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2 November 2016
Buffalo Man Sentenced on Cocaine ChargeRead the Press Release
CONTACT: Barbara Burns
PHONE: (716) 843-5817
FAX: (716) 551-3051BUFFALO, N.Y.-Acting U.S. Attorney James P. Kennedy, Jr. announced today that Nelson Pacheco, 44, of Buffalo, NY, who was convicted of conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute and to distribute 500 grams or more of cocaine, was sentenced to 108 months by U.S. District Judge Richard J. Arcara.
Assistant U.S. Attorney George C. Burgasser, who handled the case, stated that between December 2010 and April 4, 2011, the defendant conspired with co-defendant Dennis Berard to distribute cocaine in the Buffalo area. On June 30, 2011, law enforcement officers executed a search warrant at Pacheco’s residence and recovered three handguns, ammunition and approximately $18,000 in cash. Dennis Berard was convicted and sentenced.
The sentencing is the culmination of an investigation on the part of Immigration and Customs Enforcement, Homeland Security Investigations, Border Enforcement Security Task Force, under the direction of Special Agent-in-Charge James C. Spero, the Niagara Falls Police Department, under the direction of Chief Bryan DalPorto, and the Niagara County Sheriff's Department, under the direction of Sheriff James Voutour.
Buffalo Man Sentenced for Conspiracy to Commit ArsonRead the Press Release
CONTACT: Barbara Burns
PHONE: (716) 843-5817
FAX: (716) 551-3051BUFFALO, N.Y.-Acting U.S. Attorney James P. Kennedy, Jr. announced today that Christopher Gorman, 51, of Buffalo, NY, who was convicted of conspiracy to damage a building used in an activity affecting interstate commerce by means of fire and an explosive, was sentenced to 41 months in prison by U.S. District Judge Richard J. Arcara.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Timothy C. Lynch, who handled the case, stated that on the night of June 12, 2014, Gorman had been drinking with Lowell Carey and Ryan Smolinski at Carey’s house. Smolinski was upset that his father was losing his business, Western New York Property Contractors, located at 349 Ontario Street, in Buffalo which he co-owned with another individual. Smolinski asked Carey and Gorman if they would help him burn the building. They agreed and made two Molotov cocktails using beer bottles they had been drinking from and gasoline and a t-shirt as a wick.
Thereafter, in the early morning hours of June 13, 2014, Gorman, Smolinski, and Carey proceeded to Western New York Property Contractors where Carey lit and threw one of the Molotov cocktails onto the roof of the building. Smolinski lit and placed the other Molotov cocktail underneath a garage door on the side of the building with Gorman’s assistance. The outside of the building was burned in the areas where the Molotov cocktails were located resulting in approximately $2,207.89 in damages.
Carey and Smolinski were previously convicted and sentenced.
The sentencing is the culmination of an investigation by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Ashan Benedict, New York Field Division, and the Buffalo Fire Department under the direction of Commissioner Garnell W. Whitfield, Jr.
Berwick Man Charged with Heroin TraffickingRead the Press Release
SCRANTON- The United States Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Pennsylvania announced today that a grand jury in Scranton charged Edwin Vaquiz, age 27, a resident of Berwick, Pennsylvania, on October 25, 2016, with distribution and possession with intent to distribute heroin.
The indictment was unsealed yesterday following the arrest of Vaquiz in Berwick. Vaquiz was arraigned before United States Magistrate Judge Karoline Mehalchick and was ordered detained.
According to United States Attorney Bruce D. Brandler, the indictment charges Vaquiz with distributing heroin on January 22, 2016 and possession with intent to distribute over sixty grams (equivalent of approximately 1,800 retail bags) of heroin on January 29, 2016, in the Berwick area.
The case was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and the Berwick Police Department. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Sean A. Camoni.
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.
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 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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Bass Pro Shops Firearms Thieves Plead GuiltyRead the Press Release
United States Attorney G.F. “Pete” Peterman, III, of the Middle District of Georgia announces that on October 31, 2016, Dante Thomas, 32, of Atlanta, Georgia entered a guilty plea to Conspiracy to Commit Theft from a Federal Firearms Licensee. Co-defendant Jabari Walters, 23, of East Point, Georgia, entered a plea to the same charge on September 12, 2016 as did co-defendants Tabari Walters, 23, of East Point, Georgia, and Kenneth Atwater, 34, of McDonough, Georgia, on October 27, 2016.
Through their pleas, these men admitted that on September 29, 2013, after discussing the idea of stealing firearms, they drove to the Bass Pro Shops in Macon, Georgia and parked along the side of Interstate 75 northbound, in the proximity of the business. All four men ran up the hill and approached the Bass Pro Shops on foot. Mr. Thomas broke and cleared the glass from the window of an emergency door using a yellow crowbar to gain access. They entered the store and ran to the firearms section, where they stole 17 firearms. The men then left the store and returned to Mr. Thomas’ vehicle, which they drove back to the Atlanta area.
Agents later obtained a search warrant for Mr. Thomas’ residence, in which they found a yellow crowbar that matched the one used to break into the Bass Pro Shops. The agents also obtained records from Mr. Thomas’ cell phone which revealed that his cell phone pinged off cell phone towers in the vicinity of the Bass Pro Shops around the time that the burglary took place.
All four men each face a maximum sentence of five years of imprisonment, a $250,000 fine, or both. Sentencing for Jabari Walters is currently set for November 20, 2016. Sentencing for Tabari Walters, Kenneth Atwater, and Dante Thomas is currently scheduled for February 15, 2017.
This case was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives. Assistant United States Attorney Beth Howard is handling the prosecution for the Government.
Questions concerning this case should be directed to Pamela Lightsey, Public Information Officer, United States Attorney’s Office, at (478) 621-2603.
Atlantic City Couple Admit Drug Trafficking and Money LaunderingRead the Press Release
CAMDEN, N.J. – An Atlantic City couple yesterday admitted their respective roles in drug trafficking and money laundering in the Atlantic County area, U.S. Attorney Paul J. Fishman announced.
Toye Tutis, 44, pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Jerome B. Simandle in Camden federal court to Count One of a second superseding indictment, charging him with conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute cocaine, crack cocaine and heroin, and Count 13 charging him with conspiring with his long-time paramour, Jazmin Vega, 42, to launder his drug trafficking proceeds. Vega also pleaded guilty to the Count 13 conspiracy to launder Tutis’s drug proceeds.
According to documents filed in this case and statements made in court:
From 2010 through December 2014, Tutis operated a large-scale drug trafficking ring out of the Ta’Ja Laundromat in Atlantic City, purchasing and distributing between 150 to 450 kilograms of cocaine and approximately 26 kilograms of heroin, and laundering between $1.5 and $3 million in drug proceeds. Tutis was aided by Vega, who admitted to laundering his drug trafficking proceeds in several ways, including through the couple’s various businesses – Ta’Ja Construction I LLC; Ta’Ja Real Estate Investors LLC; and Integrity Heating and Cooling LLC; and by purchasing more than 30 properties with tainted funds. As part of their plea agreements, Vega and Tutis have to forfeit 20 properties, cash and other assets.
The drug trafficking conspiracy count to which Tutis pleaded guilty carries a maximum potential penalty of life in prison and a fine of $10 million. The money laundering count to which Tutis and Vega both pleaded guilty carries a maximum potential penalty of 20 years in prison and a $500,000. Sentencing is scheduled for Feb. 17, 2017.
Nine other people have pleaded guilty to participating in the drug trafficking conspiracy or other related drug trafficking in the Atlantic County area, including:
- Kabaka Atiba, 46, of Atlantic City, sentencing scheduled for Jan. 20, 2017;
- Tozine Tiller, 42, of Absecon, sentencing scheduled for Jan. 20, 2017;
- TeJohn Cooper, 43, of Galloway Township, sentencing scheduled for Dec. 16, 2016;
- Ronald Douglas Byrd, 51, of Pleasantville, sentencing scheduled for Dec. 2, 2016;
- Kareem Taylor, 41, of Atlantic City; sentencing scheduled for Dec. 2, 2016;
- Talib Tiller, 43, of Mays Landing, sentencing scheduled for Dec. 1, 2016;
- John Wellman, 41, of Somers Point, sentencing scheduled for Dec. 1, 2016;
- Phillip Horton, 50, of Los Angeles, California, sentencing scheduled for Dec. 1, 2016; and
- Francisco Alberto Rascon-Muracami, 22, of Obregon, Mexico, sentenced on Oct. 30, 2015, to 70 months’ imprisonment and five years of supervised release.
U.S. Attorney Fishman credited special agents of the FBI’s Newark Division, Atlantic City Resident Agency, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Timothy Gallagher; the DEA’s New Jersey Division, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Carl J. Kotowski; the Atlantic County Prosecutor’s Office, under the direction of Acting Prosecutor Diane Ruberton; and the Atlantic City Police Department, under the direction of Police Chief Henry White, with the investigation leading to today’s guilty pleas.
He also thanked the N.J. State Police; the Pennsylvania State Police, the Atlantic County Sheriff’s Office; the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms; U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE)-Homeland Security Investigation (HSI); U.S. Postal Inspection Service; Cumberland County Sheriff’s Office and the Ventnor, Northfield and Millville police departments for their assistance.
The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Diana Carrig and Howard Wiener of the Camden Division and Jonathan M. Peck of the Newark Division.
Defense counsel:
Tutis: J. Michael Farrell Esq., Philadelphia
Vega: Troy A. Archie Esq., Cinnaminson, New Jersey
Anchorage Man Convicted of Drug and Money Laundering OffensesRead the Press Release
Anchorage, Alaska – U.S. Attorney Karen L. Loeffler announced that after an eight-day trial, a federal jury found Murville Lavelle Lampkin, 44, resident of Anchorage, Alaska, guilty yesterday of conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine and heroin, money laundering conspiracy, distribution of heroin, and possession with the intent to distribute methamphetamine.
According to the evidence at trial, starting in late spring 2014, Toa Danh “Tony” Ly began to distribute marijuana and methamphetamine in Anchorage, the Valley, and Kenai Peninsula. Ly later included heroin among the items he distributed. Proceeds from these drug sales were deposited in Wells Fargo bank accounts. Individuals who sold drugs and made deposits of drug money for Ly included Pao Lee, Rennie Davis, Robert Rast, Tracey Trujillo, Mark Hanes and Susan Bradshaw.
On Nov. 8, 2014, Anchorage Police arrested Davis and Rast. Shortly thereafter, Ly met Lampkin, who agreed to sell drugs and deposit money for him. Lampkin’s first deposits of drug proceeds occurred on Nov. 12, 2014. In total, Lampkin deposited $57,000 worth of drug proceeds into Wells Fargo bank accounts controlled by Ly.
On Jan. 8, 2015, an undercover informant working for the FBI called Ly and negotiated the purchase of a half-ounce of heroin for $1300. Ly told the informant to go to a McDonald’s restaurant in Anchorage. Ly told the informant that the “new guy Lamar” would meet him with the heroin, and that “Lamar” would be driving a silver Trailblazer. Two minutes after this phone call, Ly called Lampkin. After Ly received a text from the informant telling him that he had arrived at the McDonald’s, Ly called Lampkin to pass along the information. Three minutes later, Lampkin was observed leaving his residence and driving directly to the McDonald’s where he parked next to the informant. The informant got out of his vehicle and climbed into the Trailblazer. After introducing himself, Lampkin told the informant that Pao Lee was unavailable because he was “running around,” and that the defendant is going to “take care of things on this side of town[.]” After confirming the sale of a “half” – approximately 15 grams of heroin for $1300 – Lampkin told the informant to call “Tony” for future buys, and that Tony “will call [the defendant].”
On Jan. 14, 2015, law enforcement executed search warrants at multiple locations connected to the conspiracy. In a locked safe at the foot of Lampkin’s bed, law enforcement located approximately 400 grams of methamphetamine packaged into 15 individual Ziploc baggies. Also in the safe were smaller baggies into which doses of drugs could be packaged, and a digital scale used to measure drug quantities.
This is Lampkin’s third drug conviction. In 2002, Lampkin pled guilty in federal court to distribution and possession of cocaine with the intent to distribute. He was sentenced to 10 years in prison. While in custody, Lampkin was convicted in Alaska state court of promoting contraband in the first degree for possessing oxycodone and tetrahydrocannabinol.
Lampkin was the former bouncer at Rumrunners Old Towne Bar & Grill. In 2012, he was convicted in state court of fourth degree assault following a fight with a patron. Lampkin was sentenced in that case to two months in jail and two years of probation.
Lampkin is scheduled to be sentenced by U.S. District Judge Sharon L. Gleason on Jan. 12, 2017.
Because of his prior drug trafficking convictions, the maximum statutory penalty for a violation of 21 U.S.C. §§ 841(a)(1) and 846, Conspiracy to Distribute Controlled Substances, and Possession with the Intent to Distribute Methamphetamine is not less than 20 years to life, a fine of $20,000,000, a 10-year term of supervised release, and a $100 special assessment. The final sentence, however, will be determined at the discretion of the court after consideration of any applicable statutory factors and the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, which take into account a number of variables.
The status of other defendants indicted as part of this case is as follows:
- Toa Danh “Tony” Ly pleaded guilty to conspiracy to distribute controlled substances and money laundering conspiracy. The sentencing hearing is set for Dec. 2, 2016.
- Pao Lee pleaded guilty to conspiracy to distribute controlled substances and distribution of controlled substances. The sentencing hearing is set for Dec. 7, 2016.
