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Thursday 6 February 2020
New York Plumbing Contractor Pleads Guilty to Employment Tax FraudRead the Press Release
A Queens, New York, business owner pleaded guilty today to failing to pay employment taxes to the Internal Revenue Service (IRS), announced Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Richard E. Zuckerman of the Justice Department’s Tax Division.
According to court documents and statements made in court, Sergei Denko was the owner and operator of Denko Mechanical Inc. and Independent Mechanical Inc., both contracting businesses in Queens that specialized in plumbing. From 2010 through 2014, Denko cashed customer checks and used the cash to pay employees. Denko then filed false employment tax returns that failed to report the cash wages and the employment taxes due. Denko admitted that he caused a tax loss of more than $360,000 to the Internal Revenue Service (IRS).
U.S. District Judge Rachel P. Kovner scheduled sentencing for June 15, 2020. At sentencing, Denko faces a statutory maximum sentence of five years in prison, a period of supervised release, restitution, and monetary penalties.
Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Zuckerman commended special agents of IRS-Criminal Investigation, who conducted the investigation, and Trial Attorneys Eric Schmale and Mark Kotila of the Tax Division, who prosecuted this case.
Additional information about the Tax Division and its enforcement efforts may be found on the division’s website.
New Jersey Man Detained on Child Pornography, Cyberstalking ChargesRead the Press Release
PROVIDENCE – A New Jersey man who allegedly befriended four minor females on social media, three in Rhode Island, and persuaded them to send sexually explicit photographs of themselves to him, then allegedly threatened to share the photographs on social media with their classmates and others if they didn’t continue to communicate with him, made an initial appearance in U.S. District Court in Providence today on child pornography and cyberstalking charges.
It is alleged that Pritkumar Tarunkumar Patel, 23, of Closter, NJ, befriended the girls on various social media platforms, and persuaded each to send sexually explicit photographs of themselves to him. It is also alleged that Patel sent sexually explicit photographs of himself to the girls, and, in at least one instance, allegedly communicated in much the same way via a live video chat.
Additionally, it is alleged that Patel threatened and harassed the girls on social media, by text messaging, and /or by calling them. It is alleged that Patel repeatedly demanded that they resume communicating with him and unblock his access to their social media accounts. He allegedly threatened to post the sexually explicit photos of them online and that he would share them with their friends, classmates, and family members. He also threatened to create Instagram accounts in the girls’ names and use those accounts to post the pictures online.
It is alleged that on at least one occasion he followed through on his threats by allegedly posting a sexually explicit picture of one of the girls, a 13-year-old girl from Indiana, on an Instagram account he created using her name.
It is also alleged that Patel threatened to locate and assault one of the girls if she did not unblock his access to her online accounts.
The investigation into Patel’s alleged actions began when the family of one of the girls brought the matter to the attention of the Hopkinton, R.I., Police Department. A Hopkinton Police Detective obtained a court-authorized search warrant that assisted him in identifying Patel and the IP address from which he was allegedly communicating with the girls.
Patel, who was charged on January 6, 2020, by way of a federal criminal complaint with production of child pornography, receipt of child pornography, transferring obscene material, and cyberstalking, was arrested on January 9, 2020, on a federal arrest warrant issued in Rhode Island. He made his initial appearance in U.S. District Court in Providence today and was ordered detained by U.S. District Court Magistrate Judge Patricia A. Sullivan.
A criminal complaint is merely an accusation. A defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Lee H. Vilker.
United States Attorney Aaron L. Weisman acknowledges and commends the Hopkinton Police Department for their investigative efforts that ultimately led to the identity and arrest of Patel.
The matter was investigated by the Hopkinton Police Department, Rhode Island State Police, New Jersey State Police, and Homeland Security Investigations.
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New Hampshire Man Arrested on Child Exploitation ChargesRead the Press Release
BOSTON – A New Hampshire man was arrested yesterday and charged in federal court in Boston with travelling to have sex with a minor and child pornography offenses.
Donald Gibson, 37, of Nashua, N.H., was charged in a criminal complaint with traveling with intent to engage in illicit sexual conduct with a person under 18 years of age, distribution of child pornography and transportation of child pornography. Gibson was detained following an initial appearance in federal court in Boston pending a detention hearing set for Friday, Feb. 7, 2020.
According to the complaint, Gibson communicated via various text messaging applications with an undercover agent and devised a plan to meet the agent and his purported 13-year-old daughter in a hotel room in Tewksbury on Feb. 5, 2020. During the conversations, Gibson allegedly distributed child pornography to the undercover agent. On Feb. 5th Gibson allegedly drove from New Hampshire to the Tewksbury hotel. Law enforcement agents intercepted Gibson as he was entering the hotel, and found him in possession of a newly-purchased, unopened box of condoms and $90 cash.
According to court documents, during a consensual interview with agents Gibson admitted that, during their conversations, he had given the undercover agent suggestions for how the undercover agent could start having sexual contact with his daughter, and that they had discussed meeting at the hotel so that they three of them (Gibson, the undercover agent, and the 13-year-old daughter) could have sex. Gibson indicated that he planned to give the undercover agent more child pornography.
The charge of traveling with intent to engage in illicit sexual conduct with a person under 18 years of age provides for a sentence of up to 30 years in prison. The charges of distribution and transportation of child pornography both provide for a mandatory minimum term of five years and up to 20 years in prison. All three charges carry a term five years and up to life of supervised release and a fine of up to $250,000. Sentences are imposed by a federal district court judge based upon the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
United States Attorney Andrew E. Lelling; Joseph R. Bonavolonta, Special Agent in Charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Boston Field Division; Tewksbury Police Chief Timothy Sheehan; and Nashua (N.H.) Police Chief Michael Carignan made the announcement today. Assistant U.S. Attorney Anne Paruti, Lelling’s Project Safe Childhood Coordinator and a member of the Major Crimes Unit, is prosecuting the case.
The case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood. In 2006, the Department of Justice created Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative designed to protect children from exploitation and abuse. Led by the U.S. Attorneys’ Offices and the DOJ’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who exploit children, as well as identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.projectsafechildhood.gov/.
Navajo man pleads guilty to assaulting child in Indian CountryRead the Press Release
ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. – Kevin Ernest Lewis, 31, of Albuquerque, New Mexico pleaded guilty in federal court in Albuquerque on Feb. 6 to one count of assault of a minor resulting in substantial bodily injury.
In Lewis’s plea agreement, he admitted to committing the offense on the Navajo Nation in McKinley County on May 28, 2019. Lewis hit his girlfriend while she was holding their four-month-old daughter. As a result of the attack, Lewis knocked the child to the ground causing the child to suffer a skull fracture and bleeding to the brain.
Lewis is currently in custody pending sentencing. He will receive a sentence of 5 years in prison under the terms of his plea agreement.
The Navajo Nation Tribal Police Department investigated this case. Assistant U.S. Attorney Allison Jaros is prosecuting the case.
Mississippi Tax Return Preparer Indicted for Filing False Tax ReturnsRead the Press Release
A Moss Point, Mississippi, resident was arrested today on a federal grand jury indictment charging her with aiding and assisting in the preparation of false tax returns and filing false personal tax returns, announced Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Richard E. Zuckerman of the Justice Department’s Tax Division and U.S. Attorney Mike Hurst for the Southern District of Mississippi. The indictment was returned on Jan. 15, 2020.
According to the indictment, Talvesha Glaude owned and operated a tax return preparation business under the names TMG Tax Service and Regional Tax Service. From 2014 through 2019, Glaude allegedly prepared and filed with the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) fraudulent client tax returns claiming inflated refunds based on false income tax withholdings and education expenses. The indictment also charges that during those years, Glaude reported false withholdings and education expenses on her own personal returns.
An indictment merely alleges that crimes have been committed. The defendant is presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.
If convicted, Glaude faces a maximum sentence of three years in prison for each count of the indictment. She also faces a period of supervised release, restitution, and monetary penalties.
Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Zuckerman and U.S. Attorney Hurst thanked special agents of IRS-Criminal Investigation, who are investigating the case, and Assistant United States Attorney Stan Harris and Trial Attorney Kevin Schneider of the Tax Division, who are prosecuting this case.
Minnesota Man Pleads Guilty to Conspiring with Michael Mann to Defraud Financing CompaniesRead the Press Release
ALBANY, NEW YORK – Luke E. Steiner, age 31, of Minnesota, pled guilty yesterday to conspiring with Michael T. Mann to defraud financing companies out of millions of dollars.
The announcement was made by United States Attorney Grant C. Jaquith and James N. Hendricks, Special Agent in Charge of the Albany Field Office of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI).
Steiner worked at Optum, a division of UnitedHealth Group Incorporated located in Eden Prairie, Minnesota. In pleading guilty, he admitted that between 2013 and September 2019, he conspired with Mann and others to fraudulently obtain millions of dollars in loans for Mann’s companies.
Steiner admitted that he worked with Mann to induce financing companies to loan money on the basis of fake invoices purporting to show payments owed by his employer, Optum, to Mann’s companies. Steiner’s role was to falsely represent to the financing companies that the fake invoices were valid and payable by Optum when, in fact, he knew that they were not. He admitted that the conspiracy caused a total of $12,968,505.22 in losses to two financing companies, one based in New York and the other in Colorado.
Steiner faces up to 20 years in prison, and up to 3 years of post-imprisonment supervised release, when he is sentenced by Senior United States District Judge Lawrence E. Kahn. He has agreed to entry of an order requiring him to pay $12,968,505.22 in restitution. A defendant’s sentence is imposed by a judge based on the particular statute the defendant is charged with violating, the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other factors.
Mann, age 49, of Saratoga County, operated ValueWise Corporation and other companies based in Clifton Park, New York. He is charged with bank fraud. The charges in the criminal complaint against Mann are merely accusations. Mann is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
These cases are being investigated by the FBI, and are being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Michael Barnett and Cyrus P.W. Rieck.
Mexican Sentenced to 2 Years in Prison for Illegal Re-entry After DeportationRead the Press Release
PITTSBURGH - A citizen of Mexico has been sentenced in federal court to two years (24 months) in prison on his conviction of Illegal Reentry After Deportation, United States Attorney Scott W. Brady announced today.
United States District Judge Nicholas J. Ranjan imposed the sentence on Jorge Segundo-Cruz, 29, of Mexico.
According to information presented to the court, Segundo-Cruz had been previously deported and removed from the United States in 2010. In 2017, after unlawfully reentering the United States, he was convicted of aggravated assault, attempted rape, and other related charges in Pittsburgh. As a result of these charges, he was identified by Immigration and Customs Enforcement and charged with illegal reentry.
Prior to imposing sentence, Judge Ranhan stated that the 24 month sentence would further the goals of deterring Segundo-Cruz and others from illegally reentering the United States and committing crimes.
Assistant United States Attorney Nicole Vasquez Schmitt prosecuted this case on behalf of the government.
United States Attorney Brady commended the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, Immigration and Customs Enforcement for the investigation leading to the successful prosecution of Segundo-Cruz.
Mexican National Indicted for Illegal Re-EntryRead the Press Release
NEW ORLEANS – U.S. Attorney Peter Strasser announced today that NAZARIO CRUZ-MUNOZ, age 35, was charged on January 31, 2020 in a one-count indictment for illegal reentry of a removed alien in violation of Title 8, United States Code, Section 1326(a).
According to the indictment, NAZARIO CRUZ-MUNOZ (“CRUZ”), reentered the United States after he was previously deported on July 23, 2015. If convicted, CRUZ faces a maximum term of imprisonment of two years, a maximum fine of $250,000, a maximum term of supervised release of one year, and a mandatory $100 special assessment.
U. S. Attorney Strasser reiterated that an Indictment is merely a charge and that the guilt of the defendant must be proven beyond a reasonable doubt.
U.S. Attorney Strasser praised the work of the United States Customs and Border Protection in investigating this matter. Assistant U. S. Attorney Carter K. D. Guice, Jr. is in charge of the prosecution.
