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18 October 2016
PCP Dealer Sentenced to 22 Years in Federal Prison for Gun and Drug OffensesRead the Press Release
Greenbelt, Maryland – U.S. District Judge Paul W. Grimm sentenced George Jack Smith, age 29, of Burtonsville, Maryland, today to 22 years in prison, followed by five years of supervised release, for possession with intent to distribute phencyclidine (PCP), illegal possession of a firearm by a previously convicted felon; and using, carrying and discharging a weapon in connection with drug trafficking. A federal jury convicted Smith of those charges on December 7, 2015.
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; and Chief Hank Stawinski of the Prince George’s County Police Department.
According to evidence presented at the five day trial, on December 1, 2013, Smith got into a vehicle outside an apartment complex in the 9300 block of Cherry Hill Road in College Park, Maryland, in order to sell PCP to the vehicle’s occupants. One of the vehicle’s occupants pulled out a knife. Smith got out of the car and fired a gun in the direction of the vehicle as it drove away. One of the bullets broke a pane of glass at the entrance to the apartment building.
Witnesses testified that a short time later, Smith got into a taxi, which was stopped by law enforcement at the apartment complex. Smith was ordered out of the cab and taken into custody. Law enforcement recovered the following items from the pockets of Smith’s jacket: a vial containing ¾ ounce of PCP; a loaded .380 caliber pistol, which had been reported stolen; and a .38 caliber revolver with five spent rounds.
A search warrant was executed at Smith’s residence on December 2, 2013, and law enforcement recovered a third gun (a.22 caliber revolver).
Smith had at least two previous felony drug convictions and a conviction for robbery conspiracy, all in Montgomery County Circuit Court, and was therefore prohibited from possessing firearms or ammunition.
United States Attorney Rod J. Rosenstein commended the ATF and Prince George’s County Police Department for their work in the investigation. Mr. Rosenstein thanked Assistant United States Attorneys Nicolas A. Mitchell and Kristi N. O’Malley, who prosecuted the case.
Owner of Education-Services Companies Pleads Guilty to Offering Bribes and Kickbacks to Chicago Public Schools Chief in Exchange for ContractRead the Press Release
CHICAGO — The owner of two education-services companies admitted in federal court today that he offered bribes and kickbacks to former Chicago Public Schools chief BARBARA BYRD-BENNETT in exchange for obtaining a $2.09 million contract to train principals.
GARY SOLOMON admitted in a written plea agreement that he offered bribes and kickbacks to then-CPS chief Byrd-Bennett in exchange for her efforts to steer the sole-source contract to Solomon’s companies, THE SUPES ACADEMY LLC and SYNESI ASSOCIATES LLC. Byrd-Bennett had previously worked for the companies, and her fraudulent arrangement with Solomon called for her to return there as a consultant upon leaving CPS, according to the plea agreement. Solomon maintained a line item within the companies’ internal financial statements to set aside the kickback money, which would be paid to Byrd-Bennett in the form of a one-time signing bonus on her first day back, the plea agreement states. Solomon told Byrd-Bennett in an email, “If you only join for the day, you will be the highest paid person on the planet for that day. Regardless, it will be paid out on day one.”
In addition to arranging the kickbacks, Solomon also provided Byrd-Bennett with numerous other benefits, including meals and tickets to sporting events.
Solomon, 48, of Wilmette, pleaded guilty to one count of honest services wire fraud. The conviction carries a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison.
The Wilmette-based SUPES and Evanston-based Synesi also pleaded guilty today as corporate defendants to one count of honest services wire fraud. Each company faces a maximum fine of $250,000 or twice the gross gain or gross loss resulting from the offense, whichever is greater. The government anticipates that the advisory guideline fine will be in the range of $3.2 million to $6.4 million.
In addition to potential prison terms and fines, the individual and corporate defendants also will be ordered to join in a restitution payment to CPS. The defendants and the government agree that the total amount of restitution is $254,000, minus any credit for funds repaid prior to sentencing.
A sentencing hearing for Solomon, SUPES and Synesi has been scheduled for March 24, 2017, before U.S. District Judge Edmond E. Chang.
The guilty pleas were announced by Zachary T. Fardon, United States Attorney for the Northern District of Illinois; Michael J. Anderson, Acting Special Agent-in-Charge of the Chicago Office of the Federal Bureau of Investigation; and Nicholas J. Schuler, Inspector General for the Chicago Public Schools.
All five defendants charged in the case have now been convicted. Byrd-Bennett, 67, of Solon, Ohio, pleaded guilty last year to one count of honest services wire fraud, which carries a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison. THOMAS VRANAS, a co-owner of SUPES and Synesi, pleaded guilty earlier this year to one count of conspiracy to commit federal program bribery. Vranas, 35, of Glenview, faces up to five years in prison. A sentencing hearing for Byrd-Bennett and Vranas has not yet been scheduled.
The government is represented by Assistant United States Attorneys Megan Cunniff Church and Lindsay Jenkins.
Owner of Four Local Restaurants and Two Others Charged in Conspiracy to Harbor Illegal AliensRead the Press Release
CONTACT: Barbara Burns
PHONE: (716) 843-5817
FAX: (716) 551-3051BUFFALO, N.Y.-U.S. Attorney William J. Hochul, Jr. announced today that Sergio Ramses Mucino, 42, Jose Sanchez-Ocampo, 37, and Marguin Sanchez, 22, all of Buffalo, NY, were charged by criminal complaint with conspiracy to harbor illegal aliens. The charge carries a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison and $250,000 fine.
“This office will continue to ensure that all employers play by the same set of rules regarding the operation of their business,” said U.S. Attorney Hochul. “This is particularly true in the restaurant industry, where health, safety, and financial rules apply to protect the public and staff alike.”
“Building and supporting a business through the intentional use of people not lawfully authorized to work here is a model that HSI will not tolerate," said Kevin Sibley, acting Special Agent in charge of HSI Buffalo. "These alleged practices not only put competitors at an economic disadvantage, they often come at the peril of the workers.”
In addition, Juan Carlos Bernal-Lujano, 51, and Miguel Sanchez-Ocampo, 30, were charged with illegal re-entry after a felony conviction. Abel Cruz-Martinez, 46, Aida Ramirez-Arellano, 23, Alejandro Valadez-Leon, 47, and Aracelli Lopez-Martinez, 33, were also charged with illegal re-entry.Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Brian J. Counihan, who is handling the case, stated that according to the complaint, Mucino, with the assistance of Sanchez-Ocampo and Sanchez, operates four restaurants in the City of Buffalo, Town of Cheektowaga and Village of Kenmore. The restaurants, where Mucino allegedly employs multiple unauthorized individuals, include Don Tequila on Allen Street in Buffalo, El Agave on Union Road in Cheektowaga, Agave on Elmwood Avenue in Buffalo, and La Divina on Delaware Avenue in Kenmore.
In March 2016, Immigration and Customs Enforcement received information that Mucino made all decisions regarding hiring and employee remuneration. The investigation further revealed that a majority of the workforce at Mucino’s restaurants are undocumented employees who are paid weekly in cash and that there are one or two legal employees per restaurant who receive payroll checks. After paying each employee in cash, each business allegedly grosses approximately $50,000 in cash, per week, none of which is reported for state or federal taxes.
A review of four bank accounts associated with the restaurants showed that Mucino would frequently commingle payroll and monthly expenses among these accounts. Between January 1, 2014 and June 2016, Mucino issued and endorsed checks to Sanchez-Ocampo, identified as his “right hand man” totaling approximately $278,432. And between June 27, 2015 and October 20, 2015, Mucino issued and endorsed checks to Marquin Sanchez totaling approximately $102,476.38.
Ongoing surveillance between July 2014 and the present found 38 Hispanic individuals working at the restaurants and living in nine apartments and two houses within close proximity to the restaurants. The investigation determined that the nine apartments are being rented and paid for Mucino and Sanchez-Ocampo and the two houses were purchased by Marguin Sanchez in cash for the purpose of housing the illegal workers. The complaint further alleges the employees worked six days a week, 14 hours a day and are paid approximately $500 to $800 in cash, per week.
Mucino and Sanchez-Ocampo have been arrested and will make an initial appearance this afternoon before U.S. Magistrate Judge H. Kenneth Schroder. Marguin Sanchez has not yet been taken into custody.
During this morning’s operation, officers seized a 2008 Ford Edge and a 2016 Cadillac Escalade allegedly used to transport the workers as well as a 2009 Porsche Boxter which was purchased with the illegal restaurant proceeds.
The complaint is the result of an investigation by Immigration and Customs Enforcement, Homeland Security Investigations, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge James C. Spero and the New York State Department of Taxation and Finance.
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.
Over 10,000 Students to Take Pledge Against Gun ViolenceRead the Press Release
U.S. Attorney Kenneth A. Polite announced that on Wednesday, October 19, 2016, over 10,000 students in 36 schools across Southeast Louisiana will participate in his Office’s second district-wide Student Pledge Against Gun Violence Day.
Middle and high school students will sign a voluntary pledge promising that they will never take a gun to school, will never resolve a dispute with a gun, and will use their influence to prevent friends from using guns to resolve disputes. Elementary school children will make a simpler commitment, pledging that if they see a gun they will not touch it, they will assume that any gun they see might be loaded, and they will tell a teacher or a trusted adult.
In coordination with the Department of Justice’s Project Safe Neighborhoods program, the Student Pledge Against Gun Violence is a national program that recognizes the role that young people, through their own decisions, can play in reducing gun violence. This campaign against youth gun violence culminates each October in a Day of National Concern about Young People and Gun Violence. Students from around the country will join together in pledging to do their part to end gun violence. Over 10 million students nationwide have signed the pledge since its inception in 1996.
U.S. Attorney Polite stated that his Office began using the pledge during the 2013-14 school year. Because of the outstanding response from school leaders and students, the Office decided to expand the initiative district-wide to include all schools in all 13 parishes, including Assumption, Jefferson, Lafourche, Plaquemines, Orleans, St. Bernard, St. Charles, St. James, St.
John the Baptist, St. Tammany, Tangipahoa, and Terrebonne. "Our Office is pleased to take this opportunity to reach out to students, engage in a dialogue about gun violence and the importance of making right choices, and encourage them to become peacemakers of our time," stated U.S. Attorney Polite.
In addition to providing the pledges, members of the U.S. Attorney’s Office and other state, local, and federal law enforcement agencies will serve as speakers at several schools to talk to students about what they can do to reduce gun violence in their communities.
Participating Schools include:
ASSUMPTION PARISH
Assumption High School
JEFFERSON PARISH
Alice Birney Elementary School
C. T. Janet Elementary School
Fisher Middle-High School
Frederick Douglass Elementary School
Grand Isle School
Gretna No. 2 Academy for Advanced Studies
Hazel Park Elementary School
McDonogh 26 Elementary School
Shirley Johnson/Gretna Park Elementary
St. Mary Magdalen
T. H. Harris Middle School
Vic A. Pitre Elementary School
William Hart Elementary School
LAFOURCHE PARISH
South Thibodaux Elementary School
ORLEANS PARISH
De La Salle High School
Dwight D. Eisenhower Academy of Global Studies
Gentilly Terrace Charter School
James M. Singleton Charter School/Dryades YMCA
Lafayette Academy Charter School
Lake Forest Charter School
Milestone Academy
Pierre A. Capdau Charter School
Samuel J. Green Charter School
Schaumburg Elementary Charter School
St. Benedict the Moor
The Good Shepherd School
William J. Fischer Accelerated Academy
PLAQUEMINES PARISH
Our Lady of Perpetual Help School
ST. JOHN THE BAPTIST PARISH
Lake Pontchartrain Elementary
Ory Magnet Elementary School
West St. John Elementary School
West St. John High School
ST. TAMMANY PARISH
Pope John Paul II High School
Florida Parishes Juvenile Detention Center
TERREBONNE PARISH
School for Exceptional Children
Participating Federal, State and Local Law Enforcement Agencies include:
Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives
Drug Enforcement Administration
Federal Bureau of Investigation
Jefferson Parish Sheriff’s Office
New Orleans Police Department
Plaquemines Parish Sheriff’s Office
St. John Parish Sheriff’s Office
U.S. Attorney’s Office, Eastern District of Louisiana
U.S. Marshals Service
Orlando Men Sentenced for Armed Robberies of Publix SupermarketsRead the Press Release
Orlando, Florida – U.S. District Judge Roy B. Dalton has sentenced Cecil Dante Buckner (36, Orlando) to 34 years and 6 months in federal prison and Jarmen Lindell Sharp (34, Orlando) to 13 years in federal prison for their participation in a conspiracy to rob Publix supermarkets. Buckner also pleaded guilty to brandishing a firearm during and in relation to the robberies.
According to court documents, beginning no later than February 28, 2014, and continuing through April 23, 2014, Buckner, Sharp, and another individual conspired to rob Publix supermarkets in Orange and Volusia Counties. Specifically, on February 28, 2014, the two men and their co-conspirator robbed the Publix located at 2295 Aloma Avenue in Winter Park; on March 16, 2014, they robbed the Publix located at 7640 West Sand Lake Road in Orlando; and on March 30, 2014, they robbed the Publix located at 2410 South Woodland Boulevard in DeLand. During each of the robberies, Buckner and a co-conspirator wore masks and gloves to conceal their identities. Buckner held store customers and employees at gunpoint at the front of the stores, while the co-conspirator forced store employees into the cashier room at gunpoint and stole cash. Sharp acted as the “lookout” during each of the robberies, waiting in the parking lot of the stores to alert Buckner and the co-conspirator in the event that law enforcement arrived. In total, Buckner, Sharp, and their co-conspirator stole over $24,000 from Publix as a result of these robberies.
Additionally, on May 4, 2016, Buckner and another individual robbed the Publix supermarket located at 2515 Thonotosassa Road in Plant City. During that robbery, Buckner held store customers and employees at gunpoint while the other individual forced a store employee into the cashier room at gunpoint. As a result of this robbery, Buckner and the other individual stole over $18,000 from Publix.
This case was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, the Orange County Sheriff’s Office, the Winter Park Police Department, and the DeLand Police Department. It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Kara M. Wick.
November 2016 ElectionsRead the Press Release
LAS VEGAS, Nev. – United States Attorney Daniel G. Bogden announced today that Assistant United States Attorney (AUSA) Carla Higginbotham will lead the efforts of his Office in connection with the Justice Department’s nationwide Election Day Program for the upcoming November 8, 2016, general elections. AUSA Higginbotham has been appointed to serve as the District Election Officer (DEO) for the District of Nevada, and in that capacity is responsible for overseeing the District’s handling of complaints of election fraud and voting rights abuses in consultation with Justice Department Headquarters in Washington.
“Every citizen must be able to vote without interference or discrimination and to have that vote counted without it being stolen because of fraud,” stated U.S. Attorney Bogden. “The Department of Justice will act promptly and aggressively to protect the integrity of the election process.”
