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20 December 2021
Texas Man Pleads Guilty to Months’ Long Cyberstalking Campaign Sparked by an Unrequited Love InterestRead the Press Release
Baltimore, Maryland – Desmond Babloo Singh, age 20, of Temple, Texas, pleaded guilty today to two counts of cyberstalking.
The guilty plea was announced by United States Attorney for the District of Maryland Erek L. Barron; Special Agent in Charge James R. Mancuso of Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) Baltimore; and Chief Melissa R. Hyatt of the Baltimore County Police Department.
According to his guilty plea, from April 18, 2020, to November 24, 2020, Singh used more than 100 different social media accounts, phone accounts, and various electronic communication tools to send harassing messages to Victim 1. The hundreds of public social media posts, text messages, and private social media messages included threats of death, bodily injury, sexualized violence, and racial slurs. Many of the accounts created and used by Singh incorporated Victim 1’s name, making it appear as if the accounts were owned and operated by her.
Earlier in 2020, Singh sent Victim 1 online communications expressing his romantic interest in her. After Victim 1 rebuffed Singh’s advances and asked him not to contact her, Singh commenced a months’ long cyberstalking campaign against both Victim 1 and Victim 2, the latter of whom Singh viewed as a romantic rival.
Singh frequently used the fraudulent accounts he created to denigrate Victim 1’s character, appearance, and make the assertion that Victim 1 was “obsessed” with him. Singh’s harassing conduct included, among other things, numerous implied threats of bodily injury or death. For instance, Singh used a fraudulent social media account to send Victim 1 an image in which the faces of her and her family members were superimposed on the faces of several individuals hanging from nooses. In another edited picture, Singh superimposed Victim 1’s mother’s face on the body of a grieving woman at a grave site.
On or about July 19, 2020, Victim 1 received a “follow” request on a social media platform from an account that Singh created. On this account, Singh had posted pictures of Victim 1 and her family home. Additionally, Singh posted Victim 1’s parents’ address in Maryland and stated there would be a party there the following day. The following day, July 20, 2020, a Baltimore County Police Department employee received an anonymous email telling law enforcement to investigate a possible bomb at the parents’ home. Law enforcement officers responded to the residence only to learn that the bomb threat was a hoax. The federal investigation into Singh’s conduct revealed that Singh had solicited another individual to “swat” Victim 1’s parents’ home.
In furtherance of his harassment campaign against Victim 1, Singh also posted Victim 1’s personal information online including her birthdate, name, personal phone number, school, social media identities, and other identifying information online. This form of online harassment is commonly referred to as “doxing”.
During the investigation of Singh’s harassment campaign, investigators discovered notes in Singh’s phone that documented his plans to harass Victim 1 including the plans to physically assault Victim 1’s family members, post over 10,000 messages relating to Victim 1’s friends, harass Victim 2, and take pictures of Victim 1 in real life.
Singh not only harassed Victim 1, but he also harassed Victim 2 whom he perceived to be a romantic rival. Similar to Victim 1, Singh created numerous social media accounts incorporating Victim 2’s real name and publicly posted his personal information. Using an anonymous account, Singh posted a video of an unidentifiable person knocking on Victim 2’s former residence with a caption telling Victim 2 to answer the door. Later, Singh later posted the same video on an online platform which included Victim 2’s name, the former address of Victim 2, and a statement stating that he went to Victim 2’s residence to fight Victim 2.
Singh faces a maximum sentence of five years in federal prison for each count of cyberstalking followed by three years of supervised release. U.S. District Judge Richard D. Bennett has scheduled sentencing for April 5, 2022 at 2:30 p.m.
United States Attorney Erek L. Barron commended the HSI and the Baltimore County Police Department for their work in the investigation. Mr. Barron thanked Assistant U.S. Attorney Christopher M. Rigali, who is prosecuting the case.
For more information on the Maryland U.S. Attorney’s Office, its priorities, and resources available to help the community, please visit www.justice.gov/usao-md and https://www.justice.gov/usao-md/community-outreach.
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Texas Man Indicted on Domestic Violence Charges for Strangling and Stalking Victim on a Carnival Cruise Ship out of the Port of New OrleansRead the Press Release
NEW ORLEANS – United States Attorney Duane A. Evans announced that GERONIMO FLORES, age 29, of Henderson, Texas, was charged on December 17, 2021 with domestic violence by strangulation and suffocation in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Sections 113(a)(8) and 7(8) and interstate domestic violence in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Sections 2261(a)(1), 2261(b)(5), and 7(8).
According to court documents, FLORES intentionally assaulted and attempted to assault his intimate and dating partner while aboard the Carnival Glory cruise ship on December 2, 2021. The Glory was within the special maritime and territorial jurisdiction of the United States during a voyage that departed from and returned to the Port of New Orleans in the Eastern District of Louisiana. FLORES is specifically accused of assaulting the victim by strangulation and suffocation, as well as striking her in the head with his hand.
If convicted of domestic violence by strangulation or suffocation, FLORES faces a maximum term of up to ten (10) years imprisonment, up to a $250,000 fine, up to three (3) years of supervised release, and a mandatory $100 special assessment fee. If convicted of domestic violence by striking the victim, he faces a maximum term of up to five (5) years imprisonment, up to a $250,000 fine, up to three (3) years of supervised release, and a mandatory $100 special assessment fee.
U.S. Attorney Evans reiterated that the indictment is merely a charge and that the guilt of the defendant must be proven beyond a reasonable doubt.
U.S. Attorney Evans praised the work of the Federal Bureau of Investigation in investigating the case. Assistant U.S. Attorney Charles D. Strauss is in charge of the prosecution.
Seattle Man Sentenced to 46 Months in Prison for Assaulting Law Enforcement During Capitol BreachRead the Press Release
According to court documents, Devlyn Thompson, 28, of Seattle, was among individuals in a crowd on the Lower West Terrace of the Capitol who were pushing against and assaulting
Metropolitan Police Department (MPD) and U.S. Capitol Police (USCP) officers in the tunnel leading into the U.S. Capitol. Thompson and others in the tunnel yelled obscenities at police and encouraged the continued assault. Thompson was part of a group that threw objects and projectiles at the officers, including flag poles, and grabbed and stole the officers’ riot shields to prevent them from defending themselves against the violence.
At approximately 2:21 p.m., Thompson personally observed police order rioters to stop, physically push the crowd back, and deploy pepper spray in an effort to try to stop the ongoing assault. Later, Thompson entered a tunnel on the West Front Terrace that led to an entrance to the
U.S. Capitol, where members of Congress were sheltering in place. Thompson joined rioters in that tunnel and assisted other rioters in their assault of officers by helping them seize and use stolen law enforcement shields for approximately 13 minutes. Thompson also helped throw a large speaker at the front line of officers, and he later picked up a metal baton from the floor of the tunnel and swung it overhead and downward against the police line in an apparent effort to knock a can of pepper spray from an officer’s hand and stop the officer from pepper-spraying the rioters. After more pepper spray was deployed by the rioters and the officers, Thompson retreated from the archway area.
Thompson pleaded guilty on Aug. 6, in the District of Columbia, to assaulting, resisting or impeding officers while using a dangerous weapon. Thompson was arrested on that same date and has been in custody ever since. Judge Royce C. Lamberth also ordered him today to pay $2,000 in restitution. He also must serve a period of three years of supervised release following completion of his prison term.
The case was prosecuted by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia and the
Justice Department's National Security Division. Valuable assistance was provided by the U.S.
Attorney’s Office for the Western District of Washington.
The FBI’s Washington Field Office investigated the case, with valuable assistance from the
FBI’s Seattle Field Office, the U.S. Capitol Police, and the Metropolitan Police Department. The FBI’s
Washington Field Office identified Thompson as #67 in its seeking information photos.
In the 11 months since Jan. 6, more than 700 individuals have been arrested in nearly all 50 states for crimes related to the breach of the U.S. Capitol, including over 220 individuals charged with assaulting or impeding law enforcement. The investigation remains ongoing.Russian National Extradited for Role in Hacking and Illegal Trading SchemeRead the Press Release
BOSTON—A Russian national has been extradited to the United States from Switzerland to face charges relating to his alleged involvement in a global scheme to trade on non-public information stolen from U.S. computer networks that netted tens of millions of dollars in illegal profits. Four other Russian nationals were also charged as part of the scheme.
Vladislav Klyushin, also known as “Vladislav Kliushin,” 41, of Moscow, Russia, was arrested in Sion, Switzerland on March 21, 2021 and was extradited to the United States on Dec. 18. Charges were unsealed this morning in U.S. District Court in Massachusetts. Klyushin is charged with conspiring to obtain unauthorized access to computers, and to commit wire fraud and securities fraud, and with obtaining unauthorized access to computers, wire fraud and securities fraud. He will appear later this morning in federal court in Boston.
Ivan Ermakov, also known as “Ivan Yermakov,” 35, and Nikolai Rumiantcev, also known as “Nikolay Rumyantsev,” 33, both of Moscow, Russia, are charged in the District of Massachusetts with conspiring to obtain unauthorized access to computers, and to commit wire fraud and securities fraud and with obtaining unauthorized access to computers, wire fraud and securities fraud. Ermakov, a former officer in the Russian Main Intelligence Directorate (GRU), a military intelligence agency of the General Staff of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation, was previously charged in July 2018 in federal court in Washington, D.C. for his alleged role in a hacking and influence effort related to the 2016 U.S. elections. In October 2018, Ermakov was also charged in federal court in Pittsburgh in connection with his alleged role in hacking and related disinformation operations targeting international anti-doping agencies, sporting federations, and anti-doping officials.
Mikhail Vladimirovich Irzak, also known as “Mikka Irzak,” 43, and Igor Sergeevich Sladkov, 42, both of St. Petersburg, Russia, are also charged in the District of Massachusetts with conspiracy to obtain unauthorized access to computers, and to commit wire fraud and securities fraud, and with securities fraud.
Ermakov, Rumiantcev, Irzak and Sladkov remain at large.
Acting United States Attorney Nathaniel Mendell stated, “The integrity of our nation’s capital markets and of its computer networks are priorities for my office. Today’s charges show that we, the FBI, and our other law enforcement partners will relentlessly pursue those who hack, steal and attempt to profit from inside information, wherever they may hide.”
“Today’s announcement and the extradition of Vladislav Klyushin is just one more example of how the FBI and our partners are working around the clock and around the world to counter the cyber threat that we face today,” said Albert Murray III, Assistant Special Agent in Charge of the FBI Washington Field Office Criminal and Cyber Division. “As alleged, Klyushin and his co-defendants used various illegal and malicious means to gain access to computer networks to perpetrate their illegal trading scheme. These crimes have real consequences. And, as our efforts in this case demonstrate, the FBI is relentless in our work to identify and locate criminals like Klyushin—no matter where they are—and bring them to the U.S. to face justice.”
According to the charging documents, Klyushin, Ermakov and Rumiantcev worked at M-13, an information technology company based in Moscow, where Klyushin served as the company’s first deputy general director. M-13 purported to offer penetration testing and “Advanced Persistent Threat (APT) emulation”—both services that seek exploitable vulnerabilities in a computer system, purportedly for defensive purposes. M-13’s website indicated that the company’s “IT solutions” were used by “the Administration of the President of the Russian Federation, the Government of the Russian Federation, federal ministries and departments, regional state executive bodies, commercial companies and public organizations.” In addition to these services, Klyushin, Ermakov and Rumiantcev also allegedly offered investment management services through M-13 to investors in exchange for up to 60 percent of the profit
Between at least in or about January 2018 and September 2020, Klyushin, Ermakov, Irzak, Sladkov and Rumiantcev allegedly agreed to trade in the securities of publicly traded companies based on material non-public information (“MNPI”) about the earnings of those companies, in advance of the public announcements of financial results. The MNPI was allegedly acquired through unauthorized intrusions into the computer networks of two U.S.-based filing agents (Filings Agents 1 and 2)—vendors that publicly traded companies used to make quarterly and annual filings through the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).
Armed with this information before it was disclosed to the public, Klyushin and his codefendants allegedly knew ahead of time, among other things, whether a company’s financial performance would meet, exceed, or lag market expectations—and thus whether its share price would likely rise or fall following the public announcement of that performance—and they traded accordingly, in brokerage accounts held in their own names and in the names of others. It is alleged that Klyushin and his co-conspirators earned tens of millions of dollars in illegal profits.
According to the charging documents, Klyushin and his coconspirators obtained unauthorized access to the computer networks of Filing Agents 1 and 2. They allegedly deployed malicious infrastructure capable of harvesting employees’ usernames and passwords and used stolen usernames and passwords to misrepresent themselves as employees in order to obtain access to the filing agents’ computer networks. To conceal the origin of their activities, the coconspirators allegedly leased proxy (or intermediary) computer networks outside of Russia and subscribed to email addresses and payment systems used in furtherance of the attacks in others’ names. Once inside the filing agent networks, it is alleged that they viewed and downloaded MNPI, including quarterly and annual earnings reports that had not yet been filed with the SEC or disclosed to the general public, of hundreds of companies that are publicly traded on U.S. national securities exchanges, including the NASDAQ and the NYSE. The coconspirators allegedly traded in the securities of those companies while in possession of MNPI concerning their financial performance, including by purchasing securities of companies that were about to disclose positive financial results, and selling short securities of companies that were about to disclose negative financial results. It is further alleged that the coconspirators distributed their trading across accounts they opened at banks and brokerages in several countries, including Cyprus, Denmark, Portugal, Russia and the United States, and misled brokerage firms about the nature of their trading activities.
For example, according to court documents, during a single two-week period between Oct. 22, 2018 and Nov. 6, 2018, Ermakov or another coconspirator gained unauthorized access into Filing Agent 2’s computer network using IP addresses hosted at a data center located in Boston, and viewed or downloaded the non-public earnings-related files of several companies, including Capstead Mortgage Corp., Tesla, Inc., SS&C Technologies, and Nevro Corp. Thereafter—days before the companies’ financial results were filed with the SEC and publicly disclosed—Klyushin and other co-conspirators allegedly placed profitable trades in the shares of those companies, buying shares of companies that were about to disclose positive financial results and selling short shares of companies that were about to disclose negative financial results. For example, on or about Oct. 24, 2018, before one company publicly disclosed positive quarterly earnings results, Klyushin or another coconspirator allegedly purchased its securities in Klyushin’s brokerage account at a Russia-based brokerage firm. That same day, Klyushin allegedly sent a message to M-13 investors, Individuals 1 and 2, stating “Pay attention to shares of [the company] now and tomorrow after 16:30 and on how much they go up”.
The charge of conspiracy to obtain unauthorized access to computers, and to commit wire fraud and securities fraud carries a maximum sentence of five years in prison, three years’ supervised release and a $250,000 fine (or twice or the gross gain or loss). The charge of unauthorized access to computers carries a maximum sentence of five years in prison, three years’ supervised release, and a $250,000 fine (or twice the gross gain or loss). The charges of securities fraud and wire fraud each carry a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison, three years of supervised release, and a $250,000 fine (or twice the gross gain or loss). Each of the charges also provide for restitution and forfeiture upon conviction.
Acting United States Attorney Mendell and FBI ASAC Murray made the announcement today. The SEC, the Justice Department’s Office of International Affairs, the Swiss Federal Office of Justice, the Valais and Zurich Cantonal Police authorities and the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s Boston Field Office provided valuable assistance. Stephen E. Frank and Seth B. Kosto, Chief and Deputy Chief respectively, of Mendell’s Securities, Financial & Cyber Fraud Unit are prosecuting the case.
The details contained in the charging documents are allegations. The defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
Rosebud Man Indicted for Assaulting a Federal OfficerRead the Press Release
Acting United States Attorney Dennis R. Holmes announced that a Rosebud, South Dakota, man has been indicted by a federal grand jury for Assaulting, Resisting, and Impeding a Federal Officer.
Todd Kal Wilcox, age 41, was indicted on October 13, 2021. He appeared before U.S. Magistrate Judge Mark A. Moreno on December 17, 2021, and pled not guilty to the Indictment.
The maximum penalty upon conviction is up to 20 years in federal prison and/or a $250,000 fine, three years of supervised release, and $100 to the Federal Crime Victims Fund. Restitution may also be ordered.
