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Wednesday 21 December 2022
South Bend Man Sentenced to 252 Months in PrisonRead the Press Release
SOUTH BEND – Kendrick Johnson, 38 years old, of South Bend, Indiana was sentenced by United States District Court Judge Damon R. Leichty on his plea of guilty to possession with intent to distribute fentanyl, announced United States Attorney Clifford D. Johnson.
Johnson was sentenced to 252 months in prison followed by 5 years of supervised release.
According to documents in this case, Johnson sold drugs in the spring of 2021. In September of 2021, investigators executed search warrants. Between Johnson’s home and his storage unit, investigators found over 6 ½ kilograms of fentanyl, almost $800,000 cash, and three loaded firearms.
“My Office, together with our law enforcement partners, will investigate, prosecute and seek long sentences for those seeking to illegally distribute fentanyl on the streets of Northern Indiana,” said United States Attorney Clifford D. Johnson. “Those groups and persons that traffic this very dangerous and deadly drug should be on notice that our federal and state law enforcement will continue to focus our efforts on dismantling those groups and bringing those offenders to justice.”
“ATF is committed to working closely with our local, state and federal law enforcement partners to investigate illegal possession of firearms and narcotics trafficking activity that creates havoc in our communities,” said ATF Acting Special Agent in Charge of the Chicago Field Division Jeffrey L. Matthews. “I commend the United States Attorney’s office in the Northern District of Indiana for their continued partnership in prosecuting those responsible.”
“Drug traffickers who knowingly sell illicit fentanyl must be held accountable for their actions,” said Alfred A. Cooke, Assistant Special Agent in Charge of the Drug Enforcement Administration Merrillville District Office. “The DEA remains committed to working hand in hand with our state, local and federal partners to keep our communities safe.”
This case was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and the Drug Enforcement Administration with the assistance of the LaPorte County Drug Task Force, the LaPorte County Sheriff’s Office, and the South Bend Police Department. The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Joel Gabrielse.
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.
Solano County Hells Angels Member Pleads Guilty to Possessing Firearm as a FelonRead the Press Release
SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Jaime Alvarez, 52, of Vallejo, California, pleaded guilty yesterday to unlawfully possessing a firearm after being convicted of a felony crime, United States Attorney Phillip A. Talbert announced.
According to court documents, on December 8, 2021, law enforcement executed a search warrant at Alvarez’s home as part of an investigation into a brutal beating at the clubhouse for the Vallejo chapter of the Hells Angels Motorcycle Club. Specifically, in October 2021, two different victims—both of whom were members of a different motorcycle club that is considered a “puppet” (or subordinate) club of the Hells Angels—were beaten by Alvarez and other club members based on perceived infractions of the Hells Angels’ rules.
During the December 2021 search of Alvarez’s Vallejo home, law enforcement found several firearms, including a Glock 27 .40 SW caliber handgun. Alvarez has prior felony convictions, which prohibit him from possessing firearms.
This case is the product of an investigation by the Solano County District Attorney’s Office, the Solano County Sheriff’s Office, the Vallejo Police Department, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Aaron D. Pennekamp and Jason Hitt are prosecuting the case.
Alvarez is scheduled to be sentenced on March 7, 2023, by U.S. District Judge Dale A. Drozd. Alvarez faces a maximum statutory penalty of 10 years in prison and a $250,000 fine. Any sentence, however, would 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.
This case is being prosecuted as part of the joint federal, state, and local Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN) Program, the centerpiece of the Department of Justice’s violent crime reduction efforts. On May 26, 2021, the U.S. Department of Justice launched a violent crime reduction strategy strengthening PSN based on these core principles: fostering trust and legitimacy in our communities, supporting community-based organizations that help prevent violence from occurring in the first place, setting focused and strategic enforcement priorities, and measuring the results.
Six sent to prison after traffic stops yield kilos of methRead the Press Release
CORPUS CHRISTI – The final member of a of a Corpus Christi drug trafficking organization has been ordered to federal prison following his conviction of conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute meth, announced U.S. Attorney Alamdar S. Hamdani.
Jesse Soliz, 40, Joshua Cadena, 30, Matthew Cadena, 34, all of Corpus Christi, and Luis Reyes-Camacho, 36, a citizen of Mexico unlawfully in the United States, pleaded guilty July 22, 2021, while Yvette Hernandez, 39, and Julio Rodriguez, 52, also of Corpus Christi, entered their pleas Sept. 24, 2021, and March 23, 2022, respectively.
Today, U.S. District Judge Nelva Gonzales Ramos sentenced Matthew Cadena to a 135-month sentence to be immediately followed by five years of supervised release. At the hearing, the court noted the significant quantity of drugs involved and roles Matthew and Joshua Cadena held as mid-level distributors who worked under Soliz.
Judge Ramos previously sentenced the other four for their respective involvement in the conspiracy. Notably, Luis Reyes-Camacho, who was identified as the supplier of the illegal drugs, and Jesse Soliz, who managed the local distribution network, received 324 months and 235 months, respectively.
In March 2020, law enforcement initiated an investigation into a drug trafficking operation in the Corpus Christi area involving meth and heroin. This resulted in the identification and arrest of multiple individuals ranging from street level dealers to mid-level suppliers.
On April 10, 2020, authorities conducted a traffic stop and identified Matthew Cadena and Hernandez as the driver and passenger, respectively. Because Cadena did not have a valid driver’s license, Cadena was arrested and his vehicle impounded. Inside the car, they discovered approximately 60 grams of meth the center console.
In January 2021, law enforcement learned Jesse Soliz, Joshua Cadena, Matthew Cadena and their associates were going to receive a large shipment of illegal narcotics, believed to be meth and heroin, from an unknown individual that resided outside of the Corpus Christi area. Upon surveilling Soliz’s residence, law enforcement observed Luis Reyes-Camacho arrive in a vehicle. Soliz walked out of the garage as Reyes-Camacho retrieved a large bag from the vehicle. Both then entered the residence. A short time later, several individuals exited the garage and drove away in multiple vehicles.
Law enforcement stopped Rodriguez and Joshua Cadena in a vehicle in which they later found two clear baggies containing approximately 60 grams of meth. During a simultaneous stop, a K-9 alerted to the front engine of a vehicle in which Reyes-Camacho was driving. Soliz was the passenger. A subsequent search resulted in the discovery of two kilograms of meth.
Authorities also discovered an additional three kilograms of meth in the residence of Soliz as well as a kilogram of heroin, approximately $26,000, a Sig Sauer 9mm pistol and ammunition.
Matthew Cadena has been and will remain in custody pending transfer to a U.S. Bureau of Prisons facility to be determined in the near future.
The Drug Enforcement Administration and Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives conducted the Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) investigation dubbed Operation Smoke’M Out with the assistance of Texas Department of Public Safety and the Corpus Christi Police Department. OCDETF identifies, disrupts and dismantles the highest-level drug traffickers, money launderers, gangs and transnational criminal organizations that threaten the United States by using a prosecutor-led, intelligence-driven, multi-agency approach that leverages the strengths of federal, state and local law enforcement agencies against criminal networks. Additional information about the OCDETF Program can be found on the Department of Justice’s OCDETF webpage.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Lance Watt prosecuted the case.
Six Co-Conspirators Sentenced for over $2.8 M Retail Financing FraudRead the Press Release
RICHMOND, Va. – Six individuals were sentenced recently to approximately 31 combined years in prison for taking part in a conspiracy to defraud several retail financing providers through various schemes involving the use of the names and other personal identifying information of over 1,000 identity theft victims.
According to court documents, between April 2017 and January 2022, Wael Jibawi, 28, of Palos Heights, Illinois; Mohammad Jibawi, 27, of Tinley Park, Illinois; Mahmoud Aljibawi, 40, of Oak Forest, Illinois; Alaelddin Aljibawi, 37, of Orland Park, Illinois; Jamel Eljebawe, 48, of Tinley Park, Illinois; and Yanal Khrisat, 28, of Burbank, Illinois, conspired to defraud at least six retail financing providers of at least $2.8 million.
During that period, the defendants opened and maintained several retail furniture stores in and around the Chicago area, which they used to establish merchant relationships with the targeted financing providers. These relationships enabled defendants to submit financing applications in the names of customers. Instead, the defendants submitted applications in the names of identity theft victims then used the approved accounts to charge the financing providers for purchases that did not actually occur. Over 1,000 identity theft victims have been identified to-date.
Additionally, in February 2018, several of the defendants used social engineering to gain access to merchant accounts belonging to other businesses and change the bank accounts designated to receive payments owed to those businesses by one retail financing provider. The defendants then submitted the affected businesses’ customer accounts for funding, causing the financing provider to deposit money that the defendants were not actually owed into accounts that they had opened and controlled.
The defendants’ respective sentences for their role in the scheme are as follows:
Defendant
Charges
Sentence
Wael Jibawi
Conspiracy to Commit Wire and Bank Fraud
Accessing Protected Computer in Furtherance of Fraud
Wire Fraud
132 months
Mohammad Jibawi
Conspiracy to Commit Wire and Bank Fraud
Accessing Protected Computer in Furtherance of Fraud
Wire Fraud
87 months
Mahmoud Aljibawi
Conspiracy to Commit Wire and Bank Fraud
Accessing Protected Computer in Furtherance of Fraud
Wire Fraud
58 months
Alaelddin Aljibawi
Conspiracy to Commit Wire and Bank Fraud
Wire Fraud
48 months
Jamel Eljebawe
Conspiracy to Commit Wire and Bank Fraud
Wire Fraud
31 months
Yanal Khrisat
Conspiracy to Commit Wire and Bank Fraud
Accessing Protected Computer in Furtherance of Fraud
Wire Fraud
21 months
Jessica D. Aber, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia; Stanley M. Meador, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI Richmond Field Office; and Colonel Gary T. Settle, Virginia State Police Superintendent, made the announcement after sentencing by U.S. District Judge David J. Novak.
Assistant U.S. Attorneys Kaitlin G. Cooke and Carla Jordan-Detamore prosecuted the case.
Anyone who believes that they have been a victim of identity theft, or wants information about preventing identity theft, may obtain helpful information and complaint forms on various government websites including the Federal Trade Commission ID Theft Website. Additional resources regarding identity theft include the Department of Justice’s Identity Theft Website, the Social Security Administration’s Fraud Prevention and Reporting Website, and the IRS’s Identity Theft Central.
A copy of this press release is located on the website of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Virginia. Related court documents and information are located on the website of the District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia or on PACER by searching for Case No. 3:21-cr-141.
San Antonio Felons Charged with Stealing Firearms During Truck BurglariesRead the Press Release
SAN ANTONIO – A group of felons were indicted Thursday, charged with burglarizing numerous Ford pickup trucks and stealing firearms and other items.
According to court documents, Alejandro Arias, 24; Andrew Riojas, 24; Victor Valenciana, 28, Aureliano Villarreal, 26; and Richard Hernandez, 24, all from San Antonio, were part of a burglary crew that targeted Ford pickup trucks between July 2021 and January 2022. The group allegedly targeted Ford pickup trucks parked in high-traffic areas such as the parking lots of retail locations, malls and restaurants, stealing firearms and other high-value items, and occasionally stealing the trucks themselves. The indictment alleges that, to evade law enforcement detection, the defendants rented vehicles, applied stolen license plates to them, and traveled to the burglary locations. All five defendants are now in custody.
Each are charged with multiple counts, including conspiracy to receive and possess stolen firearms, felon in possession of a firearm, and possession of a stolen firearm. The defendants have each made their initial court appearances and await trial, currently scheduled for January 2023. If convicted, they each face a maximum penalty of five years in prison on the conspiracy to possess stolen firearms count and a maximum penalty of 10 years on the remaining counts. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
U.S. Attorney Jaime Esparza of the Western District of Texas and Special Agent in Charge Fred J. Milanowski of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) Houston Field Division made the announcement.
The ATF, Department of Homeland Security Investigations, and San Antonio Police Department are investigating the case.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Brian Nowinski is prosecuting the case.
An indictment is merely an allegation and all defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
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Safford Man Sentenced to 60 months for Child Exploitation OffensesRead the Press Release
TUCSON, Ariz. – Last week, Richard Lee Molinar, 44, of Safford, Arizona, was sentenced by United States District Judge Scott H. Rash to 60 months in prison for child exploitation offenses. Molinar earlier pleaded guilty to Possession of Child Pornography. Upon release, Molinar will be placed on lifetime supervised release with sex offender conditions and will be required to register as a sex offender.
On July 7, 2021, Molinar was charged by a six-count indictment that alleged he received, possessed, and distributed child pornography between March 1, 2020, and April 1, 2021. Molinar pleaded guilty to count one of the indictment on June 23, 2022, which charged that on or about April 1, 2021, he possessed child pornography. Molinar admitted to possessing a phone which he used to access, download, save, and view images and 13 videos depicting minor children, many under the age of 12, who were engaged in sexually explicit conduct. Molinar received and distributed these images and videos using Facebook Messenger.
“Project Safe Childhood aims to protect the public long-term from the actions of defendants who seek to exploit children,” said United States Attorney Gary Restaino. “Because of this conviction, and the diligence of our partners at Homeland Security Investigations, the defendant will be subject to stringent conditions for the rest of his life with respect to the use of the internet and participation in chat rooms and other forms of social networking.”
“HSI will not tolerate the exploitation of children and will continue to use our unique investigative authorities to bring to justice anyone who attempts to violate our children,” said Special Agent in Charge Scott Brown, HSI Arizona.
This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood (PSC), a nationwide initiative to combat the epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice. Led by U.S. Attorneys’ Offices and the DOJ’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, PSC 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.
Homeland Security Investigations conducted the investigation in this case. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Rebecca S. Garvey and Carin C. Duryee, District of Arizona, Tucson, handled the prosecution.
