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Tuesday 5 April 2022
Norfolk Man Sentenced to Prison for Fentanyl Distribution Resulting in Death of Chesapeake WomanRead the Press Release
NORFOLK, Va. – A federal judge yesterday sentenced a Norfolk man to 45 years in prison for his role in a conspiracy to manufacture and distribute fentanyl, acetyl-fentanyl, and heroin in the Hampton Roads region. He was convicted by a jury in May 2021 of all five counts related to the drug conspiracy, including distribution of fentanyl resulting in a young woman’s death.
According to court records and evidence presented at trial, between early 2017 and May 2020, Daniel Carrington, a.k.a. “Eastside,” a.k.a. “E,” 28, traveled to Baltimore, Maryland, and purchased heroin, fentanyl, and acetyl-fentanyl to resell in Chesapeake and throughout the Hampton Roads region. The drugs distributed by Carrington resulted in the overdose death of a Chesapeake woman, identified in Court documents as D.J., on December 27, 2019. Although Carrington was aware D.J.’s death, he continued to sell fentanyl until his arrest in May 2020.
Evidence presented at trial included a video of the defendant laughing at his “tester” while he was falling out of consciousness and proudly declaring how strong his fentanyl was. Other videos introduced to the jury included large quantities of cash, a firearm, and illegal narcotics. Text messages introduced at trial showed the defendant’s knowledge that he was distributing pure fentanyl and that he knew of its lethal effects. A medical examiner testified that the levels of fentanyl in the victim’s body were five times the minimum level considered to be lethal by forensic pathologists.
Jessica D. Aber, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia, Brian Dugan, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI’s Norfolk Field Office, and Kelvin L. Wright, Chief of the Chesapeake Police Department made the announcement after sentencing by U.S. District Judge John A. Gibney.
Assistant U.S. Attorneys John F. Butler and Joseph E. DePadilla are prosecuting the case.
This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), which 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.
A copy of this press release is located on the website of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Virginia. Related court documents and information are located on the website of the District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia or on PACER by searching for Case No. 2:20-cr-106.
Nicholas County Man Sentenced for Federal Gun OffenseRead the Press Release
CHARLESTON, W.Va. – A Nicholas County man was sentenced today to one year and one month in prison, to be followed by three years of supervised release, for being a felon in possession of a firearm.
According to court documents and statements made in court, a deputy with the Nicholas County Sheriff’s Department arrived at the Mount Lookout residence of Brian Jacob Taylor, 35, in February 2021 to serve Taylor with a warrant for his arrest concerning an unrelated charge. Taylor asked the deputy if he could put a shirt on and secure his dog before being transported to the police station. While inside Taylor’s residence, the deputy observed a loaded shotgun and marijuana in plain view. Later that same day, the Nicholas County Sheriff’s Department obtained and executed a search warrant for Taylor’s residence and located two loaded firearms as well as several controlled substances, including methamphetamine, a heroin-fentanyl mixture and marijuana. Taylor was prohibited from possessing firearms by virtue of two prior felony convictions in Nicholas County Circuit Court for the delivery of a controlled substance.
U.S. Attorney Will Thompson made the announcement. The Nicholas County Sheriff’s Department conducted the investigation with assistance from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF).
Senior United States District Judge David A. Faber presided over the sentencing. Assistant United States Attorney Andrew J. Tessman is handling the prosecution.
A copy of this press release is located on the website of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of West Virginia. Related court documents and information can be found on PACER by searching for Case No. 2:21-cr-00019.
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New York Man Pleads Guilty to Federal Fraud ChargesRead the Press Release
CHARLESTON, W.Va. – A New York man pleaded guilty today to his role in a wire fraud scheme that involved the use of stolen identities to purchase two new trucks together worth more $100,000 from a pair of Charleston dealerships.
According to statements made in court, Julio Hisael Almonte, 31, of the Bronx, traveled to West Virginia in June 2018 and worked with a co-conspirator to fraudulently purchase the Ford F-150 Raptor and Toyota Tacoma using fraudulent identification cards and the stolen identities of other people. Almonte was arrested by the West Virginia State Police on June 30, 2018, in Braxton County, as he attempted to drive the Ford F-150 back to the New York area.
Almonte pleaded guilty to two counts of wire fraud and one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud. He is scheduled to be sentenced on July 20, 2022, and faces a maximum penalty of 60 years in prison.
U.S. Attorney Will Thompson made the announcement. The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and West Virginia State Police conducted the investigation. The U.S. Postal Inspection Service also provided assistance with the investigation.
Senior United States District Judge David A. Faber presided over the hearing. Assistant United States Attorney Nowles Heinrich is prosecuting the case.
A copy of this press release is located on the website of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of West Virginia. Related court documents and information can be found on PACER by searching for Case No. 2:21-cr-00160.
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New York Man Pleads Guilty to Charges Related to Robbery and Murder of Stamford JewelerRead the Press Release
Leonard C Boyle, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, announced that ROBERT RALLO, 58, of New York, pleaded guilty today before U.S. District Judge Kari A. Dooley in Bridgeport to federal offenses in connection with the robbery of Marco Jewelers in Stamford in March 2020. During the robbery, the owner of Marco Jewelers was shot and killed.
According to court documents and statements made in court, on March 28, 2020, at approximately 2:48 p.m., Stamford Police Officers responded to Marco Jewelers, located at 16 Sixth Street in Stamford. When officers arrived, they found evidence of a robbery and encountered the storeowner, Mark Vuono, lying on the ground in front of an open safe. Emergency medical personnel arrived and pronounced Vuono deceased.
Investigators collected and analyzed surveillance video from Marco Jewelers, surrounding businesses and Stamford city cameras. Video obtained from Marco Jewelers revealed that, on March 28, Rallo and an associate were driven in a black Jaguar to Marco Jewelers. Rallo and his associate then entered the store. Rallo, armed with a handgun, engaged in a physical altercation with Vuono, while Rallo’s associate stole items from the display cases. Vuono, who also possessed a firearm, and Rallo struggled next to a large open safe. During the more than three-minute struggle, Rallo reached into the safe and pulled out a third firearm, a .357 Magnum revolver. Rallo subsequently shot and killed Vuono with the .357 revolver.
Following the robbery, law enforcement located the black Jaguar in Staten Island and maintained surveillance on the vehicle. On March 30, at approximately 5:30 p.m., a black BMW X3 pulled up beside the black Jaguar. Rallo exited the rear door of the BMW and entered the driver’s door of a black Jaguar. The two vehicles then left the area and rapidly accelerated. The Jaguar crashed on Tompkins Street. Rallo attempted to flee on foot, but was quickly apprehended. The BMW crashed into a tree and parked car at the intersection of Daniel Low Terrace and Corson Avenue. The operator of the BMW also attempted to flee and was apprehended.
A search of the BMW revealed 63 rings, eight bracelets, two tie pins, an earring and a cufflink, and a search of the BMW operator’s residence revealed 23 pairs of earrings and three rings. These items were stolen from Marco Jewelers on March 28.
Rallo pleaded guilty to one count of interference with commerce by robbery (Hobbs Act robbery), an offense that carries a maximum term imprisonment of 20 years; interstate transportation of stolen property, an offense that carries a maximum term of imprisonment of 10 years, and using a firearm to cause a death during a robbery, which carries a maximum term of imprisonment of life
Judge Dooley scheduled sentencing for June 28. Under the terms of a binding plea agreement, if accepted by the court, the parties have agreed that a sentence of between 25 years and life in prison is an appropriate sentence in this case.
Rallo has been detained since his arrest.
Rallo’s two associates have been charged with related offenses and are detained while awaiting trial. U.S. Attorney Boyle stressed that an indictment is not evidence of guilt. Charges are only allegations, and a defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.
This investigation has been conducted by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Stamford Police Department and Greenwich Police Department, with the assistance of the New York Police Department, Yonkers (N.Y.) Police Department and New Rochelle (N.Y.) Police Department. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Jocelyn Courtney Kaoutzanis and Rahul Kale.
New Jersey Heroin/Fentanyl Supplier Sentenced to 12 Years in PrisonRead the Press Release
PITTSBURGH, PA - A former New Jersey resident has been sentenced in federal court to 12 years of imprisonment followed by eight years of supervised release on his conviction for violating the federal narcotics laws, United States Attorney Cindy K. Chung announced today.
Senior United States District Judge Joy Flowers Conti imposed the sentence on Herbert Felder, 53, formerly of East Orange, New Jersey. In December 2019, Felder pled guilty to the one-count Indictment charging him with conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute 400 grams or more of fentanyl and 100 grams or more of heroin from in and around December 2018 and continuing to May 1, 2019, in the Western District of Pennsylvania and elsewhere.
According to information presented to the Court, Felder was identified as source of supply of over 600 “bricks” – more than 31,000 individual dosage units – of heroin/fentanyl mixtures, which he provided to co-conspirators for redistribution in the Western District of Pennsylvania. Agents with the Pennsylvania State Police and the Federal Bureau of Investigation surveilled Felder and his co-conspirators in May 2019 at a hotel in Hershey, Pennsylvania. In connection with his guilty plea, Felder admitted to distributing the “bricks” of heroin and fentanyl to co-conspirators while in Hershey, Pennsylvania, at that time. The Court was advised that law enforcement later seized the bricks of heroin/fentanyl pursuant to search warrants, thereby preventing the distribution of this large quantity of narcotics in the Western District of Pennsylvania. In connection with his plea, Felder admitted to knowing that those substances were being trafficked to the Western District of Pennsylvania for further distribution.
Felder has been in the custody of the United States Marshals since his arrest in this matter in August 2019.
Assistant United States Attorney Jerome A. Moschetta prosecuted this case on behalf of the government.
United States Attorney Chung commended the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Pennsylvania State Police Drug Law Enforcement Division for the investigation leading to the successful prosecution of Felder.
Navajo man arraigned for child sexual abuse in Indian CountryRead the Press Release
ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. – Leonard Yazzie, 39, of Pine Hill, New Mexico, and an enrolled member of the Navajo Nation, was arraigned in federal court today on a charge of aggravated sexual abuse of a child in Indian Country. Yazzie will remain in custody pending a detention hearing scheduled for April 7.
A federal grand jury indicted Yazzie on March 23. According to the indictment, on March 28, 2016, and March 27, 2017, Yazzie allegedly engaged in a sexual act with a victim, identified as Jane Doe. At the time, Jane Doe was under 12 years old. The abuse is alleged to have occurred on the Ramah Navajo Reservation.
An indictment is only an allegation. A defendant is considered innocent unless and until proven guilty. If convicted, Yazzie faces a minimum of 30 years and up to life in prison.
The Gallup Resident Agency of the FBI Albuquerque Field Office investigated this case with assistance from the Ramah Navajo Police Department. Special Assistant United States Attorney Chelsea N. Van Deventer is prosecuting the case.
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Morganton, N.C. Man Is Sentenced to 13+ Years for Transportation of Child PornographyRead the Press Release
CHARLOTTE, N.C. – Martin Lee McGee, 32, of Morganton, N.C., was sentenced to 160 months in federal prison today for transporting child pornography, announced Dena J. King, U.S. Attorney for the Western District of North Carolina. In addition to the prison term, McGee was ordered to serve a lifetime of supervised release, to register as a sex offender, and to pay a $100 special assessment, a $5,000 Justice for Victims of Trafficking Act (JTVA) assessment, and a $35,000 Amy, Vicky, and Andy Child Pornography Victim Assistance Act (AVAA) assessment.
Robert R. Wells, Special Agent in Charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), Charlotte Division and Chief Vidal Sipe of the Newton Police Department join U.S. Attorney King in making today’s announcement.
According to court records and today’s sentencing hearing, in April 2020, law enforcement were alerted to an individual, later identified as McGee, using Snapchat to upload child pornography. Law enforcement executed search warrants at McGee’s residence and Snapchat account. A forensic analysis of the seized devices and information revealed that McGee possessed more than 13,500 images and videos depicting the sexual abuse of children. Some of the child pornography in McGee’s extensive collection depicted minors as young as toddlers engaging in sadistic and masochistic conduct.
On October 6, 2021, McGee pleaded guilty to transportation of child pornography. He is currently in federal custody and will be transferred to the custody of the federal Bureau of Prisons Upon designation of a federal facility.
In making today’s announcement U.S. Attorney King commended the FBI and the Newton Police Department for their investigation of the case, and thanked the Catawba County Sheriff’s Office for their assistance.
Assistant United States Attorneys Cortney Randall and Nick J. Miller prosecuted the case.
This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse, launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice. Led by U.S. Attorneys’ Offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS), Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state and local resources to better locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the Internet, as well as to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.projectsafechildhood.gov.
Mississippi Doctor Convicted of Hospice FraudRead the Press Release
Greenville, MS – A federal jury convicted a Cleveland, Mississippi doctor on Monday of Conspiracy to Commit Healthcare Fraud following a two week trial for his role in referring and certifying patients to hospice who were not terminally ill and should not have been placed on hospice care.
According to court documents and evidence presented at trial, Dr. Scott Nelson, of Cleveland was a medical director for numerous hospice organizations in the Mississippi Delta. At least four of the hospice owners associated with Dr. Nelson had been convicted of healthcare fraud prior to Dr. Nelson’s trial. Hospice employees routinely transported prospective patients to Dr. Nelson’s office in Cleveland, sometimes transporting three or four patients at a time. Dr. Nelson saw the patients in his office and then referred them for hospice, claiming to be their primary care physician, or attending physician. In almost all cases, the patients had no idea they were being placed on hospice and multiple patients testified at trial that Dr. Nelson did not explain hospice to them and did not tell them he was referring them to hospice care. Dr. Nelson also certified patients as terminally ill who were not actually terminally ill and he “robosigned” numerous medical records, allowing hospice owners to bill Medicare and Medicaid for hospice services that were not medically necessary. From 2009 through 2014, Dr. Nelson served as medical director for as many as 14 hospice providers and received approximately $442,000 in medical director fees from those hospices.
During the course of the conspiracy charged in the indictment, hospice owners received over $15 Million in Medicare funds based on Dr. Nelson’s patient referrals and certifications.
Prior to the trial, co-defendants Charline Brandon, Wendell Brandon, and Annette Lofton all pled guilty to the conspiracy to commit healthcare fraud.
“This type of fraud drives up medical costs for those who truly need care and jeopardizes our entire healthcare system.” said U.S. Attorney Clay Joyner. “The U.S. Attorney’s Office will continue to work with all federal, state and local partners to do everything in our power to eradicate it.”
"Just to enrich himself, Dr. Nelson fraudulently prescribed hospice care for a steady stream of Medicare and Medicaid beneficiaries who he knew were not dying, ignoring the fact that under this end-of-life status they would not be eligible for curative services,” said Special Agent in Charge Tamala E. Miles of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General (HHS OIG). “The guilty verdict in this case shows that our investigators and our law enforcement partners will aggressively pursue irresponsible practitioners who put their greed for profits above the well-being of their patients.”
“Healthcare fraud is not just about the dollars these medical professionals have taken, but also the trust they have violated,” said Mississippi Attorney General Lynn Fitch. “Patients put their faith in their doctors. They should not have to worry about being pawns in a get-rich-quick scheme. My Office is pleased to work with our partners at the U.S. Attorney’s Office to protect patients and defend the sacred trust so essential to our healthcare system.”
The HHS-OIG and the Mississippi Attorney General’s Medicaid Fraud Control Unit are investigating the case. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Clay Dabbs and Kim Hampton.
Mexican Citizen Sentenced to 42 Months for Possessing Methamphetamine for DistributionRead the Press Release
MADISON, WIS. – Timothy M. O’Shea, United States Attorney for the Western District of Wisconsin, announced that Gregorio Arreola Mendoza, 34, a citizen of Mexico found in Eau Claire County, Wisconsin, was sentenced today by U.S. District Judge William M. Conley to 42 months in prison for possession of methamphetamine with intent to distribute. Arreola Mendoza pleaded guilty to this charge on November 2, 2021.
On February 24, 2021, a trooper with the Wisconsin State Patrol stopped a vehicle on Interstate 94 in Eau Claire County, Wisconsin. While talking to the driver, later identified as Arreola Mendoza, the trooper smelled the odor of marijuana and alcohol coming from the car. He also saw an open bottle of beer on the floor between the passenger’s legs. During an interview, the passenger, identified as Jose A. Mendoza-Cortez, admitted to having marijuana in the center console. The trooper searched the car and saw marijuana debris on the floor and a marijuana blunt in the center cup holder. As the officer continued his search, he found 20 plastic bags in the trunk, each containing a crystalline substance. The total amount of the substance from the 20 bags weighed approximately 20 pounds and tested positive for methamphetamine.
During a post-arrest interview, Arreola Mendoza admitted that someone paid him and Mendoza-Cortez to transport the drugs from Minnesota to Ohio.
At sentencing, Judge Conley noted that Arreola Mendoza and Mendoza-Cortez were entrusted with a significant amount of methamphetamine. Judge Conley also stressed that such a large amount of drugs would have caused a staggering amount of damage to the community.
Judge Conley sentenced Mendoza-Cortez to 48 months in prison on March 24, 2022.
The charges against Arreola Mendoza and Mendoza-Cortez were the result of an investigation conducted by the Wisconsin State Patrol, West Central Drug Task Force, Eau Claire County District Attorney’s Office, and Drug Enforcement Administration. Assistant U.S. Attorney Chadwick M. Elgersma prosecuted this case.
Marshall County man sentenced for drug chargeRead the Press Release
WHEELING, WEST VIRGINIA – Dalton Kade Riggs, of Cameron, West Virginia, was sentenced today to 57 months of incarceration for a drug charge, United States Attorney William Ihlenfeld announced.
