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Monday 9 May 2016
Lodi Oncologist and Office Administrator Pay $300,000 to Settle False Claims Act AllegationsRead the Press Release
SACRAMENTO, Calif. — A Lodi oncologist and his wife, who served as the doctor’s office administrator, have paid the United States $300,000 to settle allegations that they improperly billed Medicare for certain chemotherapy drugs purchased from an unlicensed foreign pharmaceutical distributor, Acting United States Attorney Phillip A. Talbert announced today.
The United States alleged that, between October 2010 and May 2011, Dr. John F. Kiraly and Rena Kiraly billed and received reimbursement from Medicare for such drugs in violation of the federal False Claims Act. Specifically, the Kiralys purchased chemotherapy drugs from Warwick Healthcare Solutions Inc., also known as Richards Pharma, a former United Kingdom-based drug distributer that distributed non-FDA approved drugs throughout the United States. The Kiralys administered certain of these drugs to their patients, billing Medicare. One medication they purchased from Warwick was Altuzan, a drug not approved by the FDA. In addition, the FDA tested a batch of Altuzan that the Kiralys had purchased from Warwick and determined that it was counterfeit, lacking the active ingredient bevacizumab.
“Our District has now pursued and resolved False Claims Act allegations against three doctors for improperly billing Warwick drugs to public insurers,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Talbert. “These cases demonstrate the commitment of our district to preserving the integrity of federal health care programs and ensuring that doctors participating in such programs provide their patients with safe and effective care.”
“Patients getting life-saving prescriptions from their doctors must be able to trust that their medicines have been FDA-proven as safe and effective,” said Steven Ryan, Special Agent in Charge of the Office of Inspector General of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. “Our investigators tirelessly pursue those who ignore requirements protecting patient health in order to increase profits.”
“Patients receiving cancer treatment drugs should be able to trust that these drugs have been the subject of the FDA-approval process, which requires that the drugs have been proven to be safe and effective for treating their medical conditions,” said Lisa L. Malinowski, Special Agent in Charge, FDA Office of Criminal Investigations’ Los Angeles Field Office. “The FDA will continue its vigilance over the prescription-drug supply chain to ensure that the drugs reaching patients have been proven to be both safe and effective, and that those who attempt to circumvent the agency’s oversight will be brought to justice.”
The case was investigated by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General and the FDA’s Office of Criminal Investigations. Assistant United States Attorney Vincente A. Tennerelli represented the United States in this matter. The claims settled by this agreement are allegations only, and there has been no determination of liability.
Leader of a Baltimore Drug Organization Sentenced to over 15 Years in Prison for Conspiring to Distribute over 1,000 Kilograms of Marijuana and to Launder Drug ProceedsRead the Press Release
Greenbelt, Maryland - U.S. District Judge Roger W. Titus sentenced Matthew Nicka, age 43, of Baltimore today to 188 months in prison, followed by five years of supervised release, for conspiracy to distribute at least 1,000 kilograms of marijuana and conspiracy to commit money laundering. Judge Titus also entered a forfeiture order requiring Nicka to pay a money judgment of $15 million, which represents the proceeds of the offense.
Nicka, his wife, Gretchen Peterson, and co-conspirator David D’Amico, had been fugitives since the indictment was returned in December 2010. Nicka and Peterson were arrested in Canada in early August 2013, and D’Amico was extradited from Colombia, South America.
The sentence was announced by United States Attorney for the District of Maryland Rod J. Rosenstein; Special Agent in Charge Karl C. Colder of the Drug Enforcement Administration - Washington Field Division; Special Agent in Charge Thomas Jankowski of the Internal Revenue Service - Criminal Investigation, Washington, D.C. Field Office; Chief J. Thomas Manger of the Montgomery County Police Department; Chief Hank Stawinski of the Prince George’s County Police Department; Chief James W. Johnson of the Baltimore County Police Department; and Commissioner Kevin Davis of the Baltimore Police Department.
According to Nicka’s plea agreement and other court documents, Nicka, Peterson and D’Amico were part of an extensive drug trafficking operation which was discovered by the DEA when they executed a search warrant at a residence in the 3500 block of Hickory Avenue in Baltimore on March 18, 2009. The residence was a center of operation for the group. Agents seized more than 80 pounds of marijuana, $20,000 in cash, 31 cell phones, documents regarding a plane purchased for $450,000, tally sheets showing over $14.5 million in marijuana sales, four money counters and false identifications.
As part of the conspiracy, Nicka, D’Amico and their co-conspirators obtained large quantities of marijuana grown in Canada and northern California, which they transported by plane and tractor trailer, to warehouses in Maryland. The marijuana was then divided for distribution in Maryland, Pennsylvania, Louisiana, Kansas, Florida, Ohio, North Carolina, Georgia and elsewhere. The defendants used multiple cellular telephones to avoid detection by law enforcement, as well as aliases and false identifications to conceal their activities. Nicka supervised and directed the conspirators’ activities, recruited conspirators and obtained marijuana in exchange for bulk cash payments, while D’Amico oversaw the day-to-day operations, received orders for marijuana, collected money, arranged for the purchase, operation and rental of planes used to transport marijuana and cash, arranged for the transportation and storage of marijuana, and transported bulk cash payments to marijuana suppliers. Gretchen Peterson received orders for marijuana, transported currency, delivered marijuana, and arranged for deliveries of marijuana to mid-level dealers. Nicka, D’Amico and Peterson also counted drug proceeds with other conspirators at a stash house in Baltimore.
From 2007 through June 2009, Nicka, D’Amico, and Peterson used aliases and false identifications, and created and used shell corporations to hold and hide assets, conduct financial transactions, title vehicles, convert assets, and to conceal the source, ownership and control of the proceeds from the marijuana distribution. The defendants structured financial transactions to avoid IRS filing requirements for transactions involving more than $10,000 in cash payments in a single transaction, and further conceal from the government large cash transactions using drug proceeds.
A total of 15 defendants, including D’Amico, Nicka and Peterson, have been convicted in this case. The other 12 defendants have already been sentenced to up to 121 months in prison.
David D’Amico, age 49, of Baltimore, and Gretchen Peterson, age 34, of Kennett Square, Pennsylvania, previously pleaded guilty to their roles in the conspiracy. D’Amico was sentenced to 10 years in prison, and ordered to pay a money judgment of $1 million. Peterson and the government have agreed that if the Court accepts her plea agreement, she will be sentenced to between 84 months and 144 months in prison. Judge Titus has scheduled sentencing for Peterson on September 8, 2016.
United States Attorney Rod J. Rosenstein praised the DEA, IRS-CI, and the Montgomery County, Prince George’s County, Baltimore County and Baltimore City Police Departments for their work in the investigation. Mr. Rosenstein thanked Assistant United States Attorneys Deborah A. Johnston and Mara Zusman Greenberg, who prosecuted this Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force case.
Leader of Drug Trafficking Ring Sentenced to 10 Years in PrisonRead the Press Release
Greenbelt, Maryland – U.S. District Judge Deborah K. Chasanow sentenced Anthony Niles, age 37, of Bowie, Maryland today to 10 years in prison followed by eight years of supervised release for conspiring to distribute and possession with intent to distribute heroin.
The sentence was announced by United States Attorney for the District of Maryland Rod J. Rosenstein; Special Agent in Charge Kevin Perkins of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Baltimore Field Office; Chief J. Thomas Manger of the Montgomery County Police Department; Special Agent in Charge Darrell Gilliard of the Naval Criminal Investigative Service, Washington Field Office; Chief Hank Stawinski of the Prince George’s County Police Department; Chief T. N. Treschuk of the Rockville City Police Department; Captain Timothy Lloyd of the Hackensack (New Jersey) Police Department; and Montgomery County State’s Attorney John McCarthy.
According to his plea agreement, from February to June 8, 2015, Niles supplied co-defendants Vincent Collins, Sierra Lynch, Abdul Sauda and others with large quantities of heroin for re-distribution. Niles used a music studio known as “Crooked House Entertainment,” located at 7922 and 7924 Cryden Way, District Heights, Maryland as a “stash” house to store and distribute drugs.
After monitoring numerous cell phone calls pursuant to a court order in which Niles and his co-defendants discussed drug transactions, on June 8, 2015, law enforcement officers executed a search warrant at Nile’s residence. Before law enforcement entered the residence, Niles attempted to flush several ounces of heroin down the toilet. Officers subsequently recovered approximately 107 grams of heroin from the toilet. Officers also discovered a trail of heroin on the floor leading from Niles’ bedroom to the bathroom. Niles was storing the heroin in a vent beside his bed. Officers also seized approximately $6,156, and items used for the packing and distribution of drugs, such as digital scales and a heavy-duty industrial press.
Niles admitted that during the conspiracy he distributed between 700 and 1,000 grams of heroin.
On May 17, 1999, Niles pled guilty to distributing cocaine in the Circuit Court of Maryland for Prince George’s County, Maryland. He was sentenced to two years imprisonment, with all but six months suspended.
Vincent Collins, age 37, of Oxon Hill, Maryland; Sierra Lynch, age 38, of Beltsville, Maryland; and Abdul Hakim Sauda, age 30, of Laurel, Maryland all pleaded guilty to their participation in the drug conspiracy. Sauda was sentenced on May 2, 2016 to one year and one day in prison. Collins and Lynch await sentencing.
United States Attorney Rod J. Rosenstein praised the FBI, the Montgomery County Police Department, NCIS, Prince George’s County Police Department and the Rockville and Hackensack (New Jersey) Police Departments for their work in the investigation. Mr. Rosenstein commended the Bergen County State’s Attorney’s Office and Montgomery County State’s Attorney’s Office for their assistance, and thanked Assistant United States Attorneys Daniel C. Gardner and Joseph R. Baldwin, who prosecuted the case.
Leader and Three Co-Conspirators of Methamphetamine Trafficking Ring Operating in Henderson County Area Are Sentenced to PrisonRead the Press Release
ASHEVILLE, N.C. – Today, U.S. District Judge Max O. Cogburn, Jr. sentenced the leader and three co-conspirators to prison terms ranging from 57 months to 70 months for their involvement in a methamphetamine trafficking ring operating in the Henderson county area, announced Jill Westmoreland Rose, U.S. Attorney for the Western District of North Carolina.
U.S. Attorney Rose is joined in making today’s announcement by Daniel R. Salter, Special Agent in Charge of the Atlanta Field Division of the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), which oversees the Charlotte District Office and Sheriff Charles S. McDonald of the Henderson County Sheriff’s Office.
Judge Cogburn sentenced the defendants as follows:
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Maria Del Ruiz-Zazueta, 45, of Hendersonville to 57 months in prison, followed by three years of supervised release.
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Stephanie Alvarenga, 24, of Hendersonville to 63 months in prison, followed by three years of supervised release.
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Daniel Alfaro, 24, of Laurel Park to 70 months in prison, followed by five years of supervised release.
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Antonio Barbosa, 34, of Hendersonville to 63 months in prison, followed by five years of supervised release.
Judge Cogburn previously sentenced four other conspirators: Nahuan Solano, 27, of Hendersonville, N.C. was sentenced to 63 months in prison followed by five years of supervised release; Eric Lee Garber, 41, of Saluda, N.C. was sentenced to 60 months in prison followed by four years of supervised release; Benjamin Nelson, 31, of Hendersonville, was sentenced to 57 months in prison followed by five years of supervised release; and Allan Collado-Raudez, 23, of Asheville, N.C. was sentenced to 39 months in prison followed by four years of supervised release.
According to filed court documents and today’s sentencing hearing, from about May 2014 to May 2015, the conspirators were involved in a drug trafficking ring, responsible for distributing significant quantities of methamphetamine in Henderson county and surrounding areas. According to court records, Maria Del Ruiz-Zazueta was the leader of the drug ring and was assisted by her daughter, Stephanie Alvarenga, in supplying the methamphetamine to their co-conspirators. Solano and Alfaro were methamphetamine traffickers and acted as runners for Ruiz-Zazueta and Alvarenga. According to court records, the ring’s customers included area methamphetamine traffickers Garber and Nelson. Ruiz-Zazueta and other members of the ring utilized Antonio Barbosa as an alternate source of supply, who was assisted by Collado-Raudez.
Court records show that, on or about May 4, 2015, law enforcement in Oklahoma conducted a traffic stop of the vehicle in which Alvarenga was a passenger. According to court records, Alvarenga and the driver of the vehicle were headed from California to North Carolina. During the traffic stop, law enforcement seized nearly 10 pounds of methamphetamine from a backpack located in the trunk of the car.
The four sentenced today are in federal custody and will be transferred to the custody of the Federal Bureau of Prisons upon designation of a federal facility. All federal sentences are served without the possibility of parole.
The investigation was handled by the DEA and the Henderson County Sheriff’s Office. Assistant U.S. Attorney Thomas Kent of the U.S. Attorney’s office in Asheville is in charge of the prosecution.
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Kearney Resident and Corporation Sentenced for the Unlawful Hiring of an AlienRead the Press Release
United States Attorney Deborah R. Gilg announced that Paul J. Younes, age 63 of Kearney, Nebraska, and Kearney Hospitality, Inc. d/b/a Fairfield Inn & Suites were sentenced for their convictions concerning the unlawful hiring of an alien. Senior United States District Court Judge Lyle E. Strom sentenced Younes to five years of probation and ordered him to pay a fine of $3,000. Kearney Hospitality, Inc. was sentenced to five years of probation and was ordered to pay a fine of $150,000. Stephanie Hagemeier of Hastings was previously sentenced on April 20, 2016 to one year of probation and was ordered to pay a fine of $500 for her role in the offense.
The investigation revealed that Blanca Gama, a citizen of Mexico who was not lawfully in the United States, was employed as the supervisor of housekeeping at the Holiday Inn Express in Hastings where Hagemeier is employed as the manager. In 2014, Hagemeier learned Gama was under investigation by the Social Security Administration Office of Inspector General. Gama quit her job at the Holiday Inn Express, but later met with Younes who arranged for her to be employed in the housekeeping department at the Fairfield Inn & Suites in Kearney under the name Elizabeth Gomez. At Gama’s request, Younes later authorized Gama’s re-hire at the Holiday Inn Express in Hastings under the name Jacqueline Lopez even though she continued to be referred to as Blanca Gama at that location.
