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31 March 2023
Ballwin Man Admits Sex with Minors, Distributing Child PornographyRead the Press Release
ST. LOUIS – A man from Ballwin, Missouri on Thursday admitted distributing child pornography and engaging in sexual contact with underage girls he’d approached on Snapchat.
Luke Edward Nicozisin, 22, pleaded guilty in front of U.S. District Judge Audrey G. Fleissig to one count of distribution of child pornography.
Nicozisin admitted sending nude images of himself to three 15-year-old girls and one 12-year-old girl, soliciting nude pictures of a 15-year-old and having sex with two 15-year-old girls. He also recorded videos of himself having sex with one of the 15-year-olds. Nicozisin initially approached the girls via Snapchat.
One of his victims reported Nicozisin to a school resource officer on July 28, 2021, prompting Nicozisin’s initial arrest.
Other victims came forward that October. On Oct. 20, 2021, a court-approved search was conducted of Nicozisin’s home, and investigators found an iPhone containing multiple pictures of videos of himself with one of the victims as well as condoms that depicted Nicozisin’s Instagram account.
At his sentencing, scheduled for July 7, Nicozisin faces a mandatory minimum sentence of at least five years in prison and a maximum of 20 years.
The FBI, the Manchester Police Department and the Chesterfield Police Department investigated the case. Assistant U.S. Attorney Kyle Bateman is prosecuting the case.
This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice. Led by U.S. Attorneys’ Offices and the Department of Justice Criminal Division's Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state and local resources to better locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the Internet, as well as to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.justice.gov/psc.
Arizona man sentenced to 70 months in prison for laundering money and seeking to deliver ammunition to drug trafficking organizations in MexicoRead the Press Release
Seattle – A 28-year-old resident of Nogales, Arizona, was sentenced today in U.S. District Court in Seattle to 70 months in prison for conspiracy to commit money laundering and his attempt to smuggle ammunition for high powered firearms into Mexico, announced U.S. Attorney Nick Brown. Rafael Alejandro Canez, was arrested November 13, 2021, after he was contacted on multiple occasions attempting to hide ammunition in his vehicle to smuggle across the border to Mexico. Canez was also identified as part of a separate money laundering conspiracy. At the sentencing hearing Judge Ricardo S. Martinez said “If you are involved in money laundering for a drug ring, you don’t know for sure someone is going to die from the drugs…. But unfortunately, cartels are awash in guns. If you are smuggling ammunition and gun parts the result is people dying -- innocent bystanders, other cartel members, or law enforcement officers.”
“The conduct in this case touches on the two things that keep the cartels flooding our country with drugs: the money they make and the guns they use to enforce their often violent conduct,” said U.S. Attorney Nick Brown. “Mr. Canez played a critical role as a smuggler of both money and ammunition and so must be held accountable.”
According to records filed in the case, Canez played a significant role in a massive multi-state and multi-national “funnel account” money laundering scheme. Canez traveled across the country collecting funds and depositing them in bank accounts which then were accessed to wire money to cartel connections in Mexico, or to withdraw cash and smuggle the money into Mexico. Canez personally laundered more than $1 million in cash for the drug trafficking organization. In just a few months in 2017 and 2018, more than $120,000 from Western Washington flowed through Canez’ account. Canez traveled to Illinois, Arizona, and New Mexico to pick up cash and make deposits – in Chicago alone he picked up $800,000 in currency.
On multiple occasions in 2020 and 2021, Canez came to the attention of law enforcement for his munitions smuggling scheme. In June of 2020, Homeland Security Investigations contacted him when he ordered 5,000 links for machine gun ammunition. The links allow a “belt” of bullets to be fed into the machine gun. Law enforcement seized the links. About a year later, Canez was found with 3,000 rounds for an AK-47 style rifle, and an upper receiver for an AR-15 style assault rifle. Canez admitted he planned to smuggle the ammunition into Mexico. Records reflect that he had purchased 16,000 rounds of that type of ammunition.
Finally, Canez was contacted as he was trying to leave the U.S. for Mexico and was found to be carrying 55 high-capacity magazines for AR-15-style assault rifles. The magazines were hidden in the spare tire underneath his vehicle.
Multiple law enforcement agencies worked on this case including Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) in Washington and Arizona, Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms & Explosives (ATF) in Arizona, the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) in Western Washington, and Customs and Border Protection (CBP) in Arizona.
The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Vince Lombardi.
American Man Who Joined ISIS in Syria Sentenced to 20 yearsRead the Press Release
MIAMI – A U.S. citizen, Emraan Ali (“Ali”), has been sentenced to 20 years in prison followed by 20 years of supervised release by the Honorable Beth Bloom for conspiring to provide material support to ISIS. Ali entered a guilty plea on November 22, 2022.
On March 20, 2015, Ali, aka Abu Jihad Al-Trinidadi Al-Amriki, took his family from Trinidad and Tobago to Brazil, and thereafter to Turkey and Syria with the purpose of joining ISIS. Before leaving Trinidad and Tobago to join ISIS, Ali set up a financial system whereby he could receive funds in Syria, collected $15,000 in cash, falsely told his children they were going on vacation, and melted down gold to be converted to jewelry so he would have money and financial support once he was in Syria. Ali also made efforts to make Trinidadian authorities believe he was not leaving Trinidad so they would not interfere with his efforts to provide material support to ISIS.
Upon arriving in Turkey, Ali and his family stayed in Istanbul and then traveled to Gaziantep, Turkey. While in Gaziantep, Ali contacted coconspirators to arrange for travel across the Turkey-Syria border to join ISIS. Shortly thereafter, Ali and his family were driven from Gaziantep to the Syrian border in a van. Once at the border Ali and his family, including small children, got out of the van and ran across the border into Syria on foot.
Once they arrived in ISIS controlled territory, ISIS registered Ali and his family, who thereafter joined a settlement in Manbij, Syria, where they lived while Ali awaited ISIS military training. From July through November 2015, Ali went to Raqqa, Syria, for ISIS religious and military training with other English speakers. The training included instruction on the operation of various automatic weapons such as the AK-47 assault rifle and PKC machine gun. Following this training, Ali was assigned an ISIS census number in the “12000” series - the series reserved for military enlistees. He was given boots, socks, and a gun barrel. Ali also registered with ISIS the M4 weapon he had personally acquired.
After he completed military training, Ali was assigned to the Anwar al-Awlaki katibah (battalion) in Raqqa and received an ISIS identification card under the kunya (alias) of “Abu-Jihad al-Trinidad al-Amriki” or “Abu Jihad TNT.” Between September and November 2015, Ali’s son, Jihad Mohammed Ali, then 15 years old, began attending ISIS religious and military training in Raqqa, after which he also was assigned to the Anwar al-Awlaki katibah. Eventually, Ali was discharged from the Anwar al-Awlaki katibah for medical reasons, and he moved his family to another location in Raqqa, which had become the de facto ISIS capital.
Ali thereafter continued to provide material support to ISIS and contribute to its economy while in Raqqa, approximately between 2015 and 2017. First, Ali worked in residential construction for ISIS. Ali’s construction work helped create homes for ISIS members, including fighters and their families who occupied territories ISIS claimed from Syria. Like others who received housing to help the occupation, Ali also received free housing upon his arrival in Syria and his entry into ISIS military training. In addition, Ali worked to create buildings for ISIS operations. Ali also became a merchant, thereby supporting ISIS and its members. Ali began buying and selling livestock, cars, weapons, weapons accessories, and telephones to and from other ISIS members.
Ali also assisted ISIS’s military goals by purchasing and selling weapons and weapons accessories to ISIS members to use in their fighting, preferring superior American-made accessories to those manufactured by China. Ali also provided money remitting services to other Trinidadian ISIS fighters in Syria, serving as a “hawalder,” or money transfer broker. He also donated his own money to ISIS members to support the ISIS cause.
Eventually, in late 2017, Ali left Raqqa with his family and moved to Mayadin, Syria, which had become the new headquarters for ISIS after the Coalition Forces retook Raqqa. While in Mayadin, Ali was assigned to an ISIS housing battalion, or katibah, and received an ISIS identification card. Consistent with ISIS’s bureaucratic structure, Ali also received a monthly stipend or payment in the amount of $35 US per adult and $28 US per child in his household. In addition, Ali was again provided free housing by ISIS.
In 2018, Ali moved his family to Hajin, Syria, where ISIS assigned him to construct a well to provide the ISIS community with potable water. When ISIS came under attack in Hajin, Ali moved his family to Al-Shafah, Syria, where he ran a store that sold various goods. While in Hajin, Ali donated some of the store’s profits to other ISIS members, thereby furthering ISIS’s goals.
Between late 2018 and early 2019, after ISIS was targeted in Al-Shafah, Ali moved his family to Baghuz, Syria, the last ISIS stronghold before its collapse in 2019. In fact, in March 2019, just before his surrender on March 19, Ali urged other Trinidadian ISIS members to refuse to surrender to the Coalition Forces. Ali did this in the hope that Coalition Forces would allow ISIS members to simply relocate.
U.S. Attorney Markenzy Lapointe for the Southern District of Florida, Assistant Attorney General Matthew G. Olsen of the Justice Department’s National Security Division, and Special Agent in Charge Jeffrey B. Veltri of the FBI, Miami Field Office, announced the sentence imposed by U.S. District Judge Beth Bloom.
FBI Miami investigated the case. Assistant U.S. Attorney Jonathan D. Stratton for the Southern District of Florida prosecuted the case, with assistance from the Justice Department’s National Security Division.
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 21-cr-20123.
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Alamogordo man pleads guilty to enticement of a minorRead the Press Release
ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. – Alexander M.M. Uballez, United States Attorney for the District of New Mexico, announced today that Alfonso Salcido Herrera, Jr. pleaded guilty to the enticement of a minor. Herrera, 45, of Alamogordo, New Mexico, will remain in custody pending sentencing, which has not been scheduled.
According to the plea agreement and other court documents, beginning in 2018 and continuing into 2022, Herrera groomed and sexually abused at least four children who were between nine and 13 years old at the time of the abuse. Herrera showed each of the four minor victims pornography from the Internet on his cell phone in an attempt to persuade, induce, entice, and coerce the minor victims to engage in sexual activity with him.
Herrera faces a mandatory minimum of 10 years in prison. Under the terms of his agreement with the government, Herrera can be sentenced to up to 60 years in prison.
Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) investigated this case with assistance from the Alamogordo Police Department and the 12th Judicial District Attorney's Office. Assistant United States Attorneys Matilda McCarthy Villalobos and Joni Autrey Stahl are prosecuting the case as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice (DOJ) to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by United States Attorneys’ Offices and DOJ’s Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to better locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the Internet, as well as to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit http://www.justice.gov/psc/.
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Additional Federal Charges Brought in Superseding Indictment for Murder of Philadelphia Police Sergeant James O’ConnorRead the Press Release
PHILADELPHIA – United States Attorney Jacqueline C. Romero announced that a Superseding Indictment was unsealed today in relation to the murder of Philadelphia Police Corporal James “Jimmy” O’Connor, posthumously promoted to Sergeant. The 31-count Superseding Indictment includes a RICO conspiracy, three additional counts of murder, nine non-fatal shootings, and related charges for Hassan Elliott, a/k/a “Haz,” age 25; Khalif Sears, a/k/a “Leaf,” a/k/a “Lil Leaf,” age 21; and two previously unnamed defendants, Kelvin Jiminez a/k/a “Nip,” age 32; and Dominique Parker, a/k/a “Dom,” age 31, all of Philadelphia.
The original Indictment charged the murder of Sergeant O’Connor, as well as related drug trafficking and firearms offenses.
The Superseding Indictment charges all four defendants with:
- conspiracy to participate in a racketeering (RICO) enterprise (1 count); and
- conspiracy to distribute a controlled substance (1 count).
Additional charges include:
- murder in aid of racketeering (4 counts);
- assault in aid of racketeering (9 counts);
- attempted assault in aid of racketeering (2 counts);
- possession of a firearm in furtherance of drug trafficking (1 count);
- using, carrying, brandishing, and discharging a firearm during a crime of violence (5 counts);
- murder in the course of using, carrying, and discharging a firearm (4 counts);
- possession with intent to distribute and distribution of a controlled substance (1 count);
- maintaining a drug involved premises (1 count); and
- possession of a firearm by a felon (2 counts).
The Superseding Indictment alleges that the defendants were members of a violent drug trafficking organization known as “1700 Scattergood,” which operated in the Frankford section of Northeast Philadelphia. The defendants allegedly sold large quantities of narcotics over a multi-year period, using violence and threats of violence to protect their reputation and drug territory. The Superseding Indictment alleges that in furtherance of that conspiracy, Elliott and others killed Kaseem Rogers on December 3, 2018; Tyrone Tyree on March 1, 2019; and Dontae Walker on August 22, 2019.
On March 13, 2020, Elliott, Sears, and others previously indicted were inside a stash house on the 1600 block of Bridge Street when Sergeant O’Connor and other members of the Philadelphia Police Department’s SWAT team arrived with a homicide warrant for Elliott related to the March 2019 murder of Tyrone Tyree. As Sergeant O’Connor and his fellow officers ascended the staircase to the second floor of the residence and announced their presence multiple times, Elliott allegedly fired a semi-automatic assault rifle 16 times, striking and killing Sergeant O’Connor.
