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Newest first across public DOJ and U.S. Attorney press releases.
Monday 30 September 2019
Former Yahoo Software Engineer Pleads Guilty to Using Work Access to Hack into Yahoo Users’ Personal AccountsRead the Press Release
SAN JOSE – Reyes Daniel Ruiz pleaded guilty in federal court in San Jose today to hacking into the accounts of thousands of Yahoo users in search of private and personal records, primarily sexual images and videos of the account holders, announced United States Attorney David L. Anderson and Federal Bureau of Investigation Special Agent in Charge John F. Bennett.
In pleading guilty, Ruiz, a former Yahoo software engineer, admitted to using his access through his work at the company to hack into about 6,000 Yahoo accounts. Ruiz cracked user passwords, and accessed internal Yahoo systems to compromise the Yahoo accounts. Ruiz admitted to targeting accounts belonging to younger women, including his personal friends and work colleagues. He made copies of images and videos that he found in the personal accounts without permission, and stored the data at his home. Once he had access to the Yahoo accounts, Ruiz admitted to compromising the iCloud, Facebook, Gmail, DropBox, and other online accounts of the Yahoo users in search of more private images and videos. After his employer observed the suspicious account activity, Ruiz admitted to destroying the computer and hard drive on which he stored the images.
Ruiz, 34, of Tracy, California, was indicted by a federal Grand Jury on April 4, 2019. He was charged with one count of Computer Intrusion, in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 1030(a)(2)(C), and one count of Interception of a Wire Communication, in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 2511(1)(a) and (4)(a). Under the plea agreement, pled guilty to the count of Computer Intrusion.
Ruiz is currently on release pursuant to the conditions of an unsecured $200,000 bond.
Ruiz’s sentencing hearing is scheduled for February 3, 2020 at 1:30 p.m. before The Honorable Edward J. Davila, U.S. District Court Judge, in San Jose. The maximum statutory penalty for each count in violation of Computer Intrusion, 18 U.S.C. § 1030(a)(2)(C), is five years imprisonment and a fine of $250,000, plus restitution. However, any sentence will be imposed by the court only after consideration of the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and the federal statute governing the imposition of a sentence, 18 U.S.C. § 3553.
Daniel Kaleba is the Assistant U.S. Attorney who is prosecuting the case with the assistance of Tong Zhang. The prosecution is the result of an investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation.
Former Fresno Resident Pleads Guilty to Investment Fraud SchemeRead the Press Release
FRESNO, Calif. — Gary John Koval, 76, formerly of Fresno, pleaded guilty today to one count of wire fraud in connection with an investment fraud scheme, U.S. Attorney McGregor W. Scott announced. According to court documents, from 2012 to approximately Nov. 2014, Koval executed an investment fraud scheme, where he falsely represented himself to potential investors as an experienced and successful businessperson and investor with significant relationships and contacts in the banking and investment community. He convinced several investors to give him money by falsely claiming that he was a facilitator for opportunities where one could purchase foreign bank notes or lines of credit and have them resold at a significant profit. Koval, in fact, used the money to fund his own business ventures unrelated to foreign investments or spent the money on his personal expenses. Koval also gave inconsistent, conflicting explanations and excuses concerning the lack of return on their investment and the inability to return the investment principal to investors that requested such a return. Some of the explanations and excuses provided by Koval induced investors to provide additional money. Koval’s conduct caused a loss to investors of over $550,000. This case is the product of an investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney Henry Z. Carbajal III is prosecuting the case. Koval is scheduled to be sentenced by U.S. District Judge Dale A. Drozd on Jan. 13. Koval faces a maximum statutory penalty of 20 years in prison and a $250,000 fine. The actual sentence, however, will be determined at the discretion of the court after consideration of any applicable statutory factors and the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, which take into account a number of variables.Financial Adviser Charged in Multimillion-Dollar Ponzi SchemeRead the Press Release
Geoffrey S. Berman, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, and Peter C. Fitzhugh, the Special Agent in Charge of the New York Field Office of Homeland Security Investigations (“HSI”), announced today the unsealing of an Indictment charging JAMES T. BOOTH with securities fraud, wire fraud, and investment adviser fraud charges in connection with his years-long scheme to defraud customers of his financial services firm, Booth Financial Associates (“Booth Financial”). Throughout the scheme, BOOTH solicited money from clients of Booth Financial and falsely promised to invest their money in securities offered outside of their ordinary advisory and brokerage accounts. Instead, BOOTH used nearly all of the money to pay personal and business expenses. In total, BOOTH fraudulently obtained nearly $5 million from his customers. BOOTH was arrested this morning in Norwalk, Connecticut, and will be presented this afternoon before Magistrate Judge Kevin N. Fox in Manhattan federal court.
Manhattan U.S. Attorney Geoffrey S. Berman said: “As alleged, James Booth convinced his clients that he would deliver solid and secure returns on their investments. Instead, as alleged, Booth delivered only lies and deceit, and bilked some 40 clients of nearly $5 million. Booth is now in federal custody and will have to answer for his alleged crimes.”
Special Agent-in-Charge Peter C. Fitzhugh: “In an elaborate scheme of false promises and deception, it is alleged that Booth attained almost $5 million by luring investors to move their assets with the guarantee of safer investments and higher returns. Instead, Booth allegedly pocketed the money. HSI New York’s El Dorado Task Force has investigated financial fraud cases for more than two decades, and with the continued law enforcement partnerships in these cases, we are able to arrest alleged fraudsters who seek to take advantage of the hopes and dreams of others for their own illicit gain.”
As alleged in the Indictment unsealed today in Manhattan federal court:[1]
From 2013 through 2019, BOOTH solicited money from clients of Booth Financial and falsely promised to invest their money in securities offered outside of their ordinary advisory and brokerage accounts. Specifically, BOOTH directed certain of his clients to write checks or wire money to an entity named “Insurance Trends, Inc.” Instead of investing his clients’ funds, BOOTH, who controlled the bank account of Insurance Trends, Inc., subsequently misappropriated his clients’ funds to pay his personal and business expenses.
In total, BOOTH raised approximately $4.9 million from approximately 40 investors. BOOTH lured many of his victims with false promises of safe investments with high returns. For example:
- BOOTH convinced a recently widowed elderly investor (“Investor-1”) to move money she had received from her late husband’s pension into Insurance Trends, Inc. BOOTH falsely promised Investor-1 that she would have $1 million by the time she was 100 years old. As a result of BOOTH’s false assurances, Investor-1 invested more than $600,000 with BOOTH.
- BOOTH similarly convinced another investor (“Investor-2”) to move his money into an investment product that, according to BOOTH, would never lose its principal and would grow with the market. Based on this false representation, Investor-2 moved money he had set aside for his child’s college expenses, at least approximately $60,000, to BOOTH. BOOTH subsequently failed to provide Investor-2 with documentation of his investment or to allow Investor-2 to redeem his investment.
- BOOTH convinced another elderly investor (“Investor-3”) to withdraw money from an annuity established for the care of his disabled sibling, approximately $18,000, and invest that money with BOOTH. Investor-3 gave the money to BOOTH with the understanding that BOOTH would invest that money for the benefit of Investor-3’s sibling’s continued care.
To prevent investors from seeking a return of their money, and to induce additional investments, BOOTH provided investors with fabricated account statements that falsely indicated that BOOTH had purchased certain securities on their behalf and that those investments had generated a profit. BOOTH further concealed the truth from investors by using money obtained from new investors to make redemption payments to previous investors, in a Ponzi-like fashion.
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BOOTH, 74, of Norwalk, Connecticut, is charged with one count of wire fraud, which carries a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison, one count of securities fraud, which carries a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison, and one count of investment adviser fraud, which carries a maximum sentence of five years in prison. The maximum potential sentence in this case is prescribed by Congress and is provided here for informational purposes only, as any sentencing of the defendant will be determined by the judge.
Anyone with information about the crimes charged in the Indictment should call the United States Attorney’s Office at 866-874-8900.
Mr. Berman praised the investigative work of HSI New York and HSI Boston - New Haven, Connecticut. Mr. Berman also thanked the U.S. States Postal Inspection Service, the U.S. Internal Revenue Service, the New York City Police Department, and the New York City Sherriff’s Office, which assisted in the investigation. Mr. Berman also thanked the Securities and Exchange Commission, which has filed a civil enforcement action against the defendant.
This case is being handled by the Office’s Securities and Commodities Fraud Task Force. Assistant U.S. Attorney Robert L. Boone is in charge of the prosecution.
The charges contained in the Indictment are merely accusations, and the defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
[1] As the introductory phrase signifies, the entirety of the text of the Indictment, and the description of the Indictment set forth herein, constitute only allegations, and every fact described should be treated as an allegation.
Federal charges and civil action announced in efforts to combat opioid epidemicRead the Press Release
SAVANNAH, GA: Pharmacists, a pharmacy, and several individuals have been named as defendants in various criminal and civil actions filed in federal court in the Southern District of Georgia as part of continuing efforts by the U.S. Attorney’s Office to combat the opioid epidemic.
The actions in Georgia and Florida were coordinated by the U.S. Department of Justice, and include 67 individuals charged in connection with various healthcare and controlled substance schemes.
For the actions taken in the Southern District of Georgia, U.S. Attorney Bobby L. Christine announced the following actions:
- A civil lawsuit in U.S. District Court in Brunswick, Ga., accuses Darien Pharmacy and Janice Ann Colter, 62, of Darien, Ga., pharmacist-in-charge of Darien Pharmacy, with filling prescriptions for controlled substances that she “knew or should have known were not issued for legitimate medical reasons and by a provider not acting with the regular course of professional practice.” The lawsuit represents the first-ever Controlled Substances Act suit against a pharmacy in the history of the Southern District of Georgia.
- A federal grand jury in Savannah indicted Jenna Savage, 26, of Port Wentworth, Ga.; Norman Lee Burnsed, 27, of Port Wentworth, Ga.; Tucker Chambers, 21, of Ellabell, Ga.; Macaila Brown, 22, of Rincon, Ga.; and Cameron Hilliard, 26, of Savannah, Ga., with conspiracy charges under the Controlled Substances Act relating to the distribution of oxycodone, Adderall, alprazolam, and clonazepam. Savage was further charged with 50 counts of illegally acquiring a controlled substance.
- A criminal information charges David L. Williford, 59, of Rincon, Ga., with illegally acquiring oxycodone. Williford, a pharmacist, is alleged in the information to have acquired the oxycodone from a pharmacy where he was employed.
“Nearly 70,000 people in the United States die each year from drug overdoses, and more than two-thirds of those deaths are due to opioid abuse,” said Bobby L. Christine, U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Georgia. “It is beyond outrageous when medical professionals and others fuel this crisis by pouring illegally prescribed drugs into the illicit drug supply pipeline, and our office will continue to take aim at such illegal activity.”
Robert J. Murphy, the Special Agent in Charge of the DEA Atlanta Division, said “Pharmaceutical products that are distributed for non-medical reasons can be just as deadly as illicit drugs. The defendants in these cases endangered the community by their actions. These cases have been a success because of the unified efforts of our federal, state and local law enforcement counterparts.”
“Being a healthcare professional in the Medicare program is a privilege, not a right. When physicians and other healthcare providers put their own financial gain above patient well-being and honest billing of government health programs, they violate the basic trust that taxpayers extend to healthcare professionals,” said Special Agent in Charge Derrick L. Jackson of the HHS-OIG Atlanta Regional Office. “These cases put corrupt medical professionals on alert that law enforcement will do everything possible to root out all forms of waste, fraud and abuse in our federal health care programs.”
Criminal indictments and informations contain only charges; defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty. The claims asserted against defendants in a civil suit are allegations only and are not determinations of liability.
These cases are being investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration and the Department of Health and Human Resources Office of Inspector General, and prosecuted for the United States by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Bradford Patrick, Jonathan Porter, Katelyn Semales, and Marcela C. Mateo.
