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9 March 2022
Grand Jury Returns IndictmentsRead the Press Release
MADISON, WIS. - A federal grand jury in the Western District of Wisconsin, sitting in Madison, returned the following indictments today. You are advised that a charge is merely an accusation and that a defendant is presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty.
Polk County Woman Charged with Fraud Scheme
Sarah Anne Tischer, 42, Amery, Wisconsin, is charged with 5 counts of wire fraud in connection with her alleged misuse of an individual’s special needs trust for which she had been designated the trustee. The indictment alleges that the wire fraud was committed from October 2017 to September 2019. The indictment alleges that Tischer fraudulently obtained funds from the trust by claiming the funds were needed for home repairs that had been previously reimbursed by an insurance company, and that Tischer spent these funds on personal expenses and at a casino. The indictment also alleges that Tischer used funds from the trust to purchase property that she claimed was for recreational purposes, but records from Tischer’s insurance company show that Tischer planned to use the house for rental purposes. In addition, the indictment alleges that Tischer withdrew cash from the trust’s checking account and spent the funds at a casino.
If convicted, Tischer faces a maximum penalty of 20 years in federal prison on each count. The charges against her are the result of an investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, with the assistance of the Polk County Sheriff’s Office and the Polk County Human Services Department. Assistant U.S. Attorney Chadwick Elgersma is handling the prosecution.
Madison Man Charged with Drug & Gun Crimes
Sylvester Ray Gavins, Jr., 31, Madison, Wisconsin, is charged with possessing with the intent to distribute cocaine and heroin, with possessing a loaded firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime, and with being a felon in possession of a firearm and ammunition. The indictment alleges that on March 26, 2021, he possessed cocaine and heroin for distribution and a loaded .40 caliber firearm and .40 caliber ammunition.
If convicted, Gavins faces a maximum penalty of 20 years in federal prison on each of the possession with intent to distribute charges, and 10 years on the charge of being a felon in possession of a firearm. The charge of possessing a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime carries a mandatory minimum penalty of 5 years in federal prison, which federal law requires to be served consecutive to any other prison term imposed.
The charges against Gavins are the result of an investigation by the Wisconsin Department of Justice Division of Criminal Investigation and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. Assistant U.S. Attorney Corey Stephan is handling the prosecution.
Three Marathon County Residents Charged with Drug Crimes
In related matters but in two separate indictments, three Marathon County residents have been charged with methamphetamine trafficking. Victor Pennington, 26, and Lucas Ellwart, 28, both of Wausau, Wisconsin, are charged with conspiring to distribute and to possess with intent to distribute 500 grams or more of methamphetamine. The indictment alleges that the conspiracy operated from June through September 2021.
The indictment also charges them with distributing 50 grams or more of methamphetamine on June 24, 2021 and July 14, 2021, and with possessing 500 grams or more of methamphetamine for distribution on September 14, 2021. In addition, Pennington is charged with distributing 50 grams or more of methamphetamine on August 2, 2021.
Sarah Waggoner, 41, Norrie, Wisconsin, is charged with 3 counts of distributing methamphetamine and 1 count of possessing with intent to distribute 500 grams or more of methamphetamine. The indictment alleges that Waggoner distributed methamphetamine on April 9, May 10, and August 12, 2021, and that the May 10 distribution involved 50 grams or more of the drug. The indictment alleges that she possessed 500 grams or more of methamphetamine for distribution on September 2, 2021.
If convicted, Pennington, Ellwart and Waggoner face a mandatory minimum penalty of 10 years and a maximum of life in federal prison on the counts alleging 500 grams or more of methamphetamine, and a mandatory minimum of 5 years and a maximum of 40 years on the counts alleging 50 grams or more of methamphetamine. Waggoner faces a maximum of 20 years on the other two distribution counts. The charges against them are the result of an investigation by the Central Wisconsin Narcotics Task Force, Wausau Police Department, Wisconsin Department of Justice Division of Criminal Investigation, and Drug Enforcement Administration. Assistant U.S. Attorney Taylor Kraus is handling the prosecution.
Kansas Man Charged with Possessing Methamphetamine for Distribution
Jimmy Castillo, 22, Topeka, Kansas, is charged with possessing with intent to distribute 500 grams or more of methamphetamine. The indictment alleges that he possessed the methamphetamine on February 19, 2022.
If convicted, Castillo faces a mandatory minimum penalty of 10 years and a maximum of life in federal prison. The charge against him is the result of an investigation by the La Crosse Police Department. Assistant U.S. Attorney Aaron Wegner is handling the prosecution.
Two Dane County Men Charged with Being Felons in Possession of Firearms
Alexander Jefferson-Cooper, 28, and Zendel Rolack, 26, both of Oregon, Wisconsin, are charged with being felons in possession of firearms. The indictment alleges that on September 7, 2021 through October 5, 2021, Jefferson-Cooper possessed a Walther handgun. It further alleges that on October 5, 2021, Rolack possessed a Smith and Wesson revolver, a Cobra handgun, and a Walther handgun.
If convicted, Jefferson-Cooper and Rolack each face a maximum penalty of 10 years in federal prison. The charges against them are the result of an investigation by the Fitchburg Police Department, Wisconsin Department of Justice Division of Criminal Investigation, and Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. Assistant U.S. Attorney Taylor Kraus is handling the prosecution.
DeForest Man Charged with Gun Crime
Raymond Poore, 29, DeForest, Wisconsin, is charged with being a felon in possession of a firearm. The indictment alleges that he possessed a loaded 9mm handgun and 9mm ammunition on November 18, 2021.
If convicted, Poore faces a maximum penalty of 10 years in federal prison. The charge against him is the result of an investigation by the Madison and Monona Police Departments, Dane County Sheriff’s Office, Federal Bureau of Investigation, and Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. Assistant U.S. Attorney Robert Anderson is handling the prosecution.
Milwaukee Man Charged with Gun Crime
Brian D. Mitchell, 32, Milwaukee, Wisconsin, is charged with being a felon in possession of a firearm and ammunition. The indictment alleges that he possessed a Glock 48 handgun and 9mm ammunition on December 22, 2021.
If convicted, Mitchell faces a maximum penalty of 10 years in federal prison. The charge against him is the result of an investigation by the Wisconsin State Patrol and Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. Assistant U.S. Attorney Steven Anderson is handling the prosecution.
Grand Junction Man Sentenced for Distributing Fentanyl Resulting in DeathRead the Press Release
DENVER – The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Colorado announces that Christopher Huggett, age 30, of Grand Junction, was sentenced to 14 years in federal prison for the distribution of fentanyl resulting in death. After his term of incarceration, Huggett will serve 3 years of supervised release.
According to the plea agreement, in 2017, Huggett began selling counterfeit pills that appeared to be Oxycodone but actually contained fentanyl. Huggett obtained the pills from and sold them in conjunction with his source, Bruce Holder. Despite learning from Holder that several people had overdosed and that some had died after using these pills, Huggett continued distributing the pills throughout Western Colorado.
On December 26, 2017, Huggett sold several pills to Zacharia Green. Green then sold some of those pills to the victim, identified as J.E. in the plea agreement. On or around December 28, 2017, J.E. used a portion of one of the pills distributed by Huggett and Holder, lost consciousness, and died. That same day, Green also used a portion of one of the pills, lost consciousness, and stopped breathing. A co-worker, however, discovered Green and called emergency medical personnel. Responders administered naloxone, saving his life.
Less than two months after his friend had overdosed and another person had died, Huggett accompanied Holder to Mexico to obtain and import additional fentanyl pills. While in Mexico, Huggett saw Holder give the person supplying the pills a large wad of cash. Later, they returned to Grand Junction with several thousand fentanyl pills concealed in the dash of Holder’s vehicle.
After Huggett was arrested and detained in this matter, he solicited the murder of a witness. In what Huggett has claimed was false bravado, he offered two inmates $5,000 and a vehicle to arrange for Green’s death. Huggett also provided one of these inmates with information on where Green could be located. After investigating this matter, agents confronted Huggett about his actions. Huggett acknowledged that he had asked inmates to have Green murdered but claimed that he did not actually intend for that to occur. Huggett stated that he was presenting a front to keep up appearances in the jail and spoke only with inmates that he believed had no possibility of release.
“Fentanyl is deadly and it’s pervasive. Dealers distributing fentanyl have our full attention,” said United States Attorney Cole Finegan. “I urge Coloradans to be on guard. Fentanyl is being disguised in many different drugs – and it can kill you. Please do not take a drug unless you get it from a pharmacist.”
“DEA applauds the Court’s sentence in this case because it lets criminals know that if they play recklessly with people’s lives by peddling deadly poison within our communities, they will be held accountable to the full-measure of the law,” said DEA Denver Special Agent in Charge Brian Besser. “I especially want to thank our agents in the Grand Junction Resident Office who, alongside their counterparts in FBI, the Western Colorado Drug Task Force and the Two Rivers Drug Enforcement Team, performed an outstanding investigation that ultimately ensured justice was served for the victims and their families in this case.”
“Today’s sentence is a direct result of the dedicated work of the FBI and our federal, state, and local partners to combat criminal organizations that distribute fentanyl and other dangerous substances with no regard for the devastation it has on our communities,” said FBI Denver Special Agent in Charge Michael H. Schneider. “The FBI will continue to investigate individuals and groups who attempt to further the scourge of drugs and violence in the areas we serve. The FBI thanks our partners, including DEA, Western Colorado Drug Task Force, the Two Rivers Drug Enforcement Team, and the U.S. Attorney's Office for their diligence and collaboration.”
United States District Court Judge Christine M. Arguello sentenced Huggett on March 9, 2022.
On April 19, 2021, Bruce Holder was convicted of distributing fentanyl resulting in death, among other crimes, after an 11-day jury trial in criminal case number 18-cr-00381. Holder is scheduled for sentencing on May 4, 2022. For his role in J.E.’s death, Zacharia Green was sentenced to two years in federal prison in criminal case number 19-cr-00459.
The Drug Enforcement Administration, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Western Colorado Drug Task Force, and the Two Rivers Drug Enforcement Team conducted the investigation in this matter. Assistant United States Attorney Jeremy Chaffin and Special Assistant United States Attorney Jaime Pena handled the prosecution.
Case number 18-cr-334
Fort Smith Woman Sentenced to over 15 Years in Federal Prison for Drug TraffickingRead the Press Release
FORT SMITH – A Fort Smith woman was sentenced today to 188 months in prison followed by four years of supervised release on one count of Possession with the Intent to Distribute Methamphetamine. The Honorable Judge P.K. Holmes, III, presided over the sentencing hearing in the United States District Court in Fort Smith.
According to court documents, On September 1, 2021, members of the United States Marshals Service (USMS) Fugitive Task Force had information that Cynia Lea Morgan, age 48, was harboring a state fugitive, and that Morgan was at a motel in Fort Smith, Arkansas.
The USMS Fugitive Task Force had information that Morgan had an outstanding warrant, had reason to believe that Morgan may be in possession of controlled substances, and requested the assistance of the Fort Smith Police Department (FSPD) and the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA).
The USMS Fugitive Task Force made contact with Morgan who was sitting in the driver’s seat of her vehicle in the parking lot of the motel, had her exit the vehicle, and detained her. A male passenger sitting in the front passenger seat was also removed from the vehicle and detained.
A FSPD K-9 officer arrived at the location and assisted with a K-9 search on the vehicle. After receiving a positive alert, a search of the vehicle was conducted. The search resulted in officers locating a purse belonging to Morgan. Inside the purse officers located, a golf ball sized bag of an off-white powder substance suspected to be fentanyl, a baggie of pills suspected to be fentanyl, a golf ball sized bag of suspected black tar heroin, suspected marijuana, a clutch containing $7,251 in United States currency and Morgan’s driver’s license, three cellular phones, and a safe key. Officers also located a safe in the vehicle. Inside the safe officers located multiple baggies containing suspected methamphetamine, two small baggies of unmarked pills suspected to be fentanyl, a prescription bottle containing assorted pills, a pill press, syringes, and other drug paraphernalia.
While conducting their search, the K-9 officer became unconscious and was experiencing symptoms of fentanyl overdose due to exposure to the fentanyl found in Morgan’s vehicle. The K-9 officer was administered naloxone by fellow officers on scene and received treatment from a Deputy U.S. Marshal who was a member of the fugitive task force and an Operational Medical Support Unit Medic. Their efforts stabilized the K-9 officer until an ambulance and EMTs arrived and transported them to the hospital, where they made a full recovery.
The suspected methamphetamine field-tested positive for methamphetamine and had a gross weight of 129.8 grams. The suspected fentanyl and heroin were not weighed, or field tested. Instead, they were packaged safely to be tested by the DEA Laboratory in a controlled environment along with the methamphetamine
U.S. Attorney David Clay Fowlkes of the Western District of Arkansas made the announcement.
The United States Marshals Services Fugitive Task Force, Fort Smith Police Department and the Drug Enforcement Administration investigated the case.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Aaron Jennen prosecuted the case.
Fort Hall Man Sentenced to Nearly 4 Years for Assault with a MacheteRead the Press Release
POCATELLO – A Fort Hall man was sentenced to 40 months in federal prison for assault with a dangerous weapon.
According to court records, on October 18, 2019, Fort Hall police officers received a call about a disturbance at a residence on the Fort Hall Indian Reservation. Officers responded to the residence and found a witness who said a person had been struck on the head with a machete. The witness saw Malik Ish, 20, of Fort Hall, strike the victim on the head with the machete. The victim was later located at the hospital where he was treated for a skull fracture. Police obtained a search warrant for the residence and located the machete in a bathtub, along with other evidence. Ish was interviewed and admitted that he was angry at the victim and went to the residence to find the victim, intending to hurt him. He stated that he struck the victim over the head with the blunt side of the machete blade.
The 40-month sentence imposed by Chief U.S. District Judge David C. Nye was in addition to the six months that Ish had already served in the tribal jail based upon the same conduct, resulting in a total of 46 months incarceration. Judge Nye also ordered Ish to serve three years of supervised release following his prison sentence. Ish pleaded guilty to the charge on December 7, 2021.
U.S. Attorney Rafael M. Gonzalez, Jr., of the District of Idaho made the announcement and commended the cooperative efforts of the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Fort Hall Police Department, which led to charges.
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Former Westlake Investment Advisor Convicted of Stealing More Than $9.3 Million from Clients in Ponzi SchemeRead the Press Release
Acting U.S. Attorney Michelle M. Baeppler announced that a federal jury returned guilty verdicts today against Defendant Raymond A. Erker, 50, of Avon, Ohio, following a seven-day trial before U.S. District Judge Dan Polster in Cleveland. Erker, a former investment advisor, was convicted of stealing more than $9.3 million from clients in a Ponzi scheme.
Also charged in this matter were co-defendants Kevin Krantz, 56, and Tara M. Brunst, 47, both of Olmsted Falls. Both Krantz and Brunst previously pleaded guilty to their roles in the scheme and are awaiting sentencing.
According to court documents and evidence presented at trial, from January 2013 through July 2018, Erker, Krantz and Brunst conspired together to devise a scheme that stole $9,366,976.37 from at least 54 investors. As part of the scheme, Erker sold investments to clients that he misrepresented as annuities and senior secured notes with no risk of loss and with a guaranteed rate of return.
Court documents also state that Erker and the co-conspirators, without the approval or consent of investors, diverted funds to other entities that they controlled and their personal bank accounts. Additionally, Erker failed to disclose to clients that he maintained substantial or limited ownership interests in companies receiving investments from the scheme. To keep up with promised rates of return, Erker falsely represented that payments to previous investors were rates of return and interest when the payments were actually new investor funds, the defining characteristic of a Ponzi scheme.
To avoid detection, Erker and his co-defendants set up office fronts in Delaware and Nevada, contracted with call centers and created false websites and account statements that purported to show investor account balances.
Erker was also convicted of making a false statement under oath. On October 9, 2019, while under oath in the United States Bankruptcy Court for the Northern District of Ohio, Erker stated that he disclosed to investors that he owned the companies the investors gave him money to invest in, when in fact, Erker knew that statement to be false.
Erker is scheduled to be sentenced on July 7, 2022.
This investigation was conducted by the Ohio Department of Commerce Division of Securities, the United States Postal Inspection Service and the Westlake Police Department. This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Brian McDonough and Kathryn Andrachik.