The Indictment alleges that on July 15, 2021, in Todd County, South Dakota, Wilcox did assault, oppose, impede, intimidate, and interfere with a law enforcement officer who was employed by the Rosebud Sioux Tribe Law Enforcement Services, and that such conduct involved the use of a dangerous weapon.
The charge is merely an accusation and Wilcox is presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty.
The investigation is being conducted by the Rosebud Sioux Tribe Law Enforcement Services. Assistant U.S. Attorney Abby Roesler is prosecuting the case.
Wilcox was released on bond pending trial. A trial date has not been set.
Rhode Island Man Admits to Defrauding COVID Relief Unemployment Programs in Eight StatesRead the Press Release
PROVIDENCE, R.I. – A Rhode Island man today pled guilty to his role in a conspiracy to file fraudulent applications for COVID unemployment relief funds in at least eight states, announced United States Attorney Zachary A. Cunha.
Courtney Hilaire, 29, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit wire fraud, fourteen counts of wire fraud, two counts of aggravated identity theft, conspiracy to possess more than fifteen unauthorized access devices, and possession of device making equipment.
Hilaire admitted that, beginning around March 1, 2020, he conspired with others to file fraudulent claims seeking funds from the Economic Injury Disaster Loans (EIDL) Program administered by the Small Business Administration. The EIDL program was created to assist individuals who were unemployed due to the pandemic. Hilaire admitted that he and others used stolen Social Security numbers, dates of birth, and other personal identifying information when filing electronic applications for pandemic relief funds from Rhode Island, Massachusetts, Pennsylvania, New York, California, Florida, Nevada, and Tennessee.
Hilaire’s participation in the conspiracy first came to the attention of law enforcement in July 2020, after he and others were arrested by Warwick Police when they were found sleeping inside a stolen car parked in a hotel parking lot. Inside the vehicle, Warwick Police discovered 33 counterfeit credit cards, fraudulent drivers’ licenses from multiple states, equipment used to read and transfer information onto credit card magnetic strips, listings of individuals identities and personal identifying information, and approximately $13,000 in crisp, clean $100 and $50-dollar bills.
Hilaire is scheduled to be sentenced by U.S. District Court William E. Smith on March 30, 2022.
The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney William J. Ferland.
The matter was investigated by Warwick Police and Homeland Security Investigations.
Rhode Islanders who believe their personal identification has been stolen and used to fraudulently obtain unemployment benefits are urged to contact the Rhode Island State Police at [email protected] or the FBI Providence office at (401) 272-8310.
On May 17, 2021, the Attorney General established the COVID-19 Fraud Enforcement Task Force to marshal the resources of the Department of Justice in partnership with agencies across government to enhance efforts to combat and prevent pandemic-related fraud. The Task Force bolsters efforts to investigate and prosecute the most culpable domestic and international criminal actors and assists agencies tasked with administering relief programs to prevent fraud by, among other methods, augmenting and incorporating existing coordination mechanisms, identifying resources and techniques to uncover fraudulent actors and their schemes, and sharing and harnessing information and insights gained from prior enforcement efforts. For more information on the Department’s response to the pandemic, please visit https://www.justice.gov/coronavirus.
Anyone with information about allegations of attempted fraud involving COVID- 19 can report it by calling the Department of Justice’s National Center for Disaster Fraud (NCDF) Hotline at 866-720-5721 or via the NCDF Web Complaint Form at: https://www.justice.gov/disaster-fraud/ncdf-disaster-complaint-form.
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Registered Nurse Sentenced for Drug DiversionRead the Press Release
BOSTON – A Dighton registered nurse was sentenced today in federal court in Boston for drug tampering.
Marietta Strickland, 61, was sentenced by U.S. District Court Judge Indira Talwani to 15 months in prison and three years of supervised release. In October 2020, Strickland pleaded guilty to one count of tampering with a consumer product, specifically the Schedule II controlled substance oxycodone, which is used for pain relief.
While working as a registered nurse at Dighton Care and Rehabilitation Center, Strickland tampered with three blister card packages of oxycodone prescribed to an 89-year-old hospice patient who suffered from Alzheimer’s disease, severe dementia and breast cancer. To avoid detection, Strickland replaced the stolen oxycodone pills with other prescription drugs disguised to look like oxycodone. As a result of Strickland’s tampering, the victim was deprived of her prescribed oxycodone for at least a month and ingested at least 77 unnecessary prescription tablets.
Acting United States Attorney Nathaniel R. Mendell; Jeffrey Ebersole, Special Agent in Charge of the Food and Drug Administration, Office of Criminal Investigations; Phillip M. Coyne, Special Agent in Charge of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Office of the Inspector General; and Acting Commissioner Margaret Cooke, of the Massachusetts Department of Public Health made the announcement today. Assistant U.S. Attorney Elysa Wan of Mendell’s Health Care Fraud Unit prosecuted the case.
Rapid City Man Charged with Failure to Register as a Sex OffenderRead the Press Release
Acting United States Attorney Dennis R. Holmes announced that a Rapid City, South Dakota, man has been indicted by a federal grand jury for Failure to Register as a Sex Offender.
Gregory Kent Davis, age 61, was indicted on December 7, 2021. He appeared before U.S. Magistrate Judge Veronica L. Duffy on December 17, 2021, and pled not guilty to the Indictment.
The maximum penalty upon conviction is up to 10 years in federal prison and/or a $250,000 fine, life of supervised release, and $100 to the Federal Crime Victims Fund. Restitution may also be ordered.
The Indictment alleges that between June 22, 2021, and July 21, 2021, Davis who had been convicted under State law, and having traveled in interstate commerce, knowingly failed to register and update his registration.
The charge is merely an accusation and Davis is presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty.
The investigation is being conducted by the U.S. Marshals Service. Assistant U.S. Attorney Jeffrey C. Clapper is prosecuting the case.
Davis was remanded to the custody of the State pending trial which has been set for February 22, 2022.
Parma Man Convicted of Illegally Possessing a Firearm and NarcoticsRead the Press Release
U.S. Attorney Bridget M. Brennan announced that a federal jury returned guilty verdicts against Defendant Baha Jaffal, 29, of Parma, Ohio, on Friday, Dec. 17, following a five-day trial before Judge Benita Y. Pearson in Cleveland. Jaffal was convicted of possession with intent to distribute a controlled substance, using or carrying a firearm during and in relation to a drug trafficking crime and being a felon in possession of a firearm and ammunition.
According to court documents and evidence presented at trial, on Nov. 11, 2019, Parma Police Officers responded to a residence on Terrace View Lane for reports of an unconscious male. Upon arrival, officers discovered Defendant Baha Jaffal overdosing and immediately administered Narcan. Officers then searched Jaffal and his belongings to determine what had caused the overdose. During this search, officers found approximately 35 grams of carfentanil and heroin in a jacket pocket.
Separately, on Dec. 12, 2019, Parma Police responded to West 54th and Snow Road for reports of a silver Chevy Suburban driving recklessly. While attempting to stop the vehicle, officers observed the driver throw a pill bottle out the window. Officers then stopped the vehicle and identified Defendant Jaffal as the sole occupant. During a search of the vehicle and Jaffal, officers discovered 27 pills containing fentanyl in Jaffal’s pocket and a loaded firearm magazine in the center console of the vehicle. Officer also recovered a firearm Jaffal threw from the vehicle and the discarded pill bottle.
Jaffal is prohibited from possessing a firearm due to previous felony convictions of burglary, domestic violence, attempted felonious assault and drug possession in the Cuyahoga County Common Pleas Court.
Jaffal is scheduled to be sentenced on April 14, 2022. A federal district court judge will determine a sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
This case was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) and Parma Police Department. This case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Scott C. Zarzycki and Marc D. Bullard.
Owners of Bergen County Company Admit $3 Million Mail Fraud SchemeRead the Press Release
NEWARK, N.J. – Two owners of a Bergen County company today admitted their roles in a scheme to deprive the U.S. Postal Service (USPS) of over $3 million in revenue through fraudulently altering postage labels, U.S. Attorney Philip R. Sellinger announced.
Jack Koch, 44, of Elmwood Park, New Jersey, and Steven Koch, 43, of Pompton Lakes, New Jersey, each pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge William J. Martini to separate informations charging them with mail fraud.
According to the documents filed in this case and statements made in court:
The Kochs owned Fresh N Clear LLC, a company that sold various household items online, including bottled water, and shipped goods to its customers via the United States Postal Service. From January 2020 through September 2020, the defendants deprived the USPS of approximately $3 million in postage revenue through purchasing Flat Rate Envelope postage labels and wrongfully removing the Flat Rate endorsement on the envelopes so they could ship Fresh N Clear’s merchandise in boxes without paying the appropriate postage rate. The defendants purchased Flat Rate Service postage labels and altered those labels by electronically removing the endorsement from the label that confirmed that the package qualified for the Flat Rate Service. After removing the endorsement from the labels, the defendants re-applied the altered labels to packages that did not qualify for the Flat Rate Service and which would have otherwise required higher postage rates. Fresh N Clear then shipped those packages to its customers.
The mail fraud charge to which each defendant pleaded guilty carries a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison and a maximum fine of $250,000 or twice the gross gain to the defendant or gross loss to the victim, whichever is greatest. Sentencing for both defendants is scheduled for July 19, 2022.
U.S. Attorney Sellinger credited postal inspectors of the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, Newark Division, under the direction of Acting Inspector in Charge Raimundo Marrero, with the investigation leading to today’s guilty pleas.
The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Perry Farhat and Katherine Romano of the U.S. Attorney’s Office’s Government Fraud Unit in Newark.
Orlando Felon Sentenced to over Seven Years for Possessing A Short-Barreled Rifle and Aggravated Identity TheftRead the Press Release
Orlando, Florida – U.S. District Judge Paul G. Byron has sentenced Jacquavius Smith (21, Orlando), a/k/a 9lokkNine and GlokkNine, to seven years and three months in federal prison for illegally possessing a short barreled semi-automatic rifle, possessing a handgun and ammunition as a convicted felon, and aggravated identity theft. The Court also ordered Smith to serve a three-year term of supervised release and to forfeit the firearms and ammunition related to the offenses.
Smith had pleaded guilty on July 13, 2021.
According to court documents, the Orlando Police Department executed a search warrant at a residence where Smith was known to stay. During the search, officers found a short-barreled semi-automatic rifle with a large capacity magazine, a handgun with an extended magazine, and approximately 70 rounds of ammunition, all belonging to Smith. Because he had previously been convicted of multiple felony offenses, including burglary, grand theft, criminal mischief, and narcotics possession, federal law prohibits Smith from possessing a firearm or ammunition.
While awaiting trial on those charges, Smith stole a victim’s personal identification information and used it to obtain a fraudulent loan under the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP), a component of the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act (CARES Act) passed to provide assistance to businesses and individuals affected by the COVID-19 pandemic.
After obtaining another search warrant, the Orange County Sheriff’s Office searched the residence where Smith was reportedly staying pending his trial. During that search, Smith was again found with a semi-automatic handgun and several rounds of ammunition. Smith also had in his possession 13 auto sears – devices capable of converting a semi-automatic firearm into a fully automatic firearm.
This case was investigated by the Orlando Police Department, the Orange County Sheriff’s Office, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, and the Federal Bureau of Investigation. It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys John Gardella and Amanda Daniels.
This case was prosecuted as part of the joint federal, state, and local Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN) Program, the centerpiece of the Department of Justice’s violent crime reduction efforts. PSN is an evidence-based program proven to be effective at reducing violent crime. Through PSN, a broad spectrum of stakeholders work together to identify the most pressing violent crime problems in the community and develop comprehensive solutions to address them. As part of this strategy, PSN focuses enforcement efforts on the most violent offenders and partners with locally based prevention and reentry programs for lasting reductions in crime.
The PPP allows qualifying small businesses and other organizations to receive loans with a maturity of two years and an interest rate of 1%. PPP loan proceeds must be used by businesses on payroll costs, interest on mortgages, rent and utilities. The PPP allows the interest and principal to be forgiven if businesses spend the proceeds on these expenses within eight weeks of receipt and use at least 75 percent of the forgiven amount for payroll. Anyone with information about allegations of fraud related to COVID-19, including the PPP or the CARES Act, 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.
Ontario County Man Pleads Guilty to Production of Child Pornography and Methamphetamine ConspiracyRead the Press Release
CONTACT: Barbara Burns
PHONE: (716) 843-5817
FAX #: (716) 551-3051ROCHESTER, N.Y. - U.S. Attorney Trini E. Ross announced today that Timothy Wright, 33, of Phelps, NY, pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Frank P. Geraci, Jr. to production of child pornography, which carries a mandatory minimum penalty of 15 years in prison and a maximum of 30 years. Wright also pleaded guilty to conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute, and to distribute, 50 grams or more of methamphetamine, which carries a mandatory minimum penalty of 10 years in prison and a maximum of life.
Assistant U.S. Attorneys Melissa M. Marangola and Katelyn M. Hartford, who are handling the case, stated that in July 2019, Snapchat reported a cybertip to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children involving a Snapchat subscriber who uploaded two files of suspected child pornography. A subsequent investigation determined that the Snapchat subscriber was Timothy Wright. On May 18, 2020, the New York State Police executed a search warrant at Wright’s residence and seized multiple electronic devices, including a cell phone, a laptop, and a hard drive. A forensic analysis of the electronic devices uncovered approximately 8,462 images and video files of child pornography. These included a video and images of Wright sexually abusing a minor child.
On July 29, 2020, Wright provided methamphetamine to his wife and co-defendant Alicia Wright who then sold the methamphetamine to an undercover police officer. After the controlled purchase was complete, the Ontario County Sheriff’s Office executed a search warrant at the Wrights’ residence on Bear Street in Phelps, NY. Investigators recovered approximately $10,000 in United States currency, approximately 64 grams of methamphetamine, and a digital scale. Alicia Wright was charged and convicted and is awaiting sentencing.
The plea is the result of an investigation by the New York State Police, under the direction of Major Barry Chase, and Homeland Security Investigations, under the direction of Acting Special Agent-in-Charge Matthew Scarpino.
Sentencing is scheduled for April 21, 2022, at 3:00 p.m. before Judge Geraci.
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North Carolina Business Owner Pleads Guilty to Filing False Tax ReturnRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON – A North Carolina man pleaded guilty today to filing a false tax return.
According to court documents and statements made in court, Steve Sloan owned and operated Total Lawn and Landscape Pros LLC (Total Lawn), which provided lawn care services in Greensboro, Chapel Hill, and nearby areas. From 2014 to 2018, Sloan filed false returns with the IRS reporting each year only a portion of the profits actually earned by Total Lawn. For example, on his 2017 tax return Sloan reported total receipts of less than $200,000. In reality, the company’s receipts that year were $464,650. In all, Sloan caused a tax loss to the IRS of approximately $318,735.
Sloan is scheduled to be sentenced on June 21, 2022, and faces a maximum sentence of three years in prison. Sloan also faces a period of supervised release, restitution, and monetary penalties. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
Acting Deputy Assistant Attorney General Stuart M. Goldberg of the Justice Department’s Tax Division, U.S. Attorney Sandra J. Hairston for the Middle District of North Carolina, and Acting Special Agent-in-Charge Karen Wingerd of the IRS-Criminal Investigation Charlotte Field Office made the announcement.
IRS-Criminal Investigation and the North Carolina State Bureau of Investigation invested the case.
Trial Attorney Kevin Schneider of the Justice Department’s Tax Division and Assistant U.S. Attorney Tanner Kroeger of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of North Carolina are prosecuting the case.
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Nigerian National Pleads Guilty to A Covid-19 Unemployment Fraud Scheme and an Unrelated Elder Fraud SchemeRead the Press Release
Greenbelt, Maryland – Oluwaseyi Akinyemi, a/k/a “Paddy Linkin”, a/k/a “Joseph Kadin”, age 35, of Hyattsville, Maryland, pleaded guilty today to two counts of mail fraud relating to a social media advanced fee fraud scheme that targeted elderly victims.
