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Friday 3 June 2016
California Woman Sentenced for Possession and Distribution of NarcoticsRead the Press Release
BISMARCK – U.S. Attorney Christopher C. Myers announced that on June 2, 2016, Victoria Elaine Reyes, a/k/a Victoria Elaine Allen, 46, Taft, California, was sentenced before U.S. District Daniel L. Hovland on charges of Possession with Intent to Distribute a Controlled Substance (Methamphetamine) and Possession with Intent to Distribute a Controlled Substance (Heroin).
Reyes pled guilty to the charges on February 17, 2015. Judge Hovland sentenced Reyes to serve 15 years in federal prison, to be followed by five years of supervised release on each count, to be served concurrently. Reyes was ordered to pay a $200 special assessment to the Crime Victim’s Fund.
In early 2014, law enforcement officials with the Southwest Narcotics Task Force in Dickinson, North Dakota, were investigating the distribution of methamphetamine and heroin in western North Dakota. On March 23, 2014, related to this investigation, a traffic stop was made near Bowman, North Dakota, and law enforcement officials seized approximately two pounds of methamphetamine and a half pound of heroin that had been transported from California. Three individuals in the vehicle were arrested, including Reyes. Reyes had arranged for the transportation of the drugs and intended to distribute them in western North Dakota.
The case was investigated by the Southwest Narcotics Task Force, the North Dakota Bureau of Criminal Investigation, and the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA).
Assistant U.S. Attorney David Hagler prosecuted the case.
Brothers Sentenced on Visa Fraud ConvictionsRead the Press Release
DALLAS — Two brothers who were convicted at trial in November 2015 on felony offenses stemming from a conspiracy they ran to commit visa fraud to secure a low-cost workforce at their information technology consulting company headquartered in Carrollton, Texas, were sentenced today to lengthy federal prison terms, announced U.S. Attorney John Parker of the Northern District of Texas.
Atul Nanda, 46, and his brother, Jiten “Jay” Nanda, 45, were each sentenced by Chief U.S. District Judge Barbara M. G. Lynn to 87 months in federal prison. Each was convicted on one count of conspiracy to commit visa fraud, one count of conspiracy to harbor illegal aliens, and four counts of wire fraud. The brothers, who have been on bond, were remanded to the custody of the U.S. Marshals Service.
Dibon Solutions is an information technology consulting company located on Chenault Drive in Carrollton; it is a family operation created by the Nanda family. Atul and Jiten Nanda created, established, and ran the corporation that they used to commit fraud through the H1-B visa program.
“The H-1B visa program is a powerful and positive tool for businesses and foreign workers alike when properly used,” said U.S. Attorney Parker. “When employers abuse the program, however, the foreign workers become a captive stable of cheap labor, victimized to the company’s financial benefit.”
“This federal investigation uncovered Dibon’s deeply rooted conspiracy of maximizing its profits at all costs,” said Katrina W. Berger, special agent in charge of Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) Dallas. “These two brothers created a highly profitable, and highly illegal business model at the extreme expense of the alien workforce that they recruited. In addition, this same illegal business model operated at an unfair advantage to Dibon’s competition since it had a much lower operating overhead.”
The H-1B visa program allows businesses in the U.S., such as Dibon, to temporarily employ foreign workers with specialized or technical expertise in a particular field such as accounting, engineering, or computer science.
The Nanda brothers recruited foreign workers with expertise who wanted to work in the U.S. They sponsored the workers’ H-1B visa with the stated purpose of working at Dibon headquarters in Carrolton, but, in fact, did not have an actual position at the time they were recruited and knew the workers would ultimately provide consulting services to third-party companies located throughout the U.S. Contrary to representations made by the conspirators to the workers (and the government), Jay and Atul Nanda directed that the workers only be paid for time spent working at a third-party company and only if the third-party company actually first paid Dibon for the workers’ services. Additionally, in Dibon’s visa paperwork, the conspirators falsely represented that the workers had full-time positions and were paid an annual salary, as required by regulation to secure the visas.
This scheme provided the conspirators with a labor pool of inexpensive, skilled foreign workers who could be used on an “as needed” basis. The scheme was profitable because it required minimal overhead and Dibon could charge significant hourly rates for a computer consultant’s services. Thus, the Nandas, as Dibon’s owners, earned a substantial profit margin when a consultant was assigned to a project and incurred few costs when a worker was without billable work. This scheme is known as “benching.” Dibon actively recruited H-1B workers for the “bench.”
The Nandas required the H-1B visa candidates to pay the processing fees that the law requires to be paid by the company. The Nandas attempted to hide this, however, by having the H-1B candidates pay the fees directly to Dibon either with cash or a check written to “Dibon Training Center.”
The three other defendants charged in the case, Siva Sugavanam, 37, Vivek Sharma, 48, and Rohit Mehra, 39, who each pleaded guilty before trial to one count of aiding and abetting visa fraud, were each sentenced earlier this month by Judge Lynn to two years’ probation. Sugavanam was the lead recruiter for Dibon; Sharma acted as Dibon’s office manager; and Mehra recruited employees for the bench and transported benched employees to and from Dibon Headquarters. All three had knowledge of and/or involvement in the filing of false documents with the Department of Labor and the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) in securing recruits’ employment with Dibon.
The case was investigated by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, HSI and the U.S. Department of State.
Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Danial Gividen and Assistant U.S. Attorney Paul Yanowitch prosecuted the case.
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Brevard County Elementary School Principal Charged with Possession of Child PornographyRead the Press Release
Orlando, Florida – United States Attorney A. Lee Bentley, III announces that Ricky Delano Sheppard (59, Brevard County) was arrested and charged by criminal complaint today with possession of child pornography. If convicted, he faces up to 20 years in federal prison, and up to a lifetime of supervision. At the time of the incident, Sheppard was working as a principal at the Holland Spessard Elementary School, in Brevard County.
According to court records, on June 3, 2016, agents assigned to the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations and Brevard County Sheriff’s Office task force executed a search warrant at Sheppard’s residence in Brevard County. During a forensic examination of Sheppard’s computer media, computer experts found hundreds of images of child pornography.
Sheppard made his initial appearance in federal court earlier today, in Orlando. He remains detained pending further proceedings. A preliminary and detention hearing has been scheduled for Wednesday, June 8, 2016, before U.S. Magistrate Judge Gregory J. Kelly.
This case was investigated by the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations, with the assistance from the Brevard County Sheriff’s Office. It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Ilianys Rivera Miranda.
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 to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.justice.gov/psc.
Bloods Gang Member Sentenced to Prison for Prostituting a MinorRead the Press Release
NORFOLK, Va. – Cordario Marcell Uzzle, 23, of Virginia Beach, was sentenced today to 151 months in prison for sex trafficking of a child. He was also sentenced to 10 years of supervised release.
Uzzle pleaded guilty on February 19. According to court documents, Uzzle was a member of a set of the Bloods street gang based in Virginia Beach. Along with several other Bloods gang members, Uzzle prostituted a 16 year-old foster-care runaway over a two-week period in the fall of 2015. The girl was forced to work for several different gang members, and performed commercial sex acts from hotels in Norfolk and Virginia Beach. Uzzle posted prostitution advertisements on the Internet, rented rooms in which prostitution appointments were performed, collected the proceeds earned, and carried a firearm to protect himself and his victims, as well as to intimidate his victims and their customers.
In October 2015, the sex trafficking ring was discovered when the 16 year-old victim was transported to the hospital after Uzzle violently attacked her. As a result of the ensuing federal investigation, seven total Bloods gang members or associates have been charged for their roles in this conspiracy to engage in sex trafficking of minor and three other victims have been identified.
Dana J. Boente, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia; John S. Adams, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI’s Norfolk Field Office; and James A. Cervera, Chief of Virginia Beach Police, made the announcement after sentencing by U.S. District Judge Arenda L. Wright Allen. Assistant U.S. Attorney V. Kathleen Dougherty prosecuted 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-2.
Atlantic County, New Jersey, Woman Sentenced to Six Years in Prison for $3 Million Time-Share Mortgage Fraud SchemeRead the Press Release
CAMDEN, N.J. – An Atlantic County, New Jersey, woman was sentenced today to 72 months in prison for her role in a $3 million conspiracy to scam customers by offering phony consulting services to owners of timeshares through the New Jersey-based Vacation Ownership Group LLC, U.S. Attorney Paul J. Fishman announced.
Ashley Lacerda, 36, of Egg Harbor Township, New Jersey, was convicted in September 2013 of one count of conspiracy to commit mail and wire fraud, one count of mail fraud and four counts of wire fraud following a seven-week trial before U.S. District Judge Noel L. Hillman in Camden federal court.
According to documents filed in this case and the evidence presented at trial:
Ashley Lacerda and her codefendants schemed to defraud hundreds of timeshare owners by offering fraudulent consulting services through their company, the Vacation Ownership Group (now VO Financial). Her husband, Adam Lacerda, 32, the company founder, president and chief executive officer, devised the company’s fraudulent sales pitches. He directed his sales force to tell numerous lies to VO customers, including that VO worked with the banks holding the customers’ loans, would use money sent by customers to pay off the customers’ loans on their timeshares, and could cancel customers’ timeshares with money back. Ashley Lacerda, the company vice president and chief operating officer, sent fraudulent contracts to customers and managed the office.
Three codefendants were convicted with Ashley Lacerda at the same trial: Ian Resnick, 41, of Absecon, New Jersey, a convicted bank robber, started as a salesman giving the fraudulent sales pitch but became Adam Lacerda’s enforcer, with the title “director of compliance.” Genevieve Manzoni, 50, of Lake Worth, Fla. was a top VO sales representative who falsely told one victim she worked with a bank, another victim that she worked with a timeshare developer. Adam Lacerda was sentenced in June 2015 to 324 months in prison; Resnick was sentenced in April 2016 to 18 years in prison and Manzoni was sentenced in December 2015 to 42 months in prison.
The 15 victims who testified at trial – including business executives, veterans, senior citizens, a lawyer and a professor – were defrauded out of a total of $200,000 by the defendants’ sophisticated scheme.
In addition to the prison term, Judge Hillman sentenced Ashley Lacerda to three years of supervised release. Restitution will be determined at a later date.
U.S. Attorney Fishman credited special agents of FBI’s Atlantic City Resident Agency, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Timothy Gallagher in Newark; and special agents from the Department of Labor, Office of Inspector General, Office of Labor Racketeering and Fraud Investigations, under the direction of Special Agent Cheryl Garcia, New York Region, for the investigation. He also thanked the N.J. Department of Labor and Workforce Development for its assistance.
The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorney R. David Walk Jr. of the U.S. Attorney’s Office Criminal Division in Camden.
Defense counsel:
Adam Lacerda: Mark E. Cedrone Esq., Philadelphia
Ashley Lacerda: Charles Nugent Esq., Marlton, New Jersey
Ian Resnick: Michael E. Riley Esq., Philadelphia
Genevieve Manzoni: Robert L. Tarver Jr. Esq., of Toms River, New Jersey
Ashburn Man Sentenced for Sex Trafficking a Child and Sex Tourism CrimesRead the Press Release
ALEXANDRIA, Va. – Eric Noe Araujo Flores, of Ashburn, was sentenced today to 300 months in prison for various sex tourism and sex trafficking crimes. Araujo Flores was also ordered to pay approximately $40,000 in restitution to his victim.
“Sex tourism and sex trafficking of children are vicious crimes that result in irreparable harm to the victims,” said Dana J. Boente, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia. “We will continue to work diligently to prosecute those who travel to foreign countries to prey upon children.”
“Today’s sentencing sends a strong message: Diplomatic Security is committed to making sure that those who commit sex trafficking of children, and sex trafficking customers, face consequences for their criminal actions,” said Bill A. Miller, Director of the U.S. State Department’s Diplomatic Security Service. “Diplomatic Security’s strong relationship with the U.S. Attorney’s Office and other law enforcement agencies around the world continues to be essential in the pursuit of justice.”
According to court documents and testimony at trial, Araujo Flores was introduced to a 14-year-old victim while she lived in El Salvador. Araujo Flores learned that street gangs were threatening her and her family with violence and he offered to help them escape from the gangs, promising financial support in exchange for sexual acts with the minor. In July 2013, he travelled to his native El Salvador with gifts and money, and after meeting with the victim’s mother, he had sex with the victim in a hotel room. After he left, Araujo Flores continued to contact the victim via telephone and later made two more trips to El Salvador to have sex with the victim. He paid cash for some of the sex acts, and also provided money for rent, food, clothing, and jewelry to the victim and her family.
In June 2014, Araujo Flores arranged for the victim and her mother to be smuggled from El Salvador into the United States through Texas. Ultimately, the victim and her mother stayed at a house Araujo Flores owned in Sterling, and periodically he would come to the home to have sex with the victim. Araujo Flores provided the victim with a counterfeit permanent resident card which included a false birthdate indicating she was over the age of 18. When the victim expressed that she did not want to have sex with Araujo Flores, he threatened her and said that if she told Araujo Flores’ wife about the sex, his wife would beat her and he would have the victim and her mother deported to El Salvador. Araujo Flores also threatened to stop providing food and to evict the victim and her mother from their apartment if she stopped having sex with him.
On Feb. 19, 2016, a federal jury convicted Araujo Flores of nine offenses, including four counts of sex trafficking of a child, three counts of foreign travel with intent to engage in illicit sexual conduct (also known as sex tourism), coercion and enticement, and harboring an alien for an immoral purpose.
Dana J. Boente, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia; Bill A. Miller, Director of the Diplomatic Security Service (DSS) for the U.S. Department of State; Colonel Edwin C. Roessler, Jr., Fairfax County Chief of Police; and Michael L. Chapman, Loudoun County Sheriff, made the announcement after sentencing by U.S. District Judge Liam O’Grady.
The case was investigated by DSS, the Loudoun County Sheriff’s Office, and the Fairfax County Police Department. Assistant U.S. Attorney Michael J. Frank prosecuted the case.
If you believe you are a victim in this case, please call the Fairfax County Police Department non-emergency number at 703-691-2131.
A copy of this press release may be found on the website of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Virginia. Related court documents and information may be found on the website of the District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia or on PACER by searching for Case No. 1:15-CR-320.
3 New Defendants, including Chiropractor, Plead Guilty in Scheme involving nearly $600 Million in Fraudulent Claims by SoCal HospitalsRead the Press Release
Santa Ana, California – As two criminal cases became public this week, the Justice Department today announced three cases in which additional defendants have pleaded guilty to federal charges for participating in a long-running health care fraud scheme that illegally referred thousands of patients for spinal surgeries and generated nearly $600 million in fraudulent billings over an eight-year period.
The three new defendants join six others who were previously charged in relation to the government’s ongoing investigation into kickbacks for patient referrals and fraudulent bills for spinal surgeries performed at Pacific Hospital in Long Beach. The scheme involved tens of millions of dollars in illegal kickbacks to dozens of doctors, chiropractors and others. As a result of the illegal payments, thousands of patients were referred to Pacific Hospital, where they underwent spinal surgeries that led to more than $580 million in fraudulent bills being submitted during the last eight years of the scheme alone. Many of the fraudulent claims were paid by the California worker’s compensation system and the federal government through the Federal Workers’ Compensation System.
Two of the three new cases were recently ordered unsealed by United States District Judge Josephine L. Staton. The documents in the two unsealed cases became publicly available this week. In the now-unsealed cases and another case recently filed:
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Michael R. Drobot, 44, of Newport Beach, the son of Pacific Hospital owner Michael D. Drobot (Drobot Senior), pleaded guilty on March 4 to conspiracy and illegal kickback charges. Drobot Junior is scheduled to be sentenced on November 18.
