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Monday 8 December 2025
Guilty Plea and Superseding Indictment Announced in Social Engineering Scheme that Stole $263 Million in CryptocurrencyRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON – Evan Tangeman, 22, of Newport Beach, California, pleaded guilty today in connection with his role in a multi-state conspiracy that used social engineering to steal hundreds of millions of dollars in cryptocurrency from victims throughout the United States, announced U.S. Attorney Jeanine Ferris Pirro.
Tangeman is the ninth defendant to enter a guilty plea in this investigation. Tangeman pleaded to participating in a RICO conspiracy before U.S. District Court Judge Colleen Kollar-Kotelly and admitted that he helped to launder at least $3.5 million for members of the enterprise.
Judge Kollar-Kotelly scheduled sentencing for April 24, 2026.
The Court also unsealed the Second Superseding Indictment, which charges three additional defendants with their roles in the Social Engineering Enterprise (SE Enterprise). Nicholas Dellecave, also known as “Nic,” and “Souja,” Mustafa Ibrahim, also known as “Krust,” and Danish Zulfiqar, also known as “Danny,” and “Meech,” were all charged with RICO conspiracy along with the remaining defendants. Dellecave was arrested in Miami on Dec.3, 2025. Zulfiqar and Ibrahim recently were arrested in Dubai on related charges.
According to the Second Superseding Indictment, the enterprise began no later than October 2023 and continued through at least May 2025. It grew from friendships developed on online gaming platforms and was comprised of individuals based in California, Connecticut, New York, Florida, and abroad.
Tangeman was a money launderer for the group that also included database hackers, organizers, target identifiers, callers, and residential burglars targeting hardware virtual currency wallets.
According to court documents, members of the enterprise used stolen databases to target victims for cryptocurrency thefts. They then used the stolen virtual currency to purchase, among other things, nightclub services ranging up to $500,000 per evening, luxury handbags valued in the tens of thousands of dollars that were given away at nightclub parties, luxury watches valued between $100,000 and $500,000, luxury clothing valued in the tens of thousands of dollars, rental homes in Los Angeles, the Hamptons, and Miami, private jet rentals, a team of private security guards, and a fleet of at least 28 exotic cars ranging in value from $100,000 to $3.8 million.
The Second Superseding Indictment alleges that on Aug. 18, 2024, Tangeman’s co-conspirator Malone Lam, Danish Zulfiqar, and others contacted a victim in the District of Columbia and, through communications with that victim, fraudulently obtained over 4,100 Bitcoin – valued then at $263 million, and valued this week at more than $368 million.
Tangeman first met the members of the in late 2023 when Lam and others moved to Los Angeles and needed assistance finding rental homes and paying for them with stolen cryptocurrency. Tangeman used a bulk-cash convertor to exchange stolen cryptocurrency for fiat cash to obtain rental homes, some renting for between $40,000 - $80,000 per month. Tangeman also caused false names to be listed on the leases to conceal the ownership of the homes. Tangeman rented homes for the group in Miami as well. During one exchange in August 2024, after the theft from the DC victim, Tangeman helped Lam obtain approximately $3 million in fiat cash in exchange for stolen cryptocurrency for a rental home.
Following Lam’s Miami arrest on Sept. 18, 2024, Tangeman accessed the home security systems to take screenshots of FBI agents searching the residences. Tangeman also asked another enterprise member to travel to Lam’s Los Angeles home, retrieve digital devices, and destroy them.
This case is being investigated by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia, the FBI’s Washington Field Office, and the IRS-Criminal Investigation Washington D.C. Field Office. Significant investigative and operational support was provided by the FBI’s Los Angeles and Miami field offices as well as the United States Attorney’s Officers in the Central District of California, Southern District of Florida, and the District of New Jersey.
The matter is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Kevin Rosenberg, Co-Chief of the Fraud, Public Corruption, and Civil Rights Section of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia.
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Guatemalan Man Unlawfully in the U.S. and Previously Convicted of Sexual Battery Pleads Guilty to Encouraging and Inducing an Unaccompanied Alien Child and to Fraudulently Obtaining Custody of the ChildRead the Press Release
CLEVELAND — A Guatemalan national unlawfully residing in the United States and previously convicted of sexual battery pleaded guilty today in federal court in Cleveland to encouraging and inducing an unaccompanied alien child (UAC) to illegally enter the United States and to submitting a sponsorship application with false statements to the Department of Health and Human Services’ Office of Refugee Resettlement (ORR) to gain custody of the UAC.
“This defendant directed a 14-year-old child to commit criminal conduct and then obtained custody of the child by defrauding a government program intended to help vulnerable children,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General Matthew R. Galeotti of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division. “Through Joint Task Force Alpha, the Criminal Division is fully committed to prosecuting those who take advantage of children and lie to undermine the integrity of government programs. We will strive to end the exploitation of these children and stop the manipulation of government programs by fraudsters, smugglers, and others engaged in serious criminal conduct.”
“Mr. Tiul Xi engaged in layers of deception. Committing one federal crime after another, he showed no regard or respect for this girl’s human dignity,” said U.S. Attorney David M. Toepfer for the Northern District of Ohio. “We greatly appreciate the dedication of the investigative teams with Homeland Security Investigations, Immigration and Customs Enforcement and the Cleveland FBI, to protect minors from being victimized by the likes of these ruthless individuals.”
According to court documents, 26-year-old Juan Tiul Xi helped a 14-year-old female Guatemalan UAC enter the United States illegally with the permission of her family. Tiul Xi helped the UAC and her family find someone from whom the family could borrow money to pay a “coyote” to transport the UAC to the United States. Tiul Xi instructed the UAC to use the name and birth certificate of Tiul Xi’s minor sister to enter the United States so that Tiul Xi could falsely state in his UAC sponsorship application that he was the UAC’s brother. Tiul Xi then made these false representations in an application that he signed under the penalty of perjury. ORR relied on Tiul Xi’s misrepresentations, approved his application to sponsor the UAC, and released the UAC to Tiul Xi’s care in September 2023.
Tiul Xi was indicted on April 17, 2025, and pleaded guilty today to all counts: one count of encouraging or inducing illegal entry for the purpose of financial gain; one count of making a false, fictitious, or fraudulent statement; and one count of aggravated identity theft. Tiul Xi faces a maximum penalty of ten years in prison on the illegal-entry count, up to five years in prison on the false-statement count, and a mandatory consecutive two-year sentence on the aggravated-identity-theft count. Tiul Xi’s sentencing is scheduled to take place March 19, 2026. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
The investigation and indictment were coordinated and prosecuted by Joint Task Force Alpha (JTFA), the Department’s lead effort in combating high-impact human smuggling and trafficking committed by cartels and Transnational Criminal Organizations (TCOs). A highly successful partnership between the Department of Justice and the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), JTFA investigates and prosecutes human smuggling and trafficking and related immigration crimes that impact public safety and border security. JTFA’s mission is to target the leaders and organizers of Cartels and TCOs involved in human smuggling and trafficking throughout the Americas. The Attorney General has elevated and expanded JTFA to target the most prolific and dangerous human smuggling and trafficking groups operating not only in Mexico and the Northern Triangle countries of Guatemala, El Salvador, and Honduras, but also in Canada, the Caribbean and the maritime border, and elsewhere. Led by the Criminal Division’s Human Rights and Special Prosecutions (HRSP) Section and supported by the Money Laundering and Asset Recovery Section, the Office of International Affairs, and the Office of Enforcement Operations, among others, JTFA has dedicated Assistant United States Attorney-detailees from the Southern District of California; District of Arizona; District of New Mexico; Western and Southern Districts of Texas; Southern District of Florida; Northern District of New York; and District of Vermont. JTFA also partners with other USAOs throughout the country and supports high-priority cases in any district. All JTFA cases rely on substantial law enforcement resources from DHS, including ICE/ HSI and CBP/BP and OFO, as well as FBI and other law enforcement agencies. To date, JTFA’s work has resulted in more than 425 domestic and international arrests of leaders, organizers, and significant facilitators of alien smuggling and/or trafficking; more than 375 U.S. convictions; more than 325 significant jail sentences imposed, and forfeitures of substantial assets.
ICE HSI and FBI Cleveland field offices jointly led the investigation with assistance from HSI’s Attaché team in Guatemala. Additionally, HSI’s Center for Countering Human Trafficking in Washington, D.C., and ORR have provided valuable assistance.
Acting Deputy Chief Christian Levesque of the Criminal Division’s Human Rights and Special Prosecutions Section, Joint Task Force Alpha detailee/Trial Attorney Spencer M. Perry of the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section, and Assistant U.S. Attorney/Senior Litigation Counsel Carol Skutnik and Assistant U.S. Attorney Michael L. Collyer for the Northern District of Ohio are prosecuting the case, with assistance from HRSP Analyst/Latin America Specialist Joanna Crandall.
Guatemalan Man Unlawfully in the U.S. and Previously Convicted of Sexual Battery Pleads Guilty to Encouraging and Inducing an Unaccompanied Alien Child and to Fraudulently Obtaining Custody of the ChildRead the Press Release
A Guatemalan national unlawfully residing in the United States and previously convicted of sexual battery pleaded guilty today in federal court in Cleveland to encouraging and inducing an unaccompanied alien child (UAC) to illegally enter the United States and to submitting a sponsorship application with false statements to the Department of Health and Human Services’ Office of Refugee Resettlement (ORR) to gain custody of the UAC.
“This defendant directed a 14-year-old child to commit criminal conduct and then obtained custody of the child by defrauding a government program intended to help vulnerable children,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General Matthew R. Galeotti of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division. “Through Joint Task Force Alpha, the Criminal Division is fully committed to prosecuting those who take advantage of children and lie to undermine the integrity of government programs. We will strive to end the exploitation of these children and stop the manipulation of government programs by fraudsters, smugglers, and others engaged in serious criminal conduct.”
“Mr. Tiul Xi engaged in layers of deception. Committing one federal crime after another, he showed no regard or respect for this girl’s human dignity,” said U.S. Attorney David M. Toepfer for the Northern District of Ohio. “We greatly appreciate the dedication of the investigative teams with Homeland Security Investigations, Immigration and Customs Enforcement and the Cleveland FBI, to protect minors from being victimized by the likes of these ruthless individuals.”
According to court documents, 26-year-old Juan Tiul Xi helped a 14-year-old female Guatemalan UAC enter the United States illegally with the permission of her family. Tiul Xi helped the UAC and her family find someone from whom the family could borrow money to pay a “coyote” to transport the UAC to the United States. Tiul Xi instructed the UAC to use the name and birth certificate of Tiul Xi’s minor sister to enter the United States so that Tiul Xi could falsely state in his UAC sponsorship application that he was the UAC’s brother. Tiul Xi then made these false representations in an application that he signed under the penalty of perjury. ORR relied on Tiul Xi’s misrepresentations, approved his application to sponsor the UAC, and released the UAC to Tiul Xi’s care in September 2023.
Tiul Xi was indicted on April 17, 2025, and pleaded guilty today to all counts: one count of encouraging or inducing illegal entry for the purpose of financial gain; one count of making a false, fictitious, or fraudulent statement; and one count of aggravated identity theft. Tiul Xi faces a maximum penalty of ten years in prison on the illegal-entry count, up to five years in prison on the false-statement count, and a mandatory consecutive two-year sentence on the aggravated-identity-theft count. Tiul Xi’s sentencing is scheduled to take place on March 19, 2026. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
The investigation and indictment were coordinated and prosecuted by Joint Task Force Alpha (JTFA), the Department’s lead effort in combating high-impact human smuggling and trafficking committed by cartels and Transnational Criminal Organizations (TCOs). A highly successful partnership between the Department of Justice and the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), JTFA investigates and prosecutes human smuggling and trafficking and related immigration crimes that impact public safety and border security. JTFA’s mission is to target the leaders and organizers of Cartels and TCOs involved in human smuggling and trafficking throughout the Americas. The Attorney General has elevated and expanded JTFA to target the most prolific and dangerous human smuggling and trafficking groups operating not only in Mexico and the Northern Triangle countries of Guatemala, El Salvador, and Honduras, but also in Canada, the Caribbean and the maritime border, and elsewhere. Led by the Criminal Division’s Human Rights and Special Prosecutions Section and supported by the Money Laundering and Asset Recovery Section, the Office of International Affairs, and the Office of Enforcement Operations, among others, JTFA has dedicated Assistant United States Attorney-detailees from the Southern District of California; District of Arizona; District of New Mexico; Western and Southern Districts of Texas; Southern District of Florida; Northern District of New York; and District of Vermont. JTFA also partners with other USAOs throughout the country and supports high-priority cases in any district. All JTFA cases rely on substantial law enforcement resources from DHS, including ICE/ HSI and CBP/BP and OFO, as well as FBI and other law enforcement agencies. To date, JTFA’s work has resulted in more than 425 domestic and international arrests of leaders, organizers, and significant facilitators of alien smuggling and/or trafficking; more than 375 U.S. convictions; more than 325 significant jail sentences imposed, and forfeitures of substantial assets.
ICE HSI and FBI Cleveland field offices jointly led the investigation with assistance from HSI’s Attaché team in Guatemala. Additionally, HSI’s Center for Countering Human Trafficking in Washington, D.C., and ORR have provided valuable assistance.
Acting Deputy Chief Christian Levesque of the Criminal Division’s Human Rights and Special Prosecutions Section, Joint Task Force Alpha detailee/Trial Attorney Spencer M. Perry of the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section, and Assistant U.S. Attorney/Senior Litigation Counsel Carol Skutnik and Assistant U.S. Attorney Michael L. Collyer for the Northern District of Ohio are prosecuting the case, with assistance from HRSP Analyst/Latin America Specialist Joanna Crandall.
Georgia State Representative charged with pandemic unemployment fraudRead the Press Release
ATLANTA - Sharon Henderson, a member of the Georgia House of Representatives, was arrested today and should appear in court this afternoon after a federal grand jury charged her with two counts of theft of government funds and ten counts of making false statements.
“It is shocking that a public official would allegedly lie to profit from an emergency program designed to help suffering community members,” said United States Attorney Theodore S. Hertzberg. “Politicians who violate the public trust and steal from the needy to enrich themselves will be held accountable.”
“Sharon Henderson allegedly chose greed over compassion by fraudulently obtaining funds meant to help those in need, some in her own Georgia House district,” said FBI Atlanta Special Agent in Charge Paul Brown. “We remain committed to find those who take advantage of federal programs meant to help those truly in need.”
“An important part of the mission of the U.S. Department of Labor, Office of Inspector General is to investigate allegations of fraud involving unemployment insurance programs. We will continue to work with our law enforcement partners to aggressively investigate these types of allegations,” said Mathew Broadhurst, Special Agent in Charge, Southeast Region, U.S. Department of Labor, Office of Inspector General.
“Nobody is above the law, especially Georgia’s elected officials. This indictment should send a clear message that theft of government funds intended for qualified citizens will not be tolerated,” said Georgia State Inspector General Nigel Lange. “GA-OIG appreciates the efforts of our state and federal partners in bringing this case for prosecution.”
According to U.S. Attorney Hertzberg, the charges, and other information presented in court: In 2020, in response to the forced closures of businesses and unprecedented economic hardship resulting from the COVID-19 emergency, the U.S. Congress created special unemployment compensation programs to provide cash assistance to individuals who lost their jobs due to the pandemic. Applicants for the programs had to provide their recent work histories and confirm, among other things, that COVID-19 was the reason they were unemployed. Applicants also had to provide a certification for every week for which they wished to claim benefits, attesting to whether they were actively seeking work for the week and the reason they were unemployed.
In June 2020, while a candidate for a Georgia House seat, Henderson allegedly applied for federal pandemic unemployment benefits claiming that her current employer was Henry County Schools. Although Henderson had worked as a substitute teacher for Henry County Schools for five days in 2018 (almost two years prior), she had not worked for Henry County Schools since then. Additionally, the Substitute Teacher Agreement Henderson signed in 2018 included an acknowledgment that substitute teachers are not eligible to draw unemployment wages. Nevertheless, Henderson allegedly stated in the application that she had worked for the school system throughout 2019 and as recently as March 10, 2020; that she had paystubs as evidence of that employment in 2019; and that her place of employment was closed as a direct result of the COVID-19 public health emergency. She then allegedly submitted weekly certifications stating that she was unable to reach her place of employment because of a COVID-19 quarantine. She allegedly submitted eight of those certifications in June 2021, after she was sworn in and serving as the state representative for District 113, which covers western Newton County and part of Covington, Georgia.
Henderson allegedly collected $17,811 of pandemic unemployment benefits to which she was not entitled as a result of false statements in her application and weekly certifications.
Henderson should appear before U.S. Magistrate Judge Justin S. Anand at 1:00 p.m. today and is expected to enter a not-guilty plea. 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, U.S. Department of Labor – Office of Inspector General, Georgia Office of the State Inspector General, and DeKalb County District Attorney’s Office.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Garrett L. Bradford is prosecuting the case.
On May 17, 2021, the Attorney General established the COVID-19 Fraud Enforcement Task Force to marshal the resources of the Department of Justice in partnership with agencies across government to enhance efforts to combat and prevent pandemic-related fraud. The Task Force bolsters efforts to investigate and prosecute the most culpable domestic and international criminal actors and assists agencies tasked with administering relief programs to prevent fraud by, among other methods, augmenting and incorporating existing coordination mechanisms, identifying resources and techniques to uncover fraudulent actors and their schemes, and sharing and harnessing information and insights gained from prior enforcement efforts. For more information on the Department’s response to the pandemic, please visit https://www.justice.gov/coronavirus
Anyone with information about allegations of attempted fraud involving COVID-19 can report it by calling the Department of Justice’s National Center for Disaster Fraud (NCDF) Hotline at 866-720-5721 or via the NCDF Web Complaint Form at: https://www.justice.gov/disaster-fraud/ncdf-disaster-complaint-form.
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.
Gang Members Indicted for Interstate Drug Trafficking ConspiracyRead the Press Release
BOSTON – Two previously convicted gang members have been indicted by a federal grand jury on drug and firearm charges. At the time of the alleged offenses, the defendants were on federal supervised release and state probation for prior drug and firearm offenses, respectively.
Stanley Earl Jenkins, a/k/a “Poolside Stixx,” 42, of Boston and Xavier Puello, a/k/a “Bodega,” 22, of Lawrence, were indicted on one count of conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute 280 grams or more of cocaine base and 40 grams or more of fentanyl; and one count of possessing a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime. The defendants are currently in state custody and appeared in federal court in Boston today.
According to court documents, Jenkins is a member of the Franklin Hill street gang. At the time of his arrest, Jenkins was on supervised release for a prior federal drug conspiracy conviction. Additionally, in 2013, Jenkins was convicted of two counts of Manslaughter in Suffolk County Superior Court in connection with the shooting deaths of two victims in the Franklin Hill Projects in July 2007. He was sentenced to 15 years in prison.
Puello is alleged in court documents to be a member of the Trinitarios transnational criminal organization, reporting to the Lawrence chapter. At the time of his arrest, Puello was on probation in Lawrence District Court following a two-year jail sentence for unlawfully carrying a loaded firearm and discharging a firearm within 500 feet of a building.
According to the charging documents, during a search of a residence in Abbot, Maine in May 2025, Jenkins and Puello were located in a downstairs bedroom with a large amount of cash. Puello also allegedly had a paper with notations identified as a “menu” of prices for different amounts of crack cocaine and fentanyl. It is further alleged that two loaded firearms – a Ruger 9mm pistol and an Anderson Arms 5.56 caliber rifle with a 60-round magazine – as well as a digital scale and numerous tied-off baggies containing cocaine, crack cocaine and ketamine were located above a ceiling tile. Jenkins and Puello were immediately taken into custody.
It is alleged that cell phones seized during the search were found to contain numerous text messages in which Jenkins and Puello discussed drug dealing and arranged sales of fentanyl and cocaine to customers. Phone records indicated that Jenkins was allegedly directing the drug conspiracy from Massachusetts at times when he was away from the Abbot residence.
The charge of conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute 280 grams or more of cocaine base and 40 grams or more of fentanyl provides for a sentence of at least 10 years and up to life in prison, at least five years of supervised release and a fine of up to $10 million. The charge of possessing a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime provides for a sentence of at least five years and up to life in prison, consecutive to the term of imprisonment for the drug trafficking crime, supervised release for up to life and a fine of up to $250,000. Sentences are imposed by a federal district court judge based upon the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and statutes which govern the determination of a sentence in a criminal case.
United States Attorney Leah B. Foley and Michael J. Krol, Special Agent in Charge for Homeland Security Investigations in New England, made the announcement. Valuable assistance was provided by the Piscataquis County (Maine) Sheriff’s Office, Greenville (Maine) Police Department, Maine Drug Enforcement Agency, Office of the Maine Attorney General and the United States Attorney’s Office for the District of Maine. Assistant U.S. Attorneys David Cutshall and Philip A. Mallard of the Organized Crime & Gang Unit are prosecuting the case.
The details contained in the charging documents are allegations. The defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
Galveston County man sentenced to federal prison for trafficking cocaine through the Eastern District of TexasRead the Press Release
BEAUMONT, Texas –A Dickinson man has been sentenced to federal prison for trafficking cocaine in the Eastern District of Texas, announced U.S. Attorney Jay R. Combs.
Anthony Wayne Brown, 37, pleaded guilty to possession with intent to distribute cocaine and was sentenced to 162 months in federal prison by U.S. District Judge Marcia A. Crone on December 8, 2025.
According to information presented in court, in November 2022, Brown was the driver of a vehicle stopped for a traffic violation in Liberty County. After noticing the odor of marijuana inside the vehicle, and receiving conflicting stories from Brown and his passenger, law enforcement conducted a search of the vehicle which resulted in the discovery of marijuana, air fresheners, and bundles containing nine kilograms of powder cocaine.
This case is part of Operation Take Back America a nationwide initiative that marshals the full resources of the Department of Justice to repel the invasion of illegal immigration, achieve the total elimination of cartels and transnational criminal organizations (TCOs), and protect our communities from the perpetrators of violent crime.
This case was investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration and the Liberty County Sheriff’s Office and prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Rachel Grove.
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Fresno Man Sentenced to 7.5 Years in Prison for $30-plus Million Fraud SchemeRead the Press Release
Matthew Dane Billingsley, 40, of Fresno, was sentenced today by U.S. District Judge Jennifer L. Thurston to seven years and six months in prison for wire fraud in a scheme that defrauded individual lenders and financial institutions out of more than $30 million, U.S. Attorney Eric Grant announced.
“The defendant defrauded victims out of millions of dollars. Over nearly five years, he repeatedly and deliberately committed crimes by altering documents, forging signatures, and otherwise lying,” said U.S. Attorney Grant. “This office, together with our law enforcement partners, will continue to aggressively pursue those who defraud victims and threaten our financial system through deceit.”
“Matthew Billingsley orchestrated a deliberate campaign of fraud, stealing more than $30 million through falsified documents,” said FBI Sacramento Special Agent in Charge Sid Patel. “The FBI, in partnership with IRS Criminal Investigation, put an end to his pattern of manipulation and exploitation. We will relentlessly pursue those who victimize others through dishonesty and greed.”
“Today’s sentencing sends a clear message: those who engage in deception to defraud lenders and abuse the financial system will be held accountable,” said IRS Criminal Investigation (IRS‑CI) Oakland Field Office Special Agent in Charge Linda Nguyen. “By fabricating brokerage statements and misusing loan funds, Mr. Billingsley not only betrayed the trust of financial institutions and individual lenders but also undermined the integrity of our financial markets. IRS-CI uses fundamental accounting principles mixed with advanced technology to build investigations that extinguish such financial deceit.”
According to court documents, between June 2018 and February 2023, Billingsley made false representations about having a brokerage account with millions of dollars in assets to serve as collateral for loans. Billingsley gave fabricated brokerage account statements to obtain more than $30 million in loans from individual lenders and financial institutions. The brokerage account statements were false because the brokerage account did not exist. Billingsley also misrepresented to individual lenders and financial institutions the intended use of the loan funds and, instead, used the money to pay down previous loans and for his personal benefit.
To obtain one of the loans, Billingsley used a Fresno restaurant owner’s name and signature on a profit-sharing agreement that Billingsley created and forged. Billingsley presented the false and fraudulent profit-sharing agreement to a financial institution to obtain a loan.
This case was the product of an investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the IRS Criminal Investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney Brittany M. Gunter prosecuted the case.
Former Harford County Sheriff’s Office Detective Pleads Guilty to Sexual Exploitation of Two ChildrenRead the Press Release
Baltimore, Maryland – Ryan Christopher Hall, 50, of Woodstock, Maryland, pled guilty today, to sexual exploitation of a child and possession of child sexual abuse material charges in federal court. Hall is a former domestic violence detective who served 27 years with the Harford County Sheriff’s Office.
Kelly O. Hayes, U.S. Attorney for the District of Maryland, announced the guilty plea with Acting Special Agent in Charge Evan Campanella, Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) – Baltimore; Carroll County State’s Attorney Haven N. Shoemaker, Jr.; Sheriff James T. DeWees, Carroll County Sheriff’s Office; and Sheriff Jeff Gahler, Harford County Sheriff’s Office.
According to court documents, from May 2017 thru October 2024, Hall sexually abused two minor children. Authorities discovered that Hall installed cameras to produce child sexual abuse material and possessed child sexual abuse material. Additionally, Hall is facing related charges for child sexual abuse in the Carroll County Circuit Court.
Hall faces a mandatory minimum of 15 years, and a maximum sentence of 30 years, in federal prison for each count of sexual exploitation of a child. He also is subject to lifetime supervised release and lifetime registration as a sex offender. U.S. District Judge Brendan A. Hurson scheduled sentencing for Tuesday, March 3, 2026, at 2 p.m.
This case is part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative, launched in May 2006, by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by the United States Attorney’s Offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who sexually exploit children, and to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, visit www.justice.gov/psc. Learn more about Internet safety education by clicking on the “Resources” tab on the left of the page.
Know2Protect is a Department of Homeland Security national public awareness campaign to educate and empower children, teens, parents, trusted adults and policymakers to prevent and combat online child sexual exploitation and abuse; explain how to report online enticement and victimization; and offer resources for victims and survivors and their supporters. Learn more about Know2Protect at www.dhs.gov/know2protect.
U.S. Attorney Hayes commended HSI, the Carroll County State’s Attorney’s Office Special Victims Unit, and Carroll County Sheriff’s Office Crimes Against Children Unit for their combined effort and work in the investigation. Ms. Hayes also thanked Assistant U.S. Attorney Colleen Elizabeth McGuinn who is prosecuting the federal case.
For more information on the Maryland U.S. Attorney’s Office, its priorities, and resources available to help the community, please visit www.justice.gov/usao-md and https://www.justice.gov/usao-md/community-outreach.
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Federal Jury Convicts Dothan Man in Meth Trafficking CaseRead the Press Release
MONTGOMERY, Ala. – On December 4, 2025, a federal jury sitting in Dothan, Alabama, convicted 38-year-old Larenta Deshawn Dawkins of possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine, announced Acting United States Attorney Kevin Davidson.
According to court records and evidence presented at trial, law enforcement began investigating suspected drug trafficking activity in Houston County in July 2024. Investigators determined that Dawkins was receiving packages in Dothan that contained methamphetamine shipped from out of state. Further investigation revealed that Dawkins used a Dothan storage unit to store the drugs after receiving them.
During a search of the storage unit, investigators recovered two boxes containing approximately five pounds of methamphetamine and three bags of marijuana. Agents then obtained a search warrant for Dawkins’s residence, where they seized numerous items linking Dawkins to the storage unit.
A sentencing hearing will be scheduled in the coming months. At that time, Dawkins will face a maximum sentence of life in federal prison. There is no parole in the federal system.
This case was investigated by the Dothan Police Department, the Eufaula Police Department, and the Drug Enforcement Administration. It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Chelsea Wilson and Joel Feil.
Fort Walton Beach Man Pleads Guilty to Distribution of MethamphetamineRead the Press Release
PENSACOLA, FLORIDA – Travaess McLemore, 41, of Fort Walton Beach, Florida, pleaded guilty to distribution of methamphetamine. The plea was announced by John P. Heekin, United States Attorney for the Northern District of Florida.
U.S. Attorney Heekin said: “Thanks to the outstanding work of our state and federal law enforcement partners, another drug dealer has been removed from our streets. The residents of the Northern District of Florida deserve to live in safe, drug-free communities, and my office will continue to aggressively prosecute anyone attempting to flood our streets with deadly drugs to achieve that outcome.”
Court documents reflect that on August 13, 2025, Okaloosa County Sheriff’s Office conducted a traffic stop on the defendant’s vehicle. During the traffic stop a canine alerted to the odor of narcotics. A search of the vehicle revealed 84 grams of methamphetamine. On the same date, deputies conducted a search warrant at the defendant’s residence and located approximately 1,548 grams of methamphetamine.
Due to a prior conviction for a serious drug offense, McLemore faces a minimum term of 15 years’ imprisonment with a maximum of life imprisonment. Sentencing is scheduled for February 10, 2026, at 10:00 am before United States District Court Judge T. Kent Wetherell, II.
The case involved a joint investigation by the Okaloosa County Sheriff’s Office and the Drug Enforcement Administration. Assistant United States Attorney Jeffrey M. Tharp is prosecuting the case.
This prosecution is part of the Homeland Security Task Force (HSTF) initiative established by Executive Order 14159, Protecting the American People Against Invasion. The HSTF is a whole-of-government partnership dedicated to eliminating criminal cartels, foreign gangs, transnational criminal organizations, and human smuggling and trafficking rings operating in the United States and abroad. Through historic interagency collaboration, the HSTF directs the full might of United States law enforcement towards identifying, investigating, and prosecuting the full spectrum of crimes committed by these organizations, which have long fueled violence and instability within our borders. In performing this work, the HSTF places special emphasis on investigating and prosecuting those engaged in child trafficking or other crimes involving children. The HSTF further utilizes all available tools to prosecute and remove the most violent criminal aliens from the United States. HSTF comprises agents and officers from multiple agencies with the prosecution being led by the United States Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Florida.
The United States Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Florida is one of 94 offices that serve as the nation’s principal litigators under the direction of the Attorney General. To access available public court documents online, please visit the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Florida website. For more information about the United States Attorney’s Office, Northern District of Florida, visit http://www.justice.gov/usao/fln/index.html.
Durant Resident Pleads Guilty to Possession of Obscene Visual Representations of the Sexual Abuse of ChildrenRead the Press Release
MUSKOGEE, OKLAHOMA – The United States Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Oklahoma announced that Zachary Aaron Holderness, age 25, of Durant, Oklahoma, entered a guilty plea to an Information of one count of Possession of Obscene Visual Representations of the Sexual Abuse of Children, punishable by up to 10 years in prison and a fine of up to $250,000.
The Information alleged that on February 27, 2025, Holderness knowingly possessed a visual depiction lacking serious literary, artistic, political, or scientific value, transported by means of interstate or foreign commerce, including by computer, and depicting, or appearing to depict, a minor engaging in sexual intercourse.
The charge arose from an investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Bryan County Sheriff’s Office, and the Choctaw Nation Lighthorse Police.
The Honorable D. Edward Snow, U.S. Magistrate Judge in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Oklahoma, accepted the plea and ordered the completion of a presentence investigation report.
A U.S. District Court Judge will determine the sentence to be imposed after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
Holderness will remain in the custody of the United States Marshals Service pending sentencing.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Morgan Muzljakovich represented the United States.
Drug traffickers face life in federal prison for distributing methamphetamine in Eastern District of TexasRead the Press Release
BEAUMONT, Texas – A Jefferson County man and woman have been charged with drug trafficking violations in the Eastern District of Texas, announced U.S. Attorney Jay R. Combs.
Starr Ann Brocato, 34, of Nederland, and John Wayne Brooks, 47, of Port Neches, were named in an indictment returned by a federal grand jury in the Eastern District of Texas charging them with conspiring to possess with intent to distribute more than 50 grams of methamphetamine.
The indictment alleges that from September to November 2025, Brocato and Brooks were involved in a conspiracy to distribute more than 50 grams of methamphetamine in the Eastern District of Texas and elsewhere.
If convicted, the defendants each face up to Life in federal prison.
This prosecution is part of the Homeland Security Task Force (HSTF) initiative established by Executive Order 14159, Protecting the American People Against Invasion. The HSTF is a whole-of-government partnership dedicated to eliminating criminal cartels, foreign gangs, transnational criminal organizations, and human smuggling and trafficking rings operating in the United States and abroad. Through historic interagency collaboration, the HSTF directs the full might of United States law enforcement towards identifying, investigating, and prosecuting the full spectrum of crimes committed by these organizations, which have long fueled violence and instability within our borders. In performing this work, the HSTF places special emphasis on investigating and prosecuting those engaged in child trafficking or other crimes involving children. The HSTF further utilizes all available tools to prosecute and remove the most violent criminal aliens from the United States.
This case is being investigated by the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration and prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Jonathan Lee.
A federal indictment is not evidence of guilt. All defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
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Drug Smuggler Caught on the High Seas with 1,828 Kilograms of Cocaine to 235 Months’ ImprisonmentRead the Press Release
On December 4, 2025, United States District Court Judge Terry F. Moorer sentenced Denny Andres Mero Anchundia, an Ecuadorian national, to 235 months’ imprisonment for smuggling approximately 1,828 kilograms of cocaine in the Pacific Ocean following his guilty plea on the charges.
Court documents show that on March 3, 2025, while on routine patrol in the Eastern Pacific Ocean, United States Coast Guard (USCG) Cutter Kimball detected a vessel that was suspected of smuggling drugs. The vessel was without nationality, in international waters, had visible packages onboard, fuel barrels on deck, and three outboard engines.
The Kimball intercepted the drug smuggling vessel which complied with USCG directions. Once dead in the water, the USCG boarding team came alongside and gained positive control of the drug smugglers. The boarding team confirmed the packages were consistent with cocaine and determined the vessel was without nationality. The boarding team then transferred the six persons onboard, including Anchundia, and the cocaine back to the Kimball. Once onboard, the boarding team was determined the weight of the cocaine as approximately 1,828 kilograms. The drug smuggling vessel was sunk due to being a hazard to navigation. The six crew members were brought the United States and charged under the Maritime Drug Law Enforcement Act.
United States Attorney Sean P. Costello made the announcement.
The case was investigated by the United States Coast Guard and the Department of Homeland Security - Homeland Security Investigations.
Assistant United States Attorney George F. May prosecuted the case on behalf of the United States.
This case was prosecuted as a part of Operation Take Back America, a nationwide initiative that marshals the full resources of the Department of Justice to repel the invasion of illegal immigration, achieve the total elimination of cartels and transnational criminal organizations (TCOs), and protect our communities from the perpetrators of violent crime.
Dorchester Man Pleads Guilty to Firearm OffenseRead the Press Release
BOSTON – A Dorchester man has pleaded guilty to unlawfully possessing a firearm and ammunition as a convicted felon.
Rickey Simmons, 46, pleaded guilty to one count of being a felon in possession of a firearm and ammunition. U.S. District Court Senior Judge F. Dennis Saylor IV scheduled sentencing for March 6, 2026. Simmons was charged in January 2025 and later indicted by a federal grand jury in February 2025.
On Jan. 28, 2025, Simmons possessed a Tisas, Model Zig M1911, .45 caliber firearm, eight rounds of .45 caliber ammunition and nine rounds of .22 caliber ammunition, after having been convicted of a felony.
The charge of being a felon in possession provides for a sentence of up to 15 years in prison, three years of supervised release and a fine of up to $250,000. Sentences are imposed by a federal district court judge based upon the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and statutes which govern the determination of a sentence in a criminal case.
United States Attorney Leah B. Foley and Thomas Greco, Special Agent in Charge of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives made the announcement today. Assistant United States Attorneys Mark Grady and Allegra Flamm of the Major Crimes Unit are prosecuting the case.
Dominican National Pleads Guilty to Trafficking Tens of Thousands of Fentanyl PillsRead the Press Release
BOSTON – A Dominican national unlawfully residing in Dorchester pleaded guilty on Friday in federal court in Boston to his role in a large-scale fentanyl trafficking conspiracy.
Anderson Ernesto Andujar Echavarria, 28, pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to distribute and to possess with intent to distribute 400 grams or more of fentanyl; three counts of distribution of 40 grams or more of fentanyl; one count of distribution of 40 grams or more of fentanyl and methamphetamine; and one count of possession with intent to distribute 400 grams or more of fentanyl. U.S. District Court Judge Indira Talwani scheduled sentencing for April 6, 2026. The defendant was arrested and charged in September 2024 along with three co-conspirators: Waner Bernabel Presinal; Carlos Fabal; and Freddy Artemio Guerrero Soto.
In November 2023, law enforcement identified Andujar as a large-scale drug trafficker distributing various narcotics. Over the course of the investigation, Andujar distributed tens of thousands of press fentanyl tablets as well as powdered fentanyl, cocaine and crystal methamphetamine to undercover law enforcement.
Bernabel was identified as a co-conspirator who worked with Andujar to distribute fentanyl pills and Fabal was identified as a fentanyl pill supplier to Andujar. Fabal was previously convicted in 2007 in federal court in Boston of conspiracy to distribute cocaine, for which he was sentenced to 67 months in prison and five years of supervised release.
At the time of the arrests, 30,000 blue pressed fentanyl pills were seized along with and 500 grams of powder fentanyl from Andujar and Guerrero Soto.
All three of Andujar’s co-defendants have pleaded guilty. Fabal and Bernabel each pleaded guilty in September 2025 and October 2025, respectively, and are scheduled to be sentenced in March 2026. Guerrero Soto pleaded guilty in February 2025 and, in May 2025, was sentenced to 30 months in prison.
The charge of conspiracy to distribute and to possess with intent to distribute 400 grams or more of fentanyl provides for a sentence of at least 10 years and up to life in prison, at least five years and up to a lifetime of supervised release and a fine of up to $10 million. The charges of distribution of 40 grams or more of fentanyl and distribution of 40 grams or more of fentanyl and methamphetamine each provide for a sentence of at least five years up to 40 years in prison, at least four years and up to a lifetime of supervised and a fine of up to $5 million. The charge of possession with intent to distribute 400 grams or more of fentanyl provides for a sentence of at least 10 years and up to life in prison, at least five years and up to a lifetime of supervised release and a fine of up to $10 million. Sentences are imposed by a federal district court judge based upon the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and statutes which govern the determination of a sentence in a criminal case.
United States Attorney Leah B. Foley and Jarod A. Forget, Special Agent in Charge of the Drug Enforcement Administration in New England made the announcement. Valuable assistance in the investigation was provided by the Massachusetts State Police and Boston Police Department. Assistant U.S. Attorney Christopher Pohl of the Criminal Division is prosecuting the case.
Dominican National Indicted for Receiving and Possessing Child Sexual Abuse MaterialRead the Press Release
PROVIDENCE – A Dominican national, who resides in Providence, was indicted by a federal grand jury on December 3, 2025, for allegedly downloading child sexual abuse material (CSAM), announced Acting United States Attorney Sara Miron Bloom.
Juan E. Acosta Gomez, 21, is charged by way of indictment for receipt and possession of child pornography. Acosta Gomez is currently detained and will appear in federal court on the indictment at a future date to be determined by the court.
According to charging documents, in October 2025, the Rhode Island Internet Crimes Against Children (ICAC) Task Force received a report regarding disturbing CSAM images being uploaded to devices belonging to the defendant. A federal search warrant was executed at his residence on November 4, 2025. As a result of the search and through their investigation, numerous CSAM images and videos were found on Acosta Gomez’s personal devices.
A federal criminal indictment is merely an accusation. A defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney John P. McAdams.
The matter was investigated by Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) and the Rhode Island Internet Crimes Against Children (ICAC) Task Force.
This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by the U.S. Attorneys’ Offices and the DOJ’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who exploit children, as well as identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit https://www.justice.gov/psc
To report suspected online child sexual exploitation and/or abuse, call the Know2Project Tipline at 1-833-591-KNOW (5669) or visit the NCMEC CyberTipline® at https://report.cybertip.org/
Department of Justice Leadership Announces New Personnel Appointments and Authorizations in the District of New JerseyRead the Press Release
Today, following Attorney General Pamela Bondi's announcement that Alina Habba will serve as Senior Advisor to the Attorney General for United States Attorneys, Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche announced the following personnel appointments and authorizations within the District of New Jersey:
- Philip Lamparello will serve as Senior Counsel and is authorized to supervise or conduct the work of the district’s Criminal Division and Special Prosecutions Division, including such work in the district’s branch offices;
- Jordan Fox will serve as Special Attorney and is authorized to supervise or conduct the work of the district’s Civil Division and Appellate Division, including such work in the district’s branch offices, along with any other matters arising within the district not specifically delegated herein; and
- Ari Fontecchio will serve as Executive Assistant United States Attorney and is authorized to supervise or conduct the work of the district’s Administrative Division, along with any other administrative matters arising within the district.
"The Department of Justice is committed to bringing in the best and brightest to carry out our mission," said Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche. "I have full confidence in each of these exceptional attorneys and look forward to our continued collaboration as we make New Jersey and America safe again."
Convicted Sex Offender Sentenced to Two Years in Prison for Failure to RegisterRead the Press Release
ANNISTON, Ala. – A Colbert County man was sentenced on a felony charge for violating the Sex Offender Registration and Notification Act, announced U.S. Attorney Prim F. Escalona.
U.S. District Judge Corey L. Maze sentenced Michael Shane McDaniel, 57, of Muscle Shoals, Alabama, to 24 months in prison followed by eight years of supervised release. In June, McDaniel pleaded guilty to failing to register or update his registration as required by the Sex Offender Registration and Notification Act (SORNA).
According to court documents, McDaniel was convicted in 2011 of child molestation in Marion Superior Court in Indianapolis, Indiana, and is required to register as a sex offender under SORNA. Following his conviction, McDaniel registered as a sex offender in Indiana where he resided. In June 2024, and continuing through December 2024, McDaniel moved from Indiana to Alabama and failed to register as a sex offender in Alabama.
The Adam Walsh Child Protection and Safety Act of 2006 implemented SORNA and established a comprehensive national system for the registration of sex offenders to protect the public. The Act requires anyone convicted of specified crimes to register with the national sex offender registry.
The U.S. Marshals Service for the Northern District of Alabama investigated the case along with the U.S. Marshals Service for the Southern District of Indiana, the U.S. Marshals Service Gulf Coast Regional Fugitive Task Force, the Hendricks County Sheriff’s Office (Indiana), and the Colbert County Sheriff’s Office (Alabama). Assistant U.S. Attorney R. Leann White prosecuted the case.
The case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched by the Department of Justice in May 2006 to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by U.S. Attorneys’ Offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS), Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to better locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the Internet, and to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.projectsafechildhood.gov.
Convicted Felon Sentenced to Nearly Seven Years in Prison for Second Firearm OffenseRead the Press Release
BOSTON – A Rockland, Mass. man was sentenced on Dec. 3, 2025 in federal court in Boston for being a convicted felon in possession of a firearm and ammunition.
Lamont Boswell, 40, was sentenced by U.S. District Court Judge F. Dennis Saylor IV to 83 months in prison to be followed by three years of supervised release. In September 2025, Boswell pleaded guilty to one count of unlawfully possessing a firearm and ammunition while being a convicted felon as well as violating the terms of his supervised release.
On April 2, 2025, while conducting a wellness check on Boswell who appeared to be passed out in the driver’s seat of his parked car, law enforcement found a pistol inside the vehicle. The recovered firearm was a Smith and Wesson semi-automatic handgun, loaded with 13 9mm rounds of ammunition in the magazine and one 9mm round in the chamber.
At the time of the offense, Boswell was under federal supervision after being convicted in 2021 of being a felon in possession of a firearm and ammunition, for which he was sentenced to 57 months in prison and three years of supervised release. In that case, Boswell was also found to have illegally possessed a loaded firearms while driving his car.
United States Attorney Leah B. Foley and Thomas Greco, Special Agent in Charge of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms & Explosives, Boston Field Division made the announcement. Special assistance was provided by Plymouth County District Attorney’s Office and the Scituate Police Department. Assistant U.S. Attorney Fred M. Wyshak III of the Organized Crime & Gang Unit prosecuted the case.
This case is part of Operation Take Back America, a nationwide initiative that marshals the full resources of the Department of Justice to repel the invasion of illegal immigration, achieve the total elimination of cartels and transnational criminal organizations and protect our communities from the perpetrators of violent crime. Operation Take Back America streamlines efforts and resources from the Department’s Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces and Project Safe Neighborhood.
Concord Man Who Sold Fraudulent Sports Memorabilia Pleads Guilty to Wire FraudRead the Press Release
OAKLAND – Daniel Damato pleaded guilty in federal court this afternoon to wire fraud in connection with his sales of fraudulent sports memorabilia. Damato also admitted that he attempted to obstruct the FBI’s investigation into his criminal conduct.
Damato, 42, of Concord, California, was charged by information on October 20, 2025, with one count of wire fraud. The information alleged that between 2022 and 2024, Damato, a sports memorabilia dealer, doctored and gave false provenance to valuable items to make them appear as authentic sports collectibles, and then attempted to sell the items to unsuspecting buyers at inflated prices.
In pleading guilty, Damato admitted that in 2023, he sold for $100,000 a baseball bat that he falsely represented as having been used by Willie Mays in the 1954 World Series. Despite his assertions to the contrary, the bat Damato sold for $100,000 had not been used in the 1954 World Series and was in fact a “factory error” bat that was an inch shorter than what Mays used during his career. After the victim buyer sent Damato $100,000 for the supposedly game-used bat, Damato did not send him anything.
Damato also sold other fraudulent items, including a jersey he falsely marketed as having been worn in a game by Mays that Damato sold for $50,000.
After the FBI executed a search warrant on his residence in October 2024, Damato contacted at least one potential witness in an attempt to obstruct the government’s investigation into his conduct.
United States Attorney Craig H. Missakian and FBI Acting Special Agent in Charge Agustin Lopez made the announcement.
Damato’s sentencing hearing is scheduled for March 23, 2026, before District Judge Araceli Martínez-Olguín. Damato faces a maximum statutory penalty of 20 years in prison and a $250,000 fine. Any sentence will be imposed by the Court after consideration of the United States Sentencing Guidelines and the federal statute governing the imposition of a sentence, 18 U.S.C. § 3553.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Abraham Fine is prosecuting the case with the assistance of Amala James. The prosecution is the result of an investigation by the FBI.
Cincinnati man pleads guilty to soliciting sex with 15-year-oldRead the Press Release
CINCINNATI – Jonathan Malachi Washington, 30, of Cincinnati, pleaded guilty in U.S. District Court today to conspiring to sex traffic children by “paying” for sex with a minor.
According to court documents, in November 2023, Washington solicited sex acts from a 15-year-old girl through a co-conspirator. Washington agreed to pay the co-conspirator $400-$500 to engage in sex acts with the victim.
Washington drove the victim to his apartment in Cincinnati for commercial sex. While he and the victim were gone, the co-conspirator posted on his SnapChat that he had “Pimped out his girl.” Washington returned the victim to the co-conspirator and paid him $400-$500 in counterfeit money.
Washington was charged federally in September 2024. He pleaded guilty to a bill of information that charges him with one count of conspiring to sex traffic children.
Sentencing of the defendant will be determined by the Court based on the advisory sentencing guidelines and other statutory factors at a future hearing.
Dominick S. Gerace II, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Ohio, and Matthew Stentz, Acting Special Agent in Charge, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) Detroit, announced the guilty plea entered today before U.S. District Judge Matthew W. McFarland. Assistant United States Attorney Kyle J. Healey is representing the United States in this case.
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Charleston Man Sentenced to 10 Years in Federal Prison for Weapons and Drugs ChargesRead the Press Release
CHARLESTON, S.C. — Jaidan Latrell Alexander, 26, of Ladson, was sentenced to 10 years in federal prison after pleading guilty to possessing firearms in furtherance of drug trafficking crimes and possession of marijuana with intent to distribute.
Evidence presented in court showed that Alexander obtained multiple firearms through a straw purchasing scheme involving a family member, despite being prohibited from possessing firearms because of his prior criminal convictions. Investigators also recovered social media evidence showing that Alexander was actively involved in narcotics distribution, and he was arrested several times while armed.
According to court records, on April 13, 2023, Alexander exchanged gunfire outside his Ladson apartment during an attempted robbery. A later search of the apartment uncovered firearms, illegal drugs, and equipment used to package and distribute narcotics.
On Aug. 30, 2024, agents with the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives arrested Alexander at his residence and executed a search warrant. Inside, they found additional firearms, hundreds of rounds of ammunition, drug-distribution tools including scales, vacuum sealers, and packaging materials, and more than 2.5 pounds of marijuana.
United States District Judge Bruce H. Hendricks sentenced Alexander to 10 years imprisonment to be followed by five years of court ordered supervision. There is no parole in the federal system.
This case was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. Assistant U.S. Attorney Chris Lietzow is prosecuting the case.
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Central Valley Corporate Insider Sentenced to 18 Months in Prison for Role in Stealing Nearly $5 Million in Livestock Feed IngredientsRead the Press Release
Shawn Sawa, 49, formerly of Clovis, was sentenced today by U.S. District Judge Jennifer L. Thurston to 18 months in prison for his role in a fraud scheme that stole millions of dollars’ worth of canola, used to make livestock feed, from international food processors, U.S. Attorney Eric Grant announced.
According to court documents, from 2015 through 2017, Sawa and co-defendant Richard Best stole $4.8 million worth of canola from international food processors. They then sold the canola for a windfall.
Sawa and Best carried out the scheme through Best’s now defunct train-to-truck transloading company, Richard Best Transfer Inc. (RBT). A transloading company transfers commodities from one mode of transportation to another mode. The victim food processors sent hundreds of thousands of tons of their canola to RBT for delivery to their customers. Sawa was the Fresno area manager for one of the victim food processors from whom he and Best stole canola. Sawa initially received kickback payments from Best to try to increase the supply of canola that RBT received from that food processor before they began their scheme.
Sawa and Best sold the stolen canola through an acquaintance in Texas who used to work in the livestock-feed industry. The acquaintance sold the stolen canola to farms and dairies and distributed the proceeds according to Best’s instructions. This included wire transfers to Sawa, Best, and RBT’s bank accounts. The account that Sawa used was opened in his spouse’s name to try to conceal the scheme.
Throughout the scheme, Sawa and Best caused RBT to email fraudulent inventory reports to the victim food processors representing that RBT had certain amounts of their canola in-stock when, in fact, RBT had significantly lesser amounts. Sawa and Best used the proceeds from the scheme to purchase luxury homes and multiple vehicles, take trips, hire private karate teachers, and cover RBT’s operating expenses, among other expenses.
Shortly before the scheme was discovered, Best gave Sawa an old cellphone that had belonged to Best’s deceased mother. Best did so because he was afraid that the victim food processor for whom Sawa worked was onto their scheme and was monitoring communications on Sawa’s company issued devices. They then used the old cellphone to secretly communicate with each other in furtherance of the scheme.
This case is the product of an investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Cody Chapple, Chan Hee Chu, and Joseph Barton are prosecuting the case.
Best pleaded guilty on Oct. 14, 2025, three weeks before his trial was supposed to start and is scheduled to be sentenced on March 2, 2026. He faces a maximum statutory penalty of 20 years in prison and a $250,000 fine. The actual sentence, however, will be determined at the discretion of the court after consideration of any applicable statutory factors and the federal Sentencing Guidelines, which take into account a number of variables.
Carson Woman and Former U.S. Postal Service Employee Sentenced to More Than 5 Years in Federal Prison for Stealing Checks and Credit Cards from MailRead the Press Release
LOS ANGELES – A South Bay woman who formerly worked as a letter carrier for the United States Postal Service in Torrance was sentenced today to 63 months in federal prison for stealing checks and debit and credit cards from the mail then selling them to her accomplices for three years, using the illicitly obtained funds to take international trips and buy luxury goods, and then flaunting the cash on Instagram.
Mary Ann Magdamit, 31, of Carson, was sentenced by United States District Judge John F. Walter, who also ordered her to pay $660,200 in restitution.
Magdamit, who has been in federal custody since July 1, was a letter carrier at the Torrance Main Post Office. She pleaded guilty on August 11 to one count of conspiracy to commit bank fraud.
From at least 2022 until July 2025, Magdamit stole mail containing checks, personal identifying information (PII), and debit and credit cards. She then activated the stolen bank-issued cards online, used the cards to make purchases, and sold some stolen cards to her co-conspirators.
She also arranged to have her co-conspirators cash the stolen checks, usually by people using counterfeit identity documents in the name of the check’s payee. Federally insured banks and credit unions were victimized in this scheme.
Law enforcement searched Magdamit’s apartment in December 2024, and seized 133 stolen credit and debit cards,16 U.S. Department of Treasury checks, and a loaded, un-serialized Glock-clone, with an extended 27-round magazine, commonly referred to as a “ghost gun.” Agents also discovered luxury goods purchased with cards she stole from the mail. She also used stolen cards on international trips she took to Turks and Caicos and Aruba.
Agents arrested Magdamit on July 1, after learning that she continued to make purchases with victims’ credit cards. A second search of Magdamit’s apartment that day yielded more stolen cards.
Magdamit posted on Instagram her luxury purchases and vacations, and flaunted stacks of hundred-dollar bills. Magdamit has agreed to forfeit a Rolex watch and other luxury goods.
“Individuals, businesses, and governments rely on the Postal Service to deliver over 100 million pieces of first-class mail daily,” prosecutors argued in a sentencing memorandum. “Especially for the poorest Americans, who are often unbanked, they rely on the mail to deliver their government benefits in the form of Treasury checks or EDD debit cards, precisely what [Magdamit] chose to steal.”
The United States Postal Service Office of Inspector General, the United States Postal Inspection Service, and the Treasury Inspector General of Tax Administration investigated this matter.
Assistant United States Attorney Andrew Brown of the Major Frauds Section prosecuted this case.
California Man Pleads Guilty to Attempted Sexual Exploitation of a 12-Year-Old and Distributing Child PornographyRead the Press Release
A California man pleaded guilty today to attempted enticement and coercion of a minor and to distribution of child pornography.
According to court documents, Donald Ramirez, 40, of Salinas, California, used Snapchat to send a 12-year-old girl a photo of his genitals and repeatedly demanded the child create and send him photos of herself engaged in sexually explicit conduct he directed. Ramirez also used other social media platforms, including Telegram and Wickr, to distribute child sexual abuse material including images of another female minor whom he had communicated with on Snapchat.
Ramirez is scheduled to be sentenced on May 11, 2026 and faces a mandatory minimum penalty of 10 years in prison, and a maximum penalty of life in prison. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
Acting Assistant Attorney General Matthew R. Galeotti of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division and U.S. Attorney Craig H. Missakian for the Northern District of California made the announcement.
The Department of Homeland Security is investigating the case.
Trial Attorney McKenzie Hightower of the Justice Department’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS) and Assistant U.S. Attorney Neal Hong for the Northern District of California are prosecuting the case.
This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice. Led by U.S. Attorneys’ Offices and CEOS, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state and local resources to better locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the Internet, as well as to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.justice.gov/psc.
Boone County Man Pleads Guilty to Violating the Federal Sex Offender Registration and Notification ActRead the Press Release
CHARLESTON, W.Va. – Richard Dale Turner, 44, of Julian, pleaded guilty today to failure to update his registration to report a change in employment and interstate travel, as required by the Sex Offender Registration and Notification Act (SORNA).
According to court documents and statements made in court, Turner is required to register as a sex offender as a result of his conviction for third-degree sexual assault in Mason County Circuit Court on March 8, 2016. Turner failed to report a change in his employment status as required when he left a job with a trucking firm on January 3, 2025. An arrest warrant was issued for Turner when he failed to appear for a scheduled court appearance on June 23, 2025. On August 15, 2025, law enforcement officers captured Turner in Santa Rosa County, Florida. Turner failed to register as a sex offender in Florida or report his interstate travel in West Virginia.
Turner is scheduled to be sentenced on March 2, 2026, and faces a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison, at least five years and up to a lifetime of supervised release, and a fine of up to $250,000.
United States Attorney Moore Capito made the announcement and commended the investigative work of the United States Marshals Service (USMS).
United States District Judge Joseph R. Goodwin presided over the hearing. Assistant United States Attorney Jonathan T. Storage is prosecuting the case.
SORNA is part of the Adam Walsh Child Protection and Safety Act of 2006 and provides a comprehensive set of minimum standards for sex offender registration and notification in the United States. SORNA seeks to strengthen the nationwide network of sex offender registration and notification programs, in part by requiring registered sex offenders to register and keep their registration current in each jurisdiction in which they reside, work, or go to school.
A copy of this press release is located on the website of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of West Virginia. Related court documents and information can be found on PACER by searching for Case No. 2:25-cr-168.
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Beaver Falls Resident Sentenced for Theft of Social Security BenefitsRead the Press Release
PITTSBURGH, Pa. - A resident of Beaver Falls, Pennsylvania, has been sentenced in federal court to 3 years’ probation plus 7 days intermittent confinement on his conviction of theft of government property, First Assistant United States Attorney Troy Rivetti announced today.
United States District Judge J. Nicholas Ranjan imposed the sentence on Nicholas T. Grimes, 31.
According to information presented to the Court, following the death of a Title II Social Security benefits recipient, Grimes began stealing that person’s Social Security retirement benefits, beginning as early as 2014. Grimes stole benefits totaling approximately $216,779 by negotiating the benefits from the deceased’s account through ATM transactions. Grimes has also been ordered to pay the full restitution of $216,779 to the Social Security Administration.
Assistant United States Attorney Gregory C. Melucci prosecuted this case on behalf of the government.
First Assistant United States Attorney Rivetti commended the Social Security Administration – Office of the Inspector General and the United States Postal Inspection Service for the investigation leading to the successful prosecution of Grimes.
Baldwin County Man Sentenced to 30 Years for Sexual Exploitation and Attempted Enticement of A MinorRead the Press Release
MOBILE, AL – Logan Smith, 38, was sentenced on December 1, 2025, to 30 years in prison for convictions related to the sexual exploitation of a minor, attempted enticement of a minor, and possession of child pornography. Smith entered his guilty pleas on June 24, 2025.
According to court documents, Smith first came to law enforcement attention following a report that he had been distributing child pornography via the internet. Further investigation revealed that he had been communicating with a minor victim living out of state over a period of months. Smith exploited the minor on social media platforms where he repeatedly directed her to record sexually explicit conduct and send those videos and images to him. Smith communicated with the minor about his plans to travel to meet her in person and to engage in sexual contact with her. Additionally, two mobile devices belonging to Smith contained hundreds of images and videos of child sexual abuse material.
At sentencing, Chief United States District Judge Jeffrey U. Beaverstock imposed a 360-month term of incarceration and a 15-year term of supervised release upon Smith’s future release. Smith will be subject to sex offender treatment and mental health treatment while imprisoned. Smith will be required to register as a sex offender and is to have no contact with minors. Smith was ordered to pay $7,220 in restitution to the victim of his offenses and $400 in special assessments.
U.S. Attorney Sean P. Costello of the Southern District of Alabama made the announcement.
The Baldwin County Sheriff’s Office and Homeland Security Investigations investigated the case.
Assistant U.S. Attorneys Beth Stepan and Kacey Chappelear prosecuted the case on behalf of the United States.
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 https://www.justice.gov/psc/publications-resources.
Broussard Man Sentenced to 115 Months in Multi-State Vehicle Theft, Firearm Trafficking, and Identity Theft ConspiracyRead the Press Release
United States Attorney Kurt L. Wall announced that U.S. District Judge Brian A. Jackson sentenced Christopher Don Byerley, age 45, of Broussard, Louisiana, to 115 months in federal prison following his convictions for conspiracy to transport a stolen motor vehicle; altering, removing and obliterating a vehicle identification number; possession of fifteen or more unauthorized access devices and possession of an unregistered silencer and being a prior convicted felon in possession of a firearm. The Court further sentenced Byerley to serve three years of supervised release following his term of imprisonment and ordered restitution in the amount of $127,000 to the victims, as well as forfeiture of the pistol and silencer.
According to admissions made as part of his guilty plea, between October 2021 and March 2022, Byerley and his co-conspirators, Robert Gregory Brazell, Adrienne Marie King, and Dennis Loyd Sizemore, carried out a coordinated and complex operation extending across Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, and Texas, in which the group stole, then used or sold the stolen and altered vehicles, including tractors, excavators, forklifts, and a pickup truck, with a total value of over $250,000.
The conspiracy involved tampering with Vehicle Identification Numbers (VINs) to disguise the identity of stolen property, use of a chop shop, fraudulent documentation, and false business fronts such as “Hevyquip L.L.C.” to sell stolen equipment and unauthorized possession of over 400 identities and access devices to further conceal their criminal activities
During the investigation, it was determined that Byerley, a convicted felon, used a third party to illegally purchase a firearm, which was later fitted with the unregistered silencer.
In February 2022, an investigation of a shoplifting incident in the Juban Crossing Shopping Center led Livingston Parish Sheriff’s Office detectives to uncover from a stolen pickup truck being operated by Byerley an unregistered firearm silencer, an FN Model 509 9mm pistol and ammunition; documentation detailing parts orders for silencers all in Byerley’s handwriting; multiple text messages and photographs pointing to intent to traffic firearms and circumvent federal regulations; and numerous documents, records, emails, text messages and photos that led law enforcement to uncover the conspiracy and far-reaching criminal enterprise.
This matter was investigated by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, Social Security Administration Office of the Inspector General, Livingston Parish Sheriff’s Office, Ascension Parish Sheriff’s Office, East Baton Rouge Sheriff’s Office, Saint Martin Parish Sheriff’s Office, Saint Landry Parish Sheriff’s Office, Lafayette Parish Sheriff’s Office, Iberia Sheriff’s Department, and Lafayette Police Department.
This case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Lyman E. Thornton III and M. Patricia Jones. To address the firearm trafficking charges, AUSA Thornton was appointed as a Special Assistant United States Attorney in the Western District of Louisiana, where he worked in conjunction with Assistant United States Attorney John Nickel.
Armed Meth Dealer Sentenced to 17 Years in Federal PrisonRead the Press Release
A man convicted of drug trafficking, who fled from police two times, was sentenced today to 17 years in federal prison.
Pablo Elias-Lopez age 35, from Sioux City, received the prison term after a July 2, 2025, guilty plea to one count of possessing with intent to distribute a controlled substance, methamphetamine, after having been convicted of a serious drug felony.
Evidence in the case revealed on or about December 11, 2024, during a traffic stop, Elias-Lopez was found to be in possession of a Taurus .44 Revolver, and a Sig Sauer P320 9mm Pistol, and ammunition, as well as 225 grams of methamphetamine and more than $10,000 cash. On January 11, 2025, Elias-Lopez was again subject to a traffic stop, and this time he fled law enforcement. During the short pursuit, law enforcement was able to maneuver and stop his vehicle. Elias-Lopez was found with a bag of cash totaling $27,005 and $600 in his wallet. On March 21, 2025, as officers were attempting to serve an arrest warrant on Elias-Lopez, he again fled, ramming into a police vehicle. During the eluding, Elias-Lopez also hit another individual head-on. As Elias-Lopez sped through neighborhoods, his vehicle ended in a wooded area where he then fled on foot. Officers were able to locate him nearby where he was taken into custody. Officers located 112 grams of methamphetamine and more than $2,200 in cash.
Elias-Lopez’s criminal history includes multiple charges of possession with intent to deliver a controlled substance, eluding, and participating in a felony or resulting in serious injury.
Elias-Lopez was sentenced in Sioux City by United States District Court Judge Leonard T. Strand to 204 months’ imprisonment. He must also serve a 10-year term of supervised release after the prison term. There is no parole in the federal system.
Elias-Lopez is being held in the United States Marshal’s custody until he can be transported to a federal prison.
The case was investigated by the Sioux City, Iowa Police Department, Woodbury County Sheriff’s Department, and Sgt. Bluff, Iowa Police Department. This case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Forde Fairchild.
Court file information at https://ecf.iand.uscourts.gov/cgi-bin/login.pl.
The case file number is 25-4018.
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Armed Drug Dealers Sentenced to Decades in Federal PrisonRead the Press Release
MOBILE, AL – Two Grand Bay men were sentenced to 20 years and 12 years in prison, respectively, for engaging in a drug-trafficking conspiracy and illegally possessing firearms in furtherance of drug crimes.
According to court documents, Demetrius Dwayne Powell, 33, and Diricka Tyrese McCants, 41, were arrested by narcotics agents on July 30, 2024. That day, agents went to a property in Grand Bay to arrest Powell, who had a pending arrest warrant for a robbery charge. When agents arrived, they encountered Powell and McCants coming out of a shed on the property. McCants, who was on federal supervised release for a prior felony drug-trafficking conviction, told the agents, “Once y’all go in there, I’m gone.”
Inside the shed, agents located and seized, among other things, nearly two pounds of 100% pure methamphetamine, smaller amounts of crack and powder cocaine, opened vacuum-sealed bags containing small amounts of marijuana, digital scales, drug packaging materials, and three loaded firearms. After their arrest, Powell and McCants exchanged recorded jail calls in which Powell encouraged McCants to take the rap for the drugs due to Powell’s violent criminal history, which includes convictions for a stabbing assault and felony domestic violence by strangulation. Powell also scolded McCants for not listening to him when he previously suggested that law enforcement had been surveilling the shed in Grand Bay.
Agents searched the contents of cell phones seized from Powell and McCants. The cell phones contained numerous text messages, photos, and videos about the defendants’ drug transactions and illegal possession of firearms between January and July 2024.
United States District Judge Terry F. Moorer sentenced Powell and McCants to serve 240 months and 144 months in prison, respectively. Upon their release from prison, Powell and McCants will each serve 10-year terms of supervised release, during which time they will be subject to drug testing and treatment. The court did not impose a fine, but Judge Moorer ordered the defendants to pay a total of $300 in special assessments and forfeited their firearms to the United States.
U.S. Attorney Sean P. Costello of the Southern District of Alabama made the announcement.
Homeland Security Investigations and the Mobile County Sheriff’s Office investigated the case. The Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, and the Drug Enforcement Administration substantially assisted the investigation.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Justin Roller prosecuted the case on behalf of the United States.
This case is part of Operation Take Back America, a nationwide initiative that marshals the full resources of the Department of Justice to repel the invasion of illegal immigration, achieve the total elimination of cartels and transnational criminal organizations (TCOs), and protect our communities from the perpetrators of violent crime.
Friday 5 December 2025
Youngstown Man Sentenced to Federal Prison for Receipt of Child PornographyRead the Press Release
PENSACOLA, FLORIDA – Matthew Allen Kitchen, 39, of Youngstown, Florida, was sentenced to five years in prison for receipt of child pornography. John P. Heekin, United States Attorney for the Northern District of Florida, announced the sentence today.
U.S. Attorney Heekin said: “The distribution of child sexual abuse material has the effect of re-victimizing the exploited children each and every time the image, video, or depiction is shared. I deeply appreciate the dedication of our state and federal law enforcement partners who tirelessly investigate these cases to keep our children safe from predators like this defendant, and my office remains committed to aggressively prosecuting these cases with the full force of the law.”
Court documents reflect that while conducting undercover activities law enforcement officers determined that child pornography was being disseminated over the internet via a peer-to-peer network. An internet protocol address assigned to the defendant’s residence in Youngstown, Florida, was identified. On March 13, 2024, a federal search warrant was executed. Law enforcement located the defendant’s laptop, which contained numerous files of child pornography.
“This sentence reinforces our commitment to protecting our children from predators who exploit children on the internet,” said Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) Assistant Special Agent in Charge Nicholas G. Ingegno. “Transmitting child sexual abuse material is abhorrent and a serious crime with lasting consequences for its victims. This outcome reflects the hard work of HSI investigators, our law enforcement partners, and prosecutors, and serves as a clear warning that anyone who targets children online will be held fully accountable.”
The defendant’s imprisonment will be followed by a 10-year term of supervised release, meaning if he violates any of the conditions of his supervision, he will potentially face an additional period of incarceration. Additionally, the defendant was ordered to pay restitution to victims, and he will be required to register as a sex offender.
The investigation was conducted by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations with assistance from the Bay County Sheriff’s Office. Assistant United States Attorney Jeffrey M. Tharp prosecuted the case.
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 and led by the U.S. Attorney’s Offices and the Criminal Divisions Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS), it 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.
The United States Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Florida is one of 94 offices that serve as the nation’s principal litigators under the direction of the Attorney General. To access available public court documents online, please visit the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Florida website. For more information about the United States Attorney’s Office, Northern District of Florida, visit http://www.justice.gov/usao/fln/index.html.
Williamsburg man sentenced to five years in prison for sending a threatening email that included obscene material to a police officerRead the Press Release
NEWPORT NEWS, Va. – A Williamsburg man was sentenced yesterday to five years in prison for distribution of obscene visual representations of the sexual abuse of children.
According to court documents, on Feb. 14 and 15, a police officer contacted Xavier Joseph Stafford, 22, and asked Stafford to move his vehicle from private property in Williamsburg. On Feb. 18, Stafford sent an email to the officer threatening the officer’s child and indicating he knew the officer’s home address. Stafford then sent another message that included two animated images depicting the sexual abuse of a minor. The email also included a live photo repeatedly looping several frames of consecutive images of the officer’s home.
Lindsey Halligan, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia, and Dominique Evans, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI’s Norfolk Field Office, made the announcement after sentencing by U.S. District Judge Arenda Wright Allen.
Assistant U.S. Attorneys Lisa McKeel and Therese O’Brien prosecuted the case.
A copy of this press release is located on the website of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Virginia. Related court documents and information are located on the website of the District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia or on PACER by searching for Case No. 4:25-cr-40.
Wilkinsburg Resident Charged with Production and Possession of Material Depicting the Sexual Exploitation of MinorsRead the Press Release
PITTSBURGH, Pa. – A resident of Wilkinsburg, Pennsylvania, has been indicted by a federal grand jury in Pittsburgh on charges of production and possession of material depicting the sexual exploitation of a minor, First Assistant United States Attorney Troy Rivetti announced today.
The two-count Indictment named Anton Reed Sr., 33, as the sole defendant.
According to the Indictment, on or about July 8, 2022, Reed produced visual depictions of the sexual exploitation of a minor. The Indictment also charges Reed with possessing, from on or about December 10, 2022, until on or about September 8, 2025, videos and still images depicting the sexual exploitation of minors, some of whom were prepubescent and under the age of 12 years.
The law provides for a maximum total sentence of not less than 15 years and up to 30 years in prison, a fine of up to $750,000, or both. Under the federal Sentencing Guidelines, the actual sentence imposed would be based upon the seriousness of the offenses and the prior criminal history, if any, of the defendant.
Assistant United States Attorney Rebecca L. Silinski is prosecuting this case on behalf of the government.
The Federal Bureau of Investigation, Allegheny County Police Department, and Wilkinsburg Police Department conducted the investigation leading to the Indictment.
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.justice.gov/psc.
An indictment is an accusation. A defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
Waterbury Gang Member Sentenced to Life in Federal PrisonRead the Press Release
JULIAN SCOTT, also known as “Ju Sav,” 26, was sentenced today by U.S. District Judge Kari A. Dooley in Bridgeport to life in prison, and a mandatory consecutive term of imprisonment of 30 years, for offenses related to his involvement in the 960 gang, a violent Waterbury street gang.
Today’s announcement was made by David X. Sullivan, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut; Maureen T. Platt, State’s Attorney for the Waterbury Judicial District; P.J. O’Brien, Special Agent in Charge of the New Haven Division of the Federal Bureau of Investigation; Thomas Greco, Special Agent in Charge, ATF Boston Field Division; and Waterbury Police Chief Fernando C. Spagnolo.
According to court documents and statements made in court, in an effort to address drug trafficking and related violence in Waterbury, the FBI, ATF, and Waterbury Police have been investigating multiple Waterbury-based groups, including the 960 gang. On September 14, 2021, a federal grand jury in Hartford returned a 36-count indictment charging Scott, Gabriel Pulliam, and 14 other 960 gang members with various offenses, including racketeering, murder, attempted murder and assault, firearm possession, narcotics trafficking, and obstruction of justice offenses.
According to the evidence presented during Scott and Pulliam’s trial:
- On October 6, 2018, in a drive-by shooting in the area of Bank Street and Porter Street, Scott and other gang members attempted to murder individuals believed to be members of a rival gang, which resulted in gunshot wounds to an innocent bystander.
- On October 11, 2018, in an effort to murder rival gang members in retaliation for the murder of a fellow 960 member, Scott, Pulliam, and other 960 members shot into a crowd of people and killed an innocent bystander, 30-year-old Fransua Guzman, and paralyzed a second victim.
- On November 18, 2018, Scott and other gang members participated in a drive-by shooting of rival gang members in the area of Bank Street and Porter Street, which resulted in gunshot wounds to two individuals.
To promote 960, Scott and other 960 members made rap videos that glorified gang violence, firearm possession, and drug dealing. Many of the rap lyrics were tied to criminal conduct committed by 960 members.
Scott has been detained since arrest on state charges on May 23, 2019. On May 10, 2024, a federal jury found Scott and Pulliam guilty of conspiracy to engage in a pattern of racketeering activity, murder in violation of the Violent Crimes in Aid of Racketeering (“VCAR”) statute, causing death through the use of a firearm and in relation to a crime of violence, attempted murder and assault with a dangerous weapon in aid of racketeering, and carrying and using a firearm during and in relation to a crime of violence. Pulliam was also found guilty of conspiracy to possess, with intent to distribute, and to distribute, controlled substances.
On November 5, 2025, Pulliam was sentenced to life in prison and a mandatory 10-year consecutive term of imprisonment.
This investigation identified at least 10 violent acts committed by 960 members in 2017 and 2018. All 16 individuals charged have been convicted and sentenced. In addition to Scott and Pulliam, Zaekwon McDaniel, Tahjay Love, and Malik Bayon also received life sentences.
This investigation was conducted by the FBI’s Northern Connecticut Gang Task Force, Waterbury Police Department, ATF, and U.S. Marshals Service, with the assistance of the Southington Police Department, Watertown Police Department, New Milford Police Department, Connecticut State Police, Connecticut Department of Correction, Connecticut Forensic Science Laboratory, and the DEA Laboratory. The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Geoffrey M. Stone, John T. Pierpont, Jr. and Natasha M. Freismuth, and Supervisory Assistant State’s Attorney Don E. Therkildesen, Jr. and Deputy Assistant State’s Attorney Alexandra Arroyo, who were cross-designated as Special Assistant U.S. Attorneys in this matter.
This prosecution is a part of the Justice’s Department’s Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN) and Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) programs.
Waimanalo Man Charged with Producing Child Pornography of His Minor Volleyball StudentRead the Press Release
HONOLULU – United States Attorney Ken Sorenson announced that Elias David, 37, of Waimanalo, Hawaii, was arrested and charged by criminal complaint on December 3, 2025 with producing child pornography.
According to court documents, beginning in approximately February 2023, David began a sexual relationship with a minor female whom he had coached in volleyball. Investigators seized from the minor victim’s phone videos depicting the minor victim and David engaged in sexual conduct. In the videos, David is holding or positioning the phone just prior to, or right after, the sexual conduct.
If convicted of the charged offense, David faces a mandatory minimum sentence of 15 years’ imprisonment and a maximum of 30 years’ imprisonment, along with potential fines and supervision after release from imprisonment.
The charge in the criminal complaint is merely an accusation, and the defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law. In the case of conviction, any sentence would be imposed by a United States District Judge based on the statutory sentencing factors and the advisory United States Sentencing Guidelines.
This case is being investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation with assistance from the Honolulu Police Department. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Michael F. Albanese.
Vian Resident Pleads Guilty to Child AbuseRead the Press Release
MUSKOGEE, OKLAHOMA – The United States Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Oklahoma announced that Grant Wes Morris, age 25, of Vian, Oklahoma, entered a guilty plea to one count of Child Abuse in Indian Country, punishable by a term of up to life in prison, and a fine of up to $250,000.00.
The Indictment alleged that on July 1, 2025, Morris willfully and maliciously harmed and threatened the health, safety, and welfare of a child under the age of 18, causing swelling and bruising. The crime occurred in Sequoyah County, within the boundaries of the Cherokee Nation Reservation, in the Eastern District of Oklahoma.
The charge arose from an investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Sequoyah Sheriff’s Office.
The Honorable Jason A. Robertson, U.S. Magistrate Judge in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Oklahoma, accepted the plea and ordered the completion of a presentence investigation report.
A U.S. District Court Judge will determine the sentence to be imposed after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
Morris will remain in the custody of the United States Marshals Service pending sentencing.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Morgan Muzljakovich represented the United States.
United States uses civil asset forfeiture to recover nearly $1.7M for victims of cryptocurrency investment scamRead the Press Release
RICHMOND, Va. – The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Virginia has recovered and cleared title to 420,740.422314 USDT, also known as “Tether,” and 1,249,996.15 BUSD, also known as “Binance USD,” representing cryptocurrency investment fraud proceeds and property involved in money laundering, using civil asset forfeiture. Both USDT and BUSD are forms of cryptocurrency equivalent in value to the dollar. The United States is now in the process of returning that property to the victim.
According to court documents, the perpetrators of the fraud scheme contacted one victim by text message and the other victim through social media. These unsolicited contacts were purported to be accidental, but after the victims responded the perpetrators enticed the victims into continuing the communications and eventually convincing them to move to an encrypted chat application. The perpetrators then earned the victims’ trust before encouraging them to “invest” in cryptocurrency using a spoofed investment website. Although the website mimicked a legitimate cryptocurrency investment platform, the spoofed site funneled the victims’ funds to the fraud perpetrators.
The site falsely represented that the victims’ “investments” were making sizeable gains. When the victims attempted to make any significant withdrawals, however, the perpetrators coerced the victims to send more money, using tactics such as claiming the victims owed taxes and fees on their “profits.” Ultimately, the perpetrators never let the victims withdraw anything more than trivial amounts and stole the victims’ money. After receiving the victims’ funds, the perpetrators laundered the victims’ funds by conducting a series of complicated transactions and making quick exchanges of one type of cryptocurrency to another in an attempt to hide the funds.
Agents with the United States Secret Service seized 420,740.422314 USDT and 1,249,996.15 BUSD from three cryptocurrency wallets. The United States began a civil forfeiture action against the seized funds by publicly filing a civil forfeiture complaint in U.S. District Court.
Lindsey Halligan, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia; William Mancino, Special Agent in Charge of the U.S. Secret Service Criminal Investigative Division; and Meghan Dubea, Resident Agent in Charge of the U.S. Secret Service Raleigh Resident Office, made the announcement.
This matter was handled by Assistant U.S. Attorney Kevin Hudson.
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. 3:25-cv-713.
U.S. Attorney’s Office Files over 460 New Immigration Cases in 2 WeeksRead the Press Release
SAN ANTONIO – United States Attorney Justin R. Simmons for the Western District of Texas announced today that federal prosecutors in the district filed 468 new immigration and immigration-related criminal cases from Nov. 21 to Dec. 4. Charges were brought against illegal aliens with past convictions for violent crimes, DWIs, manslaughter and attempted murder, as well as alleged human smugglers and aliens with prior removals.
On Nov. 22, two non-U.S. citizens were arrested and charged with alien smuggling in El Paso. U.S. Border Patrol agents observed the two individuals assisting three people out of a canal and into a pickup truck. USBP agents conducted a traffic stop on the truck, when the vehicle doors opened, and the five occupants ran away. The agents initially located and apprehended four of the subjects. A criminal complaint alleges that Denis Ruben Ampie-Ayerdis was identified as the front passenger who assisted the three illegal aliens out of the canal. Ampie-Ayerdis allegedly stated that he was in the U.S. legally under asylum. The driver of the vehicle, Jose Gregorio Rivera-Angarita, was detained by a Hudspeth County Sheriff’s Officer shortly after the other four. Rivera-Angarita stated he was in the U.S. illegally and that he knew the three individuals he picked up were illegal aliens. Rivera-Angarita also allegedly stated that he and his brother, Ampie-Ayerdis, were being paid a total of $800 to pick up and transport the aliens to a house in El Paso. The coordination of the scheme allegedly developed with someone Ampie-Ayerdis met on the social media app, TikTok.
On Nov. 27, a USBP agent stopped a vehicle that had allegedly been observed picking up multiple individuals half a mile north of the Rio Grande River on Texas Highway 20. A criminal complaint alleges the agent noticed four individuals tightly crammed in the back seat, unrestrained and attempting to conceal themselves. The complaint further alleges that fifth occupant was hiding on the floorboard of the front passenger seat, attempting to conceal herself with a jacket. The driver of the vehicle was identified as Nahum Alejandro Carrillo-Gallardo, who allegedly stated he was instructed to pick up and transport the five illegal aliens—foreign nationals from Guatemala and Mexico—to a location near Fort Bliss, where another person would take custody. Carrillo-Gallardo is charged with one count of alien smuggling.
A convicted felon from Mexico was arrested on Nov. 30. Jose Alejandro Urueta-Cabral allegedly approached the Bridge of the Americas Port of Entry, telling the Customs and Border Protection officer (CBPO) that he was born in East Los Angeles, California, and had attended Garfield High School. Allegedly, he further stated that he had been in Chihuahua with a sick relative for months and his passport had been stolen. The criminal complaint alleges that the CBPO observed Urueta-Cabral as jumpy and avoiding eye contact, and referred him for further inspection, where Urueta-Cabral admitted he was born in Delicias, Chihuahua, Mexico. Further investigation revealed Urueta-Cabral had been previously removed from the U.S. eight times, the last being on March 19 through Nogales, Arizona. Additionally, Urueta-Cabral, has a criminal record that includes multiple narcotics-related convictions, second-degree burglary, and second-degree robbery. He is now charged with illegal re-entry.
On Nov. 25, Cuban national Yusmany Santiesteban-Acosta allegedly presented a State of Texas Commercial Drivers License bearing his name, photograph and date of birth at the Paso Del Norte Port of Entry. A system alerted the CBPO of a previous manslaughter conviction, which had resulted in a 10-year prison sentence in December 2022. Santiesteban-Acosta served two days of the decade-long sentence. The criminal complaint further alleges that Santiesteban-Acosta stated he was a legal permanent resident. Immigration records indicate he was removed from the U.S. to Mexico on July 28.
Orlando Cuba-Trencilio, also a Cuban national, was arrested approximately seven miles west of the Tornillo Port of Entry near Clint. Cuba-Trencilio was previously removed from the U.S. to Mexico on Oct. 1 and has multiple prior convictions including attempted murder in the second degree and aggravated battery.
Mexican national Primitivo Castro-Lopez was found in the Bastrop County Jail, where he had been detained following a DWI arrest. Castro-Lopez has been removed from the U.S. three times and has been previously convicted for aggravated assault with a deadly weapon.
Mexican national Blas Bautista-Vences was found in the Travis County Jail, where he had also been booked on a DWI charge. Bautista-Vences has four prior DWI convictions and four prior removals, as well as past convictions for possession of a controlled substance, assault causing bodily injury, and unlawful possession of a firearm by a felon.
Marcos Vasquez Matute, also a Mexican national, was found in the Williamson County Jail. Matute has been twice removed from the U.S. and has been convicted of five DWIs.
In Eagle Pass, USBP agents arrested Salvadoran national Jaime Bladmir Hernandez-Garcia, who has been removed from the U.S. twice, the most recent being on April 11. Hernandez-Garcia was convicted in January for his fifth DUI. In 2021, he was convicted for driving while his license was revoked. He is charged with illegal re-entry.
These cases were referred or supported by federal law enforcement partners, including ICE, U.S. Border Patrol, the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), the FBI, the U.S. Marshals Service (USMS), and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF), with additional assistance from state and local law enforcement partners.
The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Western District of Texas comprises 68 counties located in the central and western areas of Texas, encompasses nearly 93,000 square miles and an estimated population of 7.6 million people. The district includes three of the five largest cities in Texas—San Antonio, Austin and El Paso—and shares 660 miles of common border with the Republic of Mexico.
These cases are part of Operation Take Back America, a nationwide initiative that marshals the full resources of the Department of Justice to repel the invasion of illegal immigration, achieve the total elimination of cartels and transnational criminal organizations (TCOs), and protect our communities from the perpetrators of violent crime. Operation Take Back America streamlines efforts and resources from the Department’s Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETFs) and Project Safe Neighborhood (PSN).
Indictments and criminal complaints are merely allegations and all defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
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U.S. Attorney’s Office Filed 115 Border-Related Cases This WeekRead the Press Release
SAN DIEGO – Federal prosecutors in the Southern District of California filed 115 border-related cases this week, including charges of bringing in aliens for financial gain, reentering the U.S. after deportation, and importation of controlled substances.
The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of California is the fourth-busiest federal district, largely due to a high volume of border-related crimes. This district, encompassing San Diego and Imperial counties, shares a 140-mile border with Mexico. It includes the San Ysidro Port of Entry, the world’s busiest land border crossing, connecting San Diego (America’s eighth largest city) and Tijuana (Mexico’s second largest city).
In addition to reactive border-related crimes, the Southern District of California also prosecutes a significant number of proactive cases related to terrorism, organized crime, drugs, white-collar fraud, violent crime, cybercrime, human trafficking and national security. Recent developments in those and other significant areas of prosecution can be found here.
A sample of border-related arrests this week:
- On November 29, Oscar Rene Redondo, a U.S. citizen, was arrested and charged with Importation of a Controlled Substance. According to a complaint, Customs and Border Protection officers found 25 packages containing 260 pounds of methamphetamine hidden in the bed of the defendant’s truck when he attempted to cross the border at the San Ysidro Port of Entry.
- On December 2, Arturo Olazaba-Lopez was arrested and charged with Attempted Entry after Deportation. According to a complaint, the defendant was hiding under a blanket in the back cargo area of a car that was being driven through the San Ysidro Port of Entry. Olasava-Lopez was previously removed from the United States on November 1, 2025, from the San Ysidro Port of Entry, and before that in 1996 from El Paso, Texas.
- On December 3, Joel Enrique Topete-Toparro and Aristeo Esteban Ceballos Lorea, citizens of Mexico, were arrested and charged with Brining in Aliens for Financial Gain. According to a complaint, U.S. Border Patrol agents encountered the defendants walking north of the U.S.-Mexico border, east of the Otay Mesa Port of Entry, and determined they were foot guides for other undocumented Mexican citizens.
Also recently, some defendants with criminal records were sentenced for border-related crimes such as illegally re-entering the U.S. after previous deportation. Here’s an example:
- On December 5, 2024, Felipe Jesus Galindo, a Mexican national who was previously convicted of Possession of a Controlled Substance for Sale, Illegal Possession of an Assault Weapon, and Willful Discharge of a Firearm with Gross Negligence, was sentenced in federal court to 24 months in custody for again illegally entering the U.S.
The immigration cases were referred or supported by federal law enforcement partners, including Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Enforcement and Removal Operations (ICE ERO), Customs and Border Protection, U.S. Border Patrol, the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), the U.S. Marshals Service (USMS), and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF), with the support and assistance of state and local law enforcement partners.
Indictments and criminal complaints are merely allegations and all defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
U.S. Attorney’s Office Concludes Investigation into Fatal ShootingRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON - The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia announced today that there is insufficient evidence to pursue federal criminal civil rights or District of Columbia charges against a Deputy United States Marshal for a fatal shooting that occurred on June 12, 2025, and fatally injured a 42-year-old District resident at the intersection of 7th and L Streets, NW.
The U.S. Attorney’s Office and the Internal Affairs Division of the Metropolitan Police Department conducted a comprehensive review of the incident, which included a review of law enforcement and civilian accounts, crime-camera footage, Body Worn Camera footage, physical evidence, recorded radio communications, forensic reports, and reports from MPD.
According to the evidence, on June 12, 2025, a Deputy United States Marshal encountered Marco Mosley. Mr. Mosley was operating a black Tahoe and the deputy was operating a pickup truck. After Mr. Mosley pulled his vehicle to the side of the road, he and the deputy conversed briefly. At that point, Mr. Mosley retrieved a handgun from his waist area and began to point it at the deputy. The deputy immediately retrieved his service weapon and fired shots at Mr. Mosley. Mr. Mosley was struck in the head. Despite lifesaving efforts by law enforcement and an emergency medical team, Mr. Mosley succumbed to his injuries and died at the scene.
After a careful, thorough, and independent review of the evidence, federal prosecutors found insufficient evidence to prove beyond a reasonable doubt that the officer willfully violated the civilian’s rights.
Investigations generally
The U.S. Attorney’s Office reviews all police-involved fatalities to determine whether sufficient evidence exists to conclude that any officers violated either federal criminal civil rights laws or District of Columbia law.
The U.S. Attorney’s Office remains committed to investigating allegations of excessive force by law enforcement officers and will continue to devote the resources necessary to ensure that all allegations of serious civil rights violations are investigated fully and completely. The Metropolitan Police Department’s Internal Affairs Division investigates all police-involved fatalities in the District of Columbia.
U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of New Mexico Weekly Immigration and Border Crimes ReportRead the Press Release
ALBUQUERQUE – Today, the United States Attorney’s Office for the District of New Mexico announced its immigration enforcement statistics for this week. These cases are prosecuted in partnership with the El Paso Sector of the U.S. Border Patrol, along with Homeland Security Investigations El Paso, and assistance from other federal, state, and county agencies.
In the one-week period ending December 5, 2025, the United States Attorney’s Office brought the following criminal charges in New Mexico:
- 58 individuals were charged this week with Illegal Reentry After Deportation (8 U.S.C. 1326)
- 1 individual was charged this week with Alien Smuggling (8 U.S.C. 1324)
- 89 individuals were charged this week with Illegal Entry (8 U.S.C. 1325)
Many of the defendants charged pursuant to 18 U.S.C. 1326 had prior criminal convictions for rape, kidnapping, domestic violence, child endangerment, criminal damage to property, and DUI.
These cases are part of Operation Take Back America, a nationwide initiative that marshals the full resources of the Department of Justice to repel the invasion of illegal immigration, achieve the total elimination of cartels and transnational criminal organizations (TCOs), and protect our communities from the perpetrators of violent crime.
These statistics represent prosecutions by the United States Attorney’s Office for the District of New Mexico only. The numbers do not include individuals apprehended by immigration enforcement officials and subjected solely to administrative process.
Under current leadership, public safety and a secure border are the top priorities for the District of New Mexico. Enhanced enforcement both at the border and in the interior of the district have yielded aliens engaged in unlawful activity or with serious criminal history, including human trafficking, sexual assault and violence against children.
The District of New Mexico consists of 33 counties and shares 180 miles of international border with Mexico. Assistant U.S. Attorneys from Albuquerque and Las Cruces work directly with our federal, state and local law enforcement partners to prosecute immigration-related and other federal offenses.
Two Thurston County men appear on federal charges involving brutal assault on JBLMRead the Press Release
Tacoma – Two Lacey, Washington, men – both former members of the military – will appear in federal court in Tacoma today at 1:30 PM on a criminal complaint filed in June following a brutal assault on Joint Base Lewis McChord (JBLM), announced U.S. Attorney Charles Neil Floyd. Charles Ethan Fields, 27, and Levi Austin Frakes, 27, have been in custody in Thurston County since their arrest on June 2, 2025. The men are charged federally with robbery, assault, and theft of government property.
According to the criminal complaint, the men entered JBLM around 8PM on June 1, 2025. About an hour after that, a member of the Army discovered them in the Ranger compound. The men were masked and had Army property arrayed around them. When questioned, the men started fighting with the Army member and beat him on the head and torso with a hammer. The victim was able to gain control of the hammer, only to have one of the men pull a knife and brandish it at the victim. The men – later identified as Fields and Frakes, ran from the Ranger compound, and dropped some of the items they allegedly were trying to steal.
Investigators collected evidence at the scene of the thefts and assault and determined the men were trying to steal about $14,000 in government property.
The men were traced to an address in Lacey and law enforcement obtained a warrant to search the residence. Inside they found weapons and military property, including night vision devices, ballistic plates and plate carriers, and helmets; military munitions; and military explosives such as blasting caps, flashbangs, and smoke grenades. Some of the items are restricted and not allowed to be owned or stored in a private residence. Officers also recovered $24,000 in cash.
Assault and theft of government property are each punishable by up to 10 years in prison. Robbery is punishable by up to 15 years in prison.
The charges contained in the criminal complaint are only allegations. A person is presumed innocent unless and until he or she is proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
The case is being investigated by the Department of the Army Criminal Investigation Division.
The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Marci L. Ellsworth.
Two Miami Men Sentenced to Nearly Five Years in Prison for $28 Million Scheme Involving Diverted PharmaceuticalsRead the Press Release
MIAMI – Two men were each sentenced on Oct. 30 to 57 months in federal prison for their roles in two separate but related schemes involving the sale of diverted and misbranded pharmaceutical drugs, including medications used to treat HIV and cancer.
According to court documents, Boris Arencibia, 52, and Jose Armando Rivera Garcia, 45, both of Miami, purchased high-priced prescriptions medications from illicit street sources—including patients who sold their prescriptions instead of taking the drugs and individuals who obtained prescriptions through fraud. These medicines require carefully controlled storage conditions to remain effective, but the diverted drugs were stored without any safeguards.
“Diverted drugs put patients’ lives at risk,” said U.S. Attorney Jason A. Reding Quiñones for the Southern District of Florida. “These defendants pushed tainted and repackaged medications into pharmacies across the country, knowing full well the danger. Our Office will continue to work with FDA, HHS-OIG, and the FBI to protect patients and hold accountable anyone who turns the healthcare system into a criminal marketplace.”
After purchasing the drugs, members of the conspiracy repackaged them and falsified paperwork to make it appear as though the medicines were supplied directly by manufacturers or legitimate wholesalers. The conspirators marketed the drugs through fake pharmaceutical distribution companies and shipped them to pharmacies across the U.S., where unsuspecting patients purchased them. In some cases, bottles contained incorrect medications, vitamins, or even pebbles—endangering patients’ health.
The first case, indicted in 2019, involved a conspiracy of 20 defendants. All but one fugitive have now been sentenced to prison terms ranging from 30 months to 14 years. Arencibia was among those who procured large quantities of diverted drugs from street sources and sold them to other conspirators. Rivera Garcia established a corporation, LDD Distributors, which received the drugs from Arencibia and sold them to a wholesale distributor operated by another defendant. Arencibia and Rivera Garcia each pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit money laundering, for using financial transactions to conceal the source and ownership of proceeds from the misbranded drugs.
The second case, filed in 2025, charged Arencibia and Rivera Garcia with operating a pharmaceutical wholesale company that marketed diverted drugs to pharmacies nationwide using falsified documentation to conceal the medicines’ true origins and conditions. Arencibia and Rivera Garcia pleaded guilty to trafficking in medical products with falsified documentation.
In total, Arencibia and Rivera Garcia sold approximately $28 million worth of diverted pharmaceuticals between the two schemes.
U.S. District Judge Darrin P. Gayles sentenced Arencibia and Rivera Garcia to 57 months in prison in the 2019 case, to be served concurrently with the 43-month prison terms imposed in the 2025 case.
U.S. Attorney Jason A. Reding Quiñones for the Southern District of Florida; Acting Special Agent in Charge Kelly McCoy of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, Office of Criminal Investigations (FDA-OCI), Miami Field Office; Acting Special Agent in Charge Jesus Barranco of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Office of Inspector General, (HHS-OIG), Miami Regional Office; and Special Agent in Charge Brett D. Skiles of the FBI, Miami Field Office, made the announcement.
The 2019 case was investigated by FDA-OCI and FBI Miami, and the 2025 case was investigated by HHS-OIG.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Frank Tamen prosecuted the 2019 case, and Trial Attorney Jacqueline Zee DerOvanesian of the Department of Justice’s Fraud Section prosecuted the 2025 case. Assistant U.S. Attorney Nicole Grosnoff is handling asset forfeiture.
Related court documents and information may be found on the website of the District Court for the Southern District of Florida at www.flsd.uscourts.gov or at http://pacer.flsd.uscourts.gov, under case numbers 19-cr-20674 and 25-cr-20154.
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Three Sentenced for Methamphetamine TraffickingRead the Press Release
ELKINS, WEST VIRGINIA – Three people have been sentenced this week for drug trafficking in North Central West Virginia, United States Attorney Matthew L. Harvey announced.
Jacob Wilson, 29, of Beverly, West Virginia, was sentenced to 72 months in federal prison for distributing more than five grams of methamphetamine. Wilson was selling methamphetamine from his home.
Lawrence Lower, 36, of Petersburg, West Virginia, was sentenced to 14 months for methamphetamine distribution. Lower was selling methamphetamine in Grant County, West Virginia.
Michael Wayne Miller, 55, of Wardensville, West Virginia, was sentenced to 18 months in federal prison for selling methamphetamine in Hardy County.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Stephen Warner prosecuted the cases on behalf of the government.
Investigative agencies include the Potomac Highlands Drug Task Force, a HIDTA-funded initiative, and the Mountain Region Drug Task Force, a HIDTA-funded initiative.
Chief U.S. District Judge Thomas S. Kleeh presided.
Thibodaux Resident Sentenced After Pleading Guilty to Aggravated Identity Theft, Providing False Statement to Firearms Dealer, and Providing False Statement to Federal AgencyRead the Press Release
NEW ORLEANS – Acting U.S. Attorney Michael M. Simpson announced that BRETT GABRIEL, age 32, of Thibodaux, Louisiana, was sentenced on November 19, 2025 by U.S. District Judge Jane Triche Milazzo.
According to court documents, BRETT GABRIEL used stolen identity information to purchase a firearm and to obtain fraudulent paycheck protection program loan proceeds administered by the federal government.
The defendant was sentenced to twenty-seven months of imprisonment followed by three years of supervised release. The defendant was also ordered to pay a mandatory special assessment fee of three hundred dollars.
Acting U.S. Attorney Simpson praised the work of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives, the United States Secret Service, and the Terrebonne Parish Sheriff’s Office in investigating this matter. Assistant United States Attorney Richard R. Pickens, II of the Financial Crimes Unit is in charge of the prosecution.
This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program bringing together all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve to reduce violent crime and gun violence, and to make our neighborhoods safer for everyone. On May 26, 2021, the Department launched a violent crime reduction strategy strengthening PSN based on these core principles: fostering trust and legitimacy in our communities, supporting community-based organizations that help prevent violence from occurring in the first place, setting focused and strategic enforcement priorities, and measuring the results. For more information about Project Safe Neighborhoods, please visit Justice.gov/PSN.
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Texas Businessman Convicted for Scheme to Bribe Mexican Government OfficialsRead the Press Release
A federal jury in Houston convicted a local businessman today for his role in a scheme to bribe Mexican government officials at Petróleos Mexicanos (PEMEX), the state-owned oil company of Mexico, and PEMEX Exploración y Producción (PEP), PEMEX’s wholly owned exploration and production subsidiary.
“Alexandro Rovirosa orchestrated a scheme to bribe Mexican officials to benefit himself and his companies,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General Matthew R. Galeotti of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division. “Bribery of government officials to win business undermines fair competition and unjustly enriches bad actors. In prosecuting this case, the Department has sent a clear message that we will not tolerate bribery and corruption schemes run out of the United States, whether the bribes are paid here or abroad.”
“Most individuals applying for American citizenship treat our laws and customs with respect,” said Special Agent in Charge Douglas Williams of the FBI Houston Field Office. “Alexandro Rovirosa instead violated U.S. laws through a network of corruption and deceit. Rovirosa believed his residence in Houston protected him from the consequences of bribing foreign officials. However, as today’s verdict demonstrates, his scheme not only cost him a luxurious Texas lifestyle, but also his freedom.”
“The conviction in this case holds the defendant accountable for participating in a scheme to bribe Mexican government officials for the benefit of the defendant and the companies associated with him,” said Special Agent in Charge Jeffrey D. Pittano of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation Office of Inspector General (FDIC OIG), Mid-Atlantic Region. “The FDIC OIG remains committed to working with our law enforcement partners to investigate financial crimes, including those involving bribery and corruption.”
According to court documents and evidence presented at trial, Ramon Alexandro Rovirosa Martinez (Rovirosa), a Mexican citizen and U.S. lawful permanent resident, 46, of The Woodlands, Texas, paid more than $150,000 in bribes to officials at PEP to retain contracts and payments from PEMEX and PEP and obtain other improper advantages in business with PEMEX and PEP, for the benefit of companies associated with Rovirosa. The trial evidence showed that between approximately 2019 and 2021, Rovirosa and his co-conspirators, including Mario Alberto Avila Lizarraga, 61, of Spring, Texas, a Mexican citizen and U.S. lawful permanent resident, offered to pay and paid bribes in the form of cash payments, luxury goods and other valuable items to at least three PEMEX and PEP officials in exchange for those officials taking certain actions to help companies associated with Rovirosa obtain and retain business with PEMEX and PEP. Those improper advantages assisted companies associated with Rovirosa in obtaining contracts with PEMEX and PEP worth at least $2.5 million.
The jury convicted Rovirosa of one count of conspiracy to violate the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) and two counts of violating the FCPA. It found him not guilty of a fourth count of violating the FCPA. He faces a maximum penalty of 15 years in prison. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
Rovirosa’s co-conspirator, Mario Avila, is a fugitive.
HSI Houston, FBI Houston and FDIC-OIG are investigating the case.
Trial Attorneys Lindsey Carson, Samad Pardesi and Paul Ream of the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section and Assistant U.S. Attorney Brad Gray for the Southern District of Texas are prosecuting the case.
The Criminal Division’s Fraud Section is responsible for investigating and prosecuting FCPA matters. Additional information about the Justice Department’s FCPA enforcement efforts can be found at www.justice.gov/criminal/fraud/fcpa.
Terrebonne Parish Man Sentenced for Federal Gun and Drug Trafficking CrimesRead the Press Release
NEW ORLEANS, LOUISIANA – Acting U.S. Attorney Michael M. Simpson announced that WILLIAM ARTHUR BRYANT, JR., (“BRYANT”), age 31, a resident of Terrebonne Parish, was sentenced on November 20, 2025, after previously pleading guilty to six counts in an indictment charging him with conspiracy to distribute, and possess with intent to distribute, fifty grams or more of methamphetamine, possession with intent to distribute fifty grams or more of methamphetamine, use of a communication facility, possession of a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime, and being a convicted felon in possession of a firearm. BRYANT was sentenced to 200 months imprisonment, five years of supervised release, and a $600 mandatory special assessment fee.
According to court documents, BRYANT conspired to distribute methamphetamine throughout Terrebonne Parish, and the surrounding areas, for over a year.
This case was investigated by the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration, the Terrebonne Parish Sheriff’s Office, the Louisiana State Police, and the Houma Police Department. The prosecution was handled by Assistant United States Attorney Lynn E. Schiffman of the Narcotics Unit.
This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program bringing together all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve to reduce violent crime and gun violence, and to make our neighborhoods safer for everyone. On May 26, 2021, the Department launched a violent crime reduction strategy strengthening PSN based on these core principles: fostering trust and legitimacy in our communities, supporting community-based organizations that help prevent violence from occurring in the first place, setting focused and strategic enforcement priorities, and measuring the results. For more information about Project Safe Neighborhoods, please visit Justice.gov/PSN.
Terrebonne Parish Man Guilty of Illegal Drug and Firearm Possession ChargesRead the Press Release
NEW ORLEANS, LA – Acting U.S. Attorney Michael M. Simpson announced that on November 18, 2025, QUINCEY MCKINLEY, age 46 of Terrebonne Parish, pled guilty before U.S. District Judge Lance M. Africk to Possession with Intent to Distribute Controlled Dangerous Substances, in violation of Title 21, United States Code, Sections 841(a)(1) and 841(b)(1)(C), and Felon in Possession of a Firearm, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Sections 922(g)(1) and 924(a)(8). Judge Africk scheduled sentencing for March 4, 2026.
According to court records, after the execution of multiple search warrants, large amounts of methamphetamine, fentanyl, and cocaine, along with numerous firearms, were located in two residences maintained and used by MCKINLEY. MCKINLEY is prohibited from possessing a firearm due to a prior felony conviction.
At sentencing, as to the drug charge, MCKINLEY faces up to twenty years imprisonment, up to a $1,000,000 fine, and at least three years of supervised release. As to the gun charge, he faces up to fifteen years imprisonment, up to a $250,000 fine, and three years of supervised release. Both counts also carry a mandatory $100 special assessment fee.
Acting U.S. Attorney Simpson praised the work of the Terrebonne Parish Sheriff’s Office and Homeland Security Investigations. This case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Stuart Theriot of the Narcotics Unit.
This case is part of Operation Take Back America, a nationwide initiative that marshals the full resources of the Department of Justice to repel the invasion of illegal immigration, achieve the total elimination of cartels and transnational criminal organizations (TCOs), and protect our communities from the perpetrators of violent crime. Operation Take Back America streamlines efforts and resources from the Department’s Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) and Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN).
Tallahassee Man Charged Federally with Communicating Threats to Injure ChildrenRead the Press Release
TALLAHASSEE, FLORIDA – Demetrius Alpha Omega Murray, 33, has been indicted in federal court in a six-count Indictment for interstate communication of threats to injure children. John P. Heekin, United States Attorney for the Northern District of Florida announced the charges.
Murray appeared before United States Magistrate Judge Martin A. Fitzpatrick for his arraignment in federal court on December 4, 2025, in Tallahassee, Florida. Trial is set for February 2, 2026, before United States District Judge Robert Hinkle.
If convicted, Murray faces a maximum of five years imprisonment on each threat count.
The case was investigated by the Tallahassee Police Department, the Leon County Sheriff’s Office, and the Gadsden County Sheriff’s Office. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Eric K Mountin.
An indictment is merely an allegation by a grand jury that a defendant has committed a violation of federal criminal law and is not evidence of guilt. All defendants are presumed innocent and entitled to a fair trial, during which it will be the government’s burden to prove guilt beyond a reasonable doubt at trial.
The United States Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Florida is one of 94 offices that serve as the nation’s principal litigators under the direction of the Attorney General. To access public court documents online, please visit the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Florida website. For more information about the United States Attorney’s Office, Northern District of Florida, visit http://www.justice.gov/usao/fln/index.html.