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Meth Distributor Sentenced to PrisonRead the Press Release
MACON, Ga. – A defendant who attempted to distribute a large amount of methamphetamine in Middle Georgia has been sentenced to prison, announced Charles “Charlie” Peeler, the U.S. Attorney for the Middle District of Georgia. U.S. District Judge Marc Treadwell sentenced Kathleen Rojas, 37, of Fayetteville, Georgia, to 72 months in prison and three years supervised release on Wednesday, February 5, 2020 after she pleaded guilty on November 8, 2019 to one count of possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine. The federal system has no parole.
Rojas was arrested during an operation conducted by the Butts County Sheriff’s Office on August 10, 2018. Agents were tipped off by a Confidential Informant that the defendant would be involved in the sale of methamphetamine. The defendant was arrested in Butts County, Georgia with 110.6 grams of 97% pure “ice” methamphetamine hidden in her bra. Rojas told investigators there was more methamphetamine in her nearby Henry County motel room, and an additional 635 grams of 99% pure “ice” methamphetamine was discovered. The total amount of “ice” methamphetamine recovered was 745.6 grams.
“To all criminals involved in the meth trade: Don’t use meth, don’t sell meth and don’t transport meth through the Middle District of Georgia. We will prosecute offenders engaged in pushing this deadly, illegal narcotic in our communities,” said U.S. Attorney Charlie Peeler. “I want to thank the Butts County Sheriff’s Office, the Flint River Drug Task Force and DEA for their excellent work in this case, and shutting down a meth distribution operation in Middle Georgia.”
The case was investigated by the Butts County Sheriff’s Office, the Flint River Drug Task Force and the DEA. Assistant U.S. Attorney Steven Outzs prosecuted 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.
Men Plead Guilty to Employment Fraud Scheme, Defrauding GoodwillRead the Press Release
ALEXANDRIA, Va. – Two Alexandria men pleaded guilty today and agreed to forfeit approximately $3.9 million for unlawfully employing unauthorized immigrants over several years and defrauding Goodwill of Greater Washington.
According to court documents, Alaa Nimr Garada, 57, and Rafik Moheyeldin, 65, operated a business known as WTC2, Inc. This business specialized in purchasing and reselling used goods, including clothing and shoes. WTC2 contracted with charities, including Goodwill of Greater Washington, which operated clothing donation centers. In particular, WTC2 contracted with several charities to set up donation bins with the charities’ logos, and WTC2 was then permitted to keep the goods collected in those bins. WTC2 primarily collected used clothing and then resold the clothing in bulk lots to customers along the United States-Mexico border and also exported items to customers in Africa, Asia, and South America.
From 2012 until 2016, the WTC2 workforce was composed primarily of unauthorized immigrants for whom no payroll taxes were remitted, and no employment benefits, such as unemployment and/or worker’s compensation insurance, were available or paid to any eligible beneficiary. WTC2’s practice of relying on the labor of unauthorized immigrants provided WTC2 with a significant competitive advantage and resulted in substantial financial gains for Garada and Moheyeldin. Over the years, WTC2 turned a substantial profit and increased the size of its workforce. In 2014, WTC2 employed approximately 50 unauthorized workers and had a gross income of approximately $8 million per year.
The two men also violated various labor laws, such as unauthorized immigrants were not properly compensated for the overtime hours they worked, and the defendants had not procured adequate workers’ compensation insurance. When a forklift ran over an employee’s foot, the employee received no benefits from the defendants’ company or an insurance company.
Garada also falsified tax returns in an effort to hide the fact that WTC2 largely employed unauthorized workers. Despite the fact that WTC2 employed approximately 50 unauthorized immigrants from 2013 to 2016, Garada falsely stated in multiple tax returns that WTC2 employed only one employee.
In addition to employing unauthorized immigrants, the two men also defrauded Goodwill of Greater Washington, with whom the business had a contractual relationship of property. The two men instructed WTC2 employees to retrieve Goodwill donation bins. WTC2 then took possession of the donated items in the bins, though under the contract, WTC2 was not entitled to keep all the donated goods if Goodwill retail stores needed some portion of them. The two men then instructed WTC2 employees to remove Goodwill’s logo and replace it with a logo belonging to a charity supporting military families. WTC2 used this military charity’s logo without permission. The two men then instructed WTC2 employees to place these bins at various locations in the Eastern District of Virginia.
As part of the plea, the two men have agreed to forfeit approximately $3.9 million, which represents illegal proceeds they collected from their scheme.
Garada and Moheyeldin each pleaded guilty to two counts of unlawful employment of unauthorized immigrants and one count of wire fraud. Garada also pleaded guilty to filing a false tax return. The two men face a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison when sentenced on June 26. Actual sentences for federal crimes are typically less than the maximum penalties. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after taking into account the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
G. Zachary Terwilliger, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia; Richard Delmar, Deputy Inspector General for the U.S. Department of Treasury; Raymond Villanueva, Special Agent in Charge of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) Washington, D.C.; Derek Pickle, Acting Special Agent-in-Charge of the Washington, D.C. Regional Office, U.S. Department of Labor, Office of Inspector General; Kelly R. Jackson, Special Agent in Charge, Washington, D.C. Field Office, IRS-Criminal Investigation (IRS-CI); Edwin Guard, Special Agent in Charge of the Washington Field Office of the U.S. Department of State’s Diplomatic Security Service; and Ron Rosenberg, Washington District Director for U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, made the announcement after U.S. District Judge Anthony J. Trenga accepted the pleas. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Carina A. Cuellar and Karen L. Taylor are prosecuting the case.
A copy of this press release is located on the website of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Virginia. Related court documents and information are located on the website of the District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia or on PACER by searching for Case Nos. 1:20-cr-027 and 1:20-cr-028.
Manitowoc County Man—Who Absconded from Extended Supervision on Vehicular Homicide Charges—is Sentenced to 20 years’ Imprisonment for Transporting a Minor Across State Lines to Engage in Criminal Sexual Activity and Possessing Child PornographyRead the Press Release
United States Attorney Matthew D. Krueger of the Eastern District of Wisconsin, announced that on February 4, 2020, U.S. District Judge William C. Griesbach sentenced Zachary S. Gauthier (age: 26) to a total sentence of 20 years’ imprisonment and 20 years’ supervised release after Gauthier pled guilty to Transporting a Minor Across State Lines to Engage in Criminal Sexual Activity and Possessing Child Pornography, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Sections 2423(a) and 2252A(a)(5)(B). The offense of transporting a minor began in Manitowoc County, Wisconsin, and was therefore filed in the Eastern District of Wisconsin.
The child pornography offense was committed in the Northern District of Alabama, and through the cooperative efforts of the respective United States Attorneys for each district, was consolidated for a guilty plea and sentencing in the Eastern District of Wisconsin.
On August 6, 2018, a Manitowoc County resident reported to law enforcement that her 15-year-old granddaughter ran away from home. The Manitowoc County Sheriff’s Department immediately investigated and, with subsequent assistance from the Manitowoc County District Attorney’s Office, Federal Bureau of Investigation, and United States Marshals Service, determined that Zachary S. Gauthier had met the granddaughter online and took her on a multi-state and weeks’ long trip ending in Parrish, Alabama. Gauthier had introduced himself to the grandmother using a fake name, representing that he wanted the granddaughter to babysit his young daughter. Then, throughout the cross-country trip and at a rented trailer in Alabama, Gauthier repeatedly sexually assaulted the granddaughter. He also knowingly searched for, downloaded, and possessed child pornography on his mobile phone in Alabama. Gauthier was arrested in Alabama by Deputy U.S. Marshals in early November 2018, after the granddaughter discovered child pornography on Gauthier’s phone.
Meanwhile, on August 10, 2018, the State of Wisconsin issued a warrant for Gauthier’s arrest because he absconded from extended supervision, which he was serving after being released from prison on two counts of negligent homicide by operation of a motor vehicle. Following his arrest in November 2018, Gauthier was extradited from Alabama to Wisconsin, his supervision was revoked, and he was ordered to serve another six years in state prison on the negligent homicide charges.
“Gauthier’s horrific crimes underscore the epidemic of child exploitation in our country,” said U.S. Attorney Krueger. “I commend the excellent work of the Manitowoc Sheriff’s Office, the Manitowoc District Attorney’s Office, and our federal and state partners, from across the country, whose collaboration brought Gauthier to justice. Predators like Gauthier should take note that decades in federal prison await them.”
“These crimes are detestable and our investigators and prosecutors will remain ever vigilant in protecting victims,” said U.S. Attorney Jay E. Town, Northern District of Alabama. “He will now spend the next 20 years in bed space reserved for him in a federal prison.”
FBI Special Agent in Charge Robert E. Hughes stated: “I commend the work of our FBI Child Exploitation Task Force. This case is a clear example that those who prey on children will get law enforcement’s full attention – federal, state and local. “Child sex predators have no boundaries when targeting their victims and transporting them interstate. However, collectively law enforcement has a very long reach and will pursue them wherever they run to ensure they are caught and brought to justice.”
“We would like to thank our numerous federal, state, and local law enforcement partners who assisted with the investigation and apprehension of Zachery Gauthier. Detective Bret Oswald was instrumental in his efforts to see this case through to a successful completion.” said Manitowoc County Sheriff Dan Hartwig
The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Tim Funnell. This case was investigated by the Manitowoc County Sheriff’s Department, the Manitowoc County District Attorney’s Office, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, and the United States Marshals Service.
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Manchester Man Charged with Lying About Role in Rwandan Genocide to Procure U.S. CitizenshipRead the Press Release
CONCORD – Idrissa Gasana, 53, of Manchester, was indicted by a federal grand jury and charged with procuring citizenship or naturalization unlawfully based in part on providing false information about his participation in the Rwandan genocide.
The indictment alleges that Gasana provided false and fraudulent information about material facts on his application for naturalization as a United States citizen. One of the documents which Gasana is alleged to have falsified is a “Questionnaire for Rwandan Visa Applicants” which seeks to determine whether those seeking refugee status in the United States participated in the 1994 genocide in Rwanda. The indictment alleges that at the time of his naturalization as a United States citizen, Gasana was an inadmissible alien because he had participated in the Rwandan genocide.
Gasana was arrested on February 6, 2020. He is being held in custody pending a detention hearing on February 11, 2020.
This case was investigated by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations (HSI). The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Georgiana L. Konesky and Seth R. Aframe.
An indictment is merely an allegation and a defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
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Man from San Felipe Pueblo sentenced to life in federal prison for sexually abusing child in Indian CountryRead the Press Release
ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. – Senior United States District Judge Judith C. Herrera sentenced Tyrone Coriz, 49, of San Felipe Pueblo, New Mexico, in federal court in Albuquerque today to life imprisonment for aggravated sexual abuse of a child in Indian Country.
On May 22, 2019, a federal jury returned a verdict of guilty against Coriz, following a three-day trial, on two counts of aggravated sexual abuse of a child in Indian Country. According to the evidence presented at his trial, Coriz sexually abused the victim between November 1, 2015, and December 27, 2015. Coriz lived in the same home as the victim and other family members. He committed these offenses at night while other household members were sleeping. Three other victims testified that Coriz also abused them in similar ways.
As a repeat offender of sex offenses against minors, Coriz faced mandatory life imprisonment based on his previous conviction for another federal sex crime in 1992.
The Bureau of Indian Affairs and the Federal Bureau of Investigation investigated this case with assistance from the Santa Ana Police Department. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Nicholas Marshall and Kyle Nayback prosecuted the case.
Man Pleads Guilty to Possession of Fentanyl on St. CroixRead the Press Release
St. Croix, USVI – United States Attorney Gretchen C.F. Shappert announced today that Marshall D. Miller, age 44, of unknown address, pled guilty on February 6, 2020 for the charge of Simple Possession of a Controlled Substance.
