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Thursday 28 September 2023
Dorchester Man Indicted for Illegal ReentryRead the Press Release
BOSTON – A Dorchester man was indicted today by a federal grand jury in Boston for unlawfully reentering the United States after deportation.
Tommy Raul Jimenez-Perez, 26, was charged with illegal reentry and will appear in U.S. District Court in Boston at a later date.
According to the indictment, Jimenez-Perez was removed on March 3, 2020. It is alleged that, sometime after his removal, Jimenez-Perez unlawfully reentered the United States.
The charge of illegal reentry provides for a sentence of up to 10 years in prison, three years of supervised release and a fine of $250,000. Sentences are imposed by a federal district court judge based upon the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and statutes which govern the determination of a sentence in a criminal case.
Acting United States Attorney Joshua S. Levy; Todd M. Lyons, Field Office Director, Boston, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Enforcement and Removal Operations; and Boston Police Commissioner Michael Cox made the announcement. Assistant U.S. Attorney Suzanne Sullivan Jacobus of the Major Crimes Unit is prosecuting the case.
The details contained in the indictment are allegations. The defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
Davenport Man Convicted of Producing, Distributing, and Possessing Child PornographyRead the Press Release
DAVENPORT, IA – A federal jury convicted a Davenport man yesterday for producing, distributing, and possessing child pornography.
According to public court documents and evidence presented at trial, David Michael Woods, 51, sexually abused two minor victims in his care and produced recordings of the abuse and other sexual images of the minor victims, which he sent to others.
Jason Richard Heider, 47, of Moline, Illinois, was also charged. In July 2022, Heider pled guilty to production and receipt of child pornography and admitted to his involvement in the abuse and production of child pornography of the minor victims.
United States Attorney Richard D. Westphal of the Southern District of Iowa made the announcement. The Davenport Police Department investigated 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 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 https://www.justice.gov/psc.
Cumberland County Man Charged with Producing and Distributing Child PornographyRead the Press Release
HARRISBURG - The United States Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Pennsylvania announced that James Sollenberger, age 54, of Cumberland County, Pennsylvania, was indicted by a federal grand jury with producing and distributing child pornography.
According to U.S. Attorney Gerard M. Karam, the indictment alleges that between March 5-17, 2017, in Cumberland County, Sollenberger enticed a minor to engage in sexually explicit conduct for the purpose of producing child pornography. It is further alleged that Sollenberger distributed child pornography on March 21, 2017.
This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by the United States Attorneys' Offices and the Criminal Division's Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who sexually exploit children, and to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.usdoj.gov/psc.
The investigation was conducted by the Department of Homeland Security. Assistant U.S. Attorney Christian Haugsby is prosecuting the case.
The maximum penalty under federal law for these offenses is up to 50 years’ imprisonment, a term of up to lifetime supervised release following imprisonment, and a fine. A sentence following a finding of guilt is imposed by the Judge after consideration of the applicable federal sentencing statutes and the Federal Sentencing Guidelines.
Indictments are only allegations. All persons charged are presumed to be innocent unless and until found guilty in court.
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County Water District Agrees to Pay over $1.5 Million to Resolve False Claims Act Allegations That It Knowingly Retained Overpayment of Federal and State Grant FundsRead the Press Release
SAN FRANCISCO – The Clearlake Oaks County Water District (District), located in Lake County, California, has agreed to pay approximately $1.6 million to resolve claims that it failed to repay federal and state grant funds that it received, but was not entitled to keep.
In February 2017, severe winter storms, flooding, and mudslides affected California counties statewide. In June, the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) declared a major disaster and allowed eligible entities, including public entities, to apply for assistance in the form of reimbursement for disaster-related expenses from FEMA and the California Governor’s Office of Emergency Services (Cal OES). One such applicant was the District, a county water district formed pursuant to the California Water Code.
The United States alleges that following the District’s application for disaster relief funds, the District received reimbursements from FEMA and Cal OES for expenses for which the District had already been reimbursed by its insurer California Joint Powers Insurance Authority (CJPIA). The United States alleges further that the District knew the funds it received from FEMA and Cal OES were an overpayment, but instead of returning those funds, retained the funds in violation of the False Claims Act and state law. The United States alleges that the District knowingly concealed the funds and made false statements to the United States and Cal OES material to its obligation to return the funds. These false statements included quarterly reports in which the District stated that it had not received excess funds and project closeout certifications in which the District claimed that it was entitled to the full dollar amount approved without deducting the amount it had already received from its insurer.
“FEMA disaster relief funds play a critical role in helping communities recover from natural disasters,” said U.S. Attorney Ismail J. Ramsey. “It is unacceptable for any entity, including a public entity, to divert funds from these programs through fraud and enrich itself at the expense of the American taxpayer. This Office will continue to pursue recipients of disaster relief funds that misused the program by retaining funds to which they were not entitled.”
Dr. Joseph V. Cuffari, Inspector General of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, said, “DHS OIG is grateful for our collaboration with our partners in the United States Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of California. Together, we ensured that more than $1.1 million are repaid to the United States. We will continue to aggressively investigate and support the prosecution of these kinds of fraudsters to ensure that appropriated relief funds are accounted for and used for the purpose Congress intended.”
The total amount of the settlement to be paid is $1,589,725.50, plus interest. Of that amount, the District will pay $1,192,294.12 to the United States and $397,431.38 to Cal OES.
The civil settlement includes the resolution of claims brought under the qui tam or whistleblower provisions of the False Claims Act by Nicole Mitchell, a former employee of the District. Under those provisions, a private party can file an action on behalf of the United States and receive a portion of any recovery. The qui tam case is captioned United States ex rel. Nicole Mitchell v. Clearlake Oaks County Water District, Case No. 1:20-cv-02388 (N.D. Cal.).
Assistant U.S. Attorney Savith Iyengar is handling this matter for the government, with assistance from Garland He. The investigation and settlement resulted from a coordinated effort by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of California and DHS-OIG.
The investigation and resolution of this matter illustrate the government’s emphasis on combating fraud in federal grants. One of the most powerful tools in this effort is the False Claims Act. Tips and complaints from all sources about potential fraud, waste, abuse, and mismanagement, can be reported to the Department of Homeland Security Office of Inspector General at www.oig.dhs.gov/hotline.
The claims resolved by the settlement are allegations only, and there has been no determination of liability.
Cohoes Man Sentenced to 135 Months on Drug and Obstruction ConvictionsRead the Press Release
ALBANY, NEW YORK – Andrew O’Connor, age 36, of Cohoes, New York, was sentenced today to 135 months in prison, to be followed by 5 years of supervised release, for trafficking methamphetamine in the Capital Region and obstructing of justice. United States Attorney Carla B. Freedman; Alfred A. Watson, Acting Special Agent in Charge of the Albany Field Office of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI); and Ketty Larco-Ward, Postal Inspector in Charge of the Boston Division of the U.S. Postal Inspection Service (USPIS), made the announcement.
As part of his guilty plea, O’Connor admitted that he distributed ounce quantities of methamphetamine in Cohoes in March, April, and June 2022, and had a shipment of over one pound of methamphetamine sent to him around June 15, 2022; investigators seized the package before it could reach O’Connor. O’Connor also admitted that after his arrest on federal charges, he contacted a co-conspirator to make arrangements to have the co-conspirator delete the information on several of O’Connor’s cell phones.
This case was investigated by USPIS and the FBI’s Capital District Safe Streets Gang Task Force, which includes FBI Special Agents and members of federal, state and local law enforcement agencies. Assistant U.S. Attorney Dustin C. Segovia prosecuted the case.
Chinese National Sentenced to 51 Months in Prison for Meth Trafficking on the Island of SaipanRead the Press Release
Saipan, CNMI – SHAWN N. ANDERSON, United States Attorney for the Districts of Guam and the Northern Mariana Islands (NMI), announced that the United States District Court for the NMI ordered 51 months imprisonment for Bing Li, age 41, a citizen of the People’s Republic of China (PRC), for Possession with Intent to Distribute Methamphetamine, in violation of 21 U.S.C. § 841(a)(1). The Court also ordered Li to serve three years of supervised release and pay a $100 special assessment fee. He was further ordered to report for deportation proceedings.
In January 2023, Bing Li received a package at the U.S. Post Office in Chalan Kanoa, Saipan. The package was addressed to Li and mailed by a sender in San Leandro, California. During an inspection of the package, Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands Customs and Biosecurity Officers discovered two plastic bags inside the package containing a total of 831.6 grams of methamphetamine with 99% purity levels. Upon questioning by agents of the Drug Enforcement Administration, Li admitted he agreed with others to receive and further distribute the methamphetamine inside the package for personal profit. In January 2023, the street value on Saipan of the seized methamphetamine was at least $332,000.
“This case demonstrates the continued targeting of mail parcels by law enforcement to interdict illicit drugs entering our jurisdictions,” stated United States Attorney Anderson. “The penalties for traffickers are significant and include removal from the United States for foreign nationals.”
This case was investigated by the CNMI Customs & Biosecurity and the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration. Assistant United States Attorney Albert S. Flores Jr. in the District of the Northern Mariana Islands prosecuted the case.
Chesapeake Man Sentenced for Five-Hour Armed Robbery SpreeRead the Press Release
NORFOLK, Va. – A Chesapeake man was sentenced yesterday to 29 years in prison for his role in a series of armed robberies of 7-Eleven establishments in the cities of Newport News, Norfolk, and Virginia Beach.
According to court documents, starting just before midnight on July 24, 2019, and into the early morning hours of July 25, 2019, Deric Simons, 23; his co-conspirator Ronald Lee Brookins, Jr., 22, of Suffolk; and a third individual conducted a series of armed robberies at 7-Eleven convenience stores. Beginning at a store in Newport News, the three men entered the stores armed with a firearm, a knife, and a BB gun that resembled a real firearm. While brandishing their weapons, they demanded U.S. currency and commercial products from frightened employees. After leaving Newport News, the three conspirators committed four additional robberies, moving between locations in Norfolk and Virginia Beach. During the fifth and final robbery, Brookins and the third co-conspirator entered the convenience store while Simons remained in the getaway vehicle. In addition to the store employee, there were three customers inside the store at the time of the robbery. Brookins and the third co-conspirator brandished the BB gun and the loaded firearm at the employee and customers. As Brookins began to empty the register, an armed customer, fearing for everyone’s safety, discharged his personal weapon, injuring Brookins and killing the third co-conspirator.
In June, Brookins was sentenced to 25 years in prison for his role in the robberies.
Jessica D. Aber, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia; Brian Dugan, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI’s Norfolk Field Office; Steve R. Drew, Chief of Newport News Police; Mark Talbot, Chief of Norfolk Police; and Paul Neudigate, Chief of Virginia Beach Police, made the announcement after sentencing by Senior U.S. District Judge Rebecca Beach Smith.
Assistant U.S. Attorneys Kristin Bird and Megan Montoya 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.
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. 2:19-cr-168.
COVID Fraud Lands Norman Man in Federal Prison for Two YearsRead the Press Release
OKLAHOMA CITY – Earlier this week, BRIAN LEE FOSTER, 54, of Norman, Oklahoma, was sentenced to serve two years in prison for his role in a Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security ("CARES") Act fraud scheme, announced U.S. Attorney Robert J. Troester.
On September 7, 2022, a federal grand jury returned a two-count indictment against Foster, charging him with making false statements to a financial institution on loan applications under the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP). The CARES Act provided more than $2 trillion in relief for individuals and businesses adversely affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. The CARES Act also authorized the U.S. Small Business Administration to create the PPP to promote lending to small businesses affected by the pandemic for job retention and certain other expenses.
According to the indictment, Foster applied for and obtained more than $40,000 in PPP loans in his name and the name of another. The indictment alleges that Foster made false statements on the PPP loan applications, by providing false payroll information and providing false tax documentation. The indictment alleges Foster used the loan proceeds for his personal benefit.
On November 15, 2022, Foster pleaded guilty to Count 2 of the indictment and admitted that he made false statements to a financial institution on a PPP loan application. He further admitted to submitting false income information in connection with the loan application.
At a sentencing hearing yesterday, U.S. District Judge Scott Palk sentenced Foster to serve 24 months in federal prison, followed by three years of supervised release. In announcing the sentence, the court noted that the defendant’s conduct was dishonest and demonstrated his willingness to lie for personal gain, at the risk of others who were entitled to relief benefits. The court also noted that Foster committed the offense while awaiting sentencing in another federal criminal case and ordered Foster to pay $21,474.76 in restitution to the U.S. Small Business Administration.
This case is the result of an investigation by the FBI Oklahoma City Field Office and the U.S. Small Business Administration Office of Inspector General. Assistant U.S. Attorney Jessica Perry prosecuted the case.
Reference is made to court filings for further information.
CEO of Immigration Services Company Sentenced to 10 Months in Prison Following Trial Conviction for Immigration Fraud OffensesRead the Press Release
Damian Williams, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, announced that ULADZIMIR DANSKOI, the CEO of an immigration services firm, was sentenced today by U.S. District Judge J. Paul Oetken to 10 months in prison for conspiracy to defraud the United States and conspiracy to commit immigration fraud.
U.S. Attorney Damian Williams said: “Uladzimir Danskoi, an experienced immigration practitioner who ran an immigration services firm’s Brooklyn office, disregarded the law and helped make a mockery of the U.S. immigration system by conspiring to defraud the United States and commit asylum and visa fraud. Asylum is meant to help vulnerable people who justifiably fear imprisonment, assault, torture, or death, because of their religion, nationality, ethnicity, political views, gender, or sexual orientation. Danskoi and his codefendants exploited the immigration system for financial gain by knowingly peddling false claims and coaching clients to lie under oath. They now face time in prison for these crimes.”
According to the allegations in the Indictment and evidence presented at trial:
A New York City immigration services firm, “Russian America,” worked with clients – primarily aliens from Russia and the Commonwealth of Independent States – seeking visas, asylum, citizenship, and other forms of legal status in the United States. Among other things, Russian America advised certain of their clients in the manner in which they were most likely to obtain asylum in this country, fully understanding that those clients did not legitimately qualify for asylum. The firm also prepared and submitted to U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (“USCIS”) clients’ fraudulent Form I-589 asylum applications, as well as asylum affidavits – statements of an asylum applicant’s personal history and claimed basis for asylum, often including allegations of past persecution – and related supporting documentation. Members and associates of each firm also coached certain clients to lie under oath during interviews conducted by USCIS Asylum Officers and provided legal representation to their clients during various immigration proceedings.
ULADZIMIR DANSKOI and previously convicted codefendant YURY MOSHA operated and maintained Russian America’s Brooklyn and Manhattan offices, respectively. Each advised and aided their clients to seek asylum under fraudulent pretenses. Among other things, DANSKOI advised a client, a confidential Federal Bureau of Investigation (“FBI”) source (the “Source”), to seek asylum on the fraudulent basis that the client was persecuted in Ukraine for being a gay male, when in fact DANSKOI fully understood that the Source was a heterosexual male who suffered no such persecution. DANSKOI also advised the Source on how to most effectively advance this fraudulent claim; connected the Source with previously convicted codefendant KATERYNA LYSYUCHENKO, who helped the Source prepare a fraudulent personal history (or “Affidavit”); and personally submitted the Source’s fraudulent asylum application and Affidavit, filed under penalty of perjury, to USCIS.