If convicted, the defendants face a maximum possible penalty of lifetime imprisonment. In addition, contained within the Superseding Indictment is a Notice of Special Findings for defendant Elliott for each of the four charges of murder while using or carrying a firearm. These Notices make Elliott eligible for the death penalty.
The case was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives and the Philadelphia Police Department, and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Christopher Diviny, Ashley Martin, and Lauren Stram.
An indictment, information, or criminal complaint is an accusation. A defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
33-Year-Old Man Sentenced to 63 Months for Importation of MethamphetamineRead the Press Release
TUCSON, Ariz. – Sergio Caballero, 35, of Nogales, Sonora, Mexico, was sentenced on Wednesday by United States District Judge Rosemary Márquez to 63 months in prison, followed by three years of supervised release. Caballero pleaded guilty to Importation of Methamphetamine.
On September 1, 2021, Caballero entered the United States from Mexico via the Mariposa Port of Entry in Nogales, Arizona. At the time of his crossing, Caballero was driving a Chevrolet Suburban that he claimed to own. During a routine inspection, Customs and Border Protection officers noticed irregularities with the vehicle’s gas tank. They later discovered 90 packages in the gas tank that contained approximately 43.04 kilograms of methamphetamine.
Agents from Homeland Security Investigations conducted the investigation in this case. The United States Attorney’s Office, District of Arizona, Tucson, handled the prosecution.
CASE NUMBERS: 21-CR-02517-TUC-RM (DTF)
21-CR-50140-TUC-RM (DTF)RELEASE NUMBER: 2023-046_Caballero
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For more information on the U.S. Attorney’s Office, District of Arizona, visit http://www.justice.gov/usao/az/
Follow the U.S. Attorney’s Office, District of Arizona, on Twitter @USAO_AZ for the latest news.
30 March 2023
Ypsilanti Man Pleads Guilty to Lying About His Work on a Classified Naval Project for a Foreign Country During Application Process for a U.S. Navy JobRead the Press Release
DETROIT – An Ypsilanti man pleaded guilty this week to making several false statements in his security clearance application for a job working with the United States Navy overseas, announced United States Attorney Dawn N. Ison.
Ison was joined in the announcement by James A. Tarasca, Special Agent in Charge of the Detroit Field Office of the Federal Bureau of Investigation.
According to court records, Yifei Chu, age 57, a naturalized U.S. citizen and recent employee of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), applied for a three-year detailed assignment to the United States Embassy in Singapore working for the United States Navy. To obtain this position, Chu was required to apply for and obtain a security clearance. Chu made several false statements in his security clearance application during an interview with federal background investigators and in an affidavit he signed regarding his security clearance application.
Chu’s false statements were made to hide his extensive contacts with members of the Taiwanese Navy and a Taiwanese company. These contacts included the fact that Chu was hired by the Taiwanese company to provide consulting services on a “classified” Taiwanese Navy project, was paid money by the Taiwanese company, and that he traveled to Taiwan on multiple occasions to meet with members of the Taiwanese Navy on a military base in Taiwan in performance of his consulting services.
Chu pleaded guilty to both counts charged in the indictment: (1) making false statements and (2) falsifying records in a federal investigation. Chu faces a maximum sentence of five years in prison on the false statements charge, and a maximum of twenty years in prison on the false record in a federal investigation charge. Sentencing is set for August 15, 2023 before United States District Judge Victoria A. Roberts.
“It is vital that those individuals who gain access to classified information related to our national defense are truthful and honest about their connections to foreign governments so that our nation’s military secrets do not end up in the wrong hands,” said United States Attorney Dawn N. Ison.
“This case is about more than just lying on a job application,” said James A. Tarasca, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI’s Detroit Field Office. “In order to obtain a position with the U.S. Navy, Chu attempted to hide his extensive contacts with the Taiwanese government, potentially giving them access to our nation’s classified information and military technology. The FBI continues to work tirelessly to ensure only the most trusted people have access to the U.S. Government’s sensitive information.”
The case was investigated by the FBI and handled by Assistant United States Attorney Ronald Waterstreet.
Worcester Man Indicted for Receiving and Possessing Machinegun While Under IndictmentRead the Press Release
BOSTON – A Worcester man has been indicted by a federal grand jury in Worcester on two firearms charges.
Jose Rivera, 24, was charged by indictment with unlawful possession of a machine gun and receipt of a firearm while under indictment for a felony. Rivera was initially charged on March 7, 2023 for possession of a machinegun.
According to the charging documents, during a search of Rivera’s Worcester residence on March 7, 2023, three Glock switches – including one attached to a Glock .40 caliber firearm were recovered. Glock switches convert semi-automatic Glock pistols into fully automatic machine guns and are considered machine guns under federal law. The indictment alleges that Rivera received the Glock .40 caliber firearm at some point on or after Oct. 9, 2021, while he was under indictment in state court for a felony punishable by a term of imprisonment of over a year.
The charge of unlawful possession of a machinegun provides for a sentence of up to 10 years in prison, up to three years of supervised release and a fine of up to $250,000. The charge of receipt of a firearm while under felony indictment provides for a sentence of up to five years in prison, up to three years 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.
United States Attorney Rachael S. Rollins; James M. Ferguson, Special Agent in Charge of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms & Explosives, Boston Field Division; Worcester Police Chief Steven M. Sargent; and John E. Mawn, Jr., Interim Colonel of the Massachusetts State Police made the announcement today. Assistant U.S. Attorney Kaitlin Brown of Rollins’ Worcester Branch Office is prosecuting the case.
This case is also a 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.
The details contained in the charging documents are allegations. The remaining defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
Wilson Man Pleads Guilty to COVID-19 Fraud Scheme in North CarolinaRead the Press Release
RALEIGH, N.C. – Nekita Donyae Hooks, 44, pleaded guilty today to conspiracy to commit wire fraud for fraudulently obtaining a Paycheck Protection Act (“PPP”) COVID-19 loan. He faces up to 20 years in prison.
“This defendant, along with his network of co-conspirators, took taxpayer money meant to help struggling small businesses during a global pandemic,” said U.S. Attorney Michael Easley. “We are investigating and prosecuting those who steal from public programs intended to keep legitimate businesses afloat.”
According to the charged criminal information, the defendant conspired with Edward Whitaker, Schunda Coleman, and others to obtain a fraudulent PPP loan on behalf of Hooks’ business. Whitaker and Coleman pled guilty on January 19, 2023 for their role in operating a nation-wide scheme to help people across the country commit millions of dollars of PPP fraud.
According to charging documents and information summarized in court, Whitaker and Coleman created fraudulent supporting documents and applications for the PPP loan which they provided to Hooks in exchange for 25% of the total loan proceeds. The fraudulent application falsified the number of employees and gross wages being paid prior to the COVID pandemic, in order to help qualify for the PPP loan. Following the disbursement of the PPP loans, Whitaker instructed Hooks as to how to make it appear that the PPP loans were being paid out to employees, when in reality the money was transferred back to Hooks. The fraudulent payroll records were then submitted to the Small Business Administration (SBA) to obtain 100% loan forgiveness.
Late last year, Quentin Jackson pled guilty in the same conspiracy which included the recruitment of numerous individuals in the Eastern District of North Carolina to use Whitaker and Coleman to obtain fraudulent PPP funds.
“The Paycheck Protection Program was designed to help small businesses facing financial difficulties during the COVID-19 pandemic,” said Donald “Trey” Eakins, Internal Revenue Service (IRS) Criminal Investigation Special Agent in Charge in the Charlotte Field Office. “Through our partnership with the U.S. Attorney’s Office and our federal law enforcement partners, IRS Criminal Investigation Special Agents will continue to aggressively pursue individuals who try to exploit federal relief programs for their personal gain.”
The Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act was designed to provide emergency financial assistance to the millions of Americans who were economically suffering from the COVID-19 pandemic. The CARES Act and additional appropriations authorized up to $649 billion in forgivable loans to small businesses through the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP). Financial institutions issued the PPP loans, which were guaranteed by the SBA.
Michael Easley, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of North Carolina made the announcement after United States Magistrate Judge Robert T. Numbers II accepted the plea. Sentencing will occur before United States District Judge James C. Dever III later this year. Internal Revenue Service (IRS) Criminal Investigation is leading the investigation, and Assistant U.S. Attorney David G. Beraka is prosecuting the cases.
A copy of this press release is located on our website. Related court documents and information can be found on the website of the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of North Carolina or on PACER by searching for Case No. 5:23-CR-00025-D.
West Columbia Gang Member Pleads to Federal Drug ChargeRead the Press Release
COLUMBIA, SOUTH CAROLINA — Darius Antonio Pugh, 36, of West Columbia, pleaded guilty in federal court to two counts of being a felon in possession of firearms and ammunition and one count of possession with intent to distribute 50 grams or more of a mixture and substance containing a detectable amount of methamphetamine, a quantity of cocaine base (commonly known as crack cocaine), and a quantity of cocaine.
Evidence presented to the court showed that on the evening of August 14, 2020, a Charleston County deputy conducted a traffic stop of a speeding car. Pugh, the driver, was in the car with a friend. As the deputy was speaking with Pugh, he saw loose “shake” (marijuana) inside the car, which gave the deputy probable cause to search the car. Deputies recovered a small baggie of cocaine and a loaded handgun. Pugh, who was out on a state bond from Lexington County for a shooting, was arrested on new state charges and thereafter made another state bond.
While out on state bond, Pugh, a gang member, was involved in a high speed chase with Richland County deputies. Evidence presented to the court showed that on the evening of April 9, 2022, Richland County deputies responded to a home invasion in progress in northeast Columbia. Enroute, deputies received information that the suspect fled in an older model Expedition. While responding to the call, a deputy encountered an older model Expedition fitting the general description in the area. The deputy attempted to make a traffic stop of the Expedition for having improper vehicle tags.
As the deputy turned on his blue lights and siren, the Expedition fled onto 1-77 with speeds in excess of 100mph. The chase continued onto 277 South and came to a stop within the Colony apartment complex, after the Expedition struck a parked car as it attempted to make a turn at a high rate of speed. Pugh, the driver and sole occupant of the Expedition, exited the SUV and was stopped by the deputy after a short foot chase. Inside a bag that Pugh had, deputies found a loaded handgun with an extended magazine and clear bags of methamphetamine, cocaine, and crack cocaine. A search of Pugh’s Expedition revealed another loaded handgun, along with a jar of marijuana and a digital scale. Both handguns were determined to have been previously stolen in Charlotte. It was determined that Pugh was not the suspect involved in the home invasion and that his Expedition was not the Expedition the home invasion victim said left the scene.
Federal law prohibits Pugh from possessing firearms and ammunition based on prior state convictions that include possession of cocaine, possession of other controlled substance, assault and battery of a high and aggravated nature (two separate convictions), possession of stolen motor vehicle, distribution of heroin, distribution of fentanyl, failure to stop for blue light and siren, and discharging firearms into a dwelling.
Pugh faces a maximum penalty of 10 years in federal prison and a fine of $250,000 on the firearm charges and a mandatory minimum of 10 years with a maximum of life and a fine of $8,000,000 on the drug charge. After service of the term of imprisonment, Pugh will also face a term of supervised release of at least 8 years. United States District Judge Mary Geiger Lewis accepted the guilty plea and will sentence him after receiving and reviewing a sentencing report prepared by the United States Probation Office.
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), the Richland County Sheriff’s Department, the Charleston County Sheriff’s Office, and the Mt. Pleasant Police Department. Assistant U.S. Attorney Stacey D. Haynes is prosecuting the case.
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Wesley Chapel Man Pleads Guilty to Exploiting and Producing Sexual Abuse Material Depicting Half A Dozen ChildrenRead the Press Release
Tampa, Florida – United States Attorney Roger B. Handberg announces that Clayton Everett Colborn (31, Wesley Chapel) has pleaded guilty to two counts of enticement and coercion of a minor to engage in sexual activity, five counts of using minors to produce child sexual abuse images and videos, and one count of possessing child sexual abuse material. Colborn faces a minimum mandatory penalty of 15 years, and up to life, in federal prison and mandatory court-ordered restitution. Colborn has agreed to forfeit electronic devices and his black Chevrolet Corvette, which were used in the commission of the offense. A sentencing hearing has not yet been scheduled.
According to court documents, between 2018 and continuing through 2020, Colborn used a social networking application to find minors for the purpose of engaging in sex acts. Colborn, who was between the ages of 27 and 28 at the time of his offenses, created a fictitious profile named “Jason Rich” and indicated that he was 16 years old. The social networking application is designed to help people make friendships and has two distinct age groups based on a user’s profile: 1) ages 13 to 17 years old, and 2) ages 18 years and older. Using the fictitious profile, Colborn met the victims in group one—ages 13 to 17 years old. He told the victims he was 16 years old and enticed them into engaging in sexual intercourse with him at various locations throughout the Middle District of Florida, including his car, apartment, and victims’ residences. In one instance, the Ocoee Police Department caught Colborn in a public park in the middle of the night with a child victim. Colborn’s pants were unzipped at the time officers chased and apprehended him in the park. Law enforcement officers obtained DNA evidence which showed that Colborn had engaged in sexual activity with the child victim.
