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15 September 2025
A Single Bullet Earns Three-Time Convicted Felon More Than Eight Years in Federal PrisonRead the Press Release
SAVANNAH, GA: Charles Harmon Porter, 54, of Savannah, Georgia, was sentenced to 100 months in federal prison plus three years of supervised release after pleading guilty to possession of ammunition by a convicted felon, said Margaret E. Heap, U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Georgia.
As described in court documents and at sentencing, on the night of May 29, 2023, Porter—a three-time convicted felon with prior convictions for offenses including terroristic threats, possession of cocaine, and obstruction of law enforcement—used a handgun to shoot his female roommate during a domestic dispute at their residence on Alma Street in Savannah. After the shooting, Porter fled the residence and discarded the handgun at an unknown location, ensuring that it would never be found. Officers with the Savannah Police Department responded immediately to the scene of the shooting and quickly identified Porter as the perpetrator. They obtained a warrant for his arrest, located him at another residence in Savannah, and took him into custody within hours of the shooting. While Porter was being booked at the Chatham County jail, a single round of ammunition was found in his pocket. An ammunition examiner with the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF) determined that the round had been manufactured outside of the state of Georgia, which made Porter’s possession of the round a federal crime. Porter was indicted in federal court for possession of ammunition by a convicted felon and pleaded guilty to the charge earlier this year.
At Porter’s September 4 sentencing hearing, the United States presented evidence proving that Porter possessed the round in connection with the shooting, which the Court agreed amounted to attempted murder.
“The sentencing of Charles Harmon Porter reaffirms that this office will vigorously prosecute violent criminals who illegally possess firearms or ammunition down to the very last bullet as part of our commitment to public safety. We wish the victim the best in her continued recovery,” said U.S. Attorney Heap.
"Every bullet represents a potential threat to public safety; we will continue to work diligently to prevent firearms from falling into the wrong hands," said Acting ASAC Robert Davis.
The case was investigated by the ATF and the Savannah Police Department and prosecuted for the United States by Assistant United States Attorney Timothy P. Dean.
A related state charge of aggravated assault remains pending against Porter in Chatham County Superior Court.
12 September 2025
York County Man Charged for Threatening Member of U.S. House of RepresentativesRead the Press Release
HARRISBURG - The United States Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Pennsylvania announced that Troy Lamont Rishell, age 48, a resident of York, Pennsylvania, was charged by criminal information for threatening a Member of the U.S. House of Representatives.
According to Acting U.S. Attorney John C. Gurganus, between February 28, 2025, and May 20, 2025, Rishell left a series of voicemails with the District Office of a Member of the U.S. House of Representatives, with intent to intimidate the Representative while the victim was engaged in the performance of the victim’s official duties.
This case was investigated by the United States Capitol Police and the United States Secret Service. Assistant United States Attorney K. Wesley Mishoe is prosecuting the case.
If convicted, Rishell faces a maximum penalty of 10 years’ imprisonment, a term of supervised release following imprisonment, a fine, and the imposition of a special assessment. A sentence following a finding of guilt is imposed by a court after consideration of the applicable federal sentencing statutes and the Federal Sentencing Guidelines.
Informations are only allegations. All persons charged are presumed to be innocent unless and until found guilty in court.
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Wilmington Man Sentenced to More Than 27 Years in Prison for Running a Sex Trafficking OperationRead the Press Release
WILMINGTON, N.C. – A Wilmington man was sentenced today to more than 27 years in prison (327 months) for sex trafficking and operating a prostitution enterprise. On February 25, 2025, Christopher Todd Evans pled guilty to the charges.
According to court documents and other information presented in court, Evans, 41, operated an “escorting” website and business for over a decade between 2010 and 2022. The business was initially called Cape Fear Entertainers and later called Cape Fear Escorts. Evans rented office space in downtown Wilmington and even made victims sign bogus “contracts” promising not to engage in sex trafficking and prostitution. Through Cape Fear Escorts, Evans prostituted more than 200 adult and minor females.
In fact, Cape Fear Escorts was a front for human trafficking and prostitution. Evans used manipulation, control, threats, and occasionally violence to coerce women to prostitute and give him their earnings. He intimidated victims and made them believe that he was well connected and that no one would ever help them. Evans’s exploitation and abuse left countless women struggling with addiction, trauma, and pain.
“Evans made money by exploiting these girls and women and exposing them to all manner of depravity and bodily harm,” said U.S. Attorney Ellis Boyle. “Monsters who prey upon others have no place in the Eastern District. The lengthy and appropriate sentence in this case is based on the dedicated work of the FBI, our local partners, and federal prosecutors. We thank law enforcement for their great work on this case. The Eastern District and our citizens are safer because this pimp will spend decades in prison.”
Ellis Boyle, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of North Carolina made the announcement after sentencing by Chief U.S. District Judge Richard E. Myers II. The Federal Bureau of Investigation and New Hanover County Sheriff’s Office investigated the case and Assistant U.S. Attorney Erin C. Blondel and former Assistant U.S. Attorney Bryan Stephany prosecuted the case.
Related court documents and information can be found on the website of the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of North Carolina or on PACER by searching for Case No. 7:23-CR-82-M.
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Washington County Man Sentenced to 151 Months in Prison for Distribution and Possession of Child PornographyRead the Press Release
ALBANY, NEW YORK – David Dion, age 48, of Greenwich, New York, was sentenced yesterday to 151 months in prison for distributing and possessing child pornography. Acting United States Attorney John A. Sarcone III, Craig L. Tremaroli, Special Agent in Charge of the Albany Field Office of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), and New York State Police (NYSP) Superintendent Steven G. James made the announcement.
As part of his earlier guilty plea, Dion admitted that from July 2023 to January 2024, he distributed images and videos of child pornography via an encrypted chat messenger to another person, and that he possessed images of child pornography on five electronic devices on February 28, 2024, when his residence was searched. He also admitted that he produced morphed images of child pornography by using non-pornographic images of known children from his Washington County community and superimposing the faces of those children onto images of child pornography he found on the Internet to create an adapted or modified depiction of an identifiable minor engaged in sexually explicit conduct. Dion possessed more than 205,000 images and 545 videos depicting child pornography across his devices.
United States District Judge Anne M. Nardacci also ordered a 20-year term of supervised release to follow Dion’s release from prison, as well as restitution to the victims in the total amount of $105,000, and forfeiture of the electronic devices he used to commit the offenses. Dion will also be required to register as a sex offender upon his release from prison.
Acting United States Attorney John A. Sarcone III stated, “Dion is a sexual predator who deeply impacted the lives of his community, by merging ordinary photos of local children into images of child pornography. He will now spend the next twelve and a half years of his wretched life locked up in a cage where he belongs. I thank our state and local partners for bringing this case to us for federal prosecution and for making our children safer.”
FBI Special Agent in Charge Craig L. Tremaroli stated: “Mr. Dion’s significant sentence ensures that he will now spend years in federal prison for terrorizing a community. The FBI is committed to working with our law enforcement partners to swiftly investigate any individual who knowingly possesses and distributes detrimental images that re-victimize our most vulnerable.”
New York State Police Superintendent Steven G. James said, “The steadfast work done by the State Police and our law enforcement partners ensures Mr. Dion will serve time for his deplorable actions. There is zero tolerance for those who prey on children, and this sentencing reflects the severity of these crimes. Together, we will continue to seek justice for those who have been victimized and protect those who are most vulnerable, our children.”
The FBI and NYSP investigated the case. Assistant U.S. Attorney Alexander Wentworth-Ping prosecuted the case.
Project Safe Childhood is a nationwide initiative to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by the U.S. Attorneys' Offices and the Criminal Division's Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS), Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state and local resources to better locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the Internet, as well as to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit https://www.justice.gov/psc.
Upper Marlboro Man Pleads Guilty to String of Bank Robbery, Firearms OffensesRead the Press Release
Greenbelt, Maryland – Wesley Phillip Wilson, Jr., 44, of Upper Marlboro, Maryland, pled guilty to several bank robbery offenses and using, carrying, and brandishing a firearm during and in relation to a crime of violence. The string of armed bank robberies occurred in Maryland and Virginia.
Kelly O. Hayes, U.S. Attorney for the District of Maryland and Erik S. Siebert, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia, announced the guilty plea with Special Agent in Charge William J. DelBagno, Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) – Baltimore Field Office; Special Agent in Charge Reid Davis, Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) – Washington, DC Field Office, Criminal Division; Chief George Nader, Prince George’s County Police Department (PGPD); Chief Amal E. Awad, Anne Arundel County Police; Chief Marc R. Yamada, Montgomery County Police Department (MCPD); Chief Douglas W. Keen, Manassas City Police Department; Colonel Peter Newsham, Chief, Prince William County Police Department (PWCPD); and Chief Kevin Davis, Fairfax County Police Department (FCPD).
According to the guilty plea, between November 19, 2020, and December 7, 2020, Wilson robbed four banks and attempted to rob another. On November 19, Wilson kicked off the spree by robbing approximately $1,570 from a Prince George’s County, Maryland bank. During the robbery, Wilson approached a teller station and handed a teller a note that stated “Don’t Be a Hero. I have a gun. No Dye packs tracers or devices in the bag. Do Not push alarm until I leave! If my scanner goes off someone will die. Only Large Bills. Hurry up!! Stay calm 20,000 Now.” The bank teller initially gave Wilson $500, but he demanded more money, so the teller complied, giving him an additional $1,070.70.
Then on November 23, Wilson entered an Anne Arundel County, Maryland bank. Wilson approached the teller station and handed the teller a note that stated “Dont Panic. Put all the money in the bag. Don’t hit the panic alarm until I leave or people will die. I have a gun…No dye packs or devices. Your on the clock. Don’t Be A Hero!!” The teller complied, giving Wilson $2,709 before he fled.
On November 25, Wilson attempted to rob a Woodbridge, Virginia bank. Wilson approached the teller’s station asking to make a withdrawal. He then tossed an envelope through the opening of the teller’s plastic shield that stated “I have a gun don’t Panic Do Not push the panic alarm until I leave and No one dies. Give me ALL the money from the drawer.” Wilson then reached into his bag and brandished a black handgun in furtherance of the robbery. In response, the teller handed Wilson a withdrawal slip and responded to the threat by attempting to press the alarm button under the desk. As a result, Wilson fled without obtaining any funds from the bank.
Then on November 28, Wilson entered a Montgomery County, Maryland bank carrying a shopping bag. Wilson approached the teller station and handed over a note that read, “I have a gun. Do not panic. Give me all the money in the drawer.” The teller complied, giving Wilson giving $3,000, which he placed in the shopping bag before fleeing.
On December 7, Wilson entered a Manassas, Virginia bank and approached the teller station. After a brief conversation, Wilson pointed a handgun at the teller, demanding everything in the top drawer. The teller complied giving Wilson the money. Then Wilson approached another bank employee and demanded money. The second employee also complied, emptying a drawer that contained cash and a GPS tracker onto the counter. As the employee put the money into envelopes, a customer entered the bank. Wilson then pointed the handgun at the employee, stating, “You have eight seconds.” He then stuffed approximately $6,135 into a bag before fleeing.
Following the bank robbery, law enforcement utilized the GPS tracker to track the stolen money to a shopping center in Manassas, Virginia. Law enforcement found Wilson and informed him that they were detaining him in connection with the Prince William County bank robbery. As an officer placed his hands behind him, Wilson confessed. Upon approaching Wilson’s vehicle, law enforcement spotted various piles of stolen cash inside and then officers eventually found additional stolen money in his pocket.
After Wilson’s arrest law enforcement conducted an interview. During the interview, Wilson confessed to the four previous bank robberies and the one attempted bank robbery. Law enforcement searched Wilson’s vehicle where officers discovered proceeds from previous robberies and the Polymer80 9mm handgun and ammunition he used in connection with the robberies.
Wilson is facing a maximum sentence of 20 years in federal prison for the bank robbery charge and a maximum of 25 years for the armed bank robbery and attempted armed bank robbery charges. Additionally, Wilson faces a minimum of five years and maximum of life—consecutive to the bank robbery offenses—for using, carrying, and brandishing a firearm during and in relation to a crime of violence.
This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program bringing together all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve to reduce violent crime and gun violence, and to make our neighborhoods safer for everyone. On May 26, 2021, the Department launched a violent crime reduction strategy strengthening PSN based on these core principles: fostering trust and legitimacy in our communities, supporting community-based organizations that help prevent violence from occurring in the first place, setting focused and strategic enforcement priorities, and measuring the results.
U.S. Attorney Hayes commended the FBI, PGPD, Anne Arundel County Police Department, MCPD, Manassas City Police Department, PWCPD, and FCPD for their work in the investigation. Ms. Hayes also thanked Assistant U.S. Attorneys Dawn Williams and Timothy F. Hagan, Jr., who are prosecuting this case, along with Assistant U.S. Attorney John Blanchard, Eastern District of Virginia, for his valuable assistance.
For more information about the Maryland U.S. Attorney’s Office, its priorities, and resources available to report fraud, visit justice.gov/usao-md and justice.gov/usao-md/community-outreach.
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U.S. Attorney’s Office Filed 97 Border-Related Cases This WeekRead the Press Release
SAN DIEGO – Federal prosecutors in the Southern District of California filed 97 border-related cases this week, including charges of bringing in aliens for financial gain, reentering the U.S. after deportation, and importation of controlled substances.
The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of California is the fourth-busiest federal district, largely due to a high volume of border-related crimes. This district, encompassing San Diego and Imperial counties, shares a 140-mile border with Mexico. It includes the San Ysidro Port of Entry, the world’s busiest land border crossing, connecting San Diego (America’s eighth largest city) and Tijuana (Mexico’s second largest city).
In addition to reactive border-related crimes, the Southern District of California also prosecutes a significant number of proactive cases related to terrorism, organized crime, drugs, white-collar fraud, violent crime, cybercrime, human trafficking and national security. Recent developments in those and other significant areas of prosecution can be found here.
