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12 October 2022
Albert Lea Bookkeeper Pleads Guilty to Embezzling More Than $200,000 in Public Housing Rent PaymentsRead the Press Release
MINNEAPOLIS – An Albert Lea woman has pleaded guilty to stealing more than $200,000 in tenant rent payments, announced U.S. Attorney Andrew M. Luger.
According to court documents, between January 2010 and July 18, 2018, Marcie Marie Thumann, 44, worked as a bookkeeper for the Albert Lea Housing and Redevelopment Authority (HRA), a government program that received both federal and state funding to remedy the shortage of available low-incoming housing units. At the beginning of each month, the HRA’s computer system generated a rent-due balance for each tenant. Thumann, who was responsible for recording and reconciling payments to the HRA, received tenants’ rent payments via cash, check, or money order. During her tenure as the HRA’s bookkeeper, Thumann routinely embezzled HRA rent payments for her own personal use and benefit. She did so by pocketing cash payments and altering the payee information on payments made by check and money order. Thumann also manipulated the HRA’s computer system to conceal the money she stole, avoid detection, and prolong her fraud scheme. In total, Thumann stole at least $213,217 in tenant payments.
Thumann pleaded guilty today in U.S. District Court before Senior Judge David S. Doty to one count of theft from program receiving federal funds. A sentencing hearing will be scheduled at a later time.
This case is the result of an investigation conducted by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development – Office of the Inspector General and the Albert Lea Police Department.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Jordan L. Sing is prosecuting the case.
11 October 2022
Youngstown man admits to multiple drug chargesRead the Press Release
WHEELING, WEST VIRGINIA – Kamron Eugene Miller, Sr., of Youngstown, Ohio, has admitted to multiple drug charges, United States Attorney William Ihlenfeld announced.
Miller, 35, pleaded guilty today to one count of “Conspiracy to Distribute and Possess with the Intent to Distribute 50 Grams or More of Methamphetamine, Fentanyl, Cocaine Hydrochloride, and Cocaine Base,” three counts of “Distribution of 50 Grams or More of Methamphetamine,” one count of “Distribution of Methamphetamine,” and one count of “Distribution of Fentanyl.” Miller admitted to working with another to distribute the drugs from May to September 2021 in Hancock County and elsewhere, including the Northern District of Ohio.
His plea also agrees to the forfeiture of more than $210,000 in cash, an assault rifle, a pistol, and several rounds of ammunition seized during the investigation of the case.
Miller faces at least 10 years and up to life incarceration for the first five counts and faces up to 20 years of incarceration for the final count. Under the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, the actual sentence imposed will be based upon the seriousness of the offenses and the prior criminal history, if any, of the defendant.
Assistant U.S. Attorneys Shawn M. Adkins and Clayton J. Reid are prosecuting the case on behalf of the government. The Hancock-Brooke-Weirton Drug Task Force, a HIDTA-funded initiative; the Drug Enforcement Administration Wheeling; the Drug Enforcement Administration Youngstown; and the Ohio Highway Patrol investigated. The Marshall County Drug Task Force, a HIDTA-funded initiative; the Ohio Valley Drug Task Force, a HIDTA-funded initiative; and the Mahoning County, Ohio Sheriff’s Office assisted in the investigation.
U.S. Magistrate Judge James P. Mazzone presided.
Yankton Woman Charged with Tampering with Consumer Products and Obtaining a Controlled Substance by FraudRead the Press Release
SIOUX FALLS - United States Attorney Alison J. Ramsdell announced that a Yankton, South Dakota, woman has been indicted by a federal grand jury for two counts of Tampering with Consumer Products and two counts of Obtaining a Controlled Substance by Misrepresentation, Fraud, Forgery, Deception, and Subterfuge.
Lisa Merrigan, age 54, was indicted in October of 2022. She appeared before U.S. Magistrate Judge Veronica L. Duffy on October 6, 2022, and pleaded not guilty to the Indictment.
The maximum penalty upon conviction is up to 10 years in federal prison and/or a $250,000 fine, three years of supervised release, and up to $400 to the Federal Crime Victims Fund. Restitution may also be ordered.
Counts one and two of the Indictment allege that on August 23, 2021, and September 7, 2021, Merrigan, who was working as a registered nurse in a hospital, tampered with vials of fentanyl citrate for injection stored inside the hospital’s Omnicell machine by removing the fentanyl citrate from the vials and replacing them with another liquid, knowing that the diluted fentanyl citrate could be dispensed to patients at the hospital.
Counts three and four of the Indictment allege that on August 23, 2021, and September 7, 2021, Merrigan knowingly and intentionally acquired and obtained fentanyl citrate, a Schedule II controlled substance, for injections by misrepresentation, fraud, forgery, deception, and subterfuge.
The charges are merely accusations and Merrigan is presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty.
The investigation is being conducted by the Food and Drug Administration, Office of Criminal Investigations, the Drug Enforcement Administration, and the South Dakota Division of Criminal Investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney Ann M. Hoffman is prosecuting the case.
Merrigan was released on bond pending trial. A trial date has not been set.
Woman Pleads Guilty for Kidnapping Victim at KnifepointRead the Press Release
A Bristow woman pleaded guilty Tuesday for kidnapping a victim at knifepoint at a Sapulpa gas station and forcing her to drive to Kellyville, announced U.S. Attorney Clint Johnson.
Kimberly Nichole Biglow, 44, was convicted of kidnapping in Indian Country and assault with a dangerous weapon with intent to do bodily harm in Indian Country.
“Federal prosecutors and our partners at the Sapulpa and Kellyville Police Departments and the FBI remain committed to pursuing individuals who commit acts of violence within the Northern District of Oklahoma,” said U.S. Attorney Clint Johnson. “Kimberly Biglow has now been brought to justice for the harm and emotional distress she caused to the victim in this case.”
On Nov. 12, 2021, shortly before 6 am, the victim was at a Sapulpa gas station fueling her silver Ford F-350 when Biglow approached her wearing pink pants and a hoodie. The victim described her as acting and speaking strangely.
The victim believed the defendant was asking for a ride and told her she was unable to provide one. She continued fueling the vehicle and believed Biglow had walked into the convenience store.
Instead, when she entered her truck, she saw Biglow in the passenger’s seat pointing an open folding knife with a silver blade at her. Biglow demanded the victim take her to a location in Sapulpa. The victim complied and initially drove around Sapulpa before being directed to drive south toward Kellyville on Highway 66.
The victim then told Biglow that her family had likely already contacted authorities since she had not answered their call. Panicked, Biglow directed the victim to stop and exited the vehicle near a Phillips 66 gas station on Highway 66 in Kellyville.
The victim called 911 and drove back north where she met with a responding Sapulpa police officer. Biglow was located outside the Phillips 66 in Kellyville and taken into custody.
The FBI, Sapulpa Police Department, and Kellyville Police Department conducted the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney Alex Scott and Spencer Willson are prosecuting the case.
Washington Woman Pleads Guilty to Conspiring to Destroy or Remove Property to Prevent SeizureRead the Press Release
FRESNO, Calif. — Brigit Marie Bissell, 27, of Bothell, Washington, pleaded guilty today to conspiring to destroy or remove property to prevent seizure, U.S. Attorney Phillip A. Talbert announced.
According to court documents, on Jan. 14, 2022, Bissell was arrested in Fresno County. Following Bissell’s arrest, agents seized two of her cellphones and informed her they would be seeking a search warrant to search the contents of her phones.
Between Jan. 16, 2022, and Jan. 17, 2022, Bissell called her associate from jail and explained that the FBI had seized her phones and was in the process of obtaining a search warrant. Bissell then instructed her associate to log in to her iCloud account and delete the contents of her phone. Bissell’s associate agreed to carry out their plan of deleting the contents of the phone for the purpose of preventing or impairing the FBI’s investigation.
The case is the product of an investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the California Highway Patrol’s Special Operations Unit, and the Fresno High Impact Investigations Team. Assistant U.S. Attorney Antonio J. Pataca is prosecuting the case.
Bissell is scheduled to be sentenced by U.S. District Judge Ana de Alba on Jan. 17, 2023. Bissell faces a maximum sentence of five years in prison and a fine up to $250,000. The actual sentence, however, will be determined at the discretion of the court after consideration of any applicable statutory factors and the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, which take into account a number of variables.
Wakonda Man Charged with Theft in Connection with Health Care and Obtaining a Controlled Substance by MisrepresentationRead the Press Release
SIOUX FALLS - United States Attorney Alison J. Ramsdell announced that a Wakonda, South Dakota, man has been indicted by a federal grand jury for one count of Theft in Connection with Health Care and three counts of Obtaining a Controlled Substance by Misrepresentation, Fraud, Forgery, Deception, and Subterfuge.
Cody Carstensen, age 46, was indicted in October of 2022. He appeared before U.S. Magistrate Judge Veronica L. Duffy on October 5, 2022, and pleaded not guilty to the Indictment.
The maximum penalty upon conviction is up to 10 years in federal prison and/or a $250,000 fine, three years of supervised release, and up to $400 to the Federal Crime Victims Fund. Restitution may also be ordered.
Count one of the Indictment alleges that between June 2019 and February 2022, Carstensen knowingly and willfully embezzled, stole, and converted without authority to the use of any person other than the rightful owner hydrocodone, oxymorphone, oxycontin, oxycodone, and morphine valued at more than $100.
Count two of the Indictment alleges that between June 13, 2020, and May 22, 2021, Carstensen knowingly and intentionally acquired and obtained hydrocodone, a Schedule II controlled substance, by misrepresentation, fraud, forgery, deception, and subterfuge.
Count three of the Indictment alleges that between July 22, 2020, and December 15, 2020, Carstensen knowingly and intentionally acquired and obtained morphine, a Schedule II controlled substance, by misrepresentation, fraud, forgery, deception, and subterfuge.
Count four of the Indictment alleges that between April 2, 2020, and December 16, 2021, Carstensen knowingly and intentionally acquired and obtained oxycodone, a Schedule II controlled substance, by misrepresentation, fraud, forgery, deception, and subterfuge.
The charges are merely accusations and Carstensen is presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty.
The investigation is being conducted by DEA and DCI. Assistant U.S. Attorney Ann M. Hoffman is prosecuting the case.
Carstensen was released on bond pending trial which has been set for December 13, 2022.
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U.S. Attorney’s Office Announces Environmental Justice and Housing Conditions InitiativeRead the Press Release
PHOENIX, Ariz. – Ensuring safe housing conditions is a priority for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Arizona. Working with our DOJ partners, the U.S. Attorney’s Office seeks to secure environmental justice for all communities, particularly underserved communities that have been historically marginalized and overburdened, including low-income communities, communities of color, and Tribal and Indigenous communities, to ensure that everyone enjoys the same degree of protection from environmental and health hazards and equal access to a healthy environment in which to live, learn, play and work. To learn more about the Department of Justice’s environmental justice initiatives, visit the Office of Environmental Justice.
The U.S. Attorney for the District of Arizona, Gary Restaino, is pleased to announce that he has named an Environmental Justice Coordinator, who will coordinate with the Department of Justice and with other federal, state, Tribal, and local agencies on civil and criminal environmental justice matters that arise in the District of Arizona. The U.S. Attorney’s Office is particularly focused on advancing environmental justice through Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and welcomes information from the public that brings to our attention possible discrimination against communities of color by local governments, including zoning and redevelopment decisions that disproportionately affect minority and underserved communities, and polluting businesses that receive municipal tax credits.
Please visit our Environmental Justice website for more information. If you are concerned about discriminatory environmental and housing conditions, email the U.S. Attorney’s Office at [email protected] and call DOJ Civil Rights at 1-888-TITLE-06 (1-888-848-5306).
RELEASE NUMBER: 2022-172_Environmental Justice
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For more information on the U.S. Attorney’s Office, District of Arizona, visit http://www.justice.gov/usao/az/
Follow the U.S. Attorney’s Office, District of Arizona, on Twitter @USAO_AZ for the latest news.
U.K. Businessman Graham Bonham-Carter Indicted for Sanctions Evasion Benefitting Russian Oligarch Oleg Vladimirovich DeripaskaRead the Press Release
A U.K. national was arrested today for conspiracy to violate U.S. sanctions imposed on Russian Oligarch Oleg Vladimirovich Deripaska and wire fraud in connection with funding U.S. properties purchased by Deripaska and efforts to expatriate Deripaska’s artwork in the United States through misrepresentations. The U.S. government will seek his extradition to the United States. Deripaska was previously charged with U.S. sanctions violations in an indictment unsealed on Sept. 29.
In 2014, the President issued Executive Order 13660, which declared a national emergency with respect to the situation in Ukraine. To address this national emergency, the President blocked all property of individuals determined by the U.S. Department of the Treasury to be responsible for or complicit in actions or policies that threatened the security, sovereignty or territorial integrity of Ukraine, or who materially assist, sponsor or provide support for individuals or entities engaging in such activities. Executive Order 13660 and regulations issued pursuant to it prohibit making or receiving any funds, goods or services by, to, from or for the benefit of any person designated by the U.S. Treasury.
On April 6, 2018, the U.S. Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) designated Deripaska as a Specially Designated National (SDN), in connection with its finding that the actions of the Government of the Russian Federation with respect to Ukraine constitute an unusual and extraordinary threat to U.S. national security and foreign policy (the OFAC Sanctions). According to the U.S. Treasury, Deripaska was sanctioned for having acted or purported to act on behalf of, directly or indirectly, a senior official of the Government of the Russian Federation, and for operating in the energy sector of the Russian Federation economy.
According to court documents, Graham Bonham-Carter, 62, of the United Kingdom, worked for entities controlled by Deripaska from July 2003 through the present. Among other things, Bonham-Carter managed Deripaska’s residential properties located in the United Kingdom and Europe, including a house in Belgravia Square, London. Even after OFAC designated Deripaska, Bonham-Carter continued to work for Deripaska and refer to Deripaska as his “boss.” For example, in an email dated on or about June 18, 2018, Bonham-Carter wrote: “Times a bit tough for my boss as sanctions have hit him from the USA so not an ideal time.” In an email dated on or about Oct. 13, 2021, Bonham-Carter wrote: “It[’]s all good apart from banks keep shutting me down because of my affiliation to my boss Oleg Deripaska.... I have even been advised not to go to the USA where Oleg still has personal sanctions as the authorities will undoubtedly pull me to one side and the questioning could be hours or even days!!”