According to court documents, on January 7, 2020, while on mobile patrol, St. Croix Police Chief Herman Lynch observed Miller acting erratically on the roadway near the Limetree Bay housing facility across from the entrance to Colorama store. When the police chief approached Miller, Miller had pinpoint pupils, was drooling, and was observed reaching into his pockets and throwing out items. The police chief saw five plastic baggies containing a pink powdery substance along with a $10 bill on the ground where the items were thrown. A subsequent field test by the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) revealed that the substance contained fentanyl and weighed approximately .7 grams.
Miller faces a maximum sentence of one year and a minimum fine of $1000. Sentencing has been scheduled for March 20, 2020 at 9:00 a.m.
The case was investigated by the Virgin Islands Police Department and the DEA. It is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Melissa P. Ortiz and Alphonso Andrews, Jr.
Man Pleads Guilty for 2015 Murder in Osage Nation Indian CountryRead the Press Release
TULSA, Okla. – A man charged with a 2015 murder occurring in Osage County pleaded guilty in federal court Thursday to murder in the second degree, announced U.S. Attorney Trent Shores.
Jeremy Keith Reece, 35, a member of the Muscogee (Creek) Nation, admitted that he intentionally shot and killed the victim in Osage Nation Indian Country on Sept. 5, 2015. During the change of plea hearing and according to the plea agreement, Reece took the victim from his residence then transported him to Osage Nation Indian Country where Reece shot the victim three times. Reece then dug a shallow grave, placed the victim in the grave, and set the victim’s body on fire.
“In 2015, Jeremy Reece callously murdered Rick Holt on the lands of the Osage Nation. Heinous acts such as those committed by Reece will not go unpunished in the Northern District of Oklahoma. This United States Attorney’s Office takes seriously its special trust responsibility to prosecute violent crimes in Indian Country,” said U.S. Attorney Trent Shores. “Assistant United States Attorney and Tribal Liaison Shannon Cozzoni worked closely with Osage County District Attorney Mike Fisher to move this case forward and secure justice for the victim and his family. I would note that this investigation is ongoing and we will not rest until we have held accountable all those responsible for this senseless act of violence.”
"While there can never be a resolution to Mr. Holt's murder that can return him to his family and friends, the District Attorney's Office is thankful for the tireless efforts and assistance of the U.S. Attorney's Office in bringing some closure to those who knew and cared about Rick," said Osage County District Attorney Mike Fisher.
The murder case was originally filed in state court but in 2017, following an adverse ruling at the district court level that the State of Oklahoma did not have jurisdiction to prosecute the case, the Oklahoma Court of Criminal Appeals issued a ruling staying the case until jurisdictional issues were resolved.
Chief U.S. District Judge John E. Dowdell remanded Reece into the custody of the U.S. Marshals Service and set sentencing for May 6, 2020.
This prosecution is the joint effort of the Osage County District Attorney and the United States Attorney’s Office. The investigation was conducted by the Osage County Sheriff’s Office, Pawhuska Police Department, Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation, Osage Nation Police Department and the FBI.
Laredo woman sentenced for role in smuggling cocaineRead the Press Release
LAREDO, Texas – A 40-year-old Laredoan has been ordered to prison after admitting she imported a large amount of cocaine via the Gateway to the Americas International Bridge, announced U.S. Attorney Ryan K. Patrick.
Yuriria Verastegui pleaded guilty Nov. 5, 2019.
Today, U.S. District Judge Marina Garcia Marmolejo ordered her to serve a 70-month sentence to be immediately followed by three years of supervised release. At the hearing, the court noted that even though Verastegui’s husband is serving a federal prison sentence himself for similar conduct, she still chose to do this on two more occasions, knowing the possible consequences.
Verastegui attempted to enter the United States July 24, 2019, driving a Ford SUV. Authorities noticed tampering with its interior quarter panels, lifted a tray to access them and found 16 bundles of cocaine.
The drugs weighed a total of approximately 16 kilograms with a value of $512,000.
Verastegui pleaded guilty to conspiracy to possess with the intent to distribute cocaine, admitting she knew there were narcotics in her vehicle and expected to be paid $9,600 for transporting them.
She will remain in custody pending transfer to a U.S. Bureau of Prisons facility to be determined in the near future.
Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations conducted the investigation with assistance from Customs and Border Protection. Assistant U.S. Attorney Anthony J. Evans is prosecuting the cases.
KC Man Pleads Guilty to Two Bank Robberies, Armed Business RobberyRead the Press Release
KANSAS CITY, Mo. – A Kansas City, Missouri, man pleaded guilty in federal court today to two bank robberies and the armed robbery of a Subway store during a February 2016 crime spree.
Mack Davis, 27, pleaded guilty before U.S. Chief District Judge Beth Phillips to two counts of bank robbery, one count of robbing a business, and one count of using a firearm in furtherance of a crime of violence. Davis was originally charged on Feb. 26, 2016, but was a fugitive from justice until he was apprehended on April 20, 2017. Davis has been in federal custody since his arrest.
Davis admitted that he stole $2,210 from Commerce Bank, 6100 Troost Avenue in Kansas City, on Feb. 16, 2016. Davis presented a note to the teller that read: “Give me all the loose money. No INK PACKS No trackers or EVERYBODY Will DIE!!” (sic)
Davis admitted that he stole $2,525 from Central Bank of the Midwest, 9740 Wornall Road in Kansas City, on Feb. 24, 2016. During the robbery, Davis told a bank employee to give him money or “I will shoot you.” Davis kept his right hand in his front pocket as if he had a gun.
Davis admitted that he stole $647 at gunpoint from the Subway store at 3550 Truman Road in Kansas City on Feb. 1, 2016. Davis, brandishing a handgun, demanded money from a Subway employee then fled with the proceeds.
Under federal statutes, Davis is subject to a sentence of up to 20 years in federal prison without parole for each of the three robbery counts, plus a mandatory consecutive sentence of at least seven years in federal prison without parole for the firearm count. The maximum statutory sentence is prescribed by Congress and is provided here for informational purposes, as the sentencing of the defendant will be determined by the court based on the advisory sentencing guidelines and other statutory factors. A sentencing hearing will be scheduled after the completion of a presentence investigation by the United States Probation Office.
This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney D. Michael Green. It was investigated by the Kansas City, Mo., Police Department and the FBI.
Justice Department Announces Investigation into Conditions in Four Mississippi PrisonsRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON – The Department of Justice’s Civil Rights Division announced today that it has opened an investigation into conditions of confinement in four of Mississippi’s prisons. The investigation will examine conditions at the Mississippi State Penitentiary (Parchman), Southern Mississippi Correctional Institute, Central Mississippi Correctional Facility, and the Wilkinson County Correctional Facility. The State of Mississippi is responsible for all four facilities. The investigation will focus on whether the Mississippi Department of Corrections adequately protects prisoners from physical harm at the hands of other prisoners at the four prisons, as well as whether there is adequate suicide prevention, including adequate mental health care and appropriate use of isolation, at Parchman.
The Department has not reached any conclusions regarding the allegations in this matter. The investigation will be conducted under the Civil Rights of Institutionalized Persons Act (CRIPA). Under CRIPA, the Department has the authority to investigate violations of prisoners’ constitutional rights that result from a "pattern or practice of resistance to the full enjoyment of such rights." The Department has conducted CRIPA investigations of many correctional systems, and where violations have been found, the resulting settlement agreements have led to important reforms.
The Civil Rights Division’s Special Litigation Section is conducting this investigation, with support from the United States Attorney’s Offices for the Northern and Southern Districts of Mississippi. Individuals with relevant information are encouraged to contact the Department via phone at 1-833-591-0288 or by email at [email protected].
Additional information about the Civil Rights Division of the Justice Department is available on its website at www.justice.gov/crt.
Justice Department Alleges Conditions at South Carolina's Broad River Road Complex Violate the ConstitutionRead the Press Release
NOTE: The notice can be found here.
WASHINGTON – The Department of Justice’s Civil Rights Division and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of South Carolina today concluded that there is reasonable cause to believe that the conditions at the Broad River Road Complex in Columbia, South Carolina, violate the Fourteenth Amendment of the Constitution. Specifically, the Department concluded that there is reasonable cause to believe that the Broad River Road Complex fails to protect youth from youth-on-youth violence and places youth in punitive, prolonged isolation.
As required by the Civil Rights of Institutionalized Persons Act (CRIPA), the Department provided the facility with written notice of the supporting facts for these alleged conditions and the minimum remedial measures necessary to address them.
“Youth held in custody for rehabilitation are protected by the Fourteenth Amendment of the Constitution, which guarantees reasonable safety from harm,” said Assistant Attorney General Eric Dreiband for the Civil Rights Division. “Our investigation found reasonable cause to conclude that youth in the facility are at substantial risk of serious physical harm from other youth and that youth are regularly subjected to harmful isolation. The Justice Department hopes to continue to work with South Carolina to resolve the Department’s concerns.”
The Civil Rights Division and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of South Carolina initiated the investigation in September 2017 under CRIPA, which authorizes the Department to take action to address a pattern or practice of deprivation of constitutional rights of individuals confined to state or local government-run correctional facilities. The investigation was also initiated under the Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act of 1994.
This investigation was conducted by attorneys with the Special Litigation Section of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of South Carolina.
Additional information about the Civil Rights Division of the Justice Department is available on its website at http://www.justice.gov/crt.
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.
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Jury Finds Orange Park Man Guilty of Federal Child Pornography OffensesRead the Press Release
Jacksonville, Florida – A federal jury has found Darryl Gray Smith, Jr. (30, Orange Park) guilty of two counts of attempted online enticement of a child to engage in sexual activity, and one count of online solicitation of child pornography. Smith faces a mandatory minimum penalty of 10 years, and up to life, in federal prison for each of the attempted online enticement counts. For the solicitation charge, he faces a mandatory minimum penalty of 15 years, and up to 30 years. A sentencing date has not yet been set.
According to testimony and evidence introduced during the trial, from February 6 through February 13, 2019, Smith engaged in a series of online text conversations with a person whom he believed to be a 14-year-old child. Unbeknownst to Smith, the “child” was an undercover Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) agent. During the course of the online conversations, Smith discussed in detail his desire to have sex with and to perform sexual acts on the child. Smith made several requests for the child to send him images of the child engaging in sexually explicit conduct. On February 13, 2019, Smith went to a local fast food restaurant in Orange Park to meet the child, and was subsequently arrested by HSI agents and deputies from the Clay County Sheriff’s Office.
This case was investigated by the Clay County Sheriff’s Office and Homeland Security Investigations. It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Ashley Washington and Kelly Karase.
This is another case brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by the United States Attorneys’ Offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who sexually exploit children, and to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.justice.gov/psc.
Judge Sends Plum Borough Drug Dealer to Federal Prison for 10 YearsRead the Press Release
PITTSBURGH, Pa. - A former resident of Plum Borough, PA, has been sentenced in federal court today to 10 years (120 months) of imprisonment on his conviction for violating the federal narcotics laws, United States Attorney Scott W. Brady announced today.
Senior United States District Judge Nora Barry Fischer imposed the sentence on Brandon Winters, age 43, formerly of Plum Borough, PA, who pleaded guilty in September 2019 to the two-Count Indictment charging him at Count One with conspiring to possess with intent to distribute and to distribute one kilogram or more of heroin and 400 grams or more of fentanyl; and at Count Two, with possessing with intent to distribute 500 grams or more of cocaine.
According to information presented to the Court, on January 30, 2019, investigators with the Federal Bureau of Investigation and Pennsylvania State Police Drug Law Enforcement Division executed a search warrant at an apartment located in Pittsburgh, which was utilized by Mr. Winters and his alleged coconspirators, Eduard Rijo and Erick Martinez. Upon entry into the apartment, case agents located Winters, Rijo, and Martinez, approximately 1,500 "bricks" (the equivalent of roughly 75,000 individual dosage units) containing mixtures of heroin and fentanyl, and more than 500 grams of cocaine. Additionally, case agents seized over $250,000 in U.S. Currency, which was found in and around Mr. Winters and his alleged coconspirators.