CASE NUMBER: CR-21-01599-SHR-BGM
RELEASE NUMBER: 2022-227_Molinar# # #
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.
Richmond Contractor Sentenced to over 1 Year for Violating Federal Lead Paint Laws and Obstructing JusticeRead the Press Release
INDIANAPOLIS- Jeffrey Delucio, 54, of Richmond, Indiana, was sentenced to 16 months in federal prison for violating the Toxic Substance Control Act, specifically the provisions of the Act concerning lead paint renovations, and for obstructing justice by fabricating records to obstruct a federal grand jury.
According to court documents, Delucio operated Aluminum Brothers Home Improvements in Richmond, Indiana, which received federal grant money from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) to mitigate lead paint hazards in older low-to-middle income homes. Lead-based paint is the leading cause of lead poisoning in children, which can result in permanent developmental and health problems. Because of lead’s toxicity, federal law requires contractors renovating homes with lead-based paint to take certain precautions while working to protect themselves and those living in and around the homes under construction.
Delucio admitted in federal court that he and other Aluminum Brothers workers he supervised failed to follow these laws while conducting multiple the HUD-funded renovations in Richmond. As a result, lead-based paint chips were scattered throughout the properties and were not cleaned up timely or properly as work was being conducted. One of the residences was inhabited by a child with elevated blood lead levels, which had prompted the renovation work at that property to begin with.
Delucio further admitted that he failed to train his workers on lead-safe work practices and then falsified documents to conceal his conduct. Delucio’s company was subpoenaed by a federal grand jury for business records, including records of employee training on lead-safe work practices. In an effort to impede federal criminal investigators, including those from HUD and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), Delucio fabricated training records for each of his employees and supplied the false documents to EPA and HUD agents.
“Mr. Delucio put his community, employees, and the environment at risk, including a medically vulnerable child” said Zachary A. Myers, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Indiana. “These regulations are in place to ensure the health of Hoosiers for generations to come. We will continue working with the EPA, IDEM, and HUD to prosecute those who do not uphold their responsibility to preserve the environment and the safety of citizens.”
“The defendant created risks by not only failing to follow lead-safe work practices, but also falsely representing to the government their employees had received training,” said Special Agent in Charge Jennifer Lynn of EPA’s criminal investigation program. “Today’s sentencing demonstrates that individuals who intentionally violate environmental laws will be held responsible for their crimes.”
“Protecting families and communities from lead-based paint hazards is one of HUD OIG’s top priorities,” said Special Agent in Charge Machelle Jindra. “HUD OIG is committed to seeking criminal penalties for those who willfully disregard lead-based paint safety regulations and other violations of Federal law related to HUD programs.”
“This wasn’t simply a situation of an environmental crime. Mr. Delucio’s behavior had real-life health implications for families in Wayne County,” IDEM Commissioner Brian Rockensuess said. “We’re pleased that this investigation has led to a conviction, preventing him and his company from causing further harm.”
The EPA, Indiana Department of Environmental Management (IDEM), and U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) investigated the case. The sentence was imposed by U.S. District Judge James Patrick Hanlon and included a $1,000 fine. As part of the sentence, Judge Hanlon ordered that Delucio be supervised by the U.S. Probation Office for 2 years following his release from federal prison.
U.S. Attorney Myers thanked Assistant United States Attorney Kathryn E. Olivier who prosecuted the case.
This case was prosecuted as part of the Department of Justice’s Comprehensive Environmental Justice Enforcement Strategy. As the Attorney General of the United States announced on May 5, 2022, the Department’s Environmental Justice Strategy seeks to provide timely and effective remedies for systemic environmental violations and contaminations and for injury to natural resources in underserved communities that have been historically marginalized and overburdened, including low-income communities, communities of color, and Tribal and Indigenous communities. The Department’s Office of Environmental Justice Members of the public who have concerns about environmental justice matters in the Southern District of Indiana can report them to the U.S. Attorney’s office via email to [email protected].
Ravenna CPA Charged with Embezzling More Than $1 Million from Employer and Submitting False Tax ReturnsRead the Press Release
CLEVELAND – Michael Harman, 45, of Ravenna, Ohio, was charged today in a six-count Bill of Information with devising a scheme to defraud his employer out of more than $1 million, money laundering, and submitting false tax returns to the IRS.
According to court documents, the defendant was a Certified Public Accountant (CPA) and was employed as a controller within his company. As a controller, some of the defendant’s responsibilities included processing payroll adjustments.
Court documents state that from 2016 to August 2020, the defendant devised a scheme to embezzle more than $1 million from his employer and used the funds for personal use, including child support payments in the State of New York and moving expenses. The defendant is accused of executing the scheme by using a series of unauthorized wire transfers, fictitious checks, and fraudulent charges on his employer’s credit cards.
In addition, the defendant is charged with failing to report income earned from the scheme on his tax returns for the tax years 2016, 2017, 2018, and 2019.
This case was investigated by the Cleveland FBI, Akron Resident Agency and IRS Criminal Investigation (CI). This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Brian M. McDonough and Aaron P. Howell.
Providence Man Admits to Wire Fraud Conspiracy, Identity Theft While on Federal Supervised Release for Sex TraffickingRead the Press Release
PROVIDENCE – A Providence man today admitted to a federal judge that he participated in a conspiracy to fraudulently submit online applications in his name and in the names of other persons to collect COVID-related unemployment benefits from at least seven states, and that he did so while serving a term of federal supervised release that followed his conviction and incarceration for sex trafficking, announced United States Attorney Zachary A. Cunha.
Mackenzy Scott, 26, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit wire fraud, seven counts of wire fraud, theft of government money, and four counts of aggravated identity theft.
According to information presented to the court and contained in court documents, beginning in March 2020, approximately four months after his release from Bureau of Prisons’ custody, and continuing to May 2021, Scott used his own name, and the names of others to carry out a scheme to submit fraudulent online applications for COVID-related, federally-funded unemployment benefits from state agencies in North Dakota, Massachusetts, Arizona, Nevada, Kentucky, Texas, Hawaii, Pennsylvania, Michigan, and Indiana. In each of these applications, Scott falsely claimed that he, and the other persons in whose names he submitted applications, were entitled to benefits and made false statements about employment and/or residence in the applications submitted to respective states.
Scott’s fraudulent activity was discovered in February 2021 by a United States Probation Officer during an investigation into alleged violations of the terms of his federal supervised release.
The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Denise M. Barton and Stacey Erickson.
The matter was investigated by the FBI and the Department of Labor – Office of Inspector General.
Rhode Islanders who believe their personal identification has been stolen and used to fraudulently obtain unemployment benefits are urged to contact the Rhode Island State Police at [email protected] or the FBI Providence office at (401) 272-8310.
On May 17, 2021, the United States Attorney General established the COVID-19 Fraud Enforcement Task Force to marshal the resources of the Department of Justice in partnership with agencies across government to enhance efforts to combat and prevent pandemic-related fraud. The Task Force bolsters efforts to investigate and prosecute the most culpable domestic and international criminal actors and assists agencies tasked with administering relief programs to prevent fraud by, among other methods, augmenting and incorporating existing coordination mechanisms, identifying resources and techniques to uncover fraudulent actors and their schemes, and sharing and harnessing information and insights gained from prior enforcement efforts. For more information on the Department’s response to the pandemic, please visit https://www.justice.gov/coronavirus.
Anyone with information about allegations of attempted fraud involving COVID- 19 can report it by calling the Department of Justice’s National Center for Disaster Fraud (NCDF) Hotline at 866-720-5721 or via the NCDF Web Complaint Form at: https://www.justice.gov/disaster-fraud/ncdf-disaster-complaint-form.
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Placerville Man Pleads Guilty to Possessing 27 Dogs for Use in Dog FightingRead the Press Release
SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Carlos Villasenor, 40, of Placerville, pleaded guilty today to possession of dogs for use in an animal fighting venture, U.S. Attorney Phillip A. Talbert announced.
According to court documents, Villasenor operated a dog breeding business in which he bred dogs from a number of well-known and desirable dogfighting bloodlines. Villasenor transported dogs between California and Mexico for the purpose of dog fighting, trained dogs for dogfighting on his property in Placerville, and sold dogs to buyers primarily outside California.
In September 2020, the sound of dogfighting, with humans egging the dogs on, could be heard from Villasenor’s Placerville property. In June 2021, law enforcement agents executed a federal search warrant at Villasenor’s property and seized 27 pit bull type-dogs, one of whom had injuries to its face consistent with an attack from another dog. Agents also seized one chihuahua mix which was used as a “bait dog.” Approximately half the dogs were tethered by heavy chains, and spaced so that they could see one another, but not reach one another, in order to frustrate the dogs and foster aggression. Many of the dogs had untreated veterinary conditions. Numerous implements of the dog fighting trade were found on the property, including a breeding stand, treadmills, and veterinary supplies including skin staplers, antibiotics, syringes, and IV bags. In his plea agreement, Villasenor surrendered his interest in the dogs and property seized by law enforcement.
This case is the product of an investigation by the U.S. Department of Agriculture, with assistance from El Dorado County Animal Services. Assistant U.S. Attorney Audrey Hemesath is prosecuting the case.
Villasenor is scheduled to be sentenced by Judge William B. Shubb on March 20, 2023. Villasenor faces a maximum statutory penalty of five years in prison and a $250,000 fine. Any sentence, however, would 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.
Peoria Felon Sentenced to 51 Months in Prison for Possession of a HandgunRead the Press Release
PEORIA, Ill. – A Peoria, Illinois, man, Eshayah Y. Aguirre, 21, of the 1600 block of North Great Oak Road, was sentenced on December 20, 2022, to 51 months in federal prison, to be followed by a three-year term of supervised release, for possessing a firearm as a felon.
At the sentencing hearing before U.S. District Judge James E. Shadid, the government presented evidence that in January 2022 Aguirre had been convicted of the felony offense of aggravated unlawful use of weapons in Peoria County Circuit Court. Aguirre was thereafter prohibited by federal law from possessing firearms due to his felony conviction.
Later on May 25, 2022, Peoria Police conducted a routine traffic stop of a Chevy Trailblazer where Aguirre was seated as a backseat passenger. During the traffic stop, Aguirre forced open the rear door of the Trailblazer, striking an officer in the head and knee with the door. Aguirre then fled on foot through a residential area and, during a chase with the officer only footsteps behind, reached into his waistband and pulled out a handgun equipped with an extended high-capacity ammunition magazine. Immediately after pulling out the gun, Aguirre tripped and fell, causing the firearm tumble across the ground in an area between houses. Police then arrested Aguirre and recovered the gun, a semi-automatic pistol with a magazine capable of holding up to 31 rounds of ammunition. The gun was loaded with a round in the chamber, ready to fire, and contained an additional 20 rounds of ammunition in the magazine. Aguirre admitted the gun was his, claiming he had found it on an earlier date and kept it for his own protection.
At the hearing, Judge Shadid found that, although Aguirre was a young man, he was being sentenced for his second gun case and the sentence imposed was necessary to protect the public from potential future crimes by Aguirre.
Aguirre was indicted in June 2022 and entered a guilty plea in August 2022. He has remained in the custody of the U.S. Marshals Service.
The statutory penalties for a possessing a firearm as a felon are up to 10 years’ imprisonment, up to five years of supervised release, and a possible fine of up to $250,000.
The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and the Peoria Police Department investigated the case. Assistant U.S. Attorney Ronald L. Hanna represented the government in the prosecution.
The case against Aguirre 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.
Peoria Felon Sentenced to 30 Months in Prison for Possession of a FirearmRead the Press Release
PEORIA, Ill. – A Peoria, Illinois, man, Anthony Derrell Morris, 22, of the 1600 block of North Great Oak Court, was sentenced on December 20, 2022, to 30 months’ imprisonment, to be followed by three years of supervised release, for possessing a firearm as a felon.
At the sentencing hearing before U.S. District Judge James E. Shadid, the government presented evidence that in May 2022 the Peoria Police Department located a 2016 Honda Fit that had been reported stolen the previous day. Police conducted surveillance and saw Morris approach the car and enter the driver’s seat. When police converged on the vehicle, an officer on the passenger side saw a firearm tucked between Morris’s right leg and the center console, with the grip of the gun in plain sight. Morris had previously been convicted of the felony offense of possession of stolen motor vehicle and was prohibited from possessing a firearm or ammunition. The gun, a .380 caliber pistol, was loaded and had previously been reported as stolen. Morris was placed into custody without incident. He admitted that he illegally obtained the firearm the day prior to his arrest.
Morris was arrested and indicted in May 2022 and pleaded guilty in August 2022. He has remained in the custody of the U.S. Marshals Service since his arrest.
The statutory penalties for possession of a firearm by a felon at the time of Morris’ offense were up to 10 years’ imprisonment, up to five years of supervised release, and a possible fine of up to $250,000.
“The United States Attorney’s Office will continue to work diligently with its federal and local law enforcement partners to seek swift and certain accountability for felons that possess firearms in our community”, said Assistant U.S. Attorney, Ronald L. Hanna.
The case was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and the Peoria Police Department. Assistant U.S. Attorney Ronald L. Hanna represented the government in the prosecution.
The case against Morris 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.
Pawtucket Man Admits Role in Counterfeit Check Fraud ConspiracyRead the Press Release
PROVIDENCE – A Pawtucket man admitted to a federal judge on Tuesday that he conspired with others to deposit and cash counterfeit checks created using stolen business and personal banking information, announced United States Attorney Zachary A. Cunha.
Maximilian Mwah, 29, admitted that he and others, including Richard Kobi, 27, of Providence, recruited individuals who would allow counterfeit checks to be deposited into their bank accounts. Once the checks were deposited, the funds were quickly withdrawn from ATMs and bank tellers. In one instance, Mwah arranged with Koboi to locate a look-alike who matched the description of an actual bank account holder. The look-alike was provided with a picture ID and the account holder’s banking information and used them to successfully make a withdrawal.
