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12 July 2016
Man Pleads Guilty in Prescription Fraud SchemeRead the Press Release
CONCORD – United States Attorney, Emily Gray Rice announced that James Donnelly, 34, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to distribute, and possess with intent to distribute, oxycodone before United States District Court Judge Landya B. McCafferty.
According to documents that were filed in United States District Court and statements in the plea proceeding, Donnelly, Geoffrey McIntosh, and others arranged to pass dozens of false prescriptions for OxyContin pills at pharmacies in the Manchester and Nashua areas. These prescriptions contained falsified signatures of a physician. Donnelly admitted that he arranged for runners to pass these fraudulent prescriptions at pharmacies. The runners would then be provided with pills or cash as payment for passing the fraudulent prescriptions. McIntosh would then sell the pills or have others sell them on his behalf. During the investigation, law enforcement officers identified over 100 fraudulent prescriptions for OxyContin, which were filled in 2009 and 2010.
A sentencing hearing has been scheduled for October 13, 2016. The court will determine the sentence to be imposed after it has the opportunity to review a presentence report prepared by the United States Probation & Pretrial Services Office.
The case was investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration, with assistance from other law enforcement agencies, including the Nashua Police Department, Manchester Police Department, Merrimack Police Department, and the New Hampshire State Police. The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney John J. Farley.
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MS-13 Gang Founder in Massachusetts Sentenced for Illegal ReentryRead the Press Release
BOSTON – The founder of MS-13 in Massachusetts was sentenced today in U.S. District Court in Boston in connection illegally reentering the U.S. after being deported.
Carlos Geovanni Martinez-Aguilar, 38, of Mesquite, Texas, was sentenced by U.S. District Court Judge Nathaniel M. Gorton to three years in prison and two years of supervised release. In April 2016, Martinez-Aguilar pleaded guilty to unlawful re-entry of a deported alien.
In 1977, Martinez-Aguilar was born in El Salvador and illegally entered the United States in 1995. In September 2002, he was convicted in Middlesex Superior Court of unarmed robbery and was deported from the United States to El Salvador in July 2003.
Prior to his 2003 deportation, Martinez-Aguilar was a leader of the MS-13 gang in the North Shore area. Known by his gang nickname, “Buffalo,” Martinez-Aguilar was well known by MS-13 gang members and local law enforcement as a founder of MS-13 in Massachusetts. MS-13, or Mara Salvatrucha, is a transnational street gang with origins in El Salvador, which is notorious for using extreme violence, including violence against their rival gangs.
In 2005, federal law enforcement learned that Martinez-Aguilar had returned to the United States following his deportation. Agents determined that he had been arrested using a false name in Lawrence for assault with a dangerous weapon, making threats, giving a false name to police and armed robbery. However, Martinez-Aguilar posted bail and was released before the Lawrence Police Department learned his true identity. Martinez-Aguilar then defaulted on the charges and a warrant was issued for his arrest as a fugitive.
Federal agents continued to track Martinez-Aguilar, which included referring the case to America’s Most Wanted, a national show that profiles the search for dangerous fugitives. A segment on “Buffalo” aired in early 2009 in an effort to get the public’s assistance in apprehending Martinez-Aguilar.
On Sept. 23, 2015, Martinez-Aguilar was arrested in the Dallas, Texas area.
During today’s sentencing hearing, Judge Gorton referred to MS-13 as a deadly and violent gang and cited the need to protect the public as a basis for his sentence of incarceration.
United States Attorney Carmen M. Ortiz and Matthew Etre, Special Agent in Charge of Homeland Security Investigations in Boston, made the announcement. The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Glenn MacKinlay of Ortiz's Organized Crime and Gang Unit.
Local Man Pleads Guilty to Charges Involving an Armed Assault on Arch PropertyRead the Press Release
St. Louis, MO – Kilwa Jones, St. Louis, MO, pleaded guilty on multiple charges involving the September 25, 2015, shooting of Christopher Sanna, as well as the robberies of both Sanna and his companion, Lisa Simpson. The robberies and the assault occurred near the Old Cathedral in the northbound lanes of Memorial Drive, which is part of the Jefferson National Expansion Memorial.
According to court documents, on September 25, 2015, at approximately 10:30 p.m., victims Christopher Sanna and Lisa Simpson were walking back to their car, which was parked on the Old Cathedral parking lot, after attending a St. Louis Cardinals baseball game. Kilwa Jones confronted them with a High Point make, C9 model, 9mm semi-automatic pistol and demanded their property. As the victims attempted to ignore Jones and walk toward their vehicle, Jones shot Sanna in the back, forcibly grabbed Simpson’s purse and rifled the pants pockets of Sanna as he lay paralyzed on the ground. Jones then jumped into a car and drove away.
Jones pleaded guilty to assault with a dangerous weapon while on federal property, possession of a firearm in furtherance of a crime of violence, two counts of robbery while on federal property and the charge of being a felon in possession of a firearm. Under the plea agreement, Jones faces a penalty of up to 35 years in prison and/or fines of up to $250,000 on each count. Sentencing has been set for October 6, 2016.
This case was investigated by the detective bureau of the St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department. Assistant United States Attorney John Bird is handling the case for the U.S. Attorney’s Office.
Lincoln Man Sentenced for Possessing Child PornographyRead the Press Release
United States Attorney Deborah R. Gilg announced that Alex Paul Garden, 29, formerly of Lincoln, Nebraska, was sentenced today in Lincoln, Nebraska, to 3 years in prison by United States Senior District Judge Richard G. Kopf, for possession of child pornography. After his release from prison, Garden will also serve 5 years on supervised release and be required to register as a sex offender.
In February, 2013, a Cyber Tip was reported to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children regarding users on a web site involved in an inappropriate chat in which nude images were exchanged. The website provided email addresses and IP addresses for the users who sent and received the nude images. The Nebraska State Patrol served a subpoena on Time Warner Cable requesting records and information relating to the subscriber using the IP address on the specific date and time that IP address was used during a chat conversation in the Cyber Tip. Time Warner Cable provided the requested records, which showed that IP address was issued to Alex Garden, at an address in Lincoln, Nebraska.
A search warrant was executed by the Nebraska State Patrol at Garden’s residence in Lincoln, Nebraska. During the execution of the search warrant, investigators seized Garden’s computer.
Forensic analysis of the computer revealed images of minors under the age of 18 engaged in sexually explicit conduct as defined by federal law. The investigation determined that some of the images were accessed and downloaded from a foreign website known for the distribution of child pornography.
This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice. Led by United States Attorneys’ Offices and the Criminal Division's Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS), Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state and local resources to better locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the Internet, as well as to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.projectsafechildhood.gov.
This case was investigated by the Nebraska State Patrol.
Lenoir County Physician Sentenced for Federal Drug ChargeRead the Press Release
GREENVILLE – The United States Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of North Carolna announced that today in federal court, Senior United States District Judge Malcolm J. Howard sentenced douglas elry watford, 60, of Kinston, North Carolina to 2 years probation. As part of his guilty plea and as a condition of his probation, WATFORD was required to surrender his license to practice medicine in the State of North Carolina and to never seek reinstatement of said license nor any license to practice medicine in any state or territory of the United States. WATFORD was also required to surrender his registration with the Drug Enforcement Administration to distribute and dispense controlled substances and to never seek reinstatement of said registration.
WATFORD was named in a Criminal Information filed on March 25, 2016 charging him with distribution of controlled substances by a DEA registrant contrary to federal regulations. On April 8, 2016, watford pleaded guilty to that charge.
Investigation of this case was conducted by the Drug Enforcement Administration, the State Bureau of Investigation’s Diversion and Environmental Crimes Unit, the North Carolina Medical Board, the Lenoir County Sheriff’s Office, and the Kinston Police Department. Assistant United States Attorney Lawrence J. Cameron represented the government.
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News releases are available on the U. S. Attorney’s webpage at www.usdoj.gov/usao/nce within 48 hours of release.
Laughlin Man Sentenced to One Year in Prison for Stealing His Deceased Mother’s Social Security BenefitsRead the Press Release
LAS VEGAS, Nev. – A Laughlin man was sentenced this morning to 12 months and one day in prison and ordered to pay $281,135 in restitution, for stealing the retirement benefits of his deceased mother for over 24 years, announced U.S. Attorney Daniel G. Bogden for the District of Nevada.
"Our office works regularly with investigators for federal benefit programs to ensure that persons who unlawfully claim or steal Social Security, VA or other benefits are prosecuted,” said U.S. Attorney Bogden. “These benefit thieves cheat and steal from all Americans, and deserve to be punished.”
Lafayette George Baida II, 71, of Laughlin, Nev., pleaded guilty last December to one count of theft of government funds, and was sentenced today by U.S. District Judge Kent J. Dawson. Baida is released on bond, and must self-report to federal prison by October 10 at noon.
“The Social Security Administration’s Office of the Inspector General is committed to pursuing those who violate the public trust,” said Robb Stickley, the Special Agent in Charge of the San Francisco Field Division, which is responsible for the state of Nevada. “We will continue to uphold the integrity of Social Security’s benefit programs, which are a lifeline for so many Americans and their families.”
Baida’s mother was receiving Title II Retirement Benefits from the Social Security Administration until her death on March 21, 1989. Baida did not notify the Social Security Administration of his mother’s death, and they continued to send monthly benefits to her. Baida stole the payments sent to his mother after her death by withdrawing funds at ATMs and cashing checks that were made payable to her. Baida knew he was not entitled to the benefits. Between March 21, 1989, and Sept. 13, 2013, Baida stole a total of $281,135 from the Social Security Administration.
The case was investigated by the Social Security Administration Office of the Inspector General and prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Kathryn Newman.
This prosecution is part of efforts underway by President Barack Obama’s Financial Fraud Enforcement Task Force. President Obama established the interagency Financial Fraud Enforcement Task Force to wage an aggressive, coordinated and proactive effort to investigate and prosecute financial crimes. The task force includes representatives from a broad range of federal agencies, regulatory authorities, inspectors general and state and local law enforcement who, working together, bring to bear a powerful array of criminal and civil enforcement resources. The task force is working to improve efforts across the federal executive branch, and with state and local partners, to investigate and prosecute significant financial crimes, ensure just and effective punishment for those who perpetrate financial crimes, combat discrimination in the lending and financial markets and recover proceeds for victims of financial crimes. For more information about the task force visit: www.stopfraud.com.
Last Defendant of 15 Member Interstate Methamphetamine Distribution Ring Convicted After Jury TrialRead the Press Release
NEWARK, N.J. - A Nevada woman was convicted by a federal jury today for her role in a drug trafficking ring that supplied between 150 and 250 pounds of methamphetamine annually to the Jersey City, New Jersey, area from 2004 through 2014, U.S. Attorney Paul J. Fishman announced.
Margaret Tiangco, 40, of Las Vegas, was convicted of one count of distributing methamphetamine and one count of conspiring to distribute methamphetamine after a one-week trial before U.S. District Judge Kevin McNulty in Newark federal court. The jury deliberated for less than an hour before returning the verdict.
According to documents filed in this case and the evidence presented at trial:
In 2003, Tiangco moved to Orange County, California, where she made contact with bulk suppliers of methamphetamine and brokered an agreement to ship as much crystal methamphetamine to New Jersey as the other conspirators could sell. Over the course of the next 10 years, Tiangco served as a broker, distributor, retailer and organizer in the network as she travelled between Orange County, California, Las Vegas, Nevada, and Jersey City, New Jersey.
Tiangco and at least 14 others B all of whom have since pleaded guilty B were arrested in 2014 on methamphetamine distribution and conspiracy charges. For more than one year, the DEA High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area Task Force (HIDTA) led an investigation into a methamphetamine distribution network that operated in at least seven states and was responsible for shipping between 150 and 250 pounds of methamphetamine annually to the Jersey City area from 2004 through 2014.
Agents performed numerous controlled purchases of methamphetamine from members of the conspiracy using confidential informants. Between February 2014 and May 2014, agents obtained court orders to wiretap phones used by John Freehauf, 39, of Jersey City, a former immigration officer with U.S. Customs and Border Protection who was one of Tiangco’s conspirators.
The distributing methamphetamine and conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine counts each carry a minimum penalty of 10 years in prison, a maximum penalty of life in prison and a $10 million fine. Sentencing is scheduled for Nov. 9, 2016.
U.S. Attorney Fishman credited special agents of the DEA, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Carl J. Kotowski; inspectors of the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, under the direction of Acting Inspector in Charge Cynthia Shoffner; law enforcement officers from the N.J. National Guard Counter Drug Task Force, under the direction of the Adjutant General, Brig. Gen. Michael L. Cunniff; the Edison Police Department, under the direction of Chief Thomas Bryan, and the Joplin, Missouri, Police Department, under the direction of Chief Matt Stewart, with the investigation leading to today’s verdict.
This case was conducted under the auspices of the Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF). The principal mission of the OCDETF program is to identify, disrupt and dismantle the most serious drug trafficking, weapons trafficking and money laundering organizations and those primarily responsible for the nation’s illegal drug supply.
The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Adam N. Subervi and Sharon Ashe of the U.S. Attorney’s Office Criminal Division in Newark.
Defense counsel: Paulette L. Pitt, Esq.