- Robert Lee Rast pleaded guilty to conspiracy to distribute controlled substances. The sentencing hearing is set for Jan. 20, 2017.
- Tracey Trujillo pleaded guilty to money laundering conspiracy. The sentencing hearing is set for Jan. 9, 2017.
- Renee Marie Davis pleaded guilty to conspiracy to distribute controlled substances. On Jan. 19, 2016, the Court sentenced her to six years in prison.
- Adam Michael Cornelison pleaded guilty to use of a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking offense. On Feb. 9, 2016, the Court sentenced him to five years in prison.
The case was the product of an investigation by the FBI’s Safe Streets Task Force, an FBI-led task force comprised of FBI Special Agents, Anchorage Police Department officers, Alaska State Troopers, and the United States Marshals. Assistance was also provided by the Internal Revenue Service, Criminal Investigation; APD’s Special Assignment Unit (SAU); and the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA). Assistant U.S. Attorney Kyle Reardon prosecuted the case.
Alien Sentenced to Three Years on Identity Theft ChargesRead the Press Release
Tampa, Florida – U.S. District Judge Susan C. Bucklew today sentenced Jose Avianeda-Espinoza (44, Hillsborough County) to three years in federal prison for making material false representations to an agency of the United Sates, making false statements as to his citizenship, and aggravated identity theft. He pleaded guilty on August 3, 2016.
According to court documents, Avianeda, a citizen of Mexico, used a U.S. citizen’s identity for nearly 17 years to obtain a number of government identifications and to avoid deportation. In December 2015, he gave a false name to deportation officers and falsely claimed to be a U.S. citizen. He subsequently recanted his claim, however, and admitted to being a citizen of Mexico who was illegally present in the United States. On January 4, 2016, Avianeda appeared before an immigration judge and reasserted his claim to United States citizenship, providing a false name to the court and relying on a stolen birth certificate from Puerto Rico. He subsequently repeated his false claim to immigration officers. In March 2016, Avianeda again appeared before an immigration judge for removal proceedings and falsely identified himself to the court.
This case was investigated by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations and the Fugitive Operation Task Force. It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Kaitlin R. O’Donnell.
Albuquerque Man Pleads Guilty to Federal Child Pornography ChargesRead the Press Release
ALBUQUERQUE – Paul Keenahan, 45, of Albuquerque, N.M., pled guilty this morning to possession of visual depictions of minors engaged in sexually explicit conduct charges. Under the terms of his plea agreement, Keenahan will be sentenced within the range of 60 to 151 months in prison followed by 15 years of supervised release. Keenahan will also be required to register as a sex offender when he completes his prison sentence.
Keenahan was arrested in Sept. 2015, on a criminal complaint charging him with distributing child pornography in Bernalillo County, N.M. According to the criminal complaint, the investigation into Keenahan began in July 2015, when the New Mexico Internet Crimes Against Children (ICAC) Task Force received a tip about an IP address that was being used to share child pornography. Investigation revealed that the IP address was subscribed to a motel on Candelaria Road NE in Albuquerque, where it was being used by Keenahan, who was then employed by and living at the motel.
According to the criminal complaint, law enforcement officers executed a state search warrant at Keenahan’s home on July 23, 2015, and seized a laptop computer containing files consistent with child pornography. Keenahan was arrested on state charges that day. A forensic examination of Keenahan’s laptop computer revealed that it contained more than 10,000 files of child pornography.
Keenahan was subsequently indicted on Oct. 7, 2015, and charged with three counts of distribution of child pornography and three counts of possession of child pornography.
During today’s proceedings, Keenahan pled guilty to three counts of possession of child pornography. In entering the guilty plea, Keenahan admitted that from Feb. 14, 2012 through July 23, 2015, he possessed electronic devices containing visual depictions of minors engaging in sexually explicit conduct. Keenahan further admitted the following:
- From Nov. 2014 through July 2015, he possessed a computer containing approximately 1,010 video files and 8,949 images of child pornography;
- From Aug. 2014 through July 2015, he possessed an external hard drive that contained approximately 58 video files and 1,530 images of child pornography; and
- From Feb. 2012 through July 2015, he possessed six DVDs containing approximately 170 videos and images of child pornography.
Keenahan remains in custody pending a sentencing hearing, which has yet to be scheduled.
This case was investigated by the New Mexico ICAC Task Force, Bernalillo County Sheriff’s Office, Albuquerque office of the FBI, Office of the New Mexico Attorney General, the U.S. Marshals Service and the New Mexico Regional Computer Forensic Laboratory with assistance from the 2nd Judicial District Attorney’s Office and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of New York.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Sarah Mease is prosecuting the case as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice (DOJ) to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by United States Attorneys’ Offices and DOJ’s Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state and local resources to better locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the Internet, as well as to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit http://www.justice.gov/psc/.
The case also was brought as a part of the New Mexico ICAC Task Force’s mission, which is to locate, track, and capture Internet child sexual predators and Internet child pornographers in New Mexico. There are 86 federal, state and local law enforcement agencies associated with the New Mexico ICAC Task Force, which is funded by a grant administered by the New Mexico Office of the Attorney General. Anyone with information relating to suspected child predators and suspected child abuse is encouraged to contact federal or local law enforcement.
Alamogordo Woman Sentenced to 12 Years for Federal Methamphetamine Trafficking ConvictionRead the Press Release
ALBUQUERQUE – Robin Lee Lovelace, 56, of Alamogordo, N.M., was sentenced today in federal court in Las Cruces, N.M., to 12 years in prison followed by five years of supervised release for her conviction on methamphetamine trafficking crime charges.
Lovelace was one of 34 individuals charged in December 2015 with federal and tribal drug offenses as the result of an 18-month multi-agency investigation led by the DEA and BIA into methamphetamine trafficking on the Mescalero Apache Reservation. Eighteen defendants, including five members of the Mescalero Apache Tribe and 13 non-Natives were charged in six federal indictments and a federal criminal complaint. Sixteen other members of the Mescalero Apache Tribe were charged in tribal criminal complaints approved by the Mescalero Apache Tribal Court.
The investigation leading to the federal and tribal charges was initiated in May 2014, in response to an increase in violent crime on the Mescalero Apache Reservation perpetrated by methamphetamine users. The investigation initially targeted a drug trafficking organization that was allegedly distributing methamphetamine within the Reservation, and later expanded to include two other drug trafficking organizations in southeastern New Mexico that allegedly served as sources of supply for the methamphetamine distributed within the Reservation. In Aug. 2014, the investigation was designated as part of the Justice Department’s Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF) program, which combines the resources and unique expertise of federal agencies, along with their local counterparts, in a coordinated effort to disrupt and dismantle major drug trafficking organizations. The investigation is one of the first OCDETF investigations to utilize electronic surveillance (wiretaps) in Indian Country. More than ten kilograms of methamphetamine were seized during the course of the investigation.
Lovelace was arrested on Nov. 20, 2015, on an indictment charging her and seven other non-Natives with methamphetamine trafficking and money laundering offenses. The indictment charged Lovelace with participation in a methamphetamine trafficking conspiracy, distribution of methamphetamine, possession of methamphetamine with intent to distribute, and use of a communication device to facilitate a drug trafficking crime.
On March 9, 2016, Lovelace pled guilty to participating in the methamphetamine trafficking conspiracy, distribution of methamphetamine and possession of methamphetamine with intent to distribute and admitted that between April 9, 2015 and Oct. 16, 2015, she and a co-defendant conspired to sell methamphetamine to another individual who unbeknownst to them was an undercover law enforcement agent. During that same time period, she also sold methamphetamine to other individuals who then distributed methamphetamine to their customers.
Lovelace also admitted selling the following quantities of methamphetamine to an undercover agent as follows:
- 27.4 grams on April 9, 2015, in Bent, N.M.
- 56 grams on April 17, 2015, in Mescalero
- 84 grams on May 8, 2015, in Mescalero
- 112 grams on May 15, 2015, in Mescalero
- 112 grams on June 8, 2015, in Mescalero
- 140 grams on July 1, 2015, in Mescalero
- 580 grams on July 24, 2015, in Socorro,
- 140 grams on Aug. 6, 2015, in Mescalero,
- 140 grams on Sept. 3, 2015, in Tularosa, N.M.
- 212 grams on Oct. 9, 2015, in Alamogordo, N.M.
Lovelace also admitted that on Oct. 15, 2015, she facilitated the sale of 364.2 grams of methamphetamine to an undercover law enforcement agent.
Thirteen of the 18 federal defendants have entered guilty pleas. The remaining five federal defendants have entered not guilty pleas to the charges against them. Charges in indictments are merely accusations and defendants are presumed innocent unless found guilty in a court of law.
The federal and tribal cases were investigated by the Las Cruces office of the DEA, District IV of the BIA’s Office of Justice Services (Mescalero Agency), BIA’s Division of Drug Enforcement, Mescalero Tribal Police Department, Hatch Police Department, FBI and Lea County Drug Task Force. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Terri J. Abernathy and Clara Cobos of the U.S. Attorney’s Las Cruces Branch Office are prosecuting the federal cases, and Mescalero Tribal Prosecutor Melissa Chavez is prosecuting the tribal cases.
13 Gang Members, Felons and Their Associates Indicted as Part of ATF-LAPD Investigation Targeting Crime in San Fernando ValleyRead the Press Release
LOS ANGELES – As the result of a seven-month investigation by special agents with the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) and officers with the Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD), federal grand juries have issued nine indictments that charge a total of 13 defendants with firearms and narcotics violations.
During an early morning operation today, authorities arrested ten of the federal defendants. Two of the defendants under indictment are currently fugitives and one defendant is already in state custody. This morning’s operation also resulted in the seizure of 13 additional firearms, approximately two and one-half pounds of methamphetamine, approximately a quarter pound of crack cocaine, and approximately quarter pound of heroin.
In addition to the 13 federal defendants, authorities have arrested eight other defendants who are expected to be prosecuted by the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office.
From February through July, the joint ATF-LAPD operation called Crime Area Gun Enforcement (CAGE) targeted violent offenders, gang members and previously convicted felons and their associates who were suspected of being involved in illegal firearm possession and sales, as well as narcotics distribution, in the San Fernando Valley. Investigators used confidential informants as part of an undercover operation in which ATF agents purchased contraband. As a result of the CAGE operation, authorities have seized approximately 20 pounds of methamphetamine and 40 weapons, including restricted firearms such as short-barrel rifles and silencers. The investigation also uncovered two locations where AR-15- and AK-47-type rifles were being clandestinely manufactured or illegally sold.
"This operation has removed dangerous drugs from the black market and has shut off a source of illegal firearms that can cause so much violence and damage in our neighborhoods," said United States Attorney Eileen M. Decker. "Criminals who engage in the illegal trafficking of drugs and guns can and should expect to be prosecuted, especially when they have previously been convicted of similar crimes."
"ATF is committed to reducing violent crime," said Eric Harden, Special Agent in Charge of the ATF’s Los Angeles Field Division. "ATF accomplishes this by working with LAPD and identifying and targeting criminal organizations and the persons responsible for perpetrating violence in our communities."
"There is no doubt that removing guns from our streets and arresting criminals who use and carry guns prevents senseless violence in our communities," said LAPD Chief Charlie Beck. "Removing even one gun from the streets means one less Angeleno robbed, shot, or murdered. Removing illegal guns is one of the LAPD’s highest priorities and working with our federal partners will help make our communities safer."
Over the past several weeks, federal grand juries returned nine indictments that charge 13 defendants. Those defendants facing federal charges are:
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Fidel Moreno-Dominguez, 47, of Palmdale, and Walter Wilfredo Lagos, 34, of Palmdale, who are charged with conspiracy to distribute one pound of methamphetamine and distribution of methamphetamine. Moreno-Dominguez is additionally charged with being a felon in possession of a firearm after being convicted of selling narcotics. Lagos is currently a fugitive.
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Robert Steven Carrillo, 31, of Redlands, and Alexander Ramirez Manzo (also known as "Dozer"), 34, of Pacoima, who are charged with conspiracy to engage in the business of dealing in firearms without a license, engaging in the business of dealing in firearms without a license, and possession of unregistered firearms. Manzo additionally is charged with being a felon in possession of a firearm after being convicted of burglary and sale of a controlled substance.
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Brandon C. Torres, 30, of Van Nuys, who is charged with engaging in the business of dealing in firearms without a license, two counts of being a felon in possession of firearms and ammunition after being convicted of possession of a controlled substance, and distribution of approximately one-quarter pound of methamphetamine.
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Antonio Cisneros, also known as "Trippy," 31 of North Hollywood, and Gino Cesar Dresda, 24, of Panorama City, who are charged with distribution of approximately one-quarter pound of methamphetamine. Additionally, Cisneros is charged with possession of a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime, distribution of a second quarter-pound of methamphetamine, and being a felon in possession of a firearm and ammunition after being convicted of possessing a controlled substance and firearms offenses. Cisneros is currently a fugitive.
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Anival Alvarez, 41, of San Fernando, and Maribel Lopez-Reyes, 30, also of San Fernando, who are charged with for conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine and two counts of distributing approximately one-quarter pound of methamphetamine.
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Luis Angel Torres, 28, of Palmdale, who is charged with engaging in the business of dealing in firearms without a license, and two counts of being a felon in possession of firearms and ammunition after being convicted of possession for sale of a controlled substance.
