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9 April 2018
Gorham Man Sentenced to 15 Years for Possessing Child PornographyRead the Press Release
Portland, Maine: United States Attorney Halsey B. Frank announced that Christopher Shepard, 32, of Gorham, Maine, was sentenced today in U.S. District Court by Judge George Z. Singal to 15 years in prison and 10 years of supervised release for possessing child pornography. Shepard pleaded guilty on November 28, 2017.
According to court records, in April of last year, investigators from the Gorham Police Department executed a search warrant at Shepard’s apartment in Gorham. Investigators seized his cellular telephone, which was later found to contain several images of a girl under the age of 12 engaged in sexually explicit conduct.
The case was investigated by the Gorham Police Department and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations.
Gila River Man Sentenced to 25 Years in Prison for MurderRead the Press Release
PHOENIX – On April 6, 2018, Philip Anthony Osife, 28, a member of the Gila River Indian Community, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge John J. Tuchi to 25 years in prison. Osife had previously pleaded guilty to second-degree murder. On March 23, 2017, Osife shot one victim twice in the face, and he shot a second victim in the neck, killing them both. Osife took the one victim’s car and left the victims there near a canal bank. A passing motorist found the victims two days later and then called the police.
The investigation in this case was conducted by the Gila River Police Department and the Federal Bureau of Investigation. The prosecution was handled by Raynette Logan and Todd Allison, Assistants U.S. Attorney, District of Arizona, Phoenix.
CASE NUMBER: CR-17-00892-PHX-JJT
RELEASE NUMBER: 2018-032_ Osife
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For more information on the U.S. Attorney’s Office, District of Arizona, visit http://www.justice.gov/usao/az/
Follow the U.S. Attorney’s Office, District of Arizona, on Twitter @USAO_AZ for the latest news.
Former church employee sentenced for embezzling over $400,000 from churchRead the Press Release
NEWNAN, Ga. - C. Alana Vines was sentenced today for stealing over $400,000 from the church where she worked as a bookkeeper in Peachtree City, Georgia.
“Stealing from a church is a despicable crime,” said U.S. Attorney Byung J. “BJay” Pak. “The defendant abused the trust that the church had placed in her, diverting over $400,000 of the congregation’s contributions for her own personal gain. We hope that today’s federal prison sentence will bring some solace to the church and its members, and deter others who might consider stealing from vulnerable victims like churches and charitable organizations.”
“The U.S. Secret Service and our law enforcement partners will continue to take an aggressive approach to arrest criminals like Vines,” said Malcolm D. Wiley, Acting Special Agent in Charge of the U.S. Secret Service, Atlanta Field Office. “In this case we were particularly resolved to bring to justice a person who chose to take advantage of unsuspecting members of the public in environments of reverence and trust. Today’s sentence should be a warning to other like-minded criminals that manipulating and stealing from the American people will not go unpunished.”
According to U.S. Attorney Pak, the charges and other information presented in court: The victim church, located in Peachtree City, Georgia, hired Vines as a bookkeeper, first as a temporary employee in March 2013 and then as a full-time employee beginning in August 2013. In her position, Vines wrote checks, paid bills, made electronic bank transfers, made entries in the church’s accounting software, and prepared financial statements.
In 2017, the church hired an outside auditor to perform an examination of its books. The auditor first noticed that the cash deposits in the bank were about $1,000 less than the amount that had been counted at the time of the collections. The auditor interviewed Vines about this discrepancy. She admitted to stealing about $1,000 from the church’s collections but stated that she had not stolen more.
The ensuing investigation revealed, however, that Vines had written nearly $400,000 in checks to herself and to business entities with which she was affiliated, without the church’s knowledge or authorization. In issuing the checks, Vines sometimes forged the signature of the church’s Treasurer on them. She signed many of the fraudulent checks herself. Vines falsely recorded many of these checks in the church’s accounting software to make it appear as if they had been issued to payees other than herself and her affiliated businesses. She falsely recorded that the checks had paid vendors for maintenance, repairs, building security, janitorial supplies, mission support, small group ministry, stewardship, and insurance expenses, when in fact Vines had issued the checks to herself and her affiliated businesses. Vines failed to record many of the fraudulent checks in the church’s accounting software at all. That failure caused the church’s accounting records to overstate the amount of money the church actually had.
In addition to stealing collections and issuing fraudulent checks, Vines also made numerous online purchases from Amazon and paid for them with the church’s checking account. Vines fraudulently purchased over $20,000 in items for her personal benefit, including computers, video equipment, pool supplies, golf equipment, clothing, shoes, and jewelry.
In total, Vines embezzled approximately $420,000.
C. Alana Vines, 38, of Sharpsburg, Georgia, was sentenced to two years in prison to be followed by three years of supervised release, and ordered to pay restitution in the amount of $420,620.07, by United States District Judge Timothy C. Batten, Sr. Vines was convicted of wire fraud on December 7, 2017, after she pleaded guilty.
This case was investigated by the U.S. Secret Service and the Peachtree City Police Department.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Stephen H. McClain prosecuted the case.
For further information please contact the U.S. Attorney’s Public Affairs Office at [email protected] or (404) 581-6016. The Internet address for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia is http://www.justice.gov/usao-ndga.
Former Youth Minister from Las Cruces Pleads Guilty to Federal Child Sexual Exploitation ChargeRead the Press Release
ALBUQUERQUE – U.S. Attorney John C. Anderson and Acting Special Agent in Charge Jack P. Staton of Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) in El Paso announced today that Stephen Mendoza Arellano, 30, of Las Cruces, N.M., pleaded guilty in federal court to traveling in interstate commerce for the purpose of engaging in sexual contact with a minor. The plea agreement recommends that Arellano be sentenced to a prison term of 57 to 71 months followed by 15 years of supervised release.
HSI Special Agents arrested Arellano on Oct. 7, 2017, on a criminal complaint charging him with attempted production of child pornography, enticement of a child to engage in sexual activity, and travel to meet a minor to engage in sexual conduct between May 2017 and Aug. 2017 in Dona Ana County, N.M., and elsewhere. At the time of his arrest, Arellano was an ordained minister of the Apostolic Assembly Church and was serving as the Church’s District of New Mexico Youth President. According to the criminal complaint, Arellano traveled from Las Cruces to El Paso, Tex., with the intention of having illicit sexual contact with the child victim who was 15-years-old when he began contacting her.
The complaint noted that Arellano was a National Ordained Minister for the Apostolic Assembly Church, at the time, held the title of District of New Mexico Youth President, and was a member of the same church as the victim. HSI initiated the investigation into Arellano after receiving a report from the parents of Arellano’s victim. According to the criminal complaint, Arellano began communicating with the victim in a sexually explicit manner in May 2017, when the victim was fifteen-years-old; sent nude photos of himself to the victim and requested nude photos of the victim via cellular phone messaging between May 2017 and Aug. 2017; and engaged in sexual activity with the victim in July and Aug. 2017. The investigation revealed that Arellano was aware of the victim’s age because he assisted in making a video for the victim’s Sweet 16 birthday party.
During today’s proceedings, Arellano pled guilty to a felony information charging him with interstate travel with intent to engage in a sexual act with a minor. In entering the guilty plea, Arellano admitted that in the early summer of 2017, he began to pursue a romantic relationship with the 15-year-old minor victim, whom he knew through the Apostolic Assembly Church and their families’ relationship. Arellano admitted that in June 2017, he traveled from Las Cruces to El Paso, Texas, with the intent to engage in illicit sexual contact with the victim. Arellano also admitted to attempting to engage in that contact.
Arellano has been in custody since his arrest and remains detained pending his sentencing hearing, which has yet to be scheduled.
This case was investigated by the Las Cruces office of HSI and the Las Cruces Police Department. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Marisa A. Ong as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice (DOJ) to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by United States Attorneys’ Offices and DOJ’s Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state and local resources to better locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the Internet, as well as to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit http://www.justice.gov/psc/.
Former Wealth Manager Sentenced for Wire Fraud, Identity Theft, and Money LaunderingRead the Press Release
LEXINGTON, Ky. – Leon A. Smith, a former wealth manager for professional athletes, was sentenced today to 51 months in federal prison for stealing nearly $1.3 million from his clients and misusing their identities.
U.S. District Court Judge Joseph M. Hood sentenced 45-year-old Smith, now of Batesville, Indiana, for wire fraud, identity theft, and money laundering. In addition to the 51-month term of incarceration, Judge Hood ordered Smith to forfeit $1,298,506.82, the approximate gross proceeds of his offense.
During two separate guilty plea hearings in November and December 2017, Smith admitted that he had misused his clients’ personal and financial information to transfer their funds into his own bank accounts and to open unauthorized credit cards and other lines of credit in their names. Smith also admitted that he concealed his activities from his clients by changing passwords to restrict his clients’ access to their accounts and by fabricating expense reports that used fake expenses to explain the low account balances that resulted from his thefts. Smith admitted that this scheme began in September 2011 and continued through January 2015.
Robert M. Duncan, Jr., United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Kentucky; Christopher Altemus, Special Agent in Charge, IRS-CI; Amy Hess, Special Agent in Charge, FBI; and Lawrence Weathers, Chief of the Lexington Police Department, jointly announced the sentence. The investigation was conducted by the IRS-CI, the FBI, and the Lexington Police Department. The United States was represented by Assistant United States Attorneys Andrew T. Boone and Kathryn M. Anderson.
Former Administrator Sentenced for Stealing $227,000 from Pettis County Ambulance DistrictRead the Press Release
JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. – The former administrator of the Pettis County Ambulance District was sentenced in federal court today for embezzling more than $227,000 from the district.
Michael Paul Gardner, 62, of Sedalia, Mo., was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Stephen R. Bough to two years in federal prison without parole. The court also ordered Gardner to pay $227,649 in restitution to the ambulance district.
Gardner, who was hired as the administrator of the Pettis County Ambulance District in December 2012, pleaded guilty to bank fraud on Dec. 14, 2017. Gardner admitted that he forged board members’ signatures on 44 checks totaling $123,721. Gardner also admitted that he received $103,928 in unapproved payroll expenses from 2015 to 2017. The total amount embezzled by Gardner from the ambulance district was $227,649.
Gardner was arrested on March 29, 2017. Two board members of the ambulance district came to the Sedalia, Mo., Police Department on March 24, 2017, to present suspicious checks and financial transactions made by Gardner. The board had been notified by Central Bank of Sedalia that there was suspicious activity being conducted on the district’s bank accounts. The board members presented several ambulance district checks to police investigators in which Gardner was the payee and upon which the signatures of two board members had been forged. Board members also presented several checks made out to another person, identified in court documents as “T.R.,” which also contained forged board members’ signatures.
Gardner admitted to investigators that he had been forging board members’ signatures on checks payable to himself or to T.R., then depositing them into either his or her personal bank accounts, for about a year.
The ambulance district employed an independent auditing firm to conduct an intensive fraud investigations to determine the amount of funds misappropriated by Gardner. The firm identified 44 forged checks totaling $123,721.
This case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Lawrence E. Miller. It was investigated by the FBI, the Sedalia, Mo., Police Department and the Pettis County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office.
Federal Grand Jury Criminal Indictments AnnouncedRead the Press Release
United States Attorney R. Trent Shores announced today the results of the April 2017B Federal Grand Jury.
The following individuals have been charged with violations of United States law in indictments returned by the Grand Jury. The return of an indictment is a method of informing a defendant of alleged violations of federal law, which must be proven in a court of law beyond a reasonable doubt to overcome a defendant’s presumption of innocence.
Anthony Dion Harris. Aiding and Abetting a Conspiracy. Harris, 27, of Broken Arrow, is charged with aiding and abetting a conspiracy to steal marijuana from the mail. The indictment charges that Harris, then employed by the Postal Service at its Tulsa Mail Processing and Distribution Center, watched as a lookout while another employee rifled a parcel and secreted it in a cabinet. If convicted, he faces a maximum penalty of 5 years in prison and a $250,000 fine. The Office of the Inspector General for the Postal Service is the investigative agency.
Steven Marion Barnes. Aiding and Abetting a Conspiracy. Barnes, 58, of Sperry, is charged with aiding and abetting a conspiracy to steal marijuana from the mail. The indictment charges that Barnes, then employed by the Postal Service at its Tulsa Mail Processing and Distribution Center, assisted the conspiracy by installing a floor safe at the residence of another employee to protect the stolen marijuana. The Indictment further charges that Barnes assisted by removing a pound of stolen cocaine from the Mail Processing Center. Barnes maintained possession of the cocaine and later buried it after learning of the arrest of two Postal Service employees. If convicted, he faces a maximum penalty of 5 years in prison and a $250,000 fine. The Postal Service Office of the Inspector General, the Drug Enforcement Administration, the Tulsa Police Department, and the Sperry Police Department are the investigative agencies.
Federal Criminal Complaint Dismissed Against Mark Conditt in Connection with Austin Bombings InvestigationRead the Press Release
In Austin today, authorities dismissed a federal charge pending against Mark Conditt of Pflugerville, TX, in connection with a string of bombing incidents in the city of Austin and surrounding areas last month, stated Austin Police Chief Brian Manley, FBI Special Agent in Charge Christopher Combs, ATF Special Agent in Charge Fred J. Milanowski, Travis County District Attorney Margaret Moore and United States Attorney John F. Bash, Western District of Texas.
A federal criminal complaint signed by U.S. Magistrate Judge Mark Lane on March 20, 2018, charged Conditt with one count of unlawful possession and transfer of a destructive device. That complaint was signed, and an arrest warrant issued, just hours before Conditt detonated a destructive device as authorities were attempting to apprehend him in Round Rock, TX. Conditt died during the incident.
The Travis County Medical Examiner, in connection with the Round Rock Justice of the Peace Dain Johnson, has officially positively identified the deceased as Mark Conditt and released the remains to his family. The identification of Conditt was necessary before federal authorities could move to dismiss the criminal complaint.
This investigation continues as authorities are still reviewing evidence collected in this case, namely computer related information.
The Austin Police Department, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco Firearms and Explosives are investigating this case. The Texas Department of Public Safety, the Texas Rangers, the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, the United States Marshals Service, the Round Rock Police Department, the Schertz Police Department, the Pflugerville Police Department, and the Cedar Park Police Department are providing valuable assistance in this investigation. The Travis County District Attorney’s Office and the Austin Division of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Western District of Texas have collaboratively provided legal support during the investigation of these incidents.
Donna Man Sentenced for Alien SmugglingRead the Press Release
McALLEN, Texas – A 19-year-old resident of Donna has been ordered to federal prison for five years as a result of his conviction for conspiracy to transport undocumented aliens, announced U.S. Attorney Ryan K. Patrick. Jesse Zuniga pleaded guilty on Dec. 19, 2017.
Today, U.S. District Judge Randy Crane sentenced Zuniga to 60 months imprisonment to be immediately followed by three years of supervised release. The sentence was enhanced as the court took into consideration Zuniga’s role in the conspiracy, his use of minors to transport undocumented aliens and that fact Zuniga was heavily involved in overseeing the transportation cell of the alien smuggling organization. The court also considered the total number of aliens transported during the conspiracy, that a vehicular accident occurred during one of the transports which resulted in multiple aliens being sent to the hospital for minor injuries and that Zuniga had been arrested several times for transporting aliens when he too was a minor, among other factors.
Zuniga was involved in coordinating at least two separate alien transporting events from April 23, 2017, to Oct. 21, 2017.
On or about April 23, 2017, Border Patrol agents were conducting surveillance in the Donna area when they observed individuals emerge from the Rio Grande riverbank and load into a vehicle. After the vehicle departed from the area, agents attempted to conduct a traffic stop. The vehicle failed to stop and led agents on a pursuit that lasted approximately five miles and reached speeds of 100mph, which ended when the vehicle rolled over into an open field. Agents apprehended 16 undocumented aliens who were passengers in the vehicle, which included a three-year-old child. Five of the aliens were transported to a local hospital where they were treated for minor injuries.
On the second occasion, agents observed two vehicles driving in tandem near the riverbank of the Rio Grande near Donna. At the location, multiple subjects emerged from the nearby area and loaded into both vehicles, which then drove in a northbound direction away from the river. Shortly thereafter, agents stopped both vehicles. Between both vehicles, agents apprehended a total of 10 undocumented aliens who were passengers in the vehicles.
Zuniga has been and will remain in federal custody pending transfer to a U.S. Bureau of Prisons facility to be determined in the near future.
Jacqueline Christine Medrano, 28, of McAllen, pleaded guilty for her role in the April event and is set for sentencing June 18, 2018. Darryin Nicole Uribe, 19, of San Juan, and Rey Angel Silguero, 19, of Alamo, were charged for their roles in the October smuggling event Both have pleaded guilty and are set for sentencing April 17, 2018.
Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations and Border Patrol conducted the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney Linda Requénez prosecuted the case.
Doctor Sentenced to 24 Months in Prison for Selling Prescriptions of Suboxone and KlonopinRead the Press Release
PHILADELPHIA – Dr. Azad Khan, 64, of Villanova, PA, was sentenced to 24 months in prison by the Honorable Lawrence F. Stengel in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania. A federal jury found Khan guilty on July 25, 2017 of conspiracy to distribute controlled substances and two counts of distribution of controlled substances, all arising from Khan’s employment at a clinic run by co-defendant Dr. Alan Summers.
Dr. Khan worked at a medical clinic operated by Dr. Summers on South Broad Street in Philadelphia that sometimes operated under the business name “NASAPT” (National Association for Substance Abuse-Prevention & Treatment). As proven at trial, Summers, Khan, and the other doctors employed at the clinic prescribed large doses of Suboxone and Klonopin in exchange for large cash payments. Suboxone is a brand name for a drug used to treat opiate addiction. The government’s experts and the defendant’s own expert testified at trial that Suboxone and Klonopin should never be prescribed together, except in rare cases when absolutely necessary. At Dr. Summers’s clinic, virtually all customers received prescriptions for both Suboxone and Klonopin, regardless of their medical need. During the duration of the conspiracy, Dr. Summers, Dr. Khan, and other doctors at the clinic illegally sold over $5 million worth of these controlled substances.
Almost all of the prescriptions for Suboxone and Klonopin were pre-printed before the customer met with a doctor. Summers, Khan and the other doctors working at the clinic failed to conduct medical examinations or mental health examinations as required by law in order to legally prescribe these controlled substances. The amount of Suboxone and Klonopin which Khan and the other doctors prescribed depended on the amount of cash the customer paid rather than any medical reason. For $200, the customers received a month’s supply of Suboxone and Klonopin. For $50, the customers received a week’s supply. Evidence at trial demonstrated a stunning lack of medicine being performed at Summers’s clinic by Khan and many of the other doctors at the clinic.
Several customers who frequented this clinic testified that they were, in fact, drug dealers or drug addicts who sold the prescribed medications. Khan’s own records showed that his customers tested positive for illicit drugs and negative for Suboxone and Klonopin. Khan ignored the drug tests which showed that some of his customers were not taking the prescribed medications and he continued to prescribe them large doses of Suboxone and Klonopin.
Dr. Summers, as well as two other doctors involved in this scheme, Dr. Keyhosrow Parsia and Dr. Clarence Verdell, have pleaded guilty and have either already been sentenced or await sentencing.
“Every doctor who abandons his or her ethics to engage in the prescription-for-pay culture is breaking the law,” said United States Attorney William M. McSwain. “It is ironic that these defendants, while holding themselves out as professional addiction treatment specialists, preyed on the very people they should have been helping. By recklessly selling preprinted prescriptions for cash, they chose greed over their duty to heal. Our office will continue to investigate and prosecute drug organizations on the street and in doctors’ offices when their unscrupulous and illegal conduct contributes to this deadly opioid epidemic.”
“Dr. Khan’s flagrant disregard for his oath as a doctor and total lack of concern for the well-being of his customers led to the illegal distribution of $5 million worth of controlled substances,” said Jonathan A. Wilson, Special Agent in Charge of the Drug Enforcement Administration’s (DEA) Philadelphia Field Division. “The DEA is responsible for the prevention, detection, and investigation of the diversion of controlled pharmaceuticals; we will continue to aggressively pursue the rogue doctors that choose to engage in this criminal activity.”
“Today’s sentencing sends a clear message that health care fraud and drug diversion will not be tolerated,” said Special Agent in Charge Maureen R. Dixon, of the Office of Inspector General for the Department of Health and Human Services. “We will continue to work with our law enforcement partners to protect government funds and keep the public safe from dangerous drugs.”
The case was investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration, the Department of Health and Human Services Office of the Inspector General, and the Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigations, with assistance from the Philadelphia Police Department and the Pennsylvania Bureau of Narcotics Investigations. It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Robert Livermore and Katherine Driscoll.
Co-Conspirators Plead Guilty to Tax FraudRead the Press Release
United States Attorney Charles E. Peeler announces that Belinda Harris, age 33, of Valdosta, GA; Cynthia Clarkston, age 38, of Valdosta, GA; and Susie Hall Sherman, age 46, formerly of Valdosta, GA, all entered guilty pleas in U.S. District Court April 4, 2018 before Senior District Court Judge Hugh Lawson. Co-defendants Tanya Franklin, age 42, of Valdosta, Georgia and Johnny Gary a/k/a Johnny Sherman a/k/a “Little Johnny,” age 27, of Valdosta, Georgia, entered guilty pleas in the same case on March 15, 2018.
Ms. Harris pled guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit mail and wire fraud, present false claims, steal and embezzle public money, and possess unauthorized access devices and one count of aggravated identity theft all in connection with a scheme to file fraudulent tax returns seeking more than $600,000 in refunds. She faces a maximum sentence of seven years in Federal prison and restitution of the refund money received.
Ms. Clarkston, Ms. Sherman, and Mr. Gary each entered guilty pleas to the conspiracy to commit mail and wire fraud, present false claims, steal and embezzle public money, and possess unauthorized access devices. They each face up to five years imprisonment and restitution of the taxpayer money stolen. Ms. Franklin pled guilty to one count of theft of government funds arising from cashing fraudulently obtained checks related to the conspiracy. Ms. Franklin faces up to 10 years in federal prison and more than $300,000 in restitution to the United States.
In entering their pleas, Ms. Harris, Ms. Clarkston, Ms. Sherman and Mr. Gary admitted to working together between 2010 and 2012 to file numerous fraudulent tax returns using the stolen identity information of other people. During searches conducted by Lowndes County Sheriff’s Office investigators and the United States Secret Service, stolen identity information was found in the homes of Ms. Harris, Ms. Clarkston and Ms. Sherman. The identity information used included more than 100 identities obtained by Mr. Gary from an individual employed at Valdosta State University. The Internal Revenue Service investigation of the scheme determined that 222 fraudulent federal income tax returns for the years 2010 and 2011, were directly linked to the conspiracy, claiming refunds totaling $670,860.00. Actual refunds of $258,914.00 were issued on those fraudulent returns. A number of victims were interviewed by investigators and stated that the federal income tax returns that were filed in their names were completely false and that they did not authorize anyone to file or accept a tax refund in their names.
Additionally, Ms. Franklin admitted to using her business bank accounts to cash fraudulently obtained checks, including those obtained by Ms. Sherman, Ms. Clarkston and others. Ms. Franklin knowingly cashed 99 fraudulent U.S. Treasury checks in 2011 and 2012 in the total amount of $334,380.10.
United States Attorney Charles E. Peeler stated: “This case is another example of good work by both local and federal investigators partnering to bring people making a living stealing both identities and money to justice. Through diligent effort over the course of a lengthy investigation, this group of individuals lining their own pockets at the expense of those whose identities were taken and American taxpayers, will now pay for what they have done. The United States Attorney’s Office is committed to working with the IRS and other law enforcement agencies to find and punish identity thieves victimizing the public, as well as those committing any form of income tax fraud.”
“Today’s plea is another example of the great work being done by our agents” said Thomas J. Holloman, Special Agent in Charge, IRS Criminal Investigation. “We will continue to utilize the resources of our law enforcement partners in combatting identity theft. The identities which are stolen are harmed, and it can take sometimes years to unravel the damage done by these criminals.” Go to IRS.GOV and click on 2018 Dirty Dozen for more on tax schemes.
“Identity theft continues to be a serious crime that affects millions of Americans each year. The defendants in this case were involved in a complex conspiracy to steal identities for the purpose of defrauding the nation’s financial system. The identity theft victims had their lives invaded in a way that often causes long lasting financial consequences. This investigation exemplifies what can be achieved when Local and Federal law enforcement works together in unity. The Lowndes County Sherriff’s Office played a vital role throughout this investigation. The guilty pleas send a clear message that the U.S. Secret Service along with our law enforcement partners will continue to aggressively pursue those committing these crimes,” said Clint A. Bush, Resident Agent in Charge, Albany, Georgia Resident Office, United States Secret Service.
This case was investigated by the Lowndes County Sheriff’s Office, U.S. Secret Service and Internal Revenue Service – Criminal Investigation. Assistant United States Attorney Robert D. McCullers is prosecuting the case for the United States.
Questions concerning this case should be directed to Pamela Lightsey, Public Information Officer, United States Attorney’s Office, at (478) 621-2603.
California Man Pleads Guilty to Heroin ConspiracyRead the Press Release
Hattiesburg, Miss. – Vincente Manuel Ruiz, age 37, of Modesto, California, pled guilty yesterday before U.S. District Judge Keith Starrett to conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute 100 grams or more of heroin, announced U.S. Attorney Mike Hurst and DEA Special Agent in Charge Stephen G. Azzam.
The investigation into Ruiz started after agents with the DEA executed a search warrant at an individual’s property in Soso, Mississippi. Agents located 951 grams of heroin at the residence. The investigation revealed that the heroin had been supplied by Ruiz. After the arrest of Ruiz, agents located two cell phones that showed an individual had previously sent packages of money to Ruiz in California. Ruiz pled guilty to conspiring to possess with intent to distribute heroin from August 2017 through December 13, 2017.
Ruiz will be sentenced by Judge Starrett on July 17, 2018. He faces a maximum penalty of 40 years in prison and a $5 million fine.
The case was investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration, the Mississippi Bureau of Narcotics, and the Ellisville Police Department. Assistant U.S. Attorney Kathlyn R. Van Buskirk is prosecuting the case.
Buffalo Man Sentenced on Gun ChargeRead the Press Release
CONTACT: Barbara Burns
PHONE: (716) 843-5817
FAX #: (716) 551-3051BUFFALO, N.Y. - U.S. Attorney James P. Kennedy, Jr. announced today that Jimmy Lee Barner, 35, of Buffalo, NY, who was convicted of being a felon-in-possession of a firearm and violating supervised release, was sentenced to 70 months in prison by U.S. District Judge Lawrence J. Vilardo.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Laura A. Higgins, who handled the case, stated that on December 7, 2016, Amherst, NY police officers stopped a vehicle in connection with a report of larceny from a Kohl’s department store on Transit Road in Williamsville, NY. The defendant was one of four occupants and was sitting in the front passenger seat. Stolen merchandise was recovered from some of the occupants.
A subsequent search of the vehicle for additional items of stolen property resulted in the seizure of a .380 caliber semi-automatic pistol from the glove box. The firearm was loaded with nine rounds of ammunition. Subsequently, a DNA sample was taken from Barner to compare with DNA collected from the firearm. Testing confirmed that the defendant’s DNA was on the firearm.
Barner was previously convicted of local charges in Erie County Court as well as federal charges in the Western District of New York of and is legally prohibited from carrying a firearm.
Today’s sentencing is the result of an investigation by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, under the direction of Special Agent-in-Charge Ashan Benedict, and the Amherst Police Department, under the direction of Chief John Askey.Bronx Man Arrested for Heroin TraffickingRead the Press Release
ALBANY, NEW YORK – Saul E. Pacheco, age 37, of the Bronx, New York, was arrested last week and charged with conspiring to distribute more than 100 grams of heroin in Columbia County.
The announcement was made by United States Attorney Grant C. Jaquith; Special Agent in Charge James J. Hunt, New York Division, U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA); and Columbia County Sheriff David P. Bartlett.
According to the criminal complaint, Pacheco was supplying heroin to a Columbia County drug dealer from December 2017 through April 2018. Pacheco was arrested on April 4, 2018, while attempting to meet the Columbia County dealer in the parking lot of a casino in Yonkers, Westchester County. In the parking lot, DEA Special Agents located a plastic bag containing approximately 50 grams of heroin, which Pacheco had possessed and then discarded once he noticed Agents approaching him. The charges in the indictment are merely accusations. The defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
If convicted, Pacheco faces at least 5 years and up to 40 years in prison, as well as a term of post-imprisonment supervised release of at least 4 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.
Pacheco appeared today for a detention hearing before United States Magistrate Judge Christian F. Hummel, who ordered him released with conditions, including a secured bond, electronic monitoring and home confinement.
This case is being investigated by the DEA and the Columbia County Sheriff’s Office, and is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Michael Barnett.
Bowie Doctor Indicted for Health Care Fraud and Identity TheftRead the Press Release
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Contact ELIZABETH MORSE
www.justice.gov/usao/md at (410) 209-4885
Greenbelt, Maryland – A federal grand jury has indicted Sampson Sarpong, age 61, of Bowie, Maryland, today on charges related to a scheme to defraud health care benefit programs and aggravated identity theft. The indictment was returned on April 4, 2018, and unsealed today upon the arrest of Sarpong.
The indictment was announced by Acting United States Attorney for the District of Maryland Stephen M. Schenning; Nancy McNamara, Assistant Director in Charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Washington Field Office; and Special Agent in Charge Bret D. Mastronardi of the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) – Office of the Inspector General (OIG).
According to the 20-count indictment, Sarpong was a licensed physician in Maryland and specialized in the field of allergy and immunology. Sarpong owned and operated the Center for Allergic Diseases, LLC, which had numerous locations, including in White Plains, Maryland, and Glenn Dale, Maryland. Sarpong allegedly billed health care benefit programs for a variety of procedures used to test for and identify a patient's allergic disorder, including skin prick tests (“SPT”) and patch tests (“PT”).
From September 2011 through March 2017, Sarpong allegedly devised a scheme and artifice to defraud health care benefit programs by knowingly performing SPTs and PTs on patients for whom such tests were not medically required. Sarpong tested excessive numbers of allergens that were not necessary based on the patient’s complaints, symptoms, history, and environment. In addition, Sarpong allegedly submitted false and fraudulent claims to health care benefit programs for services that were not rendered. Further, Sarpong is alleged to have used the identification of eight different patients in relation to the fraud.
According to the indictment, Sarpong allegedly caused health care benefit programs to pay him more than $850,000 based on hundreds of false claims submitted.
Sarpong faces a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison each count of health care fraud and a mandatory consecutive two years in prison for aggravated identity theft.
An indictment is not a finding of guilt. An individual charged by indictment is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty at some later criminal proceedings.
Acting United States Attorney Stephen M. Schenning commended the FBI and OPM OIG for their work in the investigation. Mr. Schenning thanked Assistant U.S. Attorneys Kelly O’Connell Hayes and Gregory Bernstein, who are prosecuting the case.
7 April 2018
U.S. Marshals Arrest Federal Escapee Nathaniel Thomas and VIPD Homicide Suspect Ivan JamesRead the Press Release
St. Croix, VI –U.S. Marshal Jim Clark for the District of the Virgin Islands announced the arrest of federal escapee Nathaniel Thomas who was wanted for Escape and Ivan James wanted for Double Homicide by the Virgin Islands Police Department (VIPD).
On March 15th, 2018 federal inmate Nathaniel Thomas escaped from the Golden Grove Detention Center two days after being convicted by a jury in District Court for weapons related offenses. Ivan James was wanted by the Virgin Islands Police Department for the double homicide that occurred in February of 2018 at the cockpit located in St. Croix. Early this morning the U.S. Marshals from the District of the Virgin Islands working with the U.S. Marshals Florida Caribbean Regional Fugitive Task Force and the U.S. Marshals Task Force in Puerto Rico located and arrested Nathaniel Thomas along with Ivan James without incident in Ponce, PR.
During this fugitive investigation the U.S. Marshals were assisted by the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF), the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), the United States Attorney’s Office, and Crime Stoppers USVI.
6 April 2018
William M. McSwain Sworn in as United States AttorneyRead the Press Release
William M. McSwain, who served as a federal prosecutor in Philadelphia before entering private law practice, returned to government service today as the United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania.
The Chief Judge of the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania, Lawrence F. Stengel, administered the oath of office to Mr. McSwain, who was nominated by President Trump to serve as U.S. Attorney on December 20, 2017 and unanimously confirmed by the U.S. Senate on March 20, 2018. A public investiture ceremony will be held at a later date.
“It is a privilege to serve as the Eastern District of Pennsylvania’s U.S. Attorney, and I am deeply grateful to all who have supported my nomination,” said U.S. Attorney McSwain. “I look forward to working with the dedicated public servants in the U.S. Attorney’s Office and the brave men and women of our law enforcement partners in the pursuit of justice for the people of our District and nation.”
Louis D. Lappen, who for the past 15 months served as Acting U.S. Attorney, will remain with the Office as the Deputy United States Attorney, a senior advisor to U.S. Attorney McSwain.
Prior to his appointment as U.S. Attorney, Mr. McSwain was a partner at the law firm of Drinker Biddle & Reath in the firm’s Philadelphia office. He served as an Assistant U.S. Attorney in the Criminal Division of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania from 2003 to 2006. Mr. McSwain graduated with honors from Yale University in 1991 and from the Harvard Law School in 2000, where he served as an editor of the Harvard Law Review. He clerked for the Honorable Marjorie O. Rendell, United States Circuit Judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit. Prior to law school, Mr. McSwain served as a U.S. Marine Corps infantry officer and scout/sniper platoon commander.
As U.S. Attorney, Mr. McSwain is the chief federal law enforcement officer responsible for all federal criminal prosecutions and civil litigation involving the United States in the Eastern District of Pennsylvania, which is one of the nation’s most populous districts with over 5 million people residing within its nine counties (Berks, Bucks, Chester, Delaware, Lancaster, Lehigh, Montgomery, Northampton, and Philadelphia counties), covering about 4,700 square miles. Mr. McSwain supervises a staff of approximately 130 Assistant U.S. Attorneys and a similar number of non-attorney support personnel at offices in Philadelphia and Allentown.
Mr. McSwain is the 39th U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania, an office that was established in 1789. He resides in Chester County, PA and is the first Chester County native to hold the position.
Westside Man Pleads Guilty to Meth Conspiracy and Possessing a Firearm to Further the ConspiracyRead the Press Release
A felon who conspired to distribute over 100 pounds of methamphetamine and possessed a GSG, MP5, .22-caliber firearm to further the conspiracy pled guilty today, April 5, 2018, in federal court in Sioux City.
Robert “Bobby” Whitenack, 37, from Westside, Iowa, was convicted of one count of conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine and one count of possession of a firearm during and in furtherance of the methamphetamine conspiracy.
In a plea agreement, Whitenack admitted that from January 2014 through May 2017, he conspired to distribute over 100 pounds of methamphetamine. Whitenack admitted that he made multiple trips to Denison, Iowa, and Omaha, Nebraska, to pick up pound-quantities of methamphetamine, and recruited at least four individuals to do the same. Whitenack received or expected to receive compensation for every pound of methamphetamine sold by his recruits. Whitenack admitted that, in January 2016, he directed a coconspirator to pick up approximately $10,000 in cash from a customer in Milford, Iowa, and bring it to Whitenack so that he could pay his source. In February 2017, Whitenack admitted that he possessed a GSG, MP5, .22-caliber firearm to further the conspiracy.
This case was brought as part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program that has been historically successful in bringing together all levels of law enforcement to reduce violent crime and make our neighborhoods safer for everyone. Attorney General Jeff Sessions has made turning the tide of rising violent crime in America a top priority. In October 2017, as part of a series of actions to address this crime trend, Attorney General Sessions announced the reinvigoration of PSN and directed all U.S. Attorney’s Offices to develop a district crime reduction strategy that incorporates the lessons learned since PSN launched in 2001.
Sentencing before United States District Court Chief Judge Leonard T. Strand will be set after a presentence report is prepared. Whitenack remains in custody of the United States Marshal pending sentencing. Whitenack faces a mandatory minimum sentence of 25 years’ imprisonment and a possible maximum sentence of life years’ imprisonment, a $20,000,000 fine, and 10 years of supervised release following any imprisonment.
The case is being prosecuted by Special Assistant United States Attorney
Ajay J. Alexander and was investigated by the Iowa Division of Narcotics Enforcement, Iowa Division of Criminal Investigations, DEA Tri-State Drug Task Force, Crawford County Sheriff’s Office, Denison Police Department, Carroll County Sheriff’s Office, and Carroll Police Department.
Court file information at https://ecf.iand.uscourts.gov/cgi-bin/login.pl.
The case file number is 17-CR-3020-LTS.
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Waterbury Man Sentenced to 3 Years in Federal Prison for Illegally Distributing OxycodoneRead the Press Release
John H. Durham, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, today announced that HARRY DUREN, 74, of Waterbury, was sentenced yesterday by U.S. District Judge Alvin W. Thompson in Hartford to 36 months of imprisonment, followed by three years of supervised release, for illegally distributing oxycodone.
According to court documents and statements made in court, between approximately March 2011 and April 2016, DUREN obtained prescriptions for medications containing oxycodone from doctors in Connecticut and then arranged to resell the medications for his own profit. In total, DUREN and his co-conspirators sold approximately 45,000 30mg oxycodone pills. DUREN’s profit from the drug sales was approximately $700,000.
On September 6, 2017, DUREN pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute, and to distribute, oxycodone.
DUREN, who is released on a $50,000 bond, was ordered to report to prison on June 5, 2018.
DUREN has a prior federal conviction for mail fraud.
This investigation was conducted by the DEA’s New Haven Tactical Diversion Squad, which includes officers from the Bristol, Hamden, Milford, Monroe, New Haven, Shelton, Wallingford and Wilton Police Departments. The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Avi M. Perry.
United States Attorney’s Office bids farewell to distinguished Shreveport Assistant U.S. AttorneyRead the Press Release
SHREVEPORT, La. – United States Attorney David C. Joseph announced the retirement of Assistant U.S. Attorney James G. “Jim” Cowles Jr., who served in the Western District of Louisiana for more than 31 years. Cowles was honored today at a retirement ceremony and reception held at the Tom Stagg U.S. Court House in Shreveport.
“We are losing a talented, dedicated lawyer and public servant,” Joseph stated. “Throughout his career, Jim has played an integral role in prosecuting cases in our office. His years of service and dedication to the Department of Justice are a true testament of his commitment to justice and the citizens of this district. Jim will be greatly missed, and we wish him the very best as he starts the next chapter of his life. I am grateful for his tireless advocacy on behalf of the people of our community.”
Cowles began his federal service March 22, 1987 and retired on March 31, 2018. He joined the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia in 1987, prosecuting cases in the D.C. Superior Court and U.S. District Court. He assisted in creating the Sex Offense Unit of that office and received a Special Achievement Award in 1990 for the prosecution of a sex ring involving 11 child victims.
In 1992, Cowles joined the Western District of Louisiana. He received the Director’s Award from Attorney General Janet Reno in 1996 for the prosecution and convictions of 14 members of the Bottoms Boyz, Shreveport’s notorious street gang. He was sent to the United Nations in 1998 as a prosecutor of war crimes for the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia in The Hague and received a Special Recognition Award from Attorney General Reno in 2001. Jim represented DOJ as resident legal advisor with the State Department, Kosovo, from 1999 to 2001, working in partnership with the United Nations in re-establishing the rule of law following the Balkan conflict. He received a Special Achievement Award from Attorney General Reno for this work in 2001. Cowles has represented the Department of Justice at conferences throughout Europe, Armenia, and Turkmenistan and has taught for DOJ national training conferences. He has tried approximately 200 jury trials since 1980.
Cowles is a 1975 graduate of Georgetown University and the Paul M. Hebert Law Center at Louisiana State University in 1979.
United States Attorneys Offices and PATCO Resolve ADA ConcernsRead the Press Release
United States Attorneys Louis D. Lappen of the Eastern District of Pennsylvania announced that the Delaware River Port Authority (DRPA) has agreed with the Department of Justice to take action relating to the accessibility of DRPA’s PATCO train line for individuals with mobility assistance issues.
Following a government investigation, DRPA has agreed to post signs advising individuals with mobility assistance issues how to request alternate transportation in the event of an elevator outage at one of PATCO’s elevator-equipped stations. DRPA has for several years provided alternate transportation for such individuals in the event of an elevator outage. The additional signs will inform mobility-impaired patrons at the elevators of how to utilize this alternate transportation.
“It is in everyone’s interest that individuals with mobility impairments have full access to public transportation,” said U.S. Attorney Lappen of the Eastern District of Pennsylvania, “and it is critical that those individuals know how to access the programs in place for them. We commend DRPA for its cooperation in the investigation and for agreeing to a common sense approach to this situation.”
The case was handled by Assistant United States Attorneys Paul W. Kaufman and Anthony Scicchitano of the United States Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania and Assistant United States Attorney Jessica O’Neill of the United States Attorney’s Office for the District of New Jersey, in conjunction with David Knight of the Civil Rights Division of the United States Department of Justice.
United States Attorney Thomas T. Cullen Announces New Management TeamRead the Press Release
United States Attorney Thomas T. Cullen Announces New Management Team
Roanoke, VIRGINIA – United States Attorney Thomas T. Cullen announced today changes to his management team within the Western District of Virginia. The changes take effect immediately.
“With this experienced leadership team in place, we will be well-positioned to implement the Attorney General’s priorities, including expanding our Project Safe Neighborhoods initiatives and reducing violent crime,” United States Attorney Cullen said today. “Specifically, we are all committed to working with our federal, state, and local partners to identify those responsible for committing significant violent crimes within our communities and prosecuting them to the fullest extent of the law.”
Rick A. Mountcastle will serve as the First Assistant United States Attorney. Mr. Mountcastle previously served as the United States Attorney for the 15-month time period between presidentially appointed U.S. Attorneys. Prior to that, Mr. Mountcastle served as the First Assistant United States Attorney and the Chief of the Civil Division. He began his service with the Department of Justice in 1986 as a Trial Attorney with the Criminal Section of the Department of Justice’s Tax Division before coming to the United States Attorney’s Office for the Western District of Virginia in 1995. Mr. Mountcastle has been the recipient of numerous Department of Justice awards, including the Attorney General’s Award for the Trial of Litigation and the Director’s Award for Superior Performance by a Litigative Team. As the First Assistant United States Attorney, Mr. Mountcastle will oversee the criminal, civil, and administrative divisions of the office.
Laura Day Rottenborn will serve as the Executive Assistant United States Attorney, a newly created position in the district. Ms. Rottenborn has been a federal prosecutor in the Western District of Virginia since 2012. She previously served as the Managing Assistant United States Attorney for the Roanoke Division where she supervised all of the Roanoke Division’s criminal prosecutors and support staff. Prior to becoming a federal prosecutor, Ms. Rottenborn was a litigator at Sidley Austin LLP in Chicago, where she practiced in the Financial and Securities Litigation group. Ms. Rottenborn is a graduate of Bucknell University and Stanford Law School. After law school, she was a law clerk to the Honorable Mary M. Schroeder, Chief Judge of the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals. In her new role as EAUSA, Ms. Rottenborn will serve as Chief of the Civil Division and Chief of the Appellate Division, direct law-enforcement and community initiatives, and oversee public affairs.
Assistant United States Attorney Zachary T. Lee will serve as the Chief of the Criminal Division. Mr. Lee has been a federal prosecutor in the Western District of Virginia since 2007. Prior to his work as a federal prosecutor, Mr. Lee was an Assistant Commonwealth’s Attorney for the City of Bristol, Virginia. He is a graduate of Washington and Lee University and the University of Wyoming College of Law. Following law school, he was a law clerk to the Honorable James P. Jones, United States District Judge, Western District of Virginia. In his role as Criminal Chief, Mr. Lee will supervise all activities of the criminal division in Roanoke and all branch offices.
Assistant United States Attorney Heather L. Carlton will serve as the Deputy Criminal Chief for the Western District of Virginia. In this role, Ms. Carlton will oversee the district’s implementation and execution of the Department of Justice’s nationwide anti-gun and gang-violence program, known as Project Safe Neighborhoods, as well as all violent crime and narcotics prosecutions. Ms. Carlton has been a federal prosecutor in the Western District of Virginia since 2014. Prior to joining the district, Ms. Carlton worked as an AUSA in the most violent area of the District of Columbia from 2008 to 2012, before spending a few years in private practice at McGuire Woods LLP. In her collective 8 years of experience as a federal prosecutor, Ms. Carlton has prosecuted a wide variety of crimes, including homicides, racketeering, human trafficking, and white-collar fraud. Ms. Carlton is a graduate of both the University of Virginia and University of Virginia School of Law.
Jennie L. M. Waering will continue to serve as the Senior Litigation Counsel. Ms. Waering has worked as a federal prosecutor in the Western District of Virginia beginning in 1983. During her tenure, she has prosecuted a wide variety of cases including fraud, environmental crimes, healthcare fraud and opiate distribution. For the last several years, Ms. Waering has served as the Heath Care Fraud Coordinator. In her role as Senior Litigation Counsel, Mrs. Waering will oversee the district’s training, discovery, and mentoring programs.
Assistant United States Attorney Jennifer R. Bockhorst will serve as the Counsel to United States Attorney. Ms. Bockhorst, a graduate of Stanford Law School, has been an Assistant United States Attorney in the Western District of Virginia since 2002. She previously served as the First Assistant United States Attorney, the Counsel to the United States Attorney, as well as the district’s Ethics Advisor, Professional Responsibility Officer and Giglio Officer. In her role as Counsel to the United States Attorney, Ms. Bockhorst ensures the Office of the United States Attorney for the Western District of Virginia complies with all ethical guidelines as set forth by Department of Justice policy.
United States Attorney Cullen also reappointed three experienced Assistant United States Attorneys to continue serving in their current roles as Managing AUSAs of the Western District’s three branch offices. Randy Ramseyer will continue serving as the Managing AUSA of the Abingdon Division, Ronald M. Huber will remain the Managing AUSA of the Charlottesville Division, and Jeb Terrien will continue to serve as the Managing AUSA of the Harrisonburg Division. In their roles, all three of the Managing AUSAs work closely with the criminal chief and deputy criminal chief on case intake and supervision.
U.S. Attorney creates Health Care Crimes Task ForceRead the Press Release
WHEELING, WEST VIRGINIA –United States Attorney Bill Powell has announced the creation of the Health Care Crimes Task Force, an initiative to investigate and prosecute opioid diversion, health care fraud, and other illegal activities in the health care field.
“It is a priority of this office to prosecute those who use their professional license or health care business to cloak illegal activities. This task force will once again use the cooperative efforts of federal, state and local law enforcement to identify, investigate and prosecute those who engage in fraud, improper opioid distribution and other abuses of our health care system. The professional status of these individuals will not protect them from prosecution,” said Powell.
In 2016, the Department of Justice prosecuted 802 defendants for health care fraud-related crimes nationally, collecting more than $3.3. billion to be returned to the federal government and private individuals.
With West Virginia ranking highest in the country in regards to percentage of population enrolled in Medicaid benefits (31% of total population), and 23% of residents enrolled in Medicare, residents in the mountain state are particularly vulnerable to health care fraud-related crimes.
The task force is comprised of the U.S. Attorney’s Office in the Northern District of West Virginia, The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General, the Drug Enforcement Administration, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Defense Criminal Investigative Service, the West Virginia Insurance Commission Fraud Unit, and the West Virginia Medicaid Fraud Unit.
To report suspected health care-related illegal activity to the task force, call 304-234-7711 or email [email protected].
Two Individuals Charged in Opa Locka City Contract Bribery SchemeRead the Press Release
Benjamin G. Greenberg, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Florida Robert F. Lasky, Special Agent in Charge, Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), Miami Field Office, and Kelly R. Jackson, Special Agent in Charge, Internal Revenue Service, Criminal Investigation (IRS-CI), announce the latest case to arise from the ongoing Opa Locka municipal corruption investigation.
The former manager of a Miami-based licensed towing company (“the Towing Company”), and his father, who had a pending agreement to buy the Towing Company, were charged with participating in a conspiracy to pay bribes in order to obtain a contract with the City of Opa Locka.
Raul Sosa Sr. (“Sosa Sr.”) and Raul Sosa Jr. (“Sosa Jr.”) were charged by indictment with conspiracy to commit Federal programs bribery, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 371, and substantive counts of Federal programs bribery, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 666(a)(2). If convicted, the defendants face a maximum statutory sentence of five years’ imprisonment for the conspiracy count and ten years’ imprisonment for each of the bribery counts, as well as a fine up to $250,000 per count.
According to the Indictment, in April 2015, the City of Opa Locka published a Request for Proposals (“RFP”) seeking bids from licensed and experienced towing firms seeking multi-year non-exclusive contracts to provide Opa Locka with citywide towing services. Shortly after this RFP was published, then-City Commissioner Luis Santiago and a co-conspirator met with Sosa Sr., who agreed to pay them a $10,000 bribe to use their positions and influence to ensure that the Towing Company was selected as one of the companies receiving a towing contract with Opa Locka. During this meeting, Sosa Sr. paid the first installment of the bribe and designated his son, Sosa Jr., as the person who would work with Santiago and the co-conspirator to carry out the illegal arrangement.
The Indictment further alleges that Sosa Jr. made additional bribe payments, and that the co-conspirator arranged for an Opa Locka city employee to assemble and prepare the Towing Company’s bid package. After this bid was submitted, the co-conspirator violated the City’s purchasing Cone of Silence by contacting a member of the City’s committee ranking the towing bids and directing that individual to rank the Towing Company as the number one company. To complete the illegal arrangement, at the June 24, 2015, City Commission meeting authorizing the award of the towing contracts, Santiago used his position as a City Commissioner to vote in favor of the resolution authorizing the City Manager to enter into towing contracts with the Towing Company and three other companies. The final installment of the bribe then was paid the day after the City Commission voted to award the Towing Company a city towing contract.
In a related case, arising from the Opa Locka corruption investigation, Santiago previously pled guilty to conspiring to commit Federal programs bribery and Hobbs Act extortion under color of official right (Case No. 16-20971-CR-WILLIAMS). Santiago was sentenced to 51 months’ imprisonment.
Mr. Greenberg commended the investigative efforts of the FBI Miami Area Corruption Task Force and IRS-CI in this matter. Mr. Greenberg thanked the Miami-Dade Police Department and Hialeah Police Department for their assistance. This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Edward N. Stamm and Maurice Johnson.
An Indictment merely contains allegations and a defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
Related court documents and information may be found on the website of the District Court for the Southern District of Florida at www.flsd.uscourts.gov or on http://pacer.flsd.uscourts.gov
Trenton Man Charged with Illegally Transporting FirearmsRead the Press Release
Clifford Riheem Elisah Bright, 29, of Trenton, New Jersey, was charged yesterday by indictment with transporting firearms from the Eastern District of Pennsylvania to New Jersey while engaged in the business of dealing in firearms without a license announced United States Attorney Louis D. Lappen. Bright was also charged with 11 counts of interstate travel to acquire firearms for the purposes of unlicensed dealing in firearms and 15 counts of making false statements to a federal firearms licensee. The indictment alleges that from December 30, 2017 through February 24, 2018, while engaged in the business of dealing firearms without a license, Bright traveled from the State of New Jersey to the Eastern District of Pennsylvania to acquire the firearms and then transported them back to the State of New Jersey. The indictment also alleges that on or about November 18, 2017 through March 1, 2018, Bright purchased 24 firearms from three different federal firearms licensees, and in doing so, knowingly made false statements pertaining to information that the law requires the licensees keep.
If convicted of the charges, defendant faces a maximum sentence of 190 years’ imprisonment, 3 years’ supervised release, a $6,750,000 fine, and a $2,700 special assessment, restitution, and forfeiture of the firearms involved.
The case was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (“ATF”), and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Katherine E. Driscoll.
An Indictment, Information or Criminal Complaint is an accusation. A defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
Transportation Operator Sentenced to 14 Months for Defrauding the State DepartmentRead the Press Release
A local transportation operator was sentenced to 14 months today for stealing federal funds intended for a foreign exchange program maintained by the U.S. Department of State. Acting Assistant Attorney General John P. Cronan of the Department of Justice’s Criminal Division, Acting U.S. Attorney Tracy Doherty-McCormick of the Eastern District of Virginia, Inspector General Steve A. Linick of the U.S. Department of State and Andrew W. Vale, Assistant Director in Charge of the FBI’s Washington Field Office made the announcement.
Denon T. Hopkins, 49, of Germantown, Maryland, was sentenced by Senior U.S. District Judge T.S. Ellis, III of the Eastern District of Virginia. Hopkins pleaded guilty to a one-count information charging him with conspiracy to commit honest services wire fraud and theft of public money on Dec. 21, 2017.
According to admissions made in connection with his plea, Hopkins was the operator and de facto owner of a transportation company that contracted with the State Department to provide bus and limousine services to a State Department component devoted to sports diplomacy and which sponsored a foreign exchange program for emerging athletes and coaches from various countries. The exchange program was managed by George Mason University in Fairfax, Virginia, through a federal grant and cooperative agreement with the State Department. During a time period when Hopkins received $247,200 in grant funds for legitimate transportation services, he and a State Department official conspired to steal portions of the federal money allocated to the exchange program by, among other things, falsifying vendor-related invoices and making fraudulent checks payable to Hopkins. In total, Hopkins stole approximately $17,335 from the State Department. He also admitted that he used portions of the funds to pay kickbacks to the State Department official to retain his transportation contract.
The Department of State’s Office of Inspector General and the FBI’s Washington Field Office investigated the case. Trial Attorney Edward P. Sullivan of the Criminal Division’s Public Integrity Section and Assistant U.S. Attorney Kimberly R. Pedersen of the Eastern District of Virginia are prosecuting the case.
Three Plead to Tax Fraud and Identity TheftRead the Press Release
Charles E. Peeler, United States Attorney for the Middle District of Georgia, announces that Saferia Johnson, aged 34, formerly of Valdosta, Georgia and Leo McGill, aged 51, of Calera, Alabama have entered guilty pleas to one count of conspiracy to steal government funds, based on a fraudulent tax refund scheme seeing more than $2 million in refunds, and to one count of aggravated identity theft. Ms. Johnson and Mr. McGill entered their pleas on April 4, 2018, before Senior District Court Judge Hugh Lawson in Valdosta. Co-defendant Detrone Middleton, 38, of Douglas, Georgia entered his guilty plea to the charges on March 15, 2018.
The evidence supporting the plea showed that in 2012, the Internal Revenue Service-Criminal Investigations (IRS-CI) began an investigation after receiving information that a number of accounts controlled by the three co-defendants and others had received a large number of federal tax refund deposits issued in the name of people other than the owners of the bank accounts. IRS-CI identified individuals whose identities had been used on the returns in question and determined that Ms. Johnson, Mr. McGill and Mr. Middleton were involved in a scheme where fraudulent federal incomes tax returns were filed for tax years 2010 and 2011 and refunds deposited into 45 separate bank accounts.
In entering their pleas, the defendants admitted to filing approximately 984 fraudulent returns using stolen identities for tax years 2010 and 2011. The fraudulent returns, which were filed without the knowledge or permission of the individuals whose identities had been stolen, sought refunds of $2,082,275.00. Refunds totaling $1,498,776.00 were issued by the IRS on those returns in the form of direct deposits to the 45 bank accounts, checks, or debit cards. Ms. Johnson, Mr. McGill, and Mr. Middleton admitted in entering their pleas that those amounts were received by them or their associates.
Investigating agents interviewed a number of the individuals whose stolen identifying information was used to file fraudulent refunds. Those individuals confirmed that they did not file or authorize the filing of the returns. A majority of those whose identities were stolen were minors at the time the returns were filed.
Ms. Johnson, Mr. McGill, and Mr. Middleton each face up to five years in prison for the conspiracy charge and two years for the aggravated identity theft. The three may also be ordered to pay restitution of the $1,498,776.00 to the United States.
United States Attorney Charles E. Peeler stated: “Those who steal the identities of other people to commit fraud against the United States Government steal directly from the taxpayers and cause great harm to those whose identities are taken. Using the identities of other people to line your own pockets also shows a callous disregard for the frustration and difficulty their greed brings to innocent victims who may spend years correcting the mess they have caused. My office is committed to working with the IRS and other law enforcement agencies to ferret out identity thieves who are victimizing the public and bring them to justice, as occurred here.”
“Identity theft continues to be a serious crime that effects taxpayers on a daily basis,” said Thomas J. Holloman, Special Agent in Charge, IRS Criminal Investigation. “With the filing season coming to a close in the next couple weeks, it is important that taxpayers protect their identities and inform the IRS when their identities may have been compromised in filing a tax return.” Go to IRS.GOV and click on 2018 Dirty Dozen for more on tax schemes.
This case was investigated by the Internal Revenue Service–Criminal Investigations. Assistant United States Attorney Robert D. McCullers is prosecuting the case for the United States.
Questions concerning this case should be directed to Pamela Lightsey, Public Information Officer, United States Attorney’s Office, at (478) 621-2603.
Third Defendant Pleads Guilty in Sex Trafficking RingRead the Press Release
CONTACT: Barbara Burns
PHONE: (716) 843-5817
FAX #: (716) 551-3051BUFFALO, N.Y.-U.S. Attorney James P. Kennedy, Jr. announced today that Feng Yang Chen, 43, of Flushing, NY, pleaded guilty to with conspiracy to violate the Mann Act and the Travel Act related to the operation of an interstate prostitution business and using the internet to promote prostitution before U.S. District Judge Lawrence J. Vilardo. The charges carry a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison and a $500,000 fine.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Elizabeth R. Moellering, who is handling the case, stated that between March 2011 and March 2016, Chen operated a multi-state prostitution organization. The defendant posted advertisements on Backpage.com and operated a call center from her home in Flushing, Queens that scheduled meetings between prostitutes and their clients. This led to encounters with prostitutes in multiple states including New York, Connecticut, Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Massachusetts, Michigan, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, and Texas. Some of the commercial sex acts took place in Tonawanda, NY and Henrietta, NY.
The defendant, who worked with co-defendants Chengqi Li and LiangLiang Guo, victimized at least 12 individuals who traveled state to state to engage in prostitution in various hotels. Some of the victims were recruited from China. Chen used threats of violence and deportation against the victims and their families to force participation. The prostitution organization posted more than 6,000 advertisements and generated more than $2,000,000 annually in proceeds.
The Government is seeking the forfeiture of approximately $450,000 in proceeds from the illegal prostitution activities; proceeds from the sale of a property located in Flushing, NY; a 2012 Porsche Cayenne; as well as multiple cellular telephones, computers, and iPads utilized during the prostitution conspiracy.
Defendants Li and Guo were previously convicted and are awaiting sentencing.
"In this disturbing case, the defendant was a member of a trafficking and prostitution organization that made millions of dollars each year preying upon at least a dozen young women,” said U.S. Attorney Kennedy. “The defendant, together with her codefendants, used threats of violence against these women, together with threats of deportation—both against the women and their families—to force them to work as prostitutes across the United States. The depravity involved in such exploitation is remarkable."
“Human trafficking is a horrific crime where the most vulnerable of our society are preyed upon and exploited,” said Kevin Kelly, Special Agent-in-Charge of HSI Buffalo. “HSI Special Agents and our partners have implemented proven strategies to target these criminal organizations involved in order to protect our communities and arrest those who prey on others.”
The plea is the result of an investigation by Immigration and Customs Enforcement, Homeland Security Investigations, under the direction of Special Agent-in-Charge Kevin Kelly; the Tonawanda Police Department, under the direction of Chief Jerome C. Uschold III; the New York Police Department, under the direction of Chief James P. O’Neill; the South Portland, Maine Police Department, under the direction of Chief Edward Googins; and the Fairview Township Police Department, under the direction of Chief Jason C. Loper.
Chen is scheduled to be sentenced on August 1, 2018, at 2:00 p.m. before Judge Vilardo.
Texas Man Indicted for Trafficking over 50 Pounds of CocaineRead the Press Release
Memphis, TN – A Brownsville, Texas man has been indicted for possession with intent to distribute cocaine and conspiracy to distribute cocaine. U.S. Attorney D. Michael Dunavant for the Western District of Tennessee announced the indictment today.
According to the indictment, on September 25, 2017, officers with the West Tennessee Drug Task Force conducted a traffic stop on a vehicle heading east on I-40. A subsequent search of the vehicle revealed over 50 pounds of cocaine. The occupants were bringing drugs from Houston, Texas through Tennessee on their way to Knoxville.
A thorough investigation conducted by the Drug Enforcement Administration offices in Memphis, Houston, and Brownsville, Texas revealed 39-year-old Jose Manuel Escobedo, as the source trafficking the drugs from Brownsville, Texas, a town situated directly on the border of the United States and Mexico. The defendant was recently arrested in Brownsville, Texas and transported to Memphis, where he has been detained pending the outcome of his trial. If convicted, Escobedo faces a mandatory minimum sentence of at least 10 years up to life in prison.
The West Tennessee Drug Task Force, an extension of the Shelby County District Attorney’s Office, investigated the case, along with the Drug Enforcement Administration.
Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Joseph Griffith is prosecuting this case on the government’s behalf.
Ten members of methamphetamine trafficking operation federally indictedRead the Press Release
ATLANTA – Ten members of an alleged methamphetamine trafficking operation that sought to distribute more than $1 million worth of drugs have been indicted in a 13-count superseding indictment on charges of violations of federal drug, firearm, and immigration laws. Seven defendants were arraigned today in federal court.
“Methamphetamine remains a major threat to our community and it continues to be the main illegally-trafficked drug in this district,” said U.S. Attorney Byung J. “BJay” Pak. “When people enter our country illegally and traffic meth while in possession of guns, they not only spread their poison, they drive violence in our communities.”
“Methamphetamine continues to ravage many communities in our nation,” said Robert J. Murphy, the Special Agent in Charge of the DEA Atlanta Field Division. “Because of the positive results yielded in this case, other methamphetamine traffickers (particularly conversion lab operators) in the Atlanta metropolitan and surrounding areas are being put on notice that DEA, its law enforcement partners and the U.S. Attorney’s Office will not tolerate their continued efforts to manufacture and distribute this insidious drug.”
According to U.S. Attorney Pak, the indictment, and other information presented in court: Beginning in July 2017, agents with the DEA and the Atlanta-Carolina High Intensity Drug Trafficking Program (“HIDTA”) began investigating defendant Hugo Solano-Garcia a/k/a Gordo, and his associates in the Atlanta area, for trafficking methamphetamine allegedly smuggled into the U.S. from Mexico.
Over the course of the investigation, federal and local law enforcement agents uncovered a series of stash houses and methamphetamine conversion laboratories in two metro-Atlanta counties, DeKalb and Gwinnett, where the defendants would allegedly convert liquid methamphetamine into crystal methamphetamine for distribution, sometimes hiding the illicit drugs in hollowed-out fire extinguishers and car batteries. The defendants barricaded some of these conversion laboratories and guarded them with guns.
Agents raided one conversion laboratory in an apartment in Brookhaven, Georgia on January 30, 2018. In that apartment, they found approximately 65 kilograms of methamphetamine in crystal and liquid form and three firearms.
In total, law enforcement has seized more than 130 kilograms of methamphetamine over the course of this investigation. The drug trafficking conspiracy charge in the indictment names the following 10 defendants:
- Hugo Solano-Garcia, a/k/a Gordo, also charged with possessing a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime;
- Victor Pacheco-Solano, a/k/a Pelon, a/k/a Moro;
- Gerardo Calderon-Pacheco, a/k/a Plebe;
- Valentin Solano-Salas, also charged with possessing a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime;
- Juan Confesor Camilo, a/k/a Jean Carlos Camilo, a/k/a Tigre;
- Aldrin Barajas-Ramirez, also charged with possessing a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime, illegal alien in possession of a firearm, and illegal re-entry after being deported;
- Miguel Pacheco-Penaloza, also charged with possessing a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime and illegal alien in possession of a firearm;
- Octavio Pacheco-Torres, a/k/a Burro, also charged with possessing a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime;
- Sair Calderon-Pacheco; and
- Joaquin Reyes-Guillen, a/k/a Aviel Cabrera-Hernandez.
The indictment was returned on March 28, 2018. Solano-Garcia, Gerardo Calderon-Pacheco, Solano-Salas, Camilo, Barajas-Ramirez, Pacheco-Penaloza, and Pacheco-Torres were arraigned on April 6, 2018. Pacheco-Solano, Calderon-Pacheco, and Reyes-Guillen have yet to be arraigned.
Members of the public are reminded that the indictment only contains charges. The defendants are presumed innocent of the charges and it will be the government’s burden to prove the defendants’ guilt beyond a reasonable doubt at trial.
This case is being investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration, the Atlanta-Carolina High Intensity Drug Trafficking Program, and the following agencies: U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, U.S. Department of State, DeKalb County High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area Unit, Georgia State Patrol, Gwinnett County Police Department, and the Franklin County Sheriff’s Department.
Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Nicholas N. Joy is prosecuting the case.
The U.S. Attorney’s Office in Atlanta recommends parents and children learn about the dangers of drugs at the following web site: www.justthinktwice.gov.
For further information please contact the U.S. Attorney’s Public Affairs Office at [email protected] or (404) 581-6016. The Internet address for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia is http://www.justice.gov/usao-ndga.Ten Alleged Members of Surenos Gang Charged with Murder and Related CrimesRead the Press Release
SAN FRANCISCO- A federal grand jury indicted ten people alleged to be members of a racketeering enterprise described as “the 19th Street/16th Street Surenos” for their respective roles in seven alleged murders, announced Acting United States Attorney Alex G. Tse and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) Special Agent in Charge Ryan L. Spradlin. The indictment, filed March 20, 2018, was unsealed today following the arrest of six defendants. A seventh defendant was taken into custody from the Santa Clara County Jail. Three other defendants are currently in the custody of the U.S. Bureau of Prisons, and are expected to make their appearances in court in the coming weeks.
According to the indictment, the 19th Street/16th Street Surenos is a racketeering enterprise made up affiliated members of Surenos gangs with adjoining territory in the Mission District of San Francisco. The Surenos gangs have roots in Southern California and Latin America and recognize the primacy of the Mexican Mafia prison gang. The indictment alleges that the two allied gangs maintain control of turf in areas of San Francisco by engaging in illegal activities such as the sale of narcotics, robberies, and other violent crimes, including murder. The 19th Street/16th Street Surenos also uses violence to enforce its own rules and to attack members of rival gangs, principally members of the Norteno gang. Nine of the defendants are alleged to have been directly involved in at least one murder, and a tenth is alleged to have helped plan a ”hunt” which led to one of the murders.
“The seven murders described in the indictment unsealed this morning refer to events going back for more than a decade,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Tse. “It is a priority of this office to prosecute gangs for the violence that can tear apart our community. This operation is proof that we will use the full power of law enforcement to uphold justice for the victims of violent crime. Successful law enforcement requires that our federal government work closely with our state and local law enforcement partners to eradicate gang violence in our communities. I commend the extraordinary work and coordination that went into executing this phase of the operation to bring these defendants to justice.”
“As the largest investigative arm of the Department of Homeland Security, leveraging its vast array of authorities and global resources, Homeland Security Investigations is well equipped in taking accused murderers, who are part of larger transnational criminal organizations, off the streets when we work closely with local law enforcement agencies,” said Ryan L. Spradlin, Special Agent in Charge of the San Francisco field office. “Of course, I would be remiss if I didn’t recognize the countless hours and unyielding commitment of the men and women of HSI & the United States Attorney’s Office during the course of this long term investigation – but it’s the public who should commend the SFPD for pushing aside misconceptions about our mission and partnering with us in the interest of taking advantage of the critical public safety work HSI does.”
According to the indictment, the crimes alleged therein all are related to the activities of the 19th Street/16th Street Surenos. The defendants allegedly participated in acts of violence to defend their collective territory against rival gangs and to enhance the enterprise’s reputation. Among the acts described in the indictment are the following: participating in “hunting” for, shooting at, and murdering rival gang members and suspected rival gang members; selling drugs—whether crack cocaine, cocaine powder, heroine, or some combination of them—in and outside gang territory; committing assaults and strong arm robberies; carrying firearms and other dangerous weapons; and wearing distinctive tattoos to promote the gang and the defendant’s role as a member.
The age and precise charges against each defendant are set out in the chart below.
Defendant Age/Residence Charges Statute
JONATHAN AGUILAR, a/k/a “Trompo”
31
RICO Conspiracy
18 U.S.C. § 1962(d)
Conspiracy to Commit Murder in Aid of Racketeering
18 U.S.C. § 1959(a)(5)
Murder in Aid of Racketeering (2 counts)
18 U.S.C. §§ 1959(a)(1) and 2
Conspiracy to Commit Assault with a Dangerous Weapon in Aid of Racketeering
18 U.S.C. § 1959(a)(6)
Use/Possession of a Firearm Causing Murder
18 U.S.C. §§ 924(j)(1) and 2
LUIS CID-SALINAS, a/k/a “Lonely,” a/k/a “Lonely Boy”
33
Murder in Aid of Racketeering (2 counts)
18 U.S.C. §§ 1959(a)(1) and 2
Use/Possession of a Firearm Causing Murder (2 counts)
18 U.S.C. §§ 924(j)(1) and 2
JUAN CARLOS GALLARDO, a/k/a “Huero”
29
RICO Conspiracy
18 U.S.C. § 1962(d)
Conspiracy to Commit Murder in Aid of Racketeering
18 U.S.C. § 1959(a)(5)
Conspiracy to Commit
Assault with a Dangerous Weapon in Aid of Racketeering
18 U.S.C. § 1959(a)(6)
Murder in Aid of Racketeering: 1 count, plus add 924(j)(1)
18 U.S.C. §§ 1959(a)(1) and 2
JOSUE GONZALEZ, a/k/a “Ghost,” a/k/a “Fedi”
36
RICO Conspiracy
18 U.S.C. § 1962(d)
Conspiracy to Commit Murder in Aid of Racketeering
18 U.S.C. § 1959(a)(5)
Murder in Aid of Racketeering (2 counts)
18 U.S.C. §§ 1959(a)(1) and 2
Conspiracy to Commit Assault with a Dangerous Weapon in Aid of Racketeering
18 U.S.C. § 1959(a)(6)
Use/Possession of a Firearm Causing Murder
18 U.S.C. §§ 924(j)(1) and 2
ORLANDO HERNANDEZ, a/k/a “Chisto”
35
Murder in Aid of Racketeering
18 U.S.C. §§ 1959(a)(1) and 2
Use/Possession of a Firearm Causing Murder
18 U.S.C. §§ 924(j)(1) and 2
MICHAEL REBOLLEDO, a/k/a “Gallo”
30
RICO Conspiracy
18 U.S.C. § 1962(d)
Conspiracy to Commit Murder in Aid of Racketeering
18 U.S.C. § 1959(a)(5)
Murder in Aid of Racketeering (3 counts)
18 U.S.C. §§ 1959(a)(1) and 2
Conspiracy to Commit Assault with a Dangerous Weapon in Aid of Racketeering
18 U.S.C. § 1959(a)(6)
Use/Possession of a Firearm Causing Murder (2 counts)
18 U.S.C. §§ 924(j)(1) and 2
MARIO REYES, a/k/a “Shy Boy”
38
RICO Conspiracy
18 U.S.C. § 1962(d)
Conspiracy to Commit Murder in Aid of Racketeering
18 U.S.C. § 1959(a)(5)
Conspiracy to Commit Assault with a Dangerous Weapon in Aid of Racketeering
18 U.S.C. § 1959(a)(6)
LUIS ROJAS, a/k/a “Grizz,” a/k/a “Grizzly”
31
RICO Conspiracy
18 U.S.C. § 1962(d)
Conspiracy to Commit Murder in Aid of Racketeering
18 U.S.C. § 1959(a)(5)
Murder in Aid of Racketeering (2 counts)
18 U.S.C. §§ 1959(a)(1) and 2
Conspiracy to Commit Assault with a Dangerous Weapon in Aid of Racketeering
18 U.S.C. § 1959(a)(6)
Use/Possession of a Firearm Causing Murder
18 U.S.C. §§ 924(j)(1) and 2
EDDY URBINA, a/k/a “Rhino”
29
RICO Conspiracy
18 U.S.C. § 1962(d)
Conspiracy to Commit Murder in Aid of Racketeering
18 U.S.C. § 1959(a)(5)
Murder in Aid of Racketeering (2 counts)
18 U.S.C. §§ 1959(a)(1) and 2
Conspiracy to Commit Assault with a Dangerous Weapon in Aid of Racketeering
18 U.S.C. § 1959(a)(6)
Use/Possession of a Firearm Causing Murder
18 U.S.C. §§ 924(j)(1) and 2
WESTON VENEGAS, a/k/a “Cartoon”
30
Murder in Aid of Racketeering
18 U.S.C. §§ 1959(a)(1) and 2
Use/Possession of a Firearm Causing Murder
18 U.S.C. §§ 924(j)(1) and 2
An indictment merely alleges that crimes have been committed, and the defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt. The maximum statutory penalties for the crimes of which the defendants have been accused are as follows:
Charge
Statute
Maximum Statutory Penalty
RICO Conspiracy
18 U.S.C. § 1962(d)
Life imprisonment, $250,000 fine, five years’ supervised release
Conspiracy to Commit Murder in Aid of Racketeering
18 U.S.C. § 1959(a)(5)
10 years’ imprisonment, $250,000 fine, three years’ supervised release
Conspiracy to Commit Assault with a Dangerous Weapon in Aid of Racketeering
18 U.S.C. § 1959(a)(6)
3 years’ imprisonment, $250,000 fine, one year of supervised release
Murder in aid of Racketeering
18 U.S.C. §§ 1959(a)(1) and 2
Death, or mandatory life imprisonment, $250,000 fine, five years’ supervised release
Use/Possession of a Firearm Causing Murder
18 U.S.C. §§ 924(j)(1) and 2
Death, or up to life imprisonment, $250,000 fine, five years’ supervised release
Further, additional fines, forfeitures, and restitution may be ordered; however, any sentence following conviction would be imposed by the court only after consideration of the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and the federal statute governing the imposition of a sentence, 18 U.S.C. § 3553.
Several of the defendants were arrested April 5, 2018, as part of a coordinated criminal enforcement operation. All the defendants except Luis Cid-Salinas, Orlando Carlos Hernandez, and Weston Venegas, appeared before the Honorable Elizabeth D. Laporte, U.S. Magistrate Judge, this morning. Appearances have been tentatively scheduled for April 10, 2018, and April 13, 2018, before U.S. Magistrate Judge Laporte for identification of counsel and other pretrial issues. No appearance has yet been scheduled for Luis Cid-Salinas, Orlando Carlos Hernandez, and Weston Venegas. The case has been assigned to the Honorable Richard Seeborg, U.S. District Judge. No appearances have yet been scheduled before District Judge Seeborg. All defendants remain in federal custody.
Assistant U.S. Attorneys Andrew Scoble and Kimberly Hopkins are prosecuting the case. The prosecution is the result of an investigation by the HSI and the police departments of San Francisco and Richmond.
Statement to PressRead the Press Release
On April 5, 2018, a federal search warrant was executed in Grainger County, Tennessee, by agents with the Internal Revenue Service – Criminal Investigation, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), Criminal Investigation Division, and the Tennessee Highway Patrol, While it is the policy of the U.S. Attorney’s Office not to comment on ongoing investigations and/or pending litigation, documents associated with case #2:18-MJ-66, that are on file with the U.S. District Court and available to the public, can be accessed through www.pacer.gov. You can also monitor the U.S. District Court calendar online at http://www.tned.uscourts.gov/district-calendar for any scheduled court hearings regarding this or any other case being handled by our office.
St. Croix Man Sentenced to Prison for His Role in Conspiracy to Possess a Cocaine with Intent to DistributeRead the Press Release
St. Croix, USVI – Ray Harris, Jr., 24, of St. Croix, was sentenced on April 5, 2018 for conspiracy to possess cocaine with intent to distribute, United States Attorney Gretchen C.F. Shappert announced.
Chief District Court Judge Wilma A. Lewis sentenced Harris to twenty-four months in prison. Judge Lewis also sentenced Harris to three years of supervised release, a $1,000 fine and ordered him to pay a $100 special assessment.
On February 17, 2017, Harris pleaded guilty to conspiracy to possess a controlled substance with intent to distribute. According to documents filed in court, on May 4, 2016, the defendant and another individual who were employed by Worldwide Flight Services at the Rohlsen Airport, entered the TSA screening area before their scheduled shifts. The defendant attempted to pass through the screening area and triggered the metal detector. A search of his person revealed a brick-like package wrapped with gray duct tape strapped to one of his legs. The other individual also had a similar package strapped to one of his legs. The packages field-tested positive for cocaine.
The case was investigated by Immigration and Customs Enforcement, Homeland Security Investigations and was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Rhonda Williams-Henry.
San Joaquin County Biodiesel Firm and Employees Charged with Clean Water Act ViolationsRead the Press Release
SACRAMENTO, Calif. — A federal grand jury returned a 17-count indictment on Thursday against American Biodiesel Inc. and two employees at its biodiesel fuel manufacturing plant in Stockton for Clean Water Act violations, U.S. Attorney McGregor W. Scott announced.
American Biodiesel Inc., registered in San Joaquin County as Community Fuels, manufactured biodiesel fuel at 809-C Snedeker Avenue, Stockton, on property leased from the Port of Stockton. The company is charged with conspiracy, 12 counts of tampering with monitoring equipment, two counts of unlawful discharge of industrial wastewater, and one count of false statements.
According to the indictment, Christopher Young, 41, of El Dorado Hills, is charged with conspiracy, 12 counts of tampering with monitoring equipment, two counts of unlawful discharge of industrial wastewater, one count of false statements, and one count of witness tampering. The same indictment charges his brother Jeremiah Young, 38, of El Dorado, with conspiracy, eight counts of tampering with monitoring equipment, and two counts of unlawful discharge of industrial wastewater.
The indictment alleges that, from March 2009 through December 2016, Christopher Young was Director of Operations, which is the highest-ranking position at Community Fuels’ manufacturing plant. In this capacity, he directed employees to tamper with pH, and flow and volume monitoring devices to allow Community Fuels to discharge hundreds of thousands of gallons of polluted industrial wastewater into the City of Stockton Municipal Utility District sewer in violation of the company’s wastewater discharge permit and in violation of the Clean Water Act. Jeremiah Young, while working as an Assistant Operator for Community Fuels from 2014 to 2016, allegedly participated in the conspiracy and in certain Clean Water Act violations.
Community Fuels’ unpermitted wastewater discharges into the Stockton sewer were allegedly polluted with methanol, glycerin, oils and fats, and acids. Instead of discharging the unpermitted wastewater into the sewer, Community Fuels had represented to the City of Stockton water regulators that it would employ tanker trucks to haul the wastewater to the East Bay Municipal Utility District wastewater treatment plant in Oakland.
The indictment alleges that Christopher Young and Community Fuels made false statements to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) in an attempt to cover up the long‑term and recurring unlawful wastewater discharges.
The indictment further alleges that Christopher Young attempted to prevent a witness from communicating information relating to the commission of a federal offense to a law enforcement officer.
This case is the product of an investigation by the EPA, San Joaquin County District Attorney’s Office, City of Stockton Municipal Utilities Department, San Joaquin County Environmental Health Department, Port of Stockton, and California Department of Toxic Substances Control.
If convicted, Christopher Young faces a maximum statutory penalty of 20 years in prison on the witness tampering count, five years in prison on the conspiracy and false statement counts, three years in prison on the unlawful discharge counts, two years in prison on the counts charging tampering with monitoring equipment, and a maximum total fine of $4,250,000. If convicted, Jeremiah Young faces a maximum statutory penalty of five years in prison on the conspiracy count, three years in prison on the unlawful discharge counts, two years in prison on the counts charging tampering with monitoring equipment, and a maximum total fine of $2,500,000. If convicted, Community Fuels faces a maximum $4 million fine. Any sentence, however, would be determined at the discretion of the court after consideration of any applicable statutory factors and the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, which take into account a number of variables. The charges are only allegations; each defendant is presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.
Saginaw Woman Sentenced to 230 Months in Prison for Sex Trafficking of a MinorRead the Press Release
Meleney Pully, 38, of Saginaw, Michigan was sentenced on April 5, 2018, before United States District Judge Thomas L. Ludington to 230 months in Federal prison for sex trafficking of a minor, announced United States Attorney Matthew Schneider.
Joining in the announcement were Saginaw County Prosecutor John McColgan and Saginaw County Sheriff William Federspiel.
As part of her plea, Meleney Pully agreed that beginning in November 2016 and continuing until February 6, 2017, that she acted with her husband to cause a 16 year old minor victim to engage in commercial sex acts. Acting together, they provided the location for the commercial sex acts to occur and took the proceeds from the commercial sex acts. Meleney Pully advertised on a website, backpage.com, soliciting individuals to engage in sexual relations with the minor in exchange for money.
The case was investigated by the Saginaw County Sheriff’s Department with assistance from the Northeast Michigan Trafficking and Exploitation Crimes Task Force (“NEMTEC”). The prosecution of this case represents a cooperative effort between the Saginaw County Prosecutor’s Office and the United States Attorney’s Office. The case is being prosecuted by Christopher Rawsthorne of the United States Attorney’s Office.
Roanoke Man Arrested for Threatening Congressman Bob GoodlatteRead the Press Release
Roanoke, VIRGINIA – United States Attorney Thomas T. Cullen announced today the arrest of a Roanoke man accused of using social media to communicate threats against U.S. Congressman Bob Goodlatte. Congressman Goodlatte represents the Sixth Congressional District of Virginia in the United States House of Representatives and is the Chairman of the House Judiciary Committee.
The United States Attorney’s Office charged Christopher Michael McGowan, 38, in a criminal complaint with one count of making a threatening communication through interstate commerce.
“Federal law criminalizes threatening communications made through the internet or a telephone, and these types of threats are not protected by the First Amendment,” U.S. Attorney Cullen stated. “As this case indicates, our office will act swiftly to address threats of gun violence.”
According to the criminal complaint and affidavit, on or about December 17, 2017, McGowan allegedly tweeted to United States Congressman Bob Goodlatte a series of messages threatening the Congressman.
“I will do this in full belief I am defending the constitution of the United States. I am not making a joke. I will kill him. Should you believe my doing so would be illegal please arrest me so we can have this discussion in court BEFORE I actually do it. Thank you.”
On December 18, 2017, officers with the Botetourt County Sheriff’s Office visited McGowan at his home and interviewed him. During the interview, McGowan admitted to sending the tweets the previous day, but stated he did not own firearms and did not intend on hurting Congressman Goodlatte or anyone else.
In a subsequent series of tweets sent from McGowan to Congressman Goodlatte on April 1, 2018, however, McGowan stated the following:
“I’m serious, @BobGoodlatte6 …you keep f**king with our constitution and challenging Mueller and the last you see will be my patriot ass behind a gun you should have long ago have prevented me owning pulling a trigger to your head (SIC). Want me arrested>? GO head.”
“#1 threatened my congressman with violence #2 stated I would kill people. #3: pretty much declared I would commit a plethora of anti-social behavior, publicly. Whom would like to bet I can purchase a gun three days from now and NOT be locked up in jail? #proudtobeanAmerican”
“…Corruption happens on so many levels and in so many ways…but YOU have truly taken it to an extreme. History will hate you even more than I do. You better get on those gun laws. I am buying one intended for you in 3 days. Can you legally stop me?”
McGowan was arrested this morning and had his initial appearance in U.S. District Court this afternoon. He was remanded to the custody of the United States Marshals pending a bond hearing next Wednesday.
The investigation of the case was conducted by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Roanoke City Police Department, the Botetourt County Sheriff’s Office, and the United States Capitol Police. Assistant United States Attorney Jake Jacobsen will prosecute the case for the United States.
A criminal complaint is only a charge and not evidence of guilt. The defendant is entitled to a fair trial with the burden on the government to prove guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.
Prince George's County Liquor Board Commissioner Sentenced to Two Years in Prision for Federal Bribery ConductRead the Press Release
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Contact ELIZABETH MORSE
www.justice.gov/usao/md at (410) 209-4885
Greenbelt, Maryland – United States District Judge Paula Xinis sentenced Anuj Sud, age 40, of Hyattsville, Maryland, to two years in prison, followed by three years of supervised release and a $50,000 fine, for violating the Travel Act by committing bribery conduct. Sud solicited and accepted bribes in the performance of his official duties on the Prince George’s County Board of License Commissioners (“Liquor Board”).
The sentence was announced by Acting United States Attorney for the District of Maryland Stephen M. Schenning; Special Agent in Charge Gordon B. Johnson of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Baltimore Field Office; Special Agent in Charge Thomas Jankowski of the Internal Revenue Service - Criminal Investigation, Washington, D.C. Field Office; and Chief Henry P. Stawinski III of the Prince George’s County Police Department.
Sud was appointed by the Governor to be a Liquor Board Commissioner in 2015. Sud also was a licensed attorney in Maryland since 2005, until his disbarment following the current criminal charge. According to court documents, in July 2015, Sud traveled to Washington, D.C. to promote and establish a bribery relationship with another individual with business before the Liquor Board. In September 2015, Sud solicited bribes from the individual in exchange for Sud’s assistance with Liquor Board matters. At other meetings in 2015 and 2016, Sud and the individual discussed Sud voting favorably in upcoming Liquor Board hearings concerning the individual’s clients, in exchange for money. At each of the subsequent hearings, Sud took favorable action and made favorable votes on behalf of the individual’s clients. In total, from 2015 to 2016, Sud accepted three $1,000 cash bribe payments in exchange for Sud’s official action as a Liquor Board Commissioner.
Acting United States Attorney Stephen M. Schenning commended the FBI, IRS-CI, and Prince George’s County Police Department for their work in the investigation. Mr. Schenning thanked Assistant U.S. Attorney Thomas P. Windom who prosecuted the case.
