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Tuesday 26 August 2025
Mexican National Sentenced to 23 Years in Federal Prison for Producing, Distributing, and Possessing Child Sexual Abuse MaterialRead the Press Release
SANTA ANA, California – An illegal alien from Mexico was sentenced today to 276 months in federal prison for befriending a 13-year-old girl, providing her with alcohol, and sexually assaulting her, taking photographs and making videos of the attack.
Jonathan Gonzalez-Reyes, 39, of Anaheim, was sentenced by United States District Judge David O. Carter, who also ordered Gonzales-Reyes to pay $3,000 in restitution to the victim.
At the conclusion of a three-day trial, a federal jury on April 30 found Gonzalez-Reyes guilty of one count of production of child pornography, two counts of distribution of child pornography, and one count of possession of child pornography. He has been in federal custody since June 2024.
In February 2021, Gonzalez-Reyes and a co-defendant, Nanci Jasmin Castillo, 32, of Anaheim, befriended the victim, a 13-year-old girl identified in court documents as “Minor Victim 1.”
At Castillo’s home, Castillo and Gonzalez-Reyes sexually assaulted the victim – to whom Castillo had given an alcoholic beverage after the victim previously had taken Xanax anti-anxiety medication – while the victim was going in and out of consciousness. Gonzalez-Reyes and Castillo photographed and made videos of the attack.
A search of Gonzalez-Reyes’ phone and Castillo’s iCloud account by law enforcement revealed the existence of child sexual abuse material (CSAM) depicting the victim and the defendants. Additionally, law enforcement found evidence that Gonzalez-Reyes sent copies of the CSAM to Castillo.
In September 2021, Gonzalez-Reyes used a cellphone to knowingly possess and distribute images of the same victim, knowing the images showed a minor engaged in sexually explicit conduct.
Castillo, who also has been in federal custody since June 2024, pleaded guilty on February 5 to one count of production of child pornography. On July 28, Judge Carter sentenced her to 20 years in federal prison and ordered her to pay $3,000 in restitution.
The FBI investigated this matter with assistance from the Anaheim Police Department, the Los Angeles Regional Human Trafficking Task Force, the Los Angeles County Department of Children and Family Services, and ZOE International.
Assistant United States Attorney Chelsea Norell of the Major Crimes Section and Special Assistant United States Attorney Blake Hannah of the General Crimes Section prosecuted this case.
Mexican National Sentenced to 18 Months Imprisonment for Reentry of Removed AlienRead the Press Release
NEW ORLEANS, LOUISIANA – ENRIQUE TORRES-BEIZA, a/k/a “Enrique B. Torres,” age 40, a native of Mexico, was sentenced on August 14, 2025, for reentry of a removed alien, in violation of Title 8, United States Code, Section 1326(a), announced Acting U.S. Attorney Michael M. Simpson. He was sentenced to 18 months imprisonment, one-year of supervised release and a mandatory $100.00 special assessment fee.
According to court documents, ENRIQUE TORRES-BEIZA, a/k/a “Enrique B. Torres,” (“TORRES-BEIZA”)reentered the United States after being previously deported on December 26, 2018. On or about October 26, 2024, TORRES-BEIZA was found to be unlawfully present in the United States while being housed in the Terrebonne Parish Jail, Terrebonne, Louisiana, and serving his sentence for a second offense, driving under the influence, conviction.
This case is part of Operation Take Back America, a nationwide initiative that marshals the full resources of the Department of Justice to repel the invasion of illegal immigration, achieve the total elimination of cartels and transnational criminal organizations (TCOs), and protect our communities from the perpetrators of violent crime. Operation Take Back America streamlines efforts and resources from the Department’s Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETFs) and Project Safe Neighborhood (PSN).
Acting U.S. Attorney Simpson praised the work of the United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency and the Terrebonne Parish Sheriff’s Office in investigating this matter. Assistant United States Attorney Carter K.D. Guice, Jr. of the General Crimes Unit is in charge of the prosecution.
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Mexican National Indicted for Drug and Firearm CrimesRead the Press Release
SALT LAKE CITY, Utah – A Mexican national, whose immigration status was revoked at the time of his arrest, is facing federal charges for drug and firearm crimes, and was ordered by the court to remain in federal custody.
Ignacio Gonzalez, 27, a Mexican citizen living in Riverton, Utah, was initially charged in a complaint earlier this month and indicted by a federal grand jury last week.
According to court documents, on August 5, 2025, federal law enforcement agents assisted Taylorsville Police Department during an executed search warrant at a residence in Riverton. During the search of the residence, law enforcement seized approximately 51.7 pounds of methamphetamine, a stolen Glock 43X, 9mm pistol, and other illegal drugs. Each of the seized bags of methamphetamine contained approximately 2.1 pounds of methamphetamine.
Gonzalez is charged with possession of methamphetamine with intent to distribute, possession of cocaine with intent to distribute, and possession of a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime. A three day jury trial is scheduled for November 3, 2025 at 8:30 a.m. in courtroom 3.4 before a U.S. Magistrate Judge at the Orrin G. Hatch United States District Courthouse in downtown Salt Lake City.
Acting United States Attorney Felice John Viti for the District of Utah made the announcement.
The case is being investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) and Taylorsville Police Department. Special assistance was provided by Homeland Security Investigations (HSI).
Assistant United States Attorney Mark E. Woolf of the United States Attorney’s Office for the District of Utah is prosecuting the case.
This case is part of Operation Take Back America, a nationwide initiative that marshals the full resources of the Department of Justice to repel the invasion of illegal immigration, achieve the total elimination of cartels and transnational criminal organizations (TCOs), and protect our communities from the perpetrators of violent crime. Operation Take Back America streamlines efforts and resources from the Department’s Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) and Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN).
An indictment is merely an allegation and all defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
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ignacio_gonzalez.indictment.pdf ignacio_gonzalez._felony_complaint.pdfMexican Citizen Pleads Guilty to Alien SmugglingRead the Press Release
ALBANY, NEW YORK – Jose Rodriguez Barajas, age 40, and a citizen of Mexico, pled guilty today to conspiracy to commit alien smuggling and three counts of alien smuggling. Acting United States Attorney John A. Sarcone III and Chief Patrol Agent Robert Garcia of the U.S. Border Patrol’s Swanton Sector made the announcement.
Rodriguez Barajas, an illegal alien himself, admitted that on March 14, 2025, he smuggled three aliens at the border who were hiding in the woods after entering the United States illegally from Canada. The defendant admitted he expected to be paid for helping the aliens get across the border and transporting them further into the United States.
Acting United States Attorney John A. Sarcone III stated, “Rodriguez Barajas—an illegal alien from Mexico—thumbed his nose at our laws, snuck into our country and conspired to sneak more aliens through our Northern Border for his own profit. This administration, unlike past administrations, is committed to fully enforcing the immigration laws of this country. If you smuggle aliens through our Northern Border, you will be caught, you will be prosecuted, and you will be deported.”
Swanton Sector Border Patrol Chief Robert N. Garcia stated, "Jose Rodriguez Barajas' blatant disregard for U.S. immigration law, ranging from his illegal entry into the country to his involvement in smuggling others, poses a significant threat to our national security and the safety of our communities. Swanton Sector Border Patrol remains unwavering in its commitment to disrupting and dismantling criminal networks that exploit our immigration system. We commend the U.S. Attorney’s Office for their invaluable partnership in ensuring those who violate our laws are held accountable."
At his sentencing on December 23, 2025, Rodriguez Barajas faces at least 5 years and up to 15 years in prison. A defendant’s sentence is imposed by a judge based on the particular statutes the defendant is convicted of violating, the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other factors.
Border Patrol investigated this case. Assistant U.S. Attorney Jeffrey Stitt is prosecuting this case.
Members of Jacksonville Drug Trafficking Organization Plead Guilty to Operating Multi-Kilo Fentanyl and Methamphetamine Distribution ConspiracyRead the Press Release
Jacksonville, Florida – United States Attorney Gregory W. Kehoe announces that Aaron Jarvis McGhee (39, Sumterville), Shikita Lashelle James (38, Jacksonville), Johnny Angelo Pack (50, Jacksonville), Natra Antonio Jones (33, Jacksonville), and Bobby Warren Harvey, Jr. (28, Jacksonville) have each pleaded guilty to conspiring to distribute more than 400 grams of fentanyl. James, Pack, Jones, and Harvey also each pleaded guilty to possessing with intent to distribute fentanyl, methamphetamine, or both. Each faces a minimum penalty of 10 years in federal prison. The sentencing hearings for McGhee, James, Pack, and Harvey are set for December 11, 2025. Jones’s sentencing hearing has not yet been scheduled.
According to the court documents, in 2022 and 2023, these individuals operated a drug trafficking organization that purchased fentanyl and methamphetamine from Mexican supply sources and transported the drugs through Houston, Texas, to Jacksonville, Florida, where they were sold. Already serving a federal prison term for a prior drug conspiracy conviction, McGhee used a contraband cellphone from prison to coordinate these drug transactions, which resulted in drug shipments across the southern U.S. border from Mexico into Texas. There, Pack secured these drug shipments and transported them back to Florida. Once in Jacksonville, Pack delivered the drug shipments to residences belonging to James, who stored and distributed the drugs to retail dealers in Duval and Clay Counties. Jones and Harvey served as runners for the organization in Jacksonville and were responsible for transporting drugs and drug proceeds.
Between April and May 2023, members of the organization routinely flew commercially between Jacksonville and Houston, staying one day at a time in Houston before taking return flights back to Jacksonville. On April 28, 2023, DEA agents observed James travel to the Jacksonville International Airport, where she dropped off Jones and Harvey, both of whom were scheduled to fly to Houston. Agents observed Jones and Harvey check in two bags each as luggage. Agents seized the four bags and secured search warrants for them. Agents recovered a total of $399,800 in cash from inside Jones’s two suitcases. In Harvey’s suitcases, agents recovered approximately five kilograms of fentanyl and an additional $373,980.
On May 16, 2023, DEA agents executed search warrants at two of James’s residences in Jacksonville. Inside one house, agents recovered approximately $824,909 in cash, approximately 6.7 kilograms of fentanyl, 4.4 kilograms of methamphetamine, 1 kilogram of heroin, and five loaded firearms. Inside the second house, agents recovered approximately $28,000 in cash, approximately 5.4 kilograms of methamphetamine, and four loaded firearms.
This case was investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration and the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office. It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Kirwinn Mike and Elisibeth Adams.
Member of Violent Bridgeport Gang Sentenced to 15 Years in Federal PrisonRead the Press Release
AMIRE NEWSOME, also known as “Mire,” 22, last residing in Stamford, was sentenced yesterday by U.S. District Judge Kari A. Dooley in Bridgeport to 180 months of imprisonment and three years of supervised release for his involvement in a violent Bridgeport street gang.
Today’s announcement was made was made by David X. Sullivan, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut; Joseph T. Corradino, State’s Attorney for the Fairfield Judicial District; Bridgeport Police Chief Roderick Porter; P.J. O’Brien, Special Agent in Charge of the New Haven Division of the Federal Bureau of Investigation; Bryan DiGirolamo, Acting Special Agent in Charge, ATF Boston Field Division; Jarod Forget, Special Agent in Charge of the Drug Enforcement Administration for New England; and Acting Chief Deputy U.S. Marshal John Iverson.
According to court documents and statements made in court, the FBI, ATF, DEA, U.S. Marshals Service, Connecticut State Police and Bridgeport Police have been investigating multiple Bridgeport-based gangs whose members are involved in narcotics trafficking, murder, and other acts of violence. Newsome was a member of the Original North End (“O.N.E.”), a gang based in the Trumbull Gardens area of Bridgeport that committed acts of violence against rival gangs, including the East End gang, the East Side gang, a West End gang, and the PT Barnum gang. O.N.E. members also robbed drug dealers, customers, and others, sold narcotics, and stole cars from inside and outside Connecticut, often using the cars to commit crimes. They frequently used social media to promote and coordinate their criminal activities.
Analysis of numerous social media posts and text messages revealed that Newsome possessed firearms, including firearms with extended magazines, and that he sold a variety of drugs. He also participated with other O.N.E. members in the theft and possession of stolen vehicles, some of which were used to commit gang-related shootings, and conspired with them to murder O.N.E.’s rivals.
The investigation also revealed that on March 25, 2020, Newsome and O.N.E. member Tyiese Warren stole a car that was in front of the Citgo 6M Service Station and Quik Mart located at 2000 Barnum Avenue in Stratford. During the theft, they dragged the car’s driver, who was trying to stop the theft and was hanging onto the car, several hundred yards before he let go. Warren and Newsome then engaged in a carjacking involving a Toyota Corolla in Bridgeport, holding the owner at gunpoint and ultimately driving away in the car. Minutes later, Warren and Newsome committed a gunpoint robbery of the Citgo in Stratford, taking cash from the store and a cellphone from a store employee. They stole three other cars that same night.
In addition, Newsome and fellow O.N.E. member Jahaz Langston conspired to murder rival gang members and, on March 7, 2021, shot and severely injured the mother of two rival gang members as she drove her vehicle on I-95.
Newsome has been detained since his arrest on August 10, 2021. On August 16, 2023, he pleaded guilty to racketeering conspiracy.
Warren and Langston each pleaded guilty to racketeering conspiracy. On March 9, 2022, Warren was sentenced to 40 years of imprisonment, and on April 17, 2025, Langston was sentenced to 188 months of imprisonment.
Approximately 47 members and associates of multiple Bridgeport-based gangs have been convicted of federal offenses stemming from this investigation, which has solved eight murders and approximately 20 attempted murders.