A sample of border-related arrests this week:
- On September 5, Marco Arizmendi-Rodriguez, a Mexican citizen, was arrested and charged with Attempted Entry after Deportation. According to a complaint, Border Patrol agents intercepted the defendant as he slowly crawled across terrain near the Otay Mesa Port of Entry after he illegally crossed into the United States from Mexico. The defendant was previously deported to Mexico in June 2011 from Calexico.
- On September 7, Jesus Campos, a U.S. citizen, was arrested and charged with Importation of a Controlled Substance. According to a complaint, Customs and Border Protection officers found 54 pounds of fentanyl and four pounds of heroin concealed in his vehicle when he applied for entry in the U.S. at the San Ysidro Port of Entry.
- On September 8, Cesar Verdugo-Cabrera, Santos Martinez-Almaraz, Ricardo Natividad Nunez-Pacheco and Jose Carmelo Ortiz-Castro, citizens of Mexico and Guatemala, were arrested by Customs and Border Protection officers after a short pursuit at sea. According to a complaint, Verdugo was charged with Attempted Bringing in Aliens for Financial Gain as the alleged captain of a panga-style fishing vessel carrying undocumented immigrants; the others were charged with Attempted Entry after Deportation.
The immigration cases were referred or supported by federal law enforcement partners, including Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Enforcement and Removal Operations (ICE ERO), Customs and Border Protection, U.S. Border Patrol, the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), the U.S. Marshals Service (USMS), and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF), with the support and assistance of state and local law enforcement partners.
Indictments and criminal complaints are merely allegations and all defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of New Mexico Weekly Immigration and Border Crimes ReportRead the Press Release
ALBUQUERQUE – Today, the United States Attorney’s Office for the District of New Mexico announced its immigration enforcement statistics for this week. These cases are prosecuted in partnership with the El Paso Sector of the U.S. Border Patrol, along with Homeland Security Investigations El Paso, and assistance from other federal, state, and county agencies.
In the one-week period ending September 12, 2025, the United States Attorney’s Office brought the following criminal charges in New Mexico:
- 42 individuals were charged this week with Illegal Reentry After Deportation (8 U.S.C. 1326)
- 3 individuals were charged this week with Alien Smuggling (8 U.S.C. 1324)
- 32 individuals were charged this week with Illegal Entry (8 U.S.C. 1325)
- 53 individuals were charged this week with Illegal Entry (8 U.S.C. 1325), violation of a military security regulation (50 U.S.C. 797) and Entering Military, Naval, or Coast Guard Property (18 U.S.C. 1382), arising from the newly established National Defense Area in New Mexico.
Many of the defendants charged pursuant to 18 U.S.C. 1326 had prior criminal convictions for alien smuggling, illegally carrying a weapon, illegal reentry, drug trafficking, and domestic violence.
These cases are part of Operation Take Back America, a nationwide initiative that marshals the full resources of the Department of Justice to repel the invasion of illegal immigration, achieve the total elimination of cartels and transnational criminal organizations (TCOs), and protect our communities from the perpetrators of violent crime.
These statistics represent prosecutions by the United States Attorney’s Office for the District of New Mexico only. The numbers do not include individuals apprehended by immigration enforcement officials and subjected solely to administrative process.
Under current leadership, public safety and a secure border are the top priorities for the District of New Mexico. Enhanced enforcement both at the border and in the interior of the district have yielded aliens engaged in unlawful activity or with serious criminal history, including human trafficking, sexual assault and violence against children.
The District of New Mexico consists of 33 counties and shares 180 miles of international border with Mexico. Assistant U.S. Attorneys from Albuquerque and Las Cruces work directly with our federal, state and local law enforcement partners to prosecute immigration-related and other federal offenses.
Trucker sentenced after failed attempt to hide cocaine with urineRead the Press Release
CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas – A 50-year-old Orange resident has been ordered to federal prison for possession with intent to distribute over 23 kilograms of cocaine, announced U.S. Attorney Nicholas J. Ganjei.
Pablo Garcia Ortiz pleaded guilty April 2.
U.S. District Judge David S. Morales has now ordered Ortiz to serve 36 months in federal prison to be immediately followed by five years of supervised release. At the hearing Sept. 11, the court heard additional evidence that detailed how Ortiz attempted to conceal the cocaine from detection. In handing down the sentence, Judge Morales noted the great damage illegal drugs cause American society. By smuggling drugs, Ortiz made himself partially responsible for those harms.
On Nov. 1, 2024, Ortiz drove a Freightliner tractor to the Sarita Border Patrol checkpoint. A K-9 alert prompted a referral to secondary inspection.
Ortiz delayed exiting and poured a jug of urine inside the cab in an attempt to mask the odor of narcotics. He also accused law enforcement of planting evidence.
Authorities ultimately found 22 bundles of cocaine weighing approximately 24 kilograms hidden in a blue toolbox under the bed. The drugs, concealed in a trash bag and cardboard box, tested positive for cocaine. They also found chili powder which is commonly used to disguise the smell of narcotics.
A search of Ortiz’s phone revealed evidence of a prior cocaine smuggling event in September 2024.
Ortiz was permitted to remain on bond and voluntarily surrender to a Federal Bureau of Prisons facility to be determined in the near future.
Drug Enforcement Administration conducted the investigation with the assistance of Border Patrol. Assistant U.S. Attorney Izaak Bruce prosecuted the case.
Tennessee Man Pleads Guilty to COVID-19 Employment Tax Fraud SchemeRead the Press Release
A Tennessee man pleaded guilty on Wednesday to tax crimes and wire fraud for his role in a scheme to claim fraudulent refunds based on false COVID-19 employment tax credits.
The following is according to court documents and statements made in court: Edward Zanes, of Kingsport, Tennessee, conspired with others to file false tax returns seeking fraudulent refunds based on the employee retention credit and paid sick and family leave credit, both of which were created by Congress to aid struggling businesses during the COVID-19 global pandemic. Zanes and co-conspirators created phony businesses, which lacked any employees or operations, for the sole purpose of claiming the bogus credits. Zanes aided in filing numerous false tax returns for those phony businesses and directed the tax returns to be mailed to addresses he and co-conspirators controlled.
In total, Zane and his co-conspirators filed false tax returns that claimed over $3.4 million in tax refunds and received over $1.8 million from the IRS.
Zanes is set to be sentenced on Jan. 7, 2026. He faces a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison for conspiring to commit mail and wire fraud, a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison for each count of mail fraud, and a maximum penalty of 3 years in prison for each count of aiding and assisting in the filing of a false tax return. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
IRS Criminal Investigation and the U.S. Secret Service investigated the case.
Trial Attorney Zachary A. Cobb of the Justice Department’s Tax Division and Assistant U.S. Attorney Mac Heavener for the Eastern District of Tennessee are prosecuting the case.
St. Francis Man Sentenced to 7 Years in Federal Prison for Resisting and Impeding Federal Officers and for Possessing Methamphetamine Bound for DistributionRead the Press Release
PIERRE - United States Attorney Alison J. Ramsdell announced today that U.S. District Judge Eric C. Schulte has sentenced a man from St. Francis, South Dakota, convicted of Assaulting, Resisting, and Impeding Federal Officers and of Possession with Intent to Distribute a Controlled Substance. The sentencing took place on September 9, 2025.
Derek McCloskey, age 30, was sentenced to seven years in federal prison, followed by four years of supervised release, and ordered to pay a $1,000 fine, $24,965.83 in restitution, and a $200 special assessment to the Federal Crime Victims Fund.
McCloskey was indicted by a federal grand jury in May 2024. He pleaded guilty on June 2, 2025.
The convictions stemmed from a vehicle pursuit on May 16, 2024, involving personnel from the United States Marshals Service, the Rosebud Sioux Tribe Law Enforcement Services, the Oglala Sioux Tribe Department of Public Safety, the Jackson County Sheriff’s Office, and the Bennett County Sheriff’s Office. During the nearly two-hour pursuit through several counties, McCloskey hit multiple law enforcement vehicles, causing significant damage to the vehicles. McCloskey and his passenger threw significant quantities of methamphetamine and a rifle from the vehicle during the pursuit. Officers ultimately recovered a rifle and approximately 25 grams of pure methamphetamine. Data from McCloskey’s phone indicated he was involved in the distribution of methamphetamine within the Rosebud Indian Reservation.
This case was investigated by the Rosebud Sioux Tribe Law Enforcement Services, the Oglala Sioux Tribe Department of Public Safety, the Jackson County Sheriff’s Office, the Bennett County Sheriff’s Office, the Bureau of Indian Affairs – Office of Justice Services, the U.S. Marshals Service, and the FBI. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Kirk Albertson and Meghan Dilges prosecuted the case.
McCloskey was immediately remanded to the custody of the U.S. Marshals Service.
St. Albans Man Charged with Illegal Possession of a FirearmRead the Press Release
Burlington, Vermont – The Office of the United States Attorney for the District of Vermont announced that on August 28, 2025, a federal grand jury returned an indictment charging Richard Bailey Jr., 34, of St. Albans, Vermont, with being a felon in possession of a firearm.
Bailey entered a plea of not guilty to the charge during an arraignment on September 8, 2025, before United States Magistrate Judge Kevin J. Doyle. Judge Doyle ordered that Bailey be detained during the pendency of this matter.
According to court records, on June 2, 2025, police in St. Albans, Vermont were investigating a domestic violence incident involving Bailey. Police in Burlington, Vermont subsequently observed Bailey standing near the alleged domestic violence victim’s place of employment. Bailey fled from police and discarded a fanny pack containing a loaded Sig Sauer pistol with a round chambered.
The United States Attorney’s Office emphasizes that an indictment contains allegations only and that Bailey is presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty. Bailey faces up to 15 years of imprisonment if convicted. The actual sentence, however, would be determined by the District Court with guidance from the advisory United States Sentencing Guidelines and the statutory sentencing factors.
Acting United States Attorney Michael P. Drescher commended the investigatory efforts of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, as well as the St. Albans and Burlington Police Departments.
The prosecutor is Assistant United States Attorney Nate Burris. Bailey is represented by Assistant Federal Public Defender Barclay Johnson.
South Bend Man Sentenced to 66 Months in PrisonRead the Press Release
SOUTH BEND – Kevin Pope, Jr., 39 years old, of South Bend, Indiana, was sentenced by United States District Court Judge Damon R. Leichty after pleading guilty to possession with intent to distribute fentanyl, announced Acting United States Attorney M. Scott Proctor.
Pope was sentenced to 66 months in prison followed by 3 years of supervised release.
According to documents in the case, Pope sold methamphetamine and fentanyl to a buyer in South Bend on five occasions in October and November 2024. Police executed a search warrant at his house in December 2024 and found over 30 grams of fentanyl, a kilogram of pills containing methamphetamine, about 90 grams of cocaine, and over $22,000 in cash. They also found a loaded handgun.
This case was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives with assistance from the South Bend Police Department. The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Joel Gabrielse.
Sioux City Man Sentenced to Federal Prison for Possession of Child PornographyRead the Press Release
Priest Morris, 21, from Sioux City, Iowa, was sentenced on September 12, 2025, to over 5 years’ imprisonment, in federal court in Sioux City. Morris pled guilty May 1, 2025, to possession of child pornography.
Evidence at the plea and sentencing hearings, showed that from January 2024, through August 2024, Morris used the Discord, Twitter, Telegram, and Snapchat applications to receive, distribute, and possess visual depictions of child pornography including materials involving a prepubescent minor or minor under the age of 12. The Sioux City Police Department received two CyberTips about a Snapchat account uploading child pornography. Law enforcement connected the account back to Morris. During the execution of a search warrant on Morris’ electronics, Morris admitted he received and possessed child pornography, and it would be located on his phone and iPad. Forensic analysis of his electronics showed that Morris possessed over 1,500 images and 6 videos of child pornography including materials that portrayed sadistic or masochistic conduct as well as infants and toddlers.
This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006, by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by the United States Attorneys’ Offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who sexually exploit children, and to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.usdoj.gov/psc. For more information about Internet safety education, please visit www.usdoj.gov/psc and click on the tab “resources.”
Sentencing was held before United States District Court Judge Leonard T. Strand. Morris was sentenced to 66 months’ imprisonment and was ordered to pay $6,000 in restitution to the child victims. Morris must also serve a 5-year term of supervised release following imprisonment. There is no parole in the federal system. Morris remains in custody of the United States Marshal until he can be transported to a federal prison.
The case was investigated by the Sioux City Police Department and was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Kraig R. Hamit.
Court file information at https://ecf.iand.uscourts.gov/cgi-bin/login.pl. The case file number is 24-4086. Follow us on X @USAO_NDIA.
Seven Arrested for Conspiring with Annandale-Based Doctor, and Others, for Distributing Oxycodone and Promethazine-Codeine SolutionRead the Press Release
ABINGDON, Va. – Seven people who conspired with doctors, including an Annandale-based doctor convicted of distributing more than 7,000 oxycodone pills, 34,000 milliliters of hydrocodone-chlorpheniramine solution (also known as “Tussionex”), and 107,000 milliliters of promethazine-codeine solution, were arrested this week.
A federal grand jury sitting in Abingdon indicted those arrested on August 26, 2025. Arrested this week were: Obioma Alozie Ndubuka, a.k.a. “Bankroll,” 31, of Gaithersburg, Maryland; Raymono Alfonzo Russell II, 24, of Bowie, Maryland; Cameron Isaiah Lewis, 23, of Bowie, Maryland; Elhadj Malick Diallo, 31, of Silver Spring, Maryland; Zion Oluwademilade Adeduwon, 24, of Bowie, Maryland; Kenechukwu Brian Okwara, a.k.a. “Kene,” 29, of Bowie, Maryland; and Yared Michael Tesfaye, a.k.a. “Yar,” 28, of Montgomery Village, Maryland.
The grand jury has charged all seven defendants with conspiracy to distribute and possess with the intent to distribute oxycodone and hydrocodone-chlorpheniramine solution and obtaining promethazine-codeine solution by fraud, two counts of possessing with the intent to distribute hydrocodone-chlorpheniramine solution, and four counts of obtaining drugs by fraud.
