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19 October 2017
Central Ohio Man Sentenced to 204 Months for Creating Child PornographyRead the Press Release
COLUMBUS, Ohio – Jason E. Hoar, 32, of Reynoldsburg and Pickerington, was sentenced in U.S. District Court to 204 months in prison and 20 years of supervised release for producing child pornography.
Benjamin C. Glassman, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Ohio, Angela L. Byers, Special Agent in Charge, Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), Cincinnati Division, Westerville Police Chief Joseph Morbitzer and other members of the FBI’s Child Exploitation Task Force announced the sentence handed down today by Chief U.S. District Judge Edmund A. Sargus, Jr.
Hoar had admitted that he created child pornography and, in August 2016, communicated with an undercover detective via Kik messenger.
The undercover officer had posted online bulletin messages on specific social media forums that are frequented by individuals who have a sexual interest in children. Hoar sent the detective explicit photos of minor females to whom he had access.
This information was subsequently sent to the FBI in Columbus and a task force officer there reached out to Hoar in an undercover capacity providing information about an undercover profile on social media.
Hoar responded to the task force officer and again provided details of his sexual interests in babies and children.
Hoar told the officer that “girls shower pics” were some of his “favs” and that he had discussed “installing a hidden camera.” Hoar recorded prepubescent females in the bathtub, whom were unaware of the video recording, and sent it to the undercover officer.
Hoar told undercover officers that letting ‘guys jack off to pics’ of children he photographed was ‘sorta harmless.’
“In no way is this behavior harmless,” U.S. Attorney Glassman said. “Producing child pornography creates trauma for victims that they often have to relive for the rest of their lives as images of their abuse are shared time and again.”
Hoar pleaded guilty in April to one count of production of child pornography.
U.S. Attorney Glassman commended the cooperative investigation by the FBI’s Child Exploitation Task Force, as well as Assistant United States Attorneys Heather A. Hill and Jonathan J.C. Grey, who are representing the United States in this case.
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California Man Sentenced for Possessing Firearms after a Domestic Violence ConvictionRead the Press Release
Acting U.S. Attorney Duane A. Evans announced that QUINTON COOKS, 36, of California, was sentenced today after previously pleading guilty to two counts of possession of a firearm after having been convicted previously of a domestic violence offense.
U.S. District Judge Eldon E. Fallon sentenced COOKS to 41 months imprisonment, followed by 3 years of supervised release and a $200 special assessment.
According to court documents, on April 26, 2015, New Orleans Police Department (“NOPD”) detectives responded to the 3700 block of Earhart Boulevard because of reported gunshots. They observed an empty vehicle that had sustained several gunshots still running and in drive, with a door ajar. There were spent casings trailing down the sidewalk. The detectives encountered COOKS at the scene. Detective determined that COOKS exchanged gunfire with another vehicle and then hid the firearm in a nearby residence. The detectives recovered the firearm hidden in a shoe in the closet of the residence.
A week later, on May 3, 2015, Louisiana State Police troopers observed a hand-to-hand transaction between a pedestrian and a vehicle that was stopped on Loyola Avenue near Julia Street in New Orleans. COOKS and two others occupied the vehicle. As the troopers approached the vehicle, they detected a strong odor of marijuana emanating from within the vehicle, and observed the passengers making suspicious movements. The troopers searched the vehicle and recovered two firearms with extended magazines and a plastic bag containing marijuana. COOKS testified in state court that one of the firearms belonged to him.
Acting U.S. Attorney Evans praised the work of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives, the Louisiana State Police, and the New Orleans Police Department for investigating this matter. Assistant United States Attorneys Maria M. Carboni and Matthew R. Payne were in charge of the prosecution.
Brookfield Man Sentenced to 21 Years for Producing Child PornographyRead the Press Release
CONCORD, N.H. – Acting United States Attorney John J. Farley announced today that Andrew McKenzie, 28, of Brookfield, New Hampshire was sentenced to 21 years in federal prison for producing child pornography.
On July 5, 2017, McKenzie pleaded guilty to one count of child pornography production. According to court documents and statements made in court, in October of 2016, McKenzie began an instant messenger conversation through Kik with an undercover agent of the Federal Bureau of Investigation. The defendant agreed to send the undercover agent sexually explicit photographs of a minor child. The investigation determined that the images sent by the defendant were of a minor child known to the defendant.
“Preventing the production of child pornography is a high priority of the U.S. Attorney’s Office,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Farley. “We are committed to working with our law enforcement partners to identify and prosecute these troubling cases. By aggressively pursuing those who produce child pornography, we hope to deter others from engaging in similar egregious conduct in the future. This horrific conduct is harmful to young children and their families and does serious damage to our entire community.”
The case was investigated by the FBI and the Rochester Police Department. The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Helen White Fitzgibbon and Donald Feith.
In February 2006, the Department of Justice introduced Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative designed to protect children from online exploitation and abuse. Led by the United States Attorney’s Offices, 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 identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.projectsafechildhood.gov.
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Brazilian National Pleads Guilty to Scheme to Launder $20 Million in Proceeds from the Telexfree FraudRead the Press Release
BOSTON – A Brazilian national pleaded guilty today in federal court in Boston to conspiring to launder approximately $20 million in proceeds from the TelexFree pyramid scheme.
Cleber Rene Rizerio Rocha, 28, pleaded guilty to one count of conspiring to commit money laundering and one count of money laundering. U.S. District Court Judge Leo T. Sorokin scheduled sentencing for Dec. 7, 2017.
In April 2014, agents executed a search warrant at the headquarters of TelexFree Inc., a massive pyramid scheme based in Marlborough, Mass., that caused billions of dollars in losses to nearly two million victims. Later that same day, Carlos Wanzeler, one of the founders of the company, fled first to Canada and then to Brazil, his native country. In his haste to flee the United States, however, Wanzeler left millions of dollars hidden in the greater Boston area.
In mid-2015, an intermediary working on Wanzeler’s behalf contacted an associate for help transferring the money from the United States to Brazil. The associate, who later cooperated with federal authorities, arranged with Wanzeler’s representative in Brazil to launder cash through Hong Kong, convert it to Brazilian Reals, and then transfer it to Brazilian accounts. In January 2017, Rocha, working as a courier for Wanzeler’s representative in Brazil, flew from Brazil to New York City. Rocha later met the cooperating witness in Hudson, Mass., where Rocha gave him a suitcase containing $2.2 million of Wanzeler’s hidden TelexFree money, intending that the cooperating witness would help launder the cash out of the United States. After the meeting, agents followed Rocha to an apartment in Westborough, Mass., and he was later arrested. A search of the apartment resulted in the seizure of approximately $20 million in cash found hidden in a mattress box spring.
Wanzeler and TelexFree co-founder James Merrill were indicted in July 2014 on charges that they operated TelexFree as a massive pyramid scheme. Merrill pleaded guilty to those charges and was sentenced in March 2017 to six years in prison. Wanzeler remains a fugitive.
The charging statute provides for a sentence of no greater than 20 years in prison, three years of supervised release and a fine of $250,000 or twice the gross gain or loss, whichever is greater. Rocha will also be subject to deportation proceedings. Sentences are imposed by a federal district court judge based on the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
Acting United States Attorney William D. Weinreb and Matthew Etre, Special Agent in Charge of Homeland Security Investigations in Boston, made the announcement today. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Andrew E. Lelling and Neil J. Gallagher Jr. of Weinreb’s Economic Crimes Unit are prosecuting the case.
Bluffton Man Indicted for Distribution of Heroin and Opioids, Including Overdose DeathRead the Press Release
Charleston, South Carolina ---- United States Attorney Beth Drake stated today that Edwin M. Jenkins, Jr., age 30, of Bluffton, South Carolina was charged in a 7-count superseding indictment with two counts of distribution of heroin, one count of distribution of a mixture of heroin and fentanyl, one count of a mixture of heroin and furanyl fentanyl, one count of distribution of fentanyl, one count of possession with intent to distribute 40 grams or more of fentanyl, and one count of distribution of a mixture of furanyl fentanyl and U-47700 resulting in death, all violations of Title 21, U. S. C. Sections 841. The maximum penalty Jenkins could receive is life imprisonment and a maximum fine of $10,000,000.
US Attorney Drake said, “Those who are dealing in heroin and opioids should know that we will use the full array of our enforcement tools to reduce the supply of these deadly narcotics here in our communities in South Carolina. Some great policing as a result of an extraordinary level of collaboration between federal and local law enforcement brought forth the evidence we needed to file these charges.”
“The FBI is thoroughly engaged in fighting this epidemic. We are proud to work these matters with our law enforcement partners like the U.S. Attorney’s Office, Bluffton Police Department and the 14th Circuit Solicitor’s Office. Together with the help of our communities, we can turn the tide,” said Alphonso “Jody” Norris, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI in South Carolina. Bluffton Police Department Chief Joseph Manning added, “The agencies’ cooperation during this investigation was vital in bringing the charge before the court and hopefully lends some comfort to at least one family who has lost a loved one. We will continue to actively pursue offenders who poison our community.”
The case was investigated by agents of the Federal Bureau of Investigations, the Bluffton Police Department and the 14th Circuit Solicitor’s Office and is assigned to Assistant United States Attorney Nick Bianchi of the Charleston office for prosecution. The United States Attorney stated that all charges in this Indictment are merely accusations and that all defendants are presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty.
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Berkeley County woman admits to heroin distributionRead the Press Release
MARTINSBURG, WEST VIRGINIA – A Martinsburg, West Virginia woman has admitted to her role in a heroin distribution operation, United States Attorney William J. Powell announced.
Brandy May, age 36, pled guilty to one count of “Conspiracy to Distribute Heroin.” She admitted to conspiring with others to distribute heroin in Berkeley County in February and March 2017.
May faces up to 20 years incarceration and a fine of up to $1,000,000. Under the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, the actual sentence imposed will be based upon the seriousness of the offenses and the prior criminal history, if any, of the defendant.
Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Lydia Lehman is prosecuting the cases on behalf of the government. The Eastern Panhandle Drug and Violent Crime Drug Task Force, a HIDTA-funded initiative, investigated
U.S. Magistrate Judge Robert W. Trumble presided.
Benavides Man Sentenced for Assault on Federal OfficerRead the Press Release
LAREDO, Texas – A 24-year-old resident of Benavides has been ordered to federal prison for assaulting a Border Patrol agent by use of a deadly or dangerous weapon, announced Acting U.S. Attorney Abe Martinez. A federal jury sitting in Laredo convicted Oscar David Gonzalez II on April 12, 2017, after a two-day trial.
Today, U.S. District Judge Marina Garcia-Marmolejo, who presided over the trial, ordered Gonzalez to serve 84 months in federal prison immediately followed by three years of supervised release.
On Dec. 2, 2016, a Border Patrol agent was working highway interdiction on State Highway 16 south of Hebbronville. At approximately 10:20 p.m., he observed a Toyota Camry followed by a Nissan Altima traveling north in tandem at a high rate of speed. The agent positioned his marked unit behind the Camry and observed several subjects in the back seat attempting to hide. Another agent arrived in his marked unit to assist in a traffic stop on both vehicles.
The first agent conducted a traffic stop on the Camry, while the second agent continued following the Altima. As the first agent approached the Camry on foot, Gonzalez drove away in the direction of the second agent and the Altima and intentionally swerved into the driver’s side of the Border Patrol marked vehicle. The collision forced the second agent onto the shoulder of the highway, broke the vehicle’s driver side mirror and scraped the fender. Gonzalez continued driving the Camry north for a couple of miles before he as stopped and taken into custody by additional responding Border Patrol agents.
Border Patrol and the FBI conducted the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney (AUSA) Julian Castaneda and former AUSA Jorge Vela prosecuted the case.
Atwater Real Estate Professionals Among Four IndictedRead the Press Release
FRESNO, Calif. — On October 12, 2017, a federal grand jury returned a six-count indictment against John Ballard, 55, and Judy (Calderon) Ballard, 54, of Atwater and Sherry Herbert, 54, and Andrea Todd, 53, of Fresno, charging them with conspiracy, wire fraud and bank fraud in connection with a fraudulent short-sale scheme, United States Attorney Phillip A. Talbert announced.
According to the court documents, Ballard and Calderon were both licensed real estate salespersons and they owned a home in Atwater, which was their primary residence. When the couple defaulted on a loan on the property, they asked permission to short-sell the property to Herbert and Todd, but had no intention of actually transferring the property to them. They used a series of false and fraudulent representations to obtain approval from banks to conduct this transaction and caused these financial institutions to approve the charge-off of funds and the financing for the short-sale.
Herbert and Todd were arraigned today before U.S. Magistrate Erica P. Grosjean. Ballard and Calderon's arraignments are currently set for November 29, 2017, before U.S. Magistrate Judge Stanley A. Boone.
This case is the product of an investigation by the Merced County District Attorney’s Office and the Federal Bureau of Investigation. Assistant United States Attorneys Michael G. Tierney and Christopher D. Baker are prosecuting the case.
If any of the four defendants are convicted, they face a maximum statutory penalty of 30 years in prison and a $1,000,000 fine. Any sentence, however, would be determined at the discretion of the court after consideration of any applicable statutory sentencing factors and the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, which take into account a number of variables. The charges are only allegations; the defendants are presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.
Attorney General Applauds FBI's Massive Sex Trafficking CrackdownRead the Press Release
Note: Relevant video can be found here.
Underage Sex Trafficking Crackdown Leads to Recovery of 84 Minors
On Oct. 18, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, along with the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children (NCMEC), announced that 84 minors were recovered and 120 traffickers were arrested as part of Operation Cross Country XI, a nationwide effort focusing on underage human trafficking that ran from Oct. 12 to 15.
The Attorney General made the following statement on this crackdown: “Every American has the right to be safe from violence and exploitation, and it is the mission of this Department to help secure that right. Today we take the next step toward that mission with the arrest of more than 120 alleged sex traffickers and the recovery of more than 80 trafficking survivors.
“I want to thank and commend the dedicated men and women of the FBI, the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children and our local, state and international law enforcement partners who made these arrests and rescues possible. They have delivered results that make this country safer and show clearly that collaboration makes us more effective in combating child exploitation.
“The Justice Department will continue to pursue our mission and, to that end, we will remain tireless in our efforts to rescue victims and put those who victimize children behind bars.”
From the FBI Release:
This is the 11th iteration of the FBI-led Operation Cross Country (OCC), which took place this year in 55 FBI field offices and involved 78 state and local task forces, consisting of hundreds of law enforcement partners. This year’s coordinated operations took place with several international partners, including Canada (Operation Northern Spotlight), the United Kingdom (Aident 8), Thailand, Cambodia, and the Philippines.
“We at the FBI have no greater mission than to protect our nation’s children from harm. Unfortunately, the number of traffickers arrested—and the number of children recovered—reinforces why we need to continue to do this important work,” said FBI Director Christopher Wray. “This operation isn't just about taking traffickers off the street. It's about making sure we offer help and a way out to these young victims who find themselves caught in a vicious cycle of abuse."
As part of Operation Cross Country XI, FBI agents and task force officers staged operations in hotels, casinos, and truck stops, as well as on street corners and Internet websites. The youngest victim recovered during this year’s operation was 3 months old, and the average age of victims recovered during the operation was 15 years old. Minors recovered during Cross Country Operations are offered assistance from state protective services and the FBI’s Victim Services Division. Depending on the level of need, victims are offered medical and mental health counseling, as well as a number of other services.
“Child sex trafficking is happening in every community across America, and at the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children, we’re working to combat this problem every day,” said NCMEC President and CEO John Clark. “We’re proud to work with the FBI on Operation Cross Country to help find and recover child victims. We hope OCC generates more awareness about this crisis impacting our nation’s children.”
Operation Cross Country XI is part of the FBI’s Innocence Lost National Initiative, which began in 2003 and has yielded more than 6,500 child identifications and locations. For additional information on Operation Cross Country XI and the Innocence Lost initiative, please visit www.fbi.gov.
Examples of stories from various cities that took part in Operation Cross Country XI: On October 13th, FBI Denver recovered two minor girls—one 3-month-old and one 5-year-old. The subject, a friend of the children's family, offered an undercover officer access to the two children for sexual purposes in exchange for $600. The FBI is working with Child Protective Services to conduct a forensic interview and secure safe placement of the children. The subject was placed under arrest.
Also on October 13th, a 16-year old female victim was recovered by FBI El Paso, after an undercover agent called an online advertisement for entertainment. Shortly thereafter, the agent met with a 21-year-old female, who offered a fee of $200 to engage in sexual intercourse with her and another female, the 16-year-old victim. Further investigations revealed that a second adult female drove the minor and the 21-year-old to the undercover’s location. Both female subjects have been arrested on federal charges.
Note to Editors: B-Roll and interviews associated with this year’s operation can be downloaded at www.fbi.gov.Armed Meth Trafficker Faces 20 to Life After Plea in Federal CourtRead the Press Release
Columbia, South Carolina ---- United States Attorney Beth Drake stated today that Clinton Kent French, age 32, of Lexington, South Carolina, entered a guilty plea in federal court in Columbia, to Possession of a Firearm in Furtherance of Drug Trafficking, a violation of 18 U.S.C. § 924(c). Additionally, French entered a guilty plea to Felon in Possession of a Firearm and Ammunition, in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 922(g). United States District Judge Cameron McGowan Currie, of Columbia, accepted the guilty plea and will impose sentence after she has reviewed the presentence report that will be prepared by the U.S. Probation Office.
Evidence presented at the change of plea hearing established that French was arrested on June 24, 2017 at the Roadway Inn Hotel in Lexington County. After arresting French, Agents with the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and Deputies with the Lexington County Sheriff's Office executed a search warrant on the room and located 135 grams of crystal methamphetamine packaged in five separate baggies for resale. Agents also located a Springfield XDS, 9-millimeter firearm loaded with 11 rounds in the room. French admitted to possessing the firearm in furtherance of his drug trafficking. French has multiple prior felony drug convictions which qualify him as both a "career offender" under the United States Sentencing Guidelines as well as an “armed career criminal" pursuant to Title 18, U.S.C. § 924(e). As a result of his guilty plea to possession of a firearm in furtherance of drug trafficking and felon in possession of a firearm, French faces a statutory mandatory minimum sentence of 20 years with a maximum possible sentence of life without parole.
The case was investigated by agents of the ATF and Deputies with the Lexington County Sheriff’s Department. Assistant United States Attorney JD Rowell of the Columbia U.S. Attorney’s Office is prosecuting the case.
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45th Defendant Sentenced on Federal Charges Arising Out of ATF-Led Operation Targeting Drug Trafficking and Firearms Crime in Bernalillo CountyRead the Press Release
ALBUQUERQUE – In Aug. 2016, a multi-agency investigation led by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) concluded with the filing of 59 federal indictments and a federal criminal complaint charging 103 Bernalillo County residents with federal firearms and narcotics trafficking offenses. To date, 80 of the 103 defendants charged as the result of this investigation have entered guilty pleas and 45 of them have been sentenced.
The investigation was undertaken in support of a federal anti-violence initiative that targets “the worst of the worst” offenders for federal prosecution. Under this initiative, the U.S. Attorney’s Office and federal law enforcement agencies collaborate with New Mexico’s District Attorneys and state, local and tribal law enforcement agencies to target violent or repeat offenders for federal prosecution primarily based on their prior criminal convictions with the goal of removing repeat offenders from communities in New Mexico for as long as possible.
Today, Albuquerque, N.M., resident Matthew Sandoval, 38, was sentenced to 60 months in prison followed by three years of supervised release for his conviction on a heroin trafficking charge.
Sandoval and co-defendant Keith Thompson, 48, were arrested in July 2016, and were charged in a two-count indictment with distributing heroin on May 9, 2016, and distributing methamphetamine on May 19, 2016. Sandoval entered a guilty plea on June 30, 2017, and Thompson entered a guilty plea on June 29, 2017. In entering their guilty pleas, Sandoval and Thompson both admitted that on May 9, 2016, they sold heroin to another individual. Thompson is currently scheduled to be sentenced on Oct. 31, 2017.
Twenty of the defendants charged as the result of the ATF investigation have entered not guilty pleas to the charges against them. Charges in indictments are merely accusations, and defendants are presumed innocent unless found guilty in a court of law. Two defendants are fugitives and the charges against two defendants have been dismissed.
This case against Sandoval was investigated by the Albuquerque office of ATF and is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Samuel A. Hurtado.
30 Members and Associates of the “Nine Trey Gangster Blood” Gang Federally IndictedRead the Press Release
ATLANTA - Federal agents have arrested 17 members and associates of the Nine Trey Gangster Bloods criminal street gang on charges of RICO conspiracy and related charges stemming from an indictment returned by a federal grand jury on October 12, 2017. A total of 30 gang members and associates were indicted.
“The alleged crimes relate to drug distribution in the Atlanta area and acts of violence perpetrated largely against the gang’s own members. Shockingly, the Nine Trey Gangsters in this case appear willing to kill someone or to commit violence over the smallest perceived slight,” said U.S. Attorney Byung J. “BJay” Pak. “Thanks to the hard work of federal and local law enforcement officials, these individuals will now face prosecution for their alleged crimes.”
“The federal grand jury indictment and the resulting arrests sweeps made by the FBI and its many law enforcement partners stem from an intensive and exhausting FBI led Safe Streets Gang Task Force effort to remove these violent gang members, collectively known as Nine Trey Gangsters, from our streets,” Said David J. LeValley, Special Agent in Charge, FBI Atlanta Field Office. “The FBI continues to provide significant investigative resources directed toward the dismantling of these types of organized and violent criminal enterprises that do so much harm to our communities and the joint law enforcement operation clearly illustrates this.”
According to U.S. Attorney Pak, the charges, and other information presented in court: Beginning by at least 2013, the defendants named in the RICO conspiracy charge committed murder, attempted murder, conspired to commit murder, robbery, extortion, firearm crimes, drug trafficking, obstruction of justice and other crimes in furtherance of the Nine Trey Gangsters.
The indictment alleges that Nine Trey Gangster members committed one murder, attempted to commit two other murders, and conspired to commit multiple additional murders. In addition, the Nine Trey Gangsters allegedly trafficked in illegal narcotics including methamphetamine, illegal prescription drugs, and marijuana.
The RICO conspiracy charge names the following alleged Nine Trey Gangster members as defendants:
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- Gordon Evans, a/k/a “QB,” 36, of Atlanta, GA;
- Patrick Caple, a/k/a “Zoe,” 52, of Atlanta, GA;
- Gary Sartor, a/k/a “G-Stacks,” 33, of Atlanta, GA;
- Tyrone Clark, a/k/a “Tight-Eye,” 36, of Marietta, GA;
- Joseph Riley, III, a/k/a “Joe Blow,” 33, of Atlanta, GA;
. - Khajavious Mitchell, a/k/a “KJ,” 23, of Atlanta, GA;
- Tashied Reed, a/k/a “Row,” 24, of Atlanta, GA;
- Michael Jackson, a/k/a “MJ,” 23, of Clayton County, GA;
- Brandon Asberry, a/k/a “B5,” 28, of Atlanta, GA;
- Jimmy Rosser, a/k/a “Lil Jimmy,” 25, of Atlanta, GA;
- Kierra Maheia, a/k/a “Erra,” 26, of Atlanta, GA;
- Cetera-Bowles Griffin, a/k/a “Bella,” 28, of Atlanta, GA;
- Alfonzo Nalls, a/k/a “Offset,” 29, of Atlanta, GA; and
- Raekwon Williams, a/k/a “B-Ray,” 20, of Atlanta, GA.
- Gordon Evans, a/k/a “QB,” 36, of Atlanta, GA;
In addition to the RICO conspiracy the Indictment alleges multiple counts of attempted murder and conspiracy to commit murder in aid of racketeering against the following alleged Nine Trey Gangster members: Evans, Caple, Sartor, Clark, Riley, Mitchell, Tashied Reed, Jackson Asberry, Rosser, Bowles-Griffin, Nalls, Williams, Westly Shivers, a/k/a “Owon,” 27, of Atlanta, GA, and Wajzim Reed a/k/a “Wazi,” 23, of Atlanta, GA.
The indictment also alleges a drug trafficking conspiracy that includes trafficking in methamphetamine, marijuana, prescription medications and heroin, against the following alleged Nine Trey Gangster members: Evans; Caple; Sartor; Clark; Riley, Tashied Reid; Jackson; Asberry; Rosser; Bowles-Griffin; Williams; Marcus Russell, a/k/a “Double M,” 26, of Jessup, GA; Calmetrius Dawkins, 22, of Atlanta, GA; J’mon Hawkins, 21, of Atlanta, GA; and Earl Smiley, 27, of Greeneville, SC, and the following alleged gang associates: Linnie Andrews, 34, of Atlanta, GA; Adrian Ansley, 27, of Bethlehem, GA; Fred Arceneaux, 58, of Bonaire, GA; Erick Balcazar, 34, of Marietta, GA; Sheena Brown, 32, of Marietta, GA; Tremaine Garrison, a/k/a “Paperwork,” 35, of Marietta, GA; Cedrick Hill, a/k/a “Ced,” 25, of Marietta, GA; Monique Preston, 30, of Marietta, GA; Demario Ridley, a/k/a “Lil Yo,” 23, of Atlanta, GA; and Travis Todd a/k/a “T-Raw,” 25, of Atlanta, GA.
Maheia and Mitchell are charged with maintaining a drug premises that the gang used as a base to conduct their illegal activities. Mitchell and Williams are also charged with possessing firearms during their drug trafficking activity.
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 FBI Atlanta's Safe Streets Gang Task Force, composed of members of the FBI, Atlanta Police Department (PD), Alpharetta PD, Clayton County PD, Cobb County PD, DeKalb PD, GA Dept. of Community Supervision, GA Dept. of Corrections, Gwinnett County PD, Marietta PD and United States Postal Inspection Services. Investigative assistance was also proved by the GA State Patrol, Covington PD, Clayton County District Attorney’s Office and Gwinnett County District Attorney’s Office.
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.-
10 Members of Bronx Drug Trafficking Organization Charged with Distributing Thousands of Pounds of Marijuana Worth over $22 MillionRead the Press Release
Joon H. Kim, the Acting United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, James J. Hunt, the Special Agent in Charge of the New York Division of the Drug Enforcement Administration (“DEA”), James D. Robnett, the Special Agent in Charge of the New York Field Office of the Internal Revenue Service, Criminal Investigation (“IRS-CI”), Angel M. Melendez, the Special Agent in Charge of the New York Field Office of Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations (“HSI”), and James P. O’Neill, the Commissioner of the New York City Police Department (“NYPD”), announced today the unsealing of an Indictment charging HALLIL TABAR, ASMIN HERNANDEZ, JOHN MUNOZ-GARCIA, JAIRO CIENFUEGOS, WILLIAM BAEZ, HENRY RODRIGUEZ, DANNY HANNAH, JR., KEVIN UMEJEI, and STARLY HERNANDEZ with conspiracy to distribute marijuana, and a Complaint charging LORNE VICTORIA with conspiracy to distribute marijuana and use of a firearm in furtherance of drug trafficking. Nine of the defendants were arrested yesterday and presented before United States Magistrate Judge Sarah Netburn in Manhattan federal court, and STARLY HERNANDEZ was arrested this morning and will be presented before Judge Netburn later today.
Acting Manhattan U.S. Attorney Joon H. Kim said: “As alleged, these defendants conspired to ship millions of dollars’ worth of drugs across the country for eventual sale in New York City. Searches of apartments where the defendants allegedly resided uncovered guns and ammunition, multiple kilograms of cocaine, hundreds of pounds of marijuana, and thousands of dollars in cash. Drug trafficking organizations endanger public safety, and today’s multi-agency effort has successfully halted another such alleged organization.”
DEA Special Agent-in-Charge James J. Hunt said: “Yesterday’s arrests were part of ‘Operation Green Giant’, a Strike Force investigation targeting an organization allegedly reaping millions off the sale of marijuana in New York City. The alleged operation traversed the country with $22 million worth of marijuana sent to our city and the profit laundered back to California. I commend the good work of the Strike Force, Southern District of New York and our law enforcement partners on these arrests and dismantlement.”
As alleged in the Indictment and Complaint unsealed yesterday and today in Manhattan federal court[1]:
The defendants are members of a Bronx-based large-scale drug trafficking organization (the “DTO”) that shipped hundreds of boxes containing thousands of pounds of marijuana from California to various locations in New York. Between at least March 2016 and the present, the DTO trafficked in over 6,600 pounds of marijuana worth approximately $22 million, which was sent to residences and businesses in Manhattan, the Bronx, and New Rochelle. After the drugs were shipped to New York, the defendants transferred multiple boxes of marijuana per week to several stash houses from which the DTO members further distributed the drugs to customers and dealers.
In connection with yesterday’s arrests, law enforcement agents executed search warrants at 12 locations in the Bronx, including apartments occupied by several of the defendants. During the execution of those search warrants, agents recovered, among other items, three handguns, one sawed-off shotgun, ammunition, multiple kilograms of cocaine, hundreds of pounds of marijuana, and thousands of dollars in cash. DEA agents previously seized over $230,000 in cash from TABAR on October 14, 2017, at San Francisco International Airport.
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Charts setting forth the names, ages, charges, residences, and maximum penalties for the defendants are set forth below. The maximum potential sentences in this case are prescribed by Congress and are provided here for informational purposes only, as any sentencings of the defendants will be determined by the judge.
Mr. Kim praised the outstanding investigative work of the DEA’s New York Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Strike Force, which comprises agents and officers of the DEA, the NYPD, HSI, the New York State Police, IRS-CI, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF), U.S. Secret Service, the U.S. Marshals Service, New York National Guard, the Clarkstown Police Department, U.S. Coast Guard, Port Washington Police Department, and New York State Department of Corrections and Community Supervision. The Strike Force is partially funded by the New York/New Jersey High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area (HIDTA), which is a federally funded crime fighting initiative and part of the Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force (“OCDTEF”) program.
This case is being handled by the Office’s Narcotics Unit. Assistant United States Attorneys Catherine Geddes and Nicholas Folly are in charge of the prosecution.
The charges contained in the Indictment and Complaint are merely accusations, and the defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
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United States v. Hallil Tabar et al. &
United States v. Lorne Victoria
CHARGE
DEFENDANTS
MAX. PENALTIES
Conspiracy to Distribute Narcotics
21 U.S.C. §§ 846 and 841(b)(1)(A)
HALLIL TABAR,
JAIRO CIENFUEGOS,
WILLIAM BAEZ,
HENRY RODRIGUEZ,
DANNY HANNAH, JR.,
STARLY HERNANDEZ,
and
LORNE VICTORIA
Life in prison with a mandatory minimum of 10 years in prison
Conspiracy to Distribute Narcotics
21 U.S.C. §§ 846 and 841(b)(1)(B)
ASMIN HERNANDEZ,
JOHN MUNOZ-GARCIA,
and
KEVIN UMEJEI
Life in prison with a mandatory minimum of 5 years in prison
Use of Firearms in Furtherance of Narcotics Trafficking
18 U.S.C. § 924(c)(1)(A)
LORNE VICTORIA
Life in prison with a mandatory minimum of 5 years in prison
DEFENDANT
AGE
RESIDENCE
HALLIL TABAR
29
BRONX
ASMIN HERNANDEZ
27
BRONX
JOHN MUNOZ-GARCIA
30
BRONX
JAIRO CIENFUEGOS
27
BRONX
WILLIAM BAEZ
31
BRONX
HENRY RODRIGUEZ
41
BRONX
DANNY HANNAH, JR.
48
BRONX
KEVIN UMEJEI
25
BRONX
STARLY HERNANDEZ
30
CALIFORNIA
LORNE VICTORIA
37
BRONX
[1] As the introductory phrase signifies, the entirety of the text of the Indictment and Complaint, and the description of the Indictment and Complaint set forth herein, constitute only allegations, and every fact described should be treated as an allegation.
18 October 2017
Zapata Couple and Convicted Felons Sentenced on Firearms ChargesRead the Press Release
LAREDO, Texas – A 43-year-old Zapata man and his common-law wife have been ordered to federal prison following their convictions of being felons in possession of firearms, announced Acting U.S. Attorney Abe Martinez. Jesus Jose De Jesus and Amira Elizabeth Saenz, 35, each pleaded guilty March 21, 2017.
Today, U.S. District Judge Diana Saldana ordered De Jesus to serve 46 months in prison, while Saenz received a six-month term of imprisonment plus an additional six months to serve on home confinement for revocation of a prior supervised release. After completion of their sentences, both will serve three years of supervised release.
De Jesus is a convicted sex offender and multiple-time convicted felon. Saenz is a convicted drug felon. As such, both are prohibited from possessing firearms per federal law. On Oct. 27, 2015, law enforcement officers were conducting compliance checks on sex offenders in Zapata County, at which time they encountered four firearms inside a residential trailer located on the 3400 block of South U.S. Zapata Highway 83 in Zapata.
The next day, agents recovered the four firearms located in the bedroom the couple shared. The firearms included a .308 caliber rifle, .22 caliber rifle, seven millimeter rifle and a .410 caliber shotgun.
Saenz was permitted to remain on bond and voluntarily surrender to a U.S. Bureau of Prisons facility to be determined in the near future. De Jesus will remain in custody pending transfer to a U.S. Bureau of Prisons facility to be determined in the near future.
The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives conducted the investigation with the assistance of the Texas Department of Public Safety. Assistant U.S. Attorneys José Homero Ramirez and José Angel Flores Jr. prosecuted the case.
Yakima Man Sentenced to 150 Months in Federal Prison for Distributing MethamphetamineRead the Press Release
Spokane – Joseph H. Harrington, Acting United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Washington, announced that Jose Alberto Abundiz, a.k.a. “Scarface”, of Yakima, Washington, was sentenced today after previously having pled guilty on June 28, 2017, to distribution of a controlled substance – methamphetamine. United States District Judge Rosanna Malouf Peterson sentenced Abundiz to a 150-month term of imprisonment, to be followed by a 5-year term of court supervision after he is released from Federal prison.
According to information disclosed during court proceedings, in August of 2016, a citizen advised that a person known as “Scarface” was selling methamphetamine. The citizen later identified “Scarface” as Jose Alberto Abundiz. Law enforcement officers subsequently confirmed that Abundiz was distributing methamphetamine in the Yakima, Washington area. On September 7, 2016, law enforcement officers executed multiple search warrants in Yakima. The officers seized over $4,000 in U.S. currency, ammunition, firearms, and a significant amount of methamphetamine.
Harrington said, “This case again highlights the commitment, dedication, and strong partnership among local, state, and federal law enforcement officers in combating drug trafficking in the Eastern District of Washington. I commend the officers and agents for a job very well done.”
The Yakima Police Department, FBI, and the Washington State Department of Corrections conducted the investigation of this matter. The case was prosecuted by Ian L. Garriques, an Assistant United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Washington.
Williamson County Man Pleads Guilty to Methamphetamine OffensesRead the Press Release
On October 18, 2017, Shaundale J. Johnson, a/k/a "Shug," 35, Marion, pled guilty to a two-count indictment charging unlawful distribution of methamphetamine, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of Illinois, Donald S. Boyce, announced today. The offenses occurred on March 17, 2017, and March 20, 2017, in Williamson County. The offenses carry a maximum penalty of up to 30 years of imprisonment, to be followed by six years of supervised release, and a $2,000,000 fine.
The investigation was conducted by the Southern Illinois Enforcement Group and Drug Enforcement Administration. The Williamson County States Attorney’s Offices also assisted in the investigation.
Waynesburg Man Charged with Illegally Possessing Drugs, Guns and AmmunitionRead the Press Release
PITTSBURGH - A resident of Waynesburg, Pennsylvania, has been indicted by a federal grand jury in Pittsburgh on charges involving the possession with intent to distribute heroin and cocaine and the unlawful possession of firearms and ammunition, Acting United States Attorney Soo C. Song announced today.
The four-count Indictment, returned on October 17, named Julius Maurice Hurt, 32, of Waynesburg, Pennsylvania, as the sole defendant.
According to the Indictment, on or about May 3, 2017, Hurt possessed with intent to distribute a quantity of heroin and a quantity of cocaine. The Indictment also charges Hurt, a felon previously convicted of a felony drug offense, with unlawfully possessing firearms and ammunition, and with unlawfully possessing firearms in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime.
The law provides for a maximum sentence of not less than five years in prison and up to life, a fine of $2,500,000, or both. Under the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, the actual sentence imposed would be based upon the seriousness of the offenses and the prior criminal history of the defendant.
Special Assistant United States Attorney Jerome A. Moschetta is prosecuting this case on behalf of the government.
The case is being prosecuted as part of Project Safe Neighborhoods, a collaborative effort between federal, state and local law enforcement agencies, prosecutors, and communities to prevent, deter and prosecute gun crime. The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, the Pennsylvania State Police, the Waynesburg Police Department, and the Greene County District Attorney’s Office, conducted the investigation leading to the Indictment in this case.
An Indictment is an accusation. A defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
U.S. Attorney’s Office Announces Multi-Agency Law Enforcement Initiative to Reduce Violent Crime in AlaskaRead the Press Release
Anchorage, Alaska – Today, Acting U.S. Attorney Bryan Schroder announced the U.S. Attorney’s Office statewide Anti-Violent Crime Strategy, which brings together municipal, state, and federal law enforcement agencies to combat the tide of rising crime in Alaska. Earlier this month, Attorney General Jefferson Sessions announced the renewal of “Project Safe Neighborhoods,” (PSN) a program that successfully contributed to the reduction of violent crime approximately 15 years ago. As part of this renewed effort, the Attorney General tasked each U.S. Attorney’s Office with arriving at a comprehensive plan to address rising crime in their districts. A fundamental element of PSN is partnership with state, local, and tribal law enforcement agencies, and the Strategy described below was developed in consultation with state and local Alaska agencies, including Department of Law.
The Alaska Anti-Violent Crime Strategy, which has been in development for the past several months, has five major components designed to stem to tide of violent crime:
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- A federal “duty agent” will be called out to every murder scene and shooting scene. Their function will be to provide assistance, intelligence from any federal investigations, and to explore federal charges if requested to do so by state and local law enforcement and the Department of Law.
- A ballistics task force will review ballistic evidence at every shooting to match up ballistics from crime scenes and recovered firearms. There are already approximately 60 correlations between ballistics evidence at different crime scenes, and the ATF will be following up on each correlation to identify and prosecute the perpetrators of violent assaults in the most appropriate forum.
- Project “Real Time” is a program committed to the identification of violent offenders and the initiation of prompt federal prosecution.
- Anti-violence efforts in rural Alaska will focus on the partnership with the Alaska State Troopers, and be directed toward federal prosecution of violent felons and domestic abusers who possess firearms.
- Reentry and Prevention efforts. The goal of PSN and the Alaska Anti-Violent Crime Strategy is to prevent crime – not fill prisons. To this end, the U.S. Attorney’s Office is coupling the above programs with new reentry efforts. For example, Project Face to Face, which will be aimed at meeting with certain high-risk inmates scheduled to be released from custody. The purpose of this project is to make clear that violence and drug trafficking by repeat offenders will not be tolerated, but help is available for all those who wish to break the cycle of violence, drug trafficking and gang activity to become productive citizens. The U.S. Attorney’s Office, together with its federal partners, will continue organizing events at secondary schools all over Alaska to discuss the dangers of opioid abuse. This program, based on the DEA/FBI-produced documentary called “Chasing the Dragon,” will continue this year, as federal prosecutors, law enforcement officers, and medical professionals will join together to discuss their experience with the opioid epidemic.
The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Alaska and our partners have been employing some of the above strategies for the past two months. Following this model, the office has had a record number of federal charges filed since August 2017. In the past two months, federal charges have been filed against 68 individuals in 56 separate violent crime cases. This represents approximately twice as many indictments and defendants charged, compared to a similar two-month period last year. Many of these cases resulted from the cooperation of federal, state, and local entities, including cooperation from the Department of Law. Some representative cases include:
- U.S. v. Twigg and Conangnan. This case charged the defendants with interfering with commerce by robbery of two coffee stands on September 25, as well as using a firearm in furtherance of these crimes. Defendant Shane Twigg, 35, has seven prior felonies and had a pending assault case when the robberies occurred. Myles Conangnan, 27, has a prior felony for Burglary, as well as 16 other convictions, including six convictions from four separate cases in 2017 alone. Both defendants face mandatory minimum sentences of 32 years in federal prison if they are convicted.
- U.S. v. Sampo. This case charged carjacking by a four-time prior felon, Michael Sampo, 28. It is alleged that on September 12, Sampo approached a woman who had just left the Subway restaurant near the Northway Mall. Sampo presented a gun and demanded her keys and purse. When the victim said that her keys were somewhere in the bottom of her purse, Sampo shot his gun into the ground. The woman threw her purse into the car and ran back into Subway, after which Sampo drove off in her vehicle. About 90 minutes later, APD spotted the stolen car, which led to a chase that ended with police ramming the vehicle to a stop on 5th Avenue in Anchorage. Sampo fled the car and was apprehended by a K9 unit. The K9 unit later found the handgun Sampo had discarded while attempting to flee. Sampo faces up to 15 years on the carjacking charge, plus a mandatory minimum ten-year consecutive sentence for using the firearm to commit the carjacking.
