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Wednesday 24 February 2016
Hidalgo Officials Sentenced for Conspiracy to Commit BriberyRead the Press Release
McALLEN, Texas ‐ Two Hidalgo women have been ordered to federal prison following their conviction for conspiracy to commit bribery, announced U.S. Attorney Kenneth Magidson. Susana Munguia, 61, and Lubina Pedraza, 54, pleaded guilty July 13, 2015.
Today, U.S. District Judge Micaela Alvarez, who accepted the guilty pleas, handed Munguia a 57-month sentence, while Pedraza was ordered to serve 46 months. The sentences will be followed by three years of supervised release. Munguia and Pedraza were also ordered to forfeit approximately $14,497 in illicit proceeds. In handing down the sentence, Judge Alvarez noted that we cannot allow public corruption to spread. There is no excuse for someone who takes a position in the public sector and then illegally uses that position for their own benefit.
Munguia and Pedraza were former officials with the City of Hidalgo Housing Authority who worked directly with the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD)’s Housing Choice Voucher Program (HCVP). Munguia was the executive director and Pedraza was a secretary.
From July 2011 to May 2014, Munguia and Pedraza admitted they used their positions as public officials to engage in a bribery scheme. The two women solicited and received bribes in exchange for allowing individuals to skip the Section 8 waitlist and immediately obtain housing assistance from the HCVP. Individuals paid, directly or through a third party, a monetary bribe to Munguia and Pedraza in order to bypass the waitlist system and to receive immediate approval to obtain vouchers for housing subsidies under the HCVP.
Munguia supervised and Pedraza was responsible for assigning housing to the payee or beneficiary and issued checks to subsidize their rent payments. After Munguia and Pedraza received the bribe, the paying party (or the person for whom payment was made), would immediately receive their subsidized housing.
Previously released on bond, the women were permitted to remain on bond and voluntarily surrender to a U.S. Bureau of Prisons facility to be determined in the near future.
The investigation was conducted by HUD-Office of Inspector General and the FBI. Assistant U.S. Attorney Kristen Rees prosecuted the case.
Hell’s Angels Member Pleads Guilty to Armed Assault; Rochester Woman Pleads Guilty to Accessory ChargeRead the Press Release
CONTACT: Barbara Burns
PHONE: (716) 843-5817
FAX #: (716) 551-3051ROCHESTER, N.Y.-U.S. Attorney William J. Hochul Jr. announced today that Robert W. Moran, Jr., 63, of Rochester, NY, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit assault with a dangerous weapon in aid of racketeering activity, before U.S. District Judge Charles J. Siragusa. The charge carries a maximum penalty of three years in prison and a $250,000 fine. In addition, Gina Tata, 52, also of Rochester, pleaded guilty to being an accessory after the fact to the crime of conspiracy to commit assault with a dangerous weapon in aid of racketeering activity. That charge carries a maximum penalty of 18 months in prison and a $125,000 fine.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Brett A. Harvey, who is handling the case, stated that on May 31, 2006, Moran – a member and officer of the Rochester Hell’s Angels – assaulted a patron at Spenders Bar on Lyell Avenue in Rochester with a baseball bat. The defendant beat the patron in the head and body after the patron made disparaging remarks about motorcycle clubs, including the Hell’s Angels. At the time of the assault, Moran was a member of the Rochester Hell’s Angels, which was an enterprise the members of which were engaged in racketeering activity, including drug trafficking and conspiracy to commit murder. The defendant committed the assault in order to maintain his position in the Rochester Hell’s Angels.