According to court documents, in at least 2023 and 2024, Rotimi Iluyomade, and the named co-conspirators entered into an agreement to distribute more than 7,000 oxycodone pills and more than 34,000 milliliters of hydrocodone-chlorpheniramine solution to individuals in multiple states. In addition, the co-conspirators agreed to acquire and obtain promethazine-codeine solution by fraud.
As part of the conspiracy, multiple individuals visited Iluyomade’s medical clinic to obtain fraudulent prescriptions for promethazine-codeine solution, as well as fraudulent prescriptions for oxycodone pills and hydrocodone-chlorpheniramine solution, also known as “Tussionex.” The individuals provided Iluyomade with lists of multiple “patients” with fake identifying information or different variations of names and false addresses, and requested prescriptions be sent to pharmacies throughout the United States for the “patients” on the lists. At least 70 of the illegal controlled substance prescriptions were transmitted to and/or filled at pharmacies in the Western District of Virginia.
The Drug Enforcement Administration, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Virginia State Police, the Salisbury, Maryland Police Department, the Loudoun County Sheriff’s Office, the Russell County Sheriff’s Office, Nebraska State Police, HHS-OIG, and the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) are investigating the case.
Valuable assistance was provided by the United States Attorney’s Office for the District of Maryland (Greenbelt Division) and Maryland Department of Public Safety and Correctional Services.
Assistant U.S. Attorneys Lena Busscher and Randy Ramseyer are prosecuting the case.
Acting United States Attorney Robert N. Tracci and Special Agent in Charge Reid Davis of the FBI Washington Field Office's Criminal Division made the announcement.
An indictment is merely an accusation. The defendant is presumed innocent until proven guilty.
Sentencing for illegal reentry includes new allegations of sexual misconductRead the Press Release
HOUSTON – A 31-year-old Mexican national with a felony criminal history has been sentenced for illegally entering the country without authorization, announced U.S. Attorney Nicholas J. Ganjei.
Luis Alfonso Murillo-Soriano pleaded guilty March 8, 2024.
U.S. District Judge Keith P. Ellison has now ordered Murillo-Soriano to serve 130 months in federal prison. Not a U.S. citizen, he is again expected to face removal proceedings following his imprisonment. At the hearing, the court heard evidence that Murillo-Soriano had allegedly sexually assaulted another inmate and helped bring contraband into the facility while in custody. In handing down the sentence, the court noted the seriousness of Murillo-Soriano’s three drug convictions and expressed concern over his commission of another serious offense after illegally re-entering the United States.
Murillo-Soriano has multiple felony drug convictions involving heroin, cocaine, and methamphetamine as well as driving while intoxicated. He was first removed in 2018 and returned unlawfully two other times.
Authorities discovered him after he was apprehended in December 2019 for his involvement in distributing four kilograms of heroin. Murillo-Soriano had just been deported at the end of October 2019. Further, he returned illegally to the United States while on supervised release for a previous serious drug trafficking charge.
He will remain in custody pending transfer to a Federal Bureau of Prisons facility to be determined in the near future.
Immigration and Customs Enforcement - Enforcement and Removal Operations conducted the investigation along with the Texas Department of Public Safety. Assistant U.S. Attorney Christine Lu is prosecuting the case.
This case is part of Operation Take Back America, a nationwide initiative that marshals the full resources of the Department of Justice to repel the invasion of illegal immigration, achieve the total elimination of cartels and transnational criminal organizations and protect our communities from the perpetrators of violent crime. Operation Take Back America streamlines efforts and resources from the Department’s Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces and Project Safe Neighborhood.
Second Defendant Involved in Conspiracy to Produce Child Pornography and the Sexual Exploitation of Children Sentenced to 40 Years in PrisonRead the Press Release
ALEXANDRIA, La. – Acting United States Attorney Alexander C. Van Hook announced that Michael Bo Peacock, 50, of Denton, Texas, has been sentenced by United States District Judge Dee D. Drell to 480 months (40 years) in prison, followed by 20 years of supervised release, for his involvement in a conspiracy to produce child pornography and the sexual exploitation of children. Peacock was also ordered to pay a fine in the amount of $50,000.
Peacock pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to produce child pornography and one count of enticing a minor to engage in criminal sexual activity on November 21, 2024. His co-defendant, Daniel Perryman Collins, 35, of Pineville, Louisiana, pleaded guilty to the same charges and was sentenced in February 2025 to 325 months (27 years, 1 month) in prison for these offenses.
This case is the result of an investigation into individuals using the dark web to communicate with others regarding exploiting children on the internet and causing them to produce child pornography. From January to November 2023, Peacock and Collins, both together and individually, for their sexual gratification, caused minor children to produce child pornographic and sexually explicit images and videos of themselves by the use of threats and blackmail. Peacock conducted all of this illegal activity in the Dallas, Texas area, while Collins worked out of the Pineville, Louisiana area.
According to information introduced in court, Peacock and Collins both participated in meeting children and coercing/blackmailing the children to engage in sexually explicit conduct and to produce videos of that conduct. Peacock would often contact a minor victim online and through various social media platforms, he and Collins would convince the minor victim to engage in sexually explicit activity and provide a video of that conduct. Peacock and Collins would then blackmail and threaten the victims to provide additional sexually explicit material. As part of the conspiracy, Collins utilized advanced security measures so that those images and materials could not be traced back to himself or Peacock.
Peacock and Collins gave each other access to all of the child pornography they had caused minor victims to produce by obtaining an account with an overseas cloud-based file hosting service so they could post and share the child pornography images and videos that they had produced or obtained. Both defendants had an encryption key to use to access the material they had posted to the site. Through their investigation, agents with the Federal Bureau of Investigation (“FBI”) Child Exploitation Operational Unit determined that Peacock and Collins exploited over 100 child victims and caused them to create child pornography. These images and videos were posted to their shared file hosting account.
On November 16, 2023, a search warrant was executed at Collins’ residence in Pineville. During the search, law enforcement agents obtained access to the cloud-based file hosting account of Peacock and Collins and were able to download all of the child pornography images and videos which they had created and posted to the account.
“This sentence should send a strong message to anyone who may be involved in this type of behavior and the sexual exploitation of minor children that this crime will not be tolerated,” said Acting United States Attorney Alexander C. Van Hook. “Our office and the state and federal agents who investigate these cases are committed to standing strong together in the fight to end this type of illegal activity in our nation and internationally. We will continue to work to protect our children from being preyed upon by offenders such as this.”
“Through relentless investigations and cutting-edge technology, the FBI works every day to uncover hidden networks that exploit children,” said FBI Criminal Investigative Division Assistant Director Jose A. Perez. “This case underscores the relentless dedication of the FBI's Child Exploitation Operational Unit to ensuring no predator can thrive at the expense of our children. Offenders like Michael Bo Peacock preyed on some of the most vulnerable members of our communities, and we will stop at nothing to identify, investigate and bring these predators to justice.”
The case was investigated by the FBI’s Headquarter-based Child Exploitation Operational Unit, with assistance from the FBI’s New Orleans and Dallas Field Offices, and prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Danny Siefker and J. Luke Walker.
To report an incident involving the possession, distribution, receipt or production of child pornography: Child sexual abuse material – referred to in legal terms as "child pornography" – captures the sexual abuse and exploitation of children. These images document victims’ exploitation and abuse, and they suffer revictimization every time the images are viewed. In 2023, the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children received 36 million reports of the possession, manufacture, or distribution of child sexual abuse materials. To file a report with NCMEC, go to https://report.cybertip.org or call 1-800-843-5678.
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Rapid City Man Sentenced to Federal Prison on Firearm ChargeRead the Press Release
RAPID CITY - United States Attorney Alison J. Ramsdell announced today that U.S. District Judge Camela C. Theeler has sentenced a man from Rapid City, South Dakota, convicted of Possession of a Firearm by a Prohibited Person. The sentencing took place on August 7, 2025.
Andrew Cortes, 30, was sentenced to two years and three months in federal prison, followed by three years of supervised release, and ordered to pay a $100 special assessment to the Federal Crime Victims Fund.
Cortes was indicted for Possession of a Firearm by a Prohibited Person by a federal grand jury in February 2025. He pleaded guilty on May 23, 2025.
On December 12, 2024, Rapid City police officers initiated a traffic stop of a vehicle in which Cortes was a passenger for a traffic violation. As soon as the vehicle came to a stop, Cortes fled the scene. Law enforcement pursued Cortes on foot and apprehended him. Cortes had a pistol in his possession during the pursuit, and it dropped from him when law enforcement apprehended him. Cortes was previously convicted for a felony crime. Possessing a firearm after such a conviction is a federal felony offense.
This case is part of Operation Take Back America, a nationwide initiative that marshals the full resources of the Department of Justice to repel the invasion of illegal immigration, achieve the total elimination of cartels and transnational criminal organizations (TCOs), and protect our communities from the perpetrators of violent crime. Operation Take Back America streamlines efforts and resources from the Department’s Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETFs) and Project Safe Neighborhood (PSN). Through PSN, the District of South Dakota seeks to bring together all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve to reduce gun violence and make our neighborhoods safer for everyone.
This case was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) and the Rapid City Police Department. Assistant U.S. Attorney Benjamin Schroeder prosecuted the case.
Cortes was immediately remanded to the custody of the U.S. Marshals Service.
Previously Convicted Sexual Abuser is Found Guilty of Assaulting Several Women at Metro StationsRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON – Today, Nicholis Dorsey, 33, of Washington, D.C. was found guilty by a Superior Court jury of misdemeanor sexual assault with felony enhancement for sexually abusing five female passengers at various metro transit stations, announced U.S. Attorney Jeanine Ferris Pirro.
Dorsey was convicted of six counts of misdemeanor sexual abuse with a felony enhancement and aggravating circumstances. Dorsey had previously been convicted of sexually assaulting three additional women – all eight women were strangers to him. The Honorable Judge Michael Ryan scheduled sentencing for November 14, 2025.
According to the evidence and testimony presented at trial, between January and March 2025, Dorsey approached five women at various metro stations and assaulted them by touching either their buttocks or inner thigh. After each assault, Dorsey would then antagonize each of his victims by engaging in prolonged staring, sometimes coupled with laughter. After committing the assaults, the defendant would promptly leave the stations. In response, detectives from the Metro Transit Police Department created be on the lookout (“BOLO”) flyers using screenshots from metro surveillance footage that depicted the defendant.
With the help of quick-acting Special Police Officers and Officers from the Metro Transit Police Department, Dorsey was arrested on March 5, 2025, shortly after the final assault, and has been in custody since. He confirmed his identity during a custodial interview, that same day, after being shown two BOLO fliers from the outstanding investigations.
The investigation revealed that Dorsey had three prior convictions for misdemeanor sexual abuse, rendering him eligible for a felony enhancement under the law.
Joining in the announcement was Chief Michael Anzallo of the Metro Transit Police Department.
In announcing the verdict, U.S. Attorney Pirro and Chief Anzallo commended the work of those investigating the case from the Metro Transit Police Department, and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia They acknowledged the efforts of those who worked on the case from the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia, including Victim Advocate Veronica Vaughan, who provided support and coordinative efforts for all five victims.
They also commended the work of Assistant U.S. Attorneys Samantha Soter and LaVater Massie-Banks, who prosecuted the case.
Philadelphia Man Pleads Guilty to Defrauding Pandemic Relief Programs, Local Union ChapterRead the Press Release
PHILADELPHIA – United States Attorney David Metcalf announced that Tracy Hardy, 52, of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, entered a plea of guilty before United States District Judge Harvey Bartle III on Thursday on four counts of wire fraud and one count of making a false claim upon the United States.
The defendant was charged with those offenses by information, arising from two separate schemes — one to obtain disaster-related loans to which he was not entitled, and another to defraud a union through inflated and falsified bids for a construction project.
As detailed in court filings and admitted to by the defendant, from about May 2020 to May 2022, Hardy participated in a scheme to defraud the Small Business Administration (SBA) and multiple SBA-approved lenders participating in the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) and Economic Injury Disaster Loan (EIDL) program, established as part of the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act, a federal law enacted in March 2020.
Hardy, the owner of several Philadelphia-based businesses, including Lou & Choo Enterprises, Inc., Hardy & Hardy Holdings, LLC, and Monroe Press, Inc., began working with Person #1, who helped individuals and businesses obtain disaster-related loans with fraudulent financial information. Hardy provided Person #1 with background and financial information related to his companies, and Person #1 prepared and submitted to the lenders the loan applications, falsely inflating financial figures relating to the operations of the companies applying for the loans and drafting false documents to support the inflated figures.
As a result, Hardy obtained more than $2 million in pandemic relief funds by means of materially false and fraudulent pretenses, representations, and promises, including: (a) by making false statements about the wages paid to employees of his businesses, the number of employees working for his businesses, the gross revenues of the businesses, the ownership of his businesses, and the intended use of the PPP loan proceeds; and (b) by providing false documentation, such as false tax documents and payroll summaries to support the loan applications.
As further detailed in court filings, from about January 2019 to June 2019, Hardy also participated in a scheme to defraud District 1199C, a local chapter of the National Union of Hospital and Healthcare Employees, which represented thousands of healthcare workers throughout the greater Philadelphia area.
In early 2019, District 1199C was seeking a construction company to renovate the bar area inside its union hall, located on the 1300 block of Locust Street in Philadelphia.
In addition to companies referenced above, Hardy was also the co-owner and operator of a construction company, Manayunk Construction & Development Corporation (“Manayunk Construction”).
On or about January 30, 2019, Hardy sent an email to Person #5, an officer of District 1199C, attaching a bid on the letterhead of Manayunk Construction for renovating the bar in the union hall. The bid detailed the work to be performed for a total cost of $47,490.
In February 2019, the defendant then submitted to Person #5 a new and inflated bid from Manayunk Construction, and two additional bids that he falsely and fraudulently created, purporting to be from two independent companies. In fact, the bids from those two additional companies were created by Hardy and were entirely fabricated.