This investigation has been conducted by the FBI’s Safe Streets and Violent Crimes Task Forces, ATF, DEA, U.S. Marshals Service, Bridgeport Police Department, Connecticut State Police and the Bridgeport State’s Attorney’s Office, with the assistance of the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, Connecticut Forensic Science Laboratory, and the police departments from Norwalk, Stamford, Fairfield, Stratford, Ansonia, Monroe, Waterbury, Naugatuck, Eastchester (N.Y.), Rye (N.Y.), and Newburgh (N.Y.). The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Karen L. Peck, Jocelyn C. Kaoutzanis, Stephanie T. Levick, and Rahul Kale.
This prosecution is a part of the Justice’s Department’s Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), Project Longevity and Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) programs.
Luzerne County Man Sentenced to 160 Months for Drug Trafficking and Firearm OffensesRead the Press Release
SCRANTON – The United States Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Pennsylvania announced that Kevin Neysmith, a/k/a Kevin Blackwood, age 45, a resident of Kingston, Pennsylvania, was sentenced to 160 months’ imprisonment by United States District Judge Julia K. Munley, for possession with intent to distribute controlled substances and possession of a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime.
According to the Acting United States Attorney John Gurganus, on September 9, 2022, members of the Lackawanna County Drug Task Force arrested Neysmith in Moosic, Pennsylvania, as he was attempting to make a fentanyl delivery. During the arrest, Neysmith exited his moving vehicle and fled through a parking lot. His car continued to move and struck an unoccupied car. Task Force Officers arrested him as he tried to hide behind a dumpster. Officer seized from Neysmith--and from a compartment in his car--methamphetamine, fentanyl, cocaine, and heroin, and an unregistered 9-millimeter Canik 55 Model TP9 semi-automatic pistol equipped with a tactical laser.
This case is part of Operation Take Back America (https://www.justice.gov/dag/media/1393746/dl?inline), a nationwide initiative that marshals the full resources of the Department of Justice to repel the invasion of illegal immigration, achieve the total elimination of cartels and transnational criminal organizations (TCOs), and protect our communities from the perpetrators of violent crime. Operation Take Back America streamlines efforts and resources from the Department’s Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETFs) and Project Safe Neighborhood (PSN).
The investigation was conducted by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI)—Scranton Office, the Lackawanna County District Attorney’s Office, members of the Lackawanna County Drug Task Force, and the Moosic Borough Police Department. The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Tatum R. Wilson.
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Long Beach Man Sentenced to 110 Years in Prison for Production of Images of Minors Engaging in Sexually Explicit ConductRead the Press Release
Gulfport, MS – A Long Beach, Mississippi man was sentenced today to 110 years in prison, followed by lifetime supervised release, for producing images and videos of minors engaging in sexually explicit conduct.
In February 2023, the Federal Bureau of Investigation (“FBI”) in Gulfport learned that Jason Leonard Rhodes, a 47-year-old male, had sexual contact with three minor boys. With that information, the FBI and the Mississippi Attorney General’s Office, Cybercrime Division, conducted a search warrant at the defendant’s residence on February 8, 2023.
During the search warrant, the FBI found various electronic devices belonging to Rhodes. A forensic examiner with the Mississippi Attorney General’s Office, Cybercrime Division conducted a forensic analysis on those devices and found videos of Rhodes performing oral sex on three minor boys, beginning when at least one of the boys was 5 years old. The forensic examiner also found chats between Rhodes and others in which Rhodes sent some of those videos to other people as well as videos of other children being sexually abused.
During the search warrant, Rhodes gave a confession to law enforcement, admitting to videoing himself performing oral sex on the minor boys and to sending out pictures and videos of children being sexually abused.
Acting U.S. Attorney Patrick A. Lemon of the Southern District of Mississippi and Special Agent in Charge Robert Eikhoff of the Federal Bureau of Investigation made the announcement.
The case was investigated by the FBI, Mississippi Attorney General’s Office, Cybercrime Division, and the Long Beach Police Department.
Assistant U.S. Attorneys Lee Smith, Glenda Haynes, and Andrea Jones prosecuted the case.
This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice. Led by U.S. Attorneys' Offices and the Criminal Division's Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS), Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to better locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the Internet as well as to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.projectsafechildhood.gov.
Local Man Sentenced for Armed Carjacking in SouthavenRead the Press Release
Aberdeen, MS – A Southaven man was sentenced today to over seven years in prison for carjacking.
According to court documents, on September 16, 2024, Lacyrus Green, 27, met two victims in the Walmart parking lot in Southaven to test drive a car the victims had for sale. Upon returning from the test drive, Green brandished a BB gun designed to look like an AR-style pistol and threatened to kill the victims, then took the key fob and stole the car. Green was subsequently apprehended in Memphis, Tennessee.
Senior Judge Sharion Aycock sentenced Green today to 95 months imprisonment. Upon release from prison, Green will be on supervision for a period of three years. He was remanded to the custody of the U.S. Marshal following sentencing.
“This office is committed to the fairly straightforward principle that violent criminals such as this defendant should go to prison,” said U.S. Attorney Clay Joyner. “We will continue, alongside our law enforcement partners, with our commitment to protect victims from those who would threaten them with harm.”
"Lacyrus Green’s vicious crime endangered lives and created fear amongst the community,” stated Special Agent in Charge of the FBI Jackson Field Office Robert Eikhoff. “The brazen act of brandishing a gun and carjacking unsuspecting sellers will not be tolerated. Collaborative teamwork between the FBI, the US Attorney’s Office, the Southaven Police Department, and the Memphis Police Department sends a clear message that law enforcement will relentlessly pursue violent offenders, restoring safety and security to our communities."
This case was investigated by the FBI, the Southaven Police Department, and the Memphis Police Department.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Robert J. Mims prosecuted the case.
Leader of Meth, Fentanyl Trafficking Organization Sentenced to 27 Years in PrisonRead the Press Release
ST. LOUIS – U.S. District Judge Stephen R. Clark on Tuesday sentenced a man who built a drug trafficking organization that brought hundreds of pounds of fentanyl and methamphetamine to the St. Louis area to 27 years in prison.
Stephen Griffin Jr., 51, received a 25-year sentence for the main case, filed in 2021, and two more years for violating his supervised release in a 2015 heroin trafficking case.
In all, 20 people were indicted. Griffin’s top lieutenant, Troy Mills, 22, was also sentenced Tuesday to 16 years in prison on meth and fentanyl conspiracy charges and a charge of being a felon in possession of a firearm. Crystal Miller, 37, of Florissant, who ran stash houses, was sentenced in December of 2023 to 20 years in prison. Twelve others have been sentenced. The remaining five defendants will be sentenced in October and November.
During the investigation, investigators seized about 39 firearms, 499 pounds of meth, 22 pounds of heroin, 49 pounds of fentanyl, four vehicles, ammunition, and more than $500,000 in assets.
Griffin pleaded guilty in April to two counts of conspiracy to distribute and possess with the intent to distribute methamphetamine, two counts of conspiracy to distribute and possess with the intent to distribute fentanyl and one count of possession of a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime. He admitted being part of a large-scale drug trafficking organization that brought meth and fentanyl from Arizona and California to the Eastern District of Missouri.
Initially, Griffin’s organization received meth and fentanyl in the mail, in multiple-kilogram packages, his plea agreement says. Those packages were taken to “stash” houses, where they were prepared for sale. Griffin and his co-conspirators also used a home health care business in a shopping center in Northwoods, Missouri as a base of operations where they coordinated shipments and sales of drugs, collected and stored drug proceeds, communicated with coconspirators, sources of supply and customers, and as a centrally located location to congregate between drug sales. Griffin’s organization later developed a second source of drugs in Arizona, and would obtain multiple-kilogram quantities of meth and fentanyl via the mail or couriers. Mills obtained drugs from Griffin and sold them to others.
In March of 2021, Griffin was arrested leaving a “stash” apartment with about one kilo of meth, a gun and multiple cell phones. Inside the apartment, investigators found about seven kilos of meth, 15 grams of fentanyl, a drug press and scales.
“Stephen Griffin rolled the dice when he started pushing fentanyl and methamphetamine in the St. Louis region,” Drug Enforcement Administration St. Louis Division Special Agent in Charge Michael Davis said. “His selfish greed destroyed families who were impacted by the fallout of his poisonous sales. Today, he faces the consequences of those actions. Griffin’s 21 years in federal prison will allow him plenty of time to reflect on the lives he ruined, including his own.”
“The U.S. Postal Inspection Service mission is to protect the nation’s mail system. With the collaborative efforts of our federal law enforcement partners, Postal Inspectors investigate those utilizing the U.S. Mail for illicit activities, including the distribution of narcotics. Today’s sentencing reflects the diligent investigative work by Postal Inspectors and our law enforcement partners,” said Inspector in Charge, Ruth Mendonça, who leads the Chicago Division, which includes the St. Louis Field Office.
The Drug Enforcement Administration, the U.S. Postal Inspection Service and the U.S. Marshals Service investigated the case. Assistant U.S. Attorney Stephen Casey is prosecuting the case.
This effort is part of an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF) operation. OCDETF identifies, disrupts, and dismantles the highest-level criminal organizations that threaten the United States using a prosecutor-led, intelligence-driven, multi-agency approach.
Jacksonville Convicted Child Sex Offender Sentenced to 50 Years for Producing Videos and Photos Depicting Sexual Abuse of A ChildRead the Press Release
Jacksonville, Florida – Chief United States District Judge Marcia Morales Howard has sentenced Kevin John Merritt (63, Jacksonville) to 50 years in federal prison for coercing and using a minor child to produce videos and photos that depicted the child being sexually abused. Merritt was arrested on March 16, 2023, and has been in custody since that time. He pleaded guilty on November 7, 2024. Merritt is a registered child sex offender following his 2011 federal conviction for possessing videos depicting the sexual abuse of children.
According to court documents, this investigation began when the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children received a “CyberTipline Report” from the company that owns Facebook. This report advised that files depicting child sexual abuse materials had been sent through Facebook Messenger on September 14, 2022, by user “Jackie Frost” to another Facebook user in Jacksonville. This report was forwarded to the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office (JSO). Subsequent investigation by JSO identified Merritt as “Jackie Frost.” At the time, Merritt was serving a 30-year term of supervised release as part of his prior child sex conviction.
On March 16, 2023, JSO detectives and other personnel executed a search warrant at Merritt’s residence. Merritt was at the home and was arrested. Several electronic devices were seized, including a cellphone belonging to Merritt. Subsequent review of the cellphone revealed an email account that was linked to the “Jackie Frost” Facebook account as well as other items attributable to Merritt. The device also contained numerous photos and videos depicting the sexual abuse and exploitation of an identified minor child that were produced by Merritt using his cellphone. Merritt’s hand is visible in two of the videos.
This case was investigated by the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office and the Federal Bureau of Investigation in Jacksonville. It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys D. Rodney Brown and Elisibeth Adams.
This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in 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, rescue, and seek justice for child victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.justice.gov/psc.
Iranian Couple Pleads Guilty After June Confrontation with ICERead the Press Release
PHOENIX, Ariz. – Mehrzad Asadi Eidivand, 41, an Iranian national, and his wife, Linet Vartanniavartanians, 37, a naturalized United States citizen, pleaded guilty on August 21 after a confrontation in June with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). Eidivand pleaded guilty to Alien in Possession of Firearms and Ammunition. Vartanniavartanians pleaded guilty to Threats Against a Federal Law Enforcement Officer. Sentencing is scheduled for November 26, 2025, before United States District Judge David G. Campbell.
In his plea, Eidivand, a citizen of Iran without legal authority to be in the United States, admitted that, on or about June 21, 2025, in Tempe, Arizona, he possessed two firearms, which is prohibited for illegal aliens.
Vartanniavartanians admitted that, on the same date, when ICE Enforcement and Removal Operations (ERO) came to her residence in Tempe, Arizona to contact her husband, she made threats intended to impede, intimidate, and interfere with the officers engaged in the performance of their official duties. Vartanniavartanias made the following threats:
- “I’m not letting anybody enter my home without my, you know, permission. So anybody that tries to invade my home, I’m going to shoot them. Like I said, I have a gun, and it’s loaded.”
- “Anybody trying to enter my house is going to be shooted. I don’t allow anybody in my house, including ICE.”
- When asked about the location of the gun, I responded “in my hand right now.”
- “I go outside the backyard, and I’ll just shoot them in the head.”
A conviction for Alien in Possession of Firearms and Ammunition carries a maximum term of 15 years in prison, a maximum fine of $250,000.00, or both, and a term of supervised release of up to three years. The maximum term of probation is five years, including a minimum term of one year if probation is imposed.
A conviction for Threats Against a Federal Law Enforcement Officer carries a maximum term of 10 years in prison, a maximum fine of $250,000.00, or both, and a term of supervised release of up to three years. The maximum term of probation is five years, including a minimum term of one year if probation is imposed.
This case is part of Operation Take Back America, a nationwide initiative that marshals the full resources of the Department of Justice to repel the invasion of illegal immigration, achieve the total elimination of cartels and transnational criminal organizations (TCOs), and protect our communities from the perpetrators of violent crime. Operation Take Back America streamlines efforts and resources from the Department’s Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETFs) and Project Safe Neighborhood (PSN).
ICE ERO, Homeland Security Investigations, and the FBI’s Phoenix Division conducted the investigation in this case. The United States Attorney’s Office, District of Arizona, Phoenix, is handling the prosecution.
CASE NUMBER: CR-25-00931-PHX-DGC
RELEASE NUMBER: 2025-140_Asadi Eidivand, et al# # #
For more information on the U.S. Attorney’s Office, District of Arizona, visit http://www.justice.gov/usao/az/
Follow the U.S. Attorney’s Office, District of Arizona, on Twitter @USAO_AZ for the latest news.Inmate Sentenced to Prison for Possessing Weapon at FCI McDowellRead the Press Release
BLUEFIELD, W.Va. – Demetrius McKinney, 45, an inmate at the Federal Correctional Institution (FCI) McDowell, was sentenced today to one year and one month in prison, to be followed by three years of supervised release, for possession of a weapon by an inmate at a federal prison. Today’s prison sentence will run consecutive to the term McKinney is currently serving.
According to court documents and statements made in court, on April 24, 2024, McKinney was involved in an altercation while an inmate at FCI McDowell. After the altercation, an FCI McDowell staff member conducted a search of McKinney and found a handcrafted weapon commonly known as a “shank” in his right front pants pocket. The shank was a piece of metal about six and a half inches long, with one end sharpened to a point and a cloth handle on the other end.
Acting United States Attorney Lisa G. Johnston made the announcement and commended the investigative work of the Federal Bureau of Prisons.
Senior United States District Judge David A. Faber imposed the sentence. Assistant United States Attorneys Brian D. Parsons and Timothy D. Boggess prosecuted the case.
A copy of this press release is located on the website of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of West Virginia. Related court documents and information can be found on PACER by searching for Case No. 1:25-cr-31.
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Houston man sentenced to federal prison for Denton-area violent crime spreeRead the Press Release
SHERMAN, Texas – A Houston man has been sentenced to federal prison for a violent crime spree in the Eastern District of Texas, announced Acting U.S. Attorney Jay R. Combs.
Victor Guardado Zepeda, 43, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to interfere with interstate commerce by robbery; conspiracy to carry a firearm during a crime of violence; two counts of Hobbs Act robbery; and two counts of brandishing firearm during a crime of violence and was sentenced to a total of 231 months in federal prison by U.S. District Judge Amos L. Mazzant, III on August 26, 2025.
According to information presented in court, Zepeda led a violent crime spree in which he and others robbed two convenience stores in Denton and Lewisville of over $100,000. During the robberies, the assailants entered the stores, brandished firearms, and placed an employee on her knees at gunpoint, while the others went into the manager’s office and severely beat one of the employees.
This case is part of Operation Take Back America, a nationwide initiative that marshals the full resources of the Department of Justice to repel the invasion of illegal immigration, achieve the total elimination of cartels and transnational criminal organizations (TCOs), and protect our communities from the perpetrators of violent crime. Operation Take Back America streamlines efforts and resources from the Department’s Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETFs) and Project Safe Neighborhood (PSN).
This case was investigated by the FBI, Denton Police Department and Lewisville Police Department. This case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Chalana A. Oliver.
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Houston County felon guilty of federal firearms violationRead the Press Release
BEAUMONT, Texas – A Crockett felon has pleaded guilty to a federal firearms violation in the Eastern District of Texas, announced Acting U.S. Attorney Jay R. Combs.
Clifford Heniser, 35, pleaded guilty to being a felon in possession of a firearm before U.S. Magistrate Judge Christine L. Stetson on August 26, 2025.
According to information presented in court, on March 15, 2025, Heniser entered the Houston County Sheriff’s Office and requested their “federal reports.” A dispatcher asked Heniser to wait for a deputy to arrive. Heniser became angry and left the building before returning with a firearm. He then exited the building again and began firing the firearm in the parking lot. Multiple law enforcement officers were dispatched to the scene and Heniser was disarmed. Two firearms were seized from Heniser, and he was arrested. Further investigation revealed Heniser is a convicted felon and prohibited from owning or possessing firearms.
Heniser was indicted by a federal grand jury on April 2, 2025, and faces up to 15 years in federal prison at sentencing. The maximum sentence prescribed by Congress is provided here for information purposes, as the sentencing will be determined by the court based on the advisory sentencing guidelines and other statutory factors. A sentencing hearing will be scheduled after the completion of a presentence investigation by the U.S. Probation Office.
This case is part of Operation Take Back America, a nationwide initiative that marshals the full resources of the Department of Justice to repel the invasion of illegal immigration, achieve the total elimination of cartels and transnational criminal organizations (TCOs), and protect our communities from the perpetrators of violent crime. Operation Take Back America streamlines efforts and resources from the Department’s Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETFs) and Project Safe Neighborhood (PSN).
This case is being investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives; Houston County Sheriff’s Office; Crockett Police Department and the Texas Department of Public Safety – Criminal Investigations. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Donald S. Carter.
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Guatemalan Man Guilty of Reentry of Removed AlienRead the Press Release
NEW ORLEANS, LOUISIANA – FRAILYN ARGUETA-JERONIMO, a/k/a “Frailyn Argeta-Jeronimo,” (“ARGUETA-JERONIMO “), age 25, a native of Guatemala, pled guilty on August 12, 2025, to reentry of a removed alien, in violation of Title 8, United States Code, Section 1326(a), announced Acting U.S. Attorney Michael M. Simpson. His sentencing is set for November 12, 2025, before Judge Zainey.
According to the charging document, ARGUETA-JERONIMO was found in the United States on March 27, 2025, having reentered the United States without authorization from the Attorney General of the United States, after being previously deported on February 6, 2020. On March 27, 2025, federal agents were performing targeted enforcement operations in Terrytown, Louisiana, and observed a maroon Toyota Tundra arrive at a Terrytown residence and pick up a Hispanic male. The Toyota Tundra was registered to a Guatemalan national who had been removed from the United States on at least three prior occasions. Based on the prior intelligence gathered on the residence, when a federal agent conducted a vehicle stop on the Toyota Tundra, a passenger, later identified as ARGUETA-JERONIMO, a Guatemalan citizen, admitted to being in the country illegally.
ARGUETA-JERONIMO faces up to two years imprisonment, a fine of up to $250,000, up to one year of supervised release, and a mandatory special assessment fee of $100.00.
This case is part of Operation Take Back America, a nationwide initiative that marshals the full resources of the Department of Justice to repel the invasion of illegal immigration, achieve the total elimination of cartels and transnational criminal organizations (TCOs), and protect our communities from the perpetrators of violent crime. Operation Take Back America streamlines efforts and resources from the Department’s Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETFs) and Project Safe Neighborhood (PSN).
Acting U.S. Attorney Simpson praised the work of the United States Border Patrol in investigating this matter. Assistant United States Attorney Carter K.D. Guice, Jr. of the General Crimes Unit is in charge of the prosecution.
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Gary Man Sentenced to 77 Months in PrisonRead the Press Release
HAMMOND- Montell Efrem Ward, 51 years old, of Gary, Indiana, was sentenced by United States District Court Judge Philip P. Simon after pleading guilty to two counts of robbery, announced Acting United States Attorney M. Scott Proctor.
Ward was sentenced to 77 months in prison followed by 2 years of supervised release.
According to documents in the case, in January 2023, Ward robbed two hotels located in Merrillville, Indiana. In the first robbery, he threatened the hotel clerk with a knife and tied the victim up with computer cords to complete the robbery. The next day, he robbed a second hotel clerk with a knife. Ward took a total of $300 from both robberies.
This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation. This case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Joel L. Mathur.
Fresno Restaurant Operator Charged with Hiring a Gang Member to Set Fire to RestaurantRead the Press Release
Fresno restaurant operator Robert “Bobby” Salazar, 63, has been arrested on a federal complaint for arson of commercial property and arson in furtherance of a felony for directing a motorcycle gang member to set fire to an underperforming restaurant property, U.S. Attorney Eric Grant announced.
According to court documents, on April 2, 2024, a fire broke out at the vacant Bobby Salazar’s restaurant on Blackstone Avenue in Fresno. Fire investigators determined that the cause of the fire was arson, with partially burned gas cans located inside the restaurant and extensive fire damage to the interior:
Fire damage inside the restaurant
Partially burned gas cans
According to court documents, agents learned that the person who set the fire was the president of the local Screamin’ Demons Motorcycle Club. Salazar allegedly hired the motorcycle gang member to start the fire and then claimed to his insurance company that he had nothing to do with the arson. He was ultimately paid out at least $980,739 for his insurance claim.
This case is the product of an investigation by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and the Fresno Fire Department, with assistance from the Fresno Police Department, the Fresno County Sheriff’s Department, and the Federal Bureau of Investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Robert L. Veneman-Hughes and Brittany M. Gunter are prosecuting the case.
Salazar is expected to make an initial court appearance on Aug. 27, 2025, before U.S. Magistrate Judge Barbara A. McAuliffe in Fresno at 2:00 P.M.
If convicted, Salazar faces a mandatory minimum of five years in prison and maximum statutory penalty of 20 years in prison for commercial arson, as well as 10 years in prison mandatorily consecutive for arson in furtherance of a felony. Any sentence, however, would be determined at the discretion of the court after consideration of any applicable statutory factors and the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, which take into account a number of variables. The charges are only allegations; the defendant is presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.
Criminal Complaint
salazar_complaint_25mj92.cr_.comp_.0825_redacted_v.1.pdfFormer FAA Contractor Sentenced for Illegally Acting as an Agent of the Iranian GovernmentRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON – Abouzar Rahmati, 43, a naturalized U.S. citizen and resident of Great Falls, Virginia, was sentenced today in U.S. District Court to 12 months in federal prison for acting as an illegal agent of the Iranian government in the United States, announced U.S. Attorney Jeanine Ferris Pirro.
Rahmati, a former Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) contractor, pleaded guilty on April 16, 2025, to acting as an agent of the Iranian government without prior notification to the Attorney General and to conspiracy to do so, before U.S. District Judge Loren L. AliKhan. In addition to the 12-month prison term, Judge AliKhan ordered Rahmati to serve three years of supervised release.
Joining in the announcement were Assistant Attorney General John A. Eisenberg of the Justice Department’s National Security Division, and FBI Special Agent in Charge Daniel Wierzbicki of the Counterintelligence and Cyber Division.
According to court documents, from at least December 2017 through June 2024, Rahmati worked with Iranian government officials and intelligence operatives to act on their behalf in the United States, including by meeting with Iranian intelligence officers in Iran, communicating with Iranian intelligence officers and government officials using a cover story to hide his conduct, obtaining employment with an FAA contractor with access to sensitive non-public information about the U.S. aviation sector, and obtaining open-source and non-public materials about the U.S. solar energy industry and providing it to Iranian intelligence officers.
“By secretly doing the bidding of the Iranian government, Mr. Rahmati violated the trust placed in him as a U.S. citizen and as a federal contractor with access to sensitive information,” said U.S. Attorney Pirro. “Ensuring that sensitive U.S. information does not fall into the hands of hostile foreign intelligence services remains one of our highest priorities.”
“Rahmati exploited his trusted position to obtain sensitive information about the U.S. aviation sector and share it with the Iranian government, said FBI Special Agent in Charge Wierzbicki. “Today’s sentencing demonstrates the FBI’s commitment to disrupt threats to U.S. critical infrastructure, especially those emanating from the nefarious activities of Iranian intelligence officers who seek to harm our nation.”
In August 2017, Rahmati offered his services to the Iranian government through a senior Iranian government official who previously worked in Iran’s Ministry of Intelligence and Security and with whom Rahmati had previously attended university.
Four months later, in December 2017, Rahmati traveled to Iran, where he met with Iranian intelligence operatives and government officials and agreed to obtain information about the U.S. solar energy industry, to provide that information to Iranian officials, and to conduct future communications under a cover story based on purported discussions about research with fellow academics.
Upon returning to the United States in early 2018, Rahmati obtained various private and open-source materials related to the U.S. solar energy industry and provided them to an official from the office of Iran’s Vice President for Science and Technology in response to tasking from Iranian government officials.
In response to tasking from Iranian officials, and in furtherance of his role as an agent of the Government of Iran, Rahmati exploited his employment as an FAA contractor by downloading at least 172 GB of the company’s files. Rahmati stored those files on removable media, which he took to Iran, where he provided sensitive documents to the Government of Iran in April 2022.
At the April 2022 meeting in Iran, Iranian intelligence officers told Rahmati and his brother that they were seeking information, including new ideas and technology not available in Iran. They further explained that if Rahmati brought such information to Iran, the Government of Iran could provide Rahmati with financial incentives, including free or low-interest loans and grants.
Later in April 2022, also in response to tasking from Iranian government officials, Rahmati sent additional information relating to solar energy, solar panels, the FAA, U.S. airports, and U.S. air traffic control towers to his brother, who lived in Iran, so that he would provide those files to Iranian intelligence.
The FBI’s Washington Field Office investigated the case, with significant assistance from the FAA’s Office of Counterintelligence and Technical Operations.
Prosecuting the case were Assistant U.S. Attorney Christopher Tortorice and former Assistant U.S. Attorney Kimberly Paschall for the District of Columbia and Trial Attorneys Beau Barnes and Alexander Wharton of the National Security Division’s Counterintelligence and Export Control Section. The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Virginia provided significant assistance.
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Former Department of Labor Employee Indicted for Fraudulently Obtaining over $40,000 in Pandemic Unemployment Assistance BenefitsRead the Press Release
BOSTON – A former employee of the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) was charged today with fraudulently obtaining over $40,000 in pandemic unemployment assistance (PUA) benefits.
Mo Yuong Kang, 50, formerly of Woburn and Dracut, Mass., was indicted today and charged with wire fraud. He will appear in federal court in Boston at a later date.
According to the indictment, Kang worked as an Industrial Hygienist with the Occupational Safety and Health Administration, an agency of the DOL, from June 2016 until July 2023. In 2020 and 2021, Kang was a full-time employee of the DOL and earned $86,667 and $90,738, respectively.
According to the indictment, in April 2020, Kang allegedly submitted a false PUA application to the Division of Unemployment Assistance (DUA). It is alleged that, in the application, Kang claimed under the penalty of perjury that he was “self-employed, an independent contractor, or a gig worker and COVID-19 has severely limited [his] ability to perform [his] normal work,” and that he had not earned more than $89 a week since March 8, 2020. The DUA approved Kang’s claim, and through September 2021 Kang subsequently submitted weekly certifications to the DUA allegedly claiming that he did not work and did not receive any income during those weekly periods. Based upon his application registration and those weekly certifications, Kang allegedly received $45,868 in PUA benefits he was not entitled to.
The charge of wire fraud provides for a sentence of up to 20 years in prison, three years of supervised release and a fine of $250,000. Sentences are imposed by a federal district court judge based upon the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and statutes which govern the determination of a sentence in a criminal case.
United States Attorney Leah B. Foley; Jonathan Mellone, Special Agent in Charge of the U.S. Department of Labor, Office of Inspector General, Office of Investigations, Labor Racketeering and Fraud, Northeast Region; and Christopher Silvestro, Special Agent in Charge of the Defense Criminal Investigative Service, Northeast Field Office made the announcement today. Assistant U.S. Attorney Kristina E. Barclay of the Public Corruption and Special Prosecutions Unit is prosecuting the case.
The Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act was enacted in March 2020 and designed to provide emergency financial assistance to the millions of Americans who were suffering the economic effects caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. The CARES Act created a new temporary federal unemployment insurance program called pandemic unemployment assistance (PUA), which provided unemployment benefits for individuals who were not eligible for standard unemployment benefits. To receive PUA benefits, Massachusetts claimants were required to certify in an initial registration and in weekly certifications whether or not they worked or received any income during the relevant time period. The PUA program was administered in Massachusetts by the Division of Unemployment Assistance (DUA).
The details contained in the charging document are allegations. The defendant is presumed to be innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in the court of law.
Former Box Elder Teacher’s Aide Sentenced to 10 Years in Federal Prison for Enticement of a Minor StudentRead the Press Release
RAPID CITY - United States Attorney Alison J. Ramsdell announced today that U.S. District Judge Camela C. Theeler has sentenced a woman from Tonganoxie, Kansas, convicted of Enticement of a Minor Using the Internet. The sentencing took place on August 18, 2025.
Duncan Sioux Witt, 29, was sentenced to 10 years in federal prison, followed by five years of supervised release, and ordered to pay $100 in special assessments to the Federal Crime Victims Fund. A federal grand jury indicted Witt for the charge in August 2024. She pleaded guilty on April 30, 2025.
During the commission of her crime, Witt was employed at Douglas High School in Box Elder, South Dakota, as a special education paraprofessional teacher’s aide. The victim was a student receiving special education services at the school. No later than February 2024, Witt began sending the boy sexually explicit messages, as well as sexually explicit images and videos of herself, using Snapchat. Over time, Witt induced the boy to send her sexually explicit pictures and videos of himself, which she saved in her Snapchat account. Witt and the boy exchanged thousands of messages over the course of several months. When the victim turned 18, Witt convinced her former husband to allow him to move into their home. Then, Witt provided the victim with alcohol and began a sexual relationship with him. Witt repeatedly told the victim she was pregnant with his child and convinced him she intended to leave her marriage to be with him.
The investigation revealed Witt had inappropriate conversations over Snapchat with multiple other students, in addition to the victim in this case. Witt was arrested in South Carolina while working at an elementary school.
This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse, launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice. Led by the U.S. Attorneys’ Offices and the DOJ’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who exploit children, as well as identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit https://www.justice.gov/psc.
This case was investigated by the Box Elder Police Department and the South Dakota Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force. Assistant U.S. Attorney Heather Knox prosecuted the case.
Witt was immediately remanded to the custody of the U.S. Marshals Service.
Florida Resident Pleads Guilty to Money Laundering Charge in Nationwide Fraud SchemeRead the Press Release
GRAND RAPIDS – U.S. Attorney Timothy VerHey announced that Florida resident Danielle Diarbakerly, age 38, pled guilty in federal court to money laundering conspiracy for her role in a multi-state fraud scheme that caused more than $3 million in losses to victims. Diarbakerly faces a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison, a fine, and will owe restitution to the victims.
Diarbakerly was indicted by a grand jury in January 2025 and accused of participating in a conspiracy to launder the proceeds of a fraud scheme that ran from at least January 2020 to September 2024. Court records reflect that Diarbakerly admitted that she and others were members of a conspiracy that was designed to defraud people living throughout the United States, including in West Michigan, and conduct financial transactions using that money to conceal the source, control, or location of the fraudulent proceeds. Some members of the conspiracy contacted victims and persuaded them that they had won large prizes in a multistate lottery. To claim these prizes, the victims were told that they would have to pay taxes and fees associated with their winnings. The victims were instructed to send their money, by wire transfer or mail, to shell companies created by Diarbakerly for that purpose. Once the money arrived, she quickly moved the funds into other shell companies that she controlled or sent it to other conspirators. Diarbakerly knew the funds were fraudulent proceeds.
“Every day, fraudsters attempt to steal money earned by hardworking Americans and from vulnerable retirees living on fixed incomes. Federal law enforcement is relentlessly pursuing everyone responsible for committing those frauds, including those who facilitate these reprehensible financial crimes. We all must remain vigilant when receiving unsolicited communications to avoid falling victim to these schemes,” said U.S. Attorney Tim VerHey.
“These schemes have sadly become increasingly widespread across our state and across the country,” said ICE HSI Detroit acting Special Agent in Charge Jared Murphey. “Thankfully, our agents, law enforcement partners and prosecutors will do everything they can to track down these culprits and hold them accountable under the law. This case is a good reminder for the community to check in on their loved ones, discuss these schemes and how families can protect themselves.”
“Schemes that drain the bank accounts of everyday people are terrible and steal the safety and security of victims across the county,” said Karen Wingerd, Special Agent in Charge, Detroit Field Office, IRS Criminal Investigation. “IRS Criminal Investigation is dedicated to flushing out fraudsters and protecting tax-paying Americans from crimes like these that jeopardize their way of life.”
Homeland Security Investigations and IRS Criminal Investigation continue to investigate this matter.
Fifth Defendant Convicted for Laundering Funds from Fraud Schemes to Nigerian Transnational Organized Crime GroupsRead the Press Release
A federal jury in Puerto Rico yesterday convicted a fifth individual for conspiracy to launder funds in connection with multiple wide-ranging wire, mail, and access device fraud schemes.
Oluwasegun Baiyewu was convicted of a money laundering conspiracy following a 22-day trial in San Juan. According to court documents and evidence presented at trial, Oluwaseun Adelekan 40, and Temitope Omotayo, 40, both of Staten Island, New York; Ifeoluwa Dudubo, 37, of Austin, Texas; and Temitope Suleiman, 37, and Oluwasegun Baiyewu, 37, of Richmond, Texas, conspired to launder funds from different international organized fraud schemes, including romance, pandemic relief unemployment insurance fraud, and business email compromise scams. These fraud schemes disproportionately impacted elderly or otherwise vulnerable Americans.
“The Department of Justice will continue to identify and prosecute the fraudsters who design complex fraud schemes and the launderers that receive victim proceeds and make sure the crimes are profitable,” said Assistant Attorney General Brett A. Shumate of the Justice Department’s Civil Division. “This conviction is a message to the transnational organized crime groups and their accomplices who take advantage of our open financial system: you cannot victimize Americans with impunity.”
“The defendant participated in a money laundering scheme turning illicit gains into a facade of legitimacy, especially those involving seniors or other vulnerable people, and businesses in Puerto Rico and the United States,” said U.S. Attorney W. Stephen Muldrow for the District of Puerto Rico. “The United States Attorney’s Office and our law enforcement partners commitment to investigate criminals who steal money sends a clear message: justice will prevail, and those who exploit others for personal gain will be held accountable. We thank all our partners who assisted in this prosecution.”
“The FBI is committed to taking down the key service providers that support cyber scammers and transnational organized crime,” said Assistant Director Brett Leatherman of the FBI’s Cyber Division. “This conviction is a reminder of the durable impact we are having in targeting the entire cybercriminal ecosystem, which is made possible by working in tandem with partners who have unique authorities and capabilities.”
“The criminals involved in this scheme thought there was safety in numbers, but the U.S. Postal Inspection Service doesn’t stop until everyone involved in schemes that target older Americans is brought to justice,” said Inspector in Charge Ketty Larco-Ward of the U.S. Postal Inspection Service Boston Division. “The defendants lined their pockets by defrauding vulnerable members of our society through various schemes designed to entice their victims to give up their hard-earned cash. This conviction is proof that anyone involved with transnational crimes will be tracked down, exposed, and made to face the consequences.”
A superseding indictment against the five defendants alleged that in 2020 and 2021, the defendants worked together to profit from efforts to “clean” money from scams involving victims, many of whom were older adults, in California, Illinois, Washington, and Nevada, and business email compromise schemes affecting victim companies in Puerto Rico and Missouri. After receiving the proceeds, according to the indictment, the defendants or their co-conspirators conducted hundreds of transactions with the funds to, among other things, purchase used cars that were shipped overseas to Nigeria.
The defendants will be sentenced before the Honorable Raúl M. Arias-Marxuach for the District of Puerto Rico.
The U.S. Postal Inspection Service, U.S. Department of Labor Office of Inspector General, and FBI San Juan Cyber Task Force are investigating this case, with assistance from the National Unemployment Insurance Fraud Task Force supporting the COVID-19 Fraud Enforcement Strike Force teams.
Trial Attorneys Emily C. Powers and Richard S. Greene IV of the Civil Division’s Consumer Protection Branch and Assistant U.S. Attorney Linet Olinghouse for the District of Puerto Rico are prosecuting the case.
If you or someone you know is age 60 or older and has experienced financial fraud, experienced professionals are standing by at the National Elder Fraud Hotline: 1-833-FRAUD-11 (1-833-372-8311). This Justice Department hotline, managed by the Office for Victims of Crime, can provide personalized support to callers by assessing the needs of the victim and identifying relevant next steps. Case managers will identify appropriate reporting agencies, provide information to callers to assist them in reporting, connect callers directly with appropriate agencies and provide resources and referrals, on a case-by-case basis. Reporting is the first step. Reporting can help authorities identify those who commit fraud and reporting certain financial losses due to fraud as soon as possible can increase the likelihood of recovering losses. The hotline is open Monday through Friday from 10:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. ET. English, Spanish and other languages are available.
More information about the department’s efforts to help American seniors is available at its Elder Justice Initiative webpage. For more information about the Consumer Protection Branch and its enforcement efforts, visit www.justice.gov/civil/consumer-protection-branch. Elder fraud complaints can be filed with the FTC at www.reportfraud.ftc.gov/ or at 877-FTC-HELP. The Justice Department provides a variety of resources relating to elder fraud victimization through its Office for Victims of Crime, which can be reached at www.ovc.gov.
Federal Prison Inmate Sentenced to Life Term for Murdering Fellow Inmate Due to His Religious FaithRead the Press Release
ROCKFORD — An inmate at Thomson Penitentiary in Thomson, Ill., has been sentenced to a life term of imprisonment after being convicted of murder and hate crime in the death of a fellow inmate.
BRANDON SIMONSON conspired with a co-defendant, KRISTOPHER MARTIN, to beat Matthew Phillips because Phillips was Jewish. Simonson and Martin assaulted Phillips to gain recognition and membership into a white supremacist antisemitic prison gang called the Valhalla Bound Skinheads. Simonson punched and kicked Phillips in the face and head, despite Phillips being knocked unconscious and unable to defend himself. The assault occurred on March 2, 2020, leading to Phillips’ death three days later.
A jury in U.S. District Court in Rockford earlier this year convicted Simonson 41, of Moorhead, Minn., of second-degree murder, conspiracy to commit murder, hate crime, and assault. On Friday, U.S. District Judge Iain D. Johnston sentenced Simonson to life in federal prison.
Martin, 43, of Brazil, Ind., pleaded guilty earlier this year and will be sentenced on Oct. 9, 2025.
Simonson’s sentence was announced by Andrew S. Boutros, United States Attorney for the Northern District of Illinois, and Lucas Rothaar, Assistant Special Agent-in-Charge of the Chicago Field Office of the FBI. Valuable assistance was provided by the Federal Bureau of Prisons. The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Vincenza L. Tomlinson and Ronald DeWald.
“Antisemitic violence has no place in our society,” said U.S. Attorney Boutros. “Violence against people of faith is illegal and unacceptable and will not be tolerated anywhere in our district, including in our prison system. My Office and our law enforcement partners will aggressively enforce federal laws to ensure that all Americans feel safe in practicing and expressing their faith.”
“The FBI and our law enforcement partners hold those who compromise the safety or lives of others accountable, even those serving sentences in prison,” said FBI ASAC Rothaar. “We continue to ask the public to help keep our communities safe from any acts of violence like those detailed in this case by reporting threatening or suspicious behavior immediately to local law enforcement or the FBI.”
Federal Detainee Sentenced for Possessing Contraband Inside Wyatt Detention CenterRead the Press Release
PROVIDENCE – A federal detainee at the Donald W. Wyatt Detention Center was sentenced today on charges of conspiracy and providing and possessing contraband in prison, announced Acting United States Attorney Sara Miron Bloom.
Anthony Whyte, 50, was sentenced by U.S. District Court Chief Judge John J. McConnell, Jr., to 12 months of incarceration. Whyte pleaded guilty on May 8, 2025.
On May 21, 2023, Whyte took possession of multiple documents from a visitor that had the appearance of having been contaminated with some sort of substance. One of the eight pages later analyzed by the FBI was determined to have been treated with synthetic cannabinoids.
Court documents reflect that Whyte arranged for the delivery of the contaminated pages during recorded telephone conversations he made from inside the Wyatt Detention Center. The papers and the manilla envelope they were contained in were seized moments after Whyte took possession of them. At the time, Whyte was detained in an unrelated criminal matter brought in the District of Connecticut.
The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Paul F. Daly, Jr.
The matter was investigated by the FBI, with the assistance of the Wyatt Detention Center Professional Standards Unit.
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Fayetteville Man Sentenced to 24 Years for Federal Drug Trafficking ConspiracyRead the Press Release
RALEIGH, N.C. – Chief U.S. District Judge Richard E. Myers II sentenced Celestio Lefranz Harrington, 34, of Lillington, to 24 years in federal prison on Wednesday for his role in a large-scale drug trafficking conspiracy involving methamphetamine, cocaine, and fentanyl.
“Drug traffickers like Harrington flood our communities with meth, cocaine, and fentanyl that kill our children and destroy our families. They prey on the devastation these poisons inflict,” said U.S. Attorney Ellis Boyle. “We will relentlessly target major suppliers, dismantle their networks, and hold them accountable by sending them to federal prison for decades.”
In early 2023, detectives with the Cumberland County Sheriff’s Office received information identifying Harrington as a source of supply for multiple types of drugs in the Fayetteville area. Surveillance showed that he traveled throughout North Carolina, South Carolina, and to Philadelphia to meet drug suppliers and addicts.
On March 29, 2023, investigators stopped Harrington’s car as he travelled back from Philadelphia. During the search, the North Carolina State Highway Patrol troopers discovered approximately 4.4 kilograms of methamphetamine and 4.1 kilograms of cocaine hidden in the trunk. Investigators then searched Harrington’s Fayetteville apartment and found an additional 3.7 kilograms of methamphetamine, approximately 489 grams of fentanyl, and items used to package drugs for resale.
In total, the investigation revealed that Harrington distributed over 180 kilograms of methamphetamine, which is about 400lbs, 15 kilograms of cocaine, and a kilogram of fentanyl, which is enough to kill five times the population of Lillington.
Ellis Boyle, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of North Carolina, made the announcement after sentencing by Chief U.S. District Judge Richard E. Myers II. The Cumberland County Sheriff’s Office, Homeland Security Investigations, and the North Carolina State Highway Patrol investigated the case, and Assistant U.S. Attorney Caroline Webb prosecuted the case. The U.S. Attorney’s Office appreciates the outstanding efforts of these dedicated law enforcement officers in cleaning up the streets of Eastern North Carolina.
This case is part of Operation Take Back America, a nationwide initiative that marshals the full resources of the Department of Justice to repel the invasion of illegal immigration, achieve the total elimination of cartels and transnational criminal organizations (TCOs), and protect our communities from the perpetrators of violent crime. Operation Take Back America streamlines efforts and resources from the Department’s Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETFs) and Project Safe Neighborhood (PSN).
Related court documents and information can be found on the website of the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of North Carolina or on PACER by searching for Case No. 5:23-CR-336.
Fort Walton Beach Man Sentenced to Federal Prison for Drug and Money Laundering ConspiracyRead the Press Release
PENSACOLA, FLORIDA – Taj Tariq Tamboura Robinson, 35, of Fort Walton Beach, was sentenced to 13 years in federal prison after previously pleading guilty to conspiracy to distribute controlled substances, two counts of distribution and possession with intent to distribute controlled substances, and conspiracy to commit money laundering. The sentence was announced by John P. Heekin, United States Attorney for the Northern District of Florida.
U.S. Attorney Heekin said: “I applaud the substantial efforts of our state and federal law enforcement partners to investigate, arrest, and help bring this drug trafficker to justice. This is yet another important case by my office fulfilling the promise of President Donald J. Trump and Attorney General Pam Bondi to Take Back America by aggressively pursuing criminal offenders who victimize our communities.”
Court documents establish that between 2018 and 2023, Robinson was a high-level distributor in a drug trafficking and money laundering organization who provided large quantities cocaine, fentanyl, methamphetamine, and marijuana to other dealers in the Northern District of Florida and elsewhere. Robinson and his co-conspirators further laundered the proceeds of their drug conspiracy by purchasing and selling real estate and vehicles in other people’s names.
“Bringing this polydrug distributor to justice was a group effort, and I appreciate the work our law enforcement partners did to make this happen,” said DEA Miami Field Division Special Agent in Charge Deanne L. Reuter. “Our North Florida communities will be safer with him off the streets.”
“The ongoing commitment and teamwork leading to arrests like Robinson’s shows the level of local dedication that exists to rid our streets of dangerous narcotics,” said Sheriff Eric Aden, Okaloosa County Sheriff’s Office. “We are proud to play a key role in putting those who peddle these poisons behind bars.”
“Today’s sentencing serves as a reminder to criminals that if you attempt to launder drug money in Northern Florida, you will be caught and sentenced to serious prison time,” said Special Agent in Charge Ron Loecker, IRS Criminal Investigation Tampa Field Office. “Through the outstanding joint investigative efforts of the IRS, DEA, and the Okaloosa County Sheriff’s Office, this defendant is off the street and no longer able to peddle poison in our communities.”
Robinson received a total sentence of 13 years in prison, which will be followed by 6 years of supervised release. In addition, the government administratively and judicially forfeited over $265,000, two vehicles, and multiple pieces of jewelry from Robinson and his co-conspirators.
The sentence was the result of a joint investigation by the Drug Enforcement Administration, Okaloosa County Sheriff’s Office, Internal Revenue Service-Criminal Investigations, and the Gulf Coast High Intensity Drug Trafficking Areas (HIDTA) Task Force. The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Alicia Forbes and former Assistant United States Attorney Ryan Love.
This case is part of Operation Take Back America (https://www.justice.gov/dag/media/1393746/dl?inline ) a nationwide initiative that marshals the full resources of the Department of Justice to repel the invasion of illegal immigration, achieve the total elimination of cartels and transnational criminal organizations (TCOs), and protect our communities from the perpetrators of violent crime. Operation Take Back America streamlines efforts and resources from the Department’s Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETFs) and Project Safe Neighborhood (PSN).
The United States Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Florida is one of 94 offices that serve as the nation’s principal litigators under the direction of the Attorney General. To access public court documents online, please visit the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Florida website. For more information about the United States Attorney’s Office, Northern District of Florida, visit http://www.justice.gov/usao/fln/index.html.
FBI Arrests Seven Alleged Members of DC Fentanyl and PCP Drug Trafficking ConspiracyRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON – The FBI this morning executed approximately 20 residential search warrants across the District of Columbia, Maryland, and Los Angeles, following a year-long investigation into an alleged D.C.-based drug trafficking organization that sold PCP and fentanyl in and around the 2900 block of Knox Place SE, announced U.S. Attorney Jeanine Ferris Pirro.
Law enforcement seized 18 firearms including one AR-Style rifle, a shotgun, and one Draco-style pistol. Agents also seized a pill press commonly used to manufacture fentanyl pills, at least two kilograms of suspected narcotics, and over $50,000 in cash.
Last week, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia indicted eight individuals – two from California, one from Baltimore, and five from metropolitan Washington D.C. – and charged them in the conspiracy.
This morning, the FBI in partnership with the DEA and the Metropolitan Police Department took seven of the indicted defendants into custody. They are Leonard Edwards, 52, of Washington D.C.; Eric “Marbury” Prather, 43, of Washington D.C.; Thomas Wilton Hancock, Jr., aka “Fresh,” 43, of Baltimore, MD; Sarda Smith, 36, of Oxen Hill, MD; Michael Thomas, 49, of Los Angeles, CA; Reginald Lassiter, 39, of Washington, D.C.; and Darryl Riley, 39, Washington, D.C.
Joining in the announcement were FBI Acting Assistant Director in Charge Phil Bates, DEA Special Agent in Charge Christopher C. Goumenis, and Chief Pamela A. Smith of the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD).
One additional defendant remains at large and is considered a fugitive. The indictment against that defendant remains sealed.
The Knox Place neighborhood has experienced at least five homicides in the past year, among other violent crimes. The alleged D.C.-based traffickers who operated around Knox Place sourced their narcotics through a Baltimore-based co-conspirator, who in turn was importing narcotics from California. One of the shipments from California included 17-gallons of PCP that was intercepted earlier this year by law enforcement outside of Topeka, Kansas.
Six of the eight defendants face 10-year mandatory minimum sentences based on the drug quantities for which they were charged. Two of them face 15-year mandatory minimum sentences.
Federal agents arrested five additional individuals who face an array of charges that include conspiracy to distribute narcotics, felon in possession of firearms, possession of a firearm in furtherance of drug trafficking, and illegal re-entry into the country.
This case is being investigated by the FBI Washington Field Office with valuable assistance from the DEA and the MPD. It is being prosecuted Assistant U.S. Attorneys Sitara Witanachchi, Matthew W. Kinskey, and John Parron of the Violent Crime and Narcotics Trafficking Section of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia.
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Effingham County area drug dealers sentenced on meth-related chargesRead the Press Release
BENTON, Ill. – This year, the U.S. Attorney’s Office, in conjunction with the Effingham Police Department, the Southeastern Illinois Drug Task Force, the Effingham County Sheriff’s Department, and the Effingham County State’s Attorney’s Office, have prosecuted several methamphetamine dealers in the Effingham County area.
“Trafficking drugs in southern Illinois will earn dealers a federal prison sentence,” said U.S. Attorney Steven D. Weinhoeft. “Thanks to the efforts of our local law enforcement partners in the Effingham County area, less meth is circulating on the streets. We will continue to work together to eliminate drugs from our communities.”
“These cases show what can be accomplished when local, county, and federal agencies work together toward a common goal,” said Effingham Police Chief Kurt Davis. “I want to thank the U.S. Attorney’s Office, the Effingham County Sheriff’s Department, the Southeastern Illinois Drug Task Force, the State’s Attorney’s Office, and the staff of the Effingham Police Department for their partnership and commitment. Their efforts make our community safer by keeping dangerous drugs off our streets.”
Jeramy C. Hoffman, 49, of Effingham, Illinois, was convicted of two counts of conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine. On May 15, 2025, the Court sentenced Hoffman to 110 months’ imprisonment, to be followed by four years of supervised release.
Corey W. Dasenbrock, 48, of Effingham, Illinois, was convicted of two counts of conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine. On Aug. 19, 2025, the Court sentenced Dasenbrock to 110 months’ imprisonment, to be followed by four years supervised release.
Hayden L. Limes, 29, of Effingham, Illinois, was convicted of conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute methamphetamine and possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine. On May 1, 2025, the Court sentenced Limes to 96 months’ imprisonment, to be followed by five years’ supervised release.
Taylor K. Nathan, 31, of Effingham, Illinois, was convicted of conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute methamphetamine and possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine. On April 3, 2025, the Court sentenced Nathan to 84 months’ incarceration, to be followed by four years supervised release.
Robert J. Beckler, II, 55, of Effingham, Illinois, was convicted of conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute methamphetamine, possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine and being a felon in possession of a firearm. The Court sentenced Beckler to 120 months’ imprisonment, to be followed by five years’ supervised release.
Russell A. Beldi, 45, of Teutopolis, Illinois, was convicted of conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine and possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine. On May 15, 2025, Beldi was sentenced to 120 months’ imprisonment, to be followed by four years supervised release.
Jodi L. Corbella, 48, of Citrus Heights, California, was convicted of conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine. Although from California, Corbella was sending methamphetamine to Russell Beldi for resale in the Effingham area. On Aug. 5, 2025, the Court sentenced Corbella to 144 months’ imprisonment, to be followed by four years supervised release.
Jesse D. Blain, 40, of Effingham, Illinois, was convicted of conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine. On Aug. 12, 2025, the Court sentenced Blain to 60 months’ imprisonment, to be followed by four years of supervised release.
Three additional Effingham area individuals were indicted on July 25, 2025, on federal methamphetamine related charges in a seven-count indictment. The defendants indicted include:
- Chelsea J. Sipes, 41, of Effingham, Illinois,
- Timothy E. Finfrock, 66, of Effingham, Illinois and
- Philip M. Blair, 43, of Effingham, Illinois.
Count 1 charges that from July 2024, until on or about June 2025, in Effingham County, within the Southern District of Illinois, Sipes, Finfrock, and Blair conspired to knowingly and intentionally distribute 50 grams or more of methamphetamine.
Count 2 charges that on Jan. 30, 2025, in Effingham County, Sipes knowingly and intentionally distributed 5 grams or more of methamphetamine.
Count 3 charges that on Feb. 25, 2025, in Effingham County, Sipes knowingly and intentionally distributed 5 grams or more of methamphetamine.
Count 4 charges that on March 6, 2025, in Effingham County, Sipes knowingly and intentionally distributed 5 grams or more of methamphetamine.
Count 5 charges that on March 14, 2025, in Effingham County, Sipes knowingly and intentionally distributed 5 grams or more of methamphetamine.
Count 6 charges that on Feb. 20, 2025, in Effingham County, Blair knowingly and intentionally distributed methamphetamine.
Count 7 charges that on Jan. 24, 2025, in Effingham County, Finfrock knowingly and intentionally distributed methamphetamine.
With respect to Count 1, all three Defendants face 10 years to life imprisonment, up to a $10 million fine, and supervised release of not less than 5 years.
With respect to Counts 2-5, Sipes faces 5-40 years’ imprisonment, up to a $5 million fine, and supervised release of not less than 4 years.
With respect to Count 6, Blair faces up to 20 years imprisonment, up to a $1 million fine, and supervised release of not less than 3 years.
With respect to Count 7, Finfrock faces up to 20 years imprisonment, up to a $1 million fine, and supervised release of not less than 3 years.
Indictments are merely a formal charge against a defendant. Under the law, a defendant is presumed to be innocent of a charge until proved guilty beyond a reasonable doubt to the satisfaction of a jury.
East Weymouth Woman Charged with Bank FraudRead the Press Release
BOSTON – An East Weymouth woman was charged today in federal court in Boston with scheming to fraudulently obtain Social Security benefits.
Debora A. Siler, 68, was charged with one count of bank fraud and will appear in U.S. District Court in Boston on Sept. 11, 2025.
According to the charging documents, Siler fraudulently obtained approximately $61,685.13 in Social Security benefits from June 2015 through September 2020. Siler is alleged to have had access to the checkbook and debit card of a Social Security beneficiary who died in May 2015. Instead of reporting the beneficiary’s death to the Social Security Administration or the bank where the benefits were deposited, Siler allegedly accessed the improperly paid benefits by forging the deceased beneficiary’s name on several checks and regularly depleting the account funds through debit card transactions.
The charge of bank fraud provides for a sentence of up to 30 years in prison, five years of supervised release, and a fine of up to $250,000, or twice the gross gain or loss, whichever is greater. Sentences are imposed by a federal district court judge based upon the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
United States Attorney Leah B. Foley and Amy Connelly, Special Agent-in-Charge of the Social Security Administration, Office of the Inspector General, Office of Investigations, Boston Field Division made the announcement. Special Assistant U.S. Attorney James J. Nagelberg of the Major Crimes Unit is prosecuting the case.
The details contained in the charging document are allegations. The defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
Dayton Man Sentenced for Fentanyl Analogue TraffickingRead the Press Release
COVINGTON, Ky. – A Dayton, Ohio, man, Germel Hughes, 45, was sentenced on Friday, by Chief U.S. District Judge David Bunning to 222 months in prison, for conspiracy to distribute 100 grams or more of a fentanyl analogue and aiding and abetting the intended distribution of 100 grams or more of a mixture containing a fentanyl analogue.
According to court documents, on January 2, 2024, law enforcement used a confidential informant to arrange a controlled purchase of fentanyl from Earnest Bryson, who agreed to sell a kilogram of fentanyl to the informant. On the following day, Bryson and co-defendants Julius Cole and Gerald Young traveled from Dayton, Ohio, to Fort Wright, Kentucky, to deliver the drugs to the informant. Soon after they arrived, law enforcement parked behind their vehicle and forcibly removed them from the vehicle. A search of the vehicle revealed that an attempt was made to destroy the drugs by mixing them with Coca-Cola. Some of the mixture was tested, however, and found to contain fentanyl as well as fluorofentanyl, a fentanyl analogue. Further investigation revealed that Hughes supplied 100 grams or more of drugs intended to be distributed to the informant.
Cole and Young have both pleaded guilty to drug trafficking charges and have been sentenced to 132 months and 18 months, respectively.
Under federal law, Hughes must serve 85 percent of his prison sentence. Upon his release from prison, he will be under the supervision of the U.S. Probation Office for 10 years.
Paul McCaffrey, Acting United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Kentucky; John Nokes, Special Agent in Charge, ATF, Louisville Field Division; Jim Scott, Special Agent in Charge, DEA, Louisville Field Division; Director Scott Hardcorn, Northern Kentucky Drug Strike Force; and Phillip J. Burnett, Jr., Commissioner of the Kentucky State Police, jointly announced the sentence.
The investigation was conducted by ATF, DEA, Northern Kentucky Drug Strike Force and KSP. Assistant U.S. Attorney Kyle Winslow is prosecuting the case on behalf of the United States.
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DC Man Arrested at San Francisco Airport, Charged in Distribution of Child PornographyRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON –Hershel Andrew Green, III, 42, of the District of Columbia, was arrested Aug. 24 at San Francisco International Airport and charged in a complaint filed in U.S. District Court with possessing and distributing child sexual abuse materials (CSAM), announced U.S. Attorney Jeanine Ferris Pirro.
Hershel is expected to make his first court appearance in U.S. District Court today in San Francisco.
As part of the investigation, Green was identified after law enforcement agents discovered electronic communications between Green and another individual related to the sexual abuse of children. Green distributed and received images and videos that included the sexual abuse of prepubescent children.
This case is being brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative to combat the epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse, launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice. Led by U.S. Attorneys’ Offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS), Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to better locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the internet, as well as to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.justice.gov/psc.
This case was investigated by the FBI Washington Field Office and Metropolitan Police Department’s Child Exploitation and Human Trafficking Task Force. The task force is composed of FBI agents, along with other federal agents and detectives from northern Virginia and the District of Columbia. The task force is charged with investigating and bringing federal charges against individuals engaged in the exploitation of children and those engaged in human trafficking.
The matter is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Janani Iyengar.
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Council Bluffs Man Sentenced to 180 Months in Federal Prison for Receipt of Child Pornography and Felon in Possession of a FirearmRead the Press Release
COUNCIL BLUFFS, Iowa – A Council Bluffs man was sentenced July 24, 2025, to 180 months in federal prison for receipt of child pornography and possession of a firearm as felon.
According to public court documents, the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children received a CyberTip that an account, later determined to be associated with David Michael Morse, 55, received and uploaded an image containing child sexual abuse material. During a search of Morse’s Council Bluffs residence, law enforcement seized Morse’s electronics, including a cellular phone, and firearms. A forensic examination of Morse’s phone showed that Morse used the device to receive images and videos containing child sexual abuse material.
After completing his term of imprisonment, Morse will be required to serve a five-year term of supervised release. There is no parole in the federal system. Morse was also ordered to pay $9,000 in restitution.
United States Attorney Richard D. Westphal of the Southern District of Iowa made the announcement. This case was investigated by the Iowa Department of Public Safety – Cyber Crime Bureau; Council Bluffs Police Department; Iowa State Patrol; the Federal Bureau of Investigation-Child Exploitation Task Force; and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives Task Force.
This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice. Led by U.S. Attorneys’ Offices and the 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 https://www.justice.gov/psc.
Chicago Grocery Store Owner Sentenced to Three and a Half Years in Prison for Fraudulently Redeeming SNAP and WIC BenefitsRead the Press Release
CHICAGO — The owner of a Chicago grocery store has been sentenced to three and a half years in federal prison for fraudulently redeeming millions of dollars in benefits under the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (“SNAP”) and the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (“WIC”).
YOUSEF ABU ALHAWA owned a grocery store in the Chicago Lawn neighborhood on Chicago’s Southwest Side. From 2011 to 2019, Alhawa fraudulently redeemed or caused to redeem SNAP and WIC benefits for non-eligible items or cash, and redeemed SNAP and WIC benefits on behalf of stores ineligible to participate in SNAP and WIC. Alhawa admitted in a plea agreement with the government that he caused a loss to those programs of more than $8.3 million.
Alhawa, 50, of Lockport, Ill., pleaded guilty last year to wire fraud and tax charges. The tax offenses pertained to Alhawa’s filing of false income tax returns for the calendar years 2015 to 2017. The tax offenses caused a federal and state tax loss of more than $610,000.
On Wednesday, U.S. District Judge Steven C. Seeger imposed the 42-month prison sentence and ordered Alhawa to pay $8.9 million in restitution to the U.S. Treasury, IRS, and State of Illinois.
The sentence was announced by Andrew S. Boutros, United States Attorney for the Northern District of Illinois, Ramsey E. Covington, Special Agent-in-Charge of IRS Criminal Investigation in Chicago, and Douglas S. DePodesta, Special Agent-in-Charge of the Chicago Field Office of the FBI. Valuable assistance was provided by the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Office of Inspector General.
“Defendant’s offense conduct was serious,” Assistant U.S. Attorney Paul Mower argued in the government’s sentencing memorandum. “SNAP is the nation’s largest federally funded nutrition assistance program. His actions not only deprived those programs of vital financial resources that could otherwise have been made available to deserving recipients, but also risked sowing general disfavor and distrust of government benefit systems.”
Carrollton man sentenced to 30 years in federal prison for child exploitation violationsRead the Press Release
SHERMAN, Texas – A Carrollton man has been sentenced to 30 years in federal prison for child exploitation violations in the Eastern District of Texas, announced Acting U.S. Attorney Jay R. Combs.
Traylan Xavier Mosley, 21, pleaded guilty to advertising child pornography and was sentenced to 360 months in federal prison by U.S. District Judge Amos L. Mazzant, III on August 26, 2025.
According to information presented in court, Mosley used photos he found online to pretend he was an attractive girl to entice teen and pre-teen boys to send him photos and videos depicting sexually explicit conduct. He then packaged the boys’ photos and videos in a compilation thumbnail image with the individual boy’s name written on top. Customers on various social media platforms would then purchase those packages, either one at a time, or in the case of one customer – the entire collection for $950 – and receive a link to access the content. Federal agents identified more than 45 children across the United States who were victimized by Mosley. Other children were unable to be identified, and leads were sent to foreign law enforcement partners when the children were located outside the United States.
This case is 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 U.S. Attorneys’ Offices and the Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS), Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to better locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the Internet, as well as to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.justice.gov/psc.
This case was investigated by the Frisco Police Department and the FBI and prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Marisa Miller.
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Career Criminal Sentenced to 12 Years in Federal Prison for Manufacturing and Selling THC and Psilocybin Products NationwideRead the Press Release
PORTLAND, Ore.— Antonio Irving Benjamin, age 53 and a resident of Salem, Oregon, was sentenced to 144 months in prison and 5 years of supervised release after previously pleading guilty to conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute over 1,000 kilograms of marijuana and conspiracy to launder the proceeds. He also agreed to forfeit assets worth more than $2 million dollars.
According to court documents, Benjamin and a previously convicted co-conspirator named Jered Hayward operated a large-scale illegal THC and psilocybin production and distribution facility headquartered in Salem, Oregon. Benjamin supervised the operations and managed a number of employees who obtained cereal and candy products and infused or sprayed potent THC oils on them. They then inserted the edibles into packages which mimicked legitimate consumer food products and sold them throughout the United States and internationally. While there was no evidence Benjamin deliberately targeted minors, the manner in which his organization packaged the edibles posed a risk to children, who are often unable to comprehend the fine print warnings that the packages contained THC products.
Benjamin’s organization utilized encrypted communications such as Telegram to market, sell and process orders, and straw businesses to mask money laundering transactions. Benjamin had no permits or licenses to produce or sell these products; the entire operation was illegal.
Benjamin has an extensive criminal record, including two prior federal convictions for cocaine and fentanyl trafficking. Because of these convictions, he is a career criminal under federal law.
Benjamin agreed to forfeit substantial assets which he admitted were related to the drug and money laundering enterprise. As part of his guilty plea Benjamin and Hayward agreed to forfeit:
- The Salem production facility;
- More than $1 million in cash;
- $640,000 worth of cryptocurrency and bank account funds;
- More than $400,000 worth of gold and silver;
- Jewelry and a Rolex watch; and
- Twelve vehicles, two UTV’s, boats and
- A property located at 879 Railway Avenue NE, Silverton, Oregon.
This case was investigated by Homeland Security Investigations, Portland Police Bureau, United States Postal Inspection, Oregon State Police, Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigation, Salem Police Department and the Washington County Sheriff’s Office. It was prosecuted by Kemp Strickland and Christopher Cardani, Assistant United States Attorneys for the District of Oregon.
California Man Sentenced to 97 Months in Prison for Conspiring to Distribute Fentanyl in Central PennsylvaniaRead the Press Release
HARRISBURG – The United States Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Pennsylvania announced today that Donnie Woods, age 45, of Northridge, California, was sentenced to 97 months’ imprisonment by United States District Judge Keli M. Neary for conspiring to distribute fentanyl.
According to Acting United States Attorney John C. Gurganus, Woods admitted that from July 2020 through at least April 2021, he conspired with others to distribute substantial quantities fentanyl in the Middle District of Pennsylvania. In April 2021, law enforcement in Pennsylvania seized two packages that Woods had sent from California to a residence in York, Pennsylvania. The two packages contained, in total, nearly four kilograms of fentanyl.
The investigation was conducted by the Drug Enforcement Administration, the United States Postal Inspection Service, and the Pennsylvania State Police. Assistant United States Attorney Carlo D. Marchioli prosecuted the case.
This case is part of Operation Take Back America (https://www.justice.gov/dag/media/1393746/dl?inline) a nationwide initiative that marshals the full resources of the Department of Justice to repel the invasion of illegal immigration, achieve the total elimination of cartels and transnational criminal organizations (TCOs), and protect our communities from the perpetrators of violent crime. Operation Take Back America streamlines efforts and resources from the Department’s Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETFs) and Project Safe Neighborhood (PSN).
This case was also brought as part of a district wide initiative to combat the nationwide epidemic regarding the use and distribution of heroin. Led by the United States Attorney’s Office, the Heroin Initiative targets heroin traffickers operating in the Middle District of Pennsylvania and is part of a coordinated effort among federal, state and local law enforcement agencies to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who commit heroin related offenses.
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California Man Sentenced for Distributing over 50 Pounds of MethamphetamineRead the Press Release
Tampa, Florida – U.S. District Judge Mary S. Scriven has sentenced Jacob Paul Arjona (32, Bakersfield, CA) to 17 years and 7 months in federal prison for conspiring to distribute and distributing methamphetamine. Arjona pleaded guilty in December 2024.
According to court records, Arjona conspired with others to have more than 500 kilograms of methamphetamine brought to the Middle District of Florida. On October 11, 2023, officers observed Arjona deliver 50 pounds of methamphetamine to his co-defendant, Mario Espino, at a residence in Holiday, Florida. Deputies from the Pasco Sheriff’s Office stopped a rideshare vehicle in which Arjona was a passenger as it left the home in Holiday. During a search of the vehicle, deputies seized over $110,000 in drug proceeds.
Espino pleaded guilty on February 24, 2025. He was sentenced to 22 years and 6 months for his role in the conspiracy.
This case was investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration and the Pasco Sheriff’s Office. It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney David P. Sullivan.
California Man Charged with Tax Refund Fraud SchemeRead the Press Release
An indictment was unsealed last week in Los Angeles charging a California man with mail fraud and various tax crimes related to a tax refund fraud scheme.
The following is according to the indictment: from 2016 through 2025, Melvin Louis Hughes, also known as “Melvin Louis Huges” and “Bandele El,” of Los Angeles County, operated a scheme to file false federal tax returns claiming millions of dollars in fraudulent tax refunds. As alleged in the indictment, Hughes submitted fraudulent Forms 1041, U.S. Income Tax Returns for Estates and Trusts, for himself and others, claiming more than $360 million in fraudulent tax refunds based on fictitious federal income tax withholdings. These tax returns allegedly attached Forms 1099, which falsely reported that major banks, online payment platforms, and other legitimate businesses made payments from which substantial amounts of tax had been withheld and paid over to the IRS. In 2024 and 2025, as a further part of the scheme, Hughes allegedly filed false IRS Forms 1040, U.S. Individual Income Tax Returns, which claimed more than $370 million in refunds based on false tax withholdings.
Hughes allegedly received approximately $6.2 million in tax refunds. He allegedly used the funds to purchase a $1.84 million house in Malibu, California, two Tesla automobiles, and approximately $500,000 in cryptocurrency.
Hughes also allegedly promoted this scheme to at least 17 other taxpayers, collecting various fees from them in exchange for his assistance. From at least five taxpayers, Hughes allegedly demanded 10% of the refund they received but instructed that the payment be made to Brother to Brother Outreach Trust, another purported trust he created and falsely characterized as a charitable donation. As alleged, Hughes received approximately $868,704.45 from the taxpayers who had utilized his scheme.
In total, Hughes is alleged to have caused a total tax loss to the IRS of approximately $13 million.
Hughes was charged with mail fraud, making a false claim, filing a false tax return, and assisting in the preparation of false tax returns. If convicted, he faces a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison for mail fraud, a maximum penalty of five years in prison for each count of making false claims for refund, a maximum penalty of three years in prison for each count of filing false tax returns, and a maximum penalty of three years in prison for each count of aiding and assisting in the preparation and presentation of false tax returns. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
IRS Criminal Investigation is investigating the case.
Trial Attorneys Patrick Burns and Mahana Weidler of the Tax Division are prosecuting the case.
An indictment is merely an allegation. All defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
Brooklyn, New York Man Charged with Evidence TamperingRead the Press Release
Burlington, Vermont – The United States Attorney’s Office for the District of Vermont stated that Damien DeJesus, 22, of Brooklyn, New York, has been charged by criminal complaint with evidence tampering for his destruction and attempted destruction of evidence that he believed would be used in a criminal prosecution against him.
On August 20, 2025, DeJesus appeared before United States Magistrate Judge Kevin J. Doyle, who ordered that DeJesus be released on conditions.
According to court records, on August 14, 2025, DeJesus was detained when law enforcement executed a federal search warrant on a residence in Vergennes, Vermont. Law enforcement found controlled substances including cocaine and three loaded firearms inside of the house. After DeJesus was detained, law enforcement investigators brought him to the Vergennes Police Department for questioning. There, DeJesus was searched and placed in a holding cell prior to an interview.
While waiting to be interviewed, DeJesus told investigators that he needed to use the bathroom. DeJesus then entered a bathroom and locked the door. Investigators waited outside the door and then heard plastic crinkling from inside the bathroom. DeJesus was told to finish up and exit the bathroom. DeJesus responded by flushing the toilet, then exiting the bathroom. When investigators brought DeJesus back to his holding cell, they found a sandwich size plastic bag with small torn twist baggies inside with traces of cocaine in one of DeJesus’s hands. Law enforcement then entered the bathroom that DeJesus had just used and observed cocaine base on top of the toilet tank.
The United States Attorney’s Office emphasizes that the complaint contains allegations only and that DeJesus is presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty. DeJesus faces up to twenty years’ incarceration if convicted. The actual sentence, however, would be determined by the District Court with guidance from the advisory United States Sentencing Guidelines and the statutory sentencing factors.
Acting United States Attorney Michael P. Drescher thanked the officers and agents from Homeland Security Investigations, the United States Marshals Service, the Rutland City Police Department, the Vergennes Police Department and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives for their work on this matter. The prosecutors are Assistant United States Attorneys Michelle Arra and Zachary Stendig. DeJesus is represented by Jason Sawyer, Esq.
This case is part of Operation Take Back America a nationwide initiative that marshals the full resources of the Department of Justice to repel the invasion of illegal immigration, achieve the total elimination of cartels and transnational criminal organizations (TCOs), and protect our communities from the perpetrators of violent crime. Operation Take Back America streamlines efforts and resources from the Department’s Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETFs) and Project Safe Neighborhood (PSN).
Bethesda Doctor Sentenced to over a Year in Federal Prison for Unlawfully Distributing Controlled SubstancesRead the Press Release
Greenbelt, Maryland – U.S. District Court Judge Theodore D. Chuang sentenced Anissa Maroof, 48, of Potomac, Maryland, to 15 months in federal prison, followed by two years of supervised release, for distributing and dispensing controlled substances. After she is released from prison, Maroof will serve the first nine months of supervised release on home detention.
Kelly O. Hayes, U.S. Attorney for the District of Maryland, announced the sentence with Special Agent in Charge William J. DelBagno, Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) – Baltimore Field Office, and Chief Marc R. Yamada, Montgomery County Police Department (MCPD).
According to the facts Maroof admitted in her guilty plea, between approximately January 2019 and June 2022, Maroof knowingly caused the distributing and dispensing of Alprazolam (commonly referred to as Xanax), Amphetamine-dextroamphetamine (commonly referred to as Adderall), and Buprenorphine. She committed this act with the knowledge that distributing and dispensing the controlled substances were outside the scope of professional practice and not for a legitimate medical purpose.
Maroof, a physician who was board certified in addiction psychiatry, owned and operated a medical practice in Bethesda, Maryland. She also had a Drug Enforcement Administration registration number that authorized her to prescribe controlled substances.
Through her medical practice, which was located in Maryland, Maroof provided patients from West Virginia with prescriptions for controlled substances, including Alprazolam, Amphetamine-dextroamphetamine, and Buprenorphine. Maroof prescribed patients combinations of Alprazolam, Amphetamine-dextroamphetamine, and Buprenorphine without warning them about the risks of combining these medications. She also prescribed controlled substances to patients even after they indicated that they were selling their excess supply of controlled substances through illicit channels.
Additionally, Maroof regularly prescribed controlled substances to patients without providing them with therapeutic services. On numerous occasions, Maroof called in prescriptions to local pharmacies without first seeing the patient, and then she directed the patient to leave cash under her office door in exchange for writing the prescriptions. She also often advised patients how to split filling their prescriptions between different pharmacies.
U.S. Attorney Hayes commended the FBI and MCPD for their work in the investigation. Ms. Hayes also thanked Assistant U.S. Attorneys Christopher Sarma and Elizabeth Wright who prosecuted the federal case.
For more information about the Maryland U.S. Attorney’s Office, its priorities, and resources available to help the community, visit justice.gov/usao-md and justice.gov/usao-md/community-outreach.
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Aberdeen, SD Man Sentenced to 5 Years in Federal Prison for Conspiracy to Distribute a Controlled SubstanceRead the Press Release
SIOUX FALLS - United States Attorney Alison J. Ramsdell announced today that Judge Charles B. Kornmann has sentenced a man from Aberdeen, South Dakota, convicted of Conspiracy to Distribute a Controlled Substance. The sentencing took place on August 18, 2025.
Kaleb Lee Fletcher Kapit, 44, was sentenced to five years in federal prison, followed by five years of supervised release, and was ordered to pay a $100 special assessment to the Federal Crime Victims Fund.
Kapit was indicted for Conspiracy to Distribute a Controlled Substance by a federal grand jury in February 2024. He pleaded guilty on May 19, 2025.
Kapit and others conspired to distribute methamphetamine in Aberdeen, South Dakota. In February 2023, law enforcement seized a package sent to Kapit by his co-conspirator, which contained approximately one pound of methamphetamine and was intended for distribution to others. Through further investigation, law enforcement learned that Kapit had sent money to someone in California on multiple occasions.
This case was investigated by the Brown County Sheriff’s Office, Homeland Security Investigations, and the United States Postal Inspection Service. Assistant U.S. Attorney Mark Hodges prosecuted the case.
Kapit was immediately remanded to the custody of the U.S. Marshals Service.
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“Operation Pick-Off” results in nearly 80 criminal alien arrests throughout the Rio Grande ValleyRead the Press Release
McALLEN, Texas – A total of 78 people have been taken into custody for various immigration-related violations following a major enforcement action throughout the Rio Grande Valley, announced U.S. Attorney Nicholas J. Ganjei.
Several have begun to make their appearances before U.S. magistrate judges in McAllen and Brownsville.
Operation Pick-Off it is a multi-agency immigration/violent crime effort targeting criminals in the Rio Grande Valley. It began Aug. 22 and continued through the weekend in the counties of Cameron, Willacy, Hidalgo and Starr.
“For those that want to come to this country without permission and then victimize American citizens once here, we are more than happy to accommodate them with a stay at a federal facility, followed by a one-way ticket home,” said Ganjei. “SDTX will not rest until we’ve brought Operation Pick-Off to each and every one of the Southern District’s 43 counties. If you’re here illegally and you commit crimes in our community, you can expect a visit from us, and that visit is going to come sooner rather than later. This is what Operation Take Back America looks like.”
The overall effort involved the arrests of 65 people who are allegedly in the country illegally after having been previously removed. The charges allege they were serving varying terms of probation following convictions for state crimes, such as drug offenses, human smuggling, fraud, burglary and assault. If convicted, most face up to 20 years in federal prison.
In addition to those charged with illegal reentry after removal, authorities arrested two others on misdemeanor warrants for avoidance of examination or inspection by immigration officers. They were also on state probation for other crimes.
Law enforcement also identified and arrested 11 others on similar immigration-related violations who are expected to be immediately removed from the country.
In support of Operation Pick-Off, the FBI, through its Summer Heat initiative, surged resources alongside its law enforcement partners to focus on intelligence-driven, multi-jurisdictional operations against priority targets.
“Today’s threats are too complex, too dangerous, and too widespread for any one agency to handle alone. That’s why the FBI joined forces with its law enforcement partners to launch a bold, coordinated strike,” said Special Agent in Charge Aaron Tapp of the FBI – San Antonio Field Office. “Operation Pick Off stands as proof of what that unity can achieve, and it wouldn’t have been possible without the unwavering dedication of the U.S. Attorney’s Office to protecting our southern border.”
“This operation reflects the strength of coordinated law enforcement at every level,” said Acting Chief Patrol Agent Jason E. Schneider of Border Patrol – Rio Grande Valley Sector. “Through close collaboration we successfully targeted and apprehended individuals who posed a threat to our communities and national security. This mission underscores our commitment to securing our borders and upholding the law through multi-agency operations.”
FBI and Border Patrol worked with the U.S. Attorney’s Office as the primary law enforcement agencies investigating this matter, with assistance from Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) – Homeland Security Investigations; U.S. Marshals Service; ICE – Enforcement and Removal Operations; Drug Enforcement Administration; Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives; Texas Department of Public Safety and IRS Criminal Investigation.
Assistant U.S. Attorneys from the Brownsville and McAllen Divisions are prosecuting the cases.
The collaborative effort is part of Operation Take Back America, a nationwide initiative that marshals the full resources of the Department of Justice to repel the invasion of illegal immigration, achieve the total elimination of cartels and transnational criminal organizations and protect our communities from the perpetrators of violent crime. Operation Take Back America streamlines efforts and resources from the Department’s Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces and Project Safe Neighborhood.
A criminal complaint is a formal accusation of criminal conduct, not evidence. A defendant is presumed innocent unless convicted through due process of law.
Wisconsin Man Sentenced for Illegal Firearm PossessionRead the Press Release
LEXINGTON, Ky. – A Milwaukee, Wi., man, Alexander Laykovich, 27, was sentenced on Friday by U.S. District Judge Karen Caldwell to 48 months in prison, for unlawful possession of a firearm by a person who has been adjudicated as a mental defective.
According to his plea agreement, on January 25, 2024, Laykovich was stopped by a Lincoln County Sheriff’s Office Deputy while driving in the Stanford, Ky., area. He had been driving from Wisconsin to North Carolina to Kentucky, where he intended to visit Fort Knox. When Laykovich was stopped, he was wearing body armor, a recording device, and possessed knives, a gas canister, and eight firearms, with six of the firearms being semiautomatic weapons capable of accepting large capacity magazines, and ammunition. A search of his storage unit and delivery boxes in Wisconsin revealed an additional 15 firearms, among other improvised explosive device parts and grenades.
In January 2023, Laykovich had been entered into the National Instant Criminal Background Check System, because he had been adjudicated a mental defective and received a lifetime prohibition from purchasing firearms. Laykovich was aware of the 2023 adjudication and knew he was prohibited from owning a firearm. The firearms in Laykovich’s possession on January 25, 2024, had either been purchased by him prior to the January 2023 adjudication and prohibition, or were purchased by his girlfriend afterwards.
Under federal law, Laykovich must serve 85 percent of his prison sentence. Upon his release from prison, he will be under the supervision of the U.S. Probation Office for five years.
“Illegal firearm possession poses a serious threat to the safety of our communities,” said Acting United States Attorney Paul McCaffrey. “This case reflects the strong collaboration between our office and our federal, state, and local partners, and we are grateful for their commitment to removing illegal firearms from our streets and holding offenders accountable under the law.”
“As a result of law enforcement’s swift actions, a potential act of violence against one of our military installations was thwarted and a large supply of illegally purchased firearms was removed from the hands of a dangerous individual. With this sentence, the defendant has been held accountable for his blatant disregard of the law,” said Olivia Olson, Special Agent in Charge, FBI Louisville Field Office. “As always, FBI Louisville and our partners across the Commonwealth are committed to protecting the communities we serve and encourage the public to remain vigilant and immediately report anything they consider suspicious to law enforcement.”
Acting U.S. Attorney McCaffrey, FBI Special Agent in Charge Olson; John Nokes, Special Agent in Charge, ATF, Louisville Field Division; Col. Phillip J. Burnett, Jr., Commissioner of the Kentucky State Police; and Sheriff Shawn Hines, Lincoln County Sheriff’s Office, jointly announced the sentence.
The investigation was conducted by the FBI, ATF, KSP, and Lincoln County Sheriff’s Office. Assistant U.S. Attorney Kate Dieruf is prosecuting the case on behalf of the United States.
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Violent Felon Sentenced to a Decade in Prison for Possession of Firearms and AmmunitionRead the Press Release
CLEVELAND – A previously convicted violent felon has been sentenced to prison after he flaunted videos of his firearms stash and shooting practice on a popular social media platform.
Reggie Jordan, 37, of Cleveland, Ohio, was sentenced to 120 months (10 years) in prison by U.S. District Judge John R. Adams after a federal jury found him guilty of being a felon in possession of firearms and ammunition in July 2023. Jordan was also ordered to serve three years of supervised release after imprisonment. The sentence was imposed by Judge Adams Aug. 19.
According to court documents and evidence presented at trial, on March 18, 2022, the defendant posted a video to Instagram in which five firearms are seen on a table. A shooting target from a popular firing range in Cuyahoga County is also seen within the video’s frame. Sergeant Marlon Wills, of the Cleveland Division of Police and the Safe Streets Task Force, observed the video and was aware of Jordan’s criminal history which prohibited him from possessing firearms. Details in the indictment outline Jordan’s previous convictions including aggravated robbery in 2008; trafficking in drugs and drug possession in 2014; and possession of drugs and trafficking in drugs in 2019.
During the investigation, clear security camera footage of Jordan at the shooting range was obtained. In it, the defendant is observed firing several firearms and wearing distinctive red clothing. He is also seen filming the video that he later posted on Instagram and carrying a backpack stuffed with firearms.
During a search warrant execution of Jordan’s residence, investigators seized six firearms—including the five seen in the Instagram video— and two large-capacity magazines. One firearm was discovered to be stolen. Firearms seized included an Interarms Pioneer Arms Sporter, Model AK-47, 7.62x39 mm caliber rifle; Alex Pro Firearms, multicaliber rifle; four pistols; and ammunition.
The distinctive red clothing that Jordan was seen wearing in the video and the backpack he was carrying were also found. Agents also recovered marijuana, two cellphones, a drug scale, a drug press and a blender with fentanyl residue, and $3,620 in cash from Jordan’s apartment.
This case was investigated by the FBI Cleveland Division, and the Cleveland Division of Police Safe Streets Gang Task Force.
This case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Joseph P. Dangelo and Peter E. Daly for the Northern District of Ohio.
Vanderwagen Man Sentenced for Violent Knife AttackRead the Press Release
ALBUQUERQUE – A Newcomb man was sentenced to 37 months in prison for assaulting another man with a knife, leaving the victim with serious bodily injuries.
There is no parole in the federal system.
According to court documents, on November 12, 2024, Josiah Bodie, 23, an enrolled member of the Navajo Nation, used a knife to assault a man outside Basha’s grocery store in Shiprock, New Mexico, following an argument. Surveillance video showed Bodie approaching the victim with a knife as the victim attempted to walk away. Witnesses reported that Bodie threw the victim against a wall before stabbing him multiple times.
The victim sustained serious bodily injury that required hospitalization for several days. Bodie was also treated for injuries sustained during the altercation.
Bodie pleaded guilty to assault resulting in serious bodily injury. Upon his release from prison, Bodie will be subject to three years of supervised release.
Acting U.S. Attorney Ryan Ellison and Acting Special Agent in Charge Philip Russell of the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s Albuquerque Field Office made the announcement today.
The Farmington Resident Agency of the FBI Albuquerque Field Office investigated this case with the assistance of the Navajo Nation Police Department and the Navajo Nation Department of Criminal Investigations. Assistant U.S. Attorney Caitlin L. Dillon is prosecuting the case.
United States uses civil asset forfeiture to recover $1.9M for victim of cryptocurrency investment schemeRead the Press Release
ALEXANDRIA, Va. – The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Virginia, through civil asset forfeiture, has recovered and cleared title to $1,971,399.80 in investment fraud proceeds and property involved in money laundering. The United States is now in the process of returning that property to the victim.
According to court documents, scam perpetrators first sent an unsolicited text message to the victim about going to Central Park and then continued to engage in communications with the victim. The cryptocurrency investment scheme involved the perpetrators taking time to get to know the victim and earning their trust before encouraging the victim to “invest” in cryptocurrency using a spoofed investment website set up to mimic a legitimate cryptocurrency investment platform and funnel victim funds to the perpetrators. The site falsely represented to the victim that their “investments” were making sizeable gains. When the victim attempted to make withdrawals, however, the perpetrators coerced the victim to send more money, using tactics such as claiming the victim owed taxes on their “profits.” Ultimately, the perpetrators never let the victim withdraw any funds and simply stole the victim’s money.
After receiving the victim’s funds, the perpetrators laundered the victim’s funds by conducting a series of convoluted transactions and making quick swaps from one type of cryptocurrency to another.
In December 2024, the FBI and Loudoun County Sheriff’s Office seized just under $2 million from three cryptocurrency wallets. The United States began a civil forfeiture action against the seized funds by publicly filing a civil forfeiture complaint in U.S. District Court. The seized funds have been ordered forfeited, allowing for the return of the funds to the victim.
Erik S. Siebert, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia; Reid Davis, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI Washington Field Office's Criminal Division; and Michael L. Chapman, Loudoun County Sheriff, made the announcement.
The matter was handled by Assistant U.S. Attorney Annie Zanobini.
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 are located on the website of the District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia or on PACER by searching for Case No. 1:25-cv-559.
U.P. Man Sentenced to Life in PrisonRead the Press Release
Eugene Rantanen was convicted of killing his 19-month-old son, Carter
MARQUETTE – U.S. Attorney for the Western District of Michigan Timothy VerHey today announced that Eugene Walter-George Rantanen, 37, of L’Anse was sentenced to life in prison for murder and first-degree child abuse. During sentencing, U.S. District Judge Paul Maloney commented that the sentence imposed “will do justice” given the defendant’s “horrendous treatment” of his 19-month-old son.
The evidence at trial showed that Rantanen had care and custody of his minor son, Carter, on the night of February 19, 2024. The two were alone at their home on the L’Anse Reservation of the Keweenaw Bay Indian Community when Rantanen called 911 to report that the nineteen-month-old boy was not breathing. Despite rapid and extensive medical intervention involving three different hospitals, the toddler succumbed to his head injuries on February 24. Numerous treating providers testified that Carter had suffered from abusive assault and inflicted trauma, and the medical examiner found that Carter’s cause of death was blunt-force trauma and the manner of death was homicide. Based on the nature of Carter’s injuries, the government argued that Rantanen was the only person with means and opportunity to commit the murder. The jury agreed, convicting Rantanen of both counts.
“This toddler’s life was tragic. His birth mother had arranged for him to be adopted by a loving family, but Rantanen insisted on having custody of Carter and all evidence suggests that, instead of loving and doting on and caring for Carter, Rantanen subjected him to months of abuse and neglect,” said U.S. Attorney VerHey. “Although this sentence will not bring this little boy back, we hope it provides some measure of justice and comfort to those who loved Carter, including his birth mother, adoptive parents, and family. My office will work tirelessly, even in difficult cases, to see that offenders are held accountable and justice is done.”
“The conviction of Eugene Rantanen further ensures the public that this child predator and murderer will never again have the opportunity to harm another innocent young soul,” said Reuben Coleman, Acting Special Agent in Charge of the FBI Detroit Field Office. “I would like to first thank our dedicated team out of the FBI Marquette Resident Agency, whose tireless efforts made this outcome possible. This success was the result of our close partnership with the Keweenaw Bay Indian Community Tribal Police, Village L’Anse Police, Baraga County Sheriff’s Office, Michigan State Police, and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Western District of Michigan. To the family and loved ones of the innocent child, I extend my deepest condolences. The FBI in Michigan remains unwavering in protecting our children and reassuring our communities that justice will be served.”
The FBI, the Michigan State Police, the Keweenaw Bay Indian Community Tribal Police, the Baraga County Sheriff’s Office, and the Village of L’Anse Police Department investigated this case, and Assistant U.S. Attorneys Alexis M. Sanford, Jeanne F. Long, and Theodore J. Greeley prosecuted it.
This case was part of the Department of Justice’s work to combat the missing and murdered indigenous person’s (MMIP) crisis. Per the Bureau of Indian Affairs, “For decades, Native American and Alaska Native communities have struggled with high rates of assault, abduction, and murder of tribal members. Community advocates describe the crisis as a legacy of generations of government policies of forced removal, land seizures and violence inflicted on Native peoples.” The BIA website has more information about the MMIP crisis at https://www.bia.gov/service/mmu/missing-and-murdered-indigenous-people-crisis
Two Fort Thompson Men Sentenced to Years in Federal Prison in Assault CaseRead the Press Release
PIERRE - United States Attorney Alison J. Ramsdell announced today that U.S. District Judge Eric C. Schulte has sentenced two men from Fort Thompson, South Dakota, in a case involving a violent assault with a firearm.
Trevin Witt, age 18, pleaded guilty to Assault with a Dangerous Weapon, Assault Resulting in Serious Bodily Injury, and Using and Carrying a Firearm During and in Relation to a Crime of Violence. On March 31, 2025, Witt was sentenced to 11 years in federal prison, followed by three years of supervised release, and ordered to pay a $300 special assessment to the Federal Crime Victims Fund.
Lawrence Taylor, age 21, pleaded guilty to Assault with a Dangerous Weapon and Assault Resulting in Serious Bodily Injury. On August 19, 2025, Taylor was sentenced to four years and nine months in federal prison, followed by three years of supervised release, and ordered to pay a $200 special assessment to the Federal Crime Victims Fund.
Witt and Taylor were indicted by a federal grand jury in June 2024. Witt pleaded guilty on February 24, 2025, and Taylor pleaded guilty on May 15, 2025.
The convictions stem from a violent incident that occurred on April 13, 2024, in the Crow Creek Sioux Indian Reservation. On that day, Witt and Taylor forcibly entered the home of the victim. Witt held a gun to the head of a resident demanding to know where the victim was. When the victim came up the stairs from the basement, he was shot by Witt. The victim survived the encounter.
This matter was prosecuted by the U.S. Attorney’s Office because the Major Crimes Act, a federal statute, mandates that certain violent crimes alleged to have occurred in Indian Country be prosecuted in Federal court as opposed to State court.
This case was investigated by the FBI and BIA-Office of Justice Services – Crow Creek Agency. Assistant U.S. Attorney Troy R. Morley prosecuted the case.
Both Witt and Taylor were immediately remanded to the custody of the U.S. Marshals Service following their respective sentencings.
Two Charleston Men Sentenced to Prison for Roles in Charleston Methamphetamine Trafficking OrganizationRead the Press Release
CHARLESTON, W.Va. – Two Charleston men were sentenced to prison today for their roles in a Drug Trafficking Organization (DTO) that distributed methamphetamine in the Charleston area. One of the defendants was also sentenced for violating supervised release.
Kirt Ray King, 48, of Charleston, was sentenced to six years and six months in prison, to be followed by eight years of supervised release, for conspiracy to distribute 500 grams or more of a mixture and substance containing methamphetamine and for committing a crime while on supervised release. John Wayne Harkless, 47, of Charleston, was sentenced to eight years and one month in prison, to be followed by three years of supervised release, for conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine
According to court documents and statements made in court, from in or about January 2024 to in or about May 2024, King and Harkless conspired with others to participate in the DTO. Harkless sold methamphetamine to a confidential informant on nine separate occasions during the time period. Investigators were able to confirm that Harkless was obtaining his methamphetamine from King.
Investigators determined that King was responsible for approximately 11 pounds of methamphetamine and was supplying the controlled substance to several individuals including co-defendants in the DTO. At the time of this offense, King was serving a term of supervised release as a result of his December 3, 2004, convictions for conspiracy to distribute 500 grams or more of cocaine, distribution of cocaine, possession with intent to distribute cocaine, possession of firearms in furtherance of drug trafficking, and money laundering. King was sentenced today to one year and six months in prison for committing a crime while on supervised release, to be served concurrently with the prison sentence of six years and six months.
Harkless has a criminal history that includes more than 23 convictions in four states. The investigation of the DTO determined that Harkless was responsible for almost 3 pounds of methamphetamine that he personally distributed.
King and Harkless are among four individuals indicted by a federal grand jury in the DTO conspiracy, and all four pleaded guilty. Anthony Michael Mowery, 49, of Parkersburg, was sentenced on April 21, 2025 to nine years in prison, to be followed by four years of supervised release, for conspiracy to distribute 50 grams or more of a mixture and substance containing methamphetamine and violating supervised release. Michael Dale Cain, 49, of Parkersburg, was sentenced on January 29, 2025, to eight years and one month in prison, to be followed by three years of supervised release, for conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine.
Acting United States Attorney Lisa G. Johnston made the announcement and commended the investigative work of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI).
United States District Judge Joseph R. Goodwin imposed the sentences. Assistant United States Attorney Jeremy B. Wolfe prosecuted the case.
The investigation was part of the Department of Justice’s Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF). The program was established in 1982 to conduct comprehensive, multilevel attacks on major drug trafficking and money laundering organizations and is the keystone of the Department of Justice’s drug reduction strategy. OCDETF combines the resources and expertise of its member federal agencies in cooperation with state and local law enforcement. The principal mission of the OCDETF program is to identify, disrupt and dismantle the most serious drug trafficking organizations, transnational criminal organizations and money laundering organizations that present a significant threat to the public safety, economic, or national security of the United States.
A copy of this press release is located on the website of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of West Virginia. Related court documents and information can be found on PACER by searching for Case No. 2:24-cr-95.
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