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14 June 2022
Repeat Sex Offender Sentenced to 40 Years for Production of Child PornographyRead the Press Release
NEW BERN, N.C. – A Wilmington man who photographed his sexual abuse of a four-year old child was sentenced today to 480 months in prison for production of child pornography. The Court also ordered him to pay more than $285,000 in restitution. Luke Michael Churchill, 48, pled guilty to one count of production of child pornography in connection with conduct that took place over the course of several months in 2019.
Michael Easley, the U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of North Carolina, commented: “Mr. Churchill is a serial predator, and his sentence is well-deserved. He positioned himself as a caregiver, but instead exploited and victimized a child. My office will not tolerate individuals like Mr. Churchill who prey upon the most vulnerable and innocent members of our community. We and our law enforcement partners will investigate and aggressively prosecute these predators and protect our children.”
According to court documents, Churchill previously faced unrelated federal charges when he was convicted in 2007 of possession of child pornography and sentenced to 95 months in prison. It was due to this prior conviction for a child exploitation offense that he was subject to enhanced statutory penalties in the current case. After being released from prison in 2013, Churchill began a 15-year term of supervised release that included a number of conditions, including having to register as a sex offender and submit to regular polygraphs. Churchill initially complied with the conditions of his supervised release and eventually succeeded in obtaining less restrictive conditions. Churchill was then able to manipulate his way into a position as a part-time caregiver for the victim, who was only four years old at the time. Churchill took advantage of his position and access, sexually abusing the child, and photographically recording the abuse on his phone at least seven different times over the course of three months in 2019. In June 2019, the child reported Churchill’s conduct and authorities were contacted.
Investigators immediately took steps to ensure the safety of the child and began investigating the allegations. Churchill was interviewed the same day the allegations were made and denied sexually abusing the minor victim and told investigators about how he had not failed any of his regular polygraph tests but refused to submit to another polygraph at that time. The very next day, Churchill transferred the child sexual abuse images he had created from his cellphone to a work laptop in an effort to thwart investigators. Despite Churchill’s efforts to conceal the abuse, investigators were able to obtain the work laptop and a forensic review recovered almost 150 images depicting Churchill engaged in sexual activity with the child. The forensic review was further able to establish that the images were created on seven separate dates—the same days that Churchill served as the child’s caregiver and had access to the minor.
Michael Easley, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of North Carolina made the announcement after sentencing by U.S. District Judge Louise W. Flanagan. The North Carolina 6th Judicial District Attorney’s Office pursued state charges against Churchill, and the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the New Hanover County Sheriff’s Office investigated the case. Assistant U.S. Attorney Bryan Stephany prosecuted the case.
This case is part of the Project Safe Childhood initiative, a national program aimed at ensuring that criminals exploiting children are effectively prosecuted by making full use of all available law enforcement resources at every level. For more information about this important national initiative, go to www.projectsafechildhood.gov.
Related court documents and information can be found on the website of the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of North Carolina or on PACER by searching for Case No. 7:20-CR-00072-FL
Red Lake Man Sentenced to Seven Years in Prison for AssaultRead the Press Release
MINNEAPOLIS – A Red Lake man was sentenced to 84 months in prison followed by three years of supervised release for shooting two individuals on the Red Lake Indian Reservation, announced United States Attorney Andrew M. Luger.
According to court documents, on May 5, 2021, Brennon Allen James Sayers, 21, was arguing loudly with his girlfriend in a vehicle outside a residence in the Ponemah area of the Red Lake Indian Reservation. Victim J.L.Z., who lived across the street, came out of his residence and began telling Sayers to stop arguing and fighting with his girlfriend. Victim C.T.G., who was walking down the road, encountered the interaction between Sayers and J.L.Z. As the confrontation between Sayers and J.L.Z. escalated to yelling and assaultive threats, Sayers pulled a firearm from his waistband and began shooting at both J.L.Z. and C.T.G. as they ran back towards J.L.Z.’s house. Both J.L.Z. and C.T.G. were struck by gunfire. After the shooting, Sayers fled the area and was located several hours later at his mother’s residence on the Red Lake Indian Reservation.
Sayers was sentenced yesterday in U.S. District Court before Chief Judge John R. Tunheim. On January 20, 2022, Sayers pleaded guilty to two counts of assault resulting in serious bodily injury.
This case is the result of an investigation conducted by the Red Lake Police Department and the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s Headwaters Safe Trails Task Force.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Deidre Y. Aanstad prosecuted the case.
Readout of Attorney General’s Meeting with News Media RepresentativesRead the Press Release
Attorney General Merrick B. Garland met with representatives from the news media today following the recent notifications that the Justice Department had obtained reporter records in the course of leak investigations. As previously announced, the department will no longer use compulsory process to obtain reporters’ source information when they are doing their jobs.
The group had a productive conversation about the need for new rules implementing the policy change. During the discussion the department made clear that reporters were never the subject or the target of the recent investigations. The Attorney General and the media representatives agreed on the need for strong, durable rules.
In the coming weeks the Attorney General will develop and distribute to the field a memo detailing the current policy. The Attorney General committed to working with members of the news media to codify the memo setting out these new rules into regulation.
Attending on behalf of the department, in addition to the Attorney General, were: Deputy Attorney General Lisa O. Monaco; John P. Carlin, Principal Associate Deputy Attorney General; Matthew Klapper, Chief of Staff to the Attorney General; Kate Heinzelman, Chief Counselor to the Attorney General; Anthony Coley, Director of Public Affairs and Senior Advisor to the Attorney General; Emily Loeb, Associate Deputy Attorney General; and David Newman, Associate Deputy Attorney General.
The news industry media representatives included: Bruce Brown, Executive Director, Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press; AG Sulzberger, Chairman and Publisher, The New York Times; David McCraw, Deputy General Counsel, The New York Times; Fred Ryan, Publisher and CEO, The Washington Post; Sally Buzbee, Executive Editor, The Washington Post; Jay Kennedy, Vice President, General Counsel & Labor, The Washington Post; Sam Feist, Senior Vice President and Washington Bureau Chief, CNN; and David Vigilante, Executive Vice President and General Counsel, CNN.
Philadelphia Man Sentenced to 15 Years for Blowing up an ATM During Spring 2020 Civil UnrestRead the Press Release
PHILADELPHIA – United States Attorney Jennifer Arbittier Williams announced that David Elmakayes, 26, of Philadelphia, PA, was sentenced to 15 years in prison and three years of supervised release by United States District Court Judge Chad F. Kenney for using an explosive device to damage an ATM machine and for illegally possessing a firearm.
The defendant was charged on June 18, 2020, with malicious damage of property with an explosive device and possession of a firearm by a convicted felon, charges which were the result of an incident that occurred during a period of civil unrest and protests in Philadelphia in response to the killing of George Floyd in Minneapolis, MN. In addition to the largely peaceful protests, incidents of looting, burglary, arson, destruction of property, and other violent acts occurred.
On the night of June 3, 2020, the defendant used an explosive device to heavily damage an automated teller machine on the sidewalk at 217 East Westmoreland Street in North Philadelphia. When he was arrested a short time later, police discovered that had three more explosive devices in his possession, as well as a .32 caliber pistol and other firearms.
“This defendant took advantage of a volatile situation on the streets of Philadelphia to commit a dangerous act that could have injured many people,” said U.S. Attorney Williams. “Damaging property with an explosive device and illegally carrying a firearm are federal crimes which our Office will aggressively prosecute. Elmakayes will now spend 15 years in prison for these crimes.”
“This defendant possessed and recklessly used an explosive device which had the potential to cause significant damage and injure countless people,” said Matthew Varisco, Special Agent in charge of ATF’s Philadelphia Field Office. “ATF is committed to protecting our communities from harm and working with our law enforcement partners to disrupt violent activity.”
The case was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives, the Philadelphia Police Department, and the Philadelphia Fire Marshal’s Office, and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Joseph A. LaBar
Pawtucket Man Charged for Allegedly Traveling to the Dominican Republic to Engage in Sex with a MinorRead the Press Release
PROVIDENCE – A Pawtucket man who traveled repeatedly to the Dominican Republic, where he allegedly had sexual contact with a minor, has been charged in federal court in Providence with engaging in illicit sexual conduct in foreign places and travel with intent to engage in illicit sexual conduct, announced United States Attorney Zachary A. Cunha.
It is alleged in charging documents that Miguel Angel Montero, 42, a naturalized United States citizen who was born in the Dominican Republic (DR), traveled several times to the DR between 2009 and 2013. During those visits, Monteiro is alleged to have had illicit sexual contact with a minor female on numerous occasions; as a result of this conduct, the alleged victim gave birth to a child fathered by Montero at the age of 15.
Montero is currently detained at the Adult Correctional Institutions, having been convicted at trial in Rhode Island state court on a charge of first-degree child molestation, in a separate matter.
The case in U.S. District Court is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Denise M. Barton and John P. McAdams.
The matter charged in federal court was investigated by Homeland Security Investigations and the Pawtucket Police Department. U.S Attorney Cunha thanks the Rhode Island Department of the Attorney General for their assistance in advance of this case being charged in U.S. District Court.
A federal criminal complaint is merely an accusation. A defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
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New Orleans Woman Sentenced for Conspiring to Stage Automobile Accident in Order to Defraud Insurance and Trucking CompaniesRead the Press Release
NEW ORLEANS, LOUISIANA – United States Attorney Duane A. Evans announced that ISHAIS PRICE (“PRICE"), age 41, of New Orleans, Louisiana, was sentenced today for Conspiracy to Commit Mail Fraud, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 371, before United States District Court Judge Sarah S. Vance, arising out of a staged automobile accident with a tractor-trailer occurring in New Orleans.
According to documents filed in federal court, PRICE, along with her co-defendants, Doniesha Gibson (Gibson), of New Orleans, Louisiana; and Chandrika Brown (Brown), of Harvey, and a co-defendant driver conspired to commit mail fraud in connection with a staged accident with a co-defendant driver. Thus far, the total number of defendants convicted in “Operation Sideswipe” is thirty-seven (37).
PRICE claimed that on October 15, 2015, she was a passenger in a 2014 Dodge Avenger owned and driven by Gibson that was hit by a Hotard bus while traveling on the I-10 near the flyover of the I-510. Also in the vehicle was defendant Brown. In truth, a co-defendant asked Gibson to recruit Brown and PRICE to ride along as passengers and he then intentionally sought out a commercial vehicle to intentionally hit. After the staged accident, the co-defendant driver switched seats with Gibson, and they called the N.O.P.D. Gibson, along with the passengers, falsely stated that the Hotard bus illegally changed lanes and caused the accident. Thereafter, Brown, Gibson, PRICE, and the co-defendant driver each retained counsel and made demands against Hotard’s owner and insurer for personal injury damages. As a result of the claims, the insurer utilized the U.S. mails to send the settlement drafts to Brown, Gibson, PRICE, and the co-defendant driver’s counsel. The total settlement for the Hotard bus accident was approximately $677,500.
U.S. District Judge Sarah S. Vance sentenced PRICE to one (1) year and one (1) day imprisonment, 3 years of supervised release, and $100 mandatory special assessment fee.
The U.S. Attorney’s Office would also like to acknowledge the assistance of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Louisiana State Police, and the Metropolitan Crime Commission with this matter. The prosecution of this case is being handled by Assistant U.S. Attorney Brian M. Klebba, Chief of the Financial Crimes Unit; Assistant U.S. Attorney Edward J. Rivera; Assistant U.S. Attorney Maria Carboni; and Assistant U.S. Attorney Brandon Long.
New Haven Man Charged with Illegally Possessing Firearm While on Federal Supervised ReleaseRead the Press Release
Vanessa Roberts Avery, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, today announced that a federal grand jury in New Haven has returned an indictment charging SHAQUIL GARY, 29, of New Haven, with unlawful possession of a firearm by a felon.
The indictment was returned on June 8, 2022. Gary appeared today before U.S. Magistrate Judge Robert A. Richardson in Hartford and entered a plea of not guilty. He has been detained since his arrest on related state charges on April 19, 2022.
As alleged in the indictment, on April 19, 2022, Gary possessed a loaded Glock model 17, 9mm pistol.
It is further alleged that Gary’s criminal history includes a federal felony conviction for armed robbery of a person in lawful control of property of the United States, and state felony convictions for the sale and possession of narcotics. It is a violation of federal law for a person previously convicted of a felony offense to possess a firearm or ammunition that has moved in interstate or foreign commerce.
If convicted of the charge, Gary faces a maximum term of imprisonment of 10 years. Gary, who is currently on federal supervised release, faces additional penalties if he is found to have violated the conditions of his supervised release.
U.S. Attorney Avery stressed that an indictment is not evidence of guilt. Charges are only allegations, and the defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.
This matter is being investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives, the New Haven Police Department and the Hamden Police Department. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Robert S. Dearington.