As alleged in the indictment, after Deripaska’s designation, Bonham-Carter engaged in over $1 million of illicit transactions to fund real estate properties in the United States for Deripaska’s benefit. Between in or about 2005 and in or about 2008, Deripaska purchased three residential properties in the United States, two in New York City and one in Washington, D.C. (the U.S. Properties). The properties were managed by a company named Gracetown Inc. After OFAC imposed sanctions on Deripaska on or about April 6, 2018, Gracetown Inc. continued to manage the properties Deripaska’s benefit. Shortly after Deripaska’s designation, Deripaska instructed Bonham-Carter to set up a new company for managing Deripaska’s properties. On or about May 25, 2018, Bonham-Carter wrote in an email that “OVD [i.e., Deripaska] wants me to set up my own company to run the [Belgravia Square] house and to possibly include Japan, Italy, China and more.” Less than two months later, on or about July 17, 2018, Bonham-Carter incorporated GBCM Limited.
Between in or about March 2021 and in or about December 2021, while in Deripaska’s employ, Bonham-Carter transmitted payments for the upkeep of the U.S. Properties. Bonham-Carter wired payments totaling $1,043,964.30 from a bank account in Russia held in the name of GBCM Limited, to bank accounts held by Gracetown Inc. in New York City. Gracetown Inc. used the funds from GBCM Limited to pay for various expenses associated with the U.S. Properties, including staff salaries, property taxes and other services, and to maintain and keep up the U.S. Properties.
As alleged, Bonham-Carter also attempted to unlawfully transfer artwork purchased by Deripaska from an auction house in New York City to London through misrepresentations concealing Deripaska’s ownership of the artwork. In May 2021, when advised by the auction house that it had reason to believe that the artwork belonged to Deripaska, Bonham-Carter falsely stated that the artwork and a payment of $12,146 that Bonham-Carter had made to ship the Artwork do not belong to Deripaska. In fact, as Bonham-Carter knew, Deripaska had purchased the artwork, it remained his property, and the funds used to pay for shipping would be billed to Deripaska.
Bonham-Carter is charged in a three-count indictment with one count of conspiring to violate and evade U.S. sanctions, in violation of the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA), one count of violating IEEPA and one count wire fraud, each of which counts carries a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
Task Force KleptoCapture Director Andrew C. Adams, U.S. Attorney Damian Williams for the Southern District of New York and Assistant Director Alan E. Kohler Jr. of the FBI’s Counterintelligence Division made the announcement.
The FBI New York Field Office and Counterintelligence Division are investigating the case, with valuable assistance provided by the Justice Department’s National Security Division Counterintelligence and Export Control Section and the Justice Department’s Office of International Affairs. The National Crime Agency of the United Kingdom provided substantial assistance.
The investigation was coordinated through the Justice Department’s Task Force KleptoCapture, an interagency law enforcement task force dedicated to enforcing the sweeping sanctions, export controls and economic countermeasures that the United States, along with its foreign allies and partners, has imposed in response to Russia’s unprovoked military invasion of Ukraine. Announced by the Attorney General on March 2 and run out of the Office of the Deputy Attorney General, the task force will continue to leverage all of the department’s tools and authorities to combat efforts to evade or undermine the collective actions taken by the U.S. government in response to Russian military aggression.
Assistant U.S. Attorneys Anden Chow and Vladislav Vainberg for the Southern District of New York 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.
U.K. Businessman Arrested for Sanctions Evasion Benefitting Russian Oligarch Oleg DeripaskaRead the Press Release
Damian Williams, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York and Michael J. Driscoll, Assistant Director-in-Charge of the New York Field Office of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (“FBI”), announced the unsealing of an Indictment charging GRAHAM BONHAM-CARTER, a citizen of the United Kingdom, with conspiring to violate United States sanctions imposed on Russian oligarch Oleg Vladimirovich Deripaska and wire fraud in connection with BONHAM-CARTER’s funding of U.S. properties purchased by Deripaska and efforts to expatriate Deripaska’s artwork in the U.S. through misrepresentations. BONHAM-CARTER was arrested today in the United Kingdom, and the United States Government will be seeking his extradition to the United States. Deripaska was previously charged with U.S. sanctions violations in an Indictment unsealed on September 29, 2022 (the “Deripaska Indictment”).
U.S. Attorney Damian Williams said: “As alleged, Graham Bonham-Carter provided property management and other services to his employer, sanctioned Russian oligarch Oleg Deripaska. Bonham-Carter obscured the origin of funding for upkeep and management of Deripaska’s lavish U.S. assets, in violation of the international sanctions. OFAC sanctions preclude supporters of the brutal and unjust Russian war regime from using U.S. dollars in any financial transactions, and we thank our international partners for their continued partnership in enforcing this critical sanctions program.”
Andrew C. Adams, Director of Task Force KleptoCapture said: “The international real estate market, and its infamous opacity, afforded Bonham-Carter no shelter from the diligence and expertise of U.S. law enforcement and our partners. Others who would attempt to move illicit money through international markets should take notice: neither powerful connections nor sophisticated deceptions succeeded in hiding Bonham-Carter’s efforts to illegally service a sanctioned oligarch.”
FBI Assistant Director-in-Charge Michael J. Driscoll said: "With each new action we take, we shine a light on the vast network of individuals willing to work with Russian oligarchs who brazenly break our laws and abuse our financial systems. Bonham-Carter allegedly hid Deripaska's money and assets from federal authorities, and continued to do so even after Deripaska was sanctioned by the U.S. Our work would not be possible without the ongoing and dedicated partnerships with our international counterparts, all of whom are strategically focused on stopping the Russian oligarchs and their criminal kleptocracy."
According to the allegations contained in the Indictment unsealed today in Manhattan federal court and the Deripaska Indictment:[1]
In 2014, the President issued Executive Order 13660, which declared a national emergency with respect to the situation in Ukraine. To address this national emergency, the President blocked all property of individuals determined by the U.S. Treasury to be responsible for or complicit in actions or policies that threatened the security, sovereignty, or territorial integrity of Ukraine, or who materially assist, sponsor, or provide support individuals or entities engaging in such activities. Executive Order 13660 and regulations issued pursuant to it, prohibit making or receiving any funds, goods or services by, to, from, or for the benefit of any person designated by the U.S. Treasury.
On April 6, 2018, the United States Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (“OFAC”) designated Deripaska as a Specially Designated National (“SDN”), in connection with its finding that the actions of the Government of the Russian Federation with respect to Ukraine constitute an unusual and extraordinary threat to U.S. national security and foreign policy (the “OFAC Sanctions”). According to the U.S. Treasury, Deripaska was sanctioned for having acted or purported to act on behalf of, directly or indirectly, a senior official of the Government of the Russian Federation, and for operating in the energy sector of the Russian Federation economy.
From approximately July 2003 through the present, BONHAM-CARTER worked for entities controlled by Deripaska. Among other things, BONHAM-CARTER manages Deripaska’s residential properties located in the United Kingdom and Europe, including a house in Belgravia Square, London. Even after OFAC designated Deripaska, BONHAM-CARTER continued to work for Deripaska and refer to Deripaska as his “boss.” For example, in an email dated on or about June 18, 2018, BONHAM-CARTER wrote: “Times a bit tough for my boss as sanctions have hit him from the USA so not an ideal time.” In an e-mail dated on or about October 13, 2021, BONHAM-CARTER wrote: “It[’]s all good apart from banks keep shutting me down because of my affiliation to my boss Oleg Deripaska.... I have even been advised not to go to the USA where Oleg still has personal sanctions as the authorities will undoubtedly pull me to one side and the questioning could be hours or even days!!”
As alleged in the Indictment, after Deripaska’s designation, BONHAM-CARTER engaged in over a million dollars of illicit transactions to fund real estate properties in the United States for Deripaska’s benefit. Between in or about 2005 and in or about 2008, Deripaska purchased three residential properties in the United States, two in New York, New York, and one in Washington, D.C. (the “U.S. Properties”). The properties were managed by a company named Gracetown, Inc. After OFAC imposed sanctions on Deripaska on or about April 6, 2018, Gracetown, Inc. continued to manage the properties for Deripaska’s benefit. Shortly after Deripaska’s designation, Deripaska instructed BONHAM-CARTER to set up a new company for managing Deripaska’s properties. On or about May 25, 2018, BONHAM-CARTER wrote in an email that “OVD [i.e., Deripaska] wants me to set up my own company to run the [Belgravia Square] house and to possibly include Japan, Italy, China and more.” Less than two months later, on or about July 17, 2018, BONHAM-CARTER incorporated GBCM Limited.
Between in or about March 2021 and in or about December 2021, while in Deripaska’s employ, BONHAM-CARTER transmitted payments for the upkeep of the U.S. Properties. BONHAM-CARTER wired payments totaling $1,043,964.30 from a bank account in Russia held in the name of GBCM Limited, to bank accounts held by Gracetown, Inc. in New York, New York. Gracetown, Inc. used the funds from GBCM Limited to pay for various expenses associated with the U.S. Properties, including staff salaries, property taxes, and other services, and to maintain and keep up the U.S. Properties.
As alleged, BONHAM-CARTER also attempted to unlawfully transfer artwork purchased by Deripaska from an auction house in New York City to London through misrepresentations concealing Deripaska’s ownership of the artwork. In May 2021, when advised by the auction house that it had reason to believe that the artwork belonged to Deripaska, BONHAM-CARTER falsely stated that the artwork and a payment of $12,146 that BONHAM-CARTER had made to ship the Artwork do not belong to Deripaska. In fact, as BONHAM-CARTER knew, Deripaska had purchased the artwork, it remained his property, and the funds used to pay for shipping would be billed to Deripaska.
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BONHAM-CARTER, 62, of the United Kingdom, is charged in a three-count Indictment with one count of conspiring to violate and evade U.S. sanctions, in violation of the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (“IEEPA”), one count of violating IEEPA, and one count of wire fraud, each of which carries a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison.
The maximum potential sentences are prescribed by Congress and are provided here for informational purposes only, as any sentencing of the defendants will be determined by a judge.
Mr. Williams praised the outstanding investigative work of the FBI and its New York Field Office, Counterintelligence Division. Mr. Williams further thanked the Department of Justice’s National Security Division, Counterintelligence, and Export Control Section and the Justice Department’s Office of International Affairs of the Department’s Criminal Division for their guidance and support throughout this investigation. Finally, Mr. Williams praised the outstanding efforts of the authorities in the United Kingdom, in particular the National Crime Agency.
The investigation was coordinated through the Justice Department’s Task Force KleptoCapture, an interagency law enforcement task force dedicated to enforcing the sweeping sanctions, export controls, and economic countermeasures that the United States, along with its foreign allies and partners, has imposed in response to Russia’s unprovoked military invasion of Ukraine. Announced by the Attorney General on March 2 and run out of the Office of the Deputy Attorney General, the task force will continue to leverage all of the Department’s tools and authorities to combat efforts to evade or undermine the collective actions taken by the U.S. government in response to Russian military aggression.
The case is being handled by the Office’s Money Laundering and Transnational Criminal Enterprises Unit. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Anden Chow and Vladislav Vainberg are in charge of the case.
The charges in the Indictment are merely accusations, and the defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
[1] As the introductory phrase signifies, the Indictments, and the description of the Indictments set forth herein, constitute only allegations, and every fact described should be treated as an allegation.
Two Former eBay Employees Sentenced for Aggressive Cyberstalking CampaignRead the Press Release
BOSTON – Two former employees of eBay, Inc. were sentenced today for their roles in a cyberstalking campaign targeting the editor and publisher of a newsletter that eBay executives viewed as critical of the company.
Stephanie Popp, 34, of Louisville, Ky., eBay’s former Senior Manager of Global Intelligence, was sentenced to one year and one day in prison and two years of probation. Stephanie Stockwell, 28, of Redwood City, Calif., the former manager of eBay’s Global Intelligence Center, was sentenced to two years of probation, with one year to be served in home confinement. Both sentences were imposed by Senior U.S. District Court Judge William G. Young
On Sept. 29, 2022, co-conspirator James Baugh was sentenced to 57 months in prison, two years of supervised release and was ordered to pay a fine of $40,000. Also on Sept. 29, 2022, co-conspirator David Harville was sentenced to two years in prison, two years of supervised release and was ordered to pay a fine of $20,000. Co-conspirators and former eBay employees Philip Cooke, Brian Gilbert and Veronica Zea previously pleaded guilty for their roles in the conspiracy to cyberstalk the victims. Cooke was sentenced in July 2021 to 18 months in prison. Gilbert and Zea are awaiting sentencing.
Between approximately Aug. 5, 2019 and Sept. 6, 2019, Stockwell, Popp and their co-conspirators at eBay agreed to engage in a harassment campaign targeting a husband and wife in Natick, Mass. for their roles in publishing a newsletter that reported on issues of interest to eBay sellers. Senior executives at eBay were frustrated with the newsletter’s tone and content as well as the substance of comments posted beneath the newsletter’s articles. The harassment campaign arose from communications between those senior executives and Baugh, who was eBay’s senior security employee.
In August 2019, the defendants and their co-conspirators executed a three-part harassment campaign intended to intimidate the victims and to influence their reporting about eBay. The campaign included sending anonymous and disturbing deliveries to the victims’ home; sending private Twitter messages and public tweets criticizing the newsletter’s content; threats to visit the victims in Natick; and traveling to Natick to surveil the victims and installing a GPS tracking device on their car.
Stockwell, at Baugh’s direction, purchased a laptop for use in harassing the victims, and used an anonymous email account to order online live spiders and a prepaid debit card to purchase a late-night pizza delivery to the victims’ home. Other deliveries ordered to the victims’ home included a book on surviving the death of a spouse, a bloody pig mask, a fetal pig and a funeral wreath. Stockwell also prepared an eBay “Person of Interest” report for the Bay Area—a fictitious list of potential suspects to provide to the Natick Police Department to deflect the police from suspecting that eBay employees were actually harassing the victims.
As part of the second phase of the campaign, Popp sent private Twitter messages and public tweets, drafted or approved by Baugh, Gilbert, or Cooke, criticizing the newsletter’s content. The threatening Twitter messages were written as if they had been sent by eBay sellers who were unhappy with the victims’ coverage in the newsletter. Some of these messages posted the victims’ home address and threats to show up at their home. The harassment also featured Craigslist posts inviting members of the public to experience sexual encounters at the victims’ home.