Riggs, 34, pleaded guilty in September 2021 to one count of “Distribution of Methamphetamine.” Riggs admitted to distributing methamphetamine in March 2021 in Marshall County.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Clayton J. Reid prosecuted the case on behalf of the government. The Marshall County Drug Task Force, a HIDTA-funded initiative, investigated.
U.S. District Judge John Preston Bailey presided.
Man from Albuquerque sentenced to seven years in federal prison for attempted carjacking and illegal possession of a firearm and ammunitionRead the Press Release
ALBUQERQUE, N.M. – James Hawley, 36, of Albuquerque, was sentenced in federal court today to seven years in prison for attempted carjacking and being a felon in possession of a firearm and ammunition.
Hawley pleaded guilty on Aug. 9, 2021. According to the plea agreement, on July 27, 2019, Hawley attempted to carjack a victim who was stopped at an intersection in Albuquerque. Hawley approached the vehicle and pointed a firearm at the victim in an attempt to gain access. The victim was able to escape by speeding through the intersection. Hawley was later found unconscious and was disarmed by paramedics while they attempted to render aid.
At the time of the offenses, Hawley previously had been convicted of aggravated battery with a deadly weapon and aggravated battery on a household member with great bodily harm. As a convicted felon, Hawley could not legally possess a firearm or ammunition.
Upon his release from prison, Hawley will be subject to three years of supervised release.
The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and the Albuquerque Police Department investigated this case. Assistant U.S. Attorney Timothy D. Trembley is prosecuting the case.
Man Sentenced for 2015 Rape Near OSU-Tulsa CampusRead the Press Release
A Tulsa man was sentenced in federal court Tuesday for a rape he committed near the OSU-Tulsa campus in 2015.
“Eugene Nunley will spend 14 years in prison for the physical and emotional harm he has caused this victim,” said U.S. Attorney Clint Johnson. “My team of federal prosecutors and victim specialists will continue to support survivors of sexual assault and fight for justice on their behalf.”
U.S. District Judge Claire V. Eagan sentenced Eugene Todd Nunley, 48, to 14 years in federal prison followed by a lifetime of supervised release.
On Aug. 26, 2021, Nunley pleaded guilty to aggravated sexual abuse by force and threat in Indian Country.
The defendant admitted that he forced the female victim into a wooded area and raped her on Aug. 13, 2015. The victim was walking on the Osage Prairie Trail near 900 North Greenwood Avenue when Nunley attacked her from behind. Following the rape, the defendant told the victim she was “lucky” then ran away.
The victim reported the crime and told officers she did not know her attacker. In early September 2015, DNA testing revealed Nunley was the perpetrator. Officers located the defendant in the Creek County jail, where he was being held on unrelated charges.
Nunley, a Muscogee Nation citizen, was previously convicted of the 2015 rape in Tulsa County District Court. His conviction was overturned after the Cherokee Nation reservation was recognized as having never been disestablished by Congress. He was indicted in federal court in June 2021.
The FBI and Tulsa Police Department conducted the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney Chantelle D. Dial prosecuted the case.
April is Sexual Assault Awareness Month. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) 2015 National Intimate Partner and Sexual Violence Survey, 21.3% of women and 2.6% of men living in the United States reported being raped or subject to attempted rape during their lifetime.
If you or someone you know is experiencing or has experienced sexual violence, you are not alone and there are services available to help, including the Sexual Assault Hotline, 1-800-656-HOPE (4673), and the StrongHearts Native Helpline, 1-844-7NATIVE (762-8483). In addition, you can find a resources page on the Office on Violence Against Women’s website. The page includes contact information for state sexual assault coalitions that can direct you to local resources and services, as well as opportunities to get involved.
MBTA Resolves Allegations of ADA ViolationsRead the Press Release
BOSTON – The Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority (MBTA) has resolved allegations that it violated the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) by providing a subsidy for users of The Ride paratransit service to supplement their paratransit rides with ride sharing companies like Uber and Lyft, even though these companies did not have the capacity to provide service to passengers who used wheelchairs.
During its investigation, the U.S. Attorney’s Office found that because wheelchair accessible vehicles were either unavailable or the wait times were excessive, wheelchair users could not benefit from the MBTA program in the same way as other users of The Ride.
In resolving the investigation, the MBTA has implemented a policy that incentivizes ride sharing companies to increase the number of wheelchair-accessible vehicles available for hire, which has resulted in more wheelchair-accessible vehicles in service and available for both The Ride program and the public at large. The MBTA has also agreed to monitor wait times for riders needing wheelchair-accessible vehicles and to report that data to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for a period of 18 months. They must also notify the U.S. Attorney’s Office of any material changes to its policy.
“Innovation is not an excuse for avoiding accessibility. Rather, it is an opportunity to enhance accessibility. That is what the MBTA has now done here. The first iteration of the MBTA’s program left out rights for those who use wheelchairs. We commend the MBTA on its efforts to rectify this problem and its success in implementing a program that has resulted in more wheelchair accessible vehicles on the road. This solution helps and includes everyone – not only users of The Ride,” said United States Attorney Rachael S. Rollins.
The matter was handled by Assistant U.S. Attorney Gregory Dorchak of Rollins’ Civil Rights Unit.
The Civil Rights Unit of the U.S. Attorney’s Office was established in 2015 with the mission of enhancing federal civil rights enforcement. For more information on the Office’s civil rights efforts, please visit www.justice.gov/usao-ma/civil-rights.
Lancaster County Woman Charged with Theft of Government FundsRead the Press Release
HARRISBURG – The United States Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Pennsylvania announced today that Sally Schrom, age 66, of Mountville, Pennsylvania, was charged in a criminal information with theft of government funds.
According to United States Attorney John C. Gurganus, the information alleges that between April 2017 and November 2019, Schrom unlawfully received federal military retirement benefits and federal civilian retirement benefits that were meant for another individual. The benefits totaled over $73,000.
“Every dollar stolen from the U.S Government's retirement coffers is one less dollar available for legitimate beneficiaries," stated Patrick J. Hegarty, Special Agent-in-Charge of the Defense Criminal Investigative Service's (DCIS) Northeast Field Office. “DCIS commends the efforts of our partners at the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Pennsylvania, the Naval Criminal Investigative Service, and the Defense Finance and Accounting Service, for protecting the interests of those who served our country."
“Ms. Schrom’s criminal actions to receive military retirement benefits and federal civilian retirement benefits intended for a family member who passed away wasted valuable taxpayer money that should have been used to support the many military and federal civilian retirees who dedicated their lives to public service,” said NCIS Special Agent in Charge Michael T. Wiest of the NCIS Northeast Field Office. “NCIS and our law enforcement partners remain committed to rooting out theft and corruption that threatens the wellbeing of our Department of the Navy family.”
The case was investigated by the Defense Criminal Investigative Service, the Naval Criminal Investigative Service, the Defense Finance Accounting Service, and the Manheim Township Police Department. Assistant U.S. Attorney Carlo D. Marchioli is prosecuting the case.
The maximum penalty under federal law for this offense is 10 years of imprisonment, a term of supervised release following imprisonment, and a fine. A sentence following a finding of guilt is imposed by the Judge after consideration of the applicable federal sentencing statutes and the Federal Sentencing Guidelines.
Criminal Informations are only allegations. All persons charged are presumed to be innocent unless and until found guilty in court.
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Kennett Square Man Pleads Guilty to Federal Tax ChargeRead the Press Release
WILMINGTON, Del. – David C. Weiss, U.S. Attorney for the District of Delaware, announced that a Kennett Square, Pennsylvania man pleaded guilty today to federal tax evasion. U.S. District Court Judge Maryellen Noreika accepted the plea.
According to court documents, Joseph Timlin, 63, formerly of Claymont, Delaware, pled guilty to evading his federal tax obligations by failing to file a 2016 income tax return and by directing his compensation be paid to a bank account held in the name of a corporate entity he created and controlled. Pursuant to his plea agreement, Timlin further admitted to evading these same obligations for 2014, 2015, 2017, and 2018. In total, Adams agreed to make restitution to the Internal Revenue Service totaling $246,629.00.
Timlin faces a maximum penalty of 5 years in prison when sentenced on August 4, 2022. Judge Noreika will determine any sentence after taking into account the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
U.S. Attorney Weiss commented on the plea, “The requirement to file and pay income taxes is not optional, and it is a burden shared by the people living and working in this country. When sophisticated actors like this defendant evade that requirement, it undermines confidence in the fairness of the system. My office will continue to prosecute those who choose to obscure their income and evade taxes.”
"As someone who prepared tax returns for a living, Mr. Timlin knew that the actions he took were illegal and fraudulent," said Yury Kruty, Special Agent in Charge of IRS-Criminal Investigation. "The Special Agents of IRS-CI will continue to investigate and prosecute individuals like this who intentionally violate the tax laws so that honest taxpayers know that everyone is being held accountable to pay their fair share."
IRS-Criminal Investigation investigated the case. Assistant U.S. Attorney Lesley F. Wolf is prosecuting the case.
A copy of this press release is located on the website of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Delaware. Related court documents and information is located on the website of the District Court for the District of Delaware or on PACER by searching for Case No. 21-cr-48.
Kamiah Man Sentenced to More Than 19 Years in Federal Prison for Second Degree MurderRead the Press Release
COEUR D'ALENE – A Kamiah man was sentenced to 235 months in federal prison for second degree murder.
According to court records, Travis Dewayne Ellenwood, 44, beat and strangled his girlfriend, Bessie Blackeagle, killing her on October 31, 2020. Ellenwood maintains he was too intoxicated to remember what happened. Ellenwood is a member of the Nez Perce Tribe, as was Ms. Blackeagle. Ms. Blackeagle was 28 at the time of her murder. She was a Nez Perce language speaker and well versed in Nez Perce traditions and customs. Her death has affected many in the tribal community.
Senior U.S. Ninth Circuit Judge Richard C. Tallman also sentenced Ellenwood to serve five years of supervised release upon completion of his prison sentence and to pay a $2,500 fine. Ellenwood pleaded guilty to the charge on October 4, 2021.
U.S. Attorney Rafael M. Gonzalez, Jr., of the District of Idaho made the announcement and credited the cooperative efforts of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Nez Perce Tribal Police, and the Idaho County Sheriff's Office, which led to charges.
“Ms. Blackeagle’s murder is a tragic reminder of the danger Native American women face in the community,” said U.S. Attorney Gonzalez. “Generations of Native Americans have experienced violence or mourned a missing or murdered family member or loved one, and the lasting impacts of such tragedies are felt throughout the country. Native Americans face unacceptably high levels of violence, and are victims of violent crime at a rate much higher than the national average. Native American women, in particular, are disproportionately the victims of sexual and gender-based violence, including intimate partner homicide. Our focus remains centered on refining coordination between our office and our tribal partners so that no family must endure this kind of heartbreak in the future,” Mr. Gonzalez concluded.
"The FBI extends its deepest condolences to the family and friends of Bessie Blackeagle. The pain and sorrow of a life taken in an act of egregious violence is a weight Bessie's loved ones will carry indefinitely," said Special Agent in Charge Dennis Rice of the Salt Lake City FBI. "Though nothing can bring Bessie back, the FBI remains dedicated to working with our tribal partners to investigate the most serious crimes affecting our tribal communities."
Mr. Gonzalez also encourages those experiencing domestic violence or those who know of someone in need of help to reach out, “everyone deserves a relationship free from domestic violence,” he added. If you or a loved one need assistance, please reach out to the free and confidential National Domestic Violence Hotline by calling 1-800-799-SAFE, texting “START” to 88788, or visiting their website at www.thehotline.org.
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Justice Department Issues Guidance on Protections for People with Opioid Use Disorder under the Americans with Disabilities ActRead the Press Release
The Department of Justice announced today that it has published guidance on how the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) protects people with opioid use disorder (OUD) who are in treatment or recovery, including those who take medication to treat their OUD. The publication, “The Americans with Disabilities Act and the Opioid Crisis: Combating Discrimination Against People in Treatment or Recovery,” is intended to help people with OUD who are in treatment or recovery understand their rights under federal law and to provide guidance to entities covered by the ADA about how to comply with the law.
“The opioid epidemic continues to pose an extraordinary challenge to communities across our country, and the COVID-19 pandemic has exacerbated this crisis,” said Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division. “People who have stopped illegally using drugs should not face discrimination when accessing evidence-based treatment or continuing on their path of recovery. The Justice Department is committed to using federal civil rights laws such as the ADA to safeguard people with opioid use disorder from facing discriminatory barriers as they move forward with their lives.”
The guidance document explains how the ADA protects people with OUD who are in treatment or recovery from discrimination in a number of settings, including employment, healthcare and participation in state or local government services and programs. The publication is part of the department’s comprehensive response to the opioid crisis, which promotes prevention, enforcement and treatment.
The Civil Rights Division, together with U.S. Attorneys’ offices, has been working to remove discriminatory barriers to recovery for individuals who have completed, or are participating in, treatment for OUD. Through outreach, technical assistance and enforcement under the ADA, the Civil Rights Division seeks to ensure that those in treatment and recovery can successfully participate in their communities and the workforce. For example:
- On March 25, the department issued a letter finding that the Indiana State Board of Nursing violated the ADA by denying a nurse the opportunity to participate in a substance use disorder rehabilitation program because she takes medication for OUD. The program is required for the individual to reinstate her nursing license.
- On March 24, the department into a Settlement Agreement with the Massachusetts Trial Court to resolve allegations that its drug court violated the ADA by discriminating against individuals with OUD.
- On March 17, the department entered into a Settlement Agreement with Ready to Work, a Colorado-based employment, residential and social services program for individuals experiencing homelessness, resolving allegations that the program denied admission to an individual because she takes medication for OUD.
- On Feb. 24, the department filed a lawsuit against the Unified Judicial System of Pennsylvania, alleging that it prohibits or otherwise limits participants in its court supervision programs from using medication to treat OUD.
For more information on the Civil Rights Division, please visit www.justice.gov/crt. For more information on the ADA, please call the department’s toll-free ADA Information Line at 800-514-0301 (TDD 800-514-0383) or visit www.ada.gov. Individuals who believe that they may have been victims of disability discrimination may file a complaint at www.ada.gov/complaint.
Justice Department Investigation Leads to Shutdown of Largest Online Darknet MarketplaceRead the Press Release
The Justice Department announced today the seizure of Hydra Market (Hydra), the world’s largest and longest-running darknet market. In 2021, Hydra accounted for an estimated 80% of all darknet market-related cryptocurrency transactions, and since 2015, the marketplace has received approximately $5.2 billion in cryptocurrency.
The seizure of the Hydra servers and cryptocurrency wallets containing $25 million worth of bitcoin was made this morning in Germany by the German Federal Criminal Police (the Bundeskriminalamt), in coordination with U.S. law enforcement.
“The Justice Department will be relentless in our efforts to hold accountable those who violate our laws – no matter where they are located or how they try to hide their crimes,” said Attorney General Merrick B. Garland. “Together with our German law enforcement partners, we have seized the infrastructure of the world’s largest darknet market, but our work is far from over. We will continue to work alongside our international and interagency partners to disrupt and dismantle darknet markets, and to hold those who commit their crimes on the dark web accountable for their acts.”
“The Department of Justice will not allow darknet markets and cryptocurrency to be a safe haven for money laundering and the sale of hacking tools and services,” said Deputy Attorney General Lisa O. Monaco. “Our message should be clear: we will continue to go after darknet markets and those who exploit them. Together with our partners in Germany and around the world, we will continue our work to disrupt the ecosystem that allows these criminal actors to operate.”
Hydra was an online criminal marketplace that enabled users in mainly Russian-speaking countries to buy and sell illicit goods and services, including illegal drugs, stolen financial information, fraudulent identification documents, and money laundering and mixing services, anonymously and outside the reach of law enforcement. Transactions on Hydra were conducted in cryptocurrency and Hydra’s operators charged a commission for every transaction conducted on Hydra.
In conjunction with the shutdown of Hydra, the department also announced criminal charges against Dmitry Olegovich Pavlov, 30, a resident of Russia, for conspiracy to distribute narcotics and conspiracy to commit money laundering, in connection with his operation and administration of the servers used to run Hydra.
“This coordinated action sends a clear message to anyone attempting to operate or support an online criminal enterprise under the cover of the dark web,” said U.S. Attorney Stephanie M. Hinds for the Northern District of California. “The dark web is not a place criminals can operate with impunity or hide from U.S. law enforcement, and we will continue to use our sophisticated tools and expertise to dismantle and disable darknet markets. This action also underscores the importance of international law enforcement collaboration. We thank German authorities and the Bundeskriminalamt, the German Federal Criminal Police Office, for its valued assistance in this case.”
“The darknet has been a key online marketplace for the sale of deadly drugs worldwide,” said Administrator Anne Milgram of the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA). “The availability of illicit substances and money laundering services offered by Hydra threaten the safety and health of communities far and wide. Criminals on the darknet hide behind the illusion of anonymity, but DEA and our partners across the globe are watching. We will continue to investigate, expose, and take action against criminal networks no matter where they operate. I commend the extraordinary investigative efforts of DEA’s Miami Counternarcotic Cyber Investigations Task Force, Cyber Support Section, and Special Operations Division, and the teamwork from federal and international law enforcement partners that led to this action.”
“The Hydra darknet site provided a platform for criminals who thought they were beyond the reaches of law enforcement to buy and sell illegal drugs and services,” said Chief Jim Lee of IRS-Criminal Investigation. “Our Cyber Crimes Unit once again used their cryptocurrency tracking expertise to help take down this site and identify the criminal behind it. Denying criminals a space to operate freely to conduct their nefarious activities is the first step in stopping this activity from happening altogether.”
