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Friday 9 November 2018
INTERPOL Washington Receives Recognition from DHSRead the Press Release
On November 7th, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Office of Intelligence and Analysis (OIA) recognized the partnership of INTERPOL Washington—the U.S. National Central Bureau—in homeland security intelligence sharing. OIA nominated INTERPOL Washington for the “HSIN-Intel Partner of the Year” that honors National Fusion Center Association (NFCA) partners for significant contributions to the sharing of unclassified intelligence information and products, analytic collaboration, and real-time information exchange via the HSIN-Intel platform. The nomination was announced during the 2018 National Fusion Center Association (NFCA) Annual Training Event in Alexandria, VA.
INTERPOL Washington was nominated for its sharing of Orange and Purple Notices with U.S. and international law enforcement. Orange notices warn of an event, a person, an object or a process representing a serious and imminent threat to public safety. Purple notices provide information on modus operandi, objects, devices and concealment methods used by criminals. Additional criteria for the award nominations include providing exceptional resources/services, serving as an example of best practices to the Nation; enhancing analytic collaboration and real-time information exchange Nationwide; and directly contributing to improving the awareness of threats and efforts to enhance security postures through information sharing.
Fusion centers operate as state and major urban area focal points for receiving, analyzing, gathering, and sharing threat-related information between federal; state, local, tribal, territorial (SLTT); and private sector partners. The NFCA represents the interests of those partners in order to promote the development and sustainment of fusion centers to enhance public safety; encourage effective, efficient, ethical, lawful, and professional intelligence and information sharing; and prevent and reduce the harmful effects of crime and terrorism on victims, individuals, and communities.
A component of the U.S. Department of Justice, INTERPOL Washington is co-managed by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security. As the designated representative to INTERPOL on behalf of the Attorney General, INTERPOL Washington serves as the national point of contact for all INTERPOL matters, coordinating international investigative efforts among member countries and the more than 18,000 local, state, federal, and tribal law enforcement agencies in the United States.
Great Falls man charged in child pornography caseRead the Press Release
GREAT FALLS—The U.S. Attorney’s Office announced that Lothar Konrad Krauth, 80, of Great Falls, appeared on a criminal complaint before U.S. Magistrate Judge John T. Johnston on charges of receipt of child pornography.
The complaint alleges the crime occurred from about Oct. 26, 2017 to Oct. 26, 2018 in Cascade County.
The complaint is merely an accusation and Krauth is presumed innocent until proven guilty.
If indicted and convicted of the charge in the complaint, Krauth faces a minimum mandatory five years to 20 years in prison, a $250,000 fine and three years supervised release.
Johnston ordered Krauth detained pending a detention hearing set for Nov. 14.
The case was investigated by Homeland Security Investigations. PACER Case Reference. MJ 18-76-GF-JTJ
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Gray Court Felon Pleads Guilty to Gun Charge in Federal CourtRead the Press Release
Florence, South Carolina ---- United States Attorney Sherri A. Lydon announced today that Derrick Bernard Cunningham, 48, of Gray Court, South Carolina, pled guilty in federal court to being a felon in possession of a firearm.
Evidence presented to the court showed that on May 26, 2018, a lieutenant with the South Carolina Law Enforcement Division (SLED) located Cunningham, who was wanted for outstanding warrants, at a hotel in North Myrtle Beach, South Carolina. Cunningham was detained and placed in handcuffs, and the lieutenant noted that Cunningham continually tried to roll onto his left side. The lieutenant observed a heavy object in a pocket of the vest Cunningham was wearing. Cunningham claimed he did not know whether the object was a firearm and that he had borrowed the vest from a friend. A search revealed the object was a Jiminez .380 caliber handgun, loaded with six rounds of ammunition. Federal law prohibits Cunningham from possessing firearms because he has prior state convictions for grand larceny, burglary, and armed robbery.
Cunningham faces a maximum penalty of ten years in federal prison. United States District Judge R. Bryan Harwell accepted the guilty plea and will sentence Cunningham after receiving and reviewing a presentence report prepared by the United States Probation Office.
The charges against Cunningham were the result of an investigation by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF), SLED, and the North Myrtle Beach Police Department. This case was prosecuted as part of the joint federal, state, and local Project CeaseFire initiative, which aggressively prosecutes firearm cases. Project CeaseFire is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a crime reduction strategy originally launched in 2001 that has been historically successful in bringing together all levels of law enforcement to reduce violent crime and make our neighborhoods safer for everyone. Turning the tide of rising violent crime in America is a top priority for the Department of Justice, which has reinstituted PSN and directed all U.S. Attorney’s Offices to develop a district crime reduction strategy. Assistant United States Attorney Lauren Hummel of the Florence office is prosecuting the case.
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Former Owner of Local Nursing Homes Pleads Guilty to Bank Theft and Tax ChargesRead the Press Release
CONTACT: Barbara Burns
PHONE: (716) 843-5817
FAX #: (716) 551-3051BUFFALO, N.Y. - U.S. Attorney James P. Kennedy, Jr. announced today that Marc I. Korn, 62, of East Amherst, NY, pleaded guilty to bank theft and willful failure to pay tax before Senior U.S. District Judge William S. Skretny. Together, the charges each carry a maximum penalty of two years in prison and a $200,000 fine. Pursuant to his agreement with the government, defendant also agreed to pay over $2.5 million in restitution to three different private entities along with approximately $850,000 to the Internal Revenue Service.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Elizabeth R. Moellering, who is handling the case, stated that Korn, who during today’s plea proceeding himself claimed to be in ill-health, was the former owner of the Batavia Nursing Home in Batavia, NY, and the Fairchild Manor Nursing Home in Lewiston, NY. By his plea, Korn admitted to committing bank theft in connection with his actions concerning a credit card and loan from Fifth Third Bank. He also admitted willfully to failing to pay over employment taxes related to his nursing homes over three quarters in 2009.
In 2008, the defendant sought a loan to refinance the Batavia Nursing Home from Fifth Third Bank. In June 2008, Fifth Third Bank provided $3,900,000 to refinance the nursing home and provided Korn with a credit card. As part of the application for the loan, the defendant submitted a personal financial statement and guaranty on which the bank relied when underwriting the loan. The statement contained numerous falsehoods, including the overvaluation of his primary residence. Korn stated that the property was valued at $1,465,000 when, at the same time, he was contesting its value with the Town of Amherst for purposes of property taxes, alleging it was worth between $500,000 and $550,000. Additionally, the defendant provided the bank with statements of bank accounts that he claimed to own. However these statements also contained falsehoods – including one statement for which Korn claimed ownership of an account containing $50,000 in February 2008, when the account actually contained $1.00 and belonged to someone else. The loan and payments on the credit card went into default and Fifth Third Bank lost more than $2,400,000.
Prior to March 2009, for both Batavia Nursing Home and Fairchild Manor Nursing Home, Korn used a service to collect and pay over employment taxes owed. However, beginning in March 2009, the defendant ceased using the service and subsequently intentionally failed to pay to the IRS employment taxes owed for the second, third and fourth quarters of 2009. Instead of paying the taxes owed to the IRS, Korn spent the funds on personal expenses including restaurants, hockey tickets, jewelry, and to pay his children’s college tuition.
Today’s plea is the result of an investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, under the direction of Special Agent-in-Charge Gary Loeffert, and the Internal Revenue Service, Criminal Investigations Division, under the direction of James D. Robnett, Special Agent-in-Charge.
Sentencing is scheduled for March 13, 2019, at 10:00 a.m. before Judge Skretny.
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Former Major at Angola Prison Convicted of Beating a Handcuffed and Shackled InmateRead the Press Release
Daniel Davis, 41, a former Major at Louisiana State Penitentiary (LSP) in Angola, Louisiana, was found guilty by a jury today in federal court for beating an inmate who was handcuffed, shackled, and not resisting. In a previous trial in January, Major Davis was convicted of conspiring with other officers to cover up the beating by devising a false cover story, submitting false reports documenting that cover story, tampering with witnesses, and lying under oath. Four other officers—former Captains James Savoy, John Sanders, and Scotty Kennedy, and former Sergeant Willie Thomas—have all previously pleaded guilty for their roles in the beating and cover up. At Davis’s trial, Captains Sanders and Kennedy testified for the government and described the abuse and the extensive cover up.
After hearing testimony over the course of three days, the jury convicted Davis of willfully depriving the inmate of his right to be free from cruel and unusual punishment. The evidence showed that Davis initiated the beating by yanking the inmate’s leg chains, causing the inmate to fall face-first onto the concrete breezeway. At that point, Davis and the other officers punched, kicked, and stomped on the inmate, leaving the inmate with a bloody gash under his eye, a dislocated shoulder, broken ribs, and a collapsed lung.
“Mr. Davis abused the justice system by beating an inmate, writing false reports, and using his influence and power as a corrections officer to encourage others to lie,” said Assistant Attorney General Eric Dreiband of the Civil Rights Division. “The Justice Department will continue to prosecute correctional officers who violate federal criminal law.”
“Our office is committed to protecting the civil rights of all citizens and ensuring that government employees in positions of authority don’t abuse that authority,” said U.S. Attorney Brandon J. Fremin. “I want to thank the Civil Rights Division of the Department of Justice, the FBI, and the Louisiana Office of Inspector General for their work on this matter. “
"Charged with protecting the civil rights of others, to include those in custody, is a responsibility the FBI takes very seriously,” said Eric J. Rommal, FBI New Orleans Special Agent in Charge. “Law enforcement officers and correctional officers acting under the color of law must ensure a person's civil rights are not violated. The jury's decision today reinforces the FBI's commitment that civil rights and color of law violations will not be tolerated.”
“Corrections officers are given great authority and power in our system because public safety depends on them doing their jobs well,” said Louisiana Inspector General Stephen Street. “When those corrections officers commit crimes by choosing to abuse their power, as defendant Davis did in this case, they must be held accountable, or public trust in the system suffers. The jury’s guilty verdict should send a clear message that we have zero tolerance for it and will continue to aggressively pursue these cases whenever and wherever they may arise. I wish to thank the FBI, United States Attorney Brandon Fremin and the prosecutors from the DOJ Civil Rights Division for their outstanding work on this case.”
No date has been set for Davis’s sentencing. He faces a maximum penalty of five years of imprisonment on the conspiracy and perjury counts, 10 years of imprisonment on the excessive force count, and 20 years of imprisonment on each of the remaining obstruction counts.
This case was investigated by the FBI’s Baton Rouge Resident Agency Office and the Louisiana Office of the State Inspector General. The case was tried by Trial Attorneys Christopher J. Perras and Zachary Dembo of the Civil Rights Division’s Criminal Section and Assistant U.S. Attorney Frederick A. Menner, Jr., of the Middle District of Louisiana.
Former Hospital Employee Pleads Guilty to Embezzling Hospital FundsRead the Press Release
He stole over $46,000 in a little more than a month from Pleasant Valley Hospital
in Point Pleasant, West Virginia
HUNTINGTON, W.Va. – A Point Pleasant man pled guilty yesterday to embezzling more than $45,000 from the Pleasant Valley Hospital, announced United States Attorney Mike Stuart. Kevin L. Durst, 62, faces up to 10 years in prison when he is sentenced on February 19, 2019. He has agreed to pay restitution to the Hospital in the amount of $46,021.57 before he is sentenced. Stuart commended the investigative efforts of the Department of Homeland Security.
“Prosecutions like this are extremely important,” said United States Attorney Mike Stuart. “Local hospitals are so critical to West Virginia communities and any amount of financial loss can be devastating to healthcare providers and patients through higher costs.”
Durst admitted as a financial analyst at Pleasant Valley Hospital, he had access to the Hospital’s online bank accounts and could initiate wire transfers on certain of those accounts. He further admitted that he secretly wrote checks to benefit himself and to his family’s private cemetery from a Hospital account that he knew was dormant and was not scrutinized by other Hospital officials. He also admitted that he transferred funds from the Hospital’s active accounts to the dormant account to ensure that there were abundant funds for his personal use. He further admitted that he initiated wire transfers to the Internal Revenue Service out of Hospital accounts to make federal tax payments for his family’s cemetery. He embezzled the funds between July 20, 2016, and August 22, 2016.
Assistant United States Attorney Meredith George Thomas was in charge of the prosecution. United States District Judge Robert C. Chambers presided over the plea hearing.
Follow us on Twitter: @SDWVNews and @USAttyStuart
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Former El Paso C.B.P. Inspector Pleads Guilty to Federal Wire Fraud ChargeRead the Press Release
In El Paso, a 44-year-old former U.S. Customs and Border Protection Inspector faces up to 20 years in federal prison after pleading guilty to a wire fraud charge in relation to schemes to defraud numerous legal and illegal aliens, announced U.S. Attorney John F. Bash and Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) Special Agent in Charge Jack P. Staton.
Appearing before United States District Judge Kathleen Cardone yesterday afternoon, El Paso resident Federico Garcia, Jr., admitted that from November 2015 to May 2018, he fraudulently presented himself as an immigration attorney and charged various fees to unwitting victims for assistance with applying for immigration benefits. Garcia, who is not a licensed attorney, carried out his scheme under the business names “Justice International” and “High End Immigrant Resource Center.” Garcia’s scheme also included fraudulently soliciting victims to invest their money in business ventures that would provide large returns to those individuals.
Garcia, who remains in federal custody, is scheduled to be sentenced at 10:00am on January 17, 2019, before Judge Cardone in El Paso.
HSI El Paso’s Document and Benefit Fraud Task Force (DBFTF) investigated this case. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Patricia Aguayo, Debra Kanof and Stephen Garcia are prosecuting this case on behalf of the Government.
Former DMV Employee and Trucking School Owner Sentenced for Bribery and Identity FraudRead the Press Release
SACRAMENTO, Calif. — U.S. District Judge Garland E. Burrell Jr. sentenced DMV employee Robert Turchin, 68, of Salinas, California, to six years and six months in prison and sentenced Pavittar Dosangh Singh, 57, of Flowood, Mississippi, to 10 months in prison for conspiracy to commit bribery and identity fraud, U.S. Attorney McGregor W. Scott announced.
According to court documents and evidence presented at trial, Turchin was an employee at the Salinas field office for the Department of Motor Vehicles between 2012 and 2015. Turchin was responsible for conducting tests for applicants for commercial licenses to operate 18-wheel tractor-trailers and commercial buses. Truck school owner Mangal Gill offered to obtain commercial licenses for people without having to pass the written tests or even take the required behind-the-wheel tests. Gill worked with Turchin and another DMV employee, Emma Klem, to have them access the DMV database to fraudulently enter test results at Gill’s request.
During the investigation, confidential operatives were able to obtain three official commercial licenses in 2013 and 2014. Collectively, they paid Gill over $12,000 after Turchin and Klem accessed the DMV database to fraudulently enter passing scores for the operatives despite the fact that the operatives did not pass or otherwise take the required tests. The trial evidence also demonstrated that Gill and Turchin continued to be involved in this fraudulent conduct until March 28, 2015, days before agents executed search warrants and found in Turchin’s vehicle slips of paper containing the numbers of fraudulently updated driver license records as well as several envelopes full of cash totaling over $10,000. The trial evidence showed that Turchin and his co-conspirators falsified DMV database records for at least 40 individuals for the purpose of obtaining commercial licenses.
According to court documents, Pavittar Singh owned a trucking school in Sacramento. Between April 2013 and March 2015, Singh paid money, through intermediaries, to employees of the DMV in order to obtain California Commercial Driver’s Licenses (CDLs) for individuals without those individuals taking or passing the requisite tests.
This case was the product of a series of ongoing investigations by the Federal Bureau of Investigation; Homeland Security Investigations (HSI); and the California DMV, Office of Internal Affairs. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Todd A. Pickles and Rosanne Rust are prosecuting the case.
Mangal Gill was sentenced on November 2, 2018, to four years and three months in prison. Andrew Kimura, a DMV employee, previously pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit bribery and identity fraud and was sentenced to three years and 10 months in prison. DMV employee Emma Klem and Kulwinder Dosanjh Singh, a broker, also previously pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit bribery and identity fraud as part of the same investigation in United States v. Klem, 2:15-cr-139, and United States v. Kulwinder Dosanjh, 2:15-cr-146, respectively. They are scheduled for sentencing on November 16, 2018. They face up to 10 years in prison and a $250,000 fine. The actual sentences, however, will be determined at the discretion of the court after consideration of any applicable statutory factors and the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, which take into account a number of variables.
Former Company Executive Sentenced to Federal Prison in $9 Million Tax Evasion SchemeRead the Press Release
Columbia, South Carolina - United States Attorney Sherri A. Lydon announced today that Bryan S. Bower, 51, formerly of Lake Wylie, South Carolina, was sentenced to over three years in federal prison for tax evasion.
Evidence presented to the court showed that Bower is a former executive of Buckeye Fire Equipment in Kings Mountain, North Carolina. From 2010 to 2013, Bower diverted over $25 million in customer payments directly into his personal bank accounts. He then failed to claim the income on his yearly tax returns, resulting in a failure to pay over $9 million in income taxes.
Bower pled guilty to tax evasion, and United States District Judge Mary Geiger Lewis sentenced him to 41 months in federal prison. There is no parole in the federal system.
“Mr. Bower’s embezzlement scheme to steal from his employer while also deliberately underreporting his embezzlement income on his federal tax returns was motivated by greed,” said Matthew D. Line, Special Agent in Charge, IRS Criminal Investigation, Charlotte Field Office. “Today’s sentencing is a reminder that there are detrimental consequences for this type of criminal behavior. IRS Criminal Investigation will continue our work to bring justice to those that abuse their positions of trust and steal from innocent victims.”
The Internal Revenue Service investigated the case. It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney T. DeWayne Pearson of the Columbia office.
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Former Central Kentucky Businessman Sentenced to 36 Months for the Illegal Transportation and Storage of Hazardous WasteRead the Press Release
LEXINGTON, Ky. – A former Central Kentucky businessman, who currently resides in Austin, Texas, was sentenced in U.S. District Court today. Kenneth Gravitt, 63, was sentenced, to 36 months, by Chief U.S. District Judge Karen Caldwell, on convictions relating to the illegal storage, transportation and disposal of hazardous waste.
In May of this year, Gravitt pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit crimes related to the handling of hazardous waste and one count of illegal storage of hazardous waste. The hazardous waste in this case consisted of old television and computer monitors that contained Cathode Ray Tubes (CRTs), which have large amounts of toxic lead. For a number of years, Gravitt operated Global Environmental Services (GES), in Georgetown, Kentucky, which was in the business of recycling electronic waste. The facts established that beginning around 2013, GES contracted with various businesses and entities to collect and recycle large numbers of devices containing CRTs. Over time, as GES took in far more of these electronic devices than it could process, it began to send crushed CRTs for disposal, to a Central Kentucky landfill that did not have a license to handle such materials. On a separate occasion in October 2015, GES illegally buried large quantities of CRT bearing devices behind its Georgetown facility. Investigators also found large numbers of CRTs in GES managed warehouses in Cynthiana and Winchester. The estimated costs to clean all the sites was several million dollars.
“The illegal disposal of hazardous waste endangers us all,” said Robert M. Duncan, Jr., United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Kentucky. “We have these prohibitions for a reason: they protect the environment, public health, public funds, and the safety of people in our community. When people endanger the community merely to serve their own interests, that conduct simply has to be prosecuted.”
"The defendant in this case put human health and the environment at risk by improperly storing and disposing of hazardous wastes," said Special Agent in Charge Andy Castro of EPA's criminal enforcement program in Kentucky. "This case shows that companies and their top executives who knowingly violate hazardous waste laws will be prosecuted."
Robert M. Duncan, Jr., United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Kentucky; Andy Castro, Special Agent in Charge, Environmental Protection Agency’s Criminal Enforcement Program for Kentucky; and Jon Maybriar, Director, Kentucky Department of Environmental Protection, Division of Waste Management, jointly made the announcement. The investigation was conducted by the Office of Inspector General of the United States Environmental Protection Agency and the Kentucky Department of Environmental Protection, Division of Waste Management. The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Ken Taylor and Erin Roth.
Former Airline Gate Agent Arrested for Cheating Airline Ticketing SystemRead the Press Release
BOSTON – A Chelsea woman was arrested yesterday and charged in connection with using her position as an airline gate agent to convert low cost flights to more expensive flights and destinations for friends, family and acquaintances.
Tiffany Jenkins, 30, was charged in a criminal complaint unsealed yesterday with wire fraud. She was released on conditions following an initial appearance in federal court in Boston.
The complaint alleges that as a gate agent, Jenkins had access to the airline company’s computer reservation database and had the ability to use a special code, referred to as an involuntary exchange or “INVOL,” to change flights for customers at no additional cost. This code enables agents to change flights for customers who miss their flights or experience a death in the family.
During a 15-month period, from approximately July 1, 2016, through Sept. 27, 2017, Jenkins allegedly conducted approximately 505 involuntary ticket exchanges for more than 100 different passengers. Many of those exchanges occurred after the passenger was first booked on domestic flights at one of the airline company’s lowest available fares—often, roundtrip flights between Las Vegas, Nev., and Long Beach, Calif. A short time later, Jenkins exchanged those tickets for a completely different city pair, generally involving much more expensive international locations, for friends, family and acquaintances.
The charge of wire fraud provides for a sentence of no greater than 20 years in prison, three years of supervised release and a fine of $250,000 or twice the gross loss or gain, whichever is greater. Sentences are imposed by a federal district court judge based upon the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
United States Attorney Andrew E. Lelling; Harold H. Shaw, Special Agent in Charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Boston Field Division; and Kristina O’Connell, Special Agent in Charge of the Internal Revenue Service’s Criminal Investigation in Boston, made the announcement today. Assistant U.S. Attorney Sara Miron Bloom of Lelling’s Securities and Financial Fraud Unit is prosecuting the case.
Felon Sentenced to Prison for Possession of AmmunitionRead the Press Release
NORFOLK, Va. – A Norfolk man was sentenced today to the statutory maximum penalty of 10 years in prison for being a felon in possession of ammunition.
According to court documents, Wesley Paul Hadsell, 40, pleaded guilty on Nov. 6, 2015. According to the statement of facts filed with the plea agreement, Hadsell admitted that on Dec. 23, 2013, he purchased ammunition at Bob’s Gun Shop in Norfolk and that on Dec. 31, 2013, he took that ammunition to a gun range in Chesapeake, where he and other individuals used some of the ammunition. Hadsell retained possession of approximately 80 rounds of ammunition after the trip to the range. Hadsell has at least 10 prior convictions for crimes ranging from burglary and bank robbery to felonious restraint.
Hadsell was initially sentenced to 20 years in prison in November 2016, pursuant to the Armed Career Criminal Act, which increased the statutory maximum for the crime. The Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals returned the case for resentencing after holding that one of Hadsell’s prior burglary convictions did not count as an Armed Career Criminal predicate offense, which reset the statutory maximum penalty to 10 years.
G. Zachary Terwilliger, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia, Thomas L. Chittum, III, Special Agent in Charge of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives’ (ATF) Washington Field Division, and Larry D. Boone, Chief of Norfolk Police, made the announcement after sentencing by U.S. District Judge Arenda Wright Allen. Assistant U.S. Attorney Andrew C. Bosse 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 is located on the website of the District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia or on PACER by searching for Case No. 2:15-cr-116.
Federal Grand Jury Criminal Indictments AnnouncedRead the Press Release
United States Attorney Trent Shores announced today the results of the November 2018 Federal Grand Jury.
The following individuals have been charged with violations of United States law in an indictment returned by the Grand Jury. The return of an indictment is a method of informing a defendant of alleged violations of federal law, which must be proven in a court of law beyond a reasonable doubt to overcome a defendant’s presumption of innocence.
Shaun Cruz Conine. Possession of Methamphetamine With Intent to Distribute; Possession of Heroin With Intent to Distribute; Carrying, Using, and Brandishing a Firearm During and in Relation to a Drug Trafficking Crime; Felon in Possession of Firearms and Ammunition; Counterfeiting and Forging Obligations and Securities of the United States; Possession of Counterfeit Obligations and Securities. Conine, 36, of Tulsa is charged with possession with intent to distribute more than 50 grams of a mixture and substance containing methamphetamine; possession with intent to distribute heroin; possessing a firearm during and in relation to a drug trafficking crime; being a felon in possession of firearms and ammunition, including an E.R. Armantino, Model Condor Supreme, 20-gauge over/under shotgun, a Taurus International Manufacturing, Inc., Model 689, .357 Magnum caliber revolver, a Browning Arms Company, Model BL-22, .22 caliber rifle, a Remington Arms Company, Model 7600, .308 WIN caliber rifle, and ammunition. Conine was further charged with forging, as well as, possessing counterfeit $20 Federal Reserve Notes. The Muscogee (Creek) Nation Lighthorse Tribal Police Department, Secret Service, FBI, and Drug Enforcement Administration are the investigative agencies.
Edwin Yupanqui Garcia Castro and Juan Pedro Gonzalez Cedano. Drug Conspiracy; Possession of Heroin With Intent to Distribute. Castro, 26, and Cedano, 35, both of Tulsa, are charged with conspiracy to distribute and possession with intent to distribute more than one kilogram of a mixture and substance containing heroin. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations and the Drug Enforcement Administration are the investigative agencies.
Humberto Cruz-Valasco. Reentry of Removed Alien. Cruz-Velasco, 31, of Tulsa, is charged with having returned to the United States unlawfully after being deported on March 31, 2015, from Laredo, Texas. If convicted, he faces a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison and a fine of $250,000. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations is the investigative agency.
FNU LNU and Adrian Torres-Moran. Drug Conspiracy. First Name Unknown, Last Name Unknown (FNU LNU)—aka “Cholo Loco”—residence and age unknown, and Torres-Moran, 20, of Tucson, Arizona, are charged with conspiring to possess with intent to distribute 500 grams or more of a mixture or substance containing cocaine. The Drug Enforcement Administration and the Texas Highway Patrol are the investigative agencies.
FNU LNU, Gumaro Ibarra, and Jesus Adelio Angulo-Lopez. Drug Conspiracy; Reentry of Removed Alien. FNU LNU—aka “Cholo Loco”—age and residence unknown, Ibarra, 24, residence unknown, and Angulo-Lopez, 24, of Broken Arrow, are charged with drug conspiracy with intent to distribute 500 grams or more of a mixture or substance containing cocaine. Angulo-Lopez is also charged with reentry of removed alien, having returned to the United States unlawfully after being deported on July 2, 2017, at Calexico, Calif. The Texas Highway Patrol, the Drug Enforcement Administration, and Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations are the investigative agencies.
Jason Marcus Franklin. Drug Conspiracy; Possession of Heroin With Intent to Distribute; Unlawful Use of a Communication Device. Franklin, 33, of Tulsa, is charged with drug conspiracy, possession with intent to distribute heroin, and unlawful use of a cell phone to coordinate illegal drug activity. Franklin, along with his co-conspirators, allegedly obtained and distributed heroin throughout the Northern District of Oklahoma, utilizing Tulsa as their base of operations. The conspiracy consisted of a dispatcher, facilitator, drivers, and redistributors. To avoid detection, dispatchers and drivers rotated in and out of Oklahoma from Mexico every six months. As part of the operation, the dispatcher, facilitator and drivers received heroin in bulk from Mexico and delivered drugs to redistributors to sell in communities across northeastern Oklahoma and elsewhere. The facilitator supplied heroin to drivers who delivered the drug to redistributors. Franklin allegedly acted as a redistributor and would text or call the dispatcher to order heroin. Then, using cell phones, the dispatcher coordinated locations where drivers and Franklin would meet and eventually exchange cash for heroin. Franklin, and other redistributors, would then allegedly sell the heroin. The Tulsa Police Department, the FBI, and the Drug Enforcement Administration are the investigative agencies.
Jose Juan Gomez-Martinez. Reentry of Removed Alien. Gomez-Martinez, 48, of Tulsa, is charged with having returned to the United States unlawfully after being deported on March 31, 2007, from Laredo, Texas. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations is the investigative agency.
Scott Andrew Howie. Possession of Methamphetamine With Intent to Distribute; Possession of Firearms in Furtherance of a Drug Trafficking Crime; Felon in Possession of Firearms and Ammunition. Howie, 37, of Bartlesville, is charged with possession with intent to distribute 50 grams or more of a mixture and substance containing methamphetamine; possession a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime; and being a felon in possession of firearms and ammunition, which included a Mossberg (Wards Western Field), Model 46B (04M 491A), .22 caliber bolt-action rifle, the Marlin Firearms Co., Model Glenfield 75, .22 caliber semi-automatic rifle, a Mossberg, Model 510, 20 gauge caliber shotgun, a Ruger, Model EC9s, 9mm Luger semi-automatic pistol, and associated ammunition. The Bartlesville Police Department and Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives are the investigative agencies.
Brian Kirk Marshall. Assaulting Federal Officers; Carrying, Using, and Discharging a Firearm During and in Relation to a Crime of Violence; Possession of a Firearm and Ammunition After a Conviction for a Misdemeanor Crime of Domestic Violence. Marshall, 49, of Pattonsburg, Missouri, is charged with forcibly assaulting FBI agents while agents were executing a search warrant of his Kansas, Oklahoma, residence; carrying, using, and discharging a firearm during a crime of violence; and possessing a firearm and ammunition after being convicted of third degree domestic assault in Missouri in 2008. The FBI is the investigative agency.
Kaylnn Dee Meyer. Failure of a Sex Offender to Notify of International Travel. Meyer, 36, of Vinita, is charged with failure to report information required by the Sex Offender Registration and Notification Act that she intended to and, in fact, traveled outside the United States. Meyer was previously convicted of enabling child sexual abuse and is required to register as a sex offender and meet specified requirements. The U.S. Marshals Service, Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations, and the Oklahoma Department of Corrections are the investigative agencies.
Brett Alan Mull. Corruptly Altering a Record, Document, and Evidence; Acquiring Methamphetamine Through Deception. Brett Alan Mull, 47, of Pryor, is charged with destroying, mutilating, and concealing evidence with intent to impair its integrity or availability for use in an official proceeding, and with using deception and his position as a Mayes County Deputy Sheriff and Lieutenant in charge of the narcotics unit to steal methamphetamine that had officially been seized as evidence. The FBI is the investigative agency.
Zaphion Lynn Nofire. Possession of Methamphetamine With Intent to Distribute. Zaphion Lynn Nofire, 24, of Eucha, is charged with possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine. Nofire faces a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison and a $1 million fine. The Bureau of Indian Affairs is the investigative agency.
Kevin Alonso Rios Casas and Aurelio Gonzalez Romero. Drug Conspiracy; Possession of Heroin With Intent to Distribute. Casas, 22, and Romero, 20, both of Tulsa, are charged with drug conspiracy and with possession with intent to distribute one kilogram or more of a mixture and substance containing heroin. The Tulsa County Sheriff’s Office, the Drug Enforcement Administration, and Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations are the investigative agencies.
Simon Dias Varelas. Felon in Possession of a Firearm and Ammunition; Possession of Methamphetamine With Intent to Distribute; Possession of a Firearm in Furtherance of a Drug Trafficking Crime; Possession of a Firearm in Furtherance of a Drug Trafficking Crime. Varelas, 41, of Sallisaw, is charged with being a felon in possession of a Taurus, PT 111 Pro, 9mm semi-automatic pistol and more than 120 rounds of 9 mm caliber ammunition as well as a Tanfoglio, Model GT380, .380 caliber semi-automatic pistol and associated ammunition. He is also charged with possession of methamphetamine with intent to distribute; and possession of a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime. The West Siloam Springs Police Department, Cherokee County Investigators, and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives are the investigative agencies.
Johnny Josiah Ward, III. Aggravated Identity Theft; Misuse of Social Security Number; False Statement in Application for Passport. Ward, 55, of St. Augustine, Florida, is charged with unlawfully using another person’s identification in relation to felony violations; misusing another person’s social security number and representing it as his own on a passport application submitted to the Department of State; and making a false statement on a passport application in order to be issued a U.S. passport. The Social Security Administration- Office of the Inspector General and U.S. Department of State are the investigative agencies.
John Andrew Williams. Possession of Fifteen or More Counterfeit Access Devices; Possession of Device-Making Equipment; Wire Fraud. John Andrew Williams, 47, of Pembroke Pines, Florida, was charged with possessing 15 or more counterfeit gift cards and with using credit card encoder equipment to re-encode the depleted gift cards fraudulently with bank account and identification information belonging to other persons, which he had obtained illegally from the “dark web.” Williams was also charged with purchasing U.S. postage stamps from kiosks throughout the United States and selling the stamps on Craigslist by means of wire communications. The Rogers County Sheriff’s Office and U.S. Postal Inspection Service are the investigative agencies.
Alicia Wright. Possession of Methamphetamine With Intent to Distribute. Wright, 43, of Hemet, California, is charged with possession with intent to distribute 500 grams or more of a mixture and substance containing methamphetamine. The Tulsa Police Department and Drug Enforcement Administration are the investigative agencies.
Drug-Trafficking Ringleader Sentenced to 22 Years in Prison for Coast-To-Coast ConspiracyRead the Press Release
WAYCROSS, GA --- The leader of a coast-to-coast drug trafficking ring will spend more than two decades in federal prison after sentencing this week.
Cedric King, 38, of Waycross, was sentenced by United States District Judge Lisa Godbey Wood to 22 years in federal prison for his role as the leader of a drug trafficking organization that operated in and around South Georgia, Northern Florida, and California, announced Bobby L. Christine, U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Georgia. King pled guilty to conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute controlled substances, and will be subject to 10 years of supervised release after completion of his sentence as well as required to forfeit over $87,000 and two firearms. There is no parole in the federal prison system.
During a lengthy undercover investigation, FBI agents and Glynn County Police Department investigators conducted multiple wiretaps to gather evidence and to dismantle King’s drug organization. The investigation revealed that King conspired with others to import large quantities of drugs from Mexico via California and distributed cocaine, heroin, methamphetamine, crack cocaine, and marijuana throughout Waycross and surrounding areas.
King, one of 36 conspirators, was arrested in May of 2017 when a wiretap confirmed that he was about to receive another large shipment of drugs from California. Authorities intercepted the drugs in Jacksonville and took King into custody. The operation netted more than six kilograms of cocaine, large quantities of the deadly synthetic opioid fentanyl, and several pounds of marijuana and methamphetamine, as well as several illegal firearms.
“Step by step, drug dealer by drug dealer, we will be relentless as we continue to identify and remove these violent drug traffickers from our communities,” said U.S. Attorney Christine. “With the outstanding cooperation from other federal, state and local law enforcement agencies and prosecutors, we are united in our determination to disrupt and dismantle these poison-pushers and lock their members up.”
“Residents of Waycross can rest easy that a major distributor of drugs on their streets will no longer be able to burden their community with the crime he inflicted on them,” said Chris Hacker, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI Atlanta Division. “It would not have been possible without the collaborative efforts of our partners in law enforcement. This sentencing should serve as notice to anyone thinking about following in King’s footsteps.”
Agencies that participated in the FBI-led investigation included the Coastal Georgia Violent Gang Task Force, the U.S. Marshals Service, the U.S. Probation Office, the Georgia Department of Community Supervision, the Glynn County Police Department, the Brunswick Police Department, the Ware County Sheriff’s Office, the Waycross Police Department and the Blackshear Police Department. The operation was investigated through the Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF), which is comprised of local, state and federal law enforcement agents.
Assistant United States Attorneys Jennifer Kirkland and Marcela Mateo prosecuted the cases on behalf of the United States.
For any questions, please contact Barry Paschal at the United States Attorney’s Office at (912) 652-4422.
Dominican National Charged with Aggravated Identity Theft and Stealing Government BenefitsRead the Press Release
BOSTON – A Dominican national was charged yesterday in federal court in Boston in connection with making false statements, stealing public money, and aggravated identity theft.
Daniel Polonia Morillo, 57, a Dominican national residing in Lawrence, was indicted on one count of false statement on an application for Social Security benefits, one count of false statement in an application and use of a passport, two counts of theft of public money, and one count of aggravated identity theft. Polonia Morillo was arrested and charged by criminal complaint during an October 2018 federal law enforcement sweep in and around the City of Lawrence.
According to the charging documents, Polonia Morillo used the name, Social Security number, and date of birth of another individual to apply for Social Security benefits in December 2016. At the time he applied, Polonia Morillo produced a United States passport in the other person’s name as proof of his identity. In addition, Polonia Morillo is charged with stealing over $40,000 in Medicaid benefits from March 2012 through October 2018, and over $4,000 in Food Stamps from April 2015 through October 2018.
Aggravated identity theft carries a mandatory sentence of two-years in prison that must run consecutively to any other sentence imposed, one year of supervised release, and a fine of $250,000. The charge of theft of public money provides for a sentence of no greater than 10 years in prison, three years of supervised release, and a fine of $250,000 or twice the gross gain or loss, whichever is greater. The charge of false statement for Social Security benefits provides for a sentence of no greater than five years in prison, three years of supervised release, and a fine of $250,000. The charge of false statement in an application of a passport provides for a sentence of no greater than 10 years in prison, three years of supervised release, and a fine of $25,000. Polonia Morillo will be subject to deportation proceedings. Sentences are imposed by a federal district court judge based upon the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
United States Attorney Andrew E. Lelling; Scott Antolik, Special Agent in Charge of the Social Security Administration, Office of Inspector General, Boston Field Office; Peter C. Fitzhugh, Special Agent in Charge of Homeland Security Investigations in Boston; and Massachusetts State Auditor Suzanne M. Bump made the announcement. Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Karen Burzycki of Lelling’s Major Crimes Unit is prosecuting the case.
The details contained in the charging documents are allegations. The defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
District Man Sentenced to 14 Years in Prison for Sexually Abusing Teenage SonsRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON – A 37-year-old man, of Washington, D.C., was sentenced today to 14 years in prison for sexually abusing his children, U.S. Attorney Jessie K. Liu announced.
The man, who is not identified here to protect the privacy of the victims, pled guilty in August 2018, in the Superior Court of the District of Columbia, to charges of first-degree child sexual abuse, first-degree sexual abuse of a minor, and second-degree cruelty to children. The plea, which was contingent upon the Court’s approval, called for an agreed-upon 14-year prison term. The Honorable Danya A. Dayson accepted the plea and sentenced the defendant accordingly. Following his prison term, the man will be required to register for the rest of his life as a sex offender and must also complete a term of 15 years of supervised release.
According to the government’s evidence, on April 14, 2018, the defendant, who had subjected his three biological sons and one stepson to repeated physical abuse over many years, forced his two oldest sons, who were then 14 and 16 years old, to smoke a marijuana cigarette laced with an unknown powdered substance. After the victims consumed the drugs, the defendant performed sexual acts on each of them. The defendant then forced the victims into a bedroom, instructed them to move a dresser to block the door, and performed additional sexual acts on the victims simultaneously. The victims reported the sexual abuse to their two younger brothers the next day, and one of the younger brothers reported the abuse to a social worker a few days later.
The defendant, who was on pretrial release in an unrelated case alleging misdemeanor sexual abuse against an adult victim occurring just one week earlier, was arrested on April 20, 2018, and has been in custody ever since.
The day before the sexual abuse, the defendant had strangled his 11-year-old stepson by putting his hands around the victim’s throat until the victim could not breathe and his face turned red.
In announcing the sentence, U.S. Attorney Liu praised the work of officers from the Metropolitan Police Department’s Youth Investigation Division. She also acknowledged the efforts of those who worked on the case from the U.S. Attorney’s Office, including Victim/Witness Advocate Lezlie Richardson and Criminal Investigator John Marsh. Finally, U.S. Attorney Liu commended Assistant U.S. Attorneys Katie Kern and Jennifer Loeb, who investigated and prosecuted the case.
District Man Pleads Guilty to Federal Firearms Charge in Robbery of Convenience StoreRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON – Cordell Brockington, 25, of Washington, D.C., pled guilty today to a federal firearms charge stemming from an armed robbery that he committed earlier this year at a convenience store in Northwest Washington, announced U.S. Attorney Jessie K. Liu and Peter Newsham, Chief of the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD).
Brockington pled guilty in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia to one count of using, carrying, possessing, and brandishing a firearm during and in relation to a crime of violence. He is to be sentenced on Jan. 22, 2019, by the Honorable Senior Judge Rosemary M. Collyer. Brockington faces a maximum penalty of life in prison.
According to the government’s evidence, on Jan. 9, 2018, at approximately 1:10 a.m., Brockington, while masked, entered a 7-Eleven store in the 1600 block of Connecticut Avenue NW. After entering the store, he approached two store clerks who were working at the time. Brockington stated to the clerks “Give me the money” several times, during which he lifted his jacket area to expose, show, and display a firearm that was located in his waistband.
Brockington then directed one of the clerks to the area of the store where two cash registers were located and instructed the clerk to open both registers. Brockington removed a total of approximately $210 from the registers. He then left the 7-Eleven store.
Brockington was arrested on Jan. 12, 2018, and has been in custody ever since. At the time of his arrest, Brockington was on supervised release following his release from prison eight months earlier for a different armed robbery. He now faces formal revocation of his supervised release and additional incarceration separate and apart from the sentence that he faces for brandishing the loaded firearm on Jan. 9, 2018.
In announcing the plea, U.S. Attorney Liu and Chief Newsham commended the work of the MPD officers who investigated the case. They also acknowledged the efforts of those who worked on the case from the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia, including Assistant U.S. Attorneys David Misler, Ethan Carroll, and Gregory Rosen, as well as Paralegal Jeannette Litz.
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Disbarred Attorney Sentenced to Prison for Defrauding Former Clients and InvestorsRead the Press Release
NEWS RELEASE SUMMARY – November 9, 2018
SAN DIEGO – Clayton Marlow Anderson, Jr., a former attorney based in La Mesa, California before his disbarment in 2015, was sentenced to serve 18 months in federal prison today for defrauding clients and investors. On July 3, 2018, Anderson pleaded guilty to wire fraud and money laundering in connection with his fraudulent investment scheme, known alternatively as the “Clayton M. Anderson Monthly Income Plan,” “Anderson Plan,” or “A-Plan.”
During a hearing this morning before U.S. District Judge Cathy Ann Bencivengo, Anderson was found to have breached his duty as an attorney and a fiduciary by involving his clients in “A-Plan,” a scheme to solicit loans to finance the costs and fees related to construction defect lawsuits brought by his law firm. As a part of his sentence, Anderson was also ordered to pay over $1.5 million in restitution to his victims.
From 2005 until 2014, Anderson solicited unsecured loans from six individuals and paid them high rates of interest between 8% and 13% each year. However, Anderson eventually refashioned these unsecured loans as an “investment” with guaranteed interest, and pitched the investment to his legal clients. In 2012, Anderson won a $1.8 million legal settlement for Jefferson Pointe Professional Corporation (“JPPC”), who had hired Anderson to represent them in a construction defect lawsuit against the builders of their office park in Murrieta, California. Instead of paying his clients their rightful share of the legal settlement as required, Anderson repeatedly solicited them on behalf of “A-Plan Investment Services, Inc.” promising JPPC a 13% annual return on their “investment.” As a part of his guilty plea, Anderson admitted that his pitch to his clients violated his duties as an attorney and that he made multiple false claims, including that A-Plan had over $1 million under management and that A-Plan was the beneficiary of a $4.4 million insurance policy on his life. Anderson admitted his clients invested $800,000 of their legal settlement into “A-Plan” in reliance on his false claims, and that he engaged in other fraudulent conduct toward his clients.
In fact, Anderson was in dire financial straits when he solicited the investment. Anderson admitted making a $182,549.69 bank transfer in order to conceal from his clients the fact that he had already withdrawn their settlement money from his client trust account without their permission. Anderson also admitted that he engaged in a money laundering transaction on January 2, 2013, when he transferred over $30,000 in money derived from his fraud scheme into a retirement account under his control.
In his plea agreement, Anderson admitted that his fraud caused his clients to lose over $600,000, and that the six other A-Plan participants lost over $700,000 in money loaned to him. Anderson also admitted misrepresenting and concealing a variety of information from the six other A-Plan participants, including his law firm’s bankruptcy, his decision to forfeit all outstanding legal settlement money to the bankruptcy trustee, and his suspension and eventual disbarment by the California State Bar in January 2015. Anderson admitted that if A-Plan’s participants had been aware of those facts, they would not have continued to participate in A-Plan, and that his misrepresentations and omissions prevented them from recouping their investments or at the very least mitigating their losses – totaling $1,362,257.50.
“Clayton Anderson put his own financial interests above those of his clients, and he betrayed the trust that they placed in him as their attorney,” said U.S. Attorney Adam L. Braverman. “This prison sentence serves as a warning and demonstrates the commitment of the United States Attorney’s Office to protecting the rights of investors – especially those investing with their own attorney – to candid, truthful information.”
“The FBI vigorously investigates those who breach the attorney-client trust relationship by committing fraud and deceit,” commented FBI Special Agent in Charge John Brown. “Today, Defendant Clayton Anderson, Jr., received an appropriate penalty that will hopefully bring closure for the victims of this egregious fraud.”
“The blatant fraud and deceit carried out by this former attorney is unconscionable,” stated Special Agent in Charge R. Damon Rowe with IRS Criminal Investigation. “The honesty and integrity Americans expect from their attorney must never be compromised, which is why we will continue to work with all levels of law enforcement to root out unscrupulous attorneys and hold them accountable.”
This case was prosecuted by Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Jeffrey D. Hill, and Assistant U.S. Attorney Joseph J. M. Orabona.
DEFENDANT Case Number 18-cr-3075-CAB
Clayton Marlow Anderson, Jr. Mira Loma, CA.
SUMMARY OF CHARGES
Wire Fraud – Title 18, U.S.C., Section 1343
Maximum penalty: 20 years’ imprisonment, $2,724,515 fine, restitution
Money Laundering – Title 18, U.S.C., Section 1957
Maximum penalty: 10 years’ imprisonment, $250,000 fine, restitution
AGENCIES
Federal Bureau of Investigation
Internal Revenue Service, Criminal Investigation
Department of Justice’s Judicial Studies Institute Celebrates Impact on Mexico’s JudiciaryRead the Press Release
The Department of Justice’s Office of Prosecutorial Development and Training (OPDAT), with the support of the Department of State’s International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Division (INL), celebrated the release of “Reflections on the Accusatory System: Shared Experiences” in the Salón Marqués-Conde of the Hotel Marquis Reforma in Mexico City on the evening of Nov. 7.
This volume, authored by a cohort of judges from the Puerto Rican Judiciary, the Federal Judiciary of the United States, and the Judiciary of Colombia, gathers the insights of OPDAT’s closest judicial partners on the role of judges within Mexico’s new accusatory criminal justice system. These judges have generously volunteered their time and expertise to work with OPDAT’s Judicial Studies Institute (JSI) in Mexico and Puerto Rico since 2016. The Honorable Edgardo Rivera García, Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of Puerto Rico, and the Honorable Gustavo Gelpí, Chief Judge of U.S. District Court for the District of Puerto Rico, have been especially instrumental in supporting OPDAT’s programming. The JSI program, funded by the Merida Initiative, strengthens the effectiveness of hundreds of Mexican federal appellate and amparo judges.
“The exchange among our dear friends at the Puerto Rican Supreme Court and the Puerto Rican federal courts, gave us a completely distinct outlook from the judicial trainings in countries like Chile and Colombia,” said Justice of the First Chamber of the Mexican Supreme Court Justice, the Honorable Jorge Mario Pardo Rebolledo. “The shared experience [of the Mexico-Puerto Rico Judicial Studies Institute] has been and continues to generate the most useful knowledge for Mexico’s new accusatory criminal justice system.”
This event commemorated the commitment of OPDAT and its partners to supporting Mexico’s judicial sector in the face of the challenges presented by transnational organized crime.
Deli Owner and Co-Conspirator Found Guilty of Conspiring to Set Fire to Rival DeliRead the Press Release
Geoffrey S. Berman, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, Ashan M. Benedict, Special Agent-in-Charge of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (“ATF”), James P. O’Neill, Commissioner of the New York City Police Department (“NYPD”), and Daniel A. Nigro, Commissioner of the New York City Fire Department (“FDNY”), announced today that REDHWAN SALEH and ANTOINE BOSTICK were convicted by a jury in connection with their participation in an arson in the Bronx, New York. The verdict followed a four-day trial before the Honorable William H. Pauley III.
Manhattan U.S. Attorney Geoffrey S. Berman said: “A unanimous Manhattan jury has found Redhwan Saleh guilty of planning and paying three men to execute the arson of a competing deli in his Riverdale neighborhood. Saleh and his co-defendant, Antoine Bostick, have found out the hard way that playing with fire usually leads to getting burned, and possibly prison.”
ATF Special Agent-in-Charge Ashan M. Benedict said: “The callous actions of Redhwan Saleh and Antoine Bostick caused extensive damage to property and could have resulted in serious injury or harm to first responders and the general public. Thanks to the efforts of the ATF/ NYPD/ FDNY Arson and Explosive Task Force, the individuals responsible were brought to justice. I would like to thank the United States Attorney’s office for their work in prosecuting this case.”
According to allegations in the Superseding Indictment, other filings in Manhattan federal court, and the evidence presented at trial:
SALEH owns a deli near the intersection of 242nd Street and Broadway in the Riverdale section of the Bronx. After SALEH learned that a competing deli was about to open a few stores down from his, SALEH paid three men, including BOSTICK, to set the new deli on fire. On September 11, 2016, a few weeks before the new deli opened, BOSTICK climbed onto the new deli’s roof, poured gasoline down the vent pipe, and lit the gas on fire. The new deli and a neighboring store both suffered extensive fire damage and the new deli’s opening was substantially delayed.
In addition to SALEH and BOSTICK, two other individuals have been convicted in connection with this case. ARTHUR CHERRY pled guilty to conspiracy to commit arson and arson, among other crimes. RICHARD SANCHEZ pled guilty to conspiracy to commit arson.
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SALEH, 37, of Brooklyn, New York, was convicted of conspiracy to commit arson, which carries a maximum sentence of five years in prison, and arson, which carries a mandatory minimum sentence of five years in prison and a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison. SALEH will be sentenced by Judge Pauley on March 15, 2019.
BOSTICK, 32, of New Rochelle, New York, was convicted of conspiracy to commit arson, which carries a maximum sentence of five years in prison. BOSTICK was found not guilty of arson. BOSTICK will be sentenced by Judge Pauley on March 15, 2019.
The statutory maximum and minimum sentences are prescribed by Congress and are provided here for information purposes only, as any sentencing of the defendants would be determined by the judge.
Mr. Berman praised the investigative efforts of the Strategic Explosive and Arson Response Task Force of the ATF, the NYPD, and the FDNY.
The case is being prosecuted by the Office’s General Crimes Unit. Assistant United States Attorneys Adam S. Hobson and Thomas McKay are in charge of the prosecution.
Delaware Woman Charged with Attempting to Smuggle Marijuana into the United States from CanadaRead the Press Release
CONTACT: Barbara Burns
PHONE: (716) 843-5817
FAX #: (716) 551-3051BUFFALO, N.Y. – U.S. Attorney James P. Kennedy, Jr. announced today that Dasiah Danae Cooper, 23, of New Castle, Delaware, was arrested and charged by criminal complaint with possession and importation of a controlled substance, and smuggling goods into the United States. The charges carry a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison and a $250,000 fine.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Patricia Astorga, who is handling the case, stated that according to the complaint, on November 5, 2018, at approximately 12:21 p.m., the defendant attempted to enter the United States from Canada at the Peace Bridge Port of Entry. Cooper was a passenger in a vehicle and stated during primary inspection that she did not have any drugs, weapons, or prohibited items.During a secondary inspection of the vehicle, a narcotics canine detected an odor on the passenger floor area. A search of the floor area resulted in the discovery of a blue plastic container with nine cigarettes containing suspected marijuana.
The defendant made an initial appearance before U.S. Magistrate Judge H. Kenneth Schroeder and was released.
The criminal complaint is the culmination of an investigation by Customs and Border Protection, under the direction of Director of Field Operations Rose Brophy, and Immigration and Customs Enforcement, Homeland Security Investigations, under the direction of Special Agent-in-Charge Kevin Kelly.
The fact that a defendant has been charged with a crime is merely an accusation and the defendant is presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty.
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Dallas felon sentenced to 7 years in prison for possessing firearm in northeast LouisianaRead the Press Release
MONROE, La. – United States Attorney David C. Joseph announced that a Dallas felon was sentenced Wednesday to 84 months in prison for possessing a pistol found during a traffic stop in northeast Louisiana.
Steve Scott, 40, of Dallas, Texas, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Terry A. Doughty on one count of felon in possession of a firearm. He was also sentenced to three years of supervised release. According to the July 26, 2018 guilty plea, Louisiana State Police troopers conducted a stop on Scott’s vehicle for a traffic violation while he was traveling in northeast Louisiana. After searching the vehicle, troopers found a Stallard pistol, Model JS-9, 9 mm caliber, bearing serial number 067896, loaded with nine rounds of 9 mm ammunition. Scott has a prior felony conviction for unlawful possession of a firearm by a convicted felon in Dallas County, Texas.
This case was brought as part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program that has been historically successful in bringing together all levels of law enforcement to reduce violent crime and make our neighborhoods safer for everyone. The Justice Department has made turning the tide of rising violent crime in America a top priority. In October 2017, as part of a series of actions to address this crime trend, PSN was reinvigorated and all U.S. Attorney’s Offices were directed to develop a district crime reduction strategy that incorporates the lessons learned since PSN launched in 2001.
The ATF and the Louisiana State Police conducted the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney Allison D. Bushnell prosecuted the case.
Cowlitz County Man Convicted of Illegal Weapons PossessionRead the Press Release
A Longview, Washington man who was convicted last year of a triple homicide in Vancouver, was convicted today in U.S. District Court in Tacoma of federal felonies for illegal weapons possession, announced U.S. Attorney Annette L. Hayes. BRENT LUYSTER, 37, was convicted following a three day trial of being a felon in possession of a firearm and being a felon in possession of ammunition. When sentenced by U.S. District Judge Benjamin H. Settle on February 25, 2019, LUYSTER faces up to twenty years in federal prison. LUYSTER is currently serving a state sentence of life in prison with no chance of parole.
According to the evidence at trial in the case, Cowlitz County Sheriff’s deputies were called to a Longview home in May 2016, after a woman fled to a neighbor’s home saying she had been assaulted and her child was missing. The woman told responding officers that LUYSTER had hit her in the head with a gun. Another neighbor reported hearing gunshots. Ultimately, officers located LUYSTER on a hillside behind the house and convinced him to surrender. He had ammunition in his pockets and at the location where he had been concealed on the hillside, officers recovered three firearms: a Bushmaster rifle, a Glock .40 caliber handgun and a Keltec .12 gauge shotgun. Additional ammunition was also discovered on the hillside. Inside the house where LUYSTER lived, law enforcement found five additional rifles and a handgun. The investigation revealed that LUYSTER’s live-in girlfriend had purchased the weapons for LUYSTER. LUYSTER was prohibited from possessing firearms due to multiple felony convictions including convictions for assault, burglary, theft, malicious harassment and riot with a deadly weapon.
Following the May 16 assault, while charges were pending, LUYSTER shot and killed three people and critically injured a fourth on July 15, 2016 at a home near Woodland, Washington. He was convicted of three counts of aggravated first degree murder in November 2017.
The case was investigated by the Cowlitz County Sheriff’s Office, Longview Police Department, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms & Explosives (ATF), and the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI). The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Bruce Miyake and Ye-Ting Woo.
Conewango Man Pleads Guilty in Debt Restructuring SchemeRead the Press Release
CONTACT: Barbara Burns
PHONE: (716) 843-5817
FAX #: (716) 551-3051BUFFALO, N.Y. - U.S. Attorney James P. Kennedy, Jr. announced today that Mark Farnham, 25, of Conewango Valley, NY, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit bank fraud before U.S. District Judge Lawrence J. Vilardo. The charge carries a maximum penalty of 30 years in prison and a $1,000,000 fine.
Assistant U.S. Attorneys Stephanie Lamarque and Wei Xiang, who are handling the case, stated that between February 2016 and October 2016, the defendant worked with co-defendants Sergiy Bezrukov and Dustin Walker at companies with various names such as “Corporate Restructure,” and “Salamanca Payroll Services.” Farnham was a manager for Corporate Restructure, Inc., which operated out of office space in Salamanca, NY, and Buffalo NY.
Farnham, Bezrukov and Walker, along with others, used a number of fraudulent companies to mail solicitations to small business owners (victims) which fraudulently informed the victims that one or more of the fraudulent companies could assist the Victims with restructuring debts they had with other lenders.
From the summer of 2016 until October 27, 2016, the defendant: opened multiple bank accounts at a number of banks, including Citizens Bank, Bank of America, Northwest Savings Bank and First Niagara Bank; made daily deposits into the bank accounts opened at the aforementioned banks; made daily withdrawals from the bank accounts at the aforementioned banks; opened post office boxes which were used to receive Victims mail and to use as the return addresses on solicitation letters; and took calls from victims who were upset and had questions about their “loan restructure.”
When talking with victims over the telephone, Farnham used aliases and provided the victims with information that was not true or accurate about the status of the purported loan restructure. Farnham continued to deposit victims’ monies into the account of shell companies that never provided any services, and withdrew the deposited money from those accounts.
Charges are pending against Sergiy Bezrukov with trial set to begin on December 17, 2018, before Judge Vilardo. The fact that a defendant has been charged with a crime is merely an accusation and the defendant is presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty. Dustin Walker was previously convicted and is awaiting sentencing.
The plea is the result of an investigation by the United States Postal Inspection Service, under the direction of Inspector-in-Charge Joseph W. Cronin of the Boston Division; the Internal Revenue Service, Criminal Investigations Division, under the direction of James D. Robnett, Special Agent-in-Charge, New York Field Office; and Special Agents of Immigration and Customs Enforcement, Homeland Security Investigations, under the direction of Special Agent-in-Charge Kevin Kelly.
Sentencing is scheduled for March 19, 2019, before Judge Vilardo.
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Colombian National Charged with Illegal Reentry and Immigration FraudRead the Press Release
BOSTON – A Colombian national has been charged in federal court in Boston with illegally reentering the United States after deportation and immigration document fraud.
Guillermo Pineda Suarez, 56, was indicted on one count of illegal reentry of a deported alien, one count of possession and use of a false immigration document, and one count of false statements in an immigration document. Pineda Suarez is currently in state custody on unrelated charges.
According to the indictment, on May 22, 2014, Pineda Suarez made a false statement under oath in a United States Citizenship and Immigration Services Form I-9 Employment Eligibility Verification Form and used a counterfeit U.S. Permanent Resident Card. It is further alleged that on March 15, 2018, Pineda Suarez was encountered by law enforcement in Boston and determined to be unlawfully present in the United States. Pineda Suarez was previously deported on Nov. 9, 2001.
Each charge provides for a sentence of up to 10 years in prison, three years of supervised release and a fine of up to $250,000. Pineda Suarez will be subject to deportation upon completion of any sentence imposed. Sentences are imposed by a federal district court judge based upon the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
United States Attorney Andrew E. Lelling; Peter C. Fitzhugh, Special Agent in Charge of Homeland Security Investigations in Boston; and Todd M. Lyons, Acting Field Office Director, Boston, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Enforcement and Removal Operations, made the announcement today. Assistant U.S. Attorney Elianna J. Nuzum of Lelling’s Major Crimes Unit is prosecuting the case.
The details contained in the charging documents are allegations. The defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
Collinsville Man Admits to Possessing Child Pornography Depicting Very Young ChildrenRead the Press Release
A 34-year old man has entered a guilty plea to possession of child pornography, announced U.S. Attorney Trent Shores.
From May 22, 2017, through July 13, 2017, Igor Kolosha, knowingly possessed and accessed graphic images and videos of children under the age of 12 engaged in sexually explicit conduct. Some of those images were of children as young as toddlers.
“Child pornography victims are repeatedly exploited by pedophiles lurking on the internet in search of sexually graphic photos and videos,” said U.S. Attorney Trent Shores. “Federal investigators and prosecutors act with the utmost vigilance when it comes to protecting child victims. We will identify, locate and prosecute child predators and anyone who seeks out or produces child pornography.”
U.S. District Judge Claire V. Eagan accepted the guilty plea and set sentencing for Feb. 12, 2019. At that time, Kolosha faces a maximum of 20 years in prison and a $250,000 possible fine.
Kolosha was permitted to remain on bond pending the sentencing.
The FBI conducted the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney Shannon Cozzoni 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. Led by United States Attorney’s Offices and the Criminal Division's Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS), Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state and local resources to better locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the Internet, as well as to identify and rescue victims.
This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice. Led by United States Attorney’s Offices and the Criminal Division's Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS), Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state and local resources to better locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the Internet, as well as to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.projectsafechildhood.gov.
Champaign County Man to Serve 45 Years in Prison for Sexual Exploitation of ChildrenRead the Press Release
URBANA, Ill. – Chief U.S. District Judge James E. Shadid today ordered Joshua E. Lange, 40, of Tolono, Ill., to serve 45 years in federal prison for his sexual exploitation of children from September 2015 through January 2017.
On April 27, 2018, Lange entered pleas of guilty to the three counts of sexual exploitation of children as charged in the indictment returned by the grand jury in November 2017. Lange admitted that he used the minors to engage in sexually explicit conduct, while the minors were asleep, and produced videos and photographs in his basement of such conduct.
U.S. Attorney John C. Milhiser stated, “We will continue to work with our state and federal partners to identify these predators and bring them to justice.”
In a separate case, in Champaign County Circuit Court, Lange is scheduled to be sentenced on Nov. 13, 2018, for aggravated criminal sexual abuse. It was during the investigation of a criminal sexual abuse allegation that investigators discovered that Lange possessed images of sexually explicit conduct depicting at least three additional minors.
Lange has remained in the custody of the U.S. Marshals Service since his arrest on Nov. 3, 2017.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Elly M. Peirson represented the government in the prosecution. The charges were investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation; the Champaign Police Department, and the Champaign County Sheriff’s Office, with the cooperation of the Champaign County States Attorney.
The case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice. 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 as well as to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.projectsafechildhood.gov.
Cesar Altieri Sayoc Charged in 30-Count Indictment with Mailing Improvised Explosive Devices in Connection with Domestic Terrorist AttackRead the Press Release
Cesar Altieri Sayoc, aka Cesar Randazzo, aka Cesar Altieri, and aka Cesar Altieri Randazzo, 56, was charged today in a 30-count Indictment for offenses relating to his alleged execution of a domestic terrorist attack in October 2018, which involved the mailing of 16 improvised explosive devices (IEDs) to 13 victims throughout the country.
Assistant Attorney General for National Security John C. Demers, U.S. Attorney Geoffrey S. Berman for the Southern District of New York, Assistant Director in Charge William F. Sweeney Jr. of the FBI’s New York Office, and Police Commissioner James P. O’Neill of the NYPD made the announcement. The case is assigned to U.S. District Judge Jed S. Rakoff.
“According to court filings, Cesar Sayoc mailed 16 IEDs to more than a dozen victims throughout the country, including current and former elected leaders. Less than five days after the first IED was discovered, he was tracked down and arrested, thanks to the outstanding work of the FBI, the U.S. Postal Inspection Service and other law enforcement partners,” said Assistant Attorney General Demers.
“Cesar Sayoc allegedly targeted former high-ranking officials such as President Barack Obama, President Bill Clinton, Vice President Joe Biden, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, and others, as well as CNN, by sending explosive packages to them through the U.S. Postal Service,” said U.S. Attorney Berman. “Sayoc’s alleged conduct put numerous lives at risk. It was also an assault on a nation that values the rule of law, a free press, and tolerance of differences without rancor or resort to violence. Thanks to the diligent and determined work of our law enforcement partners here and across the country, it took just five days to identify and apprehend Sayoc and end his reign of terror. He now faces justice from a nation of laws.”
“As alleged, Cesar Sayoc deliberately targeted 13 individuals with 16 improvised explosive devices, attempting to create an atmosphere of fear and intimidation from California to the eastern seaboard,” said Assistant Director in Charge Sweeney. “Thanks to the seamless integration of FBI JTTFs across the country, working side-by-side with many other law enforcement agencies and first responders, his campaign of terror was brought to a rapid conclusion just five days after the discovery of the first device. The FBI remains steadfast in our mission to protect the American public, and we will move with speed to bring justice to anyone seeking to harm our communities.”
“I commend everyone involved in investigating and prosecuting this case, particularly the agents and detectives on the FBI’s Joint Terrorism Task Force in New York, which includes 56 agencies and 300 individuals – 113 of them NYPD cops,” said Commissioner O’Neill. “Standing shoulder to shoulder with the FBI, the ATF, the U.S. Marshals, the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, the New York State Police, and others, we said from the outset that we would identify and bring to justice the person allegedly responsible for these acts. We could make that promise because of our proven history of effective partnership. The public’s vigilance also greatly assisted this investigation and helped lead to today’s 30-count indictment. What is clear is that New Yorkers are always resilient in the face of threats – we refuse to back down, and we will never be deterred.”
According to the Indictment, Complaint, other court filings, and statements made during court proceedings[1]:
Between Oct. 22 and Nov. 2, the FBI and the U.S. Postal Service recovered 16 padded manila envelopes containing IEDs allegedly mailed by Sayoc from Florida to addresses in New York, New Jersey, Washington, D.C., Delaware, Atlanta and California. Sayoc’s alleged victims, listed alphabetically, were former Vice President Joseph Biden, Senator Cory Booker, former CIA Director John Brennan, former Director of National Intelligence James Clapper, former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, CNN, Robert De Niro, Senator Kamala Harris, former Attorney General Eric Holder, former President Barack Obama, George Soros, Thomas Steyer, and Representative Maxine Walters.
Each of the 16 envelopes allegedly mailed by Sayoc had similar features, including the return addressee “Debbie Wasserman Shultz” at an address in “Florids,” six self-adhesive postage stamps bearing the American flag, and address labels printed on white paper with blank ink in similar typeface and font size. Each of the 16 envelopes also contained an IED. The 16 IEDs also had similar features, including approximately six inches of PVC pipe packed with explosive material, a small clock, and wiring. Some of the IEDs also contained shards of glass.
Preliminary analysis by the FBI has revealed forensic evidence linking 11 of the 16 mailings to Sayoc. Specifically, latent fingerprints on two of the envelopes have been identified to Sayoc, and there are possible DNA associations between a DNA sample collected from Sayoc prior to his arrest in this case and DNA found on components from 10 of the IEDs (including one of the IEDs that was mailed in an envelope from which a latent fingerprint identified to Sayoc was recovered).
The FBI arrested Sayoc in Plantation, Florida, on Oct. 26 – less than five days after the Oct. 22 recovery of the first IED, which Sayoc allegedly mailed to Soros in New York. The FBI seized a laptop from Sayoc’s van in connection with the arrest that contained lists of physical addresses that match many of the labels on the envelopes that Sayoc allegedly mailed. The lists were saved at a file path on the laptop that includes a variant of Sayoc’s first name: “Users/Ceasar/Documents.” A document from that path, titled “Debbie W.docx” and bearing a creation date of July 26, contained repeated copies of an address for “Debbie W. Schultz” in Sunrise, Florida, that is nearly identical, except for typographical errors, to the return address that Sayoc allegedly used on the packages. Similar documents bearing file titles that include the name “Debbie,” and creation dates of Sept. 22, contain exact matches of the return address allegedly used by Sayoc on the 16 envelopes.
Sayoc possessed a cellphone at the time of his arrest, and the FBI’s ongoing forensic analysis of the device has revealed additional evidence. For example, Sayoc allegedly used the phone to conduct the following Internet searches, among others, on the dates indicated:
- July 15: “hilary Clinton hime address”
- July 26: “address Debbie wauserman Shultz”
- Sept. 19: “address kamila harrias”
- Sept. 26: “address for barack Obama”
- Sept. 26: “michelle obama mailing address”
- Sept. 26: “joseph biden jr”
- Oct. 1: “address cory booker new jersey”
- Oct. 20: “tom steyers mailing address”
- Oct. 23: “address kamala harris”
Sayoc’s phone also contained photographs of some of the victims.
* * *
Sayoc, a U.S. citizen, is charged in the Indictment with 30 counts: one count of six different offenses for each of the five IEDs that he allegedly mailed to Clinton, Brennan, Clapper, Soros and De Niro in the Southern District of New York. In aggregate, the 30 counts in the Indictment carry a potential maximum penalty of life imprisonment, and a mandatory minimum penalty of life imprisonment. A chart providing more information regarding the charges and potential penalties is set forth below. The statutory penalties are prescribed by Congress and are provided here for informational purposes only, as any sentencing of the defendant would be determined by the judge.
Counts
Charge
Penalties Per Count
1 – 5
Using a weapon of mass destruction
Maximum per count: life
6 – 10
Interstate transportation of an explosive
Maximum per count: 20 years
11 – 15
Conveying a threat in interstate commerce
Maximum per count: 5 years
16 – 20
Unlawful use of mails
Maximum per count: 10 years
21 – 25
Carrying an explosive during the commission of a felony
Minimum for first conviction: 10 years
Minimum for additional convictions: 20 years
26 – 30
Using and carrying a destructive device in furtherance of a crime of violence
Maximum per count: life
Minimum for first conviction: 30 years
Minimum for additional convictions:
lifeMr. Demers and Mr. Berman praised the outstanding efforts of the FBI’s New York Joint Terrorism Task Force, which principally consists of agents from the FBI and detectives from the NYPD, and the U.S. Postal Inspection Service. Mr. Demers and Mr. Berman also thanked the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Florida for its assistance.
Assistant U.S. Attorneys Sam Adelsberg, Emil J. Bove III, Jane Kim, and Jason A. Richman of the Southern District of New York are in charge of the prosecution, with assistance from Trial Attorneys David Cora and Kiersten Korczynski of the National Security Division’s Counterterrorism Section.
Cesar Altieri Sayoc Charged in 30-Count Indictment with Mailing Improvised Explosive DevicesRead the Press Release
Geoffrey S. Berman, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, John C. Demers, the Assistant Attorney General for National Security, William F. Sweeney Jr., Assistant Director-in-Charge of the New York Office of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (“FBI”), and James P. O’Neill, Police Commissioner of the City of New York (“NYPD”), announced today that Cesar Altieri Sayoc, a/k/a “Cesar Randazzo,” “Cesar Altieri,” and “Cesar Altieri Randazzo,” was charged today in Manhattan federal court in a 30-count Indictment for offenses relating to his alleged execution of a domestic terrorist attack in October 2018, which involved the mailing of 16 improvised explosive devices (“IEDs”) to 13 victims throughout the country. The case is assigned to U.S. District Judge Jed S. Rakoff.
Manhattan U.S. Attorney Geoffrey S. Berman said: “Cesar Sayoc allegedly targeted former high-ranking officials such as President Barack Obama, President Bill Clinton, Vice President Joe Biden, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, and others, as well as CNN, by sending explosive packages to them through the U.S. Postal Service. Sayoc’s alleged conduct put numerous lives at risk. It was also an assault on a nation that values the rule of law, a free press, and tolerance of differences without rancor or resort to violence. Thanks to the diligent and determined work of our law enforcement partners here and across the country, it took just five days to identify and apprehend Sayoc and end his reign of terror. He now faces justice from a nation of laws.”
Assistant Attorney General John C. Demers said: “According to court filings, Cesar Sayoc mailed 16 IEDs to more than a dozen victims throughout the country, including current and former elected leaders. Less than five days after the first IED was discovered, he was tracked down and arrested, thanks to the outstanding work of the FBI, the U.S. Postal Inspection Service and other law enforcement partners.”
FBI Assistant Director William F. Sweeney Jr. said: “As alleged, Cesar Sayoc deliberately targeted 13 individuals with 16 improvised explosive devices, attempting to create an atmosphere of fear and intimidation from California to the eastern seaboard. Thanks to the seamless integration of FBI JTTFs across the country, working side-by-side with many other law enforcement agencies and first responders, his campaign of terror was brought to a rapid conclusion just five days after the discovery of the first device. The FBI remains steadfast in our mission to protect the American public, and we will move with speed to bring justice to anyone seeking to harm our communities.”
NYPD Commissioner James P. O’Neill said: “I commend everyone involved in investigating and prosecuting this case, particularly the agents and detectives on the FBI’s Joint Terrorism Task Force in New York, which includes 56 agencies and 300 individuals – 113 of them NYPD cops. Standing shoulder to shoulder with the FBI, the ATF, the U.S. Marshals, the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, the New York State Police, and others, we said from the outset that we would identify and bring to justice the person allegedly responsible for these acts. We could make that promise because of our proven history of effective partnership. The public’s vigilance also greatly assisted this investigation and helped lead to today’s 30-count indictment. What is clear is that New Yorkers are always resilient in the face of threats – we refuse to back down, and we will never be deterred.”
According to the Indictment, Complaint, other court filings, and statements made during court proceedings[1]:
Between October 22 and November 2, 2018, the FBI and the U.S. Postal Service recovered 16 padded manila envelopes containing IEDs allegedly mailed by Sayoc from Florida to addresses in New York, New Jersey, Washington, D.C., Delaware, Atlanta, and California. Sayoc’s alleged victims, listed alphabetically, were former Vice President Joseph Biden, Senator Cory Booker, former CIA Director John Brennan, former Director of National Intelligence James Clapper, former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, CNN, Robert De Niro, Senator Kamala Harris, former Attorney General Eric Holder, former President Barack Obama, George Soros, Thomas Steyer, and Representative Maxine Waters.
Each of the 16 envelopes allegedly mailed by Sayoc had similar features, including the return addressee “Debbie Wasserman Shultz” at an address in “Florids,” six self-adhesive postage stamps bearing the American flag, and address labels printed on white paper with black ink in similar typeface and font size. Each of the 16 envelopes also contained an IED. The 16 IEDs also had similar features, including approximately six inches of PVC pipe packed with explosive material, a small clock, and wiring. Some of the IEDs also contained shards of glass.
Preliminary analysis by the FBI has revealed forensic evidence linking 11 of the 16 mailings to Sayoc. Specifically, latent fingerprints on two of the envelopes have been identified to Sayoc, and there are possible DNA associations between a DNA sample collected from Sayoc prior to his arrest in this case and DNA found on components from 10 of the IEDs (including one of the IEDs that was mailed in an envelope from which a latent fingerprint identified to Sayoc was recovered).
The FBI arrested Sayoc in Plantation, Florida, on October 26, 2018 – less than five days after the October 22 recovery of the first IED, which Sayoc allegedly mailed to Soros in New York. The FBI seized a laptop from Sayoc’s van in connection with the arrest that contained lists of physical addresses that match many of the labels on the envelopes that Sayoc allegedly mailed. The lists were saved at a file path on the laptop that includes a variant of Sayoc’s first name: “Users/Ceasar/Documents.” A document from that path, titled “Debbie W.docx” and bearing a creation date of July 26, 2018, contained repeated copies of an address for “Debbie W. Schultz” in Sunrise, Florida, that is nearly identical, except for typographical errors, to the return address that Sayoc allegedly used on the packages. Similar documents bearing file titles that include the name “Debbie,” and creation dates of September 22, 2018, contain exact matches of the return address allegedly used by Sayoc on the 16 envelopes.
Sayoc possessed a cellphone at the time of his arrest, and the FBI’s ongoing forensic analysis of the device has revealed additional evidence. For example, Sayoc allegedly used the phone to conduct the following Internet searches, among others, on the dates indicated:
-
- July 15, 2018: “hilary Clinton hime address”
- July 26, 2018: “address Debbie wauserman Shultz”
- September 19, 2018: “address kamila harrias”
- September 26, 2018: “address for barack Obama”
- September 26, 2018: “michelle obama mailing address”
- September 26, 2018: “joseph biden jr”
- October 1, 2018: “address cory booker new jersey”
- October 20, 2018: “tom steyers mailing address”
- October 23, 2018: “address kamala harris”
Sayoc’s phone also contained photographs of some of the victims.
* * *
SAYOC, 56, of South Florida, is charged in the Indictment with 30 counts: one count of six different offenses for each of the five IEDs that he allegedly mailed to Clinton, Brennan, Clapper, Soros, and De Niro in the Southern District of New York. In aggregate, the 30 counts in the Indictment carry a potential maximum penalty of life imprisonment, and a mandatory minimum penalty of life imprisonment. A chart providing more information regarding the charges and potential penalties is set forth below. The statutory penalties are prescribed by Congress and are provided here for informational purposes only, as any sentencing of the defendant would be determined by the judge.
Mr. Berman and Mr. Demers praised the outstanding efforts of the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s New York Joint Terrorism Task Force, which principally consists of agents from the FBI and detectives from the New York City Police Department, New York State Police, Westchester County Police Department, the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. Mr. Berman and Mr. Demers also thanked the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Florida for its assistance.
This prosecution is being handled by the Office’s Terrorism and International Narcotics Unit. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Sam Adelsberg, Emil J. Bove III, Jane Kim, and Jason A. Richman are in charge of the prosecution, with assistance from Trial Attorneys David Cora and Kiersten Korczynski of the National Security Division’s Counterterrorism Section.
Counts
Charge
Penalties Per Count
1 – 5
Using a weapon of mass destruction
Maximum per count: life
6 – 10
Interstate transportation of an explosive
Maximum per count: 20 years
11 – 15
Conveying a threat in interstate commerce
Maximum per count: 5 years
16 – 20
Unlawful use of mails
Maximum per count: 10 years
21 – 25
Carrying an explosive during the commission of a felony
Minimum for first conviction: 10 years
Minimum for additional convictions: 20 years
26 – 30
Using and carrying a destructive device in furtherance of a crime of violence
Maximum per count: life
Minimum for first conviction: 30 years
Minimum for additional convictions:
life
[1] As the introductory phrase signifies, the entirety of the text of the Complaint and the Indictment, and the description of the Complaint and Indictment set forth herein, constitute only allegations and every fact described should be treated as an allegation.
-
Camden Felon Sentenced to Federal Prison for Unlawfully Possessing a FirearmRead the Press Release
Columbia, South Carolina---- United States Attorney Sherri A. Lydon announced today that Tarkim Shavell Melendez, 30, of Camden, South Carolina, was sentenced to nearly four years in federal prison for being a felon in possession of a firearm.
Evidence presented to the court showed that when a Bishopville City Police officer conducted a traffic stop in Bishopville on February 8, 2018, he recognized the passenger, Melendez, because Melendez had outstanding arrest warrants. When Melendez was arrested he was carrying a stolen, loaded 9mm pistol. Federal law prohibits him from owning or possessing a firearm or ammunition due to previous felony convictions.
Senior United States District Judge Joseph F. Anderson, Jr., sentenced Melendez to 46 months in federal prison, to be followed by three years of court-ordered supervision. There is no parole in the federal system.
The case was investigated by the Bishopville City Police Department and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) and prosecuted as part of the joint federal, state, and local Project CeaseFire initiative, which aggressively prosecutes firearm cases. Project CeaseFire is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a crime reduction strategy originally launched in 2001 that has been historically successful in bringing together all levels of law enforcement to reduce violent crime and make our neighborhoods safer for everyone. Turning the tide of rising violent crime in America is a top priority for the Department of Justice, which has reinstituted PSN and directed all U.S. Attorney’s Offices to develop a district crime reduction strategy. Assistant United States Attorney William E. Day, II, of the Columbia office prosecuted the case.
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Camden County Police Officer Charged with Civil Rights Violation and Obstruction of JusticeRead the Press Release
CAMDEN, N.J. - A federal grand jury indicted a Camden County police officer for multiple offenses arising from an assault on the streets of Camden, New Jersey, United States Attorney Craig Carpenito announced.
Nicholas Romantino, 25, of Egg Harbor Township, New Jersey was charged in a two-count Indictment that was unsealed today. The Indictment alleges that Romantino violated a victim’s civil rights by repeatedly punching the victim in the head and then falsified a police report to cover up the assault. A federal grand jury returned the sealed Indictment on November 7, 2018.
According to documents filed in this case and statements made in court:
On or about February 22, 2018, Romantino was working in his official capacity as a Camden County Police Officer when he responded to a radio dispatcher’s report of a “man with a gun” in the area of Collings and New Hampshire Roads. Romantino was one of several police officers who responded.
When officers arrived at the location, another officer stopped the victim and told him to put his hands up. The victim complied. Romantino approached the victim from behind and tried to pull his arm behind his back, which startled the victim. The victim reacted by pulling his arm away from Romantino. Romantino then threw the victim to the ground.
Once on the ground, Romantino rolled the victim over onto his stomach at which point another officer grabbed the victim’s legs and a second officer grabbed the victim’s right arm. Romantino grabbed the victim’s left hand.
Romantino, without provocation, punched the victim multiple times in the back of his head. Ultimately, the victim was transported in police custody to Virtua Hospital in Camden, New Jersey, where he received treatment for head injuries, as a result of the punches that he received from Romantino.
After the victim was transported to the hospital, Romantino checked himself into Virtua Hospital where he received treatment for injuries to his right hand, as a result of the punches that he delivered to the victim’s head.
Romantino then returned to the police station to prepare his reports in connection with the victim’s arrest. To justify his actions against the victim, Romantino prepared and submitted a false and fraudulent police report in which Romantino falsely stated that the victim “placed his left hand under his chest and began to try [to] lift himself off the ground. Due to the fact that the male was trying to lift himself up and I was unable to see his right hand I began to strike the male in the head with a closed fist . . . .” Contrary to Romantino’s representations in his report, Romantino held the victim’s left hand while he punched the victim in the back of his head and another officer held the victim’s right arm.
The violation of civil rights count carries a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison. The false records count carries a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison. The maximum fine for each of the charges is $250,000.
U.S. Attorney Carpenito credited special agents of the FBI, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Michael T. Harpster of the Philadelphia Division, with the investigation leading to today’s indictment. U.S. Attorney Carpenito also recognized the contributions of the Internal Affairs Unit of the Camden County Police Department, under the direction of Chief J. Scott Thomson, and investigators assigned to the Special Prosecution Unit of the Camden County Prosecutor’s Office.
The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorney Jason M. Richardson of the U.S. Attorney’s Office Criminal Division in Camden.
The charges and allegations contained in the indictment are merely accusations, and the defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
Buffalo Man Charged with Possession of A MachinegunRead the Press Release
CONTACT: Barbara Burns
PHONE: (716) 843-5817
FAX #: (716) 551-3051BUFFALO, N.Y. - U.S. Attorney James P. Kennedy, Jr. announced today that Jeffrey Parker, 33, of Buffalo, NY, was arrested and charged by complaint with unlawful possession of a machinegun, and unlawful possession of a firearm which is not registered in the National Firearms Registration and Transfer Record. The charges carry a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison and a $250,000 fine.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Timothy C. Lynch, who is handling the case, stated that according to the complaint, on September 6, 2018, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives received information from the New York State Police that Parker may have purchased a noncompliant AR-15 style rifle in North Carolina. That same day, an ATF special agent spoke with the defendant who voluntarily turned over eight firearms to the ATF. Six of them were recovered at a cousin’s house in Buffalo and the other two were recovered from Parker’s friend’s house.
While examining the rifles, the special agent noticed that one of the rifles might be a fully automatic machinegun. ATF records show that the defendant purchased this firearm on May 26, 2011, from Federal Firearms Licensee (FFL) Craiglow’s Gun Shop, in West Seneca, NY. The special agent went to Craiglow’s Gun Shop and spoke to the owner who stated he did not believe that the gun was a fully automatic machinegun when he transferred it to Parker.
Law enforcement officers subsequently tested the rifle at a firearms and determined that the rifle functioned as a fully automatic machinegun. A records check also determined that the machinegun was not registered to the defendant.The defendant made an initial appearance today before U.S. Magistrate Judge H. Kenneth Schroeder and was released.
The complaint is the result of an investigation by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives, under the direction of Special Agent-in-Charge Ashan Benedict, and the New York State Police, under the direction of Major Edward Kennedy.The fact that a defendant has been charged with a crime is merely an accusation and the defendant is presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty.
# # # #
Bakersfield Man Indicted for Multiple Firearm ChargesRead the Press Release
FRESNO, Calif. — A federal grand jury returned a six-count indictment Thursday against Julian Burmado, 29, of Bakersfield, charging him with one count of unlawfully manufacturing and dealing firearms and five counts of possession of a firearm not registered in the National Firearms Registry, U.S. Attorney McGregor W. Scott announced.
According to court documents, between March 19 and November 6, 2018, Burmado manufactured and sold homemade rifles to a confidential informant. Many of the rifles had barrel lengths of less than 16 inches. Burmado did not have a license to engage in the business of manufacturing and dealing in firearms, nor were any of the short-barrel rifles registered as required by federal law.
This case is the product of an investigation by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and the Bakersfield Police Department. Assistant U.S. Attorney Melanie L. Alsworth is prosecuting the case.
If convicted, Burmado faces a maximum statutory penalty of 10 years in prison and a $250,000 fine for each count involving possession of unregistered firearms, and a maximum statutory penalty of five years in prison and a $250,000 fine for unlawfully manufacturing and dealing firearm. Any sentence, however, would 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. The charges are only allegations; the defendant is presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.
Baker man and trucking company ordered to pay $1.29 million, face prison for fraud and violating laws regulating transporting hazardous materialsRead the Press Release
BILLINGS – The U.S. Attorney’s Office announced today that Donald E. Wood, Jr., of Baker, and his trucking company, Woody’s Trucking LLC, were sentenced in U.S. District Court for convictions on multiple charges stemming from a 2012 explosion at an oil and gas processing facility in Wibaux, Montana.
U.S. District Judge Susan Watters sentenced Wood, 57, to 12 months and one day in prison and three years of supervised release. Watters sentenced Woody’s Trucking to four years of probation.
Watters also ordered forfeiture of a personal money judgment of $644,689.70 and ordered restitution of $644,689.70. The monetary penalties total $1,289,370.40 to be paid by Wood and Woody’s Trucking.
A federal jury convicted Wood and his company on 13 of 14 counts after an eight day trial in May. Both defendants were convicted of conspiracy, wire fraud, mail fraud, obstruction of justice and hazardous materials shipping paper and placarding violations. The one count of acquittal related to a placarding violation.
In a sentencing memo, Assistant U.S. Attorney Bryan Dake said the case was about Wood “engaging in deceitful, fraudulent and dangerous conduct, manipulating his otherwise legitimate business practices, in order to line his own pockets.”
The case arose after a December 29, 2012 explosion at Custom Carbon Processing, Inc.’s facility in Wibaux, in which three employees were seriously injured. A driver for Woody’s Trucking had loaded natural gas condensate, or “drip gas,” from a pipeline station in Watford City, N.D., and hauled it to Custom Carbon Processing, a facility that processes and recycles slop oil.
Previous bills of lading that accompanied Woody’s shipments falsely identified the product as “slop oil and water,” which is a non-hazardous substance. On the date of the explosion, the driver was pumping from the truck’s front tank into the CCP facility, when flammable vapors from the drip gas ignited and caused an explosion, injuring three employees. The tanks on the truck burned for eight days. It was determined later that the truck contained drip gas and not slop oil and water. Drip gas is a hazardous material and the truck was not placarded to indicate it held a flammable liquid.
Witnesses at trial testified that Wood, the CEO of the trucking company, directed the driver to place a falsified bill of lading in the burned out truck several days after the explosion. The reason was to cover up the fact that the company was hauling drip gas without placards. The false bill of lading also was submitted to the company’s insurance company and to the Occupational Safety and Health Administration. In addition, the company had no insurance coverage for hauling drip gas.
Later, employees of the burned facility sued Woody’s Trucking, the owners of the CCP facility and others for negligence in a civil action. Woody’s submitted the lawsuit to its insurance company for payment of costs, attorney fees and payment of the eventual settlements to the injured workers. The insurance company agreed to settle the claims, but always maintained that Woody’s Trucking failed to disclose that it was transporting hazardous materials.
The insurance company made coverage related payments after the explosion on behalf of Woody’s Trucking. The company paid $644,689.70 for costs and fees associated with the explosion.
U.S. Attorney Kurt Alme said, “The defendants in this case cut corners to get ahead, and in doing so, endangered lives. For the safety of our citizens, this conduct cannot be permitted. I want to thank the prosecution team and the representatives from the Department of Transportation, Environmental Protection Agency and Department of Labor that coordinated on this important investigation.”
“We believe today’s sentencing sends a strong message to those responsible for properly handling and transporting hazardous material,” said Jeffrey Dubsick, Regional Special Agent in Charge for the U.S. Department of Transportation Office of Inspector General. “Working with our law enforcement and prosecutorial partners, we will continue our vigorous efforts to protect against those who would risk the safety of the public and the environment for personal gain.”
Susan Bodine, assistant administrator of EPA’s Office of Enforcement and Compliance Assurance, said, “The defendants in this case not only violated federal transportation regulations, but also tried to cover up their actions by providing first responders with falsified documents. Companies managing hazardous chemicals should take notice that EPA and our law enforcement partners will enforce laws designed to protect our communities and the environment from chemical accidents.”
Rita Lucero, regional administrator for OSHA’s Region VIII, said, “OSHA is very appreciative of the prosecution brought by the U.S. Attorney’s office in this case. OSHA, the Department of Justice and the Environmental Protection Agency will continue working together to bring employers to justice when they jeopardize the health and safety of their employees.”
Assistant U.S. Attorney Bryan Dake represented the U.S. Attorney’s Office at sentencing. Assistant U. S. Attorney Adam Duerk and Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Eric Nelson of the EPA tried the case.
The case was investigated by the U.S. Attorney’s Office, EPA’s Criminal Investigation Division, Department of Transportation’s Office of Inspector General and the Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration.
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Atlanta-Area Brother and Sister Plead Guilty to Offenses Arising from Narcotics TraffickingRead the Press Release
NEW ORLEANS – U.S. Attorney Peter G. Strasser announced that TAGGET WILLIAMS, age 44, of Atlanta, Georgia, and SONYA WILLIAMS, age 44, of Norcross, Georgia, pled guilty today to offenses arising from narcotics trafficking.
According to court documents, TAGGET traveled to New Orleans seeking to purchase five kilograms of cocaine from a confidential informant. His sister SONYA was to drive the shipment from New Orleans to Atlanta, from where TAGGET would resell it.
TAGGET pled guilty to conspiring to distribute and to possess with the intent to distribute five kilograms or more of cocaine, for which he faces a term of imprisonment of at least ten years and up to life, a fine of up to $10,000,000, and at least five years of supervised release following any term of imprisonment. SONYA pled guilty to concealing the felony, for which she faces up to three years in prison, a fine of $250,000, and up to one year of supervised release following any term of imprisonment.
Judge Barbier set sentencing for February 7, 2019.
United States Attorney Strasser praised the work of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, Homeland Security Investigations. Assistant U.S. Attorney Jeffrey Sandman is in charge of the prosecution
Anne Arundel County Man Pleads Guilty to Federal Charges for Sexually Abusing A Minor to Produce Child PornographyRead the Press Release
Baltimore, Maryland – Glenn Ranger, age 56, of Glen Burnie, Maryland, pleaded guilty today to two counts of production of child pornography in connection with his sexual abuse of a young boy.
The guilty plea was announced by United States Attorney for the District of Maryland Robert K. Hur; Acting Special Agent in Charge Cardell T. Morant of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI); Colonel William M. Pallozzi, Superintendent of the Maryland State Police; Chief David A. Spencer of the Easton Police Department; Chief Terrence B. Sheridan of the Baltimore County Police Department; and Anne Arundel County State’s Attorney Wes Adams.
According to his guilty plea, from no later than 2004, Ranger knowingly persuaded, enticed, and coerced a prepubescent male to engage in sexually explicit conduct in order to produce videos and images of that conduct. Specifically, Ranger sexually abused John Doe, an approximately 10-year-old boy, in order to record the abuse. The boy was unaware that Ranger was recording the abuse.
In July 2014, Ranger leased a storage unit in Pasadena, Maryland, but failed to pay the rent for the unit. The contents of the unit were purchased at auction by a resident of Easton, Maryland, in March 2018. After observing the nature of the contents, the individual turned them over to law enforcement. The contents of Ranger’s storage unit included computers and other digital devices, VHS tapes, framed photographs, and binders containing printed and organized images of child pornography erotica. The framed photographs included five images of child pornography, including images of John Doe produced by Ranger. The digital devices were forensically examined and were found to contain over 200 images of child pornography and more than 10,000 child exploitive/age difficult images. Two of the VHS tapes contained videos of Ranger sexually abusing John Doe on three separate occasions, and also show Ranger taking sexually explicit photographs of John Doe. The digital camera used to take the photographs and the storage card were also located among the items from Ranger’s storage unit. The files indicate the photos were produced on April 1, 2005, when John Doe was 10 years old.
Ranger was arrested on April 4, 2018. Ranger’s mobile phone was forensically examined after his arrest and revealed that Ranger had visited the social media profile of John Doe, and had made over 46,000 searches using terms such as “nude teen boys,” “nude teenager girl,” “nude teenager boy,” “pure nudist,” and “familys nude.”
Ranger faces a mandatory minimum sentence of 15 years in prison and a maximum of 30 years in prison, followed by up to lifetime of supervised release, for each of the two counts of production of child pornography. The government is recommending a 50 year sentence. U.S. District Judge Richard D. Bennett has scheduled sentencing for January 24, 2019 at 11:00 a.m. Ranger remains detained.
This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by the United States Attorney’s Offices and the Criminal Division's Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who sexually exploit children, and to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.justice.gov/psc. For more information about Internet safety education, please visit www.justice.gov/psc and click on the "resources" tab on the left of the page.
United States Attorney Robert K. Hur commended HSI-Baltimore, the Maryland State Police, the Easton Police Department, the Baltimore County Police Department, and the Anne Arundel County State’s Attorney’s Office for their work in the investigation. Mr. Hur thanked Assistant U.S. Attorney Paul E. Budlow, who is prosecuting the federal case.
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Anchorage Child Psychologist Sentenced for Possession of Child PornographyRead the Press Release
Anchorage, Alaska – U.S. Attorney Bryan Schroder announced today that Russell Cherry, 51, of Anchorage, was sentenced today by U.S. District Judge Sharon L. Gleason, to serve four years in federal prison, followed by 15 years of supervised release, after previously pleading guilty to one count of possession of child pornography. Cherry worked as a neuropsychologist treating children in Anchorage until he was indicted in June 2018.
According to court documents, in the summer of 2017, Cherry had been using a file-sharing network to download images and videos depicting child sexual exploitation. Cherry became the subject of a federal investigation after APD detectives observed activity from an IP address that had distributed through the file-sharing network, a 4-minute video depicting the sexual assault of two children between eight and 10 years old. The investigation determined that the IP address was associated with Cherry’s residence.
On Aug. 29, 2017, APD and FBI executed a search warrant on Cherry’s residence, where several hundred images depicting child pornography were found on a number of different devices belonging to Cherry. During a statement to law enforcement at the time of the search, Cherry admitted to searching for and downloading images depicting child sexual exploitation for his own “curiosity.”
The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and the Anchorage Police Department (APD) conducted the investigation leading to the successful prosecution of this case. This case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Adam Alexander.
This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative to combat the growing epidemic of child exploitation and abuse launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice. Led by U.S. Attorney’s Offices nationwide and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state and local resources to better locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the Internet, as well as to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.projectsafechildhood.gov.
Albany County Man Admits Distributing Child Pornography over Encrypted Messaging ApplicationRead the Press Release
ALBANY, NEW YORK – Derek Boprey, age 31, of Ravena, New York, pled guilty today to distributing child pornography via an encrypted messaging application on his phone.
The announcement was made by United States Attorney Grant C. Jaquith and James N. Hendricks, Special Agent in Charge of the Albany Field Office of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI).
As part of his guilty plea, Boprey admitted that on March 23, 2018, he used the Wickr Me messaging application to distribute child pornography over the internet to another man, also residing in the Capital Region. Boprey, using the name “durb30,” sent dozens of images of child pornography, including images depicting the sexual abuse of children as young as 2 years old. Boprey also pled guilty to possessing child pornography on 2 electronic devices.
Boprey, who was ordered into custody today, faces at least 5 years and up to 20 years in prison, to be followed by post-imprisonment supervised release of at least 5 years and up to life, when he is sentenced on March 6, 2019 by United States District Judge Mae A. D’Agostino. A defendant’s sentence is imposed by a judge based on the particular statute the defendant is charged with violating, the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other factors. Boprey would also have to register as a sex offender upon his release from prison.
This case was investigated by the FBI and its Child Exploitation Task Force, which includes members of federal, state and local law enforcement agencies, including the Colonie Police Department. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Michael Barnett with assistance from the Albany County District Attorney’s Office.
This case is being prosecuted as part of Project Safe Childhood. Launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice, Project Safe Childhood is led by United States Attorneys’ Offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS), 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 https://www.justice.gov/psc
Acting Attorney General Whitaker Statement on Presidential ProclamationRead the Press Release
After President Trump’s Presidential Proclamation regarding the Southwest Border, Acting Attorney General Matthew Whitaker issued the following statement of strong support:
"Our southern border is in crisis. The hundreds of thousands of illegal aliens who have unlawfully crossed our border are posing a significant threat to the government’s ability to effectively enforce our nation’s immigration laws. Plain and simple, there are too many loopholes in our current immigration system. The vast majority of asylum claims that originated from this system are not meritorious. What’s worse, large numbers of aliens fail to even pursue their claims in court and many fail to appear for their court hearings.
“Today, the President has made a strong statement that enough is enough. Aliens with legitimate claims to asylum can still receive it—they simply have to go to one of our ports of entry. Thanks to this decisive order from President Trump, we are continuing to provide a path to protection for those who truly need it, while stopping our generosity from being abused."
The total number of aliens referred to expedited removal proceedings has significantly increased over the last decade, from 161,516 aliens in 2008 to approximately 234,534 in FY 2018. The total number of credible-fear referrals for interviews increased from about 5,000 a year in Fiscal Year (FY) 2008 to about 97,000 in FY 2018.
The vast majority of asylum applications are not meritorious. In FY 2018, a total of about 6,000 aliens who passed through credible-fear screening (17 percent of all completed cases, 27 percent of all completed cases in which an asylum application was filed, and about 36 percent of cases where the asylum claim was adjudicated on the merits) established that they should be granted asylum.
More than approximately 70,000 aliens a year (as of FY 2018) are estimated to enter between the ports of entry and then assert a credible fear in expedited removal proceedings. Another 24,000 assert fear to return at our ports of entry.
As of November 2, 2018, there were approximately 203,569 total cases pending in the immigration courts that originated with a credible-fear referral—or 26 percent of the total backlog of 791,821 removal cases.
Of that number, 136,554 involved nationals of Northern Triangle countries. 89 percent of aliens from the Northern Triangle receive a positive credible-fear interview.
But in nearly half of the completed cases involving these aliens, the alien failed to appear at a hearing or failed to file an asylum application.- 71 percent were of claims completed with the issuance of an order of removal.
- 31 percent were of claims completed where the alien failed to appear at a hearing.
- 40 percent were of claims completed without the alien filing an application for asylum
- Only nine percent were ultimately granted asylum.
18 Members and Associates of Selma Street Gang Charged in Mobile Federal Court with Narcotics and Firearm OffensesRead the Press Release
United States Attorney Richard W. Moore of the Southern District of Alabama and DEA Special Agent in Charge Stephen G. Azzam announced the unsealing today of a twenty-three count indictment charging 18 members and associates of a Selma-based street gang known as the MLK Gang” with narcotics conspiracy and firearms offenses.
A total of seven defendants were taken into custody this week; seven other defendants were already in Alabama state custody. Six of the 18 defendants will be presented and arraigned before U.S. Magistrate Judge Sonja F. Bivins today at 2:00 P.M. CHOIIS HARRIS was arrested in northern Alabama and was presented and arraigned before Magistrate Judge Herman N. Johnson, Jr. in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Alabama yesterday. The case is assigned to United States District Judge Jeffrey U. Beaverstock.
U.S. Attorney Richard Moore said: “The city of Selma has been plagued too long with a high level of violent crime that we are determined to stop. This indictment is only one part of the strategy of federal, state and local law enforcement to take back the streets of Selma. The U.S. Attorney’s Office will continue to increase our presence in Selma and we are asking the residents of Selma to join us in making their streets safe again.”
DEA Special Agent in Charge Stephen G. Azzam said, “The damage caused by drugs and violence affects everyone across the nation, including towns like Selma, Alabama. Our neighborhoods deserve to exist without fear and intimidation inflicted by violent drug gangs. The arrests of these individuals should be a warning to others who prey on the weak and defenseless through their drug trafficking and violent acts. We will continue to work with all of our law enforcement partners, to relentlessly pursue these violent criminals and drug traffickers plaguing our communities.”
As alleged in the Indictment unsealed today in Mobile federal court and in other court papers:
The MLK gang, comprised of “DTE” gang members and “Crips” affiliated individuals, concentrated in the processing of cocaine into crack cocaine and its distribution in and around the Martin Luther King Street area of Selma, Alabama. To protect its crack Distribution location, the MLK gang maintained a ready supply of firearms, including handguns, shotguns, and semi-automatic rifles. These weapons were often used by the MLK Gang against rival crack cocaine traffickers.
Count One of the Indictment charges DAMIAN ROGERS, aka DTE LI’DAME, aka A1 DAME, aka DAME, KEISHA WEST, aka TREECE, IRVIN WEST, aka TRIPPY, aka MOO MOO, MITCHELL WILLIAMS, JR., aka MINI MAN, aka MANY MAN, aka MAN E MAN, JAMARCUS BRENSON, aka DTE LISAVAGE, aka L’IL SAVAGE, aka SAVAGE, aka CHEESE, KAREEN WALKER, aka CHROME, JEREMIAH BROWN, aka UNC, EARL GOLDSBY, aka IRON HEAD, LEO CARTER, aka BO PEEP, JAMARRIOUS SHAW, aka DUKEY DUKE, JUWAN HOWARD, J’QUAHN HARVILLE, aka DTE MELO, aka MELO, aka RAHMEL, CHOIIS HARRIS, KENTREVIUS WASHINGTON, aka TREY, JAMES CARTEZ LEE, aka KNACK KNACK, JON GARY, aka ROUN, HORACE CRAIG, aka HONEY BEE, and JARRELL PRITCHETT aka RELLwith participating in a conspiracy to possess with the intent to distribute crack cocaine.
Count Nine of the Indictment charges DAMIAN ROGERS, aka DTE LI’DAME, aka A1 DAME, aka DAME, KEISHA WEST, aka TREECE, IRVIN WEST, aka TRIPPY, aka MOO MOO, MITCHELL WILLIAMS, JR., aka MINI MAN, aka MANY MAN, aka MAN E MAN, JAMARCUS BRENSON, aka DTE LISAVAGE, aka L’IL SAVAGE, aka SAVAGE, aka CHEESE, JEREMIAH BROWN, aka UNC, EARL GOLDSBY, aka IRON HEAD, JAMARRIOUS SHAW, aka DUKEY DUKE,JUWAN HOWARD, J’QUAHN HARVILLE, aka DTE MELO, aka MELO, aka RAHMEL, CHOIIS HARRIS, KENTREVIUS WASHINGTON, aka TREY, JAMES CARTEZ LEE, aka KNACK KNACK, and HORACE CRAIG, aka HONEY BEE, with participating in a conspiracy to possess a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime.
If convicted of the drug conspiracy in Count One, the defendants could be imprisoned from a minimum of five to a maximum of 40 years. If convicted of the firearm conspiracy in Count Nine, the defendants could be imprisoned up to twenty years. The maximum potential sentences in this case are prescribed by Congress and are provided here for informational purposes only, as any sentencing of the defendants will be determined by the judge.
This case was investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration, the Selma Police Department, the Alabama Law Enforcement Agency, and the Alabama Attorney General’s Office. Assistant United States Attorney Luis F. Peral is handling prosecution of the case for the United States.
The charges contained in an indictment are merely accusations, and the defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
Thursday 8 November 2018
“Monkey Island” Pipe Bomb Suspect ConvictedRead the Press Release
TULSA, Okla. – A 36-year-old resident of Grove has pleaded guilty to possession of an unregistered destructive device discovered at a residence in Afton, announced U.S. Attorney Trent Shores.
In his plea agreement, Richard C. Cole admitted to possessing a pipe bomb which was capable of exploding and for not taking the required steps to apply for and register the destructive device with the National Firearms Registration and Transfer Record according to federal laws. The bomb was located at his former rental apartment in Afton.
“Improvised explosive devices such as these are dangerously volatile,” said Shores. “The pipe bombs here involved “exploding targets” consisting of binary explosives, which when the two components are mixed become explosives. These types of IEDs are subject to federal law and federal storage requirements. Mr. Cole acted criminally and irresponsibly by possessing these pipe bombs. Thank goodness they were discovered, and the Oklahoma Highway Patrol Bomb Squad was able to render the devices safe.”
On Aug. 25, 2018, Delaware County Sheriff’s deputies were called to Cole’s apartment unit after the landlord discovered a suspected improvised explosive device (IED). The landlord made the discovery as he was inspecting the apartment following Cole’s eviction. Authorities then contacted the Oklahoma Highway Patrol Bomb Squad who, upon arrival, observed two, one-pound canisters containing “mixed Tannerite” which is a binary explosive. They also found two boxes of ammunition along with an IED, commonly referred to as a “pipe bomb,” in an ammunition container. The explosive experts then rendered the device safe at that time.
A conviction for possessing an unregistered device carries a possible sentence of 10 years in prison and a $250,000 maximum fine. U.S. District Judge Claire V. Eagan will impose sentencing Feb. 8, 2019. Cole was permitted to remain on bond pending that hearing.
The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives; Oklahoma Highway Patrol Bomb Squad and Delaware County Sheriff’s Office conducted the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney Robert T. Raley is prosecuting the case. He is also the National Security Anti-Terrorism prosecutor for the U.S. Attorney’s Office in the Northern District of Oklahoma.
Wood County man sentenced to more than 10 years for his connection to a drug distribution operation in Wetzel and Tyler CountiesRead the Press Release
WHEELING, WEST VIRGINIA – Timothy Lohri, of Williamstown, West Virginia, was sentenced to 121 months incarceration for his involvement in methamphetamine, cocaine, and heroin distribution that spanned multiple states, United States Attorney Bill Powell announced.
Lohri, age 36, pled guilty to one count of “Conspiracy to Distribute and to Possess with the Intent to Distribute Controlled Substances” in July 2018. Lohri admitted to his involvement in a conspiracy that consisted of trafficking crystal methamphetamine, also known as “ice,” heroin, and cocaine brought to West Virginia from Columbus, Ohio, and obtained from as far away as Atlanta, Georgia.
Assistant U.S. Attorneys Robert H. McWilliams, Jr., and Shawn M. Adkins prosecuted the case on behalf of the government. The Drug Enforcement Administration; the Bureau of Alcohol; Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives; the Marshall County Drug and Violent Crimes Task Force, a HIDTA-funded initiative; the West Virginia State Police; the Tyler County Sheriff’s Office; the Wetzel County Sheriff’s Office; the Sistersville Police Department; the Paden City Police Department; and the New Martinsville Police Department investigated. The Columbus, Ohio, Police Department Gang Crimes Unit assisted in the case.
The investigation was funded in part by the federal Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force Program (OCDETF). The OCDETF program supplies critical federal funding and coordination that allows federal and state agencies to work together to successfully identify, investigate, and prosecute major interstate and international drug trafficking organizations and other criminal enterprises.
U.S. District Judge John Preston Bailey presided.
Wheeling man sentenced for wire fraudRead the Press Release
WHEELING, WEST VIRGINIA – Eugene Robert LeClear, of Wheeling, West Virginia, was sentenced today to 30 months incarceration for wire fraud, United States Attorney Bill Powell announced.
LeClear, age 47, pled guilty to one count of “Wire Fraud” in July 2018. LeClear admitted to defrauding others out of more than $100,000 from August 2016 to December 2017 in Ohio County.
LeClear was also ordered to pay $130,405 in restitution to the victims.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Randolph J. Bernard prosecuted the case on behalf of the government. The Federal Bureau of Investigation investigated.
U.S. District Judge John Preston Bailey presided.West Virginia Residents Indicted for Kidnapping and Firearms Offenses Committed in Tennessee, Virginia and West VirginiaRead the Press Release
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. – On October 16, 2018, a federal grand jury in Knoxville returned a 16-count superseding indictment against Josh Small, 51, of Princeton, West Virginia, and Joni Amber Johnson, 35, of Princeton, West Virginia, charging them with kidnapping, conspiracy to commit kidnapping, using firearms during crimes of violence, and being felons in possession of firearms. Both appeared before U.S. Magistrate Judge Deborah Poplin in U.S. District Court on November 6, 2018, and pleaded not guilty to the charges included in the indictment.
Trial is set for April 30, 2018, in U.S. District Court. If convicted, Small faces 97 years in mandatory minimum sentences for the firearms-related charges and up to life in prison for each kidnapping charge. Johnson faces 82 years in mandatory minimum sentences for the firearms charges, plus an additional 10 years for each felon in possession charge and up to life in prison for each of the kidnapping charges.
Details of the charges against Small and Johnson are contained in the indictment, which is on file with the U.S. District Court and available to the public. According to the indictment, Small worked for a family member on small paving jobs, such as paving or repaving driveways, for single-family households in Tennessee. The customers were often retirees and the elderly who paid cash for the work. After returning to West Virginia from Tennessee following the paving work, Small traveled back to Tennessee with Johnson where they committed home invasions of elderly Tennessee residents, including some for which paving work had been done. The residents were confined to their own homes where Small and Johnson allegedly tied them up, held them at gunpoint and stole their valuables, which they later sold to pawn shops in West Virginia. In addition to the offenses committed in Tennessee, the indictment also alleges a conspiracy to commit similar crimes in Virginia and West Virginia.
Agencies whose investigation led to the indictment of Small and Johnson include the FBI, Giles County Sheriff's Office in Virginia; Carroll County Sheriff's Office in Virginia; Montgomery County Sheriff's Office in Virginia; Bland County Sheriff's Office in Virginia; Virginia State Police; Mercer County Sheriff's Department in West Virginia; Campbell County Sheriff's Office in Tennessee; and, Jefferson County Sheriff's Office in Tennessee. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Tracy Stone and Cynthia Davidson will represent the United States in court proceedings.
Members of the public are reminded that an indictment constitutes only charges and that every person is presumed innocent until his or her guilt has been proven beyond a reasonable doubt.
This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program bringing together all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve to reduce violent crime and make our neighborhoods safer for everyone. Attorney General Jeff Sessions reinvigorated PSN in 2017 as part of the Department’s renewed focus on targeting violent criminals, directing all U.S. Attorney’s Offices to work in partnership with federal, state, local, and tribal law enforcement and the local community to develop effective, locally-based strategies to reduce violent crime.
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Washington man sentenced to 10 years in prison for heroin possessionRead the Press Release
GREAT FALLS – Washington resident Christopher Craig Johnson, 36, was sentenced to 10 years in federal prison and three years of supervised release today for his conviction of possessing heroin for distribution.
U.S. District Judge Brian M. Morris presided at the hearing.
Johnson pleaded guilty to possession with intent to distribute heroin.
Law enforcement officers arrested Johnson after a car crash in July 2015 in Great Falls in which Johnson and another person fled the scene. A passenger at the scene told officers that the vehicle belonged to Johnson, that he had brought methamphetamine and heroin from Washington on the trip and had the drugs when they arrived in Great Falls. Johnson had sold some of the meth in town and had planned to go to Browning to distribute drugs but got into the crash.
Further investigation led to Johnson’s arrest. A search warrant led to the seizure of meth and a small amount of heroin from his Great Falls residence. Law enforcement officers then executed a search warrant on Johnson’s wrecked vehicle and seized heroin. A Drug Enforcement Administration lab determined the drugs seized totaled 82.8 grams of pure meth and 18.17 grams of heroin.
In a sentencing memo, Assistant U.S. Attorney Jessica Betley said Johnson was a serious danger to the community and that he had at least 10 prior felony convictions, including holding up individuals at gunpoint during a robbery and drug distribution and possession offenses.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Jessica Betley prosecuted the case, which was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and the Russell Country Drug Task Force.
The U.S. Attorney’s Office is partnering with federal, state, local and tribal law enforcement to identify those responsible for significant violent crime in Montana. A centerpiece of this effort is Project Safe Neighborhoods, a recently reinvigorated Department of Justice program that has proven to be successful in reducing violent crime. Today’s sentencing is part of the Project Safe Neighborhoods program.
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United States sues UBS to recover civil penalties for fraud in the sale of residential mortgage-backed securitiesRead the Press Release
ATLANTA - The United States Government filed a civil complaint against UBS AG and several of its United States affiliates (together, UBS), alleging that UBS defrauded investors throughout the United States and the world in connection with its sale of residential mortgage-backed securities (RMBS) in 2006 and 2007.
“The complaint alleges that instead of ensuring that their representations to investors were accurate and transparent, UBS affirmatively misled investors and withheld crucial information from them about the loans in its deals,” said U.S. Attorney Pak. “UBS allegedly placed a higher priority on selling bonds and making profits than accurately representing the quality of the underlying loans to investors. These practices resulted in massive losses to investors, harmed homeowners, and ultimately jeopardized the banking system.”
“The fraudulent actions by UBS as alleged in the complaint contributed to the 2008 financial crisis, which resulted in lasting economic harm to the nation and unnecessary suffering for Americans,” said Principal Deputy Associate Attorney General Jesse Panuccio. “This suit aims to hold UBS accountable and sends a strong message that the Department of Justice will not tolerate fraud committed by corporations.”
“Investors who bought RMBS from UBS suffered catastrophic losses, which not only caused direct harm to those investors, but also contributed to the financial crisis of 2008,” stated U.S. Attorney Richard P. Donoghue. “The filing of this complaint makes it clear that we will continue to hold financial institutions fully accountable for their conduct and will aggressively pursue financial fraud.”
The complaint alleges that UBS’ actions violated the Financial Institutions Reform, Recovery, and Enforcement Act of 1989 (FIRREA), based on mail fraud, wire fraud, bank fraud, and other misconduct. FIRREA authorizes the Attorney General to seek civil penalties up to the amount of the gain derived from the violation or the losses suffered by persons other than the violator resulting from the violation.
As detailed in the complaint, from 2006 through 2007, UBS allegedly misled investors about the quality of billions of dollars in subprime and Alt-A mortgage loans backing 40 RMBS deals. Specifically, in publicly-filed offering documents, UBS is alleged to have knowingly misrepresented key characteristics of the loans, thereby concealing the fact that the loans were much riskier and much more likely to default than UBS represented. In the end, the 40 RMBS sustained catastrophic losses.
The government’s case is being handled by the U.S. Attorney’s Offices for the Northern District of Georgia and the Eastern District of New York. The Office of the Inspector General for the Federal Housing Finance Administration also provided assistance in the government’s investigation.
Assistant U.S. Attorneys Austin M. Hall and Armen Adzhemyan with the Northern District of Georgia; and Assistant U.S. Attorneys Bonni J. Perlin, Michael J. Castiglione, Richard K. Hayes with the Eastern District of New York are prosecuting the case.
For further information please contact the U.S. Attorney’s Public Affairs Office at [email protected] or (404) 581-6016. The Internet address for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia is http://www.justice.gov/usao-ndga.
United States Sues UBS to Recover Civil Penalties for Fraud in the Sale of Residential Mortgage-Backed SecuritiesRead the Press Release
BROOKLYN, NY – Earlier today, in federal court in Brooklyn, the United States filed a civil complaint against UBS AG and several of its United States affiliates (together, UBS), alleging that UBS defrauded investors throughout the United States and the world in connection with its sale of residential mortgage-backed securities (RMBS) in 2006-2007.
Richard P. Donoghue, United States Attorney for the Eastern District of New York, Byung J. Pak, United States Attorney for the Northern District of Georgia, and Jesse Panuccio, Principal Deputy Associate Attorney General of the Justice Department, announced the filing.
“Investors who bought RMBS from UBS suffered catastrophic losses, which not only caused direct harm to those investors, but also contributed to the financial crisis of 2008,” stated United States Attorney Donoghue. “The filing of this complaint makes clear that we will continue to hold financial institutions fully accountable for their conduct and will aggressively pursue financial fraud.” Mr. Donoghue expressed his grateful appreciation to the Federal Housing Finance Agency-Office of Inspector General, for its assistance in the government’s investigation.
“The complaint alleges that instead of ensuring that their representations to investors were accurate and transparent, UBS affirmatively misled investors and withheld crucial information from them about the loans in its deals,” stated United States Attorney Pak. “UBS allegedly placed a higher priority on selling bonds and making profits than accurately representing the quality of the underlying loans to investors. These practices resulted in massive losses to investors, harmed homeowners, and ultimately jeopardized the banking system.”
“The fraudulent actions by UBS as alleged in the complaint contributed to the 2008 financial crisis, which resulted in lasting economic harm to the nation and unnecessary suffering for Americans,” stated Principal Deputy Associate Attorney General Panuccio. “This suit aims to hold UBS accountable and sends a strong message that the Department of Justice will not tolerate fraud committed by corporations.”
The complaint alleges that UBS’s actions violated the Financial Institutions Reform, Recovery, and Enforcement Act of 1989 (FIRREA), based on mail fraud, wire fraud, bank fraud and other misconduct. FIRREA authorizes the Attorney General to seek civil penalties up to the amount of the gain derived from the violation, or the losses suffered by persons other than the violator resulting from the violation.
As detailed in the complaint, from 2006 through 2007, UBS misled investors about the quality of billions of dollars in subprime and Alt-A mortgage loans backing 40 RMBS deals. Specifically, in publicly filed offering documents, UBS knowingly misrepresented key characteristics of the loans, thereby concealing the fact that the loans were much riskier and much more likely to default than UBS represented. In the end, the 40 RMBS sustained substantial losses.
The government’s case is being handled by the United States Attorney’s Offices for the Eastern District of New York and the Northern District of Georgia. Assistant United States Attorneys Bonni J. Perlin, Michael J. Castiglione, Richard K. Hayes, Armen Adzhemyan and Austin M. Hall are in charge of the prosecution.
E.D.N.Y. Docket No. 18-CV-6369 (MKB)
United States Sues UBS to Recover Civil Penalties for Fraud in the Sale of Residential Mortgage-Backed SecuritiesRead the Press Release
Earlier today, in federal court for the Eastern District of New York, the United States filed a civil complaint against UBS AG and several of its United States affiliates (together, “UBS”), alleging that UBS defrauded investors throughout the United States and the world in connection with its sale of residential mortgage-backed securities (RMBS) from 2006 through 2007.
Principal Deputy Associate Attorney General Jesse Panuccio, United States Attorney Richard P. Donoghue for the Eastern District of New York, United States Attorney Byung J. Pak for the Northern District of Georgia, and Associate Inspector General Jennifer Byrne, Federal Housing Finance Agency-Office of. Inspector General (FHFA-OIG) announced the filing.
“The fraudulent actions by UBS as alleged in the complaint contributed to the 2008 financial crisis, which resulted in lasting economic harm to the nation and unnecessary suffering for Americans,” said Principal Deputy Associate Attorney General Jesse Panuccio. “This suit aims to hold UBS accountable and sends a strong message that the Department of Justice will not tolerate fraud committed by corporations.”
“Investors who bought RMBS from UBS suffered catastrophic losses, which not only caused direct harm to those investors, but also contributed to the financial crisis of 2008,” stated United States Attorney Donoghue. “The filing of this complaint makes clear that we will continue to hold financial institutions fully accountable for their conduct and will aggressively pursue financial fraud.” Mr. Donoghue expressed his grateful appreciation to the Federal Housing Finance Agency-Office of Inspector General, for its assistance in the government’s investigation.
“The complaint alleges that instead of ensuring that their representations to investors were accurate and transparent, UBS affirmatively misled investors and withheld crucial information from them about the loans in its deals,” stated United States Attorney Pak. “UBS allegedly placed a higher priority on selling bonds and making profits than accurately representing the quality of the underlying loans to investors. These practices resulted in massive losses to investors, harmed homeowners, and ultimately jeopardized the banking system.”
The complaint alleges that UBS’ actions violated the Financial Institutions Reform, Recovery, and Enforcement Act of 1989 (FIRREA), based on mail fraud, wire fraud, bank fraud, and other misconduct. FIRREA authorizes the Attorney General to seek civil penalties up to the amount of the gain derived from the violation, or the losses suffered by persons other than the violator resulting from the violation.
As detailed in the complaint, from 2006 through 2007, UBS misled investors about the quality of billions of dollars in subprime and Alt-A mortgage loans backing 40 RMBS deals. Specifically, in publicly-filed offering documents, UBS knowingly misrepresented key characteristics of the loans, thereby concealing the fact that the loans were much riskier and much more likely to default than UBS represented. Ultimately, the 40 RMBS sustained catastrophic losses.
This case is being handled by the United States Attorneys’ Offices for the Eastern District of New York and the Northern District of Georgia. Assistant United States Attorneys Bonni J. Perlin, Michael J. Castiglione, Richard K. Hayes, Armen Adzhemyan, and Austin M. Hall are in charge of the prosecution. The United States Attorneys’ Offices thank the Office of the FHFA-OIG for its assistance in the investigation.
USAO NDTX Weekly Roundup -- 11/08/1Read the Press Release
INDICTMENT --- Robert Grafton, 52
On Nov. 7, a federal grand jury indicted Robert Grafton, of Dallas, on three counts of bank robbery. Over a two week period, he allegedly robbed three Capital One bank locations in Dallas, brandishing a weapon and demanding bank tellers hand over the currency in the register. If convicted, Mr. Grafton faces up to 20 years in federal prison on each count. The FBI along with the Dallas Police Department investigated the case.SENTENCING – Lawrence Shahwan, 41
On Nov. 6, 41- year-old Lawrence Shahwan, the lead defendant in the Gas Pipe synthetic cannabinoid case, was sentenced to six years in federal prison. In March 2015, Mr. Shahwan pleaded guilty to conspiracy to contribute a controlled substance analogue. He admits that for years, he manufactured so-called “spice” products – made using chemicals that mimic the effects of THC -- and distributed the product to head shops around Dallas, branded as “Assassin Revolution,” “Venom,” “Wolf Pack Rage,” etc. At sentencing, Chief Judge Barbara M.G. Lynn remarked on the dangers of synthetic cannabinoids, which can be fatal. The Drug Enforcement Administration, the Duncanville, Desoto, and Dallas Police Departments, the Denton County Sheriff’s Office, Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigation, and the U.S. Marshals Service conducted the investigation. More about the case here.INDICTMENT -- Gary Lyn Black, 60
On Nov. 6, a federal grand jury indicted Gary Lyn Black – also known by the street name “Godsmack” -- for distributing more than 500 grams of methamphetamine, possessing a firearm in furtherance of a drug conspiracy, possessing a firearm as a convicted felon, and maintaining a drug-involved premises. If convicted, Mr. Black, of Johnson County, faces a mandatory minimum sentence of 10 years in federal prison and a maximum sentence of life. The Cleburne Stop the Offender Program investigated the case.INDICTMENT – Gustavo Palafox-Acuna & Marcos Escalante-Acuna
On November 7, 2018, a federal grand jury indicted Gustavo Palafox-Acuna and Marcos Escalante-Acuna for conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute 500 grams or more of a mixture or substance containing a detectable amount of methamphetamine. The two were arrested on October 18, 2018, with approximately 113 pounds of methamphetamine.INDICTMENT – Eugene Mitchell, 44
On Nov. 6, a federal grand jury indicted Eugene Mitchell, of Chicago on a felon in possession of a firearm charge. If convicted, Mr. Mitchell faces up to 10 years in federal prison. The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, & Explosives and the Lancaster Police Department conducted the investigation.US Attorney Patrick Statement on the Departure of AG SessionsRead the Press Release
HOUSTON – The Southern District of Texas (SDTX) extends its appreciation to Attorney General (AG) Jeff Sessions for his leadership of the Department of Justice during his tenure as Attorney General. He was a prosecutor’s prosecutor and unwavering in his support of US Attorneys as well as state & local law enforcement across the country.
His leadership recommitted the Department to the rule of law, religious liberty, decreasing crime and attacking the opioid epidemic. By providing us with additional prosecutors, we continue to aggressively enforce our nation’s immigration laws and attack violent crime, thereby keeping our communities safe in the SDTX.
We sincerely thank AG Jeff Sessions for his dedicated service to our nation.
We will continue to effectuate the law enforcement priorities of President Donald J. Trump and look forward to working under the leadership of our next Attorney General.