Latest Records
Newest first across public DOJ and U.S. Attorney press releases.
Thursday 27 February 2020
Former Pittsburgh Woman Sentenced to Prison for Heroin ConspiracyRead the Press Release
PITTSBURGH - A former resident of Pittsburgh, PA, was sentenced to federal prison on federal narcotics charges, United States Attorney Scott W. Brady announced today.
Brittany Zietak, 28, previously pleaded guilty to one count of conspiring to possess with the intent to distribute and distribute heroin in front of United States District Court Judge Marilyn S. Horan. Today, Judge Horan sentenced Zietak to a term of 30 months in prison followed by a term of six years’ supervised release.
According to information presented to the court, Zietak conspired with co-defendants Daniel Espy and Vincent Daniele to acquire and distribute large quantities of heroin in Allegheny County. Zietak assisted Espy in acquiring and selling the heroin while Vincent Daniele ran and protected a drug stash house for the conspiracy where the heroin and a firearm were stored. Vincent Daniele was previously sentenced to 66 months in prison for his role in this offense. Daniel Espy has pleaded guilty and is scheduled to be sentenced on June 22, 2020.
Assistant United States Attorneys Timothy M. Lanni is prosecuting this case on behalf of the government.
The Drug Enforcement Agency and the Pittsburgh Bureau of Police Narcotics and Vice Division with assistance from the South Park Police Department, conducted the investigation that led to the Indictment in this case.
The investigation was funded by the federal Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force Program (OCDETF). The OCDETF program supplies critical federal funding and coordination that allows federal and state agencies to work together to successfully identify, investigate, and prosecute major interstate and international drug trafficking organizations and other criminal enterprises.
Former Kivalina Teacher Arrested and Charged for Child Exploitation CrimesRead the Press Release
Anchorage, Alaska – U.S. Attorney Bryan Schroder announced that Jayson Knox, a/k/a “Birdie,” 21, a former substitute teacher at the McQueen School in Kivalina, Alaska, has been charged with attempted sexual exploitation of a child, transfer of obscene material to a minor, and attempted coercion and enticement of a minor. Knox was arrested yesterday, and is currently awaiting his initial court appearance.
According to court documents, Knox became the subject of a federal investigation earlier this month when the Alaska State Troopers contacted the FBI concerning allegations that Knox had engaged in inappropriate conduct with minors in Kivalina. The complaint alleges that Knox used text messages and social media to communicate with 10 minors in Kivalina to send and request sexually explicit images. The complaint also alleges that Knox used text messages and social media to make attempts to set up meetings with some of the minors to engage in sexually explicit conduct.
If the public has any further information regarding Knox’s activities,
please contact Anchorage FBI at (907) 276-4441.
If convicted, Knox faces a mandatory minimum sentence of 10 years to life in federal prison. Under the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, the actual sentence imposed will be based upon the seriousness of the offense and the prior criminal history, if any, of the defendant.
The FBI’s Child Exploitation Task Force and the Alaska State Troopers (AST) conducted the investigation leading to the charges in this case. This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Daniel Doty of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Alaska.
This case is part of the Rural Alaska Anti-Violence Enforcement Network (RAAVEN) Working Group’s ongoing efforts to increase engagement, coordination, and action on public safety in Alaska Native communities.
The investigation is also part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by U.S. Attorneys’ Offices, Project Safe Childhood combines federal, state, and local resources to better locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the Internet, as well as to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.justice.gov/psc.
The charges in the criminal complaint are merely allegations, and the defendant is presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
Former Indian Health Services doctor charged with conflict of interestRead the Press Release
GREAT FALLS – A former doctor with Indian Health Services in Browning was indicted on charges of conflict of interest for allegedly using his job to prescribe a diabetes drug from a pharmacy in exchange for kickbacks, U.S. Attorney Kurt Alme said.
An indictment filed on Feb. 26 charges Dr. Arnold Scott Devous, 67, of Billings, with federal medical officer with conflict of interest. If convicted of the most serious crime, Devous faces a maximum five years in prison, a $250,000 fine and three years of supervised release.
An arraignment is set for March 26 in Great Falls before U.S. Magistrate Judge John T. Johnston.
The indictment is merely an accusation. Devous remains innocent until proven guilty.
The indictment alleges Devous used his position as a medical officer for Indian Health Services in Browning to prescribe Farxiga, a Type 2 diabetes medication. Farxiga was not on the IHS formulary and could not be obtained at the facility.
The indictment further alleges that from about December 2015 to June 2016 in Teton and Glacier counties, Devous prescribed Farxiga to patients and entered into a business arrangement with a pharmacy in Choteau in which he, his wife and a person with whom he had been negotiating a prospective job would receive 80 percent of the profits of the sale of Farxiga from the pharmacy. The arrangement resulted in the receipt of about $45,590.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Ryan Weldon is prosecuting the case, which was investigated by the Office of Inspector General, Office of Investigations, U.S. Department of Health & Human Services.
Pacer case reference. 20-18.
If the above case is of interest to your media organization and the community it serves, we encourage you to monitor its progress through the U.S. District Court calendar and the PACER system.
To establish a PACER account, which will allow you to review documents filed in the case, please go to, http://www.pacer.gov/register.html. To access the district court’s calendar, please go to https://ecf.mtd.uscourts.gov/cgi-bin/PublicCalendar.pl.
XXX
Former Harrisburg Businessman Sentenced to 37 Months’ Imprisonment for Defrauding College Faculty UnionRead the Press Release
HARRISBURG – The United States Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Pennsylvania announced that the former owner/operator of a Harrisburg based dental and vision claims processing business, Michael Timothy Buchanan, age 69, currently a resident of Fishers, Indiana, was sentenced to 37 months’ imprisonment followed by three years of supervised release on February 26, 2020, by Senior U.S. District Court Judge Sylvia H. Rambo, for defrauding a trust fund established by the Association of Pennsylvania State College and University Faculties (APSCUF) out of $1,493,629.
According to United States Attorney David J. Freed, Buchanan pleaded guilty in May 2019 to a criminal information charging him with one count of health care fraud. Buchanan executed a scheme to defraud the Pennsylvania Faculty Health and Welfare Fund (The Fund) between 2007 and 2017 by his submission of false, inflated invoices for the services his company, Actuaries, Consultants and Administrators, Inc. (ACA), provided The Fund in connection with the processing of dental and vision claims submitted by members of the APSCUF Union.
The Fund paid ACA $5.20 for each vision claim it processed and $8.10 for each dental claim it processed. Buchanan routinely and artificially inflated the number of claims it allegedly processed for The Fund between 2007 and 2017 that resulted in a $1,493,629 overpayment to ACA.
“Citizens have a right to expect that the hard-earned dollars they contribute towards ever increasing health care costs will be protected by the stewards of those funds,” said U.S. Attorney Freed. “When such funds are misappropriated via fraud, we in federal law enforcement will step in to hold the fraudsters accountable. We are pleased that Judge Rambo’s sentence recognized the serious nature of the defendant’s conduct, and that he has been ordered to pay back what he stole.”
“For a decade, Buchanan orchestrated the overbilling of the faculty union,” said Tara A. McMahon, Acting Special Agent in Charge of the FBI’s Philadelphia Division.” “His company deliberately and repeatedly submitted one false claim after the next, resulting in the theft of nearly $1.5 million. With this sentence, he’ll begin to answer for such brazen fraud.”
“In an effort to personally enrich himself, Michael Buchanan stole more than $500,000 from union members’ health benefits through his scheme of submitting inflated invoices to the union trust fund,” said Derek Pickle, Acting Special Agent-in-Charge, Philadelphia Region, U.S. Department of Labor Office of Inspector General. “We will continue to work with our law enforcement partners to protect the financial integrity of labor organizations,”
Judge Rambo ordered Buchanan to pay $1,493,629 in restitution to the Fund, to forfeit his interest in $1,493,629 in U.S. currency, and six Fidelity Brokerage Services retirement accounts. Judge Rambo also ordered Buchanan to commence service of his sentence on April 20, 2020.
The case was investigated by the Harrisburg Office of the FBI and the U.S. Department of Labor, Office of Inspector General. Assistant United States Attorney Kim Douglas Daniel prosecuted the case.
# # #
Former CFO of Naugatuck Company Charged with Fraud OffensesRead the Press Release
John H. Durham, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, and Brian C. Turner, Special Agent in Charge of the New Haven Division of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, today announced that a federal grand jury in New Haven returned a six-count indictment yesterday charging JOSEPH NADER, 53, of Torrington, with fraud offenses.
As alleged in the indictment, Nader was the Chief Financial Officer (“CFO”) of a company located in Naugatuck. From approximately 2013 to February 2017, Nader defrauded the company by making false representations to the company’s owners concerning the company’s financial position. He also created a false bank statement depicting a balance of over $185,000 in a company account, when the balance was significantly less, and then provided that false bank statement to an outside accounting firm for preparation of the company’s year-end financial statements. Because Nader misrepresented the company’s financial position, the company issued bonuses to him and other employees in amounts they would not otherwise have received had the true financial position of the company been known.
In addition, the indictment alleges that Nader sent false invoices and pack lists to a customer of the company to reflect products purportedly purchased by the customer, causing the customer to pay more than $100,000 for products that had not been purchased or shipped.
It is also alleged that Nader manipulated the company’s payroll system to cause the company to make excessive payments to him.
The indictment charges Nader with six counts of wire fraud, an offense that carries a maximum term of imprisonment of 20 years on each count.
This matter has been assigned to U.S. District Judge Michael P. Shea in Hartford. An arraignment date is not scheduled.
U.S. Attorney Durham stressed that an indictment is not evidence of guilt. Charges are only allegations and the defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.
This investigation is being conducted by the Federal Bureau of Investigation. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Jennifer Laraia and Michael McGarry.
Former Baltimore Mayor Catherine Pugh Sentenced to Three Years in Federal Prison for Fraud Conspiracy and Tax ChargesRead the Press Release
Baltimore, Maryland – U.S. District Judge Deborah K. Chasanow today sentenced Catherine Elizabeth Pugh, age 69, of Baltimore, Maryland, to three years in federal prison, followed by three years of supervised release, on charges of conspiracy to commit wire fraud, conspiracy to defraud the United States, and two counts of tax evasion. Judge Chasanow also ordered Pugh to pay $411,948 in restitution and to forfeit $669,688 including property on Ellamont Road in Baltimore and $17,800 from the Committee to Re-elect Catherine Pugh.
The sentence 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; and Special Agent in Charge Kelly R. Jackson of the Internal Revenue Service - Criminal Investigation, Washington, D.C. Field Office.
“Baltimore City faces many pressing issues, and we need our leaders to place the interests of the citizens above their own,” said United States Attorney Robert K. Hur. “Catherine Pugh betrayed the public trust for her personal gain and now faces three years in federal prison, where there is no parole—ever. Law enforcement will remain vigilant to ensure that our citizens receive the honesty and professionalism they deserve from government officials and will prosecute officials who betray the public’s trust.”
“The defendant's scheme to cheat the taxpayers of Baltimore was as bold as it was brazen, and today's sentence shows that the punishment for those actions is swift and severe,” said Alfred Watson, Assistant Special Agent in Charge of the Baltimore Division of the FBI. “The public has a right to expect and demand honesty and integrity from their public servants and the FBI stands ready with our law enforcement partners to uphold those principals in our system.”
“Today, Catherine Pugh learned the consequences of her actions. When those in positions of trust conspire to defraud the government and engage in corrupt ventures, they must be held accountable,” said IRS-CI Special Agent in Charge Kelly R. Jackson. “We will continue to pursue justice against those whose actions deteriorate the confidence of the citizens that they were elected to serve.”
According to her plea agreement, from approximately 2007 through 2016 Pugh served in the Maryland State Senate, where she served on various legislative committees, including the Senate Health Committee. In 2011, Pugh ran an unsuccessful campaign to be mayor of Baltimore. In September 2015, Pugh again ran for mayor of Baltimore, and won, becoming Mayor on December 6, 2016. Pugh owned Healthy Holly, LLC, a company formed in Maryland on January 14, 2011, and used to publish and sell children’s books she had written. Pugh also owned Catherine E. Pugh and Company, Inc., a marketing and public relations consulting company organized in Maryland in 1997. The principal address for both companies was Pugh’s residence in Baltimore. Pugh was also the sole signatory on the Healthy Holly and Pugh Company bank accounts. Pugh did not maintain a personal bank account, using her business bank accounts for personal and business finances.
Between June 2011 and August 2017, four Healthy Holly books were published, with each book listing “Catherine Pugh” as author. The vast majority of books published by Healthy Holly were marketed and sold directly to non-profit organizations and foundations, many of whom did business or attempted to do business with the Maryland and Baltimore City governments.
From approximately 2011 until December 2016, Gary Brown, Jr. worked as a legislative aide to Pugh. Brown actively campaigned for Pugh’s reelection to the State Senate in 2014 and served as her campaign aide during her 2016 mayoral election campaign. Following Pugh’s election and inauguration as mayor of Baltimore City in December 2016, Brown was hired as the Deputy Director of Special Events in the mayor’s office. In December 2016, Brown was nominated by the Maryland Democratic Central Committee to fill the vacancy in the Maryland House of Delegates created by Pugh’s mayoral victory. However, the Governor withdrew Brown’s nomination after he was indicted for election law violations in January 2017.
Brown was the sole owner and operator of Stricker Abstracting, LLC, and GB Abstracting, LLC, both Maryland companies that purported to be title-abstracting businesses, and GBJ Consulting, LLC, a Maryland consulting business. Brown ran all three companies from his residences in Baltimore. Brown also freelanced as a tax return preparer. Between March 2011 until March 2019, Brown helped Pugh promote and sell the Healthy Holly books. Brown oversaw the transportation and storage of the books, drafted invoices, and corresponded with purchasers. Much of Brown’s work on Healthy Holly occurred during work hours while serving as Pugh’s legislative aide and mayoral staff member. Brown was not an employee of Healthy Holly and received no salary or compensation until approximately mid-2016 when he started to get sales commissions. None of his companies received compensation for services purportedly provided to Healthy Holly.
Wire Fraud
Pugh admitted that from November 2011 until March 2019, she conspired with Gary Brown to defraud purchasers of Healthy Holly books in order to enrich themselves, promote Pugh’s political career, and fund her campaign for mayor. Pugh and Brown admitted that they employed several methods to defraud, including: not delivering books after accepting payments for the books; accepting payments for books to be delivered to a third party on behalf of a purchaser, then converting some or all of the purchased books to their own use without the purchaser’s or third party’s knowledge; and by double-selling books without either purchaser’s knowledge or consent. Pugh stored quantities of fraudulently obtained Healthy Holly books at various locations, including Pugh’s residence, her state legislative offices, her mayoral office, the War Memorial building in Baltimore City, and a public storage locker used by Pugh’s mayoral campaign.
Specifically, Pugh admitted that she sold approximately 20,000 each of Healthy Holly books one, two, and three to the University of Maryland Medical System (UMMS) for $100,000 each. UMMS agreed to the purchase on the condition that it be on behalf of, and for distribution to, school children in the Baltimore City Public School system (BCPS), in part, to further the mission of UMMS’s community outreach program. As part of the agreement Pugh was to deliver the donated books to BCPS.
As detailed in her plea agreement, Pugh did not deliver the full 20,000 Healthy Holly books one, two, and three that UMMS purchased to BCPS, instead keeping some of the books for herself. In addition, Pugh sold to unwitting purchasers copies of Healthy Holly books one, two, and three that had already been sold to UMMS and donated to BCPS. Pugh used Associated Black Charities, a Baltimore-based public charity, to facilitate the resale and distribution of the books to new purchasers. Neither the charity nor the new purchasers knew that Pugh was double-selling the books. Pugh also accepted payment for books that were never delivered to the purchaser.