United States Attorney Rachael S. Rollins; Joseph R. Bonavolonta, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI Boston Division; and Natick Police Chief James G. Hicks made the announcement today. eBay provided valuable assistance and cooperation with the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney Seth B. Kosto, Deputy Chief of Rollins’ Securities, Financial & Cyber Fraud Unit prosecuted the case.
Tulare County Man Pleads Guilty to Federal Gun and Drug ChargesRead the Press Release
FRESNO, Calif. — Jonathan Gallegos, 32, of Ivanhoe, pleaded guilty today to conspiring to distribute and possess with intent to distribute methamphetamine and marijuana and using a firearm during and in relation to a drug trafficking crime, U.S. Attorney Phillip A. Talbert announced.
According to court documents, the charges arose from a long-term investigation that uncovered evidence of a scheme involving the trade of illegal drugs sourced in Mexico and California for firearms sourced in Texas. In 2021, a team of local, state, and federal law enforcement officers partnered in an investigation into the Tulare County Surenos Street Gang. Part of the investigation focused on Gallegos and his associates, who were involved in shipping illegal drugs and firearms across state lines.
Between April 6, 2021, and Dec. 17, 2021, Gallegos and associates shipped kilograms of marijuana and methamphetamine from post offices in Central California to residences in San Antonio, Texas. Gallegos’s drug-buying customers shipped firearms back to Gallegos and his associates in California, as payment for the narcotics they had received. Gallegos is a felon who cannot lawfully possess firearms.
This case is the product of an investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, the Tulare County Sheriff’s Office, the Tulare County Area Regencies Gun Enforcement Team, the Visalia Police Department, the California Department of Justice’s Bureau of Investigation, the California Highway Patrol’s Special Operations Unit, and the Tulare County District Attorney’s Office. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Justin J. Gilio and Antonio J. Pataca are prosecuting the case.
Gallegos is scheduled to be sentenced by U.S. District Judge Ana de Alba on Jan. 17, 2023. Gallegos faces a mandatory minimum sentence of 15 years up to life in prison. The actual sentence, however, will be determined at the discretion of the court after consideration of any applicable statutory factors and the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, which take into account a number of variables.
This effort is part of an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) operation. OCDETF identifies, disrupts, and dismantles the highest-level criminal organizations that threaten the United States using a prosecutor-led, intelligence-driven, multi-agency approach. Additional information about the OCDETF Program can be found at www.justice.gov/OCDETF.
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 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.
Tucson Man Sentenced to 17.5 Years for Possession of Methamphetamine and FirearmsRead the Press Release
TUCSON, Ariz. – Gabriel Joseph Bustamante, 43, of Tucson, Arizona, was sentenced on September 28, 2022, by United States District Judge Rosemary Márquez to 17.5 years in prison, followed by five years of supervised release. Bustamante previously pleaded guilty to Possession with Intent to Distribute Methamphetamine and Felon in Possession of Firearms.
On April 22, 2021, federal agents served a search warrant on Bustamante’s residential trailer and seized 3.6 kilograms of pure methamphetamine and multiple firearms. Agents also searched two storage units belonging to Bustamante where they recovered additional firearms.
This investigation was a collaborative effort between federal law enforcement agencies and is part of the Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF) initiative in Southern Arizona that is led by the Tucson Strike Force. 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.
Homeland Security Investigations, the Drug Enforcement Administration, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives conducted the investigation in this case. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Ashley Culver and David Petermann, District of Arizona, Tucson, handled the prosecution.
CASE NUMBER: CR-21-1116-TUC-RM
RELEASE NUMBER: 2022-174_Bustamante# # #
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.
Tonawanda Man Pleads Guilty for His Role in Debt Collection SchemeRead 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 Greg MacKinnon, 56, of the City of Tonawanda, NY, pleaded guilty to conspiring to defraud the United States before U.S. District Judge Richard J. Arcara. The charge carries a maximum penalty of five years in prison, and a fine of $250,000.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Russell T. Ippolito, who is handling the case, stated that between June 2011, and April 27, 2017, MacKinnon operated Vantage Point Services, a debt collection business. MacKinnon and others involved in the conspiracy fraudulently and unlawfully collected on debt, earning income exceeding $10,000 every year from such criminal activity. MacKinnon, and his co-conspirators, diverted money from Vantage Point Services to other debt collection business entities controlled by the co-conspirators. The money was diverted, and made to appear as ordinary business expenses, to avoid reporting income exceeding $10,000 in any year from criminal activity and paying income taxes.
The plea is the result of an investigation by the Internal Revenue Service, Criminal Investigation Division, under the direction of Special Agent-in-Charge Thomas Fattorusso, and Homeland Security Investigations, under the direction of Acting Special Agent-in-Charge Matthew Scarpino.
Sentencing is scheduled for January 18, 2023, before Judge Arcara.
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Three Men Sentenced to Life in Federal Prison for Double Homicide—Murder for Hire ConspiracyRead the Press Release
Tampa, Florida – U.S. District Judge Charlene E. Honeywell today sentenced Kermon Williams, a/k/a “The General” (42, St. Petersburg), James Higgs, Jr., a/k/a “Hammer” (40, St. Petersburg), and Jhaphre Higgs, a/k/a “Pre” (35, St. Petersburg) each to life in federal prison followed by 20 years’ imprisonment for a double homicide, murder for hire conspiracy. Williams, Higgs, Jr., and Higgs were found guilty by a federal jury on June 24, 2022.
According to testimony and evidence presented at trial, Williams asked Jhaphre and James Higgs, Jr., to kill Tywan Armstrong, a rival drug dealer, who Williams saw as a threat to his drug business. Williams paid Jhaphre and James Higgs, Jr., with cash and drugs and gave them an AR-15 rifle to commit the murder. Jhaphre and James Higgs, Jr. made their first attempt on Armstrong’s life on September 22, 2018, shooting at him several times with an AR-15. Armstrong survived the first attempt on his life. Afterwards, Williams directed Jhaphre and James Higgs, Jr. to make the murder as public as possible to send a message on the street.
On January 21, 2019, Jhaphre and James Higgs, Jr., following William’s directive, opened fire on Armstrong’s car with an AR-15 and .40 caliber pistol in front of a large crowd of people gathered at a St. Petersburg gas station. The hail of bullets struck Armstrong 28 times, front passenger Roger Ford 11 times, and a rear passenger several times. Despite heroic efforts on the part of officers from the St. Petersburg Police Department and members of St. Petersburg Fire Rescue, both Armstrong and Ford died from their injuries.
All three defendants have previously been convicted of multiple felonies. Williams had previously been convicted of performing a lewd and lascivious act in the presence of a child under the age of 16. Jhaphre Higgs had previously been convicted of aggravated battery with possession of a firearm. And James Higgs, Jr., had previously been convicted of accessory after the fact to murder.
“This demonstrates how science – in this case, digital ballistics technology – can breathe life into violent gun crime cases,” said ATF Tampa Field Division Special Agent in Charge Craig W. Saier. “And despite the twist and turns over the course of the three-plus year investigation, we never gave up.”
This case was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, the St. Petersburg Police Department, the Pinellas County Sheriff’s Office, and the Florida Department of Law Enforcement. It was investigated and prosecuted by former Assistant United States Attorney Natalie Hirt Adams. The trial was conducted by Assistant United States Attorneys Craig R. Gestring and Charlie D. Connally.
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.
Three Individuals Charged for Distributing over 400,000 Fentanyl Pills and 25 Pounds of MethamphetamineRead the Press Release
PHOENIX, Ariz. – Keivin Crosswell-Cervantes, 28, of Mexico, Carlos Alberto Castro-Ruiz, 27, of Avondale, Arizona, and Alexander Ortega-Islas, 22, of Phoenix, Arizona, were indicted on October 4, 2022, on Conspiracy to Distribute Fentanyl and Methamphetamine along with Use or Carry a Firearm during a Drug Trafficking Offense. The three defendants had their initial appearance on September 23, 2022, before United States Magistrate Judge Eileen S. Willett.
On Sept. 21, 2022, HSI special agents arrested Crosswell-Cervantes, Castro-Ruiz, and Ortega-Islas and seized approximately 410,000 blue fentanyl pills, approximately 20,000 multi-colored fentanyl pills, also known as “skittles”, and approximately 25 pounds of methamphetamine in Avondale, Arizona. During the enforcement action, special agents also seized an AK-47 style pistol, a Kimber 1911 45 caliber pistol with two magazines, and an FN 45 caliber pistol.
A conviction for Conspiracy to Distribute Fentanyl and Methamphetamine carries a mandatory minimum sentence of 10 years in prison with a maximum penalty of life in prison, a fine of up to $10,000,000, or both.
A conviction for Use or Carry a Firearms during a Drug Trafficking Offense carries a mandatory minimum sentence of 5 years in prison, consecutive to any other sentence, with a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison, a fine of up to $250,000, or both.
An indictment is merely an allegation of criminal conduct, not evidence. An individual is presumed innocent until evidence is presented to a jury that establishes guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.
Special Agents from Homeland Security Investigations, Nogales, conducted the investigation in this case. Assistant U.S. Attorney Matthew G. Eltringham, District of Arizona, Tucson, OCDETF Section, is handling the prosecution.
CASE NUMBER: MJ-22-9370-ESW
RELEASE NUMBER: 2022-171_Crosswell-Cervantes et al.# # #
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.
Three Defendants Sentenced to Prison for Fentanyl Pill TraffickingRead the Press Release
SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Three defendants were sentenced today for trafficking fentanyl pills and other drugs, U.S. Attorney Phillip A. Talbert announced.
The three defendants were sentenced for their involvement with a Sacramento-based drug trafficking organization (DTO). According to court documents, the DTO was led by Jose Lopez-Zamora, and from at least May 2019 until January 2021, it was responsible for importing tens of thousands of fentanyl-laced counterfeit oxycodone “M-30” pills from Mexico and distributing them in northern California and elsewhere. In addition, they distributed cocaine and methamphetamine.
Rudi Jean Carlos Flores, 29, of Manteca, was sentenced to 10 years and one month in prison for conspiracy to distribute and to possess with intent to distribute fentanyl, cocaine, and methamphetamine. According to court documents, Flores was a Manteca-based distributor for the Lopez-Zamora DTO. During a federal wiretap in October through December 2020, agents intercepted calls in which Flores ordered 1,000 or more M-30 pills from Lopez-Zamora on multiple occasions. In one wiretapped call, Lopez-Zamora admonished Flores to make sure his customers did not text him, because if one of Flores’s customers were to die from the pills, the texts would hurt Flores. Flores laughed and said he understood. In another wiretapped call, Flores promised to look into and confront some “gangsters” whom Lopez-Zamora suspected of stealing a load of 11,000 M-30 fentanyl pills from him. Agents searched Flores’s residence on Jan. 13, 2021, and found about 400 M-30 fentanyl pills, $33,470 in cash, and two loaded handguns. Text messages on Flores’s seized phone revealed that he informed an associate that there would be retaliation if someone “snitched” on them.
Jason Lamar Lee, 49, of Sparks, Nevada, was sentenced to eight years and seven months in prison for conspiracy to distribute and to possess with intent to distribute fentanyl, cocaine, and methamphetamine. According to court documents, Lee was a Reno-based distributor for the Lopez-Zamora DTO who obtained one to two thousand fentanyl M-30 pills and pound quantities of methamphetamine from Lopez-Zamora. In multiple wiretapped phone calls, Lee and Lopez-Zamora discussed how they needed to identify a suspected informant so they could retaliate by murdering him. Agents searched Lee’s residence on Jan. 13, 2021, and found over 1,000 fentanyl M-30 pills, almost a pound of methamphetamine, and two handguns.
Mateo Elias Guerrero-Gonzales, 24, of Sacramento, was sentenced today to two years and three months in prison for distribution of fentanyl. According to court documents, on Feb. 6, 2020, Guerrero-Gonzales sold 100 fentanyl M-30 pills to a confidential source. When co-defendant Christopher Williams began to snort one of the pills that he received as payment for brokering the deal, Guerrero-Gonzales warned him to snort only half the pill because they contained fentanyl. On Jan. 13, 2021, agents searched Guerrero-Gonzales’s residence and found psilocybin mushrooms, marijuana, $7,675 in cash, seven firearms, and numerous firearm magazines and boxes of ammunition. One of the firearms was a short-barrel rifle and one was a fully automatic Glock handgun.
This case is the product of an investigation by the Drug Enforcement Administration, Homeland Security Investigations, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, the U.S. Marshals Service, the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, the Yuba-Sutter Narcotic and Gang Enforcement Task Force (NET-5), the California Highway Patrol, the Butte Interagency Narcotics Task Force (BINTF), the Tri-County Drug Enforcement Team (TRIDENT), the Sacramento County Sheriff’s Department, the Sacramento Police Department, the Roseville Police Department, the Manteca Police Department, the Yuba City Police Department, and the West Sacramento Police Department. Assistant U.S. Attorney David W. Spencer is prosecuting the case.
Three other defendants have pleaded guilty: Christopher Kegan Williams pleaded guilty, and on Dec. 14, 2021, was sentenced to two and a half years in prison. Alejandro Tello pleaded guilty and is scheduled to be sentenced on Jan. 17, 2023. Baudelio Vizcarra Jr., pleaded guilty, and is scheduled to be sentenced on Nov. 3, 2022.
Charges are pending against the following defendants: Jose Guadalupe Lopez-Zamora, Leonardo Flores Beltran, Christian Anthony Romero, Joaquin Alberto Sotelo Valdez, Erika Gabriela Zamora Rojo, Jose Luis Aguilar Saucedo, Rosario Zamora Rojo, and Sandro Escobedo. The charges are only allegations; the defendants are presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.
This effort is part of an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) operation. OCDETF identifies, disrupts, and dismantles the highest-level criminal organizations that threaten the United States using a prosecutor-led, intelligence-driven, multi-agency approach. Additional information about the OCDETF Program can be found at www.justice.gov/OCDETF.
Syracuse Man Sentenced to 70 Months for Possession with Intent to Distribute Kilograms of CocaineRead the Press Release
SYRACUSE, NEW YORK – Alex Carrasquillo-Rosado, age 31, of Syracuse, was sentenced today to 70 months’ imprisonment to be followed by five years of supervised release for possessing with intent to distribute six kilograms of cocaine seized from his car and house in November of 2021.