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Rudy Salazar, 36, of Mission Hills, who is charged with distribution of approximately one-quarter pound of methamphetamine.
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Albert Benjamin Perez, also known as "Dragon," 57, of Granada Hills, who is charged with distribution of methamphetamine.
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Steven Clyde Neaville, 53, of Van Nuys, who is charged with distribution of approximately one-quarter pound of methamphetamine.
Those taken into federal custody this morning were arraigned this afternoon in United States District Court in Los Angeles, and all were ordered detained.
An indictment contains allegations that a defendant has committed a crime. Every defendant is presumed to be innocent until and unless proven guilty in court.
The 13 federal defendants are facing statutory maximum sentences ranging from five years in federal in federal prison to life imprisonment for the charges contained in the indictments. Some of the federal defendants are also facing mandatory minimum sentences of five or 10 years in connection with certain drug distribution charges.
The federal cases brought as part of the CAGE operation are being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Julian L. André and Karen E. Escalante of the General Crimes Section.
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1 November 2016
Zuni Pueblo Man Sentenced to Eight Years for Federal Child Sexual Abuse ConvictionRead the Press Release
ALBUQUERQUE – Joshua Lasiloo, 32, a member and resident of Zuni Pueblo, N.M., was sentenced today in federal court in Albuquerque, N.M., to eight years in prison followed by five years of supervised release for his conviction on a child sexual abuse charge. Lasiloo will be required to register as a sex offender when he completes his prison sentence.
Lasiloo was arrested on Oct. 23, 2015, on a three-count indictment charging him with sexually abusing a child under the age of 12 years from March 2013 through Sept. 2013, in Indian Country in McKinley County, N.M.
On May 12, 2016, Lasiloo pled guilty to a felony information charging him with abusive sexual contact of a minor. In entering the guilty plea, Lasiloo admitted that from March 20, 2013 through Sept. 21, 2013, he sexually abused the victim who was under the age of 12 years.
This case was investigated by the Albuquerque office of the FBI and the Zuni Pueblo Tribal Police Department. Assistant U.S. Attorney Raquel Ruiz-Velez prosecuted the case as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice (DOJ) to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by United States Attorneys’ Offices and DOJ’s Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state and local resources to better locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the Internet, as well as to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit http://www.justice.gov/psc/.
Wilkes-Barre Man Charged in Straw Purchase of FirearmRead the Press Release
SCRANTON - The United States Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Pennsylvania announced today that a Wilkes-Barre man was charged with making false statements to a federally licensed firearm dealer.
According to United States Attorney Bruce D. Brandler, Ruben Rosario, age 19, of Wilkes-Barre, was charged in a Criminal Information, filed October 31, 2016, in United States District Court in Scranton, with providing false information to Piestrak’s Gun Shop, in Nanticoke, Pennsylvania, on April 5, 2016, in connection with the purchase of a firearm.
This matter was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Robert J. O’Hara.
Together with the Criminal Information, the government also filed a plea agreement with Rosario, which is subject to the approval of the court. No date has yet been scheduled for the entry of Rosario’s guilty plea.
This case was brought as part of the Violent Crime Reduction Partnership (“VCRP”), a district wide initiative to combat the spread of violent crime in the Middle District of Pennsylvania. Led by the United States Attorney’s Office, the VCRP consists of federal, state and local law enforcement agencies whose mission is to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who commit violent crimes.
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 is ten 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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Weymouth Woman Pleads Guilty to Stealing $700,000 from EmployerRead the Press Release
BOSTON – A Weymouth woman pleaded guilty today in U.S. District Court in Boston in connection with a fraud scheme in which she stole approximately $701,826 from her employer.
Katelin Garland, 39, pleaded guilty to two counts of wire fraud. U.S. District Court Judge Nathaniel M. Gorton scheduled sentencing for Feb. 1, 2017.
As an administrative manager, Garland was responsible for depositing checks received, maintaining the record-keeping system, and requesting checks payable for entities in connection with business services. From approximately October 2011 to October 2015, Garland took advantage of flaws in her employer’s accounting and auditing systems and requested checks payable to fictitious names, which she then endorsed for deposit to a bank account she controlled. To conceal the scheme, Garland made false entries in her employer’s record-keeping system concerning those payments. She used the funds to pay for routine living expenses, tickets to sporting events, private school tuition for her children, and to purchase a boat, travel, and to shop.
The charging statute provides for a sentence of no greater than 20 years in prison, three years of supervised release, a fine of $250,000 and restitution. Actual sentences for federal crimes are typically less than the maximum penalties. Sentences are imposed by a federal district court judge based upon the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
United States Attorney Carmen M. Ortiz and Shelly Binkowski, Inspector in Charge of the U.S. Postal Inspection Service made the announcement today. Assistant U.S. Attorney Mark J. Balthazard of Ortiz’s Economic Crimes Unit is prosecuting the case.
Wellsburg Man Charged with Production of Child PornographyRead the Press Release
CONTACT: Barbara Burns
PHONE: (716) 843-5817
FAX: (716) 551-3051ROCHESTER, N.Y.- Acting U.S. Attorney James P. Kennedy, Jr. announced today that Joshua Vandegrift, 29, of Wellsburg, NY, was arrested and charged by criminal complaint with production of child pornography. The charge carries a minimum of 15 years in prison, a maximum penalty of 30 years, and a $250,000 fine.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Tiffany H. Lee, who is handling the case, stated that according to the complaint, between October 2014 and January 2015, Vandegrift engaged in sexually explicit communications via social media with a number of minor females. Those communications included enticing the minors to send sexually explicit photos of themselves to the defendant. The minors included a 17 year-old, a 12 year-old and two 13 year-olds.
The complaint is the result of an investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Adam S. Cohen, the Chemung County Sheriff’s Office, under the direction of Christopher Moss, and the Oswego County Sheriff’s Office, under the direction of Reuel Todd.
The fact that a defendant has been charged with a crime is merely an accusation and the defendant is presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty.
Webster County man charged with failing to register as a sex offenderRead the Press Release
ELKINS, WEST VIRGINIA – A federal grand jury sitting in Clarksburg, West Virginia, returned an indictment today charging Timothy A. Yeigh, 28, of Camden on Gauley, West Virginia, with failing to register as a sex offender, United States Attorney William J. Ihlenfeld, II, announced.
Yeigh allegedly traveled in interstate commerce from West Virginia to Florida and failed to register and update his registration as a sex offender. Yeigh is required to register under the Sex Offender Registration and Notification Act by reason of a conviction under state law.
He was charged with one count of “Failure to Update Sex Offender Registration.” He faces up to ten years in prison and a fine up to $250,000. 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 Sarah W. Montoro is handling the case on behalf of the government. The United States Marshals Service is investigating.
An indictment is merely an accusation. A defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.U.S. Citizen Residing in Mexico Sentenced to Prison for Violating Federal Drug Trafficking LawsRead the Press Release
ALBUQUERQUE – Leon Homero Hernandez, 42, a U.S. citizen residing in Mexico, was sentenced today in federal court in Las Cruces, N.M., to 84 months in prison followed by four years of supervised release for his conviction on methamphetamine and cocaine trafficking charges.
Hernandez was arrested on Oct. 28, 2015, on a four-count indictment charging him with distributing cocaine on Aug. 17, 2015 and Sept. 2, 2015, and distributing methamphetamine on Sept. 2, 2015 and Sept. 23, 2015. According to the indictment, Hernandez committed the crimes in Dona Ana County, N.M. The indictment included forfeiture provisions requiring Hernandez to forfeit $3,900 to the United States.
On March 10, 2016, Hernandez pled guilty to a felony information charging him with two counts of distributing cocaine and two counts of distributing methamphetamine. In entering the guilty plea, Hernandez admitted distributing quantities of narcotics to an undercover law enforcement agent on the following dates: 24.1 grams of cocaine on Aug. 17, 2015; 23.8 grams of cocaine and 27.3 grams of pure methamphetamine on Sept. 2, 2015; and 56.6 grams of pure methamphetamine on Sept. 23, 2015.
This case was investigated by the Las Cruces office of the DEA and was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Terri J. Abernathy of the U.S. Attorney’s Las Cruces branch office.
Two Noel Men, Crocker Man Indicted for Meth ConspiracyRead the Press Release
SPRINGFIELD, Mo. – Tammy Dickinson, United States Attorney for the Western District of Missouri, announced that two Noel, Mo., men and a Crocker, Mo., man were indicted by a federal grand jury today for their roles in a conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine in Pulaski County, Mo., and McDonald County, Mo.
Michael Huckabey, 39, and Wesley A. Burrow, 34, both of Noel, and Steven C. McCurley, 50, of Crocker, were charged in an indictment returned by a federal grand jury in Springfield, Mo.
Today’s indictment alleges that Huckabey, Burrow and McCurley participated in a conspiracy to distribute 500 grams or more of methamphetamine in Pulaski and McDonald counties from Dec. 16, 2015, to May 9, 2016.
Dickinson cautioned that the charge contained in this indictment is simply an accusation, and not evidence of guilt. Evidence supporting the charge must be presented to a federal trial jury, whose duty is to determine guilt or innocence.
This case is being prosecuted by Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Jody Larison. It was investigated by the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, the Waynesville, Mo., Police Department, the Pulaski County, Mo., Sheriff’s Department, the Ozarks Drug Enforcement Team and the McDonald County, Mo., Sheriff’s Department.
Two MS-13 Gang Members Convicted of Murder Are Sentenced to Life in PrisonRead the Press Release
CHARLOTTE, N.C. – U.S. Attorney Jill Westmoreland Rose announced today that U.S. District Judge Robert J. Conrad, Jr. handed down life sentences to two MS-13 gang members convicted of murder.
In April 2016, a federal jury convicted Miguel Zelaya, 22, of Charlotte, of conspiracy to participate in racketeering activity (RICO), murder in aid of racketeering, use or carry of a firearm during and in relation to a crime of violence, and possession of a firearm in furtherance of a crime of violence resulting in the death of Jose Orlando Ibarra.
Luis Ordonez-Vega, 37, of Concord, N.C. was convicted of RICO conspiracy, murder in aid of racketeering, use or carry of a firearm during and in relation to a crime of violence, and possession of a firearm in furtherance of a crime of violence resulting in the death of Noel Navarro Hernandez.
A third MS-13 gang member, Jorge Garcia, 27, of Charlotte, was also sentenced today to 70 months in prison and two years of supervised release, after pleading guilty to a RICO conspiracy and attempted murder in aid of racketeering charges.
According to filed court documents, trial evidence and statements made in court:
From at least in or about 2009 to about May 2015, the three men along with 34 other co-defendants named in a federal indictment, were members of the MS-13 gang, a criminal organization with over 6,000 members in the United States and 30,000 members internationally. MS-13 originated in Los Angeles, California, and has spread to states across the country, including in North Carolina. The gang’s members are mostly immigrants or descendants of immigrants from El Salvador and other Central and Latin American countries. In North Carolina, some of the active MS-13 members are divided into different groups, or “cliques,” which include the “Trece Locos Salvatrucha,” the “Hollywood Locos Salvatrucha,” the “Charlotte Locotes Salvatrucha,” the “Centrales Locos Salvatrucha,” and the “Coronados Little Cycos Salvatrucha,” among others. The different cliques work together to carry out criminal acts, to protect the interests of the criminal enterprise, and to assist each other in avoiding law enforcement detection.
MS-13 members adhere to a set of gang rules and pay dues which fund the gang’s criminal activities and support other gang members or their families in the U.S and abroad. Gang members are also expected to protect the name, reputation, and status of the gang and its members, and to punish through acts of violence and intimidation those who disrespect the gang. Some MS-13 members signify their affiliation with the gang by wearing blue, black and white color clothing and certain “Mara Salvatrucha,” or “MS-13” tattoos.
Members of MS-13 in Charlotte participated in multiple meetings at various times to discuss gang-related matters and to plan the commission of future crimes for the benefit of the gang. They were also responsible for numerous criminal acts including murder and attempted murder.
Zelaya, a/k/a “Most Wanted” and “Ne Ne”, is a member of the “Coronados Little Cycos Salvatrucha” clique. On December 18, 2013, Zelaya shot and killed Jose Orlando Ibarra, an associate of a rival gang, “The Latin Kings.” Zelaya admitted to law enforcement that he shot Jose Ibarra because Ibarra owed him money for a gun and because Ibarra and his brother, a Latin King member, had been looking for one of Zelaya’s “homies” with a shotgun.
Ordonez-Vega, a/k/a “Big Boy,” is a self-admitted member of MS-13 from Nassau County, New York, and a member of the “Brentwood Locos Salvatrucha” clique. Ordonez-Vega has “MS” tattooed across his stomach and “La Mara Salvatrucha” tattooed across his chest. On June 6, 2013, Ordonez-Vega shot and killed Noel Navarro Hernandez in a strip mall parking lot in Charlotte. Ordonez-Vega and other MS-13 members targeted Navarro because they believed that Navarro was a rival gang member because of the way he talked, wore red, and his haircut.
Twenty-nine other MS-13 gang members were previously sentenced in connection with this case:
- Raul Contreras was sentenced to 360 months in prison and three years of supervised release.
- Oscar Trejo was sentenced to 300 months in prison and three years of supervised release.
- Cesar Garcia-Perez was sentenced to 276 months in prison and three years of supervised release.
- Daniel Navarro was sentenced to 240 months in prison and three years of supervised release.