Federal Inmate Pleads to Weapon ChargeRead the Press Release
BLUEFIELD, W.Va. – An inmate at the Federal Correctional Institution at McDowell pled guilty to a weapon offense, announced United States Attorney Mike Stuart. Devin Dantzler, 24, pled guilty to being an inmate in possession of a weapon.
Dantzler admitted that on June 26, 2019, while he was an inmate at the prison, he possessed a handcrafted weapon commonly called a “shank.” A staff member at the prison found the shank in Dantzler’s pocket during a search.
Dantzler faces up to five years in prison when sentenced on February 3, 2020.
The Federal Bureau of Prisons conducted the investigation. Senior United States District Judge David A. Faber presided over the hearing. Assistant United States Attorney John File is handling the prosecution.
Fatal Stabbing in Indian Country Leads to Five-Year Prison SentenceRead the Press Release
OKLAHOMA CITY – SAGE ATHEAKEE GOMEZ, 23, a member of the Ponca Tribe of Oklahoma, has been sentenced to five years in prison for involuntary manslaughter, announced U.S. Attorney Timothy J. Downing.
According to court documents, on September 15, 2018, Gomez stabbed B.L.W., a member of the Tonkawa Tribe, at a rural residence on Indian land near Ponca City. The victim died of his wounds on October 2. Gomez has been in federal custody since his arrest in late September 2018.
On October 16, 2018, a federal grand jury charged Gomez with three federal crimes: voluntary manslaughter "upon sudden quarrel and heat of passion" in Indian Country, Assault with a Dangerous Weapon in Indian Country, and Assault Resulting in Serious Bodily Injury in Indian Country. On March 8, 2019, Gomez pleaded guilty to a superseding information that charged him with involuntary manslaughter. In particular, the new charge alleged that when he stabbed the victim during an altercation, Gomez committed a reckless act "without due caution and circumspection, which might produce death."
After a lengthy hearing today, U.S. District Judge Charles B. Goodwin sentenced Gomez to five years in the custody of the Bureau of Prisons, to be followed by three years of supervised release. This prison sentence is above the advisory imprisonment range under the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines. The court also ordered Gomez to pay $6,890.27 in restitution to cover funeral expenses. Of that amount, $5,500 will go to the Tonkawa Tribe and $1,390.27 will go to the Oklahoma Crime Victims Fund.
This case is result of an investigation by the Bureau of Indian Affairs. It was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Arvo Q. Mikkanen and Matthew Anderson.
Reference is made to public filings for further information.
Enumclaw, WA couple charged with mail fraud for scheme to steal local drainage district tax dollars for their own useRead the Press Release
Seattle – An Enumclaw, Washington couple were charged in U.S. District Court in Seattle today in connection with their six-year scheme to divert more than $400,000 in local tax dollars to their own use, announced U.S. Attorney Brian T. Moran. ALLAN B. THOMAS and JOANN E. THOMAS are scheduled to appear on the federal charges in U.S. District Court in Seattle at 2:00 p.m. today.
According to the criminal complaint, ALLAN B. THOMAS served as Commissioner for Drainage District 5 in King County for more than 35 years. As a commissioner, THOMAS was involved in estimating the costs of drainage maintenance for the district so that the county auditor could set and assess the appropriate taxes. The Commissioners then authorized payment to service providers who were supposed to do maintenance work on the drainage system.
As early as 2012, JOANN THOMAS set up a joint bank account with ALLAN THOMAS’ son from a previous marriage. The account was a business account for a company called A C Services. Over the next six years, ALLAN THOMAS had $413,323 of local tax dollars paid to A C Services claiming it was for drainage ditch maintenance. However, THOMAS’ son said other than two small jobs performed in 2012, he did not perform any drainage ditch work. Financial records indicate that over the six years, shortly after the tax dollars were deposited into A C Services account, the money was quickly transferred to other accounts belonging to the THOMASES, or was used to pay their expenses for such things as hay, mortgage payments, or property taxes. More than $70,000 was withdrawn as cash.
In 2018, after the couple became aware of an investigation into their conduct, they began funneling the tax dollars through another company: City Biz. The couple submitted warrants for City Biz to be paid for drainage maintenance work and within days of the funds arriving in City Biz bank accounts, nearly all of the money was transferred directly to ALLAN THOMAS or the THOMASES’ dairy farm. In all the criminal complaint alleges the THOMASES defrauded taxpayers of $468,165.
The charges contained in the complaint are only allegations. A person is presumed innocent unless and until he or she is proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
Mail fraud is punishable by up to 20 years in prison and a $250,000 fine.
The FBI and IRS - Criminal Investigation are leading the investigation with assistance from the Enumclaw Police Department. The Enumclaw City Attorney initiated the review of the district finances. The Washington State Auditor’s Office also conducted an audit of the district in 2019. The King County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office, in consultation with the U.S. Attorney’s Office, determined the case was appropriate for federal prosecution.
The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Justin Arnold and Andrew Friedman.
thomas_complaint.pdfEastport Man Sentenced to Prison for Possessing Child PornographyRead the Press Release
Bangor, Maine: An Eastport, Maine man was sentenced today in federal court in Bangor for possessing child pornography, U.S. Attorney Halsey B. Frank announced.
U.S. District Judge Nancy Torresen sentenced Ryan Mumme, 48, to eight years in prison and supervised release for life. Mumme was also ordered to pay $1,000 in restitution. He pled guilty in June 2018 after being charged in December 2017.
According to court records, Mumme admitted to agents during an interview at his home that he had child pornography on his laptop computer. A subsequent forensic examination of the laptop revealed images and videos of children under the age of 12 engaged in sexually explicit conduct.
U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations, the Maine State Police Computer Crimes Unit and the Eastport Police Department investigated the case. The case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice. 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.justice.gov/psc.
Easton-Area Attorney Charged with Defrauding EstateRead the Press Release
PHILADELPHIA – United States Attorney William M. McSwain announced that Angelo Perrucci, Jr., of Bangor, PA was arrested and charged by Indictment with wire fraud.
The indictment alleges that between on or about March 16, 2016 and on or about May 29, 2019, Angelo Perrucci, Jr., while serving as the administrator of an estate of a deceased Bergen County, N.J. individual, defrauded the estate of more than $300,000. During the more than three-year period in which Perrucci purported to serve as the administrator of the estate, he issued more than seventy checks to himself.
“As alleged in the indictment, this defendant – an attorney entrusted with the care of this estate – committed fraud and stole from the true beneficiaries of the estate,” said U.S. Attorney McSwain. “Attorneys of any kind, public or private, take an oath to act in accordance with the law – not to use their law license to steal. My Office will continue to root out the type of conduct that is alleged here.”
If convicted, the defendant faces a maximum possible sentence of 100 years’ imprisonment.
The case was investigated by the United States Postal Inspection Service, and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Christopher J. Mannion of the Eastern District of Pennsylvania.
An indictment, information, or criminal complaint is an accusation. A defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
District Man Sentenced to 15 Years for Fatal Stabbing in SoutheastRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON – David A. Hackney, 60, of Southeast, Washington, D.C., was sentenced to 15 years in prison for the fatal stabbing of a man in Southeast Washington, announced U.S. Attorney Jessie K. Liu.
On September 27, 2019, pursuant to Hackney’s guilty plea, the Honorable Milton C. Lee of the Superior Court of the District of Columbia sentenced Hackney to 15 years in prison. Hackney pled guilty to second-degree murder while armed in the killing of Chester Belfield at a prior proceeding on July 11, 2019. Upon completion of his sentence, Hackney will also be placed on five years of supervised release.
According to the government’s evidence, on April 13, 2019, at approximately 2:30 p.m., members of the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD) were dispatched to 1039 Southern Avenue, Southeast for a stabbing incident. Upon arrival at the scene, MPD located an adult male victim – later identified as Chester Belfield – unresponsive suffering from stab wounds to the body. Mr. Belfield was then transported to the District’s United Medical Center where he later died from his injuries.
According to multiple witnesses, Hackney and Mr. Belfield engaged in a verbal confrontation. Witnesses then observed Hackney escalating the verbal fight by chasing Mr. Belfield across Southern Avenue, SE with a knife in his right hand. Mr. Belfield was not armed and tried to run away from Hackney. The witnesses then observed Hackney stab Mr. Belfield at least three times. Hackney fled the scene after killing Mr. Belfield. The witness’s testimony was further confirmed by a cellular telephone video that captured the entire incident from start to finish.
Hackney was arrested on April 22, 2019, where he remains in custody until his sentencing.
In announcing the sentence, U.S. Attorney Liu, commended the work of those who investigated the case from the Metropolitan Police Department. She also expressed appreciation for the work of Supervisory Victim Witness Advocate Jennifer Clark and Paralegal Specialist Debra Forte. Finally, she commended the work of Assistant U.S. Attorneys Nebiyu Feleke and Laura Bach who investigated and prosecuted the case.
Cuban Citizen Sentenced for Making False Statements on an Application for Lawful Permanent Residence and for Theft of Government FundsRead the Press Release
MIAMI – A Cuban citizen and high-ranking official in the Cuban government living in Miami, Florida, was sentenced on September 27, 2019, to six months in prison for making false statements in his application for lawful permanent residence and for theft of government funds. The Court also ordered the defendant to be deported to Cuba immediately upon completion of his sentence.
U.S. Attorney Ariana Fajardo Orshan of the Southern District of Florida, Assistant Attorney General Brian A. Benczkowski of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, Special Agent in Charge George L. Piro the of the FBI’s Miami Field Office, Special Agent in Charge Anthony Salisbury of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) Miami Field Office, and Special Agent in Charge Rodregas Owens from the Social Security Administration, Office of the Inspector General (SSA-OIG) made the announcement.
Saul Santos Ferro, 74, previously pleaded guilty to one count of making false statements in an immigration document and theft of government funds (Case No. 18cr20982). Santos was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Darrin P. Gayles of the Southern District of Florida who also ordered Santos to be removed to Cuba immediately upon completion of his sentence and pay restitution in the amount $12,522.28.
According to admissions in court documents, Santos made a number of lies and misrepresentations in his application to register as a permanent resident, which he knowingly presented to U.S. immigration authorities, ultimately obtaining lawful permanent resident status. Specifically, when he applied to register as a permanent resident, Santos failed to disclose his membership or affiliation with any organization, falsely stated that he never served in or been a member of a police unit and falsely stated that he never served in any situation that involved detaining persons. In fact, Santos served as a Major in the Cuban government’s Department of State Security or Departamento de Seguridad del Estado (DSE) for decades and was involved in arresting and detaining political dissidents in Cuba.
Additionally, Santos admitted that he falsely stated that he never gave false or misleading information to any U.S. government official while applying for any immigration benefit and falsely stated that he never lied to U.S. immigration authorities to gain entry or admission into the United States and to obtain immigration benefits. In fact, Santos told a series of lies about his past employment with the DSE to U.S. immigration authorities in the course of obtaining authority to enter the United States on a visitor visa in 2010 and 2012.
Santos further admitted to receiving Supplemental Security Income (SSI) benefits to which he was not entitled. SSI is a program funded by tax dollars and administered by the Social Security Administration to provide the elderly and people with disabilities with cash for basic needs including food, clothing and shelter. Santos and his wife qualified for and began receiving SSI benefits in September 2014, but by April 2015, Santos and his wife misrepresented their living situation and began receiving more money than they were entitled to receive. Because of his misrepresentation, the Court held Santos responsible for overpayments to him and his wife, which amounted to $28,491.83.
The FBI, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations and SSA-OIG, with support from the FBI’s International Human Rights Unit, investigated the case.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Daniel Cervantes of the Southern District of Florida and Trial Attorney Rami S. Badawy of the Criminal Division’s Human Rights and Special Prosecutions Section prosecuted the case, with the support of historian Joanna Crandall.
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 on http://pacer.flsd.uscourts.gov.
Chubbuck Man Sentenced to over 19 Years in Federal Prison for Distributing Child PornographyRead the Press Release
POCATELLO – Vincent Miera, 53, of Chubbuck, Idaho, was sentenced today in U.S. District Court to 235 months in federal prison followed by a lifetime of supervised release for distributing sexually explicit images of minors, U.S. Attorney Bart M. Davis announced. Miera was also ordered to pay $25,000 in restitution to victims of the offense. Miera was sentenced by Chief U.S. District Judge David C. Nye. Miera pleaded guilty on May 2, 2019.
According to court records, law enforcement officers executed a search warrant at Miera’s Chubbuck home in June 2018. Officers previously received information that Miera had downloaded a large amount of child pornography from the internet. At Miera’s home, officers discovered two phones in Miera’s possession. During a forensic search of Miera’s phones, officers found 159 images and 588 videos of child pornography. Miera admitted in court that he distributed the child pornography through a texting application.
At sentencing, Judge Nye also ordered Miera to forfeit the phones used in the commission of the offense. As a result of his conviction, Miera will be required to register as a sex offender.
This case was investigated by Homeland Security Investigations in Idaho Falls and the Chubbuck Police Department.
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.”
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Canton Woman Charged for Role in Fraudulent SchemeRead the Press Release
BOSTON – A Canton woman was charged on Friday, Sept. 27, 2019, in federal court in Boston in connection with an ongoing investigation into a business email compromise (BEC) scheme.
Bintu Toure, 26, was charged with wire fraud and money laundering conspiracy. Toure will appear in federal court in Boston at a later date. She is the second defendant to be charged in connection with this scheme, following the indictment of Yannick Minang in July.
Toure allegedly conspired with others to open numerous bank accounts in Massachusetts in the name of sham companies, as part of an apparent BEC scheme. A BEC scheme is a sophisticated scam often targeting businesses involved in wire transfer payments. The fraud is carried out by compromising and/or “spoofing” legitimate business email accounts through social engineering or computer intrusion techniques, to cause employees of the victim company (or other individuals involved in legitimate business transactions) to transfer funds to accounts controlled by the scammers.
It is alleged that, through the use of fraudulent invoices and spoofed email accounts, Toure conspired to trick the victims of the scheme into wiring hundreds of thousands of dollars to bank accounts under her control. Toure and her co-conspirators then transferred funds from the accounts on to others located overseas.
The charge of wire fraud provides for a sentence of up to 20 years in prison, three years of supervised release, and a fine of up to $250,000 or twice the gross gain or loss, whichever is greater. The charge of money laundering conspiracy provides for a sentence of up to 20 years in prison, three years of supervised release, and a fine of $500,000 or twice the amount involved in the transaction, whichever is greater. Sentences are imposed by a federal district court judge based upon the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
United States Attorney Andrew E. Lelling and Joseph R. Bonavolonta, Special Agent in Charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Boston Field Division, made the announcement today. Assistant U.S. Attorney William B. Brady, of Lelling’s Criminal Division, and Jordi de Llano, Deputy Chief of Lelling’s Securities & Financial Fraud Unit, are prosecuting the case.
The details contained in the charging documents are allegations. The defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
Bucks County Bar and Restaurant Owners Charged with Tax OffensesRead the Press Release
PHILADELPHIA – United States Attorney William M. McSwain announced that Stephen Eckler, 68, of Ivyland, Pennsylvania, and Robert Yost, 52, of Southampton, Pennsylvania, were charged by Information with willful failure to pay employment taxes.
The information alleges that Eckler and Yost, owners of the Kopper Kettle Bar and Restaurant, located in Feasterville, Pennsylvania, did not report $263,340 in cash wages that they paid to dishwasher employees at the Kopper Kettle Bar and Restaurant during the period March 2012 through at least September 2016. As a result of this practice, defendants Eckler and Yost failed to properly collect and pay over employment taxes to the Internal Revenue Service, including Social Security Tax and the Medicare Tax, commonly referred to as “FICA” taxes, and federal income tax withholdings.
“Our tax system requires businesspeople to truthfully report the wages paid to their employees,” said U.S. Attorney McSwain. “The defendants’ practice of paying their employees in cash, concealing this from the IRS, and failing to collect and pay federal employment taxes, undermines the integrity of the federal income tax system and harms those who play by the rules. My Office will aggressively pursue businesspeople who operate in such an illegal manner.”
If convicted, the defendants face a maximum possible sentence of five years in prison, a $250,000 fine, and full restitution paid to the IRS.
The case was investigated by the Internal Revenue Service, Criminal Investigation Division, and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Richard P. Barrett.
An indictment, information, or criminal complaint is an accusation. A defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
Berkeley County man admits to role in cocaine, heroin, and fentanyl distribution operationRead the Press Release
MARTINSBURG, WEST VIRGINIA – Shavon Craig, of Kearneysville, West Virginia, has admitted to his role in a cocaine, heroin, and fentanyl distribution operation, U.S. Attorney Bill Powell announced.
Craig, age 35, pled guilty to one count of “Possession with Intent to Distribute Cocaine Base.” Craig admitted to distributing cocaine base in Berkeley County in December 2018.
Craig is facing up to 20 years incarceration and a fine of up to $1,000,000. Under the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, the actual sentence imposed will be based upon the seriousness of the offenses and the prior criminal history, if any, of the defendant.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Lara K. Omps-Botteicher, Special Assistant U.S. Attorney C. Lydia Lehman, also with the Berkeley County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office, and Assistant U.S Attorney Timothy D. Helman, are prosecuting the case on behalf of the government. The Federal Bureau of Investigation; the West Virginia State Police; the Eastern Panhandle Drug & Violent Crimes Task Force, a HIDTA-funded initiative; the Berkeley County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office, the Berkeley County Sheriff’s Office, the Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office, the Martinsburg Police Department, the Charles Town Police Department, and the Ranson Police Department investigated.
The investigation was funded by the federal Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force Program (OCDETF). The OCDETF program supplies critical federal funding and coordination that allows federal and state agencies to work together to successfully identify, investigate, and prosecute major interstate and international drug trafficking organizations and other criminal enterprises.
U.S. Magistrate Judge Robert W. Trumble presided.
Baton Rouge Man Sentenced to Federal Prison for Drug Trafficking and Gun ChargesRead the Press Release
United States Attorney Brandon J. Fremin announced that U.S. Chief Judge Shelly D. Dick sentenced Kendrick Hardnett, age 40, of Baton Rouge, to 111 months in federal prison following his conviction for possession of a firearm by a convicted felon and possession with intent to distribute marijuana, cocaine, and cocaine base. The Court further sentenced Hardnett to 4 years of supervised release following his term of imprisonment, and ordered that the firearm involved be forfeited.
According to admissions made as part of his guilty plea, on September 6, 2017, Baton Rouge Police Department narcotics detectives executed a search warrant on Hardnett’s residence. Prior to executing the warrant, Hardnett was observed exiting the residence and departing in a vehicle. The detectives initiated a traffic stop of Hardnett’s vehicle and recovered two clear plastic baggies containing marijuana, one clear plastic containing cocaine base, and $1,100 from his pockets. Upon further search of the vehicle, the detectives recovered a firearm from the front driver's side floorboard where Hardnett was seated. At the same time, a second group of BRPD detectives entered Hardnett’s residence and recovered several clear plastic baggies containing marijuana, cocaine, and cocaine base, and a digital scale from the living room.
Prior to possessing the firearm, Hardnett was convicted of aggravated second-degree battery on April 4, 2007, and possession with the intent to distribute marijuana on September 30, 2010, both in East Baton Rouge Parish.
U.S. Attorney Fremin stated, “This conviction and sentence is yet another example of how our partnership with Baton Rouge Police Department and ATF can remove dangerous criminals from our streets to make our communities safer for our citizens.”
This matter is being handled by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Louisiana, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, and the Baton Rouge Police Department, with substantial assistance from the Louisiana State Police Crime Laboratory. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Demetrius Sumner.
Bakersfield Man Sentenced to 15 Years in Prison for Receipt of Child PornographyRead the Press Release
FRESNO, Calif. — Augustine Amon Reyes, 33, of Bakersfield, was sentenced today by U.S. District Judge Dale A. Drozd to 15 years in prison for receiving child pornography, U.S. Attorney McGregor W. Scott announced.
According to court documents, between Oct. 28, 2016, and Nov. 27, 2016, in Kern County, Reyes was found to have received or distributed through the internet between 10 and 150 images of minors engaged in sexually explicit conduct. The images also included depictions of prepubescent minors. Reyes also engaged in a pattern of activity involving the sexual abuse of minors.
This case was the product of an investigation by the Bakersfield office of Homeland Security Investigations as well as the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation. Assistant U.S. Attorney Brian W. Enos prosecuted the case.
This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by the United States Attorneys’ Offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute those who sexually exploit children, and to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.usdoj.gov/psc. Click on the “resources” tab for information about internet safety education.
Anchorage Man Indicted on Child Pornography ChargesRead the Press Release
Anchorage, Alaska – U.S. Attorney Bryan Schroder announced today that Mr. Shannon Robert Bell, 53, has been indicted on charges of possession and distribution of child pornography. Bell was arraigned this afternoon before U.S. Magistrate Judge Deborah M. Smith, and is a resident of Anchorage, Alaska, where he was employed as a clinical therapist at multiple inpatient treatment facilities for children.
The indictment alleges that on Sept. 29, 2018, Bell knowingly distributed child pornography involving prepubescent minors, or minors who have not attained 12 years of age, by any means and facility of interstate and foreign commerce. Additionally, allegations state that on July 1, 2019, Bell knowingly possessed and accessed child pornography with intent to view material that contained images of child pornography, including images involving prepubescent minors.
If the public has any further information regarding Bell,
please contact Anchorage FBI at (907) 276-4441.
If convicted, Bell faces a statutory minimum of five years in prison and guideline sentence of the statutory maximum of 20 years in prison. Under the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, the actual sentence imposed will be based upon the seriousness of the offense and the prior criminal history, if any, of the defendant.
The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and the Anchorage Police Department (APD) conducted the investigation leading to the indictment in this case. This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Adam Alexander.
This case is being brought as part of Project Safe Childhood. In May 2006, DOJ launched Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative designed to protect children from online exploitation and abuse. Led by the United States Attorneys’ Offices, Project Safe Childhood combines federal, state, and local resources to better locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the internet, as well as identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.projectsafechildhood.gov.
An indictment is only a charge and is not evidence of guilt. A defendant is presumed innocent and is entitled to a fair trial at which the government must prove guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.
Adams County Man Sentenced to 44 Months for Cocaine ConspiracyRead the Press Release
MADISON, WIS. - Scott C. Blader, United States Attorney for the Western District of Wisconsin, announced that Lonell Johnson, 27, Grand Marsh, Wisconsin, was sentenced on September 26 by U.S. District Judge William M. Conley to 44 months in federal prison for conspiracy to distribute cocaine. Jackson pleaded guilty to this charge on July 11, 2019.
Johnson was charged along with 11 other individuals for participating in a cocaine distribution scheme. Gregory Smith mailed packages containing cocaine from Houston, Texas, to Joseph Harper in Madison. Postal records from November 2017 to November 2018 showed 32 packages mailed from Smith to addresses in Wisconsin or Iowa associated with Harper. Based on witness statements and multiple cocaine seizures in the case, each of the packages contained between a half kilogram and one kilogram of cocaine.
Intercepted communications during the wiretap investigation revealed that Johnson was a highly trusted confidant of Harper and also a frequent cocaine customer. The investigation revealed that Johnson cooked the purchased cocaine into crack cocaine and sold it to multiple customers in the Grand Marsh area. In addition, on September 26, 2018, law enforcement agents observed Johnson bring a cocaine package mailed by Smith into Harper’s stash house in Madison.
In imposing the sentence, Judge Conley noted that Johnson has a lengthy criminal history including crimes involving guns and violence to women. Judge Conley was also concerned that it appeared Johnson was serving in an apprenticeship role to Harper and was becoming more involved in the conspiracy as time progressed.
Judge Conley previously sentenced Harper to 12 years in prison and Smith to 11 years in prison for their respective roles in the conspiracy. All 12 defendants charged in the case have entered guilty pleas.
The charge against Johnson is the result of a joint investigation by the Drug Enforcement Administration, U.S. Postal Inspection Service, Federal Bureau of Investigation, Wisconsin Department of Justice Division of Criminal Investigation, and the Dane County Sheriff’s Office. The investigation was conducted and funded by the Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF), a multi-agency task force that coordinates long-term narcotics trafficking investigations. The prosecution of the case is being handled by Assistant U.S. Attorney Aaron Wegner.
Friday 27 September 2019
Woman Pleads Guilty to Straw Purchasing FirearmsRead the Press Release
ALEXANDRIA, Va. – An Alexandria woman pleaded guilty today to straw purchasing multiple firearms.
According to court documents, Joni Maria Metcalf, 34, straw purchased five firearms from federal firearm licensees on behalf of a man she was dating at the time and his friend. These individuals provided Metcalf with money and instructions on how to purchase the firearms. Police in Washington, D.C. recovered one of the illegally purchased firearms from her boyfriend’s friend, 11 days after Metcalf straw purchased the firearm.
Metcalf pleaded guilty to making false statements with respect to the purchase of firearms and faces a maximum penalty of five years in prison when sentenced on Jan. 24, 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.
This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), which 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.
G. Zachary Terwilliger, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia, and Ashan M. Benedict, Special Agent in Charge of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives’ (ATF) Washington Field Division, made the announcement after U.S. District Judge Liam O’Grady accepted the plea. Assistant U.S. Attorney Nicholas U. Murphy II and Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Annie Zanobini 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-286.
Winchester Man Sentenced to 24 Months for Extorting Singapore GovernmentRead the Press Release
LEXINGTON, Ky. —Mikhy Farrera-Brochez, a 34-year-old man originally from Winchester, Kentucky, was sentenced to 24 months in federal prison Friday, by United States Chief District Judge Danny C. Reeves, for sending extortionate communications to the Government of Singapore and its Ministry of Health and using the means of identification of over 14,200 people as leverage in his extortion attempt.
According to trial testimony, Farrera-Brochez obtained access to a database belonging to the Singaporean Ministry of Health that listed the private identifying and medical information of thousands of people in Singapore living with HIV, including more than 50 U.S. citizens. Farrera-Brochez sent the database to his mother in Kentucky, and retrieved it when he returned to Kentucky in 2018.
On January 22, Farrera-Brochez sent an email to several officials of the Government of Singapore that included three links to places on the internet where he had put copies of the database. Farrera-Brochez made several demands in that email. On February 18, Farrera-Brochez sent a second email to officials of the Government of Singapore threatening to publish the database if his demands were not met.
Farrera-Brochez was convicted on June 4. In addition to the sentencing, Farrera-Brochez was also ordered to forfeit to the federal government the electronic devices and Google accounts that he used in his crimes. Upon release from prison, Farrera-Brochez will be on supervised release for 3 years.
Robert M. Duncan, Jr., United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Kentucky, and James Robert Brown, Jr., Special Agent in Charge of the FBI, jointly made the announcement.
“The defendant’s conduct was serious and significant, affecting thousands of people across the world,” said United States Attorney Robert M. Duncan, Jr. “The defendant unlawfully obtained the private, personal identifying information of more than 14,000 people, including American citizens, and used this information in an attempt to extort the government of a foreign nation. Without the hard work of law enforcement personnel, the defendant could have caused significant additional harm, by publishing this personal and private information.”
The investigation was conducted by the FBI with assistance from the Kentucky State Police. The United States was represented by Assistant United States Attorney Dmitriy Slavin and Special Assistant United States Attorney James Chapman.
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Williamsport Man Charged with Wire FraudRead the Press Release
WILLIAMSPORT - The United States Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Pennsylvania announced that Benjamin Butler, age 33, of Williamsport, Pennsylvania, was charged on September 26, 2019, with six counts of wire fraud.
According to United States Attorney David J. Freed, the indictment alleges that Butler engaged in a kiting scheme in September and October of 2015, whereby he allegedly used multiple credit card accounts to fraudulently pay off $18,850 of credit card charges by using the temporary credit on one card to pay off another account even though he did not have the funds to ultimately cover such a payment.
The charges stem from an investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Department of Justice Office of the Inspector General. Assistant United States Attorney Geoffrey MacArthur is prosecuting the case.
Indictments are only allegations. All persons charged are presumed to be innocent unless and until found guilty in court.
A sentence following a finding of guilt is imposed by the Judge after consideration of the applicable federal sentencing statutes and the Federal Sentencing Guidelines.
Butler is facing a maximum of 20 years’ imprisonment and a $250,000 fine. Under the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, the Judge is also required to consider and weigh a number of factors, including the nature, circumstances and seriousness of the offense; the history and characteristics of the defendant; and the need to punish the defendant, protect the public and provide for the defendant's educational, vocational and medical needs. For these reasons, the statutory maximum penalty for the offense is not an accurate indicator of the potential sentence for a specific defendant.
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U.S. Attorney’s Office representative appointed to the Montana Missing Indigenous Persons Task ForceRead the Press Release
BILLINGS—The U.S. Attorney’s Office announced today that Assistant U.S. Attorney Jared Cobell has been appointed as the office’s representative on the Montana Missing Indigenous Persons Task Force.
The task force met today at the DoubleTree hotel in Billings. The task force was created by the Looping in Native Communities Act or LINC Act, which was passed by the 2019 Montana Legislature.
Montana Attorney General Tim Fox appointed Cobell based on a recommendation from the task force after it received a request from U.S. Attorney Kurt Alme. Cobell is a prosecutor in the Great Falls office and serves as the tribal liaison coordinator.
“We are pleased to be included on this new task force and know AUSA Cobell will represent us well. We support the state’s effort to better determine the scope of and help find missing Indigenous persons, and we look forward to working with the task force on this important issue that affects the entire state,” U.S. Attorney Alme said.
In June, the U.S. Attorney’s Office, the Montana Department of Justice, FBI and BIA co-sponsored a training for the public and law enforcement on how to use missing persons databases and alerts, what families can do when a loved one goes missing and related topics. A second training will be held on Oct. 16 in Billings at the First Interstate Bank Operation’s Center.
Later this year, the office is facilitating training to tribal governments and members on how to enter and review information in the National Missing and Unidentified Persons System, or NamUS, which is an online database available to the public and law enforcement.
The U.S. Department of Justice, BIA and Mt Department of Justice have provided or are working to provide all tribal and BIA law enforcement access to the state Criminal Justice Information Network and the National Crime Information Center Missing Person’s File.
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U.S. Attorney Scott W. Brady Statement on Confirmation of Mike Baughman as United States MarshalRead the Press Release
PITTSBURGH - United States Attorney Scott W. Brady congratulates Michael Baughman on his confirmation yesterday as United States Marshal for the Western District of Pennsylvania.
“Mike Baughman is a dedicated professional who has worked diligently throughout his career to keep our communities safe,” said U.S. Attorney Brady. “The mission of the United States Marshals Service in apprehending fugitives, protecting the federal judiciary, transporting prisoners and protecting witnesses is critical to the function of federal courts. The President’s confidence in U.S. Marshal Baughman is shared by the prosecutors at the United States Attorney’s Office.”
U.S. Attorney Bryan Schroder Participated in Anchorage Hate Crimes Forum Hosted by Z.J. Loussac LibraryRead the Press Release
Anchorage, Alaska – U.S. Attorney Bryan Schroder and Mayor Ethan Berkowitz were opening speakers at the Anchorage Hate Crimes Forum hosted by Z.J. Loussac Library on Saturday, Sept. 21. Attorney Schroder also participated as member of the Law Enforcement panel.
Members of the Law Enforcement panel addressed how to report a crime, what to expect in a criminal investigation, and how to determine whether a hate crime occurred. The panelists reminded community members that law enforcement actions depend upon the community timely reporting crimes.
Members of the Community panel provided an outlook on victims of bias and hate crimes, including the reluctance that many victims have to report crimes. The panelists also addressed concerns of bias against marginalized groups and violence against women in Anchorage and throughout the state.
Members of the Resource panel discussed resources that are available to victims or witnesses to crimes. The panelists highlighted available advocacy and enforcement groups, and encouraged affected individuals to not be afraid to seek help.
The event’s empowering keynote address came from Judy and Dennis Shepard of the Matthew Shepard Foundation, presenting their mission “to erase hate by replacing it with understanding, compassion, and acceptance.”
Attorney Schroder provided an encouraging recap, stating “Anchorage is a diverse city and we must recognize the complexities associated with diversity. This public discussion assembled individuals, agencies, and organizations with a common goal: fight hatred. We must fight hatred by having a strong community that will not tolerate prejudice. Through continuous outreach, awareness, and education, we can build a stronger community to support our common goal.”
For more information about Department of Justice’s work to combat and prevent hate crimes, visit www.justice.gov/hatecrimes: a one-stop portal with links to Department of Justice hate crimes resources for law enforcement, media, researchers, victims, advocacy groups, and other organizations and individuals.
Law enforcement members joining U.S. Attorney Bryan Schroder at this event included officials from the Anchorage Police Department, Alaska State Troopers, Anchorage District Attorney Office, and Federal Bureau of Investigation. Help make a difference by reporting crimes to your local law enforcement officials.
Two men sentenced in Bozeman drug probe after investigators find nearly five pounds of meth in vehicleRead the Press Release
MISSOULA—Two men convicted of methamphetamine trafficking charges were sentenced to prison today after an investigation in which law enforcement seized almost five pounds of meth from a vehicle, U.S. Attorney Kurt Alme said.
Victor Manuel Ortega-Yescas, 51, of Bozeman, was sentenced to three years in prison, followed by referral to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement for deportation. Ortega-Yescas pleaded guilty in June to possession with intent to distribute meth.
Co-defendant Carmelo Enrique Ruiz-Morales, 45, of Bozeman, was sentenced to 18 months in prison, followed by referral to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement for deportation. Ruiz-Morales pleaded guilty in June to distribution of meth.
The prosecution said in court documents that the defendants were identified as sources for meth in Bozeman. A confidential informant working with the Missouri River Drug Task Force made three controlled buys of two ounces each time from Ruiz-Morales in late 2018. Investigators then set up a controlled buy with Ruiz-Morales, and the informant bought one pound of meth for $7,500. One pound of meth is the equivalent of about 3,624 doses.
Law enforcement began investigating Ortega-Yescas as a potential source after observing Ruiz-Morales meeting with him. A search warrant served on Ruiz-Morales’ phone showed a large number of text messages between the two men that indicated Ortega-Yescas supplied meth to Ruiz-Morales. Investigators learned that Ortega-Yescas would take 15-hour drives to Lynwood, CA, spend a few hours there and return to Montana. On Feb. 8, Ortega-Yescas drove to Lynwood, arrived the next day and reentered Montana on Feb. 10. Officers pulled him over in Big Sky and executed a search warrant on his Ford Expedition. Officers found a large quantity of meth, which was found to be 2,146 grams, or 4.7 pounds, of 99 percent pure meth. That amount of meth is the equivalent of about 17,032 doses.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Tom Bartleson prosecuted the case, which was investigated by the Missouri River Drug Task Force and Montana Highway Patrol.
The case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), which 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.
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Two Robeson County Men Sentenced for Robbery and Gun CrimesRead the Press Release
RALEIGH – United States Attorney Robert J. Higdon, Jr. announced that Chief United States District Judge Terrence W. Boyle sentenced DANIEL THOMPSON 22, of Fairmont, North Carolina, to 112 months’ imprisonment and ELIJAH MITCHELL 24, of Lumberton, North Carolina, to 125 months’ imprisonment.
THOMPSON and MITCHELL were named in a two-count Indictment on March 6, 2019. Count One charged both men with Interference with Commerce by Means of Robbery and Aiding and Abetting, and Count Two charged both men with Brandishing a Firearm during a Crime of Violence and Aiding and Abetting. On June 19, 2019, both men pled guilty to both counts.
On September 9, 2018, around 6:30 a.m., THOMPSON and MITCHELL entered a Murphy USA gas station located in Fayetteville, North Carolina. There, THOMPSON approached the store clerk and brandished a firearm at her while demanding money from the cash register. MITCHELL then jumped over the counter and stood by the victim as she removed money from the cash registers. In addition to the money, cartons of cigarettes and other tobacco products were also stolen from the store. Surveillance video captured the robbery, and law enforcement disseminated still shots of the robbery, which ultimately led to identification and arrest of THOMPSON and MITCHELL.
This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program bringing together all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve to reduce violent crime and make our neighborhoods safer for everyone. Since 2017 the United States Department of Justice has reinvigorated the PSN program and has targeted 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.
That effort has been implemented through the Take Back North Carolina Initiative of the United States Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of North Carolina. This initiative emphasizes the regional assignment of federal prosecutors to work with law enforcement and District Attorney’s Offices in those communities on a sustained basis to reduce the violent crime rate, drug trafficking, and crimes against law enforcement.
The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, the Fayetteville Police Department and the Fairmont Police Department investigated this case. Assistant United States Attorney Chad E. Rhoades prosecuted the case for the government.
Two More Arrested in Connection to Eastern Avenue Marijuana Distribution Conspiracy, ShootingsRead the Press Release
Roanoke, VIRGINIA –A pair of Roanoke men, Chad Custer and Darion Harvey, who conspired with others to run a marijuana operation out of a rented, Eastern Avenue home in the City of Roanoke, have been charged in a federal criminal complaint with drug and gun charges. United States Attorney Thomas T. Cullen made the announcement today as part of the Western District of Virginia’s ongoing Project Safe Neighborhoods initiative to reduce drug and violent crime.
Custer and Harvey are the latest in a series of arrests tied to the alleged drug operation at the Eastern Avenue home. Earlier this week, Aaron Woods was arrested and charged with federal drug and firearms-related crimes.
“These and other recent arrests reflect the commitment of federal law enforcement and the Roanoke Police Department to respond, in an aggressive manner, to rising levels of violence and organized drug activity in the city,” U.S. Attorney Cullen stated today. “Working collaboratively, we will continue to investigate individuals and groups engaged in these activities and, when appropriate, prosecute them in federal court.”
As alleged in the criminal complaints, Woods, Custer, Harvey, and others had been working together since at least 2017 to distribute large amounts of marijuana from an Eastern Avenue home Woods rented. Law enforcement estimated that a dozen or more individuals would visit the home each day to purchase marijuana from large, vacuum-sealed bags left out on a table. According to witnesses, purchasers streamed in and out throughout the day as others played video games, smoked marijuana and socialized. Witnesses described seeing Woods, Custer and Harvey in possession of firearms, which they kept out on tables or in their waistbands.
Nolan Kyle Harman, also of Roanoke, was charged federally in February of this year for making straw purchases of firearms for Custer, at Custer’s request.
The complaints allege the distribution activity at Woods’ Eastern Avenue residence culminated in a shooting death on July 10, 2018. According to witnesses, three individuals who had earlier in the day left the residence following an argument about a marijuana purchase, returned around 9:45 p.m. Something like a brick was thrown through the front, plate glass window at which point Woods, Harvey and Custer began shooting. Two-way gunfire ensued, resulting in the death of an individual who was shot in the head and neck as he/she apparently attempted to flee the scene. Woods, Harvey, Custer, and others, fled the Eastern Avenue home following the shooting.
Investigation of these cases was conducted by the Roanoke City Police Department, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearm, and Explosives, the Drug Enforcement Administration, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the U.S. Marshals Service, the Roanoke County Police Department, the Bedford County Sheriff’s Office, the Virginia State Police, and members of the region’s High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area (HIDTA) task force. Assistant United States Attorney Kari Munro will prosecute these cases for the United States.
These cases were brought as part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), the centerpiece of the Department of Justice’s violent crime reduction efforts. PSN is an evidence-based program proven to be effective at reducing violent crime. Through PSN, a broad spectrum of stakeholders work together to identify the most pressing violent crime problems in the community and develop comprehensive solutions to address them. As part of this strategy, PSN focuses enforcement efforts on the most violent offenders and partners with locally based prevention and reentry programs for lasting reductions in crime.
A criminal complaint is only a charge and not evidence of guilt. These defendants are entitled to a fair trial with the burden on the government to prove guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.
Two Men Charged with Conspiring to Distribute Fentanyl, Heroin, and CocaineRead the Press Release
The Office of the United States Attorney for the District of Vermont announced that Justin Blake, 36, of Brooklyn, New York, and Michael Graham, 37, of Burlington, Vermont, were indicted yesterday by the federal grand jury on charges of conspiring to distribute, possessing with intent to distribute, and distributing fentanyl, heroin, and cocaine, in violation of the Controlled Substances Act. Blake and Graham were both arrested on September 20, 2019, and are currently detained pending trial.
According to court records, the Burlington Police Department, with assistance from the Drug Enforcement Administration, conducted multiple purchases of fentanyl from Blake and Graham. BPD Detectives identified three Burlington residences that Blake and Graham utilized as part of their drug distribution activities, and obtained warrants authorizing their search. On September 20, 2019, BPD and DEA executed the three warrants on Washington Street, Riverside Avenue, and Archibald Street, seizing approximately 100 grams of cocaine, 30 grams of fentanyl, 14 grams of heroin, $5,300 of U.S. Currency, and a .22 caliber Beretta semi-automatic pistol.
If convicted, both defendants face a maximum of twenty years of imprisonment on each count. The actual sentence however, would be determined by the Court with guidance from the advisory Federal Sentencing Guidelines. The United States Attorney emphasizes that the charges in the indictment are merely accusations, and that the defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
United States Attorney Christina E. Nolan commended the collaborative investigative efforts of the Burlington Police Department and the Drug Enforcement Administration.
The United States is represented in this matter by Assistant U.S. Attorney Jonathan Ophardt. Defendant Blake is represented by Robert L. Sussman, Esq. Defendant Graham is represented by Gregory S. Mertz, Esq.
Two Individuals Indicted for Child Pornography Charges Under Project Safe Childhood InitiativeRead the Press Release
Jackson, TN – On September 26, 2019, a federal grand jury in Memphis indicted John Sanderson, 36 of Dyersburg, Tennessee and Matthew Berry, 40, of Bells, Tennessee for child pornography violations. U.S. Attorney D. Michael Dunavant for the Western District of Tennessee announced the indictments today.
As charged in the indictments, Sanderson was charged with producing child pornography (18 USC 2251) and possessing child pornography (18 USC 2252). Sanderson was first arrested in Dyer County on a complaint on August 29, 2019. He faces 15-30 years in custody if convicted of production, and up to 20 years if convicted for possession. Investigators are seeking information that can assist in the identification of minor victims. Please contact the FBI’s Child Exploitation Task Force in Jackson, Tennessee, if you may have information about the sexual exploitation of minors.
The grand jury also returned an indictment charging Matthew Berry with receipt and possession of child pornography. According to facts presented at a detention hearing in federal district court in Jackson, Tennessee, on September 20, 2019, Berry used peer-to-peer software to view images of minors engaging in sexually explicit conduct. Berry was a Crockett County employee at the time the alleged conduct occurred. The Crockett County Sheriff’s Department and the FBI are investigating this case.
U.S. Attorney D. Michael Dunavant said: "With new and ever-changing technology, offenders are finding new and increasingly disturbing ways to victimize and exploit child victims. These cases demonstrate that no matter where offenders are located, our Project Safe Childhood Initiative and FBI partners will find them and hold them accountable for internet crimes against children."
Both of these cases are being brought as part of Project Safe Childhood (PSC), 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, PSC 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 PSC, please visit http://www.justice.gov/psc/ For more information about internet safety education, please visit http://www.justice.gov/psc/resources.html and click on the tab "resources."
These cases are being prosecuted by the Eastern Division of the U.S. Attorney’s Office on behalf of the government.
The charges and allegations contained in the indictments are merely accusations, and the defendants are considered innocent unless and until proven guilty.
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Three New York Men Sentenced for Firearms and Heroin Trafficking OffensesRead the Press Release
SCRANTON - The United States Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Pennsylvania announced that United States District Court Judge A. Richard Caputo sentenced three men from New York for various heroin trafficking and firearms offenses. On September 19, 2019, Judge Caputo sentenced Jose Mendoza, age 41, to a time served sentence of approximately 13 months, and three years of supervised, for conspiring to distribute heroin. On September 26, 2019, Judge Caputo sentenced Edwin Aguilar, age 27, to two years of probation, for conspiring to distribute heroin. That same day, Luis Mercado, age 48, was sentenced to 110 months’ imprisonment and four years of supervised release, for conspiring to distribute in excess of 100 grams of heroin, and for aiding and abetting the transportation of stolen firearms.
According to United States David J. Freed, Mercado brokered the sale of 47 firearms stolen from Fulmer’s Sporting Goods, a federally licensed firearms dealer in Wysox, Pennsylvania. Mercado and his co-conspirators, Jared Miller and Aaron Vanderpool, received heroin and cash in exchange for the stolen firearms. Mercado admitted to trafficking between 100 grams and 400 grams of heroin, which is the equivalent of approximately 4,000 to 16,000 potentially fatal doses of heroin between New York and Pennsylvania in June 2012 through June 2015. As part of his sentence, Mercado was ordered to pay $27,383.75 in restitution.
Mendoza and Aguilar worked as drug couriers who trafficked between 20 grams and 40 grams of heroin, which is the equivalent to approximately 800 to 1,600 potentially fatal doses of heroin. Mendoza and Aguilar were apprehended transporting heroin from New York to Pennsylvania on August 31, 2015.
Miller previously was sentenced to 84 months’ imprisonment, and Vanderpool was sentenced to 77 months’ imprisonment for their roles in the offenses. One other individual associated with the investigation, Jose Espinosa, pleaded guilty to heroin trafficking and stolen firearms offenses, and awaits sentencing.
The matter was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, and the Pennsylvania State Police. Assistant United States Attorney Phillip J. Caraballo prosecuted the cases.
These cases 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. The Department of Justice reinvigorated PSN in 2017 as part of the Department’s renewed focus on targeting violent criminals, directing all U.S. Attorney’s Offices to work in partnership with federal, state, local, and tribal law enforcement and the local community to develop effective, locally-based strategies to reduce violent crime.
The cases were brought as part of a district wide initiative to combat the nationwide epidemic regarding the use and distribution of heroin. Led by the United States Attorney’s Office, the Heroin Initiative targets heroin traffickers operating in the Middle District of Pennsylvania and is part of a coordinated effort among federal, state and local law enforcement agencies to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who commit heroin related offenses.
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St. Petersburg Man Sentenced for Distribution of Synthetic OpioidRead the Press Release
Tampa, Florida – U.S. District Judge Steven Merryday today sentenced Mario Marquez Roberson (28, St. Petersburg) to 15 years and 8 months in federal prison for distribution of 4-flouroisobutyrl fentanyl, a synthetic opioid.
Roberson had pleaded guilty on April 2, 2019.
According to court documents, Roberson engaged in six transactions with an undercover officer during which he sold the officer hydromorphone pills and an approximate total of 52 grams of a synthetic opioid.
This case was investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration and the St. Petersburg Police Department. It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Callan Albritton.
This investigation is also the result of the Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) program. The principal mission of the OCDETF program is to identify, disrupt, and dismantle the most serious drug trafficking and money laundering organizations and those primarily responsible for the nation’s drug supply.
Shreveport Felon Sentenced to 70 Months in Federal Prison for Illegally Possessing PistolRead the Press Release
SHREVEPORT, La. – United States Attorney David C. Joseph announced that Matthew Matthews, 26, of Shreveport, was sentenced September 24 by U.S. District Judge Donald E. Walter, to 70 months in prison followed by three years of supervised release for possession of a firearm by a convicted felon. Matthews pleaded guilty on April 25, 2019.