The announcement was made by United States Attorney Carla B. Freedman, Ketty Larco-Ward, Inspector in Charge, United States Postal Inspection Service (USPIS), Boston Division, Matthew Scarpino, Acting Special Agent in Charge, Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), Buffalo Field Office, Thomas Fattorusso, Executive Special Agent in Charge, Internal Revenue Service – Criminal Investigation Division (IRS-CI), New York Field Office, and Joseph Cecile, Chief of Police, Syracuse Police Department.
This case is being investigated by the United States Postal Inspection Service (USPIS), Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), Internal Revenue Service – Criminal Investigation Division (IRS-CI), and the Syracuse Police Department. Investigative assistance was provided by the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), United States Border Patrol, and the Onondaga County Sheriff’s Office. The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Michael D. Gadarian.
Sulphur Springs Shooter Indicted for Possessing A FirearmRead the Press Release
Tampa, FL – United States Attorney Roger B. Handberg announces the return of an indictment charging Thaddeus Timeaus Howard (29, Tampa) with unlawful possession of a firearm. If convicted, Howard faces a maximum penalty of 10 years in federal prison.
According to statements made in open court, on July 9, 2022, near the intersection of North Nebraska Avenue and East Fairbanks Street in the Sulphur Springs neighborhood of Tampa, Howard fired approximately seven shots at his ex-girlfriend. Surveillance video played during Howard’s arraignment showed an individual, whom prosecutors allege is Howard, fire multiple shots from a pistol. After firing the weapon, Howard entered his vehicle and chased his target who had fled in a car driven by her cousin. That chase ended when Howard caused a multi-vehicle accident near the intersection of North Nebraska Avenue and East Broad Street after swerving in and out of oncoming traffic. Howard fled the scene of that crash on foot and was apprehended by officers from the Tampa Police Department. Officers searched Howard after taking him in to custody and located a pistol in the pocket of his jeans.
At the time of the incident, Howard had prior felony convictions for armed robbery and aggravated assault with a deadly weapon. Federal law prohibits felons from possessing firearms or ammunition.
An indictment is merely a formal charge that a defendant has committed one or more violations of federal criminal law, and every defendant is presumed innocent unless, and until, proven guilty.
This case was investigated by the Tampa Police Department and the Federal Bureau of Investigation. It will be prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney David P. Sullivan. The forfeiture will be handled by Assistant United States Attorney James A. Muench.
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.
Sioux Falls Man Sentenced for Making False StatementsRead the Press Release
SIOUX FALLS - United States Attorney Alison J. Ramsdell announced today that a Sioux Falls, South Dakota, man convicted of two counts of Making False Statements in Connection with the Purchases of Firearms was sentenced on September 28, 2022, by U.S. District Judge Lawrence L. Piersol.
Jayden Guenther, age 20, was sentenced to five years of probation on each count to run concurrently and a special assessment to the Federal Crime Victims Fund in the amount of $200.
Guenther was indicted by a federal grand jury in March of 2022. He pled guilty on July 27, 2022.
The conviction stemmed from incidents on May 6, 2021 and again on August 27, 2021, when Guenther asked two individuals to purchase two new Glock 9mm handguns for him. Guenther was not old enough to purchase the pistols, so he paid both individuals to purchase the guns for him.
Each firearm had been shipped and transported in interstate commerce before Guenther possessed them.
This case was investigated by Homeland Security Investigations. Assistant U.S. Attorney Jeffrey C. Clapper prosecuted the case.
This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program bringing together all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve to reduce violent crime and gun violence, and to make our neighborhoods safer for everyone. On May 26, 2021, the Department launched a violent crime reduction strategy strengthening PSN based on these core principles: fostering trust and legitimacy in our communities, supporting community-based organizations that help prevent violence from occurring in the first place, setting focused and strategic enforcement priorities, and measuring the results.
Second Defendant Sentenced for Role in Conspiracy to Defraud U.S. Department of AgricultureRead the Press Release
Tampa, Florida – U.S. District Judge Steven D. Merryday has sentenced Bassam Al Saleh (65, Tampa) to 18 months in federal prison for conspiracy to defraud and to make false statements to the United States Department of Agriculture (“USDA”). The court also ordered Al Saleh to make restitution to the USDA in the amount of $654,502.28.
According to court documents, Bassam Al Saleh joined in a conspiracy to defraud the USDA and to make false statements to the USDA in 2015 when he agreed to aid in submitting false and fraudulent representations to the USDA that his brother, Ahmad Al Saleh, was buying a St. Petersburg convenience store that was enrolled to accept USDA Supplemental Nutrition Assistance (“SNAP”) program benefits. After the USDA prohibited the prior owner of the store from accepting any SNAP benefit purchases and prohibited him from even working at the store, Bassam Al Saleh joined with his brother, Ahmad Al Saleh, and the prior store owner to create false records and representations that Ahmad Al Saleh had bought the store and that Ahmad Al Saleh was operating it himself. In reality, the previous store owner continued to operate and manage the store and continued to make profits from it, paying Ahmad Al Saleh a fee for the use of Al Saleh’s name as the owner of the store on USDA documents. During the time that the prior owner was still operating the store under the supposed ownership of Ahmad Al Saleh, the prior owner committed numerous acts of SNAP benefits trafficking at the store. In those instances, the prior store owner bought SNAP benefits from customers and paid for them in cash, in direct violation of USDA SNAP regulations. The court determined that the losses to the SNAP program from the prior store owner’s engagement in this conduct during the time period of the supposed “ownership” of the store by Ahmad Al Saleh was at least $654,502.84.
This case was investigated by the United States Department of Agriculture -Office of Inspector General, the USDA Food and Nutrition Service, and Homeland Security Investigations, with assistance from the St. Petersburg Police Department. It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Jay L. Hoffer.
Santa Barbara Man Sentenced to over 11 Years in Federal Prison for $14 Million Ponzi Scheme, Tax Evasion, ID Theft and Other FeloniesRead the Press Release
LOS ANGELES – A Santa Barbara man was sentenced today to 133 months in federal prison for stealing approximately $14 million from victims who thought their investments would be used to purchase annuities issued by Swiss insurance companies and for failing to pay over $3 million in federal income tax.
Darrell Arnold Aviss, 64, was sentenced by United States District Judge Stanley Blumenfeld Jr., who also ordered him to pay $ 14,486,169 in restitution and to forfeit his interest in a Santa Barbara home worth approximately $4 million.
At today’s court hearing, Judge Blumenfeld, who remanded Aviss into federal custody, described Aviss as “cruel, callous and self-absorbed” and adding, “the devastation in this case is real.”
On June 28, Aviss pleaded guilty to 21 felonies: five counts of wire fraud, one count of money laundering, five counts of engaging in monetary transactions in criminally derived property over $10,000, three counts of tax evasion, six counts of willful failure to report foreign bank and financial accounts, and one count of aggravated identity theft.
Aviss ran his Ponzi scheme from at least 2012 through the summer of 2020, soliciting money from people who wanted to purchase annuities from insurance companies based in Switzerland. Aviss claimed the Swiss annuities he offered were safe and secure, and, in some instances, he told victims the annuities would pay interest rates ranging from 5% to 7%.
But Aviss did not use the victims’ money to purchase annuities, even though he arranged for the victims to receive fabricated statements showing the purported value of the annuities, which the false documents showed were increasing over time.
Victims, most of whom were over the age of 60, gave Aviss more than $14 million, with most of that money coming from just one victim. Some money was paid back to victims to keep the scheme running.
Instead of purchasing annuities, Aviss used the victims’ money for his own purposes and to support his lavish lifestyle. He used the money for, among other things, Ponzi payments to victims, mortgage payments, luxury car leases, expensive watches, trips to Monaco, more than $170,000 in purchases at a Santa Barbara nightclub, and 20 tickets to a U2 concert and after-party.
One victim lost more than $9.7 million in Aviss’ Ponzi scheme. Aviss stole $400,000 from another victim whom he knew recently had been diagnosed with cancer, according to the prosecution’s sentencing memorandum.
“Aviss has essentially been living a life of pure crime for about a decade,” prosecutors wrote in a sentencing memorandum. “Based on the financial records and his statements to the probation officer, Aviss has had no source of money – no real job – since at least 2012, apart from the money he stole from the victims, including retirees who denied themselves luxuries to save up the nest eggs Aviss stole.”
Aviss also defrauded the United States by failing to file tax returns for 2014, 2015 and 2016 and failing to pay any income taxes for those years. Aviss evaded paying more than $3 million in income taxes.
Aviss also failed to file with the Department of the Treasury Reports of Foreign Bank and Financial Accounts for the years 2015 through 2020 in an attempt to conceal accounts he controlled in Monaco, where he deposited some of his ill-gotten gains. He transferred victims’ money to these offshore accounts, one of which was established with information from an identity theft victim.
The FBI and IRS Criminal Investigation conducted the investigation in this matter.
Assistant United States Attorneys Monica E. Tait and Ali Moghaddas of the Major Frauds Section prosecuted this case. Assistant United States Attorney Daniel G. Boyle of the Asset Forfeiture and Recovery Section is handling asset forfeiture matters in this case.
If you or someone you know is age 60 or older and has been a victim of financial fraud, help is available at the National Elder Fraud Hotline: 1-833-FRAUD-11 (1-833-372-8311). This Department of Justice hotline, managed by the Office for Victims of Crime, is staffed by experienced professionals who provide personalized support to callers by assessing the needs of the victim and identifying relevant next steps. Case managers will identify appropriate reporting agencies, provide information to callers to assist them in reporting, connect callers directly with appropriate agencies, and provide resources and referrals, on a case-by-case basis. Reporting is the first step. Reporting can help authorities identify those who commit fraud, and reporting certain financial losses due to fraud as soon as possible can increase the likelihood of recovering losses. The hotline is staffed seven days a week from 3 a.m. to 8 p.m. PT. English, Spanish, and other languages are available.
Information about the Department of Justice’s Elder Fraud Initiative is available at www.justice.gov/elderjustice.
Rochester Man Going to Prison for More Than 12 Years for Selling Fentanyl That Led to Overdose, and RobberyRead the Press Release
CONTACT: Barbara Burns
PHONE: (716) 843-5817
FAX #: (716) 551-3051ROCHESTER, N.Y.-U.S. Attorney Trini E. Ross announced today that Andrew D. Williams, 26, of Rochester, NY, who was convicted of possession with intent to distribute fentanyl and para-flourofentanyl, and Hobbs Act robbery, was sentenced to serve 150 months in prison by U.S. District Judge Frank P. Geraci, Jr.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Brett A. Harvey, who handled the case, stated that on February 19, 2020, Williams robbed Annie’s Stop & Shop, on Culver Road in Irondequoit. During the robbery, Williams pointed what appeared to be a firearm at the head of the female owner of the store. Williams and an accomplice stole $460 and some grocery items during the robbery.
On April 6, 2021, Williams sold fentanyl and para-fluorofentanyl to a 21-year-old male, who later suffered an overdose and was found unresponsive. Emergency personnel revived the male after giving him two doses of Narcan. On June 10, 2021, investigators executed a search warrant at Williams’s residence on Strathmore Circle in Rochester, during which they recovered 458 glassine bags of fentanyl and para-fluorofentanyl, $2,978 in drug proceeds, drug packaging materials, and numerous rounds of firearm ammunition.
The sentencing is the result of an investigation by Homeland Security Investigations, under the direction of Acting Special Agent-in-Charge Matthew Scarpino; the Greater Rochester Area Narcotics Team, which includes the Monroe County Sheriff’s Office, under the direction of Sheriff Todd Baxter, and the Rochester Police Department, under the direction of Chief David M. Smith; and the Irondequoit Police Department, under the direction of Chief Alan Laird.
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Rochester Man Going to Prison for His Role in Cocaine ConspiracyRead the Press Release
CONTACT: Barbara Burns
PHONE: (716) 843-5817
FAX #: (716) 551-3051ROCHESTER, N.Y. - U.S. Attorney Trini E. Ross announced today that Deshan Scott, 23, of Rochester, NY, who was convicted of possession of a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime, was sentenced to serve 60 months in prison by U.S. District Judge Frank P. Geraci, Jr.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Katelyn M. Hartford, who handled the case, stated that between September and October 26, 2021, Scott conspired with others to sell cocaine. In the early morning of October 26, 2021, investigators executed search warrants at numerous locations associated with the narcotics conspiracy, including a residence on Bernard Street. At that location, Scott worked as a lookout for the organization, watching for threats to their operation such as law enforcement or armed robbers, while other co-conspirators sold street-level quantities of cocaine to customers. When Scott saw law enforcement approaching, he threw a loaded 9mm handgun out of a window, which was found on a roof ledge outside a window. During the search of the residence, law enforcement also recovered 200 plastic vials of cocaine and $2,310 United States currency.
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 Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives, under the direction of Special Agent-in-Charge John B. DeVito, New York Field Division; Homeland Security Investigations, under the direction of Acting Special Agent-in-Charge Matthew Scarpino; Immigration and Customs Enforcement, under the direction of Acting Field Office Director Thomas Brophy; the Internal Revenue Service, Criminal Investigation Division, under the direction of Thomas Fattorusso, Special Agent-in-Charge, the New York State Police, under the direction of Major Brian J. Ratajczak; the Monroe County Sheriff’s Office, under the direction of Sheriff Todd Baxter; the Ontario County Sheriff’s Office, under the direction of Sheriff Philip Povero; the Rochester Police Department, under the direction of Police Chief David M. Smith; the Greece Police Department, under the direction of Chief Michael Wood; the Brighton Police Department, under the direction of Chief David Catholdi; and the Greater Rochester Area Narcotics Enforcement Team.
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Quincy Man Pleads Guilty to Child Pornography OffenseRead the Press Release
BOSTON – A Quincy man pleaded guilty today in federal court in Boston to receiving child pornography.
Andre Tilahun, 29, pleaded guilty to one count of receipt of child pornography. U.S. District Court Judge Patti B. Saris scheduled sentencing for Jan. 10, 2023. Tilahun was arrested and charged in May 2021.
In April 2021, a search was conducted at Tilahun’s home where a laptop belonging to Tilahun was seized. A forensic examination of the laptop revealed that Tilahun received images depicting child pornography on the Kik Messenger platform. Tilahun also participated in a Kik chatroom where participants shared child pornography.
The charge of receipt of child pornography provides for a mandatory minimum sentence of five years and up to 20 years in prison, five years and up to life of supervised release and a fine of up to $250,000. Sentencing Guidelines and statutes which govern the determination of a sentence in a criminal case.
