Latest Records
Newest first across public DOJ and U.S. Attorney press releases.
12 September 2017
Ohio man admits to trafficking heroin and cocaineRead the Press Release
WHEELING, WEST VIRGINIA – A Youngstown man admitted today to trafficking heroin and cocaine, Acting United States Attorney Betsy Steinfeld Jividen announced.
Daryl “Malik” Walter Hall, age 31, pled guilty to one count of “Conspiracy to Distribute Heroin and Cocaine Base.” The crime occurred between August 2016 to April 2017 in Hancock County.
Hall faces up to 20 years incarceration and a fine of up to $1,000,000. Under the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, the actual sentence imposed will be based upon the seriousness of the offenses and the prior criminal history, if any, of the defendants.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Stephen L. Vogrin prosecuted the case on behalf of the government. The Hancock/Brooke/Weirton Drug & Violent Crime Task Force, a HIDTA-funded initiative, investigated.
Senior U.S. District Judge Frederick R. Stamp, Jr., presided.Ohio Man Sentenced to 33 Months in Prison for Defrauding Essex County, New Jersey, Company Out of More Than $950,000Read the Press Release
NEWARK, N.J. – A Milford, Ohio, man was sentenced today to 33 months in prison for using an Essex County, New Jersey, medical company’s credit card without the company’s permission to fraudulently obtain more than $950,000, Acting U.S. Attorney William E. Fitzpatrick announced.
John Tekulve, 44, previously pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Katharine S. Hayden to an information charging him with wire fraud. Judge Hayden imposed the sentence today in Newark federal court.
According to documents filed in this case and statements made in court:
From January 2011 through October 2012, Tekulve owned a medical supply company that sold products to an Essex County medical company. He obtained the company’s credit card information, which he used to fraudulently bill the company nearly $1 million for products and services that neither Tekulve nor his medical supply company provided. Tekulve then used the proceeds of the scheme for his own purposes, including the purchase of high-end automobiles and jewelry.
In addition to the prison term, Judge Hayden sentenced Tekulve to three years of supervised release and ordered him to pay restitution of $977,418.75.
Acting U.S. Attorney Fitzpatrick credited special agents with the U.S. Secret Service, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Mark McKevitt in Newark, with the investigation leading to today’s sentencing.
The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorney Veronica Allende of the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Trenton.
Defense counsel: Peter Carter Esq., Newark
Municipal, State, and Federal Partnership Targets Fentanyl TraffickersRead the Press Release
Anchorage, Alaska – Acting U.S. Attorney Bryan Schroder announced today that a federal grand jury in Anchorage has returned a series of indictments charging individuals with fentanyl trafficking and other criminal offenses. Fentanyl, sometimes known on the street as “Grey Death,” is a powerful opioid that is up to 50 times more powerful than heroin. The Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) has issued nationwide alerts on fentanyl as a threat to health and public safety, as well as to law enforcement officers, who were warned by DEA two months ago to take extreme precautions when handling fentanyl, because exposure to an amount equivalent to a few grains of sand can result in death.
In the recently indicted cases, Sergio Jauna Devoe, 27, of Anchorage, was charged with possession with the intent to distribute quantities of methamphetamine and fentanyl, on or about May 5, 2017. Devoe was also charged with possession of a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime. If convicted, Devoe faces a mandatory minimum ten-year sentence, with a maximum of life imprisonment.
Misty G. Thomas, 25, of Anchorage, was charged with possession with the intent to distribute quantities of methamphetamine and fentanyl, on or about Oct. 6, Oct. 7, and Nov. 9, 2016. If convicted, Thomas faces a mandatory minimum of five years in prison, and a maximum sentence of 40 years in prison. Thomas was also charged in a separate indictment for fraudulent activity in connection with identification documents. According to the indictment, on or about Feb. 18, 2017, Thomas knowingly posed as “E.B.” to a Fred Meyer employee, a licensed dealer of firearms, and used E.B.’s identification to falsely purchase three firearms. If convicted, Thomas faces a maximum of ten years in prison on the firearm charges, as well as a mandatory consecutive two-year sentence based on the theft of “E.B.’s” identity to purchase the firearms.
Finally, Charles Jeffery Mosley, Jr., 36, of Anchorage, was charged with possession with the intent to distribute over 100 grams of heroin, on or about July 12, 2017. Mosley was also charged for being a felon in possession of a firearm, and for possession of a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime. Mosley faces a mandatory minimum ten-year sentence.
Acting U.S. Attorney Bryan Schroder stated, “For Americans under the age of 50, drug overdoses are the leading cause of death. The trafficking of fentanyl can only worsen this tragedy. We are thankful to be able to work collaboratively with our state and local partners – not just in prosecuting the traffickers of opioids, but also in finding solutions to this epidemic. These solutions include prevention and education efforts, as well as task forces that include medical and health professionals.”
These cases are being handled by Special Assistant U.S. Attorney James Stinson, who is an Anchorage municipal prosecutor. Since 2007, the Municipality of Anchorage has assigned prosecutors to the U.S. Attorney’s Office to work on cases that have direct impact on the safety of Anchorage residents, such as drugs, guns, and violent crime. The Anchorage District Attorney’s Office also participated in the prosecution and referral of the cases, which were investigated by the Anchorage Police Department, the Drug Enforcement Administration, and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives.
An indictment is merely an allegation and all defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
Men Sentenced to Five Years for Stealing 35 GunsRead the Press Release
ALEXANDRIA, Va. – Two men were each sentenced today to five years in prison for their roles in a conspiracy to steal firearms from businesses in Virginia.
Preston G. Holmes III, 24, and Matthew D. Jones, 23, both of Prince George’s County, Maryland, were convicted by a federal jury on July 3 of conspiracy and theft of firearms from a federally licensed firearms dealer. According to court documents and evidence presented at trial, Holmes and Jones participated in the burglary of a Federal Firearms Licensee (FFL) in Chantilly, where they stole 35 semi-automatic handguns. Holmes and Jones were also involved in attempted thefts of firearms from FFLs in Spotsylvania County and Fredericksburg.
Dana J. Boente, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia, and Arron J. Graves, Acting Special Agent in Charge of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives’ (ATF) Washington Field Division, made the announcement after sentencing by U.S. District Judge Gerald Bruce Lee. Assistant U.S. Attorney Alexander E. Blanchard and former Assistant U.S. Attorney Michael E. Rich prosecuted the case.
A copy of this press release is located on the website of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Virginia. Related court documents and information is located on the website of the District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia or on PACER by searching for Case No. 1:17-cr-67.
Martinsburg men indicted on drug distribution chargesRead the Press Release
MARTINSBURG, WEST VIRGINIA – Two Martinsburg, West Virginia men were indicted by a federal grand jury on July 25, 2017 of drug distribution charges, Acting United States Attorney Betsy Steinfeld Jividen announced.
Christopher Deshaun Walker, age 28, was indicted on two counts of “Possession with Intent to Distribute Cocaine Base,” one count of “Distribution of Heroin,” one count of “Aiding and Abetting the Distribution of Heroin,” and one count of “Possession with Intent to Distribute Heroin.”
Henry Aaron Shepherd, age 36, was indicted on one count of “Aiding and Abetting the Distribution of Heroin.”
The crimes are alleged to have occurred from May to November 2015 in Berkeley County, West Virginia.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Paul T. Camilletti is prosecuting the case on behalf of the government. The Eastern Panhandle Drugs & Violent Crime Task Force, a HIDTA-funded initiative, and the Berkeley County Sheriff’s Office are investigating.
An indictment is merely an accusation. A defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
Marion County man sentenced for mail fraudRead the Press Release
CLARKSBURG, WEST VIRGINIA – A Fairmont, West Virginia man was sentenced today to six months incarceration for mail fraud, Acting United States Attorney Betsy Steinfeld Jividen announced.
Bryce Martin, age 26, of Fairmont, pled guilty to one count of “Mail Fraud” in June 2017. Martin admitted to taking part in a staged vehicular accident in January 2012 in Harrison County. He also admitted to faking injuries from said accident and filing a false insurance claim, from which he, and others, received insurance settlements of approximately $101,500. Martin also admitted his role in procuring an insurance settlement check in someone else’s name in the amount of $46,500.
Martin was ordered to pay $152,603.64 in restitution.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Andrew R. Cogar prosecuted the case on behalf of the government. The West Virginia Insurance Commission Office of Inspector General and the United States Postal Inspection Service investigated.
Senior U.S. District Judge Irene M. Keeley presided.
Man Sentenced to over 7 Years in Prison for Armed Robbery of Mail Carrier in Rancho CordovaRead the Press Release
SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Juan Carlos Maldonado, 22, originally of Michoacán, Mexico, was sentenced today to seven years and three months in prison by U.S. District Judge John A. Mendez for the armed robbery of a U.S. mail carrier, participation in a bank fraud scheme, and aggravated identity theft, U.S. Attorney Phillip A. Talbert announced.
According to court documents, on June 21, 2016, Maldonado and others followed a U.S. letter carrier in a Rancho Cordova neighborhood using a sport utility vehicle with its plates removed. They pulled alongside the postal truck and when the carrier stepped out to deliver mail, Maldonado wielded a pistol at the carrier and robbed him at gunpoint. During the robbery, Maldonado and his associates raided the postal truck, stealing over 800 items of U.S. Mail. Following the robbery, they rifled through the stolen mail for personal identification and financial information, which Maldonado used and provided to others for use to defraud financial institutions.
On June 30, 2016, Maldonado was arrested by the El Dorado County Sheriff’s Office at the Red Hawk Casino while attempting to access proceeds from credit cards stolen during the robbery. Maldonado pleaded guilty to the charges on June 6, 2017.
San Francisco Division Inspector in Charge Rafael Nunez stated: “Working with the U.S. Attorney’s Office and our partners in law enforcement, Postal Inspectors arrested this individual for the armed robbery of a U.S. Postal Service Letter Carrier. Protecting postal employees from harm is the U.S. Postal Inspection Service’s top priority.”
This case was the product of an investigation by the United States Postal Inspection Service and the United States Postal Inspection Service’s Narcotic and Economic Crimes Investigations Task Force (NECI) with assistance from the El Dorado County Sheriff’s Office, the El Dorado County District Attorney’s Office, and the Rancho Cordova Police Department. NECI is a partnership between local and federal law enforcement to combat theft and unlawful use of the U.S. Mail. The Placer County District Attorney’s Office and Sutter County Sheriff’s Office have each dedicated law enforcement personnel to the task force. Assistant United States Attorney Michelle Rodriguez prosecuted the case.
Man Pleads Guilty to Child Pornography ChargeRead the Press Release
NORFOLK, Va. – A Chesapeake man pleaded guilty today to receipt of child pornography.
According to court documents, Charles McClung, 64, was a member of an online bulletin board dedicated to trading child pornography. The board was hosted on the dark net and had over 1,500 members. Agents with Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) began an investigation into the board in September 2015, and McClung was identified downloading content from the board in December 2015. As a result of the investigation, HSI and other law enforcement executed a federal search warrant of McClung’s residence in Chesapeake and found hundreds of thousands of images of child pornography.
McClung faces a mandatory minimum of 5 years in prison and a maximum of 20 years in prison when sentenced on January 17, 2018. Actual sentences for federal crimes are typically less than the maximum penalties. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after taking into account the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
Dana J. Boente, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia, and Michael K. Lamonea, Assistant Special Agent in Charge of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) Norfolk, made the announcement after U.S. Magistrate Robert J. Krask accepted the plea. Assistant U.S. Attorney Elizabeth M. Yusi is prosecuting the case.
A copy of this press release is located on the website of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Virginia. Related court documents and information is located on the website of the District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia or on PACER by searching for Case No. 2:17-cr-105.
MS-13 Gang Member Sentenced to 45 Years’ Imprisonment for Murder Conspiracies and Attempted Murders on Long IslandRead the Press Release
Earlier today at the federal courthouse in Central Islip, New York, Anibel Rondolpho Rodriguez, a member of La Mara Salvatrucha, also known as MS-13, an international criminal organization, was sentenced by United States District Judge Joseph F. Bianco to 45 years’ imprisonment following the defendant’s March 30, 2017 guilty plea to racketeering charges including two murder conspiracies, two attempted murders, and threatening to commit assault.
The sentence was announced by Bridget M. Rohde, Acting United States Attorney for the Eastern District of New York, William F. Sweeney, Jr., Assistant Director-in-Charge, Federal Bureau of Investigation, New York Field Office (FBI), and Patrick J. Ryder, Commissioner, Nassau County Police Department (NCPD).
“The defendant, and other members of the Hempstead clique of the MS-13, unleashed a wave of violence in Nassau County that included murders and vicious assaults,” stated Acting United States Attorney Rohde. “Today’s sentence sends a strong message that this Office and our federal, state and local law enforcement partners will work together to ensure that all those who threaten our communities are brought to justice.” Ms. Rohde also extended her appreciation to the members of the FBI’s Long Island Gang Task Force for their tireless efforts during the investigation.
“It is disturbing and unsettling to investigate a group of people and keep discovering in case after case that they truly have no respect for human life,” stated FBI Assistant Director-in-Charge Sweeney. “MS-13 gang members actually revel in killing anyone who crosses them, regardless our Long Island Gang Task Force continues to work with the community to keep the gang from wreaking havoc on innocent people. We will use every tool we have to decimate MS-13 and keep them from rebuilding their ranks.”
“The arrest, conviction and sentencing of defendant Anibel Rondolpho Rodriguez is an excellent example of the professionalism and dedication of numerous law enforcement agencies that have worked tirelessly and collaborated on this case,” stated NCPD Commissioner Ryder. “Our residents and communities will be safer with defendant Rodriquez incarcerated along with his other co-conspirators. Gangs and their heinous crimes can never be tolerated in any community and we are taking a proactive approach to keep our residents and police safe.”
Conspiracy to Murder Miguel Perez
According to court documents previously filed in the case, on August 9, 2012, Rodriguez, also known as “Peluche,” agreed with two co-conspirators to kill Miguel Perez, who was associated with the Zulu Nation gang. The Zulu Nation gang had an ongoing dispute with members of the Hempstead Locos Salvatruchas clique of the MS-13. While the defendant was talking to Perez outside the victim’s house in Freeport, New York, a co-conspirator fatally shot Perez three times with a 9mm. handgun.
Conspiracy to Murder Jose Ivan Reyes-Lainez and Attempted Murder of Jane Doe
On October 6, 2013, in Hempstead, New York, the defendant and six co-conspirators confronted Jose Ivan Reyes-Lainez about his suspected membership in a rival gang. The defendant and his co-conspirators decided to kill Reyes-Lainez, as well as Jane Doe, who had accompanied Reyes-Lainez, to prevent her from being a witness to the murder. Reyes-Lainez was fatally stabbed more than two dozen times, and Jane Doe was stabbed 18 times but she survived her injuries.
Attempted Murder of John Doe No. 1
On September 14, 2013, a group of MS-13 members including the defendant confronted John Doe No. 1 and another individual who they believed to be members of the rival Bloods street gang in Roosevelt, New York. The defendant grabbed a baseball bat from the individual and struck John Doe No. 1. The defendant’s co-conspirators also struck John Doe No. 1 with a wooden board, stabbed him with a screwdriver, and punched and kicked him.
Assault of John Doe No. 2
On October 6, 2013, in Hempstead, MS-13 members including the defendant approached John Doe No. 2 and asked him whether he was a gang member, questioning him about a tattoo on his arm. John Doe No. 2 denied any gang membership and was walking away from the group when he was stabbed and kicked by the MS-13 members, including the defendant.
The conviction of Rodriguez is the latest in a series of federal prosecutions by the United States Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of New York targeting members of the MS-13, a violent international criminal organization. The MS-13’s leadership is based in El Salvador and Honduras, but the gang has thousands of members across the United States, comprised primarily of immigrants from Central America. With numerous branches, or cliques, the MS-13 is the largest and most violent street gang on Long Island. Since 2003, hundreds of MS-13 members, including dozens of clique leaders, have been convicted on federal felony charges in this district. A majority of those MS-13 members have been convicted on federal racketeering charges for participating in murders, attempted murders and assaults. Since 2010 alone, this Office has obtained indictments charging MS-13 members with carrying out more than 40 murders, and has convicted dozens of MS-13 leaders and members in connection with those murders. These prosecutions are the product of investigations led by the FBI’s Long Island Gang Task Force, comprising agents and officers of the FBI, Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement – Homeland Security Investigations, NCPD, Suffolk County Police Department, Nassau County Sheriff’s Office, Suffolk County Probation, Suffolk County Sheriff’s Department, Rockville Centre Police Department and New York State Police.
The government’s case is being handled by the Office’s Long Island Criminal Division. Assistant United States Attorneys John J. Durham, Raymond A. Tierney and Paul G. Scotti are in charge of the prosecution.
The Defendant:
ANIBEL RONDOLPHO RODRIGUEZ
Age: 29
Residence: Freeport, New York
E.D.N.Y. Docket No. 14-CR-68 (JFB)
Louisburg Man Sentenced for Several Firearm OffensesRead the Press Release
GREENVILLE – The United States Attorney for the Eastern District of North Carolina, John Stuart Bruce, announced that today in federal court, Senior United States District Judge Malcolm J. Howard sentenced DAVID EARL GILL, JR., 26, of Louisburg, North Carolina, to 216 months of imprisonment followed by 5 years of supervised release and ordered to pay $4,477.07 in restitution.
On May 12, 2017, GILL pled guilty to carjacking and using, carrying, and brandishing a firearm during and in relation to a crime of violence and possessing and brandishing a firearm in furtherance of a crime of violence. Additionally GILL plead guilty to possession of a stolen firearm in the Northern District of Georgia.
According to the Indictment and information in the public records, on July 31, 2015, GILL and his codefendant Kyara Nicole Jones, forced entry into a residence in Louisburg, North Carolina. GILL was armed with a sawed off shotgun and forced the homeowner into a closet and barricaded the door with furniture and took the homeowner’s vehicle. Jones previously pled guilty for her role on January 12, 2017 and will be sentenced later this year.
On August 5, 2015, GILL pawned a shotgun that was reported stolen from Rockingham County at a store in McDonough, Georgia. The next day, law enforcement officers in McIntosh arrested GILL when they located him driving the stolen vehicle from Louisburg, North Carolina.
The investigation was conducted by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms & Explosives (ATF), the Franklin County Sheriff’s Office, Rockingham County Sheriff’s Office, the McIntosh, Georgia, Sheriff’s Office, and the Henry County, Georgia, Police Department. Assistant U.S. Attorney Jane Jackson prosecuted the case for the Eastern District of North Carolina and Assistant U.S. Attorney Bret Hobson prosecuted the case for the Northern District of Georgia.
Long-Time Gang Member Sentenced to Nearly 8 Years in Prison for being a Felon in Possession of a FirearmRead the Press Release
A long-time member of a south Seattle street gang was sentenced today in U.S. District Court in Seattle to 92 months in prison, and three years of supervised release, announced U.S. Attorney Annette L. Hayes. SAMUEL N. REZENE, 30, denies his gang membership, but has a lengthy criminal history involving drug trafficking, promoting prostitution and firearms. REZENE was the target of multiple shooting incidents including one in February 2012, when REZENE’s then girlfriend was shot and killed while riding in the car REZENE was driving. At the sentencing hearing today U.S. District Judge James L. Robart said whether or not REZENE is a gang member, “he has chosen a life of crime and has been involved in multiple dangerous situations.”
“Today, the violence that has surrounded this defendant for more than five years comes to an end,” said U.S. Attorney Annette L. Hayes. “Law enforcement has traced numerous drive-by shootings – one of them deadly – to the violence this defendant embraced. By sending this defendant to prison for illegally possessing firearms, the community will be protected from further violence and the devastation that always follows in its wake.”
According to records filed in the case, in 2011 and 2013, REZENE and one or more associates were involved in two different drug robberies of rival gangsters. In retaliation for these robberies, REZENE, his home and vehicles were repeatedly the targets of drive-by shootings. In retaliation, REZENE’s associates shot up a business associated with the rival gang. On May 15, 2014, REZENE was shot multiple times while at a gas station in Renton. REZENE grabbed a gun from the center console of his car and attempted to return fire, and then collapsed. REZENE was taken to Harborview Medical Center and survived the shooting. His assailant has never been found. At the time of the shooting REZENE had multiple felony convictions, including convictions for drug trafficking, illegal firearms possession, promoting prostitution, and attempting to elude a police vehicle. These convictions prohibit him from possessing a firearm.
Even after the May 2014 shooting at the gas station, REZENE continued his violent ways. After being released from the hospital, law enforcement spotted him shooting at a business associated with a rival gang in October 2014. REZENE was sentenced to 31 months in state custody for a related firearms offense. He was charged federally in December 2014 and was found guilty at a bench trial in May 2017.
The case was investigated by the Renton Police Department and the Seattle Police Department with assistance from the FBI.
The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Todd Greenberg and Stephen Hobbs.
Lebanon County Man Sentenced to over 15 Years’ Imprisonment for Drug Conspiracy and Possession of A FirearmRead the Press Release
HARRISBURG – The United States Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Pennsylvania announced today that LezFrank Vargas-Herrera a/k/a Christian Rivera Rios, age 25, of Lebanon, Pennsylvania, was sentenced on September 11, 2017, to 181 months’ imprisonment by Chief United States District Court Judge Christopher C. Conner, for conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute heroin and cocaine hydrochloride and possession of a firearm in furtherance of drug trafficking.
According to United States Attorney Bruce D. Brandler, eleven defendants were originally indicted by a federal grand jury in July 2015.
The charges stem from an investigation in which the Department of Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) agents in Lebanon County intercepted packages sent from Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic to the United States between June and October 2014. The packages contained kilogram quantities of heroin and cocaine hydrochloride concealed inside electronics and car parts. The offense involved at least nine kilograms of cocaine hydrochloride and seven kilograms of heroin (which equals approximately 280,000 retail bags of heroin). Vargas-Herrera was also found in possession of a Glock 9mm handgun, a loaded magazine, and ammunition when he was arrested by law enforcement.
The following co-defendants were previously sentenced by Chief Judge Conner:
-
Glauco Kelvin Celedonio-Smith, age 20, to 180 months’ imprisonment;
-
Wilson Herrera, age 22, to 120 months’ imprisonment;
-
Felix Rodriguez-Pabon, age 25, to 87 months’ imprisonment;
-
Lional Martinez-Osaria, age 30, to 68 months’ imprisonment;
-
Yefries Guillan-Herrera, age 24, to 57 months’ imprisonment;
-
Wilfreddy Perez, age 24, to 35 months’ imprisonment; and
-
Jose Pena-Herrera, age 22, to 12 months’ imprisonment.
Luis Beato-Herrera and Nelson Martinez are awaiting sentencing.
The investigation was conducted by HSI, the Pennsylvania State Police, the Berks County District Attorney’s Office Detective Unit, and the U.S. Customs & Border Protection. The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Daryl F. Bloom.
This case was brought as part of a district wide initiative to combat the nationwide epidemic regarding the use and distribution of heroin. Led by the United States Attorney’s Office, the Heroin Initiative targets heroin traffickers operating in the Middle District of Pennsylvania and is part of a coordinated effort among federal, state and local law enforcement agencies to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who commit heroin related offenses.
This case was brought as part of the Violent Crime Reduction Partnership (“VCRP”), a district wide initiative to combat the spread of violent crime in the Middle District of Pennsylvania. Led by the United States Attorney’s Office, the VCRP consists of federal, state and local law enforcement agencies whose mission is to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who commit violent crimes with firearms.
# # #
-
Kansas Sex Offender Sentenced for Transporting Virginia Teen for SexRead the Press Release
KANSAS CITY, KAN. - A registered sex offender from Kansas was sentenced Tuesday to 15 years in federal prison for picking up a 16-year-old girl in Virginia and taking her across state lines to have sex with him, U.S. Attorney Tom Beall said.
Logan Viquesney, 21, Kansas City, Kan., pleaded guilty to one count of interstate transportation of a minor to engage in sexual activity. In his plea, he admitted he communicated with the victim over the internet while she was staying with her grandparents in Virginia. On May 30, 2016, the victim was reported missing from her grandparents’ home. Investigators learned that Viquesney had driven to Virginia, picked up the girl, and taken her with him on a trip that took them from Virginia to Maryland, Illinois, Missouri and Kansas. While on the trip, Viquesney had sex with the girl.
Viquesney was arrested after he arrived in Kansas City, Kan., with the girl.
Beall commended the Kansas City, Kan., Police Department, the Lenexa Police Department, the Kansas Bureau of Investigation, the FBI and Assistant U.S. Attorney Kim Flannigan for their work on the case.
Kanawha County couple admits to drug distribution conspiracy involving mail theftRead the Press Release
CHARLESTON, W.Va. – A Kanawha County couple who distributed pain pills from stolen packages pleaded guilty today, announced United States Attorney Carol Casto. Amber Fox, 28, of East Bank, entered her guilty plea to mail theft. David Grove, Jr., 39, also of East Bank, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to distribute pain pills.
Fox was a federal postal support employee who worked in the Charleston Processing and Distribution Center. She used her job to steal pain pills by identifying packages that contained oxycodone and hydrocodone. Fox admitted that on March 17, 2015, she stole a package that contained 112 hydrocodone pills. After stealing the packages, Fox took the pills to the home that she shared with Grove in East Bank. Together, they took some of the pills themselves and sold the remaining pills. Fox admitted to stealing between 45 and 50 postal packages containing thousands of oxycodone and hydrocodone pills from August 2014 to April 9, 2015. On April 9, 2015, law enforcement executed search warrants at the East Bank residence and located over 500 stolen oxycodone and hydrocodone pills. Both Fox and Grove gave statements admitting their involvement in the mail theft and drug distribution conspiracy. Fox is no longer an employee with the United States Postal Service.
Fox and Grove are scheduled to be sentenced on December 12, 2017. Grove faces up to 20 years in federal prison. Fox faces up to five years in federal prison.
The United States Postal Service, Office of Inspector General, and the Metropolitan Drug Enforcement Network Team conducted the investigation. Assistant United States Attorney Erik S. Goes is in charge of the prosecution. The plea hearing was conducted before United States District Judge John T. Copenhaver, Jr.
This case is 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 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.
- Follow us on Twitter: SDWVNews
Justice Department and Federal Trade Commission Announce Guidance for Post-Hurricane Relief EffortsRead the Press Release
The Department of Justice and the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) today announced the release of antitrust guidance for businesses taking part in relief efforts and those involved in rebuilding communities affected by Hurricanes Harvey and Irma.
The guidance is intended to help businesses understand how they can work together to rebuild affected communities without violating the antitrust laws. The antitrust laws accommodate procompetitive collaborations among competitors. At the same time, the agencies intend to hold accountable those who enter into anticompetitive agreements that take advantage of hurricane victims or hurricane relief efforts. Among other actions, the Department of Justice will criminally prosecute companies that fix prices, rig bids, or allocate customers, and the Federal Trade Commission will investigate and take action against companies and individuals who violate the consumer protection laws.
Anyone with information on price fixing, bid-rigging, market allocation agreements, or other anticompetitive conduct should call the Antitrust Division’s Citizen Complaint Center at 888-647-3258, or visit http://www.justice.gov/atr/report-violations. Consumers or businesses with concerns about fraudulent activity can also call the Disaster Fraud Hotline at 1-866-720-5721 or visit https://www.justice.gov/disaster-fraud/how-report-disaster-related-fraud.
Jefferson County man admits to mail fraudRead the Press Release
MARTINSBURG, WEST VIRGINIA – A Kearneysville, West Virginia man pled guilty to mail fraud, Acting United States Attorney Betsy Steinfeld Jividen announced.
Daniel Lichtman, age 36, pled guilty to one count of “Mail Fraud.” Lichtman admitted to filing false insurance claims totaling $354,552.26. The crime happened November 2013 in Berkeley County.
Lichtman faces up to twenty years incarceration and a $250,000 fine. Under the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, the actual sentence imposed will be based upon the seriousness of the offenses and the prior criminal history, if any, of the defendants.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Danae DeMasi-Lemon prosecuted the case on behalf of the government. The United States Postal Inspection Service investigated.
U.S. Magistrate Judge Robert W. Trumble presided.
Jefferson County man admits to cocaine chargesRead the Press Release
MARTINSBURG, WEST VIRGINIA – A Ranson, West Virginia man pled guilty today to distributing cocaine, Acting United States Attorney Betsy Steinfeld Jividen announced.
Ricardo Lewis, Jr., aka BOLO, age 33, pled guilty to one count of “Conspiracy to Distribute Controlled Substance.” The crime is alleged to have occurred from August 2015 to July 2016 in Berkeley and Jefferson Counties.
Lewis faces up to 20 years incarceration and a fine of up to $1,000,000. Under the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, the actual sentence imposed will be based upon the seriousness of the offenses and the prior criminal history, if any, of the defendants.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Anna Z. Krasinski prosecuted the case on behalf of the government. The Eastern Panhandle Drug & Violent Crime Task Force, a HIDTA-funded initiative, investigated.
U.S. Magistrate Judge Robert W. Trumble presided.
Jefferson City Man Who Shot at Police Officers Charged with Illegally Possessing a FirearmRead the Press Release
JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. – Tom Larson, Acting United States Attorney for the Western District of Missouri, announced that a Jefferson City, Mo., man was charged in federal court today with illegally possessing a firearm after he shot at police officers who were executing a search warrant at his residence.
Ardaris Webb Cheatham of Jefferson City was charged with being a felon in possession of a firearm in a federal criminal complaint filed in the U.S. District Court in Jefferson City. Cheatham had his initial court appearance today and remains in federal custody.
Today’s complaint alleges that Cheatham, who is a felon, was in possession of a loaded Beretta .40-caliber pistol on Monday, Sept. 11, 2017.
According to an affidavit filed in support of today’s criminal complaint, the Jefferson City Police Department SWAT Team executed a search warrant for narcotics at Cheatham’s residence at approximately 12:35 p.m. Tuesday, Sept. 11, 2017. When officers entered the residence, the affidavit says, Cheatham fired at the officers as he retreated into the residence. Cheatham attempted to escape by exiting the basement, but was apprehended by other officers who were stationed outside.
Officers found approximately 27 pounds of marijuana hidden in various locations within
Cheatham’s residence. A methamphetamine pipe with residue was also found in a bedroom.A witness later told investigators that she purchased the firearm two years ago. She said Cheatham had fired the gun in the past, and sometimes handled the firearm in the residence.
Under federal law, it is illegal for anyone who has been convicted of a felony to be in possession of any firearm or ammunition. Cheatham has a prior felony conviction for possession of a controlled substance.
Larson cautioned that the charge contained in this complaint is simply an accusation, and not evidence of guilt.
This case is being prosecuted by Supervisory Assistant U.S. Attorney Michael S. Oliver. It was investigated by the Jefferson City, Mo., Police Department and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives.
Jacksonville Man Sentenced to 210 Months Following Brutal Assault on Law EnforcementRead the Press Release
RALEIGH – The United States Attorney for the Eastern District of North Carolina, John Stuart Bruce, announced that today in federal court, Chief United States District Judge James C. Dever, III sentenced EDWIN LEO BROWN, 28, of Jacksonville, to 210 months of imprisonment followed by 3 years of supervised release.
On May 1, 2017, BROWN pled guilty to four counts of Possession with Intent to Distribute a Quantity of Cocaine Base (Crack) and one count of Possession of a Firearm by a Felon.
According to the Indictment and information in the public records, BROWN, was targeted as a distributor of narcotics in the Jacksonville area. It was determined that from at least November 2015 to April 2016, BROWN was a mid-level drug trafficker who distributed quantities of crack cocaine to his clientele in Onslow County, North Carolina. As a result, agents utilized a confidential informant (CI) to conduct several controlled purchases of crack cocaine from BROWN in Jacksonville.