The second bid from Manayunk Construction was fraudulently inflated by at least $45,000, with the bid accounting for some additional work to be done, as well as generating tens of thousands of dollars in proceeds for the benefit of the defendant and Person #5. Hardy’s bid from Manayunk Construction offered the lowest price of the three bids that he submitted.
In March 2019, the Executive Board of District 1199C voted to award the contract for the bar renovation project to Manayunk Construction, based on its low bid of $139,790. Manayunk Construction subsequently completed the bar renovation project and Hardy, through his company, was paid more than $150,000, an amount that was fraudulently inflated by at least $45,000.
The case was investigated by the FBI, with the Pennsylvania Office of Attorney General, and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Louis D. Lappen.
Ogden Market Beating Death in March 2021 Leads to 20 Year Prison TermRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON – Alvin Alexis Cruz Garcia, 27, of Washington, D.C., was sentenced today in Superior Court for the beating death of Ramon Gomez Yanez at the Ogden Market in Northwest, announced U.S. Attorney Jeanine Ferris Pirro.
Cruz Garcia was found guilty of one count of second-degree murder while armed following a four-day trial on June 6, 2025. Superior Court Judge Todd Edelman sentenced Cruz Garcia to 20 years in prison to be followed by five years of supervised release.
According to the government’s evidence, at approximately 8:28 p.m. on March 23, 2021, 38-year-old Ramon Gomez Yanez, parked his car and made his usual stop at the local food market, Ogden Market, located at 1500 Ogden Street NW. When Mr. Gomez came back outside, the defendant was standing on the sidewalk and urinating much too close to the back of Mr. Gomez’s car. The Ogden Market surveillance video, with no audio available, showed some exchange of words between the two men and then showed Cruz Garcia punch Mr. Gomez down to the ground. While Mr. Gomez was down on the sidewalk, the defendant kicked and punched Mr. Gomez multiple times in the head area, and then just walked away, leaving Mr. Gomez to die on the scene from those injuries.
Cruz Garcia was arrested on June 7, 2022, and has been in custody since.
Joining in the announcement was Chief Pamela Smith of the Metropolitan Police Department.
In announcing the sentence, U.S. Attorney Pirro and Chief Smith commended the work of those who investigated the case from the Metropolitan Police Department. They also acknowledged Assistant U.S. Attorney’s Jin Park and Katrenia Shelly who prosecuted the case.
Nigerian National Sentenced to Prison for International Scheme that Defrauded Elderly U.S. VictimsRead the Press Release
Note, the release has been updated to include a quote from the U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Florida.
A Nigerian national was sentenced yesterday to 97 months in prison for his role in a transnational inheritance fraud scheme.
According to court documents, Ehis Lawrence Akhimie, 41, was a member of a group of fraudsters that sent personalized letters to elderly victims in the United States over the course of several years. The letters falsely claimed that the sender was a representative of a bank in Spain and that the recipient was entitled to receive a multimillion-dollar inheritance left for the recipient by a family member who had died overseas years before. Akhimie and his co-conspirators told a series of lies to victims, including that, before they could receive their purported inheritance, they were required to send money for delivery fees, taxes, and other payments to avoid questioning from government authorities. Akhimie and his co-conspirators collected money victims sent in response to the fraudulent letters through a complex web of U.S.-based former victims, whom the defendants convinced to receive money and forward to the defendants or persons associated with them. Victims who sent money never received any purported inheritance funds. In pleading guilty, Akhimie admitted to defrauding over $6 million from more than 400 victims, many of whom were elderly or otherwise vulnerable.
“The Justice Department will continue to pursue, prosecute, and bring to justice transnational criminals responsible for defrauding U.S. consumers, wherever they are located,” said Assistant Attorney General Brett A. Shumate of the Justice Department’s Civil Division. “This case is a testament to the critical role of international collaboration in tackling transnational crime. I want to thank our U.S. law enforcement partners, as well as those who assisted across the globe, including the National Crime Agency and Crown Prosecution Service of the United Kingdom, for their outstanding contributions to this case.”
“Schemes like this steal not only money but dignity from our seniors," said U.S. Attorney Jason A. Reding Quiñones for the Southern District of Florida. "Our Office stands with victims, ensures their voices are heard, and will relentlessly pursue those who prey on them.”
“The U.S. Postal Inspection Service is committed to protecting American consumers from being defrauded by Transnational Criminal Organizations,” said Acting Postal Inspector in Charge Bladismir Rojo for the U.S. Postal Inspection Service (USPIS) Miami Division. “We have long partnered with the Department of Justice’s Consumer Protection Branch to deliver justice and we will continue to do so.”
“Defrauding the elderly and other vulnerable populations is a betrayal of not just trust but of humanity,” said Acting Special Agent in Charge Ray Rede for HSI Arizona. “HSI and our law enforcement partners commitment to investigate criminals who steal money sends a clear message: justice will prevail, and those who exploit others for personal gain will be held accountable. We thank all our partners who assisted in this investigation.”
Akhimie is the eighth defendant sentenced to prison in connection with the scheme. District Court Judge Kathleen M. Williams for the Southern District of Florida previously sentenced six additional defendants in a related case. On April 25, the District Court Judge Roy K. Altman for the Southern District of Florida sentenced Okezie Bonaventure Ogbata, who was extradited from Portugal, to 97 months in prison for his role in the scheme, describing the defendants’ offense conduct as “an incredibly serious crime” and stating that it merited a substantial sentence because it was important “to stand up for the most vulnerable, for the least protected members of our society who have done absolutely nothing wrong.”
USPIS and HSI investigated the case. The Justice Department’s Office of International Affairs, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Florida, Europol, and authorities from the UK, Spain, and Portugal all provided critical assistance.
Senior Trial Attorney and Transnational Criminal Litigation Coordinator Phil Toomajian and Trial Attorneys Josh Rothman of the Civil Division’s Consumer Protection Branch are prosecuting the case.
If you or someone you know is age 60 or older and has been a victim of financial fraud, help is standing by at the National Elder Fraud Hotline: 1-833-FRAUD-11 (1-833-372-8311). This U.S. Department of Justice hotline, managed by the Office for Victims of Crime, is staffed by experienced professionals who provide personalized support to callers by assessing the needs of the victim and identifying relevant next steps. Case managers will identify appropriate reporting agencies, provide information to callers to assist them in reporting, connect callers directly with appropriate agencies, and provide resources and referrals, on a case-by-case basis. Reporting is the first step. Reporting can help authorities identify those who commit fraud and reporting certain financial losses due to fraud as soon as possible can increase the likelihood of recovering losses. The hotline is open Monday through Friday from 10:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. ET. English, Spanish, and other languages are available.
More information about the department’s efforts to help American seniors is available at its Elder Justice Initiative webpage. For more information about the Consumer Protection Branch and its enforcement efforts, visit its website at www.justice.gov/civil/consumer-protection-branch. Elder fraud complaints may be filed with the FTC at https://reportfraud.ftc.gov/ or at 877-FTC-HELP. The Department of Justice provides a variety of resources relating to elder fraud victimization through its Office for Victims of Crime, which can be reached at www.ovc.gov.
New York Woman Admits Depositing $2.7 million in Fraudulent Checks in Missouri, IllinoisRead the Press Release
ST. LOUIS – A woman from New York on Friday admitted attempting to deposit $2.7 million in fraudulent checks.
Gabrielle Borthwick, 23, pleaded guilty in U.S. District Court in St. Louis to 12 felonies: six counts of financial institution fraud and six counts of aggravated identity theft.
Borthwick admitted as part of her plea that she obtained counterfeit cashier’s checks and the stolen personal information (names, birthdates and Social Security numbers) of multiple people. She then went to a series of banks in Missouri and fraudulently opened, or attempted to open, accounts in the victims’ names without their permission. Borthwick presented the financial institutions with counterfeit out-of-state driver’s licenses that displayed her photograph but contained the victims’ names and dates of birth. To dispel concerns about the out-of-state licenses, Borthwick falsely claimed to have recently moved to Missouri and supplied fake utility and phone bills to support her claims. She then deposited counterfeit cashier’s checks in amounts ranging from $121,260 to $1.4 million. She claimed to run a wedding planning business to allay bank officials’ suspicions about the size of the checks. Borthwick then tried to withdraw cash or electronically transfer funds before the financial institutions realized that the checks were fake.
Borthwick deposited checks in multiple Missouri banks and in one bank in Illinois totaling $2,773,280.65. She fraudulently obtained $271,667.98, her plea agreement says.
Borthwick is scheduled to be sentenced on December 17. Financial institution fraud is punishable by up to 30 years in prison, a $1 million fine or both prison and a fine. Aggravated identity theft is punishable by two years in prison, consecutive to any other charge and a fine of up to $250,000. She will be ordered to repay the money.
U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations, the Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office, and police departments in Eureka, O’Fallon and Union in Missouri and Edwardsville in Illinois investigated the case. Assistant U.S. Attorney Justin Ladendorf is prosecuting the case.
New Orleans Man Sentenced to 105 Months for 2022 Gas Station ShootingRead the Press Release
NEW ORLEANS, LOUISIANA – Acting U.S. Attorney Michael M. Simpson announced that on September 10, 2025, U.S. District Judge Darrel James Papillion sentenced New Orleans resident, DANTRELL MCZEAL (“MCZEAL”), age 34, to 105 months imprisonment, and three years of supervised release following his imprisonment. MCZEAL must also pay a mandatory special assessment fee of $100.00. MCZEAL pleaded guilty on May 27, 2025 to being a felon in possession of firearms, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Sections 922(g)(1) and 924(a)(8).
According to court documents, in July 2022 MCZEAL and an unknown individual, shot at one another in the parking lot of a New Orleans gas station. MCZEAL was shot in the leg during the gunfire exchange. Ballistic casings recovered from the parking lot revealed that MCZEAL fired nineteen (19) .223 rifle shots during the exchange. The unknown individual fled the parking lot in his vehicle. MCZEAL also fled the parking, lost control of his vehicle, and struck a light pole at a nearby intersection. MCZEAL was seen limping from his vehicle while in possession of a Palmetto State Armory Model PA-15, .223 REM/5.56 x 45mm semi-automatic rifle with an extended magazine.
New Orleans Police Department officers later recovered a loaded Glock Model 30GEN4, .45 caliber semi-automatic pistol, with an extended magazine and a bullet in the chamber, from MCZEAL’s abandoned vehicle.
Federal law prohibits convicted felons from possessing firearms. MCZEAL is a convicted felon, having previously been convicted in Orleans Parish Criminal District Court of aggravated battery, aggravated burglary, and two counts of being a felon in possession of a firearm.
This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program bringing together all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve to reduce violent crime and gun violence, and to make our neighborhoods safer for everyone. On May 26, 2021, the Department launched a violent crime reduction strategy strengthening PSN based on these core principles: fostering trust and legitimacy in our communities, supporting community-based organizations that help prevent violence from occurring in the first place, setting focused and strategic enforcement priorities, and measuring the results.
The case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the New Orleans Police Department. It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Brittany Reed of the Violent Crime Unit/Strike Force Unit.
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New Mexico Teenager Charged with Making Violent Online ThreatsRead the Press Release
ALBUQUERQUE – A New Mexico teenager has been charged with making violent threats on social media following the assassination of Turning Point USA founder Charlie Kirk.
According to court documents, on or about September 11, 2025, Jace Allen, 19, used an account on X.com under the alias “Jebron Lames” to post a series of violent and racist threats following the assassination of Turning Point USA founder Charlie Kirk on September 10, 2025. Among the threats, Allen wrote that he planned to commit mass murder, target minorities and Jews, and shoot up unspecified locations. He also threatened an Ohio city council member directly, telling the official, “You’re gonna be one of the first to die.”
The FBI’s Toledo Resident Agency quickly traced the account to Allen’s phone and residence in Jamestown, New Mexico. Agents from the FBI Gallup Resident Agency located and interviewed Allen at his home on September 11, 2025. Allen admitted to making the posts, acknowledged being a Neo-Nazi who hates Jews and minorities, and said he wanted to help spark a civil war by terrorizing people online.
Although Allen stated he did not own a firearm, a search of his phone revealed videos of him firing a rifle and handgun in August 2025.
Allen is charged with transmitting communications containing a threat to injure another person and will remain in custody pending a detention hearing. If convicted of the current charges, Allen faces five years in prison.
Acting U.S. Attorney Ryan Ellison and Philip Russell, Acting Special Agent in Charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s Albuquerque Field Office, made the announcement today.
The Gallup Resident Agency of the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s Albuquerque Field Office investigated this case. Supervisory Assistant U.S. Attorney Matthew McGinley is prosecuting the case.
A criminal complaint is merely an allegation. All defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
Miami Woman Indicted on Federal Aggravated Identity Theft ChargesRead the Press Release
Baltimore, Maryland – A federal grand jury returned an indictment charging a Miami woman with 16 federal charges in connection with an unemployment insurance (UI) benefits fraud scheme. Tamika Nicole Jones, 33, of Miami, Florida, is charged with eight counts of wire fraud, seven counts of aggravated identity theft, and one count of mail fraud. The indictment was unsealed following Jones’s arrest in South Florida by Special Agents with the U.S. Department of Labor – Office of Inspector General (DOL-OIG).
Kelly O. Hayes, U.S. Attorney for the District of Maryland, announced the indictment with Special Agent in Charge Troy W. Springer, National Capital Region, DOL-OIG.
As detailed in the indictment, UI is a joint state and federal program that provided monetary benefits to eligible beneficiaries. UI payments are intended to provide temporary financial assistance to lawful workers who became unemployed through no fault of their own. Beginning in or around March 2020, in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, several federal programs expanded UI eligibility and increased UI benefits. This included the Pandemic Unemployment Assistance Program, Federal Pandemic Unemployment Compensation, and the Lost Wages Assistance Program.