The Department of Justice has an important role in deterring election fraud and discrimination at the polls, and combating these violations whenever and wherever they occur. The Department’s long-standing Election Day Program furthers these goals, and also seeks to ensure public confidence in the integrity of the election process by providing local points of contact within the Department for the public to report possible election fraud and voting rights violations while the polls are open on election day.
Federal law protects against such crimes as intimidating or bribing voters, buying and selling votes, impersonating voters, altering vote tallies, stuffing ballot boxes, and marking ballots for voters against their wishes or without their input. It also contains special protections for the rights of voters and provides that they can vote free from acts that intimidate or harass them. For example, actions of persons designed to interrupt or intimidate voters at polling places by questioning or challenging them, or by photographing or videotaping them, under the pretext that these are actions to uncover illegal voting may violate federal voting rights law. Further, federal law protects the right of voters to mark their own ballot or to be assisted by a person of their choice.
On Election Day, Nov. 8, there will be command posts in Reno and Las Vegas staffed by members of the Nevada Election Integrity Task Force, which includes the FBI, Nevada Secretary of State’s Office and U.S. Attorney’s Office. They will assist with the investigation of any complaints of election fraud or voting rights abuses, and will ensure that such complaints are directed to the appropriate authorities.
Complaints may be filed by a number of ways:
- By completing the Election Law Violation Form on the Nevada Secretary of State’s website: http://nvsos.gov/sos/elections/election-information/resources/report-potential-election-law-violation;
- By calling the NV Secretary of State at (775) 684-5718;
- By calling the FBI in Las Vegas at (702) 385-1281 and asking for FBI Special Agent Michael B. Elliott.
- Complaints about possible violations of the federal voting rights laws can be made directly to the Civil Rights Division’s Voting Section in Washington by telephone at (800) 253-3931 or (202) 307-2767, by fax at (202) 307-3961, by email to [email protected], or by complaint form at http://www.justice.gov/crt/complaint/votintake/index.php
- By contacting our United States Attorney’s Office Points of Contact. In southern Nevada, AUSA Nick Dickinson can be reached at (702) 388-6336. In northern Nevada, AUSA Carla Higginbotham can be reached by contacting (775) 784-5438.
We are pleased to again be a part of this most important effort to ensure the 2016 election is administered fairly. The franchise is the cornerstone of American democracy. We all must ensure that those who are entitled to the franchise exercise it if they choose, and that those who seek to corrupt it are brought to justice.
Northeast Arkansas Roundup Results in 11 Arrests in Methamphetamine Trafficking RingRead the Press Release
LITTLE ROCK—Christopher R. Thyer, United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Arkansas; along with Matthew Barden, Assistant Special Agent in Charge of the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), Little Rock District Office; and Jeffrey B. Reed, Resident Agent in Charge of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms & Explosives (ATF), Little Rock Field Office, announced today the unsealing of a multiple- count indictment charging 13 defendants in northeast Arkansas and southeast Missouri with multiple drug and weapons charges.
An investigation into a large-scale drug trafficking organization based in Blytheville resulted in the early-morning arrests of 11 of the 13 defendants on charges involving conspiracy to distribute and distribution of methamphetamine and weapons possession. Six defendants were arrested in the Blytheville and one in Jonesboro, while two were arrested in Missouri towns (Malden and Steele) near Arkansas. Two others were served arrest warrants while incarcerated in the Dunklin County, Missouri, jail. Two of the indicted individuals, Brad Vernon and Joseph Riley, are still at large.
The defendants arrested today will remain in custody and have initial appearances before United States Magistrate Judge Joe. J. Volpe on Thursday.
“We remain resolute in our continuing effort to help the people of northeast Arkansas, and the Delta in general, combat the plague of methamphetamine and gun violence,” Thyer said. “If the drugs dealers won’t go away, neither will we. While past law enforcement operations have slowed the drug trade in northeast Arkansas, now we have people from neighboring states coming into Blytheville to purchase large quantities of meth. Today’s operation, the culmination of a combined, cooperative effort from multiple federal and state law enforcement agencies, makes clear we will not permit this behavior to go unchecked and unpunished.”
Some of the co-conspirators arrested today have been known to law enforcement for several years, dating back to previous drug investigations in Blytheville. This joint DEA-ATF investigation began in mid-2015, with a series of smaller controlled purchases of methamphetamine from targets in Missouri. Eventually, as law enforcement informants increased the amounts of methamphetamine they purchased, these targets brought the informants to their main meth suppliers in Blytheville to buy larger amounts, up to quarter-pounds at a time.
All told, law enforcement directly purchased more than one kilogram (1000 grams) of methamphetamine from the Arther James and Robert Brown drug-trafficking organization (DTO) in 17 controlled purchases. The entire conspiracy involves multiple kilograms of methamphetamine. In addition, agents seized nine firearms from James, Brown, and Antonio McNichols, all of whom are convicted felons. Five of the firearms were seized during the Tuesday morning arrests, while four others were seized during search warrants conducted during the investigation.
“Today’s arrests demonstrate DEA’s relentless effort to reduce violent crime and rid our streets of criminal drug trafficking organizations,” Barden said. “In conjunction with our federal, state and local partners, we continue to work together to end the scourge of drugs and violence that erode the quality of life in our neighborhoods. These arrests send a clear message that our community will not tolerate the heinous activity perpetrated by drug traffickers and shows our commitment to work together to dismantle violent street gangs.”
The indictment was handed down by a federal grand jury on October 6, 2016. The indictment charges 13 defendants in 28 separate counts. The counts include conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute methamphetamine, distribution of methamphetamine, felon in possession of firearms, and the use of a telephone to facilitate a drug trafficking crime. If convicted of conspiracy to distribute more than 500 grams of methamphetamine, defendants will face a sentence of not less than 10 years to life imprisonment.
“The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms & Explosives Little Rock Field Office, Cape Girardeau Field Office and the DEA Little Rock Field Office worked jointly with the Mississippi County Sheriff’s Office and the Second Judicial District Drug Task Force in an extensive investigation to thwart a drug-trafficking organization in the Mississippi County area of Arkansas,” Reed said. “This joint investigation led to the arrest of several offenders to create a safer environment for the communities of northeast Arkansas.”
The investigation was jointly led by the DEA and ATF, with cooperation and additional assistance from the Second Judicial District Drug Task Force, the Blytheville Police Department, the Mississippi County Sheriff’s Department, the Osceola Police Department, and the Arkansas Highway Police. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Chris Givens.
An indictment contains only allegations. A defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
JAMES/BROWN DTO INDICTMENT DEFENDANTS- Arther Lionel JAMES, 38, Blytheville (arrested in Blytheville)
- Brad VERNON, 34, Gosnell (fugitive)
- Adam BAILEY, 35, Kennett, MO (incarcerated in Dunklin, Co., MO, Jail)
- Angeleke BLANKENSHIP, 43, Kennett, MO (arrested in Malden, MO)
- Antonio BRODIE, Blytheville (arrested in Jonesboro)
- Justin BUYS, 31, Blytheville (incarcerated in Dunklin, Co., MO, Jail)
- Heath FOWLER, 40, Blytheville (arrested in Blytheville)
- Keith KEYS, 49, Blytheville (arrested in Blytheville)
- Antonio McNICHOLS, 46, Blytheville (arrested in Blytheville)
- Lewis MILES, 45, Blytheville (arrested in Blytheville)
- Joseph RILEY, 30, Blytheville (fugitive)
- Robert Lamont BROWN, 39, Blytheville (arrested in Blytheville)
- Steven THOMAS, 31, Steele, MO (arrested in Steele, MO)
STATUTORY SENTENCESConspiracy to possess with intent to distribute and to distribute more than 500 grams of methamphetamine is punishable by not less than 10 years, not more than life, incarceration in the Bureau of Prisons with a possible fine of up to $10,000,000, and not less than 5 years supervised release.
Conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute and to distribute more than 50 grams but less than 500 grams of methamphetamine is punishable by not less than 5 years, not more than 40 years’ incarceration in the Bureau of Prisons with a possible fine of up to $5,000,000, and not less than 4 years supervised release.
Conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute and to distribute less than 50 grams of methamphetamine is punishable by not more than 20 years’ incarceration in the Bureau of Prisons with a possible fine of up to $1,000,000, and not less than 3 years supervised release.
Distribution of 50 grams or more of actual methamphetamine is punishable by not less than 10 years, not more than life, incarceration in the Bureau of Prisons with a possible fine of up to $10,000,000, and not less than 5 years supervised release.
Distribution of 5 grams or more of actual methamphetamine is punishable by not less than 5 years, not more than 40 years’ incarceration in the Bureau of Prisons with a possible fine of up to $5,000,000, and not less than 4 years supervised release.
Distribution of 50 grams or more of methamphetamine mixture is punishable by not less than 5 years, not more than 40 years’ incarceration in the Bureau of Prisons with a possible fine of up to $5,000,000, and not less than 4 years supervised release.
Distribution of a mixture containing a detectable amount of methamphetamine is punishable by not more than 20 years’ incarceration in the Bureau of Prisons with a possible fine of up to $1,000,000, and not less than 3 years supervised release.
Possession of a firearm by a felon is punishable by not more than 10 years’ incarceration in the Bureau of Prisons with a possible fine of up to $250,000, and not more than 3 years supervised release.
Use of a communication facility to facilitate a drug trafficking crime is punishable by not more than 4 years’ incarceration in the Bureau of Prisons with a possible fine of up to $250,000, and not more than 1 year supervised release.
North Carolina Man Sentenced for Using Force Against Muslim Woman to Obstruct Her Free Exercise of Religion on an AirplaneRead the Press Release
ALBUQUERQUE – Gill Parker Payne, 37, of Gastonia, North Carolina, was sentenced today in federal court in Albuquerque for using force or the threat of force to intentionally obstruct a Muslim woman in the free exercise of her religious beliefs. Payne was sentenced to a year of probation, which will include two months of home detention, and was ordered to pay a $1000.00 fine.
Payne was sentenced based on his guilty plea on May 13, 2016. According to court documents, on Dec. 11, 2015, Payne and a Muslim woman, identified as K.A., were on board a Southwest Airlines flight from Chicago, Ill., to Albuquerque. K.A. was wearing a religious headscarf, known as a hijab. Payne was seated several rows behind K.A. on the airplane, and did not know her.
In entering his guilty plea, Payne admitted that he saw that K.A. was wearing a hijab and was aware that it is a religious practice of Muslim women to wear a headscarf. Payne further admitted that shortly before landing, but while still in-flight, he walked up the aisle to where K.A. was sitting and stopped next to her seat. Payne proceeded to tell K.A. to take off her hijab while saying, “This is America! Take that shit off.” Payne then grabbed the back of the hijab and pulled it all the way off, leaving K.A.’s entire head exposed. As a result, K.A. felt violated and quickly pulled the hijab back up and covered her head again.
“The prosecution of this case sends a clear message to anyone who contemplates the use of threats or intimidation to interfere with the right of individuals, including members of our Muslim community, to express their faith without fear,” said U.S. Attorney Damon P. Martinez of the District of New Mexico. “The Justice Department is committed to protecting the religious rights of Muslims in New Mexico by aggressively prosecuting those who perpetrate hate crimes against them.”
“All Americans, regardless of their differences, deserve to be treated with respect,” said Special Agent in Charge Terry Wade of the FBI’s Albuquerque Division. “As the lead agency for enforcing federal civil rights laws, the FBI will continue to hold accountable those individuals whose intolerant acts harm others. I would like to thank the FBI staff in Albuquerque and Charlotte, North Carolina, for their work on this case, as well as the U.S. Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division, the U.S. Attorney’s Office and Albuquerque Aviation Police.”
The case was investigated by the FBI’s Albuquerque Division, and was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Margaret Vierbuchen of the District of New Mexico and Special Litigation Counsel Fara Gold of the Civil Rights Division’s Criminal Section.
New York Man Charged with Attempted Sex Trafficking of A MinorRead the Press Release
SCRANTON - The United States Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Pennsylvania announced that a criminal information was filed today charging a New York man who was staying in northeastern Pennsylvania at the time of his arrest, with attempted sex trafficking of a minor.
According to United States Attorney Bruce D. Brandler, the defendant Adrian Smith, age 21, is accused in the information of participating in the attempted sex trafficking of three female minors in Scranton during August 2016.
The charge stems from an investigation by special agents of the Federal Bureau of Investigation with assistance from Scranton Police. Assistant U.S. Attorney Francis P. Sempa is prosecuting the case.
If convicted, Smith faces a mandatory minimum sentence of 10 years in prison and a potential maximum sentence of life in prison.
This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by the United States Attorneys' Offices and the Criminal Division's Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who sexually exploit children, and to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.usdoj.gov/psc For more information about internet safety education, please visit www.usdoj.gov/psc and click on the tab "resources."
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 life 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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New Milford Man Pleads Guilty to Federal Firearms OffenseRead the Press Release
Deirdre M. Daly, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, announced that LEONARD SIKORSKI, 60, of New Milford, waived his right to be indicted and pleaded guilty today before U.S. District Judge Janet Bond Arterton in New Haven to one count of illegal possession of a firearm bearing an obliterated serial number.
According to court documents and statements made in court, in September 2015, SIKORSKI transported three rifles, two shotguns and 1,561 live rounds of ammunition to a pair of storage lockers he rented in Danbury. On October 22, 2015, SIKORSKI admitted to investigating agents that he had placed several firearms in those storage lockers, and gave the agents consent to search and seize the items. One of the items, a 12 gauge Remington shotgun, had an obliterated serial number.
SIKORSKI agreed to forfeit and abandon the firearms and ammunition seized from his storage lockers based on federal laws barring unlawful users of controlled substances from possessing firearms. SIKORSKI also agreed to surrender to the FBI five additional handguns and two additional rifles seized by the Naugatuck and New Milford police during separate car stops of SIKORSKI.
SIKORSKI is scheduled to be sentenced on January 13, 2017, at which time he faces a maximum term of imprisonment of five years and a fine of up to $250,000.
SIKORSKI is currently in state custody serving a sentence for illegally possessing explosives.
This matter is being investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Connecticut State Police and New Milford Police Department. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Henry Kopel.
New Hartford Businessman Sentenced for Filing False Tax ReturnsRead the Press Release
SYRACUSE, NEW YORK – Dino Tucciarone, 57, of New Hartford, New York, was sentenced today by Senior U.S. District Judge Frederick J. Scullin, Jr. to serve a three (3) year term of probation and perform sixty (60) hours of community service, announced United States Attorney Richard S. Hartunian. The sentenced followed his May 18, 2016 guilty plea to one count of filing a false federal income tax return.
As part of his guilty plea, Tucciarone admitted that he owned and operated Disaster Services, Inc. in New Hartford, New York, and earned substantial income over and above what he reported on his personal federal income tax returns. The defendant admitted that he made material misrepresentations in his tax returns by substantially under reporting his income and tax liability for the years 2007, 2008 and 2009. The unreported income resulted in additional tax as well as penalties and interest due to the IRS totaling more than $284,000.00.