Gina Tata, who was the bartender at Spenders Bar at the time of the assault, tried to help Moran escape arrest and prosecution for the assault. After hearing the comments made by the patron, Tata called a member of the Rochester Hell’s Angels, leading to the eventual beating of the victim by Moran. In the aftermath of the attack, Tata took several steps to help Moran avoid apprehension by law enforcement authorities, including lying to the police about the identities of the perpetrator of the assault. Tata also counseled another eyewitness to not give the police a good description of the perpetrator and to not identify Moran. Also, in the early morning hours after the assault, Tata let an associate of the Rochester Hell’s Angels into Spenders Bar to retrieve a hard drive containing recordings of the interior surveillance cameras at the bar. In May 2007, a year after the assault, Tata lied to the FBI about the perpetrators of the assault, describing them as tall, young Hispanic males, and falsely told the FBI that she used the phone at Spenders Bar only to call 911 and the owner of the bar.These pleas are part of a larger investigation that resulted in the indictment and arrest of members and associates of the Rochester and Monterey (California) Hell's Angels for drug trafficking and racketeering-related offenses in February 2012. Hell's Angels President Richard W. Mar, and Jeffrey A. Tyler, were charged with conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute, and to distribute, 500 grams or more of methamphetamine. Five other defendants – Henry McCauley, Donna Boon, Paul Griffin, Richard E. Riedman, and Gordon L. Montgomery – were convicted for their roles in the methamphetamine conspiracy. Judge Siragusa sentenced Griffin to probation and Riedman to 37 months in prison. McCauley, Boon and Montomgery are awaiting sentencing. Another defendant, Timothy M. Stone, was convicted and of being an accessory after the fact to the assault and conspiracy, and was sentenced to 12 months in prison.
The fact that a defendant has been charged with a crime is merely an accusation and the defendant is presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty.
The plea is the culmination of an investigation on the part of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Adam Cohen, the Genesee County Sheriff's Office, under the direction of Sheriff Gary T. Maha, the Drug Enforcement Administration, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge James J. Hunt, New York Field Division, the New York State Police, under the direction of Major Craig Hanesworth, the City of Batavia Police Department, under the direction of Chief Sean Shawn Heubusch, and the Village of LeRoy Police Department.
Sentencing for Moran and Tata is scheduled for May 25, 2016, at 10:15 a.m. and 11:00 a.m. respectively, both before Judge Siragusa.
Hammond Man Sentenced to 22 Years in Prison after Pleading Guilty to Drug and Gun ChargesRead the Press Release
U.S. Attorney Kenneth A. Polite announced that MARCUS BRUMFIELD, age 31, of Hammond, was sentenced today after pleading guilty to charges of possession with the intent to distribute twenty-eight grams or more of cocaine base, felon in possession of a firearm, and possession of a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime.
U.S. District Judge Sarah S. Vance sentenced BRUMFIELD to 264 months in prison to be followed by 4 years of supervised release.
According to court documents, on August 27, 2013, Officers with the Hammond Police Department arrested BRUMFIELD, who was previously convicted of a felony, after finding him in a vehicle with 1.4 ounces of cocaine base, and a stolen Glock, .45 caliber handgun.
U.S. Attorney Polite praised the work of the Drug Enforcement Administration and the Hammond Police Department in investigating this matter. Assistant United States Attorney Andre’ Jones was in charge of the prosecution.
Fourteen Alleged Gang Members and Associates Indicted in Charleston, South Carolina, on Federal Racketeering and Attempted Murder ChargesRead the Press Release
Contact Person: Office of Public Affairs (202) 514-2007
Washington – Fourteen alleged members of two violent street gangs in South Carolina and alleged associates of both gangs have been indicted by a federal grand jury for allegedly conspiring to participate in a racketeering enterprise and using firearms in the commission of attempted murder in aid of racketeering activity.Assistant Attorney General Leslie R. Caldwell of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division; U.S. Attorney William M. Nettles of the District of South Carolina; Special Agent in Charge C.J. Hyman of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) Charlotte, North Carolina, Field Division; Special Agent in Charge Nick S. Annan of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations (ICE-HSI) Atlanta Field Office; Solicitor Duffie Stone of the 14th Judicial Circuit; Solicitor David Pascoe of the First Circuit; Sheriff R.A. Strickland, of the Colleton County, South Carolina, Sheriff’s Office; Chief Wade Marvin of the Walterboro, South Carolina, Police Department; Sheriff Al Cannon of the Charleston County, South Carolina, Sheriff’s Office; Sheriff L.C. Knight of the Dorchester County, South Carolina, Sheriff’s Office; Captain Jon Rogers of the Summerville, South Carolina, Police Department; Director Jerry Adger of the South Carolina Department of Probation, Parole and Pardon Services; and Chief Mark Keel of the South Carolina Law Enforcement Division – Lowcountry Office made the announcement today upon the unsealing of the indictments.