This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), the centerpiece of the Department of Justice’s violent crime reduction efforts. PSN is an evidence-based program proven to be effective at reducing violent crime. Through PSN, a broad spectrum of stakeholders work together to identify the most pressing violent crime problems in the community and develop comprehensive solutions to address them. As part of this strategy, PSN focuses enforcement efforts on the most violent offenders and partners with locally based prevention and reentry programs for lasting reductions in crime.
Murfreesboro Man Sentenced to 70 Months for Fentanyl and Firearm ChargesRead the Press Release
NEW BERN, N.C. – Earl Lamont Vaughan, 45, of Murfreesboro, was sentenced yesterday to 70 months in prison for possessing fentanyl with intent to distribute and for being a felon in possession of a firearm. Vaughan pled guilty to the charges on March 9, 2022.
According to court records and statements made during hearings, on April 2, 2019, at around 2:00 p.m., officers were canvassing the area of Benthall Bridge Road in Murfreesboro, North Carolina, looking for a residence where they had heard reports of Vaughan making heroin sales. While driving, they saw Vaughan drive past in the opposite direction, and they were aware that his license had been revoked. Officers turned around and watched Vaughan pull into a driveway and enter a house. They knocked on the door to the house, and Vaughan took several minutes to respond.
After explaining they had seen him driving without a license, officers asked Vaughan to speak with them about drug sales. He denied drug sales and told officers that the home belonged to his aunt. His aunt stated that she knew nothing about any drug sales and consented to a search.
Searching the home, officers found a bedroom containing clothes and other belongings of Vaughan’s, as well as a digital scale with a brown powder residue. Officers secured the residence and obtained a search warrant. Resuming the search an hour later, they found a loaded .25 caliber Astra handgun in a white clothesbasket in Vaughan’s room. From another clothesbasket, they seized a blender with powder residue and a bag of white powder. In the same basket, they found 36 grams of fentanyl in a blue water bottle. Vaughan consented to be interviewed and admitted to possessing the fentanyl, which he had believed to be heroin, and mixing it in the blender with the white powder.
Vaughan’s prior convictions include three state drug felonies, as well as a conviction for assault with a deadly weapon with intent to kill and inflicting serious injury.
Michael F. Easley, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of North Carolina, made the announcement after sentencing by U.S. District Judge Louise W. Flanagan. The Hertford County Sheriff’s Department, Bertie County Sheriff’s Department, and Murfreesboro Police Department conducted the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney Jake D. Pugh prosecuted the case.
Related court documents and information can be found on the website of the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of North Carolina or on PACER by searching for Case No. 2:20-cr-0010-FL.
Multi-Year Investigation Leads to Indictment of 26 Defendants and Seizure of Nearly 500,000 Counterfeit Pills Laced with FentanylRead the Press Release
Assistant U. S. Attorney Owen Roth (619) 546-7710 and Assistant U.S. Attorney Shauna R. Prewitt (619) 546-7937
NEWS RELEASE SUMMARY – June 14, 2022
SAN DIEGO – A two-year investigation has led to the indictment of 26 defendants for international drug smuggling, drug trafficking, and related conspiracy offenses. One of the defendants, Raul Barajas-Padilla, appeared in federal court yesterday for an initial appearance on the indictment.
So far, 17 defendants have been arrested. Efforts remain ongoing to apprehend the remaining defendants.
According to publicly filed documents, the Drug Enforcement Administration led the investigation into a drug-trafficking conspiracy extending from Sinaloa, Mexico into the United States.
Agents identified Mexico-based traffickers who coordinated shipments of counterfeit pharmaceutical pills laced with fentanyl, powder fentanyl, heroin, methamphetamine and cocaine into the United States. These efforts yielded seizures of more than 478,000 counterfeit pharmaceutical pills laced with fentanyl, as well as about 51 kilograms of methamphetamine, 10 kilograms of cocaine, 4 kilograms of powder fentanyl, and 4 kilograms of heroin. Agents also seized about $230,000 in assets.
According to the indictment, DEA agents also identified the distributors in the U.S.; the couriers who were responsible for transporting drugs; the people who managed stash houses; the people who smuggled the illicit proceeds back to Mexico; and other dealers.
“This long-term investigation has resulted in the seizure of nearly half a million fentanyl-laced counterfeit pills plus additional quantities of fentanyl in powder form,” said U.S. Attorney Randy Grossman. “As fentanyl continues to fuel the ongoing opioid epidemic and claim ever more lives, we will use every available resource to find, apprehend, and hold accountable those who seek to profit from it, no matter where they are.” Grossman thanked the prosecution team as well as the DEA, HSI agents, the San Diego County Sheriff’s Department and supporting local, state, and federal partners who conducted this investigation for their excellent work on this case.
“Drug cartels, such as the Sinaloa cartel, are driving addiction and overdose deaths in the United States,” said DEA Special Agent in Charge Shelly S. Howe. “This extensive investigation demonstrates DEA’s resolve to hold drug dealers accountable for their destruction and to prevent massive amounts of fentanyl pills and other addictive drugs from being sold to our citizens.”
“The criminal investigation that led to this indictment is a great example of successful collaboration between multiple law enforcement agencies determined to prevent illegal narcotics from entering our communities,” said HSI San Diego Special Agent in Charge Chad Plantz. “HSI will continue working with our federal, state, and local law enforcement partners to bring to justice those who smuggle dangerous narcotics across our borders.”
This effort is part of an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) operation. OCDETF identifies, disrupts, and dismantles the highest-level criminal organizations that threaten the United States using a prosecutor-led, intelligence-driven, multi-agency approach. Additional information about the OCDETF Program can be found at https://www.justice.gov/OCDETF.
The U.S. Attorney’s office is actively partnering with San Diego County District Attorney Summer Stephan and the San Diego Prescription Drug Abuse Task Force (PDATF) to provide the community information and resources regarding fentanyl and naloxone. Resources include a recent recorded Town Hall titled Talk to Your Kids About Fentanyl, featuring 10 Ways to Protect our Kids from Fentanyl, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=el09UaBc47U; a Community & Parent Fentanyl Toolkit, available at https://www.sdpdatf.org/community-resources; and information on how to obtain and learn to use lifesaving Naloxone, https://www.sdpdatf.org/naloxone.
DEFENDANTS Case Number 22-CR-863
Jose Refugio Vasquez, Jr. Age: 31 San Ysidro
Jaime Gutierrez Age: 48 El Cajon and Tijuana, MX
Jose Baudelio Garcia Age: 45 San Diego
Raul Osbaldo Perez Age: 28 San Ysidro and Tijuana, MX
Marvin Toms Age: 61 San Bernardino, CA
Andrew Acuna Age: 31 Chula Vista
Mario Hernandez Age:45 Chula Vista and Fresno, CA
Michael Perez-Lopez Age: 26 San Ysidro and Tijuana, MX
Jorge Paredes Age: 26 San Diego and Tijuana
Edgar Lopez, Jr. Age: 25 Tijuana, MX
Angel Gutierrez Age: 21 Lynwood, CA
Raul Barajas-Padilla Age: 21 San Diego
Oscar Daniel Munoz Gonzalez Age: 30 San Ysidro
Gabriel Jimenez-Aispuro Age: 31 San Diego
Edgar Cornejo Age: 26 San Diego
Andres Martinez Age: 25 San Ysidro
Oswaldo Marceleno-Cortez Age: 40 San Diego
SUMMARY OF CHARGES
Controlled Substances Trafficking Conspiracy – Title 21, U.S.C., Section 846
Maximum penalty: Life in prison, mandatory minimum 10 years; $10 million fine
Possession of Controlled Substances with Intent to Distribute – Title 21, U.S.C., Section 841
Maximum penalty: Life in prison, mandatory minimum 10 years; and $10 million fine
AGENCY
Drug Enforcement Administration
Homeland Security Investigations
San Diego Sheriff’s Department
*The charges and allegations contained in an indictment or complaint are merely accusations, and the defendants are considered innocent unless and until proven guilty.
Morris County Man Sentenced to 78 Months in Prison for Role in Passaic County Cocaine Trafficking ConspiracyRead the Press Release
NEWARK, N.J. – A Morris County, New Jersey, man was sentenced today to 78 months in prison for his role in a Passaic County cocaine distribution conspiracy, U.S. Attorney Philip R. Sellinger announced.
Victor Pimentel, 46, of Parsippany, previously pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Claire C. Cecchi to an information charging him with conspiracy to distribute cocaine. Judge Cecchi imposed the sentence today in Newark federal court.
According to documents filed in the case and statements made in court:
Pimentel was part of a conspiracy to distribute cocaine in and around Passaic County. A search of Pimentel’s residence revealed over 20 kilograms of cocaine, drug paraphernalia, and $322,000 in cash.
In addition to the prison term, Judge Cecchi sentenced Pimentel to three years of supervised release.
U.S. Attorney Sellinger credited special agents and task force officers of the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration, New Jersey Division, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Susan A. Gibson, and the Passaic County Prosecutor’s Office under the direction of Passaic County Prosecutor Camelia M. Valdes, with the investigation leading to today’s sentencing.
The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorney Jonathan M. Peck of the U.S. Attorney’s Office Criminal Division in Newark.
Meriden Man Indicted for Trafficking FentanylRead the Press Release
Vanessa Roberts Avery, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, and Brian D. Boyle, Special Agent in Charge of the Drug Enforcement Administration for New England, announced that a federal grand jury in New Haven returned an indictment today charging GERARDO NUNEZ-IRIZARRY, also known as “Indio,” 43, of Meriden, with possession with intent to distribute 40 grams or more of fentanyl.
As alleged in court documents and statements made in court, between June and August 2021, law enforcement made multiple controlled purchases of fentanyl from Nunez-Irizarry. In November 2021, Nunez-Irizarry agreed to sell a 50-gram quantity of fentanyl. On November 18, 2021, investigators stopped Nunez-Irizarry’s car in Meriden as he drove to an arranged location to complete the transaction and seized approximately 50 grams of fentanyl. He was arrested on state charges at that time.
Nunez-Irizarry was arrested on a federal criminal complaint on March 24, 2022.
If convicted of the charge, Nunez-Irizarry faces a mandatory minimum term of imprisonment of five years and a maximum term of imprisonment of 40 years.
U.S. Attorney Avery stressed that an indictment is not evidence of guilt. Charges are only allegations, and the defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.
Nunez-Irizarry is currently released on a $100,000 bond.
This matter is being investigated by the DEA’s New Haven Task Force, which includes personnel from the DEA, U.S. Marshals Service, Internal Revenue Service – Criminal Investigation Division, and the New Haven, East Haven, West Haven, Meriden, Waterbury, Branford, Ansonia, and Middletown Police Departments as well as from the Connecticut State Police. The investigation has been supported by the Meriden Police Department and the U.S. Postal Inspection Service’s Narcotics and Bulk Cash Trafficking Task Force, which includes members from the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, the U.S. Postal Service – Office of the Inspector General, the Connecticut Army National Guard, and the Hartford, New Britain, Meriden and Town of Groton Police Departments.
This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Konstantin Lantsman through the Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) Program. OCDETF identifies, disrupts and dismantles drug traffickers, money launderers, gangs and transnational criminal organizations through a prosecutor-led and intelligence-driven approach that leverages the strengths of federal, state and local law enforcement agencies. Additional information about the OCDETF Program can be found at https://www.justice.gov/OCDETF.
Martinsburg woman sentenced for role in drug trafficking ringRead the Press Release
MARTINSBURG, WEST VIRGINIA –Mary Margaret Renfro, of Martinsburg, West Virginia, was sentenced today to five years of probation for her role in a drug conspiracy that spanned several states, United States Attorney William Ihlenfeld announced.
Renfro, 39, pleaded guilty in January 2021 to one count of “Conspiracy to Possess with Intent to Distribute and to Distribute 100 Grams or More of Heroin and 40 Grams or More of Fentanyl” and one count of “Conspiracy to Possess with Intent to Distribute and to Distribute 28 Grams or More of Cocaine Base.” Renfro worked with others to distribute 100 grams or more of heroin and 40 grams or more of fentanyl, a s well as 28 grams or more of cocaine base from June 2019 to December 2019 in Berkeley and Jefferson Counties and elsewhere.
This prosecution is part of an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) investigation. OCDETF identifies, disrupts, and dismantles the highest-level drug traffickers, money launderers, gangs, and transnational criminal organizations that threaten the United States by using a prosecutor-led, intelligence-driven, multi-agency approach that leverages the strengths of federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies against criminal networks.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Lara Omps-Botteicher and Special Assistant U.S. Attorney C. Lydia Lehman, also with the Berkeley County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office, prosecuted the case on behalf of the government. The FBI; Homeland Security Investigations; the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms & Explosives; and the Eastern Panhandle Drug Task Force, a HIDTA-funded initiative, investigated. The Berkeley County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office assisted.
