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13 September 2019
Woodworth man pleads guilty to lying on federal firearms formRead the Press Release
ALEXANDRIA, La. – United States Attorney David C. Joseph announced that Jerry A. Morgan, 30, of Woodworth, Louisiana, pleaded guilty Tuesday before U.S. District Judge Dee D. Drell for making a false statement on a federal firearms transaction record, known as an ATF Form 4473.
According to the guilty plea, Morgan completed an ATF Form 4473 when he purchased 10 AR-15 style rifles from a licensed firearms seller in Lecompte, Louisiana, on November 29, 2017. On the form, Morgan said he was purchasing the firearms for himself, but in truth he was purchasing them for another individual, co-defendant Dagoberto Yanez, 26, of New Mexico. Yanez gave Morgan approximately $4,300 to cover the cost of the firearms purchase.
Yanez pleaded guilty on August 19, 2019, for conspiring to make false statements to a licensed firearm dealer. According to Yanez’s guilty plea, Yanez intended the guns to go to a drug-trafficking organization in Mexico.
Morgan faces five years in prison, three years of supervised release and a $250,000 fine. Judge Drell set Morgan’s sentencing for December 17, 2019. Yanez is scheduled to be sentenced on November 22, 2019.
The ATF investigated the case. Assistant U.S. Attorney Brian C. Flanagan is prosecuting the case.
Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN) is the centerpiece of the Department of Justice’s violent crime reduction efforts. Project Safe Neighborhoods is an evidence-based program proven to be effective at reducing violent crime. Through PSN, a broad spectrum of stakeholders work together to identify the most pressing violent crime problems in the community and develop comprehensive solutions to address them. As part of this strategy, PSN focuses enforcement efforts on the most violent offenders and partners with locally based prevention and reentry programs for lasting reductions in crime.
Washington Sex Offender Indicted for Child PornographyRead the Press Release
KANSAS CITY, Mo. – A Washington sex offender was indicted by a federal grand jury today for receiving and distributing child pornography.
David Lee Wilson, 37, was charged in an indictment returned by a federal grand jury in Kansas City, Mo. Wilson has a prior conviction for child molestation in Grays Harbor County, Washington, and is a registered sex offender.
Today’s indictment alleges that Wilson received and distributed child pornography beginning on Aug. 22, 2019, in Howell County, Missouri.
The charge contained in this indictment is simply an accusation, and not evidence of guilt. Evidence supporting the charge must be presented to a federal trial jury, whose duty is to determine guilt or innocence.
This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Ami Harshad Miller. It was investigated by Immigration and Customs Enforcement's (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), the Southwest Missouri Cyber Crimes Task Force, and the West Plains, Mo., Police Department.
Project Safe Childhood
This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by the United States Attorneys' Offices and the Criminal Division's Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who sexually exploit children, and to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.usdoj.gov/psc . For more information about Internet safety education, please visit www.usdoj.gov/psc and click on the tab "resources."United States Settles with United Parcel Service for Overcharging Federal Agencies under General Services Administration ContractRead the Press Release
The Department of Justice announced today that United Parcel Service Inc. (UPS) has agreed to pay the United States $8.4 million to resolve allegations that it overcharged federal agencies for package delivery services under a General Services Administration (GSA) contract.
“Contractors are expected to carefully comply with the pricing requirements of GSA contracts and other federal contracts,” said Assistant Attorney General Jody Hunt of the Department of Justice’s Civil Division. “This settlement demonstrates that the government will hold accountable contractors that overcharge federal agencies by failing to follow the pricing terms of federal contracts.”
The settlement announced today resolves allegations that from 2007 to 2014, UPS failed to follow the Price Reductions Clause of the GSA contract, which required UPS to provide GSA with certain lower prices offered to another customer, resulting in the government paying more than it should have for package deliveries. Under the GSA contract, which is known as a Multiple Award Schedule Contract, UPS provided ground delivery service and air delivery service. The settlement covers ground delivery service.
"GSA's Office of Inspector General will continue to work with the Department of Justice to put the taxpayer first," said GSA Inspector General Carol Fortine.
This matter was jointly investigated by the GSA, Office of the Inspector General, and the Department of Justice’s Civil Division. The claims settled in this case are allegations only, and there has been no determination of liability.
UAW International Board Member Arrested and Charged with Embezzling UAW FundsRead the Press Release
A member of the United Auto Workers union’s International Executive Board was arrested today on a federal criminal complaint charging him with conspiring with other UAW officials to embezzle hundreds of thousands of dollars in union money for their own personal benefit along with other crimes, announced U.S. Attorney Matthew Schneider.
Joining in the announcement was Irene Lindow, Special Agent in Charge of the U.S. Department of Labor – Office of Inspector General, Rainer S. Drolshagen, Acting Special Agent in Charge of the Detroit, Michigan office of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Manny Muriel, Special Agent in Charge of the Detroit, Michigan office of the Internal Revenue Service – Criminal Investigations, and Thomas Murray, District Director, U.S. Department of Labor – Office of Labor-Management Standards.
Vance Pearson, 58, of St. Charles, Missouri, was arrested today by federal agents in Missouri after being charged in a federal criminal complaint with taking part in a multiyear conspiracy to embezzle money from the International Union, United Automobile, Aerospace, and Agricultural Workers of America (UAW), to engage in mail and wire fraud, to file false reports with the Department of Labor, and to launder money. Pearson is the UAW’s Director of Region 5, which is headquartered in Hazelwood, Missouri. The UAW’s Region 5 covers the tens of thousands of UAW members from Missouri and the sixteen states to the southwest, including California. As Region 5 Director, Pearson is a member of the UAW’s International Executive Board, which governs the affairs of the union.
Pearson was arrested by federal agents in Missouri on the Detroit criminal complaint, and he is expected to make his initial appearance in federal court in St. Louis before being arraigned in Detroit. The complaint was unsealed after Pearson was arrested.
The Detroit criminal complaint charges Pearson with conspiring with other UAW officials to embezzle UAW money for the personal benefit of Pearson and other senior UAW officials by concealing personal expenditures in the cost of UAW Region 5 conferences held in Palm Springs, California, Coronado, California, and Missouri. Between 2014 and 2018, Pearson and other UAW officials submitted fraudulent expense forms seeking reimbursement from the UAW’s Detroit headquarters for expenditures supposedly incurred in connection with Region 5 leadership and training conferences. In truth, however, Pearson and his co-conspirators used the conferences to conceal the use of hundreds of thousands of dollars in UAW funds to pay for lavish entertainment and personal spending for the conspirators.
For example, Pearson and other senior UAW officials used UAW money to buy sets of golf clubs, individual clubs, and other golf equipment that cost thousands of dollars. In addition, Pearson and other UAW officials spent over $100,000 to purchase golf clothing, shirts, hats, sunglasses, golf balls, jackets, and fashion shorts from various pro shops at golf courses in California and Missouri. Pearson and the conspirators spent tens of thousands of dollars in UAW funds at the Indian Canyons golf course in Palm Springs on green fees for golfing outside of the time periods covered by the UAW Region 5 conferences that were used to conceal the extravagant personal spending of UAW funds.
Pearson and other UAW officials also spent hundreds of thousands of dollars in UAW funds to rent villas with individual pools in gated communities in Palm Springs for senior UAW officials for long periods of time outside of the dates set for the UAW conferences to which they were charged. UAW funds were also used to pay for meals for senior UAW officials at high-end restaurants outside the time periods of the UAW conferences to which they were charged.
The complaint also charges Pearson and his co-conspirators with embezzling over $60,000 for the purchase of boxes of cigars, humidors, cigar cutting equipment, and lighters from 2014 to 2018. The costs of the cigars were hidden within the expenses for the Region 5 conferences. Pearson caused the UAW to file false reports with the Department of Labor wherein the various embezzlement activity was concealed.
During search warrants executed last week in connection with the investigation, agents recovered dozens of cigars, humidors, and other tobacco-related items in the personal residences. In addition, agents seized hundreds of high-end bottles of liquor, hundreds of golf shirts, multiple sets of golf clubs, and tens of thousands of dollars in cash. Agents seized sets of golf clubs from Pearson’s UAW office and from the home of another UAW official that are consistent with the clubs purchased as part of the embezzlement scheme.
Each instance of embezzlement of union funds is punishable by five years in prison and a $10,000 fine. Mail and wire fraud carry a maximum sentence of 20 years imprisonment and a fine of $250,000. Money laundering carries a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison and a fine of up to $250,000.
U.S. Attorney Schneider commended the outstanding work of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Internal Revenue Service – Criminal Investigations, the US Department of Labor – Office of Inspector General and the U.S. Department of Labor – Office of Labor-Management Standards in conducting a comprehensive criminal investigation into labor corruption activities involving a vital sector of the local and national economy.
A criminal complaint is only a charge and is not evidence of guilt. Every defendant is entitled to a fair trial in which it will be the government's burden to prove guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.
The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys David A. Gardey and Steven Cares.
U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Washington and U.S. Department of Justice Civil Rights Division Host Community Roundtable to Increase Awareness of Sexual Harassment in HousingRead the Press Release
Spokane – William D. Hyslop, United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Washington, announced that the United States Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Washington and the United States Department of Justice (DOJ), Civil Rights Division, recently hosted roundtables in Yakima and Spokane, Washington, for community organizations to discuss the problem of sexual harassment in housing. The event included local law enforcement agencies, legal aid offices, fair housing organizations, shelters and transitional housing providers. Those organizations were invited because they often work with vulnerable populations who are most likely to become victims of sexual harassment in housing.
United States Attorney Hyslop said, “Sexual harassment in housing is often underreported. I encourage anyone who has been subjected to sexual harassment by his or her landlord or employer of a landlord to report it to the United States Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Washington. Sexual harassment is illegal under the Fair Housing Act, and my office is committed to enforcing the law and working to secure justice for victims of these offenses. We are extremely proud of our community partners joining us in a meaningful discussion on how to increase community awareness of, and identify barriers to reporting, sexual harassment in housing in the Eastern District of Washington.”
While most people are familiar with the problem of sexual harassment in the workplace, harassment also occurs in housing, and the Fair Housing Act prohibits it. Sexual harassment by landlords, property managers, maintenance workers, and others with power over housing often affects the most vulnerable populations - single mothers, women who are financially unstable, and women who have suffered sexual violence in their past. These women often do not know where to turn for help.
The United States Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Washington is working closely with the Civil Rights Division to spread the word here in the Eastern District of Washington about options to help victims experiencing sexual harassment or who experienced sexual harassment in housing in the past. Often it is community organizations, such as local law enforcement, legal aid offices, fair housing organizations, shelters and transitional housing providers, that are in the best position to identify housing abuses and recommend that victims report sexual harassment to DOJ’s Civil Rights Division. By increasing awareness and building strong partnerships, we can better combat this problem in our community.
Since launching the Sexual Harassment in Housing Initiative in 2017, the Department of Justice has filed 11 lawsuits alleging a pattern or practice of sexual harassment in housing. The Justice Department has filed or settled 15 sexual harassment cases since January 2017, and has recovered over $2.6 million for victims of sexual harassment in housing. These cases often involve egregious conduct, including allegations that defendants have exposed themselves sexually to current or prospective tenants, requested sexual favors in exchange for reduced rents or making necessary repairs, made unrelenting and unwanted sexual advances to tenants, and evicted tenants who resisted their sexual overtures. The DOJ’s investigations frequently uncover sexual harassment that has been ongoing for years or decades and identify numerous victims who never reported the conduct to federal authorities.
Roundtable discussions like the one that United States Attorney Hyslop hosted recently are an integral part of a DOJ initiative that seeks to identify barriers to reporting sexual harassment in housing, increase awareness of its enforcement efforts - both among victims and those they may report to - and collaborate with federal, state, and local partners to increase reporting and help women quickly and easily connect with federal resources.
DOJ encourages anyone who has experienced sexual harassment in housing, or knows someone who has, to contact the Civil Rights Division by calling (844) 380-6178 or emailing: [email protected].
Individuals who believe they may have been victims of discrimination may also contact the Civil Rights Coordinator for the United States Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Washington, Joseph P. Derrig, by calling 509-353-2767.
Two Washington residents sentenced to prison for trafficking meth, possessing firearmsRead the Press Release
HELENA—A man and woman who admitted to meth trafficking and firearms crimes were sentenced today to prison after their vehicle was stopped near Missoula and law enforcement found more than a pound of meth inside, U.S. Attorney Kurt Alme said.
Tavia Dion Blume, 40, of Monroe, WA, was sentenced to 14 years in prison and five years of supervised release.
Co-defendant Kyle Douglas Alverson, 25, of Lake Stevens, WA, was sentenced to 14 years and 11 months in prison and five years of supervised release.
Both Blume and Alverson pleaded guilty in April to conspiracy to distribute meth and to possess with intent to distribute meth and possession of a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime.
Senior U.S. District Judge Charles C. Lovell presided.
In court documents filed in the case, the prosecution said Blume and Alverson conspired with others to distribute meth and also possessed firearms for protection. The Montana Highway Patrol stopped a vehicle Blume was driving on Dec. 16. 2018 on Interstate 90 east of Missoula. Alverson was a passenger. Law enforcement seized the vehicle and served a search warrant on the vehicle. During the search, officers found three firearms and ammunition, seized about 692 grams, or about 1.5 pounds, of meth, $1,280 in U.S. currency and other items. One and a half pounds of meth is the equivalent of 5,436 doses.
When interviewed by law enforcement, Blume said she had started selling narcotics to pay off debts and admitted to having a gambling problem. Blume would buy meth and heroin from her source in Washington for resale in Montana. When arrested, Blume was on her fourth trip.
Alverson bought meth to resell from Blume and her source of supply. Together, Blume and Alverson decided he would get a Glock .380 caliber pistol, which was found in the vehicle. Blume admitted that she owned a Phoenix Arms .22LR caliber pistol and a Taurus 9mm pistol and had the firearms for protection from being robbed while dealing drugs. The two firearms also were found in the vehicle.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Tom Bartleson prosecuted the case, which was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, the Montana Highway Patrol and the Missouri River Drug Task Force.
The case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), which is the centerpiece of the Department of Justice’s violent crime reduction efforts. PSN is an evidence-based program proven to be effective at reducing violent crime. Through PSN, a broad spectrum of stakeholders work together to identify the most pressing violent crime problems in the community and develop comprehensive solutions to address them. As part of this strategy, PSN focuses enforcement efforts on the most violent offenders and partners with locally based prevention and reentry programs for lasting reductions in crime.
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Two Mexican Drug Traffickers Arrested after Two-Kilogram Cocaine SeizureRead the Press Release
BOSTON – Two Mexican nationals were arrested and charged yesterday in federal court in Boston in connection with selling two kilograms of cocaine.
Carlos Acosta Estrella, 31, and his mother, Ana Guadalupe Acosta Grajeda, 56, were arrested on Thursday, Sept. 12, 2019 and charged in a criminal complaint with one count of possession with intent to distribute 500 grams or more of cocaine.
According to a criminal complaint, Estrella and Grajeda were arrested by law enforcement agents in East Boston after they were videotaped selling two kilograms of cocaine to a cooperating witness. Federal agents executed a search warrant of the East Boston apartment were the defendants were located and seized one kilogram of suspected fentanyl, one kilogram of suspected heroin, numerous cellphones, a high-powered tactical shotgun with a laser sight, and a box of ammunition for the shotgun.
The charging statute provides for a mandatory minimum sentence of five years and up to 40 years in prison, at least four years of supervised release, and a fine of $5 million. Sentences are imposed by a federal district court judge based upon the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
United States Attorney Andrew E. Lelling; Brian D. Boyle, Special Agent in Charge of the Drug Enforcement Administration, New England Field Division; and Boston Police Commissioner William Gross made the announcement today. Assistant U.S. Attorney Christopher Pohl of Lelling’s Narcotics and Money Laundering Unit is prosecuting the case.
The details contained in the criminal complaint are allegations. The defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
Two Lebanon Men Indicted on Drug Conspiracy ChargesRead the Press Release
HARRISBURG- The United States Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Pennsylvania announced today that on September 11, 2019 that Juan Delvalle-Andino, 31, and Pablo Ortiz-Calzada, 33, both of Lebanon, were indicted by a federal grand on drug trafficking charges.
According to United States Attorney David J. Freed, the indictment alleges that Delvalle-Andino and Ortiz-Calzada conspired with one another to possess over 500 grams of cocaine, attempted to possess over 500 grams of cocaine, and in fact did possess some quantity of cocaine. The indictment further alleges that both individuals had previously been convicted in the Judicial District of Puerto Rico of serious drug felonies.
The case was investigated by the U.S. Postal Inspectors and the Pennsylvania State Police. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Scott R. Ford.
Indictments and Criminal Informations are only allegations. All persons charged are presumed to be innocent unless and until found guilty in court.
A sentence following a finding of guilt is imposed by the Judge after consideration of the applicable federal sentencing statutes and the Federal Sentencing Guidelines.
The maximum penalty under federal law is 80 years in prison, a term of supervised release following imprisonment, and a fine. Under the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, the Judge is also required to consider and weigh a number of factors, including the nature, circumstances and seriousness of the offense; the history and characteristics of the defendant; and the need to punish the defendant, protect the public and provide for the defendant's educational, vocational and medical needs. For these reasons, the statutory maximum penalty for the offense is not an accurate indicator of the potential sentence for a specific defendant.
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Tupelo Loan Officer Sentenced for Bank FraudRead the Press Release
OXFORD, Miss. – A Tupelo bank officer and his co-defendant were sentenced today by U.S. District Judge Debra M. Brown in federal court in Greenville, Mississippi for bank fraud. Both had previously pled guilty before Judge Brown to one count of Bank Fraud, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 1344. Judge Brown sentenced Max Miller, age 53, to serve 18 months imprisonment followed by two years of supervised release. James Nichols, age, 52, was sentenced to time served followed by 5 years of supervised release. Judge Brown ordered both Miller and Nichols to pay $374,261 in restitution to Renasant Bank.
Max Miller, without the knowledge of Renasant Bank, used his position as a loan officer at Renasant Bank to create loans in the name of specified borrowers when the loans were not actually intended for the named borrowers but were actually intended to benefit his co-defendant, James Nichols, who was not listed as the borrower on the loans. In addition to the scheme with Nichols, Miller also generated loans for his own benefit. As a result of this scheme, Renasant Bank suffered a financial loss of $374,261.
US Attorney Chad Lamar announced the sentences following Friday’s hearing and emphasized the importance of the case. “The United States Attorney’s Office is committed to holding accountable any individuals who violate federal law by defrauding the very financial institutions that employ them.” Lamar stated. “The actions of these individuals represent a betrayal not only of the bank they defrauded, but the public trust, and we appreciate the diligent investigation by our partners that helped bring these individuals to justice.”
"The FDIC OIG remains focused in our efforts to investigate financial fraud schemes impacting FDIC-insured financial institutions throughout the country." remarked Laurie Younger, Special Agent in Charge, FDIC-OIG, Dallas Field Office
“The Federal Housing Finance Agency Office of Inspector General (FHFA-OIG) is committed to investigating allegations of fraud committed by officers of financial institutions which are members of the 11 Federal Home Loan Banks (FHLBanks) because their crimes strike at the heart of the FHLBank System,” said Edwin Bonano, Special Agent in Charge of the FHFA-OIG’s Southeast Region Office. “We are proud to have partnered with the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Mississippi in this case.”
This case was investigated by the FDIC Office of Inspector General and the Federal Housing Finance Agency Office of Inspector General and prosecuted by AUSA Clay Dabbs.
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Tiger Enters Guilty Plea to Federal Bribery ChargeRead the Press Release
MUSKOGEE, OKLAHOMA – The United States Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Oklahoma announced that Bristow, Oklahoma, resident GEORGE PHILLIP TIGER, age 69, entered a guilty plea today to Bribery Concerning Programs Receiving Federal Funds, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 666(a)(1)(B), punishable by not more than 10 years imprisonment, up to a $250,000.00 fine, or both.
Tiger, the former Principal Chief of the Muscogee (Creek) Nation, was an agent of the Alabama-Quassarte Tribal Town (AQTT) from September 26, 2017 through December 4, 2018. His duties included serving as the Chairman of the Economic Development Authority (EDA) Board. The AQTT formed the EDA to identify, plan, initiate and develop tribal economic and industrial activities on behalf of the AQTT. The AQTT is an Indian tribal government and organization that received federal assistance in excess of $10,000.00 during any one-year period from January 1, 2012 through the date of the indictment. The AQTT is headquartered in Wetumka, Oklahoma.
The Indictment to which Tiger entered his guilty plea alleged that from on or about September 26, 2017 through on or about February 15, 2019, in the Eastern District of Oklahoma and elsewhere, Defendant George Phillip Tiger did corruptly solicit, demand, accept and agree to accept a thing of value from persons known to the Grand Jury, intending to be influenced and rewarded in connection with a transaction or series of transactions of the Alabama-Quassarte Tribal Town (AQTT) involving $5,000.00 or more.
“Mr. Tiger took advantage of the position of trust he had been given by the people of the Alabama-Quassarte Tribal Town. Instead of acting in the best interests of those he was appointed to serve, Tiger sought out and received unlawful profit for himself,” said United States Attorney Brian J. Kuester. “This office and the agencies who have been involved in this investigation are committed to identifying, investigating, and prosecuting those who corrupt the positions of trust and authority they hold.”
"While serving as an appointed official for the Alabama-Quassarte Tribal Town, Tiger repeatedly exploited his position by soliciting and accepting bribes related to Tribal business. This plea reinforces the message that law enforcement will not tolerate tribal officials who engage in corrupt activity for personal financial gain at the expense of the people they serve,” said Melissa Godbold, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI’s Oklahoma City Division.
"This case demonstrates the commitment of the Defense Criminal Investigative Service (DCIS), along with our law enforcement partners, to aggressively pursue those who damage the economic health of Tribal organizations and their business entities that support critical national security programs funded by the Department of Defense (DoD)," said Michael Mentavlos, Special Agent-in-Charge of the DCIS Southwest Field Office. "DCIS will continue to investigate corruption and fraud that affects the DoD through the exploitation of Small Business Programs designed to help disadvantaged groups.”
“The IRS is committed to devoting all resources necessary to assist our local, state, and federal law enforcement partners in evaluating financial aspects of criminal investigations,” said Tamera Cantu, IRS Special Agent in Charge of the Dallas Field Office. “Today’s guilty plea underscores that commitment, not only to our law enforcement partners, but to the taxpayers and citizens who rely on us to uphold and enforce the law.”
The Defense Criminal Investigative Service (DCIS), Office of Inspector General, the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), Internal Revenue Service, Small Business Administration – Office of Inspector General, General Services Administration – Office of Inspector General, Army Criminal Investigations Division, and Naval Criminal Investigative Service participated in the investigation that lead to the Indictment.
The Honorable Kimberly E. West, Magistrate Judge in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Oklahoma, in Muskogee, accepted the plea and ordered the completion of a presentence investigation report. The defendant was allowed to remain free on a personal recognizance bond pending a sentencing hearing.
Assistant United States Attorney Douglas Horn, Assistant United States Attorney Ryan Heatherman, and Special Assistant United States Attorney Courtney Jordan represented the United States at the plea hearing.
Texas Man Sentenced to 10 Years for Traveling to Wisconsin for Illegal Sexual Activity with MinorRead the Press Release
MADISON, WIS. – Scott C. Blader, United States Attorney for the Western District of Wisconsin, announced that today Robert Hosler, 27, Austin, Texas, was sentenced by Chief U.S. District Judge James D. Peterson to 10 years in federal prison for interstate communications and travel to engage in illegal sexual activity and for possessing child pornography.
Hosler was convicted in May following a one-day court trial of two counts involving interstate communications and travel to engage in illegal sexual activity. He also pleaded guilty to possessing child pornography. In August 2018, Hosler responded to an advertisement posted on the Internet, which offered a 12-year-old child for sexual purposes. In response to the ad, he flew from Texas to Minnesota, rented a car and travelled to a prearranged meeting location in Eau Claire, Wisconsin, where he was arrested by law enforcement officers on September 6, 2018. The advertisement was posted by an undercover law enforcement officer.
At the time of his arrest, Hosler possessed a cell phone containing visual depictions of minors engaging in sexually explicit conduct; at least one of the depictions was of a minor who had not attained 12 years of age. In his response to the ad, Hosler expressed an interest in the possibility of videotaping his sexual contact with the minor. At the time of his arrest, recording equipment was found in his car.
Judge Peterson called the defendant selfish and self-deluded, whose primary concern was his own sexual interest. Peterson was concerned that Hosler was able to persuade himself that having sex with a 12-year-old was an OK thing to do.
The charges against Hosler are the result of an investigation by the Eau Claire Police Department, Wisconsin Department of Justice Division of Criminal Investigation, Federal Bureau of Investigation, Department of Homeland Security, Central Texas Violent Crimes Task Force, Wisconsin State Patrol, and West Central Drug Task Force. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Elizabeth Altman and Diane Schlipper handled the prosecution.
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. Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state and local resources to better locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the Internet, as well as to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.justice.gov/psc.
Teacher Gets 35 Years for Child ExploitationRead the Press Release
GRAND RAPIDS, MICHIGAN - Philip Gordon Paauwe, 33, of Grandville, Michigan, was sentenced to serve 420 months in the Federal Bureau of Prisons for coercing and enticing a minor to produce child pornography. U.S. District Judge Paul L. Maloney also imposed a period of supervised release of 10 years and ordered Paauwe to pay $34,000 in restitution to the victim.
In sentencing Paauwe, Judge Maloney stated that in his 25 years as a judge, he has not often, or perhaps ever, seen this degree of depravity. Judge Maloney said that Paauwe’s "grotesque behavior" and the "degree of manipulation is just unbelievable" and found that Paauwe was a very dangerous individual who used his "teaching position to perpetrate this monstrosity." Judge Maloney denied the defense request for leniency and expressed his goal to protect children from the risk posed by Paauwe.
Paauwe came to the attention of law enforcement during an undercover operation where he initiated plans to have sex with a 13-year-old girl. Paauwe was originally charged in state court for child pornography found on his phone. Further investigation into those images disclosed that he had been exploiting an out-of-state 15-year-old girl to make child pornography. Local authorities then referred the matter for federal prosecution. In its sentencing memorandum, the U.S. Attorney’s Office opposed the defense request for leniency and noted Paauwe’s extreme sexual manipulation of the victim, his fantasies of raping and killing children, and his sexual misconduct related to his teaching position.
In announcing the sentence, U.S. Attorney Birge stated, "As a teacher of special needs and emotionally impaired students, Paauwe knew how to relate to and ultimately exploit the minors he targeted. The school environment itself was fodder for his perverted fantasies. He is every parent’s nightmare. And that is why it is so important for my office to hold him and criminals like him accountable."
"The defendant exploited children for his own personal gratification. The identification, investigation and prosecution of those who victimize and exploit the most vulnerable members of our society remains a top priority for the FBI and its law enforcement partners," said FBI Acting Special Agent in Charge Rainer Drolshagen.
This case is part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative designed to protect children from online exploitation and abuse. The U.S. Attorney’s Office, county prosecutor's offices, the Internet Crimes Against Children task force (ICAC), federal, state, tribal, and local law enforcement are working closely together to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who exploit children. The partners in Project Safe Childhood work to educate local communities about the dangers of online child exploitation, and to teach children how to protect themselves. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit the following web site: https:www.projectsafechildhood.gov. Individuals with information or concerns about possible child exploitation should contact local law enforcement officials.
This case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Davin Reust and Daniel Mekaru, in cooperation with the Kent County Prosecutor’s Office, and investigated by WEBCHEX – a partnership of FBI, Michigan State Police, and other local agencies, including the Kent County Sheriff’s Department.
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Surge of Law Enforcement, Prosecution Resources Making Ogden PSN Target Area Safer for ResidentsRead the Press Release
PSN Target Enforcement Area Summary
- 963 months of prison imposed (80.25 years)
- 21 defendants sentenced (20 to prison, 1 on probation)
- Average prison is 48.15 months
- Screened cases involving 164 individuals
- 74 individuals have been charged
- Another 90 are under review or have been declined
- 115 weapons recovered as a part of cases filed – including a grenade launcher, 78 pistols
- 34,656.42 grams of drugs, including 29,766.63 grams of meth
- In 2018, Weber County CSI responded to 93 shooting incidents where casings or bullets were recovered. By Sept. 1, 2018, there had been 69 shootings. As of Sept. 1, 2019, they have responded to 32 shootings.
What is the PSN Target Enforcement Area: While the Utah PSN Task Force, along with other local and federal law enforcement agencies fulfill their duties and mission in every area of the state, the PSN Task Force has selected a 4.86 square mile area located primarily within Ogden City and Weber County for enhanced targeted enforcement. This area, selected for its history of firearm and drug related crimes, includes 8,047 households and more than 22,000 residents of Ogden City and Weber County. Through collaborative efforts and combined resources, the PSN Task Force is strategically targeting this area to detect, investigate, and disrupt those who violate state and federal laws, particularly firearm and drug related crimes. Offenders arrested as a part of the targeted enforcement action are being prosecuted in state or federal court based upon which jurisdiction that can provide the most appropriate sanction. In 2018, Ogden City experienced a historic 19.7% reduction in its Part 1 crimes. Ogden City leaders attribute much of the success of this reduction in crime to the coordinated work occurring within the PSN Target Enforcement Area.
Significant cases prosecuted as a part of the TEA:
U.S. v. Christopher J. Spraw, et al: Six individuals are charged in a six-count indictment with conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine, conspiracy to distribute heroin, possession of meth with intent to distribute (Buenrostro), and two counts of possession of heroin with intent to distribute (Buenrostro and Deroboam). Spraw is charged in the last count with possession of a firearm. According to a complaint filed in the case, the FBI, the Davis Metro Narcotics Strike Force and the Weber Morgan Strike Force initiated separate investigations based on information indicating Spraw, a member of the Silent Aryan Warriors (SAW), was working with others to sell large amounts of methamphetamine and heroin in Weber and Davis counties. The agencies joined forces to continue the investigation. Counts 3 and 4 of the indictment relate to approximately 195 pounds of meth and 1 pound of heroin found during the execution of a search warrant in Kearns. Spraw, age 49, is from Ogden. Other defendants include Manuel Ramblano Sanchez Jr., age 24, address unknown, Damian Buenrostro, age 22, of Kearns, Sheila Mary Deroboam, age 52, Heidi Lynn Openshaw, age 40, and Vanessa Dominguez, age 33, all of Ogden. Arrest warrants are pending for Sanchez and Buenrostro. The defendants face up to life in prison with a mandatory minimum 10 years if convicted of the conspiracy to distribute meth count.
U.S. v Lawley: Dijuan Michele Lawley, age 45, of Ogden, pleaded guilty to distribution of cocaine and possession of a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime in late May and was sentenced to 78 months in federal prison and five years of supervised release when he finishes his sentence. Lawley admitted he distributed approximately 2 grams of cocaine to another person, who was an ATF agent acting in an undercover capacity. He also admitted he possessed three firearms in furtherance of his drug trafficking crime. Lawley was initially in custody on another federal case that was dismissed Aug. 31, 2018. Five days after being released from custody, he made arrangements to sell cocaine. He was arrested by the ATF SWAT team with helicopter surveillance assistance from the Utah Department of Public Safety.
U.S. v Cordova: A two-day trial will start Oct. 22, 2019, before U.S. District Judge Robert J. Shelby for Rory Curtis Cordova, aka “Joker,” age 51, of Ogden, who faces two counts of possessing a firearm following a felony conviction. A criminal complaint filed Aug.15, 2018, alleges that around midnight on June 30, 2018, South Salt Lake City police officers responded to reports of gunfire at a residence. Officers learned that an unidentified individual had fired multiple shots at the residence from a vehicle. Eight bullets struck the residence. Two individuals were inside the home at the time. Based on the video information and additional information provided by a resident of the home, law enforcement officers were able to identify Rory Cordova as a suspect in the case. At approximately, 3:15 a.m., the complaint says, law enforcement officers from multiple agencies located Cordova’s vehicle in Ogden and took him into custody. During the course of the investigation, officers recovered several shell casings from inside Cordova’s vehicle where they also located a stolen Glock 26 9mm handgun. Firearms leave unique markings on ammunition and casings as it is discharged from the firearm. NIBIN stores images of those markings, which identify the signature of the firearm. These images are compared against other NIBIN entries for matches or “hits.” A “hit” indicates that the markings are the same on the ammunition or casings and would have been fired from the same firearm. NIBIN analysis revealed that the markings on the spent shell casings recovered from the scene of the South Salt Lake shooting matched the spent shell casings recovered from Cordova’s car. The NIBIN analysis also linked the Glock handgun recovered from Cordova’s vehicle to spent shell casings recovered from the scene of a shots fired call in Ogden on June 8, 2018. According to the complaint, the Ogden incident involved a man pulling up in front of a residence where a child’s birthday party was taking place. Shots were fired at the residence from the vehicle. Officers located several bullet holes and marks on the exterior of the residence, the front window of the residence, and the windshield of a vehicle parked in the driveway at the residence. Witness statements describing the shooter and the vehicle he was driving were consistent with Cordova and matched a vehicle registered to Cordova. Cordova is a documented Ogden Trece gang member and has felony convictions, leading to his restricted status under federal law firearms laws, according to charging documents. The potential maximum penalty for each of the counts in the complaint is 10 years in federal prison.
US v Armstrong: Charles Ray Armstrong, age 55, of West Valley City, who pleaded guilty to conspiracy to distribute more than 50 grams of methamphetamine, was sentenced to 117 months in federal prison Aug. 12, 2019. Armstrong admitted that he agreed to deliver meth to a location in Ogden. According to the court document, when he arrived to deliver the meth, he recognized the person purchasing the meth was an informant who worked with law enforcement. He immediately left the area and drove his vehicle to the freeway with law enforcement in pursuit. He admitted throwing the meth out the window of his vehicle. Police recovered a portion of the drugs. Testing done at the Utah Crime Lab found 94.83 grams of actual meth.
US v Sexton: Brandon Michael Sexton, age 44, of Ogden, is charged in a three-count indictment with possession of methamphetamine with intent to distribute, possession of heroin with intent to distribute, and possession of 19 firearms and associated ammunition following a felony conviction. An investigation conducted by the Weber Morgan Narcotics Strike Force resulted in Sexton’s arrest. A three-day jury trial is set for Oct. 15, 2019, before U.S. District Judge Jill N. Parrish. The maximum potential penalty for the charges in the indictment is life in prison with a 10-year mandatory minimum.
Indictments are not findings of guilt. Individuals charged in indictments are presumed innocent unless or until proven guilty in court.
Supai Man Sentenced to Prison for Domestic AssaultRead the Press Release
PHOENIX, Ariz. – This week, Anthony Paya, of Supai, Ariz., was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Diane J. Humetewa to 24 months of imprisonment to be followed by three years of supervised release. Paya had previously pleaded guilty to assault of an intimate partner or dating partner resulting in substantial bodily injury.
On May 10, 2018, Paya assaulted his partner, including by striking her multiple times with an extension cord. The assault occurred at a home in Supai, on the Havasupai Indian Reservation. Both Paya and the victim are enrolled members of the Havasupai Tribe.
The investigation in this case was conducted by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Bureau of Indian Affairs – Office of Justice Services. The prosecution was handled by Assistant U.S. Attorney Alexander Samuels, District of Arizona, Phoenix.
St. Joseph Man Charged with Illegally Possessing 15 FirearmsRead the Press Release
KANSAS CITY, Mo. – A St. Joseph, Missouri, man has been charged in federal court with illegally possessing 15 firearms.
Bryan R. Harshman, 39, was charged in a criminal complaint filed in the U.S. District Court in Kansas City, Missouri, on Thursday, Sept. 12, with being a felon in possession of firearms. Harshman remains in federal custody pending a detention hearing.
According to an affidavit filed in support of the federal criminal complaint, law enforcement officers with the Drug Enforcement Administration, the Buchanan County, Mo., Sheriff’s Department, and the St. Joseph, Mo., Police Department, executed a search warrant at Harshman’s residence on Wednesday, Sept. 11. They seized a Mitchell 12-gauge shotgun, a Mossberg .22-caliber semi-automatic pistol, a Mossberg 12-gauge shotgun, a Noble Manufacturing 410-gauge shotgun, a New England Firearms 20-gauge sawed-off shotgun (all concealed in the wall of the second-floor porch), a loaded Mitchell 12-gauge shotgun, a Ruger .22-caliber rifle, a Marlin 12-gauge shotgun, a Jimenez Arms .22-caliber semi-automatic pistol, a Springfield 40 S&W caliber semi-automatic pistol, a Sears & Roebuck 12-gauge shotgun with an extra barrel, a Remington 12-gauge shotgun, and a sawed-off Mossberg 12-gauge shotgun with a defaced serial number.
In a second-floor office located near the firearms, the affidavit says, officers observed items used in the packaging and distribution of methamphetamine, including digital scales and baggies. Two of the bowls used to weigh substances on the digital scale field-tested positive for methamphetamine.
While officers searched Harshman’s residence, additional officers located Harshman at a local Waffle House and he was taken into custody. Officers also searched the Chevrolet SUV being rented by Harshman, which was in the parking lot. Officers found a loaded Glock .40-caliber semi-automatic pistol, a loaded Smith and Wesson .38 Special revolver, and a solvent trap that had been drilled and was open at both ends, apparently modified to be used as a suppressor, inside the vehicle.
Under federal law, it is illegal for anyone who has been convicted of a felony to be in possession of any firearm or ammunition. Harshman has a prior felony conviction for distributing a controlled substance.
The charge contained in this complaint is simply an accusation, and not evidence of guilt. Evidence supporting the charge must be presented to a federal trial jury, whose duty is to determine guilt or innocence.
This case is being prosecuted by Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Robert Smith. It was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, the Drug Enforcement Administration, the Buchanan County, Mo., Sheriff’s Department, and the St. Joseph, Mo., Police Department.
Project Safe Neighborhoods
The U.S. Attorney’s Office is partnering with federal, state, and local law enforcement to specifically identify criminals responsible for significant violent crime in the Western District of Missouri. A centerpiece of this effort is Project Safe Neighborhoods, a program that brings together all levels of law enforcement to reduce violent crime and make neighborhoods safer for everyone. Project Safe Neighborhoods is an evidence-based program that identifies the most pressing violent crime problems in the community and develops comprehensive solutions to address them. As part of this strategy, Project Safe Neighborhoods focuses enforcement efforts on the most violent offenders and partners with locally based prevention and reentry programs for lasting reductions in crime.Springfield Man Sentenced to 16 Years for Illegal FirearmRead the Press Release
SPRINGFIELD, Mo. – A Springfield, Missouri, man was sentenced in federal court today for illegally possessing a firearm.
Alexander Monday Coleman, 48, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Roseann Ketchmark to 16 years in federal prison without parole. Coleman was sentenced as an armed career offender due to his prior felony convictions.
On Nov. 13, 2018, Coleman pleaded guilty to being a felon in possession of a firearm. Springfield police officers found a loaded KAHR Arms 9mm pistol in Coleman’s coat pocket when they searched him during a traffic stop on Jan. 26, 2017. Coleman was a passenger in the vehicle in which other individuals were in possession of illegal drugs, a scale, and drug paraphernalia.
According to court documents, Coleman was a former known member of the Grape Street Crips gang with a lengthy criminal history.
Under federal law, it is illegal for anyone who has been convicted of a felony to be in possession of any firearm or ammunition. Coleman has prior felony convictions for assault (as well as multiple misdemeanor convictions for assault), possession of a controlled substance, possession of cocaine for resale, theft of property, unlawful possession of a firearm, grand theft of a motor vehicle, possession with intent to distribute a controlled substance, and delivery or manufacture of an imitation controlled substance. Coleman was on parole at the time of this federal offense.
This case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Ami Harshad Miller. It was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and the Springfield, Mo., Police Department.
Project Safe Neighborhoods
The U.S. Attorney’s Office is partnering with federal, state, and local law enforcement to specifically identify criminals responsible for significant violent crime in the Western District of Missouri. A centerpiece of this effort is Project Safe Neighborhoods, a program that brings together all levels of law enforcement to reduce violent crime and make neighborhoods safer for everyone. Project Safe Neighborhoods is an evidence-based program that identifies the most pressing violent crime problems in the community and develops comprehensive solutions to address them. As part of this strategy, Project Safe Neighborhoods focuses enforcement efforts on the most violent offenders and partners with locally based prevention and reentry programs for lasting reductions in crime.Springdale Man Sentenced to More Than 27 Years in Federal Prison for Weapons and Drug PossessionRead the Press Release
Fayetteville, Arkansas - Duane (DAK) Kees, United States Attorney for the Western District of Arkansas, announced that Adrian Chavez Oviedo, age 28, was sentenced today to 330 months in federal prison, followed by five years of supervised release and ordered to pay a $9,700.00 fine for Aiding and Abetting in the Possession with Intent to Distribute Methamphetamine, Conspiracy to Distribute Methamphetamine and Felon in Possession of a firearm. The Honorable Timothy L. Brooks presided over the sentencing hearing in the United States District Court in Fayetteville.According to court records, In May of 2018, agents with the DEA and detectives with the 4th Judicial Drug Task Force received information that Oviedo, was involved in drug trafficking in and around Springdale, Arkansas. On June 2, 2018, Oviedo was arrested by the Springdale Police Department for drug trafficking related crimes and incarcerated at the Washington County Jail. While incarcerated, detectives learned that Oviedo began distributing methamphetamine inside the facility and was directing individuals outside the facility to move drugs from a storage unit and collect drug debts owed to him. Detectives were able to locate a storage facility in Springdale, Arkansas, that had separate units rented to Oviedo. On June 7, 2018, detectives executed a search warrant on a storage unit registered to Oviedo and located two pistols, an assault rifle, approximately 573 grams of methamphetamine, 181 grams of heroin and digital scales inside. On June 12, 2018, Oviedo was interviewed and admitted to trafficking narcotics including methamphetamine. The DEA crime lab tested the seized methamphetamine and determined that it contained 515.9 grams of actual methamphetamine.
A federal grand jury indicted Oviedo in July 2018, and he entered a guilty plea in May 2019.
This case was investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration, the 4th Judicial Drug Task Force and the Springdale Police Department. Assistant United States Attorney Denis Dean prosecuted the case for the United States.
South Florida Health Care Facility Owner Sentenced to 20 Years in Prison for Role in Largest Health Care Fraud Scheme Ever Charged by the Department of JusticeRead the Press Release
A federal district judge sentenced a south Florida health care facility owner to 20 years in prison today after being found guilty in the largest health care fraud scheme charged by the U.S. Justice Department. The case involves a decades-long scheme of kickbacks and money laundering in connection with fraudulent claims to Medicare and Medicaid for services deemed medically unnecessary.
Philip Esformes, 50, of Miami Beach, Florida, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Robert N. Scola of the Southern District of Florida, who also sentenced Esformes to three years supervised release. A hearing to determine restitution and forfeiture has been scheduled for Nov. 21.
After an eight-week jury trial, Esformes was found guilty in April 2019 of one count of conspiracy to defraud the United States, two counts of receipt of kickbacks in connection with a federal health care program, four counts of payment of kickbacks in connection with a federal health care program, one count of conspiracy to commit money laundering, nine counts of money laundering, two counts of conspiracy to commit federal program bribery and one count of obstruction of justice
“For nearly two decades, Philip Esformes bankrolled his lavish lifestyle with taxpayer dollars, paying bribes with impunity and robbing Medicare and Medicaid by billing for services that people did not need or get,” said Assistant Attorney General Brian A. Benczkowski. “It is a credit to the tenacity of our prosecutors and law enforcement partners that the man behind one of the biggest health care frauds in history will be spending 20 years in prison.”
“Philip Esformes will now spend years in prison for orchestrating a kick-back and money laundering scheme that defrauded America’s health care system out of millions of dollars,” said U.S. Attorney Fajardo Orshan of the Southern District of Florida. “The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Florida remains committed to working with our partners at the Department’s Criminal Division, the FBI and HHS-OIG to root out health care fraud and protect taxpayer dollars for patient care.”
“Philip Esformes is a man driven by almost unbounded greed,” said Deputy Special Agent in Charge Denise M. Stemen of the FBI’s Miami Field Office. “The illicit road Esformes took to satisfy his greediness led to millions in fraudulent health care claims, the largest amount ever charged by the Department of Justice. Along that road, Esformes cycled patients through his facilities in poor condition where they received inadequate or unnecessary treatment, then improperly billed Medicare and Medicaid. Taking his despicable conduct further, he bribed doctors and regulators to advance his criminal conduct and even bribed a college official in exchange for gaining admission for his son to that university. The FBI and its partners are constantly investigating health care fraudsters, big and small, who steal money from taxpayers at the expense of patients in need of quality medical care.”
“Healthcare fraud is a hidden tax costing billions of dollars every year and, as in this case, too often threatens the very health of vulnerable patients,” said Special Agent in Charge Omar Pérez Aybar for the Office of Inspector General of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS-OIG). “Esformes – who provided shoddy medical care – stands convicted of fraud and is now paying the price. We continue working tirelessly with our law enforcement partners to protect people in government health programs.”
According to the evidence presented at trial, between January 1998 and July 2016, Esformes led an extensive health care fraud conspiracy involving a network of assisted living facilities and skilled nursing facilities he owned. Esformes bribed physicians to admit patients into his facilities. Then, he cycled the patients through his facilities where they often failed to receive appropriate medical services or received medically unnecessary services billed to Medicare and Medicaid. Several witnesses testified to the poor conditions in the facilities and the inadequate care patients receive.
Esformes concealed the poor conditions and scheme from authorities by bribing an employee of a Florida state regulator for advance notice of surprise inspections scheduled to take place at his facilities. The evidence further showed Esformes used his criminal proceeds to make a series of extravagant purchases, including luxury automobiles and a $360,000 watch. Esformes also used criminal proceeds to bribe the basketball coach at the University of Pennsylvania in exchange for his assistance in gaining admission for his son into the university.
Altogether, the evidence established that Esformes personally benefited from the fraud and received in excess of $37 million.
Esformes’s coconspirator, physician’s assistant Arnaldo Carmouze, previously pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit health care fraud and was sentenced on April 10, 2019, to 80 months in prison and was ordered to pay $12,590,761 in restitution. Co-conspirator Odette Barcha also pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to violate the anti-kickback statute. Barcha was sentenced on April 3 to 15 months in prison and three years of supervised release and was ordered to pay $704,516.00 in restitution.
This case was investigated by the FBI and HHS-OIG and was brought as part of the Medicare Fraud Strike Force, under the supervision of the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Florida, with assistance from Florida Attorney General’s Office Medicaid Fraud Control Unit. The case was prosecuted by Fraud Section Acting Health Care Fraud Chief Allan Medina and Assistant Chief Drew Bradylyons, and Trial Attorneys Elizabeth Young, James Hayes and Jeremy Sanders, as well as Assistant U.S. Attorneys John Shipley and Dan Bernstein of the Southern District of Florida. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Alison Lehr, Nalina Sombuntham and Daren Grove of the Southern District of Florida handled the forfeiture aspects of the case.
The Fraud Section leads the Medicare Fraud Strike Force, which is part of a joint initiative between the Department of Justice and HHS to focus their efforts to prevent and deter fraud and enforce current anti-fraud laws around the country. Since its inception in March 2007, the Medicare Fraud Strike Force, which maintains 15 strike forces operating in 24 districts, has charged nearly 4,000 defendants who have collectively billed the Medicare program for more than $14 billion.
Shreveport resident sentenced to 3 years in prison for possessing two loaded firearms during traffic stopRead the Press Release
SHREVEPORT, La. – United States Attorney David C. Joseph announced that Marcell Deangelo Lewis, 24, of Shreveport, was sentenced Thursday to 36 months in prison and three years of supervised release by Chief U.S. District Judge S. Maurice Hicks Jr. for being a felon in possession of firearms. He previously pleaded guilty on June 3, 2019.
A Shreveport Police officer conducted a traffic stop on Lewis’ vehicle on March 19, 2018, on Interstate 49 near Hollywood Street for a speeding violation. After making contact with Lewis, the officer immediately smelled marijuana and conducted a search of the vehicle. The officer found a Colt, Model: Trooper MKIII, .357-caliber revolver loaded with six rounds in the center console and a Glock, Model: 23, .40-caliber pistol loaded with 21 rounds of ammunition on the passenger floorboard. Lewis claimed ownership of both firearms.
Lewis was convicted on December 12, 2018, in Caddo Parish District Court for possession with intent to distribute marijuana. Under federal law, a felon is prohibited from possessing a firearm or ammunition.
The ATF and Shreveport Police Department conducted the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney Brandon B. Brown prosecuted the case.
Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN) is the centerpiece of the Department of Justice’s violent crime reduction efforts. Project Safe Neighborhoods is an evidence-based program proven to be effective at reducing violent crime. Through PSN, a broad spectrum of stakeholders work together to identify the most pressing violent crime problems in the community and develop comprehensive solutions to address them. As part of this strategy, PSN focuses enforcement efforts on the most violent offenders and partners with locally based prevention and reentry programs for lasting reductions in crime.
Rochester Man Pleads Guilty in Series of Six Armed RobberiesRead the Press Release
CONTACT: Barbara Burns
PHONE: (716) 843-5817
FAX #: (716) 551-3051ROCHESTER, N.Y. - U.S. Attorney James P. Kennedy, Jr. announced today that Lavon Wims, 27, of Rochester, NY, pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Elizabeth A. Wolford to six counts of Hobbs Act robbery. The charges carry a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison and a $250,000 fine.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Sean C. Eldridge, who is handling the case, stated that Wims admitted his role in a series of armed robberies at Rochester stores in December 2018 and January 2019, including: • On December 28, 2018, at McDonalds on East Avenue in Rochester, Wims held a knife to the throat of a McDonald’s employee while co-conspirator Malik Lott displayed what appeared to be a handgun. Wims dragged the employee to a cash register and a safe, and removed approximately $2,534 from McDonald’s; • On December 31, 2018, at the 24-7 Store on West Henrietta Road in Brighton, Wims jumped over the counter and held what appeared to be a handgun to the side of a store employee while demanding cash. Wims left with approximately $100 from the store; • On January 19, 2019, at the Express Mart on Chestnut Ridge Road in Chili, Wims displayed what appeared to be a handgun to a store employee and walked the employee over to the register, where Wims removed approximately $600; • On January 23, 2019 at Jordy’s Spirits on Dewey Avenue in Rochester, Wims pointed what appeared to be a handgun at a store employee and demanded money. Lott assisted Wims in removing cash from the register, and they left with approximately $350 from the store; • On January 27, 2019, at the Speedway Gas Station on Elmwood Avenue in Brighton, Wims pointed what appeared to be a handgun at an employee and told the employee to open the registers. Wims then removed approximately $220 from the store, and left to commit another robbery; and
• About 8 minutes after the Speedway robbery, on January 27, 2019, at the Valero Gas Station on East Henrietta Road in Rochester, Wims pointed what appeared to be a handgun at an employee and told the employee to given him money. The employee opened the register, and Wims took approximately $60 and fled the store.Co-conspirator Malik Lott previously pleaded guilty to his role in robberies at McDonalds and Jordy’s Spirits. Lott is scheduled to be sentenced on October 28, 2019, at 10:30 am before Judge Wolford.
The plea is the result of an investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s Rochester Area Major Crimes Task Force, under the direction of Special Agent-in-Charge Gary Loeffert.
Wims is scheduled to be sentenced on November 25, 2019, at 2:00 p.m. before Judge Wolford.
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Recidivist Hacker Sentenced for Violating Supervised Release ConditionsRead the Press Release
BOSTON – A New Bedford man was sentenced yesterday for violating conditions of his supervised release by engaging in another cybercrime after being released from federal custody after two prior convictions.
Cameron Lacroix, 30, was sentenced by U.S. District Court Senior Judge Mark L. Wolf to 15 months in prison, to be served consecutively to a nine-month sentence previously imposed by U.S. District Court Chief Judge Patti B. Saris.
Lacroix was first convicted in 2014 of access device fraud and computer fraud for hacking into Bristol Community College’s computer servers using stolen log-in credentials and changing grades for himself and other students. Lacroix also hacked into law enforcement computer servers, including a local Massachusetts police department.
Lacroix was separately convicted with intentionally causing damage to a protected computer in connection with hacking Twitter accounts for Jeep and Burger King.
Lacroix was sentenced for each case on Oct. 27, 2014, and Nov. 25, 2014, respectively, to 48 months in prison and three years of supervised release, to be served concurrently. Following his release from custody, and while serving a term of supervised release, Lacroix obtained employment, working as a manager for a company from approximately August to November 2018 when the company discovered that Lacroix had engaged in a fraud scheme that compromised the company’s computer system. The company discovered that Lacroix used the usernames and passwords of other employees to load funds onto pre-paid credit cards, which he then used to withdraw cash at ATMs. Thereafter, the Court revoked Lacroix’s supervised release in both criminal cases. Judge Saris sentenced Lacroix to nine months for the violation and, yesterday, Judge Wolf sentenced Lacroix to 15 months in prison, to be served consecutively.
United States Attorney Andrew E. Lelling and Joseph R. Bonavolonta, Special Agent in Charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Boston Field Division made the announcement today. Assistant U.S. Attorney Mackenzie A. Queenin of Lelling’s Cybercrime Unit handled the matter.
Plano Federal Prosecutor Honored by North Texas Crime CommissionRead the Press Release
PLANO, Texas – The North Texas Crime Commission (NTCC) recognized an Eastern District of Texas federal prosecutor as the 2019 Prosecutor of the Year at their monthly membership meeting on Sep. 12, 2019 in Dallas.
Assistant United States Attorney Marisa Miller was honored as Prosecutor of the Year specifically for her outstanding achievements in the areas of combating child exploitation and human trafficking. The award was presented by NTCC Chair David Dean and U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Texas, Joseph D. Brown.
AUSA Miller is the Project Safe Childhood Coordinator for the Eastern District of Texas, responsible for the coordination of all of the district’s prosecution of crimes against children and human trafficking. Prior to joining the Eastern District of Texas in 2014, AUSA Miller spent six years as Project Safe Childhood Coordinator for the Western District of New York. Throughout her tenure with the United States Attorney’s Offices in Texas and New York, AUSA Miller has prosecuted crimes against vulnerable persons, including the production of child pornography; the receipt, transportation, distribution and possession of child pornography; enticement of minors, transporting minors in interstate commerce for illegal sexual activity, travel in interstate and foreign commerce for illegal sexual activity, sex trafficking of children, and transportation of individuals in interstate commerce for commercial sex. AUSA Miller received her BA from Bryn Mawr College and her juris doctorate from the University of Michigan Law School.
The North Texas Crime Commission (NTCC) recognized Eastern District of Texas federal prosecutor as the 2019 Prosecutor of the Year (Attorney in Charge of the Plano Office AUSA Jay Combs, AUSA Marisa Miller, First Assistant U.S. Attorney Heather Rattan)Also honored were Department of Homeland Security, Homeland Security Investigations, Special Agent Jason Mitchell as 2019 Federal Agency Officer of the Year and Plano Police Detective Jeffrey Rich as 2019 State/Local Prosecutor of the Year.
“Marisa Miller works very hard to fight child abuse,” said U.S. Attorney Joe Brown. “Whether it is rooting out child predators, bringing law enforcement agencies together, or educating parents on the online threats to their children, Ms. Miller has been a leader in the fight. We are very proud of her efforts.”
The North Texas Crime Commission (formerly the Greater Dallas Crime Commission) was established in 1950. Its belief is that proper enforcement and enlightened prevention can be achieved through a comprehensive and cooperative effort involving concerned citizens and law enforcement. In addition to monthly membership breakfasts, the NTCC travels to Austin monthly during the Legislative Session to meet with key lawmakers and annually to Washington, D.C., to meet with law enforcement officials and lawmakers.
Headshot AUSA Marisa MillerPawtucket Man Sentenced for Selling Firearm, Crack Cocaine to Undercover OfficerRead the Press Release
PROVIDENCE – A Pawtucket man who sold a firearm and crack cocaine to an undercover Massachusetts law enforcement officer was sentenced Thursday to one year and a day in federal prison, to be followed by three years supervised release, the first six months to be served in a Pawtucket residential reentry center.
Gary Pagnozzi, 60, of Pawtucket, admitted to selling a .44 caliber revolver and 3.5 grams of crack cocaine to the undercover law enforcement officer on April 5, 2018, the same day he retrieved the firearm from the residence of an inmate incarcerated at the Rhode Island Adult Correctional Institutions (ACI). The inmate, 24-year-old Ricardo Dominquez, called Pagnozzi from inside the ACI and asked him to retrieve and sell the firearm. That same day, Pagnozzi arranged to sell the firearm to a person he knew to be a Massachusetts resident. Pagnozzi arranged to meet the person, an undercover law enforcement officer, in Massachusetts where he sold him the firearm for $500 and 3.5 grams of crack cocaine for $200.
Pagnozzi, who pleaded guilty on June 25, 2019, to transferring a firearm to an out-of-state resident and to distribution of cocaine base, was sentenced Thursday by U.S. District Court Judge John J. McConnell, Jr., to one year and one day in federal prison, to be followed by three years supervised release, the first six months to be served at the Neil J. Houston Jr. House, announced United States Attorney Aaron L. Weisman and Special Agent in Charge of the Boston Field Division of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) Kelly D. Brady.
Dominquez, who was released from the ACI on April 11, 2018, contacted the out-of-state law enforcement officer and offered to sell him crack cocaine. Dominquez, arrested on May 22, 2019, for twice selling crack cocaine to the law enforcement officer, pleaded guilty in federal court on April 19, 2019, to two counts of distribution of cocaine base. He is scheduled to be sentenced by U.S. District Court Chief Judge William E. Smith on September 23, 2019.
The cases are being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Milind M. Shah. The matters were investigated by ATF and the Rhode Island ATF Task Force.
United States Attorney Aaron L, Weisman thanks the Department of Corrections for their assistance in the investigation of Gary Pagnozzi.
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Paradise Valley Man Sentenced to Prison for Tax EvasionRead the Press Release
PHOENIX – This week, U.S. District Judge Steven P. Logan sentenced John Chandler Propstra, 47, of Paradise Valley, Ariz., to 21 months in prison and three years of supervised release. The Court also ordered Propstra to pay more than $700,000 in restitution to the Internal Revenue Service. Propstra had previously pleaded guilty to tax evasion.
Propstra owned and operated several professional employment organizations, which contracted with small business owners to provide payroll services. Propstra, through his companies, collected federal employment taxes from his clients. However, instead of paying the taxes over to the IRS as he contracted to do, Propstra kept a significant portion of the taxes for his own personal use. To conceal his theft, Propstra filed false employment tax returns with the IRS, which overstated the tax payments he purportedly made. He eventually stopped filing employment tax returns altogether. Propstra also failed to file accurate wage reports with the Social Security Administration, which the IRS could have used to cross-check against Propstra’s IRS filings and tax payments. For tax years 2010 and 2011, Propstra failed to pay over to the IRS $710,819.05 in federal employment taxes due and owing by his companies Star Human Resources, Star H Resources, Star HR, and Prop HR. Propstra’s other companies included Guaranteed HR Consulting, HR Rock, Rock HR, Consulting Guaranteed, and Rock Solid Consulting.
The investigation in this case was conducted by Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigation. The prosecution was handled by Bridget Minder and Peter Sexton, Assistant United States Attorneys, District of Arizona, Phoenix.
Otsego Man Sentenced to 28 Years in Prison for Production of Child PornographyRead the Press Release
United States Attorney Erica H. MacDonald announced the sentencing of NICHOLAS SCOTT CAMPBELL, 37, to 28 years in prison for producing child pornography involving two minors. CAMPBELL, who pleaded guilty on April 8, 2019, to one count of production of child pornography, was sentenced today before Judge Susan Richard Nelson in U.S. District Court in St. Paul, Minnesota.
“The sexual exploitation of children is a despicable and vile crime. This defendant, who preyed on and exploited vulnerable children for years, will now be held accountable for his actions, locked away in prison for decades,” said U.S. Attorney Erica MacDonald.
"It is unthinkable, but every single year thousands of children become victims of crimes like this," said FBI Minneapolis Special Agent in Charge, Jill Sanborn. "The FBI's Violent Crimes Against Children program takes these crimes seriously and commits significant resources to provide rapid, proactive and comprehensive response to get defendants like this off the streets and into prison for a very long time."
According to the defendant’s guilty plea and documents filed in court, in February 2017, the FBI began investigating CAMPBELL because he was using a peer-to-peer file-sharing platform to distribute child pornography. Following the execution of a federal search warrant at CAMPBELL’s residence, agents seized a large volume of electronic evidence. Upon review of the evidence by the FBI and National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC), agents determined that CAMPBELL had produced sexually explicit images and videos of two minors. As part of his guilty plea, CAMPBELL admitted to creating the images and videos, and to engaging in a pattern of prohibited sexual conduct with the minors.
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 the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state and local resources to better locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the Internet, as well as to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.projectsafechildhood.gov.
This case was the result of an investigation conducted by the FBI.
Assistant United States Attorney Katharine T. Buzicky prosecuted the case.
Defendant Information:
NICHOLAS SCOTT CAMPBELL, 37
Otsego, Minn.
Convicted:
- Production of child pornography, 1 count
Sentenced:
- 336 months in prison
- 25 years of supervised release
###
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United States Attorney’s Office, District of Minnesota: (612) 664-5600
Operation High Tide Results in over a Dozen Defendants Indicted on Narcotics Trafficking and Firearms ChargesRead the Press Release
NORFOLK, Va. – Over 100 law enforcement agents, officers, and other personnel executed Operation High Tide this week, which resulted in a series of arrests of individuals allegedly involved in selling drugs and guns in Norfolk, Chesapeake, and Portsmouth.
Operation High Tide is a large-scale narcotics trafficking and firearms investigation that has resulted in the recovery of over 65 firearms, over 7 kilograms of cocaine, nearly a kilogram of crack cocaine, over 625 grams of heroin, over 100 grams of fentanyl, 75 grams of acetyl fentanyl, 12 pounds of marijuana, 621 grams of hash oil, 24 grams of MDMA (commonly known as ecstasy), 120 grams of methamphetamine, and over $560,000 in cash. The narcotics seized have a street value of nearly $1 million.
“Operation High Tide is the latest highly-coordinated effort from federal, state, and local law enforcement to tackle violent crime in Hampton Roads,” said G. Zachary Terwilliger, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia. “Through this operation, we are making our strong partnership known and felt in Hampton Roads, as we apprehend and remove from the streets those individuals who have allegedly committed serious offenses and put the safety of our communities in danger. Armed criminals are the principal players involved in the deadly cycles of turf battles and gang conflicts that deprive our neighborhoods and families of the peace and security they deserve. This coordinated operation reflects the skilled and brave work of our federal, state and local law enforcement partners, and is part of a law enforcement surge in this priority enforcement area for EDVA.”
The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) initiated Operation High Tide in collaboration with the Chesapeake, Norfolk, and Portsmouth Police Departments and the Virginia State Police. This Operation identified more than two dozen individuals throughout Hampton Roads who were illegally selling firearms, fentanyl, heroin, cocaine, and other narcotics.
“ATF’s priority is reducing violent crime,” said Ashan M. Benedict, Special Agent in Charge of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives’ (ATF) Washington Field Division. “Criminals often utilize firearms as tools of their trade causing harm to our communities. This case illustrates ATF’s commitment to effective law enforcement partnerships and dedication to keeping our cities safe.”
“The safety and well-being of Virginia residents and visitors was positively impacted as a result of this comprehensive investigation and joint operation with our law enforcement partners,” said Jesse R. Fong, Special Agent in Charge for the Drug Enforcement Administration’s (DEA) Washington Field Division. “The DEA is committed to working with our federal, state, and local partners on operations such as this one, to safely remove violent criminals, guns, and drugs from our neighborhoods.”
Below is a table which lists the name, age, hometown, and respective charge(s) each defendant faces or faced. Defendants in state custody awaiting transfer to federal custody are not listed.
Name, Age
Hometown
Charges
Brian D. Best, 34
Virginia Beach
1 Count of Conspiracy to Distribute and Possess Methamphetamine; 1 Count of Distribution of Methamphetamine
Antisha Carrington, 25
Virginia Beach
1 Count of Conspiracy to Distribute and Possess with Intent to Distribute Cocaine, Heroin, Fentanyl, and Marijuana; 1 Count of Distribution of Marijuana; 3 Counts of Distribution of Heroin
Kawanta D. Epps, 40
Norfolk
1 Count of Conspiracy to Distribute and Possess with Intent to Distribute Cocaine, Heroin, Fentanyl, and Marijuana; 9 Counts of Distribution of Heroin; 4 Counts of Distribution of Fentanyl
Anthony L. Green, 48
Chesapeake
1 Count of Conspiracy to Distribute and Possess with Intent to Distribute Cocaine, Heroin, Fentanyl, and Marijuana; 5 Counts of Distribution of Heroin; 1 Count of Distribution of Fentanyl
Corey L. Jones, 50
Portsmouth
1 Count of Conspiracy to Manufacture, Distribute, and Possess with Intent to Manufacture and Distribute Heroin; 11 Counts of Distribution of Heroin, Fentanyl, Acetyl Fentanyl, and Cocaine; 3 Counts of Distribution of 10 Grams or more of Acetyl Fentanyl
Dominic D. Jones, 26
Portsmouth
1 Count of Conspiracy to Manufacture, Distribute, and Possess with Intent to Manufacture and Distribute Heroin; 3 Counts of Distribution of Heroin, Fentanyl, Acetyl Fentanyl, and Cocaine; 1 Count of Possess, Use, and Carry Firearm in Furtherance and in Relation to Drug-Trafficking Crime; 1 Count of Felon in Possession of Firearm
Malcolm D. Jones, 45
Portsmouth
1 Count of Conspiracy to Manufacture, Distribute, and Possess with Intent to Manufacture and Distribute Heroin; 13 Counts of Distribution of Heroin, Fentanyl, Acetyl Fentanyl, and Cocaine; 3 Counts of Distribution of 10 Grams or More of Acetyl Fentanyl;
Shon E. Melton, 30
Portsmouth
3 Counts of Distribution of Heroin; 1 Count of Possession of Firearms During and In Relation to a Drug Trafficking Crime; 1 Count of Possession of an Unregistered National Firearms Act Firearm
Gary Norfleet, 52
Chesapeake
1 Count of Possession with Intent to Distribute Cocaine; 1 Count of Felon in Possession of a Firearm
Jermaine Parker, 35
Chesapeake
6 Counts of Distribution of Fentanyl; 2 Counts of Possession of a Firearm in Furtherance of a Drug-Trafficking Crime; 5 Counts of Felon in Possession of a Firearm; 1 Count of Maintaining a Drug-Involved Premises
Corey S. Reed, 38
Norfolk
3 Counts of Distribution of Controlled Substances; 2 Counts of Possession with Intent to Distribute Controlled Substances
Jameel M. Simmons, 37
Portsmouth
1 Count of Possession with Intent to Distribute Heroin; 1 Count of Possession of a Firearm in Furtherance of a Drug Trafficking Crime
Jelami M. Smith, 43
Portsmouth
1 Count of Distribution of Heroin; 1 Count of Distribution of Fentanyl
Robert Spruill, 39
Chesapeake
1 Count of Conspiracy to Distribute and Possess Methamphetamine; 1 Count of Distribution of Methamphetamine
G. Zachery Terwilliger, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia; Mark R. Herring, Attorney General of Virginia; Ashan M. Benedict, Special Agent in Charge of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives’ (ATF) Washington Field Division; Jesse R. Fong, Special Agent in Charge for the Drug Enforcement Administration’s (DEA) Washington Field Division; Colonel Gary T. Settle, Superintendent of Virginia State Police; Larry D. Boone, Chief of Norfolk Police, Col. K.L. Wright, Chief of Chesapeake Police, and Angela Greene, Chief of Portsmouth Police, made the announcement after the federal arrests were made and the indictments were unsealed.
This case was investigated by the ATF’s Norfolk Field Office, the Chesapeake, Norfolk, and Portsmouth Police Departments, and the Virginia State Police, with the assistance of the FBI, DEA, NCIS, and the U.S. Marshals. Attorneys from the Drug and Violent Crime Unit of the Norfolk Division of the U.S. Attorney’s Office, including Kristin G. Bird, Andrew C. Bosse, John F. Butler, Megan M. Cowles, Sherrie Capotosto, Kevin M. Comstock, Joseph E. DePadilla, William B. Jackson, Darryl Mitchell, and William D. Muhr are prosecuting the cases.
A copy of this press release may be found on the website of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Virginia. Related court documents and information may be found on the website of the District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia or on PACER by searching for Case Nos. 2:19-CR-80, 141, 145, 147, 149, 150, 154; and 2:18-CR-138.
An indictment contains allegations that a defendant has committed a crime. Every defendant is presumed to be innocent until and unless proven guilty in court.
Omaha Woman Sentenced for Distributing MethamphetamineRead the Press Release
United States Attorney Joe Kelly announced that Carrie Yelton, 35, of Omaha, Nebraska, was sentenced on September 12, 2019, to 24 months in prison by United States District Judge Robert F. Rossiter, Jr. for distributing five grams or more of actual methamphetamine. In addition to her prison term, Yelton will serve 3 years of supervised release following her release from prison.
On March 7, 2018, law enforcement officers utilized a confidential informant to buy methamphetamine from Yelton. The confidential informant purchased 21 grams of actual methamphetamine from Yelton for $550.
This case was investigated by the Sarpy County Sheriff’s Office.
Omaha Man Sentenced to 87 Months for Child PornographyRead the Press Release
United States Attorney Joe Kelly announced that Chad M. Pedersen, 36, was sentenced today in federal court in Omaha for receiving child pornography. The Honorable Robert F. Rossiter, Jr. sentenced Pedersen to 87 months’ imprisonment. There is no parole in the federal prison system. After his release from prison, Pedersen will serve a five-year term of supervised release and will be required to register as a sex offender. Pedersen was ordered to pay $2,000 in restitution to each of two minor victims whose images were among the more than 14,000 images of child pornography on his computer and storage devices.
In October 2016 Pedersen accessed an undercover website offering free child pornography. He obtained a password to the VIP section. There was no child pornography available on the undercover website. His IP address was noted by investigators.
In 2017 investigators with the FBI Omaha Child Exploitation Task Force served a search warrant on Pedersen’s Yahoo! accounts recovering 156 videos and more than 1,400 images of child pornography. A federal search warrant was executed on Pedersen’s Omaha residence in November, 2017. Two computers seized from his residence revealed 114 videos and more than 6,000 images of child pornography. The child pornography included numerous images involving infants and bondage.
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 United States Attorney’s Offices and the Criminal Division's Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS), Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state and local resources to better locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the Internet, as well as to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.projectsafechildhood.gov.
This case was investigated by the Omaha FBI's Child Exploitation and Human Trafficking Task Force
Omaha Man Sentenced to 78 Months for Receiving Child PornographyRead the Press Release
United States Attorney Joe Kelly announced that Thomas I. Mawhiney, 31, was sentenced today in federal court in Omaha for receiving child pornography. The Honorable Robert F. Rossiter, Jr. sentenced Mawhiney to 78 months’ imprisonment. There is no parole in the federal prison system. After his release from prison, Mawhiney will serve a 10-year term of supervised release and will be required to register as a sex offender. His sentence will run consecutive to an undischarged state sentence in Oregon for armed robbery.
In June 2016 investigators with the FBI Child Exploitation Task Force identified a North Omaha residence offering to share child pornography by computer. A search warrant was executed on the residence on July 29, 2016. Mawhiney was identified as the individual downloading and sharing child pornography. His electronic devices held 50 videos and 4,000 images of child pornography. Many of the images depicted infants and toddlers engaged in various forms of sexual acts.
Mawhiney left Omaha shortly after the search. He was convicted of armed robbery in Oregon. His federal sentence will run consecutive to his state robbery conviction.
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 United States Attorney’s Offices and the Criminal Division's Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS), Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state and local resources to better locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the Internet, as well as to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.projectsafechildhood.gov.
This case was investigated by the Omaha FBI's Child Exploitation and Human Trafficking Task Force
Ohio Gamer Sentenced in Deadly Swatting CaseRead the Press Release
WICHITA, KAN. – WICHITA, KAN. – An Ohio gamer involved in a swatting incident that led to a death was sentenced today to 15 months in prison, U.S. Attorney Stephen McAllister said. In addition, the defendant was ordered to pay $2,500 in restitution. After the prison term, he will serve two years on supervised release.
Casey S. Viner, 19, North College Hill, Ohio, pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy and one count of obstructing justice.
“Swatting, and soliciting others to swat someone, are more than foolish,” McAllister said. “Such actions are reckless, dangerous and, as this case proves, potentially tragic. Swatting is not a prank, and it is no way to resolve disputes among gamers. Once again, I call upon gamers to self-police their community to ensure that the practice of swatting is ended once and for all.”
In his plea, Viner admitted he argued with co-defendant Shane Gaskill while playing Call of Duty World War II online. Viner contacted co-defendant Tyler Barriss and asked him to swat Gaskill, Viner thought Gaskill lived at 1033 W. McCormick in Wichita.
In fact, Gaskill gave Viner and Barriss a false address. Barriss called Wichita police and reported a hostage situation at 1033 W. McCormick. Police responded, believing they were dealing with a man who had shot his own father and was holding family members hostage. Andrew Finch, who lived at the address, did not know why police were at his home when he stepped onto the porch. When Finch made a move that startled officers, he was shot and killed.
Barriss was sentenced to 20 years in federal prison. Barriss pleaded guilty to more than 50 felonies nationwide, including federal charges in Kansas of making an interstate hoax that resulted in a death and cyberstalking. Gaskill was placed on deferred prosecution.
In his plea, Viner admitted trying to erase any record on his phone of his communications with Barriss and Gaskill.
McAllister commended the FBI, the Wichita Police Department and his co-counsel Assistant U.S. Attorney Debra Barnett for their work on the case.
North Hollywood Man to Plead Guilty to Charges that He Smuggled Greased-Up Kilograms of Cocaine to Australia in Household ProductsRead the Press Release
LOS ANGELES – A San Fernando Valley man has agreed to plead guilty to federal criminal charges that he conspired to smuggle approximately 40 kilograms of cocaine – concealed and suspended in grease – in household products and mailed it to Australia, then laundered up to $3.5 million of the illicit drug proceeds.
Vardges Markosyan, 47, of North Hollywood, whose aliases include “David Petrosov,” “Giani Oncho,” and “Laram Narman,” agreed to plead guilty to a two-count criminal information charging him with conspiracy to distribute cocaine and conspiracy to engage in money laundering.
Markosyan admitted in his plea agreement that, from December 2014 until October 2016, he was involved in a drug conspiracy that procured approximately 40 kilograms (88.2 pounds) of cocaine and shipped it to Australia. The cocaine would be suspended in grease and placed in empty household products such as log splitters, air compressors, tankless water heaters, lampstands, and air conditioners, according to the plea agreement.
The shipped packages were sent via commercial carrier to Australia, where they were distributed, court documents state. Markosyan admitted to conducting “test runs” of drug shipment methods by sending packages of household products by commercial carrier to Australia to evaluate whether the drugs could be shipped without detection inside similar packages.
For example, Markosyan admitted that in March 2015, a co-conspirator sent 9.87 kilograms (21.76 pounds) of cocaine hidden in a log splitter to Australia, sent by FedEx. In advance of this package, Markosyan sent a “test run” for a similar log splitter that was sent to Australia, according to court documents.
Markosyan also admitted in his plea agreement that he conspired with his sister, Iren Markosyan, to launder the proceeds of drug trafficking, between May 2014 and January 2019. Markosyan admitted that he used his sister’s name – with her knowledge – to purchase properties in North Hollywood and Studio City. Markosyan and his sister obtained hard-money loans secured against these properties, and enjoyed and spent the net proceeds of these loans after transferring them to various accounts, according to court papers. In December 2018, Markosyan received $234,442 from the sale of the North Hollywood property.
Markosyan has agreed to forfeit to the U.S. government his interest in the Studio City property, held in his sister’s name, as well as a 1996 Carver 38 boat and a 2005 Caribe boat also held in her name.
The charges to which Markosyan has agreed to plead guilty carry a statutory maximum sentence of life in federal prison. The charge of conspiracy to distribute cocaine carries a mandatory minimum sentence of 10 years in federal prison.
For her role in the scheme, Iren Markosyan pleaded guilty on May 13 to one felony count of conspiracy to launder monetary instruments. She has agreed to forfeit the Studio City property, to a judgment in the amount of $234,442, and her interest in the 1996 Carver 38 boat and a 2005 Caribe boat. She will face a statutory maximum sentence of 20 years in federal prison at her sentencing hearing.
This matter was investigated by the FBI, IRS-Criminal Investigations, the Glendale Police Department, and State of California Department of Health Care Services Investigations Branch, and is being conducted with the support of the Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF). The United States wishes to thank its foreign partners, the New South Wales Police Force, the New South Wales Crime Commission, and the Australian Federal Police, for their assistance in the investigation.
This case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Puneet V. Kakkar of the International Narcotics, Money Laundering, and Racketeering Section, and Assistant United States Attorney Katharine Schonbachler of the Asset Forfeiture Section.
Mountain Top Woman Sentenced to 24 Months of Imprisonment for Failing to Remit Federal Payroll TaxesRead the Press Release
SCRANTON – The United States Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Pennsylvania announced today that on September 11, 2019, Judith Cefaly, age 54, of Mountain Top, Pennsylvania, was sentenced to 24 months of imprisonment and two years of supervised release, by United States District Judge James Munley, for failing to remit to the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) federal payroll taxes.
According to United States Attorney David J. Freed, Cefaly was the former general manager and part owner of Shakti, Inc., a beauty salon and spa in Kingston, Pennsylvania, from 1997 through 2017. Cefaly previously pleaded guilty to an information alleging that she withheld federal payroll taxes from employees’ paychecks, but failed to then remit those taxes to the IRS. Over the course of tax years 2011 through 2016, Cefaly failed to remit over $646,000 of those federal taxes to the IRS, instead using the funds for her personal benefit.
In addition to the terms of imprisonment and supervised release, Judge Munley also ordered Cefaly to pay $646,620.26 in restitution.
The investigation was conducted by the IRS Criminal Investigations Division. The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Phillip J. Caraballo.
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Maryland Man Sentenced to 46 Months in Prison for Subway RobberiesRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON – Scotlund Haisley, 51, of Montgomery County Maryland, was sentenced today to 46 months in prison for his role in an attempted robbery and robbery of a Subway sandwich shop, on two separate instances in January 2019, in Northwest Washington, announced U.S. Attorney Jessie K. Liu.
Haisley pled guilty on February 21, 2019, in the Superior Court of the District of Columbia, to one charge of attempted robbery on January 20, 2019, and one charge of robbery on January 24, 2019. He was sentenced by the Honorable Craig Iscoe.
According to the government’s evidence, on January 20, 2019, at approximately 6:34 p.m., Haisley entered a Subway sandwich shop on 4401 Connecticut Avenue, N.W., with a cap rolled down over his face. He walked behind the counter, placed an object to the back of a Subway employee’s head, and demanded the money in the register. The employee opened the register, withdrew about $300, and gave it to Haisley.
On January 24, 2019, at approximately 8:55 p.m., Haisley entered the same Subway shop on Connecticut Avenue wearing a full face mask. With his hand in his pocket, Haisley confronted the same Subway employee, told that employee that he had a gun, and demanded money. The employee opened the register and handed Haisley money who then fled from the Subway.
A review of security camera footage from the Subway revealed that the robber wore the same clothing, except for his face mask, during both robberies. A review of security footage from the nearby Van Ness Metro station showed that the robber was present in the Van Ness station on January 20 and 24, around the times of each robbery. On January 20, Haisley’s face was concealed by his mask, but on January 24, the mask was removed during at least part of his time in the Metro station, and he used stolen money to reload a SmartTrip card.
On January 26, Metro Transit Police (MTP) stopped Haisley at the Tacoma Metro Station. He was wearing the same clothing depicted in all of the Subway and Metro videos, and had two SmartTrip cards in his possession. One of those cards was the card that Haisley reloaded on January 24, 2019, after robbing the Subway. The other card was used to exit Metro at the Van Ness Station about 10 minutes before the January 20, 2019 robbery.
After he was stopped on January 26, 2019, two people who knew the defendant, called MPD to identify him as the person depicted in the video that MPD released.
In announcing the sentence, U.S. Attorney Liu commended the work of those who investigated the case from the Metropolitan Police Department. She also acknowledged the efforts of Assistant U.S. Attorney Michael Romano, who investigated and prosecuted the case.
Manhattan U.S. Attorney Settles Civil Fraud Claims Against Medical Device Manufacturer for Selling Products Not Cleared by the FDARead the Press Release
Geoffrey S. Berman, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, and Mark S. McCormack, Special Agent in Charge of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s Office of Criminal Investigations Metro Washington Field Office (“FDA”), announced today that the United States has simultaneously filed and settled a civil fraud lawsuit under the False Claims Act against AVALIGN TECHNOLOGIES, INC. (“Avalign”), and its subsidiary INSTRUMED INTERNATIONAL, INC. (“Instrumed,” and together with Avalign, “Defendants”), for manufacturing and selling medical devices that were not cleared by the FDA. These uncleared devices were used by medical providers in spinal surgeries, circumcisions, and other medical procedures. The providers submitted claims for reimbursement to Medicare and Medicaid for those procedures. As part of the settlement, approved in Manhattan federal court by U.S. District Judge Edgardo Ramos, Defendants agreed to pay the Government $9,500,000 and admitted to conduct alleged in the United States’ complaint.
Manhattan U.S. Attorney Geoffrey S. Berman said: “It is critical that the devices used in some of the most consequential medical procedures have the required FDA approval or clearance. Unapproved or uncleared devices used in medical procedures present a significant public health and safety risk, and this Office will continue to hold manufacturers of medical devices accountable for profiting from sales of uncleared devices.”
Special Agent in Charge Mark S. McCormack said: “U.S. patients rely on FDA oversight to ensure that medical devices are safe and effective. When companies fail to follow FDA rules, they put patients’ health at risk. We will continue to investigate and bring to justice companies that attempt to evade FDA requirements and jeopardize the public health.”
As alleged in the complaint filed with the settlement agreement, since 1976, many different kinds of medical devices must, depending on the degree of patient risk, be approved or cleared by the FDA before they can be marketed for use on patients. There is a grandfather exception for medical devices that were legally in commerce prior to 1976, which are known as “pre-amendment” devices. To qualify for pre-amendment status, the device’s owner (typically the manufacturer) must, among other things, have marketed the device prior to May 28, 1976. From 2007 through 2014, Instrumed sold medical devices for which Instrumed had not obtained the required clearances from the FDA and for which Instrumed could not demonstrate that the pre-amendment exception applied.
As part of the settlement, Defendants admitted, among other things, that:
-
- In February 2009, Instrumed’s then-head f Quality and Regulatory Affairs acknowledged in an email in response to an inquiry about an Instrumed device, that “we cannot claim pre-amendment because Instrumed was not selling/marketing this device before May 28, 1976.”
- By n later than April 2009, representatives of Instrumed and CareFusion Corporation (“CareFusion”), a customer of Instrumed pre-amendment devices and distributor of those devices, began exchanging correspondence regarding whether Instrumed and CareFusion could legitimately rely on Instrumed’s invocation of the pre-amendment status exemption to market its devices.
- CareFusion repeatedly informed Instrumed that the evidence Instrumed was relying on to justify its claim that certain devices qualified for the pre-amendment status exemption – evidence consisting of excerpts from a catalogue issued by the devices’ original manufacturer, not Instrumed, and an affidavit from an Instrumed employee – was insufficient. Instrumed never provided CareFusion a satisfactory affidavit to justify its claim that the devices qualified for the pre-amendment status exemption.
- In March 2014, the FDA issued a warning letter indicating that it had determined that Instrumed’s devices “are nt pre-amendment devices that were legally on the market in the United States prior to May 28, 1976.”
- Instrumed ultimately decided t discontinue sale of these products and conducted a recall of these products. Thrughout the period 2007 to 2014, however, Instrumed continued to sell the devices listed in the settlement agreement. Sme of the devices were then sold by Instrumed’s customers to hospitals and other medical providers, and used in procedures for which providers submitted claims for reimbursement to federal health care programs.
Of the $9.5 million that Defendants agreed to pay under the settlement, $8,128,440.60 will go to the United States and $1,371,559.40 will go to states impacted by Defendants’ conduct through separate settlements with those states.
In connection with this settlement, the United States joined a private whistleblower lawsuit that had previously been filed under seal pursuant to the False Claims Act. The United States had previously reached a settlement with CareFusion, which was entered by the Court on May 7, 2019. As part of that settlement, CareFusion agreed to pay a total of $3.3 million to the United States and certain states, and admitted to selling devices that Instrumed wrongly claimed qualified for the pre-amendment exception.
Mr. Berman thanked the FDA, the Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General, and the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services for their invaluable assistance in this matter.
The case is being handled by the Office’s Civil Frauds Unit. Assistant United States Attorneys Sharanya Mohan and Mónica P. Folch are in charge of the case.
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Managing partner of Chicago travel agency indicted for carrying out $1.75m fraud on Delta's Skybonus programRead the Press Release
ATLANTA - Gennady Podolsky, a dual Ukrainian and American citizen, and managing partner of Vega International Travel Services, Inc., has been arraigned for wire fraud.
“Podolsky used his knowledge of the travel industry to take advantage of his travel agency clients,” said U.S. Attorney Byung J. “BJay” Pak. “Through his access, he allegedly took advantage of Delta Airlines corporate frequent flyer program, illegally reaping millions of SkyBonus points worth more than $1.75 million dollars.”
“The fraudulent accumulation of frequent flyer miles in the travel industry may seem like a victimless crime, however, large corporations stand to lose significant profits”, said Chris Hacker, Special Agent in Charge of FBI Atlanta. “The FBI will do everything in its power to protect companies and to stop anyone who participates in this corrupt behavior.”
According to U.S. Attorney Pak, the charges, and other information presented in court: Vega International Travel Services, Inc. (“Vega Travel”) was a small, full-service travel agency located in Chicago, Illinois, that catered to clients of Russian and Eastern European descent who were living abroad.
Podolsky was Vega Travel’s managing partner and lead travel agent. Delta Air Lines, based in Atlanta, Georgia, operates a frequent-flyer program for individuals called SkyMiles, and a similar program for businesses called SkyBonus, that allows individuals and businesses to earn points for free travel and other valuable perks. Enrolled businesses can earn points under the SkyBonus program at the same time the traveling passengers earned points under the SkyMiles program.
A business enrolled in the SkyBonus program accrues points whenever its employees travel on Delta and a SkyBonus account identification number is entered electronically at the time of booking. For an enrolled business to accrue SkyBonus points under the terms of the program, the traveling passenger must have been an actual employee of that business. Enrolled businesses could redeem accrued SkyBonus points for flight reward certificates, ticket upgrades, and other valuable benefits.
According to the indictment, beginning in March 2014 until April 2015, Podolsky allegedly devised and executed a scheme to defraud Delta through the fraudulent accrual and redemption of over 42 million SkyBonus points, causing a loss to Delta of over $1.75 million dollars. As part of the scheme, Podolsky caused a SkyBonus account to be registered in the name of a fertility center owned and operated by a family member of the president of Vega Travel.
When Vega Travel booked its customers for air travel on Delta, Podolsky caused the SkyBonus account number for the fertility center to be associated with those customers’ tickets, even though those customers were not employees of that company or any similar entity. By doing so, Podolsky caused SkyBonus points to accrue fraudulently in the fertility center’s account for passengers who were not employees of that company. Podolsky then caused the SkyBonus points that had fraudulently accrued to be redeemed by requesting, receiving, and utilizing reward certificates for free air travel and other valuable benefits.
Gennady Podolsky, 43, of Kiev, Ukraine, was arraigned before U.S. Magistrate Judge Russell G. Vineyard on twelve counts of wire fraud. Podolsky was indicted by a federal grand jury on September 11, 2019.
Members of the public are reminded that the indictment only contains charges. The defendant is presumed innocent of the charges and it will be the government’s burden to prove the defendant’s guilt beyond a reasonable doubt at trial.
This case is being investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorneys John S. Ghose and Bernita Malloy are prosecuting 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.
Man Sentenced for Role in Armed Gas Station RobberiesRead the Press Release
ALEXANDRIA, Va. – A Washington, D.C. man was sentenced today to 23 years in prison for his participation in a string of armed robberies.
“Williams is a violent criminal whose callousness was on full display during the series of armed robberies,” said G. Zachary Terwilliger, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia. “Our commitment to getting such violent criminals off of our streets is unwavering. I am grateful to our local and federal law enforcement partners who assisted in this investigation and whose diligence allowed us to prosecute the case successfully.”
According to court documents and evidence presented at trial, Kenya Preston Williams, 37, used a loaded semi-automatic handgun to commit eight robberies in the Washington, D.C. metropolitan area, including the robbery of an Exxon gas station in Alexandria and two different robberies of the same Shell gas station in Falls Church. Williams’ co-conspirator, Steven Oneil Houston, 26, of Oxon Hill, Maryland, previously pleaded guilty to charges of brandishing a firearm during and in relation to a crime of violence.
“Today’s sentencing sends a clear message that violent criminals in our community cannot evade the law,” said Timothy M. Dunham, Special Agent in Charge, Criminal Division, FBI Washington Field Office. “The FBI Washington Field Office will work closely with our federal, state, and local law enforcement partners through our Safe Streets Violent Crime Task Force to continue to aggressively investigate violent crime in our area.”
This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), which is the centerpiece of the Department of Justice’s violent crime reduction efforts. PSN is an evidence-based program proven to be effective at reducing violent crime. Through PSN, a broad spectrum of stakeholders work together to identify the most pressing violent crime problems in the community and develop comprehensive solutions to address them. As part of this strategy, PSN focuses enforcement efforts on the most violent offenders and partners with locally based prevention and reentry programs for lasting reductions in crime.
G. Zachary Terwilliger, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia, Timothy M. Dunham, Special Agent in Charge, Criminal Division, FBI Washington Field Office, and Colonel Edwin C. Roessler Jr., Fairfax County Chief of Police, made the announcement after sentencing by U.S. District Judge Anthony J. Trenga. Assistant U.S. Attorney Alexander E. Blanchard prosecuted the case.
The Alexandria City Police Department, Prince George’s County Police Department, and Metropolitan Police Department all provided significant assistance with this investigation.
This case was investigated by the FBI’s Washington Field Office Safe Streets Violent Crime Task Force, which is composed of FBI agents and law enforcement partners within the National Capital Region.
A copy of this press release is located on the website of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Virginia. Related court documents and information are located on the website of the District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia or on PACER by searching for Case No. 1:19-cr-29.
Madison Man Sentenced to over 11 Years for Bringing Minor Across State Lines for SexRead the Press Release
MADISON, WIS. – Scott C. Blader, United States Attorney for the Western District of Wisconsin, announced that today Bryan Rogers, 32, Madison, Wisconsin, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge William M. Conley to 135 months in federal prison for transporting a minor from Tennessee to Wisconsin for an illegal sexual purpose. This prison term will be followed by 15 years of supervised release. Rogers pleaded guilty to this offense on June 19, 2019.
Rogers came into contact with the minor in Tennessee through an online game. She told him that she was being sexually assaulted by an adult on a daily basis. Rogers persuaded the minor to make a video recording of an assault and send it to him, allegedly so he could provide evidence to law enforcement of the sexual assaults. The minor did not want to produce the video, but eventually acquiesced after Rogers said he would come rescue her after she made the video.
After the minor sent the video of her abuse to Rogers, he then traveled to Tennessee and returned to Wisconsin with the minor. The minor was reported missing on January 14, 2019. Subsequent investigation led to Rogers, and he was questioned on January 31, 2019. When questioned by law enforcement, he admitted he had been in contact with the victim online and that she had disclosed her sexual assault, but claimed he never met her in person, he did not go to Tennessee to get her, and he did not know her whereabouts. During a search of his home, officers found the victim in a closet. The victim told investigators Rogers had picked her up in Tennessee and brought her to Wisconsin, where he engaged in sexual intercourse with her. The victim stated that during her two weeks in Wisconsin, she hid in Rogers’ closet or in the trunk of his car while he was at work.
“The actions of this defendant are abhorrent. Instead of immediately contacting law enforcement, Rogers encouraged the child victim to produce a video of the sexual abuse, and after claiming to rescue her, he himself sexually assaulted her,” said U.S. Attorney Blader. “My office is committed to working with our federal, state, and local law enforcement partners to bring interstate child predators to justice.”
Judge Conley noted that Rogers targeted an extremely vulnerable victim and could have been a hero in this case by reporting the victim’s abuse to authorities; instead Rogers did not help her and further victimized her.
The charge against Rogers is the result of an investigation by the Wisconsin Department of Justice Division of Criminal Investigation, Federal Bureau of Investigation, Madison Police Department, Dane County Sheriff’s Office, and Monroe County (Tennessee) Sheriff’s Office. The prosecution of this case is being handled by Assistant U.S. Attorney Julie Pfluger.
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. Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state and local resources to better locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the Internet, as well as to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.justice.gov/psc.
Luidji Benjamin, a/k/a “Zoe,” Sentenced in Manhattan Federal Court to 17 Years for Sex Trafficking of MinorsRead the Press Release
Geoffrey S. Berman, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, announced that LUIDJI BENJAMIN was sentenced today to 17 years in prison for sex trafficking of minor females. BENJAMIN was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Jed S. Rakoff, before whom BENJAMIN previously was convicted by a federal jury of one count of sex trafficking of a minor and one count of conspiracy to commit sex trafficking, following a five-day jury trial.
Manhattan U.S. Attorney Geoffrey S. Berman said: “Luidji Benjamin sexually exploited vulnerable girls for his own financial gain. This sexual predator damaged the lives of at least two young women, advertising their bodies for commercial sex. Today Benjamin was justly sentenced to 17 years in prison for his callous and depraved exploitation.”
According to the allegations contained in the Indictment and evidence presented during the trial in Manhattan federal court:
From at least in or about Fall 2015 to in or about December 2015, LUIDJI BENJAMIN, a/k/a “Zoe,” the defendant, engaged in sex trafficking and commercial sexual exploitation of two minor victims. The defendant recruited, enticed, harbored, transported, provided, obtained, and maintained women for the purpose of commercial sex, including one minor victim (“Victim-1”) who resided at a residential treatment facility located in Westchester County, which provided housing for at-risk troubled children and adolescents on behalf of departments of social services for certain counties in New York State.
The defendant recruited Victim-1 to engage in commercial sex through a social media website, and he used Backpage.com and Craiglist.com, online classifieds websites, to post advertisements for commercial sex. Certain of these advertisements included graphic images, including of Victim-1 performing oral sex on the defendant. BENJAMIN directed Victim-1 to engage in commercial sex acts in cars and residences throughout Queens, New York.
The defendant and a co-conspirator also recruited a second minor victim (“Victim-2”) to engage in commercial sex acts. The defendant and his co-conspirator spent the proceeds of this scheme on marijuana, liquor, and other goods for themselves.
This prosecution is part of an ongoing investigation that, including LUIDJ BENJAMIN, has charged 19 defendants, set forth in eight indictments, for the sex trafficking of at least 13 minor girls and young adults in New York State’s social services system.
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In addition to his prison sentence, BENJAMIN, 23, of Queens, New York, was sentenced to five years of supervised release.
Any individuals who believe that they have information that may be relevant to this investigation should contact the FBI at 1-212-384-1000 or https://tips.fbi.gov.
Mr. Berman thanked the FBI and the NYPD for their outstanding work in this matter and, in particular, the New York Child Exploitation and Human Trafficking Task Force.
This case is being handled by the Office’s General Crimes Unit. Assistant United States Attorneys Mollie Bracewell, Jacob Gutwillig, and Richard Cooper are in charge of the prosecution.
Judge imposes 10-year sentence on Bastrop felon for illegal possession of firearmRead the Press Release
MONROE, La. – United States Attorney David C. Joseph announced that U.S. District Judge Terry A. Doughty sentenced Bastrop resident, Troydarius Jamal Jackson, 29, on September 4, 2019, to 10 years in federal prison for possession of a firearm by a convicted felon. Jackson admitted during his guilty plea hearing on April 5, 2019, to possessing a rifle, despite having previous convictions in 2012, 2013 and 2015.
A Louisiana State Police trooper encountered Jackson and co-defendant Cortez Demoria McWilson, 29, also of Bastrop, in a vehicle on September 11, 2017, in Bastrop. As the trooper approached the vehicle, in an attempt to speak to the defendants, McWilson started the vehicle and drove off, prompting a pursuit of the vehicle by the LSP trooper and other law enforcement officers. Eventually, the vehicle stopped and McWilson and Jackson fled the area but were later apprehended. A law enforcement officer searched the vehicle and found a GSG, Model 522, .22LR-caliber rifle and ammunition on the front passenger seat. Also on the front passenger seat was a grocery bag containing methamphetamine, Xanax, marijuana, clear plastic baggies and a digital scale with marijuana residue on it.
Jackson was previously convicted for distribution of a controlled dangerous substance in 2013, for perjury in 2012, and for possession with intent to distribute a controlled dangerous substance in 2015. Under federal law, it is illegal for anyone who has been convicted of a felony to be in possession of a firearm or ammunition.
McWilson previously pleaded guilty on April 5, 2019, to conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute Methamphetamine, Xanax, and marijuana, and was sentenced on August 22, 2019, by U.S. District Judge Terry A. Doughty, to serve two years in federal prison.
The ATF, Louisiana State Police and Morehouse Parish Sheriff’s Office conducted the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney Brian C. Flanagan prosecuted the case.
Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN) is the centerpiece of the Department of Justice’s violent crime reduction efforts. Project Safe Neighborhoods is an evidence-based program proven to be effective at reducing violent crime. Through PSN, a broad spectrum of stakeholders work together to identify the most pressing violent crime problems in the community and develop comprehensive solutions to address them. As part of this strategy, Project Safe Neighborhoods focuses enforcement efforts on the most violent offenders and partners with locally based prevention and reentry programs for lasting reductions in crime.
Jackson Man Sentenced under Project EJECT to over Two Years in Federal Prison for Illegally Possessing a FirearmRead the Press Release
Jackson, Miss. – Mark Cassity, 22, of Jackson, was sentenced today by Chief U.S. District Judge Daniel P. Jordan III to 30 months in federal prison, followed by 3 years of supervised release, for possessing a firearm as a convicted felon, announced U.S. Attorney Mike Hurst and Kurt Thielhorn, Special Agent in Charge of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF).
On June 8, 2018, Cassity was arrested by an officer of the Jackson Police Department during a traffic stop for providing false information. During the arrest, a brief struggle ensued between the officer and Cassity. Once the officer gained control, the officer discovered a handgun in Cassity’s front pocket. During booking, the officer learned Cassity had been previously convicted of auto burglary.
The case was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Bert Carraway.
This case is part of Project EJECT, an initiative by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Mississippi under the U.S. Department of Justice’s Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN). EJECT is a holistic, multi-disciplinary approach to fighting and reducing violent crime through prosecution, prevention, re-entry and awareness. EJECT stands for "Empower Justice Expel Crime Together." PSN is bringing together all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve to reduce violent crime and make our neighborhoods safer for everyone. Former Attorney General Jeff Sessions reinvigorated PSN in 2017 as part of the Department’s renewed focus on targeting violent criminals, directing all U.S. Attorney’s Offices to work in partnership with federal, state, local, and tribal law enforcement and the local community to develop effective, locally-based strategies to reduce violent crime.
Jackson Man Pleads Guilty under Project EJECT to Possessing a Firearm as a Convicted FelonRead the Press Release
Jackson, Miss – Braxton Dontrel Burns, 33, of Jackson, pled guilty Friday before Chief U.S. District Court Judge Daniel P. Jordan III to possessing a firearm as a convicted felon, announced U.S. Attorney Mike Hurst and Kurt Thielhorn, Special Agent in Charge of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives.
On May 5, 2018, a Jackson Police officer conducted a traffic stop on a vehicle for speeding. Before the vehicle stopped, the driver tossed a handgun from the vehicle. The driver was identified as Braxton Burns. The officer determined that Burns had a prior conviction for auto burglary in Madison County, Mississippi. On February 20, 2019, Burns was charged in a federal indictment with being a convicted felon in possession of a firearm.
Burns will be sentenced on December 12, 2019, by Judge Jordan, and faces a maximum penalty of ten years in prison and a $250,000 fine.
The case was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Bert Carraway.
This case is part of Project EJECT, an initiative by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Mississippi under the U.S. Department of Justice’s Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN). EJECT is a holistic, multi-disciplinary approach to fighting and reducing violent crime through prosecution, prevention, re-entry and awareness. EJECT stands for "Empower Justice Expel Crime Together." PSN is bringing together all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve to reduce violent crime and make our neighborhoods safer for everyone. Former Attorney General Jeff Sessions reinvigorated PSN in 2017 as part of the Department’s renewed focus on targeting violent criminals, directing all U.S. Attorney’s Offices to work in partnership with federal, state, local, and tribal law enforcement and the local community to develop effective, locally-based strategies to reduce violent crime.
Informational: Federal Court arraignmentsRead the Press Release
The U.S. Attorney’s Office announced that the following persons were arraigned or appeared this week before U.S. Magistrate judges on indictments handed down by the Grand Jury or on criminal complaints. The charging documents are merely accusations and defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty:
Appearing in Missoula on Sept. 13 before U.S. Magistrate Judge Kathleen L. DeSoto on a criminal complaint was:
Allan Roy Goodman, 42, of Missoula, on charges of possession of a firearm by a prohibited person, possession of a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime, conspiracy to distribute meth and distribution of meth. If convicted of the most serious crime, Goodman faces minimum mandatory 10 years to life in prison and five years of supervised release. Goodman was detained pending further proceedings. The case was investigated by the FBI and the Montana Regional Violent Crime Task Force. Pacer case reference. 19-59.
Appearing in Great Falls before U.S. District Judge Brian M. Morris on Sept. 11 and pleading not guilty was:
Sean Henry White Bremner, 24, of Browning, on charges of sexual abuse of a minor, sexual exploitation of a child, receipt of child pornography and transfer of obscene material to a minor. If convicted of the most serious crime, Bremner faces a maximum 15 years in prison, a $250,000 fine and five years to life of supervised release. Bremner was release pending further proceedings. The case was investigated by the FBI. Pacer case reference. 19-65.
Appearing in Great Falls before U.S. Magistrate Judge John T. Johnston on Sept. 11 and pleading not guilty was:
Logan Michael Burke, also known as Logan Old Chief, on charges of assault of dating partner by suffocation and assault of dating partner by strangulation. If convicted of the most serious crime, Burke faces a maximum 10 years in prison, a $250,000 fine and three years of supervised release. Burke was detained pending further proceedings. The case was investigated by the Bureau of Indian Affairs and Blackfeet Law Enforcement Services. Pacer case reference. 19-66.
Appearing in Billings before U.S. Magistrate Judge Timothy J. Cavan on Sept. 13 and pleading not guilty was:
Chase Woodenlegs, 29, of Busby, on charges of assault resulting in serious bodily injury, assault with a weapon and strangulation. If convicted of the most serious crime, Woodenlegs faces a maximum 10 years in prison, a $250,000 fine and three years of supervised release. Woodenlegs was detained pending further proceedings. The case was investigated by the FBI. Pacer case reference. 19-114.
Gregg Allen Johnson, 41, of Billings, on charges of conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute meth and two counts of possession of a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime. If convicted of the most crimes, Johnson faces a minimum mandatory five years to 40 years in prison, a $5 million fine and at least four years of supervised release on the drug count and a minimum mandatory 10 years to life, consecutive to any other sentence, on one of the firearms counts. Johnson was detain3ed pending further proceedings. The case was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. Pacer case reference. 19-108.
Rane Sawyer Black, 21, of Billings, on charges of prohibited person in possession of a firearm. If convicted of the most serious crime, Black faces a maximum 10 years in prison, a $250,000 fine and three years of supervised release. Black was released pending further proceedings. The case was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. Pacer case reference. 19-96.
Appearing on Sept. 10 and pleading not guilty was:
Eric Shane Ennis, 40, of Shepherd, on charges of prohibited person in possession of a firearm and ammunition. If convicted of the most serious crime, Ennis faces a maximum 10 years in prison, a $250,000 fine and three years of supervised release. The case was investigated by Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. Pacer case reference. 19-106.
Jose Antonio Escobedo, 46, of Billings, on charges of conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute meth and possession with intent to distribute meth. If convicted of the most serious crime, Escobedo faces a minimum mandatory 10 years to life in prison, a $10 million fine and at least five years of supervised release. Escobedo was detained pending further proceedings. The case was investigated by the Eastern Montana High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area Task Force. Pacer case reference. 19-113.
Cesar Hernandez-Rodriguez, 35, of Mexico, on charges of illegal re-entry. If convicted of the most serious crime, Hernandez-Rodriguez faces a maximum two years in prison, a $250,000 fine and one year of supervised release. The case was investigated by the Border Patrol. Pacer case reference. 19-115.
If any of the above cases are of interest to your media organization and the community it serves, we encourage you to monitor the progress of the case regularly through the U.S. District Court calendar and the PACER system.
To establish a PACER account, which will allow you to review documents filed in the case, please go to, http://www.pacer.gov/register.html. To access the district court’s calendar, please go to https://ecf.mtd.uscourts.gov/cgi-bin/PublicCalendar.pl.
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Individual Sentenced to 25 Years in Prison for Production of Child PornographyRead the Press Release
SAN JUAN, P.R. – United States District Court Judge Pedro A. Delgado-Hernández sentenced Ricardo Barrios-Calderón to 25 years in prison followed by a supervised release term of 10 years for production of child pornography, announced Rosa Emilia Rodríguez-Vélez, United States Attorney for the District of Puerto Rico. Barrios-Calderón pleaded guilty on February 22, 2019.
According to the statement of facts, which was part of the Plea Agreement states that on February 12, 2018, the mother of a 12-year-old female informed Federal Bureau of Investigation’s (FBI) Agents that, on or about February 9, 2018, her daughter had told her that defendant Ricardo Barrios-Calderón had kissed her on the lips and had touched her breasts and vagina. The victim also told her mother that defendant Barrios-Calderón recorded her with his cellular phone while he was touching her. Barrios-Calderón is a close family member and would give the victim presents in exchange for her sexual encounters with him.
On February 12, 2018, FBI Agents executed a search warrant in defendant Barrios-Calderón’s residence and prior residence, both located in Aguadilla, Puerto Rico. Since defendant Barrios-Calderón was at his current residence, FBI Agents proceeded to arrest him. FBI Agents conducted a forensic examination on the defendant’s electronic equipment, which was found to contain sexually explicit videos between him and the minor, in addition to other unrelated images and videos of child pornography.
“The sexual abuse of children is repugnant, and it victimizes the most innocent and vulnerable of all,” said U.S. Attorney Rosa Emilia Rodríguez-Vélez. “We must bring the full force of the law against sexual predators. We are committed to bringing the defendants in these cases to justice and protecting every child.”
The FBI handled the investigation and Assistant United States Attorney Elba Gorbea prosecuted the case.
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Individual Charged with Conspiracy to Possess with Intent to Distribute Fentanyl, Cocaine and HeroinRead the Press Release
SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico – On September 12, 2019, a federal grand jury in the District of Puerto Rico returned an eight-count indictment charging Bryan Gilbert Díaz-De Jesús, a.k.a. “Bryan Gilbert De Jesús,” with conspiracy to distribute controlled substances, possession with intent to distribute controlled substances, introduction of misbranded drugs into interstate commerce, and use of a communication facility, announced Rosa Emilia Rodríguez-Vélez, United States Attorney for the District of Puerto Rico. The Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), and US Postal Inspection Service (USPIS) are in charge of the investigation in collaboration with Customs and Border Protection (CBP) and the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA).
The indictment alleges that from May 2019 until August 2019, Díaz-De Jesús, conspired with others to knowingly possess with intent to distribute and to distribute fentanyl, cocaine, and heroin. The defendant introduced and caused the introduction into interstate commerce, and with the intent to defraud and mislead, a “drug” as defined under Title 21, United States Code, Section 321(g)(1) – specifically, N-phenyl-N-[1(2-phenylethyl)-4-piperindinyl] propenamide, commonly known as fentanyl, that was misbranded, in that the drug’s labeling failed to bear adequate directions for use.
Fentanyl is a synthetic opioid that is 80-100 times stronger than morphine. Pharmaceutical fentanyl was developed for pain management treatment of cancer patients, applied in a patch on the skin. Because of its powerful opioid properties, Fentanyl is also diverted for abuse by drug users. Fentanyl is often added to heroin by criminal drug distributors to increase the heroin’s potency in order to produce a stronger effect on the structure/function of the bodies of drug users. Many users believe that they are purchasing heroin and are unaware that they are, in fact, purchasing fentanyl. According to the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration, just two (2) milligrams of fentanyl is a lethal dose for most people.
As part of the conspiracy the defendant used a communication facility, a postal station, in facilitating the commission the drug trafficking.
“Arrests like these are saving lives,” said Rosa Emilia Rodríguez-Vélez, U.S. Attorney for the District of Puerto Rico. “Fentanyl is the number one threat in the opioid epidemic in the United States, and we are seeing an increase in the presence of fentanyl laced with other drugs in Puerto Rico. We are working tirelessly with our law enforcement partners to get drug traffickers off the streets where they can no longer push these lethal drugs into our communities. This investigation continues.”
Assistant U.S. Attorneys Alberto López-Rocafort, Deputy Chief, Gang Unit, and María L. Montañez-Concepción are in charge of the prosecution of the case. If convicted the defendant faces a minimum term of imprisonment of 5 years and up to 40 years in prison. Indictments contain only charges and are not evidence of guilt. Defendants are presumed to be innocent until and unless proven guilty.
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Indictment Charges Middletown Business, Owner, with Making and Selling Adulterated Dietary SupplementsRead the Press Release
John H. Durham, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, and Jeffrey Ebersole, Special Agent in Charge of the Food and Drug Administration, Office of Criminal Investigations, New York Field Office, today announced that a federal grand jury in New Haven has returned an indictment charging ROBERT J. TRIGO, 75, of Middletown, and his business, NATUREMOST OF NEW ENGLAND, INC., with manufacturing and selling adulterated dietary supplements.
The indictment was returned on September 6, 2019, and Trigo surrendered to law enforcement this morning. He appeared before U.S. Magistrate Judge Robert M. Spector in New Haven and was released on a $250,000 bond.
As alleged in the indictment, Trigo owns NatureMost of New England, Inc. (“NatureMost”), located in Middletown. NatureMost manufactures, among other things, vitamins and dietary supplements, which it sells and distributes to wholesalers, distributors and retailers, as well as to individual consumers throughout the U.S. and several foreign countries. On December 4, 2014, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (“FDA”) held a meeting with Trigo to discuss NatureMost’s violations of current good manufacturing practice regulations. Trigo informed the FDA that NatureMost had ceased production and distribution of all products as of that date, and he promised to meet with the FDA before resuming operations.
It is further alleged that Trigo never contacted the FDA about resuming operations and, in 2017, NatureMost and Trigo fraudulently sold adulterated dietary supplements that were not prepared, packed or held in accordance with current good manufacturing practice regulations.
The indictment charges Trigo and NatureMost with three counts of introducing adulterated dietary supplements into interstate commerce. If convicted of the charges, Trigo faces maximum term of imprisonment of three years and a fine of up to $250,000 on each count, and NatureMost faces a fine of up to $500,000 on each count.
U.S. Attorney Durham stressed that an indictment is not evidence of guilt. Charges are only allegations, and the defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.
This matter is being investigated by the Food and Drug Administration, Office of Criminal Investigations. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Neeraj N. Patel.
Independence Man Convicted of Distributing Child PornographyRead the Press Release
Ft. Mitchell, Ky. – An Independence man was convicted late Thursday, by a federal jury sitting in Covington, of distributing child pornography.
The jury convicted Michael Clark, 49, after four hours of deliberations, following a four-day trial.
According to the evidence at trial, Clark distributed child pornography, on five different occasions, to a law enforcement officer via BitTorrent, which is a peer-to-peer file-sharing network. A search warrant was executed at Clark’s residence in April 2018. A computer was seized and a forensic examination revealed evidence of the child pornography.
Clark was indicted in in November 2018.
Robert M. Duncan, Jr., United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Kentucky, Andy Beshear, Kentucky Attorney General, Steven L. Igyarto, Resident Agent in Charge for Homeland Security Investigations, and Michael “Spike” Jones, Sheriff of Kenton County Police Department, jointly announced the jury’s verdict.
The investigation was conducted by the Kenton County Police Department, the Kentucky Office of Attorney General, and Homeland Security Investigations. The United States was represented in the case by Assistant U.S. Attorney Elaine K. Leonhard.
Clark will appear for sentencing, before U.S. District Judge David L. Bunning, on January 3, 2020. He faces a maximum of 20 years in prison. However, the Court must consider the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and the applicable federal sentencing statutes before imposing the sentence.
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High Society Hit Squad Members Sentenced to 25 Years in PrisonRead the Press Release
RICHMOND, Va. – Two Petersburg gang members were sentenced today to a combined 25 years in prison for drug and firearms trafficking crimes.
“In March we announced a significant law enforcement operation that involved over 150 federal agents executing arrest and search warrants in Petersburg,” said G. Zachary Terwilliger, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia. “The U.S. Attorney’s Office, along with our law enforcement partners at the Petersburg Police Department and the ATF, has made fighting violent crime in Petersburg a top priority, and we are surging our respective finite resources to Petersburg to investigate and prosecute criminal activity. On Wednesday, I spent six hours with Chief Miller and ATF Supervisors Shawn Morrow and Scott Fulkerson as we walked the streets in some of the hardest hit areas in Petersburg. Areas where children play next to broken glass from shot up vehicles, where drug dealers scurried for the shadows as we approached, and where blighted homes are being used as drug dens. EDVA is committed to working with Chief Miller and the Petersburg Police, the ATF, and our other law enforcement partners to continue to combat violent crime, drug trafficking, human trafficking, and any other offenses with a federal nexus in Petersburg.”
According to court documents, Autrelle Malik Waddell, 22, and Titus Maurice Lee, 44, are members of the High Society Hit Squad, a gang operating in Petersburg. The men were arrested in March 2019 and charged, along with two others, in a federal indictment with multiple firearms and narcotics trafficking crimes. According to court documents, Waddell was indicted for trafficking heroin, fentanyl and acetyl fentanyl, and was held responsible for the sale of eight firearms during the course of the investigation. One of the firearms Waddell sold had an obliterated serial number, and another was identified as a Mac-10 semi-automatic firearm with a high capacity magazine. Lee, who is Waddell’s uncle, was also charged in a criminal indictment with distributing “crack” cocaine, heroin, and fentanyl, and was held responsible for trafficking eight separate firearms.
“This investigation highlights ATF's partnership with Petersburg Police and our commitment to making our communities safer,” said Ashan M. Benedict, Special Agent in Charge of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives’ (ATF) Washington Field Division. “Firearms trafficking is not a victimless crime. When firearms are diverted to the illicit market, they often become tools of the trade for criminals. If you traffic in firearms or use firearms to commit other crimes, ATF is fully dedicated to bringing you to justice.”
“My top priority is the safety of the citizens of Petersburg and cleaning up our streets. As shown in this case, my department works closely with our law enforcement partners to keep firearms out of the hands of criminals and keep dangerous drugs out of our community," said Kenneth A. Miller, Director of Public Safety, Petersburg Bureau of Police. “If you violate the law or if you harm our community, the Petersburg Police will use every tool at our disposal to see that you are held accountable.”
Waddell was sentenced to nine years, while Lee was sentenced to 16 years for their respective involvement in the drug and firearm trafficking conspiracy.
This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), which is the centerpiece of the Department of Justice’s violent crime reduction efforts. PSN is an evidence-based program proven to be effective at reducing violent crime. Through PSN, a broad spectrum of stakeholders work together to identify the most pressing violent crime problems in the community and develop comprehensive solutions to address them. As part of this strategy, PSN focuses enforcement efforts on the most violent offenders and partners with locally based prevention and reentry programs for lasting reductions in crime.
G. Zachary Terwilliger, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia, Ashan M. Benedict, Special Agent in Charge of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives’ (ATF) Washington Field Division, and Kenneth A. Miller, Director of Public Safety, Petersburg Bureau of Police, made the announcement. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Angela Mastandrea-Miller and Kenneth Simon are prosecuting the cases.
A copy of this press release is located on the website of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Virginia. Related court documents and information are located on the website of the District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia or on PACER by searching for Case No. 3:19-cr-36.
High School Janitor Charged with Filming Students in Girls’ Locker RoomRead the Press Release
Jacksonville, Florida – United States Attorney Maria Chapa Lopez announces the arrest of Jason Brian Goff (42, Starke) on a criminal complaint charging him with attempted production of child pornography. If convicted, Goff faces a minimum mandatory penalty of 15 years, and up to 30 years, in federal prison and a potential life term of supervised release.
According to the
complaint , beginning on July 24, 2018, Goff was employed as a custodian at Clay High School in Green Cove Springs. On August 22, 2019, two 14-year-old female students reported a suspected camera in an unassigned, locked locker in the girls’ gym locker room. When school administrators unlocked the locker, they discovered a cellphone taped to the inside wall of the locker with the camera lens pointed out of a pre-fabricated hole aimed at a changing area. As the school janitor, Goff had access to the area and the ability to unlock the type of locks on the locker containing the cellphone.A forensic review of the cellphone revealed images and videos of high school girls changing in the locker room. At the end of one of the videos, the phone pans down and a Clay County School identification badge can be seen hanging from the waist of the person holding the phone. The photo on the badge matches the photo on Goff’s Clay County School identification badge. The cellphone also contained “selfie” photos of Goff and text messages from Goff’s phone number.
Goff’s detention hearing is scheduled for Tuesday, September 17, at 2:00 p.m., before the Honorable U.S. Magistrate Judge James R. Klindt.
A criminal complaint is merely an allegation that a defendant has committed one or more violations of federal criminal law, and every defendant is presumed innocent unless, and until, proven guilty.
This case was investigated by the Clay County Sheriff’s Office, and the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, Homeland Security Investigations. It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Kelly S. Karase.
It 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.
Hamden Man Charged with Illegally Possessing ExplosivesRead the Press Release
John H. Durham, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, and Brian C. Turner, Special Agent in Charge of the New Haven Division of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, today announced that a federal grand jury in New Haven has returned an indictment charging KENNETH LUPOLI, 57, of Hamden, with one count of possession of explosives by a convicted felon.
The indictment was returned on September 6, 2019, and Lupoli was arrested this morning at his home in Hamden. He appeared before U.S. Magistrate Judge Robert M. Spector in New Haven and was released on a $100,000 bond.
As alleged in the indictment, on May 28, 2019, Lupoli possessed several explosives, including fireworks, fuses, and salutes. Lupoli’s criminal history includes state felony convictions for illegal possession of explosives and criminal possession of a pistol or revolver.
It is a violation of federal law for a person previously convicted of an offense punishable by more than one year of imprisonment to possess any explosive that has been transported in interstate or foreign commerce.
If convicted of the charge, Lupoli faces a maximum term of imprisonment of 10 years.
U.S. Attorney Durham stressed that an indictment is not evidence of guilt. Charges are only allegations, and the defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.
This matter is being investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Neeraj N. Patel.
Grand Jury Indicts Three Harrisburg Men for Drug Trafficking and Firearms OffensesRead the Press Release
HARRISBURG-The United States Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Pennsylvania announced today that on September 11, 2019 Qushawn Brown, age 28, Wesley Garner, age 25, and Anderson Ortiz, age 20, of Harrisburg, were indicted by a federal grand jury on drug trafficking and firearms charges.
According to United States Attorney David J. Freed the defendants are charged with operating a drug trafficking conspiracy from 2018 to August 2019 that distributed crack cocaine and heroin. The defendants used firearms during their drug trafficking activities including assault rifles with extended magazines.
The case was investigated by Bureau of Alcohol Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives, the Harrisburg Bureau of Police, and the Pennsylvania State Police. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Michael Consiglio.
Indictments and Criminal Informations are only allegations. All persons charged are presumed to be innocent unless and until found guilty in court.
A sentence following a finding of guilt is imposed by the Judge after consideration of the applicable federal sentencing statutes and the Federal Sentencing Guidelines.
The maximum penalty under federal law for this offense is life imprisonment, a term of supervised release following imprisonment, and a fine. Under the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, the Judge is also required to consider and weigh a number of factors, including the nature, circumstances and seriousness of the offense; the history and characteristics of the defendant; and the need to punish the defendant, protect the public and provide for the defendant's educational, vocational and medical needs. For these reasons, the statutory maximum penalty for the offense is not an accurate indicator of the potential sentence for a specific defendant.
This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program bringing together all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve to reduce violent crime and make our neighborhoods safer for everyone. The Department of Justice reinvigorated PSN in 2017 as part of the Department’s renewed focus on targeting violent criminals, directing all U.S. Attorney’s Offices to work in partnership with federal, state, local, and tribal law enforcement and the local community to develop effective, locally-based strategies to reduce violent crime.
This case was also brought as part of a district wide initiative to combat the nationwide epidemic regarding the use and distribution of heroin. Led by the United States Attorney’s Office, the Heroin Initiative targets heroin traffickers operating in the Middle District of Pennsylvania and is part of a coordinated effort among federal, state and local law enforcement agencies to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who commit heroin related offenses.
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