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20 July 2016
Former Acclarent, Inc. Executives Convicted of Crimes Related to the Sale of Medical DevicesRead the Press Release
BOSTON – The former Chief Executive Officer and Vice President of Sales of Acclarent, Inc., a medical device company, were convicted by a federal jury in connection with distributing adulterated and misbranded medical devices.
William Facteau, 47, of Atherton, Cal., and Patrick Fabian, 49, of Lake Elmo, Minn., were convicted by a jury following a six week trial of 10 counts of introducing adulterated and misbranded medical devices into interstate commerce.
The jury concluded that Facteau and Fabian caused the unlawful distribution of a medical device known as the Relieva Stratus Microflow Spacer (“Stratus”) for uses not cleared or approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. Despite the fact that the company had told the FDA that the Stratus was a medical device intended to maintain an opening to a patient’s sinus, Facteau and Fabian launched the product intending it to be used as a steroid delivery device. The FDA, however, had specifically refused Acclarent’s request to clear the Stratus for marketing as a drug delivery device without further submissions to support that use.
The evidence at trial demonstrated that Facteau and Fabian sought to quickly develop and market products, including the Stratus as a drug delivery device, to create a projected revenue stream that would make Acclarent an attractive business for either an initial public offering or acquisition.
The jury acquitted Facteau and Fabian on 14 felony counts of fraud. The 10 counts of conviction were misdemeanor counts related to the same conduct.
The charge of violating the Food, Drug and Cosmetics Act provides for a sentence of no greater than one year in prison on each count, one year of supervised releaseand fine of $100,000 or twice the gross gain or loss. Actual sentences for federal crimes are typically less than the maximum penalties. Sentences are imposed by a federal district court judge based upon the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
United States Attorney Carmen M. Ortiz; Harold H. Shaw, Special Agent in Charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Boston Field Division; Jeffrey Ebersole, Special Agent in Charge of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, Office of Criminal Investigations, New York Field Office; Phillip Coyne, Special Agent in Charge of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Office of the Inspector General, Office of Investigations; Craig Rupert, Special Agent in Charge of the Department of Defense, Office of Inspector General, Defense Criminal Investigative Service, Northeastern Field Office; and Jeffrey Hughes, Special Agent in Charge of the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, Office of Inspector General, Northeast Field Office. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Sara Miron Bloom, Patrick Callahan and William Weinreb of Ortiz’s Criminal Division with the assistance of Trial Attorney Raquel Toledo of the Justice Department’s Consumer Protection Branch and Beth Weinman of the FDA’s Office of General Counsel.
Filipino National Admits Running $9 Million Stolen Credit and Debit Card Cybercrime RingRead the Press Release
NEWARK, N.J. – A Filipino national today admitted running an international cashing operation that monetized stolen credit and debit card information obtained through computer hacking and ATM skimming operations, U.S. Attorney Paul J. Fishman announced.
Angelo Virtucio, a/k/a “ZaiR,” a/k/a “ZaiRe,” a/k/a “Omega,” a/k/a “Omega10,” 30, of Quezon City, Philippines, pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Susan D. Wigenton in Newark federal court to an information charging him with one count of conspiracy to commit bank fraud. Virtucio was arrested in the Southern District of Florida on Jan. 29, 2015 and was extradited to the District of New Jersey on Feb. 11, 2015.
According to documents filed in this case and statements made in court:
Virtucio monetized millions from stolen credit and debit card data using a global network of “cashers” that he employed to enter into unauthorized financial transactions using the accounts related to the stolen information.
The stolen credit card data was primarily obtained through computer hacking. The stolen debit card data was mostly obtained through ATM skimming operations. After purchasing the stolen data from other cybercriminals, Virtucio and his conspirators encoded it onto counterfeit credit and debit cards. The cashers then used the counterfeit cards to make unauthorized ATM withdrawals and purchases at physical retail locations.
The conspiracy to commit bank fraud charge is punishable by a potential maximum of 30 years in prison and a $1 million fine. Sentencing is scheduled for Oct. 24, 2016.
U.S. Attorney Fishman credited the special agents of the U.S. Secret Service, Newark Division, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Mark McKevitt, with the ongoing investigation.
The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorney Andrew S. Pak of the Computer Hacking and Intellectual Property Section of the Economic Crimes Unit.
Defense counsel: Kathleen Theurer Esq. and A. Paul Condon Esq.
Felon Charged with Possessing Firearm and AmmunitionRead the Press Release
Muadhdhin Bey, age 33, of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, was charged today by Indictment1 with possessing a firearm and ammunition on March 28, 2016, after having been convicted of a felony offense, announced United States Attorney Zane David Memeger.
If convicted the defendant faces a maximum of 10 years in prison, a special assessment of $100, a 3 year term of supervised release, and a potential fine.
The case was investigated by the Philadelphia Police Department and the Federal Bureau of Investigation and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Jonathan B. Ortiz.
1An Indictment is an accusation. A defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
Federal Jury in New Mexico Convicts Mexican National on Methamphetamine Trafficking Conspiracy ChargeRead the Press Release
ALBUQUERQUE – A federal jury sitting in Las Cruces, N.M., returned a verdict today finding Javier Amador-Flores, 49, guilty on a methamphetamine trafficking conspiracy charge after a three-day trial. U.S. Attorney Damon P. Martinez, Special Agent in Charge Waldemar Rodriguez of Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) in El Paso, Chief Patrol Agent Jeffrey D. Self of the U.S. Border Patrol El Paso Sector, and Commander Byron Wester of the Lea County Drug Task Force, announced the guilty verdict.
Amador-Flores, a permanent resident from Mexico who lived in Denver City, Texas, was arrested on July 29, 2015, on an indictment charging him and four co-defendants, three of whom are Mexican nationals, with participating in a conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine in Lea County, N.M., from May 1, 2015 through May 6, 2015. Three of Amador-Flores’ co-defendants, Joel Dominguez-Morales, 41, Maria Marcelina Cardoza-Burciaga, 40, and Myrna Orozco, 32, a U.S. citizen, were also arrested. The fourth co-defendant, Jose Manuel Trujillo, 41, has yet to be arrested and is considered a fugitive.
Dominguez-Morales, Cardoza-Burciaga and Orozco pled guilty to participating in the methamphetamine trafficking conspiracy charged. Amador-Flores elected to proceed to trial.
Amador-Flores’ trial began July 18, 2016, and concluded this afternoon when the jury returned a verdict of guilty on the sole count indictment. The evidence at trial established that Amador-Flores participated in the methamphetamine trafficking conspiracy by receiving and storing shipments of methamphetamine at the residence he shared with Orozco in Denver City. Other members of the conspiracy distributed the methamphetamine in Lea County.
According to trial testimony, on May 1, 2015, an undercover agent arranged to purchase methamphetamine from Trujillo. On May 6, 2015, Trujillo informed the undercover agent that Dominguez-Morales would be delivering the methamphetamine to the agent. Thereafter, Dominguez-Morales met with the undercover agent at a restaurant in Hobbs and directed the agent to meet him at an abandoned bar in a rural area outside of Hobbs, where a woman would deliver the methamphetamine. Later that day, law enforcement officers arrested Dominguez-Morales and Cardoza-Burciaga near the abandoned bar and seized almost four kilograms of methamphetamine.
As part of their continuing investigation, on May 6, 2015, the officers executed a consensual search at the residence shared by Amador-Flores and Orozco, where they seized additional methamphetamine. During the trial, the jury learned that after his arrest, Amador-Flores made a statement to law enforcement officers in which he acknowledged that Trujillo and Dominguez-Morales were his friends and that he was aware of their drug trafficking activities. He also stated that Trujillo offered to pay him $2,000 to deliver the methamphetamine to the undercover agent on May 6, 2015. The evidence established that although Amador-Flores agreed to make the delivery for Trujillo, he did not do so because Dominguez-Morales was able to make the delivery.
The jury returned a guilty verdict after deliberating approximately two and a half hours.
Amador-Flores remains in custody pending his sentencing hearing, which has yet to be scheduled. At sentencing, Amador-Flores faces a statutory mandatory minimum of ten years and a maximum of life in prison. He will be deported after completing his prison sentence.
His co-defendants Dominguez-Morales, Cardoza-Burciaga and Orozco each face a statutory maximum penalty of 20 years in prison. Dominguez-Morales and Cardoza-Burciaga will be deported after serving their prison sentences.
The charges against Trujillo are merely accusations and he is presumed innocent unless found guilty in a court of law.
This case was investigated by the Las Cruces office of Homeland Security Investigations, U.S. Customs and Border Protection and the Lea County Drug Task Force, with assistance from the Yoakum County (Texas) Sheriff’s Office. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Brock Taylor and Matthew Beck of the U.S. Attorney’s Las Cruces Branch Office are prosecuting the case.
The Lea County Drug Task Force is comprised of officers from the Lea County Sheriff’s Office, Hobbs Police Department, Lovington Police Department, Eunice Police Department the Tatum Police Department and the Jal Police Department, and is part of the NM HIDTA Region VI Drug Task Force. The High Intensity Drug Trafficking Areas (HIDTA) program was created by Congress with the Anti-Drug Abuse Act of 1988. HIDTA is a program of the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP) which provides assistance to federal, state, local and tribal law enforcement agencies operating in areas determined to be critical drug-trafficking regions of the United States and seeks to reduce drug trafficking and production by facilitating coordinated law enforcement activities and information sharing.
Federal Grand Jury Indicts Cherokee Woman in International Parental Kidnapping CaseRead the Press Release
CHARLOTTE, N.C. – United States Attorney Jill Westmoreland Rose announced today that a federal grand jury sitting in Charlotte returned yesterday a criminal indictment against Shira Elizabeth Mattocks, aka Shira Elizabeth Raman, 27, of Cherokee, N.C., for kidnapping her three children and fleeing to Mexico. Mattocks was first charged by a criminal complaint filed in the Western District of North Carolina on June 20, 2016, and she was arrested the same month upon returning to the United States.
John A. Strong, Special Agent in Charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), Charlotte Division, and Chief James Dike Sneed of the Cherokee Indian Police Department join U.S. Attorney Rose in making today’s announcement.
According to allegations contained in the criminal complaint and the bill of indictment, Mattocks was involved in ongoing custody disputes with the fathers of her three young children, identified in court documents as E.A., J.O. and S.O.As alleged in court documents, sometime after November 14, 2014, Mattocks kidnapped E.A., J.O. and S.O., and fled the United States with the intent to obstruct the lawful exercise of the fathers’ parental rights.Law enforcement located Mattocks in Mexico and with the assistance and cooperation of the Mexican authorities Mattocks was deported back to the United States.On June 22, 2016, Mattocks was taken into custody upon her arrival at Hartfield-Jackson Atlanta International airport.
In making today’s announcement U.S. Attorney Rose said, “As alleged in the indictment, Mattocks abducted her three young children and fled to another country, where she hid for more than a year and a half.Rather than deal with pending custody issues, Mattocks chose to run, causing significant distress to the children’s fathers and potentially exposing the young victims to a great deal of psychological harm.Thanks to the diligent efforts of our law enforcement partners, the children have safely returned to the United States to resume a normal childhood and Mattocks will face the consequences of her actions.”
“The FBI is uniquely positioned to investigate cases involving charges related to international parental kidnapping. Through our Legal Attaché offices covering more than 200 countries, the FBI can work directly with other law enforcement agencies to bring justice to children whose parents try to take the law into their own hands,” said FBI’s Special Agent in Charge Strong.
Mattocks is currently in federal custody. Her arraignment has been scheduled for July 27, 2016, at 9:40 a.m. before U.S. Magistrate Judge Dennis Howell in Asheville. Mattocks is charged with three counts of international parental kidnapping. Each charge carries a maximum term of three years in prison.
The charges contained in the indictment are allegations. The defendant is 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 commended the FBI and the Cherokee Indian Police Department for their investigation of the case, and thanked LEGAT Mexico City, Guadalajara Sub-office, participating officers with the Instituto Nacional de Migración and La Policía Federal for their invaluable assistance.
Assistant U.S. Attorney John Pritchard of the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Asheville is prosecuting the case.
Family Members Convicted of $1.2 Million Tax Refund Fraud ConspiracyRead the Press Release
TALLAHASSEE, FLORIDA – After a six-day trial, a federal jury convicted Jennifer Maldonado, 29, and her father Jorge Maldonado, 52, both of Oviedo, Florida, of conspiracy, wire fraud, theft of government property, and aggravated identity theft. Co-conspirators Sharon Glover and Diane White, both 54 of Sanford, Florida, pled guilty in February 2016 to conspiracy, theft of government property, and aggravated identity theft. The verdicts and guilty pleas were announced by Christopher P. Canova, United States Attorney for the Northern District of Florida.
At trial, the government presented evidence that, between 2009 and 2011, Jorge Maldonado and his daughter Jennifer, who were both tax preparers, conspired with Glover and White to obtain more than $1.2 million in income tax refunds issued on fraudulent tax returns. The Maldonados filed returns that generated refunds. Glover and White cashed refund checks issued as a result of the fraudulent returns at a Tallahassee supermarket. They deposited cash proceeds of the checks into the Maldonados’ bank accounts or delivered the cash to the Maldonados. Glover and White cashed 505 checks by using fraudulent powers of attorney, approximately 16 different forged notary seals, and forged taxpayer signatures.
The defendants face a maximum of 20 years in prison for conspiracy and wire fraud, and a maximum of 10 years in prison for theft of government property. The defendants also face a mandatory term of two years in prison for aggravated identity theft, which must be served consecutively to any penalty they receive on the other counts.
The sentencing hearings are scheduled as follows at the United States Courthouse in Tallahassee:
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Jorge Maldonado: October 5, 2016, at 9:30 a.m.;
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Jennifer Maldonado: October 5, 2016, at 2:30 p.m.;
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Sharon Glover: August 4, 2016, at 10:30 a.m.; and
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Diane White: September 16, 2016, at 2:30 p.m.