If you or someone you know is age 60 or older and has been a victim of financial fraud, help is standing by at the National Elder Fraud Hotline: 1-833-FRAUD-11 (1-833-372-8311). This U.S. Department of Justice hotline, managed by the Office for Victims of Crime, is staffed by experienced professionals who provide personalized support to callers by assessing the needs of the victim and identifying relevant next steps. Case managers will identify appropriate reporting agencies, provide information to callers to assist them in reporting, connect callers directly with appropriate agencies, and provide resources and referrals on a case-by-case basis. Reporting is the first step. Reporting can help authorities identify those who commit fraud and reporting certain financial losses due to fraud as soon as possible can increase the likelihood of recovering losses. The hotline is staffed seven days a week from 6:00 a.m. to 11:00 p.m. eastern time. English, Spanish and other languages are available.
Former Tallahassee Federal Correctional Officer Sentenced to Forty-Eight Months in Federal Prison for Sexual Abuse of InmateRead the Press Release
TALLAHASSEE, FLORIDA –Jimmy Lee Highsmith, 42, of Marianna, was sentenced to forty-eight months in federal prison following his conviction on one count of sexual abuse of a ward while on duty at the Federal Correctional Institution in Tallahassee. Jason R. Coody, United States Attorney for the Northern District of Florida, announced the sentenced.
Highsmith was convicted by a federal jury in December 2021. Evidence introduced at trial revealed that Highsmith abused his authority as a correctional officer to engage in sexual acts with an inmate on various occasions. The jury received testimony and exhibits showing that between March and April 2014, Highsmith ordered a female inmate at Federal Correctional Institution Tallahassee to meet him in his office and the officers’ bathroom to engage in illicit sexual acts. Surveillance video footage confirmed that, on April 30, 2014, Highsmith and his victim were caught by other inmates engaging in sexual acts between 11:30 p.m. and midnight in his office. The victim disclosed the illicit sex acts the next day and was taken to Tallahassee Memorial Hospital where a sexual assault examination confirmed injuries resulting from sexual activity.
“The sexual abuse of inmates by federal correctional officers is intolerable,” said U.S. Attorney Coody. “Those sentenced to prison are to atone for their crimes and gain skills that will enable them to return as productive members of society. They should not be preyed upon by officers who violate their oath of office. This office will vigorously investigate and prosecute any officer who engages in such acts of abuse to the fullest extent of the law.”
“Abuse of inmates of any kind is unacceptable, and Highsmith will rightly serve time for sexually abusing an inmate under his supervision. The Department of Justice Office of the Inspector General will continue to bring to justice anyone who engages in this type of conduct,” said James F. Boyersmith, Special Agent in Charge of the Department of Justice Office of the Inspector General Miami Field Office.
Highsmith’s prison sentence will be followed by 5 years of supervised release. He will also be required to register as a sex offender and will be subject to sex offender conditions.
This conviction was the result of an investigation by the Department of Justice Office of Inspector General. Assistant United States Attorneys David L. Goldberg and Lazaro P. Fields prosecuted the case.
The United States Attorney's Office for the Northern District of Florida is one of 94 offices that serve as the nation’s principal litigators under the direction of the Attorney General. To access public court documents online, please visit the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Florida website. For more information about the United States Attorney’s Office, Northern District of Florida, visit http://www.justice.gov/usao/fln/index.html.
Former Post Office Manager and Two Illinois Men Federally Charged for Conspiracy Involving Theft of $1.7 Million in Checks from the MailRead the Press Release
INDIANAPOLIS – James Lancaster, 40, of Indianapolis, the former manager of customer service at Indianapolis’ New Augusta Post Office, has been charged in federal court with conspiracy to commit bank fraud and theft of mail. The charges against Lancaster were unsealed late yesterday. On March 1, 2022, a federal grand jury in the Southern District of Indiana returned an indictment charging Lavaris Yarbrough, 26, of Calumet City, Illinois, and Jordan McPhearson, 30, of Blue Island, Illinois, with bank fraud and conspiring with Lancaster to commit bank fraud.
According to court documents, between May 11, 2020, and June 23, 2021, Lancaster used his position at the Post Office to steal checks from the mail. Lancaster gave the stolen checks to McPhearson, sometimes receiving cash in exchange. McPhearson fraudulently negotiate the stolen checks, depositing them into an account belonging to someone other than the intended payee. Occasionally, McPhearson provide stolen checks to Yarbrough who fraudulently negotiate them.
Throughout the course of the conspiracy, Lancaster stole more than 270 pieces of U.S. mail from the New August Post Office. This mail contained checks from more than 50 different local businesses. In total, the value of the stolen checks was around $1.7 million.
If convicted, Lancaster, Yarbrough and McPhearson each face up to 30 years in federal prison for conspiracy to commit bank fraud. Lancaster also faces up to 5 years in prison for theft of mail. A federal district judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
“Public service is a public trust, and Government officials who violate that trust to defraud and steal from the public—and those who conspire with them—must be held accountable.” said U.S. Attorney Zachary A. Myers. “Our office will continue to work closely with the Postal Service and Postal Inspection Service to investigate and prosecute mail theft schemes.”
Special Agent-in-Charge Andre Martin, Central Area Field Office, U.S. Postal Service Office of Inspector General said, “Today’s charges represent our commitment to work with our law enforcement partners to maintain the integrity and trust in the U.S. Mail. The majority of postal employees are hard-working public servants dedicated to moving mail to its proper destination. The USPS OIG, along with the U.S. Attorney's Office, remain committed to safeguarding the integrity of the U.S. Mail and ensuring the accountability and integrity of U.S. Postal Service employees.”
The U.S. Postal Service – Office of Inspector General is investigating the case. The U.S. Postal Inspection Service also provided valuable assistance.
An indictment or information are merely allegations, and all defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
Former Hattiesburg Resident Sentenced to 13 Months in Prison for Possession with Intent to Distribute a Controlled SubstanceRead the Press Release
Hattiesburg, Miss. – A former Hattiesburg resident was sentenced to 13 months in prison for possession with intent to distribute a controlled substance, announced U.S. Attorney Darren J. LaMarca and Special Agent in Charge Kurt Thielhorn of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives.
According to court records, in 2017, ATF agents learned that Donston Lamar Noel, 41, was selling narcotics and firearms in the Hattiesburg area. Agents conducted a sting operation netting several grams of cocaine and methamphetamine from Noel on July 27, 2017. Again, on September 7, 2017, agents obtained sold several dosage units of oxycodone and hydrocodone as well as a Palmetto State Armory PA-15, 5.56 mm caliber pistol from Noel.
Noel pleaded guilty on December 2, 2021, to possession with intent to distribute a controlled substance.
The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms & Explosives investigated the case.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Stan Harris prosecuted the case.
The case was prosecuted as part of the federal, state, and local Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN) Program. The centerpiece of the Department of Justice’s crime reduction efforts, PSN is an evidence-based program proven effective at reducing violent crime. Through PSN, a broad spectrum of stakeholders work together and develop comprehensive solutions. As part of this strategy, PSN focuses enforcement efforts and partners with locally based prevention and reentry programs for lasting reductions in crime.
Federal Jury Convicts Claiborne County Man of Possession of Child PornographyRead the Press Release
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. – On March 7, 2022, following a two-day trial, a jury convicted Alexander Dewayne Noah, 25, of Tazewell, Tennessee, of possession of child pornography in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 2252A(a)(5)(B).
Sentencing is scheduled for July 14, 2022, before the Honorable Thomas A. Varlan, United States District Judge. Noah faces a term of imprisonment of up to 20 years, a term of supervised release of up to life, and he will also be required to register as a sex offender anywhere that he resides, works, or attends school.
According to the evidence presented at trial, the investigation began when the Department of Homeland Security, Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) received a tip from the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children that child pornography was being stored in a on online storage account. The ensuing investigation, including the execution of a federal search warrant at Noah’s residence, led to the federal indictment.
HSI and the Knoxville Police Department’s Internet Crimes Against Children Unit conducted the investigation.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Jennifer Kolman represented the United States at trial.
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 the United States Attorney’s Offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, PSC 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 PSC, please visit www.justice.gov/psc.
For more information about internet safety education, please visit www.justice.gov/psc/resources.html and click on the tab "resources.”
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El Paso School Teacher Pleads Guilty to Sexual Exploitation of a MinorRead the Press Release
EL PASO – Ricardo Ortiz, 30, a former teacher at Horizon High School in El Paso pleaded guilty today to three counts of Coercion and Enticement of a Minor and one count of Possession of a Visual Depiction Involving the Sexual Exploitation of a Minor.
According to court documents, the El Paso man began chatting with a 14-year-old on social media when the conversation quickly turned sexual in nature. Ortiz arranged to meet with the minor for a sexual encounter but when he arrived at the meeting place, Ortiz was arrested by law enforcement. Ortiz was actually speaking with an undercover FBI employee instead of a minor.
Upon further investigation it was discovered that Ortiz also engaged in sexual activities with at least three minors in the El Paso area. Agents also found child pornography on Ortiz’s electronic devices.
A sentencing date has not been set. Ortiz faces a maximum penalty of up to life in prison on each of the coercion and enticement counts and up to 20 years in prison on the possession count. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
U.S. Attorney Ashley C. Hoff of the Western District of Texas and FBI Special Agent in Charge Jeffrey R. Downey, El Paso Field Office, made the announcement.
The FBI is investigating the case. To report information related to this investigation call the El Paso FBI office at 915-832-5000.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Mallory J. Rasmussen is prosecuting the case.
This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice. Led by U.S. Attorneys’ Offices and CEOS, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state and local resources to better locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the Internet, as well as to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.justice.gov/psc.
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Double Homicide Suspect Charged with Drug CrimeRead the Press Release
An Austin man with alleged ties to a double homicide has been charged with a drug crime, announced U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of Texas Chad E. Meacham.
Fernando Molina, 38, was charged via criminal complaint on Feb. 16 and indicted on March 9, charged with conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute a controlled substance.
According to the complaint, the charges stemmed from an investigation into a drug-related double homicide perpetrated in Parker County, Texas on April 11, 2021. Two weeks after the killings, investigators raided the residence of Mr. Molina’s associate, Jerome Thomas Watkins, and seized more than 3,000 fentanyl-laced counterfeit pills, multiple firearms, and roughly 20 cell phones that allegedly contained evidence of fentanyl, cocaine, methamphetamine, and heroin trafficking.
According to the complaint, a search of those phones revealed text message conversations with a drug supplier saved in the phone under the name “Austin.” Investigators eventually traced “Austin’s” multiple phone numbers to Mr. Molina. One of Mr. Molina’s phones was the last device in contact with a homicide victims before his death; another pinged cell towers in close proximity to the crime scene at the time of the homicide, according to the complaint.
Parker County has charged Mr. Molina with conspiracy to commit murder in connection with the double homicide.
A criminal complaint is merely an allegation of criminal conduct, not evidence. Mr. Molina is presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law. If convicted, he faces life in federal prison.
Mr. Molina’s associate, Mr. Watkins, was convicted at trial in November 2021 of conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute cocaine, methamphetamine, heroin, and fentanyl, possession with intent to distribute fentanyl, and being a felon in possession of a firearm. He is set to be sentenced later this month.
The Drug Enforcement Administration’s Dallas Field Division, the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s Dallas Field Office – Fort Worth Resident Agency, the Parker County Sheriff’s Office, and the Pflugerville Police Department’s Street Crimes Unit conducted the investigation, which was classified a HIDTA (High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area) operation. Assistant U.S. Attorney Shawn Smith is prosecuting the case.
Dallas Restaurant Owners Sentenced for Failing to Pay Required Corporate Payroll Taxes & Personal Income TaxesRead the Press Release
SCRANTON- The United States Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Pennsylvania announced today that Giuseppe Tomasino, age 45, and Andrea Tomasino, age 71, co-owners of Tomasino’s Restaurante Italiano, located in Dallas, PA, were sentenced on March 8, 2022, by United States District Judge Robert D. Mariani for both failing to collect and pay over several years’ worth of required federal payroll taxes and for underreporting personal income for several years. Judge Mariani sentenced Giuseppe Tomasino to serve a 6-month period of home detention with electronic monitoring, to be followed by two years of supervised release. Additionally, Giuseppe Tomasino was ordered to pay restitution to the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) in the amount of $205,799.00. Citing the elder Tomasino’s serious health issues, Judge Mariani sentenced Andrea Tomasino to two years of probation. Andrea Tomasino was also ordered to pay restitution to the IRS in the amount of $214,347.00.
According to United States Attorney John C. Gurganus, for a 5-year period from the first quarter of 2014 through the first quarter of 2019, the Tomasinos willfully failed to collect and pay over to the IRS required federal payroll taxes, including Federal Insurance Contribution Act (FICA) taxes. Additionally, for years 2014 through 2017, both men intentionally underreported their personal income, resulting in further tax loss to the IRS. More specifically, Giuseppe Tomasino underreported income for the relevant years in the total amount of $489,390.00, while Andrea Tomasino underreported income for the same period in the total amount of $491,820.00.
The case was investigated by IRS-Criminal Investigations. Assistant U.S. Attorney Jeffery St John prosecuted the case.
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Customs and Border Protection Officer Convicted by Federal Jury of Using Unreasonable Force at Calexico Port of Entry and Obstructing JusticeRead the Press Release
Assistant U. S. Attorney Seth Askins (619) 546-6692 and Alicia Williams (619) 546-8917
NEWS RELEASE SUMMARY – March 9, 2022
SAN DIEGO – U.S. Customs and Border Protection Officer Marcos Valenzuela was convicted by a federal jury today of using unreasonable force on an individual who had applied for admission to the United States from Mexico.
The jury trial began Monday. The jury deliberated for an hour and a half before finding Valenzuela guilty of two charges, Deprivation of Rights under Color of Law and Falsification of Records in a Federal Investigation.
According to evidence presented at trial, which included surveillance video and witness testimony, Valenzuela was assigned to primary vehicle inspection in lane 5 at the Calexico West Port of Entry on August 16, 2019. There was an incident in the pre-primary area of his line between the victim, identified only as “J.L.” in court documents, and the driver of a motorcycle, after the motorcycle cut in front of J.L.’s vehicle while waiting in line.
Valenzuela responded to the pre-primary area where J.L. had gotten out of his vehicle. Valenzuela instructed J.L. to get back into his vehicle, and when J.L. did not immediately comply, Valenzuela told him to get back into his vehicle or Valenzuela would “throw him to the ground.” After J.L. complied, Valenzuela returned to the primary booth. Eventually, the motorcyclist applied for entry into the United States at the primary booth, and Valenzuela told him that he was “going to f**k [J.L.] up right now.”
Immediately thereafter, J.L. drove up to the primary inspection booth with his identification card extended in his hand from the window of the vehicle in an effort to expedite the admissibility inspection. Rather than conducting that inspection, Valenzuela immediately began to rehash the incident in pre-primary, telling J.L., “All right, bro. Check it out. I already called it upstairs…” J.L. attempted to explain that the motorcyclist had cut line in front of him, but Valenzuela told him to be quiet, that Valenzuela was talking, and that J.L. would be removed from the vehicle if he said another word.
When J.L. asked to speak with Valenzuela’s supervisor, Valenzuela told J.L. to turn off and exit the vehicle. While J.L. was turning off the vehicle and removing his seat belt, Valenzuela reached through the driver’s window, unlocked and opened the door, and grabbed J.L.’s left wrist. He pulled J.L. out of the vehicle, and then in one motion that took about five seconds, he shoved J.L. into the wedge of the door, wrapped his right arm around J.L.’s neck and upper chest, threw J.L. to the ground with a backwards motion, and landed on top of J.L. who was now face down on the ground and sustained minor injuries to his forehead and forearm.
Once J.L. had been placed in handcuffs, Valenzuela escorted him to the vehicle secondary office. While in the security office, Valenzuela made multiple misrepresentations to other Customs and Border Protection officers about his interaction with J.L. in an effort to portray J.L. as the aggressor and justify his use of force against J.L. Valenzuela also wrote an incident report later that day that included numerous false statements alleging aggressive verbal and physical conduct by J.L. and claiming that J.L. resisted arrest.
At trial, Valenzuela testified in his own defense, maintaining that J.L. resisted arrest by “pushing off” against him once he had been removed from the vehicle and attempting to explain away the false statements in his reports by claiming that the statements had actually been made by J.L. during their interaction in the pre-primary area.
The jury rejected that testimony and found that Valenzuela deprived J.L. of his Fourth Amendment Constitutional right to be free from unreasonable search and seizure, which includes the right to be free from the use of excessive force. The jury also found that Valenzuela falsified the incident report with the intent to impede, obstruct, or influence a federal investigation, specifically the investigation of his excessive use of force against J.L.