Mwah pleaded guilty on Tuesday to conspiracy to commit bank fraud and to bank fraud. He is scheduled to be sentenced on March 16, 2023. His sentence will be determined by a federal district judge after consideration of the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
Koboi pleaded guilty on April 27, 2022, to conspiracy to commit bank fraud, ten counts of bank fraud, and being a felon in possession of a firearm. He was sentenced to thirty-six months in federal prison; three years of federal supervised release; and ordered to pay restitution totaling $31,928, the actual loss to banks attributed to his criminal conduct.
Cases related to this bank fraud conspiracy are being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Ly T. Chin.
The matter was investigated by the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, with the assistance of the FBI, United States Secret Service, ATF, Rhode Island State Police, Providence Police Department, and Delaware State Police.
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Omaha Man Sentenced to 130 Months for MethamphetamineRead the Press Release
Acting United States Attorney Steven Russell announced that Larry D. Brooks, 60, of Omaha, Nebraska, was sentenced today in federal court in Omaha. United States District Judge Brian C. Buescher sentenced Brooks to 130 months in prison for one count of possession with intent to distribute 50 grams or more of methamphetamine (actual). After serving his sentence, Brooks will be placed on supervised release for 5 years. There is no parole in the federal system.
On or about February 6, 2021, in Omaha, officers with the Omaha Police Department observed a Red GMC Yukon being driven without illuminated taillights. The officers conducted a traffic stop on the vehicle. Brooks was driving the vehicle and there were no other occupants. After the stop, Brooks identified himself to the officers. During the search of the Brooks’s vehicle, officers located three (3) plastic baggies, which contained suspected methamphetamine and a digital gram scale. At the time of the traffic stop, Brooks knew the methamphetamine was in the vehicle and he intended to distribute some or all of the methamphetamine to another person.
Subsequent Nebraska Public Service Laboratory lab tests confirmed the suspected methamphetamine found in Brooks’s vehicle was methamphetamine and had a weight of 101.107 grams (3.56 ounces). Subsequent lab tests determined the recovered methamphetamine had a purity of 95%, for a minimum amount of actual methamphetamine of 90.996 grams
This case was investigated by the Omaha Police Department.
Oklahoma Inmate Sentenced to Serve Three Decades in Federal Prison for Drug Dealing from State PrisonRead the Press Release
OKLAHOMA CITY – Last week, EDUARDO ROSALES, 35, of Oklahoma City, was sentenced to serve 360 months in federal prison for his involvement in a methamphetamine distribution conspiracy, announced U.S. Attorney Robert J. Troester.
On December 4, 2019, a federal grand jury returned a 55-count Indictment charging Rosales and dozens of co-defendants with crimes related to a large-scale drug trafficking operation orchestrated from state prisons. According to the Indictment, the operation primarily focused on distributing methamphetamine using contraband cell phones from prison.
On August 3, 2021, Rosales pleaded guilty to Count 1 of a Superseding Information, alleging a drug conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine. The Indictment pertaining to Rosales was dismissed at sentencing pursuant to a plea agreement.
On December 15, 2022, Senior U.S. District Judge Stephen P. Friot sentenced Rosales to serve 30 years in federal prison after he completes his current state prison sentences. Judge Friot also ordered Rosales to serve 10 years of supervised release after his federal prison term. At the sentencing hearing, the court took into consideration that in 2019, Rosales used incarcerated associates, non-incarcerated associates, and contacts in Mexico to orchestrate a massive drug-trafficking ring that distributed methamphetamine throughout Oklahoma. In imposing the sentence, Judge Friot noted Rosales’ leadership role in the organization, his continued propensity to engage in criminal activity despite incarceration, the need for long-term incapacitation, and his criminal history.
Public records reflect that Rosales holds multiple felony convictions. He is currently serving a 15-year term of imprisonment with the Oklahoma Department of Corrections for 2016 convictions for trafficking in illegal drugs (methamphetamine), being a felon in possession of a firearm, and possession of a weapon while committing a felony in Oklahoma County District Court case CF-2016-9180. Additionally, in Oklahoma County District Court cases CF-2013-8251, CF-2014-6012, CF-2016-10038, and CF-2017-2838, Rosales holds felony convictions for possession of a controlled and dangerous substance (cocaine and marijuana) after sustaining a prior felony conviction, possession of proceeds after sustaining a prior felony conviction, and being a felon in possession of a firearm.
This case resulted from a nearly two-year investigation by the FBI Oklahoma City Field Office, the Oklahoma City Police Department, and the Oklahoma Department of Corrections—Security Threats Intelligence. The investigation ultimately led to the federal indictments of more than 40 defendants related to this drug trafficking enterprise. Rosales is the last defendant to be sentenced from the two Indictments stemming from this investigation.
This prosecution is also a part of an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF) investigation. OCDETF identifies, disrupts, and dismantles the highest-level drug traffickers, money launderers, gangs, and transnational criminal organizations that threaten the United States using a prosecutor-led, intelligence-driven, multi-agency approach that leverages the strengths of federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies against criminal networks.
Assistant U.S. Attorneys Jason Harley, David McCrary, and Chelsie Pratt prosecuted the case.
North Providence Woman Sentenced for Defrauding the Federal Housing Administration, Business and Unemployment COVID Relief ProgramsRead the Press Release
PROVIDENCE – A North Providence woman convicted of defrauding multiple publicly-funded programs was sentenced on Tuesday to eighteen months in federal prison for making false statements when applying for a Federal Housing Administration (FHA)-backed mortgage, a Small Business Association (SBA) loan, and for fraudulently applying for government-funded COVID unemployment benefits, announced United States Attorney Zachary A. Cunha.
In March 2022, Juliana Martins, 53, admitted to a federal judge that, while simultaneously on federal supervised release for her role in a stolen identity and refund scheme, as well as state probation for an unrelated 2014 conviction for forgery and counterfeiting, Martins applied for an FHA-guaranteed loan. As part of the application process, she provided false explanations about gaps in her employment history, claiming that she was unemployed due to a “family emergency,” when in fact she had been incarcerated and serving an earlier federal sentence. claiming she was Martins also failed to disclose the fact that she was subject to a $385,533 federal restitution order.
Following the application, Martins and a co-borrower were issued an FHA-insured mortgage in the amount of $265,109.
Additionally, Martins admitted that in July 2020, she submitted a fraudulent application for a Small Business Administration (SBA) low-interest COVID-related Economic Injury Disaster Loan (EIDL), falsely claiming that she was an independent contractor in the health service business, and that her business had been impacted by the pandemic. Finally, Martins admitted that she fraudulently applied for and received COVID-related unemployment insurance benefits in April 2020, while she was in fact employed as an office manager. In total, Martins received over $40,000 in COVID relief benefits to which she was not entitled.
Martins pleaded guilty on March 2, 2020, to making a false statement on a loan application and theft of government property. Martins was sentenced on Tuesday by U.S. District Court Chief John J. McConnell, Jr., to eighteen months in prison and three years of federal supervised release. The defendant was ordered to pay restitution totaling $43,537.
The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys G. Michael Seaman and Sandra R. Hebert.
The matter was investigated by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development - Office of Inspector General; U.S. Department of Labor – Office of Inspector General; FBI; and Rhode Island State Police, with the assistance of the Rhode Island Department of Labor and Training Unemployment Insurance Fraud Unit.
Rhode Islanders who believe their personal identification has been stolen and used to fraudulently obtain unemployment benefits are urged to contact the Rhode Island State Police at [email protected] or the FBI Providence office at (401) 272-8310.
On May 17, 2021, the United States Attorney General established the COVID-19 Fraud Enforcement Task Force to marshal the resources of the Department of Justice in partnership with agencies across government to enhance efforts to combat and prevent pandemic-related fraud. The Task Force bolsters efforts to investigate and prosecute the most culpable domestic and international criminal actors and assists agencies tasked with administering relief programs to prevent fraud by, among other methods, augmenting and incorporating existing coordination mechanisms, identifying resources and techniques to uncover fraudulent actors and their schemes, and sharing and harnessing information and insights gained from prior enforcement efforts. For more information on the Department’s response to the pandemic, please visit https://www.justice.gov/coronavirus.
Anyone with information about allegations of attempted fraud involving COVID- 19 can report it by calling the Department of Justice’s National Center for Disaster Fraud (NCDF) Hotline at 866-720-5721 or via the NCDF Web Complaint Form at: https://www.justice.gov/disaster-fraud/ncdf-disaster-complaint-form.
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Noblesville Man Sentenced to over 10 Years in Federal Prison for Distributing Child Sexual Abuse MaterialRead the Press Release
INDIANAPOLIS- Chakra Dasari, 34, of Noblesville, Indiana was sentenced to 121 months in federal prison for distributing and receiving child sexual abuse material.
According to court documents, in January of 2021, Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department (IMPD) officers received information that Dasari had been using a cloud storage and file hosting application called Mega to store and exchange images of child sexual abuse. Dasari had sent the witness child sexual abuse material via Mega’s chat feature.
On May 11, 2021, investigators with the Indiana Crimes Against Children (ICAC) Task Force executed a search warrant at Dasari’s Noblesville residence. Investigators located an Apple iPhone on Dasari’s person that held 17 video files and 1 image file of child sexual abuse material. The iPhone also contained Telegram social media messages in which Dasari received material from an unknown Telegram user depicting toddlers and infants being made to engage in sexually explicit conduct with adults. Dasari possessed this child sexual abuse material between June of 2020 and May of 2021.
Dasari made multiple false statements to investigators during a recorded interview, denying that he had ever sent or received sexually explicit images or videos of minors. Dasari stated to police that he only “might have said certain things (I’m) not proud of” during his conversations with another Mega user.
United States Attorney for the Southern District of Indiana, Zachary A. Myers and IMPD Chief Randal Taylor made the announcement.
“The defendant joined others online to share heinous images depicting the sexual abuse of babies and toddlers,” said Zachary A. Myers, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Indiana. “Those who are gratified by the sexual exploitation of the most vulnerable of victims are a tremendous danger to our communities. The outstanding investigators of the Indiana ICAC Task Force will continue to work tirelessly with our U.S. Attorney’s Office to identify these criminals and send them to prison, where our children are out of their reach.”
ICAC and IMPD investigated the case. The sentence was imposed by U.S. District Judge James P. Hanlon. As part of the sentence, Judge Hanlon ordered that Dasari be supervised by the U.S. Probation Office for 10 years following his release from federal prison. Dasari must also register as sex offender wherever he lives, works, or goes to school, as required by law.
U.S. Attorney Myers thanked Assistant United States Attorney Kristina M. Korobov who prosecuted this case.
This investigation was conducted by the Indiana Internet Crimes Against Children (ICAC) Task Force, a partnership of federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies led by the Indiana State Police. The Task Force is dedicated to investigating and prosecuting crimes involving the technology-facilitated sexual exploitation of children and the trafficking of child sexual abuse material. Each year, Indiana ICAC investigators evaluate thousands of tips, investigate hundreds of cases, and rescue dozens of children from ongoing sexual abuse.
In fiscal year 2019, the most recent year for which data is available, the Southern District of Indiana was second out of the 94 federal districts in the country for the number of child sexual exploitation cases prosecuted.
This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by U.S. Attorneys’ Offices and the Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to better locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the internet, as well as to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.justice.gov/psc
New York Man Admits Role in Conspiracy to Distribute Fentanyl, Methamphetamine and Cocaine in New JerseyRead the Press Release
NEWARK, N.J. – A New York man admitted participating in a conspiracy to distribute fentanyl, methamphetamine and cocaine in New Jersey from locations in Manhattan, U.S. Attorney Philip R. Sellinger announced today.
Juan Carlos Merced Moreno, aka “Samuel,” 45, of Manhattan, New York, pleaded guilty by videoconference on Dec. 20, 2022, before U.S. District Judge Claire C. Cecchi to a superseding information charging him with one count of conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute 40 grams or more of a mixture and substance containing fentanyl, 50 grams or more of a mixture and substance containing methamphetamine, and 100 grams or more of a mixture and substance containing a detectable amount of heroin.
According to documents filed in this case and statements made in court:
Moreno admitted that from November 2020 through January 2021 he conspired with others to distribute and possess with intent to distribute fentanyl, methamphetamine, and heroin. He admitted participating in the conspiracy from locations in Manhattan and that some of the controlled substances were transported to New Jersey.
The conspiracy charge carries a mandatory minimum penalty of five years in prison, a maximum potential penalty of 40 years in prison, and a maximum $5 million fine. Sentencing is scheduled for May 8, 2023.
U.S. Attorney Sellinger credited members of the Department of Homeland Security, Homeland Security Investigations, New York City Airport Border Enforcement Security Taskforce under the direction of Ivan J. Arvelo; special agents from Homeland Security Investigation, Newark, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Ricky J. Patel; members of the New York Police Department, under the direction of Commissioner Keechant Sewell; and investigators and assistant prosecutors from the Hudson County Prosecutor’s Office, under the direction of Hudson County Prosecutor Esther Suarez, with the investigation leading to today’s guilty plea.
The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorney Benjamin Levin of the U.S. Attorney’s Office National Security Unit in Newark.
Michigan City Man Sentenced to 444 Months in PrisonRead the Press Release
SOUTH BEND –Rico Marion, 44 years old, of Michigan City, Indiana, was sentenced by United States District Court Judge Damon R. Leichty after pleading guilty to conspiracy to distribute fentanyl and possession of a firearm in furtherance of drug trafficking, announced United States Attorney Clifford D. Johnson.
Marion was sentenced to 444 months in prison followed by 5 years of supervised release.
