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Thursday 30 June 2016
Parkersburg man sentenced to 10 years in prison for Federal child pornography crimeRead the Press Release
CHARLESTON, W.Va. – A Parkersburg man was sentenced today to 10 years in federal prison for possessing over 600 images and videos of child pornography, announced Acting United States Attorney Carol Casto. Charles Tom Davisson II, 56, previously pleaded guilty to the federal child pornography crime. After Davisson is released from prison, he will be on supervised release for 25 years and will also be required to register as a sex offender.
Davisson admitted that on January 22, 2015, he possessed images and videos of prepubescent minors engaged in sexual acts. Investigators found the massive collection of images and videos on his computer and other media devices discovered at his residence in Parkersburg. Davisson further admitted that he was illegally using peer-to-peer file sharing programs to download, receive, and distribute child pornography.
“This is the third case this week that the U.S. Attorney’s Office has brought before the court dealing with sex crimes against children,” said Acting United States Attorney Carol Casto. “These frequent prosecutions reflect our commitment, as well as the commitment of our law enforcement partners, to bringing sexual predators to justice. The public needs to be aware that these serious crimes have tremendous consequences and can result in lengthy prison sentences.”
The Parkersburg Police Department, the West Virginia Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force, and the FBI conducted the investigation. Assistant United States Attorney Lisa G. Johnston is in charge of the prosecution. United States District Judge John T. Copenhaver, Jr., imposed the sentence.
This case is being prosecuted as part of an ongoing initiative by the United States Attorney’s Office to combat child sexual exploitation and abuse in the Southern District of West Virginia.
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Owner of Cape Cod Cleaning Service Sentenced for Filing False Tax ReturnsRead the Press Release
BOSTON – A Wareham business owner was sentenced yesterday in connection with a multi-year scheme in which she under-reported her income by more than $1 million.
Deborah Osgood, 54, was sentenced by U.S. District Court Judge Denise J. Casper to one day in prison, six months home confinement and one year of supervised release. Osgood was also ordered to pay more than $300,000 in restitution. In April, Osgood pleaded guilty to making and subscribing a false tax return.
Osgood was the owner of 2 Busy 2 Clean Cleaning Service, Inc., a residential and commercial cleaning service that operated principally in Cape Cod. Between 2009 and 2013, Osgood instructed some clients of 2 Busy 2 Clean to make checks payable to her personally, rather than to the business. Osgood cashed those checks, but did not deposit the proceeds into the business bank account, or otherwise report them to the accountant she retained to prepare her income tax returns. As a result, she significantly underreported the gross receipts of her business, and thus her own income, when she filed tax returns for years 2009 to 2013. For those five tax years, Osgood did not report more than $1 million in gross receipts, and thus underpaid her federal income taxes by more than $300,000.
United States Attorney Carmen M. Ortiz and Joel P. Garland, Special Agent in Charge of the Internal Revenue Service’s Criminal Investigation in Boston, made the announcement today. The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Stephen E. Frank, Deputy Chief of Ortiz’s Economic Crimes Unit.
Oshkosh Man Charged with Child PornographyRead the Press Release
Gregory J. Haanstad, United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Wisconsin, announced that that on June 28, 2016, a federal grand jury returned an indictment against Neil C. Kienast (age: 20) of Oshkosh, Wisconsin, charging him with possession of child pornography in violation of Title18, United States Code, Section 2252A. If convicted of the charge, Kienast faces a maximum of 20 years in prison, a $250,000 fine, and five years to life of supervised release.
The indictment alleges that on January 14, 2016, Kienast possessed a number of movie files that contained images of child pornography. The indictment also provides notice that various computers and storage media devices seized from Kienast are subject to forfeiture.
Kienast is scheduled to appear on July 14, 2016, at 2:45 p.m. before the Honorable James Sickel, Magistrate Court Judge. A trial date will be set at that time.
This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney William Roach.
An indictment is only a charge and is not evidence of guilt. The defendant is presumed innocent and is entitled to a fair trial at which the government must prove guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.
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Northeast Pennsylvania Check Casher Sentenced to Two Years in Prison for Stolen Identity Refund Fraud SchemeRead the Press Release
SCRANTON – The United States Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Pennsylvania announced that Jose Cabreja, age 30, Scranton, was sentenced today to two years in prison by United States District Court Judge Malachy E. Mannion in Scranton for conspiracy to make false claims against the government.
According to United States Attorney Peter Smith, Cabreja operated Frank Check Casher, Inc. in Olyphant, Cabreja and his co-conspirators used the identities of unknowing third parties to prepare and file fraudulent federal income tax returns which resulted in the issuance of tax refund checks. Cabreja deposited and cashed fraudulently obtained tax refund checks totaling $876,731 between June and August 2013.
Judge Mannion also ordered Cabreja to pay restitution in the amount of $662,309.
Cabreja was indicted by a federal grand jury in Scranton in February 2016, as a result of an investigation by the Internal Revenue Service, Criminal Investigations, with assistance from the Pennsylvania State Police, the Hazelton, Taylor, Dickson City, Dunmore and Olyphant Police Departments, and the Lackawanna and Luzerne County District Attorneys’ Offices. The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney William Houser.
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North Platte Man Convicted on Child Pornography ChargesRead the Press Release
United States Attorney Deborah R. Gilg announced that Angel F. Garcia, 37, formerly of North Platte, Nebraska, was sentenced today in Lincoln, Nebraska, to 70 months in prison by United States Senior District Judge Richard G. Kopf, for receipt and distribution of child pornography. Following his release from prison, Garcia will serve 5 years on supervised release and be required to register as a sex offender.
In March of 2015, while conducting an investigation, law enforcement officers of the North Platte Police Department observed an IP address making known child pornography files available for sharing. Further investigation determined that Garcia was the subscriber to that IP address. In April, 2015, a search warrant was executed at Garcia’s residence in North Platte. Officers performed an on-scene preview of a computer located in Garcia’s bedroom and found thousands of child pornography images and videos. Garcia admitted to officers that he had in fact downloaded and viewed child pornography from the internet.
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 United States Attorneys’ Offices and the Criminal Division's Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS), Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state and local resources to better locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the Internet, as well as to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.projectsafechildhood.gov.
This case was investigated by the North Platte Police Department.
Nitro woman pleads guilty to Federal methamphetamine crimeRead the Press Release
CHARLESTON, W.Va. – A Nitro methamphetamine dealer pleaded guilty today to a federal drug crime, announced Acting United States Attorney Carol Casto. Jamisa Hairston, 25, entered her guilty plea to distribution of methamphetamine.
Hairston admitted that on April 7, 2014, she sold methamphetamine to a confidential informant working with law enforcement. The drug deal took place at a residence in Nitro that Hairston shared with her boyfriend.
Hairston faces up to 20 years in federal prison when she is sentenced on October 5, 2016.
The Metropolitan Drug Enforcement Network Team conducted the investigation. Assistant United States Attorney John J. Frail is handling the prosecution. The plea hearing was held before United States District Judge Thomas E. Johnston.
This case is being prosecuted as part of an ongoing effort led by the United States Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of West Virginia to combat the illicit sale and misuse of illegal drugs, including methamphetamine. The U.S. Attorney’s Office, joined by federal, state and local law enforcement agencies, is committed to aggressively pursuing and shutting down pill trafficking, eliminating open air drug markets, and curtailing the spread of illegal drugs in communities across the Southern District.
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Ninth Defendant from Georgia Sentenced in Credit Card SchemeRead the Press Release
BOISE – Kyandre Banks, 27, of Lilburn, Georgia, was sentenced today to 60 months in prison followed by three years of supervised release for conspiracy to commit wire fraud and aggravated identity theft, U.S. Attorney Wendy J. Olson announced. He pleaded guilty on February 18, 2016. Visiting U.S. District Judge Stanley A. Bastian also ordered Banks to pay $22,679.54 in restitution along with the other co-defendants, and to forfeit $49,953.41 in cash proceeds from the offense.
According to court proceedings, Banks admitted traveling to the District of Idaho in October 2014, along with his co-defendants, for the purpose of making fraudulent purchases of gift cards and prepaid debit cards from retail stores, using stolen credit card numbers encoded onto stock debit cards. Banks admitted to obtaining the stock debit cards encoded with unauthorized credit card numbers, and making purchases at retail stores between October 4 and 6, 2014. Banks further admitted traveling to three separate retail stores, making 11 purchases of gift cards, pre-paid debits cards and personal toiletries, and using six different credit card numbers that he was not authorized to use. Officers recovered the defendant’s suitcase and backpack which contained a total of 27 gift cards.
Banks was indicted, along with Terrance Barimah of Floranceville, Georgia, Clarence Collins of Douglasville, Georgia, Rashine Kale of Lawrenceville, Georgia, Jean Estinville of Lawrenceville, Georgia, Charles Moore of Stone Mountain, Georgia, Jonathan Penn of Suwanee, Georgia, Brian Treadwell of Buford, Georgia, Mikki Williams of Loganville, Georgia, and Rakeen Anderson, of Atlanta, Georgia, on charges relating to a wire fraud and identity theft scheme. Collins, Banks, Estinville, Kale, Moore, Penn, Williams and Treadwell were each charged with conspiracy to commit wire fraud, wire fraud, and aggravated identity theft. Anderson was charged with conspiracy to commit wire fraud and wire fraud. Barimah was charged with conspiracy to commit wire fraud and illegal possession of device-making equipment.
Co-defendants Rakeen Anderson and Jean Estinville were sentenced on September 30, 2015. Anderson received 18 months in prison for conspiracy to commit wire fraud. Estinville received 46 months in prison for conspiracy to commit wire fraud and aggravated identity theft. Brian Treadwell and Mikki Williams were sentenced on June 16, 2014. Treadwell received 75 months in prison for conspiracy to commit wire fraud and aggravated identity theft. Williams received three years of probation and 200 hours of community service for misprision of a felony. Clarence Collins was sentenced on July 6, 2015, to 78 months in prison for conspiracy to commit wire fraud and aggravated identity theft. Charles Moore was sentenced on July 7, 2015, to 51 months in prison for conspiracy to commit wire fraud and aggravated identity theft. Jonathan Penn was sentenced on July 8, 2015, to 24 months in prison for conspiracy to commit wire fraud. Rashine Kale was sentenced on July 22, 2015, to 30 months in prison for conspiracy to commit wire fraud and aggravated identity theft.
Terrance Barmiah is set for sentencing on July 20, 2016.
The case was investigated by the United States Secret Service and the Boise Police Department.
Nine Men Charged with Distributing Drugs in Bristol CountyRead the Press Release
BOSTON – Nine men have been charged in U.S. District Court in Boston in connection with distributing heroin and cocaine in the Bristol County area.
Six men from southeastern Massachusetts and Rhode Island were charged with conspiring to distribute cocaine, and three New Bedford residents, in a separate but related criminal complaint, were charged with conspiring to distribute heroin. Six defendants were arrested this morning will appear in U.S. District Court in Boston later this afternoon. Three defendants remain fugitives from justice.
According to court documents, Luis Lopez was the head of a drug trafficking organization that imported large quantities of cocaine from Puerto Rico to New Bedford and Fall River. Another defendant coordinated the shipments of cocaine through the U.S. Mail with the assistance of Chindy Diaz, who received cocaine-filled packages on Lopez’s behalf and delivered it to Lopez at his Fall River residence. Israel Santiago also allegedly helped coordinate the receipt of cocaine on behalf of Lopez. Lopez then sold the cocaine to other drug dealers, including Tyson Britto. During the course of the investigation, federal agents intercepted at least three cocaine-filled packages bound for Lopez.
In a related investigation, federal agents learned that Sharik Mendes, who owns and operates the HEART gym in New Bedford, was allegedly receiving large quantities of heroin from at least two suppliers based in Providence. It is alleged that Mendes employed Tyson Depina to distribute the heroin on his behalf. Intercepted phone calls showed that Depina was consistently selling heroin to users and lower-level dealers, and that he was providing Mendes with $1,000 to $2,000 a day for this heroin. In April 2016, Depina was arrested for possessing heroin which he attempted to destroy incident to his arrest. In addition, it is alleged that Depina was also supplied heroin by another defendant, who was distributing it on behalf of a higher-level drug dealer.
The following defendants are charged in a federal criminal complaint with:
Conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute cocaine:
1) Luis Lopez, a/k/a “Juan Gonzalez,” 43, of Tiverton, R.I. and Fall River;
3) Chindy Diaz, 38, of New Bedford;
5) Tyson Britto, a/k/a “Peanut,” 31, of Fall River; and,
6) Israel Santiago, a/k/a “Reysito,” 39, of Fall River.
The following defendants are charged in a related federal criminal complaint with:
Conspiracy to distribute and possess with the intent to distribute heroin:
1) Sharik Mendes, 39, of New Bedford; and
2) Tyson Depina, a/k/a “Tru,” 40, of New Bedford.
The charges of conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute heroin and cocaine provide a sentence of no greater than 20 years in prison, a lifetime of supervised release and a fine of $1 million. Actual sentences for federal crimes are typically less than the maximum penalties. Sentences are imposed by a federal district court judge based upon the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
United States Attorney Carmen M. Ortiz; Bristol County District Attorney C. Samuel Sutter; Michael J. Ferguson, Special Agent in Charge of the Drug Enforcement Administration, Boston Field Division; Joel P. Garland, Special Agent in Charge of the Internal Revenue Service’s Criminal Investigation in Boston; Shelly Binkowski, Inspector in Charge of the U.S. Postal Inspection Service; Fall River Police Chief John M Souza; New Bedford Police Chief Joseph C. Cordeiro; Fairhaven Police Chief Michael Myers; and Bristol County Sheriff Thomas M. Hodgson, made the announcement today. The cases are being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Eric Rosen of Ortiz’s Narcotics and Money Laundering Unit.
The details contained in the charging documents are allegations. The defendants are presumed to be innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
New York man sentenced for possession of counterfeit credit cardsRead the Press Release
WHEELING, WEST VIRGINIA – Charles Manu, 23, of Bronx, New York, was sentenced to 24 months in prison for possession of counterfeit devices, United States Attorney William J. Ihlenfeld, II, announced.
Manu was found in Ohio County in possession of more than fifteen counterfeit devices, including stolen credit card account numbers and recoded or reprogrammed gift cards. Manu previously pled guilty to one count of “Possession of Unauthorized Access Devices.”