On February 17, 2018, Shreveport police officers responded to a call of an armed individual who had pointed a handgun at an employee in a McDonald’s drive-through window. Police later located a vehicle matching the description of the one in the drive-through and attempted to make contact when the vehicle sped away. After the vehicle came to a stop, Matthews exited and was placed in a police unit while the officers questioned the passenger. The passenger told police that Matthews pointed the gun at the employee and that the gun was in the center console of the vehicle. The passenger also gave the police 6.4 grams of marijuana and 3.1 grams of crack cocaine, which she said Matthews told her to hide. When the officers searched the vehicle, they found a Smith and Wesson, Model SW40VE, .40-caliber pistol and 15 rounds in the center console.
Matthews is a felon who was convicted in Caddo Parish on October 12, 2012, for possession with intent to distribute marijuana, and on December 12, 2016, for illegal possession of stolen things. Under federal law, those convicted of felonies are not allowed to possess firearms or ammunition.
The ATF and the Shreveport Police Department conducted the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney J. Aaron Crawford prosecuted the case.
Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN) is the centerpiece of the Department of Justice’s violent crime reduction efforts. Project Safe Neighborhoods 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.
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Shreveport Felon Sentenced to 110 Months in Federal Prison for Illegal Possession of PistolRead the Press Release
SHREVEPORT, La. – United States Attorney David C. Joseph announced that Brandon Lars Reed, 30, of Shreveport, was sentenced September 24 by Chief U.S. District Judge S. Maurice Hicks Jr., to 110 months in prison followed by three years of supervised release for possession of a firearm by a convicted felon. Reed pleaded guilty on March 11, 2019.
On July 31, 2017, a Shreveport police officer responded to a complaint at a hotel on Monkhouse Drive that individuals were smoking marijuana. When the officer entered the hotel room, he found Reed with other occupants. During a search of the hotel room, a Glock, Model 27, .40-caliber pistol, located on one of the beds, and five Xanax bars, located in the bathroom, were found, all of which Reed admitted to possessing.
Reed is a felon who was convicted in Caddo Parish on November 9, 2009, of possession of a firearm with a controlled dangerous substance, and on April 15, 2014, of possession of a Schedule III drug. Under federal law, as a convicted felon, Reed is not allowed to possess a firearm or ammunition.
The ATF and Shreveport Police Department conducted the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney J. Aaron Crawford prosecuted the case.
Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN) is the centerpiece of the Department of Justice’s violent crime reduction efforts. Project Safe Neighborhoods 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.
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Serial Fraudster Sentenced for Card-Cracking SchemeRead the Press Release
RICHMOND, Va. – A Richmond man was sentenced today to over five years in prison for conspiring to defraud several banks and identity theft.
According to court documents, Troy Murchison, 23, conspired with several others for more than three-and-a-half years to defraud at least five different banks by depositing counterfeit payroll checks and other worthless financial instruments into dozens of compromised bank accounts and then quickly withdrawing the credited funds. Murchison used social media to recruit at least 40 accountholders of different financial institutions to provide their debit cards and PINs in exchange for promised payment. Murchison then created counterfeit payroll checks purportedly issued by more than a dozen local businesses, which he and others acting on his instruction then deposited into the compromised accounts.
These deposits fraudulently induced the targeted financial institutions to credit thousands of dollars to those accounts, which Murchison and others immediately withdrew. Between 2014 and 2017, Murchison and others deposited over 100 worthless checks and money orders totaling more than $95,000 into at least 40 compromised accounts and successfully withdrew nearly $40,000 of the credited proceeds. During that same period, Murchison was charged in three separate state cases for conduct related to this conspiracy. Murchison was on probation, awaiting trial, and a fugitive in these cases when he was ultimately arrested in November 2017.
G. Zachary Terwilliger, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia, and Peter R. Rendina, Inspector in Charge of the Washington Division of the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, made the announcement after sentencing by Senior U.S. District Judge Henry E. Hudson. Assistant U.S. Attorney Kaitlin G. Cooke prosecuted 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. 3:18-cr-122.
Second Employee in Cash Flow Partners Bank Fraud Conspiracy Charged in Multimillion-Dollar Loan SchemeRead the Press Release
NEWARK, N.J. – A Bergen County, New Jersey, woman has been charged for her role in a conspiracy that involved the creation of false documentation to secure over $4 million dollars in bank loans, U.S. Attorney Craig Carpenito announced.
Jennie Frias, a/k/a “Jennie Castillo,” 36, of Englewood, New Jersey, was charged by complaint with one count of conspiracy to commit bank fraud. Frias had her initial appearance Sept. 25, 2019, before U.S. Magistrate Judge James B. Clark III in Newark federal court and was released on a $100,000 unsecured bond.
According to documents filed in this case and statements made in court:
Between March 2016 and May 2018, Cash Flow Partners LLC, a business consulting firm with offices in New York and New Jersey, released internet advertisements and held seminars offering to assist customers in obtaining bank loans, including loans insured by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC). When customers submitted documentation supporting their bank loan applications to Cash Flow Partners, Frias and others created false documentation to make customers’ loan applications appear more financially viable than they actually were. Employees in Cash Flow’s “File Building Department” falsified payroll records by including fictitious financial and employment information, such as fake jobs, on template payroll forms and IRS tax forms. Then, employees in Cash Flow’s “Funding Department,” of which Frias became director, took steps to pose as the loan applicants when communicating with the victim banks. For example, Funding Department employees remotely controlled computers located at the homes of the loan applicants to submit documents to the banks. Funding Department employees also took possession of the loan applicants’ cell phones and communicated with the banks posing as the loan applicants. The victim banks sustained losses of over $4 million.
One of Frias’ conspirators, Raymundo Torres, pleaded guilty Sept. 24, 2019, to charges relating to his role in the Cash Flow bank fraud conspiracy.
The conspiracy to commit bank fraud charge carries a maximum potential penalty of 30 years in prison and a $1 million fine.
Individuals who believe they may have information about this case may contact the FBI at 1-800-CALL-FBI (225-5324).
U.S. Attorney Carpenito credited special agents of the FDIC-Office of the Inspector General (FDIC-OIG), under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Patricia Tarasca in New York, and special agents of the FBI, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Gregory W. Ehrie in Newark, with the investigation leading to the charges.
The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Ari B. Fontecchio of the Economic Crimes Unit and J. Stephen Ferketic of the U.S. Attorney’s Office Opioids Unit in Newark.
The charge and allegations against Frias are merely accusations, and she is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
Defense counsel: John D. Arseneault Esq. and John J. Roberts Esq., Chatham, New Jersey
Rockford Man Sentenced to More Than 12 Years in Prison for Distributing Heroin in RockfordRead the Press Release
ROCKFORD — A Rockford man was sentenced today by U.S. District Judge Philip G. Reinhard on a federal drug trafficking charge.
MAURICE D. NEAL (also known as “Moe”), 37, was sentenced to 12 years and seven months in federal prison, to be followed by three years of supervised release. Neal pleaded guilty on June 25, 2019, to distributing heroin.
In a written plea agreement, Neal admitted that between October 2015 and September 2016, he operated a heroin trafficking business in the Rockford area, and maintained two cellphone lines as hotlines for customers to order and purchase heroin. Neal typically sold user-quantity amounts of heroin, such as a gram or a half gram, but occasionally did larger transactions. Neal admitted he engaged in a large number of transactions each day, selling at least ten to 15 grams of heroin a day, resulting in sales of at least 4,500 grams of heroin during the time period that he operated his heroin trafficking business.
The sentence was announced by John R. Lausch, Jr., United States Attorney for the Northern District of Illinois; Brian M. McKnight, Special Agent-in-Charge of the Chicago office of the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration; and Brendan F. Kelly, Acting Director of the Illinois State Police. The case was investigated by the Rockford Resident Agency of the DEA's Chicago Field Office, and the Stateline Area Narcotics Team (“SLANT”), a task force led by the Illinois State Police. The U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms & Explosives, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Winnebago County Sheriff’s Department, and the Rockford Police Department assisted in the investigation. The government was represented by Assistant U.S. Attorney Margaret J. Schneider.
A co-defendant, QUINCY L. ATMORE (also known as “Q”), 47, of Rockford, pleaded guilty on Jan. 17, 2018, to distributing heroin. Atmore was sentenced on May 9, 2018, to 17 years in federal prison.
Repeat Offender Sentenced to 21 Years in Prison for Distributing Child Pornography While on Federal Supervised ReleaseRead the Press Release
CAMDEN, N.J. – A Camden County, New Jersey, man was sentenced to 252 months in prison for distributing images of child sexual abuse and violating the conditions of his supervised release imposed in connection with a previous child pornography conviction, U.S. Attorney Craig Carpenito announced today.
Barnaby Hewsen, 45, formerly of Pennsauken, New Jersey, previously pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Noel L. Hillman to an information charging him with one count of distributing child pornography as well as a petition charging him with violating the conditions of federal supervised release by committing another crime while under supervision. Judge Hillman imposed the sentence Sept. 26, 2019, in Camden federal court.
According to documents filed in this case and statements made in court:
In May 2017, Hewsen uploaded to a website three images that showed infants being sexually abused. On June 2, 2017, law enforcement officers conducted a search of Hewsen’s residence and discovered seven videos and 373 images on his computer, many of which depicted prepubescent children, some as young as newborns, being sexually abused and in some instances bound and assaulted. During the investigation that followed, officers also discovered stories on Hewsen’s computer that carefully detailed fantasies about kidnapping, molesting, and defiling young babies and infants. Some of the stories appeared to be authored by Hewsen himself. Hewsen took these actions while on federal supervised release for his previous federal conviction for possessing child pornography.
In addition to the prison term, Judge Hillman sentenced Hewsen to lifetime supervised release
U.S. Attorney Carpenito credited special agents of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Brian A. Michael; and the Camden County Prosecutor’s Office, under the direction of Prosecutor Mary Eva Colalillo, with the investigation leading to today’s sentencing.The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorney Gabriel J. Vidoni of the U.S. Attorney’s Office’s Criminal Division in Camden.
Defense counsel: Richard Sparaco Esq., Cherry Hill, New Jersey
Queens Woman Indicted for Causing Overdose Death of Victim in Motel RoomRead the Press Release
An indictment was unsealed today in federal court in Brooklyn charging Angelina Barini with distributing and possessing with intent to distribute fentanyl that resulted in the fatal overdose of a Queens man on July 11, 2019. Barini was arrested on a criminal complaint on August 25, 2019, and was arraigned on the indictment this morning before United States Magistrate Judge Steven M. Gold. Barini was ordered detained pending trial.
Richard P. Donoghue, United States Attorney for the Eastern District of New York; Peter Fitzhugh, Special Agent-in-Charge, Homeland Security Investigations, New York Field Office (HSI), and James P. O’Neill, Commissioner, New York City Police Department (NYPD), announced the charges.
“As alleged, without regard for the potentially lethal consequences of her actions and despite the enormous body count attributed to dangerous opioids, the defendant provided fentanyl to the victim, causing his death,” stated United States Attorney Donoghue. “This Office will continue working tirelessly with our law enforcement partners to hold accountable those like the defendant who contribute to the opioid epidemic.”
“In her course of business as a prostitute, it is alleged that Barini gave her client a fatal dose of fentanyl resulting in his death,” stated HSI Special Agent-in-Charge Fitzhugh. “It is well known that the opiod epidemic is very real and present in the New York City area, and with the hope of preventing future opioid related deaths, law enforcement at all levels continue to collaborate, investigate and arrest the dealers and traffickers who bring these deadly drugs into our area.”
As alleged in court filings, on July 11, 2019, the victim was found dead in a motel room in Woodside, Queens. Video surveillance from earlier that day captured a female, who appeared to be Barini, and the victim, entering the motel together. Subsequent to her arrest, Barini was interviewed by law enforcement authorities and admitted supplying the drugs to the victim.
The Office of the Chief Medical Examiner determined the victim’s cause of death was fentanyl intoxication. The investigation is continuing.
The charges in the indictment are allegations, and the defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty. If convicted, she faces a mandatory minimum of 20 years’ imprisonment, and a maximum of life imprisonment.
Assistant United States Attorneys Soumya Dayananda, Andrew Grubin and Andrew Wang are in charge of the prosecution.
The Defendant:
ANGELINA BARINI
Age: 41
Queens, New YorkE.D.N.Y. Docket No. 19-CR-428 (BMC)
Previously Convicted Sex Trafficker Sentenced to 21 Months’ Imprisonment for Repeat CrimeRead the Press Release
HARRISBURG - The United States Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Pennsylvania announced that Dawan “Finesse” Oliver, age 36, currently an inmate at Dauphin County Prison, was sentenced to 21 months’ imprisonment and ordered to pay an assessment of $5,000 under the Justice for Victims of Trafficking Act by Senior United States District Judge Yvette Kane for interstate travel in aid of prostitution.
According to United States Attorney David J. Freed, Oliver was sentenced by Judge Kane in 2008 for his participation in a large conspiracy involving trafficking of minor girls and women from Toledo, Ohio, to the Harrisburg area to engage in prostitution. He was sentenced to serve nine years in federal prison at that time. Law enforcement authorities in Lower Paxton Township became aware of Oliver engaging in similar conduct in 2018, this time with adult women only. Upon receiving the information that Oliver had transported a young woman from Toledo to Harrisburg for prostitution, Oliver was arrested and charged federally. He entered a guilty plea to a one-count indictment charging interstate travel in aid of prostitution in June 2019. The 21-month sentence imposed by Judge Kane was at the top of the advisory Sentencing Guideline range.
This case was investigated by the Lower Paxton Township Police Department with assistance from the Federal Bureau of Investigation. Assistant United States Attorney James T. Clancy prosecuted the case.
This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by the United States Attorneys' Offices and the Criminal Division's Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who sexually exploit children, and to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.usdoj.gov/psc For more information about internet safety education, please visit www.usdoj.gov/psc and click on the tab "resources."
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Previously Convicted Sex Offender Pleads Guilty to Federal Charge for Possession of Child PornographyRead the Press Release
Greenbelt, Maryland – Santos Nicolas Obando-Flores, age 46, of Brentwood, Maryland, pleaded guilty today to possession of child pornography. In 2015, Obando-Flores was convicted of a sex offense after engaging in sexual contact with a nine-year-old minor and was sentenced to 20 years in prison with all but six years suspended.
The guilty plea was announced by United States Attorney for the District of Maryland Robert K. Hur; Special Agent in Charge John Eisert of Homeland Security Investigations (HSI); and Colonel William M. Pallozzi, Superintendent of the Maryland State Police (MSP).
According to his guilty plea, on September 13, 2018, Obando-Flores was being administered a routine polygraph examination by a Maryland State Police polygraph examiner. The routine polygraph was required because Obando-Flores was a registered sex offender. During the post-polygraph interview, Obando-Flores admitted to the polygraph examiner that he had viewed child pornography on his cellphone and that the pornography was still on the cellphone. Obando-Flores also admitted to having as many as one hundred videos containing child pornography on his phone.
The polygraph examiner stopped the interview and read Obando-Flores his Miranda Rights, which Obando-Flores acknowledged that he understood. Obando-Flores agreed to speak with law enforcement without an attorney present and again admitted to the MSP polygraph examiner that there was child pornography on his cellphone. He explained to the polygraph examiner that he got it from a Facebook page and that he received multiple videos of child pornography through a “group chat” from an application on his phone. Obando-Flores was able to describe some videos depicting prepubescent minors engaged in sex acts or provocatively posed. Obando-Flores admitted that he started getting the videos approximately six to eight months ago.
The polygraph examiner confiscated Obando-Flores’s cellphone, which Obando-Flores had brought with him to the scheduled meeting and Obando-Flores consented to the search of his phone. An MSP trooper previewed the phone and found numerous files of suspected child pornography. Obando-Flores was arrested and a federal search warrant was obtained from the phone. Forensic analysts identified approximately 359 videos and 200 images documenting the sexual abuse of minors.
As part of his plea agreement, Obando-Flores will be required to 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).
“Combatting the exploitation of children is a team effort and thanks to our collaboration with our local law enforcement partners, we have one less offender on the streets,” said HSI Baltimore Special Agent in Charge John Eisert. “HSI is committed to continuing to work with our local law enforcement partners to pursue our goals of identifying and rescuing the victims of exploitation.”
Obando-Flores faces a minimum mandatory sentence of 10 years and a maximum of 20 years in federal prison followed by up to lifetime supervised release. U.S. District Judge Peter J. Messitte has scheduled sentencing for February 18, 2020 at 9:30 a.m.
This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by the United States Attorney’s Offices and the Criminal Division's Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who sexually exploit children, and to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.justice.gov/psc. For more information about Internet safety education, please visit www.justice.gov/psc and click on the "Resources" tab on the left of the page.
United States Attorney Robert K. Hur commended HSI-Baltimore and the Maryland State Police for their work in the investigation. Mr. Hur thanked Assistant U.S. Attorney Jennifer R. Sykes, who is prosecuting the federal case.
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Pittsburg Man Sentenced to 27 Years for Producing Child PornRead the Press Release
WICHITA, KAN. – A southeast Kansas man was sentenced Thursday to 27 years in Federal prison for producing child pornography, U.S. Attorney Stephen McAllister said.
Michael Paul Murphy, 41, Pittsburg, Kan., pleaded guilty to two counts of producing child pornography. In his plea, Murphy admitted using an iPhone to surreptitiously record minor victims in various stages of undress. He edited the recordings to focus on the victims’ genitals. He emailed the images to his workplace.
McAllister commended the Pittsburg Police Department, the FBI and Assistant U.S. Attorney Jason Hart for their work on the case.
Physician Sentenced to 15 Months in Federal Prison for Passport FraudRead the Press Release
Greenbelt, Maryland – U.S. District Judge Deborah K. Chasanow today sentenced Michael Nana Baako, age 50, a native of Ghana residing in Fulton, Maryland, to 15 months in federal prison, followed by three years of supervised release, for the federal charge of passport fraud. Baako was a physician who practiced in hospitals in Maryland and maintained his own clinic, Biazo Healthcare.
The sentence was announced by United States Attorney for the District of Maryland Robert K. Hur and Special Agent in Charge Edwin Guard of the U.S. Department of State’s Diplomatic Security Service (DSS) Washington Field Office.
According to Baako’s plea agreement, since at least 2001, Baako and R.A.A. have lived together in Howard County, Maryland and are the parents of two minor children. Baako and R.A.A. married in Ghana in 1995. Months later, Baako entered the United States legally after obtaining a visitor’s visa. In 1996, Baako applied for certification of his Ghanian medical education in the United States. In 1998, Baako married a U.S. citizen in Virginia, who filed a petition for Baako to become a naturalized United States citizen three weeks later. The petition was denied in 2000 after immigration officials concluded that Baako’s marriage was a “sham” marriage entered into for the sole purpose of obtaining immigration benefits. In 2001, Baako was licensed to practice in Maryland as a physician.
On November 29, 2005, Baako registered to vote in Maryland, swearing that he was a United States citizen, and subsequently voted in 10 federal elections between November 7, 2006 and November 6, 2018.
On December 15, 2006, Baako obtained a new Ghanaian passport in Accra, Ghana, as a Ghanaian national. On April 17, 2007, and September 16, 2009, respectively, Baako and R.A.A. submitted passport applications on behalf of their minor children, in which Baako falsely claimed that he was a citizen of the United States, born in Hillsborough, North Carolina. On April 22, 2008, Baako submitted an application for a United States passport for himself in which he falsely claimed that he was born in North Carolina, as were both of his parents. As part of his passport application, Baako provided an affidavit purporting to be from a family friend, falsely stating that this person was one of the first people to see Baako after his birth and was present at a subsequent naming and baptism ceremony for Baako at a Hillsborough, North Carolina church. Baako was issued a U.S. passport on April 29, 2008, which he used for international travel on several occasions. That passport included the false information that Baako was a citizen of the United States born in North Carolina. On July 31, 2012, Baako and R.A.A. submitted a passport renewal application on behalf of their first child, in which Baako falsely stated that he was a citizen of the United States. On February 20, 2018, Baako filed a passport renewal application for his own passport, again falsely stating that he was a U.S. citizen born in North Carolina. Baako was interviewed by Department of State officials on April 22, 2010, and on June 12, 2018. In both interviews Baako falsely stated that he was born in Hillsborough, North Carolina.
On May 8, 2019, law enforcement officers executed a search warrant at Baako’s home and located his Ghanaian passport and plans for the three-bedroom home Baako purchased in Accra, Ghana in August 2012. Investigators also obtained a number of documents related to Baako’s ongoing efforts to fraudulently obtain documentation establishing that he was a U.S. citizen born in North Carolina, including: a false affidavit purporting to be sworn by the Baako’s mother, claiming that he was born in North Carolina; a page from the family Bible falsely stating it had been presented to Baako at his birth in North Carolina; a falsified baptism certificate purporting to be from a North Carolina church, certifying that Baako was born in North Carolina; and several draft petitions to the Circuit Court for Howard County seeking to fraudulently establish the fact of his birth in North Carolina.
Baako has been detained since his arrest on May 8, 2019. As stated at today’s hearing, the Department of Homeland Security has initiated removal proceedings against Baako.
United States Attorney Robert K. Hur commended DSS for its work in the investigation. Mr. Hur thanked Assistant U.S. Attorneys Zachary A. Myers and Daniel A. Loveland, who prosecuted the case.
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Philadelphia Middle School Teacher Charged with Child Sexual ExploitationRead the Press Release
PHILADELPHIA – First Assistant United States Attorney Jennifer Arbittier Williams announced that Christopher O’Sullivan, 31, of Philadelphia, was charged by Indictment with one count of using a facility of interstate commerce to entice a minor to engage in sexual activity, and one count of manufacturing child pornography.
The indictment alleges that between June 21 and July 23, 2019, O’Sullivan enticed a minor to engage in criminal sexual activity and manufactured child pornography. Court documents allege that O’Sullivan, a middle school teacher, coerced a 12-year-old minor boy to take a sexually explicit photograph and text it to O’Sullivan, and that O’Sullivan discussed sexual activity with the minor over text messaging. O’Sullivan was arrested by criminal complaint on August 30, 2019, in Plattsburgh, New York, and he has been detained since that time.
Anyone with additional information regarding O’Sullivan related to the sexual abuse of minors is encouraged to contact the FBI – Philadelphia at (215)418-4000.
“The defendant’s alleged abuse of his position of trust in our community for his perverse gratification is over,” said First Assistant U.S. Attorney Williams. “Child sexual exploitation is appallingly pervasive, exacerbated by the easy availability of digital media and communications, and it demands an aggressive response. We stand ready with our federal partners to identify and prosecute individuals that perpetuate this abuse.”
“Rather than live up to a teacher’s commitment to care for his students, O’Sullivan robbed this young boy of his innocence and childhood. Although today’s indictment cannot repair the damage O’Sullivan caused, it sends the message that the FBI and our partners, like the Philadelphia Police Department’s Special Victims Unit, remain committed to hunting down child predators,” said Michael T. Harpster, Special Agent in Charge of the Philadelphia Division of the FBI.
If convicted, the defendant faces a mandatory minimum term of imprisonment of 15 years, a maximum possible sentence of lifetime imprisonment, a mandatory minimum term of 5 years up to a lifetime of supervised release, a $500,000 fine, a $200 special assessment, and a $10,000 additional assessment.
The case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Michelle L. Morgan. An indictment, information, or criminal complaint is an accusation.
A defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
Pearl River County Man Sentenced to over 6 Years in Federal Prison for being a Felon in Possession of a FirearmRead the Press Release
Gulfport, Miss. – Michael Wayne Dossett, 38, or Carriere, was sentenced today by U.S. District Judge Sul Ozerden to 78 months in prison, followed by three years of supervised release, for being a felon in possession of a firearm, announced U.S. Attorney Mike Hurst and Special Agent in Charge Kurt Thielhorn with the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives.
Dossett was also ordered to pay a $3,000 fine and forfeit six firearms, including a stolen SKS 7.62 caliber rifle with an extended magazine. Dossett has previous felony convictions for robbery and possession of cash in a correctional facility.
An investigation by the Bureau of Alcohol Tobacco Firearms and Explosives into the Simon City Royals criminal street gang activity in Pearl River County resulted in the April 17, 2019, execution of a search warrant at the home of Dossett, where firearms, 152 rounds of assorted ammunition, a ballistic vest, and various gang paraphernalia was seized.
The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives investigated the case. It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Annette Williams.
Paterson Felon Arrested for Trafficking and Unlawfully Possessing FirearmsRead the Press Release
NEWARK, N.J. – A Paterson, New Jersey, man with a prior felony conviction has been arrested for illegally selling 11 firearms for over $8,000, U.S. Attorney Craig Carpenito announced.
Floyd Henry, a/k/a “HK,” 34, was arrested Sept. 25, 2019, on a complaint charging him with one count of illegally engaging in the business of dealing in firearms and three counts of possession of firearms by a convicted felon. Henry had his initial appearance Sept. 26, 2019, before U.S. Magistrate Judge James B. Clark III in Newark federal court and was detained without bail.
According to documents filed in this case and statements made in court:
From July 15, 2019, through Sept. 20, 2019, Henry engaged in the business of dealing firearms while not being a federally licensed importer, licensed manufacturer, or licensed dealer. On at least three occasions, Henry sold a total of two semi-automatic rifles, two revolvers, and seven semi-automatic pistols for over $8,000.
Each of the three counts of being a felon in possession of a firearm carries a maximum potential penalty of up to 10 years in prison. The charge of engaging in the business of dealing firearms, while not being a federally licensed importer, licensed manufacturer, or licensed dealer carries a maximum potential penalty of up to five years in prison.
U.S. Attorney Carpenito credited special agents of the ATF under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Charlie J. Patterson; officers with the Passaic County Sherriff’s Office, under the direction of Sheriff Richard H. Berdnik; the Passaic County Prosecutor’s Office under the direction of Prosecutor Camelia Valdes; and the N.J. State Police under the direction of Col. Patrick J. Callahan, with the investigation leading to Henry’s arrest.
ATF’s National Tracing Center (NTC) supported this case. The NTC is the country’s only crime gun tracing center, and functions to provide accurate and timely trace information about the purchaser of a recovered firearm. ATF special agents and intelligence research specialists analyze this information to identify individuals engaged in unlicensed dealing of firearms, to include those who straw purchase firearms, which are often later recovered from the hands of convicted felons.
The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorney Christopher D. Amore of the Organized Crime and Gangs Unit in the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Newark.
Defense counsel: Peter Carter Esq., Assistant Federal Public Defender, Newark
Passaic County Private Jet Pilot Sentenced to 13 Years in Prison for Cocaine Trafficking, Money Laundering, and StructuringRead the Press Release
TRENTON, N.J. – A Passaic County, New Jersey, man was sentenced today to 156 months in prison for trafficking hundreds of kilograms of cocaine into New Jersey and New York and then laundering over $10.2 million in cash drug proceeds, U.S. Attorney Craig Carpenito announced.
Khamraj Lall, 52, of Ringwood, New Jersey, was found guilty previously by a federal jury in Trenton of all eight counts of a superseding indictment, including counts charging him with conspiracy to distribute cocaine, money laundering, structuring monetary instruments, and conspiracy to commit money laundering and structuring. U.S. District Judge Anne E. Thompson imposed the sentence today in Trenton federal court.
According to documents filed in the case and the evidence at trial:
From April 2011 through November 2014, Lall, a private pilot, smuggled hundreds of kilograms of cocaine from Guyana to New Jersey and New York on his privately owned jet aircraft and then laundered the proceeds.
Lall, who owed a private jet charter business called Exec Jet Club based in Gainesville, Florida, used the proceeds of his cocaine empire to purchase jet planes, houses, and cars. He also paid over $2 million in cash stuffed into suitcases to a Florida contractor to build an airplane hangar in Guyana.Over a 3-½ year period, Lall also made (or had others make) 1,287 cash deposits totaling approximately $7.5 million into more than 20 different bank accounts in New Jersey and New York, much of it in $20 bills. In order to avoid detection and circumvent bank reporting laws, all 1,287 deposits were for amounts less than $10,000.
In November 2014, Lall was flying one of his jets from the U.S. to Guyana and stopped in Puerto Rico to refuel. An outbound search of the plane uncovered $470,000 in cash stuffed into a suitcase hidden in the tail of the plane, and another $150,000 in cash hidden under a seat.
In addition to the prison term, Judge Thompson sentenced Lall to five years of supervised release. The Court previously ordered Lall to forfeit his interest in two jet airplanes, two airplane hangars, multiple properties, a Lexus SUV, among other property traceable to his crimes. The Court also entered a money judgment against Lall for $9.3 million.
U.S. Attorney Carpenito credited special agents and task force officers of IRS-Criminal Investigation, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge John R. Tafur; the Morristown, New Jersey, police department, under the direction of Chief Peter Demnitz; special agents and staff of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Brian Michael; the Drug Enforcement Administration-Rochester, New York, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge James J. Hunt; the Federal Aviation Administration, Law Enforcement Assistance Program; and U.S. Customs and Border Protection Air and Marine Operations Center under the direction of Richard T. Booth, with the investigation leading to today’s sentencing.
The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Jonathan M. Peck and Thomas S. Kearney of the Criminal Division in Newark.
Defense counsel: Jason J. Leboeuf Esq., Livingston, New Jersey
Park Ridge Man Sentenced to 14 Years in Prison for Conspiring to Commit ExtortionRead the Press Release
ROCKFORD — A Park Ridge man was sentenced today by U.S. District Judge Philip G. Reinhard to 14 years in federal prison, to be followed by three years of supervised release, for conspiring to commit extortion.
ROBERT PANOZZO, 59, pleaded guilty to the charge on June 19, 2019. According to a written plea agreement, from Jan. 1, 2005, through Dec. 20, 2009, Panozzo conspired with JOSEPH D. ABBOTT, 40, formerly of Park City, and others, to extort money from an individual by actual and threatened force, violence, and fear.
The sentence was announced by John R. Lausch, Jr., United States Attorney for the Northern District of Illinois. The case was investigated by the Chicago office of the FBI. The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorney Scott R. Paccagnini.
In 2005, Panozzo loaned money to the individual. In 2006, the individual paid Panozzo in cash, which the individual believed was the last in a series of payments that satisfied his loans from Panozzo. However, Panozzo told the individual that $100,000 was still owed as interest from the previous loans. Panozzo admitted in the plea agreement that he recruited Abbott and others to cause harm to the individual and his property in order to coerce the individual to repay the loans from Panozzo. On Oct. 5, 2006, Panozzo, Abbott and others confronted the individual at his place of business in McHenry County and demanded payment of the outstanding loans. When the individual said he could not do so, Panozzo, Abbott and others struck the individual, causing injuries to his head and arms that required medical treatment.
Panozzo was incarcerated in the Illinois Department of Corrections from Nov. 3, 2006, to Sept. 25, 2008. Panozzo admitted that after his release from IDOC and throughout 2009, he repeatedly called and left voicemail messages for the victim, demanding that he either pay off his loans or meet with Panozzo to discuss repayment. On Feb. 8 and 11, 2009, Abbott left a note at the victim’s residence in McHenry County, demanding repayment of the $100,000. Later that month, Abbott used a flammable liquid to set fire to a Dodge Caravan that was parked in the driveway of the victim’s residence. Panozzo admitted that he had paid Abbott to set fire to the victim’s van. On March 3, 2009, Panozzo called the victim’s residence and left a voicemail message that announced Panozzo intended to arrive at the victim’s residence within one hour. In April 2009, Panozzo and the victim engaged in a series of conversations in which Panozzo demanded repayment. On April 8, 2009, Abbott used an incendiary device to set fire to the contents of several trash cans and the garage located at the victim’s residence. Panozzo also admitted that he had paid Abbott to “blow up” the victim’s residence.
Abbott was sentenced on July 26, 2019, to six and a half years in federal prison, to be followed by three years of supervised release, for conspiring to commit extortion.
Operation “Bird Dog” Results in Guilty PleasRead the Press Release
Jackson, TN – A joint investigation conducted by the Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency (TWRA) and United States Fish and Wildlife Service Office of Law Enforcement into violations of the Migratory Bird Treaty Act (MBTA), known as Operation "Bird Dog," has resulted in multiple defendants pleading guilty to federal hunting violations. U.S. Attorney D. Michael Dunavant announced the guilty pleas today.
According to information presented in court, Hunter Rainwaters, 20, Cody Brown, 20, Peyton Mayberry, 20, and Jay Maiden, 20, committed violations involving the illegal placement of bait to attract waterfowl and taking or attempting to take waterfowl over a baited area. The area the subjects illegally baited is a TWRA owned and managed Wildlife Management Area in Benton County, TN. The effects of this baiting on a public waterfowl hunting area resulted in the closure of a portion of the Wildlife Management Area and the subsequent loss of hunting opportunity for other hunters in the affected area for the first ten (10) days of the 2017-2018 waterfowl hunting season.
On September 23, 2019, U.S. Magistrate Court Judge Jon A. York sentenced Rainwaters to loss of hunting privileges for two years along with $1,000 fine; Mayberry, Brown and Maiden were each sentenced to loss of hunting privileges for one year along with a $1,000 fine. Additionally, other defendants cited in the case paid a total of $17,680.00 in fines.
U.S. Attorney D. Michael Dunavant said, "The U.S. Attorney’s Office is a full-service federal prosecution office, and we have the ability and intention to charge any violations of federal law, no matter where they occur in the Western District of Tennessee. These prosecutions demonstrate our commitment to upholding the rule of law, and to pursuing any cases that harm and impact our rural communities. We commend the TWRA and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service on this successful operation, and appreciate our partnerships with them."
This case was investigated by the Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency and the United States Fish and Wildlife Service.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Matthew J. Wilson prosecuted this case on behalf of the government.
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North Reading Woman Arrested for Assaulting Federal OfficerRead the Press Release
BOSTON – A North Reading woman was arrested this morning and charged in federal court in Boston with assaulting a federal officer.
Francesca Elliott, 24, was charged in a criminal complaint with one count with assaulting a federal officer. Elliott was released on conditions following an initial appearance.
According to the charging documents, on Aug. 17, 2019, at approximately 10:30 p.m., two individuals exited an event at TD Garden and entered the grounds of the Thomas P. O’Neill Federal Building on Causeway Street in Boston. A uniformed member of the Federal Protective Service noted that both of the individuals were speaking in loud, aggressive tones and appeared to be intoxicated. As the individuals approached the uniformed officer, one of the individuals appeared to become more aggressive and started charging at the officer, who ordered the individual to stop. The individual continued rushing towards the officer, becoming more aggressive, balling his fists, and shouting at the officer to “Do you job.” At this point, fearing that the individual was about to assault him, the officer informed the individual that he was being arrested for disorderly conduct and to place his hands behind his back.
As the officer was attempting to secure this individual, the other individual – Elliott –allegedly struck the officer in the face with her cellphone, causing a laceration on his right eye. The officer released the first individual, and after a brief struggle, was able to secure Elliott in handcuffs.
The charging statute provides for a sentence of up to 20 years in prison, up to three years of supervised release and a fine of up to $250,000. Sentences imposed by a federal district court judge based upon the US Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
United States Attorney Andrew E. Lelling; Jason Molina, Acting Special Agent in Charge of Homeland Security Investigations in Boston; and Timothy Bane, Regional Director of the Department of Homeland Security, Federal Protective Service made the announcement today. Assistant U.S. Attorney Kenneth G. Shine of Lelling’s Major Crimes Unit is prosecuting the case.
The details contained in the charging documents are allegations. The defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.