According to documents in the case, from June through mid-August 2021, Marion conspired with others to distribute fentanyl in the Michigan City area. Marion sold pills purporting to be oxycodone that were actually fentanyl and he possessed numerous firearms during the length of the conspiracy. In August 2021, Marion and a co-defendant were caught traveling back to Michigan City with over a kilogram of fentanyl pills.
“Today’s 37 year sentence was imposed on Mr. Marion for his role in distributing hundreds of grams of fentanyl to the streets of Northern Indiana,” said United States Attorney Clifford D. Johnson. “Fentanyl is 50 times more potent than heroin and 100 times more potent than morphine meaning as little as 2 milligrams can kill. Our federal, state and local law enforcement partners are focused on dismantling organizations that distribute this deadly illicit drug.”
“The sentence imposed reflects the commitment of the DEA, alongside our local and federal law enforcement and prosecution partners, to hold fentanyl traffickers accountable while keeping Hoosiers safe and healthy,” said Alfred A. Cooke, Assistant Special Agent in Charge of the Drug Enforcement Administration-Merrillville District Office.
“This sentence is an excellent example of how law enforcement partnerships are a force multiplier in investigating and prosecuting cases that have a large impact on the community,” said ATF Acting Special Agent in Charge of the Chicago Field Division Jeffrey L. Matthews. “I commend the efforts of all the investigators, agents and prosecutors who worked together to hold this defendant accountable.”
This case was investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration (including the Chicago Field Division, the Merrillville District Office, the Amarillo Resident Office and the Albuquerque District Office) with the assistance of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, the LaPorte County Drug Task Force, an Indiana HIDTA Initiative and the Michigan City Police Department. The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Kimberly L. Schultz and Joel Gabrielse.
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.
Mexican National Charged with Smuggling Firearms into MexicoRead the Press Release
DEL RIO, Texas – A federal grand jury in Del Rio returned an indictment last week charging a Mexican national with conspiring and attempting to smuggle firearms and ammunition into Mexico from the United States.
According to court documents, Jose Jesus Hernandez-Valle, 54, conspired with others to smuggle a 9mm pistol, a .40 caliber pistol, and more than 200 rounds of ammunition and other related firearm accessories into Mexico. The firearms were discovered and seized by Border Patrol Agents at the Del Rio International Port of Entry on Nov. 2.
Hernandez-Valle is charged with one count of conspiracy to smuggle goods from the U.S. and one count of smuggling goods from the U.S. The defendant is scheduled to make his initial court appearance Dec. 29 before U.S. Magistrate Judge Collis White of the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Texas. If convicted, he faces a maximum penalty of five years in prison on the conspiracy count and 10 years in prison for the smuggling goods count. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
U.S. Attorney Jaime Esparza of the Western District of Texas and Acting Special Agent in Charge Craig Larrabee of the Department of Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) San Antonio Division made the announcement.
HSI and the U.S. Border Patrol are investigating the case.
Assistant U.S. Attorneys Zachary Bird and Alex Brown are prosecuting the case.
An indictment is merely an allegation and all defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
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Mexican National Charged with Possession, Smuggling Firearm into MexicoRead the Press Release
DEL RIO, Texas – A federal grand jury in Del Rio returned an indictment last week charging a Mexican national with smuggling goods from the United States and possessing a firearm.
On Dec. 4, 2022, U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) Officers encountered Santos Lozano-Martinez, 36, at the Camino Real International Bridge Number Two in Eagle Pass. During the inspection of Lozano-Martinez’s vehicle, a firearm and ammunition were discovered. Lozano-Martinez is accused of illegally possessing and smuggling from the U.S. into Mexico an Anderson AM-15 rifle, 20 rounds of 30.06 caliber Winchester ammunition, 50 rounds of .45 caliber Winchester ammunition and 131 rounds of .223 caliber Remington ammunition.
Lozano-Martinez is charged with one count of smuggling goods from the United States and one count of being an alien in possession of a firearm. The defendant is scheduled for his initial court appearance on Dec. 29 before U.S. Magistrate Judge Collis White of the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Texas. If convicted, he faces a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison on the count of smuggling goods from the U.S. and up to 15 years of imprisonment on the count of alien in possession of a firearm. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
U.S. Attorney Jaime Esparza of the Western District of Texas; Acting Special Agent in Charge Craig Larrabee of the Department of Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) San Antonio Division; and Special Agent in Charge Jeffrey C. Boshek II of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF), Dallas Division, made the announcement.
HSI, CBP and ATF are investigating the case.
Assistant U.S. Attorneys Zachary Bird and Alex Brown are prosecuting the case.
An indictment is merely an allegation and all defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
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Mexican Citizen Sentenced to 4 Months for Illegal Re-entry into the United StatesRead the Press Release
SYRACUSE, NEW YORK – Salvador Hernandez-Hernandez, age 32, of DeKalb, Illinois, was sentenced today to serve 4-months in prison following his conviction for illegally reentering the United States following a prior deportation, announced United States Attorney Carla B Freedman and U.S. Border Patrol Swanton Sector Chief Patrol Agent Robert N. Garcia.
As a part of his prior guilty plea, Hernandez admitted that he was removed from the United States in July 2008, and that sometime after his removal he unlawfully reentered the United States without permission. On October 9, 2022, United States Border Patrol Agents stopped a vehicle that Hernandez was driving near Fort Covington, New York. Hernandez admitted that he had no legal right to be in the United States.
This case was investigated by the United States Border Patrol and was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Jessica N. Carbone.
Many, Louisiana Man Convicted of Dog Fighting is Sentenced to Federal PrisonRead the Press Release
SHREVEPORT, La. - United States Attorney Brandon B. Brown announced that Charles Calvin Akins, 52, of Many, Louisiana, has been sentenced by United States District Judge Elizabeth E. Foote to 15 months in prison, followed by 2 years of supervised release.
Akins was charged in a federal indictment in February 2022 and pleaded guilty to the charge of possession of a dog for use in an animal fighting venture. This charge is a result of an investigation by law enforcement agents with the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) into illegal activities of Akins. Akins is a convicted felon, having been convicted of a felony charge of carnal knowledge of a juvenile in 1988, as well as misdemeanor convictions for aggravated assault and unauthorized use of a movable in 2016.
On January 19, 2022, agents with the ATF obtained a federal search warrant for Akins’ residence in Many, Louisiana. While planning the execution of the search warrant, agents observed 15 pit bull type dogs in the backyard of Akins’ residence. The dogs were chained in close proximity to each other but outside of biting reach and each dog had access to a small wooden structure. During the execution of the search warrant, agents observed the dogs, their chains, and their plywood structures. Each structure was surrounded by a circular path or “chain path.” The chain paths appeared to be worn dirt that the dogs would traverse around their plywood structures due to the restrictions of their chains.
Inside a nearby shed was a homemade treadmill with a small, dog-sized running belt made of wooden slats. These treadmills are commonly used by dog fighters to train and condition their dogs for fights. Inside another shed, agents found a pistol next to a large toolbox containing a large metal spring device, metal scale, and animal medications, as well as several heavy metal chains and metal stakes, a dog-breeding device and numerous carpet pieces. All of these items are commonly used by dog fighters to train and strengthen their dogs’ bite, weigh game dogs as they train and prepare them for upcoming fights, and for strength conditioning of the game dogs. Pieces of carpet are also commonly used by animal fighters to line fighting pits and provide traction for their game dogs. The dogs were seized and given behavioral and medical assessments. Several of the dogs had scars and wounds around the back legs, neck and rear, and displayed dog-aggressive behavior toward other dogs.
Akins admitted to owning and possessing the 15 dogs at his residence, along with the dog-fighting equipment found there. He also admitted that the dogs were possessed for use in dog-fighting events which would be conducted between at least two animals for purposes of sport, wagering, or entertainment, and that such dog-fighting events affected interstate commerce.
“Dog fighting is not only against the law, but an inhumane way of treating animals,” said U.S. Attorney Brandon B. Brown. “Individuals who participate in this type of activity should be aware that it is illegal to participate or wager in dog or cock fights. This office will continue to work with federal and local law enforcement agencies to put a stop to this kind of activity in the Western District of Louisiana.”
The case was investigated by the ATF and FBI and prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Brian C. Flanagan.
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Man from Acoma pleads guilty to sexual abuse in Indian CountryRead the Press Release
ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. – Alexander M.M. Uballez, United States Attorney for the District of New Mexico, announced today that Karl Shroulote, Sr., pleaded guilty to sexual abuse in Indian Country. Shroulote, 46, of Acoma, New Mexico, and an enrolled member of the Pueblo of Acoma, will remain on conditions of release pending sentencing, which has not been scheduled.
In his plea agreement, Shroulote admitted that on April 29, 2018, he sexually assaulted a victim, identified in court records as Jane Doe, while she was unconscious in his home on the Acoma Pueblo.
By the terms of the plea agreement, Shroulote faces between five years and three months and six and a half years in prison, and must register as a sex offender.
The Bureau of Indian Affairs investigated this case with assistance from the Pueblo of Acoma Police Department. Assistant United States Attorneys Alexander F. Flores is prosecuting the case.
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Man Sentenced to 28+ Years for Two St. Louis CarjackingsRead the Press Release
ST. LOUIS – U.S. District Judge Stephen R. Clark on Wednesday sentenced a man who carjacked two people in 2021, including a grandmother and her granddaughter, to 28 years and 10 months in prison.
Darius Eubanks, 28, first stole a 2012 Chevrolet Malibu at gunpoint at a north St. Louis grocery store on the afternoon of June 27, 2021. He then unsuccessfully tried to kidnap someone at gunpoint before crashing the stolen vehicle at Labadie Avenue and North Sarah Street in north St. Louis.
Eubanks abandoned that vehicle and walked to a nearby market, where he pistol-whipped a woman who was placing her granddaughter into a 2005 Hyundai Sonata, knocking the woman to the ground. As the woman struggled to get her granddaughter out of the car, Eubanks began driving off.
Less than 30 minutes later, Eubanks was caught by police near his home in the 5000 block of Palm Avenue with a gun and the grandmother’s car keys.
In court Wednesday, the grandmother said she and her granddaughter were traumatized and that she would “never forgive” Eubanks.
Eubanks pleaded guilty in September to two carjacking charges and a charge of brandishing a firearm during a crime of violence.
The case was investigated by the St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department and the FBI.
Man Sentenced to 18+ Years in Prison for Selling Fatal Dose of Fentanyl to St. Peters WomanRead the Press Release
ST. LOUIS – U.S. District Judge Matthew T. Schelp on Wednesday sentenced a man who sold the fentanyl that killed a St. Peters, Missouri woman in 2020 to 18 years and four months in prison.
Nathan Matson, 27, of O’Fallon, Missouri, met with the victim in the driveway of her home on July 4, 2020 and sold her ten capsules containing fentanyl for $100.
When the victim contacted Matson to ask him what he sold her, Matson lied and said it was morphine, according to a sentencing memorandum. Knowing that she was in distress, Matson could have contacted the victim’s family or called 911 but did not.
The woman’s mother discovered her daughter dead in her bedroom the next day.
The St. Peters Police Department investigated and both Matson and his co-defendant, Jason Post, admitted their role to police.
In court Wednesday, the victim’s sister said Matson, “took advantage of someone who trusted him.” She said her sister would still be alive if she’d never met Matson.
The victim’s mother said, “I can’t understand why Nathan Matson would give my daughter a drug that would kill her and drive away, knowing what was going to happen.”
The sentencing memo says Matson tested positive for opiates 25 times since he was charged, suggesting he must have been selling fentanyl to support his own drug addiction even after the 2020 death.
Matson pleaded guilty in August to a fentanyl distribution charge.
Post, 30, of O’Fallon, Missouri, pleaded guilty in February to aiding and abetting in the distribution fentanyl and was sentenced in July to eight years in prison. He drove Matson to St. Louis to purchase the fentanyl, and then drove Matson to the victim’s house. He was rewarded with five capsules of fentanyl.
“Poisonings involving opioids jumped to more than 80,000 last year and are the leading cause of death for those ages 18 to 45,” said Special Agent in Charge Michael A. Davis, head of the Drug Enforcement Administration division that leads DEA investigations in Missouri. "The gravity of this problem is one reason the DEA and our law enforcement partners, like the St. Peters Police Department, take these investigations so seriously and why long sentences are appropriate.”
The St. Peters Police Department and the Drug Enforcement Administration investigated this case.
Madison Man Sentenced to 6 Years for Illegal Gun PossessionRead the Press Release
MADISON, WIS. – Timothy M. O’Shea, United States Attorney for the Western District of Wisconsin, announced that Devin Crayton, 33, Madison, Wisconsin pleaded guilty and was sentenced yesterday by Chief U.S. District Judge James Peterson to six years in federal prison for being a felon in possession of a firearm.
On or about January 11, 2022, Crayton was handling a firearm and discharged it in his girlfriend’s residence. Later that morning he was arrested. Officers obtained a warrant to search the house and found an unloaded Taurus 9mm handgun along with a magazine containing four live rounds. They also found a bullet hole from the upstairs hallway that travelled down into the living area, and a stolen police captain’s badge and handcuff case. Crayton is a convicted felon, has been to prison in Nevada, and is prohibited from possessing a firearm.
Crayton said that he likes “car shopping” (stealing from vehicles) and that the police badge was in a bag that he took. He also admitted that he was handling the gun when it discharged in the house. While the defendant said it was a negligent discharge and he only briefly handled it, a witness said that Crayton always carried the gun, that he had pointed it at her before, and that he fired it in the house to wake people up as he was trying to get methamphetamine.
Relevant conduct considered at sentencing included a March 27, 2022, arrest where the defendant was in possession of two handguns and a short barrel shotgun.
At sentencing Judge Peterson said that the most aggravating factor of the case was that after the defendant’s arrest in this case, he spent two months in jail on state charges and, after being released, immediately got more guns. The fact that he discharged the firearm was also concerning, and the court was skeptical of claims that this was a negligent discharge. Judge Peterson noted that at 33 years old, the defendant can no longer blame his conduct on a difficult childhood, and that he had a bad criminal record.
