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26 August 2021
St. Petersburg Postal Clerk Pleads Guilty to Stealing Mail and Passport Applications to Commit Bank FraudRead the Press Release
Tampa, Florida – Jasmine Wynne (31, Ruskin) has pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit bank fraud, five counts of aggravated identity theft, and one count of theft of a postal key. She faces up to 30 years in federal prison for the conspiracy count, 2 years’ imprisonment for the aggravated identity theft charges, and up to 10 years in prison for theft of a postal key. Wynne’s sentencing hearing has been scheduled for November 17, 2021.
According to court documents, Wynne was employed as a Postal Clerk with the United States Postal Service (“USPS”) and was assigned to a Post Office in St. Petersburg. Between June 2017 and September 2019, Wynne conspired with others to commit bank fraud. Specifically, Wynne used her status and the special access she enjoyed as an employee of the USPS to open First Class mail entrusted for delivery to the Postal Service. Wynne then photographed the contents of the mail, which included victim bank account information and personal identifying information (“PII”). She also took photographs of United States Passport applications that were processed at her Post Office location. These applications also contained PII and bank account information. Wynne then emailed the photographs to coconspirators who utilized the PII and bank account information to commit bank fraud.
Wynne also used her position as a USPS employee to access and steal at least one restricted Postal Arrow key. An Arrow key is a special master key that opens USPS collection boxes, banks of mailboxes at apartment complexes, and any other mailboxes. The Arrow keys are manufactured for the USPS and distributed through controlled channels. Wynne provided the stolen Postal Arrow key to her co-conspirators in exchange for payment so that they could steal mail from locked mailboxes and secure additional PII and other information for use in the bank fraud conspiracy.
This case was investigated by the United States Postal Inspection Service and the U.S. Department of State’s Diplomatic Security Service. It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Craig Gestring.
South Padre Island man heads to prison following the discovery of more than 22K pornographic imagesRead the Press Release
BROWNSVILLE, Texas - A 68-year-old local man has been ordered to federal prison for receipt and possession of child pornography, announced Acting U.S. Attorney Jennifer B. Lowery.
Robert Andrew Riley pleaded guilty June 25, 2019.
Today, U.S. District Judge Fernando Rodriguez Jr. imposed a 168-month term of imprisonment. In handing down the sentence, the court noted the amount of child pornography Riley possessed and further ordered he pay $78,000 in restitution to 26 victims. He must also serve 10 years on supervised release following completion of his prison term, during which time he will have to comply with numerous requirements designed to restrict his access to children and the internet. Riley will also be ordered to register as a sex offender.
In January 2018, authorities initiated an investigation into child pornography sharing on the internet. This led them to Riley’s address on South Padre Island.
Law enforcement later executed a search at his residence and seized several electronic and digital devices. Forensic analysis resulted in the discovery of 22,628 unique images and 6,097 unique videos of child pornography.
Riley has been and will remain in custody pending transfer to a U.S. Bureau of Prisons facility to be determined in the near future.
Homeland Security Investigations - Rio Grande Valley Child Exploitation Task Force conducted the investigation.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Ana C. Cano is prosecuting the case, which was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood (PSC), a nationwide initiative the Department of Justice (DOJ) launched in May 2006 to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. U.S. Attorneys' Offices and the Criminal Division's Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section leads PSC, which marshals federal, state and local resources to locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who sexually exploit children and identifies and rescues victims. For more information about PSC, please visit DOJ’s PSC page. For more information about internet safety education, please visit the resources tab on that page.
Solon Man Sentenced to Federal Prison for Firearm ChargesRead the Press Release
DAVENPORT, IOWA – A Solon man, Christopher Allan Hay, age 49, was sentenced yesterday by United States District Court Chief Judge John A. Jarvey to 30 months in prison for Drug User in Possession of Firearms and Ammunition and Possession of Unregistered Firearms. Hay was ordered to serve three years of supervised release to follow his prison term as well as pay $300 to the Crime Victims’ Fund.
According to court documents, Hay was identified by Customs and Border Patrol (CBP) agents in San Francisco and Chicago when they located suspicious packages sent from China – addressed to Hay – believed to contain illegal firearms silencers. After investigating, CBP determined the packages contained fourteen alleged “fuel filters,” which have no filtering capability and are easily converted into firearms silencers. As such, the ATF has deemed them silencers under the National Firearms Act. As a result, law enforcement executed a valid search warrant on Hay’s residence and located 37 firearms; hundreds of rounds of ammunition; four “fuel filter” silencers, one of which was attached to a firearm; as well as 813 grams of marijuana. Two of Hay’s firearms were determined to be fully automatic machineguns, which Hay admitted he illegally converted. Hay admitted purchasing the “fuel filters” with the intent to use them as firearm silencers, knowing it was illegal to possess them without the proper ATF paperwork and approval. In addition, Hay admitted knowingly possessing, using, and distributing marijuana. On April 19, 2021, Hay pleaded guilty to the charges brought against him.
Acting United States Attorney Richard D. Westphal of the Southern District of Iowa made the announcement. The United States Postal Inspection Service and Customs and Border Patrol investigated the case.
Socorro woman sentenced to 16 years in prison for federal drug and firearms convictionRead the Press Release
ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. – Mary Gonzales, 50, of Socorro, New Mexico, was sentenced on Aug. 18 to 16 years and three months in prison. On March 10, a jury returned a guilty verdict on all counts, including one count each of possession with intent to distribute 50 grams and more of methamphetamine, possession with intent to distribute heroin, being a felon in possession of a firearm and ammunition and possession of a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime.
According to court records, on June 7, 2018, a Socorro County Deputy observed Gonzales conducting what appeared to be a hand-to-hand drug sale in Socorro. The deputy conducted a traffic stop and found Gonzales in possession of methamphetamine, heroin and a loaded firearm.
Gonzales previously had been convicted of possession of marijuana, attempted possession of a controlled substance, trafficking crack cocaine and attempted trafficking of crack cocaine. As a previously convicted felon, Gonzales cannot legally possess a firearm or ammunition.
Upon her release from prison, Gonzales will be subject to five years of supervised release.
The FBI investigated this case with assistance from the Socorro County Sheriff’s Office. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Samuel Hurtado and Nicholas Mote prosecuted the case.
Sioux Falls Woman Sentenced to Probation, Community Service, and Ordered to Pay Restitution for Making a Materially False StatementRead the Press Release
Acting United States Attorney Dennis R. Holmes announced that Tami Haug-Davis, age 64, of Sioux Falls, South Dakota, appeared before U.S. District Judge Karen E. Schreier on August 23, 2021, and was sentenced for Making a Materially False Statement.
Haug-Davis was ordered to pay restitution in the amount of $15,000 to the Missouri Valley Crisis Center (MVCC) and to the Department of Justice. She was also sentenced to one year of probation and to serve 40 hours of community service.
Beginning in or about September 2016 until February 2019, Tami Haug-Davis was the Director of the Missouri Valley Crisis Center (MVCC) in Chamberlain, South Dakota. During this time, MVCC was funded in large part by state and federal grants, awarded by the South Dakota Department of Social Services. MVCC received funds from the following federal grants: Family Violence Prevention Services (FVPS), Department of Health and Human Services, Administration for Children and Families and Crime Victims Assistance (VOCA), Department of Justice, Office of Victims of Crime.
In the fall of 2018, South Dakota Department of Public Safety Victim Services Program (DPS) conducted a review of MVCC pursuant to their receipt of federal and state grants. DPS later issued MVCC a Corrective Action Plan dated October 11, 2018. The plan listed seventeen items for which MVCC needed to provide supporting documentation to DPS, including a corrective action that MVCC must provide detailed board meeting minutes from the last three meetings and a complete list of the Board of Directors.
MVCC provided a response to DPS’s directive for more information. Following receipt of MVCC’s response, a complaint was issued by the State of South Dakota’s Division of Criminal Investigation. On March 28, 2019, the Department of Justice – Office of the Inspector General opened an investigation regarding the management of MVCC as it had provided federal grant monies to MVCC. The Department of Health and Human Services – Office of the Inspector General joined the investigation, as it had also provided federal grant monies to MVCC.
As part of the joint investigation, federal agents with each agency interviewed Haug-Davis. On August 30, 2019, and July 14, 2020, during interviews with federal agents, Haug-Davis knowingly and intentionally made materially false statements regarding the creation, submission, and veracity of board meeting minutes and documents provided to DPS in response to the October 11, 2018, corrective action plan. Her statements were made about a matter within the jurisdiction of the U.S. Departments of Justice and Health and Human Services, and she knew her statements were untrue when she made the statements to investigators.
The investigation was conducted by the Department of Justice – Office of the Inspector General, the Department of Health and Human Services – Office of the Inspector General, and the State of South Dakota’s Division of Criminal Investigation. The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Jeremy Jehangiri.
Rochester Man Pleads Guilty to Fentanyl Trafficking and Causing Non-Fatal OverdoseRead the Press Release
CONTACT: Barbara Burns
PHONE: (716) 843-5817
FAX #: (716) 551-3051ROCHESTER, N.Y. - U.S. Attorney James P. Kennedy, Jr. announced today that Soroush Hamedi, 27, of Rochester, NY, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute, and to distribute, 40 grams or more of fentanyl, before Chief U.S. District Judge Elizabeth A. Wolford. The charge carries a mandatory minimum sentence of five years in prison and a maximum sentence of 40 years, and a $5,000,000 fine.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Brett A. Harvey, who is handling the case, stated that the defendant was part of a group of individuals who ran a drug house at 192 Weaver Street in the City of Rochester. The defendant and others sold quantities of fentanyl and cocaine from the house between January 2018 and February 25, 2020. The defendant admitted to trafficking between 160 and 280 grams of fentanyl during the conspiracy.
On February 25, 2020, special agents of the Drug Enforcement Administration and other law enforcement personnel executed a search warrant at the defendant’s residence at 19 Dale Street, Rochester, New York. At the time, the defendant was present inside the residence. During the search, the investigative team recovered, among other things, a clear plastic bag containing 10.064 grams of fentanyl in the basement ceiling at the bottom of a vent pipe after the defendant threw the bag down the vent.
As part of his guilty plea, the defendant admitted to selling a quantity of fentanyl to a 27-year-old female who later suffered a non-fatal overdose.
The plea is the result of an investigation by the Drug Enforcement Administration, under the direction of Special Agent-in-Charge Ray Donovan, New York Field Division; the Monroe County Sheriff’s Office, under the direction of Sheriff Todd Baxter; the Rochester Police Department, under the direction of Chief Cynthia Herriott-Sullivan.
Sentencing is scheduled for December 6, 2021, at 3:00 p.m., before Chief Judge Wolford.
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Rochester Convicted Felon Sentenced for Possession of Cocaine, Firearm, and AmmunitionRead the Press Release
CONTACT: Barbara Burns
PHONE: (716) 843-5817
FAX #: (716) 551-3051ROCHESTER, N.Y. - U.S. Attorney James P. Kennedy, Jr. announced today that David Dixon, 39, of Rochester, NY, who was convicted of possession of cocaine with intent to distribute and felon in possession of a firearm and ammunition, was sentenced to 70 months imprisonment by U.S. District Judge Charles J. Siragusa.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Cassie Kocher, who handled the case, stated that on at approximately 2:30am on March 11, 2020, officers observed the defendant in the area of Gillette Street, Rochester with an open bottle of alcohol. As other officers arrived, the defendant attempted to flee but was quickly apprehended and searched incident to arrest. During the search, officers recovered 22 grams of cocaine; a loaded semiautomatic pistol; and approximately $586 in United States currency from the defendant’s person. The defendant was prohibited from possessing the firearm and ammunition based upon a 2004 conviction for Robbery in the First Degree in Monroe County Court.
The sentencing is the result of an investigation by Rochester Police Department, under the direction of Chief Cynthia Herriott-Sullivan and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives, under the direction of Special Agent-in-Charge John B. Devito, New York Field Division.
The case was brought by the U.S. Attorney’s Office as part of its Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN) initiative. 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.