This case was investigated by the Social Security Administration Office of Inspector General, and the Department of Homeland Security Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
Justice Department Permanently Shuts Down International “Psychic” Mail Fraud SchemeRead the Press Release
Fraudsters Allegedly Scammed Victims Out of More Than $180 Million
The U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of New York entered a consent decree on Friday that permanently barred eight individuals and entities from operating an alleged international multi-million dollar mail-fraud scheme in the name of alleged psychics Maria Duval and Patrick Guerin. Pursuant to the consent decree entered, the defendants are barred from using the U.S. mail to distribute any advertisements, solicitations or promotional materials on behalf of any psychics, clairvoyants or astrologers. The consent decree also enjoined the defendants from using the U.S. mail to distribute materials representing that services or items offered for purchase will increase the recipient’s odds of winning a lottery, will bring the recipient good luck or will entitle the recipient to receive an inheritance. The consent decree also authorized the U.S. Postal Inspection Service to return any money or personal checks sent to the defendants and detained by the Postal Inspection Service.
The following eight international defendants agreed to be bound by a permanent injunction in order to resolve the United States’ civil suit against them: Canadian company 9097-9394 Québec Inc. dba Infogest Direct Marketing (Infogest); Infogest employees Mary Thanos, Daniel Sousse and Philip Lett, all of Quebec, Canada; Hong Kong corporation Destiny Research Center Ltd.; Destiny Research Center President Martin Dettling of Zurich, Switzerland; Patrick Guerin of France and Maria Duval of France.
In an amended complaint filed in November 2015, the United States alleges that the defendants operated a mail fraud scheme in which they sent letters purporting to be written by psychics Maria Duval and Patrick Guerin to American consumers through the U.S. mail. The letters claim that the psychics have had a specific, personalized vision or psychic reading revealing that the recipient of the letter has the opportunity to achieve great wealth, including claims of winning millions in the lottery. The solicitations urge victims to purchase various products and services in order to ensure that the foreseen good fortune comes to pass. In reality, the solicitations are identical, mass produced form letters sent to tens of thousands of recipients throughout the United States every month. Many of the customers who receive the solicitations are vulnerable victims, including the desperate, elderly and infirm.
The United States alleges that the fraud scheme victimized more than one million Americans, who sent the defendants payments totaling more than $180 million.
“This widespread scam targeted more than one million Americans, many of whom were elderly or in financial distress,” said Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Benjamin C. Mizer, head of the Justice Department’s Civil Division. “The Justice Department is committed to stopping such fraud and pursuing all those responsible for lying to vulnerable consumers for their own financial gain.”
“To line their own pockets, the defendants preyed upon the superstition and desperation of millions of vulnerable Americans,” said U.S. Attorney Robert L. Capers for the Eastern District of New York. “We will use every means at our disposal to protect our citizens from fraudulent schemes like this, that target the lonely, the ill, and the elderly.”
The defendants have all agreed to settle the case and be bound by a permanent injunction. The permanent injunction also bars the defendants from making various claims in advertisements sent through the U.S. mail, including claims that products offered for sale will increase the recipient’s odds of winning the lottery or bring the recipient luck or good fortune. The permanent injunction further bars the defendants from using or selling lists of consumers who have responded to the Duval and Guerin solicitations.
The United States’ case is being handled by Trial Attorney Ann F. Entwistle of the Civil Division’s Consumer Protection Branch, and Chief of Affirmative Civil Enforcement John Vagelatos for the U.S. Attorney’s Office of the Eastern District of New York, in coordination with the U.S. Postal Inspection Service.
Additional information about the Consumer Protection Branch and its enforcement efforts may be found at http://www.justice.gov/civil/consumer-protection-branch. For more information about the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of New York, visit its website at https://www.justice.gov/usao-edny.
Justice Department Permanently Shuts Down International “Psychic” Mail Fraud SchemeRead the Press Release
The U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of New York entered a consent decree today that permanently barred eight individuals and entities from operating an alleged international multi-million dollar mail-fraud scheme in the name of alleged psychics Maria Duval and Patrick Guerin. Pursuant to the consent decree, the defendants were barred from using the U.S. mail to distribute any advertisements, solicitations, or promotional materials on behalf of any psychics, clairvoyants, or astrologers. The consent decree also enjoined the defendants from using the U.S. mail to distribute materials representing that services or items offered for purchase will increase the recipient’s odds of winning a lottery, will bring the recipient good luck, or will entitle the recipient to receive an inheritance. The consent decree also authorized the United State Postal Inspection Service to return any money or personal checks sent to the defendants and detained by the Postal Inspection Service.
The following eight international defendants agreed to be bound by a permanent injunction in order to resolve the United States’ civil suit against them: Canadian company 9097-9394 Québec Inc. dba Infogest Direct Marketing (Infogest); Infogest employees Mary Thanos, Daniel Sousse and Philip Lett, all of Quebec, Canada; Hong Kong corporation Destiny Research Center Ltd.; Destiny Research Center President Martin Dettling of Zurich, Switzerland; Patrick Guerin of France; and Maria Duval of France.
In an amended complaint filed in November 2015, the United States alleges that the defendants operated a mail fraud scheme in which they sent letters purporting to be written by psychics Maria Duval and Patrick Guerin to American consumers through the U.S. mail. The letters claim that the psychics have had a specific, personalized vision or psychic reading revealing that the recipient of the letter has the opportunity to achieve great wealth, including claims of winning millions in the lottery. The solicitations urge victims to purchase various products and services in order to ensure that the foreseen good fortune comes to pass. In reality, the solicitations are identical, mass produced form letters sent to tens of thousands of recipients throughout the United States every month. Many of the customers who receive the solicitations are vulnerable victims, including the desperate, elderly, and infirm.
The United States alleges that the fraud scheme victimized more than one million Americans, who sent the defendants payments totaling more than $180 million.
“To line their own pockets, the defendants preyed upon the superstition and desperation of millions of vulnerable Americans,” said United States Attorney Robert L. Capers. “We will use every means at our disposal to protect our citizens from fraudulent schemes like this that target the lonely, the ill, and the elderly.”
“This widespread scam targeted more than one million Americans, many of whom were elderly or in financial distress,” said Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Benjamin C. Mizer, head of the Justice Department’s Civil Division. “The Justice Department is committed to stopping such fraud and pursuing all those responsible for lying to vulnerable consumers for their own financial gain.”
The defendants have all agreed to settle the case and be bound by a permanent injunction. The permanent injunction also bars the defendants from making various claims in advertisements sent through the U.S. mail, including claims that products offered for sale will increase the recipient’s odds of winning the lottery or bring the recipient luck or good fortune. The permanent injunction further bars the defendants from using or selling lists of consumers who have responded to the Duval and Guerin solicitations.
The United States’ case is being handled by John Vagelatos, Chief of Affirmative Civil Enforcement for the U.S. Attorney’s Office of the Eastern District of New York, and Ann F. Entwistle, Trial Attorney for the Civil Division’s Consumer Protection Branch, in coordination with the U.S. Postal Inspection Service.
For more information about the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of New York, visit its website at https://www.justice.gov/usao-edny. Additional information about the Consumer Protection Branch and its enforcement efforts may be found at http://www.justice.gov/civil/consumer-protection-branch.
E.D.N.Y. Docket No. 14-CV-6791
Justice Department Files Complaint Against the State of North Carolina to Stop Discrimination Against Transgender IndividualsRead the Press Release
Attorney General Loretta E. Lynch announced today that the Justice Department has filed a complaint against the state of North Carolina, the University of North Carolina (UNC) and the North Carolina Department of Public Safety (DPS) alleging that they are discriminating against transgender individuals in violation of federal law as a result of the state’s compliance with and implementation of House Bill 2 (H.B. 2). H.B. 2 requires public agencies to treat transgender individuals, whose gender identity does not match the sex they were assigned at birth, differently from similarly situated non-transgender individuals.
The complaint, filed in the Middle District of North Carolina, follows the department’s notice to the defendants on May 4, 2016, that they are in violation of Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972 and the Violence Against Women Reauthorization Act of 2013 (VAWA).
“This action is about a great deal more than just bathrooms,” said Attorney General Lynch. “This is about the dignity and respect we accord our fellow citizens, and the laws that we, as a people and as a country, have enacted to protect them – indeed, to protect all of us. It’s about the founding ideals that have led this country – haltingly but inexorably – in the direction of fairness, inclusion, and equality for all Americans. This is not a time to act out of fear. This is a time to summon our national virtues of inclusivity, diversity, compassion, and open-mindedness. What we must not do – what we must never do – is turn on our neighbors, our family members, our fellow Americans, for something they cannot control, and deny what makes them human.”
The complaint alleges that the defendants, as a result of compliance with and implementation of the bathroom and changing facility provisions of H.B. 2, are engaging in a pattern or practice of discrimination against transgender public employees and applicants in violation of Title VII, which prohibits discrimination in employment on the basis of sex. Access to restrooms is an important, basic condition of employment and denying transgender individuals access to restrooms and changing facilities consistent with their gender identity constitutes unlawful sex discrimination.
The complaint also alleges that, as a result of these same provisions in H.B. 2, UNC and DPS are violating the non-discrimination provision of VAWA, which prohibits discrimination on the basis of sex and gender identity. Additionally, the complaint alleges that UNC is violating Title IX, which prohibits discrimination on the basis of sex. These laws apply to recipients of federal funding.
“H.B. 2 violates the laws that govern our nation and the values that define us as a people,” said Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Vanita Gupta, head of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division. “Transgender men are men – they live, work and study as men. Transgender women are women – they live, work and study as women. America protects the rights of all people to be who they are, to express their true selves and to live with dignity.”
The complaint is being handled by the Civil Rights Division which enforces the non-discrimination provisions of Title VII, Title IX and VAWA.
North Carolina Complaint
Jury Convicts North Suburban Lawyer of Immigration Fraud for Falsifying Clients’ Applications for U.S. AsylumRead the Press Release
CHICAGO — A federal jury today convicted a north suburban attorney of submitting false information to immigration authorities to help his clients seek asylum in the United States.
ROBERT DEKELAITA accepted fees from foreign nationals in exchange for submitting the false documents to the U.S. Department of Homeland Security’s Citizenship and Immigration Services. DeKelaita’s fraudulent statements often falsely portrayed his clients as victims of persecution by religious extremists in the Middle East.
DeKelaita, 53, of Glenview, was convicted on one count of conspiracy to commit asylum fraud, two counts of knowingly offering false statements in an asylum application, and one count of procuring perjury during asylum interviews. The conviction is punishable by a maximum sentence of 35 years in prison.
U.S. District Judge Matthew F. Kennelly scheduled a sentencing hearing for Aug. 3, 2016, at 1:30 p.m.
Asylum is a benefit the U.S. government extends to immigrants who have suffered persecution in their native country or who fear future persecution on account of race, religion, nationality, membership in a particular social group, or political opinion. To apply for asylum, the immigrant must submit an application detailing his or her personal history and provide a specific account of the alleged persecution. The application is signed by the immigrant, the immigrant’s attorney, and, if translation services were provided, the interpreter. An interview is then held before immigration authorities, with all of the signors present. A grant of asylum confers numerous benefits upon the immigrant, including eligibility to apply for permanent residency status.
DeKelaita is a licensed attorney whose Morton Grove firm, R.W. DeKelaita & Associates LLC, specializes in immigration law. Evidence at trial revealed that from approximately 2000 to 2011, DeKelaita prepared and submitted asylum applications that contained material lies, including tales of rape, murder, torture, kidnappings, bombings and other forms of religious oppression in the Middle East. As a result, several of DeKelaita’s clients were granted asylum and eventually permanent residency and citizenship status.
Two interpreters who provided Arabic and Assyrian translations for DeKelaita’s clients were also charged in the scheme. ADAM BENJAMIN, of Skokie, pleaded guilty last year to one count of conspiracy to commit asylum fraud. Benjamin admitted in a plea agreement that he instructed DeKelaita’s clients to present false stories of persecution in order to secure asylum. Benjamin was sentenced in July 2015 to six months in prison. YOUSIF YOUSIF, of Skokie, has pleaded not guilty to immigration fraud charges and is scheduled for trial on Aug. 29, 2016, before Judge Kennelly.
DeKelaita’s conviction was announced by Zachary T. Fardon, United States Attorney for the Northern District of Illinois; Armando Lopez, Special Agent-in-Charge of the Homeland Security Office of Inspector General in Chicago; and Michael J. Anderson, Special Agent in Charge of the Chicago Office of the Federal Bureau of Investigation. Assisting in the investigation were Homeland Security’s U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services; Homeland Security’s U.S. Customs and Border Protection; U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations; and the Farmington Hills, Mich., Police Department.
The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Lindsay Jenkins and Andrianna Kastanek.
Jefferson County Individuals Arrested on Federal Drug Trafficking ChargesRead the Press Release
BEAUMONT, Texas - U.S. Attorney John M. Bales announced today that 11 Jefferson County men are in custody following a lengthy investigation into drug trafficking in the Eastern District of Texas.
On May 6, 2016, a combined task force of federal, state and local law enforcement agencies began executing federal arrest warrants for defendants indicted following a ten month investigation into the distribution of crack cocaine in Beaumont, Texas.
A federal grand jury returned a four-count indictment on May 4, 2016 charging 13 individuals with federal drug and firearms violations. Of those, five defendants were arrested on May 6th and will be making initial appearances in court this week. Those arrested are:
Ashton Devon Randolph, 20;
Christopher Dewayne Ooten, 38;
Clifton Ray Freeman, 26;
George Lewis, 58; and
Kody Dwayne Ardoin, 21, all of Beaumont, Texas.Of the 13 individuals indicted on May 4th, six were already in custody and are as follows:
Kerry Arsenio Ardoin, 25;
Kristopher George Ardoin, 29;
Michael Eugene Ardoin, 29;
Patrick Alan Jackson, 27;
Seth Deandre Turner, 27; and
Terrance Ardoin, 31, all of Beaumont, Texas.The remaining two defendants are being sought by law enforcement at this time.
According to the indictment, for over a decade the Ardoin family and others are alleged to have openly distributed crack cocaine from their home at 1107 Avenue A in Beaumont.
“The ‘crack house’ operated by and for these defendants is just what you might expect – a vortex of misery and lost dreams,” said U.S. Attorney Bales. “The investigators working on this case have done an excellent job in building the necessary proof to hold the named defendants accountable for the damage that they have done to the community and to the sad and desperate customers who purchased the crack. We look forward to presenting the evidence in a court of law.”
If convicted of the drug conspiracy charges, the defendants face a minimum of 10 years and up to life in federal prison. If convicted of the firearms charges, the defendants face up to 20 years in federal prison. If convicted of the drug house charge, those defendants face up to 20 years in federal prison.
