor for ensuring this career criminal spends years in federal prison and off our streets.”
The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and Indiana State Police investigated this case. The sentence was imposed by U.S. District Court Judge James R. Sweeney. Judge Sweeney also ordered that Willis be supervised by the U.S. Probation Office for three years following his release from federal prison.
U.S. Attorney Myers thanked Assistant United States Attorney Jeremy C. Fugate, who prosecuted this case.
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U.S. Attorney’s Office hosts United Against Hate meeting with the Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes on the Flathead Indian ReservationRead the Press Release
BILLINGS — The U.S. Attorney’s Office held a United Against Hate meeting Wednesday evening in Pablo, on the Flathead Indian Reservation, with members of the Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes community and federal, tribal and local law enforcement, U.S. Attorney Jesse Laslovich said.
United Against Hate is an initiative launched by the U.S. Department of Justice focused on improving the prevention of hate crimes and hate incidents by building relationships at the local level. Through this initiative, the Justice Department seeks to create and strengthen partnerships among law enforcement, community leaders and residents.
“Hate crimes and incidents create fear, divide our communities, and tragically, can turn violent. Through our United Against Hate initiative, the U.S. Justice Department is committed to fighting hate crimes and preventing violence by bringing people together to discuss how we can combat this behavior. Last month, the FBI released its statistics for 2022, which showed that less than 2 percent of all reported hate crimes were committed against an American Indian or Alaska Native, and that none of those was reported to have occurred in Montana—a first since 2015. We know that statistics tell only part of the story, and we know more hate crimes against American Indian or Alaska Natives are occurring and are going unreported or are underreported. Our hope is that by having meetings like this, we can stress the importance of identifying hate incidents and crimes and reporting them to law enforcement. If we can prove a person violently acted out due to their racist beliefs, we will seek to hold such conduct accountable by aggressively pursuing a hate crime prosecution. I thank our close partner, the Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes, for joining us in this important work,” U.S. Attorney Laslovich said.
“The Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes appreciate the United Against Hate initiative led in Montana by U.S. Attorney Jesse Laslovich. We know that many of these types of crimes against Indigenous peoples are underreported or go unreported altogether. With this type of community outreach, we want our community to feel empowered when they are faced with hate crimes, and that people have the tools and knowledge to engage with law enforcement to help stop these destructive instances,” CSKT Chairman Tom McDonald said.
The meeting with CSKT is one in a series of meetings the U.S. Attorney’s Office is holding throughout Montana and provided an opportunity for the tribal community to have a better understanding of hate crimes and hate incidents, how to report them to law enforcement and to learn about available resources. Approximately 30 persons attended the meeting, which was held at the Tribal Council Chambers in Pablo. Additional Justice Department information and resources about hate crimes are available at https://www.justice.gov/hatecrimes.
Speakers at the event included U.S. Attorney Laslovich and Assistant U.S. Attorney Ryan G. Weldon, from the Missoula Division Office. In addition, the event featured a Hate Crimes Panel Discussion and question and comment session that included U.S. Attorney Laslovich, FBI Special Agent Charles Sampson and CSKT Police Chief Craige Couture. CSKT Chairman Tom McDonald and CSKT Councilwoman Jennifer Finley provided welcoming and concluding remarks.
The District of Montana will be holding additional United Against Hate events in coming months in communities across the state.
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Two Men Sentenced for Gun Crimes Committed During the Robbery of a U.S. Postal Mail CarrierRead the Press Release
SALT LAKE CITY, Utah – Nathan Suaste, 20, of West Valley City, Utah, and Lorenzo Saavedra, 20 of Saratoga Springs, Utah, were each sentenced today after they pleaded guilty to using and carrying a firearm during and in relation to a crime of violence. Suaste was sentenced to 60 months Saavedra was sentenced to 84 months. A third defendant, Exodus Matua, is scheduled to be sentenced in March 2024.
According to court documents, and admissions made during their change of plea hearing, in August 2022, Suaste, Saavedra, and Matua targeted a U.S. Postal Mail Carrier with the intent to threaten and steal his arrow key. An arrow key is a Postal Service key used by USPS employees who deliver and pick up mail from mail receptacles. Suaste was the driving force behind the robbery and recruited Saavedra and Matua to participate. Saavedra, armed with a firearm provided by Suaste, confronted and pulled the mail carrier out of his mail truck. While detaching his arrow key, Matua, who was also armed with a firearm, punched the mail carrier in the face and pointed his firearm at the mail carrier. Suaste, Saavedra, and Matua intended to use the stolen arrow key to open mail receptacles, steal mail belonging to third parties, and use the contents of the stolen mail – including checks and other financial instruments – to obtain money under false and fraudulent pretenses.
