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Wednesday 13 May 2026
Jamaican National Pleads Guilty to Trafficking Firearms from the U.S.Read the Press Release
MIAMI – A Jamaican national pleaded guilty to illegally exporting dozens of firearms, magazines, and ammunition from the U.S. to Jamaica by concealing them inside furniture and shipping them overseas.
Taugea Ubert Dayes, 33, who performs under his stage name “Countree Hype,” pleaded guilty to one count of smuggling goods from the U.S. and one count of delivering a firearm to a common carrier without written notice.
“Illegal firearms trafficking fuels violence far beyond our borders,” said U.S. Attorney Jason A. Reding Quiñones for the Southern District of Florida. “This defendant concealed dozens of firearms inside furniture and attempted to ship them overseas to evade detection and arm the black market in Jamaica. Firearms smuggling is not a paperwork offense. It is a public safety threat that fuels violence, empowers criminal organizations, and destabilizes communities. We will continue working with our international law enforcement partners to stop the flow of illegal weapons at its source.”
According to court records, on March 7 and 8, 2025, Dayes concealed 30 firearms, 32 magazines, and over 100 rounds of ammunition inside five office chairs. He wrapped the items in tinfoil and foam and sewed them into the seat cushions. On March 10, 2025, Dayes shipped the chairs from the U.S. to Jamaica using a freight shipping service. Jamaican law enforcement seized the firearms in Kingston eight days later.
Dayes faces up to 10 years in federal prison. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
U.S. Attorney Reding Quiñones and Acting Special Agent in Charge José R. Figueroa of Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) Miami made the announcement.
HSI Miami is investigating with assistance from the HSI Kingston Attaché, HSI Transnational Criminal Investigative Unit (TCIU), and the Firearms and Narcotics Investigation Division of the Jamaica Constabulary Force.
Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Melissa Roca Shaw and Assistant U.S. Attorney Kseniya Smychkouskaya are prosecuting the case.
This prosecution is a part of the U.S. Department of Justice’s Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN) program. PSN is the centerpiece of the Department’s violent crime reduction efforts. PSN is an evidence-based program proven to be effective at reducing violent crime. Through the PSN program a broad spectrum of law enforcement and community stakeholders work together to identify the most pressing violent crime problems in the community and develop comprehensive solutions to address them. As part of this strategy, PSN focuses enforcement efforts on the most violent offenders and partners with locally based prevention and reentry programs to reduce violence crime and gun violence, and to make our local neighborhoods safer for everyone.
Related court documents and information may be found on the website of the District Court for the Southern District of Florida at www.sdfl.uscourts.gov or at http://pacer.sdfl.uscourts.gov, under case number 25-cr-20344.
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Indictments, Convictions through Guilty Pleas, and Sentencings in Homeland Security Task Force (HSTF) ProsecutionsRead the Press Release
SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico – The United States Attorney’s Office for the District of Puerto Rico, W. Stephen Muldrow, United States Attorney, in conjunction with our partner agencies in the Homeland Security Task Force (“HSTF”) announce the following investigative and prosecutorial results for the week of May 4 through May 10, 2026. The HSTF is a permanent, interagency law enforcement task force created by executive order to combat transnational criminal organizations—including cartels, trafficking networks, and foreign terrorist organizations.
Indictments:
- On May 6, 2026, a federal grand jury returned a five-count indictment charging (1) Charlie G. Marval-Henríquez (Venezuelan); (2) Jhoan Alexander Rodríguez-Núñez (Venezuelan); and (3) José Abraham Rodríguez-Núñez (Venezuelan) with conspiracy and attempt to import cocaine. Marval-Henríquez is also facing one count for re-entry of a removed alien. Jhoan Alexander and Josué Abraham Rodríguez-Núñez are both facing one count of improper entry by alien. According to court documents, in April 2026, the defendants knowingly and intentionally imported into the United States, from Colombia and other places, five kilograms or more of cocaine. Specifically, on April 29, 2026, HSTF seized approximately 643.3 kilograms of cocaine that the defendants were smuggling in a vessel. Assistant United States Attorney (AUSA) Camille García-Rivera is in charge of the prosecution of the case.
- On May 7, 2026, a federal grand jury returned a 27 count superseding indictment charging (1) Douglas Antonio Fernández-Rodríguez (Venezuelan); (2) Eurices Gómez-Quijada (Venezuelan); (3) Oswaldo Bermúdez-Sánchez (Venezuelan); (4) Jesús Antonio Bougrat-Ramos (Venezuelan); (5) Jesús Mata-Gómez (Venezuelan); (6) Luis Quijada-Martínez (Venezuelan); (7) Alan Ibarra-Ibarra, a.k.a. “Alans/El Colombiano” (Venezuelan); (8) Primitivo Meregildo-Vargas, a.k.a. “El Viejo/El Jefe” (Dominican); and (9) Ramón Antonio Mejía-Meregildo, a.k.a. “El Barbero,” (Dominican) with conspiracy and importation of cocaine from Venezuela and other places, into Puerto Rico. All defendants are charged with knowingly entering or attempting to enter the United States illegally. Specifically, on or about March 11, 2026, HSTF seized approximately 709.1 kilograms of cocaine from a vessel that crashed on the shores of Vieques following a pursuit by law enforcement. United States Coast Guard Special Assistant U.S. Attorney (SAUSA) Cody A. McKinney is in charge of the prosecution of the case.
Convictions through Guilty Pleas:
- On May 5, 2026, Frank Quiñones-Boria pleaded guilty to drug trafficking in CR Case 22-327 (PAD). According to the indictment, the defendant was charged with knowingly and intentionally possessing with intent to distribute and distribute heroin, cocaine base (crack), cocaine, and marijuana at the Pedro Rosario Nieves Public Housing Project in Fajardo, Puerto Rico, and other areas nearby. All in violation of Title 21, U.S.C.§§ 841(a)(1), 846, and 860. Defendant was arrested on July 27, 2022. The court set defendant’s sentencing date for August 8, 2026. AUSA Corinne Cordero is in charge of the prosecution of the case.
- On May 5, 2026, Raul Quiñones-Boria pleaded guilty to drug trafficking in CR Case 22-327 (PAD). According to the indictment, the defendant was charged with knowingly and intentionally possessing with intent to distribute and distributing heroin, cocaine base (crack), cocaine, and marijuana at the Pedro Rosario Nieves Public Housing Project in Fajardo, PR, and other areas nearby. All in violation of Title 21, U.S.C.§§ 841(a)(1), 846, and 860. Defendant was arrested on July 27, 2022. The court set defendant’s sentencing date for August 8, 2026. AUSA Corinne Cordero is in charge of the prosecution of the case.
- On May 7, 2026, Calin Hernández-Valdez pleaded guilty to Count One in CR Case 25-484 (RAM). According to the indictment, the defendant was charged with reentry of a removed alien after an aggravated felony conviction. Defendant was arrested on November 14, 2025. The court set defendant’s sentencing date for August 5, 2026. SAUSA Steven Liong-Rodríguez is in charge of the prosecution of the case.
- On May 7, 2026, Usbardo Trinidad-Hungría pleaded guilty to Count One in CR Case 26-027 (GMM). According to the superseding indictment, the defendant was charged with an illegal reentry offense. On January 5, 2026, Trinidad-Hungría was remanded to the custody of the U.S Immigration and Customs Enforcement by the Puerto Rico Department of Corrections after Defendant finished serving a sentence at the Bayamón Regional Jail for violations of the Puerto Rico Firearms Law. The court set defendant’s sentencing date for August 7, 2026. AUSA Manuel Muñiz-Lorenzi is in charge of the prosecution of the case.
- On May 8, 2026, Julio Torres-Roche pleaded guilty to conspiracy to distribute 300 to 400 grams of cocaine and the possession of firearms in furtherance of drug trafficking in CR Case 25-392 (SCC). He also pleaded guilty to possessing with intent to distribute a detectable amount of cocaine in case 25-345 (GMM). According to the indictment in CR Case 25-392 (SCC), the defendant was charged with conspiring to distribute controlled substances in public housing projects and other areas in and around Cayey, Puerto Rico, and using firearms in furtherance of that drug trafficking. In CR Case 25-345 (GMM), he was charged with possession with intent to distribute controlled substances, possession of a firearm in furtherance of drug trafficking, and possession of a firearm with an obliterated serial number. Defendant was arrested on December 3, 2025. The court set defendant’s sentencing date for August 20, 2026. AUSAs Vance Eaton and Andrés Orr are in charge of the prosecution of the case.
- On May 8, 2026, Zael Lao-Ortiz pleaded guilty to conspiracy to distribute 200 to 300 grams of cocaine and the possession of firearms in furtherance of drug trafficking in CR Case 25-392 (SCC). According to the indictment, the defendant was charged with conspiring to distribute controlled substances in public housing projects and other areas in and around Cayey, Puerto Rico, and using firearms in furtherance of that drug trafficking. Lao-Ortiz was arrested on October 6, 2025. The court set defendant’s sentencing date for August 20, 2026. AUSAs Vance Eaton and Andrés Orr are in charge of the prosecution of the case.
- On May 8, 2026, Jonathan Ortiz-Martínez pleaded guilty to conspiracy to distribute 200 to 300 grams of cocaine in CR Case 25-392 (SCC). According to the indictment, the defendant was charged with conspiring to distribute controlled substances in public housing projects and other areas in and around Cayey, Puerto Rico. Defendant was arrested on October 7, 2026. The court set defendant’s sentencing date for August 20, 2026. AUSAs Vance Eaton and Andrés Orr are in charge of the prosecution of the case.
- On May 8, 2026, Michael Jovan Rodríguez-Cruz pleaded guilty to conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute controlled substances in CR Case 25-272 (SCC). According to the indictment, the defendant was charged with conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute controlled substances, possession with intent to distribute heroin, cocaine, cocaine base (crack), marihuana, and fentanyl, and possession of firearms in furtherance of drug trafficking crimes in several public housing projects in San Juan. The court set defendant’s sentencing for August 6, 2026. AUSAs Laura Díaz-González and Andrés Orr are in charge of the prosecution of the case.
- On May 8, 2026, Maycol A. Franco pleaded guilty to conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute controlled substances and possession of a firearm in furtherance of drug trafficking crimes in CR Case 25-272 (SCC). According to the indictment, the defendant was charged with conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute controlled substances, possession with intent to distribute heroin, cocaine, cocaine base, marihuana, and fentanyl, and possession of firearms in furtherance of drug trafficking crimes in several public housing projects in San Juan. The defendant was arrested on July 10, 2025. The court set defendant’s sentencing for August 6, 2026. AUSAs Laura Díaz-González and Andrés Orr are in charge of the prosecution of the case.
- On May 8, 2026, Jorge L. Carmona Gil pleaded guilty to all charges in the Indictment namely, Count One: Conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute and Distribute in excess of 5 kilos of Cocaine aboard a vessel of the United States; Count Two: Possession with the intent to distribute in excess of 5 kilos of Cocaine aboard a vessel of the United States and Aiding and Abetting; Count Three: Conspiracy to import cocaine in excess of 5 kilos of Cocaine; and Count Four: Attempted Importation in excess of 5 kilos of Cocaine and Aiding and Abetting in case 24-132 (SCC). According to the indictment, the defendant was charged with these above drug trafficking crimes. Defendant was arrested on March 22, 2024. The court set defendant’s sentencing date for August 6, 2026. AUSA Luis A. Valentín is in charge of the prosecution of the case.
Sentencings:
- On May 4, 2026, Rodolfo Brunet-González was sentenced by Judge Camille L. Vélez-Rivé to a three-year term of probation for conspiring with another person to transport into and receive in the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico a firearm from out of State via the United States Postal Service (USPS) mail without being a licensed importer, manufacturer, dealer or collector of firearms. Defendant was charged by a federal grand jury in the District of Puerto Rico on September 18, 2025, in CR Case 25-389 (CVR), and pleaded guilty on February 3, 2026. AUSA Pedro R. Casablanca is in charge of the prosecution of the case.
- On May 5, 2026, Sem Monge-Parrilla was sentenced by Chief Judge Raúl M. Arias-Marxuach to 60 months of imprisonment and 8 years of supervised release for participating in drug trafficking in and near the Jardines de Sellés Public Housing Project. According to court documents, defendant was charged by a federal grand jury in the District of Puerto Rico on May 8, 2024, in CR Case 24-170 (RAM), and pleaded guilty on February 4, 2026. AUSAs Joseph Russell and Andrés Orr are in charge of the prosecution of the case.
- On May 5, 2026, Ernesto Caraballo was sentenced by Chief Judge Raúl M. Arias-Marxuach to 96 months of imprisonment and 8 years of supervised release for participating in drug trafficking while armed in and near the Jardines de Sellés Public Housing Project. According to court documents, defendant was charged by a federal grand jury in the District of Puerto Rico on May 8, 2024, in CR Case 24-170 (RAM), and pleaded guilty on February 4, 2026. AUSAs Joseph Russell and Andrés Orr are in charge of the prosecution of the case.
- On May 6, 2026, [2] Marcos Antonio Ventura-Martínez was sentenced by Judge Silvia L. Carreño-Coll to a 30 month term of imprisonment (with no term of supervised release) for drug trafficking crimes, including Count One: Conspiracy to import cocaine in excess of 5 kilos of Cocaine; Count Two: Importation in excess of 5 kilos of Cocaine and Aiding and Abetting; Count Three: Conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute and Distribute in excess of 5 kilos of Cocaine aboard a vessel of the United States; and Count Four: Possession with the intent to distribute in excess of 5 kilos of Cocaine aboard a vessel of the United States and Aiding and Abetting. According to court documents, defendant was charged by a federal grand jury in the District of Puerto Rico on October 2, 2024, in Criminal case #24-376 (SCC), and pled guilty to all four charges on February 4, 2026. AUSA Luis A. Valentín is in charge of the prosecution of the case.
- On May 6, 2026, defendant Rafael Emilio Pérez-Pichardo, a 66-year-old Dominican Republic national, was sentenced by Chief Judge Raúl Arias Marxuach to two years’ probation for illegal reentry of removed alien after having been previously removed from the United States following a felony conviction, in violation of Title 8, United States Code, Section 1326(a) & (b)(1). In 1990, the defendant was convicted in New York of manslaughter and sentenced to an indeterminate sentence of 5 to 15 years of imprisonment. In 2003, he was removed from the United States. According to court documents, defendant was charged by a federal grand jury in the District of Puerto Rico on June 4, 2025, in CR Case 25-262 (RAM), and pleaded guilty on February 5, 2026. AUSA Elba Gorbea was in charge of the prosecution of the case.
- On May 7, 2026, Omar Antonio Contreras-Mendoza was sentenced by Chief Judge Raúl Arias Marxuach to 70 months of imprisonment for conspiring to distribute 339 kilograms of cocaine knowing or having reasonable cause to believe that the controlled substance would be imported into the United States. Because the defendant was detained in Colombia pending extradition, the Court credited 20 months and 8 days, resulting in a sentence of 49 months and 22 days of imprisonment. According to court documents, defendant was charged by a federal grand jury in the District of Puerto Rico on October 5, 2022, in CR Case 22-435 (RAM), and pleaded guilty on May 15, 2025. AUSA Camille García Jiménez was in charge of the prosecution of the case.
- On May 7, 2026, Eduardo Berríos-Sepúlveda was sentenced by Chief Judge Raúl M. Arias-Marxuach to 96 months of imprisonment and 8 years of supervised release for participating in drug trafficking while armed in and near the Jardines de Sellés Public Housing Project. According to court documents, defendant was charged by a federal grand jury in the District of Puerto Rico on May 8, 2024, in CR Case 24-170 (RAM), and pleaded guilty on January 8, 2026. AUSAs Joseph Russell and Andrés Orr are in charge of the prosecution of the case.
- On May 7, 2026, Luis A. Quijano-Cruz was sentenced by Judge Silvia Carreño-Coll to a term of imprisonment of 18 months and supervised release term of 5 years for conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute cocaine. According to court documents, defendant was charged by a federal grand jury in the District of Puerto Rico on February 22, 2024, in CR Case 24-069 (SCC), and pled guilty to the charge on April 24, 2025. AUSA María Cristina Semanaz is in charge of the prosecution of the case.
- On May 7, 2026, Erick Leandro Calderón-Soler was sentenced by Judge María Antongiorgi-Jordán to 87 months of imprisonment for drug-trafficking charges regarding movement of cocaine from Colombia to the United States. According to court documents, defendant was charged by a federal grand jury in the District of Puerto Rico on May 4, 2023, in CR Case 23–178 (MAJ) and pleaded guilty on February 11, 2026. AUSA Antonio Perez is in charge of the prosecution of the case.
- On May 8, 2026, Fedor Vovk and Aleksei Kondratev were sentenced by Judge Camille Vélez-Rivé to a term of imprisonment of time served (equal to seven months) for conspiracy to bring in illegal aliens at a place other than a designated port of entry. According to court documents, the defendants were charged by a federal grand jury in the District of Puerto Rico on November 6, 2025, in CR Case 25-471 (CVR), and pleaded guilty on February 6, 2026. SAUSA Steven Liong-Rodríguez is in charge of the prosecution of the case.
- On May 8, 2026, Michael García-Torres was sentenced by Judge Silvia Carreño Coll to 108 months (9 years) of imprisonment to be followed by 6 years of supervised release for conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute controlled substances and possession of firearms in furtherance of drug trafficking crimes in several public housing projects in San Juan. According to court documents, defendant was charged by a federal grand jury in the District of Puerto Rico on June 11, 2025, in CR Case 25-272, and pleaded guilty on February 18, 2026. AUSAs Laura Díaz González and Andrés Orr are in charge of the prosecution of the case.
- On May 8, 2026, [1] Jonathan Ramaza Sanabria was sentenced by Judge Pedro A. Delgado-Hernández to a 120 month (10 years) term of imprisonment and a supervised release term of five years for drug trafficking crimes, including Count One: Conspiracy to import cocaine in excess of 5 kilos of Cocaine; Count Two: Importation in excess of 5 kilos of Cocaine and Aiding and Abetting; Count Three: Possession with intent to distribute in excess of 5 kilos of cocaine; and Count Four: Possession with the intent to distribute in excess of 5 kilos of cocaine and Aiding and Abetting. According to court documents, defendant was charged by a federal grand jury in the District of Puerto Rico on July 7, 2022, in CR Case 22-304 (PAD), and pleaded guilty to all four charges on February 7, 2026. AUSA Luis A. Valentín is in charge of the prosecution of the case.
- On May 8, 2026, defendant Juan Enrique Feliciano-Torres was sentenced by Judge Gina R. Méndez-Miró to 66 months of imprisonment and 3 years’ supervised release for a conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute controlled substances containing a detectable amount of Fentanyl and possession of a Glock Pistol G27, .40 caliber, loaded with ammunition, in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime. According to court documents, the defendant signed a Waiver of Indictment and pleaded guilty to Counts One and Two of an Information filed by the U.S. Attorney’s Office in the District of Puerto Rico on February 6, 2026, in CR Case 26-050 (GMM). Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Edwin Cabán Jr. from the U.S. Postal Inspection Service is in charge of the prosecution of the case.