- Jose Danny Argueta was sentenced to 228 months in prison and two years of supervised release.
- Milton Chavarria was sentenced to 228 months in prison and three years of supervised release.
- Alexis Villalta-Morales was sentenced to 204 months in prison and two years of supervised release.
- Christian Pena was sentenced to 180 months in prison.
- Carlos Almonte was sentenced to 144 months in prison and two years of supervised release.
- Luis Funes-Rivera was sentenced to 144 months in prison and two years of supervised release.
- Albert Vela-Garcia was sentenced to 78 months in prison and two years of supervised release.
- Jose Moran-Celis was sentenced to 72 months in prison and two years of supervised release.
- Marlon Vasquez-Maldonado was sentenced to 72 months in prison and three years of supervised release.
- Rene Lopez-Ventura was sentenced to 66 months in prison and two years of supervised release.
- Jose Manuel Linares was sentenced to 60 months in prison and two years of supervised release.
- Juan Bergamasco-Suarez was sentenced to 57 months in prison and two years of supervised release.
- Neris Gutierrez was sentenced to 51 months in prison and two years of supervised release.
- Jose Vasquez was sentenced to 46 months in prison and two years of supervised release.
- Luis Erazo was sentenced to 37 months in prison and two years of supervised release.
- Raul Guardado was sentenced to 36 months in prison and three years of supervised release.
- Jonathan Noble was sentenced to 36 months in prison and two years of supervised release.
- Jaime Turcios was sentenced to 36 months in prison and three years of supervised release.
- Rosendo Rivas was sentenced to 30 months in prison and two years of supervised release.
- Jorge Perez was sentenced to 27 months in prison and two years of supervised release.
- Marvin Fuentes-Canales was sentenced to 24 months in prison and two years of supervised release.
- Saul Gavidia was sentenced to 21 months in prison and three years of supervised release.
- Victor Pineda was sentenced to 21 months in prison and two years of supervised release.
- Angel Hernandez was sentenced to 21 months in prison.
- Fec Rodriguez-Vareal was sentenced to 15 months in prison and one year of supervised release.
Two more defendants, Jorge Sosa and William Gavidia, were previously convicted at trial and are currently awaiting sentencing. Sosa was convicted of RICO conspiracy, attempted murder in aid of racketeering and use or carry of a firearm during and in relation to a crime of violence and possession of a firearm in furtherance of a crime of violence, that being attempted murder in aid of racketeering. Gavidia was convicted of RICO conspiracy.
Three others remain fugitives. They are Miriam Barilles-Escamilla, Salvador Ruiz, and Luis Villalta.
In making today’s announcement U.S. Attorney Rose thanked the Charlotte Division of the FBI and ICE’s Homeland Security Investigations for leading the joint investigation, along with North Carolina’s Alcohol Law Enforcement and the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department.
This prosecution is part of an extensive investigation by the Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF). OCDETF is a joint federal, state and local cooperative approach to combat drug trafficking and is the nation’s primary tool for disrupting and dismantling major drug trafficking organizations, targeting national and regional level drug trafficking organizations and coordinating the necessary law enforcement entities and resources to disrupt or dismantle the targeted criminal organization and seize their assets.
Assistant U.S. Attorneys Elizabeth Greene and William Miller of the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Charlotte are prosecuting the case.
Two Federal Inmates Sentenced to 70 Months in Prison for Assaulting Another InmateRead the Press Release
SCRANTON – The United States Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Pennsylvania announced today that United States District Judge Malachy Mannion sentenced Reuben Blajos, age 42, and Manuel Vasquez-Perez, age 40, for assaulting another inmate while incarcerated at the United States Penitentiary Canaan (USP Canaan) in Waymart, Pennsylvania. Both inmates received a 70 month term of imprisonment.
According to United States Attorney Bruce D. Brandler, Blajos and Vasquez-Perez previously pleaded guilty to the assault, and admitted they beat another inmate with modified flails fashioned from padlocks affixed to socks, and repeatedly kicked their victim while he was on the ground. The victim suffered serious, but not life-threatening brain injuries, and numerous cuts and abrasions throughout his body.
At the time of the assault, Blajos was serving a sentence at USP Canaan pursuant to a 2010 federal conviction for racketeering and narcotics trafficking conspiracies. Judge Mannion ordered that his new sentence run consecutive to his undischarged term of imprisonment.
Vasquez-Perez, a citizen of Mexico, was serving a sentence at USP Canaan pursuant to a 2012 federal conviction for entering the United States illegally after having previously been deported. That sentence for entering the United States illegally expired during the course of the prosecution for the assault offense.
The case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and officers from USP Canaan. Assistant United States Attorney Phillip J. Caraballo prosecuted the case.
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Twin Falls Man Sentenced to 25 Years in Prison for Transportation and Possession of Child PornographyRead the Press Release
BOISE – Stephen Roy Walker, 43, of Twin Falls, Idaho was sentenced today in United States District Court to 300 months in prison followed by 25 years supervised release, for transportation and possession of child pornography, U.S. Attorney Wendy J. Olson announced. Walker pleaded guilty on August 5, 2016.
According to the plea agreement, agents with the Department of Homeland Security served a search warrant at the Old Towne Lodge in Twin Falls, where Walker was living with three minor children, in February of 2014. Agents seized computers and electronic devices pursuant to the warrant, and a subsequent forensic examination of the devices revealed images of child pornography on the devices. In his plea agreement, Walker admitted that he transported 462 digital images and 42 digital videos containing child pornography from Texas to Idaho, and that he possessed the images while living in Idaho. The images included child victims from 46 known child pornography series, and depicted prepubescent minors and images of sadistic and masochistic abuse.
Walker also admitted that 78 of the images, and 4 of the videos, depicted himself engaged in sexually explicit conduct with one of the children who was living with him at the Old Towne Lodge. Walker further admitted that he took these images while living in Texas, and transported them to Idaho.
Chief U.S. District Judge B. Lynn Winmill also ordered Walker to forfeit two laptop computers, an external hard drive, and a digital camera used in the commission of the charged offenses. As a result of his conviction, Walker will be required to register as a sex offender.
“Three innocent children were rescued from a life of certain continued victimization thanks to the swift action of our special agents and partners involved in investigating this case,” said Steve Cagen, acting special agent in charge of HSI Seattle. “No child should be subject to this type of cruel punishment. Together, HSI and local law enforcement strive to assist traumatized youth by holding all child predators accountable for their deeds.”
“The U.S. Attorney's Office will aggressively work with our local, state, and federal partners to stop the sexual exploitation of children,” said Olson. “Those who continue to victimize children will be targeted and prosecuted. Mr. Walker is being severely and appropriately punished for his criminal conduct.”
The case was investigated by the Department of Homeland Security, Homeland Security Investigations and the Twin Falls Police Department, with assistance from the Buhl Police Department, the Idaho State Police, and the Twin Falls County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office.
The case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by the United States Attorneys’ Offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who sexually exploit children, and to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.usdoj.gov/psc. For more information about internet safety education, please visit www.usdoj.gov/psc and click on the tab “resources.”
Three More Indicted Related to Conspiracy to Lure Robbery Victims with Online AdsRead the Press Release
KANSAS CITY, Mo. – Tammy Dickinson, United States Attorney for the Western District of Missouri, announced today that three more defendants have been indicted by a federal grand jury in relation to a conspiracy to use online ads to lure robbery victims.
Kenneth W. Sexson, 32, and Nicole L. Covey, also known as Nicole Waguespack and Nicole Preston, 33, both of Sugar Creek, Mo.; Sage E. Harrison, 35, Devon Davis-Aumua, 21, and Serina Campos, 23, all of Independence, Mo.; and Ray Mahurin, 34, of Blue Springs, Mo., were charged in an 11-count indictment returned by a federal grand jury in Kansas City. Today’s superseding indictment replaces a June 29, 2016, federal indictment and includes Davis-Aumua, Campos and Mahurin as additional defendants as well as additional charges against Sexson, Covey and Harrison.
Today’s indictment alleges that Sexson, Covey, Harrison and Davis-Aumua participated in a conspiracy to commit armed robbery from April 1, 2015, to June 7, 2016. They allegedly used several websites (including craigslist.org, backpage.com and skout.com) to make connections with their victims and arrange meetings at local hotels, residences and apartments. When customers arrived for the meetings, the indictment says, conspirators would be lying in wait, armed with firearms, and rob the customers.
The indictment specifically refers to six armed robberies that occurred in October 2015 at various locations in Kansas City, Mo., Independence, Mo., and North Kansas City, Mo.
In addition to the conspiracy, Sexson and Covey are charged together in two counts of aiding and abetting an armed robbery. Sexson, Covey and Harrison are also charged together in two counts of aiding and abetting armed robbery. Sexson, Covey and Davis-Aumua are also charged together in one count of aiding and abetting an armed robbery and one count of aiding and abetting the brandishing of a firearm in furtherance of a crime of violence.
Sexson is also charged with one count of armed robbery and one count of being a felon in possession of firearms and ammunition. The indictment alleges that Sexson was in possession of a Mossberg 12-gauge shotgun, a Marlin 30-30-caliber rifle, a Glock 9mm pistol, a Springfield 9mm pistol, and various rounds of ammunition on June 7, 2016. Under federal law, it is illegal for anyone who has been convicted of a felony to be in possession of any firearm or ammunition. Sexson has three prior felony convictions for assault and prior felony convictions for being a felon in possession of a firearm, possession of a controlled substance and leaving the scene of an accident.
Davis-Aumua is also charged with one count of being an unlawful drug user in possession of a firearm. The indictment alleges that Davis-Aumua was in possession of a Springfield .45-caliber pistol on Oct. 10, 2015.
Sexson, Mahurin, Covey and Campos are also charged together in one count of being unlawful drug users in possession of firearms and ammunition.
Dickinson cautioned that the charges contained in this indictment are simply accusations, and not evidence of guilt. Evidence supporting the charges must be presented to a federal trial jury, whose duty is to determine guilt or innocence.
This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Matthew P. Wolesky. It was investigated by the FBI, and the Independence, Mo., Police Department, with assistance from the Kansas City, Mo., Police Department, the North Kansas City, Mo., Police Department and the Blue Springs, Mo., Police Department.
Texas man pleads guilty to methamphetamine distribution conspiracyRead the Press Release
SHREVEPORT, La. – United States Attorney Stephanie A. Finley announced that a man from Texas pleaded guilty last week to conspiring to sell methamphetamine in the Shreveport area with another Texas man.
Delton Williams Jr., 29, of Deberry, Texas, pleaded guilty Tuesday before U.S. Magistrate Judge Mark L. Hornsby to one count of conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine. The plea will become final when accepted by U.S. District Judge S. Maurice Hicks Jr. According to the guilty plea, law enforcement agents learned that co-defendant Tares Terrell Hearn, 37, of Carthage, Texas, had organized a transaction to sell methamphetamine on May 10, 2016 at a Greenwood, La., gas station. Williams had arrived earlier in a Cadillac Escalade. Hearn was then seen entering the Escalade and exiting the vehicle with a package tucked under his arm. While Hearn was being arrested, Williams was followed to an adjacent business where he was also arrested. Hearn and Williams were found with large sums of money. Hearn was found with a large amount of methamphetamine not intended for personal use. It was later learned that Williams transported methamphetamine from Texas to Greenwood for Hearn who intended to distribute it
Williams and Hearn face up to 20 years in prison, at least three years of supervised release and a $1 million fine. A sentencing date of February 1, 2017 was set. Hearn pleaded guilty on September 9, 2016 to the conspiracy count. Sentencing for Hearn is set for January 12, 2017.
The DEA and Caddo Parish Sheriff’s Office conducted the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney Brandon B. Brown is prosecuting the case.
Taylor County man charged with illegal possession of a firearmRead the Press Release
CLARKSBURG, WEST VIRGINIA – A federal grand jury sitting in Clarksburg, West Virginia, returned an indictment today charging Rollie C. Poynter, Jr., 50, of Grafton, West Virginia, with illegal possession of a firearm, United States Attorney William J. Ihlenfeld, II, announced.
Poynter, who had previously been convicted of felony offenses in West Virginia, Ohio, and Kentucky, was allegedly found in possession of a .38 caliber revolver in Taylor County, West Virginia.
Poynter was charged with one count of “Unlawful Possession of a Firearm.” He faces up to ten years in prison and a fine up to $250,000. 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 is handling the case on behalf of the government. The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives, the Taylor County Sheriff’s Office, and Grafton City Police Department are investigating.
An indictment is merely an accusation. A defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.State Prisoner Sentenced to 14 Months in Prison for Mailing Threatening Communications to Lancaster County JudgeRead the Press Release
SCRANTON - The United States Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Pennsylvania announced that Joshua Keziah, age 28, an inmate incarcerated at the State Correctional Institution in Frackville, Pennsylvania was sentenced today by United States District Court Judge Malachy E. Mannion in federal court, in Scranton, to 14 months’ imprisonment. Additionally, Keziah receieved two years of post-release supervision that requires the defendant to spend 90 days in a halfway house.
According to United States Attorney Bruce D. Brandler, in August 2016, the defendant pleaded guilty to sending a threathening letter to President Judge Joseph Mandespacher of Lancaster County, Pennsylvania.
The case was investigated by the United States Postal Inspection Service and the Lancaster County Police Department. Assistant United States Attorney Evan Gotlob prosecuted the case.