Meanwhile, MOSHA encouraged a second client, a Government cooperating witness posing as a person seeking asylum (the “Client”), to establish and maintain online blogs that were critical of the Client’s home country as a way to generate a claim that, based on the Client’s invented political opinion, it was unsafe for him to return to his native country. MOSHA did so understanding that the Client’s decision to blog was prompted not by his own idea or initiative, but by MOSHA’s instruction, and that the Client’s motive for blogging was to contrive a basis for asylum rather than to publicly express a sincerely held opinion. MOSHA also understood that the Client lacked the desire, topical knowledge, journalistic ability, and technical expertise to write blogposts and maintain these blogs. Accordingly, Mosha connected the Client with unapprehended codefendant TYMUR SHCHERBYNA, a Ukraine-based purported journalist, with the understanding that, in exchange for a fee, SHCHERBYNA would and did maintain and ghost-write the Client’s blog. MOSHA also personally prepared and submitted the Client’s asylum application, Affidavit, and related paperwork under penalty of perjury, knowing that these documents contained material falsehoods.
When the Source and Client needed to prepare for an interview, conducted under oath by a USCIS asylum officer, DANSKOI and MOSHA connected each to previously convicted codefendant JULIA GREENBERG, a New York immigration attorney, who coached both clients to lie to Asylum Officers and provided legal representation to these clients during immigration proceedings. For example, GREENBERG, understanding that the Source was a heterosexual male who did not suffer persecution in his home country, prepared the Source for questioning by an Asylum Officer, advised the Source how to falsely answer certain anticipated questions from the Asylum Officer, and instructed the Source to dress and change the Source’s appearance in a manner that comported with GREENBERG’s vision of a gay male.
DANSKOI and MOSHA also agreed to help certain Russian America clients obtain L1 employment visas by creating fake leases and staging offices to create the impression to USCIS that these clients had legitimate jobs waiting for them in the United States.
A similar investigation into another Brooklyn-based firm engaged in asylum fraud on behalf of clients from Russia and the Commonwealth of Independent States resulted in the convictions of three additional individuals: attorneys ILONA DZHAMGAROVA and ARTHUR ARCADIAN, and IGOR REZNIK.
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DANSKOI, 56, of Staten Island, New York, was previously convicted of one count of conspiring to defraud the United States and conspiring to commit immigration fraud following a two-week trial before Judge Oetken.
DANSKOI is the seventh defendant to have been sentenced in two immigration fraud cases pending before Judge Oetken and U.S. District Judge Mary Kay Vyskocil. The six other defendants who have been sentenced by Judges Oetken or Vyskocil are:
- ILONA DZHAMGAROVA, 46, of Brooklyn, New York, who was sentenced to two years in prison;
- YURY MOSHA, 47, of Staten Island, New York, who was sentenced to 10 months in prison;
- IGOR REZNIK, 40, now of Pennsylvania, who was sentenced to 10 months in prison;
- ARTHUR ARCADIAN, 44, of Brooklyn, New York, who was sentenced to 6 months in prison;
- JULIA GREENBERG, 43, of Staten Island, New York, who was sentenced to 3 months in prison; and
- KATERYNA LYSYUCHENKO, of Milan, Italy, who was sentenced to time-served (approximately 2 months in prison).
Mr. Williams praised the outstanding investigative work of the FBI’s New York Eurasian Organized Crime Task Force, Homeland Security Investigations, and USCIS’s New York Asylum Office and Fraud Detection and National Security Unit, and he thanked U.S. Customs and Border Protection for its assistance.
This case is being prosecuted by the Office’s Money Laundering and Transnational Criminal Enterprises Unit. Assistant U.S. Attorneys David R. Felton and Jonathan E. Rebold are in charge of the prosecution.
Buffalo man pleads guilty to production of child pornographyRead the Press Release
BUFFALO, N.Y. - U.S. Attorney Trini E. Ross announced today that Michael Regan, 41, of Buffalo, NY, pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge John L. Sinatra, Jr. to production of child pornography, which carries a mandatory minimum penalty of 15 years in prison, a maximum of 30 years and a $250,000 fine.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Caitlin M. Higgins, who is handling the case, stated that in August 2020, Regan took a sexually explicit photo of Minor Victim 1 using his cellular telephone. Also in August 2020, during communications over the social media application TextNow, Regan directed Minor Victim 2 to send him sexually explicit images of herself. Regan then met Minor Victim 2 to engage in sexual contact. After the sexual contact, Regan instructed Minor Victim 2 not to tell anyone or he would come to her house. Minor Victim 2 felt threatened by Regan’s statement.
The plea is the result of an investigation by the Buffalo Police Department, under the direction of Commissioner Joseph Gramaglia, and the Federal Bureau of Investigation Child Exploitation Task Force, under the direction of Special Agent-in-Charge Matthew Miraglia.
Sentencing is scheduled for January 25, 2024, before Judge Sinatra.
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Bossier City Man Sentenced for Illegally Distributing and Possessing CocaineRead the Press Release
SHREVEPORT, La. – United States Attorney Brandon B. Brown announced that Demetrius Demontrae Richmond, 26, of Bossier City, Louisiana, was sentenced today by United States District Judge Elizabeth E. Foote. Richmond was sentenced to 51 months in prison, followed by 3 years of supervised release, for conspiracy to distribute and possession with intent to distribute cocaine and crack cocaine.
According to information presented in court, Richmond began obtaining cocaine and crack cocaine from an individual in approximately January 2020. Richmond would purchase the narcotics from this individual at various places in Shreveport and then distribute to other individuals. Richmond admitted to conspiring to distribute and possess with intent to distribute at least 267 grams of powder cocaine and 72 grams of crack cocaine.
The case was investigated by U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration, Federal Bureau of Investigation, and Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, and prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Jessica D. Cassidy.
The investigation and conviction of Richmond is part of an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF) investigation. OCDETF identifies, disrupts, and dismantles the highest-level drug traffickers, money launderers, gangs, and transnational criminal organizations that threaten the United States by using a prosecutor-led, intelligence-driven, multi-agency approach that leverages the strengths of federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies against criminal networks.
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Boise Tax Return Preparer Convicted by Jury of Filing False Tax Returns Sentenced to One Year in Federal PrisonRead the Press Release
BOISE – Andres Sanchez, 34, of Boise, was sentenced to one year in federal prison for willfully aiding and assisting in the preparation and filing of false or fraudulent tax returns on behalf of several clients, U.S. Attorney Josh Hurwit announced today.
Sanchez was convicted of six counts after a four-day jury trial in U.S. District Court before the Honorable B. Lynn Winmill. The federal jury was unable to reach a verdict on one remaining count.
During the trial, the jury heard evidence that Sanchez worked as a paid tax return preparer in Boise. For tax returns filed for tax years 2014, 2015, and 2016, the jury heard evidence that Sanchez counseled his clients to include ineligible dependents on their tax returns to increase tax refunds. The ineligible dependents resulted in dependency exemptions and refundable tax credits for Sanchez’s clients, including the child tax credit, additional child tax credit, and earned income credit. The ineligible dependents resulted in significant refunds in many cases where Sanchez’s clients would have otherwise owed taxes.
After Sanchez completes his prison term, he will serve one year of supervised release wherein he will be supervised by the U.S. Probation Office. In addition to the prison sentence, Sanchez was ordered to pay $38,119 in restitution.
“Prosecuting tax cheats is about ensuring fairness for the rest of Idahoans who follow the law,” said U.S. Attorney Hurwit. “We will continue to hold accountable anyone who prepares false tax returns and undermines the integrity of our tax system.”
“Tax return preparer fraud remains a top priority for IRS Criminal Investigation and we will continue to identify, investigate and recommend the prosecution of abusive return preparers,” said Andy Tsui, Special Agent in Charge, Denver Field Office. “I applaud the efforts of our special agents working these cases for promoting voluntary compliance with our tax laws, and reinforcing the message that tax preparers who file false information on tax returns will be prosecuted.”
U.S. Attorney Hurwit credited the investigative work of the IRS Criminal Investigation, which led to the charges. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Sean Mazorol and Darci Crane prosecuted the case.
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Boeing to Pay $8.1 Million to Resolve Alleged False Claims Act Violations Arising from Manufacture of V-22 Osprey AircraftRead the Press Release
The Boeing Company will pay $8,100,000 to settle allegations that it violated the False Claims Act by failing to adhere to critical manufacturing specifications in the production of composite parts for V-22 Osprey military aircraft, announced United States Attorney Jacqueline C. Romero.
The allegations against Boeing were brought to light by three whistleblowers who worked at Boeing’s manufacturing facility in Ridley Park, Pennsylvania.
The United States alleges that Boeing falsely certified to the government that it had complied with all manufacturing specifications for the fabrication of certain composite parts for the V-22 Osprey aircraft.
Composite parts for the V-22 Osprey are manufactured using a process that involves curing these parts in autoclaves. The autoclaves are large, precisely controlled chambers that regulate temperature and pressure over the extended period of time required to properly cure composite parts. Every composite part used in the V-22 must be cured at a particular temperature and pressure. The V-22 manufacturing specifications require Boeing to assure the accurate performance of the autoclaves by performing monthly temperature uniformity surveys, among other requirements. Temperature uniformity surveys are intended to verify that an autoclave is performing at expected temperatures or identify when an autoclave deviates from specified temperatures.
The United States contends that Boeing failed to comply with manufacturing specifications for certain V-22 composite parts manufactured at the Ridley Park facility. The government alleges that Boeing failed to conduct routine checks designed to ensure the consistent performance of autoclaves in which composite parts were cured. Specifically, the United States alleges that from 2007 through 2018 Boeing failed to perform monthly temperature uniformity surveys on autoclaves, failed to collect and analyze temperature uniformity survey data on a monthly basis, failed to verify that calibration and certification tags on autoclaves were current, and failed to direct random surveillance of autoclave processes – all in violation of the V-22 manufacturing specifications. The United States further alleges that Boeing failed to use appropriate thermal testing equipment and failed to maintain required documents concerning autoclave testing.
“Taxpayers deserve to get what they pay for, and members of our military deserve to know that no shortcuts have been taken in the manufacture of aircraft and other equipment upon which they depend. My office will continue to investigate vigorously all credible allegations of government contractors cutting corners and submitting false certifications in connection with payments from the Treasury,” said United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania Jacqueline C. Romero.
“Maintaining the integrity of the U.S. Department of Defense supply chain is a top priority for the Office of Inspector General’s Defense Criminal Investigative Service. The Department of Defense expects its contractors to adhere strictly to contract specifications when providing products to the U.S. military,” stated Patrick J. Hegarty, Special Agent in Charge of the Defense Criminal Investigative Service, Northeast Field Office. Hegarty continued: “We are committed to working with our law enforcement partners and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania to investigate allegations of contractors circumventing required testing protocols and submitting false claims during the procurement process.”
“The integrity of the military procurement process, and ultimately warfighter safety and our national security, demand that our contractors comply strictly with manufacturing requirements, including protocols for equipment testing,” said Special Agent-in-Charge Greg Gross of the Navy Criminal Investigative Service Economic Crimes Field Office. “NCIS and our partners remain committed to rooting out any noncompliance with manufacturing specifications that threatens warfighter readiness.”
The False Claims Act provides for whistleblowers to receive a portion of the amount recovered because of their disclosures. In this case, the three whistleblowers collectively will receive $1,539,000 of the settlement proceeds.
The government’s investigation was led by Assistant United States Attorneys Joel M. Sweet and David A. Degnan, Auditor Dawn Wiggins, and Investigator Jeffrey Braun, all of the United States Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania, along with Trial Attorney Amy Likoff of the U.S. Department of Justice Commercial Litigation Branch, Fraud Section, and Special Agents of the Defense Criminal Investigative Service and the Navy Criminal Investigative Service. The whistleblower lawsuit is captioned United States ex rel. Robert C. Roath, et al. v. The Boeing Company, No. 16-cv-6547 (E.D. Pa.). The whistleblowers are represented by F. Emmett Fitzpatrick, III of Flamm Walton Heimbach and Joseph D. Mancano of Mancano Law, PLLC.
The settlement is not an admission by Boeing that it is liable under the False Claims Act.
Billings man sentenced to prison for possessing unregistered silencerRead the Press Release
BILLINGS — A Billings man who admitted to possessing an unregistered silencer that was recovered at a Billings bar after a shooting incident was sentenced today to one year and one day in prison, to be followed by three years of supervised release, U.S. Attorney Jesse Laslovich said.
Elias Miguel Nava, 19, pleaded guilty in June to possession of an unregistered silencer.
U.S. District Judge Susan P. Watters presided.
The government alleged in court documents that on Oct. 16, 2022, Billings Police Department officers recovered a silencer at Bullwhackers Bar after a shooting incident. On Oct. 23, 2022, police officers recovered a .22-caliber pistol and other firearms at the Wild West Bar after a shooting incident involving Nava. The pistol was in the possession of Nava and one of his co-defendants at the time. Social media, photos and videos showed Nava and his co-defendant in possession of the pistol with the silencer that was recovered on Oct. 16 attached.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Thomas K. Godfrey prosecuted the case. The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and Billings Police Department conducted the investigation.
This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program bringing together all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve to reduce violent crime and gun violence, and to make our neighborhoods safer for everyone. On May 26, 2021, the Department launched a violent crime reduction strategy strengthening PSN based on these core principles: fostering trust and legitimacy in our communities, supporting community-based organizations that help prevent violence from occurring in the first place, setting focused and strategic enforcement priorities, and measuring the results.
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Bangladesh Citizen Sentenced to 14 Months in Federal Prison for Illegally Possessing a Stolen FirearmRead the Press Release
Saipan, CNMI – SHAWN N. ANDERSON, United States Attorney for the Districts of Guam and the Northern Mariana Islands (NMI), announced that the United States District Court for the NMI ordered 14 months imprisonment for MD Ikbal, age 37, a citizen of Bangladesh living on the island of Rota, after being convicted of Illegal Alien in Possession of a Firearm, in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 922(g)(5)(A). Ikbal will enter deportation proceedings following his release from prison.
During June 2016, Ikbal arrived in the Commonwealth of the Mariana Islands (CNMI) pursuant to a CNMI-Only Transitional Worker (CW-1) visa. A CW-1 is a nonimmigrant visa that allows employers in the CNMI to apply for permission to employ individuals who are otherwise ineligible to work under other nonimmigrant worker categories. Following the expiration of his visa in January 2017, Ikbal remained on the island of Rota without lawful immigration status. In October 2021, Ikbal entered the home of another without permission and threatened to kill occupants. Ikbal was subsequently charged in local court for trespassing and assault, then released on bail.
During May 2022, police on Rota received a report that Ikbal was in possession of a firearm. Officers from the CNMI Department of Public Safety searched the island for Ikbal. After nine hours, they located Ikbal hiding in a jungle area, armed with a stolen .40 caliber handgun containing a fully loaded magazine. The firearm was a service weapon issued to a Rota police officer. The gun was reported stolen a week prior.
