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9 July 2021
Amite Woman Pleads Guilty to Bribery Scheme and Witness TamperingRead the Press Release
NEW ORLEANS, LOUISIANA – United States Attorney Duane A. Evans announced that SHAWANDA DOVE, 51, of Amite, Louisiana, pleaded guilty on July 7, 2021 to use of an interstate facility with intent to carry on unlawful activity and tampering with a witness.
According to the superseding bill of information, DOVE used a cell phone to carry out a bribery scheme, in violation of 18 U.S.C. §§ 1952(a)(3) and 2. Specifically, DOVE paid a Tangipahoa Parish Sheriff’s Office, Criminal Records Division Supervisor in exchange for fraudulent bonds used for the release of incarcerated persons. Additionally, in an related matter, DOVE made multiple threats to a witness cooperating in the federal prosecution of DOVE’s son, Aaron Nakeenen Womack, in violation of 18 U.S.C. §§ 1512(b)(1).
As to the bribery scheme, DOVE faces maximum penalties of five (5) years incarceration, a $250,000 fine, a three (3) year term of supervised release, and a mandatory special assessment of $100.00. Additionally, DOVE faces maximum penalties of twenty (20) years imprisonment and/or a fine of $250,000, three (3) years of supervised release, and a $100 special assessment for the witness tampering charge. DOVE’s sentencing is scheduled on October 6, 2021.
U.S. Attorney Evans praised the work of the Federal Bureau of Investigation and Homeland Security Investigations in investigating this matter. Assistant United States Attorneys Tracey Knight and Paige O’Hale are in charge of the prosecution.
Albany County Man Pleads Guilty to Transporting and Possessing Child PornographyRead the Press Release
ALBANY, NEW YORK – Christopher Eberlein, age 54, of Albany, pled guilty today to multiple counts of transportation and possession of child pornography. The announcement was made by Acting United States Attorney Antoinette T. Bacon and Jodi Cohen, Acting Special Agent in Charge of the Albany Field Office of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI).
As part of his guilty plea before United States District Judge Mae A. D’Agostino, Eberlein admitted that he emailed hundreds of child pornography images and videos to himself from June 2008 through May 2019. He also admitted to possessing child pornography images and videos on three laptops and one thumb drive.
Eberlein faces at least 5 years and up to 20 years in prison, and a term of supervised release of at least 5 years and up to life, when he is sentenced on November 9, 2021. A defendant’s sentence is imposed by a judge based on the particular statute the defendant is charged with violating, the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines, and other factors. Additionally, Eberlein will be required to register as a sex offender.
This case was investigated by the FBI and its Child Exploitation Task Force, with assistance from the New York State Police, and is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Rachel Williams.
This case is prosecuted as part of Project Safe Childhood. Launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice, Project Safe Childhood is led by United States Attorney’s offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS). Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state and local resources to better locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the Internet, as well as to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit https://www.justice.gov/psc.
Adult Man Pretending to be Teenager Pleads Guilty to Federal Child Pornography ChargesRead the Press Release
Miami, Florida – A Palm Beach Gardens, Florida adult who enticed minor girls into sending him sexually explicit pictures of themselves by, among other things, pretending to be a teenager during on-line chats has pled guilty in federal court in West Palm Beach to production, distribution, and possession of child pornography.
According to court records, beginning in 2008, Dwight Castaldi, 45, communicated with girls as young as 13 on a social networking website. Castaldi told the girls he was a teenager and sent the victims pictures of an unknown young man, falsely claiming they were pictures of him. During chats, after promising each girl an exclusive relationship, Castaldi convinced the minors to take sexually explicit pictures of themselves and send the images to him. Law enforcement officers executed a search warrant at Castaldi’s Palm Beach County home in 2018. They found several electronic devices containing hundreds of videos and photographs of child exploitation material and evidence of Castaldi communicating with others about it.
Castaldi’s sentencing hearing is scheduled for September 20, 2021, before U.S. District Judge Rodney Smith. Castaldi faces a mandatory minimum prison sentence of 15 years and a maximum of life.
Castaldi recently completed a three-year sentence in California on separate charges for similar conduct of enticing a 13-year-old girl using the internet.
Acting U.S. Attorney Juan Antonio Gonzalez of the Southern District of Florida and Special Agent in Charge George L. Piro of FBI Miami announced the guilty plea.
FBI Miami investigated the case, together with the Palm Beach Gardens Police Department and Huntington Beach California Police Department. Assistant U.S. Attorney Gregory Schiller is prosecuting the case.
This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood (PSC), a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by United States Attorneys’ Offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals, who sexually exploit children, and to identify and rescue victims. For more information about the Project Safe Childhood initiative and for information regarding Internet safety, please visit www.justice.gov/psc.
To report online child sexual exploitation, use the electronic Cyber Tip Line or call 1-800-843-5678. The Cyber Tip Line is operated by the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children in partnership with the FBI and other law enforcement agencies.
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 20-cr-80087.
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8 July 2021
Wilkes-Barre Woman Sentenced for the Straw Purchase of A FirearmRead the Press Release
SCRANTON – The United States Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Pennsylvania announced that Crystal Hughes, age 37, of Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania, was sentenced by United States District Court Judge Malachy E. Mannion to one year of probation for making false statements in order to purchase a firearm from a federally licensed firearms dealer.
According to Acting United States Attorney Bruce D. Bandler, Hughes pleaded guilty to making false statements on April 30, 2020, to a Luzerne County federally licensed firearms dealer in order to purchase a pistol. The false statement related to the fact that she was not buying the pistol for herself, but on behalf of another person.
The matter was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF), and the Kingston Police Department. Assistant United States Attorney James Buchanan prosecuted the case.
This case is being prosecuted as part of the joint federal, state, and local Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN) Program, the centerpiece of the Department of Justice’s violent crime reduction efforts. PSN is an evidence-based program proven to be effective at reducing violent crime. Through PSN, a broad spectrum of stakeholders work together to identify the most pressing violent crime problems in the community and develop comprehensive solutions to address them. As part of this strategy, PSN focuses enforcement efforts on the most violent offenders and partners with locally based prevention and reentry programs for lasting reductions in crime.
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White Earth Man Sentenced to 17 Years in Prison for Sexual Abuse of A MinorRead the Press Release
MINNEAPOLIS – A White Earth man was sentenced yesterday to 205 months in prison followed by 10 years of supervised release for sexually abusing a minor.
According to court documents, between April 2018 and October 2018, within the exterior boundaries of the White Earth Indian Reservation, Evan James Oppegard, 33, knowingly engaged in sexual acts with a minor. Oppegard also admitted to sending sexually explicit communications to, and soliciting sexual acts with, the minor via Facebook.
Acting U.S. Attorney W. Anders Folk for the District of Minnesota made the announcement after Chief U.S. District Judge John R. Tunheim sentenced the defendant.
This case is the result of an investigation conducted by the White Earth Police Department, the Mahnomen County Sheriff’s Office, and the FBI.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Evan B. Gilead prosecuted the case.
Wellston Man Pleads Guilty to Lying on a Federal ATF Record to Purchase a Firearm from Licensed Gun DealerRead the Press Release
OKLAHOMA CITY – Today, BRANDON ALLEN McNEILL, 40, of Wellston, pleaded guilty to a "lie and buy" by making a false statement on a Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF) firearms transaction record when purchasing a firearm from licensed gun dealer, announced Acting U.S. Attorney Robert J. Troester.
On March 2, 2021, a federal grand jury returned a two-count Indictment against McNeill, charging him with making a false statement in acquisition of a firearm, and possessing a firearm after a misdemeanor domestic violence conviction. According to the Indictment, on January 8, 2021, McNeill entered a federally licensed firearm dealer to purchase a firearm. During the process, McNeill made a false and fictitious written statement on a federal ATF firearms transaction record indicating that he had not been convicted of a misdemeanor crime of domestic violence, when in fact, he had been convicted of such an offense in 2019.
Federal law prohibits a person who has previously been convicted of a misdemeanor crime of domestic violence from possessing a firearm. McNeill was found in possession of the firearm on January 14, 2021, as alleged in the Indictment.
At today’s hearing, McNeill pleaded guilty to making a false statement in acquisition of a firearm. At sentencing, McNeill faces up to ten years in prison, a $250,000 fine, and up to three years of supervised release. As part of his plea agreement, the government will dismiss at sentencing the second count, charging him with illegally possessing the firearm after a domestic violence conviction.
This case is the result of an investigation by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Stan West.
This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods and Project Guardian, the Department of Justice’s signature initiatives to reduce gun violence and enforce federal firearms laws. The local implementation of these initiatives in the Western District of Oklahoma is through "Operation 922," which prioritizes prosecution of federal gun crimes connected to domestic violence.
Reference is made to court filings for further information.
Wells Man Pleads Guilty to Making False Statements to Firearms DealersRead the Press Release
PORTLAND, Maine—A Wells man pleaded guilty today in federal court to providing false information to firearms dealers while purchasing firearms, Acting U.S. Attorney Donald E. Clark announced.
According to court records, in April 2019, Christopher Thomas Proach, 24, purchased seven firearms from three different federal firearm licensees in Cumberland and York counties. While purchasing the firearms, Proach responded “Yes” to a question on an ATF form that asked him if he was purchasing the firearms for himself. In truth, he was purchasing the firearms for a Connecticut resident. He gave all seven firearms to the Connecticut resident immediately after the sales. It is against federal law to provide false information to federal firearm licensees when purchasing firearms from them.
Proach faces up to 10 years in prison and a $250,000 fine on each of the three counts to which he pleaded guilty. He will be sentenced after the completion of a presentence investigation report by the U.S. Probation Office. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and the Wells Police Department investigated the case as part of the Department of Justice’s Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN) initiative.
PSN is a nationwide initiative that brings together federal, state, local and tribal law enforcement officials, prosecutors, community leaders and other stakeholders to identify the most pressing violent crime problems in a community and develop comprehensive solutions to address them. PSN is coordinated by the U.S. Attorneys’ Offices in the 94 federal judicial districts throughout the 50 states and U.S. territories. PSN is customized to account for local violent crime problems and resources. Across all districts, PSN follows four key design elements of successful violent crime reduction initiatives: community engagement, prevention and intervention, focused and strategic enforcement, and accountability.
Washington State Man Sentenced to 10 Years in Federal Prison After Traveling Across State Lines for Sex with a MinorRead the Press Release
EUGENE, Ore.—A Vancouver, Washington man was sentenced to federal prison today for sending sexually explicit emails and text messages to an undercover law enforcement officer posing online as a 13-year-old girl, and then traveling across state lines for a planned sexual encounter with the child.
Daniel Lee Baldie, 35, was sentenced to 10 years in prison and 25 years’ supervised release.
According to court documents, in January and February 2020, Baldie sent emails and text messages to a Benton County Sheriff’s Office deputy posing online as a 13-year-old girl. Baldie’s emails included requests for a nude photo and descriptions of sexual acts he would engage in with the child. Baldie also sent the deputy a photo of his genitals. As part of the email and text message exchange, Baldie arranged to meet the purported child and bring her back to his residence in Vancouver for a sexual encounter.
On February 7, 2020, law enforcement officers followed Baldie from his residence to a meeting location in Corvallis, Oregon where he was arrested. Baldie admitted he intended to meet the child and take her back to his residence.
On February 11, 2020, Baldie was charged by criminal complaint with traveling with intent to engage in illicit sexual conduct, attempted production of child pornography, and coercion and enticement. On March 30, 2021, he pleaded guilty to attempted coercion and enticement of a minor.
This case was investigated by the Benton County Sheriff’s Office and the FBI. It was prosecuted by Jeffrey Sweet, Assistant U.S. Attorney for the District of Oregon and the Benton County District Attorney’s Office
Anyone who has information about the physical or online exploitation of children are encouraged to call the FBI at (503) 224-4181 or submit a tip online at tips.fbi.gov.
This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.justice.gov/psc.
Vestavia Hills Father and Son Arrested in Bank Fraud SchemeRead the Press Release
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. – Today, a father and son were arrested and charged in a bank fraud scheme in which they provided fraudulent information to financial institutions for the purpose of purchasing boats, luxury vehicles, and heavy equipment, announced U.S. Attorney Prim F. Escalona and Federal Bureau of Investigation Special Agent in Charge Johnnie Sharp, Jr.
A 26-count indictment filed in U.S. District Court charges Christopher A. Montalbano, 38, of Vestavia, and Gus Anthony Montalbano, 75, of Vestavia, with conspiracy to commit bank fraud, false statements on a loan application, and money laundering. Christopher Montalbano was also charged with aggravated identity theft and bank fraud. Christopher Montalbano and Gus Montalbano were arrested at their respective homes in Vestavia.
According to the indictment, from 2015 through February 2020, the Montalbano’s conspired to submit fraudulent information regarding their income to numerous financial institutions in support of numerous fraudulent loan applications to purchase boats, luxury vehicles and heavy equipment. The defendants submitted fraudulent personal and corporate financial statements, tax returns, pay stubs, W-2s, invalid Hull Identification Numbers (HINs), and invalid Vehicle Identification Numbers (VINs) in support of the loan applications. In addition, the defendants applied for and obtained multiple loans for the purpose of purchasing a luxury vehicle without disclosing that they had already financed the purchase of the same luxury vehicle with a different financial institution. The funds obtained from the fraudulent loans were used to pay for personal living expenses and make loan payments owed to other financial institutions.
In March 2018 and September 2018, Christopher Montalbano fraudulently used the identity of another individual on an application for loans submitted to USAA Bank.
The indictment also charges Christopher Montalbano with bank fraud due to the violation of the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (“CARES”) Act. On April 29, 2020, Montalbano submitted to Cross River Bank a fraudulent PPP loan application for LSA Corporation. Montalbano fraudulently represented that the funds he sought for LSA Corp. would “be used to retain workers and maintain payroll or make mortgage interest payments, lease payments, and utility payments” when, in fact, he intended to use the funds he obtained from the PPP for personal expenses. On April 30, 2020, Cross River Bank approved and deposited $58,153.00 into the LSA Corporation’s bank account.
On May 17, 2021, the Attorney General established the COVID-19 Fraud Enforcement Task Force to marshal the resources of the Department of Justice, in partnership with agencies across government, to enhance efforts to combat and prevent pandemic-related fraud. The Task Force assists agencies tasked with administering relief programs to prevent fraud by 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 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 Federal Bureau of Investigation investigated the case. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Robin B. Mark and Kristen Osborne are prosecuting the case.