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St. Albans woman pleads guilty to obtaining pain pills by fraudRead the Press Release
CHARLESTON, W.Va. – A St. Albans woman pleaded guilty today to federal crimes involving obtaining oxycodone and Xanax by fraud, announced United States Attorney Carol Casto. Virginia Scarberry, 52, entered her guilty plea to one count of conspiracy to obtain controlled substances by fraud and one count of obtaining controlled substances by fraud.
Scarberry admitted that on April 14, 2015, she obtained oxycodone and Xanax by presenting a prescription that she knew to be fraudulent to the Kroger pharmacy in St. Albans. Scarberry further admitted that she was paid $250 to get the fraudulent prescription filled and that she also knew the prescription was not valid because she had never been a patient of the doctor whose name was on the preprinted prescription pad.
Scarberry faces up to four years in federal prison for each count, for a total of up to eight years, when she is sentenced on February 1, 2017.
The Dunbar Police Department, the South Charleston Police Department, and the Drug Enforcement Administration conducted the investigation. Assistant United States Attorney Timothy D. Boggess is in charge of the prosecution. The plea hearing was held before United States District Judge Thomas E. Johnston.
This case was prosecuted as part of an ongoing effort led by the United States Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of West Virginia to combat the illicit sale and misuse of prescription drugs and heroin. The U.S. Attorney’s Office, joined by federal, state and local law enforcement agencies, is committed to aggressively pursuing and shutting down illegal pill trafficking, eliminating open air drug markets, and curtailing the spread of opiate painkillers and heroin in communities across the Southern District.
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Springdale Man Sentenced to 5 Years in Federal Prison for Drug TraffickingRead the Press Release
Fayetteville, Arkansas - Kenneth Elser, United States Attorney for the Western District of Arkansas, announced that Carlos Rios, age 38, of Springdale, was sentenced today to 60 months in federal prison followed by three years of supervised release on one count of Distribution of Methamphetamine. The Honorable Timothy L. Brooks presided over the sentencing hearing in the United States District Court in Fayetteville.
According to court records, on or about April 18, 2016 law enforcement conducted a controlled purchase of $1,360 worth of methamphetamine from Rios outside a business in Elm Springs. The suspected substance was sent to the Drug Enforcement Administration Lab for testing and was determined to contain 26.3 grams of actual methamphetamine. Rios was indicted by a federal grand jury in May, 2016 and pleaded guilty in July, 2016.
This case was investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration, and the Springdale Police Department. Assistant United States Attorney Sydney Butler prosecuted the case for the United States.
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Related court documents may be found on the Public Access to Electronic Records website @ www.pacer.gov
Sedalia Man Pleads Guilty to Meth, Illegal FirearmRead the Press Release
JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. – Tammy Dickinson, United States Attorney for the Western District of Missouri, announced that a Sedalia, Mo., man pleaded guilty in federal court today to possessing methamphetamine with the intent to distribute and to illegally possessing a firearm.
Justin Ray Shelledy, 38, of Sedalia, pleaded guilty before U.S. Magistrate Judge William A. Knox to the charges contained in a March 17, 2016, federal indictment.
Shelledy admitted that he was in possession of 50 grams or more of methamphetamine, with the intent to distribute, on March 4, 2016.
Shelledy also admitted that he was in possession of a Ruger 9mm handgun and ammunition on March 4, 2016. Under federal law, it is illegal for anyone who has been convicted of a felony to be in possession of any firearm or ammunition. Shelledy has prior felony convictions for unlawful use of a weapon and domestic assault.
According to court documents, Shelledy was arrested on an outstanding Pettis County warrant after getting out of his vehicle at his residence on March 4, 2016. Sedalia police officers found a black sunglasses case in his left jeans pocket. Inside the case was a plastic baggie that contained approximately 6.9 grams of methamphetamine, approximately 1.5 grams of marijuana and five prescription pills. Officers then searched Shelledy’s vehicle and located two cell phones and a loaded magazine for the Ruger 9mm handgun. Officers found the handgun inside the house in a bedroom closet along with another loaded magazine. In the same bedroom, officers found a box that contained three baggies with a total of 57.7 grams of methamphetamine.
Under federal statutes, Shelledy is subject to a mandatory minimum sentence of five years in federal prison without parole, up to a sentence of 50 years in federal prison without parole. A sentencing hearing will be scheduled after the completion of a presentence investigation by the United States Probation Office.
This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Lawrence E. Miller. It was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, the Sedalia, Mo., Police Department and the Pettis County, Mo., Sheriff’s Department.
Robert David Liles Sentenced Following Guilty Plea to A Federal Charge of Possession of Stolen FirearmsRead the Press Release
United States Attorney Kenyen R. Brown of the Southern District of Alabama announces that Robert David Liles of Elberta, Alabama, was sentenced to 27 months imprisonment following a July 2016 guilty plea to a charge of possession of stolen firearms.
On February 13, 2016, an Investigator with the Elberta Police Department went to Liles’ residence in an effort to locate stolen items from a recently burglarized residence. The Investigator spoke to Liles about the stolen firearms, and Liles took the investigator inside the residence where he recovered four (4) rifles, two (2) shotguns, a pistol, along with a bag that contained ammunition and other firearm accessories, and a large damaged safe which had contained the firearms.
During a subsequent interview with law enforcement Liles said he believed the firearms were stolen, but did not ask any details about where they came from. Liles said he knew the individuals who brought the firearms to his residence were not supposed to have the firearms, and he was not supposed to have them either.
Possession of stolen firearms is a violation of Title 18, United States Code Section 922(j). Liles’ term of imprisonment will be followed by a 3-year term of federal supervised release.
This case was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms & Explosives. The case was prosecuted by the United States Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Alabama.
Rindge Man Ordered to Pay More Than $22.8 Million in Restitution to Ponzi Scheme VictimsRead the Press Release
CONCORD, N.H. – Aaron E. Olson, 42, of Rindge, New Hampshire, was ordered to pay $22,811,405.26 to the victims of a Ponzi scheme he operated from 2007 through 2012, reported United States Attorney Emily Gray Rice.
Olson was sentenced to 60 months in prison last April for evading taxes from 2007 through 2010 for failing to report illicit income from the Ponzi scheme. From 2007 through 2010, Olson was the sole proprietor of an investment business known as AEO Associates (AEO). In December of 2010, Olson formed KMO Associates LLC (KMO), an investment business that was registered in Massachusetts. Olson ran both operations from an office in Jaffrey, New Hampshire. Olson used AEO and later KMO to obtain approximately $27.8 million from individuals and organizations ostensibly to invest on their behalf. Olson was not licensed as an investment broker in New Hampshire or in any other jurisdiction and he did not register AEO and KMO with the State of New Hampshire as investment businesses.
Olson used approximately $2.6 million of the investors’ money for his personal benefit and used some of the investors’ money to make fraudulent “earnings” payments to other investors. To conceal this conduct, Olson sent investors fictitious earnings statements that falsely showed significant earnings in their accounts.
The collapse of Olson’s fraudulent scheme in about March or April of 2012 left 81 victims with collective losses totaling more than $22.8 million. Under the terms of a plea agreement, Olson was required to pay restitution to the victims in an amount determined by the court. At a hearing yesterday, Olson argued that he only owed about $17.1 million in restitution. The United States Attorney’s Office argued that he owed the entire amount each victim lost. After considering both arguments, United States District Judge Landya B. McCafferty ruled that Olson owed the full amount the victims lost and ordered Olson to pay $22,811,405.26 in restitution immediately.
This case was investigated by the office of Criminal Investigations for the Internal Revenue Service in conjunction with the New Hampshire Bureau of Securities Regulation and was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Mark S. Zuckerman.
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Pittsburgh man charged with heroin distribution, firearm chargesRead the Press Release
CLARKSBURG, WEST VIRGINIA – A federal grand jury sitting in Clarksburg, West Virginia, returned an indictment today charging Nyzhon N. Bell, 19, of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, with distributing heroin and illegally possessing a firearm, United States Attorney William J. Ihlenfeld, II, announced.
In May 2016, Bell allegedly distributed heroin in Harrison County, West Virginia. He was also in possession of a semi-automatic pistol that he used in furtherance of his heroin distribution operation.
Bell was charged with one count of “Possession with Intent to Distribute Heroin” and one count of “Possession of Firearm in Furtherance of Drug Trafficking Crime.” He faces up to twenty years in prison and a fine up to $1,000,000 for the distribution of heroin count and up to five years in prison and a fine up to $250,000 for the use of a firearm count. 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 is handling the case on behalf of the government. The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives and the Greater Harrison County Drug and Violent Crime Task Force, a HIDTA-funded initiative, is investigating.
An indictment is merely an accusation. A defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.Peosta Warehouse Supervisor Sentenced to 78 Months in Federal Prison for Stealing over $400,000 from his Employer and Lying to a Credit UnionRead the Press Release
A Dubuque-area man, who stole and sold over $400,000 worth of his employer’s goods on the Internet, was sentenced today to 78 months’ imprisonment.
Chad Michael Saeugling, 40, from Asbury, Iowa, received the prison term after his pleas of guilty on June 8, 2016 to one count of Mail Fraud and two counts of Making a False Statement to a Financial Institution.
At his plea hearing and in a written plea agreement, Saeugling admitted he was employed as a supervisor at a Peosta, Iowa, warehouse between 2004 and 2014. From 2009 through August 2014, Saeugling defrauded his employer by selling his employer’s goods on the Internet. Specifically, Saeugling advertised goods found in his employer’s warehouse on eBay, an Internet marketplace. Once an eBay shopper paid defendant for an item, Saeugling placed his own UPS or FedEx shipping label on the item and put the item on a UPS or FedEx truck, hiding the item among items his employer was shipping. Saeugling then used his access to a computerized inventory system to falsely adjust the stolen item out of his employer’s inventory to avoid detection.
Shortly after Saeugling’s mail fraud scheme was discovered, Saeugling agreed to purchase a house from his father. In order to secure a home mortgage loan for the property in late 2014, Saeugling made a false statement concerning his income to a federally insured credit union. Saeugling also falsely told the credit union that his father had gifted him $22,000 to purchase the home when, in truth, Saeugling had previously supplied his father with the $22,000, in cash, which his father then routed through two different bank accounts before providing the $22,000 in two $11,000 checks to Saeugling at the time of closing on the home.
At sentencing, Chief Judge Linda R. Reade of the United States District Court for the Northern District of Iowa found defendant “spit in his employer’s eye” and led his own father in criminal activity. The judge rejected Saeugling’s claim that a bank official had told him to route funds through his father in two different accounts. The judge found Saeugling had “no credibility” and “no conscience,” and his criminal activity would have continued were it not for the courage of one of his coworkers at the warehouse. Further, the judge found Saeugling had violated the terms of his release pending sentencing by possessing firearms and ammunition, which he was selling to his coworkers at his workplace. The judge concluded Saeugling was at an “extremely high risk to reoffend.”
Saeugling was sentenced in Cedar Rapids and sentenced to 78 months’ imprisonment. A special assessment of $300 was imposed, and he was ordered to make $423,025.52 in restitution his employer’s insurer. He must also serve a five-year term of supervised release after the prison term. There is no parole in the federal system.
Saeugling is being held in the United States Marshal’s custody until he can be transported to a federal prison.
The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Tim Vavricek and investigated by the Dubuque County Sheriff’s Office.
Court file information at https://ecf.iand.uscourts.gov/cgi-bin/login.pl.
The case file number is 16-CR-1023-LRR.
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Owner and CEO of Debt Collection Company Pleads Guilty in $31 Million Fraudulent Debt Collection SchemeRead the Press Release
Preet Bharara, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, announced that TRAVELL THOMAS, the owner, chief executive officer (“CEO”), and president of a Buffalo, New York-based debt collection company (the “Company”), pled guilty today before Judge Katherine Polk Failla to orchestrating a scheme to coerce thousands of victims across the country, through false threats and representations, into paying a total of more than $31 million to the Company to resolve debts these victims purportedly owed. To date, 11 individuals associated with the Company have pled guilty to participating in the scheme.
U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara said: “As he admitted today, Travell Thomas ran a massive, fraudulent debt collection scheme through which he and his cohorts stole over $31 million from his vulnerable victims. Thomas instructed his debt collectors to threaten, intimidate, and lie to their victims by overstating their debts and making false claims about what would happen to if they didn’t pay up. Today’s plea is the eleventh in this landmark consumer fraud case that victimized thousands of people across the country.”
According to the allegations contained in the Indictment to which THOMAS pled guilty and statements made during his plea proceeding and other court proceedings:
Between 2010 and February 2015, THOMAS was the co-owner, CEO, and president of the Company. In that capacity, Thomas oversaw four debt collection offices operated by the Company in Buffalo and a team of managers and debt collectors. As part of the scheme, THOMAS falsely inflated the balances of debts owed by consumers in the Company’s debt collection software so that THOMAS’s debt collectors could collect more money from the victims than the victims actually owed, a practice known within the Company as “juicing” balances. THOMAS also placed purported debts with more than one of his offices so that multiple collectors from within the Company could solicit and coerce a particular victim to repay a debt more than once.