KC Man Pleads Guilty to Distributing Child PornRead the Press Release
KANSAS CITY, Mo. – Tammy Dickinson, United States Attorney for the Western District of Missouri, announced that a Kansas City, Mo., man pleaded guilty in federal court today to attempting to distribute child pornography over the Internet.
Richard A. Villanueva, 37, of Kansas City, pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Gary A. Fenner to the charge contained in a March 26, 2015, federal indictment.
According to today’s plea agreement, an FBI task force officer identified Villanueva’s computer as sharing images of child pornography over the Internet through a peer-to-peer file-sharing program. On Oct. 1, 2013, the officer downloaded 10 video files that contained child pornography from Villanueva’s computer. Among the downloaded files was a video of a 3-to-4-year-old victim being repeatedly raped by an adult male.
Villanueva must pay $5,000 in restitution to each of four victims who are depicted in the images of child pornography, or $3,000 to each victim if he pays the restitution within 30 days of his sentencing date. Villanueva must forfeit to the government a laptop computer and three hard drives that were used to commit the offense.
Under federal statutes, Villanueva is subject to a mandatory minimum sentence of five years in federal prison without parole, up to a sentenced of 20 years in federal prison without parole. The maximum statutory sentence is prescribed by Congress and is provided here for informational purposes, as the sentencing of the defendant will be determined by the court based on the advisory sentencing guidelines and other statutory factors. A sentencing hearing will be scheduled after the completion of a presentence investigation by the United States Probation Office.
This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Catherine A. Connelly. It was investigated by the FBI and the Kansas City, Mo., Police Department.
Project Safe Childhood
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."
Justice Department Obtains Record Fine and Injunctive Relief against Activist Investor for Violating Premerger Notification RequirementsRead the Press Release
ValueAct to Pay $11 Million for Investing in Halliburton and Baker Hughes without Notifying Antitrust Authorities
The Department of Justice announced today that ValueAct has agreed to pay $11 million to settle allegations that certain ValueAct entities violated the reporting and waiting period requirements of the Hart-Scott-Rodino Antitrust Improvements Act of 1976 (the “HSR Act”). As part of the settlement, ValueAct has also agreed to injunctive relief designed to prevent future violations.
On Nov. 17, 2014, Baker Hughes and Halliburton – two of the three largest providers of oilfield products and services in the world – announced their plan to merge in a deal valued at $35 billion. Thereafter, ValueAct, an activist investment firm, purchased over $2.5 billion of Halliburton and Baker Hughes voting shares without complying with the HSR Act’s notification requirements. According to a complaint filed on April 4, 2016 in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California, ValueAct purchased these shares with the intent to influence the companies’ business decisions – including decisions related to the merger – and therefore could not rely on the limited “investment-only” exemption to the HSR Act’s notification requirements. The complaint details how ValueAct used its access to senior executives of both Halliburton and Baker Hughes to attempt to influence the companies’ proposed merger and other aspects of their businesses. Halliburton and Baker Hughes abandoned their proposed merger on May 2, 2016 after the Antitrust Division sued to block it in U.S. District Court for the District of Delaware.
“ValueAct acquired substantial stakes in Halliburton and Baker Hughes in the midst of our antitrust review of the companies’ proposed merger, and used its position to try to influence the outcome of that process and certain other business decisions,” said Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Renata Hesse, head of the Justice Department’s Antitrust Division. “ValueAct was not entitled to avoid the HSR requirements by claiming to be a passive investor, while at the same time injecting itself in this manner. The HSR notification requirements are the backbone of the government’s merger review process, and crucial to our ability to prevent anticompetitive mergers and acquisitions. Today’s record penalty and important injunctive relief demonstrate our continued commitment to vigorous enforcement of these important notification and waiting period requirements.”
The HSR Act imposes notification and waiting period requirements for transactions meeting certain size thresholds to ensure that such transactions undergo premerger antitrust review by the department and the Federal Trade Commission. The HSR Act has a narrow exemption for acquisitions of less than 10 percent of a company’s outstanding voting securities if the acquisition is made “solely for the purposes of investment” and the purchaser has no intention of participating in the company’s business decisions.
Federal courts can assess civil penalties for premerger notification violations under the HSR Act in lawsuits brought by the department. The current maximum civil penalty for an HSR violation is $16,000 per day; however, the maximum penalty will increase to $40,000 per day effective Aug. 1, 2016.
As part of the settlement, ValueAct agreed to pay a record $11 million. The highest fine previously paid for an HSR violation was $5.67 million. ValueAct is also enjoined from relying on the “investment-only” exemption when it intends to influence, or is considering influencing, certain basic business decisions, including those relating to merger and acquisition strategy, corporate restructuring, and the company’s pricing, production capacity, or production output.
ValueAct is an investment firm headquartered in San Francisco that manages over $16 billion on behalf of investors.
As required by the Tunney Act, the proposed settlement, along with the department’s competitive impact statement, will be published in The Federal Register. Any person may submit written comments concerning the proposed settlement within 60 days of its publication to Kathleen S. O’Neill, Chief, Transportation, Energy & Agriculture Section, U.S. Department of Justice, 450 Fifth Street, N.W., Suite 8000, Washington, D.C. 20530. At the conclusion of the 60-day comment period, the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California may enter the final judgment upon finding that it serves the public interest.
ValueAct Explanation
ValueAct Complaint
ValueAct CIS
ValueAct PFJ
ValueAct Stipulation with Proposed Order
Jury Convicts La Feria Man of Sexual Enticement of a MinorRead the Press Release
LAREDO, Texas – A federal jury sitting in Laredo has convicted a 40-year-old man from La Feria of attempting to entice a minor to engage in unlawful sexual activity, announced U.S. Attorney Kenneth Magidson. The jury deliberated for approximately one hour before finding Daniel Melton guilty today.
During trial, the jury heard from a special agent with Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) who testified she responded to a Craigslist posting Melton had placed. That post sought a “young teen that needs to be trained or has little experience.” The agent then engaged in sexually-explicit conversations with Melton for more than two weeks. During those conversations, he sent sexually-explicit pictures to the undercover agent and requested they be shown to a minor.
Eventually, Melton agreed to meet the agent in Laredo for the purpose of engaging in sex with the mother and the minor daughter. Law enforcement arrested him upon his arrival in Laredo.
Melton admitted he posted the Craigslist advertisement and engaged in sexually explicit communications with whom he believed to be a real mother and minor daughter. He further acknowledged he likely would have had sex with the minor daughter had ne not been arrested.
U.S. District Judge George Kazen presided over the trial and will set sentencing at a later date. At the time of his sentencing, Melton faces a minimum of 10 yeaars and up to life in federal prison and a possible $250,000 fine. He will remain in custody pending that hearing.
HSI investigated.
This case, prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Alfredo De La Rosa and Chris Howard, 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."
Investment Bank Director Pleads Guilty in Manhattan Federal Court to Insider TradingRead the Press Release
Preet Bharara, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, announced today that STEVEN MCCLATCHEY, a director at an investment bank in Manhattan (the “Investment Bank”), pled guilty to committing insider trading in connection with potential mergers and acquisitions (“M&A”) in which the Investment Bank was involved. MCCLATCHEY pled guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit securities and wire fraud and one count of securities fraud before U.S. District Judge Katherine Polk Failla.
U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara said: “As he has now admitted through his guilty plea, Steven McClatchey abused his position at a major investment bank, tipping his close friend Gary Pusey with material, nonpublic information about mergers and acquisitions. Pusey traded on that market-moving information and rewarded McClatchey with cash kickbacks and home renovations in return.”
According to the allegations contained in the Information filed against MCCLATCHEY and statements made in related court filings and proceedings:
MCCLATCHEY, who had served as a director at the Investment Bank since at least 2008, routinely possessed material, nonpublic information (“Inside Information”) concerning pending mergers and acquisitions in which the Investment Bank was involved. Indeed, among MCCLATCHEY’s responsibilities at the Investment Bank was the tracking of the status of all such pending transactions and the likely date on which such transactions would be publicly announced. MCCLATCHEY breached his duty of confidentiality to the Investment Bank and to its clients by providing Inside Information about pending M&A transactions to his close friend, Gary Pusey.
Specifically, from February 2014 through September 2015, MCCLATCHEY and Pusey participated in a scheme to commit insider trading in advance of and in connection with more than 10 separate mergers and acquisitions. MCCLATCHEY and Pusey were close friends who owned boats docked in a Long Island marina and who spent most Saturdays on their boats, at the marina, or playing pool and watching sports.
MCCLATCHEY learned about the deals as part of his employment with the Investment Bank, which generally advised either (i) the company to be acquired in the transaction; (ii) the acquiring company; or (iii) a company that ultimately lost a bid to acquire the company involved in the transaction.
Having learned the Inside Information about these impending transactions, MCCLATCHEY, in breach of fiduciary duties and other duties of trust and confidence owed to the Investment Bank and its clients, tipped Pusey so that Pusey could use the information to trade and with the expectation that Pusey would confer a benefit upon MCCLATCHEY. Among the benefits that MCCLATCHEY received as part of the insider trading scheme were thousands of dollars of cash payments by Pusey and the provision of home renovation services.
Pusey used the Inside Information that he received from MCCLATCHEY to make profitable trades in, among other securities: Forest Oil Corporation, Questcor Pharmaceuticals, Inc., Zygo Corporation, Pepco Holdings, Inc., Measurement Specialties, Inc., Entropic Communications, Inc., PetSmart, Inc., Emulex Corporation, Omnicare, Inc., and TECO Energy, Inc. Pusey reaped approximately $76,000 in ill-gotten gains from this scheme.
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MCCLATCHEY, 58, of Long Island, New York, pled guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit securities and wire fraud and one count of securities fraud. Each count carries a maximum sentence of 25 years in prison. The charges also carry a maximum fine of $250,000, or twice the gross gain or loss from the offense. The maximum potential sentences in this case are prescribed by Congress and are provided here for informational purposes only, as any sentences for the defendants will be determined by the judge.
Mr. Bharara praised the work of the FBI, and thanked the SEC.
The charges were brought in connection with the President’s Financial Fraud Enforcement Task Force. The task force was established to wage an aggressive, coordinated and proactive effort to investigate and prosecute financial crimes. With more than 20 federal agencies, 94 U.S. attorneys’ offices, and state and local partners, it is the broadest coalition of law enforcement, investigatory and regulatory agencies ever assembled to combat fraud. Since its formation, the task force has made great strides in facilitating increased investigation and prosecution of financial crimes; enhancing coordination and cooperation among federal, state and local authorities; addressing discrimination in the lending and financial markets; and conducting outreach to the public, victims, financial institutions and other organizations. Since fiscal year 2009, the Justice Department has filed over 18,000 financial fraud cases against more than 25,000 defendants. For more information on the task force, please visit www.StopFraud.gov.
This case is being handled by the Office’s Securities and Commodities Fraud Task Force. Assistant U.S. Attorney Rebecca Mermelstein is in charge of the prosecution.
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Illinois Man Pleads Guilty to Wire Fraud in Connection to Sales of Iraqi CurrencyRead the Press Release
Montgomery, Ala. – On Monday, July 11, 2016, Husam Usama Tayeh, 36, of Oak Lawn, Illinois, pleaded guilty to committing wire fraud, announced United States Attorney George L. Beck, Jr and Joseph P. Borg, Director of the Alabama Securities Commission. Tayeh’s guilty plea resulted from his operation of a business that unlawfully sold Iraqi currency---dinars—over the internet to customers all over the country. A joint-federal and state investigation led to Tayeh’s guilty plea.
According to court documents, Tayeh was the owner of Dinar Corporation, Inc. (Dinar Corp.), a company registered in Nevada and headquartered in the suburbs of Chicago, Illinois. Through Dinar Corp., Tayeh operated a website. On that website, Tayeh offered to sell customers Iraqi dinars. One of the ways that Tayeh’s customers could buy dinars was through installment contracts. When a customer entered into an installment contract, Tayeh promised to place in reserve the quantity of dinars to be purchased by the customer. Tayeh assured customers that he would ship them the reserved dinars upon the customers making their final contract payments. Tayeh defrauded customers in that he never actually placed dinars in reserve and never had access to enough dinars to fulfill all orders should the orders all come due.
Court documents also explain how Tayeh found his way to an Alabama federal court. Tayeh was unable to find a bank in or around Chicago that would take his ill gotten money. Therefore, Tayeh contracted with a resident of Dothan, Alabama to launder the Dinar Corp. proceeds through Dothan banks.
At some date in the coming months, Chief United States District Judge W. Keith Watkins will sentence Tayeh. At the sentencing hearing, Tayeh faces a maximum sentence of 20 years’ imprisonment as well as a fine.
“Tayeh used advanced technology to commit classic fraud—he duped people into spending their hard-earned money on his worthless wares,” announced United States Attorney Beck. “Tayeh’s caused harm all over the country. I am proud to say that we in Alabama put a stop to this far-reaching scheme.”
Mr. Borg of the Alabama Securities Commission added, “the Iraqi Dinar ‘investment opportunity’ is a scam that has existed for more than a decade and has regained some of its former popularity. Investors are lured by the ‘can’t miss’ method in which the interested investor profits from a severely undervalued currency that is ‘certain’ to appreciate in value in just a short time. We will continue to investigate and prosecute those like Tayeh who prey on main street investors.”