To date, the FBI has identified and interviewed seven child victims who all resided within the Middle District of Florida. Colborn victimized each child victim in a similar manner.
During the investigation, the FBI obtained a federal search warrant for Colborn’s iCloud account and found approximately 30 videos and 81 images that Colborn had produced of himself engaging in sexual acts with various young girls between the ages of 13 and 17 years old.
This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Ocoee Police Department, and the Pasco Sheriff’s Office. It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Lisa M. Thelwell.
Anyone with information regarding Clayton Everett Colborn, also known as “Jason Rich,” “Jason,” “Clay,” or “Clayay” should call 1-800-CALL-FBI (1-800-225-5324) or submit online at tips.fbi.gov.
This is another case brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by the United States Attorneys’ Offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who sexually exploit children, and to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.justice.gov/psc.
Van Zandt County Man Sentenced for Federal Drug Trafficking ViolationsRead the Press Release
TYLER, Texas - A Canton man has been sentenced to federal prison for drug trafficking violations in the Eastern District of Texas, announced U.S. Attorney Brit Featherston today.
Ashton Norris, 30, pleaded guilty on August 22, 2022, to possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine and was sentenced to 97 months in federal prison today by U.S. District Judge J. Campbell Barker.
According to information presented in court, on Oct. 4, 2021, Norris was stopped on IH-20 in Van Zandt County for a defective license plate lamp. During the stop, it was discovered that Norris had an active warrant for his arrest out of Wood County and Norris was placed under arrest. An inventory of the vehicle after Norris was arrested revealed a backpack with approximately 103 grams of methamphetamine. Norris was indicted by a federal grand jury on Dec. 5, 2021 and charged with federal drug trafficking violations.
This case was investigated by the Canton Police Department, the Wood County Sheriff’s Office, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration. This case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Jim Noble.
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Vallejo Man Pleads Guilty to Conspiracy to Traffic Heroin and MethamphetamineRead the Press Release
SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Michael Renay Williams, 62, of Vallejo, pleaded guilty today to conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute heroin and at least 500 grams of methamphetamine, U.S. Attorney Phillip A. Talbert announced.
According to court documents, between September and November 2020, Williams sold large quantities of heroin and methamphetamine on numerous occasions to an undercover agent. At the time of his arrest, he was in possession of approximately 3 pounds of crystal methamphetamine.
This case is the product of an investigation by the Drug Enforcement Administration, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Homeland Security Investigations, and the Vallejo Police Department. Assistant U.S. Attorney Cameron L. Desmond is prosecuting the case.
Williams is scheduled to be sentenced on Oct. 5, 2023, by U.S. District Judge Troy L. Nunley. He faces a mandatory minimum 10 years in prison and a maximum statutory penalty of life in prison and a $10 million fine. The actual sentence, however, will be determined at the discretion of the court after consideration of any applicable statutory factors and the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, which take into account a number of variables.
Charges are pending against co-defendant, Clarence Courtney, 57, of Vallejo. Courtney is scheduled for a jury trial to begin on March 11, 2024. The charges are only allegations; he is presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.
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 www.justice.gov/OCDETF.
United States Attorney Jane E. Young Announces New Criminal Division LeadershipRead the Press Release
CONCORD – United States Attorney Jane E. Young announced the appointments of Assistant U.S. Attorney Seth R. Aframe to serve as the Criminal Division Chief and Assistant U.S. Attorney Jennifer C. Davis to serve as the Deputy Criminal Division Chief.
“I am delighted to announce Seth Aframe as the Criminal Division Chief and Jennifer Davis as the Deputy Criminal Chief,” said U.S. Attorney Young. “Together, Seth and Jen have diligently served the office for more than half a century. Each bring strong legal, analytical, and mentorship skills. Additionally, they have demonstrated an unparalleled devotion to this outstanding office. I am confident that under their leadership the Criminal Division will continue to thrive.”
Assistant U.S. Attorney Aframe has served the U.S. Department of Justice since 2007 in the District of New Hampshire’s criminal and civil divisions, most recently serving as the Deputy Criminal Division Chief. Over the course of his esteemed career, Mr. Aframe prosecuted a variety of federal violations, including fraud, drug, firearm, and child exploitation crimes. He also litigated over 100 appeals before the United States Court of Appeals for the First Circuit. Mr. Aframe has served as the District’s Elections Coordinator and Civil Rights Coordinator since 2018.
Mr. Aframe is a respected member of his community. He is an Adjunct Professor at the University of New Hampshire Law School, and previously served as a School Board Member in Hopkinton. Mr. Aframe is a graduate of Georgetown University Law Center.
Ms. Davis has nearly 30 years of experience serving as an Assistant U.S. Attorney in the District of New Hampshire. Most recently, she has conducted complex long-term narcotics investigations as the District’s Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force Coordinator and National Opioid Coordinator. Since 2022, she has served as a mentor for her colleagues as the District’s Senior Litigation Counsel.
Ms. Davis has prosecuted and tried cases related to health care and security fraud, firearm and narcotics, immigration, and white-collar crimes. Earlier in her career, Ms. Davis received a detail appointment as the Assistant Director for Criminal Programs at the U.S. Department of Justice’s Office of Legal Education, where she oversaw the implementation of trainings for the country’s federal prosecutors. She is a graduate of Marquette University Law School.
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U.S. Attorney’s Office Files Lawsuit Against Local 1456 to Compel Fair Election of Union OfficersRead the Press Release
NEWARK, N.J. – The U.S. Attorney’s Office today filed a lawsuit in U.S. District Court for the District of New Jersey to compel Port Police and Security Guards Union, Local 1456, to hold a fair election under the Labor-Management Reporting and Disclosure Act of 1959, U.S. Attorney Philip R. Sellinger announced.
The lawsuit alleges that Local 1456 established bylaws for the election of union officers that rendered 98 percent of the union’s membership ineligible to be elected to leadership positions. The suit alleges that any union member who missed the union’s September 2021 meeting – more than a year before the election – was rendered ineligible by that fact alone. The suit alleges that Local 1456’s officers disqualified at least four individuals who were or sought to be nominated at its nomination meeting on Nov. 1, 2022. A slate of five officers – four of whom had voted to disqualify candidates who might have opposed them – was then elected unopposed.
The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorney Paul W. Kaufman of the Camden office.
The complaint is an allegation of unlawful conduct. The allegation must still be proven in federal court.
ppgu1456.complaint.pdfTwo Involved in Violent Robberies of AT&T Stores Sentenced to PrisonRead the Press Release
Vanessa Roberts Avery, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, today announced that two participants in a spree of violent robberies of AT&T stores in Connecticut and western Massachusetts were sentenced yesterday by U.S. District Judge Stefan R. Underhill in Bridgeport. SHAQUILLE RAYMOND, 25, of Hartford was sentenced to 72 months of imprisonment and five years of supervised release, and SAVIANA BOURNE, 25, of Middletown, was sentenced to 78 months of imprisonment and three years of supervised release.
According to court documents and statements made in court, in 2021, Raymond, Alex Josephs, Ronaldo Smith and Deshawn Baugh committed several violent armed robberies of AT&T stores in Connecticut and western Massachusetts. The perpetrators typically entered the stores shortly before closing, pointed weapons at employees, and, at times, pistol-whipped, dragged, and shoved employees toward the back inventory room. They then held the employees at gunpoint while loading large bags with cell phones and other electronics. The group stole hundreds of thousands of dollars in merchandise. Bourne, who worked at AT&T stores, helped plan the robberies, served as a getaway driver, and coordinated the sale of the stolen merchandise.
The investigation revealed that Raymond, Josephs, and Smith robbed AT&T stores in Newington on January 29, 2021, and Enfield on February 24, 2021. Baugh then joined the conspiracy and together they robbed an AT&T store in Canton on April 15, 2021, and attempted to rob stores in Torrington and Glastonbury in May 2021, but were locked out of the stores.
On June 6, 2021, Raymond and his associates, armed with a semiautomatic pistol, two revolvers, and a semiautomatic rifle, robbed an AT&T store in West Springfield, Massachusetts. After the robbery, they fled in a vehicle driven by Bourne, who led police on a high-speed chase that ended when their vehicle collided with a Massachusetts State Police cruiser. Raymond, Josephs, Smith, Baugh, and Bourne were arrested, and a search of the vehicle revealed more than $150,000 in stolen merchandise, as well as the firearms used during the robbery.
Judge Underhill ordered Raymond and Bourne to pay restitution of $298,073.86, which reflects the losses from the Newington, Enfield, and Canton robberies. The property stolen in the West Springfield robbery was recovered.
Raymond and Bourne have been detained since their arrests. On October 28, 2022, Raymond pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit Hobbs Act robbery and one count of brandishing a firearm during and in relation to a crime of violence. On November 30, 2021, Bourne pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit Hobbs Act robbery, four counts of Hobbs Act robbery, and two counts of attempted Hobbs Act robbery.
Josephs, Smith, and Baugh also pleaded guilty. On March 1, 2023, Baugh was sentenced to 108 months of imprisonment and was ordered to pay restitution of $124,842.45, which reflects the loss from the Canton robbery. Josephs and Smith await sentencing.
This matter has been investigated by the FBI's Connecticut Violent Crimes Task Force with the assistance of the Massachusetts State Police and the Newington, Enfield, Canton, Torrington, Glastonbury, and West Springfield Police Departments. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Robert S. Ruff.
Tuscola Man Sentenced to 27 years in Prison for the Sexual Exploitation of ChildrenRead the Press Release
BAY CITY – A Tuscola County man, who went by the online moniker “thefundad,” was sentenced this week to 27 years in prison for sexually exploiting two 13-year-old girls, United States Attorney Dawn N. Ison announced today.
Ison was joined in the announcement by Angie M. Salazar, Special Agent in Charge of Homeland Security Investigations, Detroit Field Office.
Brian Siwka, age 39, of Reese, Michigan, was sentenced by United States District Judge Thomas L. Ludington. Siwka sexually exploited two 13-year-old girls that he found through the “Kik” social media application. He engaged in sexual chats with both girls and made them take sexually explicit photographs of themselves and send them to him over the internet via Kik. Siwka further admitted that he had produced nearly two dozen recordings of other minors online, whom he had also made engage in sexually explicit conduct for him. At the time of his arrest in September 2020, Siwka was in possession of 178 images of child pornography and 21 videos of children engaging in sexually explicit conduct at the urging of Siwka on his laptop.
“This defendant repeatedly sought out, groomed, and sexually exploited multiple children whom he met online,” U.S. Attorney Ison said. “Our work rooting out these online sexual predators seems never-ending, but my office will not stop bringing online sexual predators and all who prey on our children to justice.”
“Our agents and partners will continue to identify and apprehend these predators within our communities and work to bring them to justice,” said Angie M. Salazar, Special Agent in Charge of Homeland Security Investigations, Detroit Field Office. “It is my hope that this sentencing brings some measure of peace to these victims and deters others from targeting children online.”
This case was investigated by Homeland Security Investigations. The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Ann Nee.
Syracuse Man Sentenced to Serve 192 Months for Possessing and Intending to Distribute CocaineRead the Press Release
SYRACUSE, NEW YORK – Jondell Middlebrooks, age 42, of Syracuse, was sentenced today to serve 192 months in federal prison following his conviction for possessing with intent to distribute cocaine, announced United States Attorney Carla B. Freedman, Frank A. Tarentino III, Special Agent in Charge of the United States Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), New York Division, Chief Joseph Cecile, City of Syracuse Police Department, and New York State Police Acting Superintendent Steven A. Nigrelli.
As part of his prior guilty plea, Middlebrooks admitted that on June 23, 2022, he possessed a quantity of cocaine that he stored in Syracuse, NY and intended to distribute. At the time he possessed it, Middlebrooks was on supervised release following a 2019 federal drug conviction.
United States District Judge Glenn T. Suddaby further sentenced Middlebrooks to a consecutive 18-month term of imprisonment for violating his supervised release and a new six-year term of supervised release to begin after he serves his terms of imprisonment.
The case was investigated by the DEA-Syracuse Resident Office, the Syracuse Police Department, the New York State Police, and the United States Probation Department-Northern District of New York. The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Thomas Sutcliffe.
Swiss Executive Pleads Guilty to Conspiracy to Defraud the IRSRead the Press Release
An executive of the holding company that owns Privatbank IHAG pleaded guilty today to conspiring to conceal over $60 million of undeclared assets held by wealthy American clients of the Swiss private bank.
According to court documents and statements made in court, from approximately 2009 to 2014, Daniel Wälchli, a member of the bank holding company’s executive board, worked with others to help Privatbank IHAG conceal the accounts of American customers who did not want to disclose their Swiss bank accounts to the IRS. The scheme involved a number of steps designed to obscure these undeclared accounts by stripping them of any indicia of U.S. ownership. Known as the “Singapore Solution,” members of the conspiracy sent over $60 million dollars on “round trips” across the globe. The money was sent from Privatbank IHAG accounts in Switzerland to a bank in Hong Kong before returning to Privatbank IHAG in accounts held by a Singaporean asset manager owned and controlled by the Swiss bank’s holding company.