These prosecutions are part of the Homeland Security Task Force (HSTF) initiative established by Executive Order 14159, Protecting the American People Against Invasion. The HSTF is a whole-of-government partnership dedicated to eliminating criminal cartels, foreign gangs, transnational criminal organizations, and human smuggling and trafficking rings operating in the United States and abroad. Through historic interagency collaboration, the HSTF directs the full might of United States law enforcement towards identifying, investigating, and prosecuting the full spectrum of crimes committed by these organizations, which have long fueled violence and instability within our borders. In performing this work, the HSTF places special emphasis on investigating and prosecuting those engaged in child trafficking or other crimes involving children. The HSTF further utilizes all available tools to prosecute and remove the most violent criminal aliens from the United States.
HSTF San Juan comprises agents and officers from the following federal partners: FBI, ICE-HSI, CBP (OFO, AMO and Border Patrol), the U.S. Marshals Service for Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands, DEA, ATF, IRS, U.S. Coast Guard, U.S. Coast Guard Investigative Service, U.S. Postal Inspection Service, the Department of State, and the U.S. Secret Service, the Puerto Rico/U.S. Virgin Islands HIDTA, TSA, FAA, and the U.S. Attorney’s Offices for the Districts of Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands.
The HSTF also has the following state and local law enforcement partners as participating agencies: the Puerto Rico Police Department; the San Juan, Carolina, Guaynabo, Barceloneta, and Ponce Municipal Police Departments, the Puerto Rico National Guard – Counter Drug Program; the Puerto Rico Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation; the Puerto Rico Internal Revenue Service (Hacienda); the Puerto Rico Port Authority; and the Virgin Islands Police Department.
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Illinois Tax Preparer Convicted at Trial After Stealing More Than $11 Million from Taxpayers in COVID-19 Assistance Fraud SchemeRead the Press Release
A federal jury in the Northern District of Illinois convicted an Illinois woman yesterday of unemployment insurance fraud for submitting false claims to a COVID-19 assistance program. From May 2020 and continuing through December 2022, Haim Hmaidan, 54, of Orland Park, Illinois, and her co-conspirators submitted nearly 700 fraudulent unemployment insurance claims that caused over $11 million in fraudulent unemployment benefits to be dispersed.
“Hiam Hmaidan stole more than $10 million from American taxpayers during the COVID-19 pandemic through an unemployment insurance fraud scheme that submitted nearly 700 fraudulent claims,” said Assistant Attorney General Colin M. McDonald of the Justice Department’s National Fraud Enforcement Division. “The Fraud Division will continue to find and prosecute fraudsters who exploited a national crisis to steal from Federal benefit programs.”
“Hiam Hmaidan nefariously used the identities of her tax clients and others without their knowledge or consent to steal over $10 million in unemployment insurance benefits meant to support struggling Americans,” said Inspector General Anthony P. D’Esposito of the U.S. Department of Labor. “Her conviction sends a clear message: my office, alongside Vice President Vance's Task Force to Eliminate Fraud, will relentlessly pursue those who commit fraud and hold them accountable. Protecting the integrity of these critical programs isn’t optional — it’s our highest priority. Fraud is a tax you never voted for, and we’re coming after the people collecting it.”
“This guilty verdict is justice for the American people,” said Special Agent in Charge Adam Jobes of the IRS Criminal Investigation (IRS-CI) Chicago Field Office. “Hiam Hmaidan took advantage of a program people relied on to get through a very difficult time. She and her co-conspirators stole millions from taxpayers at a time when families were struggling to keep a roof over their heads and food on their tables. Working closely with our fellow law enforcement partners, IRS-CI followed the money to expose the full scope of this scheme and helped bring it to an end. This verdict sends a clear message that if you try to cash in on a national crisis, you will be brought to justice and held accountable for your crimes.”
According to court documents and evidence presented at trial, Hmaidan operated an unemployment insurance fraud scheme in which she agreed with others to defraud the Pandemic Unemployment Assistance Program, which Congress established in 2020 as part of the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act (CARES Act).
Hmaidan, together with her co-conspirators, submitted claims containing false information regarding the claimants’ employment status and the impact of the pandemic on their ability to earn a living. Hmaidan abused her position as a tax preparer by submitting many of the fraudulent claims using her clients’ names and personal information. Based on those fraudulent claims, unemployment insurance benefits were loaded onto debit cards and mailed directly to Hmaidan or to addresses accessible to Hmaidan and her co-conspirators. Once Hmaidan and her co-conspirators obtained the debit cards, they used the fraudulent proceeds on the cards to withdraw approximately $2.8 million in cash from ATMs near where they lived.
The jury convicted Hmaidan of one count of conspiracy to commit mail fraud and five counts of mail fraud. She is scheduled to be sentenced on Oct. 2. Hmaidan faces a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison on all counts. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
The U.S. Department of Labor Office of Inspector General and IRS-CI investigated the case.
Trial Attorneys Shy Jackson and Meredith B. Healy of the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section are prosecuting the case.
On April 7, the Department of Justice announced the creation of the Fraud Division. The Fraud Division is laser-focused on investigating and prosecuting those who commit fraud against the American people. The Department’s work to combat fraud supports President Trump’s Task Force to Eliminate Fraud, a whole-of-government effort chaired by Vice President J.D. Vance to eliminate fraud, waste, and abuse within Federal benefit programs.
Illegal aliens and convicted felons sentenced for transnational drug trafficking and money launderingRead the Press Release
ATLANTA – Two illegal aliens and two convicted felons have been sentenced to federal prison for their roles in a large international drug trafficking and money laundering organization stretching from Mexico to Atlanta.
“These defendants forfeited their freedom by choosing to poison our community and enrich narco-terrorists abroad,” said U.S. Attorney Theodore S. Hertzberg. “My office, our Homeland Security Task Force, and our state and local partners are deeply committed to stemming the tide of drugs flowing into north Georgia and punishing the criminals who enable and abet foreign cartels.”
“Fentanyl continues to devastate communities across our country,” said Jae W. Chung, Special Agent in Charge of the DEA Atlanta Field Division. “Through strong partnerships and coordinated enforcement efforts, we were able to stop a dangerous operation and disrupt the flow of illegal profits. This case underscores our shared mission to save lives and keep our communities safe.”
“Sandra Hernandez Chilel’s sentencing demonstrates that individuals involved in trafficking dangerous drugs such as fentanyl and laundering crime proceeds, which contribute to violence and instability within our communities, will be held responsible,” said Demetrius Hardeman, Special Agent in Charge, IRS Criminal Investigation, Atlanta Field Office. “IRS-CI special agents, together with our federal partners, conducted thorough investigations to dismantle this network and intercept narcotics and illicit funds, thereby ensuring perpetrators are brought to justice.”
According to U.S. Attorney Hertzberg, the charges, and other information presented in court: In 2024, federal law enforcement uncovered a scheme in which David Miranda Vinalay and multi-convicted drug dealers, such as Jerome Lewis and Irving Joel Hernandez, funneled bulk cash drug proceeds to a middleman in Norcross, Georgia. At the direction of Mexico-based drug traffickers, the middleman delivered the money to Sandra Beatriz Hernandez Chilel, who laundered the funds to Mexico through her Norcross, Georgia money service business, “Pulga La Esperanza.” Hernandez Chilel attempted to conceal the laundered funds by wiring the money to different individuals in Mexico in small transactions. Between September and November 2024, the organization laundered over $1 million in drug proceeds to Mexico.
Earlier today, U.S. District Judge Eleanor L. Ross sentenced Sandra Beatriz Hernandez Chilel, 50, an illegal alien from San Marcos, Guatemala, to five years and five months in prison and she will be deported to Guatemala upon completion of her sentence. On December 17, 2025, Hernandez Chilel pleaded guilty to money laundering conspiracy and conducting an unlicensed money transmitting business.
Three additional defendants were sentenced in this case:
- Jerome Lewis, 48, of Lilburn, Georgia, was sentenced to fifteen years in prison to be followed by ten years of supervised release, after pleading guilty to money laundering conspiracy and possession with the intent to distribute methamphetamine. Lewis was separately convicted in federal court in 2015 of conspiracy to distribute cocaine.
- David Miranda Vinalay, 40, an illegal alien from Michoacán, Mexico, was sentenced to seven years and eleven months months in prison to be followed by one year of supervised release after pleading guilty to money laundering conspiracy.
- Irving Joel Hernandez, 35, of Lilburn, Georgia, was sentenced to seven years in prison to be followed by five years of supervised release after pleading guilty to money laundering conspiracy and possession with the intent to distribute fentanyl. Hernandez was convicted in state court in 2015 of trafficking methamphetamine.
This case was investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration and Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigation. Valuable assistance was also provided by Georgia State Patrol, DeKalb County Police Department, Gwinnett County Police Department, and Gwinnett County Sheriff’s Office.
Assistant U.S. Attorneys Bethany L. Rupert, Dwayne A. Brown, Jr., and Nicholas Evert prosecuted the case.
These prosecutions are part of the Homeland Security Task Force (HSTF) initiative established by Executive Order 14159, Protecting the American People Against Invasion. The HSTF is a whole-of-government partnership dedicated to eliminating criminal cartels, foreign gangs, transnational criminal organizations, and human smuggling and trafficking rings operating in the United States and abroad. Through historic interagency collaboration, the HSTF directs the full might of United States law enforcement towards identifying, investigating, and prosecuting the full spectrum of crimes committed by these organizations, which have long fueled violence and instability within our borders. In performing this work, the HSTF places special emphasis on investigating and prosecuting those engaged in child trafficking or other crimes involving children. The HSTF further utilizes all available tools to prosecute and remove the most violent criminal aliens from the United States. The Atlanta Wilhelm HSTF comprises agents and officers from ATF, CGIS, DEA, FBI, ICE-HSI, IRS-CI, DOL-OIG, DSS, USMS, USPIS, and USSS, as well as numerous state and local agencies, with the prosecution being led by the United States Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia.
For further information please contact the U.S. Attorney’s Public Affairs Office at [email protected] or (404) 581-6016. The Internet address for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia is http://www.justice.gov/usao-ndga.
Illegal alien and husband convicted of firearms offenses and lying to Immigration JudgeRead the Press Release
NEWNAN, Ga. – An illegal alien who unlawfully possessed a firearm at a Fayette County gun range and her husband, who lied to an immigration judge in an effort to secure his wife’s release from custody and who paid another woman to fraudulently purchase firearms that others attempted to smuggle into Mexico, have pleaded guilty to multiple felony offenses and now face years in prison.
“Illegal aliens are strictly prohibited from possessing weapons in our country, and federal law prudently prohibits lawful residents from telling lies to facilitate illicit gun trafficking,” said U.S Attorney Theodore S. Hertzberg. “Through their deceitful conduct, this husband-and-wife duo demonstrated contempt for the law, but they could not escape its reach. My office’s partnership with Atlanta’s highly productive Homeland Security Task Force will ensure that these criminals and those who assisted them are held accountable.”
“Among ATF’s top priorities is ensuring that firearms traffickers are aggressively investigated and swiftly brought to justice,” said ATF Atlanta Assistant Special Agent in Charge Ryan Todd. “This investigation is an excellent example of what can be accomplished through strong collaboration among multiple partner agencies, resulting in outstanding outcomes.”
“The Bureau of Industry and Security is committed to preventing unlawful exports,” stated Bureau of Industry and Security Special Agent in Charge Jeremy Shein. “We will continue to work with our law enforcement partners to disrupt, dismantle and deter the illicit procurement networks that seek to violate U.S. export laws and inflict harm.”
According to U.S. Attorney Hertzberg, the charges, and other information presented in court: On August 8, 2025, Steven Estrada Feregrino gave a woman $4,600 to purchase firearms on his behalf from a gun store in Fayetteville, Georgia. The woman bought seven firearms with Estrada’s money and falsely represented that she was the actual buyer of the firearms. Afterwards, the woman gave the firearms to Estrada and Miguel Angela Varela-Posas, a previously deported illegal alien. Within less than a week, the firearms that Estrada and Varela-Posas received were recovered at the Del Rio, Texas port of entry inside a van bound for Mexico.
Two months later, Estrada and his wife, Brenda Rojano-Gonzalez, 26, an illegal alien from Temimilco, Mexico, went to a gun range where CCTV cameras recorded Rojano-Gonzalez handling and discharging a firearm. Subsequently, immigration authorities arrested Rojano-Gonzalez. At a November 5, 2025 hearing in immigration court, Estrada falsely testified under oath that Rojano-Gonzalez never shot a firearm at a gun range. Although the immigration court released her on a bond, Rojano-Gonzalez was charged in federal court with possession of a firearm by a prohibited person. Rojano-Gonzalez pled guilty to that charge on March 11, 2026. Sentencing is scheduled for June 11, 2026, before Chief U.S. District Judge Leigh Martin May.
On May 11, 2026, Steven Estrada Feregrino, 29, of Fayetteville, Georgia, pleaded guilty to perjury and false statements to a federal firearms licensee. Sentencing is scheduled for August 14, 2026, before Chief Judge May.
In indictments returned on February 3, 2026, and May 5, 2026, Varela-Posas, 30, of Puebla, Mexico, was charged with illegal reentry to the United States, false statements to a federal firearms licensee, possession of a firearm by a convicted felon, possession of a firearm by an illegal alien, and possession of counterfeit documents.
Members of the public are reminded that the indictments only contain charges. Varela-Posas is presumed innocent of the charges, and it will be the government’s burden to prove his guilt beyond a reasonable doubt at trial.
These cases are being investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, U.S. Department of Commerce, Bureau of Industry and Security, Homeland Security Investigations, and Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
These prosecutions are part of the Homeland Security Task Force (HSTF) initiative established by Executive Order 14159, Protecting the American People Against Invasion. The HSTF is a whole-of-government partnership dedicated to eliminating criminal cartels, foreign gangs, transnational criminal organizations, and human smuggling and trafficking rings operating in the United States and abroad. Through historic interagency collaboration, the HSTF directs the full might of United States law enforcement towards identifying, investigating, and prosecuting the full spectrum of crimes committed by these organizations, which have long fueled violence and instability within our borders. In performing this work, the HSTF places special emphasis on investigating and prosecuting those engaged in child trafficking or other crimes involving children. The HSTF further utilizes all available tools to prosecute and remove the most violent criminal aliens from the United States. The Atlanta Wilhelm HSTF is comprised of agents and officers from ATF, CGIS, DEA, FBI, ICE-HSI, IRS-CI, DOL-OIG, DSS, USMS, USPIS, and USSS, as well as numerous state and local agencies, with the prosecution being led by the United States Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia.
For further information please contact the U.S. Attorney’s Public Affairs Office at [email protected] or (404) 581-6016. The Internet address for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia is http://www.justice.gov/usao-ndga.
Illegal Alien Sentenced to a Year in Prison for Feloniously Assaulting Law Enforcement Officers During ArrestRead the Press Release
CHICAGO — An illegal alien residing in Aurora, Ill., has been sentenced to a year in federal prison for feloniously assaulting law enforcement officers during the execution of an arrest warrant.
The assaults occurred on the afternoon of July 17, 2025, in the lobby of the Kane County Sheriff’s Department in St. Charles, Ill. Two officers from U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Enforcement and Removal Operations approached FRANCISCO JAVIER ACEVEDO-CALDERA and informed him that they had a warrant for his arrest. Acevedo-Caldera, who had recently been bonded out of the Kane County Jail, resisted the arrest, kicked one of the officers, head-butted the other officer, and then bit a Kane County Sheriff’s Deputy who offered to help, puncturing the Deputy’s skin. The officers were eventually able to subdue Acevedo-Caldera and execute the arrest warrant.
Acevedo-Caldera, 40, pleaded guilty in January 2026 to a federal charge of assaulting a federal employee. On May 7, 2026, U.S. District Judge Jeremy C. Daniel sentenced Acevedo-Caldera to 12 months in federal prison.
The sentence was announced by Andrew S. Boutros, United States Attorney for the Northern District of Illinois, and Raymond Hernandez, Acting Field Director for ICE-ERO in Chicago. Valuable assistance was provided by the Kane County Sheriff’s Department.
“Defendant’s conduct was serious—he made physical contact with all three officer victims and caused bodily injury to two of them,” Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Sarah Finch argued in the government’s sentencing memorandum. “Assaulting these officers in a government building caused risk to public safety and demonstrated disrespect for the law and law enforcement.”
Illegal Alien Pleads Guilty to Unlawful ReentryRead the Press Release
MUSKOGEE, OKLAHOMA – The United States Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Oklahoma announced that Concepcion Soto-Rivera, a/k/a Conception Soto-Rivera, age 41, a Mexican national unlawfully present in McIntosh County, Oklahoma, pleaded guilty to one count of Unlawful Reentry of Removed Alien, punishable by a term of imprisonment of not more than two years, and a fine of not more than $250,000.00.
The charge arose from an investigation by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security’s Immigration and Customs Enforcement Division, and the Eufaula Police Department.
The Indictment alleged that on March 17, 2026, Soto-Rivera, an alien, was found in the United States without obtaining the express consent of the Secretary of Homeland Security to reapply for admission to the United States after having been previously removed on October 30, 2016, October 18, 2014, August 13, 2008, June 23, 2008, May 21, 2008, May 17, 2008, and May 13, 2008.
This case is part of Operation Take Back America, a nationwide initiative that marshals the full resources of the Department of Justice to repel the invasion of illegal immigration, achieve the total elimination of cartels and transnational criminal organizations (TCOs), and protect our communities from the perpetrators of violent crime.
The Honorable D. Edward Snow, 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.
A U.S. District Court Judge will determine the sentence to be imposed after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
Soto-Rivera will remain in the custody of the United States Marshals Service pending sentencing.
Assistant U.S. Attorneys Kristin Knutson and Nicole Paladino represented the United States.
Homewood Felon Pleads Guilty to Possession of Firearm and AmmunitionRead the Press Release
PITTSBURGH, Pa. - A resident of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, pleaded guilty in federal court on May 12, 2026, to violating a federal firearms law, United States Attorney Troy Rivetti announced today.
Chaz Mitchell, 36, of the Homewood neighborhood of Pittsburgh pleaded guilty before United States District Judge J. Nicholas Ranjan to a one-count Indictment charging Mitchell with possession of a firearm and ammunition by a convicted felon.