“The successful seizure of Hydra, the world's largest darknet marketplace, dismantled digital infrastructures which had enabled a wide range of criminals – including Russian cyber criminals, the cryptocurrency tumblers and money launderers that support them and others, and drug traffickers,” said FBI Director Christopher Wray. “Today’s announcement is a testament to the strength and potency of our law enforcement partnerships here and around the world – and another example of our strategy to broadly target the entire illicit ecosystem that drives and enables crime.”
“The U.S. Postal Inspection Service is dedicated to protecting the United States mail from being used to transport illegal drugs and illicit goods available on the darknet,” said Chief Postal Inspector Gary R. Barksdale of the U.S. Postal Inspection Service National Headquarters. “The seizure of the criminal marketplace, Hydra Market, reflects the effective collaboration of law enforcement to stop criminal enterprises from their illicit activity. The Postal Inspection Service will continue to work with our federal partners to end these criminal organizations regardless of where they are.”
“The dismantling of the Hydra Market, the dark web’s largest supplier of illicit goods and services, sends a message to these electronic criminal kingpins that think they can operate with impunity,” said Special Agent in Charge Anthony Salisbury of Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) Miami. “HSI will continue to work with our U.S. and international law enforcement partners to target these transnational criminal organizations who attempt to manipulate the anonymity of the dark web to push their poison all over the world.”
According to the indictment, vendors on Hydra could create accounts on the site to advertise their illegal products, and buyers could create accounts to view and purchase the vendors’ products. Hydra vendors offered a variety of illicit drugs for sale, including cocaine, methamphetamine, LSD, heroin and other opioids. The vendors openly advertised their drugs on Hydra, typically including photographs and a description of the controlled substance. Buyers rated the sellers and their products on a five-star rating system, and the vendors’ ratings and reviews were prominently displayed on the Hydra site.
Hydra also featured numerous vendors selling false identification documents. Users could search for vendors selling their desired type of identification document – for example, U.S. passports or drivers’ licenses – and filter or sort by the item’s price. Many vendors of false identification documents offered to customize the documents based on photographs or other information provided by the buyers.
Numerous vendors also sold hacking tools and hacking services through Hydra. Hacking vendors commonly offered to illegally access online accounts of the buyer’s choosing. In this way, buyers could select their victims and hire professional hackers to gain access to the victims’ communications and take over the victims’ accounts.
Hydra vendors also offered a robust array of money laundering and so-called “cash-out” services, which allowed Hydra users to convert their bitcoin (BTC) into a variety of forms of currency supported by Hydra’s wide array of vendors. In addition, Hydra offered an in-house mixing service to launder and then process vendors’ withdrawals. Mixing services allowed customers, for a fee, to send bitcoin to designated recipients in a manner that was designed to conceal the source or owner of the bitcoin. Hydra’s money laundering features were so in-demand that some users would set up shell vendor accounts for the express purpose of running money through Hydra’s bitcoin wallets as a laundering technique.
Starting in or about November 2015, Pavlov is alleged to have operated a company, Promservice Ltd., also known as Hosting Company Full Drive, All Wheel Drive and 4x4host.ru, that administered Hydra’s servers (Promservice). During that time, Pavlov, through his company Promservice, administered Hydra’s servers, which allowed the market to operate as a platform used by thousands of drug dealers and other unlawful vendors to distribute large quantities of illegal drugs and other illicit goods and services to thousands of buyers, and to launder billions of dollars derived from these unlawful transactions.
As an active administrator in hosting Hydra’s servers, Pavlov allegedly conspired with the other operators of Hydra to further the site’s success by providing the critical infrastructure that allowed Hydra to operate and thrive in a competitive darknet market environment. In doing so, Pavlov is alleged to have facilitated Hydra’s activities and allowed Hydra to reap commissions worth millions of dollars generated from the illicit sales conducted through the site.
The DEA’s Miami Field Division, FBI, IRS-CI, U.S. Postal Inspection Service, and HSI investigated the case.
The U.S. investigation was conducted with support and coordination provided by the Department of Justice’s multi-agency Special Operations Division and the Joint Criminal Opioid and Darknet Enforcement (JCODE) Team.
Trial Attorneys C. Alden Pelker and Christen M. Gallagher of the Criminal Division’s Computer Crime and Intellectual Property Section and Assistant U.S. Attorneys Claudia A. Quiroz and Robert S. Leach for the Northern District of California are prosecuting the case.
In addition to the critically important efforts of the German Federal Criminal Police, significant assistance was provided by the Justice Department’s Office of International Affairs and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia. Assistance was also provided by the Justice Department’s National Cryptocurrency Enforcement Team.
An indictment is merely an allegation, and the defendant is presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
Justice Department Investigation Leads to Shutdown of Largest Online Darknet MarketplaceRead the Press Release
SAN FRANCISCO – The Justice Department announced today the seizure of Hydra Market (Hydra), the world’s largest and longest-running darknet market. In 2021, Hydra accounted for an estimated 80% of all darknet market-related cryptocurrency transactions, and since 2015, the marketplace has received approximately $5.2 billion in cryptocurrency.
The seizure of the Hydra servers and cryptocurrency wallets was made this morning in Germany by the German Federal Criminal Police (the Bundeskriminalamt), in coordination with U.S. law enforcement.
“The Justice Department will be relentless in our efforts to hold accountable those who violate our laws – no matter where they are located or how they try to hide their crimes,” said Attorney General Merrick B. Garland. “Together with our German law enforcement partners, we have seized the infrastructure of the world’s largest darknet market, but our work is far from over. We will continue to work alongside our international and interagency partners to disrupt and dismantle darknet markets, and to hold those who commit their crimes on the dark web accountable for their acts.”
“The Department of Justice will not allow darknet markets and cryptocurrency to be a safe haven for money laundering and the sale of hacking tools and services,” said Deputy Attorney General Lisa O. Monaco. “Our message should be clear: we will continue to go after darknet markets and those who exploit them. Together with our partners in Germany and around the world, we will continue our work to disrupt the ecosystem that allows these criminal actors to operate.”
“This coordinated action sends a clear message to anyone attempting to operate or support an online criminal enterprise under the cover of the dark web. The dark web is not a place criminals can operate with impunity or hide from U.S. law enforcement, and we will continue to use our sophisticated tools and expertise to dismantle and disable darknet markets,” said Stephanie M. Hinds, U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of California. “This action also underscores the importance of international law enforcement collaboration. We thank German authorities and the Bundeskriminalamt, the German Federal Criminal Police Office, for its valued assistance in this case.”
Hydra was an online criminal marketplace that enabled users in mainly Russian-speaking countries to buy and sell illicit goods and services, including illegal drugs, stolen financial information, fraudulent identification documents, and money laundering and mixing services, anonymously and outside the reach of law enforcement. Transactions on Hydra were conducted in cryptocurrency and Hydra’s operators charged a commission for every transaction conducted on Hydra.
In conjunction with the shutdown of Hydra, the department also announced criminal charges against Dmitry Olegovich Pavlov, 30, a resident of Russia, for conspiracy to distribute narcotics and conspiracy to commit money laundering in connection with his operation and administration of the servers used to run Hydra.
“The darknet has been a key online marketplace for the sale of deadly drugs worldwide,” said Administrator Anne Milgram of the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA). “The availability of illicit substances and money laundering services offered by Hydra threaten the safety and health of communities far and wide. Criminals on the darknet hide behind the illusion of anonymity, but DEA and our partners across the globe are watching. We will continue to investigate, expose, and take action against criminal networks no matter where they operate. I commend the extraordinary investigative efforts of DEA’s Miami Counternarcotic Cyber Investigations Task Force, Cyber Support Section, and Special Operations Division, and the teamwork from federal and international law enforcement partners that led to this action.”
“The Hydra darknet site provided a platform for criminals who thought they were beyond the reaches of law enforcement to buy and sell illegal drugs and services,” said Chief Jim Lee of IRS-Criminal Investigation. “Our Cyber Crimes Unit once again used their cryptocurrency tracking expertise to help take down this site and identify the criminal behind it. Denying criminals a space to operate freely to conduct their nefarious activities is the first step in stopping this activity from happening altogether.”
“The successful seizure of Hydra, the world's largest darknet marketplace, dismantled digital infrastructures enabling a wide range of criminals – including Russian cyber criminals, the cryptocurrency tumblers and money launderers that support them and others, and drug traffickers” said FBI Director Christopher Wray. “Today’s announcement is a testament to the strength and potency of our law enforcement partnerships here and around the world – and another example of our strategy to broadly target the entire illicit ecosystem that drives and enables crime.”
“The U.S. Postal Inspection Service is dedicated to protecting the United States mail from being used to transport illegal drugs and illicit goods available on the darknet,” said Chief Postal Inspector Gary R. Barksdale of the U.S. Postal Inspection Service National Headquarters. “The seizure of the criminal marketplace, Hydra Market, reflects the effective collaboration of law enforcement to stop criminal enterprises from their illicit activity. The Postal Inspection Service will continue to work with our federal partners to end these criminal organizations regardless of where they are.”
“The dismantling of the Hydra Market, the dark web’s largest supplier of illicit goods and services, sends a message to these electronic criminal kingpins that think they can operate with impunity,” said Special Agent in Charge Anthony Salisbury of Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) Miami. “HSI will continue to work with our U.S. and international law enforcement partners to target these transnational criminal organizations who attempt to manipulate the anonymity of the dark web to push their poison all-over the world.”
According to the indictment, vendors on Hydra could create accounts on the site to advertise their illegal products, and buyers could create accounts to view and purchase the vendors’ products. Hydra vendors offered a variety of illicit drugs for sale, including cocaine, heroin, methamphetamine, LSD, and other opioids. The vendors openly advertised their drugs on Hydra, typically including photographs and a description of the controlled substance. Buyers rated the sellers and their products on a five-star rating system, and the vendors’ ratings and reviews were prominently displayed on the Hydra site.
Hydra also featured numerous vendors selling false identification documents. Users could search for vendors selling their desired type of identification document – for example, U.S. passports or drivers’ licenses – and filter or sort by the item’s price. Many vendors of false identification documents offered to customize the documents based on photographs or other information provided by the buyers.
Numerous vendors also sold hacking tools and hacking services through Hydra. Hacking vendors commonly offered to illegally access online accounts of the buyer’s choosing. In this way, buyers could select their victims and hire professional hackers to gain access to the victims’ communications and take over the victims’ accounts.
Hydra vendors also offered a robust array of money laundering and so-called “cash-out” services, which allowed Hydra users to convert their bitcoin (BTC) into a variety of forms of currency supported by Hydra’s wide array of vendors. In addition, Hydra offered an in-house mixing service to launder and then process vendors’ withdrawals. Mixing services allowed customers, for a fee, to send bitcoin to designated recipients in a manner that was designed to conceal the source or owner of the bitcoin. Hydra’s money laundering features were so in-demand that some users would set up shell vendor accounts for the express purpose of running money through Hydra’s bitcoin wallets as a laundering technique.
Starting in or about November 2015, Pavlov is alleged to have operated a company, Promservice Ltd., also known as All Wheel Drive and 4x4host.ru, that administered Hydra’s servers (Promservice). During that time, Pavlov, through his company Promservice, administered Hydra’s servers, which allowed the market to operate as a platform used by thousands of drug dealers and other unlawful vendors to distribute large quantities of illegal drugs and other illicit goods and services to thousands of buyers, and to launder billions of dollars derived from these unlawful transactions.
As an active administrator in hosting Hydra’s servers, Pavlov allegedly conspired with the other operators of Hydra to further the site’s success by providing the critical infrastructure that allowed Hydra to operate and thrive in a competitive darknet market environment. In doing so, Pavlov is alleged to have facilitated Hydra’s activities and allowed Hydra to reap commissions worth millions of dollars generated from the illicit sales conducted through the site.
The DEA’s Miami Field Division, FBI, IRS-CI, U.S. Postal Inspection Service, and HSI investigated the case.
The U.S. investigation was conducted with support and coordination provided by the Department of Justice’s multi-agency Special Operations Division and the Joint Criminal Opioid and Darknet Enforcement (JCODE) Team.
Assistant U.S. Attorneys Claudia A. Quiroz and Robert S. Leach of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of California and Trial Attorneys C. Alden Pelker and Christen M. Gallagher of the Criminal Division’s Computer Crime and Intellectual Property Section are prosecuting the case.
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.
In addition to the critically important efforts of the German Federal Criminal Police, significant assistance was provided by the Justice Department’s Office of International Affairs and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia. Assistance was also provided by the Justice Department’s National Cryptocurrency Enforcement Team.
An indictment is merely an allegation, and the defendant is presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
Inland Empire Man Agrees to Plead Guilty in Bid-Rigging Scheme to Obtain Contracts to Provide Food to Federal Prison FacilitiesRead the Press Release
LOS ANGELES – A former contractor at a food supply company has agreed to plead guilty to a felony bid-rigging charge, admitting that he conspired with a person at another food company to determine which supplier would obtain low-bid contracts from the United States Bureau of Prisons (BOP), the Justice Department announced today.
Edgar Porras, 49, of Moreno Valley, was charged in a criminal information filed today with one count of bid rigging. In a plea agreement also filed today, Porras agreed to plead guilty to the offense.
During the scheme that ran from 2013 through August 2018, Porras conspired “to suppress and restrain competition by rigging bids to obtain selected food contracts offered by the BOP,” according to court documents. To further the scheme, Porras, who was a contractor to a food company identified as “Company A,” agreed with co-conspirators not to compete to obtain the BOP contracts, and collectively they decided which conspirator would submit the lowest – and presumably winning – bid for a contract.
Porras admitted in his plea agreement that he rigged the bidding process for approximately 111 BOP food contracts cumulatively worth approximately $1.9 million.
Porras agreed to plead guilty to violating a provision of the Sherman Antitrust Act, which carries a statutory maximum penalty of 10 years in federal prison and a maximum fine of $1 million. The fine may be increased to twice the gain derived from the crime or twice the loss suffered by the victims of the crime if either of those amounts is greater than the statutory maximum fine.
Porras will be directed to appear in United States District Court in Los Angeles at a later date.
The United States Department of Justice, Office of Inspector General conducted the investigation in this matter as part of the Procurement Collusion Strike Force (PCSF).
Assistant United States Attorneys Jeff Mitchell of the Major Frauds Section and Jason Pang of International Narcotics, Money Laundering, and Racketeering Section are prosecuting this case. The United States Attorney’s Office is a participating member of the PCSF.
In November 2019, the Department of Justice created the PCSF, a joint law enforcement effort to combat antitrust crimes and related fraudulent schemes that impact government procurement, grant and program funding at the federal, state and local levels.
In the fall of 2020, the Strike Force expanded its footprint with the launch of PCSF: Global, which is designed to deter, detect, investigate, and prosecute collusive schemes that target government spending outside of the United States.
To contact the PCSF, or to report information on market allocation, price fixing, bid rigging or other anticompetitive conduct, go to https://www.justice.gov/procurement-collusion-strike-force.
Hickory Drug Trafficker Is Sentenced to Five Years for Firearms OffenseRead the Press Release
CHARLOTTE, N.C. – Carlos Car’tre Ikard, 26, of Hickory, N.C., was sentenced to 60 months in prison and three years of supervised release for possession of a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime, announced Dena J. King, U.S. Attorney for the Western District of North Carolina. U.S. District Judge Kenneth D. Bell presided over today’s sentencing.
U.S. Attorney King is joined in making today’s announcement by Brian Mein, Acting Special Agent in Charge of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF), Charlotte Field Division, and Chief Thurman Whisnant of the Hickory Police Department.
According to filed documents and court proceedings, on July 13, 2020, while Ikard was on post-release supervision with the State of North Carolina, he began posting images on his Snapchat account in which he was possessing multiple firearms. The next day, law enforcement located Ikard in a vehicle parked at his residence in Hickory. Law enforcement seized from the vehicle three firearms, one of which was stolen, Oxycodone pills, and marijuana. Law enforcement also executed search warrants for Ikard’s Snapchat account and cell phone, which contained images of Ikard with the seized firearms and messages in which Ikard arranged drug sales.
Ikard is currently in federal custody and will be transferred to the custody of the federal Bureau of Prisons upon designation of a federal facility.
The investigation was led by the ATF and the Hickory Police Department, with the assistance of the North Carolina Department of Public Services, Division of Community Corrections.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Christopher Hess, of the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Charlotte, prosecuted the case.
Group Home Owners Convicted in $1 Million Medicare Fraud SchemeRead the Press Release
A federal jury convicted a Texas husband and wife yesterday for a $1 million Medicare fraud scheme, including violations of the federal Anti-Kickback Statute.
According to court documents and evidence presented at trial, Lindell King, 52, and Ynedra Diggs, 44, both of Missouri City, were patient recruiters who owned and operated group homes in which Medicare beneficiaries lived. In exchange for sending their group home residents to Behavioral Medicine of Houston (BMH), a community mental health center that purported to provide partial hospitalization services, BMH paid Diggs, King, and other patient recruiters kickbacks in cash and by check, often concealed as payment for “transportation” or other sham services. Over the course of the conspiracy, BMH billed approximately $1 million to Medicare based on kickbacks paid to Diggs and King.
Both Diggs and King were convicted of a conspiracy to defraud the United States and to pay and receive health care kickbacks, and several substantive violations of the Anti-Kickback Statute. Diggs and King are both scheduled to be sentenced on Aug. 4. King faces up to 20 years in prison on all charges and Diggs faces up to 15 years in prison on all charges. 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 Jennifer B. Lowery of the Southern District of Texas; Special Agent in Charge Miranda Bennett of the Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General’s (HHS-OIG) Dallas Region; Assistant Director Luis Quesada of the FBI’s Criminal Investigative Division; Special Agent in Charge James H. Smith III of the FBI’s Houston Field Office; and Major William Marlowe of the Texas Attorney General’s Medicaid Fraud Control Unit (MFCU) made the announcement.