Conspiracy to Defraud the United States/Tax Evasion
Pugh further admitted that she used the proceeds of the sale of fraudulently obtained Healthy Holly books for her own purposes, including: to fund straw donations to Pugh’s mayoral election campaign; and to fund the purchase and renovation of a house in Baltimore City.
Specifically, Pugh issued Healthy Holly checks payable to Brown, for the purpose of funding straw donations to the Committee to Elect Catherine Pugh. Brown cashed the checks and used the untraceable cash to fund money orders, debit cards, and personal checks in the names of straw donors totaling approximately $35,800. The straw donations purchased with the cash were then deposited into the bank account of the Committee to Elect Catherine Pugh. Pugh wrote additional Healthy Holly checks to Brown totaling $26,300, which he cashed and gave the cash to Pugh. In total, Brown and Pugh cashed out approximately $62,100 of Healthy Holly checks during 2016, all of which went to straw donors or Pugh. To conceal the scheme, Brown and Pugh created the pretense of a legitimate business relationship between Brown and Healthy Holly. In furtherance of the pretense, Pugh and Brown signed an independent contractor agreement between Healthy Holly and GBJ Consulting, and Brown created a business ledger that misrepresented the Healthy Holly checks as payments for promotion services rendered by Brown’s company on behalf of Healthy Holly. At Pugh’s urging, Brown also created bogus GB Consulting invoices and backdated them.
On January 11, 2017, Brown was charged with, and ultimately convicted of, violating Maryland’s election laws for funneling $18,000 of the straw donations to Pugh’s campaign. The Committee to Elect Catherine Pugh issued five checks in the names of three of the straw donors, with a notation in the memo line on each check stating “returned contribution.” In fact, Pugh acknowledges that none of the straw donors received any of the returned money, and instead, at Pugh’s direction, Brown used the money to pay for his legal defense in the state election-law prosecution, a case that had legal implications for Pugh.
Pugh also admitted that she conspired to evade taxes on the income received from the sales of Healthy Holly books. To accomplish this, Pugh concealed from the IRS the fact that she created false business expenses to offset the income she received from the sale of books by issuing Healthy Holly checks to Brown for services and/or products purportedly supplied by his company. Pugh filed false income tax returns for 2015 and 2016, in which she underreported her income. For example, for tax year 2016 Pugh claimed her taxable income was $31,020 and the tax due was $4,168, when in fact, Pugh’s taxable income was $322,365, with an income tax due of approximately $102,444.
Former Baltimore City employee Gary Brown, Jr., age 38, of Baltimore, previously pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit wire fraud, to two counts of conspiracy to defraud the United States, and to filing a false tax return. Judge Chasanow has not yet scheduled a sentencing date for Brown.
United States Attorney Robert K. Hur commended the FBI and the IRS Criminal Investigation for their work in the investigation and thanked the U.S. Department of Labor - Office of Inspector General, Office of Investigations - Labor Racketeering and Fraud, the Maryland State Prosecutor’s Office, and the Baltimore City Office of Inspector General for their assistance. Mr. Hur thanked Assistant U.S. Attorneys Martin J. Clarke and Leo J. Wise, who prosecuted the case.
# # #
Five Defendants Sentenced in South Florida to Prison Terms for Their Roles in Tricare and Medicare Fraud SchemeRead the Press Release
MIAMI – This week, U.S. District Judge Cecilia M. Altonaga sentenced five defendants, including a doctor, to federal prison terms for their roles in a scheme that defrauded Tricare and Medicare out of more than $9.6 million. The defendants tricked beneficiaries into having the federal health care programs pay for medically unnecessary compounded prescription medicines and cancer genetic tests. Their sentences are as follows:
- Dr. Mangala Ramamurthy, 64, of Texas was sentenced to 34 months for her role in the scheme: prescribing compounded pain creams and referring Genetic Cancer tests that were medically unnecessary. Dr. Ramamurthy earlier pled guilty to conspiracy to defraud the U.S. and conspiracy to receive healthcare kickbacks.
- John Scholtes, 56 of Boca Raton, Florida, was sentenced to 97 months for his role in the scheme. Scholtes earlier pled guilty to conspiracy to commit healthcare fraud, conspiracy to defraud the U.S., and conspiracy to receive healthcare kickbacks.
- Anthony Mauzy, 43, of California, was sentenced to 49 months for his role in the scheme. Mauzy earlier pled guilty to conspiracy to commit healthcare fraud.
- Thomas Sahs, 41, of California, was sentenced to 45 months for his role in the scheme. Sahs earlier pled guilty to conspiracy to commit healthcare fraud.
- Rajesh Mahbubani, 46, of Texas, was sentenced to 49 months for his role in the scheme. Mahbubani earlier pled guilty to conspiracy to commit healthcare fraud.
On January 31, 2020, a sixth co-conspirator, Senthil Kumar Ramamurthy, 38, of Texas, was sentenced to 121 months in federal prison for his role in the scheme. S.K. Ramamurthy earlier pled guilty to conspiracy to commit healthcare fraud, conspiracy to defraud the US, and conspiracy to receive healthcare kickbacks. S.K. Ramamurthy is the son of Dr. Ramamurthy.
Ariana Fajardo Orshan, U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Florida, Cynthia Bruce, Special Agent in Charge, Defense Criminal Investigative Service (DCIS), Southeast Field Office, and SAC Omar Pérez Aybar, Special Agent in Charge for Health and Human Services, Office of Inspector General (HHS-OIG) made the announcement.
Tricare is the health care program for the U.S. military that pays the health care costs of active and retired military personnel and their families, including the costs of medically necessary prescription medications. Medicare is a federally-funded program that provides free or below-cost health care benefits to certain individuals, primarily the blind, elderly, and disabled.
According to court records, the co-conspirators targeted Tricare for about 10 months, starting in 2014. After making their way onto U.S. military bases, co-conspirators convinced Tricare beneficiaries to sign-up for compounded prescription medications that the beneficiaries did not need. To encourage sign-up, co-conspirators falsely told the beneficiaries that the pharmacies would custom-design their medications or that the medications were free. In fact, the medications were not custom-designed and the patients had co-payments. Compounding pharmacies paid the co-conspirators millions of dollars in kickbacks in exchange for sending the pharmacies expensive prescription orders.
In mid-2015, Tricare scaled back its reimbursements for compounded medications. The defendants turned to Medicare. They paid doctors to refer Medicare beneficiaries to a lab in Georgia for cancer genetic screening testing, even though the doctors had never examined the beneficiaries. As with the compounded medications, the cancer genetic screening tests were not medically necessary.
The owner of the Georgia lab, Minal Patel, 40, was indicted in the Southern District of Florida in September 2019. An indictment is an accusation and a defendant is innocent until proven guilty.
To date, fraudulent compounding pharmacy schemes have caused estimated losses to Tricare in excess of $2 billion. Fraudulent genetic testing lab schemes have caused estimated losses to Medicare of approximately $2.1 billion.
U.S. Attorney Fajardo-Orshan commended the investigative efforts of DCIS and HHS-OIG. Assistant United States Attorneys Kevin J. Larsen, Anna Maria Martinez, and John C. Shipley prosecuted the case. Assistant United States Attorney Daren Grove is handling the asset forfeiture matters.
Related court documents and information may be found on the website of the District Court for the Southern District of Florida at www.flsd.uscourts.gov or at http://pacer.flsd.uscourts.gov.
- Dr. Mangala Ramamurthy, 64, of Texas was sentenced to 34 months for her role in the scheme: prescribing compounded pain creams and referring Genetic Cancer tests that were medically unnecessary. Dr. Ramamurthy earlier pled guilty to conspiracy to defraud the U.S. and conspiracy to receive healthcare kickbacks.
Federal inmate sentenced to additional prison time for using a contraband cell phone to post videos to FacebookRead the Press Release
ATLANTA – Brian J. Wilson, an inmate at the United States Penitentiary in Atlanta (“USP Atlanta”) has been sentenced to an additional three months in prison for using a contraband cell phone to post photographs and videos onto Facebook from his cell at the prison.
“Contraband cell phones are pervasive in prisons and dangerous in the hands of inmates in any prison facility,” said U.S. Attorney Byung J. “BJay” Pak. “Cell phones can, and often do, become a tool used by inmates to run illicit schemes, intimidate people outside of the facility, or as in this case, simply flaunt that they have one. The federal government will continue to combat their use through vigorous prosecutions and the imposition of consecutive prison sentences.”
“By continuing to break the law while incarcerated, Wilson has not learned from his past transgressions,” said Chris Hacker, Special Agent in Charge of FBI Atlanta. “The FBI is using every resource possible to stop the proliferation of contraband cell phones in our prisons and hopefully this additional sentence will send a clear message that their use will not be tolerated.”
According to U.S. Attorney Pak, the charges, and other information presented in court; USP Atlanta is a medium-security federal prison for male inmates operated by the Federal Bureau of Prisons. The Cell Phone Contraband Act of 2010 made it a crime for federal inmates to possess or use cell phones while incarcerated.
On March 24, 2015, Wilson was sentenced to ten years in prison after sustaining a conviction for possession of a stolen firearm. Since approximately May 3, 2018, Wilson has been an inmate at USP Atlanta.
As an inmate, Wilson possessed a cell phone in USP Atlanta. Between late-May and July 2019, Wilson used his cell phone to post images to and to live stream content onto the social media platform Facebook from his prison cell. In fact, Wilson posted a “selfie” photograph onto his Facebook account of himself holding a cell phone while in his prison cell. Ironically, in a live stream video, Wilson warned people that federal cases have significant prison sentences, lamenting that “federal law ain’t playing” because “the United States will lock you … up” if you are convicted of a federal crime.
Prior to his guilty plea, Wilson was scheduled to be released from custody in the fall of 2022. Under federal law, however, inmates convicted of possessing contraband in prison must receive consecutive (or additional) prison time after their original sentence is completed.
On November 21, 2019, Brian J. Wilson, 32, of Atlanta, Georgia, pleaded guilty to possessing a contraband cell phone in prison. Based on the plea, the Court sentenced Wilson to an additional three months in prison.
The FBI and the Bureau of Prisons investigated this case.
Jeffrey W. Davis, Chief of the Public Integrity and Special Matters Section, and Assistant U.S. Attorney Carolyn Cain Burch prosecuted the case.
For further information please contact the U.S. Attorney’s Public Affairs Office at [email protected] or (404) 581-6016. The Internet address for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia is http://www.justice.gov/usao-ndga.
Federal Judge Sentences Asheville Man to Life in Prison for Co-Worker's MurderRead the Press Release
ASHEVILLE, N.C. – U.S. Attorney Andrew Murray announced today that Derek Shawn Pendergraft, 22, of Asheville, has been sentenced to life in prison, for the murder of his co-worker, Sara Ellis. U.S. District Judge Martin Reidinger presided over today’s sentencing hearing.
John A. Strong, Special Agent in Charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), Charlotte Division; Neal D. Labrie, Chief Ranger of the Blue Ridge Parkway; and Robert Schurmeier, Director of the North Carolina State Bureau of Investigation (SBI), join U.S. Attorney Murray in making this announcement.
“When a life is cut short at the hands of another individual, no prison sentence is ever long enough to make things right for the victim’s loved ones,” said U.S. Attorney Murray. “Today’s sentence will not bring back Sara to her family and friends who miss her and think about her every day, but it is my sincere hope that everyone impacted by this heinous crime can find solace in knowing that Sara’s killer will never walk free among us again.”
According to filed court documents and statements made in court, on July 24, 2018, Pendergraft, who worked at the Pisgah Inn, murdered his co-worker, Sara Ellis, during the perpetration of aggravated sexual abuse. The murder occurred on the Blue Ridge Parkway, within the special territorial jurisdiction of the United States, and within the Western District of North Carolina.
On August 26, 2019, Pendergraft pleaded guilty to first degree murder and two counts of aggravated sexual abuse resulting in death. He is currently in federal custody and will be transferred to the custody of the federal Bureau of Prisons upon designation of a federal facility. All federal sentences are served without the possibility of parole.
In making today’s announcement, U.S. Attorney Murray commended the National Park Service, the FBI, and the SBI for their investigation of the case, and thanked the Transylvania County Sheriff's Office, the Haywood County Sheriff’s Office, and the Cruso Fire Department for their invaluable assistance.
Assistant U.S. Attorneys Don Gast and John Pritchard, of the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Asheville, prosecuted the case.
Executive Office for Immigration Review Proposes Rule on FeesRead the Press Release
FALLS CHURCH, VA – The Executive Office for Immigration Review (EOIR) submitted to the Federal Register for publication a notice of proposed rulemaking related to fees the agency last raised more than 30 years ago. The fees included are related to filings for appeals to the Board of Immigration Appeals (BIA), applications for suspension of deportation or cancellation of removal, and motions to reopen or reconsider before the immigration courts or the BIA.
The Office of Management and Budget, in its 1993 revision of Circular No. A-25, instructs agencies to conduct biennial reviews of fees. Federal law similarly requires each agency’s Chief Financial Officer to review agency fees biennially. Despite these instructions, it has been 33 years since EOIR last conducted a thorough review of the costs and appropriateness of its fee-based filings.
Following a comprehensive analysis, EOIR identified a need to avoid nearly $45 million dollars in taxpayer subsidization for the fee-based filings by proposing the fee increases. "The proposed fee increases are marginal in terms of inflation-adjusted dollars and would mitigate the significant taxpayer subsidization of these forms and motions. EOIR is long past due for a review of its fee-based filings, especially as its caseload and costs have increased substantially since 1986," said James McHenry, EOIR Director.
The proposed rule would not affect immigration judges’ and the BIA’s discretionary authority to waive a fee upon a showing that the filing party is unable to pay.
The rule proposes the following fee increases:
- Increase the fee for Form EOIR-26 from $110 to $975.
- Increase the fee for Form EOIR-29 from $110 to $705.
- Increase the fee for Form EOIR-40 from $100 to $305.
- Increase the fee for Form EOIR-42A from $100 to $305.
- Increase the fee for Form EOIR-42B from $100 to $360.
- Increase the fee for Form EOIR-45 from $110 to $675.
- Increase the fee for filing a motion to reopen or reconsider with the immigration court from $110 to $145.
- Increase the fee for filing a motion to reopen or reconsider with the BIA from $110 to $895.
— EOIR —
The Executive Office for Immigration Review (EOIR) is an agency within the Department of Justice. EOIR’s mission is to adjudicate immigration cases by fairly, expeditiously, and uniformly interpreting and administering the Nation’s immigration laws. Under delegated authority from the Attorney General, EOIR conducts immigration court proceedings, appellate reviews, and administrative hearings. EOIR is committed to ensuring fairness in all cases it adjudicates.
Dubuque Man Charged with Being a Drug User in Possession of Firearms and AmmunitionRead the Press Release
Daniel Heim, age 32, of Dubuque, Iowa, has been charged with being a drug user in possession of firearms and ammunition. The charge is contained in an Indictment unsealed on February 26, 2020, in United States District Court in Cedar Rapids.
The Indictment alleges that, in December 2019, Heim possessed 14 firearms and thousands of rounds of ammunition while being an unlawful user of marijuana and cocaine.
If convicted, Heim faces a possible maximum sentence of 10 years’ imprisonment, a $250,000 fine, and 3 years on supervised release following any imprisonment.