Matua will be sentenced March 18, 2024, at 11:30 a.m. in courtroom 7.2 before a U.S. District Court Judge at the Orrin G. Hatch United States District Courthouse in downtown Salt Lake City. See prior news release here.
“Mail carriers should never be worried about being held at gunpoint,” said U.S. Attorney Trina A. Higgins of the District of Utah. “We will continue to work with our law enforcement partners to identify and prosecute people who harm public servants. We will use every resource available to protect the United States mail system, its critical workforce, and the community.”
“The U.S. Postal Inspection Service takes any acts of violence against our employees very seriously. U.S. Postal Inspectors relentlessly investigated this robbery until all responsible parties were identified and brought to justice. Attacks against our dedicated public servants will not be tolerated,” stated Dominique Giroux, Acting Inspector in Charge of the USPIS Phoenix Division.
The case was investigated by the United States Postal Inspection Service (USPIS), with assistance from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF), Saratoga Police Department, Salt Lake City Police Department, and the Utah County Major Crimes Task Force.
Assistant United States Attorney Mark Y. Hirata of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Utah prosecuted the case.
This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program bringing together all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve to reduce violent crime and gun violence, and to make our neighborhoods safer for everyone. On May 26, 2021, the Department launched a violent crime reduction strategy strengthening PSN based on these core principles: fostering trust and legitimacy in our communities, supporting community-based organizations that help prevent violence from occurring in the first place, setting focused and strategic enforcement priorities, and measuring the results.
Twenty-six charged in Eastern Panhandle drug trafficking indictmentRead the Press Release
MARTINSBURG, WEST VIRGINIA – Twenty-six people have been indicted by a federal grand jury for the distribution of methamphetamine, fentanyl, and cocaine in the Eastern Panhandle of West Virginia, according to United States Attorney William Ihlenfeld.
Individuals from Pennsylvania, Virginia, and West Virginia were charged with drug trafficking in an indictment unsealed today. According to court documents, Dorian Scott Burks, also known as “Cash,” age 28, of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, supplied methamphetamine to Andrew Ross Hose, age 54, of Berkeley Springs, West Virginia. Hose and others redistributed methamphetamine, as well as with fentanyl and cocaine, in Hampshire, Morgan, and Berkeley Counties. During the investigation, officers seized drugs, firearms, and United States currency.
“The supply of drugs from Pittsburgh to the Eastern Panhandle has been disrupted thanks to the excellent work of the Potomac Highlands Drug Task Force,” said U.S. Attorney Ihlenfeld. “Law enforcement will continue to use every tool available to pursue and to prosecute out-of-town dealers who operate for profit in West Virginia.”
Assistant U.S. Attorney Lara Omps-Botteicher is prosecuting the case on behalf of the government.
The Potomac Highlands Drug Task Force consists of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Drug Enforcement Administration, the West Virginia State Police, the Hampshire County Sheriff’s Office, the Mineral County Sheriff’s Office, the Hardy County Sheriff’s Office, the Grant County Sheriff’s Office, and the Keyser Police Department. The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives; the Berkeley County and Hampshire County Prosecuting Attorney’s Offices assisted.
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.
An indictment is merely an allegation, and each defendant is presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
List of defendants: www.justice.gov/usao-ndwv/case-document/list-defendants-us-v-hose-et-al
Tulsa, Oklahoma Man Sentenced to 54 Months for $7 Million COVID-19 Testing FraudRead the Press Release
A Tulsa, Oklahoma man who submitted fraudulent insurance claims for COVID-19 testing, resulting in a more than $7 million loss to insurers was sentenced Wednesday to 54 months in federal prison, announced U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of Texas Leigha Simonton.
William Paul Gray, 50, was charged via criminal information in March and pleaded guilty to Conspiracy to Commit Health Care Fraud. He was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Brantley Starr. Mr. Gray was also ordered to pay over $7 million dollars in restitution.
According to plea papers, Mr. Gray admitted that he and his coconspirators accessed private patient information – including names, dates of birth, and insurance subscriber numbers – by accessing confidential electronic medical records to obtain large amounts of patient information at once.
They then used the patient information to submit claims to insurance providers – including Blue Cross Blue Shield, Cigna, United Healthcare, Aetna, Humana, and Molina Health Care – for COVID-19 testing that was never performed. (The patients had not requested COVID-19 testing, nor were they aware their information was being used to submit claims.)
