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27 July 2023
Leader of Multi-State Jewelry Theft Crew Sentenced to over 6 Years’ of Federal ImprisonmentRead the Press Release
PHILADELPHIA – United States Attorney Jacqueline C. Romero announced that Duanne Pierce, 60, of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania was sentenced to 77 months’ imprisonment, 3 years of supervised release, and $606,394.60 in restitution and other penalties by United States District Court Senior Judge Cynthia M. Rufe for conspiring to transport stolen property across state lines and interstate transportation of stolen property.
From May 2018 through February 2020, defendant Duanne Pierce led seven others in a conspiracy to commit 12 retail jewelry store thefts throughout the United States, transporting the stolen jewelry back to Philadelphia after the thefts, where the jewelry was generally resold to stores in the “Jewelers Row” section of the city. Pierce and his crew carried out these thefts all over the country, often committing multiple thefts from different jewelry stores in a single day. This sophisticated approach reduced the likelihood that the crew would be caught because of local law enforcement’s significant challenge in investigating these out-of-state perpetrators. Pierce participated in 11 thefts, and his role was to steal jewelry—including diamond rings and gold chains, often worth several thousand dollars each—from a display case or from the rear, employee-only area of a store, while his co-conspirators “distracted” sales associates. Pierce then resold the stolen jewelry to local jewelers in Philadelphia. The total retail value of the jewelry stolen by Pierce’s crew was approximately $612,670.59.
In March 2022, a federal grand jury returned a 10-count Indictment charging Duanne Pierce and codefendants Charles Tillery, Janel Pierce, Yolanda Fife, David Tillery, Telfa Wills, and Clifton Fleming with conspiracy to transport stolen property across state lines, in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 371 (Count 1), and interstate transportation of stolen property and aiding and abetting, in violation of 18 U.S.C. §§ 2314 and 2 (Counts 2 through 10). In March 2023, Pierce pled guilty to Counts 1 through 10 of the Indictment. Each of Pierce’s codefendants has also pled guilty.
"Thanks to the excellent work of the FBI and the many local police departments that assisted in this case," said U.S. Attorney Romero, "this prolific interstate robbery ring has been fully dismantled. Duanne Pierce’s sentence is the culmination of excellent cross-country collaboration among federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies."
“Duanne Pierce and his co-defendants were both prolific and strategic in their thefts, sometimes targeting multiple jewelry stores in the same day. Then they’d move on to a different city and do it again, hauling the stolen loot back to Philly to resell,” said Jacqueline Maguire, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI’s Philadelphia Division. “Through the investigative efforts of the FBI and numerous law enforcement partners across the country, this crew has been dismantled and is being held accountable for their crimes. For his leadership role in the conspiracy, Pierce will now spend years in federal prison.”
The case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Lancaster (PA) Police Department, Plantation (FL) Police Department, Greenville (SC) Police Department, Concord (NC) Police Department, Anderson (SC) Police Department, Jackson County (GA) Sheriff’s Office, Knoxville (TN) Police Department, Manchester (CT) Police Department, Howard County (MD) Police Department, Arlington County (VA) Police Department, Indianapolis (IN) Metropolitan Police Department, and Miami Township (OH) Police Department, and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Jessica Rice, Katherine Shulman, and Kevin Jayne.
Latin Kings Member Sentenced for Racketeering ConspiracyRead the Press Release
BOSTON – A former member of the New Bedford Chapter of the Massachusetts Almighty Latin King and Queen Nation (Latin Kings) was sentenced yesterday in federal court in Boston for racketeering.
Josue Carrasquillo, a/k/a “King Playboy,” 28, was sentenced by U.S. Senior District Court Judge Rya W. Zobel to time served (approximately five months in prison) and three years of supervised release. In November 2020, Carrasquillo pleaded guilty to conspiracy to conduct enterprise affairs through a pattern of racketeering activity, more commonly referred to as RICO conspiracy.
The Latin Kings are a violent criminal enterprise comprised of thousands of members across the United States. The Latin Kings adhere to a national manifesto, employ an internal judiciary and use a sophisticated system of communication to maintain the hierarchy of the organization. As alleged in court documents, the gang uses drug distribution to generate revenue, and engages in violence against witnesses and rival gangs to further its influence and to protect its turf. Carrasquillo participated in the violent acts of the gang and distributing controlled substances on behalf of the gang.
In December 2019, a federal grand jury returned an indictment alleging racketeering conspiracy, drug conspiracy and firearms charges against 62 leaders, members and associates of the Latin Kings. Carrasquillo is the 60th and final defendant to be sentenced in this case. The two remaining defendants charged in the indictment remain fugitives.
The United States Attorney’s Office for the District of Massachusetts; Christopher DiMenna, Acting Special Agent in Charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Boston Division; Carol Mici, Commissioner, Massachusetts Department of Correction; and New Bedford Police Chief Paul Oliveira made the announcement today. Valuable assistance was also provided by the Bristol and Suffolk County District Attorney’s Offices. Assistant U.S. Attorney Philip A. Mallard of the Organized Crime & Gang Unit prosecuted the case.
This effort is part of an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) operation. OCDETF identifies, disrupts, and dismantles the highest-level criminal organizations that threaten the United States using a prosecutor-led, intelligence-driven, multi-agency approach. Additional information about the OCDETF Program can be found at https://www.justice.gov/OCDETF.
The details contained in the charging documents are allegations. The two remaining defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
Kentucky Woman Sentenced for Mailing Threatening Communications to Neighbors Because of Their RaceRead the Press Release
Louisville, KY – A Kentucky woman was sentenced to nine years in prison, followed by three years of supervised release for mailing communications to her neighbors in 2020 threatening to injure them because of their race.
According to court documents, Suzanne Craft, 55, of Louisville, sent multiple threatening communications via the U.S. Postal Service to an interracial couple and their children, who lived in the same Lake Forest neighborhood as Craft. Many of these communications contained threats of violence and racial slurs.
Following a jury trial in March, Craft was convicted of five counts of mailing threatening communications. The jury further found that, for each of these five counts, Craft sent the threatening communications to her neighbors because of their actual or perceived race or color.
“This sentence sends a clear message regarding our commitment to ending hate-motivated violence and threats of violence,” said Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division. “There is no room in civilized society for violent threats based on race. We hope that this result brings some measure of peace to victims who had to suffer through the defendant’s terrifying threats of racial violence.”
“I commend the FBI, the U.S. Postal Inspection Service and the trial team for their outstanding work during the investigation and prosecution of this case,” said U.S. Attorney Michael Bennett for the Western District of Kentucky. “The citizens of the Western District who live in communities throughout our 53 counties have the right to live and raise their families free from threats of violence made on the basis of race. The nine-year sentence imposed by the court in this case sends a strong message that this type of activity is criminal, will not be tolerated and that this office will take action to protect our citizens from racial hatred.”
“Today’s sentencing is indicative of the egregious behavior Craft levied on her neighbors,” said Special Agent in Charge Jodi Cohen of the FBI Louisville Field Office. “Racially-charged threats will not be tolerated in our communities, and if discovered, will be fully investigated and the perpetrators will be held accountable.”
Assistant Attorney General Clarke, U.S. Attorney Bennett, Special Agent in Charge Cohen and U.S. Postal Inspector in Charge Lesley Allison of the Pittsburgh Division made the announcement.
The FBI Louisville Public Corruption Civil Rights Task Force and the U.S. Postal Inspection Service investigated the case.
Assistant U.S. Attorneys Christopher Tieke and Stephanie Zimdahl for the Western District of Kentucky prosecuted the case, with assistance from paralegal Carissa Moss.
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Kentucky Woman Sentenced for Mailing Threatening Communications to Neighbors Because of Their RaceRead the Press Release
A Kentucky woman was sentenced to nine years in prison, followed by three years of supervised release for mailing communications to her neighbors in 2020 threatening to injure them because of their race.
According to court documents, Suzanne Craft, 55, of Louisville, sent multiple threatening communications via the U.S. Postal Service to an interracial couple and their children, who lived in the same neighborhood as Craft. Many of these communications contained threats of violence and racial slurs.
Following the jury trial in March, Craft was convicted of five counts of mailing threatening communications. The jury further found that, for each of these five counts, Craft sent the threatening communications to her neighbors because of their actual or perceived race or color.
“This sentence sends a clear message regarding our commitment to ending hate-motivated violence and threats of violence,” said Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division. “There is no room in civilized society for violent threats based on race. We hope that this result brings some measure of peace to victims who had to suffer through the defendant’s terrifying threats of racial violence.”
“I commend the FBI, the U.S. Postal Inspection Service and the trial team for their outstanding work during the investigation and prosecution of this case,” said U.S. Attorney Michael Bennett for the Western District of Kentucky. “The citizens of the Western District who live in communities throughout our 53 counties have the right to live and raise their families free from threats of violence made on the basis of race. The nine-year sentence imposed by the court in this case sends a strong message that this type of activity is criminal, will not be tolerated and that this office will take action to protect our citizens from racial hatred.”
“Today’s sentencing is indicative of the egregious behavior Craft levied on her neighbors,” said Special Agent in Charge Jodi Cohen of the FBI Louisville Field Office. “Racially-charged threats will not be tolerated in our communities, and if discovered, will be fully investigated and the perpetrators will be held accountable.”
Assistant Attorney General Clarke, U.S. Attorney Bennett, Special Agent in Charge Cohen and U.S. Postal Inspector in Charge Lesley Allison of the Pittsburgh Division made the announcement.
The FBI Louisville Public Corruption Civil Rights Task Force and the U.S. Postal Inspection Service investigated the case.
Assistant U.S. Attorneys Christopher Tieke and Stephanie Zimdahl for the Western District of Kentucky prosecuted the case, with assistance from paralegal Carissa Moss.
Kenner Man Pleads Guilty to Conspiracy to Commit Wire Fraud and Money LaunderingRead the Press Release
NEW ORLEANS – DUANE DUFRENE, age 55, a resident of Kenner, Louisiana, pleaded guilty today to one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud and one count of conspiracy to commit money laundering before U.S. District Court Judge Jane Triche-Milazzo, announced U.S. Attorney Duane A. Evans of the Eastern District of Louisiana.
According to court documents, DUFRENE conspired with RYAN MULLEN, DILLON ARCENEAUX, LANCE VALLO, GRANT MENARD, and ZEB SARTIN to use several shell Louisiana corporations, that were devoid of assets, to defraud a Georgia based merchant cash company. MULLEN and DUFRENE helped establish ARCENEAUX, VALLO, MENARD, and SARTIN as the owners of the existing shell corporations. MULLEN and DUFRENE then created fake vendor accounts for the corporations, and MULLEN, along with another person, created falsified bank records for the companies. MULLEN then used an alias and represented himself to be a broker for the shell companies he helped create.
Through the aid of another broker, MULLEN supplied the victim merchant cash advance company with the fake vendor accounts and false bank records in order to obtain funding. The victim cash advance company approved the advances and began to electronically wire ARCENEAUX, VALLO, MENARD, and SARTIN millions of dollars in advances. ARCENEAUX, VALLO, MENARD, and SARTIN laundered a portion of the funds by paying MULLEN and DUFRENE a portion of the funds. ARCENEAUX, VALLO, MENARD, and SARTIN then closed their non-existent businesses before fully repaying the victim merchant cash advance company, resulting in overall losses to the victim of approximately $6.4 million.
DUFRENE is to be sentenced on November 29, 2023, and faces a maximum sentence of five years on the wire fraud conspiracy, and up to twenty years on the money laundering conspiracy. After imprisonment, the defendant faces up to three years of supervised release, and up to a $250,000 fine on the wire fraud count, and up to three years of supervised release, and up to a $500,000 fine on the money laundering count. Each count also requires DUFRENE to pay a mandatory special assessment fee of $100 per count.
U.S. Attorney Evans commended the special agents of the Federal Bureau of Investigation and IRS-Criminal Investigation for their handling of the matter. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Edward Rivera of the Financial Crimes Unit and Andre Lagarde of the Public Integrity Unit.
Kenner Man Indicted for Conspiracy to Distribute and Receipt of Child Sexual Abuse MaterialRead the Press Release
NEW ORLEANS, LOUISIANA – NOAH TORRES (“TORRES”), age 46, of Kenner, Louisiana was arrested and indicted on Friday, July 21, 2023, with one count of Conspiracy to Distribute Materials Involving the Sexual Abuse of Minors and one count of Receipt Materials Involving the Sexual Abuse of Minors, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Sections 2252(a)(2) and (b)(1), announced U.S. Attorney Duane A. Evans. If convicted, TORRES faces a mandatory minimum sentence of five (5) years and a maximum sentence of twenty (20) years imprisonment, and/or a fine of up to $250,000.00, or the greater of twice the gross gain to the defendant or twice the gross loss to any person of the offense under Title 18, United States Code, Section 3571 per count. In addition, TORRES faces a term of supervised release of no less than five (5) years and up to life after his release from prison as well as payment of a mandatory $100 special assessment fee per count.
According to the indictment filed in federal court, TORRES administered a chat group with approximately 195 users. TORRES’s chat group shared and distributed images and videos of child sexual abuse material. On Monday, July 24, 2023, TORRES was arrested at his Kenner residence by Special Agents with the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, Homeland Security Investigations.
U.S. Attorney Evans reiterated that the indictment is merely a charge and that the guilt of the defendant must be proven beyond a reasonable doubt.
This case 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 United States Attorney’s Offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS), Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state and local resources to better locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the Internet, as well as to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.projectsafechildhood.gov.
U.S. Attorney Evans praised the work of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, Homeland Security Investigations, including the Portland, Oregon and New Orleans, Louisiana offices; the Kenner Police Department; and the Louisiana Bureau of Investigation. The prosecution of this case is being handled by Assistant U.S. Attorney Brian M. Klebba, Project Safe Childhood Coordinator and Chief of Financial Crimes Unit.
Kanawha County Man Pleads Guilty to Federal Gun CrimeRead the Press Release
CHARLESTON, W.Va. – Randell Lee Proctor, 44, of Belle, pleaded guilty today to possession of a firearm by a person previously convicted of a misdemeanor crime of domestic violence.
According to court documents and statements made in court, on December 29, 2022, Proctor possessed a Hi-Point, model C9, 9mm semi-automatic pistol in the Rand area of Kanawha County.
Federal law prohibits a person with a prior conviction for a misdemeanor crime of domestic violence from possessing a firearm or ammunition. Proctor knew he was prohibited from possessing a firearm because of his prior convictions for domestic battery on September 15, 2016, November 26, 2013, January 24, 2005 and September 24, 2002, all in Kanawha County Magistrate Court.
Proctor is scheduled to be sentenced on December 7, 2023, and faces a maximum penalty of 15 years in prison, up to three years of supervised release, and a $250,000 fine.