This case resulted from an investigation by the Internal Revenue Service – Criminal Investigation. Assistant United States Attorneys Herbert S. Lindsey and Gary K. Milligan are 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]-
Embezzler Receives Enhanced Sentence for Faking Terminal ConditionRead the Press Release
HOUSTON – A former employee of Southwestern Energy Co. has been ordered to prison following her conviction of embezzlement, announced U.S. Attorney Kenneth Magidson. Kendra Walker, 28, pleaded guilty to embezzling $452,025.56.
Today, U.S. District Judge Nancy Atlas found that Walker had obstructed justice and enhanced her sentence, ordering her to serve a total of 36 months in federal prison. In handing down the sentence, Judge Atlas noted that “this crime is inexcusable."
In an attempt to receive a more lenient sentence, Walker had claimed she was being treated at a hospice for a terminal condition and submitted a three-page report purportedly created by her hospice. However, the U.S. Attorney’s Office noticed that this report claimed Walker had been diagnosed with “stage 5” breast cancer, whereas stage 4 is regarded as the gravest stage by the National Cancer Institute.
The FBI investigated further and found the report Walker submitted to not be genuine. Further, Walker had never been a hospice patient. Walker also claimed to have been recently treated at M.D. Anderson Cancer Center, but hospital representatives confirmed there were no records of her having been treated there.
Walker had previously pleaded guilty to embezzling from her former employer, Southwestern Energy Co., where she had been employed in its accounts payable department. Starting in February 2014, Walker abused her position to access her employer’s accounts payable system and fraudulently changed vendor records to instead list her own bank accounts. She then caused Southwestern Energy Co.’s accounts payable system to pay invoices that, in reality, the vendors did not submit. Instead, these payments were transmitted into her bank accounts because Walker had changed the vendors’ bank account information.
From February 2014 to February 2015, Walker embezzled $452,025.56. As part of her sentencing, the court also ordered Walker to pay full restitution to Southwestern Energy Co.
Walker was permitted to remain on bond and voluntarily surrender to a U.S. Bureau of Prisons facility to be determined in the near future.
The FBI investigated. Assistant U.S. Attorney Michael Chu is prosecuting the case.
Drug Dealer Sentenced to 9 Years in Federal Prison for Distributing Heroin/Fentanyl to Two Customers who OverdosedRead the Press Release
Greenbelt, Maryland – U.S. District Judge Paul W. Grimm sentenced Edward Dewy Viens, age 30, of North Beach, Maryland, today to 108 months in federal prison, followed by three years of supervised release, for conspiracy to distribute and possession with intent to distribute controlled substances. Judge Grimm also ordered Viens to forfeit $1,302, seized during the investigation.
The sentence was announced by United States Attorney for the District of Maryland Rod J. Rosenstein; Assistant Special Agent in Charge Don A. Hibbert of the Drug Enforcement Administration, Baltimore District Office; Calvert County Sheriff Mike Evans; Calvert County State’s Attorney Laura Martin; and Anne Arundel County State’s Attorney Wes Adams.
“More than 50 Marylanders die every month from heroin, which may be poisoned with deadly additives, according to the Maryland Department of Health and Mental Hygiene,” said U.S. Attorney Rod J. Rosenstein. “If you know someone who uses heroin, get them help today before they become the next statistic.”
According to his plea agreement, from October to December 30, 2014, Viens obtained heroin and fentanyl from a supplier in Annapolis, and redistributed those drugs to users in Prince George’s, Calvert and Anne Arundel Counties.
On November 30, 2014, a Calvert County Sheriff’s Office (CCSO) patrol officer attempted to pull over a vehicle in Owings, Maryland for a traffic violation. When the officer activated his lights, the vehicle turned abruptly into a driveway and stopped. Viens got out of the vehicle and threw approximately 13 grams of heroin to the ground as he ran away, eluding arrest.
On December 21, 2014, Viens met one of his regular customers at a gas station in Calvert County and sold a gram of mixture containing heroin and/or fentanyl for $120. Afterwards, the customer and an acquaintance drove to a secluded area where the customer ingested the drugs. Almost immediately, the customer lost consciousness. The acquaintance called emergency personnel who performed CPR on the victim and administered Naloxone Hydrochloride (Narcan). The victim was subsequently admitted to a hospital and diagnosed with a heroin overdose.
A few days later on December 27, Viens met another customer in Calvert County and sold 1.5 grams of a mixture containing heroin and/or fentanyl for $210. Veins warned the customer to “be careful, people have been falling out over this. It’s fire, so just please be careful.” The customer drove to a nearby parking lot and ingested a small amount of the drugs. The customer then dropped off an acquaintance and drove to a second parking lot, ingesting more of the drugs. The customer drove a short distance from the parking lot, lost consciousness and struck a telephone pole. CCSO officers found the victim unconscious and unresponsive. They administered Narcan, and the victim was taken to a hospital and diagnosed with a heroin overdose.
On December 30, 2014, law enforcement officers executed a search warrant at Viens’ hotel room in Annapolis. They detained Viens, who was attempting to flush drugs and drug paraphernalia down the toilet. They seized a digital scale with heroin residue, material used to package drugs, a bag containing alprazolam and oxycodone pills, syringes and a residue from a table that contained fentanyl, caffeine and quinine. Law enforcement also recovered $302 from Viens’ wallet, and $1,000 from Viens’ front pants pocket, or that had spilled out of his pocket.
United States Attorney Rod J. Rosenstein commended the DEA, Calvert County Sheriff’s Office, and the Calvert County and Anne Arundel County State Attorney’s Offices for their work in the investigation and prosecution. Mr. Rosenstein thanked Assistant U.S. Attorneys Thomas M. Sullivan and Daniel C. Gardner, who prosecuted the case.
District Man Pleads Guilty to Federal Charge for Impersonating a Congressional Chief of StaffRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON – Jarrett Lewis, 35, pled guilty today to a federal charge stemming from his impersonation of the chief of staff of a member of Congress, announced U.S. Attorney Channing D. Phillips and Matthew R. Verderosa, Chief of the U.S. Capitol Police.
Lewis, of Washington, D.C., pled guilty in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia to a charge of false personation of an employee or officer of the United States. The charge carries a statutory maximum of three years in prison and potential financial penalties. Under federal sentencing guidelines, Lewis could face up to six months in prison and a fine. The Honorable Rudolph Contreras scheduled sentencing for Oct. 13, 2016.
According to a statement of offense submitted as part of the plea, from September 2014 through May 2015, Lewis falsely claimed to be a chief of staff for the Honorable John Lewis, a member of the U.S. House of Representatives. He did so to request admission and special privileges at a high-end restaurant, bar and lounge in Miami’s South Beach area and to seek field passes from the Washington Redskins for a football game. The scheme came to the attention of Congressman Lewis’s actual chief of staff, and led to a law enforcement investigation.
In announcing the plea, U.S. Attorney Phillips and Chief Verderosa commended the work of those who investigated the case from the U.S. Capitol Police. They also acknowledged the efforts of those who worked on the case at the U.S. Attorney’s Office, including Assistant U.S. Attorney Mervin A. Bourne, Jr., who is prosecuting the matter.
Court Shuts Down Houston-Area Tax Return PreparerRead the Press Release
Houston Man Allegedly Falsely Overstated Customers’ Itemized Deductions
A Houston, Texas, tax return preparer fraudulently lowered his clients’ federal income taxes by overstating the deductions they claimed on Schedule A (Itemized Deductions), according to a lawsuit filed by the Justice Department in May. Now a federal court has barred the defendant in that case from preparing tax returns for others.
Charles Lee Harrison admitted to the allegations in the government’s complaint, including that he prevented his clients from realizing that their returns contained false items by not reviewing the returns with his clients and by sometimes not showing his clients the Schedule A that contained he false deductions. Harrison also occasionally prepared returns that contained false credits and false Schedule F (Profit or Loss from Farming) losses. Harrison did business under the names Harrison and Harrison Services and Harrison Tax & Legal Services in Grimes County and Harris County, Texas. In 2014, Harrison pleaded guilty to willfully aiding and assisting in the preparation and presentation of a false tax return.
Return preparer fraud is one of the Internal Revenue Service’s (IRS) Dirty Dozen Tax Scams for 2016. The IRS has some tips on their website for choosing a tax preparer and has launched a free directory of federal tax preparers. In the past decade, the Tax Division has obtained injunctions against hundreds of unscrupulous tax preparers. Information about these cases is available on the Justice Department’s website. An alphabetical listing of persons enjoined from preparing returns and promoting tax schemes can be found on this page. If you believe that one of the enjoined persons or businesses may be violating an injunction, please contact the Tax Division with details.
Corcoran Man Indicted for Multimillion Dollar Fraud in the Bakken Oil FieldsRead the Press Release
United States Attorney Andrew M. Luger today announced an indictment charging RONALD DAVID JOHNSON, 50, for stealing more than $2.1 million from victims hoping to invest successfully in the North Dakota oil boom. JOHNSON is charged with five counts of wire fraud, one count of money laundering. JOHNSON is expected to appear tomorrow before Magistrate Judge Becky R. Thorson in U.S. District Court in Saint Paul, Minn.
According to the indictment and documents filed in court, JOHNSON came up with an investment idea to address the need to house oil workers in the Bakken in North Dakota and Montana. The idea, registered as Indoor RV Parks, LLC, would allow oil workers to eschew more common barracks-style housing in favor of comfortable indoor RV parks, which would have been large warehouses where oil workers could park their RVs and have access to shared amenities like laundry and vending machines.
According to the indictment, JOHNSON fraudulently solicited $2.1 million from four investors in Indoor RV Parks, LLC, telling the investors that their money would be used to build and manage indoor RV parks for oil workers. Instead of using the invested money for RV parks, JOHNSON used more than $1.8 million to fund his personal cattle farm, take vacations, buy vintage Chevrolets, and purchase real estate, including an entire 17-acre island on Mink Lake in Maple Lake, Minn.
This case is the result of an investigation conducted by the Criminal Investigation Division of the IRS and the FBI.
This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Joseph H. Thompson.
Defendant Information:RONALD DAVID JOHNSON, 50
Corcoran, Minn.Charges: • Wire fraud, 5 counts
• Money laundering, 1 countCoffee County Man Sentenced to Serve 262 Months in PrisonRead the Press Release
CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. – On July 20, 2016, Brian Lee Fielding, a.k.a. “Bull”, 35, of Coffee County, Tenn., was sentenced to serve 262 months in prison by the Honorable Curtis L. Collier, U.S. District Judge.
Fielding pleaded guilty in March 2016 to a federal indictment charging him with, among other things, conspiracy to distribute and possess with the intent to distribute 50 grams or more of methamphetamine (actual) and 500 grams or more of a mixture and substance containing a detectable amount of methamphetamine.
Information on file with the U.S. District Court, shows that Fielding conspired with others to distribute and possess with the intent to distribute methamphetamine in the Eastern District of Tennessee and elsewhere from January 2015 until at least September 2015. His role in the conspiracy was to obtain methamphetamine for others to distribute in furtherance of the conspiracy. As part of his plea agreement, Fielding admitted that he personally distributed one kilogram of methamphetamine (actual) in furtherance of the conspiracy.
Fielding was classified as a “career offender” under federal law because he had two prior drug trafficking convictions, including a 2009 conviction for distribution of cocaine in Coffee County. He committed the instant offense shortly after being released from prison on his conviction for distribution of cocaine. His federal sentence reflected his prior state convictions and the risk of harm his conduct posed to society. Judge Collier also recommended that Fielding participate in a drug treatment program while he is in prison.
The indictment and subsequent conviction of Fielding was the result of an investigation conducted by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Manchester Police Department, Coffee County Sheriff’s Office, Winchester Police Department, and Tennessee Highway Patrol. Assistant U.S. Attorney Michael D. Porter represented the United States.
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Cleveland man pleads guilty to crack cocaine distributionRead the Press Release
WHEELING, WEST VIRGINIA – Donny Deshawn Parker, 24, of Cleveland, Ohio, pled guilty to crack cocaine distribution in federal court today, United States Attorney William J. Ihlenfeld, II, announced.
Parker pled guilty to one count of “Distribution of Cocaine Base.” He admitted to selling crack cocaine in Marshall County, WV. He faces up to twenty years in prison and a fine of up to $1,000,000. Under the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, the actual sentence imposed will be based upon the seriousness of the offenses and the prior criminal history, if any, of the defendant.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Stephen L. Vogrin prosecuted the case on behalf of the government. The Marshall County Drug Task Force investigated.
Senior U.S. District Judge Frederick P. Stamp, Jr. presided.
Chicago-Based Drug Courier Sentenced to Four Years in Federal Prison for Participating in Multi-State Heroin Trafficking ConspiracyRead the Press Release
SCRANTON-The United States Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Pennsylvania announced that a 37-year-old Mexican national who resided in Chicago at the time of his arrest was sentenced on Tuesday to serve four years in prison by U.S. District Court Judge Robert D. Mariani in Scranton for his role in a drug conspiracy that was responsible for distributing large quantities of heroin during a four-year time period in Monroe, Carbon, Montgomery, and Berks Counties in Pennsylvania.
According to United States Attorney Peter Smith, the defendant, Gilberto Bautista-Ocampo, previously admitted to acting as a courier to transport heroin from Chicago to Pennsylvania during February 2014.
Bautista-Ocampo was indicted by a federal grand jury in March 2014, as a result of an investigation by the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), Homeland Security Investigations, the Pennsylvania State Police, the Pennsylvania Attorney General’s Office, Berks County Detectives and Montgomery County Detectives.
Judge Mariani also noted that the defendant faces possible deportation as a result of his criminal conduct.
This case was brought as part of a district wide initiative to combat the nationwide epidemic regarding the use and distribution of heroin. Led by the United States Attorney’s Office, the heroin initiative targets heroin traffickers operating in the Middle District of Pennsylvania and is part of a coordinated effort among federal, state and local law enforcement agencies.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Francis P. Sempa prosecuted the case.