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Chiropractor Michael E. Barri, 48, of San Clemente, who owned and operated the Santa Ana companies Tri-Star Medical Group and Jojaso Management Company, pleaded guilty on March 11 to a conspiracy count and admitted that he received illegal kickbacks for referrals to Pacific Hospital from 2009 through October 2013. During a nine-month period that ended in 2013, Barri admitted receiving $158,555 in illegal kickbacks after referring a dozen patients to Pacific Hospital, where they had back surgeries. As a result of his referrals, Pacific Hospital billed insurance carriers approximately $3.9 million for spinal surgeries. Barri is scheduled to be sentenced by Judge Staton on January 13, 2017.
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Linda Martin, 66, of Clovis, California, who was a marketer for Pacific Hospital who recruited medical professionals and others to refer patients with promises of kickbacks, pleaded guilty to a conspiracy charge on May 27. She is scheduled to be sentenced on August 19.
These three defendants join six others – including Drobot Senior – who have also pleaded guilty. All nine defendants have agreed to cooperate with the government’s ongoing investigation – dubbed “Operation Spinal Cap” – into the kickback scheme, which involved dozens of surgeons, orthopedic specialists, chiropractors, marketers and other medical professionals.
“Federal law prohibits kickbacks to health care professionals because these payments impose additional costs on all patients and corrupt the relationship between the doctor and patient,” said United States Attorney Eileen M. Decker. “This scheme resulted in what can only be called a massive amount of fraudulent billing. The continuing investigation into the scheme demonstrates our commitment to protecting patients and prosecuting those in the health care industry who care more about money than those in their care.”
“The guilty pleas announced today are the latest step in holding accountable the individuals who co-opted doctors and other specialized healthcare workers to carry out multiple kickback conspiracies that abused the state and federal healthcare systems for more than a decade,” said Deirdre Fike, the Assistant Director in Charge of the FBI's Los Angeles Field Office. “The continuing results of Operation Spinal Cap are based on a tremendous effort by investigators and prosecutors handling this case, which is among the largest healthcare fraud schemes to be perpetrated in the state of California.”
As described in court documents, Drobot Senior – who was the owner and/or CEO of Pacific Hospital of Long Beach until late 2013 and who pleaded guilty in April 2014 – ran a 15-year-long scheme in which he and others submitted hundreds of millions of dollars in bills to workers’ compensation insurers and the U.S. Department of Labor for spinal surgeries and other procedures performed on patients who had been referred by dozens of doctors, chiropractors and others who were paid illegal kickbacks.
As part of the scheme, members of the conspiracy typically paid a kickback of $15,000 for each lumbar fusion surgery and $10,000 for each cervical fusion surgery. Some of the patients lived hundreds of miles away from Pacific Hospital, and closer to other qualified medical facilities. The patients were not informed that medical professionals had been offered kickbacks to induce them to refer the surgeries to Pacific Hospital. From 2005 through 2013 (which is only part of the overall scheme), Pacific Hospital billed insurers more than $580 million for spinal surgeries related to over 4,400 patients. Insurers paid the hospital more than $226 million for the surgeries performed as a result of illegal kickbacks.
Those involved in the scheme concealed the kickback payments by entering into bogus contracts to provide a “cover story” for the doctors, chiropractors and others who received illegal payments. For example, a number of doctors entered into agreements with a company owned by Drobot Senior, Pacific Specialty Physician Management (PSPM), under which the doctors received as much as $100,000 per month from PSPM in return for the right to purchase their medical practices – an option that was never exercised. In other cases, Pacific Hospital entered into contracts with doctors under which the doctors were to help the hospital collect on its surgery bills to insurance companies, but the hospital’s own collection staff, rather than the doctors, actually performed the collections work. Several doctors entered into lease agreements under which PSPM or Pacific Hospital paid rent for the use of office space, but rarely used the space. And other doctors had agreements to provide consulting services to Drobot’s companies, but did not actually provide the services. Still others, including marketers who introduced doctors to Pacific Hospital, had additional agreements with Drobot’s companies.
Two other Drobot companies – California Pharmacy Management (CPM) and its successor, Industrial Pharmacy Management (IPM) – were also important players in the scheme. Both companies set up and managed what were essentially mini-pharmacies within doctors’ offices. CPM and IPM bought and dispensed medication that the doctors prescribed to their patients, and these businesses received a portion of the money reimbursed by insurance companies for the medications. Drobot Senior, along with others at CPM and IPM, often agreed to increase the doctors’ shares of the insurance claims in return for those doctors’ referral of patients to Pacific Hospital. In many cases, for doctors who made such referrals, the conspirators “advanced” payments from CPM and IPM before the companies had collected any money for the medications or even prescribed them, and often simply wrote off these payments as losses when collections fell short. Drobot Junior was involved in these companies for over a decade, first as the manager of CPM, and then as co-owner and manager of IPM.
In his plea agreement, Drobot Junior admitted participating in the kickback scheme, primarily through his operation of CPM and IPM. As far back as 2005, Drobot Junior began personally soliciting doctors and chiropractors to enter into contracts with CPM and specifically discussed kickback arrangements, which were finalized by his father. Drobot Junior later acted a liaison when disputes arose concerning the payment of kickbacks to medical professionals or when those kickback recipients did not refer as many patients as expected.
Drobot Junior also admitted that he induced doctors who had contracted with CPM or IPM to also use products and services by companies he was affiliated with, including Medi-Lab Corporation. In return for referrals to Medi-Lab, Drobot Junior received monthly payments, some of which he used to make kickback payments to the doctors.
“These unscrupulous defendants thought they had figured out a clever scheme to line their pockets in their bilking of the insurance system. Federal and state worker’s compensation programs were not designed as a slush fund for the greedy,” stated IRS Criminal Investigation Acting Special Agent in Charge Anthony J. Orlando. “Law enforcement is serious about investigating these crimes and holding accountable those who defraud government health care programs and deprive patients of their right to honest services.”
“Kickback schemes such as these threaten the financial integrity of public healthcare programs,” said Special Agent in Charge Scott Pierce, USPS Office of Inspector General, Contract Fraud Investigations Division. “The workers’ compensation program benefits thousands of postal employees who have received legitimate on-the-job injuries. This case should send a clear message to all health care providers that workers’ compensation fraud is a federal crime that carries serious consequences and will not be tolerated.”
When he is sentenced, Drobot Junior will face a statutory maximum penalty of 10 years in federal prison.
Barri and Martin each face potential prison sentences of five years as a result of their guilty pleas.
Last year, the United States Attorney’s Office announced charges against five other defendants, including two doctors involved in the Pacific Hospital kickback scheme, and a similar scheme involving Tri-City Regional Medical Center in Hawaiian Gardens.
The ongoing investigation into abuses involving kickbacks paid for spinal surgery patients is being conducted by the Federal Bureau of Investigation; the United States Postal Service, Office of Inspector General; IRS Criminal Investigation; and the California Department of Insurance.
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Thursday 2 June 2016
Woodinville Drywall Installation Company Sentenced for Immigration ViolationRead the Press Release
A Woodinville, Washington drywall company and its owner were sentenced today in U.S. District Court in Seattle to financial penalties and a probationary sentence for repeated violations of the Immigration Reform and Control Act of 1986, announced U.S. Attorney Annette L. Hayes. DJ DRYWALL, INC., and owner DAVID L. JONES, 47, pleaded guilty in February 2016 to knowingly encouraging and inducing a Mexican national to reside in the United States in violation of law. The guilty plea follows three different investigations and two civil fines regarding the company’s practice of illegally hiring undocumented workers.
“This employer repeatedly hired an illegal workforce as though the rules did not apply to him,” said U.S. Attorney Annette L. Hayes. “Allowing some businesses to ignore hiring rules creates an uneven playing field for all. These prosecutions are aimed at stopping this conduct and eliminating conditions for workers that are often unsafe and unsound.”
According to records filed in the case, DAVID L. JONES has a long work history in the drywall industry. He incorporated DJ DRYWALL in 2006 and is the company president and sole stockholder. In both 2008 and 2011, DJ DRYWALL was audited by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and paid fines for violating immigration rules related to I-9’s -- a form required for employment. Due to the violations in 2008, DJ DRYWALL paid a $32,316 fine. Following a second audit in 2011, the company paid $27,405 for knowingly hiring 21 unauthorized aliens. A third investigation in 2013 again revealed a pattern of hiring unauthorized workers and paying them ‘off the books,’ or encouraging them to submit false I-9 documents or green cards.
Under the terms of the plea agreement, DAVID L. JONES forfeited $25,000 to the United States today at the sentencing hearing. JONES will be on two years of probation. The company will be on probation for five years and will pay a $75,000 fine over the next five years. While on probation JONES will be required to qualify all his employees through the E-Verify internet system.
“ICE is committed to holding businesses accountable when they knowingly hire an illegal workforce,” said Brad Bench, special agent in charge for ICE HSI in Seattle. “Employers who willfully violate our nation’s hiring laws gain an unfair economic advantage over their law abiding competitors. Our goal is to protect job opportunities for the nation’s legal workers and level the playing field for those businesses that play by the rules.”
The case was investigated by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) Homeland Security Investigation (HSI) and was prosecuted by Special Assistant United States Attorney Don Reno. Mr. Reno is an attorney with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement specially designated to prosecute immigration crimes in federal court.
Wilkes-Barre Man Sentenced in Federal Court for Failing to Comply with Sex Offender Registration RequirementsRead the Press Release
SCRANTON-The United States Attorney's Office for the Middle District of Pennsylvania announced that a Wilkes-Barre man was sentenced today in federal court in Scranton by United States District Judge James M. Munley, to serve 41 months in prison on the charge of failing to comply with sex offender registration requirements.
According to United States Attorney Peter Smith, Joseph Brant, age 56, a resident of the Sherman Hills Apartments in Wilkes-Barre, pleaded guilty to being a person required to comply with the Sex Offender Registration and Notification Act by reason of a sexual abuse conviction under the laws of the State of New York, but failed to do so upon establishing a residence in Pennsylvania. The indictment charged that Brant traveled interstate to Pennsylvania, established a residence in Wilkes-Barre, but failed to register or update his sex offender registration information in Pennsylvania as required by the law.
In addition to the prison term, Judge Munley also ordered that Brant be supervised by a probation officer for five years following his release from prison, that he undergo sexual offender treatment, and that he comply with all registration requirements of the Sexual Offender Registration and Notification Act.
The charges were the result of an investigation by the United States Marshals Service - Scranton and New York offices. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Michelle Olshefski.
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.
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Wheeling woman pleads guilty to heroin traffickingRead the Press Release
WHEELING, WEST VIRGINIA – Angel Rae Klein, 27, of Wheeling, pled guilty today to heroin trafficking, United States Attorney William J. Ihlenfeld, II, announced.
Klein possessed and sold heroin throughout late 2014 and early 2015 in Ohio County, West Virginia. In several instances, Klein sold heroin that contained fentanyl.
Klein pled guilty today to one count of “Conspiracy to Distribute Heroin and Fentanyl.” She faces up to 20 years in prison and a fine of up to $1,000,000. Under the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, the actual sentence imposed will be based upon the seriousness of the offenses and the prior criminal history, if any, of the defendant.
U.S. Attorney William J Ihlenfeld, II, and Assistant U.S. Attorney Randy Bernard are prosecuting the case on behalf of the government. The Ohio Valley Drug and Violent Crime Task Force, a HIDTA-funded initiative, investigated.
Senior U.S. District Judge Frederick P. Stamp, Jr. presided.
West Columbia Man Sentenced for Distributing Child PornographyRead the Press Release
GALVESTON – West Columbia resident Joseph Robert Shoemake, 36, has been sentenced to federal prison following his conviction of distribution of child pornography, announced U.S. Attorney Kenneth Magidson. Shoemake pleaded guilty Dec. 16, 2015.
Today, U.S. District Judge George C. Hanks Jr. ordered Shoemake to serve 151 months in federal prison. The sentence will be immediately followed by 15 years of supervised release, during which time he will have to comply with numerous requirements designed to restrict his access to children and the Internet. He will also be ordered to register as a sex offender.
A federal grand jury indicted Shoemake Aug. 19, 2015, following an investigation conducted by the Houston FBI Child Exploitation Task Force. That investigation revealed Shoemake was making child pornography available to others through the use of peer-to-peer software over the Internet. The images included children under the age of 12 being sexually violated by adults and children under the age of 12 in positions which caused their genitalia to be displayed in a lewd/lascivious manner. Bondage involving children was also present on his computer. Several images and videos also depicted minors under the age of five.
Law enforcement executed a search warrant at the home of a third party where Shoemake was using the Internet connection at that residence to receive and distribute child pornography in an attempt to avoid detection. The examination of the computer media ultimately obtained from Shoemake revealed more than 1,229 digital images and approximately 15 videos which contained child pornography.
He has been and will remain in custody pending transfer to a U.S. Bureau of Prisons facility to be determined in the near future.
This case, prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Julie N. Searle and Sherri L. Zack, was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by the United States Attorneys' Offices and the Criminal Division's Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state and local resources to locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who sexually exploit children, and to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.usdoj.gov/psc. For more information about internet safety education, please visit www.usdoj.gov/psc and click on the tab "resources."
USNCB Meets with Chinese CounterpartsRead the Press Release
On June 1st, officials from NCB Beijing and Chinese Embassy visited the USNCB. Director Shank, Chief of Staff Graham, and General Counsel Smith met with them to discuss the valuable relationship between our NCBs, and their ability to promote cooperation.
Two dealers plead guilty to Federal drug crimesRead the Press Release
CHARLESTON, W.Va. – Two defendants pleaded guilty today to federal drug crimes, announced Acting United States Attorney Carol Casto. Jamarrio Dobbs, 35, of Detroit, pleaded guilty to distribution of heroin. In a separate drug prosecution, Keri Browning, 28, of Logan, pleaded guilty to distribution of oxycodone.
Jamarrio Dobbs admitted that on three occasions in February and March of 2016, he sold heroin to a confidential informant cooperating with law enforcement. On April 27, 2016, law enforcement executed a search warrant on the residence where Dobbs was staying and seized a handgun, over $7,000 in cash, and approximately 48 grams of crack. Dobbs was arrested immediately prior to the search and he informed officers that he had swallowed several bags of heroin. Officers took Dobbs to the hospital for treatment and recovered over two grams of heroin. Dobbs faces up to 20 years in federal prison when he is sentenced on September 7, 2016.
In a separate prosecution, Keri Browning admitted that on February 4, 2016, she sold oxycodone to a confidential informant working with law enforcement. The drug deal took place at Browning’s Rossmore Road residence in Logan. Browning faces up to 20 years in federal prison when she is sentenced on August 25, 2016.
The Metropolitan Drug Enforcement Network Team conducted the investigation of Dobbs. Assistant United States Attorney Monica D. Coleman is handling the prosecution of Dobbs. The plea hearing for Dobbs was held before United States District Judge Thomas E. Johnston.
The investigation of Browning was conducted by the United States Drug Enforcement Administration. Assistant United States Attorney John J. Frail is responsible for Browning’s prosecution. Browning’s plea hearing was held before United States District Judge Joseph R. Goodwin.
These prosecutions are part of an ongoing effort led by the United States Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of West Virginia to combat the illicit sale and misuse of prescription drugs and heroin. The U.S. Attorney’s Office, joined by federal, state and local law enforcement agencies, is committed to aggressively pursuing and shutting down illegal pill trafficking, eliminating open air drug markets, and curtailing the spread of pills and heroin in communities across the Southern District.
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Two Men Plead Guilty in Hacking, Spamming Scheme That Stole Personal Information from Millions of AmericansRead the Press Release
NEWARK, N.J. – Two men today admitted their roles in a computer hacking and identity theft scheme that hijacked customer email accounts, stole personally identifiable information (PII) from millions of people, and generated more than $2 million in illegal profits, U.S. Attorney Paul J. Fishman announced.
Tomasz Chmielarz, 33, of Rutherford, New Jersey, pleaded guilty to Count One and Count Three of an indictment charging him with conspiracy to commit fraud and related activity in connection with computers and conspiracy to commit fraud and related activity in connection with electronic mail. Devin James McArthur, 28, of Ellicott City, Maryland, pleaded guilty to Count Two of the indictment charging him with conspiracy to commit wire fraud. Both defendants pleaded today before U.S. District Judge William J. Martini in Newark federal court.
According to documents filed in this case and statements made in court:
Beginning as early as 2011, Timothy Edward Livingston, 30, of Boca Raton, Florida, and others allegedly operated A Whole Lot of Nothing LLC — a business that specialized in sending unsolicited, or “spam,” emails on behalf of its clients. Livingston’s clients included legitimate businesses, such as insurance companies that wished to send bulk emails to advertise their businesses, as well as illegal entities, such as online pharmacies that sold narcotics without prescriptions. Typically, Livingston charged $5 to $9 for each spam email that resulted in a completed transaction for a client.
Many internet service providers use filters to prevent spam from reaching their customers’ email accounts. Chmielarz admitted that beginning in January 2012, Livingston solicited him to write computer programs that send spam in a manner that conceals the true origin of the email and bypasses spam filters. In addition, Livingston and Chmielarz used proxy servers and botnets to remain anonymous, hide the true origin of the spam, and evade anti-spam filters and other spam blocking techniques. Livingston also allegedly registered certain websites used in the spam campaigns in the name of his alias, “Mark Lloyd,” to avoid detection.
Chmielarz admitted that he and Livingston hacked into individual email accounts and seized control of corporate mail servers to further their spam campaigns. For instance, they created custom software designed to hack into the customer email accounts of a company identified in the indictment as “Corporate Victim 1.” Once their email account software gained access to a Corporate Victim 1 user’s account, it created sub-accounts and used them to send out spam. By using proxy servers and Corporate Victim 1’s customer accounts, Livingston and Chmielarz were able to send out massive amounts of spam without identifying themselves as the senders.
Chmielarz also admitted that he and Livingston created custom software that exploited vulnerabilities in a number of corporate websites, including one identified in the indictment as “Corporate Victim 2,” which allowed Livingston and Chmielarz to use Corporate Victim 2’s email servers to send out spam that appeared to be from Corporate Victim 2, but in reality was from Livingston and his conspirators.
Livingston, Chmielarz and McArthur also worked together to steal databases containing the PII of millions of Americans for use in spam campaigns. In May of 2013, Livingston and Chmielarz discussed stealing confidential business information from “Corporate Victim 3,” as identified in the indictment. In an online chat, Livingston told Chmielarz, “here is the site I need scrapped (sic),” and provided Chmielarz with an address for Corporate Victim 3’s website and the login credentials for an employee. “Scraping” is a technique employed to extract large amount of data from websites.
In another online chat, Livingston told Chmielarz that the database they were going to steal from Corporate Victim 3 contained 10 million records. Livingston subsequently paid Chmielarz to write a computer program to steal the database.
From February 2014 through February 2015, McArthur worked as a sales representative at a corporation identified in the indictment as “Corporate Victim 4.” In a series of online chats in August 2014, Livingston, Chmielarz, and McArthur discussed using McArthur’s position at Corporate Victim 4 to steal confidential business information, including the PII of millions of the company’s customers.
McArthur admitted that on Aug.11, 2014, he gave Livingston unauthorized access to a remote administration tool on a computer connected to Corporate Victim 4’s network. Livingston and Chmielarz used the access to steal the names, addresses, phone numbers, and email addresses of potential, current, and former Corporate Victim 4 customers for use in spam campaigns.
In an online chat dated Sept. 3, 2014, Livingston and McArthur discussed the contents of the database that they had stolen from Corporate Victim 4. McArthur estimated that they had succeeded in stealing 24.5 million records.
The charges of conspiracy to commit fraud and related activity in connection with computers and conspiracy to commit fraud and related activity in connection with electronic mail to which Chmielarz pleaded guilty each carry a maximum potential penalty of five years in prison and $250,000 fine, or twice the gain or loss from the offense. The conspiracy to commit wire fraud charge to which McArthur pleaded guilty carries a potential penalty of 20 years in prison and a $250,000 fine, or twice the gain or loss from the offense. Sentencing for both defendants is scheduled for Sept. 13, 2016.
Livingston is scheduled for trial on Oct. 13, 2016, before Judge Martini. The charges and allegations against him are merely accusations and he is considered innocent unless and until proven guilty.
U.S. Attorney Fishman credited special agents of the FBI’s Cyber Division, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Timothy Gallagher in Newark, with the investigation.
The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorney Daniel Shapiro of the Computer Hacking and Intellectual Property Section of the Economic Crimes Unit in Newark, Senior Trial Attorney William Hall of the Department of Justice’s Criminal Division Computer Crime and Intellectual Property Section and Assistant U.S. Attorney Peter Gaeta of the Asset Forfeiture-Money Laundering Unit in Newark.
Defense counsel:
Chmielarz: Michael Koribanics Esq., Clifton, New Jersey
McArhtur: Joshua P. Cohn, Saddle Brook, New Jersey
Two Lansing "Homeless IRS Scam" Defendants Get Prison TimeRead the Press Release
GRAND RAPIDS, MICHIGAN — Two additional defendants connected to a Lansing, Michigan area family-run tax scam were sentenced in federal court, U.S. Attorney Patrick Miles announced today. Defendant Ruqayya Aida Abdul-Hakim was sentenced to a term of 72 months (six years) in prison, three years of supervised release and restitution in the amount of $707,444.73. Ms. Abdul-Hakim admitted filing 587 false federal tax returns during a two year time period. Defendant Imran Dawood Ibn-Abdurrahim was sentenced to a term of 54 months (four and a half years) in prison, three years of supervised release and restitution in the amount of $254,142.60. Mr. Ibn-Abdurrahim admitted filing 200 false federal tax returns.
In earlier hearings, defendant Tsiidzoyedu Callista Chiwocha, the mother of Ruqayya Aida Abdul-Hakim and Imran Dawood Ibn-Abdurrahim, was sentenced to a term of incarceration of 12 months plus one day for filing false tax returns; and, Qasim Ibn-Ishaq Verser was sentenced to a term of 36 months of incarceration for filing false tax returns. Mr. Verser’s federal sentence will be served consecutively to his state felony drug-trafficking convictions. And in an earlier prosecution, Taka Chiwocha-Crowell pled guilty to filing false tax returns and was sentenced to 42 months’ incarceration. Two additional co-defendants still face federal charges in this district for this same alleged tax scheme; they remain innocent until proven guilty.
The tax scheme involved deceiving citizens into providing their personal identification information by promising them "free stimulus money." Many of the victims in this case were homeless persons or suffered from addiction and disability issues. The tax returns typically contained false reporting of undocumented income and abusive use of the Earned Income credit. Complaints by local citizens prompted the FBI to open a criminal investigation, including obtaining multiple search warrants to seize evidence of a tax fraud scheme. During the multi-year investigation, more than fifty subpoenas were issued to track down the tax refunds which had been paid into numerous bank accounts. In some instances, the personal identification information was used to file a tax return in a successive year.
"My office has no tolerance for those who take advantage of the trust of the vulnerable only to scam the system and line their own pockets," stated U.S. Attorney Miles. He was joined in the announcement by Jarod J. Koopman, Special Agent in Charge, Internal Revenue Service – Criminal Investigation and David P. Gelios, Special Agent in Charge, FBI Detroit Division.
The investigation was conducted by the Lansing Office of the FBI and the Lansing Office of IRS Criminal Investigations. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Michael A. MacDonald.
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Two Harrisburg Men Charged Federally with Possession of Child PornographyRead the Press Release
HARRISBURG - The United States Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Pennsylvania announced today that John L. Gilbert, III, age 36, and Timothy Rissmiller, age 44, both residents of Harrisburg, Pennsylvania were indicted yesterday by a grand jury in Harrisburg and charged with possession of child pornography.
According to U.S. Attorney Peter Smith, Gilbert and Rissmiller were taken into custody by the Harrisburg Bureau of Police after they allegedly printed photographs containing child pornography at a store in Harrisburg. Harrisburg police also searched the residence of the two men and found additional evidence of alleged child pornography.
This investigation is being conducted by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Harrisburg Bureau of Police and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Meredith A. Taylor.
This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by the United States Attorneys' Offices and the Criminal Division's Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who sexually exploit children, and to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.usdoj.gov/psc For more information about internet safety education, please visit www.usdoj.gov/psc and click on the tab "resources."
Indictments and Criminal Informations are only allegations. All persons charged are presumed to be innocent unless and until found guilty in court.
A sentence following a finding of guilt is imposed by the Judge after consideration of the applicable federal sentencing statutes and the Federal Sentencing Guidelines.
The maximum penalty under federal law is 20 years of imprisonment, a term of supervised release following imprisonment, and a fine. Under the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, the Judge is also required to consider and weigh a number of factors, including the nature, circumstances and seriousness of the offense; the history and characteristics of the defendant; and the need to punish the defendant, protect the public and provide for the defendant's educational, vocational and medical needs. For these reasons, the statutory maximum penalty for the offense is not an accurate indicator of the potential sentence for a specific defendant.
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Two Former Deutsche Bank Employees Indicted on Fraud Charges in Connection with Long-Running Manipulation of LiborRead the Press Release
Note: The court entered judgments of acquittal as to Matthew Connolly and Gavin Campbell Black on all counts alleged in the indictment.
Two former Deutsche Bank AG (Deutsche Bank) traders—the bank’s supervisor of the Pool Trading Desk in New York and a derivatives trader in London—were indicted for their alleged roles in a scheme to manipulate the U.S. Dollar (USD) London InterBank Offered Rate (LIBOR), a benchmark interest rate to which trillions of dollars in interest rate contracts were tied.
Assistant Attorney General Leslie R. Caldwell of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, Deputy Assistant Attorney General Brent Snyder of the Justice Department’s Antitrust Division and Assistant Director in Charge Paul M. Abbate of the FBI’s Washington Field Office made the announcement after the indictment was unsealed today.
On May 31, a federal grand jury in the Southern District of New York returned a 10-count indictment charging Matthew Connolly, 51, of Basking Ridge, New Jersey, and Gavin Campbell Black, 46, of London, with one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud and bank fraud and nine counts of wire fraud for their participation in a scheme to manipulate the USD LIBOR rate in a manner that benefited their own or Deutsche Bank’s financial positions in derivatives that were linked to those benchmarks. Connolly was taken into custody today and is expected to make his initial appearance this afternoon. The case has been assigned to Chief U.S. District Judge Colleen McMahon of the Southern District of New York.
Michael Curtler, 43, of London, a former Deutsche Bank derivatives trader and manager of the London Money Market Derivatives (MMD) Desk in London, pleaded guilty in October 2015 to one count of conspiracy to commit wire and bank fraud in connection with his role in the scheme.
“This indictment charges two senior traders with manipulating LIBOR to gain an illegal advantage in the market,” said Assistant Attorney General Caldwell. “Millions of people around the world rely on LIBOR and other global financial benchmarks as accurate and honestly-reported rates. Manipulation of these rates undermines the integrity of our financial system and the Justice Department will continue to hold accountable both the financial institutions and the individuals responsible for this conduct.”
“Healthy financial markets are crucial to a successful economy,” said Deputy Assistant Attorney General Snyder. “By corrupting this important benchmark rate, the defendants undermined the integrity of financial markets here and around the world. The department is committed to holding individuals accountable for the roles they play in committing complex financial crimes.”
“These federal charges outline the alleged criminal actions perpetrated by two banking insiders to manipulate the LIBOR interest rate, which is used to set interest rates for consumer loan products, including mortgages and credit cards,” said Assistant Director in Charge Abbate. “This indictment comes as a result of the dedicated and tireless efforts of agents, analysts and prosecutors committed to holding accountable those who deliberately compromise the integrity of our financial markets for personal gain.”
According to the indictment, LIBOR was an average interest rate, calculated based on submissions from leading banks around the world, reflecting the honest and unbiased rates those banks believed they would be charged if borrowing from other banks. LIBOR was published by the British Bankers’ Association, a trade association based in London. The published LIBOR “fix” for USD currency was the result of a calculation based upon submissions from a panel of 16 banks, including Deutsche Bank.
According to allegations in the indictment, Connolly was Deutsche Bank’s director of the Pool Trading Desk in New York, where he supervised traders who traded USD LIBOR-based derivative products. Black was a director on Deutsche Bank’s MMD Desk in London, who also traded USD LIBOR-based derivative products. In order to increase Deutsche Bank’s profits on derivatives contracts tied to the USD LIBOR, Connolly allegedly directed his subordinates, and Black allegedly asked Curtler and others at Deutsche Bank, to submit false and fraudulent LIBOR contributions consistent with the traders’ or the bank’s financial interests rather than the honest and unbiased costs of borrowing.
The charges in the indictment are merely accusations, and the defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
In April 2015, Deutsche Bank entered into a deferred prosecution agreement to resolve wire fraud and antitrust charges and Deutsche Bank Group Services (UK) Limited pleaded guilty to one count of wire fraud, collectively agreeing to pay a $775 million fine, for the bank’s role in engaging in a scheme to defraud counterparties to interest rate derivatives trades by secretly manipulating USD LIBOR and other currencies submissions.
The Justice Department has previously announced resolutions with five other banks for their roles in manipulation of benchmark interest rates, including Barclays Bank PLC, UBS AG, The Royal Bank of Scotland plc, Coöperatieve Centrale Raiffeisen-Boerenleenbank B.A. and Lloyds Banking Group plc. The department has also charged 13 individuals as a result of this investigation. Three of those individuals have pleaded guilty, two have been convicted at trial, and the charges against the others are pending.
Special agents, forensic accountants and intelligence analysts of the FBI’s Washington Field Office are conducting the investigation. Senior Trial Attorney Carol L. Sipperly and Trial Attorneys Alison L. Anderson and Richard A. Powers of the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section and Trial Attorney Daniel M. Tracer of the Antitrust Division’s New York Office are prosecuting the case. Fraud Section Deputy Chief Benjamin D. Singer and Assistant Chief Jennifer L. Saulino have also provided valuable assistance in this matter.
The investigation leading to this case has required, and has greatly benefited from, a diligent and wide-ranging assistance among various enforcement agencies both in the United States and abroad. In particular, the department acknowledges and expresses its appreciation for this assistance from the Commodity Futures Trading Commission’s Division of Enforcement, the U.K. Financial Conduct Authority and the U.K. Serious Fraud Office. More than 20 individuals have been charged by the U.K. Serious Fraud Office for their roles in engaging in benchmark rate manipulation.
This prosecution is part of efforts underway by President Barack Obama’s Financial Fraud Enforcement Task Force. President Obama established the interagency Financial Fraud Enforcement Task Force to wage an aggressive, coordinated and proactive effort to investigate and prosecute financial crimes. The task force includes representatives from a broad range of federal agencies, regulatory authorities, inspectors general and state and local law enforcement who, working together, bring to bear a powerful array of criminal and civil enforcement resources. The task force is working to improve efforts across the federal executive branch, and with state and local partners, to investigate and prosecute significant financial crimes, ensure just and effective punishment for those who perpetrate financial crimes, combat discrimination in the lending and financial markets and recover proceeds for victims of financial crimes. For more information about the task force visit www.stopfraud.gov.
Tuscaloosa Men Indicted for Conspiracy to Distribute Marijuana through the U.S. MailRead the Press Release
BIRMINGHAM – The FBI today arrested one of two Tuscaloosa men indicted in May on charges that they conspired to distribute marijuana and to bribe U.S. Postal Service employees to deliver the drug, announced U.S. Attorney Joyce White Vance, FBI Special Agent in Charge Roger C. Stanton, U.S. Postal Inspector in Charge Adrian Gonzalez and West Alabama Narcotics Squad Capt. Wayne Robertson.
A federal grand jury in May indicted QUINCY TERRELL DOSS and MANUEL JOHNSON JR., both 35, for conspiracy to distribute marijuana in Tuscaloosa County between August 2014 and July 30, 2015. The grand jury’s five-count indictment also charges Doss and Johnson with conspiring, between April 2015 and July 30, 2015, to bribe Postal Service employees, and with possessing with intent to distribute marijuana on May 14, 2015. The indictment also charges Johnson with bribing a mail carrier on June 22, 2015, and charges Doss, individually, with possessing with intent to distribute marijuana on July 30, 2015.
Agents arrested Doss this morning at his at home. He was detained following an appearance before U.S. Magistrate Judge John E. Ott. Johnson already was in custody on state charges related to the marijuana distribution. Johnson is scheduled for arraignment in U.S. District Court on June 9.
“We are entitled to expect integrity and honesty from Postal Service employees,” Vance said. “My office is committed to prosecuting corrupt postal employees, as well as those who attempt to bribe postal workers in order to further their own criminal activities.”
“The Postal Service is in the business of moving the U.S. mail. It has no interest in being an unwitting accomplice to anyone using the U.S. mail to distribute illegal drugs, and is committed to root out such conspiracies,” Gonzalez said. “Part of the mission of the Postal Inspection Service is to ensure a safe and secure work environment for our employees. This alleged activity by these defendants posed a significant threat to the postal employees and community we strive to protect. I commend the hard work and countless hours put forth by all of the law enforcement agencies involved in this investigation."
“Today’s arrest shows the FBI’s commitment to working together with our law enforcement partners in addressing drug conspiracy, bribery, and corruption at every level,” Stanton said.
Robertson, of the West Alabama Narcotics Squad, said, "Our team is focused on stopping illegal drugs from coming onto Tuscaloosa County streets, whether those drugs come here by traditional means, or through mail and package services. We will continue to work with our law enforcement partners to stem that flow."
Three Postal Service employees involved in this case were charged previously and have entered guilty pleas for their roles in the conspiracy.
The maximum penalty for the charges of conspiracy to distribute marijuana, conspiracy to bribe a public official, and possession with intent to distribute marijuana is five years in prison and a $1 million fine. The maximum penalty for bribing a public official is two years in prison and a $250,000 fine.
The FBI, U.S. Postal Inspection Service and West Alabama Narcotics Squad investigated the case, which Assistant U.S. Attorney Brad Felton is prosecuting.
An indictment contains only charges. A defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
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Texas man sentenced to 60 months in prison for possession with intent to distribute cocaineRead the Press Release
SHREVEPORT, La. – United States Attorney Stephanie A. Finley announced that a Texas man was sentenced Wednesday to 60 months in prison for possessing cocaine.
Laraymeon Jevon Watson, 32, of Lufkin, Texas, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge S. Maurice Hicks Jr. on one count of possession with intent to distribute cocaine. He was also sentenced to three years of supervised release. According to the February 25, 2016 guilty plea, Watson received cocaine powder and Ecstasy pills from a supplier in Texas. When his vehicle was stopped on June 24, 2015 near Greenwood, La., for a traffic violation, approximately 8 ounces of cocaine powder and more than 3,000 Ecstasy pills were found. He admitted he planned to sell the drugs.
The defendant was arrested as part of Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF) Operation “River City Blues.” The DEA, the Louisiana State Police, and the Lufkin Police Department investigated the case. The OCDETF program is a joint federal, state and local cooperative approach to combat drug trafficking and is the nation’s primary tool for targeting national and regional level drug trafficking organizations, coordinating the necessary law enforcement entities and resources to disrupt and dismantle the targeted criminal organization, and to seize its assets.
Assistant U.S. Attorney James G. Cowles Jr. prosecuted the case.
Tennessee Man Sentenced to Prison on Perjury Charges for Falsely Impersonating His BrotherRead the Press Release
ASHEVILLE, N.C. - Today, U.S. District Judge Martin Reidinger sentenced Robby Lynn Hawkins, 36, of Rockwood, Tennessee to 15 months in prison on perjury charges for falsely impersonating his brother in court proceedings, announced Jill Westmoreland Rose, U.S. Attorney for the Western District of North Carolina. Judge Reidinger also ordered Robby Hawkins to serve two years under court supervision after he is released from prison.
U.S. Attorney Rose is joined in making today’s announcement by Steve Kloster, Chief Ranger of the Great Smoky Mountains National Park.
According to filed documents and statements made in court, on November 28, 2015, Park Rangers conducted a traffic stop of the vehicle Robby Hawkins was driving within the Great Smoky Mountains National Park. The vehicle had been reported as stolen in Jackson City, Tennessee. Robby Hawkins told law enforcement that his name was “Ricky Lynn Hawkins,” which is his brother’s name, and gave his brother’s date of birth. Subsequently, Robby Hawkins was arrested for driving with a revoked license and possession of a stolen vehicle.
According to court records, during court proceedings that followed, Robby Hawkins was addressed by the court as “Ricky Hawkins,” and signed court documents using his brother’s name. Court records show that, under his brother’s name, Robby Hawkins was then sentenced to 15 days in prison after pleading guilty to a petty offense charge of possession of a stolen vehicle. According to court records, law enforcement discovered soon thereafter that “Ricky Hawkins” was incarcerated in Indiana, and that Robby Hawkins had falsely impersonated him in court proceedings. Robby Hawkins was then charged with one count of perjury in a court document. He pleaded guilty to the charge in February 2016.
The investigation was handled by the Rangers of the .The prosecution was handled by the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Asheville.
Sixteen Charged in Drug Conspiracy Operating in Buncombe and Rutherford CountiesRead the Press Release
ASHEVILLE, N.C. – United States Attorney Jill Westmoreland Rose announced today that 16 individuals are facing multiple federal drug charges for their involvement in a drug conspiracy. A criminal indictment was returned on May 18, 2016, and was unsealed today in federal court. Law enforcement arrested 11 of the 16 charged on Tuesday during an early morning round-up. Of the remaining five defendants, one is currently in state custody on state charges and four others have not been arrested yet.
According to allegations contained in the criminal indictment, from on or about September 2014, to about December 2015, the defendants operated as a drug conspiracy responsible for trafficking crack cocaine in and around Buncombe and Rutherford Counties and surrounding areas.The 16 defendants named in the 91-count indictment are each charged with conspiracy to distribute crack cocaine and related drug offenses.They are:
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Marquise Brown, 27, of Asheville, NC. (not arrested)
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Carlos Byrd, 34, of Asheville, NC. (arrested)
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Christopher Drayton, 27, of Black Mountain, NC. (arrested)
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Charles Eric Freeman, 50, of Rutherfordton, NC. (arrested)
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Tyquise Deandre Griffin, 22, of Asheville, NC. (arrested)
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Aaron Jones, 35, of Asheville, NC. (in state custody)
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Richard Kimble, 44, of Asheville, NC. (arrested)
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Kevin Lamont Logan, 42, of Rutherfordton, NC. (arrested)
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Roderick Martin, 34, of Asheville, NC. (not arrested)
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Caliph Devon Mayo, 27, of Canton, NC. (arrested)
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Tyler McAfee, Age, 23, of Asheville, NC. (arrested)
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Michael Tyrone Moore, 27, of Asheville, NC. (not arrested)
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Levar William Morris, 36, of Asheville, NC. (arrested)
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Quinton Javon Mosley, 33, of Rutherfordton, NC. (not arrested)
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Danyail Antonio Pea, 32, of Asheville, NC. (arrested)
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Reco Lamar Mosley, 33, of Asheville, NC. (arrested)
(See chart below for federal charges and penalties for each defendant).
“Today’s arrests are the culmination of a 15-month long investigation conducted by our federal and local law enforcement partners.The defendants charged in the indictment, some of whom have alleged gang ties, operated a drug conspiracy distributing crack cocaine, an illegal substance known for its incredibly high addiction rates and severe, even deadly, effects.The arrest of these individuals will bring immediate relief to neighborhoods affected by their drug trafficking activities and drug-fueled violence. We will continue to work alongside our law enforcement partners to conduct targeted investigations and stem the flow of drugs in our communities,” said U.S. Attorney Rose.
Special Agent in Charge Daniel R. Salter of the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) stated, “Today is a victory not only for the multitude of law enforcement agencies who dismantled this organization, but for the citizens of Buncombe and Rutherford Counties. Now that these criminals have been removed from the streets, the poisonous drugs that they would have sold will never reach the consumer. This effort would not have been successful without the high level of cooperation between our federal, state and local law enforcement counterparts.”
“ATF will continue to work closely with our federal, state and local law enforcement partners to focus on reducing violent crime in our communities by targeting drug traffickers and the associated violent criminal activity,” said C.J. Hyman, Special Agent in Charge of the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives.
“The strong working relationship between the Rutherford County Sheriff's Office, DEA and the U.S. Attorney's Office is a beneficial force multiplier. Many times, narcotics investigations leave county lines and even cross into other states. Having the ability to reach out and further an investigation with federal assistance is the only answer to cases like these. The results of this investigation will have positive effects in our county for a long time,” said Sheriff Chris Francis of the Rutherford County Sheriff’s Office.
Those arrested this week will appear in federal court today before U.S. Magistrate Judge Dennis Howell. Arrest warrants have been issued for Marquise Brown, Reco Lamar Mosely, Michael Tyrone Moore and Roderick Martin. Aaron Jones is currently in state custody and will appear in federal court on the federal charges at a later date.
The charges contained in the indictment are allegations. The defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
In making today’s announcement, U.S. Attorney Rose praised the outstanding efforts of special agents of the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Daniel R. Salter; the Internal Revenue Service - Criminal Investigation (IRS-CI) under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Thomas J. Holloman III; the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), under the direction of Special Agent in Charge John A. Strong; the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF), under the direction of Special Agent in Charge C.J. Hyman; deputies of the Buncombe County Sheriff’s Office under the direction of Sheriff Van Duncan and the Rutherford County Sheriff’s Office under the direction of Sheriff Chris Francis; and officers of the Asheville Police Department under the direction of Chief Tammy Hooper for their work in investigating this case. U.S. Attorney Rose also noted the invaluable assistance provided by the Columbus Police Department.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Thomas Kent of the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Asheville is prosecuting the case.
This prosecution is part of an extensive investigation by the Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF). OCDETF is a joint federal, state and local cooperative approach to combat drug trafficking and is the nation’s primary tool for disrupting and dismantling major drug trafficking organizations, targeting national and regional level drug trafficking organizations and coordinating the necessary law enforcement entities and resources to disrupt or dismantle the targeted criminal organization and seize their assets.
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Sex Offender Sentenced to 21 Months for Failing to Register While Living in StephentownRead the Press Release
ALBANY, NEW YORK – Walter Boutwell, age 56, was sentenced today to serve 21 months in prison for failing to update his sex offender registration after moving to Stephentown, New York from Massachusetts.
The announcement was made by United States Attorney Richard S. Hartunian and United States Marshal David McNulty.
United States District Judge Mae A. D’Agostino also sentenced Boutwell to serve 5 years of supervised release, to begin after his release from prison.
Boutwell was designated a Level 3 Sex Offender – the highest level – by the Massachusetts Sex Offender Registry Board following his 1982 conviction for aggravated rape.
Federal law requires a sex offender to register where he or she resides, is employed, or is enrolled as a student, and to keep any registration current. Boutwell registered at an address in Pittsfield, Massachusetts on April 21, 2015. By June, 2015, Boutwell was living in Stephentown, New York and did not update his registration.
This case was investigated by the United States Marshals Service Sex Offender Investigation Branch, North East Region, and the United States Marshals New York/New Jersey Regional Fugitive Task Force. The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Solomon B. Shinerock.
The case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood. In 2006, the Department of Justice created Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative designed to protect children from exploitation and abuse. Led by the U.S. Attorneys’ Offices and the DOJ’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state and local resources to better locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who exploit children, as well as identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit https://www.justice.gov/psc.
Sentencing in Heroin and Methamphetamine SeizureRead the Press Release
EUGENE, Ore. – Miguel Angel Reyna-Ramos, 38, was sentenced to serve 72 months in federal prison after pleading guilty to possession with intent to distribute 50 grams, or more, of a mixture and substance containing methamphetamine.
The defendant was stopped by police in May 2015 while driving on Interstate 5 near Medford, Oregon. The defendant did not have a driver’s license and also admitted the car he was driving was not registered to him. After the defendant declined consent to search, a narcotics detection dog was deployed. The dog alerted to 2 kilograms of heroin and 8 kilograms of methamphetamine in the car’s luggage compartment.
In handing down the sentence, U. S. District Judge Michael McShane considered the defendant’s background, including his lack of prior arrests, and the nature and circumstances of the crime, including the quantity of methamphetamine and heroin. Judge McShane noted that, as an illegal alien, the defendant would most likely be deported after serving his prison sentence.
This case was investigated by the Oregon State Police and the DEA. Assistant U.S. Attorney William “Bud” Fitzgerald prosecuted the case.
Romanian National Pleads Guilty to ATM Skimming FraudRead the Press Release
U.S. Attorney Kenneth A. Polite announced that MIHAI ALEXANDRU DINU, age 41, of Romania, pled guilty to one count of bank fraud related to the use of ATM “skimming” devices.
According to court records, in January of 2015, the United States Secret Service and the Louisiana Financial Crimes Task Force began investigating the unauthorized collection of debit card numbers through the installation of “skimming devices” on various ATM machines and the subsequent illegal use of fake debit cards in the Eastern District of Louisiana. In March of this year, DINU and another man were captured on surveillance video using fake debit cards to withdraw funds from three local bank accounts. Subsequently, DINU admitted to investigators that he had illegally entered the United States and joined in with a group of individuals who used fake passports and fake driver’s licenses to travel within the United States for the purpose of making the illegal ATM withdrawals. DINU also participated in a similar ATM skimming conspiracy in Virginia prior to arriving in Louisiana.
DINU faces a maximum sentence of thirty (30) years in prison, a maximum of $250,000 in fines, and up to three (3) years of supervised release. U.S. District Judge Nannette Jolivette Brown set sentencing on September 8, 2016.
U.S. Attorney Polite praised the work of the Agents from the United States Secret Service and the Louisiana Financial Crimes Task Force, along with the St. Tammany Parish Sheriff’s Office in investigating this matter. Assistant United States Attorneys Edward J. Rivera and Carter Guice are in charge of the prosecution.
Project Safe Childhood Salem Man Sentenced for Child Pornography PossessionRead the Press Release
CONCORD, NEW HAMPSHIRE: Matthew Castricone, 27, of Salem, New Hampshire, was sentenced to 36 months in federal prison by the United States District Court for the District of New Hampshire after pleading guilty to one count of possessing child pornography, announced United States Attorney Emily Gray Rice.
A federal investigation revealed that an individual had accessed a website devoted to child pornography from the defendant’s Salem residence. When a search warrant was subsequently obtained and executed at the defendant’s residence in October 2015, agents discovered dozens of videos of child pornography on the defendant’s personal computer.
The case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (Boston and New Hampshire offices), and the Salem New Hampshire Police Department.
The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Nick Abramson.
In February 2006, the Department of Justice introduced Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative designed to protect children from online exploitation and abuse. Led by the United States Attorneys Offices, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state and local resources to better locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the Internet, as well as identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit https://www.justice.gov/psc.
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President of Pharmaceutical Companies Sentenced to 60 Months in Prison for Long-Running Scheme to Sell Misbranded and Unapproved Chemotherapy and Other Prescription DrugsRead the Press Release
Earlier today in Central Islip, NY, William Scully, the president of Pharmalogical, Inc. (Pharmalogical) d/b/a Medical Device King and MDK, and Taranis Medical Corp. (Taranis), was sentenced to 60 months’ imprisonment and ordered to forfeit to the government close to $900,000 in criminal proceeds, following his conviction on November 12, 2015, after a six-week jury trial, of 64 felonies for mail and wire fraud, violations of the Food Drug & Cosmetic Act (FDCA), unlicensed wholesale distribution of prescription drugs, and multiple related conspiracy charges.
The convictions arose from Scully’s leadership role in a long-running scheme to sell misbranded and unapproved pharmaceutical products, including chemotherapy drugs for infusion into Stage 4 cancer patients, to medical providers across the United States. Evidence elicited at trial from 40 witnesses established that Scully deceived a wide array of doctors and cancer clinics into believing that he was selling legitimate FDA-approved products when, in reality, he was selling unapproved products imported through a series of unidentified middlemen in Turkey and elsewhere overseas. Many of the products Scully sold were highly sensitive, so-called “cold-chain” biologic drugs that did not have FDA-required warnings of potentially deadly side effects. The sentencing proceedings were held before U.S. District Judge Arthur D. Spatt.
The sentence was announced by Robert L. Capers, United States Attorney for the Eastern District of New York, and Director George M. Karavetsos, Food and Drug Administration, Office of Criminal Investigations, New York.
“Those considering bypassing the FDA’s regulatory authority by selling unapproved and misbranded pharmaceutical products jeopardize the health and well-being of our nation’s patient population. All such individuals are on notice that they will be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law,” stated United States Attorney Capers. Mr. Capers expressed his grateful appreciation to the FDA for its assistance in the investigation and prosecution of the defendant.
“This sentence reflects the serious nature of the defendant’s actions,” said FDA Office of Criminal Investigations Director Karavetsos. “Americans must have confidence that the drugs they are receiving are safe, effective and fully comply with U.S. laws. Our office will aggressively pursue those who place patients at risk and who seek to profit from the importation and distribution of potentially dangerous foreign unapproved drugs.”
Scully owned and operated Pharmalogical, MDK, and Taranis, which collectively sold over $17 million in pharmaceutical drugs and devices. Scully purchased these products through wholesalers overseas and received them in the United States with shipping labels stating “product samples” with “no commercial value,” even though the packages often contained tens of thousands of dollars of misbranded and unapproved prescription drugs. Scully would then execute “bait-and-switch” transactions with doctors by advertising FDA-approved products on his website but then sending them misbranded and unapproved products. Several doctors and health care professionals testified at trial that Scully deceived them into believing that the drugs they were purchasing were FDA-approved and legal. Ultimately, the drugs were infused into patients, including cancer patients and patients with Crohn’s disease.
Scully continued to sell these drugs well after his office was searched by FDA agents and all of his existing products were seized. To conceal the continued sales, he covertly set up a new company, Taranis, which he operated without a license and out of a storage space where he kept the drugs. Even after that storage space was searched and additional products were seized, Scully continued selling products to unsuspecting doctors.
The government’s case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Charles P. Kelly and Kenneth M. Abell.
The Defendant:
WILLIAM SCULLY
Age: 47
Residence: Commack, New YorkPottawattamie County Man Sentenced to Prison for Firearms OffensesRead the Press Release
COUNCIL BLUFFS, IA – On June 1, 2016, Nicholas M. Malone, 27, of Pottawattamie County, was sentenced by Chief United States District Court Judge John A. Jarvey to 60 months in prison, followed by three years of supervised release, for felon in possession of a firearms and possession of stolen firearms charges, announced Acting United States Attorney Kevin E. VanderSchel.
Malone entered his guilty pleas on February 23, 2016, to illegally possessing stolen firearms, based on his arrest on June 5, 2015, by the Council Bluffs Police Department. At the time of his arrest, Malone was operating a stolen pick-up truck and was found to be in possession of methamphetamine, drug paraphernalia, a loaded .40 caliber hand-gun, a Tikka .204 Rifle, and assorted ammunition. The firearms and ammunition had been reported stolen from Oakland, Iowa prior to Malone’s arrest.
This matter was investigated by the Council Bluffs Police Department, with support from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives. The case was prosecuted by the United States Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Iowa.
Pittsburgh Man Pleads Guilty in Heroin Trafficking ConspiracyRead the Press Release
PITTSBURGH – An Allegheny County resident pleaded guilty in federal court to a charge of conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute and distribute a quantity of heroin, United States Attorney David J. Hickton announced today.
William Blair, 35, of Pittsburgh Pa., pleaded guilty to one count before United States District Judge Mark R. Hornak.
In connection with the guilty plea, the court was advised that in 2013, the Federal Bureau of Investigation and other agencies joined forces in a multi-agency wiretap investigation of drug trafficking and violence in the Homewood section of Pittsburgh. The interception of wire and electronic communications began in December 2013 and continued through the end of August 2014. During that timeframe, William Blair was intercepted over the wire conspiring with others to possess with intent to distribute and distribute heroin, which the conspirators obtained in Cleveland, OH, and transported to the Western District of Pennsylvania for further distribution.
Judge Hornak scheduled sentencing for Jan. 7, 2016. The law provides for a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison, a fine of not more than $1,000,000, or both. Under the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, the actual sentence imposed is based upon the seriousness of the offense and the prior criminal history of the defendant.
Pending sentencing, the court continued the defendant’s bond.
Assistant United States Attorney Tonya Sulia Goodman is prosecuting this case on behalf of the government.
The Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Greater Pittsburgh Safe Streets Task Force, Wilkinsburg Police Department, Allegheny County Sheriff’s Office, Pennsylvania Office of the Attorney General, Munhall Police Department, Duquesne Police Department, Monroeville Police Department, Allegheny County Police Department, West Mifflin Police Department, Bellevue Police Department, and the Pittsburgh Bureau of Police conducted the investigation that led to the prosecution of William Blair.
Piedmont Man Sentenced for Failing to Pay Taxes and Concealing Bankruptcy AssetsRead the Press Release
United States Attorney Randolph J. Seiler announced that a Piedmont, South Dakota, man convicted of Failure to Withhold, Properly Account For, and Pay Over Tax, and Concealment of Bankruptcy Assets was sentenced on May 27, 2016, by Chief Judge Jeffrey L. Viken, U.S. District Court. The Defendant was charged on January 26, 2016, and pleaded guilty on February 12, 2016.
Bernard Haag, age 58, was sentenced to 18 months of imprisonment, 3 years of supervised release, ordered to pay a $200 special assessment to the Federal Crime Victims Fund, $230,854.85 in restitution to the Internal Revenue Service, and $70,000 to various bankruptcy creditors.
During the years 2005 through 2009, Haag was the president and sole shareholder of Big Dog Industries, Inc. (“Big Dog”), a corporation located in Piedmont. During the years 2010 through 2012, Haag was the sole member of Concept Development, LLC (“Concept Development”), a limited liability company located in Piedmont. From 2005 through 2012, Haag used Big Dog and Concept Development to operate a day care business in Piedmont, under the business name Piedmont Preschool and Child Care Center (“PPCCC”).
During the same time period, Haag withheld taxes from his employees’ wages, including federal income tax, social security, and Medicare taxes for employees of Big Dog and Concept Development, and willfully failed to pay over those taxes to the United States for all of 2005 through 2011, and three quarters of 2012. Haag also willfully failed to pay the employer’s portion of taxes on wages paid to employees of Big Dog and Concept Development for all of 2005 to 2012. Rather than paying over the taxes, Haag used a portion of the withholdings for his own personal use.
In 2006, Haag filed for a bankruptcy. During the pendency of his bankruptcy proceeding (2006-2012), Haag knowingly concealed property belonging to his bankruptcy estate from the bankruptcy trustee, including taxes he withheld from employee’s paychecks but failed to pay over to the government during the years 2005 through 2011. Haag also concealed substantial amounts of gross income related to the operation of PPCCC from the bankruptcy trustee.
The investigation was conducted by the Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigation Division. Assistant U.S. Attorney Benjamin Patterson prosecuted the case.
Philadelphia Man Sentenced for Sex TraffickingRead the Press Release
PHILADELPHIA - Jerel Jackson, 30, of Philadelphia, PA, was sentenced today to 30 years in prison for five counts of sex trafficking of minors and adults by force. On March 18, 2015, Jackson pleaded guilty to the charges. In addition to the prison term, U.S. District Court Judge C. Darnell Jones ordered a $500 special assessment and five years of supervised release. A separate restitution hearing will be held at a later date.
The case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, with assistance from the Philadelphia Police Department Special Victims Unit, the Tinicum Township Police Department, and the Dover (Delaware) Police Department, and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Michelle L. Morgan.
Owner and Chief Financial Officer of Healthcare Company Sentenced to Prison for Their Roles in Fraud SchemeRead the Press Release
BATON ROUGE, LA – BARBARA A. SADLER, age 63, of Zachary, Louisiana, and SEDRIC C. BLAKES, age 42, of Zachary, Louisiana, have been sentenced to federal prison arising out of their convictions in a multi-million dollar scheme to defraud the Louisiana Medicaid program through Extraordinary Care Network, Inc. (“Extraordinary”), an attendant care services company that SADLER and BLAKES owned and operated.
Assistant Attorney General Leslie R. Caldwell of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, U.S. Attorney Walt Green of the Middle District of Louisiana, Special Agent in Charge CJ Porter of the Dallas Region of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office of the Inspector General (HHS-OIG), Special Agent in Charge Jeff Sallet of the FBI’s New Orleans Division and Louisiana State Attorney General Jeff Landry made the announcement.
SADLER and BLAKES were previously charged by a federal grand jury, in a Superseding Indictment returned on June 25, 2015, with conspiring with others to commit healthcare fraud and wire fraud, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 1349. The Superseding Indictment also included a forfeiture allegation requiring SADLER and BLAKES to forfeit the proceeds of their fraud if convicted. In connection with their guilty pleas previously entered before Chief U.S. District Judge Brian A. Jackson, both defendants admitted that they engaged in a multi-year scheme to defraud Medicaid, through the health care company that they owned and operated. SADLER admitted that she and others submitted fraudulent claims to Medicaid in which they falsely represented that Extraordinary Care had provided one-on-one attendant care services, when in fact such services had not been provided as represented. In furtherance of the scheme, SADLER admitted that she and her co-conspirators would fabricate progress notes, forge the signatures of unwitting company employees, and then use such documents as support for fraudulent claims to Medicaid for reimbursement. In her written plea agreement, SADLER admitted that the scheme caused a loss of more than $1 million. BLAKES also admitted that he, too, participated in the scheme and that he would fabricate progress notes and forge signatures of other employees in support of his and SADLER’s false claims.
At today’s sentencing, SADLER was sentenced to serve 44 months in federal prison, and BLAKES was sentenced to serve 36 months in prison. The defendants were ordered to make restitution in the amount of $1,200,000 to the Louisiana Department of Health and Hospitals. SADLER and BLAKES were each ordered to forfeit an additional $1,200,000 as the proceeds of their criminal activity. Finally, following their releases from prison, each defendant will be required to serve a 3-year term of supervised release.
U.S. Attorney Green stated: “Today’s sentences should serve as strong reminders of our strong commitment to combatting health care fraud in this district. Our office’s partnerships with the U.S. Department of Justice’s Criminal Fraud Section and the Louisiana Medicaid Fraud Control Unit continue to root out fraud and wrongdoing, and we will continue to aggressively pursue those who steal from the Medicare and Medicaid programs.”
FBI Special Agent in Charge Jeff Sallet said, “In close coordination with our state and federal partners, the New Orleans Division of the FBI will continue to work tirelessly in an effort to identify and pursue any individual or entity who would use fraud and deceit to steal taxpayer funds from the Medicare and Medicaid programs.”
Louisiana Attorney General Jeff Landry added, “It is unfortunate that there are people who defraud a program that was created to help those in need. I am proud of my Medicaid Fraud Control Unit for their assist on this investigation. My office is committed to protecting taxpayer money by prosecuting those who take advantage of the Medicaid system.”
This ongoing matter is being investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and the Medicaid Fraud Control Unit of the Louisiana State Attorney General’s Office (MFCU), and is being brought as part of the Medicare Fraud Strike Force, under the supervision of the United States Attorney’s Office and the Fraud Section of the Criminal Division of the U.S. Department of Justice. This case is being prosecuted by DOJ Trial Attorney Dustin M. Davis, current DOJ Trial Attorney and former Assistant U.S. Attorney Shubhra Shivpuri, and Assistant U.S. Attorney J. Brad Casey.
North Country Uncle, Nephew Indicted for False Statements Made in Firearms PurchaseRead the Press Release
PLATTSBURGH, NEW YORK – Donald J. Shappy, Jr., age 57, of Keeseville, NY, and Jonathon P. Shappy, age 27, of Schuyler Falls, NY, were arraigned today on an indictment alleging that Donald Shappy made false statements during the purchase of a firearm, and that Jonathon Shappy aided and abetted the statements.
The announcement was made by United States Attorney Richard S. Hartunian, Delano A. Reid, Special Agent in Charge of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) New York Field Division, and New York State Police Superintendent Joseph A. D’Amico.
The Shappys were arrested yesterday. Donald Shappy was released pending a detention hearing on June 7, 2016, while Jonathon Shappy was detained pending his detention hearing on the same date.
The indictment alleges that on March 7, 2016, Donald Shappy falsely certified that he was the true purchaser of a Henry Repeating Arms .22 caliber rifle when he knew that he was purchasing the firearm for Jonathon, who had been denied the ability to purchase the same rifle two days earlier. Jonathan Shappy is charged with aiding and abetting the false statements.
The charges in the indictment are merely accusations. The defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty.
If convicted, each defendant faces a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison, a fine of up to $250,000, and a term of post-imprisonment supervised release of up to 3 years. A defendant’s sentence is imposed by a judge based on the particular statute the defendant is charged with violating, the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines, and other factors.
This case is being investigated by the ATF and the New York State Police, and is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Douglas Collyer.
North Carolina Man Sentenced for Tax Evasion and Serving as a Pilot without a LicenseRead the Press Release
A North Carolina man was sentenced yesterday to 21 months in prison for tax evasion and four counts of serving as a pilot without an airman’s certificate, announced Acting Assistant Attorney General Caroline D. Ciraolo of the Justice Department’s Tax Division and U.S. Attorney Ripley Rand for the Middle District of North Carolina.
Paul Douglas Tharp, from 2012 through 2014, attempted to evade payment of an outstanding federal income tax debt by filing false documents, including false tax returns, with the Internal Revenue Service (IRS), according to court documents. After Tharp failed to file tax returns for the years 2003 through 2006, the IRS assessed federal income taxes for those years. In 2014, Tharp provided a false Form 433-A, Collection Information Statement for Wage Earners and Self-Employed Individuals, signed under penalty of perjury, on which Tharp failed to report that he owned an airport and an investment firm and concealed his business bank accounts and rental income. In 2012 and 2014, Tharp also filed tax returns for the 2011 through 2013 tax years on which he omitted significant income that he received from his airport and rental properties.
As part of his plea, Tharp also admitted that he served as a pilot without the required certification on four different occasions in 2012. Tharp surrendered his pilot certificate on Aug. 2, 2012. After that date, Tharp flew four flights in and out of Davidson County Airport in Lexington, North Carolina, without valid registration and while his pilot certificate was suspended.
In addition to his prison term, Tharp was ordered to pay restitution in the amount of $285,028.47 to the IRS.
Acting Assistant Attorney General Ciraolo and U.S. Attorney Rand commended special agents of IRS-Criminal Investigation, who investigated the case and Assistant U.S. Attorney Anand Ramaswamy of the Middle District of North Carolina and Trial Attorney Nathan Brooks of the Tax Division, who are prosecuting this case.
Additional information about the Tax Division and its enforcement efforts may be found on the division’s website.
Newark Man Pleads Guilty to Bank Fraud and Money LaunderingRead the Press Release
WILMINGTON, Del. – Charles M. Oberly, III, United States Attorney for the District of Delaware, announced today that Akeem Harris, age 26, of Newark, Delaware pleaded guilty to one count of bank fraud and one count of money laundering before U.S. District Judge Sue L. Robinson in connection with the theft of more than $450,000. Harris is scheduled to be sentenced on September 13, 2016.
According to court records and statements made in open court, in or around May 2015, using the business name of Wolf Distribution, Harris opened a bank account and subsequently deposited an altered check in the amount of approximately $439,000.00, written from the account of a New York-based health services provider. In the two weeks following the deposit of that altered check, Harris conducted a series of cash withdrawals and obtained bank checks, made payable to himself as well as other individuals and entities associated with him. In January 2015, Harris also received a fraudulent wire transfer in the amount of $40,000 from the account of a community development investment foundation based in Maryland. Using the proceeds of that fraudulent wire transfer, Harris then purchased an official bank check and otherwise depleted those funds through a series of cash withdrawals. Harris also agreed to the forfeiture of approximately $33,000.00, which the government anticipates will be returned to the victims of his crimes.
The maximum sentence for bank fraud is up to 30 years in prison followed by five years of supervised release and a fine of $1,000,000. The maximum sentence for money laundering is up to 10 years in prison followed by three years of supervised release and a fine of $250,000.
U.S. Attorney Oberly stated, “Mr. Harris’s actions compromise both the integrity of financial institutions and the soundness of the organizations that rely upon them. His willingness to participate in a variety of schemes shows a callous disregard for the law.”
“Money laundering is tax evasion in progress. It is fuel for criminals to conduct their criminal affairs and is used to manipulate and erode our financial systems," said Akeia Conner, Special Agent in Charge IRS Criminal Investigation.
This case is the result of an investigation conducted by the Internal Revenue Service - Criminal Investigation and the Federal Bureau of Investigation. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Lesley Wolf.
Nevada Man Pleads Guilty to $5 Million Investment Fraud SchemeRead the Press Release
NEWARK, N.J. - A Nevada man today admitted defrauding investors out of more than $5 million, U.S. Attorney Paul J. Fishman announced.
Lee Vaccaro, 44, of Las Vegas, Nevada, pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge William J. Martini in Newark federal court to a two-count information charging him with conspiracy to commit securities fraud and securities fraud.
According to documents filed in this case and statements made in court:
Vaccaro was the chief marketing officer and vice president of investor relations for eAgency, a California-based company developing mobile security products. Vaccaro admitted that he and an individual identified as “Conspirator #1” sold investors interests in companies they controlled, and falsely represented to investors that the companies held warrants in eAgency. Warrants are derivative securities that give the holder the right to purchase common stock at a specific price within a certain time frame.
Vaccaro also admitted that he and Conspirator #1 made oral and written misrepresentations concerning the existence, number, validity, and term of eAgency warrants purportedly owned by the investment companies, as well as about the amount of money Conspirator #1 had personally invested in and raised for eAgency, and Conspirator #1’s current position at eAgency.
In addition, Vaccaro admitted that he and Conspirator #1 created and showed to investors numerous forged documents purporting to reflect the issuance of warrants to entities controlled by Vaccaro, and the transfer of those warrants to a company controlled by Conspirator #1. He admitted that most of the eAgency warrants purportedly transferred by Vaccaro to Conspirator #1’s company had, in fact, never been issued.
Beginning in January 2011, the dollar amount of interests Vaccaro and Conspirator #1 sold in the investment companies began to surpass the dollar amount of valid warrants held by the investment companies. Neither Vaccaro nor Conspirator #1 disclosed to investors the risk that their investments would be diluted by the sale of additional interests in the companies.
Vaccaro and Conspirator #1’s actions defrauded investors of more than $5 million.
The conspiracy to commit securities fraud count to which Vaccaro pleaded guilty carries a maximum potential penalty of five years in prison and a fine of up to $250,000, or twice the gross gain or loss from the offense. The securities fraud count carries a maximum potential penalty of 20 years in prison and a $5 million fine. Sentencing is scheduled for Sept. 13, 2011.
U.S. Attorney Fishman credited special agents of the FBI, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Timothy Gallagher in Newark, for the investigation leading to today’s guilty pleas. He also thanked the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission’s New York Regional Office, under the direction of Sanjay Wadhwa and the New Jersey Bureau of Securities, under the direction of Laura Posner.
The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorney Daniel Shapiro and Deputy Chief Zach Intrater of the U.S. Attorney’s Office Economic Crimes Unit in Newark.
If you believe you are a victim of or otherwise have information concerning this alleged scheme, you are encouraged to contact the FBI at 973-792-3000.
Today’s plea is part of efforts underway by President Obama’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.
Defense counsel: Robert C. Scrivo, Esq., Newark
Muskogee Woman Pleads Guilty to Drug ConspiracyRead the Press Release
MUSKOGEE, OKLAHOMA – The United States Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Oklahoma announced that SAMANTHA LEE SMITH, age 21, of Muskogee, Oklahoma, pled guilty to DRUG CONSPIRACY, in violation of Title 21, United States Code, Sections 841(a)(1) and 841(b)(1)(A), punishable by not less than 10 years or more than life imprisonment, up to a $10,000,000.00 fine or both.
The superseding indictment alleged that beginning in or about the end of 2013, the exact date being unknown to the Grand Jury, and continuing until on or about January 27, 2016, within the Eastern District of Oklahoma and elsewhere, the defendant and others did knowingly and intentionally conspire, confederate and agree with each other, and with others known and unknown to the Grand Jury, to possess with intent to distribute and to distribute 500 grams or more of a mixture or substance containing a detectable amount of methamphetamine, a Schedule II controlled substance.
The Investigation revealed that Cody McClendon, an Indian Brotherhood (IBH) gang member, while an inmate with the Oklahoma Department of Corrections in McAlester, Oklahoma was utilizing a contraband cellular phone that he kept hidden on his person and inside his prison cell to facilitate the sale and distribution of methamphetamine. McClendon was doing this by using the cellular phone to communicate with co-conspirators via audio phone calls, text messages, and by communicating on the social media website Facebook. SMITH was a methamphetamine distributor as well as a drug and money courier for the organization.
The charges arose from a joint investigation by the Oklahoma Bureau of Narcotics, the Tahlequah Police Department, the Muskogee Police Department, the Oklahoma Department of Corrections, the Bureau of Indian Affairs and the Drug Enforcement Administration. The investigation was coordinated by the Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF) of the Eastern District of Oklahoma. OCDETF is an initiative led, and coordinated by, the Office of the United States Attorney.
The Honorable Kimberly E. West, Magistrate Judge in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Oklahoma, accepted the defendant’s guilty plea, and ordered the completion of a presentence report. Sentencing will be scheduled upon its completion. The defendant will remain in the custody of the United States Marshal Service pending sentencing.
Assistant United States Attorney Shannon Henson represented the United States.
Milton Truck Driver Pleads Guilty to Federal Child Pornography CrimesRead the Press Release
PENSACOLA, FLORIDA – Andre M. Straughn, 39, of Milton, Florida, pled guilty today to receipt and transportation of child pornography, as well as making a false statement to a federal agent. The guilty plea was announced by Christopher P. Canova, United States Attorney for the Northern District of Florida.
In July 2015, law enforcement agents became aware of online child pornography files that were linked to Straughn’s online activities. Law enforcement agents conducted an investigation and determined that Straughn was a truck driver who traveled to other states with his cellular device and laptop and used multiple electronic platforms to engage in online child pornography. After Straughn returned home from a trip, agents searched Straughn’s residence. Straughn told law enforcement agents that he did not have an online storage account, did not use the social media application Kik, and could not remember the password to his cellular telephone. A forensic review of Straughn’s electronic devices revealed that Straughn did maintain online storage accounts and a Kik account. In total, Straughn’s online storage account, laptop, and other electronic devices revealed more than 50,000 images and videos of child pornography, dating back approximately 10 years.
For each child pornography charge, Straughn faces a mandatory minimum of 5 years and a maximum of 20 years in prison. For the false statement charge, Straughn faces a maximum of 8 years in prison. The sentencing hearing is scheduled for August 18, 2016, at 12:30 p.m. at the United States Courthouse in Pensacola.
The case was investigated by the United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement Homeland Security Investigations, Pensacola Police Department, and other agencies that are part of the North Florida Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force. Assistant United States Attorney David L. Goldberg is prosecuting the case.
The United States Attorney's Office for the Northern District of Florida is one of 94 offices that serve as the nation’s principal litigators under the direction of the Attorney General. To access public court documents online, please visit the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Florida website. For more information about the United States Attorney’s Office, Northern District of Florida, visit http://www.justice.gov/usao/fln/index.html.
For more information, contact:
Amy Alexander, Public Information Officer
(850) 216-3854, [email protected]Massachusetts Company Sentenced in Connection with Disadvantaged Business FraudRead the Press Release
BOSTON – Transit Safety Management, Inc., a Georgetown, Mass. consulting company, was sentenced today to making a false statement in connection with its certification for favored contracting status.
Transit Safety Management, Inc. (TSM) was sentenced by U.S. District Court Judge Nathaniel M. Gorton to five years of probation and a fine of $84,000 In February 2016, TSM pleaded guilty to one count of making a false statement to a state agency in order to maintain its status as a "disadvantaged business enterprise" (DBE).
In order to qualify as a DBE, a company’s management must be controlled by a socially or economically disadvantaged individual such as a woman or minority. The purpose of the program is to give an economic advantage to minorities and women who run their own companies. However, the manager of the DBE cannot also engage in employment that would prevent him or her from devoting sufficient attention to the affairs of the DBE. In this case, investigators discovered that TSM’s purported owner was a full-time employee of a federal agency and the business was really operated by her husband making it ineligible for certification as a DBE.
TSM provided consulting services to the railroad industry, focusing on safety and operations management. Shortly after it was founded in 1999, TSM's owner certified the company as a "disadvantaged business enterprise". As such, TSM was able to take advantage of federal regulations aimed at promoting the participation of minority and disadvantaged businesses in federally-funded public construction contracts. Under the DBE regulations, a contractor to transportation projects must either subcontract a percentage of its work to a DBE or show that it made a good faith effort to subcontract work to a DBE but was unable to do so. This requirement makes the DBE status a valuable and potentially lucrative designation.
In order to maintain its DBE certification, TSM had to make yearly affirmations that it was still eligible and that nothing had changed that would affect its eligibility for the favored DBE status. Despite this, TSM lied about whether it met the criteria for DBE status. According to court documents, TSM’s owner was hired as a full-time employee with a federal agency in 2005. As a full time federal employee, TSM’s purported manager could not control TSM under the regulations. Nevertheless, TSM failed to disclose this change and continued to make its yearly affirmations to maintain is DBE status. TSM admitted to making approximately $160,000 in profits.
United States Attorney Carmen M. Ortiz; Todd Damiani, Special Agent in Charge of the U.S. Department of Transportation, Office of Inspector General, Office of Investigations; and Harold H. Shaw, Special Agent in Charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Boston Field Division, made the announcement today. The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Eugenia M. Carris of Ortiz’s Public Corruption Unit.
Manhattan U.S. Attorney and FBI Announce Return of Stolen Inverted Jenny StampRead the Press Release
Preet Bharara, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, and Diego Rodriguez, Assistant Director-in-Charge New York Field Office of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (“FBI”), announced today the return of a rare “Inverted Jenny” stamp to the American Philatelic Research Library (“APRL”), the assignee of Ethel B. McCoy, the owner from whom it was stolen. The stamp, one of four stolen from McCoy in 1955, was recently recovered by the FBI. It is the third of the four McCoy Inverted Jennys to be recovered to date.
Manhattan U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara said: “The treasured Inverted Jenny stamp returned today has been missing for more than 60 years since it was stolen. We are proud to be able finally to return this Inverted Jenny to its rightful owner. We hope that someday soon we can celebrate the return of the final missing McCoy Inverted Jenny as well, and encourage anyone with information regarding its whereabouts to come forward.”
Assistant Director-in-Charge Diego Rodriguez said: “More than 60 years ago, a block of four of the most famous error stamps in philatelic history – the Inverted Jenny – was stolen from an exhibition. There were no witnesses, no suspects and little evidence to pursue. Today, the FBI is proud to assist in the return of the third Inverted Jenny stamp to the American Philatelic Research Library. This is just one example of the FBI’s commitment to restore significant arts and antiques to their rightful owners.”
According to court filings and other publically available information:
The Inverted Jenny stamp returned today (the “Stamp”) is from a sheet of 100 24-cent stamps issued by the United States Postal Service in 1918. The stamps contained the image of a Curtiss Jenny JN-4HM, a biplane specially modified for shuttling mail, to commemorate the Postal Service’s first airmail flight, which took place on May 15, 1918. Significantly, this particular sheet (the “Inverted Jenny Sheet”) was misprinted, with the airplane image upside down, or “inverted.” It was sold on or about May 14, 1918, to collector William T. Robey of Washington, D.C.
Robey eventually sold the Inverted Jenny Sheet for $15,000 to a noted Philadelphia dealer named Eugene Klein, who in turn sold it for $20,000 to collector H. R. Green. Green, on the advice and with the help of Klein, subsequently broke up the Inverted Jenny Sheet and sold many of the individual stamps to other collectors. Prior to breaking up the Inverted Jenny Sheet, Klein and Green lightly penciled a number on the back of each stamp so that each stamp’s original position on the sheet could later be identified. The Stamp returned today is position 76 from the Inverted Jenny Sheet.
Ethel B. Stewart McCoy, a philatelist and daughter of Charles Bergstresser, one of the founders of Dow Jones & Co., purchased a block of four stamps from the Inverted Jenny Sheet, specifically positions 65, 66, 75, and 76 (the “McCoy Block”), from New York City stamp dealer Spencer Anderson in 1936 for $16,000. On or about September 23, 1955, during an exhibition at a convention of the American Philatelic Society in Norfolk, Virginia, the McCoy Block, including the Stamp, was stolen by an unknown thief or thieves.
Before her death in 1980, McCoy assigned all of her right, title, and interest in the stolen McCoy Block to the APRL. The FBI recovered the stamp in position 75 from the McCoy Block in 1977, and recovered the stamp in position 65 in 1982, and both were returned to the APRL.
The Stamp remained missing until April of this year, when it was consigned to Spink USA, Inc. (“Spink”), by an individual named Keelin O’Neill. Spink sent the Stamp to the Philatelic Foundation in New York to be authenticated, and personnel of the Foundation identified it as one from the stolen McCoy block. They then alerted the FBI and the APRL. The FBI approached O’Neill, who stated that he had received the Stamp in or about October 2013 from his grandfather, who is now deceased. Once he was advised that the Stamp was stolen, O’Neill voluntarily agreed to relinquish the Stamp to the APRL.
The fourth and final Inverted Jenny from the McCoy block remains missing.
The return today to the APRL is being made pursuant to a stipulated agreement entered between the Government, the APRL, and Mr. O’Neill, and so ordered by the Honorable Jesse M. Furman, United States District Court Judge for the Southern District of New York.
Mr. Bharara thanked the FBI for their outstanding work on this matter.
The case is being handled by the Office’s Money Laundering and Asset Forfeiture Unit. Assistant U.S. Attorney Alexander J. Wilson is in charge of the case.
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Man Sentenced to Three Years for Threatening A Witness in His Brother's Federal CaseRead the Press Release
GRAND RAPIDS, MICHIGAN – Jermaine Carr, 34, of Riverdale, Illinois, received a three-year sentence in federal prison for tampering with a witness in his brother’s federal case. The witness was assisting law enforcement officers with the investigation into Jermaine Carr’s brother, Daniel Carr, for heroin trafficking. Jermaine Carr called the witness and threatened to burn his house down and told him he was going to die. The three-year term of imprisonment represented the maximum sentence that could be imposed for tampering with a witness. Carr pled guilty to the offense in January 2016. His brother, Daniel Carr, pled guilty in April 2016 to conspiracy to distribute heroin.
At the sentencing hearing, U.S. District Judge Janet T. Neff emphasized the importance of federal witnesses being protected against threats and harassment by angry defendants and family members. She stated that Carr is a danger to society based not only on the seriousness of this offense but also in part on a long string of domestic violence assaults, including with strangulation.
In announcing the sentence, U.S. Attorney Patrick Miles stated, “When we work with witnesses in federal cases, we make their safety a priority. Any threats or harassment of our witnesses will be dealt with seriously.”
This case was investigated jointly by the Battle Creek Police Department and the DEA. Assistant U.S. Attorney Tessa K. Hessmiller prosecuted the case.
END
Long Time Skagit County Violent Drug Dealer Sentenced to Ten Years in PrisonRead the Press Release
A long-time Skagit County, Washington drug dealer and gang member was sentenced today in U.S. District Court in Seattle to ten years in prison for conspiracy to distribute controlled substances and possessing a firearm in furtherance of drug trafficking, announced U.S. Attorney Annette L. Hayes. CRISTOBAL ORTIZ, a/k/a Filero, 27, of Mount Vernon, Washington, was arrested in February 2015 following a Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) undercover investigation. When court authorized search warrants were served at ORTIZ’ residence law enforcement recovered four firearms, methamphetamine, cocaine, and nearly $130,000 in cash. At the sentencing hearing U.S. District Judge Robert S. Lasnik pointed out that those who are selling heroin and methamphetamine in Skagit County are having a “horrible impact.”
“This defendant has long jeopardized community safety in Skagit County with violent, threatening behavior toward both law enforcement and members of the public,” said U.S. Attorney Annette L. Hayes. “With four prior felony convictions – three involving firearms – this federal prison sentence will effectively protect the community.”
ORTIZ has a 14 year history of crime in Skagit County and is well known to local police. In addition to drug distribution, ORTIZ has three prior convictions arising from incidents where he or an associate fired one or more guns. ORTIZ came to the attention of federal law enforcement in a 2013 wiretap investigation of a group of drug traffickers operating in Skagit, Snohomish, and Whatcom Counties. In early January and February 2015, a person working with law enforcement purchased highly pure heroin from ORTIZ and co-defendant Miguel Reyes Bravo. When law enforcement searched the homes of both men they seized heroin, methamphetamine, cocaine and multiple stolen firearms.
Reyes Bravo was sentenced to six years in prison on April 15, 2016. ORTIZ pleaded guilty on March 10, 2016.
“This violent career criminal has been shut down and no longer will use his gang affiliations for illicit drug distribution,” stated DEA Special Agent in Charge Keith Weis.
Writing to the court, Mount Vernon Chief of Police Jerry Dodd noted that ORTIZ had been involved with a violent gang operating in Skagit County and had more than 150 contacts with law enforcement.
The case was investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) with assistance from the Mount Vernon Police Department, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms & Explosives (ATF), the Skagit County Interlocal Drug Enforcement Unit (SCIDEU), the Bellingham Police Department, the Whatcom Gang and Drug Task Force and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigation (HSI).
The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Karyn Johnson and Steven Masada.
Long Island Fisherman Pleads Guilty to Falsifying Documents and Lying to Federal InvestigatorsRead the Press Release
James Kaminsky, a fisherman from Mattituck, New York, pleaded guilty today in federal court in Central Islip, New York, to federal felonies stemming from his role in systematically covering up the landing and sale of illegal fluke (summer flounder), scup and black sea bass that were overharvested in violation of New York state quotas and the federal Research Set-Aside (RSA) Program, the Justice Department’s Environment and Natural Resources Division announced.
Kaminsky pleaded guilty to one count of aiding and abetting false documents and one count of oral false statements in connection with a scheme that ran from May through August 2011. During this period, Kaminsky utilized the RSA Program as a mask for unlawful quota overages. He then sold his illegal catch to Mark Parente, a federal fish dealer and a defendant in a related case. Federal fish dealers are required to accurately report their purchases to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), regardless of whether the fish originated from a state or federal fishery. NOAA utilizes these reports to assess fish stocks and to set quotas in conjunction with regional fisheries councils. False information inputted into fisheries statistical models reduces their effectiveness and could result in unexpected, corrective quota reductions years after the illegal catch because actual fishing effort had been undercounted by the models. Such quota reductions can have negative effects on the legitimate fishing fleet.
In order to cover up the illegal harvest and transactions, Kaminsky and Parente agreed to falsify government documents. As such Kaminsky falsified approximately 30 fishing vessel trip reports and Parente falsified a corresponding number of dealer reports. To further obscure the illicit conduct, almost all of the payments were made in cash, with Parente and Kaminsky meeting at a pre-determined spot off the Long Island Expressway in Nassau or Suffolk Counties. The scheme omitted or misidentified approximately 6,900 pounds of fluke, 50,000 pounds of scup and 12,000 pounds of black sea bass. The wholesale value of the fish was stipulated as $78,000. The second charge stems from material, false statements that Kaminsky made to NOAA criminal investigators during a November 2014 proffer session with a federal prosecutor.
As part of the plea deal, the defendant agreed to pay a total financial penalty of $150,000. He also agreed to five years of probation and six months of home detention. Agreed-upon probation terms include relinquishment of commercial fishing permits, ban from the RSA Program and divestiture and ban from any interest in a commercial fishing vessel. Kaminsky’s sentencing is scheduled for Nov. 2.
Kaminsky is “Fisherman Y,” as that term is used in the related Mark Parente case. Kaminsky is the tenth defendant to be prosecuted as part of NOAA’s ongoing Long Island RSA Fraud Investigation. The case was investigated by agents of NOAA’s National Marine Fisheries Service. The case is being prosecuted by Christopher L. Hale of the Justice Department’s Environmental Crimes Section, Environment and Natural Resources Division.
Lima man indicted on child pornography chargeRead the Press Release
An indictment was filed charging Richard Hack, 27, of Lima, with receipt and distribution of material involving the sexual exploitation of children, said Carole S. Rendon, Acting U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of Ohio.
The conduct took place between 2011 and 2015, according to the indictment
If convicted, the defendant sentence will be determined by the court after reviewing factors unique to this case, including the defendant’s prior criminal record, if any, the defendant’s role in the offense and the characteristics of the violation. In all cases the sentence will not exceed the statutory maximum and in most cases it will be less than the maximum.
The investigating agency in this case is the Federal Bureau of Investigation, in Toledo. The case is being handled by Assistant United States Attorney Tracey Ballard Tangeman.
An indictment is only a charge and is not evidence of guilt. Defendants are entitled to a fair trial in which it will be the government’s burden to prove guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.
Leader of Drug Trafficking Organization Admits Distributing Kilograms of Marijuana and Laundering the Proceeds Through Luxury Auto PurchasesRead the Press Release
CHICAGO — The leader of a Chicago drug trafficking organization pleaded guilty in federal court today to distributing more than 1,000 kilograms of marijuana and laundering the proceeds by purchasing luxury cars and leasing high-rent properties.
JONATHAN TANKSON admitted in a plea agreement that he coordinated bulk shipments of marijuana from large-scale growers in California. Between December 2010 and December 2013, Tankson flew to California at least twice per month, typically bringing with him on the plane $400,000 to $500,000 in cash. Tankson often purchased 100 to 200 pounds of marijuana at a time, with the drugs being shipped on vans and tractor trailers to stash houses in Chicago, according to the plea agreement. One of the stash houses was located in the Lincoln Park neighborhood of Chicago, while another was set up in a penthouse apartment in the city’s River West neighborhood.
Tankson, 32, of Evanston, pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to possess a controlled substance with the intent to deliver, and one count of conspiracy to commit money laundering. The conviction carries a maximum sentence of 40 years in prison and a maximum fine of $1.5 million.
U.S. District Judge Matthew F. Kennelly scheduled a sentencing hearing for August 25, 2016, at 1:30 p.m.
According to the plea agreement, Tankson used drug proceeds to purchase several luxury automobiles through straw purchasers. Between June 2011 and December 2013, Tankson orchestrated the purchases of a Porsche Cayenne sport utility vehicle for $140,000, a Mercedes-Benz S63 sedan for $108,000, an Audi A8 sedan for $80,000, and several other expensive vehicles, according to the plea agreement. Tankson acknowledged in the plea agreement that the auto transactions were intended to conceal the source of the drug proceeds.
Tankson was arrested in December 2013. During a search of his Lincoln Park stash house, law enforcement discovered more than $1 million in cash, approximately 75 kilograms of cannabis stuffed into numerous plastic bags, five suitcases filled with cannabis, 20 rounds of 9mm ammunition and two 9mm pistol magazines, according to a federal criminal complaint filed against him in January 2014.
Investigators thereafter began an extensive money laundering investigation that led to charges against two other defendants. An alleged straw buyer of the vehicles, SONGHANE TRAORE, of Chicago, is charged with one count of conspiracy to possess a controlled substance with the intent to deliver, one count of conspiracy to commit money laundering, and one count of money laundering. JEROME B. MARSHALL, of Chicago, is charged with one count of money laundering for allegedly helping Tankson to fraudulently lease the Lincoln Park apartment.
Traore and Marshall have pleaded not guilty to the charges. Traore’s next court appearance before Judge Kennelly is scheduled for June 3, 2016, at 1:00 p.m., while Marshall will next appear before Judge Kennelly on June 13, 2016, at 10:00 a.m.
Tankson’s guilty plea was announced by Zachary T. Fardon, United States Attorney for the Northern District of Illinois; Jeffery Magee, Special Agent in Charge of the Chicago Field Division of the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives; James D. Robnett, Special Agent-in-Charge of the Chicago Office of the Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigation Division; and Eddie T. Johnson, Chicago Police Superintendent.
The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorney Kartik K. Raman.
Plea Agreement
Lame Deer Man Sentenced to More Than 17 Years in Prison for RapeRead the Press Release
BILLINGS – Olaf James Haugen, 29, of Lame Deer was sentenced today to 210 months in prison and 10 years’ supervised release for rape. Federal District Court Judge Susan P. Watters issued the sentence.
Haugan was convicted of aggravated sexual abuse following a two-day jury trial in Billings in December of 2015. Haugen was indicted by a grand jury in January on the single count of aggravated sexual abuse in January 2015. At trial, the government introduced evidence that Haugen physically and sexually assaulted the victim in August of 2013. A dispute started when the victim confronted Haugen about his drug abuse. Haugen became angry. He threatened to kill the victim with a pocket knife, raped her, hit her several times and bit her on the back. The assault started on the evening of August 31 and continued into the next morning.
The assault was heard by an individual in the adjoining room, but was not reported by that individual. Later, another individual came to the house and overheard the assault continuing. She reported the assault to the BIA and an officer responded to the scene. When the officer arrived, the victim opened a window and asked the officer to help her because Haugen was beating her up. Haugen initially refused to allow the officer into the room and threatened to stab himself, but eventually calmed down and was arrested.
The victim was examined by Indian Health Services after the assault. Her injuries included abrasions and contusions consistent with being struck, a large bite mark on her back and an abrasion on her throat consistent with having a knife held against it. The victim did not initially disclose the rape but was convinced by a family member to do so and reported the rape two days later. Haugen claimed the intercourse was consensual but gave conflicting accounts of the incident at trial and to investigating officers following his arrest.
The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney John Sullivan. The case was investigated by the FBI and the Bureau of Indian Affairs.
Kansas Sex Offender Charged with Transporting Virginia Teen for SexRead the Press Release
KANSAS CITY, KAN. – A registered sex offender from Kansas was charged in federal court here Thursday with picking up a 16-year-old girl in Virginia and taking her across state lines to have sex with him, Acting U.S. Attorney Tom Beall said today.
Logan Viquesney, 20, Kansas City, Kan., was charged with one count of interstate transportation of a minor to engage in sexual activity.
An affidavit filed in the case alleges the victim was staying with her grandparents in Virginia when she and Viquesney began communicating over the Internet. On May 30, the victim was reported missing from her grandparents’ home. Investigators learned that Viquesney had driven to Virginia, picked up the girl, and taken her with him on a trip that took them from Virginia to Maryland, Illinois, Missouri and Kansas. While on the trip, Viquesney had sex with the girl.
Viquesney was arrested after he arrived in Kansas City, Kan., with the girl.
If convicted, he faces a penalty not less than 10 years in federal prison. Investigating agencies include the Kansas City, Kan., Police Department, the Lenexa Police Department, the Kansas Bureau of Investigation and the FBI. Assistant U.S. Attorney Chris Oakley is prosecuting.
In all cases, defendants are presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty. The indictments merely contain allegations of criminal conduct.
Justice Department and Dutch Authorities Announce Simultaneous Enforcement Actions Against International Mass-Mailing Fraud Schemes Targeting the ElderlyRead the Press Release
Thousands of U.S. Victims Defrauded Out of Over $18 Million Annually
The United States filed a civil complaint in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of New York against an individual and two Dutch companies that allegedly engaged in multiple international mail fraud schemes that have defrauded elderly and vulnerable U.S. victims out of tens of millions of dollars, the Department of Justice announced. The Department sought a temporary restraining order, which was entered by the court yesterday, as well as preliminary and permanent injunctions to prevent the defendants from further victimizing U.S. consumers.
According to the complaint, U.S. residents received fraudulent direct mail solicitations that falsely claimed that the individual recipient had won, or would soon win cash or valuable prizes or otherwise come into great fortune. Victims sent payments through the U.S. and international mail systems to defendants Trends Service in Kommunikatie B.V. (Trends) and Kommunikatie Service Buitenland B.V. (KSB), both in Utrecht, Netherlands, and both owned and operated by defendant Erik Dekker, 54, of Langbroek, Netherlands.
At the same time that the Justice Department took this law enforcement action, Dutch law enforcement agents executed search warrants on the business address used by both companies and on Dekker’s home address. The Dutch authorities also took control of the Dutch P.O. boxes used by the defendants to receive victim funds. The coordinated U.S. and Dutch enforcement actions seek to immediately stop the use of Dutch P.O. boxes to receive payments from fraud victims and to immediately stop the defendants from continuing to victimize the elderly. Learn more about the actions taken by Dutch authorities at: https://www.om.nl/actueel/nieuwsberichten/@94702/fiod-and-us-doj/
“Schemes targeting elderly victims are increasingly international in scope, but geographic distance will not prevent us from seeking justice and holding bad actors accountable,” said Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Benjamin C. Mizer, head of the Justice Department’s Civil Division. “Dutch authorities have done a great service to U.S. residents and elderly victims worldwide by addressing fraud facilitated within their borders. The Justice Department will continue to work with our international law enforcement partners to put a stop to fraud schemes that exploit vulnerable Americans.”
“As alleged in the complaint, defendants act as the clearinghouses for multiple international mail fraud schemes, taking money from thousands of elderly and vulnerable victims not only in this district but also throughout the United States,” said U.S. Attorney Robert L. Capers for the Eastern District of New York. “Together with the U.S. Postal Inspection Service and our international partner, the Fiscal Intelligence and Investigation Division of the Netherlands, we will track down, and stop, the schemes wherever they lead.”
“No one should ever be told they must pay a fee, or make a worthless purchase, to collect a prize,” said Inspector in Charge Regina L. Faulkerson of the U.S. Postal Inspection Service’s Criminal Investigation Group. “When that happens, it’s fraud - plain and simple - and Postal Inspectors work to keep those falsehoods out of the U.S. mail.”
The complaint filed June 1 in U.S. federal court in the Eastern District of New York alleges that, since at least 2012, Trends, KSB and Dekker have used P.O. boxes in the Netherlands to receive payments from various predatory mass-mailing fraud schemes. Solicitations are mailed from locations around the globe to residents in the United States. The solicitations purport to be personalized to each individual recipient, even though they are form letters mailed to hundreds of thousands of potential victims. Some solicitations instruct recipients to pay a processing fee in order to receive lottery winnings or other prizes; other solicitations urge recipients to purchase goods or services based on false promises that they will guarantee future lottery wins.
As alleged in the complaint, victims responded to the solicitations by completing a form and submitting a payment, usually around $15 to $55, via U.S. mail. The solicitations contain pre-addressed envelopes in which victims send payments. The envelopes are addressed to P.O. boxes in the Netherlands. Trends and KSB operate more than 50 of these P.O. boxes. Like other so-called “caging services,” Trends and KSB open the payment envelopes, remove the contents, enter payment and other personal information from the victims into a database and handle victim payments. The U.S. government estimates that U.S. victims mail more than $18 million annually to the defendants’ P.O. boxes.
The government is seeking an injunction under the Anti-Fraud Injunction Statute immediately shutting down the defendants’ role in the fraudulent schemes in order to protect U.S. victims from further harm. The injunctions sought by the United States would enjoin the defendants from using the U.S. mail or causing the U.S. mail to be used, to distribute the fraudulent solicitations or to collect victim payments, and from selling lists of American victims who have responded to the solicitations. If granted, a permanent injunction would allow the U.S. Postal Service to intercept mail heading to the defendants, and return that mail—along with any money being sent to the defendants—to U.S. victims.
U.S. District Court Judge I. Leo Glasser for the Eastern District of New York set a hearing on the preliminary injunction on July 18 at 10 a.m.
The Justice Department’s case is being handled by Trial Attorney Kerala Thie Cowart of the Civil Division’s Consumer Protection Branch, Assistant U.S. Attorney John Vagelatos of the U.S. Attorney’s Office in the Eastern District of New York and Postal Inspector Joseph R. Bizzarro of the U.S. Postal Inspection Service.
The claims made in the complaints are allegations only, and there has been no determination of liability.
A copy of the complaint, case # 16-CV-2770, can be found here: https://www.justice.gov/opa/file/863501/download
More information on fraud against the elderly is available here: https://www.justice.gov/elderjustice/.
Additional information about the Consumer Protection Branch and its enforcement efforts may be found at http://www.justice.gov/civil/consumer-protection-branch.
Justice Department and Dutch Authorities Announce Simultaneous Enforcement Actions Against International Mass-Mailing Fraud Schemes Targeting the ElderlyRead the Press Release
The United States filed a civil complaint in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of New York against an individual and two Dutch companies that allegedly engaged in multiple international mail fraud schemes that have defrauded elderly and vulnerable U.S. victims out of tens of millions of dollars, the Department of Justice announced. The Department sought a temporary restraining order, which was entered by the court yesterday, as well as preliminary and permanent injunctions to prevent the defendants from further victimizing U.S. consumers.
According to the complaint, U.S. residents received fraudulent direct mail solicitations that falsely claimed that the individual recipient had won, or would soon win, cash or valuable prizes or otherwise come into great fortune. Victims sent payments through the U.S. and international mail systems to defendants Trends Service in Kommunikatie, B.V. (Trends), and Kommunikatie Service Buitenland, B.V. (KSB), both in Utrecht, Netherlands, and both owned and operated by defendant Erik Dekker, 54, of Langbroek, Netherlands.
At the same time that the Justice Department took this law enforcement action, Dutch law enforcement agents executed search warrants on the business address used by both companies and on Dekker’s home address. The Dutch authorities also took control of the Dutch P.O. boxes used by the defendants to receive victim funds. The coordinated U.S. and Dutch enforcement actions seek to immediately stop the use of Dutch P.O. boxes to receive payments from fraud victims and to immediately stop the defendants from continuing to victimize the elderly. Learn more about the actions taken by Dutch authorities at: https://www.om.nl/actueel/nieuwsberichten/@94702/fiod-and-us-doj/
“As alleged in the complaint, defendants act as the clearinghouses for multiple international mail fraud schemes, taking money from thousands of elderly and vulnerable victims not only in this district but also throughout the United States,” said U.S. Attorney Robert L. Capers for the Eastern District of New York. “Together with the U.S. Postal Inspection Service and our international partner, the Fiscal Intelligence and Investigation Division of the Netherlands, we will track down, and stop, the schemes wherever they lead.”
“Schemes targeting elderly victims are increasingly international in scope, but geographic distance will not prevent us from seeking justice and holding bad actors accountable,” said Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Benjamin C. Mizer, head of the Justice Department’s Civil Division. “Dutch authorities have done a great service to U.S. residents and elderly victims worldwide by addressing fraud facilitated within their borders. The Justice Department will continue to work with our international law enforcement partners to put a stop to fraud schemes that exploit vulnerable Americans.”
“No one should ever be told they must pay a fee, or make a worthless purchase, to collect a prize,” said Inspector in Charge Regina L. Faulkerson. “When that happens, it’s fraud - plain and simple - and Postal Inspectors work to keep those falsehoods out of the U.S. mail.”
The complaint filed June 1 in U.S. federal court in the Eastern District of New York alleges that, since at least 2012, Trends, KSB and Dekker have used P.O. boxes in the Netherlands to receive payments from various predatory mass-mailing fraud schemes. Solicitations are mailed from locations around the globe to residents in the United States. The solicitations purport to be personalized to each individual recipient, even though they are form letters mailed to hundreds of thousands of potential victims. Some solicitations instruct recipients to pay a processing fee in order to receive lottery winnings or other prizes; other solicitations urge recipients to purchase goods or services based on false promises that they will guarantee future lottery wins.
As alleged in the complaint, victims responded to the solicitations by completing a form and submitting a payment, usually around $15 to $55, via U.S. mail. The solicitations contain pre-addressed envelopes in which victims send payments. The envelopes are addressed to P.O. boxes in the Netherlands. Trends and KSB operate more than 50 of these P.O. boxes. Like other so-called “caging services,” Trends and KSB open the payment envelopes, remove the contents, enter payment and other personal information from the victims into a database, and handle victim payments. The U.S. government estimates that U.S. victims mail more than $18 million annually to the defendants’ P.O. boxes.
The government is seeking an injunction under the Anti-Fraud Injunction Statute immediately shutting down the defendants’ role in the fraudulent schemes in order to protect U.S. victims from further harm. The injunctions sought by the United States would enjoin the defendants from using the U.S. mail, or causing the U.S. mail to be used, to distribute the fraudulent solicitations or to collect victim payments, and from selling lists of American victims who have responded to the solicitations. If granted, a permanent injunction would allow the U.S. Postal Service to intercept mail heading to the defendants, and return that mail - along with any money being sent to the defendants - to U.S. victims.
U.S. District Court Judge I. Leo Glasser for the Eastern District of New York set a hearing on the preliminary injunction on July 18 at 10 a.m.
The United States’ case is being handled by Assistant U.S. Attorney John Vagelatos of the U.S. Attorney’s Office in the Eastern District of New York, Trial Attorney Kerala Thie Cowart of the Civil Division’s Consumer Protection Branch, and Postal Inspector Joseph R. Bizzarro of the U.S. Postal Inspection Service.
The claims made in the complaints are allegations only, and there has been no determination of liability.
A copy of the complaint can be found here: The Complaint and exhibits
More information on fraud against the elderly is available here: https://www.justice.gov/elderjustice/.
For more information about the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of New York, visit its website at https://www.justice.gov/usao-edny.
Additional information about the Consumer Protection Branch and its enforcement efforts may be found at http://www.justice.gov/civil/consumer-protection-branch.
E.D.N.Y. Docket No. 16-CV-2770 (ILG)(SMG)
Jury Convicts Peculiar Man of Tax EvasionRead the Press Release
KANSAS CITY, Mo. – Tammy Dickinson, United States Attorney for the Western District of Missouri, announced that a Peculiar, Mo., man was convicted by a federal jury today of tax evasion.
Harold R. Stanley, 62, of Peculiar, was found guilty of one count of tax evasion and one count of endeavoring to obstruct and impede the due administration of the internal revenue laws.
Stanley, an electrical engineer, was hired by companies as a consultant and received $971,604 from self-employment from 2005 to 2009 as an independent contractor. Stanley failed to file any tax returns for 2005 and 2006. For tax years 2007 through 2009, Stanley filed substantially correct returns but left the tax line entry blank and failed to submit any payment.
The total tax loss for 2005 through 2009 is $259,900.
Stanley submitted fake money orders for payment to the Internal Revenue Service, returned documents to the Internal Revenue Service claiming that the tax assessments were satisfied because they were “Accepted for Value,” filled out payment vouchers with his name in all capital letters but didn’t submit payment and submitted a false criminal referral to IRS – Criminal Investigation.
Under federal statutes, Stanley is subject to a sentence of up to eight years in federal prison without parole. The maximum statutory sentence is prescribed by Congress and is provided here for informational purposes, as the sentencing of the defendant will be determined by the court based on the advisory sentencing guidelines and other statutory factors. A sentencing hearing will be scheduled after the completion of a presentence investigation by the United States Probation Office.
Following the presentation of evidence, the jury in the U.S. District Court in Kansas City, Mo., deliberated for less than half an hour before returning the guilty verdict to U.S. District Judge Roseann Ketchmark, ending a trial that began Tuesday, May 31, 2016.
This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Paul S. Becker. It was investigated by IRS-Criminal Investigation.
Joint EU-U.S. Press Statement Following the EU-U.S. Justice and Home Affairs Ministerial MeetingRead the Press Release
Today the EU-U.S. Ministerial Meeting on Justice and Home Affairs, hosted by the Netherlands Presidency of the Council of the European Union, took place in Amsterdam. This meeting is held usually twice a year, to evaluate and advance Trans-Atlantic cooperation in the areas of freedom, security and justice.
Attorney General Loretta E. Lynch joined Dutch Minister of Security and Justice Ard van der Steur, U.S. Deputy Secretary of Homeland Security Alejandro Mayorkas, and Commissioner for Migration, Home Affairs and Citizenship, Dimitris Avramopoulos and Commissioner for Justice, Consumers and Gender Equality, Věra Jourová, representing the European Union.
In this Ministerial meeting, the EU and the United States reaffirmed their commitment to closer cooperation, especially in the context of evolving and shared challenges that affect the security and rights of citizens on both sides of the Atlantic.
Today’s signing of the "Umbrella" agreement[1] represented a major step forward in EU-U.S. relations. The agreement sets high standards for the protection of personal data transferred by law-enforcement authorities. It also strengthens legal certainty and enhances the rights of citizens which in turn will facilitate EU-U.S. cooperation to combat crime, including terrorism. The EU and the U.S. are committed to work together in the implementation of this agreement to ensure that it benefits both citizens and law enforcement cooperation. The next step will be to seek approval by the European Parliament.
During the ministerial meeting, the delegations focused on ways to address the migration crisis, on their respective visa policies, and on information sharing in the context of security, on counterterrorism policies and terrorist financing, on money laundering, data protection and on practical cooperation to tackle transnational organised crime. The exchange of views covered issues including the protection of refugees, global resettlement efforts, effective border management and dismantling organised criminal migrant smuggling networks.
The EU and the U.S. first discussed ways to address global migration by developing safe, regular and orderly migration processes whilst ensuring international protection for those who need it. The discussion focused on opportunities to mutually reinforce and coordinate their actions in this respect while also establishing high security standards. They agreed that the current migration and refugee challenges require global solutions through increased international cooperation and regional action. In this respect they reaffirmed their commitment to work together in the lead-up to the upcoming United Nations General Assembly high level meeting addressing large movements of refugees and migrants and to the U.S. hosted Leader-Level Refugee Summit, to be held in September 2016 in New York.
The EU and U.S. exchanged views on visa issues and the respective legal frameworks. They agreed to maintain their constructive dialogue at all levels to achieve mutually beneficial solutions.
The EU and the U.S. discussed initiatives to improve counterterrorism efforts, including border security, screening of travellers and information sharing, as well as cooperation to better identify terrorist and foreign fighter travel. They also agreed to reinforce their dialogue on chemical, biological, radioactive and nuclear material and on its possible use by terrorist networks. They discussed legislative initiatives to improve information sharing, and to streamline efforts to combat terrorist financing and money laundering.
They also discussed a five year review of the 2010 EU-U.S. Mutual Legal Assistance Treaty, a key mechanism for transatlantic criminal justice cooperation. The EU and the U.S. confirmed that the treaty is working effectively and identified areas for further practical improvement. The U.S. and the EU committed to implementing those recommendations. These recommendations include enhancing training and specialisation of practitioners, improving the way joint investigation teams work together, using technology to avoid delays, and making it easier to track criminal proceeds by identifying bank accounts. Facilitating access to electronic evidence is a particular concern of the review, and the participants committed to improving their practices through which they obtain such evidence.
Following up to the commitment made at the EU–U.S. Summit in March 2014, the EU and the U.S. reiterated their desire to tackle jointly the issue of transnational child sex offenders, acknowledging the operational conclusions of an EU–U.S. expert meeting held in September 2015. The EU and the U.S. recognized the importance of improving operational cooperation to protect children from transnational sex offenders.
Concluding the discussions, Europol and the U.S. jointly presented the results of a successful EU–U.S. operation that brought together law enforcement authorities from across Europe and the US to dismantle an important drug trafficking network and seize the proceeds of their crimes.
The EU and the U.S. committed to continuing their regular dialogue and to hold another ministerial meeting in the second half of 2016.
[1] Agreement between the European Union and the United States of America on the protection of personal data when transferred and processed for the purpose of preventing, investigating, detecting or prosecuting criminal offences, including terrorism