Cowboys Indictment
According to the indictment, the defendants are members and associates of the Cowboys, a violent criminal street gang with members operating in South Carolina since at least 2009, who resided in an area known as the “Eastside” of Walterboro and are led by Khiry Broughton. The indictment further alleges that for a period of time, the Cowboys were aligned with another violent criminal street gang in Walterboro known as the Wildboys.
From October 2012 to November 2015, the Cowboys allegedly committed a wide range of crimes in order to further their racketeering scheme, including attempted murders, assault with dangerous weapons, drive-by shootings, home invasion robberies, threats of violence and distribution of narcotics, and charges the following defendants:- Broughton, 25, aka Kblacka;
- DaShawn Trevell Brown, 23, aka Shawny;
- Clyde Naquan Hampton, 23, aka One Loyal Shooter;
- Zaquann Ernest Hampton, 22, aka TOB;
- Matthew Rashaun Jones, 22, aka Boogie Mac;
- Christopher Sean Brown, 22, aka Roughish;
- Bryant Jameek Davis, 21, aka Savo;
- William Lamont Cox, 38, aka Wataz; and
- Quintin John Fishburne, 35, aka Q.
The indictment was returned under seal on Feb. 9, 2016, and unsealed yesterday after the nine defendants were arrested.
Wildboys Indictment
According to the four-count indictment, the defendants are members and associates of the Wildboys, a violent criminal street gang with members operating in various cities in South Carolina, including in Summerville and Walterboro. Wildboys members and associates allegedly committed a wide range of racketeering activity, including assault with dangerous weapons, murder, robbery and narcotics trafficking.
The indictment charges the following defendants with attempted murder in aid of racketeering activity and using a firearm during a violent crime:- Joshua Edward Manigault, 30, aka J-Rizzle and Rizzle-Back;
- Brian Manigo, 24, aka B-Nasty;
- Kelvin Mitchell, 28, aka Kevy Boy;
- Damien Robinson, 19, aka Sacked Up; and
- Devin Brown, 21, aka Deno Badazz.
The indictment was returned under seal on Feb. 9, 2016, and unsealed yesterday after the five defendants were arrested.
* * *
The Criminal Division’s Organized Crime and Gang Section is prosecuting the cases in partnership with the 14th Circuit Solicitor’s Office. The ATF, ICE-HSI, the Colleton County Sheriff’s Office, the Walterboro Police Department, Charleston County Sheriff’s Office, the Dorchester County Sheriff’s Office, the Summerville Police Department and the First Circuit Solicitor’s Office are investigating the cases.
An indictment is not evidence of guilt. All defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
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Fourteen Alleged Gang Members and Associates Indicted in Charleston, South Carolina, on Federal Racketeering and Attempted Murder ChargesRead the Press Release
Fourteen alleged members of two violent street gangs in South Carolina and alleged associates of both gangs have been indicted by a federal grand jury for allegedly conspiring to participate in a racketeering enterprise and using firearms in the commission of attempted murder in aid of racketeering activity.
Assistant Attorney General Leslie R. Caldwell of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division; U.S. Attorney William M. Nettles of the District of South Carolina; Special Agent in Charge C.J. Hyman of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) Charlotte, North Carolina, Field Division; Special Agent in Charge Nick S. Annan of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations (ICE-HSI) Atlanta Field Office; Solicitor Duffie Stone of the 14th Judicial Circuit; Solicitor David Pascoe of the First Circuit; Sheriff R.A. Strickland, of the Colleton County, South Carolina, Sheriff’s Office; Chief Wade Marvin of the Walterboro, South Carolina, Police Department; Sheriff Al Cannon of the Charleston County, South Carolina, Sheriff’s Office; Sheriff L.C. Knight of the Dorchester County, South Carolina, Sheriff’s Office; Captain Jon Rogers of the Summerville, South Carolina, Police Department; Director Jerry Adger of the South Carolina Department of Probation, Parole and Pardon Services; and Chief Mark Keel of the South Carolina Law Enforcement Division made the announcement today upon the unsealing of the indictments.