An indictment contains only charges. A defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
Utica Man Pleads Guilty to Aggravated Harassment of VA EmployeesRead the Press Release
ALBANY, NEW YORK – Robert Seifert, age 63, of Utica, New York, plead guilty today to making telephonic threats to employees of the Albany Stratton Veterans Affairs Medical Center.
The announcement was made by Acting United States Attorney Antoinette T. Bacon and Christopher Algieri, Special Agent in Charge of the Northeast Field Office for the United States Department of Veterans Affairs Office of Inspector General.
Seifert, who has been convicted twice before of threatening VA employees, admitted that on January 14, 2021, he made three successive calls to employees at the Albany Stratton VA with no legitimate purpose other than to harass and threaten them, and left threatening voicemails in which he used demeaning and offensive language that caused each of the employees to fear for their own safety and property.
United States Magistrate Judge Daniel J. Stewart is scheduled to sentence Seifert on October 6, 2021, at which time Seifert faces a maximum term of imprisonment of 364 days and a maximum fine of up to $1,000 for each of the three counts, and a term of supervised release of up to 1 year. A defendant’s sentence is imposed by a judge based on the particular statute the defendant is charged with violating, the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines, and other factors.
This case was investigated by U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs Office of Inspector General, and the Veterans Affairs Police Service at the Albany Stratton VA Medical Center, and is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Alexander P. Wentworth-Ping.
Two Modesto Men Charged with Illegal Weapons PossessionRead the Press Release
FRESNO, Calif. — A federal grand jury returned a one-count indictment today against Cesar Castro, 41, of Modesto, charging him with being a felon in possession of a firearm, and a one‑count indictment against Juan Dimas, 31, of Modesto, charging him with being a felon in possession of ammunition, Acting U.S. Attorney Phillip A. Talbert announced.
According to court documents, on June 1, Castro was arrested in Modesto in possession of a loaded firearm. On May 20, Dimas was arrested in Modesto after discarding a loaded firearm during a police chase. Both men are convicted felons prohibited from possessing firearms or ammunition, and both men were serving terms of post-release community supervision following firearms convictions at the time of their arrest on these charges.
This case is the product of an investigation by the Bureau of Alcohol Firearms, Tobacco and Explosives, the Stanislaus County District Attorney’s Office, and the Modesto Police Department. Assistant U.S. Attorney Katherine Schuh is prosecuting the case.
If convicted, Castro and Dimas each face a maximum statutory penalty of 10 years in prison and a $250,000 fine. Any sentence, however, would be determined at the discretion of the court after consideration of any applicable statutory factors and the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, which take into account a number of variables. The charges are only allegations; the defendants are presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.
This case is being prosecuted as part of the joint federal, state, and local Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN) Program, the centerpiece of the Department of Justice’s violent crime reduction efforts. PSN is an evidence-based program proven to be effective at reducing violent crime. Through PSN, a broad spectrum of stakeholders work together to identify the most pressing violent crime problems in the community and develop comprehensive solutions to address them. As part of this strategy, PSN focuses enforcement efforts on the most violent offenders and partners with locally based prevention and reentry programs for lasting reductions in crime.
Two Indicted for Maritime Drug-Trafficking OffensesRead the Press Release
Acting United States Attorney Richard G. Frohling of the Eastern District of Wisconsin announced that on August 25, 2020, a federal grand jury indicted Herlin Hernandez-Trinidad (a/k/a “Rainely), and on January 26, 2021, a federal grand jury indicted Jose Crespo-Lorenzo (a/k/a “El Colombiano”). In both cases, the defendants were charged with a count of conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute five kilograms or more of cocaine on board a vessel subject to the jurisdiction of the United States, in violation of Title 46, United States Code, Section 70506(b); and a count of conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute five kilograms or more of cocaine, in violation of Title 21, United States Code, Section 846.
Both Hernandez-Trinidad and Crespo-Lorenzo were recently arrested in Puerto Rico and transferred to Milwaukee, Wisconsin, to face prosecution in this district.
“These indictments demonstrate an extraordinary effort by federal, state, and local law enforcement to hold accountable those involved in international drug-trafficking activity designed to flood the streets of the United States and other parts of the world with harmful controlled substances,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Frohling.
“This investigation demonstrates the commitment of DEA and the involved partner agencies to pursue and disrupt the drug-trafficking organizations that are inflicting harm upon our communities with dangerous and illegal narcotics,” said DEA Wisconsin Assistant Special Agent in Charge John McGarry.
“This indictment is a great example of what can be accomplished when federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies work in collaboration. HSI will continue its efforts to disrupt and dismantle drug trafficking organizations like this one to keep our communities safe from the harmful effects of illicit drugs,” said Angie Salazar, special agent in charge, HSI Chicago.
“Wisconsin DOJ’s Division of Criminal Investigation worked alongside federal and local law enforcement partners on this sweeping investigation into large-scale drug trafficking,” said Attorney General Kaul. “Thank you to the investigators whose work has led to the arrests of many alleged members of this drug trafficking conspiracy. Cases like this one disrupt the supply of dangerous drugs to communities and can make a real difference in the fight against the drug epidemic.”
Each count carries a mandatory ten-year term of imprisonment and up to life imprisonment. The defendants further face fines of up to $10,000,000, and from five years to a lifetime term of supervised release.
An indictment is only a charge and not evidence of guilt. The defendants are presumed innocent and are entitled to a fair trial at which the government must prove their guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.
The indictments are the product of a multi-year investigation into international drug-trafficking activity, including maritime shipments of bulk quantities of cocaine that were ultimately intended to reach various locations within the continental United States (such as Milwaukee, Wisconsin) and elsewhere.
The investigation is led by law enforcement agents and officers from the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), the North Central High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area (HIDTA), the Wisconsin Department of Justice, Division of Criminal Investigations, Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF), the United States Postal Inspection Service, and the Milwaukee Police Department. Assistant United States Attorneys Robert J. Brady, Jr., and Gail Hoffman are prosecuting the case.
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Tulsa Man Pleads Guilty to Carjacking and RobberyRead the Press Release
A 19-year-old Tulsa man arrested for a series of robberies and carjackings that occurred in Tulsa and Broken Arrow pleaded guilty Wednesday in federal court, announced Acting U.S. Attorney Clint Johnson.
In his plea agreement, Tavian Caleb Steward admitted to carjacking, robbery in Indian Country, and two counts of carrying, using, and brandishing a firearm during and in relation to a crime of violence.
According to Steward, he and an accomplice, Roderick Brooks, acted in concert with one another in carjacking a victim and stealing his Toyota Rav4 in Tulsa on Dec. 30, 2020. Furthermore, Steward brandished a firearm during the crime. Brooks has also been charged for taking part in the carjacking. He is presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.
Steward also admitted that he entered a Subway restaurant in Tulsa and robbed a cashier at gunpoint on Jan. 7, 2021. According to court documents, Steward then stole the victim’s Chevrolet Monte Carlo and fled the restaurant. Steward was finally taken into custody after he was involved in a hit and run collision on Jan. 10, 2021. He was driving the Monte Carlo when he caused the accident.
Steward is a citizen of the Cherokee Nation, and all crimes occurred within the Muscogee Nation Reservation. Steward’s sentencing date is scheduled for October 27, 2021.
The FBI, Tulsa Police Department, and Broken Arrow Police Department are the investigative agencies. Assistant U.S. Attorney John E. Brasher is prosecuting the case.
Tulare County Men Indicted on Firearms and Drug ChargesRead the Press Release
FRESNO, Calif. — A federal grand jury returned a seven-count indictment today against Regino Garcia Jr., 20, and Anthony Martinez, 24, both of Tulare County, charging them with dealing firearms without a license, possession of an unregistered firearm, distribution of methamphetamine and possession of auto-sear devices, Acting U.S. Attorney Phillip A. Talbert announced.
According to court documents, Garcia and Martinez met with undercover officers and sold them a total of 14 firearms and 40 auto-sear devices for converting a firearm into a fully automatic weapon. One of the firearms sold was a short-barreled rifle. Additionally, they sold methamphetamine to the undercover officers on three occasions. Neither defendant had a license to deal firearms.
This case is the product of an investigation by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. Assistant U.S. Attorney Laurel J. Montoya is prosecuting the case.
If convicted, both defendants face a maximum statutory penalty of 10 years to life in prison and a $10 million fine. Any sentence, however, would be determined at the discretion of the court after consideration of any applicable statutory factors and the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, which take into account a number of variables. The charges are only allegations; the defendants are presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.
This case is being prosecuted as part of the joint federal, state, and local Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN) Program, the centerpiece of the Department of Justice’s violent crime reduction efforts. PSN is an evidence-based program proven to be effective at reducing violent crime. Through PSN, a broad spectrum of stakeholders work together to identify the most pressing violent crime problems in the community and develop comprehensive solutions to address them. As part of this strategy, PSN focuses enforcement efforts on the most violent offenders and partners with locally based prevention and reentry programs for lasting reductions in crime.
Tractor-Trailer Driver from Illinois Pleads Guilty to Transporting Minor from Virginia to South Dakota and Engaging in Criminal Sexual ActivityRead the Press Release
ABINGDON, Va. – A Cahokia, Illinois man pleaded guilty today to transporting a minor from Virginia to South Dakota with the intent to engage in criminal sexual activity.
According to court documents, David Kyle Skaggs, 33, was an over-the-road tractor-trailer operator. In 2015, Skaggs started communicating on Facebook with a 15-year-old boy in Lee County, Virginia. Over the course of several months, Skaggs and the boy, “AA,” developed a friendly relationship and Skaggs became acquainted with AA’s family, including AA’s younger sister, victim “KL,” who was 13 years old.
In August 2015, Skaggs took AA and KL on a long-distance trip in his tractor-trailer. Skaggs picked up AA and KL in Lee County and drove them to South Dakota. After stopping at a truck stop in South Dakota, Skaggs bought the two minors alcohol, and they all drank while sitting in the truck. After AA was asleep, Skaggs had sexual intercourse with KL in the sleeper portion of Skaggs’ truck. KL later gave birth to Skaggs’s child.
Skaggs is scheduled to be sentenced on September 30, 2021 and faces a minimum penalty of 10 years in prison. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
Acting U.S. Attorney Daniel P. Bubar of the Western District of Virginia and Stanley M. Meador, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI’s Richmond Division made the announcement.
The Federal Bureau of Investigation, Lee County Sheriff’s Department, and Virginia Department of Social Services investigated the case.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Whit D. Pierce is prosecuting the case.
Toledo Man Charged with Sinking Vessel and Disposing Garbage in the Maumee RiverRead the Press Release
Acting U.S. Attorney Bridget M. Brennan announced that a federal grand jury returned a four-count indictment charging Wayne Robert Banks, Jr., 48, of Toledo, Ohio, with the destruction of a vessel, deposit of refuse in navigable waters, obstruction of navigable waters and failure to mark or light a sunken vessel.
According to the indictment, on October 29, 2020, the Defendant willfully sunk and destroyed a 24’ Reinell boat within navigable channels of the Maumee River. The indictment further charges that the Defendant failed to immediately mark the sunken craft with a buoy, beacon or light. The Defendant is also accused of disposing of refuse materials, including bottles, electronic equipment, batteries, cardboard and other garbage in the Maumee River.
If convicted, a defendant’s sentence will be determined by the Court after review of factors unique to this case, including the Defendant’s prior criminal records, if any, the Defendant’s role in the offense and the characteristics of the violation. In all cases, the sentence will not exceed the statutory maximum, and in most cases, it will be less than the maximum.
An indictment is only a charge and is not evidence of guilt. A defendant is entitled to a fair trial in which it will be the government’s burden to prove guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.
This investigation was conducted by the Coast Guard Investigative Service under the direction of Resident Agent in Charge Edward L. Songer, Detroit, Michigan. This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Jody L. King.
Texas Resident Sentenced to 30 Months in PrisonRead the Press Release
Jackson, Miss. – An alien from Honduras was sentenced to 30 months in prison for the crime of transporting and harboring illegal aliens, announced Acting United States Attorney Darren J. LaMarca.
According to court documents, on March 19, 2019, Dennis Omar Escobar-Castro was driving a Chevy Suburban with Texas license plates eastbound on Interstate I-20 when a Rankin County Sheriff’s Deputy made a traffic stop for careless driving. Escobar-Castro could produce no driver’s license, and none of the eleven passengers had identification or driver’s licenses, other than South American IDs. Two of the alien passengers were unaccompanied minors.
Castro admitted to agents from Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) that he believed all his passengers were nationals of Mexico, Honduras, Guatemala and El Salvador, and that Escobar-Castro had been driving them from Houston, Texas, to Atlanta, Georgia, to take them to work. At least one alien passenger claimed to have paid $1,000 for Escobar-Castro to drive him from Texas to his destination.
An original indictment, returned by a federal grand jury in April 2019, charged Escobar-Castro with transporting and harboring aliens. He pled guilty on March 25, 2021.
Escobar-Castro appeared today for sentencing before United States District Judge Carlton W. Reeves in Jackson. Judge Reeves sentenced Escobar-Castro to 30 months in prison, to be followed by three years of supervised release, and a fine of $1200.
Acting U.S. Attorney LaMarca commended the work of the Special Agents with HSI’s Jackson Division who investigated the case, and the Rankin County Sheriff’s Office who assisted with the discovery and arrest of defendants. The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Theodore Cooperstein and Keesha Middleton.
Syracuse Man Sentenced to Seven Years in Federal Prison for Brokering Illegal Gun SalesRead the Press Release
SYRACUSE, NEW YORK – Daniel Morales, age 36, of Syracuse, was sentenced today to serve 84 months (7 years) in federal prison for causing the sale of firearms and ammunition to a convicted felon, announced Acting United States Attorney Antoinette T. Bacon, John B. DeVito, Special Agent in Charge of the New York Field Division of the United States Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF), and Chief Kenton Buckner, City of Syracuse Police Department.
In addition to his sentence of imprisonment, Daniel Morales was also ordered to serve a three (3) year term of supervised release following his release from incarceration.