In connection with the guilty plea, the Court was advised that, on July 5, 2025, following the issuance of a state arrest warrant for Mitchell on unrelated charges, officers from the Pittsburgh Bureau of Police observed Mitchell in possession of an assault rifle and sawed-off shotgun and attempted to execute the state warrant. Mitchell refused to exit a residence until the SWAT unit arrived. Upon Mitchell’s surrender and being taken into custody, officers obtained and executed a state search warrant for the residence, from where they recovered an assault rifle, sawed-off shotgun, pistol, and ammunition. Mitchell had previously been convicted of felony state firearms offenses. Federal law prohibits possession of a firearm or ammunition by a convicted felon.
Judge Ranjan scheduled Mitchell’s sentencing for August 21, 2026. The law provides for a maximum total sentence of up to 15 years in prison, a fine of up to $250,000, or both. Under the federal Sentencing Guidelines, the actual sentence imposed would be based upon the seriousness of the offense and the prior criminal history of the defendant.
Assistant United States Attorney V. Joseph Sonson is prosecuting this case on behalf of the United States.
The Pittsburgh Bureau of Police and Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives conducted the investigation that led to the prosecution of Mitchell.
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.
Homeland Security Task Force investigation into methamphetamine trafficking leads to lengthy federal prison sentence for Dallas manRead the Press Release
SHERMAN, Texas – A Dallas man has been sentenced to federal prison as a result of an investigation by the Homeland Security Task Force in the Eastern District of Texas, announced U.S. Attorney Jay R. Combs.
Juan Jose Montanez, also known as Happy Johnny, 40, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to possess with intent to manufacture and distribute methamphetamine and was sentenced to 90 months in federal prison by U.S. District Judge Amos L. Mazzant on May 12, 2026.
According to information presented in court, in 2021 federal agents began investigating a drug trafficking scheme in the Dallas area and the Eastern District of Texas. The investigation led authorities to Montanez, an employee at a Dallas barbershop, and it was determined he was responsible for trafficking not only methamphetamine, but a large amount of cocaine. In addition to his federal prison sentence, Montanez was ordered to forfeit $131,800 in cash; several bank accounts totaling $126,000; three firearms; and assorted shoes, purses, sunglasses, and a jacket all together estimated to be worth approximately $64,215.
This case is part of the Homeland Security Task Force (HSTF) initiative established by Executive Order 14159, Protecting the American People Against Invasion. The HSTF is a whole-of-government partnership dedicated to eliminating criminal cartels, foreign gangs, transnational criminal organizations, and human smuggling and trafficking rings operating in the United States and abroad. Through historic interagency collaboration, the HSTF directs the full might of United States law enforcement towards identifying, investigating, and prosecuting the full spectrum of crimes committed by these organizations, which have long fueled violence and instability within our borders. In performing this work, the HSTF places special emphasis on investigating and prosecuting those engaged in child trafficking or other crimes involving children. The HSTF further utilizes all available tools to prosecute and remove the most violent criminal aliens from the United States. HSTF Dallas comprises agents and officers from the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) Dallas Field Office; U.S. Department of Homeland Security, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, Homeland Security Investigations - Dallas (ICE-HSI); Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) Dallas Field Division; Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) Dallas Field Division; Internal Revenue Service, Criminal Investigations (IRS-CD; United States Postal Service, United States Postal Inspection Service (USPIS); Transportation Security Administration, Federal Air Marshal Service (FAMS); United States Secret Service (USSS); Department of State, Bureau of Diplomatic Security (DSS); TEXOMA HIDTA; and U.S. Marshals Service (USMS) Eastern District of Texas with the prosecution being led by Eastern District of Texas Assistant U.S. Attorney Matthew T. Johnson.
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Grosse Pointe Woods Doctor Convicted of Tax ChargesRead the Press Release
DETROIT – A Grosse Pointe Woods doctor was convicted yesterday by a federal jury in Detroit for failing to declare and pay taxes on income he earned from illegally selling controlled substance prescriptions as well as failing to declare and pay taxes on income received from corporations he controlled but registered in the names of other individuals, announced United States Attorney Jerome F. Gorgon, Jr.
Gorgon was joined in the announcement by Karen Wingerd, Special Agent in Charge, Detroit Field Office, IRS Criminal Investigation (IRS-CI).
Convicted was Peter Nwoke, 50. The trial which began on April 7, 2026, was conducted before United States District Denise Page Hood.
The charges on which Dr. Nwoke was convicted arose from the operation of his medical practice, Divine Medical Care and Divine Medical Services, which largely involved visiting homebound Medicare patients in Detroit. In order to avoid paying taxes Nwoke also incorporated two additional corporations, City Medical and Divine Medical Center, which he placed in the names of nominees. While Nwoke controlled the bank accounts and reaped profits from businesses incorporated in the names of others, he did not report that income or pay taxes on the money he received. Nwoke also engaged in the business of unlawfully selling controlled substance prescriptions for highly addictive opioids, charging $500 a prescription for Oxycontin 80mg or oxycodone 30mg. The prescriptions were then filled by the purchasers and sold on the street market. When he deposited some of the cash he received from pill sales in 20 different bank accounts, he failed to declare it as income or pay taxes on it.
According to evidence presented at trial, Nwoke underreported his taxable income for the years 2011, 2012 and 2013 by a total of more than $2 million. Nwoke underreported his tax due and owing for those years by more than $725,000. He paid taxes totaling $29,424 when he should have paid $849,088 in taxes. In one tax year he paid $500 in taxes on income of over $400,000.
During the tax years in question Nwoke prescribed over 2.8 million dosage units of prescription drug-controlled substances. He deposited over $1.4 million in cash in his collection of bank accounts. After one of his confederates in the pill business was raided by the FBI, Nwoke told him “They’ll never get me, because I keep my paperwork together.”
Nwoke is scheduled to be sentenced on September 10, 2026. The defendant’s sentence will be determined after consideration of the sentencing guidelines.
The defendant has pending against him three counts of false statement/perjury, based on his testimony at an earlier trial on the tax charges. That trial in 2022 ended in a mistrial, since that jury was unable to agree on a verdict. The perjury charges were severed from the tax charges and will be scheduled for trial at a later date. Nwoke is presumed innocent of these charges unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.
The investigation was conducted by the Internal Revenue Service, with assistance from many other federal agencies.
The trial was conducted by Assistant United States Attorneys Rob Moran and Wayne F. Pratt.
German citizen charged with laundering funds linked to prominent darknet marketplace “Dream Market”Read the Press Release
ATLANTA - Owe Martin Andresen, the suspected main administrator of Dream Market, one of the largest illicit darknet marketplaces before its 2019 shutdown, has been indicted for an alleged scheme to launder funds from Dream Market’s administrator accounts. Andresen was arrested last week in Germany on parallel charges brought by the German government.
“Andresen allegedly channeled commissions earned from selling illegal drugs, stolen personally identifiable information, counterfeit identification documents, and other items through cryptocurrency wallets and even converted his ill-gotten gains into gold bars,” said U.S. Attorney Theodore S. Hertzberg. “Thanks to the close coordination between federal and German law enforcement, Andresen and his co-conspirators will no longer profit from the online sales of narcotics and fraud services, and Andresen will be prosecuted in both Germany and the United States as a result of his actions.”
“This action highlights the unwavering commitment of IRS Criminal Investigation and our global law enforcement partners to dismantle the financial engines that sustain transnational criminal enterprises,” said Kareem Carter, Special Agent in Charge of the Internal Revenue Service - Criminal Investigation (CI), Washington D.C. Field Office. “The reintegration of long dormant proceeds demonstrates a hard truth: illicit actors may hide in the shadows, but their financial footprints remain. IRS CI is dedicated to following the money, and our Cyber Crimes Unit special agents are dedicated to exposing those who attempt to exploit technology to evade accountability.”
“Technology has provided drug traffickers with more and more options to peddle their poisons into our communities,” said DEA Miami Field Division Special Agent in Charge Miles Aley. “It’s up to us to slam the door on those options and bring these cyber criminals to justice.”
According to U.S. Attorney Hertzberg, the indictment, and other information presented in court: Dream Market launched in 2013 and became one of the largest criminal marketplaces on the darknet, with close to 100,000 listings at a given time. Between 2013 and 2019, Dream Market facilitated the sale of more than 90 kilograms of heroin, 450 kilograms of cocaine, 25 kilograms of crack cocaine, 45 kilograms of methamphetamine, 13 kilograms of oxycodone, and 36 kilograms of fentanyl. Buyers and sellers accessed Dream Market and interacted with each other through the use of Tor (an internet traffic anonymizing service), and they relied on cryptocurrency to mask the origin and destination of their payments—a model that allowed the marketplace to grow at a staggering pace.
Coordinated law enforcement efforts led to the dismantling of the Dream Market infrastructure by identifying, arresting, and prosecuting the high-level vendors, moderators, and administrators who sustained the transnational criminal enterprise. High-ranking administrators who used the monikers “Oxymonster” and “KITT3N” were previously convicted in prosecutions led by the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Southern District of Florida and the U.S. Department of Justice Computer Crime and Intellectual Property Section. A mid-level administrator responsible for customer service issues on the website and who used the moniker “GOWRON” was convicted in a prosecution by the United Kingdom Crown Prosecution Service. However, the main administrator of the Dream Market, who used the moniker “Speedstepper,” was not identified.
In 2019, facing increasing law enforcement pressure, Dream Market’s administrators announced that they were voluntarily shutting down the marketplace. After Dream Market’s closure, the marketplace’s cryptocurrency infrastructure remained largely untouched, including Dream Market wallets that held millions of dollars in commission payments to the administrators (the “Dream Wallets”).
Three years later, in November and December 2022, Andresen allegedly accessed the Dream Wallets and transferred funds into new, consolidated cryptocurrency wallets (the “Consolidated Wallets”)—activity that could only have been initiated by someone with access to Dream Market’s original private keys, believed to be “Speedstepper.”
Months later, in August 2023, Andresen allegedly used a cryptocurrency service provider based in Atlanta, Georgia to purchase gold bars from international companies using funds in the Consolidated Wallets and directed those companies to ship the gold bars to his home address in Germany. German law enforcement identified additional money laundering transactions committed by Andresen in Germany. In total, Andresen is alleged to have laundered over $2 million between August 2023 and April 2025.
On May 7, 2026, in a coordinated effort by both German and U.S. law enforcement, Andresen was arrested on German charges, and his residence and two other locations were searched. During the searches, law enforcement located approximately $1.7 million of gold bars allegedly purchased with Dream Market funds, as well as over $23,000 in cash. Law enforcement also located information identifying several bank accounts and cryptocurrency wallets containing approximately $1.2 million of funds believed to be proceeds of the Dream Market.
A federal grand jury returned an indictment on January 13, 2026, charging Owe Martin Andresen, 49, of Germany, with six counts of international concealment money laundering and six counts of concealment money laundering. Each federal charge provides for a sentence of up to 20 years in prison. Germany also has charged Andresen with several counts of concealment money laundering. Each German charge is punishable by up to five years in prison.
Members of the public are reminded that the indictment only contains charges. The defendant is presumed innocent of the charges, and it will be the government’s burden to prove the defendant’s guilt beyond a reasonable doubt at trial.
This case is being investigated by the IRS Criminal Investigation – Cyber Crimes Unit and DEA Miami Counternarcotic Cyber Investigations Task Force, with substantial assistance from foreign law enforcement partners, including the Bundeskriminalamt Cybercrime Unit and Zentrale Kriminalinspektion Oldenburg.
A multi-agency task force, including the Drug Enforcement Administration, Internal Revenue Service - Criminal Investigation, United States Postal Inspection Service, Federal Bureau of Investigation, Homeland Security Investigations, and the Fort Lauderdale Police Department, initially investigated Dream Market’s criminal activities between 2016 and 2022.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Bethany L. Rupert is prosecuting the case. The Justice Department’s Office of International Affairs provided substantial assistance during the investigation. The original Dream Market investigation was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Monique Botero of the Southern District of Florida and Trial Attorney C. Alden Pelker of the Criminal Division’s Computer Crime and Intellectual Property Section.
For further information please contact the U.S. Attorney’s Public Affairs Office at [email protected] or (404) 581-6016. The Internet address for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia is http://www.justice.gov/usao-ndga.
Georgian National Sentenced to 15 Years in Prison for Soliciting Hate Crimes and Planning Mass Casualty Attack in New York CityRead the Press Release
BROOKLYN, NY – Earlier today in federal court in Brooklyn, Michail Chkhikvishvili, a Georgian national also known as “Commander Butcher,” was sentenced to 15 years in prison by United States District Judge Carol Bagley Amon for soliciting hate crimes and distributing instructions to make bombs and ricin. Chkhikvishvili is a leader of Maniac Murder Cult, an international racially motivated violent extremist group that is also known as “Maniacs Murder Cult,” “Maniacs: Cult of Killing,” “MKY,” “MMC,” and “MKU.” Chkhikvishvili recruited others to commit violent acts in furtherance of MKY’s ideologies, including planning and soliciting a mass casualty attack in New York City. He was extradited from Moldova to the Eastern District of New York in May 2025 and pleaded guilty in November.
Joseph Nocella, Jr., United States Attorney for the Eastern District of New York; John A. Eisenberg, Assistant Attorney General of the Justice Department’s National Security Division; Harmeet K. Dhillon, Assistant Attorney General of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division; James C. Barnacle, Jr, Assistant Director in Charge, Federal Bureau of Investigation, New York Field Office (FBI); and Jessica S. Tisch, Commissioner, New York City Police Department (NYPD), announced the sentence.
“The defendant is a hate-mongering menace who intended to hurt and kill children in the Jewish community and in other minority communities in New York City,” stated United States Attorney Nocella. “Thanks to our incredible law enforcement partners, he did not succeed and will now face justice for his cowardly acts. Today’s sentence sends a strong message to hateful extremists, wherever you are, who seek to spread fear through unspeakable violence: we will find you and prosecute you to the fullest extent of the law.”
Mr. Nocella praised the outstanding investigative work of the FBI’s New York Joint Terrorism Task Force, which consists of investigators and analysts from the FBI, the New York City Police Department, and over 50 other federal, state, and local agencies, as well as the Department of State, U.S. Customs and Border Protection, the Justice Department’s Office of International Affairs, and the government of Moldova for their crucial assistance in securing Chkhikvishvili’s arrest and extradition.
“Chkhikvishvili, a leader of the ‘Maniacs Murder Cult,’ repeatedly called for the murder of innocent civilians, including children, and schemed to attack and terrorize Jewish communities and racial minorities in the United States,” stated Assistant Attorney General Eisenberg. “Chkhikvishvili, for example, tried to recruit a supposed associate to dress up as Santa Claus and pass out poisoned candy to minority children. Today’s sentence takes a monster off our streets and protects our communities at least for a time.”
“The defendant plotted abhorrent acts of antisemitic and racially motivated violence,” stated Assistant Attorney General Dhillon. “Individuals who plan and encourage this violence will not find refuge in the dark corners of the Internet. Together, with our law enforcement partners, we will relentlessly pursue these criminals, and hold them accountable.”
This defendant’s repeated and consistent efforts to solicit violence resulted in irreparable damage to numerous families in the United States and around the world,” stated FBI Assistant Director in Charge Barnacle. “His ideologically driven, racially-motivated, and anti-Semitic actions inspired followers, admirers and members of the Maniac Murder Cult and similar hate groups to commit heinous acts. This arrest and subsequent sentencing send a strong message to those who wish to engage in hate-filled violence; you will face the consequences regardless of your location. Being overseas will not shield anyone from the relentless pursuit of the FBI New York’s Joint Terrorism Task Force to deliver justice.”
“As a leader of the white supremacist group ‘Maniac Murder Cult,’ this defendant concocted hate-fueled, mass-casualty plans and inspired others to commit attacks based on his vile rhetoric,” stated NYPD Commissioner Tisch. “This violent extremist’s intentions were clear: harm and kill as many Jews and racial groups as possible. But thanks to the work of our NYPD investigators, along with the FBI and the United States Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of New York, he is now off our streets and being held accountable for his hateful crimes.”
Maniac Murder Cult adheres to Neo-Nazi ideology and promotes violence against racial minorities, the Jewish community and other groups it deems “undesirables.” Since approximately September 2021, Chkhikvishvili has distributed a manifesto titled the “Hater’s Handbook” to MKY members and others. The Hater’s Handbook encourages people to commit acts of mass violence, including school shootings, and includes Chkhikvishvili’s assertion that he has “murdered for the white race.”
In June 2022, Chkhikvishvili traveled to Brooklyn, New York. Beginning as early as July 2022, Chkhikvishvili repeatedly encouraged others, primarily via Telegram, to commit violent hate crimes and other acts of violence on behalf of MKY. This included soliciting acts of mass violence in New York from an individual who, unbeknownst to Chkhikvishvili, was an undercover FBI employee (the UC).
Beginning in approximately November 2023, Chkhikvishvili solicited the UC to commit violent crimes, such as bombings and arsons, for the purpose of harming racial minorities, Jewish individuals and others. In November 2023, Chkhikvishvili began planning a mass casualty attack in New York City to take place on New Year’s Eve. The scheme involved having an individual dress up as Santa Claus and hand out candy laced with poison to racial minorities. In January 2024, the scheme evolved and Chkhikvishvili specifically directed the UC to target the Jewish community, Jewish schools, and Jewish children in Brooklyn with poison. Chkhikvishvili sent detailed manuals about creating and mixing lethal poisons and gases, including ricin.
Chkhikvishvili has incited multiple attacks and killings around the world:- In January 2025, a 17-year-old student killed one individual and injured another before dying by suicide inside Antioch High School in Nashville, Tennessee. The attacker livestreamed part of the attack. Prior to the attack, in an audio recording posted online and attributed to him, the attacker claimed he was taking action on behalf of Maniac Murder Cult. The attacker’s manifesto explicitly mentioned Chkhikvishvili.
- In August 2024, an individual livestreamed himself stabbing five people outside a mosque in Eskisehir, Turkey, while wearing a tactical vest bearing Nazi symbols. A manifesto attributed to the attacker included explicit references to Chkhikvishvili and his violent statements. Before the attack, the attacker also distributed a link to the Hater’s Handbook and other violent propaganda.
The government’s case is being handled by the Office’s National Security and Cybercrime Section. Assistant United States Attorneys Andrew D. Reich and Ellen H. Sise are in charge of the prosecution, with assistance from Trial Attorney Justin Sher of the National Security Division’s Counterterrorism Section, Special Agent Kristoffer Borch from the Eastern District of New York’s Criminal Investigations Unit, and Paralegal Specialists Rebecca Roth and Wayne Colon. The Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division also provided assistance.
The Defendant:
MICHAIL CHKHIKVISHVILI (also known as “Mishka,” “Michael,” “Commander Butcher” and “Butcher”)
Age: 22
Tbilisi, GeorgiaE.D.N.Y. Docket No. 24-CR-286 (CBA)
Georgian National Sentenced to 15 Years in Prison for Soliciting Hate Crimes and Planning Mass Casualty Attack in New York CityRead the Press Release
Earlier today in federal court in Brooklyn, Michail Chkhikvishvili, a Georgian national also known as “Commander Butcher,” was sentenced to 15 years in prison by U.S. District Judge Carol Bagley Amon for soliciting hate crimes and distributing instructions to make bombs and ricin.