“The jury has found that Marcos Valenzuela used excessive force and deprived a United States citizen of his right under the Fourth Amendment to be free from unreasonable search and seizure,” said U.S. Attorney Randy Grossman. “The U.S. Attorney’s Office takes every allegation of excessive force by law enforcement officers very seriously, and where those allegations are supported by the evidence, we will take the appropriate action to ensure that the transgressors are held accountable. Along with our law enforcement agency partners, we are dedicated to protecting the constitutional rights of all members of our community.”
Grossman thanked Assistant U.S. Attorneys Seth Askins and Alicia Williams and Paralegal Specialist Lina Douglas who prosecuted the case, along with former Assistant U.S. Attorney Christopher Tenorio and Special Agents with both the Federal Bureau of Investigation and Customs and Border Protection’s Office of Professional Responsibility for their excellent work on this case.
“Today's guilty verdict demonstrates the FBI’s commitment to holding everyone accountable for their criminal actions, regardless of the position they hold,” said FBI Special Agent in Charge Suzanne Turner. “I want to specifically thank Customs and Border Protection's Office of Professional Responsibility for their partnership and commitment in seeing this case to the end.”
“CBP employees and officers take an Oath of Office, a solemn pledge that conveys great responsibility and one that should be carried out at all times with the utmost professionalism,” said Elizabeth Cervantes, Special Agent in Charge of the CBP Office of Professional Responsibility in San Diego. “CBP employees who disregard that oath and instead choose to violate the trust of the citizens they swore to protect will be held accountable. CBP will continue to work with our partners at other agencies to seek out and investigate any instance of abuse. This layered approach and collaboration among federal agencies is critical to the mission of professional integrity. Although the percentage of prosecutions for abuse is very small, no incident is tolerated.”
“CBP stresses honor and integrity in every aspect of our mission, and the overwhelming majority of CBP employees and officers perform their duties with honor and distinction, working tirelessly every day to keep our country safe,” said Ryan Koseor, Port Director for the Calexico area ports of entry for U.S. Customs and Border Protection. “We do not tolerate abuse within our ranks, and condemn actions that would tarnish the reputation of our agency. I appreciate the work of our partners to investigate this officer for using excessive force and to bring this case to trial. As public servants, we are rightly held to a higher standard of conduct and are subject to the same laws and rules that apply to private citizens.”
Valenzuela is scheduled to be sentenced on July 8 before U.S. District Chief Judge Dana M. Sabraw.
DEFENDANT Case Number 21cr1056-JLS
Marcos Valenzuela Age: 30 El Centro, CA
SUMMARY OF CHARGES
Deprivation of Rights under Color of Law – Title 18, U.S.C., Section 242
Maximum penalty: Ten years in prison and $250,000 fine
Falsification of Records in a Federal Investigation – Title 18, U.S.C., Section 1519
Maximum penalty: Twenty years in prison and $250,000 fine
AGENCIES
U.S. Customs and Border Protection, Office of Professional Responsibility
Federal Bureau of Investigation
Cuban National Sentenced to over 38 Years in Prison for Drug Trafficking and Other Crimes after Using His Border Ranch as a Criminal CorridorRead the Press Release
EL PASO – A Cuban national living in Fort Hancock was sentenced today to 460 months in prison for drugs, firearms and immigration crimes.
On July 23, 2021, Gilberto Morales, 57, was found guilty by a federal jury of one count of conspiracy to possess 1,000 kilograms or more of marijuana; one count of possession of 100 kilograms or more of marijuana; one count of being a felon in possession of a firearm; one count of conspiracy to transport aliens; one count of conspiracy to harbor aliens; and one count of harboring aliens.
According to evidence presented at trial, Morales used his Fort Hancock ranch to further his drug trafficking and human smuggling activities. He coordinated with a Mexican drug cartel operating out of Porvenir, Chihuahua, Mexico. Porvenir is across the Rio Grande River from the defendant’s ranch. During sentencing, the judge found that between June 2019 and August 2020, Morales smuggled at least 22,000 kilograms of marijuana into the United States, trafficking between a ton and half a ton of marijuana a week.
On August 14, 2020, a search warrant was executed at Morales’ ranch. Four undocumented non-citizens were located at the ranch. Testimony at trial indicated Morales had smuggled undocumented non-citizens from as early as November 2019. Later that same day federal agents executed a second search warrant at the stash house belonging to co-defendant Sergio Ivan Gonzalez where Morales delivered bulk marijuana. Agents found over 480 kilograms of marijuana in dozens of large bundles. According to trial testimony, this was typical for the amount of marijuana Morales regularly smuggled through his property.
During execution of the search warrant on Morales’ property, federal agents found 11 firearms and at trial, a jury found Morales guilty of being a felon in possession of approximately 1,833 rounds of assorted ammunition in addition to 11 firearms. Morales’ prior conviction consisted of a charge of conspiracy with intent to distribute more than five kilograms of cocaine in the Southern District of New York in 2009. He was sentenced to 50 months in prison.
In addition to the prison sentence, Morales was ordered to forfeit his 160-acre ranch, nearly $157,000 in cash found stashed in his house on his ranch, two trucks, a horse trailer and numerous firearms and ammunition. He was also assessed a $520,000 money judgment.
“For more than a year, Gilberto Morales operated his very own smuggling corridor through his ranch right on the Rio Grande, working with a Mexican drug trafficking organization in smuggling bulk marijuana and undocumented immigrants,” said U.S. Attorney Ashley C. Hoff. “Today's sentence represents just punishment for a defendant who was giving safe harbor to a dangerous Mexican cartel in the United States.”
“This case includes various factors that pose a threat to public safety and border security – drug and weapons possession to transporting and harboring non-citizens,” said Frank Burrola, Special Agent in Charge for HSI El Paso. “HSI special agents utilize their ample authority to investigate a multitude of serious crimes that result from crimes such as these, and we will continue to work with our law enforcement partners to prevent these crimes by removing dangerous individuals from our community.”
“Doing hard time in New York wasn’t enough for Mr. Morales. He decided to move to Texas and continue a life of crime and villainy. He should have known that Texas law enforcement is relentless. Mr. Morales will now have more time to think about his career choices. Thanks to all the law enforcement agencies involved in this investigation for helping to keep the citizens of Texas safe” stated ATF Dallas Field Division Special Agent in Charge Jeffrey C. Boshek II.
“The range of crimes in this case shows why it is important for law enforcement agencies to work together, leveraging their respective resources and expertise to bring criminals to justice,” said Greg Millard, Special Agent in Charge of the Drug Enforcement Administration’s El Paso Division. “As always, DEA is glad to lend support to its partners.”
Morales’ co-defendant, Sergio Ivan Gonzalez, aka Sergio Ivan Gonzalez-Rangel, 36, from Clint, Texas, pleaded guilty on July 2, 2021, to one count of Conspiracy to Possess with Intent to Distribute 1,000 Kilograms or More of Marijuana. Gonzalez’s sentencing is set for March 28, 2022.
Morales has remained in federal custody since being taken into custody after his guilty verdict on August 14, 2020.
Homeland Security Investigations and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives investigated this case with invaluable assistance from the Drug Enforcement Administration’s El Paso Division; the U.S. Border Patrol; and the Texas Department of Public Safety. AUSAs Adrian Gallegos and Spencer Kiggins prosecuted this case on behalf of the government. AUSA Kristal Wade represented the government on the forfeiture procedures.
AUSA Adrian Gallegos and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Western District of Texas participate in Joint Task Force Alpha (JTFA), which was established by Attorney General Merrick B. Garland in June 2021 to marshal the investigative and prosecutorial resources of the Department of Justice, in partnership with the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), to enhance U.S. enforcement efforts against the most prolific and dangerous human smuggling and trafficking groups operating in Mexico and the Northern Triangle countries of Guatemala, El Salvador, and Honduras. The Task Force focuses on disrupting and dismantling smuggling and trafficking networks that abuse, exploit, or endanger migrants, pose national security threats, and are involved in organized crime. JTFA consists of federal prosecutors and attorneys from U.S. Attorney’s Offices along the Southwest Border (District of Arizona, Southern District of California, Southern District of Texas, and Western District of Texas), from the Criminal Division and the Civil Rights Division, along with law enforcement agents and analysts from DHS’s Immigration and Customs Enforcement and Customs and Border Protection. The FBI and the Drug Enforcement Administration are also part of the Task Force.
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Crop Insurance Agency and CEO to Pay $500,000 to Settle Claims in Federal Fraud InvestigationRead the Press Release
Silveus Ins. Group, Inc. also agreed to a year-long monitoring period and CEO James Cameron Silveus agreed to a year-long exclusion from federal programs.
GRAND RAPIDS – Silveus Insurance Group, Inc., and its Chief Executive Officer, James Cameron Silveus, located in Warsaw, Indiana, have agreed to pay $500,000 to resolve allegations that they violated the False Claims Act by causing the submission of fraudulent claims for federal crop insurance. The insurance agency also agreed to enter into a one-year monitoring period with the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Risk Management Agency (“RMA”), while Mr. Silveus agreed to a voluntary exclusion from federal programs through March 1, 2023.
The United States contends that Mr. Silveus, through Silveus Insurance Group, served as the crop insurance agent for a Michigan crop farmer, Gaylord Lincoln, who farmed crops in Calhoun, Eaton, Ingham, and Jackson counties in Michigan. In December 2021, the United States filed a complaint in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Michigan, alleging that Mr. Lincoln violated the False Claims Act by maintaining a scheme to fraudulently obtain more federal farm benefit program payments than he was entitled to receive. In the complaint, the United States alleges that Mr. Lincoln carried out this scheme by placing some of his farmlands and crops under the names of farmhands who served as “straw” farming operators, even though the farmland and crops really belonged to Mr. Lincoln. The United States also alleged that Mr. Lincoln arranged for the straw farming operators to fraudulently obtain federal crop insurance policies to which they were not entitled because they had no insurable interest in those crops.
Separate from the filed complaint, the United States contends that Mr. Silveus and Silveus Insurance Group, acting at the direction of Mr. Lincoln, obtained federal crop insurance policies for these straw farming operators, and that Mr. Silveus and Silveus Insurance Group caused the submission of false claims for the straw farming operators who had no insurable interest in the insured crops under their names. As a result of these false claims, the federal government, through the Federal Crop Insurance Corporation, paid subsidy premiums and indemnities on these false policies, as well as administrative costs that were paid to Mr. Silveus and Silveus Insurance Group.
“The federal crop insurance program is designed to promote the national welfare by creating economic stability for farmers,” said United States Attorney Andrew B. Birge. “This system relies on producers and their insurance agents to submit truthful and complete information, and my office is committed to investigating any allegations of fraud on the federal crop insurance program.”
The resolution obtained in this matter was the result of a coordinated effort between the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Western District of Michigan and the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Risk Management Agency and Office of the Inspector General. Assistant U.S. Attorney Andrew J. Hull represented the United States.
The claims against Silveus Insurance Group and Mr. Silveus resolved by this settlement are allegations only, and there has been no determination of liability.
Additionally, the case against Gaylord Lincoln is pending in federal court, see United States v. Lincoln, No. 1:21-cv-1089 (W.D. Mich.), and the claims made in the complaint are allegations that the United States must prove if the case proceeds to trial. There has been no determination of liability in that case.
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Convicted Felon Sentenced for Illegal Firearm PossessionRead the Press Release
TUSCALOOSA, Ala. – A federal judge this week sentenced a convicted felon for illegally possessing a semi-automatic assault rifle, announced U.S. Attorney Prim F. Escalona and Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives Special Agent in Charge Mickey French.
U.S. District Court Judge L. Scott Coogler sentenced Julian Devaughn Lewis, 46, of Tuscaloosa County, to 46 months in prison followed by three years of supervised release for being a felon in possession of a firearm. Lewis pleaded guilty to the charge in December 2021.
According to the plea agreement, Lewis acquired the rifle in July 2021 and directed that it be stored in a Northport storage facility. After Lewis was arrested on an unrelated charge, an ATF special agent seized the rifle and ammunition at the storage facility. Lewis has prior felony convictions for Unlawful Distribution of a Controlled Substance, Receiving Stolen Property, Second Degree, and Unlawful Possession of Marijuana, First Degree.
“The possession of a high-capacity assault rifle by a convicted felon is a potentially deadly situation, and I am grateful to our ATF partners for their work in bringing this defendant to justice,” said U.S. Attorney Escalona.
“The ATF will continue to investigate, apprehend, and charge prohibited persons who illegally possess firearms. The ATF’s primary mission is to combat violent crime in our communities, and we will work tirelessly to keep the communities that we serve safe.” ATF Special Agent in Charge Mickey French stated.
ATF investigated the case. Assistant U.S. Attorney Alan Baty prosecuted the case.
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Coffee County Man Sentenced to 40 Years in Federal Prison for Murder While Trafficking Drugs Along with Other Gun and Drug ChargesRead the Press Release
Montgomery, Alabama – On March 8, 2022, Jareece Edward Blackmon, 28, from Enterprise, Alabama, was sentenced to 40 years in prison on federal gun and drug charges, including a charge of committing murder in relation to a drug trafficking crime, announced United States Attorney Sandra J. Stewart. There is no parole in the federal system.
According to court records and evidence presented at his December 2021 trial, in June of 2017, the Montgomery Police Department responded to reports of a shooting at a Montgomery business. When officers arrived, they found Blackmon suffering from a gunshot wound to one of his legs. Officers also found a stolen Ruger .380 in Blackmon’s car along with ammunition in a mesh bag that had Blackmon’s blood on it. Blackmon is a convicted felon and is prohibited by federal law from possessing a firearm or ammunition.
Later, in August of 2017, Blackmon went to a house in Enterprise with multiple individuals to purchase a large quantity of marijuana. One of them went inside with Blackmon, was shot multiple times, and died. The next day, while officers were executing an arrest warrant for Blackmon, they found another gun. Further analysis determined that it was the same gun used in the murder and that it contained traces of Blackmon’s DNA. More than eighteen pounds of marijuana and other firearms were discovered as well.
Blackmon was found guilty of using and discharging a firearm to commit murder during and in relation to a drug trafficking crime, conspiracy to traffic marijuana, possession of a firearm in connection with a drug trafficking crime, possession with intent to distribute marijuana, and three counts of being a felon in possession of a firearm.
This case was prosecuted pursuant to the U.S. Department of Justice’s Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN) initiative, a program in which U.S. Attorneys’ offices work in partnership with federal, state, local, and tribal law enforcement to develop effective, locally based strategies to reduce violent crime and make neighborhoods safer for everyone. The Department of Justice reinvigorated PSN as part of its renewed focus on targeting armed violent criminals.
This case was investigated by the Enterprise Police Department, the Montgomery Police Department, and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF), with assistance from the Alabama Department of Forensic Sciences, the Dothan Police Department, the Level Plains Police Department, and the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI). Assistant United States Attorneys Kevin Davidson, Justin Jones, and Greg Griffin Jr. prosecuted the case.
Chevron Phillips Chemical Company Agrees to Reduce Harmful Air Pollution at Three U.S. Chemical PlantsRead the Press Release
Chevron Phillips Chemical Company LP has agreed to make upgrades and perform compliance measures estimated to cost $118 million to resolve allegations that it violated the Clean Air Act and state air pollution control laws at three petrochemical manufacturing facilities located in Cedar Bayou, Port Arthur, and Sweeney, Texas. Chevron Phillips will also pay a $3.4 million civil penalty. The settlement will eliminate thousands of tons of air pollution from flares.
According to the complaint filed with a consent decree, the company failed to properly operate and monitor its industrial flares, which resulted in excess emissions of harmful air pollution at the three Texas facilities. The company regularly “oversteamed” the flares and failed to comply with other key operating constraints to ensure the volatile organic compounds (VOCs) and hazardous air pollutants (HAPs) contained in the gases routed to the flares are efficiently combusted.
“The Justice Department and EPA will enforce the law against petrochemical plants that violate the Clean Air Act,” said Assistant Attorney General Todd Kim for the Justice Department’s Environment and Natural Resources Division. “We are committed to reducing harmful air pollution from unnecessary and improper flaring, especially near overburdened communities with environmental justice concerns.”
“This settlement will require Chevron Phillips to install pollution control and emissions monitoring equipment at three facilities in Texas, reducing emissions of greenhouse gases and other harmful gases by thousands of tons per year,” said Acting Assistant Administrator Larry Starfield for the EPA’s Office of Enforcement and Compliance Assurance. “Those controls, plus a requirement for fence line monitoring of benzene emissions and corrective actions when benzene readings are high, will result in significant benefits for the local communities in Texas.”