Mr. Gray admitted that the “labs” at which the coconspirators claimed the testing occurred, including TC Diagnostics, ME Diagnostics, and PHR Diagnostics, were, in fact, shell entities that never operated as labs. Collectively, these three entities submitted approximately $30 million in claims and were paid more than $7 million in reimbursements for fake testing.
Also charged in the scheme are Connie Jo Clampitt, 52, Terrance Barnard, 40, and Don Hogg, 37. Clampitt, Hogg and Bernard have each pled guilty and are pending sentencing.
The Dallas Regional Office of the United States Department of Labor – Employee Benefits Security Administration, the Dallas Office of the Department of Labor – Office of Inspector General, the Texas Department of Insurance Fraud Unit's Fort Worth Field Office, and the Federal Bureau of Investigation's Dallas Field Office conducted the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney Renee Hunter is prosecuted the case. Assistant U.S. Attorney Dimitri Rocha handled the forfeiture.
For more information about the Justice Department’s response to wrongdoing connected to the COVID-19 pandemic, visit https://www.justice.gov/coronavirus.
Three-Time Convicted Felon Sentenced to More Than Six Years in Prison for Possessing A FirearmRead the Press Release
Orlando, Florida – U.S. District Judge Wendy Berger has sentenced Allen Lee Glover (25, Orlando) to six years and five months in federal prison for possessing a loaded firearm as a convicted felon. The court also ordered Glover to forfeit a Glock GMBH Model 19 pistol and associated 9mm ammunition traceable to the offense. Glover had pleaded guilty on August 4, 2023.
According to court documents, on July 6, 2022, officers with the Orlando Police Department attempted to initiate a traffic stop on a vehicle driven by Glover. At the time, Glover was on felony probation and had active felony warrants from Polk County. Glover immediately fled at a high rate of speed from the traffic stop. Later, officers observed the same vehicle pulling into the driveway of a residence. When officers drove towards the vehicle, Glover exited the vehicle, fled on foot, and threw a black handgun over the fence of the residence. Glover was taken into custody. The officers recovered a loaded Glock 9mm firearm from the backyard of the residence.
At the time of this offense, Glover had previously been convicted in state court in Florida for multiple felonies, including grand theft, conspiracy to commit burglary, and burglary. As a convicted felon, he is prohibited from possessing a firearm or ammunition under federal law.
This case was investigated by Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, and the Orlando Police Department. It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Noah P. Dorman.
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.
Three Montanans admit roles in trafficking fentanyl in Missoula, HelenaRead the Press Release
MISSOULA—Three Montanans accused of trafficking fentanyl in the Missoula and Helena communities admitted to charges today, U.S. Attorney Jesse Laslovich said.
Nikolas Loren Pellant, 34, and Lynsi Noel Barnes, 32, both of Missoula, and Beau James Breneman, 44, of Helena, each pleaded guilty to possession with intent to distribute controlled substances. The defendants face a mandatory minimum of five years to 40 years in prison, a $5 million fine and at least three years of supervised release.
U.S. Magistrate Judge Kathleen L. DeSoto presided. Sentencing for Barnes and Breneman was set for March 28, 2024, while sentencing for Pellant was set for March 29, 2024 before U.S. District Judge Donald W. Molloy. The court will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors. All the defendants were detained pending further proceedings.
The government alleged in court documents that in October 2022, federal agents intercepted a package that contained more than 300 fentanyl pills and was addressed to Pellant. Officers arrested Pellant when he accepted the package in a controlled delivery. The investigation determined that Pellant and his girlfriend, Barnes, had been selling fentanyl in the Missoula are for several months and that they acquired the drug through the mail and by making weekly trips to Spokane, Washington. The government further alleged that in January, the Montana Highway Patrol stopped Barnes as she was returning from one such trip and seized more than 450 fentanyl pills and other evidence of drug distribution from her vehicle.
In addition, the government alleged that in January 2022, law enforcement received reports of a rash of fentanyl overdoses in Lewis and Clark County. An investigation determined that co-defendant Breneman was distributing heroin laced with fentanyl and that he had warned at least one customer to use small and diluted quantities of the drug because it was dangerous. Breneman admitted to distributing heroin laced with fentanyl. On May 31, Breneman and Barnes were passengers in a vehicle that was stopped in Shoshone County, Idaho. Law enforcement searched the car and found more than 300 fentanyl pills. Officers also found a plastic bag containing more fentanyl pills concealed on Breneman’s person.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Karla E. Painter is prosecuting the case. The Missouri River Drug Task Force, Drug Enforcement Administration, Homeland Security Investigations, U.S. Postal Service, Montana Highway Patrol, Montana Division of Criminal Investigation, Missoula County Sheriff’s Office and Shoshone County (Idaho) Sheriff’s Office conducted the investigation.