Prior to sentencing Mr. Winters to a 10-year term of imprisonment, the Court noted Mr. Winters’ acknowledgement that his criminal conduct in this case was motived by his selfishness, greed, and addiction to the fast and easy money associated with narcotics trafficking. Following Mr. Winters release from his sentence of incarceration, the Court ordered that he be under the supervision of the United States Probation Department for a period of five years.
Assistant United States Attorneys Jerome A. Moschetta and Tonya Sulia Goodman prosecuted this case on behalf of the government.
United States Attorney Brady commended the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Pennsylvania State Police for the investigation leading to the successful prosecution of Mr. Winters.
Johnstown Drug Dealer Sentenced to Nearly 5 Years in Federal PrisonRead the Press Release
JOHNSTOWN, Pa. – A resident of Johnstown, Pa. has been sentenced in federal court in Johnstown to 57 months in prison and three years’ supervised release on his conviction of violating federal narcotics laws, United States Attorney Scott W. Brady announced today.
United States District Judge Kim R. Gibson imposed the sentence on Derrick L. Harper, Jr., 27.
According to information presented to the court, on Nov. 27, 2018, Harper possessed with intent to distribute a quantity of cocaine base, in the form commonly known as crack, fentanyl and cocaine.
Assistant United States Attorney Arnold P. Bernard, Jr. prosecuted this case on behalf of the government.
Mr. Brady commended the Laurel Highlands Resident Agency of the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Johnstown Police Department for the investigation that led to the successful prosecution of Harper.
Jersey City Woman Sentenced to 135 Months in Prison for Role in Smuggling Fentanyl into Prison, Resulting in Inmate OverdoseRead the Press Release
NEWARK, N.J. – A Hudson County, New Jersey, woman was sentenced today to 135 months in prison for her role in conspiring to distribute fentanyl, which resulted in the overdose of an inmate at a New Jersey State prison, U.S. Attorney Craig Carpenito announced.
Jasmir Humphrey, a/k/a “Jasmir Jackson,” 31, previously pleaded guilty to an information charging her with one count of conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute fentanyl. U.S. District Judge Brian R. Martinotti imposed the sentence today in Newark federal court.
According to documents filed in this case and statements made in court:
Noel Salgado, a/k/a “Kuko,” who is the leader of the “Loyal Hoody Gang” subset of the Neighborhood Rolling 20 Bloods, a nationwide street gang, was previously incarcerated as an inmate at Bayside State Prison. While incarcerated, Salgado directed Humphrey, gang members, and associates to provide narcotics proceeds to him and his associates and to smuggle narcotics and other contraband into the prison in order to distribute to other inmates.
In particular, on October 17, 2015, Salgado called Rodgerick Garrett, a/k/a, “Fif,” a/k/a, “Boo,” from prison to arrange for the purchase and smuggling into the prison of heroin and fentanyl. Humphrey picked up the narcotics from Garrett and smuggled them to Salgado on October 18, 2015. The following day, an inmate of Bayside State Prison, to whom Salgado had distributed the narcotics, was found unresponsive in his cell suffering from a drug overdose. Despite rescue breathing efforts, the inmate remained unconscious for approximately 20 minutes. The inmate only regained consciousness after medical personnel administered an opiate antidote to revive the inmate. The inmate was hospitalized for two days following his overdose. Law enforcement’s investigation revealed that Humphrey had smuggled in drugs for Salgado on prior occasions. Charges against Salgado and Garrett are still pending, and they are both presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
In addition to the prison term, Judge Martinotti sentenced Humphrey to three years of supervised release.U.S. Attorney Carpenito credited special agents with the FBI, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Gregory W. Ehrie in Newark, and investigators with the N.J. Department of Corrections, Special Investigations Division, under the direction of Commissioner Marcus O. Hicks, with the investigation leading to the charges resulting in today’s sentencing. He also thanked the Jersey City Police Department and the Hudson County Sheriff’s Office for their assistance.
The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Christopher D. Amore and Elaine K. Lou of the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Newark.
Defense counsel: Joseph M. Corazza, Esq.
Jacksonville Felon, Previously Convicted of Attempted Murder, Arrested on Firearms ChargeRead the Press Release
Jacksonville, Florida – United States Attorney Maria Chapa Lopez announces the filing of a criminal complaint charging D.K. Johnson (80, Jacksonville) with possessing a firearm as a convicted felon. If convicted, Johnson faces a maximum penalty of 10 years in federal prison.
According to the
complaint , in 1992, Johnson was federally convicted of attempted murder, assault with attempt to commit murder, assault causing serious bodily harm, and using and carrying a firearm during a crime of violence. He was sentenced to 10 years in federal prison. According to court documents, Johnson committed these crimes against his coworkers at the time.During the past two years Johnson has been employed by a company in Jacksonville. He was terminated at the end of January 2020, at which time he began making threats toward his former employer. The former employer knew that Johnson was a convicted felon and had accompanied Johnson to a gun show, where Johnson had purchased a Sig Sauer pistol in a transaction not requiring a background check.
On February 5, 2020, special agents with the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives executed a search warrant at Johnson’s home. Agents recovered ammunition from inside the residence, and several firearms from a shed on the property, including a Sig Sauer .40 caliber pistol. Johnson was arrested at the scene.
A criminal complaint is merely an allegation that a defendant has committed one or more violations of federal criminal law, and every defendant is presumed innocent unless, and until, proven guilty.
This case was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. It will be prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Laura Cofer Taylor.
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.
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. For more information on Project Guardian visit www.justice.gov/projectguardian.
International Firearms Trafficker Sentenced to Federal PrisonRead the Press Release
Tampa, Florida – Senior U.S. District Judge Susan Bucklew has sentenced Jermaine Rhoomes (46, St. Petersburg) to four years and nine months in federal prison for trafficking firearms, ammunition, and gun parts to Jamaica, in violation of the International Traffic in Arms Regulations. The sentence imposed was the maximum recommended by the United States Sentencing Guidelines.
Rhoomes had pleaded guilty on October 1, 2019.
According to court documents, in March 2016, Rhoomes used an alias and false address to smuggle to Jamaica a pistol, an AR15-style assault rifle, and multiple ammunition magazines, in shipments that he had declared as containing audio equipment. In July 2017, Rhoomes used a fake name and address to send a 50-gallon barrel to Jamaica that he declared as “food.” Jamaican law enforcement officers intercepted the barrel and discovered that it actually contained two AK47-style assault rifles, five AR15-style assault rifles, eight pistols, 3,315 rounds of assorted ammunition, 38 gun magazines, and a bulletproof vest. After tracing that shipment back to Rhoomes, law enforcement searched Rhoomes’s apartment in St. Petersburg and found seven partially completed assault-style rifles, two shotguns, 23 gun magazines, and 5,949 rounds of assorted ammunition, all of which Rhoomes intended to illegally export to Jamaica.
Representatives from the Jamaican government, including Queen’s Counsel Paula Llewellyn, Jamaica’s Director of Public Prosecutions, traveled to the United States to attend Rhoomes’s sentencing hearing.
“The unique international investigative authorities of HSI helped disrupt this transnational criminal organization,” said Department of Homeland Security, Homeland Security Investigations Tampa Assistant Special Agent in Charge Michael Cochran. “Thanks to the hard work of our HSI special agents and our partners at Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Enforcement and Removal Operations, the St. Petersburg Police Department, the U.S. Postal Inspector, the HSI Attaché office in Jamaica and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, our communities are safer today.”
This case was investigated by Homeland Security Investigations, Immigration and Customs Enforcement and Removal Operations, the St. Petersburg Police Department, the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. Assistant United States Attorney Daniel George and Trial Attorney Will Mackie of the National Security Division’s Counterintelligence and Export Control Section prosecuted the case.
Inmate at FCI Hazelton sentenced for assaultRead the Press Release
CLARKSBURG, WEST VIRGINIA – Brian Keith Rose, an inmate at FCI Hazelton in Bruceton Mills, West Virginia, has admitted to and was sentenced for an assault charge, U.S. Attorney Bill Powell announced.
Rose, age 34, was sentenced today to 12 months incarceration to run consecutively to the sentencing he is currently serving. Rose pled guilty to one count of “Assault of a Correctional Officer Involving Physical Contact.” He admitted to assaulting a federal correctional officer at FCI Hazelton in October 2018.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Brandon S. Flower prosecuted the case on behalf of the government. The Bureau of Prisons Special Investigation Services investigated.
U.S. District Judge Thomas S. Kleeh presided.
Hudson Man Sentenced to 120 Months for Crack Cocaine ConspiracyRead the Press Release
ALBANY, NEW YORK – Julan Morrison, aka “Weez,” age 38, of Hudson, New York, was sentenced today to 120 months in prison for his involvement in a crack cocaine distribution ring that operated in Columbia County.
The announcement was made by United States Attorney Grant C. Jaquith; Keith M. Corlett, Superintendent of the New York State Police; James N. Hendricks, Special Agent in Charge of the Albany Field Office of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI); and Chief L. Edward Moore of the Hudson Police Department.
As part of his guilty plea, Morrison admitted that between August and December 2017, he was involved in a conspiracy to distribute crack cocaine in Columbia County. Morrison admitted that members of the conspiracy made weekly trips to New York City where they purchased hundreds of grams of powder cocaine, returned it to Hudson, converted it to crack cocaine, and then sold it to customers. Morrison admitted that the organization sold at least 464 grams of crack cocaine between August and December 2017.
Senior United States District Judge Thomas J. McAvoy also imposed a 5-year term of supervised release, to begin after Morrison’s release from prison.
This case was investigated by the New York State Police’s Special Investigations Unit, the FBI, and the Hudson Police Department, and was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Wayne A. Myers and Joshua R. Rosenthal.
Honduran National Indicted for Illegal Re-EntryRead the Press Release
NEW ORLEANS – U.S. Attorney Peter Strasser announced today that FRANCISCO ANTONIO ESCOTO-AVILA, age 38, was charged on January 30, 2020 in a one-count indictment for illegal reentry of a removed alien in violation of Title 8, United States Code, Section 1326(a).
According to the indictment, FRANCISCO ANTONIO ESCOTO-AVILA (“ESCOTO”), reentered the United States after he was previously deported on March 3, 2011. If convicted, ESCOTO faces a maximum term of imprisonment of two years, a maximum fine of $250,000, a maximum term of supervised release of one year, and a mandatory $100 special assessment.
U. S. Attorney Strasser reiterated that an Indictment is merely a charge and that the guilt of the defendant must be proven beyond a reasonable doubt.
U.S. Attorney Strasser praised the work of the United States Customs and Border Patrol in investigating this matter. Assistant U. S. Attorney Spiro G. Latsis is in charge of the prosecution.
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Hombre de Tejas acusado de delitos federales de odio y delitos relacionados con armas de fuego en conexión con el tiroteo masivo del 3 de agosto del 2019 en El PasoRead the Press Release
Un gran jurado federal en El Paso, Tejas, acusó formalmente hoy a Patrick Wood Crusius, 21, de Allen, Tejas, de delitos de odio y otros relacionados con armas de fuego en conexión con el asesinato de 22 personas y el intento de asesinato de 23 personas adicionales en un Walmart en El Paso, Tejas, el 3 de agosto del 2019. Así declararon Eric Dreiband, Fiscal General Auxiliar de la División de Derechos Civiles del Departamento de Justicia, John F. Bash, Fiscal Federal para el Distrito Occidental de Tejas y Luis M. Quesada, Agente Especial Encargado de la Oficina Local de la FBI en El Paso.