The charge against Crayton was the result of an investigation conducted by the Verona Police Department and Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. The prosecution of the case has been handled by Assistant U.S. Attorney Corey Stephan.
This case has been brought as part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), the U.S. Justice Department’s program to reduce violent crime. The PSN approach emphasizes coordination between state and federal prosecutors and all levels of law enforcement to address gun crime, especially felons illegally possessing firearms and ammunition and violent and drug crimes that involve the use of firearms.
Lyndon Station Man Sentenced to 5 Years for Receiving Child PornographyRead the Press Release
MADISON, WIS. – Timothy M. O’Shea, United States Attorney for the Western District of Wisconsin, announced that Kyle O. Luke, 27, of Lyndon Station, Wisconsin, was sentenced yesterday by U.S. District Judge William M. Conley to five years in federal prison for receiving child pornography. This prison term will be followed by 15 years of supervised release. Luke pleaded guilty to this charge on September 13, 2022.
In January 2022, agents executed a search warrant at Luke’s home based on a tip provided by the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children. During the search, agents seized numerous electronic devices. Agents interviewed Luke and he admitted that he accessed child pornography with his phone and that there may still be videos on that phone that had been sent to him on Snapchat.
At the time of the offense in this case, Luke was on supervision for attempted 2nd degree sexual assault and child enticement. Because Judge Conley found the defendant had a pattern of minimizing his sexually deviant conduct, three years of the sentence in this case will run consecutive to a five-year sentence the defendant is currently serving in that prior case.
The charge against Luke was the result of an investigation conducted by the Wisconsin Department of Justice Division of Criminal Investigation and the Juneau County Sheriff’s Office. Assistant U.S. Attorney Elizabeth Altman prosecuted this case.
Leader of Violent Brockton-Based Drug Crew Sentenced to Nearly 20 Years in PrisonRead the Press Release
BOSTON – A Brockton man was sentenced yesterday in federal court in Boston for his role leading a wide-ranging drug trafficking conspiracy reaching from Boston to Brockton to Cape Cod.
Djuna Goncalves, 36, was sentenced by U.S. District Court Judge Nathaniel M. Gorton to 230 months, or more than 19 years, in prison and five years of supervised release. In October 2021, Goncalves pleaded guilty to conspiracy to distribute and to possess with intent to distribute 100 grams or more of heroin, 400 grams or more of fentanyl, cocaine, cocaine base, oxycodone and marijuana; possession with intent to distribute 100 grams or more of heroin; possession with intent to distribute 40 grams or more of fentanyl, cocaine, cocaine base and marijuana; being a felon in possession of a firearm and ammunition; and possession of a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking offense.
“Djuna Goncalves was the leader of a violent drug trafficking operation that, for years, fueled serious and deadly crimes involving guns and including murders that plagued neighborhoods across our Commonwealth,” said United States Attorney Rachael S. Rollins. “This office will continue to prioritize protecting our communities by finding and prosecuting the drug traffickers and violent offenders who terrorize our neighborhoods. If you fall into that category, consider yourself warned.”
“Djuna Goncalves was the leader of a violent drug crew responsible for moving vast quantities of fentanyl and other deadly drugs throughout southeastern Massachusetts. While they turned a profit, people and their families were tormented by the forces of drug use and addiction,” said Matthew Millhollin, Special Agent in Charge for the Homeland Security Investigations New England Field Office. “HSI is committed to dismantling and disrupting drug trafficking operations to stop the flow of drugs into New England. We’re proud to join our partners to announce today’s sentence.”
“DEA is committed to investigating and dismantling Drug Trafficking Organizations and individuals like Mr. Goncalves who are responsible for distributing lethal drugs like fentanyl and heroin,” said Brian D. Boyle, Special Agent in Charge of the Drug Enforcement Administration, New England Division. “Today’s sentence not only holds Mr. Goncalves accountable for his crimes but serves as a warning to those traffickers who are fueling the opioid epidemic with deadly drugs in order to profit and destroy people’s lives. DEA’s top priority is combatting the opioid epidemic by working with our local, county, state and federal partners to bring to justice anyone who distributes this poison.”
In the fall of 2018, law enforcement began investigating a violent Brockton drug crew headed by Djuna Goncalves. The investigation revealed that Djuna Goncalves worked with his brothers (and co-defendants) Cody and Tony Goncalves and others to distribute large quantities of fentanyl, heroin, cocaine, cocaine base and marijuana throughout southeastern Massachusetts from a base of operations in Brockton. The investigation also targeted several Boston-based drug suppliers to the Goncalves brothers. Large quantities of heroin, fentanyl, cash, a loaded handgun, and an AK-47 assault rifle were seized from Djuna Goncalves, who had previously been convicted of two prior drug distribution offenses.
In all, 17 defendants, including Djuna Goncalves, were indicted as part of a wide-ranging drug trafficking conspiracy. Djuna Goncalves was the last defendant to be sentenced.
U.S. Attorney Rollins; HSI SAC Millhollin; DEA SAC Boyle; and Colonel Christopher Mason, Superintendent of the Massachusetts State Police made the announcement today. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Christopher Pohl and Alathea E. Porter of Rollins’ Narcotics & Money Laundering Unit prosecuted the case.
This effort is part of an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) operation. OCDETF identifies, disrupts, and dismantles the highest-level criminal organizations that threaten the United States using a prosecutor-led, intelligence-driven, multi-agency approach. Additional information about the OCDETF Program can be found at https://www.justice.gov/OCDETF.
Lawrence Woman Sentenced in Fentanyl Trafficking ConspiracyRead the Press Release
BOSTON – A Lawrence woman was sentenced in federal court in Boston yesterday for a drug trafficking offense in connection with her role in a fentanyl trafficking conspiracy.
Danybelkis Vasquez-Rodrigue, 28, was sentenced by U.S. District Court Chief Judge F. Dennis Saylor IV, to 45 months in prison and three years of supervised release. On Aug. 30, 2022, Vasquez-Rodrigue was convicted following a five-day trial of one count of conspiracy to distribute and to possess with intent to distribute 400 grams or more of fentanyl.
In November 2020, law enforcement began an investigation into Rodriguez-Ruiz, who had been identified as a Lawrence-based drug supplier. On Nov. 24, 2020, Rodriguez-Ruiz distributed nearly one kilogram of fentanyl to a cooperating witness. In exchange for the fentanyl, Vasquez-Rodrigue collected $42,000 from the cooperating witness. Through small payments to multiple individuals through local money remitting businesses, Vasquez-Rodrigue then transmitted those drug proceeds to the fentanyl supplier in Mexico.
On Sept. 9, 2022, Rodriguez-Ruiz was sentenced to 57 months in prison and three years of supervised release after previously being convicted of conspiracy to distribute and to possess with intent to distribute 400 grams or more of fentanyl and one count of distribution and possession with intent to distribute 400 grams or more of fentanyl.
United States Attorney Rachael S. Rollins and Joseph R. Bonavolonta, Special Agent in Charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Boston Division made the announcement today. The case was investigated by the FBI’s Strike Force including the Norfolk County Sherriff’s Office. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Alathea E. Porter and Stephen W. Hassink of Rollins’ Narcotics & Money Laundering Unit prosecuted the case.
This effort is part of an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) operation. OCDETF identifies, disrupts, and dismantles the highest-level criminal organizations that threaten the United States using a prosecutor-led, intelligence-driven, multi-agency approach. Additional information about the OCDETF Program can be found at https://www.justice.gov/OCDETF.Kodiak Man’s Murder Convictions Upheld by Court of AppealsRead the Press Release
ANCHORAGE – The Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals has upheld James Wells’ murder convictions which were handed down by a trial jury in October 2019 for the April 2012 murders of two U.S. Coast Guard (USCG) employees, Electrician’s Mate First Class James Hopkins and retired Chief Boatswain’s Mate Richard Belisle at a United States Coast Guard base on Kodiak Island, Alaska.
In February 2013, Wells was arrested for the murders of Hopkins and Belisle, who were both Wells’ co-workers at the USCG antenna maintenance facility, located at the USCG Communication Station (COMMSTA) on Kodiak Island. Wells was convicted in 2014 and the case was reversed for retrial by the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals in December 2017. After a three-week retrial that ended in October 2019, a federal jury quickly convicted Wells of two counts of first-degree murder, two counts of murder of an officer or employee of the United States and two counts of possession and use of a firearm in relation to a crime of violence. Wells appealed. In a ruling issued last week, the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals upheld Wells’ murder convictions, thus Wells sentence of life imprisonment remains in place. The court of appeals issued two separate rulings: 1) affirming the convictions and dismissing Wells’ arguments for a new trial and 2) the court remanded the sentencing court’s decision on valuing how restitution to the spouses of the men Wells murdered would be paid, along with upholding that Wells interview by investigators was done lawfully.
“The court’s ruling, solidly affirming Wells two murder convictions at trial, puts an end to this saga for the wives of Messrs. Belisle and Hopkins, the colleagues of the murdered men, the community of Kodiak and the United States Coast Guard,” said U.S. Attorney S. Lane Tucker. “Justice has been served. James Wells took the stand and attempted to explain away what he did that day, an explanation that was quickly rejected by the trial jury and by the court of appeals. Wells will spend the rest of his life in prison for the murder of these two men.”
“We are all relieved to bring final closure on this heinous and heartless crime. Our hearts continue to go out to the families and loved ones of the victims, and to the community of Kodiak for having the strength to endure this lengthy process,” said Paul Shultz, CGIS Special Agent in Charge, CGIS Northwest Region.
"I'm proud of the trial team's tireless efforts in the pursuit of justice on behalf of the Hopkins and Belisle families. Now with the Appellate Court's decision, comes a sense of some closure for all," said Special Agent in Charge Antony Jung of the FBI Anchorage Field Office.
Evidence at trial established that on April 12, 2012, between 7:09 a.m. and 7:14 a.m., Wells had shot and killed Hopkins and Belisle with a .44 revolver while working at their duty stations in the Rigger Shop at COMMSTA. First responders noted no evidence of a break-in or robbery and both men appeared to be victims of a targeted killing. Wells was due to arrive at the Rigger Shop the same time as Hopkins and Belisle, but instead left two phone messages for Hopkins and Belisle, noted to be after the victims’ time of death, stating Wells was running late due to a flat tire. Wells arrived to the Rigger Shop over an hour after his normal start time, immediately claiming to have had a flat tire.
USCG security videos captured Wells passing the Main Gate at Base Kodiak at 6:48 a.m. in his white Dodge truck on his way toward the Kodiak Airport, and returning toward his residence at 7:22 a.m. However, a small blue SUV, owned by Wells, was captured on USCG security videos passing the Rigger Shop front entrance. The evidence showed Wells drove his white Dodge truck to the airport, where he swapped vehicles and drove Nancy Wells’ blue Honda CR-V to COMMSTA to commit the murders. There was a 34-minute period of time for which James Wells could not account and that unexplained discrepancy captured the attention of the interviewing agents. Additionally, a tire with a nail in it was seized and through extensive testing, the examiner concluded that the nail had been manually inserted into the tire, undermining the foundation of Wells’ alibi that he had picked up a nail while driving to work on the morning of the murders.
At Wells’ sentencing hearing after the second trial in 2019, U.S. District Judge Sharon L. Gleason made specific findings for the record that Wells threatened or unlawfully interfered with witnesses and that during the trial, Wells testified on several occasions in a “materially false manner.” The ruling of the Ninth Circuit equally found that Wells’ alibi at trial was not credible.
“I want to thank all of our partner agencies that were involved in the prosecution of this case through the decade of sentencing, retrial, and appeals,” said Rear Adm. Nathan Moore, 17th Coast Guard District, Commander. “Your continued dedication to this case ensured justice was met, and that James’ and Richard’s loved ones and our Coast Guard family can move one step closer to closure.”
The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) conducted the investigation leading to the successful prosecution of this case, with support from the U.S. Coast Guard Investigative Service (CGIS), and the Alaska State Troopers (AST).
In 2019 the Deputy Criminal Chief Steven Skrocki prosecuted the case along with Assistant U.S. Attorney Christina Sherman, and U.S. Coast Guard Commander Kelly Stevens, who was appointed as a Special Assistant U.S. Attorney.
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Kansas Man Indicted on Cocaine and Firearms ChargesRead the Press Release
WICHTA, KAN. – A federal grand jury in Wichita returned an indictment charging a Kansas man with crimes related to drug trafficking and firearms.
According to court documents, Clinton Bruner, 49, of Wichita was indicted on one count of possession with intent to distribute cocaine, one count of possession with intent to distribute cocaine base, one count of possession of a firearm in furtherance of drug trafficking crime, and one count of possession of a stolen firearm.
The Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) is investigating the case.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Matt Treaster is prosecuting the case.
OTHER INDICTMENTS
Annali L. Vanarsdale, 19, of Wichita was indicted on one count of bank robbery. The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) is investigating the case. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Mona Furst and Jason Hart are prosecuting the case.
An indictment is merely an allegation, and all defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
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Kanawha County Man Pleads Guilty to Child Pornography CrimeRead the Press Release
CHARLESTON, W.Va. – Jonathan Richard Chapman, 42, of St. Albans, pleaded guilty today to attempted distribution of child pornography.
According to court documents and statements made in court, from about June 5, 2021, until June 30, 2022, Chapman used a peer-to-peer file sharing program to make 704 digital media files of suspected child pornography available to others. Chapman admitted that the digital media files included an image depicting a prepubescent minor female subjected to sexually explicit conduct. Chapman further admitted to possessing 91 images of child pornography on his personal electronic devices on August 11, 2022. The child pornography included several images and videos depicting infants and toddlers subjected to sexually explicit conduct.