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Chicago Man Sentenced to More Than 72 Years for Multiple Armed Bank RobberiesRead the Press Release
GRAND RAPIDS, MICHIGAN —U.S. Attorney Patrick A. Miles, Jr., announced today that Dominick T. Johnson, 34, of Chicago, Illinois, was sentenced to 72 years and eight months in prison by U.S. District Judge Gordon J. Quist. Johnson was convicted by a jury in January of seven crimes—including conspiracy, bank robbery, and firearms charges—after a two-week trial.
Johnson planned and served as the get-away driver for three completed bank robberies in and around Kalamazoo: the May 29, 2014, robbery of PNC Bank in Galesburg, the July 29, 2014, robbery of Comerica Bank in Comstock Township, and the January 8, 2015, robbery of Old National Bank in Oshtemo Township. Johnson’s half-brother, Nathan Benson, previously pled guilty for his role in the robberies. In all three robberies, Benson brandished a loaded firearm and pointed it at bank employees. In two of the robberies, Benson forced the employees into the bank’s vault. The conspiracy also involved three planned bank robberies that were unsuccessful; two were disrupted by law enforcement and one was thwarted by a traffic accident. One significant piece of evidence that led to the conviction of Johnson was the recovery of DNA evidence from a partially eaten hamburger recovered from the bank robbers’ path of flight from the Old National Bank robbery. Johnson also listened to two of the robberies via cell phone calls to Benson, while Johnson’s cell phone was registering with towers near the banks. Benson was sentenced to 14 years’ imprisonment in March.
“The Court’s sentence is an unambiguous message: violent crime will not be tolerated in Western Michigan,” said U.S. Attorney Miles. “The defendant placed the lives of bank employees and customers in extraordinary danger by orchestrating these robberies, and now he will face the consequences of his decisions.”
The investigation was led by the FBI and the Kalamazoo County Sheriff’s Office. Other assisting agencies were the Michigan State Police, the Kalamazoo Department of Public Safety, the Baroda-Lake Township Police Department, the Galesburg Police Department, and the Van Buren County Prosecutor’s Office.
Assistant U.S. Attorneys Justin M. Presant and Hagen W. Frank prosecuted the case.END
Canadian Woman Pleads Guilty to Attempting to Enter the United States IllegallyRead the Press Release
CONTACT: Barbara Burns
PHONE: (716) 843-5817
FAX: (716) 551-3051BUFFALO, N.Y.—U.S. Attorney William J. Hochul, Jr. announced today that Marta Sawicka, 35, of Canada, pleaded guilty to attempting to enter the United States at a time or place other than as designated by immigration officers, before U.S. Magistrate Judge H. Kenneth Schroeder. The defendant was then sentenced to time served.
According to Assistant U.S. Attorney Aaron J. Mango, who handled the case, on July 18, 2016, Sawicka was found illegally entering the United States from Canada by walking across the upper level of the Whirlpool Rapids Bridge around 2:30 a.m. The upper level of the Whirlpool Rapids Bridge is designated solely for railroad traffic and is clearly marked with signs as a no trespassing area. The lower level of the Whirlpool Rapids Bridge is designated for passenger vehicle traffic and is in operation only between the hours of 7:00 a.m. and 11:00 p.m. daily. Outside of these hours the lower level of the bridge is closed with locked gates preventing vehicle or pedestrian traffic between the United States and Canada. The defendant was spotted by a Border Patrol officer and arrested.
During processing at the Border Patrol Station, Sawicka was fingerprinted which revealed prior immigration history. In February 2016, the defendant attempted to enter the United States at the Highgate Springs Port of Entry in Vermont but was stopped by Customs and Border Protection Officers. Sawicka was removed and was barred from reentering the United States for a period of five years.
The plea and sentencing are the culmination of an investigation by U.S. Border Patrol, under the direction of Chief Patrol Agent Brian Hastings.
California Man Sentenced for Fraud Scheme Involving Bank of AmericaRead the Press Release
RICHMOND, Va. – Danny Lamar Andrews, 54, of Richmond, California, was sentenced today to 84 months in prison for bank fraud and aggravated identity theft. He was also ordered to pay $69,500 restitution to Bank of America and to serve five years of supervised release when released from prison.
Andrews pleaded guilty on March 18. According to court documents, Andrews entered Bank of America branches in Pennsylvania, New Jersey, and Virginia while impersonating Bank of America account holders. He withdrew funds from their accounts using stolen debit card numbers and false identifications. Bank of America incurred $69,500 in actual losses and Andrews attempted other unsuccessful transactions totaling $46,000 in intended losses arising from aborted transactions. Over the last 17 years Andrews has a dozen prior convictions, 10 of which were for fraud or theft related offenses, over the last seventeen years.
Dana J. Boente, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia; Douglas F. Mease, Special Agent in Charge of the U.S. Secret Service’s Richmond Field Office; and Humberto I. Cardounel, Jr., Chief of Henrico County Police Division, made the announcement after sentencing by U.S. District Judge John A. Gibney, Jr. Assistant U.S. Attorney Michael C. Moore prosecuted the case.
This case was investigated by the Metro-Richmond Identity Theft Task Force. They were assisted by the police departments in Pennsylvania and New Jersey. Prosecutions for the Task Force are handled by the U.S. Attorney’s Office and the Office of the Attorney General for the Commonwealth of Virginia.
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. 3:16-cr-34.
Buffalo Woman Indicted for Conspiring to Threaten, Solicit Violence on TwitterRead the Press Release
SPRINGFIELD, Mo. – Tammy Dickinson, United States Attorney for the Western District of Missouri, announced today that additional charges have been filed against a Buffalo, Mo., woman for conspiring to solicit violence against federal agents and military service members by utilizing various Twitter accounts.
Safya Roe Yassin, 38, of Buffalo, was charged in a three-count superseding indictment returned by a federal grand jury in Springfield, Mo., on Tuesday, July 19, 2016. The superseding indictment replaces an indictment returned on Feb. 23, 2016, and includes an additional count of transmitting a threatening communication and a new conspiracy count.
The federal indictment alleges that Yassin conspired with others from May 2015 to Feb. 18, 2016, and utilized Twitter to disseminate information that they believed to be from the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL). That information allegedly included threats and solicitations of violence against two current employees of the FBI and two former U.S. service members.
When Twitter suspended an account for violations of its terms of service, the indictment says, Yassin and her co-conspirators created new accounts in a manner that could be readily identified, so that followers of their prior accounts could find the new accounts. When new accounts were established, Yassin and her co-conspirators promoted the newly created Twitter accounts of other co-conspirators in order to maintain a constant presence of Twitter accounts providing information that they believed to be from ISIL.
In addition to the conspiracy, Yassin is charged with two counts of transmitting a threatening communication over the Internet.
According to the indictment, on Aug. 24, 2015, Yassin posted on Twitter a message previously posted by another user with the explicit phrase “Wanted to kill” followed by the first and last name, status as an employee of the FBI, city of residence, zip code and phone number of Victim 1. In the same communication, Yassin allegedly repeated the same explicit “Wanted to kill” phrase followed by the first and last name, status as an employee of the FBI, city of residence, zip code and phone number of Victim 2. This charge was contained in the original indictment.
According to the indictment, on Oct. 8, 2015, Yassin posted on Twitter a message previously posted by another user that contained a link to a document with the name and home address for a former U.S. service member identified as Victim 3, photos of Victim 3 with his family, and the names of Victim 3’s spouse and children along with the explicit phrase “to eventually hunt him down & kill him.” The document also contained the name and home address of Victim 4, a former U.S. service member who had been the previous target of solicitations to commit a crime of violence and threats on social media.
Dickinson cautioned that the charges contained in this indictment are simply accusations, and not evidence of guilt. Evidence supporting the charges must be presented to a federal trial jury, whose duty is to determine guilt or innocence.
This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Brian Casey and Abram McGull II. It was investigated by the FBI.
Bogalusa Man Sentenced for Oxycodone DistributionRead the Press Release
U.S. Attorney Kenneth A. Polite announced that DONALD FONTENOT, age 63, of Bogalusa, was sentenced today after previously pleading guilty to four counts of selling oxycodone tablets to an undercover Drug Enforcement Administration agent. Oxycodone is a prescription-only Schedule II controlled substance and a highly addictive and abused opioid drug.
U.S. District Judge Kurt D. Engelhardt sentenced the defendant to a term of imprisonment of 24 months, 3 years of supervised release, and a $400 special assessment.
U.S. Attorney Polite praised the work of the DEA Tactical Diversion Squad in investigating this matter. Assistant United States Attorney Michael B. Redmann was in charge of the prosecution
Basin Man Sentenced to 18 Months for Clean Water Act Violations and Destruction of U.S. PropertyRead the Press Release
MISSOULA – Joseph David Robertson, 77, was sentenced today to eighteen months in prison and three years’ supervised release for unauthorized discharge of pollutants into waters of the United States and injury or depredation of United States property. Robertson must also pay $129,933.50 in restitution. U.S. District Court Judge Donald W. Molloy issued the sentence and ordered that Robertson be detained immediately. Robertson was convicted in April following a four day federal trial.
Robertson was indicted by a grand jury in May of 2015 as a result of illegal ponds he built on two parcels of land near Basin, Montana, one on Beaverhead-Deerlodge National Forest land and the other on adjacent private property. Robertson has continually asserted that he owns the property where ponds were built, but he does not. The ponds resulted in the discharge of dredged and fill material into a tributary stream and adjacent wetlands and caused widespread damage to both properties.
At trial, the government introduced evidence that in October of 2013, a United States Forest Service (USFS) Special Agent visited the National Forest property to determine whether Robertson had complied with previously issued conditions of probation for misdemeanor violations of USFS regulations. The Agent testified at trial that during the site visit, she observed multiple ponds dug into an existing stream on both USFS and adjacent private property not owned by Robertson.
During a subsequent site visit in November of 2013, Robertson admitted to Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and USFS Criminal Special Agents that he had performed the work on the National Forest property using an excavator. State and federal officials visited the site again in May of 2014, and observed that Robertson had done additional work. The site was now approximately 1.2 acres in size, and extended beyond the National Forest property to a private property that he did not own. The work consisted of nine ponds of varying sizes, including some as large as approximately 4900 square feet that were placed directly in the stream and wetlands area. Unconsolidated dredged material from the ponds had been used to create the berms and had been placed in and around the stream and wetlands. Robertson admitted that he had completed the additional work. Additional investigation revealed that Robertson continued to construct ponds on the USFS property after May of 2014, despite being told repeatedly that he had no legal right to do so.
One of the central legal issues at trial was whether the waters polluted by Robertson were “waters of the United States” for purposes of the Clean Water Act. The United States introduced evidence and expert testimony from the Army Corps of Engineers and the EPA that the stream and wetlands had a significant nexus to traditional navigable waters, and therefore were “waters of the United States.” Fishery biologists from the Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks (FWP) and the USFS testified that this headwater and wetland complex provided critical support to trout in downstream rivers and fisheries, including the Boulder and Jefferson Rivers.
“Robertson damaged federal land that the government holds in trust for the people of the United States,” said United States Attorney for the District of Montana Mike Cotter. “Clean waterways and healthy riparian ecosystems benefit the people who are the true owners of our public lands. This is not merely an issue of dumping a little dirt into a small stream, it is an illustration of the fact that waterways and riparian ecosystems are interconnected, and this type of destruction has significant environmental consequences downstream. This sentence sends a message that meaningful enforcement of environmental laws serves to protect resources owned by all Americans.”
“Like all Americans, Montana residents expect their local waterways to be clean and free of pollution,” said Jeffrey Martinez, Special Agent in Charge of EPA’s criminal enforcement program in Montana. “This defendant is a repeat violator, with the conduct in this case affecting a Montana waterway, National Forest Service Lands, and private property not belonging to the defendant. The EPA and its law enforcement partners are committed to protecting public health and our nation’s natural resources.”
The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Bryan Whittaker and Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Eric Nelson from the United States Environmental Protection Agency. This case was investigated by multiple state and federal agencies including the United States Forest Service, the Environmental Protection Agency Criminal Investigation Division, the Army Corps of Engineers, and the Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office. Other agencies that assisted the investigation included Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks and the Jefferson Valley Conservation District.
Baltimore Armed Robber Sentenced to over 15 Years in Federal Prison for Two Store RobberiesRead the Press Release
Baltimore, Maryland – U.S. District Judge Ellen L. Hollander sentenced Donte Maurice Johnson, age 30, of Baltimore, Maryland, to 183 months in federal prison, followed by five years of supervised release, for two commercial robberies and for using and brandishing a firearm during a crime of violence. The sentencing was held on July 19, 2016.
The sentence was announced by United States Attorney for the District of Maryland Rod J. Rosenstein; Special Agent in Charge Kevin Perkins of the Federal Bureau of Investigation; Chief James W. Johnson of the Baltimore County Police Department; Commissioner Kevin Davis of the Baltimore Police Department; Baltimore County State’s Attorney Scott Shellenberger; and Baltimore City State’s Attorney Marilyn J. Mosby.
According to his plea agreement, on November 2, 2013, Johnson robbed a grocery on Claremont Avenue in Baltimore. Johnson held a shotgun to the store owner’s head and demanded money. A co-conspirator stood inside the door as a look-out. The robbers took between $600 and $700.
On November 25, 2013, Johnson and the co-conspirator robbed a convenience store, located on Philadelphia Road in Baltimore. Specifically, two employees were working at the counter area of the store and two men approached the counter. Donte Johnson pointed a shotgun at both employees and demanded that they open the registers. In fear for their lives, the clerks complied. Johnson reached over the counter and obtained money from one register. The co-conspirator walked behind the counter and retrieved money from another register. The total loss to the store was $153.