This case was investigated by the Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigation Division, Syracuse, New York Resident Office, and was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Ransom P. Reynolds.
Moreno Valley Man Sentenced to Nearly 20 Years in Prison for Advertising, Distributing, and Possessing Pornographic Images of Toddlers and Infants in Online ChatroomRead the Press Release
LOS ANGELES – A Moreno Valley man has been sentenced to nearly two decades in federal prison for advertising child pornography in a members-only online chatroom for people with a sexual interest in infants and toddlers.
Angelo Harper Jr., 21, was sentenced on Monday to 235 months in prison and lifetime supervised release by United States District Judge R. Gary Klausner. Harper was convicted of advertising child pornography after a trial in July. Harper also pleaded guilty in July to distributing child pornography and possession of child pornography.
The evidence presented at trial showed that Harper used the Kik Messenger social media platform to access a chatroom for those interested in nepiophilia, which is a sexual interest in infants and toddlers. Last year, an agent with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations entered the chatroom using an undercover Kik account, and accessed several postings about child pornography – made by an individual later identified as Harper – which included images depicting child pornography and a link to an explicit video. At one point, Harper wrote: “I have tons of pics and vids of little boys and girls. Pm me for chat and trade of kids under 6 [winking face emoji].”
“Pedophiles who use technology to share child pornography re-victimize each child and perpetuate the market for this criminal behavior,” said United States Attorney Eileen M. Decker. “This case highlights the fact that defendants like this one will not escape prosecution by hiding in the dark corners of the Internet.”
As a result of the investigation, HSI agents seized numerous digital devices from Harper that contained child pornography, and Harper admitted to using Kik to transmit child pornography. In total federal agents seized approximately 9,000 images of child pornography and over 500 videos.
“This lengthy sentence should serve as a sobering warning about the consequences facing those who use the internet to traffic in child pornography and sexually exploit their innocent, helpless victims,” said Edward Owens, acting special agent in charge for Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) in Los Angeles. “The perversion of the perpetrators involved in these egregious crimes is frankly appalling and must be punished to the fullest extent of the law.”
The investigation into Harper was conducted by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations.
This case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys George E. Pence and A. Carley Palmer of the General Crimes Section.
Missouri Man Who Set Fire to Mosque and Who Attempted Arson at Planned Parenthood Sentenced to 63 Months in PrisonRead the Press Release
Jedediah Stout, 32, of Joplin, Missouri, was sentenced today in the Western District of Missouri to 63 months in prison for setting fire to the Islamic Society of Joplin mosque as well as for two attempted arsons of a Planned Parenthood clinic in Joplin, announced Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Vanita Gupta, head of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division, and U.S. Attorney Tammy Dickinson of the Western District of Missouri.
Stout pleaded guilty on April 18, 2016, to a four-count information that charged him with one count of damage to the Islamic Society of Joplin mosque, two counts of arson at a Planned Parenthood facility in Joplin and one count of violating the Freedom of Access to Clinic Entrances Act. Stout was also ordered to pay $701,971 in restitution.
Stout, who told investigators that he did not like Islam as a religion, admitted in his guilty plea to setting a fire that destroyed the mosque on Aug. 6, 2012. The mosque served families from neighboring states, many of whom provided funding for the operation of the mosque. As a direct result of the fire, many donations made during the Muslim holy period of Ramadan were destroyed.
In his guilty plea, Stout also admitted to two arson attempts on Oct. 3 and Oct. 4, 2013, against the Planned Parenthood of Joplin. In both attempts, Stout threw items containing an accelerant onto the roof of the Planned Parenthood facility and then ignited material attached to the accelerant. Surveillance video captured his consecutive attempts to set the fires and Stout was apprehended soon after those attempts. Stout admitted to investigators that he was responsible for both Planned Parenthood arson attempts and for the mosque arson, and that he had committed the mosque arson using the same kind of incendiary device as in the Planned Parenthood arson attempts. Stout further admitted that he targeted Planned Parenthood because they provide reproductive health care services.
“This sentence sends a clear message that violence targeting where people worship or access reproductive health care services violates federal law and carries severe consequences,” said Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Gupta. “The Justice Department will continue to vigorously investigate and prosecute these crimes as we strive to protect the safety and diversity of our communities.”
“No American should fear being the victim of violence simply for exercising their constitutional rights,” said U.S. Attorney Dickinson. “When hate and intolerance lead to criminal attacks, we will protect our citizens and defend their civil rights.”
The case was investigated by the FBI; the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives; the Missouri State Highway Patrol and the Joplin Police Department. This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Jim Kelleher of the Western District of Missouri and Trial Attorney Julia Gegenheimer of the Civil Rights Division’s Criminal Section.
Member of Heroin/Fentanyl Trafficking Conspiracy Sentenced to 108-Month Prison TermRead the Press Release
DAYTON – Josue Morales-Medina, 41, of Mexico was sentenced in U.S. District Court to 108 months in prison for his role in trafficking heroin laced with fentanyl in the Miami Valley.
Benjamin C. Glassman, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Ohio, members of the Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) Bulk Cash Smuggling Task Force, Montgomery County Sheriff Phil Plummer, Ohio State Highway Patrol Colonel Paul A. Pride, announced the sentence handed down yesterday by U.S. District Judge Thomas M. Rose.
According to court documents, Ohio State Highway Patrol troopers stopped a vehicle in which Morales-Medina was a passenger on I-75 in Dayton in November 2015 for a traffic violation. Morales-Medina had approximately $298,000 in cash from trafficking drugs. Troopers contacted the Homeland Security Investigation’s Bulk Cash Smuggling Task Force. Investigators went to a Dayton home used by Morales and others to store drugs. Inside the home, investigators found more than eight kilograms of fentanyl, nearly one kilogram of heroin and a firearm. They arrested Morales-Medina. He has been in custody since his arrest. He pleaded guilty on May 20, 2016 to one count of conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute 100 grams or more of heroin.
Morales-Medina, an illegal alien from Mexico, faces deportation at the conclusion of his prison sentence.
United States Attorney Glassman commended the cooperative investigation by those involved in the HSI Bulk Cash Smuggling Task Force, along with State Highway Patrol officers and Montgomery County Sheriff deputies, as well as Assistant United States Attorney Andrew Hunt, who represented the United States in this case.
Member of Dockworkers Union Guilty in Scheme that Bilked Health Care Plan by Fraudulently Billing for Chiropractic ServicesRead the Press Release
LOS ANGELES – A member of the International Longshore and Warehouse Union (ILWU), Local 13, was convicted by a federal jury on federal fraud charges for causing two medical clinics to bill the union’s health care plan for chiropractic services that were not provided or were not medically necessary.
David Gomez, 52, of San Pedro, was convicted late Friday by a jury in Los Angeles of 20 counts of mail fraud. After the verdicts were returned, United States District Judge R. Gary Klausner ordered Gomez taken into custody.
The ILWU represents dockworkers at the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach. Members of the union receive benefits, including health care benefits, through the ILWU-Pacific Maritime Association Welfare Plan.
According to the evidence presented at trial, Gomez and his co-defendant, Sergio Amador, opened a clinic in Long Beach in 2009 that operated under the name Port Medical and provided medical and chiropractic care. The next year, they opened a second clinic operating under the same name in San Pedro.
Gomez and Amador also created medical management companies that they used to receive funds generated by the medical clinics, which they then used to pay themselves and to pay incentives to ILWU members to use, and encourage other ILWU members, to use the Port Medical clinics. These incentives were often paid as “sponsorships” of basketball or softball teams, with the understanding that the ILWU member receiving the “sponsorship” would visit, and encourage other team members to visit, Port Medical.
According to the evidence presented at trial, Port Medical chart entries were falsified to indicate that ILWU members and their dependents, including children as young as 5 years old, had received repeated chiropractic services, including multiple sessions of massage therapy, that they had not. To accomplish this, ILWU members were asked to sign their names on multiple sign-in stickers that were used to create the fabricated chart entries, or their signatures on stickers affixed to the chart entries were simply forged.
Other evidence at trial related to instructions provided to Port Medical massage therapists on how to craft chart entries to maximize billing and make services appear to be medically necessary, a requirement for them to be covered by the ILWU-PMA Welfare Plan. Included were instructions to massage therapists never to write that a patient had indicated “no complaints,” and to make sure not to copy or write chart entries “exactly the same each time, change things up a little!!!”
“This defendant stole money intended to protect and promote the health of unionized dockworkers,” said United States Attorney Eileen M. Decker. “In taking these funds from the Welfare Plan for his personal profit, this defendant undermined the continuing efforts of the ILWU and PMA to provide comprehensive medical benefits to his fellow union members and their families.”
Over the life of the fraudulent scheme, the medical management companies controlled by Amador and Gomez received at least $3 million that derived from funds paid by the Welfare Plan to Port Medical.
“This case is particularly egregious since defendant Gomez was a longshoreman and a longtime member of the ILWU who was operating a healthcare clinic in close proximity to the port - all ingredients for the perfect recipe to defraud the ILWU-PMA health insurance plan,” said Deirdre Fike, the Assistant Director in Charge of the FBI's Los Angeles Field Office. “The FBI and our partners will continue to vigorously address health care fraud, a major crime issue which affects patients and consumers, and society as a whole in terms of its economic impact.”
Gomez’s sentencing was set for January 9, 2017. At the time of sentencing, Gomez will face a statutory maximum sentence of 20 years in prison on each of the 20 counts of conviction.
“David Gomez conspired with others to victimize the union health plan and its participants by billing for services not rendered, services not medically necessary and services that did not address specific conditions of patients. In an age of rising medical care costs the Office of Inspector General will continue to work with our law enforcement partners to combat fraud involving union affiliated health and welfare plans,” said Special Agent in-Charge Abel Salinas of the Los Angeles Regional Office, U.S. Department of Labor, Office of Inspector General.
“This was a major scheme to defraud a Southern California dockworkers medical plan that provides crucial services to thousands of hardworking men and women,” said Crisanta Johnson, Regional Director for the Department of Labor's Employee Benefits and Security Administration. “It's unconscionable that the defendants would game such a sacred program to line their own pockets.”
Amador pled guilty earlier this year to 20 counts of mail fraud and is scheduled to be sentenced on December 1.
The case against Gomez and Amador was investigated by the U.S. Department of Labor – Office of Inspector General, Office of Investigations; the U.S. Department of Labor – Employee Benefits Security Administration; and the Federal Bureau of Investigation. The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney George S. Cardona, Chief of the Major Frauds Section.
Maine Resident Pleads Guilty to Participating in A Multi-State Heroin Trafficking Conspiracy Based in StroudsburgRead the Press Release
SCRANTON - The United States Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Pennsylvania announced that a 20-year-old Maine resident pleaded guilty yesterday before U.S. District Court Judge Malachy E. Mannion in Scranton, to participating in a heroin trafficking conspiracy that stretched from Stroudsburg to New York to the state of Maine.
According to United States Attorney Bruce D. Brandler, the defendant, Stephon Davis, who used the street name “Chicken,” admitted to conspiring with others to sell heroin between 2010 and 2015. Davis admitted responsibility for distributing more than 100 grams of heroin during the conspiracy, which is approximately equivalent to more than 3,300 retail bags of heroin.
Davis was indicted along with six other people by a federal grand jury in Scranton in September 2015, as a result of an investigation by agents of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, investigators from the Pennsylvania State Police, Maine State Police, the Monroe County District Attorney’s Office, and local police in Monroe County.
The indictment alleges that Davis and his co-defendants participated in a street gang known as the Black P-Stones, obtained heroin from suppliers in New York, and distributed the heroin in Stroudsburg and locations in the state of Maine. According to the indictment, couriers were used to transport heroin to Maine, where Davis and others distributed it to customers.
Davis faces a mandatory minimum sentence of five years in prison and a potential maximum sentence of 40 years in prison. Judge Mannion will schedule sentencing after completion of a pre-sentence investigation and report.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Francis P. Sempa is prosecuting the case.
This case was brought as part of a district wide initiative to combat the nationwide epidemic regarding the use and distribution of heroin. Led by the United States Attorney’s Office, the heroin initiative targets heroin traffickers operating in the Middle District of Pennsylvania and is part of a coordinated effort among federal, state and local law enforcement agencies.
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 40 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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Kansas City, Mo. Man Charged with Transporting Woman for ProstitutionRead the Press Release
KANSAS CITY, KAN. – A Kansas City, Mo., man was charged in federal court for enticing an 18-year-old woman across state lines for prostitution, Acting U.S. Attorney Tom Beall said.
Derrick D. Horne, 26, Kansas City, Mo., was charged with one count of enticing a person to cross state lines to engage in prostitution. A criminal complaint alleged the case grew out of an undercover operation by the Kansas City, Kan., Police Department and the FBI to target individuals who promote prostitution and to recover victims of human trafficking.
On Oct. 15, 2016, an undercover officer responded to an adult website advertisement and arranged to meet a sex worker and to pay for sex, starting at $150 for half an hour. When Horne dropped the sex worker off to meet the officer at a recreational vehicle parked behind a hotel at 1805 N. 110th Street in Kansas City, Kan., both he and the woman were arrested.
Investigators learned Horned had recruited the woman to be a prostitute, saying she could be his “lil business woman/escort” and she would “get money for doing nothing (the) majority of the time.” The first time Horne set up an appointment for the woman, the client paid $170. Horne got $80 and the woman got $90.
If convicted, he faces up to 20 years in federal prison and a fine up to $250,000. The Kansas City, Kansas Police Department, Kansas City, Missouri Police Department, Wyandotte County Sheriff’s Department, Overland Park, Kansas Police Department, and the FBI investigated.
In all cases, defendants are presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty. The indictments merely contain allegations of criminal conduct.
Justice Department Files Brief to Address the Use of Criminal Background Checks by Housing ProvidersRead the Press Release
The Justice Department filed a statement of interest today arguing that the Fair Housing Act (FHA) requires that landlords who consider criminal records in evaluating prospective tenants do not use overly broad generalizations that disproportionately disqualify people based on a legally protected characteristic, such as race or national origin.
The statement of interest was filed in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of New York in Fortune Society Inc. v. Sandcastle Towers Housing Development Fund Corp. et al. The case was brought by an organization that helps formerly incarcerated individuals find housing challenging the practices of an affordable rental apartment complex with 917 units in Far Rockaway, Queens.
In the statement of interest, the department aims to assist the court in evaluating whether a housing provider’s policy that considers criminal records in an application process produces unlawful discriminatory effects in violation of the FHA. Although the FHA does not forbid housing providers from considering applicants’ criminal records, the department states in its filing that “categorical prohibitions that do not consider when the conviction occurred, what the underlying conduct entailed, or what the convicted person has done since then run a substantial risk of having a disparate impact based on race or national origin.”
The brief explains that when a housing provider has a criminal record check policy with a disparate impact, the housing provider must “prove with evidence – and not just by invoking generalized concerns about safety – that the ban is necessary.” Even then, the policy will still violate the FHA if there is a less discriminatory alternative.