La acusación formal alega que el 3 de agosto del 2019, Crusius abrió fuego con un rifle de asalto y disparó a múltiples individuos en un Walmart Supercenter y sus alrededores en El Paso, Tejas, lo que llevó a la muerte de 22 personas y la lesión de otras muchas más. Más aún, la acusación alega que en la misma fecha en que sucedió el tiroteo, Crusius subió un documento a Internet que él había redactado titulado «Una verdad incómoda». El documento comienza declarando lo siguiente: «Este ataque es una respuesta a la invasión hispana de Tejas. No soy yo sino ellos los instigadores. Yo sencillamente estoy defendiendo a mi país del reemplazo cultural y étnico producido por la invasión». La acusación formal acusa a Crusius de haber causado lesiones corporales deliberadamente a las víctimas por razón del origen nacional real o percibido de ellas.
En total, la acusación formal de 90 cargos acusa a Crusius de 22 cargos de delitos de odio que resultaron en la muerte, 23 delitos de odio por intento de asesinato y 45 cargos de descarga de arma de fuego en relación a los delitos de odio.
Una vez condenado, los cargos en la acusación formal acarrean una pena máxima de cadena perpetua o la pena de muerte. El Fiscal General decidirá posteriormente si se solicitará la pena de muerte. En el caso de que el Fiscal General determine que las circunstancias del delito justificarían la pena de muerte, la ley requiere que se presente una notificación ante el tribunal dentro de un plazo de tiempo razonable antes del juicio. Crusius se encuentra actualmente bajo custodia estatal con cargos penales pendientes.
La FBI —con el apoyo del Departamento de Policía de El Paso, la Agencia de Control de Bebidas Alcohólicas, Tabaco, Armas de Fuego y Explosivos (ATF, por sus siglas en inglés), el Departamento de Seguridad Pública de Tejas, la Oficina del Sheriff del Condado de El Paso, la Oficina del Condado de El Paso para la Medicina Forense, el Departamento de Policía de Allen y el Departamento de Policía de Dallas— llevó a cabo la investigación. El caso está siendo procesado por los Fiscales Federales Auxiliares Ian Hanna y Greg McDonald del Distrito Occidental de Tejas y los abogados de litigios del Departamento de Justicia de los EE. UU. Tim Visser y Michael Warbel.
Cabe destacar que una acusación formal es simplemente eso, una acusación, y no se debe considerar como prueba de culpabilidad. El acusado se considera inocente mientras no se pruebe su culpabilidad ante un tribunal de justicia.
Para más información sobre los esfuerzos del Departamento por combatir los delitos de odio, incluyendo hechos y estadística, ejemplos de casos y una colección de los recursos del Departamento para la aplicación de la ley, grupos comunitarios, investigadores y otros se encuentra en www.justice.gov/hatecrimes.
Acusación Formal (en Inglés)
Harrison County man sentenced for role in a methamphetamine distribution operationRead the Press Release
CLARKSBURG, WEST VIRGINIA – Russell Clark, of Clarksburg, West Virginia, was sentenced today to 41 months incarceration for his involvement in a methamphetamine distribution conspiracy, U.S. Attorney Bill Powell announced.
Clark, age 66, pled guilty to one count of “Aiding and Abetting Maintaining a Drug-Involved Premises” in April 2019. Clark admitted to maintaining a residence on Winding Way in Clarksburg for the purpose of distributing methamphetamine in February 2018.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Zelda E. Wesley prosecuted the case on behalf of the government. The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives and the Greater Harrison Drug & Violent Crimes Task Force, a HIDTA-funded initiative, investigated.
The investigation was funded in part 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.
U.S. District Judge Thomas S. Kleeh presided.
Green Bay Man Charged with Production of Child PornographyRead the Press Release
United States Attorney Mathew D. Krueger of the Eastern District of Wisconsin, announced that on February 3, 2020, Todd J. Naze (age: 54) of Green Bay, Wisconsin, was charged by criminal complaint with six counts of production of child pornography in violation of 18 U.S.C. Section 2251. If convicted of any charge, Naze faces a mandatory minimum term of 15 years and up to 30 years in prison, $250,000 fine, and five years to life of supervised release.
The affidavit in support of the criminal complaint alleges that on December 31, 2019, Adult Female 1 met with Brown County Sheriff Deputies and advised them that Todd Naze possessed a hard drive containing image and movie files of females using the toilet in a staff bathroom at Southwest High School in Green Bay, Wisconsin. In the process of doing so, the females exposed their pubic and genital area, which was recorded on the videos. Adult Female 1 copied the hard drive and provided a copy to law enforcement. Upon examining the videos, law enforcement advised that they appeared to be created from a camera hidden in the bathroom and contain video images of multiple females. Law enforcement searched Naze’s residence and school office recovering numerous computers and storage devices that continue to be examined. Law enforcement have identified thousands of movie and image files containing images of more than 30 females. Seventeen of them are either current or former students. In general, the videos of the minor females depict the minor from the waist down and only in camera view when directly in front of the toilet.
On February 5, 2020, Naze appeared before the Honorable James Sickel, Magistrate Court Judge, and was ordered to be held in jail. A preliminary hearing in the matter is scheduled for February 20, 2020 3:00 PM in Courtroom 201, 125 S. Jefferson St., Green Bay, WI 54301 before Magistrate Judge James R Sickel.
This case was investigated by the Green Bay Police Department, Brown County Sheriff’s Department and Brown County District Attorney’s office. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney William Roach.
A criminal complaint is only a charge and is not evidence of guilt. The defendant is presumed innocent and is entitled to a fair trial at which the government must prove guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.
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Public Information Officer Kenneth Gales 414-297-1700
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Gettysburg Man Charged with Malicious Attempt to Destroy Building by Fire and ExplosiveRead the Press Release
HARRISBURG - The United States Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Pennsylvania announced that Samson Paul Yohe, age 28, of Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, was indicted on February 5, 2020, by a federal grand jury with malicious attempt to destroy building by fire and explosive and possession of an unregistered firearm (destructive device).
According to United States Attorney David J. Freed, on December 22, 2019, it is alleged that Yohe threw an incendiary device, commonly referred to as a Molotov cocktail, through the window of the Adams County Courthouse. The device consisted of an antique yellow bottle filled with liquid and a cotton sock used as a wick, which was lit prior to throwing.
The case was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, the Gettysburg Borough Police, the Adams County Detective Bureau, the Adams County Sheriff’s Office, and the Adams County District Attorney’s Office. Assistant U.S. Attorney Daryl F. Bloom and Special Assistant United States Attorney Brian Sinnett are prosecuting the case.
This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program that has been historically successful in bringing together all levels of law enforcement to reduce violent crime and make our neighborhoods safer for everyone. The Department of Justice reinvigorated PSN in 2017 as part of the Department’s renewed focus on targeting violent criminals, directing all U.S. Attorney’s Offices to work in partnership with federal, state, local and tribal enforcement and the local community to develop effective, locally-based strategies to reduce crime.
Indictments and Criminal Informations are only allegations. All persons charged are presumed to be innocent unless and until found guilty in court.
A sentence following a finding of guilt is imposed by the Judge after consideration of the applicable federal sentencing statutes and the Federal Sentencing Guidelines.
The total maximum penalty under federal law for these offenses is 50 years of imprisonment, a term of supervised release following imprisonment, and a fine. Under the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, the Judge is also required to consider and weigh a number of factors, including the nature, circumstances and seriousness of the offense; the history and characteristics of the defendant; and the need to punish the defendant, protect the public and provide for the defendant's educational, vocational and medical needs. For these reasons, the statutory maximum penalty for the offense is not an accurate indicator of the potential sentence for a specific defendant.
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Georgia Man Pleads Guilty to Carrying 3.4 Kilos of Cocaine on Bus Traveling Through KCRead the Press Release
KANSAS CITY, Mo. – A Georgia man pleaded guilty in federal court today to possessing more than 3.4 kilograms of cocaine that he was transporting through Kansas City on a bus.
Hason R. Davis, 21, pleaded guilty before U.S. Chief District Judge Beth Phillips to one count of possessing cocaine with the intent to distribute.
By pleading guilty today, Davis admitted that he was carrying three bundles of cocaine, which weighed a total of 3,447 grams, in a backpack. Kansas City police officers approached Davis at a local bus station on Sept. 3, 2018, after he disembarked from a bus for a layover. Davis gave his consent for the officers to search his carry-on bag, but when asked to search his backpack, he did not respond. Instead, Davis said he need to smoke a cigarette and walked away from the officers, then dropped the backpack and started running. After a short pursuit, he was taken into custody.
Under federal statutes, Davis is subject to a sentence of up to 40 years in federal prison without parole. The maximum statutory sentence is prescribed by Congress and is provided here for informational purposes, as the sentencing of the defendant will be determined by the court based on the advisory sentencing guidelines and other statutory factors. A sentencing hearing will be scheduled after the completion of a presentence investigation by the United States Probation Office.
This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Ashleigh A. Ragner. It was investigated by the Kansas City, Mo., Police Department.
Former Woonsocket Man Sentenced in FBI Safe Streets Task Force Investigation and ArrestRead the Press Release
PROVIDENCE – A former Woonsocket man arrested by members of the FBI Safe Streets Task Force during an investigation into the trafficking of drugs on the streets of Woonsocket was sentenced today to 77 months in federal prison.
James Ruth, 31, was arrested by members of the Safe Streets Task Force on July 2, 2019, following an investigation into his drug trafficking activities, including several electronically monitored sales of crack cocaine.
According to information presented to the court, four of the transactions took place between March 19 and April 30, 2019, during which time Ruth sold between 3.2 grams and 27.42 grams of crack cocaine in exchange for between $170 and $1,200.
Ruth pleaded guilty on October 22, 2019, to conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute 28 grams or more of cocaine base, conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute cocaine base, and four counts of distribution of cocaine base.
Today, U.S. District Court Judge William E. Smith sentenced Ruth to 77 months imprisonment to be followed by 4 years’ supervised release, announced United States Attorney Aaron L. Weisman and Special Agent in Charge of the FBI Boston Division Joseph R. Bonavolonta.
The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Christine D. Lowell and Sandra R. Hebert.
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Former Philadelphia Resident Pleads Guilty to Three Drug CountsRead the Press Release
PITTSBURGH, PA - A former resident of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, pleaded guilty in federal court to charges of violating the federal narcotics laws, United States Attorney Scott W. Brady announced today.
Mark Carter, 33, pleaded guilty to three counts before United States District Judge Cathy Bissoon.
In connection with the guilty plea, the court was advised that in June 2016, Pennsylvania State Police arranged for a confidential informant to buy crack and heroin from Mark Carter. Carter arranged for Brandon Morris to meet the CI. In exchange for $2,000 in pre-recorded funds, Morris gave the CI three bricks of heroin and one-half of an ounce of crack. On June 27, 2016, the CI purchased heroin and crack from Carter using $2,150 in pre-recorded funds.
On June 28, 2016, troopers executed a search warrant on Morris’ residence located on E. Brady St. in Butler, PA. In the bedroom where Carter was found, troopers recovered a plastic bag containing 39.57g of raw heroin, a plastic bag containing 119.36g of crack cocaine, individual packets of heroin, $7,612.00, including $4,150 pre-recorded funds, and various items of drug paraphernalia.
On July 21, 2016, the CI arranged to buy drugs from Carter. Carter asked the CI to pick up Janell Hunter from the Greyhound Bus Station and to get her a hotel room in Butler. Carter arrived from Philadelphia a short time later. A search warrant on the hotel room revealed a bag containing 80.58g of crack cocaine, 38.83g heroin, and drug paraphernalia.
Judge Bissoon scheduled sentencing for June 23, 2020. 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.
Pending sentencing, the court ordered that Carter remain detained.
Assistant United States Attorney Shanicka L. Kennedy is prosecuting this case on behalf of the government.
The Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Pennsylvania State Police conducted the investigation leading to the prosecution of Carter.
Former Kentucky Deputy Jailer Sentenced for Repeatedly Tasing Suicidal Inmate to Punish Him for CursingRead the Press Release
James Eakes, a former deputy jailer with the Fulton County Detention Center in Hickman, Kentucky, was sentenced today to 48 months in prison and one year of supervised release for willfully depriving a Kentucky citizen of his constitutional rights under color of law.