Donte Johnson continued to rob the store’s customers. As this was happening, a customer was able to leave the store and get into his vehicle, which was parked in the store’s parking lot. He called 911 and waited for the robbers to exit. The customer saw the robbers run across Philadelphia Road to the parking lot of a bar across the street, and enter a dark green Honda Civic. The customer followed Johnson and the co-conspirator so he would be able to give directions to the police. Once the robbers turned onto Square Ridge Road, the car stopped, and Donte Johnson fired one round from a shotgun at the customer in his vehicle.
Baltimore County Police detectives were able to locate the shotgun used in the convenience store robbery. The shotgun had two unfired shotgun shells lying on the ground next to it and one fired shotgun shell casing loaded in the action of the gun.
United States Attorney Rod J. Rosenstein commended the FBI, Baltimore County Police Department, Baltimore City Police Department and the Baltimore County and Baltimore City State’s Attorney’s Offices for their work in the investigation. Mr. Rosenstein thanked Assistant United States Attorneys David Metcalf and Bonnie S. Greenberg, who prosecuted the case.
Australian Man Pleads Guilty to Traveling to the U.S. to Engage in Illicit Sexual Conduct with a 6-Year-Old BoyRead the Press Release
LOS ANGELES – An Australian geneticist pleaded guilty this morning to traveling to Los Angeles to engage in illicit sexual conduct with a 6-year-old boy.
Michael Quinn, 33, of Melbourne, pleaded guilty today before United States District Judge John F. Walter, who scheduled a sentencing hearing for October 3.
“Mr. Quinn traveled to the United States to have sex with a young child,” said United States Attorney Eileen M. Decker. “Fortunately, law enforcement was able to ensure that no child was put in harm’s way and that Mr. Quinn would face severe consequences for his conduct.”
Quinn was arrested on May 21 by special agents with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) when he arrived at a Los Angeles-area hotel to buy a 6-year-old boy for sex.
According to documents filed in the case, the investigation began in May 2016 after undercover agents met Quinn on a social networking site that caters to individuals with a sexual interest in children. Quinn admitted during today’s hearing that he told undercover agents he was traveling to Los Angeles and wanted to “meet up with a dad who shares his young ones.” Specifically, Quinn told the agents, whom he believed were like-minded people, that he was hoping to meet “other pervs” in the U.S.
Quinn ultimately agreed to pay a human trafficker $250 to provide him with a young boy with whom he could engage in illicit sex. Once Quinn arrived in Los Angeles, he was arrested after paying another undercover agent $260. According to Quinn, “a dominant purpose of his travel was to anally sodomize someone he knew was a 6-year-old boy.”
“As this case makes clear, Homeland Security Investigations is using all of the tools and resources at its disposal to combat the sexual exploitation of children by pedophiles who’re trolling the internet searching for victims,” said Joseph Macias, special agent in charge for HSI Los Angeles. “Pedophiles in the United States, or anywhere in the world, who believe they can escape the detection of law enforcement by traveling to another county to commit heinous crimes against children should be on notice. Cyberspace and international borders will not be barriers to bringing you to justice.”
Pursuant to the plea agreement, if ultimately accepted by the Court, Quinn will face a federal prison sentence of between 10 years and 160 months.
This case is a product of Project Safe Childhood, a Department of Justice initiative launched in 2006 to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse, and HSI’s Operation Predator, an international initiative to protect children from sexual predators.
The case against Quinn is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Joey Blanch of the Violent and Organized Crime Section.
Led by the U.S. Attorneys’ Offices and the DOJ Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals state and local resources to locate, apprehend and prosecute those who sexually exploit children, and to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.justice.gov/psc.
Attorney General Loretta E. Lynch Statement on Court of Appeals Ruling in Texas Voter ID CaseRead the Press Release
Attorney General Loretta E. Lynch released the following statement today after the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals ruled against Texas’s voter ID law:
“I am pleased with today’s decision by the full U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit holding that Texas’s 2011 photographic voter identification law violates Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act. This decision affirms our position that Texas’s highly restrictive voter ID law abridges the right to vote on account of race or color, and orders appropriate relief before yet another election passes.”
Alexandria man sentenced to 20 months in prison for trying to send obscene images to a minorRead the Press Release
ALEXANDRIA, La. – United States Attorney Stephanie A. Finley announced today that an Alexandria man was sentenced to 20 months in prison for attempting to send obscene material to a minor.
William Ware, 40, of Alexandria, La., was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Dee D. Drell on one count of attempting to transfer obscene material to a minor. He was also sentenced to three years of supervised release and must register as a sex offender. According to the April 12, 2016 guilty plea, on December 9, 2014, Ware contacted what he believed was a 13-year-old minor female using social media over the internet. He then sent the purported minor two sexually explicit videos using an internet chat service. The minor was in fact an undercover law enforcement agent, and Ware was later arrested.
Homeland Security Investigations conducted the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney Jamilla A. Bynog is prosecuting the case.
This case is part of Project Safe Childhood, a U.S. Department of Justice nationwide initiative to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by U.S. Attorneys’ Offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state and local resources to better locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who 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.
The U.S. Department of Homeland Security/Homeland Security Investigations/Immigration & Customs Enforcement (ICE) also encourages the public to report suspected child predators and any suspicious activity through its toll-free hotline at (866) 347-2423. Investigators are available at all hours to answer hotline calls. Tips or other information can also be submitted to ICE online by visiting their website at www.ice.gov/exec/forms/hsi-tips/tips.asp or through the Operation Predator smartphone application www.ice.gov/predator/smartphone-app. Tips may be submitted anonymously.
Albuquerque Man Pleads Guilty to Federal Bank Robbery ChargeRead the Press Release
ALBUQUERQUE – Christian Tafolla, 26, of Albuquerque, N.M., pled guilty today in federal court to robbing an Albuquerque-area Wells Fargo Bank branch on March 18, 2016.
Tafolla was arrested on March 21, 2016, and charged by criminal complaint with robbing the Wells Fargo Bank located at 8100 Wyoming Blvd. in Albuquerque, on March 18, 2016. The complaint alleged that Tafolla robbed the bank by handing the bank teller a note demanding money. Tafolla was arrested later that day after Albuquerque Police Department officers observed Tafolla entering a store near the Wells Fargo Bank.
Tafolla subsequently was indicted on April 12, 2016. During today’s proceedings, Tafolla pled guilty to the indictment and admitted robbing the bank on March 18, 2016.
At sentencing, Tafolla faces a maximum penalty of 20 years in federal prison. Tafolla remains in custody pending a sentencing hearing which has yet to be scheduled.
This case was investigated by the Albuquerque office of the FBI and the Albuquerque Police Department. Assistant U.S. Attorney Edward Han is prosecuting the case.
19 July 2016
Woman Sentenced in Fraud SchemeRead the Press Release
CONTACT: Barbara Burns
PHONE: (716) 843-5817
FAX: (716) 551-3051BUFFALO, N.Y.-U.S. Attorney William J. Hochul Jr. announced today that a Jennifer L. Cadwallader, 39, who was convicted of wire fraud and filing false tax returns, was sentenced to five years probation, including six months home confinement, by Chief U.S. District Judge Frank P. Geraci.
According to Assistant U.S. Attorney Trini E. Ross, who handled the case, the defendant was employed as the Office Manager for American Paving and Excavating, LLC (“American Paving”) from 2009 to 2015. Cadwallader’s responsibilities included accounts payable, maintaining books and records, the accounting system, paying bills, payroll, and deposits.
Between 2012 and 2014, the defendant accessed American Paving’s bank account and electronically transferred $338,329.12 from the corporate bank account to her personal credit card accounts. These electronic transfers were not authorized by American Paving and were done without American Paving’s knowledge or consent. In an attempt to conceal the theft, Cadwallader recorded the payments to her personal credit card accounts as credit card and fuel expenses on American Paving’s books and records.
In that same time period, the defendant failed to report the income from the electronic transfers totaling $338,329.12 to the Internal Revenue Service. Taxes due on the income totaled $108,026.00.
The sentencing is the result of an investigation by the Internal Revenue Service, Criminal Investigation Division, under the direction of Shantelle P. Kitchen.
West Haven Man Sentenced to Federal Prison for Distributing Heroin Involved in Overdose DeathRead the Press Release
Deirdre M. Daly, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, announced that CHRISTOPHER FOGLER, 31, of West Haven, was sentenced today by Chief U.S. District Judge Janet C. Hall in New Haven to 12 months and one day of imprisonment, followed by three years of supervised release, for distributing heroin that was involved in an overdose death in Milford in January 2015.
According to court documents and statements made in court, on January 12, 2015, a 39-year-old male died from an apparent heroin overdose at a residence in Milford. The investigation, which included analysis of text messages captured from the decedent’s cellular telephone, revealed that FOGLER and Alyssa Jelliffe sold the decedent $170 worth of heroin on the evening of January 11, 2015.
On January 16, 2015, a court-authorized search of FOGLER and Jelliffe’s residence revealed approximately 10 bags of heroin and assorted drug paraphernalia, including a digital scale, razor blades and cut straws.
FOGLER and Jelliffe were arrested on January 16, 2015.
On April 19, 2016, FOGLER pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute, and to distribute, heroin. Jelliffe, 23, pleaded guilty to the same charge on July 15, 2016. She awaits sentencing.
U.S. Attorney Daly noted that the U.S. Attorney’s Office, DEA and police departments across Connecticut are working together to investigate and prosecute narcotics dealers who distribute heroin, fentanyl or opioids that cause death or serious injury to users.
This investigation was conducted by the DEA’s Bridgeport High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area (HIDTA) Task Force and the Milford Police Department. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Alina P. Reynolds.
Warren County Man Pleads Guilty to Transporting a Minor Across State LinesRead the Press Release
St. Louis, MO – Christopher Schroeder pled guilty to transporting a minor across state lines to engage in criminal sexual activity.
According to court documents, in late October 2015 or early November 2015, Schroeder met fifteen-year-old female A.B. through KIK, an internet chat forum. A.B. was living in Brooklyn, Ohio, at the time.
On or about November 8, 2015, Schroeder drove to Brooklyn, Ohio, and picked up fifteen-year-old A.B. at an agreed upon location.
Schroeder drove them to his residence in Marthasville. Sometime after arriving at his home, he engaged in sexual intercourse with A.B. Two of these sex acts were recorded by Schroeder without the victim’s knowledge.
Schroeder, Marthasville, MO, pled guilty to one felony count of transportation of a minor with intent to engage in criminal sexual activity before United States District Judge Henry Autrey. Sentencing has been set for October 19, 2016.
This charge carries a penalty range of ten years to life in prison and/or fines up to $250,000, followed by supervised release for life. In determining the actual sentences, a judge is required to consider the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines, which provide recommended sentencing ranges.
This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Brooklyn Police Department, St. Charles County Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force and the Warren County Sheriff’s Department. Assistant United States Attorney Colleen Lang is handling the case for the U.S. Attorney’s Office.
United States Files Suit against DynCorp International Alleging Submission of False Claims under State Department ContractRead the Press Release
The United States filed a False Claims Act complaint against DynCorp International Inc. (DynCorp) alleging that it knowingly submitted inflated claims in connection with a State Department contract to train Iraqi police forces (CIVPOL contract), the Department of Justice announced today. The United States filed the complaint in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia. DynCorp, which is headquartered in McLean, Virginia, is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Delta Tucker Holdings Inc.
In April 2004, the State Department’s Bureau for International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs awarded the CIVPOL contract to DynCorp to provide training for civilian police forces in Iraq and other services needed to support that effort, such as trainers, guards, translators, vehicles and living quarters for contractor personnel. In its complaint, the United States alleges that DynCorp knowingly allowed one of its main CIVPOL subcontractors to charge excessive and unsubstantiated rates for hotel lodging, translator, security guard and driving services and overhead expenses, and included these charges in the claims it submitted under the CIVPOL contract to the State Department. The complaint also alleges that DynCorp added its own markup to its subcontractor’s excessive charges, thereby further inflating the claims it submitted to the government.
“Companies that contract with the United States have an obligation to deal fairly and openly with the government,” said Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Benjamin C. Mizer, head of the Justice Department’s Civil Division. “Attempting to take advantage of the American taxpayers in times of war is a shameful abuse of this responsibility.”
“The United States relies on its contractors to be forthcoming with accurate information and to act responsibly in return for receiving the taxpayers’ money,” said U.S. Attorney Channing D. Phillips of the District of Columbia. “Our office is committed to recovering funds from those who fail to adhere to those responsibilities and obligations.”
The civil complaint in this action is the result of an investigation by the Civil Division’s Commercial Litigation Branch, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia and the State Department’s Office of Inspector General.
The case is captioned United States v. DynCorp International, Inc., No. 1:16-cv-01473 (D.D.C.). The claims asserted in the complaint are allegations only, and there has been no determination of liability.
United States Files Suit Against DynCorp International, Alleging the Submission of False Claims Under State Department ContractRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON - The United States filed a False Claims Act complaint against DynCorp International Inc. (DynCorp) alleging that it knowingly submitted inflated claims in connection with a State Department contract to train Iraqi police forces (CIVPOL contract), the Department of Justice announced today. The United States filed the complaint in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia. DynCorp, which is headquartered in McLean, Virginia, is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Delta Tucker Holdings Inc.
In April 2004, the State Department’s Bureau for International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs awarded the CIVPOL contract to DynCorp to provide training for civilian police forces in Iraq and other services needed to support that effort, such as trainers, guards, translators, vehicles and living quarters for contractor personnel. In its complaint, the United States alleges that DynCorp knowingly allowed one of its main CIVPOL subcontractors to charge excessive and unsubstantiated rates for hotel lodging, translator, security guard and driving services and overhead expenses, and included these charges in the claims it submitted under the CIVPOL contract to the State Department. The complaint also alleges that DynCorp added its own markup to its subcontractor’s excessive charges, thereby further inflating the claims it submitted to the government.
“Companies that contract with the United States have an obligation to deal fairly and openly with the government,” said Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Benjamin C. Mizer, head of the Justice Department’s Civil Division. “Attempting to take advantage of the American taxpayers in times of war is a shameful abuse of this responsibility.”