U.S. District Judge Gina M. Groh presided.
Find the related press release here: https://www.justice.gov/usao-ndwv/pr/25-charged-six-state-drug-conspiracy-involving-heroin-fentanyl-cocaine
Martinsburg man sentenced to 13 years for drug and firearms chargesRead the Press Release
MARTINSBURG, WEST VIRGINIA – Quasym Divad John Finch and Brittany Marie Breeden, both of Martinsburg, West Virginia, were sentenced today for drug and firearms charges, United States Attorney William Ihlenfeld announced.
Finch, 31, was sentenced today to 157 months of incarceration after pleading guilty in March 2022 to one count of “Conspiracy to Possess with Intent to Distribute and to Distribute Cocaine Base, Fentanyl, and Methamphetamine Hydrochloride” and one count of “Unlawful Possession of a Firearm.” Finch admitted to working with Breeden to distribute cocaine base, fentanyl, and methamphetamine hydrochloride from January 2020 to February 2021 in Berkeley County. Finch, a person prohibited from having firearms because of a prior conviction, admitted to having a .410 revolver, a .380 pistol, and a semi-automatic rifle in February 2021 in Berkeley County.
Breeden, also known as “Brittany Marie Finch,” 28, was sentenced today to five years of probation after pleading guilty to one count of “Distribution of Fentanyl.” Breeden admitted to selling fentanyl in February 2021 in Berkeley County.
Assistant U.S. Attorneys Lara Omps-Botteicher and Eleanor F. Hurney prosecuted the cases on behalf of the government. ATF and the Eastern Panhandle Drug Task Force, a HIDTA-funded initiative, investigated.
U.S. District Judge Gina M. Groh presided.
Martinsburg man sentenced for drug chargeRead the Press Release
MARTINSBURG, WEST VIRGINIA – Ryan Ramney, of Martinsburg, West Virginia, was sentenced today to five years of probation for a drug charge, United States Attorney William Ihlenfeld announced.
Ramney, 38, pleaded guilty in March 2022 to one count of “Possession with Intent to Distribute Cocaine Hydrochloride.” Ramney admitted to having cocaine hydrochloride, also known as “coke,” in July 2021 in Berkeley County.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Eleanor F. Hurney prosecuted the case on behalf of the government. The Eastern Panhandle Drug Task Force, a HIDTA-funded initiative, and the Department of Homeland Security investigated.
U.S. District Judge Gina M. Groh presided.
Man Who Illegally Possessed Handgun on Evanston Street Sentenced to Nearly 8 Years in Federal PrisonRead the Press Release
CHICAGO — A man who illegally possessed a semi-automatic handgun in Evanston, Ill., and tried to flee from police has been sentenced to nearly eight years in federal prison.
DARIUS MORALES illegally possessed the firearm on May 8, 2019. Evanston Police responded to gun shots fired in an alley and saw a silver Jeep Commander pull out and speed away. The Jeep led police on a high-speed chase through downtown Evanston until it crashed into a fence in the backyard of a residence. Morales, who was a passenger in the Jeep, left the gun on the fence and tried to run off. He was arrested a few blocks away.
A federal jury last year convicted Morales, 32, of Evanston, of illegally possessing the firearm. Morales had previously been convicted of multiple felonies and was prohibited by federal law from possessing a firearm.
Judge Amy J. St. Eve of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit, sitting by designation in U.S. District Court in Chicago, on Friday imposed a 94-month prison sentence. Judge St. Eve found that Morales was the individual who fired the gun in the alley.
The sentence was announced by John R. Lausch, Jr., United States Attorney for the Northern District of Illinois; and Robert J. Bell, Special Agent-in-Charge of the Chicago Division of the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration. Substantial assistance was provided by the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives; Evanston Police Department; and Cook County State’s Attorney’s Office. The government was represented by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Jeannice Appenteng and Charles W. Mulaney.
Maine Man Pleads Guilty to Bank FraudRead the Press Release
CONCORD - Sean Crockett, 40, of Lebanon, Maine, pleaded guilty on Monday in federal court to bank fraud, United States Attorney Jane E. Young announced today.
According to court documents and statements made in court, Crockett used other people’s identities to open merchant accounts and used those accounts to process fraudulent credit card payments. Merchant accounts are bank accounts for businesses that allow them to accept payments by debit or credit card.
In 2015, Crockett used altered bank and incorporation records, false tax documents, and other persons’ identities to apply for and open merchant bank accounts for companies Crockett controlled. Crockett paid some of these persons to use their identities to open these accounts. Others did not know Crockett and never gave permission to him to open the merchant accounts.
Crockett then used stolen credit card information to process fraudulent transactions. Crockett withdrew the funds soon after they were deposited. Later the credit card holders disputed the transactions, resulting in hundreds of thousands of dollars of “chargebacks” to those merchant accounts. Normally, when chargebacks occur the funds are withdrawn from the merchant account. In this case, however, because Crockett had already withdrawn the funds, the bank was forced to pay the chargebacks. Because of this, the bank routinely closed Crockett’s merchant accounts. To continue the scheme, Crockett opened new merchant accounts using other peoples’ identities.
Crockett is scheduled to be sentenced on September 29, 2022.
This matter was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Internal Revenue Service. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Matthew T. Hunter and Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Alexander S. Chen.
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Lewis County woman sentenced for firearms chargeRead the Press Release
CLARKSBURG, WEST VIRGINIA – Crystal Dawn Roth, of Walkersville, West Virginia, was sentenced today to 100 months of incarceration for a firearms charge, United States Attorney William Ihlenfeld announced.
Roth, 39, pleaded guilty today to one count of “Unlawful Possession of a Firearm.” Roth, a person prohibited from having firearms because of prior convictions, admitted to having a revolver in March 2021 in Braxton County.
Roth was also ordered to pay a $20,000 fine.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Christopher L. Bauer prosecuted the case on behalf of the government. The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and the Braxton County Sheriff’s Office investigated.
Chief U.S. District Judge Thomas S. Kleeh presided.
Leader of Bay Area Drug Distribution Network Sentenced to Six Years in PrisonRead the Press Release
SAN FRANCISCO - Andy Manuel Reanos-Moreno was sentenced to 72 months in prison for his role in a large-scale drug distribution conspiracy announced U.S. Attorney Stephanie M. Hinds and Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) Special Agent in Charge Wade R. Shannon. Senior United States District Judge Charles R. Breyer handed down the sentence.
Reanos-Moreno, 27, of Oakland, California, pleaded guilty to the charge on November 10, 2021, without a written plea agreement. According to court documents, Reanos-Moreno was the leader of a vast network of street-level drug dealers who sold drugs in the Tenderloin neighborhood of San Francisco. Documents filed in connection with Reanos-Moreno’s sentencing describe a sophisticated operation that provided drugs for resale and housing for street-level dealers in Oakland who then commuted into San Francisco where the drugs were sold.
In pleading guilty, Reanos-Moreno admitted running his network of dealers from at least January 15, 2019, to July 31, 2019. Described in charging and sentencing documents as “redistributors,” Reanos-Moreno supplied these individuals with heroin, methamphetamine, cocaine, and cocaine base. In exchange, the dealers were expected to purchase drugs for resale from only Reanos-Moreno. The dealers called Reanos-Moreno on a nearly daily basis to place orders for re-supplies of drugs. Reanos-Moreno’s role as the head of the organization involved sourcing the drugs from Southern California, renting houses and apartments for dealers, and managing customer relations. Reanos-Moreno used undocumented street-level dealers and used his knowledge of immigration laws to threaten dealers who did not sell enough narcotics for the organization. The government’s sentencing memorandum concludes that Reanos-Moreno “used his legal immigration status, his knowledge of real estate in the area, and his ability to pay upfront costs such as deposits on apartments as a means of both enticing street-level dealers to work for his organization and then holding their feet to the fire to ensure that they sold enough drugs or else they would lose their housing or face potential legal jeopardy.”
On August 1, 2019, the United States Attorney filed a federal criminal complaint against Reanos-Moreno, charging him with conspiracy to distribute controlled substances, in violation of 21 U.S.C. §§ 846 and 841(a)(1). Subsequently, a federal grand jury issued an indictment charging Reanos-Moreno with the same violation. Pursuant to his guilty plea, he admitted he committed the crime.
In addition to the prison sentence, Judge Breyer also ordered Reanos-Moreno to serve 48 months of supervised release and forfeit over $25,000 seized from his home at the time of arrest. Reanos-Moreno has been in custody since August 7, 2019, and will begin to serve his prison term immediately.
Assistant U.S. Attorneys Sailaja M. Paidipaty and Ryan Rezaei are prosecuting the case with assistance from Madeline Wachs and Linda Love. The prosecution is the result of an investigation by the DEA, San Francisco Police Department, and Richmond Police Department.
Latin Music Company Executives Arrested on Federal Complaint Alleging Violations of U.S. Sanctions Related to Drug TraffickersRead the Press Release
LOS ANGELES – FBI agents today arrested two music business executives – including the CEO of a Latin music conglomerate – who are charged with conspiring to violate the Foreign Narcotics Kingpin Designation Act by conducting business with a Guadalajara-based concert promoter with ties to Mexican drug cartels.
Angel Del Villar, 41, of Huntington Beach, the CEO of Del Records and its subsidiary talent agency Del Entertainment; and Luca Scalisi, 56, of West Hollywood, the chief financial officer of Del Entertainment, were arrested this morning. Both men made their initial appearances this afternoon in United States District Court in downtown Los Angeles. Del Villar was ordered released on $100,000 bond and Scalisi was ordered released on $35,000 bond. Their arraignments have been scheduled for July 20.
Del Villar and Scalisi are named in a criminal complaint that accuses them of conspiracy to transact in property of specially designated narcotics traffickers in violation of the Kingpin Act.
A third defendant named in the complaint – Jesus Perez Alvear, 37, of Cuernavaca, Morelos, Mexico, a music promoter who controls Gallistica Diamante, a.k.a. Ticket Premier – is believed to be in Mexico. Perez, who promoted concerts in Mexico for Del Entertainment until March 2019, and Gallistica Diamante are listed as “Specially Designated Narcotics Traffickers” under the Kingpin Act, which prevents people in the United States from conducting business with the two entities.
The complaint alleges that on April 19, 2018, FBI agents approached a well-known musician, referred to in the complaint as Individual A, and explicitly told Individual A about Perez’s designation under the Kingpin Act and how that prohibited him from conducting business with Perez and performing concerts that Perez promoted.
On April 28, 2018, Individual A performed at a music concert which Perez organized. Del Villar’s credit card was used to pay for a private jet that brought the musician from Van Nuys Airport to the performance in Aguascalientes, Mexico, according to the complaint.
On four additional occasions in 2018 and 2019, Individual A performed at concerts in Mexico – specifically in Mexicali, Salamanca, Chiapas and San Jose Iturbide – all of which Perez promoted. Individual A acted at the direction or with the knowledge of Del Villar, Scalisi and Perez.
A criminal complaint contains allegations that a defendant has committed a crime. Every defendant is presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.
If they were to be convicted of violating the Kingpin Act, Del Villar and Scalisi would face a statutory maximum sentence of 30 years in federal prison. Perez would face a statutory maximum sentence of 10 years in federal prison.
The current whereabouts of Perez are unknown, but he is believed to be residing in Mexico. Anyone with information about Perez is encouraged to contact the FBI’s Los Angeles Field Office at (310) 477-6565.
The FBI, IRS Criminal Investigation, and the Drug Enforcement Administration are investigating this matter. The Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control provided significant assistance in this matter.
Assistant United States Attorney Benedetto Balding of the International Narcotics, Money Laundering, and Racketeering Section is prosecuting this case.
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.
Las Vegas Man Pleads Guilty to Mail Fraud ConspiracyRead the Press Release
LAS VEGAS – A Las Vegas man pleaded guilty today to his role in a conspiracy to commit mail fraud in connection to the illegal possession of unemployment benefit debit cards issued by the Nevada Department of Employment, Training and Rehabilitation (DETR) and Arizona’s Department of Economic Security (DES) — the agencies administer Nevada’s and Arizona’s unemployment insurance program, respectively.
Vincent Okoye (40) pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit mail fraud. U.S. District Judge Gloria M. Navarro scheduled sentencing for September 20, 2022.
According to court documents and admissions Okoye made in court, he conspired with others, including co-defendant Jasmine-Royshell Kanisha Black, to obtain DETR and DES debit cards by submitting fraudulent unemployment insurance claims using other peoples’ personal identifying information, such as their names, dates of birth, and social security numbers, without their knowledge or consent. In total, DETR and DES approved more than $550,000 in benefits for the fraudulent claims.