The case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Alabama Securities Commission. Assistant United States Attorneys Jonathan S. Ross and Kevin P. Davidson are prosecuting the case, along with Steven P. Feaga, Deputy Director of the Alabama Securities Commission for Enforcement and Prosecution, and Amanda W. Senn, General Counsel of the Alabama Securities Commission.
Hurlburt Field Intelligence Squadron Member Sentenced to 5 Years for Committing Federal Child Pornography Crimes on BaseRead the Press Release
PENSACOLA, FLORIDA – Douglas J. Plate, 53, of Navarre, Florida, a federal employee at Hurlburt Field, was sentenced today to five years in federal prison for receipt, possession, and access with intent to view child pornography. He will also be required to register as a sex offender. The sentence was announced by Christopher P. Canova, United States Attorney for the Northern District of Florida.
In December 2015, the United States Air Force determined that Plate, who worked in a sensitive facility with a top secret security clearance, was searching for pornography online at his work station and residence. A forensic review of his work and laptop computers revealed a significant amount of accessed pornography, including sexualized images of minor females. Additionally, Plate admitted to using foreign language search terms to avoid detection.
“I commend the diligent work of our hard working prosecutors and law enforcement professionals to bring to justice those who abuse their positions of trust,” said United States Attorney Canova. “Serving as a representative of the U.S. government carries a high responsibility of setting an ethical example, and no one is above the law.”
“This case is particularly disturbing because a government employee violated the trust of the United States in one of the most heinous ways imaginable,” said Susan L. McCormick, special agent in charge of HSI Tampa. “Thanks to our HSI special agents’ partnership with the Air Force Office of Special Investigations, an individual who was jeopardizing our Nation’s security and trust is now facing justice.”
The case was investigated by the United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement Homeland Security Investigations and the Air Force Office of Special Investigations. Assistant United States Attorney David L. Goldberg prosecuted the case.
The United States Attorney's Office for the Northern District of Florida is one of 94 offices that serve as the nation’s principal litigators under the direction of the Attorney General. To access public court documents online, please visit the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Florida website. For more information about the United States Attorney’s Office, Northern District of Florida, visit http://www.justice.gov/usao/fln/index.html.
For more information, contact: Amy Alexander, Public Information Officer
(850) 216-3854, [email protected]Guilford Man Pleads Guilty to Distributing HeroinRead the Press Release
Contact: Jody Mullis
Assistant United States Attorney
Tel: (207) 945-0373Bangor, Maine: United States Attorney Thomas E. Delahanty II announced that Joshua Bickmore, 29, of Guilford, Maine, pleaded guilty today in U.S. District Court to distribution of heroin.
According to court records, on August 13, 2015, Bickmore met with an undercover law enforcement officer at the Cambridge, Maine, General Store and sold him 13 baggies of heroin for $390.
Bickmore faces up to 20 years in prison, a $1,000,000 fine, and between three years and a lifetime of supervised release. He will be sentenced after the completion of a presentence investigation report by the U.S. Probation Office.
The investigation was conducted by the Drug Enforcement Administration and the Greenville, Maine, Police Department.
Guatelmalan Man Sentenced After Pleading Guilty to Illegally Reentering the United States After A Previous DeportationRead the Press Release
CONCORD, NEW HAMPSHIRE –United States Attorney Emily Gray Rice announced that Victor Lopez, of the Dominican Republic, was sentenced to ten months in prison after pleading guilty to illegally reentering the United States after having been previously deported.
On February 15, 2016, an ICE-ERO Deportation Officer received a request for assistance form a New Hampshire State Police Trooper who he had stopped a vehicle for speeding on I-93 north bound in Windham. There were five individuals in the vehicle, two of whom provided the Trooper with foreign ID cards. The defendant and two other individuals refused to provide identification and refused to answer any questions. The Trooper requested that ICE-ERO assist with the identification of those three individuals in the vehicle.
An ICE-ERO Deportation Officer submitted the defendant’s fingerprints to databases of known fingerprints for comparison. The comparison identified the defendant as Victor Lopez and established that Lopez had been deported from the United States to Guatemala in 2012.
The case was investigated by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, Bureau of Immigration and Customs Enforcement and the New Hampshire State Police. Assistant U.S. Attorney Alfred Rubega prosecuted the case.
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Grand Jury Indicts Erie Man on Gun ChargeRead the Press Release
ERIE, Pa. - A resident of Erie, Pennsylvania, has been indicted by a federal grand jury in Erie on charges of violating federal firearm laws, United States Attorney David J. Hickton announced today.
The two-count indictment named Mark Anthony Gnacinski, Jr., 29, as the sole defendant.
According to the indictment presented to the court, Gnacinski unlawfully possessed a 12 gauge shotgun and ammunition while being prohibited from firearm possession because he is a convicted felon.
The law provides for a maximum total sentence of 20 years in prison, a fine of $250,000 or both. Under the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, the actual sentence imposed would be based upon the seriousness of the offenses and the prior criminal history, if any, of the defendant.
Assistant United States Attorney Marshall J. Piccinini is prosecuting this case on behalf of the government.
This case was prosecuted as part of Project Safe Neighborhoods, a collaborative effort by federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies, prosecutors, and communities to prevent, deter, and prosecute gun crime.
The Erie Bureau of Police and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives conducted the investigation leading to the indictment in this case.
An indictment is an accusation. A defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
Grand Forks Man Sentenced for Possession and Distribution of Child PornographyRead the Press Release
FARGO - US Attorney Christopher C. Myers announced that on July 12, 2016, Robert William Beattie, 56, Grand Forks, N.D., was sentenced before US District Judge Ralph R. Erickson to serve 12 years in federal prison, followed by a 10-year period of supervised release. Judge Erickson also sentenced Beattie to pay a $200 special assessment to the Crime Victims’ Fund, plus an additional $5,000 special assessment under the Justice for Victims of Trafficking Act. Beattie will also pay $10,000 in restitution to the victims depicted in the child pornography possessed by him.
“This lengthy sentence should serve as a warning about the consequences facing those involved in downloading child pornography,” said Alex Khu, Special Agent in Charge of Homeland Security Investigations, St. Paul, MN. “Every time these images and videos are viewed, the innocent victims depicted in them are violated again.”
This case came to the attention of law enforcement after the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC) informed the North Dakota Bureau of Criminal Investigations and Department of Homeland Security - Homeland Security Investigations that an IP address geographically located in North Dakota was being utilized to trade child pornography. A subsequent investigation revealed that the IP address was assigned to Beattie’s office, which was located at the University of North Dakota School of Medicine. Thereafter, law enforcement obtained search warrants for Beattie’s office as well as his personal residence, where they recovered multiple media devices. A subsequent forensic examination revealed approximately 3,233 images and 100 videos of child pornography depicting children as young as two years of age engaged in sexually explicit conduct. This case was investigated by the Department of Homeland Security - Homeland Security Investigations, North Dakota Bureau of Criminal Investigation, Grand Forks Police Department, and the University of North Dakota Police Department.
Assistant US Attorney Jennifer Puhl prosecuted the case.
This case was prosecuted as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative designed to protect children from online exploitation and abuse. Led by U.S. Attorneys’ Offices throughout the nation, Project Safe Childhood, in conjunction with Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force (ICAC), help federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies enhance their investigative responses to offenders who use the Internet, online communications systems, or computer technology to sexually exploit children. The ICAC Program is a national network of 61 coordinated task forces engaging in proactive investigations, forensic investigations, and criminal prosecutions. Project Safe Childhood also helps to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.projectsafechildhood.gov.
Garfield Heights woman charged with stealing $34,000 in Social Security benefitsRead the Press Release
A Garfield Heights woman was charged with theft of government property, said Carole S. Rendon, Acting United States Attorney for the Northern District of Ohio.
Joan Hall, 69, stole over $34,000 in Social Security Retirement and Survivor’s benefits to which she was not entitled. Hall fraudulently converted to her own use her deceased husband’s Social Security Retirement and Survivor’s benefits after he died. As her husband’s representative payee, Hall was required to report her husband’s death to the Social Security Administration. She failed to report his death, and instead continued to receive benefits intended for her deceased husband, according to the information.
The United States Social Security Administration Office of the Inspector General conducted the investigation. The case is being prosecuted by Special Assistant United States Attorney Lisa J. Sanniti.
If convicted, the court will determine the defendant’s sentence after a review of factors unique to this case, including the defendant’s prior criminal record, if any, the defendant’s role in the offense, and the characteristics of the violation. In all cases, the sentence will not exceed the statutory maximum. In most cases, it will be less than the maximum.
An information is only a charge and is not evidence of guilt. A defendant is entitled to a fair trial in which it will be the government’s burden to prove guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.
Former school teacher sentenced for receipt of child pornographyRead the Press Release
GREENVILLE – The United States Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of North Carolina announced that in federal court today, Senior United States District Judge Malcolm J. Howard sentenced WILLIAM EDWARDSON, JR., 56, of Jacksonville, North Carolina to 72 months imprisonment, followed by 5 years of supervised release. The Court also ordered EDWARDSON to register as a sex offender.
EDWARDSON was named in an Indictment filed on September 2, 2015. On January 11, 2016, EDWARDSON pled guilty to one count of Receipt of Child Pornography (CP).
At the time of his indictment, EDWARDSON was a teacher and soccer coach at Trexler Middle School in Richlands, North Carolina.
In January 2015, the North Carolina State Bureau of Investigation identified an IP address downloading and sharing child pornography via a peer-to-peer network using the Shareaza law enforcement software program. As the investigation progressed, the address and user were identified as EDWARDSON. On February 6, 2015, a search warrant was executed at EDWARDSON’s residence in Jacksonville and a laptop computer and two thumb drives were seized. Forensic examination of the defendant’s computer revealed 424 images and 51 videos containing CP. EDWARDSON was interviewed and admitted to downloading visual depictions of minor children engaging in sexually explicit conduct.
Investigation of this case was conducted by the NC State Bureau of Investigation. Assistant United States Attorney Ethan Ontjes represented the government. This case was accepted for federal prosecution as part of Project Safe Childhood.
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News releases are available on the U. S. Attorney’s webpage at www.usdoj.gov/usao/nce within 48 hours of release.
Former Fair Bluff Police Officer Sentenced to 15 Years for the Manufacturing of Child PornographyRead the Press Release
RALEIGH – The United States Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of North Carolina announced that in federal court today DONALD BRIAN BEAUCHAINE, 40, of Lake Waccamaw, North Carolina, was sentenced to 180 months imprisonment followed by 15 years of supervised release by Chief United States District Judge James C. Dever, III, for one count of manufacturing child pornography.
BEAUCHAINE was previously employed as a police officer with the Fair Bluff, North Carolina Police Department. On June 4, 2014 he was caught secretly videotaping his girlfriend’s minor daughter in the bathroom. He admitted to videotaping the girl beginning in April 2014 until he was caught. A forensics examination of BEAUCHAINE’S cellphone and laptop contained 12,000 images of child pornography.
The criminal investigation of this case was conducted by the North Carolina State Bureau of Investigation and the Lake Waccamaw Police Department. Assistant United States Attorney Ethan A. Ontjes is handling the prosecution on behalf of the Eastern District of North Carolina.
This case was part of the Project Safe Childhood initiative, a national program aimed at ensuring that criminals exploiting children are effectively prosecuted by making full use of all available law enforcement resources at every level. For more information about this important national project, Project Safe Childhood, go to www.projectsafechildhood.gov.
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News releases are available on the U. S. Attorney’s web page at www.usdoj.gov/usao/nce within 48 hours of release.
Former Employees of Dental Practice in Valencia County Charged with Trafficking in Prescription PainkillersRead the Press Release
ALBUQUERQUE – Pamela Suniga, 52, of Veguita, N.M., and Barbara Hussey, 40, of Belen, N.M., made their initial appearances today in federal court in Albuquerque, N.M., on an indictment charging them with violating the federal narcotics laws. Suniga and Hussey remain in custody pending arraignment and detention hearings, which are scheduled for July 13, 2016.
Suniga and Hussey were arrested yesterday based on an 11-count indictment charging the two women with conspiracy to distribute Hydrocodone, a prescription opioid painkiller, between May 2015 and Oct. 2015. The indictment also charges Suniga with distributing Hydrocodone on five occasions between May 2012 and Dec. 2014, and Suniga and Hussey with unlawfully acquiring Hydrocodone by forging prescriptions in the name of a dentist and presenting the prescriptions at a pharmacy in Belen in Aug. 2015.
The indictment charges Suniga alone with making a materially false statement in Oct. 2015, by forging the name of a dentist on a prescription for Hydrocodone and presenting the forged prescription at a pharmacy in Belen, and with aggravated identity theft. Finally, Suniga is charged with embezzling $17,219.55 in health care benefits between Dec. 2014 and Oct. 2015. The indictment also includes forfeiture provisions, which seek forfeiture of the monies Suniga allegedly embezzled.
According to the indictment, Suniga and Hussey committed the 11 offenses charged in the indictment in Valencia County, N.M. At the time they allegedly committed the crimes charged in the indictment, Suniga and Hussey were employed by a dental practice in Valencia County.