“This filing demonstrates the Justice Department’s steadfast commitment to removing discriminatory barriers that prevent formerly incarcerated individuals from restarting their lives,” said Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Vanita Gupta, head of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division. “Women and men who served their time and paid their debt to society need a place to live, yet unlawful housing policies can too often prevent successful reentry to their communities. While not all criminal records policies adopted by landlords violate the Fair Housing Act, we will take action when they do."
“Landlords' categorical refusals to rent to individuals who have served their debts to society can illegally discriminate against those individuals based on their race or national origin,” said U.S. Attorney Robert L. Capers of the Eastern District of New York. “This office will continue to work to fight such discrimination.”
In this case, the plaintiff argues that the Sandcastle complex had a policy of refusing to rent to individuals with prior convictions for felonies or misdemeanors other than traffic offenses. The plaintiff argues that this policy has an unjustified disparate impact against prospective African-American and Hispanic tenants, in violation of the FHA. In the statement of interest, the department does not take a position on the factual accuracy of the plaintiff’s arguments, but instead addresses the appropriate legal framework for analyzing its claim. The legal framework set forth in the filing is consistent with the guidance released by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development in April 2016 concerning how the FHA applies to the use of criminal records by providers or operators of housing and real-estate related transactions.
Fortune Society Inc. v. Sandcastle Towers Housing Development Fund Corp. et al. was filed in the Eastern District of New York in 2014. After the completion of pre-trial discovery, both parties have asked the court to enter judgment in their favor before trial. Those requests, filed in September 2016, are now pending with the court.
Sandcastle SOIJohnstown Woman Facing Federal Drug ChargesRead the Press Release
JOHNSTOWN, Pa. – A resident of Johnstown, Pa., was indicted by a federal grand jury in Johnstown on charges of violating federal narcotics laws, United States Attorney David J. Hickton announced today.
The indictment named Patricia Ann Hawes, 52, of Johnstown, Pa.
According to the indictment presented to the court, on May 11, 2016, Hawes distributed less than 500 grams of cocaine. Likewise, between April 22, 2016 and June 7, 2016, Hawes maintained her residence for the purpose of distributing and using heroin and cocaine.
The law provides for a maximum sentence of 40 years in prison and a fine of $1,500,000 or both. Under the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, the actual sentence imposed would be based upon the seriousness of the offenses and the prior criminal history, if any, of the defendant.
Assistant United States Attorney Stephanie L. Haines is prosecuting this case on behalf of the government.
The Laurel Highlands Resident Agency of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, and the Cambria County Drug Task Force, conducted the investigation that led to the prosecution of Hawes.
An indictment is an accusation. A defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
Indictment: Salina Man Produced Child PornographyRead the Press Release
WICHITA, KAN. – A federal grand jury returned an indictment here Tuesday charging a Salina man with producing and distributing child pornography, Acting U.S. Attorney Tom Beall said.
Michael N. Rodenbeek, 53, Salina, Kan., is charged with three counts of producing child pornography, one count of distributing child pornography, one count of possessing child pornography, and one count of unlawful possession of a firearm following a felony conviction. The crimes are alleged to have occurred in June, July, August and September, 2016, in Saline and Sedgwick counties.
A complaint filed in the case alleges a Wichita police detective accessed a file sharing network to download child pornography from Rodenbeek’s computer. Investigators learned that on June 18, 2016, Rodenbeek used an iPhone to record a 9-year-old girl and on July 19, 2016, he used an iPhone to record a 10-year-old girl.
If convicted, he faces a penalty of not less than 15 years and not more than 30 years on each count of production, not less than five years and not more than 20 years on the distribution count, up to 20 years on the possession count, and up to 10 years on the firearm charge. The Wichita Police Department, Homeland Security Investigations and the Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force investigated. Assistant U.S. Attorney Jason Hart is prosecuting.
OTHER GRAND JURY INDICTMENTS
Brett Nolan Cico, 31, St. Francis, Kan., is charged with two counts of producing child pornography and two counts of committing a felony involving a minor while registered as a sex offender.
The indictment alleges that on Jan. 15, 2016, he took pictures of a 14-year-old girl and a 14-year-old boy. The crimes are alleged to have occurred in Sherman County, Kan.
If convicted, he faces a penalty of not less than 15 years and not more than 30 years on each count of production, and 10 years to be served consecutively on each of the other counts. Immigration and Customs Enforcement and Homeland Security Investigations investigated. Assistant U.S. Attorney Jason Hart is prosecuting.
Kevin Michael Hamill, 28, Wichita, Kan., is charged with one count of possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine. The crime is alleged to have occurred Sept. 3, 2016, in Kingman County, Kan.
If convicted, he faces a penalty of not less than five years and not more than 40 years in federal prison and a fine up to $2 million. The Kingman Police Department investigated. Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Kimberley Rodebaugh is prosecuting.
James Ray Lawson, 54, Louisville, Ky., is charged with one count of possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine. The crime is alleged to have occurred Sept. 15, 2016, in Ellis County, Kan.,
If convicted, he faces a penalty of not less than 10 years and a fine up to $4 million on the methamphetamine count, and up to five years and a fine up to $250,000 on the marijuana count. The Drug Enforcement Administration investigated. Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Kimberley Rodebaugh is prosecuting.
Arturo Rodriguez-Martinez, 53, a citizen of Mexico, is charged with unlawfully re-entering the United States after being deported. He was found Sept. 23, 2016, in Sedgwick County, Kan.
If convicted, he faces a penalty up to two years in federal prison and a fine up to $250,000. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Enforcement and Removal Operations Investigated. Assistant U.S. Attorney Brent Anderson is prosecuting.
Jose Manuel Arriaga-Guillen, 24, a citizen of Mexico, is charged with unlawfully re-entering the United States after being deported. He was found Sept. 27, 2016, in Sedgwick County, Kan.
If convicted, he faces a penalty up to two years in federal prison and a fine up to $250,000. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Enforcement and Removal Operations Investigated. Assistant U.S. Attorney Brent Anderson is prosecuting.
Gabriel Lemus-Miranda, 36, a citizen of Mexico, is charged with unlawfully re-entering the United States after being deported. He was found Aug. 18, 2016, in Sedgwick County, Kan.
If convicted, he faces a penalty up to two years in federal prison and a fine up to $250,000. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Enforcement and Removal Operations Investigated. Assistant U.S. Attorney Brent Anderson is prosecuting.
In all cases, defendants are presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty. The indictments merely contain allegations of criminal conduct.
Heroin Dealer Sold Fentanyl Causing One Death and Multiple OverdosesRead the Press Release
ALEXANDRIA, Va. – Darnell Lee Washington, aka “Dale,” 26, of Leesburg, pleaded guilty today to charges related to his distribution of heroin and fentanyl.
According to the statement of facts filed with the plea agreement, between late 2015 and February 2016, Washington regularly distributed heroin he obtained from his source of supply to customers in Leesburg, and elsewhere. Washington distributed heroin from a house on South Street in Leesburg, and stored digital scales, packaging material and other paraphernalia in the house. On Feb. 1, 2016, Washington distributed a controlled substance, which turned out to be fentanyl, causing multiple overdoses, including a fatal overdose of which the victim died from acute fentanyl poisoning.
Washington was indicted by a federal grand jury on August 17, and has agreed to accept a binding sentence of 15 years in prison.
Dana J. Boente, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia; Mark R. Herring, Attorney General of Virginia; Paul M. Abbate, Assistant Director in Charge of the FBI’s Washington Field Office; and Gregory C. Brown, Chief of Leesburg Police Department, made the announcement after the plea was accepted by U.S. District Judge Gerald Bruce Lee. Assistant U.S. Attorney Mary K. Daly and Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Lena Munasifi are prosecuting the case.
A copy of this press release may be found on the website of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Virginia. Related court documents and information may be found on the website of the District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia or on PACER by searching for Case No. 1:16-cr-110.
Grove City Man Pleads Guilty to Distributing Heroin and Money LaunderingRead the Press Release
COLUMBUS, Ohio – Roman Hernandez, 39, of Grove City, pleaded guilty in U.S. District Court to possession with the intent to distribute heroin and to one count of money laundering. The plea agreement calls for a total custodial sentence of between 51 and 63 months’ imprisonment, to be followed by 3 years of supervised release.
Benjamin C. Glassman, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Ohio, Kathy A. Enstrom, Special Agent in Charge, Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigation, Cincinnati Field Office, Marlon V. Miller, Special Agent in Charge, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), Franklin County Sheriff Zach Scott and other members of Central Ohio HIDTA (High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area) Drug Task Force announced the guilty plea entered before Senior U.S. District Judge James L. Graham. The HIDTA Task Force is operated as part of Ohio Attorney General Mike DeWine’s Ohio Organized Crime Investigations Commission.
According to court documents, this joint investigation revealed through surveillance, financial records, cooperating witnesses, and other investigative techniques, that between March 2013 and April 2013 Hernandez was involved in the sale of heroin.
On April 9, 2013 a search warrant was executed at 3260 Norwood Street, Columbus, Ohio. This was a home being rented by Hernandez and his girlfriend.
Before the search warrant was executed, Hernandez was observed driving away from the residence in his Cadillac Escalade. The vehicle was stopped by law enforcement and Hernandez admitted that between January 2013 and April 9, 2013 he had possessed with intent to distribute and distributed heroin. He acknowledged that proceeds from the sale of heroin would be located at his residence at 3260 Norwood Street, Columbus, Ohio.
During the course of the search warrant investigators seized in excess of $55,000 in U.S. currency. Investigators also found financial records and closing documents where Hernandez and his girlfriend had purchased a piece of real property located at 4870 Manitoba Road, Columbus, Ohio on April 2, 2013 for $70,000. The property had been purchased with cash.
Hernandez’s portion of the purchase price was $26,000. The funds had been withdrawn from his checking account in the form of a cashier’s check. The investigation documented that the funds used by Hernandez to purchase the property at 4870 Manitoba Road were proceeds he derived from sale of narcotics.
In addition, Hernandez agreed to forfeit a Cobra, Model M-11, 9mm handgun and a Sig Sauer, Model P250, 9mm handgun.
“The harm inflicted by heroin is matched only by the profit potential for those who sell it. Today’s guilty plea is the culmination of a lengthy effort in which IRS-CI worked with its law enforcement partners to disrupt the flow of money -- the lifeblood that allows drug dealers to proliferate,” said Kathy A. Enstrom, Special Agent in Charge, IRS Criminal Investigation, Cincinnati Field Office. “This is an important victory for the citizens of Central Ohio. This individual not only fueled the drug problem in Central Ohio, but he supported addiction in several parts of the country.”
U.S. Attorney Glassman commended the investigation of this case by the Central Ohio HIDTA Task Force, and Assistant U.S. Attorney Timothy Prichard, who is prosecuting the case.
Fort Worth Man Sentenced to 172 Months in Federal Prison for Kidnapping and Enticing Two Teenage Girls to Engage in Sexual ActivityRead the Press Release
ABILENE, Texas — A Fort Worth, Texas, resident, Robert Blaine Harris, 50, was sentenced this morning by U.S. District Judge Reed C. O’Connor to 172 months in federal prison, following his guilty plea in July 2016 to an indictment charging one count of enticement of a minor and aiding and abetting, announced U.S. Attorney John Parker of the Northern District of Texas.
Harris has been in custody since his arrest in January 2016
According to documents filed in the case, beginning in December 2015, Harris engaged in a relationship with a minor, Jane Doe 1, using Skout, an online dating application. Harris persuaded, induced, and enticed Jane Doe 1 and another 13-year-old female, Jane Doe 2, to engage in sexual activity.
On January 2, 2016, Harris acknowledged in a message that he knew both girls were “underage and I could get in really big trouble and that would ruin my life.” In the early morning hours of January 2, 2016, Harris traveled to Abilene and picked up the two 13-year-old females and transported them to his residence in Fort Worth to engage in sexual activity. The two juvenile females were recovered by law enforcement at Harris’ residence on January 9, 2016, after Harris called the Fort Worth police.
This year marks the 10th anniversary of the Project Safe Childhood (PSC) initiative. PSC is a department initiative launched in May 2006 to combat the proliferation of technology-facilitated sexual exploitation crimes against children. Led by U.S. Attorneys’ Offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, PSC marshals federal, state, tribal and local resources to better locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the Internet, as well as to identify and rescue victims. Since FY 2011, the Department of Justice has filed 20,260 PSC cases against 19,111 defendants. These cases include prosecutions of child sex trafficking; sexual abuse of a minor or ward; child pornography offenses; obscene visual representation of the sexual abuse of children; selling or buying of children; and many more statutes. To learn more about PSC’s work, please visit: https://www.justice.gov/psc.
U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), San Angelo Police Department, Abilene Police Department and Fort Worth Police Department investigated the case. Assistant U.S. Attorney Juanita Fielden was in charge of the prosecution.
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Former Stockton Woman Indicted with Others in Two Fraud ConspiraciesRead the Press Release
SACRAMENTO, Calif. — On Thursday, October 13, 2016, a federal grand jury returned two indictments charging Kioni Dogan, 36, of Las Vegas and formerly of Stockton, with a total of 21 fraud counts related to claims for unemployment benefits and tax refunds, Acting U.S. Attorney Phillip A. Talbert announced.
The unemployment fraud indictment, charges Dogan, along with Gloria Harris, 56, of Stockton, and Lavonda Bailey, 34, of Las Vegas, with one count of conspiracy to commit mail fraud. It also charges Dogan with 15 counts of mail fraud. According to court documents, Dogan operated a “fictitious employer” scheme. Dogan created an employer with the California Employment Development Department (EDD) that was fictitious and did not conduct any business. Dogan then caused the submission of information to the EDD falsely indicating that various persons were employed by the fictitious entity. Dogan subsequently filed unemployment claims in the names of the fake employees. Harris and Bailey are among the individuals who collected the fraudulent benefits, both in their own names and in the names of other fake employees. The total loss to the California EDD is alleged to be over $2 million.
This is the third indictment returned as a result of the unemployment fraud investigation. On September 15, 2016, Herbert Alexander, 69, of Stockton was charged with unemployment fraud. On December 30, 2015, Deborah Hollimon of Stockton and West Memphis, Arkansas, was charged with unemployment fraud and identity theft.
The tax fraud indictment charges Dogan and Antonia L. Brasley, 47, of Stockton, with one count of conspiracy to submit false claims for tax refunds. It also charges Dogan with four individual counts of submitting false claims. According to court documents, from May 2011 through April 2012, Dogan and Brasley participated in a conspiracy to submit false tax returns to the IRS by obtaining personal identifying information from family, friends, and others, and then submitting returns seeking refunds to which the people listed on the returns were not entitled. To pursue the refunds, false statements were placed on the returns regarding income, withholding from income, and gambling losses, with fraudulent supporting tax forms known as W2-Gs. Dogan is also charged with making false claims in connection with four returns filed in January 2012, each seeking thousands of dollars in tax refunds.
The unemployment fraud case is the product of an investigation by the U.S. Department of Labor, the California Employment Development Department, and the U.S. Postal Inspection Service. Assistant U.S. Attorney Jared C. Dolan is prosecuting the case. The tax fraud case was the product of an investigation by the Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney Christopher S. Hales is prosecuting the case.
If convicted of the unemployment benefits fraud, Dogan, Harris, and Bailey face a maximum statutory penalty of 20 years in prison and a $250,000 fine as to each count. If convicted in the tax fraud case of conspiracy to submit false claims, Dogan and Bralsey each face a maximum statutory penalty of 10 years in prison and a $250,000 fine. If convicted on the tax-related false claims counts, Dogan faces a maximum statutory penalty of five years in prison and a $250,000 fine for each count. Any sentence, however, would be determined at the discretion of the court after consideration of any applicable statutory factors and the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, which take into account a number of variables. The charges are only allegations; the defendants are presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.
Felon Pleads Guilty to Possession of a Firearm in a School ZoneRead the Press Release
U.S. Attorney Kenneth A. Polite announced that KENNETH JACKSON, age 24, of New Orleans, pled guilty as charged to an Indictment charging one count of being a felon in possession of a firearm and ammunition and one count of possession of a firearm in a school zone.
According to court records, on March 9, 2016, JACKSON fired several shots from a firearm towards a red vehicle at the intersection of North Villere Street and Pauger Streets, where the Homer A. Plessy Community School is located. When he was arrested, JACKSON gave a statement admitting that he had shot at two individuals inside of the red car on that day.
JACKSON faces up to ten years imprisonment for the felon-in-possession charge and up to five years imprisonment for the school zone charge. U.S. District Judge Jay C. Zainey scheduled sentencing for January 24, 2017.
U.S. Attorney Polite praised the work of the Federal Bureau of Investigation in investigating this matter. Assistant United States Attorney Jonathan L. Shih is in charge of the prosecution.
Dustin and Rowland designated as District Election Officers for November electionRead the Press Release
U.S. Attorney Carole S. Rendon announced that Assistant United States Attorneys Ava Dustin and Ann Rowland will lead the efforts of her office in connection with the Justice Department’s nationwide Election Day Program for the upcoming November 8, 2016, general elections.
Rowland has been appointed to serve as the District Election Officer in the eastern division for the Northern District of Ohio while Dustin will serve as the election officer in the western division. In that capacity, they are responsible for overseeing the District’s handling of complaints of election fraud and voting rights abuses in consultation with Justice Department Headquarters in Washington.
“Every citizen must be able to vote without interference or discrimination and to have that vote counted without it being stolen because of fraud,” Rendon said. “The Department of Justice will act promptly and aggressively to protect the integrity of the election process.”
The Department of Justice has an important role in deterring election fraud and discrimination at the polls, and combating these violations whenever and wherever they occur. The Department’s long-standing Election Day Program furthers these goals, and also seeks to ensure public confidence in the integrity of the election process by providing local points of contact within the Department for the public to report possible election fraud and voting rights violations while the polls are open on election day.
Federal law protects against such crimes as intimidating or bribing voters, buying and selling votes, impersonating voters, altering vote tallies, stuffing ballot boxes, and marking ballots for voters against their wishes or without their input. It also contains special protections for the rights of voters and provides that they can vote free from acts that intimidate or harass them. For example, actions of persons designed to interrupt or intimidate voters at polling places by questioning or challenging them, or by photographing or videotaping them, under the pretext that these are actions to uncover illegal voting may violate federal voting rights law. Further, federal law protects the right of voters to mark their own ballot or to be assisted by a person of their choice.
The franchise is the cornerstone of American democracy. We all must ensure that those who are entitled to the franchise exercise it if they choose, and that those who seek to corrupt it are brought to justice. In order to respond to complaints of election fraud or voting rights abuses on November 8, 2016, and to ensure that such complaints are directed to the appropriate authorities, Dustin and Rowland will be on duty in this District while the polls are open.
Rowland can be reached at 216-622-3847 while Dustin can be reached at 419-241-0767.
In addition, the FBI will have special agents available in each field office and resident agency throughout the country to receive allegations of election fraud and other election abuses on election day. The FBI field office can be reached by the public at 216-522-1400.
Complaints about possible violations of the federal voting rights laws can be made directly to the Civil Rights Division’s Voting Section in Washington, DC by phone at 1-800-253-3931 or (202) 307-2767, by fax at (202) 307-3961, by email to [email protected] or by complaint form at http://www.justice.gov/crt/complaint/votintake/index.php.
Rendon said: “Ensuring free and fair elections depends in large part on the cooperation of the American electorate. It is imperative that those who have specific information about discrimination or election fraud make that information available immediately to my Office, the FBI, or the Civil Rights Division.”
District Man Sentenced to 4 1/2-Year Prison Term for Recent Shoot-Out in Northeast WashingtonRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON – Leroy Robinson, 32, of Washington, D.C., was sentenced today to 54 months in prison after earlier pleading guilty to charges stemming from a recent shoot-out that took place in broad daylight in Northeast Washington, announced U.S. Attorney Channing D. Phillips.
Robinson pled guilty in July 2016, in the Superior Court of the District of Columbia, to charges of assault with a dangerous weapon and unlawful possession of a firearm. He was sentenced by the Honorable Neil E. Kravitz. Upon completion of his prison term, Robinson will be placed on three years of supervised release.
In entering his guilty plea, Robinson admitted to being an initial aggressor in a shoot-out that occurred in broad daylight on the morning of June 1, 2016. According to the evidence, at approximately 9:45 a.m., Robinson and an unknown suspect exchanged gunfire with a group of individuals in the 1300 block of Brentwood Road NE. Surveillance video shows Robinson and the unknown suspect firing gunshots in the direction of two parked cars. The video further shows the muzzle flash of Robinson’s firearm moments after an innocent civilian entered into one of these cars. As a result of the gunshots, the side and rear windows of the civilian’s car were destroyed. Numerous gunshots also struck the front driver’s side and rear of the civilian’s vehicle, which was riddled with bullets. Amazingly, none of these bullets struck the civilian.
Robinson was struck by a bullet and crawled away from the scene. When law enforcement arrived, they saw him in a grassy area across from the area of the shooting, suffering from a gunshot wound. Law enforcement also found an empty gun holster on his waistband.
In announcing the sentence, U.S. Attorney Phillips commended the work of those who investigated the case from the Metropolitan Police Department. He also expressed appreciation for the work of Assistant U.S. Attorneys Tamika Griffin Moses and Richard Barker, who investigated and prosecuted the case.
Dickenson County Man Pleads Guilty to Failing to Register as a Sex OffenderRead the Press Release
ABINGDON, VIRGINIA – A Virginia man, who was required to register as a convicted sex offender upon moving to the Commonwealth from Arizona but failed to do so, pled guilty yesterday in the United States District Court for the Western District of Virginia in Abingdon, United States Attorney John P. Fishwick Jr. announced.
Ray Merrill Stapleton, 65, of Dickenson County, Virginia, pled guilty yesterday in District Court to one count of failing to register as a sex offender under the Sex Offender Registration and Notification Act (SORNA) after having traveled in interstate commerce. Stapleton will be sentenced on January 9, 2017.
“SORNA is an important tool for law enforcement to ensure the safety of our communities,” United States Attorney Fishwick said today. “Mr. Stapleton knew his requirements under the law and failed to comply, for that he has been held justly accountable.”
According to evidence presented at yesterday’s hearing by Assistant United States Attorney Randy Ramseyer, Stapleton was convicted in Pima County, Arizona on June 26, 1988 that consequently resulted in his requirement to register as a sex offender. Stapleton acknowledged his obligation to comply with Arizona, and other states’ registration requirements to register, should he choose to move. Officials in Arizona last recorded contact with Stapleton in September 2010 and recently contacted the Virginia State Police and the United States Marshals Service to follow-up on an investigative lead about the whereabouts of Stapleton. The defendant was ultimately located living in Dickenson County, Virginia, where he was arrested and charged with failing to register.
The investigation of the case was conducted by the Virginia State Police and the United States Marshals Service. Assistant United States Attorney Randy Ramseyer prosecuted the case for the United States.
Deer Lodge Prison Guard Sentenced for Accepting BribesRead the Press Release
HELENA – Martin Reap, 25, of Deer Lodge, Montana, was sentenced to 20 months’ imprisonment, five years’ supervised release, and a $100 special assessment by United States District Court Judge Sam Haddon on Tuesday, October, 2016 for accepting bribes while working as a correctional officer at the Montana State Prison. The charge stemmed from a scheme whereby Reap smuggled contraband—including controlled substances and tobacco—to inmates at the prison in exchange for bribes.
The charge against Reap was the result of an investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the United States Postal Inspector, the Montana Department of Corrections-Division of Investigations, Montana State Prison Warden Leroy Kirkegard and his staff, and the Montana Division of Criminal Investigations. Criminal Chief Assistant United States Attorney Joseph Thaggard and Assistant United States Attorney Jeffrey Starnes prosecuted the case.
“This is an important case aimed at rooting out public corruption and ensuring that correctional officers carry out their obligation to ensure the safety of the community, rather than seeking personal enrichment from those they are entrusted to guard,” said United States attorney for the District of Montana Michael Cotter. “This investigation represents the best of interagency cooperation. Multiple federal and state entities worked together seamlessly to find and root out corruption at the Montana State Prison.”
This case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Joe Thaggard and investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the United States Postal Inspector, the Montana Department of Corrections, Montana State Prison Warden Leroy Kirkegard and his staff, and the Montana Division of Criminal Investigations.
Court Shuts Down South Florida Tax Return PreparerRead the Press Release
Today, a federal court in West Palm Beach, Florida permanently barred Renel Herard, individually and doing business as Herard Tax Services and Herard Security & Training Inc., from preparing federal tax returns for others. In addition to enjoining Herard from preparing, filing or assisting in the preparation or filing of federal tax returns, amended returns, or any other related documents, the court ordered Herard to publish, at his own expense, notice of the injunction for 14 consecutive days in The Palm Beach Post and Radio Vision Nouvelle (WPOM 1600 AM) and to prominently post a copy of the final injunction in the front window of the defendants’ offices until April 30, 2017. The court also ordered Herard to turn over to the United States a list of all customers for whom Herard or his businesses prepared returns after Jan. 1, 2015, and to provide a copy of the injunction order to anyone with whom Herard worked to prepare or file tax returns for others.
On Feb. 26, the government filed suit against Herard and alleged that returns prepared by Herard and his businesses have unlawfully understated customers’ income tax liabilities by creating or inflating deductions or fabricating business losses for non-existent businesses and have overstated refunds by falsely claiming tax credits, including education credits, fuel tax credits and medical and child care expenses for ineligible taxpayers who did not incur qualified expenses. The government alleged that, beginning with returns he prepared for the 2014 tax year, Herard prepared returns that falsely claimed the Premium Tax Credit, a refundable tax credit designed to help eligible individuals and families with low or moderate income afford health insurance purchased through the Health Insurance Marketplace aka the Exchange, by claiming it for customers who did not purchase health insurance through the Exchange.
Return preparer fraud is one of the Internal Revenue Service’s (IRS) Dirty Dozen Tax Scams for 2016. The IRS has some tips on their website for choosing a tax preparer and has launched a free directory of federal tax preparers. In the past decade, the Tax Division has obtained injunctions against hundreds of unscrupulous tax preparers. Information about these cases is available on the Justice Department’s website. An alphabetical listing of persons enjoined from preparing returns and promoting tax schemes can be found on this page. If you believe that one of the enjoined persons or businesses may be violating an injunction, please contact the Tax Division with details.
Convicted Felon Charged with Possession of AmmunitionRead the Press Release
Marquise Bell, 25, of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania was charged today by Indictment[1] with possession of ammunition by a convicted felon, announced United States Attorney Zane David Memeger.
If convicted the defendant faces a maximum possible sentence of ten years imprisonment.
The case was investigated by the Philadelphia Police Department and the Federal Bureau of Investigation and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Yvonne Osirim.
[1] An Indictment or Information is an accusation. A defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
Construction Company Partner Pleads Guilty to Evading Taxes on More Than $1 MillionRead the Press Release
PANAMA CITY, FLORIDA –Patrick Shawn Kelley, 54, of Panama City Beach, has pled guilty to two counts of tax evasion. The plea was announced by Christopher P. Canova, United States Attorney for the Northern District of Florida.
Between 2009 and 2011, Kelley was a partner in American Construction Logistics and Services (ACLS), a construction company that performed work for the U.S. Government in Afghanistan. During his guilty plea on October 14, Kelley admitted that he failed to file tax returns for the 2009, 2010, and 2011 tax years on income consisting of $1,167,025.32 in wages, ACLS funds used for personal expenditures, and cash wired to Kelley’s wife from ACLS employees. In total, Kelley never paid the IRS $210,397 in taxes due and owing for the unreported income.
During the years 2010 and 2011, in an effort to conceal his income from the IRS, and without the knowledge or consent of his business partners, Kelley made significant personal expenditures directly from the ACLS bank account. The expenditures included $320,550 for the purchase of his personal residence in Panama City Beach; $156,000 for an ownership interest in a motorcycle shop; $44,000 for the purchase of a boat; $10,393 for the purchase of a Jeep Wrangler; and a $9,500 loan to a friend. Kelley also diverted funds totaling $353,520.37 from the ACLS corporate bank account to his personal bank accounts, and directed Afghan employees to wire cash to his wife.
For each count of tax evasion, Kelley faces a maximum of five years in prison, a total fine of $250,000, and an order of restitution. Sentencing is scheduled for January 13, 2017, at 2:00 p.m., at the United States Courthouse in Panama City.
This case resulted from an investigation by the Internal Revenue Service – Criminal Investigation, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, and the Special Inspector General for Afghanistan Reconstruction. Assistant United States Attorney Stephen M. Kunz is prosecuting the case.
The United States Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Florida is one of 94 offices that serve as the nation’s principal litigators under the direction of the Attorney General. To access public court documents online, please visit the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Florida website. For more information about the United States Attorney’s Office, Northern District of Florida, visit http://www.justice.gov/usao/fln/index.html.
For more information, contact: Amy Alexander, Public Information Officer
(850) 216-3854, [email protected]Compton Man Sentenced to More Than Ten Years in Prison for Illegal Firearm and Methamphetamine SalesRead the Press Release
LOS ANGELES – A Compton man has been sentenced to more than ten years in federal prison for illegal methamphetamine and firearms sales.
Luis Rodriguez Jr., 29, was sentenced on Monday to 121 months in federal prison by United States District Judge R. Gary Klausner. Rodriguez pled guilty earlier this year to distribution of methamphetamine and illegal firearm sales without a license.
Rodriguez pled guilty to selling methamphetamine and three firearms to a Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives confidential informant on multiple occasions. The firearms included a Smith & Wesson, Model 66 .357 caliber Magnum revolver, a Ceska Zbrojovka (CZ) Model CZ 52 7.62mm caliber Tokarev rifle, a Ruger Model 22/45 MK III .22 caliber pistol, which had been reported stolen in Texas, and a Colt Model 1911 U.S. Army .45 caliber pistol.
