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6 March 2017
Louisiana Attorneys Plead Guilty to Failure to File Tax ReturnsRead the Press Release
Two Louisiana attorneys pleaded guilty today in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Louisiana to willfully failing to file federal tax returns, announced Acting Deputy Assistant Attorney General Stuart M. Goldberg of the Justice Department’s Tax Division and U.S. Attorney Stephanie A. Finley for the Western District of Louisiana.
According to documents filed with the court, James Lynden Burton, 48, and his ex-wife, Lucretia Pecantte-Burton, 50, of New Iberia, Louisiana, are licensed attorneys and were partners of the law firm of Pecantte-Burton & Burton (PB&B). PB&B offered general legal services and representation and regularly received cash payments from clients for legal services rendered. They also had a partnership interest in a tax return preparation business. For tax years 2007, 2008 and 2009, Burton and Pecantte-Burton did not file individual income tax returns despite earning income from their law practice and the tax return preparation business. They filed delinquent returns after learning that they were under criminal investigation by the Internal Revenue Service (IRS).
Burton and Pecantte-Burton each face a statutory maximum sentence of 12 months in prison as well as a term of supervised release, restitution and monetary penalties.
Acting Deputy Assistant Attorney General Goldberg and U.S. Attorney Finley thanked special agents of IRS-Criminal Investigation, who conducted the investigation, and Assistant U.S. Attorney David Joseph and Trial Attorney Daniel McGraw, who are prosecuting the case.
Additional information about the Tax Division and its enforcement efforts may be found on the division’s website.
Leavenworth Man Sentenced to 20 Years for Distributing Child PornographyRead the Press Release
WICHITA, KAN. – A Leavenworth man who bragged on the Internet about sexually abusing a 4-year-old girl was sentenced Monday to 20 years in federal prison for distributing child pornography, U.S. Attorney Tom Beall said.
Joshua Grimm, 33, Leavenworth, Kan., pleaded guilty to one count of distributing child pornography. At sentencing, a prosecutor said the investigation started in June 2016 when Grimm began communicating with a detective in Arizona who was working undercover. In a chatroom conversation, Grimm told the detective Grimm had sexually abused a 4-year-old-girl and he sent a photo of the girl. At the time, child molestation charges were pending against Grimm. Grimm told the detective he had “thought about kidnapping a young girl from a park or busy store.”
Beall commended the FBI, an Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force in Arizona and Assistant U.S. Attorney Kim Flannigan for their work on the case.
Laredoan Sentenced for Assaulting Federal Agent to Avoid ArrestRead the Press Release
LAREDO, Texas – A 40-year-old Laredo man has been ordered to prison following his conviction for assaulting a United States Border Patrol (BP) agent and possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine, announced U.S. Attorney Kenneth Magidson. A federal jury sitting in Laredo convicted Jorge Rocha after only 20 minutes of deliberation on July 18, 2016.
Today, U.S. District Judge Marina Garcia Marmolejo, who presided over the trial, ordered Quintanilla to serve a total of 235 months in federal prison to be immediately followed by five years of supervised release.
On Jan. 29, 2016, Rocha had been carrying a concealed bag when a BP agent approached him near the River Drive Mall. According to testimony presented to the jury at trial, Rocha fled when the agent approached and identified himself. The agent pursued Rocha, who discarded a bag concealed underneath his shirt. When the agent caught up to him, Rocha resisted arrest, striking the agent on the face and head. The agent suffered lacerations and bruises during Rocha’s attack. Rocha was forcibly subdued after other agents responded to the call for assistance.
After agents apprehended him, investigators retrieved the bag Rocha dropped while attempting to flee. According to testimony at trial, the bag contained approximately 5.9 pounds of methamphetamine, valued at $188,890.
Rocha will remain in custody pending transfer to a U.S. Bureau of Prisons facility to be determined in the near future.
BP and the Drug Enforcement Administration conducted the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Mike Eaton and Julian Castaneda prosecuted the case.
Jury Convicted Former Cay Clubs Chief Financial Officer of Conspiracy, Bank Fraud and Tax OffensesRead the Press Release
The former Chief Financial Officer of Cay Clubs Resorts and Marinas (Cay Clubs) was convicted Friday evening by a federal jury of conspiracy, bank fraud, and tax offenses. The jury verdict was returned after a two-week trial before Chief U.S. District Judge K. Michael Moore.
Benjamin G. Greenberg, Acting United States Attorney for the Southern District of Florida, Kelly R. Jackson, Special Agent in Charge, Internal Revenue Service, Criminal Investigation (IRS-CI), and Timothy Mowery, Special Agent in Charge, Federal Housing Finance Agency, Office of Inspector General (FHFA-OIG), made the announcement.
David W. Schwarz, 60, of Orlando, was convicted of conspiracy to commit bank fraud, in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 1349, two counts of bank fraud, in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 1344, and one count of interference with the administration of the IRS, in violation of 26 U.S.C. § 7212(a). Schwarz faces a statutory maximum of 30 years in prison for each of the conspiracy and bank fraud offenses, and 3 years for the tax offense. Sentencing is scheduled for May 1, 2017, at the federal courthouse in Key West.
According to evidence at trial, Schwarz was the Vice President and Chief Financial Officer (CFO) of Cay Clubs, which operated purported luxury resorts in the Florida Keys, Clearwater, Orlando, Las Vegas, and elsewhere. Between 2004 and 2008, Cay Clubs grew to more than 1,000 employees and became one of the largest employers in the Florida Keys. Schwarz, who was the one-third owner, and Fred Davis Clark, Jr., a/k/a Dave Clark, who was the two-thirds owner, began Cay Clubs in 2004 with fraudulent sales of Cay Clubs units to insiders, using money from Cay Clubs bank accounts to fund the cash to close for purchases, while obtaining mortgage financing from lending institutions. These fraudulent sales were used in marketing materials to falsely show demand for Cay Clubs units and to inflate prices, as Cay Clubs was in reality purchasing units from itself. Proceeds of these sales were diverted to Schwarz and Clark.
Trial evidence established that Cay Clubs raised more than $300 million from approximately 1,400 investors, who purchased units in Cay Clubs developments. Schwarz and Clark failed to remodel the dilapidated properties as they promised investors, while taking millions of dollars out of the company for their own benefit. During the operation of Cay Clubs from 2004 through 2008, Schwarz and Clark diverted more than $30 million in proceeds for themselves, including millions of dollars in cash transfers, that was used to purchase property and other businesses, including a gold mine, a rum distillery, aircraft, and a coal reclamation business.
Trial evidence further showed that as Cay Clubs faced dwindling sales due to its failure to upgrade the dilapidated properties in 2006, Schwarz, Clark, and others engaged in additional fraudulent sales of Cay Clubs units to insiders, including Clark’s family members. These mortgage loans were used to prevent Cay Clubs from defaulting on commercial debts. The documents used to obtain these mortgages included falsified signatures and notary attestations, and had Cay Clubs acting as the seller while Schwarz provided the cash to close so that mortgage loans could be obtained to fund the sales.
During the course of this scheme, Schwarz and Clark did not file any corporate tax return for $74 million in income generated by the Cay Clubs entities. Furthermore, neither Schwarz or Clark filed any individual tax return for these years until after an investigation of Cay Clubs by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). In 2010 and 2011, Schwarz filed false individual tax returns for tax years 2004, 2005 and 2006, respectively, in which he substantially underreported his income for these tax years and concealed his receipt of millions of dollars in proceeds.
On December 11, 2015, Dave Clark, 59, formerly a resident of Tavernier, was convicted by a federal jury in connection with related bank fraud charges and obstruction of the SEC. He was sentenced on February 21, 2016, to 40 years in prison by U.S. District Judge Jose E. Martinez. Former Cay Clubs sales executives Barry Graham, 59, and Ricky Lynn Stokes, 54, both formerly of Ft. Myers, previously pled guilty to conspiracy to commit bank fraud in related cases and were sentenced to 60 months, and 30 months, respectively.
Mr. Greenberg commended the investigative efforts of the IRS-CI and FHFA-OIG, and the extensive assistance of the SEC’s Miami Regional Office. This matter is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Jerrob Duffy, James V. Hayes, and Alison Lehr.
Related court documents and information may be found on the website of the District Court for the Southern District of Florida at www.flsd.uscourts.gov or on http://pacer.flsd.uscourts.gov.
Honesdale Man Pleads Guilty to Distributing Child PornographyRead the Press Release
PITTSBURGH - A resident of Honesdale, Pennsylvania, pleaded guilty in federal court to a charge of distribution of material depicting the sexual exploitation of a minor, Acting United States Attorney Soo C. Song announced today.
Ramon Coca, 27, of Honesdale, Pennsylvania, pleaded guilty to one count before United States District Judge Nora Barry Fischer.
In connection with the guilty plea, the court was advised that Coca distributed videos containing material depicting the sexual exploitation of minors, the production of which involved the use of minors engaging in sexually explicit conduct, some of whom had not yet attained 12 years of age.
Judge Fischer scheduled sentencing for July 5, 2017 at 11:30 a.m. The law provides for a total sentence of 20 years in prison, a fine of $250,000, or both. Under the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, the actual sentence imposed is based upon the seriousness of the offense and the prior criminal history, if any, of the defendant.
Assistant United States Attorney Shaun E. Sweeney is prosecuting this case on behalf of the government.
The Federal Bureau of Investigation conducted the investigation that led to the prosecution of Coca.
This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by the United States Attorneys' Offices and the Criminal Division's Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who sexually exploit children, and to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.justice.gov/psc.
Greeneville Resident Sentenced to 127 Months on Crack Cocaine Conspiracy ChargesRead the Press Release
GREENEVILLE, Tenn. – On Mar. 6, 2017, Fitzroy Turner, 35, of Greeneville, Tenn., was sentenced by the Honorable J. Ronnie Greer, U.S. District Court Judge, to serve 127 months in federal prison following a conviction for his leadership role in a conspiracy to distribute large quantities of cocaine base “crack” in the Eastern District of Tennessee. Following his prison sentence, he will also serve a five-year term of supervised release.
According to his plea agreement on file with U.S. District Court, Turner admitted to participating in the sale of crack cocaine on five separate occasions between February and June 2015 to an individual cooperating with law enforcement. He admitted to being accountable for at least 2.8 kilograms but less than 8.4 kilograms of crack cocaine between October 2012 and April 2016. Turner also admitted that he maintained a residence in Greeneville during the conspiracy for the purpose of manufacturing or distributing crack cocaine.
Co-defendants Barry Moore, 40, Zachery Moore, 51, and Sophia Arwood, 31, all of Greeneville, Tenn., were previously sentenced to 210, 96, and 60 months respectively.
Law enforcement agencies participating in the investigation included the Third District Judicial Drug Task Force, Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) and Tennessee Bureau of Investigation (TBI). Assistant U.S. Attorney Wayne Taylor and former Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Corey Shipley represented the United States.
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Fulton County Contract Supplier Guilty of Giving Kickbacks Tied to Construction of Fulton County Detention CenterRead the Press Release
PADUCAH, Ky. – A Union City, Tennessee, business owner and contract supplier pled guilty today in United States District Court before Senior U.S. District Judge Thomas B. Russell for his role in a conspiracy to defraud Fulton County citizens, through kickbacks and concealment of costs associated with work performed on the 2015 Fulton County Detention Center expansion, announced United States Attorney John E. Kuhn, Jr.
Daniel C. Larcom, 42, pled guilty to three charges including Honest Services Wire Fraud and Wire Fraud for his role in a conspiracy that allegedly involved then Fulton County Jailer Ricky D. Parnell and others.
Larcom is the owner of Danny Larcom Heating & Air, Inc., whose company was awarded a $415,000 contract to install HVAC systems as part of the $3.3 million expansion of the Fulton County Detention Center.
In 2011 Larcom installed a new $4,800 heating and air unit at Parnell’s home and was not paid for the unit but was promised addition contracts involving the jail. In around 2012 or 2013, Parnell contracted with Larcom to replace HVAC equipment in the old jail with new equipment. Larcom estimated the cost at $90,000 for ten new units. Parnell advised Larcom to make the contract for $100,000 and add high end thermostats and that he wanted $5,000 cash for awarding Larcom the contract.
After a couple months, Larcom gave Parnell the $5,000 he demanded by putting $5,000 cash into a coffee cup and meeting Parnell in his pick-up truck. While Larcom was in the truck, Parnell entered the truck, did not say anything, and took the cup with the $5,000 cash kickback. The cash was in $100 bills. Larcom believed that Parnell would not give Larcom any future work if he did not pay the $5,000 kickback.
Further, Parnell asked Larcom to install the HVAC systems for the jail expansion project. Larcom estimated the job would cost $380,000 to $400,000. Parnell allegedly told Larcom to make a bid for $415,000. With Parnell’s endorsement, Larcom was awarded the contract. In return for being awarded the job, Parnell requested that Larcom give Parnell a dual unit HVAC system, a generator, and $15,000 cash. The dual unit HVAC system and generator went to Parnell’s house. The $15,000 was given to Parnell in a coffee cup the same way that the earlier $5,000 kickback was given to him.
Larcom agreed and conspired with Parnell to give Parnell cash and other items of value, specifically HVAC units and generators, so that Parnell would continue to award Larcom and Larcom’s company with contracts for the Fulton County Detention Center, which Parnell could influence because he was the Fulton County Jailer. Larcom’s invoices were paid by Fulton County.
Larcom and Parnell both profited from their arrangement and neither the Fulton County Fiscal Court nor the citizens of Fulton County were ever made aware of the arrangement. In doing so, Larcom had the intent to defraud the citizens of Fulton County through the kickback scheme he entered into with Parnell.
Larcom was charged by grand jury indictment, with co-defendants Ricky D. Parnell, 59, of Hickman, Kentucky; Ronald D. Armstrong, 60, of Dresden, Tennessee; Jimmy Boyd, 56, of South Fulton, Tennessee; and Michael Homra, 79, of Fulton County, on November 15, 2016. Homra and Armstrong recently pleaded guilty to charges and are awaiting sentencing.
If convicted at trial, the defendants could be sentenced to no more than 20 years in prison per count, pay a $250,000 fine for each count, and be sentenced to serve a three-year period of supervised release.
This case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Nute Bonner and is being investigated by the Kentucky Attorney General’s Office and the Federal Bureau of Investigation
Fresno County Man Sentenced to 3 Years in Prison for Being a Felon in Possession of a FirearmRead the Press Release
FRESNO, Calif. — U.S. District Judge Lawrence J. O’Neil sentenced Gary Lee Ortiz, 42, of Auberry, today to three years and one month in prison for being a felon in possession of a handgun with an obliterated serial number, U.S. Attorney Phillip A. Talbert announced.
Ortiz was also ordered to pay $5,200 in restitution to the U.S. Forest Service for damaging public land and natural resources as a result of marijuana cultivation activities on and near his residence in the Mill Creek area of Auberry, California.
According to court documents, on June 8, 2015, law enforcement officers found a large marijuana cultivation operation in the Sierra National Forest adjacent to Ortiz’s property located about four and one half miles from Shaver Lake. During a follow-up investigation of Ortiz’s property, agents seized a total of four firearms. Three of the firearms were found in and around a trailer on Ortiz’s property, and one of the firearms was a Herbert Schmidt, model E 15, .22 LR caliber revolver with the serial number obliterated. At the time, Ortiz was a convicted felon on probation for carrying a concealed weapon in a vehicle.
Law enforcement officers eradicated 12,302 marijuana plants from public land and 444 marijuana plants from Ortiz’s property.
This case was the product of an investigation by the U.S. Forest Service, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco Firearms and Explosives, the California Department of Fish and Wildlife, the Fresno County Sheriff’s Office, and the Fresno County Probation. Assistant U.S. Attorney Karen Escobar prosecuted the case.
Former Postal Employee Convicted at Trial in Scheme to Defraud Worker’s Compensation Program Sentenced to 21 Months in Federal PrisonRead the Press Release
DALLAS — McArthur Baker, 69, a former U.S. Postal Service employee, was sentenced today by U.S. District Judge Sam A. Lindsay to 21 months in federal prison for his role in a scheme to defraud the Department of Labor’s (DOL) Office of Worker’s Compensation Program (OWCP), announced U.S. Attorney John Parker of the Northern District of Texas.
Baker and co-defendant Tonya Evans, 52, both of Dallas, were each convicted following a one-week trial before U.S. District Judge Sam A. Lindsay on one count of conspiracy to defraud the U.S. with respect to claims and one count of false statements or fraud to obtain federal employees’ compensation. Evans is scheduled to be sentenced June 19, 2017.
The government presented evidence at trial that Baker and Evans engaged in a scheme to receive kickbacks in exchange for their completion of falsified medical documentation that was used by co-conspirators to defraud DOL’s OWCP. The government presented further evidence that Baker also falsified forms related to travel he purportedly made for medical services, and as a result, received funds from DOL to which he was not entitled.
Baker began working for the U.S. Postal Service in 1982; he was assigned to work as a mail handler equipment operator. Between 1984 and 2007, Baker filed eight different claims for disability, claiming he suffered from various injuries. As a result of these claims, Baker stopped working in approximately December 2007. He never returned to work but continued to receive disability compensation from December 2007 until at least October 2009. He received more than $68,000 in worker’s compensation payments. He retired from the U.S. Postal Service in October 2009 but he continued to receive disability medical care paid for through DOL, and he continues to be eligible for disability medical care.
Evans began working for the U.S. Postal Service in November 1985; she worked as a clerk primarily with the parcel post distribution machine. She filed disability claims in August 2001, August 2003, and August 2008 claiming that she suffered from various injuries. As a result of these claims, Evans was placed on worker’s compensation in 2001. She received more than $340,000 in worker’s compensation payments. In March 2010, she applied for disability retirement that was approved in October 2011.
Convicted co-conspirator, Larry Washington, was a licensed professional counselor and ran several businesses known as AAA Mental Health, LLC, Mind Spa, Inc., Solutions Health and Rehabilitation, and Convergence Emergence Diversion. Through these businesses, Washington purportedly provided patients with counseling, pain management, chiropractic services, physical therapy, and massage services. His patients were former postal and Veterans Administration employees who had suffered on-the-job injuries and were eligible to receive medical services and worker’s compensation related to those injuries. Earlier this year, Washington pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit health care fraud and was sentenced in May 2016 to 78 months in federal prison and ordered to pay $7.7 million in restitution.
To maintain and enhance his billings with OWCP, Washington asked claimants, including Baker and Evans, to falsify medical documentation, called “mood inventories,” that indicated they had received services on days they had not. Baker and Evans completed numerous mood inventory forms that contained false information about the days on which Baker and Evans received treatment from Washington or someone working for Washington. Baker and Evans received approximately $100 for each form they completed.
Over the course of the fraud, Baker received a total of at least $3,000 from Washington; Evans received at least $6,000.
As a result of Baker’s falsified documentation, Washington was able to fraudulently bill $105,125 from OWCP. As a result of Evans’ falsified documentation, Washington was able to bill $202,438 from OWCP.
The government presented further evidence that Baker submitted falsified documentation related to travel he purportedly made to receive medical services from Washington and others. He also requested reimbursement for twice the amount of mileage he would have received had he actually received the purported services. As a result, based on fraudulent travel forms he submitted, Baker received more than $3,000.
In addition to Baker and Evans, 20 claimants, four doctors or medical providers, a senior claims examiner at DOL, a claims representative, a Postal employee detailed to the Postal Service Health Resource Management Office, and a medical provider’s employee were charged and convicted in the scheme.
In total, the defendants were able to collectively fraudulently bill the federal government through the OWCP for more than $9.5 million and receive more than $8.7 million in government payments based on their fraudulent billing. The DOL made approximately $11.4 million in payments to these claimants for their compensation and medical services.
The investigation was led by the U.S. Postal Service Office of Inspector General, and the Department of Labor Office of Inspector General, with assistance from Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigation, U.S. Treasury Office of Inspector General, Social Security Administration Office of Inspector General/Cooperative Disability Investigations Unit, and the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs Office of Inspector General.
Assistant U.S. Attorneys P.J. Meitl, Nicole Dana and Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Jennifer Bray prosecuted.
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Former New Jersey Attorney General and Chairman of Port Authority Board of Commissioners Sentenced to One Year of Home Confinement for BriberyRead the Press Release
Court Also Fines Him $100,000, Orders Four Years’ Probation
NEWARK, N.J. – David Samson, the former chairman of the Board of Commissioners of the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, was sentenced today to 12 months of home confinement and four years of probation for using his official authority to pressure the parent company of United Airlines Inc. to institute a non-stop flight from Newark to South Carolina for his personal benefit, U.S. Attorney Paul J. Fishman, Inspector General Michael Nestor of the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, Office of Inspector General, and Special Agent in Charge Timothy Gallagher of the FBI’s Newark Division, announced.
Samson, 77, of Aiken, South Carolina, who served as New Jersey Attorney General from 2002 to 2003 and was the founding member and chairman of the law firm Wolff & Samson PC, previously pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Jose L. Linares in Newark federal court to an information charging him with one count of bribery. Judge Linares imposed the sentence today in Newark federal court.
“We believe that Mr. Samson’s crime, which involved a substantial violation of trust by a high-ranking public official, warranted a significant term of incarceration,” U.S. Attorney Fishman said. “Obviously we’re disappointed in the sentence, but we respect the court’s decision.”
“The investigation, prosecution, and sentencing of David Samson demonstrates that no individual is above the law, and that no government employee may use their official position for personal gain,” Inspector General Nestor said. “The Port Authority Office of Inspector General will continue to fulfill its mission of rooting out corruption, no matter what level it may exist within the Port Authority. We commend our law enforcement partners for their cooperative effort and tireless work.”
“The FBI’s stance on public corruption is that of zero tolerance and therefore one of our highest priorities,” Special Agent in Charge Gallagher said. “We in the FBI believe that public corruption is among the most serious of criminal violations. It is a betrayal of the public’s sacred trust. If allowed to grow, public corruption permeates all aspects of society and affects all other criminal priorities. And if allowed to spread unchecked, public corruption can threaten the very foundation of democracy. These charges reflect the FBI’s commitment to fighting public corruption and we will continue to aggressively pursue those that participate in these types of crimes.”
According to documents filed in this case and statements made in court:
The Port Authority operates Newark Liberty International Airport, one of United’s largest hubs. In September 2011, several months after Samson became the chairman of the Port Authority, he and Jamie Fox, who at the time was a paid consultant and lobbyist for United Continental Holdings Inc. (United), the Chicago-based parent company of United Airlines Inc., met with representatives of United for dinner at a restaurant in New York. (Fox, who was the commissioner of the N.J. Department of Transportation from September 2014 to October 2015 and who was charged separately with conspiring with Samson to commit bribery, died Feb. 20, 2017.)
During that dinner and following a discussion of certain of United’s priorities for Newark Airport, Samson told the United representatives that Continental Airlines Inc., a predecessor of United, used to have non-stop flight route between Newark Airport and Columbia Airport, and that the route had made his travel from New Jersey to his home in South Carolina more convenient. A United representative responded that United generally stopped flying routes because they were not profitable, but told Samson that United would look into reinstating the Newark/Columbia route.
Subsequent to this dinner and additional inquiries from Fox on Samson’s behalf, United concluded that reinstating the Newark/Columbia route would not be profitable and communicated United’s lack of interest to Fox. Samson and Fox used Samson’s official position and authority as chairman of the Port Authority’s Board of Commissioners – which included control over the board’s agenda – to pressure United to reinstate the Newark/Columbia route. In November 2011, Samson and Fox were aware that an agreement between United and the Port Authority relating to United’s construction of a wide-body maintenance hangar at Newark Airport was to be presented to the Port Authority Board for its consideration at its Nov. 5, 2011, meeting. In an email exchange between Samson and Fox on Nov. 2, 2011, Samson and Fox discussed using Samson’s official authority to remove from the agenda the hangar agreement for the purpose of pressuring United to reinstate the Newark/Columbia route. Samson wrote Fox that he was “reviewing current Board agenda items of interest.” Referring to the hangar agreement, Fox suggested to Samson that “[m]aybe it needs further review!!!!!,” to which Samson responded “[y]es, it’s already off this month’s agenda: I hate myself.” Following through on this exchange with Fox, Samson caused the hangar agreement to be removed from the Port Authority Board’s agenda.
In advance of the board’s next meeting on Dec. 8, 2011, Samson and Fox continued to use Samson’s official authority to pressure United. On multiple occasions, Fox communicated to United that its failure to reinstate the route had made Samson angry and was having a negative impact on United’s relationship with the Port Authority. Samson and Fox also discussed further using Samson’s official authority over the board’s agenda to pressure United. On Dec. 7, 2011, the day before the Port Authority Board’s meeting, Samson sent Fox an email telling him that Samson had given instructions to remove the hangar agreement from the agenda. Fox responded that he thought it was a good time to put the agreement back on the agenda and Samson agreed to do so. The Port Authority Board then considered the hangar agreement on Dec. 8, 2011, and approved it. Fox later emailed Samson: “Finally have their [United’s] attention. Having item off/on this week worked,” referring to the hangar agreement.
As a result of the repeated use of Samson’s official authority to pressure United by Samson and Fox, United decided to reinstate the Newark/Columbia route. Based on Samson’s preferred travel schedule to South Carolina, which Fox communicated to United, the airline implemented a weekly schedule that only included flights from Newark Airport to Columbia Airport departing at 6:00 p.m. on Thursdays (with a returning flight the same night) and from Columbia Airport to Newark Airport departing at 6:20 a.m. on Mondays (after a flight to Columbia Airport the evening before). United began flying the Newark/Columbia route in September 2012 and operated the route until March 2014. Samson used the Newark/Columbia route on 27 occasions between October 2012 and January 2014. Samson and others referred to the Newark/Columbia route as the “Chairman’s Flight” and Fox referred to it as “Samson Air.”
In addition to home confinement and probation, Judge Linares sentenced Samson to 3,600 hours of community service and fined him $100,000.U.S. Attorney Fishman credited criminal investigators of the Port Authority, Office of Inspector General, under the direction of Inspector General Nestor; special agents of the FBI, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Gallagher; and criminal investigators of the U.S. Attorney’s Office, for the investigation leading to today’s sentencing.
The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Vikas Khanna and Lee M. Cortes Jr. and Senior Litigation Counsel J Fortier Imbert of the U.S. Attorney’s Office Special Prosecutions Division and Assistant U.S. Attorney David Feder of the criminal division.
Defense counsel: Michael Chertoff Esq., Washington, D.C., & Justin Walder Esq., Hackensack, New Jersey
Former Howard County Youth Gymnastics Coach Sentenced to Six Years in Federal Prison for Distribution of Child PornographyRead the Press Release
Baltimore, Maryland – U.S. District Judge Marvin J. Garbis sentenced former Howard County youth gymnastics coach Paul Daniel Bollinger, age 57, of Windsor Mill, Maryland, on March 3, 2017, to six years in prison, followed by twelve years of supervised release, for distribution of child pornography. Bollinger worked as a youth gymnastics coach in Maryland for over 30 years prior to his arrest in this case.
The sentence was announced by United States Attorney for the District of Maryland Rod J. Rosenstein; Special Agent in Charge Gordon B. Johnson of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Baltimore Field Office; Chief Terrence B. Sheridan of the Baltimore County Police Department; Special Agent in Charge Andre R. Watson of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI); and Baltimore County State’s Attorney Scott Shellenberger
According to his plea agreement, on May 15, 2016, Bollinger distributed computer files containing videos of child pornography using a file sharing program. An undercover Baltimore County Police detective downloaded at least 10 movie files containing child pornography that Bollinger distributed.
On May 25, 2016, investigators executed a state search warrant at Bollinger’s residence. During the search, investigators found a desktop computer powered on and running peer-to-peer file sharing software, and numerous files with titles indicative of child pornography were being shared and downloaded through use of the software. The wallpaper image on the computer monitor depicted a naked female child lying on her stomach. Law enforcement seized the desktop computer, hard drives and other digital media which contained over 40,000 image files and over 100 video files of child pornography. Next to Bollinger’s bed, detectives found over 100 pages of handwritten stories about an adult male having sex with young children.
According to his plea agreement, Bollinger was present during the execution of the search warrant and spoke with law enforcement. He characterized his involvement with child pornography as an obsession and stated that he had been viewing child pornography since approximately 1990. Bollinger advised that he prefers female children aged 8 to 12 years, the same age group of girls that he currently coached, but denied any inappropriate contact with children. Bollinger stated that he had sexual thoughts about a girl he coached in gymnastics and that he was attracted to the “body type” of many of the girls he coached.
Bollinger remains detained.
The case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by the United States Attorneys' Offices and the Criminal Division's Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who sexually exploit children, and to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.justice.gov/psc. For more information about internet safety education, please visit www.justice.gov/psc and click on the "resources" tab on the left of the page.
United States Attorney Rod J. Rosenstein commended the FBI, Baltimore County Police Department, HSI Baltimore, and Baltimore County State’s Attorney’s Office for their work in the investigation. Mr. Rosenstein thanked Assistant U.S. Attorney Matthew J. Maddox, who prosecuted the federal case.
Former First Tennessee Bank Employee Sentenced to Serve Three Years in Prison for Embezzlement of Funds and Tax EvasionRead the Press Release
GREENEVILLE, Tenn. – On Mar. 6, 2017, Kenneth L Miller, 37, of Greeneville, Tenn., was sentenced by the Honorable J. Ronnie Greer, U.S. District Court Judge, to serve 36 months in federal prison for embezzlement of funds and tax evasion. Upon his release from prison, he will be under the supervision of the U.S. Probation Office for five years. He was also ordered to pay restitution in the amounts of $844,254.79 to First Tennessee Bank (First Tennessee), $161,018.00 to the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) and $81,014.18 to two additional victims of his crimes, for a total of $1,086,286.97.
Miller was an employee of First Tennessee from May 2000 until February 2016. In October 2016, he pleaded guilty to an information charging him with one count of theft by a bank officer or employee and four counts of attempting to evade or defeat tax. The plea agreement on file with U.S. District Court details his scheme, which involved a variety of techniques, including: earning and then abusing the trust of various clients by telling them falsely that he would engage in financial transactions for their benefit and using his position as a manager of the bank to identify clients who he knew did not review their monthly statements and also to identify inactive accounts from which to embezzle money because he knew the owners of such accounts would be unlikely to detect the embezzlement. Upon learning of the embezzlement by Miller, First Tennessee reimbursed most of the losses to their accountholders.
Of the total amount he embezzled, Miller obtained approximately $967,573.25 for his personal use. He lost or spent most of this through online gambling on various websites and making payments on various personal consumer debts. Miller did not claim any of these funds as income on his tax returns for 2012, 2013, 2014, and 2015, thus evading paying taxes in the approximate amount of $161,018.
Renae McDermott, FBI Special Agent in Charge, Knoxville Division stated, “The defendant engaged in a pattern of illegal, unauthorized transactions which violated the bank customers’ confidence and trust. Today’s sentencing sends a message that the FBI will actively investigate and pursue prosecution of persons in a position of trust and hold them accountable for their actions.”
Agencies involved in the investigation of this case include the FBI, IRS Criminal Investigation, and Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation. Assistant U.S. Attorney TJ Harker represented the United States.
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Former Charlotte Business Owner Sentenced to Prison on Embezzlement ChargesRead the Press Release
CHARLOTTE, N.C. – On Friday, March 3, 2017, U.S. District Judge Robert J. Conrad, Jr. sentenced a former Charlotte business owner to 12 months and a day in prison on embezzlement charges, announced Jill Westmoreland Rose, U.S. Attorney for the Western District of North Carolina. Cameron Garrison, 37, was also ordered to serve two years under court supervision and to pay $116,245.19 as restitution.
Isabel Colon, Regional Director of Employee Benefits Security Administration’s Atlanta Regional Office of U.S. Department of Labor and John A. Strong, Special Agent in Charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation in North Carolina join U.S. Attorney Rose in making today’s announcement.
According to court documents and information introduced at the sentencing hearing, from in or about 2008 through in or about 2010, Garrison failed to remit, and converted for his own use, employee contributions which were supposed to be remitted to the Garrison Enterprises 401(k) profit sharing plan. In total, Garrison failed to remit, and converted for his own use, approximately $95,000 in employee contributions to the plan. According to court records, Garrison founded Garrison Enterprises, Inc. (Garrison Enterprises) in 1999 and served as its Chief Executive Officer until his termination in 2010. Garrison Enterprises focused its business on developing web-based applications for data management. The company was administratively dissolved in January 2015, court records show.
According to filed court documents, in or about 2006, Garrison Enterprises established the Garrison Enterprises 401(k) profit sharing plan (the Plan). Garrison was named and served as the trustee of the Plan, with authority to direct the investment of the Plan's assets for the sole benefit of the Plan's participants and beneficiaries. The Plan permitted participants to contribute a portion of their pay to the Plan through payroll deductions, and to take loans out of their account balances in the Plan in certain circumstances and then repay those loans through payroll reductions, collectively referenced to as "employee contributions."
According to court records, from in or about 2008 through in or about 2010, Garrison converted for his own use employee contributions which were supposed to be remitted to the Plan. Court records indicate that after the money was deducted from the employees’ paychecks, instead of remitting the money to the Plan, Garrison maintained the employees’ monies in the general assets of the corporate bank account and then transferred those monies into his personal account. Garrison made those transfers in the form of payroll, car allowances, and loan repayments. In addition, court records show that Garrison withdrew cash and made payments for personal expenses directly from the corporate accounts. According to court records, from in or about 2008 through in or about 2010, Garrison fraudulently failed to remit to the Plan and converted for his own use approximately $95,000 in employee contributions that were due to 21 different recipients, resulting in a loss of between $95,000 and $150,000.
“Theft of employee benefit assets jeopardizes the benefits of workers. This case reaffirms the U.S. Department of Labor’s commitment to protect workers’ benefits by identifying criminal activity wherever and whenever it occurs,” said Isabel Colon, Regional Director of Employee Benefits Security Administration’s Atlanta Regional Office.
Garrison pleaded guilty in September 2016 to one count of embezzlement from employee 401(k). He will be ordered to report to the Federal Bureau of Prisons upon designation of a federal facility. All federal sentences are served without the possibility of parole.
The investigation was led by the U.S. Department of Labor’s Employee Benefits Security Administration and the FBI. Assistant U.S. Attorney Maria Vento, with the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Charlotte, prosecuted the case.
Former Bennington City Clerk Sentenced in Two Embezzlement CasesRead the Press Release
TOPEKA, KAN. - A former city clerk for the city of Bennington, Kan., was sentenced Monday to a total of 16 months in federal prison in two separate cases of interstate transportation of embezzled funds, U.S. Attorney Tom Beall said. She also was ordered to pay $184,000 in restitution.
In the first case, Janetta Marie Buttery, 42, Bennington, Kan., pleaded guilty to one count of interstate transportation of stolen funds. In her plea, Buttery said she served as city clerk from October 2014 to May 2016 and left the position before the city discovered the crime. In her position as clerk she had access to credit cards belonging to the city and the city’s Recreation Commission. She used the cards to make unauthorized payments totaling more than $75,000.
In the second case, Buttery pleaded guilty to one count of interstate transportation of embezzled funds while she worked as secretary, bookkeeper and executive assistant to the owner of Realty Associates in Salina, Kan. She embezzled more than $79,000 in the company’s funds to make payments on personal debts belonging to herself and her family members.
Beall commended the FBI and Assistant U.S. Attorney Rich Hathaway for their work on the case.
Final four defendants sentenced to federal prison for roles in multistate drug ringRead the Press Release
HUNTINGTON, W.Va. – Four defendants who participated a multistate drug ring were sentenced to federal prison today, announced United States Attorney Carol Casto. Atari Seantay Brown, 39, of Detroit, was sentenced to 11 years and three months in federal prison for distribution of heroin. Sean Lee Braggs, 27, of Dearborn, Michigan, was sentenced to five years in federal prison for conspiracy to distribute heroin. Deandra Sheen Jones, 42, of Farmington Hills, Michigan, was sentenced to a year and three months in federal prison for conspiracy to distribute heroin and crack. Samuel E. Nelson, III, 37, of Louisville, was sentenced to two and a half years in federal prison for possession with intent to distribute heroin.
From the summer of 2014 to May 2016, Brown admitted that he helped lead a conspiracy to distribute significant quantities of drugs in the Huntington area. During the conspiracy, Brown arranged for the transportation of large quantities heroin and cocaine from Michigan to the Huntington area. Agents were able to make numerous controlled purchases of heroin from Brown and others during the investigation. On September 2, 2016, a confidential informant working at the direction of the Drug Enforcement Administration contacted Brown to arrange for the purchase of heroin. Brown met with the informant at an apartment located at 333 14th Street in Huntington that the group used to store and distribute drugs. Inside the apartment, Brown sold approximately 10 grams of heroin to the informant in exchange for $1,200. Brown also admitted that he possessed firearms during the conspiracy, that he maintained the 14th Street apartment to distribute drugs, and that he served as a leader of the conspiracy.
Braggs admitted that he assisted Brown and others by distributing heroin in the Huntington area, by transporting drugs from Michigan to Huntington, and by transporting money from Huntington to Michigan. On April 18, 2016, Braggs was traveling from Huntington to Michigan when his vehicle broke down in Ohio. Brown arranged for a tow truck to get the vehicle to Michigan. Agents surveilling Brown and Braggs contacted members of the Ohio Highway Patrol and a trooper subsequently conducted a traffic stop of the tow truck in northern Ohio. Agents discovered that Braggs’ vehicle contained a hidden compartment behind the rear seat that concealed $181,490 in cash. Braggs admitted that the hidden cash constituted proceeds from drug sales in the Huntington area.
Jones admitted that she assisted Brown by transporting cocaine from Michigan that was concealed in a rental vehicle. Jones also transported cash from Huntington to Michigan and helped Brown acquire additional heroin in Michigan. On March 26, 2016, Jones arranged for Brown to receive approximately 100 grams of heroin that Brown distributed to Nelson. On April 30, 2016, Jones transported approximately one kilogram of cocaine to Huntington at Brown’s direction. The cocaine was concealed in the spare tire of a rental vehicle Jones was driving. Jones admitted she was aware that Brown intended to convert the cocaine into crack for distribution.
Nelson admitted that he acquired large quantities of heroin from Brown and transported the drugs to the Louisville area for distribution. On April 18, 2016, Nelson traveled from Louisville to acquire heroin from Brown at the 14th Street apartment in Huntington. A trooper with the West Virginia State Police subsequently conducted a traffic stop of Nelson’s vehicle as he traveled toward Interstate 64 to return to Louisville. Law enforcement searched Nelson’s vehicle and discovered approximately 130 grams of heroin concealed in the dashboard.
On May 18, 2016, after a federal grand jury returned an indictment, agents executed arrest warrants and search warrants at eight locations, including residences in Detroit, Proctorville, Ohio, and Huntington. During the searches, agents seized large quantities of heroin, cocaine, crack, and marijuana, as well as an additional $120,531 in cash and 41 firearms.
These prosecutions arose out of a long-term investigation led by the Drug Enforcement Administration, with assistance from the West Virginia State Police, the Putnam County Sheriff’s Department, the Huntington Police Department, the Huntington FBI Drug Task Force, the Ohio Highway Patrol, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, and the United States Postal Inspection Service.
In addition to Brown, Braggs, Jones, and Nelson, six other defendants were convicted for their roles in this drug ring. Corey Bruce Toney was sentenced to 10 years and three months in federal prison, Arthur James Canada was sentenced to three years and 10 months in federal prison, Matthew Michael Meadows and Tanisha Lynette Wooding were each sentenced to a year and a half in federal prison, and Parker Wyatt Mays and Roy Bills were each sentenced to a year and a day in federal prison for their respective roles in the conspiracy.
Assistant United States Attorney Joseph F. Adams handled the prosecutions. Chief United States District Judge Robert C. Chambers imposed the sentences and presided over these cases.
These cases were prosecuted as part of an ongoing effort led by the United States Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of West Virginia to combat the illicit sale and misuse of illegal drugs. The U.S. Attorney’s Office, joined by federal, state and local law enforcement agencies, is committed to aggressively pursuing and shutting down pill trafficking, eliminating open air drug markets, and curtailing the spread of illegal drugs in communities across the Southern District.
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Filipino Woman Charged with Stealing $100,000 at Naval Base in JapanRead the Press Release
KANSAS CITY, Mo. – Tammy Dickinson, United States Attorney for the Western District of Missouri, announced that a Filipino woman who fled from Japan to the Philippines before being arrested in Overland Park, Kan., was charged in federal court today with stealing the equivalent of nearly $100,000 at a Naval base in Japan.
Cynthia Lopez Creseni was charged with theft of public money in a criminal complaint filed in the U.S. District Court in Kansas City, Mo. Creseni remains in federal custody pending a detention hearing on Thursday, March 9, 2017.
The federal criminal complaint alleges that Creseni stole the equivalent of $99,068 from Morale Welfare and Recreation (MWR) at the Yokosuka Naval Base in Japan.
According to an affidavit filed in support of the original criminal complaint, the Naval Criminal Investigative Service (NCIS) was notified about the theft of approximately $85,500 and ¥ 1,620,000 (aggregate value of $99,068) from a safe assigned to Creseni at the MWR cash cage. Creseni, who has worked at the base in various positions since 2000, served as the lead cashier of the game/slot room at the time of the theft.
Creseni officially reported the funds missing from her assigned safe after returning from a vacation to the United States in February 2015. Creseni, who denied taking the money, was placed on administrative leave pending the outcome of an investigation.
Interviews of Creseni’s co-workers revealed that she might have had some financial problems, the affidavit says. When investigators attempted to interview Creseni at her residence in Japan, they learned that she had vacated her home, sold it and moved to the Philippines. Efforts were made to locate Creseni in the Philippines, but were unsuccessful. Agents learned that Creseni entered the United States on July 15, 2015.
On Jan. 24, 2017, Creseni was located in Overland Park, Kan., and arrested by federal agents for immigration violations for overstaying her visa.
Dickinson cautioned that the charge contained in this complaint is simply an accusation, and not evidence of guilt. Evidence supporting the charge must be presented to a federal trial jury, whose duty is to determine guilt or innocence.
This case is being prosecuted by Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Kim Moore. It was investigated by the Naval Criminal Investigative Service and Immigration and Customs Enforcement's (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI).
Federal Prosecutors’ Focus on Illegal Guns Results in 4 Recent Convictions for Illegal Weapons Possession and Gun TraffickingRead the Press Release
LOS ANGELES – In three trials last week, federal juries convicted four Southern California men on charges of illegal weapons possession and gun trafficking.
After deliberating for only an hour on Friday, a jury in Los Angeles found two men guilty of illegally selling firearms. Francisco Juantonio Hilt, 39, of Compton, and Sean Ronaldo Alexander, 37, of South Los Angeles, each were convicted of multiple counts of gun trafficking.
Hilt and Alexander were found guilty in relation to seven illegal gun transactions involving a total of 30 guns, including military-style weapons and stolen firearms. The evidence at trial showed that the men believed they were supplying guns to the Armenian Mafia and the “Mexican Cartel,” and the firearms were sold to an individual that Hilt believed was a convicted felon. Both defendants were found guilty of conspiracy and engaging in the business of dealing in firearms without a license. Hilt was also convicted of several counts of being a felon in possession of firearms and sale of a firearm to a prohibited person.
Hilt and Alexander were charged as the result of an operation last year by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) that targeted the sale of guns in and around Compton and Mona Park in Willowbrook. During the course of the year-long investigation, authorities took more than 100 illegally trafficked firearms off the streets, and 14 defendants were charged in federal and state court.
As a result of Friday’s guilty verdicts, Hilt, who has a previous drug conviction, faces a statutory maximum sentence of 90 years in federal prison, and Alexander faces a maximum sentence of 10 years, when they are sentenced on June 5 by United States District Judge R. Gary Klausner.
A third defendant charged in this case – Jamie Maurice Thomas, 38, of South Los Angeles – pleaded guilty in November to conspiracy and selling a firearm to a prohibited person. Thomas faces up to 15 years in federal prison when he is sentenced by Judge Klausner on March 27.
“The availability of illegal firearms dramatically increases the incidence of violent crime,” said United States Attorney Eileen M. Decker. “In each of the cases announced today, convicted felons possessed firearms, and, in two of the cases, the defendants either sold or claimed to want to sell guns. My office is focused on removing felons who would sell or possess firearms from our streets, and our community is safer today with these four defendants facing significant prison time.”
Eric Harden, the Special Agent in Charge of the ATF’s Los Angeles Field Division, stated: “ATF reduces violent crime by partnering with the local law enforcement to identify, investigate, and arrest those who illegally supply firearms to prohibited individuals, and by targeting previously convicted felons who possess firearms. The dedicated personnel of ATF work tirelessly to rid our communities of criminals who have multiple violent convictions and upon release go right back to the streets to commit firearms violence. These solid investigations will result in significant prison time for these individuals, making for safer neighborhoods.”
In a second weapons case that went to trial last week in Los Angeles, a federal jury on Thursday convicted Samir Fouad Benamor, 48, of Torrance, of being a convicted felon who unlawfully possessed a shotgun in violation of federal law. He was convicted after a three-day trial and will be sentenced on June 5 by United States District Judge S. James Otero. At sentencing, Benamor – who has been previously convicted of six different felonies, including domestic violence, drug trafficking and illegal firearms possessiom – will face a statutory maximum penalty of 10 years in federal prison.
The evidence at Benamor’s trial showed that on June 2, 2016, law enforcement officers with the Torrance Police Department conducted a post-release community supervision search of Benamor’s residence and vehicle in Torrance. During the search of Benamor’s vehicle, a Torrance Police Department Detective located a shotgun under the seat of the vehicle. As Benamor had previously sustained a felony conviction, he was prohibited under federal law from possessing the shotgun in his vehicle. Benamor admitted to another Detective that he unlawfully possessed the shotgun, but claimed that he intended to sell it.
“On behalf of the Torrance Police Department, I would like to express my sincere appreciation to the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives, as well as the United States Attorney’s Office, for their professionalism and dedication in this matter,” said Torrance Chief of Police Mark Matsuda. “Their partnership with us in this case contributed towards our goal of providing a safe and secure community for our residents.”
In the third firearms-related trial last week, a federal jury in Santa Ana on Thursday convicted Tony Eugene Craig, 45, of North Hollywood, of being a felon in possession of a firearm.
On January 8, 2016, members of the United States Marshals Service’s Pacific Southwest Regional Fugitive Task Force located Craig in North Hollywood. Craig. who had absconded from his federal supervised release, was found hiding in a back bedroom after his girlfriend told Task Force members that he was not home. During a protective sweep of the room where Craig was located, law enforcement agents found a loaded .357 Magnum revolver on the floor next to the bed.
Craig had been previously convicted of six different felonies, including domestic violence, drug trafficking and illegal firearms possession. Craig was on supervised release after serving a prison term in relation to a 2003 conviction for conspiracy to distribute cocaine when he was found in possession of the firearm and ammunition.
Craig faces a statutory maximum penalty of 10 years in federal prison when he is sentenced on June 12 by United States District Andrew J. Guilford.
These three cases are representative of the U.S. Attorney’s Office’s focus on working with both federal and local law enforcement partners to address violent crime and to remove criminals possessing illegal firearms from the street. That focus resulted in a more than three-fold increase in prosecutions of those who illegally possessed weapons between 2014 and 2016, and prosecutors expect the number of those cases to continue to rise.
The case against Hilt and Alexander was investigated by ATF and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Veronica Dragalin and Bryant Yang of the General Crimes Section.
The case against Benamor was investigated by ATF and the Torrance Police Department and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Matthew W. O’Brien of the General Crimes Section.
The case against Craig was investigated by ATF and the USMS Pacific Southwest Regional Fugitive Task Force and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Khaldoun Shobaki of the General Crimes Section.
Federal Case Charges San Bernardino County Father and Son in Conspiracy to Steal Cash from the U.S. Postal ServiceRead the Press Release
RIVERSIDE, California – A father and son have been arrested and charged in federal court in connection with a robbery late last week at a United States Postal Service facility in Victorville.
According to court documents filed on Friday, the father and son – Corey Parker Sr., 46, and Corey Parker Jr., 23, both of Adelanto – also are suspects in a series of Postal truck robberies across Southern California that has caused more than $400,000 in losses.
The Parkers were charged Friday in a criminal complaint filed in United States District Court. The complaint charges both men with conspiracy to rob the Victorville Post Office on Thursday night.
According to the affidavit in support of the criminal complaints, the pair also are believed to have committed a string of postal truck robberies over the last 18 months – thefts that occurred while the trucks were moving or otherwise in transit. During those robberies, the thieves jumped on the back of a postal truck and opened the rear door to steal the truck’s contents, specifically registered mail that included cash, checks and money orders.
The Parkers made their initial court appearances on Friday afternoon, and United States Magistrate Judge Sheri Pym ordered them detained – held without bond – pending trial. A preliminary hearing in this case was scheduled for March 17, and the two men are scheduled to be arraigned on March 22.
“The brazen acts of these defendants demonstrate the lengths to which mail thieves will go, including jumping onto moving vehicles and attempting to rob secure post offices,” said United States Attorney Eileen M. Decker. “This case is the latest of several cases highlighting my office’s focus on criminals victimizing the Postal Service and its customers.”
“This arrest is a result of determination and good old-fashioned police work exhibited by the Postal Inspectors assigned to the case,” said William Hedrick, Postal Inspector in Charge of the Los Angeles Field Office. He added, “A large part of the Postal Inspection Service mission is assuring the safety of postal employees and we want them to have confidence that they can focus on their duties. These types of crimes against postal employees are rare, but when they do occur, they become top priority for us.”
If convicted of the conspiracy charge in the criminal complaint, the defendants each would face a statutory maximum sentence of five years in federal prison.
A criminal complaint contains allegations that a defendant has committed a crime. Every defendant is presumed to be innocent until proven guilty in court.
This matter is being investigated by the United States Postal Inspection Service, with the assistance of the Rialto Police Department. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Bilal Essayli of the Riverside Branch Office.
The Parkers are the latest defendants to be charged in relation to crimes affecting the mails and the United States Postal Service.
Other cases prosecuted recently by the United States Attorney’s Office include:
- 33 defendants charged across 28 cases;
- 11 defendants charged across seven cases in the Inland Empire;
- Carlos Canjura, 54 of Van Nuys;
- Chinh Vuong, 48, of Garden Grove;
- Bernie Martinez, 23, and Kammi Leigh Vestesen, 24, both of Corona; and
- Paul Wagner, 28, of Corona.
This representative sample of cases is only a portion of the cases charged by the U.S. Attorney’s Office in which the mail service was victimized. To address the rising problem of mail theft and crimes such as identity theft that flow from mail theft, the Los Angeles-based U.S. Attorney’s Office more than doubled the number of cases charged which were investigated by the United States Postal Inspection Service from 2015 to 2016.
Donna Young Sentenced for Bankruptcy MisrepresentationRead the Press Release
The United States Attorney for the District of Vermont announced that Donna Young, 68, of Wilmington, was sentenced today in United States District Court in Burlington following her guilty plea to a charge that she made false statements under penalty of perjury in a bankruptcy case she filed. U.S. District Judge William K. Sessions III placed Young on one year of probation.
On April 13, 2016, a federal grand jury in Rutland returned a three-count false statement indictment against Young. According to the indictment, on two dates in 2013 and a third time in October 2014, Donna Young filed bankruptcy petitions in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for Vermont. The petitions were fraudulent because they were filed in the name of Donna Young's daughter, Kelli-Ann Young, without Kelli-Ann’s knowledge or consent. According to the indictment, Donna Young forged Kelli-Ann Young’s signature on each of the petitions, which she swore to under penalty of perjury. At the time the petitions were filed, there was a foreclosure and eviction proceeding pending in Vermont state court involving a property in West Dover that Kelli-Ann Young had at one time owned. Donna Young was living in the West Dover house during the foreclosure and the filing of the bankruptcy petitions automatically stayed those eviction proceedings. Young pled guilty last November.
This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation.
Young is represented by Federal Public Defender Michael Desautels. The prosecutor is Assistant U.S. Attorney Gregory Waples.
District Man Pleads Guilty to Armed Robbery and Other ChargesRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON – Donathan Taylor, 19, of Washington, D.C., has pled guilty to charges stemming from two robberies and a home break-in, all committed in broad daylight and in different neighborhoods, U.S. Attorney Channing D. Phillips announced today.
Taylor pled guilty on March 3, 2017, in the Superior Court of the District of Columbia, to charges of armed robbery, robbery, and destruction of property. The plea, which is contingent upon the Court’s approval, calls for an agreed-upon sentence of seven years in prison. The Honorable Kimberley S. Knowles set a hearing for May 19, 2017 to determine whether the plea and sentence will be accepted.
In his guilty plea, Taylor admitted involvement in three crimes: damaging a door during a home break-in that took place at about 10:30 a.m. on April 1, 2015, in the 200 block of 17th Street NE; a robbery that took place at about 11:35 a.m. on May 25, 2016, in the 1600 block of G Street SE, and an armed robbery that took place at about 2:45 p.m. on June 24, 2016, in the 600 block of Buchanan Street NW. A co-defendant is awaiting trial in the latter robbery.
In announcing the plea, U.S. Attorney Phillips commended the work of those who investigated the case from the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD). He also expressed appreciation for the assistance provided by the Latent Fingerprint Unit of the Forensic Science Laboratory of the District of Columbia Department of Forensic Sciences. Finally, he acknowledged the efforts of those who worked on the case from the U.S. Attorney’s Office, including Assistant U.S. Attorneys Michael J. Romano and Kamil E. Shields, who prosecuted the case.
Dexter Man Sentenced to 10 Years for Cocaine and Oxycodone Trafficking ConspiracyRead the Press Release
Contact: Joel B. Casey
Andrew McCormack
Assistant United States Attorneys
Tel: (207) 945-0373Bangor, Maine: United States Attorney Thomas E. Delahanty II announced that Mark Tasker, 49, of Dexter, Maine, was sentenced today in U.S. District Court by Judge Jon D. Levy to 10 years in prison and five years of supervised release for conspiring to distribute and possess with the intent to distribute cocaine and oxycodone and maintaining a drug involved premise. He pleaded guilty on July 20, 2016.
According to court records, between January 2002 and November 2014, Tasker conspired with Kelli Mujo and her father, Roger Belanger, to distribute cocaine and oxycodone in the Dexter area. The drugs were acquired by Mujo and Belanger in Rhode Island and transported to Maine. From January 2012 until November 2014, Tasker used his residence in Dexter to distribute them.
In sentencing the defendant, Judge Levy observed that the length and breadth of the conspiracy was “extraordinary” and that Tasker had participated in it during its entire existence.
The case was investigated by the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration and the Maine Drug Enforcement Agency, with assistance provided by the Dexter Police Department, the Penobscot, Somerset and Piscataquis County Sheriff’s Offices.
Dallas Methamphetamine Trafficker Sentenced to 210 Months in Federal PrisonRead the Press Release
DALLAS, Texas — On Friday, March 3, 2017, U.S. District Judge Sidney A. Fitzwater sentenced Pablo Erick Quincosa-Cabrera, 42, of Dallas, Texas, to 210 months in federal prison, following his guilty plea in November 2016, to one count of conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute a mixture and substance containing a detectable amount of methamphetamine, announced U.S. Attorney John Parker of the Northern District of Texas.
According to documents filed in the case, on five separate occasions between April 2016, and September 2016, Quincosa-Cabrera possessed with the intent to distribute or distributed half-kilogram to kilogram quantities of methamphetamine.
The Drug Enforcement Administration, the Allen Police Department, the Garland Police Department, and Rockwall Police Department investigated the case.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Suzanna Etessam prosecuted.
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Connecticut Man Sentenced to 13 Years’ Imprisonment for Committing Six Bank RobberiesRead the Press Release
SCRANTON - The United States Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Pennsylvania announced that David Sandy Lee Parks, age 61, of New Haven, Connecticut, was sentenced today by United States District Court Judge Malachy E. Mannion to 156 months’ imprisonment for six bank robberies in Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, and Connecticut.
According to United States Attorney Bruce D. Brandler, Parks previously pleaded guilty to all six counts in a criminal information charging the following bank robberies and armed bank robberies:
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Savings Institute Bank & Trust, Westerly, Rhode Island, on February 20, 2015;
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Coastway Credit Union, Warwick, Rhode Island, on June 16, 2015;
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Citizen’s Bank, Stonington, Connecticut, on June 24, 2015;
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People’s Security Bank, Duryea, Pennsylvania, on July 3, 2015;
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Wells Fargo Bank, Plymouth, Pennsylvania, on July 10, 2015; and
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First Niagra Bank, Trexlertown, Pennsylvania, on July 17, 2015.
Shortly after the First Niagra Bank robbery on July 17, 2015, officers from the Upper Macungie Police Department arrested Parks, who was driving the vehicle identified in surveillance footage as the getaway car. A search incident to arrest revealed a pellet gun and other evidence connecting him to the First Niagra robbery. Parks has been detained in federal custody since his arrest.
In addition to the 156-month term of imprisonment, Judge Mannion also ordered that Parks be placed on supervised release for a period of three years following the service of his sentence. Judge Mannion further ordered that Parks make restitution in the amount of $49,816, which represents the total amount of money stolen in the first five robberies. The amount of $8,140 stolen from First Niagra Bank was previously returned.
The case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Pennsylvania State Police, the Duryea, Plymouth Township, Upper Macungie, Pittston, Wilkes-Barre, Wilkes-Barre Township, Plains Township, Jenkins Township, West Pittston, Edwardsville, Warwick, Rhode Island, Hanover, and Kingston Police Departments, and the Luzerne County District Attorney’s Office. Assistant United States Attorneys John Gurganus and Sean A. Camoni prosecuted the case.
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Columbia Sex Offender Sentenced for Failing to RegisterRead the Press Release
Contact Person: Bill Day (803) 929-3000
Columbia, South Carolina---- United States Attorney Beth Drake stated today that Christopher Lee Holton, age 29, of West Columbia, South Carolina was sentenced Thursday, March 2, 2017, in federal court in Columbia, South Carolina, for Failure to Register as a Sex Offender, a violation of 18 U.S.C. § 2250(a). United States District Judge Mary Geiger Lewis, of Columbia, sentenced Holton to one year imprisonment to be followed by five years of Supervised Release.
Evidence presented at the guilty plea hearing established that Holton was convicted and sentenced for Molesting a Child and Sexual Misconduct with a Minor in Indiana. Holton's conviction resulted in his being required to register as a sex offender pursuant to the Sex Offender Registration Act (SORNA). SORNA requires sex offenders to register with law enforcement agencies by providing contact information such as their address and to notify the agencies if they intend to move or the information changes. Holton registered as a sex offender in Indiana when he was released from prison in January 2015 but in August 2015 the Whitley County Sheriff's Office (Indiana) discovered that Holton had moved without notifying them. Holton was located and arrested in West Columbia in August 2016. The investigation revealed that Holton had been living in South Carolina for approximately eight months but did not register, when he arrived in South Carolina, as a sex offender as required by SORNA.
The case was investigated by agents of the United States Marshal Service (USMS) and Whitley County Sheriff's Office (Indiana). Assistant United States Attorney William E. Day II of the Columbia office prosecuted the case.
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Colombian Paramilitary Leader Sentenced to More than 15 Years in Prison for International Drug TraffickingRead the Press Release
A senior paramilitary leader and one of Colombia’s most notorious drug traffickers was sentenced on Friday to serve 198 months in prison for his role leading an international drug trafficking conspiracy responsible for the importation of ton-quantities of cocaine into the United States. Acting Assistant Attorney General Kenneth A. Blanco of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division and Chief of Operations Anthony Williams of the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) made the announcement.
Hernan Giraldo Serna, a Colombian national, pleaded guilty in 2009 to one count of conspiracy to distribute cocaine knowing and intending that it would be imported into the United States. U.S. District Judge Reggie B. Walton imposed the sentence.
According to admissions in the plea agreement, Serna ascended to a leadership position in 1996 within the Autodefensas Unidas de Colombia (United Self Defense Forces of Colombia or AUC), a terrorist and paramilitary organization in Colombia. In September 2001, the AUC was designated a Foreign Terrorist Organization by the U.S. Department of State. In May 2003, the AUC was placed on the Significant Foreign Narcotics Traffickers list by order of the President, pursuant to the Foreign Narcotics Kingpin Designation Act. In February 2004, Giraldo Serna individually was designated as a Tier II Kingpin by the Department of Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control, subjecting him to severe economic sanctions under the Kingpin Act.
The statement of facts also established that Giraldo Serna became a senior commander in the AUC by 1996, and his armed force controlled a significant part of northern Colombia. In connection with his guilty plea, Giraldo Serna admitted that, from the early 1990s through the early 2000s, soldiers operating under his direction controlled large areas in northern Colombia where cocaine was cultivated, produced and distributed. Giraldo Serna also admitted to providing security for drug traffickers in the region under his control, including those individuals responsible for coca cultivation and distribution. Giraldo Serna also admitted to knowing that multi-ton quantities of cocaine were manufactured and transiting the region under his control and that significant quantities of that cocaine was transported to the United States. He further admitted his responsibility for the illegal importation of thousands of kilograms of cocaine into the United States.
“The sentence demonstrates the successful and vigorous partnership we have with our law enforcement colleagues in Colombia. We have been able to disrupt the flow of drugs coming from the north coast of Colombia, and punish the narco-traffickers responsible,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General Blanco. “This defendant, operating with the resources of an illegal para-military group that controlled drug trafficking in a large portion of northern Colombia, distributed large quantities of cocaine into international commerce, much of which was imported into the United States. International drug traffickers who believe they can operate with impunity learn the hard way that they cannot, and we will continue to work with our international partners to bring to justice those who knowingly transport cocaine to the United States.”
“DEA agents work every day to attack global criminal networks that use drug trafficking as a means to finance their terrorist activities and we are pleased that this AUC leader will finally face American justice,” said DEA Chief of Operations Williams. “We will continue to work with our international partners as DEA targets the transnational criminal groups destroying the lives of many people around the world.”
Today’s sentence does not account for violations of Colombian human rights-related laws allegedly committed by Giraldo Serna, which are being addressed in Colombia through the Justice and Peace process – a legal framework enacted in 2005 to facilitate the demobilization of its paramilitary organizations – and Colombian criminal justice system.
The case was investigated by DEA’s Bogota and Cartagena, Colombia Country Offices, and the DEA Special Operations Division. The government of Colombia provided invaluable assistance through the investigation, prosecution, and sentencing of this case, with specific assistance provided by the Judicial Police of the Prosecutor General’s Office in Colombia and the Colombian National Police.
This case was prosecuted by Trial Attorney Paul Laymon of the Criminal Division’s Narcotic and Dangerous Drug Section (NDDS), with significant assistance provided by the NDDS Judicial Attachés in Bogotá, Colombia; the Criminal Division’s Office of International Affairs; and the Prosecutor General’s Office of the Republic of Colombia (Fiscalía), including the Fiscalía’s Transnational Justice program.
Cocaine Trafficker Sentenced to 10 Years in PrisonRead the Press Release
SAN JOSE – Jesus Alberto Bueno-Meza was sentenced today to 120 months in prison for conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute and to distribute cocaine, announced United States Attorney Brian Stretch and Drug Enforcement Administration Special Agent in Charge John J. Martin.
Bueno-Meza, 48, a citizen of Mexico who was living in the San Jose area at the time of the offense, pleaded guilty on November 28, 2016, to one count of conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute and to distribute cocaine, in violation of 21 U.S.C. §§ 846, 841(a)(1), and 841(b)(1)(A)(viii). According to the plea agreement, Bueno-Meza admitted he conspired with other individuals to distribute five kilograms or more of cocaine between July 2013 and September 2015. He also admitted that, in furtherance of the conspiracy, he distributed cocaine and possessed with the intent to distribute cocaine on numerous occasions over his approximately two years of participation in the conspiracy.
Bueno-Meza was indicted by a federal grand jury on October 8, 2015. He was charged with one count of conspiracy to possess with the intent to distribute and to distribute cocaine and methamphetamine, one count of distribution and possession with intent to distribute cocaine, three counts of use of a communication facility (telephone) to commit a felony drug offense, and one count of illegal re-entry after deportation.
The sentence was handed down by the Honorable Edward J. Davila, U.S. District Judge. In addition to the prison term, Judge Davila also sentenced Bueno-Meza to a five-year period of supervised release. The defendant currently is released on bond and has been ordered to begin serving his sentence on June 22, 2017.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Chinhayi Cadet is prosecuting the case with the assistance of Patricia Mahoney. This case is the product of an extensive investigation by the Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force, a focused multi-agency, multi-jurisdictional task force investigating and prosecuting the most significant drug trafficking organizations throughout the United States by leveraging the combined expertise of federal, state and local law enforcement agencies.
Clinic Manager Heads to Prison for Health Care FraudRead the Press Release
HOUSTON – The 47-year-old owner and operator of Elite P. Care Medical Services has been sentenced for her role in a health care fraud conspiracy that billed Medicare and Medicaid for more than $1 million in fraudulent health care claims, announced U.S. Attorney Kenneth Magidson.
Verona Spicer, of Houston, pleaded guilty to conspiracy and health care fraud charges in October 2015. Today, she was ordered to federal prison for 33 months.
Spicer had clinics located on Harwin Drive in Houston and in Port Arthur. She submitted claims to Medicare and Medicaid that fraudulently billed for physician office visits not performed by a licensed physician, physical therapy services not provided or performed by a licensed physical therapist and medical diagnostic tests not ordered as medically necessary by a licensed physician.
Spicer paid Houston physician Dr. Jocelyn Pyles, 59, of Sugar Land, who formerly worked full-time as a physician for the City of Houston. After completing her work for the City of Houston, would go to Spicer’s clinics where she signed patient medical records for patients she had not seen or examined. Spicer and Pyles signed Medicare and Medicaid enrollment applications that enabled the fraudulent billing under Pyles’ Medicare and Medicaid provider numbers.
A foreign medical graduate who was not licensed to practice medicine in the United States was actually the person who saw the patients.
Pyles was also ordered to prison after a jury convicted her of 14 counts of health care fraud in November 2015.
Spicer and Pyles were both also ordered to pay Medicare and Medicaid $560,718.62 in restitution.
The Department of Health and Human Services – Office of Inspector General, FBI, Texas Attorney General’s Medicaid Fraud Control Unit conducted the investigation with assistance of Medicare Zone Program Integrity Contractor, Health Integrity LLC. Assistant U.S. Attorney Julie Redlinger prosecuted the case.
City Man to Serve 96 Months in Federal Prison for Assaulting Postal CarrierRead the Press Release
Oklahoma City, Oklahoma – CURTIS WESLEY THOMAS, SR., 37, of Oklahoma City, was sentenced today by United States District Judge Vicki Miles-LaGrange to serve the statutory maximum of 96 months in federal prison for assaulting a postal carrier, announced Mark A. Yancey, United States Attorney for the Western District of Oklahoma.
According to court records, on October 21, 2015, Thomas assaulted and robbed a postal carrier who was working delivering the mail in Southwest Oklahoma City. Specifically, the carrier was stuck in the head, punched in the face several times, placed in a choke hold, and slammed to the pavement at which time he became unconscious. The carrier’s satchel containing mail, a package scanner, and cell phone were taken. Following a thorough investigation, the United States Postal Inspection Service identified Thomas as the perpetrator.
Thomas was charged by criminal complaint on December 11, 2015, and later indicted by a grand jury on September 20, 2016. He pled guilty on November 2, 2016, to assaulting the postal carrier.
At his sentencing, Judge Miles-LaGrange ordered that Thomas serve the statutory maximum of 96 months in federal prison and that his federal sentence begin only after he first serves his 20-year sentence (the first 10 years suspended) on July 5, 2016, in Oklahoma County District Court for robbery with a firearm. After serving his state and then federal sentence, Thomas must also serve three years of supervised release.
This case is a result of an investigation conducted by the United States Postal Inspection Service and was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Charles W. Brown.
Cape Cod Man Sentenced for Drug and Money Laundering RingRead the Press Release
Boston - A Cape Cod man was sentenced today in U.S. District Court in Boston in connection with running a large-scale marijuana operation and then laundering the proceeds.
David Landry, 29, of Mashpee, was sentenced by U.S. District Court Judge Indira Talwani to 78 months in prison and three years of supervised release. Landry is currently serving a four-year state sentence for heroin distribution. The federal sentence will run concurrently with the remainder of his state sentence. In December 2015, Landry, his mother, Diane Johnson, Justin Groom and Evan Lopes, were indicted with possession with intent to distribute marijuana, conspiracy to manufacture marijuana, money laundering, possession with intent to distribute methylone (also known as “molly”), being a felon in possession of a firearm and money laundering conspiracy.
From May 2014 to January 2015, Landry and Groom conspired to manufacture and distribute marijuana, and possessed marijuana with the intent to distribute it. Landry, who was arrested and has been in state custody since Sept. 12, 2014, continued participating in the criminal offense while in jail on the state charges. On Jan. 6, 2015, law enforcement authorities executed a search warrant at a residence on Cheryl Lane in Pocasset, Mass., and seized numerous marijuana plants and extensive growing equipment. Groom is alleged to have used the proceeds of the illegal activities to pay the rent on the Cheryl Lane house.
It is alleged that Lopes, aided by Landry, possessed with intent to distribute methylone, a Schedule I controlled substance similar to MDMA. On Jan. 15, 2015, law enforcement authorities executed a search warrant at a residence on Point Pleasant Circle in East Wareham, Mass., and seized two kilograms of methylone and several letters Landry sent to Lopes while Landry was in jail.
Landry, a convicted felon, was in constructive possession of a loaded .40 caliber semi-automatic pistol on Jan. 21, 2015, when law enforcement officers recovered the pistol during a search of a residence on Acapesket Road in Falmouth, Mass. Landry pleaded guilty to constructively possessing the gun and directing an associate to its whereabouts. Finally, from 2010 to 2015, it is alleged that Landry and his mother, Diane Johnson, conspired to launder drug proceeds in order to disguise the nature of the funds and promote continued drug trafficking.
During the sentencing hearing, the government argued that Landry is a dangerous offender whose criminal conduct lasted from at least 2010 to 2015, and continued while he was in state custody. Moreover, it involved significant, wholesale quantities of heroin, methylone, and marijuana. The marijuana grow operation involved sophisticated, expensive equipment for which Landry paid over $40,000, and from which Landry expected to produce substantial illegal revenue for years. The money laundering involved multiple bank accounts and hundreds of thousands of dollars. The loaded firearm, hidden at an associate’s residence, apparently reflected Landry’s intention to continue to use threats and violence in furtherance of his drug trafficking and money laundering activity.
On March 2, 2017, Groom was sentenced to two years of probation after pleading guilty to marijuana and money laundering offenses. Lopes and Johnson are awaiting trial.
Acting United States Attorney William D. Weinreb; Mickey D. Leadingham, Special Agent in Charge of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, Boston Field Division; Joel P. Garland, Special Agent in Charge of the Internal Revenue Service’s Criminal Investigations in Boston; Cape and Islands District Attorney Michael D. O’Keefe; Colonel Richard D. McKeon, Superintendent of the Massachusetts States Police; Barnstable County Sheriff James M. Cummings; Barnstable Police Chief Paul MacDonald; Falmouth Police Chief Edward A. Dunne; Mashpee Police Chief Scott Carline; Bourne Police Chief Dennis Woodside; and Wareham Police Chief Kevin D. Walsh, made the announcement today. Assistant U.S. Attorney Ted Heinrich of Weinreb’s Narcotics and Money Laundering Unit prosecuted the case.
The details contained in the charging documents are allegations. defendants are presumed to be innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in the court of law.
California Clinic Owner Sentenced to 63 Months in Prison for Role in Occupational Therapy Fraud SchemeRead the Press Release
A rehabilitation clinic operator in Los Angeles County was sentenced to 63 months in prison today for his role in a $3.4 million Medicare fraud scheme that involved billing for occupational therapy services that were not medically necessary and not provided.
Acting Assistant Attorney General Kenneth A. Blanco of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, U.S. Attorney Eillen M. Decker of the Central District of California and Special Agent in Charge Christian J. Schrank of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ Office of Inspector General’s (HHS-OIG) Los Angeles Regional Office made the announcement.
Simon Hong, 55, of Brea, California, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge George H. Wu of the Central District of California. Judge Wu also ordered Hong to pay $2,407,857 in restitution. Hong pleaded guilty on Dec. 15, 2016, to one count of conspiracy to commit health care fraud.
As part of that guilty plea, Hong admitted that he owned JH Physical Therapy Inc., an occupational therapy clinic in Walnut, California, but hid his ownership in the name of a “straw”or nominee owner in an effort to execute and conceal the fraudulent scheme. Hong admitted that as part of the scheme, he billed Medicare for occupational therapy services when no such services were provided to the Medicare beneficiaries. Instead, the Medicare beneficiaries received acupuncture and massage services, which were not reimbursable by Medicare. Hong further admitted that he directed co-conspirator therapists to falsify medical records to make it appear as if the services billed had been actually provided and funneled 87 percent of the proceeds from Medicare to himself.
Through this scheme, Hong admitted that he and his co-conspirators billed Medicare approximately $3,454,485 from October 2009 until December 2012 in false claims and received approximately $2,407,857.
Hong was charged by indictment on June 16, 2016, along with Grace Hong, 51, of Brea, and Keith Canlapan, 38, of West Covina, California. Canlapan pleaded guilty to one count of conspiring to commit health care fraud, and Grace Hong is scheduled for trial March 21, 2017. An indictment is merely an allegation and all defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
In a separate case, Hong was convicted by a jury in October 2016 of eight counts of health care fraud, nine counts of illegal health care kickbacks and two counts of aggravated identity theft, involving a scheme to bill Medicare for physical therapy services that were never provided to beneficiaries. On Jan. 10, 2017, Hong was sentenced in that case by U.S. District Judge David O. Carter of the Central District of California to 121 months in federal prison and remanded into custody. The 63-month sentence imposed by Judge Wu will run concurrently to the sentence imposed by Judge Carter.
HHS-OIG investigated the case. The Criminal Division’s Fraud Section Trial Attorney Niall M. O’Donnell and Former Fraud Section Trial Attorney Blanca Quintero prosecuted the case.
Buffalo Man Indicted on Cocaine ChargeRead the Press Release
CONTACT: Barbara Burns
PHONE: (716) 843-5817
FAX: (716) 551-3051BUFFALO, N.Y.- Acting U.S. Attorney James P. Kennedy, Jr. announced today that a federal grand jury returned a two count indictment charging Eli Clark, 25, of Buffalo, NY, with possession with intent to distribute crack cocaine and maintaining a drug-involved premises. The charges carry a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison and a $5,000,000 fine.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Laura Higgins, who is handling the case, stated that according to the indictment and a previously filed complaint, during the early hours of October 21, 2016, a search warrant was executed at the defendant’s house on Crowley Avenue in Buffalo. Police recovered approximately 250 grams of crack cocaine inside Clark’s kitchen.
Clark was arraigned before U.S. Magistrate Judge H. Kenneth Schroeder, Jr. and is detained pending further proceedings on March 10, 2017, at 2:00 p.m.
The indictment is the result of an investigation by the Niagara County Drug Task Force, under the direction of Sheriff James Voutour; the Drug Enforcement Administration, under the direction of Special Agent-in-Charge James J. Hunt, New York Field Division; the Erie County Sheriff’s Department, under the direction of Timothy Howard; and the Buffalo Police Department, under the direction of Commissioner Daniel Derenda.
The fact that a defendant has been charged with a crime is merely an accusation and the defendant is presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty.
Brentwood Doctor and Wife Plead Guilty to Conspiring to Defraud the IRSRead the Press Release
Jeffrey Cephus McCoy, Jr. 70, and Andra McCoy, 68, of Brentwood, Tenn., pleaded guilty today to conspiracy to defraud the United States in the collection of income taxes, announced David Rivera, U.S. Attorney for the Middle District of Tennessee; Stuart Goldberg, Acting Deputy Assistant Attorney General of the Justice Department’s Tax Division; and Tracy Montano᷉, Special Agent in Charge of the IRS-Criminal Investigation-Nashville Division.
According to the indictment, Dr. McCoy, a radiologist, provided radiological services under contracts with healthcare providers. The McCoys filed false tax returns for the years 2003‑2007 that included fictitious withholding amounts, attached false Forms 1099‑OID, and failed to report taxable income. The indictment further alleges that the McCoys submitted false documents to IRS and placed their assets in the names of nominees or in nominee bank accounts.
At the plea hearing, the McCoys admitted that from July 25, 2002, until August 13, 2014, they conspired to defraud the United States by impeding the IRS’s collection of their income taxes. The McCoy’s further admitted that they signed and filed a false tax return for the 2003 tax year that reported $439,850 in false and fictitious withholdings.
A sentencing hearing will be scheduled by the court, and, when sentenced, the McCoy’s face a potential statutory maximum sentence of five years in prison, a fine of $250,000, and three years of supervised release.
The case was investigated by the Internal Revenue Service – Criminal Investigation. Assistant United States Attorney Thomas J. Jaworski and Alexander R. Effendi of the Tax Division represent the United States.
Brandon Woman Sentenced for Medicaid FraudRead the Press Release
The Office of the United States Attorney for the District of Vermont announced that Misti Baker, 36, of West Rutland, Vermont, was sentenced on Friday by United States District Court Judge Geoffrey W. Crawford for healthcare fraud. Judge Crawford sentenced Baker to time served plus two years of supervised release and ordered her to pay $77,306.57 in restitution.
According to court records, between 2012 and 2015, Baker defrauded the State of Vermont’s Children’s Personal Care Services (CPCS) program. CPCS, which is jointly funded by federal and Vermont Medicaid dollars, is designed to provide supplemental assistance with self-care and activities of daily living to Medicaid-eligible children with significant disabilities or health conditions. Three of Baker’s children qualified for the CPCS program. Baker signed and submitted approximately 100 time sheets to Aris Solutions, a company that administered the CPCS program, falsely indicating that her three children had received CPCS program care. In fact, despite their eligibility, the children had not received the claimed care. Baker had Aris Solutions send the payment checks for the purported care giver to various addresses and Post Office boxes over which she had access. Baker’s actions resulted in the fraudulent payment of approximately $77,306.57.
This matter was investigated by the Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General, Boston Regional Office, and the Vermont Medicaid Fraud Control Unit.
The United States was represented by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Jonathan A. Ophardt and John J. Boscia. The defendant was represented by Christopher L. Davis, Esq., of Langrock Sperry & Wool LLP.
Bergen County Doctor Convicted of Taking Bribes in Test-Referral Scheme with New Jersey Clinical LabRead the Press Release
NEWARK, N.J. – A family doctor practicing in Bergen County, New Jersey, was convicted today of all 10 counts of an indictment charging him with accepting bribes in exchange for test referrals as part of a long-running and elaborate scheme operated by Biodiagnostic Laboratory Services LLC (BLS), of Parsippany, New Jersey, its president and numerous associates, U.S. Attorney Paul J. Fishman announced.
Bernard Greenspan, 79, of River Edge, New Jersey, was convicted of one count of conspiring to commit violations of the Anti-Kickback Statute, the Federal Travel Act and wire fraud; three substantive violations of the Anti-Kickback Statute; three substantive violations of the Federal Travel Act; and three substantive violations of wire fraud. Greenspan was convicted following a 11-day trial before U.S. District Judge William H. Walls in Newark federal court. The jury deliberated just over four hours before returning the guilty verdict.
“We rightfully expect doctors to make their medical decisions based solely on what’s in the best interest of a patient,” U.S. Attorney Fishman said. “Whether they are dealing with a routine procedure or grappling with a potentially serious condition, patients should never have to worry that a doctor has violated that trust for personal greed. As we showed at trial – and the jury agreed – Greenspan abused his position and broke a wide range of federal laws when he accepted cash bribes and other illicit services in return for blood test referrals to BLS.”
“Patients have every right to insist that their physician is making medical referrals based on what is best for the patient—not what’s best for the doctor’s bank account,” said Special Agent in Charge Timothy Gallagher of the Newark FBI Field Office. “Bernard Greenspan decided to accept bribes in exchange for referrals and deprived patients of their right to honest services. These types of kickback arrangements cripple the healthcare industry and severely impact patient care. The FBI remains committed to investing its resources to combat these types of schemes.”
According to the indictment and testimony at trial, between March 2006 and April 2013, Greenspan received bribes totaling approximately $200,000 from BLS employees and associates. Greenspan periodically solicited and received monthly bribe payments in the form of sham rental, service agreement, and consultant payments.
In addition, Greenspan solicited and received other bribes, including payment for holiday parties for Greenspan and his office staff and additional cash bribes for ordering specific blood tests. In addition, BLS hired – at Greenspan’s specific request –a patient of Greenspan’s with whom he was having a sexual relationship. Greenspan’s referrals generated approximately $3 million in lab business for BLS.
The investigation has thus far resulted in 43 convictions – 29 of them of doctors – in connection with the bribery scheme, which its organizers have admitted involved millions of dollars in bribes and resulted in more than $100 million in payments to BLS from Medicare and various private insurance companies. It is believed to be the largest number of medical professionals ever prosecuted in a bribery case.
“This verdict should serve as a warning to any health care provider that dares to put personal profit ahead of proper patient care,” said Scott J. Lampert, Special Agent in Charge, Office of Inspector General, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. “HHS-OIG, along with our law enforcement partners, will continue to aggressively pursue those who seek to undermine the federally funded health care programs intended for our most vulnerable Americans.”
“Dr. Greenspan violated the Hippocratic Oath taken by medical professionals when he pledged to ‘come for the benefit of the sick, remaining free of all intentional injustice,” said Inspector in Charge James V. Buthorn of U.S. Postal Inspection Service, Newark Division. “The culture of kickbacks and bribery have no place in our healthcare system, and the U.S. Postal Inspection Service was proud to do our part, working with our law enforcement partners to ensure justice was served today. Congratulations on the successful outcome to the agents and prosecutors who untiringly worked on investigating this case and preparing for trial.”
The investigation has recovered more than $12 million through forfeiture. On June 28, 2016, BLS, which is no longer operational, pleaded guilty and was required to forfeit all of its assets.
The conspiracy, Anti-Kickback, and Federal Travel Act counts are each punishable by a maximum potential penalty of five years in prison. The wire fraud charges are punishable by a maximum potential penalty of 20 years in prison per count. Each count also carries a maximum $250,000 fine, or twice the gross gain or loss from the offense. Greenspan’s sentencing is scheduled for June 20, 2017.
U.S. Attorney Fishman credited special agents of the FBI, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Gallagher; inspectors of the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, under the direction of Inspector in Charge Buthorn; IRS–Criminal Investigation, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Jonathan D. Larsen; and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Office of Inspector General, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Lampert with the ongoing investigation.
The government was represented at trial by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Joseph N. Minish and Danielle Alfonzo Walsman of the U.S. Attorney’s Office Health Care and Government Fraud Unit in Newark.
U.S. Attorney Paul J. Fishman reorganized the health care fraud practice at the New Jersey U.S. Attorney’s Office shortly after taking office, including creating a stand-alone Health Care and Government Fraud Unit to handle both criminal and civil investigations and prosecutions of health care fraud offenses. Since 2010, the office has recovered more than $1.32 billion in health care fraud and government fraud settlements, judgments, fines, restitution and forfeiture under the False Claims Act, the Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act and other statutes.
Defense counsel: Damian Conforti Esq. and Eric Kanefsky Esq., Newark, NJ
BP Imposter Sentenced for Fraud SchemeRead the Press Release
McALLEN, Texas – A legal permanent resident from Cuba who resided in Mission has been sentenced to federal prison for impersonating an officer of the United States, announced U.S. Attorney Kenneth Magidson. Eugene Agustin Munoz-Canellas, 55, pleaded guilty Nov. 16, 2016.
Today, U.S. District Judge Randy Crane sentenced Munoz-Canellas to 18 months in federal prison. Not a U.S. citizen, he is expected to face deportation proceedings following his release. In handing down the sentence, Judge Crane considered the defendant’s extensive criminal history of theft and fraud and noted the need to impose a sentence that protected the community and promoted respect for the law.
From July 2015 to Sept. 23, 2016, Munoz falsely claimed to be an U.S. Border Patrol agent. Using that position, Munoz illegally solicited bribe payments from multiple individuals seeking legal status in the United States.
Munoz-Canellas has been and will remain in custody pending transfer to a U.S. Bureau of Prisons facility to be determined in the near future.
Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Office of Professional Responsibility and Homeland Security Investigations conducted the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney Kristen Rees prosecuted the case.
Attorney Pleads Guilty for Role in Multi-Million Dollar Scheme to Fraudulently Obtain Copyright Infringement Settlements from Victims Who Downloaded Pornographic MoviesRead the Press Release
An Illinois attorney pleaded guilty today for his role in a multi-million dollar scheme to fraudulently obtain payments to settle sham copyright infringement lawsuits by lying to state and federal courts throughout the country.
Acting Assistant Attorney General Kenneth A. Blanco of the Department of Justice’s Criminal Division, U.S. Attorney Andrew M. Luger of the District of Minnesota, Chief Richard Weber of the Internal Revenue Service-Criminal Investigation (IRS-CI) and Special Agent in Charge Richard T. Thornton of the FBI’s Minneapolis Division made the announcement.
John L. Steele, 45, currently residing in Pennsylvania, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit mail fraud and wire fraud and conspiracy to commit money laundering before U.S. District Judge Joan N. Ericksen of the District of Minnesota. Sentencing has not yet been scheduled.
According to Steele’s admissions in the plea, between 2011 and 2014, Steele and co-defendant Paul Hansmeier, both practicing lawyers, executed a scheme to fraudulently obtain more than $6 million by threatening copyright lawsuits against individuals who supposedly downloaded pornographic movies from file-sharing websites. Steele admitted that he and Hansmeier created a series of sham entities to obtain copyrights to pornographic movies – some of which they filmed themselves – and then uploaded those movies to file-sharing websites like “The Pirate Bay” in order to lure people to download the movies. Steele and Hansmeier then filed bogus copyright infringement lawsuits that concealed their role in distributing the movies, as well as their personal stake in the outcome of the litigation. After fraudulently inducing courts into giving him and co-defendants the power to subpoena Internet service providers and thereby identify the subscriber who controlled the IP address used to download the movie, Steele and Hansmeier used extortionate tactics such as letters and phone calls to threaten victims with enormous financial penalties and public embarrassment unless they agreed to pay a $3,000 settlement fee.
To distance themselves from the specious lawsuits and any potential fallout, Steele admitted that he and co-defendants created and used Prenda Law, among other firms, to pursue their claims.
According to the plea, after various courts began to restrict the defendant’s ability to sue multiple individuals in the same copyright lawsuit, the defendant changed his tactics and began filing lawsuits falsely alleging that computer systems belonging to their sham clients had been hacked. To facilitate their phony “hacking” lawsuits, Steele and Hansmeier recruited “ruse defendants,” who had been caught downloading pornography from a file-sharing website, to be sued in exchange for Steele and Hansmeier waiving their settlement fees while pursuing claims against their supposed “co-conspirators.”
According to the plea agreement, as courts began to uncover the defendant’s unscrupulous litigation tactics, judges began denying the defendant’s requests to subpoena ISPs, dismissing lawsuits, accusing Steele and co-defendants of deceptive and fraudulent behavior and imposing sanctions against the Steele and his associates. For example, on May 6, 2013, the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California issued an order imposing sanctions against the defendant. In total, the Steele and co-defendants obtained approximately $6 million from the fraudulent copyright lawsuits.
Paul R. Hansmeier, of St. Paul, Minnesota, was charged as a co-defendant in an indictment filed on Dec. 16, 2016. The charges contained in the indictment against him are merely accusations, and he is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
FBI and IRS-CI are investigating the case. Senior Trial Counsel Brian Levine of the Criminal Division’s Computer Crime and Intellectual Property Section and Assistant U.S. Attorney Benjamin Langner of the District of Minnesota are prosecuting the case.
steele_plea_agreement_1.pdfAppleton Man Sentenced to 72 Months Incarceration on Heroin Distribution ChargeRead the Press Release
Gregory J. Haanstad, United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Wisconsin, announced that on Wednesday, March 1, 2017, Jesse J. Wohlrabe (age: 30) of Appleton, Wisconsin, appeared in federal court in Green Bay and was sentenced to 72 months in federal prison for his involvement in a conspiracy to distribute heroin in the Fox Valley.
In pronouncing sentence, Chief U.S. District Court Judge William C. Griesbach noted the serious nature of Wohlrabe’s crime and the heroin addiction epidemic occurring in Northeast Wisconsin to which Wohlrabe contributed. The judge strongly condemned Wohlrabe’s prior criminal record. He concluded that Wohlrabe was deserving of a substantial prison sentence. Following his release from prison, Wohlrabe will serve 5 years on federal supervised release.
The case was investigated by the Lake Winnebago Area MEG Unit. The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Daniel R. Humble.
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For Additional Information Contact:
Public Information Officer Dean Puschnig 414-297-1700
4 March 2017
Long Island Man Arrested for Attempting to Provide Material Support to TerroristsRead the Press Release
A criminal complaint was unsealed today in federal court in the Eastern District of New York charging Elvis Redzepagic with attempting to provide material support and resources to the Islamic State of Iraq and al-Sham (ISIS) and the al-Nusrah Front, which have both been designated by the U.S. Secretary of State as foreign terrorist organizations. Redzepagic was arrested yesterday at his residence in Commack, New York, and his initial appearance is scheduled for this afternoon before United States Magistrate Judge Robert M. Levy at the United States Courthouse, 225 Cadman Plaza East, Brooklyn, New York.
The charges were announced by U.S. Attorney Robert L. Capers of the Eastern District of New York, Acting Assistant Attorney General for National Security Mary B. McCord, of the U.S. Department of Justice, Assistant Director in Charge William F. Sweeney, Jr. of the New York Field Office of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), and Special-Agent-in-Charge Angel M. Melendez, of HSI New York.
As set forth in court documents, Redzepagic is a 26-year old citizen of the United States. Over the last two years, Redzepagic twice traveled to the Middle East to attempt to join a foreign terrorist organization. Specifically, in 2015, Redzepagic communicated with an individual he believed to be the commander of a battalion in Syria and a member of ISIS or the al-Nusrah Front and made attempts to join him to engage in violent jihad. In July 2015, Redzepagic traveled to Turkey and made multiple attempts to cross the border into Syria to join his associate’s organization. Unable to enter Syria from Turkey, Redzepagic traveled to Jordan in August 2016, but was stopped and deported by Jordanian authorities. In Facebook messages from October 2015, Redzepagic explained that “jihad” is when “you fight for the sake of God” and “die for the sake of Allah,” and he explicitly stated that he traveled to Turkey to “perform Jihad and join Jabhat Al-Nusra.” In subsequent interviews with law enforcement, Redzepagic admitted that at the time he attempted to enter Syria from Turkey, he was prepared to strap a bomb to himself.
“This defendant made numerous attempts to travel to Syria to wage violent jihad,” stated United States Attorney Capers. “We will continue to track down and prosecute individuals like the defendant before they are able to become foreign fighters or harm the United States and its allies.” Mr. Capers extended his grateful appreciation to the FBI’s Joint Terrorism Task Force, which comprises a number of federal, state, and local agencies from the region. Mr. Capers also thanked the Suffolk County Police Department, Nassau County Police Department and the Port Authority Police Department for their assistance.
“According to the complaint, the defendant traveled overseas as part of his attempt to join and provide material support to designated foreign terrorist organizations that were engaged in fighting in Syria,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General McCord. “The National Security Division’s highest priority is countering terrorist threats. We will continue to work to stem the flow of foreign fighters abroad and bring to justice those who attempt to provide material support to designated foreign terrorist organizations.”
“As we alleged, Elvis Redzepagic was persistent in his efforts to travel overseas to ‘perform jihad’ as he said in social media posts. Traveling not once, but twice to the Middle East where he attempted to join ISIS or al-Nusrah Front in 2015 and 2016. Homegrown violent extremists, especially individuals who demonstrate determination like Redzepagic, are only mitigated through the joint efforts of local and federal law enforcement working together to protect our communities,” said Assistant Director-in-Charge Sweeney.
“Redzepagic, a U.S. citizen living in Long Island, made multiple attempts to join ISIS or al-Nusrah Front in Syria where he wanted to engage in violent jihad, which could have resulted in the death of countless individuals” said Special Agent in Charge, Melendez of HSI New York. “This arrest underscores the importance of cooperation between law enforcement agencies across the globe in identifying and bringing these extremists to justice before they are able to commit terrorist attacks.”
The charges in the complaint are merely allegations, and the defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
The government’s case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Saritha Komatireddy and Artie McConnell, with assistance provided by Trial Attorney Dan E. Stigall of the National Security Division’s Justice Department’s Counterterrorism Section.
The Defendant:
ELVIS REDZEPAGIC
Age: 26
COMMACK, NY
E.D.N.Y. Docket No. 17-M-199
3 March 2017
Utah Gang InitiativeRead the Press Release
UTAH GANG INITIATIVE CASE EXAMPLES
U.S. v Jonah Robinson
Age: 18
Orem, UT
Robinson is charged with possession of a firearm/ammunition and possession of a stolen firearm in a two-count indictment returned March 1, 2017. Robinson, a self-proclaimed member of the Kearns Town Bloods, came to law enforcement’s attention in February when he posted a video on Snapchat in which he pointed a firearm, from the window of a residence, at a group of Provo City police officers. He stated, in the video, that for “15 snapshots I’ll shoot every last one.” A concerned citizen saw the video, took screen shots, and called it to law enforcement’s attention. Robinson was on state court probation at the time of the offense. With a felony conviction, possession of the firearm used in the video, which the indictment alleges was stolen, is a violation of federal law. The case is being investigated by the Provo City Police Department, the FBI, and the Utah County Major Crimes Task Force.
U.S. v Pedro Valdez-Camacho aka Pedro Chofer; aka Cota Cota; aka Jesus Gonzalez-Valdez; aka Cota Valdez-Camachor; aka Pedro Choffer; aka Jesus Cota Gonzalez-Chofer; aka Jesus Valdez; aka Pedro Valdez-Camachor; aka Jesus Gonzales Valdez-Chofer
Age: 33
Coalville, UT
A Felony Information filed Wednesday charges Valdez-Camacho with re-entry of a previously removed alien. He is scheduled for an initial appearance Tuesday at 11 a.m. before U.S. Magistrate Judge Paul Warner. The defendant is a confirmed member of Los Paisanos. Because he has a previous federal conviction for possession of methamphetamine with intent to distribute, he is subject to a potential 20-year sentence in the Utah case. (He was sentenced to 87 months in 2008 for the conviction in Wyoming.) Valdez-Camacho has five previous deportations/voluntary departures from the country. Law enforcement believed he posed a threat to officer safety before he was taken into custody. The case is being investigated by U.S. Homeland Security Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
U.S. v Joseph Hores Medina
Age: 30
Roy, UT
Medina was sentenced to 98 months in federal prison on Feb. 27, 2017, after pleading guilty to possession of a firearm following a felony conviction and possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine. He will be on supervised release for four years when he finishes his federal prison sentence. According to documents filed by prosecutors in federal court, Medina is reputed to be the leader of the Nortenos, a local criminal gang in Ogden. Following a three-month investigation, law enforcement officers obtained a search warrant for his home and person. During the execution of the warrant, they found a pistol directly under the driver’s side seat. The firearm was loaded and had a high capacity magazine. They also found a red bandana, which officers recognized as representing the colors of the Nortenos. They also found several baggies of meth containing around 8.629 grams of meth, around $900 in cash, a police scanner, a stolen police badge, and other firearms, among other things. Medina is a convicted felon and prohibited from possession a firearm under federal law. He admitted that he possessed the methamphetamine with intent to distribute it to others. The case was investigated by member agencies of the Weber/Morgan Strike Force and ATF. It was prosecuted in federal court by Branden B. Miles, Chief Criminal Deputy in the Weber County Attorney’s Office, who is cross designated as a Special Assistant U.S. Attorney.
U.S. v Mahyar Movahhed
Age: 28
Iranian citizenship; Sandy, UT
Movahhed was sentenced to 60 months in federal prison on Feb. 22, 2017, after pleading guilty possession of methamphetamine with intent to distribute. Movahhed was involved in a traffic stop executed by Unified Police Department officers in August 2016. He was found with 27.3 grams of meth. Law enforcement officers say Movahhed is an active member of the Taliban Bloods/Rose Park Taliban. As a part of his supervised release conditions following his prison term, U.S. District Judge Robert J. Shelby ordered that he not get any new tattoos associated with a criminal street or prison gang and not wear clothing or other items that may be identified with a criminal street gang. He will be on supervised release for 36 months. Officers with the UPD/Metro Gang Unit and the FBI investigated the case. The ATF is a member of the Metro Gang Unit.
U.S. v Hector Renteria
Age: 29
Salt Lake City
Renteria was convicted of four counts of distribution of a controlled substance and one count of carrying a firearm during and in relation to a drug trafficking offense by a jury in May 2016. He was sentenced to 15 years in prison in December 2016. According to a sentencing memorandum filed by prosecutors in the case, Renteria is a long-time active member of the Avenues street gang. Renteria negotiated narcotics sales, including one that involved a firearm sale as well, on multiple occasions from November 2013 to June 2014. Investigators recovered about 25 grams of heroin, 595 grams of meth, and a firearm from these sales. When he was arrested, agents seized more than $2,000 cash from his wallet as well as several cell phones. A search of the phones revealed pictures of Renteria, who was not allowed to possess a firearm following a felony conviction, firing assault rifles and pistols with known gang members. Other photos show him posing with large stacks of $100 bills and making gang signs. The case was investigated by the FBI.
U.S. v Colton Paul Poore
Age: 26
Roy, UT
Poore, an Ogden Trece affiliate well-known to gang detectives in Salt Lake and Weber counties, was sentenced to 51 months in federal prison Feb. 15, 2017, after pleading guilty to possession of a firearm following a felony conviction. Gang officers were looking for Poore, at the time a parole fugitive, in the area of 2100 South State Street in Salt Lake City in mid-September. When Poore saw the officers, he attempted to flee. Even after he was taken to the ground, Poore continued to resist officers. Once he was taken into custody, he told officers they would find a gun in the bag he was carrying. He admitted he found the handgun and kept it for protection. The semi-automatic handgun was fully loaded with a round in the chamber. As a part of Poore’s sentence, U.S. District Judge Jill N. Parrish imposed several conditions of release he must follow after he is released from prison. The conditions preclude him from having contact of any kind with any member or associate of a criminal street gangs. He also is prohibited from getting new tattoos associated with a criminal street gang and cannot wear clothing or other items that may be associated with a gang. The case was investigated by the UPD/Salt Lake Metro Gang Unit, including the ATF.
Unlicensed Medical Professional Convicted for Role in $1.3 Million Medicare Fraud SchemeRead the Press Release
A federal jury in Houston convicted an unlicensed medical professional who was posing as a physician yesterday for his participation in a $1.3 million Medicare fraud scheme.
Acting Assistant Attorney General Kenneth A. Blanco of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, U.S. Attorney Kenneth Magidson of the Southern District of Texas, Special Agent in Charge Perrye K. Turner of the FBI’s Houston Field Office and Special Agent in Charge C.J. Porter of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services-Office of Inspector General’s (HHS-OIG) Dallas Regional Office made the announcement.
Rex Duruji, 56, of Houston, was convicted yesterday of one count of conspiracy to commit healthcare fraud, one count of conspiracy to pay healthcare kickbacks and one count of healthcare fraud following a four-day trial before U.S. District Judge Kenneth M. Hoyt of the Southern District of Texas. Duruji is scheduled to be sentenced on May 8, 2017.According to evidence presented at trial, from January 2012 until May 2015, Duruji engaged in a scheme to defraud Medicare by posing as a licensed physician, although he did not possess a medical license in the State of Texas. The evidence presented at trial showed that Duruji posed as a physician to induce Medicare beneficiaries to sign up for fraudulent home-health services with Koby Home Health (Koby) that were not actually provided and paid illegal cash kickbacks to the beneficiaries for those claims. According to evidence at trial, Medicare paid approximately $1.3 million in false and fraudulent claims for home-health services submitted by Koby.
The FBI and HHS-OIG investigated the case. Trial Attorneys Scott Armstrong and Kevin Lowell of the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section are prosecuting the case.
Two Women Plead Guilty to Orchestrating $20 Million Medicare Fraud Scheme at Seven Miami Area Home Health AgenciesRead the Press Release
Two Miami residents pleaded guilty today to fraud charges stemming from their roles in a $20 million home health care fraud scheme.
U.S. Attorney Wifredo A. Ferrer of the Southern District of Florida, Acting Assistant Attorney General Kenneth A. Blanco of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, Special Agent in Charge George L. Piro of the FBI’s Miami Field Office, Special Agent in Charge Shimon R. Richmond of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General’s (HHS-OIG) Miami Regional Office, and Special Agent-in-Charge Brian Swain of the U.S. Secret Service (USSS)’s Miami Field Office made the announcement.
Mildrey Gonzalez, 61, of Miami, pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit health care fraud and one count of health care fraud before U.S. District Judge Jose E. Martinez of the Southern District of Florida. Milka Alfaro, 40, also of Miami, pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit health care fraud and wire fraud before Judge Martinez. Sentencing for both defendants has been scheduled for May 11 before Judge Martinez.
As part of their guilty pleas, Gonzalez and Alfaro admitted that they were co-owners and operators of seven home health care agencies purported to do business in Miami-Dade County: Inar Home Care Service Corp., MA Home Health Inc., Golden Home Health Care Inc., Nova Home Health Care Inc., Finetech Home Health Inc., Homestead Home Health Care LLC and Metro Dade Home Health Inc. According to admissions made as part of their guilty pleas, Gonzalez and Alfaro recruited and paid nominees to falsely represent themselves as the owners of the home health care agencies, thereby concealing their ownership interests from Medicare and the general public. Gonzalez and Alfaro further admitted that they paid bribes and kickbacks to medical professionals, including doctors, in return for the provision of prescriptions for home health care services and referrals of Medicare beneficiaries to their home health care agencies; that they paid patient recruiters bribes and kickbacks in return for referrals of Medicare patients to the home health care agencies; and that in some cases, the Medicare beneficiaries did not need the home health care services for which Medicare paid.
Gonzalez and Alfaro admitted that as a result of the fraudulent scheme, Medicare paid approximately $20 million to the above-referenced home health care agencies.
and Alfaro were charged in a superseding indictment returned on July 20, 2016, along with Adriana Jalil, 66, of Miami, who served as a patient recruiter, and Luis Luzardo, 48, also of Miami, who utilized sham staffing companies to launder money. Jalil and Luzardo pleaded guilty and were sentenced by Judge Martinez earlier this year to 24 and 37 months in prison, respectively.
The USSS, FBI and HHS-OIG investigated the case, which was brought as part of the Medicare Fraud Strike Force under the supervision of the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section and U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Florida. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Lisa H. Miller, Evelyn B. Sheehan and Alison W. Lehr of the Southern District of Florida, and Fraud Section Trial Attorney L. Rush Atkinson, are prosecuting the case.
Since its inception in March 2007, the Medicare Fraud Strike Force, now operating in nine cities across the country, has charged nearly 3,000 defendants who have collectively billed the Medicare program for more than $11 billion. In addition, the HHS Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, working in conjunction with the HHS-OIG, are taking steps to increase accountability and decrease the presence of fraudulent providers.
Related court documents and information may be found on the website of the District Court for the Southern District of Florida at www.flsd.uscourts.gov or on http://pacer.flsd.uscourts.gov.
Two Sentenced to Prison for Conspiring to Steal Merchandise Under Control of United States CustomsRead the Press Release
Jackson, Miss – Richard Calvin Harper, 52, of Clinton, Mississippi, and Andrew Sneed, 57, of North Las Vegas, Nevada, were sentenced on March 2, 2017, by U.S. District Judge Daniel P. Jordan III, for their convictions on charges of conspiracy to steal merchandise under the control of the United States Customs Service, announced U.S. Attorney Gregory K. Davis.
Harper was sentenced to 27 months in federal prison and Sneed was sentenced to 60 months in federal prison. Both defendants were also ordered to pay $1,483,011.50 in restitution to Levis Strauss and Company and its insurance company.
On July 4, 2015, Harper and Sneed conspired with others to steal long-haul trailers full of Levi’s merchandise from the United States Customs bonded warehouse located at the Levi’s facility in Madison County, Mississippi. Several hundred palettes of merchandise were stolen.
This case was investigated by Homeland Security Investigations and the Madison County Sheriff’s office. It was prosecuted by Criminal Division Chief Darren J. LaMarca.
Two Cubans Sentenced to Two Years in Prison for Possession of Stolen Account Numbers and Identity TheftRead the Press Release
Eriberto Ricardo Gomez, 42, and Yasmanis L. Oduardo Fonseco, 28, have both been sentenced to two years in federal prison on their convictions for possession of fifteen or more stolen account numbers and aggravated identity theft, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Illinois, Donald S. Boyce, announced. Ricardo Gomez and Oduardo Fonseco, are both Cuban Nationals who currently reside in Houston, Texas. They were sentenced in federal court in Benton, IL on March 2, 2017.
The stolen account numbers were discovered by an officer of the Caseyville, Illinois, Police Department on October 8, 2015, during a traffic stop on I-70 in Madison County. At that time, Ricardo Gomez and Oduardo Fonseco had in their possession over 100 gift cards. The magnetic strips on 19 of these gift cards had been re-encoded with account numbers registered to customers of a financial institution in the state of Pennsylvania. During their plea hearings in November of last year, both Ricardo Gomez and Oduardo Fonseco acknowledged that they used these gift cards to make fraudulent purchases at Walmart stores located in Arkansas and Manchester, MO.
In addition to all the gift cards, a computer was also seized from the vehicle that Ricardo Gomez and Oduardo Fonseco were travelling in. When this computer was searched, the FBI found 301 stolen bank account and credit card numbers. An MSR X6 credit card re-encoder was also recovered from Ricardo Gomez’s jacket pocket.
"Unfortunately, these types of crimes involving stolen account numbers are all too frequent," U.S. Attorney Boyce stated. "In addition to their financial impact, these crimes leave the victims feeling violated and vulnerable. Our office will prosecute, and seek federal prison sentences, for anyone who engages in this type of crime in Southern Illinois."
The investigation was conducted by the Springfield Division, Fairview Heights Resident Agency, of the Federal Bureau of Investigation ("FBI"). The Caseyville and Pontoon Beach Police Departments, assisted in the investigation. Walmart’s Global Security Department also provided significant assistance in the investigation. The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Scott A. Verseman.
Two Corrections Officers Sentenced for Smuggling Drugs into Middleton JailRead the Press Release
BOSTON – Two former corrections officers at the Essex County Correctional Facility were sentenced recently in U.S. District Court in Boston for their involvement with smuggling Suboxone into the Essex County House of Corrections – Middleton for inmates.
Katherine Sullivan, 32, of Londonderry, N.H., was sentenced yesterday by U.S. District Court Judge Allison D. Burroughs to 36 months of probation, 120 hours of community service, and ordered to pay a fine of $5,000. In November 2016, Sullivan pleaded guilty to one count of conspiring with inmates to distribute Suboxone, a drug used to treat opioid addiction, between October and December 2015.
In January 2017, U.S. District Court Judge Richard G. Stearns sentenced John S. Weir, 34, of Danvers, Mass., to the same sentence after Weir pleaded guilty to conspiring with inmates to distribute Suboxone between September and November 2014. Both Sullivan and Weir have resigned from their positions as corrections officers.
The investigations revealed that Weir and Sullivan obtained Suboxone strips from sources outside the jail and smuggled the contraband into the facility when reporting for their shifts. Inmates receiving the Suboxone from Weir and Sullivan then sold the drug to other prisoners inside the correctional facility.
Essex County Sheriff Kevin F. Coppinger said, “We have a zero tolerance policy for this type of behavior and we will take swift and decisive action in all cases.”
Acting United States Attorney William D. Weinreb; Harold H. Shaw, Special Agent in Charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Boston Division; and Essex County Sheriff Coppinger, made the announcement. Assistant U.S. Attorney William F. Bloomer of Weinreb’s Public Corruption and Special Prosecutions Unit prosecuted the cases.
Three Plead Guilty to Firearm Straw PurchasingRead the Press Release
Concord, N.H.—Emily Gray Rice, United States Attorney for the District of New Hampshire, announced that Matthew Bergeron, 30, of Fitchburg, Massachusetts, Rashawn Dunn, 30, of Manchester, New Hampshire, and Jessica Fithian, 33, of Manchester, New Hampshire, have all pleaded guilty this week to conspiracy charges arising out of the straw purchase of firearms in 2016.
According to the indictment, statements made in court, and other public records in the case, Bergeron and Dunn conspired to have Dunn purchase two firearms on Bergeron’s behalf in June and July 2016 from Riley’s Sport Shop, a federally licensed firearms dealer in Hooksett, New Hampshire. Bergeron conspired with Fithian to have her purchase one firearm on his behalf in July 2016, also at Riley’s. In connection with each firearm purchase, Dunn and Fithian were required to complete an ATF Form 4473 where they falsely stated that they were purchasing the firearms for themselves, rather than for Bergeron. Bergeron also had each co-defendant purchase ammunition and extended clip magazines on his behalf. Shortly after Dunn and Fithian left the store, they provided the firearms, magazines and ammunition to Bergeron. At the time, Bergeron was a previously convicted felon and a resident of Massachusetts, and could not legally purchase firearms for himself in New Hampshire. A federal indictment was returned by a grand jury sitting in Concord on November 2, 2016.
Dunn and Fithian each pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 371, and Bergeron pleaded guilty to two counts of the same. Separate sentencing hearings for each defendant have been scheduled for June 2017, in front of Chief U.S. District Judge Joseph LaPlante. At that time, each defendant will face a maximum term of imprisonment of 5 years for each count of conviction. Their actual sentences will be determined by the court following completion of a presentence investigation report.
This matter is being jointly investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms & Explosives and the Manchester Police Department. The case is part of ATF’s Project Safe Neighborhoods initiative, which is a federally-funded program intended to reduce gun violence through law enforcement training, public education, and aggressive law enforcement efforts to investigate and prosecute gun-related crimes. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Charles L. Rombeau.
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Texas Man Sentenced to 78 Months in Prison for Running Fraudulent Investment Companies and Obstructing Securities and Exchange Commission InvestigationRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON – A San Angelo, Texas, man was sentenced to 78 months in prison today for running two investment fraud schemes that defrauded investors out of approximately $900,000 over a four-year period and obstructing a Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) investigation.
Acting Assistant Attorney General Kenneth A. Blanco of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, U.S. Attorney John R. Parker of the Northern District of Texas and Acting Special Agent in Charge Michael A. Costanzi of the FBI’s Dallas Office made the announcement.
Stanley Jonathan Fortenberry, 51, was sentenced by U.S. Districst Judge Sam R. Cummings of the Northern District of Texas. Judge Cummings also ordered the defendant to pay $890,310 in restitution and to forfeit $311,254. On Nov. 18, 2016, Fortenberry pleaded guilty on to two counts of mail fraud and one count of obustruction of justice.
In November 2016, when Fortenberry pleaded guilty to fraud and obstruction of justice charges, he admitted that he ran an investment company called Premier Investment Fund (Premier), which raised funds from investors for social media projects run by another company with ties to the country music industry. Fortenberry misled investors about the profitability of the company and about the destination of the investors’ funds. Fortenberry admitted that he diverted approximately half of investors’ funds into his own pocket and to pay the expenses of his fundraising operation.
Fortenberry also admitted that, from 2013 to 2014, he ran Wattenberg Energy Partners (Wattenberg), which raised funds for oil and gas drilling projects in northern Colorado. Fortenberry admitted that he set up the company in his son’s name because he was then under investigation by the SEC for misusing the Premier investors’ funds. He used a network of salespeople to solicit individuals over the phone to invest in drilling projects. Fortenberry admitted that he spent the vast majority of the funds on himself and the company’s fundraising operation. In October 2014, at an administrative hearing with the SEC, Fortenberry falsely denied having control of or working for Wattenberg.
Fortenberry admitted that the total loss to victims of both schemes was $887,311.
The FBI’s Dallas Office investigated the case. Trial Attorney William E. Johnston of the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section and Assistant U.S. Attorney Sean Long of the Northern District of Texas are prosecuting the case. The SEC has provided substantial assistance in this case and referred this matter to the department.
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Texas Man Sentenced to 78 Months in Prison for Running Fraudulent Investment Companies and Obstructing Securities and Exchange Commission InvestigationRead the Press Release
A San Angelo, Texas, man was sentenced to 78 months in prison today for running two investment fraud schemes that defrauded investors out of approximately $900,000 over a four-year period and obstructing a Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) investigation.
Acting Assistant Attorney General Kenneth A. Blanco of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, U.S. Attorney John R. Parker of the Northern District of Texas and Acting Special Agent in Charge Michael A. Costanzi of the FBI’s Dallas Office made the announcement.
Stanley Jonathan Fortenberry, 51, was sentenced by U.S. Districst Judge Sam R. Cummings of the Northern District of Texas. Judge Cummings also ordered the defendant to pay $890,310 in restitution and to forfeit $311,254. On Nov. 18, 2016, Fortenberry pleaded guilty on to two counts of mail fraud and one count of obustruction of justice.
In November 2016, when Fortenberry pleaded guilty to fraud and obstruction of justice charges, he admitted that he ran an investment company called Premier Investment Fund (Premier), which raised funds from investors for social media projects run by another company with ties to the country music industry. Fortenberry misled investors about the profitability of the company and about the destination of the investors’ funds. Fortenberry admitted that he diverted approximately half of investors’ funds into his own pocket and to pay the expenses of his fundraising operation.
Fortenberry also admitted that, from 2013 to 2014, he ran Wattenberg Energy Partners (Wattenberg), which raised funds for oil and gas drilling projects in northern Colorado. Fortenberry admitted that he set up the company in his son’s name because he was then under investigation by the SEC for misusing the Premier investors’ funds. He used a network of salespeople to solicit individuals over the phone to invest in drilling projects. Fortenberry admitted that he spent the vast majority of the funds on himself and the company’s fundraising operation. In October 2014, at an administrative hearing with the SEC, Fortenberry falsely denied having control of or working for Wattenberg.
Fortenberry admitted that the total loss to victims of both schemes was $887,311.
The FBI’s Dallas Office investigated the case. Trial Attorney William E. Johnston of the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section and Assistant U.S. Attorney Sean Long of the Northern District of Texas are prosecuting the case. The SEC has provided substantial assistance in this case and referred this matter to the department.
Texas Man Sentenced for His Role in A Bank Fraud ConspiracyRead the Press Release
Tampa, FL – U.S. District Judge Virginia Hernandez Covington has sentenced David Chambers Opembe (25, Texas) to three years in federal prison for conspiracy to commit bank fraud. The Court also ordered him to forfeit $252,107.07, which are traceable to proceeds of the offense.
Chambers pleaded guilty on November 14, 2016.
According to court documents, in December 2014, Opembe’s sister, Ebony Chambers Stillwell, began working as the onsite manager for St. Giles Manor, an apartment complex located in Pinellas Park. St. Giles Manor, which was managed by SPM Property Management, was being refurbished. As part of her duties, Stillwell received and processed invoices from vendors and contractors for payment.
During the refurbishment, SPM and St. Giles Manor contracted with Erickson’s Drying Systems, a cleaning and restoration company based in Ft. Myers. Pursuant to this work, Erickson’s submitted invoices for payment to St. Giles Manor and Stillwell that were paid by checks from an SPM LLC bank account.
On January 22, 2015, Opembe registered a shell company called Erickson’s Drying Systems with the Harris County Clerk in Texas. On the same date, he opened a bank account at Regions Bank in the name of Erickson’s Drying Systems, listing himself as the sole signatory on the account and his home address in Texas. No one at the actual Erickson’s in Ft. Myers was aware of or approved the establishment of the Texas corporation or business bank account.
Between January 22, 2015, and October 23, 2015, Stillwell caused to be issued approximately 21 checks from the SPM disbursing account to the “fake” Erickson’s Drying Systems. She facilitated the automated issuance of these checks by submitting fabricated invoices that she altered using prior legitimate invoices from Erickson’s. Stillwell directed that all of these checks be delivered to her office, rather than mailed to Erickson’s in Ft. Myers. She then deposited those checks into the “fake” Erickson’s bank account opened by her brother at Regions Bank. Once the funds were deposited into the Erickson’s account at Regions Bank, Opembe withdrew cash and transferred funds to his personal checking account. The Erickson’s account at Regions was also used by Opembe and Stillwell to make their car payments and for other personal expenses. In total, approximately $262,067 in fraudulently obtained checks were deposited into the “fake” Erickson’s Regions Bank account by Opembe and Stillwell.
Ebony Chambers Stillwell pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit bank fraud On October 25, 2016. She is scheduled to be sentenced on March 20, 2017.
This case was investigated by the Tampa Police Department and the Pinellas Park Police Department. It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Mandy Riedel.
Tennessee Doctor and his Wife Plead Guilty to Conspiring to Defraud the United StatesRead the Press Release
A Brentwood, Tennessee doctor and his wife pleaded guilty today to conspiring to defraud the United States, announced Acting Deputy Assistant Attorney General Stuart M. Goldberg of the Justice Department’s Tax Division and U.S. Attorney David Rivera for the Middle District of Tennessee.
According to the indictment, Jeffrey Cephus McCoy Jr., 70, and Andra McCoy, 68, filed 2003 to 2007 income tax returns with the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) that underreported their income and claimed fake income tax withholding amounts. The indictment further alleges that the McCoys submitted false documents to the IRS and placed their assets in the names of nominees and in nominee bank accounts.
At the plea hearing, the McCoys admitted that from July 2002 through August 2014, they conspired to defraud the United States by impeding the IRS’s collection of their income taxes. The McCoys further admitted that they filed a 2003 tax return, which falsely reported income tax withholdings of $439,850.
Sentencing dates have not been set. The McCoys face a statutory maximum sentence of five years in prison, a period of supervised release and monetary penalties.
Acting Deputy Assistant Attorney General Goldberg and U.S. Attorney Rivera thanked special agents of IRS–Criminal Investigation, who conducted the investigation, and Assistant U.S. Attorney Thomas J. Jaworski and Trial Attorney Alexander R. Effendi of the Tax Division, who are prosecuting the case.
Additional information about the Tax Division and its enforcement efforts may be found on the divsion’s website.
Taos County Businessman Pleads Guilty to Federal Tax ChargeRead the Press Release
ALBUQUERQUE – Robert Baños, 45, of Red River, N.M., pled guilty today in federal court in Albuquerque, N.M., to a federal tax charge. The guilty plea was announced by U.S. Attorney Damon P. Martinez and Ismael Nevarez Jr., Special Agent in Charge of the Phoenix Field Office of IRS Criminal Investigation.
Baños is an owner and operator of the Old Tymer’s Café and Bighorn Sports and Rental, both of which are located in Red River in Taos County, N.M. Baños was indicted on April 12, 2016, and charged with five counts of filing false tax returns. According to the indictment, Baños violated the federal tax laws during five tax years – 2009 through 2013 – by filing tax returns that failed to report his true income. During each of those tax years, Baños falsely reported that he had a negative income in the individual income tax returns he filed with the IRS.
During today’s proceedings, Baños pled guilty to Count 5 of the indictment charging him with making and subscribing a false tax return for tax year 2013. In entering the guilty plea, Baños admitted that during tax years 2009 through 2013, he underreported his businesses’ true income to a tax return preparer knowing the tax return preparer would rely on this false information to prepare and submit Baños’ tax returns. Baños also acknowledged signing, under penalty of perjury those tax returns, which he knew to be materially false for the purpose of evading federal income taxes.
At sentencing, Baños faces a maximum penalty of three years in federal prison. A sentencing hearing has yet to be scheduled. Under the terms of his plea agreement, Baños will be required to pay restitution to the IRS that covers the amount involved in the all of the criminal activity charged in the indictment, not just the count to which he pleaded guilty.
This case was investigated by the Albuquerque office of IRS Criminal Investigation and is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Margaret M. Vierbuchen.