“The United States relies on its contractors to be forthcoming with accurate information and to act responsibly in return for receiving the taxpayers’ money,” said U.S. Attorney Channing D. Phillips. “Our office is committed to recovering funds from those who fail to adhere to those responsibilities and obligations.”
The civil complaint in this action is the result of an investigation by the Civil Division’s Commercial Litigation Branch, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia and the State Department’s Office of Inspector General.
The case is captioned United States v. DynCorp International, Inc., No. 1:16-cv-01473 (D.D.C.). The claims asserted in the complaint are allegations only, and there has been no determination of liability.
Two Members of Violent Drug Trafficking Ring Sentenced to PrisonRead the Press Release
Two men who were significantly involved in a violent drug trafficking organization distributing meth, heroin and cocaine in the Seattle area were sentenced today in U.S. District Court in Seattle, announced U.S. Attorney Annette L. Hayes. SON T. NGUYEN, aka “Nine Fingers” aka “Kim,” 43, of Seattle, was sentenced to ten years in prison and LONG V. TRONG aka “Black Long,” 43, of Seattle, was sentenced to six years in prison. The two men were both mid-level members of the drug ring, distributing drugs and using firearms to enforce rules and protect their drug territory. U.S. District Judge John C. Coughenour imposed the sentence.
The two year investigation lead by the FBI’s Seattle Safe Streets Task Force (SSTF) and Bellevue Police Department’s Eastside Narcotics Task Force (ENTF) revealed that each month the organization distributed 15-20 kilos of cocaine, 10-15 kilos of heroin and five kilos of methamphetamine across a wide swath of the greater Seattle metro area. The two leaders of the drug ring were convicted at trial in April 2016.
Drug activity associated with the organization occurred over a wide geographic area with many drug sales occurring in the “Jungle” homeless encampment, as well as at homes and near businesses in Seattle, Renton, Shoreline and Kent. LONG V. TRONG controlled the drug sales in an area of the ‘Jungle’ and had other people working for him as drug sellers in the area. Evidence obtained during a court authorized wiretap of phones associated with the criminal group revealed TRONG and others discussed assaults and a homicide in the Jungle tied to the drug trafficking activity.
On multiple occasions members of the drug trafficking organization were arrested with firearms. SON T. NGUYEN delivered a firearm to one of the coconspirators intending that it be used in a violent crime. When he was arrested, SON T. NGUYEN also possessed numerous firearms despite a lengthy criminal history which barred him from possessing guns.
These defendants have already pleaded guilty and been sentenced to prison:
Phuong A. Nguyen, aka “P,” 42, of Kent, Washington – 12 years
Brieanna K. Carlson, 27, of Seattle, Washington – three years
Kimberle S. Alojasin, aka “Nguyen,” 56, of South King County – four years
Kenneth W. Thomas, 55, of SeaTac, Washington – four years
Yen T. Vu, 55, of Seattle – three years
Tony V. Nguyen, 23, of Seattle – two years
This was an Organized Crime and Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF) investigation, providing supplemental federal funding to the federal and state agencies involved. This investigation was led by the FBI’s Seattle Safe Streets Task Force (SSTF) and Bellevue Police Department’s Eastside Narcotics Task Force (ENTF). The SSTF includes task force officers from the Seattle Police Department, and the ENTF is composed of Bellevue Police Department officers, and agents and officers from the Washington State Patrol, U.S. Postal Inspection Service, and the Redmond, Kirkland, and Mercer Island police departments in partnership with the King County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office. Additional assistance was provided by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms & Explosives (ATF), the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) and ICE’s Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), King County Sheriff’s Office, the Washington State Department of Corrections, and the Kent and Tukwila police departments, and the Seattle Fire Department.
The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Vince Lombardi and Kate Vaughan.
Twice Convicted Armed Robber Hammered with 54-Year Prison TermRead the Press Release
HOUSTON – A Houston man, already sentenced to 330 months for one bank robbery, just received another 319-month-term of imprisonment for his role in the armed robbery of a bank in The Woodlands in 2014, announced U.S. Attorney Kenneth Magidson.
Keith Stephens, 28, pleaded guilty Feb. 26, 2016, to aiding and abetting bank robbery and brandishing a firearm in commission of a crime of violence related to the armed bank robbery of the Chase Bank on West Panther Creek in The Woodlands, on June 27, 2014. Today, U.S. District Judge Melinda Harmon considered the role Stephens played in the robbery, the use of a gun in the offense, the way the victims were treated and amount of money taken. She also determined that Stephens had planned and organized the armed robbery. She sentenced him to 235 months for the bank robbery and a consecutive 84 months for the firearms charge.
Stephens was also convicted in the armed robbery of the JP Morgan Chase Bank located on South Fry Road in Katy on July 16, 2014. Last week, U.S. District Judge David Hittner ordered Stephens to serve a total of 330 months in federal prison for that crime.
In handing down the sentence today, Judge Harmon ordered Stephens’ term of imprisonment to be served consecutively to the previous sentence, resulting in a total of 649 months in prison, more than 54 years.
“Prosecutions of those involved in serial bank and armored car robberies will continue to be a priority for federal law enforcement and their state and local partners,” said Magidson. “The severe sentence handed down today should serve as a significant deterrent to others who participate in violent crimes that put life in jeopardy.”
On June 27, 2014, while Stephens waited outside as a lookout, Crystal Lashay Lewis, 23, of Houston, entered the bank and checked the interior for armed surveillance. Also acting as lookout was Zachary Loudd, 24, of Houston. Once Lewis had exited the bank, Stephens ordered Jerrell Devon James, 22, and Andrew Demon Holley, 23, both of Houston, to enter.
They robbed the bank while wearing masks, gloves and carrying handguns. During the robbery, they also pointed their guns at employees and customers. After exiting with the stolen money, they drove a stolen pickup truck to a predetermined site where they abandoned the vehicle and entered an SUV driven by Randale Deshay Jackson, 29, also of Houston. Jackson drove the men to Stephens’ residence where the money was divided among them.
James, Loudd, Lewis and Holley, who also pleaded guilty to their respective roles in the robbery, are scheduled to be sentenced before Judge Harmon later this month.
Jackson is charged in a separate case with the armed robbery of a pharmacy in Tomball on Sept. 11, 2014.
The Montgomery County Sheriff’s Office and the FBI conducted the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Celia Moyer and Richard D. Hanes are prosecuting the case.
Toronto Woman Pleads Guilty to Counterfeit Money ChargeRead the Press Release
CONTACT: Barbara Burns
PHONE: (716) 843-5817
FAX: (716) 551-3051BUFFALO, N.Y.—U.S. Attorney William J. Hochul, Jr. announced today that Kenishia Simone Brown, 33, of Toronto, Canada, pleaded guilty to possession of counterfeit money before U.S. District Judge Rcihard J. Arcara. The charge carries a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison.
According to Assistant U.S. Attorney Marie P. Grisanti, who is handling the case, on January 13, 2016, the defendant was a passenger in a vehicle entering the United States at the Rainbow Bridge Port of Entry. After being referred to secondary inspection, Brown was questioned about her reasons for coming to the United States and was asked to take her jacket off and empty her pockets. At that time, a bundle of cash was discovered. Brown was then taken to a secure where it was determined that 58 $50 bills were counterfeit bills.
The plea is the culmination of an investigation by Customs and Border Protection, under the direction of Acting Director of Field Operations Rose Hilmey and the U.S. Secret Service, under the direction of Acting Special Agent in Charge Thomas Braun.
Sentencing is scheduled for November 3, 2016 at 12:30 p.m. before Judge Arcara.Somerset County, New Jersey, Man Admits Producing Sexually Explicit Images of ChildrenRead the Press Release
TRENTON, N.J. – A Branchburg, New Jersey, man today admitted his role in a scheme to produce sexually explicit images of children through a website he operated from his home computer, U.S. Attorney Paul J. Fishman announced.
Jonathan Soto, 26, pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Freda L. Wolfson in Trenton federal court to Count One of an indictment charging him with conspiracy to produce child pornography. He has remained in federal custody since his arrest on April 16, 2015.
According to the documents filed in this case and statements made in court:
Soto admitted that, from July 2014 through April 2015, he administered and operated a website designed to produce child pornography by tricking minor victims into engaging in sexually explicit activity on web cameras. As part of the conspiracy, Soto designed the website with certain online tools and a chatroom function that enabled users to target minor victims online, share victims’ social media profiles and discuss ways to get minors to produce child pornography over the internet.
Users of the website created false profiles on popular social media websites purporting to be young children, aged from about 10 to 16. Using these false profiles, the users chatted with actual children and lured the minor victims to other websites to engage in private chats. Once in a private chat room, users then persuaded child victims to engage in sexually explicit activity. Unbeknownst to the victims, when they engaged in sexually explicit activity, they were secretly recorded, and those videos were shared with other users on Soto’s website.
The conspiracy to produce child pornography count to which Soto pleaded guilty carries a minimum penalty of 15 years in prison, a maximum potential penalty of 30 years in prison, and a $250,000 fine. Sentencing is scheduled for Nov. 10, 2016.
U.S. Attorney Fishman credited special agents of the FBI, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Timothy Gallagher in Newark, and the Branchburg Township Police Department, under the direction of Chief David Young, with the investigation.
The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorney Melissa Wangenheim of the U.S. Attorney’s Office Criminal Division in Newark.
Defense counsel: Assistant Federal Public Defender Lisa Mack Esq., Newark
Rochester Man and Massachusetts Woman Plead Guilty to Drug Distribution Causing DeathRead the Press Release
CONCORD – United States Attorney, Emily Gray Rice announced that Mark Ross, 42, of Gonic, New Hampshire, and Leslie Aberle, 32, of Salisbury, Massachusetts appeared yesterday before United States District Court Judge Landya McCafferty and pleaded guilty to distribution of a controlled substance resulting in death.
According to documents that were filed in United States District Court and statements in the plea proceeding, Aberle drove Mark Ross from Rochester, New Hampshire to Lawrence, Massachusetts on October 16, 2015 for the purpose of obtaining heroin. Ross acquired the heroin. Ross and Aberle returned to the Riviera Motel in Rochester where Ross was staying with Jazzmyn Rood and Rood’s daughter Evangelique Tarmey. Ross provided a quantity of the drug to Tarmey. The following morning, Tarmey was found dead in the motel room. The New Hampshire Medical Examiner later found that Ms. Tarmey died of acute fentanyl intoxication.
New Hampshire has the third-highest rate of per capita drug overdose deaths in the United States. More than half of the drug overdose deaths in New Hampshire in 2015 were the result of fentanyl, either alone or in combination with other drugs.
United States Attorney Rice said, “I want to thank the Rochester Police Department and the Drug Enforcement Administration for their work on this case. Fighting the opioid epidemic is a multi-pronged, team effort. One facet of our attack is to prosecute those who are criminally responsible for causing drug overdoses. We will continue to work with law enforcement agencies to identify and prosecute the individuals who distribute drugs that cause overdose deaths. Any drug distribution has the potential to be deadly, regardless of the quantity of drugs involved. When a drug distribution causes an overdose death, my office will seek to hold the distributor accountable.”
In April 2016, the United States Attorney’s Office and the New Hampshire Attorney General’s Office announced the formation of an inter-office team of prosecutors who will work together to prosecute individuals who cause opiate overdoses in New Hampshire. This prosecution, initiated before the creation of the joint team, is an example of the type of case that will be generated by the team.
The case was investigated by the Rochester Police Department. The Drug Enforcement Administration assisted in the investigation. The case was prosecuted by First Assistant United States Attorney Don Feith.
A sentencing hearing has been scheduled for October 28, 2016 in each case.
Quad Cities Mixed Martial Arts Promoter Sentenced to Prison for Filing False Tax ReturnRead the Press Release
DAVENPORT, IA – – On July 13, 2016, Monte A. Cox, 56, of Bettendorf, Iowa, was sentenced by Chief United States District Court Judge John A. Jarvey to three months in federal prison for filing a false tax return announced United States Attorney Kevin E. VanderSchel. Cox was also ordered to serve one year of supervised release following his prison term, pay $100 to the Crime Victims’ Fund, and to cooperate with the Internal Revenue Service in the determination, assessment, and payment of any tax liability that Cox may have for calendar years 2007 through 2010.
Cox pled guilty on October 5, 2015. According to the plea agreement, Cox knowingly underreported income on his personal tax returns for the years 2007, 2008, 2009, and 2010. During this period Cox resided in Bettendorf, Iowa, and earned income as a Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) fight promoter and fighter manager. He operated his business under the name Ultimate Productions, Inc. For each of these years, Cox knew that he had received income from his MMA-related activities and ownership of Ultimate Productions, Inc. that exceeded the income he reported on his tax returns. Cox underreported his income by an estimated $255,036 for 2007, $295,854 for 2008, $405,778 for 2009, and $152,509 for 2010. As a result, Cox owed the government an additional $370,478 in taxes for 2007-2010 beyond what he claimed in his false returns.
This matter was investigated by the Internal Revenue Service – Criminal Investigation, and prosecuted by the United States Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Iowa.
President Obama issues an open letter to America's law enforcement communityRead the Press Release
CHARLESTON, W.Va. - In the wake of the tragedies in Dallas and Baton Rouge, today the President issued an open letter to America's law enforcement community, announced Acting United States Attorney Carol Casto.
The full text of the letter is below:
To the brave members of our Nation’s law enforcement community:
Every day, you confront danger so it does not find our families, carry burdens so they do not fall to us, and courageously meet test after test to keep us safe. Like Dallas officer Lorne Ahrens, who bought dinner for a homeless man the night before he died, you perform good deeds beyond the call of duty and out of the spotlight. Time and again, you make the split-second decisions that could mean life or death for you and many others in harm’s way. You endure the tense minutes and long hours over lifetimes of service.
Every day, you accept this responsibility and you see your colleagues do their difficult, dangerous jobs with equal valor. I want you to know that the American people see it, too. We recognize it, we respect it, we appreciate it, and we depend on you. And just as your tight-knit law enforcement family feels the recent losses to your core, our Nation grieves alongside you. Any attack on police is an unjustified attack on all of us.
I’ve spent a lot of time with law enforcement over the past couple of weeks. I know that you take each of these tragedies personally, and that each is as devastating as a loss in the family. Sunday’s shooting in Baton Rouge was no different. Together, we mourn Montrell Jackson, Matthew Gerald, and Brad Garafola. Each was a husband. Each was a father. Each was a proud member of his community. And each fallen officer is one too many. Last week, I met with the families of the Dallas officers who were killed, and I called the families of those who were killed in the line of duty yesterday in Baton Rouge. I let them know how deeply we ache for the loss of their loved ones.
Some are trying to use this moment to divide police and the communities you serve. I reject those efforts, for they do not reflect the reality of our Nation. Officer Jackson knew this too, when just days ago he asked us to keep hatred from our hearts. Instead, he offered—to protestors and fellow police officers alike—a hug to anyone who saw him on the street. He offered himself as a fellow worshipper to anyone who sought to pray. Today, we offer our comfort and our prayers to his family, to the Geralds and the Garafolas, and to the tight-knit Baton Rouge law enforcement community.
As you continue to serve us in this tumultuous hour, we again recognize that we can no longer ask you to solve issues we refuse to address as a society. We should give you the resources you need to do your job, including our full-throated support. We must give you the tools you need to build and strengthen the bonds of trust with those you serve, and our best efforts to address the underlying challenges that contribute to crime and unrest.
As you continue to defend us with quiet dignity, we proclaim loudly our appreciation for the acts of service you perform as part of your daily routine. When you see civilians at risk, you don’t see them as strangers. You see them as your own family, and you lay your life on the line for them. You put others’ safety before your own, and you remind us that loving our country means loving one another. Even when some protest you, you protect them. What is more professional than that? What is more patriotic? What is a prouder example of our most basic freedoms—to speech, to assembly, to life, and to liberty? And at the end of the day, you have a right to go home to your family, just like anybody else.
Robert Kennedy, once our Nation’s highest-ranking law enforcement official, lamented in the wake of unjust violence a country in which we look at our neighbors as people “with whom we share a city, but not a community.” This is a time for us to reaffirm that what makes us special is that we are not only a country, but also a community. That is true whether you are black or white, whether you are rich or poor, whether you are a police officer or someone they protect and serve.
With that understanding—an understanding of the goodness and decency I have seen of our Nation not only in the past few weeks, but throughout my life—we will get through this difficult time together.
We will do it with the love and empathy of public servants like those we have lost in recent days. We will do it with the resilience of cities like Dallas that quickly came together to restore order and deepen unity and understanding. We will do it with the grace of loved ones who even in their grief have spoken out against vengeance toward police. We will do it with the good will of activists like those I have sat with in recent days, who have pledged to work together to reduce violence even as they voice their disappointments and fears.
As we bind up our wounds, we must come together to ensure that those who try to divide us do not succeed. We are at our best when we recognize our common humanity, set an example for our children of trust and responsibility, and honor the sacrifices of our bravest by coming together to be better.
Thank you for your courageous service. We have your backs.
Sincerely,
Barack Obama
The full letter is also available at https://www.whitehouse.gov/blog/2016/07/19/read-president-obamas-open-letter-americas-law-enforcement-community
Post Falls Man Sentenced to Ten Years in Prison for Murder for Hire and Drug ChargesRead the Press Release
COEUR D'ALENE – Darin Kyle Taylor, 56, of Post Falls, Idaho, was sentenced today for use of interstate facilities in the commission of murder for hire, and possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine, U.S. Attorney Wendy J. Olson announced.
Senior U.S. District Judge Edward J. Lodge sentenced Taylor to 120 months in prison, to be followed by three years supervised release for the use of interstate facilities in the commission of murder hire and 121 months in prison, to be followed by five years supervised release for possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine. Taylor pleaded guilty on December 15, 2015.
According to the plea agreements, on June 17 and June 30, 2015, the Idaho State Police worked with a confidential informant to purchase methamphetamine from Taylor at his Post Falls residence. On July 1, 2015, Idaho State Police detectives served a search warrant at Taylor’s residence and seized methamphetamine, cocaine, heroin, marijuana, cash, and firearms.
On August 19, 2015, the day after Taylor was indicted by a federal grand jury on drug charges, Taylor met with a confidential informant working with the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF). Taylor solicited this ATF confidential informant to murder another person promising to pay cash. Taylor was arrested on his federal drug charge shortly after his conversation and has been in federal custody since.
The cases were investigated by the Idaho State Police, Drug Enforcement Administration, and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives.
Pennsylvania Man Admits Role in Scheme to Obtain Medically Unnecessary Prescription Compound MedicationRead the Press Release
Pharmaceutical Employees, Military Beneficiaries and Others Recruited as Part of the Scheme
NEWARK, N.J. – A pharmaceutical employee today admitted filling his own medically unnecessary prescriptions and recruiting others to do the same as part of a scheme to fraudulently obtain reimbursements for compound medication prescriptions, causing losses of $3.69 million, U.S. Attorney Paul J. Fishman announced.
Peter Pappas, 44, of Drexel Hill, Pennsylvania, pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge John Michael Vazquez in Newark federal court to an information charging him with one count of conspiracy to commit health care fraud.
According to documents filed in this case and statements made in court:
Pappas, an employee of a New Jersey pharmaceutical company, admitted that in August 2014, he was recruited by an individual identified in the information as “co-conspirator #1 (CC-1),” to assist a marketing business identified in the information as “Company A.” Company A was paid by various compounding pharmacies for referring beneficiaries whose insurance plans would pay for compounded medication, such as pain creams, scar creams and vitamins.
CC-1 offered Pappas “commission” payments in return for compounded medication, creams and vitamins that Pappas obtained at specific specialty pharmacies for himself and family members and that were billed to his employer’s prescription drug benefit plan. In furtherance of the scheme, Pappas received a preprinted prescription form with compounded medications and creams from CC-1, took the forms to a friend who was a doctor, and asked the doctor to prescribe those medications.
Afterwards, the compounded prescription products were sent to Pappas from a pharmacy outside his home state. On Oct. 15, 2014, Pappas received a $9,023.86 check from Company A, which was a percentage of the amount paid by Pappas’s employer to the compounding pharmacy for filling the prescriptions.
From September 2014 through November 2015, Pappas refilled compounded prescriptions on forms provided by CC-1 and Company A at certain specific compounding pharmacies selected by Company A, and in return, received commission checks and wire transfers from Company A.
Pappas also recruited co-workers and others to join the scheme, including TRICARE beneficiaries. TRICARE, which is managed by the Defense Health Agency at the U.S. Department of Defense, is a health care benefit program for uniform service members of the U.S. military and their families. Pappas admitted that he attempted to recruit TRICARE beneficiaries because he knew that TRICARE gave high reimbursements for compounded medication and creams.
Altogether, Pappas received $481,773 from Company A for his role in the conspiracy. His employer, TRICARE, and other insurance companies lost at least $3.69 million from the scheme.
Pappas faces a statutory maximum of 10 years in prison and a $250,000 fine, or twice the gross gain or loss from the offense. Sentencing is scheduled for Oct. 25, 2016.
On June 29, 2016, Stephanie Naar, 27, of St. Louis, Missouri, who had been an employee of the same New Jersey pharmaceutical company as Pappas, pleaded guilty before Judge Vazquez and admitted accepting thousands of dollars in exchange for obtaining and filling her own medically unnecessary prescriptions for compounded medication and creams.
U.S. Attorney Fishman credited special agents of the FBI, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Timothy Gallagher in Newark; and the U.S. Department of Defense, Defense Criminal Investigative Service, Office of Inspector General, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Craig Rupert, with the ongoing investigation leading to today’s plea.
The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorney Melissa L. Jampol of the U.S. Attorney’s Office Health Care and Government Fraud Unit in Newark.
U.S. Attorney Paul J. Fishman reorganized the health care fraud practice at the New Jersey U.S. Attorney’s Office shortly after taking office, including creating a stand-alone Health Care and Government Fraud Unit to handle both criminal and civil investigations and prosecutions of health care fraud offenses. Since 2010, the office has recovered more than $1.3 billion in health care fraud and government fraud settlements, judgments, fines, restitution and forfeiture under the False Claims Act, the Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act and other statutes.
Defense counsel: Walter Cohen and Rebecca Warren Esqs., Harrisburg, PA
Orofino Man Sentenced for Illegal Gun PossessionRead the Press Release
COEUR D'ALENE - Stephen C. Walker, 24, of Orofino, Idaho, was sentenced today for unlawful possession of a firearm, U.S. Attorney Wendy J. Olson announced. Senior U.S. District Judge Edward J. Lodge sentenced Walker to 13 months in prison and 3 years supervised release. Walker pleaded guilty on January 26, 2016.
According to statements made in court, Walker admitted that on October 29, 2014, he had a .22 caliber firearm in his back pocket. Walker was prohibited from possessing a firearm due to a previous felony conviction for burglary. Walker was contacted by police around midnight, in an area that had been subjected to burglaries the night before.
The case was investigated by the Orofino City Police Department, the Nez Perce Tribal Police, FBI and ATF.
The case was prosecuted as part of Idaho’s Project Safe Neighborhoods Program, which seeks to reduce gun violence in Idaho.
New Haven Heroin Dealer Sentenced to 34 Months in Federal PrisonRead the Press Release
Deirdre M. Daly, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, announced that ANTHONY VELEZ, also known as “Tone,” 37, of New Haven, was sentenced today by U.S. District Judge Victor A. Bolden in Bridgeport to 34 months of imprisonment, followed by three years of supervised release, for distributing heroin.
This matter stems from a joint investigation headed by the DEA New Haven Task Force, FBI and New Haven Police Department into the distribution of heroin in New Haven. The investigation included the use of court-authorized wiretaps, physical surveillance and controlled purchases of heroin from wholesale and street-level distributors operating in the area of Ferry Street, Grand Avenue and Blatchley Avenue in New Haven’s Fair Haven neighborhood.
In July 2015, a grand jury in New Haven returned an indictment charging VELEZ and 16 other New Haven residents with heroin trafficking offenses.
As part of the investigation, law enforcement has seized approximately 500 grams of raw heroin, three handguns and five vehicles. In addition, bank accounts containing more than $300,000 have been frozen.
TORRES has been detained since his arrest on July 15, 2015. On February 16, 2016, he pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute heroin.
The DEA New Haven Task Force includes participants from the New Haven, Hamden, West Haven, North Haven, East Haven, Branford, Ansonia, Meriden and Derby Police Departments, and the U.S. Marshals Service.
This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney H. Gordon Hall.
Nevada Man Sentenced to 25 Years in Prison for Perpetrating a Nationwide Multimillion-Dollar Fraud SchemeRead the Press Release
Defendant Defrauded Investors in a Nigerian Oil Scheme and Made False Claims to the Department of Veterans Affairs
A Las Vegas resident was sentenced to 25 years in jail today on multiple fraud charges, announced Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Caroline D. Ciraolo of the Justice Department’s Tax Division.
Anton Paul Drago, formerly known as Evan Fogarty, 65, was convicted in March 2016 of all 10 counts of the indictment after an eight-day jury trial. The jury found him guilty of one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud, two counts of wire fraud, three counts of submitting false claims to the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA), one count of theft of government funds, one count of passing a fictitious financial instrument, one count of making false statements to federal agents and one count of failing to file a federal income tax return.
“Today’s sentence reflects the serious nature of Mr. Drago’s crimes and the substantial harm he inflicted on his investors and the U.S. government,” said Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Ciraolo. “When confronted with his extensive fraudulent conduct by federal agents, rather than come clean, Mr. Drago chose to double down on his lies and continue the scheme that funded his extravagant lifestyle. Today, he paid the heavy price for his illegal activities.”
“We are pleased with today’s sentencing of Anton Drago for his crimes against the U.S. government and innocent taxpayers and shareholders,” said Chief Richard Weber of IRS-Criminal Investigation (CI). “Everything about Mr. Drago’s business was a fraud and he made the costly mistake of failing to file his income tax return. That mistake brought him to the attention of the IRS and the scrutiny of CI special agents. Fortunately for the victims of his fraud, the resulting investigation revealed the depth of his fraudulent dealings.”
“Our joint investigation with the IRS’s Criminal Investigation resulted in the conviction of a veteran who defrauded the government by claiming monetary benefits he wasn’t entitled to,” said Special Agent in Charge Douglas J. Carver VA-Office of Inspector General’s Western Field Office. “The money he stole would have benefited other eligible disabled veterans. We are pleased that this sentence reflects the seriousness of his crimes and believe this conviction will serve as a deterrent to others who might consider defrauding the Department of Veterans Affairs and our country’s veterans.”
The evidence presented at trial established that Drago orchestrated a large-scale Nigerian oil investment fraud scheme. From at least 2004 through 2012, Drago told investors that money they invested would be used for legal fees and business expenses to fund the production, refinement and shipment of crude oil from Nigeria to the Bahamas. Along with co-conspirator Joseph Rizzuti, formerly of Palm City, Florida, Drago also told investors that the money they invested would fund the purchase of an oil refinery in the Bahamas. Drago lied to investors about his background, falsely claiming that he was an engineer and an expert in the oil industry with over 30 years of experience working worldwide. He also falsely told some investors that he was the grandson of the Shell Oil founder and heir to a $500 million trust which he invested in the Nigerian oil investment deal. None of these claims were true.
The government also presented evidence to establish that Drago and Rizzuti contracted with investors, promising them a short-term turnaround on their investment in just 60 days with a return of up to 400 percent. Unwitting investors gave the conspirators more than $2 million. Instead of investing in a Nigerian oil deal as promised, Drago and Rizzuti used most of the investors’ money for personal expenses. Specifically, Drago spent the money on rent; groceries; memberships at the Tournament Players Club Summerlin golf course and an exclusive activity club in Turnberry Towers, both in Las Vegas; maintenance on his Mercedes Benz; jewelry; travel; and luxury purchases at stores such as Louis Vuitton, Nordstrom and Sharper Image. In addition, nearly $1 million of the investors’ money was transferred to unknown bank accounts in China. Despite Drago’s receipt of income from this fraudulent scheme, he failed to file his 2007 federal income tax return in a timely manner.
After spending the investors’ money, Drago continued to lie to the investors about other elaborate oil-related schemes that would make them whole. He attempted to negotiate a fictitious financial instrument purporting to be an International Bill of Exchange worth $10 million at a Wells Fargo Bank branch in Las Vegas. He also lied to federal agents of the IRS, who were investigating him when he told them that every penny of investor money went to Nigeria.
At the same time he was perpetrating the fraudulent Nigerian oil investment scheme, Drago also falsely claimed individual unemployability compensation benefits from the VA. Drago served in the U.S. Marine Corps. The evidence at trial established that for decades, Drago falsely claimed to have a debilitating military service-related knee injury and was totally unable to work in any capacity, when in fact he was self-employed and running several businesses. The evidence showed that Drago was active and an avid golfer, spending more than $100,000 on golf-related expenses between 2005 and 2008. Based upon his false claims to the VA, he received thousands of dollars in monthly VA benefits to which he was not entitled.
Rizzuti, who testified at Drago’s trial, previously pleaded guilty to a wire fraud conspiracy and an unrelated charge of obstructing the internal revenue laws and was sentenced in May 2013 to 80 months in prison.
In addition to the term of imprisonment, Drago was sentenced to pay $2.3 million in restitution and to serve five years of supervised release following his prison term.
Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Ciraolo commended the special agents of IRS–CI and the VA-Office of Inspector General, who investigated the case, and Trial Attorneys Charles M. Edgar Jr. and Sean Beaty of the Tax Division, who prosecuted the case. Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Ciraolo also thanked litigation technical support specialist John L. Kost, who provided trial support, and the U.S. Attorney’s Office of the District of Nevada, who provided invaluable assistance to the Tax Division.
Additional information about the Tax Division’s enforcement efforts can be found on the division’s website.
Moscow Man Sentenced for Making Online ThreatsRead the Press Release
COEUR D'ALENE – Paul Jens Suggs, 20, of Moscow, Idaho, was sentenced today for communicating interstate threats, U.S. Attorney Wendy J. Olson announced. Senior U.S. District Judge Edward J. Lodge sentenced Suggs to 16 months in prison, to be followed by three years supervised release. Suggs pleaded guilty on January 20, 2016.
According to the plea agreement, Suggs admitted that in September 2015, he made several posts on Facebook threatening to shoot a man in Moscow and to shoot law enforcement officers in Pullman, Washington and Moscow, Idaho. Additionally, Suggs posted that he was going to kill the family members of law enforcement officers. Suggs was arrested that same month, and has been in federal custody since his arrest.
The case was investigated by the Pullman Police Department, Moscow Police Department and the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI).
Michael Danilovich Sentenced to 25 Years for Racketeering, Health Care Fraud, Securities Fraud, Mail Fraud, Wire Fraud, and Money LaunderingRead the Press Release
Preet Bharara, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, announced that MICHAEL DANILOVICH was sentenced today to 25 years in prison in connection with his conviction for 16 counts of racketeering conspiracy, securities fraud, health care fraud, mail fraud, wire fraud, and money laundering charges following a five-week jury trial. The jury convicted DANILOVICH of racketeering arising out of his operation, from 2007 through 2012, of the largest single no-fault automobile insurance fraud scheme ever charged; his operation, from 2007 to 2009, of two investment fraud schemes, Lyons Ward & Associates and the Rockford Group; and his attempted operation, from 2011 to 2012, of a third investment fraud scheme, Baron & Caplan Association, including after he was arrested and released on bail in this case. DANILOVICH was sentenced today by United States District Judge Deborah A. Batts, who presided over the trial.
U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara said: “Michael Danilovich made a career out of defrauding people. From running the largest no-fault insurance fraud scheme in the country to operating multi-million dollar investment frauds, Danilovich’s deception was wide-ranging. Thanks to the outstanding work of the FBI and the NYPD, Danilovich’s career of crime has been put to an end.”
According to the Superseding Indictment, evidence admitted at trial, court filings, and statements made in open court:
From 2007 through 2012, DANILOVICH was a leader of an enterprise engaged in a pattern of racketeering that included a massive scheme to defraud automobile insurance companies under New York’s no-fault insurance law, multiple securities fraud schemes, money laundering, and the operation of illegal gambling businesses.
Under New York State law, every vehicle registered in the state is required to have no-fault automobile insurance, which enables the driver and passengers of a registered and insured vehicle to obtain benefits of up to $50,000 per person for injuries sustained in an automobile accident, regardless of fault (the “No-Fault Law”). The No-Fault Law requires prompt payment for medical treatment, thereby obviating the need for claimants to file personal injury lawsuits in order to be reimbursed. Under the No-Fault Law, patients can assign their right to reimbursement from an insurance company to others, including medical clinics that provide treatment for their injuries. New York State law also requires that all medical clinics in the state be incorporated, owned, operated, and controlled by a licensed medical practitioner in order to be eligible for reimbursement under the No-Fault Law. Insurance companies will not honor claims for medical treatments from a medical clinic that is not actually owned, operated, and controlled by a licensed medical professional.
From 2007 through 2012, DANILOVICH’s organization defrauded automobile insurance companies of more than $100 million by, among other things, creating and operating medical clinics that provided unnecessary and excessive medical treatments in order to take advantage of the No-Fault Law. In addition, Danilovich’s organization fraudulently owned and controlled more than a dozen medical professional corporations (“PCs”) – including no fault clinics, MRI offices, and acupuncture and chiropractic PCs – by paying licensed medical professionals to use their licenses to incorporate the professional corporations. DANILOVICH and his co-conspirators paid kickbacks of thousands of dollars to runners to recruit patients to receive the same battery of tests and treatments, and received kickbacks from other co-conspirators for referring patients for additional unnecessary treatments. All told, Danilovich’s organization billed insurance companies for tens of millions of dollars in fraudulent medical treatments. Furthermore, DANILOVICH and his co-conspirators laundered the proceeds of the fraud through check-cashing entities and shell companies, and used the money to pay for luxury cars, watches, and vacations.
In addition to the no-fault insurance fraud scheme, DANILOVICH was convicted for operating two investment fraud schemes that swindled innocent victims out of nearly $18 million. Both schemes – Lyons Ward & Associates and the Rockford Group – purported to be settlement claims funding companies that invested in lawsuits in return for a portion of future settlements. DANILOVICH also attempted to operate a third scheme, Baron & Caplan Association, including after he was arrested and released on bail in this case. As part of these schemes, DANILOVICH and his co-conspirators created bogus documents and account statements used by cold-callers to solicit victims through false representations. In reality, there was no investment fund at all; instead, DANILOVICH and his co-conspirators simply stole the money invested by victims and laundered the proceeds by wiring them overseas to shell companies in Eastern Europe, which were then turned into cash in the United States.
DANILOVICH’s organization also operated high-stakes illegal poker games and illegal sports books.
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At DANILOVICH’s first trial in the fall of 2013, a mistrial was declared after the jury failed to reach a unanimous verdict on all counts.
On March 19, 2015, co-defendant Mikhail Zemlyansky was convicted following a four-week trial before U.S. District Judge J. Paul Oetken of six counts of racketeering conspiracy, securities fraud, mail fraud, and wire fraud charges, related to the crimes committed by the Zemlyansky/Danilovich Organization. On January 28, 2016, Judge Oekten sentenced Zemlyansky to 15 years in prison.
Mr. Bharara thanked the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the New York City Police Department for their continued outstanding work in this investigation. Mr. Bharara also thanked the National Insurance Crime Bureau, the investigative units of the insurance companies, the Manhattan District Attorney’s Office, and the Alabama Securities Commission for their valuable assistance with the investigation.
The case is being prosecuted by the Office’s Violent & Organized Crime Unit. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Daniel S. Noble, Joshua A. Naftalis, and Jaimie L. Nawaday are in charge of the prosecution.
Marin Doctor Sentenced to Three Years in Prison for Prescribing Oxycodone Outside the Usual Course of Professional Practice and Without A Legitimate Medical PurposeRead the Press Release
OAKLAND – Dr. Michael Roger Chiarottino was sentenced today to three years in prison for illegally prescribing oxycodone and other controlled substances, announced United States Attorney Brian J. Stretch and Drug Enforcement Administration Special Agent in Charge John J. Martin.
Dr. Chiarottino pleaded guilty on March 8, 2016, to one count of distributing oxycodone, a Schedule II controlled substance, outside the usual course of professional practice and without a legitimate medical purpose, in violation of Title 21, United States Code, Section 841(a)(1). According to his plea agreement, Chiarottino admitted that between February 12, 2013, and March 6, 2014, he prescribed large quantities of controlled substances (including oxycodone, oxymorphone, hydromorphone, methadone, and hydrocodone) to undercover DEA agents posing as patients in exchange for cash. On each occasion, Dr. Chiarottino failed to conduct an appropriate medical examination of, or obtain a sufficient patient medical history from, the undercover agent to support a prescription for such a large quantity of narcotics. In total, Dr. Chiarottino prescribed 46.8 grams of oxycodone (numbering 1,530 thirty-milligram pills) and admitted doing so with the intent to act outside the usual course of professional practice and without a legitimate medical purpose. In his plea agreement, Dr. Chiarottino also admitted that he met with patients and wrote prescriptions for controlled substances at North Bay Pain Management Services and therefore maintained a premises for the distribution of controlled substances. Dr. Chiarottino also admitted that, as a licensed physician and DEA registrant, he abused a position of trust and used a special skill to intentionally prescribe controlled substances without a legitimate medical purpose.
Dr. Chiarottino, age 68, of San Rafael, was indicted by a federal Grand Jury on September 14, 2014. He was charged with fifteen counts of distribution of controlled substances in violation of Title 21, United States Code, Section 841(a)(1).
The sentence was handed down by The Honorable Jeffrey S. White, U.S. District Court Judge. Judge White also sentenced the defendant to a five-year period of supervised release. During this period of supervised release, Dr. Chiarottino is barred from providing medical treatment or examining any patient in the course of any employment or professional practice. Dr. Chiarottino is also forbidden from prescribing medication or controlled substances to any person and may not supervise any medical practitioner in treating any medical patient or prescribing any medication. Finally, as a condition of his supervised release, Dr. Chiarottino is required to cooperate with and not contest any administrative action to revoke or suspend his license to practice medicine or prescribe controlled substances by the Medical Board of California and the Drug Enforcement Administration. Dr. Chiarottino’s medical license is currently suspended. The defendant will begin serving the sentence on October 20, 2016.
Garth Hire is the Assistant U.S. Attorney who is prosecuting the case with the assistance of Legal Technician Melissa Dorton. The prosecution is the result of an investigation by the Drug Enforcement Administration, the Livermore Police Department, the Pleasanton Police Department, and the Medical Board of California. This case is the product of an extensive investigation by the Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force, a focused multi-agency, multi-jurisdictional task force investigating and prosecuting the most significant drug trafficking organizations throughout the United States by leveraging the combined expertise of federal, state and local law enforcement agencies.
Manhattan U.S. Attorney Charges Volunteer Wrestling Coach in Rockland County with Sexual Exploitation of A MinorRead the Press Release
Preet Bharara, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, and Diego Rodriguez, the Assistant Director-in-Charge of the New York Field Office of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (“FBI”), announced today the arrest and filing of charges against Marcus Stroud, a 19-year-old volunteer wrestling coach in Rockland County, New York. The Complaint charges that STROUD persuaded a minor under the age of 14 (“Victim-1”) to engage in oral sex while STROUD recorded the activity with his iPhone. STROUD was presented today before U.S. Magistrate Judge Judith McCarthy in White Plains federal court and detained without bail.
U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara said: “Marcus Stroud is charged with coercing a minor into sexual conduct by posing as a Good Samaritan, while actually preying upon the terrified victim through intimidation and the threat of public embarrassment. This Office and our law enforcement partners remain committed to investigating and prosecuting those who commit these predatory crimes against children."
FBI Assistant Director Diego Rodriguez said: “There is no level of depravity that can’t find an outlet online or on digital devices in our society these days. This case illustrates just how easy it is allegedly to manipulate and control children who are simply too naïve of the world around them. We as law enforcement do all we can, and we are successful at stopping many of these alleged criminal deviants. But we won’t ever be able to stop all of them. Parents have to control their children’s access to the outside world through their phones and internet connections.”
According to the Complaint[1]:
In late December 2015, STROUD met Victim-1 at a youth wrestling tournament in Rockland County, New York. STROUD and Victim-1 connected online on SnapChat and Instagram. Thereafter, Victim-1 connected with a SnapChat user using the account name “thechsenpug” (“Pug”). Pug sent Victim-1 nude photos of a female and requested nude photos in return. After Victim-1 provided several nude photos, Pug told Victim-1 that Pug would release the photos on social media unless Victim-1 videotaped himself performing “oral sex on a black guy.”
In early January 2016, STROUD contacted Victim-1 via SnapChat and told Victim-1 that STROUD had come across naked pictures of Victim-1 on Instagram but the pictures had been deleted. STROUD told Victim-1 that he was good at computers and could help Victim-1. Victim-1 told STROUD about the photos and STROUD told Victim-1, among other things, that he would put an “alert” on the pictures, so that STROUD would be notified when the pictures were uploaded to the Internet. STROUD also told Victim-1 that he would be willing to perform the sexual act with Victim-1 to prevent the photos from being released. Victim-1 told STROUD he did not want to perform the sexual act.
In mid-February, STROUD asked Victim-1 when and where they would engage in the sexual act. STROUD told Victim-1 that if he wouldn’t do the sexual act, STROUD didn’t care if Victim-1 was exposed. On or about February 20, 2016, STROUD told Victim-1 that he had been notified that nude photos of Victim-1 had been posted on an online web page. STROUD told Victim-1 that he had been able to delete the photos. STROUD also told Victim-1 that he was notified that the photos had been sent to two different phone numbers. STROUD told Victim-1 that they should just do the sexual act and get it over with. Later that day, STROUD met with Victim-1 in Rockland County, New York, engaged in sexual activity with Victim-1, and recorded it. STROUD told Victim-1 that he would send the video to the female who had requested it and would put a virus on the video so that, when she opened it, STROUD would be able to take control of her phone and delete Victim-1’s photos.
On or about February 21, 2016, Victim-1 received a SnapChat message from a SnapChat user with the user name “sweedprincess” stating that “sweedprincess” liked the video a lot and wanted to know if Victim-1 would make another. As set forth in the Complaint, SnapChat records revealed two Internet Protocol (“IP”) addresses from which “sweedprincess” logged onto SnapChat between February 9 and February 22, 2016. Cablevision records revealed that a “Chris Stroud” in Rockland County, New York, was the subscriber of one of those IP addresses on February 10, 2016, and the other IP address on February 22, 2016.
As set forth in the Complaint, STROUD was interviewed by the Clarkstown Police Department on February 22, 2016. STROUD stated, among other things, that Victim-1 asked him for help, that he had engaged in “computer hacking” on Victim-1’s behalf, and that the help required “sending a file.” STROUD said that he met Victim-1 in Rockland County, New York, where they “created the file,” and then STROUD uploaded a virus into the file and sent the file. STROUD admitted that he engaged in oral sex with Victim-1 and recorded the activity on STROUD’s phone. STROUD stated that he told Victim-1 they would make the video and then STROUD would put a virus on the video.
* * *
STROUD, 19, of Nyack, New York, is charged with one count of sexual exploitation of a child. If convicted, STROUD faces a minimum sentence of 15 years in prison and a maximum sentence of 30 years in prison. The mandatory minimum and potential maximum sentences in this case are prescribed by Congress and are provided here for informational purposes only, as any sentencing of the defendant would be determined by a judge.
Mr. Bharara praised the efforts of the FBI, the Clarkstown Police Department, and the Rockland County District Attorney’s Office in connection with this investigation.
Mr. Bharara stated that the investigation is ongoing. Anyone who has relevant information concerning STROUD or who may have encountered someone using the user names “thechsenpug” or “sweedprincess” should contact the Federal Bureau of Investigation at (914) 989-6000.
U.S. v. Marcus Stroud ComplaintThe prosecution is being handled by the Office’s White Plains Division. Assistant United States Attorney Marcia S. Cohen is in charge of the prosecution.
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[1] As the introductory phrase signifies, the entirety of the text of the Complaint and the description of the Complaint set forth herein constitute only allegations, and every fact described should be treated as an allegation.
Man Indicted for Passing Counterfeit $100 BillsRead the Press Release
SPRINGFIELD, Mo. – Tammy Dickinson, United States Attorney for the Western District of Missouri, announced that a man was indicted by a federal grand jury today for passing counterfeit $100 bills in Mountain View, West Plains and Springfield, Mo.
Stuart E. Thurber, 55, who has been living in a travel trailer with no permanent residence, was charged in a six-count indictment returned by a federal grand jury in Springfield, Mo.
Today’s indictment alleges that Thurber forged at least 93 counterfeit $100 bills between January 2014 and April 2016.
Thurber allegedly passed eight counterfeit $100 bills at a Dollar General Store located at 502 Highway 60, Mountain View, on March 22, 2016. Thurber allegedly passed four counterfeit $100 bills at a Wal-Mart Store located at 101 Highway 60, Mountain View, on March 23, 2016. Thurber allegedly passed eight counterfeit $100 bills at Southern Supply, located at 3216 E. Division St., Springfield, on March 31, 2016. Thurber allegedly passed four counterfeit $100 bills at a Dollar General Store located at 1397 Bill Virdon Blvd., West Plains, on April 2, 2016.
The indictment also charges Thurber with one count of possessing digital and electronic images of $100 bills with the intent to defraud.
Dickinson cautioned that the charges contained in this indictment are simply accusations, and not evidence of guilt. Evidence supporting the charges must be presented to a federal trial jury, whose duty is to determine guilt or innocence.
This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Steven M. Mohlhenrich. It was investigated by the U.S. Secret Service, the Mountain View, Mo., Police Department, the Ozark, Mo., Police Department and the West Plains, Mo., Police Department.
Man Admits to Federal Arson During 2015 Baltimore RiotsRead the Press Release
Baltimore, Maryland –Trevon Green, age 23, of Baltimore, pleaded guilty on July 18, 2016, to the arson of a Baltimore food market in connection with the April 27, 2015, riots in Baltimore. Green also admitted that he participated in the looting of a liquor store and assaulted the store’s owner.
The guilty plea was announced by United States Attorney for the District of Maryland Rod J. Rosenstein; Special Agent in Charge Daniel L. Board, Jr. of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives - Baltimore Field Division; Maryland State Fire Marshal Brian Geraci; Commissioner Kevin Davis of the Baltimore Police Department; and Baltimore City State’s Attorney Marilyn J. Mosby.
“Trevon Green was not a protester, he was a criminal who enjoyed committing gratuitous violence,” said U.S. Attorney Rod J. Rosenstein. “He looted a liquor store and kicked the defenseless store owner in the head, then he set fire to a food market. We caught him because police and prosecutors spent time reviewing recordings from cameras throughout the city.”
On April 27, 2015, riots and widespread looting erupted in Baltimore following the funeral of Freddie Gray. According to his plea agreement, Green participated in the rioting. In the later afternoon of April 27, 2015, Green engaged in the looting at a liquor store located in the 2200 block of W. North Avenue. Green is captured on video leaving the store with a box of merchandise from the store. Green stopped briefly to have a conversation with a woman outside the liquor store. One of the owners of the store, who had previously been punched in the face, was crouching near his vehicle, just behind where Green was standing, watching the looting of his store. After Green was done speaking with the woman, he turned, and without provocation or speaking a word, Green kicked the store owner in the face. As a result, the owner crumpled to the street, suffering an injury to his face.
Just prior to 8:25 p.m., Green proceeded to the market located in the 1500 block of North Monroe Street in Baltimore. Green was recorded on cell phone video with two other men near the broken front window of the market. Green is recorded telling the other men to light the store on fire, as one of the men lit the contents of a garbage can on fire, then threw the can with its contents ablaze through the broken front window. Others depicted on the video confirmed that the store was on fire and the video captured flames in the front of the store. On the video recording, Green states that he and the others were setting the store on fire for Freddie Gray. The damage to the store from the fire and looting is at least $334,894.16. As part of his plea agreement, Green has agreed to the entry of a restitution order in the full amount of the victims’ losses.
During the investigation, ATF released video from the arson of the liquor store in an attempt to identify the perpetrators of the arson, as well as the assaults on the owner of the store. (link to the video: https://www.dvidshub.net/video/428956/assault-true-religion#.ViU1Wv3oteU) Multiple tips were received from the public identifying Green as one of the individuals assaulting the liquor store owner, which assisted law enforcement in identifying Green in the video from the subsequent arson of the market.
Green and the government have agreed that if the Court accepts the plea agreement Green will be sentenced to 70 months in prison. U.S. District Judge J. Frederick Motz has scheduled sentencing for August 22, 2016 at 2:00 p.m. Green remains detained.
The investigation into arsons that occurred on April 27, 2015, is continuing. Anyone with information is urged to call the ATF hotline, 1-888-ATF-FIRE (1-888-283-3473). ATF continues to offer a reward of up to $10,000 for information leading to the arrest and conviction of any individual responsible for these incidents.
Federal prosecutors previously have charged four other defendants for arson crimes committed during the Baltimore riots on April 27, 2015. Darius Raymond Stewart, age 22, of Baltimore, pleaded guilty to malicious destruction of property by fire, arising from the arson of a liquor store. Stewart is scheduled to be sentenced on August 3, 2016. Gregory Lee Butler, Jr., a/k/a Greg Baly, age 22, of Baltimore, pleaded guilty to the federal indictment charging him with obstruction of firefighters during a civil disorder, and is scheduled to be sentenced on September 20, 2016. Donta Betts, age 20, of Baltimore, was sentenced to 15 years in prison for making a destructive device in connection with the April 27, 2015, riots in Baltimore and, in an unrelated case, for discharge of a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime on July 2, 2015. Raymon Carter, age 25, of Baltimore, Maryland, pleaded guilty to the federal crime of rioting, including the arson of the CVS Pharmacy on April 27, 2015, and was sentenced to four years in prison and ordered to pay restitution of $500,000.
United States Attorney Rod J. Rosenstein praised the ATF, Office of the State Fire Marshal, Baltimore Police Department, and Baltimore City State’s Attorney’s Office for their work in the investigation and prosecution. Mr. Rosenstein thanked Assistant United States Attorney Judson T. Mihok, who is prosecuting the case.
Mail Thief and Counterfeiter Sentenced to 57 Months in PrisonRead the Press Release
Contact Person: Bill Watkins (864) 282-2100
Columbia, South Carolina ---- Acting United States Attorney Beth Drake stated today that Tracy Lynn Albertson, age 43, of Piedmont, was sentenced today in federal court in Anderson, for conspiracy to commit fraud, a violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 371. United States District Judge Timothy M. Cain of Anderson sentenced Albertson to 57 months imprisonment and ordered her to pay over $11,000 in restitution.
Evidence presented at the change of plea hearing established that Albertson and others regularly stole mail from residential boxes, sorted the stolen mail for checks and personal identifying information, created altered or counterfeit checks, and then negotiated the checks throughout the upstate. Most of the fraud was conducted in an effort to obtain funds to purchase methamphetamine. Albertson was captured on multiple bank surveillance cameras when she negotiated the checks.
The case was investigated by agents of United States Postal Inspection Service and the Easley Police Department. Assistant United States Attorney Bill Watkins of the Greenville office handled the case.
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MS-13 Member Pleads Guilty to Federal Racketeering Conspiracy Including Attempted MurderRead the Press Release
Greenbelt, Maryland –Jaime Ernesto Navarette-Mejia, a/k/a Violento, age 35, of Gaithersburg, Maryland, pleaded guilty today to conspiracy to participate in a racketeering enterprise known as La Mara Salvatrucha, or MS-13, including an attempted murder.
The guilty plea was announced by United States Attorney for the District of Maryland Rod J. Rosenstein; Special Agent in Charge Andre R. Watson of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI); Chief Hank Stawinski of the Prince George’s County Police Department; Chief Richard McLaughlin of the Laurel Police Department; Prince George’s County State’s Attorney Angela D. Alsobrooks; Chief Douglas Holland of the Hyattsville Police Department; Chief Edward G. Hargis of the Frederick Police Department; Frederick County State’s Attorney J. Charles Smith; Chief J. Thomas Manger of the Montgomery County Police Department; and Montgomery County State’s Attorney John McCarthy.
MS-13 is a national and transnational gang composed primarily of immigrants or descendants from El Salvador. Branches or “cliques” of MS-13, one of the largest street gangs in the United States, operate throughout Prince George’s County, Montgomery County, and Frederick County, Maryland. MS-13 members are required to commit acts of violence to maintain membership and discipline within the gang. One of the principal rules of MS-13 is that its members must attack and kill rivals, known as “chavalas,” whenever possible.
According to his plea agreement and court documents, from 2012 through at least 2014, Navarette-Mejia was a member of the Normandie clique of MS-13. Navarette-Mejia and MS-13 members committed crimes to further the interests of the gang, including murder, assault, robbery, extortion by threat of violence, obstruction of justice, witness tampering, and witness retaliation.
Navarette-Mejia admitted that on March 28, 2014, he and another MS-13 member traveled to a restaurant/bar in Laurel, Maryland. Navarette-Mejia and the other MS-13 member had in their possession a .380 caliber handgun that belonged to the Normandie clique. After Navarette-Mejia became involved in an altercation with patrons of the restaurant, he and the other MS-13 member were asked to leave the restaurant. They went to the car of the other MS-13 member, parked outside. When the patrons who had been involved in the altercation came outside, Navarette-Mejia fired at least five shots at them using the Normandie clique .380 caliber handgun. One of the shots struck a victim in the foot, causing serious injury.
A firearms examiner determined that the .380 caliber handgun that fired the shell casings recovered at the restaurant was the same firearm used at other crime scenes including a murder that occurred on February 28, 2013, an attempted murder that occurred on July 30, 2014, in Hyattsville, Maryland, and a murder that occurred on November 30, 2013 in Frederick, Maryland. These crimes were committed by co-conspirators of Navarette-Mejia.
Navarette-Mejia faces a maximum sentence of life in prison for the racketeering conspiracy because it included an attempted murder. U.S. District Judge Peter J. Messitte has scheduled sentencing for October 28, 2016, at 9:30 a.m.
United States Attorney Rod J. Rosenstein commended the HSI Baltimore, Prince George’s County Police Department, Laurel Police Department, Frederick Police Department, Hyattsville Police Department, Montgomery County Police Department, Prince George’s County State’s Attorney’s Office and its Strategic Investigations Unit, Frederick County State’s Attorney’s Office and Montgomery County State’s Attorney’s Office for their work in the investigation. Mr. Rosenstein also recognized the Prince George’s County Sheriff’s Office, Prince George’s County Department of Corrections, HSI Baltimore’s Operation Community Shield Task Force, and the Maryland Department of Corrections Intelligence Unit for their assistance. Mr. Rosenstein thanked Assistant United States Attorneys William D. Moomau and Lindsay Eyler Kaplan, who are prosecuting this case.