The HHS-OIG, FBI, and MFCU investigated the case.
Trial Attorneys Monica Cooper and Brynn Schiess of the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section are prosecuting the case.
The Fraud Section leads the Criminal Division’s efforts to combat health care fraud through the Health Care Fraud Strike Force Program. Since March 2007, this program, comprised of 15 strike forces operating in 24 federal districts, has charged more than 4,200 defendants who collectively have billed the Medicare program for more than $19 billion. In addition, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, working in conjunction with the Office of the Inspector General for the Department of Health and Human Services, are taking steps to hold providers accountable for their involvement in health care fraud schemes. More information can be found at https://www.justice.gov/criminal-fraud/health-care-fraud-unit.
Former Correctional Officer Sentenced for Smuggling Cellphones into Dauphin County PrisonRead the Press Release
HARRISBURG - The United States Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Pennsylvania announced that Kyle Bower, age 32, of Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, was sentenced on April 4, 2022, to 2 months’ imprisonment to be followed by 2 months of home detention by United States District Court Judge Christopher C. Conner for smuggling cellular telephones into Dauphin County Prison.
According to United States Attorney John C. Gurganus, Bower was a correctional officer at Dauphin County Prison when he agreed to smuggle cellphones into the prison for money on behalf of inmates. Between October 2015 and January 2016, he smuggled phones into the prison for inmates and was paid hundreds of dollars for each phone.
This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and the Dauphin County Criminal Investigation Division. Assistant U.S. Attorney Michael Consiglio prosecuted the case.
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Former CEO of Shreveport Federal Credit Union Sentenced on Federal ChargesRead the Press Release
SHREVEPORT, La. - United States Attorney Brandon B. Brown announced that Helen Godfrey-Smith, 72, of Shreveport, Louisiana, has been sentenced by United States District Judge Elizabeth E. Foote for making and using a false document. Judge Foote sentenced Godfrey-Smith to one year of probation and she was ordered to pay a fine in the amount of $5,000.
According to information presented at Godfrey-Smith’s guilty plea hearing, she was employed by the Shreveport Federal Credit Union (SFCU) from 1983 to 2017 and during much of that time was employed as the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the SFCU. The SFCU was a Shreveport, Louisiana based financial institution under the regulation of the National Credit Union Administration (NCUA).
In October 2016, the SFCU, through Godfrey-Smith, entered into an agreement with the United States Department of the Treasury to buy back certain securities that were part of the Department’s Troubled Asset Relief Program (TARP). As part of that process, on December 27, 2016, Godfrey-Smith signed and submitted to the United States Department of the Treasury an Officer’s Certificate which certified that all conditions precedent to the closing had been satisfied.
In reality, SFCU had not met all conditions precedent to closing and had suffered a material adverse effect. Unbeknownst to the United States Department of the Treasury and the NCUA, SFCU was in a financial crisis. From 2015 through 2017, another individual who was the Chief Financial Officer of SFCU (Individual 1), had been falsifying call reports to the NCUA which included millions of dollars in fictitious fee income. In addition, she was creating fictitious entries in the banks records to support the false call reports. This created the illusion that SFCU was profitable when, in fact, the bank was failing. In addition, Individual 1, embezzled approximately $1.5 million from the credit union.
By the time Godfrey-Smith signed the Officer's Statement, she had become aware of deficiencies at the credit union. Specifically, she had recently investigated and discovered that there were millions of dollars of fictitious entries on SFCU's general ledger, and the credit union's books were not balanced. However, she failed to disclose this information to the United States Department of the Treasury and signed the false Officer’s Statement.
In the Spring of 2017, the institution failed. It was taken over by regulators from the NCUA and placed into a conservatorship. An investigation by the NCUA revealed that SFCU had amassed in excess of $10 million in losses by December 2016.
This case was investigated by the FBI, IRS-Criminal Investigation, and U.S. Department of Treasury–Office of Special Inspector General for the Troubled Asset Relief Program. Assistant U.S. Attorney Seth D. Reeg prosecuted the case.
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Former Bookkeeper Sentenced to 36 Months in Prison for Decades-Long Theft from Charleston Real Estate CompanyRead the Press Release
Charleston, South Carolina --- Karen Rhett, 59, of Mt. Pleasant, was sentenced to 36 months in federal prison after pleading guilty to wire fraud and false statements on tax documents. Rhett formerly served as the bookkeeper for Simmons Realty Company (“SRC”) and related business entities.
Evidence presented to the Court showed that over two and a half decades, Rhett stole more than a million dollars from the Simmons’ business entities. As the bookkeeper, Rhett was in a position of trust to maintain accounting and business records. Rhett devised a complex scheme to defraud the businesses through various means, including by embezzling funds through unrecorded general ledger deposits that she would transfer to herself. As part of the scheme, Rhett often transferred funds between the related business entities before transferring the funds to herself. Rhett also created false business expenses through fabricated invoices then wrote checks to herself for the same amount, recording the payments as legitimate business expenses.
United States District Judge David C. Norton sentenced Rhett to 36 months in federal prison, to be followed by a three-year term of court-ordered supervision. This sentencing is the result of an investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Internal Revenue Service. Assistant United States Attorney Emily Limehouse prosecuted the case.
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Florida Man Sentenced to Time-Served for Transferring Obscene Material to a MinorRead the Press Release
PITTSBURGH – A former resident of Tampa, Florida, has been sentenced in federal court to time-served and 3 years’ supervised release on his conviction of transferring obscene material to a minor, United States Attorney Cindy K. Chung announced today.
United States District Judge Arthur J. Schwab imposed the sentence on Robert Fike, age 51, of Tampa, Florida.
According to information presented to the court, in January of 2019 and in February of 2019, Fike sent packages to a minor female residing in the Western District of Pennsylvania. The packages contained obscene material—socks or leggings with Fike’s semen, as confirmed by laboratory testing, and letters addressed to the minor female with graphic, sexually explicit content.
Fike has been in custody related to this case since December 2019 and has served nearly 28 months in prison.
Assistant United States Attorney Heidi M. Grogan prosecuted this case on behalf of the government.
United States Attorney Chung commended the United States Postal Inspection Service, the Pennsylvania Office of Attorney General, and the Penn Township Police Department for the investigation leading to the successful prosecution of Fike.
This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by the United States Attorneys' Offices and the Criminal Division's Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals, who sexually exploit children, and to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.justice.gov/psc.
Fentanyl Dealer Sentenced to Eight Years in Overdose DeathRead the Press Release
SAN JOSE – Xavier Robledo was sentenced in federal court today to 96 months in prison for distributing fentanyl that caused overdoses in two people and killed one, announced United States Attorney Stephanie M. Hinds and Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) Special Agent in Charge Wade R. Shannon. The sentence was handed down by United States District Judge Beth L. Freeman.
“M30 pills sold on the street are often laced with fentanyl, a cheap and deadly substitute,” said U.S. Attorney Stephanie M. Hinds. “These counterfeit pills mimic Oxycodone, but they can be killers in disguise. The mismeasurement of even a microgram of fentanyl can have lethal consequences. We urge all to stay away from fentanyl sold on the street in any form it takes.”
“The death and destruction caused by fentanyl knows no boundaries. From coast to coast this poison is devasting families,” said DEA Special Agent in Charge Wade R. Shannon. “Holding accountable those, like Robledo, who ruin lives with their criminal actions is our priority.”
Robledo, 21, of Seaside in Monterey County, California, pleaded guilty on February 8, 2022, to two counts of distributing fentanyl. In his plea agreement, Robledo admitted that in mid- April 2020, Robledo sold counterfeit, fentanyl-laced pills known as “M30” pills. M30 pills are light blue and imprinted with an “M” on one side and “30” on the other. He arranged the sale of three fentanyl-laced M30 pills via cell phone messages to a customer to whom Robledo had previously sold M30s. This person is identified only as “Individual 1” in the plea agreement. Robledo admitted he personally delivered the M30 pills, which he knew contained fentanyl, to Individual 1 at his house. The M30 pills caused Individual 1 to suffer a fentanyl overdose, and law enforcement officers found Individual 1 in an unresponsive state. Individual 1 was later able to recover from his overdose.
Robledo further admitted in his plea agreement that in early May 2020, he again sold a counterfeit M30 that he knew contained fentanyl. He sold this M30 to a different individual identified in the plea agreement as “Individual 2.” Robledo knew Individual 2 because two weeks earlier Robledo sold and delivered drugs to Individual 2 at a drug rehabilitation facility where Robledo knew Individual 2 was undergoing treatment. In the early May sale, Robledo arranged the sale to Individual 2 using cell phone messages, and Robledo delivered the M30 to Individual 2 at his house. A few hours later Individual 2 ingested the M30 pill. It caused him to overdose on fentanyl. Law enforcement officers found Individual 2 in an unresponsive state and transported him to a hospital. Individual 2 continued to be unresponsive. On or about May 8, 2020, Individual 2 died. Robledo admitted in his plea agreement that Individual 2 died as a result of the fentanyl in the M30 that Robledo sold him.
In addition to the 96 month prison term, U.S. District Judge Beth L. Freeman ordered Robledo to pay restitution for, among other things, the funeral costs of Individual 2. In addition, Robledo was sentenced to serve three years of supervised release following release from federal prison.
Assistant U.S. Attorneys Christina Liu and Casey Boome prosecuted the case with the assistance of Linda Love and Mark DiCenzo. The prosecution is the result of an investigation by DEA and the Pacific Grove Police Department.
Fentanyl, a Schedule II controlled substance, is a highly potent opiate that can be diluted with cutting agents to create counterfeit pills that purport to mimic the effects of Oxycodone and can typically be obtained at a lower cost than genuine Oxycodone. However, small variations in the amount or quality of fentanyl can have significant effects on the potency of the counterfeit pills, raising the danger of overdoses. Fentanyl has become the leading cause of drug overdose deaths in the United States. In this case, the counterfeit, fentanyl-laced pills that Robledo distributed were shaped and colored to resemble Oxycodone pills that are sold legitimately in the marketplace. As in this case, counterfeit pills known as M30s are round tablets that are sometimes light blue and with “M” and “30” imprinted on opposite sides of the pill.
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.
Federal Grand Jury Indicts Louisville Man for Possession of Handgun at Shawnee High SchoolRead the Press Release
LOUISVILLE, KENTUCKY – A federal grand jury in Louisville, Kentucky returned an indictment on March 16, 2022, charging a Louisville man with illegal possession of a firearm in a school zone.
According to court documents, Jaylin Ready 18, of Louisville was indicted for possessing a handgun at Shawnee High School on January 31, 2022.
The defendant made his initial appearance today before U.S. Magistrate Judge Colin H. Lindsay of the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Kentucky. If convicted, he will face a maximum penalty of 5 years in prison. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
U.S. Attorney Michael A. Bennett of the Western District of Kentucky and Special Agent in Charge R. Shawn Morrow of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) made the announcement.
The ATF and the Louisville Metro Police Department are investigating the case.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Joshua Porter is prosecuting the case.
This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), the centerpiece of the Department of Justice’s violent crime reduction efforts. PSN is an evidence-based program proven to be effective at reducing violent crime. Through PSN, a broad spectrum of stakeholders work together to identify the most pressing violent crime problems in the community and develop comprehensive solutions to address them. As part of this strategy, PSN focuses enforcement efforts on the most violent offenders and partners with locally based prevention and reentry programs for lasting reductions in crime.
An indictment is merely an allegation and all defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
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East Brookfield Man Convicted of Illegally Operating a Helicopter, Making False Statements and Attempted Witness TamperingRead the Press Release
BOSTON – An East Brookfield man was convicted today by a federal jury in Worcester in connection with unlawfully operating a helicopter, making false statements to federal investigators and attempting to tamper with a witness.
Antonio Santonastaso, 62, was convicted following a three-day jury trial of one count of serving as an airman without an airman certificate, one count of making false statements to federal agents and one count of attempted witness tampering. U.S. District Court Judge Timothy S. Hillman scheduled sentencing for Oct. 5, 2022. Santonastaso was indicted in May 2019.
“Mr. Santonastaso demonstrated a blatant disregard for FAA rules and regulations by operating a helicopter out of his backyard without a license on numerous occasions. Every time he did so, he endangered himself, his community and the general public on the ground,” said United States Attorney Rachael S. Rollins. “My office will continue our work to detect and hold accountable individuals who violate federal laws and regulations, as well as those who make false statements to federal investigators and who attempt to tamper with witnesses. I commend the Northeast U.S. Department of Transportation, Office of Inspector General, for their diligence and efforts in handling this case.”
“Anyone choosing to intentionally ignore Federal aviation regulations and requirements will be pursed to the fullest extent of the law,” said Joseph Harris, Special Agent-in-Charge, Department of Transportation Office of Inspector General, Northeastern Region. “As demonstrated by today’s conviction, we will continue working with our law enforcement and prosecutorial partners to support the safety and integrity of the Nation’s airspace.”
The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) revoked Santonastaso’s license to pilot an aircraft in 2000, after he participated in the theft of a helicopter from Norwood Memorial Airport. Despite being aware of that revocation, Santonastaso operated a Robinson R-22 helicopter – taking off and landing from his backyard – more than 50 times between April 28, 2018, and Nov. 11, 2018.
When questioned by the FAA, Santonastaso made false statements regarding his eligibility to pilot the helicopter. Specifically, Santonastaso falsely claimed that the events that gave rise to the FAA’s revocation of his license were a fabrication. Evidence at trial also established that Santonastaso attempted to corruptly persuade an individual with the intent to hinder, delay and prevent that individual from reporting his illegal helicopter flights to law enforcement.
The charging statutes provide for a sentence of no greater than 20 years in prison, up to three years of supervised release and a fine of $250,000. Sentences are imposed by a federal district court judge based upon the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and statutes which govern the determination of a sentence in a criminal case.
U.S. Attorney Rollins and DOT OIG SAC Harris made the announcement today. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Evan Panich of Rollins’ Affirmative Civil Enforcement unit, cross-designated to the Criminal Division, and Danial Bennett of Rollins’ Worcester Branch Office are prosecuting the case.
ESI Energy LLC, Wholly Owned Subsidiary of Nextera Energy Resources LLC, is Sentenced After Pleading Guilty to Killing and Wounding Eagles in Its Wind Energy Operations, in Violation of the Migratory Bird Treaty ActRead the Press Release
ESI Energy Inc. (ESI) was sentenced today in Cheyenne, Wyoming, for violations of the Migratory Bird Treaty Act (MBTA), announced Assistant Attorney General Todd Kim for the Justice Department’s Environment and Natural Resources Division and U.S. Attorney L. Robert Murray for the District of Wyoming.
ESI is a wholly owned subsidiary of NextEra Energy Resources LLC, which in turn is a wholly owned subsidiary of NextEra Energy Inc. ESI owns other companies, many of which operate wind energy generation facilities throughout the United States, including in Wyoming, New Mexico, Arizona, California, Colorado, Illinois, North Dakota and Michigan, as well as other states.
ESI pled guilty to three counts of violating the MBTA, each based on the documented deaths of golden eagles due to blunt force trauma from being struck by a wind turbine blade at a particular facility in Wyoming or New Mexico, where ESI had not applied for the necessary permits. ESI further acknowledged that at least 150 bald and golden eagles have died in total since 2012, across 50 of its 154 wind energy facilities. 136 of those deaths have been affirmatively determined to be attributable to the eagle being struck by a wind turbine blade.
The court sentenced ESI, pursuant to a plea agreement, to a fine of $1,861,600, restitution in the amount of $6,210,991, and a five-year period of probation during which it must follow an Eagle Management Plan (EMP). The EMP requires implementation of up to $27 million (during the period of probation; more thereafter if a written extension is signed) of measures intended to minimize additional eagle deaths and injuries, and payment of compensatory mitigation for future eagle deaths and injuries of $29,623 per bald or golden eagle. ESI also must over the next 36 months apply for permits for any unavoidable take of eagles at each of 50 of its facilities where take is documented or, in the case of four facilities not yet operational, predicted.
“The Justice Department will enforce the nation’s wildlife laws to promote Congress’s purposes, including ensuring sustainable populations of bald and golden eagles, and to promote fair competition for companies that comply,” said Assistant Attorney General Todd Kim of the Justice Department’s Environment and Natural Resources Division. “For more than a decade, ESI has violated those laws, taking eagles without obtaining or even seeking the necessary permit. We are pleased to see ESI now commit to seeking such permits and ultimately ceasing such violations.”
“Wyoming is graced with abundant natural resources – including both eagles and strong winds,” said U.S. Attorney L. Robert Murray for the District of Wyoming. “The sentencing today shows our commitment to both maintaining and making sustainable use of our resources. It also ensures a level playing field for business in Wyoming and ensures those receiving federal tax credits are complying with federal law.”
“The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) has a long history of working closely with the wind power industry to identify best practices in avoiding and minimizing the impacts of land-based wind energy facilities on wildlife, including eagles,” said Edward Grace, Assistant Director of the USFWS’ Office of Law Enforcement. “This agreement holds ESI and its affiliates accountable for years of unwillingness to work cooperatively with the Service and their blatant disregard of wildlife laws, and finally marks a path forward for the benefit of eagles and other wildlife resources entrusted to the Service’s stewardship.”
“This prosecution and the restitution it secures will protect the ecologically vital and majestic natural resources of our bald eagle and golden eagle populations,” said U.S. Attorney Phillip A. Talbert for the Eastern District of California. “California has been awarded more than $4.6 million in restitution under this plea agreement for the deaths of at least 92 eagles within the state caused by the defendant and affiliated companies.”
The MBTA prohibits the “taking” of migratory birds, including bald and golden eagles, without a permit from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service of the Department of the Interior. “Take” is defined by regulation to mean “to pursue, hunt, shoot, wound, kill, trap, capture or collect” or to attempt to do so.
Bald and golden eagles are also protected under the Bald and Golden Eagle Protection Act (the Eagle Act) which, like the MBTA, prohibits killing and wounding eagles without a permit from USFWS. USFWS is authorized to issue such eagle take permits (ETPs) only where: (1) the predicted take is compatible with the preservation of bald and golden eagles; (2) it is necessary to protect an interest in a particular locality; (3) the take is associated with, but not the purpose of, the activity; and (4) the take could not practicably be avoided. Permit applicants are required to avoid and minimize take to the maximum extent practicable, and to pay compensatory mitigation for unavoidable takes.
According to documents filed in court, it is the government’s position that ESI’s conduct violated both the Eagle Act and the MBTA, but the government accepted the company’s guilty plea to only MBTA counts due in large part to ESI’s agreement to apply for permits at 50 facilities and its prior efforts to minimize and mitigate for eagle fatalities.
ESI’s and its affiliated companies’ actions in Wyoming and New Mexico were taken under an admitted nationwide posture and alleged corporate policy of not applying for ETPs.
According to the information filed in this case:
- ESI and its affiliates deliberately elected not to apply for or obtain any ETP intended to ensure the preservation of bald and golden eagles, and instead chose to construct and operate facilities it knew would take eagles, and in fact took eagles, without any permits authorizing that take.
- Because ESI did not seek any ETPs, it avoided any immediate federal obligation to avoid and minimize eagle take to the maximum degree practicable and to pay for compensatory mitigation for the eagle deaths.
- Because some other wind energy companies (1) altered proposed operations as required to avoid and minimize take levels to the maximum degree practicable, (2) applied for ETPs, (3) obtained ETPs that in some cases were impacted by take levels caused by ESI’s unpermitted facilities, and/or (4) paid mitigation for eagle takings, ESI, by not doing these things, gained a competitive advantage relative to those wind energy companies.
- ESI and its affiliates began commercial operations at new facilities on a schedule intended to meet, among other things, power purchase agreement commitments and qualifying deadlines for particular tax credit rates for renewable energy, and with production amounts not impacted by avoidance and minimization measures that might have been required under an eagle take permit. ESI and its affiliates received hundreds of millions of dollars in federal tax credits for generating electricity from wind power at facilities that it operated, knowing that multiple eagles would be killed and wounded without legal authorization, and without, in most instances, paying restitution or compensatory mitigation.
According to documents filed in court, between 2018 and 2019, ESI authorized subsidiary Cedar Springs Transmission LLC (CST) to develop a multi-facility commercial wind power project in Converse County, Wyoming, consisting of the Cedar Springs I, II and III wind power facilities (collectively, the project).
On March 28, 2019, USFWS informed the defendant, through a letter to its agents, that Cedar Springs I and II, based on CST’s consultant’s calculations, could result in the collision mortality of 44 golden eagles and 23 bald eagles over the first five years of operations, and recommended that, because of the unusually high number of occupied golden eagle nests, the proposed wind facilities not be built. USFWS further stated that, if the facilities were built, the company should apply for an ETP under the Eagle Act as soon as possible. The defendant continued the development of the Cedar Springs facilities.
On July 17, 2019, representatives of CST met with USFWS representatives. During that meeting, USFWS recommended that, consistent with the recommendation made by USFWS in February, the wind project not be constructed due to the risk of avian fatalities. USFWS also recommended that, if the wind project was built, the project should implement seasonal curtailment during daylight hours. The defendant did not implement the recommended curtailment.
Between Sept. 10 and Sept. 23, 2019, USFWS sent additional letters to the defendant’s agents, each noting that the defendant’s parent company had documented that the project was anticipated to kill eagles and recommending that the facilities apply for an ETP. USFWS reiterated for the third time its recommendation that a wind project should not be constructed in the proposed area for the Cedar Springs project.
On or about Sept 28, 2020, the defendant’s affiliates began some turbine operations at Cedar Springs II. Between approximately Nov 29, 2020, and Dec 1, 2020, two golden eagle carcasses were found near wind turbines at Cedar Springs II (after which it was sold).
On or about Dec. 6, 2020, the defendant authorized the commercial operation of Cedar Springs I to commence. Between April 2021 and January 2022, seven golden eagle carcasses were found near wind turbines at Cedar Springs I.
On or about Dec. 15, 2020, the defendant authorized the commercial operation of Cedar Springs III to commence. On approximately Jan. 30, 2022, a golden eagle carcass was found near a wind turbine at Cedar Springs III.
Between 2018 and 2019, ESI authorized a subsidiary, Roundhouse Renewable Energy LLC (RRE), to develop a commercial wind power facility in Laramie County, Wyoming.
In a letter dated March 28, 2019, USFWS stated that, based on RRE’s consultant’s calculations, Roundhouse could result in the collision mortality of 19 golden eagles and 4 bald eagles over the first five years of operation, and recommended that RRE apply for an ETP under the Eagle Act. The defendant continued the development of Roundhouse.
In a letter dated Aug. 27, 2019, USFWS provided recommendations on opportunities to avoid and minimize impacts to eagles using the available data. USFWS again stated that the facility was predicted to take eagles even if all USFWS recommendations were implemented, however, and recommended that an ETP be sought.
On June 12, 2020, the defendant authorized the commercial operation of Roundhouse to commence. Between approximately Sept. 17, 2020, and April 17, 2021, four golden eagle carcasses were found near wind turbines at Roundhouse.
In 2003, ESI authorized a subsidiary, FPL Energy New Mexico Wind LLC (NMW), to begin operations at a commercial wind power facility in De Baca and Quay Counties, New Mexico. On or about Dec. 29, 2020, two golden eagle carcasses were found near a wind turbine at NMW.
No ETP was sought by or issued to ESI in connection with the operations or repowering of any of the above wind power facilities.
This case was investigated by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Office of Law Enforcement. The prosecutions were handled by the Environmental Crimes Section of the Justice Department’s Environment and Natural Resources Division with assistance from the U.S. Attorneys’ Offices for the Eastern District of California, the District of Wyoming and the Northern District of California.
ESI Energy LLC, Wholly Owned Subsidiary of Nextera Energy Resources LLC, is Sentenced After Pleading Guilty to Killing and Wounding Eagles in Its Wind Energy Operations, in Violation of the Migratory Bird Treaty ActRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON – ESI Energy Inc. (ESI) was sentenced today in Cheyenne, Wyoming, for violations of the Migratory Bird Treaty Act (MBTA), announced Assistant Attorney General Todd Kim for the Justice Department’s Environment and Natural Resources Division and U.S. Attorney L. Robert Murray for the District of Wyoming.
ESI is a wholly owned subsidiary of NextEra Energy Resources LLC, which in turn is a wholly owned subsidiary of NextEra Energy Inc. ESI owns other companies, many of which operate wind energy generation facilities throughout the United States, including in Wyoming, New Mexico, Arizona, California, Colorado, Illinois, North Dakota and Michigan, as well as other states.
ESI pled guilty to three counts of violating the MBTA, each based on the documented deaths of golden eagles due to blunt force trauma from being struck by a wind turbine blade at a particular facility in Wyoming or New Mexico, where ESI had not applied for the necessary permits. ESI further acknowledged that at least 150 bald and golden eagles have died in total since 2012, across 50 of its 154 wind energy facilities. 136 of those deaths have been affirmatively determined to be attributable to the eagle being struck by a wind turbine blade.
The court sentenced ESI, pursuant to a plea agreement, to a fine of $1,861,600, restitution in the amount of $6,210,991, and a five-year period of probation during which it must follow an Eagle Management Plan (“EMP”). The EMP requires implementation of up to $27 million (during the period of probation; more thereafter if a written extension is signed) of measures intended to minimize additional eagle deaths and injuries, and payment of compensatory mitigation for future eagle deaths and injuries of $29,623 per bald or golden eagle. ESI also must over the next 36 months apply for permits for any unavoidable take of eagles at each of 50 of its facilities where take is documented or, in the case of four facilities not yet operational, predicted.
“The Justice Department will enforce the nation’s wildlife laws to promote Congress’s purposes, including ensuring sustainable populations of bald and golden eagles, and to promote fair competition for companies that comply,” said Assistant Attorney General Todd Kim of the Justice Department’s Environment and Natural Resources Division. “For more than a decade, ESI has violated those laws, taking eagles without obtaining or even seeking the necessary permit. We are pleased to see ESI now commit to seeking such permits and ultimately ceasing such violations.”
“Wyoming is graced with abundant natural resources – including both eagles and strong winds,” said U.S. Attorney L. Robert Murray for the District of Wyoming. “The sentencing today shows our commitment to both maintaining and making sustainable use of our resources. It also ensures a level playing field for business in Wyoming and ensures those receiving federal tax credits are complying with federal law.”
“The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) has a long history of working closely with the wind power industry to identify best practices in avoiding and minimizing the impacts of land-based wind energy facilities on wildlife, including eagles,” said Edward Grace, Assistant Director of the USFWS’ Office of Law Enforcement. “This agreement holds ESI and its affiliates accountable for years of unwillingness to work cooperatively with the Service and their blatant disregard of wildlife laws, and finally marks a path forward for the benefit of eagles and other wildlife resources entrusted to the Service’s stewardship.”
“This prosecution and the restitution it secures will protect the ecologically vital and majestic natural resources of our bald eagle and golden eagle populations,” said U.S. Attorney Phillip A. Talbert for the Eastern District of California. “California has been awarded more than $4.6 million in restitution under this plea agreement for the deaths of at least 92 eagles within the state caused by the defendant and affiliated companies.”
The MBTA prohibits the “taking” of migratory birds, including bald and golden eagles, without a permit from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service of the Department of the Interior. “Take” is defined by regulation to mean “to pursue, hunt, shoot, wound, kill, trap, capture or collect” or to attempt to do so.
Bald and golden eagles are also protected under the Bald and Golden Eagle Protection Act (the Eagle Act) which, like the MBTA, prohibits killing and wounding eagles without a permit from USFWS. USFWS is authorized to issue such eagle take permits (ETPs) only where: (1) the predicted take is compatible with the preservation of bald and golden eagles; (2) it is necessary to protect an interest in a particular locality; (3) the take is associated with, but not the purpose of, the activity; and (4) the take could not practicably be avoided. Permit applicants are required to avoid and minimize take to the maximum extent practicable, and to pay compensatory mitigation for unavoidable takes.
According to documents filed in court, it is the government’s position that ESI’s conduct violated both the Eagle Act and the MBTA, but the government accepted the company’s guilty plea to only MBTA counts due in large part to ESI’s agreement to apply for permits at 50 facilities and its prior efforts to minimize and mitigate for eagle fatalities.
ESI’s and its affiliated companies’ actions in Wyoming and New Mexico were taken under an admitted nationwide posture and alleged corporate policy of not applying for ETPs.
According to the information filed in this case:
• ESI and its affiliates deliberately elected not to apply for or obtain any ETP intended to ensure the preservation of bald and golden eagles, and instead chose to construct and
operate facilities it knew would take eagles, and in fact took eagles, without any permits authorizing that take.
• Because ESI did not seek any ETPs, it avoided any immediate federal obligation to avoid and minimize eagle take to the maximum degree practicable and to pay for compensatory mitigation for the eagle deaths.
• Because some other wind energy companies (1) altered proposed operations as required to avoid and minimize take levels to the maximum degree practicable, (2) applied for ETPs, (3) obtained ETPs that in some cases were impacted by take levels caused by ESI’s unpermitted facilities, and/or (4) paid mitigation for eagle takings, ESI, by not doing these things, gained a competitive advantage relative to those wind energy companies.
• ESI and its affiliates began commercial operations at new facilities on a schedule intended to meet, among other things, power purchase agreement commitments and qualifying deadlines for particular tax credit rates for renewable energy, and with production amounts not impacted by avoidance and minimization measures that might have been required under an eagle take permit. ESI and its affiliates received hundreds of millions of dollars in federal tax credits for generating electricity from wind power at facilities that it operated, knowing that multiple eagles would be killed and wounded without legal authorization, and without, in most instances, paying restitution or compensatory mitigation.According to documents filed in court, between 2018 and 2019, ESI authorized subsidiary Cedar Springs Transmission LLC (CST) to develop a multi-facility commercial wind power project in Converse County, Wyoming, consisting of the Cedar Springs I, II and III wind power facilities (collectively, the project).
On March 28, 2019, USFWS informed the defendant, through a letter to its agents, that Cedar Springs I and II, based on CST’s consultant’s calculations, could result in the collision mortality of 44 golden eagles and 23 bald eagles over the first five years of operations, and recommended that, because of the unusually high number of occupied golden eagle nests, the proposed wind facilities not be built. USFWS further stated that, if the facilities were built, the company should apply for an ETP under the Eagle Act as soon as possible. The defendant continued the development of the Cedar Springs facilities.
On July 17, 2019, representatives of CST met with USFWS representatives. During that meeting, USFWS recommended that, consistent with the recommendation made by USFWS in February, the wind project not be constructed due to the risk of avian fatalities. USFWS also recommended that, if the wind project was built, the project should implement seasonal curtailment during daylight hours. The defendant did not implement the recommended curtailment.
Between Sept. 10 and Sept. 23, 2019, USFWS sent additional letters to the defendant’s agents, each noting that the defendant’s parent company had documented that the project was anticipated to kill eagles and recommending that the facilities apply for an ETP. USFWS reiterated for the third time its recommendation that a wind project should not be constructed in the proposed area for the Cedar Springs project.On or about Sept 28, 2020, the defendant’s affiliates began some turbine operations at Cedar Springs II. Between approximately Nov 29, 2020, and Dec 1, 2020, two golden eagle carcasses were found near wind turbines at Cedar Springs II (after which it was sold).
On or about Dec. 6, 2020, the defendant authorized the commercial operation of Cedar Springs I to commence. Between April 2021 and January 2022, seven golden eagle carcasses were found near wind turbines at Cedar Springs I.
On or about Dec. 15, 2020, the defendant authorized the commercial operation of Cedar Springs III to commence. On approximately Jan. 30, 2022, a golden eagle carcass was found near a wind turbine at Cedar Springs III.
Between 2018 and 2019, ESI authorized a subsidiary, Roundhouse Renewable Energy LLC (RRE), to develop a commercial wind power facility in Laramie County, Wyoming.
In a letter dated March 28, 2019, USFWS stated that, based on RRE’s consultant’s calculations, Roundhouse could result in the collision mortality of 19 golden eagles and 4 bald eagles over the first five years of operation, and recommended that RRE apply for an ETP under the Eagle Act. The defendant continued the development of Roundhouse.
In a letter dated Aug. 27, 2019, USFWS provided recommendations on opportunities to avoid and minimize impacts to eagles using the available data. USFWS again stated that the facility was predicted to take eagles even if all USFWS recommendations were implemented, however, and recommended that an ETP be sought.
On June 12, 2020, the defendant authorized the commercial operation of Roundhouse to commence. Between approximately Sept. 17, 2020, and April 17, 2021, four golden eagle carcasses were found near wind turbines at Roundhouse.
In 2003, ESI authorized a subsidiary, FPL Energy New Mexico Wind LLC (NMW), to begin operations at a commercial wind power facility in De Baca and Quay Counties, New Mexico. On or about Dec. 29, 2020, two golden eagle carcasses were found near a wind turbine at NMW.No ETP was sought by or issued to ESI in connection with the operations or repowering of any of the above wind power facilities.
This case was investigated by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Office of Law Enforcement. The prosecutions were handled by the Environmental Crimes Section of the Justice Department’s Environment and Natural Resources Division with assistance from the U.S. Attorneys’ Offices for the Eastern District of California, the District of Wyoming and Northern District of California.
ESI Energy LLC, Wholly Owned Subsidiary of Nextera Energy Resources LLC, Is Sentenced After Pleading Guilty to Killing and Wounding Eagles in Its Wind Energy Operations, in Violation of the Migratory Bird Treaty ActRead the Press Release
SACRAMENTO, Calif. – ESI Energy Inc. (ESI) was sentenced today in Cheyenne, Wyoming, for violations of the Migratory Bird Treaty Act (MBTA), announced Assistant Attorney General Todd Kim for the Justice Department’s Environment and Natural Resources Division and U.S. Attorney L. Robert Murray for the District of Wyoming.
ESI is a wholly owned subsidiary of NextEra Energy Resources LLC, which in turn is a wholly owned subsidiary of NextEra Energy Inc. ESI owns other companies, many of which operate wind energy generation facilities throughout the United States, including in Wyoming, New Mexico, Arizona, California, Colorado, Illinois, North Dakota and Michigan, as well as other states.
ESI pleaded guilty to three counts of violating the Migratory Bird Treaty Act (MBTA), each based on the documented deaths of golden eagles due to blunt force trauma from being struck by a wind turbine blade at a particular facility in Wyoming or New Mexico, where ESI had not applied for the necessary permits. ESI further acknowledged that at least 150 bald and golden eagles have died in total since 2012, across 50 of its 154 wind energy facilities. 136 of those deaths have been affirmatively determined to be attributable to the eagle being struck by a wind turbine blade.
The court sentenced ESI, pursuant to a plea agreement, to a fine of $1,861,600, restitution in the amount of $6,210,991, and a five-year period of probation during which it must follow an Eagle Management Plan (EMP). The EMP requires implementation of up to $27 million (during the period of probation; more thereafter if a written extension is signed) of measures intended to minimize additional eagle deaths and injuries, and payment of compensatory mitigation for future eagle deaths and injuries of $29,623 per bald or golden eagle. ESI also must over the next 36 months apply for permits for any unavoidable take of eagles at each of 50 of its facilities where take is documented or, in the case of four facilities not yet operational, predicted.
“The Justice Department will enforce the nation’s wildlife laws to promote Congress’s purposes, including ensuring sustainable populations of bald and golden eagles, and to promote fair competition for companies that comply,” said Assistant Attorney General Todd Kim of the Justice Department’s Environment and Natural Resources Division. “For more than a decade, ESI has violated those laws, taking eagles without obtaining or even seeking the necessary permit. We are pleased to see ESI now commit to seeking such permits and ultimately ceasing such violations.”
“Wyoming is graced with abundant natural resources – including both eagles and strong winds,” said U.S. Attorney L. Robert Murray for the District of Wyoming. “The sentencing today shows our commitment to both maintaining and making sustainable use of our resources. It also ensures a level playing field for business in Wyoming and ensures those receiving federal tax credits are complying with federal law.”
“The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) has a long history of working closely with the wind power industry to identify best practices in avoiding and minimizing the impacts of land-based wind energy facilities on wildlife, including eagles,” said Edward Grace, Assistant Director of the USFWS’ Office of Law Enforcement. “This agreement holds ESI and its affiliates accountable for years of unwillingness to work cooperatively with the Service and their blatant disregard of wildlife laws, and finally marks a path forward for the benefit of eagles and other wildlife resources entrusted to the Service’s stewardship.”
“This prosecution and the restitution it secures will protect the ecologically vital and majestic natural resources of our bald eagle and golden eagle populations,” said U.S. Attorney Phillip A. Talbert for the Eastern District of California. “California has been awarded more than $4.6 million in restitution under this plea agreement for the deaths of at least 92 eagles within the state caused by the defendant and affiliated companies.”
The MBTA prohibits the “taking” of migratory birds, including bald and golden eagles, without a permit from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service of the Department of the Interior. “Take” is defined by regulation to mean “to pursue, hunt, shoot, wound, kill, trap, capture or collect” or to attempt to do so.
Bald and golden eagles are also protected under the Bald and Golden Eagle Protection Act (the Eagle Act) which, like the MBTA, prohibits killing and wounding eagles without a permit from USFWS. USFWS is authorized to issue such eagle take permits (ETPs) only where: (1) the predicted take is compatible with the preservation of bald and golden eagles; (2) it is necessary to protect an interest in a particular locality; (3) the take is associated with, but not the purpose of, the activity; and (4) the take could not practicably be avoided. Permit applicants are required to avoid and minimize take to the maximum extent practicable, and to pay compensatory mitigation for unavoidable takes.
According to documents filed in court, it is the government’s position that ESI’s conduct violated both the Eagle Act and the MBTA, but the government accepted the company’s guilty plea to only MBTA counts due in large part to ESI’s agreement to apply for permits at 50 facilities and its prior efforts to minimize and mitigate for eagle fatalities.
ESI’s and its affiliated companies’ actions in Wyoming and New Mexico were taken under an admitted nationwide posture and alleged corporate policy of not applying for ETPs.
According to the information filed in this case:
- ESI and its affiliates deliberately elected not to apply for or obtain any ETP intended to ensure the preservation of bald and golden eagles, and instead chose to construct and operate facilities it knew would take eagles, and in fact took eagles, without any permits authorizing that take.
- Because ESI did not seek any ETPs, it avoided any immediate federal obligation to avoid and minimize eagle take to the maximum degree practicable and to pay for compensatory mitigation for the eagle deaths.
- Because some other wind energy companies (1) altered proposed operations as required to avoid and minimize take levels to the maximum degree practicable, (2) applied for ETPs, (3) obtained ETPs that in some cases were impacted by take levels caused by ESI’s unpermitted facilities, and/or (4) paid mitigation for eagle takings, ESI, by not doing these things, gained a competitive advantage relative to those wind energy companies.
- ESI and its affiliates began commercial operations at new facilities on a schedule intended to meet, among other things, power purchase agreement commitments and qualifying deadlines for particular tax credit rates for renewable energy, and with production amounts not impacted by avoidance and minimization measures that might have been required under an eagle take permit. ESI and its affiliates received hundreds of millions of dollars in federal tax credits for generating electricity from wind power at facilities that it operated, knowing that multiple eagles would be killed and wounded without legal authorization, and without, in most instances, paying restitution or compensatory mitigation.
According to documents filed in court, between 2018 and 2019, ESI authorized subsidiary Cedar Springs Transmission LLC (CST) to develop a multi-facility commercial wind power project in Converse County, Wyoming, consisting of the Cedar Springs I, II and III wind power facilities (collectively, the project).
On March 28, 2019, USFWS informed the defendant, through a letter to its agents, that Cedar Springs I and II, based on CST’s consultant’s calculations, could result in the collision mortality of 44 golden eagles and 23 bald eagles over the first five years of operations, and recommended that, because of the unusually high number of occupied golden eagle nests, the proposed wind facilities not be built. USFWS further stated that, if the facilities were built, the company should apply for an ETP under the Eagle Act as soon as possible. The defendant continued the development of the Cedar Springs facilities.
On July 17, 2019, representatives of CST met with USFWS representatives. During that meeting, USFWS recommended that, consistent with the recommendation made by USFWS in February, the wind project not be constructed due to the risk of avian fatalities. USFWS also recommended that, if the wind project was built, the project should implement seasonal curtailment during daylight hours. The defendant did not implement the recommended curtailment.
Between Sept. 10 and Sept. 23, 2019, USFWS sent additional letters to the defendant’s agents, each noting that the defendant’s parent company had documented that the project was anticipated to kill eagles and recommending that the facilities apply for an ETP. USFWS reiterated for the third time its recommendation that a wind project should not be constructed in the proposed area for the Cedar Springs project.
On or about Sept 28, 2020, the defendant’s affiliates began some turbine operations at Cedar Springs II. Between approximately Nov. 29, 2020, and Dec. 1, 2020, two golden eagle carcasses were found near wind turbines at Cedar Springs II (after which it was sold).
On or about Dec. 6, 2020, the defendant authorized the commercial operation of Cedar Springs I to commence. Between April 2021 and January 2022, seven golden eagle carcasses were found near wind turbines at Cedar Springs I.
On or about Dec. 15, 2020, the defendant authorized the commercial operation of Cedar Springs III to commence. On approximately Jan. 30, 2022, a golden eagle carcass was found near a wind turbine at Cedar Springs III.
Between 2018 and 2019, ESI authorized a subsidiary, Roundhouse Renewable Energy LLC (RRE), to develop a commercial wind power facility in Laramie County, Wyoming.
In a letter dated March 28, 2019, USFWS stated that, based on RRE’s consultant’s calculations, Roundhouse could result in the collision mortality of 19 golden eagles and 4 bald eagles over the first five years of operation, and recommended that RRE apply for an ETP under the Eagle Act. The defendant continued the development of Roundhouse.
In a letter dated Aug. 27, 2019, USFWS provided recommendations on opportunities to avoid and minimize impacts to eagles using the available data. USFWS again stated that the facility was predicted to take eagles even if all USFWS recommendations were implemented, however, and recommended that an ETP be sought.
On June 12, 2020, the defendant authorized the commercial operation of Roundhouse to commence. Between approximately Sept. 17, 2020, and April 17, 2021, four golden eagle carcasses were found near wind turbines at Roundhouse.
In 2003, ESI authorized a subsidiary, FPL Energy New Mexico Wind LLC (NMW), to begin operations at a commercial wind power facility in De Baca and Quay Counties, New Mexico. On or about Dec. 29, 2020, two golden eagle carcasses were found near a wind turbine at NMW.
No ETP was sought by or issued to ESI in connection with the operations or repowering of any of the above wind power facilities.
This case was investigated by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Office of Law Enforcement. The prosecutions were handled by the Environmental Crimes Section of the Justice Department’s Environment and Natural Resources Division with assistance from the U.S. Attorneys’ Offices for the Eastern District of California, the District of Wyoming and the Northern District of California.
Dual U.S. and Dutch Citizen Charged with $14 Billion Tender Offer Fraud SchemeRead the Press Release
Damian Williams, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, and Ricky J. Patel, the Acting Special Agent-in-Charge of the New York Field Office of Homeland Security Investigations (“HSI”), announced the unsealing of an Indictment charging MELVILLE TEN CATE with tender offer fraud, securities fraud, and wire fraud in connection with several schemes on behalf of his company, Xcalibur Aerospace Ltd. (“Xcalibur”), including a fraudulent tender offer worth more than $14 billion. TEN CATE remains at large.
U.S. Attorney Damian Williams said: “Fraudsters talk big and hope no one looks too closely at the bottom line. We allege Mr. ten Cate attempted to make his company look profitable and bluffed his way through the proposed purchase of a multi-billion dollar company. But it was all based on a lie. Instead of collecting on a hefty payday, he’s now facing serious federal charges.”
HSI Acting Special Agent-in-Charge Ricky J. Patel said: “The filing of this indictment alleges that ten Cate sold lies to raise cash - swindling investors and companies along the way through multiple fraud schemes. Time and time again this fraudster believed he could outsmart unwitting pools of investors, luring them with phony stock tenders and a variety of false promises. Justice caught up with him and he is now facing charges for his criminal acts. HSI will never stop in its mission to pursue these unscrupulous actors anywhere in the world to keep the public safe and to preserve and protect the American financial system.”
According to the allegations contained in the Indictment filed today in Manhattan federal court:
From in or about August 2019 until in or about November 2020, MELVILLE TEN CATE, the defendant, executed fraudulent schemes designed to induce others to invest in, or otherwise transfer money to, Xcalibur and TEN CATE. First, TEN CATE attempted to secure $500 million in debt financing from U.S. banks and third-party debt issuers. In doing so, TEN CATE materially misrepresented Xcalibur’s business activities and finances to the banks and other potential investors, including by falsely claiming that Xcalibur’s financial records had been audited by an international accounting firm, that Xcalibur had outside investors, and that Xcalibur had cash reserves of almost £9.8 billion.
In a second scheme, in and about November 2020, TEN CATE placed an advertisement in a national newspaper (the “Newspaper”) in which he falsely claimed that Xcalibur had secured billions of dollars in financing and was making a tender offer to acquire a multibillion-dollar U.S. corporation (the “Target Company”). In furtherance of his scheme to issue the false tender offer for the Target Company, TEN CATE sent fabricated payment confirmations to the Newspaper and to a New York, New York-based printer (the “Printer”) that TEN CATE had hired to file the false tender offer with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”). The Newspaper published the false tender offer, but neither the Newspaper nor the Printer ever received payment and TEN CATE never completed the tender offer.
* * *
TEN CATE, 53, of Dubai, United Arab Emirates, is charged with one count of tender offer fraud, one count of securities fraud, and two counts of wire fraud. TEN CATE faces a maximum sentence of 20 years’ imprisonment on each count.
The maximum potential sentence in this case is prescribed by Congress and is provided here for informational purposes only, as any sentencing of a defendant will be determined by the judge.
Mr. Williams praised the investigative work of HSI. Mr. Williams also thanked the Securities & Exchange Commission, which brought a related civil action against TEN CATE that was filed today.
This case is being handled by the Office’s Securities and Commodities Fraud Task Force. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Kiersten A. Fletcher and Andrew Jones are in charge of the prosecution.
The charges contained in the Indictment are merely accusations, and the defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
District Man Sentenced to 15-Year Prison Term for Killing Man in Front of Senior Apartment CenterRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON – Marcha Johnson, 43, of Washington, D.C., was sentenced today to a 15-year prison term for killing a man last fall in Northwest Washington, announced U.S. Attorney Matthew M. Graves and Robert J. Contee III, Chief of the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD).
Johnson pleaded guilty in January 2022, in the Superior Court of the District of Columbia, to a charge of voluntary manslaughter while armed. He was sentenced by the Honorable Robert Okun. Following completion of his prison term, Johnson will be placed on five years of supervised release.
According to court documents, in the early evening hours of Oct. 6, 2021, Johnson was in the Unit block of O Street NW, having parked his car in front of a seniors’ apartment building. Just before 8 p.m., the victim, Rufus Davis III, 20, rode up to the area on a scooter and started speaking with Johnson and others. Mr. Davis was scolded by Johnson, who got in Mr. Davis’s face and spoke to him in an animated manner. The two men continued to speak for several minutes until they again came close to each other near Johnson’s car. As Mr. Davis approached Johnson and the others, Johnson pulled a gun, just inches in front of Mr. Davis’s face, and fired one shot. Johnson fired two more shots at Mr. Davis’s back as Mr. Davis tried to move away from Johnson. Then, as Mr. Davis laid on the ground, Johnson stood over him and fired the final two bullets in his revolver into Mr. Davis’s head from just inches above Mr. Davis.
Johnson was arrested on Oct.13, 2021. He has been in custody ever since.
In announcing the sentence, U.S. Attorney Graves and Chief Contee commended the work of those who investigated the case from the Metropolitan Police Department. They also acknowledged the efforts of those who worked on the case from the U.S. Attorney’s Office, including Paralegal Specialist Meridith McGarrity and Victim/Witness Advocate Jennifer Clark. Finally, they commended the work of Assistant U.S. Attorneys John Giovannelli and Jeffrey Wojcik, who prosecuted the case.
District Man Sentenced to 12-Year Prison Term for Sexually Assaulting Woman at Gunpoint in 2006Read the Press Release
WASHINGTON –Christopher Grooms, 36, of Washington, D.C., was sentenced today to a 12-year prison term for a home invasion sexual assault in Southeast Washington that occurred in 2006, announced U.S. Attorney Matthew M. Graves and Robert J. Contee III, Chief of the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD).
Grooms pleaded guilty in December 2021, in the Superior Court of the District of Columbia, to attempted first-degree sexual abuse while armed, with aggravating circumstances. He was sentenced by the Honorable Marisa Demeo. The sentence of incarceration will be followed by 10 years of supervised release. Grooms is also required to register as a sex offender for the remainder of his lifetime.
According to the government’s evidence, on March 25, 2006, at approximately 2:30 a.m., Grooms knocked on the door of an acquaintance in the 1300 block of Morris Road SE. The victim, who was seven months pregnant at the time, was staying over at the apartment while babysitting for a friend. The victim recognized Grooms and answered the door. Grooms pushed his way inside, grabbed her by the hair and brandished a gun. He forced the victim into a back bedroom where a four-year-old child was sleeping on a bunk bed. He pushed the victim onto the lower bunk. Grooms raped the victim while brandishing the gun and threatening to kill her.
When the sexual assault was over, Grooms stole a cell phone and left. The victim made a prompt report to police and obtained medical care to ensure the health of the baby as well as her own health. She also received a sexual assault examination the same day. The rape kit was tested in 2007 and yielded a DNA mixture that included the victim and a male contributor. In 2020, advances in DNA technology led to a match between the male DNA profile from the rape kit and the DNA profile of the defendant. A confirmatory DNA sample was later obtained from the defendant and resulted in a very strong statistic of inclusion of the defendant in the DNA mixture.
Grooms was indicted for first-degree sexual abuse while armed, with aggravating circumstances in September 2021, and has been held in custody since.
In 2012, Grooms was convicted of attempted first-degree sexual abuse for a sexual assault that occurred in 2008 involving a different victim.
In announcing the sentence, U.S. Attorney Graves and Chief Contee commended the work of those who investigated the case from the Metropolitan Police Department, including the Seventh Police District, the Sexual Assault Unit and the Cold Case Unit of the Sexual Assault Unit. They also expressed appreciation for the assistance provided by the U.S. Marshals Service. They acknowledged the efforts of those who worked on the case from the U.S. Attorney’s Office, including Paralegal Specialists Tiffany Fogle and Cynthia Muhammad, Victim/Witness Advocate Tracey Hawkins, and Supervisory Victim/Witness Services Coordinator Katina Adams-Washington.
Finally, they commended the work of Assistant U.S. Attorneys Rachel Bohlen and Amy Zubrensky, who investigated and prosecuted the case.
Danbury Man Pleads Guilty to Child Exploitation OffenseRead the Press Release
Leonard C Boyle, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, announced that WAYNE MARCELL, 36, of Danbury, pleaded guilty today before U.S. District Judge Victor A. Bolden in Bridgeport to one count of sexual exploitation of a child.
According to court documents and statements made in court, in April 2021, a 14-year-old female in Georgia met Robert Fyke, of Lubbock, Texas, on an online video/chat platform. Fyke and the minor victim then used Kik and other social media platforms to communicate. In May 2021, Fyke drove from Texas to Georgia, picked up the minor victim and drove her back to Lubbock. The minor victim resided with Fyke for approximately four weeks, and Fyke produced sexually explicit images of the victim.
While living with Fyke, the minor victim began communicating with Marcell on video game and social media platforms. In June 2021, Marcell paid an individual $2,000 to drive the minor victim from Texas to Illinois. Marcell then drove from Connecticut to Illinois, picked up the minor victim, and brought her to his home in Danbury. Marcell engaged in multiple illicit sexual acts with the minor victim, and took photos and videos of the sexual abuse.
Marcell has been detained since his arrest on related state charges on June 23, 2021.
At sentencing, which is not scheduled, Marcell faces a mandatory minimum term of imprisonment of 15 years and a maximum term of imprisonment of 30 years.
Fyke pleaded guilty to a related charge in the Northern District of Texas and, on December 16, 2021, was sentenced to 30 years of imprisonment.
This matter is being investigated by Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), with the assistance of the U.S. Marshals Service and Danbury Police Department. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Nancy V. Gifford with the cooperation of the Danbury State’s Attorney’s Office.
This prosecution is part of the U.S. Department of Justice’s Project Safe Childhood Initiative, which is aimed at protecting children from sexual abuse and exploitation. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.justice.gov/psc.
To report cases of child exploitation, please visit www.cybertipline.com
Cumberland County Man Sentenced to Two Years in Prison for Participating in Straw Purchases to Obtain FirearmsRead the Press Release
TRENTON, N.J. – A Cumberland County, New Jersey, man with a prior felony conviction was sentenced today to 24 months in prison for participating in straw purchases to obtain firearms that he was not permitted to purchase, U.S. Attorney Philip R. Sellinger announced.
Darick Nollett, 32, of Heislerville, New Jersey, previously pleaded guilty by videoconference before U.S. District Judge Michael A. Shipp to an information charging him with one count of aiding and abetting the making of a false statement during the purchase of a firearm. Judge Shipp imposed the sentence today in Trenton federal court.
According to documents filed in this case and statements made in court:
Nollett was not legally permitted to purchase firearms because of a 2015 felony conviction. In 2018 and 2019, in order to obtain firearms, Nollett caused other individuals to purchase five firearms for him. These individuals falsely stated on U.S. Department of Justice, Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms & Explosives (ATF) Firearm Transaction that they were the actual buyer/transferee of the firearm when, in fact, Nollett was the actual buyer/transferee. In 2020, Nollett ordered “fuel filters” from China that he intended to modify and use as firearms silencers. Law enforcement officers executing a court-authorized search warrant of Nollett’s property in May 2020 recovered more than 30 firearms, as well as ammunition and firearm accessories.
In addition to the prison term, Judge Shipp sentenced Nollett to three years of supervised release and ordered Nollett to forfeit or abandon the firearms, ammunition, and firearm accessories recovered from his property.
U.S. Attorney Sellinger credited special agents of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, Homeland Security Investigations, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Jason J. Molina in Newark; special agents of the ATF Newark Field Division, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Jeffrey L. Matthews; postal inspectors of the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, Philadelphia Division, under the direction of Inspector in Charge Damon E. Wood; officers of the New Jersey State Police, under the direction of Superintendent Col. Patrick J. Callahan; the Cumberland County Prosecutor’s Office, under the direction of Prosecutor Jennifer Webb-McRae, with the investigation leading to today’s sentencing.
The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorney Daniel A. Friedman of the U.S. Attorney’s Office’s Criminal Division in Camden.
Cryptocurrency Purchases of Child Pornography Send Miami Man to Federal Prison for 12 YearsRead the Press Release
Miami, Florida – A 46-year-old Miami man who bought child pornography on the Dark Web using cryptocurrency has been sentenced to 151 months in federal prison, to be followed by 30 years of supervised release.
Adolfo Fernandez stored the child exploitation material on various electronic devices that he kept at his home, including over 2,000 pictures and 300 videos of minors being sexually abused. In addition to the purchased items, Fernandez also stored digital images that showed him in his living room, engaged in explicit sex acts with a minor.
On December 13, 2021, Fernandez pled guilty to one count of receipt of child pornography.
Juan Antonio Gonzalez, U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Florida, and Anthony Salisbury, Special Agent in Charge, HSI, Miami Field Office, announced the sentence that U.S. District Judge Beth Bloom imposed.
HSI Miami investigated the case. Assistant U.S. Attorney Adam Hapner prosecuted it. Assistant U.S. Attorney Sara Klco is handling asset forfeiture.
This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood (PSC), a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by United States Attorneys’ Offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals, who sexually exploit children, and to identify and rescue victims. For more information about the Project Safe Childhood initiative and for information regarding Internet safety, please visit www.justice.gov/psc.
Related court documents and information may be found on the website of the District Court for the Southern District of Florida at www.flsd.uscourts.gov or at http://pacer.flsd.uscourts.gov, under case number 21-cr-20337.
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Compton Man Charged with Robbing Men He Met on Dating AppRead the Press Release
LOS ANGELES – A Compton man is expected to appear in federal court today after being arrested Monday on federal criminal charges alleging he targeted and robbed more than 20 gay men he met on the Grindr dating application.
Derrick Patterson, 22, was arrested on Monday by special agents with the FBI. Patterson, who is charged in a criminal complaint with one count of Hobbs Act robbery, is expected to make his initial appearance this afternoon in United States District Court.
According to an affidavit filed with the criminal complaint on March 30, from November 2019 to March 2022, Patterson targeted his victims by using Grindr, a social networking program for gay, bisexual, transgender and queer people. Patterson allegedly met his victims at their homes or in hotel rooms, purportedly for sexual encounters, then robbed them. During the robberies, Patterson allegedly pulled weapons – varyingly, knives or a taser gun – on his victims, then demanded money and their cell phones, before fleeing the scene with the victims’ wallets. On other occasions, Patterson physically assaulted his victims. He then allegedly later withdrew money from victims’ bank accounts or used their credit cards for his own personal expenses.
For example, in September 2020, Patterson allegedly met one victim at a hotel on Century Boulevard in Los Angeles and, while engaging in consensual sexual activity, took the victim’s phone. He then attempted to access Apple Pay by asking the victim for the password. When the victim refused and demanded his phone back, Patterson pulled out a taser, threatened the victim, and continued to demand the victim’s Apple Pay password, according to the affidavit. When the victim fled, Patterson allegedly activated the taser. When the victim returned to the room, Patterson was gone, but the victim’s wallet was missing and his belongings had been rummaged through.
A search warrant for Patterson’s phone number placed him near this location at the time of the robbery – as well as at a different Century Boulevard hotel where a similar robbery was reported two hours earlier.
During another robbery in October 2020, Patterson allegedly stabbed a victim in the chest. The victim survived and later positively identified Patterson during a photographic line-up as his attacker. The final robbery occurred on March 26 at a hotel in Beverly Hills, the affidavit alleges.
A complaint contains allegations that a defendant has committed a crime. Every defendant is presumed innocent until and unless proved guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.
If convicted, Patterson would face a statutory maximum sentence of 20 years in federal prison.
The FBI investigated this matter. The Los Angeles Police Department, the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department and the Beverly Hills Police Department provided substantial assistance.
Assistant United States Attorney Jeremiah M. Levine of the Violent and Organized Crime Section is prosecuting this case.
Anyone who believes they may have been a victim or targeted by the defendant is urged to contact the FBI’s Los Angeles Field Office 24 hours a day at (310) 477-6565.
Carmel Man Sentenced to Two Years in Federal Prison and Must Pay over $736,000 in Restitution for Defrauding an Indianapolis BusinessRead the Press Release
INDIANAPOLIS – Jeffrey Gasior, 39, of Carmel, Indiana was sentenced to two years in federal prison today for bank fraud offenses related to his work at an advertising and public relations agency based in Indianapolis.
According to court documents, Gasior was hired by the company as its Vice President of Digital. Gasior oversaw sales, strategy development, coordination, and analysis of digital advertising on behalf of the company’s clients. Gasior also had access to the company’s credit cards to purchase media on behalf of clients and to request reimbursement for expenses.
From October 2018 through August 2019, Gasior devised and executed a complex scheme to steal money from the company by receiving payments that he was not entitled to. Among other things, Gasior created false invoices and expense reports and redirected payments to purported vendors to his personal bank account. As a result of the false and fraudulent representations and documentation, Gasior diverted over $736,000 of the company’s funds to himself and others.
“Local businesses are the backbone of our communities and our economy,” said U.S. Attorney Zachary A. Myers. “To satisfy his own greed, Mr. Gasior exploited the trust placed in him and his expertise by the victim company. His criminal conduct showed no regard for the company or its reputation. Anyone involved in committing such crimes must be held accountable. I commend the United States Secret Service, Indiana State Police, and the prosecution team for their hard work in bringing this offender to justice.”
“The Secret Service remains committed to pursuing those who abuse their position of authority to violate the public’s trust and defraud our community,” said USSS Acting Special Agent in Charge Andrew Campion. “Through the hard work and stalwart partnerships between the Secret Service, Indiana State Police and the U.S. Attorney’s Office, Gasior will be held accountable for his criminal actions.”
“Indiana State Police investigators work diligently every day, all across Indiana, and in close collaboration with its law enforcement partners, to help bring to justice those who seek to perpetuate the victimization of others for their own personal gain”, said Indiana State Police Superintendent Doug Carter.
The United States Secret Service and the Indiana State Police investigated the case. The sentence was imposed by U.S. District Judge Sarah Evans Barker. As part of the sentence, Judge Barker ordered that the defendant be supervised by the U.S. Probation Office for 30 months following his release from prison, including 12 months of home detention. Gasior was also ordered to pay $736,221.06 in restitution.
U.S. Attorney Myers thanked Assistant U.S. Attorney MaryAnn T. Mindrum who prosecuted this case.
California Man Sentenced to 42 Months in Prison for Defrauding Victims in Vineland, New JerseyRead the Press Release
CAMDEN, N.J. – A California man was sentenced today to 42 months in prison for defrauding elderly victims through a bogus investment scheme, U.S. Attorney Philip R. Sellinger announced.
Christopher Glynn, 59, of Burbank, California, previously pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Robert B. Kugler in Camden federal court to a superseding information charging him with one count of wire fraud and one count of money laundering.
According to documents filed in this case and statements made in court:
Glynn maintained a variety of corporate entities, including U.S. Grant Distribution Group, PG Philanthropic Initiative, Perrarus Global Philanthropic Initiative, and others. Glynn also claimed affiliation with an international trust that purportedly was funded with billions of dollars.
Glynn approached two victims in Vineland, New Jersey, and offered them an opportunity to “invest” hundreds of thousands of dollars in a “business development loan.” Glynn told the victims that this business development loan would be used for authorized business and legal expenses related to his entities and the international trust. The loan also would be used for expenses related to an animal welfare charitable foundation and shelter that Glynn was helping the victims to set up. Glynn assured the victims that the international trust would guarantee their business development loan, the loan would generate specific returns for the victims, and the victims could use the returns to fund their animal welfare charitable foundation and shelter.
Glynn sent emails and other correspondence and contracts to the victims. Glynn also arranged for conference calls between himself, his associates, and the victims, including one call that Glynn claimed included “a direct representative from the NSA (National Security Agency), and a representative from either DHS (Department of Homeland Security) or the FBI.” Glynn took these steps in order to convince the victims that they were investing in a legitimate business opportunity.
Glynn ultimately directed the victims to wire funds to various bank accounts that Glynn controlled, in order to fund the “business development loan.” The victims did so, relying on Glynn’s representations about how the funds would be used. In addition, Glynn also convinced the victims to open credit cards in the name of their forthcoming animal welfare charitable foundation, to which Glynn and his associates would have access.
Instead of using the “business development loan” and the credit cards in the manner that Glynn had promised, Glynn and his associates misappropriated the victims’ money and used it for unauthorized personal expenses such as personal travel, tanning services, and luxury retail purchases.
In addition to the prison term, Judge Kugler sentenced Glynn to three years of supervised release.
U.S. Attorney Philip R. Sellinger credited special agents of the FBI’s Atlantic City Resident Agency, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge George M. Crouch Jr. in Newark, with the investigation leading to today’s sentencing.
The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Sara A. Aliabadi and Andrew B. Johns of the U.S. Attorney’s Office Criminal Division in Camden.
Calabasas Man Allegedly Scammed Investors out of at Least $28 Million They Thought Would Fund Cannabis Vaping BusinessesRead the Press Release
LOS ANGELES – A former UCLA decathlete who also competed with the Philippines national team was arrested this morning on a federal criminal complaint alleging that he fraudulently raised more than $37 million from investors who were told their funds would be used to finance companies marketing cannabis vape pens.
David Joseph Bunevacz, 53, of Calabasas, was taken into custody this morning pursuant to a complaint filed on March 30 that charges him with one count of wire fraud. Bunevacz is expected to make his initial appearance this afternoon in United States District Court in Los Angeles.
According to an affidavit filed with the complaint, Bunevacz solicited investments in various businesses – “CB Holding Group Corp.” and “CaesarBrutus LLC,” among others – which he claimed were involved in the sale of vape pens containing cannabis products such as CBD oil and THC. Bunevacz falsely told at least one investor he had a long-standing relationship with a Chinese manufacturer of disposable vape pens and he obtained “raw pesticide-free oil” that was sent to a “lab that infuses the flavors into the oil with our proprietary custom process that renders the vape flavoring smooth and discrete,” the complaint alleges. Bunevacz allegedly also provided investors with forged documents – such as bank statements, invoices and purchase orders – to support his claims of the businesses’ success and the need for investor funds.
Instead of using the funds to finance business operations, Bunevacz “misappropriated the vast majority of the funds to pay for his own opulent lifestyle, including a luxurious house in Calabasas, Las Vegas trips, jewelry, designer handbags, a lavish birthday party for his daughter, and horses,” according to the affidavit. Bunevacz allegedly spent $8,143,500 at casinos, paid $218,700 to an event planner in connection with a birthday party for his daughter, and bought a horse for $330,000. Some investor funds were allegedly used to repay earlier investors in a manner consistent with a Ponzi scheme.
To create the false appearance that his companies were engaged in legitimate business activities, Bunevacz registered various shell companies, including several with names similar or identical to those of legitimate cannabis businesses. To conceal his control of these shell companies and the bank accounts associated with them, Bunevacz listed other individuals, including his stepdaughter, as the corporate officers of the shell companies.
According to the affidavit, Bunevacz and his family maintain a public profile. Bunevacz’s blog touts his success as a former decathlete who competed for the Philippines, and his wife and daughter appeared in a reality television show. Despite Bunevacz’s promotion of his background, Bunevacz took efforts to conceal negative information from investors, such as his 2017 felony conviction for the unlawful sale of securities, according to the affidavit. After one investor uncovered a civil lawsuit against Bunevacz, Bunevacz allegedly emailed a counterfeit version of the settlement agreement to falsely make it appear that he had been paid $325,000 as part of a settlement. In reality, it was Bunevacz who had agreed to pay $325,000 to settle the claim.
Investigators believe that Bunevacz caused his victims to suffer losses of at least $28.4 million, and possibly as much as $35 million. The investigation in this matter is ongoing.
A criminal complaint contains allegations that a defendant has committed a crime. Every defendant is presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty in court.
If convicted of the wire fraud charge alleged in the complaint, Bunevacz would face a statutory maximum sentence of 20 years in federal prison.
The FBI, the Los Angeles Sheriff’s Department and IRS Criminal Investigation are investigating this matter. The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission provided substantial assistance.
Assistant United States Attorney Alexander B. Schwab of the Major Frauds Section is prosecuting this case.
CEO of Medical Device Company Charged with Evading Payment of $6 Million in Federal Payroll TaxesRead the Press Release
MINNEAPOLIS – A Mounds View man has been charged with tax evasion for failing to pay several years’ worth of payroll taxes, announced U.S. Attorney Andrew M. Luger.
According to court documents, Larry Wallace Lindberg, 68, is a pharmacist and the CEO of Midwest Medical Holdings LLC, a Mounds View-based pharmaceutical and medical equipment company. As the owner and CEO of the company, Lindberg was responsible for filing tax returns and paying taxes on behalf of the company. Despite being aware of his company’s tax obligations, Lindberg failed to pay over to the Internal Revenue Service (“IRS”) several hundred thousand dollars in federal payroll taxes each quarter. Beginning in 2011, the IRS spent years attempting to collect on the tax debt. Lindberg entered into several installment agreements with the IRS in which he agreed to make regular payments towards the tax debt, but ultimately failed to make the payments and defaulted on each of the agreements. In attempt to evade the IRS’s collection of the tax debt, Lindberg diverted funds and assets to other business entities he controlled. In total, Lindberg and Midwest Medical Holdings owes more than $6 million in federal income taxes.
Lindberg is charged with one count of tax evasion. He will make his initial appearance in U.S. District Court before Judge Katherine M. Menendez on April 21, 2022.
This case is the result of an investigation conducted by the IRS Criminal Investigation Division.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Joseph H. Thompson is prosecuting the case.
The charges contained in the information are merely accusations, and the defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
Brooklyn Man Charged with Production of Child PornographyRead the Press Release
A criminal complaint was unsealed today in federal court in Brooklyn charging Steven Labianca with the sexual exploitation of children. The charges relate to sexually explicit images and videos of children that the defendant requested and received from minors that he targeted on Skype. Labianca was arrested this morning and will make his initial appearance this afternoon before United States Magistrate Judge Lois Bloom.
Breon Peace, United States Attorney for the Eastern District of New York, and Michael J. Driscoll, Assistant Director-in-Charge, Federal Bureau of Investigation, New York Field Office (FBI), announced the charges.
“As alleged, Labianca preyed on minors online, developing a relationship with them first, then exploiting them by enticing the victims to take sexually explicit photos and videos of themselves for the defendant’s own personal gratification,” stated United States Attorney Peace. “Today’s arrest underscores the importance of monitoring our children’s Internet activity and teaching them to say ‘no’ to inappropriate requests in the real world and online. Fighting child exploitation is a priority for the Department of Justice and this Office will continue to make every effort to ensure that those who contribute to the victimization of children will be brought to justice.”
“The behavior in which we allege Mr. Labianca engaged - soliciting and receiving sexually-explicit images and videos from children as young as 13 - is depraved, and it underscores the dangers children may face online,” stated FBI Assistant Director-in-Charge Driscoll. “The action we've taken today will ensure Mr. Labianca faces justice for his crimes, but our investigation continues. We implore anyone who may have information about this case to call as at 1-800-CALL-FBI or reach us online at tips.fbi.gov.”
As set forth in court filings, Labianca was using a Skype account with the account name “Original Geek” and an Instagram account with the account name “haulsropefasterr.” Between April 2017 and February 2021, Labianca allegedly engaged in a series of sexually explicit Skype communications with at least eight underage victims, ages 13 to 17, who lived within the United States and abroad. Labianca directed the victims to perform sexual acts while participating in the video calls. Labianca also directed the children to take nude photos and videos of themselves and send them to him. Several victims did in fact send sexually explicit photos and videos to Labianca.
If convicted of sexual exploitation of a child, Labianca faces a mandatory minimum sentence of 15 years’ imprisonment. The charges in the complaint are allegations, and the defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
This prosecution is 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 United States Attorneys’ Offices and the Department of Justice Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state and local resources to better locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the Internet, as well as to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.projectsafechildhood.gov.
The government’s case is being handled by the Office’s Public Integrity Section. Assistant United States Attorney Olatokunbo Olaniyan is in charge of the prosecution.
The Defendant:
STEVEN LABIANCA
Age: 49
Midwood, BrooklynE.D.N.Y. Docket No. 21-MJ-386
Bronx Associate Principal Pleads Guilty to Child Enticement and Possession of Child PornographyRead the Press Release
Damian Williams, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, announced that JONATHAN SKOLNICK pled guilty today to child enticement and possession of child pornography. SKOLNICK pled guilty today before U.S. District Judge Colleen McMahon who will also sentence the defendant.
U.S. Attorney Damian Williams said: “Jonathan Skolnick, a teacher and former middle school associate principal, admitted today to reprehensible crimes connected to his coercing of own students, minor children, to sending him nude photos of themselves. No parent should ever need to worry about the safety of their children from child predators when sending them off to school; I commend our law enforcement partners for their efforts in bringing Skolnick’s career as an educator to an end.”
According to the Indictment, public court filings, and statements made in court:
Between in or around August 2012 and in or around June 2018, SKOLNICK worked as a high school teacher at a school in Brooklyn, New York (“School-1”). In or around July 2018, SKOLNICK became an associate principal at a middle school in the Bronx, New York (“School-2”), where he worked until in or around September 2019.
Over the course of approximately seven years, SKOLNICK induced, enticed, and coerced minor children (the “Minor Victims”) to send him nude and sexually explicit photographs and videos of themselves over the Internet. SKOLNICK abused his position of trust as a teacher and mentor at School-1 and School-2 in order to access Minor Victims.
Between in or around 2012 and in or around September 2019, the Minor Victims sent SKOLNICK nude and sexually explicit photographs and videos that he possessed.
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SKOLNICK, 39, of the Bronx, New York, pled guilty to: (1) one count of child enticement, which carries a mandatory minimum sentence of 10 years in prison and a maximum sentence of life in prison; and (2) one count of possession of child pornography, which carries a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison. The maximum potential sentences in this case are prescribed by Congress and are provided here for informational purposes only, as any sentencing of the defendants will be determined by the judge. Sentencing is scheduled for September 22, 2022.
Mr. Williams praised the outstanding investigative work of the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the New York City Police Department.
The prosecution is being handled by the Office’s General Crimes Unit. Assistant United States Attorneys Elizabeth A. Espinosa and Rebecca T. Dell are in charge of the prosecution.
Baltimore Man Admits to Fraudulently Obtaining Cares Act Paycheck Protection Plan Loans While on Probation and Pre-Trial Release and Defrauding Businesses of over $1,000,000Read the Press Release
Baltimore, Maryland –Keon Ball, age 45, of Baltimore, Maryland, pleaded guilty today to wire fraud conspiracy and aggravated identity theft in relation to multiple identity theft schemes and fraud schemes—including schemes conducted while on probation after a past state fraud conviction and while on pre-trial release in connection with state fraud charges. As part of his plea agreement, Ball will be ordered to pay at least $715,504 in restitution.
The guilty plea was announced by United States Attorney for the District of Maryland Erek L. Barron; Special Agent in Charge Bo Keane of the United States Secret Service - Baltimore Field Office; and Chief Melissa R. Hyatt of the Baltimore County Police Department.
According to his guilty plea, from May 2018 to June 2020, Ball and a co-conspirator incurred charges of over $1,000,000 on fraudulently established credit lines, using the identities of at least 10 victims in connection with the schemes. For example, on August 25, 2018, Ball submitted a false and fraudulent application for a credit line account from a financial institution using the name, birth date, and social security number of Victim 1. After the credit application was approved, Ball and his co-conspirator incurred $105,442.59 in purchases from Company 1 (a home improvement store) under the identity of Victim 1. Ball and his co-conspirator did likewise multiple other times afterward, incurring charges of over $150,000 in connection with lines of credit opened using various other victims’ names—none of which was repaid. Ball and his co-conspirator also repeatedly passed fraudulent checks to Company 1 purporting to pay the balances they incurred.
Further, as part of their scheme to defraud, Ball and his co-conspirator obtained two vehicles valued at over $60,000 and multiple pieces of heavy construction equipment valued at over $30,000 using the identity information of Victim 2.
As stated in his plea agreement, on February 5, 2019, law enforcement executed a search and seizure warrant on Ball’s luxury high rise in Baltimore where law enforcement seized multiple counterfeit identification documents including three fraudulent licenses, a card reader, re-encoder, bank white plastic card stock, hologram overlays, and a firearm which Ball was prohibited from possessing. Investigators also discovered that Ball leased the apartment using a counterfeit identification document and the identifying information of another identity theft victim. Law enforcement would also go on to recover multiple pieces of the fraudulently obtained heavy equipment. Ball was subsequently arrested and charged on a state level in connection with the fraudulent credit line scheme then was released on conditions.
As stated in the plea agreement, despite his pending state charges, Ball was not deterred and his fraudulent activity continued. In June and July 2020, Ball submitted fraudulent CARES Act Paycheck Protection Program loan applications (PPP loans) and obtained $256,664 in government-backed PPP funds for purported businesses that did not exist in any legitimate capacity. Included with each application was a document purporting to be a 2019 IRS Form W-3 Transmittal of Wage and Tax Statements which was in fact not legitimate and contained false information concerning purported wages paid and purported number of employees of each business. Each application also falsely affirmed that Ball was not on probation in light of a past conviction at the time of each application. The PPP funds were then deposited in a bank account that Ball had opened using the identity information of another victim.
Ball also started the PPP loan application process for two additional fraudulent PPP loans from Bank 1 in the amounts of $113,258 and $231,078.000 for purported businesses he ran. These loans, however, ultimately did not close.
In total, Ball caused a loss of $750,000 and intended losses of over $1,450,000 and used the identifying information of more than 10 victims in connection with his schemes.
On May 17, 2021, the Attorney General established the COVID-19 Fraud Enforcement Task Force to marshal the resources of the Department of Justice in partnership with agencies across government to enhance efforts to combat and prevent pandemic-related fraud. The Task Force bolsters efforts to investigate and prosecute the most culpable domestic and international criminal actors and assists agencies tasked with administering relief programs to prevent fraud by, among other methods, augmenting and incorporating existing coordination mechanisms, identifying resources and techniques to uncover fraudulent actors and their schemes, and sharing and harnessing information and insights gained from prior enforcement efforts. For more information on the Department’s response to the pandemic, please visit https://www.justice.gov/coronavirus.
Anyone with information about allegations of attempted fraud involving COVID-19 can report it by calling the Department of Justice’s National Center for Disaster Fraud (NCDF) Hotline at 866-720-5721 or via the NCDF Web Complaint Form at: https://www.justice.gov/disaster-fraud/ncdf-disaster-complaint-form.
The Pandemic Response Accountability Committee (PRAC) Fraud Task Force was established to serve the American public by promoting transparency and facilitating coordinated oversight of the federal government’s COVID-19 pandemic response. The PRAC Fraud Task Force brings together agents from its 22 member Inspectors General to investigate fraud involving a variety of programs, including the Paycheck Protection Program. Task force agents who are detailed to the PRAC receive expanded authority to investigate pandemic fraud as well as tools and training to support their investigations.
Ball faces a maximum sentence of twenty years in federal prison for wire fraud conspiracy and a mandatory consecutive two years in federal prison consecutive to any sentence imposed for aggravated identity theft. U.S. District Judge Deborah K. Chasanow has scheduled sentencing for July 22, 2022, at 11:30 a.m.
United States Attorney Erek L. Barron commended the USSS and the BCPD for their work in the investigation. Mr. Barron thanked Assistant U.S. Attorney Paul A. Riley, who is prosecuting the case.
For more information on the Maryland U.S. Attorney’s Office, its priorities, and resources available to help the community, please visit https://www.justice.gov/usao-md and https://www.justice.gov/usao-md/community-outreach. For more information on identity theft and fraud, please visit https://www.justice.gov/usao-md/report-fraud.
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Armed Bank Robber Sentenced to 8 Years in Federal PrisonRead the Press Release
Leonard C Boyle, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, announced that GEORGE BRATSENIS, 73, last residing in Bridgeport, was sentenced today by U.S. District Judge Jeffrey A. Meyer in New Haven to 96 months of imprisonment, followed by three years of supervised release, for committing armed bank robberies.
According to court documents and statements made in court, Bratsenis met his associate, Bomani Africa, when they were both incarcerated on robbery convictions in a New Jersey state prison. On April 20, 2014, Bratsenis and Africa robbed a People’s United Bank branch located on Old Kings Highway Road in Darien, Connecticut. Bratsenis, driving his pick-up truck, dropped Africa off in downtown Darien. Africa then entered the bank, pulled out a gun, jumped over the teller counter and ordered a teller to open drawers, saying “I will shoot you if you don’t give me all your money!” Africa took a substantial amount of cash and then left the bank. Bratsenis picked up Africa a short distance away and they left the scene.
In September 2014, Bratsenis, Africa and Africa’s son, Randi Feliciano, conspired to rob another bank. In the early morning hours of September 25, 2014, Feliciano drove Africa from Philadelphia to a parking lot in Trumbull, Connecticut, where, at approximately 8:30 a.m., Africa stole a car from a victim a gunpoint. The next morning, Africa and Bratsenis, both wearing masks and brandishing firearms, robbed a People’s United Bank branch located on Madison Avenue in Trumbull, taking nearly $30,000 in cash. After they drove from the scene in the car Africa had carjacked, they parked in a nearby parking lot and set fire to the car. Feliciano drove Africa from the scene and followed Bratsenis to a Norwalk restaurant where the three men divided the proceeds of the robbery. Feliciano then drove Africa back to Philadelphia.
Bratsenis was arrested on September 28, 2014, in Trumbull. On October 18, 2019, he pleaded guilty to one count of armed bank robbery. He has been detained since his arrest.
Bratsenis has a lengthy criminal history that includes a federal conviction for armed bank robbery in April 1984 for which he received a 25-year prison sentence.
On December 13, 2014, Africa and Feliciano, both wearing masks and brandishing firearms, also robbed a First Niagara Bank branch located on Hawley Lane in Stratford, taking more than $15,000 in cash.
Africa has been detained since his arrest on May 28, 2015. On December 16, 2015, he pleaded guilty to one count of armed bank robbery. He awaits sentencing.
Feliciano pleaded guilty to the same charge and, on February 21, 2017, was sentenced to 51 months of imprisonment.
In addition to this prosecution, Bratsenis and Africa have each pleaded guilty to murder-for-hire charges in the District of New Jersey for committing a contract killing of an individual in New Jersey on May 22, 2014. They await sentencing in that case.
This matter was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Darien, Trumbull, Stratford and Bridgeport Police Departments. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Rahul Kale.
Arkansas Man Sentenced to Federal Prison for Nacogdoches Drug TraffickingRead the Press Release
BEAUMONT, Texas – A Little Rock, AR man has been sentenced to federal prison for drug trafficking violations in the Eastern District of Texas, announced U.S. Attorney Brit Featherston today.
Leanthony Ray Moses, 45, pleaded guilty on July 28, 2021, to conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute methamphetamine and was sentenced to 135 months in federal prison today by U.S. District Judge Michael Truncale.
According to information presented in court, on Sep. 17, 2019, Moses was stopped by local law enforcement in Nacogdoches for a traffic violation. The officer’s canine partner alerted to the presence of drugs in the vehicle during the traffic stop. A search of the vehicle revealed 2,926 grams of methamphetamine. Moses was indicted by a federal grand jury on Nov. 20, 2019, and charged with federal drug trafficking violations.
This case was investigated by Homeland Security Investigations and the Nacogdoches Police Department and prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Donald S. Carter.
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Alabama Man Facing Federal Charges Resulting from Violent Crime Spree in TennesseeRead the Press Release
NASHVILLE – A Huntsville, Alabama man has been indicted by a federal grand jury in Nashville, Tennessee, following a violent carjacking and robbery spree last summer, announced U.S. Attorney Mark H. Wildasin for the Middle District of Tennessee.
The indictment returned yesterday charges Antonio Carvelle Pitts, 20, with two counts of Hobbs Act robbery, two counts of using, carrying, and brandishing a firearm during and in relation to a crime of violence, and transportation of a stolen vehicle in interstate commerce.
According to the indictment and other records filed with the Court, on June 24, 2021, Pitts flagged down an individual in Memphis, Tenn., and asked for a ride. Pitts later pulled a knife and threatened to kill the individual and forced him from the car, before fleeing with the man’s car.
On June 27, 2021, Pitts approached a woman in a church parking lot in Huntsville, Alabama, pointed a “long gun” at her and took her Lexus SUV. Later, on the same day, Pitts entered a Subway restaurant in Fairview, Tenn., with the “long gun” and robbed the store of all the money in the cash register, before fleeing in the Lexus SUV.
Approximately 45 minutes later, Pitts approached the drive-thru window of the McDonald’s restaurant in Hurricane Mills, Tenn., and pointed a black shotgun at the drive-thru worker. Pitts then reached through the window and took the cash from the register.
After the Hurricane Mills robbery and within the next hour, Pitts robbed the McDonald’s on Highway 22 North in Henderson County, Tenn., using the same method at the drive-thru window, and still driving the Lexus SUV.
Shortly after this robbery, the Tennessee Highway Patrol and Madison County Sheriff’s deputies began pursuing Pitts in the Lexus, eventually ramming, and immobilizing the vehicle before taking Pitts into custody.
If convicted, Pitts faces a mandatory minimum of seven years in prison on each count of brandishing a firearm, and up to life in prison.
This case was investigated by the FBI. Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Steven Brantley is prosecuting the case.
An indictment is merely an accusation. The defendant is presumed innocent until proven guilty in a Court of Law.
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Aberdeen Man Sentenced to 14 Years in Federal Prison for Distribution of Child Pornography Related to His Association with a Child Pornography WebsiteRead the Press Release
Baltimore, Maryland – U.S. District Judge Richard D. Bennett sentenced Charles Hand, age 68, of Aberdeen, Maryland, late yesterday to 14 years in federal prison, followed by lifetime supervised release, for distribution of child pornography in relation to his association with an internet-based child pornography website dedicated to the advertisement and distribution of child pornography, the discussion of pedophilia, and the sexual abuse of children. Judge Bennett also ordered that, upon Hand’s release from prison, he will be required to register as a sex offender in the places where he resides, where he is an employee, and where he is a student, under the Sex Offender Registration and Notification Act (SORNA).
The sentence was announced by United States Attorney for the District of Maryland Erek L. Barron and Special Agent in Charge Thomas J. Sobocinski of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Baltimore Field Office.
“Charles Hand not only facilitated and perpetuated the abuse of children by posting—and helping others to post—child sex abuse material on an internet website dedicated to the sexual abuse of children, but he also exposed himself and engaged in lascivious behavior with at least one child victim. Hopefully, this sentence will deter others who advocate and participate in the abuse of children. I am extremely proud of the work done by dedicated and diligent agents and prosecutors that led to the prosecution and conviction of Hand, who facilitated such horrendous abuse,” said United States Attorney for the District of Maryland, Erek L. Barron.
According to his guilty plea, between October 2020 and December 2020, Hand repeatedly distributed child pornography files on a child pornography website to multiple individuals, including to an undercover FBI agent during online chats. During the chats, Hand repeatedly discussed his sexual interest in children and his desire to sexually abuse them. Hand repeatedly posted child pornography to certain areas of the website which required users to post a certain number of files of children engaged in sexually explicit conduct to the site.
On at least three instances, the undercover FBI agent downloaded child sex abuse material that Hand posted, including several videos of prepubescent girls between four and eight-years-old being sexually abused by adult males. During conversations with the undercover agent, Hand also discussed his own sexual activity with a minor child and his wife divorcing him as a result.
As stated in his plea agreement, on March 3, 2021, law enforcement executed a search warrant at Hand’s residence, seizing multiple electronic devices, including two computers, a digital camera, and a SD card. Hand used the computers to download, upload, possess, and distribute child pornography, including on the child pornography website. Hand possessed a total of more than 117,000 images and videos of child pornography on the two computers, including numerous depictions of sadistic or masochistic conduct, depictions of prepubescent minors in bondage, and bestiality involving prepubescent minors.
Additionally, one computer contained over 9,000 records concerning a known victim of child pornography whose real identity had become known by other pedophiles. That folder contained images of the victim being sexually abused, numerous articles and records about her, her parents, her participation in high school sports, non-pornographic photos of her taken from social media platforms, court records concerning her abuser, and the federal prosecution of the abuser. Hand also possessed a publication that described how to have sex with children without getting caught and approximately 2,800 “stories” related to sexual activity with children, many of which were written from the perspective of a pedophile.
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 Attorney’s Offices and the Criminal Division's Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who sexually exploit children, and to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.justice.gov/psc. For more information about Internet safety education, please visit www.justice.gov/psc and click on the "Resources" tab on the left of the page.
United States Attorney Erek L. Barron commended the FBI for its work in the investigation. Mr. Barron thanked Assistant U.S. Attorney Paul A. Riley and Trial Attorney James E. Burke IV of the Justice Department’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, who prosecuted the case.
For more information on the Maryland U.S. Attorney’s Office, its priorities, and resources available to help the community, please visit www.justice.gov/usao-md/project-safe-childhood and https://www.justice.gov/usao-md/community-outreach.
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