Assistant U.S. Attorney David J. Perri prosecuted the case on behalf of the government. The West Virginia State Police and the United States Secret Service investigated.
U.S. District Judge John Preston Bailey presided.
New York Lawyer and Wife Pay $1 Million Following Conviction on Immigration Fraud SchemeRead the Press Release
The Office of the United States Attorney for the District of Vermont announced today that Loreto Kudera, age 45, and Hazel Kudera, age 43, a married couple from New York, New York, who have pleaded guilty to an immigration fraud scheme, have paid the final installment of their $1 million forfeiture penalty representing ill-gotten gains from the scheme.
On June 9, 2016, the Kuderas pleaded guilty to charges that they conspired to commit immigration fraud. According to the public record, Hazel Kudera owns several medical staffing agencies in New York specializing in providing nursing professionals to hospitals, outpatient and skilled nursing facilities. She and her husband, Loreto Kudera, then a lawyer at the Law Offices of Barry Silberzweig, in New York, New York, provided false and fraudulent information to the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services in St. Albans, Vermont when applying for H1-B visas for foreign nurses.
The H-1B visa program permits an employer to petition on a behalf of a foreign national beneficiary to enter the United States for the specific purpose of working for the employer in a specialty occupation. There are a limited number of H-1B visas available each year, and the purpose of the program is to ensure that these visas go to legitimate beneficiaries to fill specialty positions from a qualified work force. Working as a general RN or LPN is not considered a specialty occupation by the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Service. Knowing this, Hazel Kudera and Loreta Kudera falsely stated that these foreign nurses, mostly from the Philippines, would be working in specialty occupations at prevailing wage rates when, in fact, they were going to work as LPNs or RNs at much lower rates, mostly at nursing homes. Hazel Kudera and Loreto Kudera profited from this scheme from the filing fees they collected from the beneficiaries as well as from the health care facilities which were paying fees to the medical staffing agencies owned by Hazel Kudera. The Kuderas admitted that they submitted 100 or more fraudulent petitions as part of their scheme. As a result of their convictions, the Kuderas agreed to forfeit $1,000,000 in illegal proceeds to the United States.
The Kuderas are scheduled to be sentenced on September 28, 2016. The maximum penalties for their conviction are five years of imprisonment, three years of supervised release, or a fine of $250,000 or twice the amount of gross gain, whichever is greater. The sentence will be advised by the United States Sentencing Guidelines.
The United States Attorney commended the investigative efforts of the United States Department of State, Diplomatic Security Service, the United States Department of Labor Office of Inspector General, Office of Labor Racketeering and Fraud, and the United States Department of Homeland Security, Homeland Security Investigations, in Boston, Massachusetts, who jointly spearheaded the investigation. The United States Attorney also wishes to thank the United States Citizenship and Immigration Service, Security Fraud Division, at the Vermont Service Center in St. Albans, Vermont for their assistance with the investigation.
The United States is represented in this case by Assistant U.S. Attorney Heather E. Ross. Hazel Kudera is represented by Richard Willstatter of Green & Willstatter, White Plains, New York and Loreto Kudera is represented by Marc Fernich of New York, New York.
New Jersey Doctor Pleads Guilty in Connection with Test Referral Scheme with New Jersey Clinical LabRead the Press Release
NEWARK, N.J. – A doctor with a practice in Clifton, New Jersey, today admitted taking bribes in connection with a long-running and elaborate test referral scheme operated by Biodiagnostic Laboratory Services LLC (BLS), of Parsippany, New Jersey, its president and numerous associates, U.S. Attorney Paul J. Fishman announced.
Juan Espindola, 58, of Montclair, New Jersey, pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Stanley R. Chesler in Newark federal court to an information charging him with violating the Federal Travel Act by accepting bribes to refer patient blood specimens to BLS.
According to documents filed in this case and statements made in court:
Espindola admitted that between April 2011 and June 2012, he received bribes of approximately $1,500, largely on a monthly basis, from an individual working on behalf of BLS, referred to in the information as “Individual 1.”
Individual 1 falsely characterized the payments as “consulting fees” and made the payments via check. In reality, Espindola did not provide consultant services to Individual 1 or BLS – the consultant fees were merely a sham intended to conceal the bribe payments. In exchange, Espindola referred patient blood samples to BLS. Espindola’s referrals generated approximately $65,000 in lab business for BLS.
The Travel Act charge to which Espindola pleaded guilty carries a maximum potential penalty of five years in prison and a $250,000 fine, or twice the gross gain or loss from the offense. His sentencing is scheduled for Oct. 12, 2016.
The investigation has thus far resulted in 41 guilty pleas – 27 of them from doctors – in connection with the bribery scheme, which its organizers have admitted involved millions of dollars in bribes and resulted in more than $100 million in payments to BLS from Medicare and various private insurance companies. It is believed to be the largest number of medical professionals ever prosecuted in a bribery case. The investigation has to date recovered more than $12 million through forfeiture.
U.S. Attorney Fishman credited special agents of the FBI, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Timothy Gallagher; inspectors of the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, under the direction of Acting Inspector in Charge Cynthia Shoffner; the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Office of Inspector General, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Scott J. Lampert; and IRS–Criminal Investigation, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Jonathan D. Larsen, with the ongoing investigation.
The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Joseph N. Minish, Danielle Alfonzo Walsman, and Jacob T. Elberg, Chief of the U.S. Attorney’s Office Health Care and Government Fraud Unit in Newark, as well as Barbara Ward, Acting Chief of the office’s Asset Forfeiture and Money Laundering Unit.
U.S. Attorney Fishman reorganized the health care fraud practice at the New Jersey U.S. Attorney’s Office shortly after taking office, including creating a stand-alone Health Care and Government Fraud Unit to handle both criminal and civil investigations and prosecutions of health care fraud offenses. Since 2010, the office has recovered more than $1.29 billion in health care fraud and government fraud settlements, judgments, fines, restitution and forfeiture under the False Claims Act, the Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act and other statutes.
Defense counsel: Robert Stahl, Esq., Westfield, New Jersey
Nevada Dentist Sentenced to Prison for Tax FraudRead the Press Release
A Las Vegas-area dentist was sentenced today to 13 months in prison for tax evasion, announced Acting Assistant Attorney General Caroline D. Ciraolo of the Justice Department’s Tax Division and U.S. Attorney Daniel G. Bogden of the District of Nevada.
Leslie Kotler, 56, pleaded guilty in June 2014 to evading his taxes over a nine year period, causing a $600,000 tax loss and admitted to using a number of nominee bank accounts and bogus trusts to hide his income and assets from the Internal Revenue Service (IRS). Kotler also filed false income tax returns for the years 2008 through 2011 that materially understated his income and filed a false bankruptcy petition in an attempt to delay the IRS’s ongoing efforts to collect the large amount of taxes he owned.
“With today’s sentence, Mr. Kotler is held accountable and pays a heavy price for his egregious conduct in evading both the assessment and payment of taxes,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General Ciraolo. “The court’s sentence reflects the serious harm caused by those who fail to comply with our nation’s tax laws and will serve to deter other individuals contemplating similar criminal conduct.”
“Leslie Kotler’s attempt to evade taxes by hiding income and filing false tax returns was a theft from the American public,” said Acting Special Agent in Charge Michael Brock of the IRS-Criminal Investigation Las Vegas Field Office. “To build faith in our nation’s tax system, honest taxpayers need to be reassured that everyone is paying their fair share. The IRS-Criminal Investigation Division, along with the Department of Justice, will investigate and prosecute those who violate our tax system.”
In addition to the term of imprisonment, U.S. District Judge Andrew Gordon of the District of Nevada ordered Kotler to serve three years of supervised release and pay restitution in the amount of $712,280. Before his sentencing, Kotler paid a total of $450,429 in back taxes, interest and fraud penalties.
Acting Assistant Attorney General Ciraolo thanked special agents of IRS-Criminal Investigations, who investigated the case and Tax Division Trial Attorney Thomas W. Flynn, who is prosecuting the case.
Additional information about the Tax Division and its enforcement efforts may be found on the division’s website.
Neenah Man Charged with Arson and Mail FraudRead the Press Release
Gregory J. Haanstad, United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Wisconsin, announced that on June 28, 2016, a federal grand jury returned an indictment against Jeremy J. Neumann (age: 37) of Neenah, Wisconsin, charging him with arson of a building in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 844(i); mail fraud in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 1341; and making a false statement in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 1001. If convicted of the arson or mail fraud charges, Neumann faces a maximum of 20 years in prison, a $250,000 fine, and three years of supervised release. If convicted of the false statement charge, Neumann faces a maximum of 5 years in prison, a $250,000 fine, and three years of supervised release.
The indictment alleges that Neumann was the owner of Gambit McDermott, LLC, a business leasing warehouse storage space in Oshkosh, Wisconsin. On November 6, 2015, Neumann maliciously damaged by means of fire his business property and later submitted a proof of loss claim to his insurance company wherein he falsely stated the fire was accidental and not originating from his own act.
Neumann is scheduled to appear on July 14, 2016, at 3:00 p.m. before the Honorable James Sickel, Magistrate Court Judge. A trial date will be set at that time.
This case was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, the State of Wisconsin, Department of Justice, Division of Criminal Investigations, the Oshkosh Police Department, and the Winnebago County District Attorney’s Office. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney William Roach.
An indictment is only a charge and is not evidence of guilt. The defendant is presumed innocent and is entitled to a fair trial at which the government must prove guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.
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Multi-Convicted Felon Sentenced to Serve 188 Months in Federal Prison on Drug Distribution and Firearms ConvictionsRead the Press Release
DALLAS — Eric Fabian Cruz, 25, of Dallas, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Sidney A. Fitzwater to serve a total of 188 months in federal prison, following his guilty plea in January 2016 to methamphetamine distribution and firearms charges, announced U.S. Attorney John Parker of the Northern District of Texas.
Specifically, Cruz pleaded guilty to three counts of distribution of methamphetamine, one count of possession with intent to distribute 50 grams or more of methamphetamine and one count of being a felon in possession of a firearm. Cruz has been in custody since his arrest in September 2015 by special agents with the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF). Judge Fitzwater sentenced him on June 17, 2016, to 188 months on the drug convictions and 120 months on the firearms conviction, to run concurrently.
According to documents filed in the case, on three occasions in September 2015, Cruz met a witness at his residence on Tyrone Drive in Dallas and sold the witness methamphetamine. When law enforcement executed a search warrant at his residence on September 22, 2015, they found at least 50 grams of methamphetamine by the door of the residence. Law enforcement also located three firearms – a Smith and Wesson, Model Bodyguard 380, .380 caliber pistol; a Springfield, Model XD-40 Compact, .40 caliber pistol; and a Romarm, Model GP/WASR/63, 7.62x39 caliber rifle – in Cruz’s bedroom in the residence. Cruz has multiple felony convictions in north Texas.
ATF and the Dallas Police Department investigated the case. Assistant U.S. Attorney Andrew Wirmani was in charge of the prosecution.
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Mobile Man Sentenced to 20 Years for Child Pornography OffenseRead the Press Release
United States Attorney Kenyen R. Brown of the Southern District of Alabama announced that Jeffrey Dean Coble, 41, of Mobile, was sentenced today to 20 years in prison for distribution and receipt of child pornography. Coble pled guilty to the offense in February.
United States District Judge Kristi K. DuBose ordered Coble to serve the maximum sentence available in the case, 240 months imprisonment, and ordered that he be supervised by the United States Probation Office for the rest of his life following his release. Coble was also ordered to register as a sex offender.
The investigation began after the Department of Homeland Security, Homeland Security Investigations received information that a subject in Michigan had produced and traded explicit images of the sexual abuse of a child with an individual traced to Mobile. Investigators determined that the phone used to communicate with the subject in Michigan was that of Jeffrey Dean Coble. A search warrant was issued for Coble’s residence and executed by HSI agents and the Mobile Police Department in November of 2015.
During the search, Coble admitted that he had used his phone to send and receive images of child pornography with other users across the country, and further confessed that he had sexually touched two minors in order to photograph the abuse and send the images to other individuals using his phone. Coble was arrested at the scene, and has been in custody since that time.
The case was investigated by Homeland Security Investigations and the Mobile Police Department, and prosecuted on behalf of the United States by Assistant United States Attorney Sean P. Costello. The case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, the Department of Justice’s initiative to combat the proliferation of technology-facilitated sexual exploitation crimes against children. For more information, please visit http://www.justice.gov/psc
Mescalero Apache Man Sentenced on Federal Assault ConvictionRead the Press Release
ALBUQUERQUE – David Charles Prins, 47, a member of the Mescalero Apache Nation, was sentenced in federal court in Las Cruces, N.M., to 39 months in prison followed by two years of supervised release for his assault conviction.
Prins was arrested on April 24, 2015, on a criminal complaint that charged him with assault by striking resulting in serious bodily injury. According to the complaint, on Sept. 19, 2014, security guards at the Inn of the Mountain Gods Hotel responded to a disturbance in Prins’ hotel room, where they found Prins in bloody clothes and the victim unconscious on the floor covered in blood. The victim suffered facial swelling and a lacerated ear, which required suturing.
Prins was subsequently charged by indictment on June 17, 2015, with assault resulting in serious bodily injury which occurred on Sept. 19, 2014, in Otero County, N.M. On Oct. 13, 2015, Prins entered a guilty plea to the indictment without the benefit of a plea agreement.
This case was investigated by the Mescalero Agency of the BIA’s Office of Justice Services and was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Aaron O. Jordan of the U.S. Attorney’s Las Cruces Branch Office.
The case was brought pursuant to the Tribal Special Assistant U.S. Attorney (Tribal SAUSA) Pilot Project in the District of New Mexico, which is sponsored by the Justice Department’s Office on Violence Against Women under a grant administered by the Pueblo of Laguna. The Tribal SAUSA Pilot Project seeks to train tribal prosecutors in federal law, procedure and investigative techniques to increase the likelihood that every viable violent offense against Native women is prosecuted in either federal court or tribal court, or both. The Tribal SAUSA Pilot Project was largely driven by input gathered from annual tribal consultations on violence against women, and is another step in the Justice Department's on-going efforts to increase engagement, coordination and action on public safety in tribal communities.