United States Attorney Will Thompson made the announcement and commended the investigative work of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) and the Kanawha County Sheriff’s Office.
United States District Judge Irene C. Berger presided over the hearing. Assistant United States Attorney Troy D. Adams is prosecuting the case.
A copy of this press release is located on the website of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of West Virginia. Related court documents and information can be found on PACER by searching for Case No. 2:23-cr-74.
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Justice Department Commemorates the 33rd Anniversary of the Americans with Disabilities Act Highlighting Efforts to Address the Criminalization of People with DisabilitiesRead the Press Release
The Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division hosted a program yesterday to commemorate the 33rd anniversary of the passage of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and to highlight the need to address unnecessary interactions between people with disabilities and the criminal justice system. Passed into law in 1990 with broad bipartisan support, the ADA prohibits discrimination against people with disabilities in everyday activities, including in workplaces, businesses, and in state and local government services, including law enforcement and corrections.
The program, entitled “Addressing the Criminalization of People with Disabilities,” focused on the department’s efforts to combat disability discrimination that leads to needless criminal justice involvement, particularly with respect to people with mental health disabilities and substance use disorders. The program called attention to the need for more community-based services to address behavioral health needs, rather than deploying the criminal justice system.
Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke opened the program with remarks detailing the interactions of millions of people with disabilities with the criminal justice system and the Justice Department’s efforts to fight for greater access and greater equity for people with disabilities. The program also featured recorded remarks from Attorney General Merrick B. Garland who acknowledged the progress that has been made toward fulfilling the promise of equal justice and opportunity for people with disabiltities, but that much more work remains.
“The anniversary of the ADA gives us the opportunity to recognize and celebrate the enormous impact the law has had on the lives of people with disabilities – and on our entire country. It also gives us an important opportunity to recognize the many barriers that remain, and to recommit ourselves to breaking them down,” said Attorney General Merrick B. Garland. “We know that far too often, law enforcement officers are forced to respond to individuals experiencing challenges that do not have a law enforcement solution. This can contribute to significant harm to people experiencing mental health crises, as well as to needless incarceration or institutionalization of such people. At the same time, it puts a great strain on the law enforcement officers who are forced to fill in the gap where community services have failed. The Justice Department is working to address these challenges through our enforcement of the ADA.”
“We are committed to using our federal civil rights laws to address the unnecessary use of law enforcement and criminal justice responses to people with disabilities when our community service systems fail them,” said Assistant Attorney General Clarke of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division. “To fully realize the promise of the Americans with Disabilities Act, we must confront issues that lie at the intersection of disability rights, criminal justice and racial justice. Simply put, people with disabilities should receive the services they need rather than being treated as criminals.”
Equal Justice Initiative Executive Director Bryan Stevenson provided a keynote speech regarding the continued systemic work that must be done to address the criminalization of people with disabilities. He also answered questions posed by Assistant Attorney General Clarke regarding ways to continue to advance progress for people with disabilities.
“When you look at the landscape now where we have one of the largest prison populations in the world, there is no community that has been more severely impacted than people with disabilities,” said Mr. Stevenson. “Our jails and prisons are filled with people with behavioral health disabilities that we have not addressed and it is an urgent and necessary issue to take on. While we can accept and acknowledge that much has been gained, there is tremendous work that needs to happen with regard to this topic of criminalizing people with disabilities.”
Finally, the program included a panel discussion featuring Former Pennsylvania Secretary of Public Welfare Estelle Richman, NYC Justice Peer Initiative Executive Director Helen Skipper and Civil Rights Division attorneys. The panel addressed various reasons for reliance on the criminal justice system to respond to people with disabilities and explored potential solutions.
The Department is also actively enforcing the ADA in this context, and recently found violations of the ADA by police departments in Louisville and Minneapolis for relying on law enforcement as the primary and generally sole responders to behavioral health calls, even when safety does not require a law enforcement presence.
For more information about the ADA, please visit www.ada.gov or call the department’s toll-free ADA Information Line at 800-514-0301 (TDD 800-514-0383). For more information on the Civil Rights Division, please visit www.justice.gov/crt.
Justice Department Announces Pattern or Practice Investigation of the City of Memphis and the Memphis Police DepartmentRead the Press Release
The Justice Department announced today that it has opened a civil pattern or practice investigation into the City of Memphis and the Memphis Police Department (MPD). The investigation will seek to determine whether there are systemic violations of the Constitution or federal law by MPD. The investigation will focus on MPD’s use of force and its stops, searches and arrests, as well as whether it engages in discriminatory policing.
This civil investigation is separate and independent from the technical assistance being provided by the Justice Department’s Office of Community Oriented Policing Services (COPS Office). While the investigation is ongoing, the COPS Office will continue to provide technical assistance to MPD through the Collaborative Reform Initiative Technical Assistance Center (CRI-TAC), related to MPD’s use of force and de-escalation practices, as well as its use of specialized units. In addition, in the wake of Tyre Nichols’s death, the Associate Attorney General asked the COPS Office to develop a guide for police chiefs and mayors across the country to help them assess the appropriateness of the use of specialized units, like the former SCORPION unit in Memphis, as well as how to ensure necessary management, oversight, and accountability of such units. The COPS Office has undertaken extensive stakeholder engagement to inform the recommendations in that guide, which is forthcoming.
This civil investigation is also separate and independent from the federal criminal civil rights investigation of MPD officers related to the death of Tyre Nichols.
“The tragic death of Tyre Nichols created enormous pain in the Memphis community and across the country,” said Attorney General Merrick B. Garland. “The Justice Department is launching this investigation to examine serious allegations that the City of Memphis and the Memphis Police Department engage in a pattern or practice of unconstitutional conduct and discriminatory policing based on race, including a dangerously aggressive approach to traffic enforcement. We are committed to working cooperatively with local officials, police, and community members to conduct the thorough and comprehensive review that the residents of Memphis deserve.”
“I know this community is still hurting after the tragic death of Tyre Nichols,” said Associate Attorney General Vanita Gupta. “At the Justice Department, we are committed to using all our tools to help ensure that Memphis residents have a safe community and can trust in the actions of law enforcement. In addition to our pattern or practice investigation, we will continue to deliver technical assistance resources through CRI-TAC and our COPS Office, to help the city and MPD address issues related to use of force, de-escalation, and specialized units in the more immediate term.”
“Every person is entitled to constitutional and non-discriminatory policing in our country,” said Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division. “Based on an extensive review of publicly available information and information provided to us, there are grounds to open this investigation now. We have reviewed information that indicates that the Memphis Police Department may be using an approach to street enforcement that can result in violations of federal law, including racially discriminatory stops of Black people for minor violations. The Justice Department will conduct a thorough and objective investigation into allegations of unlawful discrimination and Fourth Amendment violations. Unlawful policing undermines community trust, which is essential to public safety.”
“The people of this great city deserve constitutional and lawful policing – and that begins with trust,” said U.S. Attorney Kevin Ritz for the Western District of Tennessee. “Community trust makes policing more effective and less dangerous for both officers and the people they protect. Pattern-or-practice investigations help build and maintain that trust by ensuring law enforcement agencies do their jobs lawfully. I welcome this opportunity to let the facts lead in what will be an ongoing and important discussion about civil rights in our city. I also want to assure the public that our team of federal prosecutors will continue to partner with federal, state, and local law enforcement to vigorously prosecute criminal activity and uphold the rule of law. Together we can build a stronger Memphis — a Memphis that protects the safety and civil rights of all.”
The investigation is being conducted pursuant to the Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act of 1994, which prohibits state and local governments from engaging in a pattern or practice of conduct by law enforcement officers that deprives people of rights protected by the Constitution or federal law. If the Justice Department has reasonable cause to believe that a state or local government has engaged in a prohibited pattern or practice, the Department is authorized to bring a lawsuit seeking court-ordered changes to remedy the violations. In this investigation, the Department will assess law enforcement practices under the Fourth and Fourteenth Amendments to the U.S. Constitution, as well as under the Safe Streets Act of 1968 and Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964
Prior to the announcement, Department officials informed Mayor Jim Strickland, MPD Chief Cerelyn Davis, and Interim Chief Legal Officer Michael Fletcher. They pledged to cooperate with the investigation. As part of this investigation, the Department will reach out to community members to learn about their experiences with MPD.
The case is being investigated by career attorneys and staff from the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Western District of Tennessee. They will be assisted by experienced law enforcement experts. Individuals with relevant information are encouraged to contact the Justice Department via email at [email protected] or by phone at 888-473-3730. Individuals can also report civil rights violations regarding this or other matters using the Civil Rights Division’s reporting portal, available at civilrights.justice.gov.
Today’s announcement marks the ninth pattern or practice investigation into law enforcement misconduct opened by the Justice Department during this Administration. The Department has ongoing investigations into the Phoenix Police Department; the Mount Vernon (NY) Police Department; the Louisiana State Police; the New York City Police Department’s Special Victims Division; the Worcester (MA) Police Department; and the Oklahoma City Police Department. The Department recently completed investigations in Louisville and Minneapolis, and secured agreements in principle with both jurisdictions to negotiate consent decrees to address the violations found.
Information specific to the Civil Rights Division’s Police Reform Work can be found here: www.justice.gov/crt/file/922421/download.
Jury Convicts St. Augustine Addiction Medicine Doctor on 19 Counts of Drug Trafficking and Obstruction of JusticeRead the Press Release
Jacksonville, Florida – United States Attorney Roger B. Handberg announces that a federal jury has found Scott Andrew Hollington (58, St. Augustine) guilty of 14 counts of unlawfully distributing and dispensing controlled substances not for a legitimate medical purpose in the usual course of professional practice, and 5 counts of obstructing justice. Hollington faces a maximum penalty of 20 years in federal prison for each of the drug trafficking offenses, and up to 10 years for the obstruction charges. His sentencing hearing has not yet been scheduled. Hollington was charged in a superseding indictment on March 23, 2023.
According to testimony and evidence presented at trial, the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) first learned of Hollington after receiving a tip from the St. Johns County Sheriff’s Office that Hollington was exchanging narcotic prescriptions for sexual favors. Following additional evidence of Hollington’s illegal prescribing practices, the DEA deployed five undercover agents to Hollington’s addiction clinic, from February 2022 to July 2022, with the purpose of obtaining prescriptions without a legitimate medical need. Through their investigation, the agents managed to secure a total of 17 prescriptions of schedule II, III, and IV controlled substances, including amphetamines (Adderall), benzodiazepines (Valium and Xanax), and buprenorphine (Suboxone), during the five visits.
Throughout the trial, the evidence showed that Hollington asked the agents about their drug preferences, offered prescriptions without proper medical justification, and admitted that he did not care about urine drug screening results. Physical examinations, vital checks, and proper documentation were omitted during most medical encounters with the undercover agents. Further evidence revealed that Hollington altered medical notes in each of the undercover agents’ medical files following his indictment, leading to the obstruction convictions.
Testimony during the trial included statements from three female victims who revealed that Hollington exchanged, coerced, or solicited sexual favors for prescriptions. One victim described him as a “monster” who took advantage of her vulnerability while seeking help for addiction. A fourth victim recounted Hollington asking if she needed a “sugar daddy” and engaging in conversation of a sexual nature instead of discussing her medical history and need for medication.
This case was jointly investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration, the St. Johns County Sheriff’s Office, the Putnam County Sheriff’s Office, the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office, the Ormond Beach Police Department, the Florida Department of Law Enforcement, and State Attorney’s Office, 7th Judicial Circuit. It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Kirwinn Mike and Ashley Washington. The forfeiture of assets is being handled by Assistant United States Attorney Mai Tran.
Jury Convicts Felon of Illegally Possessing a GunRead the Press Release
VALDOSTA, Ga. –A South Georgia resident with a criminal history was convicted by a federal jury of illegally possessing a firearm.
Shi-Young Lamar Sharper, 39, of Valdosta, was found guilty of one count of illegal possession of a firearm by a convicted felon at the conclusion of a one-day trial before U.S. District Judge Hugh Lawson on July 26. Sharper faces a maximum of ten years in prison to be followed by three years of supervised release and a $250,000 fine. Sentencing is scheduled for Nov. 15.
“In this case, the defendant dangerously attempted to avoid arrest and crashed his car into a citizen’s yard. Thankfully, no one was hurt, and he was captured safely,” said U.S. Attorney Peter D. Leary. “Working with law enforcement, our office will hold repeat offenders accountable at the federal level when they chose to illegally pick up a gun.”
“Repeat offenders in possession of a firearm pose one of the most serious threats to public safety in our communities,” said Rich Bilson, Senior Supervisory Resident Agent of FBI Atlanta's Valdosta office. “Sharper's criminal history demonstrates his disregard for the law, and now he will be held accountable at the federal level without the opportunity for parole.”
According to court documents and evidence presented at trial, a Lowndes County Sheriff’s Office deputy attempted to a traffic stop on the vehicle Sharper was driving in Feb. 2021. Instead of pulling over, Sharper drove through the front yard of a Valdosta residence, struck some bushes and then ran away from the scene. Law enforcement quickly found him with debris from the bushes on his head and shoulders. Officers found a .38 revolver in his car. Sharper has prior felony convictions. It is illegal for a convicted felon to possess a firearm.
This case is being prosecuted as part of the joint federal, state, and local Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN) Program, the centerpiece of the Department of Justice’s violent crime reduction efforts. PSN is an evidence-based program proven to be effective at reducing violent crime. Through PSN, a broad spectrum of stakeholders work together to identify the most pressing violent crime problems in the community and develop comprehensive solutions to address them. As part of this strategy, PSN focuses enforcement efforts on the most violent offenders and partners with locally based prevention and reentry programs for lasting reductions in crime.
The case was investigated by the Lowndes County Sheriff’s Office and FBI.
Assistant U.S. Attorneys Monica Daniels and Sonja Profit prosecuted the case for the Government, with support from Assistant U.S. Attorney Hannah Couch and Criminal Chief Leah McEwen.
Joplin Woman Sentenced for Failing to Pay Employment TaxesRead the Press Release
KANSAS CITY, Mo. – A Joplin, Mo., woman was sentenced in federal court yesterday for failing to pay over employment taxes.
Karen Lauridsen, 61, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge M. Douglas Harpool to 14 months in federal prison and ordered to pay $242,251 in restitution to the IRS for delinquent employment taxes.
On Nov. 8, 2022, Lauridsen pleaded guilty to failure to pay over employment taxes. In or about 2003, Lauridsen and another individual purchased Company A, with Lauridsen serving as the President of Company A. In her role as president, Lauridsen was solely responsible for Company A’s finances, including, payroll, tax preparations, tax filings, and paying employment taxes to the Internal Revenue Service.
Beginning in the fourth quarter of 2011, Company A became delinquent on both the trust fund and employer portions of its employment taxes. The Internal Revenue Service began collection efforts by at least September 2017, including an in-person meeting between Lauridsen and a Revenue Officer on September 13, 2017. During that meeting, Lauridsen admitted to the officer that she was responsible for paying Company A’s employment taxes. However, she did not pay the balances due. As a result, in January 2018, the IRS began levying Company A’s known bank accounts, as well as Company A’s customer payments, with limited success.
Internal Revenue Service, Criminal Investigation Special Agents interviewed Lauridsen on November 28, 2018. During the interview, Lauridsen admitted to the agents, as she had in her earlier interview, that she was responsible for Company A’s finances, financial decisions, setting employee pay rates, filing the company’s tax returns, and paying the company’s taxes. Further investigation revealed that during the time period that Lauridsen ceased paying Company A’s employment taxes, Lauridsen frequently gambled at casinos in Kansas, Mississippi, Missouri, Nevada, and Oklahoma. Lauridsen’s gambling persisted despite the IRS’s collection efforts and its criminal investigation.
As a result of her conduct, Company A incurred an employment tax liability with the Internal Revenue Service of $242,251, which Lauridsen was ordered to pay as a part of her sentence.
This case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Shannon Kempf. It was investigated by the IRS-CI.
Joint Statement from Canada, Mexico, and the United States Following the Second Trilateral Fentanyl Committee MeetingRead the Press Release
On July 25, 2023 Mexico’s Secretary of Security Rosa Icela Rodriguez hosted U.S. Homeland Security Advisor Dr. Elizabeth Sherwood-Randall and Canada’s National Security and Intelligence Advisor Jody Thomas (virtually) in the second meeting of the Trilateral Fentanyl Committee to propel and expand actions on our shared commitment to combat the trafficking of synthetic drugs.
President Joe Biden, President Andrés Manuel López Obrador, and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau established this trilateral Committee, comprising high-level representatives from the three countries, during the North American Leaders’ Summit on January 9-10, 2023, to guide priority actions to address the illicit fentanyl threat facing North America.
The three co-chairs reaffirmed commitments to jointly confront the deadly scourge of synthetic drugs, and discussed the steps we are taking to fulfill them, including by: 1) intensifying and expanding prosecution of drug traffickers and dismantling criminal networks; 2) targeting the supply of precursor chemicals used to make illicit fentanyl and inviting action by private chemical and shipping companies to prevent diversion; 3) preventing the trafficking of drugs across our borders; and 4) promoting public health services to reduce harm and demand, educate individuals on the risks of substance use, and provide treatment to those seeking it.
The three delegations committed to create an expert working group to identify challenges related to our respective legislative and regulatory frameworks associated with precursor chemicals, and related equipment. The three countries also committed to establishing an agile mechanism to promptly share emerging illegal drugs and drug trafficking trends.
The three countries committed to continue working together to expand international support to address the threat of synthetic drugs, building on the very strong collaboration of Canada, Mexico, and the United States, and working through the new Global Coalition to Address Synthetic Drug Threats. To that end, the three countries committed to present progress on their joint efforts within the Trilateral Fentanyl Committee to Coalition partners at the next meeting of the Global Coalition to Address Synthetic Drug Threats on the margins of the United Nations General Assembly.
Representing Mexico were the Secretary of Security and Citizen Protection, Rosa Icela Rodríguez; the Secretary of Foreign Affairs, Alicia Bárcena Ibarra; the Secretary of the Interior, Luisa María Alcalde Luján; the Secretary of National Defense, Gen. Luis Cresencio Sandoval González; the Secretary of the Navy, Adm. José Rafael Ojeda Durán; Secretary of Health, Dr. Jorge Alcocer Varela; the General Attorney of the Republic, Alejandro Gertz Manero; Chief Officer for North America, Roberto Velasco Álvarez; Ambassador of Mexico to the United States, Esteban Moctezuma Barragán; Ambassador of Mexico to Canada, Carlos Joaquín González (virtual); Deputy Commissioner of the National Migration Institute, Alejandro Tagle Marroquin; the General Secretary of the National Intelligence Center, Saúl Parra Ibarra; the fiscal Attorney General, Arturo Medina Padilla; the head of the Financial Intelligence Unit, Pablo Gómez Álvarez; and the spokesperson for the Mexican Government, Jesús Ramírez Cuevas.
The U.S. delegation was led by the White House Homeland Security Advisor, Dr. Elizabeth Sherwood-Randall; and included the U.S. Ambassador to Mexico, Ken Salazar; the Deputy Secretary of State for Management and Resources, Richard Verma; the Deputy Attorney General, Lisa O. Monaco; the Acting Deputy Secretary of Homeland Security, Kristie Canegallo; the Senior Advisor to the Director of National Drug Control Policy, Kemp Chester; the Department of Justice Senior Counsel Joshua Handell; and U.S. Deputy Chief of Mission in Mexico, Mark C. Johnson.
Canada was represented by the National Security and Intelligence Advisor to the Prime Minister, Jody Thomas (virtually); the Associate Deputy Minister of Public Safety Canada, Tricia Geddes; the Senior Assistant Deputy Minister responsible for Crime Prevention at Public Safety Canada, Talal Dakalbab; the Chargé d’Affaires and Deputy Chief of Mission of Canada in Mexico, Shauna Hemingway; the Executive Director of the Opioid Response Team at Health Canada, Jennifer Novak; the Senior Policy Advisor to the National Security and Intelligence Advisor to the Prime Minister, Shannon Partridge; the Counsellor for Intergovernmental Affairs at the Canadian Embassy in Mexico, Lucie Verreault; and the Public Safety Canada Counsellor at the Canadian Embassy in Washington D.C., Michael Holmes.
Iowa Man Sentenced to 9 Years in Prison for Distribution of Methamphetamine.Read the Press Release
Acting United States Attorney Susan Lehr announced that Lukas Allen Vogt, 29, of Guttenberg, Iowa, was sentenced today in federal court in Omaha, Nebraska, for Possession with Intent to Distribute Methamphetamine. United States District Court Judge Brian C. Buescher sentenced Vogt to 9 years’ imprisonment. He was also ordered to serve a three-year term of supervised release as there is no parole in the federal system.
On August 26, 2021, an Omaha Police Officer conducted a traffic stop on a vehicle that failed to maintain its lane at mile marker 441 eastbound on Interstate 80. The driver of the vehicle was identified as Vogt and a passenger was identified as co-defendant Cody Lee Fischer. A Police Service Dog was deployed during the stop and alerted to the odor of narcotics coming from within the vehicle. A subsequent search revealed a bag of methamphetamine in the glove box. Two loaded semi-automatic handguns were found in a black duffle bag on the back seat of the vehicle. A search of the trunk revealed approximately five pounds of methamphetamine in multiple sandwich bags.
After both men were arrested, Fischer admitted traveling from Denver, Colorado, where he purchased the methamphetamine and intended to sell it in Luxemburg, Iowa. Fischer admitted the guns were his and that Vogt was being paid to drive. Fischer was sentenced to 188 months’ imprisonment on July 6, 2022.
This case was the result of an investigation by the Omaha Police Department and the Drug Enforcement Administration.
Holyoke Man Sentenced for False Statements Regarding Straw Firearms PurchasesRead the Press Release
BOSTON – A Holyoke man was sentenced yesterday in federal court in Springfield in connection with straw purchases of firearms.
Tyler A. Augusto, 23, was sentenced by U.S. District Court Judge Mark G. Mastroianni to two years of probation, with the first four months of the sentence to be served in home confinement. In February 2023, Augusto pleaded guilty to one count of false statements to acquire firearms from a licensed dealer; one count of false statements with respect to information required to be kept in the records of a licensed firearms dealer; and one count of false statements.
Between October 2020 and February 2022, Augusto conducted numerous purchases of firearms from three different federally firearms licensees on behalf of his father, who was not licensed to possess firearms. In February 2022, Augusto falsely told law enforcement that he had not purchased any firearms for his father and that his father had not asked Augusto to purchase any firearms.
As part of his plea agreement, Augusto will forfeit a Sig Sauer Model P365 9mm caliber semi-automatic pistol; a Colt Model SP1 .223 caliber semi-automatic rifle; a Taurus Model CT9-G2 9mm caliber semi-automatic rifle; a Glock model 17 frame; an IMI Uzi model A 9mm semi-automatic rifle; an FN model FS2000 5.56x45mm caliber semi-automatic rifle; a FN model SCAR 16S 5.56x45mm caliber semi-automatic rifle; a Sig Sauer model SIG 556 SCM 5.56x45mm caliber semi-automatic rifle; and a Glock model 21 .45 caliber ACP semi-automatic pistol.
Acting United States Attorney Joshua S. Levy and James M. Ferguson, Special Agent in Charge of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives, Boston Field Division made the announcement today. Valuable assistance was provided by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Holyoke Police Department. Assistant U.S. Attorney Steven H. Breslow of the Springfield Branch Office prosecuted the case.
Holyoke Man Pleads Guilty to Drug and Firearm OffensesRead the Press Release
BOSTON – A Holyoke man pleaded guilty yesterday in federal court in Springfield in connection with drug and firearm offenses.
Jonathan Mercedes, 31, pleaded guilty to one count of possession with intent to distribute 40 grams of more of fentanyl; one count of possession with intent to distribute cocaine; and one count of possession of firearms in furtherance of drug trafficking felonies. U.S. District Court Judge Mark G. Mastroianni scheduled for Nov. 16, 2023. Mercedes was indicted by a federal grand jury in May 2022.
On April 7, 2022, Mercedes possessed with intent to distribute 60 grams of fentanyl laced heroin and 59 grams of cocaine. Mercedes also possessed a Ruger .22 caliber semi-automatic handgun loaded with nine rounds of .22 caliber ammunition and a Smith and Wesson 9mm semi-automatic handgun loaded with 11 rounds of 9mm ammunition.
The charge of possession with intent to distribute 40 grams or more of fentanyl provides for a sentence of up to 40 years in prison, five years of supervised release and a fine of $2 million. The charge of possession with intent to distribute cocaine provides for a sentence of up to 20 years in prison, three years of supervised release and a fine of $1 million. The charge of possession of firearms in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime provides for a sentence of up to life in prison, three years of supervised release and a fine of $250,000. Sentences are imposed by a federal district court judge based upon the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and statutes which govern the determination of a sentence in a criminal case.
Acting United States Attorney Joshua S. Levy; Brian D. Boyle, Special Agent in Charge of the Drug Enforcement Administration in New England; and Holyoke Police Chief David Pratt made the announcement today. Assistant United States Attorney Todd E. Newhouse of the Springfield Branch Office is prosecuting the case.
Heron man sentenced to three years in prison for kidnapping son, fleeing to Costa RicaRead the Press Release
MISSOULA — A Heron man convicted at trial of kidnapping his son in violation of a parenting plan and taking him to Costa Rica was sentenced today to three years in prison, to be followed by one year of supervised release, U.S. Attorney Jesse Laslovich said.
At a two-day trial in March, a jury found Jacob Israel Strong, aka Jacob Israel Guill, 37, guilty of international parental kidnapping.
U.S. District Judge Dana L. Christensen presided. The court also ordered $6,948 restitution.
The government alleged in court documents and at trial that in January 2020, Strong and his ex-wife entered into a parenting plan for their then two-year-old son as part of a divorce proceeding. Prior to a court date in August 2021, Strong failed to return their son to his mother as scheduled. The mother was unable to locate Strong and contacted the Sanders County Sheriff’s Office. Law enforcement also was unable to contact Strong. The Sanders County Attorney’s Office subsequently charged Strong with felony parental interference and a state arrest warrant was issued for Strong.
In September 2021, the FBI opened an investigation to assist Sanders County in the search for Strong and his son. In January 2022, the FBI discovered Strong and the child were living in Costa Rica and learned that Strong and his son left the United States in approximately October 2021, near Midland, Texas. Strong paid a man to transport them to Costa Rica, and Strong and the child lived with the man for about six weeks. In May 2022, the FBI received specific information about Strong’s whereabouts, and Costa Rica officials arrested and deported him back to the United States. The child’s mother traveled to Costa Rica to take custody of her son and returned with him to the United States.
Assistant U.S. Attorneys Timothy J. Racicot and Brian C. Lowney prosecuted the case. The FBI conducted the investigation.
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Grand jury indicts Central Ohio man for threatening to blow up reproductive health clinicRead the Press Release
COLUMBUS, Ohio -- A federal grand jury has indicted a Reynoldsburg man for threatening a reproductive health services facility.
Court documents allege that Mohamed Farah Waes, 33, made telephone threats to a clinic operated by Planned Parenthood of Greater Ohio. He was indicted on July 11 and arrested today.
According to the indictment, on July 5, 2022, Waes allegedly called the clinic and threatened to burn down the facility and everyone inside it.
The indictment charges Waes with violating the Freedom of Access to Clinic Entrances (FACE) Act, which makes it a federal crime to threaten the use of force to intimidate anyone receiving or providing reproductive health services. He is also charged with making threatening statements through interstate communications, a crime punishable by up to five years in prison, and threatening to unlawfully damage and destroy a building by means of fire and explosive, which is a federal crime punishable by up to 10 years in prison.
“Threatening the life of anyone who seeks any type of health service is a heinous act that is unacceptable in a civilized society,” said U.S. Attorney Kenneth Parker. “People must handle their disagreements with services provided by clinics in a more civil way than using the threat of force or any kind of intimidation.”
Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division, U.S. Attorney Kenneth L. Parker for the Southern District of Ohio, and FBI Special Agent in Charge J. William Rivers for the Cincinnati Field Office announced the charges. Assistant U.S. Attorney Jennifer Rausch for the Southern District of Ohio and Trial Attorney Daniel Grunert of the Civil Rights Division’s Criminal Section are prosecuting the case.
An indictment merely contains allegations, and defendants are presumed innocent unless proven guilty in a court of law.
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Goffstown Man Sentenced to 55 Months in Prison for Drug TraffickingRead the Press Release
CONCORD – A Goffstown man was sentenced in federal court for drug trafficking in New Hampshire, U.S. Attorney Jane E. Young announces.
Zachary Janas, 40, was sentenced by U.S. District Court Judge Joesph N. Laplante to 55 months in prison and three years of supervised release. On April 17, 2023, Janas plead guilty to distribution of and unlawful possession with the intent to distribute fentanyl.
“Individuals trafficking in fentanyl, whether acting alone or as a participant in an organized drug trafficking organization, will be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law,” said U.S. Attorney Young. “Drug traffickers, like the defendant, import and distribute fentanyl in New Hampshire at an alarming rate. As evident by the work done in this case, our law enforcement partners will deploy the necessary assets to investigate and bring to justice those who sell drugs knowing full well the potentially deadly consequences of their actions.”
“Zachary Janas deserves the prison sentence he received today for distributing a significant amount of fentanyl and possessing multiple firearms in his home in Goffstown,” said Christopher DiMenna, Acting Special Agent in Charge of the FBI Boston Division. “Fentanyl is an insidious drug that has destroyed countless lives in New Hampshire, and the FBI’s Major Offender Task Force will continue to work with our law enforcement partners to remove from our streets the dangerous criminals who peddle this poison."
On September 21, 2021, Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) agents arranged the purchase of approximately one-half kilogram of fentanyl from Janas at his Goffstown residence. On September 24, 2021, FBI agents executed a search warrant at Janas’ residence and seized an additional one-half kilogram of fentanyl packaged for distribution, approximately $7,000 cash, multiple firearms, and ammunition.
The FBI’s Major Offender Task Force, New Hampshire State Police’s Narcotics Investigations Unit and the Goffstown Police Department conducted the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney Jennifer C. Davis is prosecuting the case.
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Gloucester County Man Admits Conspiring to Commit Bank Fraud and Credit Card FraudRead the Press Release
CAMDEN, N.J. – A Gloucester County, New Jersey, man today admitted participating in schemes to negotiate fraudulent checks with forged signatures and to use credit cards without authorization, U.S. Attorney Philip R. Sellinger announced.
Misty Sarfo-Adu, 28, of Sewell, pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Robert B. Kugler in Camden federal court to an information charging him with one count of bank fraud conspiracy and one count of access device fraud conspiracy.
According to documents filed in this case and statements made in court:
Sarfo-Adu conspired with Eugene Koranteng, Emmanuel Yirenkyi, and others to commit bank fraud by obtaining blank checks containing the names and account information of unsuspecting customers of a credit card company. They made the checks payable to members of the conspiracy, forged the customers’ signatures on the checks, and negotiated the checks at financial institutions. In a separate scheme, Sarfo-Adu and Yirenkyi also conspired to use credit cards without the account holders’ knowledge or authorization. Sarfo-Adu admitted that the fraud schemes caused a loss to the credit card company of more than $150,000.
The count of conspiracy to commit bank fraud carries a maximum penalty of 30 years in prison and a fine of up to $1 million. The count of conspiracy to commit access device fraud carries a maximum penalty of five years in prison and a fine of up to $250,000. Sentencing is scheduled for Nov. 28, 2023.
Koranteng and Yirenkyi remain charged in criminal complaints. The charges and allegations contained in the complaints against Koranteng and Yirenkyi are merely accusations, and they are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
U.S. Attorney Sellinger credited special agents of Homeland Security Investigations Newark, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Ricky J. Patel, with the investigation leading to today’s guilty plea. U.S. Attorney Sellinger also thanked the Moorestown Police Department for its assistance in the investigation.
The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorney Jeffrey Bender of the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Camden.
sarfoadu.information.pdfGlendive woman sentenced to more than three years in prison for stealing more than $119,000 from elderly man whose finances she managedRead the Press Release
MISSOULA — A Glendive woman convicted of stealing more than $119,000 from an elderly man whose finances she managed was sentenced today to three years and four months in prison, to be followed by three years of supervised release, U.S. Attorney Jesse Laslovich said.
Gina Larae Mann, aka Gina Larae Neva, 54, pleaded guilty in October 2022 to wire fraud, aggravated identity theft and money laundering.
U.S. District Judge Dana L. Christensen. The court also ordered $119,269 restitution.
“Mann preyed upon a recently widowed victim instead of helping him. Even worse, she helped herself by spending his money for her own benefit. Mann’s conduct destroyed the financial security, good credit, and peace of mind of an elderly man who trusted her. Our office will continue to hold accountable those who exploit the most vulnerable among us and I applaud Assistant U.S. Attorney Karla E. Painter and the IRS Criminal Investigation for investigating and prosecuting this case,” U.S. Attorney Laslovich said.
“Ms. Mann abused the trust of a vulnerable man for her financial gain. Now she will pay for her crimes by serving a federal prison sentence where she will not be able to take advantage of anyone else,” said Andy Tsui, Special Agent in Charge, IRS Criminal Investigation Denver Field Office. “As a community, it is our responsibility to care for our elders. As a law enforcement community, it is our duty to hold individuals accountable who abuse their position of trust and steal from the people that are under their care.”
The government alleged in court documents that Mann offered to help the victim, a recently widowed elderly man who was familiar with Mann and trusted her with his taxes and bookkeeping. After gaining control of the victim’s bank account, Mann stole more than $119,000 through various methods, including taking money directly from the victim and opening several lines of credit in his name without his knowledge.
The scheme caused the victim financial ruin and destroyed his credit. In a statement provided to the court, the victim said of Mann’s conduct, “She ruined my life and I will live with it for the rest of my life, trying to fix the mess she has created.”
Mann’s scheme began in early 2018 and continued until late 2019 when the victim discovered the fraud after receiving overdraft notices from a credit union. When interviewed, Mann told federal agents that the victim wanted to be a partner in her business and claimed she used ATM cash advances from a credit card to pay for her business location, car payments and insurance. Neither statement was true. The victim was not aware of and did not authorize any of Mann’s withdrawals or credit card transactions. The government further alleged that Mann transferred funds directly to her business and her own account, sent thousands of dollars to her husband and withdrew more than $1,000 at a casino and liquor store in Billings.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Karla E. Painter prosecuted the case. The IRS Criminal Investigation conducted the investigation.
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General Contractor Agrees to Plead Guilty to Tax EvasionRead the Press Release
BOSTON – The former owner of a general contracting business based in South Boston and Quincy has been charged and has agreed to plead guilty to concealing business income from the Internal Revenue Service (IRS).
John Michael Sacco, 52, formerly of Quincy, has agreed to plead guilty to one count of tax evasion. A plea hearing has not yet been scheduled by the Court.
According to the charging documents, Sacco managed construction projects under the name JMS Contracting. It is alleged that, from 2014 through 2021, Sacco received over $9 million from JMS’s customers. Rather than depositing JMS’s gross receipts into business bank accounts, Sacco allegedly cashed most checks from customers, used proceeds to purchase supplies and pay subcontractors in cash, and retained remaining cash to pay personal expenses. Sacco allegedly failed to issue required tax forms to its subcontractors and failed to file required forms with the IRS with respect to amounts that JMS paid to its subcontractors. By not reporting JMS’s actual receipts on tax returns that he filed for certain years and by filing no tax returns in other years, Sacco underreported his personal income tax obligations, causing a loss to the IRS of over $3 million.
The charge of tax evasion provides for a sentence of up to five years in prison, three years of supervised release and a fine of up to $250,000 or twice the gross gain or loss, whichever is greater. Sentences are imposed by a federal district court judge based upon the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and statutes which govern the determination of a sentence in a criminal case.
Acting United States Attorney Joshua S. Levy and Harry Chavis, Jr., Special Agent in Charge of the Internal Revenue Service’s Criminal Investigation in Boston, made the announcement. Assistant U.S. Attorney David M. Holcomb of the Securities, Financial & Cyber Fraud Unit is prosecuting the case.
The details contained in the charging documents are allegations. The defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
Former USPS Employee Sentenced for Theft of MailRead the Press Release
NEW ORLEANS, LOUISIANA –LEON TINSON, age 59, of New Orleans, Louisiana was sentenced on July 19, 2023, by U.S. District Judge Sarah S. Vance to two years of probation and a $100 mandatory special assessment fee for theft of mail, announced U.S. Attorney Duane A. Evans.
This case was investigated by the United States Postal Inspection Service, Office of the Inspector General. Assistant United States Attorney David Berman of the Violent Crimes Unit handled the prosecution.
Former Part-Time Worker with Children’s Movement of Florida Indicted on Federal Child Exploitation ChargesRead the Press Release
MIAMI – A Miami federal grand jury has charged Rafael Antonio Saldana, 37, of Miami-Dade County, with coercion and enticement of a minor, production of child pornography and attempted coercion and enticement of a minor.
According to the indictment and underlying criminal complaint, law enforcement’s review of a 15-year-old boy’s phone revealed multiple sexually explicit images of the minor victim solicited by Saldana. In the days leading up to July 13, Saldana sent messages to the minor victim’s phone coordinating a time and location for the two to meet. It is alleged that Saldana planned over text to pick up the minor victim at a McDonald’s in Miami, then drive him to Saldana’s home to engage in sexual activity with Saldana and a third, unidentified individual. On July 13, Saldana arrived across the street from the McDonald’s in Miami to meet the minor victim. Law enforcement ultimately placed Saldana under arrest outside of his home.
Prior to his arrest, Saldana worked part-time at the Children’s Movement of Florida, an organization that advocates for early childhood learning opportunities and access to children’s health care.
If convicted, Saldana faces a mandatory minimum of 15 years in prison and up to 30 years in prison on the production of child pornography charge. He faces a mandatory minimum sentence of 10 years in prison and up to a lifetime in prison on the coercion and enticement of a minor and attempted coercion and enticement of a minor charges. If convicted of any of the charges, Saldana faces up to a lifetime of supervised release and will be required to register as a sex offender.
U.S. Attorney Markenzy Lapointe for the Southern District of Florida, Special Agent in Charge Anthony Salisbury of Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), Miami, and Interim Director Stephanie V. Daniels of the Miami-Dade Police Department (MDPD), announced the charges.
HSI Miami and MDPD investigated the case. Assistant U.S. Attorney Audrey Pence Tomanelli is prosecuting the case.
This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood (PSC), a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by United States Attorneys’ Offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, 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 the Project Safe Childhood initiative and for information regarding Internet safety, please visit www.justice.gov/psc.
An indictment contains mere allegations, and all defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty in a court of law.
Related court documents and information may be found on the website of the District Court for the Southern District of Florida at www.flsd.uscourts.gov or at http://pacer.flsd.uscourts.gov under case number 23-mj-03384.
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Former Missouri State Highway Patrol Inspector Sentenced to Prison for BriberyRead the Press Release
ST. LOUIS – U.S. District Judge Matthew T. Schelp on Thursday sentenced a former supervisory motor vehicle inspector with the Missouri State Highway Patrol to 15 months in prison for taking thousands of dollars in cash bribes.
Judge Schelp also ordered Larry S. Conrad, 67, to perform 100 hours of community service and pay a $20,000 fine, part of which represented the bribe money that he’d already spent.
At his guilty plea in April, Conrad admitted accepting a total of about $14,020 in individual bribes of $40 to $160 to falsify forms and approve inspections of vehicles that had been damaged and had salvage titles or were listed as “abandoned,” even if he never saw the vehicle.
Conrad “bypassed the entire safety system that was put in place by the state of Missouri and the Missouri State Highway Patrol to ensure that vehicles were safe to operate on our roads,” Assistant U.S. Attorney Hal Goldsmith said during Thursday’s hearing, “potentially placing unwitting drivers and other motorists in harm’s way.”
In a sentencing memorandum, Goldsmith wrote that Conrad accepted hundreds of bribes over at least six months before being caught.
After receiving a tip about Conrad’s conduct, investigators recorded Conrad taking cash bribes that had been placed in the driver’s side door pocket, the memo says. When he was approached by law enforcement on Sept. 29, 2022, Conrad lied and denied accepting any cash payments that day. After being told that there was audio and video evidence of the bribes, Conrad admitted accepting a small amount of cash, and took it out of his pocket. Pressed further, Conrad admitted accepting additional bribes that day, and took cash out of his pants pockets five different times, eventually admitting that he had taken $610 that day, the memo says. After falsely claiming that he kept money from other bribes in a safe, Conrad made a full confession and allowed the FBI to retrieve $6,565 in envelopes that he’d stashed underneath the rear seat of his personal truck.
Conrad issued passing motor vehicle inspections and certified motor vehicles which he had not even physically inspected, including at least one that was so “substantially damaged as not being in working and driving condition,” Goldsmith wrote. His actions “allowed for the sale of vehicles, some of which had latent and undisclosed damage, to unsuspecting individuals who unwittingly trusted that defendant and the Highway Patrol had conducted proper inspections,” Goldsmith wrote.
Conrad’s primary duty was to perform motor vehicle inspections at the Missouri State Highway Patrol’s Troop C facility in south St. Louis County. There is no fee for the inspections. If the vehicle passes, an inspector signs and certifies forms required for motor vehicle owners to apply for original Missouri Certificates of Title.
Conrad pleaded guilty to one felony charge of using a facility in interstate commerce, a cellular telephone, to facilitate his bribery scheme.
The case was investigated by the FBI, with the cooperation of the Missouri State Highway Patrol. Assistant U.S. Attorney Hal Goldsmith prosecuted the case.
Former Mississippi Department of Corrections Officer Pleads Guilty to Using Excessive Force Against an InmateRead the Press Release
A former corrections officer with the Mississippi Department of Corrections pleaded guilty today before U.S. District Judge Tom Lee for using excessive force against an inmate, involving the use of a dangerous weapon and resulting in bodily injury.
According to court documents and information presented in court, on July 11, 2019, Jessica Hill, a corrections officer at the Central Mississippi Correctional Facility, willfully deprived inmate L.C. of the Eighth Amendment right to be free from cruel and unusual punishment when the defendant, aiding and abetting others, struck L.C. with a cannister and repeatedly punched L.C. in the head even though L.C. was not resisting. Hill continued to strike L.C., who was lying on the ground in the fetal position, until fellow prison staff intervened to stop Hill’s assault.
“Prison officials who engage in such abuses of power endanger inmates and fellow staff members and will be held accountable for their actions,” said Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division. “Using violent physical force as punishment will not be tolerated. The Justice Department will continue to vindicate the Eighth Amendment right of prisoners to be free from cruel and unusual punishment at the hands of prison officials.”
“This defendant has now confessed her abusive conduct.” said U.S. Attorney Darren J. LaMarca for the Southern District of Mississippi. “She and all others entrusted with the protection of society must conduct themselves with self-discipline and under the law. Clearly, she violated her oath, and now will be held accountable.”
“Our citizens serving time for crimes committed against the public deserve the safety and protection from harm by those officials who are charged with their care,” said Acting Special Agent in Charge Maher Dimachkie of the FBI Jackson Field Office. “Ms. Hill’s blatant disregard for the rights afforded under the Eighth Amendment is a disservice to those in the penal system, the corrections officers who take pride in their profession. The FBI remains committed to protecting all citizens we serve.
Hill faces a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison. Her sentencing is scheduled for Oct. 25.
The FBI Jackson Field Office is investigating the case.
Trial Attorney Eric Peffley of the Civil Rights Division’s Criminal Section and Assistant U.S. Attorney Glenda Haynes for the Southern District of Mississippi are prosecuting the case.
Former Mississippi Department of Corrections Officer Pleads Guilty to Using Excessive Force Against an InmateRead the Press Release
A former corrections officer with the Mississippi Department of Corrections pleaded guilty today before U.S. District Judge Tom Lee for using excessive force against an inmate, involving the use of a dangerous weapon and resulting in bodily injury.
According to court documents and information presented in court, on July 11, 2019, Jessica Hill, a corrections officer at the Central Mississippi Correctional Facility, willfully deprived inmate L.C. of the Eighth Amendment right to be free from cruel and unusual punishment when the defendant, aiding and abetting others, struck L.C. with a cannister and repeatedly punched L.C. in the head even though L.C. was not resisting. Hill continued to strike L.C., who was lying on the ground in the fetal position, until fellow prison staff intervened to stop Hill’s assault.
“Prison officials who engage in such abuses of power endanger inmates and fellow staff members and will be held accountable for their actions,” said Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division. “Using violent physical force as punishment will not be tolerated. The Justice Department will continue to vindicate the Eighth Amendment right of prisoners to be free from cruel and unusual punishment at the hands of prison officials.”
“This defendant has now confessed her abusive conduct.” said U.S. Attorney Darren J. LaMarca for the Southern District of Mississippi. “She and all others entrusted with the protection of society must conduct themselves with self-discipline and under the law. Clearly, she violated her oath, and now will be held accountable.”
“Our citizens serving time for crimes committed against the public deserve the safety and protection from harm by those officials who are charged with their care,” said Acting Special Agent in Charge Maher Dimachkie of the FBI Jackson Field Office. “Ms. Hill’s blatant disregard for the rights afforded under the Eighth Amendment is a disservice to those in the penal system, the corrections officers who take pride in their profession. The FBI remains committed to protecting all citizens we serve.
Hill faces a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison. Her sentencing is scheduled for Oct. 25.
The FBI Jackson Field Office is investigating the case.
Trial Attorney Eric Peffley of the Civil Rights Division’s Criminal Section and Assistant U.S. Attorney Glenda Haynes for the Southern District of Mississippi are prosecuting the case.
Former Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office Correctional Officer Pleads Guilty to COVID Relief FraudRead the Press Release
Jacksonville, Florida –United States Attorney Roger B. Handberg announces that Deconna Burke (34, Jacksonville) has pleaded guilty to wire fraud involving COVID Relief Fraud through the Paycheck Protection Program. Burke faces a maximum penalty of 20 years in federal prison and payment of restitution to the United States government. No sentencing date has been set.
According to court documents, in April 2021, Burke submitted a Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loan application to a lender authorized by the Small Business Administration (SBA) to lend funds for approved PPP loan applications. The PPP loan application falsely claimed that Burke operated his own babysitting business with a gross income of $98,000. Throughout the loan application, Burke made multiple false statements regarding his purported payroll and operating expenses. In support of his PPP loan application, Burke submitted a false IRS Form 1040 “Profit or Loss From Business” that contained false statements about operating expenses, gross income, and wage expenditures for his purported business. In reliance on the false statements in his PPP loan application and supporting documentation, Burke received a PPP loan in the amount of $20,415. After receiving the PPP loan proceeds into his bank account, Burke began making withdrawals and spending it on personal expenses, including paying off a loan for a motorcycle. In November 2021, Burke filed a PPP Loan Forgiveness Application, falsely stating that he spent the $20,415 on payroll. In reliance on his false statements the SBA forgave the entire loan amount.
This case was investigated by the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office and the United States Secret Service – Jacksonville Field Office. It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Kevin C. Frein. The asset forfeiture is being handled by Assistant United States Attorney Mai Tran.
In May 2021, the Attorney General established the COVID-19 Fraud Enforcement Task Force to marshal the resources of the Department of Justice in partnership with agencies across government to enhance efforts to combat and prevent pandemic-related fraud. The Task Force bolsters efforts to investigate and prosecute the most culpable domestic and international criminal actors and assists agencies tasked with administering relief programs to prevent fraud by augmenting and incorporating existing coordination mechanisms, identifying resources and techniques to uncover fraudulent actors and their schemes, and sharing and harnessing information and insights gained from prior enforcement efforts. For more information on the department’s response to the pandemic, please visit www.justice.gov/coronavirus.
Anyone with information about allegations of attempted fraud involving COVID-19 can report it by calling the Department of Justice’s National Center for Disaster Fraud (NCDF) Hotline at 866‑720‑5721 or via the NCDF Web Complaint Form at www.justice.gov/disaster-fraud/ncdf-disaster-complaint-form.
Florida Woman Sentenced to 51 Months in Prison for Defrauding Holocaust Survivor of $2.8 Million in Connection with Romance ScamRead the Press Release
Damian Williams, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, announced today that PEACHES STERGO was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Edgardo Ramos to 51 months in prison in connection with her years-long scheme to defraud an 87-year-old Holocaust survivor of his life savings.
U.S. Attorney Damian Williams said: “Peaches Stergo callously defrauded an 87-year-old Holocaust survivor who was simply looking for companionship. She used the millions of dollars in fraud proceeds to live a life of luxury at the victim’s expense. But she did not get away with it. As today’s sentence demonstrates, perpetrators of romance scams will be held to account for their crimes.”
According to the Indictment and other filings and statements made in court:
From at least in or about May 2017, up to and including at least October 2021, STERGO engaged in a scheme to defraud an 87-year-old Holocaust survivor (the “Victim”) of over $2.8 million, which was his life savings.
STERGO met the Victim on a dating website approximately seven years ago. In or about early 2017, STERGO asked the Victim to borrow money to pay her lawyer, who she claimed was refusing to release funds from an injury settlement. After the Victim gave her the money, STERGO said the settlement funds had been deposited into her TD Bank account. In reality, bank records show STERGO never received any money from an injury settlement.
Over the next four and a half years, STERGO continued her lies. She repeatedly demanded that the Victim deposit money into her bank accounts. She claimed that if he did not, her accounts would be frozen, and he would never be paid back. In total, the Victim wrote 62 checks — totaling over $2.8 million — that were deposited into one of two of STERGO’s bank accounts.
In furtherance of the fraud, STERGO created a fake email account, intended to appear as if it belonged to a TD Bank employee. She also created fake letters from a TD Bank employee and fake invoices.
STERGO called defrauding the Victim her “business.” Once, STERGO told her real significant other that the Victim had said he “loved” her. STERGO thought that her successful manipulation of the Victim’s emotions was humorous, following up her message with “lol.” She also joked in a text message that the Victim was “broke” — that “[h]e don’t have anything else to pawn.” But when the scam was over — when the Victim was no longer sending STERGO money — she was upset, not because she felt bad for the Victim or had a sense of remorse, but because she was unwilling to earn money though legitimate employment; she preferred to be a fraudster. As she said in a text message, “I am just aggravated hurt frustrated that I haven’t made money . . . I don’t want to work . . . it’s too hard.”
While the Victim lost his life savings and was forced to give up his apartment, STERGO lived a life of luxury with the millions she received from the fraud: she bought a home in a gated community, a condominium, a boat, and numerous cars, including a Corvette and a Suburban. During the course of the fraud, STERGO also took expensive trips, staying at places like the Ritz Carlton, and spent many tens of thousands of dollars on expensive meals, gold coins and bars, jewelry, Rolex watches, and designer clothing from stores like Tiffany, Ralph Lauren, Neiman Marcus, Louis Vuitton, and Hermes.
In imposing today’s sentence, Judge Ramos noted that STERGO’s conduct was “unspeakably cruel” and motivated by “greed.”
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In addition to her prison term, STERGO, 36, of Champions Gate, Florida, was sentenced to three years of supervised release and ordered to pay restitution in the amount of $2,830,775 and forfeit the same amount, including the home she purchased in a gated community and over 100 luxury items she purchased with fraud proceeds, including Rolex watches, designer purses and clothing, and large amounts of gold and jewelry.
Mr. Williams praised the outstanding investigative work of the Federal Bureau of Investigation.
This case is being handled by the Office’s General Crimes Unit. Assistant U.S. Attorney Adam Sowlati is in charge of the prosecution.
Florida Man Found Guilty of Federal Hate Crimes for Racially Motivated Attack Against Six Black Men Near 1923 Rosewood Massacre SiteRead the Press Release
After two hours of deliberation, a jury in Gainesville, Florida, convicted David Emanuel, 62, on all counts for committing hate crimes for his racially motivated attack on a group of Black men who were surveying land along a public road in Rosewood, Florida.
On March 15, Emanuel was charged with willfully intimidated of the victims, F.D.D., and attempted to injure and intimidate F.D.D. through the use Emanuel’s vehicle, because of F.D.D.’s race and color and because F.D.D. was using a public facility. Emanuel was also charged for willfully intimidating and attempting to intimidate five additional victims, through the use of Emanuel’s vehicle because of the victims’ race and color and because the victims were using a public facility. According to the indictment, all six victims were Black males who were surveying land owned by one of the victims at the time of the offenses.
Evidence at trial proved that on Sept. 6, 2022, Emanuel found the victims surveying land adjacent to a public roadway near the location of the 1923 Rosewood Massacre. When the defendant came upon the victims, who were on the public roadway, he shouted racial slurs and expletives at them, including “[racial slur] get out of these woods” before driving a pickup truck directly at the group, nearly striking one of them. At trial, one witness testified that Emanuel admitted that he “came at those [expletives],” and that he “would have [expletive]d up all those Black [expletive]. Video evidence showed that after he was arrested, Emanuel complained that he was “getting treated like this [expletive] over a [expletive] [racial slur].” One witness testified that the defendant came “within inches” of striking one of the victims and that one victim, “nearly lost his life that day.” No victims suffered physical injury as a result of the defendant’s racially motivated attack.
“This defendant is being held accountable for intimidating a group of men and weaponizing his vehicle to attack them,” said Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division. “As we marked 100 years since the horrific 1923 Rosewood Massacre, this verdict should send a strong message that violent, racially motivated conduct will not be tolerated in our society. The Justice Department is committed to aggressively enforcing our federal civil rights laws.”
“Despicable, hate-fueled crimes such as these have no place in our state or country,” said U.S. Attorney Jason R. Coody for the Northern District of Florida. “The violence directed toward these victims, based solely on their race, is abhorrent and will not be tolerated. With the dedicated assistance of our law enforcement partners, we will continue to aggressively investigate and prosecute civil rights violations to ensure justice for those victimized by hate.”
“Horrific acts of hate-motivated violence like this are devastating to families and communities,” said Assistant Director Luis Quesada of the FBI’s Criminal Investigative Division. “The FBI is fiercely committed to investigating civil rights violations and holding perpetrators accountable.”
The FBI Jacksonville Field Office and Gainesville Resident Agency investigated the case, with assistance from the Levy County Sheriff’s Office.
Assistant U.S. Attorneys Kaitlin Weiss and Frank Williams for the Northern District of Florida and Trial Attorney Laura-Kate Bernstein of the Civil Rights Division’s Criminal Section are prosecuting the case.
Federal jury convicts Anaconda man of attempted coercion, possession of child pornographyRead the Press Release
MISSOULA — A federal jury on July 26 convicted an Anaconda man who was arrested in an undercover investigation of attempting to coerce and entice a minor into engaging in sexual intercourse and of possessing child pornography, U.S. Attorney Jesse Laslovich said.
After a three-day trial that began on July 24, the jury found Christopher Todd Boudreau, 42, guilty of attempted coercion and enticement and possession of child pornography. Boudreau faces a mandatory minimum of 10 years to life in prison, a $250,000 fine and five years to life of supervised release.
U.S. District Judge Donald W. Molloy presided. The court will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors. The court set sentencing for Nov. 29. Boudreau was detained pending further proceedings.
“Our office will not relent in our pursuit of those adults, like Boudreau, who seek to have sex with minors and possess thousands of images of child pornography. It is the kind of conduct that has no place in our society, especially because it harms and sexually exploits children, which is why we will do everything we can to protect children from those who attempt to abuse them. I am grateful to Assistant U.S. Attorneys Zeno B. Baucus and Brian C. Lowney for prosecuting this case and the FBI’s Child Exploitation and Human Trafficking Task Force and Missoula County Sheriff’s Office for conducting the investigation,” U.S. Attorney Laslovich said.
In court documents and at trial, the government alleged that in July 2022, law enforcement, working in an undercover capacity on the internet, received a “friend request” from Boudreau. The undercover provided a phone number, and Boudreau initiated a text conversation. The undercover identified herself as a juvenile girl in the initial messages. Communications progressed, and Boudreau arranged to meet the undercover in Missoula. Boudreau repeatedly indicated his interest to engage in intimacy and stated that intimacy meant “sex.” Law enforcement arrested Boudreau on July 28, 2022, after he arrived at a location to meet the undercover. Law enforcement served a search warrant on Boudreau’s residence and found electronic media that contained thousands of images and videos of child pornography. In a search of Boudreau’s vehicle, law enforcement found condoms, candy and his phone.
Assistant U.S. Attorneys Zeno B. Baucus and Brian C. Lowney are prosecuting the case. The FBI’s Child Exploitation and Human Trafficking Task Force and Missoula County Sheriff’s Office conducted the investigation.
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. 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.
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Farley Man Sentenced for Sexually Assaulting Minor Victim to Produce, Distribute Child PornographyRead the Press Release
KANSAS CITY, Mo. – A Farley, Mo., man was sentenced in federal court today for sexually assaulting a minor child victim to produce child pornography and distribute it to others through the Kik application.
Andrew J. McCardie, 36, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Brian C. Wimes to 40 years in federal prison without parole. McCardie 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.
On Feb. 23, 2023, McCardie pleaded guilty to two counts of producing child pornography and one count of distributing child pornography.
McCardie communicated with individuals through the Kik application beginning in January 2022, using a screen name to indicate he was willing and able to produce child pornography and distribute to other persons. McCardie produced 19 images and videos of child pornography involving a minor child victim on Feb. 11 and 12, 2022. Most of these were created live, meaning he was recording himself actively sexually abusing the child victim while communicating with other persons over Kik, and sending those images and videos to them during the abuse.
On March 5, 2022, McCardie created another live video during his sexual abuse of the child victim. McCardie didn’t know he was communicating with an undercover law enforcement officer through Kik. McCardie told the undercover officer he had been “doing these requests on Kik for a couple years now” and discussed how to sexually abuse a child. During this conversation, McCardie sent the undercover officer a screenshot of a chat he was having with the Kik user he produced the video for, in order to prove he had created the video live.
On March 6, 2022, law enforcement officers executed a search warrant at McCardie’s residence. The entry team attempted to take control of McCardie near the entrance of the residence but he resisted, initially holding a firearm as officers entered. McCardie was brought out into the yard, where he continued to resist before being handcuffed and placed under arrest. McCardie attempted to hide his iPhone in the bedroom closet, but officers found the phone and seized it in order to conduct a forensic investigation.
McCardie’s Kik account included 218 images and videos of child pornography. McCardie sent 58 separate videos and images of child pornography to other Kik users, and had received more than 200 images and videos of child pornography from other Kik users between Jan. 2 and March 7, 2022.
This case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Kenneth W. Borgnino. It was investigated by the FBI.
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."
District Man Sentenced to 10 Years for Child Sexual AbuseRead the Press Release
Defendant Sexually Abused a Minor Child Over a Six-Month Period
WASHINGTON –Mikeale Frazier, 24, of the District of Columbia, was sentenced, on July 25, 2023, to 10 years in prison for first degree child sexual abuse, announced U.S. Attorney Matthew M. Graves, Acting Special Agent in Charge Sarah Linden, of the FBI Washington Field Office’s Criminal and Cyber Division, and Acting Chief Pamela Smith, of the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD).
Frazier pleaded guilty on October 25, 2022, in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia. In addition to the prison term, U.S. District Court Judge Amy Berman Jackson ordered 10 years of supervised release.
According to the government’s evidence, Frazier sexually abused a fourteen-year-old minor child for approximately six months. When a relative of the minor victim told Frazier to stay away from the victim due to her age, Frazier continued to sexually abuse the minor victim. Frazier also recorded a video of his sexual abuse of the minor victim.
Frazier was arrested on June 21, 2021, and has been in custody since.
This case was investigated by the Metropolitan Police Department’s Youth Division with assistance from the FBI Washington Field Office’s Child Exploitation and Human Trafficking Task Force. The task force is composed of FBI agents, along with other federal agents and detectives from northern Virginia and the District of Columbia. The task force is charged with investigating and bringing federal charges against individuals engaged in the exploitation of children and those engaged in human trafficking.
This case was brought as part of the Department of Justice's Project Safe Childhood initiative. In February 2006, the Attorney General created Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative designed to protect children from online exploitation and abuse. Led by the U.S. Attorney's Offices, 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 identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.projectsafechildhood.gov.
In announcing the plea, U.S. Attorney Graves, Acting Special Agent in Linden, and Acting Chief Smith commended the work of those who investigated the case from FBI Child Exploitation and Human Trafficking Task Force as well as the Metropolitan Police Department’s Youth Division. They also expressed appreciation for the efforts of those who handled the case for the U.S. Attorney’s Office, including Paralegal Specialist Alexis Spencer-Anderson, Victim/Witness Advocate Yvonne Bryant, and Assistant U.S. Attorney Janani Iyengar.
Defendants in Tyngsborough Daycare Investigation IndictedRead the Press Release
BOSTON – Two New Hampshire women have been indicted by a federal grand jury in Boston in connection with the sexual exploitation of children at a daycare in Tyngsborough, Mass.
Lindsay Groves, 38, of Hudson, N.H. and Stacie Marie Laughton, 39, of Nashua, N.H., were indicted on three counts each of sexual exploitation of children. Groves is also charged with one count of distribution of child pornography.
Laughton will appear in federal court in Boston tomorrow, July 28, 2023 at 10:15 a.m. Groves will appear at a later date. The defendants were previously charged by criminal complaint with sexual exploitation of children and distribution of child pornography on June 22, 2023 and July 18, 2023. Both defendants remain in custody.
“Ensuring the safety of our children is one of the highest priorities for this office. The conduct alleged today is horrific and inexplicable. This case is a reminder of how critical it is that we continue to focus on people who prey on our most vulnerable population, children. The U.S. Attorney’s Office will never let up in our efforts to investigate and prosecute child exploitation. Perpetrators will be rooted out and aggressively pursued by this office,” said Acting United States Attorney Joshua S. Levy.
“These allegations are every parent’s worst nightmare. The individuals in today’s indictments are alleged to have collaborated to take advantage of trusted access to children to create exploitative material,” said Michael J. Krol, Special Agent in Charge of Homeland Security Investigations in New England. “Homeland Security Investigations and our partners will never cease in our pursuit of those who prey upon children.”
According to the charging documents, Groves worked at Creative Minds located in Tyngsborough, Mass. It is alleged that, between May 2022 and June 2023, Groves took nude images of children at the day care and sent the photos to Laughton. Specifically, Groves allegedly used natural bathroom breaks for the children (routine diaper/pull-up changes prior to “naptime”) to take multiple photos of the prepubescent children in a private bathroom and then send the photos to the individual via text message.
According to the charging documents, a preliminary forensic review of Groves’ cellphone allegedly revealed over 10,000 text messages between Laughton and Groves that included discussion about, and transfer of, explicit photographs that Groves had taken of children while employed at Creative Minds daycare – including at least four sexually explicit images of three three-year-old children who were students at the daycare, as well as explicit descriptions of sex with each other and others, including children. The investigation remains ongoing.
Members of the public who have questions, concerns or information regarding this case should call 617-748-3274. Case information, including links to charging documents and victim resources, can be found here: https://www.justice.gov/usao-ma/victim-and-witness-assistance-program/united-states-v-lindsay-groves
The charge of sexual exploitation of children provides for a sentence of at least 15 years and up to 30 years in prison, and distribution of child pornography provides for a sentence of at least five year and up to 20 years in prison. Both offenses provide for at least five years and up to a lifetime of supervised release and a fine of up to $250,000. Sentences are imposed by a federal district court judge based upon the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and statutes which govern the determination of a sentence in a criminal case.
Acting U.S. Attorney Levy; HSI Acting SAC Krol; and Nashua (N.H.) Police Chief Kevin Rourke made the announcement today. Valuable assistance was provided by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of New Hampshire; Middlesex County District Attorney’s Office; and the Hudson, N.H. Police Department. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Anne Paruti and Jessica L. Soto of the Major Crimes Unit 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 the U.S. Attorneys’ Offices and the DOJ’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who exploit children, as well as identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit https://www.justice.gov/psc.
The details contained in the charging documents are allegations. The defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
The referenced media source is missing and needs to be re-embedded.Defendants Convicted and Sentenced to Federal Prison in Long-Term Methamphetamine Drug Trafficking Investigation in Washington CountyRead the Press Release
PENSACOLA, FLORIDA – A federal judge sentenced the fourth defendant in a large-scale methamphetamine trafficking organization operating primarily in Washington County. The convictions and sentences were announced by Jason R. Coody United States Attorney for the Northern District of Florida.
The defendants and their sentences were:
• Ashley Zurica, 43, of Caryville, Florida, 220 months in prison
• Ashley Brown, 41, of Caryville, Florida, 180 months in prison
• Donald Skipper, 55, of Chipley, Florida, 180 months in prison
• William Carter, 52, of Wausau, Florida, 168 months in prison“Methamphetamine distribution is a scourge on large and small communities of our district,” stated U.S. Attorney Coody. “With our dedicated law enforcement partners, we are committed to identifying and aggressively prosecuting those who threaten our citizens’ health and safety by distributing such addictive, controlled substances. These sentences demonstrate that resolve.”
All will be on supervised release when they are eventually released from custody.
In 2019, the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) Panama City Resident Office Task Force initiated an investigation targeting the distribution of multiple kilograms of methamphetamine by Ashley Zurica, Ashley Brown, Donald Skipper, William Carter, and others in Washington county and surrounding areas of north Florida. Over the course of the three-year investigation, DEA, working with state and local partners, compiled evidence to secure indictments on four Federal defendants in the Northern District of Florida in addition to indictments in other federal districts and multiple State of Florida defendants. The investigation led to the seizure of several kilograms of methamphetamine, and the identification of illegal drug sources in Florida, Alabama, and Georgia.
“Our work with the U.S. Attorney’s office for the Northern District of Florida and DEA is resulting in convictions and removing illegal narcotics from our community,” said Washington County Sheriff Kevin Crews. “We remain committed to working with our federal, local, and state law enforcement partners to keep these highly addictive and destructive drugs out of our community.”
“Methamphetamine is a highly addictive and destructive substance, which can inflict great harm to our communities,” said DEA Miami Field Division Special Agent in Charge Deanne L. Reuter. “The success of this investigation is a direct result of the collaboration between the DEA Miami Field Division and our local, state, and federal law enforcement partners, working together to keep our communities safe and healthy.”
This case resulted from a joint investigation by the Drug Enforcement Administration, the Washington County Sheriff’s Office, Chipley Police Department, the Bay County Sheriff’s Office, the Florida Department of Law Enforcement, and the Washington County State’s Attorney Office. Assistant United States Attorney Walter Narramore prosecuted the case.
This effort is part of an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF) operation. OCDETF identifies, disrupts, and dismantles the highest-level criminal organizations that threaten the United States using intelligence-driven, multi-agency approach that leverages the strengths of federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies against criminal networks. Additional information about the OCDETF Program can be found at https://www.justice.gov/OCDETF.
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 http://www.justice.gov/usao/fln/index.html.
Dallas County Man Sentenced to 25 years in Federal Prison in Connection with Donut Shop RobberiesRead the Press Release
SHERMAN, Texas – A Mesquite man has been sentenced to 25 years in federal prison for violent criminal activity in the Eastern District of Texas, announced U.S. Attorney Damien M. Diggs today.
Tony Sullivan, 28, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to interfere with interstate commerce by robbery; aiding and abetting; conspiracy to kidnap; using, carrying, and brandishing a firearm during and in relation to a crime of violence. Sullivan was sentenced to 300 months in federal prison on July 26, 2023, by U.S. District Judge Amos Mazzant.
“Sullivan has been justly punished for subjecting innocent victims to his spree of violence between April 2019 and August 2019,” said U.S. Attorney Damien M. Diggs. “Today’s sentence sends a powerful message to those who use violence and fear to carry out their crimes.”
“The defendant targeted a close-knit community of successful business owners, inciting fear throughout the metroplex. His victims were stalked and terrorized, some for hours and some to the brink of death, and all have a long road of recovery ahead,” said Dallas FBI Special Agent in Charge Chad Yarbrough. “Law enforcement utilized proactive investigative techniques that thwarted future attacks and led to the dismantlement of a criminal enterprise that had no intention of stopping. We cannot allow violent crimes to erode the value of community in our hometowns; law enforcement will continue to work together to bring violent offenders to justice and protect our residents.”
According to information presented in court, the FBI began an investigation into a series of home invasion type robbery incidents between April 2019 and December 2019 that targeted owners and operators of donut stores in the Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex area. The robberies occurred late in the evening or very early in the morning before the shopkeepers departed for work. The assailants would force their way into the home and assault the home’s occupants. Victims were often beat with baseball bats and bound with duct tape while being held at gunpoint. At least nine robberies have been attributed to this crime spree. Due to the times of the robberies coinciding with the times the victims would have been leaving their residences to open their businesses, agents concluded the suspects had to have conducted physical surveillance to determine where the victims lived and when the victims would have been leaving their residences. On the evening of July 8, 2019, officers in Euless, Texas, received a call from a witness reporting an individual stumbling down his street with his hands bound by tape. The victim had a bleeding head wound and was transported to a hospital. The victim advised he returned home from his donut shop in Dallas to find two suspects in his residence. He was bound and beat with a baseball bat and ordered to open a safe. The assailants left with the victim’s car keys, cellular phone, approximately $9,500 from the safe, and approximately $900 from his wallet. Law enforcement agents utilized footage from surveillance videos, cell phone site data, and data extracted from cellular phones to determine Sullivan participated in the attack.
This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s Dallas Violent Crimes Task Force, which includes the Dallas Police Department, the Garland Police Department, the Grand Prairie Police Department, the Richardson Police Department and the Texas Department of Public Safety. Other investigating agencies who assisted in the investigation are the Bureau of Alcohol Tobacco and Firearms (ATF), the Carrollton Police Department, the Coppell Police Department, the Dallas Police Department, the Dalworthington Gardens Police Department, the Euless Police Department, and the Flower Mound Police Department. The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Ernest Gonzalez.
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Connecticut Man Sentenced to 121 Months for Alien Smuggling and Child Pornography PossessionRead the Press Release
PLATTSBURGH, NEW YORK – Jose Angel Portillo-Lopez, age 72, of Norwalk, Connecticut, was sentenced yesterday to serve 121 months in federal prison for conspiracy to commit alien smuggling, and possession of child pornography.
The announcement was made by United States Attorney Carla B. Freedman, Chief Patrol Agent Robert Garcia, United States Border Patrol, Swanton Sector, and Matthew Scarpino, Special Agent in Charge of the Buffalo Field Office of Homeland Security Investigations (HSI).
In pleading guilty, Portillo-Lopez admitted that in April of 2021, he traveled to the northern border in Burke, New York, where he assisted in the smuggling of four Vietnamese nationals from Canada into the United States for profit. Further, the investigation revealed, and Portillo-Lopez admitted, that he possessed videos of child pornography on his cellphone.
United States District Judge David N. Hurd also ordered that Portillo-Lopez serve a 10-year term of supervised release following his release from prison.
This case was investigated by the United States Border Patrol, Burke & Champlain Stations, and Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) and was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Jeffrey C. Stitt.
Connecticut Man Sentenced to Prison for Trafficking at Least 32 “Ghost Guns”Read the Press Release
Damian Williams, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, announced that MELVIN BURROUGHS was sentenced today by U.S. District Judge Andrew L. Carter, Jr., to 58 months in prison for trafficking firearms. BURROUGHS previously pled guilty to trafficking firearms and conspiring to traffic firearms.
U.S. Attorney Damian Williams said: “Illegal firearms — and in particular ghost guns — are a scourge to our community. Melvin Burroughs built and sold a veritable armory of ghost guns, and he now faces prison time for his crimes.”
According to the Superseding Information and statements made in court proceedings and filings:
From approximately 2019 through approximately January 2022, BURROUGHS purchased the parts for “ghost guns,” assembled the parts into completed firearms, and then illegally sold the working and completed firearms.
On March 14, 2021, BURROUGHS exited his house in Ansonia, Connecticut, with a handgun and — in broad daylight — discharged five rounds at two men who had approached his house. Still images of that broad daylight shooting are below:
The Ansonia Police Department searched the defendant’s house the next day. Law enforcement officers located two completed Glock-style privately made firearms (commonly known as “ghost guns”) and a .50-caliber Desert Eagle pistol that had been reported stolen in Georgia. Law enforcement officers also recovered a custom-made red and black AR-15-style rifle with the words “SUU WHOOP” inscribed on it. “Suu whoop” is a gang call of the Bloods street gang, and red is the color of the Bloods street gang. In addition, law enforcement agents recovered large quantities of ammunition, various gun parts, tools for making ghost guns, and a flamethrower. Photographs of certain of the materials seized from the defendant’s house are below:
In connection with the shooting and search of his residence, BURROUGHS was charged in the Superior Court of Connecticut – Ansonia-Milford Judicial District in Milford, Connecticut, with Connecticut state offenses and was released on bail conditions.