United States Attorney Rachael S. Rollins and Matthew B. Millhollin, Special Agent in Charge of Homeland Security Investigations in New England made the announcement. Valuable assistance was provided by the Quincy Police Department and Weymouth Police Department. Assistant U.S. Attorney Benjamin A. Saltzman of Rollins’ Criminal Division is prosecuting the case.
This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse, launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice. Led by the U.S. Attorneys’ Offices and the DOJ’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who exploit children, as well as identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit https://www.justice.gov/psc.
Queens Man Convicted of Laundering Bitcoin and Operating Unlicensed Money Transmitting BusinessRead the Press Release
Earlier today, a federal jury in Brooklyn convicted Mustafa Goklu, also known as “Mustangy,” of money laundering and operating an unlicensed money transmitting business as part of a scheme to launder the purported Bitcoin proceeds of drug trafficking. The verdict followed a four-day trial before United States District Judge Pamela K. Chen. When sentenced, Goklu faces up to 25 years in prison.
Breon Peace, United States Attorney for the Eastern District of New York, announced the verdict.
“The defendant offered his customers the ability to launder their criminal proceeds, remain anonymous and conceal where their Bitcoin was coming from so they could continue to engage in drug trafficking and other crimes while avoiding law enforcement detection,” stated United States Attorney Peace. “With today’s verdict, Goklu’s illicit business of converting money from one form to another without a required license has been shut down and the defendant has been convicted for his crimes.”
Mr. Peace thanked the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration, New York Division, for its outstanding investigative work on the case.
As proven at trial, in July 2018, DEA special agents identified an advertisement posted on localbitcoins.com where an individual with the username “Mustangy” offered to purchase up to $99,999 worth of bitcoins (“BTC”), a digital currency also known as cryptocurrency, and convert them into U.S. currency for a fee. Law enforcement agents later identified Goklu as the individual using the username Mustangy. On July 11, 2018, a DEA Special Agent acting in an undercover capacity (the “UC”) began exchanging encrypted text messages with Goklu to arrange in-person exchanges of BTC to U.S. currency. The UC and the defendant subsequently met and engaged in seven transactions or attempted exchanges of BTC to cash over a nine-month period, culminating in Goklu’s arrest in April 2019. The UC indicated to the defendant on multiple occasions that the source of the BTC the defendant was exchanging was narcotics trafficking and that as part of the UC’s business he sold oxycodone, Adderall, and marijuana. The transactions occurred in the defendant’s parked Mercedes-Benz, at a coffee shop in Sunnyside, Queens, and locations in Manhattan. The amounts exchanged at each transaction ranged from approximately $5,000 to $50,000 for a total of $133,000. During each transaction, the UC transferred BTC to Goklu’s cryptocurrency wallet, after which the defendant retained a seven or eight percent commission fee and provided the UC with the remaining amount in cash. The evidence introduced at trial also showed that the defendant was engaged in similar illicit Bitcoin exchanges with multiple other individuals.
In July 2022, Mr. Peace was selected as the Chairperson of the White Collar Fraud subcommittee for the Attorney General’s Advisory Committee (AGAC). As the leader of the subcommittee, Mr. Peace will play a key role in making recommendations to the AGAC to facilitate the prevention, investigation and prosecution of various financially motivated, non-violent crimes including mail and wire fraud, bank fraud, health care fraud, tax fraud, securities and commodities fraud, and identity theft.
The government’s case is being handled by the Office’s International Narcotics and Money Laundering Section. Assistant United States Attorneys Gillian Kassner and Marietou E. Diouf are in charge of the prosecution with the assistance of paralegal specialist Bridget Donovan.
The Defendant:
MUSTAFA GOKLU
Age: 50
Sunnyside, QueensE.D.N.Y. Docket No. 19-CR-386 (PKC)
Puerto Rican Man Sentenced to 10 Years in Prison for Conspiring to Distribute over 250 Kilograms of CocaineRead the Press Release
NEWARK, N.J. – A Puerto Rican man was sentenced today to 120 months in prison for conspiring to distribute over 250 kilograms of cocaine, U.S. Attorney Philip R. Sellinger announced.
Mariano Enrique Arroyo Perez, aka “Humilde,” 29, previously pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Esther Salas to a superseding indictment charging him with conspiracy to distribute five kilograms or more of cocaine.
According to documents filed in this case and statements made in court:
From 2017 through July 2019, Arroyo Perez and his conspirators conspired to distribute approximately 250 kilograms of cocaine. The conspirators sought to bring cocaine into the United States using private planes. Specifically, Arroyo Perez coordinated the use of a private plane to transport approximately 150 kilograms of cocaine from Puerto Rico to New Jersey on Nov. 18, 2018. Law enforcement officers intercepted that shipment after the pilots became suspicious about four passengers who were not on the flight manifest and had particularly heavy luggage. The luggage contained cocaine, and the passengers were arrested.
In addition to the prison term, Judge Salas sentenced Arroyo Perez to five years of supervised release.
This case is part of an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) operation. OCDETF identifies, disrupts, and dismantles the highest-level criminal organizations that threaten the United States using a prosecutor-led, intelligence-driven, multi-agency approach. Additional information about the OCDETF Program can be found at https://www.justice.gov/OCDETF.
U.S. Attorney Sellinger credited special agents and task force officers with the Drug Enforcement Administration in New Jersey, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Susan A. Gibson in Newark, as well as special agents and task force officers with the Drug Enforcement Administration in Colombia, the Dominican Republic, and Puerto Rico. He also thanked the U.S. Office of International Affairs and the U.S. Marshals Service for their assistance with the case.
The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorney Lauren Repole, Chief of the General Crimes Unit in Newark and Assistant U.S. Attorney Francesca Liquori, Chief of the OCDETF Unit in Newark.
Postal Carrier Indicted for Cocaine Distribution Stemming from Her Official PositionRead the Press Release
Tampa, FL – United States Attorney Roger B. Handberg announces the return of an indictment charging Bradenton residents Nathasha Prieto (33) and Angel Hernandez Coss (37) with conspiring to distribute and possession with the intent to distribute five or more kilograms of cocaine. If convicted on all counts, each faces a mandatory minimum term of 10 years, and up to, in federal prison.
According to court documents, Prieto, a United States Postal carrier, provided addresses on her postal route to Coss, who arranged for the shipment of packages containing kilograms of cocaine from Puerto Rico to those addresses. Instead of delivering the packages, Prieto removed the packages from the mail stream so that the cocaine within them could be distributed by Coss. On August 15, 2022, the investigation resulted in the seizure, from Prieto, of packages shipped from Puerto Rico containing kilograms of cocaine.
An indictment is merely a formal charge that a defendant has committed one or more violations of federal criminal law, and every defendant is presumed innocent unless, and until, proven guilty.
This case was investigated by the United States Postal Service - Office of Inspector General, the United States Drug Enforcement Administration, and the Manatee County Sheriff’s Office. It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney James C. Preston, Jr.
Pike County Man Convicted in Connection with Fentanyl Overdose DeathRead the Press Release
PIKEVILLE, Ky. – Justin Bryant, 38, of Shelbiana, Ky., was convicted on Friday by a federal jury in Pikeville of distributing fentanyl and para-fluorofentanyl that caused the death a victim. The jury also convicted Bryant of conspiring with others to distribute heroin, fentanyl, and para-fluorofentanyl.
The jury convicted Bryant of the charges following a three-day trial and about three hours of deliberations.
According to evidence at trial, on October 12, 2021, Bryant smuggled drugs into the Pike County Detention Center and distributed them. The drugs contained fentanyl and para-fluorofentanyl, and it resulted in the death of another individual in the jail.
Bryant was indicted on January 27, 2022.
Carlton S. Shier, IV, United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Kentucky; J. Todd Scott, Special Agent in Charge of the DEA Louisville Field Division, announced the conviction.
Bryant will appear for sentencing on February 7, 2023, and he faces a of sentence of 20 years to life in prison. However, the Court must consider the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and the applicable federal sentencing statutes before imposing a sentence.
The investigation was conducted by the DEA. The United States was represented in the case by Assistant U.S. Attorney Andrew H. Trimble.
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Pharmacist sent to prison for fraudulent compounding cream schemeRead the Press Release
HOUSTON – A Houston woman has been ordered to federal prison following her conviction of conspiracy to commit health care fraud, announced U.S. Attorney Jennifer B. Lowery.
Kyhati Undavia pleaded guilty Oct. 12, 2021.
Today, U.S. District Judge Hanen ordered Undavia to serve 27 months in federal prison to be immediately followed by three years of supervised release. In handing down the sentence, the court considered the $12 million dollar restitution she paid at the time of the sentencing. In handing down the sentence, Judge Hanen noted restitution goes a long way to show acceptance but you cannot buy your way out of prison.
At the time of her plea, Undavia admitted to submitting claims to federal health benefit programs such as TRICARE, Department of Labor Office of Workers’ Compensation Programs (DOL-OWCP) and Civilian Health and Medical Program of the Department of Veterans Affairs (CHAMPVA) for compounded medication prescriptions. Undavia has a professional background as a pharmacist who controlled and operated Memorial Pharmacy.
From December 2012 to December of 2018, Undavia hired employees to market Memorial Pharmacy to physicians as a place to submit compounded drug prescriptions. Undavia paid kickbacks through the marketers to physicians in efforts to persuade them to write prescriptions and send them to Memorial on behalf of their patients.
Instead of providing pain medication prescriptions directly to the patients who could select a pharmacy of their choice, the bribed physicians sent the prescriptions directly to Memorial. In some instances, patients were never seen by an actual physician. Instead, physicians authorized prescriptions for beneficiaries that a marketer provided to them.
The marketer paid the physician an illegal kickback for the prescriptions or Undavia would directly pay them. Beneficiaries often received medicated creams that they did not need or want.
Undavia received approximately $22 million from Tricare, DOL-OWCP and CHAMPVA for the prescriptions.
“Today’s sentencing is a testament to the dedication and determination of the investigative and legal teams,” said Special Agent in Charge Scott Pierce, U.S. Postal Service - Office of Inspector General (USPS-OIG), Southern Area Field Office. “The Postal Service spends hundreds of millions of dollars annually on health care related costs and these monies are critical to those who legitimately require medical services. As in this case, our criminal investigators will diligently pursue any individual or organization intent on defrauding the Postal Service with an eye on both federal prosecution and returning lost monies to the affected program.”
Undavia was permitted to remain on bond and voluntarily surrender to a U.S. Bureau of Prisons facility to be determined in the near future.
The Defense Criminal Investigative Services, DOL - Office of Inspector General (OIG), USOS-OIG, Veterans Affairs - OIG and FBI conducted the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney Tina Ansari prosecuted the case.
Out of state group charged in $11M Indian call center fraud ringRead the Press Release
HOUSTON – Three individuals have been charged for their roles in a multi-year fraud and money laundering conspiracy involving call centers, announced U.S. Attorney Jennifer B. Lowery.
Amirsinh Diwan, 42, Des Plaines, Illinois, is expected to appear before U.S. Magistrate Judge Yvonne Y. Ho at 1:30 p.m. today. Zaheen Rafikbhai Malvi, 28, Heber Springs, Arkansas, is expected to appear at 2 p.m.
Also charged is Sohil Usmangani Vahora, 37, also of Des Plaines. He is expected in Houston at a later date.
The 11-count indictment, returned Sept. 7, and unsealed upon their arrests Sept. 22, alleges that from January 2017 to August 2020, the individuals and other co-conspirators allegedly engaged in a criminal fraud conspiracy originating from call centers located in India.
The callers impersonated U.S. government officials and tricked victims into sending them money to safeguard their assets, avoid arrest or prevent their government benefits from being cut off, according to the charges.
Victims allegedly sent money in the form of gift cards by providing redemption codes over the phone and mailed cash in packages sent to FedEx and UPS pick-up locations. The indictment alleges co-conspirators, known as runners, liquidated victims’ gift cards at retail locations in the United States or used fake identification documents to pick up their packages containing cash at Walgreens locations.
They allegedly defrauded over $11 million from victims as a result of the conspiracy.
All three individuals are charged with conspiring to commit mail fraud, wire fraud and conspiring to commit money laundering. Vahora is also charged with seven counts of mail fraud, while Diwan and Malvi are charged with two and four counts of mail fraud, respectively.
If convicted, all three individuals face up to 20 years in federal prison.
The Social Security Administration – Office of Inspector General, Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration, U.S. Postal Inspection Service, Homeland Security Investigations in Houston and Fayetteville, Arkansas and the FBI with the assistance of the Heber Springs Police Department. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Stephanie Bauman and Kate Suh are prosecuting the case.
An indictment is a formal accusation of criminal conduct, not evidence. A defendant is presumed innocent unless convicted through due process of law.
Otsego County Woman Pleads Guilty to Distribution of Child PornographyRead the Press Release
SYRACUSE, NEW YORK – Shelby Ortiz, age 30, of Maryland, New York pled guilty today to distribution of child pornography. The announcement was made by United States Attorney Carla B. Freedman and Matthew Scarpino, Acting Special Agent in Charge of the Buffalo Field Office of Homeland Security Investigations (HSI).
During the change of plea hearing today, Ortiz admitted that she subjected an approximately seven-month-old boy to mouth to penis contact, knowing that the sex act she was performing was being video recorded. She admitted further that, on the same day she performed the sex act, she knowingly distributed the video to a person then living in Florida with whom she was participating in an online and telephone dominant/submissive sexual relationship.
If the plea agreement is accepted by the district court, at sentencing on February 21, 2023, Ortiz faces a term of imprisonment of between 10 and 20 years, a term of post imprisonment supervised release of between five years and life, a fine of up to $250,000, restitution to the victim, and will be required to register as a sex offender. A defendant’s sentence is imposed by a judge based on the statute the defendant is charged with violating, the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines, and other factors.
This case is being investigated by Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), the Oneonta Police Department, led by Police Chief Christopher Witzenburg, and the New York State Police and is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Michael D. Gadarian as part of Project Safe Childhood.
Project Safe Childhood is a nationwide initiative designed to protect children from online exploitation and abuse. Led by the United States Attorney’s offices, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to better locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the Internet, as well as identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit http://www.justice.gov/psc/.
