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8 November 2021
Man Who Illegally Possessed a Gun Sent to Federal PrisonRead the Press Release
A man who illegally possessed three firearms was sentenced to over three years in federal prison.
Jonathon Sotres-De La O, age 20, from Sioux City, Iowa, received the prison term after a May 19, 2021, guilty plea to one count of possession of a firearm by an unlawful drug user and one count of receipt of a firearm by a person under indictment. At the time Sotres-De La O possessed the firearms and ammunition he knew he was an unlawful user of controlled substances.
Evidence at Sotres-De La O’s detention, change of plea, and sentencing hearings revealed that despite his young age Sotres-De La O was already a recidivist. In May of 2019, he received a deferred judgment in the Iowa District Court for Harrison County, but was unable to successfully complete the relatively short term of probation. In June of 2020, during an investigation of a shooting perpetrated by roommates and friends, Sotres-De La O was found in possession of a rifle, ammunition, illegal drugs, and drug use paraphernalia. He was charged federally with this crime, and he was released on pre-trial supervision to await trial. While on release, on March 6, 2021, Sotres-De La O was stopped by police while driving his car. Sotres-De La O was searched, and two boxes of ammunition were found in the glove box. A white backpack was also located in the car and it was searched. Two stolen handguns, marijuana, cocaine, and other items were found inside the bag.
Sotres-De La O was sentenced in Sioux City by United States District Court Chief Judge Leonard T. Strand. Sotres-De La O was sentenced to 46 months’ imprisonment. He must also serve a 6-month term of supervised release after the prison term. There is no parole in the federal system.
Sotres-De La O is being held in the United States Marshal’s custody until he can be transported to a federal prison.
This case was brought as part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN). PSN is the centerpiece of the Department of Justice’s violent crime reduction efforts. PSN is an evidence-based program proven to be effective at reducing violent crime. Through PSN, a broad spectrum of stakeholders work together to identify the most pressing violent crime problems in the community and develop comprehensive solutions to address them. As part of this strategy, PSN focuses enforcement efforts on the most violent offenders and partners with locally based prevention and reentry programs for lasting reductions in crime.
The case was investigated by the Sioux City, Iowa Police Department and the U.S. Department of Justice’s Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney.
Court file information at https://ecf.iand.uscourts.gov/cgi-bin/login.pl.
The case file number is 20-4079.
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Man Sentenced to Six Years in Federal Prison for Illegally Possessing Loaded Gun on Chicago StreetRead the Press Release
CHICAGO — A man has been sentenced to six years in federal prison for illegally possessing a loaded handgun on a Chicago street.
DONTA BAKER illegally possessed the gun on the evening of July 24, 2020, in the 2100 block of West 68th Street in Chicago’s West Englewood neighborhood. Chicago Police officers observed Baker standing on a sidewalk tugging at an object in his waistband and approached him to conduct an investigatory stop. Baker ran from the officers and tossed the gun over a fence into a residential backyard. The officers apprehended him a short time later.
Baker, 38, of Chicago, pleaded guilty in June to a federal charge of illegal possession of a firearm. Baker had previously been convicted of multiple firearm-related felonies in state court and was prohibited by federal law from possessing the gun. After pleading guilty and awaiting sentencing in the federal case, Baker violated the terms of his bond conditions when he removed his ankle monitor. He was quickly re-arrested and the bond was revoked.
U.S. District Judge Steven C. Seeger imposed the federal prison sentence Nov. 2, 2021, after a hearing in U.S. District Court in Chicago.
The sentence was announced by John R. Lausch, Jr., United States Attorney for the Northern District of Illinois; Kristen de Tineo, Special Agent-in-Charge of the Chicago Field Division of the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives; and David Brown, Superintendent of the Chicago Police Department.
“Defendant’s crime is not one of simple possession,” Assistant U.S. Attorney Saurish Appleby-Bhattacharjee argued in the government’s sentencing memorandum. “Particularly within this federal district – encompassing a city besieged by routine shootings and homicides – there is no simple possession of a loaded pistol by a convicted felon.”
Holding illegal firearm possessors accountable through federal prosecution is a centerpiece of Project Safe Neighborhoods, the Department of Justice’s violent crime reduction strategy. In the Northern District of Illinois, U.S. Attorney Lausch and law enforcement partners have deployed the PSN program to attack a broad range of violent crime issues facing the district, particularly firearm offenses.
Man Pleads Guilty to Robbing a Victim for Money and DrugsRead the Press Release
A Tulsa man pleaded guilty Monday in U.S. District Court for assaulting and threatening to kill a victim, robbing him of hundreds of dollars, then carjacking his vehicle, announced Acting U.S. Attorney Clint Johnson.
Merle Jason Lancaster Sr., 42, pleaded guilty to Robbery in Indian Country.
Lancaster Sr. admitted that on Feb. 3, 2021, he threatened to kill the victim and his family if he did not hand over money or drugs. Lancaster further assaulted the victim with a baseball bat in order to force the victim to comply with his demands. He then forced the victim into the victim’s vehicle. Lancaster and an accomplice drove the victim to a convenience store so the victim could withdraw several hundred dollars from an ATM machine. Video surveillance showed the victim and Lancaster entering the convenience store, the victim withdrawing money, and the victim handing over the cash to Lancaster as he stood over the victim. The three left the convenience store, and at some point, Lancaster and his accomplice forced the man out of the car and drove away.
U.S. District Judge Gregory K. Frizzell will sentence Lancaster at a hearing set for March 9, 2022. If Judge Frizzell accepts the plea agreement, the defendant will serve 90 months in federal prison.
The defendant is a citizen of the Cherokee Nation, and the crime occurred within the boundaries of the Muscogee Nation Reservation.
The Tulsa Police Department and FBI conducted the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney Justin G. Bish is prosecuting the case.
Looted Cambodian Antiquities in Denver Museum Are Subject of Forfeiture Action Filed in Manhattan Federal CourtRead the Press Release
Damian Williams, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, announced the filing of a civil complaint today seeking forfeiture of four looted Cambodian antiquities at a museum in Denver, Colorado, for the purpose of returning the antiquities to the Kingdom of Cambodia. The antiquities, which include a 12th to 13th century Khmer sandstone sculpture depicting Prajnaparamita, and a 7th to 8th century Khmer sandstone sculpture depicting Surya, were sold to the museum by antiquities dealer Douglas Latchford through the use of false provenance documents. The museum has voluntarily relinquished possession of the antiquities.
U.S. Attorney Damian Williams said: “As alleged, Douglas Latchford papered over the problematic provenance of Cambodian antiquities with falsehoods, in the process successfully placing stolen goods in the permanent collection of an American museum. Eradicating the illegal trade in stolen antiquities requires the vigilance of all parties in the art market, especially cultural institutions.”
According to the civil complaint filed in Manhattan federal court today:
The United States of America seeks the forfeiture of the following antiquities, currently in the possession of a museum located in Denver, Colorado (the “Museum”): (1) a 12th to 13th century Khmer sandstone sculpture depicting standing Prajnaparamita (“Prajnaparamita”), (2) a 7th to 8th century Khmer sandstone sculpture depicting standing Surya (“Surya”), (3) an Iron Age Dong Son bronze bell (the “Bell”), and (4) a 17th to 18th century sandstone lintel depicting the sleep of Vishnu and birth of Brahma (the “Lintel”). Together, the Prajnaparamita, Surya, Bell, and Lintel are the “Defendants in Rem.”
Investigators working for the Cambodian Ministry of Culture and Fine Arts and the United States Government have interviewed a Cambodian national who was previously engaged in the theft and looting of antiquities from Cambodian temples and archeological sites (“Looter-1”). Looter-1, a former member of the Khmer Rouge, led a group of approximately 450 people working in multiple teams to loot temples and archeological sites in Cambodia. Looter-1 has reviewed photographs of the Prajnaparamita, Surya, Bell, and Lintel, and recognized them as antiquities that Looter-1 and his team had stolen from archeological and religious sites in Cambodia.
The Museum acquired the Prajnaparamita, Surya, Bell, and Lintel from Douglas Latchford, a prominent collector and dealer in Southeast Asian art and antiquities who was previously indicted in this District with crimes related to a many-year scheme to sell looted Cambodian antiquities on the international art market. As alleged in the indictment, United States v. Latchford, 19 Cr. 748 (AT), as part of the scheme, Latchford created false provenance documents and false invoices and shipping documents for the antiquities he was selling. In September 2020, the indictment against Latchford was dismissed due to his death. Latchford was closely associated with a particular scholar of Khmer art (the “Scholar”). Over the years, the Scholar, who was a volunteer research consultant for the Museum, assisted Latchford on many occasions by verifying or vouching for the proffered provenance of Khmer antiquities that Latchford was trying to sell.
Latchford lied repeatedly to the Museum, in particular with regard to the provenance of the Prajnaparamita and Surya. Latchford provided false provenance for the Prajnaparamita and Surya, and made multiple misrepresentations and contradictory statements regarding when certain of the Defendants in Rem were shipped and imported into the United States. For example, Latchford told the Museum that he had purchased the Prajnaparamita from a particular art collector (the “False Collector”) in June 1999, who had in turn acquired the Prajnaparamita in Vietnam between 1964 and 1966. Other documents indicate that Latchford shipped the Prajnaparamita from Thailand to London in 1994, well before the June 1999 date, and that it entered the United States in May 2000, after the enactment of an embargo on the importation of Khmer stone antiquities.
The Museum has voluntarily agreed to relinquish possession of the Defendants in Rem to the United States in order for them to be repatriated to the Kingdom of Cambodia, and waived all claims of right, title, and interest in the Defendants in Rem.
* * *
Mr. Williams thanked Homeland Security Investigations for its outstanding work on this investigation, which he noted is ongoing, and praised its ongoing efforts to find and repatriate stolen and looted cultural property. Mr. Williams also thanked the Kingdom of Cambodia’s Ministry of Culture and Fine Arts for its assistance with this investigation.
This matter is being handled by the Office’s Money Laundering and Transnational Criminal Enterprises Unit. Assistant U. S. Attorney Jessica Feinstein is in charge of the case.
Kings County Woman Pleads Guilty to Stealing $87,000 in Social Security BenefitsRead the Press Release
FRESNO, Calif. — Deborah Rossoni, 58, of Lemoore, pleaded guilty today to stealing $87,000 in Social Security payments and agreed to pay full restitution to the Social Security Administration, Acting U.S. Attorney Phillip A. Talbert announced.
According to court documents, in July 2012, Rossoni’s father passed away, but the SSA was not notified of his death and continued direct depositing Social Security payments into his bank account until July 2018. During this time, Rossoni transferred the payments into her own bank accounts and then used the money for personal expenditures, including credit card bills and house repairs.
This case is the product of an investigation by the SSA Office of Inspector General. Assistant U.S. Attorney Joseph Barton is prosecuting the case.
Rossoni is scheduled to be sentenced by U.S. District Judge Dale A. Drozd on Feb. 14, 2022. She faces a maximum statutory penalty of 10 years in prison and a $250,000 fine. The actual sentence, however, will be determined at the discretion of the court after consideration of any applicable statutory factors and the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, which take into account several variables.
Justice Department Files Complaint Against Professional Compounding Centers of America Inc., for Reporting Fraudulent Pricing Information for Ingredients Sold to PharmaciesRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON – The Justice Department has filed a complaint under the False Claims Act against Professional Compounding Centers of America Inc. (PCCA), a Houston-based company that sells active pharmaceutical ingredients and other products and services to compounding pharmacies. The complaint alleges that PCCA reported fraudulent and inflated Average Wholesale Prices (AWPs) for its ingredients that bore no relationship to the actual prices at which it sold those ingredients to its pharmacy customers, thereby causing those pharmacies to submit inflated compound prescription claims to TRICARE, the federal health care program providing insurance for active duty military personnel, military retirees and military dependents.
Compounding pharmacies purchase ingredients for use in compound drugs from ingredient suppliers such as PCCA, which establish and report AWPs for their ingredients to pricing compendia used by federal health care programs and commercial health insurance companies. TRICARE determines the level of reimbursement for compound prescription claims based in part on the reported AWP for each of the ingredients in a compound drug. The complaint alleges that PCCA knowingly established and reported AWPs for its ingredients that were greatly inflated above their actual selling prices. For example, in 2014, PCCA typically sold the chemical Fluticasone Propionate to its top customers for between approximately $135 and $197 per gram, but it reported an AWP for that ingredient of $3,630.90 per gram – approximately 18 to 27 times the actual selling price. That same year, PCCA typically sold the ingredient Resveratrol to its top customers for under $2 per gram but reported an AWP of $818.68 per gram, more than 400 times the actual selling price of the ingredient.
“The fraudulent reporting and marketing of drug prices to solicit business will not be tolerated,” said Deputy Assistant Attorney General Michael D. Granston of the Justice Department’s Commercial Litigation Branch in the Civil Division. “We will continue to hold accountable those who take improper advantage of federal health care programs.”
“We diligently investigate fraud on the federal healthcare system, especially where it impacts our veterans and their families,” said U.S. Attorney Ashley Hoff of the Western District of Texas. “We will continue to guard the system so patients receive the care they deserve and federal taxpayer dollars are not wasted.”
“The practices we confront today in this case created a major threat to the viability of the TRICARE program, a critically important public healthcare program that serves the needs of our military,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Karin Hoppmann of the Middle District of Florida. “This effort demonstrates our district’s resolve in the struggle against fraud schemes that prey on the nation’s military personnel and their families.”
“As the investigative arm of the Department of Defense Office of the Inspector General, the Defense Criminal Investigative Service (DCIS) will aggressively pursue all allegations of fraud perpetrated against the Department of Defense,” said Special Agent in Charge Michael C. Mentavlos of the DCIS Southwest Field Office. “DCIS will continue to partner with the Defense Health Agency and the Department of Justice to hold companies like PCCA accountable for their actions, protect the TRICARE program and recover valuable taxpayer resources.”
The complaint alleges that PCCA marketed its inflated AWPs, the resulting profit potential and compound formulas containing high AWP ingredients as inducements to pharmacies to purchase PCCA ingredients. PCCA’s actions caused its pharmacy customers to submit tens of thousands of false and fraudulently inflated compound prescription claims containing PCCA ingredients to TRICARE, costing the program hundreds of millions of dollars in excess reimbursement.
The complaint also alleges that PCCA offered additional inducements to pharmacy customers, such as annual all-inclusive travel packages, in exchange for ingredient purchases and purchase commitments.
The United States filed its complaint in a lawsuit originally brought under the qui tam or whistleblower provisions of the False Claims Act by Peter Hueseman. Hueseman was formerly a part owner and pharmacist at a pharmacy that purchased compound ingredients from PCCA. Under the act, a private party can file an action on behalf of the United States and receive a portion of any recovery. The act permits the United States to intervene in such lawsuits, as it has done in this case. The qui tam case is captioned United States ex rel. Hueseman v. Professional Compounding Centers of America, Inc., No. 5:14-cv-212 (W.D. Tex.). In November 2019, the United States reached settlements with Freedom Pharmaceuticals Inc., and Pharmacy Services Inc., which were also defendants in this matter. See https://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/compound-ingredient-supplier-fagron-holding-usa-llc-pay-2205-million-resolve-allegations.
The investigation of this matter was the result of a coordinated effort between the Civil Division’s Commercial Litigation Branch (Fraud Section) and the U.S. Attorney’s Offices for the Western District of Texas and Middle District of Florida, with assistance from DCIS, FBI, the United States Postal Service Office of Inspector General, the Department of Labor Office of Inspector General, and the Drug Enforcement Agency.
The United States’ intervention in this matter illustrates the government’s emphasis on combating healthcare fraud. One of the most powerful tools in this effort is the False Claims Act. Tips and complaints from all sources about potential fraud, waste, abuse, and mismanagement, can be reported to the Department of Health and Human Services at 800-HHS-TIPS (800-447-8477).
This matter is being handled by Fraud Section Attorneys Sanjay Bhambhani, Danielle Sgro and Nathan Green and Assistant U.S. Attorneys Mary Kruger, John Deck, and Collette Cunningham.
The claims in the complaint are allegations only, and there has been no determination of liability.
Justice Department Files Complaint Against Professional Compounding Centers of America Inc. for Reporting Fraudulent Pricing Information for Ingredients Sold to PharmaciesRead the Press Release
The Justice Department has filed a complaint under the False Claims Act against Professional Compounding Centers of America Inc. (PCCA), a Houston-based company that sells active pharmaceutical ingredients and other products and services to compounding pharmacies. The complaint alleges that PCCA reported fraudulent and inflated Average Wholesale Prices (AWPs) for its ingredients that bore no relationship to the actual prices at which it sold those ingredients to its pharmacy customers, thereby causing those pharmacies to submit inflated compound prescription claims to TRICARE, the federal health care program providing insurance for active duty military personnel, military retirees and military dependents.
Compounding pharmacies purchase ingredients for use in compound drugs from ingredient suppliers such as PCCA, which establish and report AWPs for their ingredients to pricing compendia used by federal health care programs and commercial health insurance companies. TRICARE determines the level of reimbursement for compound prescription claims based in part on the reported AWP for each of the ingredients in a compound drug. The complaint alleges that PCCA knowingly established and reported AWPs for its ingredients that were greatly inflated above their actual selling prices. For example, in 2014, PCCA typically sold the chemical Fluticasone Propionate to its top customers for between approximately $135 and $197 per gram, but it reported an AWP for that ingredient of $3,630.90 per gram – approximately 18 to 27 times the actual selling price. That same year, PCCA typically sold the ingredient Resveratrol to its top customers for under $2 per gram but reported an AWP of $818.68 per gram, more than 400 times the actual selling price of the ingredient.
“The fraudulent reporting and marketing of drug prices to solicit business will not be tolerated,” said Deputy Assistant Attorney General Michael D. Granston of the Justice Department’s Commercial Litigation Branch in the Civil Division. “We will continue to hold accountable those who take improper advantage of federal health care programs.”
“We diligently investigate fraud on the federal healthcare system, especially where it impacts our veterans and their families,” said U.S. Attorney Ashley Hoff for the Western District of Texas. “We will continue to guard the system so patients receive the care they deserve and federal taxpayer dollars are not wasted.”
“The practices we confront in this case created a major threat to the viability of the TRICARE program, a critically important public healthcare program that serves the needs of our military,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Karin Hoppmann for the Middle District of Florida. “This effort demonstrates our district’s resolve in the struggle against fraud schemes that prey on the nation’s military personnel and their families.”
“As the investigative arm of the Department of Defense Office of the Inspector General, the Defense Criminal Investigative Service (DCIS) will aggressively pursue all allegations of fraud perpetrated against the Department of Defense,” said Special Agent in Charge Michael C. Mentavlos of the DCIS Southwest Field Office. “DCIS will continue to partner with the Defense Health Agency and the Department of Justice to hold companies like PCCA accountable for their actions, protect the TRICARE program and recover valuable taxpayer resources.”
The complaint alleges that PCCA marketed its inflated AWPs, the resulting profit potential and compound formulas containing high AWP ingredients as inducements to pharmacies to purchase PCCA ingredients. PCCA’s actions caused its pharmacy customers to submit tens of thousands of false and fraudulently inflated compound prescription claims containing PCCA ingredients to TRICARE, costing the program hundreds of millions of dollars in excess reimbursement.
The complaint also alleges that PCCA offered additional inducements to pharmacy customers, such as annual all-inclusive travel packages, in exchange for ingredient purchases and purchase commitments.
The United States filed its complaint in a lawsuit originally brought under the qui tam or whistleblower provisions of the False Claims Act by Peter Hueseman. Hueseman was formerly a part owner and pharmacist at a pharmacy that purchased compound ingredients from PCCA. Under the act, a private party can file an action on behalf of the United States and receive a portion of any recovery. The act permits the United States to intervene in such lawsuits, as it has done in this case. The qui tam case is captioned United States ex rel. Hueseman v. Professional Compounding Centers of America, Inc., No. 5:14-cv-212 (W.D. Tex.). In November 2019, the United States reached settlements with Freedom Pharmaceuticals Inc., and Pharmacy Services Inc., which were also defendants in this matter. See https://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/compound-ingredient-supplier-fagron-holding-usa-llc-pay-2205-million-resolve-allegations.
The investigation of this matter was the result of a coordinated effort between the Civil Division’s Commercial Litigation Branch (Fraud Section) and the U.S. Attorneys' Offices for the Western District of Texas and Middle District of Florida, with assistance from DCIS, FBI, the U.S. Postal Service Office of Inspector General, the Department of Labor Office of Inspector General, and the Drug Enforcement Agency.
The United States’ intervention in this matter illustrates the government’s emphasis on combating healthcare fraud. One of the most powerful tools in this effort is the False Claims Act. Tips and complaints from all sources about potential fraud, waste, abuse, and mismanagement, can be reported to the Department of Health and Human Services at 800-HHS-TIPS (800-447-8477).
This matter is being handled by Fraud Section Attorneys Sanjay Bhambhani, Danielle Sgro and Nathan Green and Assistant U.S. Attorneys Mary Kruger, John Deck, and Collette Cunningham.
The claims in the complaint are allegations only, and there has been no determination of liability.
Jefferson County man admits to drug chargeRead the Press Release
MARTINSBURG, WEST VIRGINIA – Robert Gordon Farmer, of Harpers Ferry, West Virginia, has admitted to a drug charge, United States Attorney William J. Ihlenfeld, II announced.
Farmer, 45, pleaded guilty today to one count of “Conspiracy to Possess with Intent to Distribute and to Distribute Cocaine Base and Cocaine Hydrochloride.” Farmer admitted to working with others to distribute drugs from July 2018 to June 2021 in Jefferson County and elsewhere.
Farmer faces up to 20 years of incarceration and fine of up to $1,000,000. Under the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, the actual sentence imposed will be based upon the seriousness of the offenses and the prior criminal history, if any, of the defendant.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Lara Omps-Botteicher is prosecuting the case on behalf of the government. The FBI; U.S. Marshals Service; Homeland Security Investigations; the West Virginia Air National Guard; the Eastern Panhandle Drug Task Force, a HIDTA-funded initiative; the West Virginia State Police, the DEA Task Force Montgomery County, Maryland; and the Frederick, Maryland, HIDTA group investigated. The EPDTF consists of the West Virginia State Police, Berkeley County Sheriff’s Office, the Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office, Ranson Police Department, the Charles Town Police Department, and the Martinsburg Police Department.
This effort is part of an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) operation. OCDETF identifies, disrupts, and dismantles the highest-level criminal organizations that threaten the United States using a prosecutor-led, intelligence-driven, multi-agency approach. Additional information about the OCDETF Program can be found at https://www.justice.gov/OCDETF.
U.S. Magistrate Judge Robert W. Trumble presided.
Gladbrook Man Sentenced to 27 Months in Federal Prison for Being a Prohibited Person in Possession of FirearmsRead the Press Release
A felon and convicted domestic abuser who possessed firearms was sentenced November 5, 2021, to 27 months in federal prison.
Jason Drew, age 38, of Gladbrook, Iowa, received the sentence after a May 11, 2021 guilty plea to one count of being a prohibited person in possession of firearms. At the plea hearing, Drew admitted that, on February 26, 2020, he knowingly possessed two revolvers after having been convicted of two crimes punishable by more than one year of imprisonment and after having been convicted of a misdemeanor crime of domestic violence. The record at the sentencing hearing established that Drew also was a drug user.
Drew was sentenced in Cedar Rapids by United States District Court Judge C.J. Williams. Drew was sentenced to 27 months’ imprisonment. He must also serve a three-year term of supervised release after the prison term. There is no parole in the federal system.
This case was brought as part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN). PSN is the centerpiece of the Department of Justice’s violent crime reduction efforts. PSN is an evidence-based program proven to be effective at reducing violent crime. Through PSN, a broad spectrum of stakeholders work together to identify the most pressing violent crime problems in the community and develop comprehensive solutions to address them. As part of this strategy, PSN focuses enforcement efforts on the most violent offenders and partners with locally based prevention and reentry programs for lasting reductions in crime.
This case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Mark Tremmel and was investigated by the Tama County Sheriff’s Office, the Cedar Rapids Police Department, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives.
Court file information is available at https://ecf.iand.uscourts.gov/cgi-bin/login.pl. The case file number is CR 20-74.
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Former metallurgist lab director pleads guilty to major fraud on USARead the Press Release
Tacoma – The former Director of Metallurgy at Bradken Inc. pleaded guilty today in U.S. District Court in Tacoma to defrauding the United States by falsifying test results that measure the strength and toughness of steel used in U.S. Navy submarines, announced U.S. Attorney Nick Brown. Elaine Thomas, 67, of Auburn, Washington, pleaded guilty to major fraud on the United States. She faces up to 10 years in prison and a $1 million fine when sentenced by U.S. District Judge Benjamin H. Settle on February 14, 2022.
According to records filed in the case, Bradken is the U.S. Navy’s leading supplier of cast high-yield steel for naval submarines. Bradken’s Tacoma foundry produces castings that prime contractors use to fabricate submarine hulls. The Navy requires that the steel meets certain standards for strength and toughness to ensure that it does not fail under certain circumstances, such as a collision. For 30 years, the Tacoma foundry (which was acquired by Bradken in 2008), produced castings, many of which had failed lab tests and did not meet the Navy’s standards. Elaine Thomas, as Director of Metallurgy, falsified test results to hide the fact that the steel had failed the tests. Thomas falsified results for over 240 productions of steel, which represent a substantial percentage of the castings Bradken produced for the Navy.
Court filings indicate there is no evidence that Bradken’s management was aware of the fraud until May 2017. At that time, a lab employee discovered that test cards had been altered and that other discrepancies existed in Bradken’s records. In June 2020, Bradken entered into a deferred prosecution agreement, accepting responsibility for the offense and agreeing to take remedial measures. Bradken also entered into a civil settlement, paying $10,896,924 to resolve allegations that the foundry produced and sold substandard steel components for installation on U.S. Navy submarines.
The Navy has taken extensive steps to ensure the safe operation of the affected submarines. Those measures will result in increased costs and maintenance as the substandard parts are monitored.
The criminal case against Thomas, deferred prosecution agreement, and civil settlement with Bradken are the result of a coordinated effort among the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Western District of Washington, the Civil Division’s Commercial Litigation Branch, the Department of Defense Office of Inspector General's Defense Criminal Investigative Service, Naval Criminal Investigative Service, and the Defense Contract Audit Agency.
The criminal prosecution is being handled by Assistant United States Attorney Seth Wilkinson.
Former Office Manager Sentenced on Fraud ChargesRead the Press Release
SAN ANTONIO – A former office manager of a prominent local dermatology practice was sentenced today to 46 months in prison for defrauding a medical practice of nearly $350,000 from patient billings and employee profit sharing accounts.
According to court documents, Patricia Ann Doucet, 74, of Karnes City, defrauded her former employer, the Dermatology & Laser Center of San Antonio. Per the indictment, the medical practice’s owner and operator organized and conducted a non-profit educational symposium on regenerative medicine in San Antonio in 2012. A bank account was established to collect contributions for the symposium event. That account was to be closed at the conclusion of the symposium. But Doucet, in her capacity as office manager, kept the account open without permission.
From July 2012 to February 2020, Doucet began to embezzle checks and cash paid to the dermatology practice by depositing them into the symposium account. She altered a signature stamp utilized by the practice for its business account or fraudulently endorsed checks by forging the owner’s signature. Doucet also stole money from the practice’s profit-sharing account that was designed to automatically issue checks to cover taxes for the employee’s profit share. Rather than directing those checks to the IRS, Doucet deposited those checks into the symposium account. Doucet then used the symposium account as her slush fund for international and domestic travel, property payments, meal purchases and other personal expenses on credit cards she fraudulently opened in the owner’s name.
In addition to the prison sentence, Doucet was ordered to pay $345,254.44 in restitution.
On August 5, 2021, Doucet pleaded guilty to 10 counts of wire fraud.
Doucet has remained in federal custody since April 23, 2021.
“I agree with Judge Ezra’s comments in court today that Doucet exploited the trust of the victim in this case by perpetrating an exceedingly complex fraud against the victim and his medical practice over the course of nearly eight years,” said U.S. Attorney Ashley C. Hoff. “We hope the Court’s sentence provides some measure of justice to the victim and sends a message to other fraudsters that their schemes and deception will not be tolerated in our community.”
The FBI investigated the case.
Assistant U.S. Attorneys Matthew W. Kinskey and Joseph E. Blackwell prosecuted the case.
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Former California Resident Pleads Guilty to Defrauding the State of California of over $10 Million in Tax RevenueRead the Press Release
SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Akrum Alrahib, 43, of Miami, Florida, pleaded guilty today to conspiring to commit mail fraud in non-cigarette tobacco schemes that defrauded the State of California of over $10 million in unpaid excise taxes, Acting U.S. Attorney Phillip A. Talbert announced.
Non-cigarette tobacco (known as Other Tobacco Products or OTP) consists of tobacco products such as cigars, chewing tobacco, and leaf tobacco. During the relevant time period, California imposed an average excise tax of about 28.13% of the wholesale cost of the OTP between April 2016 and June 2016; 27.30% between July 2016 and June 2017; and 65.08% between July 2017 and December 2017. California licensed tobacco distributors are required to collect this tax when they distribute the product within the state. The distributor must then submit to the California Department of Tax and Fee Administration (CDTFA) in Sacramento (formerly the Board of Equalization) monthly reports reflecting the amount of untaxed OTP sold in the previous month and the amount of excise tax owing, and the payment.
According to court documents, between April 2016 and December 2017, Alrahib led two conspiracies involving multiple individuals and businesses operating in California. As the leader, Alrahib provided untaxed OTP to various individuals and companies in California, knowing that the products would be sold illegally, resulting in a loss to the State of California of over $10 million in tax revenue.
“This guilty plea is the result of a highly successful, collaborative effort involving federal and state investigators and prosecutors, working side-by-side,” Acting U.S. Attorney Talbert stated. “We will continue to root out illegal conduct and tax evasion in the tobacco products industry.”
“The primary goal of ATF in combating tobacco trafficking is to enforce the federal laws relating to the trafficking of domestically produced and counterfeit cigarettes and tobacco products,” said Special Agent in Charge Patrick Gorman, San Francisco Field Division, Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms & Explosives (ATF). “ATF will continue to work alongside our partners to investigate incidents of illegal conduct and tax evasion of tobacco products.”
“Tax evasion is not a victimless crime. California communities lose critical tax dollars that pay for vital programs, and it isn’t fair for those hard-working business owners who play by the rules,” said California Department of Tax and Fee Administration Director Nick Maduros. “It’s important for our department and the U.S. Attorney’s Office to work together to stop tax evasion.”
This case is the product of an investigation by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms & Explosives and the California Department of Tax and Fee Administration. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Rosanne L. Rust and Michael D. Anderson are prosecuting the case.
Alrahib is scheduled to be sentenced by U.S. District Judge William B. Shubb on Dec. 13, 2021. Alrahib faces a maximum statutory penalty of five years in prison and a $250,000 fine. The actual sentence, however, will be determined at the discretion of the court after consideration of any applicable statutory factors and the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, which take into account a number of variables.
Florida Man Admits Role in $1 Million Kickback Scheme Related to Genetic TestingRead the Press Release
NEWARK, N.J. – A Florida man today admitted his role in a conspiracy to receive kickbacks and bribes from laboratories in exchange for referrals of patient DNA samples and genetic tests, Acting U.S. Attorney Rachael A. Honig announced.
Norman Smiley, 80, of Boca Raton, Florida, pleaded guilty by videoconference before U.S. District Judge Brian R. Martinotti to an information charging him with conspiracy to violate the Anti-Kickback Statute.
According to documents filed in this case and statements made in court:
Smiley owned and operated Sun Health Advocates LLC, a company that was in the business of acquiring patient DNA samples and physicians’ orders for purposes of submitting those samples and orders to clinical laboratories for genetic testing, including Metric Lab Services LLC and Spectrum Diagnostic Labs LLC. Smiley, on behalf of Sun Health, entered into illicit agreements with the Metric and Spectrum laboratories under which the laboratories paid Sun Health kickbacks in exchange for delivering DNA samples and orders for genetic tests. Sun Health concealed these arrangements by issuing sham invoices to the laboratories that purportedly reflected services provided at an hourly rate even though the parties had already agreed upon the kickback amount, which was based on the revenue the laboratories received from Medicare. Metric and Spectrum paid Sun Health approximately $1.16 million in kickbacks as part of the scheme.
The charge to which Smiley pleaded guilty carries a maximum penalty of five years in prison and a fine of $250,000, or twice the gross grain or loss from the offense, whichever is greatest. Sentencing is scheduled for March 16, 2022.
Acting U.S. Attorney Honig credited special agents of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Office of Inspector General, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Scott J. Lampert; and special agents of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of New Jersey, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Thomas J. Mahoney, with the investigation leading to today’s guilty plea.
The government is represented by Bernard J. Cooney, Chief of the Government Fraud Unit.
Felon Who Absconded While Awaiting Sentencing on a Gun Offense Sentenced to over 5 Years’ ImprisonmentRead the Press Release
A man who possessed a firearm as a felon was sentenced on November 3, 2021, to more than 5 years in federal prison.
Joel Dawdy, age 31, from Sioux City, Iowa, received the prison term after a December 21, 2020, guilty plea to being a felon in possession of a firearm.
Evidence at his change of plea, detention, and sentencing hearings revealed that on January 28, 2020, officers attempted to stop a vehicle in which Dawdy was a passenger. Dawdy exited the car, ran, and during the pursuit jettisoned a loaded gun. After pleading guilty to his crime, he violated the conditions of his supervised release, absconded from supervision, and had to be found and arrested by the United States Marshal Service.
Dawdy was sentenced in Sioux City by United States District Court Chief Judge Leonard T. Strand. Dawdy was sentenced to 63 months’ imprisonment. He must also serve a 3-year term of supervised release after the prison term. There is no parole in the federal system.
Dawdy is being held in the United States Marshal’s custody until he can be transported to a federal prison.
This case was brought as part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN). PSN is the centerpiece of the Department of Justice’s violent crime reduction efforts. PSN is an evidence-based program proven to be effective at reducing violent crime. Through PSN, a broad spectrum of stakeholders work together to identify the most pressing violent crime problems in the community and develop comprehensive solutions to address them. As part of this strategy, PSN focuses enforcement efforts on the most violent offenders and partners with locally based prevention and reentry programs for lasting reductions in crime.
The case was investigated by the Sioux City, Iowa Police Department, the United States Marshals Service, and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives. The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Forde Fairchild.
Court file information at https://ecf.iand.uscourts.gov/cgi-bin/login.pl.
The case file number is 20-CR-4030.
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Federal Law Enforcement in Chicago Seizes Private Plane and 100 Kilograms of Cocaine; Three Defendants ArrestedRead the Press Release
CHICAGO — Three individuals have been arrested on federal charges as part of an investigation that disrupted a suspected Mexico-to-Chicago drug pipeline and resulted in government seizures of a private plane and 100 kilograms of cocaine.
Federal agents on Wednesday discovered 80 kilograms of cocaine in a vehicle in Chicago’s River North neighborhood and another 20 kilograms of the drug in a hotel room in the city’s Gold Coast neighborhood, according to criminal complaints filed in U.S. District Court in Chicago. The cocaine had allegedly been transported to the Chicago area earlier Wednesday via private plane from Toluca, Mexico, via Houston, Texas. The plane arrived at Gary/Chicago International Airport in Gary, Ind., and the drugs were driven in suitcases to downtown Chicago, the charges allege.
Two of the defendants – SEBASTIAN VAZQUEZ-GAMEZ, 30, of Toluca de Lerdo, Mexico, and RODRIGO ALEXIS JIMENEZ-PEREZ, 25, of Columbus, Ind. – were arrested Wednesday in downtown Chicago, while the third defendant – SERGIO IVAN BLAS, 39, of Indianapolis, Ind. – was arrested Thursday in the Indianapolis area. Federal agents today obtained a warrant to seize the private plane, a Bombardier Challenger 600.
A detention hearing for Jimenez-Perez is scheduled for Nov. 9, 2021, at 1:00 p.m. before U.S. Magistrate Judge Gabriel A. Fuentes in Chicago. Vazquez-Gamez is set to appear for a detention hearing before Judge Fuentes on Nov. 10, 2021, at 3:00 p.m. Blas is scheduled to make his initial court appearance on Nov. 9, 2021, in U.S. District Court in the Southern District of Indiana.
The charges and arrests were announced by John R. Lausch, Jr., United States Attorney for the Northern District of Illinois; Robert J. Bell, Special Agent-in-Charge of the Chicago Field Division of the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration; Angie Salazar, Special Agent-in-Charge of the Chicago office of Homeland Security Investigations; and Justin Campbell, Acting Special Agent-in-Charge of the IRS Criminal Investigation Division in Chicago. Substantial assistance was provided by U.S. Customs and Border Protection, the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Southern District of Indiana, and the Chicago Police Department. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Ashley Chung and Andrew Erskine represent the government.
According to the charges, Vazquez-Gamez arrived on the plane from Houston and loaded suitcases full of cocaine into a Lincoln Navigator sport-utility vehicle. Vazquez-Gamez and others from the plane entered the Lincoln and were driven to the hotel in Chicago, the complaints state. Outside the hotel, Vazquez-Gamez loaded some of the suitcases into a Toyota Highlander sport-utility vehicle driven by Jimenez-Perez, the charges allege. Agents pulled over the Toyota a few blocks away, seized the suitcases containing 80 kilograms of cocaine, and arrested Jimenez-Perez. Agents later arrested Vazquez-Gamez in his hotel room, where they seized the other 20 kilograms of cocaine, the charges allege.
The complaint against Blas accuses him of directing Jimenez-Perez on where to meet Vazquez-Gamez to pick up the cocaine.
The public is reminded that complaints contain only charges and are not evidence of guilt. The defendants are presumed innocent and entitled to a fair trial at which the government has the burden of proving guilt beyond a reasonable doubt. If convicted, the Court must impose reasonable sentences under federal sentencing statutes and the advisory U.S. Sentencing Guidelines.
Federal Correctional Officer Pleads Guilty to Making False Statements About Engaging in Unlawful Sexual Activity with Jail InmateRead the Press Release
LOS ANGELES – A correctional officer at the federal jail in downtown Los Angeles pleaded guilty today to a felony charge for lying to investigators about his sexual activity with an inmate who was under his care and supervision.
Abel Concho, 53, of East Los Angeles, pleaded guilty to one count of making false statements.
According to his plea agreement, Concho was employed by the Bureau of Prisons (BOP) as a correctional officer at the Metropolitan Detention Center (MDC) in Los Angeles. The victim in this case was an MDC inmate under Concho’s supervision from June 2010 to February 2011.
On July 28, 2021, Concho made a series of false statements during an administrative interview with federal investigators, including that he “never” had sexual contact with one MDC inmate, when in fact Concho engaged in sexual contact with the victim on approximately 35 different occasions. Concho, on multiple occasions, also lied that he “never had sexual contact” with any MDC inmates, Concho admitted in the plea agreement.
After initially denying he had any sexual contact with the victim, Concho then falsely stated that he had sexual intercourse with the victim just “once (or) twice” that he could recall. Concho also falsely stated on multiple occasions that he did not provide a cellphone to the victim to take nude photographs for him. In fact, he illegally smuggled a cellphone into MDC and provided that cellphone to the victim to take nude photographs for him, which the victim then did.
Concho admitted in his plea agreement that he knew it was a federal crime and an offense that could lead to termination for a BOP employee to knowingly engage in any sexual act with a person in official detention and under his custodial, supervisory and disciplinary authority in a federal facility. Concho admitted he knew that under the law and pursuant to the BOP employee code of conduct, sexual activity between staff and inmates could not be considered consensual and was not permitted. In addition to the harm it caused inmates, staff sexual acts with inmates threatened the safety and security of the prison and betrayed the trust and confidence placed in the BOP by the public, Concho admitted.
He further admitted he knew it was a federal crime and an offense that could lead to termination for a BOP employee to smuggle contraband, including cellphones, into MDC for inmates’ use.
As part of the plea agreement, Concho agreed not to seek employment in any law enforcement capacity or a position that requires carrying a firearm, to complete 100 hours of community service, and to pay $9,500 in restitution to the victim.
United States District Judge R. Gary Klausner has scheduled a February 7, 2022 sentencing hearing, at which time Concho will face a statutory maximum sentence of five years in federal prison.
The United States Department of Justice Office of Inspector General and the FBI investigated this matter.
Assistant United States Attorney Veronica Dragalin of the Public Corruption and Civil Rights Section is prosecuting this case.
Florida Man Apprehened at the Cyril E. King Airport Sentenced to 37 Months in Federal Prison as a Career Offender on Marijuana Trafficking ConvictionRead the Press Release
St. Thomas, USVI – United States Attorney Gretchen C.F. Shappert announced today that Marvin Forbes, age 49, from Orlando, FL, was sentenced to 37 months of incarceration by Judge Robert A. Molloy on his conviction of Possession with Intent to Distribute Marijuana after qualifying as a career offender in federal court.
According to court documents, on June 19, 2020, Forbes arrived at the Cyril E. King Airport in St. Thomas on Spirit Airlines flight #1610 which departed from Fort Lauderdale, FL. Upon arrival in St. Thomas, United States Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officers conducted an inspection of Spirit Airline’s checked bags. CBP K-9 “Sherpa” later alerted to the presence of narcotics in Forbes’ checked bag. After Forbes removed his bag from the baggage claim belt, CBP officers escorted him to secondary for inspection. In secondary, CBP officers cut a lock that was placed on Forbes’ suitcase after he failed to produce the key to open the lock. Inside Forbes’ suitcase, CBP officers discovered eight (8) vacuum sealed packages, each containing multiple smaller, individually vacuum sealed packages, of marijuana with a total weight of 12.61 kilograms. Forbes entered a guilty plea in U.S. District Court on May 17, 2021.
At sentencing, Forbes qualified as a career offender pursuant to the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines based on the facts that: (1) he was at least 18 years old at the time he committed the offense of conviction; (2) his conviction is a felony that is either a crime of violence or a controlled substance offense; and (3) Forbes had at least two prior felony convictions of either a crime of violence or a controlled substance offense. As a career offender, Forbes’ guideline sentence was increased from 24 to 37 months of incarceration.
This case was investigated by the Department of Homeland Security, Homeland Security Investigations and CBP. It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Delia Smith and is part of an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) investigation. OCDETF identifies, disrupts, and dismantles the highest-level drug traffickers, money launderers, gangs, and transnational criminal organizations that threaten the United States by using a prosecutor-led, intelligence-driven, multi-agency approach that leverages the strengths of federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies against criminal networks.
Enrolled member of the Navajo Nation pleads guilty to federal assault chargesRead the Press Release
ALBUQERQUE, N.M. – Quincee Zohnnie, 25, of Shiprock, New Mexico, and an enrolled member of the Navajo Nation, pleaded guilty in federal court on Oct. 26 to assault with a dangerous weapon and retaliating against a victim in Indian Country. A sentencing date has not been scheduled.
According to the plea agreement, on June 14, 2020, Zohnnie was riding in the passenger seat of his girlfriend’s car when they spotted John Doe sitting outside his home on the Navajo Nation, New Mexico. Zohnnie had an argument with John Doe before returning home and retrieving his firearm. Zohnnie returned to John Doe’s residence and fired multiple rounds at the house, which at the time of the incident was occupied by John Doe’s family including a minor child.
By the terms of the plea agreement, Zohnnie faces eight years in prison.
The Farmington Residency Agency of the FBI Albuquerque Field Office investigated this case. Assistant U.S. Attorney Alexander F. Flores is prosecuting the case.
Drug Trafficker Sentenced to over 24 Years in PrisonRead the Press Release
Gulfport, Miss. - A Dominican man was sentenced to 293 months in federal prison for conspiracy to distribute and attempt to distribute cocaine, announced Acting U.S. Attorney Darren LaMarca and Acting Special Agent in Charge Jack P. Staton of Homeland Security Investigations in New Orleans.
Antony Daniel Abreu, 33, a citizen of the Dominican Republic and resident of New York, was found guilty following a seven day trial by a jury in July, 2021, on two counts of conspiracy and attempted drug trafficking.
The trial testimony established that Abreu conspired with five others in the Dominican Republic, Philadelphia, PA, and New York, NY, to purchase 17 kilos of cocaine in Gulfport. The drugs were to be taken back to New York in a hidden compartment of a car that had been shipped from Philadelphia. Three defendants were apprehended in downtown Gulfport during the operation.
Abreu and defendant Darrell Young went to trial and were both found guilty. The third defendant, Christopher Nguyen, entered a guilty plea prior to trial. Young and Nguyen will be sentenced in January, 2022.
Abreu was sentenced on Thursday, November 4, 2021 in Gulfport. In addition to his prison term of 293 months, he was ordered to pay a $10,000 fine and serve 5 years of supervised release after completing his term of imprisonment.
Homeland Security Investigations investigated the case.
Assistant U.S. Attorneys Annette Williams and Jonathan Buckner prosecuted the case.
District of Columbia Couple Pleads Guilty to Child Cruelty ChargesRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON – A District of Columbia man and his fiancé have pleaded guilty to child cruelty charges stemming from an assault of a five-year-old girl in their care, U.S. Attorney Matthew M. Graves and Robert J. Contee III, Chief of the Metropolitan Police Department, announced today.
Dawub Balil, also known as Tyvez Jackson, 26, and Diamond Taylor, 24, pleaded guilty on Nov. 3, 2021, in the Superior Court of the District of Columbia. Balil pleaded guilty to first-degree cruelty to children, a felony, and Taylor pleaded guilty to a felony charge of second-degree cruelty to children. Both also pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor charge of obstruction of justice. Both defendants are to be sentenced Jan. 28, 2022, by the Honorable Marisa Demeo.
According to the government’s evidence, Balil and Taylor resided in the 2800 block of Pomeroy Road SE, with four children, including the 5-year-old, who is identified in court documents as “D.J.” Balil is the child’s father. He and Taylor, who was not “D.J.”’s biological mother, were the primary caregivers for her and had exclusive care and custody of her weeks prior to “D.J.’s” hospitalization.
On May 28, 2020, at approximately 1:30 p.m., Taylor called 911 and reported that “D.J.” fell from the top of her bunk bed, which she later admitted was untrue. The D.C. Fire and Emergency Medical Services Department arrived on the scene and found “D.J.” in the bathroom, face up in the tub. The shower was running, and the tub was filling up with cold water.
The girl was taken to Children's National Medical Center. A pediatrician noted that she suffered from a severe head trauma, a lacerated liver, old and new rib fractures, and fractures to her tibia and wrists, among other injuries. Several of those injuries were loop shaped and were concentrated on her thighs. The doctor believed the marks were consistent with being hit with a belt. The doctor also stated that she believed these injuries were consistent with repeated abuse.
After “D.J.” was taken to the hospital, Balil subsequently threatened his roommates and took their cell phone so that they would not be able to make a report about the child abuse to the D.C. Child and Family Services Agency or the Metropolitan Police Department. Taylor admitted that on May 28, 2020, she told her children not to tell the police that Balil beats the children.
In their guilty pleas, both defendants acknowledged inflicting injuries on “D.J.” on other occasions.
In announcing the pleas, U.S. Attorney Graves and Chief Contee commended the work of those who investigated the case from the Metropolitan Police Department. They also expressed appreciation for the assistance provided by the Children’s National Medical Center. They acknowledged the efforts of those who handled the case at the U.S. Attorney’s Office, including Paralegal Specialists Stephanie Gilbert, Meridith McGarrity, and Tasha Harris; Investigative Analyst Zachary McMenamin; Supervisor Litigation Technology Specialist Leif Hickling, and Victim/Witness Advocate Marcia Rinker. Finally, they commended the work of Assistant U.S. Attorney Cynthia Wright, who prosecuted the case.
Clearfield, PA Man Pleads Guilty in Meth Distribution SchemeRead the Press Release
JOHNSTOWN, Pa. – A former resident of Clearfield, PA pleaded guilty in federal court to a charge of violating narcotics laws, Acting United States Attorney Stephen R. Kaufman announced today.
Chad Lawhead, 48, pleaded guilty to a lesser included offense at Count Two of the Superseding Indictment before Senior United States District Judge Kim R. Gibson.
In connection with the guilty plea, from July 2019 to June 2020, Lawhead did conspire to distribute 50 grams or more of a mixture and substance containing a detectable amount of methamphetamine.
Judge Gibson scheduled sentencing for March 15, 2022.The law provides for a minimum sentence of 5 years in prison and a maximum of 40 years in prison, a fine of $5,000,000, or both. Under the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, the actual sentence imposed would be based upon the seriousness of the offenses and the prior criminal history, if any, of the defendant.
Assistant United States Attorney Maureen Sheehan-Balchon is prosecuting this case on behalf of the government.
The Drug Enforcement Administration and the Pennsylvania State Police conducted the investigation that led to the prosecution of Lawhead. Additional agencies participating in this investigation include the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, the Internal Revenue Service – Criminal Investigation, the United States Postal Inspection Service, Homeland Security Investigations, Pennsylvania Office of the Attorney General, Clearfield County District Attorney’s Office, Erie County District Attorney’s Office, Millcreek Police Department, Erie Bureau of Police, and other local law enforcement agencies.
This prosecution is a result of an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF) investigation. OCDETF identifies, disrupts, and dismantles high-level drug traffickers, money launderers, gangs, and transnational criminal organizations that threaten communities throughout the United States. OCDETF uses a prosecutor-led, intelligence-driven, multi-agency approach that leverages the strengths of federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies against criminal networks.
Cincinnati Man Sentenced to 250 Months for Fentanyl and Heroin TraffickingRead the Press Release
COVINGTON, Ky.— A Cincinnati man, Clarence Toney, 41, was sentenced to 250 months in federal prison on Friday, by Chief U.S. District Judge Danny C. Reeves, after pleading guilty to the distribution of fentanyl and heroin and violating his supervised release conditions. Toney was classified as a career offender.
In his guilty plea, Toney admitted that, on six separate occasions in Covington, he sold a mixture or substance containing a detectable amount of fentanyl to a confidential informant working with the Covington Police Department. On two of the six occasions, the substance he sold also included a detectable amount of heroin. In addition to pleading guilty to the charges, Toney also admitted that his actions violated the conditions of his supervised release for a previous drug trafficking conviction.
Toney pleaded guilty in July 2021.
Under federal law, Toney 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 six years.
Carlton S. Shier, IV, Acting United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Kentucky; Jodi Cohen, Special Agent in Charge, FBI, Louisville Field Office; and Col. Robert Nader, Chief of Police, Covington Police Department, announced the sentence.
The investigation was conducted by the FBI and the Covington Police Department. The United States was represented by Assistant U.S. Attorney Kyle M. Winslow.
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Charles J. Kovats Named Acting United States Attorney for the District of MinnesotaRead the Press Release
MINNEAPOLIS – Charles J. Kovats has been named as the Acting United States Attorney for the District of Minnesota following the departure of former Acting United States Attorney W. Anders Folk. Mr. Kovats previously served as the office’s Criminal Division Chief since 2018.
Acting United States Attorney Kovats has served the citizens of the District of Minnesota as a prosecutor since 2010 when he joined the United States Attorney’s Office as the National Security Section Chief. In 2012, Mr. Kovats was selected by former Secretary of Defense Leon E. Panetta to serve on the Defense Legal Policy Board in Washington, D.C., which was tasked with reviewing the application of military justice in both Iraq and Afghanistan. Prior to moving to the District of Minnesota, Mr. Kovats served as an Assistant United States Attorney in the Central District of California from 2005 until 2010.
A veteran, Mr. Kovats served for seven years in the United States Army Judge Advocate General’s Corps. Mr. Kovats received his B.A. from Santa Clara University in 1992 and, in 1996, earned his law degree from the University of San Francisco School of Law.
Former Acting United States Attorney W. Anders Folk stepped down to take a position with the Office of the Deputy Attorney General, in Washington D.C.
Champaign Woman Convicted of Providing a Firearm to a FelonRead the Press Release
URBANA, Ill. – Lawanda Moore, 31, of the 200 block of Arcadia Drive in Champaign, Illinois, pleaded guilty on November 5, 2021, to unlawfully transferring a firearm to a convicted felon. A sentencing hearing is scheduled for March 7, 2022, in federal court in Urbana, Illinois.
At the change-of-plea hearing before U.S. Magistrate Judge Eric I. Long, Moore admitted to transferring a firearm to Timothy Davis, also of Champaign. When Moore transferred the gun to Davis, she knew he had been previously convicted of a felony and, as a result, was not allowed to lawfully possess a firearm.
At sentencing, Moore faces statutory penalties of up to ten years in prison, a fine of up to $250,000, and up to three years of supervised release.
The case was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives and the Champaign Police Department. Assistant U.S. Attorney Rachel Ritzer is representing the United States in the prosecution.
Camden Woman Sentenced to 63 Months in Prison for Role in Drug Trafficking OrganizationRead the Press Release
CAMDEN, N.J. – A Camden woman was sentenced today to 63 months in prison for conspiring to distribute heroin in the city of Camden, Acting U.S. Attorney Rachael A. Honig announced.
Jasmin Velez, 27, of Camden, previously pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Renée Marie Bumb in Camden federal court to an information charging her with one count of conspiracy to distribute heroin within 1,000 feet of a school. During her sentencing hearing, Velez agreed that the amount of heroin jointly attributable to her, as a member of the conspiracy, was three to 10 kilograms. She also acknowledged her role, as a member of the conspiracy, with respect to the distribution of cocaine and cocaine base.
According to documents filed in this case and statements made in court:
A total of 19 defendants were arrested in late 2018 on drug-trafficking charges based on the FBI’s investigation of a drug-trafficking organization that ran the open-air narcotics trade on the 400-500 block of Pine Street in Camden for several months in 2018. The investigation used video surveillance, confidential informants, consensual recordings, controlled drug purchases, and several court-authorized wiretaps to uncover the inner workings of the drug-trafficking organization. The organization included street-level sellers like Velez, who worked various shifts selling drugs to customers and collecting drug proceeds. These sellers were supervised by different layers of managers who, in turn, supplied them with pre-packaged heroin, some of which was mixed with fentanyl, as well as cocaine and crack cocaine. The FBI and other law enforcement officers recovered multiple firearms from different locations connected to the drug organization at the time of the 2018 arrests.
Sixteen defendants already have entered guilty pleas on drug conspiracy charges. Three defendants are awaiting trial; the charges against them are merely accusations, and they are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
In addition to the prison term, Judge Bumb sentenced Velez to six years of supervised release.
Acting U.S. Attorney Honig credited special agents of the FBI’s South Jersey Violent Offender and Gang Task Force, South Jersey Resident Agency, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Jacqueline Maguire; the Camden County Police Department, under the direction of Chief Gabriel Rodriguez; the Camden County Prosecutor’s Office, under the direction of Acting Prosecutor Jill S. Mayer; the Camden County Sherriff’s Department, under the direction of Sheriff Gilbert L. Wilson; the Cherry Hill Police Department, under the direction of Chief William P. Monaghan; and the N.J. State Police, under the direction of Col. Patrick J. Callahan, with the investigation leading to today’s sentencing. She also thanked the Drug Enforcement Administration, the U.S. Marshals Service, and the Department of Homeland Security for their assistance.
This case is part of an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) operation. OCDETF identifies, disrupts, and dismantles the highest-level criminal organizations that threaten the United States using a prosecutor-led, intelligence-driven, multi-agency approach. Additional information about the OCDETF Program can be found at https://www.justice.gov/OCDETF.
The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Sara Aliabadi and Patrick C. Askin of the U. S. Attorney’s Office Criminal Division in Camden.
Bridgeport Fentanyl Dealer Sentenced to 5 Years in Federal PrisonRead the Press Release
Leonard C Boyle, Acting United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, announced that ANTHONY FIGUEROA-GONZALEZ, 29, of Bridgeport, was sentenced today by U.S. District Judge Vanessa L. Bryant in Hartford to 60 months of imprisonment, followed by four years of supervised release, for distributing fentanyl.
According to court documents and statements made in court, in August 2019, the Drug Enforcement Administration’s Bridgeport High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area (HIDTA) Task Force identified Figueroa-Gonzalez as a large-scale distributor of fentanyl. On September 17 and November 7, 2019, investigators made controlled purchases, each of approximately 50 grams of fentanyl from Figueroa-Gonzalez in Bridgeport.
Figueroa-Gonzalez was arrested on a federal criminal complaint on May 6, 2020. On July 27, 2021, he pleaded guilty to possession with intent to distribute, and distribution of, 40 grams or more of fentanyl.
Figueroa-Gonzalez, who is released on a $100,000 bond, is required to report to prison on December 29.
The DEA’s Bridgeport HIDTA Task Force includes personnel from the DEA Bridgeport Resident Office, the Connecticut State Police, and the Bridgeport, Norwalk, Stamford, Stratford, Milford and Danbury Police Departments. This case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Karen L. Peck.
Boston Man Sentenced for Firearm and Ammunition OffensesRead the Press Release
BOSTON – A Boston man was sentenced today for illegal possession of a firearm and ammunition.
Rahshjeem Benson, a/k/a “Six Nine,” 39, was sentenced by U.S. District Court Judge Leo T. Sorokin to nine years in prison and three years of supervised release. On July 7, 2021, Benson was convicted by a federal jury of one count of being a felon in possession of a firearm and ammunition.
In April 2019, Benson was arrested inside a bar in the Copley area of Boston after he was observed selling cocaine outside the bar and cocaine was recovered from the purchaser. A Charter Arms Bulldog Pug .44 SPL caliber revolver loaded with five Smith & Wesson .44 SPL caliber cartridges was found in Benson’s sweatshirt pocket following his arrest. A subsequent investigation revealed that the firearm had been stolen from a car in New Hampshire approximately three weeks prior. Moreover, text messages on Benson’s cell phone revealed that for months prior to his arrest, Benson had been regularly selling drugs including cocaine, heroin and fentanyl from the bar and elsewhere in the Copley area.
Due to prior felony convictions for drug trafficking and unlawful possession of a firearm, Benson is prohibited from possessing firearms or ammunition.
Acting United States Attorney Nathaniel R. Mendell; James Ferguson, Special Agent in Charge of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, Boston Field Division; and Boston Police Acting Commissioner Gregory Long made the announcement today. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Elianna J. Nuzum and Fred M. Wyshak, III of Mendell’s Criminal Division 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.
Berkeley County man sentenced for firearms violationRead the Press Release
MARTINSBURG, WEST VIRGINIA – Nathan Johnson, of Martinsburg, West Virginia, was sentenced today to three years of probation for a firearms violation, United States Attorney William J. Ihlenfeld, II announced.
Johnson, age 45, pleaded guilty in January 2020 to one count of “Unlawful Possession of a Firearm.” Johnson, a person prohibited from having firearms, admitted to having 34 firearms in March 2017 in Berkeley County.
Johnson was also ordered to pay a $5,000 fine and ordered to forfeit 36 firearms, as well as thousands of rounds of ammunition.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Timothy D. Helman prosecuted the case on behalf of the government. The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives investigated.
Chief U.S. District Judge Gina M. Groh presided.
Berkeley County man admits to drug chargeRead the Press Release
MARTINSBURG, WEST VIRGINIA – Caleb Sinclair, of Martinsburg, West Virginia, has admitted to a drug charge, United States Attorney William J. Ihlenfeld, II announced.
Sinclair, 35, pleaded guilty today to one count of “Conspiracy to Distribute Fentanyl and Heroin and Cocaine Base.” Sinclair admitted to working with others to distribute fentanyl, heroin, cocaine base, and cocaine hydrochloride from August 2020 to June 2021 in Berkeley County and elsewhere.
Sinclair faces up to 20 years of incarceration and a fine of up to $1,000,000. Under the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, the actual sentence imposed will be based upon the seriousness of the offenses and the prior criminal history, if any, of the defendant.
Assistant U.S. Attorneys Lara Omps-Botteicher and Timothy D. Helman are prosecuting the case on behalf of the government. The Eastern Panhandle Drug Task Force, a HIDTA-funded initiative, investigated.
U.S. Magistrate Judge Robert W. Trumble presided.
Beaver County Farmer and Employee Charged with Using Toxic Pesticide to Kill Migratory BirdsRead the Press Release
PITTSBURGH, Pa. – Two residents of western Pennsylvania have been charged with offenses related to the unlawful killing of migratory birds, Acting United States Attorney Stephen R. Kaufman announced today.
The three-count Information filed today in federal court names Robert Yost, 50, of New Galilee, PA, and Jacob Reese, 25, of Enon Valley, PA, as defendants.
According to the Information, Yost operated Yost Farms in Beaver County, PA. In June 2020, Yost and one of his employees, Reese, allegedly conspired to kill migratory birds present on leased farmland operated by Yost Farms, using carbofuran, a registered restricted-use pesticide. As alleged, the Environmental Protection Agency concluded no later than 2009 that the dietary, worker, and ecological risks for all uses of carbofuran were unacceptable and that all products containing carbofuran generally caused unreasonable adverse effects on humans and the environment. According to the Information, on June 22, 2020, Yost directed Reese to spread whole kernel corn coated in carbofuran in and around a leased field used for soybean cultivation where children were regularly present. The tainted corn allegedly attracted protected migratory birds that were killed within a short distance of where they ingested the corn. Yost and Reese thereafter took steps to conceal their efforts to poison and kill migratory birds, including by destroying the feed bag containing the carbofuran-laced whole corn kernel. In total, Yost and Reese are alleged to have killed approximately seventeen (17) Canada geese, ten (10) red-winged blackbirds, and one (1) mallard duck.
Yost and Reese are charged with one count of conspiracy, one count of violating the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act, and one count of violating the Migratory Bird Treaty Act. The defendants face a total maximum term of imprisonment of 13 months and a total fine of $31,000. The actual sentence imposed would be based upon a consideration of statutory sentencing factors and the prior criminal history, if any, of the defendants.
Assistant United States Attorney Eric G. Olshan is prosecuting this case on behalf of the government. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service - Office of Law Enforcement, Environmental Protection Agency - Criminal Investigation Division, and Pennsylvania Game Commission conducted the investigation leading to the charges in this case, with assistance from the Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture.
Arthrex Agrees to Pay $16 Million to Resolve Kickback AllegationsRead the Press Release
BOSTON – Arthrex Inc. (Arthrex), a Florida-based orthopedic device company, has agreed to pay $16 million to resolve allegations that it violated the False Claims Act (FCA) by paying kickbacks to a physician to induce the physician’s use and recommendation of Arthrex products, thereby causing the submission of false claims to the federal government for orthopedic procedures.
The settlement resolves allegations that Arthrex paid a Colorado-based orthopedic surgeon millions of dollars under the guise of royalty payments. While Arthrex’s agreement with the surgeon purported to compensate the surgeon for contributing to the development of certain orthopedic products, the government contends that Arthrex made the payments to induce the surgeon’s use and recommendation of Arthrex products. As a result, the government alleges that Arthrex violated the Anti-Kickback Statute and, in turn, the FCA.
“Paying bribes to physicians to distort their medical decision-making corrupts the health care system,” said Acting United States Attorney Nathaniel R. Mendell. “This settlement demonstrates our dedication to ensuring that taxpayers and patients get a health care system that is on the level. Kickbacks have no place anywhere in our health care system, and we will continue to identify and punish this illegal conduct.”
“The Department of Justice will continue to pursue medical device manufacturers that pay kickbacks to boost their profits,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General Brian M. Boynton for the Justice Department’s Civil Division. “Such arrangements can improperly influence physicians’ decision-making and result in the misuse of critical federal health care program funds.”
“Medical device manufacturers who engage in such kickback schemes undermine the integrity of federal health care programs,” said Special Agent in Charge Phillip M. Coyne of the Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General (HHS-OIG). “Working closely with our law enforcement partners, our agency will continue to protect patients and taxpayers by holding accountable companies that engage in unlawful activities.”
“Arthrex may have believed it could increase profits by paying millions of dollars in kickbacks to a physician, under the guise of royalty payments, to increase the use of its products. But today’s $16 million settlement makes it clear that its unscrupulous scheme backfired,” said Joseph R. Bonavolonta, Special Agent in Charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Boston Division. “Anyone involved in, or entertaining, similar activity should know that health care fraud is a priority for the FBI, and we will pursue anyone trying to misuse this country’s vital health care system.”
Under the terms of the settlement agreement, Arthrex will pay the government $16 million. In connection with the settlement, Arthrex entered into a five-year corporate integrity agreement with HHS-OIG, setting forth requirements for future compliance.
The settlement resolves allegations originally brought in a lawsuit filed by a whistleblower under the qui tam provisions of the False Claims Act, which allow private parties, known as relators, to bring suit on behalf of the government and to share in any recovery. The lawsuit was filed in the U.S. District Court for the District of Massachusetts and is captioned United States ex rel. Shea v. Arthrex Inc., et al., No. 20-cv-10210-ADB (D. Mass.). Under the FCA’s qui tam provisions, a private party can file an action on behalf of the United States and receive a portion of any recovery. In this case, the relator will receive 15.625 percent.
Acting U.S. Attorney Mendell, Acting AAG Boynton, HHS-OIG SAC Coyne, and FBI SAC Bonavolonta made the announcement. Assistant U.S. Attorneys David J. Derusha and Charles B. Weinograd of Mendell’s Affirmative Civil Enforcement Unit and Trial Attorney Andrew Jaco of the Justice Department’s Civil Division handled the matter.
Akron Man Sentenced to 20 Years for Distribution of Carfentanil That Caused DeathRead the Press Release
Acting U.S. Attorney Bridget M. Brennan announced that Ellis J. Wilson, 27, of Akron, Ohio, was sentenced today by Judge Dan Aaron Polster to 20 years in prison after Wilson pleaded guilty to distribution or carfentanil with an enhanced penalty, distribution of carfentanil and possession of a controlled substance with intent to distribute.
According to court documents, on April 16, 2019, Wilson agreed to provide an individual identified as “J.N.” with a quantity of heroin through a third party. Wilson then provided J.N. with a substance that contained a detectable amount of carfentanil. J.N. later ingested this substance, overdosed and died of carfentanil toxicity.
Additionally, on several occasions in May of 2019, Wilson provided a confidential source with the Summit County Drug Unit a similar substance containing a detectable amount of carfentanil. On May 23, 2019, law enforcement officers searched a residence belonging to Wilson and obtained carfentanil, heroin and multiple items used in the preparation of drug distribution, including a digital scale, plastic baggies, cutting agents, a blender with powder residue and a 9mm semiautomatic pistol.
Wilson pleaded guilty in July of 2021 to a penalty enhancement due to the death resulting from his distribution of the carfentanil mixture to J.N.
This case was investigated by the Summit County Sheriff’s Office with assistance provided by the Summit County Prosecutor’s Office. This case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Peter E. Daly and Toni Beth Schnellinger Feisthamel.
6 November 2021
Owner of Louisiana Construction and Building Inspection Businesses and His Two Siblings Plead Guilty to Tax FraudRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON - A Louisiana man who owns construction and building inspection businesses, along with his brother and sister who were employed by the construction businesses, pleaded guilty today to conspiracy to defraud the IRS.
According to court documents, from 2011 through at least June 2019, Randy A. Farrell Sr., of Jefferson Parish, along with his brother, David Farrell, also of Jefferson Parish, and sister, Dawn Farrell Ruiz, of St. Tammany Parish, conspired to conceal income from the IRS and prevent employment taxes from being deducted from their own and others’ wages. Randy Farrell also conspired with Matthew Reck, who pleaded guilty to conspiring to defraud the IRS on July 7.
According to court documents, Randy Farrell and Reck co-owned and operated two commercial construction companies, SES Construction Consulting Group (SES) and Global Technical Solutions (GTS) through 2015, when Reck sold his interest in the companies to Randy Farrell. Court documents show that Randy Farrell and Reck took funds from SES and GTS without reporting the profits on their tax returns, and they worked with an accountant to conceal these efforts on the companies’ internal books and records. Randy Farrell and Reck also ensured certain SES and GTS employees, including David Farrell and Dawn Farrell Ruiz, were paid outside of the normal payroll process so employment taxes would not be withheld from their paychecks.
Since 2007, Randy Farrell has also co-owned a building inspection business, IECI & Associates LLC (IECI). To help conceal the income he received from IECI, Randy Farrell directed IECI to issue checks payable to nominees in amounts under $10,000 and then cashed the checks, keeping the funds for himself. Randy Farrell also used IECI corporate funds for gambling, and then he concealed his actions by directing these expenditures to be falsely entered into IECI’s corporate records as “materials” expenses or “contract labor” payments. After the IRS executed a search warrant at his business offices and home in September 2017, Randy Farrell filed tax returns that falsely underreported the taxable income he earned from his businesses.
Randy Farrell, David Farrell and Ruiz are scheduled to be sentenced at a later date. Each faces a maximum penalty of five years in prison. Reck is scheduled to be sentenced on Jan. 12, 2022, and also faces a maximum of five years in prison. All defendants face 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 and the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Eastern District of Louisiana made the announcement.
IRS Criminal Investigation is investigating the case.
Trial Attorneys William Montague and Parker Tobin of the Tax Division and Assistant U.S. Attorney Nicholas Moses of the Eastern District of Louisiana are prosecuting the case.
5 November 2021
Warren Man Sentenced for Threatening Social Security Administration OfficialRead the Press Release
Acting U.S. Attorney Bridget M. Brennan announced that on Wednesday, Nov. 3, Judge J. Philip Calabrese sentenced Anthony D. Wilson, 35, of Warren, Ohio, to a three-year term of probation after Wilson pleaded guilty in June of 2021 to threatening an official with the Social Security Administration.
“Public servants should never be faced with threats of physical violence or intimidation in the course of their employment,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Bridget M. Brennan. “The Social Security Administration employees threatened by Mr. Wilson are commended for the prompt and appropriate response to the threats made against them.”
“Mr. Wilson’s violent threats to murder a DDS employee who was performing their official duties are intolerable,” said Gail S. Ennis, Inspector General for the Social Security Administration. “The safety of SSA employees and contractors is one of our highest priorities, and we will continue to hold accountable those who jeopardize or attempt to endanger their safety. I thank our law enforcement partners for their efforts in this investigation and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for prosecuting this case.”
According to court documents, in January of 2020, the Social Security Administration (SSA) began a review of the disability status of Wilson to ensure he remained eligible to receive benefits, which required Wilson to undergo medical examinations. At the conclusion of this review, the SSA determined that Wilson was not disabled and discontinued his benefits. Wilson later appealed this decision and, in order to consider the appeal, the SSA required Wilson to undergo further medical examinations and a Claims Adjudicator with the Opportunities for Ohioans with Disabilities, Disability Determination Services, a contractor for the SSA, was assigned to the case.
On or about March 20 and March 21, 2021, Wilson left threatening voicemail messages on the work phone of the adjudicator threatening bodily harm to the adjudicator and other employees. Wilson made these threats in retaliation to the adjudicator’s work on Wilson’s pending case before the Social Security Administration.
As part of the investigation, federal agents obtained a copy of Wilson’s criminal history and discovered a number of prior arrests for making threatening statements and, in one instance, threatening to harm a police officer.
This investigation was conducted by the Social Security Administration – Office of the Inspector General. This case was prosecuted by Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Jason W. White.
Wallingford Man Sentenced to 5 Years in Prison for Downloading Child Sex Abuse Images from the InternetRead the Press Release
Leonard C Boyle, Acting United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, announced that ERIC RUNDSTROM, 47, of Wallingford, was sentenced today by U.S. District Judge Janet Bond Arterton in New Haven to 60 months of imprisonment, followed by five years of supervised release, for downloading child sex abuse images from the internet.
According to court documents and statements made in court, an FBI investigation revealed that Rundstrom had accessed an online website to connect with others interested in collecting and sharing images and videos depicting the sexual abuse of children. Investigators discovered a link to an online file hosting account associated with Rundstrom where hundreds of images and videos of child pornography had been stored, including images of adult males sexually abusing prepubescent females.
Rundstrom was arrested on a federal criminal complaint on February 14, 2019. On March 4, 2020, he pleaded guilty to one count of receipt and possession of child pornography.
Rundstrom, who is released on a $25,000 bond, is required to report to prison on December 7.
This matter was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Anastasia E. King.
This prosecution is part of the U.S. Department of Justice’s Project Safe Childhood Initiative, which is aimed at protecting children from sexual abuse and exploitation. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.justice.gov/psc.
To report cases of child exploitation, please visit www.cybertipline.com.
Violent Career Offender Sentenced to 151 Months in PrisonRead the Press Release
MACON, Ga. – A career offender with a violent criminal history was sentenced to serve more than 12 years in federal prison resulting from his arrest for distributing illegal narcotics while carrying a loaded semi-automatic weapon in Macon.
Joseph Ballard, 47, of Macon, was sentenced to serve 151 months in prison to be followed by three years of supervised release by U.S. District Judge Tilman “Tripp” Self on Nov. 4, after he previously pleaded guilty to possession with intent to distribute heroin. There is no parole in the federal system. Ballard has prior felony convictions for voluntary manslaughter, aggravated stalking, terroristic threats and drug distribution in Bibb County, Georgia, Superior Court.
“Ballard has a long and violent criminal history in the Macon community. He is now being held accountable for choosing to illegally carry a loaded semi-automatic weapon while pushing the deadliest narcotics into our community,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Peter D. Leary. “I want to thank the federal, state and local law enforcement agencies who work around-the-clock with us to ensure the most violent, repeat offenders in the Middle District of Georgia are held responsible for their continued criminal activity.”
According to court documents, Ballard was pulled over for a seatbelt violation while driving in Macon on March 1, 2018 by the Georgia State Patrol (GSP). The troopers saw drugs by Ballard’s feet and during a search, found a .40 caliber semi-automatic pistol loaded with 13 rounds of ammunition under the driver’s seat, as well as quantities of heroin, methamphetamine, a variety of illegal drugs that Ballard admitted he was going to sell, along with drug paraphernalia and cash.
The case was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF), Georgia Department of Public Safety, Georgia State Patrol (GSP), and the Bibb County Sheriff’s Office.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Will Keyes prosecuted the case for the Government.
Vermont Resident Sentenced for Marijuana and THC-product Distribution OperationRead the Press Release
The United States Attorney’s Office for the District of Vermont announced that Kyle S. Lamothe, 29, presently of Milton, Vermont, was sentenced today in United States District Court in Burlington to 24 months’ incarceration following his guilty plea to possession with intent to distribute more than 50 kilograms of marijuana. Chief District Judge Geoffrey Crawford also ordered that Lamothe pay a $20,000 fine and be subject to three years of supervised release following his sentence of incarceration.
In January 2021, a federal grand jury in Burlington returned an indictment charging Lamothe with four counts alleging various marijuana-related violations of the Controlled Substances Act, including two counts of distribution. In April 2021, the United States filed a plea agreement it had reached with Lamothe, allowing him to plead to a single violation, and Lamothe pleaded guilty to the drug offense on May 13, 2021. Lamothe faced up to 20 years of imprisonment for the crime to which he pleaded. Lamothe appeared before the Court for sentencing today, and the Court ordered that Lamothe remain released—subject to conditions of supervision—pending his self-surrender to the Bureau of Prisons for service of his 24-month sentence of imprisonment.
According to court records, Lamothe used a residence on Lasnier Road in Swanton, Vermont to store, process, and distribute marijuana and products infused with marijuana extracts and THC distillates. The Court found that the enterprise involved at least 700 kilograms (1,543 pounds) of “converted drug weight”—a measure the United States Sentencing Guidelines uses as a common denominator in cases involving multiple controlled substances that roughly equates to a kilogram of marijuana. Lamothe received hundreds of pounds of marijuana from suppliers in the western United States and in Canada, and he sold multi-pound quantities of marijuana to customers for profit. Lamothe also prepared thousands of unregulated THC-infused edibles in a lab facility in his residence. When federal authorities executed a search warrant on the Lasnier Road residence in November 2020, they seized over 600 kilograms of plant material, over 270 kilograms of various THC-infused products, and approximately $121,000 in currency. They also located four loaded firearms in the residence, each within reach of bulk currency or controlled substances.
The case was jointly investigated by Homeland Security Investigations and the Vermont State Police Narcotics Investigation Unit. Acting United States Attorney Jonathan A. Ophardt commended their collaborative investigative efforts and noted his appreciation for the logistical assistance of the Vermont State Police. “While we acknowledge a qualitative difference between cannabis and more dangerous controlled substances, traffickers who possess large amounts of cannabis and currency attract violence. The guns encountered in this case are evidence of that connection. The United States Attorney’s Office, working with our federal, state, and local law enforcement partners, will continue to prioritize the investigation and prosecution of traffickers who profit from unregulated black markets and endanger the community.”
Lamothe was represented by attorney Paul Volk. The prosecutor was Assistant United States Attorney Matthew Lasher.
University professor pleads guilty to possession of child pornographyRead the Press Release
ATLANTA - Daniel Deocampo, a former professor and dean at Georgia State University (“GSU”), has pleaded guilty to possession of child pornography. Images and videos of children as young as five years old, engaged in sexually explicit conduct, were among the items confiscated.
“Deocampo was caught brazenly using the university network to exploit children,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Kurt R. Erskine. “It is disturbing when we learn that an educator engages in this type of disgusting behavior. Possessing child pornography victimizes and abuses the children in the images each time they are disseminated.”
“Children portrayed in child pornography images are victimized each time those images are distributed or viewed, and this case is especially distressing because the suspect was a professor who worked with our youth,” said Chris Hacker, Special Agent in Charge of FBI Atlanta. “The FBI remains committed to protecting our children and is thankful for the law enforcement partnerships that make it possible to stop people like Deocampo from victimizing any more children.”
According to Acting U.S. Attorney Erskine, the charges and other information presented in court: In November 2020, Georgia State University's Cyber Security Department (“GSU Cyber Security”) alerted the FBI that an employee was accessing websites which appeared to contain child pornography through the university’s network.
Working together, the FBI and GSU Cyber Security identified Deocampo as the individual who had accessed multiple websites containing child pornography (or had links to other websites containing child pornography) from campus in November and December 2020. GSU Cyber Security also advised the FBI that Deocampo routinely accessed the university’s network from home. Based on that information, FBI determined that Deocampo was also accessing websites containing child pornography from his home on several days in late December 2020 and early January 2021.
Based on the foregoing, on January 6, 2021, the FBI executed search warrants at Deocampo's residence, as well as his GSU office and lab space. As a result of the search, agents recovered an Apple laptop belonging to Deocampo that contained more than 4,000 files of child pornography, including approximately 190 videos.
Daniel Deocampo, 48, of Avondale Estates, Georgia, pleaded guilty to possession of child pornography on November 3, 2021. Deocampo’s sentencing is scheduled for February 23, 2022 at 11:00 a.m. before U.S. District Judge Steven D. Grimberg.
This case is being investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and Georgia State University Police Department.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Alex R. Sistla is prosecuting the case.
This case is being brought as part of Project Safe Childhood. In February 2006, the Attorney General launched Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative designed to protect children from online exploitation and abuse. Led by the United States Attorney’s Offices around the country, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state and local resources to apprehend and prosecute individuals who exploit children. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.projectsafechildhood.gov.
For further information please contact the U.S. Attorney’s Public Affairs Office at [email protected] or (404) 581-6016. The Internet address for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia is http://www.justice.gov/usao-ndga.
Two Sentenced to Federal Prison for Health Care FraudRead the Press Release
Tampa, Florida – U.S. District Judge Virginia M. Hernandez Covington has sentenced Michael Nolan (48, Tampa) and Richard Epstein (29, Aurora, CO) for their roles in a conspiracy to defraud federal health benefit programs, Medicare and the Civilian Health and Medical Program of the Department of Veterans Affairs (“CHAMPVA”).
Nolan was sentenced to six years and six months in federal prison, followed by three years of supervised release. Epstein was sentenced to five years and three months in federal prison, followed by three years of supervised release. As part of their sentences, the court also entered a money judgment against each defendant in the amount of $2.1 million and $3 million, respectively, which were proceeds of the conspiracy. Noland and Epstein were also ordered to pay restitution, jointly and severally with each other and other conspirators, in the amount of $29,020,304.
Nolan and Epstein each had pleaded guilty on July 31, 2020.
According to court documents, from around October 2016 through around April 2019, Epstein and Nolan ran a telemarketing company in Tampa called REMN Management LLC that targeted the elderly to generate thousands of medically unnecessary physicians’ orders for durable medical equipment (“DME”) and cancer genetic testing (“CGx”). Epstein and Nolan also created and operated Comprehensive Telcare, LLC, a “telemedicine” company through which they illegally bribed physicians to sign the orders regardless of medical necessity. Epstein and Nolan then illegally sold the signed physicians’ orders to client-conspirators for use as support for false and fraudulent claims submitted to Medicare and CHAMPVA. The conspiracy resulted in the submission of at least $134 million in fraudulent claims to the federal health benefit programs, resulting in approximately $29 million in payments.
The investigation and prosecution of the case were a joint effort between the Middle District of Florida and the Department of Justice - Criminal Division, Fraud Section, Health Care Fraud Unit, as part of nationwide actions known as Operation Brace Yourself and Operation Double Helix. The operations targeted ongoing schemes, such as the conspiracy described above, in which DME companies, laboratories, and marketers were paying illegal bribes through “telemedicine” operators to secure signed physicians’ orders for DME and CGx, which were then used as support for fraudulent, illegal claims submitted to Medicare and other federal health benefit programs.
“These significant sentences and restitution of over $29,000,000 to our nation’s critical healthcare system – Medicare – are a result of law enforcement’s unified efforts to hold the perpetrators of one of the largest healthcare fraud schemes in history accountable for their crimes,” said Special Agent in Charge Omar Pérez Aybar of U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General.
“We are all victims of these corrupt individuals because they cheated the taxpayer funded Medicare system,” said FBI Tampa Division Special Agent in Charge Michael McPherson. “Health care fraud investigations are given high priority within the FBI’s Criminal Investigative Division. Because this abuse impacts us all, protection of these federal health benefit programs is a shared responsibility which can be accomplished with the support of an engaged community willing to bring health care fraud to the attention of law enforcement.”
“Today’s sentence properly holds these defendants accountable for their fraudulent actions and reflects the magnitude of the crime committed against CHAMPVA and Medicare,” said Special Agent in Charge David Spilker of the Department of Veterans Affairs Office of Inspector General’s Southeast Field Office. “The VA OIG’s continued oversight of VA’s multiple healthcare programs, including CHAMPVA, is one of the agency’s highest priorities. We thank our outstanding law enforcement partners for their efforts in this joint investigation.”
"The significant prison terms and financial penalties will hopefully bring some closure to those victimized by Nolan and Epstein,” said IRS Criminal Investigation Special Agent in Charge Brian Payne. “They preyed on the elderly and military veterans to subject them to unnecessary medical testing and to use unnecessary medical equipment for their own financial gain. We will continue to investigate these con artists and hold them accountable.”
This case was investigated by U.S. Department of Health and Human Services – Office of Inspector General, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Department of Veterans Affairs – Office of Inspector General, and the Internal Revenue Service –Criminal Investigation, Tampa Field Office. The criminal case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Tiffany E. Fields, Jay G. Trezevant, James A. Muench, and Department of Justice Trial Attorney Gary A. Winters.
Two Individuals in Federal Prison as Officers, Agents Target those Responsible for an Overdose Death in Park CityRead the Press Release
SALT LAKE CITY – Jimmy Astudillo, age 32, of Salt Lake City, was sentenced to 65 months in federal prison for the possession of heroin with intent to distribute, related to his role in the distribution of narcotics that caused the fatal overdose of a Park City woman in 2018.
Astudillo previously entered his guilty plea in federal court in August. In their court filings, prosecutors told the judge that the defendant’s criminal history suggests a near life-long pattern of serious crimes and, given the brazen and dangerous nature of defendant’s activities, recommended the court sentence Astudillo to 65 months in federal prison.
The investigation into the case began on May 10, 2018, when Park City police officers and deputies with the Summit County Sheriff’s Office responded to an apartment to check on a woman at the request of an acquaintance. They found the woman, identified as CC in court filings, deceased. The Office of the Medical Examiner later listed CC’s death as a drug overdose resulting from heroin and methamphetamine toxicity.
An overdose drug investigation targeting individuals who provided the methamphetamine and heroin started almost immediately. According to documents filed in court, law enforcement officers and DEA agents used information provided by the acquaintance to start conducting interviews. Officers served a subpoena on a Park City business for security footage for the evening of May 9, 2018, and a few days later, agents obtained a federal search warrant for CC’s Facebook Messenger records.
The Facebook records revealed communications between CC and Zachary Westerman during the evening hours of May 9, 2018. The Messenger exchanges also revealed that Westerman had supplied CC with heroin and methamphetamine.
In the final five exchanges, Westerman told her he had $30 of black tar heroin and $20 of methamphetamine he would sell for $10, for a discounted total of $40. CC agreed. Westerman then double checked the agreement, “So 40 total.” “Perfect,” CC said. A few minutes later, CC messaged Westerman, “Here.”
On Jan. 23, 2019, Westerman, age 36, of Sandy, pleaded guilty to one count of distribution of heroin in federal court in Salt Lake City. He admitted that on May 9, 2018, he sold user-level amounts of heroin and methamphetamine to CC. He was sentenced to 36 months in federal prison. The sentence included an enhancement for CC’s death resulting from his conduct.
The investigation did not end there.
According to a sentencing memorandum filed in in federal court, Westerman, in a post-arrest interview, identified Jimmy Astudillo, as his supplier for the drugs he sold CC. Agents obtained a federal search warrant for Astudillo’s Facebook account for the period of April 2 to Sept. 20, 2018. Those records revealed numerous drug trafficking conversations between Astudillo and his drug customers. In one, Astudillo bragged to one of his customers that his heroin was so strong that the “feds” were trying to blame him for overdose deaths in Utah and he had to be careful not to get caught. Astudillo referred to the potent heroin as “fire.”Agents arranged and conducted a controlled buy of one-ounce of heroin from Astudillo in 2018, paying $1,200. Astudillo told the undercover officer that the heroin was “fire” (high quality). He also told him the undercover he sells normal strength, cheaper heroin as well. A second attempted undercover purchase of four ounces of heroin for $4,400 ended up not taking place. Astudillo kept insisting the undercover officer (UC) get in his vehicle to drive them to the source of the supply nearby. The UC would not get into the car and asked to see the heroin. Astudillo then pulled out a bag of what appeared to be heroin, but the UC noticed the amount was likely not the agreed upon four ounces. As Astudillo became agitated, the UC returned to his vehicle and left.
Federal agents arrested Astudillo on Dec. 19, 2018. They also executed a search warrant at his home and found a small bag of heroin in a dresser drawer and a larger bag of heroin in a closet full of shoes. The total weight of the seized heroin was about one pound.
In the sentencing memorandum, prosecutors told the court that following his arrest, Astudillo called his heroin supplier and advised him to destroy his phones and expressed the hope that he “could get back in the swing of things” with the supplier once out of custody.
Assistant United States Attorneys prosecuted the cases against Westerman and Astudillo. The Summit County Sheriff’s Office, the Park City Police Department, and the DEA, conducted the investigation.
Two Businessmen Charged with Running Fencing Operation Out of Suburban Chicago StoresRead the Press Release
CHICAGO — Two businessmen have been charged in federal court with running a fencing operation out of their suburban Chicago stores.
ZIAD I. ZAYED, also known as “Zee,” 46, and MOSAS I. ZAYED, 33, both of Frankfort, Ill., are charged with conspiracy to receive and dispose of stolen property across state lines. The Zayeds, who are brothers, were arrested Tuesday. They are scheduled to appear for detention hearings today at 2:30 p.m. before U.S. Magistrate Judge Gabriel A. Fuentes.
According to a criminal complaint filed in U.S. District Court in Chicago, the Zayeds used their store – Crestwood Electronics Inc. in Crestwood, Ill. – and other businesses to knowingly purchase stolen electronic devices and other merchandise, re-package the items, and then ship them to re-sellers out of state and overseas. Some of the items fenced by the Zayeds included laptop computers, fitness tracking devices, and digital cameras that were stolen last year from railcars near Chicago, the charges allege.
The complaint and arrests were announced by John R. Lausch, Jr., United States Attorney for the Northern District of Illinois; and Emmerson Buie, Jr., Special Agent-in-Charge of the Chicago Field Office of the FBI. The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Ann Marie E. Ursini, Melody Wells, and Barry Jonas.
The public is reminded that a complaint is not evidence of guilt. The defendants are presumed innocent and entitled to a fair trial at which the government has the burden of proving guilt beyond a reasonable doubt. If convicted, the Court must impose a reasonable sentence under federal statutes and the advisory U.S. Sentencing Guidelines.
Taos Pueblo man pleads guilty to sexual abuse of a minorRead the Press Release
ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. – Elliot Romancito, 27, of Taos, New Mexico, and an enrolled member of the Taos Pueblo, pleaded guilty in federal court on Nov. 3 to sexual abuse of a minor in Indian Country. Romancito was indicted on March 10, 2020.
In his plea agreement, Romancito admitted that after a party on the night of Sept. 30, 2018, or in the early morning hours of Oct. 1, 2018, he drove to a location on the Taos Pueblo and engaged in a sexual act with the victim, identified in court records as Jane Doe. At the time of the abuse, Jane Doe was 15-years old.
By the terms of the plea agreement, Romancito faces up to two years in prison and will be required to register as a sex offender.
The Santa Fe Resident Agency of the FBI Albuquerque Filed Office investigated this case. Assistant United States Attorneys David P. Cowen and Elisa Dimas are prosecuting this case.
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Supplier of Drug Network Is Sentenced to 30 Years in PrisonRead the Press Release
CHARLOTTE, N.C. – The supplier of a local drug network has been sentenced to 30 years in prison, announced William T. Stetzer, Acting U.S. Attorney for the Western District of North Carolina. Matthew Wondra, 34, of Murphy, N.C., was also ordered to serve five years of supervised release after he is released from prison.
According to court documents and yesterday’s sentencing hearing, in September 2018, law enforcement became aware that Wondra was operating as a supplier for a local drug network in Cherokee and Graham Counties and elsewhere. Court records show that Wondra frequently traveled to Georgia to purchase kilogram quantities of methamphetamine and heroin, which he then distributed to dealers in Western North Carolina. Throughout the investigation, Wondra engaged in multiple drug transactions, and at times possessed firearms in connection with his drug trafficking activities. On one occasion, Wondra put a gun to the head of a person he accused of stealing drug proceeds from him during the course of the conspiracy and he threatened to kill that person. According to filed documents, from September 2018 to August 2019, Wondra was responsible for purchasing and distributing more than 19 kilograms of methamphetamine and over three kilograms of heroin.
On October 30, 2020, Wondra pleaded guilty to conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute methamphetamine and heroin. At yesterday’s court hearing, Wondra received sentencing enhancements for weapons possession, making a credible threat, maintaining a premises for the purpose of storing and distributing controlled substances, and for his leadership role during the drug conspiracy.
Wondra’s co-defendants, Jamie Allen and Derek Wilson, were previously sentenced to 10 years and 4.25 years in prison, respectively, for their role in the conspiracy.
In making today’s announcement, Acting U.S. Attorney Stetzer thanked the Drug Enforcement Administration’s Asheville Post of Duty; the Bureau of Indian Affairs; the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives; the U.S. Postal Inspection Service; the Cherokee County Sheriff’s Office; the Jackson County Sheriff’s Office; the Swain County Sheriff’s Office; the Graham County Sheriff’s Office; the Buncombe County Sheriff’s Office; the Henderson County Sheriff’s Office; the Rutherford County Sheriff’s Office; the Cherokee Indian Police Department; the Murphy Police Department; and the Asheville Police Department for their investigation of the case.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Thomas Kent, of the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Asheville, prosecuted the case.
This case is part of an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF) investigation. OCDETF identifies, disrupts, and dismantles the highest-level drug traffickers, money launderers, gangs, and transnational criminal organizations by using a prosecutor-led, intelligence-driven, multi-agency approach that leverages the strengths of federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies against criminal networks. Additional information about the OCDETF Program can be found at https://www.justice.gov/OCDETF.
St. Thomas Man Who Forged Checks in His Father’s Name Sentenced to 21 Months in Federal Prison for $303,000 Bank FraudRead the Press Release
St. Thomas, USVI – United States Attorney Gretchen C.F. Shappert for the District of the Virgin Islands announced today that Lenroy Ravalier, Jr. was sentenced by the Honorable Robert A. Molloy to serve 21 months in federal prison followed by 3 years of supervised release and ordered to pay restitution of $169,000, representing his ill-gotten gains from his commission of bank fraud.
According to public documents filed in the case, Ravalier Jr. forged checks in his father’s name totaling $303,000, and then moved much of the money through various accounts under his control. One of the accounts was opened strictly for the purpose of passing the stolen funds through the account. A bank was able to intervene and recapture over $132,000 of the amount Ravalier Jr. stole but by then he had spent the remainder. Ravalier Jr. did not have authorization from the victim to take the funds described above or to write checks in the victim’s name.
This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Nathan Brooks and Jill Koster.
St. Thomas Man Arrested at the Cyril E. King Airport with Nine Vacuum Sealed Packages of Marijuana Sentenced in Federal CourtRead the Press Release
ST. THOMAS – United States Attorney Gretchen C.F. Shappert announced on today that Kharim Moore of St. Thomas was sentenced today to three years’ probation, fined $1,000, and ordered to complete 100 hours of community service for possession with intent to distribute a controlled substance.
According to court documents, U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officers were conducting screenings of arriving passengers at the Cyril E. King Airport on November 4, 2020 when Moore disembarked a Delta Airlines flight from Atlanta, GA. He was selected for inspection and his carryon backpack was searched.
Officers discovered nine vacuum sealed packages with a green leafy substance inside that weighed approximately 3.48 kilograms. The substance tested positive for marijuana.
The Department of Homeland Security-Homeland Security Investigations and CBP investigated the case. It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Kyle Payne and is part of an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) investigation. OCDETF identifies, disrupts, and dismantles the highest-level drug traffickers, money launderers, gangs, and transnational criminal organizations that threaten the United States by using a prosecutor-led, intelligence-driven, multiagency approach that leverages the strengths of federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies against criminal networks.
St. James Parish Men Indicted for Violations of the Federal Controlled Substances ActRead the Press Release
NEW ORLEANS, LOUISIANA – JUAN CAZES, age 46, and CRANDALL WASHINGTON, age 42, both residents of St. James Parish, Louisiana, were charged November 4, 2021, in a two-count indictment by a Federal Grand Jury with conspiracy to possess with the intent to distribute methamphetamine and possession with the intent to distribute methamphetamine in violation of Title 21, United States Code, Sections 846, 841(a)(1), and 841(b)(1)(A), announced U.S. Attorney Duane A. Evans.
According to Count 1 and Count 2 of the indictment, on October 28, 2021, CAZES and WASHINGTON conspired and possessed with the intent to distribute 500 grams or more of a mixture and substance containing a detectable amount of methamphetamine.
If convicted of Count 1, both CAZES and WASHINGTON face a mandatory minimum sentence of 10 years and up to life imprisonment, a fine of up to $10,000,000, and at least five years of supervised release following any term of imprisonment. If convicted of Count 2, both CAZES and WASHINGTON face a mandatory minimum sentence of ten years and up to life imprisonment, a fine of up to $10,000,000, and at least five years of supervised release following any term of imprisonment. For both counts of the indictment, both CAZES and WASHINGTON face payment of a $100 mandatory special assessment fee.
U.S. Attorney Evans reiterated that the indictment is merely a charging document and that the guilt of the defendants must be proven beyond a reasonable doubt.
This case was investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration and St. James Parish Sherriff’s Office. The prosecution is being handled by Assistant United States Attorney Christopher Usher.
St. Croix Woman Sentenced for Attempting to Smuggle Marijuana from Florida Through the Cyril E. King AirportRead the Press Release
St. Thomas, USVI – U.S. Attorney Gretchen C.F. Shappert announced that Raquel Rivera, from St. Croix, was sentenced for the federal crime of possession with intent to distribute 6 kilograms of marijuana. Rivera was convicted at trial in May of 2021.
On Wednesday, November 3, 2021 Chief Judge Robert A. Molloy sentenced Rivera to 5 years probation.
Evidence presented at trial established that Rivera was stopped on April 22, 2020 at the Cyril E. King airport after arriving on St. Thomas from Miami, FL. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officers searched her luggage, including one suitcase checked in using Rivera’s name and one checked in using the name of someone else. Inside her luggage, officers found 12 identical, vacuumsealed bags of marijuana concealed in various items of clothing, including jeans, towels, and a Hello Kitty blanket. In total, Rivera possessed nearly six kilograms of marijuana in both suitcases. When interviewed by officers that day, she gave conflicting accounts of what was in the suitcases and who packed them prior to her travel. A unanimous jury found Rivera guilty of possession of marijuana with intent to distribute.
Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) and Customs and Border Protection (CBP) investigated the case. Assistant U.S. Attorney Natasha Baker and Nathan Brooks prosecuted the case.
South Florida Liquor Store Owner Goes to Federal Prison for Tax EvasionRead the Press Release
Miami, Florida – A Lake Worth, Florida man who did not report his liquor store’s cash sales to the IRS was sentenced to 18 months in prison yesterday in federal district court in West Palm Beach for tax evasion.
Ajay Kumar, 60, was the sole officer and registered agent of Kruthi, Inc, a company registered in Florida, and doing business as “Tri County Discount Liquor.” Kumar reported credit card receipts to his accountant and on Kruthi’s federal income tax returns. However, Kumar did not report his cash receipts. As a result, Kruthi’s returns for tax years 2015 through 2018 underreported the liquor store’s gross receipts by approximately $1,718,945. For those same tax years, Kumar failed to pay approximately $481,304.68 in federal income taxes.
Kumar previously pled guilty to one count of tax evasion. U.S. District Judge Donald M. Middlebrooks sentenced Kumar to 18 months in prison. Judge Middlebrooks also ordered Kumar to serve three years of supervised release and to pay a $7,500 fine and $481,304.68 in restitution.
Juan Antonio Gonzalez, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Florida, and Acting Special Agent in Charge Matthew D. Line, IRS Criminal Investigation (IRS-CI), Miami Field Office, announced the sentence.
“Those who underreport taxable earnings violate the integrity of our federal system of taxation,” said U.S. Attorney Gonzalez. “To do so is a crime and our Office will aggressively prosecute business owners who evade their federal tax obligations.”
“Defrauding the government with a scheme to knowingly underreport taxable income is a crime. The people of the United States are the ultimate victims in these schemes – those taxpayers who truthfully file tax returns and pay their fair share of tax each year,” said Acting SAC Line. “Let this serve as a message to both small and large businesses alike, that individuals who deliberately underreport or omit income from their tax returns will be held accountable for their actions.”
IRS-CI Miami investigated this case. Assistant U. S. Attorney Marc Osborne prosecuted it.
Related court documents and information may be found on the website of the District Court for the Southern District of Florida at www.flsd.uscourts.gov or at http://pacer.flsd.uscourts.gov, under case no. 21-cr-80091.
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South Carolina Couple Charged with Illegally Trafficking Firearms into New JerseyRead the Press Release
NEWARK, N.J. – A South Carolina couple made their initial court appearance today on charges of trafficking firearms into New Jersey, Acting U.S. Attorney Rachael A. Honig announced.
Fuquan Haafiz Ali Bowers, 37, and Christina Lanette Williams, both of Newberry, South Carolina, were arrested Nov. 3, 2021, and are charged by complaint with conspiracy to deal firearms without a license, dealing firearms without a license, and transferring firearms to an out-of-state resident. Bowers was additionally charged with unlawful possession of a firearm and ammunition by a convicted felon. They appeared today before U.S. Magistrate Judge Kevin F. McDonald in South Carolina federal court and were each released on $25,000 unsecured bond.
According to documents filed in this case and statements made in court:
This summer, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF) and Elizabeth, New Jersey, police officers recovered several firearms in separate investigations in the city of Elizabeth. One of the recovered firearms was at the scene of a shooting; another firearm was recovered from a juvenile; and the third firearm was recovered from a convicted felon. The ATF later discovered that the recovered firearms were purchased by Williams in South Carolina before they were subsequently recovered by law enforcement in New Jersey. The ATF then obtained documents and other evidence revealing that Williams and Bowers traveled from South Carolina to New Jersey to sell the firearms in Elizabeth.
The firearms dealing charges each carry a maximum sentence of five years in prison, and a fine of up to $250,000. The felon in possession of a firearms charge carries a maximum sentence of 10 years and a fine of up to $250,000.
Acting U.S. Attorney Honig credited special agents of the ATF, Newark Field Division, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Jeffrey L. Matthews; and the Elizabeth Police Department, under the direction of Director Earl J. Graves and Chief Giacomo Sacca, with the investigation leading to these charges.
This arrest was made by a firearms trafficking strike force, part of the Department of Justice’s violent crime reduction initiative to reduce gun violence and enforce federal firearms laws. Initiated by the Attorney General in the spring of 2021, the violent crimes reduction initiative is a comprehensive strategy to deploy federal resources in the most effective way, disrupt the most dangerous threats and support ground-level efforts of local law enforcement. Within the initiative, firearms trafficking strike forces have been launched to reduce violent crime by addressing illegal gun trafficking in significant firearms trafficking corridors.
The government is represented by Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Timothy P. Shaughnessy of the Organized Crime/Gangs Unit in Newark.
The charges and allegations contained in the complaint are merely accusations, and the defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
Soldier in training at Fort Gordon indicted for distributing child pornographyRead the Press Release
AUGUSTA, GA: A U.S. Army soldier in training at Fort Gordon has been indicted for distributing child pornography.
Joshua Gamble, 29, of Fort Gordon, was indicted by a U.S. District Court Grand Jury on one count of Distribution of Child Pornography, said David H. Estes, Acting U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Georgia. The charge carries a statutory minimum penalty of five years and up to 20 years in prison, and there is no parole in the federal system.
“Anyone who would think to engage in activities that exploit children should be forewarned that our vigilant law enforcement partners are always watching,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Estes. “We will be unrelenting in pursuing those who would victimize the most vulnerable among us.”
FBI agents investigating illegal distribution of child pornography via an Internet chat application arrested Gamble in in October on a complaint based on activity that took place on Aug. 10 and 11, 2021.
Indictments contain only charges; defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
The case is being investigated by the FBI, and prosecuted for the United States by Assistant U.S. Attorney and Project Safe Childhood Coordinator Tara M. Lyons.