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Wednesday 31 March 2021
Ariton Man Sentenced to 157 Months in Prison Following Federal Firearms ConvictionsRead the Press Release
Montgomery, Alabama – On March 30, 2021, Marcus Antonio Grubbs, a 37-year-old man from Ariton, Alabama, was sentenced to 157 months in prison for possession of stolen firearms and possessing firearms in connection with a drug trafficking crime, announced Acting United States Attorney Sandra J. Stewart.
According to court records, the charges stem from two encounters Grubbs had with law enforcement in Dale and Barbour Counties. The first encounter occurred in September of 2015 when law enforcement was investigating numerous burglaries in the area and made contact with Grubbs. After searching his residence, at that time located in Dale County, agents discovered that Grubbs was in possession of approximately 25 guns, 24 of which were found to have been stolen. Grubbs has previous felony convictions and is prohibited by federal law from possessing firearms.
Later, in September of 2019, law enforcement executed another search warrant on Grubbs’ residence, then in Barbour County, and found more guns. In addition to the firearms, agents also seized a variety of illegal drugs, including approximately 70 grams of crack cocaine and 567 grams of methamphetamine.
Grubbs was indicted by a federal grand jury in February of 2020, and on September 29, 2020, he pleaded guilty to possession of stolen firearms and possession of a firearm in furtherance of a drug crime. In addition to his 13-year prison sentence, Grubbs was also ordered to serve three years of supervised release after his term is complete. There is no parole in the federal system.
The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF), the Alabama Law Enforcement Agency (ALEA), the Barbour County Sheriff’s Office, the Dale County Sheriff’s Office, the Henry County Sheriff’s Office, the Houston County Sheriff’s Office, the Dothan Police Department, the Enterprise Police Department, and the Opp Police Department investigated this case, with assistance from the United States Marshals Service. Assistant United States Attorney Brandon Bates prosecuted the case.
Aggravated Felon Sentenced to 46 Months in Federal Prison for Firearm and Immigration OffensesRead the Press Release
Ocala, FL – United States District Judge Roy B. Dalton, Jr., has sentenced Jose Merced Sanchez De La Torre (43, Ocala) to 46 months in federal prison for illegal reentry by a previously deported alien and unlawful possession of a firearm by an alien. Sanchez De La Torre had pleaded guilty on September 24, 2020.
According to court documents, on August 31, 2020, the FBI received a tip that a residence in Ocala contained illegal aliens and firearms. U.S. Customs and Border Protection researched the address and determined that one of the residents, Sanchez De La Torre, was an illegal alien from Mexico. Sanchez De La Torre previously had been deported from the United States, in 2015, following federal convictions for unlawful possession of a firearm (an aggravated felony) and seven counts of structuring financial transactions.
On September 8, 2020, law enforcement officers executed an arrest warrant at the residence. During a search of the premises, a large amount of ammunition and three firearms were located, including an AK-47 rifle. As both an illegal alien and a convicted felon, Sanchez De La Torre is prohibited from possessing firearms and ammunition under federal law.
This case was investigated by the FBI, U.S. Customs and Border Patrol, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, and the Marion County Sheriff’s Office. It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Tyrie Boyer.
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 and enhances coordination of federal, state, local, and tribal authorities in investigating and prosecuting gun crimes. For more information on Project Guardian visit www.justice.gov/projectguardian.
Acting U.S. Attorney Offers Tips for Keeping Families Safe OnlineRead the Press Release
Charleston, South Carolina --- Following the recent sentencing of a Cheraw man for transferring obscene material to a minor, Acting U.S. Attorney M. Rhett DeHart urges the public to take necessary precautions to keep themselves and their families safe from online predators.
“Be it through social media or other online messaging apps, predatory criminals have used sly communications efforts to victimize neighbors including children,” said Acting U.S. Attorney DeHart. “Our office urges the public to utilize the FBI Safe Online Surfing Program that covers important topics like cyberbullying, passwords, malware, and social media, while also understanding and following measures proven to help protect them in the consistently-evolving technological world.”
Acting U.S. Attorney DeHart offers the following advice for families to utilize to keep their families safe:
Advice for Children
- Keep your accounts private.
- Do not accept requests from strangers. Block or ignore messages from strangers.
- Be selective about the information and pictures you share online. Know and assume that any content you create online – texts, photos and/or videos – can and will be made public, permanently. Nothing "disappears" online. Once you send something, you have no control over where it goes.
- Understand that people can pretend to be anything/anyone online and that images can be altered or stolen.
- Be suspicious and stop communicating if you meet someone on one app, and they ask you to move to a different platform.
- If you feel overwhelmed or victimized, do not hesitate to ask for help, including that of law enforcement. Do not feel ashamed to report crimes.
- Immediately report anything you may believe is illegal to your local police department or to the FBI at 1-800-CALL-FBI (225-5324) or https://tips.fbi.gov.
Advice for Adults
- Openly communicate with your children about online activity and possible victimization.
- Place limits on internet use and consider shutting down Wi-Fi overnight.
- Know and maintain passwords to phones, tablets, and computers.
- Spot check phones, tablets and computers and know what apps are being used and what is being downloaded.
- Ensure social media settings are set at the strictest level possible.
- Monitor who is in communication with your child and what is being said.
- Immediately report anything you may believe is illegal to your local police department or to the FBI at 1-800-CALL-FBI (225-5324) or https://tips.fbi.gov.
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More information on the FBI Safe Online Surfing Program can be found at: https://www.fbi.gov/about/community-outreach/safe-online-surfing-sos-program.
56 Members of A Violent Gang Charged with Drug Trafficking and Firearms Violations in San Juan, Carolina, and Trujillo Alto, Puerto RicoRead the Press Release
SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico – On March 23, 2021, a federal grand jury in the District of Puerto Rico returned an indictment charging 56 violent gang members from the municipalities of San Juan, Carolina and Trujillo Alto, with conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute, possession with intent to distribute controlled substances, and firearms violations, announced W. Stephen Muldrow, United States Attorney for the District of Puerto Rico. The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF), the Puerto Rico Police Bureau (PRPB), San Juan and Carolina Strike Forces, and the United States Marshals Service investigated the case.
“This operation shows our resolve, along with our federal and state law enforcement partners, to continue working to protect the communities we serve from these deadly drugs and violence,” said W. Stephen Muldrow, U.S. Attorney for the District of Puerto Rico. “Operation 65 successfully removed members of an extremely violent drug organization from our streets and reflects the excellent collaboration between our federal and Puerto Rico law enforcement partners – coordinated through our HIDTA and OCDETF task force programs.”
“The members of “65 Inc.,” as this criminal organization was known, flooded San Juan, Carolina and Trujillo Alto neighborhoods with gun violence and drugs. Many lives in those communities have been irreparably damaged as a result of their violent criminal activity,” said Robert Cekada, Special Agent in Charge of ATF Miami Field Division. “During the course of the investigation, ATF, the USMS, PRPB, Carolina PD, and San Juan PD worked relentlessly to investigate 65 Inc. leaders and other key members of the organization. Also, Guaynabo PD, Bayamón PD, and San Juan PD assisted during the arrests.”
“The United States Marshals Service will continue working with the United States Attorney’s Office, the Bureau of Alcohol Tobacco and Firearms and all other agencies in conducting these enforcement operations to fight crime,” said Wilmer Ocasio Ibarra, US Marshal. “Today, I commend our Deputies and Task Force Officers for the excellent job they have done and continue to do every day in order to make our streets and communities safer.”
The indictment alleges that from 2015 to the date of the return of the indictment, the drug trafficking organization distributed cocaine base (commonly known as “crack”), heroin, cocaine, marihuana, Oxycodone (Percocet), and Alprazolam (Xanax) within 1,000 feet of the Jardines del Paraíso, Jardines de Monte Hatillo, Las Dalias, Monte Park, Jardines de Campo Rico, San Martín, Jardines de Country Club, Ernesto Ramos Antonini, La Esmeralda, and Nuestra Señora de Covadonga Public Housing Projects, Los Claveles Condominium, and Buen Consejo Ward. The object of the conspiracy was the large-scale distribution of controlled substances and to possess and distribute kilogram quantities of controlled substances, mainly cocaine, in Puerto Rico, for further distribution in the continental United States.
In or around August 2015, new leadership among the street gangs emerged and gained control of most of the housing projects and wards within specific areas of San Juan, Carolina and Trujillo Alto. Members of this new gang identified themselves as 65 INC. or 65. Their goal was to take over and maintain control of all the drug trafficking activities within specific areas in the mentioned municipalities through the use of force, threats, intimidation and violence. Some members of 65 INC. transported and distributed kilogram quantities of cocaine from Puerto Rico to the continental United States.
During the course of the investigation, over 100 weapons were seized either directly from members of the drug trafficking organization or recovered by the Puerto Rico Police Bureau and ATF in areas controlled by the organization. Twenty-seven of the weapons recovered had been converted into machineguns.
Members of the organization had illegal connections to obtain weapons of different makes, models and calibers, including high powered rifles like AK-47 and AR-15 type pistols. They also had individuals who had the knowledge to modify firearms to convert them into fully automatic machineguns. They were also able to obtain high capacity magazines capable of accepting up to 30 rounds of ammunition at a time, and drum magazines capable of accepting up to 50 rounds of ammunition at a time, all of which were used by members of the organization. These types of magazines were also recovered by the PRPB and ATF during the investigation.
Members of the organization displayed their power and association with each other in the street by brandishing and at times firing weapons into the air, both at night and in broad daylight. Weapons would be brandished in public spaces, such as bars, pubs, common areas of the housing projects and wards they controlled, and outside areas of rival housing projects and wards. Some of the members of the conspiracy would drive around firing their weapons from moving vehicles in areas known to be controlled by rival gangs and in broad daylight on public roads and bridges, such as the Teodoro Moscoso bridge.
The organization’s control over drug trafficking stretched beyond Puerto Rico. Some of the members were involved in multi-kilogram distribution of cocaine to several states in the United States. They used other co-conspirators who traveled to the continental United States as mules with the cocaine. The mules would travel at times with up to 10 kilos each. The proceeds of the sale of those kilos was then transported back to Puerto Rico to the drug trafficking organization.
As part of the conspiracy, the members acted in different roles to further the goals of the conspiracy, including acting as leaders, drug point owners, runners, suppliers, enforcers, drug processors, sellers, and facilitators. The leaders and drug point owners routinely authorized and instructed other co-conspirators to provide free samples of narcotics to customers to promote the sales of a specific brand of drug. The defendants had access to cars, motorcycles, and scooters which they used to transport money, narcotics, and firearms.
The members of the gang used force, violence, and intimidation to maintain control of the areas in which they operated. They often abducted and assaulted rival drug traffickers as well as members of their own drug trafficking organization to intimidate and maintain control of the drug trafficking. Thirty-two defendants are facing one charge of possession of firearms in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime. They are:
Joseph E. Pérez-González, a/k/a “Peca/Stripper”
Shelby J. Pérez-Cora, a/k/a “White Bear/Shelby”
Joseph Marte-Rodríguez, a/k/a “Mato/Matagato”
Miguel A. Arroyo-Andújar, a/k/a “Mawi/Mawiton”
Julio Rodríguez-Febres, a/k/a “Julito/Pai/Líder”
Iron Lee Jorge Colón, a/k/a “Iron/Doble/Doble A”
Jean C. Torres-Meléndez, a/k/a “Yankee/30”
Jorge A. Sánchez-Arizmendi, a/k/a “Georgi/Rubia/OG Black”
Milton Caliel Rodríguez/Medero, a/k/a “Cali”
Saul Ortiz-Ortiz
Héctor Deejay Vega-Collazo, a/k/a “DJ/Dinero”
José Navedo-Ramos, a/k/a “Joshuany/Joshy”
Juan A. Martínez- Martínez, a/k/a “Juancho/Juanchi”
Vicyael Hernández-Díaz, a/k/a “Menor/Vicia/Vic”
Edgar R. López-Pellot, a/k/a “Johnny/Joni”
David Escribano-López, a/k/a “Lobo”
Victor Guadalupe-Gómez, a/k/a “Vitito”
Pedro R. Oquendo-Arrufat, a/k/a “Chuky”
Juan C. Rivera-Esquilín, a/k/a “Cano/C”
Joel Rivera-Molina, a/k/a “Barber”
Camilo Pérez-Marquez, a/k/a “El Boxeador”
Lennyn Santiago-Hernández, a/k/a “Lenny”
Tony R. López-Torres, a/k/a “Sombra”
Francisco Bonilla-García, a/k/a “Cholin”
Ricardo A. Arias-Rivera, a/k/a “Ricky R/Casco/Ricky/Cholón/Jirafa”
John M. Dávila-Martínez, a/k/a “Moña”
Alfred Baliester-Colón, a/k/a “Tuto”
Heriberto Torres-Díaz, a/k/a “Yerno”
Luis E. Díaz-Peguero
Héctor Cuba-Ortiz, a/k/a “Cuba”
Raymond Pizarro-Quintero, a/k/a “Memo”
Francisco Maracayo-Correa, a/k/a “Los Maracayo”
The other defendants are:
Raúl Torres-Santana, a/k/a “Manota
Shaquille Lugo-Nuñez, a/k/a “Lindo”
Bryan Hernández-López, a/k/a “Sweepy/Swepy”
Luis E. Guzmán-González, a/k/a “Chito/Cheeto”
Michael Román-Amador, a/k/a “Huevo/Pipi”
José Robles-Feliciano, a/k/a “Nervio”
Johan J. Rosales-Medero, a/k/a “Johancito”
Terix Zabala-González, a/k/a “Terix/Teri”
Willys J. Torres- González, a/k/a “Hershey”
Chawil Campusano-Vázquez, a/k/a “Chawi/Chewi/Chegüi”
Evaris Naomi García-Camacho
Samuel Torres-Santiago
Jouseph Bermúdez-Matos, a/k/a “Kobe”
Emilio Rodríguez-Arce
Anthony Figueroa-Valladares, a/k/a “Farru/Farruko”
Rayden Oneill-Díaz, a/k/a “R/J/Raiden”
Eduardo Benítez-Meléndez, a/k/a “Yambele”
Carlos R. Miró-Pagán, a/k/a “Farru”
Victor Maracayo-Correa, a/k/a “Maca/Los Maracayo/M”
Alexander Schroeder-Montañez, a/k/a “Blanquito”
Noah Martínez, a/k/a “Gringo”
Benjamín Rivera-Castro, a/k/a “Benji”
Roberto Ramos-Carrasquillo, a/k/a “Popi”
María Santiago-González
Assistant U.S. Attorney and Chief of the Gang Section Alberto López-Rocafort, Deputy Chief of the Gang Section, AUSA Tereza Zapata-Valladares, and AUSA Pedro Casablanca are in charge of the prosecution of the case. If convicted on the drug charges, the defendants face a minimum sentence of 10 years, and up to life in prison. If convicted of both the drug and firearms charges, the defendants face a minimum sentence of 15 years, and up to life in prison. Indictments contain only charges and are not evidence of guilt. Defendants are presumed to be innocent until and unless proven guilty.
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Tuesday 30 March 2021
Winslow Man Pleads Guilty to Social Security FraudRead the Press Release
BANGOR, Maine: A Winslow man pleaded guilty today in federal court to Social Security fraud, Acting U.S. Attorney Donald E. Clark announced.
According to court records, Robert Curtis, 63, was a recipient of Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) benefit payments beginning in February 2011. SSDI benefits are paid to people who are blind or disabled. He also was a recipient of MaineCare coverage beginning in April 2010 and Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefit payments beginning in February 2011. These programs have reporting requirements for work activity and income, which can affect eligibility for benefits.
During the time he was receiving benefits under these programs, Curtis worked as a medication deliverer. He also served as the lead plaintiff in a civil suit for lost wages, alleging that he should have been classified as an employee instead of an independent contractor, for which he was awarded over $21,000. Curtis failed to inform the Social Security Administration (SSA) or the Maine Department of Health & Human Services (ME/DHHS) of his work activity and income, despite periodic reminders that he was required to report it. He also denied any such activity to SSA in a continuing disability review in 2013, and to ME/DHHS in annual reviews from 2011 to 2017, because he knew it could affect his eligibility for benefits. As a result, he improperly received over $92,000 in SSDI benefits, almost $12,000 in SNAP benefits, and over $13,000 in MaineCare benefits.
Curtis faces up to 10 years in prison and a fine of up to $250,000, and up to three years of supervised release. He will be sentenced after the completion of a presentence investigation report by the U.S. Probation Office.
SSA’s Office of the Inspector General and ME/DHHS investigated the case.
Williston Man Charged with Distribution of Crack CocaineRead the Press Release
The Office of the United States Attorney for the District of Vermont stated that Gregory Lewis, 25, of Williston, Vermont, was arrested yesterday on charges that he distributed cocaine base in January and February of 2021. Lewis is scheduled to appear remotely this afternoon for an initial appearance before the Hon. Kevin J. Doyle, United States Magistrate Judge.
According to court records, law enforcement utilized a confidential informant to purchase approximately one ounce of crack cocaine from Lewis on two separate occasions in early 2021. On March 29, 2021, law enforcement executed search warrants on Lewis’ residence in Williston and a storage unit in South Burlington, Vermont linked to Lewis. During the searches, agents seized over $20,000 of suspected drug proceeds, three handguns, a rifle, and ammunition. One of the handguns, a Glock Model 45 pistol, had previously been reported stolen. During the search, Lewis was arrested in the bathroom of his residence, near a backpack with plastic packaging containing suspected cocaine residue. Suspected cocaine residue was also found near the toilet. In a post-arrest interview, Lewis admitted to agents that during the execution of the warrant, he had flushed over 700 grams of cocaine down the toilet.
The United States Attorney emphasizes that the charges against Lewis are merely accusations and that he is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
If convicted of the charged offenses, Lewis could face up to twenty years in prison, up to a $1,000,000 fine, and a period of federal supervised release. Any sentence will be formulated through consultation of the United States Sentencing Guidelines and consideration of Lewis’ personal history and characteristics.
This case is being investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration, the Burlington Police Department, and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives, with assistance from the Vermont State Police.
Acting United States Attorney Jonathan A. Ophardt is prosecuting the case for the government. The Federal Public Defender’s Office is representing Lewis.
Washington State Man Pleads Guilty After Traveling Across State Lines for Sex with a MinorRead the Press Release
EUGENE, Ore.—A Vancouver, Washington man pleaded guilty today to sending sexually explicit emails and text messages to an undercover law enforcement officer posing online as a 13-year-old girl, announced Acting U.S. Attorney Scott Erik Asphaug.
Daniel Lee Baldie, 34, pleaded guilty to attempted coercion and enticement of a minor.
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 could 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 where he was arrested. Baldie admitted he intended to meet the child and take her back to his residence as planned.
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.
Baldie faces a maximum sentence of life in prison with a 10-year mandatory minimum sentence, a $250,000 fine, and a life term of supervised release. He will be sentenced on July 8, 2021 before U.S. District Court Judge Ann Aiken.
Under the Sex Offender Registration and Notification Act, Baldie will be required to register as a sex offender in any state in which he resides.
This case was investigated by the Benton County Sheriff’s Office and the FBI. It is being prosecuted by Jeffrey Sweet, Assistant U.S. Attorney for the District of Oregon.
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.
United States Settles Housing Discrimination Lawsuit Against Staten Island Rental Agent and Real Estate AgencyRead the Press Release
BROOKLYN – Mark J. Lesko, Acting United States Attorney for the Eastern District of New York, and Pamela S. Karlan, Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division, announced today a settlement with Village Realty of Staten Island Ltd. and Denis Donovan, a sales and former rental agent at Village Realty, to resolve a lawsuit filed last year alleging discrimination against African Americans in violation of the Fair Housing Act.
The settlement resolves claims that Donovan discriminated against prospective renters on the basis of race by treating African Americans who inquired about available rental units less favorably than similarly-situated white persons, and that Village Realty is legally responsible for Donovan’s alleged discrimination because he was acting as Village Realty’s agent. The lawsuit was based on the results of testing conducted by the department’s Fair Housing Testing Program, in which individuals pose as renters to gather information about possible discriminatory practices. According to the complaint, Donovan allegedly told African-American testers about fewer rental units than white testers, offered white testers rental discounts and opportunities to inspect units that were not offered to African-American testers, generally offered African-American testers units only in racially mixed neighborhoods while offering white testers units in both overwhelmingly white and racially mixed neighborhoods, and made more encouraging comments to white testers about available rental units.
“Today's settlement underscores the importance of making housing equally available to all residents of this district, regardless of race," stated Acting U.S. Attorney Lesko. “This Office is committed to ending racial discrimination and to achieving fairness and equality in housing.”
“For 30 years – since its establishment in 1991 – the Fair Housing Testing Program has played a critical role in helping the Department of Justice root out discrimination that might otherwise go undetected,” said Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Karlan. “Today’s settlement reflects the Department’s continued commitment to uncover and eliminate discrimination in all forms and to ensure equal access to housing regardless of race.”
Under the consent decree, the defendants will establish a settlement fund of $15,000 to compensate victims of Donovan’s alleged discriminatory practices and pay a civil penalty of $2,500 to the United States. The agreement prohibits the defendants from engaging in further acts of discrimination and requires them to implement nondiscriminatory standards and procedures, undergo fair housing training, and provide periodic reports to the department.
This case is being handled by Eastern District of New York Assistant U.S. Attorney Rachel G. Balaban, along with Trial Attorney Katherine A. Raimondo of the Civil Rights Division’s Housing and Civil Enforcement Section.
Individuals who believe they may have experienced discrimination at Village Realty should contact the Justice Department toll-free at 1-800-896-7743 or by email at [email protected]. Individuals may be entitled to relief from the settlement fund if they (1) are African American; (2) visited or called Village Realty to inquire about units available for rent prior to March 31, 2019; and (3) were denied the opportunity to rent a unit or provided untrue or incomplete information about available rental units.
The Civil Rights Division enforces the federal Fair Housing Act, which prohibits discrimination in housing on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, familial status, national origin and disability. More information about the department’s fair housing enforcement can be found at www.justice.gov/fairhousing.
USPS Employee Pleads Guilty to Theft of MailRead the Press Release
Leonard C Boyle, Acting United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, and Matthew Modafferi, Special Agent in Charge of the U.S. Postal Service, Office of Inspector General, announced that MICHAEL McGUIRK, 36, of Windham, waived his right to be indicted and pleaded guilty today to theft of mail by a postal employee.
Pursuant to the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act (CARES Act), the court proceeding before U.S. Magistrate Judge Donna F. Martinez occurred via videoconference.
According to court documents and statements made in court, between September 2019 and May 2020, while he was employed as a sales associate at the U.S. Post Office in Columbia, McGuirk stole numerous pieces of mail, including packages and greeting cards that contained gift cards or other items of value. Surveillance camera footage depicted McGuirk in the Columbia Post Office rifling through the mail, concealing mail in his clothing, opening packages and envelopes, and taking cash from the reserve cash register.
McGuirk is scheduled to be sentenced by U.S. District Judge Vanessa L. Bryant on June 23, 2021, at which time he faces a maximum term of imprisonment of five years. He is released pending sentencing.
McGuirk resigned from the U.S. Postal Service in May 2020.
This matter is being investigated by the U.S. Postal Service Office of the Inspector General and is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Tara E. Levens.
Acting U.S. Attorney Boyle encouraged individuals who believe they are a victim of theft related to this case to file a complaint by calling 888-USPS-OIG, or by visiting https://www.uspsoig.gov/form/file-online-complaint.
USP Hazelton Inmate admits to assault charge, sentencedRead the Press Release
CLARKSBURG, WEST VIRGINIA – Timmie Winselle, an inmate at United States Penitentiary Hazelton, West Virginia, has admitted today to assaulting another inmate, Acting United States Attorney Randolph J. Bernard announced.
Winselle, 26, pleaded guilty today to one count of “Assault with a Dangerous Weapon with Intent to do Bodily Harm.” Winselle admitted to using a weapon to assault and injure another inmate in November 2019 in Preston County.
Winselle was sentenced to 24 months of additional incarceration to any sentence he is currently serving.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Christopher L. Bauer prosecuted the case on behalf of the government. The Bureau of Prisons investigated.
U.S. District Judge Thomas S. Kleeh presided.
Two Men Plead Guilty to Fraudulent Scheme to Evade Payroll Taxes and Workers’ Compensation Requirements in Construction IndustryRead the Press Release
Jacksonville, Florida – Gregorio Jose Fuentes-Zelaya (27, Orlando) and Dennis Alexander Barahona (38, Chelsea, MA) have pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit wire fraud and conspiracy to commit tax fraud. Fuentes-Zelaya has pleaded guilty to five counts of wire fraud and two counts of tax fraud. Barahona has pleaded guilty to one count of wire fraud and one count of tax fraud. Each wire fraud count carries a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison and each tax fraud count carries a maximum penalty of 5 years in prison. The United States also will seek forfeiture of $1,367,625, the approximate amount of proceeds obtained as a result of the wire fraud offenses, as well as funds seized from two bank accounts utilized during the scheme, with balances totaling $230,764. Fuentes-Zelaya and Barahona also owe a total of approximately $5,766,286 in restitution for the tax fraud offenses.
Fuentes-Zelaya is scheduled to be sentenced on May 10, 2021. A sentencing date for Barahona has not yet been scheduled.
According to court documents, Fuentes-Zelaya and Barahona established shell companies that purported to be involved in the construction industry. They obtained workers’ compensation insurance policies in the name of the shell companies to cover a minimal payroll for a few purported employees. They then “rented” the workers’ compensation insurance to work crews who had obtained subcontracts with construction contractors on projects in various Florida counties. Fuentes-Zelaya and Barahona sent the contractors a certificate as “proof” that the work crews had workers’ compensation insurance, as required by Florida law. By sending the certificate, the defendants falsely represented that the work crews worked for their companies. Over the course of the scheme, the Fuentes-Zelaya and Barahona “rented” the certificates to hundreds of work crews.
The contractors issued payroll checks for the workers’ wages to the shell companies and the conspirators cashed these checks, then distributed the cash to the work crews after deducting their fee, which was typically about 6% of the payroll. During the period of the scheme, the conspirators cashed payroll checks totaling approximately $22,793,748, with their fees totaling approximately $1,367,625. Neither the shell companies nor the contractors reported to government authorities the wages that were paid to the workers, nor did they pay either the employees’ or the employers’ portion of payroll taxes – including Social Security, Medicare, and Federal Income tax. According to the IRS, the estimated amount of payroll taxes due on wages totaling $22,793,748 is $5,766,286.
The scheme also facilitated the avoidance of the higher cost of obtaining adequate workers’ compensation insurance for the hundreds of workers on the work crews to whom Fuentes-Zelaya and Barahona “rented” the workers’ compensation insurance. Had workers’ compensation insurance policies been purchased for a payroll totaling $22,793,748, the policy premiums would have totaled about $3,600,000. The policies that Fuentes-Zelaya and Barahona purchased, and then “rented” out, were for estimated payrolls of $80,800 to $100,800. The insurance company issued those policies for premiums ranging from $15,206 to $31,268.
This case was investigated by Homeland Security Investigations and the Internal Revenue Service – Criminal Investigation. It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Arnold B. Corsmeier.
Two Former Mortuary Technicians of New York City Office of Chief Medical Examiner Charged with Stealing Decedents’ PropertyRead the Press Release
Two criminal complaints were unsealed today in federal court in Brooklyn charging Charles McFadgen and Willie Garcon with access device fraud for using credit and debit cards that belonged to decedents whose bodies were in the care and custody of the New York City Office of Chief Medical Examiner (“OCME”). McFadgen and Garcon were arrested this morning and are scheduled to make their initial appearances this afternoon before United States Magistrate Judge Roanne L. Mann.
Mark J. Lesko, Acting United States Attorney for the Eastern District of New York; William F. Sweeney, Jr., Assistant Director-in-Charge, Federal Bureau of Investigation, New York Field Office (FBI); and Margaret Garnett, Commissioner, New York City Department of Investigation (DOI), announced the arrests and charges.
“As alleged, the defendants, as mortuary technicians employed by New York City’s OCME, had a solemn duty to care for the bodies of the deceased and treat their personal effects with the utmost respect. Instead, the defendants brazenly pilfered the belongings of the deceased, stole their property and enriched themselves by making unauthorized purchases worth several thousand dollars,” stated Acting United States Attorney Lesko. “These arrests serve as a warning to corrupt city employees that they will be prosecuted and held accountable for their criminal acts and breach of public trust.”
“Government employees, regardless of their position, are supposed to serve their fellow citizens, not steal from them. The alleged behavior of these two former medical examiner office employees stripped families of the dignity they expected to be afforded to their deceased family members, and it broke federal law. Today’s charges serve as a reminder that there are consequences for illegal behavior,” stated FBI Assistant Director-in-Charge Sweeney.
“As representatives of the City's Office of Chief Medical Examiner, these defendants should have provided compassion, dignity, and respect for the deceased New Yorkers they were serving. Instead, they exploited the access of their positions and breached the trust the City placed in them by stealing from the dead, according to the charges. DOI thanks the NYPD, FBI and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of New York for working together to expose the corruption and bring accountability to this charged conduct. Individuals who have experienced similar issues with theft from deceased loved ones are encouraged to make a report to DOI's Office of Inspector General for OCME at (212) 825-5904,” stated DOI Commissioner Garnett.
Garcon Complaint:
Garcon was employed at the OCME between May 2018 and July 2020 as a forensic mortuary technician. His duties included transporting the bodies of decedents from the location of death to the OCME. Garcon was simultaneously employed by the Burlington County Medical Examiner’s Office from February 2020 to May 21, 2020. In May 2020, Garcon was arrested by state authorities in New Jersey and found in possession of property that belonged to four decedents who died in New York City and whose bodies had been placed in the OCME’s custody. According to the OCME’s records, Garcon was assigned to transport the bodies of three of those decedents and was working as an autopsy technician at the OCME in New York when the body of the fourth decedent arrived there. A subsequent investigation revealed that Garcon made nearly $6,500 in unauthorized purchases, including airline travel from Newark to Fort Lauderdale, Florida, using credit and debit cards that belonged to the four decedents.
McFadgen Complaint:
McFadgen was employed at the OCME as a mortuary technician between October 2003 and July 2016 when he retired. McFadgen admitted to investigators that both during and after his employment at the OCME, he used debit and credit cards that he knew had been stolen. McFadgen made more than $13,500 in unauthorized purchases using debit and credit cards stolen from five decedents whose bodies were in the OCME’s custody.
The charges in the complaints are allegations, and the defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty. If convicted, each defendant faces a maximum of 10 years’ imprisonment.
The government’s case is being handled by the Office’s Public Integrity Section. Special Assistant United States Attorney Virginia Nguyen is in charge of the prosecution.
The Defendants:
CHARLES MCFADGEN
Age: 66
Bronx, New YorkE.D.N.Y. Docket No. 21-MJ-378
WILLIE GARCON
Age: 50
Brooklyn, New YorkE.D.N.Y. Docket No. 21-MJ-379
Three men face federal charges in separate child exploitation casesRead the Press Release
AUGUSTA, GA: Three men face the possibility of substantial terms in federal prison after their indictments stemming from separate child exploitation investigations.
All three men are in custody pending trial following initial appearance hearings in U.S. Magistrate Court, said David H. Estes, Acting U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Georgia.
Those charged are:
- Jasiri Hutchison, 20, of Bulloch and Liberty counties, is charged with Production of Child Pornography; and, Coercion and Enticement of a Minor to Engage in Sexual Activity. The indictment alleges that in April 2019, in Bulloch and Liberty counties and in the state of Connecticut, Hutchison persuaded a minor victim “to engage in sexually explicit conduct for the purpose of producing a visual depiction.” Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) leads the investigation in the case, and Hutchison also faces charges in the Middle District of Georgia for Possession of Child Pornography.
- William Voss, 38, of Waynesboro, Ga., is charged with Possession of Child Pornography, a charge that upon conviction carries a statutory penalty of up to 20 years in prison. The indictment alleges that in May 2020 in Burke County, Voss possessed child pornography. The Georgia Bureau of Investigation (GBI) leads the investigation in the case.
- Robert Paul Synenberg, 21, of Augusta, is charged with Possession of Child Pornography, a charge that carries upon conviction a statutory penalty of up to 20 years in prison. The FBI leads the investigation in the case, which came to agents’ attention after a cybertip from the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children in November 2020.
“Our law enforcement partners will work relentlessly to protect our most vulnerable citizens from harm and exploitation,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Estes. “These indictments demonstrate the continued success of those efforts.”
“It takes great partnerships from local, state and federal law enforcement agencies, non-government organizations, and the public to make arrests like these,” said Chris Hacker, Special Agent in Charge of FBI Atlanta. “The FBI will always make it a priority to protect children who can’t protect themselves against people who prey on them.”
“The GBI will continue to work tirelessly to protect innocent victims of online exploitation,” said GBI Director Vic Reynolds. We are grateful for the relationships we maintain with our federal partner agencies.”
“Protecting children from exploitation is one of our most important missions, and we will continue to pursue and arrest these violators to ensure their safety,” said Special Agent in Charge Katrina W. Berger, who oversees Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) operations in Georgia and Alabama.
Criminal indictments contain only charges; defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
HSI, the FBI and GBI are investigating the cases, which are being prosecuted for the United States by Southern District of Georgia Assistant U.S. Attorneys Jennifer J. Kirkland and Project Safe Childhood Coordinator Tara M. Lyons.
Tampa Man Pleads Guilty to Committing Arson During Civil DisturbanceRead the Press Release
Tampa, Florida – Terrance Lee Hester, Jr. (20, Tampa) today pleaded guilty to damaging or destroying by fire a building used in interstate commerce. Hester faces a minimum mandatory sentence of 5 years, and up to 20 years, in federal prison. A sentencing date has not yet been set.
According to court documents, around midnight on May 31, 2020, a protest near a shopping plaza located at 2301 East Fowler Avenue in Tampa devolved into civil unrest, looting, and destruction of property. During this disturbance, the Champs Sports store located in the shopping plaza was set on fire. The building became fully engulfed in fire, resulting in major damage to the building and the loss of property. The estimated loss to the building, the Champs Sports store, and other businesses in the plaza is approximately $1.25 million.
Video footage obtained by investigators revealed that Hester had participated in the civil disturbance and tossed a flaming piece of cloth into the Champs Sports store through a broken window. Fire investigators determined that the fire originated inside the Champs Sports store, and Hester’s act caused or contributed to the cause of the fire.
This case was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, the Tampa Police Department, and Tampa Fire Rescue. It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Michael Sinacore.
Statement of Acting U.S. Attorney Rachael A. Honig Regarding Bias-Motivated Violence and Other Civil Rights ViolationsRead the Press Release
NEWARK, N.J. – Acting U.S. Attorney Rachael A. Honig and FBI Newark Field Division Special Agent in Charge George M. Crouch Jr., today reiterated federal law enforcement’s commitment to investigating and prosecuting all acts of bias-motivated violence and other deprivations of individuals’ civil rights, including crimes committed on the basis of race, ethnicity, religion, sex, national origin, disability, sexual orientation, or gender identity.
“Some of the darkest hours that we have lived through recently as New Jersey residents have involved the horror of violence based on hate,” Acting U.S. Attorney Honig said. “We have seen anti-Semitic violence in Jersey City and a gender- and race-based attack at the home of a federal judge. Now, we face a rising tide of hatred directed at Asian-Americans. New Jersey is one of the most diverse states in the country, and this kind of hate should find no home here. We urge the community to report hate-based crimes to the FBI and to contact our office’s civil rights hotline with information about discrimination in housing, employment, education, or public accommodations.”
“Hate crimes are not only an attack on an individual, but an entire community,” FBI Special Agent in Charge Crouch said. “Investigating these crimes is one of the FBI’s highest priorities. We will work diligently with our law enforcement partners to protect the rights of all Americans.”
The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of New Jersey employs four Assistant U.S. Attorneys dedicated full-time to federal civil rights enforcement: three in the Civil Rights Unit of the Civil Division, and one Senior Civil Rights Counsel in the Criminal Division. The Office works closely in these matters with the Civil Rights Division of the Department of Justice. In the past several years, the Office has brought multiple civil and criminal cases based on federal civil rights laws and has been recognized by the Executive Office of U.S. Attorneys with two Director’s Awards for its work in this area. These Assistant U.S. Attorneys also conduct frequent community outreach, including outreach focused on organizations serving women, people of color, religious groups, and the LBGTQ+ community.
Acting U.S. Attorney Honig and Special Agent in Charge Crouch urged all New Jersey residents to report hate-based crimes to law enforcement. Members of the public who have a civil rights concern or complaint should contact the U.S. Attorney’s Office through its civil rights hotline, which can be reached at 855-281-3339, or by filling out the following form on the Office’s website: /media/1184596/dl?inline. The FBI’s Newark Field office can be reached at (973) 792-3000.
The most recent statistics maintained by the FBI on hate crimes are available here: https://ucr.fbi.gov/hate-crime/2019/hate-crime. Additional resources regarding hate crimes and bias incidents can be found by visiting these links: https://civilrights.justice.gov/#your-rights and https://fbi.gov/investigate/civil-rights/hate-crimes#FBI-Resources.
For additional information about the U.S. Attorney’s Office in the District of New Jersey visit: www.justice.gov/usao-nj/.
Southern Illinois Mail Thief Sentenced to PrisonRead the Press Release
A man who repeatedly stole mail from mailboxes in Southern Illinois is heading to prison. Seth W.
Sorensen, 45, was sentenced today to one year and one day in prison and two years of court
supervision after his release. Last December, Sorensen pled guilty in federal court to one count of
mail theft and two counts of possession of stolen mail.
The federal charges stemmed from three separate incidents that occurred over a four-day stretch in
February 2019. On Feb. 23, 2019, a person in Okawville, Illinois watched as Sorensen drove mailbox
to mailbox stealing mail from houses on M&M Lane and R&R Drive. The person immediately reported the
incident to the Okawville Police Department, who quickly identified Sorensen as the primary suspect
and discovered that he had an active warrant for burglary out of Troy, Illinois.On Feb. 24, 2019, Okawville police went to an apartment where Sorensen was staying and arrested him
on the warrant. During the arrest, officers found a trash bag in Sorensen’s possession that
contained stolen mail belonging to 26 different victims at 19 different residences in Southern
Illinois. Sorensen spent the remainder of February 24 and February 25 in the Madison County Jail.On Feb. 26, 2019, Sorensen was released from jail. He walked from the jail to an apartment complex
on South Morrison Avenue in Collinsville, Illinois, where a resident noticed him peeking into
mailboxes. The resident eventually confronted Sorensen and grabbed a pile of stolen mail from his
hands. The mail was addressed to multiple people in different units within the complex. At least
one of the letters was addressed to the resident herself. After the confrontation, Sorensen fled
the area on foot. The resident called the Collinsville Police Department.A short time later, Collinsville police stopped Sorensen as he was walking. Sorensen
identified himself by showing them the discharge paperwork he had received from the Madison County
Jail earlier that morning. Sorensen initially denied looking through any mailboxes at the apartment
complex or having any stolen mail in his possession, but the officers noticed mail
hanging out of his pocket addressed to individuals on South Chestnut Street – the
very street Sorensen was walking down when he was stopped. When asked about the mail in his
pocket, Sorensen said he found the mail in the street and intended to return it but did not know
where the individuals lived. Collinsville police reminded Sorensen that letters have
addresses on them.
Sorensen was arrested that evening after a short investigation.This case was investigated by the Okawville Police Department, the Collinsville Police Department,
and the United States Postal Inspection Service. The case was prosecuted by Assistant
United States Attorney Luke J. Weissler.South Sioux City Man Sentenced for Possessing with Intent to Distribute Methamphetamine and FirearmsRead the Press Release
Acting United States Attorney Jan Sharp announced that Pedro Valdovinos, age 23, of South Sioux City, Nebraska, was sentenced on March 29, 2021, in federal court in Omaha, Nebraska, after having pled guilty to Possessing with Intent to Distribute Methamphetamine and Possessing Firearms in Relation to a Drug Trafficking Crime. Senior United States District Court Judge Joseph F. Bataillon sentenced Valdovinos to 138 months’ imprisonment. After completing his term of imprisonment, Valdovinos will be required to serve a 5-year term of supervised release as there is no parole in the federal system. Valdovinos also lost any right or claim to the U.S. currency seized during the investigation.
In June of 2019, a cooperating witness bought methamphetamine from Valdovinos inside of his South Sioux City residence with the total being more than 50 grams.
On August 5, 2019, officers executed a Federal search warrant on Valdovinos’s residence. During the initial entry, Valdovinos and co-defendant Leagsaidh Hargreaves were located inside the residence in a basement bedroom closet with a handgun by their feet. A search of the residence revealed approximately 140 grams of methamphetamine, over $35,000 in U.S. currency, and three additional handguns found next to the methamphetamine.
Valdovinos and Hargreaves were arrested and interviewed. Valdovinos took full responsibility for the methamphetamine and the firearms that were located inside of the residence. Hargreaves initially denied any knowledge or involvement but has since pleaded guilty to lying to law enforcement officers. Hargreaves is scheduled for sentencing on May 17, 2021.
This case was investigated by officers of the DEA Sioux City Resident Office.
Six Charged with Bribery Schemes for Official Acts at the Department of Planning and Permitting of the City and County of HonoluluRead the Press Release
HONOLULU, Hawaii – Today, the United District Court for the District of Hawaii unsealed Honest Services Wire Fraud charges against the following six individuals arising out of schemes in which employees of the Department of Planning and Permitting ("DPP") of the City and County of Honolulu took bribes in exchange for performing official acts at DPP:
• Wayne Inouye, 64, of Honolulu, a former Building Plans Examiner at DPP, in Cr. No. 21-00034 LEK (Indictment);
• Jocelyn Godoy, 58, of Pearl City, an employee of the Data Access and Imaging Branch at DPP, in Cr. No. 21-00036 DKW (Indictment);
• Jason Dadez, 42, of Honolulu, a Building Inspector at DPP, in Cr. No. 21-00037 DKW (Indictment);
• Jennie Javonillo, 71, of Waipahu, a former Building Plans Examiner at DPP, in Cr. No. 21-00038 DKW (Indictment);
• Kanani Padeken, 36, of Kaaawa, a Building Plans Examiner at DPP, in Cr. No. 21-00040 DKW (Information); and
• William Wong, 71, of Honolulu, an architect, in Cr. No. 21-00041 DKW (Information).
The Indictment against Mr. Inouye also charges him with one count of making a false material statement to the government.
Acting U.S. Attorney Judith A. Philips stated, "This Office is committed to prosecuting those who betray the public trust for personal gain with all available resources."
"Our citizens entrust their government with great authority and power. It is our responsibility to the communities we serve to represent them ethically and transparently," said Federal Bureau of Investigation Special Agent in Charge Eli S. Miranda. "The FBI will bring all its resources to bear and vigorously pursue criminals who attempt to defraud the American people and our institutions."
The charges in the Indictments and Informations are merely allegations, and a defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
This case is being investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation. The caseis being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Michael Nammar and Craig S. Nolan.
Silver Spring Sex Offender Sentenced to 10 Years in Federal Prison for Possession of Child PornographyRead the Press Release
Greenbelt, Maryland - U.S. District Judge Paula Xinis sentenced John Michael Raley, age 51, of Silver Spring, Maryland to 10 years in federal prison followed by 10 years of supervised release for possession of child pornography. Raley was ordered to pay $9,000 in restitution. Judge Xinis also ordered that, upon his release from prison, Raley must continue to register as a sex offender in the places where he resides, where he is an employee, and where he is a student, under the Sex Offender Registration and Notification Act (SORNA).
The guilty plea was announced by Acting United States Attorney for the District of Maryland Jonathan F. Lenzner and Special Agent in Charge Jennifer C. Boone of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Baltimore Field Office.
According to his guilty plea, in 2012 Raley was convicted in U.S. District Court in Maryland of one count each of distribution and possession of child pornography. Raley was sentenced to seven years in federal prison, followed by 10 years of supervised release. Raley was released from the custody of the Bureau of Prisons on February 15, 2019.
On March 27, 2019, during the administration of a court-ordered polygraph, Raley admitted that after he was released from the custody of the Bureau of Prisons, he obtained his personal effects from another individual to whom he had entrusted the effects during his imprisonment. Raley admitted that among the effects was a secure digital memory card (SD card). Raley had purchased an SD card adapter to plug into his television in order to allow him to view the contents of the SD card on the television at his home in Maryland. Raley admitted that the SD card contained images and videos of child pornography, which Raley had viewed three to four times since his release from prison.
Raley then spoke with his U.S. Probation Officer by telephone in the presence of the polygraph examiner and admitted the same conduct. The Officer advised Raley to go to his home, where the Probation officer met him and confiscated the SD card. A federal search warrant was obtained for the card and a forensic examination was performed by an FBI examiner. The memory card contained thousands of images of child pornography, including boys under the age of 12 and depictions of sadistic conduct and violence.
This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by the United States Attorney’s Offices and the Criminal Division's Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who sexually exploit children, and to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.justice.gov/psc. For more information about Internet safety education, please visit www.justice.gov/psc and click on the "Resources" tab on the left of the page.
Acting United States Attorney Jonathan F. Lenzner commended the FBI for their work in the investigation. Mr. Lenzner thanked Assistant U.S. Attorney Timothy F. Hagan, Jr. who prosecuted the federal case.
For more information on the Maryland U.S. Attorney’s Office, its priorities, and resources available to help the community, please visit www.justice.gov/usao-md/project-safe-childhood and https://www.justice.gov/usao-md/community-outreach.
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San Felipe Pueblo man pleads guilty to two counts of assault with a dangerous weaponRead the Press Release
ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. – Emery Garcia, 36, of the San Felipe Pueblo, pleaded guilty in federal court on March 29 to two counts of assault with a dangerous weapon in Indian Country.
A grand jury indicted Garcia on Nov. 17, 2020. In his plea agreement, Garcia admitted to committing the offense on the San Felipe Pueblo in Sandoval County, New Mexico, on Oct. 8, 2020, assaulting John Doe 1 and John Doe 2 with a board, specifically a piece of 2x4 lumber, with the intent to do bodily harm. Garcia attempted to enter a home through a window and attacked John Doe 1, a minor, with the board when John Doe 1 tried to stop Garcia. Garcia then struck John Doe 2, who attempted to intervene.
Garcia is currently in custody pending sentencing. He faces five to seven years in prison.
The FBI investigated this case with assistance from the Bureau of Indian Affairs. Assistant U.S. Attorney Allison Jaros is prosecuting the case.
Russian national and engineering company admit guilt in scheme to evade U.S. national security trade sanctionsRead the Press Release
SAVANNAH, GA: A Russian national and his engineering company have admitted to charges that they violated U.S. national security laws.
Oleg Vladislavovich Nikitin, general director of KS Engineering (KSE), a St. Petersburg, Russia-based energy company, pled guilty in U.S. District Court to conspiracy to evade U.S. export regulations and to defraud the United States, said David H. Estes, Acting U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Georgia. The charge was brought in a third superseding indictment, USA v. World Mining and Oil Supply et. al, alleging Nikitin and his co-defendants conspired to violate the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) and the Export Control Reform Act of 2018 (ECRA).
As a result of the plea entered before U.S. District Court Judge R. Stan Baker, Nikitin faces up to five years in federal prison and substantial fines and forfeitures, followed by up to three years of supervised release.
“Oleg Nikitin attempted to evade trade sanctions designed to protect the United States from illegal acquisition of industrial equipment by non-aligned powers,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Estes. “We will maximize the use of our nation’s resources to vigorously defend against those who threaten our national security.”
As described in court documents and testimony, Nikitin and KSE admitted conspiring with others to evade U.S. trade sanctions that prohibited export of equipment that could make “a significant contribution to the military potential or nuclear proliferation of other nations, or that could be detrimental to the foreign police or national security of the United States.”
The conspiracy began when an unnamed Russian government-controlled business contracted with Nikitin and KSE to purchase a power turbine from a U.S.-based manufacturer for approximately $17.3 million. The Russian company intended to use the turbine on a Russian Arctic deepwater drilling platform, expressly prohibited by the U.S. Department of Commerce without first obtaining a license.
Nikitin admitted that he and another KSE employee, Anton Cheremukhin, conspired with Gabrielle Villone and his Italian-based company, GVA International Oil and Gas Services (GVA); and GVA employee Bruno Caparini, to obtain the turbine on their behalf. Villone, Caprini and GVA then employed the services of Dali Bagrou and World Mining and Oil Supply (WMO) of Dacula, Ga., to procure the turbine from a U.S.-based manufacturer and to have the turbine shipped overseas. The parties conspired to conceal the true end user of the turbine from both the U.S. manufacturer and the U.S. government by submitting false documentation that stated it would be used by a U.S. company in and around Atlanta.
Nikitin, Villone, and Bagrou were all arrested in Savannah, Ga., while attempting to complete the illegal transaction. Villone was sentenced in June 2020 to 28 months in prison after pleading guilty to the conspiracy. Bagrou remains in custody pending further legal action, and is considered innocent unless and until found guilty in court.
“Special Agents of the Bureau of Industry and Security’s Office of Export Enforcement (OEE) are committed to bringing sanctions violators, who have willfully chosen to threaten our nation’s security, to justice,” said Ariel Joshua Leinwand, Special Agent in Charge of OEE’s Miami Field Office. “These guilty pleas represent the results of an intensive and collaborative approach with our law enforcement partners to vigorously enforce our nation’s export control laws.”
“The illegal export of technology poses a great danger to the United States,” said Special Agent in Charge, Cynthia A. Bruce, DCIS Southeast Field Office. “DCIS and our investigative partners will aggressively pursue and bring to justice those who threaten our national security.”
“This was a methodical plan by Nikitin and his partners to undercut United States sanctions and put our goods in the hands of actors that are a direct threat to our national security,” said Chris Hacker, Special Agent in Charge of FBI Atlanta. “Today’s plea doesn’t mean our work is done. The FBI and our partners will always make threats to our national security a top priority.”
“U.S. Customs and Border Protection takes great pride in working with our partner government agencies to vigorously enforce U.S. export control laws as part of our overall duties and responsibilities in protecting and preserving our national security,” said Henry DeBlock, Area Port Director for CBP Savannah.
The Department of Commerce, Bureau of Industry and Security, Office of Export Enforcement, as well as the Defense Criminal Investigative Service and the Federal Bureau of Investigation are investigating the case with assistance from the Georgia Department of Natural Resources and Customs and Border Protection. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Jennifer G. Solari and Steven H. Lee are prosecuting the case with Trial Attorney William A. Mackie of the National Security Division’s Counterintelligence and Export Control Section.
Restaurant Owners Plead Guilty to Harboring Undocumented WorkersRead the Press Release
Jacksonville, Florida – Ji Lin Qiu (44) and Gui Zhen Yang (37), both of Palm Coast, have pleaded guilty to offenses related to their employment of undocumented aliens at their restaurants. Qiu has pleaded guilty to harboring undocumented aliens for commercial advantage and private financial gain and faces a maximum penalty of 10 years in federal prison. Yang has pleaded guilty to establishing a commercial enterprise for the purpose of evading United States Immigration laws and she faces a maximum penalty of 5 years in federal prison. As part of his plea agreement, Qiu agreed to forfeit a residence in Palm Coast, a 2013 Toyota Sienna van, a 2019 Honda Odyssey van, and a 2020 Honda Odyssey van. A sentencing date has not yet been scheduled.
Qiu and Yang had been indicted on September 14, 2020.
According to court documents, Qiu and Yang, a married couple, owned and operated the Red Bowl restaurant on Bartram Park Boulevard in Jacksonville, the Red Bowl Poké & Hibachi restaurant on Crosshill Boulevard in Jacksonville, and the Fancy Sushi & Grill restaurant on East Highway 100 in Palm Coast. At the restaurants, they employed aliens who were unlawfully present in the United States and who were not legally authorized to work in the United States. Contrary to federal law, they did not require the workers to provide documents to establish that they could legally work in the United States.
Qiu and Yang also owned or rented three residences, each of which was near one of the restaurants. At the residences, they provided rent-free housing to the undocumented workers. They also provided the workers with transportation between the houses and the restaurants. Qiu and Yang paid the workers in cash, did not withhold taxes and other payments from the workers’ wages, and did not pay the employer’s portion of these taxes to government authorities. They also did not report the workers to state revenue authorities as required under Florida law to ensure the collection of the proper amount of unemployment compensation tax.
This case was investigated by Homeland Security Investigations. It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Arnold B. Corsmeier.
Reign of Violence and Drug Distribution Orchestrated from Tennessee Prison Results in Federal IndictmentsRead the Press Release
Nashville, Tenn. - March 30, 2021 - A federal indictment unsealed Friday charged 27 individuals with a host of federal crimes relating to a large scale conspiracy to distribute heroin, methamphetamine, fentanyl and cocaine, announced Acting U.S. Attorney Mary Jane Stewart for the Middle District of Tennessee. Eight others were charged in separate indictments last week and two other individuals had previously been charged. The conspiracy has been ongoing since as early as 2018 and was orchestrated from within the Tennessee State Prison system by Humberto Morales, aka Pelon, 29, of Columbia, Tennessee, who has been incarcerated since 2014. Other charges resulting from this investigation include kidnapping, money laundering, making threats by electronic communication, and firearms violations.
The Tennessee Department of Correction (TDOC) previously sought the assistance of federal law enforcement to address criminal activity occurring within the prison system.
The resulting indictments and other court documents allege that the organization had ties to MS-13, Sur-13, and other street gangs and distributed tens of thousands of fentanyl-laced pills; multiple kilograms of fentanyl and heroin; over fifty pounds of methamphetamine, which was often 95-99 percent pure (commonly referred to as “ice”); as well as smaller quantities of cocaine and marijuana. Court documents also allege that this well-orchestrated conspiracy is linked to at least one murder, horrific assaults, and multiple other crimes of violence.
Morales is alleged to have been the leader of the organization and routinely obtained contraband cell phones which were smuggled into the prison facilities where he was housed. Morales used these phones and encrypted communication services such as WhatsApp to orchestrate activities of the drug distribution network, order acts of violence against individuals, and to direct the flow of cash from drug sales between middle Tennessee and Mexico. Drug proceeds were also used to pay co-conspirators, to pay for drug shipment expenses, bail and legal services, and to purchase firearms.
Notable acts of violence associated with the conspiracy include the severing of a woman’s hand in November 2019, as punishment for losing drug proceeds. During this incident, the woman was kidnapped, driven around Nashville, and then a hatchet was used to chop off one of her hands, before leaving her lying on the street. This incident was recorded on video and sent via encrypted communication on a cell phone. Another incident involved a hitman for the organization who, at the direction of Morales, cut off part of his own pinky finger to prove his continued loyalty to the organization after he lost or stole a small quantity of drugs.
The indictment also charges Morales and Kim Birdsong, 49, of Nashville, with using facilities of interstate commerce (cellular telephones and encrypted messaging services) in an effort to murder a person known as “Pancho”/”Mekaniko,” and that cash, drugs, and the cancellation of a pre-existing drug-related debt were to be provided as payment for that murder. That person was then shot multiple times on April 4, 2019, in Nashville, but survived.
As a result of this investigation, law enforcement seized more than $160,000 in cash drug proceeds and multiple firearms, including a handgun which had been illegally modified to operate as a machinegun, and an operational firearm silencer.
Many of the defendants were charged by criminal complaint as the investigation progressed and have been in custody awaiting indictment. Others were arrested Friday and are in federal custody. Two others are fugitives, including Morales’ girlfriend, Erika Vasquez, 32, aka Chula, of Memphis and Columbia, Tenn., and Magdiel Pina Ramirez, aka Big Show, 28, of Mexico. Ramirez is the person described above who served as a hitman in Mexico and cut off part of his own finger. Both are currently believed to be in Mexico.
Others charged in this investigation are: Jose Juan Alvarado, 44; Oscar Avelar Anguiano, aka Chucky, 33; Grecia Barrios, 33; Kim Lamont Birdsong, aka Bird, 49; Jennifer Cano, 33; Ricardo Davalos-Martinez, 28; Mario Garcia Flores, aka Christhian Colmenares-Ruiz, 33; Jonhy Fernando Jimenez, 38; Antonio Sanchez-Lopez, 23; Jennifer Montejo, 33; Korrine Parker, 43; Luis Ramirez Escudero, 27; Phillip Christopher Smith, aka Felipe, 41; Sinquan D. Smith, 27, all of Nashville; Avigael Cruz, aka Traviesio, 29; Billy Cruz, aka Pee Wee 26; Kevin Oliva-Hernandez, 31; Jairo Rostran, aka Poffi, 28, all of Smyrna, Tenn.; Rico Gross, 38; Armando Lopez, aka Mando, 40; Jesse Sanchez, aka Papi, aka Bori, 31, all of Goodlettsville, Tenn.; Jacob Lee, aka Grenas, 25; Justin Blake Lee, aka Chino, 26; Jasmine Tayor, 26, all of Manchester, Tenn.; Kevin Tidwell, aka Miklo, 27; Melinda Tidwell, both of Ashland City, Tenn.; Terrance Marquette Bobo, 28, of Memphis, Tenn.; Pearline Neal, 31, of Gallatin, Tenn.; Austin Dodd, 25, aka Chucky, of Chapmansboro, Tenn.; Tiffany Messick, 27, of Shelbyville, Tenn.; Stacy Owens, 31, of Decaturville, Tenn.; Zenaida Cano, 42; of Phoenix, Arizona; David Ku, 45, of Inglewood, California; and Gerson Jimenez-Garcia, 38, of Honduras.
Jennifer Montejo, charged in the conspiracy in December 2019, was sentenced on Friday to 25 years in prison. Montejo was arrested at a Nashville bus station as she returned from California after travelling to Los Angeles days earlier. At the time of her arrest, four kilograms of fentanyl, and a kilogram of heroin were discovered in Montejo’s luggage. She pleaded guilty in November 2020.
Acting U.S. Attorney Mary Jane Stewart praised the tremendous efforts of the law enforcement agencies involved in this extensive investigation and noted the unparalleled cooperation between the agencies and the significant resources contributed by the Tennessee Department of Correction and its desire to reduce criminal activity by its inmates.
This multi-year Organized Crime and Drug Enforcement Task Force investigation is being conducted by numerous federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies, including the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms & Explosives; Homeland Security Investigations; IRS Criminal Investigations; U.S. Postal Inspection Service; FBI; Tennessee Department of Corrections-Office of Investigations & Compliance; and others.
If convicted, most defendants face a minimum of 10 years in prison and many face up to life in prison.
All defendants not previously convicted are presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.
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Reality Show Cast Members Charged with Running Nationwide Telemarketing Fraud SchemeRead the Press Release
Audrey Strauss, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, Peter C. Fitzhugh, the Special Agent-in-Charge of the New York Field Office of Homeland Security Investigations (“HSI”), and Dermot Shea, Commissioner of the New York City Police Department (“NYPD”), announced the unsealing of a Superseding Indictment charging JENNIFER SHAH and STUART SMITH with conspiracy to commit wire fraud in connection with telemarketing and conspiracy to commit money laundering. The case has been assigned to United States District Judge Sidney H. Stein.
SHAH and SMITH were arrested earlier today and will be presented this afternoon in Salt Lake City federal court before United States Magistrate Judge Dustin Pead.
Manhattan U.S. Attorney Audrey Strauss said: “Jennifer Shah, who portrays herself as a wealthy and successful businessperson on ‘reality’ television, and Stuart Smith, who is portrayed as Shah’s ‘first assistant,’ allegedly generated and sold ‘lead lists’ of innocent individuals for other members of their scheme to repeatedly scam. In actual reality and as alleged, the so-called business opportunities pushed on the victims by Shah, Smith, and their co-conspirators were just fraudulent schemes, motivated by greed, to steal victims’ money. Now, these defendants face time in prison for their alleged crimes.”
HSI Special Agent-in-Charge Peter C. Fitzhugh said: “Shah and Smith flaunted their lavish lifestyle to the public as a symbol of their ‘success.’ In reality, they allegedly built their opulent lifestyle at the expense of vulnerable, often elderly, working-class people. As alleged, disturbingly, Shah and Smith objectified their very real human victims as ‘leads’ to be bought and sold, offering their personal information for sale to other members of their fraud ring. Working with our partners at the NYPD and the United States Attorney’s Office, SDNY, and with the assistance of HSI Salt Lake City, HSI New York worked to ensure that Shah and Smith will answer for their alleged crimes. As a result, their new reality may very well turn out differently than they expected.”
NYPD Commissioner Dermot Shea said: “These individuals allegedly targeted and defrauded hundreds of victims but thanks to the hard work of the NYPD and our law enforcement partners, this illegal scheme was brought to an end. I congratulate the NYPD detectives, Homeland Security Investigations, and the U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York for their hard work in bringing these persons to justice.”
According to the allegations in the Superseding Indictment[1]:
From 2012 until March 2021, JENNIFER SHAH and STUART SMITH, together with others (collectively, the “Participants”) carried out a wide-ranging telemarketing scheme that defrauded hundreds of victims (the “Victims”) throughout the United States, many of whom were over age 55, by selling those Victims so-called “business services” in connection with the Victims’ purported online businesses (the “Business Opportunity Scheme”).
In order to perpetrate the Business Opportunity Scheme, Participants, including SHAH and SMITH, engaged in a widespread, coordinated effort to traffic in lists of potential victims, or “leads,” many of whom had previously made an initial investment to create an online business with other Participants in the Scheme. Leads were initially generated by sales floors operating in, among other places, Arizona, Nevada, and Utah. The owners and operators of those sales floors operated in coordination with several telemarketing sales floors in the New York and New Jersey area, including in Manhattan, and provided lead lists and assistance in fighting Victim refund requests to other Participants operating those floors.
SHAH and SMITH, among other things, generated and sold leads to other Participants for use by their telemarketing sales floors with the knowledge that the individuals they had identified as “leads” would be defrauded by the other Participants. SHAH and SMITH received as profit a share of the fraudulent revenue per the terms of their agreement with those Participants. SHAH and SMITH often controlled each aspect of the frauds perpetrated by other Participants on the individuals they had identified by, among other things, determining which “coaching” sales floor could buy leads from them, selecting the downstream sales floors to which the “coaching” sales floor was permitted to pass the leads, choosing the firms to provide “fulfillment” services, that is, documents and records purporting to demonstrate that the services the Participants claimed to provide to those Victims were actual and legitimate, setting how much the downstream sales floors could charge, and determining which “products” each of the downstream sales floors could sell.
To perpetrate the Business Opportunity Scheme, certain of the Participants sold alleged services purporting to make the management of Victims’ businesses more efficient or profitable, including tax preparation or website design services, notwithstanding that many Victims were elderly and did not own a computer. At the outset of the Business Opportunity Scheme, certain Participants employed by a purported fulfillment company sent a given Victim electronic or paper pamphlets or provided so-called “coaching sessions” regarding these purported online businesses, but at no point did the defendants intend that the Victims would actually earn any of the promised return on their intended investment, nor did the Victims actually earn any such returns.
SHAH and SMITH undertook significant efforts to conceal their roles in the Business Opportunity Scheme. For example, SHAH and SMITH, among other things, incorporated their business entities using third parties’ names and instructed other Participants to do the same, used and directed others to use encrypted messaging applications to communicate with other Participants, instructed other Participants to send SHAH’s and SMITH’s shares of certain fraud proceeds to offshore bank accounts, and made numerous cash withdrawals structured to avoid currency transaction reporting requirements.
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SHAH, 47, of Park City, Utah, and SMITH, 43, of Lehi, Utah, are each charged with one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud in connection with telemarketing through which they victimized 10 or more persons over the age of 55, which carries a maximum sentence of 30 years, and one count of conspiracy to commit money laundering, which carries a maximum sentence of 20 years. The maximum potential sentences in this case 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 outstanding investigative work of HSI’s El Dorado Task Force and the NYPD. Ms. Strauss also thanked HSI Utah and the United States Attorney’s Office for the District of Utah for their support and assistance in this investigation.
This case is being handled by the Office’s Money Laundering and Transnational Criminal Enterprises Unit. Assistant United States Attorneys Kiersten A. Fletcher, Benet J. Kearney, and Robert B. Sobelman are in charge of the prosecution.
If you believe you have been a victim of the scheme described above, including a victim entitled to restitution, and you wish to provide information to law enforcement and/or receive notice of future developments in the case or additional information, please contact Wendy Olsen-Clancy, the Victim Witness Coordinator at the United States Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York, at 866-874-8900 or [email protected]. You may also report it to Detective Christopher Bastos at 917-480-7167 or [email protected].
The charges contained in the Superseding 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 Superseding Indictment, and the description of the Superseding Indictment set forth herein, constitute only allegations, and every fact described should be treated as an allegation.
Rapid City Woman Found Guilty of Theft of Government Property and FraudRead the Press Release
Acting United States Attorney Dennis R. Holmes announced that Holli Lundahl, a/k/a Holli Telford, age 64, of Rapid City, South Dakota, was found guilty of Theft of Government Property and Supplemental Security Income Benefits Fraud following a federal jury trial in Rapid City, South Dakota. The verdict was returned on March 25, 2021.
The Theft of Government Property charge carries a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison and/or a $250,000 fine, and 3 years of supervised release. The Supplemental Security Income Benefits Fraud charge carries a maximum penalty of 5 years in prison and/or a $250,000 fine, and 3 years of supervised release. Each charge also carries a $100 special assessment to the Federal Crime Victims Fund and restitution may be ordered.
Evidence at trial established Lundahl knowingly stole and converted to her own use over $40,000 worth of Social Security Administration Title XVI Social Security Supplemental Income payments between 2014 and 2019. The evidence showed Lundahl received and kept the payments, even though she was not entitled to them, because she owned property and had resources far in excess of the limits permissible for Title XVI beneficiaries. In order to continue to receive the benefits, Lundahl falsely reported, concealed, and failed to disclose to the Social Security Administration extensive property, resources, and assets she held or possessed.
This case was investigated by the Office of the Inspector General – Social Security Administration. Assistant U.S. Attorney Eric Kelderman prosecuted and tried the case.
A presentence investigation was ordered and a sentencing date has not been set. Lundahl remains released on bond pending sentencing.
Queens Man Pleads Guilty to Securities Fraud ConspiracyRead the Press Release
Earlier today, in federal court in Brooklyn, Tae Hung Kang, also known as “Kevin Kang,” pleaded guilty before United States Magistrate Judge Peggy Kuo to conspiring to commit securities fraud in connection with a scheme involving foreign exchange trading that targeted members of the Korean-American community. When sentenced, Kang faces up to five years in prison, as well as forfeiture and a fine. Kang has also agreed to pay restitution in the amount of $835,058.32.
Mark J. Lesko, Acting United States Attorney for the Eastern District of New York, announced the guilty plea.
“With today's plea, Kang is held accountable for his fraud and for betraying the trust of the Korean-American community who, believing in Kang's integrity, invested hundreds of thousands of dollars in his company's stock," stated Acting U.S. Attorney Lesko. "This Office is committed to safeguarding the investing public and protecting investors whose hard-earned money has been fraudulently misappropriated.” Mr. Lesko thanked the Federal Bureau of Investigation, New York Field Office, for their investigative work on the case, and the United States Commodities and Futures Trading Commission for their assistance during the investigation.
As set forth in court filings and today’s proceeding, Kang defrauded investors located in the Eastern District of New York and elsewhere in connection with foreign exchange trading which refers to trading one currency for another in an effort to profit from fluctuating exchange rates. Kang enticed investors to invest their money into stock issued by his company, Safety Capital Management, Inc. (“Safety Capital”), which did business as FOREXNPOWER. The investors were told their investments would be pooled by Kang and others to conduct foreign exchange trading, or to expand the FOREXNPOWER business. Kang falsely promised investors outsized returns at minimal risk. Ultimately, nearly all of the money that was invested in Safety Capital stock was misappropriated by Kang and his co-conspirators. Kang used some of the money stolen from clients to pay for advertisements targeting additional investors and promoting FOREXNPOWER’s outsized trading returns based on a algorithmic trading method that did not actually exist. Kang’s co-defendant John Won is awaiting trial.
The government’s case is being handled by the Office’s Business and Securities Fraud Section. Assistant United States Attorneys Julia Nestor, Lauren Howard Elbert, Mathew S. Miller and Trial Attorney Gerald M. Moody, Jr., of the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section, are in charge of the prosecution.
The Defendant:
TAE HUNG KANG (also known as “Kevin Kang”)
Age: 57
Bayside, New YorkE.D.N.Y. Docket No. 18-CR-184 (RJD)
Providence Man Indicted on Charge of Illegal Possession of a FirearmRead the Press Release
BOSTON – A Providence man was indicted today by a federal grand jury in Boston in connection with being a felon in possession of a firearm and ammunition.
Roland S. Morgan, 37, was indicted on one count of being a felon in possession of a firearm and ammunition. On March 11, 2021, Morgan was charged by criminal complaint and arrested in Pennsylvania on March 19, 2021. He will make his initial appearance in Boston at a later date.
According to court documents, on Oct. 28, 2020 at approximately 1:00 a.m., a police officer observed a silver Mercedes exiting Interstate 95. The officer noted that the vehicle’s rear license plate was not luminated, a violation of Massachusetts Law. After observing the vehicle make a number of random u-turns, the officer conducted a motor vehicle stop. Morgan was driving the vehicle and was unable to produce a driver’s license. The officer queried Morgan’s identifiers and determined that Morgan had two outstanding arrest warrants issued by Attleboro District Court. Morgan was then removed from his vehicle and booked on the outstanding warrants.
As alleged in court documents, during a search of Morgan’s vehicle, a loaded .38 caliber Smith and Wesson revolver, 43 rounds of .38 caliber ammunition, 10 steel tipped arrows, an orange hunting bow, narcotics, a BB gun and a tan body armor vest were recovered.
Morgan is prohibited from possessing a firearm or ammunition due to prior felony convictions.
The charging statute provides for a sentence of up to 10 years in prison, up to 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; Joseph R. Bonavolonta, Special Agent in Charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Boston Field Division; Seekonk Police Chief Dean Isabella; and Thomas M. Quinn, Bristol County District Attorney made the announcement. Assistant U.S. Attorney Kenneth G. Shine of Mendell’s Major Crimes Unit is prosecuting the case.
The details contained in the charging documents are allegations. The defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
Prison healthcare company agrees to $215,000 settlement relating to Controlled Substances Act claimsRead the Press Release
ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. – Acting U.S. Attorney for the District of New Mexico Fred J. Federici has announced that Centurion Correctional Healthcare New Mexico has agreed to a $215,000 settlement relating to civil claims brought by the Department of Justice on behalf of the United States Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA).
Centurion provides healthcare in prisons in several states. For each facility where Centurion provides healthcare, the DEA issues a registration authorizing Centurion to purchase and distribute controlled substances under the Controlled Substances Act (CSA).
At issue in the civil claim was activity relating to Centurion’s registration for Northeast New Mexico Detention Facility (NENMDF), which expired on October 31, 2019. In its claim, the government contended that Centurion continued to acquire and dispense controlled substances after the expiration of the authorization granted through Centurion’s DEA registration at NENMDF. This activity allegedly continued through November 25, 2019, when another company assumed care for inmates at the facility.
The government also contended that Centurion abandoned its remaining stock of controlled substances and failed to maintain proper records for controlled substances in violation of the terms of the CSA.
By the terms of the settlement, Centurion agrees to pay $215,000 and the government, upon receipt of the settlement amount, releases Centurion from any civil or administrative monetary claim the United States has for the covered conduct under the CSA. Centurion admits no liability or wrongdoing.
“This settlement strengthens our enforcements efforts with regards to the Controlled Substances Act,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Federici. “The Office of the U.S. Attorney plays a vital role in upholding accountability among those authorized by the government to dispense controlled substances. Such authorization conveys a substantial level of trust, and that trust can only be maintained through strict compliance.”
“Everyone must do their part to ensure that prescription medications are not misused and abused,” said Kyle W. Williamson, Special Agent in Charge of the Drug Enforcement Administration’s El Paso Division. “The law requires that registrants do so, and DEA will continue to scrutinize and investigate those entities that fail to comply with the rules set forth in the Controlled Substance Act.”
Assistant U.S. Attorney Ruth F. Keegan represented the United States in the settlement agreement.
Postal Service Employee Charged with Stealing MailRead the Press Release
PITTSBURGH - A resident of New Castle, Pennsylvania has been indicted by a federal grand jury on a charge of committing theft as a postal employee, Acting United States Attorney Stephen R. Kaufman announced today.
The one-count Indictment named Chelsea Balmer, age 33, as the sole defendant.
According to the Indictment, on February 19, 2020, Balmer was caught stealing mail matter while working as an employee of the postal service.
The law provides for a maximum total sentence of not more than five years in prison, a fine of not more than $250,000.00, a term of supervised release of not more than three years, or a combination thereof. Under the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, the actual sentence imposed would be based upon the seriousness of the offense and the prior criminal history, if any, of the defendant.
Assistant United States Attorney Brian W. Castello is prosecuting this case on behalf of the government.
The United States Postal Service Office of Inspector General conducted the investigation leading to the Indictment in this case.
An indictment is an accusation. A defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
Postal Employee Pleads Guilty to Theft of MailRead the Press Release
HARRISBURG – The United States Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Pennsylvania announced that a Lower Paxton Postal employee, Candy Ehler, age 51, of Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, pled guilty on March 29, 2021, before U.S. District Court Judge Sylvia H. Rambo to three counts of theft of mail by an employee.
According to Acting United States Attorney Bruce D. Brandler, on August 2, 2019, the United States Postal Service was notified that a medication package had not been received by its intended recipient. A pattern of missing/stolen medication packages containing opioid based controlled substances that required signature confirmation of receipt was confirmed. These packages were attempted to be delivered by the assigned mail carrier, but were returned to the Lower Paxton Post Office due to the intended recipients not being at their residence. Once returned to the Post Office, video surveillance revealed Postal Carrier Ehler, removing three controlled substance medication packages that were not on her primary route. Ehler did not have a request for second delivery attempt, and the intended recipients never received their medication.
The charges stem from an investigation by the United States Postal Service Office of Inspector General and Department of Veteran’s Affairs Office of Inspector General. Assistant United States Attorney Daryl F. Bloom is prosecuting the case.
A sentence following a finding of guilt is imposed by the court after consideration of the applicable federal sentencing statutes and the Federal Sentencing Guidelines.
Ehler is facing a maximum of 15 years of incarceration and a $750,000 fine. Under the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, the court is also required to consider and weigh a number of factors, including the nature, circumstances and seriousness of the offense; the history and characteristics of the defendant; and the need to punish the defendant, protect the public and provide for the defendant's educational, vocational and medical needs. For these reasons, the statutory maximum penalty for the offense is not an accurate indicator of the potential sentence for a specific defendant.
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Portland Man Sentenced to Federal Prison for Bank Fraud Scheme Involving MinorsRead the Press Release
PORTLAND, Ore.—A Portland, Oregon man was sentenced to federal prison today for a bank fraud scheme whereby he would recruit others, including minors, to deposit fraudulent checks into their personal bank accounts and withdraw cash, announced Acting U.S. Attorney Scott Erik Asphaug.
Marcus Raiford, 22, was sentenced to 12 months and one day in federal prison and five years’ supervised release. He was also ordered to pay $75,681 in restitution.
According to court documents, beginning in August 2017 and continuing until at least September 2018, Raiford and others recruited individuals, primarily minors, young adults, and students at various local high schools, to deposit counterfeit checks at banks and credit unions throughout the Portland Metropolitan Area. Raiford and his accomplices used social media platforms, including Snapchat and Instagram, to recruit the minors and young adults, promising significant cash payments in exchange for their participation in the scheme.
Individuals recruited by Raiford and his accomplices were instructed to open accounts at various banks or use existing accounts to deposit counterfeit checks made payable to the recruits. The recruits were told they worked for a company that held inactive investments and accounts in need of liquidation, thereby concealing the scheme. In some instances, the recruits were told they needed to deposit the counterfeit checks to help the company avoid tax liability.
Raiford and others requested the recruits’ identification, ATM card, and pin number so counterfeit checks could be made payable to them and deposited into their accounts. Raiford and his accomplices then withdrew the money from ATMs or made point of sale purchases with the ATM cards at various commercial businesses. Over the course of the conspiracy, Raiford and his accomplices deposited more than $150,000 in counterfeit checks.
On December 19, 2018, a federal grand jury in Portland returned a 14-count indictment charging Raiford and his accomplices with conspiring to commit bank fraud, bank fraud, and money laundering. On August 26, 2020, Raiford pleaded guilty to the conspiracy charge.
This case was investigated by the Portland Police Bureau with assistance from Homeland Security Investigations and the Vancouver Police Department. It was prosecuted by Rachel K. Sowray, Special Assistant U.S. Attorney for the District of Oregon.
Plymouth Man Sentenced to 151 Months in Prison for Distributing Child PornographyRead the Press Release
Acting United States Attorney W. Anders Folk today announced the sentencing of ALEXZANDER MICHAEL CARNEAL, 29, to 151 months in prison for distributing child pornography. CARNEAL, who pleaded guilty on November 30, 2020, was sentenced today before Judge Susan Richard Nelson in U.S. District Court.
According to the defendant’s guilty plea and documents filed with the court, CARNEAL used GigaTribe to acquire and trade diaper erotica and other sexually explicit content involving minors. On multiple occasions between May and June 2019, CARNEAL exchanged messages with an undercover federal agent. CARNEAL also stated to the undercover agent that he had a large collection of child pornography and diaper content, which CARNEAL made available for distribution.
This case was the result of an investigation conducted by FBI Minneapolis, FBI New York, and the Plymouth Police Department.
This case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Laura M. Provinzino and former Assistant U.S. Attorney Julie E. Allyn.
Defendant Information:
ALEXZANDER MICHAEL CARNEAL, 29
Plymouth, Minn.
Convicted:
- Distribution of child pornography, 1 count
Sentenced:
- 151 months in prison
- 20 years of supervised release
- Restitution ordered – amount to be determined at a later date
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United States Attorney’s Office, District of Minnesota: (612) 664-5600
Pittsburgh Woman Charged with Stealing Mail while Working as a Postal Service EmployeeRead the Press Release
PITTSBURGH - A resident of Pittsburgh, PA has been indicted by a federal grand jury on a charge of committing theft as a postal employee, United States Attorney Scott W. Brady announced today.
The one-count Indictment named Christa Murray, age 36, as the sole defendant.
According to the Indictment, on December 19, 2019, Murray was caught stealing mail matter while working as an employee of the postal service.
The law provides for a maximum total sentence of not more than five years in prison, a fine of not more than $250,000.00, a term of supervised release of not more than three years, or a combination thereof. Under the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, the actual sentence imposed would be based upon the seriousness of the offense and the prior criminal history, if any, of the defendant.
Assistant United States Attorney Brian W. Castello is prosecuting this case on behalf of the government.
The United States Postal Service Office of Inspector General conducted the investigation leading to the Indictment in this case.
An indictment is an accusation. A defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
Orange County Man Arrested on Criminal Complaint Alleging He Received Illegal Kickbacks from Corrupt Sober Living HomesRead the Press Release
SANTA ANA, California – Special agents with the FBI this morning arrested an Orange County man on federal charges of soliciting and receiving illegal kickbacks from corrupt sober living homes in exchange for finding them new patients in a process known as “body brokering.”
Darius Jarell Moore, 27, of Santa Ana, is charged with one count of solicitation and receipt of payment in return for referring a patient to a recovery home or clinical treatment facility. Moore is scheduled to make his initial appearance this afternoon in United States District Court in Santa Ana.
An affidavit filed with the complaint alleges Moore received hundreds of thousands of dollars in kickbacks from four Orange County facilities with two separate ownership groups via a shell company – Moore Recovery Solutions LLC, a Santa Ana-based business. The kickbacks allegedly were covered up by bogus contracts for “marketing” services.
According to the affidavit, “Patient brokering has created a situation where substance abusers with no desire to stop using drugs are able to gain income from their insurance benefits by periodically participating in treatment programs.…The facilities generally know patient brokers pay patients and give patients drugs, but they maintain deniability by discharging patients who admit they were paid and stopping work with particular patient brokers as soon as such actions become overtly known.”
The complaint specifically alleges that Moore in October 2020 accepted a $16,000 kickback wired to a bank account held in the name of Moore Recovery Solutions from a checking account of a corrupt sober living home. The affidavit further details more than $350,000 in illegal kickbacks that the sober living homes allegedly paid to Moore in exchange for recruiting new patients. The sober living homes then submitted claims to health insurers.
The affidavit also details a recorded conversation between Moore and a sober living home employee discussing the clients Moore had placed into the facility and the cash value of the clients.
In December 2020, investigators executing search warrants at Moore’s residence found marketing agreements between Moore Recovery Solutions and two sober living homes that agreed to pay him $70,000 per month and $10,000 per month, respectively, but no other evidence that Moore’s company was a legitimate marketing service, according to the affidavit.
Investigators also found text messages from patients to Moore asking for money and asking to be placed in treatment. In response, Moore told the patients he would only talk to them through Signal, an encrypted communication application.
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, Moore would face a statutory maximum sentence of 10 years in federal prison.
This matter was investigated by the FBI, the United States Office of Personnel Management – Office of Inspector General, and the California Department of Insurance.
This case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Benjamin R. Barron, Chief of the Santa Ana Branch Office, and DOJ Trial Attorney Justin Givens of the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section.
North Fort Myers Man Sentenced to 14 Years in Federal Prison for Attempting to Entice A Minor to Engage in Sexual Activity and Possessing Child Sexual Abuse Images and VideosRead the Press Release
Fort Myers, Florida – U.S. District Judge Thomas P. Barber has sentenced Frederick Charles Trueblood, Jr. (47, North Fort Myers) to 14 years in federal prison for attempting to coerce and entice a minor to engage in sexual activity and for possessing images and videos depicting the sexual abuse of children. Trueblood was also sentenced to a 10-year concurrent prison term for attempting to transfer obscene material to a minor. In addition, he was ordered to serve a life term of supervised release and to register as a sex offender.
Trueblood had pleaded guilty on October 30, 2020.
According to court documents, FBI agents began an undercover investigation to identify individuals who approach children in online chat rooms to lure them into sexual activity. Between May 13 and 14, 2019, Trueblood sent an unsolicited chat message to an individual whom he believed to be a 13-year-old girl but was actually an undercover agent. During the chat, Trueblood asked the “child” to send him graphic nude images exposing herself to him. Trueblood also sent multiple explicit pictures of himself to the “child.”
On August 23, 2019, FBI agents executed a federal search warrant at Trueblood’s home and seized his computers. During an interview with agents, Trueblood admitted that he had used the chat site “just for sexual fun.” He admitted that quickly after meeting kids on the chat site that he would have sexually explicit conversations with them and that he had sent pictures of his penis to many children on the chat site, and that another chat site had actually banned him for sending such pictures to kids. A subsequent forensic examination of Trueblood’s computers revealed numerous images and videos depicting the sexual abuse of young children that he had been collecting since May 2018.
This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Fort Myers Child Exploitation and Human Trafficking Task Force. It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Yolande G. Viacava.
This is another case 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.justice.gov/psc.
New Orleans Man Sentenced for Embezzlement of Union FundsRead the Press Release
NEW ORLEANS, LA – MARK DOUGLAS, age 72, a resident of New Orleans, Louisiana, was sentenced for embezzlement of union funds by the Honorable Greg G. Guidry, announced U.S. Attorney Duane A. Evans. DOUGLAS was sentenced to 24 months of probation and a $100 special assessment. DOUGLAS was also ordered to pay $7,078.35 in restitution to the United Food and Commercial Workers Local 1101.
According to court documents, between November 11, 2011 and January 17, 2015, DOUGLAS acted as President of the United Food and Commercial Workers Local 1101. DOUGLAS was responsible for the local’s grievances with the Domino Sugar Company and running the day to day operations of the union.
Union officers were permitted to file “lost time” claims to be reimbursed for conducting union business. Lost time is generally taken for arbitrations, attorney visits, accountant visits, or negotiations with Domino Sugar Company. During his time as President, DOUGLAS filed fraudulent “lost time” claims with the union, thereby unlawfully obtaining $7,078.35 that he was not entitled to receive.
U.S. Attorney Evans praised the work of the U.S Department of Labor, Office of Labor-Management Standards, in investigating this matter. The prosecution of this case is being handled by Assistant U. S. Attorney G. Dall Kammer, Chief, General Crimes.
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Navajo woman pleads guilty to abandonment and abuse of a child resulting in deathRead the Press Release
ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. – Tonya Mae Dale, 28, of the Navajo Nation, NM, pleaded guilty in federal court on March 24 to a charge of involuntary manslaughter in Indian Country.
A grand jury previously returned an indictment against Dale on Sept. 25, 2019. According to the indictment and other court records, Dale committed the offense in San Juan County on or about June 26, 2019. In her plea, Dale admitted to driving while intoxicated with her children in the vehicle, and her intoxication contributed to her vehicle becoming stuck. The next day Dale decided to leave her vehicle and began walking. At some point, she decided to leave her children, a baby and a young child, and seek help on her own. When she returned with assistance to the location she had left her kids, only the baby was still there. The other child had wandered away and was found deceased the next day.
Dale is currently in custody pending sentencing. She faces up to eight years in prison.
The FBI investigated this case with assistance from the Navajo Nation Police Department. Assistant U.S. Attorney Nicholas Marshall is prosecuting the case.
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Middlesex County Man Admits Interfering with Law Enforcement Officers During Civil DisorderRead the Press Release
TRENTON, N.J. – A Middlesex County, New Jersey, man today admitted attempting to interfere with law enforcement officers during a civil disorder when he attempted to set fire to a police vehicle during a riot in Trenton, Acting U.S. Attorney Rachael A. Honig announced.
Justin D. Spry, 22, of South Plainfield, New Jersey, pleaded guilty by videoconference before U.S. District Judge Brian R. Martinotti to an information charging him with one count of attempting to obstruct, impede, or interfere with law enforcement officers during a civil disorder affecting commerce.
According to documents filed in this case and statements made in court:
On May 31, 2020, large-scale protests were held throughout the United States, including in Trenton, in response to the death of George Floyd. Although the May 31st protest in Trenton was peaceful earlier in the day, violence erupted later. A group of individuals proceeded down East State Street in downtown Trenton and began to riot, smashing store fronts, looting stores, and attacking multiple marked Trenton Police Department vehicles parked on the 100 Block of East State Street.
A City of Trenton street camera and other video footage taken by an individual present on the street captured Kadeem Dockery light an explosive device and throw it through the open front driver’s side window of a Trenton Police Department vehicle. Dockery then removed his shirt and handed it to Killian Melecio, who then attempted to stuff the shirt in the gas tank of the police vehicle and ignite it. Melecio was then assisted by Spry in attempting to set fire to the police vehicle. Law enforcement officers on scene arrested Spry, but Melecio and Dockery fled. Law enforcement later identified Melecio and Dockery through analysis of street camera and other video footage. They were arrested on Aug. 5, 2020.
Melecio pleaded guilty on Jan. 26, 2021, to one count of attempting to obstruct, impede, or interfere with law enforcement officers during a civil disorder affecting commerce.
The charge of attempting to interfere with law enforcement officers during a civil disorder to which Spry and Melecio have pleaded guilty carries a maximum penalty of five years in prison and a maximum fine of $250,000. Sentencing for Spry is scheduled for Aug. 3, 2021.
Acting U.S. Attorney Honig credited special agents of the FBI and task force officers of the Joint Terrorism Task Force in Newark, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge George M. Crouch Jr., with the investigation leading to today’s guilty plea. She also thanked officers of the Trenton Police Department, under the direction of Police Director Sheilah Coley; troopers of the New Jersey State Police, under the direction of Col. Patrick J. Callahan; and officers of the New Jersey Department of Corrections, under the direction of Commissioner Marcus O. Hicks, for their assistance.
The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Alexander E. Ramey and Michelle S. Gasparian of the U.S. Attorney’s Office’s Criminal Division in Trenton.
The charges and allegations remaining against Kadeem Dockery are merely accusations, and he is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
Michigan Man Pleads Guilty to Federal Hate Crime for Attacking Black TeenagerRead the Press Release
A Michigan man pleaded guilty today to a federal hate crime for attacking a Black teenager.
Lee Mouat, 43, of Newport, willfully caused bodily injury to a Black teenager because of the teenager’s race.
According to the plea agreement, Mouat confronted a group of Black teenagers, including the victim, at a state park in Monroe. 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.
“Hate-fueled incidents like this one have no place in a civilized society,” said Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Pamela Karlan for the Civil Rights Division. “The Justice Department is committed to using all the tools in our law enforcement arsenal to prosecute violent acts motivated by hate.”
“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 young victim in this case suffered tremendously from this vicious, racially motivated assault. Every individual citizen has the right to not live in fear of violence or attack based on the color of their skin.”
“Mouat’s hateful and violent conduct, motivated by racial intolerance, was intended to physically harm the victim as well as create fear within the African-American community,” said Special Agent in Charge Timothy Waters of the FBI’s Detroit Division. “The FBI and our law enforcement partners will continue to ensure that if a crime is motivated by bias, it will be investigated as a hate crime and the perpetrators will be held responsible for their actions. We encourage anyone who has been the victim of or witness to such a crime to report it to the FBI.”
Mouat will be sentenced at a hearing scheduled for June 24, 2021. He faces a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison, three years of supervised release, and a fine of up to $250,000.
This case was investigated by the FBI and is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Frances Carlson of the Eastern District of Michigan and Trial Attorney Tara Allison of the Civil Rights Division.
Mexican National Charged with Holding American Citizen Hostage and Drug TraffickingRead the Press Release
WILMINGTON, Del. – U.S. Attorney David C. Weiss for the District of Delaware, announced today that Luis Raul Castro Valenzuela, aka “Chacho,” was charged with holding a U.S. Citizen, listed in the indictment by his/her initials (hereinafter “the victim”), with kidnapping and with hostage taking. The three-count indictment also alleged that Castro Valenzuela conspired to distribute heroin and fentanyl between March 2017 and November 11, 2020.
U.S. Attorney Weiss said, "The pursuit of justice takes many forms. Few cases illustrate this principle more clearly than this one-where investigators followed a drug operation in Bear, Delaware to King of Prussia, Pennsylvania and then to Sinaloa, Mexico, ultimately leading to the rescue of a U.S. Citizen held hostage by an alleged member of the Sinaloa Cartel. The collaboration between local, state, federal, and Mexican officials in this case is unprecedented and demonstrates what can be accomplished when agencies selflessly work towards a single objective. Finally, I want to express our deep appreciation to the Mexican prosecutors, law enforcement officers, and military personnel for their critical assistance."
“The rescue of this victim is the culmination of an international and multi-jurisdictional drug trafficking and smuggling investigation impacting the people of Delaware and surrounding areas,” stated Brian L. Jones, Resident Agent in Charge of Homeland Security Investigations (HSI). “We are all relieved that this victim has been rescued safely but it also drives home the dangers of narcotics trafficking and the violent behavior of the Mexican drug cartels. Homeland Security Investigations wants to thank our law enforcement partners, domestically and in Mexico, for their dedication to combatting drug trafficking and we will use every resource available to stop the flow of illegal narcotics into the United States.”
Damon Wood, the Postal Inspector in Charge of the Philadelphia Division stated, “This case started with investigators from several different agencies independently pursuing different leads. When they came together, they found themselves investigating a conspiracy to distribute illegal narcotics that stretched from the Philadelphia suburbs, down through Delaware, and into Mexico. I want to commend the hard work of our law enforcement partners from over a dozen agencies who helped develop the charges announced today, not the least of which includes the Mexican authorities, who, as a result of information developed here, rescued a U.S. citizen held against their will in Mexico. Keeping the employees and customers of the Postal Service safe and the mail free from criminal misuse are the primary missions of the Postal Inspection Service. As an agency, we have taken, and will continue to take, aggressive steps to interrupt and investigate those who use the mail to distribute illegal narcotics and launder their proceeds.”
“Today a dangerous criminal is off the streets thanks to a large-scale coordinated effort between our partners in the U.S. and in Mexico,” said Jennifer C. Boone, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI Baltimore Field Office. “In this law enforcement collaboration, not only was a victim being held hostage rescued but more than a million dollars’ worth of illegal drugs was seized. The citizens of Delaware have the FBI’s commitment that we will continue to aggressively investigate criminal organizations that target our communities with their drug-related violent activity and ensure that they are held accountable.”
“While IRS-Criminal Investigation is known for tax investigations, the assistance we provided in this investigation is a reminder that whenever there is a need to follow the money, we are often called upon,” said IRS-CI Special Agent in Charge Thomas Fattorusso. “We are highly skilled at financially disrupting and dismantling drug trafficking organizations. We are proud to have assisted in this investigation; joining forces with our law enforcement partners to hold these individuals accountable.”
“Today’s indictment is a prime example of cooperation among international, federal, state, and local authorities in securing justice for victims,” said Delaware Attorney General Kathy Jennings. “I am thankful for their tireless work, which not only removed a victim from harm’s way, but disrupted a drug trade that has bred so much violence in our communities.”
“Drug dealing is a dangerous and often violent enterprise, and thanks to the hard work and successful collaboration of these agencies, a victim's life was spared,” said Pennsylvania Attorney General Josh Shapiro. “My office will continue to work with local, state, federal, and international authorities to keep Pennsylvanians safe from those who profit from drug trafficking.”
Although the Indictment was obtained in November 2020, it was sealed until the victim was rescued and the defendant was arrested. As reported by Mexican authorities, in February 2021, Mexican law enforcement officers executed multiple warrants in Culiacan, Mexico. The victim was safely recovered and is in good health. Castro Valenzuela was arrested as part of the rescue operation; Mexican authorities have lodged their own charges and allege that he is a member of the Sinaloa Cartel.
The United States is pursuing the extradition of Castro Valenzuela to the District of Delaware so that he may be tried in federal court.
Four individuals were also charged in the District of Delaware with a conspiracy to distribute heroin and fentanyl: Jamar Jackson, aka “Jay”, 37, of Chester, Pennsylvania and Bear, Delaware; Denise Brown, aka “China”, 34, of King of Prussia, Pennsylvania; Harley Douglas, 37, of Bear, Delaware; and Nicole Jackson, 35, of Dover, Delaware. Douglas was also charged with two firearms offenses.
In total, the investigation resulted in the seizure of approximately 7.5 kilograms of heroin and/or fentanyl, 14.5 pounds of methamphetamine, 12 guns, and $180,000. The street value of these drugs easily exceeds $1 million.
The primary investigating agencies in this case are HSI, U.S. Postal Inspection Service, and the FBI. Instrumental assistance was also provided by the IRS Criminal Investigation, U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration, the Delaware State Police, the Pennsylvania State Police, the Newport Police Department, the Elsmere Police Department, the Philadelphia Police Department, the Pennsylvania Office of Attorney General Bureau of Narcotics Investigations and the Chester Police Department. The investigation was supported by the Liberty Mid-Atlantic High Intensity Drug Area program (HIDTA), and the Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF). Other prosecutors’ offices who assisted in the investigation include the Delaware Department of Justice, the Montgomery County District Attorney’s Office, as well as other U.S. Attorney’s Offices. The Justice Department’s Office of International Affairs provided significant assistance including support and coordination between Fiscalía General de la República (FGR) of Mexico and U.S. law enforcement. Subprocuraduria Especializada en Investigaciones de Delincuencia Organizada (SEIDO) also provided substantial assistance on this case and was instrumental in locating the victim and arresting Castro Valenzuela.
A copy of this press release is located on the website of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Delaware. Related court documents and information is located on the website of the District Court for the District of Delaware or on PACER by searching for Case No. 20-CR-00075 (Castro Valenzuela) and Case No. 20-CR-00084 (Jamar Jackson et. al.).
Memphis Man Sentenced to 30 Years for Committing Multiple Armed Business RobberiesRead the Press Release
Memphis, TN – Brandon Guffin, 25, has been sentenced to 360 months in federal prison for committing multiple armed business robberies. Acting U.S. Attorney Joseph C. Murphy Jr., announced the sentence today.
According to information in presented in court, from December 9, 2018 through December 31, 2108, Guffin committed nine armed robberies of businesses throughout the greater Memphis area. He targeted such businesses as Mapco, Circle K gas stations, Family Dollar and KFC.
On April 25, 2019, a federal grand jury returned an 18-count indictment against Guffin charging him with brandishing a firearm during nine business robberies. Guffin pleaded guilty to 13 counts of the indictment on November 4, 2019.
On March 25, 2021, U.S. District Judge Thomas L. Parker sentenced Guffin to 360 months in federal prison to be followed by five years’ supervised release. There is no parole in the federal system.
This case was investigated by the FBI’s Safe Streets Task Force.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Elizabeth Rogers prosecuted this case on behalf of the government.
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Marrero Man, Convicted in 2006 of Child Pornography Possession, Pleads Guilty Again to Possession of Child PornographyRead the Press Release
NEW ORLEANS – U.S. Attorney Duane A. Evans announced that BRADLEY EDWARD CORLEY, age 46, a resident of Marrero, Louisiana, pleaded guilty today before United States District Judge Jay C. Zainey to Count Two of a two-count Indictment charging him with possession of images and videos depicting the sexual exploitation of children, including children as young as approximately four (4) years old, in violation of 18 U.S.C. 2252(a)(4)(B). In 2006, CORLEY was convicted in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Louisiana of possession of child pornography.
According to court documents, in about September 2019, Special Agents with the Federal Bureau of Investigation (“FBI”) received a tip that an individual, subsequently determined to be CORLEY, had uploaded approximately seven (7) images depicting the sexual exploitation of children to a digital application and distribution platform designed for video gaming communities. Agents executed a search warrant at CORLEY’s residence in March 2020 and seized several electronic devices that contained files depicting the sexual victimization of children. A forensic examination of several of the devices confirmed that CORLEY had used them to search for, download, and save at least 60,000 images and 1,5000 videos depicting the sexual victimization of children, including by visiting a web forum on June 16, 2019, August 4, 2019, and March 9, 2020. The filed depicted children as young as approximately four (4) years old engaging in sexually explicit conduct, including numerous images and videos that portrayed “sadistic or masochistic conduct or other depictions of violence.”
Because of his prior conviction, if convicted in this matter CORLEY faces a mandatory minimum term of imprisonment of ten (10) years and a maximum term of imprisonment of twenty (20) years for the possession charge. CORLEY also faces a lifetime of supervised release, a $250,000 fine, and he can be required to register as a sex offender. Sentencing has been scheduled before Judge Zainey for June 29, 2021.
This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice. Led by 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 www.projectsafechildhood.gov.
U.S. Attorney Evans praised the work of the Federal Bureau of Investigation in investigating this matter, with support from the Jefferson Parish Sheriff’s Office. Assistant United States Attorney Jordan Ginsberg is in charge of the prosecution.
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Manchester Pair Plead Guilty to Participating in Drug Trafficking ConspiracyRead the Press Release
CONCORD – Jovan Callaghan, 25, and Chrystal Callaghan, 42, of Manchester, pleaded guilty in federal court to conspiracy to distribute, and possess with intent to distribute, fentanyl and crack cocaine, Acting United States Attorney John J. Farley announced today.
According to court documents and statements made in court, in the spring of 2020, investigators received information from confidential sources that Jovan and Chrystal Callaghan and a co-defendant were selling crack cocaine and fentanyl from their residence in Manchester. Law enforcement officers learned that Chrystal Callaghan and a co-conspirator would travel to New York to purchase crack cocaine. On three separate occasions, officers conducted lawful traffic stops of their vehicle returning from New York and seized over 300 grams of crack cocaine. In late 2020, confidential sources conducted six controlled purchases of fentanyl and crack cocaine from the three co-defendants.
On December 24, 2020, investigators executed a search warrant at the residence and seized over one kilogram of fentanyl and a firearm, along with large amounts of cash and drug use and packaging materials.
Jovan and Chrystal Callaghan are scheduled to be sentenced on July 6, 2021.
Charges against a third defendant, Melissa Gazaway, remain pending.
“Drug traffickers endanger our citizens and damage our neighborhoods,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Farley. “We are working closely with our law enforcement partners to identify and prosecute the drug dealers who are peddling fentanyl and other deadly drugs in the Granite State. Thanks to the hard work of our federal, state, and local partners, these individuals will no longer be selling deadly drugs in Manchester.”
This matter was investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration, the New Hampshire State Police, the Manchester Police Department, and the Nashua Police Department. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Georgiana L. MacDonald.
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Manchester Man Indicted for Fentanyl Trafficking and Maintaining a Drug-Involved PremisesRead the Press Release
CONCORD – Michael Cicciu, 41, of Manchester was indicted by a federal grand jury on Monday and charged with one count of possession of fentanyl with intent to distribute and one count of maintaining a drug-involved premises, Acting United States Attorney John J. Farley announced today.
According to the indictment, on September 3, 2020, Cicciu possessed a quantity of fentanyl with intent to distribute. The indictment also alleges that between October 26, 2019, and September 3, 2020, Cicciu managed and controlled a property on High Street in Manchester and made the premises available for storing, distributing, and using controlled substances.
Cicciu was arrested on state charges on September 3, 2020, and currently is being detained.
The charges in the indictment are only allegations. The defendant is presumed to be innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
The case was investigated by the Manchester Police Department.
This case is part of Operation Synthetic Opioid Surge (S.O.S.). In July of 2018, Attorney General Jeff Sessions announced the creation of S.O.S., which is being implemented in the District of New Hampshire and nine other federal districts. The goal of S.O.S. is to combat the large number of overdoses and deaths associated with fentanyl and other synthetic opioids. In New Hampshire, the U.S. Attorney’s Office is focusing its efforts on prosecuting synthetic opioid trafficking cases arising in Hillsborough County, which includes Manchester and Nashua.
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Man Charged with Organizing Smuggling Event that Led to Deaths of 13 Mexican and Guatemalan NationalsRead the Press Release
Assistant U. S. Attorneys Timothy Coughlin (619) 546-6768, Victor White (619) 546-8439, Blair Perez (619) 546-7963, Shauna Prewitt (619) 546-7937, Patrick Swan (619) 546-8450
NEWS RELEASE SUMMARY – March 30, 2021
EL CENTRO – Jose Cruz Noguez of Mexicali, Mexico, was charged in federal court today with coordinating the March 2, 2021 smuggling event that led to the deaths of 13 Mexican and Guatemalan nationals in a crash of an overloaded vehicle near Holtville, California.
Cruz, a legal permanent resident of the United States who has spent time in San Jose, California, was taken into custody last night as he crossed into the U.S. from Mexico at the Calexico Port of Entry. He made his first appearance in federal court in El Centro today before U.S. Magistrate Judge Ruth Bermudez Montenegro.
Cruz was charged with Conspiracy to Bring Aliens to the United States Outside a Port of Entry Causing Serious Bodily Injury/Placing a Life in Jeopardy, and Bringing in Aliens Without Presentation for Financial Gain. Judge Montenegro ordered that Cruz remain in custody and scheduled a detention hearing for Monday, April 5, 2021 at 9 a.m.
“These smuggling networks seek maximum profit by moving as many people as possible across the border with zero regard for their safety and well-being,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Randy Grossman. “Cramming dozens of people into eight-passenger vehicles and driving recklessly to avoid detection shows an utter disregard for human life. We will find and prosecute smugglers who use these methods and cause such tragic and avoidable deaths.” Grossman commended Assistant U. S. Attorneys Timothy Coughlin, Victor White, Shauna Prewitt, Patrick Swan and Blair Perez and agents from Homeland Security Investigations and the U.S. Border Patrol, El Centro Sector Intelligence Unit, for their excellent work on this case.
“Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) remains steadfast in our commitment to pursue members of human smuggling networks such as the network that caused the tragic deaths in the March 2 smuggling incident,” said Cardell T. Morant, special agent in charge for HSI San Diego. “Our investigative efforts have led to the arrest of an individual who allegedly put those lives in danger, and this brings us another step closer to providing closure for the families. We will continue to work collaboratively with our law enforcement partners to bring the perpetrators of this heinous crime to justice.” HSI’s tip line in the Calexico area is (760) 335-5343.
“Thirteen individuals lost their lives on March 2nd due to unscrupulous human smugglers,” said El Centro Sector Border Patrol Chief Patrol Agent Gregory K. Bovino. “The U.S. Attorney’s Office, Homeland Security Investigations and the U.S. Border Patrol will stop at nothing to find, arrest, and prosecute smuggling organizations and this case is evidence of that.”
Cruz came to the attention of law enforcement when he was identified by another suspected smuggler who claimed to be an associate of Cruz. The associate was arrested at the Campo Border Patrol Station for an unrelated smuggling event on March 15, two weeks after the fatal crash. The associate pointed the finger at Cruz, telling authorities he had worked for Cruz in the past, and had been recruited by Cruz to be the driver of the ill-fated vehicle from that tragic day. Cruz had offered him $1,000 per passenger, but he declined, the complaint said.
According to the complaint, the events of March 2 unfolded like this:
At approximately 5:56 a.m., Border Patrol Agents from the El Centro Border Patrol Station received a report from the California Highway Patrol of more than a dozen individuals running away from a burning GMC Yukon SUV and into the desert in Holtville, California. Border Patrol Agents were asked to respond to this suspected human smuggling event. At approximately 6:10 a.m., Border Patrol Agents responded to the area and extinguished the fire. Border Patrol Agents also followed foot tracks into the desert and apprehended 19 individuals hiding in the surrounding brush.
Separately, at approximately 6:05 a.m., a Remote Video Surveillance System (RVSS) operator at the Calexico Border Patrol Station spotted multiple vehicles and approximately 20 individuals gathered in a remote area just south of the United States/Mexico border. He also noticed that the border fence in the area had been breached and an approximately 10-foot section of it had been removed and was laying on the ground in Mexico. Border Patrol Agents then reviewed video footage from the area and discovered that two vehicles had crossed through the fence at approximately 5:23 a.m.: the GMC Yukon SUV and a Ford Expedition.
At 7:05 a.m., Border Patrol Agents at the Calexico Border Patrol Station received a request from the Calexico Police Department to assist with a mass-casualty vehicle crash in Holtville, California. Border Patrol Agents responding to the crash identified one of the vehicles involved as the Ford Expedition that recently had breached the border fence. A total of 25 individuals had been in the Ford Expedition at the time of the crash. Subsequent inspection of the Ford Expedition revealed that all but the driver and front passenger seats had been removed, presumably to fit that large number of people.
Despite the best efforts of law enforcement and medical personnel, 12 individuals – including the suspected driver – died at the scene of the crash. Another individual died on the way to the hospital. The surviving 12 individuals were transported to various hospitals far and wide, including in San Diego. Many of the survivors were diagnosed with serious injuries.
According to the complaint, on March 26, 2021, the suspected smuggler who claimed to be an associate of Cruz participated in a secretly recorded conversation with Cruz. During the recorded call, Cruz confirmed his involvement in the March 2, 2021, event, including that his other associates cut the border fence; that the vehicles were fully loaded; and that he collected money for the event. Further, Cruz stated there were 60 “Pollos” – his term for customers – in the two vehicles and the driver was going to make $28,000.
The associate told authorities he had grown up in Mexicali, Mexico and had known Cruz for several years. He said that he illegally entered the United States six months ago and started working for Cruz, who he described as a coordinator. He said Cruz paid him to drive individuals who are in the United States illegally from El Centro, California to Los Angeles, California. He said Cruz required him to harbor an individual who was illegally in the United States at his home in El Centro, California. In addition, the associate said Cruz required that he scout areas near El Centro, California where Cruz had groups of people illegally enter the United States. According to the associate, Cruz oversees the transportation of individuals who are in the United States illegally to stash houses; collects smuggling payments from family members or sponsors; recruits drivers; and scouts for the presence of law enforcement.
The associate stated that two weeks prior to the March 2, 2021, smuggling event, Cruz attempted to recruit him to drive one of the smuggling vehicles north from Mexico into the United States through a section of the fence that Cruz said would be breached. Cruz told his associate there would be up to 20 people in the vehicle and that the associate would be paid $1,000 per person for the job. According to the complaint, Cruz also told the associate that Cruz would oversee the smuggling event and would arrange for the vehicles that crossed to go to a stash house in Holtville, California. The associate claimed he declined Cruz’s offer.
Federal officials wish to thank the Mexican and Guatemalan consulates for their assistance in notifying family members of those individuals who died in the crash and in identifying and contacting family members of those hospitalized as a result of this tragedy.
At the hearing, Cruz was advised of the charges pending against him. The matter was set for a preliminary hearing on April 13, 2021 at 9 a.m. and arraignment on April 27, 2021 at 9:00 a.m. before Judge Montenegro. The Court appointed Federal Defenders as defense counsel in this case.
DEFENDANT Case Number 21MJ8250
Jose Cruz Noguez Age 47 Mexicali, Mexico
SUMMARY OF CHARGES
Conspiracy to Bring Aliens to the United States Outside a Port of Entry Causing Serious Bodily Injury/Placing a Life in Jeopardy –Title 8, U.S.C., Secs. 1324(a)(1)(A)(i), (v)(I), and (B)(iii)
Maximum Penalty: Twenty years in prison.
Bringing in Aliens Without Presentation for Financial Gain – Title 8, U.S.C., Sec. 1324(a)(2)(B)(ii)
Maximum Penalty: For a first or second violation, not less than three years or more than 10 years in custody; for a third violation, not less than five years or more than 15 years of custody.
INVESTIGATING AGENCIES
Homeland Security Investigations
United States Border Patrol, El Centro Sector Intelligence Unit
*The charges and allegations contained in an indictment or complaint are merely accusations, and the defendants are considered innocent unless and until proven guilty.
Law Firm Bookkeeper Sentenced for Fraud, Identity TheftRead the Press Release
PROVIDENCE – A former bookkeeper/office manager who admitted to embezzling more than $740,000 from a Rhode Island law firm that employed her, fraudulently collecting nearly $20,000 in temporary disability insurance payments, and filing fraudulent documents when applying for a mortgage from a Rhode Island bank, was sentenced today to five years in federal prison.
According to court documents, Sarah Gaulin, 39, a former employee of the law firm of Hamel, Waxler, Allen and Collins (HWAC), devised and executed multiple schemes and forged law firm checks to fraudulently obtain $740,953 in law firm funds.
Gaulin previously admitted to the court that she prepared and cashed HWAC checks made payable to herself, which included the forged signature of a law firm partner; prepared HWAC checks payable to her own creditors; and prepared HWAC checks payable to law firm credit card companies and other third party vendors to pay for personal purchases and expenses, such as her rent, mortgage, automobile lease and repairs, AT&T service, and credit card debts.
Additionally, according to court documents, Gaulin used more than 550 forged HWAC checks to purchase $292,190 worth of gift cards from Staples.
Gaulin also admitted that she submitted fraudulent bank statements to a Rhode Island bank as part of a mortgage application she filed with the bank. Gaulin admitted to submitting personal bank statements reflecting a positive balance when in fact her actual account was routinely overdrawn. Gaulin reflected that among her expenses was rent she paid monthly, when, in fact, she had been using funds she illegally obtained from HWAC to make the payments.
Additionally, as detailed in court documents, from March 26, 2016, to July 23, 2016, and from May 5, 2018, to August 11, 2018, Gaulin fraudulently collected approximately $19,588 in temporary disability insurance payments from the Rhode Island Department of Labor and Training. Gaulin claimed she was unable to work due to injury or illness, when, in fact, she remained employed during the time she was collecting the benefits.
On October 13, 2020, Gaulin pleaded guilty to two counts of bank fraud, and one count each of aggravated identity theft and wire fraud.
Gaulin was sentenced today by U.S. District Court Judge William E. Smith to 60 months in federal prison to be followed by three years of supervised release. Additionally, Gaulin was ordered to pay restitution in the amount of $760,541, to include $740,953 to HWAC and $19,588 to the Rhode Island Department of Labor and Training.
Gaulin’s sentence is announced by Acting United States Attorney Richard B, Myrus, Superintendent of the Rhode Island State Police Colonel James M. Manni, and Christina D. Scaringi, Special Agent in Charge of the Northeast Region of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development Office of Inspector General.
The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Dulce Donovan.
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Las Vegas woman indicted on fraud and money laundering chargesRead the Press Release
CLARKSBURG, WEST VIRGINIA – Shelly Anne Leipham, of Las Vegas, Nevada, is facing fraud charges, Acting United States Attorney Randolph J. Bernard announced.
Leipham, 65, was indicted on March 2, 2021 on three counts of “Wire Fraud,” five counts of “Mail Fraud,” and three counts of “Money Laundering.” Leipham is accused of calling an elderly victim living in Harrison County and claiming the victim won one million dollars. Leipham is accused of defrauding the victim of nearly $25,000 by directing the victim to send that amount to her over the course of a two-year period by mail and wire.
“This case showcases just one of the many ways people prey on our elderly neighbors. Lottery scams aren’t new, and it’s most despicable when the perpetrator targets someone who is vulnerable. We encourage everyone to be vigilant and suspicious. If it sounds too good to be true, it’s most likely a scam,” said Bernard.
The government is also seeking a money judgment in the amount of $336,402.
Leipham is facing up to 20 years of incarceration and a fine of up to $250,000 for each of the wire fraud and mail fraud counts. She’s facing up to 20 years of incarceration and a fine of up to $500,000 for each of the money laundering counts. Under the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, the actual sentence imposed will be based upon the seriousness of the offenses and the prior criminal history, if any, of the defendant.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Sarah E. Wagner is prosecuting the case on behalf of the government. The Internal Revenue Service and the West Virginia State Police investigated.
This case is being prosecuted as a part of the Department of Justice Elder Fraud Initiative. Since the bipartisan Elder Abuse Prevention and Prosecution Act (EAPPA) was signed into law, the Department of Justice has participated in hundreds of enforcement actions in criminal and civil cases that targeted or disproportionately affected seniors.
An indictment is merely an accusation. A defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
Lakeland Man Pleads Guilty to Receiving Child Sex Abuse Videos from the Largest Darknet Child Pornography Website, Which Was Funded by BitcoinRead the Press Release
Tampa, Florida – Jack R. Dove, III (41, Lakeland) has pleaded guilty to receiving and possessing images and videos depicting the sexual abuse of children. He faces a minimum mandatory penalty of 5 years, and up to 20 years, in federal prison. His sentencing hearing is scheduled for June 29, 2021.
Dove had been indicted on January 29, 2019.
According to court documents, Dove used the cryptocurrency bitcoin to pay for a membership to a Darknet marketplace called “Welcome To Video,” which contained the largest collection of child sexual exploitation materials by volume on the Darknet. In March 2018, the Korean National Police in South Korea seized the server that was used to operate the “Welcome To Video” website, which contained over 250,000 child sexual exploitation videos. The website exclusively advertised child sexual exploitation videos available for purchase and download by members of the website using bitcoin. An analysis of the server revealed that Dove had created multiple accounts. In January and February 2017, Dove used one of his accounts to purchase “points” from the website. Dove then used those “points” to download and received approximately 8,700 megabytes of child sex abuse material. In August 2018, Dove used another account to pay for “VIP” membership to the website granting him unlimited downloads from the website over a six-month period. During his VIP membership status, Dove downloaded and received approximately 38 videos depicting minors engaged in sexually explicit conduct, including young children.
On November 30, 2018, federal agents executed a search warrant at Dove’s Lakeland home and seized several electronic devices. A forensic analysis of the devices revealed that Dove had in fact received the child sex abuse videos that he had previously purchased from the “Welcome To Video” website and was in possession of additional child sex abuse material depicting young children, including infants and toddlers, who had been bound and subjected to sadistic and violent acts during the production of the videos.
This case was investigated by Homeland Security Investigations. The international investigation was led by IRS-Criminal Investigation, Homeland Security Investigations, the National Crime Agency of the United Kingdom, and the Korean National Police of the Republic of Korea. It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Lisa M. Thelwell and Ilyssa Spergel, with assistance from Trial Attorney C. Alden Pelker of the Criminal Division’s Computer Crime and Intellectual Property Section.
This is another case 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.justice.gov/psc.
Lake Elsinore Man Pleads Guilty to Criminal Charge for Bagman Role in Conspiracy to Defraud Elderly by Posing as Federal AgentsRead the Press Release
LOS ANGELES – A Riverside County man pleaded guilty today to a federal criminal charge that he participated in an international conspiracy where he helped collect more than $500,000 in cash conned out of elderly victims by other co-conspirators pretending to be federal agents threatening the victims with arrest on bogus warrants.
Anuj Mahendrabhai Patel, 31, a.k.a. “Mike” and “Indio,” of Lake Elsinore, pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit mail fraud and wire fraud.
According to his plea agreement, from April 2019 to March 2020, Patel participated in an international conspiracy that deceived elderly victims out of their money. Other members of the conspiracy, some of whom are believed to be in India, telephoned victims and pretended to be government employees or law enforcement officers. Using several false pretenses – including phony badge numbers and using spoofed government telephone numbers – the co-conspirators convinced the victims, most of whom were elderly, that their identities or assets were in trouble.
Some victims were told that their Social Security numbers had been linked to crimes and that there were warrants issued by courts authorizing the victims’ arrests. The co-conspirators further told the victims that to clear the warrants, they should withdraw their savings and send cash by mail to other members of the scheme.
The victims were ordered to send the parcels through shipping companies that allowed parcel recipients to pick up parcel so long as the recipients had identification matching the names listed on the parcel as the addressees. The addresses the defendants gave primarily were at locations in Riverside County, but also in Los Angeles and San Diego counties.
Patel admitted he used tracking numbers to monitor the victims’ parcels, and communicated with couriers – Elmer Miranda Barrios, 36, a.k.a. “Welbin Raul Mejia” and “Joe Rodriguez,” and William Margarito Barrios, 36, Elmer Barrios’s cousin, both of Lake Elsinore – who used fraudulent identification documents matching the names listed on the parcels as addresses. Patel also admitted to receiving or intending to receive 18 packages sent by victims.
The total loss in this case is approximately $541,420 and Patel admitted the scheme involved at least 10 victims, many of whom he knew were vulnerable people.
United States District Judge Otis D. Wright II has scheduled a June 28 sentencing hearing, at which time Patel will face a statutory maximum sentence of 20 years in federal prison.
William Barrios pleaded guilty on January 4 to one count of conspiracy to commit mail fraud and wire fraud, and was sentenced on March 29 and was given a time-served sentence of five months in federal prison and was ordered released to immigration authorities for deportation. Elmer Barrios is scheduled to go on trial in this matter on May 4.
This matter was investigated by Homeland Security Investigations; the Social Security Administration; the United States Department of Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration; the Murrieta Police Department; the San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Department; the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department; the Huntington Beach Police Department; the Fullerton Police Department; the Stanislaus County (California) Sheriff’s Department; the Seattle Police Department; the Brownsville (Texas) Police Department; the St. James Parish (Louisiana) Sheriff’s Office; the Cook County (Illinois) Sheriff’s Office; the Addison (Illinois) Police Department; the Columbus (Ohio) Division of Police; the Northwest Lancaster County (Pennsylvania) Regional Police Department; the Edison Township (New Jersey) Police Department; and the St. Petersburg (Florida) Police Department.
This case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Peter H. Dahlquist of the Riverside Branch Office.
The U.S. Attorney’s Office in Los Angeles is one of six offices participating in the Transnational Elder Fraud Strike Force, a joint law enforcement effort that brings together the resources and expertise of federal law enforcement and non-governmental organizations to combat international fraud schemes that disproportionately affect American seniors.
Justice Department Settles Housing Discrimination Lawsuit Against Staten Island, New York Rental Agent and Real Estate AgencyRead the Press Release
The Justice Department announced today that its Civil Rights Division, together with the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of New York, has reached a settlement with Village Realty of Staten Island Ltd. and Denis Donovan, a sales and former rental agent at Village Realty, to resolve a lawsuit filed last year alleging discrimination against African Americans in violation of the Fair Housing Act.
Today’s agreement, which is in the form of a consent decree, must still be approved by the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of New York. The settlement resolves claims that Donovan discriminated against prospective renters on the basis of race by treating African Americans who inquired about available rental units differently and less favorably than similarly-situated white persons and that Village Realty is legally responsible for Donovan’s alleged discrimination because he was acting as Village Realty’s agent. The lawsuit was based on the results of testing conducted by the department’s Fair Housing Testing Program, in which individuals pose as renters to gather information about possible discriminatory practices. The department’s complaint alleges that Donovan told African-American testers about fewer rental units than white testers, offered white testers rental discounts and opportunities to inspect units that were not offered to African-American testers, generally offered African-American testers units only in racially mixed neighborhoods while offering white testers units in both overwhelmingly white and racially mixed neighborhoods, and made more encouraging comments to white testers about available rental units.
“For 30 years – since its establishment in 1991 – the Fair Housing Testing Program has played a critical role in helping the Justice Department root out discrimination that might otherwise go undetected,” said Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Pamela S. Karlan of the Civil Rights Division. “Today’s settlement reflects the department’s continued commitment to uncover and eliminate discrimination in all forms and to ensure equal access to housing regardless of race.”
“Today’s settlement underscores the importance of making housing equally available to all residents of this district, regardless of race,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Mark J. Lesko of the Eastern District of New York. “This office is committed to ending racial discrimination and to achieving fairness and equality in housing.”
Under the consent decree, the defendants will establish a settlement fund of $15,000 to compensate victims of Donovan’s alleged discriminatory practices and pay a civil penalty of $2,500 to the United States. The agreement prohibits the defendants from engaging in further acts of discrimination and requires them to implement nondiscriminatory standards and procedures, undergo fair housing training, and provide periodic reports to the department.
Individuals who believe they may have experienced discrimination at Village Realty should contact the Justice Department toll-free at 1-800-896-7743 or by email at [email protected]. Individuals may be entitled to relief from the settlement fund if they (1) are African-American; (2) visited or called Village Realty to inquire about units available for rent prior to March 31, 2019; and (3) were denied the opportunity to rent a unit or provided untrue or incomplete information about available rental units.
The Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division enforces the federal Fair Housing Act, which prohibits discrimination in housing on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, familial status, national origin and disability. More information about the department’s fair housing enforcement can be found at www.justice.gov/fairhousing.