Opioid Awareness Summit Helps Educators and Public Health Professionals Combat Opioid MisuseRead the Press Release
SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Sponsored by the U.S. Attorney’s Office, more than 325 educators, school nurses, counselors, mental health clinicians, public health professionals and others with an interest in student health have convened today at Sacramento State University for the Opioid Awareness Summit for Educators and Public Health Professionals.
The summit is focused on four specific goals 1) building awareness of the scope and state of the national opioid epidemic and its impact on young adults in our region; 2) destigmatizing opioid misuse to provide for more effective treatment interventions; 3) encouraging beneficial conversations with students if approached about drug misuse; and 4) building awareness of the warning signs that a student or child is misusing opioids.
Participants will hear from medical, public health and law enforcement professionals about the science of addiction, treatment options, ready-for-use resources for educators, and best practices for implementing an opioid awareness program in their own schools. Additionally, U.S. Department of Justice policy and current enforcement efforts will also be discussed.
U.S. Attorney Phillip A. Talbert said: "Opioid trafficking and opioid misuse are some of the most urgent law enforcement and public health challenges facing our country today and need education and prevention, treatment, and enforcement. Today’s Opioid Awareness Summit for educators brings together all of these and highlights our office’s ongoing commitment to keeping communities safe by preventing drug misuse and overdose deaths."
The U.S. Attorney’s Office is sponsoring the summit along with the Sierra Sacramento Valley Medical Society, the Sacramento State University, Sacramento County, The Well at Sac State, the Drug Enforcement Administration, and the Central Valley High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area.
Ohio Man Pleads Guilty to Attempting Hate CrimeRead the Press Release
A local, self-identified “incel” pleaded guilty in U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Ohio today to attempting to conduct a mass shooting of women.
Tres Genco, 22, of Hillsboro, Ohio, admitted he plotted to commit a hate crime, namely, a plan to shoot women at a university in Ohio. He was arrested by federal agents in July 2021 and has remained in custody since.
“The gender-based hate and bias-motivated threat of violence exhibited by this defendant simply has no place in our society,” said Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division. “The Department of Justice will remain steadfast in our efforts to investigate and prosecute those who carry out, or attempt to carry out, gender-based hate crimes to the fullest extent of the law.”
“Genco formulated a plot to kill women and intended to carry it out. Our federal and local law enforcement partners stopped that from happening,” said U.S. Attorney Kenneth L. Parker for the Southern District of Ohio. “Hate has no place in our country – including gender-based hate – and we will continue to work with our law enforcement partners to vigorously prosecute any such conduct.”
“Thankfully, law enforcement partners working closely together prevented a deadly killing spree targeting women,” said Special Agent in Charge J. William Rivers for the FBI Cincinnati Field Division. “Genco’s hate-filled beliefs and actions were extremely dangerous and could have resulted in irreparable harm to our community and many precious lives. We urge the public to report concerning behavior to the FBI and local police to help prevent future violence.”
Genco identified as an “incel” or “involuntary celibate.” The incel movement is an online community of predominantly men who harbor anger towards women.
According to court documents, Genco maintained profiles on a popular incel website from at least July 2019 through mid-March 2020 and posted hundreds of times on the site.
In one post, Genco detailed spraying “some foids and couples” with orange juice in a water gun. “Foids” is an incel term short for “femoids,” referring to women. Genco compared his “extremely empowering action” to similar conduct by known incel Elliot Rodger. In May 2014, Rodger killed six people and injured 14 others, including shooting individuals outside a University of California, Santa Barbara sorority house. Prior to his mass attack, Rodger shot a group of college students with orange juice from a water gun.
Genco also wrote a manifesto, stating he would “slaughter” women “out of hatred, jealousy and revenge…” and referring to death as the “great equalizer.”
As part of this investigation, law enforcement agents discovered a note of Genco’s that indicated he hoped to “aim big” for a kill count of 3,000 people with a reference to the same date as Elliot Rodger’s attack and intended to attend military training. The investigation revealed that the day he wrote his manifesto, he searched online for sororities and a university in Ohio.
In 2019, Genco purchased tactical gloves, a bulletproof vest, a hoodie bearing the word “Revenge,” cargo pants, a bowie knife, a skull facemask, two Glock 17 magazines, a 9mm Glock 17 clip and a holster clip concealed carry for a Glock.
Genco attended Army Basic Training in Georgia from August through December 2019. He was discharged for entry-level performance and conduct.
In January 2020, Genco wrote a document entitled “isolated” that he described as “the writings of the deluded and homicidal.” Genco signed the document, “Your hopeful friend and murderer.”
Genco’s court documents detail that he conducted surveillance at an Ohio university on Jan. 15, 2020. That same day, he searched online for topics including “planning a shooting crime” and “when does preparing for a crime become an attempt?”
On March 12, 2020, Highland County sheriff’s deputies responded to a call at Genco’s residence. At the residence, in the trunk of Genco’s vehicle, police officers found, among other things, a firearm with a bump stock attached, several loaded magazines, body armor and boxes of ammunition. Inside the residence, police officers found a modified Glock-style 9mm semiautomatic pistol, with no manufacturer’s marks or serial number, hidden in a heating vent in Genco’s bedroom. As part of his plea, Genco admitted that he possessed both firearms in furtherance of his plot.
Genco pleaded guilty to one count of attempting to commit a hate crime, which, because it involved an attempt to kill, is punishable by up to life in prison.
Assistant Attorney General Clarke; U.S. Attorney Parker; Special Agent in Charge Rivers; Special Agent in Charge Daryl S. McCormick of the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF); and Highland County Sheriff Donnie Barrera announced the charges. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Megan Gaffney Painter and Timothy S. Mangan for the Southern District of Ohio are representing the United States in this case.
New Orleans Woman Pleads Guilty to Health Care FraudRead the Press Release
NEW ORLEANS - The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Louisiana, announced that, ERIKA JAMES (“JAMES”), age 49, from New Orleans, Louisiana, pleaded guilty to one count of health care fraud on October 4, 2022.
According to court documents, JAMES was a Denial Specialist at Company 1, a Federally Qualified Health Center and AIDS Service Organization. From March 2020 through April 2021, JAMES created fraudulent invoices with falsified supporting documents, such as explanation of benefits documents from insurance companies. JAMES endorsed checks that were issued to patients that were in higher amounts than the usual range of the refund amount. JAMES made claims in the system that made it appear that patients came into Company 1 and paid out of pocket for services. JAMES would have the Finance Department issue the patient refund check, and would then deposit the refund check into her personal bank account.
JAMES filed additional claims with the Louisiana Health Access Program (“LAHAP”) in December 2020 and told LAHAP to mail the checks to her residence. The checks that were sent to JAMES’s residence were made out to Company 1. JAMES then proceeded to deposit those checks into her personal bank account.
JAMES faces a possible maximum sentence of ten years’ imprisonment, up to three years of supervised release, up to a $250,000 fine, and a mandatory $100 special assessment fee. Judge Sarah S. Vance set the sentencing hearing for January 25, 2023.
U.S. Attorney Evans praised the work of the United States Department of Health and Human Services – Office of Inspector General. Assistant U.S. Attorneys J. Ryan McLaren and Kathryn McHugh are in charge of the prosecution.
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New Jersey Man Sentenced to Prison for Fraud SchemeRead the Press Release
PITTSBURGH, PA - A New Jersey resident has been sentenced in federal court to 18 months on his conviction of fraud conspiracy, plus three years supervised release, United States Attorney Cindy K. Chung announced today.
Senior United States District Judge Joy Flowers Conti imposed the sentence on Carlo Reginald Ramirez, Jr. age 40, of Newark, New Jersey.
According to information presented to the court, Ramirez and others used false identification cards of Sprint account holders to obtain cell phones and other accessories between April 2018 and August 2019.
Prior to imposing sentence, Judge Conti stated that she recognized the seriousness of the offense and the harm to victims of identity theft.
Assistant United States Attorney Gregory C. Melucci prosecuted this case on behalf of the government.
United States Attorney Chung commended the Homeland Security Investigations and Pennsylvania State Police for the investigation leading to the successful prosecution of Ramirez.
New Castle Felon Indicted for Drug and Gun CrimesRead the Press Release
PITTSBURGH – A Superseding Indictment was returned by a federal grand jury in Pittsburgh charging Sahire Walker with committing crack cocaine trafficking and firearm crimes, United States Attorney Cindy K. Chung announced today.
The Superseding Indictment charges Walker, age 44, of New Castle, Pennsylvania, with committing the following crimes on June 4, 2020: (1) possession of cocaine base with intent to distribute, (2) possession of a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime, and (3) possession of a firearm and ammunition after a felony conviction.
The law provides for a maximum total sentence of at least 20 years and up to life in prison and a fine of up to $2,500,000. Under the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, the actual sentence imposed would be based upon the seriousness of the offenses and the prior criminal history of the defendant.
Assistant United States Attorney Craig W. Haller is prosecuting this case on behalf of the United States.
The New Castle Police Department, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives conducted the investigation leading to the return of the Superseding Indictment in this case.
This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program bringing together all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve to reduce violent crime and gun violence, and to make our neighborhoods safer for everyone. On May 26, 2021, the Department launched a violent crime reduction strategy strengthening PSN based on these core principles: fostering trust and legitimacy in our communities, supporting community-based organizations that help prevent violence from occurring in the first place, setting focused and strategic enforcement priorities, and measuring the results.
A superseding indictment is an accusation. A defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
More Than 4 Million Deadly Dosages of Fentanyl Seized in Ohio During DEA Enforcement SurgeRead the Press Release
CLEVELAND – The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Ohio and the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) Detroit Division today announced the results of an enforcement operation that resulted in significant fentanyl seizures across Ohio.
As part of the nationwide “One Pill Can Kill” initiative in Ohio, the DEA and its law enforcement partners seized more than 65 kilograms of fentanyl powder and 87,000 fentanyl-laced pills during the period of May 23, 2022, through Sept. 8, 2022 – enough to provide 4,766,788 deadly dosages.
Nationwide, more than 10.2 million fentanyl pills and approximately 980 pounds of fentanyl powder were seized during the same period. The amount of fentanyl taken off the streets during this surge is equivalent to more than 36 million lethal doses. Additionally, 338 weapons were seized, including rifles, shotguns, pistols, and hand grenades.
“Across the country and particularly here, in Northern Ohio, we have witnessed, firsthand, the proliferation of fentanyl and the devastating effects it has had on our neighbors and loved ones,” said First Assistant United States Attorney Michelle M. Baeppler. “Fighting back against drug traffickers who flood our streets with this deadly narcotic – particularly in pill form – is an enduring and relentless battle, but we must continue to fight.”
“Fentanyl in pill form is a deliberate attempt by drug cartels to make illicit drug use more appealing to Americans,” said DEA Detroit Special Agent in Charge Orville O. Greene. “Fake pills are especially concerning because of the appeal they can have to an unsuspecting person. One may believe they are taking a legitimate pharmacy-grade pill but far too often, that isn’t the case. Fake prescription pills bought on the street are made in clandestine labs, primarily in Mexico, from chemicals sourced from China, and contain a lethal dose of fentanyl.”
The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Ohio, the DEA and other law enforcement partners have led investigations and prosecutions of numerous individuals charged with or convicted of fentanyl trafficking recently, including:
United States v. Zamora et al (3:22-cr-00224-JGC)
In August 2021, authorities in Summit County received information that an ATV in Copley, Ohio, was scheduled to be transported out of state and was fitted to conceal 2.2 kilograms of pressed fentanyl pills meant to look like oxycodone originating from a cartel in Mexico. Authorities later arrested and charged Omar Zamora and Nathaniel Dabney in connection with the incident. Zamora and Dabney both pleaded guilty to their roles in the incident and were sentenced to prison.
United States v. Wall et al (1:22-cr-00280-SL)
In January 2022, postal inspectors in Arizona seized a package that was found to contain approximately 2.2 kilograms of fentanyl pills. After an investigation into the origins of the package, authorities identified Dayareon Crofton, Floyd Head and Cortez West as participants in an alleged drug trafficking conspiracy that shipped and couriered large quantities of fentanyl pills to Derrean Wall in Cleveland. Over the course of the next three months, Crofton, Head, and West were arrested, each carrying approximately 2 kilograms of fentanyl pills. All three were arrested while en route to Cleveland, Ohio. This case remains ongoing.
United States v. Brown et al (3:22-cr-00224-JGC)
In March 2022, federal authorities seized a parcel in the mail that was later found to contain approximately 7,833 fentanyl pills disguised to look like oxycodone. An investigation identified Cody Brown, Jennifer Murphy, and Damion Yoshimoto in Tiffin, Ohio, as part of a conspiracy that allegedly shipped fentanyl pills from out of state to Tiffin. Brown, Murphy and Yoshimoto were later arrested and charged in an indictment. This case remains ongoing.
United States v. Larrie Ladell Campbell (1:22-CR-268-JRA)
In May 2022, law enforcement obtained a parcel shipped in the U.S. mail from Arizona to Cleveland that was found to contain over 2 kilograms of fentanyl pills. An investigation determined that Larrie Ladell Campbell had mailed the parcel from Arizona and then traveled to Cleveland to try and retrieve it. Campbell pleaded guilty to federal charges in July 2022 and is awaiting sentencing.
United States of America v. Watkins (3:22-cr-00349-JGC)
In November 2020, Martez Watkins fled to Indiana after local drug trafficking charges were filed in Toledo, Ohio. While there, it is alleged that Watkins continued to send fentanyl pills to the Northern District of Ohio through his drug trafficking operation. Authorities later tracked Watkins down, and he was arrested in May 2022 on federal drug trafficking charges. During the Watkin’s residence, it is alleged that authorities found 5,362 pills, which were later determined to contain a combination of acetaminophen and fentanyl and meta-fluoro 4-ANPP and para-fluorofentanyl, more than $12,000 cash, a firearm, and drug packaging materials. This case remains ongoing.
In 2021, a record number of Americans – 107,622 – died from drug poisoning or overdose. Sixty-six percent of those deaths can be attributed to synthetic opioids such as fentanyl.
Drug traffickers have expanded their inventory to sell fentanyl in a variety of bright colors, shapes, and sizes. Rainbow fentanyl was first reported to DEA in February 2022, and it has now been seized in 21 states.
Fentanyl is a synthetic opioid that is 50 times more potent than heroin. Just two milligrams of fentanyl, or the amount that could fit on the tip of a pencil, is considered a potentially lethal dose.