Heim appeared today in federal court in Cedar Rapids and was released on bond. Heim’s next appearance for trial is set for April 27, 2020.
As with any criminal case, a charge is merely an accusation and a defendant is presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty.
This case was brought as part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN). PSN is the centerpiece of the Department of Justice’s violent crime reduction efforts. PSN is an evidence-based program proven to be effective at reducing violent crime. Through PSN, a broad spectrum of stakeholders work together to identify the most pressing violent crime problems in the community and develop comprehensive solutions to address them. As part of this strategy, PSN focuses enforcement efforts on the most violent offenders and partners with locally based prevention and reentry programs for lasting reductions in crime.
This case 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 /media/1122011/dl?inline.
This case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Mark Tremmel and is being investigated by the Dubuque Police Department, the Dubuque County Sheriff’s Office, and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives.
Court file information is available at https://ecf.iand.uscourts.gov/cgi-bin/login.pl. The case file number is CR 20-1006.
Follow us on Twitter @USAO_NDIA.
Dual U.S.-Mexican Citizen Arrested for Violations of the Kingpin ActRead the Press Release
A dual U.S.-Mexican citizen had her initial appearance in federal court in the District of Columbia Wednesday on charges related to her alleged involvement in five business entities designated by the Department of Treasury’s Office of Foreign Asset Control (OFAC) as providing material support to the international narcotics trafficking activities of the Mexican narcotics trafficking organization known as the Cartel de Jalisco Nueva Generacion (CJNG).
Assistant Attorney General Brian A. Benczkowski of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division and Special Agent in Charge William Bodner of the Drug Enforcement Administration’s (DEA) Los Angeles Field Division made the announcement.
Jessica Johanna Oseguera Gonzalez, known as “La Negra,” 33, who was residing in Guadalajara, Mexico, was arrested in Washington, D.C. Wednesday pursuant to a warrant stemming from a Feb. 13, 2020, indictment. The charges were unsealed earlier today and she remains in U.S. custody. Her detention hearing is on Monday before U.S. Magistrate Judge Robin M. Meriweather in the District of Columbia.
The five-count indictment alleges that Oseguera Gonzalez, engaged in transactions or dealings in property or interests in property with five business entities, which have been designated by OFAC as Specially Designated Narcotics Traffickers pursuant to the Foreign Narcotics Kingpin Designation Act. The businesses are alleged to provide financial support to, and are subject to the control of, the CJNG. As a result, U.S. persons are generally prohibited from engaging in transactions with them.
The indictment alleges that Oseguera Gonzalez continued her involvement with J&P Advertising S.A. de C.V., JJGON S.P.R. de R.L. de C.V., Las Flores Cabanas, Mizu Sushi Lounge and Operadora Los Famosas S.A. de C.V., and Onze Black, after their designations by OFAC on Sept. 17, 2015.
The charges contained in the indictment are merely accusations, and the defendant is presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
The DEA’s Los Angeles Field Division led the investigation in conjunction with the Department of Treasury’s Office of Foreign Asset Control. Assistant Deputy Chief Anthony Nardozzi, and Trial Attorneys Brett Reynolds, Kaitlin Sahni, and Cole Radovich of the Criminal Division’s Narcotic and Dangerous Drug Section are prosecuting the case.
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.
Drug Trafficker Sentenced to 14 Years in Federal Prison Following Seizure of 90 Pounds of MethamphetamineRead the Press Release
Spokane – William D. Hyslop, United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Washington, announced that Martel Chavez-Mendoza, age 40, a resident of Yakima, Washington, was sentenced after having pleaded guilty on August 21, 2019, to distributing over 500 grams of methamphetamine. United States District Judge Stanley A. Bastian sentenced Chavez-Mendoza to a fourteen-year term of imprisonment, to be followed by a five-year term of court supervision after he is released from federal prison.
According to information disclosed during court proceedings, law enforcement received information that Chavez-Mendoza was selling methamphetamine and using a location near Sunnyside, Washington, to convert the methamphetamine from liquid to crystal form. During its investigation, the United States Drug Enforcement Administration (“DEA”) determined Chavez-Mendoza distributed a kilogram of methamphetamine to another individual. While conducting surveillance, DEA also observed Chavez-Mendoza and another individual purchasing acetone (commonly used to crystallize methamphetamine) and transporting it to a garage near Sunnyside.
As a result, DEA obtained warrants to search Chavez-Mendoza’s residence, vehicle, and another location. Investigators seized ninety pounds (approximately 44 kilograms) of methamphetamine and two pounds of heroin from Chavez-Mendoza’s vehicle. While searching Chavez-Mendoza’s residence, DEA seized firearms, drug ledgers and over $50,000 in U.S. currency. Investigators also found the remnants of a large-scale methamphetamine crystallization operation at a third location.
United States Attorney Hyslop said, “Ninety-pounds of methamphetamine is the largest single drug seizure in Yakima County in years. Taking this much meth off the streets is a great victory. Nonetheless, illegal drugs should be of significant concern to the community as they are to all law enforcement. The United States Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Washington commends the law enforcement officers with the DEA and Yakima Police Department who investigated this case. The sentence imposed by the court removes a large-scale drug trafficker from our community and sends a clear message to others who may choose to engage in such criminal activity.”
This case was investigated by the Yakima Resident Office of the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration and the Yakima Police Department. This case was prosecuted by Benjamin D. Seal, an Assistant United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Washington.
Dothan Man Sentenced to More Than 11 Years in Prison for Federal Drug and Gun ChargesRead the Press Release
Montgomery, Alabama – On Wednesday, February 26, 2020, Joshua Drake Howard, a 36-year-old resident of Dothan, Alabama, was sentenced to 140 months in prison for federal drug and firearms related charges, announced United States Attorney Louis V. Franklin, Sr., FBI Special Agent in Charge James Jewell, and Dothan Police Chief Steven Parrish. Following his prison sentence, Howard will be on supervised release for five years.
In November 2019, Howard pleaded guilty to charges of possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine, possession of a firearm in connection with a drug trafficking crime, and possession of a firearm with an obliterated serial number.
According to court records, in February 2018 the FBI and the Dothan Police Department received information that Howard would be travelling to Phenix City, Alabama to pick up methamphetamine and then return to Dothan. On February 22, 2018, officers were observing Howard during his return trip from Phenix City. As he was driving through Headland, Alabama, Howard stopped at a local fast food restaurant, ordered at the drive-through window, and parked to eat his meal. Officers approached him and asked him to get out of the vehicle. When he did, they saw a handgun in the door pocket and found crystal meth in his pants pocket. The officers then searched the truck and found a tactical bag containing more methamphetamine, a digital scale, small empty plastic bags, another handgun, and ammunition.
Just a few months later, on July 13, 2018, Dothan police officers pulled Howard over for a traffic violation and discovered he was in possession of a firearm with an obliterated serial number.
Before announcing his sentence, the judge stated that Howard had a significant criminal history that was concerning and could not be overlooked.
“Selling drugs and carrying guns is a deadly combination that puts us all in danger,” stated U.S. Attorney Franklin. “Dealers like Joshua Howard use firearms to protect their drugs and money, with no regard for the safety of our neighborhoods, our children, or anyone but themselves. My office will continue to work with all of our law enforcement partners to identify, investigate, and prosecute anyone that endangers our communities with this type of reckless, criminal behavior.”
FBI SAC James Jewell stated, “there is nothing but evil in the combination of illegal narcotics and firearms. These people have no issue selling this poison to our children and protecting their drug proceeds with firearms that are often stolen, or as in this case, have an obliterated serial number. The FBI remains committed to assist our state, local, and federal partners in this arena.”
“The Dothan Police Department appreciates the working relationship we have with our federal partners,” said Dothan Police Chief Steven Parrish. “This sentencing was possible because of the collaborative efforts of multiple agencies and shows the value of combining our resources to combat crime.”
The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and the Dothan Police Department investigated this case, with assistance from the Headland Police Department. Assistant United States Attorney Brandon Bates prosecuted this case.
District Men Found Guilty of Armed Carjacking and Armed Robbery of 18-Year-Old ManRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON – Keith Baham, 20, and David McKinney, 19, of Washington, D.C., were found guilty by a jury today of armed carjacking, armed robbery, first-degree theft, and unauthorized use of vehicle, announced U.S. Attorney Timothy J. Shea. Baham was also convicted of two counts of Possession of a Firearm During a Crime of Violence.
Baham and McKinney were found guilty following a trial in the Superior Court of the District of Columbia in front of The Honorable J. Michael Ryan. The defendants remain detained pending sentencing, which is scheduled for May 1, 2020.
According to the government’s evidence, on February 25, 2019, Baham and McKinney had the 18-year-old victim drive to the 3100 block of Apple Road, N.E. Once there, Baham took out a gun and told the victim to drop everything and to hand over his belongings. While the victim was held at gunpoint, the men took the victim’s wallet, phone, and other personal items before fleeing the scene in the victim’s car.
In announcing the verdict, U.S. Attorney Shea commended the work of those investigating the case from the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD). He also acknowledged the efforts of those who worked on the case from the U.S. Attorney’s Office, including Supervisory Victim/Witness Services Coordinator Katina Adams-Washington; Victim/Witness Services Coordinator La June Thames; Paralegal Specialists Jessica Pierce, Sabrina Turner, and Debra McPherson; Victim Advocate Jennifer Clark; Supervisory IT Specialist Leif Hickling; and Investigative Analyst William Hamann.
Finally, he commended the work of Assistant U.S. Attorneys Rachel Forman and Kevin Birney, who prosecuted the case.
Department of Justice Files Statement of Interest Defending Photographer on Free Speech ClaimRead the Press Release
The Department of Justice today filed a Statement of Interest in federal court in Kentucky, explaining that a Louisville/Jefferson County Metro Government law, which requires a photographer to photograph same-sex weddings in violation of her religious objections, violates the U.S. Constitution. The United States’ brief explains that the photographer, Chelsey Nelson, is likely to succeed on her claim that requiring her to photograph weddings against her conscience constitutes government-compelled speech that violates the Free Speech Clause of the First Amendment.
“The First Amendment forbids the government from forcing someone to speak in a manner that violates individual conscience,” said Eric Dreiband, Assistant Attorney General for the Civil Rights Division. “The U.S. Department of Justice will continue to protect the right of all persons to exercise their constitutional right to speech and expression.”
The law at issue prohibits businesses from discriminating on various bases, including on sexual orientation. Ms. Nelson brought suit against the Louisville/Jefferson County Metro Government and several of its officials, and sought a preliminary injunction preventing the application of this law to require her to photograph same-sex weddings.
The United States’ brief explains that Ms. Nelson is likely to succeed on her Free Speech claim. The Free Speech Clause prohibits the government from requiring people to engage in speech supporting or promoting someone else’s expressive event, such as a wedding ceremony. The brief observes that “[w]eddings are sacred rites in the religious realm and profoundly symbolic ceremonies in the secular one” and thus are plainly “expressive activities” under the Supreme Court’s Free Speech cases. Moreover, the brief explains, photography is an expressive art form, and wedding photography in particular seeks to celebrate and honor the union being photographed. Forcing a photographer, against her conscience, to express her support for a wedding that her faith opposes violates the Constitution.
In July 2018, the Department of Justice announced the formation of the Religious Liberty Task Force. The Task Force brings together Department components to coordinate their work on religious liberty litigation and policy, and to implement the Attorney General’s 2017 Religious Liberty Guidance.
Defendant Convicted in Connection with Conspiracy to Distribute and Possess with Intent to Distribute MethamphetamineRead the Press Release
United States Attorney Joe Kelly announced that Travis Christopher Harvey, 41, of West Des Moines, Iowa, was convicted on February 27, 2020, following a jury trial before United States Judge Robert F. Rossiter, Jr. for conspiracy to distribute and to possess with intent to distribute five hundred grams or more of methamphetamine. Sentencing for Harvey is scheduled for May 27, 2020. Harvey is facing a term of imprisonment of at least ten years to life.
In mid-2018, a Drug Enforcement Administration led task force initiated Operation Dog Pound, which was a drug interdiction effort focused on an Omaha, Nebraska, drug trafficking organization. Harvey was identified during the investigation as a distributor in the Des Moines, Iowa, area that was receiving multi-pound shipments of methamphetamine from his Omaha supplier. Investigators utilized cellphone and text messaging intercepts, vehicle trackers, and physical surveillance to establish Harvey’s involvement in the conspiracy.
In all, Operation Dog Pound resulted in ten federal indictments with more than thirty pounds of methamphetamine and $30,000 being seized.
The Drug Enforcement Administration, Nebraska State Patrol, U.S. Customs and Border Protection, Omaha Police Department, Bellevue Police Department, and the U.S. Postal Inspection Service were the investigating agencies.
Convicted Felon Sentenced to More Than Seven Years for Possessing A FirearmRead the Press Release
Tampa, Florida – U.S. District Judge Susan C. Bucklew today sentenced Andron McKinney (29, Tampa) to seven years and eight months in federal prison for possessing a firearm and ammunition as a convicted felon. The court also ordered McKinney to forfeit the firearm and ammunition used in the offense.
McKinney had pleaded guilty on November 29, 2019.
According to court documents, subsequent to a traffic stop, law enforcement officers searched the car that McKinney had been driving and found a loaded pistol underneath the driver’s seat. McKinney’s fingerprint was found on the magazine inside the pistol. At the time, McKinney had multiple prior convictions for narcotics-related felonies and domestic violence felonies and is therefore prohibited from possessing a firearm or ammunition.
This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Tampa Police Department. It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Callan Albritton.
This is another case prosecuted as part of the Department of Justice’s “Project Safe Neighborhoods” Program (PSN), which is a nationwide crime reduction strategy aimed at decreasing violent crime in communities. It involves a comprehensive approach to public safety — one that includes investigating and prosecuting crimes, along with prevention and reentry efforts. In the Middle District of Florida, U.S. Attorney Maria Chapa Lopez coordinates PSN efforts in cooperation with various federal, state, and local law enforcement officials.
Concord, N.C. Man Pleads Guilty to Unlawful Distribution of Anabolic SteroidsRead the Press Release
CHARLOTTE, N.C. – U.S. Attorney Andrew Murray announced that Daniel John Hodges, 25, of Concord, N.C. appeared in federal court today before U.S. Magistrate Judge David C. Keesler, and pleaded guilty to unlawful distribution of anabolic steroids.
Robert J. Murphy, Special Agent in Charge of the Atlanta Field Division of the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), which oversees the Charlotte Office, joins U.S. Attorney Murray in making today’s announcement.
According to plea documents filed in the case and today’s plea hearing, from about September 2018 to September 2019, Hodges did knowingly possess with intent to distribute anabolic steroids, including Testosterone Enanthane, Dianabol, Anavar, and Winstrol. Hodges further admitted to possessing between 20,000 and 40,000 units of anabolic steroids, and maintaining a premises for the the purpose of manufacturing or distributing a controlled substance. Over the course of the investigation, law enforcement also seized an electronic and a manual pill press/tableting machine that belonged to Hodges, often used to manufacture consumable steroid products. According to statements made in court during the plea hearing, Hodges obtained the substances unlawfully from a source of supply in China, and used, among other things, social media to advertise to and conduct transactions with customers.
Following the plea hearing, Hodges was released on bond. The charge of possession with intent to distribute an anabolic steroid carries a maximum prison term of ten years and a $500,000 fine. A sentencing date has not been set.
In making today’s announcement, U.S. Attorney Murray thanked the DEA, the Cabarrus County Sherriff’s Office, and the Cabarrus County District Attorney’s Office for their investigation and coordination of this case.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Mark T. Odulio, of the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Charlotte, is handling the prosecution.