Chapman is scheduled to be sentenced on March 15, 2023, and faces a mandatory minimum of five years and up to 20 years in prison, at least five years and up to a lifetime of supervised release, and a $250,000 fine.
United States Attorney Will Thompson made the announcement and commended the investigative work of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security-Homeland Security Investigations (HSI).
Senior United States District Judge John T. Copenhaver, Jr., presided over the hearing. Assistant United States Attorney Julie White is prosecuting the case.
This case was prosecuted as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative of the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by the United States Attorney’s 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.justice.gov/psc.
A copy of this press release is located on the website of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of West Virginia. Related court documents and information can be found on PACER by searching for Case No. 2:22-cr-174.
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Justice Department Secures Settlement with Florida School District to Protect Students with DisabilitiesRead the Press Release
The Justice Department announced today it has secured a settlement agreement with the Okaloosa County School District in Florida to resolve its investigation into allegations of physical and verbal abuse and discriminatory use of seclusion and restraint on students with disabilities.
The department’s investigation concluded that the school district violated Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) in its response to known physical and verbal abuse and improper seclusion and restraint of students with disabilities. The district secluded and restrained students before first attempting appropriate behavior-management or de-escalation strategies. As a result of these practices, some students with disabilities were injured, and others lost many hours of class time. Under the settlement agreement, the Okaloosa County School District has voluntarily agreed to strengthen its complaint procedures and internal investigations, continue to prohibit seclusion, reform its restraint practices and improve its staff training.
“All children deserve an opportunity to learn and thrive in a safe and supportive environment,” said Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division. “Schools must provide students with disabilities appropriate educational supports and cannot resort to practices that physically and mentally harm them. The Justice Department will vigorously pursue allegations of abuse and unlawful restraint and seclusion of students and will not stand by when their rights are infringed.”
“We stand with our colleagues in the Civil Rights Division in the fight to redress discrimination against students with disabilities in school,” said U.S. Attorney Jason R. Coody for the Northern District of Florida. “We also commend the Okaloosa County School District for agreeing to remedy the problems brought to light by the department’s investigation, by employing effective and non-discriminatory tools and protocols when handling behavioral matters in its schools.”
The district fully cooperated throughout the investigation. Under the settlement agreement, the district will implement reforms to end discrimination against students with disabilities. The district will, among other steps:
- Continue to prohibit the use of seclusion;
- Limit its use of restraint;
- Clarify and improve crisis response team procedures and post-restraint procedures;
- Report all instances of restraint and evaluate if they were justified;
- Designate trained staff to collect and analyze restraint data and oversee the creation of appropriate behavior intervention plans;
- Review procedures for students with disabilities who are restrained on the bus or who have behaviors that may manifest during transport;
- Strengthen its multi-tiered systems and supports at all schools;
- Reform district complaint procedures and improve internal district investigations into allegations of employee abuse or improper use of restraint or seclusion;
- Strengthen practices related to employee hiring and transfers;
- Deliver training and resources to help schools implement the agreement; and
- Designate an administrator to oversee the district’s related services (i.e., paraprofessionals, transportation and behavioral staff) and schools’ use and review of restraint, and to ensure the district’s compliance with the agreement and Title II of the ADA.
Enforcement of Title II of the ADA is a priority of the Civil Rights Division. Additional information about the Civil Rights Division is available on its website at www.justice.gov/crt, and additional information about the Educational Opportunities Section’s work is available at https://www.justice.gov/crt/educational-opportunities-section. To learn more about the Section’s work under the ADA to combat improper seclusion in schools, visit this website: https://www.justice.gov/schoolseclusion.
To report a possible civil rights violation, please visit www.civilrights.justice.gov/.
View the agreement below.
Jury Finds McKeesport Felon Guilty of Firearms ChargeRead the Press Release
PITTSBURGH, PA - After deliberating for approximately an hour and 15 minutes yesterday, a federal jury of four men and eight women found Deamonte Law guilty of one count of being a felon in possession of a firearm, United States Attorney Cindy K. Chung announced today.
Law, 29, formerly of McKeesport, Pennsylvania, was tried before United States District Judge Cathy Bissoon in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.
According to Assistant United States Attorneys Barbara K. Doolittle and DeMarr Moulton, who prosecuted the case, the evidence presented at trial established that Law possessed a Smith and Wesson, Model M&P, .40 caliber pistol on Sept. 4, 2020, despite having previously been convicted of a felony. In May of 2015, Mr. Law was convicted of conspiring to distribute and to possess with the intent to distribute cocaine base, in the form commonly known as crack, as well as possessing a firearm in furtherance of this drug trafficking crime, at Criminal No. 13-202 in the Western District of Pennsylvania. Federal law prohibits a convicted felon from possessing a firearm.
Judge Bissoon scheduled sentencing for April 19, 2023, at 10:00 a.m. The law provides for a total sentence of not more than 10 years in prison, a fine of not more than $250,000, or both. Under the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, the actual sentence imposed is based on the seriousness of the offense and the prior criminal history, if any, of the defendant.
Pending sentencing, the court continued the defendant’s detention.
The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, the McKeesport Police Department, and the Allegheny County Police Department conducted the investigation that led to the prosecution of Deamonte Law.
Jury Convicts Wichita Man of Money Laundering, Wire and Bank FraudRead the Press Release
WICHITA, KAN.– A federal jury convicted a Kansas man of defrauding federal and state agencies by a total of $355,550 in COVIID-19 business recovery funds.
Michael Capps, 44, of Wichita was found guilty of submitting false and fraudulent documents on behalf of his companies to Emprise Bank for a Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loan, to the Small Business Administration (SBA) for Economic Injury Disaster (EIDL) loans, as well as to the Kansas Department of Commerce for Small Business Working Capital grants.
The jury convicted Capps of:
• one count of false statement to a bank for a PPP loan,
• one count of bank fraud – PPP loan,
• two counts of false statement to the SBA for EIDL loan,
• two counts of wire fraud SBA,
• two counts of wire fraud Kansas Department of Commerce, and
• four counts of money laundering.The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and the Sedgwick County District Attorney’s Office investigated the case.
Assistant U.S. Attorneys Alan Metzger and Molly Gordon prosecuted the case.
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Judge Sends Cocaine Dealer to Prison for Covid-Relief FraudRead the Press Release
Grand Rapids man sentenced to 87 months for role in conspiracy to obtain more than $1 million in COVID-19 relief funds.
GRAND RAPIDS, MICHIGAN — United States Attorney Mark Totten announced today that a local drug dealer has been sentenced to more than seven years in prison for his role in a plot to obtain more than $1.4 million COVID-19 relief funds.
“Instead of treating the COVID-19 pandemic as a tragedy, Jemar Mason welcomed it as an opportunity to get rich quick. He took money intended to keep workers from losing their jobs, all while dealing cocaine.” said U.S. Attorney Mark Totten, for the Western District of Michigan. “My office remains committed to holding fraudsters fully accountable for their misdeeds.”
Defendant Jemar Mason is a previously convicted drug offender from the Grand Rapids area. In 2020, he joined a scheme with four other people: Andre Jackson, a corrupt former police officer from Georgia, Jackson’s “accountant,” a local used-car salesman, and a local cocaine user named David Kurbanov. The group worked together to help Mason and Kurbanov prepare fraudulent applications for Paycheck Protection Program loans authorized by the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security ("CARES") Act. This Act was a federal law designed to provide emergency financial assistance to the millions of Americans who are suffering the economic effects caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. One source of relief provided by the CARES Act was the authorization of forgivable loans to small businesses through the PPP program, which was designed to provide small businesses with loans in order to keep employees on payroll. Mason and his co-conspirators exploited the program to obtain approximately $1.495 million in fraud proceeds. Afterwards, Mason and his confederates attempted to hide the proceeds by marking expenditures like car purchases as “payroll” expenses. Mason and Kurbanov also attempted to wire $500,000 to an overseas bank account that Jackson selected in order to invest the money for their own profit.
Investigators from the Internal Revenue Service detected the plot and took steps to freeze the bank accounts of the conspirators, ultimately recovering approximately $1.123 million of the fraud proceeds. Federal prosecutors in the Western District of Michigan brought charges against five codefendants, including Mason, all of whom have now been convicted in connection with the scheme.
Mason’s criminal activity went beyond financial crimes: he was also trafficking cocaine. After obtaining a Title III wire intercept, investigators from the Drug Enforcement Administration learned that Mason, his coconspirators, and associates were actively dealing drugs throughout West Michigan. Search warrants later uncovered multiple stash locations that were used to hide drugs, firearms, and drug dealing tools.
Mason’s prison term of 87 months will be followed by a six-year term of supervised release in which his activity will be monitored by the United States Probation Office.
“Mason exploited the pandemic to defraud United States taxpayers for his own personal gain,” said Acting Special Agent in Charge Charles Miller, Internal Revenue Service – Criminal Investigation, Detroit Field Office. "IRS-CI is proud to work with our law enforcement partners to hold wrongdoers accountable and to protect the integrity of vital federal assistance programs.”
DEA Special Agent in Charge for the Detroit Division also weighed in, stating, “Mason and many of his associates were responsible for trafficking kilogram-level quantities of addictive and destructive illicit drugs throughout western Michigan. Their criminal acts have certainly destroyed lives and eroded communities. This sentencing should serve as a stark reminder to anyone peddling poisons in our communities: your unlawful and destructive actions will not be tolerated.”
The charges in this case were part of an Organized Crime and Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF) investigation, dubbed Operation Cashout, by law enforcement officers in the Western District of Michigan and the Northern District of Georgia, including the Internal Revenue Service – Criminal Investigation, the Drug Enforcement Administration, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the United States Postal Inspection Service, the United States Secret Service, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives, the Michigan State Police, the Kent Area Narcotics Enforcement Team (KANET), and the Grand Rapids Police Department.
OCDETF identifies, disrupts, and dismantles the highest-level drug traffickers, money launderers, gangs, and transnational criminal organizations that threaten the United States by using a prosecutor-led, intelligence-driven, multi-agency approach that leverages the strengths of federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies against criminal networks. Additional information about the OCDETF Program can be found at https://www.justice.gov/OCDETF.
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Jamestown Woman Going to Prison on Drug ChargeRead the Press Release
CONTACT: Barbara Burns
PHONE: (716) 843-5817
FAX #: (716) 551-3051BUFFALO, N.Y.-U.S. Attorney Trini E. Ross announced today that Loegan Morrison Samples, 24, Jamestown, NY, who was convicted of maintaining a drug-involved premises, was sentenced to serve 60 months in prison by U.S. District Judge Richard J. Arcara.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Joshua A. Violanti, who is handling the case, stated that in April 2019, the Jamestown Metro Drug Task Force executed a search warrant at Samples’ residence on Partridge Street, during which investigators recovered methamphetamine, small amounts of cocaine and marijuana, a shotgun, a stun gun, and drug paraphernalia. Samples sold methamphetamine for boyfriend and co-defendant Jacob Komenda and maintained the premises on Partridge Street for drug trafficking. In September 2019, investigators executed a second search warrant at a new residence in Jamestown that Samples shared with Komenda, seizing $3,182 in cash, methamphetamine, and various drug paraphernalia.
Jacob Komenda was previously convicted and is awaiting sentencing.
This effort is part of an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) operation. OCDETF identifies, disrupts, and dismantles the highest-level criminal organizations that threaten the United States using a prosecutor-led, intelligence-driven, multi-agency approach. Additional information about the OCDETF Program can be found at https://www.justice.gov/OCDETF.
The sentencing is the result of an investigation by the Drug Enforcement Administration, under the direction of Special Agent-in-Charge Frank A. Tarentino III, New York Field Division, the Jamestown Police Department, under the direction of Chief Timothy Jackson, and the Chautauqua County Sheriff’s Office, under the direction of Sheriff James Quattrone.
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Jamestown Man Pleads Guilty to Meth ChargeRead the Press Release
CONTACT: Barbara Burns
PHONE: (716) 843-5817
FAX #: (716) 551-3051BUFFALO, N.Y.-U.S. Attorney Trini E. Ross announced today that Justin Brooks, 33, Jamestown, NY, pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge John L. Sinatra, Jr. to possession with intent to distribute 50 grams or more of methamphetamine. The charge carries a mandatory minimum penalty of 10 years in prison, a maximum of life, and a fine of $10,000,000.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Joshua A. Violanti, who is handling the case, stated that on February 8, 2021, Jamestown Police officers responded to Brooks’ residence on Bush Street for a report of a possible assault and initiated an investigation into a burglary/assault. Subsequently, officers executed a search warrant at Brooks’ residence and recovered suspected marijuana, $6,500, scales, packaging material, a sword, and approximately 357 grams of methamphetamine.
This effort is part of an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) operation. OCDETF identifies, disrupts, and dismantles the highest-level criminal organizations that threaten the United States using a prosecutor-led, intelligence-driven, multi-agency approach. Additional information about the OCDETF Program can be found at https://www.justice.gov/OCDETF.
The plea is the result of an investigation by the Drug Enforcement Administration, under the direction of Special Agent-in-Charge Frank A. Tarentino III, New York Field Division, and the Jamestown Police Department, under the direction of Chief Timothy Jackson.
Sentencing is scheduled for June 20, 2023, at 10:00 a.m. before Judge Sinatra.
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Iowa Man Pleads Guilty to Illegally Possessing a FirearmRead the Press Release
A man who illegally possessed a firearm pled guilty on December 19, 2022, in federal court in Cedar Rapids.
Lavell Andre Barnes, Jr., age 27, from Iowa City, Iowa, was convicted of possession of a firearm by a felon.
At the plea hearing, Barnes admitted that he illegally possessed a firearm after being previously convicted of two felony convictions in Cook County, Illinois. Barnes was previously convicted of a controlled substance offense involving heroin and aggravated unlawful use of a weapon.
