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10 July 2018
Las Vegas Man Sentenced to 27 Years in Prison for Drug TraffickingRead the Press Release
Abingdon, VIRGINIA – A Las Vegas man, who trafficked methamphetamine and oxycodone from Nevada to Virginia and laundered the proceeds, was sentenced last week in U.S. District Court in Abingdon to 324 months in prison, United States Attorney Thomas T. Cullen announced.
Richard Henry Kayian, 57, was found guilty by a jury in November 2017 of one count of conspiracy to distribute 500 grams of methamphetamine and oxycodone, and one count of money laundering. In addition, Kayian was ordered to pay a forfeiture money judgment in the amount of $743,441.
The investigation leading to Kayian’s conviction was conducted by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives, the Drug Enforcement Administration, the Internal Revenue Service-Criminal Investigations, and state and local law enforcement in Southwest Virginia and Las Vegas, Nevada. This collaborative law enforcement effort resulted in 31 defendants entering guilty pleas or being found guilty of crimes related to the distribution of methamphetamine and opioids in Nevada, Virginia and Kentucky.
According to evidence presented at Kayian’s trial and other hearings by Assistant United States Attorney Zachary T. Lee, law enforcement agencies in Virginia and Nevada charged 32 individuals in late 2016 with conspiring to distribute methamphetamine, oxycodone, and buprenorphine and money laundering. Evidence demonstrated that Kayian was responsible for recruiting distributors for the drug trafficking organization and sending large quantities of methamphetamine and oxycodone via UPS and Federal Express to numerous locations in Abingdon, Virginia and Glade Spring, Virginia. These drugs, along with buprenorphine, were then distributed throughout the Southwest Virginia and in Eastern Kentucky by members of the drug trafficking organization. Additionally, evidence gained from the investigation demonstrated that more than $1,000,000 in proceeds from the drug sales in the Abingdon area were sent via wire transfers and bank deposits to Kayian and others in Las Vegas.
Operation Leaving Las Vegas has resulted in the following sentences:
- Tracey Allen Callihan, 49, of Glade Spring, Virginia - 324 months imprisonment and ordered to pay a forfeiture money judgment of $30,000.00 for one count of conspiracy to distribute 500 grams or more of methamphetamine and oxycodone, and one count of money laundering.
- Brandon Lee Stone, 33, of Abingdon, Virginia – 300 months imprisonment for one count of conspiracy to distribute 500 grams or more of methamphetamine, oxycodone and buprenorphine, and one count of money laundering.
- Misael Reyes Tajimaroa, 32, of Spokane, Washington – 192 months imprisonment for one count of conspiracy to distribute 500 grams or more of methamphetamine, oxycodone and buprenorphine, and one count of money laundering.
- Bradley Lee Chapman, 28, of Bristol, Virginia - 135 months imprisonment for one count of conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine, oxycodone and buprenorphine, and one count of money laundering.
- Kaitlynn Elizabeth Chapman, 26, of Bristol, Virginia – 72 months imprisonment for one count of conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine, oxycodone and buprenorphine, and one count of money laundering.
- John Williams, 50, of Glade Spring, Virginia – 18 months imprisonment and a $2,500 fine for one count of conspiracy to use a communications facility to facilitate a drug trafficking offense.
- Rebecca Williams, 51, of Abingdon, Virginia – 108 months imprisonment for one count of conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine.
- Heather Michelle Sullins, 27, of Abingdon, Virginia – 30 months imprisonment for one count of conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine, oxycodone and buprenorphine.
- Alex Michael Kayian, 23, of Bristol, Virginia - 72 months imprisonment for one count of conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine, oxycodone and buprenorphine, and one count of money laundering.
- Ralph Stewart Dingus, 27, of Abingdon, Virginia - 37 months imprisonment for one count of conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine.
- John Dewayne Farmer, 32, of Abingdon, Virginia - 240 months imprisonment for one count of conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine and one count of money laundering.
- Lola Virginia Farmer, 52, of Abingdon, Virginia - 87 months imprisonment for one count of conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine.
- Shauna Nicole Chafin, 36, of Abingdon, Virginia - 97 months imprisonment for one count of conspiracy to distribute 500 grams or more of methamphetamine, oxycodone and buprenorphine.
- William Wesley Fleenor, 29, of Abingdon, Virginia - 79 months imprisonment for one count of conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine.
- Jeffrey Nathaniel Gobble, 25, of Abingdon, Virginia - 46 months imprisonment for one count of conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine.
- Preston Kyle Lawson, 21, of Abingdon, Virginia - 46 months imprisonment for one count of conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine.
- Gary Chapman, 47, of Clay City, Kentucky - 151 months imprisonment for one count of conspiracy to distribute 500 grams or more of methamphetamine.
- Daniel Corey Cantrell, 25, of Abingdon, Virginia - 37 months imprisonment for one count of conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine.
- Tanner Morris Curd, 23, of Meadowview, Virginia - 84 months imprisonment for one count of conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine.
- Amy Lorene Moser, 52, of Abingdon, Virginia -100 months imprisonment for one count of conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine.
- Steven Salyer, 27, of Abingdon, Virginia - 87 months imprisonment for one count of conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine.
- Brandon Cody Trivett, 23, of Abingdon, Virginia - 30 months imprisonment for one count of conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine.
- Brian Edward Widener, 30, of Abingdon, Virginia – 46 months imprisonment for one count of conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine.
- Justin Lowe, 24, of Abingdon, Virginia – 41 months imprisonment for one count of conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine.
- Lamar Skipper, 27, of Chilhowie, Virginia - four years probation for one count of conspiracy to distribute oxycodone and one count of money laundering
- Gary Brandon Childress, 25, of Abingdon, Virginia - three years probation. for one count of conspiracy to distribute oxycodone.
- Austin Obranovic Boardwine, 24, of Abingdon, Virginia - four years probation for one count of conspiracy to distribute oxycodone and buprenorphine.
- Caleb Dean, 28, of Damascus, Virginia – 48 months imprisonment for one count of conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine and oxycodone.
- Charlene Hale, 25, of Bristol, Tennessee – four years probation for one count of conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine and oxycodone.
The investigation of the case was conducted by the Drug Enforcement Administration, Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives, Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigations, United States Marshals Service, Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department, Virginia State Police, Washington County, Virginia Sheriff’s Office, Abingdon Police Department, Marion Police Department, and Smyth County, Virginia Sheriff’s Office. Assistant United States Attorney Zachary T. Lee is prosecuting the case for the United States.
Lancaster Resident Pleads to Federal Firearm Charges Relating to Firearms Stolen from National Guard ArmoryRead the Press Release
Columbia, South Carolina ---- United States Attorney Sherri A. Lydon stated that Brandon Shane Polston, age 32, of Lancaster, plead guilty in federal court to being a felon in possession of firearms, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Sections 922(g)(1), 924(a)(2), and 924(e), and to possession of machineguns and a destructive device not registered to him in the National Firearms Registration and Transfer Record, in violation of Title 26, United States Code, Sections 5841, 5861(d), and 5871. Co-defendants Austin Lee Ritter, age 23, and Kimberly Denise Cannon, age 40, both of Lancaster, each plead guilty to the same charges on June 25, 2018. United States District Judge Michelle Childs, of Columbia, accepted the guilty pleas and will impose sentences after she has reviewed the presentence reports, which will be prepared by the United States Probation Office.
Evidence presented in court established that on the early morning hours of November 26, 2017, an officer with the Lancaster Police Department conducted a traffic stop of a vehicle driven by co-defendant Cannon after observing her littering. Further investigation during the traffic stop revealed the following inside the vehicle: a FNH, model M249, 5.56mm machinegun, two (2) Colt, model M-16, 5.56mm machineguns, two (2) Beretta, model M9, 9mm pistols, a Colt, model M203, 40mm grenade launcher (“destructive device”), night vision goggles, and various military items stolen from the Lancaster National Guard Armory. Officers also recovered various items stolen from WalMart, including an employee identification badge and employee vest.
After the traffic stop, Polston and a co-defendant Ritter were located at the a local motel and found in possession of a small quantity of methamphetamine. A review of surveillance video from the motel showed Polston and his co-defendants Ritter and Cannon bringing the bags containing the firearms back and forth between the vehicle and the motel room. Additionally, searches of Ritter and Cannon’s cell phones revealed various photos and text messages relating to the stolen firearms. One of the photos appeared to be a “selfie” of Ritter sitting in the front seat of a vehicle with Polston sitting in the rear seat beside a M-16 machinegun. During the investigation, both Ritter and Cannon advised agents that Polston took them to an area near a residential complex where they retrieved bags containing the stolen firearms from a ditch.
Polston and his co-defendants Ritter and Cannon are all prohibited under federal law from possessing firearms and ammunition based upon their prior state convictions. Polston has prior convictions for breaking into autos (2 counts), malicious injury to person property over $2,000, but less than $10,000, assault and battery 1st degree, burglary 2nd degree (2 counts), receiving stolen goods over $2,000 but less than $10,000, and property offense 3rd or subsequent. Polston was released from the South Carolina Department of Corrections in February 2017.
Polston, like co-defendants Ritter and Cannon, faces a maximum of 10 years imprisonment, a fine of $250,000, and 3 years of supervised release on each of the firearm charges.
The case was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF), the Lancaster Police Department, and the South Carolina State Law Enforcement Division (SLED) and was prosecuted as part of Project CeaseFire, a joint federal, state and local initiative focused upon aggressively prosecuting firearm cases in an effort to reduce violent crime and make our neighborhoods safer. Project CeaseFire is South Carolina’s implementation of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a crime reduction strategy originally launched in 2001. Attorney General Jeff Sessions has made turning the tide of rising violent crime in America a top priority and reinstituted PSN nationwide. Assistant United States Attorney Stacey D. Haynes of the Columbia office handled the case.
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Kentucky Truck Driver, Prior Sex Offender, Indicted for Child PornographyRead the Press Release
SPRINGFIELD, Mo. – A Kentucky truck driver and prior sex offender was indicted by a federal grand jury today for transporting child pornography.
Gregory Marshall, 57, of Paducah, Ky., was charged by a federal grand jury in Springfield, Mo., with one count of transporting child pornography. Today’s indictment replaces a federal criminal complaint that was filed against Marshall on June 21, 2018. Marshall was convicted of sodomy involving a 14-year-old victim in Kentucky in 1995.
According to an affidavit filed in support of the original criminal complaint, a Missouri State Highway Patrol trooper stopped the tractor trailer Marshall was driving on U.S. Highway 60 in Wright County, Mo., on June 17, 2018. While searching the sleeper berth of the tractor, the affidavit says, the trooper discovered a laptop computer and an external hard drive that contained child pornography.
The charge contained in this indictment is simply an accusation, and not evidence of guilt. Evidence supporting the charge must be presented to a federal trial jury, whose duty is to determine guilt or innocence.
This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney James J. Kelleher. It was investigated by the Missouri State Highway Patrol and Immigration and Customs Enforcement's (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI).
Project Safe Childhood
This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by the United States Attorneys' Offices and the Criminal Division's Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who sexually exploit children, and to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.usdoj.gov/psc . For more information about Internet safety education, please visit www.usdoj.gov/psc and click on the tab "resources."
KC Man Pleads Guilty to Kidnapping, TortureRead the Press Release
KANSAS CITY, Mo. – A Kansas City, Mo., man pleaded guilty in federal court today to his role in a conspiracy to kidnap and torture an Independence, Mo., man.
Randal G. Holmes, also known as “Peckerwood” or “Wood,” 53, pleaded guilty before U.S. Chief District Judge Greg Kays to one count of conspiracy to commit kidnapping, one count of kidnapping, one count of conspiracy to distribute 50 kilograms or more of marijuana and one count of brandishing firearms in furtherance of a drug-trafficking crime.
According to today’s plea agreement, Holmes’s co-conspirators purchased at least 120 pounds of marijuana from a source in Colorado, for which they made more than a dozen trips between Colorado and Kansas City. Holmes received $100 for every pound of marijuana brought back to Kansas City because of his prior connection to the source in Colorado. On Sept. 12, 2016, Holmes and other conspirators agreed to kidnap the victim, a co-conspirator in the drug-trafficking conspiracy identified in court documents as “C.H.,” because he stole money that was intended for the purchase of marijuana.
Holmes arrived at the Independence, Mo., residence of the victim’s father, identified as “W.H.,” on Sept. 12, 2016. Conspirators told W.H. to call C.H. and tell him he was being held at gunpoint and that C.H. needed to come to the residence right away. When C.H. arrived at the residence, Holmes pointed a firearm at him and told him to get into his vehicle. While in the vehicle, a co-conspirator struck, punched and choked C.H. as Holmes drove away.
They took C.H. to Holmes’s residence, where they were met by a third co-conspirator. C.H. was taken to the basement, where he was assaulted with fists, a hammer and tin snips/clippers. During the assault, Holmes repeatedly demanded that C.H. disclose where the duffle bag containing the money was located. Holmes left to retrieve the duffle bag while a co-conspirator held C.H. at gunpoint.
Holmes later drove C.H. to a rural residence near Edwards, Mo. As Holmes drove them to the residence, a co-conspirator continued to strike C.H. with fists and the butt of a firearm. When they arrived at the residence, C.H. was told to call his father and to tell him that he was okay, that he had taken a beating, that he would be home in a couple of days and that he deserved what had happened.
Law enforcement officers were able to trace the telephone call and on Sept. 13, 2016, officers were able to locate C.H. and arrest Holmes. Officers observed that C.H. had suffered multiple, visible injuries to his face, head, hands and feet. Officers noted that C.H. had trouble walking, that his face was black and blue, as well as swollen with traces of dried blood. Upon receiving medical treatment, it was determined that C.H. had also suffered a fracture in his left hand.
Officers found a Jimenez Arms 9mm pistol in Holmes’s vehicle and a Hi-Point 9mm pistol in the residence where C.H. had been held. Officers also found an FN Herstal .40-caliber pistol, a Remington .270-caliber rifle, an RG .22-caliber revolver, a Ruger .22-caliber rifle, a Mossberg .20-gauge shotgun, 36.4 grams of marijuana and drug paraphernalia in a co-conspirator’s residence.
Under federal statutes, Holmes is subject to a sentence of up to life in federal prison without parole. The maximum statutory sentence is prescribed by Congress and is provided here for informational purposes, as the sentencing of the defendant will be determined by the court based on the advisory sentencing guidelines and other statutory factors. A sentencing hearing will be scheduled after the completion of a presentence investigation by the United States Probation Office.
This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Brad K. Kavanaugh. It was investigated by the Independence, Mo., Police Department, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, the Benton County, Mo., Sheriff’s Department, the Missouri State Highway Patrol and the FBI.
Johnstown Residents Charged with Violating Federal Drug and Gun LawsRead the Press Release
JOHNSTOWN, Pa. – Two Cambria County residents were indicted by a federal grand jury in Johnstown on charges of violating federal narcotics and firearms laws, United States Attorney Scott W. Brady announced today.
The indictment named Alissa N. Mosley, 29, and Justin R. Guillarmod, 35, of Johnstown, Pa.
According to the indictment presented to the court, on July 27, 2017, Mosley and Guillarmod did possess with intent to distribute more than 100 grams of heroin. Also, on July 27, 2017, Guillarmod was found in possession of a Taurus Magnum .357 caliber revolver. On Dec. 2, 2014, Guillarmod was convicted in the Court of Common Pleas of Cambria County, PA, of drug trafficking, which is a crime punishable by imprisonment for a term exceeding one year. Federal law prohibits persons who have been convicted of a crime punishable by a term of imprisonment exceeding one year from possessing firearms.
The law provides for a maximum sentence for Mosley of 40 years in prison and a fine of $5,000,000 or both. The law provides for a maximum sentence for Guillarmod of 50 years in prison and a fine of $5,250,000 or both Under the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, the actual sentence imposed would be based upon the seriousness of the offense and the prior criminal history, if any, of the defendant.
Assistant United States Attorney Stephanie L. Haines is prosecuting this case on behalf of the government.
The Laurel Highlands Resident Agency of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, and the Cambria County Drug Task Force, conducted the investigation that led to the prosecution of Mosley and Guillarmod.
An indictment is an accusation. A defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
Henderson Man Sentenced for Felon in Possession ChargeRead the Press Release
NEW BERN – The United States Attorney for the Eastern District of North Carolina, Robert J. Higdon, Jr., announced that today, AQUILLA BROWN, 27, of Henderson, North Carolina, was sentenced by Judge Louise W. Flanagan to 105 months imprisonment followed by 3 years of supervised release.
BROWN was named in an Indictment on June 27, 2017 charging him with Possession of a Firearm and Ammunition by a Felon. On February 15, 2018, BROWN pled guilty to the charge.
On March 15, 2017, the Henderson Police Department (HPD) initiated a traffic stop on a vehicle for traffic infractions. BROWN was a passenger in that vehicle. After obtaining identification from the driver and BROWN, the HPD became aware of the frequent alleged drug-trafficking activities by BROWN. Based on this information, a K-9 unit responded to the scene and made a positive alert to the presence of narcotics on BROWN’S side of the vehicle. BROWN stated that he smoked marijuana prior to entering the vehicle. As both occupants exited the vehicle, law enforcement observed the driver attempt to hide an object in her boot which was discovered to be a firearm. BROWN acknowledged ownership of the firearm, a .38 caliber revolver, which was loaded at the time.
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.
The investigation of this case was conducted by the Henderson Police Department and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms & Explosives (ATF). Assistant United States Attorney S. Katherine Burnette handled the prosecution of this case for the government.
Haverstraw Man Sentenced in Manhattan Federal Court to 10 Years for Distributing Narcotics Causing December 2016 Overdose of Queens VictimRead the Press Release
Geoffrey S. Berman, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, announced that ROBERT DIAZ, a/k/a “Facey,” a/k/a “Face,” was sentenced today by U.S. District Judge Alison J. Nathan to 120 months in prison for distributing heroin and other narcotics, including heroin that caused serious bodily injury to a victim who overdosed from using the heroin and was revived only after the administration of naloxone. DIAZ pled guilty on February 14, 2018, before U.S. Magistrate Judge Debra Freeman.
Manhattan U.S. Attorney Geoffrey S. Berman said: “For years, Robert Diaz peddled heroin and other drugs in and around Rockland County, contributing to the opioid crisis plaguing our community today and causing at least one victim to overdose. Today’s sentence should serve as a message to those seeking to profit off of this tragic epidemic.”
According to the Indictment filed in Manhattan federal court, previous court filings, and statements made at public court proceedings:
DIAZ and eight co-defendants – Rene Sanchez, a/k/a “Renny,” Pablo Perez, a/k/a “Menor,” Christian Cardenas, a/k/a “Chris,” a/k/a “Spoonie,” David Almonte, a/k/a “Elli,” Ronald Bolanos, a/k/a “Ronny,” a/k/a “ET,” Rolando Paulino, a/k/a “Santana Paulino,” Theresa Keefe, a/k/a “Terry,” and Nicole Munderville, a/k/a “Nicki” – were charged with participating in a drug trafficking organization that distributed significant quantities of narcotics, including heroin, fentanyl, cocaine, and crack cocaine, in and around Rockland County, New York, and obtained those narcotics for resale from the Bronx, Brooklyn, and Queens, New York.
DIAZ sold retail quantities of drugs to users in Rockland County during the period from approximately 2012 to approximately May 2017. On or about December 15, 2016, DIAZ provided heroin to an individual (“Victim-1”) who overdosed after using the heroin. Medical personnel were required to administer naloxone to reverse the effects of the overdose, saving Victim-1’s life.
On multiple occasions during the course of the conspiracy, DIAZ indicated that he was well aware that the narcotics he and others were distributing contained fentanyl, were particularly dangerous, and had caused adverse reactions in multiple drug customers, including the overdose of Victim-1. DIAZ nevertheless continued obtaining and selling heroin, expressing on one occasion, subsequent to Victim-1’s overdose, that his customers were doing the “fentanyl dance” and that he had a “new connect” for “straight up fentanyl” that his customers “love[d].”
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In addition to his prison sentence, DIAZ, 50, was sentenced to four years of supervised release.
Pablo Perez, Ronald Bolanos, and Theresa Keefe previously pled guilty and were sentenced to 90 months, 80 months, and 40 months in prison, respectively. Rene Sanchez, Christian Cardenas, Rolando Paulino, and Nicole Munderville previously pled guilty and are awaiting sentencing.
Mr. Berman praised the investigative work of the Drug Enforcement Administration and the Rockland County Drug Task Force, and thanked the Rockland County District Attorney’s Office for their assistance in this investigation.
This matter is being handled by the Office’s Narcotics Unit. Assistant United States Attorneys Elizabeth Hanft, Jane Kim, and Jason Richman are in charge of the prosecution.
Hartshorne Man Sentenced to 60 Months for Methamphetamine DistributionRead the Press Release
MUSKOGEE, OKLAHOMA – The United States Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Oklahoma announced that Darrell Smith, age 56, of Hartshorne, Oklahoma was sentenced to 60 months imprisonment and 4 years supervised release for Possession With Intent To Distribute Methamphetamine, in violation of Title 21, United States Code, Sections 841(a)(1) and 841(b)(1)(B). The charge arose from an investigation by the Hartshorne Police Department, the Pittsburg County Sheriff’s Office, and the District 18 Drug Task Force.
The Indictment alleged that on or about November 16, 2017, within the Eastern District of Oklahoma, the Defendant knowingly and intentionally possessed with intent to distribute 50 grams or more of a mixture or substance containing a detectable amount of methamphetamine, a Schedule II controlled substance.
United States Attorney Brian J. Kuester said, “Local law enforcement agencies and communities deal daily with the tragedy caused by methamphetamine, while dealers reap the financial benefits. The Hartshorne Police Department, Pittsburg County Sheriff’s Office, and the District 18 DA Drug Task Force worked together to professionally and thoroughly investigate the defendant’s unlawful activities. As a result, the dedicated members of this office were able to successfully prosecute him and he is being held accountable.”
The Honorable Ronald A. White, U.S. District Judge in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Oklahoma, in Muskogee, presided over the hearing. Assistant United States Attorney Christopher Wilson represented the United States. The defendant will remain in custody pending transportation to the designated federal facility at which the non-paroleable sentence will be served.
Hartford Man Admits to Selling Heroin to Farmington and Avon Overdose VictimsRead the Press Release
John H. Durham, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, and Brian D. Boyle, Special Agent in Charge of the Drug Enforcement Administration for New England, announced that JOSHUA HOLLOWAY, 25, of Hartford, waived his right to be indicted and pleaded guilty today in Hartford federal court to two counts of possession with intent to distribute, and distribution of, heroin.
This matter stems from an ongoing statewide initiative targeting narcotics dealers who distribute heroin, fentanyl or opioids that cause death or serious injury to users.
According to court documents and statements made in court, on February 16, 2017, Farmington Police and emergency medical personnel responded to a residence in Farmington where they encountered an unresponsive 24-year-old male. Life saving measures were attempted, but the male was pronounced deceased at the scene. A family member informed investigators that the victim had an opiate addiction. Officers did not locate evidence related to drug use, but seized the victim’s cellphone.
The Office of the Chief Medical Examiner for the State of Connecticut concluded that the victim’s death was caused by “acute heroin and fentanyl toxicities, alcohol and sertraline use.”
Witness interviews and analysis of the seized cellphone revealed that HOLLOWAY supplied heroin/fentanyl to the victim on February 15, 2017, in Hartford.
The investigation revealed that HOLLOWAY also sold heroin/fentanyl to a man in Avon on February 11, 2017. The purchaser ingested some of the heroin HOLLOWAY sold him and died shortly thereafter of an acute intoxication due to the combined effects of fentanyl, alpazolam and etizolam.
HOLLOWAY was arrested on a federal criminal complaint on January 23, 2018.
HOLLOWAY is scheduled to be sentenced by U.S. District Judge Vanessa L. Bryant on October 11, 2018. The offense carries a maximum term of imprisonment of 20 years, on each count. HOLLOWAY is released on a $50,000 bond pending sentencing.
This matter has been investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration’s New Haven Task Force and the Farmington and Avon Police Departments. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Ray Miller.
Guatemalan National Sentenced for Illegal ReentryRead the Press Release
BOSTON - A Guatemalan national was sentenced today in federal court in Boston for illegally reentering the United States after being deported.
Jose Antonio Alarcon-Mazariegos, 44, a Guatemalan national formerly residing in Cambridge, was sentenced by U.S. Senior District Court Judge Douglas P. Woodlock to 15 months in prison and three years of supervised release. Upon his release, Alarcon-Mazariegos will be subject to deportation proceedings. On April 3, 2018, Alarcon-Mazariegos pleaded guilty to one count of illegal reentry of a deported alien.
According to court documents, law enforcement officers in Cambridge encountered Alarcon-Mazariegos on Oct. 7, 2017, and determined him to be illegally present in the United States. Alarcon-Mazariegos was previously deported on April 2, 2004, Aug. 5, 2004, and May 28, 2005.
United States Attorney Andrew E. Lelling and Rebecca Adducci, Interim Field Office Director, Boston, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Enforcement and Removal Operations, made the announcement today. Assistant U.S. Attorney Nicholas Soivilien of Lelling’s Major Crimes Unit prosecuted the case.
Green Bay Woman Indicted for Income Tax SchemeRead the Press Release
Matthew D. Krueger, the United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Wisconsin, announced that Alma Ramirez (age 40) of Green Bay appeared in federal court in Green Bay to answer charges brought against her in a 29-count indictment. Specifically, Ms. Ramirez is charged with 5 counts of wire fraud, 5 counts of aggravated identity theft, and 19 counts of assisting in the filing of false federal income tax returns.
According to the indictment, during the period from March 2013 through May 2016, Ms. Ramirez, and others working with her and at her direction, prepared and filed more than 60 false federal income tax returns in the names of various individuals fraudulently seeking more than $300,000 in federal income tax refunds. These tax returns included false information concerning the taxpayer’s employment, wages, and the amount of federal income taxes that had been withheld from those wages, dependents, and the taxpayer’s eligibility for various tax credits.
The indictment also alleges that Ramirez committed identity theft by using without lawful authority the names and social security numbers of individuals to commit her fraud scheme. If convicted of the wire fraud offenses Ms. Ramirez faces up to 20 years in prison, a fine of up to $250,000, or both. If convicted of the aggravated identity theft charges, Ms. Ramirez will face a mandatory 2 year-term of imprisonment consecutive to any other sentence she receives.
This matter was investigated by the IRS Criminal Investigation and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Matthew L. Jacobs.
The public is cautioned that an indictment is merely the formal method of issuing charges against an individual. A person is presumed innocent until such time, if ever, as the government establishes his or her guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.
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Fulton Man Pleads Guilty to Prostitution BusinessRead the Press Release
JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. – A Fulton, Mo., man pleaded guilty in federal court today to transporting an individual across state lines as part of his prostitution business.
Sanchez Monroe Walker, 31, pleaded guilty before U.S. Magistrate Judge Willie E. Epps, Jr., to transporting an individual across state lines to engage in prostitution.
In early 2015, Walker was working as the “manager” for “CR,” then a prostitute. Walker and CR made money by traveling about Missouri and temporarily serving customers from a hotel at each location for a day or two before moving on. Potential customers could find their services on advertisements posted to “Backpage,” an internet classifieds site. In January or February of 2015, Walker met a female victim, “FV,” at a party in Columbia, Mo., and soon thereafter, FV joined Walker and CR in the business of prostitution.
On April 9, 2015, the trio traveled from Jefferson City, Mo., to St. Louis, Mo., and posted two ads on Backpage. After checking into a hotel, they received a request for an “outcall” in the vicinity of Fairview Heights, Ill. (An “incall” is when a client comes to the hotel of a prostitute, and an “outcall” is when a prostitute travels to a client.) Walker drove CR and FV across the Mississippi River to a hotel near Fairview Heights (about seven miles into Illinois). Walker waited in the car for about an hour while CR and FV visited a client inside the client’s hotel room. Once the “outcall” was complete, Walker drove both CR and FV back to the hotel in Missouri. At the conclusion of the two-day trip, they returned to Columbia, which was their base of operations.
Under federal statutes, Walker is subject to a sentence of up to 10 years in federal prison without parole. The maximum statutory sentence is prescribed by Congress and is provided here for informational purposes, as the sentencing of the defendant will be determined by the court based on the advisory sentencing guidelines and other statutory factors. A sentencing hearing will be scheduled after the completion of a presentence investigation by the United States Probation Office.
This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Lawrence E. Miller. It was investigated by the FBI.
Former federal prison guard sentenced to prison for accepting bribesRead the Press Release
ATLANTA – Melvin Thomas, a former correctional officer at the U.S Penitentiary in Atlanta (“USP Atlanta”) was sentenced to federal prison for accepting bribe payments in exchange for smuggling contraband into the prison.
“Thomas reneged on his oath of office by violating the laws he pledged to uphold,” said U.S. Attorney Byung J. “BJay” Pak. “This type of conduct will not be tolerated, and the defendant will now be held accountable for his betrayal of the public trust, as well as his disloyalty to his fellow correctional officers.”
“Smuggling contraband into federal prisons compromises the safety of correctional officers and inmates. For that reason, the OIG takes very seriously investigations of this nature,” said Robert A. Bourbon, Special Agent in Charge of the Department of Justice Office of the Inspector General’s Miami Field Division.
According to U.S. Attorney Pak, the charges and other information presented in court: From approximately July 2009 to April 2017, Thomas was a correctional officer at USP Atlanta, a medium-security federal prison for male inmates that is operated by the Federal Bureau of Prisons. USP Atlanta prohibits inmates from using or possessing tobacco products. As a correctional officer, Thomas accepted several bribe payments from an inmate in exchange for smuggling tobacco into the prison. In total, the inmate paid Thomas approximately $3,500 for the contraband that he smuggled into the prison.
Melvin Thomas, 40, of Rocky Mount, North Carolina, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Timothy C. Batten, Sr. to one year, one day in prison to be followed by two years of supervised release. He was also ordered to pay a $3,500 fine. Thomas pleaded guilty to bribery of a public official on April 10, 2018.
This case was investigated by the Department of Justice Office of Inspector General.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Ryan Huschka prosecuted the case.
For further information please contact the U.S. Attorney’s Public Affairs Office at [email protected] or (404) 581-6016. The Internet address for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia is http://www.justice.gov/usao-ndga.
Former QVC Director Sentenced to 30 Months in Federal Prison for Million-Dollar Fraud SchemeRead the Press Release
PHILADELPHIA – First Assistant U.S. Attorney Jennifer Arbittier Williams announced that James D. Falkowski, 42, of Buffalo, New York, was sentenced today to 30 months in federal prison.
Falkowski operated a multi-faceted fraud scheme while working as a director at QVC, Inc., an American cable, satellite, and broadcast television network and multinational corporation specializing in televised and internet home shopping based in West Chester, Pennsylvania. Falkowski previously pled guilty on March 20, 2018 to 11 counts of wire fraud and one count of conspiracy. At the sentencing hearing today, United States District Judge Michael M. Baylson also ordered that the defendant pay $832,138.55 in restitution.
“This defendant used his position, his access, and his employer to fund a lifestyle that would have otherwise been beyond his reach,” said First Assistant U.S. Attorney Williams. “Today’s sentence should serve as a deterrent to anyone who believes he can steal from his employer and successfully cover his tracks.”
Falkowski – a director from 2008 until his termination in 2013 – was responsible for enhancing QVC’s brand and reputation in the entertainment and fashion industries. Falkowski used his position at QVC to embezzle and fraudulently obtain from QVC over $1,000,000 worth of money, goods, and services, all without QVC’s knowledge or approval. These luxuries included hundreds of thousands of dollars of first-class travel, hotel and resort stays, spa treatments, dining at upscale restaurants, luxury clothing and accessories, and personal medical treatments, such as Botox treatment.
To hide his actions from QVC, Falkowski created fake invoices purporting to be from The Four Seasons Hotels, luxury car service companies, and other vendors in order to deceive QVC into paying for Falkowski’s fraud. Falkowski also enlisted the assistance of two QVC vendors to help him defraud QVC. Those two vendors – Los Angeles-based public relations agency “The Steinberg Group,” doing business as “dOMAIN,” and a New York City-based production management company – agreed to submit fraudulently altered invoices and bills to QVC in order to hide Falkowski’s embezzlement.
Additionally, Falkowski caused QVC to pay over $200,000 in private luxury chauffeur rides for himself and his associates, approximately $70,000 in payments to his personal creditors, as well as $59,500 in gift cards from American Express, Tom Ford, and Barney’s New York that Falkowski claimed were for distribution to talent, but which he instead used for himself.
The case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, and is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Christopher J. Mannion.
Former Pharmacy Technician Indicted for Stealing Fentanyl, MorphineRead the Press Release
SPRINGFIELD, Mo. – A former pharmacy technician at Mercy Medical Center in Springfield, Mo., was indicted by a federal grand jury today for stealing fentanyl and morphine from the pharmacy and replacing the drugs with saline solution.
Marc F. Musil, 36, of Springfield, Mo., was charged with two counts of tampering with a consumer product in an indictment returned by a federal grand jury in Springfield.
Today’s indictment alleges that Musil removed fentanyl from syringes on July 12, 2017, and replaced the fentanyl with saline solution. The indictment also alleges that Musil removed morphine from syringes and replaced the morphine with saline solution.
The charges contained in this indictment are simply accusations, and not evidence of guilt. Evidence supporting the charges must be presented to a federal trial jury, whose duty is to determine guilt or innocence.
This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Patrick Carney. It was investigated by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration – Office of Criminal Investigations.
Former Nashville Metro Police Sergeant Pleads Guilty to Federal Theft and Money Laundering ChargesRead the Press Release
Former Nashville Metropolitan Police Department (MNPD) Sergeant James Dunaway pleaded guilty today in U.S. District Court to theft from an entity that receives federal program funds and money laundering, announced U.S. Attorney Don Cochran of the Middle District of Tennessee.
Dunaway, 43, of Old Hickory, Tennessee, was indicted by a federal grand jury on May 2, 2018.
According to the indictment, during the period of November 18, 2015 through November 16, 2017, Dunaway was a supervisor in the MNPD Specialized Investigation Division-Narcotics Unit and was responsible, among other things, for monitoring and executing search warrants.
Dunaway admitted during the plea hearing that during the execution of search warrants on five separate occasions, he stole a portion of the cash discovered and seized at each location, including:
The November 18, 2015 search of a residence off Pleasant Hill Road in Nashville, where more than $100,000 was seized;
The April 10, 2017 search of a residence off Robertson Road in Nashville, where more than $500,000 was seized;
The April 26, 2017 search of a residence off Pleasant Hill Road in Nashville, where more than $182,000 was seized;
The September 13, 2017 search of a residence off Spencer Enclave Way in Nashville, where more than $70,000 was seized; and
The November 15, 2017 search of a hotel room in which the MNPD Office of Professional Accountability had placed marijuana, $28,000 cash and video cameras for the purpose of conducting an integrity check. Video cameras captured Dunaway placing money in his pockets during the search and the indictment alleges that Dunaway stole $5,860.00 during the execution of this search warrant.
Dunaway also admitted that between April 11, 2017 and May 8, 2017, he made approximately $40,540.00 in cash deposits and on May 1, 2017, he obtained a cashier’s check with $42,500.00 cash, which he stole during the searches. Dunaway then used the cashier’s check to purchase a 2014 Toyota Sequoia.
Dunaway admitted that during the course of this scheme, he embezzled, stole and converted approximately $109,910.00 to his own use.
The plea agreement calls for the immediate forfeiture of the 2014 Toyota Sequoia and total restitution in the amount of $109,910.00.
Dunaway faces up to 10 years in prison and a $250,000 fine when he is sentenced on October 24, 2018.
This case was investigated by the FBI and the Metropolitan Nashville Police Department. U.S. Attorney Don Cochran and Assistant U.S. Attorney Ryan Raybould are prosecuting the case.
Former Erie Resident Charged with Violating Federal Laws Regaarding the Sexual Exploitation of ChildrenRead the Press Release
ERIE, Pa. - A former resident of Erie, Pennsylvania, has been indicted by a federal grand jury in Erie on charges of violating federal laws relating to the sexual exploitation of children, United States Attorney Scott W. Brady announced today.
The four-count indictment named Mark Joseph Bretz, 27, as the sole defendant.
According to the indictment presented to the court, Bretz received computer images depicting minors engaging in sexually explicit conduct and used interstate communications to extort several victims into providing Bretz sexually explicit or suggestive material.
This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by the United States Attorneys' Offices and the Criminal Division's Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who sexually exploit children, and to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.justice.gov/psc.
The law provides for a maximum total sentence of 26 years in prison, a fine of $1,000,000, or both. Under the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, the actual sentence imposed would be based upon the seriousness of the offenses and the prior criminal history, if any, of the defendant.
Assistant United States Attorney Christian A. Trabold is prosecuting this case on behalf of the government.
The Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Erie County Detectives Bureau conducted the investigation leading to the indictment in this case.
An indictment is an accusation. A defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
Former Des Moines Pharmacy Technician Sentenced for Illegally Tampering with FentanylRead the Press Release
DES MOINES, Iowa – On July 10, 2018, Victor Van Cleave, age 30, was sentenced by United States District Court Chief Judge John A. Jarvey to 30 months in prison for tampering with consumer products, announced United States Attorney Marc Krickbaum. Van Cleave was ordered to serve three years of supervised release to follow his prison term.
According to the plea agreement entered on February 26, 2018, between September 7, 2016 and October 2, 2016, Van Cleave was employed as a pharmacy technician at Iowa Methodist Hospital in Des Moines. During that time, Van Cleave had access to fentanyl—a Schedule II controlled substance—that was stored at the hospital for administration to hospital patients. Van Cleave tampered with the hospital’s fentanyl and fentanyl vials during the course of his employment. Specifically, Van Cleave inserted a syringe into multiple fentanyl vials, removed the fentanyl with that syringe, and injected the fentanyl into himself. Using a different syringe, Van Cleave then replaced the fentanyl he had removed from the vials with a different fluid. Van Cleave then placed the tampered vials back into storage at the hospital.
This investigation was conducted by the United States Drug Enforcement Administration and the United States Food and Drug Administration, Office of Criminal Investigations. The case was prosecuted by the United States Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Iowa.
Florida Media Company Pleads Guilty to Bribing Soccer Officials | Spanish Parent Company Enters into Non-Prosecution AgreementRead the Press Release
Earlier today, in federal court in Brooklyn, US Imagina, LLC (“Imagina US”) pleaded guilty to a criminal information (the “Information”) charging it with two counts of wire fraud conspiracy in connection with the participation of two of its senior executives in schemes to pay more than $6.5 million in bribes to high-ranking officials of the Caribbean Football Union (“CFU”) and four Central American national soccer federations to secure media and marketing rights to those federations’ World Cup qualifier matches. Imagina US, which was previously known as MediaWorld, is a privately held Florida corporation engaged in the businesses of media content creation and audiovisual production, and also has a unit devoted to buying and selling the media and marketing rights to sports events, principally soccer matches. Imagina US is majority-owned by Imagina Media Audiovisual SL (“Imagina Media”), a privately held company based in Barcelona, Spain that is engaged worldwide in the businesses of media content creation, audiovisual production and the purchase and sale of media and marketing rights to sporting events. Also today, Imagina Media, which is also known as MediaPro, entered into a non-prosecution agreement with the government in connection with one its three co-Chief Executive Officers’ (“co-CEOs”) participation in this criminal conduct.
Pursuant to a plea agreement with the government, Imagina US agreed to forfeit $5,279,000 in criminal proceeds from these schemes. Imagina US was also sentenced to pay $3 million in restitution to the CFU, $1.7 million in restitution to the Honduran soccer federation (“FENAFUTH”), $790,000 in restitution to the Guatemalan soccer federation (“FENAFUTG”), $600,000 in restitution to the Costa Rican soccer federation (“FEDEFUT”), and $565,000 in restitution to the Salvadoran soccer federation (“FESFUT”). Imagina US was further sentenced to pay a fine of $12,883,320, which Imagina Media agreed to pay on behalf of Imagina US pursuant to the non-prosecution agreement. Today’s guilty plea and sentencing proceedings took place before United States District Judge Pamela K. Chen.
Richard P. Donoghue, United States Attorney for the Eastern District of New York, William F. Sweeney, Jr., Assistant Director-in-Charge, Federal Bureau of Investigation, New York Field Office (FBI), and R. Damon Rowe, Special Agent-in-Charge, Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigation, Los Angeles Field Office (IRS CI), announced the guilty plea and non-prosecution agreement.
“Corporations that operate in the United States have a responsibility to ensure that their officers do not engage in corrupt conduct and to take steps to root out corrupt conduct as soon as they are put on notice of it,” stated U.S. Attorney Donoghue. “Those that fail to do so will face significant consequences, while those that effectively remediate will receive positive consideration.”
“Using bribery as part of your business plan is a well-known red flag, and this behavior has no place as part of any legitimate business strategy,” stated FBI Assistant Director-in-Charge Sweeney. “US Imagina, LLC is paying the penalty for their activity which only contributes to the erosion of trust between businesses and their clients. We will continue to bring dishonest companies to justice, and hope this plea serves as an example to other corporations who think they can operate using similar moves.”
“Today’s guilty plea is a clear demonstration of IRS Criminal Investigation’s continued commitment to dismantling the corruption that has plagued the world of international soccer,” stated IRS-CI Special Agent-in-Charge Rowe. “Working with our partners at the Department of Justice, we will continue to investigate corporate entities that profit from crooked practices and use the U.S. financial system in the process.”
The Criminal Schemes
According to facts presented during court proceedings in this case and in related cases, the Imagina US and Imagina Media senior executives bribed soccer officials in the Confederation of North, Central America and Caribbean Association Football (“CONCACAF”) region in exchange for the media and marketing rights to World Cup qualifier matches. The executives often used false invoices and contracts to disguise the true nature of the bribe payments and, for the same reason, they often transmitted the bribes through bank accounts held by intermediaries in third countries.
With respect to the bribery scheme related to the CFU’s World Cup qualifier rights, one of Imagina Media’s three co-CEOs (identified as Co-Conspirator #1 in the Information) agreed that Imagina Media would be responsible for paying half of a $3 million bribe that Imagina US’s then-partner, the Miami-based sports marketing company Traffic USA, had previously agreed to pay Jeffrey Webb, a senior official of the CFU and the president of CONCACAF. The $3 million bribe was in exchange for a contract awarding Traffic USA the media and marketing rights to CFU members’ home World Cup qualifier matches for the 2018 and 2022 qualification cycles. Co-Conspirator #1 and Imagina US’s CEO, Roger Huguet, then made a $500,000 payment towards Imagina US’s $1.5 million share of the bribe by having an intermediary send a false invoice from a Panamanian shell company to Imagina Media’s Portuguese subsidiary, Medialuso. Co-Conspirator #1 then directed senior executives at Imagina Media and Medialuso, both of whom reported to Co-Conspirator #1, to make the payment.
Many of the executives and soccer officials who paid or received the bribes described in the Information, and their intermediaries, have already pleaded guilty to participating in these bribery schemes, including Roger Huguet, Fabio Tordin, Miguel Trujillo, Jeffrey Webb, Costas Takkas, Alfredo Hawit, Rafael Callejas, Brayan Jiménez, Héctor Trujillo and Eduardo Li. Reynaldo Vasquez of the Salvadoran soccer federation has been indicted for receiving bribes as part of this scheme but has not yet appeared before the Court. Traffic USA has also pleaded guilty.
Imagina Media’s Initial Failure to Conduct an Internal Investigation
On May 27, 2015, an indictment in the Eastern District of New York captioned United States v. Jeffrey Webb et al., 15-CR-252 (PKC) (the “First Indictment”) was unsealed. The First Indictment charged Webb and others with participating in the CFU World Cup qualifiers scheme and also alleged that additional, anonymized co-conspirators were involved in the scheme. According to the non-prosecution agreement, within days after the First Indictment was unsealed, Imagina Media’s senior management knew that these additional anonymized co-conspirators were Co-Conspirator #1 and Huguet, and that Imagina Media had been anonymously identified in the First Indictment as “Sports Marketing Company C.” Co-Conspirator #1 denied to other members of Imagina Media’s senior management that he had been involved in a scheme to pay bribes to Webb or anyone else.
For months after the First Indictment was unsealed, Imagina Media’s management did not conduct an internal investigation or make any serious inquiry to determine whether any of the allegations in it relating to Co-Conspirator #1 or Huguet were true. In July 2015, Imagina Media issued a press release, in English and Spanish, in which it denied that there was any evidence that it was the “Sports Marketing Company C” named in the First Indictment, even though it knew that it was in fact Sports Marketing Company C. In the same press release, Imagina Media denied that it paid any bribes.
In December 2015, promptly after a superseding indictment and the guilty pleas of Huguet and Imagina US executive Fabio Tordin were unsealed, Imagina Media suspended and then terminated Co-Conspirator #1, Huguet, and Tordin, and retained counsel to conduct an internal investigation.
The Non-Prosecution Agreement
Pursuant to the non-prosecution agreement it entered today, Imagina Media has accepted responsibility for its criminal conduct and that of its subsidiary Imagina US, and has also accepted responsibility for its failure to conduct a prompt internal investigation upon learning of the allegations against its agents in the First Indictment. Imagina Media has accepted responsibility by, among other things: (a) causing Imagina US to plead guilty to the two counts in the Information and honor all of the terms of Imagina US’s plea agreement with the government, and (b) agreeing to pay the criminal penalty of $12,883,320 imposed on Imagina US as part of its sentence. In consideration of this acceptance of responsibility, Imagina Media’s remedial actions to date, including the termination of Co-Conspirator #1, Roger Huguet and Fabio Tordin and the hiring of a new CEO, Chief Financial Officer and General Counsel, among others, at Imagina US, and its commitment to, among other things: (a) accept and acknowledge responsibility for its conduct; (b) continue its cooperation; (c) implement enhanced internal controls and a rigorous corporate compliance program that includes policies and procedures at Imagina US, Imagina Media and Imagina Media’s other subsidiaries and affiliates designed to detect and deter violations of all applicable federal, state and foreign anti-corruption laws, the government entered a non-prosecution agreement with Imagina Media and agreed to a 10 percent reduction from the low end of the applicable Sentencing Guidelines fine range. If Imagina Media violates the non-prosecution agreement, it is subject to full criminal prosecution.
The guilty plea and non-prosecution agreement announced today are part of an investigation into corruption in international soccer led by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of New York, the FBI New York Field Office, and the IRS CI Los Angeles Field Office. The prosecutors in Brooklyn are receiving considerable assistance from attorneys in various parts of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division in Washington, D.C., including the Office of International Affairs, the Organized Crime and Gang Section, the Money Laundering and Asset Recovery Section, and the Fraud Section, as well as from INTERPOL Washington.
The government’s case is being handled by the Office’s FIFA Task Force and the Business and Securities Fraud Section. Assistant United States Attorneys Paul Tuchmann, David Pitluck, Samuel P. Nitze and Brian D. Morris of the Eastern District of New York are in charge of the prosecution.
The government’s investigation is ongoing.
The Defendant: US IMAGINA, LLC
Place of Organization: FloridaE.D.N.Y. Docket No. 18-CR-311 (PKC)
Flight Attendant Pleads Guilty to Airport Security Violations and Unlicensed Money TransmittingRead the Press Release
Geoffrey S. Berman, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, announced that SCOTT McKINNEY, a former flight attendant, pled guilty today to conspiring both to violate airport security requirements and to operate an unlicensed money transmitting business.
U.S. Attorney Geoffrey S. Berman said: “Scott McKinney abused his privileges as an airline employee, including misusing the known crewmember lane, to smuggle bulk cash through security and then across the country, in furtherance of an illegal money transmitting business. McKinney’s scheme is now grounded, and he faces the possibility of time in a federal prison.”
According to the Complaint, Indictment, and other documents filed in the case, as well as statements made during the plea proceedings:
Between July and November 2017, McKINNEY, a flight attendant based in California, conspired with others to operate an unlicensed money transmitting business and to violate airport security requirements. On several occasions, McKINNEY flew from California to New York to pick up packages containing $50,000 or more in cash at JFK Airport or other locations in New York City. McKINNEY then flew back to California with the cash. On some of these occasions, McKINNEY was on the ground at JFK Airport for two hours or less before flying back to California. At the time of these trips, McKINNEY did not have a money transmitting license in New York or California, and was not registered as a money transmitter with the U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Financial Crimes Enforcement Network. In a statement to agents of Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations (“HSI”) on or about September 15, 2017, McKINNEY admitted that he was aware of the licensing requirement and lacked such a license.
To facilitate his illegal money transmitting business, McKINNEY used the Known Crewmember (“KCM”) lane to bypass regular airport security screening. The KCM lane allows approved airline crewmembers to pass through security more quickly and, typically, without having their carry-on luggage screened. On several occasions, McKINNEY wore his crewmember uniform and used the KCM security lane – even though he was not working on those occasions – to smuggle bulk cash through airport security.
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McKINNEY, 49, of San Diego, California, pled guilty to one count of conspiring both to violate airport security requirements and to operate an unlicensed money transmitting business, which carries a maximum sentence of five years in prison. The statutory maximum sentence is prescribed by Congress and is provided here for informational purposes only, as any sentencing of the defendant will be determined by the judge. McKINNEY is scheduled to be sentenced by Judge Failla on October 31, 2018, at 3:30 p.m.
Mr. Berman praised HSI for its outstanding work on this case.
This matter is being handled by the Office’s Narcotics Unit. Assistant United States Attorney Michael D. Neff is in charge of the prosecution.
Five Aliens Indicted on Charges for Illegal Reentry, Unlawful and Illegal Alien in Possession of a Firearm, and Other Mutltiple Federal OffensesRead the Press Release
RALEIGH – Robert J. Higdon, Jr., United States Attorney for the Eastern District of North Carolina, announces that a federal grand jury in Raleigh has returned indictments charging ABEL CARLOS ANGELES-MORALES, age 31, of Mexico, BERNARDO VILLALBA-QUITERIO, age 29, of Mexico, and OSCAR OBDULIO LOPEZ-GARCIA, age 53, of Guatemala, with illegal reentry of a deported alien. Additionally, a federal grand jury in Raleigh has returned superseding indictments charging FAOZI SALEH ALAYAH, age 32, of Yemen, with unlawful and illegal alien in possession of a firearm and false statement in an immigration proceeding, and MIGUEL RAIMUNDO RODRIGUEZ, age 45, of Cuba, with misuse of a Social Security account number, false claim of United States citizenship with intent to engage unlawfully in employment and obtain a benefit or service in the United States, and aggravated identity theft.
If convicted of illegal reentry of a deported alien, ANGELES-MORALES, previously deported three times and found in Wake County, and VILLALBA-QUITERIO, previously deported twice and found in Tyrrell County, would face maximum penalties of two years’ imprisonment, a $250,000 fine, and a term of supervised release following any term of imprisonment.
If convicted of illegal reentry subsequent to a felony conviction (sale of a controlled substance), LOPEZ-GARCIA, previously deported four times and found in Lenoir County, would face a maximum imprisonment term of 10 years, a $250,000 fine, and a term of supervised release following any term of imprisonment.
If convicted of unlawful and illegal alien in possession of a firearm and false statement in an immigration proceeding, ALAYAH, found in Halifax County, would face a maximum imprisonment term of 15 years, a $250,000 fine, and a term of supervised release following any term of imprisonment.
If convicted of misuse of a Social Security account number, false claim of United States citizenship with intent to engage unlawfully in employment in the United States and obtain a benefit or service, and aggravated identity theft, RODRIGUEZ, found in Cumberland County, would face a maximum imprisonment term of 36 years, a $250,000 fine, and a term of supervised release following any term of imprisonment.
The charges and allegations contained in the indictments and superseding indictments are merely accusations. The defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty in a court of law.
The cases are being investigated by ICE’s Enforcement and Removal Operations, and Homeland Security Investigations.
Federal Inmate Charged with Illegally Possessing Buprenorphine in PrisonRead the Press Release
JOHNSTOWN, Pa. – An inmate at the Federal Correctional Institution in Loretto, Pa., was indicted by a federal grand jury in Johnstown on a charge of possession of a prohibited object in prison, United States Attorney Scott W. Brady announced today.
The indictment named Ramon Santiago-Sandoval, 27.
According to the indictment presented to the court, on October 23, 2017, Santiago-Sandoval possessed a quantity of Buprenorphine.
The law provides for a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison and a fine of $250,000 or both. Under the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, the actual sentence imposed would be based upon the seriousness of the offense and the prior criminal history of the defendant.
Assistant United States Attorney Stephanie L. Haines is prosecuting this case on behalf of the government.
The Laurel Highlands Resident Agency of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, and the Federal Correctional Institution, Special Investigative Staff, conducted the investigation leading to the prosecution of Rodriguez-Melendez.
An indictment is an accusation. A defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
Federal Grand Jury IndictmentsRead the Press Release
United States Attorney Sherri A. Lydon stated today that a Federal Grand Jury in Greenville, South Carolina, returned Indictments against the following:
Greenville Resident Indicted on Fraud and Related Activity in Connection with Access Devices. Marius Zegrean , age 32, of Greenville, South Carolina, was charged in a 1-count indictment with Fraud and Related Activity in Connection with Access Devices, a violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section, 1029(a)(5). The maximum penalty Zegrean could receive is 15 years imprisonment and a maximum fine of $250,000. The case was investigated by agents of the United States Secret Service and is assigned to Assistant United States Attorney William J. Watkins, Jr., of the Greenville office for prosecution.
The United States Attorney stated that all charges in these indictments are merely accusations and that all defendants are presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty.
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Federal Felon Indicted for Illegally Possessing Crack Cocaine and PistolsRead the Press Release
JOHNSTOWN, Pa. – A resident of Johnstown, Pa., was indicted by a federal grand jury in Johnstown on charges of violating federal narcotics and firearms laws, United States Attorney Scott W. Brady announced today.
The indictment named Leon E. Szewczyk, 34, of Johnstown, Pa.
According to the indictment presented to the court, on April 6, 2018, Szewczyk possessed with the intent to distribute more than 28 grams of cocaine base, commonly known as "crack," and a quantity of fentanyl. Also, on April 6, 2018, he was found in possession of a loaded Raven ArmsModel MP25, .25 caliber semi-automatic pistol and a Ruger, Model LCP, .380 caliber semi-automatic pistol. On Nov. 2, 2010, Szewczyk was convicted in United States District Court for the Western District of Pennsylvania, of drug trafficking, which is a crime punishable by imprisonment for a term exceeding one year. Federal law prohibits persons who have been convicted of a crime punishable by a term of imprisonment exceeding one year from possessing firearms.
The law provides for a maximum sentence of 70 years in prison and a fine of $6,250,000 or both. Under the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, the actual sentence imposed would be based upon the seriousness of the offenses and the prior criminal history of the defendant.
Assistant United States Attorney Stephanie L. Haines is prosecuting this case on behalf of the government.
The Laurel Highlands Resident Agency of the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Cambria County Drug Task Force conducted the investigation that led to the prosecution of Szewczyk.
An indictment is an accusation. A defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
FCI-Loretto Inmate Charged with Possessing Prohibited Substance in PrisonRead the Press Release
JOHNSTOWN, Pa. – An inmate at the Federal Correctional Institution in Loretto, Pa., was indicted by a federal grand jury in Johnstown on a charge of possession of a prohibited object in prison, United States Attorney Scott W. Brady announced today.
The indictment named Dilpreet Singh, 33.
According to the indictment presented to the court, on July 14, 2017, Singh possessed a quantity of Buprenorphine.
The law provides for a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison and a fine of $250,000 or both. Under the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, the actual sentence imposed would be based upon the seriousness of the offense and the prior criminal history of the defendant.
Assistant United States Attorney Stephanie L. Haines is prosecuting this case on behalf of the government.
The Laurel Highlands Resident Agency of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, and the Federal Correctional Institution, Special Investigative Staff, conducted the investigation leading to the prosecution of Rodriguez-Melendez.
An indictment is an accusation. A defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
Erie Man Charged with Receiving and Possessing Child PornographyRead the Press Release
ERIE, Pa. - A resident of Erie, Pennsylvania, has been indicted by a federal grand jury in Erie on charges of violating federal laws relating to the sexual exploitation of children, United States Attorney Scott W. Brady announced today.
The two-count indictment named Mark Anthony Prindle, 24, 1534 Taki Drive, Erie, Pennsylvania, as the sole defendant.
According to the indictment presented to the court, Prindle received and possessed computer images and movies depicting prepubescent minors engaging in sexually explicit conduct.
This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by the United States Attorneys' Offices and the Criminal Division's Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who sexually exploit children, and to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.justice.gov/psc.
The law provides for a maximum total sentence of 40 years in prison, a fine of $500,000, or both. Under the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, the actual sentence imposed would be based upon the seriousness of the offenses and the prior criminal history, if any, of the defendant.
Assistant United States Attorney Christian A. Trabold is prosecuting this case on behalf of the government.
The Department of Homeland Security Investigations and the Millcreek Police Department conducted the investigation leading to the indictment in this case.
An indictment is an accusation. A defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
Elk Grove Man Sentenced to 22 Years in Prison for Producing Child PornographyRead the Press Release
SACRAMENTO, Calif. —Alexander Jordan Miller, 22, of Elk Grove, was sentenced today to 22 years in prison for producing child pornography, U.S. Attorney McGregor W. Scott announced.
U.S. Attorney Scott stated: “Miller was a social media predator who spent hours searching for victims who were old enough to know how to use social media, but young enough to be susceptible to his extortion scheme. Rather than physical force, he used fear to compel girls to create the videos he demanded. Today’s sentence rightly takes into account the physical and psychological pain he inflicted on the young, vulnerable victims.”
“This case highlights the critical importance of educating children about safe and responsible internet use,” said Special Agent in Charge Sean Ragan of the FBI Sacramento Field Office. “Miller used the anonymity of the internet to his advantage and used coercive threats, blackmail, and shame to put his young victims in impossible situations. The impact of Miller’s despicable behavior on his victims cannot be overstated. The FBI is committed to unmasking those who use the internet to exploit the innocence of our nation’s children. We hope Miller’s sentencing serves as caution to families about internet safety and as a message to would-be offenders that such crimes will not go undetected.”
According to court documents, in 2015, Miller, under various pseudonyms, used social media and a messaging app to persuade minor victims to take and then send nude photos of themselves engaged in sexually explicit conduct. In each instance, after Miller obtained one or more nude photos of the victim, Miller demanded that the victim provide additional, and increasingly graphic, nude videos and photos. Miller told each victim that if she did not provide more nude videos or photos, he would send the victim’s friends and family the explicit photos that the victim provided previously, or he threatened to post the victim’s photos on the internet. As part of this extortion scheme, Miller used at least 12 minor victims to produce child pornography. One of the victims was 11 years old at the time of the offense.
This case was the product of an investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney Brian A. Fogerty prosecuted the case.
This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by the United States Attorneys’ Offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute those who sexually exploit children, and to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.usdoj.gov/psc. Click on the “resources” tab for information about Internet safety education.
Electrical Engineer Found Guilty for Intending to Convert Trade Secrets from Defense ContractorRead the Press Release
A federal jury in Hartford, Connecticut yesterday returned guilty verdicts against a man for his conduct related to a scheme to convert trade secrets belonging to a defense contractor based in Groton, Connecticut, related to, among others, an innovative naval prototype being developed for the U.S. Navy, Office of Naval Research, announced Acting Assistant Attorney General John P. Cronan of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division and U.S. Attorney John H. Durham of the District of Connecticut.
According to evidence admitted at trial, Jared Dylan Sparks, 35, of Ardmore, Oklahoma, an electrical engineer, worked at LBI Inc., a defense contractor that has designed and built unmanned underwater vehicles for the U.S. Navy’s Office of Naval Research and deployable ice buoys used to gather weather data for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). During the course of his employment with LBI, Sparks collaborated with Charles River Analytics (CRA), a Massachusetts-based software company that developed software to be integrated into LBI’s unmanned underwater vehicles. In late 2011, CRA sought to expand into the hardware business and eventually agreed with the Office of Naval Research that it would complete the testing for a number of the unmanned vehicles designed and developed by LBI. Sometime after April 2011, Sparks began exploring employment with CRA, and was eventually hired by that company in January 2012. Before he left LBI, however, Sparks surreptitiously uploaded thousands of LBI files to his personal account with Dropbox, a cloud-based file-storage application. Those files included LBI’s accounting and engineering files as well as photographs related to designs and renderings used to fabricate and manufacture LBI’s unmanned underwater vehicles and buoys.
On Nov. 3, 2016, a grand jury returned a 29-count indictment charging Sparks and Jay Williams of Griswold, Connecticut, with various offenses stemming from this alleged scheme.
The jury found Sparks guilty of six counts of theft of trade secrets, six counts of upload of trade secrets, and one count of transmission of trade secrets. Each of these offenses carry a maximum term of imprisonment of 10 years. The jury found Sparks not guilty of multiple counts of the indictment, and Williams not guilty of all the counts in which he was charged. Sparks’ sentencing has not yet been scheduled.
“Jared Sparks stole thousands of documents—including proprietary designs and renderings—from his former employer when he left to work for a competitor,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General John P. Cronan. “Yesterday’s verdict sends a clear message that the Department of Justice is committed to protecting American intellectual property and will aggressively prosecute those who steal it.”
“In order to protect both our country’s national security and the intellectual property of Connecticut’s defense contractors, our office is committed to prosecuting those who steal trade secrets and hope to profit from the theft,” said U.S. Attorney Durham.
“Theft of trade secrets from a Defense contractor harms the U.S. taxpayer and threatens the integrity of the Defense Department's procurement system,” said Special Agent-in-Charge Leigh-Alistair Barzey, Defense Criminal Investigative Service (DCIS) Northeast Field Office. “DCIS is committed to working with the DOJ, FBI and other law enforcement partners, to investigate and prosecute those individuals who seek to profit at the expense of our national security.”
"Intellectual property theft cost U.S. businesses billions in revenue annually and robs the nation of jobs and taxes," said FBI Acting Special Agent in Charge Robert Fuller. "Preventing intellectual property theft is a priority of the FBI's criminal investigative program. The key to this successful prosecution was due to linking considerable resources and collaboration of the private sector, federal law enforcement partners, the U.S. Attorney's office and the Criminal Division's Computer Crime and Intellectual Property Section."
This matter was investigated by DCIS and the FBI with assistance from the Department of Defense’s Computer Forensic Laboratory. The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Jacabed Rodriguez-Coss of the District of Connecticut and Trial Attorneys Kebharu Smith and Joss Nichols of the Criminal Division’s Computer Crime and Intellectual Property Section (CCIPS), with assistance from the CCIPS Cybercrime Lab.
Electrical Engineer Found Guilty for Intending to Convert Trade Secrets from Defense ContractorRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON – A federal jury in Hartford, Connecticut yesterday returned guilty verdicts against a man for his conduct related to a scheme to convert trade secrets belonging to a defense contractor based in Groton, Connecticut, related to, among others, an innovative naval prototype being developed for the U.S. Navy, Office of Naval Research, announced Acting Assistant Attorney General John P. Cronan of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division and U.S. Attorney John H. Durham of the District of Connecticut.
According to evidence admitted at trial, Jared Dylan Sparks, 35, of Ardmore, Oklahoma, an electrical engineer, worked at LBI Inc., a defense contractor that has designed and built unmanned underwater vehicles for the U.S. Navy’s Office of Naval Research and deployable ice buoys used to gather weather data for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). During the course of his employment with LBI, Sparks collaborated with Charles River Analytics (CRA), a Massachusetts-based software company that developed software to be integrated into LBI’s unmanned underwater vehicles. In late 2011, CRA sought to expand into the hardware business and eventually agreed with the Office of Naval Research that it would complete the testing for a number of the unmanned vehicles designed and developed by LBI. Sometime after April 2011, Sparks began exploring employment with CRA, and was eventually hired by that company in January 2012. Before he left LBI, however, Sparks surreptitiously uploaded thousands of LBI files to his personal account with Dropbox, a cloud-based file-storage application. Those files included LBI’s accounting and engineering files as well as photographs related to designs and renderings used to fabricate and manufacture LBI’s unmanned underwater vehicles and buoys.
On Nov. 3, 2016, a grand jury returned a 29-count indictment charging Sparks and Jay Williams of Griswold, Connecticut, with various offenses stemming from this alleged scheme.
The jury found Sparks guilty of six counts of theft of trade secrets, six counts of upload of trade secrets, and one count of transmission of trade secrets. Each of these offenses carry a maximum term of imprisonment of 10 years. The jury found Sparks not guilty of multiple counts of the indictment, and Williams not guilty of all the counts in which he was charged. Sparks’ sentencing has not yet been scheduled.
“Jared Sparks stole thousands of documents—including proprietary designs and renderings—from his former employer when he left to work for a competitor,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General John P. Cronan. “Yesterday’s verdict sends a clear message that the Department of Justice is committed to protecting American intellectual property and will aggressively prosecute those who steal it.”
“In order to protect both our country’s national security and the intellectual property of Connecticut’s defense contractors, our office is committed to prosecuting those who steal trade secrets and hope to profit from the theft,” said U.S. Attorney Durham.
“Theft of trade secrets from a Defense contractor harms the U.S. taxpayer and threatens the integrity of the Defense Department's procurement system,” said Special Agent-in-Charge Leigh-Alistair Barzey, Defense Criminal Investigative Service (DCIS) Northeast Field Office. “DCIS is committed to working with the DOJ, FBI and other law enforcement partners, to investigate and prosecute those individuals who seek to profit at the expense of our national security.”
"Intellectual property theft cost U.S. businesses billions in revenue annually and robs the nation of jobs and taxes," said FBI Acting Special Agent in Charge Robert Fuller. "Preventing intellectual property theft is a priority of the FBI's criminal investigative program. The key to this successful prosecution was due to linking considerable resources and collaboration of the private sector, federal law enforcement partners, the U.S. Attorney's office and the Criminal Division's Computer Crime and Intellectual Property Section."
This matter was investigated by DCIS and the FBI with assistance from the Department of Defense’s Computer Forensic Laboratory. The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Jacabed Rodriguez-Coss of the District of Connecticut and Trial Attorneys Kebharu Smith and Joss Nichols of the Criminal Division’s Computer Crime and Intellectual Property Section (CCIPS), with assistance from the CCIPS Cybercrime Lab.
Desloge Man Pleads Guilty to Bank Robberies, Faces 30 Years in PrisonRead the Press Release
KANSAS CITY, Mo. – A Desloge, Mo., man, who was arrested after a high-speed chase in Callaway County, Mo., pleaded guilty in federal court today to two separate indictments that charge him with robbing four banks and with illegally possessing a firearm.
James Todd Hulsey, 53, pleaded guilty before U.S. Chief Magistrate Judge Matt J. Whitworth to one count of bank robbery involving Adams Dairy Bank in Blue Springs, Mo., in which he brandished a loaded firearm. Hulsey also pleaded guilty to the charges contained in a separate indictment, related to three additional bank robberies in Springfield, Ill.
Hulsey admitted that he robbed Adams Dairy Bank, 651 N.E. Coronado Dr., Blue Springs, on Oct. 14, 2016. Hulsey approached the teller counter at approximately 12:15 p.m., displayed a loaded Diamondback Arms 9mm pistol, presented a demand note to the teller and threatened to kill her. The teller turned over $7,845 and Hulsey fled from the bank on foot. Descriptions of the robber and the associated vehicle used in the robbery were broadcast to law enforcement agencies.
A couple of hours later, a state trooper saw Hulsey’s vehicle traveling eastbound on I-70 in Callaway County, Mo., and attempted to stop the vehicle. A vehicle pursuit ensued, reaching speeds over 120 miles per hour. Hulsey’s vehicle got a flat tire and ran off the road. Hulsey fled from the vehicle on foot and a 75-yard foot pursuit took place before Hulsey was taken into custody. The pistol was found inside Hulsey’s vehicle; officers also saw U.S. currency blowing out of the driver’s side door of the vehicle as well as located throughout the front passenger compartment of the vehicle.
Hulsey also admitted that he stole $13,634 from Chase Bank in Springfield, Ill., on Sept. 28, 2016. He stole $4,750 from PNC Bank in Springfield, Ill., on Oct. 3, 2016. He stole $2,104 from Chase Bank in Springfield, Ill., on Oct. 7, 2016. Hulsey provided the teller with a note indicating that he was robbing the bank in each of the three robberies and implied that force would be used if necessary. During the Oct. 7, 2016, robbery a semi-automatic handgun can be seen in Hulsey’s hand in a video recording of the robbery.
Under the terms of today’s plea agreement, the U.S. Attorney for the District of Kansas agrees not to file charges based upon Hulsey committing a bank robbery on Sept. 23, 2016, at First National Bank, 4650 College Blvd., Overland Park, Kan.; however, Hulsey must pay the restitution related to this uncharged bank robbery.
Hulsey has five prior felony convictions for bank robbery and felony convictions for an illegal weapon and for receiving stolen property.
Under the terms of today’s plea agreement, Hulsey will be sentenced to 30 years in federal prison without parole and must pay restitution to each of the victim banks. A sentencing hearing will be scheduled after the completion of a presentence investigation by the United States Probation Office.
This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Emily A. Morgan, Western District of Missouri, Greg Gilmore, Central District of Illinois and Leon Patton, District of Kansas. It was investigated by the FBI, the Blue Springs, Mo., Police Department, the Missouri State Highway Patrol, the Callaway County, Mo., Sheriff’s Department, the Boone County, Mo., Sheriff’s Department, the Springfield, Ill., Police Department and the Overland Park, Kan., Police Department.
DBSI Defendants Detained Pending Prison DesignationRead the Press Release
BOISE - After a hearing before her this morning, United States Magistrate Judge Candy W. Dale ordered Defendants Douglas L. Swenson, Mark A. Ellison, Jeremy S. Swenson, and David D. Swenson – former executives of Diversified Business Services and Investments, Inc. (“DBSI”) of Meridian, Idaho – immediately detained pending designation by the Bureau of Prisons to federal correctional facilities. Judge Dale held that because the Defendants had exhausted their appellate rights, the Bail Reform Act no longer applied, and the interests of justice would no longer be served by their continued release.
On April 14, 2014, after a 45-day trial before Chief United States District Judge B. Lynn Winmill, the jury found Defendants Douglas L. Swenson, Mark A. Ellison, Jeremy S. Swenson, and David D. Swenson guilty of 44 counts of securities fraud. The jury further found Defendant Douglas L. Swenson guilty of 34 counts of wire fraud.
In August of 2014, Judge Winmill sentenced Defendants Douglas L. Swenson to 240 months in prison and to pay $180,632,025 in restitution; Mark A. Ellison to 60 months in prison and to pay $32,158,501 in restitution; Jeremy S. Swenson to 36 months in prison and to pay $32,158,501 in restitution; and David D. Swenson to 36 months in prison and to pay $32,158,501 in restitution. By loss amount, the DBSI fraud was the largest in the history of the District of Idaho.
By orders in November and December of 2014, the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals allowed the Defendants to remain released from prison pending their appeal. On June 25, 2018, the United States Supreme Court denied Defendants’ petition for writ of certiorari, ending their appeal.
Regarding today’s hearing, United States Attorney for the District of Idaho Bart M. Davis stated, “We are gratified by Judge Dale’s decision to immediately detain the DBSI Defendants, pending their designation to the Bureau of Prisons facilities that will house them for the terms of their incarceration. After four years of freedom and pursuit of their appeal all the way to the United States Supreme Court, that appeal is now over and there was no basis in law for the DBSI Defendants to remain released. We hope that the incarceration of the DBSI Defendants provides the victims of their crimes some degree of closure, and that restitution payments by the Defendants to the victims may now commence. I would like to thank the United States Probation Office for their work over the last four years in supervising the Defendants while they were released pending appeal, and the committed law enforcement agents of the Federal Bureau of Investigation and Internal Revenue Service for their tireless work on this case.”
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Cypriot National Sentenced to Prison for Money LaunderingRead the Press Release
A Cypriot national was sentenced today in federal court in Boston for money laundering.
Acting Assistant Attorney General John P. Cronan of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, U.S. Attorney Andrew E. Lelling for the District of Massachusetts, Special Agent in Charge Brian D. Boyle of the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) New England Division, Special Agent in Charge Harold H. Shaw of the FBI Boston Field Division and Special Agent in Charge Kristina O’Connell of IRS’s Criminal Investigation in Boston, made the announcement.
Esam Sakkal, 40, a national of Cyprus, was sentenced by U.S. District Court Judge Rya W. Zobel to 27 months time served and ordered to pay forfeiture of $19, 248. In April 2018, Sakkal pleaded guilty to one count of money laundering conspiracy and two counts of laundering of monetary instruments.
In June 2017, Sakkal and his brother, Nabeel Sakkal, aka Traycho Marinov Mitchov, Nabil Cieckal and Nabil Imadein Bazul Siggal, a dual national of Cyprus and Jordan, were indicted. Nabeel Sakkal remains a fugitive.
An indictment is merely an allegation and the defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
At the plea hearing, Sakkal admitted that on numerous occasions between 2009 and 2016, the Sakkals met with a U.S. undercover law enforcement agent posing as a member of a drug organization whose role was to launder money from drug sales. Sakkal admitted that in 2014, he advised his brother Nabeel on methods to transport cash obtained from an undercover agent, which was subsequently laundered by the Sakkals through wire transfers to the United States. Sakkal also admitted that he attempted to launder approximately €1 million euros he believed to be the proceeds from illegal drug sales when he met with an undercover agent in Warsaw, Poland in April 2016. Sakkal further admitted that he agreed to obtain money from the undercover agent, and agreed to cause the money to be wired to the United States.
Trial Attorney Randall Warden of the Justice Department’s Money Laundering and Asset Recovery Section and Assistant U.S. Attorneys Linda Ricci of Lelling’s Narcotics and Money Laundering Unit prosecuted the case.
Cranston Man Admits to Social Security Fraud, Opioid Trafficking ChargeRead the Press Release
PROVIDENCE, RI – A Cranston, R.I. man has admitted to collecting thousands of dollars in Social Security Supplemental Security Income (SSI) to which he was not entitled, and attempting to possess a significant quantity of Oxycodone pills with the intent of selling the pills to others.
Raymond Walker, 47, pleaded guilty in U.S. District Court to one count each of Social Security fraud and attempt to possess with the intent to distribute Oxycodone, announced United States Attorney Stephen G. Dambruch, Special Agent in Charge of the Food and Drug Administration Office of Criminal Investigations (FDA-OCI) Jeffrey J. Ebersole, and Scott E. Antolik, Special Agent in Charge of the Social Security Administration Office of Inspector General (SSA-OIG).
According to information presented to the Court, Walker received $500 monthly Supplemental Security Income (SSI) payments. SSI is meant to assist aged, blind, and disabled people who have little to no income. To be eligible, one has to be disabled, unable to engage in substantial gainful activity, and have limited income and resources.
The Social Security Administration takes into account a claimant’s resources and allows an individual to hold up to $2,000 worth of resources. “Income” includes money a claimant receives from work and other sources, such as friends and relatives. The claimant must notify the Social Security Administration of any significant changes in conditions affecting the receipt of benefits, to include work activity, as either an employee or self-employed individual.
According to information presented to the Court, on September 8, 2017, Walker was interviewed by a SSA claims specialist and informed the claims specialist that since July 2015 his only resource was a 1988 vehicle and a bank account with no more than $200 in it at any time. He told the interviewer that he received approximately $200 per month from family members to assist with personal expenses.
However, an investigation by FDA-OCI, SSA-OIG and the United States Attorney’s Office determined that between December 2013 and July 2017, $306,435 was deposited into Walker’s bank account. It was also determined that he owned a 2016 Audi.
As part of the investigation, on October 4, 2017, at the direction of FDA-OCI agents, a cooperating witness met the defendant at his mother’s house in Providence and sold the defendant 2 bottles containing 168 30 mg Oxycodone pills for $5,000. Upon receiving the pills, the defendant emptied the prescription bottles into a bottle of his own. The defendant did not have all the money at once and asked the cooperating witness to return later to receive full payment. When the cooperating witness returned, approximately an hour and a half later, the defendant informed the individual he had already received complaints regarding the strength of the pills.
Indeed, in that hour and a half, agents observed the defendant’s mother’s home and saw numerous individuals stopping in front of the house and engaging with the defendant to purchase the pills.
Walker is scheduled to be sentenced by U.S. District Court Chief Judge William E. Smith on October 26, 2018. Social Security Fraud is punishable by statutory penalties of up to 5 years in federal prison, 3 years supervised release, and a fine of up to $250,000. Attempt to possess with the intent to distribute Oxycodone is punishable by statutory penalties of up to 20 years in federal prison, 3 years supervised release, and a fine of up to $250,000.
The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Dulce Donovan.
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Coffeyville Woman Pleads Guilty in $150,000 Mail FraudRead the Press Release
KANSAS CITY, KAN. – A Coffeyville woman pleaded guilty to stealing $150,000 from a customer at a bank where she worked, U.S. Attorney Stephen McAllister said.
Phyllis Lanning, 61, Coffeyville, Kan., pleaded guilty to one count of mail fraud. She admitted that while she worked for Condon National Bank in Coffeyville, Kan., she created and mailed falsified documents in order to conceal the fact she stole $150,000 from a customer’s account. She diverted legitimate monthly statements to a postal box in Bartlesville, Okla., that she controlled. She prepared counterfeit statements and mailed them to the owner of the account. The theft was discovered after the owner of the account died and family members took control of the account.
Sentencing is set for September 24. She faces a penalty of up to 20 years in federal prison and a fine up to $250,000. McAllister commended the FBI and Assistant U.S. Attorney Alan Metzger for their work on the case.
Clovis Man Pleads Guilty to Distributing and Receiving Child PornographyRead the Press Release
ALBUQUERQUE – Spencer C. Lovato, 26, of Clovis, N.M., pled guilty today in federal court in Albuquerque, N.M., to an indictment charging him with two counts of distributing child pornography and one count of receiving child pornography.
At sentencing, Lovato faces a statutory mandatory minimum penalty of five years and a maximum of 20 years in federal prison. Lovato will also be required to register as a sex offender. Lovato has been in custody since his arrest in April 2017. He will remain detained pending his sentencing hearing, which has yet to be scheduled.
The FBI arrested Lovato in April 2017, on a criminal complaint charging him with child pornography offenses in Dec. 2016, in Curry and San Miguel Counties, N.M. According to the complaint, the investigation leading to Lovato’s arrest began in Dec. 2016, when the FBI received a report about video and image files containing child pornography that were being shared by individuals on an online messaging platform. During the investigation, the FBI obtained two IP addresses, email accounts and telephone account records identifying Lovato as the subscriber of accounts used to distribute and receive child pornography.
Lovato subsequently was charged in a three-count indictment on May 9, 2017, with distributing child pornography on Dec. 27, 2016, in Curry County, and with distributing and receiving child pornography on Jan. 5, 2017, in New Mexico.
During today’s proceedings, Lovato pled guilty to all three counts of the indictment. In entering the guilty plea, Lovato admitted that on Dec. 27, 2016, he sent a message on his phone that included a digital video of a minor involved in sexually explicit conduct. Lovato also admitted that on Jan. 5, 2017, he sent a message and received a message that included digital videos of minors involved in sexually explicit conduct.
This case was investigated by the Santa Fe office of the FBI and the Clovis Police Department. Assistant U.S. Attorney Paul Mysliwiec is prosecuting the case as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice (DOJ) to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by United States Attorneys’ Offices and DOJ’s 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 information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit http://www.justice.gov/psc/. Individuals with information relating to suspected child predators and suspected child abuse are encouraged to contact the Children’s Advocacy Center at (575) 526-3437, or to contact Homeland Security Investigations at 1-866-DHS-2-ICE.
The case also was brought as a part of the New Mexico Internet Crimes Against Children (ICAC) Task Force’s mission, which is to locate, track, and capture Internet child sexual predators and Internet child pornographers in New Mexico. There are 86 federal, state and local law enforcement agencies associated with the New Mexico ICAC Task Force, which is funded by a grant administered by the New Mexico Attorney General’s Office. Anyone with information relating to suspected child predators and suspected child abuse is encouraged to contact federal or local law enforcement.
Christian County Reserve Deputy Pleads Guilty to Tax FraudRead the Press Release
SPRINGFIELD, Mo. – A reserve deputy sheriff for Christian County, Mo., pleaded guilty in federal court today to tax fraud.
Marty Layne Brickey, 47, of Republic, Mo., pleaded guilty before U.S. Magistrate Judge David P. Rush to one count of failure to pay over to the IRS the payroll taxes he collected from his employees. Under the terms of today’s plea agreement, Brickey has agreed to pay $114,449 in restitution to the IRS and $539,260 in restitution in connection with some investments made to Brickey or his companies.
Brickey has been commissioned as a reserve deputy sheriff in Christian County since 2012. Brickey owned and operated several companies that marketed, promoted and managed software development. Interzone Entertainment, LLC, had offices located in Springfield, Mo., Chicago, Ill., Perth, Australia, Belo Horizonte, Brazil, and in China before it ceased operations in February 2010. Big Collision Games, LLC, had offices in Texas and in Dublin, Ireland. MasterTitle Games, Inc., and Spectacle Games maintained offices in Austin, Texas. Brickey also owned Zoonik USA, Inc., and Studio Avenue, Inc.
By pleading guilty today, Brickey admitted that he voluntarily and intentionally failed to pay over to the IRS $15,031 in payroll taxes tax (including federal income taxes, Medicare and Social Security taxes) that he collected from Interzone employees during the second quarter of 2009. Brickey acknowledged that the total tax loss, including all relevant conduct, is $114,449.
Restitution payments to various investors are related to funds solicited by Brickey to bring a video game to market, which did not come to fruition. Although Brickey will pay restitution to the investors, today’s plea agreement does not constitute any admission of criminal culpability or civil liability on his part, and the government does not allege any criminal culpability with respect to the investments.
Under federal statutes, Brickey is subject to a sentence of up to five years in federal prison without parole. The maximum statutory sentence is prescribed by Congress and is provided here for informational purposes, as the sentencing of the defendant will be determined by the court based on the advisory sentencing guidelines and other statutory factors. A sentencing hearing will be scheduled after the completion of a presentence investigation by the United States Probation Office.
This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Patrick Carney and Casey Clark. It was investigated by IRS-Criminal Investigation and the FBI.
Charlotte Man and His Wife Plead Guilty to Sex Trafficking Three MinorsRead the Press Release
CHARLOTTE, N.C. – Zerrell Ross Fuentes, 24, and his wife, Brianna Leshay Wright, 25, both of Charlotte, appeared in federal court today and pleaded guilty to sex trafficking three minor victims, announced Andrew Murray, U.S. Attorney for the Western District of North Carolina.
According to filed plea documents and statements made in court, between April 28, 2016 and May 8, 2016, Fuentes, his wife, Brianna Wright, and his mother and indicted co-conspirator, Tanya Marie Fuentes, engaged in the sex trafficking of three minor victims. Zerrell Fuentes admitted in court today that, while he was in jail, he recruited three underage victims, via telephone, to engage in prostitution to earn money for his bond. Zerrell Fuentes arranged for Wright to transport the minor victims from Charlotte to Myrtle Beach, S.C., for the purpose of engaging in commercial sex acts.
According to court records, Brianna Wright, accompanied by Tanya Fuentes, drove the three minors from Charlotte to Myrtle Beach. While in Myrtle Beach, Tanya Fuentes paid for lodging, and Brianna Wright’s phone was used to post prostitution advertisements for the minor victims on the Internet. She also provided her own telephone number on the ads, as a means of communication to arrange “dates” between the minors and customers, and transported the victims to and from the arranged prostitution appointments.
Zerrell Fuentes and Brianna Wright remain in custody. A sentencing date has not been set. Tanya Fuentes is charged with conspiracy to commit sex trafficking, sex trafficking of a minor, conspiracy to transport a minor to engage in prostitution, and transportation of a minor to engage in prostitution. Those charges are still pending.
The penalty for sex trafficking related offenses is a mandatory minimum of 10 years and a maximum of life in prison and a $250,000 fine.
In making today’s announcement U.S. Attorney Murray commended the law enforcement agents and officers from Homeland Security Investigations and the Charlotte Mecklenburg Police Department who are members of the FBI’s Human Trafficking Task Force for their investigation. He also thanked the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives for their assistance in this case.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Kimlani Ford, of the U.S. Attorney’s office in Charlotte, is prosecuting the case.
Business Owner Indicted for Failure to Provide IRS with 1.6 Million Dollars in Payroll TaxesRead the Press Release
Matthew D. Krueger, the United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Wisconsin, announced that Susan Wenszell (age 57) of Milwaukee has been charged in an indictment with failing to pay over payroll taxes withheld from the wages of employees of a business she and her husband operated in Milwaukee.
Specifically, the indictment charges that during the period from April 2012 through December 2015 Ms. Wenszell, who is the president and owner of J. Wenszell Enterprises Inc., failed to pay over the payroll taxes withheld from the wages of the employees of the business. During this period, Ms. Wenszell withheld more than 1.6 million dollars in payroll taxes from employee wages and failed to pay those taxes to the IRS. Each of the offenses with which Ms. Wenszell is charged carries a maximum possible penalty of up to 5 years in prison and a fine of up to $250,000, or both.
This matter was investigated by the IRS Criminal Investigation and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Matthew L. Jacobs.
The public is cautioned that an indictment is merely the formal method of issuing charges against an individual. A person is presumed innocent until such time, if ever, as the government establishes his or her guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.
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Birmingham Tax Preparer Sentenced to Five Years in PrisonRead the Press Release
BIRMINGHAM – A federal judge on Monday sentenced a Georgia woman to five years in prison for preparing and filing fraudulent tax returns for other people through her Birmingham-area business between 2009 and 2012, announced U.S. Attorney Jay E. Town and Internal Revenue Service, Criminal Investigation, Special Agent in Charge Thomas J. Holloman.
U.S. District Judge R. David Proctor sentenced PATRICE ANDERSON, 38, of Fairburn, Georgia, on 13 tax-related counts. A federal jury convicted Anderson in September for using her Birmingham tax-preparation business, Queen’s Fast Tax, to file returns that she knew contained false information.
“If you steal from the federal government, you will be charged with a federal crime and you will go to a federal prison,” Town said. “Anderson earned every minute of her five years by siphoning away monies belonging to honest taxpayers from the U.S. Treasury.”
“Patrice Anderson’s sentence demonstrates the seriousness of violating our nation’s federal tax laws,” Holloman said. “Anderson must now serve prison time for her criminal actions, and pay restitution to the tax-paying citizens she defrauded. This sentence should send a clear message: schemes that are directed at cheating the U.S. taxpayers have serious consequences and will result in jail time.”
Evidence at trial showed that Anderson filed tax returns claiming refundable credits to which her clients were not entitled so that they could receive much larger refunds from the government than they were eligible to receive. In return, Anderson would charge the clients abnormally high fees – up to $3,000 per fraudulent return – to file their taxes, according to testimony. The court determined that Anderson, who operated Queen’s Fast Tax from 2009 through 2012, had filed tax returns claiming more than $3.6 million in refunds in 2010 and 2011 alone, and that at least half the claimed refunds in those years were fraudulent.
Anderson testified that she only included information provided by clients on the tax returns that she prepared, but the government presented evidence that Anderson’s own 2010, 2011 and 2012 tax returns contained some of the same false items that were characteristic of the fraudulent tax returns she filed for her clients.
IRS-CI investigated the case, which Assistant U.S. Attorneys Xavier O. Carter Sr. and Kathryn McHugh prosecuted.
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Biopharmaceutical Employees Convicted of Insider TradingRead the Press Release
BOSTON – Two employees of Cambridge-based biopharmaceutical companies were convicted today by a federal jury of engaging in an insider trading scheme.
Schultz “Jason” Chan, 54, of Newton, the Director of Biostatistics at a Cambridge-based biopharmaceutical company, was convicted of one count of conspiracy to commit securities fraud and three counts of securities fraud. Songjiang Wang, 54, of Westford, the Director of Statistical Programming at a different biopharmaceutical company, was convicted of one count of conspiracy to commit securities fraud and two count of securities fraud. U.S. District Court Judge Indira Talwani scheduled Chan’s and Wang’s sentencings for Oct. 4 and 5, 2018, respectively.
From August 2013 to September 2015, Wang and Chan, who were friends, conspired to commit securities fraud by trading insider information regarding successful clinical drug trials at their respective companies. Specifically, Wang traded on inside information Chan provided regarding a clinical study conducted by Chan’s employer. In addition, over a period of several months, Wang tipped Chan of clinical trial results of a Phase 3 clinical trial being conducted by his employer. Furthermore, Wang gave Chan cash, which Chan used to purchase stock shares of Wang’s employer. Chan subsequently sold those shares and paid back Wang.
The charge of securities fraud provides for a sentence of no greater than 20 years in prison, three years of supervised release and a fine of $5 million. The charge of conspiracy to commit securities fraud provides for a sentence of no greater than five years in prison, three years of supervised release, and a fine of $250,000 or twice the gross gain or loss, whichever is greater. Sentences are imposed by a federal district court judge based upon the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
United States Attorney Andrew E. Lelling and Harold H. Shaw, Special Agent in Charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Boston Division, made the announcement today. The United States Attorney’s Office received valuable assistance from the Securities and Exchange Commission. Assistant U.S. Attorney Jordi de Llano Campos, Deputy Chief of Lelling’s Economic Crimes Unit, and Assistant United States Attorney Kriss Basil, also of the Economic Crimes Unit, are prosecuting the case.
Bay Area Methamphetamine Trafficker Sentenced to 25 Years in PrisonRead the Press Release
SACRAMENTO, Calif. — U.S. District Judge John A. Mendez sentenced Donnie Joe Phillips, 65, of Concord, today to 25 years in prison for methamphetamine trafficking, U.S. Attorney McGregor W. Scott announced.
On February 7, 2018, after a five-day trial, a federal jury found Phillips and his co‑defendant Gordon Owen Miller, 60, of Clayton, guilty of conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine. Miller was found guilty of two counts of distribution and two counts of possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine. Phillips was found guilty of eight counts of distribution and two counts of possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine.
According to evidence produced at trial, between June 2014 and February 2015, Phillips and Miller supplied methamphetamine to co-defendant Phyliss Mosher, 51, of Vallejo, who supplied it to an undercover agent. The drug deals took place in Solano and Yolo Counties. On January 25, 2018, Mosher was sentenced to 15 years in prison after she pleaded guilty to the methamphetamine trafficking conspiracy on May 9, 2017. On May 15, 2018, Miller was sentenced to 20 years in prison.
This case was the product of an investigation by the Drug Enforcement Administration, the El Dorado County Sheriff’s Office, the El Dorado County District Attorney’s Office, the California Highway Patrol, the Vallejo Police Department, and the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Jason Hitt and Jill Thomas prosecuted the case.
This case was part of an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF). The OCDETF program was established in 1982 to conduct comprehensive, multilevel attacks on major drug trafficking and money laundering organizations. The principal mission of the OCDETF program is to identify, disrupt, and dismantle the most serious drug trafficking and money laundering organizations and those primarily responsible for the nation’s drug supply.
Baltimore Felon Sentenced to 10 Years in Federal Prison after Pleading Guilty to Illegal Possession of a FirearmRead the Press Release
Baltimore, Maryland – U.S. District Judge Catherine C. Blake sentenced Antoine Benjamin, age 26, of Baltimore, today to 10 years in prison, followed by three years of supervised release, for being a felon in possession of a firearm.
The sentence and guilty plea were announced by United States Attorney for the District of Maryland Robert K. Hur; Special Agent in Charge Rob Cekada of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF) Baltimore Field Division; Special Agent in Charge Gordon B. Johnson of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Baltimore Field Office; Interim Police Commissioner Gary Tuggle, of the Baltimore Police Department; Baltimore City State’s Attorney Marilyn Mosby; and Maryland Attorney General Brian Frosh.
According to his plea agreement, on October 23, 2016, a Baltimore Police officer in the 2700 block of Edmondson Avenue saw Benjamin engaging in behavior which made the officer believe he might be engaged in criminal activity. The officer approached Benjamin, who ran away. The officer, assisted by other Baltimore Police officers, pursued Benjamin for several blocks. During the pursuit, the officers saw Benjamin reaching into the front of his pants, as if to retrieve an item. Benjamin ran through a back alley and turned back toward Edmondson Avenue, where he was eventually apprehended by officers. Benjamin was detained on the ground and during a pat down, an officer felt what he believed to be a handgun. The officer recovered a semi-automatic .380-caliber handgun with an obliterated serial number, and seven rounds in the magazine and one round in the chamber.
Benjamin had several previous felony convictions and was prohibited from possessing a firearm or ammunition.
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.
United States Attorney Robert K. Hur commended the ATF, the FBI, the Baltimore Police Department, the Office of the State’s Attorney for Baltimore City, and the Maryland Attorney General’s Office for their work in the investigation. Mr. Hur thanked Assistant U.S. Attorneys Michael C. Hanlon and Joan C. Mathias, who prosecuted the case.
Armed Career Criminal Sentenced to 15 Years for Hobbs Act Robbery and Gun ChargesRead the Press Release
CHARLOTTE, N.C. – Ronteeni Pak Belk, 40, of Charlotte, N.C., was sentenced to 180 months in prison on Hobbs Act robbery and felon in possession of a firearm charges, announced Andrew Murray, U.S. Attorney for the Western District of North Carolina. U.S. District Judge Max O. Cogburn, Jr. also ordered Belk to serve three years under court supervision after he is released from prison.
John A. Strong, Special Agent in Charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), Charlotte Division, and Chief Kerr Putney of the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department (CMPD) join U.S. Attorney Murray in making today’s announcement.
On March 13, 2017, Belk robbed at gun point the Cash America Pawn located at 5200 North Tryon Street in Charlotte. According to filed court documents and statements made in court, at approximately 9:00 a.m., Belk entered the store, pointed a silver handgun at employees, and demanded money. A female employee complied and gave Belk cash from the store’s cash registers. Court records show that Belk also demanded personal items from the individuals inside the store. The same female employee and a customer gave Belk their wallets. Belk then fired a shot into the ground and left the scene. Soon after Belk left the store, the female employee called 911 to report the robbery.
According to court records, CMPD officers located Belk driving a black Hyundai Elantra and began to follow him. Belk attempted to evade the officers, and eventually crashed his vehicle at N. Graham Street and W. Sugar Creek Road. Belk fled the scene on foot and was apprehended shortly thereafter in a wooded lot in the 5700 block of N. Graham Street. At the scene, officers recovered a chrome Raven Arms .25 caliber pistol and four live rounds, a glove, and the store employee’s wallet. The cash from the store’s register was recovered near the intersection where Belk had crashed his vehicle.
At the time of the offense, Belk was a convicted felon and was prohibited from possessing a firearm. Court records indicate that due to Belk’s prior criminal convictions for robbery with a dangerous weapon, he qualified for a sentencing enhancement as an armed career criminal.
Belk is currently in federal custody and will be transferred to the custody of the Federal Bureau of Prisons upon designation of a federal facility. All federal sentences are served without the possibility of parole.
In making today’s announcement, U.S. Attorney Murray thanked the FBI and CMPD for leading the investigation.
Assistant United States Attorney William Bozin, of the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Charlotte, prosecuted the case.
This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program bringing together all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve to reduce violent crime and 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.
Area Man Found Guilty of Sexually Abusing His Cousin, Beginning When She Was 12 Years OldRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON – An area man, 32, was found guilty today of first-degree sexual abuse, first-degree child sexual abuse, and other charges for sexually abusing his cousin, beginning when she was 12 and continuing until she was 14, announced U.S. Attorney Jessie K. Liu.
The defendant, who is not identified here to protect the privacy of the victim, recently lived in both Silver Spring, Md., and Alexandria, Va. He was found guilty by a jury following a trial in the Superior Court of the District of Columbia. The Honorable Ronna L. Beck ordered that he be held without bond until sentencing on Nov. 2, 2018. He faces up to decades in prison.
According to the government’s evidence at trial, the victim and her younger sister would spend weekends at the Northeast Washington home of their adult sister. The man lived in that same home and, before his abuse became known, and was beloved by the victim’s parents and her adult siblings, who viewed him like a son or brother, rather than as a nephew and cousin.
In the summer of 2014, when the victim was 12 years old, the defendant began sexually abusing her during her weekend visits. The nature of his abuse escalated over time, and each time he abused the girl, he told her not to tell anyone about what he was doing. He also told her that if she told, nobody would believe her, and that she would be the one to get in trouble, not him. The victim confided in her 10-year old sister when the abuse began, but the younger sister did not understand the sexual abuse, and therefore, did not believe the victim and told her so. This caused the victim to fear that just as the defendant had warned, nobody would believe her if she told. Thus, she kept the abuse bottled up inside for the next couple of years.
In early 2017, however, the victim began refusing to visit her adult sister’s home. The victim’s mother and her adult sister found that odd. After church one Sunday in April 2017, the older sister began pressing the victim as to why she had quit coming over to the sister’s home on weekends. It was at that point that the victim finally reported the sexual abuse to which the defendant had been subjecting her. Contrary to the defendant’s threats that no one would believe the victim, the victim’s family immediately reported the abuse to the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD), and the defendant was later arrested.
In announcing the verdict, U.S. Attorney Liu praised the work of members of the Youth and Family Services Division of the Metropolitan Police Department. She also acknowledged the efforts of those who worked on the case from the U.S. Attorney’s Office, including Assistant U.S. Attorney John Mannarino, Deputy Chief of the Appellate Section; Paralegal Specialists Brenda C. Williams and Tiffany Jones; Victim/Witness Advocates Juanita Harris, Elsa Maltese and Karen Giannakoulias; Litigation Technology Specialists Anisha Bhatia and Jeanie Latimore-Brown, and Interns Megan Hughes, John Bedecarre, Marianne Aguilar, Demia Lee, and Leon Stern. Finally, U.S. Attorney Liu commended the work of Assistant U.S. Attorneys Jennifer B. Loeb and Peter V. Taylor, who investigated and prosecuted this case.
Antlers Man Sentenced to 30 Months for Possession of Firearm, AmmunitionRead the Press Release
MUSKOGEE, OKLAHOMA – The United States Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Oklahoma announced that Charles Allen Bailey, age 50, of Antlers, Oklahoma was sentenced to 30 months imprisonment and 3 years supervised release for Felon In Possession Of Firearm & Ammunition, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Sections 922(g)(1) and 924(a)(2). The charge arose from an investigation by the Oklahoma Bureau of Narcotics and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives.
The Indictment alleged that on or about July 18, 2017, within the Eastern District of Oklahoma, the defendant, Charles Allen Bailey, having been convicted of a crime punishable by imprisonment for a term exceeding one year, knowingly possessed in and affecting commerce a firearm and ammunition which have been shipped and transported in interstate commerce.
United States Attorney Brian J. Kuester said, “Working with local, state, tribal, and federal law enforcement agencies to combat violent crime is a priority of the Department of Justice and U.S. Attorney’s Offices. One of the federal laws available to us to carry out that priority prohibits convicted felons from possessing firearms. The defendant in this case violated that federal law and is being held accountable accordingly. This joint effort by agents from the OBN, ATF and members of this office is an example of interagency team work that occurs on a daily basis in the Eastern District of Oklahoma and across the country. When agencies work together, the public benefits.”
The Honorable Ronald A. White, U.S. District Judge in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Oklahoma, in Muskogee, presided over the hearing. Assistant United States Attorney Kristin Harrington represented the United States. The defendant will remain in custody pending transportation to the designated federal facility at which the non-paroleable sentence will be served.
Altoona Woman Charged with Illegally Using Her Son’s Social Security BenefitsRead the Press Release
JOHNSTOWN, Pa. - A Blair County resident has been indicted by a federal grand jury in Johnstown on a charge of conversion of government funds, United States Attorney Scott W. Brady announced today.
The indictment named Delores Ann Clouser, 68, of Altoona, Pa.
According to the indictment presented to the court, from May 1, 2015, to March 1, 2017, Clouser did receive and convert falsely to her own use a total of $16,865, which represents approximately 23 separate Social Security Administration benefit payments made to her as representative payee for her son, to which she was not entitled.
The law provides for a maximum total sentence of 10 years in prison, a fine of $250,000, or both. Under the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, the actual sentence imposed would be based upon the seriousness of the offense and the prior criminal history, if any, of the defendant.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Stephanie L. Haines is prosecuting this case on behalf of the government.
The Social Security Administration, Office of Inspector General, conducted the investigation leading to the indictment in this case.
An indictment is an accusation. A defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
Albuquerque Woman Pleads Guilty to Federal Fraud, Identity Theft and Theft of Mail ChargesRead the Press Release
ALBUQUERQUE – Ericka Chavez, 22, of Albuquerque, N.M., pled guilty today in federal court to bank fraud, identify theft and theft of mail charges.
U.S. Postal Inspectors arrested Chavez on March 21, 2018, on a criminal complaint charging her with theft of mail. The complaint alleged that in Oct. 2017 and Feb. 2018, mail boxes at two Albuquerque-area apartment complexes were broken into and mail was stolen. The U.S. Postal Inspection Service initiated an investigation into the scheme after receiving complaints that checks stolen from the mail boxes had been altered and used to pay for memberships to Albuquerque stores.
Chavez was subsequently charged in a 19-count indictment on April 10, 2018, with three counts of theft of mail, eight counts of bank fraud and eight counts of aggravated identity theft. According to the indictment, Chavez committed the offenses from Oct. 2017 through March 2018, in Bernalillo County, N.M., by stealing mail from cluster mailboxes located in apartment complexes. The mail stolen included checkbooks, checks, and personal identifiers of victims, which Chavez used to commit further crimes.
During today’s proceedings, Chavez pled guilty one count of theft of mail, one count of bank fraud and one count of aggravated identity theft. In entering the guilty plea, Chavez admitted that on Nov. 5, 2017, she pried open a mailbox at an apartment complex in southeast Albuquerque and stole mail from inside the mailbox. Chavez also admitted that on Oct. 24, 2017, she executed a scheme to defraud the Bank of Albuquerque by writing a check to an Albuquerque store that was drawn on an account at Bank of Albuquerque in the name of a victim and also fraudulently signed the check with the victim’s name. Chavez acknowledged that she used the victim’s name, address and bank account number without the victim’s permission in order to defraud the bank, the store and the victim.
Chavez has been in federal custody since her arrest and remains detained pending her sentencing hearing, which has yet to be scheduled. At sentencing, Chavez faces a maximum penalty of 30 years in federal prison including a mandatory term of imprisonment of two years on the aggravated identity theft charge, which must be served consecutive to any other sentence imposed on the other charges.
The U.S. Postal Inspection Service investigated this case, which was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Jeremy Pena.
9 July 2018
“Bitcoin Maven” Sentenced to One Year in Federal Prison in Bitcoin Money Laundering CaseRead the Press Release
LOS ANGELES, California - The so-called “Bitcoin Maven,” who admitted to operating an unlicensed bitcoin-for-cash exchange business and laundering bitcoin that was represented to be proceeds of narcotics activity, was sentenced today to 12 months and one day in federal prison, three years of supervised release, and a fine of $20,000.
Theresa Lynn Tetley, 50, of Southern California, a former stockbroker and real estate investor, was sentenced by United States District Judge Manuel L. Real for conducting an illegal business and engaging in unlawful monetary transactions involving bitcoins. Tetley was also ordered to forfeit 40 Bitcoin, $292,264.00 in cash, and 25 assorted gold bars that were the proceeds of her illegal activity.
Tetley pleaded guilty to one count of operating an unlicensed money transmitting business and one count of money laundering.
The government’s case against Tetley is the first of this kind charged in the Central District of California. According to court documents, Tetley offered bitcoin-for-cash exchange services without registering as a money services business with the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN), and without implementing anti money-laundering mechanisms such as customer due diligence and reporting certain transactions required for these types of businesses. Tetley advertised on localbitcoins.com and exchanged, in total, between $6 and $9.5 million for customers across the country, charging rates higher than institutions that were registered with FinCEN.
As a result of operating this unregistered business, Tetley facilitated laundering for one individual who is suspected of receiving bitcoin from unlawful activity, such as sales of drugs on the dark web. In the course of her business, Tetley also conducted an exchange of bitcoin-for-cash for an undercover agent who represented that his bitcoin were the proceeds of narcotics trafficking.
According to sentencing documents, the government argued that “[i]n light of the growth of the dark web and the use of digital currency, unlicensed exchangers provide an avenue of laundering for those who use digital currency for illicit purposes.” The government asserted that Tetley’s business “fueled a black-market financial system” that “purposely and deliberately existed outside of the regulated bank industry.”
The investigation into Tetley was conducted by the Drug Enforcement Administration and IRS Criminal Investigation.
The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Puneet V. Kakkar of the Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force Section.
Woman Sentenced in North Mississippi for Student Loan FraudRead the Press Release
OXFORD, MS. William C. Lamar, U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of Mississippi, together with Neil Sanchez, Special Agent in Charge of the U.S. Department of Education Office of Inspector General, Southern Region Office, announced today that a Memphis, Tennessee woman has been sentenced to prison for her role in a scheme to fraudulently obtain student aid.
Lakeisha Arterberry, 32, of Memphis, Tennessee, formerly of Greenwood, Mississippi, was sentenced on July 5, 2018, by U.S. District Judge Debra M. Brown, following her plea of guilty on January 25, 2018, to one count of conspiracy to commit fraud in relation to student aid provided by the U.S. Department of Education. The charge stems from a series of fraudulent applications submitted by Arterberry to the U.S. Department of Education for federal student aid. Each of the fraudulent submissions sought federal student aid for individuals who were enrolled in online classes but who had no intention of completing the coursework or seeking a degree.
Judge Brown ordered Arterberry to serve a total of 18 months in prison, followed by 3 years of supervised release. She was also ordered to pay restitution in the amount of $249,000. Arterberry is scheduled to report to prison on August 27, 2018.
“Federal student aid exists so that individuals can pursue and make their dream of a higher education a reality. As the law enforcement arm of the U.S. Department of Education, ensuring that those who steal student aid or game the system for their own selfish purposes are stopped and held accountable for their criminal actions is a big part of our mission,” said Neil Sanchez, Special Agent in Charge of the U.S. Department of Education Office of Inspector General's Southern Region Office. "That’s why I’m proud of the work of OIG special agents and our law enforcement colleagues for holding Lakeisha Arterberry accountable for her criminal actions.”
Following the sentence, U.S. Attorney William C. Lamar remarked: “The United States Attorney’s Office is committed to holding those individuals who seek to profit from their fraudulent schemes accountable for their illegal activities. The punishment imposed upon Lakeisha Arterberry reinforces the message that federal courts view her actions as serious crimes which warrant significant punishment.”
This case was investigated by the Department of Education, Office of Inspector General and prosecuted by AUSA Robert Mims.
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Warm Springs Man Sentenced to 25 Years in Federal Prison for Molesting Minor VictimRead the Press Release
PORTLAND, Ore. – Lawren John Slockish, 36, of Warm Springs, Oregon, was sentenced today to 300 months in federal prison for molesting an 11-year-old girl.
“Sexual abuse of children casts a lifelong shadow on the health of the victims. The Warm Springs Multi-Disciplinary Child Abuse Team brings together tribal police and prosecutors, Child Protective Services, the Indian Health Service, and federal law enforcement authorities to collaboratively investigate these cases in a thorough, compassionate manner ensuring justice for these vulnerable victims” said Billy J. Williams, U.S. Attorney for the District of Oregon.
“This victim showed great courage by coming forward to disclose the abuse, and for that we are very grateful. Her strength will allow us - law enforcement, the community and her family - to keep other children safe,” said Steve Goldman, Assistant Special Agent in Charge of the FBI in Oregon. “The FBI, working with our tribal partners, will do everything to bring justice for the victim with a long-term goal of identifying and addressing child sexual abuse within our community.”
According to court documents, both Slockish and the minor victim are members of the Warm Springs Tribe. One day following the abuse, the child disclosed to her mother that Slockish had touched her breasts and tried to anally sodomize her. The minor victim’s mother notified the Warm Springs police. The child told Warm Springs police officers that the assault was not the first time the defendant had molested her and that he had done so in a similar manner approximately one year prior.
Slockish previously pleaded guilty to one count of abusive sexual contact with a child on January 19, 2017. Upon completion of his prison sentence, Slockish will be on supervised release for life.
The FBI investigated this case with the assistance of the Warm Springs Tribal Police Department. It was prosecuted by Paul T. Maloney, Assistant U.S. Attorney for the District of Oregon.
On March 3, 1994, the FBI initiated “Operation Safe Trails” with the Navajo Department of Law Enforcement in Flagstaff, Arizona. The operation, which would later evolve into the Safe Trails Task Force (STTF) Program, unites FBI and other federal, state, local, and tribal law enforcement agencies in a collaborative effort to combat the growth of crime in Indian Country. STTFs allow participating agencies to combine limited resources and increase investigative coordination in Indian Country to target violent crime, drugs, gangs, and gaming violations.