Once fully implemented, the pollution controls are estimated to reduce emissions of climate-change-causing greenhouse gases, including carbon dioxide, methane and ethane, by over 75,000 tons per year. The settlement is also expected to reduce emissions of ozone-forming VOCs by 1,528 tons per year and of toxic air pollutants, including benzene, by 158 tons per year.
The pollutants addressed by the settlement can cause significant harm to public health. VOCs are a key component in the formation of smog or ground-level ozone, a pollutant that irritates the lungs, exacerbates diseases such as asthma, and can increase susceptibility to respiratory illnesses, such as pneumonia and bronchitis. Chronic exposure to benzene, which EPA classifies as a carcinogen, can cause numerous health impacts, including leukemia and adverse reproductive effects in women.
Flares are also often large sources of greenhouse gas emissions. Flares are devices used to combust waste gases that would otherwise be released into the atmosphere during certain industrial operations. Well-operated flares should have high “combustion efficiency,” meaning they combust nearly all harmful waste gas constituents, like VOCs and HAPs, and turn them into water and carbon dioxide. The agreement is designed to improve Chevron Phillips’s flaring practices. First, it requires the company to minimize the amount of waste gas that is sent to the flares, which reduces the amount of flaring. Second, the company must improve the combustion efficiency of its flares when flaring is necessary.
Chevron Phillips will take several steps to minimize the waste gas sent to its flares at each facility. At the Cedar Bayou facility, Chevron Phillips will operate a flare gas recovery system that recovers and “recycles” the gases instead of sending them to be combusted in a flare. The flare gas recovery system will allow Chevron Phillips to reuse these gases as a fuel at its facilities or a product for sale. At the Port Arthur and Sweeny facilities, Chevron Phillips will be required to amend its air quality permits to limit the flow of gas at selected flares. Chevron Phillips will also create waste minimization plans for each facility to further reduce flaring. For flaring that must occur, the agreement requires that Chevron Phillips install and operate instruments and monitoring systems to ensure that the gases sent to its flares are efficiently combusted.
Chevron Phillips will also perform air quality monitoring that is designed to detect the presence of benzene at the fence lines of the three covered plants. Monitoring results must be publicly posted, providing the neighboring communities with more information about their air quality. The monitoring requirements also include triggers for root cause analysis and corrective actions if fence line emissions exceed certain thresholds. Flare compliance is an ongoing priority for EPA under its Creating Clean Air for Communities National Compliance Initiative.
The consent decree, lodged in the Southern District Court of Texas, is subject to a 30-day public comment period and final court approval. The consent decree will be available for viewing at https://www.justice.gov/enrd/consent-decrees.
Carbon County Woman Charged with Theft of Government FundsRead the Press Release
SCRANTON- The United States Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Pennsylvania announced that a former Postal contractor, Rachele Ostrowe, age 39, of Jim Thorpe, Pennsylvania, was indicted by a federal grand jury for theft of Government funds.
According to United States Attorney John C. Gurganus, the indictment alleges that between November 2017 and April 2019, Ostrowe fraudulently claimed mileage payments for extra trips to deliver mail and parcels to which she knew she was not entitled. The indictment alleges she stole over $1,000.
The case is being investigated by the United States Postal Service Office of the Inspector General. Assistant United States Attorney Sean A. Camoni 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.
Indictments are only allegations. All persons charged are presumed to be innocent unless and until found guilty in court.
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Brooklyn Man Indicted for Gunpoint Robberies of More Than $1 MillionRead the Press Release
A 10-count superseding indictment was unsealed today in federal court in Brooklyn charging Robert Rodriguez with Hobbs Act robbery, Hobbs Act robbery conspiracy, and related firearms crimes for planning and executing four armed robberies targeting the owner and patrons of a Queens check-cashing business in July 2020 and September 2021. Rodriguez was arrested today and is scheduled to be arraigned this afternoon before United States Magistrate Judge Taryn A. Merkl. Rodriguez’s co-defendant, Raymundo Heyaime Sanchez, was previously arrested and indicted for Hobbs Act robbery and related crimes for his role in one of the four robberies charged in the superseding indictment. Sanchez is currently detained pending trial.
Breon Peace, United States Attorney for the Eastern District of New York, John B. DeVito, Special Agent-in-Charge, Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, New York Field Division (ATF), and Keechant L. Sewell, Commissioner, New York City Police Department (NYPD), announced the charges.
“As alleged in the superseding indictment, the defendant is charged with the brazen gunpoint robberies of the owner and customers of a Queens check cashing business,” stated United States Attorney Peace. “Such openly menacing and violent conduct will not be tolerated. This Office will vigorously prosecute criminals who allegedly commit violent crimes using guns and endanger the safety and security of our communities.”
“Today’s arrest of an armed violent criminal by the ATF/NYPD Sparta Task Force is another example of our unwavering commitment to aggressively pursue and investigate acts of violence involving the use of firearms in our communities” stated ATF Special Agent-in- Charge DeVito. “The defendant’s willful disregard for the safety and security of our citizens was evident by preying on both the business and customers alike. Thanks to our partners in the United States Attorney’s Office and the NYPD, this defendant will now have to answer for his violent actions in a court of law.”
“Today’s indictment is another example of our laser-like focus on combating violent crime and holding accountable anyone who endangers people on our streets,” stated NYPD Commissioner Sewell. “If you carry an illegal gun in New York City – and especially if you use that gun to terrorize our communities – you will be arrested and charged accordingly. Thanks to the combined efforts of the NYPD and our partners at the ATF and the office of the U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of New York, the accused in this case now faces the prospect of significant federal prison time.”
As set forth in court filings, Rodriguez, Sanchez, and a co-conspirator targeted the owner of a check-cashing business located in Jamaica, New York. On July 3, 2020, after conducting surveillance of the owner’s home and business, the owner was confronted in the driveway of the business by masked bandits who pistol-whipped him on the back of the head before robbing him of more than $1 million. Rodriguez subsequently committed three additional robberies of the business’s customers more than a year later. On each occasion, Rodriguez purportedly waited in a vehicle near the check-cashing business until a customer departed, at which point he followed each victim by car before ultimately robbing the customer at gunpoint.
The charges in the indictment are allegations, and the defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty. If convicted of the charges, the defendants face a mandatory minimum of 84 months’ imprisonment and up to life in prison.
The government’s case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Lindsey R. Oken and Adam Toporovsky.
The Defendants:
ROBERT RODRIGUEZ (also known as “Chicho”)
Age: 37
Brooklyn, New YorkRAYMUNDO HEYAIME SANCHEZ
Age: 25
Brooklyn, New YorkE.D.N.Y. Docket No. 21-CR-465 (S-1)(PKC)
Bridgeport Gang Member Sentenced to 40 Years for Murder, Role in Courthouse Shooting, Other ViolenceRead the Press Release
TYIESE WARREN, also known as “Loose Screw,” 21, of Bridgeport, was sentenced today by U.S. District Judge Kari A. Dooley in Bridgeport to 480 months of imprisonment, followed by three years of supervised release, for murder and other violent crimes he committed as a member of a Bridgeport gang.
Today’s announcement was made by Leonard C Boyle, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut; Joseph T. Corradino, State’s Attorney for the Fairfield Judicial District; Bridgeport Acting Police Chief Rebeca Garcia; James Ferguson, Special Agent in Charge, ATF Boston Field Division; David Sundberg, Special Agent in Charge of the New Haven Division of the Federal Bureau of Investigation; Brian D. Boyle, Special Agent in Charge of the Drug Enforcement Administration for New England, and Acting U.S. Marshal Lawrence Bobnick.
According to court documents and statements made in court, the FBI, ATF, DEA, U.S. Marshals Service and Bridgeport Police have been investigating multiple Bridgeport-based gangs whose members are involved in narcotics trafficking, murder and other acts of violence. Warren has been a member of the “Original North End” (“O.N.E.”), a gang based in the Trumbull Gardens area of Bridgeport whose members sold narcotics, laundered narcotics proceeds, committed acts of violence against rival gang members, robbed drug dealers, stole cars from inside and outside Connecticut and used them to commit crimes, and tampered with witnesses who might testify against them. From approximately 2017 until August 2020, O.N.E. members were aligned with the “Greene Homes Boyz” (“GHB/Hotz”), a gang based in the Charles F. Greene Homes Housing Complex in Bridgeport’s North End, against rival groups in Bridgeport, including the East End, East Side and PT Barnum gangs, as well as 150, which is a geographic gang based on the West Side of Bridgeport.
On December 8, 2019, Warren and others shot and killed Ty’Quess Moore, 18, a member or associate of the East End/P.T. Barnum gang alliance.
Warren also helped plan and carry out the retaliation shootings of East End gang members and associates in a brazen afternoon shooting in front of a Bridgeport courthouse. At 12:11 p.m. on January 27, 2020, Bridgeport Police responded to the area of 172 Golden Hill Street in Bridgeport after a Shot Spotter activation detected approximately 20 shots being fired in front of the state courthouse located there. Upon arrival, investigators discovered that four victims had been shot while sitting inside a black Chevrolet Impala. One victim was shot in the side of his chest and was left paralyzed and a second victim sustained multiple gunshot wounds to his back, shoulder and wrist. The victims’ vehicle had approximately 23 entry bullet holes in the driver’s side and windshield area.
Warren also participated in gang-related drug trafficking.
Further, on March 25, 2020, Warren and an accomplice stole a car that was in front of the Citgo 6M Service Station and Quik Mart located at 2000 Barnum Avenue in Stratford. During the theft, they dragged the car’s driver, who was trying to stop the theft and was hanging onto the car, several hundred yards before he let go. Warren and an accomplice then engaged in a carjacking involving a Toyota Corolla in Bridgeport, holding the owner at gunpoint and ultimately driving away in the car. Minutes later, Warren and an accomplice committed a gunpoint robbery of the Citgo in Stratford, taking cash from the store and a cellphone from a store employee. Stratford Police arrested Warren later that night after he crashed another stolen car he was driving on an I-95 on-ramp and then ran from police.
Warren has been detained since March 25, 2020. On October 25, 2021, he pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to engage in a pattern of racketeering activity.
This ongoing investigation is being conducted by ATF, the FBI’s Safe Streets and Violent Crimes Task Forces, DEA, U.S. Marshals Service, Bridgeport Police Department, Connecticut State Police and the Bridgeport State’s Attorney’s Office, with the assistance of the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, Connecticut Forensic Science Laboratory and the Stratford and Naugatuck Police Departments. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Rahul Kale, Karen L. Peck, Jocelyn C. Kaoutzanis, and Stephanie T. Levick.
This prosecution is a part of the Justice’s Department’s Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), Project Longevity and Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) programs.
PSN is the centerpiece of the Department of Justice’s violent crime reduction efforts. PSN is an evidence-based program proven to be effective at reducing violent crime. Through PSN, a broad spectrum of stakeholders work together to identify the most pressing violent crime problems in the community and develop comprehensive solutions to address them. As part of this strategy, PSN focuses enforcement efforts on the most violent offenders and partners with locally based prevention and reentry programs for lasting reductions in crime.
Project Longevity is a comprehensive initiative to reduce gun violence in Connecticut’s major cities. Through Project Longevity, community members and law enforcement directly engage with members of groups that are prone to commit violence and deliver a community message against violence, a law enforcement message about the consequences of further violence and an offer of help for those who want it. If a group member elects to engage in gun violence, the focused attention of federal, state and local law enforcement will be directed at that entire group.
OCDETF identifies, disrupts and dismantles drug traffickers, money launderers, gangs and transnational criminal organizations through a prosecutor-led and intelligence-driven approach that leverages the strengths of federal, state and local law enforcement agencies. Additional information about the OCDETF Program can be found at https://www.justice.gov/OCDETF.
Blairsville Bookkeeper Sentenced to Prison for Embezzling from Her Employer and Filing False Tax ReturnsRead the Press Release
PITTSBURGH, PA- A resident of Blairsville, PA was sentenced in federal court for Mail Fraud and Filing a False Income Tax Return, United States Attorney Cindy K. Chung announced today.
Sandra Jo Doak, 63, was sentenced to 42 months’ imprisonment at Count 1, and 38 months at Count 2, to be served concurrently, and three years’ supervised release for defrauding her employer in her role as bookkeeper for the medical office of Matthew Klain in Indiana, PA. Doak embezzled company funds totaling approximately $592,833, which she used for personal expenses such as the sporting events and travel. Doak also concealed the embezzled income from the IRS on her personal income tax returns and was ordered to pay $123,849 to the IRS in restitution.
In imposing sentence, United States District Judge Bissoon considered the seriousness of the offenses and financial impact upon the medical practice and its employees.
Assistant United States Attorney Gregory C. Melucci prosecuted this case on behalf of the government.
The United States Postal Inspection Service, Internal Revenue Service and the Pennsylvania State Police along with the Indiana Pennsylvania District Attorney’s Office conducted the investigation that led to the prosecution of Sandra Jo Doak.
Birmingham Man Pleads Guilty to Charges Involving the Sexual Exploitation of a MinorRead the Press Release
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. – A Birmingham man plead guilty this week to the charges of sex trafficking of a minor and production of child pornography, announced U.S. Attorney Prim F. Escalona and Federal Bureau of Investigation Special Agent in Charge Johnnie Sharp, Jr.
Jeremy Lynn Alexander, 36, pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Karon O. Bowdre to one count of sex trafficking of a minor and one count of production of child pornography. According to the plea agreement, on or about July 16, 2021, FBI Birmingham’s Child Exploitation and Human Trafficking Task Force received a priority lead regarding a 14-year-old female reported missing out of Madison, Wisconsin. FBI Birmingham and Homewood Police Special Investigations Unit launched an immediate investigation to find and recover the child. They located her through an advertisement on a website known for commercial sex advertisements. A task force officer responded to the number posted in the advertisement, the minor victim replied, and provided the address to meet. Members of the task force responded to a local hotel and located the juvenile victim in the hotel room with Alexander. Further investigation revealed child pornography involving Alexander and the juvenile victim located on Alexander’s cell phone.
FBI Birmingham's Child Exploitation Human Trafficking Task Force investigated the case, with the assistance of the Homewood Police Special Investigations Unit. Assistant United States Attorneys Darius Greene and R. Leann White are prosecuting the case.
The case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched by the Department of Justice in May 2006 to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. 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, and to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.projectsafechildhood.gov.
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Alien smuggler’s high speed flight leads to stint in federal prisonRead the Press Release
CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas – A 43-year-old Falfurrias resident has been ordered to federal prison following his conviction of transporting illegal aliens, announced U.S. Attorney Jennifer B. Lowery.
Pedro Galindo pleaded guilty Dec. 1, 2021.
Today, U.S. District Judge Drew Tipton handed Galindo a sentence of 41 months in federal prison. At the hearing, the court noted he had prior convictions for burglary, robbery and conspiracy to transport undocumented aliens.
On Sep. 3, 2021, Galindo was driving a black Chevrolet Impala Northbound on U.S. Highway 281 near San Manuel. During that time, law enforcement observed a low-riding vehicle that appeared to contain more occupants than its seating capacity allowed.
When a registration check on the vehicle returned with no record on file, law enforcement attempted to pull the vehicle over for further inspection. Galindo failed to yield and drove north at an accelerated speed before eventually losing control. At that time, he allowed eight passengers to exit the vehicle. Authorities determined all passengers were illegally present in the United States.
After speeding through the Falfurrias checkpoint, Galindo continued to flee in his vehicle at nearly 148 miles per hour. A vehicle immobilization device brought the car to a halt where officers were able to arrest Galindo.
He will remain in custody pending transfer to a U.S. Bureau of Prisons facility to be determined in the near future.
Customs and Border Protection conducted the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney J. Parker Gochenour prosecuted the case.
16 Defendants, Including 12 Physicians, Sentenced to Prison for Distributing 6.6 Million Opioid Pills and Submitting $250 Million in False BillingsRead the Press Release
Sixteen Michigan and Ohio-area defendants, including 12 physicians, have been sentenced to prison for a $250 million health care fraud scheme that included the exploitation of patients suffering from addiction and the illegal distribution of over 6.6 million doses of medically unnecessary opioids. Five physicians were convicted in two separate trials, while 18 other defendants pleaded guilty. Seven defendants await sentencing.
“It is unconscionable that doctors and health care professionals would violate their oath to do no harm and exploit vulnerable patients struggling with addiction,” said Assistant Attorney General Kenneth A. Polite Jr. of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division. “These are not just crimes of greed, these are crimes that make this country’s opioid crisis even worse – and that is why the department will continue to relentlessly pursue these cases.”
“Patients look to physicians and medical professionals for their expertise and knowledge, trusting that they will do what is best to take care of them,” said Assistant Director Luis Quesada of the FBI’s Criminal Investigative Division. “In this circumstance, these medical professionals provided prescription drugs to those with no medical need. It is unacceptable that in this nation’s current opioid crisis, physicians and medical professionals are exploiting the well-being of their patients for profit. Thanks to the diligent work of the FBI and our law enforcement partners, we are able to navigate the important sphere of healthcare fraud and to continue our mission of bringing those who operate these criminal schemes to justice.”
“Health care professionals who exploit opioid addiction for financial gain do so at the risk of endangering their patients and undermining critical public health efforts to address the opioid epidemic,” said Special Agent in Charge Mario Pinto of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Office of the Inspector General (HHS-OIG). “We will continue working with our law enforcement partners to ensure that bad actors are held accountable for such egregious disregard for patient safety and well-being.”
“IRS-CI is committed to working with its law enforcement partners to help fight the opioid crisis and to prevent unscrupulous heath care professionals from using taxpayer funded programs as their own piggybanks,” said Special Agent in Charge Sarah Kull of the IRS Criminal Investigation (IRS-CI), Detroit Field Office.
According to court documents and evidence presented at trial, the scheme involved doctors refusing to provide patients with opioids unless they agreed to unnecessary back injections. Perpetrated through a multi-state network of pain clinics from 2007 to 2018, the evidence established that the clinics were pill mills frequented by patients suffering from addiction, as well as drug dealers, who sought to obtain high-dosage prescription drugs like oxycodone. The doctors working at the clinics agreed to work only a few hours a week to “stay under the radar” of the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), yet were among the highest prescribers of oxycodone in the State of Michigan.
To obtain prescriptions, the evidence showed that the patients had to submit to expensive, unnecessary and sometimes painful back injections, known as facet joint injections. The injections were selected because they were among the highest reimbursing procedures, rather than based on medical need. Trial testimony established that, in some instances, patients experienced more pain from the shots than from the pain they had purportedly come to have treated, and that some patients developed adverse conditions, including open holes in their backs. Patients largely acquiesced to these unnecessary procedures because of their addiction or desire to obtain pills to be resold on the street by drug dealers. Evidence further established that the defendant physicians repeatedly performed these unnecessary injections on patients over several years and were paid more for facet joint injections than any other medical clinic in the United States.
The evidence further established that the proceeds of the fraud were used to fuel lavish lifestyles. Francisco Patino, a doctor and part-owner of the clinics, bought jewelry, cars and vacations, as well as paid Ultimate Fighting Championship and other mixed martial arts fighters to promote his specialized diet program. Mashiyat Rashid, Patino’s business partner and part-owner of the clinics, purchased private jet flights, courtside tickets to the NBA Finals and expensive real estate. Other physicians involved in the scheme purchased luxury cars, gold bars, and indoor basketball courts and swimming pools. Over $16 million in fraud proceeds was forfeited by the United States from the defendants.
The physicians sentenced by the court include:
- Spilios Pappas, M.D., 63, of Lucas County, Ohio, convicted at trial in 2020 for conspiracy to commit health care fraud and wire fraud, and health care fraud, was sentenced on March 9, to nine years in prison and ordered to pay $32,287,758 in restitution.
- Tariq Omar, M.D., 63, of Oakland County, Michigan, convicted at trial in 2020 for conspiracy to commit health care fraud and wire fraud, and health care fraud, was sentenced on March 9, to eight years in prison and ordered to pay $24,243,603 in restitution.
- Joseph Betro, D.O., 60, of Oakland County, Michigan, convicted at trial in 2020 for conspiracy to commit health care fraud and wire fraud, and health care fraud, was sentenced in February 2022 to nine years in prison and ordered to pay $27,417,516 in restitution.
- Mohammed Zahoor, M.D., 53, of Oakland County, Michigan, convicted at trial in 2020 for conspiracy to commit health care fraud and wire fraud, and health care fraud, was sentenced in February 2022 to eight years in prison and ordered to pay $36,645,577 in restitution.
- Zahid Sheikh, M.D., 62, of Macomb County, Michigan, was sentenced to 70 months in prison, and ordered to pay $2,088,797 in restitution in connection with his guilty plea to one count of conspiracy to commit health care fraud.
- Abdul Haq, M.D., 76, of Ypsilanti, Michigan, was sentenced to four years in prison, and ordered to pay $6,927,046.12 in restitution in connection with his guilty plea to one count of conspiracy to commit health care fraud.
- Steven Adamczyk, M.D., 47, of Bloomfield Hills, Michigan, was sentenced to 42 months in prison, and ordered to pay $1,237,570.97 in restitution in connection with his guilty plea to one count of conspiracy to commit health care fraud.
- David Weaver, M.D., 67, of Canton, Michigan, was sentenced to three years in prison, and ordered to pay $229,500 in restitution in connection with his guilty plea to one count of conspiracy to commit health care fraud.
- Glenn Saperstein, M.D., 58, of Commerce Township, Michigan, was sentenced to 20 months in prison, and ordered to pay $2,722,760.95 in restitution in connection with his guilty plea to one count of conspiracy to commit health care fraud.
- Manish Bolina, M.D., 43, of Canton, Michigan, was sentenced to 20 months in prison, and ordered to pay $310,936.95 in restitution in connection with his guilty plea to one count of false statements.
- Hussein Saad, M.D., 42, of Dearborn, Michigan, was sentenced to 10 months in prison, and ordered to pay $415,207.54 in restitution in connection with his guilty plea to one count of false statements.
- David Yangouyian, M.D., 58, of Farmington Hills, Michigan, was sentenced to six months in prison, and ordered to pay $35,480.98 in restitution in connection with his guilty plea to one count of conspiracy to commit health care fraud.
Other defendants sentenced by the court include:
- Mashiyat Rashid was sentenced in March 2021 to 15 years in prison and ordered to pay over $51 million in restitution in connection with his guilty plea to one count of conspiracy to commit health care fraud and wire fraud, and one count of money laundering.
- Yousef Almatrahi, 34, of Romulus, Michigan, the owner of a home health agency, was sentenced to three years in prison and ordered to pay $1,359,512.69 in restitution in connection with his guilty plea to one count of conspiracy to commit health care fraud in connection with his payment of illegal kickbacks for the referral of patients from the clinics for medically unnecessary home health services.
- Hina Qazi, 39, of Rochester Hills, Michigan, the owner of a home health agency, was sentenced to 18 months in prison and ordered to pay $827,713 in restitution in connection with her guilty plea to one count of conspiracy to commit health care fraud in connection with her payment of illegal kickbacks for the referral of patients from the clinics for medically unnecessary home health services.
- Joshua Burns, 43, of Detroit, Michigan, was sentenced to one-day in prison and ordered to pay $144,00 in restitution in connection with his guilty plea to one count of conspiracy to defraud the United States and pay and receive illegal kickbacks and bribes in connection with Patino’s referral of urine drug testing and sponsorship of MMA fighters.
The following defendants are scheduled to be sentenced on future dates:
- Francisco Patino, M.D., is scheduled to be sentenced on his conviction after a one-month trial in 2021 on one count of conspiracy to commit health care fraud and wire fraud, two counts of health care fraud, one count of conspiracy to defraud the United States and pay and receive health care kickbacks, one count of conspiracy to commit money laundering, and one count of money laundering.
- Yasser Mozeb, 39, of Hamtramck, Michigan, the office manager of the Tri-County clinics, is scheduled to be sentenced in connection with his guilty plea to one count of conspiracy to commit health care fraud and one count of conspiracy to defraud the United States and pay and receive illegal kickbacks and bribes.
- Kashif Rasool, M.D., 46, of Troy, Michigan, is scheduled to be sentenced in connection with his guilty plea to one count of conspiracy to commit health care fraud.
- Tariq Siddiqi, 44, of Sterling Heights, Michigan, is scheduled to be sentenced in connection with his guilty plea to one count of conspiracy to commit health care fraud in connection with his payment of illegal kickbacks for the referral of patients from the clinics for medically unnecessary home health services.
- Tasadaq Ali Ahmad, 54, of Canton, Michigan, the owner of a home health agency, is scheduled to be sentenced in connection with his guilty plea to one count of conspiracy to commit health care fraud and one count of conspiracy to defraud the United States and pay and receive kickbacks.
- Stephanie Borgula, 41, of Livonia, Michigan, a licensed physical therapist, is scheduled to be sentenced in connection with her guilty plea to one count of conspiracy to commit health care fraud.
- Meiuttenun Brown, M.D., 51, of Toledo, Ohio, is scheduled to be sentenced in connection with her guilty plea to one count of conspiracy to commit health care fraud.
The FBI, HHS-OIG and IRS-CI investigated the case.
Assistant Chief Jacob Foster of the National Rapid Response Strike Force and Trial Attorneys Thomas Tynan, Steven Scott, Kathleen Cooperstein and Shankar Ramamurthy of the Justice Department’s Fraud Section prosecuted 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.
"Get Dat Money" Member Sentenced to 17+ Years in PrisonRead the Press Release
MACON, Ga. – The 13th member of Macon’s “Get Dat Money” (GDM) methamphetamine drug trafficking organization was sentenced to serve more than 17 years in prison resulting from a lengthy investigation into the network’s illegal activities throughout Middle Georgia.
Tabitha Whitehead, 37, of Macon, was sentenced to serve 210 months in prison to be followed by three years of supervised release on Tuesday, March 8, after she pleaded guilty to conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute methamphetamine on Dec. 21, 2020. There is no parole in the federal system.
“The final member of Kelvin Carswell’s ‘Get Dat Money’ organization has been held to account for her role in pushing large amounts of methamphetamine in Middle Georgia, destroying many lives and hurting our community in the process,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Peter D. Leary. “The tremendous efforts by federal and local investigators in this case ultimately protected people and ended an illegal methamphetamine network orchestrated by Carswell from behind prison walls.”
"This sentencing ends an exhaustive investigation into a conspiracy that compounded an epidemic that is killing our citizens," said Philip Wislar, Acting Special Agent in Charge of FBI Atlanta. "The lengthy sentence received by Whitehead and the twelve other defendants in this case serves as an example of the FBI and our law enforcement partners commitment to end the opioid crisis."
“We can be grateful that this dangerous group of individuals has been held to account for spreading poison in our community. The partnership between the Bibb Sheriff’s Office and the FBI has resulted in members of the ‘Get Da Money’ criminal organization getting justice for their criminal deeds,” said Bibb County Sheriff David Davis.
The following individuals have been sentenced to prison:
Kelvin D. Carswell, aka “K-9,” “Nine,” “Kinineso Harlem Carswell,” “9ne Oharlem,” “Kninepunkin KinGcarswell,” 42, of Macon, was sentenced to serve the maximum 240 months in prison to be followed by three years of supervised release after he pleaded guilty to one count conspiracy to possess with the intent to distribute methamphetamine on Dec. 15, 2020;
Davan Randolph, 50, of Macon, was sentenced to serve 125 months in prison to be followed by three years of supervised release after he pleaded guilty to possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine on Dec. 15, 2020;
Terrico Wade, 40, of Macon, was sentenced to serve 71 months in prison to be followed by three years of supervised release after he pleaded guilty to distribution of methamphetamine on Dec. 15, 2020;
Chad Cummings, 38, of Macon, was sentenced to serve 60 months in prison to be followed by three years of supervised release after he pleaded guilty to possession of a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime on May 3, 2021;
Quateshia Carswell, 28, of Macon, was sentenced to serve 48 months in prison to be followed by three years of supervised release after she pleaded guilty to conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute methamphetamine on Dec. 1, 2020;
Trent Burton, 51, of Macon, was sentenced to serve the maximum 48 months in prison to be followed by one year of supervised release after he pleaded guilty to use of communication facility on Dec. 16, 2020;
Kewaunis King, 31, of Macon, was sentenced to serve the maximum 48 months in prison to be followed by one year of supervised release after he pleaded guilty to use of communication facility on Dec. 15, 2020. King’s federal sentence will run consecutively to any term of imprisonment imposed in Bibb County, Georgia, Superior Court for criminal conduct occurring on Nov. 27, 2018, in Case No. 2018-130280;
Trayvion Burney, 27, of Macon, was sentenced to serve 33 months in prison to be followed by one year of supervised release after he pleaded guilty to misprision of a felony on Jan. 27, 2021;
Kelly Jones, 39, of Macon, was sentenced to serve 24 months of probation after pleading guilty to use of communication facility on Dec.15, 2020;
Jahmi Booker, 39, of Macon, was sentenced to serve ten months in prison to be followed by one year of supervised release after he pleaded guilty to use of communication facility on Dec. 15, 2020;
Jacobi Jones, Sr., 36, of Macon, was sentenced to serve seven months in prison to be followed by one year of supervised release after he pleaded guilty to misprision of felony on Dec. 21, 2020; and,
Henry Flowers, 33, of Macon, was sentenced to time served to be followed by one year of supervised release after he pleaded guilty to use of a communication facility on Jan. 11, 2021.
U.S. District Judge Tilman E. “Tripp” Self III presided over this case.
According to court documents, FBI’s Macon office and the Bibb County Sheriff’s Office initiated an investigation in 2017 into the Carswell drug trafficking organization known as “Get Dat Money” or “GDM.” On May 30, 2012, Carswell had been incarcerated by the Georgia Department of Corrections, serving a sentence for attempted carjacking with a maximum release date of Oct. 12, 2026. In June 2017, the FBI received information that Carswell was orchestrating the sale of drugs while incarcerated at the Washington State Prison in Sandersville, Georgia. A search of Carswell’s prison cell uncovered a quantity of drugs and a cellular phone with multiple SD cards. Investigators discovered Carswell was texting his co-conspirators explicit instructions via his contraband cell phone to facilitate the distribution of methamphetamine, heroin and crack cocaine from prison. The drugs, once obtained, were sold from a residence Carswell and his co-conspirators referred to as “The Mansion” located at 373 Fulton Street in Macon. Carswell’s co-conspirators would sell drugs out of “The Mansion” at his direction. Drugs were also sold by distributors working at the behest of Carswell at multiple motels located in Macon. Throughout the course of the conspiracy, Carswell’s co-conspirators obtained more than 10,000 grams of methamphetamine for distribution at his direction.
The case was investigated by the FBI and the Bibb County Sheriff’s Office.
Criminal Chief Michael Solis prosecuted the case.
8 March 2022
York Woman Charged with Money LaunderingRead the Press Release
HARRISBURG - The United States Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Pennsylvania announced that on March 4, 2022, a criminal information was filed charging Melinda Bixler, age 49, of York, Pennsylvania, with one count of engaging in monetary transactions in property derived from unlawful activity.
According to United States Attorney John C. Gurganus, the information alleges that Bixler purchased a home in York, PA for $685,000 using money that she had obtained through various unlawful means.
The information alleges that Bixler obtained a mortgage loan for the purchase of this home by submitting multiple false statements to York Traditions Bank. These false statements allegedly included a forged letter from the owners of a business property that Bixler had previously purchased stating that she no longer owed money to the prior owners, when in fact she was still making monthly payments on it. It is also alleged that Bixler obtained a gift letter from her son stating that he was gifting his mother $350,000 from his own personal funds when Bixler actually funneled money to her son through a series of transactions that disguised the true sources of the funds. One source of these funds was $78,000 that Bixler took from the bank account of M.H., a 94-year-old woman residing at a nursing home in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania. Bixler was then the power of attorney for M.H., and she therefore had access to the elderly client’s bank account.
The case was investigated by Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigation, Federal Bureau of Investigation, York County District Attorney’s Office, York County Area Agency on Aging, and the Pennsylvania Department of Aging, Protective Services Office. Assistant U.S. Attorney Ravi Romel Sharma is prosecuting the case.
If convicted, the maximum penalty under federal law is 10 years’ imprisonment. This charge may also carry a fine and a term of supervised release following imprisonment. 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.
Informations are only allegations. All persons charged are presumed to be innocent unless and until found guilty in court.
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Yakima Man Sentenced to 22 Years in Federal Prison for Child Pornography OffenseRead the Press Release
Yakima, Washington – On March 2, Chief U.S. District Judge Stanley A. Bastian sentenced Douglas Craig Parsley, 34, of Yakima, Washington, to 22 years in federal prison for attempted production of child pornography. Chief Judge Bastian also ordered Parsley to serve an additional 20 years on federal supervision after he is released from prison. Parsley pleaded guilty on October 27, 2021.
According to court documents, Parsley attempted to produce child pornography by photographing a toddler he was babysitting while the child’s mother was at work. Parsley photographed his minor victim in nude and partially nude states.
