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9 February 2026
Pair Plead Guilty to Conspiring with Annandale-Based Doctor to Illegally Distributing Oxycodone and other Controlled SubstancesRead the Press Release
ABINGDON, Va. – A pair of Maryland men who conspired with Dr. Rotimi Iluyomade, an Annandale-based doctor convicted of distributing more than 7,000 oxycodone pills, 34,000 milliliters of hydrocodone-chlorpheniramine solution (also known as “tussionex”), and 107,000 milliliters of promethazine-codeine solution (“also known as lean”), pled guilty recently in U.S. District Court in Abingdon.
Obioma Alozie Ndubuka, 32, a.k.a. “Bank Roll” of Derwood, Maryland, and Raymono Alfonzo Russell II, 25, of Bowie, Maryland, pled guilty recently to one count of conspiracy to distribute and possess with the intent to distribute Schedule II controlled substances and to acquire promethazine-codeine solution by fraud. In addition, Russell was ordered to forfeit $40,000 to the United States.
Also charged in the conspiracy are Cameron Isaiah Lewis, 23, of Bowie, Maryland; Elhadj Malick Diallo, 31, of Silver Spring, Maryland; Zion Oluwademilade Adeduwon, 24, of Bowie, Maryland; Kenechukwu Brian Okwara, a.k.a. “Kene,” 29 of Bowie, Maryland; and Yared Michael Tesfaye, a.k.a. “Yar,” 28, of Montgomery Village, Maryland.
Adeduwon pled guilty in 2025 and has been ordered to forfeit $100,000 to the United States.
According to court documents, in at least 2023 and 2024, Iluyomade and the co-conspirators entered into an agreement to distribute more than 7,000 oxycodone pills and more than 34,000 milliliters of hydrocodone-chlorpheniramine solution to pharmacies in multiple states, including California, Colorado, Nebraska, Arizona, Missouri, Florida, Pennsylvania, Maryland, New Jersey, Delaware, Rhode Island, Georgia, Wisconsin, Texas, West Virginia, and in the Eastern and Western Districts of Virginia. At least 70 of the illegal controlled substance prescriptions were transmitted to and/or filled at pharmacies in the Western District of Virginia.
As part of the conspiracy, multiple individuals visited Iluyomade’s medical clinic to obtain fraudulent prescriptions. The individuals provided Iluyomade with lists of multiple “patients” with fake identifying information or different variations of names and false addresses, and requested prescriptions be sent to pharmacies throughout the United States for the “patients” on the lists.
Ndubuka traveled to various pharmacies to pick up fraudulent prescriptions written by Iluyomade, which he then distributed for profit, often posting pictures on his social media accounts to facilitate drug sales. Iluyomade transmitted at least 134 fraudulent prescriptions using variations of patient names using the “Ndubuka” surname. The prescriptions listed 56 different residential addresses but the same patient home phone number.
Russell visited Iluyomade’s clinic to obtain fraudulent prescriptions, paying approximately $300 per fraudulent prescription and often using the personal information of homeless individuals to obtain the prescriptions. He paid these individuals cash, or provided them drugs, to go inside the pharmacy and pick up the fraudulent prescriptions. Russell then distributed the drugs he obtained for profit.
The investigation began on September 2, 2023, when Russell attempted to pick up a fraudulent promethazine-codeine solution prescription transmitted by Dr. Iluyomade at TigerX Pharmacy in Honaker, Virginia. Russell was arrested and a search of his vehicle revealed multiple controlled substance prescription bottles in various ‘patient’ names, all from Dr. Iluyomade, filled at pharmacies in Roanoke, Radford, Tazewell, and Floyd, Virginia.
The Drug Enforcement Administration, Federal Bureau of Investigation, Virginia State Police, Russell County Sheriff’s Office, Salisbury, Maryland Police Department, Loudoun County Sheriff’s Office, Nebraska State Police, HHS-OIG, and the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) are investigating the case.
Assistant U.S. Attorneys Lena Busscher and Randy Ramseyer are prosecuting the case.
Acting United States Attorney Robert N. Tracci, Christopher C. Goumenis, Special Agent in Charge DEA Washington Division, and Darren B. Cox, Assistant Director in Charge of the FBI Washington Field Office made the announcement.
Over Six Million Dollars in Taxpayer Funds RecoveredRead the Press Release
PHOENIX, Ariz. – Timothy Courchaine, U.S. Attorney for the District of Arizona, today announced that, through a court-ordered judgment in a civil asset forfeiture action, the government has secured approximately $6,550,729 in stolen taxpayer money.
Through diligent investigation and the effective use of civil forfeiture, federal agents and prosecutors recovered the taxpayer funds stolen through pandemic-related schemes.
As set forth in the civil complaint, COVID-19 pandemic-related unemployment insurance funding was distributed through several federal programs, including the CARES Act, the Continued Assistance Act, and the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021. This funding was administered through state workforce agencies, including the Arizona Department of Economic Security (ADES). Fraudsters, using stolen personal information of U.S. citizens and fabricated employment information, applied for and obtained unemployment insurance payments through ADES. The fraudsters routed the payments to bank accounts they opened using the stolen personal information, then withdrew the funds or transferred them to other accounts. Investigators identified over 2,000 fraudulent accounts that contained over $6 million in payments obtained from ADES. Using civil forfeiture authority, federal prosecutors and investigators were able to seize and recover the funds.
The District of Arizona brought this civil forfeiture case in cooperation with the broader national DOJ-led COVID Fraud Task Force–a multi-agency collaboration among prosecutors and law enforcement from various agencies that has, to-date, charged numerous individuals and entities who exploited COVID fraud relief programs and seized and forfeited over $1.4 billion in COVID fraud proceeds.
This case was investigated by the U.S. Department of Labor, Office of Inspector General, with assistance from the U.S. Postal Inspection Service and U.S. Secret Service. The U.S. Marshals Service assisted in the seizure and forfeiture. The United States was represented by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Joseph Bozdech and LaTanya Wateland.
CASE NUMBER: CV-24-00331-PHX-SHD
RELEASE NUMBER: 2026-024_over $6million in US Currency
Omaha Jury Convicts Barndominium Builder of Three Counts of Wire FraudRead the Press Release
United States Attorney Lesley A. Woods announced that Bryce A. Nolde, 37, of Waverly, Nebraska, was convicted of three counts of wire fraud by a federal jury in Omaha, Nebraska, on February 4, 2026.
Nolde operated BV Builders, which billed itself as a construction company specializing in barndominiums and shouses. The term barndominium or shouse (shed-house) typically refers to a large, open-concept building constructed with metal or wood framing and clad in metal siding and roofing. These structures are used for residential purposes and can incorporate a workshop, garage, or room for animals.
Evidence at trial showed that between July 2022 through early 2024, BV Builders advertised that it could build customers the house of their dreams. The company would get a large downpayment or draw a large amount from a customer’s construction loan and then represent that the money was going to pay subcontractors and suppliers for their work on the customer’s build. Instead, the money went to fund Nolde’s personal interests or other purposes. The customers were left with no dream houses, and often with construction liens on their property, because the subcontractors and suppliers did not get paid for the work they provided. Dozens of victims testified at trial to the devastating financial crimes.
The jury deliberated for slightly more than two hours before returning a guilty verdict for each of the three counts for which Nolde was charged.
United States District Judge Brian C. Buescher, who presides over the case, set Nolde’s sentencing on May 13, 2026, at 1:30 p.m. Each of the wire fraud counts carry a possible penalty of up to 30 years in federal prison and a fine of up to $1,000,000. Nolde could also be ordered to pay restitution to the victims of his crimes.
This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Office of Inspector General Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, the Office of Inspector General Federal Housing Finance Agency, the Office of Inspector General for the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System and the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, and the Nebraska State Patrol.
Ocean County Man Sentenced to 72 Months’ Imprisonment for Traveling Overseas to Engage in Sexual Conduct with a MinorRead the Press Release
TRENTON, N.J. – An Ocean County man was sentenced to 72 months’ imprisonment for traveling to Norway to engage in sexual conduct with a 14-year-old victim, Senior Counsel Philip W. Lamparello announced today.
Jacob Bauer, 29, of Toms River, pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Robert Kirsch in Trenton federal court on September 9, 2025, to a one-count Information charging him with engaging in illicit sexual conduct in a foreign place. U.S. District Judge Robert Kirsch imposed the sentence today in Trenton federal court.
According to documents filed in this case and statements made in court:
From December 1, 2023 through December 10, 2023, Bauer, then 27 years old, traveled from the United States to Norway to engage in sexual activity with a 14-year-old female in a hotel. After returning to the United States, Bauer communicated with the victim and bragged to others about his sexual activities, all while acknowledging the victim’s age and status as a minor. After learning of Bauer’s sexual activity, members of an online community that Bauer was active in “doxxed” him by publishing his information online.
In addition to the prison term, Judge Kirsch sentenced Bauer to 10 years of supervised release following Bauer’s term of imprisonment and ordered forfeiture of Bauer’s property used to commit the offense. Bauer is also subject to registration under the Sex Offender Registration and Notification Act.
Senior Counsel Lamparello credited the special agents and task force officers of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Stefanie Roddy in Newark, with the investigation leading to the sentence. He also thanked the New Brunswick Police Department, under the direction of Chief of Police Vincent Sabo, the Manchester Township Police Department, under the direction of Chief of Police Antonio Ellis, the FBI Legal Attaché Office, U.S. Embassy, Copenhagen, Denmark, the FBI Legal Attaché Office, U.S. Embassy, Warsaw, Poland, the Jackson County, Georgia Sheriff's Office, INTERPOL, the Norwegian Politiet, Troms District, the Norwegian Politiet, NC3 KRIPOS, and the Poland Policja CBZC, Central Cybercrime Bureau for their assistance.
This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice. Led by U.S. Attorneys’ Offices and CEOS, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to better locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the Internet, as well as to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit Justice.gov/PSC.
The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorney Jonathan S. Garelick of the U.S. Attorney’s Office’s Criminal Division in Trenton.
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Defense counsel: Andrea G. Aldana, Esq., Federal Public Defenders.
Oakland Man Sentenced to Five Years in Federal Prison for Robbing U.S. Mail CarrierRead the Press Release
OAKLAND — An Oakland man was sentenced today to five years in federal prison for robbing a postal carrier. U.S. District Judge Araceli Martínez-Olguín handed down the sentence.
Joseph Michael McBee, 30, was charged by criminal complaint on Oct. 28, 2024, and by information on July 1, 2025, with one count of robbery of a U.S. mail carrier. He pleaded guilty on Oct. 20, 2025.
According to the plea agreement, early on the morning of Oct. 10, 2023, McBee stole a 2015 Kia Soul parked on a residential street in Oakland. Later that morning, he arrived in the stolen Kia at a Toyota dealership in Daly City and assisted two others, Ebony Reeves and Felix Wilson, as they stole a 2023 Toyota Camry. Reeves was separately charged with receipt of stolen mail and Wilson was charged with aiding and abetting mail robbery; both have pleaded guilty.
All three then drove around San Francisco looking for a mail carrier to rob. At about 10:25 a.m., they spotted a U.S. mail truck and mail carrier. McBee exited the stolen Toyota and approached the victim mail carrier, demanding that the victim hand over his postal keys. When the victim refused, McBee pushed him to the ground and stole his wallet. The victim sustained bruising to both arms as a result of McBee’s assault. During the assault, mail trays containing over 500 pieces of mail were stolen. Afterwards, the three defendants drove to a gas station store in Oakland where McBee used the victim mail carrier’s credit card.
McBee was not arrested until Oct. 31, 2023, after he took law enforcement on an extensive and dangerous car chase and subsequent foot chase. When McBee was finally apprehended, he had a firearm and ammunition in his possession.
United States Attorney Craig H. Missakian and U.S. Postal Inspection Service (USPIS), San Francisco Division Inspector in Charge Stephen M. Sherwood made the announcement.
In addition to the prison term, Judge Martínez-Olguín also sentenced McBee to a three-year period of supervised release.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Ivana Djak is prosecuting the case with the assistance of Jessie Chelsea and Amala James. The prosecution is the result of an investigation by USPIS.
Nine Members of Oakland-Based “Ghost Town” Gang Sentenced to A Combined Total of Nearly 60 Years for Armed Robberies in 2022Read the Press Release
OAKLAND – Nine associates of the Oakland-based “Ghost Town” gang have been sentenced to a combined total of nearly 60 years in prison for a series of armed robberies targeting small Bay Area businesses. The sentences were handed down by U.S. District Judge Araceli Martínez-Olguín, with the final defendant sentenced today.
The nine defendants, Demarco Barnett, 36; Jakari Jenkins, 34; Danny Garcia, 41; Garland Rabon, 30; Aramiya Burrell, 35; Lester Garnett, 34; Darrin Hutchinson, 39; Ricky Joseph, 37; and Keanna Smith-Stewart, 33, each pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit robbery affecting interstate commerce. Based on their involvement, eight of the defendants also pleaded guilty to a varying number of substantive counts of robbery affecting interstate commerce.
The robberies took place in 2022. On March 18, 2022, the co-conspirators engaged in the armed robbery of a coin and stamp store located on the tenth floor of a building in the South of Market neighborhood of San Francisco. The co-conspirators entered the store, brandished firearms, and demanded money from the business and the two individuals who happened to be present at the time – the owner and his son. The robbers struck the head and zip-tied the hands of the owner’s son, and absconded with cash, jewelry, and coins. Defendants Jenkins, Barnett, and Joseph were charged with and pleaded guilty to this robbery count.
The co-conspirators then struck a San Pablo jewelry store on Nov. 12, 2022. Five co-conspirators, at least three of whom were brandishing firearms, entered the store, while two others waited outside in the getaway cars. The co-conspirators stole bags of jewelry. Defendants Jenkins, Barnett, Rabon, Garcia, and Hutchinson were charged with and pleaded guilty to this robbery count.
A third robbery occurred on Dec. 24, 2022, of a marijuana business in Oakland. The co-conspirators arrived at the business as an employee was leaving it. The robbers brandished weapons, directed the employee back into the building at gunpoint, demanding “budded weed” and “money.” One of the robbers struck the employee in the head with a firearm. The robbers searched through the employee’s pockets and stole his bank debit card. The robbers absconded with the victim’s debit card and a bag of marijuana plant trimmings. Defendants Jenkins, Barnett, Rabon, Burrell, Garnett, and Garcia were charged with and pleaded guilty to this robbery count.
United States Attorney Craig H. Missakian and FBI Special Agent in Charge Sanjay Virmani made the announcement.
The following chart summarizes the number of counts each defendant pleaded guilty to and the sentence each defendant received:
DefendantNumber of Counts in Guilty PleaSentence (months)Demarco BarnettConspiracy + 3 substantive robberies114Jakari JenkinsConspiracy + 3 substantive robberies96Danny GarciaConspiracy + 2 substantive robberies84Garland RabonConspiracy + 2 substantive robberies75Aramiya BurrellConspiracy + 1 substantive robbery82Lester GarnettConspiracy + 1 substantive robbery70Darrin HutchinsonConspiracy + 1 substantive robbery70Ricky JosephConspiracy + 1 substantive robbery68Keanna Smith-StewartConspiracy50Total709In addition to the custodial time, the Court also ordered restitution in the amount of $150,338.00.
The Violent Crime Strike Force is prosecuting the case with the assistance of Yenni Weinberg. The prosecution is the result of an investigation by the FBI and the Oakland Police Department.
New York Man Sentenced for Fentanyl and Methamphetamine Trafficking ConspiracyRead the Press Release
LONDON, Ky. – A Sunnyside, New York, man, Wilson Molina, 33, was sentenced on Monday by U.S. District Judge Rober Wier to 120 months for conspiracy to distribute 400 grams of fentanyl and 500 grams or more of methamphetamine.
According to his plea agreement, beginning in February 2024 and continuing through December 2024, Molina conspired with others to distribute controlled substances, including counterfeit pills containing fentanyl and methamphetamine. The fentanyl pills were manufactured to appear as if they were legitimate oxycodone 30mg pills; similarly, the methamphetamine pills mimicked the appearance of legitimate amphetamine and dextroamphetamine pills (commonly known by the brand name, “Adderall”. On multiple occasions, Molina supplied one of his co-conspirators with controlled substances that they then shipped into the Eastern District of Kentucky. Molina and his co-conspirators coordinated distribution of the fentanyl and methamphetamine from Queens, New York, maintaining massive quantities of the counterfeit pills in a storage unit close to Molina’s residence. On February 10, 2025, DEA executed a search warrant at a storage unit used to hold the drugs Molina was trafficking, and agents seized more than 3.4 million counterfeit pills.
Under federal law, Molina must serve 85 percent of his prison sentence. Upon his release from prison, he will be under the supervision of the U.S. Probation Office for 5 years.
Paul McCaffrey, First Assistant United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Kentucky, and Jim Scott, Special Agent in Charge, DEA, Louisville Field Division; jointly announced the sentencing.
The investigation was conducted by the DEA. The U.S. Attorney’s Office was represented by Assistant U.S. Attorney Gregory Rosenberg.
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Minnesota Man Indicted for Filing and Conspiring to File False Tax Returns Requesting Hundreds of Millions of Dollars in Undeserved Tax Refunds from the IRSRead the Press Release
MINNEAPOLIS – Caesar Munir Wilson made his initial appearance in U.S. District Court on Thursday, in response to an indictment charging him with conspiracy to file false claims for tax refunds, filing a false claim for a tax refund, money laundering, and bank fraud from 2022 to 2023. He was released subject to conditions on an unsecured bond pending disposition of the case.
The indictment alleges that the defendant’s tax returns falsely requested refunds of more than $ 90 million and that he conspired in the filing of additional false tax returns requesting tax refunds totaling more than $ 210 million. Wilson’s fraudulent claims allegedly totaled more than $ 350 million and resulted in the United States Treasury paying out more than $ 19 million in undeserved tax refunds. Wilson also allegedly used his fraudulent proceeds to purchase a $ 2.6 million house in Prior Lake, to invest in cryptocurrency and other projects, and for personal expenses.
During the course of the conspiracy, Wilson allegedly advised a group of sovereign citizens regarding trusts and taxes. He also provided them with tax forms and documents for tax filings. Sovereign citizens wrongly believe that certain laws, such as the federal income tax, do not apply to a person’s sovereign persona.
“Individuals who file false claims for tax refunds and who conspire with others to violate the laws of the Unites States must be held accountable for their criminal conduct,” said United States Attorney Daniel N. Rosen.
The case is being investigated by IRS-Criminal Investigation and the Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration.
Assistant U.S. Attorneys Matthew D. Forbes and Matthew D. Evans are prosecuting the case.
An indictment is only a charge and is not evidence of guilt. The defendant is presumed innocent.
Milwaukee Man Sentenced to 12 Years in Federal Prison for Armed RobberyRead the Press Release
Brad D. Schimel, United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Wisconsin, announced that on January 29, 2026, Chief United States District Judge Pamela Pepper sentenced Dametri G. Horton (age: 34) to 12 years’ imprisonment for his commission of an armed robbery and illegal possession of a firearm.
On May 7, 2025, after a two-day trial, a federal jury found Horton guilty of committing a commercial business armed robbery. The evidence established that on November 20, 2022, Horton entered a Walgreens in the City of Milwaukee, approached a cashier, brandished a firearm, and demanded money. When the cashier backed away in fear, Horton reached across the counter and stole $385.44 from the register drawer.
The Milwaukee Police Department apprehended Horton approximately two weeks later after Horton led officers on a vehicle pursuit that lasted nearly 10 miles. As police sought to arrest Horton, he discarded a loaded, Taurus semi-automatic pistol. Horton has prior State of Wisconsin felony convictions for burglary, fleeing, recklessly endangering safety, and theft. As a convicted felon, he was federally prohibited from possessing a firearm. Prior to his armed robbery jury trial, Horton entered a guilty to plea to being a felon in possession of a firearm.
“This case demonstrates the power of strong partnerships between federal and local law enforcement, along with a dedicated prosecution team” said U.S. Attorney Schimel. “Working together with FBI’s Milwaukee Area Violent Crime Task Force and Milwaukee Police Department, we ensured that a dangerous, repeat offender was held fully accountable, and this sentence sends a clear message that armed robbery and illegal firearm possession will be aggressively prosecuted and met with serious consequences.”
“Mr. Horton’s brazen and reckless conduct put Milwaukee residents at risk - from an armed robbery at a drug store to a vehicle pursuit,” said FBI Milwaukee Special Agent in Charge Alan Karr. “The FBI is committed to crushing violent crime and identifying criminals who threaten our communities. The FBI and our partners on the Milwaukee Area Violent Crime Task Force will continue to aggressively pursue our mission to ensure public safety.”
This case was investigated by the FBI’s Milwaukee Area Violent Crime Task Force and City of Milwaukee Police Department. It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Benjamin Wesson and Robert Brady.
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Memphis Tax Preparers Plead Guilty to Conspiracy and Preparing False Returns for ClientsRead the Press Release
Memphis, TN – Two Memphis tax return preparers pleaded guilty to conspiring to defraud the United States and aiding in the preparation and filing of false tax returns. United States Attorney D. Michael Dunavant, for the Western District of Tennessee, made the announcement today.
According to court documents and statements made in court, Robert Wells, 54, and Andre Wilson, 54, operated Wells and Wilson Financial, a Memphis-based tax preparation business. From at least 2019 through 2022, Wells and Wilson conspired with each other to defraud the IRS; and both men prepared returns for clients that were materially false. Specifically, they prepared tax returns that included false itemized deductions, business income, or business deductions. As a result, the clients received inflated refunds that they were not entitled to receive. In total, Wells and Wilson caused a loss to the U.S. Treasury exceeding $250,000.
U.S. Attorney D. Michael Dunavant said: "Protection of the United States Treasury and taxpayer resources is a top priority for the Department of Justice and this office. Income tax fraud schemes strike at the very heart of our federal government’s financial ability to provide services and protection for our citizens, and we will use all available resources to punish and deter such dishonest criminal behavior.”
“Dishonest tax return preparers use a variety of methods to cheat the government,” said Special Agent in Charge Donald “Trey” Eakins, Charlotte Field Office, IRS Criminal Investigation. “Today's plea is a reminder to those who might consider preparing false tax returns that IRS-CI and the U.S. Attorney’s Office will continue their aggressive pursuit of those who attempt to defraud the United States tax system."
Wells is scheduled to be sentenced on May 6, 2026. Wilson is scheduled to be sentenced on May 18, 2026. Both men face a maximum penalty of five years in prison for conspiracy and three years in prison for preparing and filing false tax returns. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
Internal Revenue Service-Criminal Investigation (IRS-CI) investigated this case.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Raney Irwin for the Western District of Tennessee and Trial Attorney Max Willner-Giwerc of the Department of Justice Criminal Division’s Tax Section are prosecuting this case on behalf of the government.
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For more information, please contact the Media Relations Team at [email protected]. Follow the U.S. Attorney’s Office on Facebook or on X at @WDTNNews for office news and updates.
McComb Man Sentenced for Violating Federal Wildlife LawRead the Press Release
JACKSON, MS – A McComb man was sentenced on January 8, 2026, to 1 year of federal probation and fined $3,000 for violating federal misdemeanor wildlife law.
According to court documents, Jeffery Budziszewski, 66, possessed and sold three-toed box turtles in violation of Mississippi law and exported the turtles to the state of New York where the turtles were repackaged and exported to the country of China, in violation of federal law.
The Lacey Act, a federal law, prohibits exporting, transporting, and purchasing in interstate or foreign commerce any wildlife taken, possessed, transported, or sold in violation of any law or regulation of any State or in violation of any foreign law. Three-toed box turtles are indigenous to the Mississippi River Valley and are susceptible to decline due to unlawful commercial exploitation, high nest mortality, delayed maturity and/or the illegal exotic pet trade.
Under Mississippi law, three-toed box turtles are deemed to be in need of management, and it is unlawful to offer for sale, sell, ship, or transport three-toed box turtles for financial gain without a valid commercial captive propagation permit. Budziszewski propagated captive three-toed box turtles and sold them without the required State permit. Between June and July 2020, Budziszewski exported numerous three-toed box turtles from the state of Mississippi to an individual in the state of New York where the turtles were repackaged and shipped to Hong Kong.
“My office is firmly committed to safeguarding America’s wildlife," said United States Attorney J.E. Baxter Kruger. "The illegal trafficking of three-toed box turtles is precisely the kind of conduct the Lacey Act was designed to prevent. We will continue to enforce the Lacey Act and ensure that those who exploit protected wildlife, undermine conservation efforts, and place profit over the rule of law are held fully accountable.”
"Three-toed box turtles are an important part of Mississippi’s natural heritage, and their removal for illegal trade puts the species at serious risk while undermining conservation efforts,” said Assistant Director Doug Ault, U.S. Fish and Wildlife, Office of Law Enforcement. “The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service will continue to pursue every link in these trafficking networks to protect vulnerable species from further decline. We will not allow profiteering to jeopardize our native wildlife."
U.S. Attorney J.E. Baxter Kruger of the Southern District of Mississippi and United States Fish and Wildlife Service Special Agent in Charge Preston Fant made the announcement.
The United States Fish and Wildlife Service Office of Law Enforcement investigated the case.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Bert Carraway prosecuted the case.
Maryland Man Sentenced for Enticing Production of Child Sexual Abuse MaterialRead the Press Release
A Maryland man was sentenced today to over 27 years in prison, followed by 10 years of supervised release for producing and possessing child sexual abuse material.
According to court documents, Juan Carlos Puente, 48, of Clinton, Maryland, used Facebook to entice a minor living in the Dominican Republic to perform sexual acts on herself and to send Puente videos of herself engaging in the requested acts in exchange for money. Records also reflected multiple money transfers from Puente to the victim, and he was explicit in directing her on what to do in the videos. Law enforcement executed a federal search warrant at Puente’s residence in Maryland in January 2024 and discovered additional child sexual abuse material, including a video recording of two minors engaged in various sex acts in which one child appeared to be approximately six years old. The investigation also revealed that Puente had traveled repeatedly between the Dominican Republic and the United States, and that he had sexually abused children in both countries. On at least one occasion, he paid his victim through an intermediary, because she was too young to be able to receive funds virtually. Puente pleaded guilty in November 2025 to one count of producing child pornography and one count of possessing child pornography involving a prepubescent minor in the U.S. District Court for the District of Maryland.
Assistant Attorney General A. Tysen Duva of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division and U.S. Attorney Kelly O. Hayes for the District of Maryland made the announcement.
This case was investigated by FBI Baltimore, with assistance from FBI Santo Domingo and the Dominican National Police.
Trial Attorney Jessica L. Urban of the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS) and Assistant U.S. Attorney Megan McKoy for the District of Maryland are prosecuting the case.
This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative to combat the epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice. Led by U.S. Attorneys’ Offices and CEOS, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to better locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the internet, as well as to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, visit www.justice.gov/psc.
Man Who Intentionally Set Fire to San Jose Post Office Pleads Guilty to ArsonRead the Press Release
SAN JOSE – Richard Tillman, 44, pleaded guilty in federal court today to setting fire to the Almaden Valley U.S. Post Office located on Crown Boulevard in San Jose in the early hours of July 20, 2025.
Tillman, who is originally from San Jose, was initially charged by a criminal complaint in July 2025, and indicted by a federal grand jury on Aug. 7, 2025, on one count of malicious destruction of government property.
In pleading guilty, Tillman admitted that he intentionally set the fire in order to “make a point to the United States government.” In preparation for the fire, Tillman purchased firelogs and lighter fluid. He then drove to the Post Office with firelogs in the vehicle, backed the vehicle through the building’s front door, exited the vehicle, spread lighter fluid throughout the vehicle, threw a lit match into the vehicle, and exited the Post Office. The fire quickly spread from the vehicle to the Post Office, completely destroying its lobby, as depicted below. Prior to July 20, 2025, the lobby of the Post Office was open to the public during business hours for retail transactions and access to post office boxes. The fire rendered the lobby unusable, and it has not been available to the public since then.
United States Attorney Craig H. Missakian, U.S. Postal Inspection Service (USPIS), San Francisco Division Inspector in Charge Stephen M. Sherwood, Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF) Special Agent in Charge John Wester, and FBI Special Agent in Charge Sanjay Virmani made the announcement.
Tillman is currently in federal custody. His sentencing hearing is scheduled for April 27, 2026, before U.S. District Judge Edward J. Davila. Tillman faces a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison, a minimum sentence of five years in prison, and a fine of $250,000 for the charge of malicious destruction of government property by fire in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 844(f)(1). Any sentence will be imposed by the court after consideration of the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and the federal statute governing the imposition of a sentence, 18 U.S.C. § 3553.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Michael G. Pitman is prosecuting the case with the assistance of Sahib Kaur. The prosecution is the result of an investigation by the USPIS, ATF, FBI, and the San Jose Police Department. The U.S. Attorney’s Office appreciates the assistance of the Santa Clara County District Attorney’s Office.
Man Sentenced to 20 Years in Prison for Role in $73 Million Global Cryptocurrency Investment ScamRead the Press Release
A dual national of China and St. Kitts and Nevis was sentenced in absentia today in the Central District of California to the statutory maximum of 20 years in prison and three years of supervised release for his role in an international cryptocurrency investment conspiracy carried out from scam centers in the Kingdom of Cambodia. The defendant, Daren Li, 42, is a fugitive after cutting off his ankle electronic monitoring device and absconding in December 2025.
“As part of an international cryptocurrency investment scam, Daren Li and his co-conspirators laundered over $73 million dollars stolen from American victims,” said Assistant Attorney General A. Tysen Duva of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division. “The Court’s sentence reflects the gravity of Li’s conduct, which caused devastating losses to victims throughout our country. The Criminal Division will work with our law enforcement partners around the world to ensure that Li is returned to the United States to serve his full sentence.”
“While technology has made it possible for people to quickly communicate with others who live oceans away, it also has made it easier for criminals to prey on innocent victims,” said First Assistant U.S. Attorney Bill Essayli for the Central District of California. “I urge the investing public to use caution and to not talk to strangers…especially ones who solicit money online.”
On Nov. 12, 2024, Li pleaded guilty in the Central District of California to conspiring with others to launder funds obtained from victims through cryptocurrency scams and related fraud. As part of his plea agreement, Li admitted that unindicted members of the conspiracy would contact victims directly through unsolicited social-media interactions, telephone calls and messages, and online dating services. The unindicted co-conspirators would gain the trust of victims by establishing either professional or romantic relationships with them, often communicating by electronic messages sent via end-to-end encrypted applications. These co-conspirators established spoofed domains and websites that resembled legitimate cryptocurrency trading platforms and promote fraudulent cryptocurrency investments to the victims after gaining the victims’ trust.
In some instances, the co-conspirators would induce victims into investing in cryptocurrency through the fraudulent and spoofed investment platforms. In other iterations of the scam, Li’s unindicted co-conspirators misrepresented to victims that they were from a customer service or technology support company and induced victims to send funds via wire transfer or cryptocurrency trading platforms to purportedly remediate a non-existent virus or other false computer-related problem.
As part of his plea agreement, Li admitted that he and his co-conspirators caused at least $73.6 million in victim funds be directly deposited into bank accounts associated with defendant and his co-conspirators, including at least $59.8 million from U.S. shell companies that laundered victim proceeds.
Li further confessed that, to conceal or disguise the nature of the crime, location, source, ownership, and control of the victim funds, he would direct co-conspirators to open U.S. bank accounts established on behalf of shell companies and would monitor the receipt of interstate and international wire transfers of victim funds. Li and other co-conspirators would receive victim funds in financial accounts that they controlled and then monitor the conversion of victim funds to virtual currency,
Eight co-conspirators have pleaded guilty so far. Li is the first defendant to be sentenced who was directly involved in the ultimate receipt of victim funds.
The U.S Secret Service (USSS) Global Investigative Operations Center is investigating the case. The Homeland Security Investigations’ El Camino Real Financial Crimes Task Force, Customs and Border Protection’s National Targeting Center, U.S. Department of State’s Diplomatic Security Service, Dominican National Police, and U.S. Marshals Service provided valuable assistance.
Trial Attorney Stefanie Schwartz of the Criminal Division’s Computer Crime and Intellectual Property Section (CCIPS), Trial Attorney Tamara Livshiz of the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section, and Assistant U.S. Attorneys Maxwell Coll, Alexander Gorin, and Nisha Chandran for the Central District of California, prosecuted the case.
The sentencing is the latest outcome of the Criminal Division’s continuing work to investigate, disrupt, and bring to justice individuals facilitating scam center operations worldwide, in partnership with U.S. Attorneys’ Offices across the country. In combating scam centers, the Criminal Division draws on its expertise in countering cybercrime, cryptocurrency fraud, money laundering, human trafficking, and transnational organized crime. By seizing and forfeiting crime-linked cryptocurrency, dismantling digital infrastructure used by the scammers to target U.S. citizens, and disrupting domestic and international money laundering networks, the Criminal Division and its partners will cut off access to victim proceeds and tools that enable the fraud. As international relationships are critical to address this growing threat, the Criminal Division will draw on its network of International Computer Hacking and Intellectual Property prosecutors (ICHIPs) who are strategically posted throughout the world to coordinate with foreign law enforcement partners.
CCIPS investigates and prosecutes cybercrime in coordination with domestic and international law enforcement agencies, often with assistance from the private sector. Since 2020, CCIPS has secured the conviction of over 180 cybercriminals and court orders for the return of over $350 million in victim funds.
If you or someone you know is a victim of a digital asset investment fraud, report it to IC3.gov.
Madera Man Sentenced to 3 Years in Prison for Possessing a Firearm and Counterfeit Postal KeysRead the Press Release
Brian Stan Hindman, 50, of Madera, was sentenced today to three years in prison for being a felon in possession of a firearm and for possession of counterfeit postal keys, U.S. Attorney Eric Grant announced.
According to court records, on July 25, 2025, during a traffic stop, law enforcement officers arrested Hindman for an outstanding state warrant for burglary. Hindman was found to be in possession of a 9 mm Ruger pistol. Hindman is prohibited from possessing firearms due to several prior felony convictions for which he spent more than four years in state prison. Hindman was also found with at least six counterfeit U.S. Postal Service keys that are commonly used by thieves to steal mail, and several driver’s licenses and debit cards in other individuals’ names.
The U.S. Postal Inspection Service conducted the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Joseph D. Barton and Arelis M. Clemente prosecuted the case.
Lehigh Acres Man Sentenced to Five Years in Federal Prison for Possessing and Accessing with Intent to View Child Sexual Abuse Images and VideosRead the Press Release
Fort Myers, Florida – Leon Mark Jewett (70, Lehigh Acres) was sentenced today by U.S. District Judge Sheri Polster Chappell to five years in federal prison for possessing and accessing with intent to view images and videos depicting the sexual abuse of children. He pleaded guilty on October 6, 2025. Jewett was also sentenced to a life term of supervised release and ordered to register as a sex offender. United States Attorney Gregory W. Kehoe made the announcement.
According to court documents, from April through December 2024, Jewett possessed and accessed with intent to view child sex abuse material that he searched for and downloaded from the internet.
In December 2024, Jewett brought his laptops into a store in Port Charlotte for repair. During the repair of one of his laptops, the store technician observed child sex abuse material on Jewett’s laptop. Law enforcement was contacted.
Pursuant to a search warrant, the FBI seized and conducted a forensic analysis on two of Jewett’s laptops, which revealed images and videos depicting the sexual abuse of children.
This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Fort Myers Child Exploitation and Human Trafficking Task Force, which includes the Lee County Sheriff’s Office. It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Yolande G. Viacava.
This is another case brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by the United States Attorneys’ Offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who sexually exploit children, and to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.justice.gov/psc.
Illegal alien admits to assaulting officerRead the Press Release
HOUSTON – A 29-year-old Belize national illegally residing in Conroe has pleaded guilty to assaulting an Immigration and Customs Enforcement officer, announced U.S. Attorney Nicholas J. Ganjei.
On Sept. 23, 2025, authorities conducted a targeted enforcement operation in Houston to locate Sindi Vanessa Moreno-Flores. Law enforcement encountered Moreno-Flores as she was entering her vehicle. When authorities attempted to place her under arrest, Moreno-Flores pulled away and scratched an ICE agent’s upper left arm and hands. She also swung her arm in an attempt to strike the officer while wearing a handcuff on her wrist. Moreno-Flores then fled into a group of bystanders. Law enforcement eventually restrained Moreno-Flores and placed her under arrest.
U.S. District Judge George Hanks will impose sentencing at a later date. At that time, Moreno-Flores faces up to eight years in federal prison and a possible $250,000 maximum fine.
She has been and will remain in custody pending that hearing.
ICE - Homeland Security Investigations conducted the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney Justin R. Martin is prosecuting the case.
This case is part of Operation Take Back America, a nationwide initiative that marshals the full resources of the Department of Justice to repel the invasion of illegal immigration, achieve the total elimination of cartels and transnational criminal organizations and protect our communities from the perpetrators of violent crime.
Huntington Man Sentenced for Federal Gun CrimeRead the Press Release
HUNTINGTON, W.Va. – Donovan Dewayne Pauley, 20, of Huntington, was sentenced today to four years of federal probation for possession of a short-barreled shotgun not registered to him in the National Firearms Registration and Transfer Record.
According to court documents and statements made in court, on May 22, 2025, Pauley sold a Winchester 12-gauge shotgun to a confidential informant in Huntington for $200. The shotgun has an approximate barrel length of 13 and 15/16 inches. This type of firearm is commonly referred to as a short-barreled shotgun and is required to be registered under the National Firearms Act. As part of his guilty plea, Pauley admitted that the firearm not registered to him in the National Firearms Registration and Transfer Record as required by federal law.
United States Attorney Moore Capito made the announcement and commended the investigative work of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF).
United States District Judge Robert C. Chambers imposed the sentence. Assistant United States Attorney Stephanie Taylor prosecuted the case.
This case is part of Operation Take Back America, a nationwide initiative that marshals the full resources of the Department of Justice to repel the invasion of illegal immigration, achieve the total elimination of cartels and transnational criminal organizations (TCOs), and protect our communities from the perpetrators of violent crime.
A copy of this press release is located on the website of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of West Virginia. Related court documents and information can be found on PACER by searching for Case No. 3:25-cr-157.
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Huntington Man Pleads Guilty to Fentanyl CrimeRead the Press Release
HUNTINGTON, W.Va. – Alante Omar Allen, also known as “Suey,” 33, of Huntington, pleaded guilty today to distribution of fentanyl.
According to court documents and statements made in court, on August 31, 2022, Allen sold approximately 20.5 grams of fentanyl to a confidential informant in exchange for $1,300 while at a business on U.S. Route 60 in Huntington. As part of his guilty plea, Allen admitted to conducting the transaction and to arranging it beforehand.
Allen is scheduled to be sentenced on May 26, 2026, and faces a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison, at least three years of supervised release, and a fine of up to $1 million.
United States Attorney Moore Capito made the announcement and commended the investigative work of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and the Cabell County Sheriff's Office.
United States District Judge Robert C. Chambers presided over the hearing. Assistant United States Attorney Joseph F. Adams is prosecuting the case.
A copy of this press release is located on the website of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of West Virginia. Related court documents and information can be found on PACER by searching for Case No. 3:25-cr-159.
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Georgia Woman Pleads Guilty to Conspiracy to Commit Wire Fraud as Part of a Jury Duty ScamRead the Press Release
Tampa, Florida – Ciara Gay (36, Austell, GA) has pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud. She faces a maximum penalty of 20 years in federal prison. As part of her plea, Gay has agreed to forfeit $19,500, which represents the proceeds of her criminal offense. Her sentencing date has not yet been set. United States Attorney Gregory W. Kehoe made the announcement.
According to court records, a victim in Sarasota County received a phone call from a scammer who falsely and fraudulently represented himself as a law enforcement officer with the Sarasota County Sheriff’s Office. The scammer told the victim she was in contempt of court for missing jury duty and had to pay a fine and instructed the victim to withdraw $19,500 in cash from her bank account and drive to the courthouse in Sarasota County, where a government official would meet her to collect the fine. Gay, a Georgia resident, traveled from Georgia to Sarasota, met the victim in person, and collected the cash from her.
This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (Tampa Division) – Sarasota Resident Agency, the Sarasota Police Department, and the Sarasota County Sheriff’s Office. It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Ross Roberts. Assistant United States Attorney James Muench is handling the forfeiture.
Fresno Man Pleads Guilty to Running $9 Million Real Estate Ponzi SchemeRead the Press Release
Matthew Campbell, 43, of Fresno, pleaded guilty today to wire fraud in connection with a $9 million real estate investment fraud scheme, U.S. Attorney Eric Grant announced.
According to court documents, since 2012, Campbell operated two real estate investment companies, Preferred Property LLC and Ampez Rehab Investments LLC, which he used to buy and sell real estate, build, renovate properties, and solicit investor money to fund operations. Starting in 2018, Campbell began using his businesses to conduct a Ponzi scheme. He knowingly made false representations about his company’s finances, the return on investment, and distributions to attract new investors, and then he used the funds to pay returns to earlier investors. Between January 2018 and October 2025, Campbell obtained more than $9.1 million in investor funds that he used in unauthorized ways. At least $2,293,000 in new investor funds went to pay old investors and continue the scheme.
The Federal Bureau of Investigation conducted the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Cody S. Chapple and Arelis M. Clemente are prosecuting the case.
Campbell is scheduled to be sentenced on May 11, 2026, by U.S. District Judge Jennifer L. Thurston. Campbell faces a maximum statutory penalty of 20 years in prison and a fine of up to $250,000. 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.
Fresno Man Pleads Guilty to Filing $1.5 Million in False Tax ReturnsRead the Press Release
Marice Curry, 35, of Fresno, pleaded guilty today to filing false federal income tax returns, U.S. Attorney Eric Grant announced.
According to court documents, in 2023, Curry filed more than 50 false tax returns for businesses claiming more than $1.5 million in fraudulent refunds. He did so by claiming refundable fuel tax credits for the businesses while knowing that they were not entitled to the credits. The credits are supposed to allow businesses to recover excise taxes that they pay on fuel used for nontaxable, off-highway purposes such as farming and fishing.
IRS Criminal Investigation conducted the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney Joseph Barton is prosecuting the case.
Curry is scheduled for sentencing by U.S. District Judge Jennifer L. Thurston on May 26, 2026. Curry faces a maximum statutory penalty of three years in prison and a $100,000 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.
Former National Guardsman sentenced for child enticementRead the Press Release
ROME, Ga. - William Eric Cooper has been sentenced to ten years in federal prison for attempting to entice a minor to produce sexually explicit images.
“Cooper is a predator who deserves this significant sentence,” said U.S. Attorney Theodore S. Hertzberg. “Through quick and excellent work, our law enforcement partners rescued an exploited child, exposed Cooper’s deviant conduct, and brought a sex offender to justice.”
“William Cooper is a dangerous predator who attempted to exploit a vulnerable child,” said Peter Ellis, Acting Special Agent in Charge of FBI Georgia. “Thanks to swift law enforcement action, we ensured that he will face the full consequences of his horrific actions.”
According to U.S. Attorney Hertzberg, the charges and other information presented in court: In February 2025, FBI agents in North Carolina rescued a 15-year-old girl who had been abducted and raped. The FBI’s investigation revealed that, prior to her kidnapping, the minor child and Cooper exchanged more than 1,000 text messages in which Cooper discussed plans to meet the girl for sex and encouraged her to create sexually explicit videos of herself to send to him. After arresting Cooper and searching his home in March 2025, agents found more than 250 images and videos depicting child sex abuse on his cell phone.
At the time of his offense, Cooper was employed by the Georgia National Guard. Following his arrest, he was separated from the military with an Other than Honorable discharge.
William Eric Cooper, 46, of Adairsville, Ga., was sentenced by U.S. District Judge William M. Ray II to ten years in federal prison, ten years of supervised release, and a $100 special assessment. Cooper was convicted of attempted enticement of a child on August 25, 2025, after he pleaded guilty.
This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation with assistance from the Bartow County Sheriff’s Office.
U.S. Attorney Hertzberg and Assistant U.S. Attorney Calvin A. Leipold, III prosecuted the case.
This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood. In February 2006, the Attorney General launched Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative designed to protect children from online exploitation and abuse. Led by the United States Attorney’s Offices around the country, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state and local resources to apprehend and prosecute individuals who exploit children. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.projectsafechildhood.gov.
For further information please contact the U.S. Attorney’s Public Affairs Office at [email protected] or (404) 581-6016. The Internet address for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia is http://www.justice.gov/usao-ndga.
Former La Crosse Mail Carrier Sentenced for Opening and Destroying MailRead the Press Release
MADISON, WIS. – Chadwick M. Elgersma, United States Attorney for the Western District of Wisconsin, announced that Ashley Straub, 25, Onalaska, Wisconsin, was sentenced February 5, 2026, by U.S. Magistrate Judge Anita M. Boor to one year of probation and a $500 fine for opening and destroying mail. Judge Boor also ordered Straub to pay restitution to the known victims.
Straub worked as a mail carrier at the La Crosse Post Office. In February 2025, Straub opened numerous items of mail and stole $350 in cash and several gift cards.
At the sentencing, Judge Boor noted that theft by mail carriers erodes trust in the United States Postal Service. In selecting an appropriate sentence, Judge Boor balanced Straub’s harm to the community with her lack of criminal history.
The charge against Straub was the result of an investigation conducted by the U.S. Postal Service Office of Inspector General and the La Crosse Police Department. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Alex Samuel and Megan Stelljes prosecuted this case.
Former Driving School Owner Sentenced for RMV Bribery ConspiracyRead the Press Release
BOSTON – A Brockton man has been sentenced in federal court in Boston for bribing a road test examiner to issue driver’s licenses to individuals who did not pass or, in some cases, even take road tests at the Registry of Motor Vehicles (RMV) in Brockton.
Carlos Cardoso, 72, was sentenced on Feb. 6, 2026 by U.S. District Court Judge Indira Talwani to time served (one day in prison) to be followed by two years of supervised release with the first six months to be spent in home incarceration. He was also ordered to pay a $5,500 fine. In June 2025, Cardoso pleaded guilty to one count of honest services mail fraud and one count of conspiracy to commit honest services mail fraud. In May 2024, Cardoso was indicted by a federal grand jury.
Cardoso, the former owner of a driving school, paid cash bribes totaling more than $20,000 to a road test examiner at the Brockton RMV service center to misrepresent that certain driver’s license applicants had passed their road test when, in fact, they had not. Some of the applicants did not even show up to take the test. As a result of the fraud, the RMV mailed driver’s licenses to unqualified applicants.
United States Attorney Leah B. Foley; Michael J. Krol, Special Agent in Charge of Homeland Security Investigations in New England; and Brian C. Gallagher, Special Agent in Charge, U.S. Department of Transportation Office of Inspector General, Northeast Region made the announcement today. Assistant U.S. Attorney Christine Wichers of the Public Corruption & Special Prosecutions Unit prosecuted the case.
Former Commodities Trader Sentenced to 151 Months for Engaging in Multi-Mullion Dollar Wire and Commodities Fraud SchemeRead the Press Release
NEWARK, N.J. – A Chicago man was sentenced to 151 months in prison and five years of supervised release for engaging in a wire and commodities fraud scheme that caused losses of more than $4 million to over a dozen victims, Senior Counsel Philip Lamparello announced.
Philip Galles, 59, of Chicago, Illinois, previously pleaded guilty before U.S. District Court Judge Esther Salas in Newark federal court to an indictment charging him with wire and commodities fraud. Judge Salas imposed the sentence on February 5, 2026. At the conclusion of the sentencing hearing, Judge Salas remanded Galles to the custody of the U.S. Marshal to begin serving his sentence. Galles was also ordered to pay more than $4 million in restitution to victims of the scheme.
According to documents filed in this case and statements made in court:
Galles, a former commodities trader, defrauded his victims by falsely claiming that he would invest their money in commodity futures through his purported investment company, Tyche Asset Management, based in Chicago, Illinois. As part of the scheme, Galles and those working for him falsely told prospective investors that Tyche had a history of success using proprietary trading strategies, with extraordinary annual rates of return exceeding 100%.
But in reality, Galles made virtually no legitimate investments in commodity futures or otherwise. Galles instead ran Tyche like a Ponzi scheme and used investor money to pay back other investors and to pay his own personal expenses—including high-end clothing, rent on a luxury apartment, and luxury automobiles.
During the investigation, Galles met with an undercover agent in New Jersey purporting to be an investment manager looking to make a large investment. Galles repeatedly lied during those meetings about Tyche and his personal history. Galles falsely claimed that Tyche had annual returns of 336%, raised over $2 billion within 60 days of starting the fund, and had prominent investors, including a Kuwaiti sovereign fund and a well-known owner of a professional sports team. Galles also falsely claimed that he graduated from a prominent university in the Midwest.
Senior Counsel Lamparello credited special agents of the United States Attorney’s Office, under the direction of Acting Special Agent in Charge Matthew Maltese in Newark, and the inspectors of the United States Postal Inspection Service, under the direction of Inspector in Charge Christopher Nielsen, with the investigation. He also thanked the Commodity Futures Trading Commission and the National Futures Association for their role in the investigation.
The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorney Carolyn Silane, Chief of the Economic Crimes Unit, and Andrew Kogan of the Cybercrime Unit in Newark.
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Defense counsel: Michael Koribanics, Esq.
Former California State Correctional Lieutenant Arrested on Charges of Smuggling Contraband into PrisonRead the Press Release
SAN JOSE – A former California state correctional lieutenant was arrested today on charges of conspiring to smuggle contraband into state prison in exchange for approximately $100,000 in payments from an inmate.
Matthew L. Madsen, 39, of Greenfield, Calif., made his initial appearance in federal district court in San Jose this afternoon.
According to the criminal complaint filed Feb. 4, 2026, and unsealed today, Madsen was employed by the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation from 2017 to 2025, during which time he primarily worked at Salinas Valley State Prison in Soledad, Calif. Cellular devices are not permitted in California state prisons because they can be used to circumvent the mandatory screening of communications into and out of institutions, and have been used by inmates to plan violent attacks and the smuggling and trafficking of contraband, including narcotics. Accordingly, like all state correctional employees, Madsen was obligated to prevent the introduction of contraband into the prison, confiscate any contraband located in the prison, and report its presence. The complaint alleges that Madsen violated these obligations and smuggled items, including cellular devices and tobacco, into Salinas Valley State Prison at the request of an inmate and in exchange for payments totaling approximately $100,000.
United States Attorney Craig H. Missakian and FBI Special Agent in Charge Sanjay Virmani made the announcement.
Madsen was released on bond. He is next scheduled to appear in district court on Feb. 17, 2026, for a status hearing.
A complaint merely alleges that crimes have been committed, and all defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt. If convicted, the defendant faces a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison and a fine of $250,000 for the count of honest services fraud in violation of 18 U.S.C. §§ 1343, 1346, and 1349. Any sentence following conviction would be imposed by the court after consideration of the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and the federal statute governing the imposition of a sentence, 18 U.S.C. § 3553.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Michael G. Pitman is prosecuting the case with the assistance of Sahib Kaur. The prosecution is the result of an investigation by the FBI and the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation.
Floyd County felon sentenced for threatening to assassinate President Trump and murder federal agentsRead the Press Release
ROME, Ga. - Jauan Rashun Porter has been sentenced to more than three years in federal prison for transmitting threats to kill the President of the United States, Donald J. Trump.
“Threatening to kill the President of the United States is an abhorrent crime that cannot be tolerated,” said U.S. Attorney Theodore S. Hertzberg. “Because the Constitution affords no protection to political violence, we will continue to work closely with our federal partners to identify and prosecute criminals who make such threats.”
“When free speech devolves into threats against the President of the United States or any of our protectees, you can expect the United States Secret Service to bring those criminals to justice,” said Acting Special Agent in Charge of the U.S. Secret Service Atlanta Field Office, Robert Donovan. “We appreciate the work of the U.S. Attorney’s Office, as well as our local law enforcement partners for their assistance in this case.”
According to U.S. Attorney Hertzberg, the charges, and other information presented in court: On July 26, 2025, Porter joined a TikTok livestream about President Trump captioned “Alligator Alcatraz,” commenting: “So there’s only one way to make America great and that is putting a bullet in between Trump’s eyes.”
Over the next few minutes, Porter further stated:
- “I’m gonna kill Donald Trump. I’m gonna put a 7.62 bullet inside his forehead.”
- “I’m gonna watch him bleed out and I’m gonna watch him die.”
- “It’ll be on the news . . . his rally is coming up pretty soon and I’m going there and I’m going to put a bullet in his head.”
- “I’mma load up a rifle [and] sit inside . . . an abandoned building . . . and when he approaches the rally . . . I’m gonna put one . . . if not the face then . . . in his chest.”
When asked by the livestream host about federal agents coming to his door, Porter stated, “I’m gonna kill them too . . . and then kill myself[.]”
During the investigation, U.S. Secret Service agents, Floyd County police officers, and State of Georgia probation officers conducted searches of Porter’s apartment and found two pipes, pistol ammunition, and Tannerite (an explosive). They did not locate a gun.
Porter has multiple prior felony convictions in Floyd County, including for terroristic threats and acts in 2018 and 2019, influencing a witness in 2019, and unlawful act of violence in a penal institution in 2023. He is currently on probation for a 2023 conviction for possession of a firearm by a convicted felon and battery domestic violence.
Jauan Rashun Porter, 30, of Rome, Georgia, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge William M. Ray II to three years and five months in prison to be followed by three years of supervised release. Porter was convicted on October 7, 2025, after he pleaded guilty to one count of transmitting interstate threats. Porter was detained in this case on August 8, 2025.
This case was investigated by the U.S. Secret Service. The Floyd County Police Department, Floyd County District Attorney’s Office, and Troup County Sheriff’s Office provided valuable assistance in the investigation.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Brian Pearce prosecuted the case.
For further information please contact the U.S. Attorney’s Public Affairs Office at [email protected] or (404) 581-6016. The Internet address for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia is http://www.justice.gov/usao-ndga.
Floyd County Man Sentenced to 192 Months for Armed Fentanyl and Methamphetamine TraffickingRead the Press Release
ASHLAND, Ky. – A Martin, Ky., man, Justin Bryant, 35, was sentenced on Monday by Chief U.S. District Judge David Bunning to 192 months for possession with intent to distribute controlled substances, including methamphetamine and fentanyl, and possession of a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime.
According to his plea agreement, on December 11, 2023, law enforcement encountered Bryant during a traffic stop in which he possessed 22.76 grams of methamphetamine, 3.57 grams of fentanyl and fluorofentanyl, and a loaded handgun, which he admitted he possessed to protect himself from the dangers of drug dealing. Based on multiple prior felony convictions, Bryant was not permitted to possess the firearm. Bryant was arrested but was subsequently released, and continued to engage in drug trafficking. On March 1, 2025, law enforcement encountered Bryant again, and he had in his possession 81.256 grams of methamphetamine.
Under federal law, Bryant must serve 85 percent of his prison sentence. Upon his release from prison, he will be under the supervision of the U.S. Probation Office for 3 years.
Paul McCaffrey, First Assistant United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Kentucky; Olivia Olson, Special Agent in Charge, FBI, Louisville Field Division; Col. Phillip J. Burnett, Jr., Commissioner of the Kentucky State Police; and Sheriff John Hunt, Floyd County Sheriff’s Office, announced the sentencing.
The investigation was conducted by the FBI, KSP, and the Floyd County Sheriff’s Office. The U.S. Attorney’s Office was represented by Assistant U.S. Attorney Drew Trimble.
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First Week of February Brings over 240 New Immigration Cases to Western District of TexasRead the Press Release
SAN ANTONIO – Federal prosecutors in the Western District of Texas filed 242 new immigration and immigration-related criminal cases from Jan. 30 to Feb. 5, announced U.S. Attorney Justin R. Simmons. Charges were brought against human smugglers and illegal aliens with past convictions for child sexual assault, violent crimes, DWIs, and multiple prior removals.
Among the new cases, a Mexican national with multiple felonies was arrested by U.S. Border Patrol agents near Val Verde. Juan Bernardo Cardenas-Ledesma, who has been deported three times, is charged with illegal re-entry and has previously been convicted of grand theft auto, lewd and lascivious acts with a child under 14, and hit and run resulting in injury or death.
Mexican national Andres Campos-Martinez was detained by ICE after being booked in the Williamson County Jail in November. In March 2020, Campos-Martinez was put on ten years of deferred adjudication after committing the offense of aggravated sexual assault of a child in Travis County. He was removed to Mexico six months later in September 2020. On Tuesday, a motion to revoke his probation was denied by a Travis County district judge.
USBP agents arrested Honduran national Jose Mario David-Sauzo aka Raymundo Martinez near Maverick. David-Sauzo is also charged with illegal re-entry, having been deported five times, the last being in September 2024. His prior felony convictions include possession of a bludgeon and obstruction of justice, burglary of a dwelling with an explosive, and second-degree forgery of a public record.
On Wednesday, Mexican national Juan Gabriel Amezquita-Fabian attempted to enter the U.S. via the pedestrian lane at the Paso Del Norte Port of Entry and allegedly presented a counterfeit State of Texas Birth Certificate along with a valid Texas ID card bearing the name, date of birth and photo of a different individual. A criminal complaint alleges Amezquita-Fabian stated he was a U.S. citizen and was returning home to El Paso after visiting family in Juarez, Mexico. Further inspection allegedly led to Amezquita-Fabian admitting to having lived in the U.S. illegally for approximately 30 years and that he paid $600 for the birth certificate and ID card. Amezquita-Fabian has been removed from the U.S. three times, the most recent being Dec. 15, 2025, following his fourth DUI conviction.
An El Paso man with five prior convictions was arrested at the Bridge of the Americas Port of Entry and charged with alien smuggling. A criminal complaint alleges that Ronnie Oswaldo Carreon claimed he was the sole occupant of a vehicle that belonged to his sister, he had been living in Mexico, and he was traveling to visit his mother in El Paso. The complaint alleges that an X-ray of the vehicle depicted a person laying down between the back seat and trunk area, and during a secondary inspection, Customs and Border Protection officers discovered a female concealed in the cargo area underneath the floor panel.
Victor Eduardo De La Fuente, who was convicted of conspiracy to transport aliens in 2024, is again charged with alien smuggling after he was arrested Tuesday by USBP agents in El Paso. A criminal complaint alleges De La Fuente is the owner of a vehicle depicted in a TikTok video which showed the transfer of individuals from another vehicle to his. The complaint alleges that De La Fuente claims to be a U.S. citizen but lives in Juarez and that he had previously transported 10 illegal aliens for a fee of $100 per alien.
Jesus Emanuel Zendejas-Ovalle, also a Mexican national, was released to ICE Enforcement Removal Operations custody from the Bexar County Jail on Thursday. Zendejas-Ovalle had been serving a three-year sentence after being convicted of felon in possession of a firearm in 2023. He was previously removed from the U.S. in November 2014.
Mexican national Alberto Guebara-Urbina was also released to ICE ERO on Thursday. He was encountered at the Comal County Jail on Sept. 1, 2025, after he was arrested for a DWI. Guebara-Urbina was last removed from the U.S. to Mexico in 2007. In 2003, he was convicted of assault in the first degree and sentenced to five years of confinement.
These cases were referred or supported by federal law enforcement partners, including ICE, U.S. Border Patrol, the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), the FBI, the U.S. Marshals Service (USMS), and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF), with additional assistance from state and local law enforcement partners.
The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Western District of Texas comprises 68 counties located in the central and western areas of Texas, encompasses nearly 93,000 square miles and an estimated population of 7.6 million people. The district includes three of the five largest cities in Texas—San Antonio, Austin and El Paso—and shares 660 miles of common border with the Republic of Mexico.
These cases are part of Operation Take Back America, a nationwide initiative that marshals the full resources of the Department of Justice to repel the invasion of illegal immigration, achieve the total elimination of cartels and transnational criminal organizations (TCOs), and protect our communities from the perpetrators of violent crime.
Indictments and criminal complaints are merely allegations and all defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
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Felon who robbed a Fort Oglethorpe restaurant sentenced to 11 years in prisonRead the Press Release
ROME, Ga. - Mario Merriweather, a repeat offender with a 30-year criminal history, has been sentenced to federal prison for robbing a fast-food restaurant in Fort Oglethorpe, Georgia and forcing restaurant staff into a walk-in freezer.
“Undeterred by multiple stints in state prison, Merriweather repeatedly terrorized victims who were simply trying to go about their jobs,” said U.S. Attorney Theodore S. Hertzberg. “His most recent attack on a Burger King restaurant has resulted in a significant sentence that demonstrates that criminals who try to ‘have it their way’ by robbing citizens in this District will be held accountable and removed from the community.”
“No one should ever be terrorized physically or emotionally, like the victims in these violent armed robberies were,” said Mitchell Jackson, Special Supervisory Resident Agent of FBI Georgia’s Cartersville office. “The FBI is proud to work with our local law enforcement partners in helping to convict these repeat offenders at the federal level, where they face stiffer penalties and no opportunity for parole.”
According to U.S. Attorney Hertzberg, the charges, and other information presented in court: On October 26, 2023, Merriweather entered a Burger King restaurant just two miles south of the Tennessee-Georgia state line and brandished what appeared to be a pistol. He ordered one employee to empty the register and ordered all the employees into a walk-in freezer. One employee used his foot to stop the freezer from locking, and another employee immediately called 911.
One of the employees who escaped from the freezer was lawfully armed and chased Merriweather outside. When Merriweather turned and pointed what appeared to be a firearm at the employee, the employee fired two shots at Merriweather but did not hit him. Merriweather fled but passed out next to his vehicle. Responding officers found Merriweather flat on his back in the road near an air pistol and also recovered a Burger King bag stuffed with cash.
Merriweather has a long history of prior robberies, including convictions for robbing a Wendy’s and a Burger King in 2001, robbing two people in 2005, and robbing two banks in 2013.
Merriweather was sentenced by U.S. District Judge William M. Ray II to 11 years in federal prison to be followed by three years of supervised release. Merriweather was convicted on charges of interference with interstate commerce by robbery on August 14, 2025, after he pleaded guilty.
This case was being investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Calvin A. Leipold, III prosecuted the case.
For further information please contact the U.S. Attorney’s Public Affairs Office at [email protected] or (404) 581-6016. The Internet address for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia is http://www.justice.gov/usao-ndga.
Dual National of China and St. Kitts and Nevis Sentenced to 20 Years in Federal Prison for Role in Multimillion-Dollar Cryptocurrency ScamRead the Press Release
LOS ANGELES – A dual national of China and St. Kitts and Nevis was sentenced in absentia today to the statutory maximum of 240 months in federal prison for his role in an international cryptocurrency investment conspiracy carried out from scam centers in Cambodia.
Daren Li, 42, is a fugitive after cutting off his ankle electronic monitoring device and absconding in December 2025. He was sentenced by United States District Judge R. Gary Klausner, who will determine restitution at a later date.
Li pleaded guilty in November 2024 to one count of conspiracy to commit money laundering.
“While technology has made it possible for people to quickly communicate with others who live oceans away, it also has made it easier for criminals to prey on innocent victims,” said First Assistant U.S. Attorney Bill Essayli. “I urge the investing public to use caution and to not talk to strangers…especially ones who solicit money online.”
“As part of an international cryptocurrency investment scam, Daren Li and his co-conspirators laundered over $73 million dollars stolen from American victims,” said Assistant Attorney General A. Tysen Duva of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division. “The Court’s sentence reflects the gravity of Li’s conduct, which caused devastating losses to victims throughout our country. The Criminal Division will work with our law enforcement partners around the world to ensure that Li is returned to the United States to serve his full sentence.”
As part of his plea agreement, Li admitted that unindicted members of the conspiracy would contact victims directly through unsolicited social-media interactions, telephone calls and messages, and online dating services. The unindicted co-conspirators would gain the trust of victims by establishing either professional or romantic relationships with them, often communicating by electronic messages sent via end-to-end encrypted applications. These co-conspirators established spoofed domains and websites that resembled legitimate cryptocurrency trading platforms and promote fraudulent cryptocurrency investments to the victims after gaining the victims’ trust.
In some instances, the co-conspirators would induce victims into investing in cryptocurrency through the fraudulent and spoofed investment platforms. In other iterations of the scam, Li’s unindicted co-conspirators misrepresented to victims that they were from a customer service or technology support company and induced victims to send funds via wire transfer or cryptocurrency trading platforms to purportedly remediate a non-existent virus or other false computer-related problem.
As part of his plea agreement, Li admitted that he and his co-conspirators caused at least $73.6 million in victim funds be directly deposited into bank accounts associated with defendant and his co-conspirators, including at least $59.8 million from U.S. shell companies that laundered victim proceeds.
Li further confessed that, to conceal or disguise the nature of the crime, location, source, ownership, and control of the victim funds, he would direct co-conspirators to open U.S. bank accounts established on behalf of shell companies and would monitor the receipt of interstate and international wire transfers of victim funds. Li and other co-conspirators would receive victim funds in financial accounts that they controlled and then monitor the conversion of victim funds to virtual currency.
Eight co-conspirators have pleaded guilty so far. Li is the first defendant to be sentenced who was directly involved in the ultimate receipt of victim funds.
The U.S Secret Service (USSS) Global Investigative Operations Center is investigating the case. The Homeland Security Investigations’ El Camino Real Financial Crimes Task Force, Customs and Border Protection’s National Targeting Center, U.S. Department of State’s Diplomatic Security Service, Dominican National Police, and U.S. Marshals Service provided valuable assistance.
Assistant United States Attorneys Nisha Chandran of the Major Frauds Section, and Maxwell Coll and Alexander Gorin of the National Security Division, Trial Attorney Stefanie Schwartz of the Criminal Division’s Computer Crime and Intellectual Property Section (CCIPS), Trial Attorney Tamara Livshiz of the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section prosecuted the case.
The sentencing is the latest outcome of the Criminal Division’s continuing work to investigate, disrupt, and bring to justice individuals facilitating scam center operations worldwide, in partnership with U.S. Attorneys’ Offices across the country. In combating scam centers, the Criminal Division draws on its expertise in countering cybercrime, cryptocurrency fraud, money laundering, human trafficking, and transnational organized crime. By seizing and forfeiting crime-linked cryptocurrency, dismantling digital infrastructure used by the scammers to target U.S. citizens, and disrupting domestic and international money laundering networks, the Criminal Division and its partners will cut off access to victim proceeds and tools that enable the fraud. As international relationships are critical to address this growing threat, the Criminal Division will draw on its network of International Computer Hacking and Intellectual Property prosecutors (ICHIPs) who are strategically posted throughout the world to coordinate with foreign law enforcement partners.
CCIPS investigates and prosecutes cybercrime in coordination with domestic and international law enforcement agencies, often with assistance from the private sector. Since 2020, CCIPS has secured the conviction of over 180 cybercriminals and court orders for the return of over $350 million in victim funds.
If you or someone you know is a victim of a digital asset investment fraud, report it to IC3.gov.
Dominican citizen extradited to the United States from the British Virgin Islands to Face Drug Trafficking ChargesRead the Press Release
SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico – British Virgin Islands authorities extradited Francis Hidalgo-Cedano to the United States to face drug trafficking charges filed in the District of Puerto Rico, announced W. Stephen Muldrow, United States Attorney for the District of Puerto Rico. Hidalgo-Cedano was arrested in the British Virgin Islands pursuant to a provisional arrest request by the United States on Nov. 5, 2025, and extradited to Puerto Rico on Wednesday, January 28, 2026.
“This extradition is another important step in our fight against drug trafficking and transnational organized crime. This prosecution demonstrates the commitment of the Department of Justice, and our law enforcement partners, and the cooperation of international authorities to work together to bring drug traffickers to justice,” said U.S. Attorney Muldrow. “We will continue to maximize our multi-agency efforts to disrupt and dismantle international drug cartels that smuggle drugs into Puerto Rico and the continental United States.”
On January 28, 2026, the British Virgin Islands extradited Francis Hidalgo-Cedano, a citizen of the Dominican Republic, to the United States to stand trial in the District of Puerto Rico on charges related to the possession, importation, and distribution of cocaine.
According to court documents, in September 2023, law enforcement authorities in Puerto Rico observed a vessel being hauled out of the water by Hidalgo-Cedano and his co-conspirators. Concealed within the floor of the vessel were approximately 258 brick-shaped packages of cocaine with a gross weight of 305.4 kilograms. During the interaction with law enforcement authorities, Hidalgo-Cedano absconded, but left his boating license with law enforcement. British Virgin Islands authorities arrested Hidalgo-Cedano on immigration offenses and the Justice Department’s Office of International Affairs (OIA) worked closely with the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Puerto Rico, and the Department of State to submit a provisional arrest request, in order to ensure the continued detention of Hidalgo-Cedano pending extradition.
On January 12, 2026, following Hidalgo-Cedano’s consent to extradition, the Governor of the British Virgin Islands issued an order granting Hidalgo-Cedano’s extradition to the United States. The Justice Department’s Office of International Affairs worked closely with the United States Marshals Service and provided substantial assistance in securing the arrest and extradition to the United States of Hidalgo-Cedano.
The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney María Cristina Semanaz Ojeda under the supervision of Chief Myriam Y. Fernández-González and Deputy Chief María L. Montañez-Concepción from the Money Laundering & Transnational Organized Crime Section.
Francis Hidalgo-Cedano is charged with six counts of conspiracy and possession with intent to distribute cocaine aboard a vessel subject to the jurisdiction of the United States, conspiracy and importation of cocaine, and conspiracy to possess and possession with intent to distribute cocaine. If convicted, the defendant faces a mandatory minimum penalty of 10 years in prison. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
This prosecution is part of the Homeland Security Task Force (HSTF) initiative established by Executive Order 14159, Protecting the American People Against Invasion. The HSTF is a whole-of-government partnership dedicated to eliminating criminal cartels, foreign gangs, transnational criminal organizations, and human smuggling and trafficking rings operating in the United States and abroad. Through historic interagency collaboration, the HSTF directs the full might of United States law enforcement towards identifying, investigating, and prosecuting the full spectrum of crimes committed by these organizations, which have long fueled violence and instability within our borders. In performing this work, the HSTF places special emphasis on investigating and prosecuting those engaged in child trafficking or other crimes involving children. The HSTF further utilizes all available tools to prosecute and remove the most violent criminal aliens from the United States. HSTF San Juan comprises agents and officers from the following federal partners: FBI, ICE-HSI, CBP (OFO, AMO and Border Patrol), the U.S. Marshals Service for Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands, DEA, ATF, IRS, U.S. Coast Guard, U.S. Coast Guard Investigative Service, U.S. Postal Inspection Service, the Department of State, and the U.S. Secret Service, the Puerto Rico/U.S. Virgin Islands HIDTA, TSA, FAA, and the U.S. Attorney’s Offices for the Districts of Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands. The HSTF also has the following state and local law enforcement partners as participating agencies: the Puerto Rico Police Department; the San Juan, Carolina, Guaynabo, Barceloneta, and Ponce Municipal Police Departments, the Puerto Rico National Guard – Counter Drug Program; the Puerto Rico Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation; the Puerto Rico Internal Revenue Service (Hacienda); the Puerto Rico Port Authority; and the Virgin Islands Police Department.
An indictment is merely an allegation and all defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
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Des Moines Shooter Sentenced to 87 Months in Federal Prison for Firearm ChargeRead the Press Release
DES MOINES, Iowa – A Des Moines man was sentenced on February 6, 2026, to 87 months in federal prison for illegally possessing a firearm as a drug user.
According to public court documents and evidence presented at sentencing, Bryan Keith Rainey, Jr., 20, and two co-conspirators fired at least 36 rounds of ammunition at a Des Moines residence occupied by two children and their mother on December 16, 2024. At least 11 rounds hit the house. No one was injured.
Three days later, officers located Rainey in a parking lot and attempted to arrest him. Rainey ran from the police. Once captured, law enforcement located a loaded AR-15 style pistol in Rainey’s pants, which ballistically matched casings from the shooting scene. Law enforcement executed a search warrant at Rainey’s house that same day and found ammunition and drug-related items.
After completing his term of imprisonment, Rainey will be required to serve a three-year term of supervised release. There is no parole in the federal system. Rainey’s federal sentence was ordered to run partially consecutively to his state sentence related to the December 16, 2024, shooting.
United States Attorney David C. Waterman of the Southern District of Iowa made the announcement. The Des Moines Police Department investigated the case. Assistant United States Attorney Kristin M. Herrera prosecuted the case.
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 gun violence, and to make our neighborhoods safer for everyone. On May 26, 2021, the department launched a violent crime reduction strategy strengthening PSN based on these core principles: fostering trust and legitimacy in our communities, supporting community-based organizations that help prevent violence from occurring in the first place, setting focused and strategic enforcement priorities, and measuring the results. For more information about Project Safe Neighborhoods, please visit Justice.gov/PSN.
Department of Defense Employee Indicted for Moonlighting as a Money Mule and Laundering Millions of Dollars for Overseas ScammersRead the Press Release
PHILADELPHIA – United States Attorney David Metcalf announced that Samuel D. Marcus, 33, of Oreland, Pennsylvania, was arrested and charged by indictment with one count of conspiracy to commit money laundering, six counts of illegal monetary transactions, and one count of money laundering – illegal concealment, arising from his alleged role as a money mule for a group of Nigerian-based scammers, in which he received, concealed, and laundered millions of dollars in fraud proceeds.
The indictment alleges that, from approximately July 2023 to December 2025, while employed as a Logistics Specialist with the Department of Defense, the defendant was in direct and regular contact with a group of Nigeria-based fraudsters, who operated under the aliases “Rachel Jude” and “Ned McMurray,” among others. These fraudsters engaged in a variety of wire fraud schemes that targeted victims based in the United States, including romance fraud, cyber fraud, tax fraud, financing fraud, and business email compromise schemes, to which victims lost millions of dollars.
The fraudsters employed a network of money mules in the United States to help launder the fraud proceeds, and instructed victims to transfer funds to financial accounts opened and operated by various money mules, including those controlled by Marcus.
The indictment alleges that, under the direction of fraudsters, the defendant and other money mules conducted a series of rapid financial transactions to convert fraud victim funds deposited into their accounts into cryptocurrency and to move those funds into foreign accounts. Marcus personally deposited and transferred millions of dollars of fraudulently obtained money into and through his personal and business accounts, while fully aware that “Rachel Jude” and “Ned McMurray” were scammers who carried out sophisticated fraud schemes. Marcus also affirmatively misled and lied to his financial institutions and law enforcement officers about the laundered funds, to include sending fraudulent invoices to make the transactions appear legitimate.
In fact, the indictment alleges that the defendant continued to work as a money mule for the fraudsters after being informed by FBI agents that the money passing through his accounts had been stolen from other people and that his monetary transfers were consistent with money laundering.
If convicted, the defendant faces a maximum possible sentence of 100 years’ imprisonment, three years’ supervised release, and a $2 million fine.
The case was investigated by FBI Philadelphia’s Fort Washington Resident Agency, with assistance from Homeland Security Investigations and the Department of Defense Office of Inspector General’s Defense Criminal Investigative Service, and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Samuel S. Dalke.
The charges and allegations contained in the indictment are merely accusations. Every defendant is presumed to be innocent unless and until proven guilty in court.
Convicted Felon from Boston Charged with Leaving a Residential Re-Entry CenterRead the Press Release
BOSTON – A Boston man has been arrested and charged for allegedly leaving a residential re-entry center where he was serving the remainder of his federal sentence for being a felon in possession of ammunition.
Tyreek Hall, 23, of Boston, was charged by criminal complaint with escape. Hall remains detained following an initial appearance on Feb. 5, 2026 before U.S. District Court Magistrate Judge M. Page Kelley.
According to the charging documents, in May 2024, Hall was sentenced in the District of Massachusetts to 46 months in prison for illegally possessing ammunition while on parole as a convicted felon. In July 2025, Hall was transferred from a correctional institution to a residential re-entry center in Boston to serve the remainder of his confined sentence.
As part of the reentry program, Hall was employed as a “part-time vehicle cleaner.” It is alleged that, at approximately 11 p.m. on Sept. 7, 2025, when Hall returned to the residential re-entry center from work, staff conducted a breathalyzer test as part of their standard security screening. It is alleged that Hall tested positive, refused a subsequent breathalyzer test and refused to submit to a urinalysis test. After his refusals, Hall was allowed to go to his living quarters. It is alleged that, at approximately 11:56 p.m., Hall returned to the front desk and walked out of the front door. Hall did not return to the residential re-entry center and was considered an active escape from federal custody until his apprehension.
The charging statute provides for a sentence of up to five years in prison, up to three years of supervised release and a fine of $250,000. Sentences are imposed by a federal district court judge based on the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
United States Attorney Leah B. Foley and Acting U.S. Marshal for the District of Massachusetts Dennis Matulewicz made the announcement. Valuable assistance was provided by the Massachusetts State Police and the Boston Police Department. Assistant U.S. Attorney John Dawley of the Organized Crime and Gang Unit prosecuted 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.
Colombian leader of international drug money laundering organization convictedRead the Press Release
ATLANTA – Valentina Forero Álvarez has pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit money laundering. Forero Álvarez led a sophisticated transnational criminal organization responsible for laundering more than $31 million in illegal narcotics proceeds through the United States financial system.
“Forero Álvarez presided over an international network that exploited our financial system to launder millions of dollars of drug proceeds,” said U.S. Attorney Theodore S. Hertzberg. “Narco-terrorists and their associates who believe they can hide their crimes through complex laundering schemes or residency abroad will be found, brought to the United States, prosecuted, and held accountable.”
“This case demonstrates the relentless commitment of Homeland Security Investigations to dismantle transnational criminal organizations that threaten the integrity of our financial system and the safety of our communities,” said Special Agent in Charge of Homeland Security Investigations in Georgia and Alabama Steven N. Schrank. “The successful disruption of this sophisticated money laundering network was the result of outstanding collaboration between HSI, our federal, state, and local law enforcement partners, and the U.S. Attorney’s Office. Together, we will continue to pursue those who seek to profit from illegal narcotics and ensure they are brought to justice.”
According to U.S. Attorney Hertzberg, the charges, and other information presented in court: Valentina Forero Álvarez directed a network of couriers who traveled from Colombia and laundered proceeds of illegal narcotics sales through the United States banking system.
As part of the criminal operation, Forero Álvarez instructed non-citizens—primarily from Colombia—to travel to the United States on tourist visas, conduct multiple pickups of bulk cash in cities across the country, and deposit the money into bank accounts held in the names of shell companies or U.S.-based businesses operating in the unregulated currency exchange market.
The couriers, at the direction of Forero Álvarez and her associates, made counter deposits into bank accounts while in Georgia and at least 14 other states, including Michigan, Texas, Florida, New York, New Jersey, North Carolina, South Carolina, California, Virginia, Massachusetts, Illinois, Tennessee, Pennsylvania, and Arizona.
During the investigation, agents seized more than $4.8 million of suspected drug money. Agents also determined that accounts opened by Forero Álvarez’s couriers received more than $31 million in cash deposits, including approximately $2.9 million deposited in the Northern District of Georgia.
Valentina Forero Álvarez, 33, of Armenia, Colombia, pleaded guilty on February 9, 2026. She remains in federal custody and will be sentenced by U.S. District Judge Steven D. Grimberg at a later date. Her conviction carries a statutory maximum penalty of 20 years in prison, a fine of up to twice the value of the laundered funds, up to three years of supervised release, and forfeiture of property involved in the offense.
This case is being investigated by Homeland Security Investigations.
Assistant U.S. Attorneys Jeffrey Brown and Nicholas L. Evert are prosecuting the case.
This case is part of Operation Take Back America, a nationwide initiative that marshals the full resources of the Department of Justice to repel the invasion of illegal immigration, achieve the total elimination of cartels and transnational criminal organizations, and protect our communities from the perpetrators of violent crime.
For further information please contact the U.S. Attorney’s Public Affairs Office at [email protected] or (404) 581-6016. The Internet address for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia is http://www.justice.gov/usao-ndga.
Charleston Man Sentenced to 25 Years in Prison and Co-Defendant Sentenced to 10 Years in Prison for Sex Trafficking ConspiracyRead the Press Release
CHARLESTON, W.Va. – Today, Tiwan Robert Bailey was sentenced to 25 years in prison, to be followed by five years of supervised release, for leading a sex trafficking conspiracy that operated in the Charleston and Rand areas of Kanawha County and Carrie Roy was sentenced to 10 years in prison, to be followed by five years of supervised release, for her role in the conspiracy.
Bailey, also known as “Quick,” 49, and Roy, also known as “Carrie Ash,” 52, both of Charleston, were found guilty by a federal jury after a five-day trial. Evidence at trial showed that between November 2023 and July 2024, Bailey trafficked four different female victims, including a 17-year-old girl, requiring each to engage in commercial sex acts and provide all the money they received to him. Bailey also obstructed the federal investigation of the sex trafficking conspiracy by seeking to interfere with any potential cooperation and testimony by the minor female victim.
Bailey coerced his adult victims through repeated acts of violence, including sexual assaults and physical beatings. Bailey reinforced this control through threats he issued to his victims in person and through voice messages, texts, and Facebook Messenger. Bailey supplied drugs to the victims suffering from addiction and withheld drugs from them as punishment.
“This defendant inflicted pain, violence, and abuse upon his victims to dehumanize and control them. He raped them. He beat them. He threatened them,” said United States Attorney Moore Capito. “Bailey went beyond exploiting their vulnerabilities with a sustained campaign of terror. Accountability should reflect that reality. Our office agreed with the Sentencing Commission guidelines that Bailey’s egregious crimes warranted life in prison. While this community will be protected from this thug for at least 25 years, in our view this sentence does not fully reflect the gravity of that harm or the years of suffering inflicted by the defendant’s actions.”
Roy aided and abetted Bailey and conspired with him in the trafficking of the minor female. Roy also transported the three adult victims to and from meetings for commercial sex acts and collected money from these acts for Bailey.
Bailey became a fugitive after a warrant for his arrest was issued in the case on July 23, 2024. The United States Marshals Service (USMS) captured Bailey on January 17, 2025, in Lexington, Kentucky.
Bailey has a criminal history that includes prior convictions for the manufacture and delivery of narcotics and conspiracy to possess with the intent to distribute cocaine base.
The jury found Bailey and Roy guilty of one count each of sex trafficking of a minor and conspiring to commit sex trafficking of a minor. The jury also found Bailey guilty of three counts of sex trafficking by force or coercion and one count of obstruction of justice.
Capito made the announcement and commended the investigative work of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security-Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), the Charleston Police Department, the United States Marshals Service, and the Kanawha County Sheriff’s Office for their investigative work in this case, and the assistance provided by the Metropolitan Drug Enforcement Network Team (MDENT) and the West Virginia Fusion Center.
“This case demonstrates the serious harm caused by human trafficking and the deliberate actions of Bailey and Roy to exploit vulnerable individuals, including a minor,” said Eric Weindorf, Special Agent in Charge of Homeland Security Investigations, Washington, D.C. “Through close collaboration with our law enforcement partners, HSI conducted a thorough investigation that led to their arrest and conviction. Upholding our mission to protect the public and dismantle criminal organizations, HSI remains committed to pursuing justice for victims and holding offenders accountable.”
United States District Judge Joseph R. Goodwin imposed the sentences. Assistant United States Attorneys Jennifer Rada Herrald and Jennifer D. Gordon prosecuted the case.
A copy of this press release is located on the website of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of West Virginia. Related court documents and information can be found on PACER by searching for Case No. 2:24-cr-118.
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Video of the press conference held on February 9, 2026, to announce the sentencings is available on the YouTube channel of the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Southern District of West Virginia: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HyMRwynjRVU
Bakersfield Defendants Plead Guilty to Sexual Exploitation of a MinorRead the Press Release
U.S. Attorney Eric Grant announced that Roy Richard Truitt III, 43, of Bakersfield, pleaded guilty today to sexual exploitation of a minor and being a registered sex offender committing a felony offense involving a minor; and Amber Louise Lowe, 48, of Bakersfield, pleaded guilty to sexual exploitation of a minor and receipt and distribution of child pornography.
According to court documents, between Aug. 28, 2018, and Sept. 2, 2018, Truitt and Lowe conspired to and did sexually exploit a minor victim, producing photographs of the sexual exploitation, which Lowe distributed to Truitt. During the relevant time period, Truitt was required to register as a sex offender in California.
Homeland Security Investigations conducted the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney Brittany M. Gunter is prosecuting the case.
The defendants are scheduled to be sentenced on May 4, 2026, by U.S. District Judge Dale A. Drozd. Truitt faces a mandatory minimum sentence of 25 years in prison, a maximum of 50 years in prison, and a $250,000 fine for sexual exploitation of a minor. For committing a felony offense against a minor while a registered sex offender, he faces a mandatory consecutive sentence of 10 years in prison. Lowe faces a mandatory minimum sentence of 15 years in prison, a maximum of up to 30 years in prison, and a $250,000 fine for sexual exploitation of a minor. For receipt and distribution of child pornography, Lowe faces a mandatory minimum sentence of five years in prison and a maximum of up to 20 years in prison. The actual sentences for each defendant, 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.
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.
Annville Man Sentenced to 30 Months’ Imprisonment for Selling Ghost GunsRead the Press Release
HARRISBURG - The United States Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Pennsylvania announced that Hector Colon, age 35, of Annville, Pennsylvania, was sentenced by United States District Judge Jennifer P. Wilson to serve 30 months’ imprisonment, 12 months’ supervised release, and $100 in financial penalties based upon his guilty plea to conspiracy to engage in the business of selling firearms without a license.
According to United States Attorney Brian D. Miller, from August 5, 2021 through January 5, 2022, Colon and Samuel Snader sold 28 Privately Made Firearms (PMFs), commonly referred to as ghost guns, and 420 rounds of ammunition without a federal firearms license. Colon negotiated the sales and Snader built the firearms using kits purchased over the internet. The firearms were sold for cash and provided in person by Snader in the parking lot of a Walmart. The Court found that under the circumstances, Colon had a reason to believe the firearms would be possessed by a prohibited person or used in a felony offense and exhibited, “a blind indifference to public safety.” All 28 firearms and ammunition were recovered by law enforcement.
PMFs are firearms, including a frame or receiver, that was completed, assembled, or otherwise produced by a person other than a licensed manufacturer. PMFs may be manufactured using a 3D printing process or any other process and require a serial number or register to be added to legally sell the firearm for livelihood or profit. The licensee must mark PMFs with a unique serial number within seven days or prior to disposition. PMFs are commonly referred to as “ghost guns” because of the difficulty in tracking them. From 2016 to 2021, approximately 45,240 suspected PMFs were recovered by law enforcement from potential crime scenes.
This case is part of Operation Take Back America (https://www.justice.gov/dag/media/1393746/dl?inline) a nationwide initiative that marshals the full resources of the Department of Justice to repel the invasion of illegal immigration, achieve the total elimination of cartels and transnational criminal organizations (TCOs), and protect our communities from the perpetrators of violent crime.
The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) and the Pennsylvania Office of Attorney General investigated the case. Assistant United States Attorney Scott F. Ford prosecuted the case.
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8 February 2026
Jordanian National Illegally in the U.S. Sentenced to Prison for Firearm ViolationRead the Press Release
TOLEDO, Ohio – A Jordanian man residing in Lucas County has been sentenced to prison for possessing a firearm, which he was prohibited from having due to his status as an unlawful alien.
Husam Al Najjar, 43, was sentenced to 27 months in prison after a federal jury found him guilty in October of being an Unlawful Alien in Possession of a Firearm. The sentence was handed down Feb. 3 by U.S. District Court Judge Jack Zouhary. Al Najjar was also ordered to serve three years of supervised release.
Evidence introduced at trial showed that the defendant was admitted to the United States as a nonimmigrant visitor on Oct. 26, 2014. About four months later, he met a U.S. citizen whom he then married March 12, 2015, in Toledo. However, agents found that Al Najjar overstayed his visa entry conditions when it expired the following month, thus making him eligible for deportation. His wife later submitted forms to U.S. Citizen and Immigration Services (USCIS) for Al Najjar to gain lawful status but those requests were never approved.
According to the original criminal complaint and affidavit filed in the case, agents investigating Al Najjar discovered that he took multiple videos and photos of himself holding or using a variety of firearms that he posted on his social media accounts. While executing a search warrant at his residence, agents seized a Glock Model 45, 9mm pistol.
Al Najjar is subject to a detainer from United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement and will be taken into administrative immigration custody for removal from the United States following the completion of his sentence.
This case was investigated by the FBI Toledo Field Office, Homeland Security Investigations, and U.S. Citizen and Immigration Services.
Assistant United States Attorneys Matthew Shepherd and Dexter L. Phillips for the Northern District of Ohio led the prosecution.
7 February 2026
Abilene Fentanyl Trafficker, 30 others, Sentenced as Part of “Operation Top Shelf”Read the Press Release
A large-scale fentanyl trafficker in Abilene, Texas, was sentenced to life in federal prison this week, announced U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of Texas Ryan Raybould.
Kurtney Bernard Jones, of Abilene, was convicted in August 2025 by a federal jury in Abilene of two counts of distribution and possession with intent to distribute fentanyl and one count of conspiracy to distribute fentanyl. On February 5, 2026, United States District Judge James Wesley Hendrix sentenced Jones to life imprisonment.
“The scale of this drug trafficking organization and this defendant’s leadership of it warrants a life sentence,” said U.S. Attorney Ryan Raybould. “Our law enforcement partners took down a massive fentanyl distribution ring over a 2-year operation. I applaud their collaborative efforts together with the prosecutors in my office in successfully removing these dangerous drugs and those peddling them from the Abilene community.”
“The defendant’s role in a drug trafficking organization that distributed a large quantity of narcotics into Abilene and the surrounding area warrants the life sentence that was imposed in this case,” said FBI Dallas Special Agent in Charge R. Joseph Rothrock. “We will continue working with our law enforcement partners to dismantle drug trafficking organizations and protect our communities from the threat of dangerous drugs.”
“This life sentence reflects the seriousness of fentanyl trafficking and our continued commitment to protecting communities from those who profit by distributing deadly drugs,” said DEA Dallas Field Division Special Agent in Charge Joseph B. Tucker. “This case highlights the strength of our partnerships with federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies working together to hold dangerous traffickers accountable and keep our communities safe.”
Evidence presented in court demonstrated that Kurtney Jones, also known as “KP,” was responsible for distributing large quantities of fentanyl, methamphetamine, and heroin in the Abilene area.
Court records show that in December 2023, Jones assumed control of a drug trafficking organization (DTO) that distributed drugs in Abilene and the surrounding counties. He formed a relationship with a drug supplier in Dallas, Texas. He organized the transport of a total of 42,000 fentanyl pills, 140 grams of heroin, 1.3 kilograms of methamphetamine, another 4,600 grams of fentanyl to the Abilene. While running the DTO, Jones threatened rival dealers and trafficked firearms. When arrested, he possessed 452 grams of fentanyl and $225,994.25 in cash. Agents also discovered that Jones possessed a pill press, capsules to make pills, and another 318.95 grams of heroin.
Jones’s prosecution was part of “Operation Top Shelf.” This was a comprehensive narcotics investigation that involved seven separate local and federal law enforcement agencies. Agents performed two separate “takedowns.” The first takedown occurred in February of 2024 and involved more than 80 agents and officers from the 7 collaborating agencies. Court records reflect that over the course of the first takedown operation, agents seized 29 kilograms of methamphetamine, 721 grams of cocaine, 1,370 grams of fentanyl, and 60 firearms. Seventeen methamphetamine and cocaine traffickers were arrested and indicted.
The second takedown occurred in September of 2024. Agents arrested and indicted 12 fentanyl traffickers, including Jones.
After the takedowns, opioid overdose rates fell sharply in Abilene. https://www.justice.gov/usao-ndtx/pr/after-takedown-opioid-overdose-rates-fall-abilene.
With Jones’s sentencing this week, all 31 traffickers charged in “Operation Top Shelf” have been sentenced. In total and excluding Jones, the Court sentenced the defendants to 4,328 months, which amounts to over 360 years of federal prison time. Those sentences include:
- Kurtney Bernard Jones: sentenced to life imprisonment for possessing with intent to distribute and distributing fentanyl and conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute fentanyl.
- Rafael Perez: sentenced to 360 months’ imprisonment for distribution and possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine.
- Diana Nichole Perez, aka Diana Santana: sentenced to 292 months’ imprisonment for distribution and possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine.
- Eddie Ochoa Lomas: sentenced to 240 months’ imprisonment for possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine.
- Tylik Ojur Johnson: sentenced to 210 months’ imprisonment for distribution of fentanyl and possession with intent to distribute fentanyl.
- Nathaniel Deal: sentenced to 262 months’ imprisonment for possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine.
- Lisa Ann Beckham: sentenced to 204 months’ imprisonment for possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine.
- Angel Alvarez: sentenced to 200 months’ imprisonment for possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine.
- Orson Rolando Ortegon: sentenced to 188 months’ imprisonment for possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine.
- Joshua Gosson: sentenced to 180 months’ imprisonment for possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine.
- Marquee Anthony Aboso, aka “OC”: sentenced to 175 months’ imprisonment for conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute fentanyl.
- Hannah Rai Gongora, aka Hannah Alvarez: sentenced to 172 months’ imprisonment for possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine.
- Laura Trevino: sentenced to 156 months’ imprisonment for possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine.
- Alexandrea Delgado: sentenced to 151 months’ imprisonment for possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine.
- Petra Soliz: sentenced to 151 months’ imprisonment for distribution and possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine.
- Juan Manuel Oliveros, Jr.: sentenced to 150 months’ imprisonment for possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine.
- Jeremiah Greene, aka “Lil Mexico”: sentenced to 132 months’ imprisonment for conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute fentanyl.
- Bradley Kirk Gutierrez: sentenced to 121 months’ imprisonment for distribution and possession with intent to distribute fentanyl.
- Jimmy Rangel: sentenced to 120 months’ imprisonment for distribution and possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine.
- Gloria Santibanez: sentenced to 114 months’ imprisonment for possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine.
- Jason Eugene DeLeon: sentenced to 108 months’ imprisonment for distribution and possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine.
- Steven Lattimore, aka “PNut”: sentenced to 103 months’ imprisonment for possession with intent to distribute fentanyl.
- Mckenzee Marie Lane: sentenced to 102 months’ imprisonment for distribution of fentanyl and possession with intent to distribute fentanyl.
- Joseph Brassell: sentenced to 96 months’ imprisonment for possession to distribute fentanyl.
- Robert Lee Mason: sentenced to 96 months’ imprisonment for conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute fentanyl.
- Glen Edward Lee, Jr.: sentenced to 70 months’ imprisonment for possession with intent to distribute fentanyl.
- Maxine Gonzales: sentenced to 63 months’ imprisonment for conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute fentanyl.
- Christopher Thompson: sentenced to 54 months’ imprisonment for possession with intent to distribute fentanyl.
- Jacob Lee DeLeon: sentenced to 27 months’ imprisonment for distribution and possession with intent to distribute cocaine.
- Paul Eli Snyder: sentenced to 21 months’ imprisonment for distribution and possession with intent to distribute fentanyl.
- Christopher Anthony Glaze: sentenced to 10 months’ imprisonment for possession with intent to distribute fentanyl.
The operation involved agents and officers from DEA Fort Worth, FBI Dallas Field Office - Abilene Resident Agency, Homeland Security Investigations, ATF Dallas, IRS – Criminal Investigations, the Taylor County Sheriff’s Office, the Abilene Police Department, and the Callahan County Sheriff’s Office.
This prosecution was part of the Homeland Security Task Force (HSTF) initiative. The HSTF is a whole-of-government partnership dedicated to eliminating criminal cartels, foreign gangs, transnational criminal organizations, and human smuggling and trafficking rings operating in the United States and abroad. Through historic interagency collaboration, the HSTF directs the full might of United States law enforcement towards identifying, investigating, and prosecuting the full spectrum of crimes committed by these organizations, which have long fueled violence and instability within our borders.
The United States Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Texas handled the prosecution.
6 February 2026
Woman Who Raised, Trained, and Traded Roosters for Illegal Cockfighting Sentenced After Federal ConvictionRead the Press Release
Woman Who Raised, Trained, and Traded Roosters for Illegal Cockfighting Sentenced After Federal Conviction
CONCORD – A Chester woman was sentenced today in federal court for her involvement in illegal cockfighting activities in New Hampshire and North Carolina, U.S. Attorney Erin Creegan announces.
Jennifer Scott, 42, was sentenced to one year of probation and ordered to pay a fine of $2,500 by U.S. Magistrate Judge Andrea K. Johnstone. As a term of her probation, the defendant is prohibited from owning or raising roosters or chickens. In October 2025, Scott pleaded guilty to one count of Attending an Animal Fighting Venture.
According to court documents, the defendant had been using her property in New Hampshire to raise and train roosters for cockfighting. On several occasions, she transported roosters to North Carolina, where she traded them and had them participate in illegal cockfighting events. During a search warrant executed on her property, law enforcement recovered sparring muffs used to train roosters for cockfighting, a sparring aid used to entice roosters to attack the simulated opponent, 76 roosters, 84 hens, 261 juvenile chickens, and an egg incubator.
“The defendant participated in a multistate cockfighting venture and profited from animal cruelty,” said U.S. Attorney Creegan. “The conduct was extensive, involving networks of participants at multiple locations in North Carolina, as well as scores of animals. Today’s sentence stands as a warning to those who participate in and fuel the market for this brutal conduct.”
The investigation was led by the U.S. Department of Agriculture Office of Inspector General. Valuable assistance was provided by the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, Homeland Security Investigations, the Drug Enforcement Administration, New Hampshire Fish and Game Department Law Enforcement Division, New Hampshire State Police, Massachusetts State Police, North Carolina State Highway Patrol, Animal Rescue League of Boston Law Enforcement Division, and the Chester Police Department. Assistant U.S. Attorney Matthew Vicinanzo prosecuted the case.
Woman Sentenced for Supplemental Nutrition Assistance FraudRead the Press Release
MINNEAPOLIS – LaTasha Thomas, age 39, was sentenced in United States District Court to 12 months imprisonment followed by a year of supervised release for one count of mail fraud, and ordered to repay $325,159 in restitution to the United States Department of Agriculture, announced U.S. Attorney Daniel N. Rosen.
Over the course of two years, Latasha Thomas conspired with her daughter Ambrosia Thomas, and other relative Cynthia Thomas, to defraud the federal Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (“SNAP”). Their scheme focused on the unlawful acquisition of Electronic Benefit Transfer (“EBT”) cards, which are issued by the state government to qualifying applicants and loaded monthly with money from SNAP. Legitimate applicants can use their EBT cards to purchase groceries and make ATM withdrawals.
Thomas and her co-conspirators devised a scheme to acquire cards under false pretenses and defraud the program. They created fake Minnesota temporary drivers’ licenses using false names, with each license picturing one of the Thomases. Then, they submitted these fake licenses to Hennepin County in applications for EBT cards. Believing their SNAP allotments could be increased if the purported recipients were confined to bedrest, the Thomases repeatedly claimed in their fraudulent applications to be women experiencing “high risk pregnancy.” They bolstered these claims with fake doctor’s notes they manufactured for the purpose of maximizing their theft of government funds.
In many of the scheme’s fraudulent applications, the Thomases directed the state to send the EBT cards to Cynthia Thomas’s apartment in Roseville. Cynthia lived there under the same false name—Sofia Gold—that appears on one of the scheme’s ill-begotten cards. When law enforcement searched Cynthia’s apartment in Roseville, they encountered her there and found several pieces of mail addressed to pseudonyms used in the scheme. In the inside part of the apartment building’s mailbox—accessible only to building management and mail carriers—law enforcement found notes indicating that mail should be delivered to Cynthia’s apartment for several of the pseudonyms used in the scheme.
The Thomases withdrew government funds from ATMs and used them to make purchases. They also marketed and sold the use of the EBTs to others, arranging for their customers to pick up an EBT card, use an agreed-upon portion of its monthly allotment, return the card, and then pay the conspirators a fee (usually 50-60%) for the privilege. In all, through their scheme the Thomases caused over $325,000 in losses to the SNAP program.
This case is the result of an investigation conducted by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Hennepin County Fraud Unit.
Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Jeanne Semivan prosecuted the case.
U.S. Attorney’s Office Filed 111 Border-Related Cases This WeekRead the Press Release
SAN DIEGO – Federal prosecutors in the Southern District of California filed 111 border-related cases this week, including charges of bringing in aliens for financial gain, reentering the U.S. after deportation, and importation of controlled substances.
The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of California is the fourth-busiest federal district, largely due to a high volume of border-related crimes. This district, encompassing San Diego and Imperial counties, shares a 140-mile border with Mexico. It includes the San Ysidro Port of Entry, the world’s busiest land border crossing, connecting San Diego (America’s eighth largest city) and Tijuana (Mexico’s second largest city).
In addition to reactive border-related crimes, the Southern District of California also prosecutes a significant number of proactive cases related to terrorism, organized crime, drugs, white-collar fraud, violent crime, cybercrime, human trafficking and national security. Recent developments in those and other significant areas of prosecution can be found here.
A sample of border-related arrests this week:
- On February 3, Bulmaro Santiago-Perez, a citizen of Mexico, was arrested and charged with Deported Alien Found in the United States. According to a complaint, Border Patrol agents found the undocumented defendant hiding in brush about half mile north of the border near the Tecate Port of Entry. He was previously deported in April 2013 through Nogales, Arizona.
- On February 4, Carlos Jhovanny Estrada Perez and Jose Eduardo Corrado-Romo, citizens of Mexico, were arrested and charged with Attempted Bringing in Aliens for Financial Gain. According to a complaint, they are the alleged captain and co-captain, respectively, of a vessel intercepted by Marine Interdiction Agents from Customs and Border Protection Air and Marine Operations transporting unauthorized immigrants. Also arrested and charged were Mexican nationals Josefina Mariano Nava, Ramon Rodriguez-Cuevas and Arturo Sesma Rodriguez, for Attempted Entry After Deportation.
- On February 4, Elvin Maravillas, a United States citizen, was arrested and charged with Importation of a Controlled Substance. According to a complaint, Customs and Border Protection officers found almost 20 pounds of fentanyl hidden in a non-factory compartment in the floor of the defendant’s vehicle as he tried to cross the border at the San Ysidro Port of Entry.
The immigration cases were referred or supported by federal law enforcement partners, including Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Enforcement and Removal Operations (ICE ERO), Customs and Border Protection, U.S. Border Patrol, the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), the U.S. Marshals Service (USMS), and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF), with the support and assistance of state and local law enforcement partners.
Indictments and criminal complaints are merely allegations and all defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
U.S. Attorney’s Office Collects Nearly $200 Million in Criminal and Civil Actions in Fiscal Year 2025Read the Press Release
MIAMI – U.S. Attorney Jason A. Reding Quiñones announced today that the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Florida collected $188,113,543 in criminal and civil debts in fiscal year 2025.
Of that amount, $173,471,304.33 was recovered through criminal restitution collections, and $14,642,238.67 was collected in civil actions to enforce debts owed to the U.S. These recoveries reflect the Office’s continued commitment to securing restitution for crime victims and enforcing financial judgments imposed by federal courts.
“Nearly $200 million recovered means real accountability and real results,” said U.S. Attorney Reding Quiñones. “Those funds represent restitution returned to victims and debts collected from people who broke the law. Court orders matter, and in the Southern District of Florida, we enforce them. If you steal or defraud, we will put you in prison and we will come after the money.”
U.S. Attorney’s Offices are responsible for enforcing and collecting restitution judgments owed to victims of certain federal crimes who have suffered financial loss or physical injury, as well as civil and criminal debts owed to the U.S. While restitution is paid directly to crime victims, criminal fines and assessments are deposited into the Department of Justice’s Crime Victims Fund, which supports federal and state victim compensation and assistance programs. The Office’s collection efforts are carried out through the Financial Litigation Program (FLP).
Significant recoveries in fiscal year 2025 include the following cases:
Issa Asad and Q Link Wireless LLC were convicted of conspiring to defraud the U.S. and committing offenses against the U.S. The defendants were ordered to pay $111,395,396.25 in restitution. To date, the FLP has recovered $108,024,452.04.
Israel Guardarrama was convicted of conspiracy to commit healthcare fraud and wire fraud and was ordered to pay $1,722,080.27 in restitution. The FLP has recovered $1.4 million by litigating and resolving a civil criminal restitution judgment lien foreclosure action against the defendant’s homestead and rental properties.
Michael Scott Segal was convicted of mail fraud and wire fraud and was ordered to pay restitution in the amount of $912,570.50. The FLP recovered $409,438.75 of that amount in fiscal year 2025 to fully satisfy the judgment.
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U.S. Attorney Moore Capito and Law Enforcement Officials to Announce Sentences in Sex Trafficking Conspiracy at Monday Press ConferenceRead the Press Release
CHARLESTON, W.Va. – United States Attorney Moore Capito will hold a press conference on Monday, February 9, 2026, at 1:00 p.m. with law enforcement officials following the sentencing hearings for Tiwan Robert Bailey and Carrie Roy.
Bailey is scheduled to be sentenced on three counts of sex trafficking by force, fraud or coercion, one count of sex trafficking of a minor, one count of conspiring to commit sex trafficking of a minor, and one count of obstruction of justice. Roy is scheduled to be sentenced on one count each of sex trafficking of a minor and conspiring to commit sex trafficking of a minor. A federal jury convicted Bailey, also known as “Quick,” 49, and Roy, also known as “Carrie Ash,” 52, both of Charleston, on September 29, 2025, following a five-day trial.
*** NOTE: The press conference is contingent upon the completion of the sentencing hearings, scheduled for 10:00 a.m. and 11:00 a.m. ***
WHAT: Press Conference
WHEN: Monday, February 9, 2026, at 1:00 p.m.
WHERE: Robert C. Byrd U.S. Courthouse, Charleston, Fourth Floor, Suite 4000
A copy of this press release is located on the website of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of West Virginia.
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U.S. Attorney Announces $3.2 Million Settlement with Fashion Company Relating to Improper Receipt of Paycheck Protection Program LoanRead the Press Release
United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, Jay Clayton, and Special Agent in Charge of the Eastern Regional Office of the U.S. Small Business Administration, Office of Inspector General (“SBA-OIG”), Amaleka McCall-Brathwaite, announced today that ALICE + OLIVIA, LLC (“ALICE + OLIVIA”) has agreed to pay $3,200,000 to resolve allegations that it violated the False Claims Act by falsely certifying that it was eligible for a Paycheck Protection Program (“PPP”) loan. Under the settlement approved by U.S. District Judge Analisa Torres, ALICE + OLIVIA has admitted and accepted responsibility for conduct alleged in the Government’s Complaint, including that it was ineligible to receive the PPP loan due to the total number of individuals it employed.
The PPP, administered by the SBA, was created to assist small businesses nationwide adversely impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. In early 2021, the SBA permitted qualifying businesses that received an initial PPP loan to apply for a second PPP loan (a “Second-Draw PPP loan”) if they met certain requirements. For example, when ALICE + OLIVIA applied for a Second-Draw PPP loan in January 2021, a business generally could have no more than 300 employees, including the employees of its domestic and foreign affiliates. ALICE + OLIVIA exceeded this size eligibility requirement.
“The Paycheck Protection Program was established to help businesses weather the extraordinary economic disruption caused by the COVID-19 pandemic by offering forgivable loans,” said U.S. Attorney Jay Clayton. “But too many applicants sought and obtained loans that they were never entitled to receive. The women and men of this Office are dedicated to holding actors who attempt to bilk public programs accountable.”
“This settlement reflects our continued commitment to protecting taxpayer dollars and ensuring that federal relief programs are used as Congress intended,” said SBA-OIG Special Agent in Charge Amaleka McCall-Brathwaite. “SBA-OIG will continue working closely with our law enforcement partners to hold accountable those who misrepresent their eligibility.”
As alleged in the Complaint:
On or about January 21, 2021, ALICE + OLIVIA submitted, through its authorized representative, an application for a Second-Draw PPP loan to a financial institution, and ALICE + OLIVIA was subsequently approved for and received a Second-Draw PPP loan for $2,000,000. On or about February 9, 2022, ALICE + OLIVIA, through its authorized representative, applied for and received full forgiveness of its Second-Draw PPP loan.
ALICE + OLIVIA stated in its Second-Draw PPP loan application that it had 293 employees, when in fact ALICE + OLIVIA (together with its domestic and foreign affiliates) had more than 300 employees. ALICE + OLIVIA also certified, among other things, that it was eligible to receive the Second-Draw PPP loan and that the information provided in its application and supporting documents was true and accurate in all material respects.
When ALICE + OLIVIA later applied for PPP loan forgiveness, it misrepresented in its application that it had only 271 employees at the time of its Second-Draw PPP loan application. ALICE + OLIVIA also certified, once again, that the information provided in its application and supporting documents was true and correct in all material respects.
ALICE + OLIVIA violated the False Claims Act by knowingly presenting and making, or causing to be presented and made, false claims and statements in connection with its submission of its Second-Draw PPP loan application and forgiveness application. Specifically, ALICE + OLIVIA falsely certified its eligibility for the Second-Draw PPP loan because ALICE + OLIVIA (together with its domestic and foreign affiliates) employed more than 300 employees and was thus ineligible for the loan it received.
In connection with the filing of the lawsuit and settlement, the Government joined a private whistleblower lawsuit that had been filed under seal pursuant to the False Claims Act.
The case is being handled by the Office’s Civil Frauds Unit. Assistant U.S. Attorney Rebecca Salk is in charge of the case.
Two Individuals Charged in Scheme to “Straw Purchase” FirearmsRead the Press Release
HUNTSVILLE, Ala. – A federal grand jury has indicted two individuals in a scheme to “straw purchase” firearms, announced U.S. Attorney Prim F. Escalona.
A three-count indictment filed in U.S. District Court charges Habonisun Mynez Chaverst, 28, of Center Point, Alabama, and Keonna Daniella Cephus, 38, of Birmingham, Alabama, with conspiracy to straw purchase firearms and submit false ATF forms 4473. Cephus was also charged with making a false statement during the purchase of a firearm.
According to the indictment, between October 2024 and November 2024, Chaverst partnered with co-defendant Cephus to purchase six firearms from a Federal Firearms Licensee. Cephus, the straw purchaser, falsified documents by specifically stating that she was the actual buyer when in fact she was buying the firearms for Chaverst. On two separate occasions in November 2024, Cephus purchased two .40 caliber Glock 22 pistols, two .40 caliber Glock 23 pistols, and two 9mm Glock 17 pistols from Hoover Tactical Firearms. Cephus used money provided by Chaverst to purchase the firearms.
The ATF investigated the case. Assistant U.S. Attorney Carson R. Gilbert is prosecuting the case.
An indictment contains only charges. A defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
Two Individuals Charged in Scheme to “Straw Purchase” FirearmsRead the Press Release
HUNTSVILLE, Ala. – A federal grand jury has indicted two individuals in a scheme to “straw purchase” firearms, announced U.S. Attorney Prim F. Escalona.
A three-count indictment filed in U.S. District Court charges Habonisun Mynez Chaverst, 28, of Center Point, Alabama, and Keonna Daniella Cephus, 38, of Birmingham, Alabama, with conspiracy to straw purchase firearms and submit false ATF forms 4473. Cephus was also charged with making a false statement during the purchase of a firearm.
According to the indictment, between October 2024 and November 2024, Chaverst partnered with co-defendant Cephus to purchase six firearms from a Federal Firearms Licensee. Cephus, the straw purchaser, falsified documents by specifically stating that she was the actual buyer when in fact she was buying the firearms for Chaverst. On two separate occasions in November 2024, Cephus purchased two .40 caliber Glock 22 pistols, two .40 caliber Glock 23 pistols, and two 9mm Glock 17 pistols from Hoover Tactical Firearms. Cephus used money provided by Chaverst to purchase the firearms.
The ATF investigated the case. Assistant U.S. Attorney Carson R. Gilbert is prosecuting the case.
An indictment contains only charges. A defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.