The guilty plea was announced by United States Attorney for the District of Maryland Erek L. Barron; Acting Special Agent-in-Charge Troy Springer, of the Washington Regional Office, U.S. Department of Labor Office of Inspector General; Special Agent in Charge James R. Mancuso of Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) Baltimore; and Chief Malik Aziz of the Prince George’s County Police Department.
“This office will prosecute anyone misusing this pandemic crisis to line their own pockets,” said U.S. Attorney for the District of Maryland Erek L. Barron. “Akinyemi not only took fraudulent advantage of a nursing care patient, a national health crisis, and an employment crisis, but he also caused significant financial harm to 13 elderly victims.”
According to his guilty plea, from July 10, 2018 to April 29, 2019, Akinyemi and at least one co-conspirator conspired to engage in a social media based elder fraud scheme. Members of the conspiracy targeted elderly victims on social media platforms, impersonating accounts of the victim’s friends in order to vouch for their fraudulent financial scheme and convince the victim to send money in hopes of receiving a financial reward. Within the scheme to defraud, the conspiracy members presented themselves as agents of real and fictitious government programs that offered supposed financial benefits to qualifying individuals.
Once the victims demonstrated interest, other members of the conspiracy utilized a new account or persona to represent themselves as an agent of an agency or community fund. The victim was then instructed to send money in a mail service system to the agency for “taxes and fees.” Believing that they would receive a financial reward, the victims sent cash, money orders, gift cards, and other valuable items through mail services to Akinyemi as well as other members of the conspiracy in order to obtain a financial reward. Akinyemi received packages under the aliases of Paddy Linkin,” “Flex,” “Joseph Kadin,” and “Anna Marcos,” in addition to other aliases. After receiving the fraudulently obtained funds, Akinyemi delivered the fraudulently obtained cash to co-conspirators in Nigeria.
Victim 1, who was 78 years old and lived in Texas, received an application via social media to apply to a purported federal government grant program. The application was accompanied by a message from a person whom Victim 1 believed was a friend, vouching for the program. Victim 1 was told by members of the conspiracy that he had been approved for $100,000 in grant funds, but that in order to receive the grant funds Victim 1 needed to pay taxes. Victim 1 sent multiple packages of money, including to Akinyemi. In order to induce Victim 1 to continue to send money, members of the conspiracy sent Victim 1 electronic “certificates.” One of these certificates was a “Certificate of Completion” bearing the Internal Revenue Service seal, stating that it was from the “Federal and State Tax Institutes.” Victim 1 also received a certificate with a U.S. flag on it with the words “Federal Grants” next to it which included Victim 1’s full name and the text: “Federal Government Grants for the sum of $5,000,000.” After receiving these certificates, Victim 1 continued to send money to Akinyemi and other members of the conspiracy. In total, Victim 1 sent between approximately $70,000 to $80,000 to Akinyemi.
Victim 2, who was 71 years old and lived in Indiana, received a message from someone they believed to be a high school friend regarding a “Strengthening Community Fund.” In reality, a member of the conspiracy was posing as the victim’s high school friend. Ultimately, the conspiracy member told Victim 2 that they received money from the fund in the recent past and that there were different amounts for which a person could apply. The member of the conspiracy then provided Victim 2 with the contact information for a fictitious agent representing the “Fund.”
After Victim 2 contacted and sought information regarding the Fund, a member of the conspiracy masquerading as an agent asked Victim 2 if they were ready to apply. When Victim 2 communicated their desire to do so, the member of the conspiracy sought biographical information from Victim 2, including their monthly income. Once Victim 2 provided this information, the member of the conspiracy informed Victim 2 that they had been “approved.” Victim 2 applied for $80,000, which Victim 2 believed would cost $800 in fees. Victim 2 then sent approximately $50,000 in fictitious fees and taxes in order to obtain money from the fictitious fund.
Victim 3, who was 69 years old, sent $9,720 to Akinyemi based on instructions from a member of the conspiracy. Victim 3 received a check in the mail for $9,770 that she was instructed to cash. The victim then deposited the check into her bank account and subsequently sent the funds to Akinyemi’s Landover Residence, as instructed. The check sent to Victim 3 was issued by Company 1 located in Tacoma, Washington. Company 1 was the victim of a fraud scheme that caused several unauthorized fraudulent checks to be generated and issued on behalf of Company 1.
Law enforcement’s subsequent review of Akinyemi’s phone revealed communications of Akinyemi discussing receipt of these funds from Company 1 through Victim 3. The chat conversation contained Akinyemi’s Landover Residence, his alias (“Paddy Linkin”), a mail service tracking number, and a dollar amount. Akinyemi and the co-conspirator also discussed the percentage of the proceeds that Akinyemi would take as part of his participation in the conspiracy.
During an interview with law enforcement on April 15, 2019, Akinyemi confirmed that he had received packages from victims throughout the country, detailed the scheme to defraud, and informed investigators that individuals in Nigeria were responsible for soliciting the victims to send money to him. Further, Akinyemi stated that he received approximately $80,000 in the mail in the year prior to his interview.
As part of the scheme to defraud elder victims, Akinyemi and his co-conspirators defrauded at least 13 victims, caused significant financial hardship to victims, and caused a loss of at least $478,145.07.
In an unrelated scheme, Akinyemi and other co-conspirators illegally obtained unemployment and COVID-19 related benefits by filing fraudulent unemployment claims under the names of living and deceased victims.
Throughout the scheme, Akinyemi and his co-conspirators used his Landover, Maryland residence as the mailing address for the fraudulent unemployment insurance debit cards. Additionally, the conspiracy listed the home address of a Washington D.C. client whom Akinyemi provided at-home nursing care in order to receive the fraudulently obtained funds in the mail.
As stated in his plea agreement, 10 Maryland Pandemic Unemployment Assistance (“PUA”) claims were filed with the state of Maryland totaling an intended loss of more than $170,000.
As a result of an executed search warrant on April 15, 2021 at Akinyemi’s Hyattsville, Maryland residence, law enforcement found two unemployment insurance debit cards in the names of Victim 24 and Victim 25. The unemployment insurance claims for Victims 24 and 25 were filed using the address of Akinyemi’s D.C. nursing care client.
In total, Akinyemi and his co-conspirators used the identities of 19 real individuals to file fraudulent unemployment insurance and PUA claims, caused an actual loss of more than $7,000, and projected an intended loss of $250,000 in state and federal benefits.
Akinyemi faces maximum 20 years in federal prison for each count of mail fraud followed by up to three years of supervised release. U.S. District Judge Theodore D. Chuang has scheduled sentencing for April 11, 2022 at 11 a.m.
On May 17, 2021, the Attorney General established the COVID-19 Fraud Enforcement Task Force to marshal the resources of the Department of Justice in partnership with agencies across government to enhance efforts to combat and prevent pandemic-related fraud. The Task Force bolsters efforts to investigate and prosecute the most culpable domestic and international criminal actors and assists agencies tasked with administering relief programs to prevent fraud by, among other methods, augmenting and incorporating existing coordination mechanisms, identifying resources and techniques to uncover fraudulent actors and their schemes, and sharing and harnessing information and insights gained from prior enforcement efforts. For more information on the Department’s response to the pandemic, please visit https://www.justice.gov/coronavirus.
Anyone with information about allegations of attempted fraud involving COVID-19 can report it by calling the Department of Justice’s National Center for Disaster Fraud (NCDF) Hotline at 866-720-5721 or via the NCDF Web Complaint Form at: https://www.justice.gov/disaster-fraud/ncdf-disaster-complaint-form.
The Pandemic Response Accountability Committee (PRAC) Fraud Task Force was established to serve the American public by promoting transparency and facilitating coordinated oversight of the federal government’s COVID-19 pandemic response. The PRAC Fraud Task Force brings together agents from its 22 member Inspectors General to investigate fraud involving a variety of programs, including the Paycheck Protection Program. Task force agents who are detailed to the PRAC receive expanded authority to investigate pandemic fraud as well as tools and training to support their investigations.
The Department of Justice runs the National Elder Fraud Hotline at 1-833-FRAUD-11 (1-833-372-8311), has an interactive tool for elders who have been financially exploited to help determine to which agency they should report their incident, and also a senior scam alert website. Victims are encouraged to file a complaint online with the FBI’s Internet Crime Complaint Center at this website or by calling 1-800-225-5324. Elder fraud complaints may be filed with the FTC at www.ftccomplaintassistant.gov or at 877-FTC-HELP.
United States Attorney Erek L. Barron commended the HSI, DOL-OIG, and the Prince George’s County Police Department for their work in the investigation. Mr. Barron thanked Assistant U.S. Attorney Rajeev R. Raghavan, who is prosecuting the case.
For more information on the Maryland U.S. Attorney’s Office, its priorities, and resources available to help the community, please visit www.justice.gov/usao-md and https://www.justice.gov/usao-md/community-outreach.
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Nicholas County Man Sentenced to 36 Months for Extensive Crop Fraud SchemeRead the Press Release
LEXINGTON, Ky.— A Mt. Sterling, Ky., man, Timothy Douglas Snedegar, 65, was sentenced to 36 months in federal prison on Monday, by U.S. District Judge Karen Caldwell, after previously pleading guilty to conspiring to commit wire fraud related to his participation in a scheme to defraud a private crop insurance company.
According to his plea agreement, between 2012 and 2015, Snedegar, who worked as a crop insurance adjuster, purported to follow proper adjustment procedures for adjusting claims of loss on private crop insurance policies, by verifying losses on Tobacco Test Sheets and through photographic evidence of the damage. Instead, working with others (including Mike McNew, convicted and sentenced to 86 months’ incarceration) and in exchange for kickbacks, Snedegar helped agricultural producers submit false Tobacco Test Sheets and photographs of damage, from other farms. Snedegar admitted to working with other adjusters in the area to share pre-filled Tobacco Test Sheets and photographs of damage. Snedegar conceded he caused a private insurance company to pay out $2,294,693 in falsified claims of loss during the years in question.
Snedegar pleaded guilty in January 2021.
Under federal law, Snedegar must serve 85 percent of his prison sentence. Upon his release from prison, he will be under the supervision of the U.S. Probation Office for 3 years.
Carlton S. Shier, IV, United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Kentucky; Jason M. Williams, Special Agent in Charge, United States Department of Agriculture Office of Inspector General; Jodi Cohen, Special Agent in Charge, Federal Bureau of Investigation, Louisville Field Office; Bryant Jackson, Special Agent in Charge, Internal Revenue Service-Criminal Investigation; and Juan Garrett, Director, Kentucky Department of Insurance Fraud Investigation Division, jointly made the announcement.
The investigations were conducted by the United States Department of Agriculture Office of Inspector General, United States Department of Agriculture Risk Management Agency Special Investigations Staff, Federal Bureau of Investigation, Internal Revenue Service-Criminal Investigation, and Kentucky Department of Insurance. The United States was represented by Assistant United States Attorneys Kathryn Anderson and Erin Roth.
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New Orleans Felon Indicted on Multitude of Gun ChargesRead the Press Release
NEW ORLEANS – United States Attorney Duane A. Evans announced that LAIRD JOHNSON, age 23, of New Orleans, Louisiana, was charged on December 17, 2021 with theft of a firearm from a federal firearms licensee in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Sections 922(u) and 924(i)(1), possession of a firearm and ammunition by a convicted felon in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Sections 922(g)(1) and 924(a)(2), and possession of a stolen firearm in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Sections 922(j) and 924(a)(2).
According to court documents, JOHNSON stole a Glock Model 19X, nine-millimeter handgun from a federal firearms licensee on June 19, 2021. JOHNSON is prohibited from possessing firearms due to his prior felony convictions in Orleans Parish for aggravated assault with a firearm, simple burglary, and possession of a firearm by a convicted felon. He is charged with possessing a .45 caliber handgun and .45 caliber ammunition on July 23, 2021. JOHNSON is further accused of possessing the stolen Glock Model 19X, the Glock Model 19, and a Zastava Arms, 7.62 rifle on August 10, 2021.
For each of the five counts, JOHNSON faces a maximum term of ten years imprisonment, up to a $250,000 fine, up to three (3) years of supervised release, and a mandatory $100 special assessment fee.
U.S. Attorney Evans reiterated that the indictment is merely a charge and that the guilt of the defendant must be proven beyond a reasonable doubt.
This case is being prosecuted as part of the joint federal, state, and local Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN) Program, the centerpiece of the Department of Justice’s violent crime reduction efforts. 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.
U.S. Attorney Evans praised the work of the New Orleans Police Department and the Federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives in investigating the case. Assistant U.S. Attorney Charles D. Strauss is in charge of the prosecution.
New Jersey Man Charged with Fraudulently Obtaining and Selling Three Tom Brady Super Bowl Rings, One of Which Sold for $337,000Read the Press Release
LOS ANGELES – Federal prosecutors today filed fraud charges against a New Jersey man who allegedly posed as a former player for the New England Patriots, which allowed him to purchase family versions of the team’s 2016 Super Bowl championship ring – supposedly as gifts to relatives of quarterback Tom Brady – one of which was sold at auction for more than $337,000.
Scott V. Spina Jr., 24, of Roseland, New Jersey, was charged today with one count of mail fraud, three counts of wire fraud and one count of aggravated identity theft in the scheme that allowed him to purchase three Super Bowl rings engraved with the name “Brady” on them and offer them for sale with the false claim that Tom Brady had given the rings to relatives.
In a plea agreement filed today in United States District Court, Spina agreed to plead guilty to the five felony offenses.
Court documents detail the fraudulent conduct that started in 2017 when Spina purchased a Super Bowl LI ring awarded to a Patriots player who subsequently left the team. Spina, who bilked the former player by paying for the ring with at least one bad check, sold the ring soon after for $63,000 to a well-known broker of championship rings.
When Spina obtained the player ring, he also received the information that allowed the former player to purchase Super Bowl rings for family and friends that are slightly smaller than the player rings. “Spina then called the Ring Company, fraudulently identified himself as [the former player], and started ordering three family and friend Super Bowl LI rings with the name ‘Brady’ engraved on each one, which he falsely represented were gifts for the baby of quarterback Tom Brady,” according to the criminal information filed today. “The rings were at no time authorized by Tom Brady. Defendant Spina intended to obtain the three rings by fraud and to sell them at a substantial profit.”
Spina entered into an agreement with the Orange County man who purchased the player’s Super Bowl ring to sell him the three family rings that Spina now claimed Brady had given to his nephews. After agreeing to buy the three rings for $81,500 – nearly three times what Spina paid for the rings – the buyer started to believe that Brady did not have nephews, and he tried to withdraw from the deal. The same day that the buyer tried to back out, and the same day that Spina actually received the rings in November 2017, Spina immediately sold them to an auction house for $100,000. During an auction in February 2018, one of the family rings was sold for $337,219.
In his plea agreement, Spina admitted that he defrauded the Orange County ring broker when he falsely claimed that the rings “were ordered for Tom Brady directly from [the Ring Company] for select family members.” Spina also admitted that he defrauded this victim in relation to three wire transfers for the deposit on the family rings. Spina further admitted he committed identity theft when he posed as the former Patriot to purchase the rings.
Spina has agreed to make his first appearance in this case in federal court in Los Angeles on January 31.
Once he formally enters the guilty pleas, Spina will face a statutory maximum penalty of 92 years in federal prison, but the actual sentence will likely be substantially less once a federal judge considers the United States Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
As part of the plea agreement, Spina agreed to pay restitution to the former Patriots player who sold his Super Bowl ring and other memorabilia.
The FBI’s Art Crime Team investigated this matter.
Assistant United States Attorney Erik M. Silber of the Environmental and Community Safety Crimes Section is prosecuting this case.
Montana Federal Court Finds Tax Shelter Promoter Liable for over $8 Million in Penalties for Timeshare Donation SchemeRead the Press Release
On Dec. 16, following a bench trial in May 2021, a federal court in the District of Montana ruled that James Tarpey, a Montana-based attorney, is liable for approximately $8,465,000 in penalties for promoting a tax shelter involving improper deductions for donating timeshares.
In 2015, the government initially filed an action to enjoin Tarpey and others from engaging in a scheme of purportedly donating timeshare interests for large tax deductions. The court permanently barred Tarpey from promoting the timeshare donation scheme. The court also ruled that Tarpey made false statements resulting in tax avoidance. Tarpey agreed to an injunction in 2016, which remains in full effect.