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Repeat sex offender sentenced to 11+ years in prison for attempt to entice ‘juvenile’ into prostitutionRead the Press Release
Seattle — A repeat offender, who had just been released to a half-way house from federal prison, was sentenced today in U.S. District Court in Seattle to 137 months in prison for attempted sex trafficking of a juvenile and attempted enticement of a minor, announced Acting U.S. Attorney Tessa M. Gorman. Prentice C. Hollingsworth, 45, was indicted in August 2020 and pleaded guilty in December 2020. At the sentencing hearing Chief U.S. District Judge Ricardo S. Martinez noted that Hollingsworth was unknowingly communicating with an undercover agent, but that did not “lessen the fact that he was trying to traffic a minor, someone he knew was very vulnerable…. The fact that the Defendant was on federal supervision and state supervision and still went right back to this behavior is very telling,” the Chief Judge said.
“This defendant’s adult life has been spent either incarcerated or sexually assaulting young women and attempting to force vulnerable juveniles into prostitution,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Gorman. “The predatory nature of his crimes means the community is safe only when he is removed from society with a lengthy prison sentence.”
According to records filed in the case, Hollingsworth was released to a federal halfway house in Tacoma in December 2019. Less than a month later, he began communicating with an undercover Seattle Police Officer he had contacted via a web application. In these communications, Hollingsworth attempted to recruit the undercover officer, who presented herself as a 15-year-old girl, to work for him as a prostitute. Hollingsworth discussed many aspects of the prostitution business, including the fee he would charge the “juvenile” for his services as a pimp and the prices she should charge for various sex acts. Hollingsworth also advised the “juvenile” that she could earn more money from sex buyers because of her age, and he encouraged her to leave school so she could devote more time to earning money in the sex trade.
In January 2020, Hollingsworth was arrested at the halfway house in Tacoma shortly after he arranged for the “juvenile” to check into a hotel room in Fife, Washington, for the purpose of prostitution.
Hollingsworth has prior convictions for rape, promoting prostitution, and communicating with minors for an immoral purpose. Due to these prior convictions he is required to register as a sex offender. Following this prison term, he will be on lifetime supervised release.
The case was investigated by the Seattle Police Department. The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Kate Crisham.
Reno Man Indicted for Dealing Large Amount of Methamphetamine and Firearm OffenseRead the Press Release
RENO, Nev. – A federal grand jury returned an indictment today charging a Reno man for allegedly distributing a large amount of methamphetamine and unlawful possession of a firearm by a felon.
According to allegations in court documents, on August 16, 2021, James Raymond Ellis (51, also known as “Jimbo”) distributed 500 grams or more of methamphetamine. Several days later, on August 20, Ellis possessed with the intent to distribute 500 grams or more of methamphetamine. In addition, Ellis possessed a 9mm pistol after having been previously convicted in Nevada for possession of a chemical with intent to manufacture a controlled substance, which is a felony. Federal law prohibits felons from possessing firearms. The Northern Nevada Safe Streets Task Force arrested Ellis on August 20 in Reno.
Ellis is charged with one count of distribution of a controlled substance, one count of possession with intent to distribute a controlled substance, and one count of felon in possession of a firearm. His initial court appearance is scheduled for August 30, 2021 before U.S. Magistrate Judge Carla L. Baldwin. If convicted, Ellis faces a statutory maximum penalty of life in prison.
Acting U.S. Attorney Christopher Chiou for the District of Nevada and Special Agent in Charge Aaron C. Rouse for the FBI made the announcement.
This case was investigated by the Northern Nevada Safe Streets Task Force, which is comprised of members from the FBI, Reno Police Department, Nevada Department of Public Safety, Nevada Gaming Control Board, Douglas County Sheriff’s Office, Carson City Sheriff’s Office, and the Nevada Department of Corrections. Assistant U.S. Attorney Andolyn Johnson is prosecuting the case.
An indictment is merely an allegation. All defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
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.
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Registered Sex Offender Facing 10-20 Years Imprisonment on Child Pornography ChargeRead the Press Release
PROVIDENCE, R.I. – A registered sex offender investigated by federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies for possessing and distributing child pornography is facing between ten and twenty years in federal prison, having pled guilty today to possession of child pornography, announced Acting United States Attorney Richard B. Myrus.
Thomas Andreozzi, 60, of North Providence, is scheduled to be sentenced by U.S. District Court Judge Mary S. McElroy on November 17, 2021.
At a hearing today in U.S. District Court, the government detailed three separate investigations into Andreozzi’s criminal activity involving child pornography since a previous conviction in Rhode Island state court in November 2014 for possessing child pornography.
According to information presented to the court, in May 2020, Homeland Security Investigations received information that an IP address, later identified by law enforcement as belonging to Andreozzi, was used to upload child pornography via a social media platform. Further investigation determined that Andreozzi used at least five different accounts on the application to view and upload child pornography. Andreozzi communicated to another person via the app that “I have lots of young stuff.” “I have little girls,” and “I have lots.”
Separately, in June 2020, the Rhode Island State Police Internet Crimes Against Children (ICAC) Task Force received information from the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children and the Massachusetts ICAC that an individual in Rhode Island uploaded 14 files of child pornography. Further investigation determined that the IP address used belonged to Thomas Andreozzi.
Additionally, the FBI and the Winnebago County, Wisconsin, Sherriff’s department investigated the sharing of child pornography via a social media platform on July 20, 2020. The user claimed to be a 30-year-old in California who was actively molesting a young female. The FBI traced the IP address that shared the child pornography to Andreozzi’s North Providence apartment.
A cell phone in Andreozzi’s hand during a court-authorized search of his residence at the time of his arrest in July 2020, was opened to an electronic media storage service. A Rhode Island ICAC analyst observed numerous files containing child pornography stored in Andreozzi’s storage account. Also located on the phone was the social media application and user account brought to the attention of the FBI and the Winnebago County Sherriff’s office.
The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney John P. McAdams.
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Readout of Justice Department Leadership Meeting on Threats to Election WorkersRead the Press Release
Today, Attorney General Merrick B. Garland convened a virtual discussion with a bipartisan group of over 1,400 election officials to discuss mounting and persistent threats to the safety of election officials and workers across the country, and the Justice Department’s recently launched Election Threats Task Force. Attorney General Garland was joined by Deputy Attorney General Lisa O. Monaco; Associate Attorney General Vanita Gupta; and Director of the FBI Christopher A. Wray.
Attorney General Garland reiterated that the right to vote is the foundation of our democracy, and the right from which all other rights flow. Our democracy depends on protecting the right of eligible voters to vote, and also on protecting those who administer and safeguard our electoral system. He made clear that the Justice Department will not tolerate threats to, or intimidation of, election officials and election workers, and that the Department is committed to supporting them as they fulfill their public duties. Attorney General Garland also stressed that communication between federal law enforcement and election officials is key to combating threats, and that meetings like today’s are an integral part of fostering strong working relationships. His full remarks are available here.
Announced by Deputy Attorney General Monaco in June, the Election Threats Task Force is composed of the Department’s Criminal Division’s Public Integrity Section, the Civil Rights Division’s Voting and Criminal Sections, and the National Security Division’s Counterterrorism Section, as well as the FBI’s Criminal Investigative Division and the Department of Homeland Security’s Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency. Deputy Attorney General Monaco provided an overview of how the Task Force unites subject matter experts from those offices and agencies to engage with state and local election agencies to better understand and deter threats to elections.
Associate Attorney General Gupta further elaborated on how the Civil Rights Division is participating in the Task Force and working more broadly to protect the right to vote and our country’s electoral processes. She also made participants aware of VictimConnect, a weekday helpline funded by the Office of Victims of Crime that connects victims of crimes and threats to trained professionals who can provide emotional support, information and referrals in over 200 languages by calling or texting 1-855-484-2846 (855-4VICTIM).
Director Wray explained how the FBI’s Election Crimes Coordinators — FBI Special Agents across all 56 FBI Field Offices — work with state and local election officials on election crime matters. He also stressed the importance of reporting all election-related threats and troubling communications to the FBI, even if it is unclear whether there is a violation of federal law, so that law enforcement can investigate, identify trends and share information with partners across the country.
Elections officials, including three secretaries of state, a state election director, and a county election supervisor had the opportunity to address and ask questions of the Attorney General and the Department leadership. The meeting ended with a firm reminder that the Department, through this Task Force, will use all available tools to protect the individuals working tirelessly to serve the public and maintain our proud tradition of free and fair elections.
To report suspected election related threats or violent acts, contact the FBI at 1-800-CALL-FBI (225-5324), prompt 1, then prompt 3. You also may file an online complaint at tips.fbi.gov.
Rapid City Man Indicted for Sexual Exploitation of a MinorRead the Press Release
Acting United States Attorney Dennis R. Holmes announced that a Rapid City, South Dakota, man has been indicted by a federal grand jury for Sexual Exploitation of a Minor, Receipt of Child Pornography, and Possession of Child Pornography.
Tell Logan Cadotte, age 30, was indicted on July 22, 2021. He appeared before U.S. Magistrate Judge Daneta Wollmann on August 11, 2021, and pleaded not guilty to the Indictment.
The maximum penalty upon conviction is a mandatory minimum of 15 up to 30 years in federal prison and/or a $250,000 fine, a mandatory minimum of 5 years up to lifetime supervised release, and a $100 assessment to the Federal Crime Victims Fund. Restitution may also be ordered.
The charges relate to Cadotte sexually exploiting an underage female between January 2019 and January 2021, by producing images of child pornography. He remained in possession of the images thereafter. A search of Cadotte’s devices found that he knowingly received and possessed images depicting the minor involved in the sexually explicit conduct. The charges are merely an accusation and Cadotte is presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty.
The investigation is being conducted by the Rapid City Police Department and the South Dakota Division of Criminal Investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney Sarah B. Collins is prosecuting the case.
Cadotte was remanded to the custody of the U.S. Marshals Service pending trial. A trial date has been set for October 19, 2021.
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Rapid City Man Indicted for Failure to Register as a Sex OffenderRead the Press Release
Acting United States Attorney Dennis R. Holmes announced that a Rapid City, South Dakota, man has been indicted by a federal grand jury for Failure to Register as a Sex Offender.
Roy Brushbreaker, III, age 27, was indicted on August 19, 2021. He appeared before U.S. Magistrate Judge Mark A. Moreno on August 24, 2021, and pled not guilty to the Indictment.
The maximum penalty upon conviction is up to 10 years in federal prison and/or a $250,000 fine, five years of supervised release, and $100 to the Federal Crime Victims Fund. Restitution may also be ordered.
It is alleged that between May 13, 2021, and July 22, 2021, Brushbreaker, a person required to register under the Sex Offender Registration and Notification Act, and a sex offender by reason of conviction under Federal Law, failed to properly register as a sex offender and update his registration.
The charge is merely an accusation and Brushbreaker is presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty.
The investigation is being conducted by the U.S. Marshals Service. Assistant U.S. Attorney Kirk Albertson is prosecuting the case.
Brushbreaker was remanded to the custody of the U.S. Marshals Service pending trial. A trial date has not been set.
Queens Woman Pleads Guilty to Distributing Narcotics That Caused Two Fatal OverdosesRead the Press Release
Earlier today, in federal court in Brooklyn, Angelina Barini pleaded guilty before United States Magistrate Judge Ramon E. Reyes, Jr. to distributing narcotics and causing the deaths of two victims. Specifically, she pleaded guilty to two counts of distributing narcotics that caused the deaths of a person; one count of distributing fentanyl, methamphetamine and cocaine; and one count of conspiring to distribute gamma-butyrolactone (GBL). When sentenced, Barini faces a minimum of 20 years’ imprisonment and a maximum term of life imprisonment.
Jacquelyn M. Kasulis, Acting United States Attorney for the Eastern District of New York; Peter C. Fitzhugh, Special Agent-in-Charge, Homeland Security Investigations, New York (HSI); and Dermot F. Shea, Commissioner, New York City Police Department (NYPD), announced the guilty plea.
“With today’s guilty plea, Barini takes responsibility for her actions in distributing lethal doses of opioids that caused the overdose deaths of unsuspecting victims, shattering the lives of their families,” stated Acting U. S. Attorney Kasulis. “This Office is committed to ending the opioid epidemic and prosecuting defendants like Barini who cause senseless, drug-related deaths in our communities.”
“The scourge of addiction takes many forms, but one of its most devastating effects is that beyond the direct victims of drug overdoses are the families who lose loved ones too soon. Fentanyl is deadly regardless of social status, age, gender or ethnicity,” stated HSI Special Agent-in-Charge Fitzhugh. “Barini had no regard for her victims, but has made the right choice by taking responsibility for her actions. HSI and its partners remain resolute in pursuing those who profit from this lethal opioid epidemic.”
As set forth in court filings and at today’s proceeding, between July and August of 2019, Barini provided narcotics to her victims while sometimes conducting business as a sex worker. On multiple occasions, those narcotics contained lethal doses of fentanyl. On July 11, 2019, Barini met with a victim at a motel in Woodside, Queens and gave him fentanyl-laced drugs, causing the victim’s overdose death. On August 5, 2019, Barini met another victim at a residence in College Point, Queens and gave him fentanyl-laced drugs which caused his overdose death. On July 4, 2019, Barini distributed and possessed with intent to distribute controlled substances containing fentanyl, methamphetamine and cocaine. Additionally, between August 16, 2019 and August 18, 2019, Barini conspired with another person to distribute and possess with intent to distribute a substance containing GBL, a Schedule I controlled substance analogue, commonly referred to as a “date rape” drug.
The government’s case is being handled by the Office’s International Narcotics and Money Laundering Section. Assistant United States Attorneys Temidayo Aganga-Williams, Andrew Grubin and Andrew Wang are in charge of the prosecution.
The Defendant:
ANGELINA BARINI
Age: 43
Queens, New YorkE.D.N.Y. Docket No. 19-CR-428 (S-2) (BMC)
Previously convicted felon sentenced to six years in federal prison for firearm possessionRead the Press Release
ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. – Donovan Maez, 24, of Albuquerque, was sentenced on Aug. 8 in federal court to six years and five months in prison for being a felon in possession of a firearm. Maez pleaded guilty on April 4, 2019.
According to the plea agreement, on March 30, 2018, law enforcement located Maez at an Albuquerque residence with a loaded firearm. On Nov. 11, 2018, after being contacted by probation officers and law enforcement, Maez attempted to evade the officers but was later arrested after a short pursuit. Maez was found with a loaded firearm at the time of the arrest. During both incidents, Maez was on probation for a prior felony conviction for auto burglary. As a convicted felon, Maez cannot legally possess firearms or ammunition.
Upon completion of his sentence, Maez will be subject to three years of supervised release.
The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives Albuquerque Resident Agency, New Mexico State Police, Albuquerque Police Department and New Mexico Corrections Department investigated this case. Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Timothy D. Trembley prosecuted the case.
Physician Assistant Sentenced to Three Years in Federal Prison for Conspiring to Distribute and Dispense Oxycodone, Fentanyl, Methadone, and Alprazolam at a Pain Management Practice with Offices in Towson and Owings MillsRead the Press Release
Baltimore, Maryland – U.S. District Judge Richard D. Bennett sentenced William Soyke, age 68, of Hanover, Pennsylvania to 37 months in federal prison, followed by three years of supervised release, for conspiracy to distribute and dispense oxycodone, fentanyl, methadone, and alprazolam outside the scope of professional practice and not for a legitimate medical purpose.
The sentence was announced by Acting United States Attorney for the District of Maryland Jonathan F. Lenzner; Special Agent in Charge Thomas J. Sobocinski of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Baltimore Field Office; Assistant Special Agent in Charge Orville O. Greene of the Drug Enforcement Administration, Baltimore District Office; and Special Agent in Charge Maureen Dixon, Office of Investigations, Office of Inspector General of the Department of Health and Human Services.
According to the plea agreement, Sokye was employed as a physician assistant with Drs. Rosen and Hoffberg from 2011 to 2018, where he treated patients during follow-up doctor appointments. As a physician assistant, Soyke had privileges to prescribe controlled substance medications but was required to operate under a delegation agreement between himself and the Rosen Hoffberg owners.
In his plea, Soyke admitted that he believed that Drs. Rosen and Hoffberg prescribed excessive levels of opioids. Despite Soyke’s attempts to lower patient’s prescription doses, both doctors overruled Sokye’s opinion. Further, if another health care provider within the practice declined to treat a patient due to the patient’s aberrant behavior (such as failing a drug screening test for illicit drugs or selling their prescriptions), Drs. Rosen and Hoffberg would assume that patient’s care.
As stated in the plea agreement, Sokye was aware that many of the patients presenting to Rosen Hoffberg did not have a legitimate medical need for the oxycodone, fentanyl, alprazolam, and methadone they were being prescribed. Nevertheless, Soyke issued prescriptions for these drugs to patients without a legitimate medical need and outside the bounds of acceptable medical practice.
Soyke also admitted that in several instances he engaged in sexual, physical contact with female patients who were attempting to get prescriptions. Specifically, Soyke asked some female customers to engage in a range of motion test, and while they were bending over, he would position himself behind them such that his genitalia would rub against the customers’ buttocks through their clothes. These patients often acceded to this sexual abuse for fear of not getting the medications to which they were addicted. Although the female patients complained to Dr. Rosen and Dr. Hoffberg about Soyke’s behavior, the doctors did not fire Soyke because Soyke saw the largest number of patients at the practice and generated significant revenue for Rosen Hoffberg.
Howard Hoffberg, M.D., the Associate Medical Director and part-owner of Rosen-Hoffberg Rehabilitation and Pain Management, pleaded guilty on June 9, 2021, to accepting kick-backs from a pharmaceutical company in exchange for prescribing a drug marketed by the company for breakthrough pain in cancer patients for off-label purposes.
Acting U.S. Attorney Jonathan Lenzner commended the FBI, the DEA, and HHS-OIG for their work in the investigation. Mr. Lenzner thanked Assistant U.S. Attorney Jason D. Medinger, who prosecuted the case.
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Philadelphia Man, Previously Convicted of a Felony, Sentenced to 15 Years for Illegally Possessing a FirearmRead the Press Release
PHILADELPHIA – Acting United States Attorney Jennifer Arbittier Williams announced that Jesse Golden, 30, of Philadelphia, PA, was sentenced to fifteen years in prison and three years of supervised release by United States District Court Judge Gerald J. Pappert. The defendant was convicted of illegally possessing a firearm and ammunition as a convicted felon after a three-day trial in May 2021.
In May 2019, a Philadelphia Police officer saw a video on the social media platform Instagram in which the defendant was sitting in a car with another individual and brandishing a distinctive painted-black revolver. Investigators determined that Golden had multiple prior felony convictions, so they obtained a search warrant for the defendant’s residence. During the execution of that warrant, investigators found an unloaded revolver and 100 rounds of ammunition the same caliber as the firearm. The revolver they found matched the look (including the paint job) of the firearm in the Instagram video. Evidence presented at trial showed that testing performed on the gun found DNA that matched the defendant’s DNA.
“The crime of being a felon in possession of a firearm is a serious offense, particularly in a city like Philadelphia, where gun violence is prevalent,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Williams. “The sentence handed down by the Court today reflects the seriousness of Golden’s crimes, and should serve as a deterrent to others engaged in the same conduct. Our Office is determined to continue doing everything we can to reduce gun violence in Philadelphia by being ‘All Hands On Deck’ to get criminals like Golden off the streets for a long, long time.”
This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program bringing together all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve to reduce violent crime and make our neighborhoods safer for everyone. The Department of Justice reinvigorated PSN in 2017 as part of the Department’s renewed focus on targeting violent criminals, directing all U.S. Attorney’s Offices to work in partnership with federal, state, local, and tribal law enforcement and the local community to develop effective, locally-based strategies to reduce violent crime.
The case was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and the Philadelphia Police Department, and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney David Ignall.
Philadelphia Man Pleads Guilty to Attempted Armed Bank Robbery in Which His Sons Were Indicted as AccomplicesRead the Press Release
PHILADELPHIA – Acting United States Attorney Jennifer Arbittier Williams announced that Ronald DeWitt Vines, 47, of Philadelphia, PA, pleaded guilty before United States District Court Judge Paul S. Diamond to attempted armed bank robbery and using, carrying, and brandishing a firearm during a crime of violence, in connection with an armed robbery he and his accomplices, who were two of his sons, attempted to carry out in Bucks County in late 2017.
In January 2018, the defendant was charged by Indictment for attempting to commit the armed robbery of the PNC Bank branch on Buck Road in Holland, PA, in November 2017. To execute the robbery, Vine placed a handgun against the side of a bank employee’s head, forcing her to open the bank door as she arrived for work that morning, and then forcing her inside the bank. A second bank employee screamed when she realized the bank was being robbed. Vines and his accomplices, sons Elijah and Solomon Vines, quickly fled the bank in a getaway vehicle before being stopped by Northampton Township Police Officers responding to a 911 call. A search by patrol officers of the getaway vehicle produced one loaded semi-automatic handgun, one loaded rifle, and two body armor vests.
“This defendant terrified and threatened the lives of bank employees who were just attempting to do their jobs, and he convinced his sons – young men with their whole lives ahead of them – to help him pull it off,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Williams. “The simple fact is that this family is a danger to the community. This case demonstrates why our All Hands On Deck initiative is so important: we are investigating and prosecuting the most violent criminals to get them off the streets and behind bars.”
“The terror of being forced into her bank at gunpoint is something that employee will likely never forget,” said Bradley S. Benavides, Acting Special Agent in Charge of the FBI’s Philadelphia Division. “Ronald Vines and his accomplice planned to rob a bank. It’s incredibly fortunate no one was hurt before the robbers opted to flee, and that police officers quickly spotted and stopped their getaway vehicle. Bank robbery isn’t an easy payday, it’s a federal crime, and the FBI and our partners will ensure perpetrators like Vines are held fully accountable.”
The case was investigated by Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, and the Northampton Township Police Department, and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney José R. Arteaga.
Pensacola Insurance Company Owner Pleads Guilty on Wire Fraud and Money Laundering OffensesRead the Press Release
PENSACOLA, FLORIDA – John Thomas, 51, of Pensacola pled guilty yesterday on wire fraud and money laundering charges related to selling fraudulent insurance policies to his clients in exchange for approximately $4.8 million in insurance premium payments. Jason R. Coody, Acting United States Attorney for the Northern District of Florida, announced the guilty plea.
Court documents reflect that between September 2013 and February 2021, Thomas operated an insurance business known as Thomas Insurance, LLC. and defrauded customers through a type of insurance fraud known as premium diversion. Thomas executed this scheme by collecting insurance premiums from customers and keeping the funds for personal use instead of producing insurance policies. To conceal his acts, Thomas gave the customers fraudulent documents referencing insurance policies that did not exist.
This case resulted from a joint investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigations and the Florida Department of Financial Services, Division of Investigative & Forensic Services, Bureau of Insurance Fraud. Work is ongoing to ensure all alleged victims are identified. If you are a client of Thomas Insurance, LLC. and wish to speak to an investigating agent regarding your policy, please contact FBI Jacksonville at 904-248-7000 or email [email protected], and reference “Thomas Insurance.” An FBI representative will respond with additional instructions.
Thomas’ sentencing hearing is scheduled for November 29, 2021, at 2:00 pm, at the United States District Courthouse in Pensacola before the Honorable District Judge T.K. Wetherell. Thomas faces a maximum term of 20 years’ imprisonment for wire fraud, a maximum term of 10 years’ imprisonment for money laundering, and a maximum term of 20 years’ imprisonment for money laundering to conceal proceeds of specified unlawful activity.
The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Jeffrey Tharp.
The United States Attorney's Office for the Northern District of Florida is one of 94 offices that serve as the nation’s principal litigators under the direction of the Attorney General. To access available public court documents online, please visit the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Florida website. For more information about the United States Attorney’s Office, Northern District of Florida, visit http://www.justice.gov/usao/fln/index.html.
Penobscot County Woman Sentenced for Theft of Money OrdersRead the Press Release
BANGOR, Maine: A Penobscot County woman was sentenced today in federal court for the theft and conversion of money orders, Acting U.S. Attorney Donald E. Clark announced.
U.S. District Judge Lance E. Walker sentenced Mellony Hafford, 37, to three years of probation. Hafford was also ordered to pay $4,177 in restitution to the U.S. Postal Service. She pleaded guilty in April 2021.
According to court records, between approximately May 2016 and April 2018, Hafford stole multiple money order forms while working as an employee of the U.S. Postal Service. She falsified several of the money order forms to conceal other fraudulent money orders she made out to herself, and to conceal her theft of cash that had been received in sales at the post office.
The U.S. Postal Service Office of the Inspector General and the U.S. Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration (TIGTA) investigated this case. TIGTA’s involvement in the investigation was supervised by William Kalb, Special Agent in Charge, North East Field Division.
Pekin Man Sentenced to 30 Years in Prison for Attempted Production of Child PornographyRead the Press Release
PEORIA, Ill. – Sebastian Sale, 30, of Pekin, Illinois, was sentenced today to 30 years in federal prison following his conviction for attempted production of child pornography. U.S. District Court Judge James E. Shadid further ordered that Sale serve a lifetime term of supervised release upon completion of his prison sentence and register as a sex offender.
Sale, who pleaded guilty on April 8, 2021, admitted that he attempted to entice a person he believed to be a minor girl to film herself engaging in sexual conduct and to email the video to him.
In a separate but related case, Sale’s girlfriend, Rachel Miller, was sentenced on May 13, 2020, to serve 30 years in prison for sexual exploitation of a child. Specifically, Miller had recorded a video of herself engaging in sexual activity with a prepubescent male, and Sale later distributed that video through the internet.
In imposing a sentence above the advisory sentencing guideline range of 180 to 210 months, Judge Shadid noted the “sad,” “vile,” “disgusting,” and “unimaginable” conduct in which Sale had engaged. Judge Shadid also observed that the defendant’s conduct was hard to distinguish from that of Miller.
Both Sale and Miller have remained in the custody of the U.S. Marshals Service since their arrests in March 2020.
“Hopefully, the sentence Judge Shadid imposed will serve as a warning to others who may be inclined to harm minors and will make them think twice,“ said Acting United States Attorney Doug Quivey. “They will be caught. Along with our federal, state, and local law enforcement partners, the United States Attorney’s Office remains firmly committed to the Project Safe Childhood initiative, and we will do everything we can to both prevent and vigorously prosecute crimes against children.”
Agents from the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, Homeland Security Investigations, and the Washington, Ill., Police Department investigated the case. Supervisory Assistant U.S. Attorney Darilynn J. Knauss represented the government in the prosecution.
The case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative by the Department of Justice to combat the epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by U.S. Attorneys’ Offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS), Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state and local resources to better locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the internet, as well as to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.projectsafechildhood.gov.
Patton Sentenced to 24 Months in Federal Prison for Role in May 2020 Salt Lake City Civil UnrestRead the Press Release
SALT LAKE CITY – Jackson Stuart Tamowski Patton, 27, of Salt Lake City, was sentenced to 24 months in federal prison for his role in the burning of a Salt Lake City police car during the May 2020 civil unrest in Salt Lake City. Patton was also ordered to pay $2,500 in restitution and to serve 36 months of supervised release after completing his prison sentence.
Patton previously pleaded guilty to one felony count of civil disorder in federal court in May of 2021. In the plea agreement, Patton admitted that, on May 30, 2020, he was protesting the killing of George Floyd when protesters turned violent and overturned a Salt Lake City Police Department patrol car. Patton admitted that law enforcement officers were lawfully engaged in the performance of their official duties during the commission of the civil disorder and that he participated in the burning of the overturned patrol car with the intent and purpose of obstructing, impeding, and interfering with law enforcement officers. Patton also admitted to moving a burning cloth into the interior of the overturned patrol car, which accelerated the burning of the patrol car.
In a sentencing memorandum filed by prosecutors, text messages sent by Patton during the days leading up to and during the protest were submitted to the court. On May 29, 2020, the day before the Salt Lake City protest, Patton texted the following to his circle of friends, “what time does the riot start tomorrow,” and “do [I] bring machetes to the riot tomorrow” and “we can all have one.” He then texted, “yes dude. I’m turning it into a riot.” On May 30, 2020, the day of the riot, Patton texted, “[I] need to figure out how to turn it into [a riot].” That same day, Patton texted “all I gotta do is sneakily throw a rock through a window” and immediately followed up with “of the police station” and that “[I]’m breaking things.” In a separate text string, Patton stated to a friend that “[I]’m fully going down there with the intention of breaking things. [I]f you don’t want to be near me I understand. [B]ut people need to know that [S]alt [L]ake is upset too.” After the civil disruption, Patton texted to a group of friends that “lol [ a friend] filmed me starting the fire…we just a [sic] [expletive] a cop car up with a cop in it…he literally had to curb hop his car to get out.” Patton later texted “look who started the fire lol.”
During the course of the prosecution, multiple terabytes of data, including video and still images, were submitted as evidence in the case. Sources of the evidence included multiple social media platforms, as well as evidence obtained from multiple state, federal, and local law enforcement agencies, and evidence received from private citizens.
On August 3, 2021 co-defendant Lateesha Richards was sentenced to 20 months in federal prison for her role in the burning of the patrol car. Co-defendants Latroi Devon Newbins and Larry Raynold Williams Jr. entered a plea of guilty and now await sentencing. Defendant Christopher Isidro Rojas’ case remains set for trial later this year.
Assistant U.S. Attorneys from the Utah U.S. Attorney’s Office prosecuted the case. Special Agents from the FBI Joint Terrorism Task Force, along with Special Agents from the ATF, and detectives and officers from the Salt Lake City Police Department, conducted the investigation.
Owner of Jet Charter Company Settles False Claims Act Allegations Regarding Misappropriation of Paycheck Protection Program LoanRead the Press Release
Seth A. Bernstein, the owner of jet charter company All in Jets LLC dba JetReady, located in Florida, has agreed to pay $287,055 to settle allegations that he misappropriated PaycheckProtection Program (PPP) loan proceeds for his personal expenses. JetReady is a jet charter operator with its principal place of business in Fort Lauderdale, Florida.
The United States alleged that Bernstein, on behalf of JetReady, applied for and received a PPP loan totaling $1,173,382 in April 2020. Within a day of receiving the loan proceeds, Bernstein allegedly diverted $98,929 of the funds to pay for personal, non-company related expenses. JetReady has since filed for bankruptcy in the Southern District of New York.
“Paycheck Protection Program loans were intended to provide critical relief to small businesses so that they could retain employees and keep their doors open,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General Brian M. Boynton of the Justice Department’s Civil Division. “We will ensure that those who misused these taxpayer-funded loans and denied other eligible businesses access to such assistance are held accountable.”
“The Paycheck Protection Program was enacted over a year ago to help small businesses and their employees financially survive the COVID-19 pandemic,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Juan Antonio Gonzalez for the Southern District of Florida. “Since this and other programs under the CARES Act were initiated, our Office has prioritized investigating and bringing to justice those who illegally seek to benefit from the global health crisis and the programs put in place to help those in need.”
“The Paycheck Protection Program is intended to provide a lifeline to the nation’s small businesses and its employees” said Inspector General Hannibal “Mike” Ware of the SBA Office of Inspector General (OIG). “OIG will aggressively investigate allegations of wrongdoing in SBA’s pandemic response programs. I want to thank the Department of Justice for its dedication to achieving this settlement.”
“The result in this case is the product of enhanced efforts by federal agencies, such as the Small Business Administration working with Department of Justice and other federal law enforcement agencies, to detect Paycheck Protection Program abuses, pursue individuals and companies that engage in such abuses and protect the integrity of the PPP program,” said SBA General Counsel Peggy Delinois Hamilton.
Congress enacted the PPP on March 29, 2020, as part of the CARES Act, to provide emergency financial support to the millions of Americans suffering the economic effects caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. The CARES Act authorized billions in loans to small businesses struggling to pay employees and other business expenses. Under the PPP, eligible businesses could obtain loans guaranteed by the Small Business Administration (SBA). Businesses were required to spend loan proceeds for employee compensation, rent or mortgage, and other specified expenses and, depending on their use of the loan proceeds, could qualify for loan forgiveness, up to the full amount of the loan.
Today’s civil settlement includes the resolution of claims brought under the qui tam or whistleblower provisions of the False Claims Act by Victoria Hablitzel, a former JetReady employee. Under those provisions, a private party can file an action on behalf of the United States and receive a portion of any recovery. Ms. Hablitzel will receive $57,411. The case is captioned U.S. ex rel. Hablitzel v. All in Jets, LLC and Seth A. Bernstein, No. 20-cv-61410 (S.D. Fla.).
The resolution obtained in 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 Office for the Southern District of Florida, with assistance from the SBA’s Office of General Counsel and OIG.
This matter was handled by Trial Attorney Jonathan Gold of the Civil Division and Assistant U.S. Attorney James A. Weinkle of the Southern District of Florida.
On May 17, the Attorney General established the COVID-19 Fraud Enforcement Task Force to marshal the resources of the Department of Justice in partnership with agencies across government to enhance efforts to combat and prevent pandemic-related fraud. The Task Force bolsters efforts to investigate and prosecute the most culpable domestic and international criminal actors and assists agencies tasked with administering relief programs to prevent fraud by, among other methods, augmenting and incorporating existing coordination mechanisms, identifying resources and techniques to uncover fraudulent actors and their schemes, and sharing and harnessing information and insights gained from prior enforcement efforts. For more information on the department’s response to the pandemic, please visit https://www.justice.gov/coronavirus.
Anyone with information about allegations of attempted fraud involving COVID-19 can report it by calling the Department of Justice’s National Center for Disaster Fraud (NCDF) Hotline at 866-720-5721 or via the NCDF Web Complaint Form at: https://www.justice.gov/disaster-fraud/ncdf-disaster-complaint-form.
The claims resolved by the settlement are allegations only, and there has been no determination of liability.
Orange County Man Once Affiliated with Youth Soccer League Indicted for Possessing, Distributing and Producing Child PornographyRead the Press Release
SANTA ANA, California – A federal grand jury has returned an indictment charging a Huntington Beach man with child exploitation offenses, including the possession, distribution and production of child pornography, the Justice Department announced today.
Mark Phillip Oster, 61, who served as a referee and a coach in the American Youth Soccer Organization from 2015 through 2021, was named in a four-count indictment filed Wednesday. The indictment charges Oster with two counts of producing child pornography, one count of distributing child pornography and one count of possessing child pornography.
Oster has been in federal custody since July 30, when FBI agents arrested him pursuant to a criminal complaint that charged him with possession of child pornography.
During this investigation, the FBI uncovered evidence indicating Oster engaged in illegal conduct with minor victims.
Anyone who has information regarding the case against Oster or who may know someone victimized by the defendant is requested to contact the FBI’s Los Angeles Field Office at (310) 477-6565 or through the FBI online tip portal. Identified victims may be eligible for certain services and rights under federal and/or state law.
An indictment contains allegations that a defendant has committed a crime. Every defendant is presumed to be innocent until and unless proven guilty in court.
Oster is scheduled to be arraigned on the indictment in United States District Court in Santa Ana on September 7.
If he were to be convicted of the four counts in the indictment, Oster would face a statutory maximum sentence of 100 years in federal prison. Additionally, each count production of child pornography carries a mandatory minimum sentence of 15 years in federal prison.
Assistant United States Attorney Andrew Beshai of the Santa Ana Branch Office and Trial Attorney Kyle Reynolds of the Department of Justice’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section are prosecuting this case.
Operation Washout River City Announced, Federal Charges Pending in Project Safe Neighborhoods OperationRead the Press Release
COLUMBUS, Ga. – The results from a four-day multi-agency operation to curb violent crime in Columbus, Georgia, were announced at a press conference held today, with dozens of repeat violent offenders and gang members taken into custody, along with firearms and drugs.
Acting U.S. Attorney for the Middle District of Georgia Peter D. Leary joined with Muscogee County Sheriff Greg Countryman and Columbus Police Chief Freddie Blackmon to announce the results of “Operation Washout River City,” a Department of Justice Project Safe Neighborhoods initiative. Conducted by the U.S. Marshals Service-Southeast Regional Fugitive Task Force (USMS SERFTF), FBI, ATF, DEA, GBI, Georgia Department of Community Supervision (DCS), Georgia State Patrol (GPS), Organized Crime and Gang Unit-Atlanta (OCAG), Muscogee County Sheriff’s Office and Columbus Police Department, with assistance from the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Georgia, more than 50 investigators executed search warrants resulting in 57 arrests between August 9-12, clearing a total of 128 active warrants. The individuals taken into custody as part of the operation are gang members and/or repeat violent offenders, with criminal state charges including homicide, kidnapping, rape, possession of illegal firearms and aggravated assault, among others. During the operation, law enforcement seized 27 firearms and 1.885 kilograms of illegal drugs, including methamphetamine and cocaine. These cases are currently under federal investigation and no federal charges have been filed at this time.
“Reducing violent crime in Columbus and in every city across the Middle District of Georgia is the highest priority; there is nothing more important than the safety of our citizens,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Peter Leary. “The U.S. Attorney’s Office will continue to direct our federal resources toward the most significant drivers of violent crime in each community, working directly with community stakeholders to strategically identify the most pressing criminal issues and take action.”
“The violent crime initiative held between August 9 – 12 certainly disrupted criminal activity in the Columbus area for that week, but I hope that the impact of the operation is to deter crime for many weeks to come,” said U.S. Marshal John Cary Bittick. “Columbus is a beautiful city and the people who live and work here deserve a community that they can be proud to call home. I am committed to working with our local, state and federal law enforcement partners to support Project Safe Neighborhoods and I will support any initiative that targets violent crime in the Middle District of Georgia.”
“Law enforcement operations such as this promotes inter-agency cooperation and networking, acts as force multipliers, extends our reach beyond the borders of Muscogee County and enhances the overall effectiveness of our daily operations. This particular operation gave the ability to remove violent offenders from our community and bring those responsible for their respective crimes before the courts, so that victims and family members can see justice served by the courts on their behalf,” said Muscogee County Sheriff Greg Countryman. “Although we recognize that we cannot arrest our way out of current circumstances, we also recognize that we cannot sit idly by and allow for lawlessness to maintain a foothold within Muscogee County either. Those that contribute to the demise of neighborhoods by engaging in violence and illicit activity can count on similar visits during future operations of this sort”.
“Operation Washout River City was utilized to target gang members and other violent criminal offenders. In order to maintain a safe city, we will continue to target gang members and those who commit violent criminal offenses. This behavior is not acceptable and will not be tolerated,” said Columbus Police Chief Freddie Blackmon.
Operation Washout River City was conducted as part of the joint federal, state and local Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN) Program, the centerpiece of the Department of Justice’s violent crime reduction efforts. PSN is an evidence-based program proven to be effective at reducing violent crime. Through PSN, a broad spectrum of stakeholders work together to identify the most pressing violent crime problems in the community and develop comprehensive solutions to address them. As part of this strategy, PSN focuses enforcement efforts on the most violent offenders and partners with locally based prevention and reentry programs for lasting reductions in crime.
In addition, Operation Washout River City is a response to The Department of Justice’s Comprehensive Violent Crime Reduction Strategy announced on May 26, 2021. The comprehensive strategy supports local communities in preventing, investigating and prosecuting gun violence and other violent crime—and requires U.S. Attorneys’ offices to work with federal, state, local and tribal law enforcement, as well as the communities they serve, to address the most significant drivers of violence in their districts.
Criminal charges are merely allegations and all defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
Ontario Man Pleads Guilty to Distribution of MethamphetamineRead the Press Release
BOISE – Oliver “Juice” Yardley, 45, of Ontario, Oregon, pleaded guilty to distributing methamphetamine, Acting U.S. Attorney Rafael M. Gonzalez, Jr. announced today. Yardley was indicted by a federal grand jury in Boise on April 13, 2021.
According to court records, on August 26, 2019, Yardley and his wife, Ashley Cates Yardley, 33, sold approximately two ounces of methamphetamine to another person in a parking lot in Fruitland, Idaho. Ashely Yardley was indicted by a federal grand jury in Boise on September 10, 2020. On July 30, 2021, she was sentenced to five years in federal prison followed by four years of supervised release by Chief U.S. District Judge David C. Nye.
Sentencing for Oliver Yardley is set for November 10, 2021, before Senior U.S. District Judge B. Lynn Winmill at the federal courthouse in Boise. He faces a statutory mandatory minimum sentence of at least five years and up to life in federal prison, a $10 million fine, and at least four years of supervised release. The federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
Acting U.S. Attorney Gonzalez credited the efforts of the Treasure Valley Metro Violent Crimes Task Force, which led to charges. The Task Force is comprised of federal, state, and local agencies, including the Federal Bureau of Investigation; Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives; Ada County Sheriff’s Office; Boise Police Department; Caldwell Police Department; Canyon County Sheriff’s Office; Meridian Police Department; Nampa Police Department; and Idaho Department of Correction, Bureau of Probation and Parole. “The ‘Metro’ task force is a model for multijurisdictional cooperative law enforcement investigations,” Gonzalez added.
This case was prosecuted by the Special Assistant U.S. Attorney hired by the Treasure Valley Partnership and the State of Idaho to address gang crimes. The Treasure Valley Partnership is comprised of a group of elected officials in southwest Idaho dedicated to regional coordination, cooperation, and collaboration on creating coherent regional growth. For more information, visit www.treasurevalleypartners.org.
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Olean Woman Sentenced for Selling FentanylRead the Press Release
CONTACT: Barbara Burns
PHONE: (716) 843-5817
FAX #: (716) 551-3051BUFFALO, N.Y.-U.S. Attorney James P. Kennedy Jr. announced today that Mary Kettle, 38, of Olean, NY, who was convicted of conspiring to possess with intent to distribute, and distributing, butyryl fentanyl, was sentenced to serve four years’ probation by U.S. District Judge John L. Sinatra, Jr.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Joshua A. Violanti, who handled the case, stated that between July 2018 and December 30, 2018, the defendant conspired with Erin Cameron and others sell butyryl fentanyl. Erin Cameron was previously convicted and is awaiting sentencing.
On October 22, 2018, the Bureau of Indian Affairs, Drug Enforcement Administration, and the Southern Tier Regional Drug Task Force set up a controlled purchase of butyryl fentanyl with Erin Cameron. The delivery of the butyryl fentanyl was made by the defendant. A second controlled purchase of butyryl fentanyl was made on February 6, 2019, and once again Kettle made the delivery.
The sentencing is the result of an investigation by the Bureau of Indian Affairs, under the direction of Jason Thompson, Associate Director of the Office of Justice Services; the Southern Regional Drug Task Force, under the direction of Cattaraugus County Sheriff’s Office and Sheriff Timothy Whitcomb; and the Drug Enforcement Administration, under the direction of Special Agent-in-Charge Ray Donovan, New York Field Division.
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Oklahoma City Man Charged with Child Pornography CrimesRead the Press Release
OKLAHOMA CITY — An Oklahoma City man has been arrested and charged with attempted receipt of child pornography and attempted coercion and enticement of a minor. GREG ALLEN HENKE, 40, was charged by criminal complaint on May 14, 2021, announced Acting U.S. Attorney Robert J. Troester. He was arrested and has been ordered detained in federal custody since May 14, 2021.
On June 1, 2021, an Indictment returned by a federal grand jury charged Mr. Henke with attempted receipt of child pornography and attempted coercion and enticement of a minor. The Indictment alleges that on or about May 10, 2021, Mr. Henke knowingly attempted to receive child pornography using a means and facility of interstate and foreign commerce. The Indictment further alleges that, between April 1, 2021, and on or about May 13, 2021, Mr. Henke using a cell phone and the internet, knowingly attempted to persuade, induce, entice, and coerce a minor to engage in sexual activity for which any person can be charged with a criminal offense.
The FBI is seeking to identify potential additional victims. Anyone with additional information to report about Greg Allen Henke can call the FBI at (405) 290-7770.
This case is the result of an investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation - Oklahoma City Field Division. Assistant U.S. Attorney Bow Bottomly is prosecuting the case.
The public is reminded that these charges are merely allegations and that the defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt. Reference is made to public records for more information.
North Carolina Woman Pleads Guilty to Federal Drug CrimeRead the Press Release
CHARLESTON, W.Va. – A North Carolina woman pleaded guilty today to a federal drug crime.
According to court documents, law enforcement officers conducted a traffic stop on the vehicle of Aletha Mae Lemon, 59, near Marmet in March 2021 and seized nearly five pounds of a mixture or substance containing methamphetamine from her vehicle.
Lemon pleaded guilty to possession with intent to distribute 50 grams or more of methamphetamine and faces a mandatory minimum of five years and up to 40 years in prison when she is sentenced on November 22, 2021.
Acting United States Attorney Lisa G. Johnston made the announcement and commended the investigative work of the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA).
United States District Judge Joseph R. Goodwin presided over the hearing. Assistant U.S. Attorney Negar M. Kordestani is prosecuting the case.
A copy of this press release is located on the website of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of West Virginia. Related court documents and information can be found on PACER by searching for Case No. 2:21-cr-00102.
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Niagara Falls Man Sentenced on Cocaine ChargeRead the Press Release
CONTACT: Barbara Burns
PHONE: (716) 843-5817
FAX #: (716) 551-3051BUFFALO, N.Y. - U.S. Attorney James P. Kennedy, Jr. announced today that Dante Dolson, 52, of Niagara Falls, NY, who was convicted of conspiring to possess with intent to distribute, and to distribute, five kilograms or more of cocaine, was sentenced to serve 97 months imprisonment and supervised release for a term of two years by U.S. District Judge Richard J. Arcara.
Assistant U.S. Attorneys Joshua A. Violanti and Misha A. Coulson who handled the case, stated that between December 2016, and August 24, 2017, the defendant conspired with others to sell cocaine in the Western District of New York On at least four occasions, Dolson coordinated the transportation of 10 kilograms of cocaine to the Niagara Falls/Buffalo, NY area for distribution. On each occasion, the defendant worked with co-conspirators to conceal the cocaine within a “trap” hidden under the hood of the vehicle used to transport the cocaine in order to avoid detection by law enforcement.
On August 24, 2017, members of the Niagara Falls Police Department executed a New York State search warrant at a residence on Independence Avenue in Niagara Falls, the associated detached garage, and a vehicle registered to Dolson. The location was the residence of a relative of Dolson. When investigators entered the detached garage, the defendant was observed rolling beneath the garage door to flee from the area. Investigators also noticed that the hood of a minivan in the garage was ajar and a socket wrench was attached to a bolt securing one of the windshield wipers. The defendant had been attempting to open the “trap” contained in the engine compartment of the vehicle and concealed behind a plastic shield underneath the wiper area.
Investigators recovered five full kilos and two half-kilo sized bricks of suspected cocaine wrapped in black plastic sitting on top of the seat cushions of a couch positioned along one of the walls within the garage. $5,000 in cash was also found in another vehicle on the property.
The sentencing is the result of an investigation by the Niagara Falls Police Department, under the direction of Chief John Faso, and the Drug Enforcement Administration, under the direction of Special Agent-in-Charge Ray Donovan, New York Field Division.
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New Orleans Man Pleads Guilty to Distributing More Than 1 Kilogram of Heroin and Agrees to Forfeit a Mercedes Benz and Six Pieces of Diamond Encrusted Jewelry, Including A Rolex, All Purchased with Heroin ProceedsRead the Press Release
NEW ORLEANS, LA – U.S. Attorney Duane A. Evans announced that ARTHUR JOHNSON, age 44, a resident of New Orleans, Louisiana, pled guilty on August 24, 2021 to conspiring to distribute one kilogram or more of heroin. JOHNSON is facing a mandatory minimum sentence of 10 years’ imprisonment up to a maximum sentence of life imprisonment, a possible fine of up to $10,000,000, and at least five years of supervised release upon his release from prison. JOHNSON must also pay a mandatory $100 special assessment cost.
According to court records, on December 27, 2017, agents intercepted communications between JOHNSON, a New Orleans based heroin dealer, and Ricky Redd, a Chicago-based drug courier. In these communications, JOHNSON and Redd discussed a pending delivery of heroin. Redd was driving that day from Chicago to New Orleans to give JOHNSON a bag containing approximately three kilograms of heroin.
Later that same day, surveillance agents observed JOHNSON and Redd met twice at a Holiday Inn Hotel in New Orleans. During the first meeting, Redd gave JOHNSON a red bag containing approximately three kilograms of heroin. During the second meeting, JOHNSON gave Redd approximately $187,000. Redd was to earn a small amount of the money that JOHNSON paid him.
The next day, December 28, 2017, agents conducted a traffic stop of JOHNSON. JOHNSON was placed under arrest and agents seized three brick chucks of heroin and eleven bags of heroin, totaling 1.3 kilograms of heroin from his home in New Orleans East. Agents also seized from the home a digital scale, six cell phones, over $11,000 in cash, a money counter, a kilogram press, two sealed GNC Inositol bottles, which are used as “cutting agents” to dilute heroin, and numerous items of jewelry, including diamond-encrusted necklaces and a diamond-encrusted Rolex watch.
The evidence against JOHNSON includes numerous intercepted communications, including jail calls, physical surveillance, witness statements, and controlled purchases of heroin. Between April 2017 and December 2017, agents identified thirteen cellular phones used by JOHNSON. JOHNSON’s practice was to purchase a disposable “burner” cell phone approximately every 30 days and notify his drug associates via text when he obtained a new phone number. JOHNSON would use the new phone in furtherance of his drug operation. After thirty days, JOHNSON would discard the phone and immediately obtain a new phone. JOHNSON, who previously had been convicted of federal drug charges, engaged in this practice to thwart law enforcement and avoid wiretaps.
Pursuant to the plea agreement, JOHNSON agreed to forfeit a 2017 Mercedes Benz, $11,543.00 in cash, and jewelry, including a Rolex watch covered in approximately 17.45 carats of diamonds, a gold tennis necklace with approximately 25.67 carats of diamonds, a ninja shaped pendant covered with the phrases “XXO” and “Never Hesitate” and which is attached to a crown with approximately 10 carats of diamonds, a gold crown pendant covered in approximately 5.42 carat of diamonds, a gold tennis necklace with approximately 4.68 carats of diamonds, and a gold and diamond rope necklace.
U.S. District Judge Susie Morgan will sentence JOHNSON on December 1, 2021. JOHNSON and six other defendants were charged in 2018 with conspiring to distribute heroin in the New Orleans area. All but one of these defendants have pled guilty
U.S. Attorney Evans praised the work of the FBI’s New Orleans Gang Task Force in investigating this matter. Assistant United States Attorneys David Howard Sinkman and Brandon Long are in charge of the prosecution.
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New Hanover County Gang Member Receives 115 Months for Gun OffenseRead the Press Release
NEW BERN, N.C. – A Wilmington man was sentenced today to 115 months in prison and 3 years of supervised release for possession of a firearm by a convicted felon. On October 17, 2019, Quaneik Kasson Allen pled guilty to the charge.
According to court documents and other information presented in court, Allen, 23, illegally possessed a firearm in connection with an April 21, 2019 shooting incident. Allen, a validated member of the Double I Bloods street gang, was on post-release supervision from a prior state felony conviction for possession of a stolen firearm. The incident – captured on Wilmington Housing Authority surveillance video – took place in the Houston Moore housing complex. Co-defendant, Antonio Spencer (previously sentenced), brutally assaulted a pregnant female who was ultimately able to flee the scene. A short time later, Allen approached Spencer and the two fought. During the struggle, a gun Spencer had in his waistband, dropped to the ground. Allen retrieved the gun and used it to shoot Spencer five times at close range. Spencer was treated and released from the hospital two days later. Responding officers from Wilmington Police Department stopped Allen while leaving the scene and recovered a .38 caliber revolver with five spent shell casings and a .380 caliber handgun.
G. Norman Acker, III, Acting U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of North Carolina made the announcement after sentencing by U.S. District Judge Louise W. Flanagan. The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF) and the Wilmington Police Department investigated the case and Assistant U.S. Attorney Bryan Stephany prosecuted the case.
This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program bringing together all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve to reduce violent crime and make our neighborhoods safer for everyone. The United States Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of North Carolina implements the PSN Program through its Take Back North Carolina Initiative. This initiative emphasizes the regional assignment of federal prosecutors to work with law enforcement and District Attorney’s Offices on a sustained basis in those communities to reduce the violent crime rate, drug trafficking, and crimes against law enforcement.
Related court documents and information can be found on the website of the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of North Carolina or on PACER by searching for Case No. 7:19-CR-00092-FL.
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Minnesota Man Sentenced for Unlawful Taking of Golden EagleRead the Press Release
Acting United States Attorney Dennis R. Holmes announced that a Wheaton, Minnesota, man convicted of Unlawful Taking of Golden Eagle was sentenced on August 23, 2021, by U.S. Magistrate Judge Mark A. Moreno.
Richard Michael Grohs, age 69, was sentenced to three years of probation, three years no trapping, restitution in the amount of $10,000 to the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation, and a special assessment to the Federal Crime Victims Fund in the amount of $25.
Grohs was indicted by a federal grand jury on October 14, 2020. He pled guilty on August 23, 2021.
The conviction stemmed from an incident that occurred between April and May of 2018, in Roberts County, South Dakota, where Grohs was illegally trapping and snared a golden eagle resulting in its death.
This case was investigated by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. Assistant U.S. Attorney Meghan N. Dilges prosecuted the case.
Grohs was released following sentencing.
Minnesota Man Pleads Guilty to Attempted Enticement of a Minor After Traveling to Florida to Engage in Criminal Sexual ActivityRead the Press Release
Miami, Florida – A 56-year-old man living in Minnesota pled guilty today in federal district court in West Palm Beach to attempted enticement of a minor to engage in criminal sexual activity.
Richard Martin Lehner admitted that, over the course of three months, he communicated with an individual he thought was a 15-year-old girl on an online dating application. Lehner repeatedly communicated with her through text and voice message, sending sexually explicit messages in order to convince her to engage in sexual activities with him. He then booked a flight from Minnesota to Florida and booked a hotel room in Palm Beach Gardens, Florida, where he believed the girl lived. When Lehner arrived in Florida, he purchased condoms and drove to a restaurant where he planned to meet the girl, to then take her to his hotel room for sex. Law enforcement officers arrested Lehner when he arrived at the restaurant.
Lehner pled guilty to one count of attempted enticement of a minor to engage in criminal sexual activity. Sentencing for Lehner is set for November 3, at 10:30 a.m., before U.S. District Judge Donald Middlebrooks. Lehner faces a mandatory minimum of ten years in prison up to a maximum of life in prison.
Juan Antonio Gonzalez, Acting U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Florida, and Anthony Salisbury, Special Agent in Charge, Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), Miami Field Office, announced the guilty plea.
HSI Miami, West Palm Beach Office, and the Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office investigated the case. Assistant U.S. Attorney Shannon O’Shea Darsch is prosecuting this case.
This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse, launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice. Led by U.S. Attorneys’ Offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS), Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state and local resources to better locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the Internet, as well as to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.projectsafechildhood.gov.
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 on http://pacer.flsd.uscourts.gov under case number 21-cr-80094.
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Mexican National Sentenced to 15 Years for Drug Trafficking, Illegal FirearmsRead the Press Release
KANSAS CITY, Mo. – A Mexican national was sentenced in federal court today for illegally selling more than a dozen firearms and a large amount of methamphetamine and heroin to undercover federal agents.
Heladio Lezama-Palma, 36, a citizen of Mexico who was residing in Kansas City, Missouri, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Brian C. Wimes to 15 years in federal prison without parole. Lezama-Palma, who has been in federal custody since his arrest, was remanded to the custody of the U.S. Marshal immediately after the hearing to begin serving his sentence.
On April 15, 2021, Lezama-Palma pleaded guilty to one count of distributing heroin, one count of possessing methamphetamine with the intent to distribute, one count of possessing firearms in furtherance of a drug-trafficking crime, one count of being an illegal alien in possession of firearms, and one count of illegally reentering the United States after having been deported.
Lezama-Palma admitted that he sold firearms and illegal drugs to two undercover Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) special agents on three separate occasions between July 2, 2018, and Oct. 30, 2018. Among those transactions, Lezama-Palma sold 13.38 grams of heroin to an undercover agent.
Lezama-Palma was arrested on Nov. 7, 2018, when he arrived to conduct an arranged fourth transaction. Lezama-Palma had agreed to sell two kilograms of methamphetamine and seven firearms for $20,000 to an undercover federal agent. The transaction was planned at a grocery store parking lot in Kansas City, Mo. Kansas City police officers arrested Lezama-Palma when he arrived at the parking lot. Officers searched his Cadillac Escalade and found a black duffle bag that contained approximately two kilograms of methamphetamine, five pistols and two rifles (a Taurus 9mm pistol, a Mellennium .40-caliber pistol, a Glock 9mm pistol, a Glock .40-caliber pistol, a Smith & Wesson 9mm pistol, a Mac 90 Sporter 7.62mm rifle, and a DTI-15 5.56mm rifle).
In addition to the conduct to which he specifically pleaded guilty, Lezama-Palma also admitted that he sold three firearms to an undercover HSI agent in Kansas on July 2, 2018. At that time, he told the undercover agent he could sell kilogram-quantities of methamphetamine for $7,500 per kilogram. Lezama-Palma also admitted that he sold approximately a kilogram of pure methamphetamine to an undercover HSI agent on July 31, 2018.
Lezama-Palma had been legally removed from the United States on June 8, 2012, but unlawfully reentered the country. According to court documents, he was ordered to voluntarily leave the United States on two other occasions.
This case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Brent Venneman and Gregg R. Coonrod. It was investigated by Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and the Kansas City, Mo., Police Department.
Methamphetamine trafficker sentenced to 15 years in prisonRead the Press Release
BILLINGS — A Michigan man who admitted bringing pounds of methamphetamine to Montana for redistribution was sentenced today to 15 years in prison to be followed by five years of supervised release, Acting U.S. Attorney Leif M. Johnson said.
Michael Troy Webb, 38, of Charlotte, Michigan, pleaded guilty on April 2 to possession with intent to distribute meth.
U.S. District Judge Susan P. Watters presided.
In court documents filed in the case the government alleged that in May 2019, the Missoula Police Department learned Webb was selling meth and heroin in Montana and had been seen with about six pounds of meth and three pounds of heroin. Webb, and his girlfriend and co-defendant, Kimberly Fanslau, were travelling through the state selling the drugs and were bound for Billings. Law enforcement further learned that Webb had been seen with about 11 pounds of meth in the prior weeks. Agents located Webb and Fanslau at a Billings hotel and served a search warrant on their room. Webb and Fanslau were both detained. Agents found $4,850 on Webb’s person and approximately four pounds of meth and 197 grams of heroin in the room. Four pounds of meth is the equivalent of about 14,496 doses. Webb told officers he or Fanslau had brought drugs to Montana at least five times, with each occasion involving several pounds of meth. Fanslau pleaded guilty and is pending sentencing.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Julie R. Patten prosecuted the case, which was investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration.
This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods, a U.S. Department of Justice initiative to reduce violent crime. Through PSN, federal, tribal, state and local law enforcement partners in Montana focus on violent crime driven by methamphetamine trafficking, armed robbers, firearms offenses and violent offenders with outstanding warrants.
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Member of Syndicato de Nuevo Mexico prison gang sentenced to 17 years in prison for racketeeringRead the Press Release
ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. – Jonathan James “Baby G” Gomez, 39, of Albuquerque, New Mexico, was sentenced on Aug. 23 to 17 years and seven months in prison for racketeering conspiracy. Gomez pleaded guilty on Sept. 25, 2020.
According to court records, from 2004 to September of 2019, Gomez was a member of the Syndicato de Nuevo Mexico (SNM) prison gang while in the New Mexico Corrections Department prison system. Gomez acknowledged that SNM is an ongoing criminal organization whose members, prospects and associates engage in acts of violence and other criminal activity including murder, kidnapping and conspiracy to manufacture and distribute narcotics. Gomez admitted to his participation in SNM’s racketeering conspiracy.
Gomez’s association with SNM and several of the acts committed by Gomez as part of the SNM racketeering conspiracy are detailed in court records. Among those acts were assaulting a corrections officer, refusing to be searched, being in possession of controlled substances, ordering assaults on an inmate, maintaining names and addresses of SNM members, and ordered an individual identified as “B.C.” to murder another person identified as “V.C.”
Upon his release from prison, Gomez will be subject to three years of supervised release.
The FBI and the New Mexico Corrections Department investigated this case. The Las Cruces Office of the U.S. Attorney for the District of New Mexico prosecuted the case.
Massachusetts Man Pleads Guilty to Participating in Fentanyl Trafficking ConspiracyRead the Press Release
CONCORD - Eduardo Contreras, 31, of Lawrence, Massachusetts, pleaded guilty in federal court to conspiracy to distribute fentanyl, Acting United States Attorney John J. Farley announced today.