Rodriguez obtained the firearms from his sister and co-defendant, Laura Salas, who was sentenced on April 25, 2016 to 120 months’ imprisonment for her participation in the crimes. The government stated in its sentencing position that, for one of the firearms transaction, a young boy who appeared to be Salas’s son handled the firearm.
“The actions of this defendant were intended to place dangerous drugs and guns on the streets,” said United States Attorney Eileen M. Decker. “Having illegal drugs and guns readily available contributes to violence in our community. This case is an example of my office’s commitment to curbing violent crime by eliminating its sources.”
Rodriguez was one of eight defendants charged last year with various counts of distributing methamphetamine, distributing methamphetamine in a premises with children, selling firearms without a license, being a felon in possession of firearms and ammunition, and possessing an unregistered firearm.
“This investigation served the most vulnerable victims of firearm and drug crimes,” said ATF Special Agent in Charge Eric D. Harden. “The challenge of reducing gun violence in our communities today and for future generations is much greater when the underground market is a family business.”
The investigation into Rodriguez was conducted by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives.
This case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Aron Ketchel of the Violent and Organized Crime Section and Eddie Jauregui of the General Crimes Section.
Colorado and Illinois Men Sentenced to Prison for Engaging in Child Exploitation EnterpriseRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON – Two members and administrators of a highly sophisticated, global enterprise dedicated to the sexual exploitation of children were sentenced to prison, announced Assistant Attorney General Leslie R. Caldwell of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, U.S. Attorney James A. Lewis of the Central District of Illinois and Special Agent in Charge Sean Cox of the FBI’s Springfield, Illinois, Division.
Brian W. Davis, 51, of Farmer City, Illinois, was sentenced to 360 months in prison for engaging in a child exploitation enterprise and two counts of production of child pornography, along with a lifetime term of supervised release. David Delalio, 38, of Longmont, Colorado, was sentenced to 210 months in prison for engaging in a child exploitation enterprise and a 15-year term of supervised release. U.S. District Judge Colin S. Bruce of the Central District of Illinois imposed the sentences yesterday and also ordered Davis to pay $164,000 in restitution and a $55,000 fine. Davis pleaded guilty on July 15, 2015 and has remained in the custody of the U.S. Marshals Service since his arrest on Oct. 8, 2014. Delalio pleaded guilty on July 20, 2015.
“Child predators seek out online forums on anonymous networks, like the one that Davis and Delalio operated, so that they can commit vile crimes without getting caught,” said Assistant Attorney General Caldwell. “But the sentencing of the leaders of this forum—along with the recent sentencings of three of their co-defendants—should give other online predators pause. While identifying and apprehending these criminals is difficult, it is not impossible, and we will use every legal authority we have to root out these predators and protect children from harm.”
“We must protect our children, if we wish to have a decent society," said U.S. Attorney Lewis. “So we must investigate and prosecute those who use our children for sexual enjoyment, and those who facilitate this abuse.”
According to the government’s sentencing memoranda, Davis and Delalio acted as members and co-administrators of a highly-sophisticated global enterprise dedicated to the sexual exploitation of children, organized via a members-only website that operated on the Tor anonymity network, through which he and others posted thousands of messages containing images of sexual exploitation involving pre-pubescent children. As of July 2014, the website hosted nearly 30,000 members, who were required to share illicit child pornography images in order to gain and keep membership, including numerous child pornography producers who were actively abusing children, according to the government’s memorandum. In addition, the sentencing memo shows that site members employed advanced technological means in order to undermine law enforcement’s attempts to identify them, including the use of a hidden service on the Tor anonymity network and elaborate file encryption.
The sentencing memos also state that Davis was the co-administrator of an exclusive “Producers” section of the website, where he acted as a gatekeeper and actively recruited and advised other members on how to sexually abuse minors and produce child pornography for the website. Davis’s contributions to the website and his own produced materials focused predominantly on a sexual interest in infants and toddlers. Davis also sexually assaulted and produced child pornography involving numerous minors who were entrusted to his care while he was employed by a child care facility in Champaign County, Illinois.
Delalio and Davis were the fourth and fifth members, respectively, to be sentenced for their involvement in the Tor-network based enterprise. On July 15, 2016, Jason Gmoser was sentenced to serve life in prison for engaging in a child exploitation enterprise. Gmoser was also sentenced to 30 years and 20 years to be served concurrent to the life sentence for conspiring to advertise and conspiring to distribute child pornography, respectively. On Sept. 2, 2016, Dakota Martin was sentenced to serve 20 years in prison to be followed by 25 years of supervised release for engaging in a child exploitation enterprise and production of child pornography. On March 14, 2016, Andrew Hoff was sentenced to serve 17.5 years in prison to be followed by 20 years of supervised release for engaging in a child exploitation enterprise.
The FBI’s Springfield Field Office and Violent Crimes Against Children Section’s Major Case Coordination Unit and Digital Analysis and Research Center led the investigation of this case. Acting Assistant Deputy Chief Keith Becker and Trial Attorney Elly Peirson of the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS) prosecuted the case.
This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice. Led by U.S. Attorneys’ Offices and CEOS, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state and local resources to better locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the Internet, as well as to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.justice.gov/psc.
Colorado and Illinois Men Sentenced to Prison for Engaging in Child Exploitation EnterpriseRead the Press Release
Three Others Previously Sentenced to Prison for Illicit Activity on Child Pornography Website Based on Tor Network
Two members and administrators of a highly sophisticated, global enterprise dedicated to the sexual exploitation of children were sentenced to prison, announced Assistant Attorney General Leslie R. Caldwell of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, U.S. Attorney James A. Lewis of the Central District of Illinois and Special Agent in Charge Sean Cox of the FBI’s Springfield, Illinois, Division.
Brian W. Davis, 51, of Farmer City, Illinois, was sentenced to 360 months in prison for engaging in a child exploitation enterprise and two counts of production of child pornography, along with a lifetime term of supervised release. David Delalio, 38, of Longmont, Colorado, was sentenced to 210 months in prison for engaging in a child exploitation enterprise and a 15-year term of supervised release. U.S. District Judge Colin S. Bruce of the Central District of Illinois imposed the sentences yesterday and also ordered Davis to pay $164,000 in restitution and a $55,000 fine. Davis pleaded guilty on July 15, 2015 and has remained in the custody of the U.S. Marshals Service since his arrest on Oct. 8, 2014. Delalio pleaded guilty on July 20, 2015.
“Child predators seek out online forums on anonymous networks, like the one that Davis and Delalio operated, so that they can commit vile crimes without getting caught,” said Assistant Attorney General Caldwell. “But the sentencing of the leaders of this forum—along with the recent sentencings of three of their co-defendants—should give other online predators pause. While identifying and apprehending these criminals is difficult, it is not impossible, and we will use every legal authority we have to root out these predators and protect children from harm.”
“We must protect our children, if we wish to have a decent society," said U.S. Attorney Lewis. “So we must investigate and prosecute those who use our children for sexual enjoyment, and those who facilitate this abuse.”
According to the government’s sentencing memoranda, Davis and Delalio acted as members and co-administrators of a highly-sophisticated global enterprise dedicated to the sexual exploitation of children, organized via a members-only website that operated on the Tor anonymity network, through which he and others posted thousands of messages containing images of sexual exploitation involving pre-pubescent children. As of July 2014, the website hosted nearly 30,000 members, who were required to share illicit child pornography images in order to gain and keep membership, including numerous child pornography producers who were actively abusing children, according to the government’s memorandum. In addition, the sentencing memo shows that site members employed advanced technological means in order to undermine law enforcement’s attempts to identify them, including the use of a hidden service on the Tor anonymity network and elaborate file encryption.
The sentencing memos also state that Davis was the co-administrator of an exclusive “Producers” section of the website, where he acted as a gatekeeper and actively recruited and advised other members on how to sexually abuse minors and produce child pornography for the website. Davis’s contributions to the website and his own produced materials focused predominantly on a sexual interest in infants and toddlers. Davis also sexually assaulted and produced child pornography involving numerous minors who were entrusted to his care while he was employed by a child care facility in Champaign County, Illinois.
Delalio and Davis were the fourth and fifth members, respectively, to be sentenced for their involvement in the Tor-network based enterprise. On July 15, 2016, Jason Gmoser was sentenced to serve life in prison for engaging in a child exploitation enterprise. Gmoser was also sentenced to 30 years and 20 years to be served concurrent to the life sentence for conspiring to advertise and conspiring to distribute child pornography, respectively. On Sept. 2, 2016, Dakota Martin was sentenced to serve 20 years in prison to be followed by 25 years of supervised release for engaging in a child exploitation enterprise and production of child pornography. On March 14, 2016, Andrew Hoff was sentenced to serve 17.5 years in prison to be followed by 20 years of supervised release for engaging in a child exploitation enterprise.
The FBI’s Springfield Field Office and Violent Crimes Against Children Section’s Major Case Coordination Unit and Digital Analysis and Research Center led the investigation of this case. Acting Assistant Deputy Chief Keith Becker and Trial Attorney Elly Peirson of the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS) prosecuted the case.
This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice. Led by U.S. Attorneys’ Offices and CEOS, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state and local resources to better locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the Internet, as well as to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.justice.gov/psc.
Clearfield County Man Charged with Possessing Child PornographyRead the Press Release
JOHNSTOWN, Pa. – A resident of Houtzdale, Pa. was indicted today by a federal grand jury in Johnstown on a charge of possession of child pornography, United States Attorney David J. Hickton announced today.
The indictment named Ellis D. Passmore, Jr., 44, of Houtzdale, Pa., as the sole defendant.
According to the indictment presented to the court, on Aug. 29, 2015, he received material depicting the sexual exploitation of a minor and on Oct. 5, 2015, he knowingly possessed pictures and videos in individual computer graphic files which were produced using prepubescent minors engaging in sexually explicit conduct. The computer graphic files were shipped or transported in interstate or foreign commerce.
The law provides for a maximum total sentence of 40 years in prison, a fine of $500,000 or both. Under the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, the actual sentence imposed would be based upon the seriousness of the offenses and the prior criminal history, if any, of the defendant.
Assistant United States Attorney John J. Valkovci, Jr., is prosecuting this case on behalf of the government.
The Laurel Highlands Resident Agency of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, and the Pennsylvania State Police, Clearfield Barracks, conducted the investigation leading to the indictment in this case.
An indictment is an accusation. A defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by the United States Attorneys' Offices and the Criminal Division's Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state and local resources to better locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who sexually exploit children and to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.justice.gov/psc.
Chesapeake Fire Lieutenant Pleads Guilty to Online Coercion and Enticement of MinorsRead the Press Release
NORFOLK, Va. – Thomas W. Almberg, 50, of Virginia Beach, pleaded guilty today to charges of coercing and enticing a minor to engage in illegal sexual activity.
According to the statement of facts filed with the plea agreement, Almberg, a lieutenant in the Chesapeake Fire Department, frequented several social media sites looking for teenage girls to chat with. In January, he met a 15-year-old boy pretending to be a 16-year-old girl on the interactive video game Clash of Clans, and the two began chatting and text messaging. Over the next two months, the two exchanged over 8,000 text messages and the conversations quickly grew to be sexually graphic. In April, Almberg met a 16-year-old girl on a different mobile chat application and their conversations quickly became sexual in nature, including the exchange of sexually explicit photographs. In May 2016, Almberg traveled to this victim’s workplace in North Carolina and propositioned her for sex. She declined, he left, and was taken into custody shortly thereafter.
Almberg was charged by criminal information on October 12, and faces a mandatory minimum penalty of 10 years in prison and a maximum penalty of life in prison when sentenced on January 24, 2017. The maximum statutory sentence is prescribed by Congress and is provided here for informational purposes, as the sentencing of the defendant will be determined by the court based on the advisory sentencing guidelines and other statutory factors.
Dana J. Boente, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia; Col. K.L. Wright, Chesapeake Chief of Police; and Michael K. Lamonea, Assistant Special Agent in Charge of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) Washington, made the announcement after the plea was accepted by U.S. District Judge Henry Coke Morgan, Jr. Assistant U.S. Attorney V. Kathleen Dougherty is prosecuting the case.
A copy of this press release may be found on the website of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Virginia. Related court documents and information may be found on the website of the District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia or on PACER by searching for Case No. 2:16cr136.
CEO, CFO and VP Convicted in Nationwide Worker's Compensation Fraud SchemeRead the Press Release
HOUSTON - Several officials with Team Work Ready (TWR) have been convicted of conspiracy, health care fraud, wire fraud and money laundering, announced U.S. Attorney Kenneth Magidson. TWR had clinics in five states including Federal Work Ready in Houston, Alamo Work Ready in San Antonio and Bayou Work Ready in New Orleans, Louisiana.
The federal jury deliberated for 14 hours following a 16-day trial before convicting CEO Jeffrey Eugene Rose Sr., 54, chief financial officer Pamela Annette Rose, 55, along with the clinic’s vice president of operations Frankie Lee Sanders, 55. The verdicts were returned late yesterday.
Today, the same jury heard evidence on forfeiture matters and returned a special verdict forfeiting $220,807, an annuity contract and real property.
During the criminal trial, the jury heard testimony from 38 witnesses including former patients of TWR clinics, former employees of TWR clinics, various experts and special agents from the U.S. Postal Service - Office of Inspector General (USPS-OIG) and IRS - Criminal Investigation (CI). According to testimony, TWR submitted approximately $9.6 million in false and fraudulent claims from four of its clinics for physical therapy services that were not provided. The claims were submitted under the Federal Employees Compensation Act (FECA) health care benefit program which is administered by the Department of Labor - Office of Worker’s Compensation Program (DOL-OWCP).
DOL-OWCP's chief fiscal officer explained to the jury at the start of the trial that FECA does not pay for professional services performed by unlicensed aides which is why DOL-OWCP requires the enrollment of all licensed professionals providing services to injured federal employees, including copies of professional licenses. He testified that the FECA program only considers chiropractors as physicians when they treat spinal subluxation. Otherwise, chiropractors are considered equivalent to physical therapists and may provide physical therapy under the direction of, and as prescribed by, a medical doctor. Specifically, in relation to this case, the DOL-OWCP would not have paid millions of dollars for the physical therapy services billed by TWR if they had known that the services were not provided as described in the claims submitted to DOL-OWCP.
The claims TWR submitted falsely and fraudulently described skilled one-on-one physical therapy services provided by a licensed chiropractor. Patients from four TWR clinics testified that they did not receive the one-on-one physical therapy services paid for by DOL-OWCP under FECA. Rather, they stated that they exercised independently on treadmills, bicycles and elliptical machines with the Nintendo Wii game and with other pieces of exercise equipment. The San Antonio clinic also had an electronic massage chair for patients. One patient from Houston testified that she felt that some of the exercises she was asked to do had nothing to do with her carpal tunnel wrist injury, specifically the treadmill. Another patient from the San Antonio clinic testified that unlicensed staff told him to do exercises on both of his arms, although he only injured his left elbow and to use the electronic massage chair and the treadmill for his injury.