According to court documents, Tarpey formed Project Philanthropy Inc. dba Donate for Cause (DFC) as a non-profit organization in 2006, and that “DFC allowed timeshare owners who faced burdensome timeshare fees and expenses to donate their unwanted timeshares.” The court found that Tarpey and others prepared appraisals for timeshares that were donated to DFC, and that Tarpey promised potential customers generous tax savings from donations of their unwanted timeshares. In a March 2019 order, the court concluded that the Treasury Regulations disqualified Tarpey and his appraisers from conducting timeshare appraisals for DFC because they “lacked sufficient independence[.]” The court further concluded that these “false appraisals resulted in tax avoidance” and that “Tarpey knew, or had reason to know, that” “he made false statements.” The court’s 2019 ruling left open the amount of Tarpey’s penalty, however.
In its final order, issued Dec. 16, the court ruled on the amount of the penalty. The court found that the gross income amount that Tarpey derived from the entire scheme was at least $19,623,437, and this would lead to a penalty of over $9.8 million. However, the court agreed with the United States to limit the penalty against Tarpey to $8,465,000 (plus interest), the amount that the government had sought in its counterclaim.
Deputy Assistant Attorney General David A. Hubbert of the Justice Department’s Tax Division made the announcement.
Trial Attorneys Richard G. Rose, Harris J. Phillips and Gretchen E. Nygaard of the Tax Division litigated this case. IRS agents and the attorneys at the IRS Office of Chief Counsel provided support.
Further information about the recent enforcement efforts of the Tax Division against unscrupulous tax-return preparers and tax-fraud promoters is available here on the Justice Department’s website. An alphabetical listing of persons enjoined from promoting tax schemes and preparing returns can be found on this page. If you become aware of an abusive tax scheme being promoted, please report it to the IRS.
Massachusetts Man Sentenced in Connection with Drug Trafficking in VermontRead the Press Release
The Office of the United States Attorney for the District of Vermont stated that Elijah Jovann Wheeler-Watson, 25, of Springfield, Massachusetts, was sentenced today in United States District Court in Burlington in connection with his October 2019 drug trafficking activity in Vermont. Wheeler-Watson previously pleaded guilty to possessing with intent to distribute cocaine base and fentanyl. U.S. District Judge William K. Sessions III sentenced Wheeler-Watson to thirty months of imprisonment to be followed by a four-year term of supervised release.
According to court records and proceedings, on October 23, 2019, Wheeler-Watson was the passenger in a car leaving a St. Johnsbury, Vermont residence known for drug activity. Law enforcement stopped the car and determined that Wheeler-Watson possessed 42 grams of cocaine base, 25 bags of fentanyl, a digital scale, and over $1,900 in U.S. currency. Several months before this incident, Wheeler-Watson had finished serving a five-year sentence in Massachusetts for multiple armed robberies. After his release from Massachusetts custody, Wheeler-Watson had traveled to Vermont several times, and had earned at least $13,000 in gross proceeds from drug trafficking activities.
Assistant United States Attorney Nicole Cate handled this case, which was investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration and Vermont State Police Drug Task Force. Wheeler-Watson was represented by Mark Kaplan, Esq.
Maryland Man Pleads Guilty to Transporting over $300,000 of Stolen MoniesRead the Press Release
BECKLEY, W.Va. – A Maryland man pleaded guilty today to transporting over $300,000 of stolen monies from West Virginia to Maryland.
According to court documents, Dhanraj Singh, 61, of Bowie, Maryland, worked at a local resort for many years. Singh admitted that from 2017 to 2020, he stole approximately $382,449 from the resort and routinely transported the stolen monies from West Virginia to Maryland.
Singh pleaded guilty to interstate transportation of stolen property and faces up to 10 years in prison when he is sentenced on April 8, 2022.
United States Attorney Will Thompson made the announcement and commended the investigative work of the Raleigh County Sheriff’s Office.
United States District Judge Frank W. Volk presided over the hearing. Assistant U.S. Attorney Kathleen E. Robeson is prosecuting the case.
A copy of this press release is located on the website of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of West Virginia. Related court documents and information can be found on PACER by searching for Case No 5:21-cr-00240.
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Man Sentenced to 14 Years for Machine Gun Possession, Drug CrimesRead the Press Release
An Irving man was sentenced today to 14 years in federal prison for possession of multiple unregistered machine gun conversion sears as well as numerous drug crimes, announced U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of Texas Chad E. Meacham.
Ramon Navarro III, 23, pleaded guilty in March to four counts of an unregistered firearm and eight counts of distribution of controlled substances. Because the government did not offer Mr. Navarro a plea deal, he pleaded open to the charges against him, with no assurances as to the term of imprisonment prosecutors would recommend to the judge. He was sentenced Monday by U.S. District Judge Sam A Lindsay.
According to court documents, Mr. Navarro, who used the aka “Trae Alvarez,” admitted that he possessed four machine gun conversion sears, three-piece devices designed to convert semiautomatic weapons into machineguns, all lacking serial numbers and of unknown origin. He also possessed six Glock pistols, each with an incorporated conversion sear, transforming the firearms into machine guns in operating condition.
(Unlike semiautomatic firearms, machineguns – weapons that can shoot more than one shot, without manual reloading, by single function of the trigger – are generally unlawful for civilians under the National Firearms Act.)
None of the firearms were registered to Mr. Navarro in the National Firearms Registration and Transfer Record, he admitted. He also admitted to trafficking in cocaine and heroin.
“This investigation is an example of ATF’s steadfast commitment to working with Dallas Police Department and all our local, state, and federal law enforcement partners in combining resources to combat violent crime, disrupt firearms trafficking, and ultimately create safer communities,” stated Jamey VanVliet, Assistant Special Agent in Charge of the ATF’s Dallas Field Division.
The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms & Explosives’ Dallas Field Division and the Dallas Police Department. Assistant U.S. Attorney Linda Requénez is prosecuting the case with the assistance of Assistant U.S. Attorney Walt Junker.
This case was prosecuted under Project Guardian, a Department of Justice initiative aimed at reducing gun violence by enforcing federal firearm laws through coordination between the federal government and state and local law enforcement.
MS-13 Member Sentenced for Assault with a Deadly Weapon and Drug Trafficking ConspiracyRead the Press Release
FRESNO, Calif. —Lorenzo Amador, 23, of Mendota, was sentenced on December 17, 2021, by United States District Judge Dale A. Drozd to five years and three months in prison for assault with a deadly weapon in aid of racketeering and conspiracy to distribute and to possess with intent to distribute marijuana, Acting United States Attorney Phillip A. Talbert announced.
According to court documents, Amador was a member of La Mara Salvatrucha (MS-13), a violent criminal street gang that engages in racketeering activity, including murder, kidnapping, extortion, and drug trafficking. On August 12, 2018, Amador and fellow MS-13 members kicked, hit, and stabbed a member of a rival gang in the back with a knife, slicing his diaphragm and sending him to the emergency room where he had to have life-saving surgery.
After the attack, Amador logged on to his Facebook account and used coded language to send word of the attack to his fellow MS-13 members. His message was intercepted pursuant to lawful wiretap on the Facebook account of one of his fellow MS-13 members. In the days following the stabbing, Amador’s fellow MS-13 members called each other in frantic efforts to warn Amador that police might be closing in on him and to try to help him flee Mendota, which he did. Police eventually caught him two months later.
Amador also joined a drug conspiracy, which he participated in by driving to Los Angeles to help the gang pick up drugs, returning to Mendota with the drugs, and selling them for the gang.
The investigation was conducted by the California Department of Justice and California Highway Patrol Special Operations Unit, the Multi-Agency Gang Enforcement Consortium (MAGEC), the Federal Bureau of Investigation, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), the Fresno County District Attorney’s Office, the Fresno County Sheriff’s Office, and the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation Special Services Unit (SSU). The CHP Special Operations Unit is a collaborative investigative effort between the California Department of Justice and California Highway Patrol that provides statewide enforcement to combat violent career criminals, gangs, and organized crime groups, along with intrastate drug traffickers. Assistant United States Attorneys Ross Pearson, Michael Tierney, and Kimberly Sanchez prosecuted the case.
Several of Amador’s co-defendants have been sentenced. One remaining defendant will be sentenced in 2022.
This case is being prosecuted as part of the joint federal, state, and local Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN) Program, the centerpiece of the Department of Justice’s violent crime reduction efforts. 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 violewnt 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.
This effort is part of an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) operation. OCDETF identifies, disrupts, and dismantles the highest-level criminal organizations that threaten the United States using a prosecutor-led, intelligence-driven, multi-agency approach. Additional information about the OCDETF Program can be found at www.justice.gov/OCDETF.
Luray Man Pleads Guilty to Cyberstalking Army RecruiterRead the Press Release
HARRISONBURG, Va. – A Luray, Virginia man pleaded guilty today to cyberstalking a female Army recruiter after being upset about failing his Army entrance examination.
According to court documents, Braxton Louis Danley, 26, contacted the victim, an army recruiter in Harrisonburg, Virginia, via email in February 2018 expressing his interest in joining the United States Army. In March 2018, Danley arrived at the victim’s recruiting station in Harrisonburg to take the required entrance exam. When Danley was unable to obtain a passing score, the victim and other recruiters instructed Danley to continue studying and to retake the test at a later date.
In April 2018, Danley called the victim multiple times on both her Army-issued cell phone and the recruiting station general telephone to inquire about re-taking the entrance exam. Each time, Danley was asked if he had studied for the test - which he admitted that he had not - and was advised that he would only be permitted to re-take the test after he had studied.
On May 14, 2018, Danley sent an email to the victim’s official Army email address stating, “I remember every thing you [expletive] done to me so time to settle the score.” (sic). On the same date, Danley called the recruiting station and told another recruiter he was angry and that he (Danley) needed to be arrested. In light of the email threat and phone call, the victim obtained a “no trespassing” notice and posted it at the recruiting station.
For the next few months, Danley continued to send the victim harassing texts. Eventually, the victim obtained a state Preliminary Order of Protection (PPO) against Danley.
On December 23, 2018, Danley posted a message on Facebook directed at the victim and two other Army recruiters that read, in part, “your lieing fu**ed up my life . lock and load fu**ers ima at your doorstep now .”(sic) A week later, Danley was arrested for violation of the state PPO and was convicted and sentenced to 12-months’ incarceration. He was released in June 2019.
Within a couple months of his release, Danley again posted threats against the victim on Facebook. Finally, in January 2020, Danley posted a message on Facebook that read “24 im getin locked remember j rj this is to. you im coming to get you.”(sic) Along with the message, Danley posted a link to a YouTube video that depicted, through images and lyrics, a violent home invasion and murder of the family residing in the home.
Danley pleaded guilty today cyberstalking and is scheduled to be sentenced on February 1, 2022 where he faces a sentence of up to five years in prison. A federal district court judge will determine the sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
The Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Harrisonburg Police Department investigated the case.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Ronald M. Huber is prosecuting the case.
Louisville Felon Sentenced to Federal Prison for Fentanyl and Illegal Possession of HandgunRead the Press Release
Louisville – A Louisville man was sentenced on December 13, 2021, to over 12 years in prison for possessing fentanyl with the intent to distribute and being a felon in possession of a gun.
According to court documents, on March 22, 2019, James Terry Wood, 37, possessed over 18 grams of fentanyl and a Browning .40 caliber handgun. Wood had previous felony convictions for reckless homicide, facilitating burglary and kidnapping, possessing controlled substances, being a felon in possession of a firearm, evading police, and tampering with evidence.
Wood had an outstanding federal arrest warrant, and on March 22, 2019, the United States Marshals Service located Wood in a truck in a Walmart parking lot on Raggard Road in Louisville. The Marshals, with assistance from the Louisville Metro Police Department, surrounded Wood’s truck. Wood then brandished a handgun, leading to a standoff that lasted several hours before Wood eventually got out of the truck and surrendered. Wood was convicted at trial on May 20, 2021.
“As demonstrated by this case, our federal law enforcement agencies have strong working relationships with LMPD,” stated Michael A. Bennett, United States Attorney for the Western District of Kentucky. “I commend the U.S. Marshals Service, ATF, LMPD, and the assigned prosecutors for their outstanding work in making Louisville safer for all who live and work here.”
“Persons with histories of violent crime and drug offenses, like this defendant, pose an increased threat to the safety of our communities and are the focus of our firearms enforcement efforts,” said ATF Special Agent in Charge R. Shawn Morrow of the Louisville Field Division. “Today’s sentencing is another example of the ongoing efforts of ATF, Louisville Metro Police Department and U.S. Marshals Service partnering together to take a violent, repeat offender off the streets and make our communities safer for everyone.”
“LMPD is grateful to have such strong federal partnerships and we look forward to further dismantling criminal activity,” said Louisville Metro Police Chief Erika Shields. “We’re seeing how valuable these collaborations are as we strive to keep our community safe. We want the public to know this criminal conduct will not be tolerated in our community as demonstrated by the prosecution of this case.
Wood was sentenced to 147 months of incarceration followed by 5 years of supervised release. There is no parole in the federal system.
The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF), the United States Marshals, and the Louisville Metro Police Department investigated the case. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Nute Bonner and David Weiser prosecuted the case.
This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), the centerpiece of the Department of Justice’s violent crime reduction efforts. PSN is an evidence-based program proven to be effective at reducing violent crime. Through PSN, a broad spectrum of stakeholders work together to identify the most pressing violent crime problems in the community and develop comprehensive solutions to address them. As part of this strategy, PSN focuses enforcement efforts on the most violent offenders and partners with locally based prevention and reentry programs for lasting reductions in crime.
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Louisiana Federal Court Permanently Shuts Down Hammond Tax PreparerRead the Press Release
A federal court in the Eastern District of Louisiana has permanently enjoined a Hammond tax return preparer from preparing federal income tax returns for others and from owning or operating any tax return business in the future.
According to the court order entered Dec. 20, Kenisha Callahan consented to entry of the injunction. The order requires that Callahan send notice of the injunction to her prior customers. The order also permits the United States to conduct post-judgment discovery to monitor Callahan’s compliance with the injunction.
The civil complaint filed against Callahan alleged that she reported fabricated income or losses, and false filing statuses, in order to maximize her customers’ earned income tax credit. Further, the complaint alleged that Callahan impermissibly lowered some of her customers’ tax liabilities by falsely claiming unreimbursed employee business expenses and charitable gifts for individuals who were not entitled to claim such deductions.
Deputy Assistant Attorney General David A. Hubbert of the Justice Department’s Tax Division made the announcement.
Return preparer fraud is one of the IRS’ Dirty Dozen Tax Scams and taxpayers seeking a return preparer should remain vigilant. (More information can also be found here.) The IRS has information on its website for choosing a tax preparer, has launched a free directory of federal tax preparers, and offers information on how to avoid “ghost” tax preparers, whose refusal to sign a return should be a red flag to taxpayers. The IRS also has a list of important reminders for taxpayers who are about to file their 2020 tax returns, including how to prepare for a smooth filing process.
In addition, IRS Free File, a public-private partnership, offers free online tax preparation and filing options on IRS partner websites for individuals whose adjusted gross income is under $72,000. For individuals whose income is over that threshold, IRS Free File offers electronical federal tax forms that can be filled out and filed online for free.
In the past decade, the Tax Division has obtained injunctions against hundreds of unscrupulous tax preparers. Information about these cases is available on the Justice Department’s website. An alphabetical listing of persons enjoined from preparing returns and promoting tax schemes can be found this page. If you believe that one of the enjoined persons or businesses may be violating an injunction, please contact the Tax Division with details.
Karon Foster Sentenced to 40 Years in Federal Prison for Participating in a Violent Racketeering ConspiracyRead the Press Release
Baltimore, Maryland – U.S. District Judge Stephanie A. Gallagher today sentenced Karon Foster, age 27, of Baltimore, Maryland, to 40 years in federal prison, followed by three years of supervised release, for conspiracy to participate in racketeering activity, for a carjacking conspiracy, and for aiding and abetting a carjacking resulting in death.