As owner and president of the Company, THOMAS drafted, approved, and disseminated collection scripts that contained a variety of misrepresentations and instructed his collectors to make those misrepresentations to consumers over the telephone. At THOMAS’s direction and under his supervision, the Company’s debt collectors, using a variety of aliases, attempted to trick and coerce thousands of victims throughout the United States into paying millions of dollars in consumer debts through a variety of false statements and false threats, including that: (1) the Company was affiliated with local government and law enforcement agencies, including the “county” and the district attorney’s office; (2) the consumers had committed criminal acts, such as “wire fraud” or “check fraud,” and if they did not pay the debt immediately, warrants or other process would be issued, at which point they would be arrested or hauled into court; (3) the victims would have their driver’s licenses suspended if they did not pay their debts immediately; (4) the Company was a law firm or mediation firm and that the Company’s employees were working with lawyers, a law firm, mediators, or arbitrators; and (5) a civil lawsuit would be filed, or was pending, against the victims for failing to pay their debts.
In total, from about January 2010 through November 2014, the Company collected over $31 million from thousands of victims across the United States. Of the money that the Company took in from victims, approximately $1.5 million was paid in cash to THOMAS and his co-owner and co-defendant, Maurice Sessum, approximately $1.4 million was cashed from banks and ATMs, and tens of thousands of dollars were used to pay for THOMAS’s gambling expenses, tickets for professional sports games, THOMAS’s wedding reception, and jewelry, among other expenses.
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THOMAS, 38, of Orchard Park, New York, pled guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud and one count of wire fraud, each of which carries a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison and three years of supervised release. The maximum potential sentence in this case is prescribed by Congress and provided here for informational purposes only, as any sentencing of the defendant will be determined by the judge.
THOMAS is scheduled to be sentenced by Judge Failla on February 10, 2017.
In total, 11 individuals associated with the Company have pled guilty to defrauding consumers as part of this debt collection scheme. In addition to THOMAS’s guilty plea, former Company mangers Tacoby Thomas, Heather Gasta, Mark Lavin, and John Salatino, and debt collectors Jessica Mann, Charles Starks, William Clark, Columbus Simmons, Michael Calandra, and Jennifer Sherk, each pled guilty to conspiracy to commit wire fraud and wire fraud for their roles in the scheme. The other defendants who have not pled guilty are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
Starks, Clark, Calandra, and Mann were sentenced by Judge Failla to prison terms of 37 months, 30 months, 15 months, and one year and one day, respectively. The sentencing of the other defendants who have pled guilty is pending.
Mr. Bharara praised the efforts of the Office’s Criminal Investigators. He also thanked the Federal Trade Commission, which referred the case to the Office.
The prosecution of this case is being overseen by the Office’s Complex Frauds and Cybercrime Unit. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Edward A. Imperatore, Jennifer L. Beidel, and Jordan L. Estes are in charge of the prosecution.
Omaha Woman Sentenced for Wrongfully Obtaining Health InformationRead the Press Release
On October 31, 2016, Carrie Case, age 42, was sentenced by Honorable Chief District Court Judge Laurie Smith Camp following her conviction for wrongfully obtaining individually identifiable health information. Chief Judge Smith Camp sentenced Case to three years of probation.
During the period February 8, 2015 through April 8, 2015, Case, working as a clerk in a physicians’ clinic in Omaha and on four occasions she unlawfully accessed and obtained electronic and hard copy medical records of an individual that was maintained within the UNMC and CHIH health systems here in Omaha. Case accessed and obtained these patient records and then provided them to a third party for no legitimate reason and without the permission or consent of the individual whose records were accessed.
This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation.
Ohio man charged with heroin, crack cocaine, firearm chargesRead the Press Release
CLARKSBURG, WEST VIRGINIA – A federal grand jury sitting in Clarksburg, West Virginia, returned an indictment today charging Johnny D. Floyd, Sr., 42, of Cincinnati, Ohio, with distributing heroin and crack cocaine and illegal possession of a firearm, United States Attorney William J. Ihlenfeld, II, announced.
Floyd allegedly distributed heroin and crack cocaine in Marion County, West Virginia. He was also in possession of a .40 caliber handgun that he used in furtherance of his drug distribution operation.
Floyd was charged with one count of “Possession with Intent to Distribute Cocaine Base and Heroin,” one count of “Maintaining Drug Involved Premises,” and one count of “Possession of a Firearm in Furtherance of a Drug Trafficking Crime.” He faces up to twenty years in prison and a fine up to $1,000,000 for possession of drugs charge; up to twenty years in prison and a fine of up to $500,000 for the maintaining a drug involved premises charge; and up to five years in prison and a fine of up to $250,000. 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 Andrew R. Cogar is handling the case on behalf of the government. The Marion County Sheriff’s Office is investigating.
An indictment is merely an accusation. A defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.New York Attorney Pleads Guilty in Manhattan Federal Court to Preparing Fraudulent Tax Returns for ClientsRead the Press Release
An attorney who operated a tax preparation business in the Bronx, New York, pleaded guilty today in Manhattan federal court to charges related to his participation in filing fraudulent tax returns and falsely claiming more than $6 million in bogus deductions, announced Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Caroline D. Ciraolo, head of the Justice Department’s Tax Division, and U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara for the Southern District of New York.
William Doonan, 69, of Bronx, New York, pleaded guilty today before U.S. Magistrate Judge Andrew J. Peck to one count of aiding and assisting in the preparation of a false tax return, and one count of obstructing and impeding the due administration of the internal revenue laws.
“William Doonan used his law practice to prepare thousands of false tax returns each year with phony deductions, costing the U.S. treasury more than $1.5 million,” said Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Ciraolo. “His conviction sends a clear message – we will fully prosecute crooked tax preparers – whether they be lawyers and tax professionals or temporary storefront operators.”
“William Doonan used his law degree and tax preparation business to fleece the IRS of millions of dollars in fraudulent tax deductions,” said U.S. Attorney Bharara. “As he admitted today, Doonan claimed numerous false deductions for thousands of clients, defrauding the IRS and unlawfully depriving the public of tax revenue.”
According to the allegations contained in the Information filed in the Southern District of New York and statements made during the plea proceeding:
Since at least 2009, Doonan has been in the business of preparing federal tax returns for clients in exchange for fees. Doonan, a New York licensed attorney since 1982, carried out his tax preparation business in the Bronx using the firm name “William Doonan, Esq.” Doonan prepared and filed more than 3,000 federal tax returns with the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) each year and regularly prepared and filed client returns that were false and fraudulent. For example, on some of his clients’ returns, Doonan added false medical and dental expenses, state and local taxes, home mortgage interest, gifts to charity, job expenses and certain miscellaneous deductions. Doonan also attached Schedules C to his clients’ returns that reported “Consulting” businesses that the relevant clients did not own, operate, and materially participate in, and business losses that the relevant clients did not incur. Between tax year 2009 through tax year 2012, Doonan included in excess of $6 million in these fabricated and inflated items on his clients’ federal tax returns.
Sentencing is scheduled for Feb. 10, 2017 before U.S. District Judge Vernon S. Broderick. Doonan faces a statutory maximum sentence of three years in prison on the aiding and assisting in the preparation of a false return count and three years in prison on the obstruction of the internal revenue laws count, as well as a period of supervised release and monetary penalties.
Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Ciraolo and U.S. Attorney Bharara commended agents of IRS-Criminal Investigation, who conducted the investigation. This case is being prosecuted by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York ’s Complex Frauds and Cybercrime Unit. Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Jorge Almonte of the Tax Division is in charge of the prosecution.
Additional information about the Tax Division and its enforcement efforts may be found on the division’s website.
New Hampshire to Receive Federal Grant Money to Combat Human TraffickingRead the Press Release
CONCORD, N.H.: Today, United States Attorney Emily Gray Rice confirmed the formation of a Human Trafficking Task Force, which will receive federal grant funding to combat human trafficking in the state of New Hampshire. The grant funding is part of a nationwide effort by the Department of Justice to fight the mounting threat posed by human traffickers, who prey upon the most vulnerable of victims to support their criminal schemes. In total, DOJ has awarded more than $49 million to 25 states with the goal of providing comprehensive and specialized services for human trafficking victims, investigating and prosecuting human trafficking cases, and supporting research designed to improve understanding of the nature of human trafficking crimes and develop best practices to prevent and respond to such crimes.
Since 2013, there have been at least 23 recorded investigations involving forced labor or sex trafficking in New Hampshire, resulting in several prosecutions and convictions. That number – which continues to grow – is fueled in part by the influx of opioids into the state. Victims of the sex trafficking trade are often addicted to opiates or other drugs. They are sometimes forced or coerced into sexual servitude based, in part, on their fear of losing a steady supply of drugs and the prospect of experiencing withdrawal symptoms as a result of that lost drug supply.
In May 2016, the U.S. Attorney’s Office, Manchester Police Department, Child and Family Services of New Hampshire, Department of Homeland Security (Homeland Security Investigations), and Give Way to Freedom submitted a joint Letter of Intent to the Department of Justice, seeking grant money to support the New Hampshire Human Trafficking Task Force, whose members have pledged their continued partnership to implement a coordinated, collaborative, victim-centered and trauma-informed multi-disciplinary response to human trafficking in New Hampshire by (1) identifying victims of all forms of human trafficking and addressing individualized service needs of those victims, and (2) investigating and prosecuting all human trafficking offenses within the boundaries of New Hampshire. The grant was approved in late September. However, additional steps must be undertaken before the funds are disbursed.
U.S. Attorney Rice praised the tremendous work done by those who prepared and obtained the grant, including the submission’s primary author, Erin Albright of Give Way to Freedom, and discussed the project’s importance in tackling this growing threat: “Human trafficking is often associated with larger metropolitan areas like New York, Los Angeles, and Boston – but it happens in New Hampshire, and with increasing frequency,” Rice stated. “Human trafficking is a heinous crime that preys on the most defenseless victims, many of whom are minors or individuals with severe substance abuse issues. With the assistance of this grant funding, our prosecutors are committed to collaborating with our law enforcement partners and incredible NGOs to provide services for human trafficking victims, and hold accountable those who are profiting from these terrible crimes.” U.S. Attorney Rice further noted that additional details will be released in December, when the project is officially launched.
Other members of the New Hampshire Human Trafficking Task Force include: the New Hampshire Department of Justice; the Hillsborough County Attorney’s Office; the Police Departments of Nashua, Portsmouth, Hampton, and Salem; the New Hampshire State Police; the Merrimack County Sheriff’s Office; the New Hampshire Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force; the U.S. Department of Labor, Wage, and Hour Division; the U.S. Department of Labor (Office of the Solicitor); the Department of Children, Youth, and Families; the Granite State Children’s Alliance; the Merrimack County Advocacy Center; the Crisis Center of Central New Hampshire; the YWCA of Manchester, New Hampshire; the International Institute of New England; the New Hampshire Coalition Against Domestic and Sexual Violence; New Hampshire Legal Assistance; Plymouth State University; the New Hampshire Restaurant and Lodging Association; the Episcopal Church of New Hampshire; Real Life Giving; and Freedom Café.
For further information about the Department of Justice’s nationwide initiative to combat human trafficking, please go to https://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/department-justice-awards-more-49-million-combat-human-trafficking.
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New Hampshire to Receive Federal Grant Money to Combat Human TraffickingRead the Press Release
CONCORD, N.H.: Today, United States Attorney Emily Gray Rice confirmed the formation of a Human Trafficking Task Force, which will receive federal grant funding to combat human trafficking in the state of New Hampshire. The grant funding is part of a nationwide effort by the Department of Justice to fight the mounting threat posed by human traffickers, who prey upon the most vulnerable of victims to support their criminal schemes. In total, DOJ has awarded more than $49 million to 25 states with the goal of providing comprehensive and specialized services for human trafficking victims, investigating and prosecuting human trafficking cases, and supporting research designed to improve understanding of the nature of human trafficking crimes and develop best practices to prevent and respond to such crimes.
Since 2013, there have been at least 23 recorded investigations involving forced labor or sex trafficking in New Hampshire, resulting in several prosecutions and convictions. That number – which continues to grow – is fueled in part by the influx of opioids into the state. Victims of the sex trafficking trade are often addicted to opiates or other drugs. They are sometimes forced or coerced into sexual servitude based, in part, on their fear of losing a steady supply of drugs and the prospect of experiencing withdrawal symptoms as a result of that lost drug supply.
In May 2016, the U.S. Attorney’s Office, Manchester Police Department, Child and Family Services of New Hampshire, Department of Homeland Security (Homeland Security Investigations), and Give Way to Freedom submitted a joint Letter of Intent to the Department of Justice, seeking grant money to support the New Hampshire Human Trafficking Task Force, whose members have pledged their continued partnership to implement a coordinated, collaborative, victim-centered and trauma-informed multi-disciplinary response to human trafficking in New Hampshire by (1) identifying victims of all forms of human trafficking and addressing individualized service needs of those victims, and (2) investigating and prosecuting all human trafficking offenses within the boundaries of New Hampshire. The grant was approved in late September. However, additional steps must be undertaken before the funds are disbursed.
U.S. Attorney Rice praised the tremendous work done by those who prepared and obtained the grant, including the submission’s primary author, Erin Albright of Give Way to Freedom, and discussed the project’s importance in tackling this growing threat: “Human trafficking is often associated with larger metropolitan areas like New York, Los Angeles, and Boston – but it happens in New Hampshire, and with increasing frequency,” Rice stated. “Human trafficking is a heinous crime that preys on the most defenseless victims, many of whom are minors or individuals with severe substance abuse issues. With the assistance of this grant funding, our prosecutors are committed to collaborating with our law enforcement partners and incredible NGOs to provide services for human trafficking victims, and hold accountable those who are profiting from these terrible crimes.” U.S. Attorney Rice further noted that additional details will be released in December, when the project is officially launched.