This case is being investigated by the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives, and the Beaumont Police Department. The U.S. Marshals Service also assisted in today’s law enforcement activities. This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Lesley A. Woods.
A grand jury indictment is not evidence of guilt. All defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
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Huber Heights Man Pleads Guilty to Possessing Child PornographyRead the Press Release
DAYTON – Richard C. Webber, 54, of Huber Heights, Ohio, pleaded guilty in U.S. District Court to one count of possession of child pornography.
Benjamin C. Glassman, Acting United States Attorney for the Southern District of Ohio and Angela L. Byers, Special Agent in Charge, Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), Cincinnati Field Division and Montgomery County Sheriff Phil Plummer announced the plea entered into today before Chief U.S. Magistrate Judge Sharon L. Ovington.
According to court documents, Webber used “Peer-to-Peer” software and file-sharing programs and applications – including ARES, LimeWire and NewsBin, as well as Windows – to obtain, download, view, possess with intent to distribute, share and transfer child pornography. Webber possessed videos depicting child pornography on a shared file folder on his home desktop computer and various storage devices in his home in Huber Heights. Upon executing a search warrant, investigators discovered more than 1,200 pictures and 170 video files of child pornography, including ones involving prepubescent minors.
Webber was charged on March 25, 2016 by a Bill of Information. Sentencing is set for 2pm on August 9 before U.S. District Court Judge Walter H. Rice.
Possession of child pornography involving prepubescent minors carries a potential maximum custodial sentence of 20 years in prison and at least five years up to a lifetime of supervised release. Webber will also be required to register as a sex offender.
This case is being brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative designed to protect children from online exploitation and abuse. Led by the U.S. Attorneys Offices, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state and local resources to better locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who exploit children, as well as identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.projectsafechildhood.gov/.
Acting U.S. Attorney Glassman commended the investigation of this case by the FBI and Assistant United States Attorney Andrew J. Hunt and First Assistant United States Attorney Vipal Patel, who are representing the United States in this case.
Fresno Man Pleads Guilty to Conspiring to Distribute HeroinRead the Press Release
FRESNO, Calif. — Rafael Guzman, 42, of Fresno, pleaded guilty today to conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute heroin, Acting United States Attorney Phillip A. Talbert announced.
Guzman was indicted on April 9, 2015, with six other defendants including Keith Foster, a former deputy chief of the Fresno Police Department. According to Guzman’s plea agreement, between December 23, 2014, and February 2, 2015, he conspired with Foster to acquire and distribute heroin.
This case is the product of an investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. Assistant United States Attorneys Melanie L. Alsworth and Duce W. Rice are prosecuting the case.
Guzman is scheduled to be sentenced by United States District Judge Anthony W. Ishii on August 15, 2016. Guzman faces a maximum statutory penalty of 20 years in prison and a $1 million fine. The actual sentence, however, will be determined at the discretion of the court after consideration of any applicable statutory factors and the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, which take into account a number of variables.
Co-defendant Sarah Ybarra previously pleaded guilty to conspiring to distribute marijuana and was sentenced to a one year in prison. The charges against all of the remaining defendants, including Foster, are allegations only; they are presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.
Fresno County Man Sentenced to over 12 Years in Prison for Enticement of a MinorRead the Press Release
FRESNO, Calif. — Juan Martin Torres, 28, of Firebaugh, was sentenced today by United States District Judge Anthony W. Ishii to 12 years and seven months in prison for enticing a minor to engage in unlawful sexual activity, Acting United States Attorney Phillip A. Talbert announced.
According to evidence presented at trial in February 2016, Torres was the director of the Firebaugh Boys and Girls Club. Torres was supervising a 14-year-old boy who often came to that Boys and Girls Club after school to complete 120 hours of community service. Torres sent the boy messages over Facebook that offered to shortcut his community‑service-hours requirement if the boy would agree to sexual acts with Torres. The boy reported the messages to law enforcement.
This case was the product of an investigation by the Firebaugh Police Department, the Fresno County Sheriff’s Office, and the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI). Assistant United States Attorneys Michael Tierney and Vincenza Rabenn prosecuted the case.
“We trust those in positions like the one held by the defendant to protect our children,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Talbert. “In committing this crime, the defendant committed an incredible breach of trust with the community, and we are grateful for the hard work by our partners in federal and local law enforcement to bring him to justice.”
“Torres’ heinous violation of the trust afforded to him as a mentor and protector remains appalling,” said Ryan L. Spradlin, special agent in charge of HSI San Francisco. “The sentence is befitting of his disturbing crime and should be seen as a clear message that HSI and our law enforcement partners will make certain that anyone who chooses to exploit innocent children will be held accountable for their actions.”
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 those who sexually exploit children, and to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.usdoj.gov/psc. Click on the “resources” tab for information about Internet safety education.
Four Ohio men convicted of defrauding 500 investors out of $10 millionRead the Press Release
Four Ohio men were convicted for conspiring to defraud investors out of more than $10 million by selling unregistered securities and making several misrepresentations to investors about the product they purported to develop, law enforcement officials said.
Kenneth Jackson, 59, of Glenmont; William Schureck, 81, of Lexington; Dennis Deciancio, 73, of Macedonia, and Daryl Dane Donohue, 67, of Mansfield, were convicted by a jury following a four-week trial. They are scheduled to be sentenced on Sept. 1.
The men were convicted on counts including conspiracy to commit mail and wire fraud, conspiracy to launder money, mail fraud, wire fraud, money laundering, making false statements and other charges.
“More than 500 people were scammed out of money by this group,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Carole S. Rendon. “Retirements were stolen and dreams were destroyed by their fraudulent conduct.”
“These four individuals conspired to misrepresent a product to their investors in order to make a profit,” said Stephen D. Anthony, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI’s Cleveland office. “The FBI will continue efforts to bring to justice those that have duped investors out of their hard-earned money.”
"These defendants built a house of cards laced with a web of financial lies. Well, the underlying structure fell apart and exposed these individuals for who they really are, thieves," said Kathy A. Enstrom, Special Agent in Charge, IRS Criminal Investigation, Cincinnati Field Office. "Combining the financial investigative expertise of the IRS with the skills and resources of the FBI, the Food and Drug Administration and the U.S. Attorney's Office makes a formidable team for combating major, greed-driven crimes."
All four men were affiliated with Medical Safety Solutions, or MSS, a company Jackson founded in 2007 which operated out of Mansfield and had a purported “research and development center” at Jackson’s home in Glenmont. Jackson held the title of Director of Research and Development at MSS. Schureck co-founded the company held the title of Chief Executive Officer at MSS. Deciancio co-founded the company and attended trade shows on the company’s behalf. Donohue was a longtime associate of Jackson who communicated with shareholders of MSS and held himself out as an “FDA consultant” hired by the company for the sole purpose of obtaining Food and Drug Administration approval for the Sharps Terminator, according to trial testimony.
The founders of MSS held the company out as an entity created to develop, market and sell a hypodermic needle destruction device they called the Sharps Terminator. The Sharps Terminator required premarket approval from the FDA before it could be sold in the United States. Jackson and Schureck filed a provisional application for a patent on the Sharps Terminator around April 2007 but did not file an actual patent application until September 2011. MSS filed a premarket approval application for the Sharps Terminator in October 2012. Between 2007 and May 2013, the defendants were engaged in the unregistered sale of securities. They did this by seeking out individuals to buy private shares of stock in MSS, but those shares were not registered with the Securities and Exchange Commission, according to trial testimony.
They defrauded investors by inducing them to buy stock and making false and fraudulent misrepresentations about MSS and the Sharps Terminator, including: that MSS had submitted a premarket approval application when it had not; that FDA approval of the Sharps Terminator was forthcoming or imminent when MSS had not even initiated the approval process; that the FDA had approved the Sharps Terminator when it had not; that the product was “market ready” that was ready for mass production when it was not, and other misrepresentations, according to trial testimony.
To make MSS appear functional and the Sharps Terminator market ready, the defendants took current and prospective investors to MSS’s “R&D facility” and showed them parts, a small number of assembled Sharps Terminator units, and large numbers of Sharps Terminator boxes, many of which were really empty, according to the indictment.
More than 500 investors were defrauded as part of the scheme. They lost more than $10 million between 2007 and 2013, according to trial testimony and court documents.
Jackson and Schureck transferred the money to cover other expenses, and Jackson gambled more than $3.3 million at Mountaineer Casino between 2009 and 2013, according to the court documents.
This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Rebecca Lutzko and Adam Hollingsworth following an investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Internal Revenue Service—Criminal Investigations and the Food and Drug Administration.
Former Watch Manufacturer Employee Admits Using False Invoicing Scheme to Steal Company MerchandiseRead the Press Release
TRENTON, N.J. – A former employee of a Bergen County, New Jersey, watch manufacturer today admitted using phony documents and corporate records to defraud her employer out of hundreds of thousands of dollars of watches and watch parts, U.S. Attorney Paul J. Fishman announced.
Lissette Delarosa, 37, of Woodland Park, New Jersey, pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Michael A. Shipp in Trenton federal court to an information charging her with one count of mail fraud conspiracy.
According to documents filed in this case and statements made in court:
Delarosa admitted that from May 2003 through July 2010, she and Cynthia Alvarez, a/k/a “Cynthia Espejo,” 50, of Kissimmee, Florida, abused their positions in the watch manufacturer’s Bergen County customer service department to fraudulently obtain merchandise. Alvarez and Delarosa created hundreds of fictitious invoices, records, and customer complaints for watches and watch parts in their employer’s invoicing system and directed the merchandise to be sent to addresses they controlled. The watch manufacturer received no payment related to these invoices and no legitimate basis existed for providing the parts free of charge.
The mail fraud conspiracy count carries a maximum potential penalty of 20 years in prison and a $250,000 fine, or twice the amount of loss caused by the offense. Delarosa’s sentencing is scheduled for Aug. 16, 2016.
Alvarez pleaded guilty to the same offense on Sept. 8, 2015 and awaits sentencing.
U.S. Attorney Fishman credited postal inspectors with the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, under the direction of Acting Inspector in Charge Cynthia Shoffner, with the investigation.
The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorney Svetlana M. Eisenberg of the U.S. Attorney’s Office Criminal Division in Newark.
Defense counsel: Alan D. Bowman, Esq., Newark, New Jersey
Former Philadelphia 311 Employee Pleads Guilty to Counterfeiting SEPTA TransPassesRead the Press Release
PHILADELPHIA – Mark Cooper, 35, of Philadelphia, PA, entered a guilty plea today to a conspiracy involving more than 2,000 counterfeit monthly passes for Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority (SEPTA), and possession of access device making equipment announced United States Attorney Zane David Memeger. U.S. District Court Judge Berle M. Schiller scheduled sentencing for August 4, 2016.
Between August 2013 and June 2015, Cooper conspired with Kimberly Adams to produce and sell counterfeit SEPTA monthly TransPasses, which allow passengers to board SEPTA buses, trolleys and subway trains. Once Cooper created the counterfeit passes, he gave them to Adams. Adams met customers, predominately City of Philadelphia employees inside and outside of City Hall, and sold the counterfeit passes for approximately $50. A genuine monthly TransPass normally sells for $91. The defendants counterfeited and sold in excess of 2,000 monthly passes and split the proceeds.
Cooper faces a statutory maximum possible sentence of 20 years in prison, a fine of up to $500,000, four years of supervised release, and a $200 special assessment. Adams pleaded guilty on August 11, 2015 and is scheduled to be sentenced May 18, 2016.
The case was initiated by the City of Philadelphia Office of the Inspector General, jointly investigated with the FBI and the SEPTA Office of the Inspector General. It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Karen Marston.
Former North Texas Pharmacist Sentenced for Federal Drug Trafficking ViolationsRead the Press Release
SHERMAN, Texas – A 29-year-old Granbury, Texas man has been sentenced to federal prison for drug trafficking violations in the Eastern District of Texas, announced U.S. Attorney John M. Bales today.
John Christopher Esparza pleaded guilty on Jan. 5, 2016, to conspiracy to distribute and possession with intent to distribute oxycodone and was sentenced to 72 months in federal prison on May 6, 2016 by U.S. District Judge Marcia Crone.
According to information presented in court, from November 2012 to September 2015, Esparza was the pharmacist in charge of Trinity Pharmacy on Rosemeade Parkway in Carrollton, Texas. During this time, he illegally sold large quantities of oxycodone to another individual. It was also revealed during the investigation that a review of the pharmacy’s inventory records suggested a large amount of oxycodone with a street value of approximately $2.9 million was unaccounted for. Esparza was indicted by a federal grand jury on Sep. 10, 2015
This case was investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration – Dallas Field Division Tactical Diversion Squad, the Texas Department of Public Safety, the Texas Board of Pharmacy, and the McKinney Police Department. This case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys in the Eastern District of Texas.
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Former FBI Assistant Special Agent in Charge Pleads Guilty to Perjury and Obstruction of JusticeRead the Press Release
BOSTON – Robert Fitzpatrick, former Assistant Special Agent in Charge (“ASAC”) of the FBI’s Boston Office, has pleaded guilty to 12 counts of an indictment charging him with perjury and obstruction of justice in connection with his testimony at the 2013 trial of James “Whitey” Bulger.
Fitzpatrick, in his capacity as ASAC of the Boston Division, had overall supervisory responsibility of the organized crime program in Boston between 1981 and 1986—a time period in which Bulger, while an active FBI informant, was involved in eight murders.
Fitzpatrick, 76, of Charlestown, R.I., who is the author of Betrayal, Whitey Bulger and the FBI Agent Who Fought To Bring Him Down, was called to testify at the Bulger trial on July 29 and July 30, 2013. In pleading guilty, Fitzpatrick admitted that he lied when he testified at Bulger’s trial that he tried to end Bulger’s relationship with the FBI and target Bulger for prosecution but was overruled by higher authorities in the FBI.
Specifically, Fitzpatrick admitted that contrary to his sworn testimony at the Bulger trial:
- his assignment to Boston in 1980 as ASAC was not a special mission ordered by the Assistant Director of the FBI because there were problems in the office, but rather a routine reassignment;
- Bulger never said, “I’m not an informant” or otherwise denied being an informant when he met with Fitzpatrick;
- Fitzpatrick never tried to close Bulger as an FBI informant;
- Fitzpatrick was demoted from ASAC because he falsified official FBI reports in connection with a shooting incident, not because he reported corruption;
- Fitzpatrick did not arrest mob boss Gennaro Angiulo; and
- Fitzpatrick did not find or recover the rifle James Earl Ray used to assassinate Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. at the Lorraine Motel in Memphis, TN in 1968.
“Mr. Fitzpatrick’s plea of guilty on all counts makes clear that there are consequences to lying in federal court. In this case, the fact that the defendant was a high-ranking former law enforcement official, who falsely held himself out as a whistleblower who tried to end the FBI’s corrupt relationship with Bulger, made his conduct even more egregious,” U.S. Attorney Carmen M. Ortiz said.
“For a former senior FBI official to lie under oath while testifying in a prosecution related to the FBI’s corrupt relationship with a violent criminal is egregious and can erode the public’s trust in the judicial system,” said Ronald G. Gardella, Special Agent in Charge of the Department of Justice Office of Inspector General’s New York Field Office. “When allegations of this kind arise, it is critical that they be fully investigated so the public and juries can have confidence that when witnesses take the stand, they are fully aware of the stakes for not telling the truth.”
U.S. District Judge F. Dennis Saylor IV took the plea agreement under advisement and set sentencing for August 5th. If Judge Saylor accepts the plea agreement, he must sentence Fitzpatrick to 24 months’ probation, a fine of $12,500 and a special assessment of $1,200.
U.S. Attorney Ortiz and Special Agent in Charge Gardella made the announcement today. This case was investigated by the Department of Justice Office of the Inspector General and is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Zachary R. Hafer and Fred M. Wyshak of Ortiz’s Public Corruption and Special Prosecutions Unit.
Former Clerk Pleads Guilty to Leaking Information About Drug-trafficking InvestigationRead the Press Release
JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. – Tammy Dickinson, United States Attorney for the Western District of Missouri, announced today that a former employee of the Boone County Clerk’s Office has pleaded guilty in federal court to leaking information about a drug-trafficking investigation. She is among six more defendants who recently pleaded guilty to their roles in a large-scale conspiracy to distribute cocaine in Boone County, Mo.
Christin Sledd, 25, of Columbia, Mo., pleaded guilty before U.S. Magistrate Judge Matt J. Whitworth on April 29, 2016, to using a telephone to facilitate a drug-trafficking conspiracy. The father of her child, Ryan Montez Kee, 29, of Columbia, pleaded guilty today to the same charge.
Four additional defendants recently pleaded guilty. Michael Earl Hunt, also known as “Mike Deuce,” 35, of Columbia, pleaded guilty on April 28, 2016 to his role in the drug-trafficking conspiracy. Courtney Lashea Thornton, 35, of Columbia, and Ronald Elwood Brown, 40, of Sturgeon, Mo., each pleaded guilty on April 26, 2016, to their roles in the drug-trafficking conspiracy. Kenneth Scott, Jr., 26, of Columbia, pleaded guilty on April 26, 2016, to using a telephone to facilitate the drug-trafficking conspiracy.
All but one of the 27 defendants charged in this case now have pleaded guilty. The only remaining defendant, Marlon Laron Smith, 35, of Murphysboro, Ill., is a fugitive.
Sledd worked at the Boone County Clerk’s Office in July and August 2014. As a clerk in the Criminal Division, she had access to confidential information, including the fact that search warrants were applied for and signed by judges.
Sledd learned at approximately 2:45 p.m. on Aug. 1, 2014, that a judge had signed a search warrant for a residence on Coats Street. She called Kee, who then passed along the information. Co-conspirators believed the search warrant was for the residence used by co-defendant Rodney Wayne Arnold, also known as “Rodney O.,” 32, of Columbia to store cocaine.
Law enforcement investigators recorded a phone call at 2:58 p.m. the same day in which co-defendant Malcolm Desean Redmon, also known as “Harp,” 32, of Columbia, was warned in advance about the search warrant. The caller urged Redmon to warn Arnold that the police were preparing to “kick his house in.” Redmon said that he would warn Arnold. Both Redmon and Arnold have pleaded guilty to their roles in the drug-trafficking conspiracy.
The caller indicated that Kee was his source for the information, and said that his source got the information from an employee at the clerk’s office.
For law enforcement officers’ safety, execution of the search warrant was called off once the person monitoring the interceptions heard the conversations and notified the task force that the search warrant had been compromised.
Scott admitted that he knew his father and co-conspirator, Kenneth Scott, Sr., 47, of Columbia, was in the business of distributing cocaine and that he conspired with many individuals to distribute cocaine. One of the ways which Scott, Sr. would get cocaine to his customers was to arrange to have a key left in a car or truck, and once the customer had ordered and paid for the cocaine, the customer was told where the key was located. The customer could then use the key on the car or truck they were directed to, and pick up the cocaine.
By pleading guilty, Scott, Jr. admitted that he received a phone call from his father, who instructed him to get a key and hide it in the back of a truck so that a person could pick it up and use it. Scott, Jr. also admitted that, after he complied with his father’s request to hide the key, he called him on the phone to confirm that he had hidden the key in the truck in a gum box.
Hunt, Thornton and Brown admitted that they participated in a conspiracy to distribute cocaine in Boone County from November 2011 to August 2014.
Under federal statutes, Sledd, Kee and Scott are each subject to a sentence of up to four years in federal prison without parole. Brown is subject to a sentence of up to 40 years in federal prison without parole. Hunt and Thornton are each subject to a sentence of up to 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. Sentencing hearings will be scheduled after the completion of presentence investigations by the United States Probation Office.
This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Anthony P. Gonzalez. It was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, IRS-Criminal Investigation, the Columbia, Mo., Police Department, the Boone County, Mo., Sheriff’s Department, the U.S. Marshal’s Service, MUSTANG (the Mid-Missouri Unified Strike Team and Narcotics Group), the Drug Enforcement Administration and the Boone County, Mo., Prosecuting Attorney’s Office.
Florida Resident Pleads Guilty to Fraudulent Shipments of Synthetic Drugs from Lab in StocktonRead the Press Release
FRESNO, Calif. — Timothy New, 33, of Pensacola, Florida, pleaded guilty today to shipping in interstate commerce, with intent to defraud, misbranded synthetic drugs, commonly known as “spice,” Acting United States Attorney Philip A. Talbert announced.
According to court documents, between September 2012 and May 2103, New and his co‑defendants utilized a manufacturing and distribution operation at a processing lab in Stockton to ship at least 24 tons of misbranded smokeable synthetic cannabinoids that contained the synthetic drugs AM-2201 and XLR11 to smoke shops and retail outlets throughout the United States. They generated in excess of $33 million as a result of the fraudulent sales.
Operating under the guise of legitimacy by companies called Zencense Incense Works LLC, ZenBio LLC, and Biozen LLC, New and his co-defendants received falsely invoiced raw synthetic cannabinoids from China that they used to manufacture and distribute as smokeable synthetic cannabinoids. The drugs were sold under the brand names Bizarro, Orgazmo, Headhunter, Defcon, Neutronium, Sonic Zero, Sonic Boom, Sonic Blast, Shockwave, Hampster, and Posh. To evade detection by federal law enforcement authorities, New and his co-defendants deliberately misbranded and marketed their product as “potpourri” or “herbal incense” that they claimed was “not for human consumption,” but fully intended to be used as a narcotic. New and his co-defendants distributed the drugs to the Stuffed Pipe smoke shops located throughout the Central Valley of California, as well as to numerous other retail establishments throughout the United States.
At the time of the illicit enterprise, AM-2201 was a Schedule I controlled substance and XLR11 was a controlled substance analogue that was publically noticed for scheduling in April, 2013, and was placed under Schedule I as a controlled substance in May, 2013.
Public health and law enforcement agencies have seen the emergence of synthetic drug use. State and local public health departments note that synthetic cannabinoids cause serious adverse health effects, including agitation, anxiety, nausea, vomiting, tachycardia, elevated blood pressure, tremor, seizures, hallucinations, and paranoid behavior. DEA scheduled XLR11 based, in part, on findings of the Center for Disease Control and Prevention that the drug causes kidney damage.
This case is the product of an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF) investigation by the Drug Enforcement Administration, Internal Revenue Service-Criminal Investigation, and the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), with assistance from the Food and Drug Administration and the Fresno County Sheriff’s Office. Assistant United States Attorney Karen A. Escobar is prosecuting the case.
The OCDETF Program was established in 1982 to mount a comprehensive attack against organized drug traffickers. Today, the OCDETF Program is the centerpiece of the United States Attorney General's drug strategy to reduce the availability of drugs by disrupting and dismantling major drug trafficking organizations and money laundering organizations and related criminal enterprises. This OCDETF investigation was also part of a nationwide law enforcement effort coordinated by the DEA’s Special Operations Division.
New is scheduled for sentencing on August 1, 2016, by United States District Judge Dale A. Drozd. He faces a maximum statutory penalty of three years in prison and a $250,000 fine, or twice the gross gain from the crime. The actual sentence, however, will be determined at the discretion of the court after consideration of any applicable statutory factors and the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, which take into account a number of variables.
Co-defendants Douglas Jason Way, 41, of Evanston, Illinois, Timothy Ortiz, 45, of Waukegan, Illinois, and Natalie Middleton, 28, of Clovis, California, have entered not guilty pleas and are next scheduled to appear in federal court in September. They are charged with drug and money laundering offenses, in addition to the misbranding charge, and face a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison and a $10 million fine. The charges against them are only allegations; Way, Ortiz, and Middleton are presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.
Florida Man Sentenced for Threatening to Firebomb Two Mosques and Shoot CongregantsRead the Press Release
The Justice Department announced today that Martin Alan Schnitzler, 43, was sentenced to one year and a day in prison for calling two mosques in Pinellas County, Florida, and threatening to firebomb them and shoot their worshippers.
Schnitzler pleaded guilty on Feb. 12, 2016, to obstructing persons in the free exercise of religious beliefs for issuing the threats. He was sentenced by U.S. District Court Judge James D. Whittemore of the Middle District of Florida.
As part of his plea, Schnitzler admitted that on Nov. 13, 2015, he intentionally obstructed members of the Islamic Society of St. Petersburg, Florida, and the Islamic Society of Pinellas County from practicing their religion when he left voicemail messages threatening the safety of the mosques’ congregants. Schnitzler claimed that his threats were prompted by the terrorist attacks in Paris. Among other things, Schnitzler also admitted that in one of the voicemails he threatened to “personally have a militia” report to one of the mosques and “firebomb you, shoot whoever is there on sight in the head. I don’t care if they’re [expletive] two years old or a hundred.”
In response to the threats, both mosques requested increased law-enforcement presence at their locations and took extra safety precautions for congregants.
“Criminal threats of violence that target people and communities because of their religious beliefs threaten the core values that define a fair and just society – equal protection and mutual respect for all,” said Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Vanita Gupta, head of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division. “When individuals commit religion-based hate crimes, we will hold them accountable for their actions and ensure they face justice.”
“This prosecution sends a clear message to anyone who contemplates the use of threats or intimidation to interfere with the right of individuals to worship as they choose, without fear,” said U.S. Attorney A. Lee Bentley III of the Middle District of Florida. “The U.S. Attorney’s Office is committed to taking whatever action is necessary to protect this important First Amendment right.”
The FBI investigated the case with the assistance of the St. Petersburg Police Department. The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Daniel George and Daniel Irick of the Middle District of Florida and Trial Attorney Gabriel Davis of the Civil Rights Division’s Criminal Section.
Florida Man Sentenced for Threatening to Firebomb Two Mosques and Shoot CongregantsRead the Press Release
Tampa, FL – The Justice Department announced today that Martin Alan Schnitzler, 43, was sentenced to a year and a day in prison for calling two mosques in Pinellas County, Florida, and threatening to firebomb them and shoot their worshippers.
Schnitzler pleaded guilty on Feb. 12, 2016, to obstructing persons in the free exercise of religious beliefs for issuing the threats. He was sentenced by U.S. District Court Judge James D. Whittemore of the Middle District of Florida.
As part of his plea, Schnitzler admitted that on Nov. 13, 2015, he intentionally obstructed members of the Islamic Society of St. Petersburg, Florida, and the Islamic Society of Pinellas County from practicing their religion when he left voicemail messages threatening the safety of the mosques’ congregants. Schnitzler claimed that his threats were prompted by the terrorist attacks in Paris. Among other things, Schnitzler also admitted that in one of the voicemails he threatened to “personally have a militia” report to one of the mosques and “firebomb you, shoot whoever is there on sight in the head. I don’t care if they’re [expletive] two years old or a hundred.”
In response to the threats, both mosques requested increased law-enforcement presence at their locations and took extra safety precautions for congregants.
“This prosecution sends a clear message to anyone who contemplates the use of threats or intimidation to interfere with the right of individuals to worship as they choose, without fear,” said U.S. Attorney A. Lee Bentley III of the Middle District of Florida. “The U.S. Attorney’s Office is committed to taking whatever action is necessary to protect this important First Amendment right.”
“Criminal threats of violence that target people and communities because of their religious beliefs threaten the core values that define a fair and just society – equal protection and mutual respect for all,” said Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Vanita Gupta, head of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division. “When individuals commit religion-based hate crimes, we will hold them accountable for their actions and ensure they face justice.”
The FBI investigated the case with the assistance of the St. Petersburg Police Department. The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Daniel George and Daniel Irick of the Middle District of Florida and Trial Attorney Gabriel Davis of the Civil Rights Division’s Criminal Section.
Endicott Man Indicted for Receiving and Possessing Child PornographyRead the Press Release
BINGHAMTON, NEW YORK – On May 4, 2016, a federal grand jury issued an indictment charging Brandon Kie, 30, of Endicott, New York, of receiving and possessing child pornography on a computer, announced by United States Attorney Richard S. Hartunian and Andrew W. Vale, Special Agent in Charge of the Albany Division of the Federal Bureau of Investigation.
Kie made his initial appearance in federal court on Friday, May 6, 2016, in Binghamton, New York, before United States Magistrate Judge Thérèse Wiley Dancks. He was ordered held in custody pending a detention hearing scheduled for May 11, 2016.
Kie faces a minimum sentence of 5 years and up to 20 years in prison, a fine of up to $250,000, a term of supervised release of at least 5 years and up to life and mandatory registration as a sex offender. A defendant’s sentence is imposed by a judge based on the particular statute the defendant is charged with violating, the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other factors.
The charges in the indictment are merely accusations. The defendant is presumed innocent until proven guilty.
This case is being investigated by the FBI, and is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Miroslav Lovric.
Launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice, Project Safe Childhood is 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 https://www.justice.gov/psc.
Downey Man Sentenced for Falsely Certifying Beef as Free of E.coliRead the Press Release
LOS ANGELES – A Downey man who falsely certified that contaminated beef was free of E. coli O157:H7 bacterium has been sentenced to a year of home detention and required to pay $307,695.90 in restitution.