On July 15, 2020, law enforcement executed a search warrant at Okoye’s residence and found:
- Over $100,000 in U.S. Currency and U.S. Money Orders;
- A forged Canadian passport;
- A postal mailbox master key;
- Over 100 pieces of mail, bearing names and addresses not belonging to Okoye;
- At least 24 pieces of mail from DETR, bearing various names and addresses; and
- At least 100 credit and debit cards not issued in Okoye’s name, including at least 11 debit cards issued by DETR and at least 12 debit cards issued by DES.
At sentencing, Okoye faces a statutory maximum penalty of 20 years in prison, a term of supervised release, and a fine.
U.S. Attorney Jason M. Frierson for the District of Nevada and Special Agent In Charge Karon Ransom for the U.S. Secret Service made the announcement.
The case was investigated by the U.S. Secret Service, U.S. Postal Service Office of Inspector General, and the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department. Assistant U.S. Attorney Jim Fang is prosecuting the case.
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Kouts Man Sentenced to 180 Months in PrisonRead the Press Release
HAMMOND – Kody Yednak, 21 years old, of Kouts, Indiana, was sentenced by United States District Court Judge Philip P. Simon on his plea of guilty to production of child pornography, announced United States Attorney Clifford D. Johnson.
Yednak received a sentence of 180 months imprisonment followed by a term of 2 years supervised release.
According to documents in the case, in January 2021, Yednak persuaded a minor to engage in sexually explicit conduct for the purpose of producing child pornography. Later. in March 2021, Yednak persuaded a different minor to engage in sexually explicit conduct for the purpose of producing child pornography. The investigation revealed the minors were approximately 10 and 11 years old.
This case was investigated by Homeland Security Investigations with the assistance of the Indiana State Police. This case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Jennifer Chang.
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KBR Defendants Agree to Settle Kickback and False Claims AllegationsRead the Press Release
Kellogg Brown & Root Services Inc., headquartered in Houston, and three other companies have agreed to a settlement of $13.67 million to resolve a lawsuit seeking damages and penalties for alleged violations of the False Claims Act and the Anti-Kickback Act, and for breach of contract. The four named defendants are: Kellogg Brown & Root Services Inc., Kellogg Brown & Root Inc., Kellogg Brown & Root LLC, and Overseas Administration Services Ltd. (collectively KBR). The settlement amount includes a payment of $12 million by KBR, in addition to $1.67 million in contract restitution that KBR previously paid to the United States relating to the subcontracts at issue in the lawsuit.
The lawsuit concerned the Logistics Civil Augmentation Program (LOGCAP) III contract, under which KBR was required to provide logistics support to U.S. Army forces in Iraq, and subcontracts that KBR awarded to two local companies to perform work on its behalf: Subcontracts 11 and 39 to La Nouvelle Trading & Contracting Co. (La Nouvelle), and Subcontracts 167 and 190 to First Kuwaiti Trading & Contracting Co., aka First Kuwaiti Trading Co. (First Kuwaiti). The United States asserted that certain KBR employees responsible for awarding these subcontracts rigged the bidding process in favor of La Nouvelle and First Kuwaiti, and that, to reward this favorable treatment, principal officers from the foreign subcontractors paid kickbacks to the responsible KBR employees. The United States also alleged that the subcontract prices were inflated, and that after the subcontracts were awarded, KBR employees extended the duration of the subcontracts at the inflated prices. The United States further contends that KBR sought reimbursement of these inflated costs through vouchers submitted to the Army. As alleged in the lawsuit, this conduct violated the False Claims Act and the Anti-Kickback Act, and breached the LOGCAP III contract.
“Those who do business with the government have a responsibility to ensure that they are properly performing and billing under their government contracts,” said Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Brian M. Boynton, head of the Justice Department’s Civil Division. “This matter reflects the department’s commitment to hold accountable contractors that knowingly overcharge the government for inflated costs and that fail to take appropriate action to prevent their employees from enriching themselves at the public’s expense.”
“The Department of Defense – Office of Inspector General’s Defense Criminal Investigative Service (DCIS) and our law enforcement partners are steadfastly committed to holding contractors accountable when they abuse the trust of the military for financial gain,” said Acting Special Agent in Charge Gregory P. Shilling of the DCIS’s Southwest Field Office. “We will diligently investigate fraud perpetrated against the Department of Defense and the American taxpayer, regardless of the length of time it takes to ensure justice is served.”
“We are pleased with today’s settlement,” said Special Agent in Charge L. Scott Moreland of the U.S. Army Criminal Investigation Division (Army CID), Major Procurement Fraud Field Office. “Kickbacks and overcharges have an inherently corrosive effect and undermine the integrity of the procurement process; it is imperative that when someone contracts with the U.S. Army, they provide only their very best with no exceptions.”
More specifically, the settlement resolves allegations that a KBR employee entered into a kickback arrangement with the managing partner of First Kuwaiti, under which the KBR employee was to receive a kickback for every subcontract that he awarded to First Kuwaiti for the lease of trucks and trailers to transport fuel and refrigerated items into Iraq. The United States contends that, under the improper influence of this illegal arrangement, the KBR employee steered two truck-lease contracts (Subcontracts 167 and 190) to First Kuwaiti at higher prices than necessary to fulfill the Army’s contract requirements, and that KBR later sought to justify the high awards based on criteria that federal law did not permit KBR to consider.
The settlement also resolves additional claims concerning these same subcontracts after they were awarded for the lease of trucks and refrigerated trailers. More specifically, KBR extended Subcontract 167 even though its employees knew that the leased equipment was no longer needed and had been returned to the subcontractor, billed the United States for this overpayment, and created false documents to justify the overpayment. KBR also extended Subcontract 190 for the continued lease of trucks to pull fuel tankers even though, the United States contends, its internal records showed that the vehicles had already been returned to First Kuwaiti, resulting in overcharges.
In addition, the United States contends that a second KBR employee rigged the bidding process for Subcontract 11, a subcontract for cleaning services at Camp Arifjan in Kuwait, so that the employee could justify awarding the subcontract to La Nouvelle. The KBR employee did this, the United States claims, with the intent to solicit kickbacks from La Nouvelle’s managing partner, who paid to reward the KBR employee for the favorable treatment he provided. The United States alleges that these kickbacks were included in the prices that KBR charged to the Government.
Finally, the United States contends that a third KBR employee rigged the bidding process for Subcontract 39, a contract for the lease of fuel storage tankers at a military airport in Kuwait, and awarded the subcontract to La Nouvelle at an inflated price, which KBR subsequently extended. As a reward for this favorable treatment, the United States alleges that the managing partner of La Nouvelle later paid the KBR employee a kickback, which was included within the prices that KBR charged to the Government.
In 2021, following more than seven years of litigation, the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Texas granted partial summary judgment to the United States on several of its False Claims Act and Anti-Kickback Act claims. This settlement resolves these allegations and other pending claims and issues, for which trial had been scheduled to commence on May 23. The lawsuit is captioned United States ex rel. Conyers v. Kellogg Brown & Root, Inc., No. 4:06-cv-04024 (S.D. Tex.).
The resolution obtained in this matter was the result of efforts by the Justice Department’s Civil Division, Commercial Litigation Branch, Fraud Section, with assistance from DCIS and the U.S. Army CID.
The United States’ resolution in this matter follows a prior $51 million judgment in favor of the United States in a litigated proceeding before the Armed Services Board of Contract Appeals, concerning a larger overpayment that KBR made to First Kuwaiti under a separate subcontract in the Iraq Theater. Following a multi-week trial and appeal to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit, that judgment became final in 2021.
This matter was handled by Fraud Section Attorneys Ashley N. Bailey, Elspeth A. England, Glenn P. Harris, Russell B. Kinner, Jeffrey A. McSorley, Michael M. Sawers and David W. Tyler.
The claims resolved by the settlement are allegations only and there has been no determination of liability.
Jury Convicts Two of Conspiring to Distribute Drugs in PrisonRead the Press Release
PITTSBURGH, – Ross Landfried and David Curran were convicted at the conclusion of a six-day jury trial of conspiring to distribute Schedule I and II controlled substances between 2017 and 2019, United States Attorney Cindy K. Chung announced today. Landfried was also convicted of conspiring to launder drug trafficking proceeds between 2017 and 2019. The evidence presented at trial established that Landfried, Curran and their co-conspirators were part of a wide-ranging drug conspiracy within the federal prison system. Inmate accounts were used to collect and make payments for the drugs.
Landfried, age 40, and Curran, age 39, both formerly of Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, will be sentenced by United States District Judge J. Nicholas Ranjan on dates to be determined.
Assistant United States Attorneys Rebecca L. Silinski and Craig W. Haller are prosecuting this case on behalf of the United States.
The Drug Enforcement Administration, the Internal Revenue Service, the federal Bureau of Prisons, and the Pennsylvania Office of Attorney General led the multi-agency investigation that also included the United States Postal Inspection Service, the Beaver County District Attorney’s Office, the Department of Homeland Security/Homeland Security Investigations, the Pittsburgh Police Department, the United States Marshals Service, the Pennsylvania State Police, the Munhall Police Department, the Robinson Township Police Department, the McKees Rocks Police Department, the Stowe Township Police Department, the Etna Police Department, and the Erie County District Attorney’s Office.
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.
Jefferson Parish Man Sentenced After Pleading Guilty to Violating the Federal Controlled Substances ActRead the Press Release
NEW ORLEANS, LOUISIANA – TRAVIS CARTER, a/k/a “Tree,” age 42, a resident of Metairie, Louisiana, was sentenced on June 9, 2022 to 24 months imprisonment , 3 years of supervised release and a mandatory $100 special assessment fee by U.S. District Judge Carl J. Barbier, after pleading guilty to a one-count indictment charging him with possession with intent to distribute cocaine, announced U.S. Attorney Duane A. Evans.
According to court documents, on January 7, 2021, Jefferson Parish Sheriff’s Office detectives executed a search of CARTER’s residence in Metairie. During the search, they discovered a digital scale with white powder residue, approximately one gram of suspected crack cocaine, a box of clear plastic bags, and $2,398.00 in U.S. currency. Detectives then transported CARTER to the Jefferson Parish Correctional Center. Thereafter, correctional officers searched CARTER’s person, which resulted in the discovery of six clear plastic bags containing approximately 165.27 grams of cocaine located in his shoes.
This case was investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration, Jefferson Parish Sheriff’s Office, and St. John Parish Sheriff’s Office. The prosecution was handled by Assistant United States Attorney J. Benjamin Myers.
Hartford Man Pleads Guilty to Offenses Stemming from Theft of Firearms from South Windsor WarehouseRead the Press Release
Vanessa Roberts Avery, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, announced that SHAMEIK CAMARA, 32, of Hartford, pleaded guilty today before U.S. District Judge Sarah A. L. Merriam in Bridgeport to offenses stemming from the theft of numerous firearms from a South Windsor warehouse last year.
According to court documents and statements made in court, in August 2021, a shipment of 50 Zigana, Model PX-9G2 pistols was stolen from R&L Carriers, a national freight shipping company with a warehouse located at 540 Sullivan Avenue in South Windsor. Even though R&L employees were aware of the theft shortly after it occurred in mid-August, they did not notify law enforcement. Officials at R&L carriers reported the theft to law enforcement on September 16, 2021. In October 2021, investigators identified Camara after seeing Facebook Marketplace and Offer Up posts selling high-end speakers and sports trading cards that were similar to items stolen from the R&L warehouse at about the same time of the firearm shipment theft.
Camara was arrested on October 28, 2021. At this time of his arrest, he possessed two firearms, one of which was a Zigana pistol taken during the theft in August 2021.
Camara was previously convicted of felony offenses. It is a violation of federal law for a person previously convicted of a felony offense to possess a firearm or ammunition that has moved in interstate or foreign commerce.
Camara pleaded guilty to one count of possession of firearm by a felon, and one count of receipt and possession of items from an interstate shipment. Judge Merriam scheduled sentencing for September 6, 2022, at which time Camara faces a maximum term of imprisonment of 20 years.
This investigation is being conducted by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF), and the South Windsor Police Department. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Lauren C. Clark and A. Reed Durham.
Greensburg Man Sentenced to Federal Prison for Possession of Dogs for Animal FightingRead the Press Release
United States Attorney Ronald C. Gathe, Jr. announced that U.S. District Judge Brian A. Jackson sentenced Dangelo Dontae Cornish, age 36, of Greensburg, to 14 months in federal prison following his conviction for possessing pit bulls for use in a dogfighting venture. The Court further sentenced Cornish to serve two years of supervised release following his term of imprisonment.