The investigation began in 2019 when an Internet Crimes Against Children (“ICAC”) Task Force Officers in Contra Costa, California, arrested a person who was trying to meet up with another person to engage in sexual activity with a minor. Search warrants led to the discovery of communications with Parsley, and law enforcement agents obtained a federal search warrant for Parsley’s home in Yakima. During the execution of that warrant, officers seized a variety of Parsley’s electronic devices, which contained forensic evidence demonstrating that Parsley had taken images of a toddler he was babysitting the previous November. It also became clear that Parsley had used those images in online communications with others.
U.S. Attorney Vanessa R. Waldref commended the efforts of the Homeland Security Investigations agents and task force officers in this case: “It is a nightmare scenario for parents that a babysitter who is entrusted with the care of a small child would memorialize sexual images of that child and distribute them online. Mr. Parsley’s egregious conduct warrants every minute of the significant sentence imposed. The children of the Eastern District of Washington deserve to live in a safe and strong community just as their parents do. I am deeply grateful for the work of Homeland Security Investigations, our local and state partners, and the ICAC Task Force, which builds fortresses around our children all across the Nation. It is everyone’s job to protect children, and this case shows that we will work across state lines and follow every lead to do so.”
“Mr. Parsley made a decision to take advantage of a working mother while using the Internet to trade child exploitation images. His decision will keep him behind bars for the next 22 years,” said Special Agent in Charge (SAC) Robert Hammer, who oversees HSI operations in the Pacific Northwest. “This is an example of how our Task Force-based law enforcement partnerships are continuously working around the clock to keep Washington communities safe from child predators.”
This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the U.S. Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by the U.S. Attorneys’ Offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to better locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals, who sexually exploit children, as well as to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit http://www.justice.gov/psc.
This case was investigated by the Department of Homeland Security, with the Southeast Regional ICAC Task Force, and the Contra Costa County, California, District Attorney’s Office. The case was prosecuted by Michael Murphy, Assistant U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Washington.
Wiggins Man Sentenced to Five Years in Prison for Transportation of Child PornographyRead the Press Release
Hattiesburg, Miss. – A Wiggins man was sentenced to serve 60 months in federal prison, followed by 20 years of supervised release, for transporting visual depictions of minors engaging in sexually explicit conduct, announced U.S. Attorney Darren J. LaMarca and Special Agent in Charge Jermicha Fomby of the Federal Bureau of Investigation in Mississippi. Restitution to the victims was also ordered.
According to court documents, Charles Ezekiel Spangler, 38, was identified by the FBI when they received information from the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children that he uploaded pictures of minors engaging in sexually explicit conduct via the internet to his Tumblr account in June of 2018.
Spangler was indicted by a federal grand jury and he pled guilty on December 2, 2021.
The case was investigated by the FBI with the assistance of the Mississippi Attorney General’s Cyber Crimes Division.
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.usdoj.gov/psc.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Andrea Jones prosecuted the case.
Whitehall Man Charged with Child Pornography OffensesRead the Press Release
ALBANY, NEW YORK – Kevin Smurphat, age 33, of Whitehall, New York, appeared in federal court yesterday on child pornography charges.
The announcement was made by United States Attorney Carla B. Freedman and Janeen DiGuiseppi, Special Agent in Charge of the Albany Field Office of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI).
According to the indictment, Smurphat used the Internet to distribute, receive, transport and possess images and videos of child pornography.
The charges in the indictment are merely accusations. The defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
Smurphat appeared yesterday before United States Magistrate Judge Daniel J. Stewart and was ordered detained pending further proceedings. If convicted, Smurphat faces a minimum 15 years and up to 40 years in prison, a maximum $250,000 fine, and a term of post-imprisonment supervised release of at least 5 years and up to life. A defendant’s sentence is imposed by a judge based on the particular statute the defendant is charged with violating, the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines, and other factors.
This case is being investigated by the FBI and its Child Exploitation Task Force, and is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Dustin C. Segovia as part of Project Safe Childhood.
Launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice, Project Safe Childhood is led by United States Attorney’s offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS), Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state and local resources to better locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the Internet, as well as to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit https://www.justice.gov/psc.
Waterford Resident and Registered Sex Offender Sentenced to 50 Years in Federal Prison for Sexual Exploitation of Several ChildrenRead the Press Release
A Waterford man was sentenced today to 50 years in federal prison after having pleaded guilty to production of child pornography and commission of an offense against a child by a registered sex offender, announced United States Attorney Dawn N. Ison.
Ison was joined in the announcement by Acting Special Agent in Charge James C. Harris of the Department of Homeland Security, Homeland Security Investigations.
Jostin Arthur Desco, 28, was sentenced by United States District Judge Judith E. Levy.
According to court records, Desco sexually exploited at least ten different children using a variety of methods. Desco sexually assaulted a 7 year-old boy who he knew well, recorded that abuse, and sent it to others on the dark web. Desco also used fake personas to convince several teenage boys to produce sexually explicit images and videos of themselves. Desco, using this fake persona, then convinced the boys to send the material to him. Desco then blackmailed several victims into producing more child pornography for him. Desco even attempted to get some victims to commit sex acts on their siblings as part of the extortive conduct. Desco was also a member of several groups, both on the dark web and the open web, that traded child pornography. Some communications between Desco and other were recovered, including one series of messages where Desco stated, “Yes I am sick and yes I am a monster.”
Desco committed most of these crimes while on parole for a previous offense of distributing child sexually abusive material. That crime required him to register as a sex offender.
“The actions of this defendant are reprehensible and demonstrate how a sexual predator can use the internet to victimize innocent children,” said US Attorney Ison. “The lengthy sentence in this case will ensure that Desco will never be able to harm a child again. It should send a clear message that those who prey on our most vulnerable citizens will be held accountable. We also hope this sentence helps to bring closure to the victims and their families.”
“Desco’s horrific crimes hurt the most vulnerable members of our community,” said HSI Detroit acting Special Agent in Charge James C. Harris III. “This sentencing sends a powerful message to those who would prey on the innocent and serves as a reminder of the work necessary to catch these predators and remove them from our communities.”
This case was investigated by the Department of Homeland Security, Homeland Security Investigations. The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Kevin M. Mulcahy and Rosemary Gardey.
Washington’s two U.S. Attorneys join federal law enforcement partners to brief religious leaders on security for houses of worshipRead the Press Release
Seattle – U.S. Attorney Nick Brown of the Western District of Washington and U.S. Attorney Vanessa Waldref of the Eastern District of Washington joined federal law enforcement leaders Monday evening March 7, 2022, for the first of five online trainings on security issues for houses of worship.
“People gather in their houses of worship for prayer, fellowship, and community. Investigating and prosecuting hate crimes is a top priority for the Department of Justice, and we must ensure that people are safe,” said U.S. Attorney Nick Brown. “I want to be sure our religious communities have the latest information on ways to secure their facilities, and deal with threats that may come their way. As we saw recently at a synagogue in Houston, training made a difference in the safe escape of those taken hostage.”
“A top priority for FBI Seattle is protecting against threats to Washington state’s faith communities,” said Donald M. Voiret, Special Agent in Charge of the Seattle Field Office. “That’s why we held this event and others like it. We want our houses of worship to be equipped and our lines of communication open before a disaster strikes, and hopefully, with preparation, we can keep that from happening.”
The virtual meeting was facilitated by the Jewish Community Center. More than 70 people attended the opening training.
The meeting provided an overview of some of the future trainings and provided an opportunity for questions to a panel of experts. The future trainings will cover: Active Shooter guidance, ensuring facility safety, counterterrorism, and hate crimes prosecutions.
Participating federal agencies include the FBI, Homeland Security’s Cybersecurity & Infrastructure Security Agency, and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms & Explosives (ATF).
Wagner Woman Charged with Child Abuse and Neglect and Involuntary ManslaughterRead the Press Release
United States Attorney Dennis R. Holmes announced that a Wagner, South Dakota, woman has been indicted by a federal grand jury for Child Abuse and Neglect and Involuntary Manslaughter.
Chelsea Andersh, age 26, was indicted on March 2, 2022. She appeared before U.S. Magistrate Judge Veronica L. Duffy on March 7, 2022, and pled not guilty to the Indictment.
The maximum penalty upon conviction is up to 15 years in federal prison and/or a $250,000 fine, three years of supervised release, and up to $200 to the Federal Crime Victims Fund. Restitution may also be ordered.
The Indictment alleges that on or about September 11, 2021, Andersh intentionally and knowingly abused, exposed, tortured, tormented, and cruelly punished a child who had not attained the age of seven by subjecting him to an environment which was lacking in proper parental care through the actions and omissions of Andersh, and which was injurious to the child’s welfare. Andersh’s actions led to the death of the child.
The charges are merely accusations and Andersh is presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty.
The investigation is being conducted by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Charles Mix County Sheriff’s Office. Assistant U.S. Attorney Ann M. Hoffman is prosecuting the case.
Andersh was released on bond pending trial. A trial date has not been set.
Wagner Man Sentenced for Failure to Register as a Sex OffenderRead the Press Release
United States Attorney Dennis R. Holmes announced that a Wagner, South Dakota, man convicted of Failure to Register as a sex Offender was sentenced on March 7, 2022, by U.S. District Judge Karen E. Schreier.
Russell Duane Hubbeling, age 57, was sentenced to nine months in federal prison, followed by five years of supervised release, and a special assessment to the Federal Crime Victims Fund in the amount of $100.
Hubbeling was indicted by a federal grand jury on October 5, 2021. He pled guilty on December 1, 2021.
The conviction stems from Hubbeling failing to register as a sex offender as required by federal law between August 5, 2021, and September 2, 2021. Hubbeling had previously been convicted of a sex offense in federal court, which requires him to register for the rest of his life.
This case was investigated by the U.S. Marshals Service. Assistant U.S. Attorney Jeffrey C. Clapper prosecuted the case.
Hubbeling was immediately turned over to the custody of the U.S. Marshals Service.
Virginia Woman Sentenced for Coercing and Enticing MinorRead the Press Release
TUCSON, Ariz. – Last week, Sara Belen Coltz, 38, of Norfolk, Virginia was sentenced by U.S. District Judge John C. Hinderaker to 120 months in prison, followed by a lifetime term of supervised release. Coltz previously pleaded guilty to coercion and enticement of a minor. After she is released from prison, Coltz will be required to register as a sexual offender.
In late 2017 through mid-2018, Coltz used a computer to communicate with the victim who was under the age of eighteen. In these communications, Coltz chatted with the victim about sexual acts she wanted to perform.
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, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to better locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the Internet, as well as to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.justice.gov/psc.
The Tucson Police Department conducted the investigation in this case. Assistant U.S. Attorney Erica L. Seger, District of Arizona, Tucson handled the prosecution.
CASE NUMBER: CR 20-00678-TUC-JCH
RELEASE NUMBER: 2022- 021_Coltz# # #
For more information on the U.S. Attorney’s Office, District of Arizona, visit http://www.justice.gov/usao/az/
Follow the U.S. Attorney’s Office, District of Arizona, on Twitter @USAO_AZ for the latest news.United States Reaches Agreement with Travis County Clerk’s Office to Ensure Polling Place Access for Voters with DisabilitiesRead the Press Release
AUSTIN – U.S. Attorney Ashley C. Hoff of the Western District of Texas announced today that the United States has reached an agreement with the Travis County Clerk’s Office (“Travis County”) to ensure that the county provides accessible polling places to voters with disabilities. The agreement resolves the United States’ investigation into Travis County’s compliance with Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act (“ADA”), which prohibits discrimination on the basis of disability by a state or local government in any of its programs or services.
The United States surveyed over 50 of the polling places Travis County used during the 2020 Primary Election. The United States observed that all polling places surveyed contained architectural or equipment barriers for voters with disabilities, such as a lack of van accessible parking, excessively sloped ramps, excessively sloped routes to the entrance, and protruding objects. In addition, the accessible voting machines lacked knee and toe clearance to accommodate wheelchairs and lacked the same level of privacy afforded to other voters. Polling places also lacked notice or procedures for voters with disabilities to access the county’s curbside voting system in a manner consistent with the ADA.
Under the terms of the agreement, the county will use an evaluation form for each current and prospective polling place based on ADA architectural standards. The agreement requires the county to either relocate voting to new, accessible facilities, or to use temporary measures such as portable ramps, signs, traffic cones, and doorbells to ensure accessibility on Election Day. In addition, Travis County will train its poll workers and other elections staff on the requirements of the ADA and how to use temporary measures to ensure each polling place is accessible during elections.
Travis County is working collaboratively with the United States to make all polling places accessible and has already taken steps since the 2020 Primary Election to ensure polling place accessibility.
“The right to vote is a foundation of our democracy and must not be diminished or restricted by barriers to access at polling sites,” said U.S. Attorney Hoff. “Under this agreement, eligible voters with disabilities in Travis County will be able to exercise their fundamental right to vote and participate in our democracy.”
People interested in finding out more about the ADA or this agreement can call the toll-free ADA Information Line at 800-514-0301 or 800-514-0383 (TDD) or access the ADA website at http://www.ada.gov.
This investigation was handled by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Liane Noble and Thomas Parnham with the assistance of the United States Department of Justice, Civil Rights Division, Disability Rights Section.
The claims resolved by the settlement are allegations only and there has been no determination of liability.
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United States Citizen Residing in Dominican Republic Sentenced to 178 Months in Prison for Conspiring to Import Cocaine into United StatesRead the Press Release
NEWARK, N.J. – A United States citizen who had been residing in the Dominican Republic was sentenced today to 178 months in prison for conspiring to import hundreds of pounds of cocaine into the United States from Venezuela, Colombia, and the Dominican Republic, U.S. Attorney Philip R. Sellinger announced.
Edwin Nieves-Rosado, aka “Tortuga,” 56, previously pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Esther Salas to Count One of an indictment charging him with conspiracy to import five kilograms or more of cocaine. Judge Salas imposed a sentence today in Newark federal court.
According to documents filed in this case and statements made in court:
From 2016 through Jan. 10, 2020, Nieves-Rosado and others conspired to import at least 800 kilograms of cocaine. Nieves-Rosado admitted playing a managerial role in this conspiracy, which involved more than five individuals.
In addition to the term of imprisonment, Judge Salas sentenced Nieves-Rosado to five years of supervised release.
This case is part of an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) operation. OCDETF identifies, disrupts, and dismantles the highest-level criminal organizations that threaten the United States using a prosecutor-led, intelligence-driven, multi-agency approach. Additional information about the OCDETF Program can be found at https://www.justice.gov/OCDETF.
U.S. Attorney Sellinger credited special agents and task force officers with the Drug Enforcement Administration operating in New Jersey, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Susan A. Gibson in Newark, as well as special agents and task force officers with the Drug Enforcement Administration operating in Colombia, the Dominican Republic, and Puerto Rico. He also thanked the Justice Department’s Office of International Affairs and the U.S. Marshals Service for their assistance with the case.
The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorney Lauren Repole of the Economic Crimes Unit and Assistant U.S. Attorney Francesca Liquori, Chief of the OCDETF/Narcotics Unit.
Uniontown Man Sentenced to More than 12 Years in Prison for Attempting to Engage in Sexual Conduct with a MinorRead the Press Release
Acting U.S. Attorney Michelle M. Baeppler announced that Bradley Willem Beun, 42, of Uniontown, Ohio, was sentenced on Tuesday, March 7, 2022, by U.S. District Judge Sara Lioi to more than twelve years, or 151 months, in prison and ten years of supervised release after Beun pleaded guilty to coercion or enticement of a minor.
“This defendant took deliberate steps and made real plans to sexually abuse what he believed to be was an eight-year-old child, “ said Acting U.S. Attorney Michelle M. Baeppler. “Thanks to the work of law enforcement, this defendant will no longer have the opportunity to prey upon children.”
“Our unwavering commitment to protecting innocent and defenseless children is paramount,” said Eric B. Smith, FBI Special Agent in Charge. “We are dedicated to thoroughly investigating reprehensible behavior from vile individuals and will continue to work diligently to thwart criminal misconduct of this nature.”
According to court documents, in April 2021, Beun began an online conversation with an undercover FBI agent and expressed interest in meeting the undercover agent’s purported 8-year-old child for the purposes of engaging in sexual conduct. On April 16, 2021, Beun arrived at the pre-determined location to meet the minor and was arrested by law enforcement.
This investigation was conducted by the FBI. This case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Tracey Ballard Tangeman.
U.S. District Court Orders Suburban Chicago Company to Stop Distribution of Adulterated and Misbranded Nutritional SupplementsRead the Press Release
In a consent decree entered Monday, a federal court ordered a Waukegan, Illinois, company to stop distributing nutritional supplements that violate the Federal Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act (FDCA), the Department of Justice and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Illinois announced.
The United States alleged in a complaint filed in the Northern District of Illinois on March 3 that Salud Natural Entrepreneur, Inc. (Salud), its owner, Hector Pablo Oliva, production manager Michel Monfort, and quality control manager Carolina L. Giral violated the FDCA by distributing adulterated and misbranded dietary supplements and unapproved new drugs that the company claimed would cure, mitigate, treat or prevent diseases such as cancer, diabetes, high blood pressure and heart disease. The United States also alleged that Salud did not comply with good manufacturing practice regulations designed to help ensure the safety of nutritional supplements, and that on one occasion Salud used ingredients that had tested positive for salmonella in manufacturing a product.
“Nutritional supplement makers must comply with laws and regulations meant to protect public health,” said Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Brian M. Boynton, head of the Justice Department’s Civil Division. “The department is committed to working with its agency partners to take action against manufacturers who risk the safety of consumers by failing to adhere to the FDCA.”
“Nutritional supplements must be manufactured, labeled, and distributed in compliance with federal law,” said U.S. Attorney John R. Lausch Jr. for the Northern District of Illinois. “The U.S. Attorney’s Office is committed to working with our colleagues at the Department of Justice’s Consumer Protection Branch to ensure that the public is not misled by unsubstantiated claims.”
“Current good manufacturing regulations are in place to protect consumers, and it is imperative that dietary supplement manufacturers comply to ensure this protection,” said Associate Commissioner Judy McMeekin, Pharm.D. for FDA Regulatory Affairs. “We also hold manufacturers responsible when their product is inappropriately labeled with claims to cure or prevent disease to protect consumers who are unknowingly scammed by false or misleading claims.”
The defendants agreed to settle the suit and be bound by a consent decree of permanent injunction filed along with the complaint. The order entered by the court permanently enjoins the defendants from violating the FDCA, and requires, among other things, that the defendants stop manufacturing, processing, labeling, holding or distributing any product that they claim can treat or cure disease, until they comply with federal law. The defendants also must bring their operations into compliance with current good manufacturing regulations.
The government was represented in this matter by Special Assistant U.S. Attorney and Senior Litigation Counsel Don Lorenzen of the Justice Department’s Consumer Protection Branch, with the assistance of Leslie Cohen of the FDA’s Office of Chief Counsel.
Additional information about the Consumer Protection Branch and its enforcement efforts may be found at http://www.justice.gov/civil/consumer-protection-branch.
U.S. District Court Orders Suburban Chicago Company to Stop Distribution of Adulterated and Misbranded Nutritional SupplementsRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON – In a consent decree entered Monday, a federal court ordered a Waukegan, Ill. company to stop distributing nutritional supplements that violate the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act (FDCA), the Department of Justice and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Illinois announced today.
The United States alleged in a complaint filed in the Northern District of Illinois on March 3, 2022, that Salud Natural Entrepreneur Inc., its owner, Hector Pablo Oliva, production manager Michel Monfort, and quality control manager Carolina L. Giral violated the FDCA by distributing adulterated and misbranded dietary supplements and unapproved new drugs that the company claimed would cure, mitigate, treat or prevent diseases such as cancer, diabetes, high blood pressure, and heart disease. The United States also alleged that Salud did not comply with good manufacturing practice regulations designed to help ensure the safety of nutritional supplements, and that on one occasion Salud used ingredients that had tested positive for salmonella in manufacturing a product.
“Nutritional supplement makers must comply with laws and regulations meant to protect public health,” said Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Brian M. Boynton, head of the Justice Department’s Civil Division. “The department is committed to working with its agency partners to take action against manufacturers who risk the safety of consumers by failing to adhere to the FDCA.”
“Nutritional supplements must be manufactured, labeled, and distributed in compliance with federal law,” said John R. Lausch, Jr., United States Attorney for the Northern District of Illinois. “The U.S. Attorney’s Office is committed to working with our colleagues at the Department of Justice’s Consumer Protection Branch to ensure that the public is not misled by unsubstantiated claims.”
"Current good manufacturing regulations are in place to protect consumers, and it is imperative that dietary supplement manufacturers comply to ensure this protection,” said Associate Commissioner Judy McMeekin, Pharm.D. for FDA Regulatory Affairs. “We also hold manufacturers responsible when their product is inappropriately labeled with claims to cure or prevent disease to protect consumers who are unknowingly scammed by false or misleading claims.”
The defendants agreed to settle the suit and be bound by a consent decree of permanent injunction filed along with the complaint. The order entered by the court permanently enjoins the defendants from violating the FDCA, and requires, among other things, that the defendants stop manufacturing, processing, labeling, holding or distributing any product that they claim can treat or cure disease, until they comply with federal law. The defendants also must bring their operations into compliance with current good manufacturing regulations.
The government was represented in this matter by Special Assistant U.S. Attorney and Senior Litigation Counsel Don Lorenzen of the Justice Department’s Consumer Protection Branch, with the assistance of Leslie Cohen of the FDA’s Office of Chief Counsel.
Additional information about the Consumer Protection Branch and its enforcement efforts may be found here.
U.S. Attorney’s Office Reaches ADA Settlement with Jefferson Partners L.P. dba Jefferson LinesRead the Press Release
FARGO - Interim United States Attorney Nicholas W. Chase announced today that the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of North Dakota entered into a settlement agreement with Jefferson Partners L.P. dba Jefferson Lines to resolve an allegation that the transportation company violated the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 ("ADA").
The settlement agreement resolves an ADA complaint alleging that a Jefferson Lines bus driver refused to allow a passenger, who used a walker to assist with mobility, to use the bus’s lift, located at the rear of the bus, to exit the bus. The complaint alleged that the bus driver instead required the passenger to walk from a seat at the back of the bus to the front of the bus and then use the stairs to get off the bus, all without the assistance of the walker. During its investigation, the U.S. Attorney’s Office learned that from January 1, 2017, through August 7, 2020, Jefferson Lines received twenty-four customer complaints regarding disability access issues, eight of which were complaints that a bus lift failed to work or that a driver failed to properly operate a lift.
Under the terms of the settlement agreement, Jefferson Lines will:
• train vehicle operators, personnel who assist passengers, and any personnel who operate lifts on the requirements of the ADA;
• require each such employee to demonstrate they can operate accessibility features and properly secure individuals who use mobility devices;
• test drivers on their ability to operate a vehicle’s accessibility features; and
• test all fixed-route vehicles weekly to ensure all accessibility features are operable and remove faulty vehicles from service until they can be repaired.
Jefferson Lines also agreed to compensate the complainant $5,000.00 for the alleged violation of the complainant’s rights under the ADA.
Interim U.S. Attorney Chase commended Jefferson Lines for cooperating throughout this investigation and for their commitment to the ADA. "For many people with disabilities, transportation is a challenging issue. The corrective measures agreed to by Jefferson Lines will allow individuals with disabilities better access to transportation services in North Dakota and around the United States. We hope other transportation providers remain focused on compliance with this important civil rights law. Our Office is committed to ensuring individuals with disabilities have full and equal access to places of public accommodation and the benefits of transportation services in North Dakota."
Since October 29, 2012, the fleets of all large, fixed-route over-the-road bus operators, such as Jefferson Lines, must be 100 percent readily accessible to and usable by individuals with disabilities. The ADA authorizes the U.S. Department of Justice to investigate complaints and undertake compliance reviews of covered entities. The Justice Department is also authorized to commence a civil lawsuit in federal court in any case that involves a pattern or practice of discrimination or raises an issue of general public importance, and to seek injunctive relief, monetary damages, and civil penalties.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Tara Vavrosky Iversen represented the United States in this matter, with assistance from Paralegal Specialist Michelle Erdmann.
Any member of the public who wishes to file a complaint alleging that any place of public accommodation or public entity in North Dakota is not accessible to persons with disabilities may file a complaint online at www.ada.gov or contact the U.S. Attorney’s Office at 701-297-7400.
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Two Plead Guilty in Methamphetamine ConspiracyRead the Press Release
BOSTON – Two drug traffickers pleaded guilty today in federal court in Boston to their roles in a methamphetamine trafficking conspiracy.
William Velez, 40, of Boston, and Mark Daileanes, 53, of Litchfield, N.H., pleaded guilty to one count each of conspiracy to distribute and to possess with intent to distribute 50 grams or more of methamphetamine. Daileanes also pleaded guilty to one count of possession with intent to distribute of 50 grams or more of methamphetamine. U.S. District Court Judge Denise J. Casper scheduled sentencing for June 28, 2022 and July 27, 2022, respectively. The defendants were indicted in May 2021, along with two other defendants, Andrew Lunn and Anthony Elwell.
On four occasions between June and September 2020, Lunn sold pure methamphetamine to a cooperating witness in amounts ranging from 100 to almost 280 grams. Velez supplied Lunn with the methamphetamine for each of those deals. For one of the deals, in July 2020, Elwell provided Daileanes with money to purchase 280 grams of methamphetamine from Lunn.
Lunn pleaded guilty on Dec. 16, 2021. Elwell has pleaded not guilty and is awaiting trial
The charges of conspiracy to distribute 50 grams or more of methamphetamine and distribution each provide for a sentence of at least 10 years and up to life in prison, at least five years of supervised release and a fine of up to $10 million. The charge of possession with intent to distribute 50 grams or more of methamphetamine provides for a sentence of at least 10 years and up to life in prison, at least five years of supervised release and a fine of up to $10 million. Sentences are imposed by a federal district court judge based upon the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
United States Attorney Rachael S. Rollins and Brian D. Boyle, Special Agent in Charge of the Drug Enforcement Administration’s New England Division, made the announcement today. The New Hampshire State Police and the Everett, Nashua (N.H), Merrimack (N.H.), Litchfield (N.H), and Manchester (N.H.) Police Departments provided valuable assistance. Assistant U.S. Attorney Alathea Porter of Rollins’ Narcotics & Money Laundering Unit is prosecuting the case.
The details contained in the charging document are allegations. The remaining defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
Two Former Senior Venezuelan Prosecutors Charged for Receiving over $1 Million in BribesRead the Press Release
Two former senior Venezuelan prosecutors have been charged with money laundering for their receipt of bribes in exchange for agreeing not to pursue criminal charges against certain individuals in Venezuela.
According to the indictment, Daniel D’Andrea Golindano (D’Andrea), 43, and Luis Javier Sanchez Rangel (Sanchez), 35, both of Venezuela, are each charged with one count of conspiracy to commit money laundering and two counts of engaging in monetary transactions in criminally derived property.
The indictment alleges that, in or around 2017, D’Andrea and Sanchez, in their official roles as prosecutors within the Venezuelan Attorney General’s Office, were investigating an individual, identified as Contractor 1 in the indictment, for alleged corruption relating to contracts obtained with subsidiaries of Venezuela’s state-owned oil company (PDVSA). D’Andrea and Sanchez discussed and agreed to receive bribes of more than $1 million in exchange for not pursuing criminal charges against Contractor 1 and others.
According to the indictment, D’Andrea caused a co-conspirator to create false invoices seeking payment, purportedly for medical diagnostic equipment, from Contractor 1. In or around 2017, Contractor 1 caused the payment of over $1 million dollars to an account in the Southern District of Florida for the benefit of D’Andrea and Sanchez. As a result of this payment, D’Andrea and Sanchez caused the Venezuelan Attorney General’s Office not to seek criminal charges against Contractor 1 and others. D’Andrea and Sanchez used the proceeds from these bribes for their personal benefit.
If convicted, the defendants face up to 20 years in prison for conspiracy to commit money laundering and up to 10 years in prison for each count of engaging in transactions in criminally derived property. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors. The defendants are in Venezuela and remain at large.
Assistant Attorney General Kenneth A. Polite Jr. of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, U.S. Attorney Juan Antonio Gonzalez for the Southern District of Florida, and Special Agent in Charge Anthony Salisbury of Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) Miami office made the announcement.
Trial Attorney Alexander Kramer of the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section and Assistant U.S. Attorney Michael N. Berger of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Florida are prosecuting the case.
The Fraud Section has lead responsibility for investigating and prosecuting all Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) matters. Additional information about the Justice Department’s FCPA enforcement efforts can be found at www.justice.gov/criminal/fraud/fcpa.
An indictment is merely an allegation, and all defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
Two Former Senior Venezuelan Prosecutors Charged for Receiving over $1 Million in BribesRead the Press Release
Miami, Florida – Two former senior Venezuelan prosecutors have been charged with money laundering for their receipt of bribes in exchange for agreeing not to pursue criminal charges against certain individuals in Venezuela.
According to the indictment, Daniel D’Andrea Golindano (D’Andrea), 43, and Luis Javier Sanchez Rangel (Sanchez), 35, both of Venezuela, are each charged with one count of conspiracy to commit money laundering and two counts of engaging in monetary transactions in criminally derived property.
The indictment alleges that, in or around 2017, D’Andrea and Sanchez, in their official roles as prosecutors within the Venezuelan Attorney General’s Office, were investigating an individual, identified as Contractor 1 in the indictment, for alleged corruption relating to contracts obtained with subsidiaries of Venezuela’s state-owned oil company (PDVSA). D’Andrea and Sanchez discussed and agreed to receive bribes of more than $1 million in exchange for not pursuing criminal charges against Contractor 1 and others.
According to the indictment, D’Andrea caused a co-conspirator to create false invoices seeking payment, purportedly for medical diagnostic equipment, from Contractor 1. In or around 2017, Contractor 1 caused the payment of over $1 million dollars to an account in the Southern District of Florida for the benefit of D’Andrea and Sanchez. As a result of this payment, D’Andrea and Sanchez caused the Venezuelan Attorney General’s Office not to seek criminal charges against Contractor 1 and others. D’Andrea and Sanchez used the proceeds from these bribes for their personal benefit.
If convicted, the defendants face up to 20 years in prison for conspiracy to commit money laundering and up to 10 years in prison for each count of engaging in transactions in criminally derived property. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors. The defendants are in Venezuela and remain at large.
U.S. Attorney Juan Antonio Gonzalez for the Southern District of Florida, Assistant Attorney General Kenneth A. Polite Jr. of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, and Special Agent in Charge Anthony Salisbury of Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) Miami office made the announcement.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Michael N. Berger of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Florida and Trial Attorney Alexander Kramer of the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section are prosecuting the case.
An indictment is merely an allegation, and all defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
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.
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Two Cleveland Men Charged with Distributing Fentanyl Mixture that Led to Overdose DeathRead the Press Release
Acting U.S. Attorney Michelle M. Baeppler announced that a federal grand jury has returned a four-count indictment charging Willie A. Pratt, 33, and Darryl L. Roberts, 31, both of Cleveland, Ohio, with distributing fentanyl that led to an overdose death.
According to court records, on October 31, 2021, officers with the Rocky River Police Department responded to a residence for a call of a possible drug overdose. Upon arrival, police identified the deceased and discovered a substance, later identified as a cocaine and fentanyl mixture and a cell phone on the decedent.
Court records state that officers investigated the incident and determined the alleged drug supplier’s number in the victim’s phone. On November 1, 2021, investigators arranged a meeting with the alleged drug supplier ostensibly to purchase more drugs and arrested defendants Pratt and Roberts in connection with the investigation.
During the arrest, it is alleged that law enforcement officers obtained detectable amounts of cocaine, heroin, fentanyl and acetyl fentanyl from both defendants. In addition, court documents state that investigators obtained the cell phone defendant Pratt used to communicate with the decedent.
An indictment is only a charge and is not evidence of guilt. A defendant is entitled to a fair trial in which it will be the government’s burden to prove guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.
If convicted, the defendant’s sentence will be determined by the Court after a review of factors unique to this case, including the defendant’s prior criminal record, if any, the defendant’s role in the offense, and the characteristics of the violation.
In all cases, the sentence will not exceed the statutory maximum, and in most cases, it will be less than the maximum.
This case was investigated by the DEA and Rocky River Police Department. This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Payum Doroodian.
Two California Men Sentenced for Conspiracy and Hate Crime Convictions for Attacking and Threatening to Kill Restaurant Patrons and Workers Because of Their Perceived National OriginRead the Press Release
Two California men were sentenced yesterday on conspiracy and hate crime charges for attacking five victims inside a restaurant while shouting ethnic slurs, hurling chairs at the victims and threatening to kill them.
William Stepanyan, 23, of Glendale, was sentenced to five years in prison and Harutyun Harry Chalikyan, 24, of Tujung, was sentenced to 15 months in prison. Each defendant was also sentenced to three years of supervised release. The court also ordered the defendants to jointly pay $21,200 in restitution for damage to the Turkish restaurant. Each defendant previously pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy and one count of committing a hate crime.
According to the facts admitted in the plea agreements, the defendants, who identify as members of the Armenian-American community, attacked five victims inside a family-owned Turkish restaurant on Nov. 4, 2020, because of their anger about Turkey’s support of Azerbaijan in its conflict with Armenia. Earlier that day, Stepanyan sent a text message saying that he planned to go “hunting for [T]urks.” That evening, the defendants drove to the restaurant with a group of approximately nine individuals who planned to demonstrate outside the establishment because they considered it symbolic of Turkey. Upon arriving at the restaurant, Stepanyan and Chalikyan stormed inside, threw hard wooden chairs at the victims, smashed glassware, destroyed a plexiglass barrier and overturned tables. One of the defendants asked the victims, “Are you Turkish?” and shouted, “We came to kill you! We will kill you!” The attack caused at least $20,000 of damage to the restaurant and physically injured multiple victims.
“The defendants violently attacked people inside a family-owned restaurant because of their perceived nationality,” said Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division. “Such violence based on national origin has no place in our society. The Justice Department will continue to vigorously prosecute bias-motivated crimes in an effort to secure justice for the victims and the communities they are meant to target and intimidate.”
“These defendants were driven by hate, and their actions were deplorable,” said U.S. Attorney Tracy L. Wilkison for the Central District of California. “The physical injuries and emotional trauma to the victims cannot be understated. We hope that the sentences handed down today will help vindicate those harms.”
“The victims in this case were brutally attacked by the defendants who trampled their civil rights and likely caused lasting psychological pain for nothing more than the perception of where they were born,” said Assistant Director in Charge Kristi Johnson of the FBI Los Angeles Field Office. “The FBI is committed to investigating civil rights violations and holding accountable individuals who commit violent acts motivated by hate.”
Trial Attorney Michael J. Songer of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division and Assistant U.S. Attorney Lindsey Greer Dotson of the Central District of California prosecuted the case on behalf of the government. The FBI conducted the investigation with the assistance of the Beverly Hills Police Department.
Two Arkansas Men Sentenced to over 23 Years Combined in Federal Prison for Fraud and Money Laundering in Connection with Proposed Elm Springs, Arkansas Wind FarmRead the Press Release
FAYETTEVILLE – Two Arkansas men were sentenced today to federal prison for Wire Fraud, Aiding and Abetting Wire Fraud, Money Laundering and Aiding and Abetting Money Laundering in connection with the development of a wind turbine that was never operational and a proposed wind farm project in Elm Springs, Arkansas, that was never constructed. The Honorable Judge Timothy L. Brooks presided over the sentencing hearings in the United States District Court in Fayetteville.
Jody Douglas Davis, 47, of Searcy, Arkansas, was sentenced to 180 months in prison followed by three years of supervised release and ordered to pay $1,138,845.28 in restitution and Phillip Vincent Ridings, 64, of North Little Rock, Arkansas, was sentenced to 97 months in prison followed by three years of supervised release and ordered to pay $1,138,845.28 in restitution.
“This case represents some of the most important work that we do,” said United States Attorney Clay Fowlkes. “These defendants developed a scheme for the purposed of stealing large sums of money from innocent investors. The defendants in this case used lies and misrepresentations to trick investors into paying them large amounts of money that they converted for their own, personal use. We will continue to work with our Federal Law Enforcement partners at the FBI and the IRS to investigate and prosecute cases like this. We will also continue to work tirelessly to protect others from similar schemes to defraud.”
"Mr. Davis and Mr. Ridings callously defrauded members of our community through a fictional investment opportunity," said FBI Little Rock Special Agent in Charge James A. Dawson. "Even after being federally indicted, these men continued to advance their criminal scheme through blatant falsehoods and deceit. Today's sentencings send a clear message to other fraudsters: preying upon our Arkansas communities will not stand."
“Davis and Ridings stole money from investors and used it for their personal use with no intention of building the wind farm project.,” said Special Agent in Charge Christopher J. Altemus Jr., IRS-CI Dallas Field Office. “This sentencing should detour criminals from committing similar crimes.”
According to court documents and evidence presented at trial, Davis, and Ridings, formed a limited liability company in Texas in 2014 called Dragonfly Industries International, LLC (“Dragonfly”) and Arkansas Wind Power (“AWP”), an Arkansas limited liability company located in Springdale, Arkansas, to develop what they told investors was a revolutionary wind turbine design that was to be installed on a 311-acre wind farm proposed for construction in Elm Springs, Arkansas.
According to the superseding indictment, Davis and Ridings conspired with Cody Fell of Springdale, Arkansas, and others, beginning as early as June 2014 and continuing through and including March 2018, to obtain money from investors who were told that the investors’ money would be used to build a prototype of the wind turbine and develop wind farms in Elm Springs, Arkansas, in Iowa, and other states. The evidence presented at trial showed that Davis and Ridings used most of the $700,000 they obtained from investors for Davis’ and Ridings’ personal use. Specifically, evidence at trial revealed that investors were told that Dragonfly’s wind turbine could produce more energy than the traditional three-blade wind turbines commonly used on existing wind farms; that nationally recognized engineering firms and a University of Memphis mechanical engineering professor had “validated” the Dragonfly wind turbine’s design; that the Department of Defense has expressed strong interest in acquiring Dragonfly’s wind turbines for use in combat zones; that a prototype of the wind turbine was nearing completion; that leaders of underdeveloped countries were ready to buy Dragonfly’s wind turbines; and that a $10 million grant from the Department of Energy was soon to be awarded to Dragonfly, when in truth and fact, none of these representations were true.
A federal jury convicted Davis and Ridings on September 3, 2021.
The case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Internal Revenue Service – Criminal Investigation.
Assistant U.S. Attorneys Kyra Jenner and Kenneth Elser prosecuted the case.
Turkish National Sentenced to 27 Months for Orchestrating “Birth Tourism” Health Care Fraud Scheme on Long IslandRead the Press Release
Earlier today, in federal court in Central Islip, Ibrahim Aksakal was sentenced by United States District Judge Joanna Seybert to 27 months’ imprisonment for conspiring to commit health care and wire fraud in connection with a so-called “birth tourism” scheme that Aksakal operated in Suffolk County between approximately 2017 and 2020. The scheme facilitated pregnant Turkish women fraudulently entering the United States using tourist and business visas to give birth so that their children would obtain birthright citizenship and medical benefits. The Court also ordered Aksakal to pay restitution in the amount of $1,039,723.63, and forfeiture in the amount of $397,500.
Breon Peace, United States Attorney for the Eastern District of New York; Raymond A. Tierney, District Attorney for Suffolk County; Ricky J. Patel, Acting Special Agent-in-Charge, Homeland Security Investigations, New York (HSI); Scott J. Lampert, Special Agent-in-Charge, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Office of Inspector General, New York Region (HHS-OIG); Frank T. Walsh, Jr., Acting Medicaid Inspector General, New York State Office of the Medicaid Inspector General (OMIG); and Rodney K. Harrison, Commissioner, Suffolk County Police Department (SCPD), announced the sentence.
From at least January 2017 to September 2020, Aksakal and his co-conspirators advertised a birth tourism scheme on two Turkish-language Facebook pages. The approximate $7,500 fee charged to each pregnant woman would include transportation, “insurance” to cover the costs of pre-natal, delivery, and post-natal medical care. Aksakal and his co-conspirators also instructed the women to conceal their pregnancies.
The pregnant women stayed in one of seven “birth houses” that Aksakal maintained in Center Moriches, Dix Hills, East Northport, East Patchogue, Smithtown and West Babylon, New York. As a result of the scheme, Medicaid disbursed more than $1 million in fraudulently obtained benefits.
The government’s case is being handled by the Office’s Long Island Criminal Division. Assistant United States Attorneys Bradley T. King, Oren Gleich, and Special Assistant United States Attorney Jennifer Sacks are in charge of the prosecution.
The Defendant:
IBRAHIM AKSAKAL (also known as “Dennis”)
Age: 50
East Patchogue, New YorkE.D.N.Y. Docket No. 20-CR-400 (JS)
Trio Sentenced to Federal Prison for Conspiracy, Identity Theft, and Various Fraud Charges, Including A Stolen COVID-19 Stimulus CheckRead the Press Release
TALLAHASSEE, FLORIDA – Jason R. Coody, United States Attorney for the Northern District of Florida announced the sentencings of Joe Nicholas Catala, 21, of Port St. Lucie, Florida (formerly of Tallahassee, Florida); Nicholas Carl Ramirez, 20, of Port St. Lucie, Florida (formerly of Tallahassee, Florida); and Clonet Junior Charmant, 21, of Port St. Lucie. Catala was sentenced to a total of thirty-six months in prison, Ramirez was sentenced to a total of two months in prison, and Charmant was sentenced to a total of 26 months prison. All defendants were ordered to pay restitution to financial institutions and individuals.
The sentences imposed were the result of guilty pleas which were entered in November 2021, when all three defendants pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit bank and wire fraud, bank fraud, and aggravated identity theft. Catala also pleaded guilty to passing or uttering a Treasury check bearing a false or forged endorsement. Charmant also pleaded guilty to identity fraud.
“Identity thieves would rather steal the personal identifying information of hardworking citizens than earn an honest living,” said U.S. Attorney Coody. “Thanks to the dedication of our law enforcement partners, these criminals will have steady employment cleaning the toilets and dormitories of a Bureau of Prisons facility for some time; a task that hopefully will deter them from future criminal conduct upon release.”
Court documents reflect that between April 1, 2019, and May 2, 2020, Catala, Ramirez, and Charmant unlawfully obtained and shared with each other and others the credit and debit card numbers, bank account numbers, and personal identifying information of third parties without authorization. Further, the defendants communicated with each other and others about how their scheme would be executed and how they would share the proceeds. The trio then fraudulently transferred funds from accounts belonging to customers of financial institutions into their own accounts using Zelle and the Internet. Additionally, the defendants used the proceeds of their scheme to purchase merchandise and services from merchants and restaurants, and to make cash withdrawals at automated teller machines (“ATMs”).
Further, Catala fraudulently used the names, addresses, and debit card numbers of others to purchase theme park admissions tickets. Catala also fraudulently used the name, social security number, and date of birth of the previous tenant of his Tallahassee apartment in a false application to open a bank account. Catala used the falsely opened bank account to deposit the proceeds of the previous tenant’s Economic Impact Payment (“EIP”) check, also known as a “Coronavirus Stimulus Check,” which was mailed to Catala’s apartment. Catala deposited the EIP check knowing that it had a forged endorsement, and then electronically transferred some of the proceeds to Charmant via Zelle.
“The Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration continues to aggressively pursue those who attempt to corruptly interfere with Federal tax administration, including those who fraudulently obtain Economic Impact Payments through the Coronavirus, Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act which were intended for Americans to assist them through the pandemic,” said J. Russell George, Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration. “We appreciate the work of the U.S. Attorney’s Office, and our law enforcement partners to ensure this criminal activity is held to account.”
Catala’s imprisonment will be followed by five years of supervised release. Ramirez’s and Charmant’s imprisonment will both be followed by three years of supervised release. All three defendants were ordered to pay restitution to financial institutions and individuals. As part of the sentences imposed, the Court also ordered the forfeiture of the defendants’ cell phones, computers, U.S. currency, an Xbox gaming system, and various debit/credit/gift cards.
“U.S. Postal Inspectors are committed to protecting the nations mail system and our customers from crimes involving the mail,” said Joseph Cronin, Inspector in Charge, United States Postal Inspection Service - Miami Division.
This case was jointly investigated by the United States Postal Inspection Service, the Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration, and the Tallahassee Police Department. Assistant United States Attorney Justin M. Keen prosecuted the case.
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 Hotline at 866-720-5721 or via the NCDF Web Complaint Form at: https://www.justice.gov/disaster-fraud/ncdf-disaster-complaint-form.
The United States Attorney's Office for the Northern District of Florida is one of 94 offices that serve as the nation’s principal litigators under the direction of the Attorney General. To access public court documents online, please visit the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Florida website. For more information about the United States Attorney’s Office, Northern District of Florida, visit http://www.justice.gov/usao/fln/index.html.
Three Rome-area men sentenced for firearms and drug trafficking offensesRead the Press Release
ROME, Ga. – Michael Lee Spears, Dustin Wayne Womack, and Jarrett Louallen have been sentenced for firearms and drug trafficking crimes that occurred in Rome, Georgia.
“Our community is safer with these violent felons and drug pushers no longer on the streets,” said U.S. Attorney Kurt R. Erskine. “We are grateful for the hard work and the longstanding partnerships between federal and state law enforcement agencies in Northwest Georgia.”
“The sentencing of these three men demonstrates the FBI and our law enforcement partners commitment to protect our citizens against violent offenders,” said Philip Wislar, Acting Special Agent in Charge of FBI Atlanta. “The FBI will continue to use aggressive approaches to identify, disrupt, and dismantle violent offenders and their criminal enterprises, ultimately making our communities safer.”
“The hard work of law enforcement and prosecutors to stop offenders from plaguing neighborhoods with illegal drugs and guns makes a big impact on communities. We will continue to work with our partners to investigate these crimes to dismantle criminal enterprises,” said Vic Reynolds, Director, Georgia Bureau of Investigation.
According to U.S. Attorney Erskine, the charges and other information presented in court: On May 13, 2019, the Floyd County Police Department responded to a 911 call about someone shooting a firearm at a residence. Law enforcement developed information indicating the person living at that residence had been involved in a dispute with Jarrett Louallen prior to the shooting. The FBI further learned that Louallen may have taken the firearm used in the shooting to Talladega, Alabama.
On June 24, 2019, law enforcement officers traveled to Louallen’s relatives’ home in Talladega, Alabama. Law enforcement located the firearm, which was an AM 15 semi-automatic rifle with a 30-round magazine with the serial numbers removed and painted over with black paint. The FBI confirmed that Louallen was the individual who shot at the residence after reviewing video surveillance.
On May 22, 2019, investigators conducted an undercover drug buy with Michael Lee Spears. Spears sold 132.237 grams of methamphetamine during the operation.
The following day, members of the Rome/Floyd Metro Task Force, the Rome SWAT Team, and the FBI executed a search warrant at Spears’ residence. Spears fired at the officers from inside his residence. Law enforcement officers returned fire and Spears eventually surrendered.
In addition, on June 21, 2019, the FBI and law enforcement officers with the Rome/Floyd Metro Task Force, the Floyd County Sheriff’s Office, the Floyd County Police Department, the Rome Police Department, traveled to the Sunrise Inn in Rome, Georgia, to execute an arrest warrant for a probation violation for Dustin Wayne Womack. As officers approached the door, they could hear people inside moving around. Officers kicked open the door and saw Womack running towards the bathroom. An officer heard an object land in the bathtub and saw a firearm. Law enforcement obtained a search warrant for the room and, during the search, recovered 118.952 grams of methamphetamine, two digital scales, and a glass smoking device.
The defendants’ sentences are as follows:
- Michael Lee Spears, 46, of Rome, Georgia, was sentenced by U.S. District Court Judge Mark H. Cohen to eight years, eleven months in prison, to be followed by five years of supervised release. This sentence accounts for the two years, nine months he has already spent in custody. Spears was convicted on charges of possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine and possession of a firearm by a convicted felon on June 23, 2021, after he pleaded guilty.
- Dustin Wayne Womack, 32, of Lindale, Georgia, was sentenced by U.S. District Court Judge Thomas W. Thrash, Jr., to ten years in prison, to be followed by three years of supervised release. Womack was convicted on charges of possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine and possession of a firearm by a convicted felon on July 22, 2021, after he pleaded guilty.
- Jarrett Louallen, 34, of Rome, Georgia, was sentenced by U.S. District Court Judge Thomas W. Thrash, Jr., to five years, ten months in prison, to be followed by three years of supervised release. Louallen was convicted of one charge of possession of a firearm by a convicted felon on March 31, 2021, after he pleaded guilty.
These cases were investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Georgia Bureau of Investigation, with significant assistance provided by the Rome/Floyd Metro Task Force. Additionally, agencies involved were the Floyd County Police Department, Floyd County Sheriff’s Office, Rome Police Department, and the Floyd County District Attorney’s Office.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Erin N. Spritzer prosecuted the case.
For further information please contact the U.S. Attorney’s Public Affairs Office at [email protected] or (404) 581-6016. The Internet address for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia is http://www.justice.gov/usao-ndga.