The jury also heard testimony from 11 former TWR employees, including unlicensed therapy technicians from the Houston and New Orleans clinics, a case manager and two licensed chiropractors. The employees reported 30 – 60 patients a day at the Houston clinic and said there were times when they did not know what the patients were doing in the main treatment area because they were busy in the back doing massages, electrical stimulation treatments and ultrasound treatments. The employees testified that they did not perform all the one-on-one services documented on patient treatment notes and admitted they frequently completed the patient treatment notes at the end of the day by following a “cheat sheet” and asking each other and the patients what activities had been done. Patients at the New Orleans clinic were instructed to go back to the therapy room to begin doing exercises by themselves. Various individuals described the treatment as “like a gym.”
The jury also heard from two federal agents who went undercover as “injured federal employees” at the Houston and New Orleans clinics. The jury watched portions of video recordings covertly made by the undercover agents that showed patients independently exercising and receiving care from unlicensed and obviously untrained staff.
One of the licensed chiropractors testified that she began covertly recording meetings with the defendants in December 2012. The jury heard several of the recordings, including one in which the defendants tried to coerce the chiropractor to order medically unnecessary treatment so TWR could make a profit.
TWR's former chief operating officer (COO) testified about a phone call he received from CFO Rose on July 11, 2013 - the day federal agents executed search warrants at TWR clinics in Houston and New Orleans. The COO said CFO Rose instructed him to meet her and CEO Rose at a local Chase bank where they moved money out of the TWR accounts to hide it from the federal government. An IRS-CI special agent traced the $700,000 transferred out of TWR bank accounts, into a transportation company account owned by Mr. and Mrs. Rose and then out of that account via a cashier’s check in the name of two “shell” businesses not associated with TWR but also owned by Mr. and Mrs. Rose.
Sanders and Jeffrey Rose have been in custody where they will remain pending sentencing, set for January 2017. Pamela Rose was permitted to remain on bond.
The possible punishment for a conviction of conspiracy to commit health care fraud, health care fraud and engaging in a monetary transaction in criminally derived property is up to 10 years in federal prison and a $250,000 fine. They also face a maximum of 20 years in prison for the wire fraud and money laundering convictions.
This case was the result of a joint investigation with the USPS - OIG, DOL - OIG, IRS - CI, Department of Veterans Affairs - OIG, and Department of Homeland Security - OIG. Assistant United States Attorneys (AUSA) Julie Redlinger and Daniel Rodriguez prosecuted the case. AUSA Kristine Rollinson handled the forfeiture matters.
Boise Man Sentenced to Eight Years in Federal Prison for Drug Charge and Illegal Gun PossessionRead the Press Release
BOISE – Jeffery Anthony Arguello, 47, of Boise, Idaho, was sentenced today to 105 months for possession of a controlled substance with intent to distribute and unlawful possession of a firearm, U.S. Attorney Wendy J. Olson announced. Chief U.S. District Judge B. Lynn Winmill also sentenced Arguello to five years supervised release. Arguello pleaded guilty to the charges on August 2, 2016.
According to the plea agreement, Arguello admitted that on December 17, 2015, he knowingly possessed 61 grams of methamphetamine with the intent to distribute it to another person. Law enforcement located a 16 gauge Winchester shotgun, Model 12, in in the closet of Arguello’s bedroom. Under the mattress where Arguello was laying, law enforcement found a loaded JPC .40 caliber pistol, with one round in the chamber. Arguello admitted he knowingly possessed the JPC pistol. In the bedroom, investigators found another loaded magazine for the same firearm and a digital scale. Arguello was prohibited from possessing a firearm due to a previous felony conviction for providing false information in acquisition of a firearm.
The case was investigated by the Boise Police Department and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF), with assistance from the Meridian Police Department.
Belle Glade Man Sentenced to Prison for Federal Drug and Firearm OffensesRead the Press Release
A Belle Glade man was sentenced yesterday to 20 years in federal prison for drug and firearm offenses.
Wifredo A. Ferrer, U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Florida, Brandt Schenken, Acting Special Agent in Charge, Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF), Miami Field Division, and Ric Bradshaw, Sheriff, Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office (PBSO), made the announcement.
David G. Trevino, 38, of Belle Glade, was sentenced by U.S. District Senior Judge Daniel T.K. Hurley to 240 months in federal prison, to be followed by ten years of supervised release. Trevino was prosecuted under the federal Armed Career Criminal Act (ACCA), which provides for an enhanced sentence for persons with at least three prior felony convictions for violent felonies or serious drug trafficking crimes.
In April 2016, a federal trial jury convicted Trevino of possessing a firearm during a drug trafficking offense, possession of cocaine with intent to distribute, obstruction of justice, and being a felon in possession of a firearm. According to the court record, including evidence presented at trial, in June 2013, PBSO deputies were on patrol in Pahokee, Palm Beach County, Florida and observed a large quantity of marijuana packaged for sale and partially concealed on the floor of Trevino's 700 series BMW, which was parked outside a local nightclub. When deputies attempted to make contact with Trevino, he fled on foot and discarded a loaded revolver on the ground. A deputy deployed his taser when Trevino failed to comply with orders to stop. During the course of the investigation, law enforcement recovered the loaded firearm, 49.3 grams of marijuana, and $3,896.
According to the court record, during a separate incident in November 2013, PBSO deputies were on patrol in Belle Glade, when they stopped a suspicious vehicle in the rear of a local business, in an area plagued by drug trafficking. As deputies approached the vehicle, Trevino, the sole occupant, threw two paper bags out of the driver’s side window that contained cocaine and marijuana packaged for sale. Trevino then drove off, fleeing the area.
This case was brought as part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN). PSN is a Department of Justice nationwide initiative that combines traditional law enforcement activities with community-based support and intervention programs. The two primary goals of the PSN initiative are to reduce and prevent violent crimes and to help past offenders adjust and re-enter the community. This program emphasizes and facilitates cooperative federal, state and local prosecution of firearm crimes, violent criminals, repeat violent offenders and gang related criminal activity.
Mr. Ferrer commended the investigative efforts of the ATF and PBSO. The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney John McMillan and Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Aaron Papero from the Palm Beach County State Attorney’s Office.
Related court documents and information may be found on the website of the District Court for the Southern District of Florida at www.flsd.uscourts.gov or on http://pacer.flsd.uscourts.gov.
Bedford Man Indicted on Prescription Drug ChargesRead the Press Release
JOHNSTOWN, Pa. – A resident of Bedford, Pa. was indicted today by a federal grand jury in Johnstown on charges of conspiracy to distribute possess with intent to distribute and distribution of quantities of Schedule IV controlled substances, United States Attorney David J. Hickton announced today.
The indictment named Damaris Rispoli, age 55, Bedford, Pa., as the sole defendant.
According to the indictment presented to the court, from in and around Aug. 2014, to on or about May 20, 2015, Rispoli conspired with another to distribute and possess with intent to distribute quantities of Tramadol, Zolpidem, Clonazepam, Lorazepam, and Carisoprodol, and on or about May 20, 2015, Rispoli possessed with intent to distribute Carisoprodol, and distributed quantities of Tramadol, Zolpidem, Clonazepam, and Lorazepam.
The law provides for a maximum total sentence of 15 years in prison, a fine of $750,000, or both. Under the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, the actual sentence imposed would be based upon the seriousness of the offenses and the prior criminal history, if any, of the defendant.
Assistant United States Attorney John J. Valkovci, Jr., is prosecuting this case on behalf of the government.
The Department of Homeland Security conducted the investigation leading to the indictment in this case.
An indictment is an accusation. A defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
Area’s Second Annual “Day of National Concern” Addresses Young People and ViolenceRead the Press Release
CEDAR RAPIDS, IOWA – Local middle and high school students are joining thousands of others from around the country this week in pledging to do their part to end gun violence. The United States Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Iowa, the Cedar Rapids and Marion Police Departments, and the Linn County Sheriff’s Office are partnering with about 10 local middle and high schools to promote discussion of the impact of violence on youth in observance of the 20th annual Day of National Concern.
The Day of National Concern was established in 1996 through a Presidential Proclamation and Unanimous Senate Resolution. The cornerstone of the initiative is the signing of a pledge in which students promise to never use a gun or violence to settle a personal dispute and to use their influence to keep their friends from doing the same. Nationwide, the pledge is often combined with school assemblies, homeroom activities, guest speakers, rallies, essay and poetry contests, displays of art work publicizing the toll of gun violence, and the beginning of many conversations about gun violence between students and adults.
Locally, many schools are inviting guest speakers to talk with students, having students submit written reflections about gun violence in the form of a poem, song, or short story, or hosting a lunch with the United States Attorney. Several Assistant United States Attorneys and other local law enforcement officials will attend and speak at many of the events.
Kevin W. Techau, U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of Iowa, stated, “We are proud to partner with the Cedar Rapids and Marion Police Departments, Linn County Sheriff’s Office, and the Cedar Rapids, Marion, and College Community schools in the second Iowa observation of the Day of National Concern. The NO Gun pledge and the discussion it generates in our area schools will have a positive impact in our community. The Cedar Rapids and Marion area students are to be commended for taking the positive step of saying no to guns in schools.”
Follow us on Twitter @USAO_NDIA.
Altoona Woman Charged with Credit Card Fraud and Identity TheftRead the Press Release
JOHNSTOWN, Pa. – A resident of Altoona, Pa. was indicted today by a federal grand jury in Johnstown on charges of access device fraud and identify theft, United States Attorney David J. Hickton announced today.
The indictment named Paula Moore, 63, of Altoona, Pa., as the sole defendant.
According to the indictment presented to the court, from on or about Sept. 7, 2012, to on or about July 16, 2014, Moore knowingly, with intent to defraud, used unauthorized devices, namely credit cards, to obtain various household and electronic items, aggregating more than $1,000, and on Sept. 7, 2012, Moore knowingly used the identification of another person to access credit card information.
The law provides for a maximum total sentence of 122 years in prison, a fine of $3,250,000, or both. Under the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, the actual sentence imposed would be based upon the seriousness of the offenses and the prior criminal history, if any, of the defendant.
Assistant United States Attorney John J. Valkovci, Jr., is prosecuting this case on behalf of the government.
The United States Postal Service, Office of Inspector General, conducted the investigation leading to the indictment in this case.
An indictment is an accusation. A defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
Abingdon Man Sentenced to 14 Years in Federal Prison for Cocaine Distribution ConspiracyRead the Press Release
Baltimore, Maryland – U.S. District Judge Ellen L. Hollander sentenced William Frederick Cornish, age 52, of Abingdon, Maryland, today to 14 years in federal prison, followed by five years of supervised release for conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute cocaine.
The sentence were announced by United States Attorney for the District of Maryland Rod J. Rosenstein; Special Agent in Charge Karl C. Colder of the Drug Enforcement Administration - Washington Field Division; Colonel Woodrow Jones, Chief of the Maryland Transportation Authority Police; Commissioner Kevin Davis of the Baltimore Police Department; Chief James W. Johnson of the Baltimore County Police Department; Anne Arundel County Police Chief Tim Altomare; Chief Michael A. Pristoop of the Annapolis Police Department; Colonel William M. Pallozzi, Superintendent of the Maryland State Police; Chief Richard McLaughlin of the Laurel Police Department; Harford County Sheriff Jeffrey R. Gahler; and Special Agent in Charge Thomas Jankowski of the Internal Revenue Service - Criminal Investigation, Washington, D.C. Field Office.
According to his plea agreement and court documents, in August 2015, DEA received information about a group that was trafficking large amounts of cocaine into Maryland and using a warehouse on Golden Ring Road in Baltimore. Investigation showed that the business using that location, KMKJ Trucking, LLC, had been evicted by July 31, 2015. The investigation subsequently identified a warehouse on Hammonds Ferry Road in Linthicum Heights, Maryland, as the new location being used by the group.
According to the plea agreement, on April 6, 2016, a tractor trailer with the KMKJ logo arrived at the Hammonds Ferry Road warehouse and backed up to the rear bay door of the unit. Investigators observed items being unloaded from the tractor trailer into the warehouse. A short time later, law enforcement observed a van traveling around the parking lot and warehouse building, conducting counter-surveillance to determine if law enforcement was in the area.
On the evening of April 8, 2016, investigators saw Cornish’s co-conspirators arrive at the Linthicum Heights warehouse. One of the co-conspirators then left in a black Honda, followed by a silver F-150 pickup truck. After a conversation on a nearby street between the drivers of the Honda and the pickup truck, they returned to the warehouse. The co-conspirator got out of his car and went into the warehouse and the F-150 entered the warehouse through the bay door, which was then closed. A few minutes later, the bay door re-opened and the F-150 drove out of the warehouse. The truck, driven Cornish, was stopped by law enforcement shortly after leaving the warehouse area. A narcotics detection dog was brought to the scene. The dog scanned the truck resulting in a positive response for the presence of illegal drugs. Law enforcement recovered 31 kilograms of cocaine from a box in the back seat of the truck. Law enforcement also stopped Cornish’s co-conspirators as they left the warehouse.
Search warrants were obtained and executed at the warehouse and at the residences of Cornish and his co-conspirators. Law enforcement recovered three large duffel bags in the basement of one of the homes containing approximately $2.4 million in cash, vacuum sealed in plastic bags marked with the amount of cash on the outside of each plastic bag. Investigators also recovered a drug/money ledger in the home documenting just over $2.4 million in receipts from the sale of illegal drugs. From Cornish’s home, law enforcement recovered a money counter, colored rubber bands, latex gloves and a digital scale, typically used in the narcotics trade to count and package money and to weigh drugs prior to distribution. Investigators also recovered a radio frequency detector that is commonly used by drug traffickers to “sweep” cars, people, and other items for hidden transmitters and electronic devices that are often used by law enforcement while investigating the distribution of illegal drugs.
The 31 kilograms of cocaine recovered from Cornish’s truck have a wholesale value in Baltimore of approximately $1 million.
United States Attorney Rod J. Rosenstein commended DEA, the Maryland Transportation Authority Police, Baltimore Police Department, Baltimore County Police Department, Anne Arundel County Police Department, Annapolis Police Department, Maryland State Police, Laurel Police Department, Harford County Task Force, and IRS Criminal Investigation for their work in the investigation. Mr. Rosenstein thanked Assistant U.S. Attorneys James G. Warwick and Joshua T. Ferrentino, who are prosecuting the case.
17 October 2016
Woman Formerly Residing in Maryland Pleads Guilty to Conspiracy to Commit Money Laundering in Connection with International Lottery Fraud SchemeRead the Press Release
Samaiyah Sharron Armistead, who currently resides in Las Vegas, Nevada, pleaded guilty today in the U.S. District Court for the District of Maryland to one count of conspiracy to commit money laundering, the Department of Justice announced. The money laundering was part of an international lottery fraud scheme involving co-conspirators in Florida and Jamaica.