According to admissions made as part of his guilty plea, Cornish admitted that five pit bulls found at his home in Greensburg, Louisiana, were being held and trained for dogfighting. Cornish was found to be discussing dogfighting with members of the Valley Street drug distribution ring operating out of Baton Rouge, when his telephone calls with a member of the ring and others were intercepted during a wiretap. Cornish discussed gambling on dogfights, breeding dogs, and training dogs for dogfighting. In October 2017, federal law enforcement agents obtained a search warrant for Cornish’s residence. At his home agents found five pit bull-type dogs kept in a manner consistent with dogfighting. The dogs were restrained with heavy chains and either weighted dog collars or ankle weights. Agents also found rudimentary outdoor shelters, veterinary supplements manufactured and distributed in interstate commerce, and a treadmill, which was designed to force dogs to exercise. As part of his plea, Cornish admitted he knowingly possessed each of these five dogs for the purpose of animal fighting ventures, and the dogfighting paraphernalia was possessed for the purpose of training and preparing the dogs for participation in animal fighting ventures. The investigation revealed that dogfights were being conducted in Louisiana, Arkansas, Georgia and Mississippi.
In all, from the drug ring case and the animal-fighting venture Cornish is the sixth person to be sentenced to date.
This operation is being investigated the FBI Baton Rouge Capitol Area Gang Task Force, the U.S. Department of Agriculture, and the United States Marshal Service. This matter is being prosecuted by Matthew D. Evans, Trial Attorney, U.S. Department of Justice, Environment and Natural Resources Division, Washington D.C., and Assistant United States Attorney Lyman E. Thornton III.
Greene County Man Pleads Guilty to Attempting to Entice and Transfer Obscene Material to a MinorRead the Press Release
ALBANY, NEW YORK – Thomas “Tommy” Squires, age 37, of Cairo, New York, pled guilty today to attempting to coerce and entice a 14-year-old child to engage in sexual acts with him. The announcement was made by United States Attorney Carla B. Freedman and Janeen DiGuiseppi, Special Agent in Charge of the Albany Field Office of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI).
As part of his guilty plea, Squires admitted that between July and August, 2020, he sent graphic, sexually explicit text messages to an undercover investigator who was posing as the 14-year-old child. In those messages, Squires repeatedly asked the child for naked photos and sent photos of an erect penis to the child. Squires further asked to meet the child in person at a location in Cairo in order to engage in sexual acts with the child in his car. On August 19, 2020, Squires traveled from his residence in Cairo to the pre-determined location to meet and have sex with the child. Squires was encountered by law enforcement upon his arrival and arrested.
Squires faces at least 10 years and up to life in prison, a fine of up to $250,000, and a term of post-imprisonment supervised release of at least 5 years and up to life. Sentencing is scheduled for October 12, 2022 in Albany before United States District Judge Mae A. D’Agostino. 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. Squires will also have to register as a sex offender upon his release from prison.
This case was investigated by the FBI and its Child Exploitation Task Force, which includes members of federal, state and local law enforcement agencies. This case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Rachel L. Williams as part of Project Safe Childhood.
Launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice, Project Safe Childhood is led by United States Attorney’s offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS). Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state and local resources to better locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the Internet, as well as to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit https://www.justice.gov/psc.
Georgia Man Sentenced in Bank Fraud Scheme that Exploited Homeless IndividualsRead the Press Release
PROVIDENCE, R.I. – A Georgia man who solicited, transported, and paid homeless individuals from the Providence area to cash hundreds of thousands of dollars worth of counterfeit business checks in four New England states was sentenced today to two years in federal prison, announced United States Attorney Zachary A. Cunha.
Jalen Ronald Stanford, 28, of Riverdale, GA, and others, created counterfeit checks generally in the amount of $2,000 or more. The checks were made payable to homeless individuals who agreed to be driven to banks in Rhode Island, Massachusetts, Connecticut, and Maine to cash them. These individuals were often paid approximately $100 per check that they successfully cashed. From October 2018 through February 2021, numerous homeless individuals were arrested at banks throughout the region as they attempted to cash some of the counterfeit checks.
A United States Secret Service investigation determined that approximately $677,687 worth of counterfeit checks were presented to banks throughout the four states, causing actual losses to financial institutions of nearly $481,000.
Stanford pled guilty on March 10, 2022, to conspiracy to commit band fraud. He was sentenced today by U.S. District Court Chief Judge John J. McConnell, Jr., 24 months in federal prison to be followed by three years of federal supervised release. Stanford was ordered to pay restitution to financial institutions totaling $480,943.71.
The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Lee H. Vilker.
United States Attorney Cunha thanks the Providence and Medway, MA, Police Departments for their assistance in the investigation of this matter.
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Gary Man Sentenced to 37 Months in PrisonRead the Press Release
HAMMOND- Jalen Sanders, 19 years old, of Gary, Indiana was sentenced by United States District Court Judge Philip P. Simon on his plea of guilty to possessing a machinegun, announced United States Attorney Clifford D. Johnson.
Sanders was sentenced to 37 months in prison followed by 2 years of supervised release.
According to documents in the case, a few days after a shooting incident, in July 2021, law enforcement discovered that Sanders had made a Snapchat video showing him displaying firearms; one appeared to be a machinegun. A subsequent search warrant of Sanders’ home revealed a Glock firearm that had been modified to be a fully automatic weapon with a conversion device known as a “Glock Switch”. The firearm was also equipped with a 50 round drum magazine.
This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation with assistance from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. This case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Caitlin M. Padula.
This case was prosecuted as part of the joint federal, state, and local Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN) Program, the centerpiece of the Department of Justice’s violent crime reduction efforts. PSN is an evidence-based program proven to be effective at reducing violent crime. Through PSN, a broad spectrum of stakeholders work together to identify the most pressing violent crime problems in the community and develop comprehensive solutions to address them. As part of this strategy, PSN focuses enforcement efforts on the most violent offenders and partners with locally based prevention and reentry programs for lasting reductions in crime.
Gambino Crime Family Associate Convicted by Federal Jury in Murder and Robbery of Brooklyn ManRead the Press Release
Anthony Pandrella, an associate of the Gambino organized crime family, was convicted today by a federal jury in Brooklyn of all three counts in an indictment charging him with the Hobbs Act robbery and murder of 77-year-old Vincent Zito and unlawful use of a firearm. The verdict followed a one and a half-week trial before United States Chief District Judge Margo K. Brodie. When sentenced, Pandrella faces up to life in prison and a mandatory minimum sentence of 10 years.
Breon Peace, United States Attorney for the Eastern District of New York, Michael J. Driscoll, Assistant Director-in-Charge, Federal Bureau of Investigation, New York Field Office (FBI), and Keechant Sewell, Commissioner, New York City Police Department (NYPD), announced the verdict.
“Today’s verdict has found that the defendant is a cold-blooded killer who shot his elderly friend in his home, execution-style with a bullet in the back of the head, to avoid returning a large sum of money he was holding for the victim,” stated United States Attorney Peace. “In addition to the brutal betrayal, the defendant also robbed luxury watches from the victim’s loan business. I commend the FBI special agents and the NYPD detectives who solved the case and brought Pandrella to justice.”
Mr. Peace also expressed his thanks to the Brooklyn District Attorney’s Office for their assistance on the case.
“Today’s conviction underscores that no one – including associates of organized crime – is above the law,” stated Commissioner Sewell. “Because of the outstanding work of the U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District and our law enforcement partners at the FBI, this defendant’s callous disregard for human life will not go unanswered. I thank and commend everyone who worked on this case and helped us hold this violent criminal accountable for his actions.”
The evidence at trial proved that Zito was running an illegal loansharking business and had been told by Pandrella that he was “hot,” meaning that he was under investigation by law enforcement. Zito had given Pandrella $750,000 from the business to hold for safekeeping, but when he tried to collect the money back from Pandrella, the defendant failed to return it. On the morning of October 26, 2018, Pandrella went to the Sheepshead Bay home of Zito and while there, shot his friend of more than 30 years in the back of the head at close range. Pandrella also stole expensive foreign-made wristwatches that the victim was holding as collateral for a customer’s loan. Pandrella was captured on security camera footage entering and leaving Zito’s residence at the time of the murder and robbery. After leaving the victim’s residence, Pandrella went home and additional security video from his neighborhood showed that the defendant changed his shoes and clothing, and removed the driver’s side floor mat of this vehicle so it could be cleaned. Zito’s body was discovered by his 11-year-old grandson upon returning home from school. The murder weapon was recovered at the scene and Pandrella’s DNA was found on the trigger and grip of the firearm.
The government’s case is being handled by the Office’s Organized Crime & Gangs Section. Assistant United States Attorneys M. Kristin Mace and Matthew R. Galeotti are in charge of the prosecution.
The Defendant:
ANTHONY PANDRELLA
Age: 62
Brooklyn New YorkE.D.N.Y. Docket No. 19-CR-122 (MKB)
Four men indicted in federal court for illegal firearms possession, drugsRead the Press Release
SAVANNAH, GA: Four defendants are among those facing federal charges including drug trafficking and illegal possession of firearms after separate indictments by a grand jury in the Southern District of Georgia, while recent actions in U.S. District Court include guilty pleas and criminal sentences related to illegal gun possession.
The indicted cases are being investigated as part of Project Safe Neighborhoods in collaboration with federal, state and local law enforcement agencies, including the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF), the FBI and the Drug Enforcement Administration, to reduce violent crime with measures that include targeting convicted felons who illegally carry guns.
“In our continuing battle against violent crime in the Southern District, an essential element is the removal of guns from the hands of convicted felons,” said David H. Estes, U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Georgia. “The message is clear: We and our law enforcement partner will not tolerate these threats to our communities.”
In the past four years, more than 760 defendants have been federally charged in the Southern District of Georgia for illegal firearms offenses – most often for possessing a firearm after conviction for a previous felony.
Defendants named in federal indictments from the June 2022 term of the U.S. District Court grand jury include:
- Deon Brown, 30, of Augusta, charged with Possession with Intent to Distribute Heroin, Cocaine, Crack Cocaine, and Methamphetamine; Possession of a Firearm in Furtherance of a Drug Trafficking Crime; and Possession of Firearms by a Convicted Felon;
- Alonzo Ware Henderson, 37, of Augusta, charged with Possession of a Firearm by a Convicted Felon;
- Cody Truitt Devore, 23, of Sylvania, Ga., charged with Possession of a Firearm by a Convicted Felon; and,
- Harry Telfair, 60, of Savannah, charged with Possession of a Firearm and Ammunition by a Convicted Felon.
Criminal indictments contain only charges; defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
Additional defendants recently have been adjudicated on federal charges that include illegal firearms possession:
- B’Quan Ferguson, 31, of Savannah, was sentenced to 180 months in prison followed by five years of supervised release after pleading guilty to Possession of a Firearm by a Convicted Felon. Savannah Police officers found a pistol in Ferguson’s car during an October 2020 traffic stop. Ferguson has multiple prior state felony convictions, including violent felonies with firearms.
- Kenya Leon Parker, 33, of Savannah, was sentenced to 115 months in prison followed by three years of supervised release after pleading guilty to Possession of a Stolen Firearm. Savannah Police officers arrested Parker in February 2021 after finding a pistol in his possession during a traffic stop.
- Tommy Greene, 34, of Savannah, was sentenced to 84 months in prison followed by three years of supervised release after pleading guilty to Possession with Intent to Distribute Eutylone (Bath Salts) and Methamphetamine, and Possession of a Firearm by a Convicted Felon. The Savannah Police Department Violent Savannah Police officers arrested Bennett in January 2020 when they found him in possession of two pistols during a traffic stop.
- Rasheen Dyshawn Stephens, 30, of Savannah, was sentenced to 60 months in prison followed by three years of release after pleading guilty to Possession of a Firearm by a Convicted Felon. Savannah Police officers investigating a domestic disturbance on June 7, 2021, found a pistol and an extended magazine in Stephens’ pockets.
- James Kenneth Merritt, 35, of Waynesboro, Ga., was sentenced to 54 months in prison followed by three years of supervised release and fined $1,000 after pleading guilty to Possession of a Firearm by a Convicted Felon. Burke County Sheriff’s deputies arrested Merritt in December 2020 after Merritt drove away and then ran from an attempted traffic stop, dropping a pistol as he fled.
- Calvin Jerrod Hendrix, 24, of Savannah, was sentenced to 51 months in prison followed by three years of supervised release after pleading guilty to Possession of a Stolen Firearm. He was charged after Savannah Police officers found a pistol in his apartment in July 2020, and learned the gun had been stolen in Clayton County.
- Hunter Cole Reavis, 25, of Savannah, was sentenced to 44 months in prison followed by three years of supervised release after pleading guilty to Possession of a Firearm by a Convicted Felon. Reavis was on probation in March 2021 when agents from the Georgia Department of Community Supervision found a pistol during a search of his Savannah hotel room.
- Jervario Melton, 30, of Kingsland, Ga., was sentenced to 46 months in prison followed by three years of supervised release after pleading guilty to Possession of a Firearm by a Convicted Felon. Melton was found in possession of a firearm during an Aug. 28, 2020, traffic stop by Port Wentworth police.
- Fredrick Connell Blount, 38, of Augusta, was sentenced to 42 months in prison and ordered to serve three years of supervised release and fined $1,500 after pleading guilty to Possession of a Firearm by a Convicted Felon. Blount was arrested after a traffic stop in August 2020 when Richmond County Sheriff’s deputies found a pistol in the vehicle Blount was driving.