On January 8, 2022 — while on bail for the shooting — BURROUGHS was arrested in Westchester County, New York, with kits to build 17 ghost guns, a completed lower receiver[1] for an AR-15 rifle, 15 extended magazines, and an 18-inch machete. A photograph of the items seized from BURROUGHS on January 8, 2022, is below:
After BURROUGHS was arrested on January 8, 2022, law enforcement agents searched multiple cellphones belonging to BURROUGHS pursuant to search warrants. Evidence on those cellphones, including text message communications, videos, and photographs, established that BURROUGHS has been unlawfully selling firearms since approximately 2019. In particular, BURROUGHS’s gun trafficking business involved purchasing ghost gun parts online or at gun shows, building the ghost guns at his home, and then selling the completed firearms. One of BURROUGHS’s cellphones contained a photograph of 15 ghost gun kits that BURROUGHS purchased in approximately February 2021.
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In addition to the prison term, BURROUGHS, 36, of Ansonia, Connecticut, was sentenced to three years of supervised release.
Mr. Williams praised the outstanding investigative work of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives. Mr. Williams also thanked the New York City Police Department, the Ansonia Police Department, the Westchester County District Attorney’s Office, the Connecticut Office of the State’s Attorney for Ansonia-Milford, and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Connecticut for their assistance in the case.
The case is being handled by the Office’s Narcotics Unit. Assistant U.S. Attorney Kevin Mead is in charge of the prosecution.
[1] A “lower receiver” or “frame” is the bottom part of a firearm and the basic unit of a firearm, which, in an AR-15 rifle, houses parts related to the trigger, magazine, and hammer.
Columbia Man Sentenced to 160 Months in Federal Prison for Gun and Drug OffensesRead the Press Release
COLUMBIA, SOUTH CAROLINA — Enoch Palmer, 24, of Columbia, was sentenced to 160 months in federal prison after pleading guilty to being a felon in possession of a firearm and ammunition and possession with the intent to distribute marijuana.
Evidence presented to the court showed that on February 20, 2022, an officer with the West Columbia Police Department performed a traffic stop on Palmer for driving without headlights. Palmer was the sole occupant of the vehicle, which was registered to him, and he was driving with a suspended license. Palmer was arrested for the license violation and law enforcement found a large quantity of marijuana underneath the driver’s seat of the car.
On April 24, 2022, Palmer, a member of a street gang, made a social media video threatening to retaliate against rival gang members after his involvement in an altercation. The following day, the City of Columbia Police Department (CPD) responded to a ShotSpotter alert on Millwood Ave and recovered 9 7.62x39mm shell casings. Through further investigation, CPD officers recovered surveillance video of Palmer leaning out of the driver’s side of a car while firing an Ak-47 style pistol across Millwood Avenue towards a group of people. Palmer shot a rival gang member in the upper body. The victim was released from the hospital with non-life-threatening injuries.
Senior United States District Judge Cameron McGowan Currie sentenced Palmer to 160 months in prison, consisting of 60 months for marijuana charge and 100 months for the felon-in-possession charge, followed by a three-year term of court-ordered supervision. There is no parole in the federal system.
This case was prosecuted as part of the joint federal, state, and local Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN) Program, the centerpiece of the Department of Justice’s violent crime reduction efforts. PSN is an evidence-based program proven to be effective at reducing violent crime. Through PSN, a broad spectrum of stakeholders work together to identify the most pressing violent crime problems in the community and develop comprehensive solutions to address them. As part of this strategy, PSN focuses enforcement efforts on the most violent offenders and partners with locally based prevention and reentry programs for lasting reductions in crime.
This case was investigated by the West Columbia Police Department, City of Columbia Police Department, Midlands Gang Task Force, and Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF). Assistant U.S. Attorneys Elle Klein and Lamar J. Fyall are prosecuting the case.
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Columbia Man Sentenced to 10 Years on Federal Drug ChargeRead the Press Release
COLUMBIA, SOUTH CAROLINA — Arma Victor Strong, III, 33, of Columbia, was sentenced to 10 years in federal prison after pleading guilty in federal court to possession with intent to distribute a quantity of methamphetamine, cocaine, and marijuana.
Evidence presented to the court showed that on July 8, 2021, a Richland County Sheriff’s Department investigator on surveillance in an unmarked car in a motel parking lot on Nates Road saw a person walk over to an occupied car and engage in a drug deal. As the person walked away from the car, the deputy saw and took a photo of what appeared to be narcotics in the person’s hand.
As the car left the area, the deputy radio’ed a marked patrol unit, which later conducted a traffic stop of the car on Two Notch Road after observing traffic violations. Due to the strong smell of marijuana coming from the car, the car was searched and a shoebox containing marijuana, pills containing methamphetamine, and cocaine was located in the backseat. Strong, the driver, admitted possessing the drugs and having distributed some earlier.
Strong faced increased penalties based on prior felony state convictions for possession of cocaine and possession with intent to distribute cocaine.
United States District Judge Mary Geiger Lewis sentenced Strong to 120 months in prison, to be followed by a 6-year term of court-ordered supervision. There is no parole in the federal system.
During the sentencing hearing, the Government also moved to estreat a portion of Strong’s surety bond, which was revoked last month after he violated conditions of release. The court granted the motion to estreat and ordered that 10% of the surety bond be estreated.
This case was prosecuted as part of the joint federal, state, and local Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN) Program, the centerpiece of the Department of Justice’s violent crime reduction efforts. PSN is an evidence-based program proven to be effective at reducing violent crime. Through PSN, a broad spectrum of stakeholders work together to identify the most pressing violent crime problems in the community and develop comprehensive solutions to address them. As part of this strategy, PSN focuses enforcement efforts on the most violent offenders and partners with locally based prevention and reentry programs for lasting reductions in crime.
This case was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) and the Richland County Sheriff’s Department. Assistant U.S. Attorney Stacey D. Haynes prosecuted the case.
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Cleveland Man Found Guilty of Illegally Possessing a Firearm and AmmunitionRead the Press Release
AKRON – Reggie Jordan was found guilty of being a Felon in Possession of a Firearm and Ammunition today by a jury after a 3 day trial before U.S. District Judge John Adams. The jury also agreed to forfeit Mr. Jordan’s interest in six firearms that were seized from his residence.
According to court documents and testimony, Sergeant Marlon Wills, a Cleveland Police Detective assigned to the FBI Safe Streets Task Force was monitoring social media pages of several suspected local gangs when he observed the Defendant post a video from a local shooting range where he was showing off five firearms. Video surveillance from the range showed Jordan firing the weapons. A search warrant of his residence was conducted and six total firearms were discovered which included an AK-47, a Draco, a stolen firearm, and several large capacity magazines. Jordan has prior convictions for Aggravated Robbery, Drug Trafficking, and Drug Possession from Cuyahoga County Common Pleas Court.
Sentencing is scheduled for November 15, 2023.
This case was investigated by the Cleveland Police Department, the FBI Safe Streets Task Force, and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms. It was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Joe Dangelo and Pete Daly.
Charleston Man and Woman Sentenced to Prison for Fentanyl CrimeRead the Press Release
CHARLESTON, W.Va. – Today, Kenneth Desaun Hayway, 38, of Charleston, was sentenced to three years and one month in prison, to be followed by four years of supervised release, and Hannah Elizabeth Barbee, 30, of Charleston, was sentenced to four years and nine months in prison, to be followed by four years of supervised release. Hayway and Barbee were sentenced for conspiracy to distribute 40 grams or more of a mixture containing a detectable amount of fentanyl.
According to court documents and statements made in court, Hayway sold fentanyl to a confidential informant asking to purchase heroin on August 15, 2022, and August 19, 2022, in Charleston. Hayway further admitted to organizing the sale of fentanyl with Barbee and co-defendant Khalif Marquee Coleman to a confidential informant seeking heroin on August 19, 2022, at Barbee’s Chesterfield Avenue residence in Charleston.
Barbee admitted to selling fentanyl to a confidential informant seeking heroin on six occasions between August 5, 2022, and September 27, 2022, at her Chesterfield Avenue residence. On September 28, 2022, law enforcement officers executed a search warrant at Barbee’s residence and found mixtures containing fentanyl totaling 55.97 grams, scales, drug packaging materials, and $5,926. Some of the cash recovered during the search was prerecorded buy money from the sales to confidential informants.
Coleman, 35, of Charleston, was sentenced to three years and 10 months in prison on July 20, 2023, after pleading guilty to conspiracy to distribute 40 grams or more of a mixture containing a detectable amount of fentanyl.
United States Attorney Will Thompson made the announcement and commended the investigative work of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and the Metropolitan Drug Enforcement Network Team (MDENT), and the assistance provided by the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) Mid-Atlantic Laboratory.
United States District Judge Irene C. Berger imposed the sentence. Assistant United States Attorney Julie M. White prosecuted the case.
A copy of this press release is located on the website of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of West Virginia. Related court documents and information can be found on PACER by searching for Case No. 2:22-cr-198.
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Cedar Rapids Man Who Transported Hundreds of Pounds of Methamphetamine from California Sentenced to Federal PrisonRead the Press Release
A man who regularly transported methamphetamine from California to Iowa for a Cedar Rapids drug trafficking organization was sentenced July 25, 2023, to more than 16 years in federal prison.
Calub Joseph Storlie, age 35, from Cedar Rapids, Iowa, received the prison term after a December 7, 2023 guilty plea to one count of conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine and one count of being an unlawful drug user in possession of a firearm.
Information provided at sentencing and evidence presented in a prior hearing showed that Storlie took numerous trips to California between 2017 and 2020 to obtain ice methamphetamine for David Belton. Storlie eventually recruited a relative, Albert Bailey, to join him on the trips, and each was paid about $2,000 per trip as well as expenses. On these trips, Storlie commonly drove a “trap car” with a false compartment inside to transport the drugs. That “trap car” was seized by law enforcement in 2020 with documents indicating that the insurance for the car was in Storlie’s name and 30 pounds of ice methamphetamine was found inside the false compartment.
During a wiretap investigation conducted by the Drug Enforcement Administration in Cedar Rapids in late 2021 and early 2022, Bailey was discovered to be a driver for a group of individuals who were purchasing ice methamphetamine in California and selling it in eastern Iowa. Bailey traveled to California and then drove between 30 and 60 pounds of methamphetamine back to Iowa, where other individuals sold it. In February 2022, intercepted communications over the wiretap indicated that Bailey would be transporting methamphetamine from California to Iowa. Investigators tracked Bailey’s vehicle and stopped it in York County, Nebraska. During a search of the vehicle, investigators located and seized approximately 60 pounds of ice methamphetamine. Immediately following the seizure of the methamphetamine in Nebraska, Storlie was intercepted on the wiretap speaking to other members of the conspiracy about the seizure and how to cover it up. Evidence in the case showed that Storlie had previously gone on similar trips to California for the same individuals as Bailey.
In addition to his involvement in the distribution of methamphetamine, Storlie purchased and stored at least nine firearms for Belton, who was a felon. Storlie had falsified ATF forms to purchase the firearms.
Eleven other individuals were charged in the same investigation as Storlie. David Poitier Belton, Derek Michael Mims, Phillip Lanell Rogers, Robert Lee Michael Bates, Anton Tarrice Whitney, Jr., Christopher Eric Curley, Elmer Mims, and Timothy Michael Webber are all awaiting sentencing. Kiyonte Levell Sowell was sentenced to 144 months’ imprisonment. Albert Henry Bailey was sentenced to 88 months’ imprisonment. Jesus Vera was sentenced to 151 months’ imprisonment.
Storlie was sentenced in Cedar Rapids by United States District Court Judge C.J. Williams. Storlie was sentenced to 200 months’ imprisonment. He must also serve a five-year term of supervised release after the prison term. There is no parole in the federal system.
Storlie is being held in the United States Marshal’s custody until he can be transported to a federal prison.
The case was investigated as part of the Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF) program of the United States Department of Justice through a cooperative effort of the DEA Task Force in Cedar Rapids and the Federal Bureau of Investigation. The DEA Task Force in Cedar Rapids consists of the DEA, the Linn County Sheriff's Office, the Cedar Rapids Police Department, the Marion Police Department, and the Iowa Division of Narcotics Enforcement. The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Dan Chatham.
Court file information at https://ecf.iand.uscourts.gov/cgi-bin/login.pl.
The case file number is 22‑CR‑39‑CJW‑MAR.
Cedar Rapids Man Sentenced for Drug and FirearmsRead the Press Release
A man who possessed a large quantity of methamphetamine and had numerous firearms was sentenced on July 26, 2023, to more than 15 years in federal prison.
Johnny Mack Hill, Jr., age 32, from Cedar Rapids, Iowa, received the prison term after a January 4, 2023 guilty plea to one count of possession with intent to distribute 500 grams of more of methamphetamine, one count of possession of firearms during and in relation to his drug offense, and one count of being a felon in possession of a firearm.
At the guilty plea, Hill, Jr. admitted that on October 14, 2020, he was in possession of at least 500 grams of methamphetamine he intended to sell to others, and multiple firearms that he possessed in connection with his drug offense. Hill, Jr. was previously convicted of attempted murder for a shooting on October 2, 2020, in a Cedar Rapids bar.
Hill, Jr. was sentenced in Cedar Rapids by United States District Court Judge C.J. Williams. Hill, Jr. was sentenced to 185 months’ imprisonment to be served consecutive to his sentence for attempted murder imposed in the Iowa District Court for Linn County. He must also serve a five-year term of supervised release after the prison term. There is no parole in the federal system.
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.
Hill, Jr. is being held in the United States Marshal’s custody until he can be transported to a federal prison.
The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Kyndra Lundquist and investigated by Cedar Rapids Police Department and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives.
Court file information at https://ecf.iand.uscourts.gov/cgi-bin/login.pl.
The case file number is 21-CR-00021.
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Camden Man Sentenced to over 18 Years in Federal Prison in Connection with Fentanyl Overdose DeathRead the Press Release
CAMDEN, SOUTH CAROLINA — Sean Michael Taylor, 27, of Camden, was sentenced to 220 months in federal prison after pleading guilty to distributing a quantity of fentanyl.
Evidence obtained in the investigation revealed that, on July 1, 2020, deputies with the Kershaw County Sheriff’s Office and other first responders from the Kershaw County Emergency Medical Services and Coroner’s Office responded to an apparent overdose at a residence in Camden. Responders located a victim who was pronounced deceased at the scene. The victim’s death was later determined to be caused by a fentanyl overdose.
On July 21, 2020, during a separate investigation, federal agents and officers assigned to the Drug Enforcement Administration Atlanta-Carolinas High Intensity Drug Trafficking Areas Program (ACHIDTA) Task Force in Columbia used a confidential source to buy fentanyl from Taylor. During that exchange, Taylor admitted that he distributed the fentanyl that caused his friend’s death a few weeks prior, and even identified the victim by name.
Later, Taylor confessed to law enforcement that he first injected himself with a syringe containing fentanyl and then handed the victim the syringe containing the remaining fentanyl. Upon injecting the fentanyl, the victim immediately collapsed to the floor, unresponsive. Taylor and others present at the residence dragged the victim to another room, but no one could rouse the victim. Taylor left the residence without calling 911.
United States District Judge Sherri A. Lydon sentenced Taylor to 220 months in prison, to be followed by a 3-year term of court-ordered supervision. There is no parole in the federal system.
This case was investigated by the DEA ACHIDTA Task Force in Columbia, which was comprised of agents and officers from the Drug Enforcement Administration, United States Postal Inspection Service, Kershaw County Sheriff’s Office, Richland County Sheriff’s Department, Lexington County Sheriff’s Department, and Department of Public Safety for the City of Orangeburg. Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Kristen Bales is prosecuting the case.
This prosecution is part of a High Intensity Drug Trafficking Areas Program (HIDTA) investigation. HIDTA is a grant program purposed with improving public safety and well-being by disrupting and dismantling drug trafficking and money laundering organizations through intelligence-driven multi-jurisdictional operations; enhancing the safety and effectiveness of law enforcement operations through training; and improving communication and information sharing among criminal justice, drug prevention, and drug treatment professionals in support of the objectives as administered by the Office of National Drug Control Policy. Additional information can be found at https://www.achidta.org/, https://www.dea.gov/operations/hidta, and https://www.whitehouse.gov/ondcp/.
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California Man Sentenced to Federal Prison for Conspiracy to Distribute Methamphetamine Resulting in DeathRead the Press Release
DAVENPORT, Iowa – A Long Beach, California man was sentenced on July 21, 2023 to 12 years in federal prison for conspiracy to distribute more than 50 grams of methamphetamine resulting in the death of a victim.
According to public court documents, Ray Bustamante, 61, conspired with Dr. John Robert Muriello and Eric Hojka, both of Iowa City, and others, to obtain and distribute methamphetamine. An investigation by the United States Postal Inspection Service revealed that since early 2020, Bustamante mailed packages of methamphetamine to people he met online. In March 2021, a parcel, mailed by Bustamante, was intercepted by Postal Inspectors and found to contain approximately 137 grams of “ice” methamphetamine.
In a separate investigation in May 2021, first responders were dispatched to Hojka’s Iowa City apartment for a report of an unconscious victim, who was later pronounced dead. An autopsy revealed the victim ingested methamphetamine which caused his death. It was later determined that the methamphetamine ingested by the victim originated from Bustamante and was sent to Dr. John Robert Muriello and Eric Hojka in Iowa City for distribution.
After his prison term, Bustamante was ordered to serve a five-year term of supervised release. There is no parole in the federal system.
United States Attorney Richard D. Westphal of the Southern District of Iowa made the announcement. This case was investigated by the United States Postal Inspection Service and the Iowa City Police Department.
California Drug Trafficker Sentenced to More Than Eight Years in PrisonRead the Press Release
MOBILE, AL – A Los Angeles, California man was sentenced today to 105 months in prison for conspiring to distribute kilograms of marijuana.
According to court documents, Anthony Robert Tirado, 31, was the leader of a California-based drug-trafficking organization that distributed hundreds of kilograms of marijuana from the Los Angeles area to Mobile and other cities throughout the United States from at least January 2018 through March 2022. Tirado employed several couriers—juveniles among them—who ferried bulk amounts of marijuana in their checked luggage on dozens of commercial flights from California to Alabama, Florida, Louisiana, Ohio, Texas, and West Virginia, among other locations. In turn, the couriers transported hundreds of thousands of dollars in drug proceeds back to California for Tirado. In Los Angeles, Tirado rented several units at a luxury apartment complex that he used to store and distribute bulk amounts of marijuana in furtherance of his nationwide drug-distribution operation.
On multiple occasions, law enforcement seized bulk drugs and cash from Tirado’s couriers in various locations in the Southern District of Alabama and elsewhere. For example, in November 2018, narcotics agents arrested one of Tirado’s Alabama-based coconspirators who had recently purchased drugs from one of Tirado’s juvenile couriers at a hotel in Mobile. During a subsequent search of the coconspirator’s car and apartment, agents seized a handgun, 20 pounds of high grade marijuana in a suitcase, and more than $33,000 in cash. On another occasion in June 2020, agents seized nearly $60,000 in bulk cash from one of Tirado’s couriers at the airport in New Orleans, Louisiana.
When United States marshals tracked and arrested Tirado in California on March 18, 2022, Tirado admitted that he knew about his pending arrest warrant but had not turned himself in. A search of Tirado’s cell phone revealed numerous text messages, photos, videos, and other data demonstrating that until his arrest, Tirado had continued distributing bulk marijuana using couriers traveling on commercial flights to Alabama and elsewhere.
In addition to the 105-month prison term, United States District Judge Terry F. Moorer ordered Tirado to serve a five-year term of supervised release upon his release from prison, during which time he will undergo drug testing and treatment. The court did not impose a fine, but Judge Moorer ordered Tirado to pay $100 in special assessments.
U.S. Attorney Sean P. Costello of the Southern District of Alabama made the announcement.
The Drug Enforcement Administration, the U.S. Marshals Service, the Mobile County Sheriff’s Office, and the Mobile Police Department investigated the case.
Assistant U.S. Attorneys Justin Roller and Deborah Griffin prosecuted the case on behalf of the United States.
CEO of Paycheck Protection Program Lender MBE Capital Sentenced to 54 Months in Prison in Connection with Fraudulent Loan and Lender ApplicationsRead the Press Release
Damian Williams, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, announced today that RAFAEL MARTINEZ was sentenced to 54 months in prison for his role in a scheme to submit fraudulent loan and lender applications related to the Paycheck Protection Program (“PPP”) administered by the U.S. Small Business Administration (“SBA”). MARTINEZ previously pled guilty to one count of conspiring to commit wire fraud before U.S. District Judge Lewis J. Liman, who imposed today’s sentence.
U.S. Attorney Damian Williams said: “Martinez lied to get money that was supposed to help people through the challenges of COVID-19. He lied so that he could fund a lavish lifestyle of cars, jets, and fancy homes. Today’s sentence sends a clear message to those who would abuse the system to serve their own selfish ends: such conduct will be brought to light and to justice. No one’s greed is above the law.”
According to the allegations in the Superseding Indictment, the Complaint, court filings, and statements made during plea and sentencing proceedings:
MARTINEZ used false representations and documents to fraudulently obtain the approval of the SBA for his company, MBE Capital Partners, LLC (“MBE”), to be a non-bank lender through the PPP in an effort to secure hundreds of millions of dollars in capital for PPP loans and, ultimately, to collect more than approximately $71 million in lender fees. In addition, MARTINEZ engaged in a scheme to obtain a PPP loan for MBE in the amount of approximately $283,764 through false statements regarding the number of employees of MBE and the wages paid to MBE employees and using the forged signature of MBE’s tax preparer.
At all relevant times, MARTINEZ has been the CEO and primary owner of MBE, a New York limited liability company formed in or about March 2015. Republic Group, LLC, a/k/a “Republic Group Parts, LLC,” which is owned and controlled by MARTINEZ, serves as the holding company for MBE and conducts business as MBE. According to MBE’s website, “For over 20 years, MBE Capital Partners has been a leading provider of financing solutions for small and diverse businesses. . . In 2019, we financed over $1.7 billion in public and private debt and we funded over 35,000 PPP loans worth $800M.”
On or about April 5, 2020, MARTINEZ applied to a financial institution for a government-guaranteed loan for Republic Group, d/b/a MBE, through the SBA’s PPP. In connection with the loan application, MARTINEZ represented that MBE had as many as 15 employees and an average monthly payroll of approximately $119,390 in 2019. In fact, however, from in or about April 2018 through in or about April 2020, MBE had at most four employees who had a total average monthly payroll of no more $25,000. In order to support the false representations made by MARTINEZ in the loan application about the number of employees at and the wages paid by MBE, MARTINEZ submitted fraudulent and doctored tax records that contained the forged signature of a tax preparer located in New York, New York (the “Tax Preparer”). Based on the false documentation provided by MARTINEZ, MBE was approved for a PPP loan in the amount of approximately $283,764, which was disbursed to a bank account controlled by MARTINEZ. A majority of the loan proceeds do not appear to have been used for payroll for employees of MBE or other business expenses.
On or about April 9, 2020, within five days of applying for the PPP loan referenced above, MARTINEZ submitted an application to the SBA for MBE to become a non-bank PPP lender. As part of the PPP lender application process, MARTINEZ represented that MBE had originated and serviced over $3.8 billion in business loans or other commercial financial receivables for the three-year period from in or about 2017 through in or about 2019 and submitted fraudulent financial statements that purported to be audited by the Tax Preparer’s firm for the years 2018 and 2019. Based on the false information provided by MARTINEZ to the SBA, MBE was approved as a non-bank lender for PPP loans.
On or about April 27, 2020, MARTINEZ submitted various documents, including the same fraudulent audited financial statements for 2019 provided to the SBA, to a life insurance company (the “Company”) as part of a proposed partnership to fund PPP loans for minority and women-owned small businesses. On or about May 13, 2020, the Company provided MBE with $100 million to fund PPP loans, which MBE in turn used as collateral to borrow additional capital of approximately $832 million through the Paycheck Protection Program Liquidity Facility (“PPPLF”) with the Federal Reserve.
As a result of the above fraudulent misrepresentations, MARTINEZ, through his company MBE, became an approved PPP lender and issued approximately $823 million in PPP loans to approximately 36,600 businesses. These loans earned MARTINEZ a total of approximately $71.3 million in fees. MARTINEZ spent the proceeds from his criminal conduct on, among other things, the purchase of a villa in the Dominican Republic for over $10 million, a $3.5 million mansion located in Franklin Lakes, New Jersey, a chartered jet service, and several luxury vehicles, including a 2018 Porsche 911 Turbo, a 2017 Ferrari 488 Spider, a 2017 Bentley Continental GT, a BMW 750, and a 1962 Mercedes Benz 190.
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In addition to his prison term, MARTINEZ, 57, of Franklin Lakes, New Jersey, was sentenced to three years of supervised release and further ordered to forfeit $44,546,712.94, as well as multiple properties and luxury vehicles, including a Ferrari Model 488 Spider, pay restitution in the amount of $71,711,893.07, and pay a $100 special assessment fee.
Mr. Williams praised the outstanding investigative work of the Internal Revenue Service, Criminal Investigation; the U.S. Small Business Administration, Office of Inspector General; and the Office of Inspector General for the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System and the Bureau of Consumer Financial Protection, Eastern Region.
This case is being handled by the Office’s Complex Frauds and Cybercrime Unit. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Micah Fergenson, Katherine Reilly, and Steven Kochevar are in charge of the prosecution.
Brother, Sister, and Two Others Charged in Multi-Million Dollar Pandemic Fraud SchemeRead the Press Release
DETROIT - A Detroit area brother and sister, along with two other individuals, have been charged in a criminal complaint for their alleged role in a multi-million-dollar unemployment insurance fraud scheme targeting funds set aside for unemployment assistance during the COVID-19 pandemic, announced United States Attorney Dawn N. Ison.
Joining in the announcement were Department of Labor – Office of the Inspector General (DOL-OIG) Special Agent-in-Charge of the Great Lakes Region, Irene Lindow, and Special Agent in Charge Angie Salazar of the Department of Homeland Security – Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) Detroit Field Office.
Charged are Kenny Lee Howard III, 30, Keila Lanae Howard, 34, David Christopher Davis, 25, and Stevenvan Eugene Ware, 30.
According to the complaint, the Howards and the two other defendants filed over seven hundred unemployment insurance claims in Michigan, Pennsylvania, Arizona, California, New York, Kansas, Maryland, Tennessee, Hawaii, and Guam. In some instances, the defendants are alleged to have used their own names to file claims for pandemic unemployment assistance in multiple states. In other instances, the defendants used the stolen personal identifying information of other individuals to file fraudulent claims for pandemic unemployment assistance. The complaint alleges that the defendants illegally obtained over $3.5 million in government funds over the course of their scheme.
“This alleged scheme diverted money away from American workers in need of financial relief during the COVID-19 pandemic,” said U.S. Attorney Ison. “My office is committed to prosecuting anyone who exploited our national crisis to enrich themselves, and today’s charges are a reflection of that commitment.”
“Partnership and cooperation are essential to these investigations,” said HSI Detroit Special Agent in Charge Angie M. Salazar. “I would like to thank the Department of Labor Office of Inspector General and the United States Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Michigan for their work to hold offenders accountable. Our efforts speak not only to the pursuit of justice but also accountability to the American taxpayer.”
"An important part of the mission of the Office of Inspector General is to investigate allegations of fraud involving unemployment insurance programs. We will continue to work with our law enforcement partners to aggressively investigate these types of allegations," said Irene Lindow, Special Agent-in-Charge, Great Lakes Region, U.S. Department of Labor, Office of Inspector General.
A complaint is only a charge and is not evidence of guilt. Trial cannot be held on felony charges in a complaint. When the investigation is completed, a determination will be made whether to seek a felony indictment.
The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Ryan Particka and Timothy Wyse. The investigation is being conducted jointly by the DOL- OIG and HSI.
Brainard Man Sentenced for Child PornographyRead the Press Release
Acting United States Attorney Susan Lehr announced that Samuel Richardson, 57, of Brainard, Nebraska, was sentenced today in federal court in Omaha for Possession of Child Pornography. United States District Court Judge Brian C. Buescher sentenced Richardson to 70 months of imprisonment. There is no parole in the federal system. Following the completion of his incarceration, Richardson will serve a 10-year term of supervised release. Richardson was also ordered to pay $5,100 in special assessments.
Richardson came to law enforcement’s attention stemming from multiple cyber tips from Microsoft (Bing) for activity occurring between March and May 2021 involving images of child pornography.
On February 10, 2022, the Nebraska State Patrol executed a search warrant at Richardson’s home in Brainard. During the search warrant, law enforcement seized Richardson’s computer, phone, and an external hard drive. Richardson was interviewed and admitted to having seen at least one of the images from the cyber tips. Richardson admitted to viewing child pornography and that law enforcement would find child pornography on his computer and external hard drive. Richardson’s devices were forensically examined, and 5,000 images of child pornography were found.
This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice. Led by U.S. Attorneys’ Offices and CEOS, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state and local resources to better locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the Internet, as well as to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.justice.gov/psc.
This case was investigated by the Nebraska State Patrol.