Cowboys Indictment
According to the indictment, the defendants are members and associates of the Cowboys, a violent criminal street gang with members operating in South Carolina since at least 2009, who resided in an area known as the “Eastside” of Walterboro and are led by Khiry Broughton. The indictment further alleges that for a period of time, the Cowboys were aligned with another violent criminal street gang in Walterboro known as the Wildboys.
From October 2012 to November 2015, the Cowboys allegedly committed a wide range of crimes in order to further their racketeering scheme, including attempted murders, assault with dangerous weapons, drive-by shootings, home invasion robberies, threats of violence and distribution of narcotics, and charges the following defendants:
- Broughton, 25, aka Kblacka;
- DaShawn Trevell Brown, 23, aka Shawny;
- Clyde Naquan Hampton, 23, aka One Loyal Shooter;
- Zaquann Ernest Hampton, 22, aka TOB;
- Matthew Rashaun Jones, 22, aka Boogie Mac;
- Christopher Sean Brown, 22, aka Roughish;
- Bryant Jameek Davis, 21, aka Savo;
- William Lamont Cox, 38, aka Wataz; and
- Quintin John Fishburne, 35, aka Q.
The indictment was returned under seal on Feb. 9, 2016, and unsealed yesterday after the nine defendants were arrested.
Wildboys Indictment
According to the four-count indictment, the defendants are members and associates of the Wildboys, a violent criminal street gang with members operating in various cities in South Carolina, including in Summerville and Walterboro. Wildboys members and associates allegedly committed a wide range of racketeering activity, including assault with dangerous weapons, murder, robbery and narcotics trafficking.
The indictment charges the following defendants with attempted murder in aid of racketeering activity and using a firearm during a violent crime:
- Joshua Edward Manigault, 30, aka J-Rizzle and Rizzle-Back;
- Brian Manigo, 24, aka B-Nasty;
- Kelvin Mitchell, 28, aka Kevy Boy;
- Damien Robinson, 19, aka Sacked Up; and
- Devin Brown, 21, aka Deno Badazz.
The indictment was returned under seal on Feb. 9, 2016, and unsealed yesterday after the five defendants were arrested.
* * *
The Criminal Division’s Organized Crime and Gang Section is prosecuting the cases in partnership with the 14th Circuit Solicitor’s Office. The ATF, ICE-HSI, the Colleton County Sheriff’s Office, the Walterboro Police Department, Charleston County Sheriff’s Office, the Dorchester County Sheriff’s Office, the Summerville Police Department and the First Circuit Solicitor’s Office are investigating the cases.
An indictment is not evidence of guilt. All defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
Four Sentenced for Roles in March 2014 Heroin Overdose Death of a Dallas Teenage GirlRead the Press Release
DALLAS — A 37-year-old heroin dealer and his three co-conspirators, including two women who injected a Dallas teenage girl with a fatal dose of that heroin in March 2014, were sentenced this week in federal court in Dallas, announced U.S. Attorney John Parker of the Northern District of Texas.
On Monday, Jimison Erik Coleman, 37, of Los Angeles, California, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Sam A. Lindsay to 16 years in federal prison. He pleaded guilty in August 2015 to one count of conspiracy to possess with the intent to distribute heroin, stemming from his role in the March 2014 heroin overdose death of a Dallas teenage girl, Rian Hannah Lashley.
Co-conspirator Cierra Allyn Rounds, 28, was sentenced on Monday by Judge Lindsay to 13 years in in federal prison. She pleaded guilty in March 2015 to the same offense.
Today, the two remaining coconspirators, who also pleaded guilty to the same offense, Kathryn Grace Dirks, a/k/a “Kat,” 26, and Glen William Brunton, 29, both of Dallas, were sentenced by Judge Lindsay to 13 years and five years, respectively.
“This case is a tragic yet perfect example of why we prosecute those who peddle poison to our children,” said U.S. Attorney Parker. “Heroin, and the prescription opioids like OxyContin and hydrocodone that fuel its demand, are killing our loved ones and tearing our families apart. This is the fastest growing and most dangerous drug threat in north Texas today and throughout this country. Opioid overdoses have reached epidemic proportions as they have tripled since 2000. Heroin deaths alone have tripled in just four years. Shockingly, eighty people a day die from opioid overdose in this country, and thirty of those, like Rian, from heroin. The cost of dealing this poison is going to be steep, particularly when people die. That’s our job.”
According to documents filed in the case, Coleman and Dirks were involved in a romantic relationship in 2013 and part of 2014, and during the time they were together, Coleman routinely distributed drugs, including heroin, MDMA and prescription drugs, to dancers and patrons at a strip club in Dallas where Dirks worked and at clubs in Southern California. Sometimes Coleman fronted quantities of drugs to particular dancers who, at his direction, sold the drugs to patrons and/or other dancers with whom they came in contact. On occasion, Dirks directed customers who were interested in purchasing drugs to Coleman, and in return, Coleman provided Dirks with heroin and other drugs to support her drug addiction. From December 2013 until April 2015, Coleman distributed multiple grams of heroin, multiple hits of ecstasy and molly, multiple ounces of cocaine and various prescription drugs to numerous customers in North Texas and elsewhere.
Early in the morning on March 25, 2014, Coleman, Dirks, Rounds, Brunton and Lashley met for breakfast at an IHOP restaurant in Plano, Texas. Coleman had provided Dirks, Rounds and Brunton with heroin on numerous occasions prior to that date. Rounds and the others learned that Lashley had about $3,500, a cell phone and an iPad.
Later that morning in a parking lot near the IHOP, Coleman gave Brunton five baggies totaling one gram of “China White” heroin and directed him to deliver the heroin to Lashley, who was with Dirks and Rounds in Lashley’s vehicle. At Coleman’s direction, Brunton distributed the heroin to Lashley for $120 cash that he subsequently turned over to Coleman. After acquiring the heroin, Rounds, Dirks and Lashley left the parking lot in Lashley’s vehicle and traveled to a residence in Dallas where Rounds lived. Coleman and Brunton left the parking lot in a separate vehicle.
On the way to that residence, Rounds used Lashley’s cell phone to send a series of text messages to Coleman, including information about their proximity to the residence and a text advising him that “…I figured ud want me on this money.” Rounds admitted that when she sent this text to Coleman, she was notifying him that she understood that she was to attempt to steal the money Lashley had and turn it over to Coleman. As Rounds and the others arrived at the Dallas residence, Rounds sent another text message to Coleman asking if she should take Lashley and Dirks inside. Coleman texted back, “Don’t leave don’t let them leave.” Rounds understood the message to mean to take Lashley into the residence and keep her there. In fact, later that afternoon, Dirks turned over a portion or all of Lashley’s cash to Coleman.
Once inside the Dallas residence, at Lashley’s request, Rounds and Dirks used a syringe to inject the heroin that Coleman supplied into Lashley. Just before doing that, however, Rounds sent Coleman a text stating “…ima bout to shoot her up for her first time.” Rounds admitted that she hoped the heroin injection would incapacitate Lashley in such a way to allow her to steal Lashley’s cash. Lashley was injected a total of three times.
Later that afternoon, Lashley began showing signs of distress and Rounds and Dirks placed her in a bathtub of ice water in an attempt to reverse the effects of the heroin. After she was removed from the bathtub, Lashley was placed on a couch and appeared to go to sleep.
Rian Lashley died later that evening as a direct result of the heroin she bought from Coleman that was administered to her. An autopsy concluded that Lashley died as a result of the toxic effects of heroin.
The Dallas Police Department, the FBI, the U.S. Marshals Service, and the Buena Park, California, Police Department investigated. Deputy Criminal Chief Assistant U.S. Attorney Rick Calvert and Assistant U.S. Attorney Phelesa Guy prosecuted the case.
# # #
Fort Campbell, Kentucky, Resident Sentenced to 18 Years in Prison for First Degree Manslaughter Resulting from Child AbuseRead the Press Release
LOUISVILLE, Ky. – A Fort Campbell, Kentucky, woman was sentenced today by Senior United States District Judge Thomas B. Russell to 18 years in prison, followed by a three year period of supervised release, for the first degree manslaughter, resulting from child abuse, in the death of an infant whom she was babysitting in December 2013, announced United States Attorney John E. Kuhn, Jr.
There is no parole in the federal system.
“This sudden violent act ended with tragic consequences,” stated U.S. Attorney John Kuhn. “While nothing we can do will ever bring this innocent child back, we have strived to achieve justice for this family.”
Sheilla E. Linares, 22, previously admitted that on December 3, 2013, while on Fort Campbell Military Base, a special jurisdiction of the United States, located in Christian County, Kentucky, she provided babysitting service for an infant child, T.R.C., Jr. Three other children also were in the residence under Linares’ care that day, her two young children and T.R.C., Jr.’s three-year-old sister, A.C. No other adults were present in the residence during the day.
Between 3:00-3:30 p.m. Linares intentionally caused serious injury to T.R.C., Jr. Linares later admitted to law enforcement that it took her less than a second to realize that what she had done was completely wrong. She admitted to then putting the baby in the swing at which point, the infant became unresponsive. Linares stated that she then called the baby’s mother and 9-1-1.
An ambulance transported T.R.C., Jr. to the emergency room at the Army hospital located on Fort Campbell Military Base. His condition deteriorated and he was transported to Vanderbilt. While being treated at Vanderbilt, medical personnel noticed bruising that appeared on both of his shoulders as well as his left upper arm. Medical tests and examinations revealed bilateral subdural hemorrhage (approximately 25 ml total volume), focal subarachnoid hemorrhage, cerebral edema, bilateral optic nerve sheath hemorrhage, subdural blood throughout the spinal cord, and cervical nerve root hemorrhage. T.R.C., Jr.’s injuries were a result of Linares’ abuse. Those injuries led to his death.
On December 7, 2013, T.R.C., Jr., was determined to have insufficient brain activity to sustain life, and pronounced dead. The amended autopsy report of the Tennessee medical examiner lists the cause of death as blunt force injuries of the head and neck.
Assistant United States Attorney Jo E. Lawless is prosecuting the case. The Federal Bureau of Investigation, with assistance from the United States Army Criminal Investigation Division, and the Clarksville Tennessee Police Department, conducted the investigation.
Former VA Nurse Pleads Guilty to Stealing Controlled Substance from Hospital SyringesRead the Press Release
ALBANY, NEW YORK – Nathan Baum, age 30, of East Greenbush, New York, pled guilty today to tampering with a consumer product and obtaining controlled substances by deception and subterfuge.
The announcement was made by United States Attorney Richard S. Hartunian; Special Agent in Charge Jeffrey G. Hughes of the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs Office of Inspector General, Northeast Field Office; and Acting Special Agent in Charge Spencer E. Morrison of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration Office of Criminal Investigations, New York Field Office.
Baum, a licensed practical nurse who worked at the hospice ward of the Veterans Affairs Medical Center (VAMC) in Albany, improperly accessed syringes that contained oxycodone hydrochloride. These syringes were stored in locked containers, which Baum was able to access using his individually assigned password. Between April 8, 2014 and May 16, 2014, Baum removed the oxycodone hydrochloride from at least 25 syringes and replaced it with haloperidol.
Oxycodone hydrochloride, a Schedule II controlled substance, is a highly addictive narcotic analgesic used to treat moderate to severe pain and is to be prescribed only when medically required. Haloperidol, often marketed as Haldol, is an anti-psychotic medication used to treat certain mental/mood disorders and to treat uncontrolled movements or agitation.
“To satisfy his addiction, the defendant stole pain medicine intended for veterans in hospice care and tried to hide his crime by replacing that medicine with anti-psychotic medicine that would not have eased their pain,” stated U.S. Attorney Richard S. Hartunian. “In committing this terrible crime, Baum betrayed his patients and their loved ones, the nursing profession, and the Department of Veterans Affairs.”
“Mr. Baum abused his position as a nurse with the VA for his own personal gain at the expense of his patients,” stated Special Agent in Charge Jeffrey G. Hughes of the Veterans Affairs Office of Inspector General, Northeast Field Office. “The VAOIG will continue to work diligently with its law enforcement partners and U.S. Attorney’s Offices to apprehend those who victimize our nation’s veterans.”
“FDA oversees the U.S. supply of medicines to ensure that they are safe and effective, and those who knowingly give the wrong medicines to patients put their health at risk,” said Spencer E. Morrison, Acting Special Agent in Charge, FDA Office of Criminal Investigations’ New York Field Office. “Our office will continue to pursue and bring to justice those who violate laws designed to protect the public health.”
Baum’s tampering was discovered in late May 2014, when his supervisor noticed that he was slurring his speech and his pupils were pinpoint – signs of controlled substance abuse. When federal agents inspected the locked container Baum was allowed to access, they found that three sets of oxycodone hydrochloride syringes had been tampered with. In an interview, Baum admitted that he was addicted to painkillers; that he used oxycodone hydrochloride that was intended for veterans; and that he replaced the oxycodone hydrochloride in some syringes with Haldol.
Senior U.S. District Judge Lawrence E. Kahn is scheduled to sentence Baum on June 22, 2016. Tampering with a consumer product carries a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison, a fine of
up to $250,000, and a term of supervised release of up to 3 years. Obtaining controlled substances by deception and subterfuge carries a maximum sentence of 4 years in prison and a fine of up to $250,000. A defendant’s sentence is imposed by a judge based on a combination of factors including the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and relevant statutes.This case is being investigated by the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs Office of Inspector General and the Food and Drug Administration Office of Criminal Investigations, and is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Elizabeth R. Rabe.
Former State Senator Leland Yee Sentenced to Five Years’ Imprisonment on Racketeering Conspiracy ChargesRead the Press Release
SAN FRANCISCO – Former State Senator Leland Yee was sentenced to 60 months’ imprisonment and Keith Jackson was sentenced to 108 months’ imprisonment today for their respective roles in a racketeering conspiracy announced Acting United States Attorney Brian J. Stretch and FBI Special Agent in Charge David J. Johnson. Brandon Jamelle Jackson and Marlon Sullivan also were sentenced today; Jackson to 54 months and Sullivan to 66 months, for their respective roles in a separate, but related, conspiracy. Today’s sentences are the first four to result from the second superseding indictment filed January 29, 2015, in federal court.
The second superseding indictment stemmed from allegations that former Senator Yee, along with 27 other defendants, was involved in a broad array of criminal activity. All four defendants who were sentenced today had pleaded guilty to one count of conducting the affairs of a racketeering enterprise through a pattern of racketeering activity, in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 1962(d). Central to the allegations in the indictment is the existence of two criminal enterprises through which some of the defendants engaged in patterns of racketeering (RICO) activity. Yee and Keith Jackson acknowledged participating in one RICO conspiracy while Sullivan and Brandon Jackson admitted to participating in a related conspiracy.