In Maryland, residents seeking UI benefits submitted online applications. Applicants answered specific questions to establish eligibility to receive UI benefits, including their name, Social Security Number (SSN), and mailing address, among other things. Additionally, the State required applicants to self-certify that they were unemployed, partially employed, or unable to work for a COVID-19-related reason. The Maryland Department of Labor (MD-DOL) relied upon the information from the application to determine UI benefits eligibility. After approval, the MD-DOL typically distributed state and federal UI benefits electronically to a debit card, which claimants could use to withdraw funds and/or make purchases.
As alleged in the indictment, from May 2020 to June 2021, the defendant defrauded State Workforce Agencies, including the MD-DOL, by impersonating victim individuals for the purpose of submitting fraudulent claims for unemployment insurance. The defendant used victims’ personal identifying information, including name, date of birth, and/or SSN, to submit applications for UI benefits.
If convicted, Jones faces a maximum sentence of 20 years in federal prison for wire and mail fraud. Aggravated identity theft carries a mandatory minimum sentence of two years in prison that runs consecutive to any other sentence.
Actual sentences for federal crimes are typically less than the maximum penalties. A federal district court judge determines sentencing after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
An indictment is not a finding of guilt. Individuals charged by indictment are presumed innocent until proven guilty at a later criminal proceeding.
The District of Maryland Strike Force is one of five strike forces established throughout the United States by the U.S. Department of Justice to investigate and prosecute COVID-19 fraud, including fraud relating to the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act. The CARES Act was designed to provide emergency financial assistance to Americans suffering the economic effects caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. The strike forces focus on large-scale, multi-state pandemic relief fraud perpetrated by criminal organizations and transnational actors. The strike forces are interagency law enforcement efforts, using prosecutor-led and data analyst-driven teams designed to identify and bring to justice those who stole pandemic relief funds.
For more information about the Department’s response to the pandemic, visit justice.gov/coronavirus. Anyone with information about allegations of attempted fraud involving COVID-19 can report it by calling the Department of Justice’s National Center for Disaster Fraud (NCDF) Hotline at 866-720-5721 or via the NCDF Web Complaint Form at justice.gov/disaster-fraud/ncdf-disaster-complaint-form.
U.S. Attorney Hayes commended the DOL-OIG for its work in the investigation. Ms. Hayes also thanked Assistant U.S. Attorney Jared M. Beim who is prosecuting the federal case.
For more information about the Maryland U.S. Attorney’s Office, its priorities, and resources available to report fraud, visit justice.gov/usao-md and justice.gov/usao-md/community-outreach.
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Mexican National with Prior Felony Convictions Sentenced to Prison for Illegally Reentering the United StatesRead the Press Release
LAS VEGAS – A Mexican national was sentenced yesterday by United States Chief District Judge Andrew Gordan to 13 months and one day in prison followed by three years of supervised release for illegally reentering the United States after being removed on three prior occasions from the country.
According to court documents and statements made during court proceedings, on December 1, 2023, Jose Ricardo Lopez Munoz was found in the United States after he was previously deported to Mexico on November 13, 1995, February 26, 1997, and August 1, 2013.
On November 28, 2023, Lopez Munoz was arrested by state law enforcement in Clark County, Nevada, for False Statement to Obstruct Public Officer. Lopez Munoz has previous felony convictions for Menacing out of the District Court, El Paso County, Colorado, in 2002, and for Challenge to Fight with use of a Deadly Weapon and with the Intent to Promote Further or Assist a Criminal Gang out of the Eighth Judicial District Court, Clark County, Nevada, in 2007. After serving over six years in prison he was deported for a third time in 2013.
Lopez Munoz pleaded guilty to one-count of Deported Alien Found in the United States. After serving his prison sentence he will be deported to Mexico a fourth time.
Acting United States Attorney Sigal Chattah for the District of Nevada and Salt Lake City Field Office Acting Director Jason Knight made the announcement.
The ICE Salt Lake City, Las Vegas Sub-Office investigated the case; and the United States Attorney’s Office for the District of Nevada prosecuted the case.
Members of the public can report crimes and suspicious activity by dialing 866-DHS-2-ICE (866-347-2423) or completing the online tip form.
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Member of violent Third World Mob gang sentenced to more than 25 years in prison for trafficking more than 1,000 kilograms of marijuanaRead the Press Release
COLUMBUS, Ohio – A member of the local violent criminal organization Third World Mob was sentenced in U.S. District Court today to 310 months in prison.
Klegewerges Abate, 36, of Columbus was convicted by a jury in August 2024. After an 8-day trial before U.S. District Judge Edmund A. Sargus, Jr., jurors deliberated for less than six hours before finding him guilty on all counts.
Abate, who is also known as “Bells,” “Robell” and “Sosa,” was convicted of conspiring to traffic at least 1,000 kilograms of marijuana, firearms offenses, and wire fraud related to illegally obtaining COVID-19 pandemic relief funds.
According to court documents and trial testimony, Third World Mob members brought hundreds of pounds of marijuana into Ohio from other states like California and Georgia to sell in central Ohio. They used U-Haul trucks and rental cars to move the drugs. Coconspirators used rental houses or houses leased or owned in other individuals’ names as “stash houses” or “trap houses” to facilitate the drug trafficking and to store significant amounts of cash from the drug proceeds.
For example, in August 2019, Abate and others possessed a suitcase with approximately $940,000 in cash in it in a house on Phlox Avenue in Blacklick.
During a November 2022 search of a residence on Chapel Stone Road in Blacklick, law enforcement officials found Abate and two of his co-conspirators, along with more than 700 kilograms of marijuana and three firearms.
Third World Mob leaders and members used violence and the threat of violence to maintain authority over their drug trafficking.
Surveillance video presented at trial showed Abate, a convicted felon, shooting a man at a restaurant in Columbus. Jurors also heard testimony about numerous shootings, a pistol-whipping, and other acts of intimidation.
Abate was also convicted of wire fraud for falsely applying for Pandemic Unemployment Assistance, fraudulently claiming that he had been a self-employed landscaper during the time he trafficked drugs.
In total, seven members of the Third World Mob have been charged federally since 2021.
Co-defendant Abubakarr Savage, 36, was also convicted at trial with Abate. He was sentenced July 2025 to more than 15 years in prison. Fellow Third World Mob member Menelik Solomon pleaded guilty in November 2023 and was also sentenced to more than 15 years in prison.
Dominick S. Gerace II, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Ohio; Elena Iatarola, Special Agent in Charge, Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), Cincinnati Division; Andrew Lawton, Acting Special Agent in Charge, Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), Detroit; and Franklin County Sheriff Dallas Baldwin announced the sentences imposed. U.S. Attorney Gerace recognized the assistance from the Columbus, and Whitehall, Ohio, and Tucson, Arizona, police departments and the Ohio Bureau of Criminal Investigation. Assistant United States Attorneys Elizabeth A. Geraghty and S. Courter Shimeall represented the United States in this case.
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Member of Ulster County Drug Trafficking Organization Sentenced to PrisonRead the Press Release
UTICA, NEW YORK – Justin Torres, age 37, of Ellenville, New York, was sentenced today to serve 37 months in prison for conspiring to distribute and possess with intent to distribute fentanyl and cocaine.
The announcement was made by Acting United States Attorney John A. Sarcone III; Ricky J. Patel, Special Agent in Charge of Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), New York; and Ulster County Sheriff Juan Figueroa, whose office leads the Ulster Regional Gang Enforcement Narcotics Team (URGENT).
Torres admitted that during the conspiracy he distributed and possessed with intent to distribute approximately 580 grams of cocaine and 200 grams of fentanyl.
Torres was one of 11 defendants charged in the case. These defendants have pled guilty and have been sentenced or are pending sentencing:
- Joshuan Atkinson was sentenced to 156 months in prison, to be followed by a 5-year term of supervised release;
- Christopher Baez was sentenced to 71 months in prison, to be followed by a 5-year term of supervised release;
- Michael Herry was sentenced to 27 months in prison, to be followed by a 3-year term of supervised release;
- Daryl Livingston was sentenced to 24 months in prison, to be followed by a 3-year term of supervised release;
- Joshua Morales is scheduled to be sentenced on December 3, 2025;
- Joseph Logan is scheduled to be sentenced on November 19, 2025; and
- Timothy Hutcherson is scheduled to be sentenced on December 17, 2025.
Acting United States Attorney John A. Sarcone III stated, “This case demonstrates our commitment to dismantling drug trafficking organizations in Ulster County, where Justin Torres and his co-conspirators sold cocaine and fentanyl. With our federal, state, and local partners, we continue to target these poison peddlers and protect the public from the deadly scourge of drugs. I commend and thank Sheriff Figueroa for his courageous leadership spearheading this operation with URGENT and all the brave officers of the task force who sacrificed themselves in the spirit in which we have all sworn an oath to as members of law enforcement. As I have stated time and time again, if these gangbangers had been charged locally, they would all be out on the streets in two hours continuing their acts of violence against our communities for a year or more while their cases moved through the state court system. The State Legislature and Governor should call a special session to repeal the reckless and dangerous cashless bail law that has imposed massive casualties amongst the citizens throughout the State of New York for eight long suffering years. My office shall do everything in its power to assist state and local law enforcement to combat the revolving door of crime.”
Ricky J. Patel, Special Agent in Charge of HSI New York, stated, “This sentence is the result of a coordinated, intelligence-driven investigation that disrupted this organization’s fentanyl and cocaine distribution, and in turn stopped a narcotics pipeline in its tracks. HSI New York remains steadfast in our commitment to deploying our expertise, data-driven strategies, and investigative resources to identify traffickers, dismantle their networks, and prevent deadly drugs from reaching our neighborhoods. Together with the Ulster County Sheriff's Office, URGENT, and our local partners, HSI New York will never waver in our commitment to protecting families within our communities and the public we serve every day.”
Ulster County Sheriff Juan Figueroa stated, “This was a collaborative effort consisting of federal, state and local law enforcement. Drug trafficking continues to affect local communities and is a nexus to crime spikes. I thank the U.S. Attorney for prosecuting these criminals. I also thank the members of the URGENT task force who put long investigative hours into this critical case to rid our community of drugs.”
Senior United States District Judge David N. Hurd also imposed a fine of $5,000 and a 3-year term of supervised release to begin after Torres is released from prison.
This case is being investigated by HSI; the Ulster County Sheriff’s Office in conjunction with URGENT (the Ulster Regional Gang Enforcement and Narcotics Team), an inter-agency taskforce targeting drug dealers and gang members in Ulster County; the New York State Police; the Village of Ellenville Police Department; and the White Plains Police Department, with assistance from the Ulster County District Attorney’s Office. Assistant U.S. Attorney Ashlyn Miranda is prosecuting this case.
This case is also part of an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) operation. OCDETF identifies, disrupts, and dismantles the highest-level criminal organizations that threaten the United States using a prosecutor-led, intelligence-driven, multi-agency approach. Additional information about the OCDETF Program can be found at https://www.justice.gov/OCDETF.
Mason City Man Sentenced to 11 years in Federal Prison for Illegal Possession of Firearms and Intent to Distribute MethRead the Press Release
Jacob Shafer, 34, from Mason City, Iowa, was sentenced September 12, 2025, in federal court in Sioux City.
Shafer pled guilty on May 7, 2025, to one count of possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine and one count of illegal possession of a firearm. Shafer was previously convicted of possession of methamphetamine with intent to deliver, and trafficking in stolen weapons in Iowa in March of 2022. Both of these convictions prohibit a person from possessing any firearm.
Evidence at the plea and sentencing hearings showed that in March 2024, during the execution of a search warrant at Shafer’s home, law enforcement seized the following: four bags of methamphetamine; drug paraphernalia including pipes, bongs, grinders, and baggies; a digital scale; ninety-six .380 caliber Winchester rounds of ammunition; a Ruger LCP, .380 pistol, and a total of 6 rounds of ammunition, which included a round in the chamber; a Smith & Wesson .40 caliber pistol, and a total of 13 rounds of ammunition; an Intratec AB-10, 9mm pistol, and a total of 22 rounds of ammunition in the magazine; and a Rock Island Armory, .45 caliber pistol. Shafer admitted he had plans to distribute the methamphetamine that officers found.
This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program bringing together all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve to reduce violent crime and gun violence, and to make our neighborhoods safer for everyone. On May 26, 2021, the Department launched a violent crime reduction strategy strengthening PSN based on these core principles: fostering trust and legitimacy in our communities, supporting community-based organizations that help prevent violence from occurring in the first place, setting focused and strategic enforcement priorities, and measuring the results.
Sentencing was held before United States District Court Judge Leonard T. Strand. Shafer was sentenced to 132 months’ imprisonment and will serve a four-year term of supervised release following imprisonment. There is no parole in the federal system. Shafer remains in custody of the United States Marshal until he can be transported to a federal prison.
The case was investigated by the Cerro Gordo County Sheriff’s Office, Mason City Police Department, Iowa Division of Criminal Investigations, Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives, and was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Kevin C. Fletcher and Kraig R. Hamit.
Court file information at https://ecf.iand.uscourts.gov/cgi-bin/login.pl.
The case file number is 24-3055. Follow us on X @USAO_NDIA.
Man Sentenced to 22 Years in Prison for Carjacking Three Vehicles in ChicagoRead the Press Release
CHICAGO — A federal judge has sentenced a man to 22 years in prison for carjacking three vehicles at gunpoint in Chicago and shooting one of the victims.
JAMARI EDWARDS carjacked the vehicles in August 2022 in the West Englewood neighborhood of Chicago. The first carjacking occurred in the drive-thru area of a coffee shop, while the other two occurred outside of a convenience store at a gas station. In each of the carjackings, Edwards pointed a gun at the driver and demanded the keys to the car. In the coffee shop carjacking, Edwards shot the driver in the leg after the driver had already given Edwards the key and exited the vehicle. Before shooting the driver, Edwards asked him words to the effect of, “Why are you not scared?”
Edwards, 23, of Chicago, was arrested in 2022 and has remained in law enforcement custody since then. He pleaded guilty earlier this year to federal carjacking and firearm charges. On Sept. 4, 2025, U.S. District Judge Lindsay C. Jenkins sentenced Edwards to 22 years in federal prison.