“Federal law prohibits foreign nationals from possessing firearms and ammunition except in limited circumstances,” stated United States Attorney Anderson. “These cases will be aggressively prosecuted by our office in an effort to keep our communities safe from gun crime.”
The CNMI Department of Public Safety, the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms & Explosives, and U.S. Homeland Security Investigations investigated this case.
Assistant United States Attorney Albert S. Flores Jr. in the District of the Northern Mariana Islands prosecuted this case.
Assault of a Federal Officer Gets Man 18 Months in PrisonRead the Press Release
TUCSON, Ariz. – Last week, Jorge Oliverio Moran-Can, 42, of Guatemala, was sentenced by United States District Judge Scott H. Rash to 18 months in prison, followed by 36 months of supervised release. Moran-Can was previously convicted of one count of Assault of a Federal Officer.
A jury convicted Moran-Can on April 24, 2023, of assaulting a United State Border Patrol agent by intentionally shoving the agent down a steep, rocky incline. The agent sustained minor injuries.
The U.S. Border Patrol conducted the investigation in this case. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Sarah B. Houston, Frances Kreamer Hope, and Matthew C. Cassell, District of Arizona, Tucson, handed the prosecution.
CASE NUMBER: CR 22-01661-TUC-SHR
RELEASE NUMBER: 2023-141_Moran-Can# # #
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.Additional Five-Year Sentence for Prison AssaultRead the Press Release
TUCSON, Ariz. – Robert Cameron Foust, 39, of Alabama, was sentenced last week by United States District Judge Scott H. Rash to five years in prison. Foust will serve his five years consecutive to the sentence he is currently serving in CR 09-10100-JTM (District of Kansas). Foust previously pleaded guilty to Assault with a Dangerous Weapon.
On October 18, 2018, Foust, an inmate at the Federal Bureau of Prison’s Federal Correctional Center, in Tucson, Arizona, attacked another inmate with a prison-made knife. The victim fell to the ground and Foust continued to stab him. In total, the victim sustained more than 20 non-life-threatening wounds. Foust later told agents that had the victim resisted or defended himself during the stabbing event, Foust would have “smoked” the victim. Foust also admitted that he had made the five-inch knife. At the time of the attack, Foust was already serving a 185-month sentence for Commercial Robbery, Use of a Firearm During a Crime of Violence, and Felon in Possession of a Firearm.
The FBI and the Federal Bureau of Prisons conducted the investigation in this case. Assistant U.S. Attorney Serra M. Tsethlikai, District of Arizona, Tucson, handled the prosecution.
CASE NUMBER: CR-19-00841-TUC-SHR
RELEASE NUMBER: 2023-142_Foust# # #
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.Ada Resident Pleads Guilty to Assault Resulting in Serious Bodily Injury in Indian CountryRead the Press Release
MUSKOGEE, OKLAHOMA – The United States Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Oklahoma announced that Amya Elise Walker, age 20, of Ada, Oklahoma, entered a guilty plea to one count of Assault Resulting in Serious Bodily Injury in Indian Country.
On May 13, 2023, Walker violently attacked an elderly woman at an Ada residence, leaving the victim with multiple bruises and lacerations requiring medical care.
The crime occurred in Pontotoc County, within the boundaries of the Chickasaw Nation Reservation, in the Eastern District of Oklahoma.
The charges arose from an investigation by the Chickasaw Nation Lighthorse Police and the Bureau of Indian Affairs.
The Honorable D. Edward Snow, U.S. Magistrate Judge in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Oklahoma, accepted the plea and ordered the completion of a presentence investigation report. Walker will remain in the custody of the U.S. Marshal pending sentencing.
Assistant United States Attorney Kevin Gross represented the United States.
Acadiana Man Sentenced to 30 Years in Prison for Production of Child PornographyRead the Press Release
LAFAYETTE, La. – United States Attorney Brandon B. Brown announced that Jason Eric Lott, 40, of the Acadiana area in Louisiana, has been sentenced by United States District Judge Robert R. Summerhays to 360 months (30 years) in prison, followed by a lifetime of supervised release, for production of child pornography.
Lott developed a relationship with a 12-year-old minor female. Unbeknownst to the minor victim’s parents, Lott began engaging in a sexual relationship with the victim. In addition, Lott produced images of the minor victim engaging in sexually explicit conduct with him.
The case was investigated by Federal Bureau of Investigation and prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney J. Luke Walker.
This case is part of Project Safe Childhood, a U.S. Department of Justice nationwide initiative to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by U.S. Attorneys’ Offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood combines federal, state and local resources to better locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the internet, as well as to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.projectsafechildhood.gov.
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15 KC-Area Residents Indicted for PCP Trafficking, Illegal FirearmsRead the Press Release
KANSAS CITY, Mo. – Fifteen Kansas City, Mo., area residents have been indicted by a federal grand jury for their roles in a conspiracy to distribute PCP and for illegally possessing firearms.
Russell L. Spencer II, also known as “Russ,” 44, Charles N. Hill, also known as “Chuck Wagon,” 42, Kessa R. Gines, 45, Charles J. Wiley, 44, Raven Hicks, 44, Dorothea L. Cain, also known as “Dea,” 52, Chaitez A. Sexton, also known as “Choddy,” 47, Bobby Graves III, 43, Robert E. Ridley, 46, Raymond D. Stewart, 31, Jabari M. Craddock, 28, Aaron J. Schultz, also known as “Tink,” 45, Austin W. Smith, 57, and Jimmy L. Abron, 41, all of Kansas City, Mo.; and Ra’Shaan R.Wilson, also known as “Rah Rah,” 28, of Belton, Mo., were charged in a 13-count indictment returned under seal by a federal grand jury in Kansas City, Mo., on Tuesday, Sept. 26. That indictment was unsealed and made public today following the arrests of all 15 defendants.
The federal indictment alleges that each of the 15 defendants participated in a conspiracy to distribute one kilogram or more of PCP in Jackson County, Mo., from Oct. 15, 2021, to Sept. 16, 2023.
In addition to the drug-trafficking conspiracy, Cain is charged with one count of possessing PCP with the intent to distribute, one count of possessing a firearm in furtherance of a drug-trafficking crime and one count of being a felon in possession of a firearm. Cain allegedly possessed a Taurus 9mm semi-automatic handgun on March 24, 2023. Under federal law, it is illegal for anyone who has been convicted of a felony to be in possession of any firearm or ammunition. Cain has a prior federal felony conviction for conspiracy to distribute PCP, two prior felony convictions for possession of a controlled substance, two prior felony convictions for stealing, and prior felony convictions for robbery, distributing or manufacturing a controlled substances,
In addition to the drug-trafficking conspiracy, Sexton and Graves are charged together with one count of possessing fentanyl with the intent to distribute, one count of possessing a firearm in furtherance of a drug-trafficking crime and one count of being felons in possession of a firearm. Sexton and Graves allegedly possessed a Kimber .45-caliber semi-automatic handgun and a Taurus 9mm semi-automatic handgun on Aug. 17, 2022. Sexton has a prior federal felony conviction for being a felon in possession of a firearm, two prior convictions for distributing a controlled substance near a school, and a prior felony conviction for burglary. Graves has a prior federal felony conviction for possessing crack cocaine with the intent to distribute, two prior felony convictions for trafficking in drugs and a prior felony conviction for possession of a controlled substance.
In addition to the drug-trafficking conspiracy, Ridley is charged with one count of possessing PCP with the intent to distribute.
In addition to the drug-trafficking conspiracy, Stewart is charged with one count of possessing PCP with the intent to distribute and one count of possessing a firearm in furtherance of a drug-trafficking crime. Stewart allegedly possessed a Taurus 9mm semi-automatic handgun on July 6, 2023.
In addition to the drug-trafficking conspiracy, Craddock is charged with one count of possessing PCP with the intent to distribute and one count of possessing a firearm in furtherance of a drug-trafficking crime. Craddock allegedly possessed a Heckler & Koch 9mm semi-automatic handgun on July 6, 2023.
In addition to the drug-trafficking conspiracy, Smith is charged with one count of possessing PCP with the intent to distribute.
The federal indictment also includes a forfeiture allegation, which would require the defendants to forfeit to the government a residential property, two vehicles, and a money judgment in the amount of proceeds obtained as a result of their participation in the drug-trafficking conspiracy.
The charges contained in this indictment are simply accusations, and not evidence of guilt. Evidence supporting the charges must be presented to a federal trial jury, whose duty is to determine guilt or innocence.
This case is being prosecuted by Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Brandon Gibson. It was investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration and the Kansas City, Mo., Police Department.
Organized Crime and Drug Enforcement Task Force
This case is part of an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) operation. OCDETF identifies, disrupts, and dismantles the highest-level criminal organizations that threaten the United States using a prosecutor-led, intelligence-driven, multi-agency approach. Additional information about the OCDETF Program can be found at https://www.justice.gov/OCDETF.
Wednesday 27 September 2023
Woodhull Man Sentenced to 240 Months in Prison for Attempted Crimes Against ChildrenRead the Press Release
ROCK ISLAND, ILL. – A Woodhull, Illinois, man, Scott Edward Raschke, 39, of the 200 block of Southeast Third Avenue, was sentenced on September 21, 2023, to 240 months of imprisonment for Attempted Sex Trafficking of Children, Attempted Enticement of a Minor, and Sexual Exploitation of a Child. He was further sentenced to a lifetime term of supervised release and a $300.00 special assessment.
At the sentencing hearing, the government proffered evidence that Raschke engaged in a months’ long online conversation in which he arranged to pay for sex with an eleven-year-old child. Ultimately, Raschke traveled to Moline, Illinois to meet the eleven-year-old for sex and to take sexually explicit photos of the child. Upon arriving in Moline, Raschke was apprehended by law enforcement.
Also at the hearing, Chief U.S. District Court Judge Sara Darrow discussed the seriousness of Raschke’s conduct, commenting on graphic nature of the conversations Raschke engaged in and his intent to memorialize the abuse of a child.
Raschke pled guilty to the charges in May of 2023. The statutory penalties for the offenses are a minimum of 15 years up to life imprisonment for Attempted Sex Trafficking of Children, a minimum of 15 years up to 30 years imprisonment for Sexual Exploitation of a Child, and a minimum of 10 years up to life imprisonment for Attempted Enticement of a Minor. The convictions also provided for a term of supervised release from five years to life.
The investigation was conducted by the Federal Bureau of Investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney Jennifer L. Mathew represented the federal government in the prosecution.
The case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative by the Department of Justice to combat the epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by U.S. Attorneys’ Offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS), Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to better locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the internet, as well as to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.projectsafechildhood.gov.
Wheeling man indicted for defrauding investors, tax evasionRead the Press Release
WHEELING, WEST VIRGINIA – Jeffrey James Morris, age 36, of Wheeling, West Virginia, has been indicted on twenty-eight counts of wire fraud and tax evasion in connection with the defrauding of investors and employees of his real estate development company.
Morris, the managing member and majority owner of Roxby Development, LLC, was charged yesterday by a special grand jury in Wheeling with eighteen counts of wire fraud and ten counts of failure to pay taxes. Morris, who was arrested earlier this month on one count of wire fraud, is accused of making misrepresentations to induce individuals to invest in Ohio County real estate, to include the McClure House hotel, the Mount Carmel Monastery, and the Scottish Rite Cathedral.
According to the indictment, Morris received nearly $7 million from approximately twenty investors. Morris allegedly used investor funds to pay for credit card transactions unrelated to Roxby renovations, to pay the debts of a company unrelated to Roxby, to pay personal expenses, and to pay other investors. He is accused of misrepresenting the status of improvements made to the properties to induce additional investment and to lull investors into not taking action for failing to comply with their agreements. Morris allegedly used deception to induce the sale of properties to him, to include providing false screenshots of bank account balances, and to have misled potential lenders by not disclosing all the payables of the Roxby entities.
Morris is also charged with withholding taxes from his employees’ pay checks but then failing to pay over $252,000 to the Internal Revenue Service, to include Medicare and social security taxes.
“Many were harmed by the actions of Jeffery Morris, including investors, employees, and vendors,” said United States Attorney William Ihlenfeld. “Thanks to the outstanding work of the FBI and IRS-CI, Mr. Morris will be held accountable.”
“Mr. Morris is accused of taking advantage of innocent investors and creating a deceptive scheme for his own personal gain,” said FBI Pittsburgh Special Agent in Charge Mike Nordwall. “The FBI will relentlessly pursue those who attempt to defraud and mislead people in our community.”
U.S. Attorney Ihlenfeld and Assistant U.S. Attorney Jarod Douglas are prosecuting the case on behalf of the government. The matter was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Internal Revenue Service-CI.
A jury trial has been scheduled for November 14, 2023, at 9:00 am.
An indictment is merely an accusation, and all defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty.
Westfield Child Predator Sentenced to 38 Years in Federal Prison for Seeking Sex with a 14-Year-Old and Trafficking in Child Sex Abuse MaterialsRead the Press Release
INDIANAPOLIS- Erik Hanson, 31, of Westfield, Indiana, has been sentenced to 38 years in federal prison after pleading guilty to sexual exploitation of a child, conspiracy to commit sexual exploitation of a child, and transportation of child sexual abuse material.
According to court documents, after an online undercover investigation, the Federal Bureau of Investigation alerted detectives with the Westfield Police Department to evidence that Erik Hanson was using the Kik communications application solicit sex with a 14-year-old girl. In fact, an undercover FBI Special Agent was communicating with Hanson posing as the child and the child’s father. In the conversations, Hanson stated that 14-year-old girls were his “favorite age” for sex, and that it was not a fantasy, but something he intended to act on. Hanson asked the ‘girl” for sexually explicit photos, sent her images of his penis, and attempted to meet with her for sex at a hotel in Tennessee. Hanson asked how soon he could meet with the 14-year-old girl because he wanted her to be “as young as possible.”
Investigators obtained a warrant to search Hanson’s Kik account and located 91 91 photos and videos of child sexual abuse material including the sexual abuse of infants, child bondage, and child bestiality.
On April 22, 2022, Hanson’s Westfield home was searched by HCMCETF and Homeland Security agents, who located multiple electronic iPhones and an iPad Hanson admitted contained child sexual abuse material. During an interview with agents, Hanson admitted to owning two Kik accounts for the purpose of viewing child sexual abuse material, and that he belonged to many online groups that traded these images. Over a period of three months, Hanson used CashApp multiple times to pay another individual a total of $75 to produce child sexual abuse material involving Minor Victim 1, who Hanson believed was the producer’s 11-year-old daughter. Hanson directed the other user to engage in specific sex acts with the child, and distributed some of this material to another individual.
“Child predators wrongly believe that the internet will protect them. This defendant’s actions demonstrate that he is a dangerous pedophile, who must be kept away from our children in person and online,” said U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Indiana, Zachary A. Myers. “The sentence imposed here ensures that the defendant will not be in a position to exploit or abuse any more children for many years. I commend the work of the dedicated investigators at the FBI, Homeland Security Investigations, the Hamilton County Metropolitan Child Exploitation Task Force, and the Westfield Police Department, to hold this predator accountable and remove him from our community.”