Chkhikvishvili is a leader of Maniac Murder Cult, an international racially motivated violent extremist group that is also known as “Maniacs Murder Cult,” “Maniacs: Cult of Killing,” “MKY,” “MMC,” and “MKU.” Chkhikvishvili recruited others to commit violent acts in furtherance of MKY’s ideologies, including planning and soliciting a mass casualty attack in New York City. He was extradited from Moldova to the Eastern District of New York in May 2025 and pleaded guilty in November.
“Chkhikvishvili, a leader of the ‘Maniacs Murder Cult,’ repeatedly called for the murder of innocent civilians, including children, and schemed to attack and terrorize Jewish communities and racial minorities in the United States,” said Assistant Attorney General for National Security John A. Eisenberg. “Chkhikvishvili, for example, tried to recruit a supposed associate to dress up as Santa Claus and pass out poisoned candy to minority children. Today’s sentence takes a monster off our streets and protects our communities at least for a time.”
“The defendant plotted abhorrent acts of antisemitic and racially motivated violence,” said Assistant Attorney General Harmeet K. Dhillon of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division. “Individuals who plan and encourage this violence will not find refuge in the dark corners of the Internet. Together, with our law enforcement partners, we will relentlessly pursue these criminals, and hold them accountable.”
“The defendant is a hate-mongering menace who intended to hurt and kill children in the Jewish community and in other minority communities in New York City,” said U.S. Attorney Joseph Nocella Jr. for the Eastern District of New York. “Thanks to our incredible law enforcement partners, he did not succeed and will now face justice for his cowardly acts. Today’s sentence sends a strong message to hateful extremists, wherever you are, who seek to spread fear through unspeakable violence: we will find you and prosecute you to the fullest extent of the law.”
“The defendant recruited others to commit violent attacks against the Jewish community and racial minorities, and he will now pay a steep price for his crimes,” said Assistant Director Donald Holstead of the FBI’s Counterterrorism Division. “His twisted plans included poisoning children with candy around the holidays, but that plot was stopped thanks to the good work of the FBI and our law enforcement partners. The defendant was extradited from Moldova, showing once again that those who try to harm our citizens will not be able to hide overseas from the FBI and Justice Department prosecutors. We will spare no effort to make sure these criminals face justice.”
“As a leader of the white supremacist group ‘Maniac Murder Cult,’ this defendant concocted hate-fueled, mass-casualty plans and inspired others to commit attacks based on his vile rhetoric,” said NYPD Commissioner Jessica Tisch. “This violent extremist’s intentions were clear: harm and kill as many Jews and racial groups as possible. But thanks to the work of our NYPD investigators, along with the FBI and the United States Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of New York, he is now off our streets and being held accountable for his hateful crimes.”
Mr. Nocella praised the outstanding investigative work of the FBI’s New York Joint Terrorism Task Force, which consists of investigators and analysts from the FBI, the New York City Police Department, and over 50 other federal, state, and local agencies, as well as the Department of State, U.S. Customs and Border Protection, the Justice Department’s Office of International Affairs, and the government of Moldova for their crucial assistance in securing Chkhikvishvili’s arrest and extradition.
Maniac Murder Cult adheres to Neo-Nazi ideology and promotes violence against racial minorities, the Jewish community and other groups it deems “undesirables.” Since approximately September 2021, Chkhikvishvili has distributed a manifesto titled the “Hater’s Handbook” to MKY members and others. The Hater’s Handbook encourages people to commit acts of mass violence, including school shootings, and includes Chkhikvishvili’s assertion that he has “murdered for the white race.”
In June 2022, Chkhikvishvili traveled to Brooklyn, New York. Beginning as early as July 2022, Chkhikvishvili repeatedly encouraged others, primarily via Telegram, to commit violent hate crimes and other acts of violence on behalf of MKY. This included soliciting acts of mass violence in New York from an individual who, unbeknownst to Chkhikvishvili, was an undercover FBI employee (the UC).
Beginning in approximately November 2023, Chkhikvishvili solicited the UC to commit violent crimes, such as bombings and arsons, for the purpose of harming racial minorities, Jewish individuals and others. In November 2023, Chkhikvishvili began planning a mass casualty attack in New York City to take place on New Year’s Eve. The scheme involved having an individual dress up as Santa Claus and hand out candy laced with poison to racial minorities. In January 2024, the scheme evolved and Chkhikvishvili specifically directed the UC to target the Jewish community, Jewish schools, and Jewish children in Brooklyn with poison. Chkhikvishvili sent detailed manuals about creating and mixing lethal poisons and gases, including ricin.
Chkhikvishvili has incited multiple attacks and killings around the world:
- In January 2025, a 17-year-old student killed one individual and injured another before dying by suicide inside Antioch High School in Nashville, Tennessee. The attacker livestreamed part of the attack. Prior to the attack, in an audio recording posted online and attributed to him, the attacker claimed he was taking action on behalf of Maniac Murder Cult. The attacker’s manifesto explicitly mentioned Chkhikvishvili.
- In August 2024, an individual livestreamed himself stabbing five people outside a mosque in Eskisehir, Turkey, while wearing a tactical vest bearing Nazi symbols. A manifesto attributed to the attacker included explicit references to Chkhikvishvili and his violent statements. Before the attack, the attacker also distributed a link to the Hater’s Handbook and other violent propaganda.
The government’s case is being handled by the Office’s National Security and Cybercrime Section. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Andrew D. Reich and Ellen H. Sise for the Eastern District of New York are in charge of the prosecution, with assistance from Trial Attorney Justin Sher of the National Security Division’s Counterterrorism Section, Special Agent Kristoffer Borch from the Eastern District of New York’s Criminal Investigations Unit, and Paralegal Specialists Rebecca Roth and Wayne Colon. The Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division also provided assistance.
Geauga County Man Sentenced to 9 Years in Prison for Child Sexual Abuse OffensesRead the Press Release
CLEVELAND – A Geauga County man has been sentenced to federal prison for engaging in online activities that involved Child Sexual Abuse Materials (CSAM).
Jeffrey A. Williams, 50, of Chardon, Ohio, has been sentenced to 110 months (9.1 years) in prison by U.S. District Judge Patricia A. Gaughan, after pleading guilty in January to Receipt and Distribution of Visual Depictions of Real Minors Engaged in Sexually Explicit Conduct. He was also ordered to serve 15 years of supervised release after imprisonment and pay $184,000 in restitution to victims.
According to court documents and evidence presented in court, from about November 2022 to February 2024, investigators found that Williams knowingly received and distributed numerous computer files which contained the sexual abuse of children. He served as a moderator and participant in online groups where he engaged with others to share CSAM and discuss their sexual interest in children. As moderator, he served as a gatekeeper to more than 50 chat groups and required others to provide CSAM files to him before they were admitted. During a search warrant executed on his electronic devices, investigators found more than 5,300 images and videos of CSAM. About 80 CSAM videos were more than 15 minutes long, with two being more than one hour. His collection included the sexual abuse of infants and the torture and rape of pre-pubescent children.
The investigation leading to the indictment was led by the FBI Cleveland Division.
Assistant United States Attorney Jennifer King for the Northern District Ohio led the prosecution.
This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. The initiative is led by U.S. Attorneys’ Offices throughout the country and marshals federal, state, and local resources to better locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the internet, as well as to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, visit justice.gov/PSC.
To report child exploitation, please visit cybertipline.org, or call 1-800-843-5678, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.
Gang Members Sentenced to 50 Years Each for Murdering Fellow Gang MemberRead the Press Release
Two Unknown Vice Lords — a violent Memphis street gang — were each sentenced to 50 years in prison after a federal jury convicted them on Feb. 13 for a gang-related murder.
“Substantial sentences like these send the loud and clear message that organized gang violence and retaliatory murder will be vigorously pursued, charged, and prosecuted by the Department of Justice,” said Assistant Attorney General A. Tysen Duva of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division. “These defendants carried out a calculated, execution-style murder. They intended to incite fear and silence in fellow gang members and in the Memphis community. The court’s 50-year sentences means they now will be known as long-term residents of the Bureau of Prisons, and the good people of Memphis will no longer be dealing with their vice. The Criminal Division remains committed to protecting communities from violent criminal organizations and pursuing justice for victims and their families.”
“These significant federal sentences have dismantled the leadership of the UVL street gang here in Memphis,” said U.S. Attorney D. Michael Dunavant for the Western District of Tennessee. “From now on, E-Money, Dre, and V-Slash will not be ‘known’ by their gang nickname, but only by their Bureau of Prisons inmate numbers.”
According to court documents and evidence presented at trial, Edward Allen, also known as E-Money, 42, of Los Angeles, and Deandre Rodgers, also known as Dre, 29, of Memphis, were high-ranking members of the Unknown Vice Lords also known as The Ghost Mob — a criminal enterprise that controlled territory throughout the entire city of Memphis, as well as Arkansas and Mississippi. Members of the Unknown Vice Lords committed murders, burglaries, assaults, human trafficking, and drug trafficking on behalf of the enterprise. When the gang’s so-called Supreme Elite Chief, the gang leader for the entire state of Tennessee, was murdered, the gang sought retaliation against anyone thought to be involved.
As proven at trial, on Jan. 10, 2019, the Supreme Elite Chief and his girlfriend were murdered in broad daylight, in a residential neighborhood. While the gang initially thought that a rival gang was responsible, they eventually came to believe it was one of their own who killed their leader and decided to retaliate.
On Jan. 14, 2019, Allen and Rodgers obtained guns from fellow gang member Vincent Grant, also known as V-Slash, 41, of Memphis. Early the next morning around 1 a.m., Allen, Rodgers, Grant, and another gang member drove the victim to the back of a rundown apartment complex where Allen and Rodgers used the firearms Grant supplied to murder the victim. Grant was also prosecuted and found guilty in a separate trial.
The jury convicted Allen and Rodgers of causing death by use of a firearm during and in relation to a crime of violence, that being murder in aid of racketeering.
A separate jury also convicted Grant of causing death by use of a firearm during and in relation to a crime of violence, that being murder in aid of racketeering. The court sentenced him to 24 years in prison.
The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) investigated the case. The Tennessee Bureau of Investigation, FBI, Memphis Police Department, and U.S. Secret Service assisted in the investigation.
Trial Attorneys Lisa M. Thelwell and Sarah J. Rasalam of the Criminal Division’s Violent Crime and Racketeering Section are prosecuting the case with substantial assistance from the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Western District of Tennessee.
This case is part of the Criminal Division’s Violent Crime Initiative to prosecute violent crimes in Memphis, Tennessee. The Criminal Division and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Western District of Tennessee have partnered, along with local, state, and federal law enforcement agencies, to confront violent crimes committed by gang members and associates through the enforcement of federal laws and use of federal resources to prosecute the violent offenders and prevent further violence.
Fort Wayne Man Sentenced to 78 Months in Prison for Distribution of Fentanyl and Felon in Possession of a FirearmRead the Press Release
FORT WAYNE – Neumen Jacobs, 32 years old, of Fort Wayne, Indiana, was sentenced by United States District Court Chief Judge Holly A. Brady after pleading guilty to distributing 40 grams or more of fentanyl and being a felon in possession of a firearm, announced United States Attorney Adam L. Mildred.
Jacobs was sentenced to 78 months in prison followed by 4 years of supervised release.
According to documents in the case, Jacobs sold a confidential informant 40 grams or more of a substance containing a detectable amount of fentanyl. Jacobs was also in possession of a firearm after having been convicted of a felony offense.
“An armed, recidivist drug dealer is going to prison for dealing fentanyl. He forfeited 6 and a half years of his life because he wanted to peddle poison in our district. Thanks to the combined efforts of the Drug Enforcement Agency, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Fort Wayne Police Department and Assistant United States Attorney Dawn R. Ransom, the Defendant was caught, prosecuted, and sentenced,” said U.S. Attorney Adam Mildred.
“Fentanyl remains the country’s deadliest drug threat, claiming nearly 50,000 lives last year. The Drug Enforcement Administration, along with its law enforcement and prosecution partners, will continue to hold accountable anyone who is willing to drive Americans towards the poison of fentanyl. Mr. Jacobs is now being held accountable for his criminal actions, which includes being a felon in possession of a firearm. The Fort Wayne region is safer today with Mr. Jacobs distant and away from the community,” said Assistant Special Agent in Charge Chip Cooke.
This case was investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration with assistance from the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Fort Wayne Police Department. The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Dawn R. Ransom.
Former Tennessee Sheriff’s Deputy Pleads Guilty to Production of Child Sexual Abuse MaterialRead the Press Release
COLUMBIA, S.C. — Johnathan Nathaniel Allen, 27, of Chattanooga Tenn., has pleaded guilty to production of child sexual abuse material.*
Evidence obtained in the investigation revealed that in September 2024 Allen used accounts on Reddit and Text Me to contact a 13-year-old girl in South Carolina.
Allen posed as a 14-year-old boy named “Josh” on the applications and pressured the minor to produce sexually explicit material at his request. At the time, Allen was 25 years old and had been a deputy with a county sheriff’s office in Tennessee since 2021.
On Reddit, Allen navigated to a forum that referenced teenagers in the title. He started a conversation with one of the minors and then directed the conversation to text messages. There, Allen used a virtual phone number he obtained through the TextMe platform. The minor showed Allen pictures of her stuffed animals and he “begged,” according to evidence, for pictures of the minor. He told the minor she could trust him and that he would not share the files. Allen caused the production of sexually explicit content depicting the minor. Allen told the victim that he was proud of her, and that she learned something new she could do. He requested additional sex acts, and he told her to delete the messages so no one else would see them.
When agents searched Allen’s home, they found a phone with Reddit, Text Me, and the fake “Josh” identity. Agents also found 19 communications on Allens’ phone with the minor, including numerous calls to the minor after law enforcement had seized the minor’s phone. Data from the Reddit and Text Me account, including pictures shared by the user, all resolved to Allen. Agents also found clothes in Allen’s bedroom that “Josh” was wearing when it shared sexually explicit images on the platform. One of the pictures shared by the Reddit user when posing as a teenager was a picture of Allen when he was younger.“This outrageous criminal conduct, especially from someone sworn to protect society’s most vulnerable, its children, will be met with the full force of the federal government,” said U.S. Attorney Bryan Stirling for the District of South Carolina. “We’re grateful to the FBI, Homeland Security Investigations, the York County Sheriff’s Office and the Hamilton County, Tennessee Sheriff’s Office for their work to bring this defendant to justice.”
Allen faces a mandatory minimum of 15 years and up to 30 years in federal prison. He will also be required to register as a sex offender, he faces a fine of up to $250,000, restitution, and a term of up to lifetime supervision to follow the term of imprisonment. United States District Judge Sherri A. Lydon accepted the guilty plea and will sentence Allen after receiving and reviewing a sentencing report prepared by the U.S. Probation Office.
This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice. Led by U.S. Attorneys' Offices and CEOS, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to better locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the Internet, as well as to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit Justice.gov/PSC.
The case was investigated by the FBI Columbia Field Office and the York County Sheriff’s Office with assistance from Homeland Security Investigations and the Hamilton County, TN Sheriff’s Office. Assistant U.S. Attorney Elliott B. Daniels is prosecuting the case.###
* The term “child pornography” is currently used in federal statutes and is defined as any visual depiction of sexually explicit conduct involving a person less than 18 years old. While this phrase still appears in federal law, “child sexual abuse material” is preferred, as it better reflects the abuse that is depicted in the images and videos and the resulting trauma to the child.
Former School Resource Officer Sentenced for Receipt of Child PornographyRead the Press Release
JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. – A Mack’s Creek, Mo., man was sentenced to nine years imprisonment, followed by 10 years of supervised release for his conviction of receipt of Child Sexual Abuse Material (CSAM).
Darrin Marshall Skinner, 52, was sentenced before District Judge Stephen R. Bough, for one count of receipt of CSAM.
Skinner, who worked as a school resource officer in Mack’s Creek and was employed by the Camden County Sheriff’s Office, traded child sexual abuse material with other individuals using MeWe, an application which focuses on the privacy of its users. A National Center for Missing and Exploitive Children (NCMEC) Cyber Tip alerted the Camden County Sheriff’s Office of Skinner’s conduct. Due to a conflict of interest, the Camden County Sheriff’s office requested the Missouri State Highway Patrol investigate.
This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Ashley S. Turner. It was investigated by the Missouri State Highway Patrol, The Camden County Prosecutor’s Office, and the Camden County Sheriff’s Office.
Project Safe Childhood
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 . For more information about Internet safety education, please visit www.usdoj.gov/psc and click on the tab "resources."
Skinner will be required to register as a sex offender upon his release from prison and will be subject to federal and state sex offender registration requirements, which may apply throughout his life.
Former New York State Judge and Brooklyn Real Estate Investor Charged with Wire Fraud ConspiracyRead the Press Release
Earlier today, at the federal courthouse in Brooklyn, a complaint was unsealed charging Sam Sprei, also known as “Yechiel Sprei,” “Shimon Sprei,” and “Eli Shapiro,” and Edward Harold King, a former Kings County Supreme Court Justice, with wire fraud conspiracy. Both defendants were arrested this morning and are scheduled to make their initial appearance this afternoon before United States Magistrate Judge Clay H. Kaminsky.
Joseph Nocella, Jr., United States Attorney for the Eastern District of New York, and Harry T. Chavis, Jr., Special Agent in Charge, Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigation, New York (IRS-CI New York), announced the arrests and charges.
“As alleged, the defendants stole millions of dollars from investors by cynically leveraging King’s position as a sitting judge to lend false legitimacy to supposed investment opportunities,” stated United States Attorney Nocella. “Today’s arrests demonstrate that this Office will hold accountable those who exploit victims for their own financial gain. Holding corrupt individuals accountable for the abuse of public trust will always be a priority of our Office.”
“Fraud that hides behind a veneer of legitimacy—especially the authority of a judge—strikes at the heart of public trust,” stated IRS-CI New York Special Agent in Charge Chavis. “IRS‑CI will relentlessly follow the money, expose deception, and ensure that those who manipulate and mislead investors are brought to justice. Today’s arrests send a clear message: schemes dressed up as opportunity will not shield wrongdoers from accountability.”
As set forth in court filings, Sprei and King perpetrated numerous schemes to defraud, including multiple schemes to defraud real estate investors in which they solicited the victims’ funds in fictitious investment opportunities, represented to the victims that their invested funds would be returnable on demand if the victims decided to end their involvement in the investments, and then later refused to return the money based on false excuses and converted a significant portion of the victims’ funds for their own use.
For example, in November 2024, Spreipresented two investors (the Investors) with an opportunity to purchase commercial real estate located in Freehold, New Jersey (the Property). Sprei told the Investors that to take advantage of this opportunity, they would first have to show “proof of liquidity” by depositing funds in escrow. In addition, Sprei told the Investors that King was an independent escrow agent and a New York judge. Sprei also made numerous misrepresentations designed to deceive the Investors, including that if the Investors decided not to pursue the investment, they could so advise the escrow agent and would receive the full amount deposited within two business days. Based on these representations from Sprei, the Investors wired a total of $6.5 million to a bank account in King’s name pursuant to written escrow agreements signed by the Investors and King. In the days immediately following the wire transfers from the Investors to the bank account in King’s name, millions of dollars of the Investors’ funds were withdrawn or transferred to a bank account in Sprei’s name. When the Investors subsequently wrote to King to request the return of their deposited funds, King provided false excuses as to why he could not return the $6.5 million. Months later, King and Sprei returned to the Investors $1.5 million, representing only a portion of the Investors’ investment. To date, Sprei and King have not returned any further funds to the Investors.
The charge in the complaint is an allegation, and the defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty. If convicted of wire fraud conspiracy, the defendants face up to 20 years’ imprisonment.
The government’s case is being handled by the Office’s Public Integrity Section. Assistant United States Attorneys Rebecca Schuman and Andrew Wang are in charge of the prosecution, with assistance from Special Agent Anthony J. Cunder and Paralegal Specialist Melissa Bennett.
The Defendants:
SAM SPREI (also known as “Yechiel Sprei,” “Shimon Sprei,” and “Eli Shapiro”)
Age: 37
Brooklyn, New YorkEDWARD HAROLD KING
Age: 72
Brooklyn, New YorkE.D.N.Y. Docket No. 26-MJ-91
26mj0091_complaint.pdfFormer Multinational Consulting Company Finance Director Convicted in Decade-Long Multi-Million Dollar Fraud and Money Laundering SchemeRead the Press Release
Earlier today, at the federal court in Brooklyn, the defendant Jordan Khammar pleaded guilty to wire fraud and money laundering for his role in a decade-long scheme to defraud a multinational media, brand management, and consulting company and steal over $7.9 million. When sentenced, Khammar faces a maximum sentence of 20 years’ imprisonment as well as restitution of at least $7.9 million in addition to $7.9 million in criminal forfeiture.
Joseph Nocella, Jr., United States Attorney for the Eastern District of New York, and Harry T. Chavis, Jr., Special Agent in Charge, Internal Revenue Service-Criminal Investigation, New York (IRS-CI), announced the guilty plea.
“For over a decade, the defendant betrayed his employer’s trust and abused his access to its financial systems for side projects and personal gain,” stated United States Attorney Nocella. “Our Office will relentlessly pursue justice for victims of economic crime and seek to hold accountable those who commit such offenses.”
"Khammar didn’t just steal—he engineered a years‑long deception to bankroll his own ventures and bury the truth under doctored records. IRS‑CI followed the money, exposed the scheme, and brought it down. When someone turns a company’s financial systems into their personal slush fund, we will unwind every transaction and make sure they answer for it," stated IRS-CI New York Special Agent in Charge Chavis.
As set forth in court filings, Khammar was hired as a financial consultant in 2006 by a multinational media, brand management, and consulting company (Company-1). He eventually became Company-1’s Finance Director with certain access to and control over a wide range of its financial accounts and systems including those tied to banking, accounting, bookkeeping, and payroll functions. Between January 2015 and May 2025, Khammar abused that access and control to engage in a scheme to defraud Company-1 out of millions of dollars. Specifically, during the ten-year period, Khammar initiated over 300 wire transactions sending himself more than $7.9 million that he was not entitled to from Company-1’s bank account.
Khammar took multiple steps to conceal his scheme from Company-1 including by manipulating its books and records, circumventing internal controls, and limiting other employees’ and consultants’ access to the company financial systems and accounts. For example, Khammar created over 100 false entries in Company-1’s general ledger to disguise his fraudulent wire transfers as purportedly legitimate payments for Company 1’s expenses including corporate credit card bills, taxes, and costs associated with renovating its Brooklyn office.
Khammar wired most of the stolen money to an account held in the name of Olive Tree Ventures, Inc. (Olive Tree), a company that he founded, owned, and controlled. From the Olive Tree account, he dispersed a large portion of the funds to finance his independent business ventures including his media production company, Sideswipe Media, Inc., to purchase hundreds of thousands of dollars-worth of real estate in Florida and Ohio, and to further pay himself and a variety of personal expenses.
The government’s case is being handled by the Office’s Business and Securities Fraud Section. Assistant United States Attorneys Jonathan P. Lax and Dana Rehnquist are in charge of the prosecution, with assistance from Paralegal Specialist Liam McNett. Assistant United States Attorney Claire S. Kedeshian of the Office’s Asset Forfeiture Section is handling forfeiture matters.
The Defendant:
JORDAN KHAMMAR
Age: 47
Columbus, OhioE.D.N.Y. Docket No. 25-CR-283 (AMD)
Former Gymnastics Coach Pleads Guilty to Production of Child Sexual Abuse MaterialRead the Press Release
Hattiesburg, MS – A former gymnastics coach pleaded guilty Monday in federal court to three counts of production of child sexual abuse material after he secretly videotaped gymnasts in the bathroom of the gym where he coached.
According to court documents and statements made in court, Sean Gardner, 39, of West Des Moines, Iowa, used his access to children as a gymnastics coach in Purvis, Mississippi to surreptitiously record minors changing clothes and using the bathroom. The investigation began after reports were made to the U.S. Center for SafeSport alleging that Gardner, while working as a gymnastics coach, engaged in inappropriate conduct involving minor athletes. SafeSport forwarded the allegations to law enforcement, which led to a joint investigation by local and federal authorities.
During the execution of a search warrant at Gardner’s Iowa residence, law enforcement seized multiple electronic devices. A forensic examination revealed numerous images and videos depicting minor children – some under the age of 12 – in states of undress that appeared to have been recorded using a concealed camera. Investigators determined that several of the recordings were made in a restroom at a gym in Purvis, Mississippi, where Gardner previously worked. The evidence included multiple files dated as early as 2017 and 2018, and investigators identified several of the minors depicted as former gymnastics students.
If you are a parent of a child that has at any point been under the instruction of Gardner, the FBI has set up a website to provide you with resources and further information about this case: https://forms.fbi.gov/seeking-victim-information-in-sean-michael-gardner-investigation.
“This is one of the most reprehensible crimes prosecuted by my office,” said United States Attorney J.E. Baxter Kruger. “Coach Sean Gardner exploited his position to abuse and exploit those children he was entrusted to mentor and care for. Justice demands that we relentlessly pursue these predators, and we remain resolute in our commitment to protecting our children. I commend the tireless work of our prosecutors and law enforcement partners, whose dedication ensured that this defendant was brought to justice and that the victims’ voices were heard.”
Special Agent in Charge of the FBI’s Jackson Field Office, Robert A. Eikhoff, remarked, “Every child deserves to feel safe and never be victimized by someone they trust. Sean Gardner’s reprehensible acts of manipulating and abusing children, and betraying their parents’ trust, have been brought to an end. When children are harmed, the FBI, together with our law enforcement partners, will employ every resource available to ensure perpetrators are held accountable.”
Gardner pleaded guilty to three counts of production of child sexual abuse material. He is scheduled to be sentenced on October 14, 2026, and faces a maximum penalty of 90 years in prison. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
This case is the result of an investigation conducted by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the West Des Moines Police Department.
Assistant United States Attorneys Kimberly Purdie and Lee Smith are 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. Attorney’s Offices and the Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS), Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to better locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the Internet, as well as to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.justice.gov/psc.
Former CEO of West Michigan Nonprofit Sentenced to 70 Months in Federal PrisonRead the Press Release
Dr. Nkechy Ezeh was the Founder of Early Learning Neighborhood Collaborative
GRAND RAPIDS, MICHIGAN – U.S. Attorney for the Western District of Michigan Timothy VerHey announced today that Dr. Nkechy Ezeh, 61, of Kent County, Michigan, was sentenced to 70 months in federal prison for orchestrating a fraud scheme that stole $1.4 million in taxpayer and donor money intended for vulnerable preschool children. She was also sentenced to a concurrent prison term of 60 months for evading income taxes.
Chief U.S. District Judge Hala Y. Jarbou, who imposed the sentence, characterized Ezeh as “a fraud and a thief,” described the scheme as “brazen and widespread,” and noted that Ezeh stole money intended for some of West Michigan’s most vulnerable children. Judge Jarbou ordered Ezeh to pay $1.4 million in restitution to the victims of the fraud and $390,174 to the IRS. Judge Jarbou also remanded Ezeh directly to prison to begin serving her sentence immediately.
“Nkechy Ezeh’s greed is beyond reprehensible,” VerHey said. “She stole taxpayer and private-donor dollars meant for low-income children in our community. Instead of helping kids, she spent that money on herself. The stolen money could have supported hundreds of West Michigan children and their families. Judge Jarbou’s sentence was perfectly appropriate.”
Ezeh – the 2018 West Michigan Woman of the Year, a two-time appointee to the State of Michigan’s Early Childhood Investment Corporation’s Executive Committee, and a tenured professor of education – founded Early Learning Neighborhood Collaborative (ELNC), a West Michigan nonprofit funded by the Department of Health and Human Service’s Early Head Start program, the U.S. Department of Education, and private donors. It provided meals, transportation, funding, advocacy, and other services to children in preschools located in underserved communities.
As a result of the fraud, ELNC had to close its doors in 2023, many West Michigan preschools lost funding, and needy children lost valuable resources. ELNC also had to lay off its 35 employees without any notice. Sharon Killebrew, ELNC’s former bookkeeper and Ezeh’s co-conspirator, was sentenced in November 2025 to 54 months in federal prison for her role in the scheme.
In a sentencing memorandum, the U.S. Attorney’s Office said that Ezeh used the stolen money to fund her lifestyle, pay for a family member’s wedding, and to travel to Hawaii, Europe, and Africa. She placed her family members on a ghost payroll that caused ELNC to pay them hundreds of thousands of dollars for little or no work, and she used money mules to wire hundreds of thousands of dollars of stolen money to her family in Nigeria.
The sentencing memorandum also pointed out that, although the direct victims of the fraud were ELNC’s donors – the federal government’s Early Head Start Program, the U.S. Department of Education, and three of Michigan’s largest, most generous, and most well-known charities – the people most affected were the children and their families who lost the support ELNC once provided. These were mostly children of color under the age of five years old, 72% of whom lived below the federal poverty level in some of the poorest neighborhoods in Kent County, Kalamazoo, and Battle Creek.
“This case underscores the seriousness of misusing federal grant funds for personal gain,” said Special Agent in Charge Thomas Ethridge of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General (HHS‑OIG). “Our commitment to protecting the integrity of HHS programs remains steadfast, and we will continue working closely with our law enforcement partners to uphold these standards and ensure that violators are held accountable.”
The case was investigated by HHS-OIG and Internal Revenue Service-Criminal Investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney Clay Stiffler is the prosecutor.
On April 7, the Department of Justice announced the creation of the National Fraud Enforcement Division. The core mission of the Fraud Division is to zealously investigate and prosecute those who steal or fraudulently misuse taxpayer dollars. Department of Justice efforts to combat fraud support President Trump’s Task Force to Eliminate Fraud, a whole-of-government effort chaired by Vice President J.D. Vance to eliminate fraud, waste, and abuse within Federal benefits programs.
Florida Woman Charged with Child Pornography OffensesRead the Press Release
Gainesville, Florida – Trinity Joy Johnson, 26, of Alachua, Florida, has been indicted in federal court for twenty-three counts of production, distribution, and possession of child pornography. John P. Heekin, United States Attorney for the Northern District of Florida announced the charges.
Johnson appeared in federal court for her arraignment before United States Magistrate Judge Midori Lowry in Gainesville, Florida. Jury trial is scheduled for June 17, 2026, at 8:30 am before Chief District Court Judge Allen C. Winsor.
Johnson faces between 15 to 30 years’ imprisonment for the production of child pornography offenses; between 5 to 20 years’ imprisonment for the distribution of child pornography offenses; and up to 20 years’ imprisonment for possession of child pornography.
The case was jointly investigated by the Alachua County Sherriff’s Office, Internet Crimes Against Children (ICAC) and Homeland Security Investigations. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Adam Hapner.
An indictment is merely an allegation by a grand jury that a defendant has committed a violation of federal criminal law and is not evidence of guilt. All defendants are presumed innocent and entitled to a fair trial, during which it will be the government’s burden to prove guilt beyond a reasonable doubt at trial.
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 and led by the U.S. Attorney’s Offices and the Criminal Divisions Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS), it 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.
The United States Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Florida is one of 94 offices that serve as the nation’s principal litigators under the direction of the Attorney General. To access public court documents online, please visit the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Florida website. For more information about the United States Attorney’s Office, Northern District of Florida, visit https://www.justice.gov/usao-ndfl.
Felon Sentenced to Federal Probation for Selling Cocaine and Firearms in Bloomington, IllinoisRead the Press Release
PEORIA, Ill. – An Indianapolis, Indiana, man, Melvin May, 44, formerly of Bloomington, Illinois, was sentenced on May 7, 2026, to five years’ probation by United States District Judge Jonathan E. Hawley after pleading guilty to four counts of distribution of a controlled substance (cocaine) and two counts of possession of a firearm as a felon.
Between September 27, 2024, and October 25, 2024, May sold cocaine and/or firearms in Bloomington on five occasions. In total, he sold two firearms and 151.8 grams of cocaine. May, who had four prior felony convictions, was on probation in McLean County, Illinois, at the time he committed the federal offenses. As a convicted felon, he was prohibited from possessing a firearm.
May was indicted in December 2024 and pleaded guilty in January 2026.
The statutory penalties for distribution of a controlled substance (cocaine) are a maximum of 20 years’ imprisonment per count, while the felon in possession charges carry a maximum of 15 years’ imprisonment per count. Each charge requires the imposition of a minimum three-year term of supervised release.
The Federal Bureau of Investigation, Springfield Field Office, and the Illinois State Police investigated the case. The Drug Enforcement Administration assisted in the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney Melissa P. Ortiz represented the government in the prosecution.
This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program bringing together all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve to reduce violent crime and gun violence, and to make our neighborhoods safer for everyone. On May 26, 2021, the Department launched a violent crime reduction strategy strengthening PSN based on these core principles: fostering trust and legitimacy in our communities, supporting community-based organizations that help prevent violence from occurring in the first place, setting focused and strategic enforcement priorities, and measuring the results.
FCI Schuylkill Inmate Indicted for Possession of A WeaponRead the Press Release
SCRANTON - The United States Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Pennsylvania announced that Brayan Giron-Ferman, age 22, a federal inmate incarcerated at FCI Schuylkill, was indicted yesterday by a federal grand jury on the charge of possession of a weapon.
According to United States Attorney Brian D. Miller, the indictment alleges that on February 27, 2026, Giron-Ferman possessed a prison-made weapon, approximately a seven-and-a-half-inch sharpened piece of metal with a cloth handle, commonly referred to as a “shank.”
The Federal Bureau of Investigations and the Special Investigative Services of the Federal Bureau of Prisons investigated the case. Assistant U.S. Attorney Luisa Honora Berti is prosecuting the case.
The maximum penalty under federal law for this offense is up to 5 years’ imprisonment, a term of supervised release following imprisonment, and a fine. A sentence following the finding of guilt is imposed by the Judge after consideration of the applicable federal sentencing statutes and the Federal Sentencing Guidelines.
Indictments and Criminal Informations are only allegations. All persons charged are presumed to be innocent unless and until found guilty in court.
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FCI Schuylkill Inmate Indicted for Possession of A WeaponRead the Press Release
SCRANTON - The United States Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Pennsylvania announced that Tiago Bettencourt, age 22, a federal inmate incarcerated at FCI Schuylkill, was indicted yesterday by a federal grand jury on the charge of possession of a weapon.
According to United States Attorney Brian D. Miller, the indictment alleges that on February 27, 2026, Bettencourt possessed a prison-made weapon, approximately a nine-inch sharpened piece of plexi-glass with a cloth handle, commonly referred to as a “shank.”
The Federal Bureau of Investigations and the Special Investigative Services of the Federal Bureau of Prisons investigated the case. Assistant U.S. Attorney Luisa Honora Berti is prosecuting the case.
The maximum penalty under federal law for this offense is up to five years’ imprisonment, a term of supervised release following imprisonment, and a fine. A sentence following the finding of guilt is imposed by the Judge after consideration of the applicable federal sentencing statutes and the Federal Sentencing Guidelines.
Indictments and Criminal Informations are only allegations. All persons charged are presumed to be innocent unless and until found guilty in court.
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Eight Defendants Sentenced After Federal Investigation Seized More Than 175,000 Fentanyl PillsRead the Press Release
Brad D. Schimel, First Assistant United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Wisconsin, announced that Senior United States District Judge William C. Griesbach sentenced the following eight individuals for their roles in a fentanyl trafficking organization operating in Green Bay:
- Ricky Q. Chambers, 29, of Green Bay, Wisconsin, was sentenced in May 2026 to 204 months in prison, followed by 7 years of supervised release.
- Jaylen T. Allen, 25, of Green Bay, Wisconsin, was sentenced in December 2025 to 168 months in prison, followed by 10 years of supervised release.
- Peyton Shipman-Allen, 33, of Green Bay, Wisconsin, was sentenced in October 2025 to 167 months in prison, followed by 10 years of supervised release.
- Taviaun S. Love, 24, of Green Bay, Wisconsin, was sentenced in July 2025 to 120 months in prison, followed by 8 years of supervised release.
- Darius D. Ricks, 32, of Milwaukee, Wisconsin, was sentenced in May 2026 to 120 months in prison, followed by 7 years of supervised release.
- Xzavier T. Newsom, 29, of Green Bay, Wisconsin, was sentenced in April 2026 to 108 months in prison, followed by 6 years of supervised release.
- Eugene L. Herrod, 34, of Green Bay, Wisconsin, was sentenced in May 2026 to 48 months in prison, followed by 10 years of supervised release.
- Devinique E. Manjarrez, 28, of Goodyear, Arizona, was sentenced in May 2026 to time served, followed by 3 years of supervised release.
Seven of the eight defendants pleaded guilty to conspiracy to distribute fentanyl. Ricky Chambers was found guilty following a jury trial.
According to court records and evidence presented in court, the defendants operated a large-scale drug trafficking organization responsible for distributing hundreds of thousands of fentanyl pills in the Green Bay and Milwaukee areas. Several members referred to themselves as “GTR,” short for “Getting to Riches.” Members of the organization frequently traveled to Phoenix, Arizona, where they purchased large quantities of fentanyl pills. They then shipped the pills to various cities throughout the Midwest before distributing them in and around Green Bay. During the investigation, law enforcement seized more than 175,000 fentanyl pills connected to the organization.
The investigation also revealed that members of GTR spent thousands of dollars on luxury travel, expensive jewelry, luxury vehicles, designer clothing, and rap video productions. Members regularly displayed large amounts of cash and luxury items on social media while promoting their music and public image. In one video, Jaylen Allen displayed a luxury watch and stated, “We really rich off nothing but fentanyl.” In numerous other videos and photographs, members of the organization posed with tens of thousands of dollars in cash.
At Chambers’ trial, an expert in drug trafficking testified that high-level fentanyl traffickers can purchase fentanyl pills in Phoenix for as little as 50 cents per pill and resell those same pills in Green Bay for up to $20 per pill. The expert also testified that seven out of ten fentanyl pills tested at DEA crime laboratories contain a potentially lethal dose of fentanyl.
“While the sentencing of the last of the defendants in this drug conspiracy brings the court cases to a conclusion, the harm these individuals have caused to the very fabric of our communities will continue to reverberate for years,” said First Assistant U.S. Attorney Brad Schimel. “The enormous amount of fentanyl these criminals distributed in our state has resulted in devastating losses of life, damage to public health, destruction of families and the expenditure of huge amounts of public and private resources to address the poison from which these criminals profited.”
“The fentanyl crisis affects families across the country to include those in our communities in Wisconsin. The criminal actors in this case sought to enrich themselves through trafficking and selling large quantities of fentanyl. They have now been held accountable for their actions,” said FBI Milwaukee Special Agent in Charge Alan Karr. “The FBI will continue to work with our partners to aggressively investigate and combat violent crime and drug trafficking throughout the United States to ensure the safety of the American people.”
“The successful conclusion of this case is another example of the relentless work conducted by the Brown County Drug Task Force in partnership with local, state, and federal law enforcement agencies across Wisconsin and the nation. Through coordinated investigations and proactive enforcement efforts, law enforcement continues to target those responsible for bringing dangerous drugs into our communities” said Brown County Sheriff, Todd Delain.
“The Brown County Drug Task Force remains committed to protecting the public and holding drug traffickers accountable. Those who choose to come to Brown County to profit from the distribution of illegal narcotics should understand that it is only a matter of time before they are arrested, prosecuted, and held accountable for their actions. Today, these drug dealers are no longer living a life of luxury — they are serving lengthy sentences behind bars!”
This case was investigated by the Brown County Drug Task Force, the Dakota County (Minnesota) Drug Task Force, the MSP Airport Police Department, the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) Green Bay Resident Office and Phoenix Division, and the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI). It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Alex Duros and Tim Funnell.
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For further information contact:
Public Affairs Officer Steve Caballero
(414) 297-1700
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Eastern Iowa Occupational Therapist Convicted in Drug Tampering SchemeRead the Press Release
An Eastern Iowa occupational therapist who tampered with an assisted living resident’s prescription pain medication pled guilty on May 12, 2026, in federal court in Cedar Rapids. Eric Leo Newsom, age 34, from Cedar Rapids, Iowa, was convicted of one count of tampering and attempting to tamper with a consumer product.
In a plea agreement, Newsom admitted he was a licensed occupational therapist within the State of Iowa. Newsom owned and operated a company through which he provided occupational therapy services to patients in Eastern Iowa.
In November 2024, Newsom began diverting narcotics from his current and former patients. One of his former patients was elderly, had cancer, required medication to control pain, and lived in a Cedar Rapids assisted living facility. On March 19, 2025, the former patient began receiving palliative hospice care. On March 24, 2025, Newsom picked up the former patient’s hydrocodone tablets from an area pharmacy and replaced the former patient’s hydrocodone tablets with zinc tablets. Before putting the zinc tablets into the hydrocodone container, Newsom added score marks to the zinc tablets to make them appear similar to hydrocodone tablets. As a result, from March 24, 2025, until March 26, 2025, the former patient did not have her narcotic pain medication. The former patient died on March 28, 2025.
Newsom also admitted burglarizing the apartment of another resident of an assisted living facility while seeking narcotics. Newsom admitted to stealing narcotics from two sisters who lived in different apartments at the same assisted living facility in Cedar Rapids while the sisters were in the facility’s gym for therapy.
Sentencing before United States District Court Judge C.J. Williams will be set after a presentence report is prepared. Newsom remains free on bond previously set pending sentencing. Newsom faces a possible maximum sentence of ten years’ imprisonment, a $250,000 fine, and three years of supervised release following any imprisonment.
The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Timothy L. Vavricek and was investigated by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General and the Iowa Medicaid Fraud Control Unit.
Court file information at https://ecf.iand.uscourts.gov/cgi-bin/login.pl.
The case file number is 25-CR-92.
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Delaware Business Owner Sentenced to 18 Months in Federal Prison for Multi-Year Tax Evasion SchemeRead the Press Release
WILMINGTON, Del. – A Townsend, Delaware man was sentenced yesterday to 18 months in prison for tax evasion. Chief U.S. District Judge Colm F. Connolly imposed the sentence.
According to court documents, John Kungu, 62, the owner of Advanced Nursing Care, engaged in a calculated, multi-year scheme to avoid paying nearly $1.2 million in taxes. Between 2018 and 2021, Kungu submitted multiple false sworn statements to the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) claiming that he could not afford to pay his tax liabilities, despite having millions of dollars in undisclosed bank accounts. On one occasion, Kungu offered to settle his tax debt for $35,000, claiming he would need to take out a loan, while simultaneously holding over $5.1 million in hidden accounts.
Additionally, from 2018 through 2020, Kungu filed false personal and corporate tax returns by intentionally categorizing hundreds of thousands of dollars in personal benefits and payments to himself as business expenses, thereby improperly reducing his tax burden to the government. Kungu intentionally withheld financial records from his bookkeeper and tax preparer to conceal his evasion.
“John Kungu built a highly successful business, but instead of paying his fair share, he chose to line his own pockets at the expense of every law-abiding taxpayer,” said U.S. Attorney Benjamin L. Wallace. “When caught, he doubled down on his fraud, lying under oath to the IRS to hide millions of dollars in wealth. Yesterday’s sentence demonstrates that those who view tax evasion as a mere cost of doing business will face serious consequences, including time in federal prison.”
“Yesterday’s sentencing is a direct result of the excellent partnership the IRS and the U.S. Attorney’s office has in combating violations of Federal law,” said Yury Kruty, Special Agent in Charge IRS Criminal Investigation, Philadelphia Field Office. “This sentence shows how seriously the courts take Federal tax crimes and should serve as a deterrent to those who might contemplate similar fraudulent actions.”
Upon Kungu’s release from prison, he will be required to serve 3 years of supervised release. In addition to his prison sentence, Kungu was ordered to pay a $75,000 fine and $1,186,573.62 in United States Attorney’s Office District of Delaware restitution to the IRS. Kungu has since paid the restitution amount, along with applicable interest and penalties.
IRS Criminal Investigation investigated the case. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Alexander P. Ibrahim and Claudia L. Pare prosecuted the case.
On April 7, the Department of Justice announced the creation of the National Fraud Enforcement Division (“Fraud Division”). The Fraud Division is investigating and prosecuting those who commit fraud against the American people. The Department’s work to combat fraud supports President Trump’s Task Force to Eliminate Fraud, a whole-of-government effort chaired by Vice President J.D. Vance to eliminate fraud, waste, and abuse within Federal benefit programs.
A copy of this press release is located on the website of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Delaware. Related court documents and information are located on the website of the District Court for the District of Delaware or on PACER by searching for Case No. 1:24-cr-00056-CFC.Defendant Pleads Guilty to Damaging the Brooklyn Headquarters of the Chabad-Lubavitch MovementRead the Press Release
BROOKLYN, NY – Earlier today, in federal court in Brooklyn, Dan Sohail pleaded guilty to damaging religious property. The proceeding was held before United States District Judge Eric N. Vitaliano. When sentenced, Sohail faces imprisonment and restitution.
Joseph Nocella, Jr., United States Attorney for the Eastern District of New York; Harmeet K. Dhillon, Assistant Attorney General of Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division; James C. Barnacle, Jr., Assistant Director in Charge, Federal Bureau of Investigation, New York Field Office (FBI); and Jessica S. Tisch, Commissioner, New York City Police Department (NYPD) announced the guilty plea.
“By pleading guilty today, the defendant admitted that he intentionally damaged the Chabad-Lubavitch World Headquarters, a globally significant Jewish religious institution, by repeatedly crashing his vehicle into the building’s entrance,” said United States Attorney Nocella. “At a time when acts of violence directed at Jewish institutions have dramatically increased, this prosecution underscores our Office’s commitment to ensuring that worshippers can gather safely and those who threaten religious institutions will be held accountable.”
“The defendant’s dangerous conduct was a targeted attack on the religious liberty and peace of worship to which every American is entitled,” stated Assistant Attorney General Dhillon. “Today’s conviction sends a clear message: the Department of Justice will not tolerate acts of hatred and violence against religious institutions.”
“The defendant's actions caused panic within the community. The guilty plea holds him accountable for using a vehicle as a dangerous weapon and demonstrates the FBI's continued commitment to partner with our local law enforcement agencies to protect the public and pursue justice for those impacted,” stated FBI Assistant Director in Charge Barnacle.
“By repeatedly ramming his vehicle into the entrance of the Chabad-Lubavitch World Headquarters, the defendant targeted a sacred institution at the heart of the Jewish community,” stated NYPD Commissioner Tisch. “At a time of rising threats against Jewish New Yorkers, attacks on places of worship carry deep fear far beyond the immediate damage they cause. Today’s guilty plea holds this defendant accountable for his actions, and the NYPD will continue working with our federal partners to protect every New Yorker’s right to practice their faith safely and freely.”
According to court filings and statements made during the plea hearing, on the evening of January 28, 2026, Sohail drove to the Chabad Headquarters located on Eastern Parkway in Brooklyn, New York. The Chabad Headquarters was hosting an event marking the anniversary of the death of the movement’s leader. After arriving at the side entrance of the building, Sohail exited his vehicle and moved barriers that had been set up to protect the building, which includes a synagogue and religious gathering spaces. After gesturing for congregants to move away, Sohail returned to his vehicle and drove his car into the building’s side entrance. He then reversed his vehicle and accelerated into the entrance four additional times, knocking the entrance door off its hinges.
The government’s case is being handled by the Office’s Human Trafficking and Civil Rights and General Crimes Sections. Assistant United States Attorney Eric Silverberg and Special Assistant United States Attorney Brachah Goykadosh are in charge of the prosecution, with assistance from Paralegal Specialist Marlane Bosler.
The Defendant:
DAN SOHAIL
Age: 36
Carteret, New JerseyE.D.N.Y. Docket No. 26-CR-127 (ENV)
Defendant Pleads Guilty to Damaging the Brooklyn Headquarters of the Chabad-Lubavitch MovementRead the Press Release
Earlier today, in federal court in Brooklyn, Dan Sohail pleaded guilty to damaging religious property. The proceeding was held before U.S. District Judge Eric N. Vitaliano. When sentenced, Sohail faces a maximum penalty of three years in prison and mandatory restitution.
“The defendant’s dangerous conduct was a targeted attack on the religious liberty and peace of worship to which every American is entitled,” said Assistant Attorney General Harmeet K. Dhillon of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division. “Today’s conviction sends a clear message: the Department of Justice will not tolerate acts of hatred and violence against religious institutions.”
“By pleading guilty today, the defendant admitted that he intentionally damaged the Chabad-Lubavitch World Headquarters, a globally significant Jewish religious institution, by repeatedly crashing his vehicle into the building’s entrance,” said U.S. Attorney Joseph Nocella Jr. for the Eastern District of New York. “At a time when acts of violence directed at Jewish institutions have dramatically increased, this prosecution underscores our Office’s commitment to ensuring that worshippers can gather safely and those who threaten religious institutions will be held accountable.”
According to court filings and statements made during the plea hearing, on the evening of Jan. 28, Sohail drove to the Chabad Headquarters located on Eastern Parkway in Brooklyn, New York. The Chabad Headquarters was hosting an event marking the anniversary of the death of the movement’s leader. After arriving at the side entrance of the building, Sohail exited his vehicle and moved barriers that had been set up to protect the building, which includes a synagogue and religious gathering spaces. After gesturing for congregants to move away, Sohail returned to his vehicle and drove his car into the building’s side entrance. He then reversed his vehicle and accelerated into the entrance four additional times, knocking the entrance door off its hinges.
The government’s case is being handled by the Office’s Human Trafficking and Civil Rights and General Crimes Sections. Assistant U.S. Attorney Eric Silverberg for the Eastern District of New York and Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Brachah Goykadosh are in charge of the prosecution, with assistance from Paralegal Specialist Marlane Bosler.
D.C. Man Found Guilty of Murdering Father of Four in Deanwood Neighborhood in 2020Read the Press Release
WASHINGTON – Jamil Whitley, 38, of Washington, D.C., was found guilty yesterday in D.C. Superior Court, for charges related to the shooting death of 32-year-old Kevin Redd in the alley behind 4722 Jay Street, Northeast, on June 11, 2020, announced U.S. Attorney Jeanine Ferris Pirro.
Whitley was found guilty by a jury on May 12, 2026, after a nearly month-long trial, on one count of second-degree murder while armed, possession of a firearm during a crime of violence, carrying a pistol without a license, and unlawful possession of a firearm. Superior Court Judge Danya Dayson scheduled sentencing for July 17, 2026.
According to the government’s evidence, on June 11, 2020, at approximately 1:36 a.m., the victim, Kevin Redd, dropped off at the Shell Gas Station located at 4321 Nannie Helen Burroughs Avenue, NE. According to gas station surveillance video, three minutes earlier the defendant had arrived at the gas station as the rear passenger of a four-door, white vehicle. The surveillance video, that had no audio, captured the two men speaking. Eventually, Whitley returned to the rear passenger area of the white vehicle and was driven from the gas station while Mr. Redd remained.
Thirteen minutes later, the defendant returned to the gas station driving an older two-door, white vehicle with a sunroof and tinted windows. Whitley was wearing the same clothes, but his face was now covered with a surgical mask. The defendant exited the vehicle and approached Mr. Redd. The defendant returned to his car with Mr. Redd following behind him. As Whitley entered the driver’s door, he quickly pulled a small object from his pants. Then, Mr. Redd entered the passenger door and before he could fully close it, the defendant sped off causing a vehicle to swerve to avoid hitting him. Just over a minute later, a residential security camera captured the defendant’s vehicle entering the alley leading to the rear of 4722 Jay Street, N.E., where within seconds two gunshots rang out. Approximately 17 seconds later, a business security camera captured the defendant fleeing the alley and the area. Subsequently, Sixth District police officers responded to the alley where they found Mr. Redd suffering from multiple gunshot wounds. He was transported to a local hospital where he succumbed to his injuries. At the time of Mr. Redd’s murder, he was a father of three with a fourth child born within weeks of his murder.
Whitley was arrested on August 25, 2021, and has been in custody since.
Joining the announcement was Interim Chief Jeffery Carroll of the Metropolitan Police Department and FBI Assistant Director in Charge Darren B. Cox of the Washington Field Office.
This case was investigated by the Metropolitan Police Department with the assistance of the Federal Bureau of Investigation.
It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Michelle D. Jackson and Negar Kordestani.
2021 CF1 004848
Cranston Man Posing as Financial Adviser Pleads Guilty to Wire FraudRead the Press Release
PROVIDENCE – A Cranston man pleaded guilty today in U.S. District Court in Rhode Island for falsely represented himself as a financial advisor worth a “million dollars in clients.”
Jason Johnson, 53, pleaded guilty to one count of wire fraud. Johnson was indicted in March 2025 and is scheduled to be sentenced on August 27, 2026. The sentence imposed will be determined by a federal district judge after consideration of the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
According to court documents, Johnson falsely represented himself as a financial advisor and accepted approximately $140,000 from a Rhode Island couple through the now-defunct W.S. Solutions LLC. Johnson diverted much of the investment funds into two bank accounts he controlled and spent most of the couple’s invested funds on personal expenditures.
Johnson failed to respond to repeated inquiries from the investors. Additionally, he failed to provide them with statements of investment activity, tracking reports, or summaries. Instead, he sent electronic communications assuring them that their accounts were being serviced and they would receive distributions of profits at a later date.
The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Lee H. Vilker.
The matter was investigated jointly by the United States Postal Inspection Service and the Federal Bureau of Investigation.
Cole County Man Charged with Multiple Counts of Production of Child PornographyRead the Press Release
JEFFERSON City, Mo. – A Jefferson City, Mo., man has been charged by a federal grand jury with child pornography charges.
Nathan Robert Kent, 33, is charged with three counts of production of child pornography, two counts of distribution of child pornography, and possession of child pornography.
Following a National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC) Cyber tip from Snapchat, law enforcement executed a search warrant on Kent’s residence. After a forensic examination of Kent’s electronic devices, law enforcement discovered he was using Snapchat and encrypted cellular phone applications to entice minor females to produce child pornography. Kent also sent files depicting Child Sexual Abuse Material (CSAM) to multiple users. Kent possessed over a thousand CSAM files.
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.
Under federal statutes, Nathan Robert Kent is subject to a sentence of up to 140 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 Ashley S. Turner. It was investigated by the Boone County Sheriff and Jefferson City Police Department.
Project Safe Childhood
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 . For more information about Internet safety education, please visit www.usdoj.gov/psc and click on the tab "resources."
Chicago woman sentenced for trafficking oxycodoneRead the Press Release
MISSOULA – A Chicago woman who was part of a drug trafficking organization involved in the diversion of oxycodone and promethazine-codeine from pharmacies throughout the United States was sentenced today to 12 months of imprisonment, followed by 3 years of supervised release, Acting U.S. Attorney Tim Racicot said.
Alize Hydeia Gist, 29, pleaded guilty in November 2025 to one count of possession with intent to distribute oxycodone.
U.S. District Judge Dana L. Christensen presided.
The government alleged in court documents that Gist joined a Chicago-based group that flew into Montana, presented fake prescriptions to Montana pharmacies, and, when doing so, fraudulently obtained oxycodone and other controlled substances, none of which they were entitled to receive. After obtaining the drugs, Gist and others gave the drugs to co-defendants for further distribution.
This prosecution is part of the Homeland Security Task Force (HSTF) initiative established by Executive Order 14159, Protecting the American People Against Invasion. The HSTF is a whole-of-government partnership dedicated to eliminating criminal cartels, foreign gangs, transnational criminal organizations, and human smuggling and trafficking rings operating in the United States and abroad. Through historic interagency collaboration, the HSTF directs the full might of United States law enforcement towards identifying, investigating, and prosecuting the full spectrum of crimes committed by these organizations, which have long fueled violence and instability within our borders. In performing this work, the HSTF places special emphasis on investigating and prosecuting those engaged in child trafficking or other crimes involving children. The HSTF further utilizes all available tools to prosecute and remove the most violent criminal aliens from the United States. HSTF Montana comprises agents and officers from a number of federal agencies as well as drug task forces throughout the state, with the prosecution being led by the United States Attorney’s Office for the District of Montana.
The U.S. Attorney’s Office prosecuted the case. The DEA conducted the investigation as part of the HSTF.
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Chesapeake man sentenced to 17 years in prison after traveling to the Philippines to have sex with a minorRead the Press Release
NORFOLK, Va. – A Chesapeake man was sentenced today to 17 years in prison for travel with intent to engage in illicit sexual activity.
According to court documents, through an online dating site, Dylan Joseph Knauer, 32, met a minor victim who resided in the Philippines, and began chatting, video calling, and “sexting” with the minor. Knauer traveled to the Philippines in April and May of 2025 and had sex with the victim, who was 14 years old.
On Oct. 22, 2025, Knauer asked the victim to make a sexually explicit video of herself. On Oct. 23, 2025, law enforcement learned that Knauer was scheduled to travel from Norfolk to Denver to Japan with a final destination of the Philippines. After boarding his flight from Denver to Japan, Knauer was removed from the aircraft.
The FBI’s Norfolk Field Office investigated this case with assistance from Homeland Security Investigations, the Federal Air Marshals Service, Customs and Border Protection, and the Denver Police Department.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Kristen S. Taylor prosecuted the 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 (CEOS), Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to better locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the internet, as well as to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.justice.gov/psc.
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. 2:26-cr-1.
Butler Felon Sentenced to Prison for Possession of FirearmRead the Press Release
PITTSBURGH, Pa. - A resident of Butler, Pennsylvania, has been sentenced in federal court to 20 months of incarceration on his conviction of violating federal firearm laws, United States Attorney Troy Rivetti announced today.
United States District Judge Christy Criswell Wiegand imposed the sentence on Robert Schatzman, 21.
According to information presented to the Court, in April 2025, law enforcement executed a search warrant at Schatzman’s home and recovered a Glock pistol from a floor air vent within his bedroom. Schatzman previously had been convicted of robbery in the Court of Common Pleas of Lawrence County, Pennsylvania. Federal law prohibits possession of a firearm or ammunition by a convicted felon.
Assistant United States Attorneys Douglas C. Maloney and Kelly M. Locher prosecuted this case on behalf of the government.
United States Attorney Rivetti commended the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Stowe Township Police Department, McKees Rocks Police Department, and Pennsylvania Office of Attorney General for the investigation leading to the successful prosecution of Schatzman.
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.
Brooklyn Woman Sentenced in $600 Million Covid Tax Credit SchemeRead the Press Release
A Brooklyn tax preparer was sentenced on Friday to 36 months in prison for her role in a fraud scheme that fraudulently claimed more than $600 million in COVID-19-related employment tax credits.
According to court documents and statements made in court, Tiffany Williams, 43, of Brooklyn, conspired with others to file tax returns seeking fraudulent refunds based on the employee retention credit and paid sick and family leave credit, credits passed by Congress to aid struggling businesses during the COVID-19 global pandemic. From November 2021 to June 2023, Williams and her co-conspirators filed more than 8,000 false tax returns seeking COVID-19 related tax credits.
In total, Tiffany Williams and her co-conspirators sought more than $600 million in credits they and their clients were not entitled to receive, which caused a loss to the United States of approximately $45 million.
Williams previously pleaded to one count of wire fraud.
Assistant Attorney General Colin M. McDonald of the Justice Department’s National Fraud Enforcement Division and U.S. Attorney Joseph Nocella, Jr. for the Eastern District of New York made the announcement.
IRS-Criminal Investigation, the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, and Homeland Security Investigations investigated the case.
Trial Attorney Richard J. Kelley of the Criminal Division’s Tax Section and Assistant U.S. Attorneys Adam Toporovsky and James Simmons of the Eastern District of New York prosecuted the case.
On April 7, the Department of Justice announced the creation of the National Fraud Enforcement Division (“Fraud Division”). The Fraud Division is laser-focused on investigating and prosecuting those who commit fraud against the American people. The Department’s work to combat fraud supports President Trump’s Task Force to Eliminate Fraud, a whole-of-government effort chaired by Vice President J.D. Vance to eliminate fraud, waste, and abuse within Federal benefit programs.
Bronx Man Convicted of Operating Police Station for the Chinese Government in New York City and Obstruction of JusticeRead the Press Release
Today in federal court in Brooklyn, Bronx resident Lu Jianwang, a U.S. citizen also known as “Harry Lu,” was convicted by a jury of two counts of a superseding indictment charging him with acting as an illegal agent of the government of the People’s Republic of China (PRC), in connection with opening and operating an overseas police station in lower Manhattan for the PRC’s Ministry of Public Security (MPS), and with obstruction of justice for destroying related evidence. The verdict was returned following a one-week trial before United States District Judge Nina R. Morrison. When sentenced, the defendant faces up to 30 years in prison. Lu’s co-defendant, Chen Jinping, pleaded guilty in December 2024 to conspiring to act as an agent of the PRC in connection with the overseas police station, and he is awaiting sentencing.
“We will not allow secret ‘police’ sent by a foreign country to harass people in the United States,” said Assistant Attorney General for National Security John A. Eisenberg. “The jury rightly condemned this conduct, which took place right in the middle of New York City.”
“The Chinese government thought it could get away with operating a secret, illegal police station in the heart of New York City to export transnational repression and subvert our rule of law,” said Assistant Director Roman Rozhavsky of the FBI's Counterintelligence and Espionage Division. “However, today’s conviction of Lu Jianwang for illegally acting as an agent of a foreign power proves we won’t allow authoritarian regimes to violate U.S. sovereignty. The FBI and our partners are dedicated to protecting everyone within our borders from efforts to undermine our democratic freedoms, and we’ll hold any state actors -- and those who help them -- accountable for breaking our laws.”
“A police station operating in New York City at the direction of the Chinese government has been exposed, its sinister purpose disrupted, and its founder held accountable for blatantly disregarding the law and our country’s sovereignty,” said U.S. Attorney Joseph Nocella Jr. for the Eastern District of New York. “Our Office remains resolute in protecting the rights of people seeking freedom from repression and speaking out to bring democracy, reform, and human rights to China.”
As proved at trial, Lu and his co-defendant Chen Jinping acted as illegal agents of the PRC government. Beginning in January 2022, under orders from an MPS official, Lu, Chen and others worked together to establish the first known overseas police station in the United States on behalf of the MPS. The police station—which was searched by the FBI in October 2022—was located in an office building at 107 East Broadway in Manhattan’s Chinatown. A blue banner proclaiming “Fuzhou Police Overseas Service Station, New York, USA,” was recovered there.
The police station operated at the direction and control of the MPS. The MPS is the PRC’s primary domestic law enforcement and intelligence agency. The MPS routinely monitors Chinese political dissidents and others with views adverse to the Chinese government’s sovereignty who live outside the PRC, including in the United States. The MPS has used cooperative contacts both inside the PRC and around the world to influence, threaten, and coerce political dissidents abroad, including in the United States, in an effort to silence them. The New York police station was part of a global initiative by the MPS to establish overseas police service stations all over the world. None of the participants in the police station scheme in Chinatown informed the U.S. government that they were helping the PRC government open and operate an undeclared MPS police station on U.S. soil.
Lu was tasked by his MPS handler with collecting information on behalf of the Chinese government, such as locating a pro-democracy advocate who had fled from China and moved to the U.S.
In October 2022, the FBI conducted a judicially authorized search of the illegal police station. In connection with the search, FBI agents interviewed Lu and Chen and seized their phones. In reviewing the contents of these phones, FBI agents observed that WeChat messages between the defendants and their MPS handler had been deleted.
The FBI has created a website for victims to report efforts by foreign governments to stalk, intimidate, or assault people in the United States. If you believe that you are or have been a victim of transnational repression, please visit https://www.fbi.gov/investigate/counterintelligence/transnational-repression.
The government’s case is being handled by the Office’s National Security and Cybercrime Section. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Antoinette N. Rangel and Lindsey R. Oken are in charge of the prosecution, with assistance from Paralegal Specialists Magdalena St. Surin and Danielle Barber. Assistant U.S. Attorney Alexander A. Solomon played a critical role in the underlying investigation.
Bronx Man Convicted of Operating Police Station for the Chinese Government in New York City and Obstruction of JusticeRead the Press Release
BROOKLYN, NY – Today in federal court in Brooklyn, Bronx resident Lu Jianwang, a U.S. citizen also known as “Harry Lu,” was convicted by a jury of two counts of a superseding indictment charging him with acting as an illegal agent of the government of the People’s Republic of China (PRC), in connection with opening and operating an overseas police station in lower Manhattan for the PRC’s Ministry of Public Security (MPS), and with obstruction of justice for destroying related evidence. The verdict was returned following a one-week trial before United States District Judge Nina R. Morrison. When sentenced, the defendant faces up to 30 years in prison. Lu’s co-defendant, Chen Jinping, pleaded guilty in December 2024 to conspiring to act as an agent of the PRC in connection with the overseas police station, and he is awaiting sentencing.
Joseph Nocella, Jr., United States Attorney for the Eastern District of New York; John A. Eisenberg, Assistant Attorney General of the Justice Department’s National Security Division; and James C. Barnacle, Jr., Assistant Director in Charge, Federal Bureau of Investigation, New York Field Office (FBI), announced the verdict.
“A police station operating in New York City at the direction of the Chinese government has been exposed, its sinister purpose disrupted, and its founder held accountable for blatantly disregarding the law and our country’s sovereignty,” stated United States Attorney Nocella. “Our Office remains resolute in protecting the rights of people seeking freedom from repression and speaking out to bring democracy, reform, and human rights to China.”
“Lu Jianwang used a police station in New York City to target PRC dissidents in furtherance of the Chinese government’s political agenda. May today’s verdict send a message to other foreign agents – the FBI maintains its unwavering resolve to reveal and disrupt the clandestine operations of adversarial nations,” stated FBI Assistant Director in Charge Barnacle.
As proved at trial, Lu and his co-defendant Chen Jinping acted as illegal agents of the PRC government. Beginning in January 2022, under orders from an MPS official, Lu, Chen and others worked together to establish the first known overseas police station in the United States on behalf of the MPS. The police station—which was searched by the FBI in October 2022—was located in an office building at 107 East Broadway in Manhattan’s Chinatown. A blue banner proclaiming “Fuzhou Police Overseas Service Station, New York, USA,” was recovered there.
The police station operated at the direction and control of the MPS. The MPS is the PRC’s primary domestic law enforcement and intelligence agency. The MPS routinely monitors Chinese political dissidents and others with views adverse to the Chinese government’s sovereignty who live outside the PRC, including in the United States. The MPS has used cooperative contacts both inside the PRC and around the world to influence, threaten, and coerce political dissidents abroad, including in the United States, in an effort to silence them. The New York police station was part of a global initiative by the MPS to establish overseas police service stations all over the world. None of the participants in the police station scheme in Chinatown informed the U.S. government that they were helping the PRC government open and operate an undeclared MPS police station on U.S. soil.
Lu was tasked by his MPS handler with collecting information on behalf of the Chinese government, such as locating a pro-democracy advocate who had fled from China and moved to the U.S.
In October 2022, the FBI conducted a judicially authorized search of the illegal police station. In connection with the search, FBI agents interviewed Lu and Chen and seized their phones. In reviewing the contents of these phones, FBI agents observed that WeChat messages between the defendants and their MPS handler had been deleted.
The FBI has created a website for victims to report efforts by foreign governments to stalk, intimidate, or assault people in the United States. If you believe that you are or have been a victim of transnational repression, please visit https://www.fbi.gov/investigate/counterintelligence/transnational-repression.
The government’s case is being handled by the Office’s National Security and Cybercrime Section. Assistant United States Attorneys Antoinette N. Rangel and Lindsey R. Oken are in charge of the prosecution, with assistance from Paralegal Specialists Magdalena St. Surin and Danielle Barber. Assistant United States Attorney Alexander A. Solomon played a critical role in the underlying investigation.
The Defendant:
LU JIANWANG
Age: 64
Bronx, New YorkE.D.N.Y. Docket No. 23-CR-316 (S-1) (NRM)
Bridgeport Man Sentenced to 37 Months in Prison for Role in Southwestern Connecticut Drug RingRead the Press Release
David X. Sullivan, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, today announced that GERALD COLEY, also known as “G Rock,” 56, of Bridgeport, was sentenced yesterday by U.S. District Judge Michael P. Shea in Hartford to 37 months of imprisonment and four years of supervised release for trafficking narcotics in southwestern Connecticut.
According to court documents and statements made in court, the Drug Enforcement Administration’s Bridgeport High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area (HIDTA) Task Force and Stamford Police Department identified Rodney Canada as the leader of a drug trafficking organization that was distributing large quantities of fentanyl, heroin, cocaine, and crack cocaine in Stamford and elsewhere in southwestern Connecticut. An investigation in 2024, which included court-authorized wiretaps and controlled purchases of narcotics, revealed that Canada, Coley, and others orchestrated the street level distribution of narcotics through other members of the conspiracy. Investigators intercepted more than 5000 text messages and calls in which Canada coordinated his drug trafficking activities.
Coley was intercepted numerous times over a wiretap discussing drug trafficking activity with Canada. He also managed cash for the drug trafficking organization and sometimes supplied Canada with drugs he acquired in New York City.
Coley, Canada, and other members of the conspiracy were arrested on May 14, 2024. On that date, investigators conducted court-authorized searches at locations in Stamford, Norwalk, Bridgeport, and Darien, and seized approximately three kilograms of cocaine, nearly 400 grams of raw fentanyl, more than 500 bags of fentanyl, five firearms, a bulletproof vest, and seven vehicles. A search of Coley’s Bridgeport residence revealed approximately 20 grams of crack cocaine, more than 700 grams of marijuana, and drug paraphernalia.
On December 17, 2025, Coley pleaded guilty to conspiracy to distribute and to possess with intent to distribute cocaine. He has been detained since his arrest.
Coley’s criminal history spans more than 30 years and this is his third federal conviction. In 2001, he was sentenced to 151 months in federal prison for trafficking crack cocaine, and in 2014, he was sentenced to 48 months for unlawfully possessing a firearm and violating the conditions of his federal supervised release.
Canada pleaded guilty and, on December 15, 2025, was sentenced to 110 months of imprisonment.
This investigation has been conducted by the Drug Enforcement Administration’s Bridgeport High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area (HIDTA) Task Force, the Stamford Police Department, the Bridgeport Police Department, and the U.S. Marshals Service, with the assistance of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Connecticut State Police, and the Norwalk, Danbury, and Darien Police Departments. The DEA HIDTA Task Force includes personnel from the DEA Bridgeport Resident Office, the Connecticut State Police, and the Norwalk, Stamford, Stratford, Milford, and Danbury Police Departments.
The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Patricia Stolfi Collins and Geoffrey M. Stone.
Border Security and Immigration Enforcement Prosecutions Rise in New Mexico During First Year of Current AdministrationRead the Press Release
ALBUQUERQUE – In the year since First Assistant U.S. Attorney Ryan Ellison assumed leadership of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of New Mexico in April 2025, the office has brought 9,081 criminal cases related to border security and immigration enforcement, including illegal reentry, alien smuggling, immigration fraud, false statements, firearms offenses, and drug trafficking investigations stemming from southern border enforcement efforts. This represents a significant increase from the 3,457 criminal cases prosecuted during the April 2024 through April 2025 period.
The office also managed a significant civil caseload during the same period, including habeas corpus matters tied to immigration detention and federal custody proceedings.
“These cases show how transnational criminal organizations exploit people for profit, import violence across our southern border, and poison our communities with drugs and weapons,” said First Assistant U.S. Attorney Ryan Ellison. “In New Mexico, we are focused on identifying the leaders, dismantling the networks they rely on, and using federal prosecutions to disrupt these operations at every level.”
The District of New Mexico’s border security and immigration enforcement efforts focused on dismantling criminal networks responsible for human smuggling, drug trafficking, firearms offenses, and other crimes that threaten public safety and national security. Prosecutors worked closely with federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies to investigate and prosecute organizations operating across the Southwest border and throughout the United States.
Many of these prosecutions were part of the Homeland Security Task Force (HSTF) initiative established by Executive Order 14159, Protecting the American People Against Invasion. The HSTF is a whole-of-government partnership dedicated to eliminating criminal cartels, foreign gangs, transnational criminal organizations, and human smuggling and trafficking rings operating in the United States and abroad. Through historic interagency collaboration, the HSTF directs the full might of United States law enforcement towards identifying, investigating, and prosecuting the full spectrum of crimes committed by these organizations, which have long fueled violence and instability within our borders. In performing this work, the HSTF places special emphasis on investigating and prosecuting those engaged in child trafficking or other crimes involving children. The HSTF further utilizes all available tools to prosecute and remove the most violent criminal aliens from the United States. HSTF Region II CORE 7 is comprised of agents and officers from Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), the Federal Bureau of Investigations (FBI), the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF), Internal Revenue Service (IRS), Customs and Border Protection – Office of Field Operations (OFO), U.S. Border Patrol (USBP) and Air and Marine (AMO), Office of Professional Responsibility (OPR), United States Department of the Interior – Bureau of Land Management (BLM), Joint Task Force North (JTF-N), United States Postal Inspection Service (USPIS), United States Marshal Service (USMS), Department of State, Bureau of Diplomatic Security (DSS), U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), Texas Department of Public Safety (TXDPS), El Paso Police Department (EPPD), New Mexico State Police (NMSP), West Texas / New Mexico High Intensity Drug Trafficking Areas (HIDTA), Albuquerque Police Department, New Mexico Sixth Judicial District, Las Cruces/Dona Ana County Metro Narcotics Agency, and the prosecution is being led by the Office of the United States Attorney for the Districts of Western Texas and New Mexico.
Boonville Man Charged with Receiving and Possessing Child PornographyRead the Press Release
JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. – Lance Aaron Larkin, 35, of Boonville, Mo., was charged by a federal grand jury with receipt and possession of Child Sexual Abuse Material (CSAM).
During a proactive investigation into individuals using peer-to-peer software to distribute and receive child pornography by the Missouri State Highway Patrol, a file was shared from Larkin’s IP address. Following a residential search warrant and a review of his electronic devices, law enforcement determined Larkin possessed thousands of child pornography images and videos.
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.
Under federal statutes, Lance Aaron Larkin is subject to a sentence of up to twenty 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 Ashley S. Turner. It was investigated by The Missouri State Highway Patrol.
Project Safe Childhood
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 . For more information about Internet safety education, please visit www.usdoj.gov/psc and click on the tab "resources."
Billings man pleads guilty to drug chargesRead the Press Release
BILLINGS - A Billings man who trafficked significant amounts of methamphetamine and cocaine admitted to charges today, Acting U.S. Attorney Tim Racicot said.
The defendant, Raymond Eugene Best, Jr., 44, pleaded guilty to one count of possession with intent to distribute controlled substances. Best faces a mandatory minimum of 15 years to life imprisonment, a $20,000,000 fine, and at least 10 years of supervised release.
U.S. District Judge Susan P. Watters presided and will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors. Sentencing was set for September 24, 2026. Best remained detained pending further proceedings.
The government alleged in court documents that beginning in approximately 2023, law enforcement began investigating a drug trafficking ring based out of Mexico that was sourcing illegal narcotics to Wyoming, South Dakota, California, Montana, including Billings, and elsewhere. The group, including Best, was distributing methamphetamine, cocaine, and fentanyl.
On June 12, 2023, the Billings Police Department received information from a criminal informant that Ray Best is the “main man” in Billings, bringing in 50-100 pounds of meth and tens of thousands of “blues.” Ray Best was described as a non-user, but a dealer who stores drugs at other people’s houses. An individual was contacted and provided additional insight about Best’s dealing in Billings.
On June 26, 2023, Billings Police Department determined an apartment belonging to a co-defendant was used for storing drugs for Best. A state search warrant was executed and officers located 7 grams of fentanyl pills and 16.7 grams of meth in a back bedroom.
On August 2, 2023, law enforcement officers served a search warrant on a co-conspirator’s hotel room in Billings. Approximately 2.77 pounds of methamphetamine were seized. Law enforcement determined the original amount was 8 pounds, but most had been distributed to other people. Law enforcement executed a search warrant at a different co-conspirator’s house and seized eight more ounces of meth. Best and a co-defendant, who were in Mexico at the time, coordinated the re-distribution of the original 8-pound quantity. Phone messages and other electronic communications showed Best’s continued involvement in the distribution of meth and cocaine in 2023. Messages were also being sent by a co-defendant who was with Best and using the same Facebook account, including: “Are you ready for another pound yet?” and “Cause you almost paid off.”
Best was previously convicted of possession with the intent to distribute methamphetamine in the United States District Court for the District of Montana in 2012, when he was sentenced to prison for over 13 years. Best was still on federal supervised release when he committed these new crimes.
This prosecution is part of the Homeland Security Task Force (HSTF) initiative established by Executive Order 14159, Protecting the American People Against Invasion. The HSTF is a whole-of-government partnership dedicated to eliminating criminal cartels, foreign gangs, transnational criminal organizations, and human smuggling and trafficking rings operating in the United States and abroad. Through historic interagency collaboration, the HSTF directs the full might of United States law enforcement towards identifying, investigating, and prosecuting the full spectrum of crimes committed by these organizations, which have long fueled violence and instability within our borders. In performing this work, the HSTF places special emphasis on investigating and prosecuting those engaged in child trafficking or other crimes involving children. The HSTF further utilizes all available tools to prosecute and remove the most violent criminal aliens from the United States. HSTF Montana comprises agents and officers from a number of federal agencies as well as drug task forces throughout the state, with the prosecution being led by the United States Attorney’s Office for the District of Montana.
The U.S. Attorney’s Office is prosecuting the case. The DEA, Eastern Montana High Intensity Drug Trafficking Areas Task Force, and Billings Police Department conducted the investigation as part of the HSTF.
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Berks County Man Sentenced to 32 Months in Prison for Unlawfully Possessing Firearms as a FelonRead the Press Release
PHILADELPHIA – United States Attorney David Metcalf announced that Jeffrey Hill, 27, of Sinking Spring, Pennsylvania, was sentenced today to 32 months’ imprisonment and three years of supervised release by United States District Judge John M. Gallagher for illegal gun possession.
The defendant was charged by information with possession of a firearm by a felon and pleaded guilty in January of this year, waiving prosecution by indictment.
As detailed in court filings and statements, Berks County Probation officers went to Hill’s residence in January of 2025 for a routine probation visit. When the defendant opened the door and saw the officers, he appeared nervous. Once inside the residence, one of the probation officers observed two metal pins, the type used to assemble a handgun, in a bag on a dresser.
After receiving supervisory approval, the probation officers conducted a search of the residence, recovering two 12-gauge shotguns, a privately manufactured AR-15-style rifle, and a privately manufactured 9mm handgun loaded with 15 rounds of hollow point ammunition.
Officers also discovered various types of ammunition; a ballistic vest; multiple loaded magazines; gun parts, including a trigger assembly, two handgun frames, metal threaded cylinders, a slide lock, and grip; and tools commonly used to manufacture homemade firearms.
Hill had previously been convicted of a crime punishable by imprisonment for a term exceeding one year and was not permitted to possess a firearm or ammunition.
This case was investigated by the Sinking Spring Police Department, Berks County Probation, and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Rebecca Kulik.
Belgrade man sentenced to over 18 years in prison on cocaine and gun chargesRead the Press Release
MISSOULA – A Belgrade man who was trafficking cocaine while possessing a firearm in Belgrade and Bozeman was sentenced today to 220 months of imprisonment, followed by five years of supervised release, Acting U.S. Attorney Tim Racicot said.
Leodis Robert Roach, 43, pleaded guilty in January 2026 to one count of possession with intent to distribute cocaine and one count of possession of a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime.
U.S. District Judge Dana L. Christenson presided.
The government alleged in court documents that on May 6, 2025, law enforcement officers used a confidential informant to conduct a controlled purchase of one ounce of cocaine from Leodis Roach and a co-defendant.
On May 22, 2025, the confidential informant conducted another controlled purchase of one ounce of cocaine from Roach and a co-defendant.
On June 4, 2025, law enforcement conducted a traffic stop in Bozeman. Roach was a passenger in the vehicle and was arrested on an outstanding warrant. Officers located approximately 25 grams of cocaine that was individually packaged in the vehicle and a Glock pistol under the passenger seat where Roach had been sitting. A search warrant was executed at the driver’s residence. Roach’s vehicle was in the garage and contained approximately 937 grams of cocaine, body armor, and a Diamondback firearm.
The U.S. Attorney’s Office prosecuted the case. The Missouri River Drug Task Force conducted the investigation.
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Attorney General Appoints United States Attorney Andrew S. Boutros to Attorney General’s Advisory CommitteeRead the Press Release
CHICAGO — Andrew S. Boutros, United States Attorney for the Northern District of Illinois, today announced his appointment to the Attorney General’s Advisory Committee (AGAC), a select and prestigious body of United States Attorneys chosen by Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche to advise Department of Justice leadership on national law enforcement priorities. U.S. Attorney Boutros’s appointment to the AGAC reflects both his leadership in the nation’s third largest federal district and the important role the Northern District of Illinois plays in leading from the front as well as confronting emerging threats to public safety and national security.
Created in 1973, the AGAC is comprised of an exclusive group of 18 United States Attorneys and is designed to ensure broad geographic, operational, and subject-matter representation. Members work through subcommittees and working groups on issues including violent crime, national security, fraud, narcoterrorism, and other critical priorities as set by the President of the United States. The Committee plays a central role in ensuring that the experience of federal prosecutors in the field informs national Department of Justice strategy.
U.S. Attorney Boutros and other members of the AGAC met with Acting Attorney General Blanche and other Department leadership last week and will hold the first substantive meeting next month.
U.S. Attorney Andrew S. Boutros, bottom right, joined other members of the AGAC at a meeting in Washington, D.C. on May 7, 2026.“I am honored to be appointed to the Attorney General’s Advisory Committee,” said U.S. Attorney Boutros. “I want to thank Acting Attorney General Blanche for his trust and confidence in me. I accept his appointment with sincere humility, fully mindful of the immense responsibility it carries, and the exceptional standards of excellence set by Department leadership and my colleagues on the Committee. As United States Attorney, I have been sharply focused on innovating, driving results, productivity, scalability, and maximizing impact, including reducing violence and disrupting fraud—all while staying true to the Department’s cherished and ancient motto: ‘Qui Pro Domina Justitia Sequitur,’ meaning, ‘Who prosecutes on behalf of justice.’” I will do my utmost to carry that mission forward while working closely with my colleagues on the AGAC to achieve the Department’s core priorities.”
U.S. Attorney Boutros took the Oath of Office as the United States Attorney for the Northern District of Illinois on April 7, 2025. He serves as the top federal law enforcement official in the Northern District of Illinois, which contains approximately nine million people in 18 counties. In his 13 months as U.S. Attorney, he has prioritized prosecutions of violent criminals, transnational cartels and terrorist groups, human traffickers, fraud actors, and numerous other criminal offenders.
As an Assistant U.S. Attorney from 2008 to 2015, U.S. Attorney Boutros investigated and successfully prosecuted hundreds of cases, many of which involved matters of national and international significance. From 2015 until his appointment as United States Attorney, U.S. Attorney Boutros worked in private law practice in Chicago, holding various leadership roles, including Co-Chair of White Collar. For 16 consecutive years, U.S. Attorney Boutros has taught an advanced criminal law course at the University of Chicago Law School. While practicing law full time, U.S. Attorney Boutros has also written and spoken extensively on criminal law and criminal law adjacent topics, including publishing two books, authoring nearly 160 articles and book chapters, and presenting at 100 speaking engagements.
U.S. Attorney Boutros earned his law degree from the University of Virginia School of Law, and a bachelor’s degree, In-Honors summa cum laude, from Virginia Tech. He also clerked on the United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit for the Honorable Eugene E. Siler, Jr.
The AGAC is comprised of 18 U.S. Attorneys and First Assistant U.S. Attorneys who lead their offices. U.S. Attorney Boutros will serve alongside the Committee’s Chairman, Jay Clayton (Southern District of New York) and Vice-Chairwoman, Leah Foley (District of Massachusetts), as well as U.S. Attorney Dan Bishop (Middle District of North Carolina), U.S. Attorney Scott Bradford (District of Oregon), U.S. Attorney Timothy Courchaine (District of Arizona), Acting U.S. Attorney Catherine Crosby (Northern District of Alabama), U.S. Attorney Michael Dunavant (Western District of Tennessee), First Assistant U.S. Attorney Ryan Ellison (District of New Mexico), First Assistant U.S. Attorney Bilal Essayli (Central District of California), U.S. Attorney Adam Gordon (Southern District of California), U.S. Attorney Jerome Gorgon (Eastern District of Michigan), Acting U.S. Attorney John Marck (Southern District of Texas), U.S. Attorney Peter McNeilly (District of Colorado), U.S. Attorney David Metcalf (Eastern District of Pennsylvania), U.S. Attorney Jeanine Pirro (District of Columbia), U.S. Attorney Jason Reding Quiñones (Southern District of Florida), and U.S. Attorney Lesley Woods (District of Nebraska).
Asian Boyz Gang Member Sentenced to 11 Years in Prison for Conspiring to Distribute MethamphetamineRead the Press Release
BOSTON – A member of the Asian Boyz gang was sentenced in federal court in Boston for conspiracy to distribute counterfeit pills made with methamphetamine that resembled the prescription medication Adderall.
Isiah Lyons, a/k/a “Tank,” a/k/a “Rozay,” 30, of Lowell, was sentenced by U.S. District Court Senior Judge F. Dennis Saylor, IV to 11 years in prison, to be followed by five years of supervised release. In January 2026, Lyons was convicted of conspiracy to distribute and to possess with intent to distribute 500 grams and more of methamphetamine. Lyons was indicted in January 2025 along with a co-conspirator and other gang associates.
In 2021, an investigation began into the Asian Boyz gang to disrupt the manufacturing and distribution of substantial quantities of methamphetamine pills impacting Lowell.
Lyons profited from the illegal sale of methamphetamine pills by brokering deals for bulk quantities of the pills, which he called “oranges” and “adds.” Between December 2022 and February 2023, Lyons joined a conspiracy to sell the pills in 1,000 pill units, which he called “g packs.” Lyons and his co-conspirators sold four “g packs” containing an estimated 4,000 pills and weighing 1.3 kilograms of methamphetamine. Unbeknownst to Lyons, one of the pill customers was an undercover agent.
To sell the methamphetamine pills, Lyons partnered with two Asian Boyz gang members who were part of the gang’s extensive drug network. They conspired in person and using encrypted messaging applications like Signal. In his message to one of his fellow co-conspirators Lyons told him the price of the pills was $1,250 for the “pacc” – spelled specifically with two “c’s” as a way of acknowledging their common Crips gang affiliation. Lyons sourced the pills from a co-conspirator he paid $1,000 for the “paccs,” booking $250 profit for each deal he brokered during the conspiracy.
United States Attorney Leah B. Foley; Ted E. Docks, Special Agent in Charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Boston Division; and Greg C. Hudon, Superintendent of the Lowell Police Department made the announcement today. Valuable assistance was provided by the Massachusetts State Police and the Billerica, Haverhill, Methuen, North Andover and Salem Police Departments. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Fred M. Wyshak, III and David Cutshall of the Criminal Division prosecuted case.This case is part of Operation Take Back America, a nationwide initiative that marshals the full resources of the Department of Justice to repel the invasion of illegal immigration, achieve the total elimination of cartels and transnational criminal organizations and protect our communities from the perpetrators of violent crime. Operation Take Back America streamlines efforts and resources from the Department’s Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces and Project Safe Neighborhood.
This case is part of the Homeland Security Task Force (HSTF) initiative established by Executive Order 14159, Protecting the American People Against Invasion. The HSTF is a whole-of-government partnership dedicated to eliminating criminal cartels, foreign gangs, transnational criminal organizations, and human smuggling and trafficking rings operating in the United States and abroad. Through historic interagency collaboration, the HSTF directs the full might of United States law enforcement towards identifying, investigating, and prosecuting the full spectrum of crimes committed by these organizations, which have long fueled violence and instability within our borders. In performing this work, the HSTF places special emphasis on investigating and prosecuting those engaged in child trafficking or other crimes involving children. The HSTF further utilizes all available tools to prosecute and remove the most violent criminal aliens from the United States. HSTF Boston is comprised of agents and officers from HSI, FBI, DEA, ATF, USMS, IRS-CI, USPIS, DOL-OIG and DSS, as well as several state and local law enforcement agencies, with the prosecution being led by the United States Attorney’s Office for the District of Massachusetts.
Arizona man sentenced for supplying drugs via the U.S. Postal ServiceRead the Press Release
A Chander, Arizona man was sentenced for conspiracy to distribute heroin and fentanyl. U.S. Attorney Darin Smith announced that Zakary Faccio, 35, will serve 67 months’ imprisonment, followed by four years of supervised release. The sentence was handed down by U.S. District Judge Scott W. Skavdahl on May 5. Faccio was remanded to the custody of the U.S. Marshals Office Service.
According to court documents, in July 2024, the Wyoming Division of Criminal Investigation (DCI), U.S. Postal Inspection Service (USPIS), and the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) launched an investigation into a drug trafficking organization in Worland. They identified Micah Maas as a major distributor through interviews and other investigative techniques. After Maas was arrested on January 15, 2025, investigators learned he had sent $2,000 to Zakary Faccio in Arizona to mail suspected drugs to him. Agents intercepted the USPS package bound for Maas’ address containing 98 grams of fentanyl and 23.4 grams of heroin. Surveillance footage from the Mesa, Arizona post office identified Faccio as the individual who shipped the package.
“This case sends a clear message: if you traffic fentanyl and heroin into Wyoming, you will be prosecuted and sent to prison,” said U.S. Attorney Darin Smith. “These deadly drugs are destroying lives and communities across America, and our office will continue working aggressively with our law enforcement partners to stop the flow of narcotics in Wyoming.”
"Narcotics are destroying lives and devastating communities across the region. Every gram, every pill, and every sale of these drugs has the potential to ruin lives,” said Inspector in Charge Bryan Musgrove, U.S. Postal Inspection Service, Denver Division. “Postal inspectors remain committed to working with our law enforcement partners to stop the flow of these deadly drugs through the mail and hold criminals who profit from poisoning our neighborhoods accountable."
Faccio was arrested on Sept. 24, 2025, in the District of Arizona. He was indicted on Nov. 19, 2025, and pleaded guilty on Feb. 10 in Casper. DCI, USPIS, and DEA investigated the crime. Assistant U.S. Attorney Paige Hammer prosecuted the case.
This case is part of Operation Take Back America, a nationwide initiative that marshals the full resources of the Department of Justice to repel the invasion of illegal immigration, achieve the total elimination of cartels and transnational criminal organizations, and protect our communities from the perpetrators of violent crime. Operation Take Back America streamlines efforts and resources from the Department’s Project Safe Neighborhoods.
Administrator of charity program for Virginia state employees sentenced for stealing over $1.5MRead the Press Release
RICHMOND, Va. – A Texas woman was sentenced today to four years in prison for stealing more than $1.5 million from the Commonwealth of Virginia Campaign (CVC), the officially sanctioned non-profit charity fundraising program for Virginia’s more than 120,000 state government employees. This case is part of the Trump Administration’s Task Force to Eliminate Fraud.
According to court documents, from 2017 through 2023, the Virginia Department of Human Resources Management employed Linda Natelle Brown, 43, of Houston, to administer the CVC. The CVC promised that Virginia state government employees could safely and easily donate to their preferred causes throughout the year via credit card payments, mailed checks, and by payroll remittances deducted directly from employee paychecks. Brown was supposed to steward these funds and make corresponding payments to charities designated by donors.
Between January 2019 and August 2023, Brown embezzled more than $1.5 million of the over $5.3 million donated by state government employees. Instead of paying the charities designated by donors, Brown stole this money for personal spending.
For example, Brown paid $10,400 in fraud proceeds for a plastic surgery procedure. Brown also used stolen charity funds to pay for a “fish pedicure” spa in Las Vegas. She fraudulently used charity funds for multiple flight tickets to destinations around the country, stays at luxury hotels, a luxury apartment in Houston, designer clothing and shoes, beauty and cosmetic products, and food and alcohol.
Brown also concealed her embezzlement from the CVC by attempting to replenish the funds she had stolen with a $494,469 U.S. Small Business Administration-backed business loan, which Brown obtained by making false statements to the lender.
The Court entered a money judgment forfeiture order of $1,581,161.
The IRS Criminal Investigation Washington D.C. Field Office, U.S. Postal Inspection Service Washington Division, and Office of the Inspector General of Virginia investigated this case.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Avi Panth prosecuted the case. Former Assistant U.S. Attorney Kashan K. Pathan assisted the prosecution.
On April 7, the Department of Justice announced the creation of the National Fraud Enforcement Division ('Fraud Division'). The Fraud Division is laser-focused on investigating and prosecuting those who commit fraud against the American people. The Department’s work to combat fraud supports President Trump’s Task Force to Eliminate Fraud, a whole-of-government effort chaired by Vice President J.D. Vance to eliminate fraud, waste, and abuse within Federal benefit programs.
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. 3:25-cr-141.