Jim Johnson, 67, had pleaded guilty to falsifying a Certificate of Analysis in United States District Court last November.
Johnson worked as a consultant for Huntington Meat Packing Company, a former meat processing and distribution company located in Montebello, California. The company had a plan that addressed, among other things, how the company would test its beef for E. coli. Among Huntington’s customers were El Primo Foods and Foster Farms.
Several years ago, Johnson knowingly and willfully provided the U.S. Department of Agriculture Food Safety Inspection Service (“USDA-FSIS”) with a fake Certificate of Analysis which falsely stated that a beef sample from the company had tested negative for E. coli. In fact, when Johnson made the false document, he knew that preliminary laboratory results indicated that the beef tested positive for E. coli. Further laboratory testing confirmed that the beef was, indeed, contaminated with the pathogen.
“The defendant’s crime endangered consumers throughout the country,” said United States Attorney Eileen M. Decker. “The public is dependent upon inspections and testing for food safety, and this case illustrates the immense ramifications that one failure can have on consumers.”
In its sentencing papers, the government stated that the USDA identified a total of approximately 111 Certificates of Analysis falsified by Johnson between March 30, 2009, and January 12, 2010. Other than the meat that tested positive for E. coli, none of the other meat related to those Certificates of Analysis was ever sent to the laboratory for testing.
Upon learning of the false Certificate of Analysis, USDA-FSIS initially recalled approximately 864,000 pounds of beef products. The recall was expanded less than a month later to include approximately 4.9 million pounds of additional beef and veal products from Huntington due to the falsified Certificates of Analysis and other violations.
The case against Johnson is the product of an investigation by the U.S. Department of Agriculture, Office of Inspector General, with assistance by the U.S. Department of Agriculture Food Safety and Inspection Service.
Dona Ana County Man Sentenced for Federal Methamphetamine Trafficking ConvictionRead the Press Release
ALBUQUERQUE – Steven Roman, 28, of Mesilla Park, N.M., was sentenced today in federal court in Las Cruces, N.M., to 77 months in federal prison followed by four years of supervised release for his methamphetamine trafficking conviction.
Roman and co-defendants Guillermo Ortega, 43, and Salvador Ortega, 35, both of Las Cruces, were charged with methamphetamine trafficking offenses in a four-count indictment filed on June 18, 2014. The indictment charged Salvador Ortega and Guillermo Ortega with distributing methamphetamine on April 2, 2014; Guillermo Ortega and Roman with distributing methamphetamine on April 2, 2014; and Guillermo Ortega with distributing methamphetamine on April 2, 2014. It also charged Guillermo Ortega with being a felon in possession of a firearm and ammunition on April 14, 2014. The indictment alleged that the three men committed these crimes in Doña Ana County, N.M.
Roman pled guilty to Count 2 of the indictment on Sept. 23, 2015, and admitted that on April 2, 2014, he distributed 57 grams of methamphetamine to a person working with law enforcement. Roman admitted that on that day, he was contacted by an individual who wanted to purchase methamphetamine, and he in turn contacted Guillermo Ortega and arranged the deal.
Guillermo Ortega pled guilty on Sept. 3, 2015, and admitted that on April 2, 2014, he and his co-defendants distributed 95 grams of methamphetamine to a person working with law enforcement. Guillermo further admitted that on April 14, 2014, he was prohibited from being in possession of firearms or ammunition because of his previous felony conviction of felony theft. At sentencing Guillermo Ortega faces a mandatory minimum of five years and a maximum of 40 years in federal prison. He remains in custody pending a sentencing hearing which has yet to be scheduled.
On Jan. 21, 2016, Salvador Ortega entered a guilty plea to Count 1 of the indictment without the benefit of a plea agreement. At sentencing, Salvador Ortega faces a maximum penalty of 20 years in federal prison. He remains in custody pending a sentencing hearing which has yet to be scheduled.
This case was investigated by the Las Cruces office of the FBI. Assistant U.S. Attorney Maria Y. Armijo of the U.S. Attorney’s Las Cruces Branch Office is prosecuting the case.
Davon Lymon Pleads Guilty to Charges in One of Two Pending Federal CasesRead the Press Release
ALBUQUERQUE – U.S. Attorney Damon P. Martinez, Special Agent in Charge Thomas G. Atteberry of the Phoenix Field Division of ATF and Special Agent in Charge Will R. Glaspy of DEA’s El Paso Division announced that Davon Lymon, 35, of Albuquerque, N.M., pleaded guilty this morning in federal court to heroin trafficking and firearms charges. Lymon entered the guilty plea without the benefit of a plea agreement to resolve the charges in one of the two federal cases pending against him.
During this morning’s proceedings, Lymon pled guilty to a three-count superseding indictment charging him with distributing heroin on Sept. 11, 2015 and Oct. 2, 2015, and unlawfully possessing a firearm on Oct. 2, 2015, in Bernalillo County, N.M. (heroin trafficking case). In Oct. 2015, Lymon was prohibited from possessing firearms because he previously had been convicted of several felony offenses including voluntary manslaughter, aggravated battery with a deadly weapon resulting in great bodily harm, fraud, and forgery.
At his sentencing hearing in the heroin trafficking case, which has yet to be scheduled, Lymon faces a statutory maximum penalty of 20 years in prison on the two heroin trafficking charges and ten years on the firearms charge.
In a separate federal case, Lymon is charged in a four-count indictment with three counts of being a felon in possession of a firearm and one count of unlawfully possessing a stolen firearm in Bernalillo County (firearms case). Counts 1 and 2 charge Lymon with unlawfully possessing a firearm on May 27, 2015, and Count 4 charges him with unlawfully possessing a firearm and ammunition on Oct. 21, 2015. Count 3 charges Lymon with unlawfully possessing a stolen firearm in late May 2015.
According to court filings, the crime charged in Count 4 of the indictment in the firearms case arises out of a traffic stop by an officer of the Albuquerque Police Department (APD) in southeast Albuquerque on the evening of Oct. 21, 2015, during which Lymon allegedly fired six rounds at the APD officer as the officer attempted to handcuff Lymon. Several rounds struck the APD officer, including one that struck the officer in the face near the chin; the officer died on Oct. 29, 2015, because of injuries sustained on Oct. 21, 2015.
Lymon has entered a not guilty plea to the indictment in the firearms case. Charges in indictments are merely accusations and defendants are presumed innocent unless found guilty in a court of law. If convicted, Lymon faces a statutory maximum penalty of ten years in federal prison on each of the four counts in the indictment in the firearms case. Trial on Count 4 of the indictment in the firearms case is tentatively set for Aug. 1, 2016. A trial date on Counts 1 through 3 has yet to be set.
The heroin trafficking case was investigated by the Albuquerque offices of ATF and DEA. The firearms case was investigated by the Albuquerque office of ATF and APD, with assistance from the Albuquerque office of the FBI, the U.S. Marshals Service, the New Mexico State Police, the Bernalillo County Sheriff’s Office, the Rio Rancho Police Department and the New Mexico Transportation Police Division.
Assistant U.S. Attorneys Jacob A. Wishard and Kimberly A. Brawley are prosecuting the two cases against Lymon 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 offenders from counties with the highest violent crime rates, including Bernalillo County, N.M., under this initiative.
DEA's Eleventh Pill Take Back Event Yields Fruitful Results in South Carolina & NationwideRead the Press Release
Contact Person: S/A Chuvalo Truesdell (404) 893-7124
COLUMBIA, SC – South Carolinians participating in the United States Drug Enforcement Administration’s (DEA’s) eleventh National Prescription Drug Take-Back Day Initiative (NTBI) held on Saturday, April 30, 2016, turned in 6,688 pounds of unwanted or expired medications for safe and proper disposal at sites set up throughout the state. This amount highest total collected statewide during the ten previous Take-Back events.
“Daniel R. Salter, the Special Agent in Charge (SAC) of the DEA Atlanta Field Division commented, “DEA’s eleventh Prescription Drug Take-Back campaign was a great success both locally and nationally. While South Carolinians turned in 6,688 pounds of unwanted or expired medications, nationally, 893,498 pounds (447 Tons) of expired and unwanted prescription medications were collected in more than 5,359 sites that were available across the United States. The local amount collected was the third highest total collected out of the ten previous Take-Back events. I would like to thank the multitude of partners (both law enforcement and non-law enforcement) who worked tirelessly to make this event another great success.”
The NTBI addresses a crucial public safety and public health issue. Surveys of opioid drug users show that the majority of them get their drugs free from friends and family, including from the home medicine cabinet. This event was a unique opportunity for Americans to make their homes and medicine cabinets safe from theft and abuse. It also helped raise awareness about the dangers of controlled prescription opioids and allowed these potentially dangerous substances to be properly disposed of in environmentally safe way.
SAC Salter encourages parents, along with their children, to educate themselves about the dangers of legal and illegal drugs by visiting DEA’s interactive websites at www.justhinktwice.com, www.GetSmartAboutDrugs.com and www.dea.gov.
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Craigslist Robber Who Impersonated Law Enforcement Sentenced to 12 Years in PrisonRead the Press Release
OAKLAND, Calif. – Tuan Ngoc Luong was sentenced today to 12 years in prison following his conviction for Hobbs Act robbery and brandishing a firearm during and in relation to a crime of violence, announced United States Attorney Brian J. Stretch and Federal Bureau of Investigation Acting Special Agent in Charge Bertram Fairries.
A federal jury convicted Luong, 38, of Castro Valley, Calif., on January 28, 2016, for setting up and committing an armed robbery using Craigslist as the bait to lure his robbery victim. When Luong was convicted of the charges, he already had been convicted in September 2015 of being a felon in possession of a firearm and ammunition.
Evidence at his trials showed that Luong posted an advertisement on Craigslist in February 2015 purportedly to sell his car. An unsuspecting potential buyer found the advertisement online and contacted Luong. The two agreed to meet at the Castro Valley BART station where Luong represented to the buyer that he was a sheriff’s deputy. At Luong’s urging, the victim took the car for a test drive with Luong in the car. During the test drive, Luong claimed he needed to stop at home to get the title to the car and instructed the victim to stop in a secluded residential neighborhood. After they stopped and got out of the car, Luong pulled out a black semi-automatic handgun, pointed it at the victim, and demanded money. Ultimately, Luong robbed the victim of a cellular phone, credit card, and a number of personal items before fleeing in the car. Luong was captured two days later as part of an undercover sting operation after an Alameda County Sheriff’s Deputy posed as an interested buyer in response to the same Craigslist advertisement. When Luong arrived to meet the prospective “buyer,” he was arrested with a black semi-automatic pistol clipped to his belt on the small of his back.
On March 26, 2015, a federal grand jury charged Luong in a three-count indictment with Hobbs Act robbery, in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 1951(a); brandishing a firearm during and in relation to a crime of violence, in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 924(c)(1)(A)(ii); and being a felon in possession of a firearm and ammunition, in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 922(g).
The sentence was handed down by the Honorable Haywood S. Gilliam, U.S. District Judge. Judge Gilliam also sentenced Luong to a three year period of supervised release and ordered Luong to pay full restitution to his victim.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Brian Lewis and Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Kelsey Linnett are prosecuting the case with the assistance of Janice Pagsanjan, Jeanne Carstensen, Melissa Dorton, Patty Lau, Noble Hughes, Trina Khadoo, and Katie Turner. The prosecution is the result of an investigation by the Alameda County Sheriff’s Office and the FBI.
Community leaders recognized for exemplary efforts to improve health and wellbeing in Northern West VirginiaRead the Press Release
WHEELING, WEST VIRGINIA – During an awards ceremony held today in Wheeling, United States Attorney William J. Ihlenfeld, II recognized a variety of community leaders, volunteers, and advocates for their outstanding contributions to public health and safety in Northern West Virginia.
“Each of the individuals recognized today have worked tirelessly to implement creative solutions to improve the quality of life in West Virginia,” said Ihlenfeld. “These individuals are at the forefront of efforts to revitalize neighborhoods and inspire progress throughout our state. I am pleased to acknowledge their outstanding contributions.”
A diverse group of community leaders were recognized today, including:
Dr. Dianna Vargo first joined the Ohio County, West Virginia School System as a math teacher at Wheeling Park High School in 1983. After serving as a teacher, a cross country and track coach, and an administrator, Dr. Vargo was named Superintendent of Ohio County Schools in July 2012. During her tenure as an educator and an administrator, Dr. Vargo has always been dedicated to ensuring that the children and families that she serves are positioned to build successful and productive futures.
In an effort to loosen the grip of substance abuse and addiction, Reynolds Memorial Hospital launched the BreakThru program in September 2015. BreakThru is a medically supervised withdrawal program designed to bridge the gap that often exists between substance abuse and recovery by transitioning patients through the withdrawal process and into long-term treatment. The BreakThru program is the first of its kind in the region and has already treated more than 100 patients from throughout the tri-state area of West Virginia, Ohio, and Pennsylvania.
The Appalachia High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area (HIDTA) was established by the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy in 1998 to reduce the impact of drug trafficking. The Appalachia HIDTA, which serves counties in West Virginia, Virginia, Kentucky, and Tennessee, was recently named the 2015 Outstanding HIDTA of the Year for its leadership in bringing unique substance abuse prevention and education resources to regional youth. The “Drug Prevention On The Move!” initiative features an interactive mobile classroom and a simulated impaired driving experience. The “Give Me a Reason” program distributes free drug testing kits to parents with the goal of giving young people a tangible reason to avoid illicit drugs and facilitating productive conversations about substance abuse between parents and children.
The Young Women’s Christian Association (YWCA) of Wheeling operates a Family Violence Prevention Program to provide education, support, and services to victims of domestic violence. The program offers a variety of services to victims, including transitional housing, an emergency shelter, crisis hotline, court advocacy, support groups, safety planning, monitored parent-child visitation, employability programming, batterer’s intervention and prevention programming, and free 911 cell phones. The program has established a Teen Dating Violence Prevention initiative that employs a dedicated advocate at several local schools to provide counseling, education, and other resources to empower students to understand and pursue healthy relationships. The YWCA Family Violence Prevention Program has also been instrumental in bringing the “Coaching Boys into Men” curriculum to several local schools to promote respectful behavior among student athletes to and help prevent relationship abuse, harassment, and sexual assault.Reverend Dr. Darrell Cummings is the Chairman of the West Virginia Human Rights Commission and the Pastor of the Bethlehem Apostolic Temple in Wheeling. Cummings has dedicated his life to public service and community engagement since he was first licensed as a minister at the age of sixteen. Cummings was recognized as the 1997 Wheeling NAACP “Man of the Year,” and the 2003 West Virginia Educators Association “Civil Rights Leader of the Year.” He was also honored by former West Virginia Governor Joe Manchin, III as the 2010 Distinguished Mountaineer of the Year. Cummings also provides support to incarcerated individuals by serving in the Chaplain Department of two state prisons.