As part of her guilty plea, Armistead agreed that had the case gone to trial, the United States would have proved beyond a reasonable doubt that in February 2014, she received $7,500 in cash at the direction of a co-conspirator and then deposited most of that money into two bank accounts controlled by the co-conspirator. In addition, Armistead received $32,500 in cash on April 22, 2014, at a pickup point in Berlin, Maryland, where she was scheduled to meet a victim of a lottery scheme. Instead, Armistead was arrested by police at the pickup point after being handed the money by an undercover officer.
“The Justice Department is committed to combatting international lottery fraud schemes,” said Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Benjamin C. Mizer, head of the Justice Department’s Civil Division. “Conspiring to launder money is a serious crime because it hides other criminal activity and its success encourages fraudsters to continue their schemes. The Justice Department will continue to prosecute those who seek to conceal criminal activity through money laundering.”
An information charging Armistead with conspiracy to commit money laundering was filed on Sept. 7. According to the charging document, Armistead agreed with other persons to knowingly conduct a financial transaction that involved the proceeds of unlawful activity, knowing that the property involved in the transaction represented the proceeds of some form of unlawful activity and knowing that the transaction was designed to conceal and disguise the nature, location, source, ownership and control of the proceeds of the unlawful activity. The government was not required to prove that Armistead knew the details of the fraud, but the government did need to establish that Armistead believed the money was connected to an illegal activity.
In this case, the money was proceeds of a fraudulent lottery fraud scheme, involving a co-conspirator in the United States and another in Jamaica. As part of the scheme, a victim was falsely told that she had won a multi-million dollar lottery prize. To collect the prize, the victim was fraudulently instructed to pay taxes and other up-front fees. The victim then sent money to various individuals, including the $40,000 that Armistead ultimately received.
“The US Postal Inspection Service is dedicated as part of it mission to ensure that these types of predatory schemes are investigated aggressively,” said U.S. Postal Inspector in Charge Antonio J. Gomez of the Miami Division. “It is imperative that we continue to work with our partners to protect those vulnerable individuals in our society who fall prey to these schemes so that the U.S. mail isn't used in furtherance of them.”
“This investigation is another example of the importance of state, federal and local law enforcement coordination to identify and dismantle a complex and cross-border criminal enterprise,” said Maryland State Police Superintendent Colonel William Pallozzi. “The dedicated efforts of troopers, federal agents and prosecutors, deputies, and local police officers ended an illegal operation.”
Armistead faces a statutory maximum sentence of 20 years in prison and a fine of $500,000 when she is sentenced on Dec. 22 at 2 p.m.
This prosecution is part of the Department of Justice’s effort to work with federal and local law enforcement to combat fraudulent lottery schemes in Jamaica that prey on American citizens. According to the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, Americans have lost tens of millions of dollars to fraudulent foreign lotteries.
Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Mizer and U.S. Attorney Rod J. Rosenstein for the District of Maryland commended the investigation by the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security and the Maryland State Police. The case was prosecuted by Trial Attorney David A. Frank and Counsel Melanie Singh of the Civil Division’s Consumer Protection Branch and Assistant U.S. Attorney Evan T. Shea.
For more information about the Consumer Protection Branch, visit its website at http://www.justice.gov/civil/consumer-protection-branch. For more information about the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Maryland, visit its website at. https://www.justice.gov/usao-md.
Wichita Man Sentenced in Gas Station RobberiesRead the Press Release
WICHITA, KAN. – A Wichita man was sentenced Monday to six years in federal for robbing two Wichita gas stations, Acting U.S. Attorney Tom Beall said.
Demon L. Anderson, 27, Wichita, Kan., pleaded guilty to two counts of robbing a commercial establishment. In his plea, he admitted that on Dec. 4, 2015, he and a co-defendant robbed a Valero gas station at 248 S. Hillside in Wichita. They entered the store while the clerk was outside and began taking cash and cigarettes. When the clerk returned, the co-defendant pointed a .40 caliber handgun at the clerk and the defendants fled the store.
Later that same night, the defendants tried to rob a Petro America gas station at 2838 W. Central in Wichita. The defendants did not know that a police officer had set up surveillance on the store and called for backup when he saw the defendants enter. The defendants were arrested at the scene.
In July, co-defendant Roy E. Walls-Guiden of Wichita, Kan., was sentenced Tuesday to 188 months in federal prison.
Beall commended the Wichita Police Department, the FBI and Assistant U.S. Attorney Jason Hart for their work on the case.
Virginia Man Pleads Guilty to Attempting to Provide Material Support to ISILRead the Press Release
Haris Qamar, 26, of Burke, Virginia, pleaded guilty today to attempting to provide material support and resources to the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL), a designated foreign terrorist organization.
The announcement was made by Acting Assistant Attorney General for National Security Mary B. McCord, U.S. Attorney Dana J. Boente for the Eastern District of Virginia and Assistant Director in Charge Paul M. Abbate of the FBI’s Washington Field Division, after the charges were unsealed.
“Mr. Qamar attempted to help ISIL encourage lone wolf attacks in our nation’s capital,” said U.S. Attorney Boente. “Ensuring the safety of our community is the top priority of my office, and we will continue to work with our law enforcement partners to locate, identify and prosecute those who choose to engage in terrorist activities.”
“This case demonstrates the reach terrorist organizations have through social media and the threat that they pose to our national security,” said Assistant Director in Charge Abbate. “When Qamar could not travel overseas he attempted to assist ISIL’s propaganda campaign for the purpose of inspiring loan wolf attacks in the Washington, D.C. area. Qamar operated over numerous social media accounts where he proselytized ISIL’s message and praised the terrorist group when they committed gruesome acts. Today’s plea is the result of the hard work of the FBI’s Joint Terrorism Task Force working around the clock to protect this country from those who seek to do us harm.”
According to the statement of facts filed with the plea agreement, on May 26, Qamar and the FBI confidential witness (CW) discussed ISIL’s need for photos of possible targets in and around Washington, D.C., for use in a video that ISIL purportedly was making to encourage lone-wolf attacks in the Washington, D.C., area. Qamar offered the CW ideas of where to take these photographs, including the Pentagon and numerous landmarks in Arlington and Washington, D.C., which could be targeted for terrorist attacks.
On June 3, a conversation was audio and video recorded when the CW picked up Qamar in a vehicle and they drove to area landmarks on the list Qamar had developed. Qamar said “bye bye DC, stupid ass kufar, kill’em all.” Qamar and the CW met again on June 10 and drove to a location in Arlington to take additional photos for the ISIL video.
According to the statement of facts, during numerous conversations with the CW, Qamar expressed his interest and excitement in the extreme violence ISIL is known for. Qamar said he loved the bodies, blood and beheadings, and he recalled watching a video of a Kurdish individual being slaughtered, and liked the cracking sound made when the individual’s spinal cord was torn. On several occasions, Qamar said he could slaughter someone and described how he would do it. Qamar also stated he admired lone-wolf attackers because they love Islam so much that they are willing to die as martyrs for Islam. In the same conversation, Qamar and the CW discussed suicide bombings. The CW said he did not believe in suicide bombings, but Qamar responded “I believe in it 100 percent.”
According to the statement of facts, on Sept. 11, 2015, terrorists connected with ISIL posted a “kill list” to the internet containing the names and addresses of U.S. military members. A few days later, Qamar told the CW that the residences of several service members who appeared on the “kill list” were near Qamar’s own home, and that Qamar had observed undercover police cars near those residences. On Sept. 16, 2015, Qamar tweeted his prayer that Allah “give strength to the mujahideen to slaughter every single US military officer.”
According to the statement of facts, on Sept. 25, 2015, Qamar told the CW that he tried to join the ISIL in 2014, and he purchased a plane ticket from Newark, New Jersey, to Istanbul, Turkey. However, Qamar did not show up for the flight because his parents prevented him from going by taking away his passport. Qamar said his parents threatened to notify law enforcement and said he fought with his father and called his father a traitor to Islam. On Nov. 18, 2015, the CW asked Qamar whether he would join ISIL if Qamar’s father gave him back his passport, and, in response, Qamar said if that happened, “I’m done, I leave.”
Qamar faces a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison when sentenced on Jan. 6, 2017. The maximum statutory sentence is prescribed by Congress and is provided here for informational purposes, as the sentencing of the defendant will be determined by the court based on the advisory Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Gordon D. Kromberg of the Eastern District of Virginia is prosecuting the case with assistance from the National Security Division’s Counterterrorism Section.
Virginia Immigration Attorney Admits Visa Fraud, Obstruction of JusticeRead the Press Release
NEWARK, N.J. – An immigration attorney for two information technology companies today admitted that she submitted phony documents and obstructed a federal investigation as part of a scheme that fraudulently obtained foreign worker visas, U.S. Attorney Paul J. Fishman announced.
Sunila Dutt, 39, of Ashburn, Virginia, pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Kevin McNulty in Newark federal court to an information charging her with conspiracy to commit visa fraud and obstruct justice.
According to the information:
SCM Data Inc. and MMC Systems Inc. offered consultants to clients in need of IT support. Both companies recruited foreign nationals, often student visa holders or recent college graduates, and sponsored them for H-1B visas. The H-1B program allows businesses in the United States to temporarily employ foreign workers with specialized or technical expertise in a particular field, such as accounting, engineering or computer science. The U.S. Department of Homeland Security, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), approves and processes applications for residency within the United States, and the U.S. Department of Labor (USDOL) is responsible for the enforcement of labor regulations, including immigration-related employment standards and worker protections.
Dutt and other conspirators recruited foreign workers with purported IT expertise who sought work in the United States. The conspirators then sponsored the foreign workers’ H-1B visas with the stated purpose of working for SCM Data and MMC Systems’ clients throughout the United States. When submitting the visa paperwork to USCIS, the conspirators falsely represented that the foreign workers had full-time positions and were paid an annual salary, as required to secure the H-1B visas. Contrary to these representations and in violation of the H-1B program, the conspirators paid the foreign workers only when they were placed at a third-party client who entered into a contract with SCM Data or MMC Systems.
In some instances, false payroll records were generated to create the appearance that the foreign workers were paid full-time wages. The conspirators required workers to pay SCM Data and MMC Systems their gross wages in cash. In exchange, the companies would issue payroll checks to the foreign workers in a smaller amount. The conspirators then encouraged the foreign workers to submit the bogus payroll checks to USCIS as proof that the workers were engaged in full-time work despite the fact that they were not working for the companies. Once USDOL launched an audit of SCM Data and MMC Systems, the conspirators provided fabricated leave or vacation slips to USDOL for the time periods that the foreign workers were not working in order to conceal the fact that they were not paid during those time periods as required by federal law.
Dutt admitted that she submitted, or caused to be submitted, one or more filings to USCIS falsely representing the companies would employ foreign workers for in-house positions when no such positions existed. Dutt also admitted that on Oct. 16, 2014, MMC Systems, through her, and at the overall direction of the owner of both companies, submitted an I-129 Petition to USCIS to extend the H-1B visa status of a person referred to in the information as “Individual 1.”
In January 2015, MMC Systems stopped paying Individual 1 on a third-party contract. Dutt admitted that on Jan. 30, 2015, she told Individual 1 to falsely tell a person, whom she believed to be a USCIS employee, that Individual 1 had been living with a friend in Virginia or at a MMC Systems guesthouse. Dutt further admitted that on Feb. 2, 2015, she sent an e-mail to Individual 1 containing false information to be given to the USCIS employee as fictitious proof that Individual 1 resided at a MMC Systems guesthouse in January 2015.
Dutt faces a maximum potential penalty of five years in prison and a $250,000 fine. Sentencing is scheduled for Feb. 6, 2017.
U.S. Attorney Fishman credited special agents of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Terence S. Opiola, and the U.S. Department of Labor, Office of Inspector General, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Michael C. Mikulka, with the investigation leading to today’s plea.
The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorney Joyce M. Malliet of the U.S. Attorney’s Office’s National Security Unit in Newark.
Defense Counsel: Mitchell Epner, Esq.
Three Individuals Plead Guilty to Conspiracy Regarding Postal Money OrdersRead the Press Release
MUSKOGEE, OKLAHOMA - The United States Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Oklahoma announced today that ADRIAN VINCENT CROSS, age 52, and LONETTA NICHOLE CROSS, age 44, both of Poteau, Oklahoma, and LADAUGHNA JEAN DUXBURY, age 54, of Shady Point, Oklahoma, pled guilty to CONSPIRACY TO STEAL, POSSESS AND UTTER STOLEN UNITED STATES POSTAL MONEY ORDERS, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 371, punishable by not more than 5 years imprisonment, up to a $250,000 fine or both.
The Indictment alleged that on or about December 24, 2015, and continuing thereafter until on or about January 13, 2016, DUXBURY, along with Co-Conspirators CROSS and CROSS in the Eastern District of Oklahoma and elsewhere, knowingly and willfully agreed and conspired against the United States to steal, possess and utter and pass United States Postal Service Money Order Forms.
Charges arose from an investigation by the Pocola Police Department, Shady Point Police Department, Leflore County Sheriff’s Office, and the United States Postal Service.
The Honorable Kimberly E. West, Magistrate Judge in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Oklahoma, in Muskogee, accepted the guilty pleas and ordered the completion of presentencing reports. Sentencings will be scheduled following their completions.
Assistant United States Attorney Kristin Harrington represented the United States.
Texas Woman Pleads Guilty to Tax Fraud SchemeRead the Press Release
KANSAS CITY, Mo. – Tammy Dickinson, United States Attorney for the Western District of Missouri, announced today that a Killeen, Texas woman has pleaded guilty in federal court to her role in a tax fraud scheme.
Kalena Latoya Winston, 39, of Killeen, pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Beth Phillips on Thursday, Oct. 13, 2016.
Winston operated a return preparation scheme for tax years 2011 and 2012. Winston solicited clients who lived in Colorado, Kansas and Tennessee, and prepared and submitted the returns electronically. Most of the false returns were filed with the IRS service center in Kansas City, Mo.
Winston’s main practice was to include false Schedule C businesses on her clients’ returns in order to increase the amount of the refunds by qualifying them for, or maximizing, the Earned Income Tax Credit. Winston also occasionally claimed false dependents on the tax returns. On two occasions, Winston used the personal identifying information the client provided her for the 2010 tax year in order to file a return without that client’s knowledge or permission for the following tax year.
Winston received debit cards containing the tax refunds from the false returns. Instead of listing her clients’ address on the returns, Winston listed the addresses of her co-conspirators so that she could maintain control over the refunds.
According to the plea agreement, the total intended tax loss for the charged conduct is $70,570. The IRS calculates the tax loss attributable to the relevant conduct to be approximately $200,000.
Under federal statutes, Winston is subject to a sentence of up to 10 years in federal prison without parole. The maximum statutory sentence is prescribed by Congress and is provided here for informational purposes, as the sentencing of the defendant will be determined by the court based on the advisory sentencing guidelines and other statutory factors. A sentencing hearing is scheduled on March 14, 2017.
This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Paul S. Becker. It was investigated by IRS-Criminal Investigation.