Chinese National Sentenced for Stealing Trade Secrets Worth $1 BillionRead the Press Release
A former associate scientist was sentenced to 24 months in federal prison in federal court today for stealing proprietary information worth more than $1 billion from his employer, a U.S. petroleum company.
In November 2019, Tan pleaded guilty to theft of a trade secret, unauthorized transmission of a trade secret, and unauthorized possession of a trade secret. From June 2017 until December 2018, Tan was employed as an associate scientist at the petroleum company and was assigned to work in a group with the goal of developing next generation battery technologies for stationary energy storage, specifically flow batteries. In his plea agreement, Tan admitted to intentionally copying and downloading the technologies’ research and development materials without authorization from his employer.
“This investigation and prosecution uncovered another instance of China’s persistent attempts to steal American intellectual property,” said Assistant Attorney General for National Security John C. Demers. “The department of justice will continue to confront this type of illicit behavior to safeguard American industry and protect American jobs.”
“American ingenuity inspires advances in science and technology and drives world markets. Nowhere is that more true than in Oklahoma’s energy industry. Unscrupulous individuals like Hongjin Tan seek to steal American trade secrets to take home to China so they can replicate our technology,” said U.S. Attorney Trent Shores for the Northern District of Oklahoma. “United States Attorneys from coast stand ready to combat China’s economic aggression that criminally threatens American industry.”
"American companies invest heavily in advanced research and cutting-edge technology. Trade secret theft is detrimental to our national security and free-market economy. It takes profits away from companies and jobs away from hard working Americans," said Melissa Godbold, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI Oklahoma City Field Office. “The sentencing of Hongjin Tan underscores the FBI’s commitment to protecting our country's industries from adversaries who attempt to steal valuable proprietary information.”
According to the plea agreement, Tan used a thumb drive to copy hundreds of files containing the proprietary information on Dec. 11, 2018. He subsequently turned in his resignation and was escorted from the premises on Dec. 12, 2018. Later that day, he returned the thumb drive, claiming that he had forgotten to do so before leaving his employer’s property. Upon examination, it was discovered that there was unallocated space on the thumb drive, indicating five documents had previously been deleted. Investigators with the FBI searched Tan’s premises and found an external hard drive. They discovered that the same five missing files from the thumb drive had been downloaded to the hard drive. Tan maintained the files on a hard drive so he could access the data at a later date. Further accessing the material would have been financially advantageous for Tan but caused significant financial damage to his Oklahoma employer.
U.S. District Judge Gregory K. Frizzell sentenced Hongjin Tan, 36, a Chinese National and U.S. legal permanent resident, to 24 months in federal prison and ordered the defendant to pay $150,000 in restitution to his former employer. Following his release from prison, Tan will spend three years on supervised release.
Tan was remanded into the custody of the U.S. Marshals Service until transfer to a U.S. Bureau of Prisons Facility.
The FBI and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations conducted this investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney Joel-lyn A. McCormick of the Northern District of Oklahoma and Trial Attorney Matthew J. McKenzie of the National Security Division’s Counterintelligence and Export Control Section (CES) are prosecuting the case, with assistance from Trial Attorney Matthew R. Walczewski and Assistant Deputy Chief Brian J. Resler of the Criminal Division’s Computer Crimes and Intellectual Property Section (CCIPS).
Chinese National Sentenced for Stealing Trade Secrets Worth $1 BillionRead the Press Release
TULSA, Okla. –A former associate scientist was sentenced Thursday in federal court for stealing proprietary information worth more than $1 billion from his employer, a U.S. petroleum company.
In November 2019, Tan pleaded guilty to theft of a trade secret, unauthorized transmission of a trade secret, and unauthorized possession of a trade secret. From June 2017 until December 2018, Tan was employed as an associate scientist at the petroleum company and was assigned to work in a group with the goal of developing next generation battery technologies for stationary energy storage, specifically flow batteries. In his plea agreement, Tan admitted to intentionally copying and downloading the technologies’ research and development materials without authorization from his employer.
“American ingenuity inspires advances in science and technology and drives world markets. Nowhere is that more true than in Oklahoma’s energy industry. Unscrupulous individuals like Hongjin Tan seek to steal American trade secrets to take home to China so they can replicate our technology,” said U.S. Attorney Trent Shores for the Northern District of Oklahoma. “United States Attorneys from coast to coast stand ready to combat China’s economic aggression that criminally threatens American industry.”
“This investigation and prosecution uncovered another instance of China’s persistent attempts to steal American intellectual property,” said Assistant Attorney General for National Security John C. Demers. “The department of justice will continue to confront this type of illicit behavior to safeguard American industry and protect American jobs.”
According to the plea agreement, Tan used a thumb drive to copy hundreds of files containing the proprietary information on Dec. 11, 2018. He subsequently turned in his resignation and was escorted from the premises on Dec. 12, 2018. Later that day, he returned the thumb drive, claiming that he had forgotten to do so before leaving his employer’s property. Upon examination, it was discovered that there was unallocated space on the thumb drive, indicating five documents had previously been deleted. Investigators with the FBI searched Tan’s premises and found an external hard drive. They discovered that the same five missing files from the thumb drive had been downloaded to the hard drive. Tan maintained the files on a hard drive so he could access the data at a later date. Further accessing the material would have been financially advantageous for Tan but caused significant financial damage to his Oklahoma employer.
"American companies invest heavily in advanced research and cutting-edge technology. Trade secret theft is detrimental to our national security and free-market economy. It takes profits away from companies and jobs away from hard working Americans," said Melissa Godbold, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI Oklahoma City Field Office. “The sentencing of Hongjin Tan underscores the FBI’s commitment to protecting our country's industries from adversaries who attempt to steal valuable proprietary information.”
U.S. District Judge Gregory K. Frizzell sentenced Hongjin Tan, 36, a Chinese National and U.S. legal permanent resident, to 24 months in federal prison and ordered the defendant to pay $150,000 in restitution to his former employer. Following his release from prison, Tan will spend three years on supervised release.
Tan was remanded into the custody of the U.S. Marshals Service until transfer to a U.S. Bureau of Prisons facility.
The FBI and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations conducted this investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney Joel-lyn A. McCormick of the Northern District of Oklahoma and Trial Attorney Matthew J. McKenzie of the National Security Division’s Counterintelligence and Export Control Section (CES) are prosecuting the case, with assistance from Trial Attorney Matthew R. Walczewski and Assistant Deputy Chief Brian J. Resler of the Criminal Division’s Computer Crimes and Intellectual Property Section (CCIPS).
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.
Chambersburg Man Sentenced to 10 Years’ Imprisonment for Sex and Drug TraffickingRead the Press Release
HARRISBURG - The United States Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Pennsylvania announced that Anthony “Tony” D’Ambrosio, age 37, of Chambersburg, Pennsylvania, was sentenced on February 26, 2020 by Chief United States District Court Judge Christopher C. Conner to 10 years’ imprisonment followed by five years’ supervised release for sex and drug trafficking.
According to United States Attorney David J. Freed, D’Ambrosio was convicted on December 18, 2017 following a two-week jury trial, of, conspiracy to transport an individual to engage in prostitution, transportation of an individual to engage in prostitution, conspiracy to distribute and possess with the intent to distribute oxycodone, cocaine and marijuana, and distribution and possession with the intent to distribute oxycodone.
D’Ambrosio and his co-conspirators recruited and transported girls and young women between the ages of 17 and 21 years old to engage in commercial sex acts in Pennsylvania, Maryland, Virginia, West Virginia, Florida, Rhode Island and the District of Columbia and frequently paid them in drugs.
D’Ambrosio and his co-defendants, participated in a conspiracy that began in approximately July 2012, and continued to January 2015. D’Ambrosio and the others rented motel rooms and posted “escort” advertisements and photographs on backpage.com from July 2012 through January 2015. D’Ambrosio and the others would take the majority of the money made during the course of the prostitution business, and distributed various drugs to the women, including oxycodone, cocaine and marijuana.
D’Ambrosio’s co-defendants received the following sentences:
- Albert E. “Pipo” Martinez was sentenced to 180 months’ imprisonment;
- Keanu Martinez was sentenced to 120 months’ imprisonment;
- Brandon Hill was sentenced to 37 months’ imprisonment; and
- Armando Delgado was sentenced to time served or approximately 52 months’ imprisonment.
This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation. Assistant U.S. Scott Ford prosecuted the case.
This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by the United States Attorneys' Offices and the Criminal Division's Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who sexually exploit children, and to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.usdoj.gov/psc for more information about internet safety education, please visit www.usdoj.gov/psc and click on the tab "resources."
# # #
Cedar Rapids Felon Pleads Guilty to Federal Crime After Throwing Handguns from Car During Police ChaseRead the Press Release
A man who threw guns from a car during a police chase pled guilty today in federal court in Cedar Rapids.
Jordan Lewis Holmes, age 23, from Cedar Rapids, Iowa, was convicted of one count of being a felon and unlawful drug user in possession of a firearm.
At the plea hearing, Holmes admitted that he possessed two nine millimeter handguns in March 2019, and that at the time he was an unlawful marijuana user and a felon. Court records reflect that in March 2019, The United States Marshals Service was seeking to arrest Holmes a warrant for a parole violation on a prior felony stolen weapon trafficking charge. Officers saw Holmes get into a vehicle and tried to initiate a traffic stop, at which time a chase ensued. During the chase the vehicle in which Holmes was a passenger drove into a church parking lot and two 9 millimeter handguns were thrown from the window where Holmes was seated. At the end of the vehicle chase, the vehicle in which defendant was riding pulled into an apartment complex parking lot, and, without the vehicle being coming to a stop, Holmes and the other three occupants of the vehicle fled on foot. Officers caught up to Holmes and arrested him shortly thereafter.
Officers later retrieved the handguns from the church parking lot. The serial numbers on both firearms had been defaced. Further investigation revealed that two days before the chase Holmes had posted a video of himself holding a handgun that resembled one of the handguns found in the parking lot. Evidence at a prior hearing showed that during a recorded phone call shortly after his arrest, Holmes told the other person that he had to get rid of his “size nine shoes,” indicating that Holmes had thrown the firearms from the moving vehicle.
This case was brought as part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN). PSN is the centerpiece of the Department of Justice’s violent crime reduction efforts. PSN is an evidence-based program proven to be effective at reducing violent crime.
Through PSN, a broad spectrum of stakeholders work together to identify the most pressing violent crime problems in the community and develop comprehensive solutions to address them. As part of this strategy, PSN focuses enforcement efforts on the most violent offenders and partners with locally based prevention and reentry programs for lasting reductions in crime.
This case 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. The United States Attorney’s Office has prosecuted this case with support from the following Project Guardian partners: [list partners here]. For more information about Project Guardian, please see /media/1122011/dl?inline.
Sentencing before United States District Court Judge C.J. Williams will be set after a presentence report is prepared. Holmes remains in custody of the United States Marshal pending sentencing. Holmes faces a possible maximum sentence of 10 years’ imprisonment, a $250,000 fine, and 3 years of supervised release following any imprisonment.
The case was investigated by the United States Marshals Service and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Dan Chatham.
Court file information at https://ecf.iand.uscourts.gov/cgi-bin/login.pl.
The case file number is 19-CR-00124-CJW-MAR.
Follow us on Twitter @USAO_NDIA.
Camden, NJ Man Pleads Guilty in Meth ConspiracyRead the Press Release
JOHNSTOWN, Pa. – A New Jersey resident pleaded guilty in federal court on charges of violating federal narcotics laws, United States Attorney Scott W. Brady announced today.
Jamel T. Brown, 37, of Camden, NJ, pleaded guilty to the indictment before United States District Judge Kim R. Gibson.
In connection with the guilty plea, on October 25, 2018, Brown and a co-conspirator possessed with intent to distribute more than 50 grams of methamphetamine.
Judge Gibson scheduled sentencing for June 25, 2020, at 1:00 p.m. The law provides for a maximum sentence of not less than five years and up to 40 years in prison, a fine of $5,000,000, or both. Under the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, the actual sentence imposed would be based upon the seriousness of the offenses and the prior criminal history, if any, of the defendant.
Assistant United States Attorney Maureen Sheehan-Balchon is prosecuting this case on behalf of the government.
The Laurel Highlands Resident Agency of the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Cambria County Drug Task Force conducted the investigation that led to the prosecution of Brown.
Brothers Charged with Old City Arson Indicted Separately for Tax FraudRead the Press Release
PHILADELPHIA – United States Attorney William M. McSwain announced that Imad Dawara, 39, of Swarthmore, PA and Bahaa Dawara, 31, of Woodlyn, PA, were charged by Indictment today with conspiracy to defraud the United States by evading the assessment of their income tax liabilities from 2015-2017. This Indictment is the second Indictment charging the brothers in criminal activities. On July 18, 2019, a grand jury returned a 10-count Indictment charging both Dawara brothers with planning and causing the arson of their business at 239-241 Chestnut Street in Philadelphia on February 18, 2018 in order to receive insurance proceeds from the destruction, as well as mail and wire fraud.
Today’s Indictment alleges that the defendants co-owned and operated multiple businesses including B-Side Complex, a nightclub and hookah lounge located at 927 North Delaware Avenue, Noche, and Baba Restaurant, which generated income that they concealed from the IRS by underreporting the gross receipts of the businesses. The defendants are both currently in federal prison because of the July 2019 Indictment for arson and fraud.
“As alleged in this Indictment, the Dawara brothers were engaged in illegal financial schemes associated with the businesses they owned and operated in Philadelphia,” said U.S. Attorney McSwain. “This second Indictment demonstrates my Office’s commitment to investigating and prosecuting all types of harm perpetrated against the government and the community at large. The investigation in this case may have begun with the arson on Chestnut Street, but it didn’t end there. We will pursue every facet of this case until justice has been served.”
If convicted, each defendant faces a maximum possible sentence of five years’ imprisonment, a $250,000 fine, and three years of supervised release.
The case was investigated by Internal Revenue Service, and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Jeanine M. Linehan and Katherine E. Driscoll.
An indictment, information, or criminal complaint is an accusation. A defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
Bronx Man Sentenced to 35 Years in Prison for Narcotics and Firearms ChargesRead the Press Release
Geoffrey S. Berman, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, announced that TERRELL POLK was sentenced today to 35 years in prison in connection with his participation in a crack cocaine conspiracy and related firearms charges. As the evidence at trial established, POLK committed three shootings of drug rivals in the Bronx, New York during August 2015. POLK was convicted following a trial before United States District Judge George B. Daniels, who also imposed today’s sentence.
U.S. Attorney Geoffrey S. Berman said: “As the jury found, Terrell Polk sold large quantities of crack cocaine and resolved disputes over drug territory with terrifying violence. As a result of the skill and determination of our law enforcement partners, Polk will now spend several decades behind bars.”
According to the evidence presented during the trial:
Terrell Polk was a member of a violent drug trafficking organization that sold large quantities of crack cocaine in the Highbridge section of the Bronx. On July 25, 2015, Polk used a .40 caliber pistol to shoot a rival drug dealer at point blank range on University Avenue in the Bronx. The victim of this shooting suffered a fractured leg.
Approximately 10 days later, on August 4, 2015, Polk used a shotgun to shoot two victims inside of a store located on Anderson Avenue in the Bronx. On that occasion, Polk was in a car when he saw one of his victims standing on the sidewalk. Polk stopped the car, jumped out of the driver’s seat with a shotgun, and chased the victim into a store. The victim and an innocent bystander in the store barricaded themselves in the back room to hide from Polk. When Polk was unable to gain access to the room, he fired a shotgun blast through the door, wounding both men. The first victim sustained shotgun wounds to his leg and hand, and the second victim sustained shotgun wounds to his elbow.
