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Tuesday 15 August 2017
Investment Manager Indicted on Fraud Charges for Allegedly Swindling Nearly $1 Million from a Retired School TeacherRead the Press Release
CHICAGO — An investment manager has been indicted for allegedly swindling nearly $1 million from a retired school teacher.
TYRIS D. MAXEY, the owner of RB Mister Enterprises LLC, a Wyoming company with an office in Chicago, persuaded the retired teacher to give him approximately $950,000 for purported investments, according to an indictment returned in federal court in Chicago. Maxey claimed that his investment firm was highly successful and that he put up his own money in the firm’s investments. In reality, Maxey’s investment activity was minimal, and he spent nearly all of the victim’s money to cover personal expenses, the indictment states. The few real investments that Maxey purchased with the victim’s money sustained heavy losses, the indictment states.
The indictment was returned Aug. 10, 2017, and ordered unsealed after Maxey’s arrest on Monday morning. The indictment charges Maxey, 43, of Chicago, with six counts of wire fraud.
Maxey pleaded not guilty at a Monday afternoon arraignment before U.S. Magistrate Judge Sidney I. Schenkier in Chicago. Maxey was ordered released from custody on a $10,000 appearance bond, and a status hearing was set for Sept. 12, 2017, before U.S. District Judge Harry D. Leinenweber.
The indictment was announced by Joel R. Levin, Acting United States Attorney for the Northern District of Illinois; and E.C. Woodson, Inspector-in-Charge of the U.S. Postal Inspection Service in Chicago.
According to the indictment, Maxey fraudulently represented to the victim that RB Mister Enterprises invested in various sectors, including medical marijuana, construction, oil, real estate, sugar and concerts. Maxey attempted to conceal the scheme by returning some of the victim’s money and fraudulently describing it as a positive return on investment, the indictment states. Maxey also furnished the victim and the victim’s accountant with fraudulent account statements that purported to relate to investments.
The fraud scheme alleged in the indictment began no later than January 2010 and continued until at least November 2013.
The public is reminded that an indictment is not evidence of guilt. The defendant is presumed innocent and entitled to a fair trial at which the government has the burden of proving guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.
Each count of the indictment is punishable by up to 20 years in prison. If convicted, the Court must impose a reasonable sentence under federal statutes and the advisory U.S. Sentencing Guidelines.
The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorney Yusef Dale.
Hammond Man Sentenced to 510 Months ImprisonmentRead the Press Release
HAMMOND- Acting United States Attorney Clifford D. Johnson announced that Eric M. Dillon, 28, of Gary, Indiana was sentenced before Judge Philip P. Simon for Armed Robbery and Use of a Firearm to Cause Death during a Crime of Violence.
Dillon was sentenced to consecutive sentences of 240 months for armed robbery and 270 months for using the firearm to cause death for a total sentence of 510 months imprisonment.
According to documents in this case, on January 20, 2016, at approximately 4:30 am, Dillon entered the 7-Eleven store at 6031 Hohman Avenue in Hammond, Indiana with a handgun, demanded money, and shot and killed the store clerk, Roger Unton.
This case was the result of an investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and Hammond Police Department with assistance from the Lake County Prosecutor’s Office. The case was handled by Assistant United States Attorneys Thomas M. McGrath and Jennifer Chang.
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Fort Worth Man Sentenced to 235 Months in Federal Prison for Distributing MethamphetamineRead the Press Release
FORT WORTH — David Piper, Jr., 52, of Fort Worth, Texas, was sentenced today by U.S. District Judge Reed C. O’Connor to 235 months in federal prison for his role in a methamphetamine distribution conspiracy, announced U.S. Attorney John Parker of the Northern District of Texas.
Piper and co-conspirator Carlos Cortinas, 39, were convicted following a two-day jury trial in March 2017. Both defendants were convicted on one count of conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute methamphetamine. Cortinas is scheduled to be sentenced on September 5, 2017.
Co-conspirator Chadwick Hernandez, 32, pleaded guilty in February 2017 to the same offense and was sentenced to 60 months in federal prison.
The government presented evidence at trial that beginning in March 2015 until January 20, 2016 Piper and Cortinas possessed with the intent to distribute 500 grams or more of methamphetamine. Evidence elicited at trial showed that methamphetamine distributors from Arlington, including Cortinas, transported multiple pounds of methamphetamine to Piper for re-distribution of methamphetamine in Bolivar, Missouri.
DEA Fort Worth investigated with the assistance of DEA’s Springfield and Tulsa offices, Arlington Police Department, Fort Worth Police Department, North Richland Hills Police Department, Oklahoma DPS, and Polk County, Missouri Sheriff’s Office. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Aisha Saleem and Shawn Smith prosecuted.
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Former Secret Service Agent Pleads Guilty to Money LaunderingRead the Press Release
SAN FRANCISCO– A former Special Agent with the U.S. Secret Service pleaded guilty today to charges of money laundering, announced U.S. Attorney Brian J. Stretch, Acting Assistant Attorney General Kenneth A. Blanco of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, IRS-Criminal Investigation (IRS-CI) Washington D.C. Field Office Cyber Crimes Unit Special Agent in Charge Kimberly A. Lappin, Special Agent in Charge John Bennett of the FBI’s San Francisco Division, and Special Agent in Charge of the Department of Homeland Security Office of the Inspector General Houston Field Office David Green.
Shaun W. Bridges, 35, of Laurel, Md., pleaded guilty to one count of money laundering before U.S. District Court Judge Richard Seeborg of the Northern District of California. Sentencing has been set for November 7, 2017.
Bridges had been a Special Agent with the U.S. Secret Service for approximately six years in the Baltimore Field Office. Between 2012 and 2014, he was assigned to the Baltimore Silk Road Task Force, a multi-agency group investigating illegal activity on the Silk Road, a covert online marketplace for illicit goods, including drugs. Bridges’ responsibilities included, among other things, conducting forensic computer investigations in an effort to locate, identify and prosecute targets of the Silk Road Task Force, including Ross Ulbricht, a/k/a “Dread Pirate Roberts,” who ran the Silk Road from the Northern District of California. In 2015, Bridges pleaded guilty to one count of money laundering and one count of obstruction of justice related to his theft and diversion of over $800,000 in digital currency over which he gained control as part of his role on the Baltimore Silk Road Task Force. In December 2015, Bridges was sentenced to 71 months in prison on those charges.
Prior to reporting to prison to begin serving his sentence for the 2015 conviction, Bridges was arrested and taken into custody on new charges related to another theft of approximately 1,600 bitcoin, valued at the time of the theft at approximately $359,005, (approximately $6.6 million today) from a digital wallet belonging to the U.S. government. According to admissions made in connection with his guilty plea in this case, Bridges admitted to using a private key to access a digital wallet belonging to the U.S. government, and subsequently transferring the bitcoin to other digital wallets at other bitcoin exchanges to which only he had access. In the course of the investigation, U.S. agents were able to locate and seize approximately 600 of the stolen bitcoin and, as part of his plea, Bridges agreed to turn over the remaining stolen bitcoin.
The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney William Frentzen and Trial Attorney Richard B. Evans of the U.S. Department of Justice Criminal Division’s Public Integrity Section with assistance from Bridget Kilkenny. Assistant U.S. Attorney David Countryman is handling asset forfeiture aspects of the case. The case is being investigated by the FBI’s San Francisco Division, the IRS-CI’s Washington D.C. Field Office Cyber Crimes Unit, and the Department of Homeland Security Office of the Inspector General.
Former Nursery School Teacher, Camp Counselor Gets 97 Months in Prison for Receiving Sexually Explicit Images of ChildrenRead the Press Release
TRENTON, N.J. – A Monmouth County, New Jersey, man was sentenced today to 97 months in prison for downloading sexually explicit videos and images of children to his home computer, Acting U.S. Attorney William E. Fitzpatrick announced.
James Paroline, 28, of Red Bank, New Jersey, previously pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Freda L. Wolfson to Count One of an indictment charging him with receiving child pornography. Judge Wolfson imposed the sentence today in Trenton federal court.
According to documents filed in this case and statements made in court:
Paroline was employed in Monmouth County as an assistant at a nursery school and as a summer camp counselor at a private school. Between Feb. 26, 2015, and March 2, 2015, Paroline accessed a website known as “PlayPen,” an underground online bulletin board and website dedicated to the advertisement and distribution of child pornography. During that period, Paroline logged into PlayPen under the username “jimbobtropolis,” which he had registered with PlayPen using his personal email address, and downloaded multiple videos and images depicting the sexual abuse of children from the website.
In addition to the prison term, Judge Wolfson sentenced Paroline to 10 years of supervised release.
Acting U.S. Attorney Fitzpatrick credited special agents of the FBI, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Timothy Gallagher in Newark, with the investigation. He also thanked officers of the Red Bank Police Department, under the direction of Chief of Police Darren McConnell; officers of the Middletown Police Department, under the direction of Chief Craig Weber; and detectives of the Monmouth County Prosecutor’s Office, under the direction of Prosecutor Christopher J. Gramiccioni; for their assistance.
The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorney J. Brendan Day of the U.S. Attorney’s Office Criminal Division in Trenton.
Defense counsel: Darren Gelber Esq., Woodbridge, New Jersey
Former Mayor of Lawrence Sentenced for Transporting Stolen FundsRead the Press Release
TOPEKA, KAN. - A former mayor of Lawrence was sentenced Tuesday to ten months in federal prison for embezzling thousands of dollars from a food bank in Douglas County, U.S. Attorney Tom Beall said. The defendant was ordered to pay $81,446 in restitution.
Jeremy James Farmer, 33, Lawrence, Kan., pleaded guilty in September 2016 to one count of interstate transportation of stolen funds. Farmer admitted the crimes took place while he was executive director of Just Food, a food bank in Douglas County. Just Food serves more than 40 partner agencies with frozen meat and fresh produce as well as bread and food donated from community drives. The organization and its partners play a key role in fighting hunger in Douglas County.
From 2013 until Farmer resigned from Just Food and from his position as mayor of Lawrence in August 2015 he used his access to Just Foods’ bank accounts and accounting systems to steal more than $5,000 from the organization.
Beall commended the FBI, the Internal Revenue Service – Criminal Investigation and Assistant U.S. Attorney Rich Hathaway for their work on the case.
Former High School Principal Guilty of Transporting Child PornographyRead the Press Release
Admitted he transferred images from phones confiscated from students, to his personal thumb drive, without their consent or knowledge and shared the images on a Russian website
LOUISVILLE, Ky. – A former Larue County, Kentucky, High School Principal pleaded guilty today in United States District Court, before U.S. District Judge David J. Hale, to transporting child pornography and possessing child pornography that had been transported in interstate commerce announced United States Attorney John E. Kuhn, Jr.
Stephen Kyle Goodlett, 37, of Elizabethtown, Kentucky, remains in federal custody and is scheduled for sentencing in Louisville, before Judge Hale, on October 20, 2017 at 10:00am. Goodlett faces additional State charges in the Commonwealth of Kentucky in Hardin County. Goodlett was initially charged by federal criminal complaint on December 19, 2016 and by federal grand jury indictment on January 4, 2017.
According to the plea agreement, on September 2, 2016, Elizabethtown police received a child sexual exploitation complaint from a female who discovered nude photographs of her that had been uploaded to a website that allowed users to anonymously post sexually explicit images and videos of people and identified the geographic area where the depicted person lived. The photographs are often accompanied by the first and last initial of the person in the photographs. The complainant viewed the images from the website and told police she was 15 years old when the nude photographs were created with a cell phone.
Elizabethtown Police requested and received the detailed IP address information for the person responsible for uploading the images. The IP address was registered to Kyle Goodlett of Elizabethtown, Kentucky. The defendant was the Assistant Principal at Larue County High School from July 4, 2012, until he was promoted to Principal on July 1, 2013 and held that position until he was terminated on October 19, 2016. Goodlett was principal while the complainant was a student there and had access to her nude images when he confiscated her cell phone. The complainant was a student at Larue County High School during that time.
On October 13, 2016, the Kentucky State Police executed a search warrant at Goodlett’s Elizabethtown residence and a preview of his electronic devices, including his iPhone and an eternal hard drive, yielded 60 files of child sexual exploitation.
Further, on December 12, 2016, KSP received a report from the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children stating that several images discovered in Goodlett’s Dropbox account contained images of known minor victims including the complainant and five images from an identified minor female.
Goodlett signed a waiver of his rights and agreed to a recorded interview with KSP Detectives. Goodlett admitted to KSP that he was addicted to pornography and that he transferred images from phones confiscated from students to his personal thumb drive without their consent or knowledge. Goodlett stated he would take the images and share them to a Russian website with the intent of trading for more images. Goodlett told KSP he used his iPhone and laptop to view the images. A forensic review revealed Goodlett possessed 436 images and 11 videos of child pornography as defined by 18 USC Section 2256(8).
If convicted, Goodlett faces no less than five years in prison and no more than 40 years. Further, Goodlett could be fined up to $500,000 and serve a period of supervised release of at least five years and up to and including a lifetime period of supervised release.
This case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney A. Spencer McKiness and is being investigated by the Department of Homeland Security, Homeland Securities Investigations with assistance from Kentucky State Police and the Elizabethtown, Kentucky, Police Department.
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This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by the United States Attorneys' Offices and the Criminal Division's Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who sexually exploit children, and to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.usdoj.gov/psc For more information about internet safety education, please visit www.usdoj.gov/psc and click on the tab "resources."
goodlett_plea_agmt_8-15-17_1.pdfFormer Department of Defense Contractor Pleads Guilty to Piloting Cargo Plane While IntoxicatedRead the Press Release
A former Department of Defense contractor pleaded guilty today to piloting a cargo flight from Osan Air Base, South Korea to Yakota Air Base, Japan, while under the influence of alcohol.
Acting Assistant Attorney General Kenneth A. Blanco of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division and Chief Master Sergeant Christopher J. VanBurger of the Air Force Office of Special Investigations (AFOSI) made the announcement.
Daniel R. Criss, 61, of Mims, Fla., pleaded guilty to one count of operating a common carrier (aircraft) under the influence of alcohol while employed by the Armed Forces outside of the U.S., within the special maritime and territorial jurisdiction of the U.S. The plea was entered before U.S. Magistrate Judge Daniel C. Irick of the Middle District of Florida.
According to admissions made in connection with his plea, on July 14, 2015, Criss was employed by a private company that contracted with the Department of Defense’s U.S. Transportation Command to deliver cargo. On that date, Criss was the pilot-in-command of a Boeing 747 aircraft transporting cargo and a flight crew from Osan Air Base, South Korea to Anchorage, Alaska, with a stopover in Yokota Air Base, Japan. Criss admitted that when he arrived at Osan Air Base that morning at about 10:00 a.m., he was already under the influence of alcohol. Before take-off, Criss’ co-pilots observed that he was having difficulty writing down the air traffic control clearance and discussed their concerns with Criss, who responded that he was tired and had not slept well. Throughout the flight, Criss remained in command of the aircraft despite his level of intoxication. Criss admitted that as the aircraft neared Yokota air space and began its descent, he missed numerous radio calls, lost situational awareness and ran an incorrect landing checklist. Criss also admitted that, upon landing, he took control of the aircraft and taxied it to the runway at a higher than normal rate of speed, and, once the aircraft arrived at the ramp, he fell asleep, woke up and fell asleep again.
According to admissions made in connection with his plea, Criss’ co-pilots, who believed that Criss was experiencing a medical emergency, called for assistance at about 2:00 p.m. Medical personnel that attended to Criss noticed that Criss was slurring his speech and had an odor of alcohol on his breath. At about 3:20 p.m., blood drawn from Criss and tested for alcohol revealed an estimated blood alcohol concentration (BAC) of .144%. Medical personnel who examimed this and a second blood test estimated that Criss’ BAC was between 0.152% and 0.146% at the time he last operated the aircraft.
AFOSI investigated this case. Trial Attorneys Sasha N. Rutizer and Mona Sahaf of the Human Rights and Special Prosecutions Section of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division are prosecuting the case.
Former Correction Officer Sentenced to 9 Months in Prison for Violating Inmate’s Civil Rights Through Abusive Sexual ContactRead the Press Release
Joon H. Kim, the Acting United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, announced that JEFFREY GREEN, a former correction officer at the Bedford Hills Correctional Facility for Women (the “Bedford Facility”), was sentenced in White Plains federal court to nine months in prison for violating the constitutional rights of an inmate through abusive sexual contact. GREEN pled guilty on May 5, 2017 to sexually assaulting an inmate at the Bedford Facility during the evening hours of March 10, 2016. GREEN pled guilty before U.S. Magistrate Judge Paul E. Davison, who imposed today’s sentence.
Acting Manhattan U.S. Attorney Joon H. Kim said: “Jeffrey Green, a former correction officer, sexually assaulted a female inmate serving time in a Bedford correctional facility. Incarcerated individuals, repaying their debt to society, are entitled to the same protections of the Constitution as the rest of us. For violating an inmate’s constitutional rights, Green will serve time in prison himself.”
According to the Information to which GREEN pled guilty, the related Complaint in which he was originally charged on February 15, 2017, and statements made in related court proceedings:
The Bedford Facility is a jail complex located in Bedford Hills, in Westchester County, New York, maintained by the New York State Department of Corrections and Community Supervision. At the time of the assault, Victim-1 was an inmate incarcerated at the Bedford Facility.
On March 10, 2016, GREEN unlocked and opened Victim-1’s cell and entered it alone. GREEN then grabbed Victim-1 by her arms, held her against the wall of her cell, licked and kissed her neck, and fondled her breasts. After Victim-1 pushed GREEN away, he again grabbed her, pushed her against the wall of her cell, pulled up her shirt and bra and licked and kissed her neck, chest, and breasts. GREEN stopped and left Victim-1’s cell when he was interrupted by the arrival of another correction officer.
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In addition to the prison sentence, GREEN, 48, of Brooklyn, New York, was sentenced to one year of supervised release.
Mr. Kim praised the outstanding investigative work of the New York State Department of Corrections and Community Supervision Office of Special Investigations and the Criminal Investigators at the United States Attorney’s Office. He also thanked the Westchester County District Attorney’s Office for its assistance in the investigation.
This case is being handled by the Office’s Civil Rights and Public Corruption Units. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Alex Rossmiller and Ellen Blain are in charge of the prosecution.
Federal Judge Sentences A Huntersville, N.C. Man to More Than Four Years in Prison for Investment Fraud SchemeRead the Press Release
CHARLOTTE, N.C. – Today, U.S. District Judge Max O. Cogburn, Jr. sentenced Robert Louis Winecoff, 37, of Huntersville, N.C. to 51 months in prison for operating an investment fraud scheme involving bogus investment products, announced Jill Westmoreland Rose, U.S. Attorney for the Western District of North Carolina. Winecoff was also ordered to serve two years under court supervision after he is released from prison and to pay more than $175,000 as restitution.
North Carolina Secretary of State Elaine F. Marshall and David M. McGinnis, Inspector in Charge of the Charlotte Division of the U.S. Postal Inspection Service (USPIS) join U.S. Attorney Rose in making today’s announcement.
According to documents filed with the court and today’s sentencing hearing, from June 2013 to May 2014, Winecoff executed a scheme to defraud victim-investors by inducing them to invest in a variety of bogus investment instruments and products. Rather than invest his victim-investors’ money as promised, Winecoff diverted the funds for his own personal use. According to court records, Winecoff presented himself to victims as the principal of Winecoff Financial Consulting Group (WFCG), a purported financial consulting firm, and marketed his bogus investment products through a website associated with the firm, www.wfcgnc.com.
Court records show that Winecoff, along with others, recruited victim-investors by making a series of false and fraudulent representations. In particular, Winecoff and his recruiters told victim-investors that Winecoff would use their money as a deposit to obtain a financial instrument known as a “standby letter of credit.” Winecoff fraudulently represented to investors that the investment in the standby letter of credit would result in large payouts within a set period of time, typically between 20 and 30 days. Winecoff falsely assured victim-investors the investments were safe, legal, short-term, and guaranteed.
According to court records, once victim-investors agreed to invest in the fraudulent scheme, Winecoff typically presented them with an “MOU Agreement” and instructed the victim-investors to wire their investment funds, typically between $20,000 and $60,000, to a bank account he controlled. Despite promises of early returns, court records show that Winecoff never invested any money or made any payments to investors.
When victims contacted Winecoff or one of his recruiters to complain about not receiving the promised returns or to otherwise question their investments, Winecoff sent emails providing excuses about why payments had not been made, including that “[p]ayouts were made to some and not others,” and false assurances that victims would receive their money by a certain date.
During the course of the 11 month-scheme, Winecoff induced approximately 12 investors from several different countries to invest a total of approximately $343,000. Winecoff did not invest any of the victim-investors’ funds as promised, he did not make any payments to any victim-investors and he did not return their principal when requested.
Rather, than invest the victim-investors’ funds, Winecoff used the stolen money to fund his personal lifestyle. Court records show that Winecoff made purchases totaling nearly $65,000 at hotels, airlines, gas stations, and retail stores. He also made cash withdrawals totaling nearly $308,000 from the account into which victims had wired their money.
Winecoff pleaded guilty in March 2017 to one count of wire fraud. He is currently in federal custody and will be transferred to the custody of the Federal Bureau of Prisons upon designation of a federal facility. All federal sentences are served without the possibility of parole.
The investigation of the case was led by the Securities Division of the North Carolina Secretary of State and USPIS.
Assistant U.S. Attorney William Miller, of the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Charlotte, prosecuted the case.
Employee of “Fast Cash Tax” Pleads Guilty to Conspiring to Defraud the IRSRead 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 Jessica Rosario, 36, of Rochester, NY, pleaded guilty to conspiring to defraud the Internal Revenue Service, before U.S. District Judge Elizabeth A. Wolford. The charge carries a maximum penalty of five years in prison and a $250,000 fine.
Assistant U.S. Attorney John J. Field, who is handling the case, stated that Rosario was an employee of an income tax return preparation business known as Fast Cash Tax, which was owned and operated by Jason Jiminez.
Between January 2012 and February 2015, Jiminez conspired with other employees of Fast Cash Tax, including Rosario, to prepare false tax returns on behalf of numerous clients. The returns were falsified to increase the amount of the Earned Income Tax Credit claimed, which yielded larger refunds for the clients than they were entitled to receive. In total, the conspiracy netted approximately $105,000 in fraudulently obtained refunds.
The plea is the result of an investigation by Special Agents with the Internal Revenue Service, under the direction of Special Agent-in-Charge James D. Robnett.
Sentencing is scheduled for December 8, 2017, at 10:00 a.m., before Judge Wolford.
Eagle Grove Man Charged with Child Sexual Exploitation OffensesRead the Press Release
Jason Marvets, age 30, of Eagle Grove, Iowa, has been charged with sexual exploitation of a child, enticement of a minor, extortion, destruction of evidence, and distribution, receipt, and possession of child pornography. The charges are contained in an Indictment filed on August 8, 2017 in United States District Court in Cedar Rapids.
The Indictment alleges that, between June 2016 and April 2017, Marvets persuaded, induced, and enticed a minor to produce depictions of sexually explicit conduct, that he threatened to distribute depictions of minors, that he caused another person to destroy evidence, and that he distributed, received, and possessed child pornography.
If convicted, Marvets faces a mandatory minimum sentence of 15 years’ imprisonment and a possible maximum sentence of life imprisonment, a $2,000,000 fine, $30,800 in special assessments, and at least five years and up to life on supervised release following any imprisonment.
Marvets appeared for a detention hearing today in federal court in Cedar Rapids and was held without bond. Marvets’ next appearance for trial is set for September 18, 2017.
As with any criminal case, a charge is merely an accusation and a defendant is presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty.
This case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Mark Tremmel and is being investigated by the Wright County Sheriff’s Office, the Webster County Sheriff’s Office, the Georgia Bureau of Investigation, and the Michigan State Police.
This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by the United States Attorneys’ Offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who sexually exploit children, and to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.usdoj.gov/psc. For more information about Internet safety education, please visit www.usdoj.gov/psc and click on the tab “resources.”
Court file information is available at https://ecf.iand.uscourts.gov/cgi-bin/login.pl. The case file number is CR 17-3034.
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Durant Man Pleads Guilty to Bank RobberyRead the Press Release
MUSKOGEE, OKLAHOMA – The United States Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Oklahoma announced that GRAHAM ALLEN HELMS, age 29, of Durant, Oklahoma, pled guilty to two counts of BANK ROBBERY, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 2113(a), punishable by not more than 20 years imprisonment, and up to a $250,000.00 fine or both.
The Indictment alleged that on or about July 24, 2017, in the Eastern District of Oklahoma, the defendant, by force, violence and intimidation did take from the person and presence of another, money belonging to and in the care, custody, control, management and possession of IBC Bank, located in Ardmore, Oklahoma, a bank whose deposits were then insured by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation.
The Indictment further alleged that on or about August 1, 2017, in the Eastern District of Oklahoma, the defendant, by force, violence and intimidation did take from the person and presence of another, money belonging to and in the care, custody, control, management and possession of Shamrock Bank, located in Coalgate, Oklahoma, a bank whose deposits were then insured by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation.
The charges arose from an investigation by the Ardmore Police Department, the Coal County Sherriff’s Office, and the Federal Bureau of Investigation.
The Honorable Kimberly E. West, U.S. Magistrate Judge in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Oklahoma, in Muskogee, accepted the plea and ordered the completion of a presentence investigation report.
Assistant United States Attorney Chris Wilson represented the United States.
Defense Contractor Agrees to Pay $9.2 Million to Settle False Billing AllegationsRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON - Huntington Ingalls Industries Inc. (HII), a publicly traded company headquartered in Newport, Virginia, has agreed to a $9.2 million settlement of allegations that it violated the False Claims Act by knowingly overbilling the government for labor on U.S. Navy and Coast Guard ships at its shipyards in Pascagoula, Mississippi. Under the settlement, HII will make a payment of $7.9 million which, combined with earlier repayments, will result in the settlement recovery of approximately $9.2 million.
“Contractors that knowingly bill the government in violation of contract terms will face serious consequences,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General Chad A. Readler of the Justice Department’s Civil Division. “This settlement demonstrates, once again, that we will not tolerate defense contractors who falsely charge the armed forces or any agency of the United States.”
"Our Armed Forces depend on defense contractors to follow the rules, and this civil settlement, the second largest in the District’s history, should remind all those who conduct business with the United States Government that they are expected to abide by the rules,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Harold Brittain, who also noted three earlier guilty pleas in a related criminal matter in the Southern District of Mississippi. Two individuals pleaded guilty in United States v. N. R. Holden & R.G. Gardner, Criminal No 1:15-cr-42 HSO-RHW, and were sentenced in 2015. Another individual pleaded guilty in United States v. R.M. Wilson, Criminal No 1:16-cr-34-LG-RHW, and was sentenced in 2016. According to Acting U.S. Attorney Brittain, “the Southern District of Mississippi will remain vigilant in identifying and prosecuting those involved in nefarious activities and fraudulent billing, which ultimately result in substantial cost overruns on Navy and Coast Guard shipbuilding projects.”
Special Agent in Charge of the Naval Criminal Investigative Service (NCIS) Southeast Field Office, Mike Wiest, says "Corruption, fraud and bribery are not victimless crimes. Overcharging for work not done is not only criminal on its face, investigating those crimes siphoned resources and time which would have been better invested in protecting the nation. Multiple federal agencies spent years investigating this lack of integrity, to help hold accountable those who would squander American taxpayer dollars."
"Today's results are part of ongoing efforts by the Coast Guard Investigative Service (CGIS) and its law enforcement partners to protect the integrity of the Coast Guard's acquisition systems by holding individuals and corporations accountable when they attempt to defraud U.S. taxpayers", said Special Agent in Charge Brian Jeanfreau.
"Contractors are expected to comply with their statutory obligations and act in good faith when dealing with the Department of Defense (DOD)," commented John F. Khin, Special Agent in Charge, Southeast Field Office, Defense Criminal Investigative Service. “This settlement is the culmination of hard work by DCIS, our investigative partners, the Department of Justice, Civil Division, Commercial Litigation Branch, and the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Southern District of Mississippi; and clearly demonstrates that combatting fraud, waste and abuse within DOD contracting remains a top priority."
The civil settlement resolves alleged labor mischarging on various U.S. Navy and Coast Guard contracts dating back to 2003. HII allegedly mischarged labor incurred on particular contracts to other contracts, even though the costs were not actually incurred by those contracts. The settlement also resolves claims disclosed by HII that it had billed the Navy and Coast Guard for dive operations to support ship hull construction that did not actually occur as claimed.
The labor mischarging allegations resolved by the settlement were originally raised in a lawsuit brought by Bryon Faulkner, a former HII employee, under the qui tam, or whistleblower, provisions of the False Claims Act (FCA), which permit private individuals to sue on behalf of the government for false claims and to share in any recovery. Act also allows the government to intervene and take over the action, as it did in this case. Mr. Faulkner will receive $1,590,144 as a result of the civil action he filed, which is captioned United States ex rel. Faulkner v. Huntington Ingalls Industries, Inc. 1:13-cv-295 HSO RHW in the Southern District of Mississippi.
This settlement was the result of a coordinated effort by the Civil Division, Commercial Litigation Branch, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Mississippi, the Defense Contract Audit Agency, DCIS, NCIS, and CGIS. The claims made in the complaint are allegations only, and there has been no determination of liability.
Defense Contractor Agrees to Pay $9.2 Million to Settle False Billing AllegationsRead the Press Release
Huntington Ingalls Industries Inc. (HII), a publicly traded company headquartered in Newport, Virginia, has agreed to a $9.2 million settlement of allegations that it violated the False Claims Act by knowingly overbilling the government for labor on U.S. Navy and Coast Guard ships at its shipyards in Pascagoula, Mississippi. Under the settlement, HII will make a payment of $7.9 million which, combined with earlier repayments, will result in the settlement recovery of approximately $9.2 million.
“Contractors that knowingly bill the government in violation of contract terms will face serious consequences,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General Chad A. Readler of the Justice Department’s Civil Division. “This settlement demonstrates, once again, that we will not tolerate defense contractors who falsely charge the armed forces or any agency of the United States.”
"Our Armed Forces depend on defense contractors to follow the rules, and this civil settlement, the second largest in the District’s history, should remind all those who conduct business with the United States Government that they are expected to abide by the rules,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Harold Brittain, who also noted three earlier guilty pleas in a related criminal matter in the Southern District of Mississippi. Two individuals pleaded guilty in United States v. N. R. Holden & R.G. Gardner, Criminal No 1:15-cr-42 HSO-RHW, and were sentenced in 2015. Another individual pleaded guilty in United States v. R.M. Wilson, Criminal No 1:16-cr-34-LG-RHW, and was sentenced in 2016. According to Acting U.S. Attorney Brittain, “the Southern District of Mississippi will remain vigilant in identifying and prosecuting those involved in nefarious activities and fraudulent billing, which ultimately result in substantial cost overruns on Navy and Coast Guard shipbuilding projects.”
Special Agent in Charge of the Naval Criminal Investigative Service (NCIS) Southeast Field Office, Mike Wiest, says "Corruption, fraud and bribery are not victimless crimes. Overcharging for work not done is not only criminal on its face, investigating those crimes siphoned resources and time which would have been better invested in protecting the nation. Multiple federal agencies spent years investigating this lack of integrity, to help hold accountable those who would squander American taxpayer dollars."
"Today's results are part of ongoing efforts by the Coast Guard Investigative Service (CGIS) and its law enforcement partners to protect the integrity of the Coast Guard's acquisition systems by holding individuals and corporations accountable when they attempt to defraud U.S. taxpayers", said Special Agent in Charge Brian Jeanfreau.
"Contractors are expected to comply with their statutory obligations and act in good faith when dealing with the Department of Defense (DOD)," commented John F. Khin, Special Agent in Charge, Southeast Field Office, Defense Criminal Investigative Service. “This settlement is the culmination of hard work by DCIS, our investigative partners, the Department of Justice, Civil Division, Commercial Litigation Branch, and the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Southern District of Mississippi; and clearly demonstrates that combatting fraud, waste and abuse within DOD contracting remains a top priority."
The civil settlement resolves alleged labor mischarging on various U.S. Navy and Coast Guard contracts dating back to 2003. HII allegedly mischarged labor incurred on particular contracts to other contracts, even though the costs were not actually incurred by those contracts. The settlement also resolves claims disclosed by HII that it had billed the Navy and Coast Guard for dive operations to support ship hull construction that did not actually occur as claimed.
The labor mischarging allegations resolved by the settlement were originally raised in a lawsuit brought by Bryon Faulkner, a former HII employee, under the qui tam, or whistleblower, provisions of the False Claims Act (FCA), which permit private individuals to sue on behalf of the government for false claims and to share in any recovery. Act also allows the government to intervene and take over the action, as it did in this case. Mr. Faulkner will receive $1,590,144 as a result of the civil action he filed, which is captioned United States ex rel. Faulkner v. Huntington Ingalls Industries, Inc. 1:13-cv-295 HSO RHW in the Southern District of Mississippi.
This settlement was the result of a coordinated effort by the Civil Division, Commercial Litigation Branch, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Mississippi, the Defense Contract Audit Agency, DCIS, NCIS, and CGIS. The claims made in the complaint are allegations only, and there has been no determination of liability.
Convenience Store, Owner Resolve Charges Relating to Food Stamp Fraud SchemeRead the Press Release
PITTSBURGH – An Allegheny County resident has entered a plea of guilty to charges of food stamp fraud and theft or conversion of government funds, and in the process causing a loss to the federal food stamp program of $85,000, Acting United States Attorney Soo C. Song announced today. In the course of the proceeding Imran also indicated that he had entered into a civil settlement agreement with the United States and had agreed to make restitution of $85,000.
United States District Judge David S. Cercone presided over the plea proceeding involving Atif Imran, 41, of Monroeville, Pa.
According to information presented to the court, Imran was the owner and operator of A to Z Convenience Store, Inc., a gas station and convenience store located on West Street in Homestead. A to Z participated in the United States Department of Agriculture’s Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, commonly known as the Food Stamp Program. Food stamp recipients could purchase eligible food items at A to Z using food stamp benefit cards. The defendant was aware that Food Stamp Program rules prohibited the exchange of food stamp benefits for cash. Despite this knowledge, on multiple occasions, Mr. Imran and employees of his exchanged food stamp benefits for cash on a discounted basis, usually giving his customers only 50 cents on the dollar for food stamp benefits. A typical exchange would involve the customer purchasing a bottled drink and a snack food item and then providing $100 in food stamp benefits for which he would receive $50 cash.
Assistant United States Attorney Colin Callahan litigated the case on behalf of the Affirmative Civil Enforcement Section of the United States Attorney's Office.
Acting U.S. Attorney Song commended the Office of the Inspector General for the United States Department of Agriculture and the Department of Homeland Security, Homeland Security Investigations for the investigation leading to the successful prosecution of Imran.
Chicago Podiatrist Sentenced for Health Care Fraud ChargesRead the Press Release
St. Louis, MO – Dr. Yev Gray was sentenced to 90 months in prison and ordered to pay $6,974,895.00 in restitution related to the submission of false reimbursement claims for non-rendered podiatric services.
According to court records, Dr. Yev Gray was the owner and president of Aggeus Healthcare, headquartered in Chicago, Illinois, which provided podiatry services to residents of long- term care facilities. As of September 2015, Aggeus was operating in at least 16 states. In Missouri, Aggeus contracted with podiatrists to provide services in eleven facilities, with seven of the facilities located in the cities of Bourbon, Hannibal, Maryland Heights and Poplar Bluff, Missouri.
According to court records, Dr. Gray created an electronic medical record (EMR) system, which automatically inserted into patient records, diseases and symptoms that the patients did not have. Dr. Gray also pressured Aggeus podiatrists to provide unneeded services, such as Doppler studies, the incision and drainage of abscesses, and the removal of calluses. Some of the podiatrists complied, provided the unneeded services, and signed the false treatment notes; others refused. Despite repeated complaints from patients, nursing homes, and some of their podiatrists, Dr. Gray and his co-defendants continued to create false patient records and to bill for medically unnecessary services. From 2009 to September 2015, Medicare paid Aggeus Healthcare millions of dollars based on the false reimbursement claims submitted by Aggeus.
Yev Gray, 49, Chicago, IL, pled guilty on May 12, 2017 to one felony count of conspiracy to commit healthcare fraud and one felony count of making false statements relating to health care matters.
Natalie Gray, a lawyer and the wife of Dr. Gray, is currently serving a one-year prison term for her role in the health care fraud conspiracy. The CEO of Aggeus and four Aggeus podiatrists are awaiting sentencing.
This case was investigated by the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services Office of Inspector General and the Federal Bureau of Investigation. Assistant United States Attorneys Dorothy McMurtry, Gwendolyn Carroll, and Gilbert Sison are handling the case for the U.S. Attorney’s Office.
Chicago Man Sentenced to Seven Years in Federal Prison for Illegally Brokering the Sale of More Than 75 GunsRead the Press Release
CHICAGO — A convicted felon from Chicago has been sentenced to seven years in federal prison for illegally brokering the sale of more than 75 guns.
JOHN THOMAS illegally brokered at least 23 transactions involving the total sale of 77 guns, including rifles, shotguns and handguns. Some of the guns had obliterated serial numbers or were previously reported stolen. The case against Thomas arose out of a larger federal investigation that has removed more than 100 illegal guns from the streets of Chicago. The federal probe involved controlled firearm sales to cooperating individuals.
Thomas, 33, also known as “Batman,” pleaded guilty earlier this year to two counts of illegal possession of a firearm by a felon, and one count of dealing firearms without a license. U.S. District Judge Andrea R. Wood on Friday imposed the 84-month sentence in federal court in Chicago.
The sentence was announced by Joel R. Levin, Acting United States Attorney for the Northern District of Illinois; and Celinez Nunez, Special Agent in Charge of the Chicago Field Division of the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives.
Thomas admitted in a plea agreement that he either obtained the firearms himself and then sold them to individuals, or he arranged for the owner of the firearms to sell the guns in exchange for a fee to Thomas for setting up the transaction. Unbeknownst to Thomas, the individuals who purported to purchase the guns were cooperating with law enforcement.
Thomas was previously convicted of a felony and was not legally authorized to possess any firearms.
One of the sales occurred on July 23, 2014, when Thomas arranged a meeting between a man identified in court records as Individual A, along with JAMEL DAVIS and a cooperating individual. The transaction, which took place in Davis’ garage in the Auburn Gresham neighborhood on Chicago’s South Side, involved the sale of two .38-caliber revolvers. A federal jury last year convicted Davis of illegal possession of a firearm by a felon, and he was sentenced to two years in prison.
Charleston meth dealer sentenced to federal prison for drug crimeRead the Press Release
CHARLESTON, W.Va. – A Charleston drug dealer was sentenced today to three years and five months in federal prison for a methamphetamine crime, announced United States Attorney Carol Casto. Shannon L. Mitchell, 36, previously pleaded guilty to distribution of methamphetamine.
Mitchell admitted that on July 18, 2016, he sold methamphetamine to a confidential informant working with law enforcement. The drug deal took place near Mitchell’s home on Maryland Avenue in Charleston. As part of the plea agreement, Mitchell also admitted to evidence of all the criminal conduct charged in the indictment.
The Metropolitan Drug Enforcement Network Team conducted the investigation. Assistant United States Attorney John Frail is responsible for the prosecution. United States District Judge Joseph R. Goodwin imposed the sentence.
This case was prosecuted 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 illegal drugs, including methamphetamine. The U.S. Attorney’s Office, joined by federal, state and local law enforcement agencies, is committed to aggressively pursuing and shutting down pill trafficking, eliminating open air drug markets, and curtailing the spread of illegal drugs in communities across the Southern District.
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Career Offender from Carlsbad Sentenced to Ten Years for Federal Heroin and Cocaine Trafficking ConvictionRead the Press Release
ALBUQUERQUE – Sylvester Hall, 55, of Carlsbad, N.M., was sentenced today in federal court in Las Cruces, N.M., to 120 months in prison followed by four years of supervised release for his heroin and crack cocaine trafficking conviction.
Hall, a career offender whose criminal history includes at least three prior drug trafficking convictions, was prosecuted under 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 work with New Mexico’s District Attorneys and state, local and tribal law enforcement agencies to target violent or repeat offenders primarily based on their prior criminal convictions for federal prosecution with the goal of removing repeat offenders from communities in New Mexico for as long as possible.