Pursuant to the terms of his plea agreement, Wälchli will not dispute that the tax loss was $531,524, and he agrees that a sentencing enhancement for “sophisticated means” is appropriate.
Wälchli faces a maximum penalty of five years in prison. He also faces a period of supervised release and monetary penalties. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
Acting Deputy Assistant Attorney General Stuart M. Goldberg of the Justice Department’s Tax Division and U.S. Attorney Damian Williams for the Southern District of New York made the announcement.
IRS-Criminal Investigation is investigating the case.
Senior Litigation Counsel Nanette Davis and Trial Attorney Christopher Magnani of the Justice Department’s Tax Division and Assistant U.S. Attorney Olga Zverovich of the Southern District of New York are prosecuting the case.
Swiss Executive Pleads Guilty to Tax Fraud ConspiracyRead the Press Release
Damian Williams, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, Stuart M. Goldberg, Acting Deputy Assistant Attorney General of the Justice Department’s Tax Division, and James C. Lee, Chief of the Internal Revenue Service, Criminal Investigation (“IRS-CI”), announced that DANIEL WÄLCHLI pled guilty today to conspiring to defraud the United States in connection with a scheme to help wealthy American clients conceal more than $60 million in income and assets held in undeclared offshore bank accounts and evade U.S. income taxes. WÄLCHLI was a member of the executive board of a Swiss holding company that owned, among other entities, a Zurich-based private bank called Privatbank IHAG Zurich AG (“IHAG”). WÄLCHLI pled guilty earlier today before U.S. District Judge Gregory H. Woods.
According to the allegations in the Indictment, court filings, and statements made in Court:
From in or about 2009 to in or about 2014, WÄLCHLI and his co-conspirators defrauded the IRS by concealing income and assets of three wealthy U.S. clients with undeclared bank accounts at IHAG. In order to assist the U.S. clients, WÄLCHLI and his co-conspirators devised and implemented a scheme dubbed the “Singapore Solution” to fraudulently conceal the bank accounts of the U.S. clients, their assets, and their income from U.S. authorities. In furtherance of the fraudulent scheme, WÄLCHLI and his co-conspirators agreed to transfer more than $60 million from undeclared IHAG bank accounts of the U.S. clients through a series of nominee bank accounts in Hong Kong and other locations before returning the funds to newly opened accounts at IHAG in the name of a Singapore-based asset-management firm that WÄLCHLI helped establish. The U.S. clients paid large fees to IHAG and others to help them conceal their assets and evade U.S. income taxes.
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WÄLCHLI, 55, of Switzerland, pled guilty to one count of conspiracy to defraud the United States, which carries a maximum sentence of five years in prison.
The maximum potential sentence in this case is prescribed by Congress and is provided here for informational purposes only, as WÄLCHLI’s sentence will be determined by the judge.
Mr. Williams praised the outstanding work of IRS-CI. Mr. Williams thanked the Department of Justice’s Tax Division for their partnership on this case.
This prosecution is being handled by the Complex Frauds and Cybercrime Unit of the United States Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York and the Department of Justice’s Tax Division. Assistant U.S. Attorney Olga I. Zverovich of the United States Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York and Senior Litigation Counsel Nanette Davis and Trial Attorney Christopher Magnani of the Tax Division are in charge of the prosecution.
St. Louis Man Sentenced to 10+ Years in Prison for Fentanyl, GunsRead the Press Release
ST. LOUIS – A man caught twice in St. Louis, Missouri with guns and fentanyl after police chases that ended in crashes was sentenced Thursday to 10 years and 10 months in prison.
Geno Armstrong, 28, pleaded guilty Nov. 30, 2022 to two counts of possession with intent to distribute fentanyl and one count of possession of a firearm in furtherance of one or more drug trafficking crimes.He admitted that he and three others, Deondre Hill, Terryon McDonald and Phillip Robinson, were spotted on Oct. 12, 2021 in a stolen Audi A8 by members of the St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department Anti-Crime Task Force Using spike strips, task force officers flattened the two front tires but McDonald sped off. Hill threw a gun out of the front passenger seat window on Goodfellow Avenue during the chase. The Audi eventually crashed into a concrete planter and electrical signal at Goodfellow and Delmar avenues. McDonald, Hill and Robinson fled on foot. Armstrong was found in the rear of the Audi with a Kel-Tec 5.56 rifle with a large capacity magazine and a Coach man bag containing fentanyl. Cash totaling $6,779 and methamphetamine was also found in the car.
On Nov. 5, 2021, after another crash, St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department officers found a Glock .40-caliber pistol, marijuana and fentanyl in a Chevrolet Malibu that Armstrong had been driving.
Armstrong’s co-defendants have also pleaded guilty and have been sentenced.
Hill, 30, of Georgia, was sentenced January 5 to seven years in prison on charges of possession with intent to distribute fentanyl, possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine and possession of a firearm in furtherance of one or more drug trafficking crime.
McDonald, 20, of Florissant, was sentenced February 28 to three years in prison on charges of possession with intent to distribute fentanyl and possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine.
Robinson, 28, of St. Louis was sentenced February 28 to five years in prison on one count of possession with intent to distribute fentanyl.
The Drug Enforcement Administration and the St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department investigated the case. Assistant U.S. Attorney J. Christian Goeke is prosecuting the case.
Southern District of New York Court Employee and Practicing Attorney Charged with Bribery and Making False StatementsRead the Press Release
Damian Williams, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, announced today the unsealing of charges against DIONISIO FIGUEROA, a/k/a “Dionicio,” an employee of the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York (“the SDNY District Court”), and TELESFORO DEL VALLE, JR., a/k/a “Ted,” a criminal defense attorney practicing in the SDNY District Court and elsewhere, for their participation in a scheme in which FIGUEROA referred criminal defendants to DEL VALLE and encouraged those defendants to retain DEL VALLE as counsel in exchange for cash payments from DEL VALLE to FIGUEROA. FIGUEROA was arrested, and DEL VALLE surrendered earlier today, and both will be presented before United States Magistrate Judge Andrew E. Krause in the SDNY District courthouse in White Plains, New York.
U.S. Attorney Damian Williams said: “The public, the Court, and the bar all rely on the integrity and honesty of the professionals who work for the Court and the lawyers who appear there. For years, Figueroa and Del Valle allegedly violated their duties and undermined the fair administration of justice, all for their personal gain. This Office will do its part to uphold the high standards of conduct expected of all those who play a role in the criminal justice process.”
According to the allegations in the Indictment:[1]
As a clerk in the SDNY Magistrate Clerk’s Office since in or about 2002, FIGUEROA was responsible for performing duties that included, among other things, making data entries regarding official case events in criminal cases; making summary entries of documents and proceedings on case dockets; and performing inquiries and furnishing information, either in person or by correspondence, regarding the status of cases. FIGUEROA also played a role with respect to the intake of criminal cases, including by preparing appearance bonds, advising defendants and their family members about the conditions of the bonds, and ensuring that appearance bonds were signed by all parties prior to a defendant’s release.
SDNY District Court personnel policies prohibited FIGUEROA from having outside employment that would pose a conflict of interest; receiving payments, gifts, or other benefits from persons having business before the SDNY District Court; and recommending particular attorneys to members of the public. FIGUEROA also was subject to the United States Courts’ Code of Conduct for Judicial Employees (the “Code of Conduct”), which cautioned judicial employees that “[a] number of criminal statutes of general applicability govern federal employees’ performance of official duties. These include: 18 U.S.C. § 201 (bribery of public officials and witnesses) ….” The Code of Conduct likewise admonished, among other things, that “[a] judicial employee should never influence or attempt to influence the assignment of cases, or perform any discretionary or ministerial function of the court in a manner that improperly favors any litigant or attorney, nor should a judicial employee imply that he or she is in a position to do so.”
DEL VALLE is a private attorney who has appeared in numerous federal criminal cases pending before the SDNY District Court.
Between at least 2011 and 2022, FIGUEROA and DEL VALLE engaged in a scheme whereby FIGUEROA used his position as an employee of the SDNY District Court to encourage criminal defendants to retain DEL VALLE to represent them in pending criminal cases. In return, DEL VALLE paid FIGUEROA a portion of the fees clients paid to DEL VALLE. Over the course of more than a decade, FIGUEROA referred at least 45 SDNY criminal defendants to DEL VALLE, and DEL VALLE paid FIGUEROA tens of thousands of dollars in referral fees. DEL VALLE paid FIGUEROA directly and through an intermediary, who would pick up envelopes of cash for FIGUEROA from DEL VALLE’s law office.
Many of the clients who ended up retaining and paying DEL VALLE were assigned free, court-appointed counsel. Nevertheless, FIGUEROA encouraged those individuals to change counsel, including by vouching for DEL VALLE’s abilities as a lawyer. For example, in July 2018, FIGUEROA told family members of one defendant (“Defendant-1”), in substance, that FIGUEROA knew a good attorney who was a specialist in similar cases and could get
Defendant-1 out of trouble. He then provided FIGUEROA’s contact information to
Defendant-1’s relative. Similarly, in February 2020, FIGUEROA told a family member of another defendant (“Defendant-2”), in substance, that if anyone could help Defendant-2 in Defendant-2’s case, it was DEL VALLE. At the time, Defendant-2 was represented by court-appointed counsel.FIGUEROA and DEL VALLE are also charged with making false statements to law enforcement during the investigation. In November 2022, federal law enforcement agents separately interviewed both FIGUEROA and DEL VALLE. After advising each that lying to federal law enforcement agents is a federal crime, FIGUEROA and DEL VALLE each made materially false, fictitious, and fraudulent statements and representations in response to the agents’ questions. In particular, FIGUEROA denied making any referrals to DEL VALLE, except on a small number of occasions concerning close relations or friends, and further denied ever having received payments from DEL VALLE for referrals. As to DEL VALLE, upon being served with a federal grand jury subpoena requiring the production of records from his law firm, DEL VALLE denied having any records reflecting client referrals from, or payments to, FIGUEROA or anyone else.
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FIGUEROA, 66, of New York, New York, and DEL VALLE, 65, of Leonia, New Jersey, are each charged with one count of conspiracy to bribe a federal employee and pay illegal compensation to a judicial employee, which carries a maximum potential sentence of five years in prison; one count of bribery of a federal employee, which carries a maximum potential sentence of 15 years in prison; one count of illegal compensation to a judicial employee, which carries a maximum potential sentence of five years in prison; and one count of false statements, which carries a maximum potential sentence of five years in prison.
The maximum potential sentences are prescribed by Congress and are provided here for informational purposes only, as any sentencing of the defendants will be determined by a judge.
Mr. Williams praised the outstanding investigative work of the Special Agents from the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York.
The case is being prosecuted by the Office’s Public Corruption Unit. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Frank Balsamello, Andrew Rohrbach, and Jarrod L. Schaeffer are in charge of the prosecution.
The charges contained in the Indictment are merely accusations, and the defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
[1] As the introductory phrase signifies, the entirety of the text of the Indictment and the descriptions of the Indictment set forth below constitute only allegations, and every fact described should be treated as an allegation.
South Texas tax fraud: preparer convicted of filing fraudulent returnsRead the Press Release
CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas – A local tax preparer has admitted to preparing false and fraudulent tax returns on behalf of Texas taxpayers, announced U.S. Attorney Alamdar S. Hamdani.
Berlinda Luikens was the owner and operator of a tax preparation business known as the Tax Company in Corpus Christi.
Luikens admitted that between 2016 and 2020, she filed false and fraudulent tax returns for taxpayers. In those fraudulent returns, Luikens knowingly reported false business and farming losses and false charitable deductions in amounts she knew the taxpayers were not entitled to claim.
The fraudulent tax returns resulted in a loss of at least $446,301 to the United States.
“Tax season ends on April 15, but there is no end to our efforts to bring tax criminals to justice,” said Special Agent-in-Charge Ramsey E. Covington of IRS Criminal Investigation’s (IRS-CI) Houston Field Office. “Our special agents are the best in the business when it comes to solving financial crimes, which is why more than 90 percent of our cases result in convictions.”
U.S. District Judge Ramos will impose sentencing June 28. At that time, Luikens faces up to three years in federal prison and a possible $250,000 maximum fine. She was permitted to remain on bond pending that hearing.
IRS – CI conducted the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney John Marck is prosecuting the case.
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South Sacramento Man Sentenced to 24 Years in Prison for Attempted Online Enticement of a Minor for Sexual PurposesRead the Press Release
SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Dilesh Sharma, 50, of Sacramento, was sentenced today to 24 years in prison, to be followed by a lifetime of supervised release, for attempted online enticement of a minor for sexual purposes, distribution of child pornography, and receipt of child pornography, U.S. Attorney Phillip A. Talbert announced.
“Today’s sentence is a warning to other online predators,” said U.S. Attorney Talbert. “We are determined to use every legal avenue we have to identify and apprehend these criminals and protect children from harm.”
“The FBI is deeply committed to ensuring cases like these are conducted with extensive rigor to ensure the allegations are a clear statement of fact and accurately represent the behavior of the accused,” said Special Agent in Charge Sean Ragan of the FBI Sacramento Field Office. “Mr. Sharma will now have decades in federal prison to consider the consequences of his actions and the threat he posed to minors.”