Other members of the New Hampshire Human Trafficking Task Force include: the New Hampshire Department of Justice; the Hillsborough County Attorney’s Office; the Police Departments of Nashua, Portsmouth, Hampton, and Salem; the New Hampshire State Police; the Merrimack County Sheriff’s Office; the New Hampshire Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force; the U.S. Department of Labor, Wage, and Hour Division; the U.S. Department of Labor (Office of the Solicitor); the Department of Children, Youth, and Families; the Granite State Children’s Alliance; the Merrimack County Advocacy Center; the Crisis Center of Central New Hampshire; the YWCA of Manchester, New Hampshire; the International Institute of New England; the New Hampshire Coalition Against Domestic and Sexual Violence; New Hampshire Legal Assistance; Plymouth State University; the New Hampshire Restaurant and Lodging Association; the Episcopal Church of New Hampshire; Real Life Giving; and Freedom Café.
For further information about the Department of Justice’s nationwide initiative to combat human trafficking, please go to https://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/department-justice-awards-more-49-million-combat-human-trafficking.
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Navajo Man Sentenced to Prison for Federal Assault ConvictionRead the Press Release
ALBUQUERQUE – Gregory Secatero, 33, an enrolled member of the Navajo Nation who resides in Albuquerque, N.M., was sentenced this morning in federal court to 41 months in prison followed by three years of supervised release for his conviction on federal assault charges.
Secatero was arrested on Feb. 12, 2015, on a criminal complaint charging him with assault resulting in serious bodily injury and child abuse in Indian Country. Court documents indicate that on Jan. 17, 2015, Secatero was involved in a car crash that seriously injured two passengers, a woman and a child, who were in Secatero’s vehicle. Both victims were ejected from the vehicle; the woman suffered a punctured left lung and seven left rib fractures and the child suffered a small subdural hematoma and left femur spiral fracture. Two other children who were in the vehicle were not seriously injured. Secatero was intoxicated at the time of the crash.
Secatero was indicted on March 10, 2015, and charged with two counts of assault resulting in serious bodily injury and one count of child abuse for endangering the lives of three children. According to the indictment, Secatero committed the crimes on the Navajo Indian Reservation in Bernalillo County, N.M.
On Jan. 21, 2016, Secatero pled guilty to two counts of assault resulting in serious bodily injury. In entering his guilty plea, Secatero admitted assaulting the victims, causing them to sustain serious bodily injuries, while driving under the influence of alcohol.
This case was investigated by the Crownpoint office of the Navajo Nation Division of Public Safety and was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Shammara Henderson.
Minneapolis Man Pleads Guilty to Human Trafficking of a MinorRead the Press Release
FARGO - US Attorney Christopher C. Myers announced that on October 31, 2016, Steven Edward Meierding, 50, Minneapolis, Minn., pled guilty before U.S. District Judge Ralph R. Erickson to One Count of Sex Trafficking of a Child.
This case came to the attention of law enforcement after the Fargo Police Department encountered a 17-year-old runaway during a traffic stop. Further investigation by Department of Homeland Security Investigators and a Fargo Police Department Detective revealed that Meierding transported the 17-year-old girl from Minneapolis, MN, to Fargo, ND, for the purpose of prostitution. Specifically, Meierding met the 17-year-old girl at a gas station in Minneapolis and subsequently took her to his residence where he took photos of her that were later used in Backpage.com advertisements for commercial sex. Sometime between May 2015 and June 15, 2015, Meierding then transported the underage girl to Fargo where he dropped her off at a residence where his co-defendant, Brenda Godoy, was residing. Meierding returned to Minneapolis, but before he could return to Fargo to pick up the underage girl, she was recovered by the Fargo Police Department during the above-mentioned traffic stop. Electronic evidence recovered during the investigation further revealed that Meierding and his co-defendant received a portion of the proceeds that the underage girl obtained as a result of engaging in commercial sex acts.
Judge Erickson has set sentencing for January 24, 2017, at the US District Court in Fargo ND.
This case was investigated by the Department of Homeland Security-Homeland Security Investigations, Fargo Police Department, and the North Dakota Bureau of Criminal Investigation.
Assistant US Attorney Jennifer Puhl is prosecuting the case.
This case was prosecuted with the assistance of the North Dakota Human Trafficking Task Force (NDHTTF), which includes regional response teams that consist of federal, state, and local law enforcement and victim service providers working together to identify and rescue human trafficking victims as well as investigate and prosecute human trafficking cases. Led by the U.S. Attorney’s Office, BCI, and the North Dakota Counsel on Abused Women Services (CAWS), the NDHTTF is dedicated to addressing the individualized needs of human trafficking victims and the apprehension, investigation, and prosecution of the perpetrators of human trafficking.
Mexican National Sentenced to Six Years for Federal Methamphetamine Trafficking ConvictionRead the Press Release
ALBUQUERQUE – Juan Carlos Nieblas-Ruelas, 28, a Mexican national illegally residing in the United States, was sentenced today in federal court in Albuquerque, N.M., to 72 months in prison for his methamphetamine trafficking conviction. Nieblas-Ruelas will be deported after he completes his prison sentence.
Nieblas-Ruelas and co-defendant Massiel Segoviano-Fierro, 25, also a Mexican national illegally residing in the United States, were arrested in Nov. 2015, and were charged by criminal complaint with conspiracy and possession of methamphetamine with intent to distribute on Nov. 23, 2015, in Bernalillo Country N.M. The two men were arrested after the two men attempted to sell approximately ten pounds of methamphetamine to an undercover law enforcement agent.
On Jan. 22, 2016, Nieblas-Ruelas pled guilty to a felony information charging him with possession of methamphetamine with intent to distribute. In entering the guilty plea, Nieblas-Ruelas admitted that on Nov. 23, 2015, he provided methamphetamine to Segoviano-Fierro knowing that Segoviano-Fierro intended to sell it to another person.
On Feb. 22, 2016, Segoviano-Fierro pled guilty to a similar felony information and admitted that on Nov. 23, 2015, in Bernalillo County, he attempted to sell methamphetamine to an individual who unbeknownst to him was an undercover law enforcement agent. Segoviano-Fierro further admitted that he collaborated with Nieblas-Ruelas to obtain approximately ten pounds of methamphetamine to sell and distribute in Albuquerque.
At sentencing, Segoviano-Fierro faces a maximum penalty of 20 years in federal prison and will be deported following his term of incarceration. Segoviano-Fierro remains in custody pending a sentencing hearing.
This case was investigated by the Albuquerque office of Homeland Security Investigations and the New Mexico State Police and is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney David M. Walsh.
Member of Computer Hacking Group “NullCrew” Sentenced to Nearly Four Years for Launching Cyber-Attacks on Corporations and UniversitiesRead the Press Release
CHICAGO — A Tennessee man was sentenced today to nearly four years in federal prison for launching cyber-attacks on corporations, universities and governmental entities throughout the world.
As a member of the hacking group “NullCrew,” TIMOTHY JUSTEN FRENCH exploited computer vulnerabilities to obtain unauthorized access and steal confidential information, including encrypted personal data of thousands of individuals. French’s cyber-attacks caused at least $792,000 in monetary loss to victim companies, universities and governmental bodies.
U.S. District Judge Gary Feinerman imposed the 45-month sentence today in federal court in Chicago.
“The defendant played a central role in an extensive, deliberate, and destructive hacking campaign that inflicted widespread and serious harm to businesses, governments, non-profits, and thousands of individuals,” Assistant U.S. Attorney William Ridgway argued in the government’s sentencing memorandum. “He disseminated online the usernames, email accounts, and passwords for thousands of individuals, which not only violated their privacy and sense of online security, it exposed them to financial fraud and identity theft.”
French, 22, of Morristown, Tenn., pleaded guilty last year to one count of intentionally damaging a protected computer without authorization.
NullCrew is a group of computer hackers who carried out a series of cyber-attacks in the United States and throughout the world. To publicize their intrusions, French and other members of NullCrew maintained Twitter accounts, including @NullCrew_FTS and @OfficialNull, which they used to announce their cyber-attacks and ridicule their victims by publicly disclosing the confidential information they had stolen, according to French's plea declaration. French hid his true identity by using Internet aliases, including “Orbit,” “@Orbit_g1rl,” “crysis,” “rootcrysis,” and “c0rps3.”
French participated in at least seven cyber-attacks while a member of NullCrew from 2012 to 2014. One of the attacks was carried out against a large Canadian telecommunications company, while another attack targeted a U.S. state, according to the plea declaration.
The sentencing was announced by Zachary T. Fardon, United States Attorney for the Northern District of Illinois; and Michael J. Anderson, Special Agent-in-Charge of the Chicago Office of the Federal Bureau of Investigation.
The government is represented by Mr. Ridgway.
Maryland Man Exiled to 10 Years in Federal Prison for Possession of a Stolen FirearmRead the Press Release
Baltimore, Maryland –U.S. District Judge James K. Bredar sentenced Daniel Hill, age 44, of Baltimore, Maryland, today to 10 years in prison, followed by three years of supervised release, for possession of a stolen gun.
The sentence was announced by United States Attorney for the District of Maryland Rod J. Rosenstein; Special Agent in Charge Daniel L. Board Jr. of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives - Baltimore Field Division; Baltimore Police Commissioner Kevin Davis; and Baltimore City State’s Attorney Marilyn Mosby.
According to Hill’s guilty plea, on October 14, 2014, three Baltimore Police Department officers were on patrol in a marked police vehicle on S. Pulaski Street in Baltimore City. As the officers approached the 2100 block of Booth Street, they saw a woman and man standing in the block. The woman appeared scared and the officers approached to investigate. When the man, later identified as Daniel Hill, spotted the police officers, he ran away. Police pursued Hill through an alleyway and Hill was quickly apprehended.
The woman told police that Hill had brandished a black handgun and demanded money from her. The woman gave Hill three $20 bills. She also told police that Hill had thrown the gun into the back yard of a residence and police recovered a .44 caliber handgun from the yard. After his arrest, Hill was searched and officers recovered three $20 bills from his left side pocket. At a subsequent interview, after waiving his rights, Hill admitted that he was in possession of the gun. Investigation showed that the gun was reported stolen in Ohio prior to its recovery in Maryland.
United States Attorney Rod J. Rosenstein commended the ATF, Baltimore Police Department and Baltimore City State’s Attorney’s Office for their work in the investigation. Mr. Rosenstein thanked Assistant U.S. Attorney John W. Sippel, Jr., who prosecuted the case.
Marshall County man charged with marijuana distributionRead the Press Release
WHEELING, WEST VIRGINIA – A federal grand jury sitting in Clarksburg, West Virginia, returned an indictment today charging Christopher M. Delauder, 27, of Moundsville, West Virginia, with distributing marijuana, United States Attorney William J. Ihlenfeld, II, announced.
In April 2016, Delauder allegedly distributed a significant amount of marijuana in Marshall County, West Virginia.
Delauder was charged with one count of “Conspiracy to Possess with Intent to Distribute and to Distribute Marijuana” and one count of “Possession with Intent to Distribute Marijuana.” He faces up to five years in prison and a fine up to $1,000,000 for each count. 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 Stephen L. Vogrin is handling the case on behalf of the government. The Marshall County Drug and Violent Crime Task Force, a HIDTA-funded initiative, is investigating.
An indictment is merely an accusation. A defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.Leaders of Violent Bloods Street Gang Admit Racketeering ConspiracyRead the Press Release
NEWARK, N.J. – Two leaders of the Sex Money Murder set of the Bloods street gang today admitted their respective roles in a racketeering conspiracy that involved murder, attempted murder, conspiracy to commit murder, and conspiracy to distribute heroin, U.S. Attorney Paul J. Fishman announced.
Narik Wilson, a/k/a “Spaz,” 32, and Emil Rutledge, a/k/a “Diddy,” 27, both of Newark, New Jersey, pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Susan D. Wigenton in Newark federal court to Count Two of a 14-count superseding indictment charging them with racketeering conspiracy.
According to documents filed in this case and statements made in court:
The Bloods street gang is organized into subgroups that operate in specific geographic locations. Sex Money Murder is the subgroup that operates primarily in Essex County, New Jersey.
Wilson and Rutledge, high-ranking members in Sex Money Murder, admitted that from 2007 to 2011 they committed a series of violent crimes to advance the gang’s objectives. Wilson, the leader, or “O.G.,” of Sex Money Murder, admitted that he directed the murder and attempted murder of eight rival gang members in and around Newark. Rutledge, a “captain,” or “shot-caller,” of Sex Money Murder, admitted that he and others carried out a number of the shootings ordered by Wilson, causing series injuries to others and the death of a victim.
Wilson admitted that he conspired with and directed other members of Sex Money Murder to murder the following individuals described in the indictment:
- Feb. 4, 2007, attempted murder of a rival gang member, (Victim 1);
- Feb. 16, 2007, attempted murder of a rival gang member (Victim 2);
- Oct. 29, 2010, attempted murder of a rival gang member (Victim 3);
- June 16, 2011, attempted murder of rival gang members (Victims 4-7);
- July 14, 2011, murder of a rival gang member (Victim 8);
- Aug. 3, 2011, attempted murder of a rival gang member (Victim 6).
Rutledge admitted that, acting at Wilson’s direction, he and others carried out drive-by shootings of Victims 3 through 7 on the above-described dates. Rutledge also admitted that he and others killed Victim 8 in a drive-by shooting. Wilson and Rutledge admitted conspiring to distribute more than one kilogram of heroin in and around Newark.