A few weeks after these shooting incidents, on August 26, 2015, New York City Police Department (“NYPD”) officers stopped a vehicle driven by Polk, and recovered a loaded gun from the back seat.
* * *
Mr. Berman praised the outstanding investigative work of the Federal Bureau of Investigation and NYPD.
This case is being handled by the Office’s Narcotics Unit. Assistant United States Attorneys Michael K. Krouse, Nicholas S. Folly, and Max C. Nicholas are in charge of the prosecution.
Branford Man Pleads Guilty to Defrauding Non-Profit Employer and IndividualsRead the Press Release
John H. Durham, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, and Brian C. Turner, Special Agent in Charge of the New Haven Division of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, announced that MICHAEL VERZELLA, 41, of Branford, pleaded guilty today before U.S. District Judge Kari A. Dooley in Bridgeport to a fraud offense related to his theft of at least $240,000 from his non-profit employer and numerous individuals serviced by his employer.
According to court documents and statements made in court, Verzella was employed as the Supervisor of Recreation and Operations at Chapel Haven Schleifer Center (“Chapel Haven”), a private, non-profit entity that provides services and residential housing to individuals with developmental and social disabilities. As an employee of Chapel Haven, Verzella possessed a Chapel Haven credit card that was supposed to be used to pay for expenses related to Chapel Haven, including the purchasing of tickets to off-site events that students and community members of Chapel Haven could attend. These events included trips to dances, bingo nights, plays, shopping malls, and sporting events.
In pleading guilty, Verzella admitted that, between January 2012 and February 2018, he used his Chapel Haven credit card to purchase tickets for sporting and entertainment events that he attended with friends and family. He then submitted fraudulent purchase orders for these expenses to the Chapel Haven business office, representing them to be for recreational events for the students and community members of Chapel Haven. He also used the credit card to purchase gift cards for his personal use. Through this scheme, Verzella defrauded Chapel Haven of approximately $175,872.
In addition, Verzella directed Chapel Haven employees he supervised to collect cash from Chapel Haven students and community members to attend in-house events at Chapel Haven, even though the fees for attending such events were already included in the tuition for students and billed by invoice to community members. Verzella kept at least $68,000 in collected cash for himself.
Verzella has agreed to pay total restitution of $450,062.08, which includes expenses Chapel Haven incurred while investigating his criminal conduct.
Verzella pleaded guilty to one count of wire fraud, an offense that carries a maximum term of imprisonment of 20 years. Judge Dooley scheduled sentencing for May 22, 2020.
Verzella was arrested on a criminal complaint on December 20, 2018. He is released on a $100,000 bond pending sentencing.
This matter is being investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the New Haven Police Department. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Sarah P. Karwan and Maria del Pilar Gonzalez.
Bowling Green Attorney Pleads Guilty to Laundering over $700,000 of Illegal ProceedsRead the Press Release
LOUISVILLE, Ky. – Bowling Green real estate attorney H. Harris Pepper, Jr. entered a guilty plea to money laundering, announced United States Attorney Russell Coleman.
“The rule of law means that everyone is held to the same standard, to include attorneys and influential members of communities like Bowling Green,” said U.S. Attorney Russell Coleman. “This result is the product of a diligent career federal prosecutor and strong investigative work by the IRS.”
“Legal professionals are held to high ethical standards. Harris Pepper, Jr., a trusted real estate attorney, went to great lengths to conceal the true ownership of several real estate investments,” said Bryant Jackson, Special Agent in Charge, IRS Criminal Investigation, Cincinnati Field Office. “The IRS will take every step to ferret out those who conspire to launder the proceeds earned from illegal sports gambling.”
Pepper was initially charged with the single count in a felony information on February 14, 2020.
According to a plea agreement, from 2008 through 2016, Pepper conspired with Douglas Booth to conceal proceeds of Booth’s illegal sports-gambling operation in Bowling Green, Kentucky. Pepper conspired with Booth to launder proceeds of the illegal gambling operation into real estate investments.
During the course of the conspiracy, Booth purchased a percentage ownership of Hard Six, LLC, by providing $125,000 in cash to Pepper. Hard Six owned real estate and buildings that it leased to Dollar General Store, Inc. Both Pepper and Booth knew the investment from Booth were proceeds from unlawful activity.
In 2010, Booth attempted to purchase a percentage ownership of an apartment complex on Louisville Road in Bowling Green, Kentucky, by providing $90,000 in cash to Pepper. Both men knew portions of the proceeds invested were from illegal activity. Pepper did not document or record Booth as an owner in the apartment complex in order to conceal Booth’s involvement in the transaction.
From 2009 through 2016, Booth purchased and maintained a percentage of ownership of HAAM Investments, LLC, by providing approximately $250,000 in cash to Pepper. HAAM Investments was created for use and purchase of an apartment complex in Russellville, Kentucky. Both Pepper and Booth knew portions of proceeds invested were from unlawful activity. Pepper transferred his ownership of HAAM Investments in July 2009. Pepper did not document or record Booth as an owner in HAAM Investments in order to conceal Booth’s investment in the transaction.
From in or about 2010 through 2016, Booth purchased and maintained an ownership interest in MYP Properties by providing approximately $200,000 in cash and relief from gambling debt to Pepper. MYP Properties was used and created to own and operate apartment complexes. Both Pepper and Booth knew portions of the proceeds invested were proceeds of unlawful criminal activity. Again, Pepper did not document Booth as an owner of MYP Properties in order to conceal his involvement in the transaction.
According to the plea agreement, the United States will seek a sentence of imprisonment which should not exceed 12 months and 1 day of imprisonment. The defendant is free to argue for any sentence, including probation. Sentencing is scheduled for June 11 at 10am in Louisville.
The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Bryan Calhoun. The case was investigated by the Internal Revenue Service, Criminal Investigations, and the Federal Bureau of Investigation.
####
Berks County Accountant Pleads Guilty to Orchestrating One of the Largest Pennsylvania-Based Ponzi Schemes in HistoryRead the Press Release
PHILADELPHIA – United States Attorney William M. McSwain announced today that Philip Elvin Riehl, 68, of Bethel Township, Berks County, PA, pleaded guilty to conspiracy and fraud charges related to a Ponzi scheme he operated worth approximately $60 million. The fraud targeted members of the Mennonite and Amish religious communities in Pennsylvania and elsewhere, of which the defendant is a member.
The defendant was charged in January 2020 with one count each of conspiracy to commit securities fraud and wire fraud, one count of securities fraud, and one count of wire fraud. Riehl, a Berks County–based accountant, fraudulently solicited tens of millions of dollars in investments, from his accounting clients and others who are mostly Mennonite or Amish, into an investment program that he operated.
Riehl then diverted funds from the program to Trickling Springs Creamery, LLC, a Franklin County–based creamery of which he was the majority owner. Riehl also fraudulently solicited direct investments in Trickling Springs Creamery. The defendant made material misrepresentations about the safety and security of these investments in his program and about the performance of the program, as well as misrepresentations and omissions about the creamery’s business and financial condition. Trickling Springs Creamery announced it was ceasing operations in September 2019 and filed a bankruptcy petition in December 2019. Investor losses are estimated to be around $60 million, making this one of the largest Pennsylvania-based Ponzi schemes ever.
The entire scheme is what is commonly referred to as “affinity fraud,” which typically involves investment scams that prey upon members of identifiable groups, such as religious or ethnic communities. These types of scams exploit the trust and friendship that exist in groups of people who share common interests or beliefs.
“Riehl’s victims trusted him to handle their investments with honesty and integrity. Instead, he took advantage of their trust based on their mutual religious affiliation,” said U.S. Attorney McSwain. “In some cases, the defendant swindled individuals out of millions of dollars. It is only natural for members of a tightly knit community to want to take care of one another, but Riehl wasn’t concerned with taking care of anyone but himself and he doesn’t deserve the loyalty of his victims now. These types of devastating crimes must be reported, and the guilty parties must be held accountable under the law.”
“Investment fraud can be devastating for its victims, with nest eggs or even life savings lost in a flash,” said Tara A. McMahon, Acting Special Agent in Charge of the FBI’s Philadelphia Division. “When criminals are willing to exploit trusting members of their own church or community in such a way, it adds significant insult to that financial injury. Philip Riehl repeatedly misled his investors, drawing them into a giant Ponzi scheme that swallowed up some $60 million of their money. The FBI is gratified to help hold him accountable for his crimes and bring some measure of justice for his victims.”
The case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Michael J. Rinaldi. The U.S. Attorney’s Office appreciates the assistance of the Pennsylvania Department of Banking and Securities, and the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.
Berkeley County man admits to wire fraud involving Hearts2Heros organizationRead the Press Release
MARTINSBURG, WEST VIRGINIA – Christopher T. Engle, of Bunker Hill, West Virginia, has admitted to wire fraud, U.S. Attorney Bill Powell announced.
Engle, age 30, was the co-owner of Hearts2Heros, a for-profit entity that allegedly was meant to support the military by creating and sending care packages to deployed service members. Hearts2Heros employees solicited contributions and misrepresented that the organization was a charity.
Engle pled guilty today to a one-count information, charging him with “Wire Fraud.” Engle admitted that he defrauded donors in the Northern District of West Virginia, taking their donations for Hearts2Heros and using it for personal use. The fraud included thousands of donors from West Virginia, Pennsylvania, Maryland, and Virginia. The total loss is $286,959.95.
“Using our brave military personnel who are deployed overseas as a prop for a fraud scheme is deplorable conduct. Such conduct also is detrimental to the work of many wonderful community organizations who genuinely support our military. Thanks to the work of the FBI and our prosecution team, the defendant’s greed will now be appropriately dealt with by the court at sentencing,” said Powell.
Engle faces up to 20 years incarceration and a fine of up to $250,000. Under the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, the actual sentence imposed will be based upon the seriousness of the offenses and the prior criminal history, if any, of the defendant.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Lara Omps-Botteicher is prosecuting the case on behalf of the government. The FBI investigated.
U.S. Magistrate Judge Robert W. Trumble presided.
Baltimore Drug Dealer Pleads Guilty to Discharging a Firearm in Furtherance of Drug Trafficking, Resulting in DeathRead the Press Release
Baltimore, Maryland – Cortez Weaver, a/k/a Corty and Tez, age 28, of Baltimore, Maryland, pleaded guilty today to possessing, brandishing, and discharging a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime, resulting in death of Maurice Finney.
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; and Commissioner Michael Harrison of the Baltimore Police Department.
According to Weaver’s guilty plea, beginning in at least July 2017 Weaver was a member of a drug conspiracy that distributed heroin and crack cocaine in the Abington Avenue area of Baltimore. Christopher Hockaday was also a member of the Abington Avenue drug trafficking organization (DTO). Hockaday became involved in a dispute with a rival DTO over who could sell drugs at a gas station at the intersection of Baltimore Street and Hilton Avenue. As a result of the dispute, on July 14, 2017, a member of the rival drug organization shot and killed Hockaday.
As detailed in his plea agreement, on July 17, 2017, Weaver and another member of the Abington Avenue DTO went to the gas station to retaliate against members of the rival drug organization and encountered Maurice Finney, a/k/a Mitch. Weaver murdered Finney, shooting him in the head at close range with a .40-caliber handgun. Weaver also attempted to murder Victim 2, chasing him across Hilton Avenue while firing multiple shots at him. Meanwhile, Weaver’s co-conspirator attempted to murder Victim 3, shooting him multiple times with a 9mm handgun and causing life-threatening injuries. The shootings were captured on surveillance cameras at the gas station. Afterward, Weaver sent his co-conspirator a text message directing him to “burn them clothes.”
On November 12, 2018, a confidential informant (CI) placed a call to Weaver that was monitored by law enforcement. During the call, the CI made plans to meet Weaver to discuss the potential robbery of a drug stash house. During the conversation, Weaver confessed that he had killed Maurice Finney and described the murder using specific details that were consistent with the surveillance footage and other physical evidence recovered during the investigation. Weaver agreed to carry out the robbery, stating that it was what he had been doing with another member of the Abington Avenue DTO. Weaver showed the CI a .45-caliber firearm and talked about owning other firearms, including a “357” and a “40.”
Unbeknownst to Weaver, the robbery opportunity was a fiction and the drug stash house did not exist. On January 25, 2019, the CI introduced Weaver to an undercover Baltimore Police Officer (the UC), posing as a drug dealer who wanted to rob his source of supply. Weaver had several meetings with the UC to discuss the robbery, including distributing the heroin they planned to steal. In every meeting, Weaver confirmed his desire to commit the robbery and stated that he intended to kill everyone who was guarding the stash location. Weaver brought co-conspirators to two of the meetings who also agreed to assist with the robbery.
On March 7, 2019, Weaver and three co-conspirators met the UC to commit the robbery. Weaver and the co-conspirators were arrested. A search of Weaver recovered a loaded .357 revolver, 11 pin-top vials of suspected cocaine, and a mask. A pair of black gloves was also recovered from the area of the car where Weaver had been sitting. Law enforcement also recovered black masks from the co-conspirators, and from their vehicle they recovered a 9mm handgun loaded with 10 rounds of ammunition, including a round in the chamber, and two pairs of black woolen gloves.
Weaver admitted that from at least July 2017 through March 7, 2019, he conspired to distribute heroin and crack cocaine in Baltimore, and that it was foreseeable to Weaver that the members of the conspiracy would distribute between three and eight kilograms of heroin.
Weaver and the government have agreed that, if the Court accepts the plea agreement, Weaver will be sentenced to between 300 and 360 months in federal prison. U.S. District Judge Richard D. Bennett has scheduled sentencing for May 21, 2020 at 3:00 p.m.
Co-defendants Jamal Jackson, age 20; Kevin Brooks, age 29; and Jermaine Sumpter, age 43, all of Baltimore, previously pleaded guilty to their roles in the robbery conspiracy. Sumpter was sentenced to 37 months in federal prison. Jackson and Brooks are awaiting sentencing.
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 and the Baltimore Police Department for their work in the investigation. Mr. Hur thanked Assistant U.S. Attorneys Christina A. Hoffman and Peter J. Martinez, who are prosecuting this Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force case.
# # #
Bakersfield Attorney Indicted for Scheme to Defraud Her ClientsRead the Press Release
FRESNO, Calif. — On Feb. 20, a federal grand jury returned an eight-count indictment against Heather Christiansen Stanley, 47, of Bakersfield, charging her with five counts of wire fraud, two counts of mail fraud, and one count of attempt to evade and defeat assessment of a tax, U.S. Attorney McGregor W. Scott announced.
The indictment was unsealed following Stanley’s arraignment on Wednesday.
According to court documents, Stanley, a divorce attorney in Bakersfield, represented to her clients that she could hold funds for them in a bank account for safekeeping during the pendency of their divorce proceedings. These monies were her clients’ funds and were not owed to Stanley for legal fees or otherwise. Instead of maintaining and protecting these funds, Stanley would use the funds for her own personal gain. Stanley often would not return the funds or would not return the full amount to her clients. In some instances, when Stanley returned the funds to her clients, she used other clients’ funds to make these payments.
This case is the product of an investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney Angela Scott is prosecuting the case.
If convicted, Stanley faces a maximum statutory penalty of up to 20 years in prison and a fine of up to $250,000 for the wire and mail fraud counts and up to five years in prison and a $100,000 fine on the tax evasion charge. Any sentence, however, would be determined at the discretion of the court after consideration of any applicable statutory factors and the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, which take into account a number of variables. The charges are only allegations; the defendant is presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.