Hall was arrested on March 12, 2015, on a criminal complaint alleging heroin and crack cocaine trafficking offenses. According to the complaint, law enforcement agents located approximately 213.64 grams of heroin, 31.7 grams of crack cocaine, 100.7 grams of marijuana and $15,080.26 in cash inside a storage unit owned by Hall.
Hall was subsequently indicted on July 23, 2015, and charged with possession of heroin and crack cocaine with intent to distribute. According to the indictment, the offenses were committed on Feb. 10, 2015, in Eddy County, N.M. Hall entered a guilty plea to the indictment without the benefit of a plea agreement on Nov. 10, 2016.
This case was investigated by the Pecos Valley Drug Task Force which is comprised of officers from the Eddy County Sheriff’s Office, Carlsbad Police Department and Artesia Police Department and is part of the HIDTA Region VI Drug Task Force. The High Intensity Drug Trafficking Areas (HIDTA) program was created by Congress with the Anti-Drug Abuse Act of 1988. HIDTA is a program of the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP) which provides assistance to federal, state, local and tribal law enforcement agencies operating in areas determined to be critical drug-trafficking regions of the United States and seeks to reduce drug trafficking and production by facilitating coordinated law enforcement activities and information sharing.
The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Maria Y. Armijo of the U.S. Attorney’s Las Cruces Branch Office as part of the New Mexico Heroin and Opioid Prevention and Education (HOPE) Initiative. The HOPE Initiative was launched in January 2015 by the UNM Health Sciences Center and the U.S. Attorney’s Office in response to the national opioid epidemic, which has had a disproportionately devastating impact on New Mexico. Opioid addiction has taken a toll on public safety, public health and the economic viability of our communities. Working in partnership with the DEA, the Bernalillo County Opioid Accountability Initiative, Healing Addiction in our Community (HAC), the Albuquerque Public Schools and other community stakeholders, HOPE’s principal goals are to protect our communities from the dangers associated with heroin and opioid painkillers and reducing the number of opioid-related deaths in New Mexico.
The HOPE Initiative is comprised of five components: (1) prevention and education; (2) treatment; (3) law enforcement; (4) reentry; and (5) strategic planning. HOPE’s law enforcement component is led by the Organized Crime Section of the U.S. Attorney’s Office and the DEA in conjunction with their federal, state, local and tribal law enforcement partners. Targeting members of major heroin and opioid trafficking organizations for investigation and prosecution is a priority of the HOPE Initiative. Learn more about the New Mexico HOPE Initiative at http://www.HopeInitiativeNM.org.
Buffalo Man Pleads Guilty to FraudRead the Press Release
CONTACT: Barbara Burns
PHONE: (716) 843-5817
FAX: (716) 551-3051BUFFALO, N.Y. - Acting U.S. Attorney James P. Kennedy, Jr. announced today that Randy Jarrett, 45 of Buffalo, NY, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit access device fraud before U.S. District Judge Lawrence J. Vilardo. The charge carries a maximum penalty of five years in prison.
Assistant U.S. Attorney MaryEllen Kresse, who is handling the case, stated that between July and December, 2013, the defendant conspired with others, including Ricky Butler, Tamika Favors, and Catherine Jarrett, fraudulently to obtain and use unauthorized access devices, namely credit cards, without the knowledge or authorization of the true account holders. Co-conspirator Ricky Butler used the true account holder’s personal identifying information and account access information to contact financial institutions and have new or replacement credit cards issued to addresses in the Western District of New York. During the course of the fraudulent scheme, 17 unauthorized credit cards were mailed to properties which were owned and/or controlled by Randy Jarrett and his mother, Catherine Jarrett. Those credit cards were used by the defendant and the other conspirators to make, and attempt to make, purchases at Walmart stores and other retail establishments totaling over $330,000.
Tamika Favors and Catherine Jarrett have been convicted and are awaiting sentencing.
The plea is the result of an investigation by the United States Postal Inspection Service, under the direction of Inspector-in-Charge Shelly Binkowski of the Boston Division; and the United States Secret Service, under the direction of Special Agent-in-Charge Lewis Robinson.
Sentencing is scheduled for November 30, 2017, at 10:00 a.m. before Judge Vilardo.
Boone County man sentenced to six years in federal prison for dealing pain pillsRead the Press Release
CHARLESTON, W.Va. – A Boone County pain pill dealer was sentenced today to six years in federal prison for a drug crime, announced United States Attorney Carol Casto. Howard D. Williamson, Jr., 55, of Madison, previously pleaded guilty to both counts of a two-count indictment charging him with distribution of oxycodone.
Williamson admitted that on July 23, 2015, and again on October 25, 2015, he sold oxycodone pills to a confidential informant working with law enforcement. Williamson further admitted that the drug deals took place at his Lincoln Avenue residence in Madison.
The investigation was conducted by the West Virginia State Police and the U.S. Route 119 Drug and Violent Crime Task Force. Assistant United States Attorney John Frail is responsible for the prosecution. United States District Judge Thomas E. Johnston imposed the sentence.
This case was 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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Albuquerque Man Sentenced to Prison for Federal Heroin Trafficking ConvictionRead the Press Release
ALBUQUERQUE – Miguel Ordonez, 24, of Albuquerque, N.M., was sentenced today in federal court to 70 months in prison followed by four years of supervised release for his conviction on heroin trafficking charges. Miguel Ordonez was also ordered to pay a $7,400 money judgment.
Miguel Ordonez and his four co-defendants, Gonzalo Montenegro-Coronel, 31, a Mexican national, Esther Ordonez, 48, and Reydecel Lopez-Ordonez, 24, both of Albuquerque, and Fernando Gomez-Campos, 21, of El Paso, Tex., were charged in a 13-count indictment that was filed on Dec. 2, 2015. The indictment charged the defendants with participating in a heroin trafficking conspiracy between Nov. 2014 and Sept. 2015, distributing heroin on eight occasions between Nov. 2014 and Sept. 2015, and with using telephones to facilitate drug trafficking crimes. It also charged Esther Ordonez, Miguel Ordonez and Montenegro-Coronel with maintaining a residence for the purpose of manufacturing and distributing heroin between Nov. 2014 and Sept. 2015. According to the indictment, the defendants committed the crimes in Bernalillo County, N.M.
On April 24, 2017, Miguel Ordonez pled guilty to two counts of distributing heroin, using a communication facility in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime, and maintaining a drug involved premises. In entering the guilty plea, Miguel Ordonez admitted participating in telephone communications on March 27, 2015, in order to arrange heroin sales with individuals who unbeknownst to him were undercover agents. Miguel Ordonez admitted selling 148 grams of heroin for $4,200 on March 27, 2015, and 98 grams of heroin for $3,200 on May 7, 2015, to the undercover agent. He also admitted that from Nov. 10, 2014 and until his arrest in July 2015, he helped others store heroin for distribution at 2620 Katrina Dr. SW in Albuquerque.
Three of the other defendants have entered guilty pleas and one has been sentenced. Lopez-Ordonez pled guilty on Oct. 19, 2016, and was sentenced to 60 months of imprisonment followed by four years of supervised release on March 30, 2017. Gomez-Campos pled guilty on March 10, 2017, and Esther Ordonez pled guilty on April 12, 2017. Gomez-Campos and Esther Ordonez have yet to be sentenced.
Montenegro-Coronel has entered a not guilty plea to the indictment and is pending trial. Charges in indictments are merely accusations and defendants are presumed innocent unless found guilty in a court of law.
This case was investigated by the Albuquerque office of the DEA and the HIDTA Region I Drug Task Force as part of the Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) program, which combines the resources and unique expertise of federal agencies, along with their local counterparts, in a coordinated effort to disrupt and dismantle major drug trafficking organizations. The HIDTA Region I Drug Task Force is comprised of officers from the Albuquerque Police Department, Rio Rancho Police Department, Valencia County Sheriff’s Office, Pueblo of Pojoaque Tribal Police Department and DEA. The High Intensity Drug Trafficking Areas (HIDTA) program was created by Congress with the Anti-Drug Abuse Act of 1988. HIDTA is a program of the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP) which provides assistance to federal, state, local and tribal law enforcement agencies operating in areas determined to be critical drug-trafficking regions of the United States and seeks to reduce drug trafficking and production by facilitating coordinated law enforcement activities and information sharing.
Assistant U.S. Attorneys Shaheen P. Torgoley and Stephen R. Kotz are prosecuting this case as part of the New Mexico Heroin and Opioid Prevention and Education (HOPE) Initiative. The HOPE Initiative was launched in January 2015 by the UNM Health Sciences Center and the U.S. Attorney’s Office in response to the national opioid epidemic, which has had a disproportionately devastating impact on New Mexico. Opioid addiction has taken a toll on public safety, public health and the economic viability of our communities. Working in partnership with the DEA, the Bernalillo County Opioid Accountability Initiative, Healing Addiction in our Community (HAC), the Albuquerque Public Schools and other community stakeholders, HOPE’s principal goals are to protect our communities from the dangers associated with heroin and opioid painkillers and reducing the number of opioid-related deaths in New Mexico.
The HOPE Initiative is comprised of five components: (1) prevention and education; (2) treatment; (3) law enforcement; (4) reentry; and (5) strategic planning. HOPE’s law enforcement component is led by the Organized Crime Section of the U.S. Attorney’s Office and the DEA in conjunction with their federal, state, local and tribal law enforcement partners. Targeting members of major heroin and opioid trafficking organizations for investigation and prosecution is a priority of the HOPE Initiative. Learn more about the New Mexico HOPE Initiative at http://www.HopeInitiativeNM.org.
Albuquerque Man Sentenced for Federal Bank Robbery ConvictionRead the Press Release
ALBUQUERQUE – Isaiah Gallegos, 22, of Albuquerque, N.M., was sentenced this morning in federal court to 37 months in prison followed by three years of supervised release for his conviction on an armed bank robbery charge.
Isaiah Gallegos was arrested in March 2016, on a criminal complaint charging him and four co-defendants, Greg Miera, 51, Martin Huerta, 43, Christian Herrera, 21, and Christopher Gallegos, 33, all of Albuquerque, with bank robbery. According to the complaint, a source identified the co-defendants as the individuals involved in robbing the US Bank branch located at 5620 Wyoming Blvd. NE in Albuquerque, on March 30, 2016. The complaint alleged that Albuquerque Police Department (APD) officers conducted surveillance as a vehicle with four men pulled up to the US Bank on the afternoon of March 30, 2016. The complaint alleged that three of the men remained in the vehicle while the fourth entered the bank, threatened to shoot the bank employees, and demanded that two bank tellers place cash into a plastic bag.
Isaiah Gallegos, Huertta, Miera, Herrera and Christopher Gallegos were indicted on April 27, 2016, and charged with bank robbery.
On April 25, 2017, Isaiah Gallegos pled guilty to the indictment and admitted that on March 30, 2016, he participated in the robbery of the US Bank branch located at 5620 Wyoming Blvd. NE in Albuquerque by acting as lookout while his co-defendants robbed the bank.
Isaiah Gallegos’ four co-defendants have entered guilty pleas and two have been sentenced. Huertta pled guilty on Sept. 9, 2016 and was sentenced on March 14, 2017 to 108 months in prison followed by five years of supervised release. Miera pled guilty on Oct. 11, 2016, and was sentenced on June 8, 2017, to 78 months in prison followed by five years of supervised release. Christopher Gallegos entered a guilty plea on Feb. 13, 2017, and Herrera entered a guilty plea on Feb. 24, 2017. At sentencing, Christopher Gallegos and Herrera each face a statutory maximum penalty of 25 years in federal prison. They remain in custody pending sentencing hearings.
This case was investigated by the Albuquerque office of the FBI and the Albuquerque Police Department. Assistant U.S. Attorney Letitia C. Simms is prosecuting the case.
Active-Duty U.S. Navy Commander Pleads Guilty to Conspiring with Foreign Defense Contractor to Defraud the U.S. NavyRead the Press Release
Assistant U.S. Attorneys Mark W. Pletcher (619) 546-9714 and Patrick Hovakimian (619) 546-9718
NEWS RELEASE SUMMARY – August 15, 2017
SAN DIEGO – U.S. Navy commander Bobby Pitts pleaded guilty today in connection with his efforts to obstruct a federal criminal investigation into the exploits of Singapore-based defense contractor Leonard Glenn Francis.
Pitts, 48, of Chesapeake, Va., pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to defraud the United States, admitting that he attempted to protect Francis, owner and chief executive of Glenn Defense Marine Asia (GDMA). Francis pleaded guilty in 2015 to bribery and fraud charges, admitting that he presided over a massive, decade-long conspiracy involving “scores” of U.S. Navy officials, tens of millions of dollars in fraud and millions of dollars in bribes and gifts – from cash, prostitutes and luxury travel to Cuban cigars, Kobe beef and Spanish suckling pigs.
Pitts is scheduled to be sentenced on December 1, 2017 by U.S. District Judge Janis L. Sammartino of the Southern District of California.
According to admissions made as part of his plea agreement, from August 2009 to May 2011, Pitts served as the officer in charge of the U.S. Navy’s Fleet Industrial Supply Command (FISC) in Singapore. As part of his duties, Pitts learned that Naval Criminal Investigative Service and several civilian employees of the U.S. Navy were investigating whether Francis was over-billing the U.S. Navy on ship husbanding contracts.
Pitts had access to internal U.S. Navy documents pertaining to investigative steps that the U.S. Navy was considering and admitted that he shared this information with Francis, with the intent to impede and obstruct the U.S. Navy’s oversight of its contracts with GDMA. On Nov. 23, 2010, for example, Pitts forwarded to a representative of GDMA an internal U.S. Navy email discussing FISC’s intention to contact officials with the Royal Thai Navy to determine whether GDMA had been billing the U.S. Navy for services in fact rendered by the Thai government.
In pleading guilty, Pitts admitted, among other things, to working with Francis and other foreign-defense-contractor personnel to help them cover up GDMA’s overcharging practices with respect to providing protection to U.S. Navy forces deployed in the Western Pacific.
So far, 18 of 27 defendants charged in the U.S. Navy bribery and fraud scandal have pleaded guilty. All defendants are presumed innocent unless and until convicted beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Mark W. Pletcher and Patrick Hovakimian of the Southern District of California and Assistant Chief Brian R. Young of the Fraud Section of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division.
DEFENDANT Case Number: 16-CR-1207
Commander Bobby Pitts Age 48 Chesapeake, Virginia
SUMMARY OF CHARGES
Conspiracy to Defraud the United States, in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 371
Maximum Penalty: 5 years in prison, a $250,000 fine,
INVESTIGATING AGENCIES
Defense Criminal Investigative Service
Naval Criminal Investigative Service
Defense Contract Audit Agency
Active-Duty U.S. Navy Commander Pleads Guilty to Conspiring with Foreign Defense Contractor to Defraud the U.S. NavyRead the Press Release
An active-duty U.S. Navy commander pleaded guilty today in connection with his efforts to obstruct a federal criminal investigation of the owner and chief executive officer of a multi-national defense contracting firm headquartered in Singapore.
Acting Assistant Attorney General Kenneth A. Blanco of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, Acting U.S. Attorney Alana Robinson of the Southern District of California, Director Dermot O’Reilly of the Department of Defense’s Defense Criminal Investigative Service (DCIS) and Director Andrew Traver of the Naval Criminal Investigative Service (NCIS) made the announcement.
Bobby Pitts, 48, of Chesapeake, Va., pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to defraud the U.S. in connection with the NCIS’s investigation of Leonard Glenn Francis, the owner and CEO of Glenn Defense Marine Asia (GDMA). Pitts is set to be sentenced on December 1, by U.S. Magistrate Judge Bernard Skomal of the Southern District of California, who accepted his plea today.
According to admissions made as part of his plea agreement, from August 2009 to May 2011, Pitts served as the officer in charge of the U.S. Navy’s Fleet Industrial Supply Command (FISC) in Singapore. As part of his duties, Pitts learned that NCIS and several civilian employees of the U.S. Navy were investigating whether Francis was over-billing the U.S. Navy on ship husbanding contracts. Pitts had access to internal U.S. Navy documents pertaining to investigative steps that the U.S. Navy was considering and admitted that he shared this information with Francis, with the intent to impede and obstruct the U.S. Navy’s oversight of its contracts with GDMA. On Nov. 23, 2010, for example, Pitts forwarded to a representative of GDMA an internal U.S. Navy email discussing FISC’s intention to contact officials with the Royal Thai Navy to determine whether GDMA had been billing the U.S. Navy for services in fact rendered by the Thai government.
In pleading guilty, Pitts admitted, among other things, to working with Francis and other foreign-defense-contractor personnel to help them cover up GDMA’s overcharging practices with respect to providing protection to U.S. Navy forces deployed in the Western Pacific.
So far, 18 of 27 defendants charged in the U.S. Navy bribery and fraud scandal have pleaded guilty. All defendants are presumed innocent unless and until convicted beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
The case is being prosecuted by Assistant Chief Brian R. Young of the Fraud Section of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division and Assistant U.S. Attorneys Mark W. Pletcher and Patrick Hovakimian of the Southern District of California.
Acting Manhattan U.S. Attorney Announces Agreement with Swiss Asset Management Firm to Resolve Criminal Tax InvestigationRead the Press Release
Joon H. Kim, the Acting United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, Stuart M. Goldberg, Acting Deputy Assistant Attorney General of the Justice Department’s Tax Division, and James D. Robnett, Special Agent in Charge of the Internal Revenue Service, Criminal Investigation (“IRS-CI”), announced today that Prime Partners SA (“Prime Partners”) entered into a non-prosecution agreement (“NPA”) with the U.S. Attorney’s Office and agreed to pay $5 million to the United States for assisting U.S. taxpayer-clients in opening and maintaining undeclared foreign bank accounts from 2001 through 2010. The NPA was based on Prime Partners’ extraordinary cooperation, including its voluntary production of approximately 175 client files for non-compliant U.S. taxpayer-clients, and provides that Prime Partners will not be criminally prosecuted. The NPA requires Prime Partners to forfeit $4.32 million to the United States, representing certain fees that it earned by assisting its U.S. taxpayer-clients in opening and maintaining these undeclared accounts, and to pay $680,000 in restitution to the IRS, representing the approximate unpaid taxes arising from the tax evasion by Prime Partners’ U.S. taxpayer-clients.
Acting Manhattan U.S. Attorney Joon H. Kim said: “Prime Partners admits to helping its clients conceal their ownership of foreign bank accounts to avoid their U.S. tax obligations. They created sham entities and even counseled their clients to use pay phones and prepaid debit cards to avoid detection of their tax fraud scheme. The resolution of this matter through a non-prosecution agreement, along with forfeiture and restitution, reflects the extraordinary cooperation provided by Prime Partners to our investigation. It should serve as proof that cooperation has tangible benefits. We will continue to pursue financial services firms around the world that help their clients evade U.S. taxes.”
Acting Deputy Assistant Attorney General Stuart M. Goldberg said: “The message is clear to those using foreign bank accounts to engage in schemes to evade U.S. taxes – you can no longer assume your ‘secret’ accounts will remain concealed, no matter where they are located. In our ongoing investigations, we will continue to draw on information from a variety of sources and to provide substantial credit to those around the globe who provide full and timely cooperation regarding the identity of U.S. tax cheats and the phony trusts and shell companies they seek to hide behind.”
IRS-CI Special Agent in Charge James D. Robnett said: “Today’s NPA signals the continued erosion of the tax secrecy safe havens that helped facilitate this criminal activity at a significant cost to the US taxpayer. IRS-CI is focused on tracking funds of individuals hiding income offshore and will continue to investigate international tax evasion.”
As part of the NPA, Prime Partners admitted various facts concerning its wrongful conduct and the remedial measures that it took to cease that conduct. Specifically, Prime Partners admitted that it knew certain U.S. taxpayers were maintaining undeclared foreign bank accounts with the assistance of Prime Partners in order to evade their U.S. tax obligations, in violation of U.S. law. Prime Partners acknowledged that it helped certain U.S. taxpayer-clients conceal from the IRS their beneficial ownership of undeclared assets maintained in foreign bank accounts by, among other things: (i) creating sham entities, which had no business purpose, that served as the nominal account holders for the accounts; (ii) advising U.S. taxpayer-clients not to retain their account statements, to call Prime Partners collect from pay phones, and to destroy any faxes they received from Prime Partners; (iii) providing U.S. taxpayer-clients with prepaid debit cards, which were funded with money from the clients’ undeclared accounts; and (iv) facilitating cash transfers in the United States between U.S. taxpayer-clients with undeclared accounts.
The NPA recognizes that, in early 2009, Prime Partners voluntarily implemented a series of remedial measures to stop assisting U.S. taxpayers in evading federal income taxes. The NPA further recognizes the extraordinary cooperation of Prime Partners, including its voluntary production of approximately 175 client files for non-compliant U.S. taxpayers, which included the identities of those U.S. taxpayers.
As part of the NPA, Prime Partners has agreed to forfeit $4.32 million to the United States, representing a portion of the gross revenues from services that it provided to U.S. taxpayers with undeclared foreign bank accounts from 2001 through 2010. In connection with this forfeiture, Prime Partners has agreed not to contest a civil forfeiture action to be filed by the United States.
The U.S. Attorney’s Office entered into the NPA based on factors including:
- Prime Partners’ voluntary and extraordinary cooperation, including its voluntary production of account files containing the identities of U.S. taxpayer-clients;
- Prime Partners’ voluntary implementation of various remedial measures beginning in or around early 2009, before the investigation of its conduct began;
- Prime Partners’ willingness to continue to cooperate to the extent permitted by applicable law; and
- Prime Partners’ representation – based on an investigation by outside counsel, the results of which have been reviewed by the U.S. Attorney’s Office and the Tax Division – that the misconduct under investigation did not, and does not, extend beyond that described in the Statement of Facts.
The NPA requires Prime Partners to continue to cooperate with the United States for at least three years from the date of the agreement. In the event that Prime Partners violates the NPA, the U.S. Attorney’s Office may prosecute Prime Partners.
Mr. Kim thanked the IRS for its outstanding work in the investigation of this matter and the Tax Division of the Department of Justice for its assistance in the investigation.
This investigation is being overseen by the Office’s Complex Frauds and Cybercrime Unit. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Sarah E. Paul and Kiersten A. Fletcher are in charge of the matter.
Additional information about the Tax Division’s enforcement efforts can be found on the division’s website.
Acting Manhattan U.S. Attorney Announces Agreement with Swiss Asset Management Firm to Resolve Criminal Tax InvestigationRead the Press Release
Joon H. Kim, the Acting United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, Stuart M. Goldberg, Acting Deputy Assistant Attorney General of the Justice Department’s Tax Division, and James D. Robnett, Special Agent in Charge of the Internal Revenue Service, Criminal Investigation (“IRS-CI”), announced today that Prime Partners SA (“Prime Partners”) entered into a non-prosecution agreement (“NPA”) with the U.S. Attorney’s Office and agreed to pay $5 million to the United States for assisting U.S. taxpayer-clients in opening and maintaining undeclared foreign bank accounts from 2001 through 2010. The NPA was based on Prime Partners’ extraordinary cooperation, including its voluntary production of approximately 175 client files for non-compliant U.S. taxpayer-clients, and provides that Prime Partners will not be criminally prosecuted. The NPA requires Prime Partners to forfeit $4.32 million to the United States, representing certain fees that it earned by assisting its U.S. taxpayer-clients in opening and maintaining these undeclared accounts, and to pay $680,000 in restitution to the IRS, representing the approximate unpaid taxes arising from the tax evasion by Prime Partners’ U.S. taxpayer-clients.
Acting Manhattan U.S. Attorney Joon H. Kim said: “Prime Partners admits to helping its clients conceal their ownership of foreign bank accounts to avoid their U.S. tax obligations. They created sham entities and even counseled their clients to use pay phones and prepaid debit cards to avoid detection of their tax fraud scheme. The resolution of this matter through a non-prosecution agreement, along with forfeiture and restitution, reflects the extraordinary cooperation provided by Prime Partners to our investigation. It should serve as proof that cooperation has tangible benefits. We will continue to pursue financial services firms around the world that help their clients evade U.S. taxes.”
Acting Deputy Assistant Attorney General Stuart M. Goldberg said: “The message is clear to those using foreign bank accounts to engage in schemes to evade U.S. taxes – you can no longer assume your ‘secret’ accounts will remain concealed, no matter where they are located. In our ongoing investigations, we will continue to draw on information from a variety of sources and to provide substantial credit to those around the globe who provide full and timely cooperation regarding the identity of U.S. tax cheats and the phony trusts and shell companies they seek to hide behind.”
IRS-CI Special Agent in Charge James D. Robnett said: “Today’s NPA signals the continued erosion of the tax secrecy safe havens that helped facilitate this criminal activity at a significant cost to the US taxpayer. IRS-CI is focused on tracking funds of individuals hiding income offshore and will continue to investigate international tax evasion.”
As part of the NPA, Prime Partners admitted various facts concerning its wrongful conduct and the remedial measures that it took to cease that conduct. Specifically, Prime Partners admitted that it knew certain U.S. taxpayers were maintaining undeclared foreign bank accounts with the assistance of Prime Partners in order to evade their U.S. tax obligations, in violation of U.S. law. Prime Partners acknowledged that it helped certain U.S. taxpayer-clients conceal from the IRS their beneficial ownership of undeclared assets maintained in foreign bank accounts by, among other things: (i) creating sham entities, which had no business purpose, that served as the nominal account holders for the accounts; (ii) advising U.S. taxpayer-clients not to retain their account statements, to call Prime Partners collect from pay phones, and to destroy any faxes they received from Prime Partners; (iii) providing U.S. taxpayer-clients with prepaid debit cards, which were funded with money from the clients’ undeclared accounts; and (iv) facilitating cash transfers in the United States between U.S. taxpayer-clients with undeclared accounts.
The NPA recognizes that, in early 2009, Prime Partners voluntarily implemented a series of remedial measures to stop assisting U.S. taxpayers in evading federal income taxes. The NPA further recognizes the extraordinary cooperation of Prime Partners, including its voluntary production of approximately 175 client files for non-compliant U.S. taxpayers, which included the identities of those U.S. taxpayers.
As part of the NPA, Prime Partners has agreed to forfeit $4.32 million to the United States, representing a portion of the gross revenues from services that it provided to U.S. taxpayers with undeclared foreign bank accounts from 2001 through 2010. In connection with this forfeiture, Prime Partners has agreed not to contest a civil forfeiture action to be filed by the United States.
The U.S. Attorney’s Office entered into the NPA based on factors including:
- Prime Partners’ voluntary and extraordinary cooperation, including its voluntary production of account files containing the identities of U.S. taxpayer-clients;
- Prime Partners’ voluntary implementation of various remedial measures beginning in or around early 2009, before the investigation of its conduct began;
- Prime Partners’ willingness to continue to cooperate to the extent permitted by applicable law; and
- Prime Partners’ representation – based on an investigation by outside counsel, the results of which have been reviewed by the U.S. Attorney’s Office and the Tax Division – that the misconduct under investigation did not, and does not, extend beyond that described in the Statement of Facts.
The NPA requires Prime Partners to continue to cooperate with the United States for at least three years from the date of the agreement. In the event that Prime Partners violates the NPA, the U.S. Attorney’s Office may prosecute Prime Partners.
* * *
Mr. Kim thanked the IRS for its outstanding work in the investigation of this matter and the Tax Division of the Department of Justice for its assistance in the investigation.
This investigation is being overseen by the Office’s Complex Frauds and Cybercrime Unit. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Sarah E. Paul and Kiersten A. Fletcher are in charge of the matter.
12 Members of Heroin Drug Trafficking Organization Operating in Manhattan, Bronx, and New Jersey Charged in Manhattan Federal CourtRead the Press Release
Joon H. Kim, the Acting United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, and Carl J. Kotowski, the Special Agent in Charge of the New Jersey Division of the Drug Enforcement Administration (“DEA”), today announced the unsealing of an indictment charging 12 defendants with participating in a drug trafficking organization that distributed large quantities of heroin in and around Monmouth and Ocean Counties, New Jersey, and obtained the heroin from Washington Heights and the Bronx, among other places. In conjunction with the unsealing of the Indictment, search warrants were executed at several locations in New Jersey.
Defendants MIGUEL ARIEL SUSANA, a/k/a “Jariel Santos,” QUADREE HUBBARD, JAMES F. SMITH III, a/k/a “Trey,” a/k/a “Brim Reaper,” a/k/a “Reaper,” TAHMIR RICE, DAMAR BIVINS, JAIR OLIVER, TYSHEEM SMITH, JOEL ROSADO, AVEENA VITRANO-MANLEY, and FRANK DESANTO were arrested by DEA agents this morning and will be presented in federal court in Manhattan before U.S. Magistrate Judge Barbara C. Moses later today. Defendant MARCELLUS CUTLER has not yet been apprehended. Defendant TYRON TROTMAN is currently in custody on state charges and will be transferred to federal custody and presented at a later date. The case has been assigned to U.S. District Judge Richard J. Sullivan.
Acting U.S. Attorney Joon H. Kim stated: “As alleged, this organization transported large quantities of heroin from Washington Heights and the Bronx across the Hudson to Monmouth and Ocean Counties in New Jersey, helping to fuel the opioid epidemic plaguing our nation. Today’s arrests of twelve alleged members of this heroin distribution organization is part our sustained commitment, along with our partners at the DEA, to stop the flow of heroin into and out of New York.”
DEA Special Agent in Charge Carl J. Kotowski said: “Today’s arrests should send a clear message to the drug traffickers that DEA and our partners are committed to keeping our neighborhoods safe. Those arrested are facing significant time in prison and will no longer be pushing their poison.”
According to the Indictment[1] unsealed in Manhattan federal court:
MIGUEL ARIEL SUSANA, a/k/a “Jariel Santos,” QUADREE HUBBARD, JAMES F. SMITH III, a/k/a “Trey,” a/k/a “Brim Reaper,” a/k/a “Reaper,” TAHMIR RICE, DAMAR BIVINS, JAIR OLIVER, MARCELLUS CUTLER, TYSHEEM SMITH, JOEL ROSADO, AVEENA VITRANO-MANLEY, TYRON TROTMAN, and FRANK DESANTO conspired to distribute significant amounts of heroin from May 2017 to August 2017, as members of a drug trafficking organization (the “DTO”) that obtained narcotics for resale from Washington Heights, New York, and the Bronx, New York, among other places, and packaged and sold those narcotics throughout Monmouth and Ocean Counties. SUSANA acted as a source of supply for HUBBARD and SMITH. RICE, BIVINS, OLIVER, CUTLER, and TYSHEEM SMITH each assisted either HUBBARD or SMITH in managing certain aspects of the DTO, including in obtaining, packaging, storing, and distributing narcotics. DESANTO and TROTMAN sold heroin obtained from SMITH to street-level customers. ROSADO and VITRANO-MANLEY worked with SMITH to obtain significant quantities of narcotics, including by pooling money with SMITH.
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Each defendant is charged with one count of conspiracy to distribute narcotics. Defendants SUSANA, HUBBARD, JAMES F. SMITH III, RICE, OLIVER, and CUTLER are charged with conspiring to distribute and possess with the intent to distribute one kilogram and more of mixtures and substances containing a detectable amount of heroin, which carries a mandatory minimum sentence of 10 years in prison and a maximum sentence of life in prison. Defendants BIVINS, TYSHEEM SMITH, ROSADO, and VITRANO-MANLEY are charged with conspiring to distribute and possess with the intent to distribute 100 grams and more of mixtures and substances containing a detectable amount of heroin, which carries a mandatory minimum sentence of five years in prison and a maximum sentence of 40 years in prison. Defendants TROTMAN and DESANTO are charged with conspiring to distribute and possess with the intent to distribute a quantity of mixtures and substances containing a detectable amount of heroin, which carries a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison. The statutory maximum sentences are prescribed by Congress and are provided here for informational purposes only, as any sentencing of the defendants will be determined by the judge. A chart with the defendants’ ages and residences is below.
Mr. Kim thanked the DEA Monmouth Ocean HIDTA Task Force for their outstanding work on the investigation. The Monmouth Ocean HIDTA Task Force comprises representatives from the DEA, the ATF, the New Jersey State Police, Monmouth County Prosecutor’s Office, Ocean County Prosecutor’s Office, Toms River Police Department, and the Neptune Township Police Department. Mr. Kim also thanked the Howell Police Department, the Freehold Township Police Department, the Lakewood Police Department, the Monmouth County Sheriff’s Office, Ocean County Sheriff’s Office, the Passaic County Sheriff’s Office, the Union County Sheriff’s Office and the United States Attorney’s Office for the District of New Jersey for their assistance in this investigation. He added that the investigation is continuing.
This matter is being handled by the Office’s Narcotics Unit. Assistant United States Attorneys Elizabeth A. Hanft and Michael D. Neff are in charge of the prosecution.
The charges contained in the Indictment are merely accusations, and the defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
[1] As the introductory phrase signifies, the entirety of the text of the Indictment, and the description of the Indictment set forth herein, constitute only allegations, and every fact described should be treated as an allegation.
Monday 14 August 2017
“Great Outdoors Bandit” Arrested in Los AngelesRead the Press Release
LOS ANGELES -On Sunday, August 13, 2017, Josue Daniel Alfaro, a/k/a Danny Alfaro, a/k/a the “Great Outdoors Bandit,” was arrested, pursuant to an arrest warrant for bank robbery, at the Los Angeles International Airport while attempting to board a Wow Airlines flight to Brussels, Belgium.
Previously, on Friday, August 11, 2017, Mr. Alfaro was charged by criminal complaint in the District of Idaho with bank robbery, and an arrest warrant issued. According to the affidavit accompanying the criminal complaint, which was unsealed today, the following banks were robbed on the following dates by a person matching Mr. Alfaro’s description and wearing a baseball-style cap and sunglasses:
-On December 21, 2016, the U.S. Bank at 10500 West Overland Road in Boise, Idaho;
-On December 21, 2016, the Idaho Central Credit Union at 1615 South Celebration Avenue in Meridian, Idaho;
-On March 24, 2017, the Bank of the West at 9140 West Emerald Street in Boise, Idaho;
-On May 24, 2017, the Alpine Credit Union at 351 East 800 South in Orem, Utah;
-On August 7, 2017, the Bank of the West at 9140 West Emerald Street in Boise, Idaho;
-On August 7, 2017, the Pioneer Federal Credit Union at 850 East Fairview Avenue in Meridian, Idaho;
-On August 7, 2017, the Clarity Federal Credit Union at 555 South Meridian Road in Meridian, Idaho.
According to the affidavit, on August 7, 2017, a person matching Mr. Alfaro’s description appeared at the Idaho Independent Bank in Mountain Home, Idaho. The person was not wearing sunglasses or disguising his face in any way. The person requested to exchange $1,500 in $100 bills for $50 bills. The bank denied the request and provided photographs of the person’s face and the vehicle he was driving – a black Mitsubishi Outlander – to law enforcement. A vehicle appearing to be a black Mitsubishi Outlander was also photographed during the August 7, 2017 robbery of the Pioneer Federal Credit Union in Meridian.
According to the affidavit, on August 9, 2017, the FBI sent out a media release of the Idaho Independent Bank surveillance photographs. Two people – an acquaintance and Mr. Alfaro’s brother – positively identified Mr. Alfaro as the person in the photographs.
According to the affidavit, Mr. Alfaro’s brother advised law enforcement that, on August 5, 2017, Mr. Alfaro and his sister drove in a rental car from their residence in Los Angeles, California to the family’s residence in Utah. On the morning of August 7, 2017, Mr. Alfaro borrowed his mother’s black Mitsubishi Outlander, left the residence in Utah, and did not return until two days later. On the morning of August 10, 2017, Mr. Alfaro argued with his sisters and appeared to have cried. Mr. Alfaro’s brother learned that the argument was initiated when Mr. Alfaro’s sisters confronted Mr. Alfaro about the bank surveillance photographs in the media. Mr. Alfaro drove back to California in the rental car.
On Monday, August 14, 2017, Mr. Alfaro had his initial appearance and arraignment on the criminal complaint before the United States Magistrate Court for the Central District of California. Mr. Alfaro was detained and will be transported to the District of Idaho for trial.
The case is being investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, United States Customs and Border Protection, Boise Police Department, and Meridian Police Department.
A criminal complaint is a means of charging a person with criminal activity. It is not evidence. The person is presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
Wichita Business Owner Sentenced in $250,000 Tax CaseRead the Press Release
WICHITA, KAN. - A Wichita business owner was sentenced Monday to two years on supervised release and ordered to pay $256,000 in restitution for withholding taxes from employee salaries that he failed to pay over to the government, U.S. Attorney Tom Beall said.
Michael J. Skladzien, 54, Wichita, Kan., pleaded guilty to one count of failing to pay over taxes. In his plea, he admitted that while he owned S&S Floor Maintenance he withheld approximately money from salaries of employees to pay federal taxes. Instead of paying the funds over to the government, he spent the money on personal expenses including gambling.
Beall commended the Internal Revenue Service – Criminal Investigation and Assistant U.S. Attorney Alan Metzger for their work on the case.
Virginia Business Owners Charged with Tax EvasionRead the Press Release
A federal grand jury in the Western District of Virginia returned an indictment charging two business owners with tax evasion and conspiring to structure currency transactions, announced Acting Deputy Assistant Attorney General Stuart M. Goldberg of the Justice Department’s Tax Division.
According to the indictment, Jeffrey and Karen Dalton owned Blue Ridge Stainless Inc. (BRS), a subcontracting business that provided labor to renovate large retail department and grocery stores, and operated it out of their home in Hillsville, Virginia. The Daltons allegedly filed their 2009 through 2014 personal tax returns with the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) reporting the income they earned from BRS, but failed to pay the taxes, penalties and interest owed. The indictment alleges that despite an IRS revenue officer repeatedly contacting the Daltons over a period of years about their delinquent taxes and pending IRS liens, they refused to pay their outstanding tax liability, used nominees to conceal their ownership of property and filed false documents with the IRS. After the IRS levied the Dalton’s personal bank accounts, they allegedly used funds from the BRS business bank account to start a cattle business and pay for their children’s wedding expenses.
The indictment also charges Jeffery and Karen Dalton with conspiring to withdraw cash from the BRS business bank account, in increments less than $10,000, to evade federal bank-reporting requirements. According to the indictment, they withdrew more than $250,000 in this piecemeal fashion.
An indictment merely alleges that crimes have been committed and the defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.
If convicted, Jeffery and Karen Dalton each face a statutory maximum sentence of five years in prison on both the tax evasion and conspiracy charge. They also face a period of supervised release, restitution and monetary penalties.
Acting Deputy Assistant Attorney General Goldberg thanked special agents of IRS Criminal Investigation, who conducted the investigation, and Trial Attorneys Daniel McGraw and Sean Beaty of the Tax Division, who are prosecuting the case.
Additional information about the Tax Division and its enforcement efforts may be found on the division’s website.
U.S. Postal Worker Sentenced in case of Accepting Bribe to Deliver MarijuanaRead the Press Release
BIRMINGHAM – A federal judge today sentenced a Shelby County woman to a probationary sentence of 2 years for accepting a bribe to deliver marijuana in the U.S. Mail as part of a conspiracy to distribute the drug, announced U.S. Attorney Jay E. Town and Inspector in Charge Adrian Gonzalez, Houston Division, and U.S. Postal Inspection Service.
U.S. District Court Judge R. David Proctor sentenced DEANN MARCHETT DIXON STEVENSON, 43, of Birmingham, AL, to a 2-year probationary sentence today.
Stevenson was a mail carrier at the Meadowbrook Post Office in Birmingham, Alabama. She pleaded guilty to conspiracy to distribute marijuana in Jefferson and Shelby counties between January 2016 and September 2016. Court documents do not name her co-conspirators, but the investigation involved the receipt of U.S. currency in exchange for delivering packages to other co-conspirators. Stevenson was also sentenced in a separate count for her conduct of accepting a bribe to deliver U.S. mail.
The U.S. Postal Inspection Service, Alabama Law Enforcement Agency, and U.S. Office of Inspector General investigated the case, which Assistant U.S. Attorney Brad Felton is prosecuting.
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Topeka Man Sentenced for Lying to Investigators After Deadly StandoffRead the Press Release
TOPEKA, KAN. - A Topeka man was sentenced Monday to 42 months in federal prison for lying to investigators in a 2016 interview following a stand-off between federal law enforcement officers and fugitive Orlando J. Collins, U.S. Attorney Tom Beall said today.
Quentin Kirk Lawton, 37, pleaded guilty in May to one count of making a false statement. In his plea, he admitted that on April 23, 2016, he visited Collins in a room at the Country Club Motel at 3732 S.W. Topeka Boulevard. Lawton left the motel shortly before a standoff between Collins and federal agents. When the FBI questioned Lawton about Collins’ whereabouts, Lawton denied he had been to the motel and seen Collins. In fact, Lawton was captured on video surveillance entering and leaving Collins’ room shortly before members of a federal task force attempted to arrest Collins.
When members of a task force tried to take Collins into custody he shot two U.S. Marshals and an FBI agent. A fire ignited from inside Collins’ room during the gunfight and spread throughout the motel. After the fire, Collins’ body was found in the motel room.
Beall commended the U.S. Marshals Service, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Topeka Police Department, the Shawnee County Sheriff’s Office, and Assistant U.S. Attorney Jared Maag for their work on the case.
Three South Charleston meth dealers plead guilty to federal drug crimesRead the Press Release
CHARLESTON, W.Va. – Three methamphetamine dealers from South Charleston pleaded guilty today to federal drug charges, announced United States Attorney Carol Casto. Carl “Yogi” Clark, 40, Jamie Harmon, 38, and Holly Doub, 34, each entered guilty pleas to distribution of methamphetamine.
Clark and Harmon admitted that in January 2017, along with other individuals, they brought approximately four kilograms of crystal methamphetamine from Atlanta to Charleston. On January 12, 2017, officers with the Metropolitan Drug Enforcement Network Team executed a search warrant at a hotel room and found over 130 grams of methamphetamine, scales, baggies, and a gun. The methamphetamine was part of the approximately four kilograms Clark, Harmon, and others brought back from Atlanta, and it was lab-tested and confirmed to be over 90% pure. Harmon and Clark also admitted to distributing additional methamphetamine to confidential informants during controlled buys in March 2017. Doub admitted that she helped Clark during one of those buys on March 13, 2017, by handing the confidential informant a gram of methamphetamine. Previously, Christopher Carte entered a guilty plea to conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine for his role in the same drug trafficking organization. As part of their plea agreements, the defendants also admitted to the other drug trafficking activity charged in the indictment.
Carte, Harmon, Clark, and Doub each face up to 20 years in federal prison when they are sentenced on November 8, 2017.
The investigation was conducted by the Metropolitan Drug Enforcement Network Team, with assistance from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. Assistant United States Attorney Haley Bunn is responsible for the prosecutions. United States District Judge Joseph R. Goodwin is presiding over these cases.
These cases are being prosecuted 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 illegal drugs, including methamphetamine. The U.S. Attorney’s Office, joined by federal, state and local law enforcement agencies, is committed to aggressively pursuing and shutting down pill trafficking, eliminating open air drug markets, and curtailing the spread of illegal drugs in communities across the Southern District.
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Texas Cocaine Supplier Sentenced to 10 YearsRead the Press Release
Jacksonville, Florida – U.S. District Judge Marcia Morales Howard today sentenced George Pena (42, Edinburg, TX) to 10 years in federal prison for possessing with the intent to distribute more than five kilograms of cocaine. He pleaded guilty on May 24, 2017.
According to court documents, in October 2016, following a month-long investigation, special agents from the Drug Enforcement Administration executed a search warrant at a home where Pena was located and recovered 12.5 kilograms of cocaine, over $17,000, and a loaded firearm.
This case was investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration. It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Frank Talbot.
Tampa Man Caught in Undercover Sting Pleads Guilty to Firearms ChargeRead the Press Release
Tampa, Florida – Acting United States Attorney W. Stephen Muldrow announces that Michael O. Johnson (28, Tampa) has pleaded guilty to possessing a firearm as a convicted felon. He faces up to life in federal prison.
According to the plea agreement, Johnson sold six firearms to undercover agents over several months, including a Russian model SKS, 7.62x39-caliber rifle. He sold the guns even after being told that they would be trafficked and resold illegally in other markets in the United States, including New York.
This case was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Frank Murray.
This is another case prosecuted as part of the Department of Justice’s “Project Safe Neighborhoods” Program - a nationwide, gun-violence reduction strategy. Acting United States Attorney W. Stephen Muldrow, along with Daryl McCrary, Special Agent in Charge, ATF, are coordinating the Project Safe Neighborhoods effort here in the Middle District of Florida in cooperation with federal, state, and local law enforcement officials. It is also a part of ATF’s Frontline Strategy on reducing violent crime in communities.
Six West Texas Residents Charged with Methamphetamine and Firearm OffensesRead the Press Release
ABILENE, Texas — Following a joint law enforcement operation involving the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Taylor County Sheriff’s Office, the U.S. Immigrations and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, the United States Marshals Service, and the Anson, Texas Police Department, six individuals are now in custody on federal drug distribution charges and more arrests are anticipated, announced U.S. Attorney John Parker of the Northern District of Texas.
Five federal indictments, unsealed last week, charge a total of five individuals with distribution and possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine. The following individuals were charged:
Jamaal Rozell Dunson, 32, of Abilene
Joe Nathan Spafford, 28, of Abilene
Michael James Huettl, 47, of Abilene
Delores Denise Rodriguez, 25, of Abilene
Driessan Scott Russell, 28, of Abilene
Trysten Keun Napper, 33, of Abilene was arrested on a complaint charging him with being a convicted felon in possession of ammunition.
Several defendants made their initial appearance last week in federal court in Abilene before U.S. Magistrate Judge E. Scott Frost. All remain in custody. Several detention hearings will be held later this week.
According to the indictments filed, in March 2017 through June 2017, the defendants intentionally and knowingly distributed and possessed with intent to distribute methamphetamine. Throughout the investigation, substantial amounts of methamphetamine, cash, and firearms were seized from the drug traffickers.
A federal indictment is an accusation by a federal grand jury, and a defendant is entitled to the presumption of innocence unless proven guilty. However, if convicted, the methamphetamine distribution counts carry a mandatory minimum penalty of five years and a maximum statutory penalty of 40 years. The firearm count carries a maximum statutory penalty of 10 years in federal prison, and a $250,000 fine
Assistant United States Attorney Juanita Fielden is in charge of the prosecution.
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Shelby County Resident Sentenced for Receipt of Child PornographyRead the Press Release
COUNCIL BLUFFS, IA - On August 11, 2017, Colton James Klein, 22, from Harlan, Iowa, was sentenced heather Jean Reekrby United States District Court Judge Stephanie M. Rose to 120 months in prison followed by ten years of supervised release for receipt of child pornography, announced United States Attorney Kevin E. VanderSchel.
Klein pleaded guilty to receipt of child pornography on March 16, 2017, based on information developed by a multi-jurisdiction law enforcement investigation beginning in August of 2015. The investigation showed that Klein was using several Facebook accounts, along with other social media sites, to obtain sexually explicit images of minor females. After obtaining the images, Klein distributed some of the images to others linked to his social media networks.
The Iowa Division of Criminal Investigation, Red Oak Iowa Police Department, La Vista Nebraska Police Department, Olathe Kansas Police Department, Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force, and Federal Bureau of Investigation conducted the investigation. This case was prosecuted by the United States Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Iowa.
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Learn more about this release by calling Rachel J. Scherle at 515-473-9300, or by emailing her at [email protected].
Seattle Woman Indicted for Distributing Controlled SubstancesRead the Press Release
PITTSBURGH - A resident of Seattle, Washington, has been indicted by a federal grand jury in Pittsburgh on charges of distribution of quantities of 4-ANPP and furanyl fentanyl, Acting United States Attorney Soo C. Song announced today.
The five-count indictment, returned on August 1 and unsealed today, named Christina M. Arias, aka Wasabisauced, 33, as the sole defendant.
According to the indictment, on or about April 5, 2017, Arias distributed a quantity of 4-ANPP. The indictment also states that, on or about April 24, 2017, on or about May 15, 2017, on or about June 7, 2017, and on or about June 15, 2017, she distributed quantities of furanyl fentanyl.
The law provides for a maximum total sentence of up to 100 years in prison, a fine up to $5,000,000, or both. Under the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, the actual sentence imposed would be based upon the seriousness of the offenses and the prior criminal history, if any, of the defendant.
Assistant United States Attorney Shardul S. Desai is prosecuting this case on behalf of the government. Substantial assistance was provided by the United States Attorney’s Offices in the Western District of Washington.
The United States Postal Inspection Service, Bellevue Police Department in Washington State, Federal Bureau of Investigation, and Homeland Security Investigations 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.
Salina Man Sentenced to 20 Years for Producing Child PornographyRead the Press Release
WICHITA, KAN. – A Salina man has been sentenced to 20 years in federal prison for producing child pornography, U.S. Attorney Tom Beall said today.
Michael N. Rodenbeek, 54, Salina, Kan., was sentenced Aug. 11. He pleaded guilty to two counts of producing child pornography. In his plea, he admitted using an iPhone camera to surreptitiously record videos focusing on the genitals of a 10-year-old victim and a 9-year-old victim. The recordings were made without the victims’ knowledge.
Beall commended the Wichita Police Department, Homeland Security Investigations, the Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force and Assistant U.S. Attorney Jason Hart for their work on the case.
Saco Woman Sentenced to Probation for Mail TheftRead the Press Release
Portland, Maine: Acting United States Attorney Richard W. Murphy announced that Norma Duhamel, 71, of Saco, Maine, was sentenced today in U.S. District Court by Chief Judge Nancy Torresen to two years of probation for theft of mail. She was also ordered to pay $1,230 in restitution. Duhamel pleaded guilty on June 2, 2017.
According to court documents, between August and October of 2016, Duhamel stole mail containing bank checks and a credit card from mailboxes of residents of Cumberland, Maine. She cashed about $1,125 worth of stolen checks and charged about $105 on the credit card.
In pronouncing sentence, Judge Torresen warned Duhamel that if she repeated her behavior and violated the terms of her probation, the Judge guaranteed her a jail sentence.
The case was investigated by the U.S. Postal Inspection Service
Postal Employee Pleads Guilty to Stealing from MailRead the Press Release
CONTACT: Barbara Burns
PHONE: (716) 843-5817
FAX: (716) 551-3051BUFFALO, N.Y.-Acting U.S. Attorney James P. Kennedy, Jr. announced today that Percy Jackson, 29, of Buffalo, NY, pleaded guilty to theft of mail by a postal employee before U.S. District Judge Lawrence J. Vilardo. The charge carries a maximum penalty of five years in prison and a $250,000 fine.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Maura K. O’Donnell, who is handling the case, stated that in the spring of 2017, while working as a mail processing clerk at the United States Postal Service Buffalo Processing & Distribution Center, the defendant rifled through mail he was entrusted to sort. Jackson opened envelopes intended to be delivered via U.S. mail, and removed gift cards and cash totaling $460.
The plea is the culmination of an investigation on the part of the United States Postal Service, Office of the Inspector General, under the direction of Special Agent-in-Charge Monica Weyler, Eastern Area Field Office, Philadelphia, PA.
Sentencing is scheduled for November 27, 2017, at 9:30 a.m. before Judge Vilardo.
Police Officer Charged with Drug TraffickingRead the Press Release
McALLEN, Texas – A 43-year-old sergeant with the Progresso Police Department has been taken into custody on charges of aiding and abetting the attempt to possess with intent to distribute more than five kilograms of cocaine, announced Acting U.S. Attorney Abe Martinez.
Authorities arrested Giovani Hernandez upon the filing of a sealed criminal complaint on Saturday, Aug. 12, 2017. He made his initial appearance before U.S. Magistrate Judge Dorina Ramos this morning and is set for a probable cause and detention hearing on Aug. 18, 2017.
Hernandez, of Weslaco, is a sergeant with the Progreso Police Department, according to the charges. From March through July 2017, a confidential source allegedly met with Hernandez seeking assistance for a drug trafficking organization. The criminal complaint alleges the meetings culminated in Hernandez agreeing to provide protection for a vehicle he believed contained a controlled substance through the Progreso area. In return for his assistance, Hernandez allegedly received approximately $5,000.
Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations, Drug Enforcement Administration and IRS - Criminal Investigations conducted the Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force Investigation which was dubbed Operation Blue Shame. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Anibal J. Alaniz and Kristen Rees are prosecuting the case.
A criminal complaint is a formal accusation of criminal conduct, not evidence.
A defendant is presumed innocent unless and until convicted through due process of law.
Owner of “Fast Cash Tax” Pleads Guilty to Conspiring to Defraud the IRSRead 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 Jason Jimenez, 39, of Rochester, NY, pleaded guilty to conspiring to defraud the Internal Revenue Service, before U.S. District Judge Elizabeth A. Wolford. The charge carries a maximum penalty of five years in prison and a $250,000 fine.
Assistant U.S. Attorney John J. Field, who is handling the case, stated that Jimenez owned an income tax return preparation business known as Fast Cash Tax. Between January 2012 and February 2015, the defendant conspired with other employees of Fast Cash Tax to prepare false tax returns on behalf of numerous clients. The returns were falsified to increase the amount of the Earned Income Tax Credit claimed, which yielded larger refunds for the clients than they were entitled to receive. In total, the conspiracy netted approximately $105,000 in fraudulently obtained refunds.
The plea is the result of an investigation by Special Agents with the Internal Revenue Service, under the direction of Special Agent-in-Charge James D. Robnett.
Sentencing is scheduled for December 4, 2017, at 2:00 p.m., before Judge Wolford.
Owner of “Fast Cash Tax,” Former Employees Sentenced for Conspiring to Defraud the IRSRead the Press Release
CONTACT: Barbara Burns
PHONE: (716) 843-5817
FAX: (716) 551-3051ROCHESTER, N.Y. - U.S. Attorney James P. Kennedy, Jr. announced today that Jason Jimenez, 39, of Rochester, NY, who was convicted of conspiring to defraud the Internal Revenue Service, was sentenced to 12 months in prison by U.S. District Court Judge Elizabeth A. Wolford. In addition, co-defendants Jessica Rosario and Ashley Walker, who were also convicted of conspiracy, were each sentenced to three years probation.
Assistant U.S. Attorneys Melissa Marangola and John J. Field, who handled the case, stated that Jimenez owned an income tax return preparation business known as Fast Cash Tax. Between January 2012 and February 2015, the defendant conspired with other employees, including Jessica Rosario and Ashley Walker, of Fast Cash Tax to prepare false tax returns on behalf of numerous clients. The returns were falsified to increase the amount of the Earned Income Tax Credit claimed, which yielded larger refunds for the clients than they were entitled to receive. In total, the conspiracy netted approximately $105,000 in fraudulently obtained refunds.
The sentencings are the result of an investigation by Special Agents with the Internal Revenue Service, under the direction of Special Agent-in-Charge James D. Robnett.
Orlando Man Sentenced to 40 Years for Production and Possession of Child PornographyRead the Press Release
Fort Myers, Florida – U.S. District Judge Sheri Polster Chappell today sentenced Jorge Guerrero-Torres (29, Orlando) to 40 years in federal prison for production and possession of child pornography. The Court also ordered him to forfeit the cellphone that he had used to commit the offense. A federal jury found Guerrero-Torres guilty on May 16, 2017.
According to testimony and evidence presented during trial, Guerrero-Torres resided with a family in Fort Myers, including four children who Guerrero-Torres had known for several years. While living with the family, Guerrero-Torres used his cellphone to take sexually explicit photos of one of the children.
After moving out of the family’s residence in May 2016, Guerrero-Torres was questioned regarding a complaint of alleged inappropriate conduct related to one of the children. After learning that detectives from the Lee County Sheriff’s Office wished to further question him, Guerrero-Torres fled and discarded his cellphone. He was apprehended in Okeechobee while attempting to make arrangements to flee to Mexico. Guerrero-Torres’s cellphone was located in Orlando and a subsequent search revealed the sexually explicit images of the child. Guerrero-Torres acknowledged that he had taken the images while living with the child’s family.
This case was investigated by the Lee County Sheriff’s Office, the Florida Department of Law Enforcement, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the United States Marshals, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations, the Okeechobee Police Department, and the Okeechobee County Sheriff’s Office. It was prosecuted by Chief Assistant United States Attorney Jesus M. Casas and Assistant United States Attorney Charles Schmitz.
This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by 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 locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who sexually exploit children, and to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.justice.gov/psc.
Operation Hardest Hit Targets Portsmouth Heroin TraffickersRead the Press Release
NORFOLK, Va. – Eleven people were arrested across three states this morning for their role in a large-scale heroin and fentanyl drug trafficking organization in Portsmouth.
Over 300 law enforcement agents made the arrests and executed 10 search warrants in Virginia, Georgia, and New York. The takedown is the result of a multi-year, multi-jurisdictional, and multi-agency Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF) investigation designated Operation Hardest Hit.
According to the indictment, law enforcement began investigating Leroy Perdue and his drug trafficking organization (Perdue DTO) in early 2016 following the heroin overdose death of a young resident of Chesapeake. With the participation of nearly two dozen Confidential Human Sources, law enforcement infiltrated the Perdue DTO and made 10 undercover controlled purchases of heroin and fentanyl. On June 22, the investigative team arrested Rhadu Schoolfield in Norfolk with 800 grams of heroin after he returned from a trip to New York.
“Tackling the opioid epidemic is one of our top priorities,” said Dana J. Boente, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia. “Through the combined efforts of our prosecutors and law enforcement partners we will continue to strangle the supply of heroin and fentanyl and bring to justice those who profit from other people’s misery.”
According to the indictment, the Perdue DTO distributed in excess of 100 kilograms of heroin (approximately 250,000 doses) over a 10-year period. Members of the Perdue DTO were responsible for supplying a violent gang based in Portsmouth and continued to sell dangerous narcotics even after learning that their drugs resulted in death. The United States is alleging that at least two members of the Perdue DTO have ties to criminal street gangs and that other members possessed firearms and ammunition. Ten of the 12 federal defendants are convicted felons.
“My top priority as attorney general is keeping Virginians and their families safe, which is why my team and I are relentlessly pursuing the heroin and fentanyl traffickers who profit off addiction and endanger the lives of Virginians,” said Mark R. Herring, Attorney General of Virginia. “Operation Hardest Hit is another important step in addressing what’s become one of Virginia’s most urgent public safety and public health threats. This operation, along with the work of the Hampton Roads Heroin Working Group, shows what can happen when local, state, and federal partners are committed to working cooperatively and collaboratively. The results speak for themselves and I hope communities around the country will look to this region as an example of what can be accomplished when we come together as a community.”
“This case demonstrates the steadfast commitment of the FBI and our law enforcement partners to protecting the public from destructive enterprises that eat at the heart and soul of our community,” said Martin Culbreth, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI’s Norfolk Field Division. “Operation Hardest Hit is an example of a coordinated, intelligence-driven strategy to choke the supply of these dangerous drugs by targeting the high level traffickers and criminal organizations most responsible for terrorizing our neighborhoods and poisoning our community.”
“This team effort helped take down a massive heroin and fentanyl drug trafficking organization that spanned across multiple states,” said Michael K. Lamonea, Assistant Special Agent in Charge of HSI Norfolk. “Today, I’m proud to say that our law enforcement actions saved lives. We’ll continue to be relentless in our pursuit of those who seek to exploit and harm our citizens with lethal drugs in communities across the country.”
The below individuals were among a dozen named in a 25-count indictment by returned by a federal grand jury on August 9:
Name
Age
Hometown
Charges
Leroy L. Perdue,
aka Dink, Big Heat, Big Cuz
45
Portsmouth
Conspiracy, Possession with intent to distribute heroin, Interstate travel in aid of racketeering
Rhadu J. Schoolfield, aka Big Face Dolla
33
Portsmouth
Conspiracy, Felon in possession of firearms, Interstate travel in aid of racketeering
Tywon McKelvy
42
New York
Conspiracy
Darion D. Perdue,
Aka Son Son
24
Portsmouth
Conspiracy
Abraham A. Atkins
35
Portsmouth
Conspiracy, Distribution, Possession with intent to distribute, Maintaining a drug-involved premises, Using a communications facility to cause, commit, and facilitate felony violations of the Controlled Substances Act
Valeria A. Waller
42
Portsmouth
Conspiracy; Distribution; Possession with intent to distribute; Felon in possession of a firearm
Eddie L. Tyson
46
Portsmouth
Conspiracy, Maintaining a drug-involved premises, Distribution of Fentanyl
Jamars A. Cooper,
aka Mall
26
Portsmouth
Conspiracy
Dominic Diablo Mosley
35
Portsmouth
Conspiracy
Edward Muckle,
aka Eddie
32
Portsmouth
Conspiracy, Maintaining a drug-involved premises
Dana J. Boente, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia, Mark R. Herring, Attorney General of Virginia, Martin Culbreth, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI’s Norfolk Division, Michael K. Lamonea, Assistant Special Agent in Charge of HSI Norfolk, Michael B. Boxler, Special Agent in Charge of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) Washington Field Division, Kelvin L. Wright, Chief of Chesapeake Police, and Tonya D. Chapman, Chief of Portsmouth Police, made the announcement after arrests were made.
This case was investigated by the FBI’s Tidewater Violent Crime Task Force, in partnership with HSI’s Norfolk Field Office, ATF, Chesapeake Police Department, Virginia State Police, and the Portsmouth Gang Suppression Unit. Special Assistant U.S. Attorney John F. Butler and Assistant U.S. Attorneys Joseph E. DePadilla, Andrew C. Bosse, William B. Jackson, and Kevin Hudson are prosecuting the case.
A copy of this press release may be found on the website of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Virginia. Related court documents and information may be found on the website of the District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia or on PACER by searching for Case No. 2:17-cr-116.
Ohkay Owingeh Pueblo Man Sentenced to Prison for Federal Sexual Abuse ConvictionRead the Press Release
ALBUQUERQUE – Peter Calvert-Cata, 21, a member and resident of Ohkay Owingeh Pueblo, N.M., was sentenced today in federal court in Albuquerque, N.M., to 48 months in prison followed by ten years of supervised release for his conviction on a sexual assault charge. He also will be required to register as a sex offender.
Calvert-Cata was arrested on Nov. 18, 2016, on a criminal complaint charging him with aggravated sexual abuse. According to the criminal complaint, Calvert-Cata sexually assaulted a 17-year-old female on Aug. 13, 2016, in Ohkay Owingeh Pueblo. At the time of the sexual assault, the victim, a member of Ohkay Owingeh Pueblo, was fading in and out of consciousness because she was under the influence of alcohol and marijuana. Calvert-Cata subsequently was indicted on Dec. 7, 2016, and was charged with two counts of aggravated sexual abuse.
On March 6, 2017, Calvert-Cata entered a guilty plea to a felony information charging him with sexual assault. In his plea agreement, Calvert-Cata admitted that he attempted to engage in a sexual act with the victim on Aug. 13, 2016, at a time when she was highly intoxicated by alcohol and marijuana. Calvert-Cata also acknowledged providing the marijuana consumed by the victim.
This case was investigated by the Santa Fe office of the FBI, the Northern Pueblos Agency of the BIA’s Office of Justice Services, the Ohkay Owingeh Tribal Police Department, and the New Mexico State Police.
Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Lucy B. Solimon prosecuted the case as part of the Tribal Special Assistant U.S. Attorney (Tribal SAUSA) Pilot Project in the District of New Mexico, which is sponsored by the Justice Department’s Office on Violence against Women under a grant administered by the Pueblo of Laguna. The Tribal SAUSA Pilot Project seeks to train tribal prosecutors in federal law, procedure and investigative techniques to increase the likelihood that every viable violent offense against Native American women is prosecuted in either federal court or tribal court, or both. The Tribal SAUSA Pilot Project was largely driven by input gathered from annual tribal consultations on violence against women, and is another step in the Justice Department's on-going efforts to increase engagement, coordination and action on public safety in tribal communities.
No. 2 Defendant in Federal Indictment Targeting Coalition of Three Latino Street Gangs Pleads Guilty to RICO and Narcotics OffensesRead the Press Release
LOS ANGELES – A gang member who helped manage a coalition of three rival street gangs in Northeast Los Angeles that were brought together by orders issued by a member of the Mexican Mafia pleaded guilty today to federal charges and admitted being a primary supplier of narcotics to the criminal enterprise.
Santos Zepeda, also known as “Slim,” 33, of Glendale, a senior member of the Frogtown gang, pleaded guilty this morning to conspiring to violate the federal Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations (RICO) Act and conspiring to traffic methamphetamine.
Zepeda was among 22 defendants named two years ago in a federal racketeering indictment that outlined how Mexican Mafia member Arnold Gonzales ordered the unification of three street gangs that were traditional rivals. The “peace treaty” imposed by Gonzales in 2010 brought together the Frogtown, Toonerville and Rascals gangs, which worked together to control the narcotics trade and other illegal activities in an area that ran along the Los Angeles River from Elysian Park nearly to Burbank.
Because he was incarcerated in Pelican Bay State Prison after being convicted of murder, Gonzales appointed another Frogtown gang member, Jorge Grey, to be his emissary on the streets, according to the indictment. Zepeda served as Grey’s top lieutenant, provided narcotics to the racketeering enterprise, and coordinated the collection of “taxes” imposed on street-level drug dealers.
Zepeda pleaded guilty this morning before United States District Judge Philip S. Gutierrez, who is scheduled to sentence the defendant on January 22.
As a result of the guilty pleas entered today, Zepeda faces a mandatory minimum sentence of 10 years in federal prison and a statutory maximum penalty of life without parole.
The RICO indictment targeting the Arnold Gonzales Organization is the result of Operation “Gig ‘em,” an investigation conducted by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, Violent Crime Impact Team; the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation, Office of Correctional Safety, Special Service Unit; the Glendale Police Department; and the Los Angeles Police Department.
After Gonzales took control of the three gangs, he exercised his authority through Grey and criminal associates that included Zepeda, according to the indictment. The organization generated revenue through extortion, specifically the imposition of taxes on the gangs and others who distributed narcotics in the territory controlled by the criminal enterprise. Members of the racketeering conspiracy allegedly implemented Gonzales’ orders, imposed discipline on those who attempted to violate the orders or contest the power of the enterprise, and collected firearms that were used to enforce their authority.
The indictment details numerous transactions involving narcotics and firearms, and also contains charges related to two shootings allegedly committed against individuals who defied the rules imposed by Gonzales and his associates.
Out of the 22 defendants named in the indictment, 11 have pleaded guilty. The remaining 11 defendants, including Grey, are scheduled to go on trial on March 5, 2018.
An indictment contains allegations that a defendant has committed a crime. Every defendant is presumed to be innocent until proven guilty in court.
This case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Carol Alexis Chen and Alexander B. Schwab of the Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force.