“Today’s sentencing of Hanson sends an important message to all would-be predators: we will not allow this type of crime against children to go unpunished,” said HSI Chicago Special Agent in Charge Sean Fitzgerald. “HSI, along with our law enforcement partners, is dedicated to the eradication of sexual exploitation and will continue to pursue those who seek gratification from the abuse and pain of the most vulnerable members of society, our children.”
FBI, Homeland Security Investigations, Hamilton County Metropolitan Child Exploitation Task Force, and the Westfield Police Department investigated this case. The sentence was imposed by U.S. District Court Judge, Chief Tanya Walton Pratt. Judge Pratt also ordered that Hanson be supervised by the U.S. Probation Office for life following his release from federal prison. Hanson must also pay $30,000 in restitution to his victims.
U.S. Attorney Myers thanked Assistant United States Attorney Kyle Sawa, who prosecuted this case.
This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by U.S. Attorneys’ Offices and the Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to better locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the internet, as well as to identify and rescue victims.
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Washington, D.C. Man Sentenced to 30 Years in Federal Prison for Federal Kidnapping and Attempted Witness TamperingRead the Press Release
Greenbelt, Maryland – Judge Paula Xinis today sentenced Kyrie Rashuad Thompson, age 29, formerly of Washington, D.C., to 30 years in prison, followed by 5 years of supervised release for kidnapping and attempted witness tampering.
The sentence was announced by United States Attorney for the District of Maryland Erek L. Barron and Special Agent in Charge Thomas J. Sobocinski of the Federal Bureau of Investigation.
According to the Court’s findings, on September 22, 2019, the victim drove her car to the residence of Thompson in the District of Columbia to drop off their three-year-old child to Thompson in a prearranged visit. Instead of retrieving their child, Thompson opened the front passenger door and sat down in the victim’s vehicle and ordered her to drive to Bald Eagle Drive in Maryland. After the victim refused, Thompson become angry and threatening. As a result, the victim began driving. Once they crossed into Maryland, the victim pulled into a parking lot in Forest Heights, Maryland, hoping to diffuse the situation. During that time, the victim’s boyfriend called the victim’s cell phone. Thompson answered the call, and told the caller that the victim was going to perform a sex act on him. When Thompson concluded the call, he started choking the victim around her neck with his hands and pulling her head toward the passenger side floorboard, pinning her down so she could not breathe. During this struggle, their three-year-old child was in the backseat of the vehicle crying.
At some point, Thomson stopped choking the victim and ordered her to continue driving to Bald Eagle Drive. They ended up on Bald Eagle Drive, near the entrance to the Oxon Hill Children’s Farm in Prince George’s County, Maryland. There, Thompson pulled out his phone, and ordered the victim to perform a sex act on him. When the victim refused, Thompson choked the victim again and then pushed the victim’s head toward his crotch, holding it there while he used his cellphone to record the sex act. On the recording, their three-year-old child could be heard crying and telling him to stop. After the victim performed the sex act, she drove back toward the District of Columbia, where Thompson took their child out of the car. He threatened the victim not to call the police or something would happen.
On December 18, 2019, a federal grand jury in the District of Maryland returned an indictment charging Thompson with kidnapping. Thereafter, on August 25, 2020, Thompson sent the victim a letter in which he wrote: “I talked to my lawyer and they told me they talked to you. Only thing is you have to change the facts [victim’s name]. You gotta say I didn;t kidnap you. You gotta say nothing happened until we were already in MD. They told me they know you probably think if you don’t go to court it’ll go away like before but its different with federal cases. You gotta call back and say I didn’t kidnap you. Please . . . . Tell them I didn’t force you to go to MD . . . Please call and say I didn’t kidnap you and you willing to tell a jury or judge that at court as well.”
United States Attorney Erek L. Barron commended the FBI for its work in the investigation and thanked the Federal Bureau of Investigation- Washington Field Office and the U.S. Park Police for their assistance. Mr. Barron thanked Assistant U.S. Attorney Leah Grossi, who prosecuted the federal case.
For more information on the Maryland U.S. Attorney’s Office, its priorities, and resources available to help the community, please visit www.justice.gov/usao-md and https://www.justice.gov/usao-md/community-outreach.
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Violent Recidivist Pleads Guilty to Being a Felon in Possession of a Firearm After Car ChaseRead the Press Release
RICHMOND, Va. – A Richmond City man pleaded guilty yesterday to being a felon in possession of a firearm.
According to court documents, on November 17, 2022, Shalik Mitchell, 30, was pulled over by Richmond Police officers during a traffic stop. Officers on routine patrol on Hull Street noticed a vehicle speeding and swerving around other motorists while failing to use a turn signal. Officers tried to catch up to the vehicle, which was still gaining separation at nearly 80 mph. The vehicle nearly veered off the roadway as it came to a stop, and officers noticed the front seat passenger making stuffing movements.
A loaded Stoeger STR-9, 9mm, semi-automatic pistol was stuffed in between the driver’s seat and center console, where Mitchell sat. At the time he possessed the pistol, Mitchell was a multiple time convicted felon and was approximately seven months into a term of supervised release for a 2019 conviction of being a felon in possession of a firearm. Mitchell was also previously convicted in 2015 by the City of Richmond Circuit Court of malicious wounding and use of a firearm in commission of a felony.
Mitchell is scheduled to be sentenced on December 21. He faces a maximum penalty of fifteen 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; Craig Kailimai, Special Agent in Charge of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives Washington Field Division; and Rick Edwards, Chief of Richmond Police, made the announcement after U.S. Magistrate Judge Mark R. Colombell accepted the plea.
Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Devon Schulz and Assistant U.S. Attorney Stephen Anthony are prosecuting the case.
This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program bringing together all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve to reduce violent crime and gun violence, and to make our neighborhoods safer for everyone. On May 26, 2021, the Department launched a violent crime reduction strategy strengthening PSN based on these core principles: fostering trust and legitimacy in our communities, supporting community-based organizations that help prevent violence from occurring in the first place, setting focused and strategic enforcement priorities, and measuring the results.
A copy of this press release is located on the website of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Virginia. Related court documents and information are located on the website of the District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia or on PACER by searching for Case No. 3:23-cr-39.
United States Files Civil Complaint Against eBay Alleging its Sales of Illicit Products Results in Environmental HarmRead the Press Release
BROOKLYN, NY — The United States, on behalf of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), filed a civil complaint today in federal court in Brooklyn against eBay Inc. (eBay) for unlawfully selling and distributing hundreds of thousands of products in violation of the Clean Air Act (CAA); the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act (FIFRA) and the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA). The complaint was filed in federal court in Brooklyn.
Breon Peace, United States Attorney for the Eastern District of New York, Todd Kim, Assistant Attorney General of the Justice Department’s Environment and Natural Resources Division, and David M. Uhlmann, Assistant Administrator for EPA’s Office of Enforcement and Compliance Assurance, announced the filing.
“eBay’s sale of emission control defeat devices, pesticides, and other unsafe products poses unacceptable risks to our communities disproportionately impacted by environmental and health hazards,” stated United States Attorney Peace. “Together with our partners, this Office will vigorously enforce federal law against those whose conduct endangers public health and the environment.”
“Laws prohibiting the sale of products that harm human health and the environment apply to e-commerce retailers just as they do to brick-and-mortar stores,” stated Assistant Attorney General Kim. “The Department of Justice will pursue violators of these laws regardless of their place in the sale or distribution chain.”
“Our nation’s environmental laws protect public health and the environment by prohibiting the unlawful sale of defeat devices; unregistered, misbranded and restricted use pesticides; and unsafe products containing toxic chemicals such as methylene chloride,” stated EPA Assistant Administrator Uhlmann. “The complaint filed today demonstrates that EPA will hold online retailers responsible for the unlawful sale of products on their websites that can harm consumers and the environment.”
The Clean Air Act prohibits selling, offering for sale, or causing the sale or offer of aftermarket parts that defeat motor vehicle emission controls (commonly known as “aftermarket defeat devices”). Today’s complaint alleges that eBay sold, offered for sale or caused the sale of more than 343,000 such devices. By enabling vehicle emission controls to be evaded, aftermarket defeat devices contribute to air pollution and harm public health. They also impede efforts by the EPA, states, tribes, and local agencies to plan for and meet air quality standards. For example, the use of defeat devices significantly increases emissions of particulate matter, carbon monoxide, nitrogen oxides and nonmethane hydrocarbons.
FIFRA prohibits the unlawful distribution or sale of unregistered, misbranded, and restricted use pesticides, and authorizes EPA to issue Stop Sale, Use, or Removal Orders to anyone with ownership, custody or control of such pesticides being unlawfully sold or distributed. Today’s complaint alleges that eBay unlawfully distributed or sold at least 23,000 such pesticides, and that some of those sales were in direct violation of a stop sale order issued to eBay in 2020 and amended in 2021. Examples of the pesticides at issue include a high toxicity insecticide banned in the U.S., a restricted use pesticide that only certified applicators may apply, and a product falsely claiming to protect users against the SARS-CoV-2 virus.
TSCA’s Methylene Chloride Rule prohibits retailers from distributing in commerce products containing methylene chloride for paint and coating removal to prevent unreasonable risks, including the risk of death, presented by these types of products. The complaint alleges that eBay has distributed over 5,600 items in violation of TSCA’s Methylene Chloride Rule.
The complaint seeks a Court order that eBay’s business practices as an e-commerce retailer violated the CAA, FIFRA, and TSCA and injunctive relief to enjoin eBay from further violations of the CAA, FIFRA, and TSCA, as well as civil penalties for each violation of the CAA.
The lawsuit is being handled by Assistant United States Attorneys Michael Blume and Paulina Stamatelos of the United States Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of New York, James Freeman, Senior Attorney, Environmental Enforcement Section, working with Caitlin Meisenbach, Lindsay Simmons, and Adrienne Trivedi from EPA’s Office of Enforcement and Compliance Assurance.
In June 2021, the United States Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of New York created an Environmental Justice Team within the Office’s Civil Division. The focus of the Environmental Justice Team is the protection of the rights of residents of the Eastern District of New York who are disproportionately burdened by environmental and health hazards.
Undercover jaguar cub deal results in Big Cat Act chargesRead the Press Release
McALLEN, Texas – An Alamo couple have been arrested for selling protected wildlife in the first case filed under The Big Cat Act, announced U.S. Attorney Alamdar S. Hamdani.
Legal permanent resident Rafael Gutierrez-Galvan, 29, and his wife Deyanira Garza, 28, made their initial appearances in federal court in McAllen Sept. 27.
According to the criminal complaint, Gutierrez-Galvan had sold a margay cub Aug. 24 for $7,500 in a local Academy Sports and Outdoors parking lot.
On Sept. 26, Gutierrez-Galvan then attempted to sell a jaguar cub to the same individual. He allegedly instructed his wife to bring a case of cash from their residence to the location. However, law enforcement conducted a traffic stop before she could arrive and discovered the money.
Neither Gutierrez-Galvan or Garza possess a license to buy, sell, trade or transport exotic animals such as margays and jaguars.
Authorities recovered both animals.
The Big Cat Act was enacted in December 2022 and prohibits the importation, transportation, sale and possession of prohibited wildlife species. A jaguar is a prohibited species. Additionally, the Endangered Species Act prohibits the importation, exportation, sale and transportation of threatened and endangered species. Jaguars are listed as an endangered species.
If convicted, Gutierrez-Galvan and Garza face up to five years in federal prison and a possible $20,000 maximum fine.
Fish and Wildlife Service and Homeland Security Investigations conducted the investigation with the assistance of Texas Parks and Wildlife and the Houston and San Antonio Zoos. Assistant U.S. Attorney Devin V. Walker is prosecuting the case.
A criminal complaint is a formal accusation of criminal conduct, not evidence. A defendant is presumed innocent unless convicted through due process of law.
U.S. Attorney's Office for the Eastern District of Tennessee Announces over 1.3 Million in Department of Justice Programs Grant FundingRead the Press Release
KNOXVLLE, Tenn. On September 27, 2023, the United States Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Tennessee announced $1,338,556 in Department of Justice, Office of Justice Programs (OJP) funding.
- City of Bristol - $11,487.
- City of Knoxville - $632,355.
- County of Greene - $14,364.
- Middle Tennessee State University- $99,818.
- University of Tennessee Knoxville - $229,454.
- University of Tennessee Knoxville - $351,078.
The Office of Justice Programs is a federal agency that provides federal leadership, grants, training, technical assistance, and other resources to improve the nation’s capacity to prevent and reduce crime, assist victims and uphold the rule of law by strengthening the criminal and juvenile justice systems. OJP’s six program offices support state, local, and tribal community safety efforts; crime victim assistance and compensation programs; juvenile justice and child protection activities; sex offender management; a wide range of training and technical assistance opportunities; ground-breaking criminal justice research; and, statistical collections covering a host of justice system topics.
The awards announced above are being made as part of the regular end-of-fiscal year cycle. Additional information about FY23 awards can be found on OJP’s website here: www.ojp.gov/funding/explore/ojp-award-data. For more information, please contact [email protected].
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U.S. Attorney Josh Hurwit Announces Update on the Success of the District of Idaho’s COVID-19 Fraud Task ForceRead the Press Release
BOISE – U.S. Attorney Josh Hurwit announced today results of the work of the District of Idaho’s COVID-19 Fraud Task Force that was formed last September. In the past 12 months, the Task Force has built a team consisting of federal prosecutors and 11 federal agencies focused on prosecuting cases related to pandemic-related programs including the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP), the Economic Injury Disaster Loan (EIDL), Unemployment Insurance (UI), and Coronavirus Food Assistance Program (CFAP). The Task Force has now charged a dozen defendants criminally and obtained civil judgments against three defendants. The amount of fraud associated with the cases is over $7 million.
“Credit goes to the prosecutors and investigators who are sparing no effort to identify COVID fraud, to hold the perpetrators accountable, and to return stolen funds to the taxpayers,” said U.S. Attorney Hurwit. “While I am proud of the successes we have had so far, the Task Force is still in its early phases. We will not rest until we have done everything in our power to seek justice against those who took advantage of the COVID-19 pandemic to line their pockets through fraud.”
“OIG will leverage partnerships and collaborate across the law enforcement spectrum to bring fraudsters to justice,” said SBA OIG’s Western Region Special Agent in Charge Weston King. “These judicial outcomes demonstrate the consequences for these wrongful acts are significant. I want to thank the U.S. Attorney’s Office and our law enforcement partners for their dedication and pursuit of justice.”
“The Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration will continue to aggressively pursue those who misuse IRS online systems to further fraudulent schemes and those who fraudulently obtain relief from the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act and its Paycheck Protection Program,” said Special Agent in Charge Rod Ammari of the TIGTA Western Field Division. “We appreciate the efforts of our law enforcement partners and the United States Attorney’s Office to ensure this criminal activity is held to account.”
