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25 June 2018
Nebraska Man Sentenced to Prison for Distribution of Child PornographyRead the Press Release
A Nebraska man was sentenced to eight years in prison today for distribution of child pornography, announced Acting Assistant Attorney General John P. Cronan of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division and U.S. Attorney Joseph P. Kelly of the District of Nebraska.
Matthew J. Rouse, 38, of Lincoln, Nebraska, pleaded guilty to one count of distribution of child pornography on March 5. Rouse was sentenced by Chief U.S. District Court Judge Laurie Smith Camp of the District of Nebraska, who ordered him to serve five years of supervised release following his prison sentence.
According to the admissions made in connection with his guilty plea, Rouse was a sergeant with the Army National Guard in Lincoln, Nebraska, when he befriended a 16-year-old high school student from Omaha, Nebraska. Beginning in September 2016 and continuing to January 2017, Rouse traveled to Omaha on multiple occasions and engaged in sexual relations with the minor. Rouse used his phone to video-record their sexual encounter and sent the videos to the minor over the Internet. Nebraska State Patrol began an investigation into Rouse’s conduct and Rouse was arrested in Lincoln on Feb. 10, 2017 on state charges stemming from this investigation. He was indicted in federal court on Feb. 22, 2017.
The case was investigated by the Nebraska State Police. Trial Attorney Nadia Prinz of the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS) and Assistant U.S. Attorney Michael P. Norris of the District of Nebraska prosecuted the case.
This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice. Led by U.S. Attorneys’ Offices and CEOS, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state and local resources to better locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the Internet, as well as to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.justice.gov/psc.
Moorestown, New Jersey, Man Admits Impersonating Federal Agent, Importing Counterfeit Coins and Bars into United StatesRead the Press Release
CAMDEN, N.J. – A Moorestown, New Jersey, man today admitted impersonating a federal agent while selling counterfeit coins and unlawfully importing counterfeit coins and bars into the United States, U.S. Attorney Craig Carpenito announced.
Jonathan A. Kirschner, a/k/a “Jonathan Kratcher,” 34, pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Robert B. Kugler in Camden federal court to an information charging him with one count of falsely impersonating an agent of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF) and one count of unlawfully bringing counterfeit coins and bars into the United States.
According to documents filed in this case and statements made in court:
Kirschner admitted that on May 9, 2017, he sold fake gold bars to a coin collector (Victim 1) for $11,000 in cash. Kirschner wore an ATF badge on a chain around his neck and claimed to be an ATF agent in written correspondence with Victim 1 and when they met in person. Kirschner also admitted that he sold 49 counterfeit Morgan dollar coins to two people (Victims 2 and 3) in Mt. Laurel, New Jersey, on June 4, 2017. Kirschner told Victims 2 and 3, “I have my badge on,” when providing descriptive information so that Victims 2 and 3 could recognize Kirschner. He admitted that he pretended to be an ATF agent to put his victims at ease in purchasing what Kirschner claimed were gold coins and bars when, in reality, the coins and bars were fake. Kirschner admitted unlawfully bringing counterfeit coins and bars into the United States by importing multiple, falsely manifested packages from other countries, including China.
The charge of impersonating a federal officer carries a maximum potential penalty of three years in prison and the charge of unlawful importation carries a maximum potential penalty of 15 years in prison. Sentencing is scheduled for Oct. 1, 2018.
U.S. Attorney Carpenito credited ATF special agents, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge John B. Devito, Newark Field Division; and special agents of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), Cherry Hill Office, under the direction of Acting Special Agent in Charge Brian A. Michael, with the investigation leading to today’s guilty plea.
The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorney Alyson M. Oswald of the U.S. Attorney’s Office’s Criminal Division in Camden.
Defense counsel: Leonard D. Biddison Esq., Haddonfield, New Jersey
Monticello Man Arrested in Colorado After Allegedly Robbing Bank in IowaRead the Press Release
Joseph Jay Kripner, age 46, from Monticello, Iowa, has been charged with one count of bank robbery. The charges are contained in a complaint unsealed Wednesday in United States District Court in Cedar Rapids, Iowa.
The complaint alleges that that, in early June 2018, Kripner robbed the Security State Bank in Springville, Iowa. Kripner displayed what appeared to be a gun at a teller. The teller provided Kripner with cash in a plastic shopping bag. Kripner then left the bank quickly. With the help of the “Crimestoppers” tip line, law enforcement officers later compared photographs of Kripner with surveillance camera footage from the bank heist.
Kripner appeared on June 19, 2018, in federal court in Colorado, and was held without bond. Kripner will appear in federal court in Cedar Rapids once the United States Marshal’s Service transports him to Iowa. If convicted, Kripner faces a possible maximum sentence of 20 years’ imprisonment, a $250,000 fine, and three years of supervised release following any imprisonment.
As with any criminal case, a charge is merely an accusation and a defendant is presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty.
The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Tim Vavricek and was investigated by the Linn County Sheriff’s Office, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, and the Rocky Mountain National Park Rangers. Court file information at https://ecf.iand.uscourts.gov/cgi-bin/login.pl.
The case file number is 18-MJ-204 (N.D. Iowa) and 18-MJ-1111 (D. Colo.). Follow us on Twitter @USAO_NDIA.
Mission Man Sentenced for Sexual Abuse of a MinorRead the Press Release
United States Attorney Ron Parsons announced that a Mission, South Dakota, man convicted of Sexual Abuse of a Minor was sentenced on June 25, 2018, by U.S. District Judge Roberto A. Lange.
Matthew Peneaux, a/k/a Matthew Swalley, age 34, was sentenced to 37 months in federal prison, followed by 5 years of supervised release, and a special assessment to the Federal Crime Victims Fund in the amount of $100. Restitution may also be ordered.
Peneaux was indicted by a federal grand jury on October 24, 2017. He pled guilty on April 11, 2018.
The conviction stemmed from events that occurred in 2015 and 2016. Between March 28, 2015, and April 30, 2016, Peneaux repeatedly engaged in sexual intercourse with a girl who was between 12 and 13 years old. Peneaux was aware that the victim was under the age of 16 and therefore unable to consent to any sexual activity with him.
This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Rosebud Sioux Tribe Law Enforcement Services. Assistant U.S. Attorney Kirk Albertson prosecuted the case.
Peneaux was ordered to report to the custody of the U.S. Marshals Service on June 26, 2018.
Minnesota Man Charged with Failure to Register as a Sex OffenderRead the Press Release
U.S. Attorney Duane A. Evans announced that ERIC EDWARD ARMSTRONG, age 31, of Anoka, Minnesota, was charged Friday by grand jury indictment with one count of failure to register as a sex offender under the federal Sex Offender Registration and Notification Act (SORNA).
If convicted, ARMSTRONG faces a maximum term of 10 years in prison and a $250,000.00 fine. He also would have to be sentenced to a term of supervised release of between 5 years and life.
U.S. Attorney Evans reiterated that the indictment is merely a charge and that the guilt of the defendant must be proven beyond a reasonable doubt.
U.S. Attorney Evans praised the work of the United States Marshals Service, the Orleans Parish Sheriff’s Office, and the Louisiana State Police in this matter. He extended his thanks to the New Orleans Police Department and the Orleans Parish District Attorney’s Office for their assistance. Assistant United States Attorney Matthew Payne is in charge of prosecution.
Middlesex County, New Jersey, Man Found Guilty on Racketeering, Murder, and Weapon ChargesRead the Press Release
NEWARK, N.J. – A New Brunswick, New Jersey, man was convicted at trial today for his violent role in a racketeering conspiracy involving multiple brothels that employed illegal aliens throughout New Jersey, U.S. Attorney Craig Carpenito announced.
Wilmer Chavez Romero, a/k/a “Charmin,” 29, was convicted of all eight counts of an indictment charging him with one count each of racketeering, racketeering conspiracy, assault with a dangerous weapon in aid of racketeering, and conspiracy to harbor aliens; two counts of using a firearm for a violent crime; and two counts of murder in aid of racketeering. He was convicted following a two and a half-week trial before U.S. District Judge William H. Walls in Newark federal court. The jury deliberated for five and a half hours before returning the guilty verdict.
According to documents filed in this case and the evidence at trial:
Chavez Romero served as an enforcer for a prostitution enterprise that helped illegal aliens enter the country and employed them at brothels throughout Cumberland, Essex, Mercer, Middlesex, Monmouth and Ocean counties. The enterprise used threats and acts of violence – including burglary, assaults, and murder – to expand its territory, thwart rival brothels, exact revenge, punish enterprise members and associates who had been disloyal, and silence people they believed were cooperating with law enforcement.
Chavez Romero acted at the direction of the leaders of the enterprise, Juan Fredy Hernandez-Zozaya, 40, and his girlfriend, Elizabeth Rojas, 36, both of New Brunswick, who oversaw brothels in New Brunswick, Trenton, Orange, Asbury Park, Lakewood, and Bridgeton.
Chavez Romero personally committed acts of violence to further the enterprise, including participating in the murders of two victims during separate robberies. On Sept. 4, 2012, Chavez Romero, armed with a firearm, entered a rival brothel house in Trenton with the intent to rob the house. During the robbery, one victim was shot in the leg and survived, while another was shot and killed.
On Jan. 23, 2013, Chavez Romero entered another rival brothel in Trenton armed with a .40 caliber firearm. Chavez Romero attempted to commit a robbery when a fight broke out and a victim was shot and killed.In addition, during recorded interviews with law enforcement in 2012 and 2014, Chavez Romero discussed his role in the murders, as well as beatings, shootings, and other acts of violence that he committed to further the enterprise’s goals and shut down its competition. As part of the enterprise, Chavez Romero also conspired to conceal and harbor aliens and aided in their interstate transport for use in the prostitution enterprise.
The racketeering and racketeering conspiracy charges carry a potential life sentence. The assault with a dangerous weapon in aid of racketeering charge carries a maximum potential penalty of 20 years in prison. Both murder in aid of racketeering counts carry a mandatory term of life imprisonment. Each use of a firearm during a violent crime count carries a mandatory consecutive term of 10 years in prison. The conspiracy to harbor illegal aliens count carries a maximum potential term of 10 years in prison. All counts in the indictment carry a potential $250,000 fine. Chavez Romero’s sentencing is scheduled for Sept. 25, 2018.
U.S. Attorney Carpenito credited special agents of Department of Homeland Security, Homeland Security Investigations, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Brian Michael in Newark, as well as the Cumberland County Prosecutor’s Office, Trenton Police Department, Mercer County Prosecutor’s Office, and the N.J. State Police Ballistics Lab, with the investigation leading to today’s conviction.
The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Meredith Williams and Melissa Wangenheim of the U.S. Attorney’s Office Criminal Division in Newark.
Defense counsel: Kevin F. Carlucci Esq. and Carol Gillen Esq., Assistant Federal Public Defenders, Newark
Menominee Man Sentenced for Sexual Contact Offense on Menominee ReservationRead the Press Release
United States Attorney Matthew D. Krueger announced that on June 19, 2018, Mitchell R. Crowe (age: 37), was sentenced by the Honorable Chief Judge William C. Griesbach to 3 years in prison and 15 years supervised release following his guilty plea to sexual contact with an underage female in violation of Title18 United States Code Sections 2244(a) (2) and 1153. The three year prison term was the statutory maximum term. As part of his sentence, Crowe must also comply with sex offender registry requirements. Those requirements mandate Crowe to advise registry officials where he is living, working or attending school.
According to the information and other court documents, between June and August 2016, while on the Menominee Indian Reservation, Crowe had sexual contact with an underage female. Further, Crowe admitted to doing so after the minor consumed alcohol and marijuana thereby rendering her incapable of appraising the nature of the situation. In imposing his sentence, Judge Griesbach stressed the serious nature of the offense, including the efforts Crowe took to gain the trust of minor, only to later exploit that trust by having sexual contact with her.
This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and Menominee Tribal Police Department. The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney William Roach.
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For additional information contact:
Public Information Officer Dean Puschnig, 414-297-1700
Manhattan U.S. Attorney Sues Herbal Drug Manufacturer for Selling Misbranded and Unapproved Drugs in Violation of the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic ActRead the Press Release
Geoffrey Berman, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, and Melinda Plaisier, Associate Commissioner for Regulatory Affairs for the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (“FDA”), announced today the filing of a Complaint against defendants RAHSAN A. HAKIM (“Hakim”) and ADONIIAH A. RAHSAN (“Rahsan”) for repeated violations of the Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act. HAKIM and RAHSAN do business as Sundial Herbal Products.
U.S. Attorney Geoffrey Berman said: “As alleged in the complaint, the defendants are the modern incarnation of snake oil salesmen, selling the unsuspecting public unapproved or misbranded drugs that they claim, without basis, will cure cancer, diabetes, and other serious illnesses. They have repeatedly been warned that their conduct violates the law, yet have continued to sell unapproved, adulterated, and misbranded drugs. Our lawsuit seeks an injunction preventing them from continuing this illegal conduct.”
FDA Associate Commissioner for Regulatory Affairs Melinda Plaisier said: “Dietary supplements pose a public health risk when they claim to treat medical conditions, such as asthma, diabetes or cancer, which puts them into the category of misbranded and unapproved drugs. The FDA will continue to take action to protect the public when companies violate the law.”
The Complaint, filed today in federal court in Manhattan, alleges that defendants manufacture and sell various unapproved drugs and dietary supplements that claim to cure, treat, and/or prevent numerous diseases and conditions, including but not limited to syphilis, diabetes, high blood pressure, arthritis, asthma, heart disease, and cancer. None of their products has been tested or approved by the FDA for safety or effectiveness. Their sale of such products poses a threat to public health because the products’ disease treatment claims may cause consumers to delay appropriate medical care for the serious medical issues described above. Further, defendants cannot guarantee the identity, purity, strength, and composition of their dietary supplements.
Defendants have been inspected by the FDA multiple times, and, despite repeated promises to do so, have failed to correct their violations of the Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act.
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The Complaint seeks an order enjoining defendants from manufacturing and selling drugs and dietary supplements in violation of the Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act.
Mr. Berman thanked the FDA for its work leading to the Complaint.
This case is being handled by the Office’s Environmental Protection Unit in the Civil Division. Assistant United States Attorney Emily Bretz is in charge of the case.
Long Island Man Pleads Guilty in Scheme to Loot Dead Woman’s EstateRead the Press Release
Earlier today, in federal court in Central Islip, John Derounian pleaded guilty to mail fraud in connection with a scheme to steal more than $1.2 million from the estate of the elderly victim (“Jane Doe”) by transferring Jane Doe’s assets into accounts controlled by the defendant. Derounian also pleaded guilty to possessing child pornography. The proceeding was held before United States Magistrate Judge Gary R. Brown.
Richard P. Donoghue, United States Attorney for the Eastern District of New York, and Phillip Bartlett, Inspector-in-Charge, United States Postal Inspection Service, New York Division, announced the guilty plea.
As detailed in prior court proceedings and the superseding indictment, on November 12, 2015, Derounian claimed to have found the body of Jane Doe, Derounian’s tenant, at her apartment in his Sea Cliff home. Subsequent to Jane Doe’s death, Derounian placed a series of telephone calls and sent emails to Morgan Stanley in an effort to drain Jane Doe’s financial accounts of over $200,000.
In an effort to perpetuate the fraud, Derounian created a forged will naming himself as the executor and sole beneficiary of Jane Doe’s estate, aside from a comparatively small charitable donation. Derounian then used the authority of the forged will to cremate Jane Doe’s body and sell her real property for over $1 million, which he transferred into bank accounts he controlled. As a result of the investigation to date, funds totaling over $1.2 million have been seized from Derounian, and the indictment seeks forfeiture of those funds.
Derounian was arrested on June 26, 2016, and law enforcement officers recovered various electronic devices from his home that contained approximately 50 images of child pornography.
When sentenced, Derounian faces up to 20 years’ imprisonment for mail fraud and 20 years’ imprisonment for possession of child pornography.
The government’s case is being handled by the Office’s Long Island Criminal Division. Assistant United States Attorney Mark E. Misorek is in charge of the prosecution. Assistant United States Attorney Robert W. Schumacher of the Office’s Civil Division is handling matters relating to forfeiture.
The Defendant: JOHN DEROUNIAN
Age: 53
Sea Cliff, New YorkE.D.N.Y. Docket No. 16-cr-412 (JMA)
Local Woman in Custody for Lasing Aircraft at McAllen AirportRead the Press Release
McALLEN, Texas – A 46-year-old McAllen resident has been taken into custody for allegedly aiming a laser pointer at an aircraft, announced U.S. Attorney Ryan K. Patrick.
Law enforcement took Ruth Ann Hopp into custody Friday. She made her initial appearance this morning, at which time she was ordered temporarily into custody pending a detention hearing set for today at 4:00 p.m.
The criminal complaint alleges Hopp is responsible for lasing numerous aircrafts that had attempted to land at McAllen International Airport.
The investigation began after numerous pilots had complained about similar incidents involving lasers.
Lasers have a dangerous effect on pilots when the beams of light strike an aircraft. The light can temporarily blind them. A laser, when aimed at an aircraft, can create a visual distraction or cause discomfort or even damage to a pilot’s eyes.
The criminal complaint alleges the instances in which Hopp is charged occurred during the landing portion of different flights, when the pilots need to be most alert. This represents a danger to not only the pilots, but the passengers of the planes as well as the people on the ground.
If convicted, Hopp faces up to five years in prison and a possible $250,000 maximum fine.
The FBI and Customs and Border Protection Air & Marine Branch conducted the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney K. Alejandra Andrade is prosecuting the case.
A criminal complaint is a formal accusation of criminal conduct, not evidence.
A defendant is presumed innocent unless convicted through due process of law.Leader of Large-Scale Brooklyn Drug Trafficking Operation Sentenced to Nine Years’ ImprisonmentRead the Press Release
Earlier today, in federal court in Brooklyn, Tyriek Hankins was sentenced to nine years’ imprisonment by United States District Judge Ann M. Donnelly for his role in a cocaine and crack distribution conspiracy operating in and around the Cypress Hills Houses (“Cypress”), a large New York City Housing Authority complex located in East New York. Hankins pleaded guilty on April 20, 2017 to conspiring to distribute 500 grams or more of cocaine. He was the last of the 10 defendants in this case to be sentenced.
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 James P. O’Neill, Commissioner, New York City Police Department (NYPD), announced the sentence.
“By supplying large amounts of cocaine to distributors, Hankins and his co-conspirators contributed to the destructive impact that drug abuse has had on their own community in Brooklyn,” stated United States Attorney Donoghue. “This Office is committed to dismantling drug organizations that endanger our community and the residents of public housing.”
“Hankins and his co-conspirators had major influence over the deadly cycle of drugs, circulating cocaine and crack throughout the Cypress Hills Houses,” stated FBI Assistant Director-in-Charge Sweeney. “As illustrated by both the current and previous investigations, the FBI NY Metro Safe Streets Task Force will continue to work closely with our law enforcement partners to rid our communities of the gang and drug-related threats.”
“In close collaboration with our federal partners at the FBI and the Eastern District, the NYPD will remain relentless in our precise targeting of gangs and crews and the illegal behavior they engage in, in all of our neighborhoods,” stated NYPD Police Commissioner O’Neill. “It remains our duty to dismantle criminal enterprises like this one as we keep striving to make the safest large city in the nation even safer.”
As alleged in public documents and presented at hearings, Cypress had long been plagued by gang and drug-related violence. In response to the criminal activity, the FBI, the NYPD, and the U.S. Attorney’s Office conducted an investigation that revealed Hankins was at the center of a large-scale drug trafficking operation, which sold cocaine and other drugs in Cypress, upstate New York and in Maine. Hankins and co-conspirators Anthony Brown and Isiah Sadler were suppliers of powder cocaine to mid-level distributors. Other co-conspirators cooked and sold that cocaine as crack. Brown, who pleaded guilty to charges in three separate federal cases for his role in heroin- and cocaine-trafficking, and Sadler, who pleaded guilty to conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute cocaine, were previously sentenced to, respectively, 192 months and 168 months’ imprisonment.
Hankins’ co-defendants also pleaded guilty to conspiracy to distribute cocaine and were sentenced as follows: Anthony Keitt, to 36 months’ imprisonment; Michael Vailes, to 78 months’ imprisonment; Renee Belardo, to probation; Cherena Swain, to probation; Rafael Perez, to 41 months’ imprisonment; Ronald Jackson, to 70 months’ imprisonment; and Dimas Perez, to 60 months’ imprisonment.
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 government’s case is being prosecuted by the Office’s Organized Crime and Gangs Section. Assistant United States Attorneys Margaret Gandy, Andrey Spektor and David Gopstein are in charge of the prosecution.
Defendant Sentenced Today:
TYRIEK HANKINS
Age: 31
Brooklyn, New YorkDefendants Previously Sentenced:
RENEE BELARDO
Age: 32
Brooklyn, New YorkANTHONY BROWN
Age: 34
Brooklyn, New YorkRONALD JACKSON
Age: 39
Utica, New York
ANTHONY KEITT
Age: 38
Brooklyn, New YorkDIMAS PEREZ
Age: 40
Brooklyn, New YorkRAFAEL PEREZ
Age: 52
Brooklyn, New YorkISIAH SADLER
Age: 33
Brooklyn, New YorkCHERENA SWAIN
Age: 31
Brooklyn, New YorkMICHAEL VAILES
Age: 31
Brooklyn, New YorkE.D.N.Y. Docket No. 16-CR-297 (AMD)
Law Enforcement Focuses Violent Crime Remedy in BessemerRead the Press Release
BIRMINGHAM – Federal, state and local law enforcement last week fanned out in and around Bessemer pursuing 35 people on federal and state charges in an ongoing effort to reduce violent crime in the Greater Birmingham area.
U.S. Attorney Jay E. Town, Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives Special Agent in Charge Marcus Watson, U.S. Marshal Marty Keely, Bessemer Division Jefferson County District Attorney Lynneice Washington, Jefferson County Sheriff Mike Hale and Bessemer Police Chief Michael Roper announced the operation.
The roundup targeted violent offenders and high-crime areas of Bessemer as part of Operation Focused Remedy, a joint operation led by ATF with the U.S. Attorney’s Office, U.S. Marshal Service, varying state and local police agencies and district attorney’s offices. The Bessemer Police Department and Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office took part in last week’s operation seeking arrests on nine federal and 26 state warrants. More than 20 guns were recovered in the operation.
“This operation is a perfect example of how federal, state and local law enforcement can combine resources and efforts to remove our worst offenders from our communities, especially those in high-crime areas,” Town said. “This ATF operation is yet another example of how law enforcement partnerships enable law-abiding residents to continue to reclaim safety and security for their families.”
“These arrests highlight ATF’s Operation Focused Remedy as a force multiplier from the partnerships of law enforcement and community,” Watson said. “ATF’s Crime Gun Intelligence resources will continue to aid in reducing violent crime in focused areas.”
Operation Focused Remedy is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods, 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 and local law enforcement and the local community to develop effective, locally-based strategies to reduce violent crime.
Kansas City, Kan., Man Sentenced for Meth, Heroin TraffickingRead the Press Release
KANSAS CITY, KAN. – A Kansas City, Kan., man who was arrested with methamphetamine, heroin and $67,000 in cash was sentenced today to 164 months in federal prison for drug trafficking, U.S. Attorney Stephen McAllister said.
Juan Lopez, 23, Kansas City, Kan., pleaded guilty to one count of possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine. In his plea, he admitted he drove away from a residence on the 3400 block of Georgia Avenue when the Kansas City, Kan., Police Department came to serve a search warrant there. He abandoned his car near West 42nd Avenue and Thompson Street and he ran into a wooded residential area carrying two bags.
Police recovered one of the bags with more than 3 pounds of methamphetamine and more than half a pound of heroin. When residents of the 4100 block of Lloyd Street reported a prowler in their garage, police found Lopez hiding there with the second backpack, which contained $67,000 in cash. When police searched the residence on Georgia Avenue, they found firearms, including three assault rifles, a pistol grip shotgun, a Mac-10 and two bulletproof vests.
McAllister commended the Kansas City, Kan., Police Department, the Kansas Highway Patrol, the Drug Enforcement Administration and Assistant U.S. Attorney Leon Patton for their work on the case.
Justice Department Settles Immigration-Related Discrimination Claims Against J.C. PenneyRead the Press Release
The Justice Department today announced that it has reached a settlement agreement with J.C. Penney Corporation, Inc. (J.C. Penney). The agreement resolves two investigations, one into whether J.C. Penney unlawfully rejected a lawful permanent resident’s valid work authorization documentation, and the other into whether J.C. Penney violated the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA) by unlawfully reverifying the work authorization of certain non-U.S. citizens based on their citizenship status.
The Department’s first investigation was prompted by a lawful permanent resident’s charge alleging that J.C. Penney violated the INA’s anti-discrimination provision when J.C. Penney fired her in August 2016. The investigation found that J.C. Penney had improperly rejected the worker’s unexpired Permanent Resident Card as proof of her work authorization, based on her citizenship status. The second investigation found that J.C. Penney had unlawfully reverified the work authorization of certain non-U.S. citizens solely based on their citizenship status, even though those non-citizens had presented the same type of valid work authorization documents as U.S. citizens when first hired. The Department also found that J.C. Penney unlawfully requested specific immigration documents from certain workers during the process of reverifying their work authorization because of their immigration status. Among other things, the INA prohibits employers from (1) rejecting valid work authorization documents, (2) limiting a worker’s choice of documentation to present for employment verification or reverification purposes, and (3) subjecting employees to different or unnecessary documentary demands, based on the employee’s citizenship, immigration status, or national origin.
Under the terms of the settlement, J.C. Penney will pay a civil penalty of $14,430 to the United States, provide $11,177.60 in back pay to the worker who filed the charge, train its staff and corporate human resources personnel, post notices informing workers about their rights, and be subject to departmental monitoring and reporting requirements.
“Employers should not impose unlawful and discriminatory burdens on employees based on their citizenship or immigration status during the reverification process,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General John Gore. “It is critical for all employers to correctly train their employees on proper Form I-9 procedures at both initial hiring and reverification, and I am pleased that J.C. Penney has agreed to undertake such training.”
The Division’s Immigrant and Employee Rights Section (IER), formerly known as the Office of Special Counsel for Immigration-Related Unfair Employment Practices, is responsible for enforcing the anti-discrimination provision of the INA. Among other things, the statute prohibits citizenship status and national origin discrimination in hiring, firing, or recruitment or referral for a fee; unfair documentary practices; and retaliation and intimidation.
For more information about protections against employment discrimination under immigration laws, call IER’s worker hotline at 1-800-255-7688 (1-800-237-2515, TTY for hearing impaired); call IER’s employer hotline at 1-800-255-8155 (1-800-237-2515, TTY for hearing impaired); sign up for a free webinar; email [email protected]; or visit IER’s English and Spanish websites.
Applicants or employees who believe they were subjected to different documentary requirements based on their citizenship/immigration status or national origin, or discrimination based on their citizenship/immigration status, or national origin in hiring, firing, or recruitment or referral for a fee, should contact IER’s worker hotline for assistance.
Illegal Alien Sentenced in Brooklyn Federal Court to 25 Years’ Imprisonment for MurderRead the Press Release
Earlier today, in federal court in Brooklyn, Kensil Dexter Fender, also known as “English,” was sentenced by United States District Judge Kiyo A. Matsumoto to 25 years’ imprisonment for the murder of Rowan Clarke. Fender previously pleaded guilty on December 14, 2017.
Richard P. Donoghue, United States Attorney for the Eastern District of New York, James J. Hunt, Special Agent-in-Charge, Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), New York Division, James P. O’Neill, Commissioner, New York City Police Department (NYPD) and George P. Beach II, Superintendent, New York State Police (NYSP) announced the sentence.
“More than a decade ago, Fender murdered a man while trying to commit a home invasion drug robbery. With today’s sentence, he learns that justice does not forget and does not rest,” stated United States Attorney Donoghue. “I commend our federal, state and local partners for working together to take this dangerous criminal off the street.” Mr. Donoghue expressed his thanks to the United States Postal Inspection Service for their assistance during the investigation.
“This drug investigation demonstrates the inevitable link between drug trafficking and violent crime,” stated DEA Special Agent-in-Charge Hunt. “In most of our cases, greed is the underlying force behind drug trafficking, and it is ironic that a piece of jewelry and DNA were key factors in bringing Rowan Clarke’s killer to justice.”
“Today’s sentencing has been a long time in coming and is an appropriate, meaningful penalty for this career criminal,” stated NYPD Commissioner O’Neill. “In partnership with the DEA and the Eastern District, the NYPD has a long memory and an even longer reach. I commend everyone involved in this case for seeing it through to its successful conclusion.”
“Good police work and invaluable partnerships at the federal, state and local level were key in bringing this murderer to justice,” stated NYSP Superintendent Beach. “State Police and our partners will continue to work together to keep our communities safe from such criminals and the dangerous drug activity and violence that they perpetuate.”
According to court filings and statements made in court, on April 2, 2007, Fender and a co-conspirator attempted to rob Clarke, who they believed had illegal drugs and drug proceeds at his apartment in northern Manhattan. As Fender and his co-conspirator attempted to push their way into the apartment, they struggled with Clarke and fatally shot him. Law enforcement agents were able to identify Fender based on DNA on a piece of jewelry left behind at the murder scene. In addition to his role in the murder, Fender was a drug distributor, buying and selling large amounts of marijuana.Upon completion of his sentence, Fender, an illegal alien from Jamaica, faces deportation from the United States.
The government’s case is being handled by the Office’s International Narcotics and Money Laundering Section. Assistant United States Attorneys Craig R. Heeren and Nathan D. Reilly are in charge of the prosecution.
Defendant:
KENSIL DEXTER FENDER
Age: 36
Woodmere, New YorkE.D.N.Y. Docket No. 16-124-(ENV)
Hampton Man Pleads Guilty to Heroin Distribution ConspiracyRead the Press Release
NEWPORT NEWS, Va. – A Hampton man pleaded guilty today to conspiring with others to distribute more than 100 grams of heroin.
According to court documents, Michael Dewayne Boddie, 56, was part of the William Joe drug trafficking organization that operated on the Virginia Peninsula and on the Southside. Boddie worked with William Joe to arrange heroin deals and would conduct sales on Joe’s behalf. Many of these sales took place in Hampton near the residences occupied by Joe.
Boddie pleaded guilty to conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute and distribution of more than 100 grams of heroin. He faces a mandatory minimum sentence of five years and a maximum of 40 years in prison when sentenced on October 17. Actual sentences for federal crimes are typically less than the maximum penalties. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after taking into account the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
The case was investigated as part of the Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) Operation Broken Finger. The OCDETF program is a federal multi-agency, multi-jurisdictional task force that supplies supplemental federal funding to federal and state agencies involved in the identification, investigation, and prosecution of major drug trafficking organizations. The principal mission of the OCDETF program is to identify, disrupt and dismantle the most serious drug trafficking, weapons trafficking and money laundering organizations, and those primarily responsible for the nation’s illegal drug supply.
G. Zachary Terwilliger, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia, and Michael K. Lamonea, Assistant Special Agent in Charge of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) Norfolk, made the announcement after U.S. District Judge Raymond A. Jackson accepted the plea. Assistant U.S. Attorney Eric M. Hurt is prosecuting the case.
A copy of this press release is located on the website of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Virginia. Related court documents and information is located on the website of the District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia or on PACER by searching for Case No. 4:17-cr-65.
Guatemalan National Charged with Making False Statement on Passport Application and with Illegal ReentryRead the Press Release
U.S. Attorney Duane A. Evans announced that RINA PAOLA CONDE GARCIA, age 37, a citizen of Guatemala, was charged Friday in a two-count indictment for false statements made on a passport application, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 1542, and for illegal reentry of a removed alien, in violation of Title 8, United States Code, Section 1326(a).
According to the indictment, on or about April 6, 2017, CONDE GARCIA, applied for a passport and falsely stated that she was born in Puerto Rico, when in fact she was not. Further, on or about July 24, 2017, CONDE GARCIA was found in the United States after having been officially deported and removed on or about January 4, 2006.
If convicted, CONDE GARCIA faces a maximum term of imprisonment of ten years, a maximum fine of $250,000, a maximum term of supervised release of three years, and a mandatory $100 special assessment.
U.S. Attorney Duane A. Evans praised the work of the Department of State’s Diplomatic Security Service in investigating this matter. Assistant U.S. Attorney Spiro G. Latsis is in charge of the prosecution.
Fresno Woman Sentenced to over 3 Years in Prison for Stealing More than $1.5 M from International Food Distribution CompanyRead the Press Release
FRESNO, Calif. — Leslie Michelle Hays, 50, of Fresno, was sentenced today to three years and five months in prison for embezzling funds from her employer, U.S. Attorney McGregor W. Scott announced.
U.S. District Judge Dale A. Drozd ordered Hays to self-surrender on September 26, 2018, and to pay $1,632,093 in restitution.
According to court documents, Hays was the director of human resources from 2005 through 2014 at Borges USA, a food distribution company based in Spain with regional headquarters in Fresno. To embezzle funds from Borges USA, Hays misreported her salary, expenses, and vacation time to the company’s payroll processor, which then remitted the stolen funds to Hays’s bank account. In total, Hays stole more than $1.5 million in inflated salary payments and false expenses reimbursements from Borges USA.
This case was the product of an investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Fresno Police Department. Assistant U.S. Attorney Grant B. Rabenn prosecuted the case.
Four Arrested in Columbus, More Than 22 Pounds of Fentanyl SeizedRead the Press Release
COLUMBUS, Ohio – Federal agents arrested four individuals today as part of a large-scale, drug-trafficking organization investigation.
Tomas Sandoval, Alvaro Gasca-Cardoso, Salatiel Ramos-Rajos and Alexis Zazueta-Soto have been charged with conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute fentanyl, methamphetamine and heroin.
Benjamin C. Glassman, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Ohio, Timothy J. Plancon, Special Agent in Charge, Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) and other members of the DEA’s Task Force announced the charges.
The four defendants appeared in federal court today at 1:30pm for initial appearances before U.S. Magistrate Judge Kimberly Jolson.
As part of the case, investigators executed a search warrant on Friday at a residence on South Napoleon Avenue in Columbus. Law enforcement officials seized 10 kilograms of fentanyl, one kilogram of methamphetamine and 10 ounces of heroin.
This investigation is ongoing.
U.S. Attorney Glassman commended the investigation of this case by the DEA and Assistant United States Attorney Timothy Prichard, who is prosecuting the case. The DEA Columbus office includes full-time task force officers from Ohio State Highway Patrol, Ohio Bureau of Criminal Investigation (BCI), Franklin and Madison county sheriff’s offices, Columbus, Upper Arlington, Westerville and Lancaster police departments, and the Columbus Airport Police Department.
A criminal complaint merely contains allegations, and defendants are presumed innocent unless proven guilty in a court of law.s
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Florida Man Sentenced to 10 Years in Federal Prison on Bomb ChargeRead the Press Release
Joshua Ryne Goldberg, 23, of Orange Park, Florida, was sentenced to 10 years in federal prison, to be followed by a lifetime of supervised release, for attempted malicious damage and destruction by an explosive of a building. Goldberg pleaded guilty on Dec. 20, 2017.
Assistant Attorney General for National Security John C. Demers, U.S. Attorney Maria Chapa Lopez for the Middle District of Florida, and Special Agent Charles P. Spencer FBI’s Jacksonville Field Office made the announcement after sentencing by U.S. District Judge Brian Davis.
According to the plea agreement, in the summer of 2015, the FBI and law enforcement officers from Australia began investigating the online name “AusWitness” and determined that it was Goldberg. He had come to the attention of law enforcement due in part to his postings concerning the May 3, 2015, attack by two gunmen at the Muhammad Art Exhibit and Contest in Garland, Texas. Prior to the attack, Goldberg posted a map of the location of the contest and urged anyone in the area to attack the event. Goldberg’s posting was copied by gunman Elton Simpson, one of the two individuals killed during the May 3, 2015, attack. The FBI later located an online posting in which Goldberg took responsibility for inspiring the Garland attack, as well as two other planned attacks.
In late July 2015, an FBI confidential human source (CHS) began exchanging messages with Goldberg as “AusWitness” on social media. Between July and mid-August 2015, Goldberg discussed getting an individual in Melbourne, Australia to carry out a terrorist attack and to have the CHS commit a bombing in the United States. During portions of those conversations, Goldberg sent the CHS five website links containing instructions for making an explosive device, including pipe bombs and other incendiary devices. On Aug. 20, 2015, Goldberg stated that he was thinking of pipe bombs at a large public event and later said that a pressure cooker bomb may be better. Later that month, Goldberg told the CHS that he had found the “perfect place” to target on Sept. 13, 2015, and sent the CHS a link to a Kansas City, Missouri firefighter’s event that memorialized first responders that had been killed in the September 11th attacks. On Aug. 27, 2015, Goldberg instructed the CHS to place the bomb near the crowd at the memorial event and to ensure it was very well hidden.
The following day, Goldberg provided the CHS with a list of items to use in the pressure cooker bomb, including shards of metal, nails and broken glass. He then instructed the CHS to dip screws and other shrapnel in rat poison before putting them in the pressure cooker bomb in order to inflict more casualties. Goldberg stated he would post a video of the bombing. A forensic analysis of the bomb making information determined that it could have been used to make explosives that would cause property damage, personal injury and/or death.
This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s Joint Terrorism Task Force (JTTF) and the Clay County Sheriff’s Office. Members of the Jacksonville JTTF include the FBI, the Naval Criminal Investigative Service, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations, U.S. Customs and Border Protection, U.S. Border Patrol, the Florida Department of Law Enforcement, Florida Highway Patrol, the St. Johns County Sheriff’s Office, and the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office.
This case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Kevin C. Frein of the Middle District of Florida, with assistance provided by Trial Attorney Jennifer Levy of the National Security Division’s Counterterrorism Section.
Florida Man Sentenced to 10 Years in Federal Prison on Bomb ChargeRead the Press Release
Jacksonville, FL – Joshua Ryne Goldberg, 23, of Orange Park, Florida, was sentenced to 10 years in federal prison, to be followed by a lifetime of supervised release, for attempted malicious damage and destruction by an explosive of a building. Goldberg pleaded guilty on Dec. 20, 2017.
Assistant Attorney General for National Security John C. Demers, U.S. Attorney Maria Chapa Lopez for the Middle District of Florida, and Special Agent Charles P. Spencer of the FBI’s Jacksonville Field Office made the announcement after sentencing by U.S. District Judge Brian Davis.
According to the plea agreement, in the summer of 2015, the FBI and law enforcement officers from Australia began investigating the online name “AusWitness” and determined that it was Goldberg. He had come to the attention of law enforcement due in part to his postings concerning the May 3, 2015, attack by two gunmen at the Muhammad Art Exhibit and Contest in Garland, Texas. Prior to the attack, Goldberg posted a map of the location of the contest and urged anyone in the area to attack the event. Goldberg’s posting was copied by gunman Elton Simpson, one of the two individuals killed during the May 3, 2015, attack. The FBI later located an online posting in which Goldberg took responsibility for inspiring the Garland attack, as well as two other planned attacks.
In late July 2015, an FBI confidential human source (CHS) began exchanging messages with Goldberg as “AusWitness” on social media. Between July and mid-August 2015, Goldberg discussed getting an individual in Melbourne, Australia to carry out a terrorist attack and to have the CHS commit a bombing in the United States. During portions of those conversations, Goldberg sent the CHS five website links containing instructions for making an explosive device, including pipe bombs and other incendiary devices. On Aug. 20, 2015, Goldberg stated that he was thinking of pipe bombs at a large public event and later said that a pressure cooker bomb may be better. Later that month, Goldberg told the CHS that he had found the “perfect place” to target on Sept. 13, 2015, and sent the CHS a link to a Kansas City, Missouri firefighter’s event that memorialized first responders that had been killed in the September 11th attacks. On Aug. 27, 2015, Goldberg instructed the CHS to place the bomb near the crowd at the memorial event and to ensure it was very well hidden.
The following day, Goldberg provided the CHS with a list of items to use in the pressure cooker bomb, including shards of metal, nails and broken glass. He then instructed the CHS to dip screws and other shrapnel in rat poison before putting them in the pressure cooker bomb in order to inflict more casualties. Goldberg stated he would post a video of the bombing. A forensic analysis of the bomb making information determined that it could have been used to make explosives that would cause property damage, personal injury and/or death.
This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s Joint Terrorism Task Force (JTTF) and the Clay County Sheriff’s Office. Members of the Jacksonville JTTF include the FBI, the Naval Criminal Investigative Service, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations, U.S. Customs and Border Protection, U.S. Border Patrol, the Florida Department of Law Enforcement, Florida Highway Patrol, the St. Johns County Sheriff’s Office, and the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office.
This case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Kevin C. Frein of the Middle District of Florida, with assistance provided by Trial Attorney Jennifer Levy of the National Security Division’s Counterterrorism Section.
Final Defendant Sentenced on Federal Conspiracy ChargesRead the Press Release
St. Louis, MO – Yakov Pisman, was sentenced to 87 months in prison for conspiring to traffic in contraband cigarettes and money laundering.
According to court documents, Pisman and others conspired for more than four years to buy contraband cigarettes in St. Louis, Missouri and Atlanta, Georgia, low tax markets, and transport and distribute them in New York, a high tax market. Multiple New York and St. Louis residents and co-defendants including Oleksandr Zyuz, Sergei Kishchenko, Mykalo Zyuz, Volodymr Zyuz have been sentenced to terms ranging between 30 to 60 months imprisonment. Illegal profits from the contraband cigarette sales were laundered through numerous accounts associated with the defendants and their fictitious companies. The amount of laundered money was in excess of $56 million dollars. Pisman was one of the leaders of the organization and guided the operations in St. Louis, Atlanta and New York.
Pisman, 60, of New York, NY, pled guilty on February 21, 2018, 2018 to two felony counts of conspiracy to commit money laundering and trafficking in contraband cigarettes. He appeared today for sentencing in front of U.S. District Judge Ronnie White.
This case was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms & Explosives; the Internal Revenue Service – Criminal Investigation Division, and various state and local authorities.
Federal Court Shuts Down Florida Tax Return PreparerRead the Press Release
Today, a federal court in Miami permanently barred Jessyca Bernard from preparing federal tax returns for others, the Justice Department announced today. The civil injunction order, to which Bernard agreed, was signed by Chief Judge K. Michael Moore of the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida.
The complaint alleges that Bernard, of Lauderhill, Florida, owned and operated Proper Taxes, Inc. in Miami Gardens, Florida. According to the complaint, Bernard fabricated losses for her customers’ side businesses in order to secure refunds to which her customers were not entitled. In one example cited in the complaint, Bernard prepared a customer’s tax returns that reported losses of more than $27,000 and $22,000 based upon fictitious expenditures for supplies, utilities, and medical expenses. Bernard also prepared a customer’s return that fabricated more than $11,000 in losses, including $8,000 in supplies for the customer’s side business of washing cars on weekends, according to the complaint.
Return preparer fraud was one of the IRS’s Dirty Dozen Tax Scams for 2018 and taxpayers seeking a return preparer should remain vigilant. The IRS has some tips on its website for choosing a return preparer and has launched a free directory of federal tax preparers.
In the past decade, the Tax Division has obtained injunctions against hundreds of unscrupulous tax preparers. Information about these cases is available on the Justice Department’s website. An alphabetical listing of persons enjoined from preparing returns and promoting tax schemes can be found on this page. If you believe that one of the enjoined persons or businesses may be violating an injunction, please contact the Tax Division with details.
Federal Charges Accuse Owners of Suburban Bulk-Mailing Company of Defrauding the Postal Service out of $16 MillionRead the Press Release
CHICAGO — The owners of a suburban bulk-mailing company swindled the U.S. Postal Service out of at least $16 million by forging documents and secretly using an official date stamp to fraudulently authenticate payment of postage for than 80 million pieces of mail, according to criminal charges filed today by the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Chicago.
YOGESH PATEL and ARVIND LAKKAMSANI owned and operated Prodigy Mailing Services Inc., which was based in Bolingbrook and later in Woodridge. Prodigy assembled bulk mailings from customers and provided the mailings – along with fraudulent payment and verification forms – to the Postal Service for delivery, without paying postage on those mailings. According to the charges, Patel and Lakkamsani schemed with a third defendant, DAVID GARGANO, to fraudulently cause the Postal Service to deliver numerous bulk mailings without payment. The trio forged a Postal Service clerk’s signature on the verification forms and secretly used an official Postal Service date stamp to make it falsely appear that the clerk had authenticated postage, the charges allege.
From 2010 to 2015, the defendants caused a loss to the Postal Service of at least $16 million, according to the charges.
A criminal information charges each of the three defendants – Patel, 58, of Orlando, Fla., Lakkamsani, 57, of Northbrook, Ill., and Gargano, 51, of Barrington, Ill. – with one count of mail fraud. Arraignments in U.S. District Court in Chicago have not yet been scheduled.
The charges were announced by John R. Lausch, Jr., United States Attorney for the Northern District of Illinois; and William Hedrick, Acting Inspector-in-Charge of the U.S. Postal Inspection Service in Chicago.
According to the charges, Gargano owned Illinois-based Direct Mail Resources Inc., which collected a fee to match customers seeking to make bulk mailings with companies who could perform those services, such as Prodigy. Gargano referred two energy companies to Prodigy for bulk mailing services. The two energy companies provided millions of dollars to the defendants to pay the postage for the companies’ bulk mailings. Instead of using those funds to pay the postage, the defendants split the money amongst themselves and used it for their own benefit, the charges allege.
The information alleges that the defendants made the mailings but kept the postage money from the energy companies without paying postage to the Postal Service. Patel and Lakkamsani fraudulently maintained a key to a Postal Service mail unit, which was located inside Prodigy’s facility, and used the key to secretly access an official date-stamp without the Postal Service’s knowledge or approval, the information states. By forging the Postal clerk’s signature and fraudulently stamping the mailings, the defendants made it falsely appear that the verification forms – which identified the amount of postage paid for the bulk mailings – were authentic and that postage had been appropriately paid, the charges allege.
The public is reminded that an information is not evidence of guilt. The defendants are presumed innocent and entitled to a fair trial at which the government has the burden of proving guilt beyond a reasonable doubt. Mail fraud is punishable by up to 20 years in prison. If convicted, the Court must impose a reasonable sentence under federal statutes and the advisory U.S. Sentencing Guidelines.
The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorney Jacqueline Stern.
El Departamento de Justicia Resuelve Denuncias Relacionadas con la Discriminación Presentadas en contra de J.C. PenneyRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON, D.C. – El Departamento de Justicia anunció hoy que ha llegado a un acuerdo con J.C. Penney Corporation, Inc. («J.C. Penney»). El acuerdo resuelve dos investigaciones: la primera para determinar si J.C. Penney rechazó ilegalmente el documento válido de autorización para trabajar de una residente permanente legal, la segunda para comprobar si J.C. Penney vulneró la ley de Inmigración y Nacionalidad (INA, por sus siglas en inglés) al reverificar de forma ilícita la autorización para trabajar de ciertos trabajadores no ciudadanos estadounidenses por motivos de su estatus de ciudadanía.
La primera investigación del Departamento fue el resultado de una denuncia presentada por una residente permanente legal que alegó que J.C. Penney había vulnerado la disposición antidiscriminatoria de la INA al despedirla en agosto del 2016. La investigación halló que J.C. Penney había rechazado, de manera incorrecta, la tarjeta de residencia permanente en vigor de la trabajadora como prueba de su autorización para trabajar, con base en su estatus de ciudadanía. La segunda investigación halló que J.C. Penney, de forma ilícita, había reverificado la autorización para trabajar de ciertos trabajadores no ciudadanos estadounidenses con base únicamente en su estatus de ciudadanía, aunque aquellos que no eran ciudadanos habían presentado el mismo tipo de documentos válidos de autorización para trabajar que presentaron ciudadanos estadounidenses cuando recién fueron contratados. Asimismo, el Departamento descubrió que J.C. Penney había solicitado ilegalmente, documentos migratorios específicos de ciertos trabajadores durante el proceso de reverificación de su autorización para trabajar por motivos de su estatus migratorio. Entre otras cosas, la INA prohíbe que los empleadores: (1) rechacen documentos válidos de autorización para trabajar; (2) limiten los documentos entre los que un trabajador puede escoger para fines relacionados con la verificación o reverificación para el empleo; y (3) sometan a empleados a solicitudes de documentos diferentes o innecesarias, con base en la ciudadanía, estatus migratorio o nacionalidad de origen del empleado.
Conforme los términos del acuerdo, J.C. Penney pagará sanciones civiles a los Estados Unidos que ascienden a $14.430, dará $11.177,60 en pagos retroactivos a la trabajadora que presentó la denuncia, capacitará a su personal general y el de la oficina corporativa, publicará avisos para informar a los trabajadores acerca de sus derechos y se someterá a los requisitos de supervisión y declaración del Departamento.
«Los empleadores no deben imponer cargas discriminatorias e ilícitas en sus empleados por motivos de su estatus migratorio o de ciudadanía durante el proceso de reverificación», declaró John Gore, el Fiscal General Auxiliar en funciones. «Es esencial que todo empleador capacite correctamente a sus empleados en cuanto a los procedimientos correctos para el Formulario I-9, tanto en la contratación inicial como en la reverificación. Estoy muy contento que J.C. Penney haya acordado someterse a tal capacitación».
La Sección de Derechos de Inmigrantes y Empleados (IER, por sus siglas en inglés), que anteriormente se conocía como la Oficina del Consejero Especial para Prácticas Injustas en el Empleo Relacionadas a Inmigración, que pertenece a la División, es responsable de aplicar la disposición antidiscriminatoria de la INA. Entre otras cosas, esta ley prohíbe la discriminación por motivos de estatus de ciudadanía o nacionalidad de origen en los procesos de contratación, despido o reclutamiento o recomendación por comisión; prácticas documentales injustas; y represalias y la intimidación.
Para más información sobre protecciones contra la discriminación en el empleo en virtud de las leyes migratorias, llame a la línea directa de la IER para trabajadores al 1‑800‑255-7688 (1‑800-237-2515, TTY para personas con discapacidades auditivas); llame a la línea directa de la IER para empleadores al 1-800-255-8155 (1-800-237-2515, TTY para personas con discapacidades auditivas); inscríbase a un seminario en línea gratuito; mande un correo electrónico a [email protected] o visite la página web de la IER en inglés o español.
Aquellos postulantes o empleados que creen haber sido sometidos a otros requisitos documentales por motivos de su nacionalidad de origen o su estatus migratorio o de ciudadanía en los procesos de contratación, despido o reclutamiento o recomendación por comisión deben llamar a la línea directa de la IER para trabajadores para pedir ayuda.
Eight Arrested in Africa-Based Cybercrime and Business Email Compromise ConspiracyRead the Press Release
Memphis, TN – In accordance with the Justice Department’s recent efforts to disrupt business email compromise (BEC) schemes that are designed to intercept and hijack wire transfers from businesses and individuals, including many senior citizens, the Department announced Operation Keyboard Warrior, an effort coordinated by United States and international law enforcement to disrupt online frauds perpetrated from Africa. Eight individuals have been arrested for their roles in a widespread, Africa-based cyber conspiracy that allegedly defrauded U.S. companies and citizens of approximately $15 million since at least 2012.
Acting Assistant Attorney General John P. Cronan of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, U.S. Attorney D. Michael Dunavant of the Western District of Tennessee, Executive Assistant Director David T. Resch of the FBI and Acting Special Agent in Charge William C. Hoffman of the FBI Memphis Field Office, made the announcement today.
Five individuals were arrested in the United States for their roles in the conspiracy including Javier Luis Ramos Alonso, 28, a Mexican citizen residing in Seaside, California; James Dean, 65, of Plainfield, Indiana; Dana Brady, 61, of Auburn, Washington; Rashid Abdulai, 24, a Ghanaian citizen residing in the Bronx, New York, who has been charged in a separate indictment; and Olufolajimi Abegunde, 31, a Nigerian citizen residing in Atlanta, Georgia. Maxwell Atugba Abayeta aka Maxwell Peter, 26, and Babatunde Martins, 62, of Ghana and Benard Emurhowhoariogho Okorhi, 39, a Nigerian citizen who resides in Ghana, have been arrested overseas and are pending extradition proceedings to face charges filed in the Western District of Tennessee.
The indictment also charges Sumaila Hardi Wumpini, 29; Dennis Miah, 34; Ayodeji Olumide Ojo, 35, and Victor Daniel Fortune Okorhi, 35, all of whom remain at large. Abegunde had his detention hearing today before U.S. District Court Judge Sheryl H.
Lipman of the Western District of Tennessee, who ordered him detained pending trial, which has been set for October 9, 2018.
"The defendants allegedly unleashed a barrage of international fraud schemes that targeted U.S. businesses and individuals, robbing them to the tune of approximately $15 million," said Acting Assistant Attorney General Cronan. "The Department of Justice will continue to work with our international partners to aggressively disrupt and dismantle criminal enterprises that victimize our citizens and businesses."
U.S. Attorney D. Michael Dunavant said: "Frauds perpetrated through the Internet cause significant financial harm to businesses and individuals in our District and throughout the United States. Because those committing Internet fraud hide behind technology, the cases are difficult – but not impossible – to investigate. We will continue to deploy our resources to take on these difficult cases and seek justice for citizens harmed by Internet scammers."
"The devastating effects that cybercrime and business email compromise have on victims and victim companies cannot be understated, and the FBI has made it a priority to work with our law enforcement partners around the world to end these fraud schemes and protect the hard-earned assets of our citizens," said William C. Hoffman, Acting Special Agent in Charge of the Memphis Field Office of the Federal Bureau of Investigation. "These charges are the result of the diligence, hard work and tenacity of the best and smartest investigators and prosecutors, to overcome the challenges faced when dealing with sophisticated efforts to hide criminal activity that involves numerous people in multiple countries, and should send a signal that criminals will not go undetected and will be held accountable, regardless of where they are."
The indictment was returned by a grand jury in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Tennessee on Aug. 23, 2017, and charges the defendants with conspiracy to commit wire fraud, wire fraud, conspiracy to commit money laundering, conspiracy to commit computer fraud, and aggravated identity fraud.
The indictment alleges that the Africa-based co-conspirators committed, or caused to be committed, a series of intrusions into the servers and email systems of a Memphis-based real estate company in June and July 2016. Using sophisticated anonymization techniques, including the use of spoofed email addresses and Virtual Private Networks, the co-conspirators identified large financial transactions, initiated fraudulent email correspondence with relevant business parties, and then redirected closing funds through a network of U.S.-based money mules to final destinations in Africa. Commonly referred to as business email compromise, or BEC, this aspect of the scheme caused hundreds of thousands in loss to companies and individuals in Memphis.
In addition to BEC, the Africa-based defendants are also charged with perpetrating, or causing to be perpetrated, various romance scams, fraudulent-check scams, gold-buying scams, advance-fee scams, and credit card scams. The indictment alleges that the proceeds of these criminal activities, both money and goods, were shipped and/or transferred from the United States to locations in Ghana, Nigeria, and South Africa
through a complex network of both complicit and unwitting individuals that had been recruited through the various Internet scams. The defendants are also charged with concealing their conduct by, among other means, stealing or fraudulently obtaining personal identification information (PII) and using that information to create fake online profiles and personas. Through all their various schemes, the defendants are believed to have caused millions in loss to victims across the globe.
An indictment is merely an allegation and the defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
The FBI led the investigation. The FBI’s Transnational Organized Crime of the Eastern Hemisphere Section of the Criminal Investigative Division, Major Cyber Crimes Unit of the Cyber Division, and International Organized Crime Intelligence and Operations Center all provided significant support in this case, as did INTERPOL Washington, the U.S. Marshals Service, and the U.S. Attorney’s Offices of the Northern District of Georgia, Western District of Washington, Central District of California, Southern District of New York, and the Northern District of Illinois.
Senior Trial Attorney Timothy C. Flowers of the Criminal Division’s Computer Crime and Intellectual Property Section and Assistant U.S. Attorney Debra L. Ireland of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Western District of Tennessee are prosecuting the case, with significant assistance from the Department of Justice’s Office of International Affairs.
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Eight Arrested in Africa-Based Cybercrime and Business Email Compromise ConspiracyRead the Press Release
In accordance with the Justice Department’s recent efforts to disrupt business email compromise (BEC) schemes that are designed to intercept and hijack wire transfers from businesses and individuals, including many senior citizens, the Department announced Operation Keyboard Warrior, an effort coordinated by United States and international law enforcement to disrupt online frauds perpetrated from Africa. Eight individuals have been arrested for their roles in a widespread, Africa-based cyber conspiracy that allegedly defrauded U.S. companies and citizens of approximately $15 million since at least 2012.
Acting Assistant Attorney General John P. Cronan of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, U.S. Attorney D. Michael Dunavant of the Western District of Tennessee and Executive Assistant Director David T. Resch of the FBI, made the announcement today.
Five individuals were arrested in the United States for their roles in the conspiracy including Javier Luis Ramos Alonso, 28, a Mexican citizen residing in Seaside, California; James Dean, 65, of Plainfield, Indiana; Dana Brady, 61, of Auburn, Washington; Rashid Abdulai, 24, a Ghanaian citizen residing in the Bronx, New York, who has been charged in a separate indictment; and Olufolajimi Abegunde, 31, a Nigerian citizen residing in Atlanta, Georgia. Maxwell Atugba Abayeta aka Maxwell Peter, 26, and Babatunde Martins, 62, of Ghana and Benard Emurhowhoariogho Okorhi, 39, a Nigerian citizen who resides in Ghana, have been arrested overseas and are pending extradition proceedings to face charges filed in the Western District of Tennessee.
The indictment also charges Sumaila Hardi Wumpini, 29; Dennis Miah, 34; Ayodeji Olumide Ojo, 35, and Victor Daniel Fortune Okorhi, 35, all of whom remain at large. Abegunde had his detention hearing today before U.S. District Court Judge Sheryl H. Lipman of the Western District of Tennessee, who ordered him detained pending trial, which has been set for Oct. 9.
“The defendants allegedly unleashed a barrage of international fraud schemes that targeted U.S. businesses and individuals, robbing them to the tune of approximately $15 million,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General Cronan. “The Department of Justice will continue to work with our international partners to aggressively disrupt and dismantle criminal enterprises that victimize our citizens and businesses.”
“Today, the FBI and our partners are announcing indictments as part of Operation Keyboard Warrior,” said FBI Executive Assistant Director Resch. “Following the success of Operation WireWire in early June, these indictments continue to demonstrate the FBI’s commitment to working with our partners around the globe to disrupt and dismantle criminal enterprises that target Americans and their businesses. This should stand as a warning that our work is not over, and we will continue to work together with our law enforcement partners to put an end to these fraud schemes. I want to thank all the agents and analysts at the FBI, our partners at the Department of Justice, and our Ghanaian partners at the Economic and Organised Crime Office for all their tireless work to continue to pursue this issue at every turn.”
The indictment was returned by a grand jury in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Tennessee on Aug. 23, 2017, and charges the defendants with conspiracy to commit wire fraud, wire fraud, conspiracy to commit money laundering, conspiracy to commit computer fraud, and aggravated identity fraud.
The indictment alleges that the Africa-based coconspirators committed, or caused to be committed, a series of intrusions into the servers and email systems of a Memphis-based real estate company in June and July 2016. Using sophisticated anonymization techniques, including the use of spoofed email addresses and Virtual Private Networks, the coconspirators identified large financial transactions, initiated fraudulent email correspondence with relevant business parties, and then redirected closing funds through a network of U.S.-based money mules to final destinations in Africa. Commonly referred to as business email compromise, or BEC, this aspect of the scheme caused hundreds of thousands in loss to companies and individuals in Memphis.
In addition to BEC, some of the Africa-based defendants are also charged with perpetrating, or causing to be perpetrated, various romance scams, fraudulent-check scams, gold-buying scams, advance-fee scams, and credit card scams. The indictment alleges that the proceeds of these criminal activities, both money and goods, were shipped and/or transferred from the United States to locations in Ghana, Nigeria, and South Africa through a complex network of both complicit and unwitting individuals that had been recruited through the various Internet scams. Some of the defendants are also charged with concealing their conduct by, among other means, stealing or fraudulently obtaining personal identification information (PII) and using that information to create fake online profiles and personas. Through all their various schemes, the defendants are believed to have caused millions in loss to victims across the globe.
An indictment is merely an allegation and the defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
The FBI led the investigation. The FBI’s Transnational Organized Crime of the Eastern Hemisphere Section of the Criminal Investigative Division, Major Cyber Crimes Unit of the Cyber Division, the Legal Attaché in Accra, and International Organized Crime Intelligence and Operations Center all provided significant support in this case, as did the Ghanaian Economic and Organised Crime Office, INTERPOL Washington, the U.S. Marshals Service, and the U.S. Attorney’s Offices of the Northern District of Georgia, Western District of Washington, Central District of California, Southern District of New York, and the Northern District of Illinois.
Senior Trial Attorney Timothy C. Flowers of the Criminal Division’s Computer Crime and Intellectual Property Section and Assistant U.S. Attorney Debra L. Ireland of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Western District of Tennessee are prosecuting the case, with significant assistance from the Department of Justice’s Office of International Affairs.
Disbarred Attorney Sentenced to 4 Years in Federal Prison in Million-Dollar Mortgage Modification Scam Targeting O.C. HomeownersRead the Press Release
SANTA ANA, California – A disbarred California attorney who previously pleaded guilty in a mortgage modification scheme that defrauded about 75 distressed Orange County homeowners out of more than $1 million was sentenced today to four years in federal prison.
Moses S. Hall, 63, a resident of Blackwood, New Jersey, who formerly had a law practice in Fullerton, was sentenced in the fraud scheme by United States District Judge Cormac J. Carney.
Hall pleaded guilty in July 2017 to one count of wire fraud and one count of obstructing the due administration of the IRS.
According to court documents, Hall operated his mortgage modification scheme from 2008 until 2012 through his law office, as well as businesses called “Salva Casas” and “Loan Modifications of America.” As part of his guilty pleas, Hall admitted that he told distressed homeowners to stop making their mortgage payments, and instead direct their monthly mortgage payments to him, purportedly so he could use that money to negotiate with the banks. Instead, Hall used the victims’ money for himself.
According to evidence in the case, Hall concealed from victims that he was using their money to pay for personal expenses and that he was a previously convicted felon who had served years in state prison in New Jersey prior to being admitted as an attorney in California.
By pleading guilty to obstructing the IRS, Hall admitted that he failed to file tax returns for the years 2008 through 2012. During those years, Hall conducted many cash transactions, including withdrawing more than $1 million in cash from 2008 to 2011, often on the same day from multiple different locations and different accounts. Moreover, Hall admitted that when he was interviewed in December 2015, he lied to IRS Special Agents about his use of that money.
During today’s sentencing hearing, several victims addressed the court and highlighted that they had lost their homes after following Hall’s advice. One of those victims paid more than $400,000 to Hall. During today’s hearing, Judge Carney noted that Hall had “betrayed the trust” of his clients.
In 2012, Hall was disbarred for as a result of the mortgage modification scheme, and the State Bar of California paid 12 victims a total of $340,000.
“Hall stipulated to nine counts of misconduct in three loan modification matters,” according to a summary of the case published by the State Bar of California. “In each case, he advised his clients to stop making mortgage payments and they lost their homes to foreclosure. All the clients were current on their mortgage payments when they hired Hall.”
In addition to the 48-month prison term, Judge Carney today ordered Hall to pay restitution to the victims and the Internal Revenue Service. The exact amount of restitution will be determined at a future hearing.
The investigation into Hall was conducted by IRS Criminal Investigation, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations, and the United States Secret Service. The State Bar of California, Office of Chief Trial Counsel, provided assistance during the investigation
Assistant United States Attorney Charles E. Pell of the Santa Ana Branch Office prosecuted this case.
Charlotte Investment Fund Operator Sentenced to 7.5 Years for Securities Fraud and Tax EvasionRead the Press Release
CHARLOTTE, N.C. – Today, U.S. District Judge Robert J. Conrad, Jr. sentenced Richard Wyatt Davis, Jr. 41, formerly of Cornelius, N.C., to 90 months in prison and two years of supervised release for securities fraud and tax evasion, announced the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Western District of North Carolina.
Reginald DeMatteis, Special Agent in Charge of the United States Secret Service, Charlotte Field Office, and Matthew D. Line, Acting Special Agent in Charge of the Internal Revenue Service, Criminal Investigation Division (IRS-CI) join the U.S. Attorney’s Office in making today’s announcement.
According to filed documents and today’s court proceedings, between 2010 and February 2015, Davis defrauded approximately 75 victims of $9.3 million, by inducing them to invest in investment funds Davis controlled, such as DCG Real Assets, as well as other investments, including H2O, LLC and Basalt Exploration. According to court records, Davis recruited his victim-investors by making a series of false and fraudulent representations about where their money would be invested. For example, Davis told investors that he would use their funds to invest in natural resources and assets such as real estate, gold mines, and water production, and touted these investments as a safe alternative to the stock market.
In reality, Davis used investor funds to pay for administrative and overhead expenses and to repay other investors. Davis also used some of the money to make direct and indirect payments to himself. Court records show that Davis assured victims that their assets were growing in value despite lacking sufficient financial information to make these claims.
According to court records, Davis generally targeted investors residing in and around Charlotte. His clients included professional athletes and individuals Davis recruited through his church. Davis also spoke at events for “preppers” and survivalists, thereby targeting victim-investors who were fearful of the stock market and the banking system. Davis preyed upon these investors’ fears of traditional financial markets and took advantage of their trust into someone who shared their religious views. Court records show that a number of Davis’s victim investors had rolled over their entire retirement savings into his funds.
According to filed documents and today’s court proceedings, for tax years 2009 through 2012, Davis transferred more than $5 million of investor funds into bank accounts in his own name and in the names of Richard Davis Enterprises and Davis Financial, Inc. Davis used some of these funds, as well as funds directly out of other accounts of Davis’s businesses, on personal expenditures totaling over $2 million. However, Davis filed false tax returns for 2009 and 2011, which reflected negative total income and failed to file individual income tax returns for 2010 and 2012.
In announcing today’s sentence, Judge Conrad said that the defendant engaged in “very significant fraudulent conduct” for a long period of time, causing harm to many and noted that he put “victims in a position from which they can never recover.” Judge Conrad emphasized the need for the sentence to reflect the seriousness of the offense, but he also considered the need to avoid unwarranted sentencing disparities.
The investigation was handled by the USSS and IRS-CI. Assistant U.S. Attorney Jenny G. Sugar of the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Charlotte and Assistant U.S. Attorney Daniel Bradley of the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Asheville prosecuted the case.
Caris Agrees to Pay $8.5 Million to Settle False Claims Act Lawsuit Alleging That it Billed for Ineligible Hospice PatientsRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON – Caris Healthcare, L.P. and its wholly-owned subsidiary, Caris Healthcare, LLC (“Caris Healthcare”), have agreed to resolve allegations that they violated the False Claims Act by knowingly submitting false claims, and knowingly retaining overpayments, for the care of patients who were ineligible for the Medicare hospice benefit because they were not terminally ill, the Department of Justice announced today. Under the settlement agreement, Caris Healthcare, a for-profit hospice chain that operates in Tennessee, Virginia, and South Carolina, has agreed to pay $8.5 million.
The settlement resolves allegations that Caris Healthcare admitted and recertified patients for hospice care that were ineligible for the hospice benefit. The government’s complaint alleged that, in an effort to meet the aggressive admissions and census targets set by the company, Caris admitted patients whose medical records did not support a terminal prognosis. The government’s complaint further alleged that when Caris was alerted to the ineligibility of these patients—via internal audits, concerns raised by its Chief Medical Officer, and recommendations of its nurse employees who actually examined the patients—Caris not only continued to submit hospice claims to Medicare for the patients, but also took no meaningful action to determine whether it had previously received improper payments for these and other patients that should have been returned to Medicare.
“Today’s settlement is an important reminder that compliance programs and activities cannot exist in name only. When a healthcare provider is put on notice that a patient is ineligible for a particular Medicare benefit or service, the healthcare provider cannot turn a blind eye to that information but, instead, must take reasonable steps to stop the improper conduct and to determine whether that conduct resulted in prior overpayments,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General Chad A. Readler of the Justice Department’s Civil Division. “Moreover, when internal audit results or other information reveals the existence of a compliance issue that is not limited to a particular claim, as was the case here, it is incumbent on providers to exercise due diligence to determine how widespread the problem is and to return any overpayments.”
“It is completely unacceptable for providers to retain overpayments from Medicare after being put on notice of the likelihood of such overpayments. Under the law, providers must go beyond merely conducting audits and providing forums for employee concerns. Rather, when Medicare rule violations have been revealed, the provider must take meaningful action to correct them, including repaying Medicare for funds they improperly received. Such corrective actions are vital to the integrity of the Medicare program, and the U.S. Attorney’s Office will continue to use the resources available to it to ensure the government is properly reimbursed for funds it is owed,” said J. Douglas Overbey, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Tennessee.
“We have significant expertise in investigating hospice fraud, as this part of the country unfortunately has seen more than its share of these schemes,” said Special Agent in Charge Derrick L. Jackson for the Office of Inspector General for the region including Tennessee. “When hospices increase their bottom lines by billing taxpayers for unneeded services, they are diverting money from vulnerable, terminally-ill individuals. Worse yet, these patients may not be receiving care for medical needs that would otherwise be covered in a non-hospice setting.”
The settlement resolves allegations filed in a lawsuit by Barbara Hinkle, a registered nurse who formerly worked for Caris Healthcare, under the qui tam, or whistleblower, provisions of the False Claims Act, which permit private individuals to sue on behalf of the government for false claims and to share in any recovery. The Act also allows the government to intervene and take over the action, as it did in this case. The whistleblower’s share will be $1,402,500.
This matter was handled on behalf of the government by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Tennessee, the Justice Department’s Civil Division, and the Department of Health and Human Services Office of the Inspector General.
The case is captioned United States ex rel. Hinkle v. Caris Healthcare, L.P., et al., Case No. 3:14-cv-212 (E.D. Tenn.). The claims resolved by the settlement are allegations only, and there has been no determination of liability.
Caris Agrees to Pay $8.5 Million Court Settle False Claims Act Lawsuit Alleging That it Billed for Ineligible Hospice PatientsRead the Press Release
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. – Caris Healthcare, L.P. and its wholly-owned subsidiary, Caris Healthcare, LLC (“Caris Healthcare”), have agreed to resolve allegations that they violated the False Claims Act by knowingly submitting false claims, and knowingly retaining overpayments, for the care of patients who were ineligible for the Medicare hospice benefit because they were not terminally ill, the Department of Justice announced today. Under the settlement agreement, Caris Healthcare, a for-profit hospice chain that operates in Tennessee, Virginia, and South Carolina, has agreed to pay $8.5 million.
The settlement resolves allegations that Caris Healthcare admitted and recertified patients for hospice care that were ineligible for the hospice benefit. The government’s complaint alleged that, in an effort to meet the aggressive admissions and census targets set by the company, Caris admitted patients whose medical records did not support a terminal prognosis. The government’s complaint further alleged that when Caris was alerted to the ineligibility of these patients—via internal audits, concerns raised by its Chief Medical Officer, and recommendations of its nurse employees who actually examined the patients—Caris not only continued to submit hospice claims to Medicare for the patients, but also took no meaningful action to determine whether it had previously received improper payments for these and other patients that should have been returned to Medicare.
“Today’s settlement is an important reminder that compliance programs and activities cannot exist in name only. When a healthcare provider is put on notice that a patient is ineligible for a particular Medicare benefit or service, the healthcare provider cannot turn a blind eye to that information but, instead, must take reasonable steps to stop the improper conduct and to determine whether that conduct resulted in prior overpayments,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General Chad A. Readler of the Justice Department’s Civil Division. “Moreover, when internal audit results or other information reveals the existence of a compliance issue that is not limited to a particular claim, as was the case here, it is incumbent on providers to exercise due diligence to determine how widespread the problem is and to return any overpayments.”
“It is completely unacceptable for providers to retain overpayments from Medicare after being put on notice of the likelihood of such overpayments. Under the law, providers must go beyond merely conducting audits and providing forums for employee concerns. Rather, when Medicare rule violations have been revealed, the provider must take meaningful action to correct them, including repaying Medicare for funds they improperly received. Such corrective actions are vital to the integrity of the Medicare program, and the U.S. Attorney’s Office will continue to use the resources available to it to ensure the government is properly reimbursed for funds it is owed,” said J. Douglas Overbey, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Tennessee.
“We have significant expertise in investigating hospice fraud, as this part of the country unfortunately has seen more than its share of these schemes,” said Special Agent in Charge Derrick L. Jackson for the Office of Inspector General for the region including Tennessee. “When hospices increase their bottom lines by billing taxpayers for unneeded services, they are diverting money from vulnerable, terminally-ill individuals. Worse yet, these patients may not be receiving care for medical needs that would otherwise be covered in a non-hospice setting.”
The settlement resolves allegations filed in a lawsuit by Barbara Hinkle, a registered nurse who formerly worked for Caris Healthcare, under the qui tam, or whistleblower, provisions of the False Claims Act, which permit private individuals to sue on behalf of the government for false claims and to share in any recovery. The Act also allows the government to intervene and take over the action, as it did in this case. The whistleblower’s share will be $1,402,500.
This matter was handled on behalf of the government by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Tennessee, the Justice Department’s Civil Division, and the Department of Health and Human Services Office of the Inspector General.
The case is captioned United States ex rel. Hinkle v. Caris Healthcare, L.P., et al., Case No. 3:14-cv-212 (E.D. Tenn.). The claims resolved by the settlement are allegations only, and there has been no determination of liability.
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Bridgeville Suboxone Clinic Owner Pleads Guilty to Filing False Tax ReturnsRead the Press Release
PITTSBURGH, PA - A resident of Washington County, Pennsylvania, pleaded guilty in federal court to charges of false income tax returns, United States Attorney Scott W. Brady announced today.
Allan W. Clark, M.D. pleaded guilty to three counts before United States District Judge Arthur J. Schwab.
In connection with the guilty plea, the court was advised that Clark was the owner and operator of the South Hills Recovery Project (SHRP), a strictly cash based suboxone clinic located in Bridgeville, Pa. A patient’s first visit fee during the relevant times was $250. The follow up monthly visits were $150. Over the course of 2011, 2012 and 2013, Clark hired approximately 11 different doctors to work part time at SHRP to assist him in handling the follow up visits. Of the $150 collected from the patient for the follow up visit, the 11 doctors were paid approximately half, or $75, and SHRP kept the other $75. Clark did not report all of the cash collected, and used some of it for personal expenses such as improvements on his home.
Judge Schwab scheduled sentencing for November 13, 2018. The law provides for a maximum total sentence per count of three 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 offenses and the prior criminal history, if any, of the defendant.
Assistant United States Attorney Nelson P. Cohen is prosecuting this case on behalf of the government.
The Internal Revenue Service-Criminal Investigations conducted the investigation leading to the information filed in this case.
Beaumont Federal Inmate Guilty of Assaulting Fellow PrisonerRead the Press Release
BEAUMONT, Texas – A 36-year-old federal inmate has pleaded guilty to assaulting another prisoner in the Eastern District of Texas, announced U.S. Attorney Joseph D. Brown today.
Joseph Young, of Ripley, TN, pleaded guilty to assault with a deadly weapon on June 22, 2018 before U.S. Magistrate Judge Keith F. Giblin.
According to information presented in court, on June 26, 2016, while an inmate with the Bureau of Prisons, Young assaulted another inmate by stabbing him several times in the abdomen, back, arms and leg, with a metal object of about seven inches in length that had been sharpened to a point into a homemade knife. The victim survived the attack and Young was indicted by a federal grand jury on Feb. 7, 2018 and charged with assault.
Under federal statutes, Young faces up to 10 years in federal prison at sentencing. The maximum statutory sentence prescribed by Congress is provided here for information purposes, as the sentencing 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 U.S. Probation Office.
This case is being investigated by the Federal Bureau of Prisons and prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Joseph R. Batte.
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Baltimore Heroin Dealer Sentenced to 14 Years in Federal PrisonRead the Press Release
Baltimore, Maryland – U.S. District Judge George L. Russell III sentenced Stanley Rodgers, age 60, of Baltimore, Maryland today to 14 years in prison, followed by five years of supervised release, for conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute heroin.
The sentence was announced by United States Attorney for the District of Maryland Robert K. Hur; Assistant Special Agent in Charge Don A. Hibbert of the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) - Washington Field Division; and Colonel Woodrow Jones, Chief of the Maryland Transportation Authority Police.
According to his plea agreement, on February 6, 2018, Rodgers took delivery of 10 kilograms of heroin in Howard County, Maryland, then returned to his residence. Shortly thereafter, Lindell Robinson arrived at Rodgers’ residence and took custody of the 10 kilograms of heroin. Robinson then drove with the drugs to downtown Baltimore, where he was arrested by DEA agents and the heroin was recovered from his car. The wholesale value of the heroin was approximately $700,000.
Rodgers must also forfeit the following assets seized from his residence on March 12, 2018, which are believed to have been acquired as a result of, or used to facilitate Rodgers’ drug distribution: jewelry with an approximate value of $150,000; and two Jeep Cherokee vehicles.
On May 3, 2018, Lindell Robinson, age 46, of Pacoma, California, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute heroin, and is scheduled to be sentenced on July 11, 2018 at 11:30 a.m.
United States Attorney Robert K. Hur praised the DEA and Maryland Transportation Authority Police for their work in the investigation. Mr. Hur thanked Assistant U.S. Attorneys James G. Warwick and David Metcalf, who prosecuted the case.
Allentown Lawyer Sentenced to Prison for Tax FraudRead the Press Release
Reading, PA – U.S. Attorney William M. McSwain announced that Douglas M. Marinos, 56, a licensed attorney, was sentenced on June 22 to serve one year in federal prison for tax fraud.
On January 18, 2018, Marinos pled guilty to one count of willfully failing to collect, truthfully account for, and pay over to the United States taxes owed by his Allentown law firm. He was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Jeffrey L. Schmehl.
From 2008 to 2015, Marinos misrepresented to his firm’s employees that money he had withheld from their paychecks had been paid to the IRS to fund their Social Security and Medicare contributions.
In total, Marinos failed to pay $229,548.92 in required payroll taxes on behalf of his firm.
“When he entered the practice of law, the defendant swore to ‘obey and defend’ the laws of Pennsylvania and the United States,” said U.S. Attorney McSwain. “Instead, the defendant abused the trust placed in him by his employees and broke the law by using this money to pay his own creditors.”
The case was investigated by the IRS Criminal Investigation Division and prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Sean P. McDonnell.
11 Individuals Charged with Running Narcotics RingRead the Press Release
CINCINNATI – A federal grand jury has charged 11 individuals in a narcotics and money-laundering conspiracy, which also involves allegations of operating drug involved premises, wire fraud and structuring, through a 20-count superseding indictment returned here Thursday and unsealed today.
Two defendants, Derwin Gadson and Ronnie Parrott, remain at large. The other nine were arrested late last week.
Benjamin C. Glassman, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Ohio, Angela L. Byers, Special Agent in Charge, Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), Cincinnati Division, Ryan L. Korner, Special Agent in Charge, Internal Revenue Service (IRS) Criminal Investigation, Cincinnati Field Office and Cincinnati Police Chief Eliot K. Isaac announced the charges.
According to the indictment, from at least August 2012 until April 2017, the defendants allegedly operated a narcotics conspiracy and distributed fentanyl, ketamine, cocaine and heroin in the Cincinnati region.
Those charged include:
Name
Age
City of Residence
John T. Moore, Jr.
33
Cincinnati
Ricardo Campbell
33
Cincinnati
Teron Campbell
26
Cincinnati
*Derwin Gadson
22
Cincinnati
Patricia O’Neal
37
Cincinnati
Timothy Mosely
34
Cincinnati
*Ronnie Parrott
33
Cincinnati
Keiron Ashurst
53
Cincinnati
Vernon Coffee
Cincinnati
Shanda Green
39
Cincinnati
Jeronda Kelley
36
Cincinnati
* Fugitives
The indictment also formally charges Campbell with operating a drug involved premises at 5520 Silverpointe Drive in Cincinnati.
Sixteen additional homes are named in the indictment as properties potentially purchased with drug proceeds or through other illicit means, including homes in Cincinnati on Montana, Lowry, Mystic, Wilson, Crestline, Wyoming, Simpson, Cleveland and Blair avenues, Saffer and Dillward streets, Woodcrest and Sarvis courts, Rapid Run and Montgomery roads, a home in Fairfield on Flaig Drive, and a home in West Chester on Tarragon Court.
Moore – who solely owned and operated both John T. Moore Construction, LLC and Lieutenant Dan, LLC (a real estate company) – purchased four of the properties by allegedly defrauding mortgage lenders.
He allegedly lied on loan applications in order to secure loans and enter into purchase agreements, including, $20,000 for 2620 Montana Avenue in Cincinnati, $20,500 for 3973 Lowry Avenue in Cincinnati, $147,000 for 5945 Flaig Drive in Fairfield and $42,250 for Rapid Run Road in Cincinnati.
The superseding indictment alleges Moore falsified bank statements to inflate the available balance and overstated the value of other properties he claimed to own. Moore also allegedly did not disclose that certain loans were to purchase residential property as opposed to a Business Equity Line of Credit.
Additionally, Moore, Green and Kelley are charged with structuring financial transactions to evade tax requirements and with money laundering.
For example, between July and November 2016, the trio allegedly made cash deposits of various monetary denominations totaling in excess of $270,000 into seven bank accounts. Likewise, it is alleged they deposited more than $230,000 into various accounts in a little over a month in 2017.
“We are on a mission to rid the Southern District of Ohio of criminal organizations that traffic fentanyl and other deadly drugs,” said U.S. Attorney Glassman. “In carrying out that mission, we’re seeking not only to hold perpetrators criminally responsible, but also to take away the fruits of the crime. We want to make sure that drug trafficking doesn’t pay.”
U.S. Attorney Glassman commended the investigation of this case by the FBI, IRS-CI and Cincinnati Police Department, as well as Assistant United States Attorney Christy Muncy, who is prosecuting the case.
If you have information on the whereabouts of Gadson or Parrott, please call the FBI at (513) 421-4310.
A superseding indictment merely contains allegations, and the defendants are presumed innocent unless proven guilty in a court of law.
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22 June 2018
Wilmington Man Sentenced to More Than 10 Years for Drug Distribution ChargeRead the Press Release
ELIZABETH CITY – The United States Attorney for the Eastern District of North Carolina, Robert J. Higdon, Jr., announced that, United States District Judge Terrence W. Boyle sentenced LEWIS ALEXANDER HINES, 26, of Wilmington to 120 months of imprisonment followed by 5 years of supervised release.
HINES was named in a five-count Superseding Indictment filed on July 25, 2017. On October 5, 2017 HINES pled guilty to Possession with Intent to Distribute 28 Grams or More of Cocaine Base.
In January 2017, agents with the Federal Bureau of Investigation Safe Streets Task Force (FBI) and the Wilmington Police Department Gang Unit (WPD) initiated an investigation into the drug distribution activities of HINES. A confidential source (CS) advised authorities that he/she could purchase drugs from HINES. Between January 9, 2017 and February 2, 2017 the CS at the direction of law enforcement made four undercover purchase of drugs from HINES. The CS purchased 251 bindles of heroin (5.02 grams of heroin) for $1,120, 147 bindles of heroin (2.9 grams of heroin) for $675, 29 grams of cocaine base (crack) for $1,400 and 14 grams of crack cocaine for $700. All of the sales occurred in Wilmington, North Carolina.
On February 6, 2017, law enforcement served a search warrant at HINES’ residence. The search uncovered 36 grams of crack cocaine, digital scales, 1 Glock magazine, various rounds of ammunition, and empty bindles of heroin.
HINES has prior convictions in North Carolina State Court for discharging a weapon into an occupied property and possession with intent to sell and deliver cocaine and a prior Federal conviction for possession of a firearm by a convicted felon.
The investigation was conducted by the Wilmington Police Department Gang Unit and the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s Safe Street’s Task Force which is comprised of the Wilmington Police Department, New Hanover County Sheriff’s Office, North Carolina Highway Patrol, Onslow County Sheriff’s Office,
Jacksonville Police Department, Onslow County Sheriff’s Office and the Carteret County Sheriff’s Office. Assistant United States Attorney Timothy M. Severo handled the prosecution of this case for the government.
Westbrook Man Charged with Interfering with Commerce by RobberyRead the Press Release
Portland, Maine: United States Attorney Halsey B. Frank announced that Travis Jonathon Card, 38, of Westbrook, Maine, was charged today by criminal complaint in U.S. District Court with interference with commerce by robbery.
According to the complaint, the charge arises from an investigation into eleven armed robberies in the greater Portland area in March and April, 2018. One of these robberies occurred at a Gulf Mart, in Westbrook, on April 6, 2018. On that date, Card entered the store, approached the clerk, brandished what appeared to be a black firearm, and directed the clerk to open the register and give him money. He absconded with over $500.
If convicted, Card faces up to 20 years in prison and a $250,000 fine.
The defendant is currently being held in state custody on related charges. His initial appearance in U.S. District Court in Portland has not yet been scheduled.
The ongoing investigation is being conducted by the FBI, in conjunction with the Portland, Westbrook, Falmouth, Cumberland, South Portland, and Old Orchard Beach Police Departments.
A criminal complaint is merely an accusation, and a defendant is presumed innocent unless proven guilty in a court of law.
Watervliet Man Indicted for Sexual Exploitation of a ChildRead the Press Release
ALBANY, NEW YORK – Aaron Vroman, age 28, of Watervliet, New York, was indicted yesterday for sexual exploitation of a child by making pornographic images, distribution of child pornography, and possession of child pornography.
The announcement was made by United States Attorney Grant C. Jaquith and Kevin M. Kelly, Special Agent in Charge of the Buffalo Field Office of Homeland Security Investigations (HSI).
According to the indictment, Vroman sexually exploited a child from September 2015 through December 2017, used file-sharing software to distribute child pornography over the internet in April 2017, and possessed child pornography on a laptop computer and flash drive.
The charges in the indictment are merely accusations. The defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
Vroman has been in custody since December 15, 2017 and will be arraigned at a later date. If convicted of all charges, Vroman faces at least 15 years and up to 30 years in prison, as well as post-imprisonment supervised release of at least 5 years and up to life. A defendant’s sentence is imposed by a judge based on the particular statute the defendant is charged with violating, the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines, and other factors.
This case is being investigated by HSI, with assistance from the New York State Police and the Colonie Police Department, and is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Joseph A. Giovannetti.
Launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice, Project Safe Childhood is led by United States Attorneys’ Offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS). Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state and local resources to better locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the Internet, as well as to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit https://www.justice.gov/psc.
United States Files Complaint to Stop Louisiana Company and its Owners from Distributing Adulterated FoodRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON – The United States filed a civil complaint against Freshy Foods, LLC of Elmwood, Louisiana, its co-owner and Chief Executive Officer Floyd D. James, and its co-owner and President Ida M. James (defendants) to stop them from manufacturing and distributing adulterated food in violation of federal law, the Department of Justice announced today.
According to the complaint, defendants prepare, manufacture, process, pack, label, hold, and distribute refrigerated, ready-to-eat (RTE) food, including sandwiches, wraps, salads, fruit cups, and snack cups. The complaint, filed in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Louisiana, alleges that the RTE food that defendants prepare, manufacture and/or distribute is adulterated in that it has been prepared, packed, or held under insanitary conditions whereby the food may have been contaminated with filth or rendered injurious to health. The allegations in the complaint apply to RTE food regulated by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA).
The Department filed the complaint at the request of the FDA.
“The Department of Justice is committed to ensuring that food manufacturers and distributors comply with laws designed to protect consumers,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General Chad A. Readler of the Justice Department’s Civil Division. “The Department of Justice continues to work actively with the FDA to ensure that consumers are protected from potentially unsafe food.”
The complaint alleges that a July 2017 inspection by FDA of Freshy Foods’ facility established that RTE food that defendants prepare, manufacture and/or distribute is adulterated. Specifically, according to the complaint, FDA found evidence of a resident strain of Listeria monocytogenes (L. mono) in the facility. The complaint alleges that in addition to the July 2017 inspection, federal and state government agencies have found L. mono in Freshy Foods’ facility or in defendants’ RTE sandwiches on six separate occasions.
According to the complaint, the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services (FDACS) found L. mono in one of defendants’ sandwiches in 2013 and in another of defendants’ sandwiches in 2016. In addition, the complaint alleges that the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) inspected Freshy Foods’ facility in June 2017, collected environmental subsamples from the facility, with three subsamples testing positive for L. mono.
The complaint states that FDA compared positive L. mono samples collected by FDA in July 2017, April 2017, and April 2016; by USDA in June 2017; and by FDACS in March 2016 and December 2013. According to the complaint, lab analysis identified a resident strain of L. mono, which has persisted in Freshy Foods’ facility since at least 2013, as well as a second, non-resident strain of L. mono at the facility.
As noted in the complaint, L. mono is one of several bacteria contained within the Listeria species. According to the complaint, L. mono can causes listeriosis, a disease commonly contracted by eating food contaminated with the bacterium. The complaint notes that Listeriosis can be serious, even fatal, for vulnerable groups such as newborns and those with impaired immune systems, and that the most serious forms of listeriosis can result in meningitis and septicemia.
The complaint alleges that defendants violated the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act by causing adulterated food to be introduced into interstate commerce or delivered for introduction into interstate commerce. It also alleges that the defendants further violated the law by causing food to become adulterated while it was being held for sale after the shipment of one or more of its components in interstate commerce.
“Southeast Louisiana is famous for its delicious food and regardless of where it is ultimately consumed, food originating from our District should be safe,” said U.S. Attorney Duane A. Evans for the Eastern District of Louisiana. “This complaint furthers the Eastern District of Louisiana’s mission to protect and improve the quality of life for consumers both here and throughout the states where Freshy Foods, LLC’s products are distributed.”
“We have an obligation to make sure that foods are safe for people to consume. The conditions that this company was holding ready-to-eat food in were unacceptable,” said FDA Associate Commissioner for Regulatory Affairs Melinda K. Plaisier. “FDA investigators repeatedly found Listeria monocytogenes at Freshy Food’s facility, and the company should stop operations until they can demonstrate to the FDA that their products are safe.”
The government is represented by Trial Attorney Kathryn Schmidt of the Civil Division’s Consumer Protection Branch and Assistant U.S. Attorney K. Paige O’Hale of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Louisiana, with the assistance of Associate Chief Counsel for Enforcement Anna K. Thompson of the FDA, Office of General Counsel, and Department of Health and Human Services.
A complaint is merely a set of allegations that, if the case were to proceed to trial, the government would need to prove by a preponderance of the evidence.
Additional information about the Consumer Protection Branch and its enforcement efforts may be found at http://www.justice.gov/civil/consumer-protection-branch. For more information about the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Louisiana, visit its website at http://www.justice.gov/usao-edla.
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United States Files Complaint to Stop Louisiana Company and its Owners from Distributing Adulterated FoodRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON – The United States filed a civil complaint against Freshy Foods, LLC of Elmwood, Louisiana, its co-owner and Chief Executive Officer Floyd D. James, and its co-owner and President Ida M. James (defendants) to stop them from manufacturing and distributing adulterated food in violation of federal law, the Department of Justice announced today.
According to the complaint, defendants prepare, manufacture, process, pack, label, hold, and distribute refrigerated, ready-to-eat (RTE) food, including sandwiches, wraps, salads, fruit cups, and snack cups. The complaint, filed in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Louisiana, alleges that the RTE food that defendants prepare, manufacture and/or distribute is adulterated in that it has been prepared, packed, or held under insanitary conditions whereby the food may have been contaminated with filth or rendered injurious to health. The allegations in the complaint apply to RTE food regulated by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA).
The Department filed the complaint at the request of the FDA.
“The Department of Justice is committed to ensuring that food manufacturers and distributors comply with laws designed to protect consumers,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General Chad A. Readler of the Justice Department’s Civil Division. “The Department of Justice continues to work actively with the FDA to ensure that consumers are protected from potentially unsafe food.”
The complaint alleges that a July 2017 inspection by FDA of Freshy Foods’ facility established that RTE food that defendants prepare, manufacture and/or distribute is adulterated. Specifically, according to the complaint, FDA found evidence of a resident strain of Listeria monocytogenes (L. mono) in the facility. The complaint alleges that in addition to the July 2017 inspection, federal and state government agencies have found L. mono in Freshy Foods’ facility or in defendants’ RTE sandwiches on six separate occasions.
According to the complaint, the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services (FDACS) found L. mono in one of defendants’ sandwiches in 2013 and in another of defendants’ sandwiches in 2016. In addition, the complaint alleges that the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) inspected Freshy Foods’ facility in June 2017, collected environmental subsamples from the facility, with three subsamples testing positive for L. mono.
The complaint states that FDA compared positive L. mono samples collected by FDA in July 2017, April 2017, and April 2016; by USDA in June 2017; and by FDACS in March 2016 and December 2013. According to the complaint, lab analysis identified a resident strain of L. mono, which has persisted in Freshy Foods’ facility since at least 2013, as well as a second, non-resident strain of L. mono at the facility.
As noted in the complaint, L. mono is one of several bacteria contained within the Listeria species. According to the complaint, L. mono can causes listeriosis, a disease commonly contracted by eating food contaminated with the bacterium. The complaint notes that Listeriosis can be serious, even fatal, for vulnerable groups such as newborns and those with impaired immune systems, and that the most serious forms of listeriosis can result in meningitis and septicemia.
The complaint alleges that defendants violated the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act by causing adulterated food to be introduced into interstate commerce or delivered for introduction into interstate commerce. It also alleges that the defendants further violated the law by causing food to become adulterated while it was being held for sale after the shipment of one or more of its components in interstate commerce.
“Southeast Louisiana is famous for its delicious food and regardless of where it is ultimately consumed, food originating from our District should be safe,” said U.S. Attorney Duane A. Evans for the Eastern District of Louisiana. “This complaint furthers the Eastern District of Louisiana’s mission to protect and improve the quality of life for consumers both here and throughout the states where Freshy Foods, LLC’s products are distributed.”
“We have an obligation to make sure that foods are safe for people to consume. The conditions that this company was holding ready-to-eat food in were unacceptable,” said FDA Associate Commissioner for Regulatory Affairs Melinda K. Plaisier. “FDA investigators repeatedly found Listeria monocytogenes at Freshy Food’s facility, and the company should stop operations until they can demonstrate to the FDA that their products are safe.”
The government is represented by Trial Attorney Kathryn Schmidt of the Civil Division’s Consumer Protection Branch and Assistant U.S. Attorney K. Paige O’Hale of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Louisiana, with the assistance of Associate Chief Counsel for Enforcement Anna K. Thompson of the FDA, Office of General Counsel, and Department of Health and Human Services.
A complaint is merely a set of allegations that, if the case were to proceed to trial, the government would need to prove by a preponderance of the evidence.
Additional information about the Consumer Protection Branch and its enforcement efforts may be found at http://www.justice.gov/civil/consumer-protection-branch. For more information about the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Louisiana, visit its website at http://www.justice.gov/usao-edla.
U.S. Attorney's Office for the Eastern District of Arkansas Indicts 73 Cases in June, Including 39 Gun CasesRead the Press Release
LITTLE ROCK—Following a week in which more than 50 defendants appeared before United States Magistrate Judge Joe J. Volpe for their first appearance in federal court, today Cody Hiland, United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Arkansas, announced the filing of 73 indictments in the month of June.
Thirty-nine of the 73 indictments involve gun crimes, filed as part of the Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN) initiative. Hiland’s announcement illustrates his office’s commitment to prosecuting gun crimes and removing dangerous criminals from the streets.
“As I said back in February, when I announced that our office’s top priorities will include the successful prosecution of gun crimes, we will not slow down or back off our commitment to take dangerous individuals off the streets and put them in prison by any means available to us under federal law,” Hiland said. “The days of dangerous criminals illegally possessing guns with impunity are over. I am proud of the partnership and hard work between our office and the federal, state and local agencies we work with every day. These indictments are a product of that hard work and a reflection of the cooperative relationship necessary to turn these cases into indictments.
“It’s important to note the work is just beginning. Law enforcement will continue to make cases and we will continue to process them for prosecution. We’re anxious for these criminals to face justice in the federal system where parole is not an option.”
In 2017, the U.S. Attorney’s Office (USAO) for the Eastern District of Arkansas (EDAR) indicted 62 cases in which a gun charge was the primary crime charged. Throughout 2017, the highest number of PSN indictments filed in any one month was 15 in July. By contrast, through the first six months of 2018, the EDAR has indicted 89 PSN cases, with June’s 39 indictments being the highest one-month total so far. In 2017, the USAO EDAR opened a total of 106 PSN cases; 174 PSN cases have been opened in the office in the first six months of 2018, with more indictments expected. The USAO EDAR opened a total of 438 cases in 2017. Through June, Hiland’s office has opened 456 cases in 2018.
Hiland’s office is receiving aid in handling this additional caseload by the addition of 12 Special Assistant United States Attorneys (SAUSAs). Four SAUSAs who have completed their background checks have been assigned 15 cases thus far.
Additionally, Hiland announces the hiring of Gerald “Bart” Dickinson to serve as a violent crimes prosecutor. Dickinson is currently chief counsel at the Arkansas Office of Medicaid Inspector General and previously served as a gang and violent crimes prosecutor in Little Rock from 2001 through 2007. He also served as chief deputy prosecutor in Lonoke County, and worked for the Arkansas Attorney General’s office. Dickinson, who has been assisting as a SAUSA, will begin full-time work when cleared by the Department of Justice.
PSN is 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 of Justice’s renewed focus on targeting violent criminals, and directed all U.S. Attorney’s Offices to work in partnership with federal, state, and local law enforcement and the local community to develop effective, locally-based strategies to reduce violent crime.
Each of these PSN cases is first opened by the USAO for investigation in consultation with a local or federal law enforcement partner. Following investigation, an Assistant U.S. Attorney presents the case to a grand jury for potential indictment. A federal indictment is a formal charging document that is presented to a grand jury, which then determines whether probable cause exists for the alleged crimes.
Following indictment, a defendant will appear before a United States Magistrate Judge. The Magistrate Judge then informs the defendant of the charges against him, the possible punishment, and determines whether the defendant will remain detained, or released on bond.
In addition to the 39 gun cases filed in June, the U.S. Attorney’s office indicted 13 cases involving drug-trafficking crimes, 10 involving immigration crimes, 4 involving crimes against children, 2 fraud cases, and 1 identity theft case.
The new gun cases primarily originated in Little Rock and surrounding Pulaski County. Charges include felon in possession of firearms, possession of a firearm in furtherance of a drug-trafficking crime, and unlawful drug user in possession of firearms.
The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, & Explosives (ATF) has been a key partner with the U.S. Attorney’s office in developing these PSN cases. In addition, many of the 39 new PSN cases began as state cases following arrests by the Little Rock Police Department, North Little Rock Police Department, Pulaski County Sheriff’s Office, Arkansas State Police, and other local agencies. The FBI, through its GET Rock gang task force, and Arkansas Community Correction has also provided significant resources and assistance to this prosecution push. Throughout this initiative, which will continue indefinitely, the U.S. Attorney’s office has been working closely with Larry Jegley and the Sixth Judicial District Prosecuting Attorney’s office, as well as other state prosecutor’s offices.
An indictment contains only allegations. A defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
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This news release, as well as additional information about the office of the United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Arkansas, is available on-line at http://www.justice.gov/edar
Twitter: @EDARNEWSTwo Individuals Sentenced for Possession of Electronic Image of U.S. ObligationRead the Press Release
MUSKOGEE, OKLAHOMA – The United States Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Oklahoma announced that Brandon Everett Barker, age 36, of Austin, Texas, and Michelle Denise Carson, age 39, of Indianapolis, Indiana, were sentenced to 21 months imprisonment and 3 years supervised release, and to 12 months imprisonment and 3 years supervised release, respectively, for Possession Of An Electronic Image Of An Obligation Of The United States, in violation of Title 18 United States Code, Sections 474(a) and 2. The charge arose from an investigation by the Atoka Police Department and the United States Secret Service.
The Indictment alleged that on or about September 17, 2017, in the Eastern District of Oklahoma, the defendants unlawfully and with intent to defraud, had in in their control, custody, and possession, a digital and electronic image of an obligation or other security of the United States, a one hundred dollar bill.
“The defendants possessed the digital image of a one hundred dollar bill and equipment to create counterfeit United States currency with the intent to defraud others. Ultimately, the end result when a fraudulent intent is carried out and counterfeit currency is passed, an unsuspecting victim exchanges goods or services for a worthless piece of paper that appears to be legitimate U.S. currency,” United States Attorney Brian J. Kuester said. “Thanks to the heads-up police work by the Atoka Police Department and the United States Secret Service, the defendants’ were stopped from carrying out their fraudulent intent and an untold number of people did not become their victims.”
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 Rob Wallace represented the United States. The defendants will remain in custody pending transportation to the designated federal facility at which the non-paroleable sentences will be served.
Two Connecticut Residents Charged with Operating Extensive Immigration Marriage Fraud SchemeRead the Press Release
John H. Durham, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, Peter C. Fitzhugh, Special Agent in Charge of Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) in Boston, and Christopher W. Fonda, Supervisory Immigration Officer for U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, Office of Fraud Detection and National Security, today announced the unsealing of a 14-count indictment charging JODIAN STEPHENSON, also known as “Jodian Gordon,” 34, of Bridgeport, and DONOVAN LAWRENCE, 62, of Milford, with various federal offenses related to an extensive immigration marriage fraud scheme.
The indictment was returned on June 5 and STEPHENSON and LAWRENCE were arrested today. They appeared before U.S. Magistrate Judge William I. Garfinkel in Bridgeport and were released on bonds in the amount of $350,000 and $100,000, respectively.
As alleged in the indictment, STEPHENSON has operated Stephenson Immigration and Legal Services, LLC, in Bridgeport, and LAWRENCE has operated Donovans Accounting Services, LLC, in Bridgeport. Between approximately July 2012 and July 2017, STEPHENSON, LAWRENCE and others conspired to arrange sham marriages between U.S. citizens and non-citizens residing in the U.S. for the purpose of the non-citizens’ applying for and obtaining “lawful permanent residence” status, also known as a “green card.” As part of the alleged scheme, STEPHENSON and LAWRENCE made and filed with U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Service false documents, including fraudulent green card applications and false tax returns in the names of the allegedly “married” couples.
The indictment identifies nine false marriages that resulted in the filing of fraudulent green card applications. During the investigation, is it alleged that STEPHENSON offered to arrange a sham marriage for a federal law enforcement agent working in an undercover capacity, and help obtain a green card for the undercover agent, in exchange for a proposed fee of $20,000. STEPHENSON then introduced the undercover agent to a U.S. citizen, advised them about the ways they could create the appearance that they were validly married and living together as husband and wife, and helped the undercover agent obtain a marriage license in exchange for a cash payment of $5,000 from the undercover agent.
The indictment charges STEPHENSON and LAWRENCE with one count of conspiracy to commit immigration marriage fraud and make false statements, and six counts of making false statements. These charges carry a maximum term of imprisonment of five years on each count. The indictment also charges STEPHENSON with seven counts of immigration documents fraud, an offense that carries a maximum term of imprisonment of 10 years on each count.
U.S. Attorney Durham stressed that an indictment is not evidence of guilt. Charges are only allegations, and each defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.
This ongoing investigation is being conducted by Homeland Security Investigations and U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Service, Office of Fraud Detection and National Security. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Henry K. Kopel.
Two Brunswick Men Sentenced to Serve More Than a Decade in Prison for Distributing Kilogram Quantities of CocaineRead the Press Release
BRUNSWICK, GA: Rafeal Lateef Baker, also known as “Channel 4,” age 43, of Brunswick, Georgia, was sentenced to more than 16 years’ imprisonment, and Kenneth Anthony Moore, also known as “Smooth,” age 48, of Freeport, Texas, was sentenced to 14 years imprisonment, for their roles in a conspiracy to distribute five kilograms or more of cocaine.
The prosecution of Baker and Moore was part of “Operation Bloody Prince,” an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF) operation targeting gang activity and drug trafficking in and around Brunswick. Baker and Moore were among over twenty defendants in the Brunswick area convicted in this operation. The OCDETF Program is the centerpiece of the United States Attorney General's drug strategy to reduce the availability of drugs by disrupting and dismantling major drug trafficking organizations.
The evidence at their sentencing hearings established that beginning in or about 2014, Baker purchased kilogram quantities of cocaine from Moore, who was residing at the time in Freeport, Texas, and that Baker then distributed that cocaine in and around Brunswick, Georgia. Baker and Moore took various steps to arrange the shipment of approximately 2 kilograms of cocaine per trip, from Texas to Georgia, and engaged in a variety of activities to evade detection by law enforcement. In all, the amount kilograms totaled a conservative 40 kilos of cocaine.
“Criminal street gangs and illegal drug distribution networks take note: you will be given no quarter in the Southern District of Georgia!” states Bobby L. Christine, U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Georgia. “Side by side with the FBI and our law enforcement partners in coastal Georgia, we will pursue you until you are brought to justice.”
“The fact that Baker and Moore will no longer be on the streets bringing drugs into our community and threatening our citizens is a direct result of the collaborative efforts of the FBI and its partners who are part of the FBI’s Coastal Georgia Safe Streets Gang Task Force,” said J. C. Hacker, Acting Special Agent in Charge (A/SAC) of the FBI Atlanta field office. “This is an example of our commitment to invest significant resources toward dismantling these types of criminal enterprises that do so much harm to our communities.”
The investigation of Baker and Moore and Atkinson was led by the FBI’s Coastal Georgia Violent Gang Task Force, the Glynn County Police Department, and the Brunswick Police Department, with assistance from the FBI in Houston, as well as the Houston Police Department. For any questions, please contact the United States Attorney’s Office at (912) 652-4422.
Trinity Man Sentenced for Worker’s Compensation FraudRead the Press Release
Tampa, FL – U.S. District Judge James D. Whittemore has sentenced Gary W. Rochevot (72, Trinity) to five years’ probation, with the first six months to be served on home detention, for making a false statement in connection with his worker’s compensation benefits. As part of Rochevot’s sentence, the court also ordered him to pay $123,434.89 in restitution. He pleaded guilty on March 23, 2018.
According to court documents, Rochevot was placed on the United States Department of Labor, Office of Worker’s Compensation Program’s (“OWCP”) long-term periodic role in February 2005, due to a 2004 work-related injury at the Orlando International Airport. Thereafter, he received a tax-free payment from the OWCP of approximately $5,500 per month. As a benefit recipient, Rochevot was required to complete and submit an OWCP CA-Form 1032 annually. The Department of Labor uses this form to determine whether an individual is entitled to receive OWCP benefits and/or whether such benefits should be adjusted. The form includes a specific warning that a false or evasive answer to any question, or the omission of an answer, could be grounds for forfeiting the compensation benefits and could subject the individual to civil liability. The warning language also specifically notes that a fraudulent answer could, among other consequences, result in criminal prosecution.
In September 2016, Rochevot completed and submitted the annual CA-Form 1032, as required. In response to one of the form’s questions concerning volunteer work, he answered that he had not performed any volunteer work during the previous 15 months. That material answer was false because Rochevot had previously worked as a volunteer “cart driver/greeter” for a large hospital, where he had routinely worked one day per week, including during September 2016. In addition, federal agents observed Rochevot engaging in routine physical activity throughout 2016, including yardwork, automobile maintenance, house maintenance, and routine errands (some of which involved heavy lifting). In October 2016, shortly after submitting the false CA-Form 1032, Rochevot also provided false answers to direct questions concerning his health status during a telephone call with a federal agent.
This case was investigated by the Transportation Security Administration Investigations. It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Jay G. Trezevant.
Toledo man indicted on drug and firearms chargesRead the Press Release
A Toledo man was indicted on firearms and drug charges, said U.S. Attorney Justin E. Herdman.
Antoine Kennedy, 20, was indicted on charges of Kennedy with being a felon in possession of a firearm and possession with the intent to distribute cocaine and marijuana.
Kennedy on Nov. 6, 2016 possessed cocaine, marijuana and a FNS 40-caliber pistol, despite a prior conviction for trafficking cocaine that made it illegal for him to have a firearm, according to the indictment.
If convicted, the defendant’s sentence will be determined by the Court after reviewing factors unique to this case, including the defendant’s prior criminal record, if any, the defendant’s role in the offense and the characteristics of the violation. In all cases the sentence will not exceed the statutory maximum and in most cases it will be less than the maximum.
The investigating agencies in this case are the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives, Toledo, Ohio and the Toledo Police Department. Assistant U.S. Attorney Michael J. Freeman is handling the case.
This case is being prosecuted as part of "Project Safe Neighborhoods," a gun violence reduction program administered by the Department of Justice, U.S. Attorney's Office for the Northern District of Ohio. The program targets armed criminals for federal prosecution.
An indictment is only a charge and is not evidence of guilt. The burden of proof is always on the government to prove a defendant guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.
Three MS-13 Members Charged with Racketeering and Illegal Possession of Firearms and AmmunitionRead the Press Release
BOSTON – Three MS-13 members have been indicted on charges of racketeering and illegal possession of firearms and ammunition.
Nelson Cruz Rodriguez Cartagena, a/k/a “Inquieto,” 24, a Salvadoran national illegally residing in Everett, was indicted on one count of conspiracy to conduct enterprise affairs through a pattern of racketeering activity, commonly referred to as RICO conspiracy. Cartagena, who was previously deported, was arrested yesterday in Everett after law enforcement determined that he had reentered the United States. Cartagena was detained following an initial appearance in federal court in Boston. In a separate indictment, Nery Rodriguez Diaz, 18, and Elmer Alfaro Hercules, 19, both Salvadoran nationals, were each charged with one count of being illegal aliens in possession of firearms and ammunition.
As alleged in court documents, MS-13 is a violent, transnational criminal organization whose branches, or “cliques,” operate throughout the United States, including Massachusetts. MS-13 members are required to commit acts of violence to maintain membership and discipline within the group. Most of the MS-13 cliques in Massachusetts, including the Everett Loco Salvatrucha (ELS) clique, belonged to MS-13’s East Coast Program, and that these cliques worked both independently and cooperatively to engage in criminal activity and to assist one another in avoiding detection by law enforcement.
Cartagena is alleged to be a full member, or “homeboy,” in MS-13’s Everett Loco Salvatrucha (ELS) clique. On recorded prison calls with a detained ELS clique leader, Cartagena discussed buying guns for the Everett clique, maintaining and supervising the clique’s marijuana trafficking business, the need to collect dues from clique members, the need to send money to MS-13 leaders in El Salvador due on the 13th of each month, and reporting on the clique’s day-to-day racketeering activities.
When the clique leader began to suspect that a member of the ELS clique had cooperated with law enforcement leading to his arrest, he allegedly enlisted Cartagena’s help to ferret out the informant. Cartagena provided the true names of two young Everett clique members, and the leader concluded that one of them, Jose Aguilar Villanueva, a/k/a “Fantasma,” was the clique member responsible for his arrest. Once ELS (incorrectly) identified Villanueva as an informant, members of the Everett clique, including Cartagena, allegedly met at the clique’s “destroyer house” – a residence where clique members stored knives, machetes, marijuana, and money – and met to discuss gang business and plan the murder of Villanueva. Ultimately, on the night of July 5, 2015, two young ELS probationary members, or “chequeos,” lured Villanueva into a park in Lawrence and stabbed him to death. Villanueva was 16-years-old.
Diaz and Hercules were charged in a separate indictment in connection with being illegal aliens in possession of firearms and ammunition. Specifically, on May 22, 2018, Diaz and Hercules were arrested in possession of loaded firearms in Bremen Street Park in East Boston, a location where numerous MS-13 gang members have been observed and where gang-on-gang violence frequently occurs. As Diaz was escorted to a waiting police cruiser to be transported for booking, Diaz allegedly shouted “La Mara! La Mara!” to a person in the park.
Diaz and Hercules each separately and unlawfully entered the United States in 2014 as unaccompanied minors. In April 2015, an immigration judge ordered Hercules deported in absentia. On May 11, 2017, Diaz was charged as a juvenile youthful offender with armed assault with intent to murder and assault and battery with a dangerous weapon. According to incident reports, Diaz and two other men allegedly held a juvenile victim down in a wooded area in Everett and stabbed him twenty-two times. On March 18, 2018, the case against Diaz was dismissed when the victim did not appear in court.
The charge of RICO conspiracy provides for a sentence of no greater than 20 years in prison, three years of supervised release and a fine of $250,000. The charge of being an alien in possession of a firearm and ammunition provides for a sentence of no greater than 10 years in prison, three years of supervised release and a fine of $250,000. The defendants also face deportation proceedings upon completion of any sentence imposed. Sentences are imposed by a federal district court judge based upon the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
United States Attorney Andrew E. Lelling; Harold H. Shaw; Special Agent in Charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Boston Field Division; Peter C. Fitzhugh, Special Agent in Charge of Homeland Security Investigations in Boston; Colonel Kerry A. Gilpin, Superintendent of the Massachusetts State Police; Commissioner Thomas Turco of the Massachusetts Department of Corrections; Essex County Sheriff Kevin F. Coppinger; Suffolk County Sheriff Steven W. Thompkins; Suffolk County District Attorney Daniel F. Conley; Middlesex County District Attorney Marian T. Ryan; Essex County District Attorney Jonathan Blodgett; Boston Police Commissioner William Evans; Chelsea Police Chief Brian A. Kyes; Everett Police Chief Steven A. Mazzie; Lynn Police Chief Michael Mageary; Revere Police Chief James Guido; and Somerville Police Chief David Fallon made the announcement today.
The details contained in the charging documents are allegations. The defendants are presumed to be innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
Three Jacksonville Residents Arrested, Charged with Possession, Conspiracy to Distribute MethRead the Press Release
SPRINGFIELD, Ill. – Three Jacksonville, Ill., residents made their respective initial appearances in federal court this morning after they were arrested on June 20, 2018. Nathaniel L. Stone, 40, of the 800 block of S. East Street; Jeremie D. Stone, 32, of the 1100 block of S. Diamond Street; and Amber R. Davis, also of the 1100 block of S. Diamond Street, are charged in a federal criminal complaint.
The complaint charges the three with conspiracy to distribute 50 grams or more of methamphetamine, and possession with intent to distribute 50 grams or more of methamphetamine. In addition, Nathaniel Stone is charged with being a felon in possession of a firearm and possession of a firearm during and in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime.
At today’s court appearance, before U.S. Magistrate Judge Tom Schanzle-Haskins, Jeremie Stone waived detention and preliminary hearing and was ordered to remain detained in the custody of the U.S. Marshals Service. Detention and preliminary hearings were continued and are scheduled for Nathaniel Stone on June 27. Amber Davis was released on her own recognizance.
The charges are the result of investigation by the Jacksonville Police Department, DEA, the Central Illinois Enforcement Group, the Morgan County Sheriff’s Office, and the U.S. Postal Inspection Service. Assistant U.S. Attorney Matthew Z. Weir is prosecuting the case.
If convicted, for the offenses of conspiracy to distribute 50 grams or more of methamphetamine and for possession with intent to distribute 50 grams or more of methamphetamine, the statutory penalty is 10 years to life in prison. For possession of a firearm during and in relation to a drug trafficking offense, the penalty is a mandatory minimum five years in prison to be served consecutive to any sentence ordered for the related drug offense. Possession of a firearm by a felon carries a statutory maximum penalty of 10 years in prison.
Members of the public are reminded that a complaint is merely an accusation; each defendant is presumed innocent unless proven guilty.
Three Charged in Vegas-to-Columbus Oxy CasesRead the Press Release
COLUMBUS, Ohio – A federal grand jury has charged three individuals with crimes related to a Las Vegas-to-Columbus oxycodone ring in two indictments returned here yesterday and filed today.
James A. Stone, 39, and David L. Pryor, 28, both of Columbus, are charged in one indictment with conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute oxycodone and conspiracy to commit money laundering. Arthur G. Pirtle, Sr., 66, of Las Vegas, was charged with the same two crimes in a separate indictment.
Benjamin C. Glassman, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Ohio, Ryan L. Korner, Special Agent in Charge, Internal Revenue Service (IRS) Criminal Investigation, Cincinnati Field Office, and Timothy J. Plancon, Special Agent in Charge, Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), announced the charges.
According to the indictments, between 2012 and 2015, defendants conspired together and with others to distribute Oxycodone.
They would allegedly conceal the drug proceeds in carryon luggage, checked luggage and/or parcel packages to transport the illegal proceeds to and from Las Vegas and Columbus, Ohio. For example, Stone was interdicted by law enforcement during a trip from Columbus to Las Vegas and $21,000 of drug proceeds was discovered inside pairs of pants in his luggage.
The indictments also allege Stone, Pryor and Pirtle wired approximately $300,000 in drug proceeds.
Additionally, in 2013, Pirtle opened a bank account in the name Another Beginning LLC and that account received multiple cash deposits in the Southern District of Ohio that were allegedly proceeds from the sale of Oxycodone. Between November 2012 and October 2015, the account received more than $400,000 in cash deposits.
Since 2014, Pryor’s debit cards have been used to purchase numerous airline tickets for members and associates of the drug trafficking organization, including Maisha Caples, Marquis Pryor and Marcus Pryor, all of whom were prosecuted and convicted in the Southern District of Ohio. Marcus Pryor was sentenced to 140 months in prison, Marquis Pryor was sentenced to 93 months in prison and Caples was sentenced to 45 months in prison for charges related to the drug and money-laundering conspiracy.
Conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute Oxycodone and conspiracy to commit money laundering are each crimes punishable by up to 20 years in prison.
U.S. Attorney Glassman commended the investigation of this case by the IRS CI and DEA, and Deputy Criminal Chief Michael Hunter, who is prosecuting the case.
Indictments merely contains allegations, and the defendants are presumed innocent unless proven guilty in a court of law.
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