Sentencing before United States District Court Judge C.J. Williams will be set after a presentence report is prepared. Barnes remains in custody of the United States Marshal pending sentencing. Barnes faces a possible maximum sentence of not more than 10 years’ imprisonment without the possibility of parole, a fine of not more than $250,000, and up to three years of supervised release following any term of imprisonment.
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.
The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Jason Dorval Norwood and was investigated by the Iowa City Police Department’s Street Crimes Action Team. Court file information at https://ecf.iand.uscourts.gov/cgi-bin/login.pl. The case file number is 22-CR-84.
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Indianapolis Area Methamphetamine Trafficking Organization Dismantled and Twelve Defendants ArrestedRead the Press Release
INDIANAPOLIS – A federal grand jury returned an indictment charging eleven individuals for their alleged roles in an Indianapolis-based drug trafficking organization with conspiracy to distribute fentanyl and methamphetamine, and related charges. An additional defendant was charged by criminal complaint with offenses related to armed methamphetamine trafficking. The indictment was unsealed on December 14, 2022, following their arrests and initial appearances, and is being announced following hearings on the pretrial detention status of the defendants.
As alleged in court documents, beginning in 2021, the defendants primarily distributed methamphetamine in Indianapolis, Indiana. Erick Apolinar Romero operated out of Indianapolis and arranged for the delivery of the controlled substances to Indianapolis for their redistribution by other members of the conspiracy. Romero and Julian Islas-Lozada maintained residential properties for the purpose of stashing and distributing the illegal drugs, including an apartment in the Nora neighborhood on the north side of Indianapolis. Kevin Patino-Romero facilitated the movement of drug proceeds. The members of the conspiracy used cellular devices and code words to facilitate these drug trafficking activities. Members of the conspiracy allegedly travelled to Nebraska on multiple occasions in October and November 2022 to acquire drugs that were being smuggled by train car and bring them to Indianapolis for distribution.
On December 13, 2022, the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), along with several local and federal law enforcement agencies, executed search warrants at seven residences in Indianapolis and arrested ten of the defendants charged in the indictment. Eduardo Abel Torres De Leon was apprehended in West Grove, Pennsylvania. Jose Ponciano-Felix was arrested on December 13, 2022, in Indianapolis, during the execution of one of the search warrants, and charged by criminal complaint with possession of methamphetamine with intent to distribute and possession of a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime.
During the life of the investigation, law enforcement officers seized approximately 408 pounds of methamphetamine; eight kilograms of fentanyl and 28 firearms. The seized firearms included several semi-automatic AR platform rifles. Approximately $32,800.00 in US Currency as well as 6 vehicles, 2 trailers, 3 all-terrain vehicles and a dirt bike were also seized.
As of December 20, 2022, eleven of the twelve defendants were ordered detained pending trial or detaining pending hearing. Richard Michael Moore was ordered released on conditions set by the Court.
The charges are as follows:
Defendant
Charge(s)
Erick Romero aka “Erick Bustos,” aka “Christian Ramirez,” 33, Indianapolis
Fentanyl and Methamphetamine Trafficking Conspiracy; Methamphetamine Distribution; Attempted Possession with Intent to Distribute Fentanyl and Methamphetamine; Unlawful Use of a Communication Facility
Julian Islas-Lozada, aka “Chusy,” 35, Indianapolis
Fentanyl and Methamphetamine Trafficking Conspiracy; Methamphetamine Distribution; Unlawful Use of a Communication Facility
Alexander Franco-Lopez, aka “Sicario,” aka “Nino,” 19, Indianapolis
Fentanyl and Methamphetamine Trafficking Conspiracy; Attempted Possession with Intent to Distribute Fentanyl and Methamphetamine;
Kevin Josue Patino-Romero, 20, Indianapolis
Fentanyl and Methamphetamine Trafficking Conspiracy; Methamphetamine Distribution;
Junior Castillo, aka “Catracho,” 35, Indianapolis
Fentanyl and Methamphetamine Trafficking Conspiracy; Attempted Possession with Intent to Distribute Fentanyl and Methamphetamine;
Eduardo Perez-Martinez, aka “Cholilo,” 28, Indianapolis
Fentanyl and Methamphetamine Trafficking Conspiracy; Attempted Possession with Intent to Distribute Fentanyl and Methamphetamine;
Jesus Alberto Casillas-Martinez, aka “Cholo,” 26, Indianapolis
Fentanyl and Methamphetamine Trafficking Conspiracy; Attempted Possession with Intent to Distribute Fentanyl and Methamphetamine;
Zachary Polk, 45, Vincennes, Indiana
Possession with Intent to Distribute Methamphetamine;
Matthew Wright, 45, Greencastle, Indiana
Possession with Intent to Distribute Methamphetamine;
Richard Michael Moore, aka “Mike Moore,” aka “Suegro,” 54, Indianapolis
Unlawful Use of a Communication Facility
Eduardo Abel Torres De Leon, aka “Primo,” aka “Forty,” 29, West Grove, Pennsylvania
Unlawful Use of a Communication Facility
Jose Ponciano-Felix, 41, Indianapolis
*Charged by complaint
Possession of Methamphetamine with Intent to Distribute; Possession of a Firearm in Furtherance of a Drug Trafficking Crime
The defendants face the following possible penalties, if convicted:
Fentanyl and Methamphetamine Trafficking Conspiracy
10 years to life in prison
Methamphetamine Distribution and Possession with Intent to Distribute Methamphetamine
10 years to life in prison
Attempted Possession with Intent to Distribute Fentanyl and Methamphetamine
10 years to life in prison
Unlawful Use of a Communication Facility
Up to 4 years in prison
Possession of a Firearm in Furtherance of a drug trafficking crime.
5 years to life in prison, consecutive to any other sentence
Actual sentences are determined by a federal district court judge and are typically less than the maximum penalties.
Zachary A. Myers, U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Indiana, Michael Gannon, Assistant Special Agent in Charge of the DEA’s Indianapolis Field Office, Chief Randal Taylor, Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department, Rodney Hopkins, Postal Inspector in Charge of the U.S. Postal Inspection Service’s Detroit Division, Justin Campbell, Special Agent in Charge, IRS Criminal Investigation, Chicago Field Office, and R. Sean Fitzgerald, Special Agent in Charge, Homeland Security Investigations Chicago, made the announcement.
This case was a result of an investigation led by the Drug Enforcement Agency, IMPD’s Drug Task Force, HSI, the United States Postal Inspection Service, and IRS-CI. The Beech Grove Police Department, Lawrence Police Department, IMPD, Indiana State Police, and the FBI assisted in the execution of search and arrest warrants.
U.S. Attorney Myers thanked Assistant U.S. Attorneys Jayson McGrath and Lindsay Karwoski, who are prosecuting this case.
This case was part of an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF) investigation. OCDETF identifies, disrupts, and dismantles the highest-level drug traffickers, money launderers, gangs, and transnational criminal organizations that threaten the United States by using a prosecutor-led, intelligence-driven, multi-agency approach that leverages the strengths of federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies against criminal networks.
An indictment or complaint is merely an allegation, and all defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
Harford County Man Sentenced to 20 Years in Federal Prison for His Participation in a Drug Distribution ConspiracyRead the Press Release
Baltimore, Maryland – U.S. District Judge George L. Russell, III sentenced Che Jaron Durbin, age 44, of Aberdeen, Maryland, on December 19, 2022, to 20 years in federal prison, followed by five years of supervised release, for conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute cocaine and crack cocaine and for two counts of possession with intent to distribute cocaine, in connection with his participation in a drug trafficking organization distributing cocaine and crack cocaine in Harford County, Maryland.
The sentence was announced by United States Attorney for the District of Maryland Erek L. Barron; Harford County State’s Attorney Albert J. Peisinger, Jr.; Special Agent in Charge Jarod Forget of the Drug Enforcement Administration; Postal Inspector in Charge Damon E. Wood of the U.S. Postal Inspection Service - Washington Division; Sheriff Jeffrey Gahler of the Harford County Sheriff’s Office; and the Harford County Drug Task Force, a High Intensity Drug Trafficking Areas (HIDTA) program, comprised of members of the Harford County Sheriff's Office, the Aberdeen Police Department, the Bel Air Police Department, and the Havre de Grace Police Department.
According to evidence presented at the eight-day trial, in May 2019, members of the Harford County Drug Task Force were investigating Durbin, who was suspected of drug trafficking in the Harford County area. Witnesses testified that on May 17, 2019, a U.S. Postal Inspector notified detectives that a suspicious package was en route to Durbin’s mother’s apartment in Aberdeen, Maryland. Detectives watched as a U.S. Postal Service mail carrier delivered the parcel to Durbin, who took it into the apartment. A short time later, a woman, later identified as co-defendant Jameka Cara Thompson, left the apartment with the parcel and drove to her home. Law enforcement detained Thompson and obtained a search warrant for her vehicle. The parcel was found to contain one kilogram of compressed cocaine. Further investigation revealed that co-defendant Jack Anderson from Tucson, Arizona was the sender of the package.
On January 22, 2020, law enforcement learned from U.S. Postal Inspectors that Durbin sent a parcel from Havre de Grace, Maryland, addressed to Anderson in Tucson, Arizona. A search warrant was obtained for the parcel after a K9 gave a positive alert. The parcel contained $82,300 in cash inside a wireless headphones box.
In February 2020, as part of the investigation, law enforcement intercepted Durbin’s communications, as well as those of Anderson, co-defendant Terrell Walton, and other co-defendants to whom Durbin supplied cocaine and crack cocaine. The evidence at trial demonstrated that Walton obtained cocaine from Durbin, which Walton then sold to a network of individuals in Harford County. Intercepted communications between Durbin and Walton included discussions regarding the amounts of drugs and the price, often using coded language.
According to trial testimony, in May 2020, law enforcement surveilled Durbin meeting with Anderson at a Tucson, Arizona hotel. Soon after the meeting, Durbin picked Thompson up at the Tucson Airport and drove her back to his hotel room. Durbin flew back to Maryland the next day and Thompson ultimately obtained a bulk supply of cocaine from Anderson on Durbin’s behalf. Thompson drove cross-country from Arizona to Harford County, where she was arrested on May 12, 2020. Law enforcement searched her vehicle, seizing 1.4 kilograms of cocaine. Durbin was also arrested. According to trial testimony, over the course of the conspiracy Thompson made at least eight similar trips on Durbin’s behalf, transporting almost 40 kilograms of cocaine to Maryland for Durbin to distribute.
Co-defendant Terrell Darnell Walton, age 36, of Delaware, was also convicted at trial for the drug conspiracy and was sentenced on September 23, 2022, to 13 years in federal prison. Co-defendant Jack Anderson IV, age 46, of Tucson, Arizona, was sentenced to 126 months in federal prison in December 2021, after Anderson entered a guilty plea to conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute five kilograms or more of cocaine. Co-defendants Jameka Cara Thompson, age 42, of Abingdon, Maryland, was sentenced to 33 months in federal prison; Gerrick Devlon Jackson, age 40 of Havre de Grace, Maryland, was sentenced to 72 months in federal prison; and Michael Ronnell Wells, age 38, of Forest Hill, Maryland, was sentenced to 71 months in federal prison, for their roles in the conspiracy.
United States Attorney Erek L. Barron commended the Harford County State’s Attorney’s Office, the DEA, the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, the Harford County Sheriff’s Office, and the Harford County Drug Task Force for their work in the investigation. Mr. Barron thanked Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Christopher J. Romano, who prosecuted the case.
For more information on the Maryland U.S. Attorney’s Office, its priorities, and resources available to help the community, please visit https://www.justice.gov/usao-md/project-safe-neighborhoods-psnexile and https://www.justice.gov/usao-md/community-outreach.
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Grand Jury Returns Two IndictmentsRead the Press Release
MADISON, WIS. - A federal grand jury in the Western District of Wisconsin, sitting in Madison, returned the following indictments today. You are advised that a charge is merely an accusation and that a defendant is presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty.
La Crosse Man Charged with Possessing Methamphetamine for Distribution
Joshua R. Wittenberg, 40, La Crosse, Wisconsin, is charged with possession of 500 grams or more of methamphetamine with the intent to distribute. The indictment alleges that he possessed the methamphetamine on November 7, 2022. Wittenberg was arrested in La Crosse on November 7. He is being held at the La Crosse County Jail.
If convicted, Wittenberg faces a mandatory minimum penalty of 10 years in federal prison and a maximum of life. The charge against him is the result of an investigation by the Monroe County Sheriff’s Office and the La Crosse Police Department. Assistant U.S. Attorney Anita Marie Boor is handling the prosecution.
Mexican Citizen Charged with Illegally Reentering U.S.
Jose Luis Garcia-Garduno, 24, a citizen of Mexico found in Madison, Wisconsin, is charged with illegally reentering the United States after previously being removed. The indictment alleges he was found in the United States on October 27, 2022.
If convicted, Garcia-Garduno faces a maximum penalty of 2 years in federal prison. The charge against him is the result of an investigation by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement. Assistant U.S. Attorney Kathryn Ginsberg is handling the prosecution.
Goose Creek Man Indicted for Production of Child Pornography and Possession of Child Pornography Involving a Prepubescent MinorRead the Press Release
CHARLESTON, SOUTH CAROLINA — A federal grand jury in Columbia returned an indictment against Michele “Mike” Mancino, 40, of Goose Creek, for production and possession of child pornography.
The indictment alleges that from at least November 2021, until December 2022, Mancino employed, used, persuaded, induced, enticed, and coerced a minor to engage in sexually explicit activity in order to produce a visual depiction of that conduct. The indictment additionally alleges that on or about October 26, 2022, Mancino possessed child pornography involving a child under the age of 12.
Mancino faces a maximum penalty of 30 years in federal prison, and he is currently detained.