In pleading guilty previously Daniel Morales admitted that he acted as a middleman in the sale of 13 firearms and ammunition recovered in a joint investigation conducted by the United States Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) and the Syracuse Police Department. The investigation in late 2018 and early 2019 included undercover purchases of stolen firearms, fully automatic weapons, illegally short-barreled rifles, and non-commercially fabricated “ghost guns” (pistols and rifles). Morales brokered a series of undercover firearms sales in Syracuse and Solvay from sellers Luis Matos, and later Jovaun Clark. During these sales, Morales connected the illegal firearms sellers with the undercover buyer for a fee paid in cash. The sales of the firearms included:
- one (1) Ruger, model 10-22RB Carbine rifle, caliber .22LR
- one (1) Marlin, model 1894 Carbine rifle, .357 caliber
- one (1) Marlin, model 1894 Carbine rifle, .357 caliber
- one (1) stolen Gristmill MFG, Valley Arms model XM177ES, .223/.556 caliber rifle with illegally short barrel
- one (1) grey and black P80, unserialized 9mm caliber “ghost gun” pistol
- one (1) black P80, un-serialized .40 caliber “ghost gun” pistol
- one (1) grey and black P80, unserialized .40 caliber “ghost” gun pistol with a threaded barrel
- one (1) fully automatic tan and black P80, un-serialized .40 caliber “ghost gun” pistol
- one stolen (1) Ruger, model Mini-Thirty, 7.62 caliber rifle
- one (1) grey and black rifle bearing no make, model or serial number, .223 caliber, with an illegally short barrel
- one (1) fully automatic grey and black P80 9mm caliber unserialized “ghost gun” pistol
- one (1) Smith and Wesson, model 5906 9mm pistol
- one (1) black and tan semiautomatic pistol with extendable grip, caliber 5.56 x 45 mm, bearing no serial number.
Luis Matos pled guilty to being a felon in possession of firearms and was sentenced on July 28, 2020, to serve 60-months in federal prison, followed by a 3-year term of supervised release.
Jovaun Clark is charged in a pending indictment with several firearms offenses. He is currently scheduled for trial on November 15, 2021. The charges in the indictment are merely accusations and he is innocent until or unless proven guilty
This case was investigated by The United States Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF), the Syracuse Police Department-Special Investigations Division (SPD-SID), and the New York State Department of Corrections and Community Supervision (DOCCS), and was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Richard Southwick.
St. Thomas Man Sentenced After Marijuana, an AR-15, and Ammunition Found in Car Following an AccidentRead the Press Release
St. Thomas, USVI – U.S. Attorney Gretchen C.F. Shappert announced that a St. Thomas man was sentenced today to four years’ probation, a $1,000 fine, and 150 hours of community service for possession with intent to distribute marijuana.
According to court documents, Kahlid Blyden, 27, was involved in a car accident on August 21, 2020 in front of Rosa’s Place Bar and Restaurant. A Virgin Islands Police Department (VIPD) responding officer arrived to see one car. The responding officer smelled a strong odor of marijuana coming from the badly damaged car. Blyden, the only person in the vicinity, was standing by the open driver’s side door of the wrecked vehicle.
The officer observed a backpack covering the gas and brake pedals. When asked why a backpack was covering the operating pedals Blyden responded, “I don’t know what you are talking about.” Officers proceeded to search the car. The backpack contained a large plastic bag of nearly one pound of marijuana. In the rear passenger floorboard behind the driver’s seat, officers located an AR-15 firearm and a box of ammunition. Blyden attempted to flee while being placed under arrest but was detained after a brief chase.
The Virgin Islands Police Department and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives investigated the case.
The United States Attorney’s Office of the Virgin Islands prosecuted the case.
St. Louis man pleads guilty and is sentenced for being a felon in possession of a firearmRead the Press Release
ST. LOUIS – United States District Court Judge Stephen N. Limbaugh, Jr. accepted a plea of guilty from Edward Wingo, Jr., on today’s date, for the crime of being a felon in possession of a firearm. Immediately after the guilty plea, Wingo, a 46-year-old St. Louis resident, was sentenced to a 37-month term of imprisonment.
On August 19, 2019, a St. Louis County police officer drove by a residence in the 4300 block of Melba. The officer spotted Wingo in a parked truck in the driveway of the residence. The officer was aware that Wingo was wanted for an unrelated criminal incident. The officer requested the assistance of the St. Louis County Police Department’s Special Response Unit’s fugitive apprehension team. Wingo was arrested for the unrelated criminal incident. As a result of the arrest, officers seized a .380 caliber, semi-automatic pistol located inside Wingo’s truck.
Prior to August 19, 2019, Wingo was convicted of one or more crimes punishable by a term of imprisonment exceeding one year under the laws of the State of Illinois.
The St. Louis County Police Department investigated the above firearm case. Assistant United States Attorney Jillian Anderson is handling this matter.
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St. Jude Medical Agrees to Pay $27 Million for Allegedly Selling Defective Heart DevicesRead the Press Release
Baltimore, Maryland – St. Jude Medical, Inc. (St. Jude) has agreed to pay $27 million to settle allegations under the False Claims Act that, between November 2014 and October 2016, it knowingly sold defective heart devices to health care facilities that, in turn, implanted the devices into patients insured by federal healthcare programs. St. Jude was acquired by Abbott Laboratories in January 2017.
The settlement agreement was announced today by Acting United States Attorney for the District of Maryland Jonathan F. Lenzner; Acting Assistant Attorney General Brian M. Boynton of the Justice Department’s Civil Division; Special Agent in Charge Maureen Dixon of the Department of Health and Human Services, Office of Inspector General (HHS OIG); Special Agent in Charge Mark S. McCormack of the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) Office of Criminal Investigations Metro Washington Field Division; Special Agent in Charge Christopher Dillard, of the Defense Criminal Investigative Services (DCIS), Mid-Atlantic Field Office; Norbert E. Vint, Deputy Inspector General Performing the Duties of the Inspector General, OPM OIG.
“Medical device manufacturers have an obligation to be truthful with the Food and Drug Administration, and the U.S. government will not pay for devices that are unsafe and risk injury or death,” said Acting United States Attorney Jonathan F. Lenzner. “The government contends that St. Jude knowingly caused the submission of false claims and failed to inform the FDA with critical information about prior injuries and a death which, had the FDA been made aware, would have led to a recall. The U.S. Attorney’s Office is committed to protecting Medicare and other federal health care programs from fraud, and in doing so strengthen patient safety,” said Lenzner.
“To ensure the health and safety of patients, manufacturers of implantable cardiac devices must be transparent when communicating with the government about safety issues and incidents,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General Brian M. Boynton of the Justice Department’s Civil Division. “We will hold accountable those companies whose conduct violates the law and puts patients’ health at risk.”
The government alleges that St. Jude failed to disclose serious adverse health events in connection with the premature depletion of the battery in certain models of its Fortify, Fortify Assura, Quadra, and Unify devices, which are implantable defibrillators used in patients at risk of cardiac arrest due to an irregular heartbeat. The devices are surgically implanted into patients’ chests, and when the devices detect an irregular heartbeat, they send an electrical pulse to the heart to “shock” it back to its normal rhythm. The government alleged that, by 2013, St. Jude knew that lithium clusters formed on the batteries of the devices, causing some of the batteries to short and, in turn, suffer a premature power drain.
The government alleges that, in late 2014, St. Jude submitted a request to the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to approve a change to prevent lithium clusters from draining the battery, and told the FDA, “no serious injury, permanent harm or deaths have been reported associated with this” issue. However, according to the government’s allegations, St. Jude was aware at that time of two reported serious injuries and one death associated with premature battery depletion (PBD) induced by lithium clusters.
St. Jude continued to distribute devices that had been manufactured without the new design. In August 2016, St. Jude contacted the FDA and informed it that the number of PBD events had increased to 729, including two deaths and 29 events associated with loss of pacing. On October 10, 2016, St. Jude issued a medical advisory regarding the PBD caused by lithium cluster shorts, which FDA classified as a Class I recall. A Class I recall is where there is a reasonable probability that “violative” products “will cause serious adverse health consequences, including death.” After the recall, St. Jude no longer sold the older devices, but thousands of them had been implanted into patients between November 20, 2014 and October 10, 2016.
“Ensuring patient safety is our number one priority,” said Maureen R. Dixon, Special Agent in Charge for the Office of the Inspector General, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. “HHS-OIG will continue to work with our law enforcement partners to investigate and hold accountable medical companies who put profits over people and ensure the integrity of the Medicare and Medicaid programs.”
“The FDA regulates medical devices to assure that patient health is protected. Reporting information untruthfully to the agency about the safety of medical devices jeopardizes patients’ health and safety,” said Special Agent in Charge Mark S. McCormack, FDA Office of Criminal Investigations Metro Washington Field Office. “We will continue to investigate and bring to justice those who place the public health at risk.”
“The Defense Criminal Investigative Service (DCIS) and its law enforcement partners will aggressively investigate corruption that puts the health of our military members and their families at risk,” said Special Agent in Charge Christopher W. Dillard, DCIS Mid-Atlantic Field Office. “We hope this settlement sends a clear warning to medical corporations that choose profit over patient care.”
“The OPM OIG prioritizes the health and safety of patients above all else,” said Norbert E. Vint, Deputy Inspector General Performing the Duties of the Inspector General, OPM OIG. “We are grateful for today’s settlement and applaud the hard work of our Department of Justice and law enforcement partners.”
The civil settlement resolves a lawsuit filed under the whistleblower provision of the False Claims Act, which permits private parties to file suit on behalf of the United States for false claims and obtain a portion of the government's recovery. The civil lawsuit was filed in the District of Maryland and is captioned United States ex rel. Burke v. St. Jude Medical, Inc., No. 16-cv-3611 (D. Md.).
The claims resolved by this settlement are allegations only, and there has been no determination of liability.
Acting U.S. Attorney Jonathan F. Lenzner commended the HHS Office of Inspector General, the FDA Office of Criminal Investigations, DCIS, and OPM OIG for their work in the investigation. The case was handled by Assistant United States Attorneys Thomas Corcoran and Jane Andersen and Trial Attorney Jonathan Gold of the Department of Justice Civil Fraud Section.
For more information about the Maryland U.S. Attorney’s Office, its programs and priorities, please visit https://www.justice.gov/usao-md.
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St. Jude Agrees to Pay $27 Million for Allegedly Selling Defective Heart DevicesRead the Press Release
St. Jude Medical Inc. (St. Jude) has agreed to pay $27 million to settle allegations under the False Claims Act that, between November 2014 and October 2016, it knowingly sold defective heart devices to health care facilities that, in turn, implanted the devices into patients insured by federal health care programs. St. Jude was acquired by Abbott Laboratories in January 2017.
“To ensure the health and safety of patients, manufacturers of implantable cardiac devices must be transparent when communicating with the government about safety issues and incidents,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General Brian M. Boynton of the Justice Department’s Civil Division. “We will hold accountable those companies whose conduct violates the law and puts patients’ health at risk.”
“Medical device manufacturers have an obligation to be truthful with the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), and the U.S. government will not pay for devices that are unsafe and risk injury or death,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Jonathan F. Lenzner for the District of Maryland. “The government contends that St. Jude knowingly caused the submission of false claims and failed to inform the FDA with critical information about prior injuries and a death which, had the FDA been made aware, would have led to a recall. The U.S. Attorney’s Office is committed to protecting Medicare and other federal health care programs from fraud, and in doing so strengthen patient safety.”
The government alleges that St. Jude failed to disclose serious adverse health events in connection with the premature depletion of the battery in certain models of its Fortify, Fortify Assura, Quadra and Unify devices, which are implantable defibrillators used in patients at risk of cardiac arrest due to an irregular heartbeat. The devices are surgically implanted into patients’ chests, and when the devices detect an irregular heartbeat, they send an electrical pulse to the heart to “shock” it back to its normal rhythm. The government alleged that, by 2013, St. Jude knew that lithium clusters formed on the batteries of the devices, causing some of the batteries to short and, in turn, suffer a premature power drain.
The government alleges that, in late 2014, St. Jude submitted a request to the FDA to approve a change to prevent lithium clusters from draining the battery and told the FDA, “no serious injury, permanent harm or deaths have been reported associated with this” issue. However, according to the government’s allegations, St. Jude was aware at that time of two reported serious injuries and one death associated with premature battery depletion (PBD) induced by lithium clusters.
St. Jude continued to distribute devices that had been manufactured without the new design. In August 2016, St. Jude contacted the FDA and informed it that the number of PBD events had increased to 729, including two deaths and 29 events associated with loss of pacing. On Oct. 10, 2016, St. Jude issued a medical advisory regarding the PBD caused by lithium cluster shorts, which FDA classified as a Class I recall. A Class I recall is where there is a reasonable probability that “violative” products “will cause serious adverse health consequences, including death.” After the recall, St. Jude no longer sold the older devices, but thousands of them had been implanted into patients between Nov. 20, 2014, and Oct. 10, 2016.
“Ensuring patient safety is our number one priority,” said Special Agent in Charge Maureen R. Dixon of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office of the Inspector General (HHS-OIG). “HHS-OIG will continue to work with our law enforcement partners to investigate and hold accountable medical companies who put profits over people and ensure the integrity of the Medicare and Medicaid programs.”
“The FDA regulates medical devices to assure that patient health is protected,” said Special Agent in Charge Mark S. McCormack of the FDA Office of Criminal Investigations, Metro Washington Field Office. “Reporting information untruthfully to the agency about the safety of medical devices jeopardizes patients’ health and safety. We will continue to investigate and bring to justice those who place the public health at risk.”
“The Defense Criminal Investigative Service (DCIS) and its law enforcement partners will aggressively investigate fraud that puts the health of our military members and their families at risk,” said Special Agent in Charge Christopher W. Dillard of the DCIS Mid-Atlantic Field Office. “We hope this settlement sends a clear warning to medical corporations that choose profit over patient care.”
“The OPM OIG prioritizes the health and safety of patients above all else,” said Norbert E. Vint, Deputy Inspector General Performing the Duties of the Inspector General of the Office of Personnel Management’s Office of Inspector General (OPM-OIG). “We are grateful for today’s settlement and applaud the hard work of our Department of Justice and law enforcement partners.”
The civil settlement includes the resolution of claims brought under the qui tam or whistleblower provisions of the False Claims Act by Debbie Burke, a patient who received one of the devices that was subject to recall. The qui tam case is captioned United States ex rel. Debbie Burke v. St. Jude Medical, Inc., No. 16-cv-3611 (D. Md.).
The resolution obtained in this matter was the result of a coordinated effort between the Civil Division’s Commercial Litigation Branch, Fraud Section; the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Maryland; the Department of Health and Human Services’ Office of Inspector General and Office of General Counsel; DCIS; OPM-OIG; and the FDA’s Office of Criminal Investigations and Office of Chief Counsel.
This matter was handled by Trial Attorney Jonathan Gold of the Civil Division and Assistant U.S. Attorneys Thomas Corcoran and Jane Andersen of the District of Maryland.
The claims resolved by the settlement are allegations only, and there has been no determination of liability.