Member of Cherry Hill Group ‘Little Spelman’ Sentenced to 12 Years in Prison for Drug Distribution ConspiracyRead the Press Release
Baltimore, Maryland – U.S. District Judge George L. Russell, III sentenced Shaquan Robinson, a/k/a Quanny, age 26, of Baltimore, today to 12 years in prison, followed by 10 years of supervised release, for conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute heroin and crack cocaine, related to his drug dealing and violence in the Cherry Hill section of Baltimore.
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; Commissioner Kevin Davis of the Baltimore Police Department; and Baltimore City State’s Attorney Marilyn Mosby.
According to his plea agreement, Robinson was a member of a group known as “Little Spelman.” From at least 2003 to 2013, Little Spelman operated in the “down the hill” area of Cherry Hill. This group committed acts of robbery, homicides, non-fatal shootings and drug distribution, to include crack cocaine, heroin, cocaine and marijuana.
Beginning in at least 2010, Robinson was a drug distributor in Cherry Hill, distributing crack cocaine, heroin, marijuana, and other drugs with members of Little Spelman. In May 2013, Robinson was seen by law enforcement on CCTV engaging in hand to hand drug transactions on a school playground. When police approached the playground, Robinson attempted to conceal the drugs, but police recovered two ziplocks of marijuana from a bag Robinson had thrown on the ground, and recovered 24 ziplocks of cocaine and $51 from Robinson. Robinson admitted that he also possessed a firearm in furtherance of the drug conspiracy. On July 8, 2012, officers approached a group of men with whom Robinson was standing. Robinson ran away holding a loaded handgun in the waistband of his pants then tossed the gun into the front yard of a home, where it was recovered by police.
In addition to drug activity, since at least 2011, members of Little Spelman have been in a dispute with members of an organization involved in the distribution of narcotics and violence that operates primarily in the part of Cherry Hill known as “Up the Hill” or “Up da Hill.” Members and associates of Little Spelman protected themselves, the organization, and their control of the drug trade in part of the Down the Hill section of Cherry Hill, and engaged in their dispute with UDH, through violence and intimidation.
For example, Little Spelman member Davon Martin admitted that on January 20, 2011, he shot and killed UDH member Rhidell Price. Martin killed Price in retaliation for Martin and another Little Spelman member, Dewayne Jones, being shot at by Up Da Hill members a few days earlier. Dewayne Jones was subsequently shot and killed on August 28, 2011.
Two days after Martin killed Price, on January 22, 2011, Little Spelman associate Harry Hicks was shot and killed by Up Da Hill members in retaliation for Price’s murder. On April 9, 2011, Martin shot and killed Up Da Hill member Dwight Taylor at a barbershop on W. Saratoga Street in Baltimore, in retaliation for Hicks’ murder. Robinson was in the barbershop during the murder. A ballistics comparison of the .45 caliber firearm that Martin used to kill Taylor revealed that it was the same gun used on January 28, 2011 by Dominic Hope, the former leader of Little Spelman, to shoot Up Da Hill member Antione White, who was leaving the funeral of Rhidell Price. Dominic Hope was subsequently shot and killed on January 20, 2012.
Davon Martin, age 27, of Baltimore, was previously sentenced to 35 years in prison.
United States Attorney Rod J. Rosenstein praised the ATF, Baltimore Police Department, and Baltimore City State’s Attorney’s Office for their work in the investigation and thanked the FBI, Baltimore County Police Department, Anne Arundel County Police Department, and Baltimore City Sheriff’s Office for their assistance. Mr. Rosenstein thanked Assistant United States Attorneys Andrea L. Smith, Seema Mittal, and Patricia C. McLane, who are prosecuting this Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force case.
McCracken County, Kentucky, Physician Guilty of Fraudulent Possession of A Controlled Substance, Wire Fraud and Making False Statements Related to Health Care MattersRead the Press Release
PADUCAH, Ky. – A McCracken County, Kentucky, physician plead guilty today, in United States District Court, before Senior District Judge Thomas B. Russell, to fraudulent possession of a controlled substance, wire fraud and making false statements related to health care matters, announced United States Attorney John E. Kuhn, Jr.
Sean P. McDonald, 46, admitted to devising a scheme to obtain prescription pain medication, while a treating physician at two Paducah, Kentucky, hospitals by falsely misrepresenting that he was removing medications for hospitalized patients, falsely possessing the controlled substances, and then falsely causing a request for payment to be sent from the two Paducah hospitals to the insurance carriers of the patients.
Specifically, according to the twelve-count federal Information, McDonald defrauded Lourdes Hospital and Western Baptist Hospital, by means of wire communication. From February 2009, through November 2010, McDonald caused a request for payment to be sent from Western Baptist Hospital and/or Lourdes Hospital, both located in Paducah, Kentucky, to patient’s insurance carriers.
During the same time period, McDonald admitted to making false and fraudulent statements to insurance carriers indicating that he had provided medication to patients when he had not.
Further, McDonald, as a prescribing physician with a DEA (Drug Enforcement Administration) registration number to issue prescriptions, wrote prescriptions for Dilauded, a Schedule II controlled substance, in violation of his DEA registration, to patients, when in fact he never provided the controlled substances to the patient.
If convicted at trial, McDonald would have faced a combined maximum term of imprisonment of 113 years, a combined maximum fine of $3,000,000 and a three year term of supervised release. Sentencing before Senior Judge Russell is September 26, 2016, in Paducah.
This case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Lettricea Jefferson-Webb and Seth Hancock and is being investigated by the United States Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General, the Medicaid Fraud and Abuse Control Unit of the Kentucky Office of the Attorney General, and Federal Bureau of Investigation.
McAlester Man Pleads Guilty to Possession of Material Involving Sexual Exploitation of MinorsRead the Press Release
MUSKOGEE, OKLAHOMA - The United States Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Oklahoma announced today that BRANDON RAY PARKER, age 40, of McAlester, Oklahoma, pled guilty to POSSESSION OF CERTAIN MATERIAL INVOLVING THE SEXUAL EXPLOITATION OF MINORS, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Sections 2252(a)(4)(B) and 2252(b)(2).
The charge arose from an investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation. The defendant was indicted in April, 2016.
The Indictment alleged that between in or about October 2013 and on or about October 2, 2015, in the Eastern District of Oklahoma, the defendant did knowingly possess, attempt to possess and access, with intent to view matters which contained visual depictions. The production of said visual depictions involved the use of minors engaging in sexually explicit conduct and said visual depictions were of such sexually explicit conduct and had been transported in interstate commerce by computer.
The Honorable Steven P. Shreder, Magistrate Judge in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Oklahoma, in Muskogee, accepted the guilty plea and ordered the completion of a presentence report. Sentencing will be scheduled following its completion.
The statutory range of punishment is up to 10 years imprisonment, up to a $250,000 fine or both and a term of supervised release of not less than 5 years up to life.
Assistant United States Attorney Christopher Wilson represented the United States.
Massachusetts Man Indicted on Terrorism ChargesRead the Press Release
BOSTON – An Adams man was charged in a superseding indictment today in connection with a plot to engage in terrorist activity inspired by and in the name of ISIL.
Alexander Ciccolo, a/k/a Ali Al Amriki, 23, was indicted on one count of attempting to provide material support to a foreign terrorist organization and one count of attempting to use of weapons of mass destruction. These charges were added to a pending indictment charging Ciccolo with one count of being a convicted person in possession of firearms and one count of assaulting a nurse during a jail intake process by use of a deadly weapon causing bodily injury. Ciccolo is scheduled to appear in U.S. District Court in Springfield on July 7, 2016 at 3:00 p.m.
According to evidence presented at a previous detention hearing, on July 4, 2015, Ciccolo received four firearms which he had ordered from a person who was cooperating with members of the Western Massachusetts Joint Terrorism Task Force, and who had been communicating with Ciccolo about his plans to engage in a terrorist act. Ciccolo was arrested immediately after receiving the firearms, which included a Colt AR-15 .223 caliber rifle, a SigArms Model SG550-1 556 rifle, a Glock 17-9 mm pistol, and a Glock 20-10 mm pistol. Ciccolo had previously been convicted of a crime punishable by more than a year in jail and therefore was prohibited from possessing firearms.
It is alleged that Ciccolo is a supporter of the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL), a designated foreign terrorist organization. Ciccolo had spoken with a cooperating witness in recorded conversations about his plans to commit acts of terrorism inspired by ISIL, including setting off improvised explosive devices, such as pressure cookers filled with black powder, nails, ball bearings and glass, in places where large numbers of people congregate, like college cafeterias. Prior to his arrest, agents had observed Ciccolo purchase a pressure cooker similar to that used in the Boston Marathon bombings.
It is also alleged that during a search of Ciccolo’s apartment after he was arrested, agents found several partially constructed “Molotov cocktails.” These incendiary devices contained what appeared to be shredded Styrofoam soaking in motor oil. It is alleged that Ciccolo had previously stated that this mixture would cause the fire from the exploded devices to stick to people’s skin and make it harder to put the fire out.
Shortly after his arrest, while he was being processed at the Franklin County Correctional Center, Ciccolo allegedly stabbed a nurse with a pen, leaving a bloody gash on the top of the nurse’s head.
Ciccolo has been detained since his arrest in July 2015.
The charge of attempted provision of material support to a foreign terrorist organization provides a sentence of no greater than 20 years in prison, up to a lifetime of supervised release and a fine of $250,000. The charge of attempted use of a weapon of mass destruction provides a sentence of life in prison, up to a lifetime of supervised release, and a fine of $250,000. The charge of being a prohibited person in possession of firearms provides a sentence of no greater than 10 years in prison, three years of supervised release and a fine of $250,000. The charge of assault with a dangerous weapon causing bodily injury provides a sentence of no greater than 20 years in prison, three years of supervised release and a fine of $250,000. Actual sentences for federal crimes are typically less than the maximum penalties. Sentences are imposed by a federal district court judge based upon the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
United States Attorney Carmen M. Ortiz and Harold H. Shaw, Special Agent in Charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s Boston Field Division, made the announcement today. This investigation was conducted by the Western Massachusetts Joint Terrorism Task Force, and member agencies of the JTTF including the Federal Bureau of Investigation; the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives; the Springfield, Ludlow, Holyoke, West Springfield, Easthampton, and Pittsfield Police Departments; the Massachusetts State Police, Homeland Security Investigations, and critical assistance from the Adams Police Department and the Massachusetts State Regional Hazardous Materials Response Team.
The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Deepika Bains Shukla and Kevin O’Regan of Ortiz’s Springfield Branch Office and Trial Attorney Andrew Sigler of the National Security Division’s Counterterrorism Section of the Department of Justice.
The details contained in the charging documents are allegations. The defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
Maryland Tax Return Preparer Sentenced to Prison for Preparing and Filing False Tax ReturnsRead the Press Release
A Baltimore, Maryland, tax return preparer was sentenced today to serve 20 months in prison for aiding and assisting in the preparation of false tax returns for others, announced Acting Assistant Attorney General Caroline D. Ciraolo of the Justice Department’s Tax Division.
On February 8, following a five day trial, a federal jury convicted Charles Imariagbe of 15 counts of aiding and assisting in the preparation of false income tax returns. According to court documents and the evidence presented at trial, between 2008 and 2012, Imariagbe operated a tax preparation business in Baltimore called JC Tax Service Inc. During that time, Imariagbe prepared false individual income tax returns for at least seven clients for submission to the Internal Revenue Service (IRS). These tax returns claimed false and fraudulent income and expenses from Schedule C businesses and grossly inflated or wholly fictitious mileage expenses. The false items on these returns resulted in the clients receiving larger tax refunds than they were entitled to receive.
In addition to the prison term, U.S. District Judge Ellen L. Hollander ordered Imariagbe to serve three years of supervised release and pay restitution to the IRS in the amount of $151,927.
Acting Assistant Attorney General Ciraolo commended the special agents of IRS-Criminal Investigation, who investigated the case and Trial Attorneys Andrew Kameros and Brittney Campbell of the Tax Division, who prosecuted the case.
Additional information about the Tax Division’s enforcement efforts can be found on the division’s website.
Marlborough Man Sentenced on Federal Heroin and Firearm ChargesRead the Press Release
CONCORD, NEW HAMPSHIRE: Robert Ervin, 20, of Marlborough, New Hampshire, was sentenced on Thursday in United States District Court for the District of New Hampshire on federal charges of distributing heroin, possessing heroin with the intent to distribute it, and possessing a firearm as a regular user of heroin, announced United States Attorney Emily Gray Rice. The Court imposed a four-year term of imprisonment, to be followed by a period of supervised release.
On October 8, 2015, law enforcement officers observed Ervin engaging in what appeared to be a suspicious hand-to-hand transaction in Keene, New Hampshire. When approached by the officers, Ervin admitted that he had just sold a small quantity of heroin, and a search of Ervin’s person and vehicle revealed the presence of additional heroin and a loaded firearm.
Several departments and agencies were involved in the investigation and prosecution, including the Keene, New Hampshire Police Department, Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) Manchester, the New Hampshire State Police, the New Hampshire Attorney General’s Drug Task Force, and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF).
The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Nick Abramson.
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Manchester Woman Sentenced to 60 Months in Prison for Distributing Heroin and FentanylRead the Press Release
CONCORD – United States Attorney, Emily Gray Rice announced that United States District Court Judge Landya McCafferty sentenced Tiffany Ramos to serve 60 months in federal prison. Ramos, who resided in Manchester prior to arrest, previously pleaded guilty to distributing controlled substances and possessing a controlled substance with intent to distribute.
According to documents that were filed in United States District Court and statements in court proceedings, Ramos, 27, sold heroin and fentanyl to a cooperating witness on three occasions in May and June of 2015. She was arrested on June 12, 2015, and found to be in possession of over 128 grams of fentanyl. Contrary to some media reports, the distribution charge to which Ramos pleaded guilty did not involve an overdose death.
According to statistics maintained by the State of New Hampshire, over half of the drug overdose deaths in New Hampshire in 2015 were related to fentanyl. Because a single gram of heroin or fentanyl can be used to create multiple individual dosage units that can be sold “on the street,” the quantity of fentanyl involved in this case could have generated hundreds of individual doses of fentanyl, each of which had the potential to cause a fatal overdose.
The case was investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration, with assistance from other law enforcement agencies, including the New Hampshire State Police and the Manchester Police Department. The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Debra Walsh and John J. Farley.
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Manchester Man Pleads Guilty to Bank Robbery ChargeRead the Press Release
CONCORD, N.H. – Andrew Dufresne, 44, of Manchester, New Hampshire, pleaded guilty in the United States District Court to robbing the People’s United Bank, 1750 Elm Street, Manchester, New Hampshire on April 9, 2014.
In the course of the robbery, Dufresne walked into the bank and handed the teller a note demanding money. He then went behind the teller’s desk and reached into the teller’s cash drawer, taking bundles of bills in various denominations. Dufresne was arrested on April 11, 2014 in Methuen after crashing a stolen car in that city.
A sentencing hearing is scheduled for October 11, 2016. The court will sentence Dufresne after it reviews a presentence investigation report prepared by the United States Probation & Pretrial Services Office.
This case was investigated by the Manchester Police Department with the assistance of the Federal Bureau of Investigation. The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Helen White Fitzgibbon.
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Louisiana Woman Sentenced to 192 Months in Prison for Conspiring to Commit Sex Trafficking of a MinorRead the Press Release
A Louisiana woman was sentenced today to 16 years in prison for conspiring to commit sex trafficking of a minor, announced Assistant Attorney General Leslie R. Caldwell of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, U.S. Attorney J. Walter Green of the Middle District of Louisiana and Special Agent in Charge Jeffrey S. Sallet of the FBI’s New Orleans Division.
Kellie M. Dominique, 37, of Baton Rouge, Louisiana, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Shelly D. Dick of the Middle District of Louisiana, who also ordered her to serve a five-year term of supervised release.
In connection with her plea, Dominique admitted that from June 2013 until September 2013, she conspired with others to promote the prostitution of a minor female out of Dominique’s home and other venues. In order to manage and carry on the prostitution business, Dominique admitted that she and the minor female regularly used telephones to schedule prostitution sessions and to discuss the proceeds earned from the prostitution sessions. Dominique also admitted that she facilitated the minor female’s posts on Backpage.com classified advertisements for commercial sex acts in Louisiana and elsewhere. Dominique further admitted that she provided the minor female with illegal drugs and used such drugs with the minor female. Finally, when authorities began to investigate her illegal conduct, Dominique made false statements to government officials and corruptly influenced potential witnesses.
Four others have been convicted in related cases in the Middle District of Louisiana, including Jeremie Tate, 34, of Zachery, Louisiana, who was sentenced in September 2015 to serve 115 months in prison for operating an interstate prostitution enterprise.
The FBI’s Baton Rouge Child Exploitation Task Force, comprised of East Baton Rouge Sheriff's Office, Louisiana Attorney General’s Office and Louisiana State Police, investigated the case with assistance from the Baton Rouge Police Department’s Narcotics Division, the U.S. Marshals Fugitive Task Force and other law enforcement agencies.
Trial Attorney Reginald E. Jones of the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS) and Assistant U.S. Attorney Jamie A. Flowers Jr. of the Middle District of Louisiana 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.
Local Men Sentenced on Firearms ViolationsRead the Press Release
U.S. Attorney Kenneth A. Polite announced today that STERLING ROBINSON, age 26, of Gretna; DEANDRE ROSE, age 23, and EVERETT ROSS, age 28, both of New Orleans, were sentenced today after having pled guilty to federal firearm violations.
U.S. District Judge Jane Triche Milazzo sentenced ROSS to 65 months of incarceration, to be followed by 3 years of supervised release. ROBINSON and ROSE were each sentenced to 60 months of incarceration, to be followed by 3 years of supervised release.
According to court documents, on October 14, 2014, Gretna police officers were patrolling in the area of Milton & Pratt Streets, when they noticed an illegally parked vehicle. As the officers approached the vehicle to issue a citation, they saw a bag of crack cocaine in the passenger door handle. The officers also observed a semi-automatic handgun secured between the passenger seat and the middle console. A short time later, the officers observed ROBINSON, ROSE, ROSS, and a female acquaintance approach and attempt to enter the vehicle.
As ROBINSON was removed from the area of the front passenger seat, he resisted arrest and attempted to reach for the bag of crack cocaine. ROSS was removed from the driver’s seat of the vehicle, and ROSE was removed from the rear passenger seat. The officers searched the vehicle, and two additional handguns were discovered. A Ruger model P85 9mm semi-automatic handgun was found underneath the front of the driver’s seat and accessible to ROSS. A Springfield model XDM, .45-caliber semi-automatic handgun was found underneath the rear of the front passenger’s seat and accessible to ROSE. The initially-observed, Kahr model CW9, 9mm semi-automatic handgun was accessible to ROBINSON. Further investigation revealed that each of the firearms had been reported stolen.
Court records revealed that ROSS and ROSE each had two prior felony convictions in Orleans Parish Criminal District Court. As such, they both were prohibited from possessing firearms by both state and federal law.
U.S. Attorney Polite praised the work of the ATF New Orleans Division Office and the Gretna Police Department, in investigating this matter. Assistant United States Attorney Nolan D. Paige and Special Assistant United States Attorney Brian Ebarb, who was assigned from the Orleans Parish District Attorney’s Office, were in charge of the prosecution.
Leader of Bank Fraud Scheme Involving over 200 Victims Sentenced to over 5 Years in Federal PrisonRead the Press Release
Baltimore, Maryland – U.S. District Judge James K. Bredar sentenced Tariq Hicks, age 48, of Owings Mills, Maryland, today to 65 months in prison, followed by three years of supervised release, for bank fraud conspiracy and aggravated identity theft arising from a scheme to use stolen credit information of more than 200 victims to defraud financial institutions. Judge Bredar also ordered Hicks to pay restitution of $61,030.78, and to forfeit the credit and identification card counterfeiting equipment seized during the investigation. In a separate case, Judge Bredar sentenced Hicks to 21 months in prison, for being a felon in possession with a gun, which is to be served concurrent to the sentence for the fraud scheme.
The sentence was announced by United States Attorney for the District of Maryland Rod J. Rosenstein; Special Agent in Charge Andre R. Watson of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI); Special Agent in Charge Brian Murphy of the United States Secret Service - Baltimore Field Office; and Chief James W. Johnson of the Baltimore County Police Department.
According to his plea agreement, from at least June 2013, through December 18, 2013, Hicks conspired with Shivani Patel, Eddie Carey, Ishia Cason, and others to defraud financial institutions by accessing stolen credit card and debit card accounts belonging to real people and using counterfeit cards encoded with the stolen account information to make unauthorized purchases.
Hicks purchased the stolen account information over the internet. Hicks and Patel used a computer and a “reader-writer” to encode the stolen credit and debit card information onto existing credit cards, gift cards, or similar cards, which were sold or distributed to co-conspirators, such as Carey and Cason, who used them and provided the bulk of the proceeds to Hicks.
Hicks also purchased or obtained over the internet “credit profiles” containing the identity information of victims, then obtained full credit reports for these victims. Using the information from the credit reports, Hicks sent co-conspirators into stores where the victims had existing credit accounts, with the victim’s personal identity information so that they could “authenticate” themselves as the victim. The co-conspirators, including Patel, Carey and Cason, would then make purchases on the existing accounts (called “account takeover”). Using the victims’ credit information, Hicks also directed the conspirators to apply for new credit accounts at other stores in the victim’s identity, and then use that “instant credit” to make purchases before the victim learned of the account.
For all of these schemes, Hicks obtained fraudulent drivers’ licenses which bore the information of the victim, but the photograph of a co-conspirator. The co-conspirators could then use the counterfeit license to establish their identity as the victim.
Hicks also instructed Patel, Carey and others to travel to other states to engage in the fraud. As they traveled, the conspirators used counterfeit cards in victims’ names to rent hotel rooms and automobiles.
On December 18, 2013, a search warrant was executed at Hicks’ residence, where he lived with Patel and Carey. Located on the dining table in the kitchen area was a complete set up for the fraud scheme, including a computer with the credit profiles and credit reports on it, a reader/writer device, credit cards in various states of manufacture, money gram receipts for payments for the stolen credit card numbers and profiles, and lists of personal identity information. Also recovered were dozens of credit cards bearing victims’ names and accounts, as well as dozens of fraudulent identification to match the credit cards, all bearing the information of the victims but the photographs of co-conspirators. In Hicks’ bedroom was a receipt for a storage unit which was rented in a false identity used by Patel. A search warrant was executed on the storage unit and a duplicate “mill” was located, including an embosser to manufacture embossed credit cards, and boxes containing hundreds of blank plastic cards ready for counterfeiting. There were also over 150 cards in various states of manufacture.
According to his plea agreement in the gun case, during the search law enforcement also recovered a loaded .22 caliber handgun and ammunition from a safe found in Hicks’ bedroom. As the result of a previous felony conviction, Hick was prohibited from possessing a gun or ammunition.
Over 450 compromised accounts were compiled from the evidence seized from the residence and storage locker, although most had not yet been used in the scheme. There were over 200 victims, including businesses and financial institutions which sustained an actual loss and victims who had their identities compromised in the conspiracy. Based on the individual victims and credit accounts which were recovered from the search warrant, actual losses associated with the scheme are $61,030.78.
Shivani Patel, age 30 of Reisterstown, Maryland; Eddie Carey, age 32; and Ishia Biff Cason, age 36, both of Baltimore, pleaded guilty to bank fraud conspiracy and aggravated identity theft. Judge Bredar scheduled sentencing for Cason on August 5, 2016, at 2:00 p.m., and for Carey and Patel on September 30, 2016, at 2:00 and 3:00 p.m., respectively.
The Maryland Identity Theft Working Group has been working since 2006 to foster cooperation among local, state, federal, and institutional fraud investigators and to promote effective prosecution of identity theft schemes by both state and federal prosecutors. This case, as well as other cases brought by members of the Working Group, demonstrates the commitment of law enforcement agencies to work with financial institutions and businesses to address identity fraud, identify those who compromise personal identity information, and protect citizens from identity theft.
Today’s announcement is part of the efforts undertaken in connection with the President’s Financial Fraud Enforcement Task Force. The task force was established to wage an aggressive, coordinated and proactive effort to investigate and prosecute financial crimes. With more than 20 federal agencies, 94 U.S. attorneys’ offices, and state and local partners, it’s the broadest coalition of law enforcement, investigatory and regulatory agencies ever assembled to combat fraud. Since its formation, the task force has made great strides in facilitating increased investigation and prosecution of financial crimes; enhancing coordination and cooperation among federal, state and local authorities; addressing discrimination in the lending and financial markets; and conducting outreach to the public, victims, financial institutions and other organizations. Since fiscal year 2009, the Justice Department has filed over 18,000 financial fraud cases against more than 25,000 defendants. For more information on the task force, please visit www.StopFraud.gov.
United States Attorney Rod J. Rosenstein commended HSI Baltimore, the U.S. Secret Service, and Baltimore County Police Department for their work in the investigations. Mr. Rosenstein thanked Assistant U.S. Attorney Tamera L. Fine, who is prosecuting the case.
Lead defendant in fraud scheme sentenced in Federal CourtRead the Press Release
Evansville--United States Attorney Josh J. Minkler, today announced that an Evansville man has been sentenced in federal court for his role in a scheme to defraud insurance companies by staging automobile crashes. Michael W. Burris, Sr. 58, was sentenced to 115 months (9 1/2 years) years imprisonment by U.S. District Chief Judge Richard L. Young.
“The Burris family is the face of organized crime in the Evansville area,” said Minkler. “Michael Burris Sr. put countless public safety officials in harm’s way by calling them to emergency runs that were staged. Further, we all pay for his crime through higher insurance premiums, and increased health care and Medicare costs.”
Between 2008 and 2014, Michael W. Burris, Sr. 58, and others, planned a series of automobile crashes in and around Evansville. They recruited persons to participate in the staged crashes, made false police reports about the crashes, and then filed claims with insurance providers for “injuries” suffered in the crash which were self-inflicted or fabricated.
In several scenarios, members of the Burris family conspiracy acquired an automobile to use in the staged crash and made certain the vehicle was insured or obtained insurance just weeks before the staged crash. They would then recruit someone to crash the vehicle in a remote area, into a tree or other fixed object causing significant damage. After the crash, the driver would leave the scene and other recruited participants waiting nearby would enter the vehicle and wait for emergency personnel to respond. They would then make a false police report and be taken to the hospital for their purported injuries. In 2008 at least two Lifeline helicopters were used to transport co-conspirators. Vehicles were often loaded with three or four people, some of which were minors and pregnant women after the staged crash to maximize insurance claims.
Burris Sr. and his conspirators purposely injured the “victims” to create an appearance that they sustained the injuries in the crash. They did this by punching them in the face, cutting their face with a razor blade, hitting them with wooden or metal poles and using a wire brush on their forehead.
Burris and other conspirators instructed the crash participants on how to appear injured by not exiting the vehicle under their own power, using emergency medical resources, and running up medical expenses through hospital stays. He had the “victims” submit false insurance claims and would coach them on how to answer questions from the insurance representatives. When the crash participants received their injury claim checks from the insurance companies, Burris and the participants would go directly to the bank on which the check was written, get cash, and divide it among the conspirators.
This case was investigated by the United States Secret Service, United States Postal Inspection Service, Evansville Police Department, Indiana State Police, and the Federal Bureau of Investigation. The Vanderburgh County Sheriff’s Office, the United States Marshal Service, and the Bureau of Alcohol Tobacco Firearms and Explosives assisted in the arrest of the 36 persons charged in the indictment today.
"Over the last year and half, the Secret Service has tirelessly pursued justice with the assistance of many other federal, state and local agencies,” said Assistant Special Agent in Charge Paul Dvorak. “Insurance fraud is not a victimless crime. This type of fraud can have a significant detrimental effect on the economy of our community. We are proud that the significant and numerous arrests made here today will have a positive impact on the city of Evansville and hopefully deter similar crimes in the future.”
“The U.S. Postal Inspection Service will continue to strongly pursue its mission of investigating mail fraud crimes and protecting the US Postal Service and its customers,” stated Inspector in Charge, Tommy Coke, Pittsburgh Division, U.S. Postal Inspection Service.
“When I started my career in retail loss prevention over twenty years ago, the Burris family and their associates were one of the first criminal groups I dealt with,” said Evansville Police Chief Billy Bolin. “It would be nice if they learned from their past mistakes, but it appears they’ve just become more sophisticated in their schemes.”
“I’m pleased the state police were able to play a role in advancing this investigation” said Indiana State Police Superintendent Doug Carter. “Financial crimes like this impact insurance premiums for honest people and this particular criminal enterprise also resulted in public safety resources responding to staged crash scenes,” Carter concluded.
17other individuals who were indicted in this case have plead guilty.
According to Assistant U.S. Attorneys Todd S. Shellenbarger and Kyle Sawa who are prosecuting this case for the government, Burris Sr must also serve three years of supervised release after his sentence.
Last Member of Mortgage Fraud Conspiracy Involving Luxury Condominiums Is Handed Down A 27 Month SentenceRead the Press Release
CHARLOTTE, N.C. – Late yesterday, Chief U.S. District Judge Frank D. Whitney sentenced the last member of a mortgage fraud conspiracy involving luxury condominiums in Oak Island, N.C., announced Jill Westmoreland Rose, U.S. Attorney for the Western District of North Carolina.
John A. Strong, Special Agent in Charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), Charlotte Division and Miriam Baer, Executive Director of the North Carolina Real Estate Commission join U.S. Attorney Rose in making today’s announcement.
According to filed court documents and today’s sentencing hearing, throughout 2007 and 2008, Antoine Johnson, 40, of Davidson, N.C., and seven other co-conspirators carried out a mortgage fraud scheme involving luxury condominiums in Oak Island. According to court records, Johnson, who operated as a promoter for the mortgage fraud conspiracy, controlled A&J Entertainment, Inc. (A&J Entertainment), a company used by the conspiracy to funnel kickbacks derived from the fraudulent scheme and to support false or inflated statements of employment and income in mortgage loan applications.
Court documents show that the co-conspirators perpetrated the scheme by recruiting individuals who agreed to buy condominiums in their name but had no intention of living in the properties or making payments to the corresponding mortgage loans (commonly referred to as “straw buyers”). The builder agreed to sell the units to the conspiracy’s straw buyers at an inflated price, causing the lenders to issue mortgage loans based on the inflated prices. Then at closing, the closing attorney prepared separate accounting statements instructing the builder to pay the difference between the true price and the inflated price of the condominiums to one or more of the conspirators.
According to court records, the conspirators induced mortgage lenders to issue mortgage loans, by submitting loan packages that contained forged documents and fraudulent information about the buyers’ income and employment. In some instances, the co-conspirators persuaded and bribed a bank employee to provide a bogus verification of deposit as support for the fraudulently obtained loan. Over the course of the fraudulent scheme, the conspirators caused a total of loss of approximately $4.5 million involving approximately 20 properties.
Court records indicate that Johnson operated as promoter in the scheme, helping to bring the transactions together, for which he received approximately $200,000 in kickbacks funneled through A&J Entertainment’s bank account.
The other seven defendants involved in this fraudulent scheme were previously sentenced as follows:
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Robert Davis, Jr., 41, of Charlotte, was sentenced to 46 months in prison and two years of supervised release.Davis operated as a real estate agent for the scheme.
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Robert Mahaney, Jr., 55, of Ridgeway, S.C., was sentenced to 30 months in prison and two years of supervised release.Mahaney was a mortgage broker for the conspiracy.
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Ahmed H. Green, 37, of Charlotte, was sentenced to 27 months in prison and three years of supervised release.Green acted as a promoter and sometimes as a straw buyer for the conspiracy.
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Carisa L. Majesky, 49, of Charlotte, was sentenced to 24 months in prison followed by two years of supervised release.Majesky operated as a real estate agent for the scheme.
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Somer Bey, 51, of Charlotte, was sentenced to 17 months in prison followed by one year of supervised release.Bey was a real estate agent for the scheme.
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Eric Marlon Davis, 43, of Charlotte, was sentenced to nine months in prison and one year of supervised release, nine months of which in home detention. Davis was a promoter in the scheme.
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Danielle Anderson, 41, of Charlotte, was sentenced to six months in prison and one year of supervised release six months of which in home confinement. Anderson was a bank employee who participated in the scheme.
Johnson will be ordered to report to the Federal Bureau of Prisons upon designation of a federal facility. All federal agencies are served without the possibility of parole.
In making today’s announcement, U.S. Attorney Rose thanked the FBI and the North Carolina Real Estate Commission for their investigation of this case. Assistant United States Attorney Maria Vento prosecuted the case.
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Lackawanna Man Sentenced on Cocaine ChargeRead 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 Shavon Royal, 21, of Lackawanna, NY, who was convicted of possession with intent to distribute, and distribution of, cocaine base within 1,000 feet of public housing property, was sentenced to time-served (14 months) by Senior U.S. District Court Judge William M. Skretny.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Edward H. White, who handled the case, stated that on May 30, 2014, the defendant sold approximately three grams of crack cocaine to a confidential informant working with the Federal Bureau of Investigation. On August 25, 2014, Royal sold approximately two grams of crack cocaine to a confidential informant working with officers of the Lackawanna Police Department. The sale occurred within 1,000 feet of the Gates Housing Projects in Lackawanna.
The sentencing is the result of an investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Adam S. Cohen, and the Lackawanna Police Department, under the direction of Chief James L. Michel.
Keshena Man Charged with AssaultRead the Press Release
Gregory J. Haanstad, United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Wisconsin, announced that on June 28, 2016, a federal grand jury returned an indictment against Curtis M. Boivin (age: 48) of Keshena, Wisconsin, charging him with assault with a dangerous weapon in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 113(a)(3); and assault resulting in serious bodily injury in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 113(a)(6). If convicted of either charge, Boivin faces a maximum of 10 years in prison, a $250,000 fine, and three years of supervised release.
The indictment alleges that on January 23, 2016, Boivin assaulted an individual on the Menominee Indian Reservation by striking him in the head and arm with a shovel, causing serious bodily injury.
Boivin is scheduled to appear on July 7, 2016, at 1:30 p.m. before the Honorable James Sickel, Magistrate Court Judge. A trial date will be set at that time.
This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and Menominee Tribal Police Department and prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney William Roach.
An indictment is only a charge and is not evidence of guilt. The defendant is presumed innocent and is entitled to a fair trial at which the government must prove guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.
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Kentucky Man Sentenced to 45 Years in Prison for Kidnapping ConspiracyRead the Press Release
KANSAS CITY, Mo. – Tammy Dickinson, United States Attorney for the Western District of Missouri, announced that a Danville, Ky., man who carjacked a vehicle in Kansas City, Mo., and forced its owner to accompany him as he drove across the state, was sentenced in federal court today.
“During a week-long, multi-state violent crime spree, this lifelong criminal terrorized several victims, including young children, and endangered the lives of many innocent people,” Dickinson said. “His violent crimes were horrific; in fact, the victim in this case believed he was about to die and it was only through his own heroic efforts that he escaped.”
Robert C. Caldwell, 26, of Danville, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Beth Phillips to 38 years in federal prison without parole, plus a consecutive sentence of seven years in prison for a firearm violation.
On Feb. 4, 2016, Caldwell pleaded guilty to participating in a kidnapping conspiracy, one count of kidnapping, one count of carjacking, one count of using a firearm during a crime of violence and one count of being a felon in possession of a firearm.
In January 2015, Caldwell and an accomplice (who is considered a juvenile in the federal system but has been charged as an adult in state court) robbed and kidnapped a 68-year-old man at gunpoint, attacked a young mother with her infant children, and robbed and kidnapped a 13-year-old child at gunpoint.
According to court documents, Caldwell stole a .380-caliber semi-automatic pistol and a truck in Kentucky prior to committing the federal offenses for which he was convicted in this case. Caldwell and his accomplice drove to Columbia, Mo., and met some friends from prison who arranged for a marijuana deal in St. Joseph, Mo. Their plan was to rob the drug dealer, but this plan fell through and they found themselves in Kansas City, Mo., with no money and no gas. They began burglarizing several vehicles in the Grandview, Mo., area and were able to avoid arrest following a high speed chase. They abandoned the stolen truck and ran into a wooded area near the residence of their first kidnapping victim.
Caldwell and his accomplice lay in wait outside the home of a 68-year-old Kansas City, Mo., man at about 5:30 a.m. on Jan. 22, 2015. They abducted the victim at gunpoint as he was leaving his home. He was forced to hand over his keys to his van, his wallet and cash. The victim was forced into his van, a 1998 Chevrolet CK 1500. He was beaten by Caldwell and his accomplice and struck in the head with the handgun.
The victim told law enforcement officers that he was driven around to multiple ATMs, but he was covered with a blanket most of the time and was unable to see the locations where the carjackers attempted to use his debit card. He couldn’t remember his PIN number so they were unable to get cash, which made them angry. They repeatedly threatened his life and that of his wife. The kidnappers pretended to be on the phone with an accomplice who was holding his wife hostage; at one point after another failed ATM attempt, they informed him they had killed his wife, which was false.
According to court documents, they continued to drive and stopped at a drive-through restaurant, where one of the men sat next to the victim and shoved the barrel of the gun into his mouth, chipping his teeth, and told him that he would kill him if he moved. After getting food, they tied his hands together with a boot strap and had him lying in the floor with a blanket over his face so he couldn’t see. They continued driving and made several stops for purchases with the victim’s credit and debit cards.
Law enforcement authorities, who had been contacted by the victim’s wife, were tracking the use of the victim’s credit and debit cards as they were used or attempted to be used along I-70 eastbound. Investigators obtained surveillance photos and video from some of the locations.
When they arrived at a rest stop, according to court documents, Caldwell and his accomplice both fell asleep. The victim managed to untie his hands and retrieve a homemade 45-pound weight from under the seat of the van. He struck both of the carjackers in the head (causing a gash above the eye of one of them) and made an attempt to escape, but was unsuccessful. He was then beaten heavily by both men.
They began driving again, and the victim pretended to be knocked out. The driver of the van was having trouble maneuvering the large van while holding the gun, so he sat the gun on the floorboard so he could use both hands to steer the vehicle. The victim lunged for the handgun and pointed it at the two kidnappers as he demanded they pull over. When the vehicle pulled over, the driver made a move towards the victim, who pulled the trigger of the loaded gun, but it failed to fire. The victim quickly racked the slide to chamber a round, but both men had fled from the vehicle with the keys.
The victim also ran from the vehicle. As he ran down the street in Jennings, Mo., he turned and saw the two carjackers had returned to the vehicle and were slowly driving in his direction. The victim hid between several houses as he watched them drive away in his van. He then contacted the police.
According to court documents, Caldwell and his accomplice returned to the highway and drove through the night. They stopped the van at a Lynnville, Ind., high school around 5:45 p.m. They approached their next victim, a mother with three children, in the parking lot of the high school. The victim was holding her 2-year-old daughter in her arms when Caldwell approached her with a knife and demanded the backpack she was carrying. After taking the backpack, Caldwell pushed her and daughter to the ground, resulting in injuries to her arm.
Caldwell and his accomplice traveled back to Kentucky. Caldwell crashed the stolen van in Bardstown, Ky., and stole a Mitsubishi car near the scene of the crash.
According to court documents, Caldwell kidnapped a 13-year-old victim in Windsor, Ky., on Jan. 27, 2015. Caldwell, who was wearing a mask, approached the child victim with a rifle in his hands and demanded the keys to the Jeep in the driveway. The child victim told him the keys were in the Jeep. Caldwell then forced the child victim into the Jeep with him and put a blanket over his head. He eventually dropped off the child victim near a store a few miles away.
Caldwell later led law enforcement officers on a high-speed pursuit, at speeds up to 85-90 miles per hour. According to court documents, Caldwell was driving erratically in an attempt to flee, passing vehicles on the shoulder and forcing vehicles off the road, almost causing them to crash. After exiting the highway, Caldwell lost control of the Jeep and crashed over a curb into a yard. The Jeep appeared to be stuck, at which time a pursuing officer got out of his patrol car with his gun drawn, approached the Jeep and ordered Caldwell out. Caldwell did not surrender. Instead, he got the Jeep unstuck and drove through a busy parking lot at a high rate of speed, nearly striking several people. A high school in the area was placed on lock down because this chase was within 300 yards of the school. The chase ended when Caldwell drove the Jeep over an embankment and into a creek. Caldwell was apprehended after he exited the vehicle and fled into the woods.
This case was prosecuted by U.S. Attorney Tammy Dickinson and First Assistant U.S. Attorney David M. Ketchmark. It was investigated by the FBI and the Kansas City, Mo., Police Department.
Justice Department Partners with Republic of El Salvador to Combat Employment DiscriminationRead the Press Release
The Justice Department and the Republic of El Salvador established a formal partnership today to protect workers from discrimination based on citizenship, immigration status and national origin. Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Vanita Gupta, head of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division, and Salvadoran Ambassador Claudia Canjura De Centeno signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) between the embassy and its consulates and the division’s Office of Special Counsel for Immigration-Related Unfair Employment Practices (OSC).
As part of the MOU, OSC and the Salvadoran government will collaborate to educate workers about their employment rights and to provide them with the resources needed to protect those rights. Additionally, the MOU seeks to promote training for employers on their obligations under the anti-discrimination provision of the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA), which prohibits employment discrimination based on citizenship, immigration status and national origin. Specifically, the MOU provides that:
- OSC will train Salvadoran consular staff on the anti-discrimination provision of the INA, participate in events organized by Salvadoran consulates to educate workers and employers and distribute educational materials to the embassy and its consulates.
- The embassy will establish a system for referring discrimination claims from the embassy and consulates to OSC.
“We welcome our newest partner to help the Civil Rights Division combat unlawful discrimination against workers employed in the United States and we value the ability to work together to achieve this important goal,” said Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Gupta. “We hope that formalizing our partnership with El Salvador will send a clear message to workers that we are eager to assist them.”
Today’s agreement is particularly useful due to the large number of Salvadoran nationals with temporary protected status (TPS), who are eligible to live and work in the United States, but who sometimes encounter discrimination by employers either based on their immigration status or national origin. TPS is a temporary immigration status granted to eligible nationals of a country designated for TPS under the INA. During the TPS designation period, TPS beneficiaries are authorized to work in the United States.
OSC is responsible for enforcing the anti-discrimination provision of the INA. Among other things, this law prohibits citizenship status and national origin discrimination in hiring, firing or recruitment or referral for a fee; discrimination in the employment eligibility verification process; retaliation and intimidation. In addition to its enforcement work, OSC educates the public on rights and responsibilities under the INA’s anti-discrimination provision. More information on OSC is available at www.justice.gov/crt/about/osc.
For more information about protections against employment discrimination under immigration laws, call OSC’s worker hotline at 1-800-255-7688 (1-800-237-2515, TTY for hearing impaired); call OSC’s employer hotline at 1-800-255-8155 (1-800-237-2515, TTY for hearing impaired); sign up for a free webinar at www.justice.gov/crt/about/osc/webinars.php; email [email protected] or visit OSC’s website at www.justice.gov/crt/about/osc.
Jury Convicts Sioux City Man of Three Federal Firearm OffensesRead the Press Release
A man who illegally possessed a firearm was convicted by a jury on June 30, 2016, after a two-day trial in federal court in Sioux City.
Brandon Hayes, 34, from Sioux City, IA, was convicted of one count of possession of a firearm by a felon, one count of possession of a firearm by a domestic abuser and one count of possession of a firearm with an altered serial number. The verdict was returned this morning following about three hours of jury deliberations.
Hayes was previously convicted of 5 felonies and six crimes of domestic violence. Hayes unlawfully possessed a 12 gauge shotgun (with an obliterated or altered serial number) which he ultimately sold to an undercover ATF agent in Sioux City on June 23, 2014.
Sentencing before United States District Court Judge Leonard T. Strand will be set after a presentence report is prepared. Hayes remains in custody of the United States Marshal and will remain in custody pending sentencing. Because of his extensive criminal history, Hayes faces a mandatory minimum sentence of 15 years’ imprisonment and a possible maximum sentence of life imprisonment, a $250,000 fine, $300 in special assessments, and up to five years of supervised release following any imprisonment.
The case was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, and the Sioux City Police Department.
Court file information at https://ecf.iand.uscourts.gov/cgi-bin/login.pl.
The case file number is 14-4082.
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Jacksonville-Onslow County Focused Deterrence Call-InRead the Press Release
RALEIGH – The United States Attorney’s Office has announced that yesterday Jacksonville-Onslow County hosted its first Focused Deterrence Call-In event. A focused deterrence notification (call-in) is a systematic and thorough problem identification strategy to deter violence, gun and drug crimes. A comprehensive and strategic focused deterrence plan is created by local and federal law enforcement partners to target chronic and repeat offenders. Once notified, offenders are provided a unified message that they have been targeted and will be sanctioned if they continue to commit criminal acts. Community members and resource providers participate and augment the aggressive law enforcement approach by providing participants with support services and resources including housing, vocational and employment services, educational services, and substance abuse programming.
Each offender was provided a resource handbook identifying various local resource providers and their contact information. At the conclusion of the event, offenders were greeted by representatives from seven local agencies that provide supportive services and resources to former offenders. In addition to the resource providers, there were also faith based leaders, community leaders, state and federal probation officers, state and federal prosecutors, local law enforcement and federal agents in attendance to offer their support and encouragement to the offenders.
Yesterday’s Jacksonville-Onslow County Focused Deterrence Call-In was hosted by the Jacksonville Police Department and the Onslow-Jones County Reentry Council. The Focused Deterrence Call-In was a joint partnership between the Jacksonville Police Department, Onslow County Sheriff’s Office, Federal Bureau of Investigation, Drug Enforcement Administration, Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, North Carolina Department of Public Safety, District Attorney’s Office in Judicial District 4, United States Probation, Tri-County Crusaders Reentry Program, and the United States Attorney’s Office.
Human Trafficker Sentenced to 16 Years in Federal PrisonRead the Press Release
BATON ROUGE, LA – U.S. Attorney Walt Green, Assistant Attorney General Leslie R. Caldwell of the U.S. Department of Justice’s Criminal Division, and Special Agent in Charge Jeffrey S. Sallet of the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s New Orleans Division announced today that KELLIE M. DOMINIQUE, age 37, of Baton Rouge, Louisiana, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Shelly D. Dick to 16 years in prison for conspiring to commit sex trafficking of a minor, followed by 5 years of supervised release. DOMINIQUE was also ordered to pay the victim $15,000 in restitution and to forfeit $15,000 in illegal proceeds from the offense.
At her guilty plea hearing, Dominique admitted that from June 2013 until September 2013, she conspired with others to promote the prostitution of a minor female out of Dominique’s home and other venues. In order to manage and carry on the prostitution business, Dominique admitted that she and the minor female regularly used telephones to schedule prostitution sessions and to discuss the proceeds earned from the prostitution sessions. Dominique also admitted that she facilitated the minor female’s posts on Backpage.com classified advertisements for commercial sex acts in Louisiana and elsewhere. Dominique further admitted that she provided the minor female with illegal drugs and used such drugs with the minor female. Finally, when authorities began to investigate her illegal conduct, Dominique made false statements to government officials and corruptly influenced potential witnesses.
Four others have been convicted in related cases in the Middle District of Louisiana, including Jeremie Tate, 34, of Zachery, Louisiana, who was sentenced in September 2015 to serve 115 months in prison for operating an interstate prostitution enterprise.
U.S. Attorney Green stated: “Today’s sentence should send a loud and clear message about the severe and real consequences that face those convicted in federal court of sexually trafficking minors. Our office is strongly committed to aggressively pursuing these offenders with our federal, state, and local partners, both through federal prosecutions and our leadership on the Middle District of Louisiana Human Trafficking Task Force. I commend the outstanding efforts of the prosecutors and agents who worked on this very important matter.”
FBI SAC Sallet stated: “Human Trafficking is an ever present threat that warrants our daily attention and law enforcement expertise. This sentence shows the severity of the crime and magnitude of Human Trafficking throughout the nation. Through federal, state and local law enforcement collaboration we are better able to confront and investigate this crime and its threat to our children.”
The FBI’s Baton Rouge Crimes Against Children Task Force, the Louisiana Attorney General’s Office, the Louisiana State Police and the East Baton Rouge, Louisiana, Sheriff’s Office investigated the case with assistance from the Baton Rouge Police Department’s Narcotics Division, the U.S. Marshals Fugitive Task Force and other law enforcement agencies.
Trial Attorney Reginald E. Jones of the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS) and Assistant U.S. Attorney Jamie A. Flowers Jr. of the Middle District of Louisiana prosecuted the case.
Hudson County, New Jersey, Man Sentenced to 25 Years in Prison for His Role in Multi-State $3.5 Million Burglary SpreeRead the Press Release
NEWARK, N.J. – A North Bergen, New Jersey, man was sentenced today to 300 months in prison for his role in a series of at least 27 burglaries and attempted burglaries across six states, U.S. Attorney Paul J. Fishman announced.
Daniel “Tokyo” Gatson, 44, was previously convicted of one count of conspiracy to transport stolen property in interstate commerce and 11 substantive counts of interstate transportation of stolen property. Gatson was convicted following a three-week trial before U.S. District Judge William J. Martini, who imposed the sentence today in Newark federal court.
According to documents filed in this case and the evidence presented at trial:
Gatson, his cousin Anthony “T.J.” Hanks, 36, of Brooklyn, New York, and numerous other conspirators, including four defendants who previously pleaded guilty and testified against Gatson and Hanks, took part in at least 27 burglaries and attempted burglaries in New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, Virginia, North Carolina, and Georgia, causing losses of over $3.5 million dollars, mainly in stolen jewelry and cash.
Typically, Gatson, Hanks and others would identify homes in affluent residential neighborhoods and conduct surveillance of the target residences, looking for indications that no one was home.
Before robbing a target residence, Gatson, Hanks and others would cut wires running to and from the residence, including phone, cable, and alarm connections. Then, while wearing masks and gloves, they would forcibly break in to the target residence, usually by smashing through the front door, while a getaway driver remained nearby in a rented minivan, often maintaining contact with one of the burglars inside the target residence by cell phone. Gatson was apprehended on Oct. 11, 2013, while attempting to flush stolen jewelry down a hotel toilet.
In addition to the prison term, Judge Martini sentenced Gatson to three years of supervised release.
Hanks, who was convicted at trial of one count of conspiracy to transport stolen property in interstate commerce and three counts of interstate transportation of stolen property, is scheduled for sentencing on Sept. 20, 2016.
U.S. Attorney Fishman credited special agents of the FBI, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Timothy Gallagher in Newark; and the Bergen County Prosecutor’s Office, under the direction of Acting Prosecutor Gurbir S. Grewal, with the investigation leading to today’s sentencing.
The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorney Josh Hafetz of the Organized Crime/Gangs Unit in Newark and Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Thomas S. Kearney of the Bergen County Prosecutor’s Office.
Defense counsel: Michael Pedicini Esq., Chatham, New Jersey
Honduran National Pleads Guilty to Illegal ReentryRead the Press Release
U.S. Attorney Kenneth A. Polite announced that EDUARDO URBINA-JUAREZ (URBINA), a citizen of Honduras, pled guilty today to a one-count Indictment charging him with illegal reentry of a removed alien, in violation of 8 U.S.C. ' 1326(a).
According to court documents, URBINA reentered the United States after having been previously deported on May 23, 2013.
URBINA faces a maximum term of imprisonment of two years, a maximum fine of $250,000, a maximum term of supervised release of one year, and a mandatory $100 special assessment. U.S. District Judge Stanwood R. Duval, Jr. set sentencing for August 11, 2016.
U.S. Attorney Polite praised the work of the United States Department of Homeland Security in investigating this matter. Assistant U.S. Attorney Spiro G. Latsis is in charge of the prosecution.
Harrisburg Man Convicted of Distributing Crack Cocaine and Possessing A Firearm in Furtherance of His Drug Trafficking ActivitiesRead the Press Release
HARRISBURG – The United States Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Pennsylvania announced today that on June 29, 2016, a jury convicted Laquan Kellam, age 33, Harrisburg, of three counts of distributing crack cocaine, one count of possessing with the intent to distribute over 280 grams of crack cocaine and one count of possessing a firearm in furtherance of his drug trafficking activities. The two-day trial was held before U.S. District Court Judge Sylvia H. Rambo.
According to United States Attorney Peter Smith, the jury returned with the verdict of guilty after approximately seven hours of deliberation. The jury found that Kellam distributed crack cocaine on June 20, 25 and 27, 2014, and that he possessed with the intent to distribute over 280 grams of crack cocaine. The jury also found Kellam guilty of possessing a firearm found at a Harrisburg residence in furtherance of his narcotics trafficking activities.
Judge Rambo remanded Kellam into custody following the verdict.
The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Eric Pfisterer, Phillip J. Caraballo and Meredith A Taylor.
The charges stem from an investigation by the Harrisburg City Police Department and agents from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives.
A sentence following a finding of guilt is imposed by the Judge after consideration of the applicable federal sentencing statutes and the Federal Sentencing Guidelines.
The maximum penalty under federal law for the combined charges is life imprisonment with a 15 year mandatory minimum and 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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Georgia Man Pleads Guilty to Using Stolen Identities to File False Tax ReturnsRead the Press Release
A Marietta, Georgia, resident pleaded guilty in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Georgia today to one count of theft of public money and one count of aggravated identity theft, announced Acting Assistant Attorney General Caroline D. Ciraolo of the Justice Department’s Tax Division and U.S. Attorney John A. Horn of the Northern District of Georgia.
Peter Isika, 46, admitted using stolen identities to file at least 50 false tax returns for tax years 2013 and 2014 claiming more than $500,000 in fraudulent refunds. Isika admitted that he purchased the stolen identities over the Internet and used those identities to obtain the fraudulent tax refunds. Isika directed the refunds to prepaid debit cards or bank accounts that he controlled.
A sentencing date has not been scheduled for Isika. He faces a statutory maximum sentence of 10 years in prison for the theft of public money charge and an additional statutory mandatory sentence of two years in prison for aggravated identity theft. He also faces a term of supervised release and monetary penalties.
Acting Assistant Attorney General Ciraolo and U.S. Attorney Horn commended special agents of the Internal Revenue Service-Criminal Investigation and U.S. Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration, who investigated the case and Trial Attorneys Jason Poole and Mara Strier of the Tax Division and Assistant U.S. Attorney Kamal Ghali, who are prosecuting the case.
Additional information about the Tax Division and its enforcement efforts may be found on the division’s website.
Former Sacramento County Sheriff’s Deputy Sentenced to 18 Months in Prison for Unlawful Sale of FirearmsRead the Press Release
SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Ryan McGowan, 34, of Elk Grove, was sentenced today by United States District Judge Troy L. Nunley to 18 months in prison and a $7,000 fine for dealing firearms without a license and for conspiracy to make a false statement on a firearms record, Acting United States Attorney Phillip A. Talbert announced.
Former Sacramento County sheriff’s deputy McGowan and his co-defendant Robert Snellings were convicted last year following a jury trial. Snellings, 64, of Rancho Murieta, a former federal firearms licensee, was sentenced last week to one year in prison.
Under state law, California has an approved roster of firearms that may be sold to the public. A federal firearms licensee is required to make sure any handgun sold is on the approved roster. There is an exemption, however, for peace officers to purchase certain firearms known as “off-roster” firearms. Peace officers who own off-roster firearms may sell them in a private sale, so long as it is brokered by a federal firearms licensee. They may not, however, use these private sales to conduct a business whose principal objective is livelihood and profit through the repetitive purchase and resale of firearms.
According to evidence produced at trial, McGowan used his position as a deputy sheriff to purchase off-roster guns at retail price and then because the firearms could not be purchased directly by the general public, resold them at an inflated price on the private market in California. From 2008 to 2011, McGowan purchased 41 handguns and sold 25 of them within a year after purchase. Thirty-three of the guns were purchased through Snellings Firearms, which was owned by co-defendant Snellings. Some of those weapons were then transferred back to Snellings personally, thereby allowing Snellings to own the weapons himself or sell them to the public.
Both defendants were found guilty of conspiracies to make false statements in federal firearms records. In order to circumvent the restrictions on purchasing off-roster firearms, they falsely stated on ATF forms that a police officer was the actual purchaser when the actual purchaser of the off roster handgun was intended to be a non-officer who was not permitted to buy the gun. Therefore, McGowan and other police officers were acting as a straw purchasers who then transferred the handguns to the real purchasers within a short period of time.
ATF Special Agent in Charge Jill A. Snyder stated: “Ryan McGowan used his position as a law enforcement officer to purchase firearms and sell them illegally. In doing so, he violated federal law and public trust.”
This case was the product of an investigation by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives with the active involvement of the Sacramento Sheriff’s Office and the Sacramento Police Department. The Roseville Police Department and other law enforcement agencies assisted. Assistant United States Attorneys William S. Wong and Michael D. Anderson prosecuted the case.
Former Jackson Police Officer Pleads Guilty to ExtortionRead the Press Release
Jackson, Miss – Bryan Jones, 44, of Jackson, pled guilty on June 29, 2016, before U.S. District Judge Dan Jordan, to extortion by use of his position as a police officer, announced U.S. Attorney Gregory K. Davis and FBI Special Agent in Charge Donald Alway.
While working as a JPD officer, Jones violated the Hobbs Act on April 15, 2015. Jones took cash during a stop from undercover FBI agents and never recorded or placed the money in Jackson Police Department evidence. At the time of the stop, Jones was carrying his service pistol holstered on his belt and driving his patrol car.
A confidential source called Jones to provide him with the location of someone who Jones thought was a drug dealer, but was really an undercover agent. Jones, acting in his capacity as a police officer, illegally searched and seized $4,000.00 and $5,000.00 respectively and later split the money with the confidential source and never recorded the money or turned it over to the Jackson Police Department evidence.
Jones will be sentenced on September 23, 2016, at 9:00 a.m. and faces a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison and a $250,000 fine.
This case was investigated by the FBI and the Jackson Police Department. It was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Mary Helen Wall and Erin Chalk.
Former Border Station Employee Pleads Guilty to Tax EvasionRead the Press Release
NORFOLK, Va. – Amy L. Planch, 50, of Moyock, North Carolina, pleaded guilty today to evasion of income tax assessment.
According to the statement of facts filed with the plea agreement, beginning in 1998, Planch worked full time at The Border Station, Inc., a popular retail store, gas station and restaurant located on the border of Currituck County, North Carolina and Chesapeake, Virginia. In her capacity as the bookkeeper and Chief Financial Officer of the company, Planch was responsible for payroll, paying bills, making deposits, transferring funds, and other tasks.
In March 2010, Planch opened a holiday-themed gift shop in Moyock, North Carolina, called the Carolina Christmas Shoppe, Inc. Although she spent the majority of her time at her new business, she retained her responsibilities as the Border Station’s bookkeeper. Beginning in early 2010, Planch began wiring thousands of dollars from the Border Station’s accounts to the Carolina Christmas Shoppe account and her personal accounts, at times then wiring a significantly smaller amount back into the Border Station’s accounts. Over the course of nearly three years, Planch transferred a net of approximately $966,000 from the Border Station to her business and personal accounts. These funds were used to pay her personal expenses, including credit card payments, mortgage payments, travel, clothing, and jewelry. Planch did not report the finances taken without authorization from the Border Station on her individual income tax returns. In December 2012, the owner of the Border Station became aware of Planch’s transfers and fired her. In March 2013, Planch traveled to the FBI offices in Chesapeake, Virginia and, during an interview with IRS and FBI agents, attempted to implicate the Border Station’s owner in a variety illegal activities, to include gambling, drugs, bank fraud, and others.
Planch was charged by criminal information on May 17, and will be sentenced on October 14 by Chief Judge Rebecca Beach Smith. Planch faces a maximum penalty of five years in prison. 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; and Thomas Jankowski, Special Agent in Charge, Washington, D.C. Field Office, IRS-Criminal Investigation (IRS-CI), made the announcement after the plea was accepted by U.S. Magistrate Judge Douglas E. Miller. 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. 2:16-cr-76.
Florida Resident Charged in Superseding Indictment with Attempting to Damage Religious PropertyRead the Press Release
Defendant Was Previously Charged with Attempting to Use Explosive Device on Florida Synagogue
James Gonzalo Medina, 40, of Hollywood, Florida, was charged today by superseding indictment with attempting to damage religious property following his initial charge on May 2, 2016, of attempting to use a weapon of mass destruction – an explosive device – at a synagogue in Aventura, Florida.
U.S. Attorney Wifredo A. Ferrer of the Southern District of Florida; Assistant Attorney General for National Security John P. Carlin; Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Vanita Gupta, head of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division; and Special Agent in Charge George L. Piro of the FBI’s Miami Field Office made the announcement.
Medina is now charged with knowingly attempting to use a weapon of mass destruction against a person or property within the United States and attempting to damage religious property. If convicted, Medina faces a maximum sentence of life in prison.
The arrest was the culmination of an undercover operation during which Medina was closely monitored by the South Florida Joint Terrorism Task Force (JTTF). The explosive device that he allegedly sought and attempted to use had been rendered inoperable by law enforcement and posed no threat to the public.
According to allegations contained in the original complaint, in March 2016, Medina came to the attention of the FBI due to his conversations about attacking a synagogue in South Florida. The FBI was able to gauge Medina’s interest in the plot and collect evidence through the use of a confidential human source (CHS), to whom Medina expressed anti-Semitic views and identified the Aventura-Turnberry Jewish Center in Aventura as the target of his attack.
The complaint further alleged that Medina wanted to use an explosive device to commit the attack and engaged the CHS and an undercover FBI employee about the details of his planned criminal conduct. In preparation for the proposed attack, Medina studied the synagogue property to assess its vulnerabilities. On April 29, 2016, Medina took possession of an inert explosive device and was arrested while approaching the synagogue. Medina was under FBI surveillance, and the FBI effectively mitigated any danger posed to the public.
A complaint and indictment are merely accusations and a defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty in a court of law.
The case was investigated by the FBI’s Miami Division and the South Florida JTTF. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Marc S. Anton and Karen E. Gilbert of the Southern District of Florida and Trial Attorney Taryn Meeks of the National Security Division’s Counterterrorism Section.
Florida Resident Charged in Superseding Indictment with Attempting to Damage Religious PropertyRead the Press Release
James Gonzalo Medina, 40, of Hollywood, Florida, was charged today by superseding indictment with attempting to damage religious property following his initial charge on May 2, 2016, of attempting to use a weapon of mass destruction – an explosive device – at a synagogue in Aventura, Florida.
U.S. Attorney Wifredo A. Ferrer of the Southern District of Florida; Assistant Attorney General for National Security John P. Carlin; Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Vanita Gupta, head of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division; and Special Agent in Charge George L. Piro of the FBI’s Miami Field Office made the announcement.
Medina is now charged with knowingly attempting to use a weapon of mass destruction against a person or property within the United States and attempting to damage religious property. If convicted, Medina faces a maximum sentence of life in prison.
The arrest was the culmination of an undercover operation during which Medina was closely monitored by the South Florida Joint Terrorism Task Force (JTTF). The explosive device that he allegedly sought and attempted to use had been rendered inoperable by law enforcement and posed no threat to the public.
According to allegations contained in the original complaint, in March 2016, Medina came to the attention of the FBI due to his conversations about attacking a synagogue in South Florida. The FBI was able to gauge Medina’s interest in the plot and collect evidence through the use of a confidential human source (CHS), to whom Medina expressed anti-Semitic views and identified the Aventura-Turnberry Jewish Center in Aventura as the target of his attack.
The complaint further alleged that Medina wanted to use an explosive device to commit the attack and engaged the CHS and an undercover FBI employee about the details of his planned criminal conduct. In preparation for the proposed attack, Medina studied the synagogue property to assess its vulnerabilities. On April 29, 2016, Medina took possession of an inert explosive device and was arrested while approaching the synagogue. Medina was under FBI surveillance, and the FBI effectively mitigated any danger posed to the public.
A complaint and indictment are merely accusations and a defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty in a court of law.
The case was investigated by the FBI’s Miami Division and the South Florida JTTF. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Marc S. Anton and Karen E. Gilbert of the Southern District of Florida and Trial Attorney Taryn Meeks of the National Security Division’s Counterterrorism Section.
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.
Florida Man Sentenced to 10 Years for Possessing Child PornographyRead the Press Release
Tampa, FL – U.S. District Judge Steven D. Merryday has sentenced Bryant Lee Gramer (43) to 10 years in federal prison for possessing child pornography. As part of his sentence, he was also ordered to pay $1,500 in restitution to a victim of his offense. Gramer pleaded guilty on April 20, 2016.
According to court documents, in 2011, Gramer uploaded to Facebook numerous photos depicting child pornography, and he also had hundreds more in his possession. Gramer, a registered sex offender, was previously convicted for committing a lewd and lascivious act in the presence of a child. In 2012, he was sentenced to a state prison term for having unregistered email accounts in violation of his sex offender reporting requirements.
"We hope today's sentencing brings a small measure of relief to the innocent victims of these crimes," said Susan L. McCormick, special agent in charge of HSI Tampa. "Protecting our nation's children remains one of HSI's top priorities."
This case was investigated by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations. It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Gregory T. Nolan.
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 United States Attorneys' Offices and the Criminal Division's Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS), Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who sexually exploit children, and tpro identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.justice.gov/psc.
Florida Cardiologist and His Practice Pay Millions and Agree to Three Years of Exclusion to Resolve Alleged False Billings for Unnecessary Procedures and Illegal KickbacksRead the Press Release
An Ocala, Florida, cardiologist, Dr. Asad Qamar, and his practice, the Institute of Cardiovascular Excellence (ICE), will pay $2 million, plus release any claim to $5.3 million in suspended Medicare funds, to resolve a lawsuit alleging that they improperly billed Medicare, Medicaid and TRICARE for medically unnecessary procedures, and paid kickbacks to patients by waiving Medicare copayments irrespective of financial hardship, the Justice Department announced today. Dr. Qamar also agreed to a three-year period of exclusion from participating in any federal health care program followed by a three-year Integrity Agreement with the Department of Health and Human Services Office of the Inspector General (HHS-OIG). The settlement relates to two consolidated lawsuits in which the United States intervened on Dec. 22, 2014.
“Billing federal health programs for medically unnecessary procedures is unacceptable – not only does it waste taxpayer funds, but it also puts patients at risk,” said Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General, Benjamin C. Mizer, head of the Justice Department’s Civil Division. “Today’s settlement evidences the Department of Justice’s firm commitment to protect public funds and to safeguard the well-being of federal health care program beneficiaries.”
The settlement resolves the government’s lawsuit claiming that Dr. Qamar and ICE billed Medicare, Medicaid and TRICARE for excessive, medically unnecessary and inadequately documented peripheral artery interventional services and related procedures. Many of the cardiovascular procedures for which Dr. Qamar and ICE billed Medicare and the other programs were not indicated by patients’ medical histories or records, or the severity of the patients’ symptoms.
The government also alleged that to help facilitate this false billing scheme, Dr. Qamar and ICE routinely and indiscriminately waived the 20 percent Medicare copayment, irrespective of the patient’s financial need. Medicare copayments assure that patients have an incentive to be smart healthcare consumers and avoid unnecessary procedures. By waiving the required copayments indiscriminately, Dr. Qamar and ICE induced patients to agree to unnecessary and invasive procedures and other services. Dr. Qamar’s and ICE’s illegal conduct made Dr. Qamar the highest paid Medicare cardiologist in the country in 2012 and 2013.
“Patient safety is of paramount importance,” said U.S. Attorney A. Lee Bentley III for the Middle District of Florida. “When a doctor performs medically unnecessary and invasive procedures on Medicare patients, federal healthcare programs are defrauded and, more importantly, patients’ lives and wellbeing are recklessly put at risk. This case shows our office’s steadfast commitment to holding medical providers personally responsible for their actions.”
“When medical professionals act on greed to perform unnecessary, invasive procedures on Medicare and Medicaid patients, both patient health and taxpayer funds are compromised,” said Special Agent in Charge Shimon R. Richmond of HHS-OIG. “Our agents and investigators will continue to work hard with our law enforcement partners to ensure that health care providers who engage in such illegal behavior are held accountable.”
The allegations resolved by today’s settlement were originally raised in two lawsuits filed pursuant to the qui tam, or whistleblower, provisions of the False Claims Act, which permit private parties to sue on behalf of the government when they discover evidence that defendants have submitted false claims for government funds and to receive a share of any recovery. The False Claims Act also permits the government to intervene in such lawsuits, as it has done in these cases. The cases are captioned United States ex rel. Doe v. Institute of Cardiovasular Excellence, PLLC, ICE Holdings, PLLC, Dr. Asad Qamar, & Dr. Humera Qamar, Case No. 5:11-CV-406-OC-KRS (M.D. Fla.); United States ex rel. Taylor & the State of Florida v. Institute of Cardiovascular Excellence & Dr. Asad Qamar, Case No. 8:14-CV-1454-T-35-EAS (M.D. Fla.). The relators Dr. Robert A. Green and Ms. Holly A. Taylor will receive $1,327,721 as their share of the settlement.
This settlement illustrates the government’s emphasis on combating health care fraud and marks another achievement for the Health Care Fraud Prevention and Enforcement Action Team (HEAT) initiative, which was announced in May 2009 by the Attorney General and the Secretary of Health and Human Services. The partnership between the two departments has focused efforts to reduce and prevent Medicare and Medicaid financial fraud through enhanced cooperation. One of the most powerful tools in this effort is the False Claims Act. Since January 2009, the Justice Department has recovered a total of more than $29.9 billion through False Claims Act cases, with more than $18.3 billion of that amount recovered in cases involving fraud against federal health care programs.
This case was handled by the Commercial Litigation Branch of the Department of Justice’s Civil Division, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Florida, HHS-OIG, and the Defense Health Agency on behalf of the TRICARE program. The claims asserted by the government are allegations only, and there has been no determination of liability.
Florida Cardiologist and His Practice Pay Millions and Agree to Three Years of Exclusion to Resolve Alleged False Billings for Unnecessary Procedures and Illegal KickbacksRead the Press Release
Tampa, FL – An Ocala, Florida, cardiologist, Dr. Asad Qamar, and his practice, the Institute of Cardiovascular Excellence (ICE), will pay $2 million, plus release any claim to $5.3 million in suspended Medicare funds, to resolve a lawsuit alleging that they improperly billed Medicare, Medicaid and TRICARE for medically unnecessary procedures, and paid kickbacks to patients by waiving Medicare copayments irrespective of financial hardship, the Justice Department announced today. Dr. Qamar also agreed to a three-year period of exclusion from participating in any federal health care program followed by a three-year Integrity Agreement with the Department of Health and Human Services Office of the Inspector General (HHS-OIG). The settlement relates to two consolidated lawsuits in which the United States intervened on Dec. 22, 2014.
“Patient safety is of paramount importance,” said U.S. Attorney A. Lee Bentley III for the Middle District of Florida. “When a doctor performs medically unnecessary and invasive procedures on Medicare patients, federal healthcare programs are defrauded and, more importantly, patients’ lives and wellbeing are recklessly put at risk. This case shows our office’s steadfast commitment to holding medical providers personally responsible for their actions.”
“Billing federal health programs for medically unnecessary procedures is unacceptable – not only does it waste taxpayer funds, but it also puts patients at risk,” said Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General, Benjamin C. Mizer, head of the Justice Department’s Civil Division. “Today’s settlement evidences the Department of Justice’s firm commitment to protect public funds and to safeguard the well-being of federal health care program beneficiaries.”
The settlement resolves the government’s lawsuit claiming that Dr. Qamar and ICE billed Medicare, Medicaid and TRICARE for excessive, medically unnecessary and inadequately documented peripheral artery interventional services and related procedures. Many of the cardiovascular procedures for which Dr. Qamar and ICE billed Medicare and the other programs were not indicated by patients’ medical histories or records, or the severity of the patients’ symptoms.
The government also alleged that to help facilitate this false billing scheme, Dr. Qamar and ICE routinely and indiscriminately waived the 20 percent Medicare copayment, irrespective of the patient’s financial need. Medicare copayments assure that patients have an incentive to be smart healthcare consumers and avoid unnecessary procedures. By waiving the required copayments indiscriminately, Dr. Qamar and ICE induced patients to agree to unnecessary and invasive procedures and other services. Dr. Qamar’s and ICE’s illegal conduct made Dr. Qamar the highest paid Medicare cardiologist in the country in 2012 and 2013.
“When medical professionals act on greed to perform unnecessary, invasive procedures on Medicare and Medicaid patients, both patient health and taxpayer funds are compromised,” said Special Agent in Charge Shimon R. Richmond of HHS-OIG. “Our agents and investigators will continue to work hard with our law enforcement partners to ensure that health care providers who engage in such illegal behavior are held accountable.”
The allegations resolved by today’s settlement were originally raised in two lawsuits filed pursuant to the qui tam, or whistleblower, provisions of the False Claims Act, which permit private parties to sue on behalf of the government when they discover evidence that defendants have submitted false claims for government funds and to receive a share of any recovery. The False Claims Act also permits the government to intervene in such lawsuits, as it has done in these cases. The cases are captioned United States ex rel. Doe v. Institute of Cardiovasular Excellence, PLLC, ICE Holdings, PLLC, Dr. Asad Qamar, & Dr. Humera Qamar, Case No. 5:11-CV-406-OC-KRS (M.D. Fla.); United States ex rel. Taylor & the State of Florida v. Institute of Cardiovascular Excellence & Dr. Asad Qamar, Case No. 8:14-CV-1454-T-35-EAS (M.D. Fla.). The relators Dr. Robert A. Green and Ms. Holly A. Taylor will receive $1,327,721 as their share of the settlement.
This settlement illustrates the government’s emphasis on combating health care fraud and marks another achievement for the Health Care Fraud Prevention and Enforcement Action Team (HEAT) initiative, which was announced in May 2009 by the Attorney General and the Secretary of Health and Human Services. The partnership between the two departments has focused efforts to reduce and prevent Medicare and Medicaid financial fraud through enhanced cooperation. One of the most powerful tools in this effort is the False Claims Act. Since January 2009, the Justice Department has recovered a total of more than $29.9 billion through False Claims Act cases, with more than $18.3 billion of that amount recovered in cases involving fraud against federal health care programs.
This case was handled by the Commercial Litigation Branch of the Department of Justice’s Civil Division, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Florida, HHS-OIG, and the Defense Health Agency on behalf of the TRICARE program. The claims asserted by the government are allegations only, and there has been no determination of liability.
Five More Inmates Sentenced for Rioting in a Federal Prison FacilityRead the Press Release
Natchez, Miss - Five inmates were sentenced by U.S. District Judge David Bramlette III for their participation in a prison riot which took place at the Adams County Correctional facility prison on May 20, 2012, announced U.S. Attorney Gregory K. Davis and FBI Special Agent in Charge Donald Alway.
Ricardo Gonzales-Porras, 31, originally of Chihuahua, Mexico, was sentenced to 300 months in prison.
Ricardo Quintana, 29, originally of Chihuahua, Mexico, was sentenced to 48 months in prison.
Ernesto Granados, 37, originally of Salamanca, Mexico, was sentenced to 120 months in prison.
Ian Reid, 45, originally of Montego Bay, Jamaica was sentenced to 89 months in prison.
Marco Perez-Serano, 32, originally of Monterrey, Nuevo Leon, Mexico, was sentenced to 105 months in prison.
The defendants were ordered to pay restitution jointly and severally in the amount of $1,382,313. They are subject to deportation following their release from prison.
The cause of the riot was what the inmates perceived to be inadequate food, medical conditions and disrespectful staff members. During the riot, prison fences were destroyed, windows were broken, prison property was stolen, hostages were taken, correctional officers were assaulted, and one corrections officer was killed.
U.S. Attorney Gregory K. Davis commended the agents with the Federal Bureau of Investigation who worked tirelessly on this case
Final Defendant Pleads Guilty in Federal Court in Two Separate Schemes to Defraud the City of BaltimoreRead the Press Release
Baltimore, Maryland – Charles Dennis Bolden, Sr., age 69, of Baltimore, a former employee at the Quarantine Road Landfill (Landfill), pleaded guilty today to conspiring to commit two separate criminal schemes: one in which Department of Public Works (DPW) employees sought and accepted cash payments from commercial haulers in return for allowing the haulers to deposit trash at the Landfill without paying the required disposal fees (extortion scheme); and a second scheme in which DPW employees stole scrap metal from the Landfill for personal gain (the junking scheme).
Bolden is the last of 12 defendants to be convicted. Six Baltimore City Department of Public Works (DPW) employees and six commercial trash haulers were charged in federal court with conspiracy and other charges, including bribery, extortion and theft. Bolden was one of the two DPW employees charged in both schemes. All 12 defendants have been convicted.
The conviction was announced by United States Attorney for the District of Maryland Rod J. Rosenstein; Special Agent in Charge Kevin Perkins of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Baltimore Field Office; Robert H. Pearre, Jr., Inspector General, City of Baltimore Office of Inspector General; Special Agent in Charge Thomas Jankowski of the Internal Revenue Service - Criminal Investigation, Washington, D.C. Field Office; and Colonel William M. Pallozzi, Superintendent of the Maryland State Police.
Extortion Scheme
Individuals or companies commercially hauling trash that have registered their vehicles with Baltimore City and obtained Landfill permits, as well as Baltimore City residents with larger loads, must deposit their trash in an open area located within the Landfill. Commercial haulers of trash that meet certain vehicle weight limitations must, in addition to purchasing a Landfill permit, pay a waste disposal fee of $67.50 per ton of trash deposited at the Landfill. DPW employees assigned as scale house operators weigh each truck as it enters the Landfill, which is recorded on a computerized point-of-sale system. The scale house operators reweigh each truck as it leaves the Landfill.
Baltimore City residents can deposit small amounts of trash and/or recyclables in dumpsters at the Convenience Center located near the main entrance of the Landfill, free of charge. Individuals or companies commercially hauling trash that have registered their vehicles with the City and obtained Landfill permits, as well as Baltimore City residents with larger loads, must deposit their trash in an open area located further within the Landfill. Commercial haulers of trash that meet certain vehicle weight limitations must, in addition to purchasing a Landfill permit, pay a waste disposal fee of $67.50 per ton of trash, also referred to as a “tipping fee.” The disposal fee applies to the net weight of the trash deposited at the Landfill.
Bolden pleaded guilty today to both indictments charging him in the two schemes. According to the statement of facts presented by the government to the court, Bolden, who was employed by DPW as a laborer at the Landfill, and other DPW employees sought and accepted cash payments from commercial haulers in return for allowing the commercial haulers to deposit trash at the Landfill without paying the required disposal fees.
On August 28, 2013, an FBI confidential source (CS) went to the Convenience Center and spoke with Bolden about the cost of dumping a truckload of trash at the Landfill. Bolden told CS that he and his “girls” at the scale house would have to be paid a “fair” amount of money in order for CS to avoid paying the required disposal fee assessed at the scale house. When CS agreed to make the payment, Bolden said that the scale house “girl gonna waive you thru.”
The next day, Latonya Drinkard, a scale house operator, waived CS past the scale house and allowed him to dump his truckload of trash without paying the required fee. Afterwards, CS paid Bolden $70 in cash, which Bolden explained was a lot less than what he and the scale house “girls” have charged others. On September 12, 2013 and October 9, 2013, Drinkard allowed CS to dump two more truckloads of trash without paying the required disposal fee. Bolden charged CS $200 for each truckload.
During a recorded conversation on October 17, 2013, Drinkard asked the CS how much Bolden was charging CS. Upon learning that it was $200 per trip, the scale house operator agreed to waive the disposal fee for less money without Bolden’s involvement and stated, “Just call and let me know whenever you want to come in and I got you.”
Illegal Junking Scheme
In addition to the revenue generated by the collection of disposal fees, Baltimore City’s waste management system generates revenue by collecting and selling recyclable scrap metal dumped at the City’s trash collection facilities, including household appliances, steel cables, copper wires, car parts, computer parts, door and window frames. The City awards contracts to private salvage companies to purchase and remove such scrap metal from its trash collection facilities.
DPW employees at the Landfill and other trash collection sites are required to segregate the recyclable scrap metal from general refuse and place it in separate bins provided by the salvage companies. The companies regularly pick up the scrap metal, weigh it and send a tonnage report to the City. Based on predetermined prices per ton, the City sends an invoice to the companies requesting payment for the value of the scrap metal the companies removed during a given period of time. Salvaging by employees, also referred to as “junking,” was strictly prohibited and employees were put on notice that any salvaging of metal constituted theft of City property.
According to the statement of facts presented by the government to the court, from 2005 to May 2015, Bolden and other Landfill employees falsely represented to the DPW that they were performing the jobs for which they were hired when, in fact, they used their paid positions during work hours to unlawfully collect, remove and sell scrap metal for personal gain.
Bolden and other laborers used their personal cell phones to communicate when and where recyclable scrap metals were being dumped at the Landfill. After creating piles of the scrap metal at various locations at the Landfill, the laborers would then use their personal pick-up trucks to collect the scrap metal and transport it from the Landfill to a private salvage company, frequently making multiple trips during a single, eight-hour work shift.
For most of the period, Bolden oversaw operations at the Convenience Center where residential trash was dumped. Video recordings documented Bolden’s use of a front-end loader to separate salvageable metal from the general trash bins. After setting aside a sufficient amount of such metal, Bolden would use his cell phone to contact other laborers, including Jarrod Hazelton and Michael Bennett, to pick up what he had collected. Telephonic intercepts revealed a daily pattern of phone calls wherein Bolden notified other employees that he had collected various types of salvageable metal that he was ready to load onto their trucks. Video footage showed Bolden helping to load the salvageable metals onto other employees’ pick-up trucks as well as his own. Those employees, in turn, would sell the metal to salvage companies and share the proceeds of the sales with Bolden. Sometimes the other laborers would meet with Bolden after hours to pick up his stolen metal and pay him.
The scrap metal that Bolden, Hazelton, Bennett and others stole and sold to private salvage companies resulted in a loss of revenue to the City totaling hundreds of thousands of dollars.
In addition, video footage established that Bolden and other employees spent a significant part of almost every workday coordinating the search and collection of salvageable metals to steal. Nonetheless, Bolden and other employees regularly signed and submitted daily time and attendance sheets falsely reflecting that they had fulfilled the hourly requirements of their respective paid positions when, in fact, they were routinely engaged in unauthorized “junking.” As a result, Bolden received hourly wages every pay period for work he did not perform on behalf of the City. More specifically, for calendar years 2013 and 2014, Bolden stole and conspired to steal salvageable metals and unearned wages from Baltimore City totaling more than $5,000 per year.
Bolden faces a maximum sentence of five years in prison for conspiracy, 20 years in prison for extortion; and 10 years in prison for theft from a government program. U.S. District Judge Marvin J. Garbis has scheduled sentencing for August 23, 2016, at 9:30 a.m.
Former DPW employees Tamara Oliver Washington, age 55; William Charles Nemec, Sr., age 56; and Michael Theodore Bennett, age 47; Latonya Drinkard, age 39, all of Baltimore, and Jarrod Terrell Hazelton, age 33, of Parkville, Maryland, previously pleaded guilty to their roles in the schemes. Nemec was sentenced to 78 months in prison, Bennett to 46 months in prison and Hazelton to two years in prison. U.S. District Judge Marvin J. Garbis also ordered Bennett and Hazelton to each pay restitution of $400,000. Washington and Drinkard are scheduled to be sentenced on August 12 and October 13, 2016.
Commercial trash hauler, John Howard Brady, age 74, was convicted by a federal jury in the bribery scheme, and is scheduled to be sentenced on July 22, 2016. The five remaining commercial trash haulers pleaded guilty to their participation in the bribery scheme. Quentin Turgot Glenn, age 50, of Hanover, Maryland, who owned and operated Glenn Services, LLC, a trash hauling business, was sentenced to three years in prison. Jessie Lee Wilson, Jr., age 41, of Baltimore, who was employed by Glenn Services as a truck driver, to three years of probation, with the first year to be spent in community confinement. Adam Williams, Jr., age 53, of Randallstown, was sentenced to one year in prison; and Larry Lowry, age 61, of Orchard Beach, Maryland, to 30 months in prison. Judge Garbis also ordered that Glenn pay restitution of $306,000; Williams pay restitution of $900,000; and Lowry pay restitution of $180,000. Mustafa Sharif, age 64, of Baltimore, awaits sentencing.
United States Attorney Rod J. Rosenstein praised the FBI, IRS-CI, Baltimore Office of Inspector General and Maryland State Police for their work in the investigation. Mr. Rosenstein thanked Assistant United States Attorneys Martin J. Clarke and Leo J. Wise, who are prosecuting the cases.