Aurora Man Sentenced for Child PornographyRead the Press Release
SPRINGFIELD, Mo. – An Aurora, Missouri, man has been sentenced in federal court for receiving and distributing child pornography.
Michael Steven Copfer, 38, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Brian C. Wimes on Monday, Feb. 24, to 12 years and seven months in federal prison without parole. The court also sentenced Copfer to 15 years of supervised release following incarceration. Copfer will be required to register as a sex offender upon his release from prison and will be subject to federal and state sex offender registration requirements, which may apply throughout his life.
On Sept. 9, 2019, Copfer pleaded guilty to one count of receiving and distributing child pornography. Copfer was identified by law enforcement after Google discovered files containing images of child pornography stored in Copfer’s Google Photos account.
This case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Ami Harshad Miller. It was investigated by Immigration and Customs Enforcement's (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) and the Southwest Missouri Cyber Crimes Task Force.
Project Safe Childhood
This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by the United States Attorneys' Offices and the Criminal Division's Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who sexually exploit children, and to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.usdoj.gov/psc . For more information about Internet safety education, please visit www.usdoj.gov/psc and click on the tab "resources."Apex Entrepreneur Pleads Guilty to Defrauding Water Remediation Investors and to Aggravated Identity TheftRead the Press Release
RALEIGH – United States Attorney Robert J. Higdon, Jr. announced that today in federal court, CHARLES GILBERT MURPHY, 63, of Apex, NC, pleaded guilty to Counts 10 and 13 of an indictment charging him with, among other things, Wire Fraud and Aggravated Identity Theft.
The Indictment alleges that MURPHY was subject to collection efforts by the United States Government arising from a prior federal conviction for Wire Fraud in June of 1999 in this same District. As such, the Indictment alleges that MURPHY caused family members to open bank accounts for him in the name of various companies he controlled, referred to in the Indictment as the “Murphy Entities.” These entities were Toxic Solutions LLC (“Toxic Solutions”), Biological Marine Remediation LLC (“Bio-Remediation”), Bio Marine Remediation LLC (“Bio-Marine”), Bio Separation Systems, LLC (“Bio-Separation”), On-Site Solutions LLC (“On-Site Solutions”), and On-Site Technologies LLC (“On-Site Technologies”).
The Indictment further alleges that MURPHY used the Murphy Entities to obtain money from individuals and entities under false and fraudulent pretenses. According to the Indictment, MURPHY represented that the Murphy Entities performed environmental cleanup activities, such as water remediation. MURPHY purported to offer to various entrepreneurial victims the opportunity to purchase exclusive rights to perform environmental cleanup services in a given geographic area. MURPHY also purported to sell the equipment necessary to perform the cleanup services. In furtherance of the scheme, MURPHY frequently presented false documents to the entrepreneurs to make it appear that funds had been allocated for services to be performed in the geographic area where the victims had purchased the exclusive rights. In reality, the documents justifying the exclusive rights purchase were falsified, and MURPHY took the money without providing all of the equipment purchased.
In furtherance of the scheme, the Indictment further alleges that MURPHY utilized the identities of others to make it appear that his companies were good investments by creating false documents and correspondence in the names of the victims.
Mr. Higdon stated, “This case arose from our Office’s continuing efforts to obtain restitution for victims of the defendant’s prior federal conviction. In the process of doing that, we learned that the defendant was at it again, deceiving a new set of victims with the same old tricks. The defendant will now have to answer to his victims, and to the court, for his actions.”
The maximum punishment for Wire Fraud (18 U.S.C. § 1343) is up to 20 years in prison. The maximum punishment for Aggravated Identity Theft (18 U.S.C. § 1028A) is not less than, nor more than 2 years in prison consecutive to any other term of imprisonment imposed. The sentencing is tentatively scheduled for June, 2020 term of court.
The investigation of this case was conducted by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigation. Assistant United States Attorney William M. Gilmore represents the United States.
168 Dogs Rescued in Georgia Pursuant to Federal Search Warrants Related to Suspected Violations of the Animal Welfare ActRead the Press Release
MACON, Ga. — Eleven federal search warrants were executed Wednesday morning related to suspected violations of the federal Animal Welfare Act (AWA) and drug trafficking, resulting in the rescue of 168 canines, announced Charles “Charlie” Peeler, the U.S. Attorney for the Middle District of Georgia. The United States Department of Agriculture, Office of the Inspector General (USDA-OIG), the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Georgia are leading the investigation, with the assistance of the following agencies:
- U.S. Marshals Service
- The Department of Justice, Environment and Natural Resources Division (ENRD)
- Georgia Bureau of Investigation (GBI)
- Bibb County Sheriff’s Office
- Crawford County Sheriff’s Office
- Houston County Sheriff’s Office
- Merriweather County Sheriff’s Office
- Peach County Sheriff’s Office
- Taylor County Sheriff’s Office
- Webster County Sheriff’s Office
- Byron Police Department
- Fort Valley Police Department
This is an ongoing investigation and any individuals who may be arrested in this investigation are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of competent jurisdiction.
Eleven federal search warrants were executed at the following locations on Wednesday, February 26, 2020:
- 323 Ruby Street, Macon, Bibb County, Georgia
- 16 Spruce Lane, Roberta, Crawford County, Georgia
- 99 Calloway Drive, Roberta, Crawford County, Georgia
- 107 Stanton Circle, Warner Robins, Houston County, Georgia
- 407 Vienna Street, Fort Valley, Peach County, Georgia
- 718 Green Street, Apt. A101, Fort Valley, Peach County, Georgia
- 223 Buckrun Road, Talbotton, Talbot County, Georgia
- 293 Chapman Road, Shiloh, Talbot County, Georgia
- 838 Jeff Hendricks Road, Woodland, Talbot County, Georgia
- 65 Turner Estates Road, Reynolds, Taylor County, Georgia
- 369 Millard Kennedy Road, Preston, Webster County, Georgia
The 168 rescued animals are now in the care of the U.S. Marshals Service. Many of the animals are malnourished with scarring, and some are severely injured and require surgery or other medical intervention. For example, one animal, a female pit bull, was discovered chained with broken legs, malnourished and overbred. An emergency veterinarian was on hand to administer care to the pit bull. At least two dogs had emergency surgery to treat their injuries. For the safety of the animals, the location of their care and housing will not be made public.
“I am incredibly grateful to the law enforcement teams who came together from all over the region to rescue these abused animals as we continue to investigate this alleged dog fighting ring,” said U.S. Attorney Charlie Peeler. “Illegal dog fighting is a barbaric activity. Those who choose to violate the Animal Welfare Act face serious consequences, including federal prison time, where there is no parole.”
“The provisions of the Animal Welfare Act were designed to protect animals from being used in illegal fighting ventures, which often entail other forms of criminal activity involving drugs, firearms, and gambling,” said Special Agent in Charge Jason Williams of the U.S. Department of Agriculture-Office of Inspector General (USDA-OIG). “Animal fighting is an investigative priority for USDA-OIG, and together with the Department of Justice, we will work with our law enforcement partners to investigate and assist in the criminal prosecution of those who participate in animal fighting ventures.”
“These search warrants are part of a multi-month, multi-agency investigation into allegations of illegal dog fighting and drug trafficking,” said Robert J. Murphy, the Special Agent in Charge of the DEA Atlanta Field Division. “Because of the dedication between all law enforcement agencies involved, the citizens of Middle Georgia are safer and innocent animals have been rescued.”
The federal Animal Welfare Act (AWA) defines “animal fighting venture” as “any event, in or affecting interstate or foreign commerce, that involves a fight conducted or to be conducted between at least two animals for purposes of sport, wagering, or entertainment.” It is illegal to sponsor or exhibit an animal in, attend or cause an individual who has not attained the age of 16 to attend an animal fighting venture. It is illegal to possess, train, sell, buy, transport, deliver or receive an animal for purposes of having the animal participate in an animal fighting venture. It is unlawful to use an instrumentality of interstate commerce for commercial speech for purposes of advertising an animal for use in an animal fighting venture, or for promoting or furthering an animal fighting venture. All of these offenses are felonies punishable by up to five years in prison.
USDA Animal Care, a unit within the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service, administers the AWA. This federal law establishes requirements concerning the transportation, sale and handling of certain animals and includes restrictions on the importation of live dogs for purposes of resale, prohibitions on animal fighting ventures and provisions intended to prevent the theft of personal pets. Regulations established under the AWA set standards for the humane care and treatment for certain animals that are exhibited to the public, sold for use as pets, used in research or transported commercially. Facilities using regulated animals for regulated purposes must provide their animals with adequate housing, sanitation, nutrition, water and veterinary care, and they must protect their animals from extreme weather and temperatures. The regulations also establish specific requirements that must be met prior to the importation of dogs for resale purposes.
The investigation was conducted as part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), the centerpiece of the Department of Justice’s violent crime reduction efforts. PSN is an evidence-based program proven to be effective at reducing violent crime. Through PSN, a broad spectrum of stakeholders work together to identify the most pressing violent crime problems in the community and develop comprehensive solutions to address them. As part of this strategy, PSN focuses enforcement efforts on the most violent offenders and partners with locally based prevention and reentry programs for lasting reductions in crime.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Julia Bowen Mize is prosecuting the case for the Government. Questions can be directed to Pamela Lightsey, Public Information Officer, United States Attorney’s Office, at (478) 621-2603 or Melissa Hodges, Public Affairs Director (Contractor), United States Attorney’s Office, at (478) 765-2362. The year 2020 marks the 150th anniversary of the Department of Justice. Learn more about the history of our agency at https://www.justice.gov/history.
Wednesday 26 February 2020
Washington woman sentenced for role in meth trafficking ringRead the Press Release
BILLINGS—A Washington woman who admitted trafficking methamphetamine as part of a large drug distribution ring was sentenced today to 10 years in prison and five years of supervised release, U.S. Attorney Kurt Alme said.
Sadie Allen Hackett, 29, of Glenwood, WA, pleaded guilty in October to possession with intent to distribute meth.
U.S. District Judge Susan P. Watters presided.
In court documents filed in the case, the prosecution said Hackett was an active member of a meth trafficking ring led by Joshua Clause. Clause pleaded guilty to drug trafficking and firearms crimes and was sentenced last year to 15 years in prison. In July 2018, a Billings Police officer made a traffic stop in which Hackett was a front seat passenger. The officer became suspicious and eventually deployed a K-9 dog, which indicated for the presence of narcotics. Law enforcement impounded the vehicle and got a warrant to search the car.
Law enforcement found a half-pound of meth and a large amount of cash in the front glove box. Hackett’s purse was found and it contained more meth. The driver said he saw Hackett place items in the glove box, including the money.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Colin Rubich prosecuted the case, which was investigated by the FBI, Billings Police Department, Eastern Montana High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area Task Force and the Montana Highway Patrol.
This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods, the USDOJ’s initiative to reduce violent crime. According to the FBI’s Uniform Crime Reports, violent crime in Montana increased by 36% from 2013 through 2018. Through these initiatives, federal, tribal, state and local law enforcement partners in Montana focus on violent crime driven by methamphetamine trafficking, armed robbers, firearms offenses and violent offenders with outstanding warrants.
XXX
U.S. Attorney’s Office credited with over $169 million collected in civil and criminal actions in fiscal year 2019Read the Press Release
ATLANTA - U.S. Attorney Byung J. “BJay” Pak announced today that the Northern District of Georgia was directly and jointly responsible for over $169 million in criminal and civil collections for Fiscal Year 2019. Included in this amount were funds paid directly to the Northern District of Georgia of $23,963,457.52. Of this amount, $9,510,094.82 was collected in criminal actions and $14,453,362.70 was collected in civil actions. Additionally, the Northern District of Georgia was credited with recovery of an additional $145,287,404.95 for joint investigations worked with other U.S. Attorney’s Offices and components of the Department of Justice.
“Collecting restitution owed to victims of crime and recovering funds stolen from the federal government are among our highest priorities,” said U.S. Attorney Byung J. “BJay” Pak. “We understand that deterring crime and fraudulent conduct requires that we create disincentives through aggressive collection efforts. Here in the Northern District of Georgia, crime doesn’t pay but persons who violate our laws do.”
The largest collection of over $108 million in criminal penalties and civil settlements was the result of a joint investigation by criminal prosecutors and civil attorneys from Northern District of Georgia, along with attorneys at the Department of Justice and the Northern District of Ohio, and law enforcement partners at the Office of Inspector General of the Department of Health and Human Services, the Federal Bureau of Investigations and other federal agencies. Working together, these federal agencies held accountable Avanir Pharmaceuticals, a California-based company. Avanir was alleged to have violated the Anti-Kickback Statute and the False Claims Act by, among other things, paying doctors to become high prescribers of Nuedexta, a drug treating pseudobulbar affect (PBA), to beneficiaries of federal healthcare programs. The government alleged that Avanir implemented a strategy to market Nuedexta in long-term care (LTC) facilities for uses other than PBA that had not been approved by the FDA and were not medically accepted indications as defined by the statutes and regulations governing the Federal health care programs. Under a deferred prosecution agreement, Avanir agreed to pay a monetary penalty in the amount of $7,800,000, and a forfeiture in the amount of $5,074,895. It also agreed to pay $95,972,017 to the United States to resolve allegations under the False Claims Act related to its marketing of Nuedexta.
In another affirmative civil enforcement action, the Northern District of Georgia recovered $750,000 for violations of the False Claims Act from DeKalb County and Worksource DeKalb. This settlement resolved allegations that they failed to ensure federal grant funds were used to benefit those who qualified for the Department of Labor's On-the-Job Training (OJT) Programs and not used to subsidize the wages of County employees who were ineligible for the OJT Programs.
The U.S. Attorney’s Offices, along with the department’s litigating divisions, are also responsible for enforcing and collecting criminal debts owed to federal crime victims. The law requires defendants to pay restitution to victims of certain federal crimes who have suffered a physical injury or financial loss. While restitution is paid to the victim, criminal fines and felony assessments are paid to the department’s Crime Victims Fund, which distributes the funds collected to federal and state victim compensation and victim assistance programs. Highlights among the thousands of criminal collections on behalf of victims recovered in 2019 are a full pre-sentence payment of approximately $191,088 in the case of U.S. v. Morgan, an insurance fraud case, and a collection of $116,249 in U.S. v. Howle, a tax fraud case.
Additionally, the Northern District of Georgia, working with partner agencies and divisions, collected $10,603,801.00 in asset forfeiture actions in FY 2019. Forfeited assets deposited into the Department of Justice Assets Forfeiture Fund are used to restore funds to crime victims and for a variety of law enforcement purposes.
For further information please contact the U.S. Attorney’s Public Affairs Office at [email protected] or (404) 581-6016. The Internet address for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia is http://www.justice.gov/usao-ndga.
Two Los Angeles Pharmacy Owners Sentenced for Multimillion-Dollar Scheme that Billed Medicare, Cigna $11.8 Million in Fraudulent Medication ClaimsRead the Press Release
Two owners and operators of a Los Angeles pharmacy were both sentenced today to 144 months in prison for their roles in a health care fraud scheme where Medicare and CIGNA were billed more than $11.8 million in fraudulent claims for prescription drugs.
Assistant Attorney General Brian A. Benczkowski of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, U.S. Attorney Nicola T. Hanna of the Central District of California, Special Agent in Charge Timothy DeFrancesca of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office of the Inspector General’s (HHS-OIG) Los Angeles Regional Office, Assistant Director in Charge Paul Delacourt of the FBI’s Los Angeles Field Office, Special Agent in Charge Ryan L. Korner of IRS Criminal Investigation’s (IRS-CI) Los Angeles Field Office and Special Agent in Charge Kris Lyle of the California Department of Justice made the announcement.