Pimp Sentenced to 25 Years for Sex Trafficking MinorRead the Press Release
ALEXANDRIA, Va. – A Florida man was sentenced today to 25 years in prison and a lifetime of supervised release for sex trafficking a 16-year-old girl throughout the United States in 2017.
According to court documents, Andrew Lee Thompson II, aka “Slim,” 34, met the minor victim in Arizona and began sex trafficking her with his two co-defendants, Delberta Rose McKenzie and Rachel Lynn Robillard. Thompson posted prostitution advertisements on the Internet, and from February through June 2017, he drove and flew the minor victim across the country for prostitution, including to Florida, Georgia, South Carolina, North Carolina, and Virginia. After the prostitution dates, he collected all the money.
While in Arlington, a security guard called police after seeing multiple men go in and out of two rooms at a hotel on Glebe Road. When law enforcement investigated, they found evidence of prostitution related activity in the hotel rooms and recovered the minor victim. After arresting Thompson, law enforcement found tattoos on his body bragging about his pimping activities, including on his arm and across his chest.
McKenzie and Robillard were each previously sentenced to five years in prison for sex trafficking of a minor.
Tracy Doherty-McCormick, Acting U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia, Andrew W. Vale, Assistant Director in Charge of the FBI’s Washington Field Office, and M. Jay Farr, Chief of Arlington County Police, made the announcement after sentencing by Senior U.S. District Judge Claude M. Hilton. Assistant U.S. Attorney Maureen C. Cain prosecuted the case.
A copy of this press release is located on the website of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Virginia. Related court documents and information is located on the website of the District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia or on PACER by searching for Case No. 1:17-cr-168.
Phoenix Man Sentenced to Federal Prison for Firearm OffenseRead the Press Release
MISSOULA – Clarence Edward Henderson, a 50-year-old former resident of Phoenix, Arizona, was sentenced today to 48 months in prison followed by 3 years supervised release after pleading guilty to felon in possession of firearms in August 2007. Henderson did not appear at his sentencing hearing set in May 2009 and was arrested in North Carolina in November of last year. U.S. District Judge Donald W. Molloy handed down the sentence.
In late December 2005, Henderson and two other men were sent by their employer to a Gallatin County residence to take a woman back to Phoenix, Arizona, after the Christmas holiday. She agreed to return to Arizona so her family would not be harmed. The three men wore “Special Agent” badges. Law enforcement seized two pistols, magazines, ammunition, a set of handcuffs, and a knuckle knife. Henderson said he handled the firearms during the drive between Arizona and Montana and his employer, provided the firearms for his use. Henderson was arrested for impersonating a police officer and possession of a firearm by a felon. Henderson’s prior felony convictions include robbery in Ohio and aggravated assault, possession of methamphetamine, attempted transportation of methamphetamine for sale, and forgery from Arizona.
The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Paulette Stewart and investigated by the Bozeman Police Department, Gallatin County Sheriff’s Office, and Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives.
The U.S. Attorney’s Office is partnering with federal, state, local and tribal law enforcement to identify those responsible for significant violent crime in Montana. A centerpiece of this effort is Project Safe Neighborhoods, a recently reinvigorated Department of Justice program that has proven to be successful in reducing violent crime. Today’s sentencing is part of the Project Safe Neighborhoods program.
Owner of payroll company in Delphos indicted for stealing $914,000 from clientsRead the Press Release
A Putnam County woman was indicted on seven counts of bank fraud after she stole more than $900,000 from her clients, said U.S. Attorney Justin E. Herdman and FBI Special Agent in Charge Stephen D. Anthony.
Jennifer Edelbrock, 51, of Kalida, operated Edelbrock Enterprises LLC, which also did business as Edelbrock-Reitz LLC in Delphos. The company provided payroll and accounting services for companies in Northwest and Central Ohio. Those services included issuing payroll checks, including withholding federal and states taxes and making quarterly payments from money provided by the clients, according to the indictment.
Edelbrock fraudulently obtained at least $914,000 and used the money for her own personal enrichment, transferring the funds from clients’ bank accounts to the account of All Seasons Lawn and Recreation LLC, which was owned by her husband, according to the indictment.
Edelbrock used her position with her clients to obtain money and funds from financial institutions that she was supposed to hold in trust to pay her clients’ payroll expenses, including federal, state and local tax obligations. She concealed the late payment of taxes because notices of delinquencies and penalties often went only to Edelbrock, according to the indictment.
She also manipulated her clients’ payroll obligations by adding certain amounts (sometimes $25 to $90 per pay period) to the employer responsibility for taxes above and beyond what the employer actually owed. Edelbrock then used the amount she overcharged for her own personal enrichment, 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 agency in this case is the Federal Bureau of Investigation. It is being handled by Assistant United States Attorney Noah P. Hood.
An indictment is only a charge and is not evidence of guilt. Defendants are entitled to a fair trial in which it will be the government’s burden to prove guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.
Outlaws Gang Members Plead Guilty to Long Island Murder and ShootingRead the Press Release
Earlier today, at the federal courthouse in Central Islip, Pedro Merchant and Alton Gore, members of the Outlaws street gang, pleaded guilty to a firearm-related murder and assault in-aid-of racketeering charge and using a firearm during the commission of a crime of violence, respectively. The charges against Merchant related to his participation in the September 11, 2013 murder of Dante Quinones. The charges against Gore related to his involvement in a September 14, 2014 shooting that wounded two rival gang members. The guilty pleas were entered before United States District Judge Joseph F. Bianco.
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 Patrick J. Ryder, Commissioner, Nassau County Police Department (NCPD), announced the guilty pleas.
“Merchant’s actions violently ended one life, while Gore attempted to take several others,” stated United States Attorney Donoghue. “This type of brazen violence in the name of their gang puts entire communities in danger. Today’s guilty pleas hold these defendants accountable for their crimes and demonstrate the commitment of this Office and our law enforcement partners to remove gangs from the streets of Long Island.”
“In the midst of their declared war on a rival gang, these members of the Outlaws put innocent people’s lives in danger,” stated FBI Assistant Director-in-Charge Sweeney. “The FBI and our law enforcement partners work every day on investigations targeting these violent criminals, and we will continue until we stop the illegal activity.”
“Today’s guilty pleas are a direct result of the combined efforts of law enforcement on Long Island which are dedicated to working together to ending gang violence in our area,” stated NCPD Commissioner Ryder. “The commitment of all Law Enforcement to eradicate gang violence is extremely important and we will not stop until all gang members are behind bars, thus ensuring that our residents and communities are safe. I would also like to congratulate the other agencies and their investigators for their dedication and diligence during this intense investigation.”
According to court filings and statements made during the guilty plea proceedings, Merchant shot and killed 17-year-old Dante Quinones in Hempstead. The confrontation began when Merchant and fellow Outlaws members approached Quinones to determine whether Quinones’ allegiance was to the Outlaws gang or their rivals, the Bloods. Merchant pulled out a pistol and shot Quinones several times at close range, killing him.
In the wake of Quinones’ murder, a gang war ensued between the Outlaws and the Bloods in Hempstead. During the following year, several shootings occurred between the two gangs, including several involving Gore, who pleaded guilty to the September 14, 2014 shooting of two Bloods members in Hempstead. In that incident, Gore, along with two other Outlaw members, staked out a home where Bloods members were watching a boxing match. Gore and his co-conspirators opened fire into the home, wounding a Bloods member in the leg, while another Bloods member was shot in the head and lost an eye.
When sentenced, each defendant faces a minimum term of 10 years in prison and a maximum term of life imprisonment.
Co-defendant Everett Brown, also known as “Ev,” an associate of the Outlaws street gang, was sentenced in November 2017 to 10 years’ imprisonment following his guilty plea to discharging a firearm during a crime of violence for his role in one of the shootings of rivals’ homes committed by the gang on August 19, 2014.
The government’s case is being handled by the Office’s Long Island Criminal Division. Assistant United States Attorneys Nicole Boeckmann, Christopher Caffarone and Michael Maffei are in charge of the prosecution.
The Defendants:
PEDRO MERCHANT (also known as “Dro”)
Age: 25
Valley Stream, New YorkALTON GORE (also known as “A-Murder”)
Age: 27
Hempstead, New YorkE.D.N.Y. Docket No. 16-CR-322 (S-1) (LDW)
Orange Landscaper Sentenced to Prison for Failing to Pay over Employment Taxes to IRSRead the Press Release
John H. Durham, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, announced that THOMAS CAPECELATRO, 64, of Orange, was sentenced today by U.S. District Judge Michael P. Shea in Hartford to 60 days of imprisonment, followed by one year of supervised release, for failing to pay over more than $66,000 in employment taxes to the Internal Revenue Service.
According to court documents and statements made in court, CAPECELATRO has owned and operated an unincorporated landscaping business known as Chestnut Ridge Landscaping (“Chestnut Ridge”) since approximately 1984. From approximately October 2010 through 2013, CAPECELATRO caused Chestnut Ridge to withhold $42,322.64 in payroll taxes from its employees but failed to truthfully account for and pay over that money to the IRS. During that same period, CAPECELATRO failed to pay $24,089.28 in federal employment taxes and $1,347.54 in federal unemployment taxes that Chestnut Ridge owed. Chestnut Ridge also failed to file quarterly employment tax returns (Forms 941) with the IRS.
The total tax loss to the U.S. Treasury from October 2010 through 2013 was $67,759.46.
On November 28, 2017, CAPECELATRO pleaded guilty to one count of willful failure to account for and pay over employment taxes.
In May 2017, CAPECELATRO made restitution of $67,759.46 for the delinquent taxes. He owes additional penalties and interest on that amount, and additional restitution for unpaid taxes, interest and penalties for the third quarter of 2005 through the third quarter of 2010.
CAPECELATRO, who is released on bond, was ordered to report to prison on June 6.
This matter was investigated by the Internal Revenue Service – Criminal Investigation Division. The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Susan L. Wines.
One Member of Gangster Disciples Pleads Guilty to Rico ConspiracyRead the Press Release
This week, one of 16 alleged Gangster Disciples members and associates indicted on racketeering charges in May 2016 pleaded guilty to RICO conspiracy.
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, Special Agent in Charge Michael T. Gavin of the FBI’s Memphis Division, and Acting Special Agent in Charge Jack Webb of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) Memphis Field Division, made the announcement.
Tommy Earl Champion, Jr., aka Duct Tape, 29, of Jackson, Tennessee, pleaded guilty on April 2, before U.S. District Judge John T. Fowlkes Jr. to one count of conspiracy to participate in a racketeering offense, and one count of using and carrying a firearm during and in relation to a crime of violence.
According to the indictment, the Gangster Disciples is a highly organized national gang active in more than 35 states. The scope of the Gangster Disciples’ crimes is wide-ranging and consistent throughout its national operation. The gang protects its power through threats, intimidation, and violence, including murder, attempted murder, assault and obstruction of justice. The Gangster Disciples promotes its enterprise through member-only activities and provides financial and other support to members charged with or incarcerated for gang-related offenses or who are fugitives from law enforcement.
Members and associates of the Gangster Disciples are subject to a strict code of discipline and are routinely fined, beaten and even murdered for failing to follow the gang’s rules. "Enforcers" within the enterprise ensure that members who violate the strict rules of the enterprise are appropriately punished.
Champion is scheduled to be sentenced on July 6.
The FBI; ATF; the Memphis Multi-Agency Gang Unit; the Memphis Police Department; the Shelby County, Tennessee Sheriff’s Office; the Jackson Police Department Gang Enforcement Team; the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation; the Madison County, Tennessee Sheriff’s Department; the 28th District West Tennessee Drug Task Force; The Tipton County, Tennessee, Sheriff’s Office; the 26th Judicial District Attorney General’s Office; the 25th Judicial District Attorney General’s Office; the Atascosa County, Tennessee District Attorney’s Office; and the Shelby County District Attorney General’s Office investigated this case. Trial Attorney Francesca Liquori of the Criminal Division’s Organized Crime and Gang Section, Assistant U.S. Attorneys Beth Boswell of the Western District of Tennessee and Samuel Stringfellow of the Northern District of Mississippi are prosecuting the case.
Niagara Falls Man Arrested, Charged with Receipt and Possession of Child PornographyRead the Press Release
CONTACT: Barbara Burns
PHONE: (716) 843-5817
FAX #: (716) 551-3051BUFFALO, N.Y.- U.S. Attorney James P. Kennedy, Jr. announced today that Randy Colucci, 33, of Niagara Falls, NY, was arrested and charged by criminal complaint with receipt and possession of child pornography. The charges carry a mandatory minimum penalty of five years in prison, a maximum of 20 years, and a $250,000 fine.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Stephanie Lamarque, who is handling the case, stated that according to the criminal complaint, in April 2017, a Department of Homeland Security Investigations Special Agent, working undercover, discovered multiple files containing videos and images of child pornography being shared on a peer to peer website. Some of the videos and images depicted prepubescent children in sexual situations. Investigators determined that the IP address connected to the files was utilized by the defendant, which led to the execution of a search warrant at Colucci’s residence. Digital media recovered from the defendant contained child pornography.
Colucci is currently on New York State parole for a 2011 manslaughter conviction, involving the death of his two-year old daughter.
The defendant is being held pending a detention hearing on April 12, 2018, at 9:30 a.m. before U.S. Magistrate Judge Jeremiah J. McCarthy.
The criminal complaint is the result of an investigation by Immigration and Customs Enforcement, Homeland Security Investigations, under the direction of Special Agent-in-Charge Kevin Kelly.
The fact that a defendant has been charged with a crime is merely an accusation and the defendant is presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty.
New York Resident Sentenced to 124 Months in Prison for Theft from City of Miami BeachRead the Press Release
David J. Miller, 45, of Syracuse, New York, was sentenced today to 124 months in prison for stealing over $3.5 million from the City of Miami Beach’s bank account through unauthorized electronic transfers.
Benjamin G. Greenberg, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Florida, Robert F. Lasky, Special Agent in Charge, Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), Miami Field Office, and Daniel J. Oates, Chief, City of Miami Beach Police Department, made the announcement.
At sentencing, United States District Judge Federico A. Moreno ordered Miller to pay $1,563,187 in restitution to the victims of the offense, including the City of Miami Beach. Miller will serve a five-year term of supervised release at the conclusion of his prison sentence.
According to publicly filed court documents, Miller was responsible for the theft of approximately $3.5 million from the City of Miami Beach’s general depository account at SunTrust Bank. Using funds from the City of Miami Beach’s account, Miller purchased approximately 157 seat licenses at NFL stadiums around the country. Miller also used stolen funds to purchase season and individual game tickets at NFL games and other sporting events.
Miller previously pled guilty to bank fraud, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 1344(2), and aggravated identity theft, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 1028A(a)(1).
Mr. Greenberg commended the investigative efforts of the FBI and the City of Miami Beach Police Department. This case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Christopher B. Browne, Harold E. Schimkat, and Nalina Sombuntham.
Related court documents and information may be found on the website of the District Court for the Southern District of Florida at www.flsd.uscourts.gov or on http://pacer.flsd.uscourts.gov.
New Mexico Husband and Wife Plead Guilty to Federal Charges in Connection with Bank Fraud SchemeRead the Press Release
In El Paso today, 39-year-old Michael Nedal Annabi and his wife, 34-year-old Perla Maldonado Annabi of Santa Teresa, NM, pleaded guilty to federal charges associated with a scheme to defraud multiple local banks and credit unions through applications for over $900,000 in personal loans and lines of credit, announced United States Attorney John F. Bash and Federal Bureau of Investigation Special Agent in Charge Emmerson Buie, Jr.
Appearing before Senior United States District Judge David Briones, both defendants pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit bank fraud and one count of wire fraud. By pleading guilty, the defendants admitted to participating in a three-year scheme beginning in 2013 which defrauded 21 financial institutions nationwide. Throughout the scheme the defendants and others would obtain loans and lines of credit after providing the financial institutions with fraudulent personal and income information. Sentencing for the Michael and Perla Annabi is scheduled for July 13, 2018.
Yesterday, 25-year-old Jenzel Nash of El Paso; 26-year-old Terrance Yelder of El Paso; and, 30-year-old Miguel Munoz of Santa Teresa, all entered guilty pleas in connection with this investigation. Nash pleaded guilty to one count of aiding and abetting making a false statement on a loan/credit application. Yelder pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit bank fraud. Munoz pleaded guilty to one count of making a false statement on a loan application. Sentencing for Yelder and Nash is scheduled for July 12, 2018. Sentencing has yet to be scheduled for Munoz.
On March 14, 2018, 34-year-old Basem Elgelda of Petaluma, CA, pleaded guilty to three counts of making a false statement on a loan application. Elgelda is scheduled to be sentenced on June 6, 2018.
“These guilty pleas are a big win for the people of El Paso. The fraudulent actions of a few bad actors can make it much harder for our local financial institutions to serve the community," stated U.S Attorney John F. Bash.
Litigation is still pending against the remaining co-defendant in this case, 21-year-old Daniel Munoz of Santa Teresa. Munoz is charged with one count of conspiracy to commit bank fraud and making a false on a loan application. Jury selection is currently set for June 4, 2018, in El Paso before Judge Briones.
All of the defendants remain on bond. Each defendant faces up to 30 years in federal prison upon final conviction.
It is important to note that an indictment is merely a charge and should not be considered as evidence of guilt. The defendants are innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.
This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation with assistance from the El Paso Police Department. Assistant United States Attorneys Rifian S. Newaz, Robert Almonte and Debra Kanof are prosecuting this case on behalf of the Government.
New Hampshire Residents Sentenced for Participating in Scheme to Distribute Misbranded DrugsRead the Press Release
CONCORD – United States Attorney Scott W. Murray announced that John Hayes, 53, and his wife, Plabpleung Hayes, 50, of New Ipswich were sentenced today for participating in a scheme to distribute misbranded prescription drugs that they obtained from India.
John Hayes was sentenced to serve 30 months in prison and to pay a $2,500 fine. Plabpleung Hayes was sentenced to serve a year and a day in prison. Both previously pleaded guilty to participating in a conspiracy to distribute misbranded prescription drugs into interstate commerce. Plabpleung Hayes faces possible deportation to Thailand following the completion of her sentence.
According to court documents and statements in court, the defendants conspired with others, including John Hayes’ brother (James Hayes) and sister-in-law (Shannon Hayes) in North Carolina, to receive shipments of pills from India. During the course of the conspiracy, John and Plabpleung Hayes, along with their co-conspirators in North Carolina, received over 2.4 million prescription drugs from India, many of which were controlled substances. The defendants attempted to conceal their scheme by having the drugs shipped to numerous Post Office boxes, including boxes in southern New Hampshire and northern Massachusetts.
In addition, United States Customs and Border Protection (CBP) seized more than 60 shipments from India destined for locations controlled by John Hayes that were found to contain more than 100,000 additional pills. The pills were packaged in blister packs, with no packaging that a person would recognize as retail-type packaging, and with no directions for use. CBP sent numerous letters to John Hayes advising him that the seizures occurred because the drugs were imported contrary to federal regulations that prohibit the importation of controlled substances without the express authorization of the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA).
The defendants sent more than 5,000 packages to locations throughout the United States, including outside of New Hampshire, between February 2012 and September 2013. The defendants used an email account to manage and confirm the receipt of drugs from India, to receive and track customer orders for drugs, and to coordinate payments.
When a search warrant was executed at the Hayes residence in New Ipswich, investigators found more than 100,000 pills, including prescription drugs and controlled substances, as well as shipping labels, empty shipping containers, and other documents. Among those documents were two letters from the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) informing John Hayes that Tramadol tablets shipped to him were being refused entry into the United States because the drugs appeared to be unapproved and misbranded.
The drugs distributed by the defendants were not approved by the FDA and included foreign versions of Hydrocodone, Percocet, Valium, Xanax, Adderall, Ritalin, Ativan, Ambien, Tramadol, Soma, Sildenafil, and Tadalafil.
James Hayes, Shannon Hayes, and two additional co-conspirators were convicted of related charges in North Carolina.
“Misbranded drugs present a danger to the public,” said U.S. Attorney Murray. “The millions of pills that the defendants were distributing were not approved by the FDA and had the potential to harm, rather than heal, those who took them. The defendants placed their interests in profits over patient safety. I commend the law enforcement agents whose hard work dismantled this criminal scheme.”
“The FDA's requirements are designed to ensure that American consumers receive drugs that are safe and effective. When criminals import and sell misbranded prescription drugs, they risk patients’ safety and health,” said Catherine Hermsen, Acting Director of FDA’s Office of Criminal Investigations. “The work that’s done by CBP, FDA and our other partner agencies at the International Mail Facilities, where international mail entering the U.S. is received and processed, provides a front line defense against illegal, illicit, unapproved, counterfeit and potentially dangerous drugs from entering the United States. We are committed to pursuing those who jeopardize the public health by importing and distributing these dangerous products.”
“The Postal Service has no interest in being the unwitting accomplice to anyone using the U.S. Mail to distribute misbranded drugs. By using the mail system for a criminal purpose, Mr. and Mrs. Hayes put our customers’ health at risk. The U.S. Postal Inspection Service will continue to preserve the integrity of the mail by investigating those who use it illegally.” said Raymond Moss, Acting Inspector in Charge of the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, Boston Field Division.
“Mr. and Mrs. Hayes ran a dangerous operation, distributing unsafe drugs that endangered the public’s health. Their illicit pill mill was a family affair and now they are finally being held accountable,” said Harold H. Shaw, Special Agent in Charge, FBI Boston Division. “The FBI, along with our law enforcement partners, will continue to do everything we can to curtail this illegal activity and ensure that our communities remain safe.
“This case shows how vital effective federal law enforcement cooperation is to the safety of Americans,” said Michael Shea, Acting Special Agent in Charge, Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), Boston. “Through close law enforcement coordination, thousands of Americans were protected from the reckless actions of these individuals, who cared about nothing but enriching themselves at the expense of a serious life-threatening risk to the unwitting American consumer.”
This case was investigated by FDA’s Office of Criminal Investigations, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Department of Homeland Security, the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, and the Federal Bureau of Investigation. The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Arnold Huftalen and Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Sarah Hawkins, who is Senior Counsel, Office of Chief Counsel, U.S. Food and Drug Administration.
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Nampa Man Pleads Guilty to Distribution of Fentanyl and Methamphetamine resulting in DeathRead the Press Release
BOISE – Ryan E. Curtis, 44, of Nampa Idaho, pleaded guilty on April 4, 2018, in the United States district court to distribution of fentanyl and methamphetamine resulting in death, U.S. Attorney Bart M. Davis announced. Curtis was indicted by a federal grand jury in Boise on January 9, 2018.
According to court records, on August 13, 2017, Ryan Curtis distributed fentanyl to D.S. in Nampa Idaho. In Curtis’ presence, D.S. ingested a portion of the fentanyl, overdosed and lost consciousness. Instead of calling 911, Curtis attempted to revive D.S. by injecting him with methamphetamine. D.S. ultimately died from the drugs.
The charge of distribution of fentanyl and methamphetamine resulting in death is punishable by a mandatory minimum term of imprisonment of 20 years up to life, a term of supervised release of at least three years, and a maximum fine of $1,000,000.
Sentencing is set for July 3, 2018, before Senior U.S. District Judge Edward J. Lodge at the federal courthouse in Boise.
The case was investigated by the Nampa Police Department and the Drug Enforcement Administration.
The case was prosecuted by the Special Assistant U.S. Attorney hired by the Ada County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office and the Idaho High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area Board. The Idaho High Intensity Drug Trafficking Board is a collaboration of local law enforcement drug task forces and prosecuting agencies dedicated to addressing regional drug trafficking organizations that operate in Ada, Canyon, and Malheur County.
Muscatine Man Sentenced to 135 Months in Prison for Conspiracy to Distribute MethamphetamineRead the Press Release
DAVENPORT, Iowa – On April 5, 2018, United States District Court Chief Judge John A. Jarvey sentenced Michael William Elliott, Jr., age 46, of Muscatine, to 135 months in prison for conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine, announced United States Attorney Marc Krickbaum. Elliott was ordered to serve five years of supervised release following his term of imprisonment and pay $100 to the Crime Victims’ Fund.
On November 17, 2017, Elliott pleaded guilty to the charge that arose from an investigation by the Muscatine County Drug Task Force. Elliott was involved in a methamphetamine conspiracy from July 2016 through April 12, 2017. During that time, Elliott was responsible for distributing over 1,100 grams of methamphetamine and he possessed a dangerous weapon.
This matter was investigated by the Muscatine County Drug Task Force and the Iowa Department of Public Safety, DCI Criminalistics Laboratory. The case was prosecuted by the United States Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Iowa.
Members of Family-Run Drug Trafficking Organization Charged with Selling Heroin and Fentanyl Resulting in Two Fatal and Four Non-Fatal OverdosesRead the Press Release
PITTSBURGH, PA - Five Allegheny County residents have been indicted by a federal grand jury in Pittsburgh on charges of violating federal narcotics and firearms laws, United States Attorney Scott W. Brady announced today.
The 15-count indictment, returned on April 4 and unsealed today, named:
Brad Reed, age 26, of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania;
Greg Reed, age 26, of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania;
Justin McBride, age 26, of Munhall, Pennsylvania;
Antoinette McBride, age 29, of Munhall, Pennsylvania; and
Richard Ruby, age 31, formerly of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.
Brad Reed and Greg Reed are twin brothers. Richard Ruby and Justin McBride are both cousins of the Reed twins. Antoinette McBride is married to Justin McBride.
"This indictment charges these five individuals for their roles in a criminal heroin/fentanyl trafficking organization that is responsible for causing two overdose deaths and four non-fatal overdoses in which the victims needed to be revived with naloxone," stated U.S. Attorney Brady. "My office will continue to be relentless in our mission to identify and prosecute drug dealers, reduce overdoses and protect the people of Western Pennsylvania."
According to the indictment presented to the court, from in and around January 2014, and continuing until in or around December 2017, Brad Reed, Greg Reed, Justin McBride, Antoinette McBride, and Richard Ruby conspired to distribute and possess with the intent distribute heroin and fentanyl. The indictment further alleges that on or about October 3, 2016, Justin McBride distributed fentanyl which caused serious bodily injury and the death of a user of fentanyl; on or about December 8, 2016, Brad Reed caused serious bodily injury to a user of heroin and fentanyl; on or about December 31, 2016, Greg Reed caused serious bodily injury to a user of heroin and fentanyl; on or about January 30, 2017, Justin McBride caused serious bodily injury to and the death of a user of heroin and fentanyl; and on or about July 1, 2017, Justin McBride caused serious bodily injury to a user of heroin and fentanyl.
The indictment also alleges that on or about December 16, 2016, Brad Reed possessed with intent to distribute and distributed a quantity of heroin and fentanyl. The indictment further alleges that on or about January 31, 2017, Brad Reed, Justin McBride, and Antoinette McBride possessed with intent to distribute heroin, fentanyl, and cocaine and, on that same date, Justin McBride also possessed with intent to distribute crack cocaine. The indictment further alleges that on or about February 21, 2017, Brad Reed and Greg Reed possessed with intent to distribute heroin and fentanyl and Brad Reed unlawfully disposed of property for the purpose of preventing the government from taking the narcotics into its lawful custody. The indictment also alleges that on January 31, 2017, Justin McBride and Antoinette McBride possessed a firearm, a black Taurus .380 caliber pistol, in furtherance of the drug trafficking conspiracy.
Further, during various times between January 2014 and December 2017, the five defendants maintained and used various premises for manufacturing and distributing heroin and fentanyl. Specifically, the indictment alleges Greg Reed and Brad Reed used and maintained 5116 Lytle Street in Hazelwood; Justin McBride and Antoinette McBride used and maintained an apartment at 1813 West Street in Munhall; and Richard Ruby and Justin McBride used and maintained 5108 Glenwood Avenue in Hazelwood, all for the purpose of manufacturing and distributing heroin and fentanyl.
With respect to the charges against Justin McBride, Brad Reed, and Greg Reed, the law provides for a maximum total sentence of not less than 20 years and up to life in prison, a fine of up to $2 million, or both. For Antoinette McBride and Richard Ruby, the law provides for a maximum total sentence of not less than five years and up to 40 years in prison, a fine of $5,000,000, or both. Under the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, the actual sentence imposed would be based upon the seriousness of the offenses and the prior criminal history, if any, of the defendant.
Assistant United States Attorneys Timothy M. Lanni and Heidi M. Grogan are prosecuting this case on behalf of the government.
The Federal Bureau of Investigation – Western District of Pennsylvania Opioid Task Force conducted the investigation leading to the indictment in this case. This Task Force is comprised of FBI Special Agents and state and local Task Force Officers, including officers from the Pittsburgh Bureau of Police, Allegheny County Sherriff’s Department, Allegheny County Police, Port Authority Police, Munhall Police Department, West Mifflin Police Department, and Pennsylvania Attorney General’s Office.
An indictment is an accusation. A defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.