The plea agreements require both Wilson and Rutledge to be sentenced to 30 years in prison, minus time served in jail on related cases, and five years of supervised release. Sentencing is scheduled for Feb. 15, 2017.
U.S. Attorney Fishman credited special agents of the FBI and the FBI’s Safe Streets Task Force, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Timothy Gallagher in Newark; the Essex County Prosecutor’s Office, under the direction of Acting Essex County Prosecutor Carolyn A. Murray; the Essex County Sheriff’s Office, under the direction of Sheriff Armando V. Fontoura; and the Newark Department of Public Safety, under the direction of Anthony F. Ambrose, with the investigation leading to today’s guilty pleas. He also thanked special agents of the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Carl J. Kotowski; and special agents of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF), under the direction of Special Agent in Charge George P. Belsky, for their roles in the investigation.
The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorney Anthony Mahajan of the U.S. Attorney’s Office Criminal Division in Newark.
Defense counsel:
Wilson: Michael N. Pedicini Esq., Chatham, New Jersey
Rutledge: Timothy R. Anderson Esq., Red Bank, New Jersey
Laveen Man Sentenced to 65 Months in Prison for Aggravated AssaultRead the Press Release
PHOENIX – On Oct. 31, 2016, Verland Anthony Sabori, 35, of Laveen, Ariz., an enrolled member of the Gila River Indian Community, was sentenced by Judge Douglas L. Rayes to 65 months in federal prison, followed by a term of three years of supervised release. Sabori had previously pleaded guilty to assault with a dangerous weapon.
On Dec. 15, 2016, Sabori, a three-time felon, shot the victim, who is also a tribal member, in the back, causing life-threatening bodily injury. The incident occurred within the boundaries of the Gila River Indian Community.
The investigation in this case was conducted by the Gila River Police Department. The prosecution was handled by Christina Covault, Assistant U.S. Attorney, District of Arizona, Phoenix.
CASE NUMBER: CR-16-269-DLR
RELEASE NUMBER: 2016-095_Sabori
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For more information on the U.S. Attorney’s Office, District of Arizona, visit http://www.justice.gov/usao/az/
Follow the U.S. Attorney’s Office, District of Arizona, on Twitter @USAO_AZ for the latest news.
Last of six defendants in cocaine distribution conspiracy sentencedRead the Press Release
SHREVEPORT, La. – United States Attorney Stephanie A. Finley announced that a Shreveport man was sentenced last week to 80 months in prison for his role in a cocaine distribution conspiracy that stretched from Dallas to Shreveport.
Sanchez Latson, 41, of Shreveport, was sentenced Monday by U.S. District Judge Elizabeth E. Foote on one count of conspiracy to distribute powder cocaine. He was also sentenced to three years of supervised release. Latson is the last to be sentenced of six defendants from Texas and Shreveport who pleaded guilty to various cocaine distribution related charges. According to the guilty pleas, Latson conspired with other defendants to possess with intent to distribute powder cocaine from April 2015 to November 2015. The drugs were purchased in Dallas and then transported to Shreveport. They were also recorded planning sales and trips to deliver the drugs.
The other defendants previously sentenced in the conspiracy are:
Keimond De Andri Graham, 33, of Arlington, Texas, was sentenced on August 11, 2016 to 70 months in prison and four years of supervised release for one count of conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute cocaine and one count of possession with intent to distribute cocaine.
Jermaine Cassie Steadman, 31, of Shreveport, was sentenced on August 18, 2016 to 62 months in prison and three years of supervised release for one count of conspiracy to distribute powder cocaine and one count of distribution of powder cocaine.
Alonzo B. Morris, 37, of Shreveport, was sentenced on August 11, 2016 to 42 months in prison and three years of supervised release for one count of conspiracy to distribute powder cocaine and one count of distribution of powder cocaine.
Ravion Delshon Shelley, 38, of Shreveport, was sentenced on September 13, 2016 to 80 months in prison and three years of supervised release for one count of conspiracy to distribute powder cocaine.
Cedric Ray Alford, 25, of Shreveport, was sentenced on August 11, 2016 to eight months in prison and three years of supervised release for one count of conspiracy to distribute powder cocaine.
This investigation is part of an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF) Operation. The DEA, Louisiana State Police and Smith County Texas Sheriff’s Office participated in the investigation. The OCDETF program is a joint federal, state and local cooperative approach to combat drug trafficking and is the nation’s primary tool for targeting national and regional level drug trafficking organizations, coordinating the necessary law enforcement entities and resources to disrupt and dismantle the targeted criminal organization, and to seize its assets.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Allison D. Bushnell prosecuted the case.
Kenneth Fells, Jr. Sentenced Following Guilty Plea to A Federal Drug Charge of Distribution of Methamphetamine "Ice"Read the Press Release
United States Attorney Kenyen R. Brown of the Southern District of Alabama announces that Kenneth Fells, Jr. of Citronelle, Alabama, was sentenced to 57 months imprisonment following a July 2016 guilty plea to a charge of possession with intent to distribute a controlled substance.
During June 2015, Fells conducted sales of multiple gram quantities of methamphetamine “Ice and crack cocaine to confidential informants working with the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms & Explosives. Fells sold a total of approximately 12 grams of methamphetamine “Ice” and 5 grams of crack cocaine.
Possession with intent to distribute a controlled substance is a violation of Title 21, United States Code Section 841(a)(1). As recommended in the plea agreement between Fells and the United States, Senior United States District Court Judge Callie V.S. Granade sentenced Fells at the low-end of the advisory sentencing guideline range. The guideline range was based upon the Fells’ criminal history and the quantity of drugs involved in his criminal activity. Fells imprisonment will be followed by a 3-year term of federal supervised release.
This case was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms & Explosives. The case was prosecuted by the United States Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Alabama.
Kenai Man Sentenced for Unlawful Production of False Identification Documents, Aggravated Identity Theft, and Felon in Possession of FirearmsRead the Press Release
Anchorage, Alaska – U.S. Attorney Karen L. Loeffler announced that David Wayne Henry was sentenced yesterday in federal court by Chief U.S. District Judge Timothy M. Burgess for unlawful production of false identification documents, aggravated identity theft, and for being a felon in possession of firearms.
David Henry, 42, of Kenai, Alaska, was sentenced to 61 months in prison, followed by three years of supervised release. On May 19, 2016, Henry pled guilty to illegally obtaining and using the names, social security numbers, and dates of birth of other individuals to manufacture numerous different types of U.S. law enforcement, intelligence, and military identification documents and government credentials. Henry also pled guilty to possessing an AR-15 assault rifle and three semi-automatic pistols after having previously been convicted of felony crimes.
According to court documents, Henry illegally produced numerous false identification documents which appeared to be issued by federal agencies. The fake IDs reflected Henry’s photo, but the names and personal identifiers of other individuals. Some of the fake IDs were also in Henry’s own name. They consisted of ID cards for the FBI, the CIA, the Department of Defense, the U.S. Marine Corps, and the Department of Veterans Affairs. When Henry was arrested, he was also in possession of multiple firearms, even though he was prohibited from possessing firearms due to his four prior felony convictions.
At the sentencing hearing, the court noted the extremely serious nature of the offense. The court stated that identity theft has become an epidemic and has real serious consequences for victims. The court also noted the need to deter the defendant from committing future crimes and the need to protect the public from further crimes of the defendant. Henry was sentenced by Chief U.S. District judge
U.S. Attorney Loeffler commended the FBI, the ATF, the Alaska State Troopers, the Air Force Office of Special Investigations, the Kenai Police Department, and the State of Alaska Probation Office for the investigation of this case.
Justice Department reaches settlement with Louisiana Tech University and Louisiana state education agencies to desegregate A.E. Phillips Laboratory SchoolRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON – The Justice Department announced that it has reached a settlement agreement with Louisiana Tech University to ensure that black students have access to the high-quality education programs at the A.E. Phillips Laboratory School, a K-8 public school operated by Louisiana Tech on its campus in Lincoln Parish. The U.S. District Court for the Western District of Louisiana today approved the court-ordered agreement, which will reduce barriers to enrollment for black students and further desegregate A.E. Phillips’ faculty, staff and facilities.
A.E. Phillips, which opened in approximately 1910 as a segregated school serving only white students, was first ordered to desegregate in 1984. Following an investigation the Justice Department concluded, and Louisiana Tech agreed, that more work is needed to open up A.E. Phillips’ quality educational program to all students of Lincoln Parish. As a laboratory school, A.E. Phillips is known for its strong academic programs and teaching, and serves as a resource for Louisiana Tech’s College of Education to train future teachers and apply innovative education techniques.
The University of Louisiana System, the Louisiana Board of Regents, the Louisiana Board of Elementary and Secondary Education and the Louisiana State Superintendent of Education are also parties to the settlement agreement. Under the consent order, Louisiana Tech and A.E. Phillips will do the following:
- increase the percentage of black student enrollment so that the percentage of black students enrolled at A.E. Phillips reflects the percentage of black students in grades K-8 enrolled in Lincoln Parish School Board’s schools by the 2020 through 2021 school year;
- take steps to expand A.E. Phillips’ existing facilities to two classrooms per grade level to accommodate additional black student enrollment;
- develop a comprehensive plan to recruit black students for incoming kindergarten classes and for available vacancies in other grade levels;
- offer full and partial tuition scholarships to admitted black students who are eligible for free and reduced price student meals under the federal guidelines;
- offer free and reduced price meals to admitted black students who meet the federal requirements for assistance; and
- take affirmative measures to recruit black candidates for administrator, teacher, certified staff and other staff vacancies at the school.
“We commend the Louisiana Tech community for its firm commitment to make the promise of equal access to education a reality for all children, regardless of the color of their skin,” said Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Vanita Gupta, head of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division. “Our consent order establishes long overdue protections critical to increasing the enrollment of – and support for – black students at A.E. Phillips.”
“All students should have a quality education and should not be barred from any school that provides them that education,” said U.S. Attorney Stephanie A. Finley of the Western District of Louisiana. “This consent order will have an important and lasting impact for all the students in the Lincoln Parish community. The children of Louisiana should always be the focus. We look forward to continuing to work with Louisiana Tech, A.E. Phillips and the state education agencies to ensure that the order is successfully implemented.”
The order dismisses the court’s supervision of the desegregation of A.E. Phillips in the areas of transportation and extracurricular activities. Upon full implementation of the consent order, Louisiana Tech and the state education agencies may seek the court’s approval to dismiss the desegregation case against A.E. Phillips.
Promoting school desegregation and enforcing Title IV of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 is a top priority of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division. Additional information about the Civil Rights Division is available on its website at www.justice.gov/crt.
Justice Department and Federal Trade Commission Seek Public Comment on Proposed Updates to International Antitrust GuidelinesRead the Press Release
The Department of Justice’s Antitrust Division and the Federal Trade Commission seek public comment on proposed Antitrust Guidelines for International Enforcement and Cooperation. The proposed guidelines update the 1995 Antitrust Enforcement Guidelines for International Operations and provide guidance to businesses engaged in international activities on questions that concern the agencies’ international enforcement policy as well as the agencies’ related investigative tools and cooperation with foreign authorities.
The proposed guidelines reflect the growing importance of antitrust enforcement in a globalized economy and the agencies’ commitment to cooperating with foreign authorities on both policy and investigative matters.
“The Antitrust Enforcement Guidelines for International Operations have long been an important reflection of the department’s application of the antitrust laws to businesses engaged in international operations,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General Renata Hesse, in charge of the Department of Justice’s Antitrust Division. “Since the Guidelines were last updated in 1995, globalization has increased dramatically, as has international antitrust enforcement and the level of cooperation between the department and international counterparts. Because of this evolution in practice and developments in the law over the intervening 21 years, this update is long overdue.”
“With the continued expansion of cross-border commerce around the world, the agencies’ international antitrust enforcement policies and practices are becoming more and more important in protecting U.S. consumers and businesses,” said Chairwoman Edith Ramirez of the Federal Trade Commission. “The revisions we are proposing are designed to ensure that the guidelines are up-to-date and transparent.”
The proposed revisions restructure the previous guidelines in order to make the guidelines more useful and accessible by focusing on the questions of greatest significance to users. The proposed revisions also describe the current practices and methods of analysis the agencies employ when determining whether to initiate and how to conduct investigations of, or enforcement actions against, conduct with an international dimension.
In particular, the revisions:
- Add a chapter on international cooperation, which addresses the agencies’ investigative tools, confidentiality safeguards, the legal basis for cooperation, types of information exchanged and waivers of confidentiality, remedies and special considerations in criminal investigations;
- Update the discussion of the application of U.S. antitrust law to conduct involving foreign commerce, the Foreign Trade Antitrust Improvements Act, foreign sovereign immunity, foreign sovereign compulsion, the act of state doctrine and petitioning of sovereigns, in light of developments in both the law and the agencies’ practice; and
- Provide revised illustrative examples focused on the types of issues most commonly encountered.
The commission vote approving issuance of the proposed updated Antitrust Guidelines for International Enforcement and Cooperation for public comment was 3-0.
The agencies are interested in receiving comments on the proposed update from interested parties, including attorneys, economists, academics, consumer groups and the business community. Interested parties may submit public comments electronically to [email protected] until Thursday, Dec. 1. Submitted comments will be made publicly available on the agencies’ websites.