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Friday 4 October 2019
Stewartstown Woman Pleads Guilty to Distribution of Oxycodone and VicodinRead the Press Release
CONCORD – Korin Gendreau, 32, of Stewartstown, pleaded guilty in federal court on Thursday to distribution of Oxycodone and Vicodin, United States Attorney Scott W. Murray announced today.
According to court documents and statements made in court, on July 19, 2018, Gendreau sold Vicodin, also known as Hydrocodone, to an individual who was cooperating with law enforcement officers. On January 11, 2019, Gendreau sold Oxycodone to the same cooperating individual. Gendreau was arrested in April of 2019.
Gendreau is scheduled to be sentenced on January 21, 2020.
“The illegal distribution of prescription painkillers has contributed to the opioid crisis in New Hampshire,” said U.S. Attorney Murray. “We will continue to work closely with our law enforcement partners to identify and prosecute those who unlawfully sell these powerful prescription drugs.”
This matter was investigated by the DEA, with assistance from the Colebrook Police Department, the Pittsburg Police Department, the New Hampshire State Police, U.S. Customs and Border Protection, the Coos County Sheriff’s Office, the New Hampshire Liquor Commission’s Division of Enforcement and Licensing, and the New Hampshire Attorney General’s Office. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Charles L. Rombeau and John S. Davis.
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Staten Island Doctor Pleads Guilty to Illegally Distributing OxycodoneRead the Press Release
Geoffrey S. Berman, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, announced that CARL ANDERSON, a state licensed doctor, pled guilty today to writing medically unnecessary prescriptions for oxycodone. ANDERSON pled guilty before U.S. Magistrate Judge Kevin N. Fox, and will be sentenced before U.S. District Court Judge Lorna G. Schofield at a later date.
U.S. Attorney Geoffrey S. Berman said: “As a physician, Carl Anderson should have been the first line of defense in the ongoing opioid epidemic. Instead, as he admitted in federal court today, in exchange for cash payments, Anderson conspired with others to dispense dangerous and addictive opiates that were being sold on the street. He now faces serious prison time for his actions.”
According to allegations in the Indictment and other documents filed in federal court, as well as statements made in public court proceedings:
Oxycodone is a highly addictive, narcotic opioid that is used to treat severe and chronic pain conditions. Oxycodone prescriptions are in high demand and have significant cash value to drug dealers. In fact, oxycodone tablets can be resold on the street for thousands of dollars. For example, 30-milligram oxycodone tablets have a current street value of approximately $30 each in New York City, with street prices even higher in other parts of the country. A single prescription for 180 30-milligram tablets of oxycodone can net an illicit distributor $5,400 in cash or more.
From at least approximately 2006 until his arrest in October 2018, ANDERSON operated a medical clinic in Staten Island, New York, where he wrote thousands of medically unnecessary oxycodone prescriptions in exchange for cash. ANDERSON prescribed large quantities of oxycodone pills to patients he knew had no legitimate medical need for the medication, including his co-defendant Arthur Grande, who sold the pills on the streets of New York. ANDERSON often held “patient visits” without appointments in the middle of the night – sometimes at 3:00 or 4:00 a.m. and sometimes at his home – and required “patients” to pay $150 to $200 per prescription in cash. Many “patients” traveled from long distances, displayed visible signs of addiction to narcotics, or were plainly not taking, and instead were selling, their pills. When ANDERSON was arrested in October 2018, the Drug Enforcement Administration (“DEA”) found over $200,000 in illicit drug proceeds in his home.
While pleading guilty today, ANDERSON admitted that he “violated [his] duties granted to [him] as a licensed physician,” “willfully turned a blind eye to . . . suspicions,” and participated in a “scheme” that “amounted to . . . diversion” of oxycodone. As part of his guilty plea today, ANDERSON agreed to the forfeiture of $264,164 in drug proceeds that were seized from his home.
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ANDERSON, 58, of Staten Island, pled guilty to one count of conspiring to distribute and possess with intent to distribute oxycodone. ANDERSON’s co-defendant, Arthur Grande, pled guilty to the same offense on October 1, 2019. This offense carries a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison. The maximum potential sentence is prescribed by Congress and is provided here for informational purposes only, as any sentencing of the defendant will be determined by the judge.
Mr. Berman praised the investigative work of the DEA Tactical Diversion Squad in New York, which comprises agents and officers from the DEA, the New York City Police Department, the New York State Police, the Town of Orangetown Police Department, the Rockland County Drug Task Force, the Westchester County Police Department, and the New York City Department of Investigation. He also acknowledged the assistance of the Department of Health & Human Services.
The case is being prosecuted by the Office’s Narcotics Unit. Assistant U.S. Attorney Nicolas Roos is in charge of the prosecution.
State Department Contracting Officer Convicted of Bribery and Procurement FraudRead the Press Release
A contracting officer with the U.S. Department of State was convicted today of conspiracy, bribery, honest services wire fraud and making false statements.
Assistant Attorney General Brian A. Benczkowski of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, U.S. Attorney G. Zachary Terwilliger of the Eastern District of Virginia, Special Agent in Charge Marc Meyer of the U.S. Department of State Office of Inspector General and Assistant Director in Charge Timothy R. Slater of the FBI’s Washington Field Office made the announcement.
Zaldy N. Sabino, 60, of Fort Washington, Maryland, was convicted of 13 counts of conspiracy, bribery, honest services wire fraud and making false statements. Sentencing has been set for Feb. 14, 2020.
Sabino was indicted in April 2019. According to the indictment, between November 2012 and early 2017, Sabino and the owner of a Turkish construction firm allegedly engaged in a bribery and procurement fraud scheme in which Sabino received at least $239,300 in cash payments from the Turkish owner while Sabino supervised multi-million dollar construction contracts awarded to the Turkish owner’s business partners and while Sabino made over a half million dollars in structured cash deposits into his personal bank accounts. Sabino allegedly concealed his unlawful relationship by, among other things, making false statements on financial disclosure forms and during his background reinvestigation.
The Department of State’s Office of Inspector General, led by Steve A. Linick, and the FBI’s Washington Field Office investigated the case. Trial Attorney Edward P. Sullivan of the Criminal Division’s Public Integrity Section and Assistant U.S. Attorney Jack Hanly of the Eastern District of Virginia prosecuted the case.
An indictment is merely an allegation. All defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law
St. Louis Man Pleads Guilty to Robbing the Richmond Heights Post Office at GunpointRead the Press Release
St. Louis, MO –Dywane Upchurch, 39, of St. Louis, MO, pleaded guilty to felony charges of being a felon in possession of a firearm and assaulting a Postal employee while committing robbery. Upchurch appeared in federal court today before United States District Judge Catherine D. Perry who accepted his plea and set his sentencing date for January 16, 2019.
According to court documents, on December 6, 2018, Dywane Upchurch entered the rear door of the U.S. Post Office in Richmond Heights located on Big Bend Boulevard. He was armed with a nine-millimeter semi-automatic pistol. Once inside, Upchurch brandished the firearm and forced both employees into a restroom. Upchurch then went to the cash register and stole approximately $8,800 in cash.
On January 17, 2019, Upchurch was taken into custody after United States Postal Inspectors executed an arrest warrant at a residence on Blakemore Place, St. Louis, Missouri. A firearm possessed by Upchurch was seized from the residence.
Upchurch faces up to 10 years in prison and a $250,000 fine on the charge of felon in possession of a firearm and up to 25 years in prison and a fine of $250,000 on the assault count. In determining the actual sentences, a judge is required to consider the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines, which provide recommended sentencing ranges.
This case is being investigated by the U.S. Postal Inspection Service and the Richmond Heights Police Department. Assistant U.S. Attorney John Ware is handling the case.
South Carolina Man Sentenced to 30 Months in Prison for Participating in A Scheme to Defraud Users of A Dating WebsiteRead the Press Release
Geoffrey S. Berman, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, announced today that DAVID JONES was sentenced by United States District Judge Nelson S. Román to 30 months in prison for his participation in a scheme by which he and others fraudulently convinced users of a dating website into believing that they had sent sexually explicit images to underage children and faced criminal prosecution if they did not pay to avoid involvement by law enforcement. JONES previously pled guilty on May 14, 2019.
Manhattan U.S. Attorney Geoffrey S. Berman stated: “David Jones scared his victims into sending him money by fraudulently convincing victims they were in peril of criminal prosecution for child exploitation. In the end, this cruel and temporarily profitable scheme by Jones earned him a prison term and surrender of his ill-gotten gains.”
According to documents filed in this case and statements made in related court proceedings:
Beginning in August 2017, Homeland Security Investigations (“HSI”) began identifying various individuals who reported that they had been extorted after using a dating website (the “Website”). In general, each victim reported communicating on the Website with an individual the victim believed was an adult. Then, after the victim received and shared sexually-explicit photos with the person the victim believed was an adult, the victim was contacted by a person who claimed that the victim had communicated with an underage minor and needed to pay the minor’s family to prevent law enforcement involvement. The victims made payments via money transfers through Western Union and Walmart and/or through the purchase of Green Dot MoneyPak cards.
In total, at least 28 victims of the criminal scheme were identified. Together, those victims paid over $40,000 to DAVID JONES and his co-conspirators. The victims were located in numerous states including Florida, Montana, Tennessee, Arizona, and New York. In connection with the scheme, DAVID JONES and his co-conspirators made phone calls from South Carolina to Mahopac, New York.
Mr. Berman praised the efforts of Homeland Security Investigations, the South Carolina Department of Corrections - Police Services Unit, and the Greenville County Sheriff’s Office in connection with this investigation.
Judge Román ordered that the 30-month term of imprisonment run consecutive to the sentence JONES is currently serving in South Carolina. In addition, he imposed a period of supervised release of three years to follow the imprisonment, and ordered forfeiture in the amount of $27,066 and restitution in the amount of $41,459.51.
The prosecution is being handled by the Office’s White Plains Division. Assistant United States Attorney Marcia S. Cohen is in charge of the prosecution.
Six Mexican Nationals Indicted in Timeshare Telemarketing ScamRead the Press Release
NEW ORLEANS – MARTIN ALONSO ACEVES CUSTODIO, a/k/a Robin Birmingham, a/k/a ALA, age 29, LIZA FLANERY FIERRO, a/k/a LIE, age 33, CLAUDIA ELENA ANTILLON ZAHUITA, a/k/a Julie Batista, a/k/a KLA, age 36, SERGIO LEON KURI, a/k/a “LNK, age 38, JESUS ADRIAN LEDESMA BERNAL, a/k/a JSS, age 31, and JULIO CESAR RIVERA ROJAS, a/k/a JCP, age 32, all residents and citizens of Mexico, were indicted October 3, 2019 by a federal grand jury for one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud, announced U.S. Attorney Peter G. Strasser of the Eastern District of Louisiana.
The indictment alleges that from at least January 1, 2016, to the present, the above defendants conspired together and with others to commit wire fraud in connection with a telemarketing scheme that targeted and victimized persons in the United States, Canada and South America. As part of the elaborate scheme, the conspirators made unsolicited phone calls to owners of resort timeshare properties to induce them to and pay fees associated with the bogus sale of their property. The defendants misrepresented the existence of a buyer for their timeshare and solicited money from the victims to facilitate the sale. They solicited the timeshare owners to enter into agreements to sell their timeshares and pay for alleged “closing costs” with electronic wire transfers from banking institutions within the United States to Mexican banks. There were no interested buyers, the closings did not occur, and the timeshares were not resold. Instead, the conspirators simply pocketed the advanced fees. Of the U.S. victims, 40 were age 60 and older and the total estimated loss is at least $10,000,000.
The defendants, who are all based in Mexico, operated under the business names Planet Travel and Newport International Investments, and at other times used the following business names: Advance Travel INC, All American Real Estate, American International Investment Group, Bear Claw Travel, Best Investment Services, Champion Properties, Closing Source LLC, Equity Closing Services Group, Global Offshore Services, NSC Holding, Peach Title, Sandia Title, Travel and Acquisitions, Travel Innovations, Travel Plus Acquisitions, Travel Right, and World Travelers, Inc.
An indictment merely alleges that crimes have been committed. The defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt. If convicted, the defendants face a maximum sentence of twenty years of incarceration, a fine of up to $250,000 and three years of supervised release.
This case is the product of an extensive and ongoing investigation by special agents of Federal Bureau of Investigation. Assistant United States Attorney Edward J. Rivera is prosecuting the case.
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Second defendant arrested in case alleging theft of trade secrets from American aviation companyRead the Press Release
CINCINNATI – An Italian national was arrested in Marino, Italy on Oct. 2 pursuant to a provisional arrest request from the United States in a case involving two defendants charged here with conspiring to steal trade secrets from an American aviation company.
Alexander Yuryevich Korshunov, 57, and Maurizio Paolo Bianchi, 59, were charged by a criminal complaint on Aug. 21. Korshunov was arrested on Aug. 30 at Naples International Airport in Italy. A federal grand jury in Cincinnati indicted the pair on Sept. 11 with conspiracy to commit theft of trade secrets and attempted theft of trade secrets, and that indictment was unsealed today.
According to the indictment, Korshunov was an employee of a Russian state-owned company and had previously been a Russian public official whose service included the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
Bianchi was a former director at Avio S.p.A, an Italian aerospace company until 2012. GE Aviation purchased the aerospace business from Avio S.p.A. in 2013 and operates the business as Avio Aero with its headquarters in Turin, Italy. GE Aviation is one of the world’s top aircraft engine suppliers and is headquartered in the Southern District of Ohio.
After leaving Avio S.p.A., Bianchi went to work for a company called Aernova in Forli, Italy.
Korshunov was employed at United Engine Corp (UEC), which included a subsidiary named Aviadvigatel (a branch of the Russian state-owned company), which had been “entity listed” by the U.S. Department of Commerce in September 2018 for acting contrary to the national security or foreign policy interests of the United States.
Aernova and Aviadvigatel had a contract during the time of the alleged conduct.
It is alleged that between 2013 and 2018, Bianchi – on behalf of Korshunov – recruited current or former employees of Avio Aero to do consulting work related to jet engine accessory gearboxes for Bianchi and Korshunov. An accessory gearbox is a component mechanism used to transfer the power from the jet engine to other airplane power systems.
According to court documents, the employees’ statements of work typically stated that the “the holders of patent and intellectual property obtained as a result of the work are…the Ministry of Industry and Trade of the Russian Federation.”
Employees allegedly used trade secrets owned by Avio Aero and GE Aviation to create the technical report. The effort focused on accessory gearboxes made by Avio Aero that provide power to systems such as hydraulic pumps, generators and fuel pumps.
Court documents detail that Korshunov allegedly arranged and paid for employees to meet with him in June 2013 at the Paris Air Show in Le-Bourget, France and in 2014 in Milan, Italy to discuss and revise the technical report.
Conspiring to steal trade secrets and attempted theft of trade secrets are punishable by up to 10 years in prison.
Assistant Attorney General for National Security John C. Demers and U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Ohio Benjamin C. Glassman commended the investigation of this case by the FBI and the cooperation of GE Aviation, as well as Assistant U.S. Attorney Timothy S. Mangan and Trial Attorney Will Mackie of the Department of Justice’s National Security Division, Counterintelligence and Export Control Section, who are prosecuting the case. The U.S. Department of Justice’s Office of International Affairs of the Department’s Criminal Division assisted in the investigation.
An indictment merely contains allegations, and defendants are presumed innocent unless proven guilty in a court of law.
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Second Defendant Arrested in Case Alleging Theft of Trade Secrets from American Aviation CompanyRead the Press Release
An Italian national was arrested in Marino, Italy, on Oct. 2 pursuant to a provisional arrest request from the United States in a case involving two defendants charged here with conspiring to steal trade secrets from an American aviation company.
Alexander Yuryevich Korshunov, 57, and Maurizio Paolo Bianchi, 59, were charged by a criminal complaint on Aug. 21. Korshunov was arrested on Aug. 30 at Naples International Airport in Italy. A federal grand jury in Cincinnati indicted the pair on Sept. 11 with conspiracy to commit theft of trade secrets and attempted theft of trade secrets, and that indictment was unsealed today.
According to the indictment, Korshunov was an employee of a Russian state-owned company and had previously been a Russian public official whose service included the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
Bianchi was a former director at Avio S.p.A, an Italian aerospace company until 2012. GE Aviation purchased the aerospace business from Avio S.p.A. in 2013 and operates the business as Avio Aero with its headquarters in Turin, Italy. GE Aviation is one of the world’s top aircraft engine suppliers and is headquartered in the Southern District of Ohio.
After leaving Avio S.p.A, Bianchi went to work for a company called Aernova in Forli, Italy.
Korshunov was employed at United Engine Corp (UEC), which included a subsidiary named Aviadvigatel (a branch of the Russian state-owned company), which had been “entity listed” by the U.S. Department of Commerce in September 2018 for acting contrary to the national security or foreign policy interests of the United States.
Aernova and Aviadvigatel had a contract during the time of the alleged conduct.
It is alleged that between 2013 and 2018, Bianchi – on behalf of Korshunov – recruited current or former employees of Avio Aero to do consulting work related to jet engine accessory gearboxes for Bianchi and Korshunov. An accessory gearbox is a component mechanism used to transfer the power from the jet engine to other airplane power systems.
According to court documents, the employees’ statements of work typically stated that the “the holders of patent and intellectual property obtained as a result of the work are…the Ministry of Industry and Trade of the Russian Federation.”
Employees allegedly used trade secrets owned by Avio Aero and GE Aviation to create the technical report. The effort focused on accessory gearboxes made by Avio Aero that provide power to systems such as hydraulic pumps, generators and fuel pumps.
Court documents detail that Korshunov allegedly arranged and paid for employees to meet with him in June 2013 at the Paris Air Show in Le-Bourget, France and in 2014 in Milan, Italy to discuss and revise the technical report.
Conspiring to steal trade secrets and attempted theft of trade secrets are punishable by up to 10 years in prison.
Assistant Attorney General for National Security John C. Demers and U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Ohio Benjamin C. Glassman commended the investigation of this case by the FBI and the cooperation of GE Aviation, as well as Assistant U.S. Attorney Timothy S. Mangan and Trial Attorney Will Mackie of the Department of Justice’s National Security Division, Counterintelligence and Export Control Section, who are prosecuting the case. The U.S. Department of Justice’s Office of International Affairs of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division assisted in the investigation.
An indictment merely contains allegations, and defendants are presumed innocent unless proven guilty in a court of law.
Saint Paul Felon Convicted at Trial for Possession of A FirearmRead the Press Release
United States Attorney Erica H. MacDonald today announced the conviction of MARCUS ANTHONY MATTOX, 25, for illegally possessing a firearm. The jury found MATTOX guilty following a four-day trial before Senior Judge Donovan W. Frank in U.S. District Court in St. Paul, Minnesota.
As proven at trial, in the early morning hours of September 22, 2018, police officers heard a volley of gunshots in the area of Lexington Avenue and University Avenue in St. Paul, followed by a second volley of gunshots. Thereafter, officers responded to a report of shots fired at an apartment complex on Concordia Avenue. Officers recovered from the apartment complex’s parking lot ten discharged.40-caliber bullet casings and a 9mm firearm. Officers also noticed a fresh blood trail leading from near the front doors of the apartment building through the parking lot. Officers followed the blood trail, and along its path they found a loaded Desert Eagle .50-caliber semiautomatic pistol. The hammer of the firearm was cocked back in the firing position and it had blood on the handgrips, the trigger guard, and the trigger. While officers were investigating the scene, they learned that MATTOX had been taken to Regions Hospital with non-life threatening gunshot wounds to his face and foot. Officers responded to Regions Hospital and collected MATTOX’s bloody clothing.
As proven at trial, while reviewing the surveillance video from the apartment building, officers observed a male exit the apartment building, wearing clothing that matched MATTOX’s clothing collected from the hospital, approach another male in the parking lot and exchange gunfire with that male before falling to the ground, getting back up and running from the scene along the same path as the trail of blood officers found at the scene. A subsequent DNA analysis confirmed that MATTOX’s blood was on the Desert Eagle .50-caliber pistol.
This case is the result of an investigation conducted by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives and the Saint Paul Police Department. This case was brought as part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), an initiative that brings together federal, state, and local law enforcement to combat violent crime.
Assistant U.S. Attorneys Benjamin Bejar and Thomas Calhoun-Lopez tried the case.
Defendant Information:
MARCUS ANTHONY MATTOX, a/k/a “Marcus Anthony Maddox,” a/k/a “M-Nutt”, 25
St. Paul, Minn.
Convicted:
- Felon in possession of a firearm - armed career criminal, 1 count
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United States Attorney’s Office, District of Minnesota: (612) 664-5600
Rockford Man Sentenced to More Than 4 Years in Prison for Conspiracy to Distribute HeroinRead the Press Release
ROCKFORD —A Rockford man was sentenced today by U.S. District Judge John Robert Blakey on a federal drug conspiracy charge.
TYSHON T. WATSON (also known as "TY"), 24, was sentenced to four years and nine months in federal prison, to be followed by three years of supervised release. Watson pleaded guilty on June 28, 2019, to conspiring to distribute one kilogram or more of heroin.
The sentencing was announced by John R. Lausch, Jr., United States Attorney for the Northern District of Illinois; Larry L. Lapp, acting Special Agent-in-Charge of the Chicago office of the FBI; Dan O’Shea, Chief of the Rockford Police Department; and Gary Caruana, Winnebago County Sheriff. The federal investigation was conducted by the FBI-led Rockford Area Violent Gang Task Force, which includes the above agencies as well as the Loves Park and Freeport Police Departments. The U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms & Explosives also assisted in the investigation. The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorney Talia Bucci.
In a written plea agreement, Watson admitted that he worked for a drug-trafficking conspiracy distributing heroin to street-level customers in the Rockford area on a daily basis between May 2017 and November 2, 2017. Watson began selling approximately five grams of heroin per week for the conspiracy, and his heroin sales later increased to approximately ten grams of heroin per day. As part of the conspiracy, Watson and his co-conspirator shared a phone that was used to arrange heroin sales, and they warned each other about potential police surveillance in areas where they were conducting drug trafficking.
On the day of Watson’s arrest in November 2017, Watson possessed 63 baggies of heroin that he intended to distribute to the conspiracy’s street-level customers. Watson at times also distributed heroin to the conspiracy’s larger-quantity customers who were heroin dealers themselves. Watson admitted that the conspiracy distributed or possessed with intent to distribute over one kilogram of heroin.
Rockford Man Sentenced to 4 Years in Prison for Robbing Two Rockford BanksRead the Press Release
ROCKFORD — A Rockford man was sentenced today to four years in federal prison on one count of armed bank robbery and one count of bank robbery.
DEMONTRION PHILLIPS, 25, pleaded guilty earlier this year to the armed robbery of Alpine Bank, 2642 Charles St. in Rockford, on July 17, 2017, and the robbery of Northwest Bank, 3106 N. Rockton Ave. in Rockford, on June 13, 2017.
The sentencing was announced by John R. Lausch, Jr., United States Attorney for the Northern District of Illinois; Larry L. Lapp, acting Special Agent-in-Charge of the Chicago office of FBI; and Dan O’Shea, Chief of the Rockford Police Department. The investigation was conducted by the FBI Safe Streets Task Force, which includes representatives from the FBI; U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives; Loves Park Police Department; Winnebago County Sheriff’s Department; and Rockford Police Department. The government was represented by Assistant U.S. Attorney Scott R. Paccagnini.
