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18 July 2017
9-Count Indictment in Firearms and Heroin Distribution Case Returned by Federal Grand Jury Today in Columbia, SCRead the Press Release
United States Attorney Beth Drake stated today a Federal Grand Jury in Columbia, South Carolina, returned the following multiple-count Indictment:
Abdullah Jabbar Aquil, a/k/a “Wap,” was charged in a 9-count indictment with possession with intent to distribution and distribution of heroin (7 counts), using/possessing a firearm during a drug trafficking crime, and being a felon in possession of a firearm and ammunition, all in violation of Title 21, United States Code, Section 841(a)(1) and Title 18, United States Code, Sections 922(g)(1) and 924(c).
The case was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives and the Richland County Sheriff’s Department and is assigned to Assistant United States Attorney Stacey D. Haynes of the Columbia office for prosecution.
The United States Attorney stated that all charges in Indictments are merely accusations and that all defendants are presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty.
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15-time Felon Sentenced for Dealing Heroin and MethRead the Press Release
NORFOLK, Va. – A Portsmouth man was sentenced today to nearly 15 years in prison for conspiring to distribute and possess with intent to distribute heroin and methamphetamine.
According to the statement of facts filed with the plea agreement, Christopher Robin Dennis, 38, led police on a high speed chase while attempting to elude arrest. Dennis repeatedly sold heroin and methamphetamine to a cooperating witness in Portsmouth. Dennis, a 15-time convicted felon with a history of eluding police and distributing drugs, was sentenced as a career offender.
Dana J. Boente, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia; and Karl C. Colder, Special Agent in Charge for the Drug Enforcement Administration’s (DEA) Washington Field Division, made the announcement after Senior U.S. District Judge Robert G. Doumar imposed sentence. Assistant U.S. Attorney Kevin M. Comstock 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. 2:17-cr-55.
"Real Time:" Georgia Man Pleads Guilty in Federal Court to Felon in Possession of a Firearm and AmmunitionRead the Press Release
Greenville, South Carolina---- United States Attorney Beth Drake stated today that Fareed Abdul Jabar, age 33, of Georgia, pled guilty Monday in federal court in Greenville, for being a felon in possession of a firearm and ammunition, a violation of 18 U.S.C. 922(g). United States District Court Judge J. Michelle Childs of Greenville accepted the plea and will impose sentence after a presentence report is prepared by U.S. Probation. Jabar faces up to ten years in federal prison.
Evidence presented by the government during the plea established that on March 29, 2017, members of the Greenville County Sheriff’s Office stopped Jabar on I-85 for speeding. During the traffic stop, a deputy smelled the odor of marijuana emitting from the vehicle and conducted a search of the vehicle. During the search, a loaded Glock .40 caliber pistol was located in the center console of the vehicle. In the rear hatch, GCSO recovered a bag containing a loaded .40 caliber pistol magazine.
Jabar was arrested federally as a part of “Operation Real-Time.” The goal of this program is to identify individuals for federal prosecution with significant criminal histories who continue to actively possess firearms in the Upstate community.
In addition to the Greenville County Sheriff’s Office and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms, Real Time’s core partners include the Greenville Police Department, the Anderson Police Department, the South Carolina Department of Probation, Parole, and Pardon Services, the South Carolina Highway Patrol, United States Probation, the Department of Homeland Security, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Drug Enforcement Administration, the 13th Circuit Solicitor’s Office and the United States Attorney’s Office.
Since August of 2015, the initiative has resulted in the expedited federal prosecution of 118 defendants and seizure of approximately 162 firearms as well as assorted ammunition from prohibited persons.
U.S. Attorney Beth Drake commended the partnership between the state and federal agencies that led to the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms and the U.S. Attorney’s Office adopting the case, “We work best when we work together. This ‘real time’ identification of high risk offenders is smart policing, and we welcome the opportunity to work alongside our state chiefs and sheriffs in taking violent repeat offenders out of our communities.”
The Greenville County Sheriff’s Office along with agents from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) investigated the case. The case is assigned to Assistant United States Attorney Max Cauthen.
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"Real Time": Greenville Man Enters Guilty Plea in Federal Court to Felon in Possession of a FirearmRead the Press Release
Greenville, South Carolina---- United States Attorney Beth Drake stated today that Dustin Gregory Martin, age 46, of Greenville, South Carolina, pled guilty Monday in federal court in Greenville, for being a felon in possession of a firearm and ammunition, a violation of 18 U.S.C. 922(g). United States District Court Judge J. Michelle Childs of Greenville accepted the plea and will impose sentence after she has reviewed the presentence report prepared by the U.S. Probation Office. Martin faces up to ten years in federal prison.
Evidence presented by the government during the plea established that on April 5, 2017, members of the Greenville County Sheriff’s Office (GCSO) arrested Martin on an outstanding warrant at a motel on Augusta Road in Greenville. A search pursuant to Martin’s arrest resulted in the seizure of a Glock 9mm pistol from under the pillow on the bed in the motel room.
Martin was arrested federally as part of “Operation Real-Time.” The goal of this program is to identify individuals for federal prosecution with significant criminal histories who continue to actively possess firearms in the Upstate community.
In addition to GCSO and ATF, Real Time’s core partners include the Greenville Police Department, the Anderson Police Department, the South Carolina Department of Probation, Parole, and Pardon Services, the South Carolina Highway Patrol, United States Probation; the Department of Homeland Security, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Drug Enforcement Administration, the 13th Circuit Solicitor’s Office, and the United States Attorney’s Office.
Since August of 2015, the initiative has resulted in the expedited federal prosecution of 118 defendants and seizure of 162 firearms as well as assorted ammunition from prohibited persons.
U.S. Attorney Beth Drake commended the partnership between the state and federal agencies that led to the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms and the U.S. Attorney’s Office adopting the case, “We work best when we work together. This ‘real time’ identification of high risk offenders is smart policing, and we welcome the opportunity to work alongside our state chiefs and sheriffs in taking violent repeat offenders out of our communities.”
The Greenville County Sheriff’s Office along with the ATF investigated the case. The case is assigned to Assistant United States Attorney Max Cauthen.
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17 July 2017
Wilmington Man Pleads Guilty to Gun, Heroin ChargesRead the Press Release
WILMINGTON, Del. – David C. Weiss, Acting United States Attorney for the District of Delaware, announced that Timothy Czeiner, age 30, of Wilmington, Delaware, pled guilty in federal court on July 10, 2017 to a four-Count Indictment charging him with gun and heroin offenses. Specifically, he pled guilty to possession of 100 grams or more of heroin with intent to distribute, with two counts of possession of a firearm by a person prohibited, and with possession of a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime. He faces a five year mandatory minimum and a maximum of forty years of incarceration on the heroin charge, a maximum of ten years of incarceration on the gun possession charges, and a five year mandatory minimum and a maximum of life imprisonment on the gun in furtherance of drug trafficking charge, which must be imposed consecutively on top of his sentence on any other charges.
According to statements made in open court, on Thursday, January 28, 2016, the defendant was seated in the driver’s seat of a car on 25th Street in Wilmington when he was approached by Wilmington Police Department officers because he had outstanding warrants. Officers saw heroin baggies stamped “Empire” and an “Empire” stamp on the floor of the passenger side of the car. When the car was searched, officers found two boxes of empty heroin baggies and a Mercedes car key.
Officers located the Mercedes to which the key belonged in the driveway of the defendant’s residence. In the trunk of the Mercedes was approximately 350 grams of bulk heroin, thousands of empty blue glassine heroin baggies, a 9 mm. handgun, a magazine loaded with eight 9 mm rounds of ammunition, and other drug paraphernalia.
When officers later searched the defendant’s cell phone, they found a video taken on January 15, 2016, which depicted the defendant handling four guns: 1) a DPMS, AR-10, .308 Caliber Rifle, 2) a MKA 1919 12-gauge semi-automatic shotgun, 3) a FN PS90, 5.7 x 28; and 4) a Century Arms AK47, 7.62 x 39. Because the defendant was a felon, he was not permitted to possess guns.
The defendant was on bail for the above offenses when he was arrested again on September 8, 2016 in possession of marijuana and heroin. Officers then searched defendant’s residence, where they found over 6,000 baggies of heroin. The preliminary weight, including packaging, was about 92 grams. The defendant admitted the heroin was his, that he had been dealing heroin since April 2016, and that his source of supply was in Philadelphia.
Acting United States Attorney David C. Weiss said, ““The lethal combination of guns and drugs continues to cause far too many deaths in the city of Wilmington. This case is an example of law enforcement’s absolute commitment to protect this community and hold offenders accountable.”
The FBI’s Violent Crime Safe Streets Task Force is part of the New Castle County HIDTA, a collaborative effort established in January 2015 among federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies. This case would not have been possible without the coordination and cooperation between the FBI, the Wilmington Police Department, and the Delaware Attorney General’s Office.
The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Jennifer K. Welsh.
Washington Man Sentenced to Prison for Immigration Scheme Targeting Vietnamese CommunityRead the Press Release
Deirdre M. Daly, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, announced that HAI VAN NGUYEN, 42, of Lynnwood, Wash., was sentenced today by U.S. District Judge Michael P. Shea in Hartford to 38 months of imprisonment, followed by three years of supervised release, for operating a fraud scheme targeting members of the Vietnamese community in Connecticut and other states.
According to court documents and statements made in court, NGUYEN advertised through Facebook a purported avenue for legal sponsorship for individuals to come to the United States from Vietnam. When contacted, NGUYEN guaranteed clients that he could obtain legal entry into the U.S. for their family members through his company, New Saigon Entertainment. NGUYEN guaranteed a green card upon arrival in the U.S. and U.S. citizenship within five years. Through fraudulent representations, NGUYEN convinced two Connecticut residents to assist him in recruiting clients for his purported company. The Connecticut residents collected deposits toward NGUYEN’s $35,000 fee pursuant to more than 50 contracts from clients in Connecticut, South Carolina, Maine and Arizona.
Additional victims of NGUYEN’s fraudulent scheme were identified in Ohio and Texas.
In total, NGUYEN defrauded members of the Vietnamese community seeking legal entry for family members into the U.S. of approximately $550,000.
Judge Shea ordered NGUYEN to pay restitution in the amount of $492,025.
NGUYEN has been detained since his arrest on May 5, 2016. On April 20, 2017, he pleaded guilty to one count of wire fraud.
NGUYEN also has been charged with similar conduct in the State of Ohio, where there is an arrest warrant pending.
This matter was investigated by Homeland Security Investigations and was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Jacabed Rodriguez-Coss.
Unarmed Bank Robber Sentenced to 22 Months in Federal PrisonRead the Press Release
EUGENE, Ore. – On Monday, July 17, 2017, Scott Lee Goodright, 63, of Springfield, Ore., was sentenced by United States District Court Judge Michael J. McShane to 22 months in prison for committing two unarmed bank robberies. Upon his release from prison, Goodright will be on supervised release for three years.
According to court documents, during a one-week period beginning September 1, 2015, Goodright committed two bank robberies. The first at a bank in downtown Eugene and the second, a week later, at a bank in Springfield. Surveillance photographs from the second robbery were distributed to the community. An Oregon State Police trooper identified Goodright and arrested him in a motel parking lot. Goodright confessed to both robberies. Police later recovered the disguise he wore during the robberies and most of the stolen cash.
On January 25, 2017, Goodright pleaded guilty to committing both bank robberies.
The case was prosecuted by Frank R. Papagni, Jr., Assistant United States Attorney for the District of Oregon. It was investigated by the FBI and Oregon State Police.
Two Plead Guilty to Conspiracy to Distribute Controlled SubstancesRead the Press Release
GREENSBORO, N.C. – Two defendants pleaded guilty on July 14, 2017, to conspiracy to distribute controlled substances in Orange County, North Carolina, announced Sandra J. Hairston, Acting United States Attorney for the Middle District of North Carolina.
AGUSTIN GUDINO AGUILAR pleaded guilty to conspiracy to distribute cocaine hydrochloride and fentanyl, in violation of Title 21, United States Code, Section 841(a)(1). LUIS EDER ORTEGA LOPEZ pleaded guilty to conspiracy to distribute cocaine hydrochloride, also in violation of Title 21, United States Code, Section 841(a)(1).
During the investigation, the defendants agreed to sell four kilograms of cocaine hydrochloride and two kilograms of heroin to a confidential informant operating under the supervision of law enforcement officers. Incident to the arrest of the defendants, investigators recovered approximately four kilograms of cocaine hydrochloride and two kilograms of fentanyl. A search warrant executed following the arrests resulted in seizure of an additional 300 grams of cocaine hydrochloride and $43,580 in U.S. currency.
Fentanyl is commonly laced in heroin and is causing significant problems across the country, according to a United States Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) public safety warning issued in 2015. Fentanyl is extremely dangerous to law enforcement and others who come in contact with it, and ingestion of even very small doses can be fatal.
Each defendant faces from five to 40 years imprisonment, a fine of up to $5,000,000, and a term of supervised release of not less than four years. Sentencings for both defendants are scheduled for November 1, 2017, at 9:30 p.m. in Greensboro, Courtroom #1.
The DEA, the Orange County Sheriff’s Office, and the Alamance Narcotics Enforcement Team, a multi-agency task force, participated in the investigation.