The sentence was announced by Andrew S. Boutros, United States Attorney for the Northern District of Illinois, Douglas S. DePodesta, Special Agent-in-Charge of the Chicago Field Office of the FBI, and Larry Snelling, Superintendent of the Chicago Police Department. The government was represented by Assistant U.S. Attorney Simar Khera.
Man Sentenced for Illegally Reentering the United States After Being RemovedRead the Press Release
A man who illegally returned to the United States after being removed was sentenced September 11, 2025, to 127 days’ imprisonment.
Gerardo Santis-Jiron, also known as Pedro Simon Rivera-Perez, age 36, a citizen of Guatemala, received the prison term after a June 10, 2025 guilty plea to one count of being found in the United States after illegal reentry.
At the guilty plea, Santis-Jiron admitted he had previously been removed from the United States and illegally reentered the United States without the permission of the United States government. Santis-Jiron was previously removed in 2009. On April 27, 2025, immigration officials found him at the Linn County Jail following his arrest on state charges for operating while under the influence.
Santis-Jiron was sentenced in Cedar Rapids by United States District Court Judge Leonard T. Strand. Santis-Jiron was sentenced to 127 days’ imprisonment. He must also serve a one-year term of supervised release after the prison term. There is no parole in the federal system.
Santis-Jiron is being held in the United States Marshal’s custody until he can be turned over to immigration officials.
This case is part of Operation Take Back America (https://www.justice.gov/dag/media/1393746/dl?inline) a nationwide initiative that marshals the full resources of the Department of Justice to repel the invasion of illegal immigration, achieve the total elimination of cartels and transnational criminal organizations (TCOs), and protect our communities from the perpetrators of violent crime. Operation Take Back America streamlines efforts and resources from the Department’s Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces
(OCDETFs) and Project Safe Neighborhood (PSN).
The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Adam J. Vander Stoep and was investigated by Enforcement and Removal Operations of the United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
Court file information at https://ecf.iand.uscourts.gov/cgi-bin/login.pl.
The case file number is 25-CR-36.
Follow us on X @USAO_NDIA.
Man Charged in Federal Court with Robbing Armored Truck Driver in Downtown ChicagoRead the Press Release
CHICAGO — A man was charged in federal court today with robbing an armored truck driver in downtown Chicago earlier this week.
DAJON HARRIS robbed a Brinks armored truck driver on Wednesday morning in the first block of South State Street in Chicago’s Loop neighborhood, according to a criminal complaint filed today in U.S. District Court in Chicago. The armored truck driver had just exited a store carrying several bags of cash when Harris allegedly approached him and tried to rip a bag out of his hand. A struggle ensued, and Harris punched the driver and took a bag of cash, the complaint states. During the struggle, the driver unholstered his gun and fired shots at Harris, the complaint states.
Harris fled west on Madison Street toward a Chicago Transit Authority subway station, the complaint states. Law enforcement officers encountered Harris in the station and recovered the stolen money. Harris was transported to a hospital for medical treatment.
The complaint charges Harris, 23, of Evergreen Park, Ill., with robbery, which is punishable by a maximum sentence of 20 years in federal prison. His initial appearance in federal court in Chicago has not yet been scheduled.
The complaint was announced by Andrew S. Boutros, United States Attorney for the Northern District of Illinois, and Douglas S. DePodesta, Special Agent-in-Charge of the Chicago Field Office of the FBI. The Chicago Police Department provided valuable assistance. The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorney Hanna Helwig.
The robbery occurred in the newly designated Project Safe Neighborhoods (“PSN”) enforcement zone in downtown Chicago. On June 4, 2025, U.S. Attorney Boutros announced an expansion of PSN to include the economic centers in downtown Chicago and the entire rail system operated by the Chicago Transit Authority. The enforcement efforts in the newly designated PSN Enforcement Zones focus on the investigation and prosecution of individuals and organized groups who engage in robberies, illegal firearm possession, drug trafficking, carjackings, and other violent offenses most often involving the use of firearms. For violent offenders arrested downtown or aboard CTA trains, criminal prosecutors will bring appropriate charges to achieve maximum deterrence.
The public is reminded that a complaint is not evidence of guilt. The defendant is presumed innocent and entitled to a fair trial at which the government has the burden of proving guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.
harris_complaint.pdfLouisiana Chiropractor Sentenced to Seven Years in Prison for Health Care Fraud and Unemployment Insurance Fraud SchemesRead the Press Release
A Louisiana chiropractor was sentenced today to seven years in prison for his role in health care fraud and unemployment insurance fraud schemes.
According to court documents and evidence presented at trial, Dr. Benjamin Tekippe, 40, of New Orleans, was a chiropractor and owner of Metairie Chiropractic & Rehab in New Orleans. Tekippe solicited patients with insurance from Blue Cross Blue Shield of Louisiana (BCBSLA) to visit his clinic by misleadingly offering “free” chiropractic massages for BCBSLA members. Tekippe would typically bill their insurance for the massage, which was generally a full-body massage performed by a massage therapist, and which was not covered. Tekippe would also routinely bill BCBSLA for several other chiropractic services that were either not performed or not performed as billed, including thousands of false and fraudulent claims for chiropractic services he purportedly provided to patients while he was out of the office, including on vacation in Aruba and incarcerated in Arizona and Washington in connection with state charges. When audited by BCBSLA, Tekippe fabricated patient records and instructed his staff to rewrite them in their own handwriting to make it falsely appear that services had been performed as billed. In total, Tekippe submitted over $2.3 million in claims to BCBSLA, and was paid approximately $740,000. Evidence at trial showed that Tekippe spent the fraudulent proceeds on luxury goods and gambling, including over $90,000 at Harrah’s Casino in New Orleans, among other things.
In addition, during the COVID-19 pandemic, Tekippe submitted weekly certifications falsely claiming that he was unemployed when he was billing for chiropractic services purportedly performed during his claimed unemployment. Through this scheme, Tekippe received $12,952 in unemployment insurance benefits to which he was not entitled.
In April 2025, Tekippe was convicted by a federal jury of six counts of health care fraud and one count of wire fraud. In addition to the prison sentence, he was ordered to pay$753,794.36 in restitution.
Acting Assistant Attorney General Matthew R. Galeotti of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division; Acting U.S. Attorney Michael M. Simpson for the Eastern District of Louisiana; and Special Agent in Charge Jason Meadows of the Department of Health and Human Service Office of the Inspector General (HHS-OIG) Dallas Region, Baton Rouge Field Office made the announcement.
The FBI and HHS-OIG investigated the case.
Trial Attorneys Kelly Z. Walters and Samantha Usher of the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section prosecuted the case.
The Fraud Section leads the Criminal Division’s efforts to combat health care fraud through the Health Care Fraud Strike Force program. Since March 2007, this program, currently comprised of 9 strike forces operating in 27 federal districts, has charged more than 5,800 defendants who collectively have billed federal health care programs and private insurers more than $30 billion. In addition, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, working in conjunction with HHS-OIG, are taking steps to hold providers accountable for their involvement in health care fraud schemes. More information can be found at www.justice.gov/criminal-fraud/health-care-fraud-unit.
Justice Department Sues Uber for Denying Rides to Passengers with Service Dogs, WheelchairsRead the Press Release
Yesterday, the Justice Department filed a lawsuit against Uber Technologies Inc. for discriminating against passengers with disabilities, including those who use service animals and mobility devices such as stowable wheelchairs. Uber is the largest provider of ride-hailing services in the United States. The lawsuit seeks $125 million for individuals who have been subject to discrimination and previously submitted complaints to Uber or the Department.
The lawsuit, filed in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California, alleges Uber violated Title III of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), which prohibits discrimination based on disability by private transportation companies like Uber. The ADA also requires Uber to allow service animals to accompany individuals with disabilities in vehicles and to provide rides to, and assist, riders with stowable wheelchairs and mobility devices.
The Department’s civil complaint alleges that Uber and its drivers routinely refuse to serve individuals with disabilities; impose impermissible surcharges by charging cleaning fees for service animal shedding and cancellation fees to riders whom Uber has unlawfully denied service; and refuse to reasonably modify Uber’s policies, practices, or procedures, where necessary, to avoid discriminating against riders with disabilities, including by denying individuals with mobility disabilities the option to sit in the front seat when needed. Due to Uber’s ride denials, individuals with disabilities have experienced significant delays, missed appointments, and have been left stranded in inclement weather.
“For too long, blind riders have suffered repeated ride denials by Uber because they are traveling with a service dog,” said Assistant Attorney General Harmeet K. Dhillon of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division. “This lawsuit seeks to end this persistent discrimination and allow riders with disabilities to use Uber. We will enforce the ADA’s guarantee that people with disabilities have equal opportunity and full participation in all aspects of American society, including transportation.”
“Rideshare companies like Uber are prohibited from denying riders with disabilities the same access to transportation that riders without disabilities enjoy,” said U.S. Attorney Craig H. Missakian of the Northern District of California. “This complaint underscores the United States’ commitment to enforcing the ADA’s promise of equal access.”
The lawsuit seeks a court order to force Uber to stop discriminating against individuals with disabilities, to modify its policies to comply with the ADA, and to train its staff and drivers on the ADA. In addition to the monetary damages to compensate aggrieved individuals subjected to Uber’s discrimination, the lawsuit demands that Uber pay a civil penalty to vindicate the public’s interest in eliminating disability discrimination.
To learn more about the Civil Rights Division visit www.justice.gov/crt, and to report possible violations of federal civil rights laws go to www.civilrights.justice.gov. For more information on the ADA, please call the department’s toll-free ADA Information Line at 800-514-0301 (TTY 1-833-610-1264) or visit www.ada.gov.
Justice Department Sues Uber for Denying Rides to Passengers with Service Dogs, WheelchairsRead the Press Release
SAN FRANCISCO – Yesterday, the Justice Department filed a lawsuit against Uber Technologies Inc. for discriminating against passengers with disabilities, including those who use service animals and mobility devices such as stowable wheelchairs. Uber is the largest provider of ride-hailing services in the United States. The lawsuit seeks $125 million for individuals who have been subject to discrimination and previously submitted complaints to Uber or the Department.
The lawsuit, filed in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California, alleges Uber violated Title III of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), which prohibits discrimination based on disability by private transportation companies like Uber. The ADA also requires Uber to allow service animals to accompany individuals with disabilities in vehicles and to provide rides to, and assist, riders with stowable wheelchairs and mobility devices.
The Department’s civil complaint alleges that Uber and its drivers routinely refuse to serve individuals with disabilities; impose impermissible surcharges by charging cleaning fees for service animal shedding and cancellation fees to riders whom Uber has unlawfully denied service; and refuse to reasonably modify Uber’s policies, practices, or procedures, where necessary, to avoid discriminating against riders with disabilities, including by denying individuals with mobility disabilities the option to sit in the front seat when needed. Due to Uber’s ride denials, individuals with disabilities have experienced significant delays, missed appointments, and have been left stranded in inclement weather.
“Rideshare companies like Uber are prohibited from denying riders with disabilities the same access to transportation that riders without disabilities enjoy,” said U.S. Attorney Craig H. Missakian of the Northern District of California. “This complaint underscores the United States’ commitment to enforcing the ADA’s promise of equal access.”
“For too long, blind riders have suffered repeated ride denials by Uber because they are traveling with a service dog,” said Assistant Attorney General Harmeet K. Dhillon of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division. “This lawsuit seeks to end this persistent discrimination and allow riders with disabilities to use Uber. We will enforce the ADA’s guarantee that people with disabilities have equal opportunity and full participation in all aspects of American society, including transportation.”
The lawsuit seeks a court order to force Uber to stop discriminating against individuals with disabilities, to modify its policies to comply with the ADA, and to train its staff and drivers on the ADA. In addition to the monetary damages to compensate aggrieved individuals subjected to Uber’s discrimination, the lawsuit demands that Uber pay a civil penalty to vindicate the public’s interest in eliminating disability discrimination.
To learn more about the Civil Rights Division visit www.justice.gov/crt, and to report possible violations of federal civil rights laws go to www.civilrights.justice.gov. For more information on the ADA, please call the department’s toll-free ADA Information Line at 800-514-0301 (TTY 1-833-610-1264) or visit www.ada.gov.
Uber Complaint
Justice Department Issues Policy Defending Parental Rights in SchoolsRead the Press Release
RALEIGH, N.C. – On September 8, 2025, Attorney General Pamela Bondi issued a memorandum to all United States Attorneys highlighting the Department of Justice’s policy to prevent and act upon violations of parental rights and First Amendment liberties in educational settings. General Bondi also directed United States Attorneys to work with federal, state, and local partners to identify and respond to credible threats against parents whose federal rights have been violated.
Under the leadership of President Trump and General Bondi, parents’ First Amendment rights – and their “fundamental right to direct the moral and religious education of their children” – will be protected from unlawful attacks.
United States Attorney Ellis Boyle stated, “Here in the Eastern District of North Carolina, parents should feel safe to raise their children in accord with their religion and customs and as the Supreme Court recently recognized in Mahmoud v. Taylor to protect them from the radical ideology that has infiltrated our schools. We will protect parental rights when parents interact with their children’s schools. To promote this and inform parents across the District, we shared a copy of the Attorney General’s memo with all county boards of education in the EDNC, the North Carolina Department of Education, the Speaker of the North Carolina House of Representatives, and the President Pro Tempore of the North Carolina Senate. Let me be very clear – here in Eastern North Carolina, we fully support the Attorney General’s policy, and we will act quickly to enforce it. Conspiring to violate constitutional rights is a crime under federal law. We will enforce these laws.”
The Attorney General’s full memo can be found here: https://www.justice.gov/ag/media/1413671/dl?utm_medium=email&utm_source=govdelivery
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Jury Convicts Stanislaus County Man of Receipt of Child Sexual Abuse MaterialRead the Press Release
A federal jury convicted a Stanislaus County man today for receipt of child pornography. Acting Assistant Attorney General Matthew R. Galeotti of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division; U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of California Eric Grant; Special Agent in Charge Siddhartha Patel of the FBI’s Sacramento Field Office; and Chief Jason Hedden of the Turlock Police Department made the announcement.