According to a written plea agreement, Phillips and another individual robbed the Alpine Bank at approximately 5:48 p.m. During the robbery, Phillips brandished a BB gun, placed a note and a white plastic garbage bag on the counter, and demanded money. While the teller was filling up the bag with money, Phillips took back the note, jumped over the counter and started placing money in the bag. Phillips then went to another teller, began putting money in his bag, then jumped back over the counter and fled the bank. Phillips dropped the BB gun and some of the money as he ran to a waiting vehicle in a nearby parking lot.
Phillips also admitted that he robbed the Northwest Bank. At approximately 4:15 p.m., Phillips provided a teller with a note that indicated he had a gun and wanted money, and he threatened harm. The teller took money out of the teller drawer and placed it on the counter. Phillips then put the money in a brown plastic grocery bag, put the note back in his pocket and left the bank with the money.
In both robberies, Phillips wore a disguise including a fake beard.
In addition to the prison term, U.S. District Judge John J. Tharp, Jr., ordered Phillips to pay full restitution.
Rochester Man Convicted of Enticing A Minor Online Going to Prison for 12 YearsRead the Press Release
CONTACT: Barbara Burns
PHONE: (716) 843-5817
FAX #: (716) 551-3051ROCHESTER, N.Y. - U.S. Attorney James P. Kennedy, Jr. announced today that Kaden Sylvester, 24, of Rochester, NY, who was convicted of the online enticement of a minor, was sentenced to serve 144 months in prison, and 15 years supervised release, by Chief U.S. District Judge Frank P. Geraci, Jr.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Kyle P. Rossi, who handled the case, stated that in September 2018, the FBI learned that Sylvester was engaged in online chats with other individuals who were actively trading child pornography. During the chats, the defendant distributed child pornography to an undercover FBI Special Agent. Based on this information, a search warrant was executed at Sylvester’s suspected residence. Further investigation revealed that the defendant had also sexually abused a child entrusted to his care, and produced child pornography involving the child.
The sentencing is the result of an investigation by the FBI's Child Exploitation Task Force, under the direction of Special Agent-in-Charge Gary Loeffert.
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Previously Convicted Sex Offender Sentenced to More Than 19 Years in Federal Prison for Distribution of Child PornographyRead the Press Release
Baltimore, Maryland - U.S. District Judge Ellen L. Hollander today sentenced Alexander Massari, age 53, of Owings Mills, Maryland, to 230 months in federal prison, followed by lifetime supervised release, for distribution of child pornography. Judge Hollander also ordered that, upon his release from prison, Massari must continue to register as a sex offender in the places where he resides, where he is an employee, and where he is a student, under the Sex Offender Registration and Notification Act (SORNA).
The 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.
“Crimes involving child pornography perpetuate the cruel and heartless business of the sexual abuse of children for personal gain,” said U.S. Attorney Robert K. Hur. “This sentence sends a clear message that we will bring to justice those who would victimize innocent children.”
According to his guilty plea, on March 15, 2018, federal investigators executed a federal search warrant for two e-mail accounts associated with Massari after the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC) received a Cybertipline Report that one of those accounts had sent or possessed child pornography. The video file associated with the tip contained images documenting the sexual abuse of a prepubescent minor female.
Records obtained as a result of the warrant revealed that in February 2018, Massari exchanged e-mails with individuals requesting child pornography, requested money for the child pornography images, and transmitted videos and images containing child pornography. Investigators also observed e-mails on February 13 and 28, 2018, during which Massari corresponded with another person about exchanging child pornography. During one exchange, Massari wrote “here you go” and the person responded “you got any more.” Massari responded that he did, but that Massari was interested in receiving child pornography in exchange.
On April 11, 2018, a company that provides website hosting services sent a Cybertipline Report to NCMEC for a child pornography violation that occurred on April 10, 2018. The user being reported was a member of Massari’s family, but Massari admitted that he was using the family member’s name and that Massari was the actual user. Although the website had been taken down by the time investigators identified it, the files provided by the web hosting service allowed law enforcement to recreate what the website looked like when it was taken down. FBI investigators viewed the files and at the top of the home page were the words “illegal.cp” and “join now!” The website provided information concerning the prices for different levels of membership that individuals could pay to obtain child pornography files. The home page of the website contained several images of child pornography.
On June 7, 2018, FBI investigators executed a federal search warrant at Massari’s residence and recovered numerous electronic storage devices, including a laptop computer and a computer hard drive. Those devices were examined pursuant to a federal search warrant and investigators recovered more than 600 images of child pornography from Massari’s electronic devices, including images of prepubescent minors engaged in sexually explicit conduct and sadistic conduct.
Massari also has a previous 2006 federal conviction for possession of child pornography.
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 commended the FBI for its work in the investigation. Mr. Hur thanked Assistant U.S. Attorney Michael C. Hanlon, who prosecuted the federal case.
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Owner of Tampa-Area Medical Marketing Company Sentenced to Prison for DNA Testing Fraud SchemeRead the Press Release
The owner of a Tampa, Florida-area medical marketing company was sentenced to 70 months in prison today for his role in a $2.2 million Medicare fraud scheme involving the payment of kickbacks and bribes to fraudulent medical clinics in Miami in exchange for the referral of Medicare beneficiaries for expensive genetic tests that were medically unnecessary, and for his role in the illegal structuring of cash withdrawal transactions.
Assistant Attorney General Brian A. Benczkowski of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, U.S. Attorney Maria Chapa Lopez of the Middle District of Florida, Special Agent in Charge Michael McPherson of the FBI’s Tampa Field Office and Assistant Inspector General Omar Perez of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office of the Inspector General’s (HHS-OIG) Miami Regional Office made the announcement.
U.S. District Judge Susan C. Bucklew of the Middle District of Florida, sentenced David Brock Lovelace, 49, of Land o’ Lakes, Florida, the owner of DBL Management LLC in Land o’ Lakes. After a one-week jury trial in July 2019, Lovelace was found guilty of one count of conspiracy to defraud the United States and pay and receive illegal health care kickbacks and one count of structuring cash withdrawals to avoid reporting requirements.
According to the evidence presented at trial, Lovelace was paid by a genetic testing laboratory for each DNA swab that Lovelace arranged to be referred to the laboratory. In order to obtain DNA swabs, Lovelace paid illegal cash kickbacks and bribes to medical clinics in Miami in exchange for the referral of DNA swabs that were obtained from Medicare beneficiaries. Lovelace directed the owners of the medical clinics to collect the DNA of all the patients who visited the clinics, regardless of whether the patients actually had any medical need for DNA testing. In turn, the clinics provided food and other inducements to beneficiaries to get them to visit the clinics where their DNA was collected.
The evidence at trial showed that the test results were never provided to the beneficiaries; rather, co-conspirators at the clinics paid doctors and obtained prescriptions for the DNA testing, frequently without any patient interaction.
From November 2013 to May 2014, the evidence at trial showed that Lovelace paid these kickbacks in the form of cash bribes to Miami clinic owners. From May 2014 to November 2014, after his arrest on other health care fraud charges, the evidence showed that Lovelace established shell companies, including Healthcare Marketing Florida of Melbourne, Florida, and recruited others to help him continue the scheme while he was out on pretrial release awaiting trial in his first criminal case.
Lovelace was previously found guilty by a jury in December 2015 of various health care fraud, money laundering and identity theft charges in a case handled by the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section. He is currently serving 14 years in prison on those charges. The sentence imposed today was ordered to be served consecutively with the 14-year sentence previously imposed.
The FBI and HHS investigated the case, which was brought as part of the Medicare Fraud Strike Force, under the supervision of the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Florida. Trial Attorney John Michelich and Assistant Deputy Chief Jacob Foster of the Fraud Section prosecuted the case.
The Fraud Section leads the Medicare Fraud Strike Force. Since its inception in March 2007, the Medicare Fraud Strike Force, which maintains 15 strike forces operating in 24 districts, has charged nearly 4,000 defendants who have collectively billed the Medicare program for more than $16 billion. In addition, the HHS Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, working in conjunction with the HHS-OIG, are taking steps to increase accountability and decrease the presence of fraudulent providers.
Oneida County Man Pleads Guilty to Distribution and Possession of Child PornographyRead the Press Release
SYRACUSE, NEW YORK – John Angwin, age 29, of Holland Patent, New York, pled guilty today to distributing and possessing child pornography, announced United States Attorney Grant C. Jaquith, Kevin Kelly, Special Agent in Charge of the Buffalo Field Office of Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), and New York State Police Superintendent Keith Corlett.
In entering his guilty plea today in United States District Court, Angwin, admitted that he used the Kik Messenger application to distribute child pornography to other Kik users. Agwin also used his iPhone to possess images and videos of child pornography he received via the internet. Execution of search warrants on Angwin’s iPhones revealed that he possessed over 1,500 images and over 150 video files depicting minors engaged in sexually explicit conduct. The images and videos included depictions of the sexual exploitation of prepubescent children.
Chief United States District Judge Glenn T. Suddaby will sentence Angwin on February 6, 2020. He faces at least 5 years and up to 20 years in prison for the distribution charge and up to 20 years in prison on the possession charge, a term of post-release supervision of at least 5 years and up to life, and a fine of up to $250,000. Angwin will also be required to register as a sex offender.
This case is being investigated by HSI Syracuse with assistance from the New York State Police Computer Crimes Unit, and the Oneida County Sheriff’s Office, and is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Geoffrey J. L. Brown.
This case is being prosecuted as part of Project Safe Childhood. Launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice, Project Safe Childhood is led by United States Attorneys’ Offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS), and is designed to marshal federal, state and local resources to better locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the Internet, as well as to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit https://www.justice.gov/psc.
Omaha Man Sentenced for Failure to Pay Withholding and F.I.C.A. TaxesRead the Press Release
United States Attorney Joe Kelly announced that United States District Court Judge Robert F. Rossiter, Jr. sentenced Rolley D. Bennett, Jr., age 53, of Omaha, Nebraska, to a jail term of 12 months and 1 day for the willful failure to pay withholding and F.I.C.A taxes. There is no parole in the federal system. Once released from prison, Bennett will begin a 3-year term of supervised release. Bennett was ordered to pay restitution in the amount of $31,576.19 to the Internal Revenue Service.
Bennett, while the controller of Diesel Power Equipment Company, headquartered in Omaha, during the period of 2013 and 2014, failed to pay approximately $879,000 in payroll trust fund taxes to the Internal Revenue Service.
Diesel Power was a business that engaged in the distribution and repair of diesel engines, generators, pumps, parts and accessories, primarily to the mining, railroad, industrial equipment, and agricultural irrigation industries. Bennett’s failure to make the payroll trust fund tax payments in 2013 and 2014 resulted in Diesel Power ultimately going out of business. Bennett took steps to willfully conceal the nonpayment of Diesel Power employment taxes including creating cash flow reports, which reported the employment tax liabilities had been paid and creating journal entries in the company’s general ledger, which accrued the employment tax liabilities and their associated payments.
“As the individual who controlled the finances, Mr. Bennett was entrusted to collect and turn over all IRS withholding taxes,” said Karl Stiften, Special Agent in Charge of IRS Criminal Investigation. “Failure to remit those employment taxes resulted in the loss of tax revenue to the government and the possible loss of future social security or Medicare benefits for the employees.”
This case was investigated by the Criminal Investigation Division of the Internal Revenue Service.
Ohio woman admits to using juvenile to sell methamphetamineRead the Press Release
WHEELING, WEST VIRGINIA – Alicia J. Evans, of Akron, Ohio, has admitted to a drug distribution charge, U.S. Attorney Bill Powell announced.
Evans, age 31, pled guilty to one count of “Using a Juvenile to Distribute Methamphetamine.” Evans admitted to using a minor to sell methamphetamine in August 2018 in Marshall County.
Evans faces up to 40 years incarceration and a fine of up to 21,000,000. 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.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Robert H. McWilliams, Jr., is prosecuting the case on behalf of the government. The Drug Enforcement Administration; the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives; the Marshall County Drug and Violent Crimes Task Force, a HIDTA-funded initiative; the West Virginia State Police; the Tyler County Sheriff’s Office; the Wetzel County Sheriff’s Office; the Sistersville Police Department; the Paden City Police Department; and the New Martinsville Police Department investigated. The Columbus, Ohio, Police Department Gang Crimes Unit assisted in the case.
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.
Senior U.S. District Judge Frederick P. Stamp, Jr. presided.
Norwalk Man Sentenced to Prison for Defrauding Service MemberRead the Press Release
John H. Durham, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, and Jeffery Thorpe, Special Agent in Charge of the Defense Criminal Investigative Service Cyber Field Office, today announced that CHRISTOPHER TEIXEIRA, 35, formerly of Darien and currently residing in Norwalk, was sentenced yesterday by U.S. District Judge Vanessa L. Bryant in Hartford to six months of imprisonment, followed by two years of supervised release, for stealing more than $57,000 from a former U.S. Navy service member.
According to court documents and statements made in court, the Defense Finance and Accounting Service (“DFAS”) is the agency of the U.S. Department of Defense that administers all payments to U.S. service members. DFAS operates the “MyPay” online portal, through which service members may provide and obtain information related to payments from DFAS.
A U.S. Navy service member (“the victim”) was scheduled to receive a medical severance payment from the Navy in January 2017. The victim provided his MyPay login and password information to Teixeira, who he trusted with certain financial responsibilities. On January 10, 2017, before the victim was to receive the medical severance payment, Teixeira changed the victim’s direct deposit information to a bank account controlled by Teixeira. DFAS then sent the victim’s $57,255.66 medical severance payment to Teixeira’s account. In order to avoid detection, Teixeira logged back into the victim’s MyPay account and reverted the direct deposit instructions back to the victim’s bank account.
Teixeira and the victim communicated after Teixeira stole the medical severance payment. Instead of admitting to the theft, Teixeira told the victim that he would assist in finding the money. When the victim indicated he was in need of funds, Teixeira transferred approximately $6,500 to the victim without telling him that Teixeira had stolen the money.
The investigation revealed that Teixeira also defrauded the Navy Federal Credit Union of $25,736.95 by taking out a personal loan and opening a credit card in the victim’s name.
Teixeira used the stolen funds to pay his own personal expenses, and transferred $25,000 to another individual’s account.
Judge Bryant ordered Teixeira to make full restitution to the victim and the Navy Federal Credit Union.
“Unauthorized access of Department of Defense networks and the victimization of American warfighters present significant risks to U.S. national security and Department of Defense operations, and DCIS special agents will aggressively hunt down and bring cyber criminals to justice,” said Jeffery Thorpe, Special Agent in Charge of the Defense Criminal Investigative Service Cyber Field Office. “This sentencing is the direct result of a joint investigative effort between DCIS and the Defense Finance and Accounting Service Criminal Investigations Branch to vigorously investigate individuals who illegally access Department of Defense networks and those that would exploit American warfighters that have served their country. We remain vigilant in our efforts to safeguard the integrity of the Department of Defense and its enterprise of information technology systems.”
On October 17, 2018, Teixeira pleaded guilty to one count of wire fraud.
Teixeira, who is released on bond, is required to report to prison on January 8, 2020.
This matter was investigated by the Defense Criminal Investigative Service and the Defense Finance and Accounting Service. The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Jennifer R. Laraia.
New Orleans Tax Preparer Charged with Filing False IRS ReturnRead the Press Release
NEW ORLEANS – DANIELLE FRANKLIN, age 28, and a resident of New Orleans, Louisiana, was indicted on October 3, 2019 by a federal grand jury for assisting in the preparation of a fraudulent tax return, announced U.S. Attorney Peter G. Strasser of the Eastern District of Louisiana.
As charged in the indictment, FRANKLIN prepared a false tax return in 2014 for a client of Cutting Edge Income Tax, located on Airline Drive in Metairie, Louisiana. As part of the scheme, FRANKLIN allegedly falsified the return by including fraudulent business losses when in fact the customer had zero losses and expenses.
An indictment merely alleges that crimes have been committed. The defendant is presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.
If convicted, FRANKLIN faces a maximum sentence of three years, one year of supervised release, and a $100,000 fine for aiding and assisting in the preparation of a fraudulent tax return.
U.S. Attorney Strasser commended the special agents of IRS-Criminal Investigation for their handling of the matter. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Edward J. Rivera.
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New Hampton Man Sentenced to over 15 Years in Federal Prison for Distributing and Possessing Child PornographyRead the Press Release
A man who distributed and possessed child pornography was sentenced today to over 15 years in federal prison.
William Rolen, age 57, of New Hampton, Iowa, received the sentence after an April 26, 2019, guilty plea to one count of distribution of child pornography and one count of possession of child pornography. Rolen also communicated with an undercover agent and planned to meet with a child and engage in sex acts, but he did not show up for the meetings.
Rolen was sentenced in Cedar Rapids by United States District Court Judge C.J. Williams. Rolen was sentenced to 188 months’ imprisonment. Special assessments of $10,200 were imposed, and Rolen must also serve a 5-year term of supervised release. He must comply with all sex offender registration and public notification requirements.
This case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Mark Tremmel and was investigated by the Iowa Division of Criminal Investigation, Homeland Security Investigations, the Eau Claire, Wisconsin, Police Department, the New Hampton Police Department, and the Chickasaw County Sheriff’s Office.
This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by the United States Attorneys’ Offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who sexually exploit children, and to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.usdoj.gov/psc. For more information about Internet safety education, please visit www.usdoj.gov/psc.
Court file information is available at https://ecf.iand.uscourts.gov/cgi-bin/login.pl. The case file number is CR 19-2014.
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Monroe County Resident Charged with Participating in a Romance and Investment Fraud Conspiracy Scheme that Targeted the ElderlyRead the Press Release
KEY WEST - A Monroe County resident was arrested on charges in connection with a romance and investment fraud scheme that targeted elderly victims throughout the United States, announced U.S. Attorney Ariana Fajardo Orshan of the Southern District of Florida and Special Agent in Charge Anthony Salisbury of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), Miami Field Office.
Sean Kerwin Bindranauth, 42, of Key West, Florida, was charged in a ten-count indictment with conspiracy to commit money laundering, eight counts of money laundering, and conducting an unlicensed money transmitting business (Case No. 19-cr-10016-JEM). If convicted, Bindranauth faces a maximum statutory sentence of twenty years in prison for the money laundering conspiracy, twenty years in prison for each money laundering count, five years in prison for unlicensed money transmitting, and a fine up to $500,000 or double the proceeds as to the money laundering conspiracy and a fine of up to $1,000,000 as to each money laundering count of conviction. The total loss amount is more than $900,000. Bindranauth had his initial appearance and arraignment on Sept. 27, 2019, and trial is set for Dec. 9, 2019, before U.S. District Judge Jose E. Martinez in Key West.
According to the indictment, from at least as early as February 2018 and continuing through May 2019, Bindranauth was part of a conspiracy that used investment and romance scams to induce victims to money via wire, personal checks, or cash to Bindranauth for a purported investment or promissory payment. Bindranauth would allegedly send the funds out of the United States to Nigeria through Western Union and MoneyGram as well as bank-to-bank transfers. Several of the victims are over 60 years old. Bindranauth and his co-conspirators were given a total of nearly $1 million from over a dozen senior citizens and other victims.
An indictment is a charging instrument containing allegations. A defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty in a court of law.
U.S. Attorney Fajardo Orshan commended the investigative efforts of HSI in this matter. This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Lindsey Lazopoulos Friedman.
Related court documents and information may be found on the website of the District Court for the Southern District of Florida at www.flsd.uscourts.gov or at http://pacer.flsd.uscourts.gov.
Minnesota Man Sentenced to More than 5 Years for Distributing Methamphetamine in Eau ClaireRead the Press Release
MADISON, WIS. - Scott C. Blader, United States Attorney for the Western District of Wisconsin, announced that Pheng Yang, 29, St. Paul, Minnesota, was sentenced yesterday by U.S. District Judge William M. Conley to 5½ years in federal prison for distributing methamphetamine in the Eau Claire, Wisconsin area between January 2018 and February 2019. On July 12, 2019, Yang pleaded guilty to possessing 500 or more grams of methamphetamine with intent to distribute.
Yang was arrested on February 4, 2019, during his attempted delivery of over 900 grams of methamphetamine to an informant in Eau Claire. At the sentencing, Judge Conley noted that notwithstanding the defendant’s lack of criminal history and addiction issues, he made a calculated decision to distribute more than 3 kilograms of methamphetamine into the Eau Claire area, which warranted a significant sentence.
The charge against the defendant was the result of an investigation conducted by the Drug Enforcement Administration, the West Central Drug Task Force, and the Wisconsin Department of Justice Division of Criminal Investigation. The United States also recognizes the assistance of the Eau Claire County District Attorney’s Office. The prosecution of the case has been handled by Assistant U.S. Attorney Meredith Duchemin.
Minneapolis Man Pleads Guilty to Wire Fraud, Child PornographyRead the Press Release
United States Attorney Erica MacDonald announced the guilty pleas of OTIS RAY MAYS, 26, to charges of wire fraud and receipt of child pornography. MAYS, who was charged in two separate indictments on March 12, 2019, entered his guilty plea on October 3, 2019, before Judge Eric C. Tostrud in U.S. District Court in St. Paul, Minnesota. A sentencing date for MAYS has not yet been scheduled.
According to the defendant’s guilty plea and documents filed in court, in May of 2017, a husband and wife went to the Hennepin County Government Center to seek advice about how to evict tenants from a rental property they owned. MAYS approached the couple and falsely stated that he was a lawyer and offered to help them with the eviction of tenants. MAYS later told the couple that their son, a college student, had downloaded to his computer videos that had been “pirated.” In exchange for a $305,000 payment to the owner of the rights in those videos, MAYS claimed he could resolve any legal difficulties arising from the allegedly pirated videos. The victim couple, at MAYS’s direction, purchased a $305,000 cashier’s check, payable to a Minneapolis lawyer, who in turn paid MAYS. MAYS also impersonated a lawyer on other occasions, and in total stole more than $340,000 from the victim couple.
According to the defendant’s guilty plea and documents filed in court, on November 20, 2017, and on December 1, 2017, MAYS transferred to his laptop computer a total of nine video files depicting a minor engaged in sexually explicit conduct.
These cases are the result of an investigation conducted by the FBI, the Bloomington Police Department, and the Richfield Police Department.
These cases are being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney John Docherty.
Defendant Information:
OTIS RAY MAYS, 26
Minneapolis, Minn.
Convicted:
- Wire fraud, 1 count
- Receipt of child pornography, 1 count
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United States Attorney’s Office, District of Minnesota: (612) 664-5600
Millstone Man Sentenced to 140 Months for Distribution of Cocaine and Possession of a FirearmRead the Press Release
PIKEVILLE, Ky.- A Millstone, Kentucky, man, who previously admitted to distributing cocaine and being a convicted felon in possession of a firearm, was sentenced Friday to 140 months in federal prison.
U.S. District Judge Robert E. Wier sentenced Charles Perry Jr, 56, for distributing cocaine and illegal possession of a firearm. Perry pleaded guilty June 7, 2019.
Under federal law, Perry must serve 85 percent of his prison sentence and will be under the supervision of the U.S. Probation Office for six years.
Robert M. Duncan, Jr., United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Kentucky; Tommy Estevan, Acting Special Agent in Charge, ATF Louisville Field Division; and Commissioner Richard Saunders, Kentucky State Police, jointly announced the sentence.
The investigation was conducted by ATF and KSP. The United States was represented by Assistant U.S. Attorney Jenna Reed.
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Michigan Man Sentenced for Coercion and Enticement of a Child in East TexasRead the Press Release
TYLER, Texas – A 22-year-old Harrison, Michigan man has been sentenced for child exploitation violations in the Eastern District of Texas, announced U.S. Attorney Joseph D. Brown today.
Daniel Wayne Little, II, pleaded guilty on May 13, 2019, to coercion and enticement of a child and was sentenced to 240 months in federal prison today by U.S. District Judge Jeremy D. Kernodle.
According to information presented in court, over a 10-month period between December 2016 and October 2017, Little pursued an inappropriate relationship with a 10-year-old child. Little used internet applications to find the victim and then sought sexually explicit images and videos from her, demanding specific images and videos and describing the sexual acts that he wanted to engage in with her. Little was indicted by a federal grand jury on Nov. 14, 2018.
This case was prosecuted as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice. Led by United States Attorneys’ Offices and the Criminal Division's Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS), Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state and local resources to better locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the Internet, as well as to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.projectsafechildhood.gov.
This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s Tyler Resident Agency and prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Nathaniel C. Kummerfeld.
Mexican National Indicted for Illegal Reentry following Angelina County Intoxication Manslaughter ConvictionRead the Press Release
BEAUMONT, Texas – A 41-year-old Mexican citizen has been indicted for immigration violations in the Eastern District of Texas, announced U.S. Attorney Joseph D. Brown today.
Vicente Gonzalez-Rico was named in an indictment returned by a federal grand jury on Oct. 2, 2019, charging him with unlawful reentry of a deported alien.
According to documents filed in court, on Jan. 26, 2017, was arrested for intoxication manslaughter for an incident which occurred on May 30, 2009 in Lufkin, Texas. While processing the defendant, it was discovered that he had previously been deported from the United States in 2005. Gonzalez-Rico was convicted of three counts of intoxication manslaughter in state district court in Lufkin, Texas and sentenced to 18 years in prison on Oct. 17, 2017.
If convicted, Gonzalez-Rico faces up to two years in federal prison and deportation.
This case is being investigated by the Department of Homeland Security/Enforcement Removal Operations and the Angelina County Sheriff’s Office and prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Randall L. Fluke.
It is important to note that an indictment should not be considered as evidence of guilt and that all persons charged with a crime are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.
Marijuana User Sentenced to over Two Years for Possessing Multiple HandgunsRead the Press Release
A man who illegally possessed three separate handguns during a one-year period was sentenced today to more than two years in federal prison.
Aquarias Tykee Madlock, age 19, from Waterloo, Iowa, received the prison term after a May 17, 2019, guilty plea to possession of a firearm by a drug user.
Evidence at sentencing showed Madlock possessed a Ruger SR9 9mm handgun in January 2018, a stolen .380 caliber Kel-Tec handgun in April 2018, and a Hi Point JCP .40 caliber semi-automatic handgun in November 2018. At the time he possessed these firearms, Madlock was a regular user of marijuana and was also involved in distributing marijuana.
Madlock was sentenced in Cedar Rapids by United States District Court Judge C.J. Williams. Madlock was sentenced to 30 months’ imprisonment. He must also serve a three-year term of supervised release after the prison term. There is no parole in the federal system.
This case was brought as part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN). PSN is the centerpiece of the Department of Justice’s violent crime reduction efforts. PSN is an evidence-based program proven to be effective at reducing violent crime. Through PSN, a broad spectrum of stakeholders work together to identify the most pressing violent crime problems in the community and develop comprehensive solutions to address them. As part of this strategy, PSN focuses enforcement efforts on the most violent offenders and partners with locally based prevention and reentry programs for lasting reductions in crime.
Madlock is being held in the United States Marshal’s custody until he can be transported to a federal prison.
The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Lisa C. Williams and was investigated by a Federal Task Force composed of the Waterloo Police Department, Federal Bureau of Investigation, and Bureau of Alcohol Tobacco and Firearms assisted by the Black Hawk County Sheriff’s Office and Cedar Falls Police Department.
Court file information at https://ecf.iand.uscourts.gov/cgi-bin/login.pl.
The case file number is 19-CR-2011.
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Man from Las Cruces, N.M., charged with impersonating deputy U.S. MarshalRead the Press Release
ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. – Aaron Tyler Stroud, 38, of Las Cruces, New Mexico, made his initial appearance in federal court in Las Cruces on Wednesday on a criminal complaint charging him with impersonating an officer of the United States.
According to the complaint, Stroud allegedly committed the offense in Doña Ana County, N.M., on September 29, 2019. He allegedly approached officers from the Las Cruces Police Department who were responding to a call from dispatch. Stroud allegedly provided the officers with a false name and told them he was a member of the U.S. Marshals Service from the El Paso sector. Stroud allegedly claimed he regularly patrolled the area. He was allegedly wearing a t-shirt with “U.S. Marshal” written on it and carrying a gun, radio, and badge with a six-point star.
Stroud is currently in custody awaiting preliminary and detention hearings scheduled for October 7. He faces up to three years in prison. A criminal complaint is only an accusation. A defendant is presumed innocent until proven guilty.
The U.S. Marshals Service investigated this case with the FBI and Las Cruces Police Department. Assistant U.S. Attorney Joni Stahl of the Las Cruces Branch Office is prosecuting the case.
Man Sentenced for Armed Robbery on the Omaha Nation Indian ReservationRead the Press Release
United States Attorney Joe Kelly announced that Manazheega Cleveland, age 20, was sentenced today by United States District Court Judge Robert F. Rossiter, Jr. to 54 months’ imprisonment for an armed robbery of the Pony Express gas station on the Omaha Nation Indian Reservation. Cleveland will also be on supervised release for a period of three years when he is released from prison.
When he was 18 years old, Cleveland entered the Pony Express gas station, along with a juvenile who brandished a shotgun at the store clerk, and demanded cash from the register. The store clerk complied and the two were able to get away on foot with just over $1,300. Cleveland will also be required to pay restitution for the stolen amount.
This case was investigated by the Omaha Nation Law Enforcement Services and the Federal Bureau of Investigation.
Man Pleads Guilty to Embezzling over $3 Million from EmployerRead the Press Release
ALEXANDRIA, Va. – A Maryland man pleaded guilty today to embezzling money from his employer, a Virginia business.
According to court documents, Reginald Zayas, 48, of Upper Marlboro, was the Controller at a Virginia-based company. Over the course of almost four years, Zayas embezzled approximately $3.2 million from the company. Zayas embezzled the money by unlawfully transferring funds from the company’s bank account to his own bank account, and he then often transferred the money from his account to others. Zayas used the laundered money to pay for his own personal expenses.
Zayas pleaded guilty to violating the Travel Act and faces a maximum penalty of five years in prison when sentenced on Jan. 31, 2020. 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, Timothy M. Dunham, Special Agent in Charge, Criminal Division, FBI Washington Field Office, and Jay N. Lerner, Inspector General of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC-OIG), made the announcement after Senior U.S. District Judge Claude M. Hilton accepted the plea. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Cristina Stam and William Fitzpatrick are prosecuting the case.
A copy of this press release is located on the website of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Virginia. Related court documents and information are located on the website of the District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia or on PACER by searching for Case No. 1:19-cr-297.
Lexington Man Sentenced to 82 Months for Trafficking Dangerous Fentanyl AnalogueRead the Press Release
LEXINGTON, Ky. – Lavonte Harmon, 33, of Lexington, was sentenced Thursday to 80 months in federal prison, by United States District Judge Danny C. Reeves, for possession with intent to distribute acetylfentanyl, a fentanyl analogue.
In December 2018, Lexington Police officer executed a search warrant on Harmon’s vehicle and residence, seizing 13 grams of acetylfentanyl, 17 grams of cocaine, $4,474 cash, and drug trafficking paraphernalia. In his plea agreement, Harmon admitted that he intended to distribute the drugs and agreed to forfeit the $4,474.
Under federal law, Harmon must serve 85 percent of his prison sentence and will be under the supervision of the U.S. Probation Office for five years following his release. Harmon will also have to pay a $1,500 fine, imposed by the court.
Robert M. Duncan, Jr., United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Kentucky; Daniel D. Dodds, Acting Special Agent in Charge of the DEA; and Lawrence Weathers, Chief of the Lexington Police Department, jointly announced the sentence.
The investigation was conducted by the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration and the Lexington Police Department. The United States was represented by Assistant U.S. Attorney David Kiebler.
This case was prosecuted as part of the Organized Crime and Drug Enforcement Task Force’s (OCDETF) Operation Synthetic Opioid Surge (SOS), a Department of Justice initiative designed to target trafficking of dangerous synthetic opioids.
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Lexington Man Indicted for Committing Series of Business RobberiesRead the Press Release
LEXINGTON, Ky.— A Lexington man was indicted Thursday for robbing several Lexington businesses.
A federal grand jury in Lexington returned an indictment charging 54-year-old Jackie B. Love with five counts of robbery.
The indictment alleges that Love robbed five different business around Fayette County on different occasions, from April 19-25, 2019. During these robberies, the indictment alleges Love unlawfully took, or attempted to take, personal property from the store clerk(s) against their will by means of actual and threatened force, violence, and fear of injury, by taking United States currency from the store when he threatened them with a firearm. Court documents allege that Love was able to take $1,255 collectively. The Lexington Police arrested Love on April 26, 2019.
Robert M. Duncan, Jr., United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Kentucky; Tommy Estevan, Acting Special Agent in Charge for ATF Louisville Field Division; and Chief Lawrence Weathers, Lexington Police Department, jointly announced the indictment.
The investigation preceding the indictment was conducted by ATF and Lexington Police Department. The indictment was presented to the grand jury by Assistant U.S. Attorney Cynthia Rieker.
A date for Love to appear in court has not yet been scheduled. He faces up to 20 years in prison, a maximum fine of $250,000, and three years of supervised release. However, any sentence following a conviction would be imposed by the Court after consideration of the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and the federal sentencing statutes.
Any indictment is an accusation only. A defendant is presumed innocent and is entitled to a fair trial at which government must prove guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.
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Lee County Offenders Collect More Than 78 Years in Federal Prison Sentences for Firearm, Drug OffensesRead the Press Release
GREENSBORO, N.C. – Since the beginning of 2019, federal judges have sentenced defendants with charges originating in Lee County, North Carolina, to an aggregate total of 942 months in federal prison, announced U.S. Attorney Matthew G.T. Martin for the Middle District of North Carolina.
In the most recent case, LEO VISTOR PERCELL, JR., age 43, of Sanford, North Carolina, was sentenced today by Senior United States District Judge N. Carlton Tilley, Jr. to 70 months imprisonment. PERCELL was also ordered to serve three years of supervised release. PERCELL pleaded guilty on July 10, 2019 to distributing fentanyl. Court records show that in March 2017, PERCELL sold seven grams of fentanyl, which he represented to be heroin, to an informant working with the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives and the Sanford Police Department.
“Our state and local law enforcement partners are working hand in hand with federal prosecutors and agents to improve public safety in Sanford and Lee County,” said U.S. Attorney Martin. “We will continue working together to implement data-driven Project Safe Neighborhood strategies to reduce violent crime by focusing on gun violators and other criminals in the area.”
Today’s sentencing is the most recent event in a series of cases resulting from a coordinated effort among federal, state, and local law enforcement intended to reduce violent and gun-related crime in Sanford and Lee County. At least 12 defendants from the area, including LEO PERCELL, have been sentenced for firearm or drug offenses in U.S. District Court for the Middle District of North Carolina in 2019. Several others have pleaded guilty and are scheduled to be sentenced before the end of the year. The cases from Sanford/Lee County which have been or are set for sentencing include the following:
• Jamar Lacobly Alston, 32, of Broadway, NC – pleaded guilty 8/1/19 to felon in possession of ammunition; sentencing scheduled for 11/7/19;
• Joshua Tajhai Brewington, 25, of Sanford -- pleaded guilty 8/8/19 to felon in possession of a firearm; sentencing scheduled for 10/28/19;
• Christopher Clamon Bridges, 31, of Sanford -- pleaded guilty 10/5/18 to felon in possession of ammunition; sentenced 1/29/19 to 18 months imprisonment, 3 years supervised release;
• Robert Bernard Fox, II, 19, of Sanford -- pleaded guilty 7/8/19 to receipt of a firearm by a person under indictment; sentenced 9/27/19 to 20 months imprisonment, 3 years supervised release;
• Jimanda Dwayne Gibbs, 43, of Sanford -- pleaded guilty 8/16/19 to felon in possession of a firearm; sentenced 8/16/19 to 30 months imprisonment, 3 years supervised release;
• Maurice Danjuan Gill, 44, of Sanford -- pleaded guilty 3/7/19 to distribution of cocaine base and possession of a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime; sentenced 6/21/19 to 117 months imprisonment, 5 years supervised release;
• Randy Ross Hunter, 41, of Sanford -- pleaded guilty 3/7/19 to felon in possession of a firearm; sentenced 6/21/19 to 180 months imprisonment, 5 years supervised release;
• Travon Emmanuel Jones, 28, of Sanford -- pleaded guilty 10/5/18 to possession with intent to distribute heroin and possession of a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime; sentenced 4/25/19 to 75 months imprisonment, 3 years supervised release;
• Dennis Minter, 36, of Sanford -- pleaded guilty 3/7/19 to distribution of cocaine base; sentenced 6/20/19 to 182 months imprisonment, 5 years supervised release;
• Everette Lee Petty, 55, of Sanford -- pleaded guilty 8/20/19 to possession of cocaine base; sentenced 9/6/19 to 120 months imprisonment, 3 years supervised release;
• Tiyon Nathan Turner, 22, of Sanford -- pleaded guilty 8/9/18 to felon in possession of a firearm and possession of marijuana; sentenced 2/11/19 to 130 months imprisonment, 5 years supervised release.
An additional defendant, DONTEZ LEVERT PERCELL, 28, of Sanford, was indicted April 29, 2019, on one count of distribution of heroin. That charge is still pending, and the defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty by admissible evidence in a court of law.
Each of these cases was investigated by one or more of these agencies: the Sanford Police Department, Lee County Sheriff’s Office, North Carolina State Highway Patrol, and Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. The cases were prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Rob A.J. Lang, Tanner L. Kroeger, Anand P. Ramaswamy, JoAnna M. McFadden, and Nicole R. DuPré of the Middle District of North Carolina.
These enforcement actions and partnerships are part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program bringing together all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve to reduce violent crime and make our neighborhoods safer for everyone. Attorney General Jeff Sessions 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 law enforcement and the local community to develop effective, locally based strategies to reduce violent crime. Learn more about Project Safe Neighborhoods.
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Las Vegas Sex Offender Sentenced to 20 Years in Prison for Possession of Child PornographyRead the Press Release
LAS VEGAS, Nev. – A 56-year-old Las Vegas man convicted of possessing over 600 images of child sexual abuse was sentenced today by U.S. District Judge James C. Mahan to the statutory maximum of 20 years in federal prison to be followed by a lifetime of supervised release, announced U.S. Attorney Nicholas A. Trutanich for the District of Nevada.
Following a one-day bench trial in April 2019, Gilbert Davila Jr. was convicted of one count of possession of child pornography. At the time of the offense, Davila had been previously convicted in California of Unlawful Sexual Intercourse with a Minor and Lewd Acts Upon a Child Under 14.
According to court documents and facts presented during the bench trial, in August and October 2017, the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC) received a report from an online email service provider in reference to possible child pornography uploaded by a user. The report was sent to the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department’s Internet Crimes Against Children (ICAC) Task Force, who in turn obtained a search warrant for information regarding the user who had uploaded the child pornography. The search warrant revealed that the user account contained more than 600 images depicting child sexual exploitation and child abuse. A search warrant was also executed at Davila’s home. Davila was interviewed after execution of the warrant and explained that he had been looking at child pornography for approximately four to five years. He also stated that he performed a factory reset on his phone on the way to the interview to delete all images and videos of child pornography saved to his phone, and that he threw the phone battery and SIM card out of the car window.
The case was investigated by the FBI and Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department. Assistant U.S. Attorney Elham Roohani prosecuted the case.
If you have information regarding possible child sexual exploitation, you are urged to make a report to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children at www.cybertipline.org.
This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by the United States Attorneys’ Offices and the Criminal Division's Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals, federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who sexually exploit children, and to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood and for information about internet safety education, visit www.usdoj.gov/psc.
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Las Vegas Man Admits Guilt in Counterfeit Credit Card Scheme that Resulted in $382K Loss in One MonthRead the Press Release
PITTSBURGH, PA - A former resident of Las Vegas, Nevada, pleaded guilty in federal court to a charge of conspiracy to commit access device fraud, United States Attorney Scott W. Brady announced today.
Yoandy Pou Torres, 38, pleaded guilty yesterday to one count before United States District Judge Cathy Bissoon.
In connection with the guilty plea, the court was advised that Pou Torres used counterfeit credit cards encoded with stolen bank account information to purchase MasterCard gift cards at Sam’s Club stores in the Pittsburgh area, as well as in Florida and California. During the month of December 2017, Pou Torres and his codefendant, Hector Podio Gutierrez, using an encoding device, created counterfeit credit cards, and then used the cards to make fraudulent gift card purchases totaling more than $382,000 at various Sam’s Club locations.
Judge Bissoon scheduled sentencing for January 28, 2020, at 10 a.m. The law provides for a total sentence of five years in prison, a fine of $250,000, or both. Under the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, the actual sentence imposed is based upon the seriousness of the offense and the prior criminal history, if any, of the defendant.
Pou Torres remains in custody pending sentencing. Podio Gutierrez is pending trial. The pair was arrested by West Mifflin Police at the Sam’s Club in West Mifflin, PA.
Assistant United States Attorney Carolyn J. Bloch is prosecuting this case on behalf of the government.
The United States Postal Inspection Service and the United States Secret Service conducted the investigation that led to the prosecution of Pou Torres.
Laredoan Admits to Transporting 71 AliensRead the Press Release
LAREDO, Texas – A 35-year-old resident of Laredo has entered a guilty plea to conspiring to transport aliens, announced U.S. Attorney Ryan K. Patrick.
On July 8, John Bryan Meredith drove a tractor-trailer to the Border Patrol Checkpoint on Highway 83 near Laredo. Soon after, a K-9 alerted to the presence of concealed humans and/or narcotics within the trailer. At secondary inspection, the K-9 alerted again.
Authorities then removed a seal and opened the rear doors of the trailer which revealed several people, all determined to be in the United States illegally. Those included a total of 71 subjects - 36 Mexicans, 21 Guatemalans, six Salvadorans, five Hondurans and three Brazilians - two of whom were unaccompanied juveniles. In addition, law enforcement also recovered a total of $7,300 hidden inside the gearshift box as well as eight additional seals and seven cellular telephones in the sleeper area of the truck.
Meredith claimed a friend had asked him to drive a tractor-trailer with a load of transmissions to Uvalde, where another driver would meet him. Meredith also stated his friend had already placed the seal on the trailer by the time he arrived.
However, further investigation revealed Meredith had bought the tractor himself and rented the trailer. The investigation revealed he had driven the same tractor and trailer past the Highway 83 checkpoint seven times between May 21, and July 8.
U.S. District Judge Marina Garcia-Marmolejo will impose sentencing Jan. 27, 2020. At that time, Meredith faces up to 10 years in federal prison and a possible $250,000 fine.
Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigation and Customs and Border Protection conducted the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney Michael Bukiewicz is prosecuting the case.
Justice Department Teams up with AARP and the Oak Ridge Boys to Launch Public Service Announcement to Raise Awareness about Fraud Schemes Targeting Older AmericansRead the Press Release
The Department of Justice today unveiled a new public service announcement (PSA) created in collaboration with AARP and the Oak Ridge Boys.
In announcing the launch of the video and accompanying social media campaign, Assistant Attorney General Jody Hunt of the Department of Justice’s Civil Division issued the following statement:
“Fraudsters are targeting and stealing billions of dollars from unsuspecting Americans every year. In order to fight this epidemic, Americans must report fraud schemes and spread the word among their families and friends. I want to thank AARP’s Fraud Watch Network and the Oak Ridge Boys for working with us to fight this critical issue. Through increased awareness and reporting, the Department of Justice can continue to take swift action to end the victimization of vulnerable elderly Americans across the country.”
“Americans are targeted by fraudsters from all over the world,” said U.S. Attorney Trent Shores of the Northern District of Oklahoma. “The scams run by con artists can wreck the financial security of retired Americans. A threat to one’s hard earned savings is a threat to one’s liberty. I am proud to stand with AARP and the Oak Ridge Boys to educate and empower elder Americans to defend themselves against fraudsters.”
“Helping people spot the signs of a scam is key to helping them avoid becoming victims,” said Kathy Stokes, director of fraud prevention programs, AARP. “And encouraging people to report scam attempts and victimization will help others know what to look for, and it will help the good guys in their efforts to go after the bad guys.”
“The Oak Ridge Boys are honored to bring awareness to elder fraud and abuse. For too long people have taken advantage of our senior citizens, and we are teaming up with the Department of Justice and the AARP Fraud Watch Network to help you and your loved ones stay safe from scammers,” said Duane Allen of the Oak Ridge Boys.
"So happy to see the Department of Justice and AARP stepping up to address this problem of elder fraud abuse. We are honored to be stepping up with you. Everyone is susceptible via phone or online, but the elderly are often the targets and victims of identity thieves and scammers. The Oak Ridge Boys are honored to lend our name and image to this worthy cause,” said Joe Bonsall of the Oak Ridge Boys.
If you or a family member, friend, or colleague have been a victim of a fraud scheme, please report to www.aarp.org/fraudwatchnetwork. Information about the Department of Justice’s Elder Fraud Initiative is available at www.justice.gov/elderjustice.
View the PSA here.
Justice Department Teams up with AARP and the Oak Ridge Boys to Launch Public Service Announcement to Raise Awareness about Fraud Schemes Targeting Older AmericansRead the Press Release
The Department of Justice today unveiled a new public service announcement (PSA) created in collaboration with AARP and the Oak Ridge Boys.
In announcing the launch of the video and accompanying social media campaign, Assistant Attorney General Jody Hunt of the Department of Justice’s Civil Division issued the following statement:
“Fraudsters are targeting and stealing billions of dollars from unsuspecting Americans every year. In order to fight this epidemic, Americans must report fraud schemes and spread the word among their families and friends. I want to thank AARP’s Fraud Watch Network and the Oak Ridge Boys for working with us to fight this critical issue. Through increased awareness and reporting, the Department of Justice can continue to take swift action to end the victimization of vulnerable elderly Americans across the country.”
“Americans are targeted by fraudsters from all over the world,” said U.S. Attorney Trent Shores of the Northern District of Oklahoma. “The scams run by con artists can wreck the financial security of retired Americans. A threat to one’s hard earned savings is a threat to one’s liberty. I am proud to stand with AARP and the Oak Ridge Boys to educate and empower elder Americans to defend themselves against fraudsters.”
“Helping people spot the signs of a scam is key to helping them avoid becoming victims,” said Kathy Stokes, director of fraud prevention programs, AARP. “And encouraging people to report scam attempts and victimization will help others know what to look for, and it will help the good guys in their efforts to go after the bad guys.”
“The Oak Ridge Boys are honored to bring awareness to elder fraud and abuse. For too long people have taken advantage of our senior citizens, and we are teaming up with the Department of Justice and the AARP Fraud Watch Network to help you and your loved ones stay safe from scammers,” said Duane Allen of the Oak Ridge Boys.
"So happy to see the Department of Justice and AARP stepping up to address this problem of elder fraud abuse. We are honored to be stepping up with you. Everyone is susceptible via phone or online, but the elderly are often the targets and victims of identity thieves and scammers. The Oak Ridge Boys are honored to lend our name and image to this worthy cause,” said Joe Bonsall of the Oak Ridge Boys.
If you or a family member, friend, or colleague have been a victim of a fraud scheme, please report to www.aarp.org/fraudwatchnetwork. Information about the Department of Justice’s Elder Fraud Initiative is available at www.justice.gov/elderjustice.
View the PSA here.
Johnstown Man Sentenced to 60 Months on Heroin and Fentanyl ConvictionRead the Press Release
ALBANY, NEW YORK – Victor M. Diaz, age 30, of Johnstown, New York, was sentenced today to 60 months in prison, to be followed by 4 years of supervised release, for possessing and intending to distribute more than 100 grams of heroin mixed with fentanyl.
The announcement was made by United States Attorney Grant C. Jaquith; Special Agent in Charge Ray Donovan, U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), New York Division; and City of Amsterdam Police Chief Gregory J. Culick.
On March 7, 2019, DEA agents and other law enforcement officers executed a federal warrant at Diaz’s Johnstown residence. They found him home, alone, and sitting near a suitcase containing 1,740 small glassine bags. The bags contained a total of approximately 89 grams of heroin mixed with fentanyl. Additionally, law enforcement found, in a plastic container, an additional 53.5 grams of heroin mixed with fentanyl. In pleading guilty, Diaz admitted that he intended to sell these drugs.
This case was investigated by the DEA and the Amsterdam Police Department, with assistance from the New York State Police and the Gloversville Police Department, and was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Michael Barnett.
Informational: Federal Court arraignmentsRead the Press Release
The U.S. Attorney’s Office announced that the following persons were arraigned or appeared this week before U.S. Magistrate judges on indictments handed down by the Grand Jury or on criminal complaints. The charging documents are merely accusations and defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty:
Appearing in Great Falls before U.S. Magistrate Judge John T. Johnston and pleading not guilty on Oct. 3 was:
Susan Kaytlin Scott, 52, of Shelby, on charges of false statement during a firearms transaction and transfer of a handgun to a juvenile. If convicted of the serious crime, Scott faces a maximum 10 years in prison, a $250,000 fine and three years of supervised release. Scott was released pending further proceedings. The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and the Toole County Sheriff’s Office investigated the case. Pacer case reference. 19-69.
Dylan Jace Arrow Top Knot, 19, of Browning, on charges of assault resulting in serious bodily injury. If convicted of the most serious crime, Arrow Top Knot faces a maximum 10 years in prison, a $250,000 fine and three years of supervised release. Arrow Top Knot was released pending further proceedings. The Bureau of Indian Affairs and Blackfeet Law Enforcement Services investigated the case. Pacer case reference. 19-67.
Appearing in Missoula before U.S. Magistrate Judge Kathleen L. DeSoto and pleading not guilty on Oct. 1 was:
Bradley Scott Lane, 37, of Missoula, on charges of conspiracy to possess methamphetamine, possession with intent to distribute meth and distribution of meth. If convicted of the most serious crime, Lane faces a minimum mandatory five years to 40 years in prison, a $5 million fine and at least four years of supervised release. Lane was released pending further proceedings. The Drug Enforcement Administration, Homeland Security Investigations and Missoula Police Department investigated the case. Pacer case reference. 19-39.
Adrian Hernandez Altamirano, aka Candelario Hernandez Altamirano, 42, of Mexico, on charges of illegal re-entry. If convicted of the most serious crime, Altamirano faces a maximum two years in prison, a $250,000 fine and three years of supervised release. Altamirano was detained pending further proceedings. The Bozeman Police Department and Department of Homeland Security investigated the case. Pacer case reference. 19-22.
Gerald Allen Hiler, 47, of Helena, and Morgan Victor Pitsch, 25, of Helena, on charges of conspiracy to commit robbery affecting commerce, robbery affecting commerce and brandishing firearm in furtherance of a crime of violence. If convicted of the most serious crime, Hiler and Pitsch face a maximum 20 years in prison, a $250,000 fine and five years of supervised release. Hiler and Pitsch were detained pending further proceedings. The FBI and the Missouri River Drug Task Force investigated the case. Pacer case reference. 19-6.
If any of the above cases are of interest to your media organization and the community it serves, we encourage you to monitor the progress of the case regularly through the U.S. District Court calendar and the PACER system.
To establish a PACER account, which will allow you to review documents filed in the case, please go to, http://www.pacer.gov/register.html. To access the district court’s calendar, please go to https://ecf.mtd.uscourts.gov/cgi-bin/PublicCalendar.pl.
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Independence Man Sentenced for Distributing Child PornographyRead the Press Release
KANSAS CITY, Mo. – An Independence, Missouri, man was sentenced in federal court today for distributing child pornography over the internet.
Bradley Edward Vader, 66, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Brian C. Wimes to nine years and seven months in federal prison without parole. The court also ordered Vader to pay a $25,000 fine.
Vader, who pleaded guilty on May 1, 2019, was actively sharing videos of child pornography over the internet through a peer-to-peer file-sharing network. Vader admitted that he had accessed Russian websites and peer-to-peer programs to acquire child pornography. He burned many of these child pornography video files to approximately 61 DVDs.
According to court documents, Vader amassed a voluminous collection of child pornography over the last decade. A search of his home yielded a computer, hard drive, jump drives, and 61 DVDs containing child pornography, some created as far back as April 2007. Of these 61 DVDs, the file lengths ranged from 53 minutes to over four hours. These files included videos of children as young as eight years old being sexually abused.
This case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Patrick D. Daly. It was investigated by the Missouri State Highway Patrol.
Project Safe Childhood
This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by the United States Attorneys' Offices and the Criminal Division's Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who sexually exploit children, and to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.usdoj.gov/psc . For more information about Internet safety education, please visit www.usdoj.gov/psc and click on the tab "resources."Illinois Man Sentenced for Stealing Uber Driver's CarRead the Press Release
St. Louis, MO – Robert W. Rives, 37, of New Baden, IL, was sentenced to 82 months in prison for carjacking and using a firearm during a crime of violence. Rives appeared today before U.S. District Judge Rodney W. Sippel.
According to the plea agreement, on October 3, 2018 in the City of St. Louis, Rives was a passenger in a Chevy Impala vehicle which had immediately turned in front of a Mitsubishi vehicle and stopped. Rives exited the passenger side and approached the driver of the Mitsubishi vehicle who was driving for UBER Eats making a delivery. He produced a firearm and demanded the driver to give him his vehicle. The victim complied and Rives then entered the victim’s Mitsubishi and drove off following the Impala. Numerous items in the stolen car included a Rock River AR-15 rifle and two handguns.
Later that day, Rives was arrested in the same type of vehicle he had stolen and officers recovered the AR-15 rifle and handguns.
The Saint Louis Metropolitan Police Department and Federal Bureau of Investigation investigated this case.
Husband and wife charged with tax evasionRead the Press Release
HOUSTON – Two people have been charged with aiding and abetting each another in the evasion of $3.5 million in diverted corporate income, announced U.S. Attorney Ryan K. Patrick along with acting IRS – Criminal Investigation (CI) Special Agent in Charge Ramsey Covington.
Asim Lodhi and wife Naila Lodhi are expected to make their initial appearances before U.S. Magistrate Judge Christina Bryan today.
The indictment, returned Sept. 10, alleges the Lodhis owned and operated U. S. Loss Prevention Inc. and Vanguard Detective & Security Agency, Inc. The company provided contract security services for commercial clients in the Houston and Dallas/Fort Worth metropolitan areas. The indictment alleges from during 2008 through 2011, the couple diverted and cashed approximately $3.5 million in client fee checks through two local check cashing services. The checks should have been deposited directly into the corporate bank accounts and disclosed to their accountants as taxable sales, according to the charges.
When necessary, Asim and Naila Lodhi allegedly later deposited approximately $2.5 million in proceeds of the check cashing activity into their personal and corporate accounts to pay corporate and living expenses. However, they described these delayed cash deposits to their accountants as non-taxable loans from friends rather than taxable sales according to the indictment. .
The charges allege that when their corporate and personal tax returns came under investigation in 2013, the Lodhis hired new accountants. These people then allegedly proposed amendments that would have converted the “loan deposits” made to the corporate accounts into taxable sales, profits and dividends. However, the defendants did not reveal approximately $1 million in diverted cash that was not deposited to any account and remained a secret, according to the charges.
The indictment further alleges the deception continued into 2014 when they made misleading statements to the IRS.
If convicted, Asim and Naila Lodhi face a maximum of five years in federal prison on each count as well as a possible $250,000 maximum fine.
IRS-CI conducted the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney Jimmy Sledge Jr. is prosecuting the case.
An indictment is a formal accusation of criminal conduct, not evidence.
A defendant is presumed innocent unless convicted through due process of law.Houston Man Pleads Guilty for Leading Interstate Marijuana Trafficking ConspiracyRead the Press Release
PORTLAND, Ore.—On Wednesday, October 2, 2019, Jody Tremayne Wafer, 30, of Houston, Texas, pleaded guilty for organizing and leading a conspiracy to traffic marijuana grown in Portland to Texas.
According to court documents, drug proceeds, in the form of bulk U.S. currency, were returned to Oregon via U.S. mail and passenger luggage on commercial airlines. As part of this investigation, federal authorities have seized approximately 11,000 marijuana plants, 546 pounds of processed marijuana, more than $2.8 million in cash, 51 firearms, 26 vehicles, trailers, pieces of heavy equipment, a yacht, and three houses used as marijuana grow sites, all since August 2017.
Wafer pleaded guilty to one count each of conspiring to manufacture, possess with intent to distribute, and distribute marijuana, maintaining drug-involved premises and using and carrying a firearm during and in relation to a drug trafficking crime.
Conspiring to manufacture, possess with intent to distribute, and distribute marijuana and maintaining drug involved premises carries a maximum sentence of 40 years in prison, a $5 million fine and a lifetime of supervised release. Using or carrying a firearm in relation to a drug trafficking crime carries a maximum sentence of life in prison with a mandatory minimum of seven years, a $250,000 fine and five years’ supervised release.
Wafer will be sentenced on January 8, 2010 before U.S. District Court Judge Robert E. Jones.
As part of his plea agreement, Wafer has agreed to forfeit any criminally-derived proceeds and property used to facilitate his crimes identified by the government prior to sentencing.
Co-defendants Trent Lamar Knight, 31, and Brittany Lesanta Kizzee, 29, also of Houston; Paul Eugene Thomas, 39, and Raleigh Dragon Lau, 33, both of Portland; and Cole William Griffiths, 31, of Hood River, Oregon have all pleaded guilty on related charges. Knight and Kizzee with be sentenced on October 22, 2019 and January 7, 2020, respectively; Lau and Thomas will be sentenced on December 10 and 18, 2019, respectively; and Griffiths will be sentenced on November 20, 2019.
This case was investigated by the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration, IRS Criminal Investigation, Homeland Security Investigations and the FBI. It is being prosecuted by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Oregon.
This case was brought as part of the Justice Department’s Organized Crime and Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF) program, the centerpiece of the department’s strategy for reducing the availability of drugs in the U.S. OCDETF was established in 1982 to mount a comprehensive attack on drug trafficking by disrupting and dismantling major drug trafficking and money laundering organizations. Today, OCDETF combines the resources and expertise of its member federal agencies in coordination with state and local law enforcement.
Hazelwood Man Sentenced for Robbing Florissant Subway at GunpointRead the Press Release
St. Louis - Alonzo Payne, 37, of Hazelwood, was sentenced today to 144 months in prison by United States District Judge Rodney W. Sippel. The sentence follows Payne’s July 3, 2019 guilty plea to one count of Interfering with Commerce by Threats or Violence and one count of Brandishing a Firearm in Furtherance of a Crime of Violence. The charges stemmed from a December 21, 2018 robbery of a Subway restaurant in Florissant, Missouri.
According to court documents, Payne entered the Subway restaurant in Grandview Plaza in Florissant and asked to be directed to the restroom. Instead of entering the restroom, Payne entered an “employees only” food preparation area and brandished a handgun, demanding cash. Two employees, 17 and 18 years old, complied with his demands and emptied the cash register. One of the two managed to enable the video camera on his/her cellular telephone and captured a recording of the incident. After Payne fled with an undetermined amount of cash, the employees called 911 and the Subway’s manager. Florissant Police arrived and reviewed the recording. The Subway manager recognized the voice on the recording as belonging to “Lonnie,” the boyfriend of a former Subway employee.
After several days of searching, Florissant Police located Payne at his girlfriend’s residence in Hazelwood. Payne left the residence in a vehicle, at which time Florissant Police conducted a traffic stop. Payne was sitting on a handgun at the time of the stop. Payne was on parole to the State of Missouri for burglary at the time he committed his crimes.
Following today’s sentence, United States Attorney Jeffrey B. Jensen stated, “Mr. Payne is a dangerous repeat offender who continues to illegally possess firearms and victimize other citizens. We will continue to work with our important local partners like the Florissant Police Department to prosecute aggressively any person who commits a violent crime, particularly one involving a firearm.”
Florissant Police Chief Timothy Fagan commended the Subway employees who provided crucial evidence during the investigation. “Importantly, these young employees did not resist Mr. Payne and complied with his demands. At the same time, they had the presence of mind to secure vital evidence that assisted greatly in identifying Mr. Payne as a suspect. Law enforcement depends upon the continued cooperation of citizens like these two young people in our efforts to locate and arrest violent offenders.”
This case was investigated by the Florissant Police Department.
Harrison County man admits to firearms chargeRead the Press Release
CLARKSBURG, WEST VIRGINIA – Jamie Allen Butcher, of Shinnston, West Virginia, has admitted to a firearms charge, United States Attorney Bill Powell announced.
Butcher, age 48, pled guilty to one count of “Aiding and Abetting Possession of a Stolen Firearm.” Butcher admitted to having a stolen .45 caliber pistol in June 2018 in Lewis County.
Butcher faces up to 10 years incarceration and a fine of up to $250,000. Under the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, the actual sentence imposed will be based upon the seriousness of the offenses and the prior criminal history, if any, of the defendant.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Brandon S. Flower is prosecuting the case on behalf of the government. The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, the West Virginia State Police, and the Weston Police Department investigated.
U.S. Magistrate Judge Michael John Aloi presided.
Fugitive extradited from Mexico to the United States to face federal racketeering charges allegedly involving Syndicato de Nuevo Mexico prison gangRead the Press Release
ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. – Angel DeLeon, 41, a Mexican national, made his initial appearance in federal court in Albuquerque, New Mexico today after being extradited from Mexico on a racketeering charge involving alleged violent criminal conduct by the Syndicato de Nuevo Mexico (SNM) prison gang.
DeLeon was one of 30 defendants charged in an indictment and two superseding indictments alleging the defendants violated federal racketeering and other laws by committing various crimes as members, prospects, and associates of SNM, a racketeering enterprise. According to these indictments, SNM is a powerful and violent prison gang formed soon after a deadly riot at the Penitentiary of New Mexico in 1980. SNM has allegedly controlled drug distribution and other illegal activities within the New Mexico prison system and engaged in street-level narcotics trafficking.
In particular, a second superseding indictment returned by a federal grand jury on March 9, 2017, accused DeLeon and four co-defendants of allegedly participated in the murder of a person identified as “F.C.” for the purpose of gaining entrance to and maintaining and increasing their positions with SNM.
DeLeon is currently in custody pending a detention hearing scheduled to be scheduled for next week. He faces up to life in prison if convicted of the charged offense. An indictment is only an allegation and a defendant is presumed innocent until proven guilty. All of the other defendants charged in the indictments have either proceeded to trial or pleaded guilty.
The Albuquerque Division of the FBI investigated this case with the New Mexico Corrections Department and the New Mexico State Police. Assistant U.S. Attorneys from the Las Cruces Branch Office are prosecuting the case.
Fraudsters Sentenced for Standby Letters of Credit SchemeRead the Press Release
ALEXANDRIA, Va. – A Michigan man was sentenced today to 10 years in prison for his role in running an advanced fee scheme involving phony Standby Letters of Credit supposedly issued by European banks. His co-defendant, also from Michigan, was sentenced to a lesser term.
According to court documents, Samuel John Abraham, 62, of Novi, and Kenneth Ross Thomas, 52, of Westland, conspired to defraud individuals and businesses desperate for credit by promising to arrange substantial lines of credit from European banks. In exchange for an up-front deposit of approximately $150,000 into an escrow account, Abraham, operating as Advanced Funding Group, using aliases such as “J. Samuel Ibrahim” and “Jamal S. Ibrahim,” and also posing as an attorney calling himself “John Wynn,” claimed that he could “lease” for clients a Standby Letter of Credit (SBLC) from a European Bank in the “face amount” of approximately $100 million. Of this large sum, clients were promised they could simply keep approximately $20 million as a “non-recourse loan.” A supposed “monetizer” would then use the remainder of the funds over the course of the year-long lease of the SBLC in order to engage in lucrative overseas trades (also known as “platform trading”), which would supposedly generate profits sufficient to repay the entire SBLC.
As part of the scheme, clients were directed to wire money to Escrow Agent Kenneth Thomas of “K. Thomas and Company Escrow Services.” In reality, the money was wired to the personal checking account of Kenneth Thomas, who was not an escrow agent, and who acted as Abraham’s chauffeur. Thomas promptly provided most of the money to Abraham. According to the Superseding Indictment, Abraham then spent large sums of the money gambling at the Motor City Casino in Detroit, and on vehicles and a condominium. According to the Superseding Indictment, Abraham took in approximately $1.2 million in proceeds from the fraud. Victims resided in Virginia, Arizona, Nevada, Wisconsin, Alaska, New York, South Dakota, Peru, Australia, and other locations.
Standby Letters of Credit, as marketed by the defendants, do not exist and have long been the subject of public service announcements by the FBI and the Securities and Exchange Commission. Abraham has a prior federal conviction and also a permanent injunction entered against him by the SEC for operating the same scheme.
G. Zachary Terwilliger, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia, and Timothy M. Dunham, Special Agent in Charge, Criminal Division, FBI Washington Field Office, made the announcement after sentencing by U.S. District Judge Leonie M. Brinkema. Special Assistant Russell L. Carlberg and Assistant U.S. Attorney Kimberly R. Pedersen are prosecuting the case.
A copy of this press release is located on the website of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Virginia. Related court documents and information are located on the website of the District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia or on PACER by searching for Case No. 1:19-cr-111.
Former online brokerage employee sentenced to prison for wire fraudRead the Press Release
Seattle – A former Washington State football player who had brief stints with two NFL teams was sentenced today to one year in prison for his kickback scheme that defrauded his employer of $1.5 million. AUGUSTINE OLOBIA, 49, of Hurst, Texas, pleaded guilty in April 2019 to wire fraud, admitting he took kickbacks for falsifying data on account referrals while he was employed at ShareBuilder. At the sentencing hearing, U.S. District Judge Robert S. Lasnik told him, “You made a severe mistake… You were taking too much pride in things that didn’t matter.”
According to records filed in the case, OLOBIA worked at ShareBuilder in Seattle from 1999 to 2013. OLOBIA was responsible for managing the third-party vendors who advertised ShareBuilder’s services. Those vendors were paid on a “bounty system.” For example, ShareBuilder paid Tega Creative $40-$55 per account that was opened after a customer opened a brokerage account at ShareBuilder as a result of Tega Creative’s marketing efforts. OLOBIA manipulated data in ShareBuilder’s computer system to vastly inflate the number of account openings attributable to Tega Creative’s marketing. Then he approved invoices issued by Tega Creative that were based on the inflated numbers. For example in 2007, Tega Creative was credited with about 2,000 account openings. In 2008, as a result of the fraud, Tega Creative was credited with 10,000 account openings. OLOBIA was secretly paid about one-third of the gross monthly payment from ShareBuilder to Tega Creative. The loss to ShareBuilder’s owner, Capital One, is estimated at more than $1.5 million.
The scheme was uncovered when OLOBIA left ShareBuilder and other employees tried to reconcile the number of accounts attributed to Tega Creative.
In asking for the prison sentence, prosecutors noted that OLOBIA had a fortunate upbringing as a child in Nigeria, and later as a member of the Nigerian Olympic team. He was a recruited athlete at a university in Houston and later as a football player at WSU. He graduated with a degree in business administration and held a number of good jobs. Despite those advantages, OLOBIA engaged in a fraud that lasted about five years and cost his employer $1.5 million.
In addition to the prison term, Judge Lasnik ordered OLOBIA to forfeit $500,000 – the amount he gained from the scheme. Restitution will be determined at a hearing on December 6, 2019.
The case was investigated by the FBI. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Michael Dion.
Former Salesman Pleads Guilty in Scheme to Defraud Elderly Victims in the Sale of Worthless StockRead the Press Release
Geoffrey S. Berman, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, announced today that VLADIMIR ZISKIND pled guilty to participating in a scheme to target elderly persons to solicit purchases of stock in a series of valueless companies through a variety of lies and misrepresentations. ZISKIND pled guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit securities fraud and one count of securities fraud before U.S. District Judge Vernon S. Broderick.
Manhattan U.S. Attorney Geoffrey S. Berman said: “Vladimir Ziskind callously preyed on elderly victims, cold-calling them with a time-sensitive offer to purchase an ‘IPO’ of a company that was ‘doing great.’ In reality, the companies for which Ziskand purported to be selling IPOs were under his control, and there was zero legitimate investment opportunity for his victims. Ziskand has admitted to his scheme, which netted over $2 million, and now faces a prison term for his lies.”
According to the allegations contained in the Complaint, the Indictment, and statements made in related court filings and proceedings:[1]
For several years, ZISKIND and his co-defendants operated a fraudulent scheme in which a salesman named “Mike Palmer” would call elderly persons on the phone and offer them what he claimed was a time-sensitive opportunity to buy stock in certain companies. In fact, there was no “Mike Palmer,” and the salesman was actually ZISKIND or co-defendant Kevin Weinzoff, who were taking turns using the fake alias. The purported time-sensitive investment opportunity was also fabricated by the defendants, as the companies in which they solicited investments were actually companies under their control. In one intercepted phone call conversation, ZISKIND described to co-defendant Keith Orlean, the chief executive officer of the company, his strategy for a successful investor sales pitch as: “You ram it down their fucking throat.” In another intercepted call between ZISKIND and Orlean, upon learning that a particular victim investor died, ZISKIND remarked: “I knew I should have pulled the last $10,000 out of him.”
The most recent version of the defendants’ phony sales pitch included false representations about an impending initial public offering, or “IPO,” for their company, Digital Donations Technologies, Inc. For example, in April 2018, ZISKIND assured a victim investor that “our company is doing great,” that the company had an offer for an IPO valued at approximately $300 million, and that Orlean was considering a private sale of the company for more than $1.5 billion. In truth, however, the defendants knew that the company had little or no actual commercial value and that no such IPO or sale was taking place.
The Federal Bureau of Investigation (“FBI”) estimates that since April 2014, the defendants have convinced more than approximately 50 elderly persons to purchase stock in companies controlled by one or more of the defendants based on false representations. The defendants appear to have solicited more than $2 million in stock purchases from victims.
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ZISKIND, 51, of Brooklyn, New York, pled guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit securities fraud, which carries a maximum penalty of five years in prison, and one count of securities fraud, which carries a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison. The maximum potential sentences in this case are prescribed by Congress and are provided here for informational purposes only, as any sentencing of the defendant will be determined by the judge.
ZISKIND is scheduled to be sentenced by Judge Broderick on January 16, 2020, at 2:30 p.m.
Mr. Berman praised the outstanding work of the FBI.
The prosecution of this case is being overseen by the Office’s Securities and Commodities Fraud Task Force. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Robert L. Boone and Andrew Thomas are in charge of the case.
[1] As for the defendants who have pled not guilty, the description of the charges set forth herein constitute only allegations.