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10 November 2020
Eagle Butte Woman Sentenced on Assaulting Federal Officers and Firearm ChargesRead the Press Release
United States Attorney Ron Parsons announced that an Eagle Butte, South Dakota, woman convicted of Assaulting Federal Officers and Felon in Possession of a Firearm, was sentenced on November 5, 2020, by Chief Judge Roberto A. Lange, U.S. District Court.
Justin Twite, age 23, was sentenced to 68 months in federal prison, followed by three years of supervised release, and a special assessment to the Federal Crime Victims Fund in the amount of $200.
Twite was indicted by a federal grand jury on April 9, 2019. She pled guilty on August 18, 2020.
On December 21, 2018, Twite engaged Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe Police Officers in a high speed chase that ended when her vehicle broke down in an open field. Law enforcement surrounded Twite’s vehicle. Twite assaulted the officers by discharging a pistol round from the vehicle, in the direction of law enforcement. Twite discharged the firearm a second time straight into the air. Realizing the firearm malfunctioned after the second shot, officers rushed to subdue Twite and place her under arrest. Twite was also prohibited from possessing a firearm after being convicted of a felony level offense in January 2018.
This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program bringing together all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve to reduce violent crime and make our neighborhoods safer for everyone. The Department of Justice reinvigorated PSN in 2017 as part of its renewed focus on targeting violent criminals, directing all U.S. Attorney’s Offices to work in partnership with federal, state, local, and tribal law enforcement and local communities to develop effective, locally-based strategies to reduce violent crime.
This case is also part of Project Guardian, the Department of Justice’s signature initiative to reduce gun violence and enforce federal firearms laws. Initiated by the Attorney General in the fall of 2019, Project Guardian draws upon the Department’s past successful programs to reduce gun violence; enhances coordination of federal, state, local, and tribal authorities in investigating and prosecuting gun crimes; improves information-sharing by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives when a prohibited individual attempts to purchase a firearm and is denied by the National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS), to include taking appropriate actions when a prospective purchaser is denied by the NICS for mental health reasons; and ensures that federal resources are directed at the criminals posing the greatest threat to our communities. For more information about Project Guardian, please see: https://www.justice.gov/projectguardian.
This case was investigated by the Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe Law Enforcement Services and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. Assistant U.S. Attorney Michael Elmore prosecuted the case.
Twite was immediately turned over to the custody of the U.S. Marshals Service.
Eagle Butte Man Indicted on Meth Trafficking ChargeRead the Press Release
United States Attorney Ron Parsons announced that an Eagle Butte, South Dakota, man has been indicted by a federal grand jury for Possession with Intent to Distribute a Controlled Substance.
Anthony Story, age 42, was indicted on August 11, 2020. He appeared before U.S. Magistrate Judge Mark A. Moreno on November 9, 2020, and pled not guilty to the Indictment.
The maximum penalty upon conviction is up to 20 years in prison and/or a $1,000,000 fine, at least three years up to a lifetime of supervised release, and $100 to the Federal Crime Victims Fund. Restitution may also be ordered.
The Indictment alleges that on or about August 14, 2019, Story did knowingly and intentionally possess with intent to distribute a mixture or substance containing a detectible amount of methamphetamine in Eagle Butte.
The charge is merely an accusation and Story is presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty.
The investigation is being conducted by the Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe Law Enforcement Services and the Northern Plains Safe Trails Drug Enforcement Task Force. Assistant U.S. Attorney Cameron J. Cook is prosecuting the case.
Story was remanded to the custody of the U.S. Marshals Service pending trial. A trial date has not been set.
Doctor’s Employee Admits Role in Genetic Testing Kickback and Bribery SchemeRead the Press Release
TRENTON, N.J. – A Pennsylvania woman today admitted participating in a conspiracy to receive bribes and kickbacks in exchange for ordering genetic tests, U.S. Attorney Craig Carpenito announced.
Kimberly Schmidt, 46, of Moscow, Pennsylvania, pleaded guilty by videoconference before U.S. District Judge Anne E. Thompson to an information charging her with one count of conspiring to violate the anti-kickback statute.
According to documents filed in this case and statements made in court:
Schmidt worked for Lee Besen, a primary care physician with a medical office in Peckville, Pennsylvania. From December 2018, Besen and Schmidt accepted monthly cash kickbacks and bribes in exchange for collecting DNA samples from Medicare patients and sending them for genetic tests to clinical laboratories in New Jersey and Pennsylvania. The cash kickbacks typically ranged from $500 to $1,500, and Besen typically accepted the cash inside his medical office.
When Besen did not receive his kickback and bribe payments, the volume of genetic tests he ordered dipped. But when those payments flowed to Besen, he increased that volume because, as Besen said in a recorded conversation, “Greenbacks speak.” Besen enlisted Schmidt to help him with the scheme by preparing paperwork for the genetic tests. In turn, Schmidt received kickbacks and bribes that were calculated based on the volume of genetic tests that Besen generated.
Even as the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic substantially reduced in-patient visits, Besen continued participating in the scheme because, as he was recorded saying, he wanted “greenbacks” to pay for his “pool house.”
As a result of the scheme, Medicare paid approximately $350,374 for genetic tests generated from Besen’s medical practice.
Conspiracy to violate the federal anti-kickback statute is punishable by a maximum of five years in prison and a fine of $250,000, or twice the gross gain or loss derived from the offense, whichever is greater. Sentencing is scheduled for March 16, 2021.
U.S. Attorney Carpenito credited special agents of the FBI, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge George M. Crouch Jr. in Newark; IRS-Criminal Investigation, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Michael Montanez in Newark; and U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Office of Inspector General, Philadelphia Regional Office, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Maureen Dixon, with the investigation leading to the charges. He also thanked the FBI Scranton Field Office, FBI Philadelphia Division, and the Pennsylvania Attorney General’s Office for their assistance.
The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorney Joshua L. Haber of the Health Care Fraud Unit and Executive Assistant U.S. Attorney Rahul Agarwal.
The charges against and allegations in the information pertaining to Besen are merely accusations, and he is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
Des Moines Man Sentenced to Prison for Possession of Child PornographyRead the Press Release
DES MOINES, IA – On November 9, 2020, United States District Court Chief Judge John A. Jarvey sentenced Phillip Christopher Lytton, age 43, formerly of Des Moines, to 48 months in prison for Possession of Child Pornography, announced United States Attorney Marc Krickbaum. Lytton was ordered to serve five years of supervised release to follow his prison term and comply with sex offender registry requirements upon release.
The investigation began in early 2019 after law enforcement received an investigative lead from the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children that images of child pornography had been uploaded on a social media account associated with Lytton. The investigation showed that Lytton posted multiple videos and images of child pornography on his Tumblr account from about September 28, 2018 to about November 12, 2018. Lytton was employed as a Transportation Security Officer and worked screening passengers at the Des Moines International Airport from August 2018 until mid-2019. The Transportation Security Administration (TSA) is an agency of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security.
This case was investigated by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security Office of Inspector General (OIG) and Homeland Security Investigations (HSI). This case was prosecuted by the United States Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Iowa as part of the United States Department of Justice’s “Project Safe Childhood” initiative, which was started in 2006 as a nationwide effort to combine law enforcement investigations and prosecutions, community action, and public awareness in order to reduce the incidence of sexual exploitation of children.
Any persons having knowledge of a child being sexually abused are encouraged to call the Iowa Sexual Abuse Hotline at 1-800-284-7821.Congolese Man Pleads Guilty to Mail Fraud ConspiracyRead the Press Release
PORTLAND, Maine: A Congolese man pleaded guilty today in federal court in Portland to conspiring to commit mail fraud, U.S. Attorney Halsey B. Frank announced.
According to court documents, from March 2015 to November 2016, Mukonkole Huge Kifwa, 35, participated in a conspiracy to obtain money through a fraudulent credit card scheme using an international mail carrier. Kifwa and his co-conspirators obtained unauthorized access to bank accounts belonging to unwitting individuals in the United Kingdom, with cash advances using fraudulent credit cards.
Kifwa faces up to 30 years in prison, five years of supervised release and a $1,000,000 fine. He will be sentenced after the completion of a presentence investigation report by the U.S. Probation Office.
The Scarborough Police Department; the U.S. Department of State, Diplomatic Security Service; U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations; and the City of London (U.K.) Police Department investigated the case.
CoConspirator Sentenced to 10 Years’ Imprisonment in Multi-Million Dollar Investment Fraud Scheme that Victimized Professional Hockey Players and Long Island InvestorsRead the Press Release
Earlier today, in federal court in Central Islip, Tommy Constantine was sentenced by United States Circuit Judge Joseph F. Bianco to 10 years’ imprisonment for stealing millions of dollars raised from Long Island residents and professional athletes that were intended for investment in land developments in Hawaii and a start-up credit card business based in Arizona, among other purposes. Constantine and coconspirator Phillip Kenner were convicted at trial in July 2015. Constantine was convicted of one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud, five substantive counts of wire fraud, and one count of conspiracy to commit money laundering. The Court entered a forfeiture money judgment in the amount of approximately $8.5 million and ordered that Constantine forfeit all his right, title and interest in specific assets, including an oceanfront resort in Mexico, real property in Hawaii and a Falcon 10 jet airplane, and ordered restitution in the amount of $5.2 million. On October 5, 2020, Judge Bianco sentenced Kenner to 17 years’ imprisonment. The Court has scheduled a restitution proceeding for Kenner on November 18, 2020.
Seth D. DuCharme, 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 Jonathan D. Larsen, Special Agent-in-Charge, Internal Revenue Service-Criminal Investigation (IRS-CI), announced the sentence.
“For years, Constantine and his coconspirator abused the trust that these victims placed in them, stealing their hard-won earnings and diverting millions of dollars for their own use. When the investors started asking questions, rather than come clean, Constantine doubled down, re-victimizing the victims by convincing them to put even more good money in their bad hands. The jury’s verdict, and the Court’s sentences, reaffirm that greed-fueled crime will not pay off for fraudsters in the end,” stated Acting United States Attorney DuCharme. Mr. DuCharme expressed his grateful appreciation to the FBI and IRS, the agencies responsible for leading the government’s investigation.
“Constantine convinced investors to trust him with their money, on more than one occasion, for the sole purpose of diverting their funds into entities that benefited him. He’s the next in line in this case to receive his sentence today and face the consequences of his actions,” stated FBI Assistant Director-in-Charge Sweeney.
“Tommy Constantine and co-conspirator, Phillip Kenner, created a multi-million dollar criminal enterprise based on other people’s money,” stated IRS Special Agent-in-Charge Larsen. “Constantine went to great lengths in cultivating relationships based on trust and promises of future earnings. Constantine then breached that trust of several victims who have reached the pinnacle of success all for his personal gain. IRS-CI will continue to unravel these criminal enterprises where fraud is perpetuated and victims harmed.”
As early as 2004, Constantine and Kenner siphoned millions of investor dollars into a labyrinth of holding companies, diverting those dollars from their approved uses into companies, real estate and other ventures – such as Constantine’s car racing endeavors – that solely benefited the defendants.
Constantine gained access to these investor funds via his relationship with Kenner. Kenner was a collegiate hockey player in upstate New York, and his teammate, Joe Juneau, a future Olympian and National Hockey League star, introduced Kenner to a number of other NHL players in the 1990’s as Kenner began his career as a Boston-based financial advisor. Through those early contacts, Kenner developed a roster of clients, including former New York Islander Michael Peca; former New York Islander and New York Ranger Brian Berard; Darryl Sydor and Bill Ranford, both two-time Stanley Cup champions; and other NHL players whose careers and playing earnings blossomed just as they placed more and more trust in Kenner to invest and manage their finances and wealth. Instead, Kenner and Constantine diverted these earnings for their own uses.
The Hawaii Real Estate Investment Scheme
Beginning in 2003, Kenner convinced Peca, Berard and several others to invest $100,000 each for the development of land in Hawaii into luxury estates and to open personal lines of credit at a bank, collateralized by their personal stock, bond and savings accounts worth at least $10 million. Kenner assured the investors that the lines of credit would be used only to pay for initial development costs associated with the Hawaii project and would be fully replenished after Lehman Brothers Holdings, Inc. agreed to loan the project up to $105 million in August 2006. In fact, Kenner borrowed nearly all of investors’ lines of credit to acquire his personal interest in unrelated real estate projects in Hawaii and Mexico and to cover his own and Constantine’s personal expenses.
In an offshoot of the scheme, Constantine brokered a $3.5 million loan from an Arizona businessman ostensibly to close on a Hawaii parcel of land. Constantine put up no money of his own, but walked away from the transaction – funded with assets diverted from Peca, Berard and others – with approximately $2 million.
The Eufora LLC Scheme
In 2002, Constantine founded Eufora LLC, a prepaid debit card business. Between February 2008 and May 2009, Eufora was operating in the red, and as Constantine testified in civil depositions, the company was nearly worthless. Notwithstanding, Kenner persuaded clients to invest in Eufora. While representing that he was investing his clients’ funds in Eufora, Kenner instead wired $725,000 of his clients’ funds to Constantine’s personal account. Kenner also directed the wiring of an additional $700,000 of his clients’ funds to Eufora’s account, and promptly re-wired those funds to a coconspirator’s personal account. The diverted funds were used to cover the costs of Kenner’s and Constantine’s home mortgages, credit card bills and other debts.
The Global Settlement Fund Scheme
In early 2009, Kenner’s clients who had opened lines of credit for the Hawaii venture received notices that their credit lines were in default. For years, Kenner concealed that he had wiped out most of his clients’ funds by borrowing against one line of credit to pay monthly interest charges for other another account. By late 2008, the concealment scheme collapsed. Notwithstanding, Kenner and Constantine persuaded their clients to invest additional funds to a Global Settlement Fund. The clients contributed more than $2.9 million toward the fund, but the vast majority of the money was diverted to the defendants’ personal use, which included Constantine buying his personal home out of foreclosure, Kenner and Constantine paying legal bills related to Kenner’s personal investment in a tequila company in Mexico, defending Constantine in Florida litigation over his race car sponsorship activities, and an exploratory and unsuccessful effort by Constantine to buy Playboy Enterprises.