If convicted on the conspiracy charge, Suniga and Hussey each face a statutory maximum penalty of 20 years in prison. If convicted on the distribution of Hydrocodone charges, Suniga faces a statutory maximum penalty of 20 years in prison. If convicted of acquiring Hydrocodone using forged prescriptions, Suniga and Hussey each face a statutory maximum penalty of four years in prison. In addition, Suniga faces a statutory penalty of five years in prison on the false statements charge and ten years on the embezzlement charge. Suniga also faces a statutory mandatory two-year prison sentence on the aggregated identify theft charge that must be served consecutive to any sentence imposed on the other charges.
Charges in indictments are merely accusations and defendants are presumed innocent unless found guilty in a court of law.
This case was investigated by the Albuquerque office of the DEA and the New Mexico Board of Pharmacy. Assistant U.S. Attorney Kristopher N. Houghton is prosecuting the case as part of the New Mexico Heroin and Opioid Prevention and Education (HOPE) Initiative.
The HOPE Initiative was launched in January 2015 by the UNM Health Sciences Center and the U.S. Attorney’s Office in response to the national opioid epidemic, which has had a disproportionately devastating impact on New Mexico. Opioid addiction has taken a toll on public safety, public health and the economic viability of our communities. Working in partnership with the DEA, the Bernalillo County Opioid Accountability Initiative, Healing Addiction in our Community (HAC), the Albuquerque Public Schools and other community stakeholders, HOPE’s principal goals are to protect our communities from the dangers associated with heroin and opioid painkillers and reducing the number of opioid-related deaths in New Mexico.
The HOPE Initiative is comprised of five components: (1) prevention and education; (2) treatment; (3) law enforcement; (4) reentry; and (5) strategic planning. HOPE’s law enforcement component is led by the Organized Crime Section of the U.S. Attorney’s Office and the DEA in conjunction with their federal, state, local and tribal law enforcement partners. Targeting members of major heroin and opioid trafficking organizations for investigation and prosecution is a priority of the HOPE Initiative. Learn more about the New Mexico HOPE Initiative at http://www.HopeInitiativeNM.org.
Suniga Hussey Indictment
Former CEO of Real Estate Investment Company Charged with Embezzling More Than $1 Million and Engaging in Tax EvasionRead the Press Release
Preet Bharara, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, Philip R. Bartlett, Inspector-in-Charge of the New York Office of the U.S. Postal Inspection Service (“USPIS”), and Shantelle P. Kitchen, Special Agent in Charge of the New York Field Office of the Internal Revenue Service, Criminal Investigation (“IRS-CI”), announced today the arrest of ROCKWELL GAJWANI on charges of wire fraud, money laundering, and tax evasion. GAJWANI was arrested this morning by USPIS and IRS agents in Connecticut, and was presented this afternoon in Manhattan federal court before U.S. Magistrate Judge Frank Maas.
U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara said: “As the chief executive officer of a Manhattan real estate company, Rockwell Gajwani was supposed to put the best interests of his company first. Instead, as alleged, he abused his position of authority to embezzle over a million dollars of company money. I thank the U.S. Postal Inspection Service and the IRS-CI for their work in this investigation.”
USPIS Inspector-in-Charge Philip R. Bartlett said: “Mr. Gajwani exploited the trust of his employer and preyed on unsuspecting employees to allegedly steal company funds for his own personal benefit, while evading payment of income tax on those funds. Postal Inspectors and their law enforcement partners will never tolerate this egregious behavior and will vigorously pursue and bring to justice anyone who participates in this criminal activity.”
IRS-CI Special Agent in Charge Shantelle P. Kitchen said: “Everyone is responsible for paying their fair share of taxes, whether their income is legal or illegal. IRS-Criminal Investigation is responsible for investigating allegations concerning individuals who are willfully not reporting their income and are evading the taxes they owe, and we take our roles as protectors of the tax system very seriously.”
As alleged in the Complaint unsealed today in Manhattan federal court:[1]
From October 2011 through March 2013, GAJWANI was the chief executive officer and president of a real estate investment company based in Manhattan (the “Manhattan Real Estate Company”). During this period, GAJWANI took over $1 million in company funds to which he was not entitled by, among other means, making wire transfers from the company’s bank account to his personal bank account, writing company checks to himself, and making cash withdrawals from the company’s bank account.
To accomplish this scheme, among other means, GAJWANI took steps to conceal his true salary and to conceal from the Manhattan Real Estate Company’s parent company (the “Parent Company”) the amount of money he had taken from the Manhattan Real Estate Company’s bank account.
In or about February 2012, GAJWANI asked an employee of the Manhattan Real Estate Company (“Employee-1”) to reduce GAJWANI’s salary to zero in the company’s payroll system, which Employee-1 did not do. Soon thereafter, GAJWANI asked Employee-1 to reduce his salary to $2,000 biweekly and did not provide an explanation to Employee-1 for this request. Ultimately, Employee-1 complied with this request and caused GAJWANI’s salary to be reduced in the payroll system from $26,923.07 on a biweekly basis – which reflects approximately GAJWANI’s agreed salary of $700,000 – to $2,000 on a biweekly basis.
Beginning in late 2012, the director of accounting for the Manhattan Real Estate Company (the “Director of Accounting”) asked GAJWANI for details regarding GAJWANI’s compensation on more than one occasion, and GAJWANI repeatedly said he would get such details to her, but failed to do so. On another occasion, in connection with a request from the Parent Company for financial information, GAJWANI told the Director of Accounting not to provide that information to the Parent Company. To further conceal the funds he had taken from the Manhattan Real Estate Company, GAJWANI directed employees of the Manhattan Real Estate Company to lump the compensation of all employees together in accounting materials provided to the Parent Company, so that GAJWANI’s compensation would not be listed separately from the aggregate figure. GAJWANI also directed certain employees of the Manhattan Real Estate Company not to communicate with employees of the Parent Company.
Over the course of his employment, GAJWANI wrote himself over $940,000 in checks from the Manhattan Real Estate Company’s bank account, and wired over $1,700,000 to his personal bank account. Although some of these funds were purportedly for expenses, by the end of his employment GAJWANI had taken over $1,300,000 more from the Manhattan Real Estate Company’s bank account than he was entitled to under his employment agreement.
GAJWANI also concealed his fraud on the Manhattan Real Estate Company by laundering the proceeds of his fraud. Specifically, on two occasions in May 2012, GAJWANI wrote checks to an employee of the Manhattan Real Estate Company (“Employee-2”) from the company’s bank account. GAJWANI wrote “expenses” in the memo line of each check, although neither check was meant to pay company expenses, and instructed Employee-2 to write a check in return directly to GAJWANI himself. Employee-2 did so on both occasions. In this manner, GAJWANI was able to secure over $30,000 in payments that GAJWANI appeared to receive from Employee-2 but in reality were funds GAJWANI had taken from the Manhattan Real Estate Company.
In addition to defrauding the Manhattan Real Estate Company and engaging in money laundering, GAJWANI did not file tax returns or pay taxes for his legitimate salary or for the money he had secured through fraud. Ultimately, in or about July 2015, after he learned of a criminal investigation, GAJWANI filed tax returns for calendar years 2011, 2012, and 2013. Each of those returns included false representations. For tax year 2011, the Federal Income Tax Return that GAJWANI filed understated GAJWANI’s actual income by more than $480,000, and included over $85,000 in false impermissible tax deductions. For tax year 2012, the Federal Income Tax Return that GAJWANI filed included over $260,000 in false impermissible tax deductions. For tax year 2013, the Federal Income Tax Return that GAJWANI filed underreported GAJWANI’s actual income by $270,000.
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GAJWANI, 52, of Darien, Connecticut, is charged with one count of wire fraud, which carries a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison; one count of money laundering, which carries a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison; and three counts of tax evasion, each of which carries a maximum sentence of five years in prison. The maximum potential sentences in this case are prescribed by Congress and are provided here for informational purposes only, as any sentencing of the defendant would be determined by a judge.
Mr. Bharara praised the outstanding investigative efforts of law enforcement personnel at USPIS and IRS-CI.
The case is being prosecuted by the Office’s Complex Frauds and Cybercrime Unit. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Jonathan Cohen and Andrew D. Beaty are in charge of the prosecution.
The allegations contained in the Complaint are merely accusations, and the defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
[1] As the introductory phrase signifies, the entirety of the text of the Complaint and the description of the Complaint set forth herein constitute only allegations, and every fact described should be treated as an allegation.
Former Bank President and CEO of Farmers Exchange Bank Indicted in Federal Court for Bank Fraud, Embezzlement, and ObstructionRead the Press Release
United States Attorney Gregory A. Haanstad of the Eastern District of Wisconsin announced today that the grand jury has returned an indictment against Geffrey Sawtelle (age: 62) of Neshkoro, Wisconsin, charging him with executing a scheme to defraud Farmers Exchange Bank, a federally insured financial institution operating at various Wisconsin locations, and related criminal charges.
From 2000 until 2014, Mr. Sawtelle was the President and CEO of Farmers Exchange Bank. The indictment alleges that, from 2003 to 2014, Mr. Sawtelle engaged in a scheme to obtain money and assets owned by the Bank, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 1344. Mr. Sawtelle executed the scheme in several different ways. Counts One through Five of the indictment allege that Mr. Sawtelle caused the Bank to purchase car racing-related items for Mr. Sawtelle’s personal use, including a Classic Trailer, a Kibbi trailer, a Renegade motorhome, a Corvette, and services performed by Corvette Sports Inc., and that Mr. Sawtelle manipulated the Bank’s ledgers to conceal those purchases. Counts Six through Fourteen allege that Mr. Sawtelle repeatedly awarded himself fraudulent bonuses that were not approved by the Bank’s Board of Directors. Counts Fifteen through Nineteen allege that Mr. Sawtelle originated a series of straw loans in the names of other people, for his own benefit. Finally, Counts Twenty and Twenty-One charge that Mr. Sawtelle caused the Bank to purchase two sports utility vehicles for his personal use. As to each of these counts, if convicted, Mr. Sawtelle would face imprisonment for not more than 30 years, a fine of not more than $1 million, or both, plus the mandatory $100 special assessment and a term of supervised release not to exceed five years.
The indictment also alleges that Mr. Sawtelle violated Title 18, United States Code, Section 656, by embezzling and misapplying Bank funds while employed as one of the Bank’s officers. Count Twenty-Two alleges that Mr. Sawtelle embezzled the proceeds of the sale of a 2002 Corvette, which Mr. Sawtelle had previously purchased and expensed to the Bank. Count Twenty-Three charges that Mr. Sawtelle transferred $20,000 from the Bank’s general ledger to his own checking account. As to each of those counts, if convicted, Mr. Sawtelle would face imprisonment for not more than 30 years, a fine of not more than $1 million, or both, plus the mandatory $100 special assessment and a term of supervised release not to exceed five years.
Finally, Counts Twenty-Four and Twenty-Five allege that Mr. Sawtelle obstructed the examinations of Farmers Exchange Bank by the FDIC, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 1517, and made false statements to an FDIC representative, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 1001. As to each of those counts, if convicted, Mr. Sawtelle would face imprisonment for not more than 5 years, a fine of not more than $250,000, or both, plus the mandatory $100 special assessment and a term of supervised release not to exceed one year.
This case is being investigated by the Office of the Inspector General for the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, the Office of the Inspector General for the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System, and the Federal Bureau of Investigation. The case will be prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Carol Kraft and Rebecca Taibleson.
An indictment is only a charge and is not evidence of guilt. The defendant is presumed innocent and is entitled to a fair trial at which the government must prove him guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.
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Florence Man Sentenced to Five Months in Prison for Federal Domestic Violence ViolationRead the Press Release
HUNTSVILLE – A federal judge today sentenced a Florence man to five months in prison for assaulting a former girlfriend living on Redstone Arsenal, announced U.S. Attorney Joyce White Vance.
A federal jury in April convicted RONNIE CHRISTOPHER RICKS, 46, on one count of interstate domestic violence for coming into the U.S. government’s special territorial jurisdiction of Redstone Arsenal and striking his former girlfriend with his fists on Aug. 5, 2015. U.S. District Judge Madeline H. Haikala sentenced him to the five months in prison, followed by two years of supervised release. Ricks already is in custody.
According to government documents, the assault occurred as follows:
Ricks’ former girlfriend was a U.S. Army non-commissioned officer living on Redstone Arsenal last year. On Aug. 5, Ricks showed up at her residence as an Army officer arrived to pick up his daughter, who Ricks’ victim was babysitting. Ricks began cursing and swung a fist at the officer. When Ricks former girlfriend stepped between the two men, Ricks threw her to the ground, struck her in the face with his fists and dragged her along the ground.
The Redstone Arsenal Police investigated the case, which Assistant U.S. Attorney David Estes is prosecuting.
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Five Current and Former Employees of Leading Proxy Solicitation Firm Charged with Conspiring to Obtain Confidential Shareholder Voting InformationRead the Press Release
BOSTON – Five current and former employees of one of the nation’s leading proxy solicitation firms were charged today with conspiring to bribe an employee of a prominent proxy advisory firm to obtain confidential information about how the advisory firm’s clients had voted on numerous shareholder proposals.