“Today, a jury found Cragg guilty of crimes that encouraged the gross abuse of our society’s most vulnerable members,” said U.S. Attorney Grant. “The U.S. Department of Justice will continue to target for prosecution and imprisonment those who contribute to this vile conduct.”
“The defendant was convicted by a jury for collecting videos depicting the sexual exploitation of children, including toddlers and infants who were subject to horrific abuse,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General Galeotti. “This content is vile and illegal, and we will aggressively prosecute those who engage with it.”
According to court documents and evidence presented at trial, Edward Cragg, 46, of Turlock, used a file-sharing program in 2015 and 2016 to search for and download more than 130 videos depicting the sexual abuse of children, including infants and toddlers.
The Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Turlock Police Department investigated the case, with substantial assistance from the Justice Department’s High Technology Investigative Unit within the Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS). Assistant U.S. Attorney David Gappa of the Eastern District of California and Trial Attorney McKenzie Hightower of CEOS are prosecuting the case.
Cragg is scheduled to be sentenced on Dec. 8, 2025, by U.S. District Judge Jennifer L. Thurston. Cragg faces a mandatory minimum of five years in prison and a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison. The actual sentence, however, will be determined at the discretion of the court after consideration of any applicable statutory factors and the federal Sentencing Guidelines, which take into account a number of variables.
This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice. Led by U.S. Attorneys’ Offices and CEOS, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state and local resources to better locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the Internet, as well as to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.justice.gov/psc.
Jury Convicts California Man of Receipt of Child Sexual Abuse MaterialRead the Press Release
A federal jury convicted a California man today for receipt of child pornography.
“The defendant was convicted by a jury for collecting videos depicting the sexual exploitation of children, including toddlers and infants who were subject to horrific abuse,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General Matthew R. Galeotti of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division. “This content is vile and illegal, and we will aggressively prosecute those who engage with it.”
“Today, a jury found Cragg guilty of crimes that encouraged the gross abuse of our society’s most vulnerable members,” said U.S. Attorney Eric Grant for the Eastern District of California. “The U.S. Department of Justice will continue to target for prosecution and imprisonment those who contribute to this vile conduct.”
According to court documents and evidence presented at trial, Edward Cragg, 46, of Turlock, California, used a file-sharing program from approximately Aug. 1, 2015, through March 1, 2016, to search for and download more than 130 child sexual abuse videos. He would then watch these videos, sort them, and move them to an external hard drive. Some of the videos depicted images of infants or toddlers being subjected to sadistic or masochistic abuse. Cragg told law enforcement that the child sexual abuse videos were “interesting … like a dead cat on the side of the road.” He also stated that he did not think looking at child sexual abuse material was wrong.
Cragg is scheduled to be sentenced on Dec. 8 and faces a mandatory minimum penalty of five years in prison. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
The FBI and the Turlock Police Department investigated the case, with substantial assistance from the Justice Department’s High Technology Investigative Unit within the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS).
Trial Attorney McKenzie Hightower of CEOS and Assistant U.S. Attorney David Gappa of the Eastern District of California are prosecuting the case.
This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Justice Department to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by United States Attorneys’ Offices and CEOS, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state and local resources to better locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the Internet, as well as to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.justice.gov/psc.
Identical Twins Who Moonlighted as Golf Tee-Time Brokers Charged with Failing to Report More Than $1.1 Million in Income to IRSRead the Press Release
LOS ANGELES – Two identical twin brothers and MRI technicians have been arrested on a 10-count federal grand jury indictment charging them with deliberately failing to report to the IRS more than $1.1 million in income, including money they made from running a golf tee-time brokering business on the side, the Justice Department announced today.
Se Youn “Steve” Kim, 41, of Buena Park, is charged with two counts of tax evasion, one count of making and subscribing to a false tax document, and two counts of willful failure to pay tax.
Hee Youn “Ted” Kim, 41, of Pomona, is charged with two counts of tax evasion, in addition to three counts of willful failure to pay tax.
The Kim brothers were arrested Thursday morning and were arraigned late Thursday afternoon in United States District Court in Los Angeles. Both defendants pleaded not guilty, and a November 4 trial date was scheduled. A federal magistrate ordered both defendants released on $20,000 bond.
According to the indictment that was unsealed Thursday, between 2021 and 2023, the Kim brothers operated a golf tee time brokering business in which they reserved golf tee times online, including at public golf courses, and resold them to members of the public for a fee, frequently in violation of municipal regulations. The brothers marketed, solicited, and communicated with their customers through various social medial platforms, including KakaoTalk, an instant messaging application.
As part of their business, the brothers reserved thousands of tee times for resale at numerous golf courses nationwide, including at least 17 different public courses across Southern California. The brothers created a monopoly of Los Angeles and Orange County area golf course tee times by securing the most sought-after early morning slots, often within seconds of their release to the public. As a result, the brothers made it more difficult and more expensive for members of the public to reserve tee times at these courses without paying them an additional booking fee, particularly during the COVID-19 pandemic.
The Kim brothers often directed their golf tee time clients to pay these reservation fees to their personal accounts, including Venmo and Zelle accounts, and then transferred those funds into their personal bank accounts.
In June 2022, Steve Kim incorporated Birdie Tour Inc., a Buena Park-based company, and served as its CEO and chief financial officer, while Ted Kim was its secretary. The brothers obtained an employer identification number from the IRS and opened a bank account in the business’s name.
In total, between 2021 and 2023, the Kim brothers earned nearly $700,000 from their tee time brokering business. Despite earning substantial income and owing taxes from this business, and from their job as MRI technicians, the brothers willfully failed to report a combined total of more than $1.1 million in income to the IRS for tax years 2022 and 2023.
The Kim brothers also accumulated substantial tax liabilities by failing to pay taxes assessed. Rather than using their available funds to pay off their outstanding tax balance, the Kim brothers spent their money on a timeshare in Hawaii, luxury vehicles, and high-end retail purchases from brands such as Chanel, Cartier, Louis Vuitton, and Prada, among other things.
An indictment is merely an allegation. All defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
If convicted, Steve Kim and Ted Kim would face a statutory maximum sentence of five years in federal prison for each tax evasion count, and up to one year in prison for each count of willful failure to pay tax. If convicted, Steve Kim faces a statutory maximum sentence of three years in federal prison for making and subscribing to a false tax document.
IRS Criminal Investigation is investigating this matter.
Assistant United States Attorney Solomon Kim of the Major Frauds Section is prosecuting this case.
ICE Captures Illegal Alien Who Cape Hatteras Park Rangers Cited for Poaching FishRead the Press Release
ELIZABETH CITY, N.C. – Earlier this week, the U.S. Marshals arrested Walter Betancourth, 46, a Honduran citizen illegally present in the United States, and turned him over to the custody of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (“ICE”). The Marshals arrested Betancourth following his appearance in Federal Court related to fish and wildlife crimes at the Cape Hatteras National Seashore.
Court documents show that on June 15, 2025, Park Rangers noticed a group of five Hispanic males overfishing red drum. The Rangers’ investigation revealed that Betancourth and his gang poached 16 red drum. The daily limit is one per person. Several of the fish were too big and should have been thrown back. Betancourth had an existing final order of removal from the United States from April 14, 2022.
“Illegal Aliens come to our land and exploit our national resources doing as they please because they completely disregard our shared values, customs, and rules. North Carolina strictly regulates our fish to ensure their availability to all North Carolina citizens now and in the future. This sort of disgusting disregard for our natural bounty is exactly the sort of behavior you might expect from someone who chose to unlawfully enter and illegally remain in the United States, ignoring a final order of removal,” said U.S. Attorney Ellis Boyle. “Let this serve as a reminder to those aliens who are illegally present – we will find you and send you back no matter where you are or what you are doing – even just fishing at the beach. I commend the fine cooperation of the Park Rangers, the Marshals, and ICE in effectuating Betancourth’s deportation.”
Betancourth’s arrest was facilitated by active cooperation between ICE, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of North Carolina, and the U.S. Marshals Service. Those and other components of the Department of Justice and the Department of Homeland Security will continue to work together to further the nationwide mission to repel the invasion of illegal immigration.
Ellis Boyle, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of North Carolina made the announcement.
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Husband and Wife Each Sentenced to a Year and a Half in Prison for Scheme to Import and Sell Counterfeit Cell Phones, AccessoriesRead the Press Release
PHILADELPHIA – United States Attorney David Metcalf announced that Yangwei Li, aka Jason Lee, Jason Li, Bryan Li, and Ryan Li, 38, and Yawen Huang, aka Yvonne Huang, 38, both of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, were each sentenced this week to 18 months in prison, three years of supervised release, and $60,000 in restitution by United States District Judge Chad F. Kenney, for their scheme to import and sell counterfeit cell phones.
The defendants were charged by indictment in September 2023 and pleaded guilty to two counts of mail fraud in November of last year.
As detailed in court filings, starting in July 2018, United States Customs and Border Protection (“Customs”) began to intercept shipments of telephones and telephone accessories in the Ports of Philadelphia, New York, and Louisville. These shipments were addressed to defendant Li, under one of his multiple aliases, at three Philadelphia addresses associated with Li and his wife, co-defendant Huang.
The devices in these packages bore counterfeit trademarks of major manufacturers, such as Samsung, Apple, and AKG, as well as counterfeit Underwriters Laboratories symbols. The counterfeit status was established by experts from the trademark owner and/or Customs.
In total, between July 2018 and July 2020, Customs seized 24 shipments of counterfeit telephones and accessories imported by Li and Huang, with a total manufacturer’s suggested retail price of nearly $350,000.
When Customs seized the defendants’ counterfeit items, it issued notices of seizure to Li, under his various aliases, at the listed import addresses. Each of those notices identified the items had been seized, advised that they were counterfeit, and solicited contrary evidence. Neither Li nor Huang responded to any of the Customs notices. Likewise, Samsung sent a total of six cease and desist letters to Li, under various aliases. Neither Li nor Huang responded to Samsung’s letters.
On April 2, 2021, law enforcement executed a search warrant at Li and Huang’s residence on the 2100 block of Chandler Street in Philadelphia. Agents recovered numerous types of counterfeit items, including Apple and Apple Watch charging kits; Apple accessory kits; iPhones and iPhone charging cables; Samsung wall and car chargers; Samsung headphones; AKG headphones; LG chargers; and UL charging cables. The domestic value of the items seized at the defendants’ residents was approximately $224,197. Agents also found Samsung and iPhone packaging, as well as laptops, thumb drives, and cell phones linking Li and Huang to six eBay sites selling counterfeit items.
The case was investigated by Homeland Security Investigations and prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Paul Shapiro and Ruth Mandelbaum.
Guatemalan National Arrested for Illegal Reentry and Failure to Register as A Sex OffenderRead the Press Release
Ocala, Florida – United States Attorney Gregory W. Kehoe announces the return of an indictment charging Jairon Micael Juarez-Gomez (36, Guatemala) with illegal reentry by a previously deported alien and failure to register as a sex offender. If convicted, Juarez-Gomez faces a maximum penalty of 30 years in federal prison.
According to the indictment, Juarez-Gomez was convicted of a felony offense—sexual battery with a child aged 12-18 years—on November 30, 2020. Following his conviction, Juarez-Gomez was required to register as a sex offender under the Sex Offender Registration and Notification Act (SORNA). He was subsequently deported, excluded, and removed from the United States to Guatemala on December 29, 2020. Juarez-Gomez was found to be voluntarily back in the United States on August 8, 2025. He had not received the consent of the Attorney General or the Secretary of Homeland Security to reapply for admission to this country. Juarez-Gomez also had knowingly failed to register as a sex offender upon his return, as required by SORNA.
An indictment is merely a formal charge that a defendant has committed one or more violations of federal criminal law, and every defendant is presumed innocent unless, and until, proven guilty.
This case is being investigated by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) Enforcement and Removal Operations (ERO), the United States Marshals Service, the Mount Dora Police Department, and the Florida Department of Law Enforcement. It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Hannah Nowalk Watson.
This case is part of Operation Take Back America, a nationwide initiative that marshals the full resources of the Department of Justice to repel the invasion of illegal immigration, achieve the total elimination of cartels and transnational criminal organizations (TCOs), and protect our communities from the perpetrators of violent crime.
Four Defendants Charged with Federal Immigration CrimesRead the Press Release
HUNTSVILLE, Alabama – A federal grand jury in Huntsville has charged four individuals with immigration crimes, announced U.S. Attorney Prim Escalona.
The following defendants were indicted for illegally reentering the United States after having previously been deported:
- Victor Alfonso Contreras-Gonzalez, 41, a citizen of Mexico;
- Arturo Ayala-Aviles, 33, a citizen of El Salvador;
Jose Jacuinde-Gutierrez , 32, a citizen of Mexico, was charged with illegally reentering the United States after having previously been deported and distribution of cocaine.
Marco Antonio Sanchez-Avila, 47, a citizen of Mexico, was charged with being a felon in possession of a firearm and an alien in possession of a firearm.
These cases are part of Operation Take Back America, a nationwide initiative that marshals the full resources of the Department of Justice to repel the invasion of illegal immigration, achieve the total elimination of cartels and transnational criminal organizations (TCOs), and protect our communities from the perpetrators of violent crime. Operation Take Back America streamlines efforts and resources from the Department’s Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETFs) and Project Safe Neighborhood (PSN). Operation Take Back America partner Homeland Security Investigations investigated these cases.
An indictment contains only charges. A defendant is presumed innocent unless, and until, proven guilty.
Former Plant Supervisors Indicted for Discharging Wastes to Nashville Sewer System and Tampering with a Monitoring DeviceRead the Press Release
A grand jury indictment was unsealed today charging two individuals for their alleged involvement with bypassing treatment processes and tampering with a monitoring device at a Nashville waste treatment facility.