According to court documents, in November 2016, Sharma used the Craigslist email system and the Kik application to electronically message back and forth with a person who identified himself as an adult, but who Sharma did not know was an undercover law enforcement agent. Sharma expressed his interest in gaining access to a minor for sexual purposes, and the undercover agent told Sharma that his girlfriend had an 11-year-old daughter. Eventually, Sharma’s conversations with the undercover agent reached a point where Sharma suggested that the two meet. On March 30, 2017, they met to set up an in-person meeting where Sharma was supposed to meet the minor for a sexual purpose. The next day, Sharma arrived at the designated meeting place and was arrested. During a review of Sharma’s iPhone, seized from him at the time of arrest, law enforcement agents discovered that Sharma received and distributed child pornography on Kik with someone other than the undercover agent.
This case was the product of an investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Roger Yang and Rosanne Rust prosecuted the case.
This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by 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 those who sexually exploit children, and to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.usdoj.gov/psc. Click on the “resources” tab for information about internet-safety education.
Snapchat Predator Is Sentenced to 17.5 Years in Prison for Distribution of Child PornographyRead the Press Release
CHARLOTTE, N.C. – A Charlotte man who used Snapchat to coerce a minor to share child pornography was sentenced to 17.5 years in prison today, announced Dena J. King, U.S. Attorney for the Western District of North Carolina. Sean Matthew Burney, 28, was also ordered to serve a lifetime of supervised release and will be required to register as a sex offender after he is released from prison.
Robert M. DeWitt, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI in North Carolina, and Chief Johnny Jennings of the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department (CMPD) join U.S. Attorney King in making today’s announcement.
According to filed court documents and today’s sentencing hearing, between February 21 and February 24, 2021, Burney used Snapchat to coerce a minor male victim to create and share videos and images that contained child pornography. The criminal investigation began once the minor victim’s mother contacted CMPD to report that her 14-year-old son was being blackmailed via Snapchat and was forced to send the blackmailer images and videos of the minor engaging in sexually explicit conduct.According to court records, Burney represented himself as a female via Snapchat and contacted the victim. When the victim sent the sexually explicit images to Burney, the victim was under the impression that he was communicating with a female. Court records show that from that point on, Burney demanded additional child pornography from the victim, and threatened to post the victim’s sexually explicit images and videos on social media if the victim did not comply. Burney continued to ask the victim for additional child pornography, knowing the victim was 14 years old.
According to court documents, when the victim didn’t respond to Burney, the defendant posted on Snapchat the victim’s account name and a caption to contact him if people wanted videos.
Over the course of the investigation, law enforcement determined that the suspect Snapchat account belonged to Burney. A search warrant for the minor victim’s and Burney’s Snapchat accounts was executed. During a forensic analysis of material seized pursuant to the search warrants, law enforcement located the child pornography.
On October 19, 2022, Burney pleaded guilty to distribution of child pornography. He is currently in federal custody. He will be transferred to the custody of the federal Bureau of Prisons upon designation of a federal facility.
In announcing today’s sentence, U.S. District Judge Frank D. Whitney said that Burney’s predatory actions not only targeted a minor, but sought to take over his free will.
The FBI and CMPD handled the investigation.
Assistant United States Attorney Stephanie Spaugh, of the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Charlotte, prosecuted the case.
This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse, launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice. Led by U.S. Attorneys’ Offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS), Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state and local resources to better locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the Internet, as well as to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.projectsafechildhood.gov.
Significant sentence imposed in multiple-man robbery crewRead the Press Release
HOUSTON – The 11th member of a 12-person robbery crew has been ordered to prison for his role in a string of armed robberies including one in which shots were fired, announced U.S. Attorney Alamdar S. Hamdani.
Denzell Devoe Lucious, 31, Houston, pleaded guilty in March 2022.
Today, U.S. District Judge Andrew Hanen imposed a total of 168 months in federal prison - 84 months for the robberies and a consecutive 84 months for aiding and abetting the use of a firearm during a crime of violence. The sentence will be to be immediately followed by three years of supervised release.
Others previously convicted and sentenced include Lontay Lavelle Young, 39, Deshaun Devon Waldrup, 27, Edward Ray Lavergne Jr., 39, Jesse Markise McQueen, 32, Kevin Craig Gray, 38, Louis Jerome Hines, 44, Terry Dwight Washington, 37, Tony Dontrel Young, 32, Barry Lloyd Jones, 30, Ross White-Leonard, 33, and Kenneth Dewayne Cooper, 34. All are from Houston.
Lontay Young, Tony Young, Waldrup, Lavergne, McQueen, White-Leonard and Jones received respective sentences of 209, 132, 125, 114, 180, 102 and 156 months, respectively. Gray and Washington both received 147-month-terms of imprisonment, while Hines was ordered to serve 171 months. Cooper is still pending sentencing.
This group conducted at least six robberies over the course of six months at various commercial establishments.
On Oct. 22, 2015, Lontay Young and Hines robbed the Family Dollar store on Wayside in Houston while wearing masks and carrying handguns.
Then, on Jan. 11, 2016, Jones, Cooper, Lucious and McQueen traveled outside of Houston to rob the Ben Bridge Jewelers at Barton Springs Mall in Austin. There, they stole a significant amount of Rolex watches and jewelry.
Less than two weeks later, this group, along with Tony Young, also robbed the Kay Jewelers located at the Houston Premium Outlet Mall. While Jones, Cooper and Young accosted the employees at gunpoint, Lucious sat outside acting as a lookout. McQueen distracted the security guard while the robbery occurred. They again stole numerous watches and jewelry.
On March 3, 2016, Lontay Young, Washington, Gray and Lavergne also held up the ANF Auto Finance on North Shepherd Drive. They entered the business acting as customers until Gray pulled out a gun. They then stole cash and property of the business, employees and customers.
Lontay Young later proceeded to commit two more robberies. Those included the March 9, 2016, robbery of Cash America Pawn on Jensen Drive with Waldrup and the Affordable Furniture store on the North Freeway on March 17, 2016, along with Jones and White-Leonard.
At the time of the furniture store robbery, authorities arrived on scene and shots were fired.
All have been and will remain in custody.
The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms conducted the investigation in conjunction with police departments in Houston and Austin and Harris County Sheriff’s Office. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Richard Hanes and Heather Winter are prosecuting the case.
Schenectady Man Sentenced to 84 Months on Drug and Gun ConvictionsRead the Press Release
ALBANY, NEW YORK – Brandon Prawl, age 28, of Schenectady, New York, was sentenced today to 84 months in prison for distributing heroin, possessing heroin with the intent to distribute, and possessing a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime.
The announcement was made by United States Attorney Carla B. Freedman; John B. DeVito, Special Agent in Charge of the New York Field Division of the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF); and New York State Police Acting Superintendent Steven A. Nigrelli.
A jury voted to convict Prawl on November 9, 2022, following a 3-day jury trial. The trial evidence established that on four dates in September 2019, Prawl distributed heroin out of a residence in Schenectady. On October 4, 2019, Prawl was found in possession of a .45 caliber pistol and loaded magazine, more than 21 grams of heroin, and drug distribution paraphernalia at the same residence. The jury concluded that Prawl possessed the heroin for distribution, and the firearm in furtherance of his drug trafficking activities.
United States District Judge Glenn T. Suddaby also imposed a 3-year term of post-imprisonment supervised release.
ATF and New York State Police investigated the case, and Assistant United States Attorneys Ashlyn Miranda and Emmet O’Hanlon prosecuted the case.
This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), the centerpiece of the Department of Justice’s violent crime reduction efforts. PSN is an evidence-based program proven to be effective at reducing violent crime. Through PSN, a broad spectrum of stakeholders work together to identify the most pressing violent crime problems in the community and develop comprehensive solutions to address them. As part of this strategy, PSN focuses enforcement efforts on the most violent offenders and partners with locally based prevention and reentry programs for lasting reductions in crime.
Salem Drug Trafficker Sentenced to Federal PrisonRead the Press Release
MEDFORD, Ore.—On March 29, 2023, a Salem, Oregon man was sentenced to more than 12 years in federal prison after he was caught transporting several dozen pounds of methamphetamine.
David Contreras, aka Jorge Castillo-Gomez, 51, was sentenced to 151 months in federal prison and five years’ supervised release.
According to court documents, on April 9, 2019, Contreras and an accomplice were traveling north on Interstate 5 near Central Point, Oregon when they were stopped by an Oregon State Police (OSP) trooper for speeding. As the trooper approached the vehicle, he observed a cardboard box inside containing a clear package with a substance resembling methamphetamine. While the trooper processed the traffic violation, he determined that the driver had a suspended Oregon driver’s license and Contreras, a passenger, did not possess a license.
After an OSP narcotics canine alerted on the vehicle, troopers conducted a search. Inside the cardboard box they found several packages containing more than 33 pounds of methamphetamine. In addition to the drugs, they located a firearm concealed on the driver’s person, more than $3,000 in cash on Contreras’ person, and an additional $6,000 in cash in a backpack. The driver explained that he reported to Contreras who provided the troopers with a false name and identification documents.
On May 1, 2019, a federal grand jury in Medford returned an indictment charging Contreras and his accomplice with possessing with intent to distribute methamphetamine. On November 8, 2021, Contreras pleaded guilty to the single charge.
This case was investigated by OSP with assistance from Homeland Security Investigations (HSI). It was prosecuted by Marco A. Boccato, Assistant U.S. Attorney for the District of Oregon.
St. Croix Man Sentenced to 12 Months on a Felon in Possession of a Firearm ConvictionRead the Press Release
St. Croix, VI – United States Attorney Delia L. Smith announced today that Moises Figueroa, Jr., age 48, of St. Croix, was sentenced by District Court Judge Wilma A. Lewis to 12 months imprisonment on his conviction of a Felon in Possession of a Firearm. Judge Lewis also sentenced Figueroa to 2 years of supervised release, a fine of $2,000.00, and a special assessment of $100.
According to court documents, on May 26, 2021, federal law enforcement agents conducted a controlled delivery at the Frederiksted Post Office in St. Croix of two packages containing firearms. Figueroa was arrested after he collected both packages at which time federal agents seized a loaded Taurus semi-automatic pistol from Figueroa’s waistband. Figueroa was charged with illegally possessing the Taurus semi-automatic pistol knowing that he was convicted of a felony in 2007, namely Unauthorized Possession of a Firearm, in People of the Virgin Islands v. Moises Figueroa, SX-06-CR-504.
The United States Postal Inspection Service, Homeland Security Investigations, and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms investigated the case, and Assistant United States Attorney Daniel H. Huston prosecuted the case. This case was part of the Department of Justice’s Project Safe Neighborhoods Initiative. Project Safe Neighborhoods is a nationwide initiative that brings together federal, state, local and tribal law enforcement officials, prosecutors, and community leaders to identify the most pressing violent crime problems in a community and develop comprehensive solutions to address them. For more information on the Department of Justice’s Project Safe Neighborhoods, please see: https://www.justice.gov/psn.
St. Croix Man Sentenced to 12 Months on a Felon in Possession of a Firearm ConvictionRead the Press Release
St. Croix, VI – United States Attorney Delia L. Smith announced today that Moises Figueroa, Jr., age 48, of St. Croix, was sentenced by District Court Judge Wilma A. Lewis to 12 months imprisonment on his conviction of a Felon in Possession of a Firearm. Judge Lewis also sentenced Figueroa to 2 years of supervised release, a fine of $2,000.00, and a special assessment of $100.
According to court documents, on May 26, 2021, federal law enforcement agents conducted a controlled delivery at the Frederiksted Post Office in St. Croix of two packages containing firearms. Figueroa was arrested after he collected both packages at which time federal agents seized a loaded Taurus semi-automatic pistol from Figueroa’s waistband. Figueroa was charged with illegally possessing the Taurus semi-automatic pistol knowing that he was convicted of a felony in 2007, namely Unauthorized Possession of a Firearm, in People of the Virgin Islands v. Moises Figueroa, SX-06-CR-504.
The United States Postal Inspection Service, Homeland Security Investigations, and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms investigated the case, and Assistant United States Attorney Daniel H. Huston prosecuted the case. This case was part of the Department of Justice’s Project Safe Neighborhoods Initiative. Project Safe Neighborhoods is a nationwide initiative that brings together federal, state, local and tribal law enforcement officials, prosecutors, and community leaders to identify the most pressing violent crime problems in a community and develop comprehensive solutions to address them. For more information on the Department of Justice’s Project Safe Neighborhoods, please see: https://www.justice.gov/psn.
Raleigh Man Sentenced for Healthcare Fraud, Wire Fraud, and Identity Theft from Elderly and Disabled Medicare BeneficiariesRead the Press Release
RALEIGH, N.C. – A Raleigh man was sentenced today to 204 months in prison for conspiracy to commit healthcare fraud, healthcare fraud, ten counts of wire fraud and ten counts of aggravated identity theft. On October 19, 2022, Furman Alexander Ford, 53, was convicted by jury trial of all of the charges.
“We live in a generous nation, but some choose to feed their greed at the expense of those in need. This defendant stole the identities of Medicare beneficiaries to defraud a taxpayer-funded program intended to help elderly, poor and disabled citizens,” said U.S. Attorney Michael Easley. “This 17-year sentence is fitting for a defendant who stole from the most vulnerable in our society.”