Donna M. Ackerly, 58, of Hopewell, N.J.; Charles W. Garske, 51, of Wayne, N.J.; Richard J. Gottcent, 59, of Islip Terrance, N.Y.; Keith Haynes, 53, of New York, N.Y.; and Michael Sedlak, 49, of Allentown, Pa., were charged in a criminal complaint with one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud and honest services wire fraud. Ackerly, Gottcent, Haynes and Sedlak were arrested this morning and will have their initial court appearances today in New Jersey, New York and Pennsylvania. Garske is expected to have his initial court appearance later this week. The defendants are scheduled to appear in U.S. District Court in Boston before Magistrate Judge Marianne B. Bowler on Aug. 4, 2016.
It is alleged that from September 2007 to March 2012, the defendants conspired to provide tickets to concerts and sporting events to Brian M. Bennett, formerly known as Brian Zentmyer, an employee of one of the country’s leading proxy advisory firms, in order to obtain information about whether and how the proxy advisory firm’s clients had voted on particular shareholder proposals. The defendants are also charged with conspiring to defraud clients of their own employer by billing them for at least a portion of the cost of the bribes provided to Bennett, while falsely describing those charges as legitimate expenses.
Bennett, currently of Mount Pleasant, S.C., pleaded guilty in July 2015 to one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud and honest services wire fraud.
"These defendants are charged with conspiring to use bribes to obtain confidential information to gain an unfair business edge over their law-abiding competitors," said Harold H. Shaw, Special Agent in Charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Boston Field Division. "This investigation is another example of the FBI’s commitment to ensuring that nonpublic business information is properly safeguarded, and not misused by individuals and third parties for their own improper advantage."
Proxy advisory firms provide institutional investors with research, analysis and recommendations concerning proposals subject to vote by shareholders in publicly traded companies. The firms may also engage in ancillary businesses, such as helping clients cast their votes, also known as proxy ballots or proxies. Proxy solicitation firms, in turn, assist publicly traded companies in matters requiring shareholder approval by attempting to gather information about institutional investors’ holdings and the direction of their proxy votes. This information can help proxy solicitors and their clients determine whether particular shareholder proposals are likely to pass or fail and can thus help to shape their strategies for affecting the outcome of shareholder votes.
In the course of his work for the proxy advisory firm, Bennett had access to non-public information concerning the firm’s clients, including information about how many shares the clients held in particular publicly traded companies, whether the clients had voted on particular shareholder proposals, and if so, how they had voted. Such information is typically confidential, and the proxy advisory firm’s contracts with its clients required that the firm not disclose this type of confidential information to third parties. In addition, Bennett was subject to the proxy advisory firm’s code of conduct, which prohibited employees from accessing confidential information about the firm’s clients unless necessary to perform their jobs, providing confidential client information to third parties, and accepting gifts “designed to induce an employee to act in a manner inconsistent with the best interests” of the firm.
According to the complaint affidavit, between September 2007 and March 2012, Sedlak requested that Bennett provide him with non-public information about how the proxy advisory firm’s clients had voted on numerous shareholder proposals. In response to Sedlak’s requests, Bennett allegedly accessed the proxy advisory firm’s computer systems, often after-hours, to obtain the confidential, client-specific information Sedlak sought. Bennett then provided that information to Sedlak. Sedlak forwarded the confidential information to other employees of the proxy solicitation firm, including Ackerly, Garske, Gottcent and Haynes. Ackerly, Garske and Haynes then allegedly provided it to the proxy solicitation firm’s clients.
In exchange for the confidential information Bennett provided, it is alleged that Sedlak gave Bennett tickets to concerts and sporting events in Massachusetts and elsewhere, accounting for the tickets in expense reports he then submitted to Gottcent and others, who allegedly approved them. In several instances, Sedlak allegedly sought and received permission from Ackerly, Garske and Haynes to bill at least a portion of the cost of the tickets to clients of the proxy solicitation firm. In those instances, Ackerly, Garske and Haynes are alleged to have provided Sedlak with the names of clients to bill, and to have instructed the firm’s billing department to falsely describe those charges in client invoices as “courier services” or other legitimate-sounding expenses.
The charging document alleges specific examples of confidential information Sedlak obtained from Bennett, and the gifts Sedlak allegedly provided in exchange.
The charging statute provides for a sentence of no greater than five years in prison, three years of supervised release and a fine of $250,000 or twice the gross gain or loss, whichever is greater. Actual sentences for federal crimes are typically less than the maximum penalties. Sentences are imposed by a federal district court judge based upon the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
United States Attorney Carmen M. Ortiz and Harold H. Shaw, Special Agent in Charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Boston Field Division, made the accouncement today. The United States Attorney’s Office has also received valuable assistance from the Securities & Exchange Commission. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Sarah E. Walters and Stephen E. Frank, Chief and Deputy Chief, respectively, of Ortiz’s Economic Crimes Unit.
Federal Jury Finds Armed Career Criminal from Albuquerque Guilty of Unlawfully Possessing a Firearm and AmmunitionRead the Press Release
ALBUQUERQUE – A federal jury sitting in Albuquerque, N.M., returned a verdict late yesterday afternoon finding Samuel Silva, 40, guilty of unlawfully possessing a firearm and ammunition after a one-day trial. The verdict was announced by U.S. Attorney Damon P. Martinez, 2nd Judicial District Attorney Kari E. Brandenburg, Special Agent in Charge Thomas G. Atteberry of the Phoenix Field Division of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF), and Chief Gorden E. Eden, Jr., of the Albuquerque Police Department (APD).
Silva was charged on Dec. 3, 2014, with being a felon in possession of a firearm and ammunition on July 1, 2014, in Bernalillo County, N.M. According to the indictment, Silva was prohibited from possessing firearms or ammunition because he previously had been convicted of numerous felony offenses. His prior felony convictions included auto burglary, unlawful taking of a vehicle, aggravated battery on a peace officer, attempted murder with a firearms enhancement, shooting at a motor vehicle, unlawful possession of a firearm, kidnapping with a firearms enhancement, and aggravated assault with a deadly weapon.
Silva was arrested on Dec. 18, 2014, after he was transferred to federal custody from state custody where he was detained on related state charges. The state charges subsequently were dismissed in favor of federal prosecution.
Silva’s trial on the felon in possession charge began yesterday morning and concluded late yesterday afternoon when the jury returned a guilty verdict. The evidence at trial established that APD officers arrested Silva on an outstanding warrant on July 1, 2014. After arresting Silva, the officers obtained a search warrant for the vehicle Silva was driving at the time of his arrest. When the officers executed the search warrant, they found a semi-automatic pistol loaded with nine rounds of .40 caliber ammunition in the vehicle.
At sentencing, Silva faces an enhanced sentence of a statutory mandatory minimum of 15 years and a maximum of life in prison for unlawfully possessing a firearm and ammunition on July 1, 2014. Silva faces this enhanced sentence because of his status as an armed career criminal.
The case was investigated by ATF in Albuquerque and APD with assistance from the 2nd Judicial District Attorney’s Office.
Assistant U.S. Attorneys Jacob A. Wishard and Edward Han are prosecuting the case as part of a federal anti-violence initiative that targets “the worst of the worst” offenders for federal prosecution. Under this initiative, the U.S. Attorney’s Office and federal law enforcement agencies work with New Mexico’s District Attorneys and state, local and tribal law enforcement agencies to target violent or repeat offenders primarily based on their prior criminal convictions for federal prosecution with the goal of removing repeat offenders from communities in New Mexico for as long as possible. Because New Mexico’s violent crime rate, on a per capita basis, is one of the highest in the nation, New Mexico’s law enforcement community is collaborating to target repeat and violent offenders, primarily based on their prior convictions, from counties with the highest violent crime rates under this initiative.
Federal Inmate Sentenced to Additional 15 Months in Prison for Possessing WeaponRead the Press Release
Concord, N.H.—Emily Gray Rice, United States Attorney for the District of New Hampshire, announced that Parrish Powell, 27, previously of Mount Vernon, New York, was sentenced for possessing a weapon at a federal correctional institution in July 2015. United States District Judge Landya B. McCafferty imposed a sentence of 15 months’ imprisonment and a mandatory $100 special assessment.
According to the indictment, statements made in court, and other public records in the case, in 2014 Powell was convicted in the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York for the illegal possession of a firearm by a convicted felon. He was sentenced to 37 months’ imprisonment and 2 years of supervised release on that charge. The Federal Bureau of Prisons assigned Powell to the federal correctional institute in Berlin, New Hampshire (“FCI Berlin”). On July 17, 2015, Powell was subject to a routine search by an FCI Berlin correctional officer. The officer discovered in Powell’s boot a knife or “shiv” fashioned out a yellow plastic eating utensil, sharpened to a point at one end, with black electrical tape wrapped around the other end, forming a makeshift handle. A federal indictment charging Powell with possessing a weapon while an inmate at a federal prison, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Sections 1791(a)(2) and (d)(1)(B), was returned on December 16, 2015, and Powell pleaded guilty on February 29, 2016.
By statute, Powell’s new sentence of 15 months must run consecutive to his existing sentence on the 2014 charges in New York. He will be subject to a period of 2 years supervised release upon release from prison as a result of the sentence imposed in 2014.
The case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Prisons with assistance from the Federal Bureau of Investigation, and is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Charles L. Rombeau.
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Federal Grand Jury IndictmentsRead the Press Release
Contact Person: Beth Drake (803) 929-3000
Acting United States Attorney Beth Drake stated today that a Federal Grand Jury in Greenville, South Carolina, returned Indictments against the following:
Laurens Resident Indicted on Embezzling VA Funds
Alison Moore, age 55, of Laurens, South Carolina, was charged in a 1-count indictment. Alison Moore was charged with Embezzlement, a violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 641. The maximum penalty Moore could receive is 10 years imprisonment and a maximum fine of $250,000. The case was investigated by agents of the Department of Veterans Affairs and is assigned to Assistant United States Attorney William J. Watkins, Jr., of the Greenville office for prosecution.Spartanburg Resident Indicted on Embezzling VA Funds
Pearline Sims, a/k/a “Pauline Sims”, age 62, of Spartanburg, South Carolina, was charged in a 1-count indictment. Pearline Sims was charged with Embezzlement, a violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 641. The maximum penalty Sims could receive is 10 years imprisonment and a maximum fine of $250,000. The case was investigated by agents of the Department of Veterans Affairs and is assigned to Assistant United States Attorney William J. Watkins, Jr., of the Greenville office for prosecution.Husband and Wife Indicted on Conspiring to Steal Mail
Cary L. Wright, age 37, and Tanya A. Wright, age 28, both of Greenville, South Carolina, were charged in a 1-count indictment. Both defendants were charged with Conspiracy, a violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 371. The maximum penalty both defendants could receive is 5 years imprisonment and a maximum fine of $250,000. The case was investigated by agents of the United States Postal Inspection Service and is assigned to Assistant United States Attorney Williams J. Watkins, Jr., of the Greenville office for prosecution.Welch Group Environmental and its Owner Indicted on Storing Hazardous Waste and Releasing Hazardous Air Pollutants
Glenn Welch, age 52, of Belton, South Carolina, and Welch Group Environmental, of Belton, South Carolina, were charged in a 5-count indictment. Both defendants were charged with Storage and Disposal of Hazardous Waste without a permit, a violation of Title 42, United States Code, Section 6928(d)(2)(A) which carries a maximum penalty of 5 years imprisonment and a maximum fine of $50,000, and Release of Hazardous Air Pollutants, a violation of Title 42, United States Code, Section 7413(c)(5)(A), which carries a maximum penalty of 15 years imprisonment and a maximum fine of $250,000 for Glenn Welch and a maximum fine of $500,000 for Welch Group Environmental. The case was investigated by agents of the Environmental Protection Agency and is assigned to Assistant United States Attorney William J. Watkins, Jr., of the Greenville office for prosecution.Four Men Indicted for Drug Violations
Jose Huber Bustamante, age 34, Jaime Roman Bustamante, age 33, Jorge Texco-Dorantes, age 32, and Samuel Olivares, age 22, were charged in a two count indictment. The indictment alleges that these four men, beginning at least in 2016, conspired to possess with the intent to distribute and to distribute 5 kilograms or more of cocaine in South Carolina and elsewhere. It also alleges that they possessed with the intent to distribute 5 kilograms or more of cocaine on June 15, 2016, in South Carolina and did aid and abet each other in the commission of the offense. If convicted on the charges in the indictment, each defendant faces a mandatory minimum of 10 years imprisonment and a maximum of life imprisonment. This case was investigated by agents of the Department of Homeland Security, Homeland Security Investigations, and is assigned to Assistant United States Attorney Andy Moorman of the Greenville office for prosecution.The Acting United States Attorney stated that all charges in these Indictments are merely accusations and that all defendants are presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty.
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Erie Oral Surgeon Indicted over Billing PracticesRead the Press Release
ERIE, Pa. - A resident of Erie, Pennsylvania, has been indicted by a federal grand jury in Erie on charges of health care fraud and false statements relating to health care matters, United States Attorney David J. Hickton announced today.
The twenty-seven-count indictment named David Edward Palo, 49, as the sole defendant.
According to the indictment presented to the court, from January 2008 to June 2014, Palo falsely billed numerous tooth extractions as surgical extractions, causing fraudulent bills totaling in excess of approximately $232,674 to be submitted to various health insurance companies.
The law provides for a maximum total sentence of 140 years in prison, a fine of $6,750,000, or both. Under the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, the actual sentence imposed would be based upon the seriousness of the offenses and the prior criminal history, if any, of the defendant.
Assistant United States Attorney Christian A. Trabold is prosecuting this case on behalf of the government.
The Federal Bureau of Investigation conducted the investigation leading to the indictment in this case.
An indictment is an accusation. A defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
Erie Oral Surgeon Charged with Healthcare FraudRead the Press Release
ERIE, Pa. - A resident of Erie, Pennsylvania, has been indicted by a federal grand jury in Erie on charges of health care fraud and false statements relating to health care matters, United States Attorney David J. Hickton announced today.
The twenty-one-count indictment named John Frederick Lehrian, 69, as the sole defendant.
According to the indictment presented to the court, from January 2008 to June 2014, Lehrian falsely billed numerous tooth extractions as surgical extractions, causing fraudulent bills totaling in excess of approximately $90,734 to be submitted to various health insurance companies.
The law provides for a maximum total sentence of 110 years in prison, a fine of $5,250,000, or both. Under the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, the actual sentence imposed would be based upon the seriousness of the offenses and the prior criminal history, if any, of the defendant.
Assistant United States Attorney Christian A. Trabold is prosecuting this case on behalf of the government.
The Federal Bureau of Investigation conducted the investigation leading to the indictment in this case.
An indictment is an accusation. A defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
Erie Felon Admits Violating Federal Gun LawsRead the Press Release
ERIE, Pa. - A former resident of Erie, Pennsylvania, pleaded guilty in federal court to a charge of violating federal firearms laws, United States Attorney David J. Hickton announced today.
Otemeo Dupree Williams, 32 pleaded guilty to one count before United States District Judge David S. Cercone.
In connection with the guilty plea, the court was advised that on July 1, 2015, Erie Police officers responded to Marty’s Tavern and caught Williams unlawfully in possession of a loaded Browning Hi-Power .9mm pistol. The serial number and manufacturers stamping on the firearm had been obliterated and the firearm had been reported stolen from a residence in September 2014. Williams’ prior criminal record prohibited him for possession of firearms.
Judge Cercone scheduled sentencing for November 21, 2016 at 1:30 p.m. The law provides for a total sentence of 10 years in prison, a fine of $250,000, or both. Under the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, the actual sentence imposed is based upon the seriousness of the offense and the prior criminal history, if any, of the defendant.
Assistant United States Attorney Marshall J. Piccinini is prosecuting this case on behalf of the government.
This case was prosecuted as part of Project Safe Neighborhoods, a collaborative effort by federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies, prosecutors, and communities to prevent, deter, and prosecute gun crime.
The Erie Bureau of Police and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives conducted the investigation that led to the prosecution of Williams.
Ecuadorian National Formerly Residing in Waterbury Pleads Guilty to Passport FraudRead the Press Release
Deirdre M. Daly, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, announced MANUEL ANTONIO GUAMAN, 33, formerly of Waterbury, waived his right to indictment and pleaded guilty yesterday before U.S. District Judge Michael P. Shea in Hartford to one count of use of a passport secured by false statement and one count of making a false statement in a passport application.
According to court documents and statements made in court, GUAMAN is a native and citizen of Ecuador. On or about August 2, 2006, he submitted in person an application for a United States passport, in the name of another individual, at a U.S. Post Office in Waterbury. Claiming to be this individual, GUAMAN presented to the passport acceptance agent a Puerto Rican birth certificate and a Connecticut identity card. Neither the birth certificate nor the identity card reflected GUAMAN’s true identity. GUAMAN signed the passport application under oath claiming to be this other individual. The passport was issued and used by GUAMAN to travel between the U.S. and Ecuador in 2012.
On October 23, 2014, GUAMAN submitted a passport renewal application, and provided the previous passport as proof of his identity and U.S. citizenship. On December 31, 2015, after conducting an investigation, law enforcement interviewed GUAMAN while he was incarcerated in a state Department of Correction facility. He admitted that he had submitted and signed the above-referenced passport renewal application, that it was his photo on the passport application, and that he was not the person whom he had claimed to be in the passport application.
GUAMAN is scheduled to be sentenced by Judge Shea on October 4, 2016. He faces a maximum term of imprisonment of 10 years on each count. He is currently serving a state sentence for assault in the first degree.
The case was investigated by the U.S. Department of State, Bureau of Diplomatic Security. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Hal Chen.
Dog Fighting Investigation Leads to Federal Dogfighting, Marijuana Grow & Firearms Charges PleaRead the Press Release
ELIZABETH CITY – The United States Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of North Carolina announced that in federal court today, ZHAQWAUN JEVONTAE GARY, 22, pled guilty to Possession of an animal for the purpose of participation in a fighting venture and aiding and abetting. On April 5, 2016 his father, ELTON GARY, 47, pled guilty to exhibiting and sponsoring an animal for the purpose of participation in a fighting venture and aiding and abetting in the same; attending an animal fighting venture and aiding and abetting in the same; possession of an animal for the purpose of participation in a fighting venture and aiding and abetting in the same; possession of firearm and ammunition by a felon; possession with intent to distribute more than 50 but less than 100 marijuana plants and aiding and abetting; and maintaining drug-involved premises and aiding and abetting. On April 21, 2016 his mother, ERICA POWELL GARY, 44, pled guilty to possession of an animal for the purpose of participation in a fighting venture and aiding and abetting, and possession of firearm by a felon.
On April 7, 2013 the Halifax County Sheriff’s Office received a complaint that ERICA GARY was conducting dog fighting operations at her residence in Halifax County. When deputies arrived at the home, no dog fighting in progress was observed on the property, but blood samples were obtained from an area that appeared to have had recent dog fighting and multiple animals were seized. In the shed, deputies located a steel bucket with bloody water, and what appeared to be a ring for dog fighting. A carpet with blood was found and there were splatters on the walls. The dogs were in a wooden fenced in area and there was blood at the bottom of the fence.
Several pit bulls were chained up within the fence. A Halifax Animal Control, was called out and gave his opinion that this was a dog fighting ring based on his review of the shed set up and appearance. Deputies located approximately 17 dogs (pit bulls) and they all had wounds and scars consistent with dog fighting. While looking for evidence of dog fighting, deputies located marijuana plants growing in a shed on the property. Deputies obtained a search warrant based on the discovery. There were approximately 68 plants, a grow light, seeds, timers, heaters, etc. in support of the growing operation. A search warrant was also executed at the home of Erica Gary and two firearms were located in the closet of the bedroom shared by Erica and Elton Gary.
At sentencing ELTON and ERICA GARY face in excess of 10 years imprisonment. ZHAQWAUN JEVONTAE GARY faces up to 5 years imprisonment. A sentencing date for these three defendants has not been set by the court.
The criminal investigation of this case was conducted by Halifax County Sheriff’s Office, Halifax County Animal Control, the North Carolina State Bureau of Investigation, and the U.S. Department of Agriculture – Office of Inspector General. Assistant United States Attorney S. Katherine Burnette is handling the case on behalf of the government.
DeCavalcante Crime Family Associate Sentenced to Five Years in Prison for Distributing CocaineRead the Press Release
NEWARK, N.J. – An associate of the DeCavalcante organized crime family of La Cosa Nostra was sentenced today to 60 months in prison for his role in distributing more than 500 grams of cocaine, U.S. Attorney Paul J. Fishman announced.
James Heeney, 36, of Elizabeth, New Jersey, previously pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge William H. Walls to an information charging him with one count of conspiring to distribute more than 500 grams of cocaine. Judge Walls imposed the sentence today in Newark federal court.
According to documents filed in this case and statements made in court:
Heeney was arrested and charged by complaint in March 2015, along with eight members of the DeCavalcante crime family. At his plea hearing, he admitted that between August 2012 and March 2013, in conjunction with other family associates, he sold more than one-half a kilo of cocaine to an undercover FBI agent for at least $30,000.
In addition to the prison term, Judge Walls sentenced Heeney to four years of supervised release.
U.S. Attorney Fishman credited special agents of the FBI, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Timothy Gallagher in Newark; the N.J. State Commission of Investigation, under the direction of Acting Executive Director Lee C. Seglem; detectives of the Waterfront Commission of New York Harbor, under the direction of Executive Director Walter M. Arsenault; and the Union County Prosecutor’s Office, under the direction of Acting Union County Prosecutor Grace H. Park, for the investigation leading to today’s sentencing.
The government is represented by Senior Litigation Counsel V. Grady O’Malley and Assistant U.S. Attorney James Donnelly of the U.S. Attorney’s Office’s Organized Crime/Gangs Unit.
Defense counsel: Paulette Pitt Esq. Woodbridge, New Jersey.
Commercial Supply Company Owner Gets Four Years in Prison for Defrauding Public and Private Customers Out of More Than $700,000Read the Press Release
TRENTON, N.J. – A part owner of Bayway Lumber, a Linden, New Jersey, company that sold commercial and industrial products to numerous public and private entities, was sentenced today to 48 months in prison for his role in a scheme to defraud customers out of $708,386, U.S. Attorney Paul J. Fishman announced.
Robert R. Dattilo, 61, previously pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Peter G. Sheridan to an information charging him with one count of conspiracy to commit mail and wire fraud. Judge Sheridan imposed the sentence today in Trenton federal court.
According to documents filed in this case and statements made in court:
From 2007 to November 2015, Dattilo conspired with others to defraud certain customers by engaging in fraudulent business practices, including overbilling, charging for more expensive items or larger quantities of items, and providing free items to employees of customers, then recouping the cost of the items (and additional profits) by overbilling and fraudulent billing.
At Dattilo’s direction, Bayway Lumber inflated the prices on items sold or intentionally failed to provide the prices called for in contractual agreements between Bayway Lumber and customers, including the University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey (UMDNJ) and its successor entities – Rutgers University and University Hospital; the City of Elizabeth; and the New York Transit Authority. These methods included:
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Concealing the true cost of items to Bayway Lumber, sometimes by manually altering vendor invoices, in order to enable Bayway Lumber to bill UMDNJ higher mark-ups.
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Charging Elizabeth prices that did not apply the discounts called for by contracts.
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Consistently billing the Transit Authority for the most expensive items, such as doors, frames and door hardware, permitted by the contract, although Bayway Lumber was providing less-expensive items than what was ordered.
Dattilo also conspired to provide certain customers, such as the Philadelphia Housing Authority, Con Edison, the New York Department of Corrections and the City of Newark, with lower-quality lumber than the customers ordered and paid for. The lower-quality lumber, including “reject” lumber, did not meet certain industry specifications and was not of construction-grade quality, as required by contract.
To conceal this product substitution scheme, Dattilo directed Bayway Lumber employees to spray paint or rearrange the lower-quality lumber sent to the customer entities in order to hide any markings on the lumber that would indicate that it was the lower-quality lumber. At Dattilo’s direction, Bayway Lumber also issued invoices to customers that falsely described the lower-quality lumber as the higher-quality lumber that the customers ordered.
Employees of some of Bayway Lumber’s customers, including Amtrak, the Plainfield Board of Education and a Bergen County company identified in the information as “Company 1,” were given a variety of items, including electronics, tickets to sporting events, merchandise and gift cards. Bayway Lumber then overbilled and fraudulently billed those customers to recoup the cost of the gifts, plus additional profits. Dattilo kept a running tally of how much Bayway Lumber overbilled and fraudulently billed those customers, which Dattilo referred to as the “Bank,” to ensure that Bayway Lumber recovered the full cost of the free items.
In addition to the prison term, Judge Sheridan sentenced Dattilo to three years of supervised release and ordered him to pay restitution of $708,386 and a $2,000 fine.
U.S. Attorney Fishman credited special agents with the Office of Inspector General, U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Christina Scaringi; special agents of the FBI, under the direction of Acting Special Agent in Charge Timothy Gallagher; and the Office of Inspector General, Amtrak, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Robert Koons, as well as investigators of the U.S. Attorney’s Office, with the investigation leading to today’s sentencing.
The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Barbara R. Llanes and Cari Fais of the U.S. Attorney’s Office Special Prosecutions Division and Barbara Ward, Acting Chief of the U.S. Attorney’s Office Asset Forfeiture and Money Laundering Unit in Newark.
Defense counsel: Alain Leibman Esq., Princeton, New Jersey
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Chicago Man Sentenced to Life for Conspiring to Distribute Heroin and Fentanyl That Caused Multiple Deaths and OverdosesRead the Press Release
A man who conspired to distribute heroin, fentanyl, and crack cocaine that led to several overdoses and deaths in Cedar Rapids in 2015 was sentenced yesterday to life in federal prison.
Max Julian Wright, age 36, from Chicago, Illinois, received the prison term after a March 2, 2016 jury verdict finding him guilty of two counts of distribution of fentanyl and one count of conspiring to distribute heroin, crack cocaine, and fentanyl that resulted in six serious bodily injuries and two deaths.
The evidence at trial showed that, between about 2013 and June 2015, Wright brought large quantities of heroin, fentanyl, and crack cocaine from Chicago to Cedar Rapids. Wright and other individuals, including DeShaun Anderson and Marcus Wallace, sold the drugs to various users in Cedar Rapids. Fentanyl is a synthetic opiate similar to heroin, but many times more potent than heroin. Witness testimony showed that by at least late 2014, the potency of the heroin being sold by Wright and Anderson increased, which led to at least six individuals immediately overdosing on the drugs. Testimony showed the users who overdosed lost consciousness nearly immediately after using the drugs, and had severely reduced breathing function due to the effects of the opiate drugs. One of the injured victims died two days later from the injuries sustained from using the drugs. Another victim died in early April of a mixed-drug overdose that included a toxic level of fentanyl in the victim’s blood. All of the deaths and overdose injuries found by the jury occurred between late February and mid-May of 2015.
Wright was sentenced in Cedar Rapids by United States District Court Judge Leonard T. Strand. Wright was sentenced to life imprisonment on the conspiracy count and 30 years’ imprisonment on the distribution counts, all of which were ordered to run concurrently. A special assessment of $300 was imposed and he was ordered to make $12,371 in restitution to the family of one of the victims. If he is ever released from prison, he must serve an 8-year term of supervised release. There is no parole in the federal system.
Wright is being held in the United States Marshal’s custody until he can be transported to a federal prison.
The case was investigated as part of the Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF) program of the United States Department of Justice through a cooperative effort of the Cedar Rapids Police Department and the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) Task Force consisting of the DEA; the Cedar Rapids Police Department; the Linn County Sheriff's Office; the Marion Police Department; the Iowa City Police Department; and the Iowa Division of Narcotics Enforcement, and the Linn County Medical Examiner’s Office, and prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Dan Chatham and Patrick Reinert.
Court file information at https://ecf.iand.uscourts.gov/cgi-bin/login.pl.
The case file number is 15-CR-00046-LRR.
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Charleston man sentenced to Federal prison for drug crimeRead the Press Release
CHARLESTON, W.Va. – A Charleston man caught dealing drugs while on federal supervised release was sentenced to prison today, announced Acting United States Attorney Carol Casto. Alan Alexander Clark, 33, previously pleaded guilty to distributing heroin. In today’s hearing, he was sentenced to two years in federal prison for that offense. He was also sentenced to an additional two years in prison for violating his federal supervised release. The sentences will be served consecutively.
Clark admitted that on July 29, 2015, he sold heroin to a confidential informant working with law enforcement. The drug deal took place at the Rite Aid at 406 Washington Street, West, in Charleston. Clark further admitted that he sold heroin and methamphetamine to a confidential informant on three additional occasions.
The investigation was conducted by the Metropolitan Drug Enforcement Network Team. Assistant United States Attorney Clint Carte handled the prosecution. United States District Judge John T. Copenhaver, Jr., imposed the sentence.
This case is being prosecuted as part of an ongoing effort led by the United States Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of West Virginia to combat the illicit sale and misuse of illegal drugs, including methamphetamine and heroin. The U.S. Attorney’s Office, joined by federal, state and local law enforcement agencies, is committed to aggressively pursuing and shutting down pill trafficking, eliminating open air drug markets, and curtailing the spread of illegal drugs in communities across the Southern District.
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Carlsbad Woman Pleads Guilty to Possessing an Unregistered FirearmRead the Press Release
ALBUQUERQUE – Janice Sarabia, 47, of Carlsbad, N.M., pled guilty this afternoon in federal court in Las Cruces, N.M., to violating the federal firearms laws by unlawfully possessing an unregistered firearm.
Sarabi was arrested in Feb. 2016, on a criminal complaint charging her with possession of an unregistered firearm on Feb. 27, 2014, in Eddy County, N.M. According to the complaint, the Pecos Valley Drug Task Force (PVDTF) executed a state search warrant on Sarabia’s residence on Feb. 27, 2014, and seized a short-barrel shotgun. A search of the National Firearms Registration and Transfer Record (NFRTR) determined that Sarabia did not have any weapons registered to her, and the shotgun also was unregistered with the NFRTR.
During today’s plea hearing, Sarabia pled guilty to a felony information charging her with possession of an unregistered firearm. At sentencing, Sarabia faces a statutory maximum penalty of ten years in federal prison. A sentencing hearing has yet to be scheduled.
This case was investigated by the Las Cruces office of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and the Pecos Valley Drug Task Force. Assistant U.S. Attorney Randy M. Castellano is prosecuting the case.
Bristol Woman Sentenced for Lying to Federal Grand JuryRead the Press Release
ABINGDON, VIRGINIA – A Bristol, Virginia woman, who lied to a federal grand jury in connection to the investigation of a burglary of a federal firearms licensee, was sentenced today in the United States District Court for the Western District of Virginia in Abingdon, United States Attorney John P. Fishwick Jr. announced.
Tanya Michelle Conley, 24, of Bristol, Virginia, previously pled guilty to one count of lying under oath to a grand jury. Today in District Court, Conley was sentenced to six months in federal prison to be followed by six months of home confinement.
“The integrity of the grand jury and the responsibility of those under oath to tell the truth are at the heart of our justice system,” United States Attorney Fishwick said today. “When individuals subvert that process by lying under oath they will be held accountable.”
According to evidence presented at previous hearings by Assistant United States Attorney Erin M. Kulpa, Conley had information concerning the burglary of a federal firearms licensee located in Bristol, Virginia. When questioned by law enforcement and quested under oath before the federal grand jury, Conley lied about her knowledge of the thefts and who had committed them.
The investigation of the case was conducted by Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and the Bristol, Virginia Police Department. Assistant United States Attorney Erin M. Kulpa prosecuted the case for the United States.
Brian Delach Was Sentenced to 168 MonthsRead the Press Release
HAMMOND – United States Attorney for the Northern District of Indiana, David A. Capp, announced that Brian Delach, 30, of Portage, Indiana was sentenced in Hammond Federal Court before Chief Judge Philip Simon for receipt of child pornography
Delach was sentenced to 168 months’ imprisonment followed by 8 years of supervised release.
According to documents filed in this case, between February and October 2015, Delach downloaded and viewed numerous images of child pornography on the Internet.
This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation. This case was handled by Assistant United States Attorney Abizer Zanzi.
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Boise Man Pleads Guilty to Conspiracy to Distribute MethamphetamineRead the Press Release
BOISE - Raymond Joseph Pruneau, 52, of Boise, Idaho, pleaded guilty today to conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine, U.S. Attorney Wendy J. Olson announced. Pruneau was indicted by a federal grand jury on March 8, 2016.
According to evidence presented at the entry of plea, Pruneau conspired with others to distribute methamphetamine in the state of Idaho between October 2015 and February 22, 2016. The defendant and his co-conspirators arranged for delivers of methamphetamine in the Ada and Canyon County, Idaho area. Investigating officers discovered the conspiracy and were able to intervene. A search of the defendant’s home resulted in officers locating 824 grams of methamphetamine and 415 grams of cocaine.
The charge of conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine is punishable by a term of imprisonment of not less than ten years or more than life, a term of supervised release of at least five years, and a maximum fine of $10,000,000.
Sentencing is set for October 9, 2016, before Senior U.S. District Judge Edward J. Lodge.
The case was investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration, Ada County Sheriff’s Office, and City County Narcotics Unit of Canyon County.
The case was prosecuted by the Special Assistant U.S. Attorney hired by the Ada County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office and the Idaho High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area Board. The Idaho High Intensity Drug Trafficking Board is a collaboration of local law enforcement drug task forces and prosecuting agencies dedicated to addressing regional drug trafficking organizations that operate in Ada, Canyon, and Malheur County.
Behr Iron & Steel Inc. Sentenced on OSHA Violation Causing Death of EmployeeRead the Press Release
ROCKFORD — A Rockford-based company was sentenced today by U.S. Magistrate Judge Iain D. Johnston for willfully violating Occupational Safety and Health Administration regulations, resulting in the death of an employee at the company’s facility in South Beloit, Ill.
BEHR IRON & STEEL INC., a high volume ferrous and nonferrous scrap processor, was sentenced to 5 years’ probation and ordered to pay restitution of $350,000 to the victim’s estate. Behr was also previously ordered to pay a fine of $520,000 in a related administrative OSHA case.
The company pleaded guilty to the charge on March 8, 2016, and admitted in a plea agreement that on March 10, 2014, the company failed to provide lockout/tagout protection and confined space protection as required under OSHA regulations for the company’s employees who were cleaning a shredder discharge pit. The company admitted that those violations caused the death of an employee who got caught in a moving, unguarded conveyor belt.
Behr’s South Beloit facility recycles metals contained in such things as automobiles and refrigerators. According to the plea agreement, OSHA regulations require employers to adopt safety procedures to ensure that dangerous machines are properly shut off and unable to start up again prior to the completion of maintenance or servicing work. The safety procedures include placing a lock on the power source of the machine and a tag on the lock warning that the machine cannot be operated until the warning is removed, and identifying the employee who has the key to the lock. OSHA also promulgated regulations that address the need to protect employees from entering a confined space without safety precautions.
Metals shredded through a shredding machine in Behr’s South Beloit facility fall onto a conveyor belt located about ten feet underground in a shredder discharge pit, which was approximately six feet long and six feet wide. The shredded materials were then moved by a conveyor belt out of the discharge pit and through a sorting process. Some of the shredded metals fall onto the ground of the discharge pit near the conveyor belt. One or two Behr employees working on the shredding machine were required to clean the discharge pit on a daily basis. The employees shoveled shredded materials from the floor of the discharge pit onto the running conveyor belt.
On March 10, 2014, a Behr employee was cleaning the discharge pit when the employee’s arm was caught by the unguarded conveyor belt. The employee was pulled into the machinery and killed.
Behr admitted that there was no lock or operable emergency shut off switch in the discharge pit for the conveyor belt, and the conveyor belt did not have guards designed to protect employees. Behr also admitted that employees in the discharge pit were not adequately trained to use the shredder or the conveyor belt, and that the company had not developed and implemented confined space protection for employees entering the discharge pit.
The sentencing was announced by Zachary T. Fardon, United States Attorney for the Northern District of Illinois; and Ken Nishiyama Atha, Regional Administrator of OSHA in Chicago.
The government was represented by Assistant U.S. Attorney Scott R. Paccagnini.
Beckley man pleads guilty to role in California-to-West Virginia drug conspiracyRead the Press Release
CHARLESTON, W.Va. – A Beckley man substantially involved in a California-to-West Virginia drug conspiracy pleaded guilty today to a federal drug charge, announced Acting United States Attorney Carol Casto. Velarian Sylvester Carter, 37, entered his guilty plea to conspiracy to distribute more than 50 grams of methamphetamine.
Carter admitted that from January 2015 to March 2016, he was involved in a drug conspiracy with multiple individuals that included the transportation and distribution of methamphetamine. He admitted that in January 2015, he conspired to have methamphetamine delivered from California to West Virginia. Carter also admitted to receiving methamphetamine from Daniel Ortiz-Rivera, a codefendant, until Ortiz-Rivera was arrested in Kansas in June 2015. Ortiz-Rivera’s arrest prompted Carter to begin purchasing drugs directly from Ortiz-Rivera’s supplier.
Carter further admitted that on March 21, 2016, a confidential informant working with law enforcement discussed the logistics of bringing drugs to Charleston with Carter, including cocaine, methamphetamine, marijuana, and heroin. That same day law enforcement stopped Carter and seized suspected drugs and approximately $28,000 in cash from the vehicle. Carter additionally admitted that on March 24, 2016, he arranged with confidential informants for the pickup of two pounds of methamphetamine in exchange for $12,000 in Charleston. On March 25, 2016, Carter arrived at the pre-arranged location and parked near the vehicle he was told contained methamphetamine. At that time law enforcement arrested Carter and seized $11,990 cash from Carter that he kept inside a Burger King bag.
Carter faces at least 10 years and up to life in federal prison when he is sentenced on October 13, 2016.
This prosecution is the result of a multi-agency investigation which led to an eight-count indictment implicating 14 defendants, including Carter. Carter’s codefendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty in a court of law. As part of this conspiracy, Ortiz-Rivera, a Mexican national, previously pleaded guilty to conspiring to distribute more than 50 grams of methamphetamine and is scheduled to be sentenced on October 11, 2016. Additionally, two women used as mules to transport methamphetamine, Danielle Dessaray Estrada, of Los Angeles, and Kelly Newcomb, of Nevada, have pleaded guilty to interstate travel in furtherance of a drug crime and are scheduled to be sentenced on October 6, 2016.
The FBI, Homeland Security Investigations, the United States Postal Inspection Service, the Charleston Police Department, and the Metropolitan Drug Enforcement Network Team conducted the investigation. Assistant United States Attorney Jennifer Rada Herrald is in charge of the prosecution. The plea hearing was held before United States District Judge John T. Copenhaver, Jr.
This case is being prosecuted as part of an ongoing effort led by the United States Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of West Virginia to combat the illicit sale and misuse of illegal drugs, including methamphetamine. The U.S. Attorney’s Office, joined by federal, state and local law enforcement agencies, is committed to aggressively pursuing and shutting down pill trafficking, eliminating open air drug markets, and curtailing the spread of illegal drugs in communities across the Southern District.
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Athens-Area Real Estate Scam Artist Sentenced to Federal PrisonRead the Press Release
G. F. “Pete” Peterman, III, United States Attorney for the Middle District of Georgia, announces that Jackie Williams, age 42, from Bishop, Georgia, was sentenced to serve 70 months in Federal prison for wire fraud today by the Honorable C. Ashley Royal, United States District Judge, in Athens. Ms. Williams was also ordered to pay restitution in the amount of $563,097.01.
Ms. Williams pled guilty to the charge on March 16, 2016. As part of her guilty plea, Ms. Williams admitted to orchestrating a real estate fraud scheme which victimized several people in the Athens, Georgia area. Ms. Williams admitted to defrauding investors from 2012-2014; specifically, she induced people to invest in a purported real estate business, claiming that she bought distressed homes and sold them for a substantial profit. However, in numerous cases Ms. Williams never purchased the home that she told her victims she had used their money to buy, and she created falsified documents, such as fake purchase contracts and mortgage preapproval letters, to perpetuate her fraud. In fact, Ms. Williams used her investors’ money for her own personal gain, and/or to pay off portions of the money she had borrowed from previous investors. As part of her guilty plea, Ms. Williams admitted that she owes $563,097.01 in restitution to eight victims.
Noting that the 70-month sentence imposed was greater than the usual range of 33 to 41 months for a fraud of this magnitude, United States Attorney G. F. “Pete” Peterman, III, stated that, “It is particularly disturbing that Ms. Williams’ fraud in this case was against many older or retired victims who invested substantial portions of their savings which, even with the restitution order entered today, they are unlikely to ever recover. If for no other reason, this office is particularly pleased that the Court chose to impose a harsher sentence than what the federal sentencing guidelines typically recommend.”
The case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Sheriff’s Offices for Barrow, Madison and Oconee Counties. Assistant United States Attorney Peter Leary handled the prosecution for the Government.
Inquiries regarding the case should be directed to Pam Lightsey at the United States Attorney’s Office at 478-752-3511.
Albuquerque Man Sentenced to Federal Prison for Robbing Pharmacy at Gunpoint to Obtain Opioid PainkillersRead the Press Release
ALBUQUERQUE – Ernesto Gallegos, 31, of Albuquerque, N.M., was sentenced today in federal court for his conviction for robbing a retail pharmacy at gunpoint to obtain prescription opioid painkillers in May 2014. Gallegos was sentenced to 70 months in federal prison followed by three years of supervised release. The sentence was announced by U.S. Attorney Damon P. Martinez, 2nd Judicial District Attorney Kari E. Brandenburg, Will R. Glaspy, Special Agent in Charge of DEA’s El Paso Division, and Chief Gorden E. Eden of the Albuquerque Police Department.
Gallegos was charged by felony information on March 16, 2016, with violating the Hobbs Act by robbing a business engaged in interstate commerce and robbery involving controlled substances. The charges against Gallegos arose out of the armed robbery of the Walgreens Pharmacy located at 5001 Montgomery Blvd. in Albuquerque on May 6, 2014.
Gallegos pled guilty on March 16, 2016, to the felony information. In his plea agreement, Gallegos admitted that late on the night of May 6, 2015, he entered the Walgreens Pharmacy on Montgomery Blvd. NE in Albuquerque, approached the pharmacy counter, gave a pharmacy employee a note demanding Oxycodone, and let the employee know that he was armed. After the pharmacy employee gave Gallegos bottles containing Oxycodone, Gallegos attempted to flee from police, but drove through a red light and crashed his vehicle into a police vehicle.
The plea agreement states that officers recovered 515 Oxycodone pills in 30-milligram and 15-milligram dosages and 26 pills of a generic brand of oxycodone in 15-milligram dosages from Gallegos and his vehicle. They also seized the handgun Gallegos used during the robbery from Gallegos’ vehicle.
This case was investigated by the Tactical Diversion Squad of the DEA in Albuquerque and the Albuquerque Police Department with assistance from the 2nd Judicial District Attorney’s Office, and was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Shaheen P. Torgoley and Joel R. Meyers.
DEA’s Tactical Diversion Squads combine DEA resources with those of federal, state and local law enforcement agencies in an innovative effort to investigate, disrupt and dismantle those suspected of violating the Controlled Substances Act or other appropriate federal, state or local statutes pertaining to the diversion of licit pharmaceutical controlled substances or listed chemicals.
The Controlled Substance Registrant Protection Act was enacted in 1984, to combat the theft of prescription drugs from individuals and businesses registered with the DEA. It created penalties for entering a pharmacy’s premises for the purpose of stealing controlled substances, and includes enhanced punishment for using a dangerous weapon. The Safe Doses Act was enacted in Oct. 2012, to fight medical theft and protect patients from unknowingly using stolen and mishandled drugs. It provides for enhanced sentences for those who rob pharmacies of controlled substances; individuals who steal medical products; and “fences” who knowingly obtain stolen medical products for resale in the supply chain.
This case was prosecuted pursuant to the New Mexico Heroin and Opioid Prevention and Education (HOPE) Initiative. The HOPE Initiative was launched in January 2015 by the UNM Health Sciences Center and the U.S. Attorney’s Office in response to the national opioid epidemic, which has had a disproportionately devastating impact on New Mexico. Opioid addiction has taken a toll on public safety, public health and the economic viability of our communities. Working in partnership with the DEA, the Bernalillo County Opioid Accountability Initiative, Healing Addiction in our Community (HAC), the Albuquerque Public Schools and other community stakeholders, HOPE’s principal goals are to protect our communities from the dangers associated with heroin and opioid painkillers and reducing the number of opioid-related deaths in New Mexico.
The HOPE Initiative is comprised of five components: (1) prevention and education; (2) treatment; (3) law enforcement; (4) reentry; and (5) strategic planning. HOPE’s law enforcement component is led by the Organized Crime Section of the U.S. Attorney’s Office and the DEA in conjunction with their federal, state, local and tribal law enforcement partners. Targeting members of major heroin and opioid trafficking organizations for investigation and prosecution is a priority of the HOPE Initiative. Learn more about the New Mexico HOPE Initiative at http://www.HopeInitiativeNM.org.
"Real-Time" Defendant, Melvin Boswell, Jr., Subject to Mandatory 25 Year Sentence After Pleading Guilty to Federal Drug Conspiracy and Firearms ChargesRead the Press Release
Contact Person: Andy Moorman (864) 282-2100
Columbia, South Carolina ---- Acting United States Attorney Beth Drake announced today that Melvin Boswell, Jr., age 48, of Greenville, South Carolina, pled guilty to conspiring to possess with the intent to distribute and to distribute five kilograms or more of cocaine and possessing firearms in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime. Boswell’s sentencing hearing has not yet been scheduled, but his guilty plea subjects him to a statutory minimum sentence of 25 years imprisonment.
On August 20, 2015, Greenville Police Department Officers arrested Boswell at a business in Greenville County after Boswell had cut his ankle monitor while on bond for other charges. While searching Boswell’s person and a rental car Boswell had driven to the business, police found: (1) 10 firearms (one of which was stolen); (2) numerous pieces of ammunition; (3) in excess of $70,000 worth of cocaine, crack cocaine, and heroin; (4) digital scales; and (5) in excess of $7000 in U.S. Currency. At the time Boswell possessed these items, he was a convicted felon.
Boswell was arrested during the initiation of “Operation Real-Time,” a partnership between the U.S. Attorney’s Office and the Greenville Police Department to transfer career criminals who possess firearms to federal court for immediate prosecution.
The case was investigated by agents of the Drug Enforcement Administration working in conjunction with the Greenville Police Department and the Greenville County Sheriff’s Office. Assistant United States Attorneys Andy Moorman and Lance Crick of the Greenville office handled the case.#####
11 July 2016
Wichita Man Sentenced for Sexually Exploiting Mississippi GirlRead the Press Release
WICHITA, KAN. - A Wichita man was sentenced Monday to five years in federal prison for using the Internet to sexually exploit a Mississippi girl, Acting U.S. Attorney Tom Beall said.
James K. Arnel, 23, Wichita, Kan., pleaded guilty to one count of receiving child pornography. In his plea he admitted communicating over the Internet with a 12-year-old girl and exchanging sexual images with her.
Beall commended the FBI and Assistant U.S. Attorney Jason Hart for their work on the case.
Wapato Man Sentenced to 15 Years in Federal Prison for Attempted Sexual Abuse of a MinorRead the Press Release
Yakima – Michael C. Ormsby, United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Washington, announced that Vincent Piel III., age 44, of the Yakama Nation Indian Reservation, was sentenced today after having previously plead guilty to attempted sexual abuse of a minor. United States District Judge Stanley Bastian sentenced Piel to a 15 year term of imprisonment. Upon release from federal prison, Piel will be under court supervision for the remainder of his life.
On December 4, 2015, Yakama Nation Tribal Police officers received a report of a sexual assault of a minor. Tribal Police officers, together with Special Agents with the FBI, conducted a joint investigation into the allegations. On February 9, 2016, Piel was charged by Indictment with Attempted Sexual Abuse of a Minor and Attempted Aggravated Sexual Abuse of a Minor. Piel subsequently pled guilty to Attempted Sexual Abuse of a Minor charge.
Michael C. Ormsby said, “The United States Attorney’s Office and its law enforcement partners are committed to protecting children who live in the Eastern District of Washington, including those children who live within the boundaries of the Yakama Nation Reservation. I commend the Yakama Nation Tribal Police and the FBI for their efforts in investigating this case. My office will continue to prosecute aggressively and seek appropriate prison sentences to remove from our communities offenders who commit crimes against children.”
This investigation was conducted by the Yakama Nation Tribal Police Department and the Federal Bureau of Investigation. This case was prosecuted by Laurel J. Holland, an Assistant United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Washington.
Texas Man Indicted for Savannah Bank RobberiesRead the Press Release
Savannah, GA: David Wayne Stanley, 51, of Houston, Texas, was indicted last week by a federal grand jury sitting in Savannah on charges related to two bank robberies in the Savannah area. The indictment alleges that on April 28, 2016, Stanley robbed the BB&T bank located at 326 Mall Boulevard, Savannah, Georgia, and the Georgia Heritage Federal Credit Union located at 1085 West Lathrop Avenue, Savannah, Georgia.
No initial appearance in court has been scheduled. If convicted on all counts, Stanley faces prison sentence of up to 40 years. United States Attorney Edward Tarver emphasizes that an indictment is only an accusation and is not evidence of guilt. The defendant is entitled to a fair trial, during which it will be the Government’s burden to prove guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.
The investigation of this case was led by the Savannah-Chatham Metropolitan Police Department and the FBI’s Violent Crimes Task Force, with substantial assistance from the Chatham County Sheriff’s Office. Assistant United States Attorney Jennifer G. Solari is prosecuting the case on behalf of the United States. For additional information, please contact First Assistant United States Attorney James D. Durham at (912) 201-2547.
Spartanburg Men Sentenced in Sex Trafficking CaseRead the Press Release
Contact Person: Bill Watkins (864) 282-2100
Columbia, South Carolina ----- Acting United States Attorney Beth Drake stated today that Brandon L. Littlejohn, age 27, John A. Gossett, III, age 23, Dylan L. Patterson, age 20, D’Shawn C. Pitts, age 20, and Michael Riddle, age 20, all of Spartanburg, were sentenced today in federal court in Greenville, for involvement in a conspiracy to traffic in minor females for the purposes of prostitution in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 1594(c). United States District Judge Bruce Howe Hendricks, of Greenville, sentenced Littlejohn to 121 months, Gossett to 87 months, Patterson to 77 months, and Pitts and Riddle to 60 months.
Evidence presented at the change of plea hearing established that the defendants recruited minor victims (ages 16-17) and young women to work for them. They then instructed and supervised the minor victims and young women on how to solicit and charge for commercial sex acts. One some occasions the women were hit or threatened with violence to persuade them to continue to work for the conspiracy.
The conspiracy operated in Spartanburg, South Carolina, Charlotte, North Carolina, Virginia, and other cities in the Southeastern states. In these locations, the Defendants obtained hotel rooms for the women to work from. Defendants placed advertisements, or assisted in the placing of advertisements, on the internet using backpage.com to advertise the young women for commercial sex acts.
Once a John answered the ad and arranged to meet the minor females or young women at the hotel, Defendants would wait in an adjoining hotel room until the John arrived, paid the money, and completed the sex act with the minor female or young girl. Once the John left the room, Defendants would enter and retrieve the money.
“Human traffickers strip victims of their humanity; treating them as little more than pieces of meat to generate cash,” said Special Agent in Charge Nick S. Annan of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) Atlanta. “The depravity of the subjects in this particular case reaches its lowest form by forcing underage girls into this dark underworld of abuse and victimization; the public should breathe a sigh of relief that these dangerous criminals are now safely behind bars.”
If you have information on human trafficking, please contact the National Human Trafficking Resource Center (NHTRC) at 1-888-3737-888. The NHTRC is a national, toll-free hotline.
The case was investigated by agents with the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations, and the Spartanburg County Sheriff’s Office. The case was assigned to Assistant United States Attorney Bill Watkins of the Greenville office for prosecution.
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