According to court documents and statements made in court, between approximately 2015 and November 30, 2017, Contreras conspired with a New Hampshire-based fentanyl distributor to distribute fentanyl. Contreras provided the fentanyl to the New Hampshire trafficker for distribution to customers in New Hampshire and Maine. On several occasions, Contreras used couriers to transport fentanyl and the proceeds of drug transactions.
Contreras is scheduled to be sentenced on December 2, 2021.
“Although fentanyl can be lethal, drug traffickers seek to profit from selling this dangerous substance to the residents of New Hampshire,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Farley. “Law enforcement officers are working together to stop the flow of fentanyl into the Granite State. As this case demonstrates, fentanyl traffickers who distribute this deadly drug in New Hampshire will be held accountable for their criminal behavior.”
This matter was investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration, Homeland Security Investigations, the Manchester Police Department, the Tilton Police Department, the Massachusetts State Police and the New Hampshire State Police. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Jennifer Cole Davis and Seth R. Aframe.
This investigation 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.
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Marin Man Charged with Firearms Trafficking and Being A Felon in Possession of A FirearmRead the Press Release
SAN FRANCISCO – James William Palmer was arrested yesterday and arraigned today on charges of engaging in the unlicensed manufacturing and dealing of firearms and of being a felon in possession of a firearm, announced Acting United States Attorney Stephanie M. Hinds and Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) Special Agent in Charge Patrick T. Gorman.
In a federal criminal complaint unsealed today, Palmer, 36, of Mill Valley, is alleged to be an unlicensed manufacturer and dealer of privately manufactured firearms and a convicted felon who possessed a firearm. The complaint charges that Palmer was manufacturing and selling firearms from as early as May 2020 through to January 2021. Law enforcement began investigating Palmer for firearms violations after examining text messages involving Palmer in an unrelated investigation. On January 27, 2021, police detained Palmer and found him in possession of a Glock semi-automatic .45 caliber pistol and two loaded ammunition clips. On the same date, police seized a number of items from Palmer’s home related to firearms manufacturing and trafficking.
This case follows the U.S. Department of Justice’s launch in five key regions of Cross-Jurisdictional Firearms Trafficking Strike Forces that are focused on disrupting illegal firearms trafficking. One of the five Strike Forces was launched here, in the San Francisco Greater Bay Area and Sacramento Region. The Strike Force identifies sources of illegally trafficked firearms and disrupts straw purchasing as well as firearms trafficking networks by collaborating in cross-jurisdictional efforts that include multiple federal agencies and multiple states and their local law enforcement agencies.
Palmer made his initial appearance to face these charges today in federal court before United States Magistrate Judge Joseph C. Spero. He was released on bond and is scheduled to return to court for his next appearance on October 7, 2021.
Palmer is charged with one count of unlicensed firearms manufacturing and dealing in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 922(a)(1)(A) and with one count of being a felon in possession of a firearm in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 922(g)(1). Each count carries a maximum sentence of 10 years imprisonment and a fine of $250,000. Any sentence following conviction, however, would be imposed by the court only after consideration of the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and the federal statute governing the imposition of a sentence, 18 U.S.C. § 3553.
A complaint merely alleges that crimes have been committed, and all defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Alexis James is prosecuting the case with the assistance of Maribel Gallegos. The prosecution is the result of an investigation by ATF and the Marin County Sheriff’s Office.
Manchester Man Sentenced to 60 Months for Fentanyl TraffickingRead the Press Release
CONCORD - Francis Harrington, 39, of Manchester, was sentenced to 60 months in federal prison for possession of fentanyl with intent to distribute, Acting United States Attorney John J. Farley announced today.
According to court documents and statements made in court, on August 22, 2019, a Manchester police officer responded to a report of two males “passed out” in a parked vehicle at a restaurant. Harrington was the passenger in the vehicle. After being engaged by medical personnel, the officer observed Harrington moving slowly and reaching around the console and floor area of the vehicle. Harrington was ordered out of the vehicle and to put his hands on his head. The officer performed a protective pat search and located a large bulge in the waistband of Harrington’s pants. When the officer asked Harrington about the object, Harrington replied “drugs.” The officer then removed the object, which was a bag containing 198 grams of fentanyl. He was arrested at the scene.
Harrington previously pleaded guilty on May 18, 2021.
“Drug dealers have been flooding our community with large amounts of fentanyl and the results have been tragic and deadly,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Farley. “We continue to work closely with the Manchester Police Department to identify and prosecute the fentanyl dealers who are jeopardizing public safety in the Queen City.”
This matter was investigated by the Manchester Police Department. The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Joachim H. Barth.
This case is part of Operation Synthetic Opioid Surge (S.O.S.). In July of 2018, Attorney General Jeff Sessions announced the creation of S.O.S., which is being implemented in the District of New Hampshire and nine other federal districts. The goal of S.O.S. is to combat the large number of overdoses and deaths associated with fentanyl and other synthetic opioids. In New Hampshire, the U.S. Attorney’s Office is focusing its efforts on prosecuting synthetic opioid trafficking cases arising in Hillsborough County, which includes Manchester and Nashua.
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Maine Woman Pleads Guilty to Participating in North Shore Drug ConspiracyRead the Press Release
BOSTON – A Maine woman pleaded guilty yesterday in federal court in Boston to charges of conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute, controlled substances.
Shelby Kleffman, 36, pleaded guilty today to one count of conspiracy to manufacture, distribute and to possess with intent to distribute 40 grams or more of fentanyl, methamphetamine, cocaine, cocaine base, and other controlled substances. U.S. Chief District Court Judge F. Dennis Saylor IV scheduled sentencing for Jan. 5, 2022. Kleffman was charged on March 26, 2021.
Kleffman admitted to her role in a drug trafficking conspiracy between Massachusetts and Maine. Kleffman operated as a Maine-based dealer who received large quantities of fentanyl, cocaine, cocaine base and methamphetamine from Massachusetts-based gang members, which she would then distribute locally to customers in Maine.
The charge of conspiracy to distribute and possess a controlled substance with intent to distribute provides for a sentence of at least five years and up to 40 years in prison, at least four years and up to life of supervised release and a fine of up to $5 million. Sentences are imposed by a federal district judge based on the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
Acting United States Attorney Nathaniel R. Mendell; Joseph R. Bonavolonta, Special Agent in Charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Boston Division; and James Ferguson, Special Agent in Charge of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, Boston Field Division, made the announcement today. Assistance was provided by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Maine; the Maine Drug Enforcement Agency; the Essex County and Hancock County Sheriff’s Departments; and the Lynn, Salem, Malden, Bangor (Maine), Portland (Maine) and Westbrook (Maine) Police Departments. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Philip A. Mallard and Sarah Hoefle of Mendell’s Organized Crime and Gang Unit are prosecuting the case.
The operation was conducted by a multi-agency task force through the Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF), a partnership between federal, state and local law enforcement agencies. The principal mission of the OCDETF program is to identify, disrupt and dismantle the most serious drug trafficking, weapons trafficking and money laundering organizations, and those primarily responsible for the nation’s illegal drug supply. More information on the OCDETF program is available here: https://www.justice.gov/ocdetf/about-ocdetf.
The details contained in the charging documents are allegations. The remaining defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
Maine Man Sentenced to 84 Months in Federal Prison for Methamphetamine TraffickingRead the Press Release
CONCORD - Michael Mowry, 44, of Acton, Maine was sentenced to 84 months in federal prison for possession of methamphetamine with intent to distribute, Acting United States Attorney John J. Farley announced today.
According to court documents and statements made in court, in May of 2018, a New Hampshire State Police trooper pulled over a vehicle on I-95 in Portsmouth for multiple traffic violations. Mowry was a passenger in the vehicle. The trooper developed suspicions about drug activity and called for a narcotics detection dog. The dog alerted to the odor of narcotics. After the trooper advised the driver of the detection of narcotics, Mowry admitted to the trooper that there was methamphetamine in a backpack in the rear seat. The backpack contained 755 grams of methamphetamine.
Mowry previously pled guilty on May 21, 2020. After the completion of his sentence, Mowry will be under five years of supervised release.
“Methamphetamine is a highly dangerous drug that is causing increasing damage to health and safety in New Hampshire,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Farley. “Together with our law enforcement partners, we are working to identify and prosecute the drug dealers who are distributing methamphetamine in the Granite State. As this case demonstrates, methamphetamine traffickers will be caught and serve substantial prison sentences for their unlawful conduct.”
“As methamphetamine seizures are on the rise DEA stands committed to keeping this highly addictive drug out of New Hampshire,” said DEA Special Agent in Charge Brian D. Boyle. “Today’s sentence not only holds Mr. Mowry accountable for his crimes but serves as a warning to those who attempt to bring this poison to the Granite State.”
This matter was investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration and the New Hampshire State Police. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Anna Dronzek.
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MDC corrections officer in court for possession of child pornographyRead the Press Release
ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. – Craig Barnish, 43, of Rio Rancho, New Mexico, made an initial appearance in federal court today facing a charge of possession of child pornography. Barnish will remain in custody pending a detention hearing scheduled for Aug. 27.
According to a criminal complaint, in January of 2021, Barnish, a corrections officer at the Metropolitan Detention Center, allegedly participated in a group chat on the Kik social media app in which he allegedly commented on two videos depicting a nude child. Later that day in the same Kik group chat, Barnish allegedly uploaded a video depicting child pornography.
After Barnish was identified as the user participating in the Kik group chat, he allegedly possessed multiple video files on his cellphone depicting children engaged in sexually explicit conduct.
A complaint is only an allegation. A defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty. If convicted, Barnish faces up to 20 years in prison.
The FBI Albuquerque Field Office is investigating this case with assistance from the Regional Computer Forensic Laboratory.
The United States Attorney’s Office for the District of New Mexico is prosecuting the case as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice. Led by the U.S. Attorneys' Offices and the Criminal Division's Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS), Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state and local resources to better locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the Internet, as well as to identify and rescue victims.
Lumberton Gang Member Convicted of Possessing a Firearm as a Convicted FelonRead the Press Release
RALEIGH, N.C. – A federal jury convicted a Lumberton man yesterday on a charge of Possession of a Firearm by a Convicted Felon.
According to court records and evidence presented at trial, an officer with the Lumberton Police department observed a red Nissan Rogue fail to stop at a stop sign. The officer approached the vehicle and contacted the driver and sole occupant of the vehicle, Emanuel Mann Billings. Billings admitted that he ran the stop sign, and the officer took his identification where he learned Billings was a convicted felon. The officer reapproached the vehicle and asked whether Billings possessed anything illegal in the vehicle. Billings admitted that he possessed a firearm in the center console of the vehicle.
During the course of the investigation, law enforcement officers were able to review open-sourced social media that showed Billings had been in possession of the firearm for months. Law enforcement also learned that Billings was associated with the street gang, Folk Nation. Billings had previously been convicted of multiple counts of robbery with a dangerous weapon, possession of a weapon of mass destruction, and assault inflicting physical injury of a detention employee.
Billings faces a minimum penalty of 180 months in prison when sentenced in November of 2021.
G. Norman Acker, III, Acting U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of North Carolina made the announcement after U.S. District Judge James C. Dever III accepted the verdict. The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives and Lumberton Police Department are investigating the case and Assistant U.S. Attorneys Chad Rhoades and John Harris are prosecuting the case.
Related court documents and information can be found on the website of the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of North Carolina or on PACER by searching for Case No.7:19-cr-00190-D.
Long Island Dentist Arrested for Distributing Prescription Drugs to Women in Exchange for SexRead the Press Release
An indictment was unsealed today in federal court in Central Islip charging Dr. Barry Arnold, a practicing dentist with an office in Valley Stream, New York, with writing illegal prescriptions to women for oxycodone, a Schedule II controlled substance, and alprazolam (“Xanax”), a Schedule IV controlled substance, in exchange for sex acts. Arnold was arrested yesterday and will be arraigned this afternoon before United States Magistrate Judge James M. Wicks.
Jacquelyn M. Kasulis, Acting United States Attorney for the Eastern District of New York, Ray Donovan, Special Agent-in-Charge, Drug Enforcement Administration, New York Division (DEA), Peter C. Fitzhugh, Special Agent-in-Charge, Homeland Security Investigations, New York (HSI), and Stuart Cameron, Acting Police Commissioner, Suffolk County Police Department (SCPD), announced the arrest and indictment.
“As alleged, Dr. Arnold abused his position as a dentist and preyed upon vulnerable, drug-addicted women, trading prescriptions for sex acts,” stated Acting U.S. Attorney Kasulis. “We are committed to vigorous prosecution of medical professionals who abdicate their Hippocratic Oath and contribute to the rise of drug abuse and addiction in our communities."
“With a clear disregard for medical integrity, Dr. Arnold allegedly exchanged prescriptions for sex in his office and home. This investigation focused on a dentist abusing his position by proliferating drug abuse and endangering the lives and safety of several women,” stated DEA Special Agent-in-Charge Donovan. “I commend the men and women at the DEA Long Island District Office Tactical Diversion Group, HSI, Suffolk County Police Department Human Trafficking Investigations Unit, Suffolk County Sheriff’s Office and the US Attorney’s Office Eastern District of New York for their expedient and diligent work on this investigation.”
“It’s alleged that Dr. Arnold took advantage of vulnerable, addicted women for his own benefit. He is ethically and legally responsible for every prescription, but he broke his oath with his alleged misconduct, and he is really no different than a street dealer,” stated HSI Special Agent in Charge Fitzhugh. “HSI’s continued partnership with the DEA will ensure that drug-dealing dentists are arrested for their criminal acts.”
“During the course of close to four years, Dr. Arnold used his ability to write prescriptions to take advantage of those struggling with addiction for his own personal indulgences,” stated Acting SCPD Commissioner Cameron. “While this doctor should have held himself to a higher standard, our officers on the DEA’S Long Island Tactical Diversion Squad will continue to hold those in medical practice accountable for illegal actions and I would like to commend the Eastern District of New York for making a difference in the opioid epidemic.”
As set forth in court filings, between October 2016 and August 2020, Dr. Arnold allegedly prescribed oxycodone, Percocet and Xanax to numerous drug-addicted victims in exchange for sex acts. The sex acts occurred after business hours at his former dental office in Lynbrook and current office in Valley Stream. Arnold also prescribed controlled substances in exchange for sex acts at his home in Williston Park. The victims were not Arnold’s dental patients and the prescriptions were not for legitimate medical purposes.
The charges in the indictment are allegations, and the defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty. If convicted, Dr. Arnold faces up to 20 years in prison.
The government’s investigation was led by the DEA’s Long Island Tactical Diversion Squad, which is comprised of agents and officers of the DEA, SCPD, Nassau County Police Department, HHS-OIG and Port Washington Police Department In addition, HSI, SCPD Human Trafficking Investigations Unit and Suffolk County Sheriff’s Office assisted with the investigation of the case.
The government’s case is being handled by the Office’s Long Island Criminal Division. Assistant United States Attorney Michael J. Bushwack is in charge of the prosecution.
The Defendant:
DR. BARRY ARNOLD
Age: 70
Willison Park, New YorkE.D.N.Y. Docket No. 21-CR-436 (GRB)
Life Insurance Trustees ChargedRead the Press Release
HAMMOND- Ricky Blaylock, age 60, of Riverside, IL and Jacqueline Blaylock Wisnewski, age 57, of Indianapolis, Indiana, were charged with bank fraud related to their theft of insurance proceeds held in trust accounts designated for the benefit of their eight-year-old grandchild.
According to the indictment, the insurance proceeds were derived from a life insurance policy held by the defendant’s son Jacob, an active-duty soldier, who passed away in late 2007. Jacob’s will named his eight-year-old daughter as his sole heir. Under the terms of his will, the assets of the estate were to be held in trust for his daughter until she was 21 years old. The will designated Jacob’s parents, Ricky Blaylock as executor of the estate and Jacqueline Blaylock as the trustee. The only asset in Jacob’s estate was the $400,000 life insurance policy. The indictment alleges that defendants funneled part of the insurance proceeds into trust accounts designated for the benefit of their grandchild but then proceeded to deplete the accounts from March 2008 through 2011, without ever making a distribution to or for the benefit of the child.
The United States Attorney’s Office emphasizes that an indictment is merely an allegation, and that all persons are presumed innocent until, and unless proven guilty in court.
If convicted, any specific sentence to be imposed will be determined by the Judge after a consideration of federal statutes and the Federal Sentencing Guidelines.
This case is being investigated by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation-Office of Inspector General and the Federal Bureau of Investigation. This case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Diane Berkowitz.
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Lemoyne Man Sentenced to 262 Months’ Imprisonment for Possession of A Firearm in Furtherance of Drug TraffickingRead the Press Release
HARRISBURG - The United States Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Pennsylvania announced that Akee Ly, age 32, of Lemoyne, Pennsylvania, was sentenced on August 25, 2021, to 262 months’ imprisonment by United States District Court Chief Judge Matthew W. Brann for possession of firearms during a drug trafficking crime.
According to Acting U.S. Attorney Bruce D. Brandler, Ly had previously been convicted of a felony and was prohibited from possessing firearms and used a third party to purchase firearms on his behalf. During a search warrant of Ly’s home in Lemoyne, Pennsylvania, officers found: an SCCY Industries pistol, a Taurus pistol, a Taurus revolver, a Springfield Armory pistol, firearm magazines, assorted ammunition, 75 grams of cocaine, $12,265, three bottles of promethazine, multiple Xanax bars, marijuana, eight Ecstasy pills, 200 THC vape bottles, and narcotics packaging material.
The case was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms. Assistant U.S. Attorney Scott Ford prosecuted the case.
This case was prosecuted as part of the joint federal, state, and local Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN) Program, the centerpiece of the Department of Justice’s violent crime reduction efforts. PSN is an evidence-based program proven to be effective at reducing violent crime. Through PSN, a broad spectrum of stakeholders work together to identify the most pressing violent crime problems in the community and develop comprehensive solutions to address them. As part of this strategy, PSN focuses enforcement efforts on the most violent offenders and partners with locally based prevention and reentry programs for lasting reductions in crime.
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Leader of Seattle drug distribution ring sentenced to 13 years in prisonRead the Press Release
Seattle – A 51-year-old Seattle man was sentenced today in U.S. District Court in Seattle to 13 years in prison for drug and gun crimes announced Acting United States Attorney Tessa M. Gorman. Clyde McKnight was convicted May 21, 2021, of possession of controlled substances with intent to distribute, and two counts of being a felon in possession of firearms, following a 5-day jury trial. The case stemmed from a 6-month investigation in 2017 by the Seattle Police Department and Drug Enforcement Administration, of significant drug trafficking in Seattle’s Pioneer Square neighborhood. At the sentencing hearing, U.S. District Judge Thomas S. Zilly ordered McKnight to also pay a $36,000 fine and serve five years of supervised release following prison.
“This defendant was a significant drug dealer in Seattle’s Pioneer Square neighborhood, spreading addiction, despair, and potentially deadly fentanyl throughout our community,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Gorman. “He has been involved with crime for decades, and did significant state prison time for attempted murder. This federal sentence is necessary to protect the public from the defendant’s callous disregard for community safety.”
According to records filed in the case and testimony at trial, Clyde McKnight was arrested outside a Portland, Oregon motel in January 2018. The arrest followed the seizure of 2.6 kilos of cocaine, 1.5 kilos of heroin, 607 grams of crack cocaine, 42 grams of methamphetamine and 180 grams of fentanyl from McKnight’s vehicle in Seattle. At the time of his arrest, McKnight had $36,000 and a handgun with him.
McKnight had been observed by law enforcement using a Chrysler 300 sedan as a storage location for drugs – crack cocaine, powder cocaine, heroin, and fentanyl. McKnight parked the vehicle in various locations in the Mount Baker neighborhood. On the night of January 2, 2018, the Seattle Police Department impounded the car and obtained a search warrant. In the early morning of January 3, 2018, McKnight made numerous panicked calls to 9-1-1 to report the vehicle stolen. Ultimately, he was informed the vehicle had been impounded and was in the police evidence yard. McKnight immediately tried to flee the state, traveling to Portland, Oregon where he was arrested.
A search of McKnight’s apartment in downtown Seattle turned up another firearm – a loaded Glock. McKnight is prohibited from possessing firearms due to prior convictions – including one for attempted murder. The jury reached separate verdicts following the drug conviction, finding that McKnight was also guilty of being a felon in possession of the two firearms.
Four other conspirators were charged, convicted, and sentenced as part of the case:
Patrick Tables, 56, was sentenced to 10 years in prison.
Jonathon Rushing, 42, was sentenced to 8 and a half years in prison.
Michael Turner, 52, was sentenced to 5 years in prison
Marvin Traylor, 52, was sentenced to one year in prison.
After multiple requests by the defendant for delays in the trial, McKnight’s trial was scheduled for April 2020. The pandemic closure of the U.S. District Courthouse to in-person appearances delayed the trial further. The case was the first one scheduled for trial as the courthouse returned to limited jury trials.
This case 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.
The case was investigated by the Seattle Police Department and the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) with assistance from the Port of Seattle Police Department and the FBI crime lab at Quantico, VA.
The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Vince Lombardi and Casey Conzatti.
Laredo Man Sentenced to 25 Years for Brutal Assault in Dallas Parking GarageRead the Press Release
The Laredo man who brutally assaulted a woman in a downtown Dallas parking garage has been sentenced to 25 years in federal prison, announced Acting U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of Texas Prerak Shah.
David Cadena, 27, was charged via criminal complaint in November 2019 and indicted less than a month later. Before he was federally charged, Mr. Cadena been charged by the state with aggravated assault with a deadly weapon and aggravated robbery, but had twice bonded out of Dallas County Jail. A federal judge ordered him detained immediately after he was arrested by the feds. He pleaded guilty in April 2021 to the federal charge, carjacking resulting in bodily injury, and was sentenced Thursday by U.S. District Judge Jane J. Boyle.
According to plea papers, Mr. Cadena admitted he savagely assaulted the victim with a fire extinguisher in the parking garage of the Statler Hotel around 2:30 a.m. on Saturday, Sept. 21.
After assaulting the victim, Mr. Cadena allegedly carjacked her 2015 Toyota Corolla, drove it around the garage, and slammed it into a wall. A Statler security guard observed Mr. Cadena behind the wheel of the wrecked vehicle and removed him from the car for his own safety.
Authorities discovered the 27-year-old victim, identified in court documents as J.K., unconscious, with severe bruising and swelling to her face and head. She was transported to Baylor Hospital, where she lay in a coma for two days, and medical professionals documented nerve damage to her arms and legs as a result of the beating.
“Cadena was likely a blow short of committing capital murder,” prosecutors argued in a motion for upward variance from the sentencing guidelines, later granted by the judge. “This is not a run-of the-mill, garden-variety carjacking. Cadena’s crime is excessively violent and egregious.”
In court documents, Mr. Cadena asserted that because he was heavily intoxicated at the time of the crime, he has no recollection of the events that occurred that night. However, after reviewing the evidence, including security video and witness accounts, he agreed that he committed the offense as described.
The Federal Bureau of Investigation Dallas Field Office and Dallas Police Department conducted the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Camille Sparks and Gary Tromblay prosecuted the case.
Keystone Heights Man Pleads Guilty to Escaping from Jacksonville Halfway HouseRead the Press Release
Jacksonville, Florida – Derrick S. McCullough (31, Keystone Heights) today pleaded guilty to escaping from a residential reentry center (halfway house) where he was completing a prior 50-month federal prison sentence. McCullough faces a maximum penalty of five additional years in federal prison. A sentencing date has not yet been set.
According to the plea agreement, in May 2018, a U.S. District Judge in the Southern District of West Virginia found McCullough guilty of possessing a firearm as a convicted felon and committed him to the custody of the U.S. Bureau of Prisons (BOP) to serve 50 months’ imprisonment. In December 2020, the BOP transferred McCullough into the custody of Keeton Corrections, Inc. Jacksonville Residential Reentry Center, a halfway house, to complete the remainder of his sentence.
McCullough was employed during portions of his time at Keeton. While employed there, he was permitted to leave the facility for work, but was required to return afterwards. On March 29, 2021, McCullough supposedly left Keeton to go to work, but later that day, his employer notified a Keeton official that McCullough was not present. On May 24, 2021, McCullough was arrested in Bradford County. In the intervening period (approximately two months), he never returned to Keeton.
This case was investigated by U.S. Marshals Service and the Bradford County Narcotics Task Force. It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Michael J. Coolican.