Aleksandr Suris, 51, of Sherman Oaks, California, was sentenced to 144 months in prison by U.S. District Judge S. James Otero of the Central District of California, who also ordered Suris to pay restitution of $11,826,444.65 to Medicare and $17,109.39 to CIGNA. The court ordered Suris to make an immediate partial restitution payment of $500,000. Maxim Sverdlov, 45, also of Sherman Oaks, was sentenced to 144 months in prison by Judge Otero, who ordered him to pay $11,826,444.65 in restitution to Medicare. The court ordered Sverdlov to make an immediate partial restitution payment of $500,000.
On Aug. 20, 2019, after an 11-day trial, a jury found Suris guilty of two counts of conspiracy to commit health care fraud, six counts of health care fraud, and one count of conspiracy to commit money laundering. The jury found Sverdlov guilty of one count of conspiracy to commit health care fraud and one count of conspiracy to commit money laundering.
Suris and Sverdlov were the co-owners and co-operators of Royal Care Pharmacy (Royal Care) in Hollywood. According to the evidence presented at trial, from 2012 to 2015, Suris and Sverdlov fraudulently billed Medicare and CIGNA for prescription medications that Royal Care did not actually purchase or dispense to beneficiaries. In order to hide the fraud, Suris and Sverdlov obtained fake drug invoices from co-conspirators to make it appear as if Royal Care had purchased the medicines for which it had billed Medicare and CIGNA, when it actually had not. Suris and Sverdlov also used these fake invoices to launder the proceeds of the fraud through a co-conspirator. In total, Suris and Sverdlov submitted more than $11.8 million in bogus claims to Medicare for prescription drugs that they never purchased or dispensed to patients.
This case was investigated by HHS-OIG, the FBI, IRS-CI and the California Department of Justice, and was brought as part of the Medicare Fraud Strike Force, under the supervision of the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Central District of California. Trial Attorney Robyn N. Pullio and Assistant Chief Daniel J. Griffin of the Fraud Section prosecuted the case.
The Fraud Section leads the Medicare Fraud Strike Force. Since its inception in March 2007, the Medicare Fraud Strike Force, which maintains 15 strike forces operating in 24 districts, has charged more than 4,200 defendants who have collectively billed the Medicare program for nearly $19 billion. In addition, the HHS Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, working in conjunction with the HHS-OIG, are taking steps to increase accountability and decrease the presence of fraudulent providers.
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.
Twenty-Four People in Milwaukee Charged with Heroin and Cocaine Trafficking and Firearms OffensesRead the Press Release
Matthew D. Krueger, United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Wisconsin, announced today federal charges against 24 defendants associated with a violent drug trafficking organization in Milwaukee known as the Buffum Meinecke Boys.
The defendants charged in this law enforcement action all reside in Milwaukee and are:
Name
Age
Ramone LOCKE
33
Jesus PUENTES
33
Michael SMITH
37
Victor GONZALEZ
34
Garrell HUGHES
33
Lamar JOHNSON
32
Rico SMITH
29
Michael WILSON
34
Amir LOCKE
34
Joey VAZQUEZ
34
Coury AGEE
33
Louis BATES
31
Tyrone BRYANT
28
Dennis KING
35
Derrell TAYLOR
31
Luis LORENZO
34
Nicholas WELDON
29
Deon BUTTS
38
Maureno BRIGGS
29
Dawan TURNER
18
Jasmaine LINTON
38
Alfonso GREER
20
Juiquin PINKARD
35
Charles MCCOLLUM
32
A federal grand jury returned an indictment charging fifteen of the defendants with conspiring to distribute 1 kilogram or more of heroin, at least five kilograms or more of powder cocaine, at least 280 grams or more of “crack” cocaine, and greater than 50 kilograms of marijuana. If convicted of this conspiracy charge, those 15 defendants face a mandatory minimum term of 10 years in prison. One of the co-conspirators, Victor Gonzalez, was also charged with unlawful possession of 37 firearms. Nine other defendants were charged with distribution of heroin or cocaine or illegally possessing firearms.
On February 25, 2020, federal, state, and local law enforcement officers arrested 17 of these defendants in a coordinated enforcement operation. Throughout the course of the investigation, officers recovered over 900 grams of heroin, over 150 grams of a mixture containing fentanyl, 1.5 kilograms of cocaine, 20 kilograms of marijuana, almost $300,000 in U.S. currency, and 53 firearms.
“Every Milwaukee resident deserves to live in a secure neighborhood, free from groups who wield guns and pedal dangerous drugs,” said United States Attorney Krueger. “This joint law enforcement action is another example of our unwavering commitment to fight gun violence and drug trafficking. I commend the excellent law enforcement cooperation, led by the FBI, to build this case.”
FBI Special Agent in Charge Robert E. Hughes stated “The FBI, with its partners, stand committed to reducing the negative impact of gangs responsible for gun violence, illegal drugs and homicides. Working together, we are dedicated to making Milwaukee a safe place to live, work, and enjoy all our city has to offer.”
“The Milwaukee law enforcement agencies continue to show our resolve by working together to investigate and prosecute violent drug organizations like the Buffum Meinecke Boys. The residents of Milwaukee deserve to live in neighborhoods free of drug related violence, and this investigation is another step to provide that freedom,” said DEA Milwaukee District Office Assistant Special Agent in Charge Paul E. Maxwell, Jr.
The defendants were charged based on joint investigation by law enforcement officers from the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s Southeastern Wisconsin Gang Task Force, the Milwaukee Police Department (MPD), the Milwaukee County Sheriff’s Office, the IRS-Criminal Investigations, and the Drug Enforcement Administration. This case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Laura S. Kwaterski and Kevin C. Knight.
Multiple law enforcement agencies participated in the arrests and execution of search warrants yesterday, including Federal Bureau of Investigation, FBI’s Southeastern Wisconsin Regional Gang Task Force, Milwaukee Police Department, Milwaukee County Sheriff’s Office, Racine Police Department, Racine County Sheriff’s Office, Mt. Pleasant Police Department, FBI’s Central Wisconsin Narcotics Task Force, Marathon County Sheriff’s Office, Lincoln County Sheriff’s Office, Wausau Police Department, Wisconsin Division of Criminal Investigation, FBI’s South Central Wisconsin Regional Gang Task Force, Madison Police Department, Dane County Sheriff’s Office, FBI Chicago Field Office, FBI Minneapolis Field Office, FBI’s Critical Incident Response Group – HRT
Drug Enforcement Administration, Internal Revenue Service, United States Marshal’s Service, St. Francis Police Department, Cudahy Police Department, West Allis Police Department, Wisconsin Division of Criminal Investigation, Bureau of Alcohol Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives, Department of Homeland Security, North Central HIDTA
This case is being prosecuted as part of the Project Safe Neighborhoods initiative. Project Safe Neighborhoods is a federal, state, and local law enforcement collaboration to identify, investigate, and prosecute individuals responsible for violent crimes in our neighborhoods. Project Safe Neighborhoods’ strategy brings together all levels of law enforcement and community resources to reduce violent crime and improve the quality of life in all our neighborhoods.
The public is cautioned that an indictment or criminal complaint is merely a charge and the defendant is presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty.
# # #
For Additional Information Contact:
Public Information Officer Kenneth Gales 414-297-1700
Follow us on Twitter
Tomato Plant Corporation and Local Restaurant Owner Plead Guilty in O’Neill Harboring CaseRead the Press Release
United States Attorney Joe Kelly announced that O’Neill Ventures, Inc., a tomato greenhouse and packing plant located in O’Neill, Nebraska, entered a felony plea of guilty in federal court today to conspiracy to harbor undocumented aliens. The plea was entered before United States Magistrate Judge Cheryl R. Zwart. The conspiracy to harbor aliens relates to the earlier prosecution of Juan Pablo Sanchez-Delgado. The plea agreement requires O’Neill Ventures to pay a fine of $400,000 at sentencing. In addition, the corporation must allow Homeland Security Investigations to conduct reviews and inspections of their labor practices and hiring processes during a probationary term as outlined in the agreement. The maximum fine authorized by law for this offense is $500,000.
The corporation admits through the plea agreement to being in a conspiracy to employ and harbor undocumented aliens with Juan Pablo Sanchez-Delgado since at least 2014. At Sanchez-Delgado’s sentencing hearing on November 27, 2019, Chief United States District Judge John M. Gerrard described Sanchez-Delgado’s financial exploitation of the workers at the tomato plant and other agricultural work sites as one of the “most egregious financial crimes,” that the judge had ever seen and proceeded to sentence Sanchez-Delgado to the maximum imprisonment time authorized by law, 120 months in federal prison. Restitution for those workers will be determined by Chief Judge Gerrard at a future date in time.
On August 8, 2018, agents and officers with Immigration and Customs Enforcement executed a search warrant at O’Neill Ventures, Inc., and found that undocumented alien workers comprised approximately 70% of the company’s work force on that date.
United States Attorney Joe Kelly further announced that John Charles Good, car salesman and owner of the La Herradura restaurant in O’Neill, entered a plea of guilty to aiding and abetting Sanchez-Delgado in his pattern and practice of unlawfully employing undocumented aliens, and particularly for employing Magdalena Castro-Benitez, Sanchez-Delgado’s wife, at the La Herradura restaurant. Castro-Benitez, previously deported from the United States to Mexico, returned to the United States illegally before joining her husband’s conspiracy to harbor illegal aliens. The charge carries a possible penalty of up to six months of incarceration, a fine of $3,000 per alien, and a term of supervised release of up to one year that could follow any term of incarceration.
Sentencing for O’Neill Ventures, Inc. and Good is set for May 29, 2020 before Chief Judge Gerrard.
This case was investigated by Immigration and Customs Enforcement and Homeland Security Investigations.
Three Bloomington Men Indicted on Charges of Child Sex Trafficking, Child PornographyRead the Press Release
PEORIA, Ill. – Trial dates in April 2020 have been scheduled for three Bloomington area men who have been indicted in separate cases on charges of child sex trafficking. A federal grand jury returned the indictments on Feb. 19, 2020, and the cases were unsealed as each made their respective initial appearances in federal court.
Teon Williams, 20, of the 800 block of E. Washington St., Bloomington, Ill., is charged with three counts of child sex trafficking for offenses from 2017 through 2019. The case was unsealed on Feb. 25, when Williams was arraigned in federal court. Williams waived detention hearing and was ordered to remain in the custody of the U.S. Marshals Service.
Jahquan Howard, 26, of the 1700 block of Linda Lane, Normal, Ill., is charged with one count of child sex trafficking and one count of production of child pornography for offenses from 2018 through 2019. Howard was also arraigned on Feb. 25. Howard remains in law enforcement custody pending a detention hearing scheduled on Feb. 27.
Andrew Wheeler, 24, of the 500 block of Bradley Lane, Normal, Ill., is charged with three counts of child sex trafficking and one count of child sex trafficking conspiracy for offenses alleged to have occurred in 2019. Wheeler, arraigned on Feb. 21, waived detention hearing and was ordered to remain in the custody of the U.S. Marshals Service.
The indictments are the result of a long-term investigation by the Bloomington Police Department's Criminal Investigation Division into child sex trafficking in central Illinois. As the investigation progressed, assistance was provided by the Federal Bureau of Investigation.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Adam W. Ghrist is representing the government in the prosecution in coordination with the McLean County State’s Attorney’s Office.
If convicted, the statutory penalty for each count of child sex trafficking is 10 years to life in prison; for child pornography, the penalty is 15 to 30 years in prison; and, for child sex trafficking conspiracy, the penalty is five years to life in prison.
Members of the public are reminded that an indictment is merely an accusation; each defendant is presumed innocent unless proven guilty.
The cases were brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative by the Department of Justice to combat child sexual exploitation and abuse. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.justice.gov/psc.
The Department of Justice Creates Section Dedicated to Denaturalization CasesRead the Press Release
The Department of Justice today announced the creation of a section dedicated to investigating and litigating revocation of naturalization. The Denaturalization Section will join the existing sections within the Civil Division’s Office of Immigration Litigation—the District Court Section and the Appellate Section. This move underscores the Department’s commitment to bring justice to terrorists, war criminals, sex offenders, and other fraudsters who illegally obtained naturalization.
While the Office of Immigration Litigation already has achieved great success in the denaturalization cases it has brought, winning 95 percent of the time, the growing number of referrals anticipated from law enforcement agencies motivated the creation of a standalone section dedicated to this important work.
“When a terrorist or sex offender becomes a U.S. citizen under false pretenses, it is an affront to our system—and it is especially offensive to those who fall victim to these criminals,” said Assistant Attorney General Jody Hunt. “The Denaturalization Section will further the Department’s efforts to pursue those who unlawfully obtained citizenship status and ensure that they are held accountable for their fraudulent conduct.”
Denaturalization cases require the government to show that a defendant’s naturalization was “illegally procured” or “procured by concealment of a material fact or by willful misrepresentation . . . .” 8 U.S.C. § 1451. Civil denaturalization cases have no statute of limitations, and the Department has successfully denaturalized numerous categories of individuals who have illegally obtained citizenship, including terrorists and other national security threats, war criminals, human rights violators, sex offenders, and other fraudsters.
National Security/Terrorism
- U.S. v. al Dahab, No. 15-cv-5414 (D.D.C.). Successful civil denaturalization of individual convicted of terrorism offenses in Egypt who admitted recruiting for al Qaeda within the United States and running a communications hub in California for the Egyptian Islamic Jihad terrorist organization. The defendant was denaturalized while in Egypt, stripped of his passport, and prevented from returning to the United States.
- U.S. v. Kariye, No. 15-cv-1343 (D. Or.). Successful civil denaturalization of individual who received military training in a jihadist training camp in Afghanistan; coordinated with Osama bin Laden and other known terrorist leaders; and was associated with terrorist organizations including Makhtab Al-Khidamat, a U.S. government-designated terrorist organization and pre-cursor to al Qaeda. The Office of Immigration Litigation coordinated a settlement that facilitated the defendant’s self-deportation to Somaliland despite his presence on No Fly List.
- U.S. v. Hamed, No. 2:18-cv-0424 (W.D. Mo.). Successful civil denaturalization of an individual convicted of conspiring to illegally transfer more than $1 million to Iraq in violation of federal sanctions and of obstructing internal revenue laws with respect to tax-exempt charities. In furtherance of those crimes, the defendant regularly authorized and transferred tax-exempt funds from a non-profit organization’s accounts in the United States to an account in Jordan controlled by a Specially Designated Global Terrorist.
War Crimes & Human Rights Violators
- U.S. v. Dzeko, No. 18-cv-759 (D.D.C.). Successful civil denaturalization of an individual who was convicted in Bosnia of executing eight unarmed civilians and POWs during the Balkans conflict. Defendant was denaturalized while incarcerated in a Bosnian prison, and thereby prevented from returning to the United States upon his release.
- U.S. v. Yetisen, No. 18-cv-570 (D. Or.). Successful civil denaturalization of an individual who pled guilty in Bosnia of executing six unarmed civilians and POWs during the Balkans conflict.
Sex Offenders
- U.S. v. Omopariola (N.D. Tex.). Successful civil denaturalization of an individual engaged in sexual contact with a 7-year-old family member.
- U.S. v. Lopez, No. 18-cv-00527 (D. Md.). Successful civil denaturalization of an individual who sexually abused a minor victim for multiple years.