The following are cases recently prosecuted by the District of Idaho’s COVID Fraud Task Force:
Lawrence Sikutwa, 43, of Boise, was sentenced to 30 months followed by 5 years of supervised release on September 25, 2023, for bank fraud and money laundering. According to court documents, between April 2020 and February 2021, Sikutwa submitted three fraudulent PPP loan applications and, as a result, obtained approximately $347,000 in fraudulent loan proceeds. Sikutwa used the identities of two individuals known to him to submit two of the PPP loan applications. All three of the loan applications Sikutwa submitted contained false certifications about the dates the companies were opened, the number of employees and amount of payroll, and that the loan proceeds would be used for business related expenses. Sikutwa also submitted false and fraudulent documents with the loan applications in an effort to substantiate the information contained on the applications. After receiving the loan proceeds, Sikutwa caused more than $190,000 to be transferred offshore. Other proceeds were transferred to various individuals and appeared to be used for personal expenses.
Valentin Lapatskiy, 34, of Meridian, was sentenced to 15 months followed by 2 years of supervised release on September 26, 2023, for wire fraud. Lapatskiy fraudulently obtained $300,000 in EIDLs by making materially false and fraudulent representations to the SBA in applications for two businesses. Lapatskiy falsely claimed in an application that his purported company Valdi Homes INC opened in November 2017 and he became the owner in February 2018. He also made false representations about a purported limousine company in his wife’s name. In both applications, Lapatskiy falsely claimed gross revenues, cost of goods sold, and employees for 2019.
Anubor Bagbi, 63, of Las Vegas, Nevada, pleaded guilty to aggravated identity theft and bank fraud and is set for sentencing on December 7, 2023. While investigating Bagbi for opening fraudulent business accounts and trying to cash stolen and/or counterfeit business checks, it was discovered that he previously used some of the same accounts, business names, and identities to fraudulently apply for, obtain, and spend PPP and EIDL funds. Beginning in April 2020 and continuing, Bagbi caused losses of $664,828 in PPP and EIDL funds, by submitting false and fraudulent applications.
Craig Marlow, 40, of Blackfoot, Idaho, was indicted by a federal grand jury on September 13, 2023, on wire fraud charges for allegedly obtaining more than $900,000 in fraudulent EIDL program proceeds. According to allegations in the indictment, between May 2020 and July 2021, Marlow used identities of individuals known to him—primarily family members—to illegally obtain EIDLs disbursed by the SBA. He also submitted at least two fraudulent applications using his own identity. As alleged in the indictment, Marlow submitted the applications using shell entities and provided false statements in the applications, including false statements about the gross revenue, monthly revenue, cost of goods, cost of operations, and number of employees for the entities in whose names the applications were submitted. Marlow allegedly submitted, and caused to be submitted, ten fraudulent loan applications and obtained $926,700. An indictment is merely an allegation, and the defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
Patricia Pischel, 38, of Star, Idaho, pleaded guilty to wire fraud and is set for sentencing on November 15, 2023. Pischel fraudulently obtained $219,409 in PPP and EIDL funds. Pischel made materially false and fraudulent misrepresentations about three businesses and, in reliance on those misstatements, she obtained approximately five PPP loans and EIDLs. Pischel’s misrepresentations included the number of employees, monthly payroll, and wage information included in purported IRS Forms W-3.
Nels Anderson, 58, of Holbrook, Idaho, was sentenced to 6 months followed by 3 years of supervised release for a false claim. Anderson was charged for submitting a CFAP 2 application that contained a materially false, fictitious, and fraudulent livestock claim. When asked for additional documentation, Anderson submitted fraudulent invoices. Anderson did not receive the CFAP 2, but the intended loss was $114,557.19.
Jimmy Winebrenner, 79, of Post Falls, Idaho, pleaded guilty to using or trafficking in unauthorized access devices, and is set for sentencing on November 14, 2023. Between May and August 2020, Winebrenner received at least 16 unemployment benefits cards in the mail from various state agencies in names other than his own. Between July and August 2020, Winebrenner obtained $81,180 in unemployment benefits from state agencies.
Daniel Labrum, 42, of South Jordan, Utah, pleaded guilty to bank fraud and is set for sentencing on November 16, 2023. Labrum’s scheme included submitting six PPP loan applications to financial institutions, one of which was based in Boise, on behalf of several businesses. The applications contained false information about the businesses concerning, among other things, the number of employees and their monthly payroll, certifications about the businesses and the intended use of the PPP funds. In total, the applications sought approximately $1,914,571 in PPP loans.
Eric O’Neil, 58, of Bethel, Connecticut, pleaded guilty to bank fraud and is set for sentencing on December 7, 2023. O’Neil submitted two PPP loan applications to financial institutions, one of which was based in Boise, on behalf of his company. The applications contained false information about his business concerning, among other things, the number of employees and its monthly payroll, certifications about the business and the intended use of the PPP funds. In total, the two applications sought approximately $777,501 in PPP loans.
U.S. Attorney Hurwit thanked the members of the COVID Fraud Task Force for their efforts. The federal law enforcement agencies participating are (i) the Small Business Administration, Office of Inspector General, (ii) the U.S. Department of Treasury, Inspector General for Tax Administration, (iii) the U.S. Secret Service, (iv) the Internal Revenue Service, Criminal Investigation, (v) the Federal Bureau of Investigation, (vi) the U.S. Department of Agriculture, Office of Inspector General, (vii) the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, (viii) the Social Security Administration, Office of Inspector General, (ix) the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, (x) the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Office of Inspector General, and (xi) the U.S. Department of Homeland Security Investigations, Office of Inspector General.
Assistant U.S. Attorneys Darci Crane, Brittney Campbell, and Sean Mazorol are prosecuting these cases with the assistance of the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section.
Anyone with information about allegations of attempted fraud involving COVID-19 can report it by calling the Department of Justice’s National Center for Disaster Fraud (NCDF) Hotline at 866-720-5721 or via the NCDF Web Complaint Form at: www.justice.gov/disaster-fraud/ncdf-disaster-complaint-form.
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U.S. Attorney Alexander M.M. Uballez announces Selection of Missing or Murdered Indigenous Persons Assistant United States Attorney for the Southwest RegionRead the Press Release
ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. – Today, United States Attorney for the District of New Mexico Alexander M.M. Uballez, announced the selection of Assistant United States Attorney (AUSA) Eliot Neal as the Missing or Murdered Indigenous Persons (MMIP) AUSA for the Southwest Region, which encompasses the Districts of New Mexico, Colorado, Utah, Nevada and Arizona. AUSA Neal is one of five MMIP AUSAs who will provide specialized support to United States Attorneys’ offices to address and combat the issues of MMIP. This support includes assisting in the investigation of unresolved MMIP cases and related crimes, and promoting communication, coordination, and collaboration among federal, Tribal, local, and state law enforcement and non-governmental partners on MMIP issues.
Eliot was selected for the MMIP AUSA position based on his background and experience, as well as his proven success in his position as the District’s Tribal Liaison to the Mescalero Apache Tribe. Eliot’s innate ability to develop positive professional and personal relationships with everyone and anyone makes him the perfect person to move seamlessly into this new position.
Eliot grew up in Wilson, Wyoming, at the foot of the Teton mountain range, a historical crossroads for the Crow, Gros Ventre, Blackfeet, Nez Perce, Bannock, Eastern Shoshone, and Sheep Eaters tribes. Close to the modern-day Wind River and Fort Hall reservations, Eliot gained exposure at a young age to both the cultural significance and beauty of Indian Country, as well as the many hardships and challenges faced by Indigenous Americans.
After attending Middlebury College for his undergraduate degree and law school at Emory University, Eliot began his legal career with Cooley LLP in Palo Alto, California. There, Eliot worked in the business litigation group, focusing primarily on securities litigation for large public technology companies. Fueled by a desire to serve the public on a more personal level, Eliot then left securities litigation and became an Assistant United States Attorney for the District of New Mexico in the Las Cruces Branch Office in 2022.
Since he joined the USAO, Eliot has worked on a wide variety of cases including child exploitation, gun crimes, and Indian Country crimes. Most recently, Eliot was asked to serve as the District’s Tribal Liaison to the Mescalero Apache Tribe. In that capacity, Eliot reestablished the District’s relationship with Mescalero after a fifteen-year lapse and has made it one of the strongest government-to-government relationships between the District and tribal leadership in the state. In his role as a Tribal Liaison, Eliot has gained a deeper understanding and appreciation of the issues threatening tribal communities—in particular persistent cycles of physical and sexual violence, drug and alcohol addiction, and poverty, all of which have outsized impacts on small, tight-knit families and communities—and ways the U.S. Attorney’s Office can better serve tribal communities and bring about justice.
“I am excited to be joining the Department of Justice’s response to the crisis of missing and murdered indigenous persons,” said Eliot. “After losing my own brother, I know how devastating it is to have a loved one taken from you. In my new role, I will do everything I can to help bring about closure and justice to those impacted by the MMIP crisis. I look forward to working with tribal and law enforcement partners throughout the Southwest region and can’t wait to get to work!”
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U. S. Attorney Rebecca C. Lutzko Announces over $1.2 Million in Justice Department Grants to Address Behavioral and Mental Health Programs and to Support the Ohio Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force ProgramRead the Press Release
CLEVELAND ― U.S. Attorney Rebecca C. Lutzko today announced awards of over $1.2 million in Department of Justice grants to help various programs in the Northern District of Ohio. The grants were awarded by the Department’s Office of Justice Programs and are being awarded to communities nationwide.
The following organizations received funding:
- The City of Cleveland, Law Enforcement Behavioral Health Response Program, Connect and Protect awarded $549,998.00;
- Findlay, Hancock County, Justice and Mental Health Collaboration Program, The Steady Path Forward awarded $550,000.00; and
- Cleveland, Cuyahoga County, Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force Programs awarded $678,139.00.
The awards announced above are being made as part of the regular end-of-fiscal year cycle. More information about these and other OJP awards can be found on the OJP Grant Awards Page.
About the Office of Justice Programs The Office of Justice Programs provides federal leadership, grants, training, technical assistance, and other resources to improve the nation’s capacity to prevent and reduce crime; advance equity and fairness in the administration of justice; assist victims; and uphold the rule of law. More information about OJP and its components can be found at www.ojp.gov.
Two Long Island Men Separately Indicted for Running National Sex Trafficking BusinessesRead the Press Release
Earlier today in federal court in Central Islip, an 11-count indictment was unsealed charging Lamont Young, also known as “Paper,” with sex trafficking by force, sex trafficking of a minor and interstate prostitution. Young was arrested today on Long Island and was arraigned this afternoon before United States Magistrate Judge James M. Wicks. Young was ordered detained pending trial.
Earlier this week, on September 26, 2023, a six-count indictment was also unsealed in federal court in Central Islip charging Michail McKen, also known as “Kells,” with sex trafficking by force and interstate prostitution. McKen was arrested this morning in Arizona. He will make his initial appearance in federal court in Phoenix later this afternoon.
Breon Peace, United States Attorney for the Eastern District of New York, James Smith, Assistant Director-in-Charge, Federal Bureau of Investigation, New York Field Office (FBI), and Rodney K. Harrison, Commissioner, Suffolk County Police Department (SCPD), announced the indictments.
“As alleged, Young and McKen each ran a national sex trafficking business, including on Long Island, forcing vulnerable females into commercial sex work for the defendants’ financial benefit,” stated United States Attorney Peace. “These indictments demonstrate that the United States Attorney’s Office is committed to working with both local and federal partners to ensure that sex trafficking on Long Island is not tolerated, and those who engage in such violent, cruel crimes are held accountable.”
Mr. Peace also expressed his thanks to the New York City Police Department for their assistance with the Young case, and to the Greater Phoenix Human Trafficking Task Force and the FBI Phoenix Violent Crimes Task Force for their assistance with the McKen arrest.
“The commercial sexual exploitation of women is a heinous act that causes long-lasting harm to victims and their families,” stated FBI Assistant Director-in-Charge Smith. “Combating sex trafficking and violence in our communities is one of the top priorities for the FBI and our law enforcement partners across New York.”
“This pair preyed on and recruited vulnerable young women for years using violence and other measures to force them to engage in sex acts for their own financial gain,” stated SCPD Commissioner Harrison. “The Suffolk County Police Department remains committed to working with our law enforcement partners throughout the nation to bring justice to victims of human trafficking.”
As set forth in Young’s indictment and other court filings, between 2011 and at least 2021, Young recruited his victims online, sold them a dream of stability and financial wellbeing, and then once they accepted his invitation to work for him, he used violence, fraud and coercion to cause them to engage in commercial sex acts for his benefit. At least one of his victims was a minor, who engaged in numerous sex acts on Long Island in 2016 and 2017 at Young’s direction. Young referred to the women that worked for him as a “program” or a “movement,” had numerous rules and inflicted violence on the victims when he perceived they disobeyed him. Young also had some of his victims brand themselves with tattoos, including the letter “P” for his street name “Paper,” which is a reference to cash.
As alleged in McKen’s indictment and other court filings, between 2019 and 2022, McKen used violence and threats of violence to compel multiple women to engage in commercial sex acts for his financial benefit. McKen often recruited sex workers in Virginia, and then caused them to travel to Long Island, where McKen is originally from, to engage in commercial sex acts. McKen sent his victims all over the country to work, including Massachusetts, Pennsylvania, Arizona, Kentucky, Alabama and Oregon. Of the individuals that he trafficked, McKen separated them into two tiers – high-end, experienced females, for whose services he could charge large sums of money, and lower-end, less competitive females, who often struggled with drug addiction, and for whose services McKen would charge less. McKen maintained leverage over those suffering with drug addiction by forcing them to engage in commercial sex acts in exchange for a rationed supply of narcotics that would prevent them from going through complete withdrawal. At the time of his arrest, law enforcement recovered a loaded Smith & Wesson 9mm handgun from the Mercedes Benz vehicle he was driving.
The charges in the Young and McKen indictments are allegations and both defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty. If convicted, they face a mandatory minimum sentence of 15 years in prison and up to life in prison.
If you are a victim of trafficking—whether by Young, McKen or someone else—and have information to provide, please contact the Federal Bureau of Investigation, which is prepared to help regardless of your immigration status, at tips.fbi.gov or call 1-800-CALL-FBI.
The government’s cases are being handled by the Office’s Long Island Criminal Division. Assistant United States Attorney Megan Farrell is in charge of both prosecutions.
The Defendants:
LAMONT YOUNG (also known as “Paper”)
Age: 41
Hauppauge, Central Islip and Patchogue, New York
E.D.N.Y. Docket No. 23-CR-382(JMA)MICHAIL MCKEN (also known as “Kells” and “Cavalli”)
Age: 35
Baldwin, New York and Phoenix, Arizona
E.D.N.Y. Docket No. 23-CR-377(JMA)Two Chicago Men Sentenced to over 2 Years in Federal Prison for Offenses Related to Stealing U.S. MailRead the Press Release
Louisville, KY – Two Chicago men were each sentenced today to 2 years and 6 months in prison for conspiring to steal U.S. Mail and for illegally using and possessing a key to access U.S. Postal Mail receptacles.
U.S. Attorney Michael A. Bennett of the Western District of Kentucky and U.S. Postal Inspector in Charge Lesley Allison of the Pittsburgh Division made the announcement.
According to court documents, Brandon King, 21, and Angel Martin, 25, were each sentenced to 2 years and 6 months in prison, followed by 3 years of supervised release, for conspiring to steal mail matter from U.S. Postal Mail receptacles and for the illegal use and possession of a key used to open U.S. Postal Mail receptacles.
There is no parole in the federal system.
As part of the conspiracy, King and Martin illegally used the key to access U.S. Postal Mail receptacles in the Louisville area and to steal items deposited in the mail receptacles. During the conspiracy, they fraudulently negotiated and attempted to negotiate stolen checks. The total intended loss caused by their conduct was $179,540.30. In June of 2022, King and Martin were arrested after attempting to flee from local law enforcement in the Louisville area.
The case was investigated by the U.S. Postal Inspection Service with assistance from the Jeffersontown Police Department.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Joel King, formerly with the United States Attorney’s Office for the Western District of Kentucky and now with the Eastern District of Kentucky, and Assistant U.S. Attorney Bryan Calhoun prosecuted the case.
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Toledo Couple Who Operated Clinic Sentenced for Mail, Wire, and Health Care FraudRead the Press Release
TOLEDO – Dr. Oliver Jenkins, age 61 and Sherry-Ann Jenkins, age 59, of Jessup, Georgia, were sentenced to prison yesterday by U.S. District Judge Jack Zouhary after earlier being convicted by a jury of conspiracy, mail fraud, wire fraud and health care fraud. Dr. Oliver Jenkins was sentenced to 41 months imprisonment to be followed by one year of supervised release and a $15,000 fine.
Sherry-Ann Jenkins was sentenced to 71 months imprisonment to be followed by two years of supervised release and a $25,000 fine. Restitution will be ordered at a later date.
According to court documents and evidence presented at trial, Dr. Oliver Jenkins, who was an Ear, Nose, and Throat M.D. at the Toledo Clinic, and his wife Sherry-Ann Jenkins, who had a Ph.D. but was not licensed to practice medicine in Ohio, started a new business called the “The Toledo Clinic Cognitive Center”. The Jenkinses represented to the Toledo Clinic that patients suspected of cognitive disorders, particularly dementia and Alzheimer’s Disease, could come to the Cognitive Center for neurocognitive testing, diagnosis, treatment, and referrals, and that Sherry-Ann Jenkins would administer the neurocognitive testing under the supervision of Dr.Oliver Jenkins. The Jenkinses represented that Dr. Oliver Jenkins would make a diagnosis, and provide medical treatment, or a referral. Instead, the Jenkinses engaged in a scheme to
defraud. Dr. Oliver Jenkins never saw or treated patients at the Cognitive Center. Sherry-Ann Jenkins ordered PET scans of patients’ brains, interpreted the scans, diagnosed patients, one as young as 21 years old, with Alzheimer’s Disease, dementia, or other impairments. She also recommended patients take coconut oil to improve memory, and instructed certain patients to see her every 3-6 weeks for the rest of their lives. The Jenkinses billed Cognitive Center patients and health care benefits programs using Dr. Oliver Jenkins’ billing number.This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation in Toledo, Ohio, the United States Department of Health and Human Services, Office of Inspector General in Cleveland, Ohio, the Ohio Attorney General’s Medicaid Fraud Control Unit, and the Ohio State Medical Board. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Brian McDonough and Robert Melching.
Three Defendants Sentenced in Prison-Directed Armed Drug Trafficking ConspiracyRead the Press Release
ATHENS, Ga. – Three defendants involved in a lengthy and ongoing investigation into armed drug trafficking conducted out of jail facilities in Mexico and Georgia were sentenced for their crimes recently.
Cindy Stamey, 50, of Danielsville, Georgia, was sentenced to serve 120 months in prison to be followed by five years of supervised release after a federal jury found her guilty of one count of conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute methamphetamine and one count of possession of methamphetamine on Sept. 21, 2022. Christopher Wilson, 42, of Hull, Georgia, was sentenced to serve 55 months in prison to be followed by three years of supervised release after he previously pleaded guilty to possession of methamphetamine with intent to distribute on April 13, 2022. Laura Yazmine Garcia Guerro, aka “Yazmin Garcia,” aka “Yaz,” 30, a citizen of Mexico and a resident of Duluth, Georgia, was sentenced to serve 120 months in prison to be followed by five years of supervised release after she previously pleaded guilty to one count of possession with intent to distribute more than 500 grams of methamphetamine on July 13, 2021.
U.S. District Judge C. Ashley Royal handed down the sentences on Sept. 18. The defendants are not eligible for parole.
“These cases are the result of a lengthy and ongoing criminal investigation into armed methamphetamine trafficking in the Athens community with ties to prisoners and Mexican cartels, a dangerous mixture,” said U.S. Attorney Peter D. Leary. “I want to applaud the tremendous efforts of law enforcement at the local, state and federal level to dismantle criminal networks plaguing our communities.”
The following co-defendants in related cases have been sentenced:
Bruce Hicks, a/k/a “Bruno,” a/k/a “Bruce Incc,” of Athens, was sentenced to serve 260 months in prison on Jan. 8, 2020, after he pleaded guilty to conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute methamphetamine on Jan. 1, 2019;
Malcody Dinges aka “Cody” aka “Yes, Sir Cody,” 44, was sentenced to serve 240 months in prison (to run consecutive to any state-imposed sentence) to be followed by three years of supervised release on May 12, 2022, after he pleaded guilty to conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute methamphetamine on Dec. 16, 2021;
Adonias Sales Temaj aka “Alacran,” 29, a citizen of Guatemala and resident of Norcross, Georgia, was sentenced to serve 210 months in prison on March 7, after he pleaded guilty to conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute methamphetamine on July 14;
Frankie Baza, of Gwinnett County, Georgia, was sentenced to serve 200 months in prison to be followed by three years of supervised release on June 3, 2021, after he pleaded guilty to conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute methamphetamine;
Ervin Sales Temaj aka “Milton Aguilar,” 35, a citizen of Guatemala and resident of Norcross, was sentenced to serve 121 months in prison to be followed by three years of supervised release on July 14, 2022, after he pleaded guilty to conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute methamphetamine on April 13, 2022;
Carrie Kasper, 32, of Athens, was sentenced to serve 120 months in prison on July 10, after she pleaded guilty to possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine on July 15, 2021;
Jeris Dove aka “Jeris Southers,” 29, of Athens, was sentenced to serve 110 months in prison to be followed by four years of supervised release on Jan. 20, 2022, after he pleaded guilty to possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine on Oct. 18, 2021;
Justin Maddox, 45, of Athens, was sentenced to serve 30 months in prison on Jan. 11, 2023, after he pleaded guilty to possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine on Aug. 3, 2021; and
Katlyn Lackey, 22, of Commerce, Georgia, was sentenced to serve 20 months in prison on Jan. 12, 2023, after she pleaded guilty to possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine May 12, 2022.
The following co-defendants are awaiting sentencing:
Brendan R. Gates, 38, of Commerce, was found guilty by a federal jury of one count of conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute methamphetamine, one count of possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine and one count of possession of a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime on Sept. 21, 2022, and faces a maximum of life imprisonment. Sentencing will occur at a date determined by the Court; and
David Zavala, of Gordon County, Georgia, pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute methamphetamine on Dec. 11, 2020, and faces a maximum of life imprisonment. Sentencing for Zavala will occur at a date determined by the Court.
According to court documents, law enforcement officers in the Middle District of Georgia began investigating drug trafficking organizations operating from jail facilities in Mexico and Georgia in 2016, including inmates using social media and contraband cell phones to conduct and direct drug sales and move the drug proceeds to other members of the conspiracy. In 2018, federal agents learned that co-defendant Dinges was conducting drug deals using contraband cell phones while in custody at Wheeler Correctional facility. During the investigation, agents learned that Dinges was communicating with the co-defendants and others located in the Athens region about controlled substances; these individuals would travel to locations in Atlanta as directed by Dinges to receive methamphetamine and return to Athens to distribute the drugs. Dinges received a fee for brokering the deals. The drug trafficking organization was responsible for distributing more than 100 kilograms of methamphetamine.
In March 2021, law enforcement conducted an undercover purchase of methamphetamine from “Carlos,” another incarcerated person in Mexico, who was suspected of providing large quantities of methamphetamine to the Athens-area including in Watkinsville, Georgia. "Carlos" directed Garcia Guerro to conduct the transaction at the El Indio Restaurant parking lot in Duluth. Garcia Guerro was arrested at the location point in possession of a gallon-size plastic bag of methamphetamine, nearly one kilogram. For more information about these cases, please visit https://www.justice.gov/usao-mdga/pr/68-defendants-indicted-operation-wu-block-meth-heroin-investigation.
This effort is part of an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force (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.
These cases are being investigated by DEA Macon Resident Office, FBI Middle Georgia Safe Streets Gang Task Force, Athens-Clarke County Police Department, Clarke County Sheriff's Office, Gwinnett County Sheriff’s Office, Hart County Sheriff’s Office, Madison County Sheriff’s Office, Oconee County Sheriff’s Office, Greene County Sheriff’s Office, Oglethorpe County Sheriff’s Office, Georgia Department of Corrections and Northeast Regional Drug Task Force.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Tamara Jarrett is prosecuting the cases for the Government.
Temple Man Sentenced to over 11 Years in Prison for Conspiring to Transport Non-Citizens Resulting in DeathRead the Press Release
DEL RIO – A Temple, TX man was sentenced yesterday to 136 months in prison for conspiracy to transport illegal aliens resulting in death.
According to court documents, between July 24, 2020, and July 26, 2020, Saul Benitez-Gonzalez, 22, conspired with Raul Perez-Benitez (indicted separately) and others to smuggle non-citizens from Mexico to the United States. Benitez helped and prepared Perez to illegally transport nine Mexican citizens into the United States.
On July 26, 2020, U.S. Border Patrol agents encountered Perez driving a GMC Sierra five miles north of Brackettville. When the agents tried to conduct an immigration inspection, Perez failed to yield and a highspeed chase ensued. Agents terminated pursuit after speeds of 100 miles per hour were reached.
Later that morning agents discovered the GMC had an accident. The GMC appeared to have flipped and rolled after hitting a large boulder. Of the nine Mexican citizens being transported by Perez in the GMC, two died from fatal injuries received in the accident and three others were transported to a medical facility with serious bodily injuries. Four others sustained minor injuries and were transported to a Border Patrol station for processing.
“Smugglers and those who support them have no regard for their human cargo,” said U.S. Attorney Jaime Esparza. “We will continue to work hard with our fellow law enforcement partners to bring these smuggling networks down.”
“This sentencing serves as reminder that HSI will utilize every tool to investigate and dismantle human smuggling networks,” said Special Agent in Charge, Craig Larrabee, HSI San Antonio. “Those engaged in this illicit activity place personal profit ahead of public safety. Driven by greed, these criminals have little regard for the health and well-being of the people they smuggle.”
On January 13, 2023, Perez was sentenced to 63 months with credit for time served since his incarceration on July 26, 2020.
HSI investigated the case.
Assistant U.S. Attorneys Izaak Bruce and Larry Fadler prosecuted the case.
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Strafford Business Owner Pleads Guilty to False Tax ReturnRead the Press Release
SPRINGFIELD, Mo. – A Strafford, Mo., business owner pleaded guilty in federal court today to filing a false tax return.
Philip Russell Turner, 53, pleaded guilty before U.S. Chief Magistrate Judge David P. Rush to one count of filing a false tax return. Turner is the co-owner and president of a business identified in court documents as “Company A.”
By pleading guilty today, Turner admitted that he filed a false tax return for the calendar year 2018. Turner only claimed $15,088 income, although he had received additional income that should have been reported.
According to today’s plea agreement, Turner used funds from Company A to pay for approximately $612,144 in renovations to his personal residence in Strafford and cabins in Colorado in 2017 and 2018. He falsely told his accountant that the expenses for the renovations were expenses incurred by Company A for, among other things, renovating Company A’s offices, so that his accountant would not include the renovations as personal income on Turner’s tax returns.
As a result of Turner’s misrepresentations, his personal income for calendar years 2017 and 2018 was unreported by approximately $612,144. As a result, according to his plea agreement, Turner has an outstanding income tax liability of $97,765 for calendar year 2017 and $61,201 for calendar year 2018.
In addition, the plea agreement says, Turner owes $351,620 in unpaid taxes from calendar years 2013, 2014, and 2015. Under the terms of the plea agreement, Turner must pay the Internal Revenue Service $510,586 in restitution plus interest.
Under federal statutes, Turner is subject to a sentence of up to three years in federal prison without parole. The maximum statutory sentence is prescribed by Congress and is provided here for informational purposes, as the sentencing of the defendant will be determined by the court based on the advisory sentencing guidelines and other statutory factors. A sentencing hearing will be scheduled after the completion of a presentence investigation by the United States Probation Office.
This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Shannon Kempf. It was investigated by IRS-Criminal Investigation.
Stilwell Resident Pleads Guilty to Involuntary ManslaughterRead the Press Release
MUSKOGEE, OKLAHOMA – The United States Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Oklahoma announced that Bradley Jordan Eagle-Tate, age 30, of Stilwell, Oklahoma, entered a guilty plea to one count of Involuntary Manslaughter in Indian Country.
The Indictment alleged that on June 27, 2022, Eagle-Tate unlawfully killed the victim by failing to devote his full time and attention to driving. According to investigators, Eagle-Tate drifted into the oncoming lane of Oklahoma Highway 100 in a no-passing zone, clipping one vehicle before colliding head-on with a second vehicle. The driver of the second vehicle died at the scene. Eagle-Tate admitted during the plea hearing that he had multiple drugs in his system at the time of the collision.
The crime occurred in Adair County, within the boundaries of the Cherokee Nation Reservation, in the Eastern District of Oklahoma.
The charges arose from an investigation by the Oklahoma Highway Patrol and the Federal Bureau of Investigation.
The Honorable Jason A. Robertson, U.S. Magistrate Judge in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Oklahoma, accepted the plea in Muskogee and ordered the completion of a presentence investigation report. The Court permitted Eagle-Tate to remain out of custody pending sentencing.
Assistant United States Attorneys Zack Parsons and Kevin Gross represented the United States.
St. Louis County Man Accused of Paying to Watch Sexual Abuse of ChildrenRead the Press Release
ST. LOUIS – A man from St. Louis County, Missouri appeared in court this week to answer charges accusing him of coercing children overseas into engaging in sexually explicit conduct.
Sanel Smajlovic was indicted Sept. 13 on four counts of attempted production of child pornography. The indictment accuses of Smajlovic of coercing a total of six minors on four occasions in 2018 and 2019 into engaging in sexually explicit conduct.
A motion seeking to have Smajlovic held in jail until trial says Homeland Security Investigations identified traffickers in the Philippines who were providing access to pre-produced child sexual abuse material as well as live-streaming the sexual abuse of children to paying customers worldwide. Smajlovic directed the sexual abuse of children and then paid the adults who provided the children, the motion says. The motion calls it part of a growing transnational child-sexual-abuse industry and says the Smajlovic case is part of a larger investigation.