On April 29, 2019, a federal jury convicted Eakes, 54, of willfully depriving an inmate of the right to be free from cruel and unusual punishment by assaulting him with a dangerous weapon. According to evidence and testimony, Eakes repeatedly tased inmate L.B. after L.B. cursed at him.
“The Department of Justice is committed to protecting victims from cruel and unusual punishment,” said Assistant Attorney General Eric Dreiband of the Civil Rights Division. “As demonstrated by this sentencing the Civil Rights Division will relentlessly pursue justice on behalf of those whose rights were abused.”
“Each of us in law enforcement take an oath to uphold the rights of all; we don’t get to pick and choose,” said U.S. Attorney Russell Coleman for the Western District of Kentucky. “Victims will be protected, and those found to be violating the law will be prosecuted regardless of their position or what office they hold.”
“The FBI will not tolerate correctional officers who violate a person’s civil rights,” said FBI Louisville Special Agent in Charge James Robert Brown Jr. “Former deputy jailer, Eakes, took an oath to protect the inmates under his control. Not only did he abuse his position of authority, but he also betrayed the public’s trust. As civil rights and color of law violations are a top priority of the FBI, we will continue to aggressively pursue law enforcement officials who abuse their power.”
The jury heard evidence that Eakes was first called to L.B.’s cell because L.B. told guards he was suicidal. As required by the jail’s procedures, Eakes and two other female deputy jailers then removed all of L.B.’s possessions from his cell and made L.B. strip naked. Eakes left the cell and closed the door, which automatically locked, leaving L.B. in his cell with only an anti-suicide garment.
The evidence and testimony showed that, after he was locked in his cell, L.B. cursed at Eakes from behind the cell door. Eakes then ordered that the door be unlocked, removed his Taser from his holster, opened the door, and immediately shot L.B. with his Taser. Eakes then entered L.B.’s cell, and, while activating the Taser, repeatedly yelled at L.B. not to curse at him again. Despite the fact that L.B. took no aggressive action towards Eakes and remained slumped against the cell wall, Eakes tased L.B. two additional times.
The FBI Louisville Field Office, Hopkinsville Resident Agency conducted the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney Madison Sewell of the Western District of Kentucky and Trial Attorney Zachary Dembo of the Civil Rights Division prosecuted the case.
Former Chief Executive Officer of Mozaic Group Ltd. Sentenced for Bank FraudRead the Press Release
St. Louis, MO –Mary Ann Gibson, 63, of St. Louis, Missouri, was sentenced to 22 months in prison for her role in embezzling from her former employer. Gibson appeared this morning in front of United States District Judge Henry E. Autrey.
According to court documents, Gibson obtained a line of credit for Mozaic Group Ltd. from Enterprise Bank and Trust and subsequently drew down on that line of credit to run the business. From approximately January 2016 through August 2017, Gibson falsely and fraudulently inflated the cash flow of the company she reported to the bank in order to maintain and increase the line of credit from Enterprise Bank and Trust. Mozaic and Gibson thereafter defaulted on the loan because Mozaic did not, in fact, have the cash flow Gibson reported to the bank. Gibson’s fraud resulted in a loss of approximately $2.5 million to the bank.
"Fraud schemes like this victimize more than just the financial institutions, which have a finite amount of money to lend," said Special Agent in Charge Richard Quinn of the FBI St. Louis Division. "In this case, the embezzled $2.5 million could have been used by other honest businesses that grow our economy."
The Federal Bureau of Investigation investigated this case. Assistant U.S. Attorney Lindsay McClure-Hartman handled the case for the U.S. Attorney’s Office.
Former Baltimore Police Detective Sentenced to 18 Months in Federal Prison for Lying to a Federal Grand JuryRead the Press Release
Baltimore, Maryland – U.S. District Judge Catherine C. Blake today sentenced former Baltimore Police Detective Carmine Vignola, age 35, of Thurmont, Maryland, to 18 months in federal prison, followed by two years of supervised release, for making false statements to the grand jury, in connection with the planting of evidence at a crime scene.
The sentence was announced by United States Attorney for the District of Maryland Robert K. Hur and Special Agent in Charge Jennifer C. Boone of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Baltimore Field Office.
“Prosecuting criminals who work in police agencies is essential both to protect our communities and to support the many honorable officers whose reputations they unfairly tarnish,” said U.S. Attorney Robert K. Hur.
“The public deserves law enforcement officers committed to serve and protect with honesty and integrity,” said Special Agent in Charge Jennifer C. Boone. “This individual and his conspirators violated their sworn duties to uphold the law, abusing their positions of trust. Together with our law enforcement partners, FBI Baltimore will continue to investigate and hold accountable those who violate the laws they have sworn to uphold.”
Carmine Vignola joined the Baltimore Police Department (BPD) as an officer on September 4, 2007, and was promoted to Detective on March 20, 2014. In March 2014, Vignola served on a Special Enforcement Section (SES) unit assigned to BPD’s Western District. Officer 2 was Vignola’s partner and Sergeant Keith Gladstone was the officer-in-charge.
According his plea agreement, on the evening of March 26, 2014, Vignola, who was on duty, was having dinner with Gladstone when Gladstone received a call on his cell phone from W.J., who had just run over an arrestee, D.S., in the front yard of a home in Northeast Baltimore. Gladstone asked Vignola if he had a BB gun. Vignola advised that he did not and Gladstone asked Vignola to call his partner to ask him if he had a BB gun. Vignola then called Officer 2, who was not working that day, and learned that Officer 2 had a BB gun at his home. Gladstone and Vignola drove to Officer 2’s home and retrieved the BB gun. Vignola and Gladstone then drove to the site of D.S.’s arrest on Anntana Avenue and Belair Road in Northeast Baltimore City. Vignola understood that Gladstone had retrieved the BB gun so that Gladstone could plant it at the scene of D.S.’s arrest in an attempt to justify W.J. running D.S. over. Once there, Gladstone exited the vehicle and headed toward the scene. Vignola exited the vehicle but remained near it. Gladstone subsequently returned to the car, without the BB gun, and he and Vignola left the scene.
D.S. was subsequently charged in Maryland state court with possession, use, and discharge of a gas or pellet gun, for the BB gun that Gladstone planted at the scene of D.S.’s arrest, and a number of drug offenses. D.S. was detained on those charges until at least April 2, 2014. On January 16, 2015, the charges were disposed of by nolle prosequi, which is a form of dismissal.
As detailed in his plea agreement, on March 1, 2017, W.J. and six other officers who had been members of the BPD’s Gun Trace Task Force (“GTTF”) were arrested on federal racketeering charges. Thereafter, it became public that multiple GTTF defendants were cooperating and providing information to the United States in an ongoing investigation.
In January 2018, Vignola and Gladstone arranged to meet in person. In order to avoid detection, they arranged the meeting using their wives’ cell phones. Gladstone arranged for the meeting to take place in a swimming pool, to ensure that Vignola was not wearing a recording device. Once Gladstone and Vignola were in the swimming pool, Vignola asked Gladstone words to the effect of, “do you have anything to worry about now, you know, since [W.J.] was arrested, do you have any concerns?” Gladstone responded that the only thing he was worried about was the incident on “Bel Air Road,” which was a reference to the arrest of D.S. Gladstone told Vignola that if he was brought in for questioning by federal law enforcement or prosecutors who had investigated the GTTF, that Vignola should lie about being at the scene and about obtaining the BB gun from Officer 2. Specifically, Gladstone said to tell investigators that he and Gladstone were there for “scene assessment” and that Gladstone had taken the gun from his, Gladstone’s, trunk. Vignola knew that neither of those statements were true because they had not provided any scene assessment and Gladstone and Vignola had obtained the BB gun from Officer 2.
On February 13, 2019, Vignola testified before a federal grand jury in Baltimore that was investigating allegations that the BB gun recovered at the scene of D.S.’s arrest had been planted there by law enforcement. Vignola falsely testified that at Gladstone’s request he called his partner to see if he had a BB gun, but his partner did not, and that after that Gladstone went into the trunk of his vehicle.
United States Attorney Robert K. Hur commended the FBI for its work in the investigation and thanked the Baltimore Police Department for its assistance. Mr. Hur thanked Assistant U.S. Attorneys Leo J. Wise and Derek E. Hines, who prosecuted the case.
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Federal Jury Convicts Chicago Man of Illegally Structuring Nearly $350,000Read the Press Release
CHICAGO — A Chicago man has been found guilty of illegally structuring nearly $350,000 in cash deposits in an effort to evade federal reporting requirements.
In 2015 and 2016, ANTUANE KING made at least 37 deposits of less than $10,000 each at seven financial institutions, including the Chicago Firefighters Credit Union. The deposits were structured in an effort to evade federal reporting rules, which require financial institutions to notify the U.S. Department of the Treasury about transactions of more than $10,000. After making all of the structured cash deposits, King later combined all of the money to purchase three residences in Markham, Lynwood, and Homewood.
A federal jury in Chicago on Wednesday convicted King, 49, on two counts of structuring a currency transaction. Each count is punishable by up to five years in federal prison. U.S. District Judge Jorge L. Alonso set sentencing for June 12, 2020.
The conviction was announced by John R. Lausch, Jr., United States Attorney for the Northern District of Illinois; and Kathy A. Enstrom, Special Agent-in-Charge of the IRS Criminal Investigation Division in Chicago. The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Christopher V. Parente and Esther Mignanelli.
Essex County Man Sentenced to Prison for Health Care Fraud, Paying KickbacksRead the Press Release
ALBANY, NEW YORK – Arshad Nazir, age 55, of Ticonderoga, New York, was sentenced yesterday to 1 year and 1 day in prison, to be followed by 3 years of supervised release, for conspiring to defraud Medicaid, and conspiring to pay bribes and kickbacks to Medicaid beneficiaries who used his medical transportation service.
The announcement was made by:
- United States Attorney Grant C. Jaquith;
- James N. Hendricks, Special Agent in Charge of the Albany Field Office of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI);
- New York State Police Superintendent Keith M. Corlett; and
- New York State Inspector General Letizia Tagliafierro.
Senior United States District Judge Thomas J. McAvoy also ordered Nazir to pay $450,000 in restitution, $50,000 of which Nazir paid immediately following his sentencing.
The sentencing was the result of a state and federal investigation into Medicaid fraud committed by the owners and operators of medical transportation companies based in Essex County.
Nazir operated Capital Medallion, Inc. d/b/a Avalanche Taxi Service (“Avalanche Taxi”), a Medicaid-funded transportation company based in Ticonderoga. The New York State Department of Health (“DOH”) paid Nazir’s company at least $2.45 million for Medicaid-funded transportation between 2014 and 2018.
As part of his plea on February 12, 2019, Nazir admitted that he committed a variety of frauds against Medicaid and DOH, including: billing Medicaid and receiving payment for trips where beneficiaries drove themselves to their own medical appointments, and falsifying the identities of the drivers for those trips; billing Medicaid and receiving payment for roundtrips to and from medical appointments when the beneficiaries took only one-way trips with Avalanche Taxi; and falsifying pick-up and drop-off locations, in order to increase the purported distances traveled and therefore be able to claim and receive higher Medicaid payments.
Nazir also admitted that he agreed to pay kickbacks and bribes to Medicaid beneficiaries in order to get these beneficiaries to schedule and keep scheduling medical transportation appointments with Avalanche Taxi. Kickbacks included cash, cigarettes and tobacco, and free goods at Nazir’s convenience store in Ticonderoga.
This case was investigated by the FBI, the New York State Police’s Special Investigations Unit, and the Office of the New York State Inspector General, and was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Michael Barnett.
Several additional agencies assisted in this investigation, including the Essex County District Attorney’s Office; New York State Police-Troop B; the Office of the New York State Comptroller, Division of Investigations; New York State Attorney General’s Office, Medicaid Fraud Control Unit (MFCU); Essex County Sheriff’s Office; Homeland Security Investigations (HSI); the Office of Inspector General for the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS-OIG); and the New York State Department of Labor.