- U.S. v. Arizmendi, No. 4:15-cv-454 (S.D. Tex.). Successful civil denaturalization of an individual convicted of multiple sex offenses, including as to students. The defendant was denaturalized while incarcerated in a Mexican prison related to a sex offense, and thereby prevented from returning to the United States upon his release.
Fraudsters & Other Criminals
- U.S. v. Mondino, No. 18-cv-21840 (S.D. Fla.). Successful civil denaturalization of an individual convicted of conspiring to defraud the U.S. Export-Import Bank of more than $24 million, resulting in more than $12 million in unrecovered losses. Because of the denaturalization proceedings, the defendant self-deported.
- U.S. v. Warsame cases, Nos. 17-cv-5023, -5024, -5025, -5027 (D. Minn.). Successful civil denaturalizations of four individuals who fraudulently claimed to be a family to gain admission to the United States through the Diversity Immigrant Visa Program.
Texas man gets nearly 17 years after kilogram of meth found on bus passenger’s thighsRead the Press Release
CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas – A 43-year-old former resident of San Antonio has been ordered to federal prison following his conviction for conspiring to possess with the intent to distribute meth, announced U.S. Attorney Ryan K. Patrick.
U.S. District Judge Nelva Gonzales Ramos convicted Lawrence James Espree Oct. 11, 2019, following a one-day trial.
Today, Judge Ramos ordered Espree to serve a total of 200 months in federal prison to be immediately followed by five years of supervised release.
During the trial, the judge heard Espree had hired a drug courier to transport drugs from the Rio Grande Valley to San Antonio. On Feb. 21, 2017, that courier was a passenger on a commercial bus as it approached the Border Patrol checkpoint near Falfurrias. There, authorities found approximately a kilogram of meth strapped to his thighs.
After the courier was arrested, Espree fled the area and evaded arrest until 2019.
During trial, he identified Espree as the person who recruited him to transport the narcotics.
Evidence also established that Espree purchased the courier’s bus ticket using his girlfriend’s email account and his mother’s credit card.
Judge Ramos also heard Espree was leading a narcotics trafficking operation in which he directed another courier. In that incident, authorities also seized an additional kilogram of narcotics from the bus passenger at the Falfurrias checkpoint in January 2017.
Evidence presented during trial also demonstrated that Espree used numerous firearms and body armor to facilitate his narcotics trafficking.
The defense attempted to convince the court he was not involved. Judge Ramos did not believe those claims and convicted him as charged.
He has been and will remain in custody pending transfer to a U.S. Bureau of Prisons facility to be determined in the near future.
Both bus passengers previously pleaded guilty to their roles in the offenses.
The Drug Enforcement Administration conducted the investigation with the assistance of Border Patrol and U.S. Marshals Service. Assistant U.S. Attorney Robert D. Thorpe Jr. and Jeremy Carl Fugate prosecuted the case.
Tennessee Podiatrist Pleads Guilty to Unlawfully Distributing Controlled SubstancesRead the Press Release
A Tennessee podiatrist pleaded guilty today for his role in unlawfully distributing controlled substances.
Assistant Attorney General Brian A. Benczkowski of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, U.S. Attorney Don Cochran of the Middle District of Tennessee, Special Agent in Charge J. Todd Scott of the Drug Enforcement Administration’s (DEA) Louisville Division and Director David B. Rausch of the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation (TBI) made the announcement.
Timothy Abbott, D.P.M., 62, of Nashville, Tennessee, pleaded guilty to seven counts of unlawful distribution of controlled substances before Chief U.S. District Judge Waverly D. Crenshaw Jr. of the Middle District of Tennessee. Sentencing has been scheduled for Aug. 31, 2020, before Chief Judge Crenshaw.
As part of his guilty plea, Abbott admitted that, on 44 occasions between April 2013 and February 2019, he knowingly distributed to four of his patients hydrocodone, a Schedule II controlled substance, without a legitimate medical purpose and outside the usual course of professional practice.
The DEA and TBI investigated the case with the assistance of the Metropolitan Nashville Police Department. Trial Attorneys William M. Grady and Alexandra Michael of the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section are prosecuting the case.
The Fraud Section leads the Appalachian Regional Prescription Opioid (ARPO) Strike Force. Since its inception in October 2018, the ARPO Strike Force, which operates in 10 districts, has charged more than 70 defendants who are collectively responsible for distributing more than 40 million pills. The Health Care Fraud Unit, in general, maintains 15 strike forces operating in 24 districts, and has charged nearly 4,200 defendants who have collectively billed the Medicare program for more than $15 billion. In addition, the HHS Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, working in conjunction with HHS-OIG, are taking steps to increase accountability and decrease the presence of fraudulent providers.
Individuals who believe that they may be a victim in this case should visit the Fraud Section’s Victim Witness website for more information.
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.
Stanly County Man Sentenced to 75 Months in Prison for Firearm and Drug ChargesRead the Press Release
WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. – A Stanly County man was sentenced to federal prison Tuesday, for firearm and drug offenses, announced Matthew G.T. Martin, United States Attorney for the Middle District of North Carolina.
EARL CHRISTOPHER TERRY, JR., 34,also known as “E” and “E-Magic,” pleaded guilty on October 15, 2019, to one count of possession of ammunition by a previously convicted felon, one count of possession with intent to distribute heroin, and one count of possession with intent to distribute fentanyl. On February 26, 2020, TERRY was sentenced by United States District Judge Loretta C. Biggs to 75 months of imprisonment, followed by three years of supervised release.
On April 18, 2019, the Stanly County Sherriff’s Office executed a search warrant at TERRY’s Badin, N.C., residence, finding $9,212 in cash and several dozen rounds of ammunition. In the woods across from the residence, deputies found a Smith & Wesson model M&P 40, .40-caliber handgun, next to bag containing heroin and fentanyl. Analysis later showed that TERRY’s DNA was on the handgun. Because TERRY had a prior felony conviction in Stanly County for three counts of the felonious Indecent Liberties with a Child, he could not possess a firearm or ammunition under federal law. TERRY was arrested on state charges but released on bond. On May 7, 2019, the Stanly County Sheriff’s Office received additional information about TERRY and narcotics, and again executed a search warrant on his residence, finding additional heroin and fentanyl.
Judge Biggs also ordered forfeiture of the handgun and ammunition found in the woods across from TERRY’s residence.
This case was investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration, Stanly County Sheriff's Office, Richland County (South Carolina) Sheriff's Office, and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, & Explosives, with the assistance of the District Attorney's Office for Stanly and Montgomery Counties. The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Eleanor T. Morales and Craig M. Principe for the Middle District of North Carolina.
###
Springfield Sex Offender Sentenced for Failing to RegisterRead the Press Release
SPRINGFIELD, Mo. – A Springfield, Missouri, man was sentenced in federal court today for his fourth conviction of failing to register as a sex offender.
Terry Lee Holmes, 66, was sentenced by U.S. Chief District Judge Beth Phillips to two years and nine months in federal prison without parole. Holmes will be required to register as a sex offender upon his release from prison and will be subject to federal and state sex offender registration requirements, which may apply throughout his life.
On Oct. 10, 2019, Holmes pleaded guilty to failing to register as a sex offender. According to court documents, Holmes has failed to register and follow the registration laws since his release from state prison in Illinois, where he served 20 years for aggravated criminal sexual assault. For more than 14 years, he has disregarded his registration requirements. Holmes failed to register even after he was repeatedly convicted for failing to register as a sex offender.
Holmes was located by a deputy marshal, who learned he was living near an elementary school playground. He has never registered in the state of Missouri as a sex offender.
Holmes has prior felony convictions for the aggravated sexual assaults of two victims, a 3-year-old and a 7-year-old child, and three prior felony convictions (in Illinois and Arkansas) for failing to register as a sex offender.
This case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Ami Harshad Miller. It was investigated by the U.S. Marshals Service.
Springdale Man Sentenced to 20 Years in Federal Prison for Bank RobberyRead the Press Release
Fort Smith, AR – David Clay Fowlkes, Acting United States Attorney for the Western District of Arkansas, announced today that Jaime Leonel Reinosa-Salguero, of Springdale, Arkansas, was sentenced to 240 months in federal prison on one count of Bank Robbery and one count of Use of a Firearm During and in Relation to a Crime of Violence. The Honorable P.K. Holmes III presided over the sentencing hearing in the United States District Court in Fort Smith.
According to court records, Reinosa-Salguero entered the Arvest Bank in Alma at approximately 10:38 a.m. on May 29, 2019. He approached the teller and demanded money while brandishing a firearm. The teller placed a large amount of currency into Reinosa-Salguero’s backpack. Reinosa-Salguero then fired one round from his handgun directly over the teller’s head and the bullet impacted the north wall near the ceiling. Reinosa-Salguero then fled the bank. A short time later, Reinosa-Salguero was located traveling northbound on Interstate 49. When Arkansas State Police initiated a traffic stop and ordered him to exit the vehicle, Reinosa-Salguero refused and fled, reaching speeds in excess of 100 m.p.h. During the pursuit, Reinosa-Salguero fired multiple rounds at the trooper who returned fire and struck Reinosa-Salguero. At approximately 11:12 a.m., the trooper performed a pursuit intervention technique causing Reinosa-Salguero’s vehicle to crash near the 55 mile marker. A subsequent search of the vehicle and surrounding area revealed the firearm used in the robbery, the money taken from the bank, and 15 rounds of ammunition. Arvest Bank’s deposits were insured by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation.
Reinosa-Salguero was indicted by a federal grand jury in June of 2019 and entered a guilty plea in October of 2019.
The investigation was conducted by the Alma Police Department, Arkansas State Police and FBI. Assistant United States Attorney David Harris is prosecuting the case for the United States.
Singaporean Shipping Company Convicted for Concealing Illegal Discharges of Oily WaterRead the Press Release
Unix Line PTE Ltd., a Singapore-based shipping company, pleaded guilty in federal court today to a violation of the Act to Prevent Pollution from Ships.
Assistant Attorney General Jeffrey Bossert Clark of the Justice Department’s Environment and Natural Resources Division, U.S. Attorney David L. Anderson of the Northern District of California and U.S. Coast Guard Investigative Service Special Agent in Charge Kelly S. Hoyle made the announcement.
In pleading guilty, Unix Line admitted that its crew members onboard the Zao Galaxy, a 16,408 gross-ton, ocean-going motor tanker, knowingly failed to record in the vessel’s oil record book the overboard discharge of oily bilge water without the use of required pollution-prevention equipment, during the vessel’s voyage from the Philippines to Richmond, California.
According to the plea agreement, Unix Line is the operator of the Zao Galaxy, which set sail from the Philippines on Jan. 21, 2019, heading toward Richmond, California, carrying a cargo of palm oil. On Feb. 11, 2019, the Zao Galaxy arrived in Richmond, where it underwent a U.S. Coast Guard inspection and examination. Examiners discovered that during the voyage, a Unix Line-affiliated ship officer directed crew members to discharge oily bilge water overboard, using a configuration of drums, flexible pipes, and flanges to bypass the vessel’s oil water separator. The discharges were knowingly not recorded in the Zao Galaxy’s oil record book.
Unix Line’s sentencing hearing is scheduled for March 20 before U.S. District Court Judge Jon S. Tigar in Oakland, California.
Senior Trial Attorney Kenneth Nelson of the Environmental Crimes Section, with the assistance of Kay Konopaske and Katie Turner, Assistant U.S. Attorney Katherine Lloyd-Lovett and Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Andrew Briggs of the Northern District of California are prosecuting the case. The prosecution is the result of a year-long investigation by the Coast Guard Investigative Service and the Investigations Division of Coast Guard Sector San Francisco.
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.
Singapore Shipping Company Pleads Guilty to Concealing Discharge of Oily WasteRead the Press Release
OAKLAND – Unix Line PTE, Ltd., a Singapore-based shipping company, pleaded guilty in federal court today to a violation of the Act to Prevent Pollution from Ships. The plea was received by the Honorable Jon S. Tigar, U.S. District Judge.
United States Attorney David L. Anderson, Assistant Attorney General Jeffrey Bossert Clark of the Justice Department’s Environment and Natural Resources Division, and U.S. Coast Guard Investigative Service Special Agent in Charge Kelly S. Hoyle made the announcement.
In pleading guilty, Unix Line admitted that its crew members onboard the Zao Galaxy, a 16,408 gross-ton, ocean-going motor tanker, knowingly failed to record in the vessel’s oil record book the overboard discharge of oily bilge water without the use of required pollution-prevention equipment, during the vessel’s voyage from the Philippines to Richmond, Calif.
According to the plea agreement, Unix Line is the operator of the Zao Galaxy, which set sail from the Philippines on January 21, 2019, heading toward Richmond, carrying a cargo of palm oil. On February 11, 2019, the Zao Galaxy arrived in Richmond, where it underwent a U.S. Coast Guard inspection and examination. Examiners discovered that during the voyage, a Unix Line-affiliated ship officer directed crew members to discharge oily bilge water overboard, using a configuration of drums, flexible pipes, and flanges to bypass the vessel’s oil water separator. The discharges were knowingly not recorded in the Zao Galaxy’s oil record book.
On October 24, 2019, a federal grand jury indicted Unix Line. On February 19, 2020, Unix Line was charged by superseding information with one count of violating the Act to Prevent Pollution from Ships, 33 U.S.C. § 1908(a). Under the plea agreement, Unix Line pled guilty to violating the Act to Prevent Pollution from Ships.
Judge Tigar scheduled Unix Line’s sentencing hearing for March 20, 2020, at 9:30 a.m. in Oakland. The maximum statutory penalty for a violation of the Act to Prevent Pollution from Ships is six years’ imprisonment and a fine of twice the gross gain or loss derived from the offense. However, any sentence will be imposed by the court only after consideration of the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and the federal statute governing the imposition of a sentence, 18 U.S.C. § 3553.
The prosecution is being handled by Assistant United States Attorney Katherine Lloyd-Lovett and Special Assistant United States Attorney Andrew Briggs of the Northern District of California and Senior Trial Attorney Kenneth Nelson of the Environmental Crimes Section, with the assistance of Kay Konopaske and Katie Turner. The prosecution is the result of a year-long investigation by the Coast Guard Investigative Service and the Investigations Division of Coast Guard Sector San Francisco.
Rawlins Doctor Pleads Guilty to Unlawful Distribution of Prescription Pain PillsRead the Press Release
Dr. DAVID RAY CESKO, 66, of Rawlins, Wyoming pleaded guilty on February 26, 2020 in U.S. District Court in Cheyenne to multiple charges that, as a physician, he unlawfully distributed controlled substances, primarily opiates and benzodiazepines, to his patients.
Cesko was charged by a Wyoming federal grand jury in March of 2019 in a thirty count indictment following a lengthy, collaborative investigation by the Wyoming Division of Criminal Investigation and the Drug Enforcement Administration. The charges alleged that Cesko had, without a legitimate medical purpose and outside the course of professional practice, unlawfully prescribed pain killers and other controlled substances to multiple patients. At the hearing today, pursuant to a plea agreement, Cesko pleaded guilty to twenty of the original charges, including charges that he unlawfully prescribed codeine cough syrup and opiates to minor, female patients, and, on several occasions, that he unlawfully prescribed opiates to a pregnant minor.
Cesko is scheduled to be sentenced on May 13th in U.S. District Court. He faces the possibility of decades in prison. As part of the plea agreement Cesko also agreed to forever relinquish his medical license and prescription authority. Judge Scott W. Skavdahl presided over the change of plea proceedings and Assistant United States Attorney Stuart S. Healy III represents the government.