This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the U.S. Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by the U.S. Attorneys’ Offices and the 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 sexually exploit children, as well as to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit http://www.justice.gov/psc.
The case was investigated by Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) and the Charleston Police Department. Assistant U.S. Attorney Katie Orville is prosecuting the case.
U.S. Attorney Adair F. Boroughs stated that all charges in the indictment are merely accusations and that defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
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Gang Member Gets Life in Prison for Murders Committed During Home InvasionsRead the Press Release
MIAMI – Gang member Derrick Slade (aka “D” or “Solja”), 28, has been sentenced to life in prison plus 30 years for murders committed during a series of home invasion robberies in Broward County.
According to evidence presented at trial, Slade joined a criminal enterprise in November 2015 that committed armed home invasions and robberies, assaults, and murders. He was convicted of engaging in a racketeering conspiracy that included the commission of murder. On November 3, 2015, Slade shot and killed a man during the course of a home invasion robbery in Dania Beach, Fla. The next day, November 4, 2015, he was involved in another home invasion robbery in Lauderhill, Fla., that resulted in the death of a second man. On November 25, 2015, Slade shot a third man and left him for dead during a home invasion robbery in Hollywood, Fla., which was captured on a security camera. Slade also committed two other burglaries in Hollywood in November 2015. He and his fellow gang members advertised their success on social media to advance the gang’s prestige and reputation.
Slade was convicted on 10 counts, including RICO conspiracy, Hobbs Act conspiracy, conspiracy to use or carry a firearm during a crime of violence, causing the death of a person by using a firearm, three counts of Hobbs Act robbery, and three counts of discharging a firearm during a crime of violence.
Juan Antonio Gonzalez, U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Florida, and acting Special Agent in Charge Maged Behnam, Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), Miami Field Office, made the announcement.
FBI Miami investigated this case with assistance from Broward Sheriff’s Office, Hollywood Police Department, Lauderhill Police Department, Hallandale Beach Police Department, Davie Police Department, and Fort Lauderdale Police Department. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Paul F. Schwartz and Jeffrey N. Kaplan prosecuted it.
This effort is part of an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) operation. OCDETF identifies, disrupts, and dismantles the highest-level criminal organizations that threaten the United States using a prosecutor-led, intelligence-driven, multi-agency approach. Additional information about the OCDETF Program can be found at https://www.justice.gov/OCDETF.
Related court documents and information may be found on the website of the District Court for the Southern District of Florida at http://www.flsd.uscourts.gov or on http://pacer.flsd.uscourts.gov under case number 20-CR-60107.
Four Drug Dealers Sentenced to Federal Prison for Conspiracy to Distribute CocaineRead the Press Release
Jacksonville, Florida – U.S. District Judge Marcia Morales Howard has sentenced four individuals to federal prison terms for their roles in a conspiracy to distribute cocaine. Edgar Ortiz Lopez (30, Jacksonville) was sentenced to 5 years and 10 months, Jeffrey Rivera Gomez (39, Puerto Rico) was sentenced to 4 years and 8 months, Yaddiel Ortiz Lopez (26, Jacksonville) was sentenced to 2 years and 9 months, and Cassidy E. Martinez Iglesias (30, Jacksonville) was sentenced to 2 years and 6 months. Each had previously pleaded guilty.
According to court documents, between January 2020 and February 2021, Yaddiel Jesus Ortiz Lopez (“Yaddiel”), Edgar Yandell Ortiz Lopez (“Edgar”), and Iglesias obtained multi-kilogram quantities of cocaine from Gomez in Puerto Rico and distributed it in Jacksonville. Law enforcement officers with the United States Postal Inspection Service and Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) learned that the cocaine was being shipped from Puerto Rico to Jacksonville via the United States Postal Service and then delivered to various locations in Jacksonville for further distribution.
On January 4, 2021, during a routine inspection of parcels at the mail facility on Kings Road in Jacksonville, law enforcement officers found a suspicious package addressed to Gomez in Puerto Rico. After obtaining a search warrant, law enforcement opened the package which contained $88,990 in cash in a shoebox and a GPS tracker. The money was seized and forfeited. Video surveillance from the post office revealed that Edgar had mailed the package.
The U.S. Postal Inspection Service, Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), and the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office worked together and located records for 40 parcels that were associated with Yaddiel, Edgar, Gomez, and Iglesias. The conspirators were responsible for the distribution of up to 50 kilograms of cocaine.
“The introduction of illicit narcotics continues to ravage our communities and rip families apart,” said HSI Jacksonville Assistant Special Agent in Charge K. Jim Phillips. “The sentencings of these criminals to a combined 189 months in federal prison is a testament to the dedication of HSI special agents, the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, and the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office in stopping the influx of dangerous narcotics into our communities and households.”
This case was investigated by Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, and the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office. It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Julie Hackenberry.
Former MPD Officers Convicted in the Death of 20-Year-Old Karon Hylton-BrownRead the Press Release
Jurors Found Evidence of a Conscious Disregard of the Extreme Risk of Harm
A jury sitting in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia returned guilty verdicts against two former members of the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD) in connection with a fatal police pursuit, on Oct. 23, 2020, in Northwest Washington, that caused the death of Karon Hylton-Brown, announced Matthew M. Graves, U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia, and Wayne A. Jacobs, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI’s Washington Field Office’s Criminal Division.
Terence Sutton, 38, an officer, was found guilty of second degree murder, conspiracy to obstruct, and obstruction of justice. Andrew Zabavsky, 54, a former lieutenant, was found guilty of conspiracy to obstruct and obstruction of justice. The trial was heard before the Honorable Paul L. Friedman in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia. A sentencing date has not yet been scheduled.
The jury found that Sutton caused Mr. Hylton-Brown’s death by driving a police vehicle in conscious disregard for an extreme risk of death or serious bodily injury to Mr. Hylton-Brown. The jury further found that Sutton and Zabavsky conspired and combined to hide from MPD officials the circumstances of the traffic crash leading to Mr. Hylton-Brown’s death.
At the time of the police pursuit, Sutton was assigned to the Crime Suppression Team in MPD’s Fourth Police District. Zabavsky supervised the Fourth Police District’s Crime Suppression Team officers, including Sutton. The pursuit began at approximately 10 p.m. on Friday, Oct. 23, 2020, after officers observed Mr. Hylton-Brown, 20, driving a moped on a sidewalk in the Brightwood Park area of Northwest Washington. The pursuit continued on neighborhood streets for more than 10 blocks and into an alley off the 700 block of Kennedy Street NW. Immediately upon exiting the alley and entering Kennedy Street, Mr. Hylton-Brown was struck by an oncoming civilian vehicle. He suffered severe head trauma and died on Oct. 25, 2020.
The charge of second-degree murder carries a statutory maximum of 40 years in prison. The conspiracy charge carries a statutory maximum of five years and the obstruction of justice charge carries a maximum of 20 years. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
This case was investigated by the Criminal Investigation and Intelligence Unit of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia and the FBI’s Washington Field Office. The case is being prosecuted by the Public Corruption and Civil Rights Section of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia.
Former Gallia County 911 dispatcher charged federally for 24 arson fires in Wayne National ForestRead the Press Release
COLUMBUS, Ohio – A fire department administrator and former 911 dispatcher has been charged federally with crimes related to at least 24 arson fires since spring 2022 in Wayne National Forest.
James A. Bartels, 50, of Patriot, Ohio, was arrested yesterday and appeared in federal court in Columbus.
Bartels is an administrator at the Greenfield Township Volunteer Fire Department. He also served as a 911 dispatcher for Gallia County.
According to an affidavit filed in support of a criminal complaint, Ohio Department of Natural Resources law enforcement officers observed a truck registered to Bartels near Wayne National Forest on Oct. 29, 2022. Bartels was observed on Dry Ridge Road. Within an hour, a fire was reported in the forest near Dry Ridge Road and Cauley Creek Road.
In the days after Bartels’s Nov. 8 resignation from working as a 911 dispatcher for Gallia County, at least 17 fires were lit. Bartels was seen at two separate locations in the vicinity of multiple fire starts within minutes of their ignition.
The affidavit details that in a law enforcement interview, Bartels admitted to starting the fires with a lighter to “give the boys something to do” and to distract himself from depression. He identified 24 arson fires for which he was responsible. His truck’s infotainment system data also placed him at the locations of the fires.
Bartels is schedule for a preliminary hearing in U.S. District Court on Jan. 3, 2023, in Columbus.
Willfully committing arson is a federal crime punishable by up to five years in prison.
Kenneth L. Parker, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Ohio, and the U.S. Forest Service announced the charges. Assistant United States Attorneys Michael J. Hunter is representing the United States in this case.
A criminal complaint merely contains allegations, and defendants are presumed innocent unless proven guilty in a court of law.
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Former Federal Special Agent Found Guilty of Civil Rights Crimes for Committing Sexual Assaults Against Two WomenRead the Press Release
RIVERSIDE, California – A former special agent with Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) was found guilty by a jury today of federal civil rights violations for sexually assaulting two women and abusing his official position to prevent them from reporting his violent conduct.
John Jacob Olivas, 48, of Riverside, was found guilty of three counts of deprivation of rights under color of law. Olivas was ordered remanded into federal custody after today’s verdict was read.
According to evidence presented at his 11-day trial, Olivas began his career with Immigration and Customs Enforcement in 2007 and resigned in September 2015 after working as an HSI special agent for just over six years. He sexually assaulted the two victims in 2012.
Olivas attempted to rape one woman in January 2012 after making it clear to her that the police would not be responsive to any report she would make about Olivas because he was “above a cop,” and “untouchable” and “invisible” to police due to his position as a federal agent, according to the victim’s trial testimony. Olivas also threatened the victim that he could make her “disappear,” have her children taken from her, and get her arrested on fake criminal charges, the victim testified.
Olivas raped another woman in September 2012 and then again in November 2012. Both times, Olivas made it clear to the victim that police would not respond to any report she might make about attacks by him, causing the victim to believe that he was “invincible” to the criminal justice system, the victim testified. She also testified at trial that Olivas pointed his HSI-issued service weapon into her back moments before he sexually assaulted her in September 2012.
Both victims endured Olivas’s “violent, escalating, controlling, and intimidating behavior, which included his repeated brandishing of HSI credentials to [them] and asserting that he was above the law,” prosecutors wrote in court documents. In all three sexual assaults, Olivas violated the victims’ constitutional rights to liberty and bodily integrity.
United States District Judge Jesus G. Bernal scheduled a March 11, 2023 sentencing hearing, at which time Olivas will face a statutory maximum sentence of life in federal prison.
The FBI and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Office of Professional Responsibility investigated this matter.
Assistant United States Attorneys Eli A. Alcaraz of the Riverside Branch Office and Frances S. Lewis of the General Crimes Section are prosecuting this case.
Former Coral Springs Police Officer Ordered to Pay Restitution for COVID-19 Relief FraudRead the Press Release
MIAMI – Jason Scott Carter, a 45-year-old former Coral Springs, Fla., police officer, must serve five years of probation and pay restitution following a federal conviction for fraudulently applying to the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) for a COVID-19 relief advance grant and low-interest loan.
According to court records, Carter submitted a fraudulent Economic Injury Disaster Loan (EIDL) application and loan agreement on behalf of Jason S. Carter Inc., a South Florida business he allegedly owned and operated. That application falsely certified that during the 12 months prior to January 31, 2020, the business had gross revenues of $100,000. In reality, the business had only minimal gross revenues. He also falsely certified in his SBA application that he would use the funds for business expenses to alleviate pandemic-related economic injury. Instead, Carter spent more than $21,000 of the SBA loan obtaining high-end repairs on his 1969 Ford Mustang.
Carter pled guilty to one count of wire fraud on October 12, 2022. In addition to his probation, he must serve six months home confinement, pay a $5,000 fine, and pay restitution in the amount of $30,000.
Juan Antonio Gonzalez, U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Florida; Special Agent in Charge Omar Perez Aybar, Health and Human Services, Office of the Inspector General (HHS-OIG), Miami Regional Office; and Special Agent in Charge David Walker, Federal Bureau of Investigation, Tampa, Fla., Field Office, made the announcement.
HHS-OIG Miami, Tampa Field Office, and FBI Tampa investigated this case. Assistant U.S. Attorney Will J. Rosenzweig prosecuted it. Assistant U.S. Attorney Peter Laserna is handling asset forfeiture.
In March 2020, the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act was enacted. It was designed to provide emergency financial assistance to the millions of Americans suffering the economic effects caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. The CARES Act authorized and provided funding to SBA to provide EIDLs to eligible small businesses, including sole proprietorships and independent contractors experiencing substantial financial disruptions due to the pandemic. This allowed them to meet financial obligations and fund operating expenses. EIDL applications were submitted directly via the SBA’s website where the applications were processed and loans funded for qualifying applicants.
On May 17, 2021, the Attorney General established the COVID-19 Fraud Enforcement Task Force to marshal the resources of the Department of Justice in partnership with agencies across government to enhance efforts to combat and prevent pandemic-related fraud. The Task Force bolsters efforts to investigate and prosecute the most culpable domestic and international criminal actors and assists agencies tasked with administering relief programs to prevent fraud by augmenting and incorporating existing coordination mechanisms, identifying resources and techniques to uncover fraudulent actors and their schemes, and sharing and harnessing information and insights gained from prior enforcement efforts. For more information on the department’s response to the pandemic, please visit https://www.justice.gov/coronavirus.
Anyone with information about allegations of attempted fraud involving COVID-19 can report it by calling the Department of Justice’s National Center for Disaster Fraud (NCDF) Hotline at 866-720-5721 or via the NCDF Web Complaint Form at: https://www.justice.gov/disaster-fraud/ncdf-disaster-complaint-form.
-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 on http://pacer.flsd.uscourts.gov, under case no. 22-CR-80094.