Sergeant John Schultz joined the Wheeling Police Department since 1995 and has built a career dedicated to public safety. As a Prevention Resource Officer at Wheeling Middle School, Sergeant Schultz consistently finds creative and impactful ways to empower and inspire local young people. He was recognized as the 2014 Prevention Resource Office of the Year. During a June 2015 field trip to Wheeling Park Pool, Schultz was instrumental in saving the life of an eighth grade boy who nearly drowned after becoming unresponsive in the pool.
The United States Attorney’s Awards ceremony was held at the United States Courthouse in Wheeling today. A variety of Northern West Virginia community leaders and advocates were in attendance.
Citizen of Honduras Pleads Guilty to Illegal ReentryRead the Press Release
ROANOKE, VIRGINIA – A citizen of Honduras, who has been removed from the United States or voluntarily returned to Mexico at least five times, pled guilty today in Federal Court for the illegally reentering the United States after previously being deported, United States Attorney John P. Fishwick Jr. announced.
Elmer Navarro-Navarro, 37, a citizen of Honduras, pled guilty today in the United States District Court for the Western District of Virginia in Roanoke to one count of reentering the United States after being previously being removed due to a conviction for an aggravated felony.
“We will continue to work with our partners to enforcement our immigration laws,” United States Attorney John P. Fishwick Jr. said today. “Ensuring that those who have been justly removed from the United States do not return is paramount to keeping our country safe.”
According to evidence presented at today’s hearing by Assistant United States Attorney C. Patrick Hogeboom III, Navarro-Navarro came to the attention of Immigration and Customs Enforcement after being arrested for malicious wounding in Roanoke City. Navarro-Navarro has been removed from the United States, or has voluntarily returned to Mexico in November 1996, February 9, 1998, February 13, 1998, April 1999 and April 2005 after serving a sentenced related to an illegal reentry conviction.
The investigation of the case was conducted by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, the Roanoke City Police and the Franklin County Sheriff’s Office. Assistant United States Attorney C. Patrick Hogeboom III prosecuted the case for the United States.
Charleston drug dealer pleads guilty to Federal methamphetamine crimeRead the Press Release
CHARLESTON, W.Va. – A Charleston man pleaded guilty today to a federal methamphetamine charge, announced Acting United States Attorney Carol Casto. Terrus Carter, 36, entered his guilty plea to conspiracy to distribute a controlled substance.
Carter admitted that from December 2015 to March 2016, he conspired with Alisha Watts to distribute methamphetamine from their residence at 7270 Stonebrook Road in Charleston. Carter further admitted that he would bring methamphetamine and marijuana to the residence to store, repackage, and distribute the drugs. Watts permitted this criminal activity in exchange for Carter paying the rent and all of the bills at the residence.
On March 18, 2016, law enforcement executed a search warrant at the Stonebrook residence and seized a loaded handgun, over 620 grams of methamphetamine, over 120 pounds of marijuana, and over $34,000 in cash. On March 20, 2016, officers executed another search warrant at 111 1st Avenue in St. Albans. During the execution of the search warrant, Carter attempted to flee out of the back door and was quickly detained by law enforcement. Officers discovered over $45,000 in cash at the St. Albans residence. As part of his plea agreement, Carter agreed to forfeit the St. Albans residence and the cash seized by law enforcement.
Carter faces a minimum of five years and up to 40 years in federal prison when he is sentenced on August 18, 2016. Watts previously pleaded guilty in April 2016 to maintaining a drug-involved premises. Watts faces up to 20 years in federal prison when she is sentenced on August 17, 2016.
The investigation was conducted by the Metropolitan Drug Enforcement Network Team. Assistant United States Attorney Monica D. Coleman is handling the prosecution. The hearing was held before United States District John T. Copenhaver, Jr.
These cases were brought as part of an ongoing effort led by the United States Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of West Virginia to combat illegal drugs in our communities. The U.S. Attorney’s Office, joined by federal, state and local law enforcement agencies, is committed to aggressively pursuing and shutting down illegal pill trafficking, eliminating open air drug markets, and curtailing the spread of drugs in communities across the Southern District.
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California Man Pleads Guilty to Selling Unapproved Drug in Rhode IslandRead the Press Release
PROVIDENCE, R.I. – Adam Alden, 29, of Bakersfield, CA, pleaded guilty today in U.S. District Court in Fresno, CA, to distributing 2,4-Dinitrophenol (DNP), a chemical used as a dye, wood preserver and herbicide, among other things, which he marketed as an extreme weight loss drug. Alden pleaded guilty to one count of introducing an unapproved drug into interstate commerce.
According to court documents and information presented to the court, a Rhode Island customer who purchased DNP from Alden, among other sources, died in October 2013 as a result of DNP ingestion. It cannot be established beyond a reasonable doubt whether or not the DNP sold by Alden caused the customer’s death.
Alden’s guilty plea before U.S. District Court Magistrate Judge Stanley A. Boone is announced by United States Attorney Peter F. Neronha of the District of Rhode Island, United States Attorney Benjamin B. Wagner of the District of Eastern California, and Russell Herman, Acting Special Agent in Charge of the Food and Drug Administration’s Office of Criminal Investigations.
According to court documents and information presented to the court, an investigation by a U.S. Food and Drug Administration task force in Rhode Island determined that between August 2013 and January 2014, the defendant sold DNP on eBay to customers throughout the United States including Rhode Island, advertising that the product was intended for human consumption as a weight loss product. DNP is a chemical used as a dye, wood preserver and herbicide among other things. Nevertheless, it has been marketed over the years as “extremely dangerous and not fit for human consumption” under the Food and Drug Cosmetic Act of 1938.
According to court documents and information presented to the court, Alden made approximately $500 in profits from his DNP sales on eBay.
Alden is scheduled to be sentenced by U.S. District Court Magistrate Judge Stanley A. Boone on July 19, 2016. Introducing an unapproved drug into interstate commerce is punishable by up to one year in federal prison or 5 years probation; and a $100,000 fine or twice the gain/loss from the offense.
The case is being prosecuted in the District of Rhode Island by Assistant U.S. Attorney Adi Goldstein and in the Eastern District of California by Assistant U.S. Attorney Katherine A. Plante.
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Contact:
Jim Martin (401) 709-5357
email: [email protected]
on Twitter @USAO_RI
California Man Convicted of Drug and Money Laundering Charges Relating to Methamphetamine Deliveries to OregonRead the Press Release
A California man was convicted late Friday by a federal jury in the U.S. District Court for the District of Oregon.
Assistant Attorney General Leslie R. Caldwell of the Criminal Division; Assistant Special Agent in Charge Cam B. Strahm of the Drug Enforcement Administration’s Portland District Office; Special Agent in Charge Gregory Bretzing of the FBI‘s Portland Division; and Chief Lawrence P. O’Dea III of the Portland Police Bureau, made the announcement today following the jury’s verdict.
Fulgencio Arias Jr., 43, of Whittier, California, was convicted of conspiracy to distribute and possess with the intent to distribute 500 grams or more of a mixture and substance containing methamphetamine, conspiracy to commit money laundering, distribution of 500 grams or more of a mixture and substance containing methamphetamine, and attempted distribution of 500 grams or more of a mixture and substance containing methamphetamine.
The defendant was charged in an indictment on Dec 15, 2011. The evidence at trial showed that the defendant was the leader of a drug trafficking organization from approximately January 2008 until Dec 15, 2011. The defendant sent large quantities of methamphetamine from the Los Angeles area to Oregon and other states in the Pacific Northwest through the use of couriers. One of the defendant’s Oregon-based co-conspirators received the methamphetamine for distribution in Oregon. In turn, co-conspirators returned proceeds from the distribution to the defendant using hidden bulk cash shipments and nominee bank accounts.
Sentencing is scheduled for Aug 30, 2016. The defendant faces a maximum penalty of life in prison.
The case was prosecuted by Trial Attorneys Clayton O’Conner and Michael Lang, respectively, of the Criminal Division’s Human Rights and Special Prosecutions Section and Narcotic and Dangerous Drug Section. The case was investigated by the DEA, FBI, the Portland Metro Gang Task Force, Portland Police Bureau, Tigard Police Department, Medford Police Department, Marion County Sheriff’s Office, Oregon State Police Forensic Laboratory with assistance from the Multnomah County Sheriff’s Office and Los Angeles Sheriff’s Department.
Buxton Man Sentenced on Firearm ChargesRead the Press Release
Contact: Benjamin M. Block
Assistant United States Attorney
Tel: (207) 780-3257Portland, Maine: United States Attorney Thomas E. Delahanty II announced that Raymond T. Pinkham, 22, of Buxton, Maine, was sentenced today in U.S. District Court in Portland to 52 months in prison following convictions for Possession of Stolen Firearms (two counts) and Conspiracy to Possess Stolen Firearms.
Two of Raymond Pinkham’s co-conspirators, Dale M. Pinkham Jr., 26, and Robert C. Bean-Pinkham, 21, both of Buxton, Maine, previously pled guilty and were sentenced by the Court. On April 19, 2016, Robert Bean-Pinkham was sentenced to 40 months in prison based on convictions for Possession of Stolen Firearms and Conspiracy to Possess Stolen Firearms. On April 20, 2016, Dale Pinkham Jr. was sentenced to 64 months in prison based on convictions for Conspiracy to Distribute Heroin, Possession of Firearms by a Prohibited Person, and Conspiracy to Possess Stolen Firearms.
According to court records, from around November 2012 until November 2014, Dale Pinkham Jr. conspired with others to distribute heroin. On December 6, 2013, a search warrant executed at the Pinkhams’ residence in Buxton resulted in the seizure of about 20 grams of heroin and numerous firearms in Dale Jr.’s bedroom. Dale Jr. was then prohibited from possessing guns due to his illegal drug use. Agents also recovered a stolen firearm from a vehicle operated by Raymond that day. Between about August and November 2014, Dale Jr., Raymond and Robert also conspired to possess and possessed stolen firearms. The co-conspirators paid for the stolen firearms using U.S. currency, heroin, or both. On October 11, 2014, a search warrant executed at the Pinkhams’ Buxton residence resulted in the seizure of seven stolen firearms from Robert’s bedroom. Law enforcement subsequently recovered 11 additional stolen firearms possessed by the co-conspirators.
The case was investigated by the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms and the Maine State Police, with assistance from the Maine Drug Enforcement Agency, the York and Cumberland County Sherriff’s Offices, the Buxton Police Department, and the Office of the Maine Attorney General.
Businessmen Indicted in East Texas Mortgage FraudRead the Press Release
SHERMAN, Texas – U.S. Attorney John M. Bales announced today that three businessmen have been indicted and charged with federal violations in the Eastern District of Texas.
Daniel C. Bomar, 36, James B. Wright, 55, both of Ocean Springs, MS, and Brett T. Immel, 35, of Chicago, were indicted by a federal grand jury on Apr. 14, 2016, and charged with conspiracy to commit bank fraud and conspiracy to commit money laundering.
According to the indictment, from 2010 to 2012, the defendants are alleged to have conspired to defraud and obtain money from Prime Lending, a mortgage lending company in Dallas, and from Federal Savings Bank, a mortgage lending company in Overland Park, Kansas. Both companies are insured by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC).
Wright was a title attorney who handled real estate closing transactions, and Bomar worked for his as an escrow officer. Immel was a partner in a business called Hanover Companies, which located investors to purchase homes from builders. Immel, on behalf of Hanover Companies, formed agreements and executed contracts with home builders to locate buyers for properties in exchange for a fee, known as a receivable fee. Immel solicited buyers to purchase homes from the builders and then directed those buyers to obtain mortgage loans from Prime Lending or Federal Savings Bank.
Immel specifically directed the buyers to Wright and Bomar to close the loans, and Immel provided Wright and Bomar with sales contracts executed by the sellers and buyers and the receivable fee contracts executed by the seller and Hanover. The receivables fee contracts directed the sellers to pay Hanover for providing buyers for the properties. However, Wright, Bomar, and Immel prevented Prime Lending or Federal Savings Bank from receiving any documentation that disclosed Hanover’s receivable fees from the sellers.
For each loan closing, Bomar and Wright created a HUD-1 Settlement Statement for the seller which detailed the receivable fee the seller was making to Hanover. However, Immel directed Bomar and Wright to create a separate HUD-1 Settlement Statement which omitted the receivable fee from the seller’s proceeds to Hanover, and instead showed the seller making more profit on the property than the seller actually received. Bomar and Wright provided this false HUD-1 Settlement Statement to Prime Lending and Federal Savings Bank in order to receive inflated loan proceeds based on the falsely increased purchase price, and the amount of loans funds the buyer needed to pay for the purchase of the home. After each loan was funded, Bomar and Wright paid a kickback to Immel through Hanover Companies.
All mortgage loans named in the indictment were purchased and secured by the Federal National Mortgage Association (Fannie Mae).
This case is currently set for trial on June 3, 2016 before U.S. District Judge Amos L. Mazzant, III. If convicted of the charges, each defendant faces up to 30 years in federal prison for the bank fraud count and up to 10 years for the money laundering count.
This case is being investigated by the Federal Housing Finance Agency – Office of Inspector General and the Internal Revenue Service and prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Camelia Lopez.
A grand jury indictment is not evidence of guilt. A defendant is presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
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Brooke County, WV man pleads guilty to failing to update sex offender registrationRead the Press Release
WHEELING, WEST VIRGINIA – Convicted sex offender Christopher Barker, 27, of Follansbee, West Virginia, pled guilty today to moving across state lines without updating his sex offender registration status, United States Attorney William J. Ihlenfeld, II, announced.
Barker, also known as Christopher D. Cooper, was previously convicted in Ohio County, West Virginia of “First Degree Sexual Assault Involving a Minor.” As a result of that conviction, Barker is required to register as a sex offender. In late 2015, Barker moved from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania to Follansbee, West Virginia without updating his sex offender registration status.
Barker pled guilty today to one count of “Failure to Register and Update Registration as a Sex Offender.” He faces up to 10 years in prison and a fine of up to $250,000. Under the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, the actual sentence imposed will be based upon the seriousness of the offenses and the prior criminal history, if any, of the defendant.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Stephen Vogrin prosecuted the case on behalf of the government. The United States Marshals Service, the Pennsylvania State Police, and the Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania Police Department investigated.