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Two Iranian Nationals Charged in Hacking of Vermont Software CompanyRead the Press Release
An indictment was unsealed today charging Mohammed Reza Rezakhah, 39 and Mohammed Saeed Ajily, 35, both Iranian nationals, with a criminal conspiracy relating to computer fraud and abuse, unauthorized access to, and theft of information from, computers, wire fraud, exporting a defense article without a license, and violating sanctions against Iran. The court issued arrest warrants for both defendants.
Acting Assistant Attorney General for National Security Dana J. Boente, Acting U.S. Attorney Eugenia A.P. Cowles of the District of Vermont, Assistant Director Scott Smith of the FBI’s Cyber Division, and Special Agent in Charge Vadim Thomas of the FBI’s Albany, New York Field Office made the announcement.
According to the allegations in the indictment filed in Rutland, Vermont, beginning in or around 2007, Rezakhah, Ajily, and a third actor who has already pleaded guilty in the District of Vermont for related conduct, conspired together to access computers without authorization in order to obtain software which they would then sell and redistribute in Iran and elsewhere outside the U.S. Ajily, a businessman, would task Rezakhah and others with stealing or unlawfully cracking particular pieces of valuable software. Rezakhah would then conduct unauthorized intrusions into victim networks to steal the desired software. Once the software was obtained, Ajily marketed and sold the software through various companies and associates to Iranian entities, including universities and military and government entities, specifically noting that such sales were in contravention of U.S. export controls and sanctions.
As part of this conspiracy, in October 2012, Rezakhah hacked a Vermont-based engineering consulting and software design company best known for its software that supports aerodynamics analysis and design for projectiles. This software is designated as a “defense article” on the U.S. Munitions List of the International Traffic in Arms Regulations (ITAR), meaning it cannot be exported from the U.S. without a license from the U.S. Department of State. Ajily thereafter promoted the same software as one of the products he could offer to his Iranian clients.
The charges in the indictment are merely accusations, and the defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
The FBI’s Albany Cyber Squad investigated the case. The case is being prosecuted by Acting U.S. Attorney Eugenia A.P. Cowles of the District of Vermont and Deputy Chief Sean Newell of the National Security Division’s Counterintelligence and Export Control Section. The Justice Department’s Office of International Affairs also provided significant assistance in this matter.
Three Former Traders for Major Banks Arraigned in Foreign Currency Exchange Antitrust ConspiracyRead the Press Release
Note: The defendants in this case, Richard Usher; Rohan Ramchandani; and Christopher Ashton, were acquitted by a jury of the charges alleged in the indictment described in the press release below.
Three United Kingdom nationals and former traders of major banks voluntarily surrendered to the FBI and were arraigned on a charge arising from their alleged roles in a conspiracy to manipulate the price of U.S. dollars and euros exchanged in the foreign currency exchange (FX) spot market, the Justice Department announced today.
A one-count indictment, filed in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York on January 10, 2017, charges Richard Usher (former Head of G11 FX Trading-UK at an affiliate of The Royal Bank of Scotland plc, as well as former Managing Director at an affiliate of JPMorgan Chase & Co.), Rohan Ramchandani (former Managing Director and head of G10 FX spot trading at an affiliate of Citicorp) and Christopher Ashton (former Head of Spot FX at an affiliate of Barclays PLC) with conspiring to fix prices and rig bids for U.S. dollars and euros exchanged in the FX spot market.
The charge in the indictment carries a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison and a $1 million fine. The maximum fine may be increased to twice the gain derived from the crime or twice the loss suffered by victims if either amount is greater than $1 million.
According to the indictment, from at least December 2007 through at least January 2013, Usher, Ramchandani and Ashton (along with unnamed co-conspirators) conspired to fix prices and rig bids for the euro – U.S. dollar currency pair. Called “the Cartel” or “the Mafia,” this group of traders carried out their conspiracy by participating in telephone calls and near-daily conversations in a private electronic chat room. Their anticompetitive behavior included colluding around the time of certain benchmark rates known as fixes, such as by coordinating their bidding/offering and trading to manipulate the price of the currency pair by the time of the fix or otherwise profit as a result of the fix price. The conspirators also coordinated their trading activities outside of fix times, such as by refraining from entering bids/offers or trading at certain times as a means of stabilizing or controlling price.
The charge in the indictment is merely an allegation, and the defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
This prosecution is being handled by the Antitrust Division’s New York Office and the FBI’s Washington Field Office. Anyone with information concerning price fixing or other anticompetitive conduct in the FX market should contact the Antitrust Division’s Citizen Complaint Center at (888) 647-3258, visit https://www.justice.gov/atr/report-violations or call the FBI tip line at (415) 553-7400.
Three Companies and Their Executives Pay $19.5 Million to Resolve False Claims Act Allegations Pertaining to Rehabilitation Therapy and Hospice ServicesRead the Press Release
Ohio based Foundations Health Solutions Inc. (FHS), Olympia Therapy Inc. (Olympia), and Tridia Hospice Care Inc. (Tridia), and their executives, Brian Colleran (Colleran) and Daniel Parker (Parker), have agreed to pay approximately $19.5 million to resolve allegations pertaining to the submission of false claims for medically unnecessary rehabilitation therapy and hospice services to Medicare, the Department of Justice announced today.
“Clinical decisions should be based on patient needs rather than corporate profits,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General Chad A. Readler of the Justice Department’s Civil Division. “This settlement reflects the Department’s continuing commitment to safeguarding patients and the Medicare system.”
FHS is the corporate successor to Provider Services Inc. (PSI), which provided management services to skilled nursing facilities. In 2010, PSI was merged into BCFL Holdings Inc. (BCFL), which was renamed FHS in 2013. Olympia provided rehabilitation therapy services to patients at the skilled nursing facilities managed by PSI and BCFL. Tridia Hospice Care Inc. provided hospice care services. Colleran and Parker partially controlled or owned PSI, BCFL, FHS, Olympia, and Tridia between 2008 and 2013.
The settlement resolves allegations that, from January 2008 through December 2012, Olympia and PSI/BCFL submitted, or caused the submission of, false claims to Medicare for medically unnecessary rehabilitation therapy services at 18 skilled nursing facilities. The government contended that the therapy services were provided at excessive levels to increase Medicare reimbursement for those services.
The settlement further resolves allegations that, from April 2011 through December 2013, Tridia submitted false claims to Medicare for hospice services provided to patients who were ineligible for the Medicare hospice benefit because Tridia failed to conduct proper certifications or medical examinations. The settlement also resolves allegations that from January 2008 through December 2012, Colleran and Parker solicited and received kickbacks to refer patients from skilled nursing facilities managed by PSI or BCFL to Amber Home Care LLC, a home health care services provider.
“This is one of the largest nursing home operations in Ohio,” said U.S. Attorney Benjamin C. Glassman for the Southern District of Ohio. “It is unacceptable for an entity entrusted to care for our most vulnerable and elderly citizens to make decisions based on profit, not quality of care. Subjecting the elderly to inappropriate levels of therapy can be physically harmful, and failing to properly certify and re-certify hospice patients can have a devastating impact on the patients and their families.”
As part of the settlement, FHS and Colleran have entered into a five-year Corporate Integrity Agreement (CIA) with the HHS Office of Inspector General (HHS-OIG). The CIA is designed to increase the accountability and transparency of FHS and Colleran so that they will avoid or promptly detect future fraud and abuse.
“Medicare providers have a legal and moral obligation to provide only those services that are medically necessary and to ensure that claims seeking payment accurately reflect the services that are actually provided,” said Special Agent in Charge Lamont Pugh III of the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services, Office of Inspector General (HHS-OIG). “The misrepresentation or falsification of those claims not only violates provisions of the False Claims Act but the public’s trust. The OIG will continue to aggressively investigate allegations of potential violations of this nature.”
The settlement resolves allegations filed in two separate lawsuits by Vladimir Trakhter, a former Olympia employee, and Paula Bourne and La’Tasha Goodwin, former Tridia employees, in federal court in Columbus, Ohio. The lawsuits were filed under the qui tam, or whistleblower, provisions of the False Claims Act, which permit private individuals to sue on behalf of the government for false claims and to share in any recovery. Mr. Trahkter will receive approximately $2.9 million and Ms. Bourne and Ms. Goodwin collectively will receive $740,000.
The settlement is the result of a coordinated effort by the Civil Division’s Commercial Litigation Branch and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Ohio, with assistance from HHS-OIG, the HHS Office of Counsel to the Inspector General, and the Ohio Medicaid Fraud Control Unit.
These cases are captioned United States ex rel. Trakhter v. Provider Services, Inc., n/k/a BCFL Holdings, Inc., et. al., Case No. 1:11-CV-217, and United States ex rel. Bourne and Goodwin v. Brian Colleran, et. al., Case No. 1:12-CV-935. The claims resolved by the settlement are allegations only, and there has been no determination of liability.
Three Cedar Rapids Men Plead Guilty to Fraud Charges, Including Counterfeiting, Possession of Stolen U.S. Mail, and Aggravated Identity TheftRead the Press Release
Three men have pleaded guilty in federal court in Cedar Rapids to various fraud charges, including counterfeiting, possession of stolen United States Mail, and aggravated identity theft.
Joshua Chalk, 31, from Cedar Rapids, Iowa, was convicted of Manufacturing Counterfeit Currency and Aggravated Identity Theft. At his plea hearing on July 17, 2017, Chalk admitted he manufactured a $100 bill in March 2017. Chalk was making counterfeit currency to purchase pizza and other items in the Cedar Rapids, Iowa, area. Chalk provided counterfeit bills to his girlfriend, who ordered the pizzas. Chalk also admitted he participated in a bank fraud scheme with Kevin Kappmeyer and Darrell Turner to remove checks drawn on the accounts of various banks from stolen mail, alter the payee names on the checks, and then attempt to cash those checks. Chalk admitted he attempted to cash an altered check on December 26, 2016, at a local check cashing company.
Darrell Turner, 50, from Cedar Rapids, Iowa, was convicted of Possession of Stolen Mail Matter and Aggravated Identity Theft. At his plea hearing on April 18, 2017, Turner admitted he possessed a check that had been contained in mail stolen from a Cedar Rapids mailbox. Turner tried to cash the check on January 6, 2017, at a local bank.
Kevin Kappmeyer, 50, from Cedar Rapids, Iowa, was convicted of Possession of Stolen Mail Matter and Aggravated Identity Theft. At his plea hearing on June 28, 2017, Kappmeyer admitted he possessed a check that had been contained in mail addressed to a company in Marion, Iowa, that was stolen. Kappmeyer cashed the check on January 4, 2017.
“Postal Inspectors are committed to protecting the U.S. Mail and postal customers from criminal attack,” said Craig Goldberg, Inspector in Charge of the Denver Division of the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, which includes Iowa. “These guilty pleas reflect the successful teamwork between the Postal Inspection Service and its local law enforcement partners who worked together to bring justice to the victims in this case and to help restore the public’s trust in the U.S. mail,” said Goldberg.
Sentencing before United States District Court Judge Linda R. Reade will be set after a presentence report is prepared for each defendant. All three men remain in custody of the United States Marshal pending sentencing. Chalk faces up to 22 years’ imprisonment, a $500,000 fine, $200 in special assessments, and four years of supervised release following any imprisonment. Turner and Kappmeyer face up to 7 years’ imprisonment, a $500,000 fine, $200 in special assessments, and four years of supervised release following any imprisonment.
The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Tim Vavricek and was investigated by the United States Postal Inspection Service, the Cedar Rapids Police Department, and the Marion Police Department.
Court file information at https://ecf.iand.uscourts.gov/cgi-bin/login.pl.
The case file numbers are 17-CR-17-LRR, 17-CR-44-LRR, and 17-CR-47-LRR.
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Tax Preparer Guilty of Tax EvasionRead the Press Release
CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas – A local tax return preparer has admitted to willfully aiding and assisting in the preparation of false U.S. Income Tax Returns for others and filing a false income tax return for herself, announced Acting U.S. Attorney Abe Martinez along with Special Agent in Charge Rick Goss of IRS - Criminal Investigation (CI).
Cristina Gonzalez pleaded guilty today, admitting she defrauded the United States by not reporting income she had earned on her personal income tax return and preparing fraudulent tax returns for others.
“This action today serves to show that running a business based around defrauding the U.S. taxpayers is no way to do business. Gonzalez, acting as a tax return preparer, submitted numerous false tax returns to the IRS causing the loss of hundreds of thousands of dollars,” said Goss. “This type of dishonesty will not go unpunished. IRS-CI will continue to track down and stop unscrupulous tax return preparers.”
During tax years 2011 through 2014, Gonzalez operated a tax preparation business in Alice which prepared and filed more than 1,200 federal income tax returns for clients. More than 99% of returns Gonzalez prepared claimed a refund and nearly 60% of the returns claimed the maximum earned income tax credit. An IRS review of returns Gonzalez filed showed many of the returns included suspicious “household help” income in specific amounts which maximized earned income credits and resulted in significantly larger tax refunds to her clients.
IRS agents located and interviewed the taxpayers associated with 47 of these returns. The income each of these taxpayers reported was significantly less than the amount of income reported in the tax returns Gonzalez filed, and virtually all of the taxpayers denied earning any significant household help income or reporting any such income to Gonzalez. The false representations in the tax returns Gonzalez prepared caused a tax loss to the United States of $223,305 in these 47 returns alone.
Gonzalez also prepared and filed her own personal federal income tax returns for 2011, 2012, 2013 and 2014. In each of these returns, she failed to report any income generated through her tax preparation business. Gonzalez collected fees from clients ranging from $350 up to $2,280 per return. Gonzalez received many of these fees by instructing the IRS to “split” the taxpayer’s refund and send a portion of the refund to bank accounts Gonzalez owned or controlled. Between 2011 and 2014, Gonzalez failed to report $276,842.71 in split fees as income on her personal income tax returns. The failure to report this income resulted in substantial unpaid taxes owed to the United States.
Senior U.S. District Judge John D. Rainey accepted the plea today and has set sentencing for Oct. 16, 2017. At that time, Gonzalez faces up to five years in federal prison for the personal tax evasion as well as another three years for aiding in the preparation of false tax returns for others. Both convictions also carry a possible $250,000 maximum fine.
She was permitted to remain on bond pending her sentencing hearing.
IRS-CI conducted the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney Robert D. Thorpe Jr. is prosecuting the case.
South-Central Kentucky Man Sentenced to Ten Years in Prison for Conspiring to Distribute More Than 50 Grams of Crystal MethamphetamineRead the Press Release
Illegal activity transpired in Simpson County, involved three co-defendants, and approximately
one and a half pounds of crystal methamphetamine
BOWLING GREEN, Ky. – A Logan County, Kentucky, man was sentenced today in United States District Court by District Judge Greg N. Stivers, to ten years in prison and five years of supervised release, for conspiring with others to knowingly and intentionally possess with the intent to distribute fifty grams or more of methamphetamine, announced United States Attorney John E. Kuhn, Jr. There is no parole in the federal prison system.
Jordan Dale Wallace, 30, of Russellville, previously admitted in court to conspiring with Danny Neal Stokes, 62, of Russellville, and Howell Dean O’Bryan, 42, of Allensville, Kentucky, to distributing 50 grams or more of methamphetamine.
According to the plea agreement, law enforcement learned of Wallace’s criminal activity following the arrest of a co-conspirator, Howell Dean O’Bryan, who stated he was selling the one pound of crystal methamphetamine to Wallace for $14,500.00. Wallace owed O’Bryan for an additional ounce of crystal methamphetamine that he had previously given to him. According to O’Bryan, Wallace should have approximately $16,000.00 for the one pound and previous ounce of crystal methamphetamine. O’Bryan and Wallace had just talked by phone when Wallace stated he was on his way with the money. During a monitored phone call to Wallace, Wallace confirmed that he was on his way to meet O’Bryan and had what he was supposed to bring. The two talked about having to weigh it out once Wallace arrived and agreed on a meeting location.
That same day, May 15, 2015, Wallace travelled to Simpson County, Kentucky, to pay for approximately one pound of crystal methamphetamine. The actual amount of methamphetamine, according to laboratory analysis was 459.3 grams of pure methamphetamine.
During a traffic stop of Wallace’s vehicle, Kentucky State Police Troopers identified Wallace as the driver. The Troopers asked for consent to search the vehicle, which Wallace declined. The Troopers asked Wallace if he had any drugs, weapons or large sums of money in the vehicle and Wallace stated no. Trooper Wesley and his K-9 partner conducted an open air search of the vehicle and the K-9 gave a positive indication on the vehicle. Troopers searched the vehicle and recovered $16,194.00 in United States currency. Wallace initially stated that he intended to use the money to purchase a car, but could provide no details. After his arrest several months later, Wallace admitted that the money was to be used to pay the co-conspirator for methamphetamine.
O’Bryan and Stokes have also pled guilty for their roles in the conspiracy and additional charges. All three defendants remain in federal custody.
Assistant United States Attorney Jo E. Lawless prosecuted the case. The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) and Kentucky State Police (including its Vehicle Enforcement Division), conducted the investigation.
South Paris Woman Sentenced to Time Served for Transferring a Firearm to a FelonRead the Press Release
Portland, Maine: Acting United States Attorney Richard W. Murphy announced that Stephanie Knightly, 50, of South Paris, Maine was sentenced today in U.S. District Court by Judge George Z. Singal to time served (about two months) for transferring a firearm to a felon.
According to court records, on August 16, 2014, Knightly purchased a pistol in Scarborough, Maine. The private sale was arranged by Steven Piirainen, a person Knightly knew to be a felon. Piirainen accompanied her to the sale and gave her cash to purchase the pistol. After the sale, Piirainen took the firearm. The next day, after stealing a truck, Piirainen engaged in a shootout with the Maine State Police in South Paris, was shot, and died. Prior to the shootout, Piirainen told Knightly that he knew his probation officer was going to arrest him soon and that he was “never going back” to prison.
The investigation was conducted by the Maine State Police; the Lewiston Police Department; and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives.
Serial Gun Felon Sentenced in Federal CourtRead the Press Release
Acting United States Attorney Steve Butler of the Southern District of Alabama announced that Roosevelt Jones, 52, of Selma, was sentenced today in federal court on charges involving his illegal possession of a firearm. Jones has three prior convictions for being a felon in possession of a firearm in federal court. Jones was serving concurrent terms of supervised release from his two most recent convictions of illegally possessing firearms when he was arrested on the event that resulted in the current prosecution. Jones was stopped by a state trooper in Dallas County when he attempted to avoid a driver’s license checkpoint. The trooper noticed that he had a gun on the back seat of his vehicle and determined that Jones had criminal history. Jones was indicted in February of 2017 on the charges in the current case, and he pled guilty to them in April of 2017.
United States District Court Judge Kristi K. Dubose imposed a sentence of 21 months imprisonment, to be followed by a three year term of supervised release. She also revoked his concurrent terms of supervised release on the old cases and ordered a six-month term of imprisonment, to run concurrently with the sentence in the current case. The judge did not impose a fine, but ordered that Jones pay $100 in special assessments.
The case was investigated by the Alabama Law Enforcement Agency (Alabama State Troopers) and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. It was prosecuted in the United States Attorney’s Office by Assistant United States Attorney Gloria Bedwell.
Serial Armed Robber Sentenced to 400 Months in Federal PrisonRead the Press Release
FORT WORTH – Nathaniel Roshaun Bowens, 34, of Fort Worth, Texas, was sentenced this morning by U.S. District Judge Reed C. O’Connor to 400 months in federal prison, announced U.S. Attorney John Parker of the Northern District of Texas.
Bowens was convicted of five counts relating to the robbery of T-Mobile stores following a two-day trial in April, 2017. Specifically, Bowens was convicted of one count of conspiracy to interfere with commerce by robbery, two counts of interference with commerce by robbery, and two counts of using carrying and brandishing a firearm during and in relation to, and possessing and brandishing a firearm in furtherance of a crime of violence. Bowens has been in custody since his arrest in January 2017.
According to evidence presented at trial, on October 5, 2015 Bowens entered the T-Mobile store located at 1801 Eastchase Parkway #115, Fort Worth, Texas, and obtained numerous cellular phones and other assorted electronics from the T-Mobile employees by threatened force, violence, and fear of immediate injury to the employees by using and brandishing a firearm.
On March 7, 2016, Bowens entered the T-Mobile store located at 981 N. Walnut Creek, Mansfield, Texas, and obtained numerous electronic devices and money from T-Mobile employees by threatened force, violence, and fear of immediate injury to the employees by using and brandishing a firearm.
On June 28, 2016, Bowens entered the T-Mobile store located at 2205 W. IH-20, Grand Prairie, Texas, and obtained numerous electronic devices and money from T-Mobile employees by threatened force, violence, and fear of immediate injury to the employees by using and brandishing a firearm.
On August 29, 2016, Bowens attempted to enter the T-Mobile store located at 3524 Altamesa Blvd, Fort Worth, Texas, to obtain numerous electronic devices and money from T-Mobile employees by threatened force, violence, and fear of immediate injury to the employees by using and brandishing a firearm but was unsuccessful.
On September 4, 2016, Bowens attempted to enter the T-Mobile store located at 2209 W. Berry St., Fort Worth, Texas, to obtain numerous electronic devices and money from T-Mobile employees by threatened force, violence, and fear of immediate injury to the employees by using and brandishing a firearm but was unsuccessful.
On September 4, 2016, Bowens entered the T-Mobile store located at 3524 Altamesa Blvd., Fort Worth, Texas, and obtained numerous electronic devices and money from T-Mobile employees by threatened force, violence, and fear of immediate injury to the employees by using and brandishing a firearm.
The case was investigated by the FBI, Fort Worth Police Department, Mansfield Police Department, Grand Prairie Police Department, Arlington Police Department, and the Dallas Police Department.
Assistant U.S. Attorneys Brian Poe and Chris Wolfe prosecuted.
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Second Manchester Physician Agrees to Pay $124,110 to Settle Civil Health Care Fraud CaseRead the Press Release
Portland, Maine: Acting United States Attorney Richard W. Murphy today announced that Douglas J. Jorgensen, D.O. has entered into a civil settlement agreement with the United States in which he will pay $124,110 to resolve allegations that from January 2011 through August 2014 he submitted false claims to Medicare.
According to a civil complaint filed today, Dr. Jorgensen is alleged to have violated the federal False Claims Acts by submitting claims for certain evaluation and management (“E&M”) services that were not eligible for payment under Medicare and submitting those claims knowing, deliberately ignoring or recklessly disregarding that they were false. Dr. Jorgensen was not entitled to be paid for those E&M services because they were provided in connection with, and integral to, osteopathic manipulative treatment Dr. Jorgensen performed on the same day. In total, Dr. Jorgensen received $62,055 from the Medicare Trust Fund to which he was not entitled. The settlement amount represents twice the amount of damages incurred by the Medicare program.
The case was investigated by the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services, Office of Inspector General. The civil action is docketed United States v. Douglas J. Jorgensen, D.O., 1:17-cv-271-JAW (D. Me.).
Resident of Weare Pleads Guilty to Possessing Firearms as a Prohibited PersonRead the Press Release
CONCORD, N.H. - Acting United States Attorney John J. Farley announced today that Jodi Swett, 31, of Weare, New Hampshire, pleaded guilty to three counts of possessing multiple firearms and ammunition as a prohibited person.
According to court records and statements made in court, on April 30, 2015, Swett pleaded guilty to a domestic violence offense. The conviction meant that Swett could not legally possess a firearm or ammunition. Nevertheless, in a private transaction that occurred in Manchester in July 2016, Swett bought a Ruger pistol for $375. In another private transaction that occurred in Hillsborough in October 2016, Swett bought a shotgun for $250 and a bulletproof vest. Additionally, during a search of Swett’s residence on February 10, 2017, the Federal Bureau of Investigation seized two .22 caliber rifles, a 9 mm pistol, and more than 100 rounds of ammunition.
Swett will be sentenced on October 25, 2017.
“The U.S. Attorney’s Office is committed to working with our law enforcement partners to combat violent crime,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Farley. “When individuals possess firearms unlawfully they present a risk to the safety of the community. We will continue to prosecute those who possess weapons unlawfully and to use all available means to reduce the risk of violent crime here in New Hampshire.”
The FBI and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives investigated the case. Assistant United States Attorney Robert Kinsella is prosecuting the case.
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Reno Doctor Robert Rand Pleads Guilty to Involuntary Manslaughter of Patient and Unlawful Distribution of Nearly 24,000 Oxycodone PillsRead the Press Release
RENO, Nev. – Local physician Dr. Robert Rand pleaded guilty today to involuntary manslaughter of a patient and unlawful distribution of oxycodone to another patient, announced Acting U.S. Attorney Steven W. Myhre for the District of Nevada. Sentencing is scheduled for Oct. 23, 2017, before U.S. District Judge Miranda Du. At the time of sentencing, Rand faces a maximum of eight years in prison on the manslaughter count and a maximum of 20 years in prison on the drug count.
Robert Gene Rand, 54, a Nevada-licensed physician who operated Rand Family Care in Reno, and eight others, including Richard Winston West II, the former manager of the Jones-West Ford dealership, were indicted on May 11, 2016, with federal prescription drug distribution charges. A superseding indictment was returned against Rand, the last remaining defendant, on June 21, 2017.
According to admissions made in the plea agreement, Rand prescribed an excessive amount of oxycodone to a patient without a legitimate medical purpose and not in the usual course of professional practice that resulted in the patient’s death from oxycodone intoxication. From the start of treatment, in June 2014, Rand prescribed the patient oxycodone. In September 2014, a doctor spoke with Rand about the patient receiving 180 oxycodone pills per month from Rand and the patient’s history. The patient was hospitalized twice. Despite phone calls, records, and encounters, Rand continued to prescribe oxycodone to the patient. In September 2015, Rand prescribed 45 dosages of oxycodone in 30 mg amounts, as well as Xanax, to the patient. One week later, Rand prescribed an additional 180 dosages of oxycodone in 30 mg amounts to the patient. Rand acted with gross negligence in prescribing this oxycodone and did so in reckless regard for the patient’s life.
Furthermore, from March 2011 to April 2016, Rand prescribed another patient a total of 23,645 oxycodone 30 mg pills without a legitimate medical purpose. He prescribed a number of opioids to this patient at the same time, including oxycodone in 5 mg, 10 mg, 20 mg, and 30 mg dosages, Percocet, hydrocodone, fentanyl, as well as other substances, such as carisoprodol and alprazolam. The patient did not undergo any toxicology tests and Rand allowed another person to pick-up the oxycodone prescriptions for the patient. Rand also warned the patient at one time that his prescriptions would no longer be filled by the pharmacies.
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), nearly two million Americans abused or were dependent on prescription opioids in 2014. Overdose deaths from opioids, including prescription opioids and heroin, have nearly quadrupled since 1999. Overdoses involving opioids killed more than 28,000 people in 2014, more than any year on record, and over one-half of those deaths were from prescription opioids. For information on opioid overdose and how you can manage pain without prescription drugs, go to http://www.cdc.gov/drugoverdose/opioids/index.html.
This case is being investigated by the DEA, FBI, IRS Criminal Investigation, Homeland Security Investigations, Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Enforcement, Reno Police Department, Washoe County Sheriff’s Office, Carson City Sheriff’s Office, Susanville, California Police Department, Nevada Department of Corrections, Nevada Gaming Control, Nevada Department of Public Safety, Lyon County Sheriff’s Office, and the State of Nevada Division of Welfare, Office of Investigations and Recovery.
The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys James E. Keller and Shannon M. Bryant.
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Public School Assistant Principal Sentenced to 58 Months in Prison and 25 Years of Supervised Release for Child Pornography OffensesRead the Press Release
Donald Paul Clippinger, 49, of Miami, was sentenced on July 14, 2017, to 58 months in prison and 25 years of supervised release, by U.S. District Judge Cecilia M. Altonaga, after having pleaded guilty to three counts of accessing with intent to view child pornography. Clippinger was also ordered to register as a sex offender upon his release from prison.
Benjamin G. Greenberg, Acting United States Attorney for the Southern District of Florida and Mark Selby, Special Agent in Charge, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, Homeland Security Investigations (ICE-HSI), Miami Field Office, made the announcement.
According to court documents, ICE-HSI’s Miami Field Office received information from the agency’s Phoenix Field Office that Clippinger had accessed child pornography on three separate dates in November 2015, using a video conferencing software application. On January 31, 2017, agents with ICE-HSI’s Miami Field Office Miami, assisted by the Florida Department of Law Enforcement (FDLE), executed a federal search warrant at Clippinger’s residence. Clippinger used the computer that law enforcement recovered from his residence to access and view child pornography through the video conferencing software.
the time of his arrest, Clippinger was an Assistant Principal at the Fienberg-Fisher K-8 Center, a Miami-Dade County public school.
Mr. Greenberg commended the investigative efforts of ICE-HSI’s Miami and Phoenix Field Offices. Mr. Greenberg also thanked FDLE for their assistance with this matter. This case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Daniel Cervantes.
This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative to combat the growing epidemic of child exploitation and abuse launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice. Led by U.S. Attorney’s Offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state and local resources to better locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the Internet, as well as to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.projectsafechildhood.gov.
Related court documents and information may be found on the website of the District Court for the Southern District of Florida at www.flsd.uscourts.gov or on http://pacer.flsd.uscourts.gov.
Portuguese Engineer Pleads Guilty to Conspiring to Export Technology to Iran Without Approval from the U.S. GovernmentRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON –Joao Pereira da Fonseca, 55, a citizen of Portugal, pled guilty today to a federal charge stemming from a scheme in which he conspired to help an Iranian company unlawfully obtain sophisticated equipment from two companies in the United States.
The plea was announced by Dana J. Boente, Acting Assistant Attorney General for National Security, Channing D. Phillips, U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia, and David Shaw, Special Agent in Charge of the Department of Homeland Security, Homeland Security Investigations, in San Diego, Calif.
Fonseca, of Coimbra, Portugal, pled guilty to conspiring to unlawfully export goods and technology to Iran and to defraud the United States. He entered the guilty plea before the Honorable Emmet G. Sullivan, on the day his trial was to begin in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia. The charge carries a statutory maximum of five years in prison and potential financial penalties. The plea, which is contingent upon the Court’s approval, calls for a prison sentence of 20 months. Judge Sullivan accepted the plea today and scheduled sentencing for Sept. 7, 2017. Upon completion of his prison term, Fonseca faces deportation proceedings.
At the time he entered his guilty plea, Fonseca admitted to taking part in the scheme between October 2014 and April 2016. One of the companies in the United States manufactures machines that help produce sophisticated optical lenses that have both commercial and military uses. The other company manufactures machinery that tests components of inertial guidance systems that have both commercial and military uses. Fonseca was a contractor for a Portuguese engineering company that served as a front company to purchase the machines on behalf of their Iranian client. The Portuguese company claimed that it was purchasing the machines for its own use, but planned to have the machines shipped to Iran. Fonseca is a mechanical engineer whose role in the conspiracy was to travel to the U.S. to approve the machinery and learn how to install and maintain the machinery once it was shipped to its final destination in Iran.
Due to the investigation conducted by a Special Agent from Homeland Security Investigations, the government prevented both machines from leaving the U.S. Fonseca traveled to the United States to receive training on how to use the optical lens equipment in October 2015. He returned to the United States in late March 2016 to be trained on how to use the inertial guidance system equipment at the company that manufactures it. After a week of training, Homeland Security Agents had gathered sufficient evidence to detain Fonseca before he could fly back to Portugal. Soon thereafter, criminal charges were brought against Fonseca. He has been in custody ever since.
In announcing the plea, Acting Assistant Attorney General Boente, U.S. Attorney Phillips, and Special Agent in Charge Shaw expressed appreciation for the work of those who investigated the case from the Department of Homeland Security, Homeland Security Investigations. They also commended the efforts of those who worked on the case from the U.S. Attorney’s Office, including Paralegal Specialists Elena Buruncenco and Jorge Casillas; Litigation Technology Specialist Anisha Bhatia; former Litigation Technology Specialist Aneela Bhatia; Legal Assistant Matthew Ruggierio, and Summer Law Clerks Tessa Tilton, Michael Collins, Jessie Michelin, James Murray, Alison Perry, Anthony Ricci, Jared Schwalb and Elizabeth Ulan.
Finally, they commended the work of the attorneys who investigated and prosecuted the case, including Assistant U.S. Attorneys Frederick W. Yette, Erik Kenerson and Thomas Swanton, of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia and Trial Attorneys Robert E. Wallace and Amy Larson of the National Security Division’s Counterintelligence and Export Control Section.
Nigerian National Sentenced for Marriage Fraud, Lying to a Federal Officer, Failure to Appear for TrialRead the Press Release
PROVIDENCE – Rasheed Abiodun Akanni, 42, a Nigerian national convicted in federal court of entering into a marriage with a U.S. citizen for the purpose of evading deportation, making false statements to a federal officer and failure to appear before the U.S. District Court as required by conditions of release, was sentenced today to 12 months in federal prison. Akanni will face deportation proceedings upon completion of his term of incarceration.
Akanni was convicted on April 20, 2017, as charged in indictments returned by federal grand juries on September 13, 2016, and April 6, 2017.
Rasheed Abiodun Akanni’s sentence is announced by Acting United States Attorney Stephen G. Dambruch; Matthew J. Etre, Special Agent in Charge of Homeland Security Investigations for New England; and Denis Riordan, District Director of U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS).
The U.S. Sentencing Guidelines range of imprisonment in this matter is 12-18 months. The government recommended the court impose a sentence of 12 months in prison.
According to the government’s evidence presented during a three-day bench trial, Akanni entered the United States from Nigeria on June 3, 2003, on a six-month visitor for pleasure visa. He never left the United States and made several unsuccessful attempts to gain legal status.
On July 13, 2007, Akanni filed for lawful permanent resident status as the spouse of an American woman. The woman later withdrew her support for Akanni’s application. On November 23, 2010, Akanni filed a petition for asylum, which stayed removal proceedings.
In the fall of 2012, Akanni began a relationship with an American woman and was married in a civil ceremony on February 14, 2013. Akanni and his wife continued to live in separate residences until jointly renting an apartment in June 2013. However, Akanni’s wife told investigators that he only stayed at their joint residence on average three or four nights a week. After two months, Akanni’s wife instructed Akanni to move out of their joint residence.
In October 2013, Akanni informed his wife that he would be filing an application for lawful permanent residence based on their marriage. His wife testified at trial that she was unaware that her husband was not a legal resident of the United States, but that she agreed to support his application for legal status. In September 2014, USCIS officers interviewed Akanni and his wife separately. On May 6, 2015, USCIS officers again interviewed both individuals separately. Further investigation determined that Akanni and his wife gave conflicting answers during the second interview as to the state of their marriage. While Akanni’s wife told USCIS investigators that her marriage to Akanni was not good and that she would be seeking a divorce, Akanni made false statements to the officers as to the state of his marriage and his residence. Akanni claimed that he resided with his wife and that the residence he was at on the day he was interviewed was his sisters. The investigation determined that Akanni actually shared the residence with a woman with whom he fathered a child. The child was born on February 13, 2016.
On September 13, 2016, a federal grand jury indicted Akanni on charges of entering into a marriage with a U.S. citizen for the purpose of evading deportation and making false statements to a federal officer. Akanni was arraigned on September 14, 2016, and released on unsecured bond. Among the conditions set by the court for his release, Akanni was ordered to appear for trial in U.S. District Court on a trial date to be set by the court. The court scheduled the trial to begin on January 30, 2017. Akanni failed to appear in court for his trial, and an arrest warrant was issued by the court.
In the early morning hours of January 31, 2017, Akanni was stopped attempting to enter Canada by officers from the Canada Border Service Agency. At the border, Akanni provided an American passport in another person’s name. Canadian officers returned him to the U.S. Customs and Border Patrol checkpoint in Lewiston, N.Y. U.S. Marshals later returned Akanni to Rhode Island where he remained in federal custody. On April 6, 2017, a federal grand jury returned an indictment charging Rasheed Abiodun Akanni with failure to appear before the U.S. District Court for trial.
Acting United States Attorney Stephen G. Dambruch thanks the U.S. Customs & Border Protection Service in Buffalo, N.Y. for their assistance in this matter.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Zechariah Chafee prosecuted the case.
On April 11, 2017, pursuant to a memo from Attorney General Jeff Sessions, Assistant U.S. Attorney Zechariah Chafee was appointed Border Security Coordinator for the United States Attorney’s Office for the District of Rhode Island. Attorney General Sessions instructed each United States Attorney’s Office to designate a Border Security Coordinator to coordinate the District’s commitment to criminal immigration enforcement.
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Nigerian Man Admits Illegal Re-entry into United StatesRead the Press Release
ALBANY, NEW YORK – Chukwudi Olisemeka, age 48, and a citizen of Nigeria, pled guilty today to illegal re-entry into the United States.
The announcement was made by Acting United States Attorney Grant C. Jaquith and Chief Patrol Agent John C. Pfeifer, United States Border Patrol, Swanton Sector.
Olisemeka was removed from the United States to Nigeria on June 19, 2008, following a 2006 embezzlement conviction in California.
May 7, 2017, he was found by a Border Patrol Agent in Massena, New York, on a bus destined for New York City. A fingerprint check of Olisemeka resulted in the discovery of the prior removal. Olisemeka admitted that he returned to the United States without permission following the 2008 removal.
Olisemeka faces up to 10 years in prison and a fine of up to $250,000 when he is sentenced by Senior United States Judge Frederick J. Scullin, Jr. on September 18, 2017. A defendant’s sentence is imposed by a judge based on the particular statute the defendant is charged with violating, the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines, and other factors.
This case was investigated by the United States Border Patrol and prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Edward P. Grogan.
Newark Man Sentenced to 12 Months and A Day Imprisonment in Structuring CaseRead the Press Release
WILMINGTON, Del. – David C. Weiss, Acting United States Attorney for the District of Delaware, announced today that Matthew Czap, age 68, formerly of Newark, was sentenced on July 12, 2017, by Chief U. S. District Court Leonard P. Stark to one year and one day of imprisonment and 2 years of supervised release. The sentencing came after Mr. Czap pleaded guilty on March 22, 2017 to one count of structuring financial transactions to avoid currency reporting requirements.
Between November 2, 2015 and March 30, 2016, defendant made eighteen separate cash deposits, totaling $163,460, each in an amount of less than $10,000. Defendant made many of the deposits on successive days, in amounts approaching, but under $10,000. Dating back to January 2013, Defendant structured approximately $1.2 million of cash deposits, while aware that the currency represented the proceeds of his wife’s criminal conduct.
Acting U.S. Attorney Weiss stated, “The Court’s sentence properly reflects the serious nature of structuring, which is, at its core, a form of money laundering. Mr. Czap’s conduct helped to conceal the proceeds of fraud and allowed the crime to go undetected for years. While he didn’t personally steal the money, he enjoyed the benefits of it. Individuals contemplating similar conduct should understand that their crimes will have the most serious of consequences.”
The case was investigated by the Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigation and the Federal Bureau of Investigation. It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Lesley Wolf. Acting U.S. Attorney Weiss thanked the investigators for their hard work in pursuing this investigation.
See also: https://www.justice.gov/usao-de/pr/newark-woman-charged-61m-wire-fraud-scheme-identity-theft-money-laundering-and-tax
Nashville Man Sentenced to 35 Years in Prison for Production of Child PornographyRead the Press Release
Mark K. White, 64, of Nashville, Tennessee, was sentenced on Friday by United States District Court Aleta Trauger, to 35 years in prison for Production of Child Pornography and Possession of Child Pornography, announced Jack Smith, Acting United States Attorney for the Middle District of Tennessee.
White was charged in a criminal complaint in July 2013, after an investigation determined that while visiting a family in Lawrenceburg, Tenn., White had sexually molested and recorded sexually explicit images of young girls, between the ages of 4 and 7 years old. Subsequent examinations of White’s phone and computer revealed that he had collected over 400 images of child pornography, which included images of at least 18 victims known from other investigations. Investigators also found evidence that revealed White’s sexual abuse of young girls dated back to 2011.
White pleaded guilty to these charges in January 2016, admitting that he had recorded the sexually explicit images of the young girls.
This matter was investigated by the Lawrenceburg Police Department, the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation, and the Federal Bureau of Investigation. The United States was represented by Assistant U.S. Attorney S. Carran Daughtrey.
Moldovan Man Pleads Guilty to Illegal Transportation of AlienRead the Press Release
ALBANY, NEW YORK – Constantin Chiriac, age 41, and a citizen of Moldova, pled guilty today to transporting an alien who had illegally crossed into the United States from Canada.
The announcement was made by Acting United States Attorney Grant C. Jaquith and Chief Patrol Agent John C. Pfeifer, United States Border Patrol, Swanton Sector.
Chiriac admitted that on May 23, 2017, while on the Akwesasne reservation near Hogansburg, New York, he picked up a Hungarian citizen who had just crossed the border illegally from Canada. Chiriac was driving the Hungarian citizen away from the border area when Border Patrol Agents stopped him. Chiriac admitted that he intended to transport the Hungarian citizen away from the border area and to Brooklyn, New York. At the time of his crime, Chiriac was in the United States on a visitor (tourist) visa.
Chiriac faces up to 5 years in prison and a fine of up to $250,000 when he is sentenced by Senior United States District Judge Frederick J. Scullin, Jr. on November 20, 2017. A defendant’s sentence is imposed by a judge based on the particular statute the defendant is charged with violating, the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines, and other factors.
The Hungarian citizen, Zslot Mihaly, was convicted of entry without inspection, a misdemeanor, and sentenced to 36 days in jail. He was then transferred to the custody of the Department of Homeland Security for removal proceedings.
This case was investigated by the United States Border Patrol and prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Edward P. Grogan.
Mission Hills Woman Sentenced for Lying About Cayman Islands BusinessesRead the Press Release
KANSAS CITY, Mo. – Tom Larson, Acting United States Attorney for the Western District of Missouri, announced that a Mission Hills, Kan., woman was sentenced in federal court today for impeding the work of the IRS by lying under oath about her Cayman Islands businesses, which were used in a scheme to hide millions of dollars in secret offshore accounts.
Verna Cheryl Womack, 66, of Mission Hills, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Gary A. Fenner to one year and six months in federal prison without parole. The court also ordered Womack to pay $1,704,421 in restitution to the IRS, which she paid today.
For nearly 20 years, Womack engaged in a multi-faceted tax fraud involving offshore accounts designed to cheat the IRS. That cheating involved numerous forms of concealment, including sham nominees and trusts as well as false statements made under oath.
On April 5, 2016, Womack pleaded guilty to testifying falsely while under oath with the corrupt intent to impede the due administration of the Internal Revenue Code. According to court documents, Womack failed to report her offshore holdings as required by law in an effort to hide more than $6 million in income from the IRS.
According to court documents, Womack orchestrated the creation of an intricate web of offshore accounts, trusts, nominees and shell companies to conceal millions of dollars in unreported income. She hid her ownership of shell companies and trusts in the Cayman Islands to conceal income earned in the United States, transfer it to the Cayman Islands, and grow it tax-free until she chose to repatriate it to the United States. This resulted in a criminal tax loss of $1,704,421.
Womack began her business dealings in the Cayman Islands in 1995 when she formed the captive reinsurance company MFC Insurance Company in that country, but elected to have it file United States tax returns. She also opened personal checking and savings accounts in her own name at the Bank of Butterfield in the Cayman Islands. Womack failed to disclose the accounts on her tax returns. Womack created several trusts at the Bank of Butterfield. Womack used her Cayman Islands’ shell companies and trusts to evade reporting income to the IRS.
Womack, through her Cayman Islands companies, owns condominiums on Grand Cayman (to which she purported to pay rent as a means of concealing her income) and in Trump Tower in New York, N.Y. (which she purchased for $2.5 million).
Womack used a Cayman Islands company to hide over $500,000 in income from the sale of her wine collection at auction. Since the mid-1990s, Womack maintained two wine cellars in her home in Mission Hills that she used to store her personal collection of investment-grade wine. In 1996 she formed Lucy Limited in the Cayman Islands and began transferring funds to Lucy Limited, fraudulently concealed as consulting fees. Womack then used those funds to purchase wine for her collection. Lucy Limited kept the wine collection as an asset on its balance sheet but Womack never disclosed to the IRS her interest in Lucy Limited. In March 2008 Womack sold approximately half of her wine collection through an auction house in New York for approximately $1.6 million but did not include the revenue from that wine sale on her 2008 tax return.
In 2009, Womack was served with a subpoena to testify at a deposition in a civil enforcement action brought by the U.S. Department of Justice. This civil enforcement action sought to permanently enjoin Allen R. Davison from providing tax advice. Davison had previously served as Womack’s tax advisor, and later, as her business employee.
Womack complied with the subpoena and testified under oath at a deposition on May 19, 2009. Womack admitted that she answered questions falsely and with the corrupt intent to impede the due administration of the Internal Revenue Code.
During the deposition, the Dept. of Justice attorney asked Womack if she knew when a company called JoJoDi Insurance Company of Cayman was started. Instead of answering truthfully, Womack responded to the question by falsely stating that she did not know when JoJoDi was started. In fact, she knew that she had personally caused it to be started in 1997.
During the deposition, the Dept. of Justice attorney also asked Womack who owned Lucy Limited, another Cayman Islands business. Womack was the settlor and 1/3 beneficiary of the trust that owned Lucy Limited. Instead of answering truthfully, however, Womack falsely stated that Lucy Limited was owned by a group of investors. In fact, she knew that there were no such investors. Womack knew that she had caused the creation of both Lucy Limited and the trust that owned Lucy Limited.
This case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Brian P. Casey and Stacey Perkins Rock. It was investigated by IRS-Criminal Investigation and the FBI.
McHenry County Man Sentenced to 70 Months in Federal Prison on Robbery ChargesRead the Press Release
ROCKFORD — A McHenry County man was sentenced today by U.S. District Judge Frederick J. Kapala on four charges of robbery.
SHAWN M. RANK, 48, of Woodstock, was sentenced to 70 months in federal prison, to be followed by three years of supervised release, for the 2016 robberies of the Heartland Bank and Trust Company in Genoa, the Cash Store in Belvidere, the Harvard Savings Bank in Harvard, and the Alpine Bank in Belvidere. Rank was also ordered to pay restitution totaling $6,972 to the banks and the Cash Store.
Rank pleaded guilty to the robbery charges on March 10, 2017.
According to a written plea agreement, Rank admitted that on Jan. 15, 2016, he walked into the Heartland Bank and Trust Company, 327 W. Main St. in Genoa, pushed a blue zippered bank bag across the counter to a teller and told the teller to fill the bag with $50s and $100s. Rank opened his jacket and showed the teller a gun tucked in his waistband. The teller put $1,250 in the bank bag. Rank took the bag and fled.
In his plea agreement, Rank also admitted to robbing the Cash Store, 1479 N. State St. in Belvidere, of $1,232 on April 1, 2016, and to the armed robbery of the Harvard Savings Bank, 58 N. Ayer St. in Harvard, of $2,700 on May 6, 2016. Finally, Rank pleaded guilty and admitted to robbing the Alpine Bank, 600 S. State St. in Belvidere, of $1,790 on June 13, 2016.
The sentencing was announced by Joel R. Levin, Acting United States Attorney for the Northern District of Illinois, and Michael J. Anderson, Special Agent-in-Charge of the Chicago Office of the Federal Bureau of Investigation. The DeKalb County Sheriff’s Office, and the Harvard, Genoa, and Belvidere Police Departments, assisted in the investigation.
The government was represented by Assistant U.S. Attorney Margaret J. Schneider.
McCracken County, Kentucky, Attorney Charged with Defrauding Clients of Insurance SettlementsRead the Press Release
Allegedly kept at least $550,000 in settlement amounts that should have gone to his clients.
PADUCAH, Ky. – A licensed Kentucky attorney was charged in a criminal Information today with various charges including devising a scheme to defraud numerous clients of insurance settlements totaling at least $550,000 announced United States Attorney John E. Kuhn, Jr.
From at least March of 2007 through May of 2017, James Grant King, 43, of McCracken County, Kentucky, allegedly committed aggravated identity theft and wire fraud.
According to the Information, King practiced as a plaintiff’s attorney for numerous clients within the Western District of Kentucky and elsewhere. These clients came to the defendant seeking his services in order to recover monetary damages and other remedies. After learning about his clients cases, King would seek to settle their cases with insurance companies. However, after reaching a settlement with the insurance companies, and unbeknownst to his clients, King would then keep most or all of the settlement amounts for himself.
King is also charged with obtaining a $97,500 personal loan from a McCracken County individual. As collateral for the loan, King transferred the title of a Phoenix Model 920 Pro XP boat. However, a few months, later, King applied for a duplicate title to the boat, and then, unbeknownst to the individual who loaned him the money, King sold the boat, without repaying the $97,500 loan.
If convicted at trial, King could face a sentence of 42 years in prison, pay a fine of $750,000 and be required to serve a three years period of supervised release.
This case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Nute A. Bonner and is being investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and the McCracken County Kentucky Sheriff’s Department.***
The indictment of a person by Criminal Information is an accusation only and that person is presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty.
king_ci_7-17-17_0.pdfManhattan U.S. Attorney Announces $4.4 Million Settlement of Civil Lawsuit Against VNS Choice for Improper Collection of Medicaid PaymentsRead the Press Release
Joon H. Kim, the Acting United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, announced today that the United States has settled a civil fraud lawsuit against VNS CHOICE, VNS CHOICE COMMUNITY CARE, and VISITING NURSE SERVICE OF NEW YORK (collectively, “VNS”) for improperly collecting monthly Medicaid payments for 365 Medicaid beneficiaries whom VNS Choice failed to timely disenroll from the VNS Choice Managed Long-Term Care Plan (“Choice MLTCP”). Most of the beneficiaries who should have been disenrolled from the Choice MLTCP were no longer receiving health care services from VNS. Under the terms of the settlement approved today by United States District Judge Ronnie Abrams, VNS Choice must pay a total sum of $4,392,150, with $1,756,860 going to the United States and the remaining amount to the State of New York. In the settlement, VNS admits that VNS Choice failed to timely disenroll 365 Choice MLTCP members and, as a result, received Medicaid payments to which it was not entitled.
Acting Manhattan U.S. Attorney Joon H. Kim said: “VNS Choice failed to timely disenroll individuals from its managed care plan and continued to collect Medicaid payments for their care, even when it provided no medical services to them. This Office is committed to holding accountable those who receive government health care program dollars to which they are not entitled.”
HHS-OIG Special Agent in Charge Scott J. Lampert said: “As State Medicaid Programs increasingly have moved to managed care arrangements, we have adapted our investigative tools accordingly. We will continue to work closely with our state and federal law enforcement partners to unravel these schemes, and hold health care providers accountable for the money they receive.”
VNS Choice administers a Managed Long-Term Care Plan for Medicaid beneficiaries pursuant to a contract with the New York State Department of Health (“MLTC Contract”). VNS Choice receives payments for each member enrolled in the Plan (called “capitation payments”) in exchange for arranging and providing certain community-based long-term care services, such as care management, skilled nursing services, physical therapy, speech therapy, occupational therapy, and preventive services. During the relevant period, VNS Choice received a monthly capitation payment of $3,800 to $4,200 for each Choice MLTC member.
The MLTC Contract sets forth various circumstances under which members must be disenrolled. For example, VNS Choice is required to disenroll Choice MLTCP members when it knows that a member no longer resides in the service area, a member has been absent from the service area for a specified number of consecutive days, a member is hospitalized for 45 consecutive days or longer, a member is no longer eligible to receive Medicaid benefits, or a member is deemed to be no longer eligible for managed long-term care. VNS Choice also must initiate disenrollment upon a member’s voluntary request.
As alleged in the United States’ Complaint filed in Manhattan federal court, VNS Choice failed to timely disenroll 365 Choice MLTCP members as required by the MLTC Contract and regulatory requirements during the period January 1, 2011, through March 31, 2015. In many instances, VNS Choice continued to collect capitation payments for several months after the date the member should have been disenrolled, during which time VNS Choice provided no health care services to the member. Approximately half of the 365 members moved out of VNS Choice’s service area or left the service area for extended periods of time. Other members notified VNS Choice of their desire to disenroll from the Choice MLTCP or repeatedly refused services but were not timely disenrolled. VNS Choice also failed to promptly disenroll members after determining that they no longer met managed long-term care eligibility criteria. Although VNS Choice eventually disenrolled the 365 members, it kept the Medicaid payments it had improperly received for these members while delaying their disenrollment.
As part of the settlement, VNS admits, acknowledges, and accepts responsibility for the following conduct:
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VNS Choice failed to identify and disenroll 365 Choice MLTCP members in a timely manner and, as a result, received monthly capitation payments to which it was not entitled.
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With respect to a number of these 365 Choice MLCTP Members, VNS Choice was aware at the time it ultimately disenrolled the members that the members should have been disenrolled earlier, but failed to repay Medicaid for the monthly capitation payments that VNS Choice had improperly received for those members.
In connection with the filing of the lawsuit and settlement, the Government joined a private whistleblower lawsuit that had been filed under seal pursuant to the False Claims Act. The Government previously partially intervened in this whistleblower lawsuit and entered into a settlement with VNS to resolve allegations relating to the use of social adult day care centers to enroll ineligible members in the Choice MLTCP.
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Mr. Kim thanked the Office of the Inspector General for HHS for its assistance. Kim also thanked the Medicaid Fraud Control Unit of the New York State Attorney General’s Office for its investigative efforts and work on the case.
The case is being handled by the Office’s Civil Frauds Unit. Assistant U.S. Attorney Jeffrey K. Powell is in charge of the case.
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Man Pleads Guilty to Preparing False Income Tax ReturnRead the Press Release
HOUSTON – A local income tax return preparer has pleaded guilty to preparing a false U.S. Individual Income Tax Return for a client, announced Acting U.S. Attorney Abe Martinez.
Chester Swanson admitted in the plea agreement filed in the record of the case that he prepared at least 37 false income tax returns for clients with a resulting intended income tax harm to the United States of more than $244,000. He further admitted the false items he placed on the income tax return underlying his guilty plea included false amounts of unreimbursed medical and dental expenses, false amounts of gifts to charity, false amounts of unreimbursed employee expenses, and false amounts of alleged losses from a sole proprietorship.
Swanson operated his income tax preparation business under the name of Chester’s Mobile Tax Service in which he met clients at various locations in Houston to prepare their income tax returns for them. Swanson admitted he also used the name Hollywood Business SVC Investments in his tax preparation business.
Swanson has agreed to pay more than $244,000 in restitution to the IRS and to never again prepare income tax returns for others.
U.S. District Judge Keith Ellison accepted the plea and set sentencing for Oct. 3, 2017. At that time. Swanson faces up to three years in federal prison and a possible $250,000 maximum fine. He was permitted to remain on bond pending that hearing.
IRS-Criminal Investigation conducted the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney Charles J. Escher is prosecuting the case.
Leader of $17 Million Health Insurance Fraud Scheme Ordered to PrisonRead the Press Release
HOUSTON – A 50-year-old Fulshear woman has been sentenced to federal prison for her role as a leader and organizer in a scheme involving the billing of insurance companies for creams containing Ketamine without valid prescriptions, announced Acting U.S. Attorney Abe Martinez. A federal jury convicted Tamara Mitchell Nov. 9, 2016, following a three-day trial.
“The public expects that the prescription drugs they receive are pursuant to valid prescriptions that are based on a legitimate medical need,” said Special Agent in Charge Spencer E. Morrison of the Food and Drug Administration - Office of Criminal Investigation, (FDA-OCI) Kansas City Field Office. “Our office will continue to pursue and to bring to justices those who jeopardize the public health by engaging in fraudulent schemes to dispense prescription drugs.”
Today, U.S. District Judge Nancy Atlas ordered Mitchell to prison for a total of 14 years to be immediately followed by three years of supervised release. At the hearing, the court heard additional evidence that one of the individuals who received the creams died from Ketamine and Cyclobenzaprine toxicity. Both substances were active ingredients in the creams Mitchell sold. In handing down the sentence, Judge Atlas noted the vast nature of the fraud scheme was one of the worst she had seen in 22 years on the bench.
During trial, the jury heard evidence demonstrating Mitchell was an owner of two pharmacies, Diamond and Save Rite, that sold creams containing controlled substances as part of a marketing scheme rather than for legitimate medical need. Both pharmacies sold these compounded creams containing Ketamine to the public by using pre-signed prescriptions to fill orders for customers who had the “right” insurance plans. The individuals who received the creams were never examined by a doctor and the submissions to the insurance providers contained misrepresentations regarding the medical need.
Mitchell hired a pharmacy technician and pharmacist to conduct the day-to-day operations of the business, while another pharmacist marketed the creams to anyone with an insurance plan that would pay. Diamond Pharmacy paid a physician and nurse practitioner thousands of dollars per month to pre-sign prescription pads without examining patients. Under Mitchell’s direction, Diamond and Save Rite falsely billed insurance companies for more than $17 million in just two years.
Mitchell will remain in custody pending transfer to a U.S. Bureau of Prisons facility to be determined in the near future.
The FDA-OCI and Drug Enforcement Administration conducted the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney James McAlister is prosecuting the case.
Keystone Heights Man Sentenced for Producing and Transporting Child PornographyRead the Press Release
Jacksonville, Florida – U.S. District Judge Brian J. Davis has sentenced Travis Christopher Ellis (27, Keystone Heights) to five years in federal prison for transporting, receiving, and possessing child pornography. The Court also ordered him to pay $2,500 in restitution to the victims of his crimes and to serve a 20-year term of supervision following his release from prison.
According to court documents, on May 5, 2016, agents from U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations served a search warrant at Ellis’s residence. During an interview with agents, he admitted to using file-sharing programs to download and share child pornography. He also admitted to using particular search terms to find child pornography and to saving his collection on external hard drives.
"This sentencing should serve as a warning that peer-to-peer networks do not shield criminals from prosecution," said HSI Tampa acting Special Agent in Charge Ivan J. Arvelo. "HSI special agents and our partners at the Clay County Sheriff’s Office have ensured this predator is held accountable for his continued victimization of the most vulnerable members of our society.”
This case was investigated by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations, with assistance from the Clay County Sheriff’s Office. It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Kelly S. Karase.
It is another case brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by United States Attorneys' Offices and the Criminal Division's Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, 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.
Jefferson County, Kentucky, Resident Sentenced to Ten Years in Prison for Online EnticementRead the Press Release
LOUISVILLE, Ky. – United States Attorney John E. Kuhn, Jr., announced today that a Jefferson County, Kentucky, resident was sentenced in United States District Court, by Senior Judge Thomas B. Russell, to ten years in prison followed by a 20-year term of supervised release. The underlying crime involved attempted online enticement by using a cell phone to communicate with a person, whom the defendant believed to be a 15-year-old girl, for the purpose of engaging in sexual activity.
“This case should alarm every parent about the online threats to our minor children, including teenagers,” said U.S. Attorney John Kuhn. “Fortunately, the defendant’s target in this case was in reality an undercover officer, but just as easily a young teenager could have fallen victim. I urge every parent and adult entrusted with the care of minor children to monitor their online activities and to talk to them about reporting any improper online communications.”
Timothy Wayne Tucker, 40, was arrested on December 6, 2016, while attempting to meet with a person, whom he believed was a 15-year-old girl to engage in sexual activity. Tucker remains in federal custody following his sentencing today.
According to information presented in court, on December 2, 2016, a law enforcement official acting in an undercover capacity (UC), created an ad on the Louisville Craigslist website under the personals tab titled “nothing serious”. The ad did not request any sexual contact from prospective responders. A person later identified as Tucker contacted the UC that same day through the Craigslist e:mail server system. The UC identified himself to Tucker as a 15-year-old female. During the online communications, e:mail and then texting, Tucker brought up the subject of sexual activity with the person he believed to be a 15-year-old girl. Specifically, he asked the UC to engage in sexual activity with himself and an adult female.
The law enforcement official acting in an undercover capacity (UC), agreed to meet Tucker on December 6, 2016, at an address on Wilderness Trail in Eastern Jefferson County, Kentucky. Law enforcement officials watched Tucker drive to the agreed upon location and conducted a traffic stop and arrested Tucker. A search of the vehicle revealed a loaded 9mm handgun as well as alcohol Tucker had promised to bring the UC. A search warrant on the phone confirmed that it was the device Tucker had used to communicate with the UC.
Assistant United States Attorney Jo E. Lawless prosecuted the case. The Kentucky Attorney General’s Department of Criminal Investigations conducted the investigation.
This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006, by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by the United States Attorneys' Offices and the Criminal Division's Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who sexually exploit children, and to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.usdoj.gov/psc For more information about internet safety education, please visit www.usdoj.gov/psc and click on the tab resources.
Jacksonville Man Who Attempted to Obstruct Firearms Investigation Sentenced to 15 Years’ ImprisonmentRead the Press Release
Jacksonville, Florida – U.S. District Judge Marcia Morales Howard today sentenced Sheldon Lamont Jackson (43, Jacksonville) to 15 years in federal prison for unlawfully possessing a firearm after having been convicted of a felony offense.
He pleaded guilty on February 23, 2017.
According to the court documents, during a traffic stop, a deputy with the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office discovered a loaded, semi-automatic handgun hidden under the driver’s seat of the car that Jackson was driving. During the investigation that followed, Jackson unsuccessfully attempted to dissuade a witness from providing information to law enforcement. Prior to his arrest in this case, Jackson had multiple prior felony convictions, including convictions for selling cocaine and resisting arrest with violence, and was therefore prohibited from possessing a firearm or ammunition under federal law.
This case was investigated by the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office, the Florida Department of Law Enforcement, and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Michael J. Coolican.
This is another case prosecuted as a part of the Department of Justice’s “Project Safe Neighborhoods” Program - a nationwide, gun-violence reduction strategy. Acting United States Attorney W. Stephen Muldrow, along with Daryl R. McCrary, Special Agent in Charge, ATF, is coordinating the Project Safe Neighborhoods effort here in the Middle District of Florida in cooperation with federal, state, and local law enforcement officials.
High-Level Justice Department Official Addresses INTERPOL on Cyber and Financial CrimeRead the Press Release
Photograph courtesy of INTERPOL. Associate Deputy Attorney General of the United States Sujit Raman addresses a high-level working group on cyber and financial crime.On July 13, 2017, Sujit Raman, who serves as Associate Deputy Attorney General of the United States, addressed a high-level working group on countering cyber and financial crime sponsored by the International Criminal Police Organization (INTERPOL). In his position, Raman assists the Attorney General and Deputy Attorney General in their oversight of all cyber-related investigations and prosecutions in the United States, and manages all cyber-related policy development in the U.S. Department of Justice.
Over two days, representatives from law enforcement, financial, telecommunications and Internet sectors participated in the conference called “Countering Cyber and Financial Crime: A High-level Dialogue for a New Governance Architecture.” The group’s mission was to develop recommendations for streamlining the global response to escalating cyber and financial crime threats.
During his remarks, Raman reinforced the importance of the Budapest Convention on Cybercrime, which is the first international treaty on crimes committed via the Internet and other computer networks. It deals specifically with copyright infringement, computer-related fraud, child pornography, hate crimes, and violations of network security. Its main purpose is to pursue a common criminal policy aimed at the protection of society against cybercrime, especially by adopting appropriate legislation and fostering international cooperation.
Raman called the Budapest Convention “the governance architecture to address internet crime.” He said that there is no need for a new international cyber agreement, as called for by some countries. He called for countries to “focus on capacity building and training efforts proven so successful in facilitating law enforcement operations and partnerships.” He also lauded INTERPOL’s efforts in building capacity by training police and promoting universal participation in the fight against cyber-crime.
The video of Raman’s remarks is available for viewing on the INTERPOL website.
A long-time federal prosecutor, Associate Deputy Attorney General Raman has led a number of international fraud, public corruption, and national security matters, and has particular expertise in dealing with the implications of technology on criminal and national security investigations. He was educated at Harvard College, Harvard Law School, and the University of Bristol (UK), where he studied as a Marshall Scholar.
Gloucester Woman Pleads Guilty to Her Role in Counterfeit Steroid Trafficking SchemeRead the Press Release
BOSTON – A Gloucester woman pleaded guilty Friday, July 14, 2017, in federal court in Boston for her role in a conspiracy to traffic steroids and launder money.
Melissa Sclafani, 29, pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy with intent to distribute and distribute counterfeit steroids and one count of conspiracy to launder money. U.S. District Court Judge Nathaniel M. Gorton scheduled sentencing for Oct. 24, 2017. On April 12, 2017, Sclafani and five others were charged by criminal complaint.
From at least February 2016 until April 12, 2017, Sclafani conspired with others to manufacture steroid products, market them as “Onyx” steroids, and sell them to customers across the United States using email and social media platforms. Customers paid for the steroids via money remitters, such as Western Union and MoneyGram, and members of the conspiracy used false identifications and multiple remitter locations to pick up the steroid proceeds.
Sclafani obtained materials and supplies to manufacture the counterfeit steroids and served as the corporate secretary of Wicked Tan LLC, a tanning business in Beverly that was owned by two co-conspirators. Sclafani assisted members of the conspiracy in laundering proceeds from the sale of counterfeit steroids through the business.
The conspiracy charge provides for a sentence of no greater than five years in prison, three years of supervised release, and a fine of up to $250,000 or twice the gain or loss of the conspiracy, and the charge of money laundering conspiracy provides for a sentence of no greater than 20 years in prison, three years of supervised release, and a fine of $500,000 or twice the gain or loss of the conspiracy. Sentences are imposed by a federal district court judge based upon the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
Acting United States Attorney William D. Weinreb; Matthew Etre, Special Agent in Charge of Homeland Security Investigations in Boston; Shelly Binkowski, Inspector in Charge of the U.S. Postal Inspection Service; and Jeffrey Ebersole, Special Agent in Charge of the Food and Drug Administration, Office of Criminal investigation, New York Field Office, made the announcement today. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Amy Harman Burkart and David J. D’Addio of Weinreb’s Cybercrime Unit are prosecuting the case.
Former United States Postal Employee Charged with TheftRead the Press Release
SCRANTON- The United States Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Pennsylvania announced today that Keri Laird, age 42, of Madisonburg, Pennsylvania, was charged in a criminal information with theft.
According to United States Attorney Bruce D. Brandler, the information alleges that between August 7, 2013 and January 21, 2015, Laird stole $5,489 from the United States Postal Service. At the time, Laird was employed at the Madisonburg Post Office.
The case was investigated by the U.S. Postal Service Office of the Inspector General. Assistant U.S. Attorney Jenny P. Roberts is prosecuting the case.
Indictments and Criminal Informations are only allegations. All persons charged are presumed to be innocent unless and until found guilty in court.
A sentence following a finding of guilt is imposed by the Judge after consideration of the applicable federal sentencing statutes and the Federal Sentencing Guidelines.
The maximum penalty under federal law for this offense is 10 years’ imprisonment, a term of supervised release following imprisonment, and a fine. Under the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, the Judge is also required to consider and weigh a number of factors, including the nature, circumstances and seriousness of the offense; the history and characteristics of the defendant; and the need to punish the defendant, protect the public and provide for the defendant's educational, vocational and medical needs. For these reasons, the statutory maximum penalty for the offense is not an accurate indicator of the potential sentence for a specific defendant.
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Former Teacher Sentenced to 27 Years in Prison for Child Sex Tourism and Child Pornography OffensesRead the Press Release
An Evergreen, Alabama, teacher was sentenced to 27 years in prison for production of child pornography, possession of child pornography, and travel in foreign commerce for the purpose of engaging in illicit sexual conduct with a minor.
Acting Assistant Attorney General Kenneth A. Blanco of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division and Acting U.S. Attorney Steve Butler of the Southern District of Alabama made the announcement.
Clarence Edward “Bud” Evers Jr., 54, pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Kristi DuBose of the Southern District of Alabama on April 14. Evers was employed as a technology teacher with the Conecuh County, Alabama, Board of Education at the time of his arrest on Feb. 11, 2016, and has been in custody since that time.
According to admissions in connection with his plea, at least as early as 1999, and on each of his summer breaks from 2010 through 2014, Evers traveled to Thailand. While in Thailand, Evers paid minor boys as young as thirteen years old to engage in illicit sexual conduct and took sexually explicit photographs of them. In addition, Evers admitted that he had other images and videos of child sexual exploitation on his electronic devices, as well as substantial amounts of encrypted data that was inaccessible to investigators.
Evers was sentenced on July 14. Evers’s sentence will be followed by a lifetime of supervised release, and he was further ordered to pay $50,000 in restitution and a $5,000.00 fine.
Trial Attorney Jessica Urban of the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS) and Assistant U.S. Attorneys Sean Costello and Maria Murphy of the Southern District of Alabama prosecuted the case. U.S. Customs and Immigration Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations investigated the case with substantial assistance from CEOS’s High Technology Investigative Unit.
This investigation was a 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.
Former DHS Employee Sent to Prison for Scheme to Steal USDA Funds Intended to Feed Hungry ChildrenRead the Press Release
LITTLE ROCK—Patrick C. Harris, Acting United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Arkansas, announced Monday that United States District Court Judge James M. Moody, Jr., sentenced Gladys Waits, 37, of Little Rock, to prison for her role in a scheme to steal money intended for feeding children in low income areas.
Judge Moody sentenced Waits, who pleaded guilty to conspiring to commit wire fraud on March 30, 2016, to 108 months’ imprisonment, to be followed by three years of supervised release. She was also ordered to pay restitution in the amount of $9,669,269.66.
The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) feeding programs in Arkansas are administered through the Arkansas Department of Human Services (DHS). Sponsors who want to participate in the feeding programs must submit an application to DHS for approval. After they are approved, they can provide meals as part of the feeding programs, and they are reimbursed for the eligible meals they serve.
Waits is the eighth defendant to be sentenced for her involvement in a scheme to fraudulently obtain USDA program funds intended to feed children in low income areas. Other defendants sentenced include: Kattie Jordan, 63 months’ imprisonment on March 15, 2016; Reuben Nims, 21 months’ imprisonment on November 2, 2016; Tonique Hatton, 108 months’ imprisonment on January 4, 2017; James Franklin, 24 months’ imprisonment on January 10, 2017; Maria Nelson, 30 months’ imprisonment on January 31, 2017; Michael Lee, 30 months’ imprisonment on May 1, 2017; and Christopher Nichols, 3 years’ probation on May 16, 2017.
Waymon Weeams, Dortha Harper, Francine Leon, Alexis Young, and Erica Warren have all pleaded guilty to conspiring to defraud USDA feeding programs and are awaiting sentencing. Jacqueline Mills and Anthony Waits were convicted on April 6, 2017, following a jury trial and are also awaiting sentencing.
Gladys Waits worked for DHS and her responsibilities included processing applications from sponsors who applied to participate in the feeding programs, determining their eligibility, and approving their proposed feeding sites. Waits was responsible for approving the feeding programs for Mills, Jordan, Nims, Franklin, Nichols, Weeams, and Harper at various times between August 2012 and August 2014. The sponsors submitted claims with inflated numbers of children fed. Waits also helped these sponsors avoid DHS’s detection of the fraud.
Gladys Waits received bribe payments from some sponsors, both directly through checks made payable to her and indirectly through checks made payable to relatives, including her husband, Anthony Waits. Anthony Waits recruited sponsors Nims, Franklin, Nichols, Weeams and Harper to participate and they paid a percentage of the proceeds they received from the programs back to Anthony Waits.
The investigation is ongoing and is being conducted by the USDA–Office of Inspector General, Federal Bureau of Investigation, Internal Revenue Service–Criminal Investigations, and United States Marshals Service. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Jana Harris, Allison W. Bragg, and Cameron McCree.
If you are aware of any fraudulent activity regarding feeding programs, please email that information to [email protected].
Former Attorney Sentenced for Mail FraudRead the Press Release
SCRANTON. The United States Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Pennsylvania announced that Susan Kevra-Shiner, age 48, of Clarks Summit, Pennsylvania, was sentenced today by United States District Court Judge Malachy Mannion to serve 24 months’ imprisonment for multiple counts of mail fraud.
According to United States Attorney Bruce D. Brander, a federal jury convicted Kevra-Shiner in January 2016, on seven counts of mail fraud. Kevra-Shiner was the sole owner of GK Abstract Company, Inc., located in Avoca, Pennsylvania. GK Abstract sold title insurance policies as an agent for Stewart Title Guaranty Company, a Texas based company. In 2008, Stewart terminated their relationship with Kevra-Shiner. The evidence at trial shows that between November 2008 and December 2009, Kevra-Shiner fraudulently sold invalid title insurance policies to 69 victims and collected $67,957.20 in premiums.
In addition to the prison term, Judge Mannion also ordered that a probation officer supervise Kevra-Shiner for three years following her release from prison, and that Kevra-Shiner pay restitution in the amount of $67,957.20.
The case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation. Assistant United States Attorney Evan Gotlob prosecuted the case.
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Florida Businessman Sentenced to Prison for Conspiring to Commit Tax and Bank FraudRead the Press Release
A Florida businessman was sentenced today to 57 months in prison in U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Florida for conspiring to commit tax and bank fraud, announced Acting Deputy Assistant Attorney General Stuart M. Goldberg of the Justice Department’s Tax Division.
According to documents filed with the court, Casey Padula, 48, of Port Charlotte, was the sole shareholder of Demandblox Inc., a marketing and information technology business. Padula conspired with others to move funds for his benefit from Demandblox to offshore accounts in Belize and disguised these transfers as business expenses in Demandblox’s corporate records. Padula created two offshore companies in Belize: Intellectual Property Partners Inc. (IPPI) and Latin American Labor Outsourcing Inc. (LALO). He opened and controlled bank accounts in the names of these entities at Heritage International Bank & Trust Limited (Heritage Bank), a financial institution located in Belize. From 2012 through 2013, Padula caused periodic payments to be sent from Demandblox to his accounts at Heritage Bank and deposited approximately $2,490,688. Padula used the funds to pay for personal expenses and purchase significant personal assets. However, he falsely recorded these payments in Demandblox’s corporate books as intellectual property rights or royalty fees and deducted them as business expenses on Demandblox’s 2012 and 2013 corporate tax returns. As a result of these false deductions, Padula caused a tax loss of more than $728,000.
Padula also conspired with investment advisors Joshua VanDyk and Eric St-Cyr at Clover Asset Management (CAM), a Cayman Islands investment firm, to open and fund an investment account that he would control, but that would not be in his name. Heritage Bank had an account at CAM in its name and its clients could get a subaccount through Heritage Bank that would not be in the client’s name but rather would be a numbered account. Padula transferred $1,000,080 from the IPPI bank account at Heritage Bank in Belize to CAM to fund a numbered account that concealed his financial interest in it. Padula failed to disclose this account to the U.S. Department of Treasury and the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) despite being required to do so under the law.
In addition to the tax fraud, Padula also conspired with others to commit bank fraud. Padula had a mortgage on his Port Charlotte, Florida home of approximately $1.5 million with Bank of America (BoA). In 2012, he sent a letter to the bank stating that he could no longer repay his loan. At the same time, Padula provided Robert Robinson III, 43, who acted as a nominee buyer, with more than $625,000 from his IPPI bank account in Belize to fund a short sale of Padula’s home. Padula and Robinson signed a contract, which falsely represented that the property was sold through an “arms-length transaction,” and agreed that Padula would not be permitted to remain in the property after the sale. Padula in fact never moved from his home and less than two months after the closing, Robinson conveyed it back to Padula by transferring ownership to one of Padula’s Belizean entities for $1. Robinson was also sentenced today to five years of probation for signing a false Form HUD-1 in connection with his role in the scheme.
“Casey Padula used secret numbered bank accounts, foreign shell companies and phony deductions to hide millions and evade U.S. taxes,” said Acting Deputy Assistant Attorney General Goldberg. “His 57 month sentence today makes clear that there is no place safe in the world for tax cheats to hide their money and feel secure that the Department of Justice and the IRS will not uncover their scheme and hold them fully accountable.”
“As Mr. Padula has learned, using shell companies and offshore accounts is not tax planning; it’s tax fraud,” said Chief Don Fort of IRS Criminal Investigation (CI). “The use of sophisticated international financial transactions does not prevent IRS CI from following the trail of money back to the person breaking the law. In conjunction with our law enforcement partners, we will continue our ongoing efforts to pursue individuals who use these offshore schemes to circumvent the law.”
In addition to the term of prison imposed by U.S. District Court Judge Sherri Polster Chappell, Padula was ordered to serve three years of supervised release and to pay a fine of $100,000 and to pay restitution of $728,609 to the IRS and to BoA in the amount of $739,459.90. He was remanded into custody.
Acting Deputy Assistant Attorney General Goldberg thanked special agents of IRS CI, who conducted the investigation, and Assistant Chiefs Todd Ellinwood and Caryn Finley of the Tax Division, who prosecuted this case. Acting Deputy Assistant Attorney General Goldberg also thanked the U.S. Attorney’s Office of the Middle District of Florida for its assistance.
Additional information about the Tax Division’s enforcement efforts can be found on the division’s website.
Florida Businessman Sentenced to Prison for Conspiring to Commit Tax and Bank FraudRead the Press Release
Fort Myers, FL – A Florida businessman was sentenced today to 57 months in prison in U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Florida for conspiring to commit tax and bank fraud, announced Acting Deputy Assistant Attorney General Stuart M. Goldberg of the Justice Department’s Tax Division.
According to documents filed with the court, Casey Padula, 48, of Port Charlotte, was the sole shareholder of Demandblox Inc., a marketing and information technology business. Padula conspired with others to move funds for his benefit from Demandblox to offshore accounts in Belize and disguised these transfers as business expenses in Demandblox’s corporate records. Padula created two offshore companies in Belize: Intellectual Property Partners Inc. (IPPI) and Latin American Labor Outsourcing Inc. (LALO). He opened and controlled bank accounts in the names of these entities at Heritage International Bank & Trust Limited (Heritage Bank), a financial institution located in Belize. From 2012 through 2013, Padula caused periodic payments to be sent from Demandblox to his accounts at Heritage Bank and deposited approximately $2,490,688. Padula used the funds to pay for personal expenses and purchase significant personal assets. However, he falsely recorded these payments in Demandblox’s corporate books as intellectual property rights or royalty fees and deducted them as business expenses on Demandblox’s 2012 and 2013 corporate tax returns. As a result of these false deductions, Padula caused a tax loss of more than $728,000.
Padula also conspired with investment advisors Joshua VanDyk and Eric St-Cyr at Clover Asset Management (CAM), a Cayman Islands investment firm, to open and fund an investment account that he would control, but that would not be in his name. Heritage Bank had an account at CAM in its name and its clients could get a subaccount through Heritage Bank that would not be in the client’s name but rather would be a numbered account. Padula transferred $1,000,080 from the IPPI bank account at Heritage Bank in Belize to CAM to fund a numbered account that concealed his financial interest in it. Padula failed to disclose this account to the U.S. Department of Treasury and the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) despite being required to do so under the law.
In addition to the tax fraud, Padula also conspired with others to commit bank fraud. Padula had a mortgage on his Port Charlotte, Florida home of approximately $1.5 million with Bank of America (BoA). In 2012, he sent a letter to the bank stating that he could no longer repay his loan. At the same time, Padula provided Robert Robinson III, 43, who acted as a nominee buyer, with more than $625,000 from his IPPI bank account in Belize to fund a short sale of Padula’s home. Padula and Robinson signed a contract, which falsely represented that the property was sold through an “arms-length transaction,” and agreed that Padula would not be permitted to remain in the property after the sale. Padula in fact never moved from his home and less than two months after the closing, Robinson conveyed it back to Padula by transferring ownership to one of Padula’s Belizean entities for $1. Robinson was also sentenced today to five years of probation for signing a false Form HUD-1 in connection with his role in the scheme.
“Casey Padula used secret numbered bank accounts, foreign shell companies and phony deductions to hide millions and evade U.S. taxes,” said Acting Deputy Assistant Attorney General Goldberg. “His 57 month sentence today makes clear that there is no place safe in the world for tax cheats to hide their money and feel secure that the Department of Justice and the IRS will not uncover their scheme and hold them fully accountable.”
“As Mr. Padula has learned, using shell companies and offshore accounts is not tax planning; it’s tax fraud,” said Chief Don Fort of IRS Criminal Investigation (CI). “The use of sophisticated international financial transactions does not prevent IRS CI from following the trail of money back to the person breaking the law. In conjunction with our law enforcement partners, we will continue our ongoing efforts to pursue individuals who use these offshore schemes to circumvent the law.”
In addition to the term of prison imposed by U.S. District Court Judge Sherri Polster Chappell, Padula was ordered to serve three years of supervised release and to pay a fine of $100,000 and to pay restitution of $728,609 to the IRS and to BoA in the amount of $739,459.90. He was remanded into custody.
Acting Deputy Assistant Attorney General Goldberg thanked special agents of IRS CI, who conducted the investigation, and Assistant Chiefs Todd Ellinwood and Caryn Finley of the Tax Division, who prosecuted this case. Acting Deputy Assistant Attorney General Goldberg also thanked the U.S. Attorney’s Office of the Middle District of Florida for its assistance.
Additional information about the Tax Division’s enforcement efforts can be found on the division’s website.
Firearms Crime ReportRead the Press Release
Stephonne Wilder, 21, was indicted for being a felon in possession of a firearm.
Rodney Morgan, Jr., 37, pled guilty to one felony count of felon in possession of a firearm and one felony count of possession with intent to distribute heroin.
Hillford Turner, 37, pled guilty to one felony count of felon in possession of a firearm.
James Bell, 29, pled guilty to one felony count of felon in possession of a firearm.
William A. Anthony, 42, pled guilty to one felony count of felon in possession of a firearm.
Devon Branch, 23, pled guilty to one felony count of felon in possession of a firearm.
Donald Dyson, 27, pled guilty to one felony count of felon in possession of a firearm.
Kendreal Graham, 51, pled guilty to one felony count of possessing a gun in furtherance of a crime of violence and one felony count of kidnapping.
Demetrius A. Simmons, 34, pled guilty to one felony count of felon in possession of a firearm.
James Holman, 50, was sentenced to 120 months in prison for being a felon in possession of a stolen firearm.
Carlos Champion, 34, was sentenced to 36 months in prison for being a felon in possession of a firearm.
Rodney E. Lewis, 33, was sentenced to 60 months in prison for possession of a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime.
Jeffrey F. Emily, 51, was sentenced to 24 months in prison for being a felon in possession of a firearm.
Jermiha Lea, 28, was sentenced to 48 months in prison for being a felon in possession of a firearm.
Eric T. Hill, 35, was sentenced to 24 months in prison for felon in possession of a firearm.
Executive Director of Domestic Violence Programs Sentenced to Prison for Embezzling Department of Justice Grant FundsRead the Press Release
GREAT FALLS - The United States Attorney’s Office announced that Toni Louise Plummer-Alvernaz (Plummer) was sentenced to one year in prison, $246,024 in restitution, and a $100 special assessment. The sentencing occurred on July 14, 2017, before U.S. District Chief Judge Dana Christensen, in Great Falls, Montana.
Plummer was the Executive Director for the Montana Native Women’s Coalition (Coalition) and the Women’s Resource Center (Resource Center). Both organizations were located in Glasgow, Montana. The Montana Native Women’s Coalition was designed to improve urban, rural, and Native American community responses to victims of domestic and sexual violence. The Women’s Resource Center offered, among other things, educational seminars to the general public on various issues, such as health, parenting, career development, and violence prevention.
The Coalition and Resource Center received approximately $1.6 million in federal grant funds from the Department of Justice, Office of Violence Against Women. Plummer embezzled approximately 15% of the grants by inflating work hours, using the organization credit cards for vacations to Mount Rushmore and California, claiming travel when no such travel occurred, cash advances, bonuses, and paying family members money that they were not entitled to receive.
In a sentencing memo filed in federal court, Ryan G. Weldon stated, “Ms. Plummer used federal funds as a slush fund to line her own pockets.” Congress has attempted to address domestic violence in Montana, particularly in Indian Country, by providing federal funding. But “Ms. Plummer chose to victimize victims yet again” by stealing that money, which was meant for some of the most vulnerable individuals in the community. Weldon stated at sentencing that this type of crime “tears at the moral fabric of the community.”
Chief Judge Dana Christensen agreed and sentenced Plummer to a year in prison and ordered restitution of $246,024. The conviction and sentencing of Plummer is the latest in a series of prosecutions and convictions relating to public corruption, fraud, and theft in federal grants, contracts, and programs brought by the investigators and prosecutors of the U.S. Attorney’s Guardians Project, an anti-corruption strike force created in 2011. The Plummer case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Department of Justice - Office of Inspector General, and local law enforcement.
District Man Sentenced to Year in Prison for Carrying Out Bank Fraud SchemeRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON – David Tyrone Johnson, 48, of Washington, D.C., was sentenced today to a year and a day in prison on federal charges arising from a real estate scheme involving forged mortgage satisfaction documents, announced U.S. Attorney Channing D. Phillips and Andrew Vale, Assistant Director in Charge of the FBI’s Washington Field Office.
Johnson pled guilty in April 2017, in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia, to charges of bank fraud and making false statements. He was sentenced by the Honorable Ketanji Brown Jackson. Following his prison term, Johnson will be placed on two years of supervised release. He also must pay $337,105 in restitution to Fidelity National Title Insurance Company, as well as a forfeiture money judgment of $170,688.
According to a statement of offense submitted at the time of the guilty plea, SunTrust Mortgage, Inc. loaned a friend of Johnson’s approximately $470,000 in 2008 to purchase residential real estate in the 100 block of 57th Street SE. By 2009, the friend had failed to repay the mortgage loans, and in 2010, SunTrust Mortgage filed a notice of foreclosure with the District of Columbia’s Recorder of Deeds. In April 2013, SunTrust Mortgage began the process of foreclosing on the mortgage and taking possession of the property, due to the friend’s failure to make good and timely payments on the mortgage loans.
Sometime before Oct. 2, 2013, Johnson caused the creation of two phony and forged certificates of satisfaction, which falsely represented that the SunTrust Mortgage loans at the property on 57th Street SE had been paid and that his friend owned the property “free and clear.” According to the statement of offense, on Oct. 2, 2013, Johnson filed these two phony certificates of satisfaction with the Recorder of Deeds.
In or about December 2013, after the fake certificates of satisfaction allowed the friend to sell the property without paying the outstanding mortgages, the title and escrow company wired out the sales proceeds of $337,105, of which approximately $170,688 was obtained by Johnson.
In addition, in 2015, Johnson was required to submit a financial disclosure form to his government agency employer; however, on that form, Johnson failed to disclose the money he obtained from the sales proceeds of the property, knowing that he had obtained the money. This failure to inform his government agency employer was material or important to his employer, and one that resulted in a false statement on his financial disclosure form.
In announcing the sentence, U.S. Attorney Phillips and Assistant Director in Charge Vale expressed appreciation for the work performed by those who investigated the case and assisted in preparing it for trial from the FBI, including the Washington Field Office and the FBI Laboratory. They also acknowledged the efforts of those working on the case from the U.S. Attorney’s Office, including Paralegal Specialist Christopher Toms; former Paralegal Specialists Corinne Kleinman and Kaitlyn Krueger; Litigation Tech Specialist Ron Royal, and Assistant U.S. Attorney Thomas Swanton, who assisted with forfeiture issues. Finally, they commended the work of Assistant U.S. Attorney Virginia Cheatham, who prosecuted the case.
Detroit heroin dealer sentenced to federal prison for drug crimeRead the Press Release
CHARLESTON, W.Va. – A Detroit man was sentenced today to two years in federal prison for a heroin crime, announced United States Attorney Carol Casto. Kenyoda Holmes, 26, previously pleaded guilty to distribution of heroin.
Holmes admitted that on April 20, 2016, he sold heroin to a confidential informant working with law enforcement. The drug deal took place at the Southmoor Apartments in South Charleston. Holmes pleaded guilty to count two of a four-count indictment that alleged distribution of heroin with each count. As part of the plea agreement, in addition to the drug deal on April 20, 2016, Holmes admitted to other drug distributions in the community beyond the count to which he pled guilty. The Court also held Holmes responsible for possessing a firearm related to his drug trafficking activity.
The Metropolitan Drug Enforcement Network Team conducted the investigation. Assistant United States Attorney Monica D. Coleman is responsible for the prosecution. United States District Judge Thomas E. Johnston imposed the sentence.
This prosecution was brought as part of an ongoing effort led by the United States Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of West Virginia to combat the illicit sale and misuse of prescription drugs and heroin. The U.S. Attorney’s Office, joined by federal, state and local law enforcement agencies, is committed to aggressively pursuing and shutting down illegal pill trafficking, eliminating open air drug markets, and curtailing the spread of opiate painkillers and heroin in communities across the Southern District.
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Defendant Sentenced to 110 Months on Gun ChargeRead the Press Release
Acting United States Attorney Steve Butler of the Southern District of Alabama announces that Senior U.S. District Judge Callie V.S. Granade sentenced Kevin James Webster, 35, to 110 months imprisonment for being a felon in possession of a firearm. Judge Granade also ordered that Webster receive three years of supervised release upon completing his prison term, undergo substance abuse testing, and pay a $100 special assessment.
On November 28, 2016, a Selma police officer responded to a home in Selma regarding a citizen complaint of a suspicious vehicle at the home. Upon arrival, the officer saw a blue GMC Yukon backed into the home’s driveway with its headlights off and the engine running. The officer noticed that the driver, later identified as Webster, was asleep and alone in the vehicle. The officer could smell marijuana emanating from the vehicle. After finding marijuana in Webster’s possession, the officer subsequently arrested Webster. During a post-arrest inventory of the vehicle, law enforcement officials recovered ten clear bags of marijuana from the front seat floorboard, a .45- caliber Llama Gabilondo y Cia Vitoria pistol under the front bench seat next to the driver, a digital scale, a small bag of cocaine, a mechanical scale, a box of clear sandwich bags, and approximately $659 in cash. The firearm was loaded with a magazine containing nine rounds of .45-caliber ammunition and one round of ammunition loaded in the firearm’s chamber. Before his November 2016 arrest, Webster had eleven felony convictions.
In January 2017, a federal grand jury for the Southern District of Alabama indicted Webster on two counts of firearms violations. Count 1 charged him with being a felon in possession of a firearm. Count 2 charged him with possessing a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime. On March 20, 2017, the defendant pled guilty to Count 1.
The DEA and the Selma Police Department investigated the case. Assistant United States Attorney Sinan Kalayoglu prosecuted the case.
Dallas Man Sentenced to 100 Months in Federal Prison on Firearm ConvictionRead the Press Release
DALLAS — Mark Anthony Esparza, 32, of Dallas, was sentenced last week by U.S. District Judge Sidney A. Fitzwater to 100 months in federal prison, following his guilty plea in September 2016, announced U.S. Attorney John Parker of the Northern District of Texas.
Esparza pleaded guilty to one count of convicted felon in possession of a firearm. Esparza has been in custody since the time of his arrest in June 2016.
According to evidence presented at the sentencing hearing, on October 18, 2015, officers with the Dallas Police Department arrested Esparza, who had previously been convicted for aggravated assault with a deadly weapon and robbery, for possessing a .40 caliber pistol. Esparza also possessed heroin and methamphetamine with the firearm.
The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives, and Dallas Police Department investigated the case. Deputy Criminal Chief Assistant U.S. Attorney Gary Tromblay prosecuted.
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