St. Croix Man Pleads Guilty to Transporting a Minor with the Intent to Engage in Prostitution and Sexual ActivityRead the Press Release
St. Croix, USVI – U.S. Attorney Gretchen C.F. Shappert announced today that a St. Croix man, Zayvon Acoy, age 31, appeared before Magistrate Judge George W. Cannon, Jr., in District Court, and pleaded guilty on July 7, 2021 to one count of transporting a minor with the intent to engage in prostitution and sexual activity.
According to court documents, between May and July of 2017, the defendant, Zayvon Acoy, conspired with his co-defendant to transport Acoy’s minor-aged girlfriend (age 17) by vehicle from an area around Peter’s Rest in St. Croix to the co-defendant’s residence in an area of Beeston Hill in St. Croix, for the purpose of the co-defendant engaging the minor in unlawful sexual activity, specifically commercial sex. The minor entered the co-defendant’s residence and the co-defendant had sexual intercourse with the minor. After engaging the minor in unlawful sexual activity, the co-defendant gave Acoy cash in exchange for the co-defendant’s engagement with the minor.
Acoy is scheduled to be sentenced on November 5, 2021 and faces a mandatory minimum of 10 years in prison. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
The Virgin Islands Police Department and Homeland Security Investigations investigated the case.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Everard E. Potter is prosecuting the case.
This case is part of the Department of Justice’s Project Safe Childhood Initiative. Project Safe Childhood is a nationwide initiative to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice. 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 on the Department of Justice’s Project Safe Childhood, please see: https://www.justice.gov/psc.
Southwest Washington registered sex offender sentenced to 20+ years in prison for producing images of child rape and abuseRead the Press Release
Tacoma - A registered sex offender from Skamania County was sentenced today in U.S. District Court in Tacoma to 251 months in prison for production of child pornography, announced Acting U.S. Attorney Tessa M. Gorman. Steven Lee McBride, 51, pleaded guilty in August 2020. At the sentencing hearing U.S. District Judge Benjamin H. Settle said “It is not hyperbole to say what happened to this victim is a life sentence. These traumas follow the victim their whole life long.”
“Congress has appropriately mandated some of the lengthiest sentences for those who abuse our vulnerable children,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Gorman. “In this case the defendant, with prior child sex crime convictions, used stealth, deception and ultimately threats to harm and kill loved ones, to force a young child to do his sick bidding. This lengthy sentence is fully appropriate.”
According to records filed in the case, in 2007, McBride was convicted in Idaho of molesting two children under the age of 16 and was required to register as a sex offender following a state prison term of up to 15-years. Upon release from prison, McBride moved to a residence in Skamania County. There he moved next door to a distant relative and befriended that neighbor’s child. Between September 2017 and May 2019, McBride made sexually explicit images of the child by hiding a camera in the bathroom, molesting the child while the child slept and ultimately by posing as a school friend of the child online to demand the child send sexually explicit images. McBride threatened to kill the child’s family if the child did not continue to provide the photos.
Law enforcement learned of the production of child pornography when investigators in Queensland, Australia became aware of McBride providing sexually explicit images online in their jurisdiction. An undercover officer contacted McBride and got additional information about the identity of the victim from McBride. The Vancouver Police Department and Homeland Security Investigations moved quickly to alert the victim’s parent and arrest McBride on June 7, 2019.
Assistant United States Attorney Angelica Williams noted in her statements to the court that McBride was a serial child predator. “His conduct was intentional, malicious, and calculated… He bragged about the abuse.”
Judge Settle said that protecting the community was the top priority in this case. He ordered McBride to be on lifetime supervised release following his prison term.
McBride was sentenced to 75 months in prison in Skamania County Superior Court for the hands-on molestation. Under the terms of the plea agreement his state and federal sentences will run concurrently.
The case was investigated by Homeland Security Investigations with assistance from the Vancouver Police Department and the Queensland Australia Police.
The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Angelica Williams.
Smuggling 119 aliens in trailer lands Houston man in prisonRead the Press Release
LAREDO, Texas – A 32-year-old Houstonian has been ordered to federal prison for conspiracy to transport illegal aliens, announced Acting U.S. Attorney Jennifer B. Lowery.
Brodrick Keith Rhodes pleaded guilty April 7.
Today, U.S. District Judge Drew B. Tipton ordered him to serve a 50-month sentence to be immediately followed by three years of supervised release. In handing down the sentence, Judge Tipton noted that Rhodes had transported an exceptionally high number of aliens in his trailer.
On Jan. 12, Rhodes arrived at the Freer Border Patrol checkpoint driving a semi-truck and refrigerated trailer. He claimed he was hauling lettuce, but authorities noticed discrepancies with his bill of lading. They also noted he appeared nervous and that the trailer was set to 30 degrees but with an internal temperature of 68.
At secondary inspection, law enforcement ultimately found 119 aliens in the trailer’s cargo area.
Rhodes claimed he worked for a business in La Porte, but the bill of lading indicated he was transporting lettuce from a Laredo produce company to a location in Sugar Land. The business indicated Rhodes had never been employed with them nor do they even transport outside the Houston area. The other two companies confirmed they had no record of the shipment.
The aliens told authorities they had been taken to a truck and told to get in the trailer. It soon departed and did not stop until it reached the checkpoint.
Rhodes was permitted to remain on bond and voluntarily surrender to a U.S. Bureau of Prisons facility to be determined in the near future.
Homeland Security Investigations conducted the investigation with the assistance of Border Patrol. Assistant U.S. Attorney Paul A. Harrison prosecuted the case.
Sixteen charged with gun crimes in third round of Cincinnati gun violence reduction initiativeRead the Press Release
CINCINNATI – Sixteen people living in Cincinnati have been arrested and charged with federal gun crimes in the third wave of federal cases filed as part of Cincinnati’s initiative to reduce gun violence.
Fifteen are convicted felons. They are all charged with illegal possession of a firearm by a convicted felon, a crime punishable by up to ten years in federal prison.
The defendants include one man, Carl Godfrey, who is now also facing state charges as part of a murder-for-hire plot. Another defendant, Kendall Black, led police on a six-mile chase last October that ended in a crash. Other defendants have been connected to incidents of shots fired and dealing illegal drugs including fentanyl, heroin and cocaine. The Gun Crimes Task Force, which includes the Cincinnati Police and ATF, recovered stolen weapons and stolen CPD body armor during this third wave.
One defendant, Darius Hillman-Carter is charged with possession with intent to distribute cocaine, a crime punishable by up to 20 years in prison, and possession of a firearm in furtherance of a crime, punishable by a minimum of five years in federal prison.
Acting U.S. Attorney Vipal J. Patel, ATF Special Agent in Charge Roland Herndon, Cincinnati Police Chief Eliot K. Isaac and Hamilton County Sheriff Charmaine McGuffey announced the cases today. In late September, the officials announced gun-related charges filed against 16 other individuals in Cincinnati. Charges against twenty more were announced in November.
The aim of the initiative is to identify repeat and dangerous offenders for federal prosecution.
“We are committed to getting guns out of the hands of people who have already been convicted of violent crimes and are prohibited under federal law from owning, possessing or controlling firearms,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Vipal J. Patel. “Enforcement is not the only answer to reducing violent crime facing our communities, but without enforcement, there is no answer.”
“ATF’s core mission is to investigate criminal cases against individuals who illegally possess and use firearms in furtherance of their criminal activities,” stated ATF Special Agent in Charge Roland H. Herndon, Jr. “We will continue to work with our partners in the greater Cincinnati area to ensure that persons who foster violence in our communities are dealt with accordingly.”
Those charged include:
Name
Age
BLACK, Kendall
30
BRYANT, Daniel
36
COACH, Nygel
31
COLVIN, Mashi
26
EVANS, Sa-Thon
40
FERGUSON, Marvin
39
GODFREY, Carl
21
HILLMAN-CARTER, Darious
22
HUBBARD, Brandon
31
JACKSON, Michael
37
LIGON, Leonard
32
MALONE, Dallis
37
MOYE, Matthew
48
RILEY, Carlito
23
RILEY, Kiontay
24
STUCKEY, Timothy
31
Patel also acknowledged the participation of the Ohio Adult Parole Authority, The Ohio State Highway Patrol and Hamilton County Prosecutor Joseph T. Deters for sharing their expertise and information in building federal cases against the defendants.
Indictments and criminal complaints merely contain allegations, and defendants are presumed innocent unless proven guilty in a court of law.
Assistant U.S. Attorneys Ashley Brucato, Julie Garcia, Timothy Oakley, Anthony Springer, Ebunoluwa Taiwo and Special Assistant U.S. Attorneys Jacqueline Stachowiak with the Hamilton County Prosecutor’s Office and Zach Kessler with the Cincinnati Law Department are representing the United States in the cases.
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Six Defendants Facing Federal Charges as Part of Intensified Focus on Gun CrimesRead the Press Release
ALBANY, NEW YORK – Acting United States Attorney Antoinette T. Bacon announced today that the following defendants have been indicted or arrested within the last month for illegally possessing firearms and ammunition in the Capital Region:
- Thomas Hendricks, age 39, of Schenectady, New York, was arrested on a federal complaint charging him with unlawfully possessing a firearm as a felon. The case is being investigated by the Schenectady Police Department and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms & Explosives (ATF), and prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Emmet O’Hanlon.
- Duquan Mcleod, age 31, of Rockingham, North Carolina, was indicted for unlawfully possessing a firearm as a felon. The case is being investigated by the Schenectady Police Department and ATF, and prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Emmet O’Hanlon.
- Justin Micheli, age 33, of Schodack, New York, was indicted for possessing a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime, possessing a firearm as a felon, and possessing and intending to distribute 500 grams or more of cocaine. The case is being investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), and prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Ashlyn Miranda and Alexander Wentworth-Ping.
- Leonard Samuels, age 38 of Schenectady, was indicted for unlawfully possessing a firearm as a felon. The case is being investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Emmet O’Hanlon.
- Frankie Rios, age 40, of Troy, New York, was indicted for unlawfully possessing a firearm as a felon, and possessing and intending to distribute cocaine and 28 grams or more of cocaine base. The case is being investigated by the ATF and Troy Police Department, and prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Rachel Williams.
- Mikal Smith, age 27, of Albany, was indicted for unlawfully possessing 20 rounds of ammunition as a felon, and possessing and intending to distribute cocaine. The case is being investigated by the DEA and Albany Police Department, and prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Rachel Williams.
These are separate cases brought as part of a larger effort to direct greater resources to prosecuting gun crimes in cities across the Northern District of New York. The charges are merely accusations. The defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
Citizen tips can help get illegal and unlawfully possessed guns off the streets, and can be provided as follows:
- Capital Region Crime Stoppers – tips can be made anonymously by visiting http://www.capitalregioncrimestoppers.com.
- Syracuse Police Department – tips can be made anonymously via the tip411 web site, or by calling (315) 442-5111.
Serial Cell Phone Store Robber Sentenced to 45 Years in Federal PrisonRead the Press Release
A Long Beach, California man was sentenced today to 45 years in federal prison after being convicted at trial of committing a spree of violent cell phone store robberies, announced Acting U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of Texas Prerak Shah.
A federal jury found Edward Eugene Robinson, 50, guilty of one count of conspiracy to interfere with commerce by robbery, two counts of interfering with commerce by robbery, and two counts of brandishing a firearm during a crime of violence in March.
According to evidence presented at trial — which included eyewitness testimony, store surveillance videos, and evidence obtained from search warrants — Mr. Robinson was the leader of a robbery crew that committed at least 15 armed robberies of cell phone stores across North Texas and Southern California in the spring and summer of 2019.
During the robberies, Mr. Robinson and his accomplices threatened store employees with guns and tazers and demanded that they open the safes where the phones and other equipment were stored. The robbers then restrained the employees using zip-ties or cell phone chargers.
Over the course of the conspiracy, Mr. Robinson stole more than $600,000 of inventory, including cell phones, tablets, and watches.
The other defendants in the case — Aaron Hardrick and Ncholeion Hollie, both of Fort Worth, Texas — previously pleaded guilty. Mr. Hardrick pleaded guilty in 2019 to multiple federal robbery and firearms charges in North Texas and Southern California. He was sentenced to 45 years in federal prison. Ms. Hollie pleaded guilty in 2020 to one federal robbery charge in North Texas and was sentenced to 9 years in federal prison.
The Federal Bureau of Investigation’s Dallas Field Office, Fort Worth Police Department, Hurst Police Department, and Bedford Police Department conducted the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney Matthew Weybrecht and Nancy Larson of the Northern District of Texas prosecuted the case, with substantial assistance from Assistant U.S. Attorneys Jerry C. Yang and Peter H. Dahlquist of the Central District of California.
Scranton Man Convicted for Production of Child Pornography and Attempted Witness IntimidationRead the Press Release
SCRANTON- The United States Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Pennsylvania announced that John Lewis Kramer, age 36, of Scranton, Pennsylvania, was convicted on July 7, 2021, by United States District Court Judge Malachy E. Mannion for production of child pornography and attempted witness tampering.
According to Acting United States Attorney Bruce D. Brandler, during the two-day bench trial, the Government presented evidence that Kramer produced images and videos of child pornography between March 1, 2019 and March 27, 2020. Also, on January 22, 2021, Kramer sent a letter to the victim’s mother threatening to have her arrested and put in jail.
The case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and the Scranton Police Department. Assistant U.S. Attorney Jenny P. Roberts and Special Assistant United States Attorney Brian Gallagher are prosecuting the case.
A sentence following a finding of guilt is imposed by the Judge after consideration of the applicable federal sentencing statutes and the Federal Sentencing Guidelines.
Kramer faces a mandatory minimum 15-year sentence. And the maximum penalty under federal law for this offense is 30 years of imprisonment, a term of supervised release following imprisonment, and a fine. Under the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, the Judge is also required to consider and weigh a number of factors, including the nature, circumstances and seriousness of the offense; the history and characteristics of the defendant; and the need to punish the defendant, protect the public and provide for the defendant's educational, vocational and medical needs. For these reasons, the statutory maximum penalty for the offense is not an accurate indicator of the potential sentence for a specific defendant.
This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by the United States Attorneys' Offices and the Criminal Division's Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who sexually exploit children, and to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.usdoj.gov/psc For more information about internet safety education, please visit www.usdoj.gov/psc and click on the tab "resources."
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Rocky Mount Man Sentenced to 87 Months for Role in Drive-By ShootingRead the Press Release
WILMINGTON, N.C. – A Rocky Mount man was sentenced to 87 months in prison for possessing multiple firearms despite being a previously convicted felon. Keyonte Da’quan Smith, also known as “Smiley,” entered his guilty plea on March 3, 2021.