On April 16, 2016, the Jacksonville Police Department responded to a call for service where the homeowner requested assistance in removing BROWN, who was drunk and disorderly, from a social gathering at her home. BROWN was verbally abusive toward the officer, and refused multiple directives from him to leave the presmises. During the attempt to arrest BROWN for being intoxicated and disruptive, BROWN pulled away from the officer, turned around, and swung with a closed fist, hitting the officer in the face. BROWN attempted to swing his fist a second time at the officer, but he missed. As the officer and BROWN tumbled to the ground, BROWN punched the officer in the nose, causing it to bleed. At some point during the struggle, BROWN, who possessed a loaded, concealed handgun, removed his firearm and used it to strike the officer on his head. The officer sustained a concussion, a partially-torn rotator cuff, a chipped tooth, and bruises and cuts to his head, face, and body.
A back-up officer arrived to assist in the struggle. BROWN continued his abusive behavior by punching and kicking the officer. BROWN continued to resist arrest, but was ultimately subdued and apprehended by both officers. Following the assault, officers seized BROWN’S firearm, a loaded 9mm handgun with one round in the chamber. During the entire struggle, the firearm was within a few feet of BROWN, and BROWN made multiple attempts to retrieve it.
The investigation was conducted by the Jacksonville Police Department and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms & Explosives (ATF). Assistant U.S. Attorney Peggah Wilson prosecuted the case for the government.
Indictment: Wichita Man Was Armed in Robberies at Two HotelsRead the Press Release
WICHITA, KAN. - A federal grand jury Tuesday returned an indictment charging a Wichita man with brandishing firearms during robberies at two local hotels, U.S. Attorney Tom Beall said.
Darrell E. Black, 24, Wichita, Kan., is charged with two counts of commercial robbery, two counts of brandishing a firearm during a robbery and two counts of unlawful possession of a firearm following a felony conviction.
The indictment alleges that on May 27, 2017, Black robbed the Extended Stay America at 9450 E. Corporate Hills, and on May 29, 2017, he robbed the Days Inn and Suites at 7321 E. Kellogg, both in Wichita.
Upon conviction, the crimes carry the following penalties:
Robbery: Up to 20 years in federal prison and a fine up to $250,000 on each count.
Brandishing a firearm: Not less than seven years and a fine up to $250,000 on each count.
Felon in possession of a firearm: Up to 10 years and a fine up to $250,000 on each count.
The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and the Wichita Police Department investigated. Assistant U.S. Attorney Lanny Welch is prosecuting.
OTHER INDICTMENTS
Darnell F. Brown, 21, Wichita, Kan., is charged with one count of possession with intent to distribute marijuana, two counts of unlawful possession of a firearm following a felony conviction, two counts of unlawful possession of a firearm in furtherance of drug trafficking and one count of possession with intent to distribute alprazolam (Xanax). The crimes are alleged to have occurred July 14 and Aug. 2, 2017, in Sedgwick County, Kan.
Upon conviction, the crimes carry the following penalties:
Possession with intent to distribute marijuana: Up to 20 years in federal prison and a fine up to $1 million.
Unlawful possession of a firearm following a felony conviction: Up to 10 years and a fine up to $250,000 on each count.
Unlawful possession of a firearm in furtherance of drug trafficking: Not less than five years and a fine up to $250,000 on each count.
Possession with intent to distribute alprazolam: Up to five years and a fine up to $250,000.
The FBI and the Wichita Police Department investigated. Assistant U.S. Attorney Lanny Welch is prosecuting.
Luis Arturo Melendez-Vargas, 36, a citizen of Mexico, is charged with two counts of making a false claim of U.S. citizenship, two counts of aggravated identity theft and one count of misusing a Social Security number. The crimes are alleged to have occurred in May and June 2017 in Ford and Sedgwick counties.
Upon conviction, the crimes carry the following penalties:
False claim of U.S. citizenship: Up to three years in federal prison and a fine up to $250,000 on each count.
Aggravated identity theft: A mandatory two years (consecutive) and a fine up to $250,000 on each count.
Misusing a Social Security number: Up to five years and a fine up to $250,000.
The Department of Homeland Security’s Enforcement Removal Operations investigated. Assistant U.S. Attorney Brent Anderson is prosecuting.
Mario Ailon-Ailon, 33, a citizen of Guatemala, is charged in a superseding indictment with one count of unlawful re-entry after deportation, one count of misusing a Social Security number, one count of making a false written statement on a W-4 withholding form and one count of aggravated identity theft. The crimes are alleged to have occurred in 2015 and 2017 in Ford County, Kan.
Upon conviction, the crimes carry the following penalties:
Unlawful re-entry: Up to 10 years in federal prison and a fine up to $250,000.
Misusing a Social Security number: Up to five years and a fine up to $250,000.
Making a false written statement to the government: Up to five years and a fine up to $250,000.
The Department of Homeland Security’s Enforcement and Removal Operations investigated. Assistant U.S. Attorney Brent Anderson is prosecuting.
Jose Antonio Sandoval-Nava, 38, who is not a citizen of the United States, is charged with one count of unlawful possession of a firearm by a person who is not legally in the United States. The crime is alleged to have occurred July 14, 2017, in Ford County, Kan.
If convicted, he faces up to 10 years in federal prison and a fine up to $250,000. The Department of Homeland Security’s Enforcement and Removal Operations investigated. Assistant U.S. Attorney Brent Anderson is prosecuting.
Blanca Maria Torres, 31, Garden City, Kan., is charged with three counts of passing counterfeit checks, two counts of theft of tax refunds obtained by fraud, two counts of misusing a Social Security number and two counts of aggravated identity theft. The crimes are alleged to have occurred in July and August 2016 in Finney County, Kan.
Upon conviction, the crimes carry the following penalties:
Passing counterfeit checks: Up to 20 years in federal prison and a fine up to $250,000 on each count.
Theft of tax refunds: Up to 10 years and a fine up to $250,000 on each count.
Misusing a Social Security number: Up to five years and a fine up to $250,000 on each count.
Aggravated identity theft: Mandatory two years (consecutive) and a fine up to $250,000 on each count.
The U.S. Secret Service investigated. Assistant U.S. Attorney Brent Anderson is prosecuting.
Regina Marie Razo, 42, Garden City, Kan., and Ramon Rascon-Mendoza, 59, Garden City, Kan. are charged with one count of possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine.
In addition, Razo is charged with four counts of distributing methamphetamine; and Rascon-Mendoza is charged with two counts of unlawful possession of a firearm by a person not legally in the United States. The crimes are alleged to have occurred in May, June and July 2017 in Finney County, Kan.
Upon conviction, the crimes carry the following penalties:
Possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine: Not less than five years and not more than 40 years in federal prison and a fine up to $5 million on each count.
Possession with intent to distribute more than 50 grams of methamphetamine: Not less than 10 years and a fine up to $10 million.
Unlawful possession of a firearm: Up to 10 years and a fine up to $250,000.
The Garden City Police Department investigated. Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Kimberly Rodebaugh is prosecuting.
In all cases, defendants are presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty. The indictments merely contain allegations of criminal conduct.
Indiana Gospel Singer Sentenced to 60 Years for Sexual Exploitation of a Minor and Distribution of Child PornographyRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON – A Muncie, Indiana man was sentenced today to serve 60 years in prison for sexual exploitation of a minor and distribution of child pornography, announced Acting Assistant Attorney General Kenneth A. Blanco of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division and Acting U.S. Attorney Patrick D. Hansen of the Central District of Illinois.
Shawn Shannon, 45, a traveling gospel singer, was sentenced today by U.S. District Judge Colin S. Bruce of the Central District of Illinois, who also ordered Shannon to pay $1,387 in restitution to the victim and serve a lifetime of supervised release following his release from prison. Shannon was convicted on July 27, 2016, after a three-day jury trial of 19 counts of sexual exploitation of a minor and one count of distribution of child pornography.
According to evidence presented at trial, Shannon lured a 13-year-old boy to a hotel in Decatur, Illinois, and directed him to pose for a series of sexually explicit photos which Shannon took with his iPhone 5s. The evidence showed that Shannon attempted to delete evidence from his iPhone 5s including thousands of text messages and contacts after the victim’s mother learned of Shannon’s conduct and confronted him. Expert testimony presented at trial revealed that forensic examiners were able to recover these text messages which demonstrated Shannon’s nefarious intentions with the victim. Shannon also engaged in sexual contact with another minor boy and took similar photos, according to trial evidence.
Shannon was arrested on April 15, 2015, and was remanded to the custody of the U.S. Marshals Service pending trial.
U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations and the Decatur Police Department investigated the case. This case is being prosecuted by Trial Attorney Elly M. Peirson of the Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS) of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, and Maureen C. Cain, a former CEOS Trial Attorney who is now an Assistant United States Attorney at the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Virginia.
This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice. Led by U.S. Attorneys’ Offices and CEOS, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state and local resources to better locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the internet, as well as to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.justice.gov/psc.
Hudson County Woman and Essex County Man Admit Roles in Oxycodone Distribution RingRead the Press Release
NEWARK, N.J. – A Hudson County, New Jersey, woman and an Essex County, New Jersey, man have admitted their respective roles in a conspiracy to illegally obtain and distribute oxycodone, Acting U.S. Attorney William E. Fitzpatrick announced.
Rhonda Musallam, 41, of Fairview, New Jersey, pleaded guilty today before U.S. District Judge Esther Salas in Newark federal court to a superseding information charging her with one count of conspiracy to distribute oxycodone. On Aug. 15, 2017, Robert O’Brien, 60, of Bloomfield, New Jersey, pleaded guilty before Judge Salas to an indictment charging him with one count of conspiracy to distribute oxycodone.
Of the 16 people that were charged in this conspiracy, 15 have been convicted, including the leader, Victoria Horvath, who was sentenced Oct. 20, 2016, to 92 months in prison. Charges against the 16th defendant were dismissed after his death in April 2015.
According to documents filed in this case and statements made in court:
Using confidential sources, surveillance, and recorded text messages and telephone calls, investigators with the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) discovered that members and suppliers of a drug-trafficking organization secured prescriptions for oxycodone and other controlled substances from various doctors in New Jersey, filled them at pharmacies in Belleville and elsewhere, and sold the drugs for a profit. The investigation identified O’Brien and Musallam as members of the drug trafficking organization.
Musallam admitted that from June 10, 2014, to July 18, 2014, she supplied members of the conspiracy and others with oxycodone pills. She said that on a day in June 2014 she sold 70 oxycodone-containing pills conspirators in exchange for $1,000.
O’Brien admitted that from Feb. 5, 2014, to Aug. 13, 2014, he obtained and paid for filled prescriptions of oxycodone-containing pills on behalf of members of the conspiracy. He said that on a day in May 2014 he purchased a filled prescription for oxycodone-containing pills from a New Jersey pharmacy on behalf of a conspirator in exchange for 45 oxycodone-containing pills from another conspirator.
Oxycodone is a Schedule II controlled substance – meaning that it has a high potential for
abuse, it is currently accepted medical use with severe restrictions, and abuse of the drug may lead to severe psychological or physical dependence.
The charges to which Musallam and O’Brien pleaded guilty carry a maximum potential penalty of 20 years in prison and a $1 million fine. Sentencing for Musallam is scheduled for Dec. 19, 2018, and for O’Brien is scheduled for Nov. 27, 2018.
Acting U.S. Attorney Fitzpatrick credited the DEA’s New Jersey Division, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Carl J. Kotowski, with the investigation leading to the guilty pleas.
The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorney Sara F. Merin of the OCDETF/Narcotics Unit of the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Newark.
The principal mission of the OCDETF program, under which this investigation was conducted, is to identify, disrupt and dismantle the most serious drug-trafficking, weapons-trafficking and money-laundering organizations, and those primarily responsible for the nation’s illegal drug supply.
Four Individuals Charged for Series of Armored Vehicle RobberiesRead the Press Release
LAS VEGAS, Nev. – Three men and one woman, who were arrested on Sept. 8, in connection with a series of violent armored vehicle robberies that occurred in Las Vegas and Henderson, made their initial appearances in federal court Monday, announced Acting U.S. Attorney Steven W. Myhre for the District of Nevada, Special Agent in Charge Aaron C. Rouse for the FBI’s Las Vegas Office, Sheriff Joseph Lombardo for the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department, and Acting Chief Todd Peters for the Henderson Police Department.
Trayvale Harrison, 30, of Barstow, Calif.; Phillip Shiel, 22, of Los Angeles, Calif.; Randel Burge, 35, and Ianthe Rowland, 34, both of Las Vegas, are each charged with conspiracy to interfere with commerce by robbery, interference with commerce by robbery, and brandishing a firearm in furtherance of a crime of violence. In addition, Harrison, Burge, and Rowland are charged with four more counts of interference with commerce by robbery. The defendants made their initial appearances before U.S. District Magistrate Judge Carl W. Hoffman. Harrison, Shiel, and Burge were detained and Rowland was released with conditions.
According to a criminal complaint, the defendants allegedly conspired to rob armored vehicles in Las Vegas and Henderson. The first robbery took place on June 5, at the Green Valley Grocery at 5324 South Fort Apache Road. An armed man told a Loomis armored vehicle guard to drop the money bag as the guard exited the store. The guard complied and the robber fled with the money bag. One month later, on July 5, two men wearing masks and armed with firearms robbed a Garda armored vehicle in front of a Walmart at 490 East Silverado Ranch Boulevard. The robbers told the guard “Drop the bags, drop the bags!” to which the guard complied. They fled with the money bag. Then, on Aug. 14, a Loomis armored vehicle was robbed in front of a Wells Fargo Bank at 101 North Pecos Road in Henderson. The robbers had firearms and fled with the money bag. The fourth armed robbery occurred on Aug. 25, in front of a Wells Fargo Bank at 445 Windmill Road. They robbed a Loomis armored vehicle and fled with the money bag. On Sept. 8, the defendants were set to rob another armored vehicle at the Chase Bank located at 2165 East Windmill Lane. The defendants were apprehended and taken into custody by law enforcement before the robbery took place.
If convicted, the maximum statutory penalty is up to life in prison for brandishing a firearm during and in relation to a crime of violence.
The investigation leading to the arrests and charges was conducted jointly by the FBI’s Violent Crimes Task Force, the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department’s Robbery and Major Violators sections, and the Henderson Police Department. The FBI’s Violent Crimes Task Force consists of FBI Special Agents and Detectives from the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department, Henderson Police Department, and the North Las Vegas Police Department. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Cristina D. Silva and Phillip N. Smith Jr.
A criminal complaint is merely an allegation, and each defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
###
Former Utility Executive Sentenced to 21 Months in PrisonRead the Press Release
BOISE – Kenneth Frank Morehouse, 59, formerly CEO of Intermountain Gas, was sentenced yesterday to 21 months in prison by Senior U.S. District Court Judge Edward J. Lodge, Acting U.S. Attorney Rafael Gonzalez announced. Judge Lodge also ordered Morehouse to pay a $5,500 fine and imposed three years of supervised release to follow his period of incarceration.
On June 21, 2017, Morehouse pleaded guilty to unlawfully possessing a firearm during a February 2017 incident in which Ada County Sheriff’s deputies were called to Morehouse’s residence by Morehouse’s wife who feared he was suicidal. A deputy encountered Morehouse in his home holding a firearm and shot Morehouse to temporarily disable him out of fear for officer safety and the safety of Morehouse and his wife. Morehouse was prohibited from possessing a firearm due to a 2015 conviction in Ada County District Court for a misdemeanor crime of domestic violence.
The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms (ATF) and the Ada County Sheriff’s Office investigated the case. It was brought as part of Project Safe Neighborhoods, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2001 by the Department of Justice to combat gun violence in the United States. Project Safe Neighborhoods marshals federal, state, and local resources to target and prosecute those who commit gun crimes. For more information about Project Safe Neighborhoods, visit https://www.bja.gov
Former Phoenix Resident Sentenced to 44 Months for EmbezzlementRead the Press Release
PHOENIX – Yesterday, Shana Raelisa Johnson, 35, of Atlanta, Georgia, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge John J. Tuchi to 44 months in prison and ordered to pay more than $2 million in restitution. Johnson had previously pleaded guilty to wire fraud.
From 2008 through 2014, Johnson worked as an accountant at a property management company based in Phoenix, Arizona. During that time, she stole more than $2.4 million from her employer by issuing fraudulent checks and making unauthorized electronic transfers from her employer’s bank accounts. After the Phoenix-based company discovered her theft, Johnson moved to Atlanta, Georgia and applied for a similar accountant position at another property management company. Johnson gave a fictitious reference and other false information during the hiring process to prevent her new employer from contacting the Phoenix employer and discovering her fraud. Upon being hired in early 2015, Johnson proceeded to steal almost $500,000 from her new, Atlanta-based employer. Johnson concealed her embezzlement from both companies by falsifying bank statements and other financial records.
“Employee embezzlement is a growing problem that presents a significant threat to local businesses. The United States Attorney’s Office takes this kind of criminal conduct very seriously and will continue to aggressively prosecute financial frauds,” stated Acting U.S. Attorney Elizabeth A. Strange.
“All businesses, whether large or small, can be the victims of deceitful employees,” stated IRS-Criminal Investigation Special Agent in Charge Ismael Nevarez Jr. “This investigation underscores IRS-CI’s expertise in conducting complex financial investigations."
The investigation in this case was conducted by the Federal Housing Finance Agency’s Office of Inspector General and the Internal Revenue Service-Criminal Investigation. The prosecution was handled by M. Bridget Minder and Andrew Stone, Assistant U.S. Attorneys, District of Arizona, Phoenix.
CASE NUMBER: CR-17-00183-JJT
RELEASE NUMBER: 2017-084_Johnson
# # #
For more information on the U.S. Attorney’s Office, District of Arizona, visit http://www.justice.gov/usao/az/
Follow the U.S. Attorney’s Office, District of Arizona, on Twitter @USAO_AZ for the latest news.
Former Paramedic Pleads Guilty to Stealing Pain-killing Drugs, Replacing Vials with WaterRead the Press Release
KANSAS CITY, Mo. – Tom Larson, Acting United States Attorney for the Western District of Missouri, announced that a former paramedic with two northwest Missouri ambulance districts pleaded guilty in federal court today to stealing pain-killing drugs and replacing the vials with water.
Joseph L. Comstock, 31, of Bethany, Mo., waived his right to a grand jury and pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Beth Phillips to a federal information that charges him with three counts of tampering with a consumer product (fentanyl and morphine) with reckless disregard for the risk that another person would be placed in danger of death or bodily injury, and under circumstances manifesting extreme indifference to such risk.
By pleading guilty today, Comstock admitted that he emptied vials of morphine and fentanyl, taking it for his own personal use, and replaced the pain-killing drugs with sterilized water. Comstock tampered with the drug vials while working at both the NTA Ambulance District in Bethany and the Community Ambulance District of Daviess County in Gallatin, Mo., in 2014 and 2015.
Comstock started tampering with drugs in March 2014, following a medical procedure to remove his tonsils. He accessed drugs on ambulances and was able to bend up the lid of the plastic boxes and dump out the drugs he wished to tamper with. He obtained both fentanyl and morphine from ambulances and replaced the drugs with sterile water.
Comstock admitted there were at least two occasions where he personally treated patients with drugs he knew he had tampered with. These patients were both hip fracture patients that were supposed to receive fentanyl but instead received sterile water that Comstock had replaced in the vial.
Federal officials were notified on March 4, 2015, of possible drug tampering at the NTA Ambulance District in Bethany. The chief of EMS reported that an employee had noticed two morphine syringes had broken tamper-evident seals. On Jan. 30, 2015, an employee noticed that two morphine syringes had broken tamper-evident seals. On Feb. 27, 2015, ambulance employees looked through narcotic boxes kept on the three NTA ambulances. They found a number of drugs that were missing tamper-evidence caps and had broken tamper-evident seals, including midazolam, lorazepam, morphine and fentanyl.
Federal agents installed surveillance equipment at the Bethany NTA building on March 18, 2015. A camera was also placed on an ambulance, which was taken out of service. Comstock was recorded on the surveillance video as he stole morphine from the ambulance on two separate occasions on March 19 and March 23, 2015. Comstock later admitted that he had tampered with drugs on all the ambulances prior to that as well.
Comstock also admitted that he tampered with drugs when he visited the Gallatin ambulance building on Feb. 24, 2015. An employee found Comstock (who had stopped working at the Gallatin ambulance company in June 2014) inside the Gallatin ambulance building. Comstock explained he had come by the Gallatin facility to use the treadmill. Later that same day, the employee went on a service call and treated a man suffering from leg pain with 100 mcg of fentanyl; however, the man did not receive any pain relief. When the employee returned, he examined the narcotics cabinet and found several fentanyl vials with loose caps, as well as morphine that appeared to have been tampered with.
The Gallatin ambulance director told federal agents about another suspicious situation at his ambulance building involving Comstock that occurred a week earlier. On Feb. 17, 2015, Comstock stopped by the ambulance building to visit with another paramedic. The next day, another employee checked the narcotics cabinet and noticed two fentanyl vials without their tamper-resistant caps. Subsequently several other fentanyl vials were discovered to have been tampered with.
Under federal statutes, Comstock is subject to a sentence of up to 10 years in federal prison without parole on each of the three counts. The maximum statutory sentence is prescribed by Congress and is provided here for informational purposes, as the sentencing of the defendants will be determined by the court based on the advisory sentencing guidelines and other statutory factors. Sentencing hearings will be scheduled after the completion of presentence investigations by the United States Probation Office.
This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Justin G. Davids. It was investigated by the Food and Drug Administration – Office of Criminal Investigation and the Bethany, Mo., Police Department.
Former Manhattan Beach Executive and SEC Attorney Sentenced to JailRead the Press Release
Assistant U. S. Attorney Rebecca S. Kanter (619) 546-7304
NEWS RELEASE SUMMARY – September 11, 2017
LOS ANGELES – A Manhattan Beach attorney was sentenced today to nine months in federal custody after being convicted at trial for embezzling over a quarter-million dollars from his former employer, MWRC Internet Sales LLC (“MWRC”), and filing false tax returns. James (“Jim”) Miller, a former regional counsel at the Securities Exchange Commission’s Los Angeles office and former real estate investor, was convicted in June of five felony counts of wire fraud and four counts of filing a false tax return. In addition to serving nine months in jail, the sentence imposed today by Judge George Wu requires Miller to pay the Internal Revenue Service $64,329 in restitution, $900 special assessment, and two years of supervised release.
According to the evidence presented at trial, James Miller was the president and co-managing partner of MWRC Internet Sales LLC, an Internet sales company that was founded in approximately 2000 in order to provide manufacturers and local brick-and-mortar retailers a way to share in the profit from online sales. As part of his duties, Miller had check signing authority for MWRC’s business bank account. From January 2009 through October 2012, Miller wrote unauthorized checks to himself, embezzling more than $300,000 from the company. Miller used this money to pay for personal expenses and debts, and did not report it on his personal tax returns for 2009 through 2012, causing a tax loss of approximately $64,000.
According to the evidence at trial, Miller’s conduct of writing unauthorized checks was first revealed when Miller and Russell Lesser, Miller’s co-managing partner and MWRC’s primary investor, were preparing annual financial statements in March 2011. Evidence at trial revealed that Lesser allowed Miller, his long-time friend, to continue as co-managing partner of MWRC based on Miller’s promise to never engage in the conduct again and to pay MWRC back the stolen funds. Lesser, who had been loaning Miller $3,000 per month to help Miller in a financially difficult time, continued to provide Miller the personal loan of $3,000 per month, and directed Miller to use that money to start repaying MWRC. Evidence at trial showed that although Miller did stop embezzling money for two months, he began writing checks to himself again in May of 2011 despite his promise to Lesser not to do so.
The evidence at trial showed that although Miller did repay MWRC $95,500 between 2009 and 2012 during the course of his embezzlement, he received from Lesser personal loans totaling $108,000 during the same time period. Evidence at trial also showed that Miller falsified MWRC’s check register to hide his criminal conduct. Specifically, evidence at trial showed that Miller made numerous false entries on the check register indicating that checks were transfers to another MWRC bank account (the most common use of the account) when in fact the checks were written to Miller himself and deposited in his own personal bank account.
The Court rejected Miller’s request for a sentence of probation based on his community service, noting that “the commission of some good works is not a get out of jail card.”
The case was prosecuted by Southern District of California Assistant United States Attorney Rebecca Kanter, acting as a Special Attorney, and Trial Attorney Benjamin Weir of the Tax Division.
Southern District of California Acting United States Attorney Alana W. Robinson, stated that “This case was aggravated by the fact that Miller was not only an attorney, but a former regional counsel for the Securities Exchange Commission. Given the defendant’s duty of candor, his numerous outlandish claims during his trial testimony makes this crime particularly offensive. Corporate executives such a Miller should understand that stealing from their employer is not “merely a business dispute,” but serious felony conduct that will be investigated and prosecuted.
“Defendant Miller abused his position of trust and continuously lied to his colleagues for personal gain,” said Danny Kennedy, the Assistant Director in Charge of the FBI’s Los Angeles Field Office. “The FBI and our federal partners will continue to work together to hold accountable offenders who commit major financial crimes that impact individual businesses and taxpayers.”
“Miller allowed greed to color his judgment and now he will be paying the price,” stated IRS Criminal Investigation’s Special Agent in Charge R. Damon Rowe. “Today’s sentencing reinforces our commitment to every American taxpayer to vigorously investigate individuals who line their pockets with fraudulently obtained funds and then file fraudulent tax returns.”
DEFENDANT Case Number 14CR0471-GW
James Miller Age: 68 Manhattan Beach, CA
SUMMARY OF CHARGES
Wire Fraud – Title 18, U.S.C., Section 1343
False Statement on Tax Return – Title 26, U.S.C., Section 7206(1)
AGENCY
Federal Bureau of Investigation, Los Angeles Division
Internal Revenue Service, Criminal Investigations
*The charges and allegations contained in an indictment or complaint are merely accusations, and the defendants are considered innocent unless and until proven guilty.
Former Deputy Chief of Staff at Special Operations Command, Pacific, Sentenced for Lying about his Relationship with Foreign Defense Contractor in Massive Navy Bribery InvestigationRead the Press Release
Assistant U.S. Attorneys Mark W. Pletcher (619) 546-9714 and Patrick Hovakimian (619) 546-9718
NEWS RELEASE SUMMARY – September 12, 2017
SAN DIEGO – A former U.S. Navy Commander was sentenced yesterday to 18 months in prison for lying to investigators to conceal his illicit decades-long relationship with Leonard Glenn Francis, the foreign defense contractor at the center of a colossal bribery and fraud scandal.
David Kapaun, former U.S. Navy Commander and later the civilian Deputy Chief of Staff at Special Operations Command, Pacific, at Camp Smith, Aiea, Hawaii, pleaded guilty to one count of making false statements on June 6, 2017, admitting that he lied on his security clearance application forms regarding his relationship with Francis, owner of Singapore-based Glenn Defense Marine Asia. The company provided ship husbanding services such as trash and sewage removal, food, water, security and fuel to U.S. Navy ships.
According to the government’s sentencing memo, Kapaun received at least as much as $50,000 in illicit goods and services from Francis since 2001. The long history between the two men involved many late nights of partying at nightclubs and karaoke bars, fine dining, and prostitutes – all paid for by Francis. For his part, Kapaun performed numerous and varied official acts for GDMA, including providing classified schedules of U.S. Navy ship port visits. Acknowledging the staggering breadth and duration of Kapaun’s activity on GDMA’s behalf, Francis referred to him as GDMA’s “comms center, strategist, and ops center.”
Conscious of the illegality of his actions, Kapaun was always careful to conceal the nature of his relationship with and his receipt of things of value from Francis. Kapaun, for example, created a fake name, Dave McIntosh, and a sham email address to disguise his identity and avoid the detection of law enforcement. Kapaun and Francis also used coded terminology when discussing their illicit activities.
In addition to the 18 months in prison, Kapaun was also sentenced to pay a fine in the amounts of $25,000, as well as restitution to the U.S. Navy in the amount of $50,000 and perform 200 hours of community service work following his release.
“Today’s sentence underscores the breadth and scope of this unprecedented investigation,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Alana W. Robinson. “We will continue to investigate and prosecute all who greedily feather their own beds in dereliction of the obligations to the United States.”
Twenty-eight individuals, including 21 current and former Navy officials and five civilian defendants, plus GDMA, the corporation, have been charged so far as part of the massive fraud and bribery investigation. Nineteen of these defendants have pleaded guilty. Nine defendants await trial.
The Defense Criminal Investigative Service, Naval Criminal Investigative Service and the Defense Contract Audit Agency are investigating. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Mark W. Pletcher and Patrick Hovakimian of the Southern District of California, Assistant U.S. Attorney Ken Sorenson of the District of Hawaii, and Assistant Chief Brian R. Young of the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section are prosecuting the case.
Anyone with information relating to fraud or corruption should contact the NCIS anonymous tip line at www.ncis.navy.mil or the DOD Hotline at www.dodig.mil/hotline, or call (800) 424-9098.
DEFENDANT Case Number: CR-1700333-SOM
David Michael Kapaun Age 58 Wahiawa, HI
SUMMARY OF CHARGES
False Statements, in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 1001
Maximum Penalty: Five years in prison
INVESTIGATING AGENCIES
Defense Criminal Investigative Service
Naval Criminal Investigative Service
Defense Contract Audit Agency
Former Border Patrol Agent Sentenced for Making a False StatementRead the Press Release
McALLEN, Texas ‐ A former Border Patrol (BP) agent has been ordered to prison for making a false statement regarding a narcotics seizure, announced Acting U.S. Attorney Abe Martinez. Eduardo Bazan, 49, of Edinburg, pleaded guilty June 30, 2017.
Today, U.S. District Judge Randy Crane ordered Bazan to serve a 24-month sentence to be immediately followed by three years of supervised release.
As part of an ongoing investigation, law enforcement learned that a 66-kilogram load of cocaine that BP seized in 2007 may have been staged with sham, or diluted, narcotics to allow drug traffickers to steal the original narcotics from unwitting sources of supply.
On Oct. 31, 2016, Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations (ICE-HSI) interviewed Bazan who had been a BP agent assigned to the McAllen Border Station. He falsely stated that in February 2007 he had unsuccessfully attempted to apprehend individuals running from a vehicle. Upon returning to that vehicle, he saw other agents recovering the bundles of cocaine.
On Nov. 1, 2016, Bazan admitted he had lied to agents and that the load vehicle had been abandoned. Bazan ran from the scene to make other agents believe the vehicle had been occupied. Bazan further admitted to receiving $8,000 for assisting the drug traffickers with the staged seizure.
Bazan was permitted to remain on bond and voluntarily surrender to a U.S. Bureau of Prisons facility to be determined in the near future.
This case was part of an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force Investigation dubbed Operation Blue Shame. ICE-HSI, Drug Enforcement Administration and IRS - Criminal Investigations conducted the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Anibal J. Alaniz and Kristen Rees prosecuted the case.
Florida Woman Sentenced to Prison for Stolen Identity Refund FraudRead the Press Release
Montgomery, Alabama- A Jacksonville, Florida resident was sentenced today to 42 months in prison for her role in a stolen identity refund fraud scheme, announced Acting U.S. Attorney Clark Morris for the Middle District of Alabama, and Acting Deputy Assistant Attorney General Stuart M. Goldberg of the Justice Department’s Tax Division.
According to documents and information provided to the court, from approximately February 2014 through February 2015, in Duval County, Florida and Pike County, Alabama, Comone Denise Ross, 58, and others obtained stolen IDs, including the personal identifying information of prisoners. They used the information to file over 100 tax returns with the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) seeking approximately $411,914 in fraudulent refunds. One co-conspirator, Devon Tucker, previously pleaded guilty and was sentenced to 32 months in prison for selling Ross identification information relating to inmates at the Troy, Alabama City Jail.
In addition to the term of prison imposed, U.S. District Judge Myron Thompson ordered Ross to serve three years of supervised release and to pay $285,412 in restitution to the IRS. Ross pleaded guilty in April 2017 to conspiring to defraud the government and aggravated identity theft.
Acting U.S. Attorney Morris and Acting Deputy Assistant Attorney General Goldberg commended special agents of IRS Criminal Investigation, who conducted the investigation, and Trial Attorneys Gregory P. Bailey and Michael P. Hatzimichalis of the Tax Division and Assistant U.S. Attorney Jonathan S. Ross of the Middle District of Alabama, who prosecuted this case.
Additional information about the Tax Division’s enforcement efforts can be found on the division’s website.
Florida Woman Sentenced to Prison for Stolen Identity Refund FraudRead the Press Release
A Jacksonville, Florida resident was sentenced to 42 months in prison for her role in a stolen identity refund fraud scheme, announced Acting Deputy Assistant Attorney General Stuart M. Goldberg of the Justice Department’s Tax Division and Acting U.S. Attorney Clark Morris for the Middle District of Alabama.
According to documents and information provided to the court, from approximately February 2014 through February 2015, in Duval County, Florida, and Pike County, Alabama, Comone Denise Ross, 58, and others obtained stolen IDs, including the personal identifying information of prisoners. They used the information to file over 100 tax returns with the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) seeking approximately $411,914 in fraudulent refunds. One co-conspirator, Devon Tucker, previously pleaded guilty and was sentenced to 32 months in prison for selling Ross identification information relating to inmates at the Troy, Alabama City Jail.
In addition to the term of prison imposed, U.S. District Judge Myron Thompson ordered Ross to serve three years of supervised release and to pay $285,412 in restitution to the IRS. Ross pleaded guilty in April 2017 to conspiring to defraud the government and aggravated identity theft.
Acting Deputy Assistant Attorney General Goldberg and Acting U.S. Attorney Morris commended special agents of IRS Criminal Investigation, who conducted the investigation, and Trial Attorneys Gregory P. Bailey and Michael P. Hatzimichalis of the Tax Division and Assistant U.S. Attorney Jonathan S. Ross of the Middle District of Alabama, who prosecuted this case.
Additional information about the Tax Division’s enforcement efforts can be found on the division’s website.
Florida Woman Found Guilty in Gas Station Debit Card Skimming Operation that Involved Multiple StatesRead the Press Release
Montgomery, Alabama- Eunises Llorca-Menses (30), of Naples, Florida, was found guilty by a federal jury Friday for her part in a scheme to use skimming devices on gas pumps to steal credit and debit card numbers, announced A. Clark Morris, Acting U.S. Attorney for the Middle District of Alabama, and Steven T. Marshall, Attorney General for the State of Alabama. The guilty verdict follows a multi-agency investigation that was initiated by the Ozark Police Department, the Alabama Attorney General’s Office, the United States Secret Service, and the Baldwin County Sheriff’s Office.
On February 15, 2017, Llorca Menses and her co-defendant Reiner Perez-Rives (34), of Houston, Texas, were charged by a federal grand jury with conspiracy to commit wire fraud, wire fraud, and aggravated identity theft. Perez-Rives pled guilty in July to conspiracy and identity theft charges.
As part of the scheme, Llorca-Menses and Perez-Rives, would rent vehicles and travel between Florida, Alabama, Tennessee and Virginia. During their travels, they would visit several gas stations and install a skimming device inside gas pumps. Through the skimming device, they collected gas station customers’ credit/debit card information and used that information to activate or reactivate credit, debit, or gift cards, and make unauthorized ATM cash withdrawals at gas stations and purchases at several places around the Southeast.
Law enforcement was able to uncover this scheme following multiple reports from victims concerning the unauthorized use of their debit cards. Working with financial institutions, the Ozark Police Department, along with state and federal partners, discovered that many of the victims had used their cards at the same gas station in Ozark, Alabama. At this station, they found a skimming device with Bluetooth capability installed on a gas pump. The Bluetooth technology allowed the defendants to collect a gas customer’s credit/debit information while sitting up to thirty-feet away from the gas pump.
At the time of their arrest on December 21, 2016, Llorca-Meneses and Peres-Rives were found to be in possession of thirty-nine credit/debit cards that had been re-encoded with stolen credit/debit card numbers, along with an additional 317 gift cards. A Wal-Mart gift card that contained the stolen account information from a victim’s Capital One credit card and a key used to gain access to the inside of a gas pump was found in Llorca-Meneses’ purse. Law enforcement also found a homemade device with connectors that matched the connections on the skimming device found in the gas pump in Ozark in their luggage.
Llorca-Menses and Perez-Rives each face a maximum sentence of 30 years in prison and payment of restitution to their victims. Their sentencings will take place within the next few months.
“It is incredibly difficult for the average person to determine if a gas pump has a skimmer,” stated Acting U.S Attorney Morris. “This is because many are placed inside the gas pump with no visible evidence of tampering. While the crooks may be getting smarter, law enforcement continues to work hard to stay a step ahead. This conviction shows that our office will continue to work with our partners to identify criminals that seek to victimize our citizens.”
"This conviction should send a strong message to debit card skimmers seeking to target unsuspecting Alabamians: you will be caught and brought to justice,” said Attorney General Marshall. “Special thanks to agents of the Alabama Attorney General's Office, the U.S. Secret Service, the Ozark Police Department and the Baldwin County Sheriff's Office for their teamwork in quickly uncovering this multi-state electronic crime spree and capturing the criminals, and to the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Middle District of Alabama for this successful prosecution."
“I would like to thank all law enforcement partners who brought these criminals to justice,” stated Ozark Police Chief Marlos Walker. “This is a win for all our communities as well as the men and women who stand up for justice every day. Teamwork is essential to the very being of a law enforcement professional. The Ozark Police Department was happy to do our part and will continue the fight against crime and disorder.”
Resident Agent in Charge Clayton Slay, with the United States Secret Service Montgomery Resident Office, stated, “the Secret Service has established an aggressive, coordinated and proactive effort to investigate and prosecute financial crimes with local and state law enforcement partners and the U.S. Attorney’s Office. Through this effort, Mrs. Llorca-Menses was successfully prosecuted and found guilty by a jury of her peers.” RAC Slay also stated that he “would like to personally thank the Ozark Police Department, Baldwin County Sheriff’s Department and the Alabama Attorney General’s Office for their work and assistance in this case.”
To avoid becoming a victim of this type of fraud, customers should pay inside the store or use pumps that are visible to store employees and video surveillance cameras. Criminals commonly target pumps that allow them to install skimming devices undetected. Unfortunately, it is impossible to prevent all types of fraudulent charges from taking place. This is why early detection is so important. Citizens are encouraged to monitor their bank and credit card accounts frequently and immediately report any unusual activity to their financial institution.
This case was a joint investigation involving the Ozark Police Department, the Alabama Attorney General’s Office, the United States Secret Service, and the Baldwin County Sheriff’s Office. Assistant United States Attorney Denise O. Simpson and Assistant United States Attorney Steven Lee prosecuted this case.
Five Defendants Indicted in Scheme to “Straw Purchase” Firearms in Michigan and Re-Sell Them in ChicagoRead the Press Release
CHICAGO — Five defendants have been indicted on federal firearms violations for conspiring to “straw purchase” handguns in Michigan and re-sell them in Chicago.
Michigan residents CORNELIUS BATTLE and DALRICK DRAIN purchased firearms from federally licensed dealers in Kalamazoo, Mich., and falsely certified on required forms that they were the actual buyers of the guns, the indictment states. Battle and Drain purchased the guns on behalf of NATHANIEL McELROY, a Chicago resident who identified which firearms he wanted and had paid Battle and Drain a premium over the stores’ prices, according to the indictment. In the first six months of 2017, the trio and two other defendants, REGINALD JOHNSON and LASHON MOORE, caused at least nine handguns to be purchased in Michigan and transported to Chicago, the indictment states.
The two-count indictment was returned Aug. 31, 2017, in federal court in Chicago, and ordered unsealed on Sept. 7, 2017. It charges the defendants with one count of conspiracy to willfully deal firearms without a license, to willfully transfer firearms to non-Michigan residents, and to knowingly make false statements in connection with the acquisition of a firearm; and one count of willfully dealing firearms without a license.
“The United States Attorney’s Office is committed to aggressively using federal firearm laws to keep illegal guns off the streets,” said Joel R. Levin, Acting United States Attorney for the Northern District of Illinois. “We will use whatever federal tools are appropriate to prosecute straw purchasers and hold them accountable for bringing illegal firearms into Chicago.”
Acting U.S. Attorney Levin announced the charges along with Michael J. Anderson, Special Agent-in-Charge of the Chicago office of the Federal Bureau of Investigation. The Chicago Police Department provided valuable participation in the investigation.
McElroy, 21, was arrested on Aug. 31, 2017. During a detention hearing in federal court in Chicago last week, U.S. Magistrate Judge Susan E. Cox ordered McElroy detained in federal custody pending trial. McElroy’s next court date has not yet been set.
Battle, 23, of Kalamazoo, Mich., was arrested in Michigan on Sept. 1, 2017. During a detention hearing in federal court in Kalamazoo last week, U.S. Magistrate Judge Phillip J. Green ordered Battle released on home confinement. Judge Green ordered Battle to appear in Chicago on a future date to be determined by the Court.
Moore, 28, of Kalamazoo, Mich., is currently in custody in Michigan on an unrelated state charge. The U.S. Attorney’s Office will seek his removal to Chicago at a future date.
Arrest warrants have been issued for Drain, 27, and Johnson, 24, both of Kalamazoo, Mich. They were not custody as of today.
The indictment describes two purchases made at the Kalamazoo firearm businesses. On Feb. 28, 2017, Drain bought two guns at On Target; and on March 30, 2017, Drain bought two guns from Dunham Sports, the indictment states. Other defendants and an unindicted member of the scheme later conspired to transfer the guns to Chicago, the indictment states. The charges allege that the defendants’ straw purchasing scheme violated a federal law that requires individuals purchasing certain firearms from an out-of-state dealer to first have the firearms transferred to a dealer in the buyer’s state of residency before the individual can legally take possession.
The public is reminded that an indictment is not evidence of guilt. The defendants are presumed innocent and entitled to a fair trial at which the government has the burden of proving guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.
Each count of the indictment is punishable by a maximum sentence of five 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. Attorneys Albert Berry III and Ankur Srivastava.
Federal Officials Decline Prosecution in the Death of Freddie GrayRead the Press Release
The Justice Department announced today that the independent federal investigation into the death of Freddie Gray, Jr., on April 19, 2015, in Baltimore, Maryland, found insufficient evidence to support federal criminal civil rights charges against six Baltimore Police Department (BPD) officers.
Overview
On May 1, 2015, the Baltimore State’s Attorney’s Office (SAO) charged BPD Officers Caesar Goodson, William Porter, Garrett Miller, and Edward Nero; Lieutenant Brian Rice; and Sergeant Alicia White with criminal offenses related to Gray’s arrest and death. The charged offenses included reckless endangerment, involuntary manslaughter, and second degree depraved heart murder. Ultimately, four out of the six officers took their cases to trial, and in each instance, the prosecution was unable to secure a conviction. The SAO’s first trial, which was against Porter, resulted in a mistrial after the jury failed to reach a verdict. In the next three trials, Nero, Goodson, and Rice were acquitted on all charges following bench trials. After the fourth trial ended in acquittal on July 18, 2016, the SAO dismissed the remaining counts against Porter, Miller, and White, ending all state prosecutions related to Gray’s death.
The Department conducted a comprehensive independent investigation of the events surrounding Gray’s death and carefully reviewed the materials and evidence generated by BPD and the SAO. Career prosecutors examined evidence from numerous sources, including surveillance videos from closed circuit cameras (CCTV) that captured various sites where Gray was taken while in custody; cell phone videos taken by civilian witnesses at the time of Gray’s arrest; numerous witness interviews (transcripts, audio, and video recordings); photos; maps; medical reports; an autopsy conducted by the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner for the State of Maryland; police dispatch recordings; reports concerning DNA and blood stain evidence; BPD documents related to Gray’s arrest and the investigation of his death; personnel files and background materials for the subjects; BPD policies and training materials; phone records; demonstrative evidence; the SAO’s investigative file concerning the incident; trial transcripts; and trial court verdicts and findings of fact. Additionally, the FBI and federal prosecutors conducted witness interviews of BPD personnel in order to clarify procedural questions with respect to police investigative practices.
Applicable Law
The Department examined the facts in this case under all relevant criminal statutes. The principal criminal statute applicable to these facts is Title 18, United States Code, Section 242, Deprivation of Rights Under Color of Law. In order to proceed with a prosecution under Section 242, prosecutors must first establish beyond a reasonable doubt that a law enforcement officer deprived an individual of a constitutional right. Prosecutors considered multiple theories of liability, based on multiple constitutional provisions, including theories of false arrest, excessive force, and deliberate indifference to the risk of serious harm to Gray.
Additionally, to prove that any police encounter violated section 242, the government must also prove beyond a reasonable doubt that the officer acted willfully. This high legal standard – one of the highest standards of intent imposed by law – requires proof that the officer acted with the specific intent to do something the law forbids. It is not enough to show that the officer made a mistake, acted negligently, acted by accident, or even exercised bad judgment.
Although Gray’s death is undeniably tragic, the evidence in this case is insufficient to meet these substantial evidentiary requirements. In light of this, and for the reasons explained below, this matter is not a prosecutable violation of the federal civil rights statutes.
Factual Summary
While this summary is based on, and consistent with, all facts known to the government, it does not include or discuss every fact learned or gathered during the thorough investigation.
At approximately 8:39 am on April 12, 2015, Freddie Gray was standing on a street corner with another male when he made eye contact with Lieutenant Brian Rice, a uniformed police officer who was on bicycle patrol in BPD’s Western District. After making eye contact with Lieutenant Rice, Gray ran. In response, Rice chased Gray and radioed that he was pursuing a suspect. Officers Garrett Miller and Edward Nero, both of whom were also on bicycle patrol, joined Lieutenant Rice in pursuing Gray. After approximately one minute, near Presbury and Mount Street, Gray surrendered to Officer Miller after Miller drew his Taser and threatened its use. The officers handcuffed and frisked Gray, leading to their discovery of what appeared to be an illegal switchblade knife in Gray’s pocket. Miller placed the knife on the ground, and Gray attempted to move toward it. In response, Officer Miller placed Gray, who was sitting on the ground, on his stomach. Gray began to flail his legs, and Miller placed Gray into a leg lace, which is a leg lock technique designed to stop the legs from moving. Officer Caesar Goodson then arrived with an empty police wagon for the purpose of transporting Gray. Video evidence shows that a small crowd of civilians gathered near the wagon and angrily protested Gray’s arrest. As the officers led Gray to the vehicle, he yelled about his wrists. Also, according to statements the officers later made to investigators, Gray would not walk on his own power, causing his feet to drag on the ground. Nonetheless, video shows that he stood by himself on the ledge of the wagon before entering. Officers Miller and Nero were assisted by another officer in placing Gray on a bench on the right side of the rear cabin. Gray faced a hard partition that completely separated the right and left sides of the wagon. The officers did not seat belt Gray. One of the officers later testified that they did not do so for reasons of officer safety, given the gathering angry crowd.
Once Gray was placed inside of the wagon and the doors were shut, witnesses could hear him banging against the wagon and yelling. At the direction of Lieutenant Rice, Goodson drove Gray in the wagon from the location of the arrest (Stop 1) to a location down the street at Mount and Baker Street (Stop 2), so that the officers could place leg shackles on Gray away from the civilians. Officers Miller, Nero, and Lieutenant Rice met Goodson at Stop 2, along with Officer William Porter and others. While at Stop 2, Gray resisted efforts of the officers to remove him from the wagon and place him into shackles. In response, Miller and Rice pulled Gray out of the wagon while he yelled and flailed. While the officers were placing new restraints on Gray, a crowd of up to nine civilians formed near the wagon and began to angrily yell at the officers about Gray’s arrest. Some yelled that the officers had injured Gray. Officer Porter assisted with crowd control. Lieutenant Rice and Officers Miller and Nero attempted to place Gray back into the rear of the wagon. As they did so, Gray went limp, and according to the officers, refused again to walk on his own power. This prompted Lieutenant Rice to enter the wagon and lift Gray inside head-first by pulling Gray’s shoulders while Nero lifted Gray’s legs. Lieutenant Rice left Gray on the floor of the wagon on his stomach with Gray’s head facing toward the front of the wagon and his hands cuffed to the rear. No officer seat-belted Gray. Once the wagon doors were shut, Rice, Miller, Nero, Porter, and multiple civilian witnesses heard Gray yell and bang against the wagon from the inside, causing it to visibly shake. Lieutenant Rice instructed Goodson to drive Gray to central booking, and at approximately 8:53 am, Goodson left Stop 2 and drove in that direction. Medical experts have agreed that sometime during the approximately 25 minutes that followed, while Gray rode in the rear of the police wagon, he sustained a fatal neck and spinal injury in a manner that is largely unknown.
Video indicates at around 8:56 am, while Officer Goodson was transporting Gray in the back of the wagon from Stop 2 to central booking, he made a wide right turn onto Freemont Avenue from Riggs Street, and briefly crossed over the double yellow line in the roadway. He then made an unannounced stop near Freemont Avenue (Stop 3). While there, Goodson got out of the wagon, walked to the rear of the vehicle, and disappeared from camera view for approximately 10 seconds. Goodson then got back in the van and drove away. It is unclear whether Goodson had any interaction with Gray at the back of the wagon at this stop, or what Goodson might have observed or heard. Goodson declined to provide a statement to state investigators about Gray or about that day. There is no other evidence of what occurred at Stop 3.
At approximately 8:59 am, after leaving Stop 3, Officer Goodson radioed to request that a police unit meet him at Druid Hill Avenue and Dolphin Street (Stop 4) for the purpose of checking on Gray. Officer Porter answered Goodson’s call and later provided two statements to investigators. He also testified at trial about his version of events. As Goodson has never given a statement in the criminal case, and could not legally be compelled to do so, Porter’s accounts offer the only evidence of what occurred at Stop 4. According to Porter, when he arrived at Stop 4, he met Goodson at the rear of the wagon, and Goodson opened the doors without discussion. There, Porter observed Gray lying on his stomach on the floor of the wagon with his head toward the front of the wagon, his feet toward the door, and his hands cuffed behind him. Gray asked for “help,” prompting Porter to ask what was wrong with him. According to Porter, Gray did not immediately reply, and then stated, “Help. Help me up.” In one of his statements to investigators, Porter is alleged to have also heard Gray say “I can’t breathe,” although he later denied having heard that.
After Gray asked for help, Officer Porter entered the wagon, pulled Gray up, and placed him on the bench. According to Porter, Gray used his own legs to assist Porter in placing him on the bench. Once there, Gray sat normally and supported his own head. Porter asked Gray if he wanted to go to the hospital, and Gray replied that he did. Gray did not complain of pain or of a specific injury, and Porter did not see any visible injury. Gray spoke in a regular tone of voice and breathed normally. According to Porter, because there were no signs of genuine medical distress, Porter did not believe that Gray was actually injured, despite Gray’s complaints. Porter allegedly believed that Gray was either lethargic from banging against the wagon, or was feigning a medical issue in order to avoid going to jail. However, because of Gray’s complaints, Porter told Goodson, who was standing at the rear of the wagon, that Gray was not going to “pass medical” at central booking. Goodson agreed, and Porter suggested that Goodson take Gray straight to the hospital. However, at that moment, at approximately 9:07 am, Lieutenant Rice radioed a request for available police units and a police wagon to respond to a different location. In response, Porter left the wagon, got back into his car, and responded to Rice’s dispatch. Goodson responded to Lieutenant Rice’s request as well and did not take Gray to the hospital. Again, neither officer seat-belted Gray.
Video surveillance reveals that the wagon arrived at Lieutenant Rice’s location (Stop 5) at approximately 9:11 am. When Goodson arrived, he parked the wagon near Lieutenant Rice and Officers Miller and Nero, who were standing on the sidewalk with a new handcuffed arrestee. It was decided that the new arrestee would be transported in the wagon back to the Western District police station for questioning. The doors to the rear of the wagon were opened, and at some point, another officer who had arrived at Stop 5 observed Gray kneeling in the wagon in a posture that resembled a praying position while facing the bench. In addition, Sergeant Alicia White arrived in order to investigate a complaint that an anonymous caller had made earlier that day about an altercation in the area. According to a statement later made by Sergeant White, she looked into the wagon, and while she could not see Gray’s face, she saw him kneeling on the wagon floor, facing away from her, and leaning over the bench with his head down. White attempted to question Gray, believing that he might know something about the complaint she was investigating. He gave no verbal response, but made an audible noise. White interpreted Gray’s silence as an indication that he did not want to cooperate with the police. Porter also attempted to speak to Gray at Stop 5, and asked Gray again if he wanted to go the hospital. Gray answered, “Yes.” According to Porter, he told Sergeant White that Gray wanted a medic, and in response, Sergeant White told Porter to follow the wagon back to the Western District to drop off the new arrestee, and then escort Gray to the hospital. At 9:16 am, Goodson left for the Western District station with Gray and the new arrestee in tow. The new arrestee later told investigators that the ride to the police station was smooth and lacked rapid accelerations, decelerations, or turns. The arrestee also stated that he heard loud banging from the other side of the wagon, and that he believed, based on the sound alone, that Gray was knocking his head against the wagon’s middle partition.
Upon Gray’s arrival at the Western District station (Stop 6), at approximately 9:18 am, Officer Porter, Sergeant White, and another BPD officer found Gray to be unconscious. Porter noted that Gray’s eyes were shut, his neck was limp, and he appeared not to be breathing. Sergeant White observed that Gray was drooling. Two officers, one of whom was Sergeant White, called for paramedics. Once the paramedics arrived, they observed that Gray was not breathing, had a small amount of blood coming from his nose, and had frothy vomitus discharge around his mouth. Gray also smelled of feces, indicating incontinence.
The paramedics took Gray to the hospital, where he remained comatose for days. During that time, he underwent multiple rounds of surgery. CT and MRI scans revealed that he suffered from a fractured neck and pinched spinal cord. Medical experts who analyzed the injuries later determined that they were akin to those sustained by a person who dives into a shallow pool and hits his head on the bottom, causing the neck to break when his head rotates forward. Those experts largely concluded that sometime in between Stops 2 and 6, Gray’s head forcefully impacted the interior surfaces of the wagon, such as the walls or doors, causing the injury. On April 19, 2015, Gray died as a result of medical complications accompanying those injuries.
Discussion
Lieutenant Brian Rice, Sergeant Alicia White, Officer William Porter, Officer Garrett Miller, and Officer Edward Nero each provided detailed statements to local investigators offering their version of what happened near the time of Gray’s fatal injury. Officers Porter, Miller, and Nero also testified about the matter in state criminal trials. In order to pursue any prosecution in this case, the government would have to disprove these accounts and establish that the officers’ actions or inactions with respect to Gray constituted a willful violation of Gray’s Fourth Amendment or Fourteenth Amendment rights. During a detailed and thorough investigation, the Department reviewed and analyzed numerous interviews of witnesses to the events surrounding Gray’s injury. In determining whether it was possible to disprove the officers’ statements beyond a reasonable doubt, the Department took into account all of the evidence in the case, including, among other things, all witness statements, any video and audio evidence, medical evidence, and other relevant documents. The Department considered all of the evidence in light of the legal standards for proving criminal cases of false arrest, excessive force, and deliberate indifference.
With respect to a false arrest charge, the Department determined that it could not disprove the officers’ statements regarding the events leading to the arrest. According to the officers, Gray was detained after he made eye contact with Lieutenant Rice and then immediately ran from him. At the time, the bicycle officers were conducting proactive enforcement in an area known for drug sales. Once the officers stopped Gray, they admitted to securing him with handcuffs and then performing a cursory search for weapons, which yielded an illegal knife. A test of that knife later revealed that it opened with a spring-assist, which corroborates Officer Miller’s determination that it was a switchblade knife. In light of the Supreme Court’s decisions regarding the thresholds for reasonable suspicion and probable cause, prosecutors concluded that a false arrest under the Fourth Amendment was not supported by the facts. Gray’s unprovoked flight from Lieutenant Rice, which occurred in an area known for drug sales, gave the officers reasonable suspicion to briefly detain him. Miller’s discovery of a knife that appeared to be an illegal switchblade supplied probable cause to arrest Gray.
In order to fully assess whether the officers used unreasonable force when arresting Gray, the Department closely examined medical evidence, video recordings, and witness accounts. The legal standard for such a prosecution would require the government to prove beyond a reasonable doubt that an officer’s use of force during Gray’s arrest was objectively unreasonable based on all of the surrounding circumstances, and thereby violated the Fourth Amendment. The law requires that the reasonableness of an officer’s use of force on an arrestee be judged from the perspective of a reasonable officer on the scene, rather than with the added perspective of hindsight.
The evidence in this matter overwhelmingly contradicted reports from some civilian witnesses that Gray was either tased or beaten by the officers. The doctor who performed Gray’s autopsy and testified for the state concluded that there was no medical evidence indicating that Gray’s injuries were caused by excessive force during the arrest, and no medical evidence showing that Gray had been tased. In fact, all medical professionals who testified at the state trials agreed that Gray was injured sometime after Stop 2 while he was being transported in the wagon. BPD investigators analyzed all of the subjects’ Tasers after Gray’s arrest and confirmed that none of the subjects had deployed their Tasers that day. One witness who claimed to have seen Gray tased later recanted that assertion at trial. Additionally, at least two civilian witnesses reported that they did not see any officer strike, punch, or kick Gray, and at least one such witness denied that officers placed Gray into the wagon forcefully. None of the video evidence established that Gray was struck, tased, or otherwise subjected to unreasonable force. Finally, all officers who were present for Gray’s arrest, and gave formal statements, denied ever seeing anyone use excessive force against Gray. To be sure, Officer Miller admitted to using a leg lace on Gray in order to temporarily immobilize Gray’s legs, but Miller’s assertion that he did so in response to Gray’s flailing is unrebutted by the evidence. Based on this assertion, his use of a leg lace cannot be proven unreasonable, and the medical evidence does not establish that the leg lace resulted in injury to Gray.
The Justice Department also considered whether the evidence established that Officer Goodson intentionally gave Freddie Gray a “rough ride” in the back of the wagon, thereby using excessive force in violation of the Due Process Clause. Pursuing this charge would require the government to prove that Officer Goodson gave Gray a ride that objectively harmed him, and that Goodson did so “maliciously and sadistically” in order to cause Gray harm. The evidence could not bear this burden. In spite of the fact that video evidence shows Goodson making a wide right turn and briefly crossing the double yellow line prior to arriving at Stop 3, neither that video, nor the other evidence, conclusively established that Goodson drove recklessly. An expert on retaliatory prisoner transport practices who testified at trial for the state acknowledged that he had seen no evidence that Goodson made abrupt starts, stops, or turns, and that he was not sure whether Goodson had given Gray a “rough ride.” Goodson provided no statement to investigators that would illuminate how he operated the wagon, and an arrestee who was placed in the wagon at Stop 5 described the drive to Stop 6 as a “smooth ride.” In addition, the medical evidence does not conclusively establish that Gray’s injuries were caused by reckless driving, or even by poor driving. There is no evidence that Officer Goodson harbored any animus toward Gray or desired to harm him. Goodson’s failure to seatbelt Gray, without more, does not prove intent to harm. The evidence cannot disprove exculpatory explanations for failing to seatbelt Gray, explanations having nothing to do with intent to harm.
In order to determine whether the officers’ failure to seatbelt Gray constituted deliberate indifference to a serious risk of harm to Gray in violation of the Fourteenth Amendment, federal investigators paid particular attention to the law enforcement witness statements, training records, and BPD policies. Under the law, it would not be enough to show that an officer merely had an awareness of some risk of serious harm or that an officer should have had such an awareness. The law would require the government to prove that the officers actually knew that transporting Gray without a seatbelt created a substantial risk of serious harm, and that they actually knew that their actions were inappropriate. The officers made no admissions that would allow us to prove that any of the officers were actually aware that transporting Gray without a seatbelt in back of a police wagon would create a substantial risk of serious harm. The Department also cannot prove that the officers received training regarding substantial risks or harms associated with the transportation of un-seat-belted detainees. The Department reviewed longstanding BPD polices for seat-belting that were in effect until just days before Gray’s arrest, and those polices afforded officers the discretion to refrain from seat-belting detainees if the officers believed there were security risks involved. Given the angry crowds at Stops 1 and 2, and in light of Gray’s combative behavior once inside the wagon, the Department cannot prove that the officers believed that their failure to seatbelt Gray was an inappropriate balancing of the safety risks involved. Accordingly, to the extent that the officers violated department policy in failing to seatbelt Gray, those failures suggest civil negligence rather than the high standard of deliberate indifference.
The Justice Department also considered whether the officers were deliberately indifferent to Gray’s serious need for medical care. The relevant medical evidence does not conclusively establish that Gray had already sustained his fatal neck injury by the time Officers Porter, Goodson, and White observed him at Stops 4 and 5. Medical experts who examined Gray’s death were sharply split during the state trials as to whether Gray suffered this injury sometime between Stops 2 and 4, or sometime between Stops 5 and 6. Experts who testified for the officers maintained that the neck injury Gray suffered would have caused near instantaneous (rather than progressive) paralysis, loss of breathing, and loss of speech. Given that testimony, and Porter’s unrebutted statement that Gray was speaking at Stops 4 and 5, the Department cannot prove beyond a reasonable doubt that Gray had already suffered his neck injury by the time officers saw him at those stops. Even if Gray had already been injured, the evidence does not prove that the officers were aware of the serious nature of that injury. At Stop 4, Gray was talking, able to maintain a seated position, and supported his own neck. At Stops 4 and 5, he was breathing and conscious. There is no evidence that he was bleeding or had any other visible injury. He was not drooling, had no liquid discharge around his mouth, and was not incontinent at that point. At Stop 6, Gray exhibited symptoms of medical distress that he did not exhibit earlier. There appears to have been a consensus among the medical experts who testified at the state trials that Gray’s injuries manifested themselves internally and would not have necessarily had visible signs. The Department is mindful of the fact that Gray asked for medical assistance and appeared lethargic at Stops 4 and 5, however, the evidence does not disprove Porter’s statement that he delayed Gray’s requests for a medic because he believed Gray was fatigued after banging himself against the wagon and might have been feigning injury. Regardless of whether Sergeant White or Officer Porter acted negligently by not calling a medic prior to Stop 6, it would be impossible to prove that either deliberately ignored Gray’s needs.
In light of the above analysis, the evidence gathered during this investigation is insufficient to prove beyond a reasonable doubt that the officers violated Gray’s Fourth Amendment rights against false arrest and unreasonable force, or his Fourteenth Amendment right to be free from excessive force and deliberate indifference.
In analyzing a potential charge under section 242, the Department also considered whether the evidence was sufficient to prove the statutory element of willfulness. To establish that the officers acted willfully, the government would be required both to disprove the officers’ account of their interaction with Gray and to affirmatively establish that the officers instead acted, or failed to act, with the specific intent to violate Gray’s rights. At a minimum, this would require proof that the officers knew that they were treating Gray in a wrongful manner, yet chose to do so anyway. For many of the same reasons described above, the evidence is insufficient to prove willfulness and cannot bear this heavy burden.
Conclusion
After an extensive review of this tragic event, conducted by career prosecutors and investigators, the Justice Department concluded that the evidence is insufficient to prove beyond a reasonable doubt that Officer Caesar Goodson, Officer William Porter, Officer Garrett Miller, Officer Edward Nero, Lieutenant Brian Rice, or Sergeant Alicia White willfully violated Gray’s civil rights. Accordingly, the investigation into this incident has been closed without prosecution.
In this case, the U.S. Attorney’s Office of the District of Maryland, the Civil Rights Division, and the FBI each devoted significant time and resources to investigating the circumstances surrounding Gray’s death and to completing a thorough analysis of the evidence gathered. The Justice Department remains committed to investigating allegations of excessive force by law enforcement officers and will continue to devote the resources required to ensure that all serious allegations of civil rights violations are thoroughly examined. The Department aggressively prosecutes criminal civil rights violations whenever there is sufficient evidence to do so.
Elkview man pleads guilty to federal methamphetamine crimeRead the Press Release
CHARLESTON, W.Va. – An Elkview man pleaded guilty today to a federal drug charge, announced United States Attorney Carol Casto. Randy George Vance, 59, entered his guilty plea to possession with intent to distribute 50 grams or more of methamphetamine.
On January 13, 2016, officers with the Metropolitan Drug Enforcement Network Team conducted a traffic stop of Vance as he was returning to West Virginia from Atlanta. During a search of Vance’s vehicle, officers recovered approximately 156 grams of methamphetamine. The methamphetamine was lab-tested and confirmed to be over 80% pure. Vance admitted that he got the drugs in Atlanta and that he intended to distribute the methamphetamine.
Vance faces at least 10 years and up to life in federal prison when he is sentenced on December 13, 2017.
The investigation was conducted by the Metropolitan Drug Enforcement Network Team. Assistant United States Attorney Gabriele Wohl is responsible for the prosecution. Chief United States District Judge Thomas E. Johnston is presiding over the case.
This case is 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.
- Follow us on Twitter: SDWVNews
Elk Grove Man Pleads Guilty to Producing Child PornographyRead the Press Release
SACRAMENTO, Calif. —Alexander Jordan Miller, 21, of Elk Grove, pleaded guilty today to producing child pornography, U.S. Attorney Phillip A. Talbert announced.
According to court documents, in 2015, Miller, under various pseudonyms, used social media and a smartphone messaging application to persuade minor victims to take and then provide to him nude photos of themselves engaged in sexually explicit conduct. In each instance, after Miller obtained one or more nude photos of the victim, Miller demanded that the victim provide additional, and increasingly graphic, nude videos and photos. Miller told each victim that if she did not provide more nude videos or photos, he would send the victim’s friends and family the nude photos that the victim provided previously, or he threatened to post the victim’s nude photos on the internet. As part of this extortion scheme, Miller used at least 12 minor victims to produce child pornography. One of the victims was 11 years old at the time of the offense.
This case is the product of an investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation. Assistant United States Attorney Brian A. Fogerty is prosecuting the case.
Miller is scheduled to be sentenced by Judge John A. Mendez on January 9, 2018. Miller faces a mandatory minimum sentence of 15 years in prison, and a maximum statutory sentence of 30 years in prison. The maximum fine that the court may impose is $250,000. The actual sentence, however, will be determined at the discretion of the court after consideration of any applicable statutory factors and the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, which take into account a number of variables.
This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by the United States Attorneys’ Offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute those who sexually exploit children, and to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.usdoj.gov/psc. Click on the “resources” tab for information about nternet safety education.
Dominican National Sentenced for Social Security FraudRead the Press Release
BOSTON – A Dominican national was sentenced today in federal court in Boston for using a stolen Social Security number in order to obtain a Massachusetts driver’s license.
Julio Cesar Baez-Mejia, 37, a Dominican national formerly residing in Lawrence, was sentenced by U.S. District Court Judge George A. O’Toole to eight months in prison and three years of supervised release to be served concurrent to an 18 month sentence he is currently serving in the Lawrence Correctional Alternative Center for assault with a deadly weapon, breaking and entering and malicious destruction of property. Baez-Mejia will face deportation upon completion of his sentence. In May 2017, Baez-Mejia pleaded guilty to one count of misuse of a Social Security number.
On Nov. 19, 2012, Baez-Mejia entered a Massachusetts branch of the Registry of Motor Vehicles and applied for a Massachusetts Class D driver’s license under the name of an American citizen from Puerto Rico. On the application, the defendant listed the name, date of birth, and Social Security number of the American citizen as his own. Baez-Mejia then signed the license application and was issued a driver’s license under the stolen identity.
Acting United States Attorney William D. Weinreb and Matthew J. Etre, Special Agent in Charge of Homeland Security Investigations in Boston, made the announcement today. Assistant U.S. Attorney Nicholas Soivilien of Weinreb’s Major Crimes Unit prosecuted the case.
Dominican National Sentenced for Illegal Reentry After DeportationRead the Press Release
BOSTON - A Dominican national was sentenced today in federal court in Boston for illegally reentering the United States after being deported.
Jimmy Jonathan Sanchez-Moreta, 40, was sentenced by U.S. District Court Judge Denise J. Casper to five years in prison and three years of supervised release to be served concurrent to a sentence of nine to 20 years he is currently serving in state prison. Sanchez-Moreta will face deportation proceedings upon completion of his sentence. In June 2017, Sanchez-Moreta pleaded guilty to one count of illegal reentry of a deported alien.
In November 2009, Sanchez-Moreta was convicted in Suffolk County Superior Court for distribution of cocaine. Upon completion of his sentence, Sanchez-Moreta was placed into immigration removal proceedings, and on April 16, 2013, he was deported to the Dominican Republic. In January 2015, Sanchez-Moreta was arrested and later convicted in Bristol County Superior Court of distribution of cocaine and heroin. Additionally, in 2015, Sanchez-Moreta was convicted in Superior Court in Rhode Island of distribution of cocaine.
Acting United States Attorney William D. Weinreb and Matthew J. Etre, Special Agent in Charge of Homeland Security Investigations in Boston, made the announcement today. Assistant U.S. Attorney Kenneth G. Shine of Weinreb’s Major Crimes Unit prosecuted the case.
Disbarred Attorney Pleads Guilty to Concealing $1.5 Million in Bankruptcy Assets and Evading $6 Million in TaxesRead the Press Release
Assistant U. S. Attorneys Michael J. Heyman (619) 546-9615 and Joseph J.M. Orabona (619) 546-7951
NEWS RELEASE SUMMARY – September 11, 2017
SAN DIEGO – J. Douglass Jennings, a practicing accountant and disbarred California attorney, pleaded guilty today to one count of Bankruptcy Fraud (Concealment of Assets) and one count of Tax Evasion.
Mr. Jennings, a Certified Public Accountant (CPA) and former attorney, once touted in a commercial that he managed “one of the nation’s leading estate and tax planning law firms.” He appeared on talk-shows and authored two books, including what he claimed in court filings was “highly regarded and one of the best and most complete estate planning treatises to date.” Mr. Jennings also practiced what he described in an advertisement as a “faith-based” approach to financial planning, with some referring to him as “Uncle Doug.”
In his plea agreement, Mr. Jennings admitted that, beginning in January 2010, he devised a scheme to defraud his unsecured creditors by concealing numerous assets, and then filed a voluntary bankruptcy petition in the United States Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of California, In re J. Douglass Jennings, Jr. and Peggy L. Jennings, Case No. 11-04720, in furtherance of that scheme. Mr. Jennings further admitted that, in his bankruptcy filings, he defrauded his unsecured creditors by intentionally concealing the following assets and income valued at nearly $1.5 million, including:
-
A stock interest in a real-estate venture valued at approximately $1 million;
-
A 53.2 foot luxury yacht known as the “Sea Eagle” valued at approximately $150,000; and
-
Antique silver items valued at approximately $165,139.
During the pendency of the bankruptcy case, Mr. Jennings additionally obtained salary payments and other benefits prohibited by the Bankruptcy Court in the amount of $138,694.
In total, Mr. Jennings caused unsecured creditors to lose $1,453,833 as a result of his bankruptcy fraud.
Mr. Jennings also pleaded guilty to evasion of tax payments. From August 2011 through April 2013, Mr. Jennings had a tax due and owing to the Internal Revenue Service (“IRS”) for calendar years 2005 through 2009 totaling approximately $2,852,545. He originally agreed to pay this amount to the IRS. Mr. Jennings also consented to pay a civil fraud penalty in the amount of $2,031,837, and interest in the amount of $1,042,711. Notwithstanding this agreement, however, Mr. Jennings attempted to evade and defeat the payment of taxes, penalties, and interest through his concealment of assets in his bankruptcy case. As a result, Mr. Jennings pled guilty to evasion of tax payments and admitted that a criminal judgment should be entered against him in the amount of $5,927,093.
On August 16, 2017, Mr. Jennings’ wife, Peggy Jennings, pled guilty to bank fraud in a related action, United States v. Peggy L. Jennings, Case No. 17CR2306-BEN. Mrs. Jennings admitted as part of her scheme to defraud the bank that she forged her mother’s signature on loan documents, fraudulently transferred funds into her mother’s bank accounts to make it appear that her mother had substantial income, submitted false documents to the bank, and intended to cause the bank losses exceeding more than $226,000. Pursuant to her plea agreement, Mrs. Jennings has agreed to pay restitution to the bank in the amount of $145,481.71 and to pay a fine in the amount of $50,000. Mrs. Jennings is scheduled to be sentenced before the Honorable Roger T. Benitez on November 13, 2017.
Following Mr. Jennings’ guilty plea to the bankruptcy and tax fraud charges, the Court set a sentencing hearing before U.S. District Judge Roger T. Benitez on December 11, 2017.
“Concealing assets compromises the very core of our bankruptcy system, which is designed to protect both debtors and creditors,” stated Acting U.S. Attorney Alana W. Robinson. “A bankruptcy petitioner who fails to make a full good faith disclosure risks a variety of serious consequences, including criminal prosecution.”
“Bankruptcy fraud threatens the integrity of the bankruptcy system, as well as public confidence in that system,” stated Tiffany L. Carroll, Acting U.S. Trustee for the Southern District of California, Hawaii, Guam, and the Northern Mariana Islands (Region 15). “I am grateful to Acting U.S. Attorney Robinson, our law enforcement partners, and the chapter 7 bankruptcy trustee for their commitment to combating bankruptcy-related crimes.” The U.S. Trustee Program is the component of the Justice Department that protects the integrity of the bankruptcy system by overseeing case administration and litigating to enforce the bankruptcy laws. Region 15 is headquartered in San Diego with an additional office in Honolulu.
“Bankruptcy fraud harms creditors and erodes confidence in the federal bankruptcy system,” commented FBI Special Agent in Charge Eric S. Birnbaum. “Truth must be at the core of any bankruptcy and individuals who hide their assets during bankruptcy cases are defrauding their creditors. The FBI will reveal the truth and in this case, exposed the concealment of more than $1.4 million in assets and income.”
“Mr. Jennings’ attempt to discharge nearly $6 million of tax debt through a fraudulent bankruptcy filing was a theft from the American public. It is a felony offense that carries severe consequences,” stated IRS Criminal Investigation’s Special Agent in Charge R. Damon Rowe. “IRS Criminal Investigation will continue to protect the integrity of the tax system by ensuring everyone pays their fair share.”
The criminal investigation involving Mr. and Mrs. Jennings arose out of a referral from the U.S. Trustee based upon findings from the Bankruptcy Court that Mr. and Mrs. Jennings engaged in fraud during their bankruptcy proceedings.
DEFENDANT Case Number 17CR2722-BEN
Douglass Jennings, Jr. Age: 72 Rancho Santa Fe, CA
SUMMARY OF CHARGES FOR J. DOUGLASS JENNINGS:
Bankruptcy Fraud – Title 18, U.S.C., Section 152(1)
Maximum penalty: 5 years’ imprisonment and $250,000 fine
Evasion of Tax Payment – Title, 26 U.S.C., Section 7201
Maximum penalty: 5 years’ imprisonment and $250,000 fine
DEFENDANT Case Number 17CR2306-BEN
Peggy L. Jennings Age: 72 Rancho Santa Fe, CA
SUMMARY OF CHARGES FOR PEGGY L. JENNINGS:
Bank Fraud – Title 18, U.S.C., Section 1344
Maximum penalty: 30 years’ imprisonment and $250,000 fine
AGENCIES
Federal Bureau of Investigation
Internal Revenue Service
-
Dallas County Community Action Committee, Inc. Vice President Admits to Scheming Homeowners Seeking Mortgage Loan and Foreclosure Prevention AssistanceRead the Press Release
DALLAS — Francisco Javier Gonzalez, a/k/a “Javier Gonzalez,” 45, of Duncanville, Texas, appeared today before U.S. District Sam A. Lindsay and pleaded guilty to one count of mail fraud, announced U.S. Attorney John Parker of the Northern District of Texas.
Gonzalez faces a maximum statutory penalty of 20 years and a $250,000 fine. Restitution could also be ordered. He has been in custody since the time of his arrest in October 2016.
According to documents filed in the case, the DCCAC was a non-profit entity, accredited by HUD between October 1990 and mid- February 2016, to provide housing counseling. It was created in 1965 by the Dallas Commissioners Court to support the efforts of the Johnson administration to combat poverty. Gonzalez served as DCCAC’s Vice President and one of the directors. Gonzalez also leased space in the DCCAC offices for another entity, known as Residential Counseling FJ LLC.
According to the charging documents filed in the case, between 2009 through 2016 Gonzalez through his work at DCCAC, defrauded homeowners under the guise that he was assisting them with mortgage assistance. Gonzalez specifically sought out victims who were facing financial difficulty and who had contacted the DCCAC seeking mortgage loan and foreclosure prevention assistance. He also identified victims facing such financial distress by subscribing to the Foreclosure Listing Service, a/k/a Roddy List, which offers listings of foreclosure and pre-foreclosure homes, by county, through a review of public records. Once identified, Gonzalez would meet with these victims in the DCCAC offices and in the victims’ homes. He would explain a plan to reduce the victim’s mortgage payment and to prevent foreclosure; the plan often included a loan modification application. These applications often contained information that had been falsified by Gonzalez and were otherwise incomplete.
According to plea documents, on February 28, 2013, Gonzalez prepared and submitted a false and fraudulent Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act (RESPA) application to a bank in an effort to delay foreclosure and extract additional funds from victims. As a result of Gonzalez’s scheme to defraud homeowners, the Department of Housing and Urban Development and certain banks suffered a loss of $611,740.55.
HUD Office of Inspector General, FHFA Office of Inspector General, and the USPIS investigated the case. Assistant U.S. Attorney P.J. Meitl is in charge of the prosecution.
# # #
Cleveland Heights man sentenced to 32 years in prison for carjackings in ClevelandRead the Press Release
A Cleveland Heights man was sentenced to 32 years in prison for six carjackings in the city’s Tremont neighborhood, said U.S. Attorney Justin E. Herdman, FBI Special Agent in Charge Stephen D. Anthony and Cleveland Police Chief Calvin Williams.
Tervon’tae Taylor participated in six carjackings in July and August 2015, often brandishing a firearm during the crime.
Four defendants, all from Cleveland, have already been sentenced for their roles in the case.
Kenneth Jackson, Jr. was sentenced to more than 64 years in prison. Antowine Palmer was sentenced to more than 14 years in prison. He is also serving 15 years in state prison for convictions for manslaughter and felonious assault.
D’wan Dillard, Jr. was sentenced to more than 16 years in prison. Calvin Rembert was sentenced to six years in prison.
Some of defendants were members of the Heartless Felons street gang and were feuding with a different set of Heartless Felons. The defendants planned to do drive-by shootings aimed at members of the rival group, so they went to Tremont to steal a car so they would be unrecognizable during the drive-by shootings.
“These defendants have collectively been sentenced to more than 130 years in prison,” Herdman said. “With our federal, state and local partners, we are committed to pursuing those who target our citizens with violence and fear, whether they’re online, overseas or on the streets of Cleveland.”
“These men terrorized victims and the city with their dangerous, gun-wielding car thefts,” Anthony said. “The Violent Crime Task Force and our local partners are committed to aggressively investigate predators who choose to engage in heinous acts of violence against our citizens.”
“The Cleveland Division of Police will continue to work to keep our neighborhoods safe for all who live, work and play in our city,” Williams said. “These sentences send a strong message to gang members that their violence will not be tolerated.”
This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Kelly Galvin and Robert J. Patton following an investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and Cleveland Division of Police.
Clarksburg woman sentenced for mail fraudRead the Press Release
CLARKSBURG, WEST VIRGINIA – A Clarksburg, West Virginia woman was sentenced today to 21 months incarceration for mail fraud, Acting United States Attorney Betsy Steinfeld Jividen announced.
Chasity Costilow, age 38, pled guilty to one count of “Mail Fraud” in May 2017. Costilow admitted to taking part in a staged vehicular accident in September 2012 in Marion County. She also admitted to faking injuries from said accident and filing a false insurance claim, from which she received a settlement of approximately $60,000.
Costilow was also ordered to pay $65, 096.84 in restitution.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Andrew R. Cogar prosecuted the case on behalf of the government. The West Virginia Insurance Commission Office of Inspector General and the United States Postal Inspection Service investigated.
Senior U.S. District Judge Irene M. Keeley presided.
California Resident Sentenced to Prison for Stolen Identity Refund FraudRead the Press Release
A California resident was sentenced to 25 months in prison for filing and conspiring to file fraudulent claims for income tax refunds with the Internal Revenue Service (IRS), announced Acting Deputy Assistant Attorney General Stuart M. Goldberg of the Justice Department’s Tax Division and U.S. Attorney Brian J. Stretch for the Northern District of California.
According to documents filed with the court, Trong Nguyen aka John Nguyen, 57, and his codefendant Diep Vo aka Nancy Vo, 74, used the identities of homeless and unemployed individuals in the San Jose, California area to file fraudulent claims for refunds with the Internal Revenue Service (IRS). Vo went to homeless shelters and homeless encampments and falsely represented to individuals that she could get them money from a government program designed to assist people who had not worked in previous years. Vo convinced people to write down their names and social security numbers and to sign blank income tax returns. Vo and Nguyen then falsified the signed returns including bogus income and income tax amounts withheld and sought more than $1.5 million in refunds from the IRS. Vo and Nguyen directed the IRS to send the refund checks to private mailboxes they controlled.
In addition to the term of prison imposed, U.S. District Court Judge Beth Freeman also ordered Nguyen to serve three years of supervised release and to pay restitution to the IRS in the amount of $700,816. Nguyen previously pleaded guilty in May. Vo also pleaded guilty and she is scheduled to be sentenced on Nov. 14.
Acting Deputy Assistant Attorney General Goldberg and U.S. Attorney Stretch thanked special agents of IRS Criminal Investigation and the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, who conducted the investigation. The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Thomas Newman and Trial Attorney Gregory Bernstein of the Tax Division.
Additional information about the Tax Division’s enforcement efforts can be found on the division’s website.
Brawley Man Pleads Guilty to Stealing More Than $250,000 from Local FarmRead the Press Release
Assistant U.S. Attorney Christine M. Ro (619)546-7937
NEWS RELEASE SUMMARY – September 11, 2017
Former bookkeeper Claude Theodore Riley pleaded guilty today to wire fraud and making a false tax return in a five-year scheme stealing from his employer, a local farm. Riley stole approximately $272,984.00 from his employer, filed fraudulent tax returns, and failed to file required employment tax returns resulting in a $1.5-million-dollar tax lien against the farm.
Riley served as the farm’s bookkeeper from 2010 to 2015, overseeing the farm’s entire annual budget. As the bookkeeper, Riley had access to the farm’s bank accounts, paychecks, and bookkeeping records. Riley forged certain IRS documents to hide his embezzlement from the employer. For his scheme, Riley made 148 transactions out of the employer’s bank account, fictitiously entered various vendors to be paid into the bookkeeping records, and generated checks made payable to himself.
“Defendant egregiously abused a sensitive position of trust when he stole more than $272,000 from an Imperial Valley farm and filed fraudulent tax returns,” stated Acting U.S. Attorney Alana W. Robinson. “I commend our federal and local law enforcement partners’ diligent efforts to obtain justice for this local farm, which is one of many that serve as the economic backbone of Imperial Valley.”
“Spanning more than five years, Mr. Riley stole funds by issuing unauthorized checks from his employer’s bank account and depositing them to his personal bank account,” stated R. Damon Rowe, Special Agent in Charge of IRS Criminal Investigation. “Our office will vigorously investigate individuals who line their pockets with fraudulently obtained funds and then file fraudulent tax returns.”
“The FBI is committed to uncovering fraud schemes that affect our community,” said FBI Special Agent in Charge Eric S. Birnbaum. “The financial stability of Imperial Valley’s agricultural businesses are essential to the local economy. Crimes that undercut the hard work of our Valley’s farming industry will not be tolerated.”
“This case is a great example of how local and federal law enforcement agencies can work together to protect and serve the community,” said Brawley Police Department Interim Chief of Police Kelly L. Brown. “The Brawley Police Department thanks the Federal Bureau of Investigations for their assistance.”
The farming industry is an important source of Imperial Valley’s economy and producer of agriculture for the nation. Imperial Valley is one of California’s top producers of agriculture, which generates income for local families in the Southern District of California.
DEFENDANT Criminal Case No. 17CR2721-BAS
Claude Theodore Riley Age: 56 Brawley, California
SUMMARY OF CHARGES
Wire Fraud – Title 18, U.S.C., Section 1343
Maximum penalty: 20 years’ imprisonment and $250,000 fine
Filing a False Tax Return – Title 26, U.S.C., Section 7206(1)
Maximum penalty: 3 years’ imprisonment and $250,000 fine
INVESTIGATING AGENCIES
Federal Bureau of Investigation, Imperial County Resident Agency
Internal Revenue Service, Criminal Investigation
Brawley Police Department
Bedford Man Pleads Guilty in Controlled Substances Distribution SchemeRead the Press Release
JOHNSTOWN, Pa. – A resident of Bedford, Pa. pleaded guilty in federal court in Johnstown to a charge of conspiracy to distribute possess with intent to distribute and distribution of quantities of Tramadol, Zolpidem, Clonazepam, Lorazepam, and Carisoprodol, all of which are Schedule IV controlled substances, Acting United States Attorney Soo C. Song announced today.
The indictment named Damaris Rispoli, age 56, pleaded guilty to one count before United States District Judge Kim R. Gibson.
In connection with the guilty plea, from in and around Aug. 2014, to on or about May 20, 2015, Rispoli conspired with another to distribute and possess with intent to distribute quantities of Tramadol, Zolpidem, Clonazepam, Lorazepam, and Carisoprodol, and on or about May 20, 2015, Rispoli possessed with intent to distribute Carisoprodol, and distributed quantities of Tramadol, Zolpidem, Clonazepam, and Lorazepam.
Judge Gibson scheduled sentencing for February 6, 2018, at 10 a.m. The law provides for a maximum total sentence of five years in prison, a fine of $250,000, or both. Under the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, the actual sentence imposed would be based upon the seriousness of the offenses and the prior criminal history, if any, of the defendant.
Assistant United States Attorney John J. Valkovci, Jr., is prosecuting this case on behalf of the government.
The Department of Homeland Security conducted the investigation that led to the prosecution of Rispoli.
Baton Rouge Man Convicted at Trial of Illegally Possessing a FirearmRead the Press Release
BATON ROUGE, LA – Acting United States Attorney Corey R. Amundson announced today that a federal jury has convicted TIMOTHY COURTNEY, age 44, of Baton Rouge, Louisiana, of possession of a firearm by a convicted felon, after a two-day jury trial before U.S. District Judge John W. deGravelles.
At trial, the evidence demonstrated that on August 9, 2016, the Baton Rouge Police Department executed a search warrant at a residence on Odell Street in Baton Rouge, where COURTNEY was believed to be living. While executing the warrant, officers encountered the defendant, a convicted felon, and from inside the residence recovered a loaded pistol, which was located within inches of the defendant’s wallet. The evidence at trial also established that the defendant later made several admissions regarding the firearm, including telling a female acquaintance that once he became aware that officers were executing a search warrant at the residence, he did not have enough time to hide the gun before officers found it.
COURTNEY’S sentencing date has not been scheduled. COURTNEY is in federal custody and was remanded back into federal custody at the conclusion of the trial.
Acting U.S. Attorney Corey Amundson stated, “Keeping guns out of the hands of convicted felons is a high priority of this Office and a critical piece of our effort to make our streets safe. I am grateful to our prosecutors and law enforcement partners at ATF, BRPD, and USMS for working to bring this defendant to justice.”
This matter is being handled by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Louisiana, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms & Explosives, and the Baton Rouge Police Department, with valuable assistance from the United States Marshal’s Service. It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Ryan Rezaei and Michael Jefferson.
Allegany County Man Sentenced to 23 Years in Prison for Production of Child PornographyRead the Press Release
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Contact ELIZABETH MORSE
www.justice.gov/usao/md at (410) 209-4885
Baltimore, Maryland – On September 11, 2017, U.S. District Judge Richard D. Bennett sentenced Jason Wayne Hines, age 37, of Cumberland, Maryland, to 23 years in prison, followed by a lifetime of supervised release, for the production of child pornography. Judge Bennett ordered Hines to pay restitution of $10,400, as well as special assessments totaling $5,100.
The sentence was announced by Acting United States Attorney for the District of Maryland Stephen M. Schenning; Special Agent in Charge Andre R. Watson of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) in Baltimore; Colonel William M. Pallozzi, Superintendent of the Maryland State Police; and Allegany County State’s Attorney Michael O. Twigg.
According to his plea agreement, on January 29 and February 1, 2016, during an undercover investigation, Maryland State Police officers downloaded two videos of minors engaged in sexually explicit conduct from Hines’ computer, which he was sharing over the internet. On May 3, 2016, a search warrant was executed at Hines’ residence. An on-scene forensic analysis of Hines’ laptop computer recovered images and videos depicting minors engaged in sexually explicit conduct. Hines was arrested on state criminal charges for distribution and possession of child pornography.
Forensic examination of Hines’ computers, storage media, and cell phone seized during the search revealed over 1,000 images and over 50 videos of child pornography. Hines’ internet search history also showed an interest in sexual activity with minors. Investigators recovered 23 images created between October 3, 2015 and February 28, 2016, and five videos from Hines’ smartphone. The five videos did not have create dates, but depicted Hines sexually abusing a prepubescent female as she was sleeping. The images recovered from the phone also document Hines’ sexual abuse of the child.
As part of his plea agreement, Hines must register as a sex offender in the place where he resides, where he is an employee, and where he is a student, under the Sex Offender Registration and Notification Act (SORNA).
This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by the United States Attorneys' Offices and the Criminal Division's Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who sexually exploit children, and to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.justice.gov/psc. For more information about internet safety education, please visit www.justice.gov/psc and click on the "resources" tab on the left of the page.
Acting United States Attorney Stephen M. Schenning commended HSI-Baltimore, Maryland State Police, and Allegany County State’s Attorney’s Office for their work in the investigation. Mr. Schenning thanked Assistant U.S. Attorneys Judson T. Mihok and Sandra Wilkinson, who prosecuted the federal case.
11 September 2017
Worcester Man Sentenced for Child EnticementRead the Press Release
BOSTON – A Worcester man was sentenced today in federal court in Worcester for attempting to solicit a minor, who was actually an undercover federal agent, to engage in illicit sexual conduct.
Timothy Biddy, 38, was sentenced by U.S. District Court Judge Timothy S. Hillman to six years in prison and five years of supervised release. In May 2017, Biddy pleaded guilty to one count of attempted interstate travel to engage in illicit sexual conduct and attempted transfer of obscene images to a minor.
From October 2016 to November 2016, an undercover federal agent posing as a 13-year-old girl began chatting with Biddy through an online text messaging service. During the communications, Biddy proposed to meet the minor to engage in illicit sexual conduct in Sioux Falls, S.D., and graphically described sexual acts he wished to perform with her. He also sent her a video of himself masturbating. Biddy was arrested in November 2016.
Acting United States Attorney William D. Weinreb and Mathew J. Etre, Special Agent in Charge of Homeland Security Investigations in Boston, made the announcement today. Assistant U.S. Attorney Mark J. Grady of Weinreb’s Worcester Branch Office prosecuted the case.
The case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood. In 2006, the Department of Justice created Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative designed to protect children from exploitation and abuse. Led by U.S. Attorneys’ Offices and DOJ’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who exploit children, as well as identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.projectsafechildhood.gov/.
Wichita Man Sentenced for Using Stolen Identities to Take Out Car LoansRead the Press Release
WICHITA, KAN. - A Wichita man was sentenced Monday to 28 months in federal prison for using stolen identities to obtain car loans, U.S. Attorney Tom Beall said. The sentence is in addition to 20 months he has already served.
Reu Charles Chamberlain, 31, Wichita, Kan., pleaded guilty to two counts of wire fraud. In his plea, he admitted he used a stolen identity at Eddy’s Chrysler Jeep Dodge in Wichita to qualify for a $48,902 loan to buy a 2016 Dodge Challenger. At Midway Motors in Wichita, he used a stolen identity to qualify for a $44,746 loan to buy a 2015 Dodge Challenger.
Beall commended the U.S. Postal Inspection Service and Assistant U.S. Attorney Alan Metzger for their work on the case.
Watchung Hills High School District Agrees to Settle Claim It Violated Americans with Disabilities ActRead the Press Release
School Officials Failed to Evacuate Students with Disabilities During School-Wide Evacuation
NEWARK, N.J. – The Watchung Hills Regional High School District Board of Education has agreed to settle allegations that it violated the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) when it failed to evacuate at least one student with a mobility disability during a school-wide evacuation and failed to have any policies addressing emergency evacuations of students with disabilities, Acting U.S. Attorney William E. Fitzpatrick announced today.
According to the agreement, on Oct. 7, 2014, the district failed to evacuate at least one student with a mobility disability during an unplanned emergency evacuation. Instead, the student was left on the second floor while students without disabilities were evacuated. The district also did not have a policy or practice that allowed students with mobility impairments to participate fully and equally during emergency evacuation drills.
The ADA prohibits a public entity from, among other things, excluding or denying individuals with disabilities from benefits the public services, programs, or activities. To comply with the ADA, the district must ensure that students with disabilities are afforded “meaningful access” to its services, benefits and activities, including emergency preparedness and emergency evacuations.
“Schools should provide a safe and inclusive environment for all students,” Acting U.S. Attorney Fitzpatrick said. “The ADA mandate is especially pronounced when it comes to programs involving student safety. Through this agreement, the district must enforce an emergency evacuation policy that ensures equal participation and the safety of students with mobility disabilities.”
The district has agreed to ensure that students with disabilities are able to participate meaningfully in emergency evacuations and evacuations drills. It has also agreed to provide ADA training to all of its employees who interact with students with disabilities. The district has adopted policies to ensure that students with disabilities will not be excluded from participation in or be denied the benefits of the district’s safety protocols and practices, including emergency evacuations and drills. The district has agreed to adopt and implement evacuation plans for students with disabilities who have mobility impairments so that all students have the opportunity to participate in evacuations – whether actual evacuations or drills.
The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorney Michael E. Campion, Chief of the Civil Rights Unit, of the U.S. Attorney’s Office Civil Division in Newark.
Individuals who believe they may have been victims of discrimination may file a complaint with the U.S Attorney’s Office at http://www.justice.gov/usao-nj/civil-rights-enforcement/complaint or call the U.S. Attorney’s Office’s Civil Rights Complaint Hotline at (855) 281-3339. Additional information about the ADA can be found at www.ada.gov, or by calling the Department of Justice’s toll-free information line at (800) 514-0301 and (800) 514-0383 (TDD).