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Tennessee Man Sentenced for Failure to Pay Child SupportRead the Press Release
CHARLESTON, W.Va. – Jancent M. Powell, 39, of Tullahoma, Tennessee, was sentenced today to five years of federal probation and ordered to pay $44,628.39 in restitution for failure to pay child support obligations.
According to court documents and statements made in court, on November 18, 2013, the Family Court of Wood County, West Virginia, ordered Powell to pay $361 a month in child support for his twin daughters. Powell admitted that he made only six of the monthly payments, all in 2014.
United States Attorney Will Thompson made the announcement and commended the investigative work of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services-Office of Inspector General (DHHS-OIG) and the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI).
United States District Judge Joseph R. Goodwin imposed the sentence. Assistant United States Attorney Jonathan T. Storage prosecuted 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-100.
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Sugar Land business owner imprisoned for nine-year fraud schemeRead the Press Release
HOUSTON – A 56-year-old business owner has been ordered to federal prison following his conviction of conspiring to commit mail fraud, announced U.S. Attorney Alamdar S. Hamdani.
Sudhakar Kalaga pleaded guilty March 6.
U.S. District Judge U.S. District Judge Lee Rosenthal has now ordered him to serve 24 months in federal prison to be immediately followed by one year of supervised release. He was also ordered to pay restitution of $10,406,219 although the court noted that the restitution had already been paid. At the hearing, the court heard additional testimony from a representative of the victim company that described the losses the company incurred and how it had caused employees at the company to lose their jobs. In handing down the sentence, the court stated that while Kalaga was very active in his community, he had taken an oath when he became a U.S. citizen to defend the Constitution and the laws of the United States and was a coward for going along with the fraud.
At the time of his plea, Kalaga admitted that from 2010 to 2019, he engaged in a bribery and bid rigging fraud scheme to secure construction and maintenance work contracts from a company with a manufacturing facility in Houston.
Kalaga admitted he submitted fake bids from non-existent construction companies to the victim company’s facilities manager. This was designed to make it appear his companies’ bids were the lowest. In return, Kalaga paid the facilities manager millions of dollars in kickbacks. Kalaga failed to disclose he was submitting falsified bids and paying kickbacks from the victim company’s own funds.
The victim company would not have paid Kalaga’s companies’ invoices had it known about the falsified bids or the kickback payments.
Kalaga was permitted to remain on bond and voluntarily surrender to a U.S. Bureau of Prisons facility to be determined in the near future.
The FBI conducted the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney Belinda Beek prosecuted the case.
Substitute teacher sentenced for extorting sexual images via SnapChatRead the Press Release
McALLEN, Texas – A 31-year-old Mission resident has been sent to federal prison for coercion and enticement of a minor, announced U.S. Attorney Alamdar S. Hamdani.
Edgar Aaron Hernandez pleaded guilty March 31.
U.S. District Judge Randy Crane has now sentenced Hernandez to 120 months in prison. The court also heard additional information today including that Hernandez admitted to requesting nude images from numerous minor victims via Snapchat and would engage in this conduct while at work. Hernandez also possessed over 1,000 additional images and videos of child pornography across various platforms. The Court also heard from victim impact statements detailing the lifelong effects of fear and shame victims of coercion feel. Hernandez was further ordered to pay $3,000 in restitution to a known victim and will serve 7 years of his life on supervised release following completion of his prison term. During that time, he will have to comply with numerous requirements designed to restrict his access to children and the internet. Hernandez will also be ordered to register as a sex offender.
“We leave our children with teachers on a daily basis because we trust them,” said Hamdani. “Hernandez breached that trust when he used his experience with children to abuse and exploit them. He extorted our most vulnerable to get what he wanted with no regard for their well-being or how his actions would affect them. But, thankfully, with this sentence, justice has forced this predator to exchange one piece of clothing for another; a teacher’s cape for an orange prison jumpsuit.”
“With the ever-increasing access criminals have to communication platforms, Homeland Security Investigation (HSI) must stay a step ahead of those who utilize the technology to exploit victims. The defendant in this case will serve the next 10 years in prison for his unfathomable acts,” said Special Agent in Charge Craig Larrabee, HSI San Antonio. “This sentencing sends a powerful message to those who would prey on the innocent and serves as a reminder that HSI will unceasingly pursue child predators.”
“Today’s sentencing is a reminder that the Secret Service is committed to investigating electronic crimes involving child exploitation,” said Resident Agent in Charge Brian Gibson, U.S. Secret Service - McAllen Resident Office. “The success in this case demonstrates the investigative capabilities of the Secret Service and the collaborative efforts with our law enforcement partners. Together we will continue pursing these bad actors and protect the nation’s most vulnerable population.”
Between April 1-4, 2022, a 13-year-old minor child reported she sent nude images via SnapChat to a man in Texas named Edgar. He claimed to be 17-years-old and threatened to disseminate them if she did not send him additional nude images.
Law enforcement identified the IP address and traced it to a residence associated with Hernandez in Mission.
On Dec. 5, 2022, authorities contacted Hernandez at Mission High School where he was employed as a substitute teacher. He admitted he believed the minor to be 13, soliciting sexually explicit images and videos via SnapChat and threatening the victim when she refused to send additional images and videos.
Hernandez further admitted to soliciting nude images and videos over the last two years from other minor children. If they refused, he threatened to expose them to their family and friends. Some of the minors told Hernandez they would commit suicide or harm themselves if he exposed them. Hernandez admitted that this did not bother him and would block the victim before seeking additional victims to coerce images from.
Law enforcement discovered approximately 1,000 videos and images of child exploitation materials on his Dropbox, Mega, and SnapChat accounts.
Hernandez will remain in custody pending transfer to a U.S. Bureau of Prisons facility to be determined in the near future.
U.S. Secret Service conducted the investigation with assistance from the Springfield, Illinois, Police Department and Homeland Security Investigations – Rio Grande Valley Child Exploitation Investigations Task force.
Assistant U.S. Attorneys Alexa D. Parcell and Cahal McColgan prosecuted the case, which was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood (PSC), a nationwide initiative the Department of Justice (DOJ) launched in May 2006 to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. U.S. Attorneys' Offices and the Criminal Division's Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section leads PSC, which marshals federal, state and local resources to locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who sexually exploit children and identifies and rescues victims. For more information about PSC, please visit DOJ’s PSC page. For more information about internet safety education, please visit the resources link on that page.
St. Louis Sex Offender Admits Seeking Child Pornography OnlineRead the Press Release
ST. LOUIS – A sex offender from St. Louis, Missouri on Thursday admitted seeking explicit images from teens online.
James W. Rankin, 47, pleaded guilty in U.S. District Court in St. Louis to one count of solicitation of child pornography and one count of transfer of obscene material. Rankin admitted communicating on an anonymous chat site with multiple individuals he believed to be underage and seeking explicit pictures from them.
In January of 2023, detectives from the San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Department in California were conducting an undercover investigation into internet-facilitated child exploitation when they received a message from Rankin. Using the screen name “Lonely_Nerd,” Rankin began communicating with someone he thought was a 14-year-old girl. After moving the conversation to the social media application Whisper, Rankin sent her a picture of his genitals, discussed going to California to pick her up and asked for sexually explicit pictures of her.
Rankin also admitted in his plea agreement that he possessed child pornography on his cell phone and that he’d engaged in conversations via Whisper with individuals who identified themselves as minors. In those conversations, Rankin sought more sexually explicit pictures.
Rankin was convicted of first-degree statutory rape of a minor under 14 in Greene County Circuit Court in 2021 and sentenced to five years in prison. He had been released on parole and was residing in a residential re-entry center at the time of his federal crimes. He was also convicted of endangering the welfare of a child and domestic assault in a 2017 Christian County, Missouri case after he engaged in sexual contact with a child under 17.
The solicitation of child pornography charge carries a penalty of at least 15 years in prison and a maximum of 40 years because Rankin is a prior offender. The transfer of obscene material charge carries a penalty of up to 10 years in prison. The U.S. Attorney’s office will ask for 20 years at Rankin’s sentencing, scheduled for March 5, 2024.
The San Bernardino Sheriff’s Department and the FBI investigated the case. Assistant U.S. Attorney Jillian Anderson is prosecuting the case.
This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice. Led by U.S. Attorneys’ Offices and the Department of Justice Criminal Division's Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state and local resources to better locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the Internet, as well as to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.justice.gov/psc.
St. Louis Man Who Struck Officer While Fleeing Sentenced to PrisonRead the Press Release
ST. LOUIS – A man from St. Louis, Missouri, who struck a St. Charles police officer while trying to flee was sentenced Thursday to 63 months in prison.
On July 11, 2022, officers from the St. Charles Police Department were called to a Waffle House and found Ameer Raff-Covington, now 32, passed out behind the wheel of a Mazda SUV. Officers had also been told that Raff-Covington had been involved in a dispute with a waitress earlier. Once awakened, Raff-Covington refused to get out of the SUV and provided a false date of birth and Social Security number to police. After being told he was under arrest, Raff-Covington put the SUV in reverse, striking an officer in the knee and pinning him between his car and another vehicle, according to Raff-Covington’s plea agreement. Raff-Covington also struck two vehicles and two Ameren electrical boxes. He stopped when officers held him at gunpoint. After Raff-Covington was removed from the vehicle, officers found a stolen Glock handgun between the driver’s seat and the center console.
Raff-Covington pleaded guilty in August to being a felon in possession of a firearm.
The St. Charles County Police Department and the St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department investigated the case. Assistant U.S. Attorney Cassandra Wiemken is prosecuting the case.
St. Louis County Man Who Altered and Deposited Stolen Checks Sentenced to PrisonRead the Press Release
ST. LOUIS – U.S. District Judge Rodney W. Sippel on Thursday sentenced a man who fraudulently deposited checks stolen from St. Louis area businesses to two years in prison.
Jacob Wolf, 35, of St. Louis County, pleaded guilty in August to a felony bank fraud charge and admitted hatching a scheme to defraud banks by acquiring and depositing checks stolen from the mailboxes of St. Louis area businesses. The names of the intended recipients on the stolen checks were removed and replaced. Wolf also obtained identification documents belonging to others and posed as those other people when trying to deposit checks. Wolf tried to fraudulently deposit checks totaling $84,557, but only successfully received $11,163.76, his plea agreement says.
The U.S. Secret Service investigated the case. Assistant U.S. Attorney Derek Wiseman prosecuted the case.
St. Charles County Man Admits Unlicensed Sales of FirearmsRead the Press Release
ST. LOUIS – A man from St. Charles County, Missouri on Thursday admitted selling firearms without a license, including over 30 that were recovered at or after crimes.
Harry Trueblood, 69, pleaded guilty in U.S. District Court in St. Louis to one count of being an unlicensed firearms dealer.
As part of his plea, Trueblood admitted selling firearms to multiple customers of at least 15 gun shows from January of 2021 through May of 2023 despite never having been licensed to deal in firearms and even after being warned that he was committing a crime. The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives began investigating Trueblood after multiple guns recovered in unrelated crimes were traced back to him as the original purchaser. Trueblood sold AR-15-type pistols and handguns to undercover ATF agents before the ATF on Feb. 1, 2023 sent him a cease and desist letter ordering him to stop dealing in firearms without a license. Trueblood continued to sell guns, his plea agreement says.
Agents found at least 250 bills of sale reflecting firearms sales and have traced at least 30 guns recovered in connection with crimes to Trueblood.
Trueblood is scheduled to be sentenced March 4, 2024.
The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives investigated the case. Assistant U.S. Attorney Jennifer Szczucinski is prosecuting the case.
Springfield Man Sentenced to 46 months in Prison for Bank RobberyRead the Press Release
Springfield, Ill. – A Springfield man, Javon Young, 25, of the 2000 block of Normandy Road, has been sentenced to 46 months imprisonment followed by three years of supervised release for Bank Robbery. Young will also have to pay over $5,000 in restitution to the victim bank.
At the sentencing hearing, U.S. District Court Judge Myerscough noted the robbery “terrified” the victims and she remarked on the emotional toll such crimes take on bank employees’ ability to feel safe at work. At the time Young committed the offense, he was already serving a term of supervised release for a previous charge of interference with commerce by threat or violence. Judge Myerscough revoked that term of supervision and sentenced Young to a consecutive 6-month term of imprisonment for his supervised release violations.
Young was indicted on January 19, 2022, he pled guilty on July 31, 2023, before U.S. Magistrate Judge Karen L. McNaught. Young has been in the custody of the U.S. Marshals Service since January 2022.
The statutory penalties for Bank Robbery are up to 20 years imprisonment, up to a $250,000 fine, and up to three years of supervised release.
The Springfield Police Department with assistance from the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Springfield Field Office investigated the case. Assistant U.S. Attorney Sarah E. Seberger represented the government in the prosecution.