According to court documents and other information presented in court, Smith, 27, of Rocky Mount, and another unidentified subject, were observed operating a sedan and shooting multiple rounds of ammunition into another vehicle while in traffic. The victim’s vehicle side door, front panel, and windshield sustained damage from the gunfire, but the victim survived. Officers located at least eight .45 caliber shell casings from the crime scene. Police tracked Smith to a nearby apartment, where he was found with 2 ski masks, two loaded .45 caliber handguns, including one that had been reported stolen, a loaded .40 caliber handgun, a large-capacity magazine, and multiple rounds of ammunition.
G. Norman Acker, III, Acting U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of North Carolina made the announcement after sentencing by Chief U.S. District Judge Richard E. Myers II. The Rocky Mount Police Department and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives investigated the case and Assistant U.S. Attorney Aakash Singh prosecuted 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. 5:20-CR-458-M.
Portland Man Sentenced to 19 Years in Federal Prison After Second Armed Career Criminal Act ConvictionRead the Press Release
PORTLAND, Ore.—After serving more than 15 years in federal prison for his first conviction under the Armed Career Criminal Act, a Portland man is headed back to federal prison for new drug and firearm offenses committed while on post-prison supervision.
Kelly David Ankeny, Sr., 61, was sentenced to 230 months in federal prison.
According to court documents, in October 2003, after being released from state prison, Ankeny took up residence in a house occupied by his 18-year-old son and his son’s roommates. At the time, Ankeny had prior convictions for second degree robbery, felon in possession of a firearm, and drug trafficking. Before long, Ankeny took over his son’s house, started selling methamphetamine, and obtained several firearms.
Ankeny’s ex-wife and the mother of his 18-year-old son tried to intervene and get Ankeny to leave the home. In response, Ankeny twice threatened her with a firearm. The ex-wife reported Ankeny’s conduct to the Portland Police Bureau who, after obtaining a federal search warrant, entered the home on November 20, 2003. Officers found Ankeny sitting in a recliner near the front door. Ankeny had one loaded handgun tucked beside the cushion of his recliner and a second sitting on an adjacent chair. Three other firearms were found in the house, including a sawed off shotgun and rifle.
On January 13, 2004, Ankeny was indicted by a federal grand jury in Portland for being a felon in possession of a firearm and illegally possessing an unregistered sawed off shotgun. On February 15, 2005, he pleaded guilty to both charges. After serving more than 15 years in federal prison, Ankeny began his term of supervised release on August 14, 2018. Less than one year after being released from prison, Ankeny admitted to using methamphetamine.
On June 25, 2019, several U.S. Probation officers conducted a home visit to Ankeny’s Gresham, Oregon residence. A safe in Ankeny’s room was found to contain more than four pounds of methamphetamine, a pound of heroin, and drug packaging material. During the search, Ankeny became enraged, hit a wall and yelled at the officers. Believing there was excessive danger in arresting Ankeny on the spot, the officers ordered Ankeny to report to the U.S. Probation office later that afternoon. Ankeny failed to appear and cut off his GPS monitoring bracelet.
U.S. Probation sought the assistance of the U.S. Marshals Service and Multnomah County Sheriff’s Office Special Investigations Unit who, over the next two months, attempted to locate and arrest Ankeny. On August 20, 2019, officers identified Ankeny driving a vehicle in east Multnomah County. They waited for Ankeny to enter a residence and developed a tactical plan to arrest him when he returned to this vehicle.
Later that day, Ankeny left the residence and got into his car. A deputy U.S. Marshal used his vehicle to block Ankeny’s car and Ankeny was ordered out at gunpoint. After he failed to comply with the orders, officers broke Ankeny’s driver side window, cut his seat belt, and removed him from the vehicle. A loaded 9mm firearm was found in a backpack, which was on Ankeny’s front passenger seat. Two additional handguns, ammunition, $16,000 in cash, and quantities of methamphetamine and cocaine were located elsewhere in the vehicle.
On September 26, 2019, a federal grand jury in Portland returned an eight-count indictment charging Ankeny with possessing with intent to distribute methamphetamine, heroin, and cocaine; possessing a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime; and illegally possessing firearms as a convicted felon.
On December 17, 2020, Ankeny pleaded guilty to possessing with intent to distribute methamphetamine and illegally possessing a firearm as a convicted felon.
Acting U.S. Attorney Scott Erik Asphaug of the District of Oregon made the announcement.
This case was investigated by the U.S. Marshals Service, Multnomah County Sheriff’s Office, and Oregon State Police Forensic Services Division. It was prosecuted by Thomas H. Edmonds, Assistant U.S. Attorney for the District of Oregon.
Pittsburgh Drug Felon Gets 10 Years for Dealing CocaineRead the Press Release
PITTSBURGH – On Thursday, July 8, 2021, Raymond Erfort was sentenced to 120 months in prison for possessing 497 grams of cocaine with intent to distribute, Acting United States Attorney Stephen R. Kaufman announced today.
Erfort, age 45 of Pittsburgh, was sentenced by United States District Judge Reggie B. Walton. Judge Walton ordered that Erfort serve six years of supervised release following his prison sentence. Erfort had prior drug trafficking convictions from three state prosecutions between 2001 and 2009 and served prior state prison sentences of 2-6 years, 3-10 years, and 5-10 years.
Assistant United States Attorney Craig W. Haller prosecuted this case on behalf of the United States.
The Pennsylvania Attorney General’s Office, the Brentwood Police Department, and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives conducted the investigation leading to the conviction and sentence in this case.
Owner of Trucking Companies Arrested on Charges Alleging Scheme to Fraudulently Obtain More Than $600,000 in COVID-Relief LoansRead the Press Release
SANTA ANA, California – The owner of trucking companies in the Inland Empire and elsewhere in California, who was out on bond awaiting trial in a separate federal criminal case, was arrested today on a criminal complaint alleging he fraudulently obtained more than $667,000 in Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) COVID-19 pandemic relief funds.
Carl Bradley Johansson, 62, of Newport Beach, was arrested this morning and is charged with one count of bank fraud and one count of conspiracy to commit bank fraud. He is expected to make his initial court appearance this afternoon in United States District Court in Santa Ana.
Johansson was on pretrial release in a separate case that remains scheduled to go on trial on September 14. In that matter, Johansson is alleged to have schemed to defeat federal transportation laws by ordering the illegal repair of an oil tanker that resulted in a fatal explosion in 2014, and to have unlawfully avoided the payment of at least $298,562 in federal income taxes from 2012 to 2017.
According to an affidavit filed with the complaint unsealed today, in April 2020, under Johansson’s direction, the Ontario-based trucking company Western Distribution LLC applied for a PPP loan in the amount of $436,390. Johansson’s son was listed as the company’s owner on the loan application and the loan application was approved.
Under Johansson’s direction, Western Distribution LLC immediately spent its PPP funds in May and June 2020, in large part on expenses unrelated to its payroll. Rather than use the funds to keep the company’s employees on staff, Johansson laid off most of the company’s employees, but rehired many of them in late 2020.
Also in April 2020, a different Johansson-controlled trucking company – a Merced County-based business identified in the affidavit as “Company A” – applied to another federally insured bank for its own PPP loan in the amount of $286,505, according to the affidavit. Johansson’s 85-year-old mother was listed as Company A’s owner on its PPP loan application, which was approved in the amount of $286,500.
To create the impression that Western Distribution LLC had spent more of its PPP loan on its payroll than it actually did, in September 2020 Johansson moved 21 of Company A’s employees onto Western Distribution LLC’s payroll, even though those employees never worked for Western Distribution, LLC, the affidavit alleges. This allegedly occurred just before the company’s 24-week window for spending its PPP funds closed.
As a result of this ruse, Western Distribution LLC could falsely claim on its PPP loan forgiveness application in January 2021 that the company had met the requisite threshold of spending at least 60 percent of its PPP loan on payroll, according to the affidavit.
In March 2021, Johansson allegedly caused Western Distribution LLC to repeat the same fraudulent representations concerning its employee lists and payroll numbers when the company submitted a second PPP loan application, this time for $231,527. The second loan application was approved.
The total loss alleged in this case is approximately $667,917.
A complaint contains allegations that a defendant has committed a crime. Every defendant is presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.
If convicted of both charges, Johansson would face a statutory maximum sentence of 70 years in federal prison.
IRS Criminal Investigation and the Department of Transportation – Office of Inspector General investigated this matter.
Assistant United States Attorneys Joseph O. Johns and Matthew W. O’Brien of the Environmental and Community Safety Crimes Section are prosecuting this case.
On May 17, 2021, the Attorney General established the COVID-19 Fraud Enforcement Task Force to marshal the resources of the Department of Justice in partnership with agencies across government to enhance efforts to combat and prevent pandemic-related fraud. The Task Force bolsters efforts to investigate and prosecute the most culpable domestic and international criminal actors and assists agencies tasked with administering relief programs to prevent fraud by, among other methods, augmenting and incorporating existing coordination mechanisms, identifying resources and techniques to uncover fraudulent actors and their schemes, and sharing and harnessing information and insights gained from prior enforcement efforts. For more information on the Department’s response to the pandemic, please visit https://www.justice.gov/coronavirus.
Anyone with information about allegations of attempted fraud involving COVID-19 can report it by calling the Department of Justice’s National Center for Disaster Fraud (NCDF) Hotline at 866-720-5721 or via the NCDF Web Complaint Form at: https://www.justice.gov/disaster-fraud/ncdf-disaster-complaint-form.
Omaha Man Sentenced for Cocaine and Firearm ChargesRead the Press Release
Acting United States Attorney Jan Sharp announced that Lashannon Bland, 41, of Omaha, Nebraska, was sentenced today in federal court in Omaha for possessing with the intent to distribute cocaine and the possession of a firearm in furtherance of drug trafficking. United States District Judge Brian C. Buescher sentenced Bland to 78 months in the Bureau of Prisons. Bland will begin a five-year term of supervised release following his release from prison. There is no parole in the federal system.
On January 17, 2020, officers received a Crime Stoppers tip that Bland had guns and drugs at his Omaha residence which also had children present. A baggie which tested positive for cocaine residue was identified during a trash pull. As a result, a state search warrant was issued in February 2020 for the residence. During the search, officers located a padlocked bedroom. A search of the bedroom revealed 2 handguns (a Phoenix Arms .25 caliber handgun and a Hi Point GHP .45 caliber handgun), 2 clear bags containing 7.94 grams and 4.22 grams of cocaine, 18 grams of marijuana, 2 digital scales, as well as several venue items for Bland. Bland gave a statement admitting to possessing the firearms and narcotics as well as selling narcotics.
This case is part of Project Guardian, the Department of Justice’s signature initiative to reduce gun violence and enforce federal firearms laws. Initiated by the Attorney General in the fall of 2019, Project Guardian draws upon the Department’s past successful programs to reduce gun violence; enhances coordination of federal, state, local, and tribal authorities in investigating and prosecuting gun crimes; improves information-sharing by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives when a prohibited individual attempts to purchase a firearm and is denied by the National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS), to include taking appropriate actions when a prospective purchaser is denied by the NICS for mental health reasons; and ensures that federal resources are directed at the criminals posing the greatest threat to our communities. The United States Attorney’s Office has prosecuted this case with support from the following Project Guardian partner, the Omaha Police Department.
Odessa Businessman Sentenced to Federal Prison for Defrauding Family and Friends out of $18 MillionRead the Press Release
In Midland today, a federal judge sentenced 45-year-old James Clinton Fletcher, owner of now-defunct San Jan, LLC, to 15 years of imprisonment for defrauding investors out of more than $18 million through various fraudulent schemes.
In addition to the prison term, U.S. District Judge David Counts ordered that Fletcher pay $18,279,111 in restitution to his victims and $1,177,231 in restitution to the IRS. Judge Counts also ordered that Fletcher be placed on supervised release for a period of three years after his prison term.
On December 22, 2020, Fletcher pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud and one count of willful failure to pay employee tax withholdings to the IRS following a multi-year extensive investigation by IRS Criminal Investigation and the FBI into Fletcher’s fraudulent schemes.
Fletcher admitted that from March 2015 to January 2018, he schemed to defraud more than two dozen family members, friends and business associates out of more than $18 million. Fletcher used those fraudulently obtained funds to purchase a home in Odessa valued at over $1 million; a vacation home in an upscale central Texas resort location; and expensive vehicles to include a Range Rover, Mercedes-Benz and a GMC Yukon Denali. Fletcher also gambled extensively and took frequent trips to Las Vegas using a private plane. He went on extravagant hunting trips using fraudulently obtained funds.
“Fletcher leveraged his relationships with family, friends and acquaintances to steal their hard-earned money and feed his endless greed,” said U.S. Attorney Ashley C. Hoff. “The magnitude of the millions in losses was only rivaled by his increased willingness to betray those who placed their trust in him. Working with our law enforcement partners, the U.S. Attorney’s Office will continue to seek justice for victims of financial fraud.”
Fletcher also admitted that for the third quarter in 2016, he failed to report and turn over to the IRS approximately $378,437.54 in employee withholdings.
“Today’s sentencing of James Clinton Fletcher, CEO of San Jan LLC, for both his conspiracy to commit wire fraud and his willful failure to pay over San Jan LLC’s employee withheld payroll taxes is a strong reminder that no matter your position or financial status, white collar financial and tax crimes are always serious offenses,” said Special Agent in Charge Richard Goss of IRS Criminal Investigation’s Houston Field Office. “And not only does employment tax evasion result in the loss of tax revenue to the U.S. government, it cheats the employees who thought their withheld payroll taxes had been paid over to the IRS for their future Social Security and Medicare benefits. IRS Criminal Investigation will vigorously pursue anyone at any level who commits financial crimes, including employment tax fraud, for their own personal gain.”
“This outcome is a result of the FBI and its partners’ commitment to investigating financial crimes and other criminal acts thoroughly and completely,” said Acting Special Agent in Charge Britton C. Boyd of the FBI’s El Paso Division.
Assistant U.S. Attorneys Shane A. Chriesman, Monica Daniels and Fidel Esparza III prosecuted this case.
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More Federal Charges for Local President of “We Build the Wall”Read the Press Release
PENSACOLA, FLORIDA – Brian G. Kolfage, of Miramar Beach, Florida, has been indicted by a federal grand jury for an additional crime related to the filing of his 2019 income taxes, announced Jason R. Coody, Acting United States Attorney for the Northern District of Florida today. Kolfage, who faces a separate federal indictment out of the Southern District of New York for fraud and money laundering related offenses, now faces two distinct counts of filing a false tax return and one count of wire fraud related to the electronic filing of his tax return in Northern Florida.