The sentence was announced by United States Attorney for the District of Maryland Erek L. Barron; Acting Special Agent in Charge L.C. Cheeks, Jr. of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) Baltimore Field Division; and Commissioner Michael Harrison of the Baltimore Police Department.
According to his guilty plea, beginning in April 2019, Foster was part of an enterprise that engaged in a pattern of deadly racketeering activities, including a series of armed carjackings, armed robberies, attempted armed robberies, and the pawning of stolen goods. Specifically, between April 19, 2019 and August 8, 2019, Foster and his crew committed 13 specific violent crimes in Baltimore, including: eight armed carjackings, including one on June 12, 2019, resulting in the murder of a victim, and five armed robberies and attempted robberies, including two in which victims were murdered. Three victims were murdered by Foster’s crew during the time of the conspiracy, and a fourth victim was paralyzed as a result of an armed robbery.
“Over four months in 2019, Karon Foster and his crew were responsible for 13-armed carjackings and robberies throughout Baltimore, including three that killed innocent victims and another that left a victim paralyzed,” said U.S. Attorney Erek L. Barron. “Foster and his co-conspirators used firearms and fear to steal cars, property and most tragically the lives of other human beings. This case reflects the collaboration and commitment of federal, state, and local law enforcement to hold accountable violent offenders like Foster and his co-conspirators. Four months of violence will result in at least three decades in federal prison for Karon Foster; hopefully others like him will take notice, choose to put down the guns, and take a different path.”
The plea agreement details a series of violent crimes committed by Foster and his co-conspirators, including a carjacking on June 12, 2019. As two individuals were talking outside, Foster and other members of the enterprise drove up in a stolen vehicle and parked directly across the street from them. Four men exited the vehicle, two of whom possessed firearms. Members of the enterprise approached one of the individuals and announced a robbery. The first individual ran away while the second person resisted the robbers’ commands. That person was shot several times and subsequently died from his injuries. The individual who ran away later returned to the scene and discovered that his/her car and the victim’s body were both gone, and only the victim’s shoes remained at the scene. Foster aided and abetted the enterprise by driving the stolen vehicle to and from the scene of the attempted robbery and the victim’s murder.
Members of the conspiracy not only promoted their activities on social media, but they also shared proceeds of their exploits. As part of the enterprise, Foster pawned items stolen from victims. Members also concealed enterprise activities by hiding, destroying, or disposing of evidence.
This case was made possible by investigative leads generated from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives’ (ATF) National Integrated Ballistic Information Network (NIBIN). NIBIN is the only national network that allows for the capture and comparison of ballistic evidence to aid in solving and preventing violent crimes involving firearms. NIBIN is a proven investigative and intelligence tool that can link firearms from multiple crime scenes, allowing law enforcement to quickly disrupt shooting cycles. For more information on NIBIN, visit https://www.atf.gov/firearms/national-integrated-ballistic-information-network-nibin.
This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program bringing together all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve to reduce violent crime and make our neighborhoods safer for everyone. Project Safe Neighborhoods (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.
United States Attorney Erek L. Barron commended the ATF, the Baltimore Police Department, and the Baltimore City State’s Attorney’s Office for their work in the investigation. Mr. Barron thanked Assistant U.S. Attorneys Patricia C. McLane and Brandon Moore who prosecuted the case.
For more information on the Maryland U.S. Attorney’s Office, its priorities, and resources available to help the community, please visit https://www.justice.gov/usao-md/project-safe-neighborhoods-psnexile and https://www.justice.gov/usao-md/community-outreach.
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KC Man Sentenced to 18 Years in Prison for Botched Robbery at Grandview Auto DealerRead the Press Release
KANSAS CITY, Mo. – A Kansas City, Missouri, man was sentenced in federal court today for the botched robbery of a Grandview, Mo., auto dealership that ended when he shot an employee while fleeing, after a shootout with the owner, who was also armed.
Lyndale E. Watson, also known as “Red, “Blood,” and “Stoni Blud,” 36, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Brian C. Wimes to 18 years and one month in federal prison without parole. The court granted the government’s motion to impose a sentence above the federal sentencing guidelines due to the violent and abhorrent nature of this crime.
On July 14, 2021, Watson pleaded guilty to one count of attempted robbery and one count of carrying a firearm in relation to a crime of violence.
Watson wore a scarf over his face when he walked into Pride Auto Sales, a car lot at 12800 S. US 78 Highway in Grandview, on Feb. 19, 2015. Watson asked an employee, identified in court documents as “M.M.,” about a car for sale. After the owner came to the front of the business, Watson pulled out a firearm, pointed the gun at the owner, and said, “Don’t move.”
The owner, already armed with a firearm, ran back to his office as Watson shot at him. The two engaged in a firefight. As Watson ran out of the business, he shot M.M. in the back as M.M. was trying to escape himself. M.M. was seriously wounded and nearly died, but survived the shooting.
On Feb. 27, 2015, law enforcement officers executed a search warrant at Wallace’s residence and found a Hi-Point 9mm rifle, a plastic bag that contained 98 rounds of 9mm ammunition, and a .380-caliber Winchester round that matched the shell casings recovered from the auto dealership.
Watson said he carried out the attempted robbery at the behest of a friend formerly employed at Pride Auto Sales, who claimed to be owed money by the owner of the car lot. According to court documents, Watson was on probation in four different cases at the time he committed this crime. His criminal history includes felony drug possession, eluding police, assault, felony domestic assault, stealing a motor vehicle, and numerous instances of resisting arrest.
This case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Jeffrey Q. McCarther. It was investigated by the Grandview, Mo., Police Department, the Kansas City, Mo., Police Department, and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives.
Justice Department and CFPB Put Landlords and Mortgage Servicers on Notice About Servicemembers’ and Veterans’ RightsRead the Press Release
The Department of Justice and Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) issued two joint letters today regarding important legal housing protections for military families. One letter was sent to landlords and other housing providers regarding protections for military tenants. A second letter was sent to mortgage servicers regarding military borrowers who have already exited or will be exiting COVID-19 mortgage forbearance programs in the coming weeks and months.
The letter to landlords and other housing providers reminds property owners of the important housing protections for military tenants, some of whom may have had to relocate or make other changes to their housing arrangements in response to the crisis. While military families enjoy the same legal protections and privileges afforded to all other homeowners and tenants, they also have additional housing protections under the Servicemembers Civil Relief Act (SCRA), which is enforceable by the Justice Department and servicemembers themselves.
The letter to mortgage servicers comes in response to complaints from military families and veterans on a range of potential mortgage servicing violations, including inaccurate credit reporting, misleading communications to borrowers and required lump sum payments for reinstating their mortgage loans. These complaints are being reviewed for compliance by the CFPB with the Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security (CARES) Act and other applicable requirements.
“The Department of Justice takes seriously its responsibility to safeguard the rights of servicemembers and veterans,” said Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division. “While servicemembers carry the great burdens of this nation, they should not have to worry that their sacrifices will result in economic harm to their families. Mortgage servicers and landlords must ensure that they are in full compliance with federal laws intended to protect servicemembers and their families during military service.”
“The illegal foreclosures of military families in the last crisis was one of the financial industry’s worst failures,” said Director Rohit Chopra of CFPB. “The CFPB will be closely watching mortgage servicers and will hold them accountable for illegal tactics perpetrated against military families.”
During the COVID-19 pandemic, roughly 7.6 million homeowners entered forbearance. While the majority have resumed their regular mortgage payments, approximately 1.25 million borrowers – many of whom are military borrowers – remain in forbearance programs that will expire at the end of the year. Ensuring that mortgage servicers comply with their legal obligations is crucial, especially since a decade ago some large financial institutions illegally seized the homes of military families, sending their lives into a tailspin. These violations were a result of breakdowns in the mortgage servicing industry that were severe and widespread. The result was numerous settlements with regulators, including a $186 million settlement between the Justice Department and some of the country’s largest mortgage servicers.
Servicemembers have several legal protections under the SCRA that are designed to enable them to devote their entire energy to the national defense. These include, for example, a prohibition on foreclosing on certain servicemembers’ mortgages without court orders, the ability for military families to terminate residential leases early, and without penalty, upon receipt of military orders, and a prohibition on evicting military families from their homes without court orders. In addition, under the CARES Act and Regulation X, servicemembers and veterans have the same protections available to all mortgage borrowers. These include, for example, streamlined COVID hardship forbearance options, requirements that mortgages receiving a COVID-19 hardship forbearance be reported as “current” to credit reporting agencies if the loan was current before entering forbearance under the CARES Act and requirements in the Bureau’s Regulations X and Z for treatment of delinquent borrowers and borrowers who have applied for loss mitigation.
The Justice Department and CFPB are calling on mortgage servicers and landlords to ensure that military homeowners and tenants are safeguarded during the pandemic and benefit equally from the nation’s economic recovery.
Justice Department Will Award $1.6 Billion to Reduce Violent Crime and Strengthen CommunitiesRead the Press Release
Attorney General Merrick B. Garland today announced the Department of Justice will award $1.6 billion in grant awards to support a wide range of programs designed to reduce violent crime and strengthen communities. The grants, which are being distributed to communities and organizations throughout the nation, are administered by the department’s Office of Justice Programs (OJP).
“The Department of Justice is committed to supporting our state and local partners to combat crime across the country,” said Attorney General Garland. “This latest round of funding will deliver critical public safety resources, helping public safety professionals, victim service providers, local agencies and nonprofit organizations confront these serious challenges.”
As law enforcement agencies address a range of public safety challenges – from violent crime to human trafficking to retail thefts – these awards will provide additional tools to advance violence intervention activities and evidence-based police and prosecution strategies. Funds are also intended to reduce recidivism, help people coming out of prisons and jails make the transition back into their communities and support responses to crises like drug overdoses and episodes involving mental illness. These grants build on earlier OJP investments, including more than $1.2 billion to support victim assistance and compensation programs, $187 million under the state formula Edward Byrne Memorial Justice Assistance Grants Program, more than $175 million in funding for victim services and public safety in American Indian and Alaska Native communities, over $21 million in grants to address hate crimes and $17.5 million in Project Safe Neighborhoods grants. The COPS office also funded the hiring of over 1,000 officers in 183 police departments this year.
Some of the awards address the rise in gun violence and other violent crime in communities across America, in alignment with the Biden-Harris Administration’s commitment in April. These grants help support the department’s Comprehensive Strategy for Reducing Violent Crime, announced in May, and will advance President Biden’s Comprehensive Strategy to Prevent and Respond to Gun Crime and Ensure Public Safety, released in June.
“These investments reflect a commitment that extends across this administration to invest in our neighborhoods, building bonds of civic trust and ending the cycle of trauma and violence that destroys too many lives and keeps far too many Americans from realizing their potential,” said Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Amy L. Solomon of OJP.
A full list of awards, as they are made, will be available on the OJP Grant Awards page.
The Office of Justice Programs provides federal leadership, grants, training, technical assistance and other resources to improve the nation’s capacity to prevent and reduce crime, advance racial equity in the administration of justice, assist victims and enhance the rule of law. More information about OJP and its components can be found at www.ojp.gov.
Justice Department Sues Ophthalmology Practice with 24 Facilities for Discriminating Against Individuals with Disabilities who Use WheelchairsRead the Press Release
The Justice Department today filed a lawsuit against Barnet Dulaney Perkins Eye Center PC (BDP), an optometry and ophthalmology medical provider, for discriminating against patients who, because of their disabilities, need assistance in transferring from their wheelchairs to the surgical table for outpatient eye surgery. BDP operates 24 facilities in Arizona.
The lawsuit, filed in the U.S. District Court for Arizona, alleges that BDP violated the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) by refusing to provide patients with disabilities the transfer assistance they need — assistance that is routinely provided by healthcare providers across the country. Instead, BDP requires these patients to hire third-party medical support personnel to transport them to and from BDP facilities and to provide transfer assistance at the facilities. Patients who are transported by third-party medical support personnel are brought into the facilities on gurneys or stretchers and are required to remain on them until surgery. This practice denies patients with disabilities full and equal access to BDP’s health care services and impermissibly imposes a disability-based surcharge on such patients by forcing them to pay extra for treatment.
“Discrimination on the basis of disability is unacceptable anywhere, and especially in the critically important area of health care,” said Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke for the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division. “Discriminatory healthcare practices deny individuals with disabilities access to essential services and can delay needed treatment. Through this lawsuit, the department continues to vigorously enforce the ADA, which has prohibited discriminatory treatment by medical providers for more than 30 years.”
Through the lawsuit, the department asks the court to stop BDP from discriminating against individuals with disabilities, including by training its staff to provide patients with assistance in transferring to and from their wheelchairs. The department also seeks money damages for those people who were harmed by BDP’s discriminatory policy, including those who were forced to pay for third-party transfer assistance in order to receive services.
If you believe that you or someone you know was required to pay for third-party medical support personnel to provide transfer assistance at or transportation to and from a BDP Eye Center, please contact 1-866-380-2003 (toll-free), or send an email to [email protected]. For more information on the ADA, please call the Department’s toll-free ADA Information Line at 1-800-514-0301 (TDD 800-514-0383) or visit www.ada.gov. For more information on the Civil Rights Division, please visit www.justice.gov/crt. The complaint can be viewed here.
Jury Convicts Albany Man of Drug ChargeRead the Press Release
ALBANY, NEW YORK – Tyler Purvis-Mitchell, age 27, of Albany, was convicted on Friday of possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine following a four-day jury trial.
The announcement was made by United States Attorney Carla B. Freedman; John B. DeVito, Special Agent in Charge of the New York Field Division of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF); and Chief Eric Hawkins, Albany Police Department.
The evidence at trial established that on May 7, 2020, Purvis-Mitchell possessed with the intent to distribute more than 125 pills containing methamphetamine, in his residence and his vehicle. The pills weighed more than 50 grams in total.
Purvis-Mitchell faces a minimum of 5 years and a maximum sentence of 40 years in prison, and a term of post-imprisonment supervised release of at least 4 years and up to life when United States District Judge Mae A. D’Agostino sentences him on April 20, 2022. 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.
The jury voted to acquit Purvis-Mitchell of two felony charges for possession of a firearm as a felon and possession of a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime.
This case was investigated by the Albany Police Department and ATF, and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Emmet J. O’Hanlon and Alexander Wentworth-Ping.
Independence Man Pleads Guilty to Three Bank RobberiesRead the Press Release
KANSAS CITY, Mo. – An Independence, Missouri, man pleaded guilty in federal court today to robbing three banks within a period of about a month in Lee’s Summit, Mo., Kansas City, Mo., and Odessa, Mo.
Hubert J. Holmes, 61, pleaded guilty before U.S. Chief District Judge Beth Phillips to one count of armed bank robbery and two counts of bank robbery.
Holmes admitted that he robbed three banks in 2019.
Holmes used a firearm to rob Summit Ridge Credit Union, 3485 N.E. Ralph Powell Road in Lee’s Summit on May 21, 2019. Holmes entered the credit union and demanded money from the teller. When the teller hesitated, Holmes displayed a silver handgun and slammed it on the counter. Two bank tellers gave him $13,243 and he left the bank on foot. Surveillance video footage showed that he fled to a blue van, consistent in appearance to a Chrysler Town and Country minivan, which was located in a nearby parking lot. While fleeing the scene of the robbery, Holmes dropped over $7,000 that was later recovered and returned to the credit union. A few days later, investigators received a tip that identified Holmes as the bank robber and provided the license plate number of his minivan.
Holmes robbed Central Bank of the Midwest, 9740 Wornall in Kansas City on June 7, 2019. Holmes, wearing a ski mask, approached a teller and demanded she give him $50 and $100 bills. The teller told Holmes she didn’t have larger bills and he responded, “give me all of them.” She removed $1,094 from her drawer and gave it to Holmes, who fled from the bank of foot. Investigators later matched a fingerprint from the scene of the robbery to Holmes.
Holmes robbed the Bank of Odessa, 201 S. 2nd Street in Odessa on June 20, 2019. Holmes put on a ski mask when he approached a teller’s window and demanded she open her drawer. Holmes reached over the counter and seized $3,099 from the teller’s cash drawer. Holmes then fled from the bank on foot and met an accomplice who was driving his van, which was parked nearby. Holmes, attempting to hurry, dropped money in the alley as he approached the van. Holmes picked up the money he dropped and got into the rear driver’s side of the van, which was being driven by another person.