The indictment alleges that Randall Ray Stark, of Texas, and Caleb Warren Randall, of Tennessee, conspired to defraud the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and to violate the Clean Water Act. According to court documents, Stark was the Facility Operations Manager and Randall was the Plant Supervisor at the facility operated by Allwaste Onsite, doing business as Onsite Environmental (Onsite). As part of the alleged conspiracy, Stark and Randall directed Onsite employees to bypass treatment processes and discharge untreated and partially treated wastewater into the Nashville sewer system in December 2022 and in January 2023. The indictment further alleges that Stark and Randall tampered with and caused Onsite employees to tamper with a sampling device that the Metropolitan Government of Nashville and Davidson County placed to monitor Onsite’s compliance with its pretreatment permit.
On Aug. 5, Onsite pleaded guilty in Nashville to federal charges relating to the discharges.
If convicted, the defendants face a total sentence of up to 17 years in prison, as well as fines, restitution, and supervised release.
Acting Assistant Attorney General Adam Gustafson of the Justice Department’s Environment and Natural Resources Division (ENRD) and Acting U.S. Attorney Robert McGuire for the Middle District of Tennessee made the announcement.
The EPA’s Criminal Investigation Division and Office of Inspector General investigated the case.
Senior Trial Attorney Matthew T. Morris of ENRD’s Environmental Crimes Section and Assistant U.S. Attorney Ahmed A. Safeeullah for the Middle District of Tennessee are prosecuting the case.
Former New Hampshire Police Officer Indicted for Receipt of Child Sexual Abuse MaterialRead the Press Release
BOSTON – A Haverhill man was indicted for receipt of child sexual abuse material (CSAM).
John Giarrusso, 49, a former Seabrook, N.H., police officer, was indicted on one count of receipt of child pornography. In August 2025, Giarrusso was arrested and charged by criminal complaint. He will be arraigned in federal court in Boston at a later date.
According to the charging documents, on or about Oct. 16, 2024 through Oct. 17, 2024 Giarrusso knowingly received video files that depict CSAM on Kik. The children in these videos appeared to be between approximately five to 11 years old.
The charge of receipt of child pornography provides for a sentence of at least five years and up to 20 years in prison, at least five years and up to a lifetime of supervised release and a fine of up to $250,000. Sentences are imposed by a federal district court judge based upon the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and statutes which govern the determination of a sentence in a criminal case.
United States Attorney Leah B. Foley and Michael J. Krol, Special Agent in Charge of Homeland Security Investigations in New England made the announcement today. Valuable assistance was provided by the Haverhill Police Department and Essex County District Attorney’s Office. Assistant U.S. Attorney Jessica L. Soto of the Major Crimes Unit is prosecuting the case.
This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse, launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice. Led by the U.S. Attorneys’ Offices and the DOJ’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who exploit children, as well as identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit https://www.justice.gov/psc.
The details contained in the charging documents are allegations. The defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
Former NASA employee and husband convicted in mortgage fraud schemeRead the Press Release
HOUSTON - A Missouri City couple have admitted to their roles in orchestrating a fraudulent financing and refinancing mortgage loan scheme, announced U.S. Attorney Nicholas J. Ganjei.
Noreen Khan aka Noreen Khan-Mayberry, 52, and her husband Christopher Mayberry, 53, pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy for making false statements to loan businesses in relation to several mortgage loans they financed. Khan had been a technical manager for NASA, while a NASA contractor had employed Mayberry.
Beginning in 2016, Mayberry and Khan, while employed at NASA, took out significant personal loans to fund the purchase of their luxury home before quickly defaulting on them.
The couple attempted to dispute the debts, claiming to be victims of identity theft. Khan filed a false police report, submitted a false report to the Federal Trade Commission and sent letters to credit bureaus seeking to have loans removed from her credit.
As part of the scheme, the couple signed three separate loan agreements with mortgage lenders related to the financing of their home from 2017 to 2021.
They also admitted to providing false employment information and fake documents, including pay stubs, tax forms and account statements, to lenders.
Khan and Mayberry face up to five years in federal prison and a possible $250,000 maximum fine in addition to the possible forfeiture of their luxury home. They must also pay restitution in the amount of $276,709 prior to sentencing, which is set for Dec. 18 before U.S. District Judge Charles Eskridge.
Both were permitted to remain on bond pending that hearing.
NASA’s Office of Inspector General-Office of Investigations conducted the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney Heather Winter is prosecuting the case.
Former Fort Belvoir soldier sentenced to 15 years in prison for assaulting and permanently injuring a newborn child and raping an adultRead the Press Release
ALEXANDRIA, Va. – A former U.S. Army private was sentenced today to 15 years in prison for two counts of assault resulting in serious bodily injury and one count of sexual abuse. This sentence is to be served consecutively to a 15-year sentence he is currently serving for assault on an infant in violation of Montana law.
According to court documents, on June 24, 2012, Austin Blair Johnson, an active duty soldier residing on Fort Belvoir, was watching his infant daughter, identified as Minor Victim 1 (MV1), who was born prematurely only 15 days earlier. MV1 was crying, so Johnson picked her up and carried her, but she continued to cry. While holding MV1 in front of him with one hand under each of her arms, Johnson rapidly and forcefully shook MV1 multiple times before letting go of her, causing her to flip and land on her head.
Johnson then picked up MV1 and ran with her upstairs to a bedroom where he woke MV1’s mother, identified as Adult Victim 1 (AV1). Johnson falsely told AV1 that he had accidentally dropped MV1 and that he had successfully broken her fall with his foot. AV1 and Johnson took MV1 to the Fort Belvoir Community Hospital emergency room where she presented with a fever, bruising on her head and shoulder, and blood coming out of her mouth. A CT scan conducted there revealed that MV1’s skull had been fractured. MV1 was transferred later to the Pediatric Intensive Care Unit (PICU) at Walter Reed Medical Center. MV1 was diagnosed with extensive injuries and remained hospitalized at Walter Reed for the next 10 days.
The day she was discharged, MV1 was left in Johnson’s care while AV1 was out. Johnson again rapidly and forcefully shook MV1 and dropped her. MV1 was 26 days old. The following morning, AV1 took MV1 to a previously scheduled follow-up appointment with a pediatrician at Fort Belvoir Community Hospital. At the appointment, MV1 began having seizures and was sent directly to the emergency room. MV1 was transferred later to the PICU at Children’s National Medical Center, where doctors discovered myriad injuries, including a second skull fracture, and identified extensive brain damage.
When she was finally discharged on July 20, 2012, MV1 was placed in the custody of Child Protective Services, where she remained for approximately 14 months until she was returned to the custody of Johnson and AV1. On June 22, 2015, shortly after her third birthday, MV1 was forced to undergo a hemispherectomy during which the entire left side of her brain was removed in an effort to control her irrepressible seizures.
MV1 is now legally blind, non-verbal, and the entire right side of her body is paralyzed. Cognitively, MV1 functions at the level of a mature infant. As part of his sentence, Johnson was ordered to pay over $1.1 million in restitution.
In addition to his assaults on MV1, in 2013, at their residence on Fort Belvoir, after AV1 had rebuffed Johnson’s requests to be intimate with her, Johnson proceeded without her consent. AV1 protested and tried to hit Johnson to get him to stop, which he eventually did.
Erik S. Siebert, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia; Reid Davis, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI Washington Field Office's Criminal Division; and Jake Cameron, Special Agent in Charge of the Washington Field Office, Department of the Army Criminal Investigation Division, made the announcement after sentencing by Senior U.S. District Judge Claude M. Hilton.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Alexander E. Blanchard prosecuted the case.
A copy of this press release is located on the website of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Virginia. Related court documents and information are located on the website of the District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia or on PACER by searching for Case No. 1:24-cr-151.
Former D.C. Department of Youth Rehabilitation Services Employee Gets Prison Term for Sexually Abusing a Minor in His CareRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON—Kelvin Powell, 63, of Temple Hills, Maryland, was sentenced today for the sexual abuse of a 17-year-old minor, who was in the custody of his former employer, the D.C. Department of Youth Rehabilitation Services, announced U.S. Attorney Jeanine Ferris Pirro.
Powell was found guilty on July 1, 2025, on four counts of first-degree sexual abuse of a ward, four counts of first-degree sexual abuse of a minor, four counts of second-degree sexual abuse of a ward, and four counts of second-degree sexual abuse of a minor, by a Superior Court jury. The Honorable Judge Rainey Brandt ordered Powell to serve 20 years in prison to be followed by 10 years of supervised release. Powell is also required to register as a sex offender.
“The court’s sentencing demonstrates that no one is above the law and that justice will prevail,” said U.S. Attorney Jeanine Ferris Pirro. “The collaborative efforts of my Office, FBI and MPD is a reminder that criminal actions, especially from a child sexual predator, will be met with serious consequences, especially on behalf of our most vulnerable victims.”
"Powell is a sexual predator who repeatedly abused a 17-year-old," said Reid Davis, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI Washington Field Office's Criminal Division. "As his sentencing demonstrates, the FBI and our law enforcement partners will pursue public servants who use their positions to prey on individuals in their care and custody."
According to the government’s evidence, Powell was a Youth Development Representative (YDR) at the Department of Youth Rehabilitation Services (DYRS)’s Youth Services Center (YSC). DYRS is the District of Columbia government agency responsible for the supervision, custody, and care of young people detained while pending charges for a delinquent act. As a YDR, Powell was responsible for the care, custody, and control of the juvenile residents being detained at YSC.
Between December 2021 through February 2022, Powell used his position and his authority to repeatedly sexually abuse a then-seventeen-year-old minor ward residing at YSC. During that time, Powell repeatedly isolated the minor in areas of YSC that were not covered by video surveillance cameras. In those areas, Powell repeatedly sexually abused the minor by committing sexual acts and sexual contacts to her. In an incident captured by surveillance cameras, Powell sexually abused the minor by groping her clothed buttocks in a hallway at YSC.
Joining in the announcement was FBI Special Agent in Charge Reid Davis of the Washington Field Office’s Criminal Division.
In announcing the sentence, U.S. Attorney Pirro and Special Agent in Charge Davis commended those who investigated the case from the FBI’s Washington Field Office. They also commended the valuable assistance provided by the Metropolitan Police Department and the U.S. Marshals Service. In addition, they acknowledged the efforts of former Assistant United States Attorneys Risa Berkower and Cara Gardner, who provided critical assistance, Paralegal Specialists Liliana Villamizar and ReShawn Johnson, supported by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Liz Aloi and Bryan Han, Victim Specialist Veronica Vaughan, Litigation Tech Specialists Leif Hickling, Will Henderson, and Charlie Bruce, who provided critical assistance. Finally, they thanked Assistant United States Attorneys Tim Visser, Jessica Wash, and Niki Holmes, who prosecuted the case.
Former Cruise Line Employee Sentenced for Possession of Child Sexual Abuse MaterialRead the Press Release
NEW ORLEANS, LOUISIANA – Acting U.S. Attorney Michael M. Simpson announced that on September 9, 2025, REZA HETA PRATAMA (“PRATAMA”), age 29, a foreign national of the Republic of Indonesia, was sentenced by United States District Judge Darrel James Papillion for Possession of Materials Involving the Sexual Exploitation of Minors, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Sections 2252(a)(4)(B) and (b)(2).
According to court documents, PRATAMA was previously employed by a cruise line and was arrested in July 2024 after special agents with the U.S. Department of Homeland Security - Homeland Security Investigations, found PRATAMA in possession of child pornography at the Erato Street Cruise Terminal in New Orleans.
Judge Papillion sentenced PRATAMA to 48 months imprisonment, 10 years of supervised release, a payment of a $100 mandatory special assessment fee, and a payment of $100 pursuant to 18 U.S.C. § 2259A. The Court also ordered that restitution be paid to all victims. A restitution hearing is set for November 4, 2025.
These cases were brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice. Led by United States Attorneys’ Offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS), Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state and local resources to better locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the Internet, as well as to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.projectsafechildhood.gov.
The U.S. Attorney’s Office would also like to acknowledge the assistance of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security - Homeland Security Investigations, and the U.S. Customs and Border Protection. The prosecution of this case is being handled by Assistant U.S. Attorney Brittany L. Reed of the Violent Crimes/Strike Force Unit.
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Florida Businessman Charged with Tax EvasionRead the Press Release
A federal grand jury in Miami returned an indictment on Wednesday charging a Florida businessman with evading taxes on millions in income and filing false tax returns.
The following is according to the indictment: from 2013 to 2021, Joseph Stewart, of Miami, earned more than $6.8 million in dividends from his 50% ownership in a business that sold internet access to American servicemembers and contractors stationed abroad. Though he filed tax returns before the business became profitable, Stewart allegedly stopped filing timely tax returns once he began receiving significant dividends from his business.
The indictment further alleges that, after Stewart received letters from the IRS in 2019, he hired a tax attorney and return preparers and told them a false story: that over $3.8 million in dividends that he received between 2013 and 2018 were nontaxable loans. Stewart allegedly also falsely told these professionals that he did not know the other shareholders of the business. As a result of these falsehoods, the tax professionals allegedly drafted tax returns for Stewart for 2013 through 2020 that underreported his income and taxes due. Except for the 2013 return, all these false tax returns were allegedly filed with the IRS.
The indictment also alleges that in April 2016, Stewart filed a false affidavit with the United States Citizenship and Immigration Service that affirmed that he had filed federal tax returns for the previous three years. Additionally, Stewart allegedly attached false unfiled copies of federal tax returns while falsely attesting that they were the true and correct copies of the returns that had been filed with the IRS.
If convicted, Stewart faces a maximum penalty of five years in prison for each tax evasion count and a maximum penalty of three years in prison for each count of subscribing to a false tax return. Stewart also faces a period of supervised release, restitution, and monetary penalties. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
IRS Criminal Investigation and the Special Inspector General for Afghanistan Reconstruction are investigating the case.
Trial Attorneys Ezra Spiro and Likhitha Butchireddygari of the Tax Division are prosecuting the case.
An indictment is merely an allegation. All defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.