The original indictment alleged that between January 2019 and July 2020, Kolfage engaged in a scheme to defraud the government in relation to his 2019 federal income tax returns. The charges alleged that Kolfage received hundreds of thousands of dollars from multiple organizations during 2019, including We Build the Wall, Inc., which were deposited into his personal bank account. Kolfage is alleged to have failed to report this income to the Internal Revenue Service.
The recently filed superseding indictment in the Northern District of Florida alleges a new count of Kolfage filing a false amended tax return in December 2020, a few months after the Southern District of New York indictment became public.
Kolfage will be arraigned on this superseding indictment on July 21, 2021, at 11:00 am, at the United States Courthouse in Pensacola, Florida. If convicted, he faces up to 20 years’ imprisonment.
The charges contained in the superseding indictment are only allegations. A defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
The case was investigated by the Internal Revenue Service – Criminal Investigation, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, and the Office of Agricultural Law Enforcement of the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys David L. Goldberg and Lazaro P. Fields.
The United States Attorney's Office for the Northern District of Florida is one of 94 offices that serve as the nation’s principal litigators under the direction of the Attorney General. To access public court documents online, please visit the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Florida website. For more information about the United States Attorney’s Office, Northern District of Florida, visit http://www.justice.gov/usao/fln/index.html.
Michigan Man Sentenced to Prison for Attacking Black TeenagerRead the Press Release
The Justice Department announced that a Michigan man was sentenced today for willfully causing bodily injury to a Black teenager because of the teenager’s race.
Lee Mouat, 43, pleaded guilty on March 4. He was sentenced to 60 months in prison and three years of supervised release for his hate crime.
According to documents filed in connection with this case, Mouat admitted that he confronted a group of Black teenagers, including the victim, at a state park in Monroe, Michigan. Mouat repeatedly used racial slurs and said that Black people had no right to use the public beach where the incident occurred. Mouat then struck one of the teens in the face with a bike lock, knocking out several of the victim’s teeth, lacerating his face and mouth, and fracturing his jaw. Mouat also attempted to strike another Black teenager with the bike lock.
“The defendant brutally attacked teenagers at a public beach because these young people are Black,” said Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke for the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division. “Hate-fueled violent crimes like this have no place in our communities. Protecting Americans from hate crimes is a top priority of the Justice Department and we will use every tool available to bring perpetrators to justice.”
“Our office is committed to protecting the rights of all citizens, and prosecuting hate crimes is a top priority,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Saima Mohsin for the Eastern District of Michigan. “The cowardly and unprovoked attack on this young victim is terribly disturbing. Every individual citizen has the right to not live in fear of violence or attack based on the color of their skin.”
“Combating hate crimes and protecting individual's civil rights is one of the top priorities of the FBI,” said Special Agent in Charge Timothy Waters of the FBI Detroit Field Office. “Mouat was held accountable for his violent and hateful actions due to the collaborative efforts of the FBI, the Monroe County Sheriff's Office and the Department of Justice. The outcome of this case sends a clear message to our community that law enforcement at every level will investigate crimes motivated by hate and bring the perpetrators to justice.”
This case was investigated by the FBI and prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Frances Carlson of the Eastern District of Michigan and Trial Attorney Tara Allison of the Civil Rights Division.
For more information and resources on the department’s efforts to combat hate crimes, visit www.justice.gov/hatecrimes.
Michael Avenatti Sentenced to over Two Years in Prison for Attempting to Extort Nike and for Defrauding His ClientRead the Press Release
Audrey Strauss, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, announced that MICHAEL AVENATTI was sentenced today in Manhattan federal court by United States District Judge Paul G. Gardephe to 30 months in prison for attempting to extort NIKE, Inc., and for defrauding a client. AVENATTI was previously found guilty on February 14, 2020, following a three-week jury trial.
Manhattan U.S. Attorney Audrey Strauss said: “Michael Avenatti used illegal and extortionate threats and betrayed one of his clients for the purpose of seeking to obtain millions of dollars for himself. Not only did Avenatti attempt to weaponize his law license and celebrity to seek to extort payments for himself, he also defrauded his own client. Avenatti will now serve substantial time in prison for his criminal conduct.”
According to the Complaint, Superseding Indictment, court documents, and evidence presented at trial:
In a scheme that unfolded in less than a week, AVENATTI used threats of economic and reputational harm to seek to extort NIKE, Inc. (“Nike”), while defrauding his client (“Client-1”), by promising to settle potential claims by Client-1 against Nike if Nike agreed to make extortionate payments to AVENATTI. AVENATTI threatened to hold a press conference on the eve of Nike’s quarterly earnings call and the start of the annual National Collegiate Athletic Association (“NCAA”) basketball tournament at which he would announce allegations of misconduct by employees of Nike. However, AVENATTI stated that he would refrain from holding the press conference and harming Nike only if Nike made a payment of $1.5 million to Client-1, who was in possession of information potentially damaging to Nike, and further agreed to “retain” AVENATTI and another individual to conduct a supposed “internal investigation” – an investigation that neither Nike nor Client-1 requested – for which AVENATTI demanded to be paid, at a minimum, between $15 million and $25 million. Alternatively, in lieu of such a retainer, AVENATTI demanded a total payment of $22.5 million from Nike to resolve any claims Client-1 might have and to buy AVENATTI’s silence.
AVENATTI never told Client-1, among other things, that AVENATTI planned to and did threaten Nike that, unless Nike paid AVENATTI, he would hold the press conference, or that AVENATTI planned to and did seek money for himself separate from, and to the financial detriment of, Client-1.
* * *
In addition to the prison sentence, AVENATTI, 50, of Venice Beach, California, was sentenced to three years of supervised release. The Court deferred a determination as to restitution for a later date.
Ms. Strauss praised the work of the FBI and the Special Agents of the United States Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York.
The case is being handled by the Office’s Public Corruption Unit. Assistant United States Attorneys Matthew Podolsky, Daniel C. Richenthal, and Robert B. Sobelman are in charge of the prosecution.
Mexican National pleads guilty to employing and exploiting illegal aliens in the U.S.Read the Press Release
ROME, Ga. – Juan Antonio Perez has pleaded guilty to the offense of harboring illegal aliens for financial gain. Perez illegally encouraged and induced aliens illegally present in the United States to reside in the United States where they worked for him illegally for his own commercial advantage and private financial gain.
“Perez endangered the livelihood of those who follow the laws governing employment, as well as the lives of those who attempt to illegally enter the United States seeking jobs like those he provided,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Kurt R. Erskine. “Perez used illegal workers for his own personal financial gain without regard for the laws of this country.”
“The old saying that crime doesn’t pay couldn’t be truer than in this instance. Perez thought his scheme to exploit desperate people looking for work and a better life would go unnoticed, but he was wrong and will now be held accountable,” said Special Agent in Charge Katrina W. Berger, who oversees Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) operations in Georgia and Alabama. “Preventing the exploitation of people and protecting the integrity of the US immigration system are hallmarks of HSI’s mission and I’m proud of the work done in this case.”
According to Acting U.S. Attorney Erskine, the charge, and other information presented in court: Juan Antonio Perez allegedly came to the United States illegally in 1992. He has lived in Bartow County, Georgia and has operated Aztec Framing at least since 2009. Aztec Framing has offices in Cartersville and Rossville, Georgia, and Hixon, Tennessee.
Perez employed illegal aliens at below-market rates, provided no benefits or insurance, and did not pay payroll taxes or Social Security. Perez built a 7,500-square-foot house, bought other houses where he allowed some of his employees to live, and purchased more than 30 sports cars and heavily customized trucks for his own personal collection. Yet, the Georgia Department of Labor has no record of Perez reporting any income. Perez also collected firearms, and agents located 14 firearms when his home was searched on April 30, 2019.
On July 7, 2021, Juan Antonio Perez, age 48, of Rydal, Georgia, pleaded guilty to knowingly encouraging and inducing aliens to come to, enter, and reside in the United States for the purpose of commercial advantage and private financial gain, knowing or in reckless disregard of the fact that such coming to, entry, and residence in the United States was in violation of law. Sentencing for Perez is scheduled for October 5, 2021 at 10:00 a.m.
This case is being investigated by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), and the Bartow-Cartersville Drug Task Force, with assistance from the Federal Bureau of Investigation, U.S. Customs and Border Protection Air and Marine Operations, the Georgia Bureau of Investigation, the Cherokee Multi-Agency Narcotics Squad, and the Polk County Drug Task Force.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Greg Radics is prosecuting the case.
For further information please contact the U.S. Attorney’s Public Affairs Office at [email protected] or (404) 581-6016. The Internet address for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia is http://www.justice.gov/usao-ndga.
Mexican National Sentenced for $10 Million Marijuana Growing Operation in Daviess CountyRead the Press Release
KANSAS CITY, Mo. – A Mexican national who has been deported seven times after illegally entering the United States was sentenced in federal court today for his role in a Daviess County, Missouri, marijuana-growing operation where law enforcement officers seized nearly $10 million worth of plants.
Sergio Medina-Perez, 47, of El Monte, California, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Greg Kays to six years in federal prison without parole. This federal sentence must be served consecutively to any sentence imposed as a result of his violation of probation in an unrelated California case. Medina-Perez pleaded guilty in California to being a felon in possession of a firearm, cultivating marijuana and resisting arrest for a marijuana grow operation in Shasta County, Calif. He received a suspended imposition of sentence and was placed on three years’ probation, but indicted eight months later in this federal case.
The court also ordered Medina-Perez to forfeit the Daviess County property to the government.
On Feb. 3, 2021, Medina-Perez pleaded guilty to participating in a conspiracy to manufacture and to possess marijuana plants with the intent to distribute. Medina-Perez also pleaded guilty to illegally reentering the United States after having been deported following a felony conviction.
Law enforcement officers, who had been keeping the marijuana grow site under surveillance, executed a search warrant at the property on Aug. 27, 2018. The plants were in a clearing inside a large area of timber. A distinct path led from a building in the wooded area to the area containing the marijuana plants.
Officers located approximately 2,464 cultivated marijuana plants. With an approximate street value of $1,800 per pound of marijuana, this results in approximately $9,757,440 in marijuana plants seized.
Two days later, on Aug. 29, 2018, Medina-Perez was arrested near the grow site. He told law enforcement that he came to Missouri from California to work as a trimmer at the marijuana grow operation and was paid $100 for every pound of marijuana that he trimmed.
Medina-Perez has been deported from the United States on seven previous occasions. He was convicted in Yakima County, Washington, of possessing cocaine on Sept. 22, 1993, and deported in 1995. He illegally reentered the United States and was deported again on April 3, 1998; Aug. 30, 2002; April 4, 2003; Dec. 17, 2005; July 6, 2006; and July 11, 2006.
Co-defendant Miguel Pulido-Maldonado, also known as “Mona,” 30, ran into the woods to escape custody but was arrested on Aug. 30, 2018; he was covered in mud, his arms had numerous bites from either mosquitos or other insects and it appeared he had been outside for several days. Pulido-Maldonado had previously illegally entered the United States and was removed on Jan. 30, 2017. Pulido-Maldonado was sentenced to three years in federal prison without parole after pleading guilty to his role in the drug-trafficking conspiracy and to illegally reentering the United States.
This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Brad K. Kavanaugh. It was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, the Northwest Missouri Drug Task Force, the Missouri State Highway Patrol, the Daviess County, Mo., Sheriff’s Department, the Grundy County, Mo., Sheriff’s Department, the Buchanan County, Mo., Sheriff’s Department, the Livingston County, Mo., Sheriff’s Department, the Drug Enforcement Administration and the Department of Homeland Security.
Medical Device Companies to Pay $38.75 Million to Settle False Claims Act AllegationsRead the Press Release
NEWARK, N.J. – Two medical device manufacturers have agreed to pay $38.75 million to resolve allegations that they violated the False Claims Act for billing the Medicare program for defective rapid point-of-care testing devices, Acting U.S. Attorney Rachael A. Honig announced today.
The settlement announced today resolves allegations that from 2008 to 2016 Alere Inc. and Alere San Diego Inc. (collectively, Alere) knowingly sold defective INRatio blood coagulation monitors used by Medicare beneficiaries taking anticoagulant drugs, such as warfarin. For those patients, blood coagulation monitoring is essential to determining a clinically appropriate and safe dosage for their medications. Too much of an anticoagulant drug can cause major bleeding, and too little of the drug can cause blood clots and strokes.
Since at least 2008, Alere allegedly knew that the software algorithm used in each version of its INRatio monitors contained a material defect. Based on its own internal research, as well as external complaints and warnings, Alere allegedly knew that INRatio devices had a “system limitation” that produced inaccurate and unreliable results for some patients. The United States alleged that despite awareness that INRatio systems were linked to over a dozen deaths and hundreds of injuries, including intra-cerebral hemorrhaging and cardiovascular events following bleeding episodes, Alere concealed the defect for years and billed Medicare for the use of defective INRatio devices. Alere allegedly failed to take appropriate corrective actions until 2016, when the devices were removed from the market following a nationwide Class I product recall undertaken at the request of the U.S. Food & Drug Administration (FDA).
“Health care companies have an obligation to be candid and clear in their disclosures to the FDA,” Acting U.S. Attorney Honig said. “The government expects companies to be proactive in investigating issues affecting patient safety. The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of New Jersey will hold accountable any company that fails to meet these obligations.”
“Patients and health care providers rely on diagnostic devices to provide reliable health information,” Acting Assistant Attorney General Brian M. Boynton of the Department of Justice’s Civil Division said. “The Department of Justice will hold accountable medical device companies that knowingly sell defective products that can harm patients and waste taxpayer dollars.”
“Companies that withhold information from or provide false information to FDA put patients’ health at risk and jeopardize the integrity of the regulatory process designed to protect the public health,” Timothy Stenzel M.D., Ph.D., Director of the Office of In Vitro Diagnostics and Radiological Health in the FDA’s Center for Devices and Radiological Health, said.
“Medical device providers who cut corners or purposefully market defective tools put profit above patient health,” FBI Special Agent in Charge George M. Crouch Jr. said. “The FBI will not sit idly by when people’s lives are at risk. It’s an ill-advised business model that ignores the consequences of getting caught.”
U.S. Attorney Honig credited special agents of the FBI Newark Division, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Crouch, and Healthcare Fraud Unit Major Provider Response Team; special agents of the Department of Health and Human Services, Office of Inspector General, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Scott J. Lampert; and the Civil Division’s Commercial Litigation Branch (Fraud Section), with investigation.
The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorney Daniel Meyler of the Health Care Fraud Unit in the District of New Jersey and Trial Attorney Christopher Terranova of the Civil Division.
The claims settled by this agreement are allegations only, and there has been no determination of liability.
Medical Device Companies Alere Inc. and Alere San Diego Inc. Agree to Pay $38.75 Million to Settle False Claims Act AllegationsRead the Press Release
Medical device manufacturers Alere Inc. and Alere San Diego Inc. (collectively, Alere) have agreed to pay $38.75 million to resolve allegations that the companies violated the False Claims Act by billing, and causing others to bill, the Medicare program for defective rapid point-of-care testing devices.
The settlement announced today resolves allegations that, from 2008 to 2016, Alere knowingly sold defective INRatio blood coagulation monitors used by Medicare beneficiaries taking anticoagulant drugs, such as warfarin. For those patients, blood coagulation monitoring is essential to determining a clinically appropriate and safe dosage for their medications. Too much of an anticoagulant drug can cause major bleeding, and too little of the drug can cause blood clots and strokes.
Since at least 2008, Alere allegedly knew that the software algorithm used in each version of its INRatio monitors contained a material defect. Based on its own internal research, as well as external complaints and warnings, Alere allegedly was aware that INRatio devices had a “system limitation” that produced inaccurate and unreliable results for some patients. The United States alleged that, despite awareness that INRatio systems were linked to over a dozen deaths and hundreds of injuries, including intra-cerebral hemorrhaging and cardiovascular events following bleeding episodes, Alere concealed the defect for years and billed Medicare for the use of defective INRatio devices. Alere allegedly failed to take appropriate corrective actions until 2016, when the devices were removed from the market following a nationwide Class I product recall undertaken at the request of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA).
“Patients and health care providers rely on diagnostic devices to provide reliable health information,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General Brian M. Boynton of the Justice Department's Civil Division. “The Department of Justice will hold accountable medical device companies that knowingly sell defective products that can harm patients and waste taxpayer dollars.”
“Health care companies have an obligation to be candid and clear in their disclosures to the FDA,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Rachael A. Honig for the District of New Jersey. “The government expects companies to be proactive in investigating issues affecting patient safety. The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of New Jersey will hold accountable any company that fails to meet these obligations.”
“Companies that withhold information from or provide false information to FDA put patients’ health at risk and jeopardize the integrity of the regulatory process designed to protect the public health,” said Timothy Stenzel, M.D., Ph.D., Director of the Office of In Vitro Diagnostics and Radiological Health in the FDA’s Center for Devices and Radiological Health.
“Medical device providers who cut corners or purposefully market defective tools put profit above patient health,” said Special Agent in Charge George M. Crouch Jr. of the FBI. “The FBI will not sit idly by when people’s lives are at risk. It’s an ill-advised business model that ignores the consequences of getting caught.”
This settlement 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 District of New Jersey, with investigative support from the FBI’s Newark Division and Healthcare Fraud Unit Major Provider Response Team and the Department of Health and Human Services, Office of Inspector General.
This matter was handled by Trial Attorney Christopher Terranova of the Civil Division and Assistant U.S. Attorney Daniel W. Meyler of the District of New Jersey.
The claims resolved by the settlement are allegations only, and there has been no determination of liability.
Manhattan Doctor Sentenced to More Than 17 Years in Prison for Bribery and Kickback Scheme, and for Distributing Oxycodone and Fentanyl for No Legitimate Medical PurposeRead the Press Release
Audrey Strauss, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, announced today that GORDON FREEDMAN, a doctor who practiced in New York, New York, was sentenced today in Manhattan federal court to 121 months in prison for participating in a scheme to receive bribes and kickbacks in the form of fees for sham educational programs (“Speaker Programs”) from pharmaceutical company Insys Therapeutics in exchange for prescribing millions of dollars’ worth of Subsys, a potent fentanyl-based spray manufactured by Insys, among other offenses (the “Insys Bribery Offenses”). FREEDMAN was convicted of the Insys Bribery Offenses following a jury trial. FREEDMAN was also sentenced to 210 months in prison, to run concurrently to the other sentence, for distributing oxycodone and fentanyl to a patient for no legitimate medical purpose (the “Diversion Offense”). That patient ultimately died of a fentanyl overdose from drugs FREEDMAN illegally prescribed him. FREEDMAN pled guilty to the Diversion Offense in December 2019.
FREEDMAN was sentenced by United States District Judge Kimba M. Wood.
U.S. Attorney Audrey Strauss said: “Dr. Gordon Freedman, a prominent Manhattan physician, allowed his medical judgment to be corrupted by hundreds of thousands of dollars in bribes that he accepted from Insys in return for prescribing Subsys, a potent fentanyl painkiller. These payments were made to appear like legitimate speaker program fees, but as the evidence at Freedman’s trial revealed, the speaker programs were a sham and were simply a way for Insys to line Freedman’s pockets. In addition, Freedman prescribed excessive quantities of oxycodone and fentanyl to one of his patients for no legitimate medical purpose. The patient overdosed and died from fentanyl prescribed by Freedman. Freedman will now be serving a long prison sentence for accepting bribes and prescribing medically unnecessary opioids.”
According to the allegations contained in the Indictments against FREEDMAN, the evidence presented in Court during the trial related to the Insys Bribery Offenses, and filings in related proceedings:
Insys manufactured Subsys, a powerful painkiller approximately 50 to 100 times more potent than morphine. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (“FDA”) approved Subsys only for the management of breakthrough pain in cancer patients. Prescriptions of Subsys typically cost thousands of dollars each month, and Medicare and Medicaid, as well as commercial insurers, reimbursed prescriptions written by the defendants. In or about August 2012, Insys launched a “Speakers Bureau,” purportedly aimed at educating practitioners about Subsys. In reality, however, Insys used its Speakers Bureau to induce doctors to prescribe large volumes of Subsys by paying them Speaker Program fees. At each Speaker Program, speakers were supposed to conduct a slide presentation for other health care practitioners regarding Subsys. However, many of the Speaker Programs led by the speakers paid by Insys were predominantly social affairs where no educational presentation occurred. Attendance sign-in sheets for the Speaker Programs were frequently forged by adding the names and signatures of health care practitioners who had not actually been present.
FREEDMAN, a doctor certified in pain management and anesthesiology, owned a private pain management office on Manhattan’s Upper East Side and was an associate clinical professor at a large hospital in Manhattan (“Hospital-1”). FREEDMAN received approximately $308,600 in Speaker Program fees from Insys in exchange for prescribing large volumes of Subsys.
In March 2013, a Regional Sales Manager for Insys sent an email to FREEDMAN informing him that he would receive more Speaker Programs in the coming months because Insys wanted prescriptions of Subsys to increase, and urging FREEDMAN to put more patients on Subsys. FREEDMAN responded, in part, “Got it,” and significantly increased his Subsys prescriptions in the following months, during which he received approximately $33,600 in Speaker Program fees.
In 2014, FREEDMAN’s prescriptions of Subsys rose even further, and he was the fourth-highest prescriber of Subsys nationally in the final quarter of 2014, accounting for approximately $1,132,287 in overall net sales of Subsys in that quarter. During 2014, FREEDMAN was the highest-paid Insys Speaker in the nation, receiving approximately $143,000.
During the period in which FREEDMAN was receiving kickbacks from Insys, he was also distributing powerfully addictive prescription drugs to a particular patient (“Patient-1”) with no legitimate medical purpose. From in or about 2013 through in or about May 2017, FREEDMAN prescribed enormous quantities of oxycodone and fentanyl to Patient-1. For example, in 2013 alone, FREEDMAN prescribed Patient-1 approximately 85,427 oxycodone pills – an average of approximately 234 oxycodone pills per day – containing a total of approximately 2,422,435 mg of oxycodone. On or about April 13, 2017, FREEDMAN gave Patient-1 prescriptions for approximately 150 doses of a drug containing fentanyl, and for approximately 950 oxycodone pills containing approximately 30 mg of oxycodone per pill. On or about May 4, 2017, Patient-1 died of a fentanyl overdose after ingesting a quantity of the drug prescribed by FREEDMAN on or about April 13, 2017.
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In addition to the prison sentence, FREEDMAN, 61, of New York, New York, was sentenced to three years of supervised release, ordered to forfeit $308,600 and ordered to pay a total fine across the two cases of $75,000.
FREEDMAN was one of five Manhattan doctors convicted for participating in the Subsys bribery conspiracy. Todd Schlifstein was convicted upon a guilty plea and sentenced by Judge Wood on October 28, 2019, principally to a term of two years in prison. Alexandru Burducea was convicted upon a guilty plea and sentenced by Judge Wood on January 27, 2020, principally to a term of 57 months in prison. Dialecti Voudouris was convicted upon a guilty plea and sentenced by Judge Wood on March 5, 2020, principally to time served. Jeffrey Goldstein was convicted upon a guilty plea and sentenced by Judge Wood on June 16, 2021, principally to a term of 57 months in prison.
Ms. Strauss praised the outstanding investigative work of the Federal Bureau of Investigation and thanked the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services - Office of the Inspector General for its participation in the investigation.
The cases are being prosecuted by the Office’s Complex Frauds and Cybercrime Unit. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Noah Solowiejczyk, David Abramowicz, and Katherine Reilly are in charge of the prosecutions.
Man Charged in Connection with Shooting of Federal Agents in ChicagoRead the Press Release
CHICAGO — A criminal complaint filed today in federal court accuses a man of forcibly assaulting two federal agents and a task force officer in Chicago yesterday morning.
EUGENE MCLAURIN, 28, of Chicago, is charged with one count of using a dangerous and deadly weapon to assault a special agent from the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives. The charge is punishable by a maximum sentence of 20 years in federal prison.
McLaurin is scheduled to make an initial appearance in federal court today at 1:30 p.m. before U.S. Magistrate Judge Heather K. McShain. The hearing will be conducted telephonically.
The complaint was announced by John R. Lausch, Jr., United States Attorney for the Northern District of Illinois; Kristen deTineo, Special Agent-in-Charge of the Chicago Field Division of ATF; and David Brown, Superintendent of the Chicago Police Department. Valuable assistance was provided by the Illinois State Police. The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Elizabeth Pozolo and Jared Jodrey.
According to the complaint, two ATF agents and an ATF Task Force officer were driving in an unmarked law enforcement vehicle early Wednesday morning while participating in a federal investigation on the South Side of Chicago. The officers noticed that a white Chevrolet Malibu sedan was following their vehicle, and they took note of the license plate number, the complaint states. The driver of the Malibu pulled alongside the officers’ vehicle, and the officers observed the driver’s side window roll down, the complaint states. A man later identified as McLaurin began shooting at the officers’ vehicle, wounding all three officers, the complaint states.
After the shooting, law enforcement located the Malibu parked on a street in Chicago, the complaint states. McLaurin was taken into law enforcement custody later Wednesday morning.
The investigation into the shooting remains ongoing.
The public is reminded that a complaint is not evidence of guilt. The defendant is presumed innocent and entitled to a fair trial at which the government has the burden of proving guilt beyond a reasonable doubt. If convicted, the Court must impose a reasonable sentence under federal sentencing statutes and the advisory U.S. Sentencing Guidelines.
Littleton Felon Sentenced to 24 Months for Unlawfully Possessing FirearmsRead the Press Release
CONCORD – Johnathon Irish, 34, of Littleton, was sentenced on Wednesday to 24 months in federal prison for unlawfully possessing firearms, Acting United States Attorney John J. Farley announced today.
Irish was found guilty of one count of being a felon in possession of firearms after a four-day trial in February of 2020. Evidence presented at trial showed that between December of 2018 and November of 2019, Irish possessed at least two firearms, a Sig Sauer 1911, .45 caliber pistol and a Catamount Fury, 12-gauge shotgun.
Irish previously was convicted in 2014 of aiding and abetting a false statement in connection with the acquisition of a firearm and making a false statement to a federal agent. Due to these felony convictions, he is legally prohibited from possessing firearms.
“In order to protect our community from violent crime, it is vital to keep firearms out of the hands of criminals,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Farley. “Despite a prior gun-related felony conviction, this defendant chose to violate federal law by possessing multiple firearms. We will continue to work with our law enforcement partners to ensure that convicted criminals cannot endanger our citizens by possessing firearms.”
“Despite being barred from possessing firearms, Johnathon Irish demonstrated time and again he was unwilling to give up guns or abide by a law meant to keep them out of the hands of felons. Today’s sentence stops his revolving door of risky behavior, and our streets are safer for it,” said Joseph R. Bonavolonta, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI Boston Division. “The FBI thanks our law enforcement partners for their assistance in helping us protect the communities we all serve.”
This matter was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, with assistance from the New Hampshire State Police. The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Anna Krasinski and Kasey Weiland.
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Lexington Doctor and Wife Charged in Superseding Indictment in International Money Laundering and Health Care Fraud SchemeRead the Press Release
BOSTON – A Lexington doctor and his wife, who works as his office manager, were charged today in a superseding indictment in connection with an international money laundering scheme involving importing illegal, misbranded drugs.
Rahim Shafa, 64, was indicted on health care fraud conspiracy, international money laundering conspiracy, money laundering, conspiracy to defraud the United States, illegally importing merchandise contrary to law and receiving and delivering misbranded drugs with an intent to defraud and mislead. Nahid “Nina” Tormosi Shafa, 63, was indicted on one count of health care fraud conspiracy and one count of international money laundering conspiracy. The defendants were previously indicted in August 2020.
According to the charging documents, Shafa was a psychiatrist who owned and operated Novel Psychopharmacology, for which Tormosi Shafa served as office manager. From April 2016 through January 2019, the defendants allegedly filed false and fraudulent Medicare reimbursement claims that they deposited into bank accounts they controlled.
It is further alleged that from approximately January 2008 through January 2018, Shafa and Tormosi Shafa engaged in an international money laundering scheme to purchase naltrexone pellet implants as well as disulfiram pellet implants and injections from Hong Kong. Naltrexone and disulfiram are approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in certain forms for the treatment of alcohol dependence and alcohol and opioid dependence, respectively. However, the forms that Shafa and Tormosi Shafa allegedly purchased are not approved by the FDA. Shafa allegedly falsified shipping documents to conceal that the packages containing the drugs were shipped from Hong Kong to Shafa in Massachusetts. For example, packages containing naltrexone pellet implants were falsely declared as ‘plastic beads in plastic tubes’ in shipping documents. Shafa and Tormosi Shafa offered to sell these drugs to patients of Novel.
The charge of health care fraud conspiracy provides for a sentence of up to 10 years in prison, three years of supervised release and a fine of $250,000. The charges of money laundering and money laundering conspiracy provide for a sentence of up to 20 years in prison, three years of supervised release and a fine of $250,000. The charge of conspiracy to defraud the United States provides for a sentence of up to five years in prison, three years of supervised release and a fine of $250,000. The charge of importing merchandise contrary to law provides for a sentence of up to 20 years in prison, three years of supervised release and a fine of $250,000. The charge of exporting merchandise contrary to law provides for a sentence of up to 10 years in prison, three years of supervised release and a fine of $250,000. The charge of receiving and delivering a misbranded drug with intent to defraud and mislead provides for a sentence of up to three years in prison, three years of supervised release and a fine of $250,000. Sentences are imposed by a federal district court judge based upon the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
Acting United States Attorney Nathaniel R. Mendell; Jeffrey Ebersole, Special Agent in Charge of the Food and Drug Administration, Office of Criminal Investigations, New York Field Office; Philip M. Coyne, Special Agent in Charge of U.S. Department of Health & Human Services, Office of the Inspector General, Office of Investigations, Boston Regional Office; and Colonel Christopher Mason, Superintendent of the Massachusetts State Police, made the announcement today. Assistant U.S. Attorney John T. Mulcahy of Mendell’s Worcester Branch Office is prosecuting the case.
The details contained in the charging documents are allegations. The defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
Kentwood Man Sentenced to Ten Years for Possession of Child PornographyRead the Press Release
NEW ORLEANS, LOUISIANA – United States Attorney Duane A. Evans announced that RANDOLPH ARD (“ARD”), age 65, of Kentwood, Louisiana, was sentenced today for Possession of Child Pornography, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 2252(a)(4)(B).
According to documents filed in federal court, on November 22, 2017, law enforcement officers with the Louisiana Bureau of Investigation arrested ARD at his Kentwood home after finding that ARD was in possession of several items, including a laptop computer and thumb drive that contained images depicting the sexual victimization of prepubescent children. Court records also revealed that ARD was previously convicted in Tangipahoa Parish Criminal District Court for pornography involving juveniles and indecent behavior with juveniles on March 6, 2013. ARD was on state parole supervision at the time of his arrest.
U.S. District Judge Eldon E. Fallon sentenced ARD to 120 months imprisonment, followed by five (5) years of supervised release, sex offender registration, and a $100 special assessment.
This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by the United States Attorneys’ Offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who sexually exploit children, and to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.usdoj.gov/psc. For more information about internet safety education, please visit www.usdoj.gov/psc and click on the tab “resources.”
U.S. Attorney Evans praised the work of the U. S. Department of Homeland Security, Homeland Security Investigations, the Louisiana Bureau of Investigation, and Louisiana Probation and Parole in investigating this matter. The prosecution of this case is being handled by Project Safe Childhood Coordinator and Chief of the Financial Crimes Unit, Assistant U. S. Attorney Brian M. Klebba.
Jury Convicts Boston Man of Being Felon in Possession of Firearm and AmmunitionRead the Press Release
BOSTON – A Boston man was found guilty by a federal jury in Boston yesterday of illegally possessing a firearm and ammunition.
Rahshjeem Benson, a/k/a “Six Nine,” 38, was convicted following a six-day trial of one count of being a felon in possession of a firearm and ammunition. U.S. District Court Judge Leo T. Sorokin scheduled sentencing for Sept. 29, 2021.
Evidence at trial established that, on April 5, 2019, Benson was arrested inside a bar in the Copley area of Boston for cocaine distribution. A Charter Arms Bulldog Pug .44 SPL caliber revolver loaded with five Smith & Wesson .44 caliber SPL cartridges was found in Benson’s sweatshirt pocket following his arrest. Due to a prior felony conviction, Benson is prohibited from possessing firearms or ammunition.
The charge of being a felon in possession of a firearm and ammunition provides for a sentence of up to 10 years in prison, up to three years of supervised release and a fine of up to $250,000. Sentences are imposed by a federal district court judge based on the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
Acting United States Attorney Nathaniel R. Mendell; Kelly D. Brady, Special Agent in Charge of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, Boston Field Division; and Boston Police Acting Commissioner Gregory Long made the announcement today. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Elianna J. Nuzum and Fred M. Wyshak, III of Mendell’s Criminal Division prosecuted the case.
This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), the centerpiece of the Department of Justice’s violent crime reduction efforts. PSN is an evidence-based program proven to be effective at reducing violent crime. Through PSN, a broad spectrum of stakeholders work together to identify the most pressing violent crime problems in the community and develop comprehensive solutions to address them. As part of this strategy, PSN focuses enforcement efforts on the most violent offenders and partners with locally based prevention and reentry programs for lasting reductions in crime.
Jersey City Gang Member Charged with MurderRead the Press Release
NEWARK, N.J. – An alleged member of a Jersey City, New Jersey, gang has been charged with the March 31, 2020, murder of a Jersey City resident, Acting U.S. Attorney Rachael A. Honig announced today.
Phillip Wiggins Jr., 24, of Newark, is charged by complaint with one count each of murder in aid of racketeering, discharging a firearm in furtherance of a crime of violence, and causing death through use of a firearm. He made his initial appearance by videoconference before U.S. Magistrate Judge Michael A. Hammer and was detained without bail.
According to documents filed in this case and statements made in court:
Wiggins is allegedly associated with a street gang known to operate in the area of Wilkinson Avenue, Ocean Avenue, Martin Luther King Drive, and Wegman Parkway in Jersey City. On March 31, 2020, Wiggins traveled to an area controlled by a rival gang with which Wilkinson was feuding, and allegedly murdered Victim-1.
Wiggins faces a potential mandatory life sentence for the murder in aid of racketeering count. The count of causing death through use of a firearm carries a maximum sentence of life in prison. The count of discharging a firearm during an act of violence carries a potential mandatory consecutive sentence of 10 years in prison.
Acting U.S. Attorney Honig credited the Hudson County Prosecutor’s Office, under the direction of Prosecutor Esther Suarez, and the Jersey City Police Department, under the direction of Public Safety Director James Shea, as well as special agents of the FBI, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge George M. Crouch Jr. in Newark, with the investigation leading to the charges.
This investigation was conducted as part of the Jersey City Violent Crime Initiative (VCI). The VCI was formed in 2018 by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of New Jersey, the Hudson County Prosecutor’s Office, and the Jersey City Police Department, for the sole purpose of combatting violent crime in and around Jersey City. As part of this partnership, federal, state, county, and city agencies collaborate to strategize and prioritize the prosecution of violent offenders who endanger the community. The VCI is composed of the U.S. Attorney’s Office, the FBI, the ATF, the Drug Enforcement Administration’s (DEA) New Jersey Division, the U.S. Marshals, the Jersey City Police Department, the Hudson County Prosecutor’s Office, the Hudson County Sheriff’s Office, New Jersey State Parole Board, the Hudson County Jail, and the New Jersey State Police Regional Operations and Intelligence Center/Real Time Crime Center.
The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorney Francesca Liquori of the Organized Crime and Gangs Unit and Assistant U.S. Attorney Sophie Reiter of the Violent Crime Unit.
The charges and allegations contained in the complaint are merely accusations, and the defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
Head of Telemarketing Operation Charged in $19 Million Credit Card Laundering SchemeRead the Press Release
Audrey Strauss, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, and William F. Sweeney Jr., Assistant Director-in-Charge of the New York Office of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (“FBI”), announced the arrest today of STEVEN SHORT, the former head of E.M. Systems & Services, LLC, and affiliated companies (“E.M. Systems”), on charges of fraudulently obtaining credit card processing services for his deceptive Florida-based telemarketing operation. As alleged in a superseding indictment unsealed today, which also contains charges previously announced against Brandon Becker, the former CEO of CardReady, LLC (“CardReady”), SHORT and Becker fraudulently carried out a credit card laundering scheme that provided access to the credit card system for SHORT’s underlying telemarketing scheme. From about 2012 through 2015, according to the Indictment, SHORT and E.M. Systems generated over $19 million from thousands of customers who received cold calls promising to reduce their overall debt burdens in exchange for fees of up to $1,495. The telemarketing operation resulted in hundreds of complaints of fraud and deceptive tactics, and requests for millions of dollars in refunds and chargebacks. The charges include that, from approximately 2012 through 2015, SHORT, Becker and their co-conspirators carried out a fraudulent credit card processing scheme, processing credit card charges for SHORT’s telemarketing operation, even though applicable contracts prohibited the processing of credit card charges for purported “debt consolidation” and “interest rate reduction” services. SHORT and Becker are charged with accomplishing this processing fraud by creating dozens of sham merchant accounts and false merchant applications, concealing the true nature of SHORT’s telemarketing operation, and defrauding an associated credit card processing company and a federally insured bank into processing more than $19 million in payments for the scheme.
SHORT was arrested this morning in Tampa, Florida, and is scheduled to be presented in Tampa before U.S. Magistrate Judge Sean Flynn. Becker was originally arrested at Los Angeles International Airport on September 22, 2019. The case is assigned to Judge Preska, and is scheduled to go to trial on January 31, 2022.
U.S. Attorney Strauss said: “Steven Short and his codefendant allegedly preyed on people already in debt in order to enrich themselves, using a web of sham companies to perpetuate and conceal their conduct. As credit cards and electronic payments become an ever more central part of our society and our economy, both consumers and corporations have every right to expect truthfulness and fair dealing in the marketplace – not fraud and deception.”
FBI Assistant Director William F. Sweeney Jr. said: "As alleged, Becker and Short created more than $19 million in illegitimate profits, derived from victims who were deliberately targeted due to their debt-laden status. They entered into this scheme together and will exit in much the same way—facing a federal indictment that carries significant charges of its own."
According to the Indictment unsealed today:[1]
SHORT controlled E.M. Systems and its affiliates, based in Florida. Beginning in 2012, SHORT sought to use E.M. Systems to carry out a telemarketing scheme targeting people with outstanding debt, and to offer them purported financial services. In order to charge for such purported services via credit cards, SHORT sought access to the credit card processing market, through Becker and CardReady.
Becker was the CEO of CardReady, a Los-Angeles based company acting as a sales agent in the credit card processing industry. As part of its business as a sales agent, CardReady found merchants who wanted credit card processing services, such as SHORT, and submitted merchant applications on behalf of those merchants to an Independent Sales Organization (“ISO”), referred to in the Indictment as the “New York ISO.” The New York ISO then evaluated the merchant applications, and referred acceptable merchant accounts up the chain to Payment Processor-1 and to Bank-1. Bank-1 and Payment Processor-1, in turn, processed payments to merchants for purchases by customers who had used credit cards.
In or about 2012, SHORT negotiated a deal with Becker, to obtain credit card processing for SHORT and E.M. Systems. Under this deal, CardReady would keep approximately one-third of the credit card sale transactions of SHORT and E.M. Systems, in exchange for providing them access to the credit card processing network. For roughly the next two years, SHORT and E.M. Systems carried out a telemarketing scheme in which they used telemarketers to cold-call consumers, targeting consumers with outstanding credit card debt. The cold-callers offered the customers services, including debt consolidation and interest rate reduction on their debts, which were prohibited by the applicable guidelines from Bank-1 and associated processing entities (the “Guidelines”), and which – as SHORT and Becker knew – would produce chargebacks from dissatisfied customers far in excess of the number and rate of chargebacks permitted under the Guidelines.
In securing payment card processing for E.M. Systems, SHORT and Becker concealed that E.M. Systems was the true underlying merchant. Instead, SHORT, Becker and their co-conspirators, over a period of more than 20 months, created approximately 26 sham merchant companies, each headed by a “signer” (the “Sham Merchants” and the “Sham Merchant Accounts”). The 26 signers for the 26 Sham Merchants typically had no businesses of their own, and knew little or nothing about E.M. Systems’ business. In return for signing paperwork, the signers were paid a nominal fee from CardReady. SHORT, Becker, and their co-conspirators prepared and coordinated fraudulent merchant applications for each of the Sham Merchants, through merchant applications that falsely described the Sham Merchants to make them look like legitimate independent businesses and to make it more likely that the associated Sham Merchant Account would be approved for processing by the New York ISO, Payment Processor-1, and Bank-1. These false merchant applications also concealed the Sham Merchants’ true association with E.M. Systems.
By steering E.M. Systems’ payment processing through these Sham Merchant Accounts, SHORT and Becker accomplished a number of fraudulent purposes. First, the use of these Sham Merchant Accounts made it possible for E.M. Systems to conceal its identity from Payment Processor-1 and Bank-1 and to maintain payment card processing. This was particularly relevant as Payment Processor-1 repeatedly required CardReady to close individual Sham Merchant Accounts because of excessive chargebacks and reports of sales of prohibited services. SHORT and Becker then caused CardReady to quickly replace the closed Sham Merchant Accounts with new Sham Merchant Accounts, precluding Payment Processor-1 from shutting down its processing of Telemarketer-1 and other high-risk merchants. Second, the fraudulent processing scheme enabled E.M. Systems to spread out its charges, refunds, and chargebacks across multiple Sham Merchant Accounts. SHORT and Becker thus enabled E.M. Systems to evade chargeback monitoring programs operated by Bank-1, Payment Processor-1, and the New York ISO.
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SHORT, 44, of Tampa, Florida, is charged in Counts One and Four of the Indictment, with conspiracy to commit wire fraud and bank fraud, and bank fraud. Count One and Count Four each carries a maximum sentence of 30 years in prison, and a maximum fine of $1 million or twice the gross gain or loss from the offense.
Becker, 50, of Los Angeles, California, is charged in four counts, conspiracy to commit wire fraud and bank fraud, conspiracy to make false statements to a bank, wire fraud, and bank fraud. Count One and Count Four each carries a maximum sentence of 30 years in prison, and a maximum fine of $1 million or twice the gross gain or loss from the offense. Count Two and Count Three each carries a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison, and a maximum fine of $250,000 or twice the gross gain or loss from the offense.
The maximum potential sentences for each defendant are prescribed by Congress and are provided here for informational purposes only, as any sentencing of the defendants will be determined by the judge.
Ms. Strauss praised the extraordinary work of the FBI and thanked the Federal Trade Commission for its assistance.
This case is being handled by the Office’s Complex Frauds and Cybercrime Unit. Assistant U.S. Attorneys David Raymond Lewis and Vladislav Vainberg are in charge of the prosecution.
The charges contained in the Indictment are merely accusations, and the defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
[1] As the introductory phrase signifies, the entirety of the text of the Indictment, and the description of the Indictment set forth herein, constitute only allegations, and every fact described should be treated as an allegation.