Escapee from County Courthouse Sentenced to 51 Months for Being A Felon in Possession of A FirearmRead the Press Release
SAN JOSE – John Penn Bivins, Jr. was sentenced to 51 months in prison for being a felon in possession of a firearm, announced United States Attorney David L. Anderson and United States Marshal Donald M. O’Keefe. The sentence was handed down by the Honorable Lucy H. Koh, U.S. District Judge.
Bivins, 49, formerly of East Palo Alto, Calif., pleaded guilty to the charge on November 6, 2019. According to his plea agreement, Bivins admitted that, on November 26, 2017, he possessed a Smith & Wesson 9mm pistol loaded with 15 rounds of ammunition. Bivins admitted he possessed the weapon and ammunition at the Fairmont Inn in San Leandro, Calif., where law enforcement officers from the U.S. Marshals Service led task force encountered him. Bivins also acknowledged that the pistol he possessed had been stolen and that when law enforcement officers apprehended him, he had escaped confinement for robbery charges in Santa Clara County 20 days earlier. Bivins agreed that he thus possessed the pistol in connection with another felony offense.
On November 6, 2019, the government filed a superseding information, charging Bivins with being a felon in possession of a firearm and ammunition, in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 922(g)(1). After waiving his right to prosecution by indictment, Bivins consented to prosecution by information and then pleaded guilty to the charge.
The defendant is currently in state custody, and his sentence will run concurrently with any anticipated state court sentence arising out of the escape charge. In addition to the prison term, Judge Koh sentenced Bivins to a three-year period of supervised release.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Chinhayi Coleman Cadet is prosecuting the case with the assistance of Jessica Leung. The prosecution is the result of an investigation by the United States Marshals Service, Santa Clara County Sheriff’s Office, California Highway Patrol, Vallejo Police Department, and in cooperation with the Santa Clara County District Attorney’s Office.
Eastern Panhandle man admits to heroin chargeRead the Press Release
MARTINSBURG, WEST VIRGINIA –Karl Justin Dunn, III, of Kearneysville, West Virginia, has admitted to distributing heroin, U.S. Attorney Bill Powell announced.
Dunn, age 32, pled guilty to one count of “Distribution of Heroin.” Dunn admitted to selling heroin in July 2018 in Berkeley County.
Dunn faces up to 20 years incarceration and a fine of up to $1,000,000. 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.
This charge is the result of investigations supported by the Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF) under the Attorney General-led Synthetic Opioid Surge (SOS)/Special Operations Division (SOD) Project Clean Sweep. This initiative seeks to reduce the supply of synthetic opioids in “hot spot” areas previously identified by the Attorney General of the United States, thereby reducing drug overdoses and drug overdose deaths, and identify wholesale distribution networks and sources of supply operating nationally and internationally.
Special Assistant U.S. Attorney C. Lydia Lehman, also with the Berkeley County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office, is prosecuting the case on behalf of the government. The Eastern Panhandle Drug & Violent Crimes Task Force, a HIDTA-funded initiative, investigated.
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.
U.S. Magistrate Judge Robert W. Trumble presided.
District Election Officer and Primary Day Hotline Established by United States Attorney’s OfficeRead the Press Release
CONCORD – United States Attorney Scott W. Murray announced the establishment of a Primary Day hotline that will be monitored throughout Primary Day on February 11, 2020, from 7 am to 8 pm. The hotline number is 603-230-2503. Inquiries and complaints may also be submitted through the United States Attorney’s Office web site at www.usdoj.gov/usao/nh by clicking on the “e-mail us” link.
Assistant United States Attorney Seth R. Aframe of the New Hampshire United States Attorney’s Office will oversee complaints of election fraud and abuse of voting rights in consultation with Justice Department Headquarters in Washington, D.C. In order to respond to these complaints and address any abuse of voting rights, AUSA Aframe will be on duty while the polls are open.
United States Attorney Murray said, “Under our Constitution, the right to vote is fundamental. Protecting the individual right to vote and assuring the legitimacy of the election process are critical Department of Justice priorities. Information about discrimination, intimidation or election fraud should be reported immediately to my office, the FBI, or the DOJ Civil Rights Division."
Complaints about ballot access problems or discrimination may also be made directly to the Civil Rights Division’s Voting Section in Washington, D.C. at 1-800-253-3931.
A Federal Election Fraud Fact Sheet that explains federal criminal jurisdiction in connection with elections and voting rights is posted on the United States Attorney’s website: www.usdoj.gov/usao/nh.
Delaware Facility Supervisor Pleads Guilty in Maryland to Federal Charges of Tax Evasion and Interstate Transportation of Stolen GoodsRead the Press Release
Baltimore, Maryland – Joseph Kukta, age 43, of Laurel, Delaware, pleaded guilty today to federal charges of interstate transportation of stolen goods and tax evasion, in connection with his theft and resale of merchandise being shipped through a commercial mail service.
The guilty plea was announced by United States Attorney for the District of Maryland Robert K. Hur; Special Agent in Charge Kelly R. Jackson of the Internal Revenue Service - Criminal Investigation, Washington, D.C. Field Office; and Special Agent in Charge John Eisert of U.S. Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) Baltimore.
According to his plea agreement, from 2007 through July 30, 2019, Kukta worked as a Senior Manager at the FedEx facility located in Seaford, Delaware. The facility handled all the FedEx Ground and FedEx Home Delivery packages passing through the Delmarva Peninsula. As the most senior employee at the facility, Kukta oversaw all operational aspects of the facility and supervised over 100 employees and contractors, earning an annual salary of more than $92,000.
Kukta admitted that beginning in 2009 and continuing until June 2019, he stole packages shipped via FedEx and resold the items to Person A, currently living in Colorado, at approximately 50% of the item’s retail price. Kukta then transported the stolen items, using his vehicles and trailers, to Person B who resided in Maryland. Person B is Person A’s father. From 2012 through 2019 Person A made 275 payments to Kukta totaling more than $1.8 million for merchandise worth approximately $3.6 million that was stolen from FedEx.
As detailed in his plea agreement, Kukta stole packages that contained bulk retail goods and merchandise shipped by suppliers including Sony Electronics, Panasonic, Apple and others, intended for delivery to a Walmart Distribution Center in Smyrna, Delaware. Beginning in 2012, Kukta’s theft of packages became frequent and consistent, occurring on a weekly basis in certain months. Kukta identified packages he would steal by accessing FedEx computer systems and reviewing packages that had been loaded onto a FedEx trailer awaiting delivery to the Walmart Distribution Center. Kukta selected specific packages which he believed, based on the shippers of the packages, contained high-end electronics or other merchandise of value that could be easily resold. In 2018, Kukta began to also steal packages from FedEx trailers that were loaded for delivery to a Nike Store in Rehoboth Beach, Delaware.
Kukta went to the FedEx facility on Sundays, holidays, or other times when employees were not at the facility, and removed the packages he previously identified from the FedEx trailers. Kukta attempted to avoid detection by turning off the lights at the facility and blocking certain surveillance cameras with cardboard boxes and other objects. Kukta loaded the stolen packages into his GMC Yukon or into vehicles operated by FedEx contractors and parked at the facility, then drove the vehicles to his rented storage unit in Seaford, where he unloaded and stored the items.
On June 5, 2019, Kukta learned that law enforcement had subpoenaed surveillance footage from the FedEx facility in Seaford. Approximately two weeks later, Kukta went to the storage unit and retrieved the remaining stolen items. Kukta sold that merchandise at an auction house in Lincoln, Delaware.
Kukta also admitted that he evaded paying income taxes on the proceeds of the scheme by failing to report that income on his annual joint federal income tax returns, causing a tax loss to the United States totaling $660,439. To conceal the income, Kukta provided false information to two banks when they questioned why he was receiving money from Company A (which was controlled by Person A). As to each bank, Kukta falsely told bank representatives that he had been selling items from his father’s estate, which he knew was false. Kukta also provided false information to the IRS during a correspondence audit, claiming that the items he had sold on eBay during 2014 were from his father’s estate, not the sale of stolen goods.
Kukta faces a maximum sentence of 10 years in federal prison for interstate transportation of stolen goods; and a maximum of five years in federal prison for tax evasion. Actual sentences for federal crimes are typically less than the maximum penalties. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after taking into account the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors. U.S. District Judge Catherine C. Blake has scheduled sentencing for June 18, 2020 at 9:15 a.m.
United States Attorney Robert K. Hur commended IRS-CI and HSI for their work in the investigation. Mr. Hur thanked Assistant U.S. Attorneys Harry M. Gruber and Paul A. Riley, who are prosecuting the case.
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Dark Web Child Pornography Facilitator Pleads Guilty to Federal Charge of Conspiracy to Advertise Child PornographyRead the Press Release
Greenbelt, Maryland – Eric Eoin Marques, age 33, of Dublin, Ireland, pleaded guilty today to conspiracy to advertise child pornography on the dark web. Marques, a dual national citizen of the United States and Ireland, was extradited by Irish authorities and arrived in the United States on March 23, 2019, to face federal criminal charges filed in Maryland on August 8, 2013.
The guilty plea was announced by United States Attorney for the District of Maryland Robert K. Hur; Assistant Attorney General Brian A. Benczkowski of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division; and Assistant Director Calvin Shivers of the FBI’s Criminal Investigative Division.
“Child pornography is created by documenting the sexual abuse of children,” said U.S. Attorney Robert K. Hur. “This is an egregious case where one individual facilitated the abuse of more than a million new child victims and attempted to keep the abuse hidden on the dark web. We must do everything we can to bring individuals like Marques to justice in order to keep our children safe.”
“The defendant’s anonymous web service hosted dozens of insidious criminal communities dedicated to the sexual exploitation of children and spread millions of images of that abuse,” said Assistant Attorney General Brian A. Benczkowski of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division. “His guilty plea is proof of the Department’s fierce commitment to rooting out those who hide behind anonymous networks to commit serious child exploitation offenses.”
“Today’s guilty plea validates the FBI’s unwavering commitment to stop those who sexually exploit innocent children,” said Assistant Director Calvin Shivers of the FBI’s Criminal Investigative Division. “The FBI and its international law enforcement partners will remain steadfast in their pursuit of justice for the world’s most vulnerable victims harmed at the ruthless hands of others.”
According his plea agreement, between July 24, 2008 and July 29, 2013, Marques conspired to advertise child pornography by operating a free, anonymous web hosting service (AHS) located on the “dark web”, an area of the Internet that is only accessible by means of special software, allowing users and website operators to remain anonymous or untraceable. The investigation revealed that the AHS contained over 8.5 million images of child exploitation material and over 1.97 million of these images and/or videos involved victims that were not known by law enforcement. As of July 12, 2013, one child exploitation website hosted on the hosting service reported nearly 1.4 million files were uploaded and accessible by individuals who visited that hidden service.
During 2012 and 2013, FBI special agents and employees using computers in Maryland downloaded more than one million files from that website. As part of the investigation, those files were reviewed and nearly all of the files depict children who are engaging in sexually explicit conduct with adults or other children, posed nude and/or in such a manner as to expose their genitals, in various state of undress, or depict child erotica. A substantial majority of the images downloaded by the FBI depict prepubescent minor children who are fully or partially nude or engaged in sexually explicit conduct.
Marques admits that this offense also involved the distribution of child pornography, which involved minors who were less than twelve years old, to include infants and toddlers, and sadistic or masochistic material or depictions of violence. Marques further admits that he willfully obstructed or impeded the administration of justice with respect to the investigation into this offense.
Marques and the government have agreed that, if the Court accepts the plea agreement, Marques will be sentenced to between 15 and 21 years in federal prison. U.S. District Judge Theodore D. Chuang has scheduled sentencing for May 11, 2020 at 2:30 p.m.
This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by the United States Attorney’s Offices and the Criminal Division's Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who sexually exploit children, and to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.justice.gov/psc. For more information about Internet safety education, please visit www.justice.gov/psc and click on the "Resources" tab on the left of the page.