According to court records and evidence presented at trial, Furman Alexander Ford, was the owner and operator of IAM Healthcare based in Raleigh, North Carolina. The investigation and trial evidence showed that Ford oversaw a scheme to trick group homes located in Wake, Durham and Johnston Counties into providing client Medicare information. Ford also targeted small community churches in Bladen County by offering food in exchange for Medicare information. Ford then used the information from these schemes to submit Medicare claims on behalf of these elderly and disabled beneficiaries who did not receive any services from IAM Healthcare. Specifically, Ford submitted fraudulent claims from December, 2018 to February, 2020, to Medicare for reimbursement. In total, Ford caused more than $500,000 to be billed to Medicare through IAM Healthcare. At least 74 beneficiaries whose information had been stolen had claims submitted to Medicare for services not rendered. Those claims alone totaled at least $251,508, of which $166,928 was paid to Ford.
In reflecting upon the need to deter Medicare providers from abusing the trust placed in them by taxpayers, the Court stated, “if they are caught, the consequences will be time in a penitentiary, and that’s fair and that’s just, and that what is going to happen today.”
Michael Easley, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of North Carolina made the announcement after sentencing by U.S. District Judge James C. Dever III. The Department of Health cand Human Services – Office of Inspector General (HHS-OIG) and the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) investigated the case, and Assistant U.S. Attorneys Ethan A. Ontjes and William Gilmore prosecuted the case.
Related court documents and information can be found on the website of the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of North Carolina or on PACER by searching for Case No. 5:20-cr-00351-FL-1.
Raleigh County Man Sentenced to More Than 12 Years in Prison for Fentanyl CrimeRead the Press Release
BECKLEY, W.Va. – Sean Hafesh, 34, of Daniels, Raleigh County, was sentenced today to 12 years and seven months in prison, to be followed by three years of supervised release, for distributing fentanyl.
According to court documents and statements made in court, on October 6, 2021, Hafesh sold approximately 3.7 grams of suspected heroin to a confidential informant at a residence in Daniels. Hafesh admitted to that transaction and further admitted to selling additional quantities of suspected heroin to confidential informants on two other occasions in October 2021
On October 13, 2021, law enforcement officers executed a search warrant at the Daniels residence and found 355 grams of suspected heroin, 24.5 grams of methamphetamine, a revolver, and a bolt-action rifle. The West Virginia State Police Forensic Laboratory confirmed the suspected heroin from the controlled buys and the search contained fentanyl.
On October 21, 2021, a law enforcement officer conducted a traffic stop of a vehicle driven by Hafesh, who admitted to possessing 36 grams of heroin and $1,460 found by the officer on Hafesh’s person and in the vehicle.
On April 7, 2022, law enforcement officers executed a search warrant at a residence in Beaver, Raleigh County, where Hafesh was present. Officers found 56 grams of suspected heroin, 33 grams of methamphetamine, 62 grams of cocaine base, also known as “crack,” several firearms and $1,042. The suspected heroin found during the search was later determined to contain fentanyl. Hafesh admitted to telling officers on the day of that search that he had been selling a significant amount of suspected heroin during the previous several months.
United States Attorney Will Thompson made the announcement and commended the investigative work of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF), the Beckley/Raleigh County Drug and Violent Crime Unit, and the West Virginia State Police.
United States District Judge Frank W. Volk imposed the sentence. Assistant United States Attorneys Andrew D. Isabell and former Assistant United States Attorney Alex Hamner are 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. 5:22-cr-68.
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Operation Smoke and Mirrors Update: Charleston Man Pleads Guilty to Role in Methamphetamine Trafficking OrganizationRead the Press Release
CHARLESTON, W.Va. – Jasper Wemh, 38, of Charleston, pleaded guilty today to conspiracy to distribute 50 grams or more of methamphetamine, admitting to a role in a drug trafficking organization (DTO) that operated in the Charleston area.
According to court documents and statements made in court, Wemh admitted to conspiring with several other people to distribute methamphetamine for several months prior to December 5, 2022. Wemh obtained methamphetamine from his supplier on consignment and often provided methamphetamine to his customers on consignment, knowing they were redistributing the methamphetamine he sold them.
Wemh further admitted to obtaining several pounds of methamphetamine from his supplier on December 3, 2022. Wemh distributed the methamphetamine to multiple customers and paid his supplier $250,000 over time from the proceeds from distributing the supplier’s methamphetamine.
Wemh also admitted to conspiring with other people to distribute cocaine base, also known as “crack,” that he received from his supplier on occasions prior to December 3, 2022. Wemh stored quantities of methamphetamine, crack and cocaine at a Greenbrier Street residence in Charleston. Wemh admitted that he frequently obtained these drugs from a safe in the residence, and that a pistol was kept in that safe as well.
Wemh is scheduled to be sentenced on July 20, 2023 and faces a mandatory minimum of 10 years to life in prison, five years and up to a lifetime of supervised release, and a $10 million fine.
Wemh is among 30 individuals indicted as a result of Operation Smoke and Mirrors, a major drug trafficking investigation that has yielded the largest methamphetamine seizure in West Virginia history. Law enforcement has seized of well over 200 pounds of methamphetamine as well as 28 pounds of cocaine, 20 pounds of fentanyl, 18 firearms and $747,000 in cash.
Co-defendant Larry Wayne Legg, 55, of Charleston, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine on March 6, 2023. Another co-defendant, Justin Allen Bowen, 40, of Charleston, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to distribute 50 grams or more of methamphetamine on February 23, 2023. The remaining defendants are scheduled for trial. An indictment is merely an allegation and all defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
United States Attorney Will Thompson made the announcement and commended the investigative work of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), the U.S. Department of Homeland Security-Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF), the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, the Metropolitan Drug Enforcement Network Team (MDENT), the West Virginia State Police, the West Virginia National Guard Counter Drug program, the Kanawha County Sheriff’s Office, the Charleston Police Department, the Putnam County Sheriff’s Office and the Raleigh County Sheriff's Office. MDENT is composed of the Charleston Police Department, the Kanawha County Sheriff’s Office, the Putnam County Sheriff’s Office, the Nitro Police Department, the St. Albans Police Department and the South Charleston Police Department.
Chief United States District Judge Thomas E. Johnston presided over the hearing. Assistant United States Attorney Jeremy Wolfe is prosecuting the case.
The investigation was part of the Department of Justice’s Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF). The program was established in 1982 to conduct comprehensive, multilevel attacks on major drug trafficking and money laundering organizations and is the keystone of the Department of Justice’s drug reduction strategy. OCDETF combines the resources and expertise of its member federal agencies in cooperation with state and local law enforcement. The principal mission of the OCDETF program is to identify, disrupt and dismantle the most serious drug trafficking organizations, transnational criminal organizations and money laundering organizations that present a significant threat to the public safety, economic, or national security of the United States.
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-4.
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Omaha Man Sentenced to 51 Months for Being a Felon in Possession of a FirearmRead the Press Release
United States Attorney Steven Russell announced that MacAnthony Gordon, 37, of Omaha, Nebraska, was sentenced today in federal court in Omaha for being a felon in possession of a firearm. Chief United States District Judge Robert F. Rossiter, Jr. sentenced Gordon to 51 months’ imprisonment. There is no parole in the federal system. After Gordon’s release from prison, he will begin a three-year term of supervised release.
On April 4, 2021, Omaha police were called to an apartment building for a report of shots fired. Arriving officers saw a man matching the suspect description sitting on the porch. The man stood up and entered the apartment building. A search of the area discovered a spent shotgun shell casing in the building’s parking lot near a vehicle with apparent fresh damage from a shotgun. Police secured the building and called out the occupants, one of which was Gordon. A search of one of the apartment units uncovered a Mossberg 12-gauge shotgun in Gordon’s bedroom along with shotgun ammunition that matched the shell casing from the parking lot. During a post-arrest interview, Gordon denied the shooting but admitted to possessing the shotgun. Gordon has felony convictions for possession of a controlled substance, possession of a defaced firearm, and domestic assault 2nd degree. As a result of the felony convictions, he is prohibited from possessing firearms.
This case is part of Project Guardian, the Department of Justice’s signature initiative to reduce gun violence and enforce federal firearms laws. Initiated by the Attorney General in the fall of 2019, Project Guardian draws upon the Department’s past successful programs to reduce gun violence; enhances coordination of federal, state, local, and tribal authorities in investigating and prosecuting gun crimes; improves information-sharing by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives when a prohibited individual attempts to purchase a firearm and is denied by the National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS), to include taking appropriate actions when a prospective purchaser is denied by the NICS for mental health reasons; and ensures that federal resources are directed at the criminals posing the greatest threat to our communities. The United States Attorney’s Office has prosecuted this case with support from the following Project Guardian partners: the Omaha Police Department and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. For more information about Project Guardian, please see www.justice.gov/archives/ag/about-project-guardian.
Omaha Man Sentenced to 130 Months for Distributing Child PornographyRead the Press Release
United States Attorney Steven Russell announced that Davonte Andrews, 27, of Omaha, Nebraska, was sentenced today in federal court in Omaha for distributing child pornography. United States District Judge Brian C. Buescher sentenced Andrews to 130 months of imprisonment. There is no parole in the federal system. After completing his term of imprisonment, Andrews will begin a 5-year term of supervised release.
On July 18, 2020, Andrews distributed approximately 11 images of child pornography over the internet via his Discord account. The Discord account contained chat messages between Andrews and another user concerning child pornography. On January 21, 2021, agents searched Andrews’s Omaha residence and located child pornography on his digital devices. There was approximately 905 images and 52 videos of child pornography depicting children between the ages of three and five years old, and 196 images and 58 videos depicting children between the ages of six and eight years old. The child pornography depicted children as young as two years old.
This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and 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.
Omaha Man Found Asleep in Vehicle Illegally Possessing FirearmsRead the Press Release
United States Attorney Steven Russell announced that Cortez Davieon Grennell, 22, of Omaha, Nebraska, was sentenced on March 29, 2023, in federal court in Omaha, for Prohibited Person in Possession of Firearms. United States District Judge Brian C. Buescher sentenced Grennell to 46 months’ imprisonment. He was also ordered to serve three years of supervised release after his release from prison. There is no parole in the federal system.
On April 11, 2022, law enforcement was dispatched to North 34th Avenue and Larimore in Omaha regarding a vehicle that had been parked and running for two hours. Officers approached the vehicle and observed Grennell alone and asleep. When law enforcement opened the door, they observed in plain view a sawed-off shotgun and handgun. Grennell admitted he was addicted to methamphetamine and should not have been in possession of the firearms. It is a federal crime for someone that is an unlawful user of, or addicted to, a controlled substance to possess a firearm.
This case was investigated by the Omaha Police Department. 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.
Ohio Man Pleads Guilty to Federal Drug CrimeRead the Press Release
CHARLESTON, W.Va. – Kentrell Dupri McKenzie, 22, of Akron, Ohio, pleaded guilty today to possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine.
According to court documents and statements made in court, on February 9, 2022, McKenzie was a passenger in a vehicle pulled over by a law enforcement officer on Interstate 77 in Jackson County. The officer detected the odor of marijuana, prompting a search of the vehicle. Officers found approximately 373 grams of methamphetamine in a sealed bag hidden inside the gear shift area. McKenzie admitted to possessing the methamphetamine.
McKenzie is scheduled to be sentenced on July 13, 2023, and faces a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison, three years of supervised release, and a $1 million fine.
United States Attorney Will Thompson made the announcement and commended the investigative work of the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) and the Ripley Police Department.
Chief United States District Judge Thomas E. Johnston presided over the hearing. Assistant United States Attorney Ryan A. Keefe 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-30.
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Odessa Woman Sentenced for False Statements During Firearm PurchasesRead the Press Release
MIDLAND, Texas – An Odessa woman was sentenced in a federal court in Midland Wednesday to 18 months in prison for providing false statements during purchases of firearms.
According to court documents, Delma Vitela, 45, purchased at least six firearms between December 2020 and March 2022 from various gun stores in the Midland/Odessa area for her then-boyfriend, a Mexican national. Vitela's then-boyfriend was prohibited from possessing firearms based on his immigration status. By representing on the purchase forms that she was the intended buyer of the guns, Vitela knowingly made false or fictitious written declarations when purchasing the firearms.
In March 2022, an individual was stopped by law enforcement in Laredo, Texas while attempting to cross into Nuevo Laredo, Mexico. This individual had in his possession two firearms that Vitela had straw purchased, one of which she’d purchased less than two weeks prior.
Vitela was arrested by federal authorities on Oct. 21, 2022 and was released on bond on Oct. 26.
“This defendant’s conduct posed a serious threat to the safety and security of people in our communities on both sides of the U.S./Mexico border,” said U.S. Attorney Jaime Esparza for the Western District of Texas. “I am thankful our law enforcement partners were able to locate and recover some of the firearms before they reached Mexico.”
“Straw purchasing is not an act of love; it is an act that fuels violence across our country and our neighbors,” said Special Agent in Charge Jeffrey C. Boshek II for the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) Dallas Field Division. “ATF and our partners in the Permian Basin are steadfast in our fight to keep firearms out of the hands of those that shouldn’t have them. Ms. Vitela thought she was being a good girlfriend when she was actually helping to arm vicious Mexican drug cartels. I hope that others don’t make this same mistake.”
ATF investigated the case.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Joe Mahoney prosecuted the case.
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North Carolina Man Sentenced for Possessing a Firearm as a FelonRead the Press Release
ALBANY, NEW YORK – Cameron Robinson, age 25, of Grover, North Carolina, was sentenced today to 27 months in prison for possessing a firearm as a previously convicted felon.
United States Attorney Carla B. Freedman, John B. DeVito, Special Agent in Charge of the New York Field Division of the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF), and Rotterdam Police Chief Michael S. Brown made the announcement.
As part of his guilty plea, Robinson admitted that on May 4, 2022, he possessed a Taurus Model G2C 9mm semi-automatic pistol. That morning, in Rotterdam, Robinson had been shot by another person using the Taurus pistol. Robinson was prohibited from possessing the firearm due to a previous North Carolina felony conviction for Assault with a Deadly Weapon Inflicting Serious Injury. Robinson was on parole for that crime when he committed this offense.
ATF and the Rotterdam Police Department investigated this case. Assistant United States Attorneys Rachel Williams and Allen J. Vickey prosecuted this case as part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program bringing together all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve to reduce violent crime and gun violence, and to make our neighborhoods safer for everyone. On May 26, 2021, the 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.
Nine-Time Convicted Felon Federally Indicted for Possession of A FirearmRead the Press Release
Ocala, Florida –United States Attorney Roger B. Handberg announces the return of an indictment charging Brady Williams (27, Ocala) with possession of a firearm by a convicted felon. If convicted, Williams faces a maximum penalty of 15 years in federal prison.
According to the indictment, on January 13, 2023, Williams knowingly possessed a Heritage Arms firearm. Williams is a nine-time convicted felon, including offenses of fleeing or attempting to elude law enforcement, grand theft of a motor vehicle, and owning or operating a chop shop. As a convicted felon, he is prohibited from possessing firearms or ammunition under federal law.
An indictment is merely a formal charge that a defendant has committed one or more violations of federal criminal law, and every defendant is presumed innocent unless, and until, proven guilty.
This case was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, and the Lake County Sheriff’s Office. It will be prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Sarah Janette Swartzberg.
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.
Newport News Man Sentenced for Unlawful Purchase of a Firearm Used in Three Local ShootingsRead the Press Release
NEWPORT NEWS, Va. –A Newport News man was sentenced today to 5 years in prison for the unlawful purchase and possession of a firearm that was used in three community shootings.
According to court documents, Khalil Rashad Armstrong, 22, asked his older cousin to purchase a handgun for Armstrong. Only 20 years old at the time, Armstrong was not old enough to purchase a handgun himself. Armstrong gave his cousin the money to purchase the firearm and selected the make and model. Around February 21, 2021, Armstrong’s cousin made false oral and written statements to a local licensed firearm dealer in order to straw-purchase the firearm for Armstrong. The firearm was recovered by police on July 27, 2021, at the crime scene of a local rival gang shootout approximately 125 days after it was purchased. Forensic ballistics confirmed the firearm had been used in two other shootings, once on May 2, 2021, resulting in property damage, and once on February 21, 2021, the same day it was purchased.
On May 12, Armstrong’s cousin and co-defendant, Destiny Na’iymah Davis, 23, of Newport News, pleaded guilty to a felony for her role in the unlawful straw-purchase of the firearm. According to court documents, the United States recommended a non-custodial sentence for Davis due to mitigating circumstances and her swift acceptance of responsibility for her role in the offense. Davis was sentenced to 18 months’ probation on December 5, 2022.
Jessica D. Aber, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia, Mike Weddel, Acting Special Agent in Charge of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives Washington Field Division; and Steve R. Drew, Chief of Newport News Police, made the announcement after sentencing by U.S. District Judge Elizabeth Wilson Hanes.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Peter Osyf prosecuted the case.
A copy of this press release is located on the website of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Virginia. Related court documents and information are located on the website of the District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia or on PACER by searching for Case No. 4:22-cr-12.
New Haven Woman Sentenced to Prison for Lying to Federal Grand Jury about Knowledge of Kidnapping and MurdersRead the Press Release
Vanessa Roberts Avery, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, announced that LAQUASIA SAMMS, also known as “Quasia,” 28, of New Haven, was sentenced today by U.S. District Judge Kari A. Dooley in Bridgeport to 90 days of imprisonment, followed by two years of supervised release, for making false statements before a federal grand jury in connection with an investigation into the kidnapping and murder of two individuals, and the related murder of a third individual, in November 2015.
According to court documents and statements made in court, on November 16, 2015, Edward Michael Parks was in Samms’ apartment on Shelton Avenue in New Haven to conduct an illegal sale of firearms. Samms, Damian Connor, and Tamar Lawrence were also present in the apartment. When another individual left the apartment with firearms that he had not paid for, Parks, who was armed, held Connor and Lawrence against their will. Parks collected money and valuables from Connor and Lawrence, and then forced them to travel in Connor’s car to Hamden where Connor said he could get more money. They were followed in another vehicle by Devante Williams and another individual. After the vehicles arrived at 676 Mix Avenue in Hamden, Parks shot and killed Connor and Lawrence. Parks then left the scene with Williams and others in the second vehicle and returned to New Haven.
When Parks appeared to believe that Williams was anxious about the murders of Connor and Lawrence, Parks shot and killed Williams in the area of Sherman Court in New Haven.
During the kidnapping, and after the three victims were murdered, Samms sent several text messages to another individual about what was happening and her reaction to the events.
On March 19, 2019, Samms appeared before a grand jury in New Haven. During her testimony, Samms repeatedly claimed that she did not remember sending any text messages related to the gun transaction, the kidnapping, or the murder of the three individuals.
On October 1, 2020, Samms pleaded guilty, admitting that she sent the text messages, and that she withheld other information that was sought by the federal grand jury.
Samms, who is released on bond, is required to report to prison on May 11.
On January 19, 2023, a jury found Parks, also known as “Lee” and “Trouble,” of Raleigh, North Carolina, guilty of two counts of kidnapping resulting in death, and one count of witness tampering by killing. At sentencing, he faces a mandatory term of imprisonment of life.
This investigation has been conducted by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Hamden Police Department and New Haven Police Department.
The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Nathaniel J. Gentile and A. Reed Durham, and Assistant State’s Attorney Seth Garbarsky, who has been cross-designated as a Special Assistant U.S. Attorney in this matter.
Muskogee Resident Sentenced to Life for Sexually Abusing Child in Indian CountryRead the Press Release
MUSKOGEE, OKLAHOMA - The United States Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Oklahoma announced that Joseph Stanley Harjo, age 40, of Muskogee, Oklahoma, was sentenced to life in federal prison for Aggravated Sexual Abuse in Indian Country. Harjo was found guilty of the offense by a federal jury in November 2021.
At trial, the United States presented evidence that in June 2016, Harjo sexually abused a six-year-old child. Days later, the child disclosed the abuse and provided further details during a forensic interview. Five additional witnesses testified at trial that Harjo sexually assaulted each of them when they were between the ages of four and twelve.
The case was investigated by the Muskogee Police Department and the Federal Bureau of Investigation.
“The defendant is clearly a sexual predator, and the life sentence imposed by the Court ensures he will never be able to victimize another child,” said United States Attorney Christopher J. Wilson. “I am thankful for the cooperative efforts of our law enforcement partners in this case. Their investigative work enabled my Assistant United States Attorneys to pursue the prosecution of the defendant and deliver justice to those he victimized.”
“Our children are our most vulnerable citizens, and we will do everything in our power to protect them by getting predators like Harjo off the street,” said FBI Oklahoma City Special Agent in Charge Edward J. Gray. “His life sentence stands as a testament to the dedication and collaboration of the FBI, the Muskogee Police Department, the Oklahoma Department of Human Services, and the U.S. Attorney’s Office to ensure justice is served for victims of the most serious crimes in Indian Country.”
The United States Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Oklahoma prosecuted the case because the defendant is a member of a federally recognized Indian tribe and the crime occurred in Muskogee County, within the boundaries of the Muscogee (Creek) Nation Reservation, and within the Eastern District of Oklahoma.
The Honorable Ronald A. White, U.S. District Judge of the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Oklahoma, in Muskogee, presided over the sentencing hearing. Harjo was remanded to the custody of the United States Marshal to await transportation to a United States Bureau of Prisons facility to serve his non-paroleable sentence.
Assistant United States Attorneys Anthony Marek and Morgan Muzljakovich represented the United States.
Morristown Man Faces Federal Drug Charge for Violation of the Controlled Substances ActRead the Press Release
Burlington, Vermont – The Office of the United States Attorney for the District of Vermont stated that on March 23, 2023, Michael Ulrich, 32, of Morristown, Vermont, was charged in an indictment with knowingly allowing his residence to be a drug-involved premises at which controlled substances were stored and distributed. The defendant was arraigned on the indictment on March 30, 2023, before U.S. Magistrate Judge Kevin J. Doyle, and is being held in the custody of the U.S. Marshals Service pending further proceedings.
According to court records, on February 28, 2023, law enforcement executed a state search warrant at Ulrich’s residence in Morristown, Vermont. Inside of the house, investigators found glassine bags intended for the packaging of controlled substances, a digital scale used to weigh quantities of controlled substances, more than 50 grams of cocaine, and a firearm.
The case is being investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF), the Morristown Police Department, the Stowe Police Department, the Lamoille County Sheriff’s Department, and the Vermont State Police.
If convicted, Ulrich faces up to twenty years of imprisonment. The actual sentence, however, would be determined with reference to the advisory Federal Sentencing Guidelines. The United States Attorney emphasizes that the charges contained in the indictment are merely accusations and that the defendant is presumed innocent unless and until he is proven guilty.
The United States is represented in this matter by Assistant U.S. Attorney Zachary B. Stendig. Michael Ulrich is represented by Mary Nerino, Esq. of the Office of the Federal Public Defender.
Milpitas Car Exporter Pleads Guilty to Crime in Scheme to Avoid Income Taxes on Multi-Million Dollar IncomeRead the Press Release
OAKLAND –Jie Suo, owner of a South Bay luxury car exporting business, pleaded guilty today to interfering with the administration of internal revenue laws stemming from statements she made to IRS investigators to corruptly impede their investigation into her multi-million dollar business she failed to disclose in her tax filings to avoiding paying several years’ income taxes for the business, announced United States Attorney Ismail J. Ramsey and Internal Revenue Service, Criminal Investigation (IRS-CI), Special Agent in Charge Darren Lian. The guilty plea was accepted by the Hon. Haywood S. Gilliam, Jr., United States District Judge.
Suo, 56, of Milpitas, Calif., is a sole proprietor who owned and operated Golden Source Trading and Agneau Mobility—two companies that exported luxury vehicles to China. According to the plea agreement, Suo admitted that the business earned over $18 million in gross receipts from 2011-2017; however, rather than pay applicable taxes on the business income, Suo embarked on a scheme to avoid paying applicable income taxes and then made statements to federal agents to impede and hinder their investigation into her earnings.
Suo admitted that she did not disclose the existence of the businesses on four tax returns that she signed and filed with the IRS; indeed, Suo acknowledged that she paid nothing in federal income tax for the calendar years 2013 through 2016.
The plea agreement describes how Suo spoke with federal investigators by telephone on May 16, 2019, and in person on May 23, 2019, and made statements to hinder the IRS investigation with the intent of avoiding criminal prosecution from the pending IRS investigation. Specifically, after agreeing to speak with the IRS investigators voluntarily and after repeatedly being reminded of her obligation to be truthful, Suo denied that her business was profitable and made numerous corrupt statements to minimize her conduct and portray herself as a victim of loan sharks, poor investments, and poor advice. For example, Suo stated that she did not employ her son for his export car business; that she operated the businesses at a loss; that she reported her business sales to her tax preparer; and that the money used to purchase a home in Pittsburg was provided by a loan. Suo acknowledged in her plea agreement the truth of the facts she denied and her corrupt intent in hindering the investigation. Suo further acknowledged that, in contrast to the statements she made to the IRS investigators, her business was sufficiently profitable that she owed nearly $1 million, $997,673, in taxes to the federal government.
On March 27, 2023, Suo was charged by Superseding Information with four counts of making and subscribing a false tax return, in violation of 26 U.S.C. § 7206(1), and one count of corrupt endeavor to obstruct or impede the administration of Internal Revenue laws, in violation of 26, U.S.C. § 7212(a). Pursuant to today’s plea agreement, Suo pleaded guilty to the obstruction charge. If Suo complies with the plea agreement, the remaining counts will be dismissed at sentencing.
Suo faces a maximum statutory sentence of up to three years in prison. In addition, as part of sentencing, the court also may order Suo to pay a fine of up to $250,000, to pay restitution of at least $997,673, and to serve an additional period of supervised release of up to a year to begin after her prison term. However, any sentence following conviction would be imposed by the court only after consideration of the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and the federal statute governing the imposition of a sentence, 18 U.S.C. § 3553.
Judge Gilliam scheduled Suo sentencing hearing for July 12, 2023.
Assistant United States Attorneys Thomas Green and Maya Karwande are prosecuting the case with the assistance of Jasmine Sanders and Kay Konopaske. The prosecution is the result of an investigation by the IRS-CI.Methamphetamine Wholesaler Is Sentenced to More Than 15 Years in PrisonRead the Press Release
ASHEVILLE, N.C. – Arthur Shane Douville, 33, of Canton, N.C., was sentenced to 188 months in prison today followed by three years of supervised release for distributing methamphetamine, announced Dena J. King, U.S. Attorney for the Western District of North Carolina.
According to documents filed with the court and today’s sentencing hearing, law enforcement investigating methamphetamine trafficking rings operating in Haywood, Jackson and Buncombe Counties identified Douville as a wholesale methamphetamine trafficker who supplied local drug distributors. Court records show that in May 2020, Douville was driving through Haywood County, after he had travelled to Georgia to buy methamphetamine. Law enforcement stopped Douville’s vehicle, and over the course of the traffic stop they seized nearly two ounces of methamphetamine hidden in a false vehicle compartment. Court records show that the methamphetamine seized was part of a larger eight-ounce quantity obtained in Georgia, some of which Douville had already distributed. Douville had made a similar trip one week earlier, obtaining four ounces of methamphetamine at that time.
At today’s sentencing hearing, U.S. District Judge Martin Reidinger enhanced Douville’s sentence after he found that the defendant had attempted to obstruct justice and derail his prosecution by producing forged letters and fake messages supposedly written and sent by a co-defendant, in which the co-defendant allegedly admitted that the seized methamphetamine belonged to him and not Douville.
On October 26, 2022, Douville pleaded guilty to possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine. He will be transferred to the custody of the federal Bureau of Prisons upon designation of a federal facility.
U.S. Attorney King credited today’s sentence to an investigation led by the Western District’s Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF) and thanked the Drug Enforcement Administration and the Haywood County Sheriff’s Office for their investigative efforts.
OCDETF identifies, disrupts, and dismantles criminal organizations using a prosecutor-led, intelligence-driven, multi-agency approach. Additional information about the OCDETF Program can be found at https://www.justice.gov/OCDETF.
Assistant United States Attorney Thomas Kent, of the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Charlotte, prosecuted the case.
Media Advisory – Press ConferenceRead the Press Release
RALEIGH, N.C. – United States Attorney Michael Easley, along with representatives from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF), the Rocky Mount Police Department, and the Nash and Edgecombe Sheriffs’ Offices will hold a press conference TOMORROW, Friday, March 31 at 2:00 p.m. to announce the sentence of Tyrone Foreman, a Rocky Mount leader of the G-Shine Blood gang, who was convicted of drug trafficking fentanyl and COVID-19 pandemic relief fraud. Officials will also provide an update on the violent crime initiative launched last year in the Rocky Mount area.
WHERE: Terry Sanford Federal Building, Room 158, 310 New Bern Avenue, Raleigh, NC 27601
WHEN: Friday, March 31 at 2:00 p.m.
Media: Please arrive at the courthouse by 1:30 for set up.
Credentialed members of the media are invited to attend. For additional information, please e-mail Don Connelly at [email protected].
Please RSVP your intentions to attend the event.
Mark Ridley-Thomas Found Guilty of Bribery and Fraud Involving Benefits for Son in Exchange for Lucrative County ContractsRead the Press Release
LOS ANGELES – Long-time politician Mark Ridley-Thomas was found guilty by a jury today of bribery in a scheme in which his son received substantial benefits from the University of Southern California in exchange for Ridley-Thomas’ political support for lucrative county contracts and contract amendments with the university while he served on the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors.
Ridley-Thomas, 68, of Los Angeles, was found guilty of seven felonies: one count of conspiracy, one count of bribery, one count of honest services mail fraud, and four counts of honest services wire fraud.
Ridley-Thomas’ political career spans several decades, including in the California State Legislature and, most recently, in the Los Angeles City Council. He was suspended in October 2021 from the Los Angeles City Council after being indicted in this case.
“When elected leaders engage in acts of corruption, our community suffers immense damage. Ridley-Thomas engaged in a corrupt conspiracy with a university dean to steer taxpayer-funded contracts to the school in exchange for benefits for his son,” said United States Attorney Martin Estrada. “Today’s verdict sends a clear message to public officials that my office will vigorously investigate and prosecute those who abuse their power and thereby breach the public trust.”
“Public officials are elected to be a voice and a vote for the people they're paid to represent, not for their own personal gain,” said Donald Alway, the Assistant Director in Charge of the FBI's Los Angeles Field Office. “Allegations of public malfeasance must and will be addressed by the FBI before further corrupt actions erode confidence in our public institutions.”
According to evidence presented at a 16-day trial, from May 2017 to August 2018, Ridley-Thomas engaged in a criminal conspiracy with Marilyn Louise Flynn, 84, of Los Feliz, formerly a tenured professor and the dean of USC’s School of Social Work.
In December 2017, citing health issues, Ridley-Thomas’ son abruptly resigned from the California State Assembly. At the time of his resignation, Ridley-Thomas’ son was the subject of a sexual harassment investigation in the Assembly, a fact not known by either USC or the public. Emails and testimony at trial, prosecutors argued, showed that the reason given for the resignation was pretextual. Behind the scenes, Ridley-Thomas was orchestrating a public relations campaign to convince the public his son was ill, and a legal team was put in place to stall the Assembly’s investigation indefinitely. Prosecutors argued that the evidence at trial demonstrated that part of Ridley-Thomas’ public relations plan included finding his son prestigious degrees, titles, and paying jobs.
During the conspiracy’s course, Flynn ultimately provided Ridley-Thomas and his son benefits, including graduate school admission to pursue a dual master’s degree, a full-tuition scholarship, a paid professorship, and a mechanism for Ridley-Thomas to funnel $100,000 of his campaign funds through the university to a non-profit to be operated by the son – Policy, Research & Practice Initiative (PRPI).
In exchange, Ridley-Thomas supported contracts involving the Social Work School, including contracts to provide services to the Department of Children and Family Services (DCFS) and the Probation Department, as well as an amendment to a contract with the Department of Mental Health (DMH) that could help bring the school potentially millions of dollars in new revenue.
By funneling the payment through USC, Ridley-Thomas and Flynn attempted to disguise the true source of a $100,000 payment to make it appear as though USC, not Ridley-Thomas, was the generous benefactor supporting Ridley-Thomas’ son and PRPI. Had it known this fact, USC would not have approved the $100,000 payment.
For his part, Ridley-Thomas delivered on his end of the corrupt bargain. He voted on three county proposals that Flynn had sought to shore up her school’s shoddy financial situation – it faced a multimillion-dollar budget deficit – including a vote approving an amended Telehealth agreement with more lucrative terms for the Social Work School. He also sought to influence key county decisionmakers associated with these approvals and made sure Flynn knew of his efforts.
United States District Judge Dale S. Fischer scheduled an August 14 sentencing hearing, at which time Ridley-Thomas will face a statutory maximum sentence of five years in federal prison on the conspiracy count, up to 10 years in federal prison for the bribery count, and up to 20 years in federal prison for each honest services fraud count.
Ridley-Thomas was found not guilty of one count of honest services mail fraud and 11 counts of honest services wire fraud.
Flynn pleaded guilty in September 2022 to one count of bribery. Her sentencing hearing is scheduled for June 26. Flynn faces a statutory maximum sentence of 10 years in federal prison. Prosecutors have agreed to recommend she satisfy her custodial term by way of home confinement and have agreed to seek a fine against her of no more than $150,000.
The FBI investigated this matter.
Assistant United States Attorney Lindsey Greer Dotson, Chief of the Public Corruption and Civil Rights Section, and Assistant United States Attorneys Thomas F. Rybarczyk and Michael J. Morse, also of the Public Corruption and Civil Rights Section, are prosecuting this case.
Man Who Ran Twitter, Reddit and Telegram Accounts Selling Intimate Photos Hacked from Female Victims’ Accounts Charged with Possession, Distribution and Sale of Child Pornography; Cyberstalking; and Conspiracy to Hack ComputersRead the Press Release
SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico – On March 29, 2023, a grand jury charged Brian Luis Valentín-Ramos with five counts related to the possession, distribution and sale of child pornography; conspiring to illegally obtain information from protected computers; and cyberstalking, all in violation of 18 U.S.C. §§ 1030(a)(2), 2252(a)(4)(B), 2252A(a)(2), 2252A(a)(4)(B), and 2261A(2)(B), announced W. Stephen Muldrow, United States Attorney for the District of Puerto Rico.
According to the Government’s allegations, since at least 2020 through 2023, Valentín-Ramos conspired with others to gain unauthorized access to social media accounts, including SnapChat, of female victims primarily in Puerto Rico. These included victims at the University of Puerto Rico. The conspirators would then steal intimate pictures of the victims from those accounts, which Valentín-Ramos would publicize and sell using Twitter, Reddit and Telegram. Valentín-Ramos would claim that “I sell my content because it was obtained via hacking making it exclusive.”
Valentín-Ramos is further charged with cyberstalking one of his adult victims.
Valentín-Ramos also possessed, distributed, and sold sexually explicit photos of two female minors, including one who was fifteen years old.
U.S. Attorney W. Stephen Muldrow of the District of Puerto Rico; and Joseph González, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI San Juan Field Office made the announcement.
The sale and distribution of child pornography charges carry a mandatory minimum of five years in prison and a maximum of twenty years. Cyberstalking carries maximum sentence of five years of imprisonment. Possession of child pornography carries a maximum of 10 years in prison. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors. The defendant was arrested on Friday, March 24, and ordered detained pending trial due to an adjudication that he is a danger to the community.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Jeanette Collazo is in charge of the prosecution of the case. FBI Special Agent Christian Nieves of the San Juan Cyber Division is in charge of the investigation.
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Kentuckiana Physician and Nurse Practitioner Sentenced for Conspiracy to Distribute Controlled Substances, Conspiracy to Commit Health Care Fraud, Health Care Fraud, and Conspiracy to Commit Money LaunderingRead the Press Release
Louisville, KY – A local physician and an advanced practice registered nurse were sentenced yesterday on conspiracy to unlawfully distribute and dispense controlled substances, conspiracy to commit health care fraud, health care fraud, and conspiracy to commit money laundering charges. The physician’s medical practice was also sentenced for conspiracy to unlawfully distribute and dispense controlled substances and conspiracy to commit health care fraud.
On March 29, 2023, physician Jeffrey Campbell, age 64, was sentenced in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Kentucky to 105 months in prison, followed by a 3-year term of supervised release, for conspiracy to unlawfully distribute and dispense controlled substances, conspiracy to commit health care fraud, health care fraud, and conspiracy to commit money laundering. Advanced practice registered nurse Mark Dyer, age 54, was sentenced to 60 months in prison, followed by a 3-year term of supervised release, for conspiracy to unlawfully distribute and dispense controlled substances, conspiracy to commit health care fraud, health care fraud, and conspiracy to commit money laundering. There is no parole in the federal system.
Additionally, Campbell’s medical practice, Physicians Primary Care, PLLC (PPC) was ordered to pay a fine of $1,000,000 for conspiracy to unlawfully distribute and dispense controlled substances and conspiracy to commit health care fraud.
According to court documents and evidence presented during the jury trial in May and June of 2021, Campbell, Dyer, and PPC conspired to unlawfully distribute and dispense controlled substances between January 1, 2009, and December 1, 2016. Campbell, Dyer, and PPC also conspired to commit health care fraud for falsely and fraudulently billing Kentucky Medicaid (Passport), Indiana Medicaid, Tricare, Medicare, and other health care benefit programs by submitting claims for physical therapy, counseling and exercise services using evaluation and management codes to obtain higher reimbursement. Campbell and Dyer also conspired to commit money laundering for paying and/or receiving bonuses to incentivize the ordering of physical therapy, counseling, and exercise. Finally, Campbell and Dyer fraudulently billed for physical therapy services using evaluation and management codes as if a physician performed a service on the patients, but, a non-physician and non-physical therapist performed the service on the patients.
U.S. Attorney Michael A. Bennett of the Western District of Kentucky; Kentucky Attorney General Daniel Cameron; Indiana Attorney General Todd Rokita; Special Agent in Charge Mario Pinto of the United States Department for Health and Human Services (HHS), Office of Inspector General, Office of Investigations, Chicago Regional Office; Special Agent in Charge Darrin K. Jones of the Defense Criminal Investigative Services (DCIS) Southeast Field Office; Special Agent in Charge Jodi Cohen of the FBI Louisville Field Office; Special Agent in Charge J. Todd Scott of the DEA Louisville Field Division; and Special Agent in Charge Bryant Jackson of the Internal Revenue Service, Criminal Investigation (IRS-CI), Cincinnati Field Office made the announcement.
The case was investigated by the HHS, DCIS, IRS-CI, FBI, DEA, the Kentucky Attorney General Office’s Medicaid Fraud Control Unit, and the Indiana Attorney General’s Office.
Assistant United States Attorneys Joseph Ansari and Christopher Tieke prosecuted the case with assistance from health care fraud investigator Bob Masterson of the U.S. Attorney’s Office.
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 www.justice.gov/OCDETF.
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