Senior U.S. District Judge Frederick P. Stamp, Jr. presided.
Bank Robber Sentenced to 135 Months in PrisonRead the Press Release
ALBANY, NEW YORK – Calvin Stephon Moore, age 50, of Utica, New York, was sentenced today to serve 135 months in prison for three bank robberies he committed in 2014.
The announcement was made by United States Attorney Richard S. Hartunian and Andrew W. Vale, Special Agent in Charge of the Albany Division of the Federal Bureau of Investigation.
Senior U.S. District Judge Thomas J. McAvoy also sentenced Moore to serve 3 years of post-imprisonment supervised release, and to pay $7,953 in restitution to his victims.
Moore pled guilty in October 2015 to committing bank robberies in Schenectady, Utica and Columbia, South Carolina.
On November 17, 2014, Moore and another man robbed a KeyBank branch in Schenectady. During the robbery, Moore told a teller, “this is a hold up give me money.” The two robbers fled the bank with $5,035. Schenectady Police found and arrested Moore’s accomplice near the bank; the accomplice had a backpack containing the stolen money and a copy of Moore’s birth certificate.
The following day, Moore robbed an Adirondack Bank branch in Utica. He handed the teller a demand note, which stated: “THIS IS A ROBBERY. I HAVE A GUN AND WILL SHOOT IF YOU TRY ANYTHING. PUT ALL THE LOOSE BILLS (EVERY DENOMINATION) IN THE BAG … NO DYE PACK OR TRACERS OR I WILL SHOOT!” Moore fled the bank with $1,647.
Moore then traveled to South Carolina.
On December 30, 2014, Moore entered a First Citizens Bank branch in Columbia. He approached a teller and presented a note in which he demanded money. He also told the teller he had a gun. Moore fled the bank with $1,271, into which a teller had placed an exploding dye pack.
Moore was arrested on the night of December 30 by officers from the Cayce, South Carolina, Police Department, who responded to a report of a person at a motel tossing a suspicious item over a fence and into a parking lot. The item was a bank dye pack.
The investigation into the Schenectady and Utica robberies was conducted by the FBI, and the Schenectady and Utica Police Departments.
The investigation into the Columbia, South Carolina robbery was conducted by the Columbia Division of the FBI, and the Columbia and Cayce Police Departments.
The Newark Division of the FBI also assisted in this investigation.
This case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Michael Barnett of the Northern District of New York, and by Assistant United States Attorney Benjamin N. Garner of the District of South Carolina.
Bangor Man Pleads Guilty to Destruction of Government PropertyRead the Press Release
Contact: Jody Mullis
Assistant United States Attorney
Tel: (207) 945-0373Bangor, Maine: United States Attorney Thomas E. Delahanty II announced that Richard Hughes, 30, of Bangor, Maine, pleaded guilty on May 6, 2016 in U.S. District Court to destroying government property.
According to court records, on June 5, 2015, Hughes drove a motor vehicle through the high frequency area electronic gate located on Elmer’s Way at the Cutler, Maine, Naval Support Activity installation. The gate is owned and operated by the United States Department of Defense. Hughes destroyed the gate.
Hughes faces up to 10 years in prison, a $250,000 fine, and up to three years 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 Naval Criminal Investigative Service and the Cutler, Maine, Naval Support Activity Police Department.
Bahamas Man Pleads Guilty to Hacking Scheme to Steal Celebrities’ Copyrighted and Personal InformationRead the Press Release
Preet Bharara, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, announced that ALONZO KNOWLES pled guilty today in Manhattan federal court to criminal copyright infringement of scripts of movies and television shows that had not yet aired, as well as identity theft of personal identification information, all of which KNOWLES obtained by hacking into the personal e-mail accounts of numerous individuals in the entertainment, sports, and media industries. He pled guilty before U.S. District Judge Paul A. Engelmayer.
Manhattan U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara said: “Alonzo Knowles targeted and hacked into the private emails of celebrities in entertainment and in professional sports. His crimes did not end with this frightening invasion of privacy, as Knowles then sought to sell what he stole, including unreleased movie and television scripts, to the highest bidder. Thanks to the terrific work of the Homeland Security Investigations agents and prosecutors in my office, this story of cybercrime meets celebrity stalking ends well, with the perpetrator caught and convicted.”
According to the Indictment, other documents filed in Manhattan federal court, and statements made at various proceedings in this case, including yesterday’s guilty plea:
ALONZO KNOWLES unlawfully accessed the personal e-mail accounts of numerous individuals in the entertainment, sports, and media industries (the “Victims”). As a result of his hacking scheme, KNOWLES obtained the Victims’ copyrighted and confidential documents, including scripts of movies and television shows that had not yet been publicly released, personal identifying information such as Social Security numbers, and private sexually explicit photographs and videos.
Over the course of two weeks in December 2015, KNOWLES and an undercover law enforcement agent (the “UC”) communicated about the material KNOWLES sought to sell to the UC. KNOWLES claimed to the UC that he had “exclusive content” that was “really profitable” and worth “hundreds of thousands of dollars.” KNOWLES stated that he obtained the material directly from the Victims without their knowledge, and claimed to be able to acquire such material from at least some of the approximately 130 Victims whose e-mail addresses and phone numbers he had in his possession.
On December 21, 2015, KNOWLES met with the UC in New York, New York. During their meeting, KNOWLES described two methods he used to hack each Victim’s e-mail account. The "easier” method, according to KNOWLES, involved sending a virus to the Victim’s computer that would enable KNOWLES to access it. The more difficult method, according to KNOWLES, involved KNOWLES sending a false hacking notification to the Victim and asking the Victim for his passcodes. Once KNOWLES had used the Victim’s passcodes to successfully access the Victim’s e-mail account, KNOWLES, unbeknownst to the Victim, would change the settings in the Victim’s e-mail account in order to continue to access to it. In order to avoid detection from the Victim, KNOWLES would delete notifications from the e-mail service provider regarding changes to the settings of the Victim’s e-mail account. KNOWLES attempted to sell numerous movie and television scripts and personal identifying information that he had unlawfully obtained from the Victims to the UC in exchange for thousands of dollars, whereupon KNOWLES was arrested.
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KNOWLES, 24, of Freeport, Bahamas, faces a maximum of 10 years in prison and six years of supervised release. The statutory maximum sentence is prescribed by Congress and is provided here for informational purposes only, as any sentencing of the defendant will be determined by the judge. KNOWLES is scheduled to be sentenced by Judge Engelmayer on August 25, 2016.
Mr. Bharara praised the investigative work of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations.
The prosecution of this case is being handled by the Office’s Complex Frauds and Cybercrime Unit. Assistant United States Attorney Kristy J. Greenberg is in charge of the prosecution.
7th Street Gang Associate Pleads Guilty to Rico Conspiracy; The Last of 18 Defendants Charged in the CaseRead the Press Release
CONTACT: Barbara Burns
PHONE: (716) 843-5817
FAX: (716) 551-3051
Buffalo, N.Y. -- U.S. Attorney William J. Hochul, Jr. announced today that 7th Street Gang associate Joseph Whitely, 26, of Buffalo, NY, pleaded guilty to Racketeering Influenced Corrupt Organizations (RICO) conspiracy before U.S. District Judge Richard J. Arcara. The charge carries a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison and a $250,000 fine.
“For more than 10 years, the 7th Street Gang – together with their 10th Street gang rivals– perpetrated violence, trafficked in deadly narcotics, and terrorized residents living on the West Side of Buffalo,” said U.S. Attorney Hochul. “As a result of this prosecution, more than five dozen gang members have been removed from our community. Most importantly, peace and hope for a better future have been restored.”
Assistant U.S. Attorney Joseph M. Tripi, who is handling the case, stated that the
7th Street Gang was responsible for narcotics trafficking, numerous shootings and multiple murders in the 7th Street area of the West Side of Buffalo between 2000 and
2012. Defendant Whitely, as a 7th Street Gang associate, sold heroin on behalf of the gang.
Regarding violence, Whitely served as the getaway driver for 7th Street Gang member Efrain Hidalgo, who murdered rival 10th Street Gang member Eric Morrow on August 11, 2009. In doing so, Whitely assisted Hidalgo to avoid capture by the Buffalo Police Department.
A total of 18 defendants were charged in the prosecution of the 7th Street gang. All 18 defendants have now been convicted. The prosecution of the 10th Street gang, meanwhile, involved 44 defendants, all of whom were convicted.
“The successful prosecution of the 7th and 10th Street gangs, and the resulting prosperity of the City’s West Side, demonstrates the true value of federal intervention,” U.S. Attorney Hochul further stated. “We will continue such vigorous efforts until every last gang member operating anywhere in this District is brought to justice.”
The plea is the culmination of an investigation on the part of Special Agents of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Safe Streets Task Force, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Adam S. Cohen, the New York State Police, under the direction of Major Steven Nigrelli, the Buffalo Police Department, under the direction of Commissioner Daniel Derenda, and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Delano A. Reid.
Sentencing is scheduled for September 15, 2016 at 12:30 p.m. before Judge Arcara.
Friday 6 May 2016
Waterbury Man Pleads Guilty to Federal Gun ChargeRead the Press Release
Deirdre M. Daly, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, announced that STEPHEN GOINS, 35, last residing in Waterbury, pleaded guilty today before U.S. District Judge Victor A. Bolden in Bridgeport to one count of possession of a firearm by a convicted felon.
According to court documents and statements made in court, on June 26, 2014, law enforcement received information that GOINS, a convicted felon, was operating a vehicle that had a firearm in the glove compartment. A Bridgeport police officer stopped the vehicle after it exited I-95 in Bridgeport. GOINS was arrested after a search of the glove compartment revealed a loaded Ruger LCR Revolver, .38 caliber Special.
GOINS’ criminal history includes felony convictions for robbery, larceny and marijuana trafficking offenses. It is a violation of federal law for a person previously convicted of a felony offense to possess a firearm or ammunition that has moved in interstate or foreign commerce.
The charge of unlawful possession of a firearm by a convicted felon carries a maximum term of imprisonment of 10 years. A sentencing date is not scheduled.
GOINS has been detained since his arrest.
This matter has been investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, Bridgeport Police Department, New Britain Police Department, and Connecticut Statewide Narcotics Task Force. The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Rahul Kale.
United States Files Complaint Against City of Española, to Redress Alleged Trespass on Lands of the Pueblo of Santa ClaraRead the Press Release
ALBUQUERQUE – The United States today filed a civil complaint on its own behalf and for the benefit of the Pueblo of Santa Clara in federal court in Albuquerque, New Mexico, against the city of Española, New Mexico. The complaint alleges that the city lacks valid rights-of-way for portions of its public water and sanitary sewer lines located on the Pueblo’s lands and is therefore trespassing on those lands. With the Pueblo’s consent, the city obtained rights-of-way in the early 1980s for the water and sewer lines under the Indian Right-of-Way Act and its implementing regulations, which authorize grants of easement across Indian lands. Those rights-of-way expired in 1994 and 2002. The complaint seeks to compel the city to comply with the Indian Right-of-Way Act by renewing its rights of way and compensating the Pueblo for the unauthorized use of the Pueblo’s property.
The Pueblo of Santa Clara and Española engaged in negotiations for almost a decade, seeking to resolve these expired rights-of-way. Those negotiations proved unsuccessful and on Nov. 13, 2013, the Bureau of Indian Affairs sent the city a Notice to Show Cause concerning trespass arising out of the expired rights-of-way.
On July 21, 2014, U.S. Attorney Damon P. Martinez for the District of New Mexico sent a follow-up letter to the city, reporting that the city’s “Response to the Notice to Show Cause” fails to provide evidence or argument to establish a legal basis for the city’s presence on Pueblo property or otherwise establish that it is not in trespass.” The city disagreed.
In response to that letter, the city stated that no trespass has taken place and no compensation is due. On April 7, U.S. Attorney Martinez met with Española’s mayor, Alice Lucero and the city’s attorney to determine whether this dispute could be resolved through settlement without filing suit. The city stressed that its position on the trespass issue had not changed.
Española’s continuing denial of trespass on lands for which it previously paid and acquired valid rights-of-way and its refusal to comply with federal law precipitated today’s filing.
“The United States takes seriously enforcement of the rule of law, particularly as it affects Indian Country,” said Assistant Attorney General John C. Cruden for the Justice Department’s Environment and Natural Resources Division. “Compliance with the Indian Right-of-Way Act and other federal statutes is not optional, but a legal requirement that ensures Indian tribes retain control of their lands and resources.”
“The filing of today’s complaint is intended to bring the city of Española into compliance with federal law,” said U.S. Attorney Martinez. “The complaint was filed only after all other options for resolving this dispute had been exhausted. While previous discussions among the parties have failed to resolve this dispute, we are hopeful that meaningful discussions will be possible while the federal court action proceeds.”
Trial Attorney Samuel D. Gollis of the Indian Resources Section of the Justice Department’s Environment and Natural Resources Division and Assistant U.S. Attorney Howard R. Thomas of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of New Mexico are representing the United States in this litigation.
USA v. City of Espanola Complaint
United States Files Complaint Against City of Española, New Mexico to Redress Alleged Trespass on Lands of the Pueblo of Santa ClaraRead the Press Release
The United States today filed a civil complaint on its own behalf and for the benefit of the Pueblo of Santa Clara in federal court in Albuquerque, New Mexico, against the city of Española, New Mexico. The complaint alleges that the city lacks valid rights-of-way for portions of its public water and sanitary sewer lines located on the Pueblo’s lands and is therefore trespassing on those lands. With the Pueblo’s consent, the city obtained rights-of-way in the early 1980s for the water and sewer lines under the Indian Right-of-Way Act and its implementing regulations, which authorize grants of easement across Indian lands. Those rights-of-way expired in 1994 and 2002. The complaint seeks to compel the city to comply with the Indian Right-of-Way Act by renewing its rights of way and compensating the Pueblo for the unauthorized use of the Pueblo’s property.
The Pueblo of Santa Clara and Española engaged in negotiations for almost a decade, seeking to resolve these expired rights-of-way. Those negotiations proved unsuccessful and on Nov. 13, 2013, the Bureau of Indian Affairs sent the city a Notice to Show Cause concerning trespass arising out of the expired rights-of-way.
On July 21, 2014, U.S. Attorney Damon P. Martinez for the District of New Mexico, sent a follow-up letter to the city, reporting that the city’s “Response to the Notice to Show Cause” fails to provide evidence or argument to establish a legal basis for the city’s presence on Pueblo property or otherwise establish that it is not in trespass.” The city disagreed.