As part of the DEA’s ongoing efforts to educate the public and encourage parents and caregivers to talk to teens and young adults about the dangers of fake pills and illicit drugs, DEA has also created a new resource, “What Every Parent and Caregiver Needs to Know About Fake Pills.”
In September 2021, DEA launched the One Pill Can Kill enforcement effort and public awareness campaign to combat the fake pill threat and educate the public about the dangers of fentanyl pills being disguised and sold as prescription medications, despite these pills not containing any of the actual medications advertised. The only safe medications are ones prescribed by a trusted medical professional and dispensed by a licensed pharmacist. All other pills are unsafe and potentially deadly.
Additional resources for parents and the community can be found on DEA’s Fentanyl Awareness page.
Middlesex County Man Charged with Laundering $2.1 Million Obtained from Internet-Related FraudsRead the Press Release
NEWARK, N.J. – A Middlesex County, New Jersey, man has been charged with laundering money obtained from a variety of internet-based scams, U.S. Attorney Philip R. Sellinger announced.
Kenny Osas Okuonghae, 35, of Edison, New Jersey, is charged by complaint with one count of money laundering conspiracy. He is scheduled to have his initial appearance today before U.S. Magistrate Judge James B. Clark III in Newark federal court.
According to documents filed in this case and statements made in court:
From 2019 through the present, Okuonghae laundered money that was obtained from a variety of internet-related scams, including property rental scams, romance scams, and a “pig butchering” scam involving a purported cryptocurrency investment platform called “Alphacoin.” “Pig butchering” refers to an internet scheme where a romance scam victim develops what the victim perceives to be a romantic relationship online with the perpetrator. The perpetrator emotionally “fattens” the victim up before enticing the victim to invest in a fake cryptocurrency scheme and then, metaphorically, “slaughters” the victim by taking the victim’s real money that he or she placed in the fake cryptocurrency investment scheme.
Okuonghae opened several bank accounts across at least seven banks and permitted fraudulent proceeds to be deposited into these accounts. One of the scams from which Okuonghae received illegal proceeds was the Alphacoin scam. Another scam involved a deposit for rental property that was not actually available to rent. Okuonghae told at least one bank that the money was coming from a legitimate customer who wished to buy car parts from Okuonghae. Okuonghae also circulated at least one false invoice made out to a victim for the purported purchase of a Mack truck. Okuonghae laundered at least $2.1 million through his accounts.
The money laundering conspiracy charged in the complaint carries a maximum punishment of 20 years in prison and a fine of up to $500,000 or twice the value of the funds involved in the transfer, whichever is greater.
U.S. Attorney Sellinger credited special agents of the FBI, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge James E. Dennehy in Newark, with the investigation leading to today’s charge. He also thanked the U.S. Postal Inspection Service and Customs and Border Protection for their assistance.
The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorney Jamie H. Solano of the Cybercrime Unit in Newark.
The charge and allegations contained in the complaint are merely accusations, and the defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
Michigan Real Estate Developer Sentenced to Prison for Tax EvasionRead the Press Release
A Michigan man was sentenced to 38 months in prison today after engaging in a nearly decade-long effort to prevent the IRS from collecting unpaid taxes he and his businesses owed.
According to court documents and statements made in court, Scott Chappelle, 61, of Okemos and East Lansing, was an attorney and former CPA who operated Strathmore Development Company Michigan LLC, Terra Holdings LLC, and Terra Management Company, all of which were involved in real estate development and property management in the East Lansing area. Chappelle admitted he did not pay over to the IRS employment taxes that were withheld from the wages of the three companies’ employees. After the IRS began trying to collect the unpaid taxes, Chappelle attempted to evade payment of those taxes by making false statements to the IRS about his and his companies’ assets and income. To further hide assets from the IRS and evade payment of taxes, Chappelle also concealed his vacation house on Lake Michigan and purchased real property in the names of businesses instead of in his own name.
“Scott Chappelle spent nearly ten years evading taxes he owed to the IRS,” said Acting Deputy Assistant Attorney General Stuart M. Goldberg of the Justice Department’s Tax Division. “At the same time he was falsely claiming financial hardship, Chappelle was spending money on multiple homes, payments toward a luxury yacht, and elective plastic surgery. His prison sentence imposed today reaffirms a fundamental principle – those who lie to IRS collection agents and criminal investigators will be held accountable.”
“Rather than working hard and playing by the rules, Scott Chapelle broke the law,” said U.S. Attorney Mark Totten for the Western District of Michigan. “Chapelle spent cash that wasn’t his – funds withheld from his workers as employment taxes, which he then hid from the IRS – to support an extravagant lifestyle he didn’t earn. Now and always, my office will hold individuals and businesses accountable who refuse to follow the rules.”
Chappelle falsely told IRS employees that he and his companies could not afford to pay their tax debts because of financial hardships, while he simultaneously paid substantial personal expenses using bank accounts in the names of at least six different businesses he controlled. These personal expenses included mortgage payments on three houses and a condominium, payments toward the purchase of a yacht, college tuition for his children, plastic surgery, personal credit card bills, life insurance premiums, car payments for himself and one of his children, and expenses associated with boats he owned.
Chappelle also admitted to making false statements to special agents of IRS-Criminal Investigation who investigated his misconduct. Chappelle did not tell the criminal investigators about real property he had purchased – including a house in Ohio purchased just one month before the interview – and he concealed the source of the funds used to pay a mortgage on a condominium in East Lansing. During the criminal investigation, Chappelle also filed a false employment tax return for Terra Holdings LLC, falsely reporting that the company had no employees and paid no wages during the period covered by the return. In fact, Chappelle knew the company had employees and paid wages during that period because he approved submissions to the company’s payroll provider.
Chappelle further admitted to making false statements on a loan application when he refinanced the mortgage on his Lake Michigan vacation house in Harbor Springs. According to court filings, Chappelle submitted fabricated bank statements to the mortgage company to make it appear as if his company had substantially more money in its account than it actually had. He then falsely blamed another employee of his company for fabricating the bank statements.
In addition to the term of imprisonment, U.S. District Judge Jane M. Beckering ordered Chappelle to serve three years of supervised release and pay $1,233,836 in restitution to the United States.
Acting Deputy Assistant Attorney General Stuart M. Goldberg of the Justice Department’s Tax Division and U.S. Attorney Mark A. Totten for the Western District of Michigan made the announcement.
IRS-Criminal Investigation investigated the case.
Trial Attorney Melissa S. Siskind of the Tax Division and Assistant U.S. Attorney Timothy P. VerHey of the Western District of Michigan prosecuted the case.
Mexican National Pleads Guilty to Illegal Possession of AmmunitionRead the Press Release
FRESNO, Calif. — Mario Carranza, 38, of Mexico, pleaded guilty today to being a felon in possession of ammunition, U.S. Attorney Phillip A. Talbert announced.
According to court documents, on March 17, 2020, law enforcement officers responded to a house in Fresno County after receiving a report of shots being fired in the backyard. Carranza and another individual were observed entering a car and leaving the area. The officers stopped the car, searched it, and recovered a disassembled, short-barrel, AR-15 style rifle with no serial number (known as a ghost gun) and a compatible firearm magazine loaded with 10 rounds of ammunition. Carranza had fired the AR-style rifle in the backyard of the residence. He is a convicted felon and prohibited from possessing firearms or ammunition.
Carranza is scheduled to be sentenced by U.S. District Judge Ana de Alba on Jan. 23, 2023. Carranza faces a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison and a fine up to $250,000. Any sentence, however, will be determined at the discretion of the court after consideration of any applicable statutory factors and the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, which take into account a number of variables.
This case is the product of an investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Fresno County Sheriff’s Office, the Fresno Police Department, the Special Operations Unit of the California Department of Justice and the California Highway Patrol, the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation, and the Fresno County District Attorney’s Office. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Justin J. Gilio and Antonio J. Pataca are prosecuting the case.
This effort is part of an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) operation. OCDETF identifies, disrupts, and dismantles the highest-level criminal organizations that threaten the United States using a prosecutor-led, intelligence-driven, multi-agency approach. Additional information about the OCDETF Program can be found at www.justice.gov/OCDETF.
Merced Man Pleads Guilty to Manufacturing 10 Bombs and Destroying Residential PropertiesRead the Press Release
FRESNO, Calif. — Wes Parker McDaniel, 53, of Merced, pleaded guilty today to manufacturing destructive devices and maliciously destroying two residential rental properties in Merced by means of explosive materials, U.S. Attorney Phillip A. Talbert announced.
According to court documents, between Feb. 1, 2021, and June 22, 2021, McDaniel made 10 destructive devices or bombs from illegal fireworks that he had purchased in Nevada, ammunition, shrapnel, fire starting material, and other items. On June 20, 2021, he deployed three of the bombs at a house in Merced. One of the bombs hit the wall of the house, exploded, and destroyed the fence, which was shared with a neighboring property. Shrapnel emitted from the device created pockmarks on the wall of the house, and a propane tank was badly burned. McDaniel threw another bomb at a different residence in Merced and placed two bombs near a car at an apartment complex in Lemoore. Those bombs did not detonate.
Following these incidents, law enforcement officers executed a search warrant at McDaniel’s residence, yard, and shed and found four bombs, fireworks, bottle rockets, a .22-caliber rifle, boxes of ammunition, fire starting material, and other items used to construct bombs.
This case is the product of an investigation by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, the Merced Police Department, the Lemoore Police Department, and the Tulare County Sheriff’s Office. Assistant U.S. Attorney Karen Escobar is prosecuting the case.
McDaniel is scheduled for sentencing on Jan. 17, 2023, before U.S. District Judge Ana De Alba. McDaniel faces a mandatory prison term of five years in prison and a maximum prison term of 20 years for the malicious destruction of property by means of explosive materials. He faces a maximum statutory penalty of 10 years in prison for manufacturing the bombs. Each of the charges carries a maximum fine of $250,000. The actual sentence, however, will be determined at the discretion of the court after consideration of any applicable statutory factors and the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, which take into account a number of variables.
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 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.
McKeesport Felon Sentenced for Illegally Possessing a WeaponRead the Press Release
PITTSBURGH - A resident of McKeesport, PA, has been sentenced to 21 months imprisonment and three years of supervised release on charges of violating federal firearms laws, United States Attorney Cindy K Chung announced today.
United States District Judge William S. Stickman imposed the sentence on Khalil Brooks, 24.
According to information presented to the Court, on April 20, 2021, Brooks was the driver of a vehicle that was stopped by a Monroeville police officer for a vehicle registration violation. Based upon the overly nervous demeanor of Brooks and false information provided to the officer by a passenger in the vehicle, Brooks was asked to exit the vehicle. While interacting with the officer outside of the vehicle, Brooks displayed signs of an individual concealing a weapon. A struggle between the officer and Brooks ensued after Brooks placed his hand into his pocket. The officer was able to gain control of Brooks and retrieve a loaded semi-auto handgun from the pocket that Brooks had placed his hand into. Brook is prohibited from possessing firearms or ammunition based upon a prior robbery conviction.
Assistant United States Attorneys Michael R. Ball and Christopher M. Cook prosecuted this case on behalf of the government.
United States Attorney Chung commended the Monroeville Police Department and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives for the investigation leading to the successful prosecution of Khalil Brooks.
Maryland U.S. Attorney’s Office, Joined by State and Local Agencies, to Host One-Stop Reentry Resource Fair at the War Memorial in Baltimore on Wednesday, October 12, 2022Read the Press Release
Baltimore, Maryland – Maryland U.S. Attorney Erek L. Barron announced that tomorrow, Wednesday, October 12, 2022, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Maryland, the Maryland Division of Parole and Probation, and the Baltimore Mayor’s Office of Neighborhood Safety and Engagement (MONSE), will sponsor a free one-stop reentry resource fair from 10:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. at the War Memorial, 101 N. Gay Street in Baltimore. More than 30 organizations, including employment programs, will be on-site offering assistance and resources to returning citizens and justice-involved persons, including in the areas of employment, job training, educational opportunities, health services, food, transitional housing, and legal assistance, among other areas of support and assistance.
This reentry resource and job fair is a component of the U.S. Attorney’s Office’s violent crime reduction strategy. In addition to the office’s enforcement efforts to remove violent criminals with guns from our communities, the U.S. Attorney’s Office has initiated outreach, intervention and prevention efforts to support and invest in communities plagued by violence, such as this reentry resource fair.
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 and https://www.justice.gov/usao-md/community-outreach.
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Maryland Man Sentenced to 37 Years in Prison for 2014 Killing of Woman in Southeast WashingtonRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON – Mark Bowser, 42, of Capitol Heights, Maryland, has been sentenced to 37 years in prison for fatally stabbing a woman with 47 sharp force injuries in an attack that took place inside the victim’s home in Southeast Washington.
The announcement was made by U.S. Attorney Matthew M. Graves and Robert J. Contee III, Chief of the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD).
Bowser was found guilty by a jury on March 30, 2022, in the Superior Court of the District of Columbia, of first-degree murder while armed, assault with a dangerous weapon of a second victim, and a related weapons offense for the knife. Bowser was sentenced on Oct. 7, 2022, by the Honorable Milton C. Lee, Jr.
According to the government’s evidence, on Sept. 20, 2014, at approximately 1:30 a.m., Bowser entered the home and bedroom of the homicide victim, Tracy Womack, as she was laying in her bed to sleep at her apartment in the 4600 block of Benning Road NE. Bowser attacked Ms. Womack with a knife, stabbing and cutting her 47 times, causing wounds to her face, neck, torso, arms, and hands. Ms. Womack was also found with her pants and underwear pulled down to her thighs. Before fleeing the scene, Bowser lunged with the knife in hand towards a second victim who had come back to Ms. Womack’s home. Though rushed to a hospital, Ms. Womack, 39, was soon pronounced dead.
Bowser was arrested the next day and has been in custody since.
In announcing the sentence, U.S. Attorney Graves and Chief Contee commended the work of those who investigated the case from the Metropolitan Police Department. They also expressed appreciation for the assistance provided by the Capital Area Regional Fugitive Task Force, and the District of Columbia Department of Forensic Sciences. They acknowledged the efforts of those who worked on the case from the U.S. Attorney’s Office, including Paralegal Specialist Debra Forte, Intelligence Analyst Zachary McMenamin, Victim/Witness Advocate Christina Bloodworth, former Victim/Witness Advocate Marcia Rinker, Supervisory Victim/Witness Services Coordinator Katina Adams-Washington, and Victim/Witness Services Coordinator La June Thames.
Finally, they commended the work of former Assistant U.S. Attorney Michelle Bradford, who indicted the case, and Assistant U.S. Attorneys Jin Park and Dennis Clark, who prosecuted the case.
Maryland Man Pleads Guilty to Coercion and Enticement of a MinorRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON –Charles Clark, 65, of La Plata, Maryland, pleaded guilty today to one count of coercion and enticement of a minor, announced U.S. Attorney Matthew M. Graves, Wayne A. Jacobs, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI Washington Field Office Criminal Division, and Robert J. Contee III, Chief of the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD).
Clark pleaded guilty in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia before the Honorable Carl J. Nichols. As part of his plea agreement, Clark will also plead guilty in the Circuit Court in Charles County, Maryland, to sexually abusing the minor victim in Maryland. Following his guilty plea and sentencing in Charles County, Clark will be sentenced in this matter. Clark faces a minimum sentence of 10 years imprisonment and a maximum sentence of life imprisonment.
According to the government’s evidence, Clark sexually abused the minor victim in this matter from the time she was 13 until she was 17. The sexual abuse occurred both at the minor victim’s residence in the District of Columbia as well as Clark’s residence in Maryland. In order to ensure that the minor victim did not report the abuse to her mother, Clark purchased items for the minor victim, including cell phones and clothing. Clark also convinced the minor victim that her mother would not believe her if she reported the abuse. Clark asked the minor victim to send him sexually explicit images of her over Instagram direct messaging. The minor victim responded on one occasion by sending a sexually explicit image of herself.
Clark was arrested on April 2, 2021. He has been in custody since.
This case was investigated by the Metropolitan Police Department’s Youth Division with assistance from the FBI Washington Field Office’s Child Exploitation and Human Trafficking Task Force. The task force is composed of FBI agents, along with other federal agents and detectives from northern Virginia and the District of Columbia. The task force is charged with investigating and bringing federal charges against individuals engaged in the exploitation of children and those engaged in human trafficking.
This case was brought as part of the Department of Justice's Project Safe Childhood initiative. In February 2006, the Attorney General created Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative designed to protect children from online exploitation and abuse. Led by the U.S. Attorney's Offices, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to better locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the Internet, as well as identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.projectsafechildhood.gov.
In announcing the plea, U.S. Attorney Graves, Special Agent in Charge Jacobs, and Chief Contee commended the work of those who investigated the case from FBI Child Exploitation and Human Trafficking Task Force as well as the Metropolitan Police Department’s Youth Division. They also expressed appreciation for the efforts of those who handled the case for the U.S. Attorney’s Office, including Paralegal Specialist Alexis Spencer-Anderson, Victim/Witness Advocate Yvonne Bryant, and Assistant U.S. Attorneys Angela Buckner, Jocelyn Bond, and Janani Iyengar.
Lowell Man Sentenced to 120 Months for Possession of Child Sexual Abuse MaterialRead the Press Release
CONCORD – Russell Graham, 42, of Lowell, MA was sentenced to 120 months in federal prison for possession of child sexual abuse material, United States Attorney Jane E. Young announced today.
According to court documents and statements made in court, Graham communicated online with an undercover law enforcement officer in New Hampshire and sent the undercover officer numerous images and videos of minors engaged in sexually explicit conduct. Graham was arrested when he traveled to New Hampshire to meet the undercover officer. A cell phone containing additional child sexual abuse material was seized from Graham at the time of his arrest. Graham was previously convicted of possession of child pornography in Massachusetts in 2017.
The case was investigated by the Nashua Police Department with assistance from Homeland Security Investigations and the New Hampshire Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force. The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Kasey A. Weiland and Georgiana MacDonald.
In February 2006, the Department of Justice introduced Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative designed to protect children from online exploitation and abuse. Led by the United States Attorney’s Offices, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state and local resources to better locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the Internet, as well as identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.projectsafechildhood.gov.
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Louis Coleman III Sentenced to Life in Prison for Kidnapping Resulting in DeathRead the Press Release
BOSTON – Louis D. Coleman III was sentenced to life in prison today for the kidnapping and killing of Jassy Correia.
Coleman, 36, of Providence, R.I., was sentenced by U.S. Chief District Court Judge F. Dennis Saylor IV to life in prison without the possibility of parole. On June 1, 2022, Coleman was convicted by federal jury in Boston of the federal charge of kidnapping resulting in death.
“Jassy Correia was a vibrant and beautiful 22-year-old woman and mother of a toddler daughter. Louis Coleman, a total stranger to her, abducted her, raped her and strangled her to death. The pain and suffering Louis Coleman inflicted on Jassy Correia that night and her loving family – her mother, her father, her brother and so many others every single day since Feb. 24, 2019 – will never be relieved by this sentence. By his depravity and his horrific disregard for Ms. Correia’s life, Louis Coleman forfeited his right to live free in society,” said First Assistant United States Attorney Joshua S. Levy. “To this day, Louis Coleman has shown no remorse. After he lured 22-year-old Ms. Correia into his car, sexually assaulted her and violently killed her, Louis Coleman did not once consider turning himself in – rather he concocted a gruesome plan to conceal the assault and murder he just committed. Today’s sentence of life in prison is a just punishment. Our office is incredibly grateful for the courage of Jassy Correia’s family. I also want to commend the unprecedented cooperation demonstrated in this case by federal, state and local law enforcement partners across multiple states from the moment this investigation started.”
“This crime was gut-wrenching and there is no question today’s sentence is just. Louis Coleman took Jassy Correia’s life—a life full of promise, away from her. No sentence can bring solace to her family, and it cannot erase the harm he inflicted, but thanks to the tireless efforts of our Violent Crimes Task Force along with the Boston, Providence, and Delaware State Police Departments, we were able to remove this dangerous threat from our community so he can’t hurt anyone else,” said Joseph R. Bonavolonta, Special Agent in Charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Boston Division.
In the early morning hours of Feb. 24, 2019, Ms. Correia went out with friends to a nightclub in downtown Boston to celebrate her upcoming birthday. Just after 2 a.m., Ms. Correia became separated from her friends and tried to get a ride home from an Uber driver who was idling in front of the nightclub. The driver was waiting for a larger group and refused to give Ms. Correia a ride. Seconds later, video surveillance captured Coleman approach Ms. Correia. According to evidence presented at trial, Coleman tricked Ms. Correia into believing he would give her a ride back to her friend’s apartment.
After getting into the vehicle with Ms. Correia, video surveillance showed Coleman make a series of short turns before pulling over, just a few blocks from where he had originally parked, for approximately 12 minutes. Coleman then began driving south to his apartment in Providence.
Surveillance footage from Coleman’s Providence apartment building showed Coleman, at about 4:15 a.m. on Sunday, Feb. 24, 2019, parking and exiting the vehicle, and then returning a short time later carrying a blanket. He then walked from the car to the front of the building carrying the Ms. Correia’s lifeless body over his shoulder. Once he entered the building, surveillance video showed Coleman dragging her towards the elevator and subsequently towards his apartment.
In the days that followed, Coleman visited two car washes and his internet search history reveled that he Googled things such as “how to pull a tooth out that’s not loose;” “can a person fit inside a suitcase;” “buy dumpster;” “oil barrel;” “how to clean for embalming;” “turkey baster;” and “target sanitizing bleach.” In addition, Coleman purchased a $150 air purifier, 36 pounds of baking soda, duct tape, 50-gallon trash bags, personal protective equipment including full-body coveralls, an odor respirator, protective masks, safety goggles, a 600-lb rated dolly, three Tyvek suits and a large suitcase.
At 1:15 a.m., on Feb. 28, 2019, Coleman wheeled a suitcase containing the victim’s body out of his apartment and into the parking lot where his vehicle was parked. Coleman struggled to lift the suitcase containing Ms. Correia’s body into the trunk of his car, before driving away at 4 a.m.
On the afternoon of Feb. 28, 2019, Coleman’s vehicle was stopped by Delaware authorities on Interstate 95 South near Wilmington, Del. Officers ordered Coleman out of the vehicle and asked him if anyone else was in the vehicle with him, to which Coleman replied, “She’s in the trunk.”
Officers discovered the Ms. Correia’s body in the trunk of Coleman’s vehicle, bound with duct tape and in the fetal position inside a sofa cushion cover, which was inside of a black trash bag, stuffed inside the suitcase Coleman was seen bringing into his apartment on Feb. 27, 2019. Police also recovered a duffle bag, a pair of new long-handled loppers, plastic garbage bags, clothing, a red plastic gas container, a green butane lighter, black gloves, charcoal air purifiers, air fresheners, tinted safety glasses, plastic bags, work towels, cloth work-gloves, a new set of DeWalt pliers, a laptop, the computer hard-drive/tower he used to conduct his Google searches and disinfectant from the vehicle.
Additionally, two large cracks in the windshield on the passenger side were later found to contain both Coleman and Ms. Correia’s DNA.
Ms. Correia had significant bruising, a bloodied face, was bound with gray duct tape and was covered in baking soda. According to evidence and testimony presented at trial, the medical examiner determined the cause of death to be strangulation and that there was evidence consistent with a sexual assault.
First Assistant U.S. Attorney Levy; FBI Boston SAC Bonavolonta; Boston Police Commissioner Michael Cox; Douglas Bartlett, Acting U.S. Marshal for the District of Massachusetts; Suffolk County District Attorney Kevin Hayden; Colonel Melissa A. Zebley of the Delaware State Police; and Providence Police Chief Hugh T. Clements Jr. made the announcement today. The U.S. Attorney’s Office acknowledges the cooperation and assistance of the Rhode Island Attorney General’s Office, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Delaware and the Massachusetts State Police. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Kenneth G. Shine, Robert Richardson and Elianna Nuzum of the Major Crimes Unit prosecuted the case.
Local woman sentenced to prison for embezzling from employerRead the Press Release
HOUSTON – A 47-year-old woman residing in Houston has been sent to prison following her conviction of mail fraud, announced U.S. Attorney Jennifer B. Lowery.
Noor Clements pleaded guilty Nov. 15, 2021.
Today, U.S. District Judge Lynn Hughes ordered Clements to serve 18 months in federal prison to be immediately followed by three years of supervised release. She is also required to pay $250,000 in restitution to her employer.
Clements worked in the Houston office of a California-based company as a chief financial officer and head of human resources from April 2016 to May 2018. In her role, she managed all accounting functions of the office including payroll and banking.
As part of her plea, she admitted to paying herself unearned vacation and overtime pay. She also made unauthorized payments with company funds to pay her student loans, credit card and personal vehicle bills. In addition, she used her company credit card towards personal expenses such as travel, income taxes, car repairs and tickets to sporting events and concerts.
The U.S. Postal Inspection Service and IRS-Criminal Investigation conducted the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney Charles J. Escher prosecuted the case.
Leader of Large-Scale Cocaine Trafficking Ring Sentenced to 11½ Years in PrisonRead the Press Release
PITTSBURGH - A former Florida resident has been sentenced in federal court to 138 months of incarceration on his conviction of Conspiracy to Distribute Five Kilograms of More of Cocaine, United States Attorney Cindy K. Chung announced today.
United States District Judge Marilyn J. Horan imposed the sentence on Hector Forbes, age 48, formerly of Sunrise, Florida.
According to information presented to the court, Forbes was one of the leaders of a large-scale cocaine distribution network that smuggled substantial quantities of cocaine from Mexico into California and then distributed that cocaine throughout the United States, including to the Western District of Pennsylvania. He was convicted of a drug trafficking offense in 2012 and deported in 2015, only to re-enter the United States illegally in 2016, where he quickly re-established himself as a drug trafficker. He arranged for shipment of cocaine, typically sent through the United States Mail to addresses in Florida, Ohio, Pittsburgh, and New Castle, among others. His customers typically sent cash back to Forbes, also through the United States mails.
Assistant United States Attorneys Brendan T. Conway and Marnie Sheehan-Balchon prosecuted this case on behalf of the government.
This prosecution is a result of an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF) investigation. OCDETF identifies, disrupts, and dismantles high-level drug traffickers, money launderers, gangs, and transnational criminal organizations that threaten communities throughout the United States. OCDETF uses a prosecutor-led, intelligence-driven, multi-agency approach that leverages the strengths of federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies against criminal networks.
United States Attorney Chung commended the Drug Enforcement Administration, the New Castle Police Department, the Lawrence County District Attorney’s Office, and the Pennsylvania Attorney General’s Office for the investigation leading to the successful prosecution of Forbes.
Las Vegas Man Pleads Guilty to Fentanyl CrimeRead the Press Release
HUNTINGTON, W.Va. – Raymond Jaquette Howard, 34, of Las Vegas, Nevada, pleaded guilty today to conspiracy to distribute 400 grams or more of fentanyl.
According to court documents and statements made in court, Howard admitted to selling approximately 1.01 grams of fentanyl to a confidential informant at a Huntington motel on September 22, 2021. On November 16, 2021, law enforcement officer’s searched Howard’s motel room and found approximately 4.6 pounds of fentanyl and a loaded Glock 43x pistol hidden in the ceiling. Howard admitted that he intended to sell the fentanyl.
Howard further admitted to directing co-defendant David Anthony Wellman, 38, of Huntington, to sell quantities of fentanyl between September 2021 and December 2021. Wellman pleaded guilty to distribution of fentanyl on September 28, 2022.
On December 24, 2021, law enforcement officers conducted a traffic stop of a vehicle in which Howard was a passenger. Officers searched the vehicle and found approximately 399.6 grams of fentanyl in a backpack. Howard admitted that he intended to sell the fentanyl or direct others to sell the fentanyl on his behalf.
Howard is scheduled to be sentenced on January 17, 2023, and faces a mandatory minimum of 10 years and up to life in prison, five years of supervised release, and a $10 million fine.
“This case resulted in the seizure of a massive amount of fentanyl and removed an out-of-state supplier of this poison from our streets,” said United States Attorney Will Thompson. “I commend the investigative work of the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), the Violent Crime and Drug Task Force West, and the West Virginia State Police.”
United States District Judge Robert C. Chambers presided over the hearing. Assistant United States Attorney Stephanie S. Taylor is prosecuting the case.
This case was prosecuted as part of Operation Synthetic Opioid Surge (SOS), an enforcement surge that has sought to reduce the supply of deadly synthetic opioids in high impact areas.
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. 3:22-cr-102.
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