- Barry McCormick, 26, of Savannah, was sentenced to 24 months in prison followed by three years of supervised release after pleading guilty to Possession of a Firearm by a Convicted Felon. McCormick was charged after a pistol fell down his pants leg during a November 2020 traffic stop by Savannah Police officers.
- David McCain III, 35, of Hephzibah, Ga., was sentenced to 24 months in prison followed by three years of supervised release and fined $1,500 after pleading guilty to Possession of a Firearm by a Convicted Felon. He was arrested on New Year’s Day 2020 when Richmond County Sheriff’s deputies investigating reports of celebratory gunfire found McCain, a convicted felon, in possession of an AR-15 style rifle with a high-capacity magazine.
- Ziquane Sandford, 24, of Hephzibah, awaits sentencing after pleading guilty to Engaging in the Business of Dealing in Firearms Without a License. Sandford faces a statutory sentence of up to five years in prison after admitting he sold firearms on four occasions without the required license.
- Willie Joe Liddell, 38, of Augusta, awaits sentencing after pleading guilty to Possession of a Firearm by a Convicted Felon. Richmond County Sheriff’s deputies were assisting the U.S. Marshals Service in arresting Liddell on an outstanding warrant when they discovered a pistol in Liddell’s jacket pocket.
- Kevin Shawn McGahee, 47, of Stapleton, Ga., awaits sentencing after pleading guilty to Possession of a Firearm by a Convicted Felon. As part of his plea agreement, McGahee forfeits 21 guns found during a law enforcement search of his residence in April.
Agencies investigating these cases include the ATF, the DEA, the Georgia Bureau of Investigation, the Savannah Police Department, and the Richmond County Sheriff’s Office.
The cases are being prosecuted for the United States by Southern District U.S. Attorney’s Office Assistant U.S. Attorneys, including Jeremiah L. Johnson, Henry W. Syms Jr., and Tania D. Groover, with firearms forfeitures coordinated through the Southern District of Georgia U.S. Attorney’s Office Asset Recovery Unit.
Under federal law, it is illegal for an individual to possess a firearm if he or she falls into one of nine prohibited categories including being a felon; illegal alien; or unlawful user of a controlled substance. Further, it is unlawful to possess a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking offense or violent crime. It is also illegal to purchase – or even to attempt to purchase – firearms if the buyer is a prohibited person or illegally purchasing a firearm on behalf of others. Lying on ATF Form 4473, which is used to lawfully purchase a firearm, also is a federal offense.
For more information from the ATF on the lawful purchasing of firearms, please see: https://www.atf.gov/qa-category/atf-form-4473.
Former federal probation officer pleads guilty to extorting individuals under her supervisionRead the Press Release
COLUMBUS, Ohio – A former federal probation officer pleaded guilty in U.S. District Court today for extortion. During her time as a probation officer, she accepted cash, pills, goods and services from individuals under her supervision.
Helwa H. Qasem, 44, of Bexley, Ohio, pleaded guilty to a bill of information charging her with extortion under color of official right, a federal crime punishable by up to 20 years in prison.
According to court documents, from 2016 through 2018, Qasem accepted Xanax, cash, a sweater, a bag and below-market personal services in exchange for official actions as a probation officer.
In her role as a U.S. Probation Officer, Qasem supervised offenders who had been sentenced to terms of probation by the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Ohio or who were serving terms of supervised release after release from prison. It was part of her duties to report individuals who violated their terms of probation or supervised release.
As part of her plea, Qasem admitted she extorted property from at least four individuals under her supervision and, in return, did not report violations committed by those individuals. For example, at least two individuals under supervision and the spouse of a third provided Xanax to Qasem for her personal use.
Qasem also unlawfully received several personal services, including moving services to help her relocate to a new home, and repairs to blinds, a dryer, a dishwasher, a washing machine and a vehicle. A person under Qasem’s supervision arranged for workers to provide these personal services for her.
Finally, Qasem admitted to sharing confidential information she received from a Columbus police officer to an individual under her supervision. Qasem had received a police report from the officer. The report stated that the officer had met with a person who was attempting to become a confidential informant and who had provided information that a person under Qasem’s supervision was a drug trafficker. The report contained a photograph of the potential informant. Qasem showed that photograph to the person under her supervision and told him to stay away from the potential informant.
Kenneth L. Parker, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Ohio; J. William Rivers, Special Agent in Charge, Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), Cincinnati Division; Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost’s Bureau of Criminal Investigation (BCI); Columbus Police Chief Elaine Bryant and other members of the FBI’s Southern Ohio Public Corruption Task Force announced the plea entered into today before U.S. District Judge Sarah D. Morrison. Assistant United States Attorneys Peter K. Glenn-Applegate and Elizabeth A. Geraghty are representing the United States in this case.
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Former Memphis Police Officer Indicted for Sexually Assaulting a Female Crime VictimRead the Press Release
A former police officer with the Memphis Police Department was charged in an indictment unsealed today in the Western District of Tennessee for sexually assaulting a woman while he was on duty.
According to the indictment, Bridges Randle, 47, who has also used the names Ajamu Abiola Banjoko and Oluwafemi Abiola Banjoko, sexually assaulted the woman after he was dispatched to a vandalism call at the woman’s residence on June 24, 2000.
Randle is charged with committing a civil rights offense that included aggravated sexual abuse. If convicted, Randle faces a maximum sentence of life in prison.
Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division, U.S. Attorney Joseph C. Murphy Jr. for the Western District of Tennessee and Special Agent in Charge Douglas Korneski for the FBI Memphis Field Office made the announcement.
This case is being investigated by the FBI’s Memphis Field Office. Assistant U.S. Attorney David Pritchard for the Western District of Tennessee and Trial Attorneys Maura White and Andrew Manns of the Criminal Section of the Civil Rights Division are prosecuting the case.
An indictment is merely an allegation, and the defendant is presumed innocent unless proven guilty.
Former Memphis Police Officer Indicted for Sexually Assaulting a Female Crime VictimRead the Press Release
Memphis, TN - A former police officer with the Memphis Police Department was charged in an indictment unsealed today in the Western District of Tennessee for sexually assaulting a woman while he was on duty.
According to the indictment, Bridges Randle, 47, who has also used the names Ajamu Abiola Banjoko and Oluwafemi Abiola Banjoko, sexually assaulted the woman after he was dispatched to a vandalism call at the woman's residence on June 24, 2000.
Randle is charged with committing a civil rights offense that included aggravated sexual abuse. If convicted, Randle faces a maximum sentence of life in prison.
Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke of the Justice Department's Civil Rights Division, U.S. Attorney Joseph C. Murphy Jr. for the Western District of Tennessee and Special Agent in Charge Douglas Korneski for the FBI Memphis Field Office made the announcement.
This case is being investigated by the FBI's Memphis Field Office. Assistant U.S. Attorney David Pritchard for the Western District of Tennessee and Trial Attorneys Maura White and Andrew Manns of the Criminal Section of the Civil Rights Division are prosecuting the case.
An indictment is merely an allegation, and the defendant is presumed innocent unless proven guilty.
###Former EarthWater CFO and Others Plead Guilty to Fraud Charges Related to High-Yield Investment SchemeRead the Press Release
The former Chief Financial Officer of EarthWater Limited (EarthWater), a Dallas-based company, pleaded guilty on June 7 to 22 charges for a multimillion-dollar, high-yield investment fraud scheme that targeted elderly victims. In addition, another individual who sold EarthWater securities pleaded guilty today to one charge related to the investment fraud scheme.
According to court documents, Harley E. “Buddy” Barnes III, 63, of Plano, Texas, pleaded guilty to conspiracy, fraud, and money laundering charges. Barnes, who was EarthWater’s CFO, conspired to and obtained investor funds through a scheme to defraud. Relatedly, Joe Edward Duchinsky, 67, of Alhambra, California, who sold EarthWater securities, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit mail and wire fraud.
According to court documents, beginning in or about 2013 and continuing through or about May 2019, Barnes, as CFO of EarthWater, and Duchinsky, as a salesperson of EarthWater stock, participated in a fraudulent scheme to convince individuals in the United States, the United Kingdom, and Canada to invest in EarthWater under the false pretense that their investment would increase substantially in value in the immediate future. In connection with the scheme, Barnes, Duchinsky, and their co-conspirators made materially false and fraudulent misrepresentations to investors that the majority of investor funds would be used to support EarthWater’s operations. In fact, the funds were used to pay undisclosed, excessive commissions to Duchinsky and others for selling EarthWater stock on Barnes’s behalf. Barnes, Duchinsky, and their co-conspirators knew that the proceeds of EarthWater stock sales were not invested in EarthWater as described to victim investors, but rather paid out to Barnes, Duchinsky, and their co-conspirators and others for their personal benefit. Barnes also engaged in money laundering involving investor funds obtained as part of the scheme.
In addition, according to court documents, Beth Ellen DeGroot, 62, of Plano, Texas, EarthWater’s former President, pleaded guilty in a separate action on May 17 to conspiring with Barnes. After the company’s bank accounts were frozen, DeGroot conspired with Barnes to fraudulently direct EarthWater’s payroll processor to continue to pay Barnes and DeGroot’s paychecks even though the company’s operations had ceased, and it had insufficient funds to cover payroll. DeGroot also submitted a fraudulent mortgage loan application using pay stubs fraudulently obtained from the payroll processor. When DeGroot learned about the government’s ongoing investigation, she attempted to obstruct the investigation by falsifying a document she produced to a federal grand jury and by making a false statement to a federal agent.
Barnes pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit mail fraud and wire fraud, 10 counts of mail fraud, 10 counts of wire fraud, and one count of money laundering. He is scheduled to be sentenced on Sept. 28. Duchinsky pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit mail and wire fraud. He is scheduled to be sentenced at a later time. DeGroot pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud and is scheduled to be sentenced on Sept. 14. Barnes faces up to 10 years in prison for the money laundering count and up to 20 years in prison for each of the other counts. Duchinsky and DeGroot each face up to 20 years in prison. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
Five other defendants have also pleaded guilty in the Northern District of Texas for their roles in the EarthWater high-yield investment fraud scheme, including EarthWater’s CEO, Cengiz Jan Comu, 61, of Dallas, Texas; EarthWater’s Chief Operating Officer, John Mervyn Price, 66, of Dallas, Texas; Donald Andrew Rothman, 74, of Coral Springs, Florida; Richard Laurence Kadish, 61, of Miami, Florida; and Richard Lawrence Green, 71, of Deerfield Beach, Florida. These five defendants are scheduled to be sentenced on Sept. 7.
Three other defendants are awaiting trial on charges set forth in a superseding indictment filed on Nov. 6, 2019, in the Northern District of Texas. The trial is scheduled to begin on Oct. 3. An indictment is merely an allegation, and all defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
Assistant Attorney General Kenneth A. Polite, Jr. of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division; U.S. Attorney Chad E. Meacham for the Northern District of Texas; and Inspector in Charge Eric Shen of the U.S. Postal Inspection Service’s (USPIS) Criminal Investigations Group made the announcement.
USPIS is investigating the case.
Trial Attorneys Christopher Fenton and Theodore Kneller of the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section and Assistant U.S. Attorney Mary F. Walters of the Northern District of Texas are prosecuting the case.
Former Detroit Police Department Officer Sentenced to Prison for Taking BribesRead the Press Release
DETROIT - A former Detroit Police Department officer was sentenced to prison today for taking $3,200 in cash bribes over an almost two-year period, United States Attorney Dawn N. Ison announced.
Ison was joined in the announcement by James A. Tarasca, Special Agent in Charge, Federal Bureau of Investigation, Detroit Division.
During a hearing today before U.S. District Court Judge George Caram Steeh, Alonzo Jones, 55, of Detroit, Michigan, was sentenced to 15 months in prison and two years of supervised release based on his plea of guilty to accepting bribes. Jones, an officer with the Detroit Police Department for over 30 years, corruptly accepted cash bribes on five separate occasions, totaling $3,200, with the intent to be influenced and rewarded in connection with his duties overseeing and running the Detroit Police Vehicle Auction. The last bribe he took was right before he retired from DPD in May 2021.
United States Attorney Ison said, “Every new police officer takes an oath to uphold our laws and act with integrity. This officer broke that oath and his crimes are an affront to the citizens of Detroit and the honest officers of the Detroit Police Department who put their lives on the line to protect those citizens. This sentence shows our office’s commitment to aggressively pursuing police officers who use their trusted positions of authority to enrich themselves.”
“The public expects law enforcement officers to do their work with honesty and integrity. Instead, Mr. Jones exploited his official position, accepting bribes in exchange for favors related to the Detroit Vehicle Auction. Today, he was held accountable for his criminal conduct,” said James A. Tarasca, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI’s Detroit Division. “Thank you to Chief James White for his cooperation during this investigation and to the men and women of the Detroit Police Department who serve with honor day in and day out. And thank you to the members of the Detroit Area Corruption Task Force for their continued work on Operation Northern Hook."
Jones was charged as part of the government’s investigation known as “Operation Northern Hook.” Northern Hook is an investigation of corruption within the government and the Police Department of the City of Detroit relating to the towing industry and other matters.
The investigation of this case was conducted by the Federal Bureau of Investigation. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Frances Lee Carlson.
The Detroit Area Corruption Task Force member agencies include the FBI, State of Michigan Attorney General's Office, Michigan State Police, Detroit Police Department, U.S. Customs and Border Patrol-Office of Professional Responsibility, Internal Revenue Service, and U.S. Department of Homeland Security.
Former Chairman and Managing Partner of Energy Company Pleads Guilty to $15 Million Ponzi SchemeRead the Press Release
A California man who previously served as an executive at an energy company pleaded guilty today to defrauding investors of more than $15 million as part of a Ponzi scheme involving limited partnerships created to provide services to oil and gas companies in North Dakota.
According to court documents, Joey Stanton Dodson, 58, formerly of Indio, engaged in a scheme between November 2012 and May 2015 to defraud investors while serving as the executive chairman and managing partner of Citadel Energy Partners. In his role, Dodson had certain responsibilities for three limited partnerships, Fort Berthold Water Partners L.P., Citadel Watford City Disposal Partners L.P., and H20 Partners L.P., which included raising funds for the limited partnerships, controlling their bank accounts, and disseminating their financial information to investors. As part of the scheme, Dodson made materially false and misleading representations and omissions to prospective and existing investors regarding his receipt of compensation, the intended use of investor funds, and the status of a potential acquisition of the limited partnerships by a private-equity firm, among other things.
After inducing investors to deposit their funds, Dodson pooled the funds from the limited partnerships and conducted multiple transfers between Citadel-related accounts that helped him divert investor funds for his own benefit and conceal his actions. In total, Dodson fraudulently raised over $15.6 million from 51 investors and misappropriated $1.3 million in investor funds, which he used to repay investors in an unrelated investment he operated under an entity known as Duke Equity and to pay other personal expenses. After Dodson’s misappropriation was discovered, the limited partnerships were placed into bankruptcy and the investors suffered a total loss of their investments.
Dodson pleaded guilty to one count of wire fraud. He is scheduled to be sentenced on Oct. 25 and faces a maximum penalty 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.
Assistant Attorney General Kenneth A. Polite, Jr. of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division; U.S. Attorney Stephanie M. Hinds for the Northern District of California; and Special Agent in Charge Sean Ragan of the FBI’s San Francisco Field Office made the announcement.
The FBI’s San Francisco Field Office investigated the case.
Trial Attorney Jason M. Covert of the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section and Assistant U.S. Attorney Sarah Griswold of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of California are prosecuting the case. The Enforcement Division of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission provided valuable assistance.
Former Chairman and Managing Partner of Energy Company Pleads Guilty to $15 Million Ponzi SchemeRead the Press Release
SAN JOSE – Joey Stanton Dodson, who previously served as an executive at Citadel Energy Partners, pleaded guilty today to defrauding investors of more than $15 million. Dodson admitted the fraud was part of a Ponzi scheme involving limited partnerships created to provide services to oil and gas companies in North Dakota. The plea was accepted by the Hon. Beth Labson Freeman, U.S. District Judge.
According to court documents, Dodson, 58, formerly of Indio, engaged in a scheme between November 2012 and May 2015 to defraud investors while serving as the executive chairman and managing partner of Citadel Energy Partners. In his role, Dodson had certain responsibilities for three limited partnerships, Fort Berthold Water Partners L.P., Citadel Watford City Disposal Partners L.P., and H20 Partners L.P., which included raising funds for the limited partnerships, controlling their bank accounts, and disseminating their financial information to investors. As part of the scheme, Dodson made materially false and misleading representations and omissions to prospective and existing investors regarding his receipt of compensation, the intended use of investor funds, and the status of a potential acquisition of the limited partnerships by a private-equity firm, among other things.
After inducing investors to deposit their funds, Dodson pooled the funds from the limited partnerships and conducted multiple transfers between Citadel-related accounts that helped him divert investor funds for his own benefit and conceal his actions. In total, Dodson fraudulently raised over $15.6 million from 51 investors and misappropriated $1.3 million in investor funds, which he used to repay investors in an unrelated investment he operated under an entity known as Duke Equity and to pay other personal expenses. After Dodson’s misappropriation was discovered, the limited partnerships were placed into bankruptcy and the investors suffered a total loss of their investments.
Dodson pleaded guilty to one count of wire fraud. Judge Freeman scheduled Dodson’s sentencing for October 25, 2022; he faces a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison. Any sentence will be imposed only after consideration of the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
U.S. Attorney Stephanie M. Hinds; Assistant Attorney General Kenneth A. Polite, Jr. of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division; and Special Agent in Charge Sean Ragan of the FBI’s San Francisco Field Office made the announcement.
The FBI’s San Francisco Field Office investigated the case.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Sarah Griswold of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of California and Trial Attorney Jason M. Covert of the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section are prosecuting the case. The Enforcement Division of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission provided valuable assistance.
Florida Tax Preparer Pleads Guilty to Criminal ContemptRead the Press Release
A Florida man pleaded guilty today to criminal contempt for continuing to prepare and file tax returns with the IRS in violation of a federal court order barring him from doing so.
According to court documents, Guy Telfort, of Fort Lauderdale, previously owned and operated Tax Houses and Accounting Services, a Lauderdale Lakes tax preparation business. From approximately January 2015 through April 2019, Telfort and other employees of Tax Houses and Accounting Services prepared and filed tax returns for clients. To generate inflated IRS refunds for clients, some of these tax returns reported false items, including fictitious business income and losses and mileage deductions. On April 24, 2019, the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida entered an injunction against Telfort in a civil proceeding, permanently barring Telfort from preparing federal tax returns for others.
Despite this court-ordered injunction, in 2020 and 2021, Telfort continued to prepare and file tax returns out of an Oakland Park pawn shop. He charged clients as much as $1,000 for each return filed with the IRS. Some of the tax returns reported false medical and dental expenses and charitable contributions, as well as fictitious businesses. To disguise his role in preparing these returns, Telfort used Preparer Tax Identification Numbers belonging to other tax preparers. Over the two-year period, Telfort helped prepare nearly 1,200 tax returns for clients in willful violation of the permanent injunction.
Telfort is scheduled to be sentenced on Aug. 16 and potentially faces a period of incarceration, term of supervised release, and monetary fine. A district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
Acting Deputy Assistant Attorney General Stuart M. Goldberg of the Justice Department’s Tax Division and U.S. Attorney Juan Antonio Gonzalez for the Southern District of Florida made the announcement.
Trial Attorneys Ashley Stein and Casey Smith of the Tax Division are prosecuting the case.
Excavation Company Employee Convicted of Paying Kickbacks to Suburban Chicago Highway CommissionerRead the Press Release
CHICAGO — A federal jury has convicted an excavation company employee of paying kickbacks to a suburban Chicago highway commissioner in exchange for approving hundreds of thousands of dollars in fraudulent invoices for purported road work.
MARIO GIANNINI worked at Bulldog Earth Movers Inc., an excavation company in Bloomingdale, Ill. From 2012 to 2020, Giannini paid more than $280,000 in kickbacks to ROBERT CZERNEK, Commissioner of the Bloomingdale Township Road District, in exchange for Czernek using his official position to approve payment of stone delivery, dump leveling, and storm sewer invoices submitted to the township by Bulldog. Czernek would leave handwritten notes for Giannini in predetermined places around the Bloomingdale Township Highway Department office and grounds identifying the information that Bulldog needed to include in the fraudulent invoices. Czernek later approved the invoices knowing that much of the work and services were never performed. The fraud scheme resulted in Bloomingdale Township issuing more than $800,000 in checks to Bulldog.
The jury in U.S. District Court in Chicago on Monday convicted Giannini, 60, of Bloomingdale, on all 14 wire fraud counts against him. Each count is punishable by up to 20 years in federal prison. U.S. District Judge Matthew F. Kennelly set sentencing for Sept. 7, 2022, at 1:30 p.m.
The conviction was announced by John R. Lausch, Jr., United States Attorney for the Northern District of Illinois; and Emmerson Buie, Jr., Special Agent-in-Charge of the Chicago Field Office of the FBI. Valuable assistance was provided by the IRS Criminal Investigation Division in Chicago, and the DuPage County State’s Attorney’s Office. The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Saurish Appleby-Bhattacharjee and Ashley A. Chung.
Czernek, of Bloomingdale, pleaded guilty earlier this year to one count of wire fraud and admitted accepting the kickbacks and approving the fraudulent invoices. Czernek agreed to forfeit several items that were criminally derived from the fraud scheme, including a 2014 Lexus RX350, a 1966 Buick Wildcat, and a 1981 Corvette. Czernek’s sentencing hearing has not yet been scheduled.
The court acquitted a third defendant, DEBRA FAZIO, of Bloomingdale, during trial.
Erie Man Pleads Guilty to Receiving Child Sexual Abuse MaterialsRead the Press Release
ERIE, Pa. - A resident of Erie, Pennsylvania, pleaded guilty in federal court to a charge of violating federal laws relating to the sexual exploitation of children, United States Attorney Cindy K. Chung announced today.
David Lyons, 29, pleaded guilty to one count before Senior United States District Judge David S. Cercone.
In connection with the guilty plea, the court was advised that from January 2019 to March 2020, Lyons received computer and cell phone images depicting prepubescent minors engaging in sexually explicit conduct.
This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by the United States Attorneys' Offices and the Criminal Division's Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS), Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who sexually exploit children, and to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.justice.gov/psc.
Judge Cercone scheduled sentencing for October 7, 2022 at 1:00 p.m. The law provides for a total sentence of 20 years in prison, a fine of $250,000, or both. Under the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, the actual sentence imposed is based upon the seriousness of the offense and the prior criminal history, if any, of the defendant.
Pending sentencing, the court continued Lyons on bond.
Assistant United States Attorney Christian A. Trabold is prosecuting this case on behalf of the government.
The Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Pennsylvania State Police conducted the investigation that led to the prosecution of Lyons.
Eastern Idaho Nurse Practitioner Pays the Price for Unlawfully Prescribing NarcoticsRead the Press Release
BOISE – Kenneth Lowther, a nurse practitioner in eastern Idaho, consented to judgment against him after admitting that he unlawfully prescribed narcotics on more than 15 occasions. The judgment, entered by the United States District Court for the District of Idaho, found Lowther civilly liable for violating the Controlled Substances Act and required that he pay a $30,000 fine.
According to the government’s Complaint, Lowther wrote prescriptions for hydrocodone in the name of one patient, but thereafter gave the prescriptions to a third-party for filling and use. The government alleged, and the Court and Lowther ultimately agreed, that the unlawful prescriptions lacked a legitimate medical purpose and were written outside the usual course of professional practice in violation of federal and state law.
“While there is a place for opioid pain medication in a legitimate medical practice, that place is not the unlawful diversion of such medication for illegal and unauthorized use,” said U.S. Attorney Rafael M. Gonzalez Jr., who announced the judgment. “This office will continue to hold prescribers accountable under the Controlled Substances Act when they write prescriptions that lack a legitimate medical purpose, and this case once again demonstrates our commitment to attacking the opioid epidemic on all fronts.”
“The allegations in this matter describe an outrageous diversion of opioid pills without medical purpose and with the high potential to cause harm to individuals and communities,” said Steven J. Ryan, Special Agent in Charge with the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General (HHS-OIG). “We will continue to partner with the U.S. Attorney’s Office to root out this kind of abuse at every turn.”
This matter was investigated jointly by the U.S. Attorney’s Office and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Office of the Inspector General, with additional assistance provided by the Idaho Board of Pharmacy and the Idaho State Attorney General’s Office.
For additional case information and publicly available court documents, see United States v. Kenneth Lowther, 22-CV-00069 (REP) (U.S. District Court for the District of Idaho).
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East Pittsburgh Felon Sentenced to 7 Years for Illegally Possessing a GunRead the Press Release
PITTSBURGH, PA – A former resident of East Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, has been sentenced in federal court to a total of 84 months in prison for violating federal firearms laws and his conditions of supervised release, United States Attorney Cindy K. Chung announced today.
Senior United States District Judge David Cercone imposed the sentence on Terrence Pasley, age 34.
According to information presented to the court, on January 16, 2021, Mr. Pasley illegally possessed a firearm as a convicted felon, and violated the conditions of his release by possessing that firearm. Federal law prohibits an individual who has been convicted of a felony from possessing a firearm.
Assistant United States Attorney Nicole Ann Stockey prosecuted this case on behalf of the government.
U.S. Attorney Chung commended the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and City of Pittsburgh Bureau of Police for conducting the investigation leading to the conviction in this case.
This case was brought as part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), the centerpiece of the Department of Justice’s violent crime reduction efforts. PSN is an evidence-based program proven to be effective at reducing violent crime. Through PSN, a broad spectrum of stakeholders work together to identify the most pressing violent crime problems in the community and develop comprehensive solutions to address them. As part of this strategy, PSN focuses enforcement efforts on the most violent offenders and partners with locally based prevention and reentry programs for lasting reductions in crime.
Dubach Man Receives 10+ Year Sentence for Illegal Possession of FirearmsRead the Press Release
MONROE, La. – United States Attorney Brandon B. Brown announced that Brandon Khesahn Cooper, 50, of Dubach, Louisiana, was sentenced today by United States District Judge Terry A. Doughty. Cooper was sentenced to a total of 138 months (11 years, 6 months) in prison, followed by 5 years of supervised release, for possession of firearms by a convicted felon and possession of firearms in furtherance of drug trafficking.
According to evidence presented in court, deputies with the Lincoln Parish Sheriff’s Office executed a search warrant on Cooper’s residence on October 19, 2021. Inside his bedroom, deputies found 12 grams of methamphetamine and a Charter Arms .38 revolver located next to Cooper’s wallet. Deputies also found packaging material consistent with distribution of illegal substances and a .410 gauge CBC shotgun in the bedroom.
Law enforcement agents with the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) interviewed Cooper after being read his Miranda rights. In the interview, Cooper claimed the methamphetamine and firearms, and admitted to agents that he was selling drugs and had purchased the revolver even though he was a convicted felon. Cooper had previously been convicted of a felony and knew that he was prohibited from possessing any firearm or ammunition. Agents with the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) determined that the revolver and shotgun were both manufactured outside of the state of Louisiana and had traveled in interstate commerce.
The case was investigated by the DEA, ATF and the Lincoln Parish Sheriff’s Office, and was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Robert F. Moody.
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 make our neighborhoods safer for everyone. PSN is part of the Department’s renewed focus on targeting violent criminals, directing all U.S. Attorney’s Offices to work in partnership with federal, state, local, and tribal law enforcement and the local community to develop effective, locally-based strategies to reduce violent crime. To learn more about Project Safe Neighborhoods, go to www.justice.gov/psn.
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Deputy U.S. Marshal Charged with Unlawfully Obtaining Cell Phone Location InformationRead the Press Release
A Deputy U.S. Marshal has been charged by indictment with unlawfully obtaining cell phone location information by misusing a law enforcement service, and later making false statements about his use of that service.
Adrian Pena, 48, of Del Rio, Texas, made his initial appearance in federal court yesterday in the Western District of Texas.
According to court documents, Pena allegedly unlawfully used a law enforcement service operated by Securus Technologies Inc. (Securus) for personal reasons, including to obtain cell phone location information relating to multiple individuals with whom the defendant had personal relationships and their spouses. Pena obtained this information by uploading false and fraudulent documents to the Securus system and by certifying that those documents were official documents giving permission to obtain the relevant individuals’ cell phone location information. After this activity became known to law enforcement, Pena lied to law enforcement officials about his use of the Securus service for personal reasons, including to locate individuals with whom he was or had been in a personal relationship. Pena also drafted an affidavit in the name of one of these individuals and persuaded that individual to sign the affidavit, which falsely stated that the individual had given Pena unlimited access to all of that individual’s personal cell phone information at all times.
Pena is charged with 11 counts of obtaining confidential phone records, two counts of false statements, and one count of falsification of a record. If convicted, he faces up to 10 years in prison for each count of obtaining confidential phone records, up to five years in prison for each count of false statements, and up to 20 years in prison for falsification of a record. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
Assistant Attorney General Kenneth A. Polite, Jr. of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division and Special Agent in Charge Cloey C. Pierce of the Department of Justice Office of the Inspector General (DOJ-OIG) Dallas Field Office made the announcement.
DOJ-OIG is investigating the case.
Deputy Chief Robert Heberle and Trial Attorney Nicole Lockhart of the Criminal Division’s Public Integrity Section 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.
Convicted Felon Pleads Guilty to Illegally Possessing FirearmRead the Press Release
Antwoine Johnson, 29, from Sioux City, Iowa, pled guilty June 14, 2022, in federal court in Sioux City, to possession of a firearm by a prohibited person.
Evidence at the plea hearing showed that on January 23, 2022, the Sioux City Police Department stopped Johnson for a traffic violation. Law enforcement detected the smell of marijuana emanating from the car. During a subsequent search of the car, Officers found a 9mm firearm in the void between the driver’s seat and console. Officers also found approximately 120 grams of marijuana in four separate baggies in the center console. Johnson was a convicted felon, previously convicted of felony burglary third degree in 2016, and was an unlawful user of marijuana, both of which prohibited him from legally possessing any firearm.
This case was brought as part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN). PSN is the centerpiece of the Department of Justice’s violent crime reduction efforts. PSN is an evidence-based program proven to be effective at reducing violent crime. Through PSN, a broad spectrum of stakeholders work together to identify the most pressing violent crime problems in the community and develop comprehensive solutions to address them. As part of this strategy, PSN focuses enforcement efforts on the most violent offenders and partners with locally based prevention and reentry programs for lasting reductions in crime.
Sentencing before United States District Court Chief Judge Leonard T. Strand will be set after a presentence report is prepared. Johnson remains free on bond previously set pending sentencing. Johnson faces a possible maximum sentence of 10 years’ imprisonment, a $250,000 fine, and not more than 3 years of supervised release following any imprisonment.
The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Patrick T. Greenwood and was investigated by Sioux City Police Department and Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives.
Court file information at https://ecf.iand.uscourts.gov/cgi-bin/login.pl.
The case file number is 22-4019.
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Clinton Man Indicted for Illegally Excavating Native American SiteRead the Press Release
KANSAS CITY, Mo. – A Clinton, Mo., man has been indicted by a federal grand jury for illegally excavating a prehistoric Native American site near Tightwad, Mo., causing more than $300,000 in damage.
Johnny Lee Brown, 70, was charged in an 11-count indictment returned under seal by a federal grand jury in Kansas City, Mo., on April 26, 2022. That indictment was unsealed and made public today upon Brown’s arrest and initial court appearance.
According to the indictment, Brown participated in a conspiracy from June 20, 2016, to September 2021 to unlawfully excavate archeological resources from federal lands at Harry S. Truman Lake in Henry County, Mo. The site, which is located on a peninsula in Harry Truman Lake, is a large prehistoric Native American site that dates to the Late Archaic Period (3,000-5,000 years ago).
The federal indictment also refers to two known co-conspirators who are not identified as well as unknown co-conspirators. The indictment alleges that Brown and his co-conspirators either drove down a closed access road or walked to the site. They allegedly used tools ranging from small handheld trowels to full-size shovels, rakes, and hoes to dig, excavate, or otherwise damage large areas.
Damage to the site, says the indictment, has been estimated by a professional archeologist to be in excess of $300,000. According to the Osage Nation, the excavation damage to this archaeological site caused by this conspiracy greatly impacts the cultural history of the Osage Nation and affiliated tribes.
In addition to the conspiracy, Brown is charged with five felony counts of excavating, damaging, and otherwise altering and defacing archeological resources. Brown is also charged with five felony counts of injury or depredation to government property. The indictment cites 10 specific occasions on which Brown and his co-conspirators excavated the site.
The charges contained in this indictment are simply accusations, and not evidence of guilt. Evidence supporting the charges must be presented to a federal trial jury, whose duty is to determine guilt or innocence.
This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys David A. Barnes and Cari Walsh. It was investigated by the National Fish and Wildlife Service and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.
Chatham County man admits producing, possessing child pornographyRead the Press Release
BRUNSWICK, GA: A Chatham County man has pled guilty to child exploitation charges, cancelling his trial that had been set for this week in Brunswick.
Rodney Bryant, 37, of Savannah, pled guilty in U.S. District Court to Production of Child Pornography and Possession of Child Pornography, said David H. Estes, U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Georgia. The production charge carries a mandatory minimum sentence of 15 years in prison, up to 30, along with five years to life of supervised release, substantial financial penalties and restitution, and registration upon release as a sex offender.
There is no parole in the federal system.
“Pedophiles who produce child pornography and share it on the Internet doom exploited children to a lifetime of victimization,” said U.S. Attorney Estes. “Thanks to the diligence and determination of our law enforcement partners and prosecutors, Rodney Bryant will be held accountable for these heinous crimes.”
As described in court documents and testimony, agents from Homeland Security Investigations and the Savannah Police Department searched Bryant’s residence in 2020 after the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children provided cybertips regarding images of child sexual abuse to the Georgia Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force. Investigators later seized dozens of electronic devices from Bryant’s home, and found thousands of images of child sexual abuse and child erotica on those devices. The investigation determined Bryant produced many of those images in Georgia and at his previous residence in Fort Drum, N.Y.
Bryant had been scheduled for a jury trial, but it was cancelled by his guilty plea to key charges in the case. Sentencing before U.S. District Court Judge Lisa Godbey Wood will be held after completion of a pre-sentencing investigation by U.S. Probation Services.
“Bryant is a predator who not only abused children, but he also recorded these horrible acts for others to see. Thankfully, he will no longer be able to continue his deplorable acts of abuse and we all can breathe a little easier,” said Special Agent in Charge Katrina W. Berger, who oversees Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) operations in Georgia and Alabama. “HSI and its partners will continue to find, arrest and prosecute those who seek to exploit our most vulnerable population.”
The case was investigated by Homeland Security Investigations and the Savannah Police Department, and prosecuted for the United States by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Jennifer J. Kirkland and Project Safe Childhood Coordinator Tara M. Lyons.
This investigation took place under the umbrella of the U.S. Department of Justice’s Project Safe Childhood. Anyone with information on suspected child sexual exploitation can contact the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children at 800-843-5678, or https://report.cybertip.org/.
Cavour Man Sentenced for Attempted Enticement of a Minor Using the InternetRead the Press Release
United States Attorney Alison J. Ramsdell announced that a Cavour, South Dakota, man convicted of Attempted Enticement of a Minor Using the Internet was sentenced on June 13, 2022, by U.S. District Judge Karen E. Schreier.
David Robert Farrell, age 40, was sentenced to 120 months in federal prison, followed by 10 years of supervised release, and a special assessment to the Federal Crime Victims Fund in the amount of $100.
Farrell was indicted by a federal grand jury on May 4, 2021. He pled guilty on March 14, 2022.
The conviction stemmed from incidents between April 22 and April 27, 2021, when Farrell knowingly used his cell phone to persuade and entice a 15-year-old female to meet with him at a hotel in Sioux Falls, South Dakota, for the purpose of having sexual activity. Farrell had been texting with a person he knew to be a 15-year-old female. Unknown to him, and before the criminal conduct occurred, an undercover law enforcement officer assumed the identity of the 15-year-old female online. Some of his communications were sexual in nature and he expressed his intent to meet with the 15-year-old at a hotel in Sioux Falls for the purpose of engaging in sexual activity.
This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the South Dakota Division of Criminal Investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney Jeffrey C. Clapper prosecuted the case.
Farrell was immediately turned over to the custody of the U.S. Marshals Service.
California Man and Nevada Woman Indicted for Interstate Sex TraffickingRead the Press Release
A federal judge in the Southern District of Mississippi unsealed an indictment in which the United States charged a California man and a Nevada woman with one count each of sex trafficking by force, fraud or coercion; conspiracy to commit sex trafficking by force, fraud and coercion; and interstate transportation for purposes of prostitution.
According to the indictment, between April 2020 and June 2020, Michael Deon Fulcher, 52, and Jonzie Hamilton, 33, used force, fraud and coercion to cause an adult woman to engage in commercial sex acts in multiple states.
The charge of sex trafficking by force, fraud or coercion carries a mandatory minimum sentence of 15 years and a maximum of life in prison, up to five years of supervised release and a fine of up to $250,000. Sentences are imposed by a federal district court judge based on the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
The FBI is asking anyone with information about Michael Deon Fulcher and Jonzie Hamilton to contact the FBI Jackson Field Office at (601) 948-5000. If you or someone you know is a victim of human trafficking, please call the National Human Trafficking Hotline at 1-888-373-7888.
Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division, U.S. Attorney Darren J. LaMarca for the Southern District of Mississippi and Special Agent in Charge Jermicha L. Fomby for the FBI Jackson Field Office made the announcement. The FBI conducted the investigation with the assistance of the Mississippi Bureau of Investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney Kathlyn Van Buskirk of the Southern District of Mississippi and Trial Attorney Kate Alexander of the Civil Rights Division’s Human Trafficking Prosecution Unit are prosecuting the case.
An indictment is merely an allegation, and the defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty.