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20 January 2017
Woman Charged with Federal Stolen Identity Refund FraudRead the Press Release
TALLAHASSEE, FLORIDA – Teona N. Rodgers, 27, of Tampa, made an initial appearance yesterday in the U.S. District Court in Tallahassee after a federal grand jury returned an indictment charging her with theft of government funds, use of unauthorized access devices, aggravated identity theft, and false claims. The indictment was announced by Christopher P. Canova, United States Attorney for the Northern District of Florida.
The indictment alleges that Rodgers unlawfully used the personal identifying information and account numbers of several individuals to assist in the filing of numerous fraudulent federal income tax returns, seeking more than $100,000 in federal tax refunds. The trial is scheduled for March 20.
This case resulted from an investigation by the Emerald Coast Financial Crimes Task Force, comprised of the Internal Revenue Service-Criminal Investigation and the Leon County Sheriff’s Office, as well as the United States Secret Service. Assistant United States Attorney Gary Milligan is prosecuting the case.
An indictment is merely an allegation by a grand jury that a defendant has committed a violation of federal criminal law and is not evidence of guilt. All defendants are presumed innocent and entitled to a fair trial, during which it will be the government’s burden to prove guilt beyond a reasonable doubt at trial.
The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Florida is one of 94 offices that serve as the nation’s principal litigators under the direction of the Attorney General. To access public court documents online, please visit the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Florida website. For more information about the U.S. Attorney’s Office, Northern District of Florida, visit http://www.justice.gov/usao/fln/index.html.
For more information, contact: Amy Alexander, Public Information Officer(850) 216-3854, [email protected]
Winchester Man Pleads Guilty to Child Pornography Production ChargesRead the Press Release
Harrisonburg, VIRGINIA – A Winchester, Virginia man, who filmed himself sexually exploiting two minor children, pled guilty today in the United States District Court for the Western District of Virginia in Harrisonburg to two federal child pornography production charges, Acting United States Attorney Rick A. Mountcastle announced.
LaMarcus Thomas, 32, of Winchester, Va., was indicted on January 13, 2016 on six counts of producing child pornography. Today in District Court, the defendant pled guilty to two counts of production of child pornography.
According to evidence presented at today’s guilty plea hearing, in the fall of 2014 the Winchester Police Department began an investigation into a complaint that two children had been molested by Thomas. After being arrested on state sex crime allegations for acts against the two children, the Winchester Police Department recovered a cellphone that belonged to Thomas.
Examination of the cell phone revealed numerous images and movies of child pornography depicting two different minor boys. It appeared the two victims were likely sleeping during the production of the images and movies, which showed various images of the penis and hands of the defendant. Thomas admitted producing the child pornography and identified himself and the two minors depicted in the images in the videos. The investigation determined that Thomas spent significant time with the two minors depicted in the videos, including spending overnight visits with the victims.
The investigation of the case was conducted by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Virginia State Police and the Winchester Police Department. Assistant United States Attorney Nancy S. Healey and Criminal Division Trial Attorney Leslie Williams Fisher of the Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS) prosecuted the case for the United States.
This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse, launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice. Led by U.S. Attorneys’ offices and CEOS, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state and local resources to better locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the Internet, as well as to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.projectsafechildhood.gov.
Wallingford Man Charged with Distributing Fentanyl and SteroidsRead the Press Release
Deirdre M. Daly, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, announced that DANIEL GUILLEN, 28, of Wallingford, was arrested yesterday on a federal criminal complaint charging him with distributing fentanyl and anabolic steroids. The charges stem from an ongoing statewide initiative targeting narcotics dealers who distribute heroin, fentanyl or opioids that cause death or serious injury to users.
GUILLEN appeared today before U.S. Magistrate Judge Joan G. Margolis in New Haven and was ordered detained.
As alleged in court documents, on August 31, 2016, the Wallingford Police Department and medical personnel responded to a residence after a report of an untimely death of a 30-year-old male. At the scene, officers seized 12 wax paper folds, eight of which contained a powdery substance. The State of Connecticut Forensics Laboratory subsequently reported that the substance tested positive for the presence of fentanyl. The investigation revealed that GUILLEN had provided the drugs to the victim shortly before the victim’s death. The investigation also revealed that GUILLEN sold anabolic steroids.
The complaint charges GUILLEN with possession with intent to distribute, and distribution of fentanyl, an offense that, given GUILLEN’s criminal history, carries a maximum term of imprisonment of 30 years. The complaint also charges GUILLEN with possession with intent to distribute, and distribution of, anabolic steroids, an offense that carries a maximum term of imprisonment of 20 years.
U.S. Attorney Daly stressed that a complaint is only a charge and is not evidence of guilt. Charges are only allegations, and a defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.
This matter is being investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration’s New Haven Tactical Diversion Squad, Wallingford Police Department, U.S. Postal Inspection Service and State of Connecticut Department of Parole and Community Services. The Task Force includes participants from the New Haven, Hamden, Greenwich, Shelton, Bristol, Vernon, Wilton, Milford, Monroe, Fairfield and Manchester Police Departments, and the Connecticut State Police.
This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney John T. Pierpont, Jr.
Uryan Frymire Charged with Possession with Intent to Distribute CocaineRead the Press Release
FORT WAYNE – The United States Attorney for the Northern District of Indiana, David Capp, announced that a criminal complaint was filed charging Uryan Frymire, 37, of Ohio, with possession with intent to distribute more than five kilograms of cocaine.
According to documents in this case, there was a traffic stop conducted in Texas on January 17, 2017 of a semi-tractor where 62 packages or approximately 70 kilograms of a white powdery substance were found. The substance field tested positive for cocaine. The driver of the semi-tractor, who was the only occupant, said he was destined for Fort Wayne and Chicago, Illinois to deliver the cocaine in the roof. The driver agreed to the delivery of 17 kilograms of cocaine to Fort Wayne. On January 19, 2017, the driver made a controlled delivery to Frymire who was arrested by Homeland Security Agents.
The United States Attorney’s Office emphasizes that a Criminal complaint 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 investigation was conducted by the United States Homeland Security Investigations with the assistance of the Allen County, Indiana Sheriff’s Department; Greenville, Indiana Police Department; Indiana State Police; and United States Drug Enforcement Administration. This case is being handled by Assistant United States
UPMC Claims Manager Admits Paying $846K to Two Ghost EmployeesRead the Press Release
PITTSBURGH - A resident of Georgetown, Texas, pleaded guilty in federal court to a charge of embezzlement in connection with health care, Acting United States Attorney Soo C. Song announced today.
Ronald Larry Locy, 48, pleaded guilty to one count before United States District Judge David Stewart Cercone.
In connection with the guilty plea, the court was advised that Locy was the Senior Director of claims for the UPMC Health Plan Claims Department. According to the government, Locy caused UPMC to pay two “ghost employees” of UPMC Health Plan, for work and bonuses to which those ghost employees were not entitled. The loss to UPMC Health Plan was approximately $846,819.
Judge Cercone scheduled sentencing for May 24, 2016, at 11 a.m. The law provides for a total sentence of 10 years in prison, a fine of $250,000, or both. Under the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, the actual sentence imposed is based upon the seriousness of the offense and the prior criminal history, if any, of the defendant.
Assistant United States Attorney Robert S. Cessar is prosecuting this case on behalf of the government.
The Federal Bureau of Investigation conducted the investigation that led to the prosecution of Locy.
Two South Florida Men Plead Guilty to Conspiracy to Commit Wire Fraud and Aggravated Identity TheftRead the Press Release
Jacksonville, Florida – United States Attorney A. Lee Bentley, III announces that Wilbert Theodore (30, Miami) and Ralph August Lohier (27, Miami) have pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit wire fraud and aggravated identity theft. Each face a maximum penalty of 20 years in federal prison for the conspiracy charge, to be followed by a consecutive mandatory minimum of 2 years’ imprisonment for the aggravated identity theft charge. As part of the plea agreement, both agreed to forfeit computer media and a credit card re-encoder utilized as part of their criminal activity.
According to the plea agreement, in 2016, Lohier and Theodore conspired with another individual in south Florida to obtain debit cards that had been re-encoded with legitimate account numbers assigned to genuine individuals. In doing so, Lohier was able to obtain fraudulent cards with Lohier’s name embossed on them. Another portion of the cards were embossed with the name C.S. Thereafter, Theodore obtained a counterfeit Florida Driver’s License in the name of C.S. After obtaining the cards and the counterfeit license, Lohier and Theodore traveled from south Florida to various places, including Flagler and Orange Counties, using the cards. They then purchased merchandise, funded reloadable debit cards, sent and received multiple money transfers through Western Union.
On March 8, 2016, a Florida Highway Patrol trooper conducted a traffic stop on I-95 in Flagler County, being driven by Lohier, with Theodore inside. During the stop, the trooper located the counterfeit driver’s license in the name of C.S., but containing a picture of Theodore. While detained in the trooper’s vehicle, Theodore and Lohier attempted to conceal a large quantity of re-encoded reloadable Visa debit cards within the rear section of the vehicle.
A search of Lohier’s vehicle revealed an additional quantity of re-encoded, reloaded debit cards in the name of the Lohier and C.S. Law enforcement also recovered computer media and a credit card re-encoder from the vehicle. Further investigation determined that Lohier and Theodore possessed 86 re-encoded cards.
This case was investigated by the Florida Highway Patrol and the United States Secret Service - Jacksonville Field Office. It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Kevin C. Frein.
Twin Cities Child Care Provider Charged with Stealing Hundreds of Thousands from Low-Income Assistance ProgramRead the Press Release
United States Attorney Andrew M. Luger today announced an indictment charging FOZIA SHEIK ALI, 50, for fraudulently obtaining at least hundreds of thousands of dollars for child care services that had not been provided. ALI is charged with wire fraud and theft of public money. The indictment was unsealed late yesterday in U.S. District Court in Minneapolis, Minn.
“This indictment describes a selfish criminal act that kept money from being available for deserving families,” said Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension Superintendent Drew Evans. “BCA agents, along with our partners, will continue to identify and arrest people who commit these costly crimes.”
According to the indictment and documents filed in state court, ALI operated the Salama Child Care Center (Salama) in Minneapolis. Between at least December 2013 and May 2015, ALI defrauded the Child Care Assistance Program (CCAP) to obtain payments from the Minnesota Department of Human Services (DHS) for child care services that were not actually provided. The CCAP program was designed to help eligible families pay for the costs of child care. CCAP in Minnesota is administered by DHS and funded by the United States Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) and the State of Minnesota.
According to the indictment, ALI submitted claims for CCAP payments that overstated the number of children who actually attended and received day care services from Salama. The claims asserted that more than 100 children attended and received child care at Salama on a given day. On more than one occasion, the claims falsely inflated the number of children that had attended Salama on a given day by more than 400 percent, including on days when Salama was closed.
According to the indictment, ALI stole hundreds of thousands of dollars from the State of Minnesota and the federal government.
This case is the result of an investigation conducted by the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension, Criminal Investigation Division of the IRS, FBI, HHS-OIG, and the Minnesota Department of Human Services.
Assistant U.S. Attorney John Kokkinen is prosecuting the case.
Defendant Information:FOZIA SHEIK ALI, 50
Hopkins, Minn.Charges: • Wire fraud, 4 counts
• Theft of public money, 1 countTerry Man Sentenced for Bankruptcy FraudRead the Press Release
Jackson, Miss - Kenneth Bowman, Jr., 63, of Terry, was sentenced today by U.S. District Judge Tom S. Lee to five years of supervised probation and ordered to pay $86,849.34 in restitution for bankruptcy fraud, announced U. S. Attorney Gregory K. Davis, Acting U. S. Trustee Henry G. Hobbs, Jr. of Region 5, and FBI Special Agent in Charge Christopher Freeze. Bowman pled guilty to the charge on September 13, 2016.
Bowman, as the officer and representative of Piggly Wiggly of Crystal Springs, Inc., a debtor in Chapter 11 bankruptcy in the Southern District of Mississippi, embezzled approximately $101,733.55 from the bankruptcy estate. Bowman appropriated to his own use estate funds belonging to the debtor, specifically making checks payable to cash and using the cash to satisfy his personal debts, and reducing assets available to creditors.
The Office of the U. S. Trustee and the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of Mississippi referred the matter to the U. S. Attorney for prosecution. The Federal Bureau of Investigation and the U.S. Trustee assisted in the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney Mary Helen Wall and Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Sammye S. Tharpe prosecuted the case.
St. Thomas Man Pleads Guilty to Threatening A Federal OfficerRead the Press Release
St. Thomas, USVI – Thomas Bitter, 36, pleaded guilty today in District Court on St. Thomas before visiting District Court Judge Juan R. Sanchez to one count of threatening a federal officer, United States Attorney Ronald W. Sharpe announced.
According to the plea agreement, between May and June of 2016, Bitter sent threatening e-mails to a Judicial Security Inspector at the District Court of the Virgin Islands after the Inspector admonished Bitter for sending numerous threatening e-mails to a federal judge in the Central District of California.
Under federal law, Bitter faces a maximum sentence of six years in prison, three years of supervised release, and a $250,000 fine. Sentencing is scheduled for March 9, 2017.
This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation. It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Everard E. Potter.
Springfield Man Arrested for Identity Theft and Theft of Social Security BenefitsRead the Press Release
BOSTON – A Dominican man living in Springfield was charged and arrested today for using an American citizen’s identity to obtain over $100,000 in Social Security benefits.
Bartolo Ramirez, 48, was charged with falsely representing a Social Security number and theft of public money. He is detained pending a detention and probable cause hearing on Wednesday, Jan. 25, 2017.
According to the criminal complaint, Ramirez was born in the Dominican Republic, entered the United States as a stowaway in 1990, and was apprehended by authorities. He was allowed to leave the United States voluntarily in 1993. By 2007, Ramirez had returned to the United States and settled in Springfield, Mass., where he obtained a Social Security card and state ID card using the name and Social Security number of an American citizen. In 2008, Ramirez applied for Social Security disability benefits under the American citizen’s identity, and collected more than $100,000 in benefits. Ramirez also used the American citizen’s name when he was arrested in Massachusetts in 2012 in an unrelated case.
The charge of misrepresenting a Social Security number provides for a sentence of no greater than five years in prison, three years of supervised release, and a fine of $250,000, or twice the gross gain or loss, whichever is greater. The charge of theft of public money provides for a sentence of no greater than 10 years in prison, three years of supervised release, and a fine of $250,000, or twice the gross gain or loss, whichever is greater. 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.
Acting United States Attorney William D. Weinreb; Scott Antolik, Special Agent in Charge of the Social Security Administration, Office of Inspector General, Office of Investigations, Boston Field Division; Matthew Etre, Special Agent in Charge of Homeland Security Investigations in Boston; Phillip Coyne, Special Agent in Charge of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Office of the Inspector General, Office of Investigations; William Squires, Special Agent in Charge of the U.S. Department of Agriculture, Office of Inspector General, Office of Investigation, Northeast Field Office; and Suzanne M. Bump, State Auditor of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, made the announcement today. Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Timothy Landry of Weinreb’s Major Crimes Unit is prosecuting the case.
The details contained in the criminal complaint are allegations. The defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
Société Générale Agrees to Pay $50 Million Penalty to Settle RMBS Fraud ClaimsRead the Press Release
United States Attorney Robert L. Capers announced today that Société Générale, S.A. will pay a $50 million civil penalty to resolve claims related to its activities, which were conducted through several affiliates (together, “SocGen”), in connection with the marketing, sale, and issuance of a residential mortgage-backed security (“RMBS”) named SG Mortgage Securities Trust 2006-OPT2 (“SG 2006-OPT2”). As part of the agreement, SocGen has acknowledged in writing that it made false representations to prospective investors in SG 2006-OPT2. Investors, including federally insured financial institutions, suffered significant losses on their investments in SG 2006-OPT2.
The settlement includes a statement of facts agreed to by SocGen, whereby SocGen acknowledges responsibility for its conduct. For example, SocGen acknowledges that it falsely represented to investors that the loans underlying SG 2006-OPT2 were originated generally in accordance with the loan originator’s underwriting guidelines. Indeed, as detailed in the statement of facts, SocGen’s third-party due diligence vendor for SG 2006-OPT2 determined that almost 40% of the loans it reviewed were underwritten outside of guidelines and lacked adequate compensating factors to make the loans eligible for securitization. SocGen acknowledges that it did not disclose these results to investors.
Likewise, SocGen represented to investors that, at the time of origination, no loan in SG 2006-OPT2 had a loan-to-value or combined loan-to-value ratio of more than 100% (in other words, that the value of any mortgage on a property did not exceed the value of the property itself) – a representation that SocGen now acknowledges was false. Moreover, SocGen knew that there were industry-wide problems with subprime loan origination practices. As described by a senior member of SocGen’s Contract Finance group, “The whole process [was] a joke.”
“SocGen’s acknowledgement of its misconduct in the securitization of SG 2006-OPT2 was a critical component of this resolution. It severely impacted investors and institutions across the United States, including in this district. Most emphatically, it was not a ‘joke’”, stated United States Attorney Capers. “We will not tolerate investment banks making false representations to investors – if and when they do so, they will be held accountable.” Mr. Capers extended his grateful appreciation to the Office of the Inspector General for the Federal Housing Finance Agency for its assistance in conducting the investigation in this matter.
The $50 million civil monetary penalty resolves claims under the Financial Institutions Reform Recovery and Enforcement Act of 1989, which authorizes the federal government to impose civil penalties against financial institutions that violate various predicate offenses, including wire and mail fraud. As part of the settlement, SocGen has agreed to fully cooperate with any ongoing investigations related to the conduct covered by the agreement.
Assistant U.S. Attorneys Clayton P. Solomon, Morgan J. Clark, and Katharine E.G. Brooker led the government’s investigation.
About the RMBS Working Group: The RMBS Working Group, part of the Financial Fraud Enforcement Task Force, was established by the Attorney General in late January 2012. The Working Group has been dedicated to initiating, organizing, and advancing new and existing investigations by federal and state authorities into fraud and abuse in the RMBS market that helped precipitate the 2008 Financial Crisis. The Working Group’s efforts to date have resulted in settlements providing for tens of billions of dollars in civil penalties and consumer relief from banks and other entities that are alleged to have committed fraud in connection with the issuance of RMBS.
To report RMBS fraud, go to: http://www.stopfraud.gov/rmbs.html
Slippery Rock Cheese Companies Sentenced for Selling Adulterated ProductsRead the Press Release
PITTSBURGH - Two companies located in Slippery Rock, Pennsylvania, have each been sentenced in federal court to 36 months’ probation and have each been ordered to forfeit to the United States $500,000 on the companies’ convictions relating to their introduction of adulterated and misbranded cheese products into interstate commerce, Acting United States Attorney Soo C. Song announced today.
United States District Judge Mark R. Hornak imposed the sentences on Universal Cheese & Drying, Inc. and International Packing, LLC.
According to information presented to the court, the defendants packaged and sold cheese under various labels at the Castle Cheese facility in Slippery Rock, PA. The cheese was distributed through retail, food service, and wholesale customers throughout the United States. The defendants had knowledge of the Food and Drug Administration’s (“FDA”) regulations and standards of identity for Parmesan and Romano cheese products and were aware that the products did not conform with FDA standards of identity for real Parmesan and Romano cheese, but represented to customers that the products contained one hundred percent real Parmesan and Romano cheese. The defendants also knew that the cheese products were misbranded because they did not bear labels that accurately reflected the products’ ingredients. The defendants likewise knew that the cheese products were also adulterated in that certain ingredients had been substituted or omitted and other ingredients had been added. The defendants used proceeds from the sale of the misbranded and adulterated cheese products to continue the operation of the cheese manufacturing and packaging at the Slippery Rock facility.
Prior to imposing sentence, Judge Hornak stated that the sentences are appropriate under applicable provisions of the Sentencing Reform Act and fulfill the purposes of sentencing.
Assistant United States Attorney Tonya Sulia Goodman prosecuted this case on behalf of the government.
Acting United States Attorney Song commended the Food and Drug Administration's Office of Criminal Investigations and the Internal Revenue Service, Criminal Investigation Division, for the investigation leading to the successful prosecution of Universal Cheese & Drying, Inc. and International Packing, LLC.
Scranton Woman Indicted on Cocaine and Heroin Trafficking ChargesRead the Press Release
SCRANTON- The United States Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Pennsylvania announced today that Patricia Cook, age 59, of Scranton, Pennsylvania, was indicted by a federal grand jury on drug trafficking and attempted witness tampering charges.
The indictment was unsealed following Cook’s arraignment on January 17, 2017, before U.S. District Magistrate Judge Karoline Mehalchick. Cook was placed on supervised release pending trial.
According to United States Attorney Bruce D. Brandler, the indictment alleges that Cook distributed and conspired to distribute heroin and cocaine between January 2015 and April 2015, in Scranton. The indictment also alleges that she attempted to tamper with a witness in a grand jury investigation.
The investigation was conducted by the Federal Bureau of Investigation. Assistant United States Attorney Jenny P. Roberts 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 offense 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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Scranton Funeral Home Director Charged with Tax EvasionRead the Press Release
SCRANTON – The United States Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Pennsylvania announced today that a Scranton funeral home director, Al T. Hughes, age 58, of Scranton, Pennsylvania, was indicted on January 17, 2017, by a federal grand jury for federal income tax evasion.
The indictment was unsealed following Hughes’s arraignment on January 19, 2017, before U.S. District Magistrate Judge Karoline Mehalchick. Hughes was released on his own recognizance.
According to United States Attorney Bruce D. Brandler, the five count indictment alleges that Hughes diverted approximately $1.25 million in corporate receipts to his personal benefit, and failed to report the diverted receipts as income on his 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, and 2014 federal tax returns resulting in a substantial tax due and owing the Internal Revenue Service. It also alleges that he cashed hundreds of customer checks, intended for payment of funeral home services, at various financial institutions, including a check cashing service in Scranton.
Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigation Acting Special Agent in Charge Gregory Floyd said, “The license to run a business is not a license to avoid paying taxes. Al T. Hughes’s misconduct of hiding income cheated all Americans, since we all pay our fair share for the government services and protections that we enjoy.”
The investigation was conducted by the Criminal Investigation Division of the Internal Revenue Service – Scranton Office. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Michelle Olshefski.
Indictments 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 count of the indictment is five years in prison, a term of supervised release following imprisonment, restitution, 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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Sandia Pueblo Man Pleads Guilty to Violating Federal Firearms LawsRead the Press Release
ALBUQUERQUE – Robert Lorenzo Perea, 32, of Sandia Pueblo, N.M., pled guilty today in federal court in Albuquerque, N.M., to violating federal firearms laws.
Perea was arrested in Nov. 2016, on an indictment charging him with being a felon in possession of a firearm and ammunition on Jan. 31, 2016, in Sandoval County, N.M. According to the indictment, Perea was prohibited from possessing firearms or ammunition because he previously had been convicted of child abuse and false imprisonment.
During today’s proceedings, Perea pled guilty to the indictment. In entering the guilty plea, Perea, admitted that on March 29, 2010, he was convicted of two counts of child abuse and false imprisonment and was therefore prohibited from possessing firearms or ammunition on Jan. 31, 2016.
At sentencing, Perea faces a maximum penalty of ten years in federal prison. He remains in custody pending a sentencing hearing which has yet to be scheduled.
This case was investigated by the Albuquerque office of the FBI and the Sandia Pueblo Police Department. Assistant U.S. Attorney Joseph Spindle is prosecuting the case.
Rocky Mount Man Pleads Guilty to Enticement ChargesRead the Press Release
Roanoke, VIRGINIA – A Rocky Mount man, who contacted at least two local teenagers via social media and exchanged explicit sexual messages with them and attempted to coerce them into meeting with him to engage in sex acts, pled guilty yesterday in the United States District Court for the Western District of Virginia in Roanoke, Acting United States Attorney Rick A. Mountcastle announced.
David Lee Fox, 62, of Rocky Mount, Va., pled guilty yesterday in District Court to two counts of coercion and enticement of a juvenile. Fox will be sentenced on April 11, 2017 and faces a mandatory minimum sentence of 10 years in federal prison.
According to evidence presented at yesterday’s guilty plea hearing by Assistant United States Attorney Ronald M. Huber, in August 2015 Fox initiated contact with a 14-year-old female, Victim A, via Facebook. Victim A initially ignored the defendant, who over numerous days continued to attempt to engage her in conversation.
On September 30, Victim A responded to Fox’s attempts at conversation and Fox told Victim A she was pretty. The conversation quickly turned sexual, with Fox asking if Victim A had a picture of herself in a bar or bikini and if she could take one and send it to him. Fox told Victim A to promise not to tell anybody about their conversation. Victim A told her parents about the exchanges with Fox. On that same day, Victim A’s parents contacted the ICAC/Franklin County Sheriff Office about the exchanges and gave law enforcement permission to assume control of Victim A’s Facebook account. All messages from Victim A’s Facebook account after that date were controlled by law enforcement.
Between October 2 and October 22, Fox initiated contact with Victim A’s Facebook account multiple times. On October 21, Fox asked Victim A is she knew Victim B.
On October 22 Fox expressed concern about Victim A’s family discovering their conversation, but Victim A reassured him. Fox then went on to discuss his penis size and asked Victim A about her breasts as well as her sexual experiences. Fox asked if Victim A would meet him and continued to describe sexual acts he would like to do to Victim A. Victim A agreed to meet Fox at the Franklin County Baptist Church around 4 p.m. on the afternoon of October 22.
On the afternoon of October 22, an investigator with the Franklin County Sheriff’s Office, the Virginia State Police and the Rocky Mount Police waited at the church for Fox to arrive. When law enforcement observed a man fitting Fox’s description arrive in the church’s parking lot to meet who he thought was Victim A, he was arrested and charged with solicitation of a minor to perform sex acts.
Prior to his arrest, Fox was also simultaneously being investigated for his online interactions with another minor female. On October 2, 2015, a Roanoke County Police detective contacted the Franklin County Sheriff’s Office regarding Victim B, another juvenile female, who had received a suspicious message from Fox’s Facebook account. The parents of Victim B gave law enforcement permission to assume control of their daughter’s Facebook account.
As with Victim A, Fox again engaged in sexual conversations with Victim B, asking her to send him pictures of herself in her bra and bikini and stressed to not let anyone know what the two of them were talking about. Unlike with Victim A, with Victim B, Fox initially lied about his age, at first saying he was a teenager himself before later admitting he was much older.
Throughout multiple conversations, Fox repeatedly described sex acts he wanted to perform on Victim B, sent her images of himself and images sexual in nature and, on multiple occasions attempted to make plans to meet her in person. The night Fox and Victim B planned to meet in person, Fox cancelled, telling Victim B he had to go out of town, however, he was in fact going to meet Victim A, where he was ultimately arrested.
The investigation of the case was conducted by Franklin County Sheriff’s Office, the Southern Virginia Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force, the Franklin County Commonwealth’s Attorney, United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement Homeland Security Investigations, the Virginia State Police and the Rocky Mount Police Department. Assistant United States Attorney Ronald M. Huber prosecuted the case for the United States.
Riverhead Physician Assistant Sentenced to Five Years in Prison for Conspiring to Illegally Prescribe OxycodoneRead the Press Release
Earlier today in Central Islip, NY, Michael Troyan, a physician assistant who operated two urgent care clinics on the east end of Long Island, was sentenced to five years’ imprisonment, three years’ supervised release, and $710,290 forfeiture, following his guilty plea on June 17, 2016, to conspiring to illegally distribute oxycodone. The sentencing proceedings were held before U.S. District Judge Denis R. Hurley.
The sentence was announced by Robert L. Capers, United States Attorney for the Eastern District of New York.
Between November 2011 and October 2015, Troyan, who was authorized to prescribe controlled substances, issued prescriptions for thousands of oxycodone pills to co-conspirators for the purpose of illegally re-selling the pills. During the government’s investigation, Troyan was captured on video in an undercover operation writing phony prescriptions at his Riverhead medical office for oxycodone and receiving large quantities of cash – half the profit from prior illegal sales. As part of his guilty plea, Troyan agreed to forfeit $710,290 attributable to illegal prescription sales.
One of Troyan’s co-conspirators was Southampton Town Councilman Bradley Bender, who was sentenced on June 24, 2016, to 24 months in prison for his role in the conspiracy. Bender’s resignation as a Councilman was accepted by the Southampton Town Board on the day of his guilty plea, November 24, 2015.
“For years, Troyan supplied Bender and others with phony prescriptions for huge quantities of oxycodone pills, which Bender filled and illegally exchanged for cash and steroids with another co-conspirator. The oxycodone pills were then re-sold to drug abusers, sustaining the destructive abuse of opioid analgesics in our communities,” stated United States Attorney Capers. “This sentence serves as a stern warning to all medical professionals entrusted with authority to prescribe controlled substances that there is a price to pay for such criminal conduct.” Mr. Capers expressed his grateful appreciation to the DEA’s Long Island Tactical Diversion Squad, which led the government’s investigation in this case.
This case is part of a series of federal prosecutions by the United States Attorney’s Office as part of the Prescription Drug Initiative. In January 2012, this Office and the DEA, in conjunction with the five District Attorneys in the Eastern District of New York, the Nassau and Suffolk County Police Departments, the New York City Police Department, and New York State Police, along with other key federal, state, and local government partners, launched the Initiative to mount a comprehensive response to what the United States Department of Health and Human Services Center for Disease Control and Prevention has called an epidemic increase in the abuse of opioid analgesics. To date, the Initiative has brought over 160 federal and local criminal prosecutions, including the prosecution of 20 health care professionals, taken civil enforcement actions against a hospital, a pharmacy, and a pharmacy chain, removed prescription authority from numerous rogue doctors and physician assistants, and expanded information-sharing among enforcement agencies to better target and pursue drug traffickers. The Initiative also is involved in an extensive community outreach program to address the abuse of pharmaceuticals.
The government’s case was handled by the Central Islip Office. Assistant United States Attorneys Allen Bode and James Knapp are in charge of the prosecution.
The Defendant:
Name: MICHAEL TROYAN
Age: 38
Residence: Riverhead, New York
Rio Grande Valley Area Doctor Charged in Illegal Kickback SchemeRead the Press Release
McALLEN, Texas ‐ A Rio Grande Valley area doctor has been taken into custody for his scheme to solicit and obtain illegal kickbacks in exchange for Medicare patient referrals, announced U.S. Attorney Kenneth Magidson.
A grand jury in McAllen returned the sealed indictment Jan. 17, 2017, against Dr. Jose de Jesus Martinez, 51, of Palmhurst. Authorities arrested him today, at which time the indictment was unsealed. He is scheduled to make his initial appearance before U.S. Magistrate Judge Peter Ormsby this morning.
The indictment alleges Martinez solicited and obtained cash in exchange for referrals of Medicare beneficiaries to prospective home health agencies. The home health agencies would then submit claims with Medicare based on the referrals furnished by Martinez for the illegal kickback payments, according to the charges.
Martinez allegedly received cash payments as illegal kickbacks for the referral of Medicare beneficiaries. The indictment alleges instructed others to alter patient records in order to enable the home health agencies to submit claims for the home health services initiated through the illegal kickback payments.
Martinez is charged with one count of conspiracy to solicit or receive Illegal remunerations, three counts of illegal remunerations and one count of obstruction of criminal investigations of health care offenses. All offenses carry a maximum five years in federal prison.
The FBI, Department of Health and Human Services‐Office of Inspector General, Texas Attorney General’s Medicaid Fraud Control Unit and the Texas Health and Human Services Commission-Office of the Inspector General conducted the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Andrew Swartz and Michael Day are prosecuting the case.
An indictment is a formal accusation of criminal conduct, not evidence.
A defendant is presumed innocent unless convicted through due process of law.
Rapid City Man Found Guilty of Seven Counts of Mail Embezzlement and TheftRead the Press Release
United States Attorney Randolph J. Seiler announced that Daniel Newman, age 24, of Rapid City, South Dakota, was found guilty of 7 counts of Mail Embezzlement and Theft as a result of a federal trial in Rapid City, South Dakota.
The charges carry a maximum penalty of 5 years in custody and/or a $250,000 fine, 3 years of supervised release, and a $100 special assessment to the Federal Crime Victims Fund for each count.
The conviction stems from Newman, while employed by the United States Postal Service, embezzling and stealing mail that contained U.S. currency, gift cards, and other items of value, between January 21, 2015, and March 5, 2015, in Rapid City.
This case was investigated by the United States Postal Service. Assistant U.S. Attorney Eric Kelderman prosecuted the case.
A sentencing date will be set. Newman will remain on bond pending sentencing.
Queens Man Convicted for Defrauding Financial InstitutionsRead the Press Release
BROOKLYN, N.Y. – James Bayfield, a self-described mortgage specialist, was convicted late yesterday by a federal jury in Brooklyn on all four counts charging bank fraud and conspiracy to commit wire fraud and bank fraud for his role in defrauding mortgage lending institutions and large financial institutions, including Amtrust Bank (Amtrust), Bank of America N.A. (BOA) and J.P. Morgan Chase & Co. (Chase), in a multi-million-dollar mortgage fraud scheme. The jury’s verdict followed a two-week trial before United States District Judge Eric N. Vitaliano. Bayfield is the sixth and final defendant convicted in this case.
The guilty verdict was announced by Robert L. Capers, United States Attorney for the Eastern District of New York. Mr. Capers thanked the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI); the Federal Housing Finance Agency, Office of Inspector General (FHFA-OIG); the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, Office of Inspector General (HUD-OIG); the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, Office of Inspector General (FDIC-OIG); and the New York State Department of Financial Services (DFS) for their hard work and dedication over the course of this multi-year investigation and prosecution.
The evidence at trial established that Bayfield, together with others, caused mortgage loan applications with false information to be submitted to lending institutions in connection with the purchase of residential properties located within the Eastern District of New York. These applications contained fraudulently inflated purchase prices, as well as false information about the assets and income of the purchasers of the properties, many of whom were being compensated as part of the scheme to act as straw purchasers. The defendant and his co-conspirators also provided false down payment checks to make it appear as if the straw purchasers and the other borrowers had made down payments in connection with the purchase of the properties, which was a condition of the lending institutions for issuing the mortgage loans.
To carry out their scheme, the defendant conducted simultaneous purchases and sales of the properties, sometimes called “flips,” in an effort to conceal their criminal involvement and to inflate the value of the properties. For example, a conspirator would purchase a property from a homeowner. That same day, the conspirator would sell the property to a straw purchaser at an inflated value. The defendant and his conspirators, through the use of backdated and falsified documents, concealed from the lending institutions the fact that the purchase and sale had occurred on the same day and made it appear as if the transaction between the homeowner and the conspirator had occurred over 60 days prior to the sale from the conspirator to the straw purchaser.
As a result of the false applications and appraisals, the lending institutions were fraudulently induced to issue millions of dollars of mortgage loans secured by properties that had inflated appraisal values to individuals who had insufficient income and assets to qualify for the mortgage loan. In many instances, the straw purchasers and the other borrowers failed to make required mortgage payments to the lending institutions, which caused the mortgage loans to be placed into default status.
When sentenced by United States District Judge Eric N. Vitaliano, Bayfield faces a sentence of up to 20 years in prison.
The government’s case was prosecuted by the Office’s Business and Securities Fraud Section. Assistant United States Attorneys David Pitluck, Mark Bini and Michael Keilty are in charge of the prosecution.
* * *
The charges were brought in connection with the President’s Financial Fraud Enforcement Task Force. The task force was established to wage an aggressive, coordinated, and proactive effort to investigate and prosecute financial crimes. With more than 20 federal agencies, 94 U.S. attorneys’ offices, and state and local partners, it is the broadest coalition of law enforcement, investigatory, and regulatory agencies ever assembled to combat fraud. Since its formation, the task force has made great strides in facilitating increased investigation and prosecution of financial crimes; enhancing coordination and cooperation among federal, state, and local authorities; addressing discrimination in the lending and financial markets; and conducting outreach to the public, victims, financial institutions, and other organizations. Since fiscal year 2009, the Justice Department has filed over 18,000 financial fraud cases against more than 25,000 defendants. For more information on the task force, please visit www.StopFraud.gov.
The Defendant:
JAMES BAYFIELD
Age: 44
Queens, New York
E.D.N.Y. Docket No. 14-CR-356 (S-1) (ENV)
Pittston Man Guilty of Conspiracy to Distribute Bath SaltsRead the Press Release
SCRANTON- The United States Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Pennsylvania announced today that David Popish, age 38, of Pittston, Pennsylvania, pleaded guilty on January 19, 2017, before Senior U.S. District Court Judge James M. Munley to participating in a conspiracy to distribute alpha-pvp, commonly known as “bath salts.”
According to United States Attorney Bruce D. Brandler, Popish admitted to conspiring with others to distribute the drug to customers in the Luzerne County area during 2014 and 2015.
Popish was one of seven people charged by a grand jury in August 2016. That indictment was the fourth wave of arrests connected to alpha-pvp distribution in Luzerne County. In all, 18 people have been charged in the case since July 2013, including the Texas-based principal supplier of the bath salts. Popish is the twelfth defendant to plead guilty in the case.
Judge Munley ordered a pre-sentence investigation to be completed and scheduled sentencing in the case for April 27, 2017.
The case was investigated by Homeland Security Investigations, United States Postal Inspection Service, the Pennsylvania State Police, and local police from Luzerne County. Assistant United States Attorney Francis P. Sempa is prosecuting the case.
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 20 years’ imprisonment, a term of supervised release following imprisonment, and a fine. Under the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, the Judge is also required to consider and weigh a number of factors, including the nature, circumstances and seriousness of the offense; the history and characteristics of the defendant; and the need to punish the defendant, protect the public and provide for the defendant's educational, vocational and medical needs. For these reasons, the statutory maximum penalty for the offense is not an accurate indicator of the potential sentence for a specific defendant.
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Pittsburgh Psychiatrist Pleads Guilty to Health Care Fraud, Illegally Distributing OxycodoneRead the Press Release
PITTSBURGH - A Pittsburgh doctor pleaded guilty in federal court to charges of possession with intent to distribute and distribution of Oxycodone, a Schedule II controlled substance, and health care fraud, Acting United States Attorney Soo C. Song announced today.
Dr. Kenneth M. Stanko, 67, pleaded guilty to the two felony counts before United States District Judge David Stewart Cercone.
According to information presented to the Court at the guilty plea, Stanko, a medical doctor, illegally distributed a controlled substance, Oxycodone, for cash. Further, Stanko submitted false claims to be submitted to UPMC Health Plan and AETNA for prescriptions which were outside the usual course of practice and not for a legitimate medical purpose.
Judge Cercone scheduled sentencing for May 24, 2016, at 10 a.m. The law provides for a maximum total sentence of 30 years in prison, a fine of $1,250,000 or both. Under the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, the actual sentence imposed would be based upon the seriousness of the offenses and the prior criminal history, if any, of the defendant.
Assistant United States Attorney Robert S. Cessar is prosecuting this case on behalf of the government.
The Federal Bureau of Investigation and Drug Enforcement Administration conducted the investigation leading to the Information in this case.
Pensacola Attorney/CPA Pleads Guilty to Federal Tax CrimesRead the Press Release
PENSACOLA, FLORIDA – James R.J. Scheltema, 56, of Pensacola, has pled guilty to filing false tax returns and tax evasion. The guilty plea was announced by Christopher P. Canova, United States Attorney for the Northern District of Florida.
Between 2010 and 2013, Scheltema, a certified public accountant and attorney, received restricted stock as compensation for his legal and accounting services. He initially reported no compensation on his 2011 and 2012 individual income tax returns, despite receiving substantial compensation from stock issuance and the sale of stock. Scheltema also failed to file timely 2013 individual and corporate income tax returns for two companies he owned and operated. Scheltema tried to evade notice of stock sales by instructing checks be made payable to his wife and to one of the companies he owned, rather than to himself. After being notified of the IRS investigation, Scheltema filed amended 2011 and 2012 returns and a delinquent 2013 return, which were still false.
The sentencing hearing is scheduled for April 10, 2017, 3:00 p.m.
For each charge of filing false tax returns, Scheltema faces a maximum of three years in prison. For the tax evasion charge, he faces a maximum of five years in prison.
This case resulted from an investigation by the Internal Revenue Service—Criminal Investigation. Assistant United States Attorney David L. Goldberg is prosecuting the case.
The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Florida is one of 94 offices that serve as the nation’s principal litigators under the direction of the Attorney General. To access public court documents online, please visit the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Florida website. For more information about the U.S. Attorney’s Office, Northern District of Florida, visit http://www.justice.gov/usao/fln/index.html.
For more information, contact: Amy Alexander, Public Information Officer(850) 216-3854, [email protected]
Parkersburg man pleads guilty to tax evasionRead the Press Release
MARTINSBURG, WEST VIRGINIA – Ralph E. Richards, Jr., 46, of Parkersburg, West Virginia, was convicted for withholding $216,693.00 worth of income from his tax return, Acting United States Attorney Betsy Steinfeld Jividen, announced.
He pled guilty to one count of “Filing False Income Tax Return.” He faces up to three years in prison and a fine of up to $100,000. Under the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, the actual sentence imposed will be based upon the seriousness of the offenses and the prior criminal history, if any, of the defendant.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Danaë DeMasi-Lemon prosecuted the case on behalf of the government. The Internal Revenue Service investigated.
U.S. Magistrate Judge James E. Seibert presided.
Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Deputy Indicted for His Role in an Identity Theft SchemeRead the Press Release
A Palm Beach County Sheriff’s deputy was arraigned today on federal charges related to his role in an identity theft scheme.
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), Sean Scheller, Chief, Town of Lantana Police Department, Kelly R. Jackson, Special Agent in Charge, Internal Revenue Service, Criminal Investigation (IRS-CI), and Ric Bradshaw, Sheriff, Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office, made the announcement.
Felisma, 42, of Boynton Beach, a deputy with the Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office, was charged in a six-count indictment with participating in an identity theft scheme, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Sections 1028A (Aggravated Identity Theft); 1029(a)(2) (Access Device Fraud); and 1029(b)(2) (Conspiracy to Commit Identity Theft) (Case No. 17-80008-CR-MIDDLEBROOKS). Felisma was previously arrested on a criminal complaint and was ordered to be held without bond pending trial by Magistrate Judge James M. Hopkins.
As alleged in the indictment, over the span of approximately 18 months, Deputy Felisma used his police department issued laptop computer to access a law enforcement database in order to obtain personal identification information belonging to numerous individuals. Felisma sold this information to his co-conspirator, who then used the identities of at least 15 of these victims to set up credit card and bank accounts, stealing tens of thousands of dollars in the names of the victims.
convicted, Felisma faces a mandatory minimum of two years’ imprisonment, to run consecutive to any other term of imprisonment imposed, as to the aggravated identity theft charges contained in Counts 3 through 6; a maximum of ten years’ imprisonment as to the access device fraud charge in Count 2; and a maximum of five years’ imprisonment as to the conspiracy to commit identity theft charge in Count 1.
Felisma is currently on administrative leave without pay from the Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office.
Mr. Ferrer commended the investigative efforts of ICE-HSI, Lantana Police Department, IRS-CI and Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office. This case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Lauren Jorgensen and Rinku Tribuiani.
An indictment is a formal charging document notifying the defendant of the charges. All persons charged in an indictment are presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.
A copy of this press release may be found on the website of the United States Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Florida at www.usdoj.gov/usao/fls. 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.
Pace Man Sentenced to 90 Months in Prison for Charity Telemarketing FraudRead the Press Release
PENSACOLA, FLORIDA – Gary R. Tomey II, 47, of Pace, Florida, was sentenced today to 90 months in prison after he was found guilty of conspiracy and mail fraud during a two-week jury trial. He was also ordered to pay a $1,219,129.46 forfeiture money judgment and $6,677 in restitution. The sentence was announced by Christopher P. Canova, United States Attorney for the Northern District of Florida.
Tomey owned and operated Children and Family Services Inc. (later called Children’s Charitable Services Inc.), which fraudulently solicited charitable donations by calling donors in Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Indiana, Mississippi, Ohio, and Tennessee. Tomey instructed his employees to falsely tell donors that 100% of their donation went to the charity and that they were volunteers. They were also told to say the charity was located in and only helped the donor’s home state. However, the employees were paid a commission-based hourly wage and worked from a call center in Milton, Florida. Of the more than $1.2 million raised in donations, only 1.5% actually went to a charitable cause. The rest paid wages, business expenses, and Tomey’s own personal expenses.
Tomey’s sentence was enhanced because he committed his fraud through telemarketing and because he victimized more than 10 people over the age of 55.
This case resulted from an investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation. Assistant United States Attorney Alicia H. Kim prosecuted the case.
“Fraudsters who exploit the charitable spirit of the American people, and especially those who prey upon the generosity of our seniors, can count on a thorough scrutiny and aggressive prosecution by this office,” said United States Attorney Canova.
“When individuals misuse funds intended for a charitable purpose, it harms all donors and honest non-profit organizations,” said Charles P. Spencer, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI Jacksonville Division. “The FBI is committed to investigating and rooting out this type of corruption, whether it happens in a public office or a non-profit organization.”
The United States Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Florida is one of 94 offices that serve as the nation’s principal litigators under the direction of the Attorney General. To access public court documents online, please visit the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Florida website. For more information about the United States Attorney’s Office, Northern District of Florida, visit http://www.justice.gov/usao/fln/index.html.
For more information, contact: Amy Alexander, Public Information Officer(850) 216-3854, [email protected]
New York Woman Pleads Guilty to Stealing More Than $700K in Fraud SchemeRead the Press Release
Deirdre M. Daly, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, announced that ROSEMARIE COLLAZO, 51, of Yonkers, N.Y., waived her right to indictment and pleaded guilty today before U.S. District Judge Stefan R. Underhill in Bridgeport to one count of wire fraud stemming from her theft of more than $700,000 from her employer.
According to court documents and statements made in court, COLLAZO was employed by Abbey National Treasury Services, PLC, in Stamford. As part of her job, COLLAZO assisted in arranging for payments to vendors and others. COLLAZO collected invoices as they came into the company and presented the collected invoices to her supervisor to approve payment. Her supervisor then reviewed the items and signed off on the payments. COLLAZO then entered the payment information into the company’s accounts payable program, which generated payment checks. Next, COLLAZO created packets that included the invoice, an authorization form and the payment check related to the specific invoice. After the packets had been reviewed and the appropriate signatures obtained from her supervisors, COLLAZO mailed the checks to vendors.
Between 2010 and 2016, COLLAZO prepared 144 fraudulent duplicate invoice packages and submitted an equivalent number of checks for authorizing signatures for payments that she knew had already been processed and paid. She then deposited the checks into her personal bank account.
In addition, on at least three other occasions, COLLAZO misappropriated a vendor refund check that had been sent the company, and endorsed the check for deposit into her personal bank account.
In total, COLLAZO stole $772,242 during the course of this scheme.
Judge Underhill scheduled sentencing for April 14, 2017, at which time COLLAZO faces a maximum term of imprisonment of 20 years.
This matter is being investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and Greenwich Police Department. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Christopher W. Schmeisser.
Montesano Man Sentenced to 6 Years in Prison for Illegal Weapons PossessionRead the Press Release
A Montesano, Washington man, who illegally possessed firearms and expressed a desire to attack the police or U.S. Military personnel out of allegiance to the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL), was sentenced today in U.S. District Court in Tacoma to six years in prison announced U.S. Attorney Annette L. Hayes. DANIEL SETH FRANEY, 34, a/k/a Abu Dawuud was arrested in February 2016, following an undercover investigation during which he repeatedly violated a permanent protection order prohibiting him from possessing firearms. At the sentencing hearing U.S. District Judge Ronald B. Leighton said, he was concerned about “the persistent nature of the threats” to the military and law enforcement, and FRANEY’s history of domestic violence.
“This defendant espoused his jihadist ideology and talked about his desire to kill police and military officers with nearly everyone he met,” said U.S. Attorney Annette L. Hayes. “His talk turned to action when he tried repeatedly to obtain high powered weapons and ammunition, and identified a target for his attack. This sentence will protect the public from this defendant who remains dangerous.”
According to the plea agreement and other records filed in the case, on multiple occasions between September and November 2015, FRANEY handled several firearms, to include firing fully automatic machineguns on one occasion. He did so while acknowledging he knew he was legally prohibited from possessing firearms.
FRANEY became the target of a federal investigation following reports from members of the public that they had heard FRANEY espouse violent rhetoric, particularly in support of the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL), a designated foreign terrorist organization. The citizen reports indicated FRANEY had made statements advocating the killing of non-Muslim Americans, particularly members of the U.S. military and law enforcement. One citizen reported that FRANEY repeatedly asked to purchase a firearm from the citizen, despite FRANEY’s admissions that he was not legally allowed to possess firearms.
During the investigation, FRANEY traveled with a person who he thought would assist him in acquiring weapons. In fact, the person was an undercover law enforcement officer who was investigating FRANEY in light of the above referenced reports. During the undercover investigation, FRANEY was captured on audio attempting to acquire firearms, particularly AK-47s. FRANEY also discussed what he deemed were good targets for an attack, all the while repeatedly referring to his support for ISIL.
The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Todd Greenberg for the Western District of Washington, with assistance from the Counterterrorism Section of the Justice Department’s National Security Division. The investigation was conducted by the FBI’s Joint Terrorism Task Force, which combines investigators from federal, state, and local law enforcement. Task force members include the Seattle Police Department, the Pierce County Sheriff’s Department, the Federal Protective Service, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), and elements of the U.S. Army’s 902nd Military Intelligence Group. In addition, the Grays Harbor County Sheriff’s Department contributed significantly to this investigation.
Mission Men and Parmelee Woman Charged with Drug Related CrimesRead the Press Release
United States Attorney Randolph J. Seiler announced that two men from Mission, South Dakota, and a woman from Parmelee, South Dakota, have been indicted by a federal grand jury for Conspiracy to Manufacture and Distribute a Controlled Substance, Possession with Intent to Manufacture and Distribute a Controlled Substance, Distribution of a Controlled Substance, and Possession of a Controlled Substance.
Meddore Maurice Douville, age 45, Jeremy Joseph Douville, age 21, and Teeana Shannon Two Eagle, 24, were indicted on December 20, 2016. They appeared before U.S. Magistrate Court Judge Mark A. Moreno on December 30, 2016, and pled not guilty to the Indictment.
The maximum penalty upon conviction is 5 years in custody and/or a $250,000 fine, three years of supervised release, forfeiture of U.S. currency seized by law enforcement, and $500 to the Federal Crime Victims Fund. Restitution may also be ordered.
It is alleged that between December 5, 2016, and December 14, 2016, Meddore Douville, Jeremy Douville, and Two Eagle conspired to manufacture and distribute over 46 pounds of marijuana in the District of South Dakota. It is further alleged that on December 5 and 6, 2016, Meddore Douville, Jeremy Douville, and Two Eagle possessed marijuana with the intent to distribute it, and on December 5, 2016, the three actually distributed marijuana.
The charges are merely an accusation and the three defendants are presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty.
The investigation is being conducted by the Rosebud Sioux Tribe Law Enforcement Services, and the Northern Plains Safe Trails Drug Enforcement Task Force. Assistant U.S. Attorney SaraBeth Donovan is prosecuting the case.
All three defendants are in custody pending trial, which is set for March 7, 2017.
Mission Man Charged with Conspiracy to Distribute MethRead the Press Release
United States Attorney Randolph J. Seiler announced that a Mission, South Dakota, man has been indicted by a federal grand jury for Conspiracy to Distribute a Controlled Substance and Possession with Intent to Distribute a Controlled Substance.
Adam Dean Stoneman, age 27, was indicted on December 14, 2016. He appeared before U.S. Magistrate Court Judge Mark A. Moreno on January 5, 2017, and pled not guilty to the Indictment.
The maximum penalty upon conviction is 20 years in custody and/or a $1,000,000 fine, a lifetime of supervised release, $200 to the Federal Crime Victims Fund, and forfeiture of U.S. currency seized by law enforcement. Restitution may also be ordered.
It is alleged that between July 1, 2014, and December 14, 2016, Stoneman conspired to distribute methamphetamine in the District of South Dakota. It is further alleged that on August 17, 2016, in Todd County, Stoneman possessed methamphetamine with the intent to distribute it.
The charges are merely accusations and Stoneman is presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty.
The investigation is being conducted by the Rosebud Sioux Tribe Law Enforcement Services and the Northern Plains Safe Trails Drug Enforcement Task Force. Assistant U.S. Attorney SaraBeth Donovan is prosecuting the case.
Stoneman is in custody pending trial. Trial is set for March 7, 2017.
Member of Tax Refund Fraud Conspiracy Sentenced in Federal CourtRead the Press Release
Roanoke, VIRGINIA – A member of a tax fraud conspiracy, responsible for the preparation and filing of dozens of false returns, was sentenced today in the United States District Court for the Western District of Virginia in Roanoke, Acting United States Attorney Rick A. Mountcastle announced today.
Agwel Fayette, 32, of Roanoke, Va., previously pled guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit theft of government money and related offenses against the United States and one count of theft of government money, both as a principal and aider and abettor. Today in District Court, Fayette was sentenced to a term of imprisonment of 33 months, with a term of supervised release. The Court also ordered Fayette to pay $117,682 in restitution to the Department of the Treasury.
According to evidence presented at previous hearings by Assistant United States Attorney C. Patrick Hogeboom III and Special Assistant United States Attorney Kari Munro, Fayette conspired with her husband, Darold Daniel, and a tax preparer in Florida, Audrey Obin, to file false tax returns claiming refunds in names of various victims. Fayette obtained personal identifiers for these victims in many instances by posing as a representative from an employment agency looking for workers. Obin has already been convicted and sentenced for his decision to prepare many of these fraudulent returns through his Miami-based business, Vision Tax Services, using the identifiers he received from Fayette and Daniel.
In all, Fayette and her co-conspirators filed more than 58 fraudulent returns with the Department of the Treasury, seeking refunds in excess of $316,000. The Internal Revenue Service successfully interceded to stop a majority of these refunds from being processed.
The investigation of the case was conducted by the Internal Revenue Service and the United States Postal Inspection Service. Assistant United States Attorney C. Patrick Hogeboom III and Special Assistant United States Attorney Kari Munro prosecuted the case against Fayette on behalf of the United States.
Manhattan U.S. Attorney Settles Lending Discrimination Suit Against JPMorgan Chase for $53 MillionRead the Press Release
Preet Bharara, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, announced today that the United States has filed and settled a federal civil rights lawsuit against JPMORGAN CHASE BANK, N.A. (“CHASE”) alleging discrimination on the basis of race and national origin in the conduct of its wholesale lending business, in violation of the Fair Housing Act (“FHA”) and the Equal Credit Opportunity Act (“ECOA”). The Consent Order between the parties was approved today by the Honorable Alison J. Nathan.
Manhattan U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara said: “Today’s settlement will compensate thousands of African-American and Hispanic borrowers who paid higher rates and fees on Chase mortgages than similarly situated white borrowers. In the settlement announced today, Chase admits the Government found that the bank’s wholesale lending brokers charged minority borrowers more than white borrowers in the same position. Such unequal treatment is not only unfair, but a violation of the Fair Housing Act.”
According to the stipulation of fact agreed to by the parties in the Consent Order, filed in federal court in Manhattan:
• Prior to January 2006 and continuing until early 2009, Chase originated and funded residential mortgage loans through a wholesale channel. Applications for these loans were brought to Chase by thousands of independent mortgage brokers throughout the United States who had entered into contracts with Chase for the purpose of bringing mortgage loan applications to it for origination and funding.
• From 2006 to 2009, approximately 360,000 wholesale mortgage loans were sourced by these independent brokers and brought to Chase. Of these, Chase reported that approximately 40,000 wholesale loans were made to African-American borrowers and that approximately 66,000 wholesale loans were made to Hispanic borrowers. Chase closed its wholesale channel in 2009.
• The government’s data model projects that, from at least 2006 through late 2009, certain of the approximately 106,000 African-American and Hispanic borrowers who obtained loans through independent mortgage brokers participating in Chase’s wholesale channel paid higher rates and fees on “wholesale” home mortgage loans compared to the rates and fees paid by similarly situated white borrowers who obtained loans through independent mortgage brokers participating in Chase’s wholesale channel. It projects that in thousands of instances, an African-American borrower entering into the same type of Chase wholesale mortgage as a white borrower paid higher loan rates and larger fees than such white borrower. Similarly, it projects that in thousands of instances, a Hispanic borrower entering into the same type of Chase wholesale mortgage as a white borrower paid higher loan rates and larger fees than such white borrower.
To compensate the estimated 50,000 African-American and Hispanic borrowers who paid higher rates and fees than similarly situated white borrowers, CHASE has agreed to create a settlement fund in the amount of approximately $53 million. CHASE has further agreed to retain an administrator to manage the settlement fund and to locate borrowers who may qualify for compensation. Borrowers who are African American and/or Hispanic and who obtained a mortgage through CHASE’s wholesale channel from 2006 through 2009 should be contacted by the administrator in the next several months, or can contact the United States Attorney’s Office directly, by contacting the Civil Rights Complaint Line at (212) 637-0840, using the Civil Rights Complaint Form available on the United States Attorney’s Office’s website http://www.justice.gov/usao/nys/civilrights.html, or by sending a written claim to:
U.S. Attorney’s Office, Southern District of New York
86 Chambers Street, 3rd Floor
New York, New York 10007
Attention: Chief, Civil Rights Unit
The case is being handled by the Office’s Civil Rights Unit. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Jean-David Barnea and David J. Kennedy are in charge of the case.
Man Sentenced to 18 Months in Prison for Violating Federal Sex Offender Registration LawsRead the Press Release
Deirdre M. Daly, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, announced that THOMAS EDWARD DONALDSON, 54, last residing in Hartford, was sentenced today by U.S. District Judge Robert N. Chatigny in Hartford to 18 months of imprisonment, followed by five years of supervised release, for violating federal sex offender registration laws.
The Sex Offender Registration and Notification Act (“SORNA”), which was passed by Congress in 2006 as part of the Adam Walsh Act, provides a comprehensive set of minimum standards for sex offender registration and notification in the United States and seeks to strengthen the nationwide network of sex offender registration and notification programs. In part, SORNA requires registered sex offenders to register and keep their registration current in each jurisdiction in which they reside, work, or go to school.According to court documents and statements made in court, on April 8, 2005, DONALDSON was sentenced in Hartford federal court to five years of imprisonment, followed by five years of supervised release, for engaging in sexually explicit conversations, from his computer in Maryland, with an undercover agent who he thought was a 13-year-old girl, and then traveling to Connecticut to meet the “girl” to engage in sexual activity. After his release from prison, DONALDSON was found in violation of his supervised release and, on March 13, 2013, was sentenced to an additional three months of imprisonment and one year of supervised release.
DONALDSON had initially complied with Connecticut Sex Offender Registry requirements while he resided in Hartford after his release from prison. However, in late 2013, he failed to respond to an address verification request and a subsequent notice of violation sent by the Sex Offender Registry Unit, and a federal investigation was initiated to locate him.
On February 5, 2016, DONALDSON was arrested in Hartford pursuant to a federal probation violation warrant. After he was apprehended, he was sentenced to an additional six months in prison for again violating his supervised release.
DONALDSON has been detained since his arrest. On October 25, 2016, he pleaded guilty to one count of failing to register as a sex offender.
This matter was investigated by the U.S. Marshals Service and was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Deborah R. Slater.
Malden Woman Indicted for Theft of Government BenefitsRead the Press Release
BOSTON – A Malden woman was indicted yesterday for collecting over $176,000 in government benefits by providing false information about her family.
Julie Mijal, 39, was charged with three counts of theft of public money and three counts of making false statements. Mijal was previously charged in a criminal complaint in October 2016.
According to court documents, Mijal has lived in Malden with her children and their father since at least 2003. During that time, Mijal and her children’s father owned a house together and used the same address on their driver’s licenses, tax returns and other records.
During the same years, however, Mijal collected need-based Supplemental Security Income (SSI) benefits by telling the Social Security Administration that she only lived with her children, and not with their father. Social Security uses the household’s total income to determine whether someone is eligible for SSI benefits. As a result, Social Security did not count the father’s income when determining whether Mijal and her children were eligible for benefits. Mijal collected $87,053 in SSI benefits that she would not have received if she had reported that her children’s father was also part of the household. In a similar manner, Mijal collected $47,745 in Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program benefits and $41,435 in MassHealth benefits.
The charge of theft of public money provides for a sentence of no greater than 10 years in prison, three years of supervised release, and a fine of $250,000, or twice the gross gain or loss, whichever is greater. The charge of making a false statement provides for a sentence of no greater than five years in prison, three years of supervised release, and a fine of $250,000 or twice the gross gain or loss, whichever is greater. 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.
Acting United States Attorney William D. Weinreb; Scott Antolik, Special Agent in Charge of the Social Security Administration, Office of Inspector General, Office of Investigations, Boston Field Division; and Suzanne M. Bump, State Auditor of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, made the announcement. Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Timothy Landry of Weinreb’s Major Crimes Unit is prosecuting the case.
The details contained in the charging documents are allegations. The defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
Lubbock Man Sentenced to 120 Months in Federal Prison for Attempting to Entice a MinorRead the Press Release
LUBBOCK, Texas — A 55-year-old Lubbock, Texas, man, Danny Ray Caudill, was sentenced today by Senior U.S. District Judge Sam R. Cummings to 120 months in federal prison, following his guilty plea in September 2016 to one count of attempted enticement of a minor, announced U.S. Attorney John Parker of the Northern District of Texas.
According to documents filed in the case, from approximately June 26 through July 20, 2016, Caudill used Facebook messaging to communicate with a person he believed to be a 14-year-old girl, who was, in fact, an undercover officer. In the communications, he knowingly persuaded, induced, and enticed, and attempted to entice this person he believed to be a 14-year-old girl, to engage in sexual activity with him. On July 20, 2016, Caudill made arrangements to meet with the person he believed was the minor girl, and he was arrested when he arrived at the agreed-upon location.
The case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by U.S. Attorney’s Offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state and local resources to better locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals, who sexually exploit children, and identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit http://www.justice.gov/psc/. For more information about internet safety education, please visit http://www.justice.gov/psc/ and click on the tab “resources.”
The investigation was conducted by the Lubbock County Sheriff’s Office and the FBI. Assistant U.S. Attorney Steven M. Sucsy was in charge of the prosecutions.
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Local Woman Pleads Guilty to Aiding in Kidnapping of Elderly ManRead the Press Release
DAYTON – Taylor Karas, 25, of Dayton, pleaded guilty today in U.S. District Court for her role in the kidnapping of an elderly man.
Benjamin C. Glassman, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Ohio, and Angela L. Byers, Special Agent in Charge, Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) announced the plea entered into today before Senior U.S. District Judge Water H. Rice.
According to the Statement of Facts in this case, on October 6, 2016, Karas and co-defendants James Marriott and Andrew Azzalina kidnapped an adult male victim and transported him across state lines. Karas lured the victim to a motel by calling him and asking him to borrow money. The victim agreed to her request and they arranged to meet.
When the elderly man arrived, Marriott threatened him with a gun while he and Azzalina demanded any items of value and bank and credit card information. Acting under Marriott’s direction, the three located the victim’s car keys, moved him from the motel to his Ford Explorer, and forced him to accompany them to various places in western Ohio and eastern Indiana where they attempted to use his bank cards to withdrawal cash and buy items.
They took him to a bank in Englewood and when the victim could not remember his PIN code, they drove him to a Dollar General and eventually to a Dick’s Sporting Goods in Richmond, Indiana to purchase items for the defendants.
Believing that the victim had requested help from the sales clerk during the purchase of clothing and other items at Dick’s Sporting Goods, the trio abandoned the elderly man at the store and fled back to Ohio in his vehicle.
Marriott, Karas and Azzalina were indicted in October 2016 on charges of aiding and abetting in kidnapping and taking a stolen vehicle across state lines. Marriott and Azzalina were also charged with brandishing a firearm during a crime of violence. Marriott faces additional charges for possessing a firearm as a convicted felon and while a fugitive from justice for sentencing on guilty pleas to aggravated possession of drugs and having weapons under disability.
Karas pleaded guilty to one count of aiding and abetting kidnapping, which is punishable by a maximum potential sentence of up to life in prison. Marriott and Azzalina are scheduled for trial on March 6.
U.S. Attorney Glassman commended the investigation of this case by the FBI as well as Assistant United States Attorney Brent G. Tabacchi, who is prosecuting this case.
Local Attorney Pleads Guilty to Wire FraudRead the Press Release
DAYTON – Steven Scudder, 62, of Centerville, pleaded guilty in U.S. District Court to wire fraud, admitting that he used his position as an attorney to facilitate a fraudulent investment scheme operated by someone else.
Benjamin C. Glassman, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Ohio, Troy N. Stemen, Acting Special Agent in Charge, Internal Revenue Service (IRS) Criminal Investigation, and Angela L. Byers, Special Agent in Charge, Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), Joseph Rivers, Regional Director of the U.S. Department of Labor Employee Benefits Security Administration and James Vanderberg, Special Agent in Charge of the U.S. Department of Labor Office of the Inspector General, announced the plea entered yesterday afternoon before U.S. District Judge Thomas M. Rose.
Court documents state that between July 2013 and July 2014, Scudder served as trustee of the WMA Trust, a land trust that purported to secure investments that individuals had made with William Apostelos. Scudder ultimately resigned from this position during mid-summer 2014. Scudder said Apostelos instructed him to continue to falsely hold himself out as the trustee of the WMA Trust until September 2014. Based on Scudder’s false representations, an investment group of approximately 10 people in another state invested more than $1 million with Apostelos. Apostelos allegedly used the funds to pay earlier investors rather than investing the money as promised.
Wire fraud is punishable by up to 20 years in prison, a maximum fine of $250,000 or twice the gain or gross loss from the crime, whichever is greater. Judge Rose will schedule a date for sentencing following a pre-sentence investigation by the court.
U.S. Attorney Glassman commended the investigation of this case by the IRS, FBI and two Department of Labor agencies, as well as Assistant United States Attorney Brent G. Tabacchi and Deputy Criminal Chief Laura Clemmens, who are representing the United States in this case.
Lexington Woman Sentenced to 61 Months for Identity Theft in Tax Refund SchemeRead the Press Release
LEXINGTON, Ky. – A Lexington, Ky., woman, who stole personal identifying information of dozens of individuals and used that information to file tax returns that would generate tax refunds, was sentenced on Tuesday, January 17, 2017, to 61 months in prison and ordered to pay restitution of $81,423.90 to the Internal Revenue Service.
U.S. District Court Judge Joseph M. Hood sentenced 30-year-old Yarelis Rios for Theft of Public Funds and Aggravated Identity Theft.
Rios previously admitted that from January 2012 to April 2013, she used the identifying information of numerous individuals that she obtained through the course of her employment at various apartment complexes in the Lexington area, to prepare fraudulent tax returns with the Internal Revenue Service. Specifically, Rios prepared and filed a total of 64 fraudulent tax returns in the names of different individuals for tax years 2011 and 2012 that requested refund amounts. The majority of the tax returns specified that the refunds were to be direct deposited into Rios’s personal bank account. In total, the 64 fraudulent tax returns filed by Rios requested tax refunds totaling $408,670 to be directed into bank accounts or onto debit cards associated with Rios. The Internal Revenue Service, however, was able to prevent 51 of these returns from being distributed by identifying them as fraudulent, so that only $81,423.90 in fraudulent federal tax refunds were issued.
Under federal law, Rios must serve 85 percent of her prison sentence and will be under the supervision of the U.S. Probation Office for 3 years following her period of incarceration.
Carlton S. Shier, IV, Acting United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Kentucky; Tracey D. Montaño, Special Agent in Charge, Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigation; Jon Oldham, Resident Agent in Charge, United States Secret Service; and Mark Barnard, Chief of Police, Lexington Police Department, jointly announced the sentence. Assistant United States Attorneys Erin M. Roth and Kathryn M. Anderson represented the government.
Law Enforcement Imposter Sentenced to Prison on Federal Fireams ChargesRead the Press Release
In San Antonio today, 26-year-old Jordan Jericho Bautista Gunter was sentenced to 63 months in federal prison followed by three years of supervised release for illegally carrying a firearm on an aircraft announced United States Attorney Richard L. Durbin, Jr.; Special Agent in Charge Kendall Whittington, Transportation Security Administration Office of Investigations, Dallas Field Division; and, Special Agent in Charge Fred Milanowski, Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, Houston Division.
On May 11, 2016, the Pflugerville, TX, resident pleaded guilty to one count of possession of a firearm by a prohibited person and one count of carrying a weapon on an aircraft. By pleading guilty, Gunter admitted that on January 10, 2016, he possessed a firearm in Pearsall, TX. At that time, Gunter was federally prohibited from doing so due to a 2011 criminal conviction in Maryland for possession of a concealed deadly weapon. Gunter also admitted that on March 9, 2015, he boarded a flight at the San Antonio International Airport while in possession of a firearm after claiming to TSA authorities that he was a law enforcement officer with the additional required training to carry a firearm on an airplane. Information provided in court at sentencing revealed that Gunter boarded not one, but multiple commercial flights, while transporting an actual prisoner as he pretended to be a law enforcement officer.
Gunter has remained in federal custody since his arrest in February 2016.
This investigation was conducted by the Transportation Security Administration Office of Investigations, Dallas Field Division together with the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and the United States Marshals Service. Assistant U.S. Attorney Bettina Richardson prosecuted this case for the government.
Jury Convicts Registered Sex Offender of New Sex Crimes Against ChildrenRead the Press Release
COLUMBUS, Ohio – A United States District Court jury convicted Thomas A. Sweeney, 48, of Columbus of all counts, which include production of child pornography, attempted coercion/enticement of a minor, receipt of child pornography and commission of a sex offense while registered as a sex offender.
Vipal Patel, First Assistant United States Attorney for the Southern District of Ohio, Steve Francis, Acting Special Agent in Charge, U.S. Department of Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), Franklin County Sheriff Dallas Baldwin and other members of the Franklin County Internet Crimes Against Children (ICAC) Task Force announced the verdict reached today, which was returned following a trial that began on January 17 before U.S. District Judge Michael H. Watson.
According to court documents and testimony, Sweeney enticed a 14-year-old female to take sexually explicit pictures and send them to Sweeney’s phone. He also used his phone to attempt to coerce the minor victim into engaging in sexual activity.
Sweeney had been convicted in 2004 in Franklin County Common Pleas Court for two counts of rape involving a minor. He was sentenced to two consecutive terms of five years in prison for that conviction.
Sweeney was charged by a criminal complaint in this case on February 11, 2016 and was indicted by a federal grand jury on March 31, 2016 and in a superseding indictment on January 12, 2017.
Production of child pornography is punishable by a range of 25 to 50 years in this case. Coercion of a minor carries a potential life sentence and receipt of child pornography is punishable by a range of 15 to 40 years in prison in this case. Committing these crimes while registered as a sex offender includes a 10-year sentencing enhancement to be served consecutive to any other term of imprisonment.
This case was prosecuted by United States Attorney Benjamin C. Glassman and Assistant United States Attorney Heather A. Hill. It was investigated by Franklin County ICAC Task Force members.
The Franklin County ICAC Task Force is a multi-agency effort dedicated to the fight against computer facilitated crimes against children. The following agencies are members:
Franklin County Sheriff’s Office
Ohio ICAC
Grove City Police Department
Columbus Police Department
Grandview Heights Police Department
Westerville Police Department
Hilliard Police Department
Franklin County Prosecutor's Office
Homeland Security Investigations (HSI)
Ohio Attorney General’s Office (BCI)
The Ohio State University Police Department
Upper Arlington Police Department
Circleville Police Department
Pickaway County Sheriff’s Office
Delaware County Sheriff’s Office
Jury Convicts Midland Man of Federal Sex Trafficking of a Child ChargeRead the Press Release
Irick Dron Oneal, age 43, of Midland, faces up to life in federal prison after a jury in Midland convicted him of the sex trafficking of a 15-year-old girl announced United States Attorney Richard L. Durbin, Jr., and Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) Special Agent in Charge Douglas E. Lindquist, El Paso Division.
On Wednesday, jurors returned their guilty verdict convicting Oneal of one count of sex trafficking of a child. Evidence presented during trial revealed that on October 14, 2016, investigators took custody of the victim when she appeared at an Odessa hotel room. Previously, investigators responded to advertisements for sex with the minor posted on the Internet site Backpage.com. Authorities discovered Oneal in the hotel parking lot while waiting for the victim.
Oneal has remained in custody since his arrest in October 2016. Sentencing has yet to be scheduled.
The investigation was developed as part of Operation Cross Country, a nation-wide operation conducted October 13-14, 2016 by the FBI to locate and rescue child victims of sex trafficking. The FBI was assisted by the Odessa Police Department, Texas Department of Public Safety Criminal Investigations Division and Homeland Security Investigations (HSI). Assistant U.S. Attorney Glenn Harwood is prosecuting this case on behalf of the government.
This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood (PSC), 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, PSC 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 PSC, please visit http://www.justice.gov/psc/. For more information about Internet safety education, please visit http://www.justice.gov/psc/resources.html.
Joaquin “El Chapo” Guzman Loera Faces Charges in New York for Leading a Continuing Criminal Enterprise and other Drug-Related ChargesRead the Press Release
Acting Attorney General Sally Q. Yates today announced that Joaquin Archivaldo Guzman Loera, known by various aliases including “El Chapo,” will face charges filed in Brooklyn, New York, following his extradition to the United States from Mexico, alleging that he was operating a continuing criminal enterprise and other drug-related crimes through his leadership of the Mexican organized crime syndicate known as the Sinaloa Cartel.
Acting Attorney General Yates was joined in making the announcement by U.S. Attorney Robert L. Capers of the Eastern District of New York; U.S. Attorney Wifredo A. Ferrer of the Southern District of Florida; Deputy Assistant Attorney General Kenneth Blanco of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division; Acting Administrator Chuck Rosenberg of the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA); Executive Associate Director Peter T. Edge of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement Homeland Security Investigations (HSI); Assistant Director In Charge William F. Sweeney of the FBI New York Field Office: U.S. Marshal Charles G. Dunne of the Eastern District of New York U.S. Marshals Service and Commissioner of the New York City Police Department James P. O’Neill.
Guzman Loera, 59, arrived in the United States on Jan. 19, and will be arraigned on a 17-count superseding indictment on Jan. 20, before U.S. Magistrate Judge James Orenstein in federal court in Brooklyn. The case is assigned to U.S. District Judge Brian M. Cogan. Following his extradition to the United States on related charges filed in the Western District of Texas and Southern District of California, the Mexican government approved a request by the United States to proceed with prosecution on the charges filed in the Eastern District of New York on May 11, 2016.
The charges in the indictment filed against Guzman Loera in the Eastern District of New York will be prosecuted jointly by the U.S. Attorney’s Offices in Brooklyn and Miami and the Narcotic and Dangerous Drug Section of the Criminal Division.
The indictment alleges that between January 1989 and December 2014, Guzman Loera led a continuing criminal enterprise responsible for importing into the United States and distributing massive amounts of illegal narcotics and conspiring to murder persons who posed a threat to Guzman Loera’s narcotics enterprise.
Guzman Loera is also charged with using firearms in relation to his drug trafficking and money laundering relating to the bulk smuggling from the United States to Mexico of more than $14 billion in cash proceeds from narcotics sales throughout the United States and Canada. As part of this investigation, nearly 200,000 kilograms of cocaine linked to the Sinaloa Cartel have been seized. The indictment seeks forfeiture of more than $14 billion in drug proceeds and illicit profits.
“Guzman Loera is the alleged leader of a multi-billion dollar, multi-national criminal enterprise that funneled drugs onto our streets and violence and misery into our communities,” said Acting Attorney General Yates. “We are deeply grateful to the Government of Mexico for their assistance in securing Guzman Loera’s extradition. The Mexican people have suffered greatly at the hands of Guzman Loera and the Sinaloa Cartel; Mexican law enforcement officials have died in the pursuit of him. We will honor their sacrifice and will honor Mexico’s commitment to combat narco-trafficking by pursuing justice in this case.”
“Guzman Loera is accused of using violence, including torture and murder, to maintain an iron-fisted grip on the drug trade across the U.S./Mexico border that invaded our community and others across the country,” said U.S. Attorney Capers. “As a result, Guzman Loera made billions of illicit dollars. This prosecution demonstrates that we will apply all available resources to dismantle the leadership of dangerous drug cartels, wherever they operate, and will not rest until we have done so.”
“Guzman Loera is accused of terrorizing communities all over the world,” said U.S. Attorney Ferrer. “With this prosecution we stand united, with our domestic and foreign partners, in our fight against transnational criminal organizations that profit billions of dollars off of the toxic spread of illicit drugs in our global communities. Today’s announcement demonstrates that international borders do not protect narcotics traffickers from criminal prosecution. We will continue to work together to combat narco-trafficking and the cartels that infect our streets, with the long-arm of the law.”
“This extradition is a tremendous victory for the citizens of Mexico and of the United States,” said DEA Acting Administrator Rosenberg. “Two principles stand out: No one is above the law and we simply do not quit in the pursuit of justice.”
“Through investigations led by our offices in New York and Nogales, Arizona, and the coordination efforts of our attaché in Mexico, Homeland Security Investigations gathered significant evidence that is instrumental in the case against Joaquin Guzman Loera in the United States for his alleged crimes as the head of the Sinaloa Cartel,” said HSI Executive Associate Director Edge. “We are pleased to have worked with our federal law enforcement partners to bring about yesterday’s extradition, and look forward to sharing the evidence gathered in this investigation in the criminal proceedings that will follow.”
“One of the most dangerous and feared drug kingpins will now be held accountable for his alleged crimes in the United States after decades of eluding law enforcement,” said FBI Assistant Director in Charge Sweeney. “After years of gathering evidence in multiple investigations, the FBI and our law enforcement partners will do everything we can to bring El Chapo to justice.”
“The U.S. Marshals Service will undertake this mission with the same sense of duty that we have undertaken previous missions for the last 228 years,” said U.S. Marshal Dunne. “We will preserve the integrity of the judicial process. We will protect the members of the Eastern District of New York family. We will secure this individual in a humane manner and we will bring him to court on time.”
As detailed in the superseding indictment and other court filings, Guzman Loera and Ismael Zambada Garcia, as leaders of the Sinaloa Cartel, conspired to import more than 200 metric tons of cocaine into the United States. The Sinaloa Cartel shared drug transportation routes and obtained drugs from various Colombian drug trafficking organizations, in particular, the Colombian Norte del Valle Cartel, the Don Lucho Organization, and the Cifuentes-Villa Organization. The cocaine was transported from Colombia via planes, boats, and submarines into ports the enterprise controlled in Southern Mexico and other locations throughout Central America. From there, it was shipped through Mexico to distribution hubs in the United States.
As one of the principal leaders of the Sinaloa Cartel, Guzman Loera allegedly also oversaw the cocaine, heroin, methamphetamine, and marijuana smuggling activities by the Sinaloa Cartel to wholesale distributors in Atlanta, Chicago, Miami, New York, as well as in various locations in Arizona, Los Angeles and elsewhere. The billions of dollars generated from drug sales in the United States were then clandestinely transported back to Mexico.
To evade law enforcement and protect the enterprise’s narcotics distribution activities, Guzman Loera and the Sinaloa Cartel allegedly employed various means including the use of “sicarios,” or hit men, who carried out hundreds of acts of violence in Mexico, including murder, to collect drug debts, silence potential witnesses, and prevent public officials from taking action against the cartel. To intimidate and eliminate his rivals, during the Sinaloa Cartel’s internecine war for territory with the Juarez Cartel from approximately 2007 through 2011, Guzman Loera directed these assassins to kill thousands of drug trafficking competitors, during which many of his victims were beheaded.
The government’s case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Andrea Goldbarg, Hiral Mehta, Patricia Notopoulos, Gina Parlovecchio and Michael Robotti from the Eastern District of New York; Assistant U.S. Attorneys Adam Fels, Lynn Kirkpatrick and Kurt Lunkenheimer from the Southern District of Florida; and Trial Attorneys Amanda Liskamm, Anthony Nardozzi and Michael Lang of the Criminal Division’s Narcotic and Dangerous Drug Section.
The case was investigated by the DEA, ICE and the FBI, in cooperation with Mexican and Colombian law enforcement authorities. Substantial assistance was provided by the U.S. Attorney’s Offices in the Northern District of Illinois, the Western District of Texas, the Southern District of New York, the Southern District of California, and the District of New Hampshire. The Department of Justice’s Office of International Affairs also provided assistance in bringing Guzman Loera to the United States to face charges. The investigative efforts in this case were coordinated with the Department of Justice’s Special Operations Division, comprising agents, analysts, and attorneys from the Criminal Division’s Narcotic and Dangerous Drug Section, DEA, FBI, ICE, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, the U.S. Marshals Service, the Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigation, the U.S. Bureau of Prisons, and the New York State Police.
The United States would like to extend its appreciation to the Government of Mexico and, in particular, President Enrique Peña Nieto, Secretary of Foreign Affairs Luis Videgaray Caso and Attorney General Raul Cervantes Andrade for their assistance in this case.
This case is also the result of the ongoing efforts by the Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF) a partnership that brings together the combined expertise and unique abilities of federal, state and local law enforcement agencies. The principal mission of the OCDETF program is to identify, disrupt, dismantle and prosecute high level members of drug trafficking, weapons trafficking and money laundering organizations and enterprises.
An indictment is a formal charging document notifying the defendant of the charges. All persons charged in an indictment are presumed innocent until proven guilty. Guzman faces a sentence of mandatory life imprisonment, if convicted of the continuing criminal enterprise charge, and a maximum sentence of life on the remaining charges.
Detention Memo
Indictment
Joaquin “El Chapo” Guzman Loera Faces Charges in New York for Leading a Continuing Criminal Enterprise and other Drug-Related ChargesRead the Press Release
Acting Attorney General Sally Q. Yates today announced that Joaquin Archivaldo Guzman Loera, known by various aliases including “El Chapo,” will face charges filed in Brooklyn, New York, following his extradition to the United States from Mexico, alleging that he was operating a continuing criminal enterprise and other drug-related crimes through his leadership of the Mexican organized crime syndicate known as the Sinaloa Cartel.
Acting Attorney General Yates was joined in making the announcement by U.S. Attorney Robert L. Capers of the Eastern District of New York; U.S. Attorney Wifredo A. Ferrer of the Southern District of Florida; Deputy Assistant Attorney General Kenneth Blanco of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division; Acting Administrator Chuck Rosenberg of the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA); Executive Associate Director Peter T. Edge of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement Homeland Security Investigations (HSI); Assistant Director In Charge William F. Sweeney of the FBI New York Field Office: U.S. Marshal Charles G. Dunne of the Eastern District of New York U.S. Marshals Service and Commissioner of the New York City Police Department James P. O’Neill.
Guzman Loera, 59, arrived in the United States on Jan. 19, and will be arraigned on a 17-count superseding indictment on Jan. 20, before U.S. Magistrate Judge James Orenstein in federal court in Brooklyn. The case is assigned to U.S. District Judge Brian M. Cogan. Following his extradition to the United States on related charges filed in the Western District of Texas and Southern District of California, the Mexican government approved a request by the United States to proceed with prosecution on the charges filed in the Eastern District of New York on May 11, 2016.
The charges in the indictment filed against Guzman Loera in the Eastern District of New York will be prosecuted jointly by the U.S. Attorney’s Offices in Brooklyn and Miami and the Narcotic and Dangerous Drug Section of the Criminal Division.
The indictment alleges that between January 1989 and December 2014, Guzman Loera led a continuing criminal enterprise responsible for importing into the United States and distributing massive amounts of illegal narcotics and conspiring to murder persons who posed a threat to Guzman Loera’s narcotics enterprise.
Guzman Loera is also charged with using firearms in relation to his drug trafficking and money laundering relating to the bulk smuggling from the United States to Mexico of more than $14 billion in cash proceeds from narcotics sales throughout the United States and Canada. As part of this investigation, nearly 200,000 kilograms of cocaine linked to the Sinaloa Cartel have been seized. The indictment seeks forfeiture of more than $14 billion in drug proceeds and illicit profits.
“Guzman Loera is the alleged leader of a multi-billion dollar, multi-national criminal enterprise that funneled drugs onto our streets and violence and misery into our communities,” said Acting Attorney General Yates. “We are deeply grateful to the Government of Mexico for their assistance in securing Guzman Loera’s extradition. The Mexican people have suffered greatly at the hands of Guzman Loera and the Sinaloa Cartel; Mexican law enforcement officials have died in the pursuit of him. We will honor their sacrifice and will honor Mexico’s commitment to combat narco-trafficking by pursuing justice in this case.”
“Guzman Loera is accused of using violence, including torture and murder, to maintain an iron-fisted grip on the drug trade across the U.S./Mexico border that invaded our community and others across the country,” said U.S. Attorney Capers. “As a result, Guzman Loera made billions of illicit dollars. This prosecution demonstrates that we will apply all available resources to dismantle the leadership of dangerous drug cartels, wherever they operate, and will not rest until we have done so.”
“Guzman Loera is accused of terrorizing communities all over the world,” said U.S. Attorney Ferrer. “With this prosecution we stand united, with our domestic and foreign partners, in our fight against transnational criminal organizations that profit billions of dollars off of the toxic spread of illicit drugs in our global communities. Today’s announcement demonstrates that international borders do not protect narcotics traffickers from criminal prosecution. We will continue to work together to combat narco-trafficking and the cartels that infect our streets, with the long-arm of the law.”
“This extradition is a tremendous victory for the citizens of Mexico and of the United States,” said DEA Acting Administrator Rosenberg. “Two principles stand out: No one is above the law and we simply do not quit in the pursuit of justice.”
“Through investigations led by our offices in New York and Nogales, Arizona, and the coordination efforts of our attaché in Mexico, Homeland Security Investigations gathered significant evidence that is instrumental in the case against Joaquin Guzman Loera in the United States for his alleged crimes as the head of the Sinaloa Cartel,” said HSI Executive Associate Director Edge. “We are pleased to have worked with our federal law enforcement partners to bring about yesterday’s extradition, and look forward to sharing the evidence gathered in this investigation in the criminal proceedings that will follow.”
“One of the most dangerous and feared drug kingpins will now be held accountable for his alleged crimes in the United States after decades of eluding law enforcement,” said FBI Assistant Director in Charge Sweeney. “After years of gathering evidence in multiple investigations, the FBI and our law enforcement partners will do everything we can to bring El Chapo to justice.”
“The U.S. Marshals Service will undertake this mission with the same sense of duty that we have undertaken previous missions for the last 228 years,” said U.S. Marshal Dunne. “We will preserve the integrity of the judicial process. We will protect the members of the Eastern District of New York family. We will secure this individual in a humane manner and we will bring him to court on time.”
As detailed in the superseding indictment and other court filings, Guzman Loera and Ismael Zambada Garcia, as leaders of the Sinaloa Cartel, conspired to import more than 200 metric tons of cocaine into the United States. The Sinaloa Cartel shared drug transportation routes and obtained drugs from various Colombian drug trafficking organizations, in particular, the Colombian Norte del Valle Cartel, the Don Lucho Organization, and the Cifuentes-Villa Organization. The cocaine was transported from Colombia via planes, boats, and submarines into ports the enterprise controlled in Southern Mexico and other locations throughout Central America. From there, it was shipped through Mexico to distribution hubs in the United States.
As one of the principal leaders of the Sinaloa Cartel, Guzman Loera allegedly also oversaw the cocaine, heroin, methamphetamine, and marijuana smuggling activities by the Sinaloa Cartel to wholesale distributors in Atlanta, Chicago, Miami, New York, as well as in various locations in Arizona, Los Angeles and elsewhere. The billions of dollars generated from drug sales in the United States were then clandestinely transported back to Mexico.
To evade law enforcement and protect the enterprise’s narcotics distribution activities, Guzman Loera and the Sinaloa Cartel allegedly employed various means including the use of “sicarios,” or hit men, who carried out hundreds of acts of violence in Mexico, including murder, to collect drug debts, silence potential witnesses, and prevent public officials from taking action against the cartel. To intimidate and eliminate his rivals, during the Sinaloa Cartel’s internecine war for territory with the Juarez Cartel from approximately 2007 through 2011, Guzman Loera directed these assassins to kill thousands of drug trafficking competitors, during which many of his victims were beheaded.
The government’s case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Andrea Goldbarg, Hiral Mehta, Patricia Notopoulos, Gina Parlovecchio and Michael Robotti from the Eastern District of New York; Assistant U.S. Attorneys Adam Fels, Lynn Kirkpatrick and Kurt Lunkenheimer from the Southern District of Florida; and Trial Attorneys Amanda Liskamm, Anthony Nardozzi and Michael Lang of the Criminal Division’s Narcotic and Dangerous Drug Section.
The case was investigated by the DEA, ICE and the FBI, in cooperation with Mexican and Colombian law enforcement authorities. Substantial assistance was provided by the U.S. Attorney’s Offices in the Northern District of Illinois, the Western District of Texas, the Southern District of New York, the Southern District of California, and the District of New Hampshire. The Department of Justice’s Office of International Affairs also provided assistance in bringing Guzman Loera to the United States to face charges. The investigative efforts in this case were coordinated with the Department of Justice’s Special Operations Division, comprising agents, analysts, and attorneys from the Criminal Division’s Narcotic and Dangerous Drug Section, DEA, FBI, ICE, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, the U.S. Marshals Service, the Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigation, the U.S. Bureau of Prisons, and the New York State Police.
The United States would like to extend its appreciation to the Government of Mexico and, in particular, President Enrique Peña Nieto, Secretary of Foreign Affairs Luis Videgaray Caso and Attorney General Raul Cervantes Andrade for their assistance in this case.
This case is also the result of the ongoing efforts by the Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF) a partnership that brings together the combined expertise and unique abilities of federal, state and local law enforcement agencies. The principal mission of the OCDETF program is to identify, disrupt, dismantle and prosecute high level members of drug trafficking, weapons trafficking and money laundering organizations and enterprises.
An indictment is a formal charging document notifying the defendant of the charges. All persons charged in an indictment are presumed innocent until proven guilty. Guzman faces a sentence of mandatory life imprisonment, if convicted of the continuing criminal enterprise charge, and a maximum sentence of life on the remaining charges.
Detention Memo IndictmentJoaquin “El Chapo” Guzman Loera Faces Charges in New York for Leading A Continuing Criminal Enterprise and Other Drug-Related ChargesRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON – Acting Attorney General Sally Q. Yates today announced that Joaquin Archivaldo Guzman Loera, known by various aliases including “El Chapo,” will face charges filed in Brooklyn, New York, following his extradition to the United States from Mexico, alleging that he was operating a continuing criminal enterprise and other drug-related crimes through his leadership of the Mexican organized crime syndicate known as the Sinaloa Cartel.
Acting Attorney General Yates was joined in making the announcement by U.S. Attorney Robert L. Capers of the Eastern District of New York; U.S. Attorney Wifredo A. Ferrer of the Southern District of Florida; Deputy Assistant Attorney General Kenneth Blanco of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division; Acting Administrator Chuck Rosenberg of the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA); Executive Associate Director Peter T. Edge of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement Homeland Security Investigations (HSI); Assistant Director In Charge William F. Sweeney of the FBI New York Field Office: U.S. Marshal Charles G. Dunne of the Eastern District of New York U.S. Marshals Service and Commissioner of the New York City Police Department James P. O’Neill.
Guzman Loera, 59, arrived in the United States on Jan. 19, and will be arraigned on a 17-count superseding indictment on Jan. 20, before U.S. Magistrate Judge James Orenstein in federal court in Brooklyn. The case is assigned to U.S. District Judge Brian M. Cogan. Following his extradition to the United States on related charges filed in the Western District of Texas and Southern District of California, the Mexican government approved a request by the United States to proceed with prosecution on the charges filed in the Eastern District of New York on May 11, 2016.
The charges in the indictment filed against Guzman Loera in the Eastern District of New York will be prosecuted jointly by the U.S. Attorney’s Offices in Brooklyn and Miami and the Narcotic and Dangerous Drug Section of the Criminal Division.
The indictment alleges that between January 1989 and December 2014, Guzman Loera led a continuing criminal enterprise responsible for importing into the United States and distributing massive amounts of illegal narcotics and conspiring to murder persons who posed a threat to Guzman Loera’s narcotics enterprise.
Guzman Loera is also charged with using firearms in relation to his drug trafficking and money laundering relating to the bulk smuggling from the United States to Mexico of more than $14 billion in cash proceeds from narcotics sales throughout the United States and Canada. As part of this investigation, nearly 200,000 kilograms of cocaine linked to the Sinaloa Cartel have been seized. The indictment seeks forfeiture of more than $14 billion in drug proceeds and illicit profits.
“Guzman Loera is the alleged leader of a multi-billion dollar, multi-national criminal enterprise that funneled drugs onto our streets and violence and misery into our communities,” said Acting Attorney General Yates. “We are deeply grateful to the Government of Mexico for their assistance in securing Guzman Loera’s extradition. The Mexican people have suffered greatly at the hands of Guzman Loera and the Sinaloa Cartel; Mexican law enforcement officials have died in the pursuit of him. We will honor their sacrifice and will honor Mexico’s commitment to combat narco-trafficking by pursuing justice in this case.”
“Guzman Loera is accused of using violence, including torture and murder, to maintain an iron-fisted grip on the drug trade across the U.S./Mexico border that invaded our community and others across the country,” said U.S. Attorney Capers. “As a result, Guzman Loera made billions of illicit dollars. This prosecution demonstrates that we will apply all available resources to dismantle the leadership of dangerous drug cartels, wherever they operate, and will not rest until we have done so.”
“Guzman Loera is accused of terrorizing communities all over the world,” said U.S. Attorney Ferrer. “With this prosecution we stand united, with our domestic and foreign partners, in our fight against transnational criminal organizations that profit billions of dollars off of the toxic spread of illicit drugs in our global communities. Today’s announcement demonstrates that international borders do not protect narcotics traffickers from criminal prosecution. We will continue to work together to combat narco-trafficking and the cartels that infect our streets, with the long-arm of the law.”
“This extradition is a tremendous victory for the citizens of Mexico and of the United States,” said DEA Acting Administrator Rosenberg. “Two principles stand out: No one is above the law and we simply do not quit in the pursuit of justice.”
“Through investigations led by our offices in New York and Nogales, Arizona, and the coordination efforts of our attaché in Mexico, Homeland Security Investigations gathered significant evidence that is instrumental in the case against Joaquin Guzman Loera in the United States for his alleged crimes as the head of the Sinaloa Cartel,” said HSI Executive Associate Director Edge. “We are pleased to have worked with our federal law enforcement partners to bring about yesterday’s extradition, and look forward to sharing the evidence gathered in this investigation in the criminal proceedings that will follow.”
“One of the most dangerous and feared drug kingpins will now be held accountable for his alleged crimes in the United States after decades of eluding law enforcement,” said FBI Assistant Director in Charge Sweeney. “After years of gathering evidence in multiple investigations, the FBI and our law enforcement partners will do everything we can to bring El Chapo to justice.”
“The U.S. Marshals Service will undertake this mission with the same sense of duty that we have undertaken previous missions for the last 228 years,” said U.S. Marshal Dunne. “We will preserve the integrity of the judicial process. We will protect the members of the Eastern District of New York family. We will secure this individual in a humane manner and we will bring him to court on time.”
As detailed in the superseding indictment and other court filings, Guzman Loera and Ismael Zambada Garcia, as leaders of the Sinaloa Cartel, conspired to import more than 200 metric tons of cocaine into the United States. The Sinaloa Cartel shared drug transportation routes and obtained drugs from various Colombian drug trafficking organizations, in particular, the Colombian Norte del Valle Cartel, the Don Lucho Organization, and the Cifuentes-Villa Organization. The cocaine was transported from Colombia via planes, boats, and submarines into ports the enterprise controlled in Southern Mexico and other locations throughout Central America. From there, it was shipped through Mexico to distribution hubs in the United States.
As one of the principal leaders of the Sinaloa Cartel, Guzman Loera allegedly also oversaw the cocaine, heroin, methamphetamine, and marijuana smuggling activities by the Sinaloa Cartel to wholesale distributors in Atlanta, Chicago, Miami, New York, as well as in various locations in Arizona, Los Angeles and elsewhere. The billions of dollars generated from drug sales in the United States were then clandestinely transported back to Mexico.
To evade law enforcement and protect the enterprise’s narcotics distribution activities, Guzman Loera and the Sinaloa Cartel allegedly employed various means including the use of “sicarios,” or hit men, who carried out hundreds of acts of violence in Mexico, including murder, to collect drug debts, silence potential witnesses, and prevent public officials from taking action against the cartel. To intimidate and eliminate his rivals, during the Sinaloa Cartel’s internecine war for territory with the Juarez Cartel from approximately 2007 through 2011, Guzman Loera directed these assassins to kill thousands of drug trafficking competitors, during which many of his victims were beheaded.
The government’s case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Andrea Goldbarg, Hiral Mehta, Patricia Notopoulos, Gina Parlovecchio and Michael Robotti from the Eastern District of New York; Assistant U.S. Attorneys Adam Fels, Lynn Kirkpatrick and Kurt Lunkenheimer from the Southern District of Florida; and Trial Attorneys Amanda Liskamm, Anthony Nardozzi and Michael Lang of the Criminal Division’s Narcotic and Dangerous Drug Section.
The case was investigated by the DEA, ICE and the FBI, in cooperation with Mexican and Colombian law enforcement authorities. Substantial assistance was provided by the U.S. Attorney’s Offices in the Northern District of Illinois, the Western District of Texas, the Southern District of New York, the Southern District of California, and the District of New Hampshire. The Department of Justice’s Office of International Affairs also provided assistance in bringing Guzman Loera to the United States to face charges. The investigative efforts in this case were coordinated with the Department of Justice’s Special Operations Division, comprising agents, analysts, and attorneys from the Criminal Division’s Narcotic and Dangerous Drug Section, DEA, FBI, ICE, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, the U.S. Marshals Service, the Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigation, the U.S. Bureau of Prisons, and the New York State Police.
The United States would like to extend its appreciation to the Government of Mexico and, in particular, President Enrique Peña Nieto, Secretary of Foreign Affairs Luis Videgaray Caso and Attorney General Raul Cervantes Andrade for their assistance in this case.
This case is also the result of the ongoing efforts by the Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF) a partnership that brings together the combined expertise and unique abilities of federal, state and local law enforcement agencies. The principal mission of the OCDETF program is to identify, disrupt, dismantle and prosecute high level members of drug trafficking, weapons trafficking and money laundering organizations and enterprises.
An indictment is a formal charging document notifying the defendant of the charges. All persons charged in an indictment are presumed innocent until proven guilty. Guzman faces a sentence of mandatory life imprisonment, if convicted of the continuing criminal enterprise charge, and a maximum sentence of life on the remaining charges.
Indictment: Scam Targeted Homeowners Facing ForeclosureRead the Press Release
KANSAS CITY, KAN. B A Missouri man is set to appear in federal court here Monday on charges he and his accomplices scammed desperate homeowners with false promises to help them save their homes, U.S. Attorney Tom Beall said.
A federal indictment alleges the defendants used the U.S. Postal Service and the Internet to target victims with financial problems.
Tyler Korn, 27, St. Ann, Missouri, is charged with one count of conspiracy to commit mail fraud and wire fraud, two counts of mail fraud, and five counts of wire fraud. Co-defendants Amjad Daoud, 32, Lutz, Fla., and Ruby Price, 72, Bonner Springs, Kan., already have appeared in federal court in Kansas City, Kan., in the case.
The indictment alleges Korn and Daoud used the address of a UPS store in Overland Park, Kan., to form Reliant Home Financial Group, a company they operated out of the St. Louis metro area. Price operated The Arize Group from rented space in Overland Park. Together, they devised a scheme to defraud homeowners with false promises of protecting them from foreclosure.
The indictment alleges the defendants fraudulently promised the victims to:
-- Lower their interest rates.
-- Lower their monthly payments
-- Help them obtain loan modifications.
When victims received foreclosure notices, the defendants allegedly advised them not to worry about it.
If convicted, Korn faces up to 20 years in federal prison and a fine up to $1 million on each count. The Department of Housing and Urban Development investigated. Assistant U.S. Attorney Jabari Wamble is prosecuting.
Holmes County Woman Pleads Guilty to Fraudulently Receiving Veterans Disability BenefitsRead the Press Release
PANAMA CITY, FLORIDA – Following day two of her trial this week, Veronica Dale Hahn, 60, of Bonifay, Florida, pled guilty to theft of government funds. The guilty plea was announced by Christopher P. Canova, United States Attorney for the Northern District of Florida.
During the first two days of trial, the government presented evidence that, between November 2001 and February 2016, Hahn received $394,800.85 from the Department of Veterans Affairs in disability payments for 100% service-connected blindness in both eyes. Over the course of a decade and a half, Hahn told various doctors within the Veterans Health Administration and in private practice that she was almost completely blind. However, within a year of receiving her disability benefits for loss of vision, she obtained a driver’s license in New Mexico, Alabama, and Florida with no vision restrictions, after passing vision exams in each state with at least 20/40 vision. During this time, Hahn was also observed driving her personal automobile on numerous occasions. Further, she worked full time as a case manager and transition counselor at several state correctional facilities. All of which required normal eyesight to perform her duties.
Hahn faces a maximum of 10 years in prison. The sentencing hearing is scheduled for April 13, 2017, at 10:00 a.m. at the United States Courthouse, in Panama City, Florida.
The case was investigated by the Department of Veterans Affairs – Office of the Inspector General. It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Christopher J. Thielemann and Michael J. Frank.
The United States Attorney's Office for the Northern District of Florida is one of 94 offices that serve as the nation’s principal litigators under the direction of the Attorney General. To access public court documents online, please visit the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Florida website. For more information about the United States Attorney’s Office, Northern District of Florida, visit http://www.justice.gov/usao/fln/index.html.
For more information, contact:
Amy Alexander, Public Information Officer
(850) 216-3854, [email protected]
Hartford Attorney Pleads Guilty to Money Laundering Charges Stemming from Stock "Pump and Dump" SchemeRead the Press Release
Deirdre M. Daly, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, announced that COREY BRINSON, 36, of Hartford, waived his right to indictment and pleaded guilty today before U.S. District Judge Jeffrey A. Meyer in New Haven to a money laundering charge stemming from his involvement in a securities fraud scheme.
According to court documents and statements made in court, between approximately October 2010 and July 2016, BRINSON, a licensed attorney, served as the nominal “securities counsel” for several companies whose securities were marketed and sold to the investing public by Christian Meissenn and Meissenn’s business associates in a stock “pump and dump” scheme. Meissenn and his associates induced investors to purchase securities by making false and misleading representations about the securities and the issuing companies, thereby causing the price of those securities to become falsely inflated. After selling their own shares at a profit, the scheme’s participants allowed the price of the securities to fall, leaving investors with worthless and unsalable stock. As a result, victim investors lost millions of dollars.
As part of the scheme, BRINSON, who did not have any experience with securities and securities markets, signed, or permitted others to affix his signature to, false and misleading attorney opinion letters that were designed to provide assurances to securities transfer agents and prospective investors. Among other things, the opinion letters falsely certified that BRINSON, as an attorney, had adequately reviewed corporate records and filings and was satisfied with the adequacy of the companies’ public disclosures. The opinion letters were then provided to securities transfer agents and prospective investors. BRINSON also received deposits of millions of dollars in proceeds of securities transactions into his Interest on Lawyer Trust Account (“IOLTA”). Rather than use the proceeds to purchase securities and fund operations at the underlying companies, Meissenn and others directed BRINSON to distribute nearly all the money to what proved to be relatives, associates and shell companies associated with Meissenn and his associates.
BRINSON knew that approximately $3 million that passed through his IOLTA were the proceeds of this illegal securities scheme. In exchange for providing his services, BRINSON received approximately five percent of the proceeds that passed through his IOLTA. In addition, BRINSON also received payment for preparing the false opinion letters. As a result of these activities, BRINSON’s personal gain was a total of approximately $200,000.
BRINSON pleaded guilty to one count of engaging in a monetary transaction in property derived from specified unlawful activity, which carries a maximum term of imprisonment of 10 years. Judge Meyer scheduled sentencing for April 14, 2017.
BRINSON surrendered his law license in November 2016.
On November 8, 2016, Meissenn pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit mail and wire fraud and one count of tax evasion. He awaits sentencing.
This ongoing investigation is being conducted by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Internal Revenue Service – Criminal Investigation Division and U.S. Postal Inspection Service, with assistance from the Connecticut Department of Banking and the Hartford and Stamford Police Departments. The matter is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Avi M. Perry and Peter S. Jongbloed.
Harrison County woman pleads guilty to cocaine distributionRead the Press Release
CLARKSBURG, WEST VIRGINIA – Jennifer Y. Lucas, 21, of Clarksburg, West Virginia, was convicted of cocaine distribution today, Acting United States Attorney Betsy Steinfeld Jividen, announced.
Lucas pled guilty to one count of “Distribution of Cocaine Base.” She faces up to twenty years in prison and a fine of up to $1,000,000. Under the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, the actual sentence imposed will be based upon the seriousness of the offenses and the prior criminal history, if any, of the defendant.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Traci M. Cook prosecuted the case on behalf of the government. The Greater Harrison County Drug and Violent Crime Task Force investigated.
U.S. Magistrate Judge Michael John Aloi presided.
Greenville Man Pleads Guilty to Child Porn ChargesRead the Press Release
Contact Person: Lance Crick (864) 282-2100
Columbia, South Carolina ---- United States Attorney Beth Drake stated today that Richard Wallace Heald, III, age 26, of Greenville, pled guilty Wednesday in federal court in Anderson, to possession of child pornography, a violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 2252A. United States District Judge Timothy M. Cain of Anderson accepted the plea and will impose sentence after he has reviewed the presentence report which will be prepared by the U.S. Probation Office.
Evidence presented at the change of plea hearing established that child exploitation investigators with the Greenville County Sheriff’s Office downloaded, using a peer-to-peer filing sharing system, two child pornography videos from an IP address associated with the Defendant’s residence.
Based on this download, a search warrant was obtained and executed at the residence. A computer was seized from the Defendant’s room. An analysis of the hard drive revealed a user name of “Ricky Heald.” The account appeared to be password protected, but agents were able to access the device. Over 120 child pornography videos were found on the computer.
Ms. Drake stated the maximum penalty Heald can receive is a fine of $250,000 and/or imprisonment for 20 years, plus a special assessment of $100.
The case was investigated by agents of the Greenville County Sheriff’s Office and the Department of Homeland Security, Office of Investigations. Assistant United States Attorney Bill Watkins of the Greenville office handled the case.
This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative designed to protect children from online exploitation and abuse. Led by the United States Attorneys’ Offices, 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 identify and rescue victims. For more information, please visit www.projectsafechildhood.gov.
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Fulton County Contract Supplier Guilty of Giving Kickbacks Tied to Construction of Fulton County Detention CenterRead the Press Release
PADUCAH, Ky. – A Fulton County, Kentucky, business owner and contract supplier pled guilty today in United States District Court before Senior Judge Thomas B. Russell for his role in a conspiracy to defraud Fulton County citizens, through kickbacks and concealment of costs associated with work performed on the 2015 Fulton County Detention Center expansion, announced United States Attorney John E. Kuhn, Jr.
Michael Homra, 79, pled guilty to three charges including Honest Services Wire Fraud and Wire Fraud for his role in a conspiracy that allegedly involved then Fulton County Jailer Ricky D. Parnell and others between April 2015 and August 2016.
According to the plea agreement, Homra is the owner of The Leader Store located in Fulton, Kentucky. His company often sold building materials to Fulton County as part of the Detention Center expansion project. Homra allowed Parnell to use The Leader Store as a middleman company for building supplies ordered during the project and paid Parnell cash kickbacks while the project was ongoing.
The agreement between Homra and Parnell was for Parnell to inflate prices that The Leader Store charged Fulton County for purchases and then for Homra to pay Parnell 50% of the profits from these purchases. Homra would pay Parnell with cash and paid Parnell between $10,000 and $25,000.
Further, according to the plea agreement, Homra knowingly and voluntarily agreed and conspired with Parnell to give Parnell cash kickbacks, both as a favor to Parnell and so that Parnell would continue to use The Leader Store as a supplier for the Fulton County Detention Center, which Parnell could do because he was the Fulton County Jailer. As part of their kickback scheme, Fulton County paid The Leader Store by check in amounts of $54,364.00 and $66,530.58.
Homra was charged by grand jury indictment, with co-defendants Ricky D. Parnell, 59, of Hickman, Kentucky; Ronald D. Armstrong, 60, of Dresden, Tennessee; Jimmy Boyd, 56, of South Fulton, Tennessee; and Daniel C. Larcom, 42, of Union City, Tennessee, on November 15, 2016 and were arraigned in United States District Court in Paducah, before Magistrate Judge Lanny King that same day.
If convicted at trial, the defendants could be sentenced to no more than 20 years in prison per count, pay a $250,000 fine for each count, and be sentenced to serve a three-year period of supervised release.
This case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Nute Bonner and is being investigated by the Kentucky Attorney General’s Office and the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI).