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Thursday 15 December 2016
Two Navy Contractors Arrested for Separate Bomb HoaxesRead the Press Release
Assistant U.S. Attorney Michelle Pettit (619) 546-7972
NEWS RELEASE SUMMARY – December 15, 2016
SAN DIEGO – Two Navy contractors were arrested and arraigned Wednesday on charges that in unrelated cases, they gave false information about bogus bomb threats that resulted in mass evacuations of Navy ships and the pier where they were docked.
Contractor Joshua Rice, 26, is charged in a grand jury indictment with reporting to Navy security personnel that he saw an inscription of the word “bomb” on the inside of a portable toilet near three Naval vessels docked at Naval Base San Diego on the morning of May 17, 2016, when he knew there was no true threat. The false report caused a security response, shutting down all work on the nearby ships and the pier. At the time, Rice was working as a contractor for American Marine.
Roberto Rubio, 22, is charged in a separate indictment with writing “9-24-16 400 bomb” on an interior wall onboard USS Cowpens and reporting it to another contractor on September 24, 2016. At the time, USS Cowpens was undergoing maintenance on the San Diego Ship Repair Facility, and Rubio’s false report also caused the anticipated security response, shutting down all work on the ship until it could be verified that there was no bomb. At the time, he was working as a welder for Navy contractor BAE Systems.
For each bomb threat, there is a security response that includes clearing the area and stopping all work, which has a significant negative impact on all affected personnel and Navy readiness.
“Everyone should know that making false bomb threats is taken very seriously by federal law enforcement, and it is a felony offense,” said U.S. Attorney Laura E. Duffy. “This is not a legal or smart way of getting out of work.”
“The bomb threats on and around Naval Base San Diego since November 2015 have had a huge negative impact on the efficiency and productivity of the shipyard's efforts to maintain Navy readiness,” said Gunnar Newquist, Special Agent in Charge of the Naval Criminal Investigative Service Southwest Field Office. “NCIS is appreciative of the tips received during the course of this ongoing investigation.”
Joshua Rice is scheduled to appear next on January 30, 2017, before Judge William Q. Hayes for a motion hearing and trial setting.
Robert Rubio is scheduled to appear next on January 9, 2017, before Judge John A. Houston for a motion hearing and trial setting.
DEFENDANT Criminal Case No. 17CR2855-WQH
Joshua Rice Age: 26 San Diego, California
SUMMARY OF CHARGE
Count 1:Title 18, United States Code, Section 1038(a)(1): False Information and Hoaxes.
Maximum penalties: 5 years’ prison and a $250,000 fine.
DEFENDANT Criminal Case No. 17CR2856-JAH
Robert Rubio Age: 22 San Diego, California
SUMMARY OF CHARGE
Count 1:Title 18, United States Code, Section 1038(a)(1): False Information and Hoaxes.
Maximum penalties: 5 years’ prison and a $250,000 fine.
INVESTIGATING AGENCY
Naval Criminal Investigative Service
*The charges and allegations contained in an indictment or complaint are merely accusations, and the defendants are considered innocent unless and until proven guilty.
Two NC 18-Year-Olds Federally Indicted in Simpsonville Gun Store RobberyRead the Press Release
Contact Person: Nancy Wicker (803) 929-3000
Columbia, South Carolina –-- Acting United States Attorney, Beth Drake, announced today that two individuals from Charlotte, NC, Sahier Lavon Richardson, age 18, and Juran Maghi Witherspoon, age 18, have been charged federally for their roles in the pre-dawn break-in and theft of firearms from The Gun Shop in Simpsonville in October.
On December 13, 2016, a federal grand jury returned a one-count indictment alleging that on October 13, 2016, the defendants, Richardson and Witherspoon, knowingly and unlawfully did take and carry away from the premises of The Gun Shop, 622 NE Main Street, Simpsonville, South Carolina, a licensed firearms dealer, firearms in the licensee’s business inventory that had been shipped and transported in interstate and foreign commerce, and did aid and abet each other in the commission of the aforesaid offense; in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Sections 922(u), 924(i)(1) and 2.
Prior to their indictment, Richardson and Witherspoon were arrested on federal arrest warrants in early November for the offense and have remained in custody, detained without bond, since that date.
The investigation was conducted by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) with the assistance and cooperation of the Simpsonville Police Department, Charlotte Mecklenburg Police Department and the Lincoln County (North Carolina) Sheriff’s Department. The case has been assigned to Assistant United States Attorney Lance Crick of the Greenville office for prosecution.
The Acting United States Attorney stated that all charges in this indictment are merely accusations and that the defendants are presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty.
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Two Mexican Nationals Plead Guilty in Sinaloa Cartel-Related Drug Trafficking and Money Laundering ProbeRead the Press Release
Assistant U. S. Attorney Larry Casper (619) 546-6734
NEWS RELEASE SUMMARY – December 15, 2016
SAN DIEGO – Osvaldo Contreras-Arriaga of Tijuana pleaded guilty in federal court today to managing and supervising a $20 million drug trafficking conspiracy in which multi-kilo quantities of cocaine were smuggled from Mexico to the United States.
Contreras-Arriaga, a 28-year-old Mexican National who was extradited from Colombia to the United States in June 2016, admitted that he arranged for drug smugglers to bring cocaine into the United States and ensured that smugglers were paid for transporting the cocaine. According to his plea agreement, he also arranged for U.S. bulk currency pickups from drug dealers so that these drug proceeds could be smuggled from the United States to Mexico.
As part of his plea agreement, Contreras-Arriaga agreed to an enhancement under the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines, which will result in him receiving an elevated Guidelines sentencing range. Contreras-Arriaga admitted that, during the period charged, he was responsible for smuggling more than 50 kilograms (110 pounds) but less than 150 kilograms (330 pounds) of cocaine into the United States.
Contreras-Arriaga also admitted to working with co-defendant Omar Ayon-Diaz, 38, also a Mexican National, who owned and operated currency exchange houses in Tijuana and who was also extradited from Colombia in August 2016. On December 6, 2016, Ayon-Diaz pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit international money laundering and admitted that he and his exchange houses knowingly received $24.5 million in smuggled proceeds from the sale of narcotics trafficking in the United States.
Joel Acedo-Ojeda, a money-laundering co-defendant, was also sentenced this week to 135 months in custody. At that sentencing, the prosecutor told the court that funds were believed to have been laundered for Sinaloa Cartel drug traffickers.
Contreras-Arriaga pleaded guilty before U.S. Magistrate Judge Barbara L. Major and Ayon Diaz pleaded guilty before U.S. Magistrate Judge Bernard G. Skomal. Both Contreras-Arriaga and Ayon-Diaz will be sentenced on March 6, 2017 at 9:00 a.m. before U.S. District Judge Roger T. Benitez.
Contreras-Arriaga faces up to life in prison, a mandatory minimum of ten years in prison, and a $10 million fine. Ayon-Diaz faces up to 20 years in prison, a maximum fine of $49 million (twice the value of the funds involved), and a forfeiture judgment of $24,500,000.
The U.S. Attorney’s Office is working this matter together with the Asset Forfeiture and Money Laundering Section of the Department of Justice in Washington, D.C.
DEFENDANT Case Number 15cr0950-BEN
Osvaldo Contreras-Arraiga Age: 28 Tijuana, Mexico
SUMMARY OF CHARGES
Conspiracy to import cocaine, in violation of Title 21, U.S.C., Secs. 952, 960 and 963.
Maximum Penalties: Life in prison and 10-year mandatory minimum sentence, and $10 million fine.
DEFENDANT
Omar Ayon-Diaz Age: 38 Tijuana, Mexico
SUMMARY OF CHARGES
Conspiracy to Commit International Money Laundering, in violation of Title 18, U.S.C., Sec. 1956(a)(2)(B)(i) and (h).
Maximum Penalties: 20 years in prison; $500,000 fine or twice the value of the funds involved.
AGENCY
Homeland Security Investigations
Two Men Indicted for Trafficking Methamphetamine Bound for Utqiaġvik (Formerly Barrow)Read the Press Release
Anchorage, Alaska – U.S. Attorney Karen L. Loeffler announced today that two Anchorage men were indicted by a federal grand jury in Anchorage for trafficking in methamphetamine bound for Utqiaġvik, Alaska (formerly Barrow, Alaska).
The two defendants named in the indictment are Maurice Abad Malabed, aka “Moe,” 47, and David Patrick Christensen, 29, both of Anchorage. According to the indictment, Malabed and Christensen conspired and attempted to distribute and to possess with the intent to distribute 50 grams and more of a mixture or substance containing a detectible amount of methamphetamine.
According to the criminal complaint filed in federal court last week, on Dec. 7, 2016, law enforcement intercepted a parcel addressed to Christensen, which contained approximately four ounces of methamphetamine, and thereafter effected a controlled delivery of the package. Malabed and Christensen were both arrested on Dec. 7, 2016, when they took possession of the parcel outside Christensen’s Anchorage residence. The underlying investigation revealed that, among other things, between approximately Nov. 29 and Dec. 7, 2016, Malabed had arranged for the shipment of roughly 135 grams of methamphetamine from California to Anchorage, with Christensen’s assistance, and that the methamphetamine was ultimately bound for Utqiaġvik.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Andrea Hattan, who presented the case to the grand jury, indicated that the law provides for a minimum of five years and a maximum total sentence of 40 years in prison, a fine of $5,000,000, or both, for each of the two charged offenses. Under the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, the actual sentence imposed would be based upon the seriousness of the offense and the prior criminal history, if any, of the defendants.
The Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), Alaska State Troopers Statewide Drug Enforcement Unit (AST SDEU), and the North Slope Bureau Police Department (NSBPD) jointly conducted the investigation leading to the indictment in this case.
An indictment is only a charge and is not evidence of guilt. A defendant is presumed innocent and is entitled to a fair trial at which the government must prove guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.
Two Men Indicted on Heroin and Crack Cocaine Trafficking ChargesRead the Press Release
HARRISBURG – The United States Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Pennsylvania announced today that Henry J. Flemister, age 26, of Steelton, Pennsylvania, and Kevin N. Bilheimer, age 57, of Yeagertown, Pennsylvania, were indicted on December 14, 2016, by a federal grand jury for heroin and crack cocaine trafficking violations.
According to United States Attorney Bruce D. Brandler, the indictment alleges that Flemister and Bilheimer conspired and possessed with the intent to distribute heroin and crack cocaine in August and September 2016, in Mifflin County.
The case was investigated by the Mifflin County Drug Task Force and the Federal Bureau of Investigation. Assistant United States Attorney James T. Clancy is prosecuting the case.
This case was brought as part of a district wide initiative to combat the nationwide epidemic regarding the use and distribution of heroin. Led by the United States Attorney’s Office, the Heroin Initiative targets heroin traffickers operating in the Middle District of Pennsylvania and is part of a coordinated effort among federal, state and local law enforcement agencies to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who commit heroin related offenses.
Indictments and Criminal Informations are only allegations. All persons charged are presumed to be innocent unless and until found guilty in court.
A sentence following a finding of guilt is imposed by the Judge after consideration of the applicable federal sentencing statutes and the Federal Sentencing Guidelines.
The maximum penalty under federal law for each of the drug trafficking offenses and conspiracy is 20 years of imprisonment, a term of supervised release following imprisonment, and a fine. Under the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, the Judge is also required to consider and weigh a number of factors, including the nature, circumstances and seriousness of the offense; the history and characteristics of the defendant; and the need to punish the defendant, protect the public and provide for the defendant's educational, vocational and medical needs. For these reasons, the statutory maximum penalty for the offense is not an accurate indicator of the potential sentence for a specific defendant.
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Two Glenpool Men Plead Guilty to ArsonRead the Press Release
MUSKOGEE, OKLAHOMA – The United States Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Oklahoma announced that GARRETT LEE RAYNOR, age 19, of Bixby, Oklahoma, and JOSHUA SCOTT COPPEDGE, age 19, of Glenpool, Oklahoma, each pled guilty to one count of ARSON, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Sections 844(f)(1) and 2, punishable by not less than 5 years and not more than 20 years imprisonment, and up to a $250,000.00 fine or both.
The Indictment alleged that on or about August 23, 2016, within the Eastern District of Oklahoma, the defendants maliciously damaged, destroyed, and attempted to damage and destroy, by means of fire, a 2010 Bluebird school bus, owned by the Twin Hills School District, an institution receiving Federal financial assistance.
The charge arose from an investigation by the Okmulgee County Sherriff’s Office and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives.
The Honorable Kimberly E. West, Magistrate Judge in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Oklahoma, in Muskogee, accepted the plea and ordered the completion of a presentence investigation report. The defendants will remain in custody pending a sentencing hearing.
Assistant United States Attorney Dean Burris represented the United States.
Two Florida Men and a Corporation Indicted in Wire Fraud Case Related to Falsified Water Testing in Dale CountyRead the Press Release
Montgomery, Ala. – Billy Ray Roberson, Sr., 60, of Milton, Florida; Darin Lewis, 46, of Crestview, Florida; and Roberson Excavation, Inc. (Roberson Excavation), a company headquartered in Milton, Florida were indicted and charged with conspiring to commit wire fraud, announced United States Attorney George L. Beck, Jr. The charge in the indictment stemmed from scheme to falsify water samples during the testing of new water lines. Both Roberson and Lewis were arrested today and made their initial appearances in federal court.
According to court documents, in 2014, the Dale County Water Authority hired Roberson Excavation to replace water lines in the Marley Mill neighborhood of Dale County. Mr. Roberson was the owner and president of Roberson Excavation. By February of 2015, Roberson Excavation was three months behind schedule on the job and paying daily penalties of $500 for each day that the project went incomplete. At that time, Mr. Roberson instructed his site supervisor, Darin Lewis, to falsify the testing required before the lines went into operation. Among the tests falsified were the tests used to determine whether harmful bacteria were present in the water.
If convicted of the conspiracy, each individual defendant faces a maximum sentence of 5 years’ imprisonment. Additionally, the corporate defendant faces a maximum fine of $250,000.
An indictment merely alleges that crimes have been committed. The defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.
This case was investigated by the Environmental Protection Agency’s Criminal Investigations Division and Office of Inspector General. Assistant United States Attorney Jonathan S. Ross is prosecuting the case.
Towanda Man Sentenced for Armed RobberyRead the Press Release
WICHITA, KAN. - A Towanda man was sentenced Thursday to seven years in federal prison for robbing an Arkansas City business at gunpoint, U.S. Attorney Tom Beall said.
Jason A. Farner, 32, Towanda, Kan., pleaded guilty to one count of brandishing a firearm during a commercial robbery. In his plea, he admitted he brandished a .380 caliber handgun on Feb. 11, 2016, when he robbed Advance America in Arkansas City, Kan. Farner was arrested later that day when a deputy with the Sumner County Sheriff’s Office stopped him for a traffic violation.
Beall commended the Sumner County Sheriff’s Office, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and Assistant U.S. Attorney Alan Metzger for their work on the case.
ThunderCat Agrees to Civil Settlement for Bid-Rigging and Kickback SchemesRead the Press Release
ALEXANDRIA, Va. – ThunderCat Technology, LLC, located in Reston, has agreed to pay $1 million to settle civil False Claims Act, Anti-Kickback Act, and Procurement Integrity Act claims relating to bid rigging and kickback schemes in connection with six government procurements.
The settlement resolves civil claims against ThunderCat relating to the criminal pleas entered by ThunderCat principal, co-owner, and general manager, Edwin Keith McMeans, and ThunderCat sales representative, Anthony Bilby. From September 2008 to February 2012, ThunderCat solicited or submitted inflated third party bids or “loser bids” during competitions for five government contracts and/or purchase orders awarded by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) on behalf of the U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) and U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services and one government contract awarded by the General Services Administration (GSA). In connection with one CBP contract, ThunderCat agreed to pay CPB employees 10 percent of ThunderCat’s profits on the contract in exchange for procurement sensitive independent government cost estimates prior to ThunderCat’s submission of its proposal.
The resolutions obtained in this matter were the result of a coordinated effort between the Civil and Criminal Divisions of the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Eastern District of Virginia, and the Offices of Inspector General for DHS and GSA.
The civil matter was investigated by Assistant U.S. Attorney Christine Roushdy. The civil claims settled by this False Claims Act, Anti-Kickback Act, and Procurement Integrity Act agreement are allegations only; there has been no determination of civil liability. Related court documents and information may be found on the website of the District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia or on PACER by searching for Criminal Case No. 1:15-cr-264 (Edwin Keith McMeans) and No. 1:13-cr-466 (Anthony Bilby).
A copy of this press release may be found on the website of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Virginia.
Three Real Estate Developers Charged in White Plains Federal Court with Conspiracy to Corrupt the Electoral Process in Bloomingburg, New YorkRead the Press Release
Preet Bharara, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, and William F. Sweeney Jr., the Assistant Director-in-Charge of the New York Field Office of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (“FBI”), today announced the unsealing of an Indictment charging SHALOM LAMM, KENNETH NAKDIMEN, and VOLVY SMILOWITZ, a/k/a “Zev Smilowitz,” with conspiracy to corrupt the electoral process, in connection with an election in Bloomingburg, New York. Bharara also today announced the guilty plea of HAROLD BAIRD, a former Town Supervisor of Mamakating, New York, to conspiracy to submit false voter registrations, charged in a one-count Information unsealed today.
Manhattan U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara stated: “In pursuit of millions of dollars in profits from a real estate development project, the defendants allegedly hatched a cynical ploy to corrupt the electoral process in Bloomingburg. As alleged, to get public officials supportive of their development project elected to local government, the defendants concocted a scheme to falsely register voters who did not live in Bloomingburg, including some who had never even set foot there. And to cover up their voter fraud scheme, the defendants allegedly back-dated fake leases and even placed toothpaste and toothbrushes in empty apartments to make them appear occupied by the falsely registered voters. Profit-driven corruption of democracy cannot be allowed to stand no matter who does it or where it happens.”
FBI Assistant Director-in-Charge William F. Sweeney Jr. stated: “Today’s charges allege the defendants corruptly advanced their own personal real estate projects in Bloomingburg, New York, at the expense of honest citizens who expect and deserve a fair election system. In their scheme to promote their own real estate development projects, the defendants violated federal law as they schemed to put themselves first. This type of behavior simply won’t be tolerated.”
As alleged in the Indictment unsealed today in White Plains federal court[1]:
SHALOM LAMM, KENNETH NAKDIMEN, and VOLVY SMILOWITZ, a/k/a “Zev Smilowitz,” the defendants, were real estate developers who, starting in or about 2006, sought to build and sell real estate in Bloomingburg, New York. From these real estate development projects, the defendants hoped for and anticipated making hundreds of millions of dollars. But by late 2013, the first of their real estate developments had met local opposition, and still remained under construction and uninhabitable. When met with resistance, rather than seek to advance their real estate development project through legitimate means, the defendants instead decided to corrupt the democratic electoral process in Bloomingburg by falsely registering voters and paying bribes for voters who would help elect public officials favorable to their project.
Specifically, in advance of an election in March 2014 for Mayor of Bloomingburg and other local officials, LAMM, NAKDIMEN, and SMILOWITZ, the defendants, and others working on their behalf, developed and worked on a plan to falsely register numerous people who were not entitled to register and vote in Bloomingburg, because they actually lived elsewhere. People the defendants falsely sought to register to vote in Bloomingburg included those who never intended to live in Bloomingburg, those who had never kept a home in Bloomingburg, and indeed, some who had never even set foot in Bloomingburg in their lives. The defendants took steps to cover up their scheme to register voters who did not actually live in Bloomingburg by, among other things, creating and back-dating false leases and placing items like toothbrushes and toothpaste in unoccupied apartments to make it seem as if the falsely registered voters lived there.
LAMM, NAKDIMEN, and SMILOWITZ, the defendants, also bribed potential voters by offering payments, subsidies, and other items of value to get non-residents of Bloomingburg to unlawfully register and vote there. LAMM, for example, agreed to pay an individual $500 for every voter that the individual procured, and LAMM and NAKDIMEN’s real estate company ultimately paid the individual more than $30,000 per month for his efforts.
As alleged in a separate Information unsealed today in White Plains federal court:
From in or about January 2014 through in or about March 2014, BAIRD conspired with others to submit false voter registrations so that he could run for political office and vote in Bloomingburg. In fact, however, BAIRD did not live in Bloomingburg, and his voter registrations were false.
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LAMM, NAKDIMEN, and SMILOWITZ were arrested this morning and will be arraigned today on the charges in the Indictment before United States Magistrate Judge Judith C. McCarthy in the White Plains federal courthouse.
LAMM, 57, of Bloomingburg, NAKDIMEN, 64, of Monsey, New York, and SMILOWITZ, 28, of Monroe, New York, are each charged with one count of conspiracy to commit an offense against the United States, in particular to corrupt the electoral process by submitting false voter registrations, buying voter registrations, and offering bribes for voter registrations and votes. The offense carries a maximum penalty of five years in prison and a $250,000 fine.
BAIRD, 60, of Sullivan County, New York, pled guilty to one count of conspiracy to submit false voter registrations, which carries a maximum sentence of five years in prison and a $250,000 fine. The defendant will be sentenced at a future date. The case is assigned to United States District Judge Cathy Seibel.
The statutory maximum penalties are prescribed by Congress and are provided here for informational purposes only, as any sentencings of the defendants would be determined by the judge.
Mr. Bharara praised the outstanding investigative work of the FBI-Hudson Valley White Collar Crime Task Force, the Sullivan County District Attorney’s Office, the Sullivan County Sherriff’s Office, the Orange County Sheriff’s Office, the Orange County District Attorney’s Office, the Internal Revenue Service, and the United States Postal Inspection Service. Mr. Bharara also thanked the Department of Justice’s Public Integrity Section, Election Crimes Branch, for its assistance in the case.
This case is being handled by the Office’s White Plains Division. Assistant United States Attorneys Kathryn Martin, Benjamin Allee, and Perry Carbone are in charge of the prosecution.
The charges contained in the Indictment are merely accusations, and the defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
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[1] As the introductory phrase signifies, the entirety of the text of the Indictment and the descriptions of the Indictment set forth below constitute only allegations, and every fact described should be treated as an allegation.
Three More Individuals Indicted for Their Roles in Capacitors Price-Fixing ConspiracyRead the Press Release
Grand Jury Has Now Indicted Total of Nine Individuals in Long-Running Conspiracy
A federal grand jury returned a second superseding indictment today charging three more executives from two different companies for conspiring to fix prices of electrolytic capacitors sold to customers in the United States and elsewhere, the Department of Justice announced today. This indictment supersedes a previous superseding indictment returned on Nov. 2, 2016, in which six individuals from four different companies were charged with price fixing.
The indictment, filed in the U.S. District Court of the Northern District of California in San Francisco, charges the following individuals for conspiring to suppress and eliminate competition by fixing the prices of electrolytic capacitors:
• Takeshi Matsuzaka, an executive of Company A, who is charged with conspiring from approximately January 2003 until January 2014;
• Kaname Takahashi, also an executive of Company A, who is charged with conspiring from approximately July 2003 until April 2013; and
• Takuo Tatai, an executive of Company D, who is charged with conspiring from approximately January 2009 until January 2012.
“The executives charged today fixed the prices of an electronic component relied upon by American consumers to power devices that are central to our day-to-day life,” said Deputy Assistant Attorney General Brent Snyder of the Justice Department’s Antitrust Division. “The Antitrust Division will continue to pursue executives and companies who conspire to cheat consumers.”
Electrolytic capacitors store and regulate electrical current in a variety of electronic products, including computers, televisions, car engine and airbag systems, home appliances and office equipment.
Today’s charges are the result of an ongoing federal antitrust investigation into anticompetitive conduct in the electrolytic capacitor industry, which is being conducted by the Antitrust Division’s criminal enforcement sections and the FBI. A total of five companies and nine individuals have been charged in the division’s ongoing investigation.
An indictment merely alleges that crimes have been committed, and all defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.
The charges today result from an ongoing federal antitrust investigation being conducted by the Antitrust Division’s San Francisco Office and the FBI’s San Francisco Field Office into price fixing, bid rigging and other anticompetitive conduct in the capacitors industry. Anyone with information related to anticompetitive conduct in the capacitors industry should contact the Antitrust Division’s Citizen Complaint Center at 1-888-647-3258, visit www.justice.gov/atr/contact/newcase.html or call the FBI tip line at 415-553-7400.
Matsuzaka Second Superseding IndictmentThree Men Sentenced for Sex Trafficking of a MinorRead the Press Release
BOSTON – Three men were sentenced yesterday in U.S. District Court in Boston in connection with the sex trafficking of a minor.
“Sex traffickers routinely target the young and most vulnerable in our communities,” said Carmen M. Ortiz, U.S. Attorney for the District of Massachusetts. “I hope that these sentences send a strong message that the federal government will use all of the tools at its disposal to investigate and prosecute these predators.”
“These individuals preyed on a child with the intent of forcing the victim into a life of prostitution,” said Harold H. Shaw, Special Agent in Charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Boston Field Division. “They sought to victimize society’s most vulnerable for their own financial gain. The FBI, together with our law enforcement partners, is committed to identifying predators like these to disrupt and dismantle sex trafficking organizations impacting our communities.”
Tyrell Gorham, a/k/a Sheek, 31, of Lewiston, Maine, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Allison D. Burroughs to 12 years in prison for one count of sex trafficking a minor. Lee Young, a/k/a Chop, 34, of Dorchester, Mass., and Chelanjei Greene, a/k/a Young, 34, of Brockton, Mass., were sentenced to eight years and six years, respectively, for one count each of conspiring to sex traffic a minor. Each defendant was also sentenced to five years of supervised release. On Sept. 21, 2016, Gorham, Young and Greene pleaded guilty.
An undercover law enforcement operation conducted in February 2015 identified a minor woman as a victim of a sex trafficking ring. Gorham recruited the minor from the Portland, Maine area, and Gorham and Young transported her and a friend to the Greater Boston area to work as prostitutes. With assistance from Greene, the minor and her friend posted an advertisement on Backpage.com, which was used to offer the sexual services of the women for a fee. The minor victim and her friend traveled to a motel in Woburn to meet a prospective client, however, the client was actually an undercover law enforcement officer.
The case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s Boston Child Exploitation Task Force (CETF). In addition to the FBI, significant investigative assistance was provided by; the Boston Police Department Child Abuse and Human Trafficking Units; the Arlington, Malden, Norwood, Revere, Saugus, Woburn, and Brockton Police Departments; and the Massachusetts State Police Human Trafficking Unit of the Massachusetts Attorney General’s Office.
U.S. Attorney Ortiz and FBI SAC Shaw made the announcement. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Timothy Moran and Emily Cummings of Ortiz’s Civil Rights Enforcement Team prosecuted the case.
Three Charged in Identity Theft SchemeRead the Press Release
SOUTH BEND – United States Attorney for the Northern District of Indiana, David Capp, announced a 13 count indictment against Gregory Brown, 36, and Shakyia Bunch, 30, of Chicago, Illinois along with Jeneva Sutton, 31, of Michigan City, Indiana for wire fraud, aggravated identity theft and unauthorized access device fraud.
Brown and Bunch were charged in all 13 counts of the indictment whereas Sutton was charged with 7 counts of wire fraud, 2 counts of aggravated identity theft and 1 count of unauthorized access device fraud.
According to documents filed in this case, from April through July of 2016, Gregory Brown was an inmate at the La Porte County Jail while Shakyia Bunch was employed at a hotel in the Northern District of Illinois and Jeneva Sutton maintained a residence in the Northern District of Indiana. It is alleged that Brown proposed to other inmates in the La Porte County Jail that he would secure their release through payment of their respective bond amounts if those inmates would repay him. Bunch allegedly stole credit card account numbers from the hotel where she was employed from individuals who had provided credit card information in order to book stays at the hotel. Sutton allegedly obtained stolen credit card account numbers from Bunch. Bunch and Sutton were alleged to have used the internet to effect wire transfers of money using the stolen credit card account numbers to pay for various inmates’ bonds. Eight wire transactions were effected using four different account holders’ credit card account information. Sutton was to receive payment via money or property from inmates who had been released from the La Porte County Jail or from individuals associated with inmates who had been released or were seeking release. Through this scheme and through use of the stolen credit card account numbers, the defendants obtained a Chrysler 300 vehicle.
The United States Attorney's Office emphasized that an Indictment is merely an allegation and that all persons charged are presumed innocent until, and unless, proven guilty in court.
If convicted in court, any specific sentence to be imposed will be determined by the judge after a consideration of federal sentencing statutes and the Federal Sentencing Guidelines.
This case was investigated as a result of an investigation by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives; La Porte County Sheriff’s Office; and Michigan City Police Department. This case is being handled by Assistant United States Attorney Molly E. Donnelly.
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The District of South Carolina U.S. Attorney’s Office Collects $65,905,918.40 in Civil and Criminal Actions for U.S. Taxpayers in Fiscal Year 2016Read the Press Release
Contact Person: Beth Drake (803) 929-3000
Columbia, South Carolina --- Acting U.S. Attorney Beth Drake announced today that the District of South Carolina collected $65,905,918.40 in criminal and civil actions in Fiscal Year 2016. Of this amount, $7,112,893.48 was collected in criminal actions and $58,793,024.92 as collected in civil actions.
Additionally, the District of South Carolina worked with other U.S. Attorney’s Offices and components of the Department of Justice to collect an additional $78,957,002.59 in cases pursued jointly with these offices. Of this amount, $200.00 was collected in criminal actions and $78,956.802.59 was collected in civil actions.
Attorney General Loretta E. Lynch announced on December 14, 2016 that the Justice Department collected nearly $15.4 billion in civil and criminal actions in the fiscal year ending Sept. 30, 2016. The $15,380,130,434 in collections in FY 2016 represents more than five times the appropriated $2.93 billion budget for the 94 U.S. Attorneys’ offices and the main litigating divisions of the Justice Department combined in that same period.
“Every day, the men and women of the Department of Justice work tirelessly to enforce our laws, ensuring that taxpayer dollars are used properly and that the American people are protected from exploitation and abuse,” said Attorney General Lynch. “Today’s announcement is a testament to that work, and it makes clear that our actions deliver a significant return on public investment. I want to thank the prosecutors and trial attorneys who made this year’s collections possible, and I want to emphasize that the department remains committed to the well-being of our people and our nation.”
“This office has made a substantial commitment to combating fraud,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Beth Drake. "The District of South Carolina US Attorney's Office has devoted six (6) lawyers supported by a terrific team of investigators and paralegals to pursue fraud against government agencies. As the Attorney General has noted, year in and year out, our ACE Unit diligently pursues unscrupulous individuals who seek to line their pockets with tax dollars at the expense of programs destined to support and protect the people of the United States. Whether the targeted funds are designed for Medicare, disaster relief, or a military contract, we give this work the top priority it deserves."
This past March, the District of South Carolina, in cooperation with the Civil Division’s Commercial Litigation Branch, the HHS Office of Counsel to the Inspector General and Office of Investigations, and the National Association of Medicaid Fraud Control Units entered a settlement with Respironics Inc., based in Murrysville, Pennsylvania for $34.8 million to resolve alleged False Claims Act violations for paying kickbacks in the form of free call center services to durable medical equipment (DME) suppliers that bought its masks for patients with sleep apnea.
The U.S. Attorneys’ Offices, along with the department’s litigating divisions, are responsible for enforcing and collecting civil and criminal debts owed to the U.S. and criminal debts owed to federal crime victims. The law requires defendants to pay restitution to victims of certain federal crimes who have suffered a physical injury or financial loss. While restitution is paid to the victim, criminal fines and felony assessments are paid to the department’s Crime Victims’ Fund, which distributes the funds to state victim compensation and victim assistance programs.
The largest civil collections were from affirmative civil enforcement cases, in which the United States recovered government money lost to fraud or other misconduct or collected fines imposed on individuals and/or corporations for violations of federal health, safety, civil rights or environmental laws. In addition, civil debts were collected on behalf of several federal agencies, including the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, Health and Human Services, Internal Revenue Service, Small Business Administration and Department of Education.
Additionally, the U.S. Attorney’s office in South Carolina, working with partner agencies and divisions, collected $2,235,503 in asset forfeiture actions in FY 2016. Forfeited assets deposited into the Department of Justice Assets Forfeiture Fund are used to restore funds to crime victims and for a variety of law enforcement purposes.
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Teamster Sentenced for Attempted Extortion of Reality Television Production CompanyRead the Press Release
BOSTON – A member of Teamsters Local 25 was sentenced today in U.S. District Court in Boston in connection with his attempted extortion of a reality television production company in June of 2014.
Mark Harrington, 62, of Andover, was sentenced by U.S. District Court Judge Douglas P. Woodlock to two years of probation with six months of home confinement, and ordered to pay a fine of $10,000 and restitution of $24,023. In November 2016, Harrington pleaded guilty to one count of attempted extortion.
In October 2015, Harrington was indicted along with John Fidler, Daniel Redmond, Robert Cafarelli, and Michael Ross for conspiring to extort and attempted extortion of money to be paid as wages for imposed, unwanted, and unnecessary and superfluous services from a reality television production company.
Beginning in spring 2014, a non-union production company began scouting locations to film a reality television show in Boston. A stage location was set up in Woburn, and a number of filming locations were chosen in and around the Boston area. In order to film in the City of Boston, permits must be approved by the City of Boston with the assistance of the Boston Film Bureau. In May 2014, with the necessary permits from the City of Boston, the company commenced filming at various locations in Boston. The company was scheduled to conduct further filming in the City of Boston, including at a hotel, a restaurant, and a college, in June 2014.
The company was not a signatory to any collective bargaining agreement with Local 25, and hired its own employees, including drivers, to produce and participate in the filming of the show.
On or about June 5, 2014, Redmond allegedly approached the production crew as they were filming at a Boston hotel and demanded that members of Local 25 be hired as drivers. Redmond insisted that one of the producers on set speak with Harrington, the secretary-treasurer of Local 25. Harrington advised the producer that he did not care about the company and that all he cared about was that some of his guys get hired on the show. The producer explained that all of the drivers had been hired and there was no work for Local 25 to perform. Redmond allegedly demanded to know where else the crew would be filming and threatened to shut the production down that night. During several subsequent telephone calls that same day, Harrington and another union official warned the producer that if the company did not make a deal with Local 25, they would start to follow them and picket.
On or about June 9, 2014, a representative from the City of Boston allegedly called a second Boston hotel to inform them that Local 25 was planning to picket the company’s filming at the hotel the following day. In turn, the hotel notified the company that, despite their prior agreement, it would no longer permit the filming because it did not want to be associated with a Local 25 picket. As a result, the company found a new location for filming outside the City of Boston. The City of Boston representative made similar calls to other locations the company planned to film at in June 2014.
In the early morning hours on June 10, 2014, a Local 25 official told a producer that Local 25 was aware that the company was preparing to film at a Milton restaurant, and Local 25 would be sending 50 men to picket. As a result of that conversation, the company hired a police detail for the filming. At 9:00 a.m. on June 10, 2014, defendants Harrington, Redmond, Fidler, Cafarelli and Ross showed up at the Milton restaurant. Two or three of the Local 25 defendants entered the production area and began walking in lockstep toward the doors of the restaurant where they chest-bumped and allegedly stomach-bumped production crew members in an attempt to forcibly enter the restaurant.
Throughout the morning, the Local 25 defendants allegedly continued to use and threaten to use physical violence against members of the crew and others; yelled profanities and racial and homophobic slurs at the crew and others; blocked vehicles from the entryway to the set and used actual physical violence and threats of physical violence to try and prevent people from entering the set. On one occasion, the Local 25 defendants prevented a food delivery truck from delivering food. The Local 25 defendants were also observed by the crew standing in close proximity to cars belonging to the crew, nine of which were later found to have had their tires slashed.
The charging statute provides for a sentence of no greater than 20 years in prison, three years of supervised release and a fine of $250,000. Actual sentences for federal crimes are typically less than the maximum penalties. Sentences are imposed by a federal district court judge based upon the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
United States Attorney Carmen M. Ortiz; Harold H. Shaw, Special Agent in Charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Boston Field Division; Cheryl Garcia, Special Agent in Charge of the Department of Labor, Office of Inspector General, Office of Labor Racketeering and Fraud Investigation, New York Regional Office; and Nikitas Splagounias, Assistant Special Agent in Charge of the Department of Labor, Office of Inspector General, Office of Labor Racketeering and Fraud Investigation, made the announcement today. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Laura J. Kaplan and Kristina E. Barclay of Ortiz’s Criminal Division are prosecuting the case.
Stilwell Man, Woman Plead Guilty to Embezzlement and Theft from Tribal OrganizationRead the Press Release
MUSKOGEE, OKLAHOMA – The United States Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Oklahoma announced that MICHAEL HILARIO MARTINEZ, age 40, and JEANA MARIE MARTINEZ, age 33, of Stilwell, Oklahoma, each pled guilty to one count of EMBEZZLEMENT AND THEFT FROM INDIAN TRIBAL ORGANIZATION, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Sections 1163 and 2, punishable by not more than 5 years imprisonment, and up to a $250,000.00 fine or both.
The Indictment alleged that from in or about January 2012 to on or about July 3, 2014, in the Eastern District of Oklahoma, the defendants, did embezzle, steal, knowingly and willfully convert to their own use, willfully misapply, and willfully permitted to be misapplied, monies, funds, credits, assets, and property, with a value in excess of $1,000.00, which had been entrusted to the custody and care of MICHAEL HILARIO MARTINEZ as an employee of the Cherokee Nation, an Indian tribal organization.
The charges arose from an investigation by the Cherokee Nation Marshal Service and the Federal Bureau of Investigation.
The Honorable Kimberly E. West, Magistrate Judge in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Oklahoma, in Muskogee, accepted the plea and ordered the completion of a presentence investigation report. The defendant will remain in custody pending a sentencing hearing.
Assistant United States Attorney Edward Snow represented the United States.
Statement of U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara on the Conviction of Former Rikers Island Correction Officer Brian CollRead the Press Release
“Today, a unanimous jury in Manhattan federal court affirmed that the protections of the U.S. Constitution extend into the walls of our prisons, including Rikers Island. For his brutal and heartless beating of 52-year-old Ronald Spear, a sickly Rikers inmate, and his lies to cover it up, Brian Coll now stands convicted of serious federal crimes. As the evidence at trial established, Coll killed Spear by repeatedly kicking him in the head as he lay restrained on the ground, telling him before he died not to forget who did this to him. The FBI investigators and career prosecutors on this case did not forget. And today, neither did the jury.”
Singapore Man Pleads Guilty to Plot Involving Illegal Exports of Radio Frequency Modules from the U.S. to IranRead the Press Release
Lim Yong Nam, aka Steven Lim, 42, a citizen of Singapore, pleaded guilty today to a federal charge stemming from his role in a conspiracy that allegedly caused thousands of radio frequency modules to be illegally exported from the U.S. to Iran. At least 16 of the components were later found in unexploded improvised explosive devices (IEDs) in Iraq.
The guilty plea was announced by Acting Assistant Attorney General for National Security Mary B. McCord, U.S. Attorney Channing D. Phillips of the District of Columbia, Director Sarah Saldaña of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), Executive Assistant Director Michael Steinbach of the FBI’s National Security Branch and Under Secretary Eric L. Hirschhorn of the U.S. Department of Commerce.
Lim was extradited earlier this year from Indonesia, where he had been detained since October 2014 in connection with the U.S. request for extradition. He pleaded guilty to a charge of conspiracy to defraud the U.S. by dishonest means. The charge carries a statutory maximum of five years in prison and potential financial penalties. The maximum statutory sentence is prescribed by Congress and is provided here for informational purposes. If convicted of any offense, the sentencing of the defendant will be determined by the court based on the advisory Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors. Under federal sentencing guidelines, the parties have agreed that Lim faces a range of 46 to 57 months in prison and a fine of up to $100,000. Lim remains in custody pending his sentencing, which was scheduled for XX before the Honorable Emmet G. Sullivan.
Lim and others were indicted in the District of Columbia in June of 2010 on charges involving the shipment of radio frequency modules made by a Minnesota-based company. The modules have several commercial applications, including in wireless local area networks connecting printers and computers in office settings. These modules include encryption capabilities and have a range allowing them to transmit data wirelessly as far as 40 miles when configured with a high-gain antenna. These same modules also have potentially lethal applications. Notably, during 2008 and 2009, coalition forces in Iraq recovered numerous modules made by the Minnesota firm that had been utilized as part of the remote detonation system for IEDs. According to the plea documents filed today, between 2001 and 2007, IEDs were the major source of American combat casualties in Iraq.
In his guilty plea, Lim admitted that between August 2007 and February 2008, he and others caused 6,000 modules to be purchased and illegally exported from the Minnesota-based company through Singapore, and later to Iran, in five shipments, knowing that the export of U.S.-origin goods to Iran was a violation of U.S. law. In each transaction, Lim and others made misrepresentations and false statements to the Minnesota firm that Singapore was the final destination of the goods. At no point in the series of transactions did Lim or any of his co-conspirators inform the company that the modules were destined for Iran. Similarly, according to the statement of offense, Lim and others caused false documents to be filed with the U.S. government, in which they claimed that Singapore was the ultimate destination of the modules. Lim and his co-conspirators were directly aware of the restrictions on sending U.S.-origin goods to Iran.
Shortly after the modules arrived in Singapore, they were kept in storage at a freight forwarding company until being aggregated with other electronic components and shipped to Iran. There is no indication that Lim or any of his co-conspirators ever took physical possession of these modules before they reached Iran or that they were incorporated into another product before being re-exported to Iran.
According to the statement of offense, 14 of the 6,000 modules the defendants routed from Minnesota to Iran were later recovered in Iraq, where the modules were being used as part of IED remote detonation systems.
This investigation was jointly conducted by ICE Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) Special Agents in Boston and Los Angeles; FBI agents in Minneapolis; and Department of Commerce, Bureau of Industry and Security agents in Chicago and Boston. Substantial assistance was provided by the U.S. Department of Defense, U.S. Customs and Border Protection, the State Department’s Directorate of Defense Trade Controls, the Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control, and the Office of International Affairs in the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, the Justice Department Attaché in the Philippines and the FBI and HSI Attachés in Singapore and Jakarta.
U.S. law enforcement authorities thanked the governments of Singapore and Indonesia for the substantial assistance that was provided in the investigation of this matter.
The prosecution is being handled by Assistant U.S. Attorney Ari Redbord of the District of Columbia and Trial Attorney Julie Edelstein of the National Security Division’s Counterintelligence and Export Control Section.
Singapore Man Pleads Guilty to Federal Charge in Plot Involving Exports to Iran of U.S. ComponentsRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON – Lim Yong Nam, aka Steven Lim, 42, a citizen of Singapore, pled guilty today to a federal charge stemming from his role in a conspiracy that allegedly caused thousands of radio frequency modules to be illegally exported from the United States to Iran, at least 16 of which were later found in unexploded improvised explosive devices (IEDs) in Iraq.
The guilty plea was announced by Acting Assistant Attorney General for National Security Mary B. McCord, U.S. Attorney Channing D. Phillips of the District of Columbia, Director Sarah Saldaña of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), Executive Assistant Director Michael Steinbach of the FBI’s National Security Branch, and Under Secretary of Commerce Eric L. Hirschhorn.
Lim was extradited earlier this year from Indonesia, where he had been detained since October 2014 in connection with the U.S. request for extradition. He pled guilty to a charge of conspiracy to defraud the United States by dishonest means. The charge carries a statutory maximum of five years in prison and potential financial penalties. Under federal sentencing guidelines, the parties have agreed that Lim faces a range of 46 to 57 months in prison and a fine of up to $100,000. Lim remains in custody pending his sentencing, which was scheduled for March 9, 2017, before the Honorable Emmet G. Sullivan.
Lim and others were indicted in the District of Columbia in June of 2010 on charges involving the shipment of radio frequency modules made by a Minnesota-based company. The modules have several commercial applications, including in wireless local area networks connecting printers and computers in office settings. These modules include encryption capabilities and have a range allowing them to transmit data wirelessly as far as 40 miles when configured with a high-gain antenna. These same modules also have potentially lethal applications. Notably, during 2008 and 2009, coalition forces in Iraq recovered numerous modules made by the Minnesota firm that had been utilized as part of the remote detonation system for IEDs. According to the plea documents filed today, between 2001 and 2007, IEDs were the major source of American combat casualties in Iraq.
In his guilty plea, Lim admitted that between August 2007 and February 2008, he and others caused 6,000 modules to be purchased and illegally exported from the Minnesota-based company through Singapore, and later to Iran, in five shipments, knowing that the export of U.S.-origin goods to Iran was a violation of U.S. law. In each transaction, Lim and others made misrepresentations and false statements to the Minnesota firm that Singapore was the final destination of the goods; at no point in the series of transactions did Lim or any of his co-conspirators inform the company that the modules were destined for Iran. Similarly, according to the statement of offense, Lim and others caused false documents to be filed with the U.S. government, in which they claimed that Singapore was the ultimate destination of the modules. Lim and his co-conspirators were directly aware of the restrictions on sending U.S.-origin goods to Iran.
Shortly after the modules arrived in Singapore, they were kept in storage at a freight forwarding company until being aggregated with other electronic components and shipped to Iran. There is no indication that Lim or any of his co-conspirators ever took physical possession of these modules before they reached Iran or that they were incorporated into another product before being re-exported to Iran.
According to the statement of offense, 14 of the 6,000 modules the defendants routed from Minnesota to Iran were later recovered in Iraq, where the modules were being used as part of IED remote detonation systems.
This investigation was jointly conducted by ICE Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) special agents in Boston and Los Angeles; FBI agents in Minneapolis, and Department of Commerce, Bureau of Industry and Security agents in Chicago and Boston. Substantial assistance was provided by the U.S. Department of Defense, U.S. Customs and Border Protection, the State Department’s Directorate of Defense Trade Controls, the Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control, and the Office of International Affairs in the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, particularly the Justice Department Attaché in the Philippines, as well as the FBI and HSI Attachés in Singapore and Jakarta.
U.S. law enforcement authorities thanked the governments of Singapore and Indonesia for the substantial assistance that was provided in the investigation of this matter.
The prosecution is being handled by Assistant U.S. Attorney Ari Redbord of the District of Columbia and Trial Attorney Julie Edelstein of the National Security Division’s Counterintelligence and Export Control Section.
Shiprock Man Sentenced to Prison for Federal Child Sexual Abuse ConvictionRead the Press Release
ALBUQUERQUE – Henderson Shorty, 53, an enrolled member of the Navajo Nation who resides in Shiprock, N.M., was sentenced this morning in federal court in Albuquerque, N.M., to 30 months in prison followed by five years of supervised release for his conviction on an abusive sexual contact charge. Shorty also will be required to register as a sex offender after he completes his prison sentence.
Shorty was arrested in Feb. 2016, on an indictment charging him with abusive sexual contact. The indictment charged Shorty with sexually abusing a child under the age of 12 years on Jan. 24, 2013, in Indian Country in McKinley County, N.M.
On July 1, 2016, Shorty pled guilty to an abusive sexual contact charge in a felony information. In entering the guilty plea, Shorty admitted that from Jan. 1, 2013 through March 31, 2013, he had sexual contact with a child under the age of 12. Shorty admitted committing the crime on the Navajo Indian Reservation.
This case was investigated by the Farmington office of the FBI. The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Elaine Y. Ramirez as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice (DOJ) to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by United States Attorneys’ Offices and DOJ’s Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state and local resources to better locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the Internet, as well as to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit http://www.justice.gov/psc/.
Shillington Man Charged with Aggravated Identity TheftRead the Press Release
Mark Vega, 34, of Shillington, Pennsylvania was charged today by Indictment1 with Mail Fraud and Aggravated Identity Theft, announced United States Attorney Zane David Memeger. According to the indictment, Vega obtained stolen identities and used the names, dates of birth, and social security numbers of these victims to apply for credit cards with Discover Financial Services and American Express Company. According to the indictment, Vega also had himself added as an authorized user on these credit card accounts.
If convicted the defendant faces a maximum possible sentence of 84 years in prison, with a two year mandatory minimum, a $1,500,000 fine, three years of supervised release, and a $600 special assesment
The case was investigated by the United States Postal Inspection Service, the Internal Revenue Service-Criminal Investigation Division, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, and the Cumru Township Police Department and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney David J. Ignall.
1 An Indictment, Information or Criminal Complaint is an accusation. A defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
Sex Offender Indicted for Failure to RegisterRead the Press Release
HARRISBURG – The United States Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Pennsylvania announced today that Joseph Wayne Acevedo, age 31, of Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, was indicted on December 14, 2016, by a federal grand jury for failure to register as a sex offender.
According to United States Attorney Bruce D. Brandler, Acevedo was convicted of the offense of indecent assault on a six-year-old child in York County in 2006. That conviction required Acevedo to register as a sex offender in any place he lived, worked, or attended school, and to update his registration on a quarterly basis. Acevedo is charged with failing to update his registration as a convicted sex offender as required by law.
The case was investigated by the Pennsylvania State Police and the United States Marshals Service. Prosecution is assigned to Assistant U.S. Attorney James T. Clancy
Indictments and Criminal Informations are only allegations. All persons charged are presumed to be innocent unless and until found guilty in court.
A sentence following a finding of guilt is imposed by the Judge after consideration of the applicable federal sentencing statutes and the Federal Sentencing Guidelines.
The maximum penalty under federal law for this offense is 10 years of imprisonment, a term of supervised release following imprisonment, and a fine. Under the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, the Judge is also required to consider and weigh a number of factors, including the nature, circumstances and seriousness of the offense; the history and characteristics of the defendant; and the need to punish the defendant, protect the public and provide for the defendant's educational, vocational and medical needs. For these reasons, the statutory maximum penalty for the offense is not an accurate indicator of the potential sentence for a specific defendant.
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Salem Man Indicted on Federal Gun ChargesRead the Press Release
Contact Person: Nancy Wicker (803) 929-3000
Columbia, South Carolina – Acting United States Attorney, Beth Drake, announced today that Justin David Crenshaw, age 31, of Salem, was indicted earlier this week for illegally possessing ammunition as a felon.
On December 13, 2016, a federal grand jury returned an indictment alleging that on October 25, 2016, in the District of South Carolina, the Defendant, Justin David Crenshaw, having been convicted of a crime punishable by imprisonment for a term exceeding one year, knowingly did possess in and affecting commerce, ammunition, that is, 9mm ammunition, which had been shipped and transported in interstate and foreign commerce; in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Sections 922(g)(1), 924(a)(2), and 924(e).
Prior to his indictment, Crenshaw was arrested on federal arrest warrants in early December for the offense and has remained in custody, detained without bond, since that date. The investigation was conducted by the Oconee County Sheriff’s Office and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF). The case has been assigned to Assistant United States Attorney Lance Crick of the Greenville office for prosecution.
The Acting United States Attorney stated that all charges in this indictment are merely accusations and that the defendants are presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty.
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Real Estate Brokers and Client Charged with Defrauding Banks in ‘Shotgun’ Loan SchemeRead the Press Release
NEWARK, N.J. – Two real estate brokers and a client were arrested today and charged in connection with a scheme to use bogus information and simultaneous loan applications at multiple banks to fraudulently obtain home equity lines of credit, a practice known as “shotgunning,” U.S. Attorney Paul J. Fishman announced.
Simon Curanaj (a/k/a Simone Curanaj, Simon Curanovic, and Simone Curanay) 62, of Yonkers, New York; Michael Arroyo, 58, of Bronx, New York; and Rafael Popoteur, 65, of Ridgefield Park, New Jersey, are charged by complaint with one count each of conspiracy to commit bank fraud. They are expected to appear later today before U.S. Magistrate Judge Steven C. Mannion.
According to the complaint:
Curanaj and Arroyo are real estate brokers and Popoteur was one of Curanaj’s clients. From 2012 through January 2014, the three defendants and others allegedly conspired to fraudulently obtain multiple home equity lines of credit (HELOCs) from banks on multiple residential properties located in New Jersey and New York.
To get the banks to extend lines of credit they would not have otherwise approved, Curanaj and his conspirators allegedly used the names and personal information of homeowners or straw borrowers, sometimes without their knowledge, to apply for the HELOCs. They made various false representations on loan documents. They then applied for several home equity lines of credit with multiple banks at the same time using the same residential property as collateral. They hid from the lenders the fact that the properties offered as collateral were either already subject to senior liens that had not yet been recorded, or that the same property was offered as collateral for a line of credit from another lender.
The two representative HELOC shotgun schemes highlighted in the complaint caused a loss of more than $1 million dollars. After receiving the fraudulently obtained home equity lines of credit, Curanaj and his conspirators shared in the illicit proceeds obtained from the banks.
The conspiracy to commit bank fraud count carries a maximum potential penalty of 30 years in prison, a fine of $1 million or twice the gross pecuniary gain to the defendants or twice the gross pecuniary loss to others, whichever is greater.
U.S. Attorney Fishman credited special agents of the U.S. Federal Finance Housing Agency, Office of Inspector General, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Steven Perez; and special agents of the FBI, under the direction Special Agent in Charge Timothy Gallagher of the Newark office, with the investigation leading to today’s charges.
The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorney Jihee G. Suh of the U.S. Attorney’s General Crimes Unit in Newark and Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Kevin DiGregory of the FHFA, Office of the Inspector General.
The charges and allegations contained in the complaint are merely accusations, and the defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
Public and Environment to Benefit from $50 Million Proposed Settlement for Natural Resources Harmed by Virginia Dupont FacilityRead the Press Release
The Departments of Justice and the Interior joined with the Commonwealth of Virginia today to announce a proposed settlement with DuPont valued at approximately $50 million to resolve claims stemming from the release of mercury from the former E.I. du Pont de Nemours and Company (DuPont) facility in Waynesboro, Virginia. Over 100 miles of river and associated floodplain have been contaminated by mercury in the South River and South Fork Shenandoah River watershed.
In addition to a cash payment of just over $42 million, DuPont will fund the design and implementation of significant renovations at the Front Royal Fish Hatchery, estimated to cost up to $10 million. The settlement terms are outlined in a proposed consent decree filed in federal court in Harrisonburg, Virginia, today.
DuPont will provide the funds to government natural resource trustees, who will oversee the implementation of projects compensating the public for the natural resource injuries and associated losses in ecological and recreational services, such as fishing access.
The trustees, through U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and Commonwealth of Virginia, invite feedback on actions to restore the river and wildlife habitat and improve public lands and recreational resources. A draft restoration plan and environmental assessment (RP/EA) was also released today for a 45-day public comment period. The plan results from stakeholder meetings beginning in 2008 to determine how best to compensate the public for the injured natural resources and their uses.
“This remarkable settlement will help restore the precious natural resources of the South Fork Shenandoah watershed, bringing lasting benefits for future generations of Virginians to enjoy,” said Assistant Attorney General John C. Cruden for the Justice Department’s Environment and Natural Resources Division. “This joint action with the Department of the Interior and the Commonwealth of Virginia is yet another testament to the value and effectiveness of cooperative federalism in action and I am grateful to all of our partners for the efforts that brought us to this resolution.”
“Today’s settlement, the largest of its kind in Virginia history, is the culmination of a coordinated effort by countless partners at both the state and federal level,” said Governor Terry McAuliffe. “Thanks to their hard work, Virginians and the environment will benefit from unprecedented investments in land conservation and habitat restoration. I applaud and appreciate the meticulous monitoring by our state agencies, the thorough analysis of the scientific advisory committee, and DuPont’s willingness to come to the table and make this happen.”
Since 2005, DuPont and the trustees have worked cooperatively to assess and identify potential restoration projects to benefit natural resources affected by mercury releases from the DuPont facility. Over 100 miles of river and thousands of acres of floodplain and riparian habitat were impacted from the mercury. Some of the assessed and impacted natural resources include fish, migratory songbirds, reptiles, amphibians and mammals. Recreational fishing opportunities were also impacted from the mercury.
“Years of input from community leaders, and partnership with the Commonwealth of Virginia, have led us to propose over $50 million worth of restoration that will be at no cost to taxpayers,” said Northeast Regional Director Wendi Weber of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. “Fish, wildlife, land and waters, as well as the city of Waynesboro and other communities affected by decades of mercury release, will benefit from natural resource projects improving water and stream quality, protecting and restoring wildlife habitat and increasing river access for recreation.”
“Clean air, water and land are environmental priorities and economic assets that make Virginia a great place to live, work and raise a family,” said Attorney General Mark Herring of the Commonwealth of Virginia. “We have an obligation to protect these assets for future generations and this record-setting settlement shows that we take our responsibilities seriously. This settlement will allow us to protect and enhance lands throughout the Shenandoah Valley and improve the quality of water for wildlife, anglers, paddlers and others who use these waterways for recreation. I really appreciate the hard work that my team, Governor Terry McAuliffe, Secretary Molly Ward, DEQ and our federal partners put into making this historic settlement a reality.”
Mercury released into the South River from the DuPont facility in the 1930s and 1940s continues to persist in the environment. Monitoring data collected over the last 20 years indicates that mercury levels remain stable, with no clear decreases over time. Federal law seeks to make the environment and public whole for injuries to natural resources and ecological and recreational services resulting from a release of hazardous substances to the environment.
The trustees evaluated a range of restoration alternatives and have ultimately proposed a preferred restoration alternative that includes projects that best meet the requirement that restoration efforts specifically focus on the injured resources. Proposed projects include:
- land protection, property acquisition, improvements to recreational opportunities and wildlife habitat restoration
- improvements to water quality and fish habitat through activities such as streamside plantings and erosion control, as well as stormwater pond improvements
- mussel propagation and restoration to improve water quality, stabilize sediment and enhance stream bottom structure
- Front Royal Fish Hatchery renovations to improve production of warm-water fish such as smallmouth bass
- recreational fishing access creation or improvement
- migratory songbird habitat restoration and protection
The draft RP/EA outlines these proposed projects, as well as other restoration alternatives and an evaluation of injuries to the natural resources. It is available online, along with other information on the process, at www.fws.gov/northeast/virginiafield/news/news.html.
The trustees will host a public meeting to summarize key components of the draft restoration plan and answer questions. The public meeting will be held on Jan. 10, 2017, at the Waynesboro Public Library lower level meeting room from 6:00 PM to 8:30 PM. The library is located at 600 S. Wayne Avenue, Waynesboro, Virginia, 22980. Following the comment period, the trustees will review and consider comments and prepare the final RP/EA. Ultimately, the trustees will work with project partners such as local, state, and federal agencies; nonprofit organizations; and landowners to implement the projects.
Today’s settlement, lodged with the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Virginia, is subject to a 45-day public comment period to begin following notification in the Federal Register. The settlement is subject to final approval by the court. To view the consent decree, visit the department’s website: www.justice.gov/enrd/consent-decrees.
Prince George’s County Rapper Pleads Guilty to Federal Gun and Drug OffensesRead the Press Release
Greenbelt, Maryland – Charles Ulysses Bowman-Bey, a/k/a Big Flock, age 24, of Upper Marlboro, Maryland, pleaded guilty today to being a felon in possession of a firearm and to possession with intent to distribute Alprazolam, a controlled substance.
The guilty plea was announced by United States Attorney for the District of Maryland Rod J. Rosenstein; Special Agent in Charge Daniel L. Board, Jr. of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives - Baltimore Field Division; and Chief Henry P. Stawinski of the Prince George’s County Police Department.
According to his plea agreement, on October 19, 2016, law enforcement executed a search warrant at Bowman-Bey’s residence. During the search of Bowman-Bey’s bedroom, law enforcement officers found, among other things, firearms, ammunition, narcotics, and narcotics paraphernalia belonging to Bowman-Bey, including: a loaded 5.7x28mm semiautomatic handgun, equipped with a laser sight; a .40 caliber semiautomatic handgun; a .380 caliber semiautomatic handgun; rounds of ammunition of various calibers; a loaded drum-style extended magazine; a .40 caliber extended magazine; $5,561 in cash, which were drug proceeds; approximately 94 tablets of Alprazolam, as well as a quantity of ground-up Alprazolam, which constitutes 95 total units of Alprazolam; and a digital scale, used to weigh narcotics.
Bowman-Bey possessed the firearms in furtherance of his drug trafficking, to protect, among other things, his drugs and his drug-trafficking proceeds. As a result of a previous felony conviction, federal law prohibited Bowman-Bey from possessing the guns and ammunition.
Bowman-Bey faces a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison for illegal possession of a firearm by a previously convicted felon, and a maximum of five years in prison for possession with intent to distribute Alprazolam. U.S. District Judge Theodore D. Chuang has scheduled sentencing for March 30, 2017 at 9:30 a.m.
United States Attorney Rod J. Rosenstein commended the ATF and Prince George’s County Police Department for their work in the investigation. Mr. Rosenstein thanked Assistant United States Attorney Michael T. Packard and Thomas J. Sullivan, who are prosecuting the case.
Northern District of California U.S. Attorney’s Office Collects $46,085,348.08 in Civil and Criminal Actions for U.S. Taxpayers in Fiscal Year 2016Read the Press Release
SAN FRANCISCO – U.S. Attorney Brian J. Stretch announced today that the Northern District of California collected $46,085,348.08 in criminal and civil actions in Fiscal Year 2016. Of this amount, $29,720,757.86 was collected in criminal actions and $16,364,590.22 was collected in civil actions.
Additionally, the Northern District of California worked with other U.S. Attorney’s Offices and components of the Department of Justice to collect an additional $3,895,072,010.24 in cases pursued jointly with these offices. Of this amount, $3,895,067,047.02 was collected in civil actions.
Attorney General Loretta E. Lynch announced on December 14, 2016, that the Justice Department collected nearly $15.4 billion in civil and criminal actions in the fiscal year ending Sept. 30, 2016. The $15,380,130,434 in collections in FY 2016 represents more than five times the appropriated $2.93 billion budget for the 94 U.S. Attorneys’ offices and the main litigating divisions of the Justice Department combined in that same period.
“Every day, the men and women of the Department of Justice work tirelessly to enforce our laws, ensuring that taxpayer dollars are used properly and that the American people are protected from exploitation and abuse,” said Attorney General Lynch. “Today’s announcement is a testament to that work, and it makes clear that our actions deliver a significant return on public investment. I want to thank the prosecutors and trial attorneys who made this year's collections possible, and I want to emphasize that the department remains committed to the well-being of our people and our nation.”
“The recovery of tens of millions of dollars from criminal and civil defendants by this Office is a testament to the hard work of our Financial Litigation Unit,” said U.S. Attorney Brian J. Stretch. "Our Office will continue to work relentlessly to recoup victims' losses and to disgorge profits from those who enrich themselves through crime and other violations of federal law.”
The U.S. Attorneys’ Offices, along with the department’s litigating divisions, are responsible for enforcing and collecting civil and criminal debts owed to the U.S. and criminal debts owed to federal crime victims. The law requires defendants to pay restitution to victims of certain federal crimes who have suffered a physical injury or financial loss. While restitution is paid to the victim, criminal fines and felony assessments are paid to the department’s Crime Victims’ Fund, which distributes the funds to state victim compensation and victim assistance programs.
The largest civil collections were from affirmative civil enforcement cases, in which the United States recovered government money lost to fraud or other misconduct or collected fines imposed on individuals and/or corporations for violations of federal health, safety, civil rights or environmental laws. In addition, civil debts were collected on behalf of several federal agencies, including the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, Health and Human Services, Internal Revenue Service, Small Business Administration and Department of Education.
North Miami Resident Sentenced for Possessing 2,434 Stolen IdentitiesRead the Press Release
A North Miami resident was sentenced to 47 months in prison, to be followed by three years of supervised release, for possessing 2,434 stolen identities.
Wifredo A. Ferrer, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Florida, Mark Selby, Special Agent in Charge, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations (ICE-HSI), Rafiq Ahmad, Special Agent in Charge, United States Department of Labor, Office of Inspector General (DOL-OIG), Kelly R. Jackson, Special Agent in Charge, Internal Revenue Service, Criminal Investigation (IRS-CI), and William Hernandez, Chief, North Miami Beach Police Department (NMBPD), made the announcement.
Camelin Junior Desrosiers, 28, previously pled guilty to one count of possession of fifteen or more unauthorized access devices, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 1029(a)(3), and one count of aggravated identity theft, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 1028A(a)(1).
According to court documents, on February 25, 2015, law enforcement initiated a traffic stop on a rental car leased by Desrosiers. The defendant, the driver, and a passenger were ordered to exit the vehicle. Because the vehicle contained after-market tinted windows, and because the tinted windows violated the rental car contract, law enforcement initiated a tow of the vehicle to return it to the rental car company.
An inventory search of the car was conducted prior to it being towed. In the trunk of the car, law enforcement found a laptop computer owned by Desrosiers. A forensic analysis of the computer revealed 2,434 pieces of personal identifying information (PII), including names, dates of birth and social security numbers.
Law enforcement spoke with one individual whose name, date of birth, and social security number were in the computer, and confirmed that he/she did not authorize Desrosiers to be in possession of the PII. Desrosiers knew that the names, dates of birth, and social security numbers belonged to real persons.
Mr. Ferrer commended the investigative efforts of ICE-HSI, DOL-OIG, IRS-CI, and the NMBPD. The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Joshua S. Rothstein.
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.
North Alabama U.S. Attorney’s Office Collects $5.09 Million in Civil and Criminal Actions for U.S. Taxpayers in Fiscal Year 2016Read the Press Release
BIRMINGHAM -- U.S. Attorney Joyce White Vance announced today that the Northern District of Alabama collected $5.09 million in criminal and civil actions in Fiscal Year 2016. Of this amount, about $3.7 million was collected in criminal actions and $1.4 million in civil actions.
Additionally, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for north Alabama worked with other U.S. Attorney’s Offices and components of the Department of Justice to collect an additional $1.1 million in civil actions pursued jointly.
“Seeking justice is the primary objective of the U.S. Attorney's Office," Vance said. "The people in my office pursue that goal every day, working to put criminals behind bars and to ensure that money taken through wrongful action is returned to the federal government and to victims of crime. In addition, we are dedicated to being good stewards of the public trust and the funding our office is given to do our work.”
Attorney General Loretta E. Lynch announced on Wednesday that the Justice Department collected nearly $15.4 billion in civil and criminal actions in the fiscal year ending Sept. 30. The FY 2016 collections represent more than five times the appropriated $2.93 billion budget for the 94 U.S. Attorneys’ Offices and the main litigating divisions of the Justice Department combined for the fiscal year.
“Every day, the men and women of the Department of Justice work tirelessly to enforce our laws, ensuring that taxpayer dollars are used properly and that the American people are protected from exploitation and abuse,” Lynch said. “Today’s announcement is a testament to that work, and it makes clear that our actions deliver a significant return on public investment. I want to thank the prosecutors and trial attorneys who made this year's collections possible, and I want to emphasize that the department remains committed to the well-being of our people and our nation.”
One of the largest single collections by the Northern District of Alabama U.S. Attorney’s Office this past year was $1.5 million received as part of the $5.9 million court-ordered restitution in the case of William Maurice Campbell Jr. and three co-defendants. Campbell, at the time of the crime, was state director of a college consortium of business development centers. A federal jury convicted him in 2011 on 96 counts related to his scheme to defraud the State of Alabama of more than $7 million. In 2012, a federal judge sentenced Campbell to more than 15 years in prison and ordered the restitution. Campbell appealed the conviction and sentence, which were upheld by the 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in September 2014.
The U.S. Attorneys’ Offices, along with the department’s litigating divisions, are responsible for enforcing and collecting civil and criminal debts owed to the United States and criminal debts owed to federal crime victims. The law requires defendants to pay restitution to victims of certain federal crimes who have suffered a physical injury or financial loss. While restitution is paid to the victim, criminal fines and felony assessments are paid to the department’s Crime Victims’ Fund, which distributes the funds to state victim compensation and victim assistance programs.
The largest civil collections were from affirmative civil enforcement cases, in which the United States recovered government money lost to fraud or other misconduct or collected fines imposed on individuals and/or corporations for violations of federal health, safety, civil rights or environmental laws. In addition, civil debts were collected on behalf of several federal agencies, including the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, Health and Human Services, Internal Revenue Service, Small Business Administration and Department of Education.
Additionally, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for north Alabama, working with partner agencies and divisions, collected $934,607 in asset forfeiture actions in FY 2016. Forfeited assets deposited into the Department of Justice Assets Forfeiture Fund are used to restore funds to crime victims and for a variety of law enforcement purposes.
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Niagara Falls Police Officer, Two Others Charged with Selling CocaineRead 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 Raymond C. Hopson, Lindsay R. Carrier, Jr., and Stephanie A. Costanzo, a Niagara Falls Police Officer, who has since resigned, were charged by criminal complaint with conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute, and to distribute cocaine and maintaining a premises for manufacturing, distributing and using cocaine, and marijuana. The charges carry a mandatory minimum penalty of five years in prison and a maximum of 40 years.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Joel Violanti, who is handling the case, stated that according to the complaint, the defendants were involved in a cocaine conspiracy between July 27, 2016, and November 9, 2016. During that time, defendant Hopson sold cocaine to an undercover police officer on multiple occasions.
On November 9, 2016, a search warrant was executed at 2930 Grand Avenue in Niagara Falls, the residence of defendant Hopson and Stephanie Costanzo. Costanzo was at home during the search. During the search, officers observed a bedroom on the second floor that was locked. Costanzo was asked why the bedroom was locked, and she gave officers a key for the door. Inside the bedroom, officers found a plastic sandwich bag containing a gram of marijuana, a second plastic bag containing over five grams of cocaine, a small black digital scale next to plastic bags, an open container of creatine which is used as a cutting agent for cocaine, and cash. In the master bedroom, where Costanzo and Hopson slept, officers found a small orange plastic container containing more than five grams of suspected cocaine, scattered marijuana, a marijuana grinder shaped like a pistol cylinder, several sandwich bags, and an empty gun magazine.
Also on November 9, 2016, officers searched 2407 Willow Avenue in Niagara Falls, the residence of Lindsay’s Carrier’s mother. During that search, police found cash, a black digital scale, four clear plastic bags containing nearly 80 grams of crack cocaine, two clear plastic bags containing nearly 61 grams of cocaine, a clear bag containing hydrocodone pills, and two clear glass jars containing 10 grams of marijuana.
The defendants made an initial appearance before U.S. Magistrate Judge Michael Roemer on December 13, 2016. Costanzo was released, Hopson and Carrier remain in custody.
“The vast majority of those of us involved in law enforcement take seriously our obligation to uphold our oath of office,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Kennedy. “This case shows how those that do will take action to remove those that don’t.”
DEA Special Agent-in-Charge James J. Hunt stated, “There is no excuse for a law enforcement officer to tarnish their badge in exchange for profit. While the good men and women in law enforcement conducted this investigation with integrity and diligence, they dismantled a major cocaine trafficking organization in Niagara County and arrested a dirty cop. By being a watchdog in our communities, we will continue to weed out drug trafficking organizations and those involved, at all levels.”
The complaint is the result of an investigation by the Niagara Falls Police department, under the direction of Superintendent Bryan Dalporto, and the Drug Enforcement Administration, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge James J. Hunt, New York Field Division, 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.
Niagara Falls Man Pleads Guilty to Child Pornography 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 Daniel Krull, 44, of Niagara Falls, NY, pleaded guilty, before U.S. District Judge Lawrence J. Vilardo, to distribution of child pornography following a prior conviction under New York law for possessing a sexual performance by a child. The charge carries a mandatory minimum penalty of 15 years and maximum of 40 years in prison, and a fine of $250,000.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Aaron J. Mango, who is handling the case, stated that the between November 6, 2015, and November 8, 2015, the defendant, using the Facebook profile “Danny Blaze,” distributed 11 images of child pornography to other individuals via a private group on Facebook. As a result, Facebook shut down the private group used by Krull and submitted a CyberTipline report to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children on February 28, 2016.
On August 23, 2016, the defendant’s cellular telephone was seized by the Niagara County Probation Department. A forensic examination revealed approximately 2,026 images and 20 videos of child pornography depicting minors engaging in sexually explicit conduct. Some of the images depicted prepubescent minors or minors less than 12 years of age and depictions of violence. Krull also had sexual contact with a 10-year old girl on approximately five occasions.
In March 2007, the defendant was convicted in state court of possessing a sexual performance by a child less than 16 years of age.
The plea is the result of an investigation by Special Agents of the Federal Bureau of Investigation at the direction of Adam S. Cohen, Special Agent-In-Charge, and Probation Officers of the Niagara County Probation Department.
Sentencing is scheduled for March 23, 2017, at 10:00 a.m. before Judge Vilardo.
News AdvisoryRead the Press Release
ALBANY, NEW YORK – United States Attorney Richard S. Hartunian, joined by FBI Special Agent in Charge Andrew W. Vale, will hold a news conference at noon on December 19, 2016 to discuss the sentencing of Glendon Scott Crawford.
Crawford was convicted in August 2015 of attempting to acquire and use a radiological dispersal device, conspiring to use a weapon of mass destruction, and distributing information relating to weapons of mass destruction. He is scheduled to be sentenced on December 19 at 10:30 a.m. by Senior United States District Judge Gary L. Sharpe.
Members of the media will be permitted to bring cameras and phones into the U.S. Attorney’s Office; cameras and phones will not be permitted in the courtroom.
What: News Conference to Discuss the Sentencing of Glendon Scott Crawford
When: Monday, December 19, 2016 @ Noon
Where: U.S. Attorney’s Office, 445 Broadway, Room 218, Albany
New Zealand Man Convicted of Conspiracy to Export Sensitive Parts to ChinaRead the Press Release
A resident of New Zealand who traveled to Seattle in April 2016 to take possession of export-restricted parts designed for missile and space applications was convicted late yesterday in U.S. District Court in Seattle of two federal felonies related to the scheme, announced U.S. Attorney Annette L. Hayes. The jury deliberated about three hours before finding WILLIAM ALI, 38, guilty of conspiracy to violate the Arms Export Control Act and attempting to violate the Act. U.S. District Judge Thomas S. Zilly scheduled ALI’s sentencing hearing for March 16, 2017. ALI remains in federal custody pending sentencing.
According to records in the case and testimony presented at the two-day trial, ALI emailed several companies and distributors in April 2015 about purchasing certain accelerometers that are designed for use in spacecraft and missile navigation. These accelerometers cannot be exported from the United States without a license from the U.S. State Department, which Ali did not have. The Department of Homeland Security learned of Ali’s inquiries and began an investigation.
Over the next year, ALI communicated by phone and email with a Homeland Security undercover agent and with a person in China known in his emails as “Michael.” Michael was the person seeking the accelerometers, as well as certain gyroscopes that are designed for military use. ALI was working to find a way to purchase the devices and transport them secretly to Michael in China. In multiple emails, ALI made clear that he was aware that export of the accelerometers and gyroscopes was illegal. ALI sent the undercover agent nearly $25,000 for the devices – money he got from Michael. ALI traveled to Seattle and met with the undercover agent on April 16, 2016, at a downtown hotel. Shortly after ALI took possession of the devices he was arrested. ALI had with him an airline ticket to Hong Kong and a visa to travel to China.
The conspiracy count is punishable by up to five years in prison and a $250,000 fine. Attempt to violate the Export Control Act is punishable by up to 20 years in prison and a $1 million fine. These are the maximum sentences allowed by law. Judge Zilly will determine the appropriate sentence based on a number of factors including the background and circumstances of the defendant.
The case was investigated by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations and was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Thomas Woods and Rebecca Cohen.
New Town Man Found Guilty of Assault with a Dangerous Weapon and Assault Resulting in Serious Bodily InjuryRead the Press Release
BISMARCK - US Attorney Christopher C. Myers announced that on December 14, 2016, Derick Colin Wilkinson, 26, New Town, ND, was convicted by a federal jury on charges of Assault With a Dangerous Weapon and Assault Resulting in Serious Bodily Injury.
Evidence presented at trial showed that, during the early morning hours of April 26, 2016, Derrick Wilkinson assaulted an Indian male outside of a bar located on the Fort Berthold Indian Reservation. Wilkinson struck the victim multiple times in the face with his hands and stomped on the then-unconscious victim’s head approximately six times with his boots. Subsequent to the assault, and in order to avoid arrest, Wilkinson fled from the bar with his girlfriend and hid in the crawlspace of his friend’s house. As a result of Derick Wilkinson’s assault, the victim was rendered unconscious, required intubation to assist his breathing, and suffered nasal and orbital fractures.
Sentencing for Derick Wilkinson has been scheduled for March 20, 2017, in Bismarck, ND.
This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and Three Affiliated Tribes Police Department.
Assistant US Attorney Jonathan O’Konek and Special Assistant US Attorney Dawn Deitz prosecuted the case.
New Orleans Man Sentenced to 78 Months in Prison for Credit Card FraudRead the Press Release
U.S. Attorney Kenneth A. Polite announced that CLIFF DURIO, age 25, of New Orleans, was sentenced today after previously pleading guilty to a one-count Indictment charging him with fraud in connection with access devices.
U.S. District Judge Lance M. Africk sentenced DURIO to 78 months in prison and 3 years of supervised release, and ordered him to pay over $35,000 in restitution to the victims of his fraud.
According to court documents, DURIO knowingly and with intent to defraud, possessed numerous counterfeit and unauthorized access devices, including credit cards and gift cards. DURIO was arrested at the New Orleans Airport after TSA screeners, while investigating a suspicious object in his luggage, discovered a bundle of over 500 credit cards. The cards were encoded and embossed with stolen accounts numbers, several of which had reported fraud. In total, DURIO was found with 46 gift cards with an aggregate value of $7,000, as well as 738 fraudulent credit cards with a total credit limit of over $4.3 million.
U.S. Attorney Polite praised the work of the U.S. Secret Service in investigating this matter. Assistant United States Attorney David Haller was in charge of the prosecution.
New Haven Man Pleads Guilty to CarjackingRead the Press Release
Deirdre M. Daly, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, announced that ELBERT LLORENS, 24, of New Haven, pleaded guilty today before U.S. Magistrate Judge Robert A. Richardson in Hartford to a federal carjacking offense.
According to court documents and statements made in court, on January 1, 2016, two men from out of state who were driving a rented 2015 Volkswagen Passat were victims of an armed carjacking in the vicinity of Hobart Street and Myrtle Street in Meriden. The victims reported that they had stopped to ask an individual, later identified as Kyle Valentine, for directions to a gas station. Valentine told the victims to follow his car, which they did. After traveling a few minutes, Valentine’s car stopped and LLORRENS pointed a handgun at one of the victims who was sitting in the passenger seat of the car, opened the door and stated “I want everything.” The victims exited the car and LLORRENS and Valentine stole their wallets and cell phones and then drove away in the Passat.
In pleading guilty, LLORRENS also admitted that, on January 3, 2016, he committed armed robberies of a gas station in East Haven and a gas station in New Haven; on January 4, 2016, he attempted to rob a convenience store in Milford; and, on January 5, 2016, he used a firearm and threats of violence to steal a 2006 Chevy Cobalt and a wallet from a victim in New Haven.
LLORRENS was arrested by New Haven Police shortly after the January 5 carjacking.
LLORRENS pleaded guilty to one count of taking a motor vehicle from a person by force and violence or by intimidation, an offense that carries a maximum term of imprisonment of 25 years. He is scheduled to be sentenced by U.S. District Judge Vanessa L. Bryant on March 15, 2017. LLORRENS has been detained since his arrest.
Valentine, 25, of New Haven, pleaded guilty to the same charge on August 11, 2016. He awaits sentencing, and also is detained.
This matter is being investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the East Haven, Meriden, Milford and New Haven Police Departments. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Douglas P. Morabito.
Namibia Man Charged in Wire Fraud CaseRead the Press Release
Karl Christian Loibenbock, a/k/a “Karl Christian Loibenboeck,” a/k/a “Christian Bock,” of Windhoek, Namibia, was charged today by Indictment[1] with one count of wire fraud, announced United States Attorney Zane David Memeger.
According to the Indictment, from September 2013 to November 9, 2016, Loibenbock falsely represented that he procured and sold high-quality rough diamonds from Angola that were not certified as required by the Kimberley Process. In reality, Loibenbock was attempting to pass off topaz stones – which Loibenbock procured in Namibia – as rough diamonds to defraud a United States customer. On November 7, 2016, Loibenbock traveled from Namibia to the United States to complete the sale of approximately 100 carats of purported rough diamonds in his attempt to defraud the United States customer out of approximately $250,000.
Launched in 2003, the Kimberley Process is an international initiative to prevent rough diamonds from being used to finance civil wars in diamond-producing countries. The Kimberley Process controls trade in rough diamonds between participating countries through domestic implementation of a certification scheme that makes the trade more transparent and secure. According to the Kimberley Process, rough diamonds must be shipped in sealed containers and exported with a Kimberley Process Certificate that certifies that the rough diamonds have not benefited rebel movements.
If convicted, the defendant faces a maximum possible sentence of 20 years in prison, three years of supervised release, a $250,000 fine, and a $100 special assessment.
The case was investigated by the Department of Homeland Security, Homeland Security Investigations, and the United Kingdom’s National Crime Agency, and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Vineet Gauri.
[1] An Indictment, Information or Criminal Complaint is an accusation. A defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
More than 44 Pounds of Meth Seized, 19 Arrested in Connection with Southsound Drug Distribution RingRead the Press Release
An investigation begun by the Drug Enforcement Administration and the West Sound Narcotics Enforcement Team in February 2014 resulted today in the arrest of 19 people with ties to a methamphetamine distribution ring, announced U.S. Attorney Annette L. Hayes. Law enforcement served 24 search warrants on locations in Washington and Arizona in connection with the case. More than 20 vehicles were searched in connection with the investigation. Today alone law enforcement seized more than 44 pounds of methamphetamine, more than 50 firearms, and more than $50,000 in cash.
Previous seizures associated with this drug ring include more than 5 pounds of meth and more than $28,000.
Those arrested today in the Western District of Washington will make their initial appearances today and tomorrow in U.S. District Court in Tacoma at 2:30 p.m. Those charged in the indictment include:
JOSE ERNESTO MOZEQUEDA VASQUEZ, 34. of Chehalis, Washington
JESUS BELTRAN, 34, of Phoenix, Arizona
ANTONIO DE LA MORA, 41, of Centralia, Washington
JUAN SALUD GARCIA ALMANZA, 30 of Centralia, Washington
VIOLETTA ROSALIA GUADARRAMA, 32 of Centralia, Washington
ERNESTO LUNA VASQUEZ, 44 of Kelso, Washington
MARIA CENTENO GALLEGOS, 37 of Chehalis, Washington
COLLIN MESINAS, 28 of Olympia, Washington
AUNDREA LYNN NATINS, 41 of Port Orchard, Washington
WILLIAM HAGMANN, 54 of Shelton, Washington
JON DANIEL BROWNFIELD, 58 of Shelton, Washington
KIMBERLY BROOKE GRAY, 36 of Port Orchard, Washington
REBECCA SUE GODSALVE, 52 of Bremerton, Washington
MARK AGNEW, 51 of Gig Harbor, Washington
ISAELA PACHECO CENTENO, 22 of Poulsbo, Washington
TERESA GOOS, 55 of Hoodsport, Washington
DEREK JOHNSON, 29 of Gig Harbor, Washington
KAREN KENMIR, 55 of Shelton, Washington
A nineteenth defendant, GERARDO ENRIQUE FLORES, 26, of Chula Vista, California, was arrested in California and will make his initial appearance on a criminal complaint in the Southern District of California.
The charges contained in the indictment are only allegations. A person is presumed innocent unless and until he or she is proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
This was an Organized Crime and Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF) investigation, providing supplemental federal funding to the federal and state agencies involved.
Today’s searches and arrests were led by the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) in Washington, Arizona, and California, and involved officers from the West Sound Narcotics Enforcement Team (WESTNET), Tahoma Narcotics Enforcement Team (TNET), Lewis County Sheriff’s Office Joint Narcotics Enforcement Team (JNET), Vancouver Police Department, Grays Harbor County Drug Task Force, Cowlitz County Sheriff’s Office, Thurston Narcotics Team (TNT), Lakewood Police Department, Washington State Patrol, Shelton Police Department, Mason County Sheriff’s Office, Kitsap County Sheriff’s Office, Olympic Peninsula Narcotics Enforcement Team (OPNET), Pierce County Sheriff’s Office, Bremerton Police Department, King County Sheriff’s Office, Valley Narcotics Enforcement Team (VNET), and the Lakewood Police Department.
The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Marci L. Ellsworth and C. Andrew Colasurdo.
Mecklenburg Co. Man Facing Federal Charges in Connection with $19 Million Investment Fraud SchemeRead the Press Release
CHARLOTTE, N.C. – A Mecklenburg Co. man is facing federal charges in connection with an investment scheme that defrauded 100 victims of $19 million, announced Jill Westmoreland Rose, U.S. Attorney for the Western District of North Carolina. A federal grand jury returned a criminal indictment against Richard Wyatt Davis, Jr., a.k.a. Rich Davis, 40, on Tuesday, December 13, 2016, charging him with one count of wire fraud, two counts of securities fraud, and three counts of tax evasion. The indictment was unsealed today following Davis’s arrest by law enforcement.
U.S. Attorney Jill Westmoreland Rose is joined in making today’s announcement by Michael Rolin, Special Agent in Charge of the United States Secret Service, Charlotte Field Division and Michael C. Daniels, Acting Special Agent in Charge of the Internal Revenue Service, Criminal Investigation Division, Charlotte Field Office (IRS-CI).
According to allegations contained in the indictment:
From approximately 2005 and continuing through in or about 2016, Davis defrauded more than 100 investors of more than $19 million by inducing his victims to invest in fraudulent investment funds controlled by him, including the DCG Commercial Fund I and DCG Real Assets, as well as other fraudulent investment vehicles (collectively, Davis Entities). In order to recruit his victim-investors, Davis made false misrepresentations regarding his credentials, including his educational background and about being a Registered Financial Consultant. Davis also purported to victim-investors that his fraudulent investment vehicles were low risk investments involving real estate, precious metals, and natural resources and touted the investments as a safe alternative to the stock market. Davis also falsely assured victim-investors that their investments were growing in value. For example, Davis falsely represented to a number of investors that Davis Entities transactions had received an average net internal rate of return of 32% percent, which was not true. As a result of his many lies and falsehoods, Davis’s investors frequently rolled over their entire retirement savings into entities controlled by the defendant.
Davis generally targeted investors residing in and around Charlotte, N.C. His clients included professional athletes and individuals who were recruited through Davis’s church. Davis also spoke at events for “preppers” and survivalists, thereby targeting victim-investors who were fearful of the stock market and the banking system. Davis preyed upon these investors’ fears of traditional financial markets and took advantage of their trust into someone who shared their religious views.
Contrary to promises made to his investors, in reality Davis invested none of the victims’ money. Rather, Davis transferred the majority of the victims’ funds to other entities he controlled, and used some of the money to make Ponzi-style payments to earlier investors in an effort to conceal and prolong the scheme. Davis also diverted victim-investors’ money to support his personal lifestyle, including to pay for his and his then wife’s personal credit cards, mortgage payments, nannies, a groundskeeper, a personal chef, vehicles, significant cash withdrawals, payments to family members, and to pay for large administrative and overhead expenses that did not increase value for investors.
To avoid fulfilling victim withdrawals requests, Davis provided numerous excuses, including that the victims’ money was unavailable because the funds were tied up in investments with specific maturity periods. Davis also falsely advised victims that they needed to invest additional funds in order to secure the return to their original investment. Davis was also frequently evasive or failed to report to investors’ inquiries about the status of their investments, and even threatened to discontinue managing the investments if investors asked for too much information.
The indictment also alleges that Davis filed false tax returns for 2009 and 2011 which reflected negative total income. Davis also failed to file individual income tax returns for 2010 and 2012. During the same time period, Davis submitted various financial statements to banks and courts, claiming his annual income was anywhere between $385,000 and upwards of $1.5 million.
Davis had his initial appearance today before U.S. Magistrate Judge David Keesler. Davis was ordered to remain in custody until his detention hearing, which was scheduled for December 20, 2016.
The wire fraud charge carries a maximum prison term of 30 years and a $1 million fine. The securities fraud charge carries a maximum prison term of 20 years and a $250,000 fine per count. And the maximum prison term for the tax evasion charge is five years and a $250,000 fine per count.
All the charges contained in the indictment are allegations. The defendant is presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond reasonable doubt in a court of law.
In making today’s announcement U.S. Attorney Rose thanked the U.S. Secret Service and the IRS for leading the joint investigation.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Jenny G. Sugar, of the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Charlotte, is in charge of the prosecution.In June 2016, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) filed a civil complaint against Davis. Without admitting or denying the allegations, Davis has entered into a partial settlement with the SEC, which bars him from any further sale of securities in a pooled investment vehicle, as well as from future violations of antifraud and securities registration provisions of the federal securities laws. Davis is also required to cooperate with a court-appointed receiver. See https://www.sec.gov/litigation/litreleases/2016/lr23554.htm
Maryland U.S. Attorney’s Office Collects over $46.9 Million in Civil and Criminal Actions for U.S. Taxpayers in FY 2016Read the Press Release
Baltimore, Maryland – U.S. Attorney Rod J. Rosenstein announced that financial collections in criminal and civil actions in Fiscal Year (FY) 2016 in the District of Maryland reached $46,916,648.14. The U.S. Department of Justice keeps statistics on a fiscal year basis, closing the books each September 30.
Attorney General Loretta Lynch announced today that the Justice Department collected $15.3 billion in civil and criminal actions in the fiscal year ending September 30, 2016. The more than $15 billion in collections in FY 2016 represents more than five times the appropriated $2.93 billion budget for the 94 U.S. Attorney’s offices and the main litigating divisions of the Department of Justice in that same period.
“Every day, the men and women of the Department of Justice work tirelessly to enforce our laws, ensuring that taxpayer dollars are used properly and that the American people are protected from exploitation and abuse,” said Attorney General Lynch. “Today’s announcement is a testament to that work, and it makes clear that our actions deliver a significant return on public investment. I want to thank the prosecutors and trial attorneys who made this year's collections possible, and I want to emphasize that the department remains committed to the well-being of our people and our nation.”
“Thanks to the hard work and dedication of employees of the U.S. Attorney’s Office and our partner agencies, funds recovered far exceed the cost of operating the office,” said Maryland U.S. Attorney Rod J. Rosenstein. “We will continue to hold accountable anyone who seeks to profit from illegal activities.”
According to statistics from the Department of Justice, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Maryland in FY 2016 collected $11,503,001.30 in criminal debts owed to the U.S. government and to federal crime victims, including restitution, criminal fines and felony assessments.
The statistics show that the $35,413,646.84 collected in civil actions in Maryland, include affirmative civil enforcement cases, in which the United States recovered government money lost to fraud or other misconduct or collected penalties imposed on individuals and/or corporations for violations of federal health, safety, civil rights or environmental laws, and debts collected on behalf of several federal agencies, including the U.S. Small Business Administration, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, and the Drug Enforcement Administration. These cases include the successful resolution of investigations against PNC Bank, N.A. and Foundation Health Services, Inc., two environmental enforcement actions against Arkema, Inc. and Westvaco and the case of United States ex rel. Coyle v. Paradigm Spine. Additionally, the District of Maryland collected civil penalties under the Controlled Substances Act on behalf of the Drug Enforcement Administration from its investigations of CVS Pharmacy, Inc., Value Drug, Inc. and Drug City Pharmacy, Inc.
Additionally, the District of Maryland worked with other U.S. Attorney’s Offices and components of the Department of Justice to collect an additional $7,635,010.69 in cases pursued jointly with these offices. Of this amount $3,526 was collected in criminal actions and $7,631,484.69 was collected in civil actions, including cases resolved under the False Claims Act on behalf of victim agencies such as the Department of Health and Human Services, Department of Defense and the Department of Education
The U.S. Attorneys’ offices, along with the Department’s litigating divisions, are responsible for enforcing and collecting civil and criminal debts owed to the United States and criminal debts owed to federal crime victims. The law requires defendants to pay restitution to victims of certain federal crimes who have suffered a physical injury or financial loss. While restitution is paid directly to the victim, criminal fines and felony assessments are paid to the Department’s Crime Victims’ Fund, which distributes the funds to state victim compensation and victim assistance programs.
The largest civil collections were from affirmative civil enforcement cases, in which the United States recovered government money lost to fraud or other misconduct or collected fines imposed on individuals and/or corporations for violations of federal health, safety, labor and controlled substance laws. In addition, civil debts were collected on behalf of several federal agencies, including the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, Health and Human Services, Internal Revenue Service, Small Business Administration and Department of Education.
In addition, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Maryland, working with partner agencies and divisions, collected $8,078,5856 in asset forfeiture actions in FY 2016. Forfeited assets deposited into the Department of Justice Assets Forfeiture Fund are used to restore funds to crime victims and for a variety of law enforcement purposes.
For more information, the Department’s Annual Statistical Reports on prior fiscal years can be found on the internet at: http://www.justice.gov/usao/reading_room/foiamanuals.html.
Mansfield Man Pleads Guilty to Threatening President of the United StatesRead the Press Release
BOSTON – A Mansfield man pleaded guilty today in U.S. District Court in Boston in connection with posting online threats to the President of the United States.
Andrew J. O’Keefe, 31, pleaded guilty before U.S. District Court Judge George A. O’Toole, Jr., who scheduled sentencing for March 16, 2017.
On May 13, 2015, an individual, later determined to be O’Keefe, posted a threat on an FBI website stating that he planned to kill President Barack Obama. On May 15, 2015, officers attempted to interview O’Keefe regarding the posting; however, O’Keefe refused to speak with them outside of his residence. A search warrant executed at O’Keefe’s home and vehicle resulted in the recovery of over 100 weapons including swords, double-edged knives, hatchets, spears, an air gun, and two laptop computers. O’Keefe was arrested on state charges and later charged federally.
The charging statute provides a sentence of no greater than five years in prison, three years of supervised release and a fine of $250,000. Actual sentences for federal crimes are typically less than the maximum penalties. Sentences are imposed by a federal district court judge based upon the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
United States Attorney Carmen M. Ortiz; Stephen A. Marks, Special Agent in Charge of the U.S. Secret Service; and Mansfield Police Chief Ronald A. Sellon, made the announcement today. Assistant U.S. Attorney Kenneth G. Shine of Ortiz’s Major Crime Unit is prosecuting the case.
Man Alleged to be ‘Buckeye Bandit’ Charged with 7 more Armed RobberiesRead the Press Release
COLUMBUS – A federal grand jury indicted Ikechi W. Emeaghara, 27, of Columbus, today in a superseding indictment charging him with seven additional armed bank robberies. He was indicted on one other count of armed bank robbery on November 10.
Emeaghara is alleged to be the armed robber dubbed as the “Buckeye Bandit” by law enforcement. Investigation continues on at least 20 other robberies in central Ohio.
Benjamin C. Glassman, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Ohio; Brad Earman, Acting Special Agent in Charge, Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF); Angela L. Byers, Special Agent in Charge, Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), Cincinnati Field Office; Columbus Police Chief Kim Jacobs; Franklin County Sheriff Zach Scott; Delaware County Sheriff Russell L. Martin; Ohio State University Police Chief Craig Stone; Worthington Police Chief Jerry L. Strait, Jr.; Upper Arlington Police Chief Tracy Hahn and Gahanna Police Chief Dennis Murphy announced the superseding indictment returned today.
According to public court documents, Emeaghara allegedly brandished a dangerous weapon and demanded cash from bank teller’s drawers on the following occasions:
- October 31, 2013 at the Wesbanco Bank on South Stygler Road in Gahanna
- November 30, 2013 at the Cooper State Bank on West 5th Avenue in Columbus
- December 6, 2013 at the Wesbanco Bank on South Stygler Road in Gahanna
- July 9, 2014 at the Smart Federal Credit Union on North High Street in Columbus*
- January 12, 2015 at the Cooper State Bank on Sawmill Road in Columbus*
- April 26, 2015 at the Cooper State Bank on Sawmill Road in Columbus*
- March 17, 2016 at the First Merit Bank on East Powell Road in Powell
- October 21, 2016 at the Key Bank on Frantz Road in Columbus (original indictment)
* Denotes armed robbery charges that also include forcing one or more persons to accompany him within the bank.
Armed bank robbery is a crime punishable by up to 25 years in prison. Armed robbery including forcing one or more persons to accompany the defendant without their consent is punishable by at least 10 years in prison.
U.S. Attorney Glassman commended the cooperative investigation by law enforcement and Deputy Criminal Chief Gary L. Spartis and Assistant U.S. Attorney Salvador A. Dominguez, who are prosecuting the case.
A federal indictment merely contains allegations and the defendant is presumed innocent unless proven guilty in a court of law.
Lead defendant in LaSalle street kidnapping sentenced in federal courtRead the Press Release
Indianapolis – United States Attorney Josh J. Minkler, announced today the sentencing of a Detroit, Michigan, man, for his leadership role in an Indianapolis kidnapping conspiracy. John Thomas a/k/a Jay, 40, was sentenced to life imprisonment without parole by U.S. District Chief Judge Richard L. Young following his conviction in September 2016, of two counts of kidnapping and one count of conspiracy to commit kidnapping.
“Mr. Thomas is a career criminal with previous convictions in Detroit for home invasions and drug trafficking,” said Minkler. “When Thomas came to Indianapolis to kidnap two children, law enforcement ensured that his career would come to an end-permanently. Thomas will not sell any more drugs, he will not break into anyone’s home, and will not kidnap any more children. We have the hard working officers of the IMPD and Special Agents of the FBI and USMS to thank for that.”
Testimony in court indicated that Thomas was a drug dealer from Detroit. On February 28, 2015, Thomas’ former girlfriend (Individual A) stole a large quantity of narcotics and narcotics proceeds and traveled to Indianapolis with her minor child. Between February 28, 2015, and March 2, 2015, Thomas and members of his conspiracy traveled to Indianapolis in search of Individual A.
On March 2, 2015, members of the conspiracy conducted a home invasion on LaSalle Street in Indianapolis and kidnapped Individual A’s minor siblings, and transported them to Detroit and Kentucky, holding them for ransom. They used a hood to prevent one victim from identifying members of the conspiracy and used zip-ties to prevent his escape. They later cut the victim’s fingers to compel him to reveal the location of Individual A, and the narcotics and narcotics proceeds taken from Thomas. Both victims were returned safely following Thomas’ arrest.
FBI Special Agent in Charge, W. Jay Abbott said, “The swift and safe return of the victims and apprehension of the subjects was the result of the cooperative efforts of Federal, State and Local law enforcement agencies.”
Five other co-conspirators have pleaded guilty and were sentenced to:
Alaa Al-Salehi, a/k/a Big Boi, 24, 132 months
April Sandell, 27, 120 months
Bernando Reeves, a/k/a C-Note, 22, 72 months
Mohammed Karkash a/k/a MJ, 24, 36 months
Ali Hussain Ashore, 28, 18 months
Assistant United States Attorneys Tiffany J. McCormick and Jeffrey D. Preston, prosecuted this case for the government.
Kenner Man Pleads Guilty to Conspiracy to Commit Access Device FraudRead the Press Release
U.S. Attorney Kenneth A. Polite announced that JOHN PAUL PIERRE, age 29, of Kenner, pled guilty today to conspiracy to commit access device fraud.
According to court documents, PIERRE’s co-conspirator, RYAN CLAVERIE, worked as a waiter in a restaurant in Metairie. During the course of his employment, CLAVERIE routinely handled the credit and debit cards of restaurant patrons. CLAVERIE had a credit card “skimmer” that extracted customer account information from the magnetic strip on the back of a credit card and a bank debit card and logged it for later download to a computer.
PIERRE and his co-conspirators used the captured electronic account information contained on the magnetic strips of these valid cards in order to manufacture and produce counterfeit credit cards with which to fraudulently obtain things of value for their own personal gain at several retail stores and establishments in the metropolitan New Orleans area.
PIERRE faces a maximum term of imprisonment of five years, a fine of $250,000 and three years of supervised release following any term of imprisonment. U.S. District Judge Mary Ann Vial Lemmon set sentencing for March 16, 2017.
U.S. Attorney Polite praised the work of the United States Secret Service, New Orleans Field Office, the Jefferson Parish Sheriff’s Office, the New Orleans Police Department, the St. Tammany Parish Sheriff’s Office and the Kenner Police Department for investigating this matter. Assistant United States Attorney Loan AMimi@ Nguyen is in charge of the prosecution.
Justice Department Opens Investigations of Orange County, California, District Attorney’s Office and Sheriff’s DepartmentRead the Press Release
The Justice Department today opened a civil pattern-or-practice investigation into the Orange County District Attorney’s Office and the Orange County Sheriff’s Department, pursuant to the Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act of 1994.
The investigation will focus on allegations that the district attorney’s office and the sheriff’s department systematically used jailhouse informants to elicit incriminating statements from specific inmates who had been charged and were represented by counsel, in violation of the Sixth Amendment. Additionally, the investigation will seek to determine whether the district attorney’s office committed systematic violations of defendants’ 14th Amendment due process rights under Brady v. Maryland, a 1963 Supreme Court case, by failing to disclose promises of leniency that would have substantially undermined the credibility of the informants’ trial testimony.
Orange County District Attorney Tony Rackauckas requested that the Justice Department review his office’s informant policies and practices and offered unfettered access to documents and personnel.
“A systematic failure to protect the right to counsel and to a fair trial makes criminal proceedings fundamentally unfair and diminishes the public’s faith in the integrity of the justice system,” said Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Vanita Gupta, head of the Civil Rights Division. “Our investigation will examine the facts and evidence to determine whether the district attorney’s office and sheriff’s department engaged in a pattern or practice of violating these rights. We are grateful to District Attorney Rackauckas for the unrestricted access he has offered to provide.”
“We appreciate the District Attorney's invitation to review his office's policies and practices, along with his assurance of unfettered access to documents and personnel in his office,” said U.S. Attorney Eileen Decker of the Central District of California. “We are confident that this investigation, and the cooperation being offered by the Orange County District Attorney's Office, will help restore public confidence in the integrity of the Orange County criminal justice system.”
Attorneys from the Civil Rights Division’s Special Litigation Section and the U.S. Attorney’s Office of the Central District of California are jointly conducting this investigation. For more information on the Civil Rights Division, please visit www.justice.gov/crt. For more information about the U.S. Attorney’s Office of the Central District of California, please visit https://www.justice.gov/usao/district/cdca.
Justice Department Opens Investigation of Orange County District Attorney’s Office and Sheriff’s DepartmentRead the Press Release
LOS ANGELES – The Justice Department today opened a civil pattern-or-practice investigation into the Orange County District Attorney’s Office and the Orange County Sheriff’s Department, pursuant to the Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act of 1994.
The investigation will focus on allegations that the district attorney’s office and the sheriff’s department systematically used jailhouse informants to elicit incriminating statements from specific inmates who had been charged and were represented by counsel, in violation of the Sixth Amendment. Additionally, the investigation will seek to determine whether the district attorney’s office committed systematic violations of defendants’ 14th Amendment due process rights under Brady v. Maryland, a 1963 Supreme Court case, by failing to disclose promises of leniency that would have substantially undermined the credibility of the informants’ trial testimony.
Orange County District Attorney Tony Rackauckas requested that the Justice Department review his office’s informant policies and practices and offered unfettered access to documents and personnel.
“We appreciate the district attorney's invitation to review his office's policies and practices, along with his assurance of unfettered access to documents and personnel in his office,” said United States Attorney Eileen M. Decker. “We are confident that this investigation, and the cooperation being offered by the Orange County District Attorney's Office, will help restore public confidence in the integrity of the Orange County criminal justice system.”
“A systematic failure to protect the right to counsel and to a fair trial makes criminal proceedings fundamentally unfair and diminishes the public’s faith in the integrity of the justice system,” said Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Vanita Gupta, head of the Civil Rights Division. “Our investigation will examine the facts and evidence to determine whether the District Attorney’s Office and Sheriff’s Department engaged in a pattern or practice of violating these rights. We are grateful to District Attorney Rackauckas for the unrestricted access he has offered to provide.”
Attorneys from the Civil Rights Division’s Special Litigation Section and the U.S. Attorney’s Office of the Central District of California are jointly conducting this investigation. For more information on the Civil Rights Division, please visit www.justice.gov/crt. For more information about the U.S. Attorney’s Office of the Central District of California, please visit https://www.justice.gov/usao/district/cdca.
Justice Department Files Suit Against Sterling Heights, Michigan, over Denial of Zoning Approval for a MosqueRead the Press Release
The Justice Department filed a lawsuit today against Sterling Heights, Michigan, alleging that the city violated the Religious Land Use and Institutionalized Persons Act of 2000 (RLUIPA) when it denied special land use approval to allow the American Islamic Community Center Inc. (AICC) to build a mosque on five adjoining parcels of land located in the city.
The complaint, filed in the U.S. District Court of the Eastern District of Michigan, alleges that Sterling Heights discriminated against the AICC on the basis of religion when it refused to approve the land use request to allow the AICC to build a mosque. It further alleges that the denial imposed a substantial burden on the AICC’s religious exercise. The AICC, currently located in Madison Heights, Michigan, sought to build in Sterling Heights because the location is more convenient for its members and its current space has become inadequate for its religious, educational and social needs. The complaint alleges that its current facility is overcrowded during important religious observances and lacks space for educational activities, youth activities and special events.
“The Constitution protects the rights of religious communities to create the institutions and physical spaces they need to observe and practice their faith free from discriminatory barriers,” said Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Vanita Gupta, head of the Civil Rights Division. “The Justice Department will continue to aggressively protect the rights of all communities to live, pray and worship free from religious discrimination and substantial burdens in local land use decisions.”
“The law prohibits the government from discriminating on the basis of religion or imposing a substantial burden on the exercise of religion when making land use decisions,” said U.S. Attorney Barbara L. McQuade of the Eastern District of Michigan. “We are alleging that Sterling Heights discriminated against the American Islamic Community Center on the basis of religion and placed a substantial burden on the community’s ability to exercise its religion by denying approval to build a mosque. We filed this lawsuit to protect the rights of all of our citizens to freely practice their religion and have a place to gather with members of their community.”
The complaint is an allegation of unlawful conduct. The allegations must still be proven in federal court.
The case was brought by the department’s Civil Rights Division and the U.S. Attorney’s Office of the Eastern District of Michigan.
RLUIPA, enacted in 2000, contains multiple provisions prohibiting religious discrimination and protecting against unjustified burdens on religious exercise. Persons who believe that they been subjected to religious discrimination in land use or zoning may contact the Civil Rights Division’s Housing and Civil Enforcement Section at (800) 896-7743 or the U.S. Attorney’s Office of the Eastern District of Michigan’s Civil Rights Hotline at (313) 226-9151 or [email protected].
More information about RLUIPA, including a report on the department’s enforcement, may be found at www.justice.gov/crt/religious-land-use-and-institutionalized-persons-act.
Sterling Heights ComplaintJury Finds Alma Man Guilty of Drug Trafficking and Firearms ViolationRead the Press Release
Fort Smith, Arkansas – Kenneth Elser, United States Attorney for the Western District of Arkansas, announced that David Hurl Lemmon, age 43 of Alma, Arkansas, was found guilty on one count of Conspiracy to Distribute More than 500 grams of Methamphetamine and one count of Felon in Possession of a Firearm following a two and one-half day jury trial. The Honorable Chief Judge P.K. Holmes, III presided over the trial in the United States District Court in Fort Smith.
According to evidence presented at the trial, Lemmon and others were involved in a conspiracy to distribute approximately 50 pounds of methamphetamine that were seized by law enforcement in Potter County, Texas in January 2016. Lemmon’s conviction for being a felon in possession of a firearm was based on the seizure of 7 firearms by law enforcement during search warrant conducted at Lemmon’s residence in Alma, Arkansas on March 29, 2016.
Lemmon will be sentenced at a later date as determined by the court. The penalty for Conspiracy to Distribute more than 500 grams of Methamphetamine is not less than 10 years or not more than life imprisonment, not more than $10,000,000 fine, or both. The maximum sentence for Felon in Possession of a Firearm is not more than 10 years imprisonment, not more than $250,000 fine, or both.
This case was investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration, the Department of Homeland Security, the Internal Revenue Service-Criminal Investigation Division, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms, the Potter County, Texas Sheriff’s Office, the Crawford County Sheriff’s Office, the Sebastian County Sheriff’s Office, the Bernalillio County, New Mexico Sheriff’s Office, the Fort Smith Police Department, and the 12th/21st Judicial District Drug Task Force.
Assistant United States Attorney Aaron Jennen and Co-Counsel, Assistant United States Attorney Candace Taylor, prosecuted the case for the United States.
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Related court documents may be found on the Public Access to Electronic Records website @ www.pacer.gov
Jerome Man Sentenced to 30 Months in Prison for Possession of Child PornographyRead the Press Release
BOISE – Casey Gibson, 23, of Jerome was sentenced today in United States District Court to 30 months in prison followed by five years of supervised release for possession of child pornography, U.S. Attorney Wendy J. Olson announced. Gibson pleaded guilty on August 30, 2016.
According to the plea agreement, an electronic device at Gibson’s residence in Jerome accessed a website based in Russia that contained child pornography, and made postings offering to trade images of child pornography. In July of 2015, agents with the Department of Homeland Security, with assistance from the Twin Falls County Sheriff’s Office, contacted Gibson at his residence. Gibson gave agents consent to search his phone and e-mail accounts. Agents discovered evidence that Gibson used his e-mail account to receive, distribute, and possess images of child pornography. During a voluntary interview, Gibson admitted to receiving and viewing images of child pornography in his e-mail account. Agents discovered 11 images of child pornography, and 1 video containing child pornography, including images of prepubescent minors under the age of 12.
The case was investigated by the Department of Homeland Security, Homeland Security Investigations, with assistance from the Twin Falls County Sheriff’s Office and the Jerome County Sheriff’s Office, and was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by the United States Attorneys’ Offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who sexually exploit children, and to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.usdoj.gov/psc. For more information about internet safety education, please visit www.usdoj.gov/psc and click on the tab “resources.”
Jefferson Parish Woman Sentenced for Bank FraudRead the Press Release
U.S. Attorney Kenneth A. Polite announced that TRACY NICHELSON, age 43, a resident of Metairie, was sentenced today for defrauding a local business.
U.S. District Court Judge Carl J. Barbier sentenced NICHELSON to 12 months plus 1-day incarceration to be followed by 3 years of supervised release. Additionally, NICHELSON was ordered to pay $16,418 in restitution to the banks she defrauded.
According to court documents, NICHELSON worked as an assistant of rental management for a New Orleans real estate business. From June 2012 until July 2013, NICHELSON embezzled $16,418 from her employer. NICHELSON issued approximately 13 unauthorized checks to herself and others by forging the signature of the business’s owner.
U.S. Attorney Polite praised the work of the U.S. Postal Inspection Service and Jefferson Parish Sherriff’s Office who assisted with the investigation. Assistant United States Attorney Julia K. Evans was in charge of the prosecution.