Smajlovic was arrested at St. Louis Lambert International Airport Sunday upon his arrival on an international flight. He pleaded not guilty to the charges at an appearance in U.S. District Court in St. Louis Monday.
Charges set forth in an indictment are merely accusations and do not constitute proof of guilt. Every defendant is presumed to be innocent unless and until proven guilty.
Homeland Security Investigations investigated the case, with the assistance of forensic specialists from the Justice Department Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section and the Missouri State Technical Assistance Team. Assistant U.S. Attorney Nathan Chapman 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.
Southwest Georgia Resident Sentenced to Prison Resulting from Valdosta Armed Drug Distribution InvestigationRead the Press Release
ALBANY, Ga. – A Valdosta, Georgia, probationer with a lengthy criminal history who was found guilty by a federal jury on charges related to controlled substance distribution out of a Valdosta, Georgia, apartment complex was sentenced to prison recently.
Barry Kiya Daise, 45, of Valdosta, Georgia, was sentenced to serve 240 months in prison to be followed by three years of supervised release to be served concurrently with any probation revocation sentence in Brooks County Superior Court by Senior U.S. District Judge W. Louis Sands on Sept. 21. Daise was convicted by a federal jury of one count of possession with intent to distribute cocaine and one count of maintaining and using a drug involved premises on Oct. 6, 2022. Daise is not eligible for parole.
“Despite prior felony convictions involving guns and drug trafficking, the defendant continued to disregard the law by committing crimes that harm the community,” said U.S. Attorney Peter D. Leary. “Defendants with long criminal records will face the possibility of federal prosecution for chronic illegal activity as we continue to partner with law enforcement to identify and hold repeat and violent offenders accountable.”
According to court documents and evidence presented at trial, Daise was identified as part of a larger investigation by the Lowndes County Sheriff’s Office Special Operations Division into armed drug trafficking in August 2019. At the time, Daise was on probation for a prior state felony. Following several months of surveillance, a search warrant was executed at Daise’s West Hill Avenue apartment on Nov. 19, 2019. Inside, officers found a loaded firearm stolen from Tifton, Georgia, ammunition, 48 grams of powder cocaine, digital scales and evidence of crack-cocaine production. Daise’s cell phone contained messages about selling controlled substances, meeting at his apartment complex parking lot to conduct the transactions and photos of guns and drugs.
Daise has a lengthy criminal record with prior state felony convictions including possession of a firearm by a convicted felon in Lowndes County, Georgia, Superior Court and possession of cocaine with intent to distribute in Brooks County, Georgia, Superior Court. The case was investigated by the Lowndes County Sheriff’s Office, Special Operations Division and FBI. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Sonja Profit and Robert McCullers prosecuted the case.
South Bend Man Sentenced to 198 Months in PrisonRead the Press Release
SOUTH BEND – Pablo Pedraza, 30 years old, of South Bend, Indiana, was sentenced by United States District Court Judge Damon R. Leichty after pleading guilty to possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine, announced United States Attorney Clifford D. Johnson.
Pedraza was sentenced to 198 months in prison followed by 5 years of supervised release.
According to documents in the case, in February 2023, Pedraza sold 1 pound of methamphetamine. When law enforcement later executed a search warrant at his residence, they recovered over 2 kilograms of methamphetamine and over $18,000 cash.
This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation with assistance from the Mishawaka Police Department, the Indiana State Police, the St. Joseph County Police Department, and the Drug Enforcement Administration North Central Laboratory. The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Joel Gabrielse.
Saugus Man Sentenced to More Than Four Years in Prison for Role in Conspiracy to Traffic Counterfeit Prescription PillsRead the Press Release
BOSTON – A Saugus man was sentenced yesterday in federal court in Boston for his role in a North Shore-based drug trafficking organization (DTO) that allegedly manufactured and distributed tens of thousands of counterfeit prescription pills containing fentanyl and methamphetamine.
Justin Westmoreland, 25, was sentenced by U.S. Chief District Court Judge F. Dennis Saylor IV to 57 months in prison and three years of supervised release. On May 26, 2023, Westmoreland pleaded guilty to conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute controlled substances.
Westmoreland was among 23 individuals charged in October 2022 in connection with a wide-ranging conspiracy to traffic counterfeit prescription pills. The defendants were subsequently indicted along with two additional alleged co-conspirators in December 2022. According to court documents, the DTO distributed counterfeit oxycodone pills containing fentanyl and counterfeit Adderall pills containing methamphetamine, among other things, to various individuals in the Lynn area.
Westmoreland was responsible for the distribution of approximately 7,000 counterfeit oxycodone pills containing undisclosed amounts of fentanyl. Intercepted communications between Westmoreland and his supplier established that Westmoreland knew that the pills he was receiving and distributing were counterfeit pills.
Westmoreland is the first individual to be convicted and sentenced in connection with this case.
Acting United States Attorney Joshua S. Levy; Brian D. Boyle, Special Agent in Charge of the Drug Enforcement Administration, New England Division; and John E. Mawn Jr., Interim Colonel of the Massachusetts State Police made the announcement today. Valuable assistance was provided by the Beverly, Everett, Peabody, Revere, Salem, Saugus and Swampscott Police Departments. Assistant U.S. Attorneys James E. Arnold and Evan D. Panich of the Narcotics and Money Laundering Unit are prosecuting the case.
This effort is part of an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) operation. OCDETF identifies, disrupts, and dismantles the highest-level criminal organizations that threaten the United States using a prosecutor-led, intelligence-driven, multi-agency approach. Additional information about the OCDETF Program can be found at https://www.justice.gov/OCDETF.
The details contained in the indictment are allegations. The remaining defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
Santa Domingo Man Pleads Guilty to Sexual AbuseRead 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 Federal Bureau of Investigation’s Albuquerque Field Office, announced today that Santiago Quintana, Jr. pleaded guilty to abusive sexual contact. Quintana, 70, of Santo Domingo, and a member of the Santo Domingo Pueblo, will remain in custody pending sentencing, which has not been scheduled.
According to court documents, on January 25, 2023, the Bureau of Indian Affairs received an allegation of sexual abuse of children from the Santo Domingo School. A Forensic Interviewer from the FBI interviewed the victim who stated that she and her sibling had been sexually abused by Quintana for about six years, beginning when they were 6 and 7 years old, and the siblings had both witnessed Quintana sexually abusing the other. In his plea agreement, Quintana admitted to engaging in sexual contact with the victim who was over the age of twelve years but had not yet attained the age of sixteen years.
At sentencing, Quintana faces up 10 years in prison and must register as a sex offender upon his release.
The FBI Albuquerque Field Office investigated this case with assistance of the Bureau of Indian Affairs. Assistant United States Attorney Robert James Booth II is prosecuting the case.
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Representative John Rogers Charged with Obstruction of Justice in Fraud Case Involving the Jefferson County Community Service FundRead the Press Release
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. – Representative John Rogers has been indicted by a federal grand jury for obstruction of justice, and tax charges have been added against his assistant, in a superseding indictment in the case involving schemes to defraud the Jefferson County Community Service Fund, announced U.S. Attorney Prim F. Escalona, Federal Bureau of Investigation Special Agent in Charge Carlton L. Peeples, and Internal Revenue Service, Criminal Investigation Acting Special Agent in Charge Demetrius Hardeman.
A 25-count superseding indictment filed this week in United States District Court charges Varrie Johnson Kindall, 58, of Chelsea, with one count of conspiracy to commit wire and mail fraud, 11 counts of wire fraud, 3 counts of mail fraud, 1 count of money laundering, and 4 tax related charges. Additionally, the superseding indictment charges John Rogers, 82, and Kindall with 2 counts of obstruction of justice. These charges arise from an investigation of wrongdoing in connection with the Jefferson County Community Service Fund. In June, former Representative Fred L. Plump, Jr., pleaded guilty to conspiring with Kindall and resigned from the Alabama House of Representatives.
According to the superseding indictment, in 2015 the Alabama Legislature passed Alabama Act No. 2015-226 (the “Act”) and authorized the Jefferson County Commission to levy and distribute a one percent sales tax and a one percent use tax to benefit the public welfare and enhance the education of the children of Jefferson County. Jefferson County began levying the new taxes in or about August 2017. The Act required the County to distribute the tax revenue according to certain specified priorities, including paying debt incurred during school construction, increasing the County’s general fund, giving funds to each board of education serving students in the County, and for certain other purposes set forth in the Act.
The Act created the Jefferson County Community Service Fund (the “Fund”), which was subsidized by approximately $3.6 million annually from the new taxes. The Act also created the Jefferson County Community Service Committee (the “Committee”), the four members of which were elected by members of the Jefferson County House and Senate delegations. The Committee was responsible for ensuring that the Fund was used only for the purposes set forth in the Act, which included to support public entities and projects such as schools, libraries, museums, parks, zoos, neighborhood associations, athletic facilities, youth sports associations, road construction, the performing arts, police departments, the sheriff’s office, fire departments, and certain nonprofit entities. Each Representative and Senator representing Jefferson County could make recommendations to the Committee of expenditures from their allotted amount of the Fund. These recommendations were made on a form created by the Committee that required certain certifications by the legislator. The organization receiving the funds was required to submit information about the organization and confirm that it intended to use the money for a public purpose. During each fiscal year from 2018 to 2022, each Representative was allocated approximately $100,000 and each Senator was allocated approximately $240,000 from the Fund.
The superseding indictment identifies certain relevant parties. Representative John Rogers was a long-serving member of the Alabama House of Representatives. Fred L. Plump, Jr. served as the Executive Director of the Piper Davis Youth Baseball League (“Piper Davis”), a nonprofit organization that claimed to provide a positive sporting experience for inner city youth in Jefferson County. Defendant Varrie Johnson Kindall was Rogers’ personal and professional assistant. Individual #1 was the Founder of Organization #1.
Between fiscal year 2018 and fiscal year 2022, Representative Rogers was allocated approximately $500,000 by the Fund. Rogers directed approximately $400,000 of those discretionary funds to Piper Davis. In turn, Plump gave approximately $200,000 to Kindall.
The superseding indictment alleges that from in or about March 2019, and continuing through April 2023, Kindall conspired with Plump and others to defraud and obtain money from the Fund. It is alleged that it was part of the conspiracy that Rogers, with Kindall’s assistance, recommended during each fiscal year that most of his allotment of Fund money be paid to Piper Davis. In turn, Plump agreed to pay kickbacks to Kindall. Plump and Kindall submitted false and fraudulent information to the Committee about Piper Davis’ intended use of Fund money. Upon receipt and deposit of Fund checks, Plump gave checks to Kindall for approximately one-half of the amount of Fund money received by Piper Davis. On one occasion, it is alleged, Kindall engaged in money laundering by moving a large sum of illegally obtained money between bank accounts.
Additionally, the superseding indictment alleges that, in 2019, Kindall committed wire fraud by assisting Rogers in directing Fund money to another entity, identified as Organization #1, and then requiring Individual #1 to pay kickbacks to her.
The superseding indictment alleges further that, after learning about the federal investigation into the fraud scheme, Rogers and Kindall attempted to obstruct justice by offering Individual #1 additional grant money as a bribe and otherwise trying to corruptly persuade Individual #1 to give false information to federal agents.
The superseding indictment adds 4 counts alleging that Kindall did not file a tax return for 2019 despite receiving substantial income and aided the filing of false tax returns for 2020-2022.
The maximum penalty for the conspiracy and substantive fraud counts is twenty years in prison and a $250,000 fine. The maximum penalty for money laundering is ten years in prison and a $250,000 fine. The maximum penalty for obstruction of justice is twenty years in prison and a $250,000 fine. The maximum penalty for obstruction of justice by bribery is five years in prison and a $250,000 fine. The maximum penalty for failing to file a tax return is 1 year in prison and a $25,000 fine. The maximum penalty for aiding the filing of a false tax return is 3 years in prison and a $100,000 fine.
The Federal Bureau of Investigation and Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigation investigated the case. Assistant United States Attorneys George Martin and Catherine Crosby are prosecuting the case.
An indictment contains only charges. A defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
Recidivist Defendant Sentenced to Six Years in Prison for Orchestrating Million-Dollar Fraud Scheme Targeting Senior Executives of Investment FirmsRead the Press Release
Damian Williams, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, announced today that JONATHAN GHERTLER was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Edgardo Ramos to six years in prison in connection with his scheme to impersonate senior leaders of two Manhattan-based investment firms, resulting in over $1 million in losses to their portfolio companies, and to impersonating a partner of a global law firm on telephone calls with federal law enforcement agents who were investigating the scheme. GHERTLER previously pled guilty to one count of wire fraud and one count of making false statements.
U.S. Attorney Damian Williams said: “Jonathan Ghertler orchestrated a sophisticated impersonation scheme by posing as prominent financiers and lawyers. He duped companies out of over $1 million. He also obstructed justice by brazenly impersonating a partner of a global law firm and urging federal agents to drop their investigation. But he did not get away with it. As today’s sentence demonstrates, serial fraudsters like Ghertler will be caught and held to account for their crimes.”
According to the Indictment and other filings and statements made in court:
From at least in or about December 2021, up to and including at least June 2022, GHERTLER impersonated the General Counsel of a global private equity firm (the “Private Equity Firm”). In doing so, GHERTLER fraudulently caused the Private Equity Firm’s portfolio companies to pay at least $200,000 to fund a non-existent internal investigation into alleged links between senior employees of the Private Equity Firm and Jeffrey Epstein, the deceased financier who, before he died on or about August 10, 2019, had been charged in the Southern District of New York with sex trafficking of minors and conspiring to commit sex trafficking of minors.
In addition, from at least May 2021, up to and including February 2023, GHERTLER impersonated the founder of an investment firm (the “Investment Firm”), directing the Chief Executive Officer (the “CEO”) of one of the Investment Firm’s portfolio companies (the “IF Portfolio Company”) to make at least $865,000 in payments to fund a non-existent internal investigation related to the founder’s alleged relationship with Epstein. Shortly before the fraud unraveled, GHERTLER, posing as the founder of the Investment Firm, had discussed with the CEO the possibility of making a large investment into a restaurant chain owned by another investment firm.
On or about February 7, 2023, after learning from the CEO that federal investigators were investigating a potentially fraudulent payment made by the Investment Firm, GHERTLER, posing as a partner (the “Partner”) at a global law firm, spoke on the phone with Special Agents with the Federal Bureau of Investigation (“FBI”). GHERTLER told the federal agents that the IF Portfolio Company had chosen not to report the fraud because it had been “made whole” by the fraudster.
On or about February 10, 2023, GHERTLER, impersonating the Partner, spoke again with federal agents. GHERTLER said, after “consult[ing]” with “associates and lower-level partners” at the Global Law Firm who “used to work” at the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York, “our position is that, uh, the law states that, umm, you know, if the money was paid back prior to, uh, the crime being, uh, discovered, uh, it’s not a crime.” GHERTLER added that his “client [i.e., the founder of the Investment Firm] has a lot of other issues he is dealing with right now, so this is one he really doesn’t need to deal with.”