- Numerous charges alleging felon in possession of firearms against several members of the 1488 gang, which is a white supremacist prison gang. Several of the gang members had been recently released from prison and were all found in possession of firearms.
All defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
Acting U.S. Attorney Schroder thanked the Alaska Department of Law, the Anchorage Police Department, the Alaska State Troopers, the FBI, ATF, DEA, U.S. Marshal Service, and the Department of Homeland Security Investigations, all of which contributed to one or more of the above cases, as well as actively participated in the formulation of the Alaska Anti-Violent Crime Strategy. Acting U.S. Attorney also thanked the Anchorage Municipal Prosecutor’s Office, which, since 2007, has assigned a prosecutor to work as a Special Assistant U.S. Attorney (SAUSA) on violent crime cases in Anchorage. In the past two months, this SAUSA has charged over ten violent crime cases.
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Two heroin dealers appear in federal court on drug chargesRead the Press Release
CHARLESTON, W.Va. – Two defendants appeared in federal court today for heroin crimes, announced United States Attorney Carol Casto. Gerald Tyrone King, 38, of White Sulphur Springs, previously pleaded guilty to distribution of heroin and was sentenced in federal court in Beckley to a year and nine months in prison. In a separate prosecution, Dana Stevenson, 26, of Charleston, pleaded guilty in federal court in Charleston to distribution of heroin.
King admitted that on May 27, 2016, he sold heroin to a confidential informant working with law enforcement. The drug deal took place in White Sulphur Springs. At sentencing it was determined that King had distributed additional quantities of heroin, cocaine, and fentanyl.
In a separate prosecution, Stevenson admitted that on December 14, 2016, he sold heroin to a confidential informant cooperating with police officers. The controlled buy occurred in the area of Garvin Avenue and Washington Street, West in Charleston. Stevenson additionally admitted that in January 2017, he possessed firearms, sold a shotgun, and distributed narcotics on multiple occasions. Stevenson faces up to 20 years in federal prison when he is sentenced on January 18, 2018.
The Greenbrier Valley Drug and Violent Crime Task Force conducted the investigation of King. Assistant United States Attorney John File is handling the King prosecution. United States District Judge Irene C. Berger imposed King’s sentence. The Special Enforcement Unit of the Charleston Police Department and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives conducted the investigation of Stevenson. Assistant United States Attorney Stephanie S. Taylor is in charge of Stevenson’s prosecution. Chief United States District Judge Thomas E. Johnston is presiding over the Stevenson case.
The King case was prosecuted under the Greenbrier Valley Heroin and Pill Initiative. Stevenson’s case was prosecuted as part of Project Safe Neighborhoods. Project Safe Neighborhoods is a nationwide commitment to reduce gun crime in the United States by networking with existing local programs targeting gun crime.
Both cases were brought as part of an ongoing effort led by the United States Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of West Virginia to combat the illicit sale and misuse of prescription drugs and heroin. The U.S. Attorney’s Office, joined by federal, state and local law enforcement agencies, is committed to aggressively pursuing and shutting down illegal pill trafficking, eliminating open air drug markets, and curtailing the spread of opiate painkillers and heroin in communities across the Southern District.
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Two Marijuana Scouts with Weapons Sentenced to PrisonRead the Press Release
TUCSON – Today, Jose Abelordo Guzman-Perez, 21, a citizen of Mexico, was sentenced by Chief U.S. District Judge Raner C. Collins to 97 months in prison, followed by a term of three years of supervised release. Guzman-Perez had previously pleaded guilty to conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute marijuana and carrying a firearm during a drug crime.
On the night of Sept. 28-29, 2016, the Tucson Sector U.S. Border Patrol Tactical Unit (BORTAC) responded to the Roskruge Mountains northwest of Three Points, Ariz., after a camera captured two suspected unauthorized aliens, later identified as Lorenzo Antonio Infante-Ortiz and Jose Abelordo Guzman-Perez, carrying backpacks. Guzman-Perez was also seen carrying a Century Arms AK-47 7.62 mm rifle and Sig Sauer P220 .45-caliber pistol, and Infante-Ortiz was seen carrying a Springfield Armory AR-15 .223-caliber rifle and Smith & Wesson 9 mm pistol. Air support units arrived and observed Infante-Ortiz and Guzman-Perez sleeping with the aforementioned rifles within arm’s reach of both of them, near a cliff with a 6-foot drop.
BORTAC agents struggled for hours in the pitch dark, utilizing only night-vision, to get in place to apprehend the defendants. Once in place, agents announced their presence and attempted to take the defendants into custody. Infante-Ortiz attempted to flee but was detained after a brief struggle. Guzman-Perez reached for the AK-47 and was promptly tackled by an agent. Guzman-Perez was combative and violently fought, causing him and the agent to fall off the cliff. The fall caused the agent’s left shoulder to dislocate, but the agent held on to Guzman-Perez with his other arm while the defendant continued to push, kick, and punch him. Eventually, Guzman-Perez got away from the agent and fell several times as he attempted to run down the mountainside in the dark. Agents on containment duty were then able to close in and capture Guzman-Perez before he left containment. Infante-Ortiz previously pleaded guilty and was sentenced to 36 months’ imprisonment.
The investigation in this case was conducted by the Homeland Security Investigations and BORTAC. The prosecution was handled by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Lawrence Lee and Adam Rossi, District of Arizona, Tucson.
CASE NUMBER: CR-16-01374-PHX-SPL
RELEASE NUMBER: 2017-102_Perez etal
# # #
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.
Two Indicted in Eastern District of Texas Wire Fraud ConspiracyRead the Press Release
SHERMAN, Texas – Two men have been indicted in a wire fraud conspiracy in the Eastern District of Texas, announced Acting U.S. Attorney Brit Featherston today.
Arlando Jacobs, 52, of The Woodlands, Texas, and Clarence Roland, 56, of Tacoma, WA, were named in a seven-count indictment charging them with wire fraud conspiracy, bank fraud, wire fraud, and aggravated identity theft. The indictment was returned by a federal grand jury in Sherman, Texas last week.
According to the indictment, between October 2011 and April 2017, Jacobs and Roland are alleged to have conspired with each other and others to create and submit fraudulent mortgage lien documents to title companies and financial institutions in order to receive transfers of funds they were not entitled to receive. According to an affidavit for a complaint, the fraud scheme resulted in approximately $3.7 million in fraudulent proceeds.
If convicted, the defendants face up to 30 years in federal prison. The maximum statutory sentence prescribed by Congress is provided here for information purposes, as the sentencing will be determined by the court based on the advisory sentencing guidelines and other statutory factors. A sentencing hearing will be scheduled after the completion of a presentence investigation by the U.S. Probation Office.
This case is being investigated by the Federal Housing Finance Agency-Office of Inspector General, Federal Bureau of Investigation, and Housing & Urban Development-Office of Inspector General. This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys J. Andrew Williams and Christopher Eason.
A grand jury indictment is not evidence of guilt. A defendant is presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
Two Behavioral Health Clinic Operators Plead Guilty to Conspiracy to Commit over $1 Million in Health Care FraudRead the Press Release
Jacksonville, FL – Acting United States Attorney W. Stephen Muldrow announces that Shawn Thorpe (30) and Ruben McLain (46), both of Winston Salem, North Carolina, have pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit healthcare fraud. Each faces a maximum penalty of five years in prison and a fine of up to $250,000. A sentencing date has not yet been set.
According to the plea agreements, Thorpe and McLain agreed that McLain was an “excluded provider” – meaning that he was prohibited from billing the federal health care programs for any services. McLain had been excluded from participation in these programs due to an earlier 2011 federal conviction for health care fraud.
Notwithstanding this exclusion, Thorpe and McLain together worked to create and manage Coastal Bay, a company that provided medical care to Medicaid patients. Thorpe never disclosed to the Medicaid program that he was working with an individual who had been excluded from participating in the program. In an effort to conceal McLain’s involvement, McLain used an alias – “Julian Winchester.” Through this alias, McLain performed a variety of functions, including hiring and firing individuals, seeing patients, and performing other managerial tasks. McLain routinely traveled from his home in North Carolina, to Jacksonville, to assist in Coastal Bay’s operations.
McLain and his family received significant financial benefits due to his involvement in Coastal Bay. Specifically, McLain had access to a Coastal Bay credit card, which he used to make routine purchases at restaurants, furniture stores, gas stations, and other places in North Carolina, even though Coastal Bay had no operations in North Carolina. In addition, McLain and his immediate family received more than $10,000 in direct payment withdrawals from the Coastal Bay business account.
This matter was investigated by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and the State of Florida Medicaid Fraud Control Unit. It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Jason Mehta and Jay Taylor.
Three New Jersey Men Charged in Manhattan Federal Court in Telemarketing Fraud Scheme Targeting the ElderlyRead the Press Release
Joon H. Kim, the Acting United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, announced the unsealing of a Superseding Indictment charging CHRISTOPHER WILSON, a/k/a “Eric Fields,” JACK KAVNER, a/k/a “Bob Wiley,” a/k/a “Phil Powers,” and DANIEL QUIRK, a/k/a “Lou Epstein,” a/k/a “Bill Huckabee,” a/k/a “Josh Newman,” with conspiring to commit wire fraud and money laundering. WILSON also is charged with destruction, alteration, or falsification of records in a federal investigation. WILSON, KAVNER, and QUIRK were arrested this morning and will be presented and arraigned this afternoon before U.S. District Judge Sidney H. Stein in Manhattan federal court.
Acting Manhattan U.S. Attorney Joon H. Kim said: “These three defendants, together with their previously charged co-defendants, allegedly targeted the elderly in a callous telemarketing scheme. They allegedly lured their victims into making ‘investments’ in businesses, then just stole their money. Together with HSI and the NYPD, we will continue to investigate and prosecute all those who target victims who are vulnerable because of their age.”
According to the allegations in the Superseding Indictment[1], a Complaint filed against co-defendants, and other statements in the public record:
Beginning in at least October 2013 through at least September 2016, WILSON, KAVNER, and QUIRK operated telemarketing companies (the “Telemarketing Companies”) that engaged in a fraudulent scheme (the “Telemarketing Scheme”), by which they promised to earn victims’ (the “Victims”) money in exchange for particular Victims making an initial cash “investment” in business development, website design, grant applications, or tax preparation services. Many Victims, the majority of whom are over 70 years old, “invested” thousands of dollars with the Telemarketing Companies, but did not earn any of the promised returns. When Victims of the Telemarketing Scheme sought refunds, or fought credit card charges, the Telemarketing Companies provided explanations and documentation to the credit card companies falsely representing that the Victims had received the promised services.
WILSON, KAVNER, and QUIRK participated in the Telemarketing Scheme by, among other things, operating the interrelated Telemarketing Companies as set forth in the below chart:
Telemarketing Company
Defendants
Olive Branch Marketing
CTO Consulting
CHRISTOPHER WILSON, a/k/a “Eric Fields”
Carlyle Management Group
Vanguard Business Solutions
JACK KAVNER, a/k/a “Bob Wiley,” a/k/a “Phil Powers”
DANIEL QUIRK, a/k/a “Lou Epstein,” a/k/a “Bill Huckabee,” a/k/a “Josh Newman”
Six other individuals were previously indicted in this case, which is scheduled for trial on April 16, 2018.
* * *
WILSON, 32, of Teaneck, New Jersey, KAVNER, 31, of West New York, New Jersey, and QUIRK, 33, of Little Ferry, New Jersey, are each charged with one count of conspiring to commit wire fraud and one count of conspiring to commit money laundering, each of which carries a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison. WILSON also is charged with one count of destruction, alteration, or falsification of records in a federal investigation, which carries a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison. The maximum potential sentences in this case are prescribed by Congress and are provided here for informational purposes only, as any sentencing of the defendants will be determined by the judge.
Mr. Kim praised the outstanding investigative work of HSI and the NYPD. He added that the investigation is ongoing.
The prosecution is being handled by the Office’s General Crimes Unit. Assistant United States Attorneys Kiersten A. Fletcher and Robert B. Sobelman are in charge of the prosecution.
The charges contained in the Superseding Indictment are merely accusations, and the defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
If you have any information regarding WILSON, KAVNER, QUIRK, or victims of the Telemarketing Companies, please report it by phone at (917) 480-7167 or by email at [email protected].
[1] As the introductory phrase signifies, the entirety of the text of the Superseding Indictment, and the description of the Superseding Indictment set forth herein, constitute only allegations, and every fact described should be treated as an allegation.
Texas Man Indicted for “Sextorting” Minors in IllinoisRead the Press Release
A Texas man was indicted on Wednesday by a federal grand jury in Peoria, Illinois, on charges related to the production of child pornography involving four minor victims, announced Acting Assistant Attorney General Kenneth A. Blanco of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division and Acting U.S. Attorney Patrick D. Hansen of the Central District of Illinois.
Mark P. Barnwell, 35 of Whitehouse, Texas, was indicted on four counts of production of child pornography and one count of being required to register as a sex offender while committing a sex-related felony involving a minor. Barnwell was initially arrested on Oct. 3, in Whitehouse, Texas on a federal criminal complaint.
According to the indictment, from September 2016 through November 2016, Barnwell employed, used, persuaded, coerced, and enticed four different minors to engage in sexually explicit conduct for the purpose of producing visual depictions of such conduct. Further, according to the Indictment, Barnwell committed a felony offense involving a minor while being required to register as a sex offender.
The charges and allegations contained in an indictment are merely accusations. A defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.
The charges are the result of a joint investigation by the U.S. Secret Service, the Peoria Police Department and the Peoria County Sheriff’s Office. The matter is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Ronald Hanna and Katherine Legge of the Central District of Illinois and Trial Attorney William Grady of the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS).
This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice. Led by U.S. Attorneys’ Offices and CEOS, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state and local resources to better locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the Internet, as well as to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.justice.gov/psc.
Students Take Pledge Against Gun Violence with U.S. Attorney, Police ChiefRead the Press Release
CINCINNATI – U.S. Attorney Benjamin C. Glassman and Cincinnati Police Chief Eliot K. Isaac united with middle school students this morning in taking a stand against violence.
The law enforcement officials joined a sixth grade class at Ethel M. Taylor Academy in signing a voluntary pledge promising that they will never take a gun to school, will never resolve a dispute with a gun and will use their influence to prevent friends from using guns to resolve disputes.
In coordination with the Department of Justice’s Project Safe Neighborhoods program, the Student Pledge Against Gun Violence is a national program that recognizes the role that young people, through their own decisions, can play in reducing gun violence. This campaign against youth gun violence culminates each October in a Day of National Concern about Young People and Gun Violence. Students from around the country join together in pledging to do their part to end gun violence. More than 10 million students nationwide have signed the pledge since its inception in 1996.
2017 marks the inaugural year for the initiative in the Southern District of Ohio, and U.S. Attorney Glassman has invited schools throughout the entire District to participate.
“The pledge is right: individual choices and actions, when multiplied by young people throughout the Southern District of Ohio and across the country, will make a difference,” Glassman said. “I’m proud to partner with Cincinnati Public Schools and the Cincinnati Police Department in working to prevent violence. Most of all, I’m proud of the students who took the pledge today and who will honor it going forward. They are the key to a better future for all of us.”
“I was truly inspired from our time with these amazing sixth graders in taking the pledge to make their communities, their city, and their country a safe place,” said Cincinnati Police Chief Eliot Isaac. “Fighting gun violence is of one of Cincinnati Police Department’s highest priorities and we are working strategically with our local and federal partners as well as Cincinnati Public Schools to end the senseless violence in our City. One the best ways we can start to do that is by working with and educating our youth on the effects of violence.”
If your school would like to participate in the pledge, contact Jennifer Thornton at [email protected].
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St. Mary's County Man Sentenced to 23 Years in Federal Prison for Committing Multiple RobberiesRead the Press Release
October 18, 2017
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Contact Bailey Drumm
www.justice.gov/usao/md at (410) 209-4885
Greenbelt, Maryland –Quantaz Lamar Shields, age 30, of Leonardtown, Maryland, was sentenced today by the United States District Judge Paul W. Grimm to 23 years of imprisonment for committing four armed robberies in St. Mary’s County, and brandishing a firearm during and in relation to those robberies.
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, and Sheriff Tim Cameron of St. Mary’s County Sherriff’s Office.
According to the guilty plea and accompanying factual stipulation, between October 20, 2015 and October 28, 2015, the defendant entered multiple locations while brandishing a firearm and stole business proceeds and other items. On November 5, 2015, law enforcement executed a search warrant at a location associated with Shields and located a 9mm Beretta handgun with a magazine containing six 9mm live rounds that Shields had used during each of the armed robberies. Law enforcement also located a Samsung flip phone that was used to communicate with the codefendant, Trevone Butler, during one of the robberies. During another search warrant executed at Shields’s sister’s residence, law enforcement seized over $2,000 in U.S. currency hidden throughout the house. Prior to the warrant, law enforcement obtained a recorded conversation between Shields (who was incarcerated) and his sister, where Shields directed his sister to deposit money into his commissary account from money hidden in her shed.
Butler was previously sentenced on December 2, 2016 to 57 months imprisonment for his role in the robberies.
Acting United States Attorney Stephen M. Schenning commended the FBI and St. Mary’s County Sherriff’s Office for their work in the investigation. Mr. Schenning thanked Assistant U.S. Attorney Kelly O. Hayes, who prosecuted the case.
St. Francis Man Sentenced for Assaulting a Federal OfficerRead the Press Release
United States Attorney Randolph J. Seiler announced that a St. Francis, South Dakota, man convicted of Assaulting a Federal Officer was sentenced on October 17, 2017, by U.S. District Judge Roberto A. Lange.
Christopher Little Elk, age 35, was sentenced to 10 months in prison, followed by 2 years of supervised release, and a special assessment to the Federal Crime Victims Fund in the amount of $100.
Little Elk was indicted by a federal grand jury on June 14, 2017. He pled guilty on July 25, 2017.
The conviction stemmed from an incident that occurred in Rosebud on May 12, 2017. Little Elk was standing in front of the Rosebud Police Department when a patrol officer pulled up to the building in his patrol vehicle. Little Elk approached the patrol officer and reported he was waiting for a ride. The officer told Little Elk he had to respond to a call, but that he might be able to give him a ride later. Little Elk became agitated and lunged at the officer, punching him in the chest and then pushing him. The officer drew his service weapon and ordered Little Elk to get on the ground. Little Elk refused to comply until the office pepper sprayed him, at which point Little Elk dropped to the ground and was placed under arrest.
This case was investigated by the Rosebud Sioux Tribe Law Enforcement Services. Assistant U.S. Attorney Kirk Albertson prosecuted the case.
Little Elk was immediately turned over to the custody of the U.S. Marshals Service.
South Charleston woman pleads guilty for theft from Tornado Post OfficeRead the Press Release
CHARLESTON, W.Va. – A South Charleston woman who stole from the Tornado Post Office in Kanawha County pleaded guilty today, announced United States Attorney Carol Casto. Martha Edele, 34, entered her guilty plea to theft of government money.
Edele was employed as an Officer-In-Charge at the Tornado Post Office. From December 23, 2013, through January 30, 2014, Edele took money that customers paid for stamps or money order sales. After taking the money, Edele would not report the transaction. Agents with the United States Post Office, Office of Inspector General, noted the account shortfall and spoke with Edele on January 31, 2014. Edele admitted taking the money, and she is no longer working for the United States Postal Service. Edele took $5,470.21 from the Tornado Post Office, and, as part of her plea agreement, has agreed to pay that amount in restitution.
Edele faces up to a year in federal prison and a $100,000 fine when she is sentenced on January 10, 2018.
The United States Postal Service, Office of Inspector General, conducted the investigation. Assistant United States Attorney Erik S. Goes is in charge of the prosecution. United States District Judge Joseph R. Goodwin presided over the plea hearing.
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Sioux Falls Man Sentenced for Possession of FirearmRead the Press Release
United States Attorney Randolph J. Seiler announced that a Sioux Falls, South Dakota, man convicted of Possession of Firearm by Prohibited Person was sentenced on October 16, 2017, by U.S. District Judge Lawrence Piersol.
Ehab Abdulmutta Jaber, age 46, was sentenced to 7 months in custody, 7 months of community confinement, and 3 years of supervised release. He was also ordered to pay $100 to the Federal Crime Victims Fund.
Jaber was indicted for Possession of Firearm by Prohibited Person by a federal grand jury on May 9, 2017. He pled guilty on July 25, 2017.
On April 9, 2017, Jaber, who later admitted he was a methamphetamine addict, while armed with two handguns, walked into a meeting being held at a Sioux Falls motel where the speaker was giving a presentation entitled “Sabotaging America: Islam’s March Towards Supremacy.” Jaber was asked to leave and he returned to his vehicle. There he streamed live video to Facebook where he displayed multiple firearms. Law enforcement officials later searched the vehicle and recovered a total of five firearms and over 600 rounds of ammunition. In a subsequent search of Jaber’s apartment, officers found methamphetamine and drug paraphernalia.
This case was investigated by the Sioux Falls Police Department and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives. Criminal Division Chief, Dennis Holmes, prosecuted the case.
Shelby County Woman, Trussville Man Prosecuted for Child PornographyRead the Press Release
BIRMINGHAM – A federal judge today sentenced a Shelby County woman to more than 24 years in prison for producing child pornography of an eight-year-old relative in 2015, announced U.S. Attorney Jay E. Town and FBI Special Agent in Charge Johnnie Sharp Jr.
U.S. District Court Judge R. David Proctor sentenced JENNIFER LYNNE GALLOWAY, 34, to 24 years and six months in prison on one count of producing child pornography. Galloway pleaded guilty to the charge in June.
After she took the photos of the child, Galloway sent them to a man she knew as Cory Haynes, whom she had met on the internet. Haynes actually was BRIAN WAYNE RAY, 55, of Trussville, according to Ray’s plea agreement with federal prosecutors. FBI investigators discovered the pornographic images that Galloway produced attached to emails between Ray and a man living in Washington, D.C., according to the plea agreement. The FBI also located other images of child pornography within Ray’s email account.
Ray pleaded guilty Oct. 11 to one count of distributing child pornography between March 9, 2016, and March 15, 2016, using the internet and an email account. He also pleaded guilty to one count of possessing child pornography between Feb. 14, 2016, and July 5, 2016, in Jefferson County. Ray is scheduled for sentencing Jan. 23.
Ray will face between five and 20 years in prison.
The FBI investigated the case, which Assistant U.S. Attorney Erica Williamson Barnes is prosecuting.
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Salina Man Pleads Guilty to Sexually Exploiting Three ChildrenRead the Press Release
SYRACUSE, NEW YORK - Charles Poltenson, 28, of Salina, New York, pled guilty today to three counts of sexual exploitation of a child, announced Acting United States Attorney Grant C. Jaquith and Vadim D. Thomas, Special Agent-in-Charge of the Albany Field Office of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI).
In entering his guilty plea today, Poltenson admitted that he recorded via the internet three minor children engaged in sexually explicit conduct over a three-year period.
As part of his guilty plea, Poltenson admitted that from 2014 through 2016 he used the real-time video technology of Skype to chat with numerous female children online. During the course of these Skype chat sessions, Poltenson persuaded, induced, enticed, or coerced girls between the ages of 10 and 15 to engage in sexually explicit conduct. While engaging in these online interactions with children, the defendant misrepresented his true-identity, pretending to be a 16- year old teen. Charles Poltenson’s actual age at the time was between 24 and 26 years old.
As part of his guilty plea, Poltenson further admitted that in addition to the live Skype sessions, he also used the internet to send voice recordings with specific instructions about sexually explicit videos he wanted various female children between the ages of 10-15 to create for him. In response to his instructions, girls between the ages of 10 and 15 created sexually explicit videos for the defendant.
United States District Judge Hon. Brenda K. Sannes will sentence Poltenson on April 13, 2018. He faces a mandatory minimum term of 15 years imprisonment on each count, with a maximum penalty of 30 years imprisonment per count. He will be required to serve a term of supervised release of a minimum of 5 years, and up to life, following his term of imprisonment. Poltenson will also be required to register as a sex offender.
This joint investigation was conducted by the FBI Syracuse Mid-State Child Exploitation Task Force. This task force is comprised of FBI Agents and Investigators of the New York State Police Bureau of Criminal Investigation. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Geoffrey J. L. Brown.
Launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice, Project Safe Childhood is led by United States Attorneys’ Offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS). Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state and local resources to better locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the Internet, as well as to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit https://www.justice.gov/psc.
Sacaton Woman Sentenced to Federal Prison for Selling Methamphetamine on the Gila River Indian CommunityRead the Press Release
PHOENIX - On Oct. 17, 2017, Carmela Marvelle Lopez, 28, of Sacaton, Ariz., and a member of the Gila River Indian Community, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Steven P. Logan to 57 months in prison, followed by a term of three years of supervised release. Lopez had previously pleaded guilty to possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine.
Between Feb. 19, 2016 and March 9, 2016, Lopez sold methamphetamine to an undercover officer on three separate occasions. Lopez conducted two of those methamphetamine sales at her former residence located on the Gila River Indian Community.
The investigation in this case was conducted by the Bureau of Indian Affairs and the Gila River Police Department. The prosecution was handled by Christina J. Reid-Moore, Assistant U.S. Attorney, District of Arizona, Phoenix.
CASE NUMBER: CR-16-01374-PHX-SPL
RELEASE NUMBER: 2017-100_Lopez
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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.
Rochester Man Pleads Guilty to Bank RobberyRead the Press Release
CONTACT: Barbara Burns
PHONE: (716) 843-5817
FAX: (716) 551-3051ROCHESTER, N.Y. -- Acting U.S. Attorney James P. Kennedy, Jr. announced today that Claude Taylor, 38, of Rochester, NY, pleaded guilty, before U.S. District Judge Elizabeth A. Wolford, to robbing the Lexington Federal Credit Union at 1275 Lexington Avenue in Rochester. The charge carries a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison, a fine of $250,000, or both.
Assistant U.S. Charles E. Moynihan, who is handling the prosecution of the case, stated that on May 5, 2016, Taylor entered the Lexington Federal Credit Union, waited in line and then passed a hand written note to a bank teller. The note, which was written on an envelope, demanded that the teller turn over $5,000. The defendant yelled, ordering the teller to “do it fast.” Taylor also ordered a neighboring teller not to interfere. The bank teller turned over money, and Taylor ran from the bank. Subsequent investigation identified the defendant, and on May 22, 2017, Taylor was arrested by law enforcement officers.
The plea is the culmination of an investigation on the part of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, under the direction of Special Agent-in-Charge Adam S. Cohen; the United States Marshal’s Service, under the direction of Charles Salina; and the Rochester Police Department, under the direction of Chief Michael Ciminelli.
Sentencing is scheduled for January 22, 2017, at 10:30 a.m. before Judge Wolford.Resolution of ADA Compliance Reviews of Twelve Philadelphia RestaurantsRead the Press Release
Louis D. Lappen, Acting United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania, announced a series of agreements to resolve the U.S. Attorney’s Office Americans With Disabilities Act (ADA) compliance review of twelve Philadelphia restaurants. The restaurants are operated by Garces Restaurant Group (“Garces”), Starr Restaurant Organization (“Starr”), Restaurant 13 and Longacre Holdings (“Longacre”). The government inspected these restaurants for ADA compliance as part of the ADA Compliance Review of 25 Philadelphia restaurants launched by the United States Attorney’s Office in 2015. These restaurants were not reviewed in response to any specific complaint.
Garces entered into a Voluntary Compliance Agreement to resolve the government’s ADA compliance review of Amada, Tinto, and Village Whiskey. Starr and affiliated entities entered into Voluntary Compliance Agreements to resolve the government’s ADA compliance review of Buddakan, Butcher & Singer, Dandelion, El Vez, Morimoto, Parc, and Talula’s Garden. Restaurant 13 entered into a Voluntary Compliance Agreement to resolve the government’s ADA compliance review of Barbuzzo.
Longacre entered into a settlement agreement to resolve the government’s 2016 lawsuit filed in federal court arising from Longacre’s failure to cooperate with the ADA Compliance Review of South Philadelphia Tap Room.
The agreements announced today require the restaurant operators to take steps to remove specific barriers to accessibility identified by the Department of Justice during inspections of these twelve restaurants. These agreements also require each operator to identify and correct violations of the ADA that may exist in affiliated restaurants and to implement new or revised ADA policies. Collectively, these agreements will impact accessibility at dozens of restaurants.
“The U.S. Attorney’s Office initiated this compliance review to ensure that individuals with disabilities have equal access to area restaurants to the full extent guaranteed by the Americans With Disabilities Act. The agreements announced today further that important goal,” said Lappen. “Restaurants must comply with the accessibility provisions of the ADA. If they do not we, will continue to take all reasonable steps within our power to enforce compliance, including litigation if necessary.”
The ADA compliance review of these restaurants was handled by the office’s Civil Rights Coordinator, Assistant U.S. Attorney Jacqueline C. Romero, and Assistant U.S. Attorney John T. Crutchlow.
Randolph County Man Sentenced for Methamphetamine OffenseRead the Press Release
On October 18, 2017, Justin M. Rice, 27, Sparta, was sentenced to federal prison for a methamphetamine offense, Donald S. Boyce, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Illinois, announced today.
Rice, who had previously pled guilty to a one-count superseding indictment charging conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine, was sentenced to 108 months of imprisonment, three years of supervised release, and was fined $200.00. The superseding indictment alleges that the methamphetamine offense occurred between 2014 and September 2016, in Perry, Randolph, St. Clair, and Franklin Counties. Evidence at the plea and sentencing hearings established that Rice was involved with numerous other persons in the distribution of ice in southern Illinois. Ice is methamphetamine which has a purity level of at least 80%. At sentencing, the district court found that Rice was responsible for the distribution of 137 grams of ice. Rice received a sentence enhancement based on his possession of a firearm. Co-defendants Bradley M.D. Miller and Taylor C. Robertson were previously sentenced to prison terms of 169 months and 57 months, respectively, for their roles in the ice conspiracy. Two additional co-defendants have pled guilty and are awaiting sentencing. One co-defendant has pled not guilty and is being held without bond pending an October 26, 2017, change of plea hearing.
The ongoing investigation is being conducted by the Randolph County Sheriff’s Office, Jackson County Sheriff’s Office, Perry County Sheriff’s Office, Percy Police Department, Steeleville Police Department, Illinois State Police, Sparta Police Department and Southern Illinois Drug Task Force. The Randolph County States Attorney’s Office also assisted in the investigation.
Prince George's County Liquor Board Official Pleads Guilty to Conspiracy, Bribery, and Obstruction of JusticeRead the Press Release
Sent to Baltimore and Washington media.
October 18, 2017
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Contact ELIZABETH MORSE
www.justice.gov/usao/md at (410) 209-4885
Greenbelt, Maryland – On October 17, 2017, Prince George’s County Liquor Board official David Dae Sok Son, age 41, of Bowie, Maryland, pleaded guilty to an Information charging him with conspiracy, bribery, and obstruction of justice, in a scheme involving alcoholic beverage licenses in Prince George’s County, Maryland.
The guilty plea 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 Stawinski III of the Prince George’s County Police Department.
Son was a Commissioner on the Prince George’s County Board of License Commissioners (“Liquor Board”) from 2005 through 2014. During the 2015 Maryland legislative session, Son served as a liaison for the Prince George’s County Senate delegation. He returned to the Liquor Board later in 2015, as its Director.
As described in the affidavit filed in support of the criminal complaint and in the plea agreement, Son solicited and facilitated bribes, from lobbyists and business owners, including co-conspirators Young Jung Paig and Shin Ja Lee. The bribe recipients were elected state officials, including then-County Councilman William Alberto Campos-Escobar (a/k/a “Will Campos”) and then-Delegate Michael Vaughn.
For example, during a meeting on April 4, 2014, Son informed an FBI Confidential Human Source (“CHS”) that Campos needed $10,000 to pay an expense related to Campos’s campaign for Maryland State Delegate. Son told the CHS that Son had spoken with Campos about the CHS giving cash to Campos in exchange for Campos arranging for another grant to be awarded to a non-profit organization selected by the CHS.
On or about April 9, 2014, Son met the CHS at a coffee shop in Lanham, Maryland. Son told the CHS that Son had told Campos to “hook [the CHS] up” with the developer of a new business in the County, so that the developer would retain the CHS’s business services. Son explained to the CHS that the business owed Campos, because Campos obtained a tax benefit for the business. Son and the CHS then walked to the coffee shop’s parking lot, where the CHS’s vehicle was located. The CHS then retrieved $3,000 in U.S. currency from the CHS’s vehicle.
On or about April 9, 2014, Son gave Campos the $3,000 in U.S. currency that Son had received from the CHS. Later on April 9, 2014, Campos sent a text message to the CHS that stated, “I owe you big time my man.”
Beginning in 2015, Son solicited and facilitated bribe payments from lobbyists and business owners who were interested in the “Sunday Sales Bill,” which established up to 100 Sunday liquor sales permits in Prince George’s County. The bribes were intended to influence public officials in the performance of their official duties. For example, in 2015, Son had asked Campos to assist in passing the Sunday Sales bill by talking to one of his colleagues about the bill; both subsequently voted in favor of the bill. On April 22, 2015, after the passage of the bill, Son arranged a lunch between Campos, Paig, and Lee. A lobbyist and attorney, Matthew Gorman, also attended. During the lunch, Son told Campos to meet Paig in the men’s bathroom, saying that Paig was “… going to hook you up.” In the men’s bathroom, Paig handed Campos an envelope containing a total of $4,000 cash, which constituted a bribe from Son, Paig, Lee, and Gorman. In addition, on October 19, 2015, Son received a $4,000 bribe payment from a lobbyist for his assistance in ensuring that the lobbyist’s clients received Sunday Sales licenses.
Lee and Paig subsequently talked to Son about getting beneficial legislation introduced related to the Sunday Sales bill and indicated that they would be willing to pay $50,000 to make that happen. Son spoke with Delegate Vaughn, who agreed to introduce legislation. On November 10, 2015, Son arranged for Paig and Lee to meet with Vaughn so they could make a “down payment.” After the meeting, law enforcement observed Paig and Vaughn get into Vaughn’s car, while Lee and Son waited in the parking lot. Shortly after Paig got out of the car, Vaughn drove directly to a bank in the same shopping center. Bank surveillance video shows Vaughn pulling a stack of cash out of his right pocket and handing it to the teller, and then doing the same from his left pocket. Bank records show that Vaughn deposited a total of $4,000.
On December 17, 2016, after Son had been questioned by the FBI, he hand-wrote a letter to another subject of the FBI’s investigation informing the subject that Son had been “taken” by the “Feds” and was “wired” when he last visited the subject. In the letter, Son also listed names of individuals who had “flipped,” or cooperated with the FBI. Son further described devices used by the FBI for body wires and told the subject that the subject should assume meetings with Son were being recorded. Son also laid out means by which the subject and Son could communicate secretly.
If convicted, Son faces a maximum sentence of five years in prison for the conspiracy, ten years in prison for bribery, and 20 years in prison for obstruction of justice. U.S. District Court Judge Paula Xinis has scheduled sentencing for January 22, 2018 at 10 a.m. in U.S. District Court in Greenbelt.
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. Attorneys Thomas P. Windom, Menaka Kalaskar, Arun G. Rao, and James A. Crowell IV, who prosecuted the case.
Plainfield Man Pleads Guilty to Charge Stemming from Overdose Death InvestigationRead the Press Release
Deirdre M. Daly, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, announced that GEORGE KINNEY, 34, of Plainfield, pleaded guilty today before U.S. District Judge Victor A. Bolden in Bridgeport to one count of possession with intent to distribute, and distribution of heroin and fentanyl.
This matter stems from an ongoing statewide initiative targeting narcotics dealers who distribute heroin, fentanyl or opioids that cause death or serious injury to users.
According to court documents and statements made in court, on August 31, 2016, the Plainfield Police Department responded to a report of an untimely death of a 38-year-old female at a hotel in Plainfield. At the scene, officers seized drug and non-drug evidence, including bags that appear to have contained heroin and/or fentanyl that were located in a bathroom garbage can. The investigation revealed that KINNEY had provided the drugs to the victim and her boyfriend shortly before the victim’s death.
KINNEY was arrested on May 9, 2017. At the time of his arrest, KINNEY possessed 40 bags of heroin, most of which had identical labeling to the bags found at the hotel. Forensic analysis of the bags revealed the presence of heroin and fentanyl.
KINNEY has been detained since his arrest.
Judge BOLDEN scheduled sentencing for January 10, 2018, at which time KINNEY faces a maximum term of imprisonment of 20 years.
This matter has been investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration’s New Haven Tactical Diversion Squad and the Plainfield Police Department. The Tactical Diversion Squad includes members from the New Haven, Hamden, Greenwich, Shelton, Bristol, Vernon, Wilton, Milford, Monroe and Fairfield Police Departments, and the Connecticut State Police.
This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney John T. Pierpont, Jr.
Pittsburgh Man Sentenced to 5 Years in Prison for Conspiring to Distribute HeroinRead the Press Release
PITTSBURGH – Gemere Bey was sentenced to 60 months in federal prison for conspiring to distribute at least 100 grams of heroin, Acting United States Attorney Soo C. Song announced today.
Bey, age 27, formerly of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, was sentenced by United States District Court Judge Nora Barry Fischer. Judge Fischer ordered that Bey serve four years of supervised release after he is released from prison. Bey’s sentencing guideline range for the heroin trafficking conviction was increased for his possession of a dangerous weapon and for his use of violence or credible threat to use violence.
Assistant United States Attorneys Rachael L. Dizard and Craig W. Haller prosecuted this case on behalf of the United States.
The Drug Enforcement Administration and the Pittsburgh Bureau of Police led the multi-agency investigation of this case that also included the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives, the Department of Homeland Security/Homeland Security Investigations, the United States Marshals Service, the Pennsylvania State Police, the Scott Township Police Department, the Munhall Police Department, the Baldwin Police Department, and the Pleasant Hills Police Department. The investigation was funded by the federal Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force Program (OCDETF). The OCDETF program supplies critical federal funding and coordination that allows federal and state agencies to work together to successfully identify, investigate, and prosecute major interstate and international drug trafficking organizations and other criminal enterprises.
Pittsburgh Man Sentenced to 12 Years in Prison for Distributing Fentanyl that Killed Two and Injured ThreeRead the Press Release
PITTSBURGH – Jocquinn Lamont Harris, a former resident of Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, has been sentenced in federal court to 144 months imprisonment, followed by six years supervised release, on charges of distribution and possession with intent to distribute fentanyl. Harris was also ordered to pay $11,396.76 in restitution, Acting United States Attorney Soo C. Song announced today.
United States District Judge Reggie B. Walton imposed the sentence Monday on Jocquinn Lamont Harris, age 31, formerly of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.
According to information presented to the court, on or about November 29, 2015; December 3, 2015; December 4, 2015; and December 5, 2015, Harris distributed and possessed with the intent to distribute fentanyl. These distributions resulted in the death of two individuals and serious bodily injury to three individuals.
Assistant United States Attorney Cindy K. Chung prosecuted this case on behalf of the government.
Acting U.S. Attorney Song commended the Pittsburgh Bureau of Police for conducting the investigation leading to the successful prosecution of Jocquinn Lamont Harris.
Pittsburgh Man Sentenced to 10 Years in Prison for Running Heroin Trafficking RingRead the Press Release
PITTSBURGH – Christopher Brown was sentenced to 120 months in federal prison for conspiring to distribute at least one kilogram of heroin, Acting United States Attorney Soo C. Song announced today.
Brown, age 24, formerly of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, was sentenced by United States District Court Judge Nora Barry Fischer. Judge Fischer ordered that Brown serve five years of supervised release after he is released from prison. Brown’s sentencing guideline range for the heroin trafficking conviction was increased for possession of a dangerous weapon, for maintaining a premises for the purpose of distributing a controlled substance, and for management or supervision of criminal activity that involved five or more participants.
Assistant United States Attorneys Rachael L. Dizard and Craig W. Haller prosecuted this case on behalf of the United States.
The Drug Enforcement Administration and the Pittsburgh Bureau of Police led the multi-agency investigation of this case that also included the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives, the Department of Homeland Security/Homeland Security Investigations, the United States Marshals Service, the Pennsylvania State Police, the Scott Township Police Department, the Munhall Police Department, the Baldwin Police Department, and the Pleasant Hills Police Department. The investigation was funded by the federal Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force Program (OCDETF). The OCDETF program supplies critical federal funding and coordination that allows federal and state agencies to work together to successfully identify, investigate, and prosecute major interstate and international drug trafficking organizations and other criminal enterprises.
Pilot Sentenced for Operating Aircraft While Under the Influence of Alcohol at Cherry Capital AirportRead the Press Release
GRAND RAPIDS, MICHIGAN — Acting U.S. Attorney Andrew Birge announced today that Sean Michael Fitzgerald, 36, of Boca Raton, Florida, was sentenced by Chief U.S. District Judge Robert J. Jonker for operating a common carrier under the influence of alcohol. Fitzgerald will serve 12 months and 1 day confinement, 3 years of supervised release, and pay a $5,500 fine. Chief Judge Jonker commented that public deterrence is needed to remind the public and the flying community that this behavior is intolerable.
The evidence at trial established that on August 25, 2016, Fitzgerald arrived at the Cherry Capital Airport in Traverse City, Michigan, to co-pilot a private charter to Bedford, Massachusetts. On the way to the airport and once there, witnesses observed obvious signs of intoxication, including slurred speech, the smell of alcohol on his breath, and bloodshot eyes. Fitzgerald proceeded to the plane and began the pre-flight preparation process before he was arrested. Among other tasks, he inspected the plane, completed systems checks, turned on the auxiliary power unit, and received clearance for the flight’s route from air traffic control. After the arrest, his blood alcohol content was measured at 0.343%.
"Without prompt action by the pilot and airport personnel, this incident could have developed into a tragedy on the ground or in the air," Birge said. "I hope this sentence serves to deter pilots from showing up for work intoxicated and endangering all those who work at airports or fly for work or pleasure."
"The safety of commercial aviation is of utmost importance to the FBI and cannot be compromised. Today’s sentencing is a reminder that operating an aircraft while intoxicated endangers the public and can cause real life consequences," said David P. Gelios, Special Agent in Charge, Detroit Division of the FBI. "While troubling, this case does not reflect on the vast majority of flight crew professionals who conduct themselves in the best interest of public safety. It does reinforce the importance of how the public's vigilance can result in the protection of other people’s lives."
The FBI and the Traverse City Police Department investigated the case. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Clay M. West and Justin M. Presant prosecuted it.
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Physician at Veterans Affairs Medical Center in Martinsburg admits to drug chargeRead the Press Release
MARTINSBURG, WEST VIRGINIA - A Maryland man has admitted to a drug charge, United States Attorney William J. Powell announced.
Daniel J. Bochicchio, of Monkton, Maryland, age 60, has pled guilty to one count of “Acquiring Fentanyl by Misrepresentation, Fraud, Deception, and Subterfuge.” Bochicchio admitted to acquiring fentanyl by fraudulently entering patient information at the Veterans Affairs Medical Center in Martinsburg, West Virginia. The crime occurred in March of 2017.
Bochicchio faces up to four years incarceration and a fine of up to $250,000. Under the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, the actual sentence imposed will be based upon the seriousness of the offenses and the prior criminal history, if any, of the defendant.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Lara Omps-Botteicher is prosecuting the case on behalf of the government. The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, Office of Inspector General and the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs Police investigated.
U.S. Magistrate Judge Robert W. Trumble presided.
Pennsylvania Man Arrested for Defrauding Fema of over $250,000 in Hurricane Sandy Disaster ReliefRead the Press Release
CAMDEN, N.J. – An Ambler, Pennsylvania, man was charged today with using phony documents to collect $252,734 in FEMA-backed disaster benefits and insurance payments that were supposed to be used to cover storm damages to his mother’s property in Ocean City, New Jersey, Acting U.S. Attorney William E. Fitzpatrick announced.
Nicholas Ochs, 54, is charged by indictment with one count of disaster benefits fraud, five counts of mail fraud and one count of theft of government funds. He appeared today before U.S. Magistrate Judge Karen M. Williams and was released on $100,000 unsecured bond.
According to the indictment:
In October 2012, the various counties of southern New Jersey, including Cape May County, suffered significant damage due to wind, rain, and flooding as a result of Hurricane Sandy. During that time, Ochs’s mother lived in a house in Ocean City. In January 2013, Ochs, on behalf of his mother, filed an application with the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) seeking federal rental assistance and assistance for personal property damage, claiming that the property was unfit for occupancy as a result of the storm.
An inspector working on behalf of FEMA inspected the property and determined that the property was uninhabitable and that repairs were required. During the inspection, Ochs, acting as power of attorney, signed the application on behalf of his mother attesting that all the information on the application was true and correct. By signing the application, Ochs also acknowledged that any disaster relief money awarded would be returned if his mother received insurance benefits for the same loss. FEMA initially denied Ochs’s claim citing the fact that the property was covered by flood insurance.
However, Ochs submitted fraudulent documents to FEMA indicating that the insurance provider denied his mother’s claim. In addition, when applying for the federal assistance, Ochs allegedly submitted false documents claiming that, as a result of being displaced, his mother was renting another property on the same block in Ocean City. From January 2013 through December 2013, Ochs faxed fraudulent lease agreements and rental receipts and failed to disclose that the property his mother was renting was owned by his mother and that no rent was ever paid. In addition, in February 2013, Ochs contacted FEMA and made a claim for transportation assistance based on his false claim that his mother’s 1985 Mercedes Benz was damaged by Hurricane Sandy.
As a result of the false documents, between February 2013 and December 2013, FEMA paid Ochs’s mother $17,229 for rental assistance and $4,345 for home repairs. Ochs then used the money for his own personal expenses. The total amount of FEMA benefits for rental assistance and home repair that Ochs collected to which he was not entitled was $21,574.In addition, after Ochs made an insurance claim for damages related to the storm, his mother’s insurance provider ultimately paid her $231,160, $169,518 of which was held in escrow by the mortgage-holder, Wells Fargo. To entice Wells Fargo to release the funds, Ochs presented fraudulent invoices and forms that over-inflated the value of the work that was actually performed.
Based on the false invoices, Wells Fargo mailed numerous checks totaling $169,518 to the house in Ocean City, which Ochs deposited into bank accounts that he controlled and spent on personal expenses. These funds were ultimately paid for by FEMA pursuant to its National Flood Insurance Program, which backed insurance payments for disaster-related expenses. Altogether, Ochs allegedly defrauded FEMA of $252,734.
The count of disaster benefits fraud carries a potential penalty of 30 years in prison and a $250,000 fine. The mail fraud counts each carry a potential penalty of 30 years in prison and $1 million fine. The count of theft of government funds carries a potential penalty of 10 years in prison and a $250,000 fine.
The charges and allegations in the indictment are merely accusations, and Ochs is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
Acting U.S. Attorney Fitzpatrick credited special agents of the Department of Homeland Security, Office of Inspector General, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Mark Tasky, with investigation leading to the charges.
The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorney Jason M. Richardson of the U.S. Attorney’s Office Criminal Division in Camden.
Defense counsel: Thomas Young Esq., Camden
Panama City Beach Man Convicted of Attempted Enticement of a MinorRead the Press Release
PANAMA CITY, FLORIDA – Yesterday, Michael Shawn Garrett, 45, of Panama City Beach, Florida, a colonel in the Florida Air National Guard, was convicted of attempted enticement of a minor for sex. The trial lasted two days and was held in the U.S. District Court in Panama City. The verdict was announced by Christopher P. Canova, United States Attorney for the Northern District of Florida.
In May 2017, undercover investigators conducted an operation to identify individuals seeking to engage in sexual activity with minors. Garrett responded to a Craigslist advertisement in which an undercover officer posed as a 14-year-old boy. During ninety minutes of conversation with the undercover officer, Garrett discussed the sex acts he wished to perform with the boy. Through his email communications, Garrett repeatedly requested the physical address of the boy, offering to pick up the boy to engage in the sexual encounter. Garrett was arrested after arriving at the designated meeting place.
The sentencing hearing is scheduled for January 11, 2018, at 10:00 a.m. at the United States Courthouse in Panama City, Florida. Garrett faces a minimum of 10 years and a maximum of life in prison.
The case was investigated by the Panama City Beach Police Department, the North Florida Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force, and the Federal Bureau of Investigation. The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Christopher J. Thielemann.
The United States Attorney's Office for the Northern District of Florida is one of 94 offices that serve as the nation’s principal litigators under the direction of the Attorney General. To access public court documents online, please visit the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Florida website. For more information about the United States Attorney’s Office, Northern District of Florida, visit http://www.justice.gov/usao/fln/index.html.
Owner of Old Town Albuquerque Jewelry Stores Pleads Guilty to Fraudulently Selling Filipino-Made Jewelry as Native American-MadeRead the Press Release
ALBUQUERQUE – Nael Ali, 53, of Albuquerque, N.M., pled guilty today in federal court to violating the Indian Arts and Crafts Act (IACA) by selling counterfeit Native American-style jewelry out of two retail jewelry stores located in Albuquerque’s Old Town. Ali entered a guilty plea to two felony charges under a plea agreement that recommends up to 18 months of imprisonment followed by a term of supervised release to be determined by the court.
The IACA prohibits the offer or display for sale, or the sale of any good in a manner that falsely suggests that it is Indian produced, an Indian product, or the product of a particular Indian and Indian tribe. The law is designed to prevent products from being marketed as “Indian made,” when the products are not, in fact, made by Indians. It covers all Indian and Indian-style traditional and contemporary arts and crafts produced after 1935, and broadly applies to the marketing of arts and crafts by any person in the United States. IACA provides critical economic benefits for Native American cultural development by recognizing that forgery and fraudulent Indian arts and crafts diminish the livelihood of Native American artists and craftspeople by lowering both market prices and standards.
“Today’s guilty plea is a victory for Native Americans and the protection of their cultural heritage. Southwest Native American jewelry is world renowned for its craftsmanship and beauty. Those who pay top dollar to own these treasures should be able to trust their authenticity and know their money supports real Native Americans and their tribes,” said Acting U.S. Attorney James D. Tierney. “Convictions of profiteers like the defendant in this case restore trust in that marketplace and prevent the exploitation of Native Americans.”
“As Chairman of the Indian Arts and Crafts Board, U.S. Department of the Interior, I want to again convey the Board’s deep appreciation for the outstanding leadership and contributions provided by the U.S Attorney’s Office for the District of New Mexico and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, along with the other agency partners who participated in bringing this landmark enforcement action under the Indian Arts and Crafts Act,” said Chairman Harvey Pratt of the Indian Arts and Crafts Board. “When Indian artists are undercut by the sale of fake Indian art, the integrity of authentic Indian art and artists suffer. Eliminating the flow of counterfeit Native American art and craftwork provides a level playing field for the highly talented, dedicated, and hard-working producers of genuine Native American art. “
“This case brought much needed attention to the issue of counterfeit Native American arts and crafts,” said Nicholas E. Chavez, Special Agent in Charge for the United States Fish and Wildlife Service, Office of Law Enforcement for the Southwest Region. “The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service will continue to work closely with our tribal, federal, and state partners to investigate and prosecute individuals who would threaten the livelihoods of Native American artisans through forgery and fraud.”
“The beautiful and unique jewelry made by Native Americans is one of our country's most precious cultural resources,” said Special Agent in Charge Terry Wade of the FBI’s Albuquerque Division. “The FBI is committed to investigating any attempt to cheat these artists out of the fruits of their labor, as well as the collectors who admire their work.”
Ali and co-defendant Mohammad Manasra, 57, also of Albuquerque, were charged in Oct. 2015, in a four-count indictment with conspiracy to violate the IACA and three substantive violations of the Act. A ten-count superseding indictment was filed in March 2016, charging Ali and Manasra with conspiracy and substantive violations of the IACA, mail fraud and four counts of wire fraud. According to the superseding indictment, Ali owned two jewelry stores, Gallery 8 and Galleria Azul, in Albuquerque’s Old Town specializing in Native American jewelry, and Manasra was a wholesaler of Native American jewelry. The superseding indictment alleged that Ali and Manasra violated the IACA by conspiring to import and fraudulently sell Filipino-made jewelry as Native American-made.
The charges against Ali and Manasra were the result of an ongoing federal investigation led by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) and FBI into an international scheme to violate the IACA. During a law enforcement operation in Oct. 2015, federal agents executed 15 search warrants in New Mexico and one in California. Eight of the search warrants were executed in Albuquerque including four at retail and wholesale jewelry businesses. In addition, search warrants were executed at three jewelry stores in Gallup, three jewelry stores in Santa Fe, and a jewelry production shop in Zuni. Federal agents also executed a search warrant at a jewelry store in Calistoga, Calif. Three federal seizure warrants also were executed on bank accounts in a Charlotte, N.C., bank and a San Francisco, Calif., bank. In addition, the Philippines National Bureau of Investigations conducted a series of investigative interviews at two factories in Cebu City, Philippines.
During today’s change of plea hearing, Ali pled guilty to a two-count felony information charging him with violating the IACA. In his plea agreement, Ali admitted operating Gallery 8, a store in Old Town Albuquerque, where he sold Native American-style jewelry made by laborers in the Philippines. Ali admitted mixing Filipino-made jewelry with Native American-made jewelry without labeling the Filipino-made jewelry with the country of origin. Ali also admitted intentionally stocking the Filipino-made jewelry in a manner that falsely suggested that it was Native-American made; providing lists for the employees to reference symbols and initials to falsely suggest the jewelry was Native American-made; and training employees to tell customers the jewelry was Native American-made. Ali also admitted that on Feb. 26, 2014, an employee acting at Ali’s direction sold ten rings, which he represented as Navajo-made but were actually Filipino-made, to an undercover law enforcement agent for $1,115.
According to the plea agreement, from Oct. 8 2015 through Oct. 28, 2015, Ali operated two stores in Albuquerque’s Old Town – Gallery 8 and Galleria Azul – where Ali personally displayed and offered Filipino-made Native American-style jewelry for sale as Native American-made. Ali admitted that he personally represented to another undercover agent that all of his Native American-style jewelry had been made by Native Americans and members of tribes, including the Navajo Nation and Zuni Pueblo. Ali acknowledged that the total value of Filipino jewelry offered and displayed for sale in his stores as Native American-made far exceeded $1,000 in retail and wholesale price.
On Oct. 5, 2016, Manasra entered a guilty plea to a misdemeanor information charging him with violating IACA. In entering the guilty plea, Manasra admitted that on Oct. 19, 2014, he fraudulently sold a Kokopelli pendant and earing set, two rings, a bracelet and an orange cluster pendant to an undercover law enforcement agent. Manasra further admitted that he knew the jewelry was made in the Philippines even though he intentionally told the undercover agent that the Kokopelli set was “Zuni” and the rings, bracelet and cluster set were “Navajo.” Manasra admitted that Filipino-made jewelry had been displayed, offered and sold falsely to suggest that it had been made by members of federally recognized Indian Tribes. At sentencing, Manasra faces a maximum penalty of one year in prison or a maximum of five years of probation.
Sentencing hearings for Ali and Manasra have yet to be scheduled.
The case was investigated by the Office of Law Enforcement for the Southwest Region of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and the Albuquerque Division of the FBI with assistance from Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), U.S. Marshals Service, DEA and New Mexico Department of Game and Fish. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s Office of Law Enforcement for Region Eight and California Department of Fish and Wildlife provided support in Calistoga, Calif., and HSI provided support in La Habra, Calif. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Attaché for Southeast Asia and the Philippine National Bureau of Investigations provided support in Cebu City, Philippines. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Kristopher N. Houghton and Sean J. Sullivan are prosecuting the case.
Owner and Employee of Metal Plating Government Contractor Plead Guilty to Hazardous Waste CrimesRead the Press Release
Phillip Michael Huddleston, 61, pleaded guilty today to violating the federal Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (“RCRA”) by illegally storing hazardous waste without a permit at Protech Metal Finishing, LLC, a metal plating facility he owned and operated in Vonore, Tennessee.
John Thomas Hatfield, 43, Protech’s production manager, pleaded guilty on October 2, 2017, to being an accessory after-the-fact to Protech’s illegal storage of hazardous waste. In order to hinder an investigation of Protech’s compliance with the RCRA, Hatfield represented that containers of hazardous waste were accurately labeled when he knew that they were not.
“These guilty pleas are the result of notable efforts undertaken by multiple law enforcement agencies to enforce provisions in government contracts and the RCRA that protect human health and the environment,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General Jeffrey H. Wood. “In this case, what was at stake was the health and safety of Protech employees and the community of Vonore, Tennessee.”
When Congress passed the RCRA, it determined that the disposal of, and inadequate controls over hazardous waste “will result in substantial risks to human health and the environment.” To that end, the RCRA imposes “cradle-to-grave” tracking, handling, and reporting controls to ensure that companies like Protech properly manage the generation, storage, transport, and disposal of hazardous wastes. The maximum penalty for each felony RCRA count is five years in prison and a fine of $250,000. The maximum penalty for this accessory-after-the-fact count is one year in prison and a fine of $25,000.
Defendants Hatfield and Huddleston are scheduled to be sentenced by Senior District Court Judge Leon Jordan on January 10 and January 8, 2018, respectively.
This case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Matt Morris of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Tennessee, and Trial Attorneys Cassandra Barnum and Senior Trial Attorney Todd W. Gleason of the Environment and Natural Resources Division. The prosecution is the result of an investigation by the IRS, EPA-CID, TVA-OIG, Department of Defense, and Department of Energy.
Over 10,000 Students to Pledge Against Gun ViolenceRead the Press Release
COLUMBIA, South Carolina ------- United States Attorney Beth Drake announced today that members of the United States Attorney’s Office and their local, state, and federal law enforcement partners began visiting schools across South Carolina, to meet with students and conduct presentations as a part of South Carolina’s 16th Annual Student Pledge Against Gun Violence.
With a focus on keeping their schools and communities safe, students in middle school and high school are signing a voluntary pledge promising that they will never take a gun to school, will never resolve a dispute with a gun, and will use their influence to prevent friends from using guns to resolve disputes. Elementary school children are making a simpler commitment, pledging that if they see a gun they will not touch it, they will assume that any gun they see might be loaded, and they will tell a teacher or a trusted adult.
The effort is part of South Carolina’s Project CeaseFire, which is South Carolina’s implementation of the Department of Justice’s Project Safe Neighborhoods Program, aimed at reducing gun violence. The Student Pledge Against Gun Violence is a national program that recognizes the role young people, through their own decisions, can play in reducing gun violence. This campaign against youth gun violence culminates each October in a “Day of National Concern About Young People and Gun Violence.” The program provides a means for beginning the conversation with young people about gun violence. Students from around the country will join together in pledging to do their part. Over the years, millions of students nationwide have signed the pledge.
The campaign encourages important conversation among young people about gun safety and respectful ways to resolve disputes. With more than 10,000 students from schools across the state agreeing to take part, the National Day of Concern provides an opportunity for teachers, counselors, and community leaders to connect with South Carolina students about gun violence and the importance of respect and making good decisions.
The U.S. Attorney's Office worked with schools, student resource officers, and law enforcement agencies throughout the state to make the pledges available, providing the pledges to participating schools as well as scheduling presentations for the schools that requested speakers. For additional information concerning the pledge, visit the national Student Pledge website at www.pledge.org.
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Orlando Man Sentenced to More Than Five Years in Federal Prison for Identity Theft and Bank FraudRead the Press Release
Orlando, Florida – U.S. District Judge G. Kendall Sharp today sentenced Jaime H. Fort (36, Orlando) to 5 years and 5 months in federal prison for aggravated identity theft and bank fraud. He pleaded guilty on July 26, 2017.
According to court documents, between January and March 2016, Fort and two of his associates executed a scheme to defraud several federally-insured financial institutions. As part of the scheme, they obtained the names, dates of birth, and Social Security numbers of identity theft victims and used these stolen identities to create counterfeit Florida driver’s licenses. They then used the counterfeit licenses to obtain financing from banks, in the victims’ names. The conspirators purchased three luxury vehicles at Orlando-area car dealerships with this financing, including two Mercedes-Benz vehicles and a Cadillac Escalade. They then sold these vehicles for cash.
Fort and his associates also used the counterfeit licenses to obtain credit and make fraudulent purchases in victims’ names at various retail stores in the Orlando area. In total, Fort is responsible for more than $175,000 in actual or attempted purchases made using credit obtained in the names of his victims.
Fort’s associates, Sena Howell and Sean White, were also charged for their roles in this case. Howell pleaded guilty and was sentenced on March 16, 2017, to 27 months’ imprisonment. White is currently a fugitive and remains at large.
This case was investigated by the U.S. Secret Service and the Orlando Police Department. It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Chauncey A. Bratt.
Oakland County Drug Trafficking Organization Charged with Drug Distribution Causing DeathRead the Press Release
An indictment was unsealed today charging 12 individuals with selling heroin mixed with fentanyl in Oakland County and elsewhere, announced Acting U.S. Attorney Daniel L. Lemisch. Seven of the defendants were charged with distributing fentanyl and heroin resulting in overdose death and serious bodily injury.
Joining Lemisch in the announcement were Special Agent in Charge David P. Gelios, Federal Bureau of Investigation and Oakland County Sheriff Michael Bouchard.
The drug-trafficking organization, known as the “TEAM”, is alleged to have been selling heroin in Oakland County, as well as Livingston, Macomb and Wayne counties since 2010. “TEAM” was formed when members of the “Hustle Boys” and the “Wall Street Gorillaz” joined together to distribute heroin.
According to the indictment, “TEAM” customers contacted members of the conspiracy and arranged heroin sales by phone. Customers called one of several drug phones and a member of “TEAM” would deliver the heroin either to the buyer’s house or to a neutral location, including parking lots in various strip malls throughout Pontiac. “TEAM” members also sold heroin from two “trap” houses located at 595 Granada Drive in Pontiac and 380 West Hopkins Avenue in Pontiac. “TEAM” informed their customers of heroin for sale by sending individual and group text messages with the word “FIRE.”
Charged were Timothy Williams, 26, of Pontiac, Kristopher Anderson, 40, of Pontiac, Deaire Rayford, 26, of Auburn Hills, Christopher Light, 25, of Commerce, Kourvoisiea Pittman, 27, of Keego Harbor, Robert Bell, Jr., 28, of Pontiac, Deandre Mullen, 26, of Pontiac, Steven Erkins, 24, of Pontiac, Anthony Lee, 27,of Pontiac, Quanzay Milton, 32, of Pontiac, Antonio Bell, 26, of Waterford and James Bellmore, 50, of Waterford. All twelve were charged with conspiracy to distribute and to possess with intent to distribute over one kilogram of heroin and heroin mixed with fentanyl.
“TEAM” was led by Timothy Williams, who went by the name “T2.” Williams was also charged with distribution of heroin resulting in serious bodily injury to four victims.
Anderson and another man, Marlon McCallum,35, of White Lake, were charged with distribution of heroin and fentanyl resulting in the death of one victim.
The law defines serious bodily injury as an injury that involves a substantial risk of death. The charges of distribution causing death or serious bodily injury, or the conspiracy to commit the offence each carry a mandatory minimum penalty of 20 years’ imprisonment.
In an effort to combat the growing epidemic of opioid and fentanyl related overdoses and deaths, the United States Attorney’s Office, along with our federal, state, and local law enforcement partners, have been going after individuals who distribute dangerous narcotics and who are profiting off this crisis. To date, we have charged 30 such individuals. Drug dealers are making the drugs stronger, and more deadly, by lacing heroin with fentanyl – a drug 30 to 50 times more powerful than heroin.
In August of this year, the Attorney General selected the United States Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Michigan as one of 12 offices across the country to participate in a Department of Justice pilot project to pursue opioid-related health care fraud. The three-year program will focus specifically on opioid-related health care fraud using data to identify and prosecute individuals that are contributing to this prescription opioid epidemic. Experienced Assistant United States Attorneys will focus solely on investigating and prosecuting health care fraud related to prescription opioids, including pill mill schemes and pharmacies that unlawfully divert or dispense prescription opioids for illegitimate purposes.
In addition to our prosecutions, the United States Attorney’s Office, along with the FBI and DEA have been participating in outreach efforts around the state that educate communities about the dangers of heroin, opioids, and synthetic opioids like fentanyl. One such outreach program is the DEA 360 Strategy. The 360 Strategy takes an innovative three-pronged approach to combating heroin/opioid use through: (1) coordinated law-enforcement actions against drug cartels and heroin traffickers in specific communities; (2) diversion-control actions against DEA registrants operating outside the law and long-term engagement with pharmaceutical-drug manufacturers, wholesalers, pharmacies, and practitioners; and (3) community outreach through local partnerships that empower communities to take back affected neighborhoods after enforcement actions and prevent the same problems from cropping up again.
Since 2016, Michigan’s FBI, DEA, and United States Attorney Offices have joined community groups to host over 50 proactive opioid prevention events which showcase the documentary film “Chasing the Dragon: The Life of an Opiate Addict.”
The film tells the raw truth of how deadly this problem is in our country. People going through opioid and prescription drug abuse each tell a similar story – from how they became dependent on Opioids and how quickly their lives spiraled out of control as addiction took hold of their lives. The FBI and DEA created this documentary, which is at times raw and uncomfortable, to help educate the public about the growing opioid epidemic in the United States.
"Chasing the Dragon: the Life of an Opiate Addict" aims to educate the public, especially students and young adults, about the dangers of Opioid use and addiction. The path to addiction for many begins with their first use of Opioids. Because the use of heroin is increasingly deadly, the FBI, DEA, and the USAO have collaborated to educate the public and to deliver a compelling message of deterrence and prevention to those exposed to these deadly drugs.
To view the film in its entirety, click on the hyperlink “Chasing the Dragon: The Life of an Opiate Addict”.
"Overdose deaths from heroin and fentanyl have become a national epidemic, including here in Michigan, as people addicted to prescription pills become desperate to feed their addictions," Lemisch said. "Law enforcement agencies are banding together to prosecute traffickers who are exploiting these addictions and risking lives for profit."
The trafficking of heroin and fentanyl by neighborhood gangs continues to cause significant harm and death in our communities”, said Maureen Reddy, Assistant Special Agent in Charge, Detroit Division of the FBI. "Today’s indictments and arrests are a result of the hard work of the FBI’s Oakland County Gang and Violent Crime Task Force (OCGVCTF) along with the Oakland County Sheriff’s Narcotics Enforcement Team (NET). The FBI will continue to prioritize the dismantlement of violent gangs and their networks responsible for the distribution of fentanyl and heroin”.
“It is due to the incredible work of the Oakland County FBI Violent Crime and Gang Task Force, the Oakland County Narcotic Enforcement Team, the work of the Sheriff’s Office Pontiac Substation Directed Patrol Unit and our local police chiefs and their departments that we can bring justice to those who have been a victim of these death dealers,” said Sheriff Michael J. Bouchard. “This is a clear message to those who prey on members of our community. We will not tolerate drug dealers in Oakland County. We are coming for you, and will take you off our streets for good.”
The charges in the indictment are merely accusations, and the defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
This investigation was conducted the FBI’s Oakland County Gang and Violent Crime Task Force (OCGVCTF) along with the Oakland County Sheriff’s Narcotics Enforcement Team (NET). . The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys John O’Brien and Shane
North Side Man Sentenced to Prison for Defrauding Pittsburgh-area BanksRead the Press Release
PITTSBURGH – A local resident has been sentenced in federal court to 24 months incarceration and three years supervised release on his conviction of charge of bank fraud conspiracy, Acting United States Attorney Soo C. Song announced today.
United States District Judge David S. Cercone imposed the sentence yesterday on Darein Clark, 24 of Pittsburgh, PA.
According to information presented to the court, Clark and others agreed to defraud Pittsburgh area banks by depositing counterfeit checks by remote mobile deposit, and then making ATM withdrawals or point of sale charges against funds credited from the deposited counterfeit checks.
Assistant United States Attorney Gregory C. Melucci prosecuted this case on behalf of the government.
The Western Pennsylvania Financial Crimes Task Force (WPFCTF), conducted the investigation that led to the successful prosecution of this defendant. The WPFCTF was established as a collaborative, multi-agency effort to effectively combat financial crimes, including identity fraud, in Western Pennsylvania. Partnering in this effort is the United States Attorney's Office for the Western District of Pennsylvania, the United States Secret Service, the United States Postal Inspection Service, the Department of Homeland Security, the Allegheny County District Attorney's Office, the Allegheny County Police Department, the City of Pittsburgh Bureau of Police and the Pennsylvania State Police.