The government’s case is being handled by the Office’s Long Island Criminal Division. Assistant United States Attorneys Saritha Komatireddy and J. Matthew Haggans are in charge of the prosecution. Assistant United States Attorneys Diane Leonardo and Madeline O’Connor are responsible for the forfeiture of assets.
The Defendants:
PHILLIP A. KENNER
Age: 51
Scottsdale, ArizonaTOMMY CONSTANTINE
Age: 54
Scottsdale, ArizonaE.D.N.Y. Docket No. 13-CR-607 (JFB)
Cincinnati City Council Member and his business partner charged with accepting bribesRead the Press Release
CINCINNATI – A federal grand jury has charged a Cincinnati city councilman and his business partner in a conspiracy involving honest services wire fraud, bribery, attempted extortion by a government official and money laundering.
Jeffrey Pastor, 36, of Cincinnati, allegedly solicited and received $55,000 in bribes between August 2018 and February 2019 in exchange for promised official action related to projects before the City of Cincinnati.
Pastor’s business partner, Tyran Marshall, 35, of Cincinnati, allegedly acted as a middleman in receiving bribes payments.
For example, according to the 10-count indictment that was returned on Nov. 4 and unsealed today, in September 2018, Pastor and Marshall flew to Miami, Fla. on a private plane to meet with investors regarding a real estate development project. Pastor never paid for or disclosed the trip. During the trip, Pastor allegedly explained he would ensure favorable action on behalf of the city for the project and could receive money through Marshall’s non-profit entity Ummah Strength, LLC (which had been incorporated two weeks prior). Pastor discussed “compensation” and agreed to accept $15,000 for helping with the project. He said the purpose of Marshall’s entity was to “sanitize” the money. Pastor accepted $15,000 in cash about a week later.
Pastor and Marshall allegedly solicited and received another $20,000 in October and November 2018. They allegedly received two $10,000 payments in exchange for Pastor’s official city action benefitting a second project.
From January 2019 through early March 2019, Pastor allegedly continued to attempt to secure more bribe money for help on a city project.
Pastor and Marshall each appeared in federal court before U.S. Magistrate Judge Stephanie K. Bowman.
Pastor is charged with each of the 10 counts in the indictment: one count of conspiring to commit honest services wire fraud (up to 20 years in prison), two counts of honest services wire fraud (up to 20 years), three counts of bribery (up to 10 years), three counts of attempted extortion by a government official (up to 20 years) and one count of money laundering (up to 20 years).
Marshall is charged with four crimes: one count of conspiring to commit honest services wire fraud (up to 20 years in prison), one count of bribery (up to 10 years), one count of attempted extortion (up to 20 years) and one count of money laundering (up to 20 years).
David M. DeVillers, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Ohio, and Chris Hoffman, Special Agent in Charge, Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), Cincinnati Division, announced the charges. Deputy Criminal Chief Emily N. Glatfelter and Assistant United States Attorney Matthew C. Singer are representing the United States in this case.
An indictment merely contains allegations, and defendants are presumed innocent unless proven guilty in a court of law.
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Chico Man Sentenced to over 3 Years in Prison for 10 Burglaries of Post Offices in Butte, Glenn, Shasta, Sutter and Tehama CountiesRead the Press Release
SACRAMENTO, Calif. — A Chico man was sentenced to three years and six months in prison for burglaries of post offices in Butte, Glenn, Shasta, Sutter and Tehama counties, U.S. Attorney McGregor W. Scott announced.
On Aug. 4, Jeremy Elguez, 32, pleaded guilty to two counts of burglary and admitted to burglarizing 10 U.S. Postal Service post offices. According to court documents, between Aug. 23, 2019 and March 1, 2020, Elguez burglarized the Butte City Post Office twice, the Glenn Post Office twice, the Vina Post Office, the Bangor Post Office, the Stirling City Post Office, the Meridian Post Office, the Artois Post Office, and the Cassel Post Office. Items reported stolen during these burglaries included mail, postal money orders, cameras, and a check for $80,000. On Aug. 1, 2019, Elguez also attempted to cash a $350,000 check stolen from the mail.
This case was the product of an investigation by the U.S. Postal Inspection Service. Assistant U.S. Attorney Tanya B. Syed prosecuted the case.
Charleston Felon Pleads Guilty to Gun CrimeRead the Press Release
CHARLESTON, W.Va. – United States Attorney Mike Stuart announced today that Ronald Sayles, 43, of Charleston, pled guilty to being a felon in possession of a firearm.
Sayles admitted that on September 18, 2020, he was a passenger in a vehicle that crashed on Washington Street, East in Charleston. When responding officers conducted a pat down of Sayles, they located a Ruger LC9, 9mm pistol in his jacket pocket. Sayles admitted to police officers that he knew he was prohibited from possessing the gun because of two prior felony convictions. In 2016, Sayles was convicted of being a felon in possession of a firearm in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of West Virginia and, in 2002, he was convicted in Kanawha County Circuit Court of possession with intent to deliver a controlled substance. Sayles was still serving a term of federal supervised release in connection with the 2016 conviction.
Sayles faces up to 12 years in federal prison when sentenced on February 4, 2021.
The Charleston Police Department and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) conducted the investigation. United States District Judge Joseph R. Goodwin presided over the hearing. Assistant United States Attorney Negar Kordestani is handling the prosecution.
This case is part of Project Guardian, the Department of Justice’s signature initiative to reduce gun violence and enforce federal firearms laws. Initiated by the Attorney General in the fall of 2019, Project Guardian draws upon the Department’s past successful programs to reduce gun violence; enhances coordination of federal, state, local, and tribal authorities in investigating and prosecuting gun crimes; improves information-sharing by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives when a prohibited individual attempts to purchase a firearm and is denied by the National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS), to include taking appropriate actions when a prospective purchaser is denied by the NICS for mental health reasons; and ensures that federal resources are directed at the criminals posing the greatest threat to our communities. For more information about Project Guardian, please see: https://www.justice.gov/projectguardian.
A copy of this press release is located on the website of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of West Virginia. Related court documents and information can be found on PACER by searching for Case No. 2:20-cr-00181.
Follow us on Twitter: SDWVNews and USAttyStuart
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Bus Rider Pleads Guilty to Topeka Bank RobberyRead the Press Release
TOPEKA, KAN. – A man who was arrested on a city bus pleaded guilty today to robbing a Topeka bank, U.S. Attorney Stephen McAllister said.
Clinton Adam Richards, 38, Topeka, Kan., pleaded guilty to one count of bank robbery. Police responded to a robbery at U.S. Bank, 3600 SW Topeka Boulevard. A tall, bald man carrying a backpack approached a teller, demanded money and left the bank with the cash. A witness reported seeing the robber board a Topeka Metro bus at a bus stop near the bank. Police stopped the bus and arrested Richards.
Sentencing is set for Feb. 16, 2021. He could face up to 20 years in federal prison and a fine up to $250,000. McAllister commended the Topeka Police Department, the FBI and Assistant U.S. Attorney Stephen Hunting for their work on the case.
Bergen County Man Sentenced to 10 Years in Prison for Conspiring to Launder over $850,000Read the Press Release
NEWARK, N.J. – A Bergen County, New Jersey, man was sentenced today to 120 months in prison for conspiring to launder more than $850,000, which he believed was derived from the sale of narcotics, U.S. Attorney Craig Carpenito announced.
Bobbie L. Henderson III, 36, previously pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Stanley R. Chesler in Newark federal court to an information charging him with one count of conspiracy to launder monetary instruments. Judge Chesler imposed the sentence today by videoconference.
According to the documents filed in this case, and statements made in court:
From 2017 through May 23, 2019, Henderson conspired with others to launder the proceeds of narcotics distribution, with the intent to promote the distribution of narcotics. Henderson further admitted to possessing more than $850,000 in furtherance of this conspiracy. These funds were seized by law enforcement during the course of the investigation.
In addition to the prison term, Judge Chesler sentenced Henderson to three years of supervised release, fined him $20,000 and ordered forfeiture of $853,120.
U.S. Attorney Carpenito credited special agents and task force officers with the Drug Enforcement Administration, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Raymond Donovan in New York, with the investigation leading to today’s sentencing.
The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorney Francesca Liquori of the Organized Crimes and Gang Unit.
Baltimore Man Pleads Guilty to Federal Charge for Selling Heroin and Cocaine in Southwest BaltimoreRead the Press Release
Greenbelt, Maryland – Calvin Claxton, a/k/a Cal, age 41, of Baltimore, pleaded guilty today to his participation in a drug distribution conspiracy operating in the Edmondson Village neighborhood in southwest Baltimore. The drug trafficking organization (“DTO”) of which Claxton was a member sold heroin and cocaine on a daily basis in street-level quantities.
The guilty plea was announced by United States Attorney for the District of Maryland Robert K. Hur; Special Agent in Charge Jennifer C. Boone of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Baltimore Field Office; Special Agent in Charge Timothy Jones of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) Baltimore Field Division; and Commissioner Michael Harrison of the Baltimore Police Department.
According to his guilty plea, from at least September 2018 through June 2019, Claxton participated in a DTO and conspired to distribute heroin, powder cocaine, and crack cocaine to drug users and redistributors in and around the Edmondson Village neighborhood of southwest Baltimore. During the course of the investigation, law enforcement learned that Claxton engaged in communications regarding the DTO’s distribution of narcotics, the whereabouts of co-conspirators, the presence of law enforcement, and the availability of narcotics. The investigation also revealed that Claxton owned and maintained a stash house in Baltimore, where the DTO stored and processed heroin and crack cocaine.
On April 10, 2019, law enforcement executed a search warrant at the stash house and recovered over 200 grams of crack cocaine, which Claxton admitted that he intended to distribute. Claxton agreed that over the course of the conspiracy he distributed over 280 grams of crack cocaine.
Claxton and the government have agreed that 150 months in prison is the appropriate sentence in this case. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after taking into account the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors. U.S. District Judge Paul W. Grimm has scheduled sentencing for February 18, 2021, at 3:30 p.m.
This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program bringing together all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve to reduce violent crime and make our neighborhoods safer for everyone. Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN) is the centerpiece of the Department of Justice’s violent crime reduction efforts. PSN is an evidence-based program proven to be effective at reducing violent crime. Through PSN, a broad spectrum of stakeholders work together to identify the most pressing violent crime problems in the community and develop comprehensive solutions to address them. As part of this strategy, PSN focuses enforcement efforts on the most violent offenders and partners with locally based prevention and reentry programs for lasting reductions in crime.
United States Attorney Robert K. Hur commended the FBI, the ATF, and the Baltimore Police Department for their work in the investigation and thanked the Anne Arundel County Police Department for its assistance. Mr. Hur thanked Assistant U.S. Attorneys Matthew DellaBetta and Michael Goldsticker, who are prosecuting this Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force case.
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Albuquerque man arraigned for unregistered firearmRead the Press Release
ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. – Wayne Velasquez, 30, of Albuquerque, was arraigned in federal court on Oct. 28 for possession of an unregistered firearm. Velasquez will remain in custody pending trial.
According to a criminal complaint, on Sept. 7, Albuquerque Police officers responding to a shooting incident encountered Velasquez sitting outside his residence with a gunshot wound to his foot. The officers allegedly observed a firearm lying on the floor of the residence. The firearm allegedly discharged when it fell to the floor, striking Velasquez in the foot.
The National Firearms Act mandates the registration of a firearm with the dimensions and characteristics of the firearm allegedly possessed by Velasquez in the National Firearm Registration and Transfer Record. A search of the Record yielded no results for the firearm.
A complaint is only an allegation. A defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty. If convicted, Velasquez faces up to 10 years in prison.
The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and the Albuquerque Police Department investigated this case. Assistant U.S. Attorney Rumaldo Armijo is prosecuting the case.
9 November 2020
U.S. Attorney’s Office remembers former U.S. Attorney, Honorable Judge James R. WilliamsRead the Press Release
The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Ohio joins the Northeast Ohio community in remembering the life and legacy of former United States Attorney, Judge, and civil rights leader, the Honorable Judge James R. Williams. Judge Williams passed away on Friday, November 6, 2020, at the age of 88.
“On behalf of all the men and women in the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District, we offer our most sincere condolences and prayers to the family and friends of Judge Williams,” said U.S. Attorney Justin Herdman. “Judge Williams was a pioneer in the legal community, a civil rights hero and part of the exceptional history of men and women who have had the honor to serve as United States Attorney in this district. Judge Williams will be dearly missed by the many that knew him, but his achievements and legacy will live on in this community and beyond.”
Judge James R. Williams was appointed by President Carter to serve as United States Attorney for the Northern District of Ohio from 1978-1982. He was appointed to the Akron Municipal Court in 1983 and elected to the Court in 1985 and again in 1987. In 1989, Judge Williams was appointed to serve on the Summit County Common Pleas Court and became the county’s first African-American Common Pleas Court judge. He was later elected to the Court in 1990 and re-elected in 1992 and 1998. Judge Williams retired in January of 2005 after 15 years of service as a common pleas judge.
U.S. Attorney Announces Office Collects over $8.4 MillionRead the Press Release
BOISE – United States Attorney Bart M. Davis announced today that his office’s Financial Litigation Unit collected more than $5.7 million in criminal restitution, fines, and assessments and in civil debts for the fiscal year that ended September 30, 2020. In some cases, the U.S. Attorney’s Office worked in conjunction with litigating components of the U.S. Department of Justice. Of the total collected, approximately $2.9 million were criminal restitution, fines, and/or assessments, and approximately $2.8 million were civil debts. In addition, the Asset Forfeiture Unit deposited to the Asset Forfeiture Fund approximately $2,784,824 in proceeds and instruments of crime in criminal and civil forfeiture actions.
“Our office’s collection and asset forfeiture attorneys, paralegals, analysts, and fiscal agents work hard every day to recover money from those who cause loss to victims and attempt to profit by committing crimes,” said Davis. “I am proud of the outstanding work all of these dedicated individuals have done over the past year. These results show they served this office, the taxpayers, and Idaho well.”
Victims of crime receive funds collected in criminal restitution cases. In fiscal year 2020, the U.S. Attorney’s Office, through the Financial Litigation Unit, collected over $2.789 million in criminal restitution that was or will be distributed to victims of crime. Other criminal collections such as fines go into the Crime Victims Fund. From there, funds are distributed to the Idaho Crime Victims Compensation Program, the Idaho Council on Domestic Violence and Victim Assistance, and similar programs across the country. Money recovered from the illegal proceeds of criminal activity through forfeiture is returned to victims, used to offset the costs of operating federal prisons, and shared with local, state, and federal law enforcement agencies to help fight crime. Other recoveries go back to agency creditors.
During the fiscal year, some notable criminal restitution collections include approximately over $1 million from a defendant that embezzled from her employer, over $250,000 from a defendant that made a false claim to the United States, almost $250,000 from a defendant that committed health care fraud many years ago, approximately $173,000 from a defendant that committed fraud, and many other collections recovered from real estate sales and refinances to pay restitution.
Forfeitures valued at approximately $2,784,824, included currency, vehicles, and real property related to trafficking in controlled substances, fraud, child exploitation, and other serious crimes. Forfeitures also included approximately 91 firearms used or possessed during criminal activities. Forfeited firearms typically are destroyed, to prevent their use in future crimes. In some cases, the United States shared, or will share, seized money and property with local investigating agencies. In victim cases, the U.S. Attorney’s Office works to direct proceeds of forfeiture to crime victims.
As for civil debts and penalties, the Financial Litigation Unit collects civil penalties for violations of regulations involving, among other things, controlled substances, environmental protection, damage to federal property, and procurement fraud. It also collects civil debts for defaulted loans.
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The year 2020 marks the 150th anniversary of the Department of Justice. Learn more about the history of our agency at www.Justice.gov/Celebrating150Years
Two Men Indicted on Federal Firearm Charges for Allegedly Trafficking Handguns from Indiana to ChicagoRead the Press Release
CHICAGO — Two men have been indicted on federal firearm offenses for allegedly trafficking multiple handguns from Indiana to Chicago.
BENJAMIN CORTEZ-GOMEZ, also known as “Bennie Blanco,” is charged with one count of dealing firearms without a license and one count of illegally possessing firearms as a convicted felon. GUSTAVO URIEL GOMEZ-HIPOLITO, also known as “Uriel Gomez,” is charged with one count of aiding and abetting Cortez-Gomez in the illegal possession of the firearms.
An indictment unsealed on Nov. 4, 2020, in U.S. District Court in Chicago accuses Cortez-Gomez of trafficking firearms over a four-month period earlier this year. The indictment further alleges that Cortez-Gomez illegally possessed seven handguns on July 27, 2020, with Gomez-Hipolito’s assistance. Cortez-Gomez purchased the seven guns in Indiana and transported them to Chicago, according to a criminal complaint filed against Cortez-Gomez earlier in the investigation.
Cortez-Gomez, 28, is currently detained in federal custody. A date for his arraignment has not yet been scheduled. Gomez-Hipolito, 24, pleaded not guilty and has been released on bond while awaiting trial.
The indictment was announced by John R. Lausch, Jr., United States Attorney for the Northern District of Illinois; Kristen deTineo, Special Agent-in-Charge of the Chicago Field Division of the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives; and David Brown, Superintendent of the Chicago Police Department. Valuable assistance was provided by the Cook County Sheriff’s Office and U.S. Customs and Border Protection’s Air and Marine Operations. Assistant U.S. Attorney Charles W. Mulaney represents the government.
The case was brought under Operation Legend, a Department of Justice initiative in which federal law enforcement agencies work in conjunction with state and local law enforcement to fight violent crime. As part of Operation Legend, the Department of Justice significantly increased resources in Chicago to help state and local officials investigate and prosecute violent crime, particularly firearm-related offenses.
The public is reminded that an indictment contains only charges and is not evidence of guilt. The defendants are presumed innocent and entitled to a fair trial at which the government has the burden of proving guilt beyond a reasonable doubt. Dealing firearms without a license is punishable by up to five years in federal prison, while the illegal possession count is punishable by up to ten years. If convicted, the Court must impose reasonable sentences under federal sentencing statutes and the advisory U.S. Sentencing Guidelines.
Tulsa Woman Charged with Felony MurderRead the Press Release
A Tulsa woman made an initial appearance in federal court today for first degree felony murder and robbery in Indian Country, announced U.S. Attorney Trent Shores
Nicole Deonn Williams, 36, of Tulsa, is charged with murdering Curtiss Gaines on June 18, 2019.
“Time and again, guns and drugs prove to be a volatile combination. In this case, the defendant and her boyfriend allegedly shot and killed Curtiss Gaines when they tried to rob him during a drug deal,” said U.S. Attorney Trent Shores. “This case comes to our office because of the McGirt decision, and our victim coordinators will work with the victim’s family to ensure they understand we will aggressively pursue justice.”
According to a criminal complaint filed in U.S. District Court, responding officers at first suspected that Gaines died from a self-inflicted gunshot wound because a shotgun was found underneath his body, but detectives later determined Gaines sustained a gunshot wound to his upper torso from a pistol caliber bullet. Upon investigating Gaines’ death, detectives found that Gaines allegedly received a call from a female, believed to be Williams, at 3 am, the day of the murder. The call came from a phone number associated with William’s boyfriend, Barton Roy Vann. Shortly after the call, Gaines told a friend he had to leave and indicated he was returning to his residence.
A second individual indicated that he picked up Williams and Vann and drove them to Gaines’ residence at approximately 3:30 am and waited for them in his vehicle until they returned. He assumed the couple were going to purchase drugs from the victim, as they had in the past. Later, Vann allegedly told the individual that he had produced a handgun and attempted to rob the victim. At some point during the robbery, Gaines obtained a shotgun and was subsequently shot by Vann. Vann is currently scheduled for trial in January 2020 with the Tulsa County District Attorney’s Office.
If convicted, Williams faces a maximum sentence of life in federal prison.
This matter will proceed in United States District Court in Tulsa, where the complaint is currently pending. A complaint is a temporary charge alleging a violation of law. For the case to proceed to trial, the United States must present the charge to a federal Grand Jury within 30 days. Once a Grand Jury returns an indictment, a defendant has a right to a jury trial at which the United States would have the burden of proving the defendant’s guilt beyond a reasonable doubt. All defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.
The FBI and Tulsa Police Department are the investigative agencies. Assistant U.S. Attorney Justin G. Bish is prosecuting the case. Mr. Bish is a prosecutor from the Western District of New York. He volunteered to assist prosecution efforts here in the Northern District of Oklahoma due to the increased volume of cases since the Supreme Court’s ruling which stated the Creek Nation Reservation had never been officially disestablished by Congress. The United States and the Muscogee (Creek) Nation have jurisdiction of all cases that occur on the reservation involving Native American victims or defendants.
Tigard Man Pleads Guilty to Social Security FraudRead the Press Release
PORTLAND, Ore.—A Tigard, Oregon man pleaded guilty today to stealing Social Security Administration (SSA) benefits announced U.S. Attorney Billy J. Williams.
Steven Clayton Stark, 67, knowingly kept ten years’ worth of benefits intended for his father that should have terminated at the time of his father’s death.
According to court records, Mr. Stark’s father received SSA Retirement Insurance Benefits (RIB) prior to his death in May, 2009. Rather than informing the SSA of his father’s death, Stark knowingly continued to accept the RIB money that was deposited into a joint account controlled by Stark. Stark transferred the funds into other accounts he owned and then spent it on himself and his family. The total loss amount to SSA is $221,960.00.
On August 25, 2020, Stark was charged by criminal Information with Theft of Government Funds in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 641. He will be sentenced on February 8, 2021 before U.S. District Court Judge Karin Immergut.
“Social Security benefits theft is a crime that threatens this very important program meant to support the most vulnerable in our nation.” said United States Attorney Williams. “Anyone who knowingly steals the retirement benefits of others must be held accountable for their conduct.”
The Social Security Administration, Office of Inspector General investigated this case. It is being prosecuted by Rachel Sowray, Special Assistant U.S. Attorney for the District of Oregon.
Three Men Face Federal Charges for Violent Twin Cities CarjackingsRead the Press Release
United States Attorney Erica H. MacDonald today announced federal carjacking charges against DELANEY NICHOLAS HARRIS, 19, JOSHOAMEI DEANGELO RICHARDSON, 19, and JAMES BROCK WILLIAMS, JR., 19. HARRIS was charged with aiding and abetting carjacking and, in a separate indictment, RICHARDSON and WILLIAMS were charged with aiding and abetting carjacking and firearms violations. The defendants made their initial appearances in U.S. District Court and have been ordered to remain in detention pending further proceedings.
United States Attorney Erica H. MacDonald stated, “This disturbing spike in carjackings throughout the Twin Cities has not gone unnoticed by federal law enforcement. This is unacceptable and we will not hesitate to hold accountable individuals who perpetrate this type of violence in our communities.”
According to the allegations in the indictment and documents filed with the court, on June 1, 2020, officers with the Minneapolis Police Department responded to a report of a carjacking in the downtown area. A witness told officers that two men, one later identified as HARRIS, the second a yet unidentified accomplice, approached a man who was exiting his vehicle, and threw him to the ground. One of the men displayed a gun, threatened to kill the victim, and demanded his car keys. The witness also told officers that HARRIS had been holding a red plastic cup just prior to the incident. Officers recovered the cup and later found that the fingerprints and DNA on the cup were a match for HARRIS.
According to the allegations in a separate indictment and documents filed in state court, on August 25, 2020, in St. Paul, Minnesota, RICHARDSON and WILLIAMS used force and violence, while brandishing a firearm, to steal a 2012 Dodge Charger. WILLIAMS allegedly brandished a firearm, demanded the keys, and threatened the driver of the Dodge Charger as he exited his vehicle. RICHARDSON and WILLIAMS then fled the scene in the Charger.
These cases are the result of investigations conducted by the FBI, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF), the Minneapolis Police Department, and the Saint Paul Police Department.
Assistant United States Attorney David P. Steinkamp is prosecuting the HARRIS case. Assistant United States Attorney Benjamin Bejar is prosecuting the RICHARDSON and WILLIAMS case.
The charges contained in the indictments are merely accusations, and the defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
Defendant Information:
DELANEY NICHOLAS HARRIS, 19
Chicago, Ill.
Charges:
- Aiding and abetting carjacking, 1 count
JOSHOAMEI DEANGELO RICHARDSON, a/k/a “Yoshi,” 19
St. Paul, Minn.
Charges:
- Aiding and abetting carjacking, 1 count
- Aiding and abetting using, carrying, and brandishing a firearm during and in relation to a crime of violence, 1 count
JAMES BROCK WILLIAMS, JR., 19
St. Paul, Minn.
Charges:
- Aiding and abetting carjacking, 1 count
- Aiding and abetting using, carrying, and brandishing a firearm during and in relation to a crime of violence, 1 count
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United States Attorney’s Office, District of Minnesota: (612) 664-5600
Three Defendants Plead Guilty in $300 Million Nationwide Telemarketing Fraud SchemeRead the Press Release
United States Attorney Erica H. MacDonald today announced the guilty pleas of TERRY LYNN CHRISTENSEN, 73, TODD ALLEN HUGHES, 47, and JESSICA MARIE PRINCE, 40, for their roles in a $300 million telemarketing fraud scheme. The defendants were indicted on October 27, 2020, and entered their guilty pleas before Chief Judge John R. Tunheim in U.S. District Court in Minneapolis, Minnesota.
According to his guilty plea and documents filed with the court, CHRISTENSEN worked as a call center manager for several fraudulent magazine companies including MO Management LLC, Preferred Media Source Inc., Preferred Media Solutions, American Readers Service, Atlantic Media Source, North American Direct Service, Inc., and North America’s Readers Choice. These companies had telemarketing call centers in Fort Lauderdale and Cape Coral, Florida. These companies were owned by MICHAEL OELRICH, who pleaded guilty to mail fraud on July 2, 2020, and were operated on behalf of co-defendant RUSSELL RAHM. In his role, CHRISTENSEN trained telemarketers to use deceptive sales scripts designed to defraud victim-consumers—many of whom were elderly or otherwise vulnerable—by tricking them into signing up for expensive magazine subscription packages. Between June 2009 and 2020, the fraudulent magazine companies defrauded victims out of approximately $98,788,421. As part of his guilty plea, CHRISTENSEN agreed to pay $100,000 in restitution to victims of his fraud conspiracy.
According to his guilty plea and documents filed with the court, HUGHES worked from his home in Holstein, Iowa, as a telemarketer for a company called The Magazine Deal. At the direction of the company and its owners, HUGHES used fraudulent sales scripts to defraud elderly victim-consumers out of hundreds or even thousands of dollars. Among other misrepresentations he made, HUGHES would falsely claim that a victim-consumer owed a large debt for an existing magazine subscription and fraudulently offered to pay off the balance in exchange for a single lump sum payment. In reality, HUGHES was simply defrauding victims out of thousands of dollars. As part of his guilty plea, HUGHES agreed to pay $50,000 in restitution to all identified victims in this and related cases.
According to her guilty plea and documents filed with the court, PRINCE worked as a call center manager for Readers Club of America (“RCA”), a Missouri-based company involved in fraudulent magazine sales. RCA employed a similar fraud scheme that also targeted victim-consumers who were elderly or otherwise vulnerable. RCA telemarketers used deceptive sales scripts and, through a series of knowing and deliberate lies and misrepresentations, signed up elderly and vulnerable individuals for expensive magazine subscriptions. Between 2014 and 2020, RCA collected $4,070,549.01 from victims as a result of this fraudulent scheme. As part of her guilty plea, PRINCE agreed to pay $4,070,549.01 in restitution to all identified victims in this and related cases.
This case is the result of an investigation conducted by the United States Postal Inspection Service and the Federal Bureau of Investigation. Additional assistance was provided by the Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration (TIGTA) and the Minnesota Attorney General’s Office.
Assistant U.S. Attorneys Joseph H. Thompson, Harry M. Jacobs, and Melinda A. Williams are prosecuting the case.
Defendant Information:
TERRY LYNN CHRISTENSEN, 73
Fort Myers, Fla.
Convicted:
- Conspiracy to commit mail fraud, 1 count
TODD ALLEN HUGHES, 47
Holstein, Iowa
Convicted:
- Conspiracy to commit wire fraud, 1 count
JESSICA MARIE PRINCE, 40
Thayer, Mo.
Convicted:
- Conspiracy to commit mail fraud, 1 count
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United States Attorney’s Office, District of Minnesota: (612) 664-5600
Telemarketing Fraudster Sentenced; Second Awaits SentencingRead the Press Release
PROVIDENCE – An Indian national has been sentenced to 33 months in federal prison for his participation in a scheme to steal from the bank accounts of elderly victims across the United States using their online-banking usernames and passwords, which had previously been taken from their computers.
Chirag Sachdeva, 30, admitted to the court that as a participant in a technical support telemarketing fraud scheme that targeted elderly individuals in the United States he had access to personal information that had been surreptitiously taken from victims’ computers and that that information included both personal identification information, such as social security numbers, and means of electronically accessing the victims bank accounts. Sachdeva further admitted, and the FBI’s information confirmed, that he sought to use the banking information of seven of those victims in hopes of stealing approximately $600,000 from their bank accounts. These victims had already lost approximately $4,442 to the telemarketing fraud scheme.
Sachdeva also admitted to enlisting the assistance of an acquaintance in Rhode Island to assist in the theft effort. Sachdeva provided that acquaintance information sufficient to obtain online access to the victims’ accounts as well as personal information about the victims, all of whom were over the age of 65. Sachdeva anticipated that the acquaintance would access the victims accounts and direct money from their accounts to accounts under the control of the acquaintance. Sachdeva expected to receive half of the stolen money.
Unbeknownst to Sachdeva, his acquaintance in Rhode Island was assisting the FBI in an investigation into telemarking fraud scheme. Sachedva was arrested by FBI agents on February 16, 2020, as he deplaned in Boston from a flight from India.
Sachdeva, having pled guilty to seven counts of wire fraud, was sentenced by U.S. District Court Chief Judge John J. McConnell, Jr., to 33 months in federal prison to be followed by 3 years of supervised release. He was ordered to pay $4,442 in restitution to victims of the schemes.
A second Indian national, Manish Kumar, 32, arrested by the FBI for his participation in three related fraud schemes: two telemarketing schemes, technical support fraud and refund fraud, and credit card fraud. Kumar, who is awaiting sentencing, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit wire fraud, four counts of wire fraud, and two counts of aggravated identity theft.
Kumar admitted that he directed telephone calls to call centers in India as part of a scheme to mislead callers into believing that their computers were infected by malware and that they needed to buy computer protection services from the call center operators. Kumar also admitted to participation in the later part of this scheme as well by providing accounts where additional money taken from the victims could be wired. Those who had fallen prey to the first part of the scheme were told that they were entitled to refunds, were told that they had accidentally been sent more than they were due, and were asked to return the excess money. Because no money had in fact been sent to the victims, those who were convinced to return the “excess” money were in fact sending their own money. Additionally, Kumar admitted that he schemed to place false charges on credit cards.
Kumar, who was arrested by FBI agents on August 24, 2019, as he deplaned in New York City from a flight from India, is scheduled to be sentenced on January 20,2021.
The cases are being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Milind M. Shah.
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South Jersey Doctor Charged in Health Care Fraud Billing SchemeRead the Press Release
CAMDEN, N.J. – A South Jersey doctor was charged in connection with his role in a longstanding billing fraud scheme, U.S. Attorney Craig Carpenito announced today.
Morris Antebi, 68, of Long Branch, New Jersey, is charged by complaint with three counts of health care fraud, wire fraud, and mail fraud for his role in the scheme. Antebi is scheduled to appear today by videoconference before U.S. Magistrate Judge Joel Schneider.
According to documents filed in this case and statements made in court:
Antebi, a physician specializing in pain management and anesthesia, owned and operated a pain management clinic chain with locations throughout South Jersey. Antebi was a participating provider in Medicare, Medicaid, and several private insurance plans. Between approximately 2014 through 2020, Antebi billed over $24.6 million for services he purportedly provided, including billing more than $15.3 million to Medicaid and more than $8 million to Medicare.
The investigation showed that Antebi engaged in various forms of billing fraud. For example, Antebi frequently billed Medicare, Medicaid, and private insurance companies on dates when travel records show he was overseas, including on trips to China, Israel, Turkey, the Dominican Republic, and across Europe, or when he was otherwise outside the State of New Jersey. Antebi billed approximately $230,700 to Medicaid, Medicare, and private insurance plans between November 2015 and January 2020 for services he purportedly rendered while he was traveling and not in the office.
The investigation also showed that Antebi billed for excessive billings for one-day periods of time. For example, Antebi billed insurance plans for more than 24 hours’ worth of services in a one-day period of time on more than 900 occasions between 2014 and 2020. Antebi also billed insurance companies for between 12 and 23.99 hours of purported services in a one-day period of time on more than 300 occasions. On certain occasions, law enforcement surveilled Antebi on days when he left the clinics early, but nevertheless billed as though he saw many patients on those days.
Despite these high billings, individuals interviewed during the investigation stated that Antebi commonly saw them for only very brief periods of time, and he often did not perform any medical exams or evaluations during their visits. Individuals also indicated that that there sometimes was no medical equipment or examination tables in the rooms at the clinics in which patients met with providers, and that patients sometimes met with providers on folding chairs in the hallway of the clinics.
The health care fraud count carries a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison and a $250,000 fine, or twice the gross gain or loss from the offense. The wire fraud and mail fraud counts each carry a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison and a $250,000 fine, or twice the gross gain or loss from the offense.
U.S. Attorney Carpenito credited agents of the FBI’s Atlantic City Resident Agency Health Care Fraud Task Force, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge George M. Crouch Jr. in Newark; the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services – Office of Inspector General, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Scott J. Lampert, the U.S. Department of Labor – Office of Inspector General, New York Region, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Michael C. Mikulka, the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Susan A. Gibson in Newark, and IRS-Criminal Investigation, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Michael Montanez in Newark with the investigation leading to the criminal complaint. U.S. Attorney Carpenito also thanked agents of FBI’s Headquarters Health Care Fraud Unit Data Analysis Response Team under the direction of Special Agent Greg Heeb in Washington, D.C. and officers of the Northfield Police Department for their assistance with the case.
The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Christina O. Hud and Daniel A. Friedman of the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Camden.
The charges and allegations contained in the complaint are merely accusations, and the defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
Defense counsel: TBD
Slidell Man Indicted for Social Security FraudRead the Press Release
NEW ORLEANS – U.S. Attorney Peter G. Strasser announced that MICHAEL R. MATHERNE (“MATHERNE”), age 60, of Slidell, Louisiana was charged by a grand jury on November 6, 2020, in a 1-count Indictment for Theft of Federal Funds.
According to the Indictment, the Social Security Administration (“SSA”), an agency or department of the United States of America, operated the Retirement Survivor Insurance Benefit program (“RSI Program”). The purpose of the RSI Program is to provide benefits to certain persons, including widows and widowers, in their retirement.
On or around January 1993, M.F. applied for and began receiving RSI Program benefits. The SSA sent the benefits to M.F. at her address in Slidell, Louisiana in the form of a paper check, which she regularly deposited into her Whitney bank account, ending in 5817.
On or about September 24, 2006, M.F. and MATHERNE were married. In or around July 2012, MATHERNE created a joint Whitney bank account ending in 5817. On about November 3, 2012, M.F. died. MATHERNE never advised the SSA of M.F.’s death.
From December 2012 through March 2019, SSA continued sending checks to M.F., at her home address in Slidell, Louisiana, and MATHERNE continued depositing the checks into the Whitney bank account, ending in 5817. From December 2012 through March 2019, MATHERNE received monthly SSA benefits totaling approximately $75,838, which he deposited into the Whitney bank account, ending in 5817, and used for his living expenses.
If convicted, MATHERNE faces a maximum of 10 years imprisonment, a fine of not more than $250,000, supervised release of at least 3 years, and a special assessment of $100 as to each count.
The case was investigated by the Social Security Administration, Office of Inspector General. U.S. Attorney Strasser reiterated that the Indictment is merely a charge and that the guilt of the defendant must be proven beyond a reasonable doubt.
The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Sharan E. Lieberman.
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Schertz Man Sentenced to Federal Prison for Pointing Laser at San Antonio Police HelicopterRead the Press Release
In San Antonio today, a federal judge sentenced 39-year-old Justin John Shorey of Schertz, TX, to 51 months in federal prison after he pleaded guilty to aiming a laser pointer at a San Antonio Police Department helicopter, announced U.S. Attorney Gregg N. Sofer, FBI Special Agent in Charge Christopher Combs, San Antonio Division, and San Antonio Police Chief William McManus.
In addition to the prison term, U.S. District Judge David A. Ezra ordered that Shorey be placed on supervised release for a period of three years after completing his prison term.
“Pointing lasers at law enforcement is extremely dangerous and can cause serious injury. This is particularly true when the pilots of an aircraft are involved,” stated U.S. Attorney Sofer. “Today’s 51-month prison sentence demonstrates the seriousness of this offense. We will aggressively prosecute anyone who purposely points a laser at an aircraft, endangering both people in the air and those in our communities on the ground.”
On November 20, 2019, Shorey pleaded guilty to aiming a laser pointer at an aircraft. According to the factual basis filed in this case, on February 17, 2019, Shorey knowingly aimed the beam of a laser pointer at an aircraft in flight. The San Antonio Police Department helicopter was flying just north of Highway 90 West, assisting in the search of a shooting suspect. When the laser beam made contact with the helicopter, it hit the pilot in the eyes affecting his ability to see and read his gauges.
At the time, the helicopter was flying in the path of the San Antonio International Airport, and Shorey’s actions endangered both civilian flights and the public on the ground. The pilot and his tactical officer onboard began a search for the laser suspect. Shorey admitted to aiming the laser at the aircraft once as it approached his location in the 2100 block of Hays Street in San Antonio and twice as it circled above him.
The pilot managed to land safely at the San Antonio International Airport. The injury to the pilot’s eyes caused by the defendant’s actions resulted in the pilot being unable to fly for a week.
“When aimed at an aircraft, the powerful beam of light from a hand-held laser can travel more than a mile and illuminate a cockpit, disorienting and temporarily blinding pilots. Lasing an aircraft represents a significant public safety threat, which endangers pilots, aircrew, passengers, and individuals on the ground, should an aircraft crash or require an emergency landing,” stated FBI Special Agent in Charge Combs. “This case should serve as a warning to others who engage in this dangerous criminal activity.”
“Actions such as lasering law enforcement helicopters are dangerous for the pilots assisting officers on the ground. I was glad to hear that the Department of Justice does not tolerate this behavior and held Mr. Shorey accountable for his actions,” stated San Antonio Police Chief McManus.
If you have information about a lasing incident, contact the San Antonio FBI at 210-225-6741. If you see someone pointing a laser at an aircraft, call the nearest local law enforcement agency immediately by dialing 911. Tips can also be submitted online at https://tips.fbi.gov.
The FBI and San Antonio Police Department conducted this investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Mark Roomberg and William R. Harris prosecuted this case on behalf of the government.
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The year 2020 marks the 150th anniversary of the Department of Justice. Learn more about the history of our agency at www.Justice.gov/Celebrating150Years.
Rochester Man Going to Prison for More Than 21 Years for His Role in Drug Trafficking Organization: Shot at Both Law Enforcers and Rival Gang MembersRead the Press Release
CONTACT: Barbara Burns
PHONE: (716) 843-5817
FAX #: (716) 551-3051ROCHESTER, N.Y. - U.S. Attorney James P. Kennedy, Jr. announced today that Obed Torres Garcia, 23, of Rochester, NY, who was convicted of conspiring to distribute five kilograms or more of cocaine and one kilogram or more of heroin, and using, carrying and discharging firearm during and in relation to a drug trafficking crime, was sentenced to serve 255 months in prison by Chief U.S. District Judge Frank P. Geraci, Jr.
Assistant U.S. Attorneys Robert A. Marangola, Cassie M. Kocher, and Katelyn M. Hartford, who handled the case, stated that between 2015 and January 29, 2018, the defendant was part of a drug trafficking organization led by Carlos Javier Figueroa, which was responsible for the transportation and sale of cocaine and heroin, and for acts of violence in furtherance of the organization’s drug trade, including an exchange of gunshots with members of the Greater Rochester Area Narcotics Enforcement Taskforce (G.R.A.N.E.T.). Various locations throughout Rochester were utilized to receive, store, and sell the supply of illegal narcotics, which were shipped from Puerto Rico.
As an active member of the Figueroa drug trafficking organization, Garcia, among other things, packaged cocaine and heroin for distribution, and personally distributed significant quantities of cocaine and heroin. Also, in furtherance of the conspiracy, the defendant and other members of the organization used and maintained a residence at 820 East Main Street in Rochester, for the purpose of packaging, storing, and distributing quantities of cocaine and heroin. Between December 2017 and January 29, 2018, Garcia lived in the apartment, which Figueroa paid for in exchange for the defendant’s work for the organization.
On January 29, 2018, at 6 Burbank Street in Rochester, Garcia discharged a handgun in the direction of G.R.A.N.E.T. officers who were attempting to execute a search warrant at that location. Officers, who the defendant admits were justified in their use of force, exchanged fire and Garcia suffered a traumatic brain injury from a gunshot wound. As a result of the traumatic brain injury, the defendant has no memory of the events that day, but after reviewing the evidence collected as part of the government’s investigation, Garcia admitted his involvement in it. In addition to admitting his role in these police involved shooting, defendant also admitted that in December 2016, while distributing heroin in the vicinity of the Valero gas station located near the intersection of Clinton Avenue and Hoeltzer Street in Rochester, he shot a 9 mm handgun at rival drug dealers.
The sentencing is the result of an investigation by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives Violent Crime Task Force, under the direction of Special Agent-in-Charge John B. Devito, New York Field Division; the Rochester Police Department, under the direction of Chief Cynthia Herriott-Sullivan; the Monroe County Sheriff’s Office, under the direction of Sheriff Todd Baxter; the Monroe County District Attorney’s Office, under the direction of District Attorney Sandra Doorley; the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Buffalo Division, under the direction of Special Agent-in-Charge Stephen Belongia; the Drug Enforcement Administration, under the direction of Special Agent-in-Charge Ray Donovan, New York Field Division; the Greece Police Department, under the direction of Chief Patrick Phelan; the Brighton Police Department, under the direction of Chief David Catholdi; and U.S. Border Patrol, under the direction of Patrol Agent-in-Charge Eduardo Payan.
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Repeat Offender Sentenced for Crack Cocaine DistributionRead the Press Release
United States Attorney Joe Kelly announced Senior United States District Court Judge Joseph F. Bataillon sentenced Alex Kellum today to 120 months in federal prison for distributing crack cocaine. His sentence was enhanced due to his previous serious drug felony conviction. There is no parole in the federal prison system. Kellum, age 39, of Omaha, Nebraska, will serve an eight-year term of supervised release following his release from the Bureau of Prisons.
A confidential informant (CI) working with FBI’s Safe Streets Task Force made multiple controlled buys from Kellum, a crack dealer in the Omaha area. Between September 6, 2017 and April 27, 2018, a CI made 12 buys of narcotics from Kellum resulting in the seizure of 600.3 grams of crack cocaine and 27.9 grams of powder cocaine.
On December 11, 2019, Kellum proceeded to a bench trial and was found guilty of three counts of crack cocaine distribution. Kellum has a previous serious drug felony conviction from 2003 when he was sentenced to 70 months’ incarceration for possession with the intent to distribute more than 5 grams of crack cocaine in the District of Nebraska.
This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and Omaha Police Department.
Project Safe Neighborhoods Grant AnnouncementRead the Press Release
SHREVEPORT / LAFAYETTE / ALEXANDRIA / LAKE CHARLES / MONROE, La. – Acting United States Attorney Alexander C. Van Hook and the Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN) Task Force announced the availability of approximately $154,931 in PSN grant funds for the Western District of Louisiana. The Department of Justice, the Office of Justice Programs and the Bureau of Justice Assistance is seeking applications for funding of a grant under the Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN) Program. At least 30% ($41,831) of the grant funds must be designated for grants under the PSN Program to fund new and/or current gang violence reduction strategies in the Western District. In addition, approximately $97,607 can be designated to fund both new and/or current comprehensive gun crime and gang violence reduction strategies within the Western District.
PSN furthers the Department of Justice=s mission to reduce violent crime by providing support to state, local and tribal efforts to create safer neighborhoods through a sustained reduction in violent crime and gang violence committed with firearms utilizing prevention, enforcement and intervention methods.
Various types of single or multi‑grantee grant proposals are welcome including those that address the following:
- Gang violence and gun violence reduction, deterrence, prevention, community outreach and education;
- Enforcement, adjudication and supervision programs;
- Prisoner re-entry programs; or
- Other innovative related projects.
Grant proposals must be submitted to the U.S. Attorney’s Office, ATTN: PSN Grant Competition, 800 Lafayette Street, Suite 2200, Lafayette, LA 70501, no later than 5 p.m., Monday, November 16, 2020.
The FY 2020 PSN Grant Announcement, OMB No. 1121-0329 can be found on the Western District of Louisiana U.S. Attorney’s Office website at: www.justice.gov/usao-wdla. More information about the program can be located at www.psn.gov or www.bja.gov/programs/psn.
Interested applicants may also contact Assistant U.S. Attorney and PSN Coordinator Jamilla A. Bynog at (337) 262-6618 for additional information.
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Pittsburgh Man Involved in Supplying Drug Gang Sentenced to Nearly 5 Years in PrisonRead the Press Release
PITTSBURGH, PA - A former resident of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, was sentenced in federal court to 57 months of imprisonment and 3 years of supervised release on his conviction of conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute heroin and fentanyl, United States Attorney Scott W. Brady announced today.
United States District Judge William S. Stickman, IV imposed sentence on Rico Taylor, 35.
According to information presented to the Court, in 2017, the Greater Pittsburgh Safe Streets Task Force initiated an investigation primarily targeting the Darccide/Smash 44, or DS44, neighborhood gang, and drug-trafficking activity in and around the South Side area of Pittsburgh. As part of this large-scale narcotics and firearms investigation, in February of 2019, the United States received authorization to conduct a federal wire investigation, which continued through June of 2019.
Intercepted communications revealed that Mr. Taylor was involved in the distribution of heroin and fentanyl. Specifically, Mr. Taylor served as a source of supply of heroin and fentanyl for Christopher Highsmith, who is among the most culpable co-defendants. As a condition of his guilty plea on April 29, 2020, Mr. Rico accepted responsibility for possessing with the intent to distribute 39 grams of a mixture containing heroin and fentanyl.
Assistant United States Attorneys Carolyn Bloch and Brendan J. McKenna prosecuted this case on behalf of the government.
The Federal Bureau of Investigation led the multi-agency investigation of this case, which also included the Bureau of Alcohol Tobacco Firearms and Explosives, Allegheny County Adult Probation, Allegheny County Police Department, Allegheny County Sheriff’s Office, Pennsylvania Attorney General’s Office Bureau of Narcotics, Pittsburgh Bureau of Police, and the Wilkinsburg Police Department. Other assisting agencies include the Green Tree Police Department, New York City Police Department, Mount Oliver Police Department, Pennsylvania State Police, Yonkers Police Department, United States Marshals Fugitive Task Force, and the United States Postal Inspection Service.
This case is part of the Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force program, known as OCDETF. OCDETF was established in 1982 to support comprehensive investigations and prosecutions of major drug trafficking and money laundering organizations. It is the keystone of the drug reduction strategy of the Department of Justice. By combining the resources and expertise of federal agencies and their state and local law enforcement partners, OCDETF identifies, disrupts, and dismantles the most serious drug trafficking, money laundering, and transnational criminal organizations.
Pittsburgh Felon Illegally Possessed a Loaded Handgun on Two OccasionsRead the Press Release
PITTSBURGH, PA – A resident of Pittsburgh pleaded guilty in federal court on charges related to federal firearms laws, United States Attorney Scott W. Brady announced today.
Clayton Sowell, 27, pleaded guilty to two counts of possession of a firearm and ammunition by a convicted felon, before United States District Judge Jagan N. Ranjan.
In connection with the guilty plea, the court was advised that in the early evening of December 19, 2019, Pittsburgh Police conducted a traffic stop of a vehicle driven by Clayton Sowell. During the traffic stop, officers recovered a loaded handgun containing 17 rounds of ammunition in the driver’s side door.
The court was further advised that in the late morning of April 28, 2020, an officer of the Penn Hills Police Department conducted a separate traffic stop of a vehicle driven by Mr. Sowell. During the traffic stop, law enforcement recovered a loaded handgun containing 18 rounds of ammunition in Mr. Sowell’s front waistband.
Finally, the Court was advised that Mr. Sowell has two prior felony convictions. On May 21, 2012, Mr. Sowell pled guilty to Fleeing or Attempting to Elude Officer in the Court of Common Pleas, County of Allegheny, Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. On June 20, 2016, Mr. Sowell pled guilty to Firearms Not to be Carried Without a License in the Court of Common Pleas, County of Allegheny, Commonwealth of Pennsylvania.
Judge Ranjan scheduled sentencing for March 4, 2021, at 10:00 am. The law provides for a total sentence of not more than ten years in prison, a fine of up to $250,000, or both. 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. Mr. Sowell remains detained pending sentencing.
Assistant United States Attorney Brendan J. McKenna is prosecuting this case on behalf of the government.
The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, Pittsburgh Bureau of Police and Penn Hills Police Department conducted the investigation in this case.
Pennsylvania Man Pleads Guilty to Meth ChargeRead the Press Release
CONTACT: Barbara Burns
PHONE: (716) 843-5817
FAX #: (716) 551-3051BUFFALO, N.Y. - U.S. Attorney James P. Kennedy, Jr. announced today that Jerry J. Roneker, Jr., 43, of Correy, PA, pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Lawrence J. Vilardo to possessing with intent to distribute 50 grams or more of methamphetamine. The charge carries a mandatory minimum penalty of 10 years in prison, a maximum of life, and a $10,000,000 fine.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Misha A. Coulson, who is handling the case, stated that on March 9, 2019, while on routine patrol in the Town of Chautauqua, Chautauqua County Sheriff’s Deputies observed the defendant’s vehicle, bearing Pennsylvania license plates, cross the center line of the road. After conducting a traffic stop, deputies observed a smoking pipe in the front of the vehicle. Deputies asked Roneker and a passenger to exit the vehicle at which time they noticed two large chunks of suspected methamphetamine. During a pat down of the defendant, deputies located a loaded 9mm handgun. In addition, deputies recovered $10,210 in U.S. currency, suspected ecstasy pills, packaging materials, a digital scale, drug paraphernalia, Xanax pills, MDMA pills, Suboxone strips, and two hypodermic needles, from the vehicle.
The plea is the result of an investigation by the Chautauqua County Sheriff’s Office, under the direction of Sheriff James Quattrone, and the Drug Enforcement Administration, under the direction of Special Agent-in-Charge Ray Donovan, New York Field Division.
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Omaha Man Sentenced for Aggravated Identity TheftRead the Press Release
United States Attorney Joe Kelly announced that Thomas Povondra, 54, of Omaha, Nebraska, was sentenced today in Omaha by Senior United States District Judge Joseph F. Bataillon to 42 months’ imprisonment for Sale of a Card Purporting to be a Social Security Card and Aggravated Identity Theft. There is no parole in the federal system. After his release, Povondra will serve a three-year term of supervised release.
From on or about October 11, 2019, to December 17, 2019, Povondra and co-defendant, Sheila Likness, engaged in a scheme to provide a police officer working in an undercover capacity with personal identification documents with the name and personal identifying information that had been obtained off the dark web.
On October 11, 2019, Povondra drove Likness to meet with the undercover officer at a Starbucks location. During that October 11, 2019 meeting, Likness informed the undercover officer that she could and would sell him identification documents such as a fake driver’s license, social security card, birth certificate, passport and secondary forms of identification such as a YMCA card for $4,000. Likness stated that she obtains the identification information off of the dark web and that it would be able to pass a check from law enforcement if the undercover officer came into contact with law enforcement.
Likness met with the undercover officer on October 31, November 5, and November 11, 2019. During these meetings, while engaging in narcotics activity, Likness would discuss the progress on the identification documents that were promised. At the November 5, 2019 meeting, Likness received $1,750 as a down payment for the documents. On November 21, 2019, Likness sent the undercover officer a picture message of passport in the name of Victim 1 with Victim 1’s date of birth.
On December 3, 2019, Povondra met with the undercover officer in the area of 153rd and Q Streets in Omaha. Povondra gave the undercover officer a blue plastic folder, which had documents purporting to be a Social Security Card, a birth certificate, a high school diploma, and high school transcripts in the name of Victim 1 with Victim 1’s personal identifying information such as date of birth and Social Security Number. Povondra discussed the progress of the passport with the undercover officer and the status of its production. Povondra also received an additional $100 from the undercover officer for the delivery of the documents.
On December 17, 2019, a search warrant was executed at the residence shared by Likness and Povondra in Omaha. Numerous computers, a credit card scanner, blank ID and credit cards, laminate material, blank checks, and papers with the identifying information of other individuals were located. Following the December 17 search warrant, Povondra provided a laptop belonging to Likness to a third-party that had not been found by law enforcement during the search warrant. Povondra told the third-party to place the contents of the laptop on the external hard drive and then destroy the laptop.
Likness’s case is still pending and is set for trial on December 8, 2020. The fact that Likness has been charged with a crime is merely an accusation and she is presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty.
This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Omaha Police Department, the Social Security Administration-Office of the Inspector General, and the United States Department of State.
Oklahoma man charged with cyberstalking of Savannah residentRead the Press Release
SAVANNAH, GA: An Oklahoma man is in custody after being charged with stalking a former acquaintance who moved to Savannah for safety.
Brannon Jeffries, 34, of Tulsa, Okla., has been charged with one count of Cyberstalking after his indictment by a U.S. District Court grand jury, said Bobby L. Christine, U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Georgia. The charge carries a penalty of up to five years in prison and substantial financial penalties upon conviction, and there is no parole in the federal system.
“The near-infinite reach of the internet has opened vast avenues for legitimate commerce and communication,” said U.S. Attorney Christine. “But we will pursue anyone who uses those tools to stalk and harass innocent victims.”
According to court documents, the victim, then a Kansas resident, entered a romantic relationship with Jeffries in November 2018 after connecting with him online. She later terminated the relationship. Following the break-up, the complaint alleges, Jeffries created social media pages and websites in her likeness, posted intimate photos to them, and attempted to contact the victim and her family from the imposter accounts. Additionally, Jeffries used the United States mail to harass and intimidate the victim.
Based on a criminal complaint preceding the indictment, Jeffries was taken into custody by U.S. Marshals and is awaiting further court proceedings.
“It is alleged that this defendant tried to hide in the shadows of the internet to harass and create immense trauma and pain to the victim and her family,” said Chris Hacker, Special Agent in Charge of FBI Atlanta. “By prosecuting this abhorrent behavior, the FBI and U.S. Attorney are hoping to bring some semblance of peace to those victims.”
Anyone with knowledge of any incidents or cases that might be related to this investigation is asked to email the Savannah FBI Office at [email protected].
Indictments and criminal complaints contain only charges; defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
The case is being investigated by the FBI, and prosecuted for the United States by Assistant U.S. Attorney Frank Pennington.
Notice to Potential Victims Regarding Microcap Securities Fraud SchemeRead the Press Release
BOSTON – Roger Knox, the founder and operator of a Swiss asset management firm, and Richard Targett-Adams, who assisted in the firm’s operation, participated in a massive global securities fraud scheme that the government believes generated up to approximately $165 million in fraudulent stock sale proceeds. Individuals who believe they may be potential victims are encouraged to notify the U.S. Attorney’s Office in the District of Massachusetts.
The defendants were previously charged in federal court in Boston. Knox pleaded guilty to securities fraud and conspiracy to commit securities fraud in January 2020, and he is currently scheduled to be sentenced on Jan. 28, 2021. Targett-Adams pleaded guilty to securities fraud, conspiracy to commit securities fraud and money laundering in June 2019, and he is currently scheduled to be sentenced on April 2, 2021.
Knox and Targett-Adams participated in a conspiracy to commit securities fraud in which ownership and control of dozens of publicly traded companies was disguised so that, among other things, criminal control groups could engage in pump-and-dump schemes and other forms of market manipulation in the companies’ microcap securities. These microcap securities, also known as “penny stocks,” primarily traded on the over-the-counter market.
Individuals who traded in one or more of the securities listed here during the time period indicated, and believe that they may be potential victims of this fraud, should contact the U.S. Attorney’s Office at [email protected]. In the email, please indicate the security traded and the transaction details for the trade(s): date(s), number of shares, price, whether it was bought or sold, and an assessment of gains or losses. Please also indicate whether there is supporting documentation, and a victim assistance specialist will assist you in transferring it in a secure manner.
Email submissions are due by Nov. 30, 2020. For more information, visit the U.S. Attorney’s Office website.
New York City Police Department Officer and Four Others Arrested for Conspiracy to Import and Distribute CocaineRead the Press Release
An indictment was unsealed today in federal court in Brooklyn charging Amaury Abreu, an NYPD Police Officer, and two co-defendants, Julio Bautista and Gustavo Valerio, with conspiring to import and distribute cocaine. Between at least January 2016 and October 2020, Abreu, Bautista and Valerio were allegedly members of a multinational drug trafficking organization (DTO) with distributors in the New York-metropolitan area and the Dominican Republic. The indictment also charges Bautista and a fourth defendant, Cesar Diaz-Bautista, with possession with the intent to distribute cocaine. A fifth defendant, Junior Ortiz, is charged in a complaint with cocaine importation conspiracy. Abreu, Julio Bautista, Cesar Diaz-Bautista, Valerio and Ortiz were arrested this morning and are scheduled to be arraigned this afternoon before United States Magistrate Judge Sanket J. Bulsara.
Seth D. DuCharme, Acting United States Attorney for the Eastern District of New York, Peter C. Fitzhugh, Special Agent-in-Charge, Homeland Security Investigations, New York (HSI), William F. Sweeney, Jr., Assistant Director-in-Charge, Federal Bureau of Investigation, New York Field Office (FBI), Madeline Singas, Nassau County District Attorney, and Dermot F. Shea, Commissioner, New York City Police Department (NYPD), announced the arrests and charges.
“As alleged, Police Officer Abreu conspired with drug traffickers who distributed large quantities of cocaine in the Eastern District of New York. By joining forces with his co-conspirators, Abreu has allegedly committed serious crimes, disgraced his NYPD badge and betrayed the public trust as well as fellow members of law enforcement who put their lives on the line to interdict drugs that endanger our communities,” stated Acting United States Attorney DuCharme. Mr. DuCharme thanked the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration, New York Field Division, HSI Office of Inspector General, the New York City Police Department’s Internal Affair Bureau and the Office of the Special Narcotics Prosecutor for the City of New York for their assistance with the investigation.
"Abreu is a sworn law enforcement officer who abused his badge and brought shame to his brothers and sisters in blue with his alleged involvement in a drug trafficking organization. There is no such thing as being above the law and we will stop anyone who exploits their position in public trust to conduct illicit acts. Dismantling this dangerous criminal organization is critical to protecting the homeland and our communities and HSI, working with its law enforcement partners, remains committed to making sure that Abreu, along with his co-conspirators, will face the consequences of their actions,” stated HSI Special Agent-in-Charge Fitzhugh.
“Officer Abreu and his co-conspirators served as a direct pipeline for the importation and distribution of cocaine in our city, as we allege today. While Abreu’s principal role in the DTO was more behind the scenes than out on the street, his double-dealing method of providing information and guidance to those who were on the front line of the illegal enterprise put the lives and safety of both the citizens of this city and his fellow NYPD officers at risk. The law enforcement community has no tolerance for imposters like Abreu, and we’ll be the first to show them the door when they engage in illegal activity of this magnitude,” stated FBI Assistant Director-in-Charge Sweeney.
“This criminal network allegedly trafficked more than 350 kilos of cocaine and was assisted by an NYPD officer, who used his knowledge and access to help them stay one step ahead of the law,” stated District Attorney Singas. “I am grateful we were able to assist our partners at the Eastern District of New York, Federal Bureau of Investigation and Homeland Security Investigations in unraveling this complex narcotics ring, which flooded New York with illicit drugs.”
“There is no place for corruption in the NYPD and it will always be prosecuted fully. We commend our IAB investigators and law enforcement partners in this case,” stated NYPD Commissioner Shea.
As set forth in the indictment and other court filings, the DTO imported multi-kilogram quantities of cocaine into the United States through a variety of means, including by sending drug couriers on flights to the United States, concealing narcotics in mail and tractor trucks that entered the United States from Mexico, and concealing narcotics in produce shipments that were imported into the United States. Since 2016, law enforcement agents have seized more than 350 kilograms of cocaine belonging to the DTO.
As alleged, Abreu, Bautista and Valerio played key roles in the DTO. Specifically, Bautista and Valerio were high-ranking members of the DTO based in New York, and were responsible for distributing and overseeing the distribution of cocaine once it arrived in New York. Abreu used his position as a police officer to protect his co-conspirators by providing information to the DTO about law enforcement procedures, performing warrant checks on DTO members on the NYPD arrest database and, on at least one occasion, distributing cocaine for the DTO. For example, in January 2016, Abreu messaged the DTO’s leadership, stating: “Today I’m going to find out the thing I couldn’t yesterday because there were too many people at the office.” One day later, Abreu messaged the DTO’s leadership that an associate of the DTO was “fine, because here in New York you don’t see information from another state when we run a license from another state only if they’re wanted so if they stop him tell him to say he lives in Pennsylvania and not in New York and it’s cool . . . .” On March 11, 2016, the DTO’s leadership sent Abreu a message containing defendant Valerio’s full name, date of birth and social security number. An audit of the NYPD’s arrest database revealed on that same day, Abreu searched for Valerio’s name in the warrants database despite having no legitimate law enforcement purpose for doing so. Ortiz allegedly operated a produce importation business that accepted shipments of cocaine from the DTO.
The charges in the indictment are allegations, and the defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty. If convicted, the defendants each face a mandatory minimum sentence of 10 years’ imprisonment and a maximum of life imprisonment on each of the charges.
The government’s case is being handled by the Office’s International Narcotics and Money Laundering Section. Assistant United States Attorney Erin Reid is in charge of the prosecution.
The Defendants:
AMAURY ABREU
Age: 34
Hauppauge, New YorkJULIO BAUTISTA
Age: 35
Roosevelt, New YorkCESAR DIAZ-BAUTISTA
Age: 43
Roosevelt, New YorkGUSTAVO VALERIO
Age: 38
South Ozone Park, New YorkE.D.N.Y. Docket No. 20-CR-433 (RRM)
JUNIOR ORTIZ
Age: 29
Uniondale, New YorkE.D.N.Y. Docket No. 20-MJ-243
New Law Enforcement Coordinator for the U.S. Attorney's OfficeRead the Press Release
SYRACUSE, NEW YORK - Acting United States Attorney Antoinette T. Bacon announced today that the United States Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of New York has a new Law Enforcement Coordinator, Dennis Murphy.
Mr. Murphy, who has a Masters of Science, Criminal Justice, has lengthy and broad law enforcement experience. Since March 2016, he has investigated fraud cases for the U.S. Department of Agriculture.
“I am pleased to welcome Dennis Murphy to our team as our Law Enforcement Coordinator,” said Acting United States Attorney Antoinette T. Bacon. “Mr. Murphy’s experience and expertise will help us build relationships with law enforcement agencies, task forces, and community groups throughout the thirty-two counties we serve. He will also be an important part of our community outreach program working closely with our Public Affairs Specialist/Community Outreach Coordinator, Marilyn Morey.”
“I am very pleased to be working for the United States Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of New York as the new Law Enforcement Coordinator,” said Law Enforcement Coordinator Dennis Murphy. “I look forward to interacting with all the law enforcement agencies in the district, as well as interacting with community and school groups on a regular basis.”
Mr. Murphy began his law enforcement career as an Officer for the Town of Camillus Police Department in January 1986. He transferred to the City of Syracuse Police Department (SPD) in October 1990 where he worked as a Detective, Detective Sergeant, and Detective Lieutenant. While at SPD, he worked in the anti-crime, narcotics, sex crimes, and major crimes units, and spent twelve years as an operator on the Emergency Response Team.
After retiring honorably from SPD in April 2012, he worked for the New York State Justice Center as a Supervising Criminal Investigator, where he oversaw three offices in the seventeen county Central New York Region until July 2015.
Mr. Murphy is also a United States Navy veteran who served as an Intelligence Specialist reservist with the Office of Naval Intelligence and then the Defense Intelligence Agency. After September 11, 2001, Mr. Murphy volunteered for active duty. He served with the Naval Criminal Investigative Service as a Technical Representative. During his service he collaborated on Operation Green Quest, that conducted Force Protection in the Middle East, and he also was assigned to the Office of Special Projects Special Surveillance Team which conducted Counter Terrorism and Espionage operations for NOBLE EAGLE and ENDURING FREEDOM.
In 2004, he transferred to the United States Air Force Reserve as a Special Agent for the Office of Special Investigations where he attended the Federal Law Enforcement Training Center – Brunswick, Georgia. Mr. Murphy's specialty for USAF-OSI was conducting Protective Service Operations in the New York City area. Specifically, he provided protection for the Secretary of the United States Air Force, Chief of Staff for the United States Air Force, and other high-ranking military officials visiting the city.
The Law Enforcement Coordination (LEC) program was implemented in 1986 in each U.S. Attorney’s Office with the goal of fostering cooperative and coordinated local, state, tribal and federal law enforcement efforts in each federal district. The program helps to develop training on emerging crime issues, conducts strategic planning, and establishes task forces and working groups to address current crime trends. During the past several years, the LEC program in the NDNY has broadened its coordination efforts beyond just law enforcement, including collaboration with many community partners to focus on national and district-wide priorities.
The Law Enforcement Coordinator also coordinates activities to promote citizen awareness, such as providing speakers for community and school groups; and initiatives designed to promote crime reduction and prevention, such as Project Safe Neighborhood, Street Smarts, Internet Safety, and Drug Awareness.
Mr. Murphy follows a distinguished set of past Law Enforcement Coordinators, including most recently Mr. Armond ‘Skip’ Scipione, serving from 2004 to 2008 as Assistant Law Enforcement Coordinator, and 2008 to 2020 as Law Enforcement Coordination Manager. Mr. Scipione was preceded as Law Enforcement Coordinator by Mr. Peter Laun, serving from 1989 to 2005 as Law Enforcement Coordination Manager.
Mr. Murphy will be based in our Syracuse office, and Ms. Morey is based in our Albany office.
To schedule a meeting or invite them to a meeting of yours, call the Syracuse Office at 315-448-0672 or the Albany Office at 518-431-0247.
Nashville Man Sentenced to 17 Years in Federal Prison for Drug Distribution and Firearms ViolationsRead the Press Release
NASHVILLE, Tenn. – November 9, 2020 – A Nashville man with a lengthy criminal history spanning two decades was sentenced last week to 17 years in federal prison, announced U.S. Attorney Don Cochran for the Middle District of Tennessee.
Timothy Lamont Page, 50, was sentenced Thursday, after he pleaded guilty in July to possession with intent to distribute crack cocaine, cocaine and heroin, and being a convicted felon in possession of a firearm.
In April 2019, officers with the Metropolitan Nashville Police Department – Madison Crime Suppression Unit, executed a search warrant at Page’s apartment, following months of surveillance based on complaints of illegal drug activity. During the search, officers found crack cocaine, cocaine and heroin packaged for sale, along with digital scales and over $4,000 cash. A loaded 9mm Smith & Wesson handgun was also found in Page’s vehicle. A federal grand jury indicted Page and his co-defendant, Isabell Slusher, 23, of Bell Buckle, Tennessee in November 2019.
On January 2, 2020, Page was transferred from the Sumner County Jail to federal custody and was released from custody the following week after a detention hearing. One of the conditions of his pre-trial release was that he have no contact with Slusher. Page left the United States Courthouse after the hearing and immediately contacted Slusher and just three days later, he picked her up from her mother’s house. On February 2, 2020, Slusher overdosed on heroin at the Strike and Spare Family Fun Center in Nashville, and lost consciousness in a bathroom stall. A volunteer firefighter was present and administered NARCAN, which likely saved Slusher’s life. It was later learned that Page had also accompanied Slusher to Vanderbilt Medical Center on two occasions after being released. In addition to likely continuing to supply Slusher with heroin, which almost killed her, Page also threatened Slusher, telling her that people would kill her if she cooperated with law enforcement. Slusher pleaded guilty to drug charges earlier this year and is awaiting sentencing.
Page’s criminal history includes facilitation of murder in 1993; possession with intent to distribute cocaine in 2003; distribution of cocaine in 2007; being a convicted felon in possession of a firearm in 2008; and attempt to possess heroin for resale in 2015.
This case was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms & Explosives and the Metropolitan Nashville Police Department. Assistant U.S. Attorney Joshua A. Kurtzman is prosecuting the case.
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Montour Falls Man Going to Prison for Possessing Child PornographyRead the Press Release
CONTACT: Barbara Burns
PHONE: (716) 843-5817
FAX #: (716) 551-3051ROCHESTER, N.Y. - U.S. Attorney James P. Kennedy, Jr. announced today that Michael J. Truesdail, 39, of Montour Falls, NY, who was convicted of possession of child pornography involving prepubescent minors, was sentenced to serve 24 months in prison by Chief U.S. District Judge Frank P. Geraci, Jr.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Meghan K. McGuire, who handled the case, stated that on March 27, 2019, a federal search warrant was executed at the defendant’s Henry Street residence. A number of electronic items were seized including two computers, a hard drive, an SD card, and two thumb drives. A forensic analysis recovered more than 8,000 images and 10 video files, some of which depict children engaged in sexual activity with other children and with adults.
The sentencing is the result of an investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, under the direction of Special Agent-in-Charge Stephen Belongia.
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Memphis Woman Sentenced in Healthcare Fraud Case; Charged in New Criminal Complaint for Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) Loan Fraud SchemeRead the Press Release
Memphis, TN –Princess Terry, 27, has been sentenced to 65 months in federal prison for healthcare fraud and aggravated identity theft, and has also been charged with wire fraud and making a false statement in connection with a loan application. D. Michael Dunavant, U.S. Attorney announced the sentence and the new unsealed complaint today.
According to the federal indictment in the healthcare fraud case, Terry owned and operated Caring Hearts Memphis, a home healthcare services business, which purported to provide healthcare services to mostly elderly patients, including home health aides, skilled nursing, and physical and occupational therapy.
Between approximately January 1, 2016 and June 27, 2019, Terry submitted over $2 million in fraudulent billing to Humana, a private health insurance provider, for services that were not actually rendered. Terry's fraudulent billing practices included numerous instances of billing for home health services on days when patients were actually hospitalized, billing for services in excess of 24 hours in a given day for the same patient, and billing for services purportedly rendered after the patient was deceased.
In executing this scheme, Terry also committed aggravated identity theft by forging patients' signatures without their knowledge or permission on consent-for-services forms and progress notes containing fraudulent misrepresentations about services not actually performed. On September 17, 2019, she was indicted based on that scheme; and on August 25, 2020, she entered a plea of guilty to charges of healthcare fraud and aggravated identity theft.
On November 6, 2020, U.S. District Judge Thomas L. Parker sentenced Parker to 65 months in federal prison, 3 years of supervised release, and a criminal forfeiture money judgment of $2 million on charges of healthcare fraud and aggravated identity theft. The Court reserved ruling on the question of restitution for a later date.
U.S. Attorney D. Michael Dunavant said: "Fraudulent schemes and crimes of dishonesty do not pay, and will be exposed. This case represents our commitment to expose healthcare fraudulent schemes, protect the integrity of the health insurance system, hold offenders accountable for their dishonest criminal conduct, and to recover ill-gotten proceeds on behalf of victims. Likewise, protection of the United States Treasury is a top priority for the Department of Justice, and our office is absolutely committed to bringing to justice those who would seek to take unfair advantage of critical government resources through PPP fraud during this challenging and uncertain time of the COVID-19 pandemic."
While she was on pretrial release in that case, Terry was also further charged with wire fraud and making a false statement in connection with a loan application. According to information in the unsealed criminal complaint, Terry allegedly executed a scheme to defraud the Small Business Administration's (SBA) Paycheck Protection Program (PPP), a loan program enacted in response to the COVID-19 public health crisis which provides forgivable loans to small businesses adversely affected by the pandemic.
In April and May of 2020, it is alleged that Terry falsely represented to the SBA and two different financial institutions that Caring Hearts Memphis was still a going business with employees and payroll obligations, despite the fact that it had not been in active operation since 2017 and had no employees. She also falsely certified that she was not under indictment, and submitted forged bank statements to document her loan applications. In this manner, Terry fraudulently obtained $290,000 in PPP loan funds.
The new charges will be presented to a federal grand jury at a later date to consider an indictment against the defendant. If convicted on the new wire fraud charge, the defendant faces a sentence of up to 20 years in federal prison, three years supervised release and a $1 million dollar fine. For the offense of making a false statement in connection with a loan application, Terry faces a sentence of up to 30 years in federal prison, 3 years supervised release and a $1 million fine. There is no parole in the federal system.
The charges and allegations contained in the complaint are merely accusations of criminal conduct, not evidence. The defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt, and convicted through due process of law.
The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) investigated both of these cases.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Christopher Cotten is prosecuting both cases on behalf of the government.
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Member of Santo Domingo Pueblo pleads guilty to assault on federal officersRead the Press Release
ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. – Stephen Reano, 22, of Santo Domingo, New Mexico, and an enrolled member of Santo Domingo Pueblo, pleaded guilty on Oct. 30 in federal court to an indictment charging him with two counts of assault on a federal officer with a dangerous weapon.
According to his plea agreement, Reano acknowledged that on June 11 he was carrying a rifle in the village area of Santo Domingo Pueblo. Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) patrol officers, responding to calls about an armed individual in the village, located Reano standing near a utility pole beneath a street light. Reano admitted that he pointed his shouldered rifle at one of the officers. Reano then pointed his weapon at the second officer when the officer used the patrol unit’s public address system to order Reano to put down his weapon.
Reano remains in custody pending sentencing, which has yet to be scheduled. He faces up to 20 years in prison for the two counts of assault.
The Albuquerque office of the FBI and the BIA investigated this case. Assistant U.S. Attorney Jennifer M. Rozzoni is prosecuting the case.
Medical Doctor Settles Civil Fraud Allegations in Adult Homes InvestigationRead the Press Release
Dr. Dominick Piacente, a New York family physician, has agreed to pay the United States $150,000 to resolve civil allegations that he paid kickbacks and caused false claims to be submitted to Medicare in connection with care that he purportedly provided to residents of adult homes.
Seth D. DuCharme, Acting United States Attorney for the Eastern District of New York, and William F. Sweeney Jr., the Assistant Director-in-Charge of the New York Office of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) announced the settlement. Mr. DuCharme thanked the United States Department of Health and Human Services, Office of Inspector General, for its assistance in the investigation.
“Patients requiring the care of adult home service providers deserve to have the benefit of Medicare, and to be treated as people, not commodities. Doctors who bilk our federal healthcare programs, in the guise of caring for disabled and elderly patients, will be held accountable for their actions,” stated Acting United States Attorney DuCharme.
Adult homes are privately-owned residential facilities licensed by the State of New York to provide long-term care and supervision to adults with disabilities or mental illnesses. An investigation by the FBI revealed that from October 2015 through April 2016, Dr. Piacente paid medical management companies in adult homes to induce the companies to allow him to receive payment from Medicare for services that he did not actually provide to residents. The settlement resolves potential claims that Piacente’s alleged conduct violated the False Claims Act.
The claims resolved by the settlement are allegations only. The government’s case is being handled by Assistant United States Attorney Lisa Kutlin of the Office’s Civil Division.
Mechanicsburg Physician to Pay $850,000 to Resolve Potential Liability Under the False Claims ActRead the Press Release
HARRISBURG - The United States Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Pennsylvania announced today that Nava K. Nawaz, M.D. of Mechanicsburg, PA has agreed to pay the United States $850,000 to resolve allegations that she submitted fraudulent travel claims to the Medicare program. As part of the settlement, Dr. Nawaz has also agreed not to seek or be an owner or operator of a laboratory for the next 18-months.
According to U.S. Attorney David J. Freed, Dr. Nawaz used her laboratory company Perll Diagnostics, Inc. to defraud Medicare by submitting over 23,000 false and inflated travel reimbursement claims for specimen collection and testing between 2014 and 2017. In doing so, the government contends that Dr. Nawaz misrepresented the distances traveled by Perll’s lab technicians and wrongly obtained taxpayer dollars for travel that never occurred.
“Our office has zero tolerance for those who invent or inflate Medicare reimbursement claims,” said U.S. Attorney Freed. “We will continue to use all available tools, including the civil remedies of the False Claims Act, to protect our seniors and safeguard the Medicare Trust Fund.”
“Incorrect billing of taxpayer-funded health care programs, such as Medicare, diverts funding from the necessary treatment and care beneficiaries need,” said Maureen R. Dixon, Special Agent in Charge for the Office of Inspector General of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. “We will continue to work with our law enforcement partners to identify fraudulent activities and protect funding for our government health care programs.”
The settlement agreement is neither an admission of liability by Dr. Nawaz nor a concession by the United States that its claims are not well founded.
This matter was investigated and handled by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Samuel S. Dalke and D. Brian Simpson, with assistance from the Office of the Inspector General, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.
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Manchester Man Pleads Guilty to Bank RobberyRead the Press Release
CONCORD - Alex Stoltman, 23, of Manchester, pleaded guilty in federal court to bank robbery, United States Attorney Scott W. Murray announced today.
According to court documents and statements made in court, on September 2, 2020, Stoltman entered a Citizens Bank branch in Manchester and handed a note to the bank teller that read, in part, “This is a robbery. Keep your hands where I can see them. Do not look at anyone. Do not think about hitting the alarm, I will blow your brains out. Give me all the money I can reach.” The victim bank teller gave Stoltman all of the money in the teller’s cash drawer.
Stoltman was arrested two days after the robbery.
Stoltman is scheduled to be sentenced on February 10, 2021.
“By entering a bank and threatening a teller, robbers endanger bank employees, as well as members of the public,” said U.S. Attorney Murray. “In order to maintain public safety, we will work closely with the FBI, the Manchester Police Department, and all of our law enforcement partners to identify and prosecute those who are responsible for bank robberies and other violent crimes. Crimes such as this will not be tolerated in New Hampshire.”
“In threatening an armed bank robbery, Alex Stoltman made it clear that he is a threat to public safety, and with today’s guilty plea, he has accepted responsibility for putting innocent people in fear for their lives,” said Joseph R. Bonavolonta, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI Boston Division. “The FBI and our partners at the Manchester Police Department are committed to taking violent criminals like him off the street in order to make our communities safer.”
“Dangerous individuals like Mr. Stoltman need to be held accountable for their actions,” said Manchester Police Chief Allen Aldenberg. “We are pleased that this incident came to such a swift resolution. It is a credit to the collaboration between Manchester Police and the FBI.”
This matter was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Manchester Police Department. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Anna Krasinski.
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Magnolia Woman Sentenced to over 9 Years in Federal Prison for Drug TraffickingRead the Press Release
El Dorado, Arkansas – David Clay Fowlkes, First Assistant United States Attorney for the Western District of Arkansas, announced that Ashley Martin (a/k/a “Hey Bae Bae”), 34, of Magnolia, Arkansas, was sentenced November 6, 2020, to 110 months in federal prison, followed by five years of supervised release for possession of methamphetamine with intent to distribute. The Honorable Chief Judge Susan O. Hickey presided over the sentencing hearing, in the United States District Court’s El Dorado Division.
According to court records, on June 3, 2019, while conducting operations in the Columbia County area, investigators with the FBI and 13th Judicial District Drug Task Force saw Martin and co-defendant, Jarred “Chase” McDaniel, 34, also of Magnolia, Arkansas, in a vehicle traveling east on Highway 82. Knowing that Martin had an outstanding felony arrest warrant and that McDaniel (who was driving) did not have a valid driver’s license, investigators contacted Arkansas State Police. After an Arkansas State Trooper stopped the vehicle and placed Martin and McDaniel under arrest, the Trooper conducted a vehicle search. During the search, the Trooper located a red Nike shoebox that contained two zip-lock bags of suspected methamphetamine.
The DEA crime laboratory has since determined that the zip-lock bags contained approximately three and a half pounds of a substance containing methamphetamine.
Martin and McDaniel were indicted by a federal grand jury in June of 2019. Martin pleaded guilty in February 2020. McDaniel has also pleaded guilty, and is currently awaiting sentencing.
The Federal Bureau of Investigation, 13th Judicial District Drug Task Force, Magnolia Police Department and Columbia County Sheriff’s Department investigated the case. Assistant United States Attorney Graham Jones prosecuted the case for the Western District of Arkansas.
Local man charged with theft of over 100 pieces mail including absentee ballotRead the Press Release
HOUSTON ‐ A 24-year-old resident of Houston has been arrested on charges of mail theft, announced U.S. Attorney Ryan K. Patrick.
Daruin Anelby Rosario is set to make his initial appearance before U.S. Magistrate Judge Christina A. Bryan at 2 p.m. today.
On Nov. 5, local authorities conducted a traffic stop which led to a search of Rosario’s vehicle, according to the complaint. Inside, law enforcement allegedly found a large quantity of unopened and opened mail in the names of others.
A subsequent inventory of the mail pieces revealed letters, financial checks as well as an unopened mail-in ballot for the State of Washington, according to the charges. Law enforcement immediately forwarded the ballot to election authorities in Washington.
If convicted, Rosario faces up to five years in federal prison and a possible $250,000 maximum fine.
The U.S. Postal Inspection Service and Humble Police Department conducted the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Luis Batarse and Kate Suh are prosecuting the case.
A criminal complaint is a formal accusation of criminal conduct, not evidence. A defendant is presumed innocent unless convicted through due process of law.
Las Vegas Man Indicted in Human Trafficking Case, Allegedly Coercing and Enticing Four Underage Girls via Social Media to Work as Prostitutes for HimRead the Press Release
LAS VEGAS, Nev. – A Las Vegas resident — charged in a 10-count indictment with coercing underage girls via Facebook to work as prostitutes for him — made his initial appearance in U.S. District Court today, announced U.S. Attorney Nicholas A. Trutanich of the District of Nevada.
“Our office is honored to support Nevada law enforcement’s continued efforts to crack down on human trafficking rings and bring traffickers to justice,” said U.S. Attorney Trutanich. “We remain committed to using all available tools to combat human trafficking and help survivors.”
In October 2020, a federal grand jury indicted Denzel Renyal Michael Loyd, 35, of Las Vegas, with four counts of coercion and enticement; three counts of sexual exploitation of a child; one count of transfer of obscene material to minor; one count of sex trafficking of children; and one count of possession of child pornography. Loyd appeared before U.S. Magistrate Judge Cam Ferenbach, who ordered him to be detained in federal custody pending a jury trial.
As alleged, from February 5, 2020 to March 9, 2020, Loyd coerced and enticed four underage victims via Facebook to engage in prostitution for him. The indictment further alleges that Loyd sent obscene material to a victim, and that he possessed child pornography on his cell phone.
The minimum statutory penalty for coercion and enticement is 10 years in prison; the minimum statutory penalty for sexual exploitation of children is 15 years in person, with a maximum statutory penalty of 30 years in prison; the minimum statutory penalty for sex trafficking of a child is 10 years in prison; the maximum statutory penalty for sending obscene material to a minor is 10 years in prison; and the maximum statutory penalty is 10 years in prison for possession of child pornography.
The charges resulted from an investigation by the FBI and Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department. Assistant U.S. Attorney Supriya Prasad is prosecuting the case.
An indictment merely alleges that crimes have been committed. The defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
If you have information regarding possible child sexual exploitation, please make a report to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children by calling the 24-hour hotline at 1-800-THE-LOST (1-800-843-5678) or by making a report at www.cybertipline.com.
This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse, launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice. Led by U.S. Attorneys’ Offices and the Department of Justice’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, 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 http://www.justice.gov/psc.
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Laplace Woman Charged with Bank FraudRead the Press Release
NEW ORLEANS – U.S. Attorney Peter G. Strasser announced that ARLENE TRANCHINA, age 55, of Laplace, was charged in a one-count Bill of Information with bank fraud on November 6, 2020.
According to court records, TRANCHINA was employed as the office manager for a company located in Reserve, Louisiana. From 2017 to October of 2019, she embezzled approximately $234,000 from her employer by making over ninety (90) checks for company expenses payable to herself or cash.
TRANCHINA faces a sentence of up to thirty years in prison, up to $250,000 in fines, up to five years of supervised release and a $100.00 mandatory special assessment fee.
U.S. Attorney Strasser reiterated that the indictment is merely a charge and that the guilt of the defendant must be proven beyond a reasonable doubt.
U.S. Attorney Strasser praised the work of the United States Secret Service, along with assistance from the St. John the Baptist Parish Sheriff’s Office, in investigating this matter. Assistant U.S. Attorney Edward J. Rivera is in charge of the prosecution.
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Justice Department Reaches Settlement with the Town of Irmo, South Carolina, to Resolve Allegations of Discrimination Against Homeowner with DisabilityRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON -- The Justice Department announced today that the Town of Irmo, South Carolina, has agreed to pay $25,000 to a homeowner with a disability as part of a settlement agreement resolving the government’s Fair Housing Act (FHA) lawsuit.
The department’s complaint, filed in the U.S. District Court for the District of South Carolina in November 2018, alleged that the town violated the FHA by refusing to allow the Irmo homeowner to build a carport adjacent to her home to accommodate her physical disability. According to the complaint, the homeowner, after falling and suffering injuries on several occasions outside her home, applied for a zoning variance in 2016 to build a carport to protect her driveway and mobility ramp in inclement weather and prevent future falls; the town summarily denied the variance. The homeowner filed a complaint with the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), which conducted an investigation and referred the matter to the Justice Department.
“The homeowner in this case requested a simple, straightforward, and reasonable accommodation: to build a carport adjacent to her own single-family home so she would be protected from the elements and could safely enter and exit her home. She should not have been forced to wait three years for this accommodation,” said Assistant Attorney General Eric Dreiband of the Civil Rights Division. “This settlement is a reminder that the Justice Department is committed to working tirelessly to enforce the Fair Housing Act and protect the rights of persons with disabilities. The department’s lawsuit should also serve as a warning that federal law protects the right of persons with disabilities to be secure in their homes and that the Justice Department will do whatever is necessary to protect that right.”
“This office will take action to protect those with disabilities,” said Peter M. McCoy, Jr., U.S. Attorney for the District of South Carolina. “This settlement not only compensates an individual who was initially prevented from making reasonable accommodations for her disability, but it helps ensure that those in similar situations are protected in the future.”
“Today’s settlement is a victory for persons with disabilities, who often need basic modifications to their living space in order to fully utilize and enjoy the place they call home,” said Anna María Farías, HUD’s Assistant Secretary for Fair Housing and Equal Opportunity. “HUD will continue to work with the Justice Department to take appropriate action when a municipality’s housing practices violate the law.”
After the department filed the lawsuit, the town adopted an ordinance allowing persons with disabilities to request reasonable accommodations in rules, policies, practices or services to afford them an equal opportunity to use or enjoy their home. More than a year later, the town finally granted the homeowner’s reasonable accommodation request and allowed her to build a carport so she could live safely in her home. Under the terms of the settlement agreement, the town is prohibited from engaging in future disability discrimination or interfering with the homeowner’s use of her carport, and town officials must participate in fair-housing training and report to the department any denial of a request for a reasonable accommodation.
The federal FHA prohibits discrimination in housing based on disability, race, color, religion, national origin, sex, and familial status. More information about the Civil Rights Division and the laws it enforces is available at www.justice.gov/crt.
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The year 2020 marks the 150th anniversary of the Department of Justice. Learn more about the history of our agency at www.Justice.gov/Celebrating150Years.
Jury Convicts Doctor of Scheme to Perform Unnecessary Surgeries on WomenRead the Press Release
NORFOLK, Va. – A federal jury convicted a Chesapeake doctor today on 52 counts related to his scheme to bill private and governmental insurers millions of dollars for irreversible hysterectomies and other surgeries and procedures that were not medically necessary for his patients.
According to court records and evidence presented at trial, Dr. Javaid Perwaiz, an obstetrician-gynecologist who has practiced in Hampton Roads since the 1980s, executed a scheme to defraud health insurance programs between at least 2010 and 2019. During that period, Perwaiz billed private and governmental insurers millions of dollars for irreversible hysterectomies and other surgeries and procedures that were not medically necessary for his patients. In many instances, Perwaiz would falsely tell his patients that they needed the surgeries to avoid cancer in order to induce them to agree to the surgeries.
“Dr. Perwaiz preyed upon his trusting patients and committed horrible crimes to feed his greed,” said G. Zachary Terwilliger, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia. “Dr. Perwaiz has a history of fraud including having his medical license and hospital privileges revoked. Nothing was going to stop him but the brave victims who testified against him and law enforcement. My thanks to the trial team for their outstanding work in what was a very complex case, and to our investigative partners for their efforts in helping bring Dr. Perwaiz to justice.”
The evidence at trial also demonstrated that Perwaiz falsified records for his obstetric patients so that he could induce their labor early, prior to the recommended gestational age that minimizes risk to the mother and baby, to ensure he would be able to conduct and be reimbursed for the deliveries. Perwaiz also violated the 30-day waiting period Medicaid requires for elective sterilizations by submitting backdated forms to falsely make it appear as if he had complied with the waiting period. Finally, Perwaiz billed insurance hundreds of thousands of dollars for diagnostic procedures that he only pretended to perform at his office.
“Not only did this doctor defraud our health care system out of millions of dollars, he did so by putting the health and safety of his patients at risk by performing unnecessary surgeries on women,” said Mark R. Herring, Attorney General of Virginia. “Doctors who take advantage of the trust their patients put in them must be brought to justice. I want to thank my team for their hard work on this egregious case and our local, state, and federal partners for their continued partnership in holding dangerous individuals accountable.”
The witnesses at trial included dozens of former patients, some of whom testified to the complications they continue to endure as a result of the unnecessary surgeries Perwaiz performed. Witnesses also included nurses who worked at the hospitals where Perwaiz performed his surgeries, who testified that they repeatedly complained about his practices to their supervisors.
“Doctors are in positions of authority and trust and take an oath to do no harm to their patients,” said Karl Schumann, Acting Special Agent in Charge of the FBI’s Norfolk Field Office. “With unnecessary, invasive medical procedures, Dr. Perwaiz not only caused enduring complications, pain and anxiety to his patients, but he assaulted the most personal part of their lives and even robbed some of their future. The brave patients and nurses who came forward and testified deserve our gratitude for helping end this horrible scheme. Let this case demonstrate the FBI’s commitment to hold accountable anyone who abuses their position of trust.”
“In his desire to line his pockets, Dr. Perwaiz callously ignored his patients’ health and well-being by conducting medically unnecessary and irreversible medical procedures,” said Maureen R. Dixon, Special Agent in Charge, Department of Health and Human Services – Office of Inspector General. “Physicians who recklessly place patients at risk to boost their own profits will be held accountable for their actions.”
Perwaiz faces a maximum penalty of 465 years in prison. He is scheduled to be sentenced on March 31, 2021. Actual sentences for federal crimes are typically less than the maximum penalties. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after taking into account the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
G. Zachary Terwilliger, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia; Karl Schumann, Acting Special Agent in Charge of the FBI’s Norfolk Field Office; Mark R. Herring, Attorney General of Virginia; Maureen R. Dixon, Special Agent in Charge, Department of Health and Human Services, Office of Inspector General; and Chris Dillard, Acting Special Agent in Charge, Defense Criminal Investigative Service, Mid-Atlantic Field Office, made the announcement after Senior U.S. District Judge Rebecca Beach Smith accepted the verdict.
Assistant U.S. Attorneys Elizabeth M. Yusi, E. Rebecca Gantt, and John F. Butler are prosecuting the case.
A copy of this press release is located on the website of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Virginia. Related court documents and information are located on the website of the District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia or on PACER by searching for Case No. 2:19-cr-189.
Judge sentences St. Louis man who left behind trail of blood during armed robbery at Vincent’s Jewelers in Creve CoeurRead the Press Release
ST. LOUIS, MO – U.S. District Judge Audrey G. Fleissig sentenced Michael Gladney to 112 months in prison today. The 44-year-old St. Louis, Missouri resident pleaded guilty, in January, to one count of armed robbery affecting interstate commerce and one count of brandishing a firearm in the furtherance of a crime of violence.
On March 19, 2018, Gladney and three other men entered Vincent’s Jewelers in Creve Coeur. Gladney and the others ordered the workers to the back of the business at gunpoint. Gladney and two others were armed with firearms and a fourth person was armed with a pipe.
One man discharged a firearm into the case and Gladney and another man used the pipe to smash the glass to gain access to and ultimately take several pieces of jewelry.
During the robbery, Gladney shot himself and left blood near a glass case as he ran away. A trail of blood led investigators outside to where a get-away vehicle was parked.
The Creve Coeur Police Department, St. Louis County Police Department and Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives investigated the case. Special Assistant United States Attorney Jennifer Szczucinski handled the case as part of the Safer Streets Initiative. The initiative was launched by Attorney General Schmitt and U.S. Attorney Jeff Jensen in January of 2019 as an unprecedented state and federal partnership to prosecute violent crime in St. Louis.
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Jefferson County man admits to role in drug conspiracyRead the Press Release
MARTINSBURG, WEST VIRGINIA – Shaquan Omar Richardson, of Harpers Ferry, West Virginia, has admitted to his role in a drug conspiracy that spanned several states, U.S. Attorney Bill Powell announced.
Richardson, also known as “Wave,” 24, pled guilty today to one count of “Conspiracy to Possess with Intent to Distribute and to Distribute One Kilogram or More of a Mixture and Substance Containing Phencyclidine (PCP)” and one count of “Possession with Intent to Distribute 280 Grams or More of Cocaine Base.” Richardson admitted to working with others to distribute PCP from August 2019 to September 2019 in Jefferson County and elsewhere. He also admitted to distributing more than 280 grams or more of cocaine base or “crack” in September 2019 in Jefferson County.
Richardson faces at least 10 years and up to life incarceration and a fine of up to $10,000,000 for each count. 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.
This case is the result of investigations supported by the Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF) under the Attorney General-led Synthetic Opioid Surge (SOS)/Special Operations Division (SOD) Project Clean Sweep. This initiative seeks to reduce the supply of synthetic opioids in “hot spot” areas previously identified by the Attorney General of the United States, thereby reducing drug overdoses and drug overdose deaths, and identify wholesale distribution networks and sources of supply operating nationally and internationally.
OCDETF was established in 1982 to conduct comprehensive, multilevel attacks on major drug trafficking and money laundering organizations and is the keystone of the Department of Justice’s drug reduction strategy. Today, OCDETF combines the resources and expertise of its member federal agencies in cooperation with state and local law enforcement. The principal mission of the OCDETF program is to identify, disrupt, and dismantle the most serious drug trafficking organizations, transnational criminal organizations, and money laundering organizations that present a significant threat to the public safety, economic, or national security of the United States.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Lara Omps-Botteicher and Special Assistant U.S. Attorney C. Lydia Lehman, also with the Berkeley County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office, are prosecuting the case on behalf of the government. The FBI; Homeland Security Investigations; the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms & Explosives; and the Eastern Panhandle Drug Task Force, a HIDTA-funded initiative, investigated.
U.S. Magistrate Judge Robert W. Trumble presided.