This case resulted in GHERTLER’s 16th conviction — his prior convictions include fraud, theft, larceny, burglary, and forgery. In 2001, he was convicted of wire fraud in the Southern District of New York, and, in 2007, he was convicted of wire fraud in the Middle District of Florida. As here, in both the prior federal cases, GHERTLER was charged with impersonating prominent lawyers and business leaders and persuading companies to fraudulently transfer large sums of money to accounts under his control.
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In addition to his prison term, GHERTLER, 61, of Orlando, Florida, was sentenced to three years of supervised release and ordered to pay restitution in the amount of $1,065,000 and forfeit the same amount.
Mr. Williams praised the outstanding investigative work of the FBI.
This case is being handled by the Office’s General Crimes Unit. Assistant U.S. Attorney Adam Sowlati is in charge of the prosecution.
Prince George's County Man Pleads Guilty to Fraudulently Obtaining Covid-19 Cares Act Paycheck Protection Program LoansRead the Press Release
Baltimore, Maryland – Reginald Alphonso Hopkins, age 52, of Prince George's County, Maryland, pleaded guilty today to the charge of conspiracy to commit wire fraud relating to the submission of fraudulent claims for the Paycheck Protection Program (“PPP”) benefits under the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (“CARES”) Act, enacted to provide emergency financial assistance to Americans suffering from the economic effects caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.
The guilty plea was announced by Erek L. Barron, United States Attorney for the District of Maryland and Special Agent in Charge Thomas J. Sobocinski of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Baltimore Field Office.
According to his plea agreement, Hopkins fraudulently obtained $1,007,224 in fraudulent PPP funds and $9,000 in Economic Injury Disaster Loan funds for various purported businesses he controlled—a transportation business, a car sales business, and an assisted living facility. He also attempted to fraudulently obtain more than $3,132,224 in PPP and EIDL funds.
According to his plea agreement, on June 11, 2020, with direction from Hopkins, a co-conspirator submitted a fraudulent PPP loan application to Bluevine and Celtic Bank for Prestige Executive Transportation, a business owned by Hopkins. The application contained multiple material misrepresentations, including that Prestige Executive Transportation in 2019 had 15 employees and an average monthly payroll of $116,436. In support of the loan application, a fabricated 2019 Internal Revenue Service (IRS) Form 944—Employer’s Annual Federal Tax Return—was submitted, which falsely indicated that the entity’s total payments to all employees in 2019 was $1,397,237.78. Based on the fraudulent submissions, the PPP loan was funded, and approximately $291,090 was distributed. Hopkins agreed to pay the co-conspirator a kickback payment after the PPP loan funds were received, and he provided the co-conspirator a check in the amount $58,000.
On March 14, 2021, the co-conspirator submitted a fraudulent PPP loan application to Cross River Bank for Prestige 24/7 Auto Sales & Services LLC (“Prestige 24/7”), another business owned by Hopkins. The loan application contained multiple material misrepresentations, including that Prestige 24/7 in 2019 had 15 employees and an average monthly payroll of $120,409. In support of the loan application, a fabricated 2019 IRS Form 940—Employer's Annual Federal Unemployment—was submitted, which falsely indicated that the entity’s total payments to all employees in 2019 was $1,444,902.60. Based on the fraudulent submissions made on behalf of Hopkins as the owner of Prestige 24/7, the PPP loan was funded on March 23, 2021, and approximately $294,771 was disbursed to Hopkins.
On March 23, 2021, the co-conspirator, with direction from Hopkins, submitted a fraudulent PPP loan application to Cross River Bank for Prestige Assisted Living Inc. (“Prestige Assisted Living”), another business owned by Hopkins. The PPP loan application contained multiple material misrepresentations, including that Prestige Assisted Living in 2019 had 24 employees and an average monthly payroll of $168,545. In support of the loan application, a fabricated 2019 IRS Form 940 was submitted, which falsely indicated that the entity in 2019 paid $2,022,544.12 in wages to all employees. Prestige Assisted Living did not even obtain a license to operate as an assisted living facility until December 18, 2020. It was authorized to have four beds. Moreover, even after it obtained its license, Prestige Assisted Living never paid wages to any employee. The PPP loan application also included a fabricated February 2020 Wells Fargo Bank account statement for Prestige Assisted Living. The actual beginning balance on the Wells Fargo Bank statement was negative $3.50, not $123,538.50 as shown on the purported bank statement submitted to Cross River Bank. Likewise, the actual ending balance on the Wells Fargo Bank statement was negative $17.50, not $123,475.77 as shown on the purported February 2020 statement submitted to Cross River Bank. Based on the fraudulent submissions the PPP loan was funded, and approximately $421,363 was distributed to Hopkins. Hopkins again paid the co-conspirator kickback payments for his work, totaling $44,000.
Hopkins spent the fraudulently obtained loan proceeds in various ways, including by paying $177,000 in kickbacks to the co-conspirator, providing PPP funds to various friends, family members and associates for purposes unrelated to employment, making large cash withdrawals for himself, and paying off various personal debts.
Hopkins also used $30,000 of the PPP funds to purchase an auto body repair shop called B&G Auto Repair LLC. He planned to seek and obtain a fraudulent PPP loan for this entity as well.
On March 19, 2021, another fraudulent PPP loan application was submitted to Cross River Bank for Prestige Executive Protection Services, LLC, another business owned by Hopkins, seeking a loan in the amount of $250,723. This application falsely claimed, among other things, that the business had $100,289 in average monthly payroll. It also included a fabricated 2019 IRS Form 940, which stated that total payments to all employees in 2019 were $1,203,471.52. The loan was ultimately declined.
In addition to obtaining the PPP loans discussed above, Hopkins also conspired with the co-conspirator to obtain PPP loans for various other purported businesses, including Prestige Paradise Promotions, LLC, Prestige Executive Protection Services II, LLC, Prestige Real Estate & Development, LLC, and B&G Auto Repair LLC, as noted above. Hopkins repeatedly sought the co-conspirator’s assistance in obtaining PPP loans for these entities, but the loans never closed.
Hopkins also caused to be submitted numerous fraudulent EIDL applications. The EIDL program was another program administered by the U.S. Small Business Administration (“SBA”) designed to provide relief funds to small businesses impacted by COVID-19.
On April 1, 2020, an EIDL application was submitted for Prestige Executive Transportation. The application falsely claimed that the business had five employees, 2019 gross revenues of $250 million, and cost of goods sold of $100 million. This equated to a requested loan amount of $2 million. This loan was ultimately declined; however, Hopkins received a EIDL Advance of $5,000.
Likewise, on April 2, 2020, an EIDL application for Prestige Executive Protection Services II was submitted to the SBA. Financial information supplied on the application stated that Prestige Executive Protection had gross revenues of $200,000 and a monthly revenue of $16,666.66, which equated to a requested loan amount of $100,000. This loan was also declined; however, Hopkins received an EIDL Advance of $4,000.
On July 1, 2020, an EIDL application was submitted for Prestige 24/7. It falsely claimed that the business had gross revenues of $700,000 and cost of goods sold of $650,000. The loan was ultimately declined.
If the party’s plea agreement is accepted by the Court, Hopkins will be sentenced to between 18 months and 41 months of imprisonment. U.S. District Judge Richard D. Bennett has scheduled sentencing for January 10, 2024, at 2:30 p.m.
The District of Maryland Strike Force is one of five strike forces established throughout the United States by the U.S. Department of Justice to investigate and prosecute COVID-19 fraud, including fraud relating to the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (“CARES”) Act. The CARES Act was designed to provide emergency financial assistance to Americans suffering the economic effects caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. The strike forces focus on large-scale, multi-state pandemic relief fraud perpetrated by criminal organizations and transnational actors. The strike forces are interagency law enforcement efforts, using prosecutor-led and data analyst-driven teams designed to identify and bring to justice those who stole pandemic relief funds.
For more information on the Department’s response to the pandemic, please visit https://www.justice.gov/coronavirus. Anyone with information about allegations of attempted fraud involving COVID-19 can report it by calling the Department of Justice’s National Center for Disaster Fraud (NCDF) Hotline at 866-720-5721 or via the NCDF Web Complaint Form at: https://www.justice.gov/disaster-fraud/ncdf-disaster-complaint-form.
United States Attorney Erek L. Barron commended the FBI for their work in the investigation and thanked the Baltimore County Police Department and the U.S. Small Business Administration – Office of Inspector General (“SBA-OIG”). Mr. Barron thanked Assistant U.S. Attorney Paul Riley, who is prosecuting the federal case. Mr. Barron also recognized the assistance of the Maryland COVID-19 Strike Force Paralegal Specialist Joanna Huber.
For more information on the Maryland U.S. Attorney’s Office, its priorities, and resources available to help the community, please visit www.justice.gov/usao-md and https://www.justice.gov/usao-md/community-outreach.
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Pittsburgh Resident Sentenced on Bank Robbery ChargeRead the Press Release
PITTSBURGH, PA - A resident of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania was sentenced in federal court today on a charge of bank robbery, United States Attorney Eric G. Olshan announced.
The court was advised that on December 7, 2022, Ahmed Asiri robbed the Dollar Bank located at 3029 West Liberty Avenue, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania in the Dormont neighborhood. As a result of the robbery, Asiri obtained $20,000 in United States currency. These funds were later recovered by law enforcement.
Judge Horan sentenced Asiri to 37 months in prison followed by one year of supervised release and ordered Asiri to pay restitution to Dollar Bank.
Assistant United States Attorney Carl J. Spindler prosecuted this case on behalf of the government.
The Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Allegheny County Police Department, and the Dormont Police Department conducted the investigation that led to the prosecution of Asiri.
Pinellas Man Sentenced to Prison for Receiving Child Sexual Abuse MaterialRead the Press Release
Tampa, FL – U.S. District Judge Steven D. Merryday has sentenced Brian David Johnson (38, Pinellas Park) to 7 years and 3 months in federal prison, followed by 15 years of supervised release, for receiving child sex abuse material. The court also ordered Johnson to pay $23,000 in restitution and forfeit various electronic devices, which are traceable to proceeds of the offense. Johnson had pleaded guilty on June 28, 2023.
According to court documents, in November 2022, the FBI executed a search warrant at Johnson’s residence after discovering Johnson was distributing, receiving, and possessing child sexual abuse material. Johnson admitted to law enforcement that he downloaded thousands of child sexual abuse files over time and had viewed images depicting infants being sexually abused. A forensic review of Johnson’s devices revealed approximately 1,400 images and videos of child sexual abuse material, approximately 100 of which depicted toddlers.
This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation. It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Abigail K. King.
It is another case brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by the United States Attorneys’ Offices and the Criminal Division's Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who sexually exploit children, and to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.justice.gov/psc.
Panama City Man on State Probation Sentenced to Federal Prison for Manufacturing Counterfeit Federal Reserve NotesRead the Press Release
Jacksonville, Florida – U.S. District Judge Brian J. Davis has sentenced Neal Evan Pollman (42, Panama City) to 18 months in federal prison for manufacturing counterfeit Federal Reserve Notes. The court also ordered Pollman to pay restitution to the victims he defrauded.
According to court documents and public records, in 2022, Pollman entered various businesses in Brevard, Clay, Duval, and Seminole counties and purchased gift cards, merchandise and food using counterfeit Federal Reserve notes. Law enforcement subsequently determined that Pollman and his co-defendant, Lyndsey Rhea Markland (41, Panama City) were staying at a hotel in the City of Palm Bay. In November 2022, the Palm Bay Police Department (PBPD) executed a search warrant at their hotel room and located Markland inside the room. Also located in the room was approximately $30,000 in counterfeit currency and a printer, along with other tools used by Pollman to manufacture counterfeit Federal Reserve notes. Shortly after the execution of the search warrant, the PBPD located Pollman in the vicinity of the hotel and arrested him. When the officers searched Pollman they recovered various counterfeit Federal Reserve notes on him which were traced back to his manufacturing activities. During a subsequent forensic examination of Pollman’s cellphone, law enforcement located images of Federal Reserve notes that Pollman used to manufacture the counterfeit currency.
Pollman and Markland appeared in federal court on April 27, 2023, pursuant to a writ bringing them to Jacksonville from the Bay County Jail in Florida where they are serving time for violating their state probation on multiple charges related to passing counterfeit Federal Reserve notes. The Court had ordered Pollman and Markland detained pending trial.
On June 8, 2023, Markland pleaded guilty to four counts of passing counterfeit Federal Reserve notes. She faces up to 20 years in federal prison on each count and payment of restitution to the victims she defrauded. Her sentencing hearing is set for November 2, 2023.
This case was investigated by the Brevard County Sheriff’s Office, the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office, the Palm Bay Police Department, the Orange Park Police Department, the Seminole County Sheriff’s Office, and the United States Secret Service - Jacksonville Field Office. It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Kevin C. Frein.
Owner of Telemedicine Companies Pleads Guilty to $44 Million Medicare Fraud SchemeRead the Press Release
BOSTON – The owner of Conclave Media (Conclave) and Nationwide Health Advocates (Nationwide) pleaded guilty today in connection with a $44 million telemedicine fraud scheme involving medically unnecessary durable medical equipment (DME), including orthotics such as back and knee braces, and genetic tests.
David Santana, 38, of Reading, Mass. pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit health care fraud. U.S. District Court Judge Angel Kelley scheduled sentencing for Feb. 7, 2024. Santana was charged in July 2023.
Between January 2018 and August 2021, Santana, through his companies Conclave and Nationwide, entered into business relationships with telemarketing companies that generated leads by targeting Medicare beneficiaries. The telemarketers then paid Conclave and Nationwide on a per-order basis to generate orders for DME and genetic testing for these beneficiaries. To arrange for these orders to be signed, Santana worked with medical staffing companies to find doctors and nurses who were willing to review and sign prepopulated orders, typically without any contact with the beneficiaries. The records falsely portrayed the medical providers as having performed a legitimate examination of the beneficiary. Santana then provided the signed orders to the telemarketing companies which sold the orders to DME suppliers and laboratories. Santana knew these DME suppliers and laboratories would use the signed orders to submit claims to Medicare for DME and genetic testing that were medically unnecessary, based on false documentation and tainted by kickbacks.
The charge of conspiracy to commit health care fraud provides for a sentence of up to 10 years in prison, supervised release for up to three years, and a fine of up to $250,000 or twice the gross pecuniary gain or loss, whichever is greater. Sentences are imposed by a federal district court judge based upon the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and statutes which govern the determination of a sentence in a criminal case.
Acting United States Attorney Joshua S. Levy; Robert Coviello, Special Agent in Charge, Health and Human Services-Office of Inspector General; Jodi Cohen, Special Agent in Charge, Federal Bureau of Investigations, Boston Division; Ketty Larco-Ward, Inspector in Charge, United States Postal Inspection Service, Boston Division; Carol S. Hamilton, Regional Director, Employee Benefits Security Administration, U.S. Department of Labor; and Patrick Hegarty, Special Agent in Charge, Defense Criminal Investigation Service, North East Field Office made the announcement today. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Lauren Graber and Howard Locker of the Health Care Fraud Unit and Alexandra Brazier and Lindsey Ross of the Affirmative Civil Enforcement Units are prosecuting the case.