In response to that letter, the city stated that no trespass has taken place and no compensation is due. On April 7, U.S. Attorney Martinez met with Española’s mayor, Alice Lucero and the city’s attorney to determine whether this dispute could be resolved through settlement without filing suit. The city stressed that its position on the trespass issue had not changed.
Española’s continuing denial of trespass on lands for which it previously paid and acquired valid rights-of-way and its refusal to comply with federal law precipitated today’s filing.
“The United States takes seriously enforcement of the rule of law, particularly as it affects Indian Country,” said Assistant Attorney General John C. Cruden for the Justice Department’s Environment and Natural Resources Division. “Compliance with the Indian Right-of-Way Act and other federal statutes is not optional, but a legal requirement that ensures Indian tribes retain control of their lands and resources.”
“The filing of today’s complaint is intended to bring the city of Española into compliance with federal law,” said U.S. Attorney Martinez. “The complaint was filed only after all other options for resolving this dispute had been exhausted. While previous discussions among the parties have failed to resolve this dispute, we are hopeful that meaningful discussions will be possible while the federal court action proceeds.”
Trial Attorney Samuel D. Gollis of the Indian Resources Section of the Justice Department’s Environment and Natural Resources Division and Assistant U.S. Attorney Howard R. Thomas of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of New Mexico are representing the United States in this litigation.
U.S. Attorney’s Office Participates in Law Week EventsRead the Press Release
ALICIA A.G. LIMTIACO, United States Attorney for the Districts of Guam and the Northern Mariana Islands (NMI), announced the U.S. Attorney’s Office participation in various events for Law Week.
The U.S. Attorney’s Office was invited to participate in the annual Law Week Law Fair held on April 30, 2016, at the Judiciary of Guam, at which members of the law community were encouraged to disseminate materials relating to their respective organizations to the public and to answer questions about their organization’s mission and purpose.
This year's Law Day theme was "Miranda: More than Words." The theme highlighted the procedural protections afforded to all by the U.S. Constitution; how these rights are safeguarded by the courts; and why the preservation of these principles is essential to our liberty. In addition to the Law Day theme, Law Week activities sought to educate about the legal system and the rule of law, with events focused on teaching students and the general public about court proceedings and the justice system. Law Week activities allowed the community to obtain first-hand information of the different aspects of the law from our justice system partners.
On May 6, 2016, U.S. Attorney Limtiaco participated in a Conversatorio panel on “Miranda: More than Words” at the U.S. District Court of Guam and spoke with Criminal Justice students from Guam Community College and the University of Guam about Miranda and related U.S. Constitution and justice system issues. Also present were U.S. District Court of Guam Chief Judge Frances Tydingco-Gatewood, U.S. District Court of Guam Magistrate Judge Joaquin Manibusan, Supreme Court of Guam Associate Justice F. Philip Carbullido, Supreme Court of Guam Associate Justice Katherine Maraman, Federal Public Defender John Gorman, Judge Advocates from all military branches, and Federal Law Enforcement Officers/Deputies/Agents.
See the following photos taken at the events.
Student Clerk Jack Ruane and his daughter, with U.S. Attorney Alicia Limtiaco and Legal Assistant Roxanne Ferrer at the U.S. Attorney’s Office’s exhibit at the Law Fair held at the Judiciary of Guam U.S. Attorney Alicia Limtiaco, second from left, responds to a question from visitors receiving handouts from the U.S. Attorney’s Office U.S. Attorney Alicia Limtiaco is pictured here in the U.S. District Court of Guam for Law Week U.S. Attorney Alicia Limtiaco with Federal Public Defender John Gorman during their discussion on Miranda Rights at the U.S. District Court of GuamU.S. Attorney Polite Announces “House of Worship” Security SymposiumRead the Press Release
U.S. Attorney Kenneth A. Polite announced that the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Louisiana – in collaboration with the New Orleans Field Office of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, U.S. Department of Homeland Security, Federal Protective Services Division and the Anti-Defamation League for the Southern Region of Louisiana – will be co-hosting a free “House of Worship” Security Symposium on Wednesday, May 18, 2016 from 9:00 am – 1:00 pm. Topics include:
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Hate Crime Overview/Trends
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Hate Crime Investigations
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Workplace Violence & Active Shooter
- Victim Witness Informational Session
WHO: Faith-Based Leadership are urged to attend
WHEN: Wednesday, May 18, 2016 from 9:00 am – 1:00 pm
WHERE: U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Louisiana
650 Poydras Street, Suite 1600
Winters Conference Room
REGISTRATION:
There is no registration fee for this event and for your convenience you can simply click on the registration link provided below and your attendance will be confirmed. Early registration is advised as attendance will be limited. Once online registration is confirmed, an electronic copy of the symposium agenda along with your attendance confirmation will be forwarded to you via email. Online registration link: https://usaolaetraining.org/HouseOfFaith
If you need additional information please do not hesitate to contact Quinn Smith at (504) 680-3003.
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Texas man sentenced to 14 years and 10 months for transporting a minor to Shreveport for prostitutionRead the Press Release
SHREVEPORT, La. – United States Attorney Stephanie A. Finley announced today that a man from Texas was sentenced to 178 months in prison for bringing a minor to Shreveport to engage in prostitution.
Larry D. Bluitt, 27, of Dallas, Texas, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Elizabeth E. Foote on one count of transportation of a minor with intent to engage in prostitution. He was also sentenced to five years of supervised release. According to the October 8, 2015 guilty plea, a law enforcement agent working in an undercover capacity responded to an online ad for prostitution on December 17, 2014. The undercover agent arranged to meet an individual at a Shreveport hotel for the purpose of prostitution. Agents observed Bluitt driving a 14-year-old female to the hotel to meet the undercover agent for sex. After he dropped off the juvenile, Bluitt was arrested by members of the FBI Violent Crimes Against Children Task Force. Bluitt admitted he drove the minor female from Dallas to Shreveport for prostitution.
This case is part of Project Safe Childhood, a U.S. Department of Justice nationwide initiative to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by U.S. Attorneys’ Offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood combines 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.
“Human sex trafficking is a form of modern slavery that is made even worse in this case because the defendant was using a child,” Finley stated. “Prosecuting crimes such as this one are a top priority for this office. Our efforts are focused on stopping these crimes in our district so that no one has to endure the pain and torture. I want to thank the federal, state and local agencies and the prosecutor who work so hard to successfully investigate and prosecute these cases.”
Those concerned may leave tips with the FBI at tips.fbi.gov. Tips may be submitted anonymously. The Shreveport FBI office number is (318) 861-1890.
The FBI-Violent Crimes Against Children Task Force and the Shreveport Police Department conducted the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney Earl M. Campbell is prosecuting the case.
Statement from New Jersey U.S. Attorney Paul J. Fishman Regarding Court Approval of the Agreement with Newark, New Jersey, to Reform Unconstitutional Policing PracticesRead the Press Release
NEWARK, N.J. – U.S. Attorney Paul J. Fishman of the District of New Jersey and Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Vanita Gupta, head of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division, released the following statements regarding the U.S. District Court for the District of New Jersey’s approval of the department’s agreement with the city of Newark to reform the police department’s unconstitutional practices:
"This consent decree, now approved by the court, provides a roadmap for reform in Newark and a model for best practices for police departments across the country," said U.S. Attorney Fishman. "Implementing the systemic changes outlined in the consent decree will take time, but this is what the city of Newark and the men and women who serve in the police department want and need, and it is what the people of Newark deserve: a first-class police department that keeps them safe and respects their constitutional rights."
“We appreciate the court’s swift approval of the Justice Department’s consent decree with the city of Newark,” said Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Gupta. “This agreement will help the Newark Police Department reform policies, improve systems and rebuild trust between officers and the community they serve. As Newark implements this agreement, we will continue to work closely with city officials, law enforcement and community members to put in place the necessary changes that can make Newark a national model for constitutional, effective and accountable policing. Once fully implemented, these reforms will make all of those in Newark – officers and civilians alike – safer. And these reforms will ensure that law enforcement in Newark complies with the Constitution and safeguards the civil rights of every Newark resident.”
South Jersey Man Admits Hiring Illegal Immigrants, Failing to Collect Payroll TaxesRead the Press Release
CAMDEN, N.J. - A Sicklerville, New Jersey, man today admitted his role in a conspiracy to evade payroll taxes on cash wages paid to illegal immigrants employed at his dry cleaning business, U.S. Attorney Paul J. Fishman announced.
Phillip Hui, 37, pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Robert B. Kugler to an information charging him with one count of conspiracy to obstruct and impede the IRS relating to the failure to collect, account for and pay payroll taxes and one count of harboring illegal aliens.
According to documents filed in this case and statements made in court:
Hui and Kathy Lei, 35, of Williamstown, New Jersey, owned New Eastern Cleaners in Voorhees Township, New Jersey. Lei, along with two other individuals, owned a house on South Main Street in Williamstown.
Hui knew he was required to verify that all of his employees were eligible to work in the United States, either as U.S. citizens or immigrants who had work authorization from Immigration and Customs Enforcement. However, at various times in 2012 and 2013, Hui and Lei hired foreign nationals B generally from Mexico or Guatemala B who did not have legal status in the United States. While working at New Eastern Cleaners, the undocumented immigrants lived in the South Main Street house.
At various times, Hui or Lei paid the undocumented immigrants in cash. They were required to work six days a week, approximately 10 hours a day and paid between $400 and $500 dollars per week. Their rent was part of the employment compensation. Hui also admitted that he would transport them or arrange their transportation between the South Main Street house and New Eastern Cleaners.
Hui admitted that when Lei filed Employer's Quarterly Federal Tax Return, Form 941 for all tax quarters in 2012 and the first three quarters in 2013, she only reported wages paid to legal employees of New Eastern Cleaners. She failed to report the wages and pay employment taxes for at least 13 undocumented immigrant employees in 2012 and at least 14 undocumented immigrant employees in 2013.
By filing the false tax forms in 2012 and 2013, Lei and Hui failed to pay the IRS employment taxes of at least $97,104 for the undocumented immigrant employees.
The conspiracy to obstruct and impede the IRS relating to the failure to collect, account for and pay over payroll taxes carries a maximum potential penalty of five years in prison. The harboring aliens charge carries a maximum potential penalty of 10 years in prison. Both charges carry a potential $250,000 fine. Hui=s sentencing is scheduled for Aug. 11, 2016
Lei pleaded guilty to the same charges on May 2, 2016. Her sentencing is also scheduled for Aug. 11, 2016.
U.S. Attorney Fishman credited special agents of Immigration and Customs Enforcement, Homeland Security Investigations (ICE-HSI), under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Terence S. Opiola, and special agents of IRS–Criminal Investigation, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Jonathan D. Larsen, with the investigation leading to today’s guilty plea. He also thanked ICE’s Enforcement and Removal Operations (ERO), under Newark Field Office Director John Tsoukaris, for its assistance in this investigation.
The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorney Jason M. Richardson of the U.S. Attorney's Office Criminal Division in Camden.
Defense counsel:
Hui: Jeffrey Zucker, Esq., Camden, NJ
Lei: Michael Engle, Esq., Philadelphia, PA
Settlement Reached over University's Home Health Care BillingRead the Press Release
PHILADELPHIA – The United States has reached a settlement agreement with the Trustees of the University of Pennsylvania, on behalf of its operating divisions, including the University of Pennsylvania Health System (UPHS), for the alleged submission of false home health care billings to the Medicare program. The settlement includes $75,787 to resolve allegations that Penn Care at Home violated the False Claims Act by submitting claims to Medicare for services not rendered and for services that were not reasonable or necessary. As part of the settlement agreement, UPHS has also agreed to implement new compliance oversight measures for its home health entities and will annually submit certified compliance reports pertaining to its home health entities to the United States Attorney’s Office through 2019. The settlement releases UPHS from liability for conduct pertaining to a specific limited number of episodes of patient care.
The settlement resolves a lawsuit pending in federal court in the Eastern District of Pennsylvania that was filed under the qui tam, or whistleblower, provisions of the False Claims Act, which allow private citizens to bring civil actions on behalf of the United States and share in any recovery.
This case was investigated by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office of the Inspector General and U.S. Office of Personnel Management Office of the Inspector General. It was handled by Assistant United States Attorneys John T. Crutchlow and Gregory B. David.
Serial Armed Robber Sentenced to 33 Years in PrisonRead the Press Release
A Detroit man was sentenced to 33 years in federal prison after having pleaded guilty earlier this year to armed robbery and firearms offenses, announced United States Attorney Barbara L. McQuade.
McQuade was joined in the announcement by Special Agent in Charge David P. Gelios, Federal Bureau of Investigation.
Elan Andrews, 29, of Detroit was sentenced yesterday by United States District Judge Gerald E. Rosen in Detroit.
According to court records, Andrews was the leader of a several man robbery crew that committed armed robberies of Little Caesar’s fast food stores in Oak Park and Dearborn in March of 2008. Andrews and his accomplices would enter the restaurant wearing hoodies, display a firearm, and demand the contents of the cash register and safe before fleeing to a waiting vehicle with an occupant inside. The “hoodies” worn during the robberies were unique "hoodies" in that one had a skeletal-like design on the chest area and the other had a web-like design on its chest area. Hence, law enforcement dubbed them the "Spiderman Crew." In addition, the hood of each hoodie zipped from the back portion of the hood all the way down below the front chest portion. Each hoodie, once zipped, had a built in mask that enclosed and hid the wearer's face behind a built-in dark mesh material. The two robberies were part of a rash of robberies of commercial fast food restaurants over a two-week period during the spring of 2008. The robberies were wide-spread and targeted restaurants in Detroit and surrounding suburban communities, including Ferndale, Birmingham, Redford, and Oak Park.
Andrews, and other members of the crew, were apprehended as a result of a task force comprised of officers from the Detroit Police Department and several suburban law enforcement agencies that dedicated several of its officers to the task force in an effort to stop this particular crime spree.
US Attorney McQuade stated, “We hope that violent offenders will take note of this type of sentence and put down their guns."
Co-defendants Jamal Muhammad received a sentence of 9 ½ years, Anthony Sampson received a sentence of 6 years and Elisha Whitehead received a sentence of 15 years.
United States Attorney McQuade praised the work of all officers and agencies involved for the diligent pursuit and investigation of the men who were intent on terrorizing businesses, employees and customers in the Detroit area.
The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Terrence Haugabook and Shane Cralle.