United States Attorney Robert K. Hur and Assistant Attorney General Brian A. Benczkowski commended the FBI’s Violent Crime Section, Child Exploitation Operational Unit and Violent Crimes Against Children International Task Force with significant assistance from the Legal Attaché London Office, Irish law enforcement authorities, An Garda Síochána and EUROPOL. The Department of Justice’s Office of International Affairs provided significant assistance in bringing Marques to the United States and procuring foreign evidence during the investigation.
Mr. Hur and Mr. Benczkowski thanked Assistant U.S. Attorneys Thomas M. Sullivan and Kristi N. O’Malley, and Deputy Chief Keith A. Becker and Trial Attorney Ralph Paradiso of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, who are prosecuting the federal case.
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Dark Web Child Pornography Facilitator Pleads Guilty to Conspiracy to Advertise Child PornographyRead the Press Release
A dual national citizen of the United States and Ireland pleaded guilty in federal court in Maryland to conspiracy to advertise child pornography.
Eric Eoin Marques, 33, of Dublin, Ireland, pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Theodore D. Chuang to conspiracy to advertise child pornography. In his plea agreement, Marques admitted that between July 24, 2008, and July 29, 2013, he conspired to advertise child pornography by operating an anonymous web hosting service (AHS).
Marques was extradited to the United States by Irish authorities on March 23, 2019. He was indicted in a four-count indictment alleging that he conspired to, and did advertise and distribute child pornography, between July 24, 2008 and July 29, 2013, by operating the AHS. Sentencing is scheduled for May 11.
“The defendant’s anonymous web service hosted dozens of insidious criminal communities dedicated to the sexual exploitation of children and spread millions of images of that abuse,” said Assistant Attorney General Brian A. Benczkowski of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division. “His guilty plea is proof of the department’s fierce commitment to rooting out those who hide behind anonymous networks to commit serious child exploitation offenses.”
“Child pornography is created by documenting the sexual abuse of children,” said U.S. Attorney Robert K. Hur of the District of Maryland. “This is an egregious case where one individual facilitated the abuse of more than a million new child victims and attempted to keep the abuse hidden on the dark web. We must do everything we can to bring individuals like Marques to justice in order to keep our children safe.”
“Today’s guilty plea validates the FBI’s unwavering commitment to stop those who sexually exploit innocent children,” said Assistant Director Calvin Shivers of the FBI’s Criminal Investigative Division. “The FBI and its international law enforcement partners will remain steadfast in their pursuit of justice for the world’s most vulnerable victims harmed at the ruthless hands of others.”
According to court documents, between July 24, 2008 and July 29, 2013, Marques operated a free anonymous hosting service located on the “dark web,” an area of the Internet that is only accessible by means of special software, allowing users and website operators to remain anonymous or untraceable. The hosting service hosted websites that allowed users to view and share images documenting the sexual abuse of children, including the abuse of prepubescent minors, violent sexual abuse and bestiality. The investigation revealed that the hosting service contained over 8.5 million images of child exploitation material and over 1.97 million of these images and/or videos involved victims that were not known by law enforcement. As of July 12, 2013, one child exploitation website hosted on the hosting service reported nearly 1.4 million files were uploaded and accessible by individuals who visited that hidden service.
During 2012 and 2013, FBI special agents and employees using computers in Maryland downloaded more than one million files from that website. As part of the investigation, those files were reviewed and nearly all of the files depict children who are engaging in sexually explicit conduct with adults or other children, posed nude and/or in such a manner as to expose their genitals, in various state of undress, or depict child erotica. A substantial majority of the images downloaded by the FBI depict prepubescent minor children who are fully or partially nude or engaged in sexually explicit conduct.
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 U.S. Attorney’s Offices and the Criminal Division's Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS), Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who sexually exploit children, and to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.justice.gov/psc. For more information about Internet safety education, please visit www.justice.gov/psc and click on the “Resources” tab on the left of the page.
The FBI’s Violent Crime Section, Child Exploitation Operational Unit and the Violent Crimes Against Children International Task Force conducted the investigation with significant assistance from the Legal Attaché London Office, An Garda Síochána and EUROPOL. The Department of Justice’s Office of International Affairs provided significant assistance in bringing Marques to the United States and procuring foreign evidence during the investigation.
CEOS Deputy Chief Keith A. Becker and Trial Attorney Ralph Paradiso and Assistant U.S. Attorneys Kristi N. O’Malley and Thomas M. Sullivan of the District of Maryland 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.
Conway Man Pleads Guilty to Illegal Firearm in Road Rage IncidentRead the Press Release
SPRINGFIELD, Mo. – A Conway, Missouri, man who threatened another driver in a road rage incident pleaded guilty in federal court today to illegally possessing a firearm.
William J.W. Duval, 29, pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge M. Douglas Harpool to being a felon in possession of a firearm. Duval remains in federal custody pending a sentencing hearing, which has not yet been scheduled.
By pleading guilty today, Duval admitted he was in possession of a Smith & Wesson 9mm semi-automatic pistol on June 19, 2019. Duval was involved in a disturbance with another driver on that date in the area of Glenstone Avenue and Kearney Street. The other driver told police officers that a white Cadillac driven by Duval had drifted into his lane of traffic and that he honked at the vehicle. Duval then flipped him off and showed him a firearm, at which time the other driver called 911.
Officers stopped Duval and searched his vehicle. They found the loaded pistol between the driver’s seat and center console and arrested Duval.
Under federal law, it is illegal for anyone who has been convicted of a felony to be in possession of any firearm or ammunition. Duval has prior felony convictions for stealing a motor vehicle, theft, burglary, forgery, possession of a controlled substance, and stealing.
Under federal statutes, Duval is subject to a sentence of up to 10 years in federal prison without parole. The maximum statutory sentence is prescribed by Congress and is provided here for informational purposes, as the sentencing of the defendant will be determined by the court based on the advisory sentencing guidelines and other statutory factors. A sentencing hearing will be scheduled after the completion of a presentence investigation by the United States Probation Office.
This case is being prosecuted by Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Anthony M. Brown, who is a cross-designated prosecutor from the Missouri Attorney General’s office as part of the Safer Streets Initiative to combat violent crime. It was investigated by the Springfield, Mo., Police Department and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives.
Project Safe Neighborhoods
The U.S. Attorney’s Office is partnering with federal, state, and local law enforcement to specifically identify criminals responsible for significant violent crime in the Western District of Missouri. A centerpiece of this effort is Project Safe Neighborhoods, a program that brings together all levels of law enforcement to reduce violent crime and make neighborhoods safer for everyone. Project Safe Neighborhoods is an evidence-based program that identifies the most pressing violent crime problems in the community and develops comprehensive solutions to address them. As part of this strategy, Project Safe Neighborhoods focuses enforcement efforts on the most violent offenders and partners with locally based prevention and reentry programs for lasting reductions in crime.Convicted North Philadelphia Drug Kingpin Sentenced to 30 Years in PrisonRead the Press Release
PHILADELPHIA – United States Attorney William M. McSwain announced that Edward Stinson, 30, of Philadelphia, PA was sentenced to 360 months’ imprisonment and five years’ supervised release by United States District Court Judge Paul S. Diamond for leading the Stinson Drug Trafficking Group, which sold crack cocaine in and around the Norman Blumberg Apartment Complex in North Philadelphia from about 2010 through 2015.
In January 2019, the defendant was found guilty at trial of conspiracy to distribute 280 grams or more of cocaine base (“crack”) near a public housing facility, and several related drug charges, including unlawful use of a communication facility in furtherance of a drug felony. Stinson was the leader of the group, and he was assisted in the daily operations of the drug gang by multiple individuals, including his co-defendant at trial, Debra Baylor. They obtained bulk quantities of cocaine from suppliers and arranged for it to be cooked into crack cocaine inside various apartments in Blumberg. The crack cocaine was then distributed on the streets of North Philadelphia, often accompanied by violence that terrorized the neighborhood.
“For at least half a decade, Stinson and the members of his gang controlled the illicit drug market in this neighborhood,” said U.S. Attorney McSwain. “His drug trafficking organization operated 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, tearing at the fabric of the neighborhood at the expense of the families, seniors, and other neighbors living there. Today, justice prevailed and Stinson got what he deserved.”
The case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Drug Enforcement Administration, and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Josh A. Davison and Joseph T. Labrum, III.
Colorado Man Sentenced to Life in Federal Prison for Murder-For-Hire and Enticing 13-Year-Old for SexRead the Press Release
Orlando, Florida – U.S. District Judge Paul G. Byron today sentenced Danny James McLaughlin (59, Littleton, CO) to life in federal prison for using interstate commerce facilities in the commission of murder-for-hire and for enticing a minor to engage in sexual activity. The court also ordered McLaughlin to pay a $300,000 fine.
McLaughlin had pleaded guilty on October 31, 2019.
According to court documents, between April 26 and May 17, 2019, McLaughlin communicated online with someone whom he believed was the father of a 13-year-old girl. Unbeknownst to McLaughlin, the “father” was an undercover federal agent. McLaughlin suggested that the undercover agent take a father-daughter trip to Colorado, where McLaughlin lived, so he could kidnap and rape the child. McLaughlin detailed his intentions to hold the teenager captive, subject her to physical and sexual torture, and then kill her.
McLaughlin indicated that he would be willing to kidnap and hold the daughter if the undercover agent would return the favor by killing McLaughlin’s wife. McLaughlin informed the agent of a weekly meeting that his wife attended, along with the time and location. He also suggested a place where the agent could dump his wife’s body, and where he could purchase chloroform to commit the murder.
On May 17, 2019, McLaughlin met with the undercover agent at a hotel in Colorado. He reaffirmed his intention to kidnap and sexually abuse the notional 13-year-old daughter and gave the agent $100 as a deposit toward the $2,600 sum he had agreed to pay for the murder-for-hire.
“The sentencing of McLaughlin is a clear message to criminals there is no safe haven from law enforcement,” said HSI Orlando Assistant Special in Charge David J. Pezzutti. “Without the hard work and strong partnerships between HSI Orlando, HSI Denver and the Brevard County Sheriff’s Office, this criminal would have murdered his wife and sexually exploited a child.”
This case was investigated by Homeland Security Investigations, the Brevard County Sheriff’s Office, and the Arapahoe County (Colorado) Sheriff’s Office. It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Emily C. L. Chang and Ilianys Rivera Miranda.
Cincinnati man charged with sexually exploiting toddlerRead the Press Release
CINCINNATI – A federal grand jury has charged a 78-year-old Cincinnati man with sexually exploiting a toddler.
Thomas Winkelbach was charged with two counts of sexually exploiting children and one count of possessing child pornography.
According to the indictment, in or about 2014 to 2015, Winkelbach coerced a victim who was 1 to 2 years old at the time to engage in sexually explicit conduct and created pictures of the abuse. Winkelbach allegedly created five pornographic photographs of the child.
When investigators searched Winkelbach’s computer, they also allegedly found other images of child pornography including images of children younger than 12.
Sexually exploiting a child is a federal crime punishable by 15 to 30 years in prison. Possessing child pornography carries a potential maximum sentence of 20 years in prison Congress sets the minimum and maximum statutory sentence. Sentencing of the defendant will be determined by the Court based on the advisory sentencing guidelines and other statutory factors.
Winkelbach remains in custody pending trial.
The Hamilton County Sheriff’s Office and Cincinnati Police Department’s Regional Electronics Computer Investigations (RECI) Task Force investigated this case.
David M. DeVillers, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Ohio; Chris Hoffman, Special Agent in Charge, Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), Cincinnati Division; Hamilton County Sheriff Jim Neil; and Cincinnati Police Chief Eliot K. Isaac announced the charges returned yesterday. Assistant United States Attorney Kyle J. Healey is representing the United States in this case.
An indictment merely contains allegations, and the defendant is presumed innocent unless proven guilty in a court of law.
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