Holmes was arrested on June 20, 2019, following the robbery of the Bank of Odessa. Shortly after the robbery, law enforcement officers began surveillance of Holmes’s residence. Officers saw Holmes driving a Chrysler Town and Country van, pulled him over, and arrested both Holmes and a passenger. Holmes had a large sum of money in his right front jeans pocket, including bait bills taken during the bank robbery. Bait bills are currency bills with known serial numbers that banks use to assist law enforcement officials in their efforts to trace currency to a bank robbery. The passenger, who matched the description of the get-away driver in the Bank of Odessa robbery, had $404 in his pockets. When officers searched the van, they found a Smith & Wesson 9mm semi-automatic handgun under the front passenger seat.
Today’s plea agreement also refers to the robbery of Country Club Bank, 401 Armour Rd. in North Kansas City, Mo., on Dec. 26, 2018. Two men wore facial coverings and hooded sweatshirts when they walked into the bank. One of them walked directly to the teller counter, went behind the counter, and removed $16,000 from the teller drawers. He attempted to carry the cash in his sweatshirt, however, he dropped some of the cash as he walked out of the bank. The other thief remained at the door of the bank and gave verbal commands to all of the occupants of the bank. When they left the bank, they got into Holmes’s Chrysler Town and Country van and drove away. Holmes, who did not plead guilty to the indictment’s charge for this bank robbery, denies being involved. However, the surveillance video of the Chrysler Town and Country van, which belongs to Holmes, became an investigative lead later in this case.
Holmes was on federal supervised release at the time of these offenses following a prior felony conviction for bank robbery.
Under the terms of today’s plea agreement, Holmes will be sentenced to at least 10 years in federal prison without parole, up to a sentence of 15 years in federal prison without parole. A sentencing hearing will be scheduled after the completion of a presentence investigation by the United States Probation Office.
This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Trey Alford. It was investigated by the FBI and the Kansas City, Mo., Police Department.
Harrison County Man Pleads Guilty to Medicare FraudRead the Press Release
Gulfport, Miss. – A Biloxi man pled guilty to providing false statements in connection with the delivery of payments for health care benefits of Medicare beneficiaries, announced U.S. Attorney Darren J. LaMarca and Tamala Miles, Special Agent in Charge of the Department of Health and Human Services, Office of the Inspector General.
According to court documents, Douglas Christopher Gorman, 41, conspired with others between January 2016 and March 2019, to provide fraudulent statements to Medicare for reimbursements of claims for patient treatment and prescriptions. Gorman held himself out as a licensed physician and treated patients, ordered diagnostic testing, ordered laboratory work, and prescribed medications while employed at Coast Neurology in Biloxi, Mississippi. Gorman was not licensed to practice medicine in Mississippi or any other state in the United States. Gorman, through his co-conspirators, submitted documents seeking reimbursement for the provided services under another co-conspirator’s Medicare identification number. Medicare reimbursed for the services and prescriptions believing the services were provided by a licensed physician.
Gorman is scheduled to be sentenced on April 13, 2022 at 10:00 a.m. and faces a maximum penalty of five years in prison. A federal district judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
The Drug Enforcement Administration and HHS OIG are investigating the case.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Kathlyn R. Van Buskirk is prosecuting the case.
Harrisburg Man Sentenced to 151 Months’ Imprisonment for Drug Trafficking and Firearm OffensesRead the Press Release
HARRISBURG -The United States Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Pennsylvania announced that Terrance Harden, age 30, of Harrisburg, Pennsylvania was sentenced on December 8, 2021 to 151 months’ imprisonment by U.S. District Court Judge Sylvia H. Rambo for possession with intent to distribute cocaine base and fentanyl and possession of a firearm by a prohibited person.
According to United States Attorney John C. Gurganus, Harden possessed with the intent to distribute fentanyl and cocaine on May 31, 2018, in Harrisburg, and possessed a loaded 9mm handgun in furtherance of drug trafficking as a convicted felon. Harrisburg City Police arrested Harden following a search of his car outside of the Pennsylvania State Parole office.
The case was investigated by the Harrisburg Bureau of Police and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. Assistant U.S. Attorney Johnny Baer prosecuted the case.
This case is being prosecuted as part of the joint federal, state, and local Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN) Program, the centerpiece of the Department of Justice’s violent crime reduction efforts. 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.
This case was also brought as part of a district wide initiative to combat the nationwide epidemic regarding the use and distribution of heroin. Led by the United States Attorney’s Office, the Heroin Initiative targets heroin traffickers operating in the Middle District of Pennsylvania and is part of a coordinated effort among federal, state and local law enforcement agencies to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who commit heroin related offenses.
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Government Contractor Indicted for Bribing Public OfficialRead the Press Release
A federal grand jury in the Eastern District of Virginia returned an indictment charging a North Carolina man with engaging in a bribery and fraud scheme with a former contracting officer for the Broadcasting Board of Governors (BBG) (now known as the U.S. Agency for Global Media).
According to court documents, William F. Snow, 70, of Jamestown, worked for a government contracting firm that previously provided professional staffing services to BBG. Between late 2014 and late 2016, Snow, in addition to a BBG contracting officer and others, allegedly agreed to hire and pay the contracting officer’s relative for a job involving minimal work and which resulted in payments to the relative that totaled more than $68,000. In exchange, the BBG contracting officer took official actions that benefitted Snow, the contracting firm, and another executive, Rita Starliper, who previously pleaded guilty for her involvement in the scheme. In particular, the contracting officer took official action and provided preferential treatment that included the awarding of a professional staffing contract to the contracting firm that was worth millions of dollars and the steering of the procurement process to benefit Snow, Starliper, and the contracting firm.
Snow is charged with one count of conspiracy to commit bribery and honest services mail fraud, one count of bribery, and three counts of honest services mail fraud. The defendant will make his initial court appearance on Dec. 28. If convicted, Snow faces a maximum penalty of five years in prison for conspiracy to commit bribery and honest services mail fraud, fifteen years in prison for bribery, and twenty years in prison for each count of honest services mail fraud. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
Assistant Attorney General Kenneth A. Polite Jr. of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division; U.S. Attorney Jessica D. Aber of the Eastern District of Virginia; Special Agent in Charge Elisabeth Kaminsky of the Office of Inspector General for the Department of State; and Assistant Director in Charge Steven M. D'Antuono of the FBI’s Washington Field Office made the announcement.
The Office of Inspector General for the Department of State and the FBI are investigating the case.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Heidi Boutros Gesch of the Eastern District of Virginia and Senior Litigation Counsel Edward P. Sullivan, and Trial Attorney Jordan Dickson of the Justice Department’s Public Integrity Section are prosecuting the case.
An indictment is merely an allegation and all defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
Ghanaian Citizens Sentenced to Prison for Fraud Conspiracy Related to A Romance ScamRead the Press Release
HARRISBURG—The United States Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Pennsylvania announced that Ibrahim Adam, age 33, and Kelvin Aggrey-Arthur, age 28, both Ghanaian citizens, were sentenced to prison for conspiring to commit wire fraud. Adam was sentenced today to 33 months’ imprisonment by United States District Court Judge Christopher C. Conner. On December 17, 2021, Aggrey-Arthur was sentenced to 40 months’ imprisonment by Judge Conner. Both sentences also include a two-year term of supervised release, which will follow the term of imprisonment.
According to United States Attorney John C. Gurganus, both men previously admitted to perpetrating a romance scam in 2019 and 2020 in which they and other co-conspirators developed online relationships with victims and then requested that those victims send them money for various fraudulent reasons, including travel, medical treatment, housing, and schooling. Both men were also ordered to pay restitution to victims, $94,100 for Adam and $25,100 for Aggrey-Arthur.
The case was investigated by the United States Postal Inspection Service, the Susquehanna Township Police Department, and the Dauphin County Criminal Investigation Division. Assistant U.S. Attorney Carlo D. Marchioli prosecuted the case.
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Former USPS Employee Admits Stealing FundsRead the Press Release
Leonard C Boyle, Acting United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, and Matthew Modafferi, Special Agent in Charge of the U.S. Postal Service, Office of Inspector General, announced that LINDIM ASIPI, 44, of Waterbury, waived his right to be indicted and pleaded guilty today before U.S. District Judge Victor A. Bolden in Bridgeport to one count of wire fraud related to his theft of U.S. Postal Service (USPS) funds.
According to court documents and statements made in court, Asipi was a motor vehicle service driver for the USPS based in Waterbury, and the USPS provided Asipi with a fleet credit card that enabled him to purchase fuel. Between approximately January 2019 and June 2020, Asipi conducted several hundred fraudulent transactions with his fleet credit card to obtain cash from gas stations without purchasing fuel. To execute these fraudulent transactions, Asipi used his assigned personal identification number (PIN), as well as the PIN of another USPS driver who was unaware of Asipi’s scheme.
On April 11, 2020, Asipi was recorded on store video surveillance driving his USPS vehicle and parking next to the gas pumps at a gas station in Prospect. After Asipi exited the vehicle and entered the store, Asipi’s credit card was used to charge $160 at 11:50 a.m. and $140 at 11:51 a.m. Surveillance video footage then shows Asipi driving away from the gas station without pumping any fuel.
At sentencing, which is not scheduled, Asipi faces a maximum term of imprisonment of 20 years.
This matter is being investigated by the U.S. Postal Service, Office of the Inspector General. This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Hal Chen.
Former Tucson Insurance Agent Sentenced to Prison for Million Dollar Elder Fraud SchemeRead the Press Release
TUCSON, Ariz. – On Friday, Koreasa M. Williams, 46, of Tucson, Arizona, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Jennifer G. Zipps to 51 months in prison. Williams previously pleaded guilty to wire fraud.
In her guilty plea, Williams, a licensed insurance agent, admitted that she devised a scheme to defraud nine annuity clients out of $1,064,522. In furtherance of her scheme, Williams sent request forms to various life insurance companies seeking to withdraw funds from her clients’ annuities without their knowledge and consent. Williams also directed the life insurance companies to wire the fraudulently obtained funds directly to her personal bank account. Williams then used the mostly elderly victims’ money for her personal benefit.
“It is essential that individuals who use their position and skill to harm others be held accountable,” said U.S. Attorney Gary Restaino. “We are grateful to our partners at the FBI for bringing this case forward and are hopeful that its resolution will bring some closure for the victims.”
The Federal Bureau of Investigation conducted the investigation in this case. The United States Attorney’s Office, District of Arizona, Tucson, handled the prosecution.
CASE NUMBER: CR-19-1276-TUC-JGZ (BGM)
RELEASE NUMBER: 2021- 095_Williams# # #
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.Former Greenfield Township Sewer Authority Manager Found Guilty of Clean Water Act Violations and Wire FraudRead the Press Release
SCRANTON—The United States Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Pennsylvania announced that Bruce Evans, Sr., age 68, and Bruce Evans, Jr., age 40, both of Greenfield Township, were found guilty on December 17, 2021, after trial of multiple counts of Clean Water Act violations that occurred at the Greenfield Township wastewater treatment plant beginning in 2013 through 2017. Evans, Sr. was also found guilty of multiple counts of wire fraud and obstruction of correspondence. The trial took place before United States District Court Judge Malachy E. Mannion.
According to United States Attorney John C. Gurganus, Evans, Sr. and Evans, Jr. knowingly failed to operate and maintain the municipality’s wastewater treatment plant in accordance with regulations and limitations specified in a permit issued by the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection (PADEP) and the United States Environmental Protections Agency (EPA). The permit requires that the permittee at all times maintain in good working order, and properly operate and maintain all facilities and systems, which were installed and used by the permittee to achieve compliance with the terms and conditions of the permits. As a result of the defendants’ failures, pollutants were discharged in violation of the permit on multiple occasions.
Prosecutors from the U.S. Attorney’s Office and the EPA presented testimony from 34 witnesses over the course of a trial that began on November 15, 2021 and ended on December 17, 2021. Witnesses included Greenfield Township Sewer Authority (GTSA) board members, Greenfield Township Supervisors, FBI and EPA Special Agents, and multiple PADEP inspectors and supervisors.
Throughout the time covered by the charges, Evans, Sr. was a Greenfield Township Supervisor, a Greenfield Township employee, a GTSA Board Member, and Manager of the GTSA. Evans, Jr. was an employee of Greenfield Township and the GTSA. Evans, Sr. was convicted of twenty (20) counts of Clean Water Act violations; four (4) counts of wire fraud involving the misappropriation of GTSA funds for his personal benefit and the benefit of his family; and four (4) counts of obstruction of PADEP certified mail addressed to his fellow GTSA board members but intercepted by Evans, Sr. Evans, Jr. was convicted of four (4) counts of Clean Water Act violations, and one (1) count of submitting a false statement to the PADEP related to representations and certifications made by Evans, Jr. regarding his professional work experience.
The evidence presented at trial established that after many years of permit non-compliance at the GTSA, the EPA and FBI initiated a criminal investigation in late 2013, which involved the use of covert cameras positioned to surveil activity at the actual GTSA facility and a pump station located on Route 106 in Greenfield Township. The investigation uncovered repeated warnings about deficient facility inspections, permit non-compliance, community complaints about foul odors and visible raw sewage routinely overflowing from the Route 106 pump station, and false statements reported to the PADEP by both Evans Sr. and Evans, Jr. It was also learned that information concerning deficient plant operations and clean water act violations was routinely conveyed directly to Evans, Sr. as the GTSA’s responsible corporate officer from the PADEP, but Evans, Sr. concealed that information from his fellow GTSA board members over a period of many years.
The investigation was jointly conducted by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency - Criminal Investigations Division, the Federal Bureau of Investigation – Scranton Field Office, and the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection - Northeast Region. Assistant U.S. Attorney Michelle Olshefski and EPA Attorneys W. Martin Harrell and Patricia C. Miller prosecuted the case.
The maximum penalty under federal law for wire fraud is 20 years’ imprisonment, a term of supervised release following imprisonment, and a fine. The Obstruction of Correspondence violations carry a maximum of 5 years’ imprisonment. The Clean Water Act violations carry a maximum of 3 years’ imprisonment. Under the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, the Judge is also required to consider and weigh a number of factors, including the nature, circumstances and seriousness of the offense; the history and characteristics of the defendant; and the need to punish the defendant, protect the public and provide for the defendant’s educational, vocational and medical needs. For these reasons, the statutory maximum penalty for the offense is not an accurate indicator of the potential sentence for a specific defendant.
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Former Child Protective Officer Sentenced to over Seven Years in Federal Prison for Receipt and Possession of Child PornographyRead the Press Release
Greenbelt, Maryland – U.S. District Judge Stephanie A. Gallagher sentenced Haitian national Jean Buteau Remarque, age 40, of Greenbelt, Maryland, today to 90 months in federal prison, followed by 10 years of supervised release, for two counts of receipt of child pornography and one count of possession of child pornography. The jury convicted Remarque late on March 25, 2021 after a four-day trial. Judge Gallagher also ordered that, upon his release from prison, Remarque must register as a sex offender in the places where he resides, where he is an employee, and where he is a student, under the Sex Offender Registration and Notification Act (SORNA).
The sentence was announced by United States Attorney for the District of Maryland Erek L. Barron; Special Agent in Charge James R. Mancuso of Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) Baltimore; and Colonel Woodrow W. Jones III, Superintendent of the Maryland State Police.
According to testimony presented at his four-day trial, Remarque previously held positions at the International Bureau of Children’s Rights in Montreal, Canada, and as a Child Protective Officer for the United Nations in Africa. In May 2018, law enforcement received information that Remarque was engaging in sexually explicit conversations with a 15-year-old female. In addition, Remarque was believed to have sexually explicit images of prepubescent minors on his cell phone. On July 17, 2018, a federal search warrant was executed at Remarque’s residence in Greenbelt. Investigators recovered an external hard drive that contained files that had been copied from one of Remarque’s phones. The evidence presented at trial proved that on November 16 and November 22, 2017, Remarque received sexually explicit images of minors. Further, the evidence showed that the files included a collection of approximately 311 images and two videos of child pornography, including sexually explicit images depicting prepubescent minors.
This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by the United States Attorney’s Offices and the Criminal Division's Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who sexually exploit children, and to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.justice.gov/psc. For more information about Internet safety education, please visit www.justice.gov/psc and click on the "Resources" tab on the left of the page.
United States Attorney Erek L. Barron commended HSI and the Maryland State Police for their work in the investigation. Mr. Barron thanked Assistant U.S. Attorney Timothy Hagan, who prosecuted the case.
For more information on the Maryland U.S. Attorney’s Office, its priorities, and resources available to help the community, please visit www.justice.gov/usao-md/project-safe-childhood and https://www.justice.gov/usao-md/community-outreach.
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Federal Jury Convicts Charlotte Man of Armed Robbery and Firearms OffensesRead the Press Release
CHARLOTTE, N.C. – A federal jury handed down a guilty verdict today against Valentino Cabral Darosa, 29, of Charlotte, for the armed robbery of a local business and related firearms offenses, announced Dena J. King, U.S. Attorney for the Western District of North Carolina.
Robert R. Wells, Special Agent in Charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), Charlotte Division, and Chief Johnny Jennings of the Charlotte Mecklenburg Police Department (CMPD) join U.S. Attorney King in making today’s announcement.
According to filed court documents, evidence introduced at trial and witness testimony, on October 23, 2020, CMPD officers responded to a robbery service call at Atlantic Metals Xchange, located at 11318 N. Community House Road, in Charlotte. The store owner, identified in court documents as M.S., told officers at the scene that prior to opening for business an individual later identified as Darosa approached the store and knocked on the door. When M.S. did not immediately answer, Darosa walked away. M.S. went outside and approached Darosa. Following a short exchange, Darosa produced a firearm and forced M.S. into the business and into a back room. As trial evidence established, Darosa ordered M.S. to unplug the surveillance system’s recorder, then handcuffed M.S. and opened the safes. Darosa began stealing items from the safes and proceeded to duct-tape M.S.’s hands and ankles together. Darosa took approximately $133,980 in property and cash and the surveillance system hard drive. Darosa also took M.S.’s backpack, which contained a firearm, cash, and the victim’s wallet. After Darosa fled the scene, M.S. managed to free himself and call 911 for assistance. On November 5, 2020, CMPD officers arrested Darosa at his apartment in Charlotte. During a search of Darosa’s apartment and vehicle, law enforcement recovered several items Darosa had stolen from the business.
Court records show that Darosa was on post-release supervision when he committed the armed robbery. He also has multiple felony convictions in Mecklenburg and Cabarrus Counties and he is prohibited from possessing a firearm.
Darosa was convicted of robbery of a business affecting interstate commerce, or Hobbs Act Robbery, using or carrying a firearm during and in relation to a crime of violence, and possession of a firearm by a felon. He is currently in federal custody. A sentencing date has not been set.
In making today’s announcement U.S. Attorney King thanked the FBI and CMPD for their investigation of the case.
Assistant U.S. Attorneys Christopher Hess and Dana Washington are in charge of the prosecution.
Essex County Man Sentenced to Three Years in Prison for Unlawfully Possessing Firearm and Conspiring to Defraud Banks of over $250,000 Using Stolen Credit Cards and Blank ChecksRead the Press Release
NEWARK, N.J. – An Essex County, New Jersey, man was sentenced today to 36 months in prison for illegally possessing a firearm and conspiring to defraud two banks of $250,000 using stolen credit cards and blank checks, U.S. Attorney Philip R. Sellinger announced.
Tamir Duval, 23, of Newark, previously pleaded guilty by videoconference before U.S. District Judge Susan D. Wigenton to an indictment charging him with one count of illegal possession of a firearm by a previously convicted felon, and to an information charging him with conspiracy to commit bank fraud. Judge Wigenton imposed the sentence today by videoconference.
According to documents filed in this case and statements made in court:
On July 27, 2020, Duval unlawfully possessed a Taurus PT740 semi-automatic handgun loaded with seven hollow nose rounds of ammunition. The firearm had been reported stolen from Gastonia, Georgia. Duval was previously convicted in Essex County Superior Court of receiving stolen property, a felony under state law.
From August 2018 through January 2020, Duval and others engaged in a scheme to use stolen credit cards and checks to fraudulently make purchases and withdraw money from two banks, leaving the banks to bear the losses of the scheme.
The credit cards and blank checks were stolen from various New Jersey-based postal facilities and never reached their intended recipients. Duval and his conspirators used the credit cards and checks to make unauthorized purchases at various retail stores and withdraw cash from automated teller machines (ATMs) in New Jersey and elsewhere. Duval and his conspirators altered the date, payee, and amount of the stolen checks prior to deposit and then fraudulently withdrew money at various ATMs from third-party account holders’ accounts.
In addition to the prison term, Judge Wigenton sentenced Duval to five years of supervised release.
U.S. Attorney Sellinger credited the Essex County Prosecutor’s Office, under the direction of Acting Prosecutor Theodore N. Stephens II; the East Orange Police Department, under the direction of Chief Phyllis Bindi; inspectors of the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, under the direction of Acting Inspector in Charge Raimundo Marrero in Newark; and special agents of the U.S. Attorney’s Office, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Thomas Mahoney, with the investigation leading to today’s sentencing.
The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorney Blake Coppotelli of the U.S. Attorney’s Office Economic Crimes Unit in Newark.
Eastern District of Wisconsin U.S. Attorney’s Office Collects over $10 Million in Civil and Criminal Actions in Fiscal Year 2021Read the Press Release
United States Attorney Richard G. Frohling announced on December 20, 2021, that the Eastern District of Wisconsin collected $10,974, 686.11 in criminal and civil actions in Fiscal Year 2021. Of this amount, $4,795,841.29 was collected in criminal actions and $6,178,844.82 was collected in civil actions.
Additionally, the Eastern District of Wisconsin worked with other U.S. Attorney’s Offices and components of the Department of Justice to collect an additional $385,794.19 in cases pursued jointly by these offices. Of this amount, $15,007.92 was collected in criminal actions and $370,786.27 was collected in civil actions.
“Everyone in the U.S. Attorney’s Office in this district works diligently to protect the taxpayers and make crime victims whole,” said U.S. Attorney Frohling. “We are committed to recovering any funds owed to the United States, collecting restitution for victims, and ensuring that wrongdoers do not profit from their criminal activities.”
The U.S. Attorneys’ Offices, along with the department’s litigating divisions, are responsible for enforcing and collecting civil and criminal debts owed to the U.S. and criminal debts owed to federal crime victims. The law requires defendants to pay restitution to victims of certain federal crimes who have suffered a physical injury or financial loss. While restitution is paid to the victim, criminal fines and felony assessments are paid to the department’s Crime Victims Fund, which distributes the funds collected to federal and state victim compensation and victim assistance programs.
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EDVA Takes Action Against COVID-19 Fraud in 2021Read the Press Release
ALEXANDRIA, Va. – Today Jessica D. Aber, United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia, announced an update on the Eastern District of Virginia’s criminal and civil enforcement efforts to combat COVID-19 related fraud, including schemes targeting the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP), Economic Injury Disaster Loan (EIDL) program and Unemployment Insurance (UI) programs.
“In the past year, Virginians have endured the physical, mental, and economic hardship brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic,” said Aber. “Within the last year, we have stood firm in our commitment to protect the programs implemented by Congress to assist community members suffering from the economic effects of this pandemic and, going forward, will continue to aggressively prosecute those who steal taxpayers’ funds.”
Since the start of 2021, EDVA has charged over 30 defendants with criminal offenses based on fraud schemes connected to the COVID-19 pandemic. These cases involve attempts to defraud over $105 million from the U.S. government and unsuspecting private individuals. The success of these cases reflects a degree of reach, coordination, and expertise emblematic of EDVA’s and the Justice Department’s response to COVID-19-related fraud.
In March 2020, Congress passed a $2.2 trillion economic relief bill known as the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act, designed to provide emergency financial assistance to the millions of Americans who are suffering the economic effects caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. Anticipating the need to protect the integrity of these taxpayer funds and to otherwise protect Americans from fraud related to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Department of Justice immediately stood up multiple efforts dedicated to identifying, investigating, and prosecuting such fraud.
On criminal matters, EDVA’s efforts to combat COVID-19-related fraud schemes in 2021 have proceeded on numerous fronts, including:
- Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) fraud: The PPP fraud cases charged in EDVA this year involve a range of conduct, from individual business owners who inflated their payroll expenses to obtain larger loans than they otherwise would have qualified for, to a serial fraudster applying for multiple loans using false claims about business entities and income. Most charged defendants misappropriated loan proceeds for prohibited purposes, such as the purchase of houses, cars, Cessna aircraft, jewelry, and other luxury items. In one case, U.S. v. Andrew Tezna, a Senior Executive Service (SES) employee of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) was sentenced for submitting fraudulent applications for over $357,000 in PPP relief loans and COVID-19 benefits.
- Economic Injury Disaster Loans (EIDL) fraud: EDVA has also focused on fraud against the EIDL program, which was designed to provide loans to small businesses, agricultural and non-profit entities. Nationally, fraudsters have targeted the program by applying for EIDL advances and loans on behalf of ineligible, newly created, shell, or non-existent businesses, and diverting the funds for illegal purposes. In U.S. v. Joseph Cherry, a repeat fraudster was sentenced in EDVA for engaging in an EIDL and PPP loan fraud scheme while under federal supervision, with an intended loss to the government of nearly $232,000.
- Unemployment Insurance (UI) fraud: Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, more than $860 billion in federal funds were appropriated for UI benefits through September 2021. Early investigation and analysis indicate that international organized criminal groups have targeted these funds by using stolen identities to file for UI benefits. Domestic fraudsters, ranging from identity thieves to prison inmates, have also committed UI fraud. In U.S. v. Mary Benton et al, the defendant operated a fraudulent scheme to obtain nearly $437,000 in pandemic-related unemployment benefits by using the personal identifying information of over 30 Virginia prison inmates.
- Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) fraud: EDVA charged and prosecuted criminals who exploited the nation’s need for personal protective equipment (PPE) required to protect medical professionals and the public from contracting and spreading COVID-19. These schemes often offered to sell scarce PPE, such as N95 respirator masks, to various medical supply companies, government entities, and consumers. For example, in U.S. v. Robert Stewart, the defendant falsely stated to multiple Federal Government agencies that he was in possession of large quantities of PPE, thus putting him in the position to obtain contracts with the Department of Veteran’s Affairs (VA) and the Federal Emergency Management Agency valued at $35.1 million and $3.5 million, respectively.
- Economic Impact Payments (Stimulus Checks) Fraud: EDVA has also worked to investigate and prosecute fraudsters who attempted financial scams, counterfeiting of checks, and mail, and identity theft targeting COVID-19 stimulus checks. In U.S. v. Jonathan Drew, the defendant stole U.S. mail addressed to more than 150 individuals in EDVA, stealing more than $700,000 in checks, including $1,200 in COVID-19 stimulus payments and checks which the defendant further used to create counterfeit stimulus checks.
EDVA has also worked to shut down fraudulent websites that were facilitating consumer scams related to COVID-19 and has taken scores of actions to disrupt financial networks supporting such scams. For example, EDVA announced the seizure of seven websites used to collect personal information and that sought to exploit the increased interest in vaccines, treatments, and employment opportunities associated with the COVID-19 pandemic.
EDVA has also used numerous civil tools to address fraud in connection with CARES Act programs. For example, EDVA obtained a civil settlement of $230,414.65 with KC Investments Group, Inc. and its owner for fraud involving Paycheck Protection Program loans.
"We are dedicated to preserving the integrity of these programs that were designed and implemented to assist citizens during a time of uncertainty and strain related to the COVID pandemic; and will continue to work with our partners to investigate and hold accountable those who manipulate these government resources for personal gain,” said Stanley M. Meador, Special Agent in Charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) Richmond Field Office.
“The NASA Office of Inspector General is committed to working with the EDVA in aggressively investigating allegations of wrongdoing targeting PPP, EIDL, and UI programs,” said Robert Steinau, Assistant Inspector General for Investigations for NASA. “We will continue to pursue and hold those accountable that defraud these crucial programs.”
“Through the dedicated efforts of Special Agents around the world, HSI conducted investigations into the sale of counterfeit personal protective equipment, disrupted financial fraud schemes that exploited COVID-19 relief programs, shut down websites that defrauded consumers, and interdicted shipments of dangerous prohibited pharmaceuticals and medical supplies through Operation Stolen Promise,” said Ray Villanueva, Special Agent in Charge of Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), Washington, D.C. “These efforts help protect American citizens from the transnational criminal organizations who seek to exploit the COVID-19 pandemic for financial gain.”
“Those who commit Covid fraud are robbing taxpayers while hurting the people who truly needed the financial support,” said Darrell Waldon, Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigation (IRS-CI) Special Agent in Charge, Washington DC Field Office. “We will continue to prioritize COVID-19 fraud investigations and ensure those who commit it are brought to justice.”
“Each day, the OIG stands beside the nation’s robust diverse small business community by safeguarding the unique SBA programs established to support their development and growth,” said the Small Business Administration’s (SBA) Office of Inspector General’s Eastern Region Special Agent in Charge, Amaleka McCall-Brathwaite. “OIG remains committed to rooting out bad actors and protecting the integrity of SBA programs every day. I want to thank the U.S. Attorney’s Office and our law enforcement partners for their dedication and pursuit of justice.”
“Initiatives like our Newport News Financial Crimes Task Force were created to crack down on various white-collar crimes, to include COVID-19 related fraud schemes. Our continued partnerships with area law enforcement, prosecutors and financial institutions will assist us in identifying and prosecuting those who commit pandemic-related fraud offenses involving the U.S. Mail,” said Daniel Adame, Postal Inspector in Charge of the Washington Division.
“So long as criminals continue to exploit pandemic relief programs, the U.S. Secret Service will continue to investigate and identify them for prosecution,” said U.S. Secret Service Special Agent in Charge Jerald Page. “The protection of our national economy and financial infrastructure has remained a critical part of our mission for more than 150 years, and our dedicated investigators will continue to work tirelessly to ensure that protection from any and all threats.”
“COVID-19 demands have created a climate for bad actors to pursue unique and considerable opportunities for fraud," said VA Inspector General Michael J. Missal. “This office is actively engaging with our law enforcement partners to identify those who would capitalize on this pandemic to steal from veterans and taxpayers.”
“An important mission of the Office of Inspector General is to investigate allegations of fraud related to Unemployment Insurance programs,” stated Troy W. Springer, Acting Special Agent-in-Charge, Washington Region, U.S. Department of Labor Office of Inspector General. “We will continue to work with the U.S. Attorney’s Office, our law enforcement partners, and the Virginia Employment Commission, to protect the integrity of programs intended for unemployed American workers, including those who continue to be affected by the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.”
Some of the major COVID-19-related cases prosecuted by EDVA in 2021 are as follows:
Case Name
Case #
Program Targeted
Intended Loss to Taxpayer
U.S. v. Punelli*
1:21-cr-224
PPP, EIDL
$55,606,000
U.S. v. Stewart
1:21-cr-5
PPP, EIDL, PPE
$39,576,500
U.S. v. Mitchums*
4:21-cr-85
PPP, EIDL
$5,100,000
U.S. v. Kindambu
1:20-cr-260
PPP
$2,501,753
U.S. v. Noel*
4:21-cr-72
UI
$469,635
U.S. v. Benton et al.
2:21-cr-33
UI
$436,834
U.S. v. Tezna
1:21-cr-77
PPP, EIDL, UI
$357,734
U.S. v. Suber
2:20-cr-110
PPP
$350,000
U.S. v. Cherry
4:20-cr-27
PPP, EIDL
$231,900
KC Investments
Civil Settlement
PPP
$230,414
U.S. v. Smith
3:21-cr-60
UI
$223,984
U.S. v. Khan*
1:21-cr-207
EIDL
$110,000
U.S. v. Tierney et al
3:21-cr-32
UI
$74,805
U.S. v. Jefferson
4:20-cr-64
EIDL
$25,000
U.S. v. Drew
1:21-cr-71
Stimulus
$1,200
*pending sentencing
In addition to these efforts, the Newport News Financial Crimes Task Force, led by the U.S. Postal Inspection Service (USPIS) and in partnership with EDVA, the FBI Norfolk Field office through its Resident Agency in Newport News, and the Washington Regional Office of the U.S. Department of Labor Office of Inspector General (DOL-OIG), have launched a joint pandemic counter-fraud operation focused on the Virginia Peninsula region. This collaborative initiative targets the trend of criminal organizations and networks incorporating pandemic-related fraud into their other illegal activities. As of December 13, 2021, this operation has successfully initiated 21 investigations, resulting in 14 individuals charged in 7 criminal cases, with identified losses of over $800,000 related to the charged cases. An additional 14 cases remain ongoing and active.
All these efforts have been made possible through the diligent work of a wide range of law enforcement partners from the FBI (Washington, Norfolk and Richmond Field Offices), DOL-OIG, U.S. Secret Service, IRS-CI, Defense Criminal Investigative Service, HSI, USPIS, the Offices of Inspectors General from SBA, Department of Homeland Security, Social Security Administration, Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, NASA, Department of Health and Human Services, and the VA.
On May 17, 2021, the Attorney General established the COVID-19 Fraud Enforcement Task Force to marshal the resources of the Department of Justice in partnership with agencies across the government to enhance efforts to combat and prevent pandemic-related fraud. The Virginia Coronavirus Fraud Task Force is a federal and state partnership led by the Eastern and Western Districts of Virginia along with fraud investigators from the FBI and Virginia State Police. The task force’s mission is to identify, investigate, and prosecute fraud related to the ongoing pandemic. The task force reviews and investigates all credible leads of fraud associated with COVID-19, focusing on schemes to exploit vulnerable populations, including the elderly and concerned citizens.
EDVA continues its fight against COVID-19 related fraud. To report a COVID-19-related fraud scheme or suspicious activity, contact the National Center for Disaster Fraud (NCDF) by calling the NCDF Hotline at 1-866-720-5721 or via the NCDF Web Complaint Form at https://www.justice.gov/disaster-fraud/ncdf-disaster-complaint-form.
A copy of this press release is located on the website of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Virginia. Related court documents and information are located on the website of the District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia.
Des Moines Woman Sentenced to Federal Prison for Fentanyl Overdose DeathRead the Press Release
DES MOINES, IA – On Thursday, December 16, 2021, Tonia Sue White, age 41, of Des Moines, was sentenced by United States District Court Judge Rebecca Goodgame Ebinger to 188 months in prison for distributing a controlled substance which resulted in death. White previously pleaded guilty to the charge.
On June 17, 2020, members of the Des Moines Police Department were dispatched to a Walgreens in Des Moines for a drug overdose. The victim was rushed to the hospital and was later pronounced dead. Members of the Des Moines Police Department Vice-Narcotics Unit made contact with the victim’s associate, who was with the victim at the time of the overdose, who provided information that led detectives to White. In a post-Miranda interview, White admitted to distributing a quantity of heroin to the victim’s associate, which was shared with the victim. Lab results indicated the substance White distributed was a heroin and fentanyl mixture.
United States Attorney Richard D. Westphal of the Southern District of Iowa made the announcement. The investigation was conducted by the Des Moines Police Department. The case was prosecuted by the United States Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Iowa.
Des Moines Man Sentenced to over 12 Years in Prison for His Role in Importing Methamphetamine from Mexico to IowaRead the Press Release
A Des Moines man who was involved in the importation and distribution of multiple kilograms of methamphetamine was sentenced on December 17, 2021, to over twelve years in federal prison.
Jack Mazariegos-Galicia, age 20, from Des Moines, Iowa, received the prison sentence after a May 24, 2021 guilty plea to conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine.
Evidence at the plea and sentencing hearings showed that, beginning in 2017, law enforcement was investigating a large-scale methamphetamine organization operating out of Mexico. The head of the organization, Mario Hernandez, was in Mexico and worked with others, including Mazariegos-Galicia, to transport kilogram quantities of methamphetamine from Mexico to Iowa. In June 2020, law enforcement conducted a traffic stop of a vehicle occupied by Mazariegos-Galicia and an associate. The stop took place outside of Des Moines and the vehicle had travelled from Texas. Inside the vehicle, officers located nearly 5,000 grams of pure “ice” methamphetamine. Mazariegos-Galicia and his associated had picked up the methamphetamine in Texas and drove it back to Iowa for it to be distributed in Iowa. In total, Mazariegos-Galicia’s role in the group involved over 43,000 grams of methamphetamine.
Mazariegos-Galicia was sentenced in Cedar Rapids by United States District Court Judge C.J. Williams. Mazariegos-Galicia was sentenced to 151 months’ imprisonment. He must also serve a five-year term of supervised release after the prison term. There is no parole in the federal system.
The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Ashley Corkery and Emily Nydle. This case was investigated as part of the Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF) program of the United States Department of Justice through a cooperative effort of the Mid-Iowa Task Force (Marshall County Sheriff’s Office, Tama County Sheriff’s Office, Marshalltown Police Department), Iowa National Guard and Counter Drug Program, Tri-County Task Force (Cedar Falls Police Department, Waterloo Police Department, Black Hawk County Sheriff’s Office), the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the FBI Safe Streets Task Force, the Drug Enforcement Administration, Iowa Division of Narcotics Enforcement, and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives.
Court file information at https://ecf.iand.uscourts.gov/cgi-bin/login.pl.
The case file number is 20-CR-2034.
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Delray Beach Man Sentenced to 17 Years in Prison for Bank Fraud, False Statements, and Aggravated Identity Theft Involving COVID-19 Relief ProgramsRead the Press Release
GAINESVILLE, FLORIDA – Jason R. Coody, Acting United States Attorney for the Northern District of Florida announced the sentencing of Jeremie Saintvil, 46, of Delray Beach, Florida. Saintvil was sentenced to a total of 17 years in prison followed by five years of supervised release. Further, Saintvil was ordered to pay $1,560,628.38 in restitution to several banks, credit unions, and credit card companies, and to the United States Small Business Administration (SBA).
Saintvil’s sentence was the result of an eight-day jury trial that resulted in guilty verdicts on September 24, 2021. Saintvil was found guilty of bank fraud, making false statements to a federally insured financial institution, aggravated identity theft, and making false statements to a federal agency.
“The theft of vital taxpayer relief funds and victimization of our elderly is reprehensible,” stated Acting U.S. Attorney Coody. “The deceptive and sophisticated acts of this defendant not only diverted emergency financial assistance from small businesses necessary for job retention, but also victimized our elderly citizens, many of whom due to advanced age or illness, were more vulnerable and unable to readily discern their identities had been stolen and used for illegal acts. With the assistance of our dedicated law enforcement partners, we are committed to investigating and prosecuting those who engage in acts of elder abuse and covid-related fraud.”
Between February 2018 and June 2020, Saintvil submitted fraudulent applications seeking more than $1.5 million in Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) and Economic Injury Disaster (EIDL) loans offered by the SBA. As part of his scheme, Saintvil fraudulently obtained the identities of elderly individuals who were residents of senior living facilities, whom he then represented were principles in the fictitious businesses seeking the forgivable loans. The fraudulent applications, which were directed to nine different federally insured credit unions, banks, and the SBA, misrepresented the number of employees and payroll expenses of the alleged companies, and made numerous other inaccurate statements in support of the PPP and EIDL loan applications, including submitting falsified tax documents and bank account information.
“Today’s sentencing is the final chapter in this investigation and can hopefully begin the healing process for all of those impacted by the defendant’s nefarious actions,” said IRS Criminal Investigation Special Agent in Charge Brian Payne. “We will continue to investigate criminals like Saintvil who steal identities, rob vital taxpayer relief funds, and victimize the elderly.”
The Coronavirus Aid Relief and Economic Security (CARES) Act is a federal law enacted March 29, 2020. It is designed to provide emergency financial assistance to millions of Americans who are suffering the economic effects resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic. One source of relief provided by the CARES Act is the authorization of forgivable loans to small businesses for job retention and certain other expenses through the PPP. The Small Business Administration (SBA) guarantees PPP loans which are funded by participating financial institutions. The PPP allows qualifying small businesses and other organizations to receive loans with a maturity of two years and an interest rate of one percent. Businesses must use PPP loan proceeds for payroll costs, interest on mortgages, rent and utilities. The PPP then allows the interest and principal to be forgiven if businesses spent the loan proceeds on qualifying expenses within a set time-period and used at least a certain percentage of the loan proceeds for payroll expenses.
“In a time of national turmoil and uncertainty, this defendant flagrantly defrauded programs intended to assist Americans and their businesses,” said Sean T. Ryan, Acting Special Agent in Charge of the FBI Jacksonville Division. “His total disregard for his fellow citizens during the pandemic – especially vulnerable elders – revealed his true colors as a fraudster. The FBI will continue to allocate resources to investigate COVID-19 and elder fraud, and work alongside our partners to hold accountable those who use illegal means and criminal behavior to take advantage of others.”
“Lying to gain access to SBA’s pandemic response programs is not without consequence,” said SBA OIG’s Eastern Region Special Agent in Charge Amaleka McCall-Brathwaite. “Our office will aggressively pursue evidence of wrongdoing and bring those responsible to justice. I want to thank the U.S. Attorney’s Office and our law enforcement partners for their dedication and pursuit of justice.”
This conviction was the result of a joint investigation by Internal Revenue Service - Criminal Investigations, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, and the SBA-Office of Inspector General. Assistant United States Attorneys Justin M. Keen and David Byron 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.
Since President Trump signed the bipartisan Elder Abuse Prevention and Prosecution Act (EAPPA) into law, the Department of Justice has participated in hundreds of enforcement actions in criminal and civil cases that targeted or disproportionately affected seniors. In particular, this past March the Department announced the largest elder fraud enforcement action in American history, charging more than 400 defendants in a nationwide elder fraud sweep. The Department has likewise conducted hundreds of trainings and outreach sessions across the country since the passage of the Act. Learn more about the Justice Department’s Elder Justice and National Nursing Home Initiatives at http://www.justice.gov/elderjustice/.
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 for the Northern District of Florida, visit http://www.justice.gov/usao/fln/index.html.
Danville Man Pleads Guilty to Federal Charges from Virginia, North CarolinaRead the Press Release
DANVILLE, VA - A Danville, Virginia man, who spent two years as a fugitive after embezzling $600,000 from a Danville credit union before being arrested in Durham, North Carolina, pleaded guilty today to federal charges stemming from his conduct in both Virginia and North Carolina.
Jorge Omar Navarro, 30, pleaded guilty today in federal court in the Middle District of North Carolina to one count of possession with intent to distribute cocaine and one count of possession of firearms in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime for his conduct in Durham. Navarro also pleaded guilty to federal charges arising out of the Western District of Virginia: one count of embezzlement and one count of using counterfeit currency with the intent to commit fraud for his conduct in Danville.
“A unique course of criminality culminated in today’s guilty plea, which ensures that the defendant will be sentenced for the entire range of his misconduct,” said Sandra J. Hairston, United States Attorney for the Middle District of North Carolina. “Credit for putting an end to the spree goes to officers of the Durham Police Department, whose thoroughness revealed that the defendant was in fact a drug trafficker and a fugitive from justice.”
“This defendant used his position of trust within the credit union to gain access to large sums of money only to abuse that trust in the name of greed,” United States Attorney Chris Kavanaugh of the Western District of Virginia said today. “Fortunately, the men and women of the Danville Police Department acted swiftly and were able to keep all of the counterfeit bills in this case from making their way into circulation.”
Navarro was the head teller at a branch of URW Federal Credit Union in Danville. As head teller, Navarro had access to the vault and authority to order money for the branch. In September 2018, Navarro fled after taking $600,000 in cash from the credit union’s vaults and replacing it with counterfeit bills. Navarro spent two years as a fugitive.
Navarro remined a fugitive until March 2021, when the Durham Police Department in North Carolina responded to a report of shots fired and found a man (later identified as Navarro) covered in blood who claimed to have been robbed at gunpoint. After obtaining a search warrant for the premises, they located multiple firearms, kilograms of cocaine and marijuana, drug paraphernalia, and $74,000 in cash. Navarro later admitted to investigators that he obtained the cash by selling drugs and confirmed his true identity, admitting that he had been using an alias after an incident with a bank in Virginia.
He is scheduled to be sentenced on June 21, 2022, and faces a minimum of ten years in prison and a maximum penalty of life. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
The Danville Police Department, the United States Secret Service, the Durham Police Department, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives, and Homeland Security Investigations investigated the case.
The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Eric L. Iverson for the Middle District of North Carolina and Rachel Barish Swartz for the Western District of Virginia.
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Danville Man Pleads Guilty to Federal Charges from Virginia, North CarolinaRead the Press Release
DANVILLE, Va. – A Danville, Virginia man, who spent two years as a fugitive after embezzling $600,000 from a Danville credit union before being arrested in Durham, North Carolina, pleaded guilty today to federal charges stemming from his conduct in both Virginia and North Carolina.
Jorge Omar Navarro, 30, pleaded guilty today in federal court in the Middle District of North Carolina to one count of possession with intent to distribute cocaine and one count of possession of firearms in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime for his conduct in Durham. Navarro also pleaded guilty to federal charges arising out of the Western District of Virginia: one count of embezzlement and one count of using counterfeit currency with the intent to commit fraud for his conduct in Danville.
“A unique course of criminality culminated in today’s guilty plea, which ensures that the defendant will be sentenced for the entire range of his misconduct,” said Sandra J. Hairston, United States Attorney for the Middle District of North Carolina. “Credit for putting an end to the spree goes to officers of the Durham Police Department, whose thoroughness revealed that the defendant was in fact a drug trafficker and a fugitive from justice.
“This defendant used his position of trust within the credit union to gain access to large sums of money only to abuse that trust in the name of greed,” United States Attorney Chris Kavanaugh of the Western District of Virginia said today. “Fortunately, the men and women of the Danville Police Department acted swiftly and were able to keep all of the counterfeit bills in this case from making their way into circulation.”
Navarro was the head teller at a branch of URW Federal Credit Union in Danville. As head teller, Navarro had access to the vault and authority to order money for the branch. In September 2018, Navarro fled after taking $600,000 in cash from the credit union’s vaults and replacing it with counterfeit bills. Navarro spent two years as a fugitive.
Navarro remined a fugitive until March 2021, when the Durham Police Department in North Carolina responded to a report of shots fired and found a man (later identified as Navarro) covered in blood who claimed to have been robbed at gunpoint. After obtaining a search warrant for the premises, they located multiple firearms, kilograms of cocaine and marijuana, drug paraphernalia, and $74,000 in cash. Navarro later admitted to investigators that he obtained the cash by selling drugs and confirmed his true identity, admitting that he had been using an alias after an incident with a bank in Virginia.
At sentencing, he faces a minimum of ten years in prison and a maximum penalty of life. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
The Danville Police Department, the United States Secret Service, the Durham Police Department, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives, and Homeland Security Investigations investigated the case.
The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Eric L. Iverson for the Middle District of North Carolina and Rachel Barish Swartz for the Western District of Virginia.
Council Bluffs Man Sentenced to Prison for Firearm OffenseRead the Press Release
COUNCIL BLUFFS, IA – A Council Bluffs man, Jaime Antonio Hernandez, Jr., age 28, was sentenced on December 14, 2021, by United States District Court Chief Judge John A. Jarvey to 84 months in prison for Prohibited Person in Possession of a Firearm. His term of imprisonment is to be followed by three years of supervised release.
In June of 2020 law enforcement located Hernandez in an apartment in Council Bluffs. Hernandez was found to be in possession of a firearm, methamphetamine and drug paraphernalia. Hernandez pleaded guilty to Prohibited Person in Possession of a Firearm in February of 2021.
United States Attorney Richard D. Westphal of the Southern District of Iowa made the announcement. The Iowa Division of Narcotics Enforcement, Pottawattamie County Sheriff’s Office, Council Bluffs Police Department, and Omaha Police Department investigated the case.