On July 1, 2015, Yee and Keith Jackson pleaded guilty to using the Leland Yee for Mayor 2011 campaign and the Leland Yee for Secretary of State 2014 campaign to conduct RICO crimes. According to government filings, the conspiracy involved three different, but related, areas of criminal activity: (1) honest services fraud in which he exchanged official acts for money, (2) a weapons trafficking conspiracy, and (3) money laundering. Federal wiretaps established in November of 2012 revealed that Yee devised extortion schemes in which he “tutored and directed [Keith] Jackson.” Yee planned to obtain campaign contributions by leveraging his Senate committee vote on an upcoming decision to dissolve the California State Athletic Commission. According to the government’s papers, Yee requested campaign contributions from individuals interested in keeping the Commission alive. In the second scheme, Yee was prepared to vote for or against pending legislation on workers compensation for professional athletes playing in California depending on which competing interest gave him the most money.
While addressing Yee, Judge Breyer commented during the hearing that the public had to have trust in the integrity of its institutions, but that Yee “abused that trust,” and “did not have that integrity.” Judge Breyer also said that the fact that Yee’s vote as a state senator was “for sale” was, in his view, “a very serious violation of trust.”
Keith Jackson, as part of his plea agreement, acknowledged that he participated in the RICO conspiracy with Yee. Keith Jackson also admitted he committed several crimes to further the conspiracy. Among the activities Keith Jackson acknowledged he participated in to further the conspiracy are accepting cash and checks for bribes, wire fraud, money laundering, and conspiracy to illegally import firearms and ammunition from the Philippines.
Sullivan and Brandon Jackson pleaded guilty on July 1, 2015, to participating in a second RICO conspiracy described in the second superseding indictment. As part of their guilty pleas, both Sullivan and Brandon Jackson acknowledged being associated with a San Francisco Chinese American civic association and conducting RICO crimes. Both Sullivan and Brandon Jackson admitted that between September of 2012 and March of 2014, they arranged the purchase of cocaine and participated in multiple illegal firearms sales. They also admitted that they discussed with an undercover agent the need to kill an associate of the undercover agent. Brandon Jackson admitted to telling the undercover agent he would gather intelligence and bring a family member from out of state to complete the murder-for-hire conspiracy. Sullivan admitted he received $10,000 to ensure that the job would be completed.
The sentences were handed down by the Honorable Charles R. Breyer, U.S. District Judge. Judge Breyer sentenced the defendants as follows:
Leland Yee: 60 months, to begin within the next 30 days, a $20,000 fine, 3 years of supervised release, and forfeiture of certain property.
Keith Jackson: 108 months, to begin within the next 30 days, 3 years of supervised release, and forfeiture of certain property
Marlon Sullivan: 66 months (including time already served), 3 years of supervised release, and forfeiture of certain property
Brandon Jackson: 54 months (including time already served), 3 years of supervised release, and forfeiture of certain property.
Assistant U.S. Attorneys William Frentzen, Susan Badger, and S. Waqar Hasib are prosecuting the case with the assistance of Rosario Calderon, Kurk Kosek, Ana Guerra, Marina Ponomarchuk, Victoria Etterer, and Lance Libatique. The prosecution is the result of an investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation; Internal Revenue Service – Criminal Investigation; San Francisco Police Department Gang Task Force; Oakland Police Department, Criminal Investigation; New York Police Department; and the Mercer County New Jersey Sheriff's Office.
Former Selmer Police Lieutenant Indicted on Federal Child Pornography ChargesRead the Press Release
Memphis, TN – A former Selmer Police Department lieutenant has been indicted on multiple child pornography charges. Edward L. Stanton III, U.S. Attorney for the Western District of Tennessee, announced the indictment today.
According to the indictment, between February and March 2015, Tony O. Miller, 36, of Finger, Tennessee, obtained images and videos of minors, some of whom were under 12 years old, engaged in sexually explicit conduct.
An undercover Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) investigation identified users of a website set up for the purposes of sharing child pornography. Visitors to the website could view, download, and comment on other users' material, as well as upload their own. Miller was identified as one of the website’s users. At the time of the alleged conduct, he was a lieutenant with the Selmer Police Department.
On Wednesday, February 24, 2016, Miller was indicted on one count of receipt of child pornography and two counts of access with intent to view child pornography.
If convicted, Miller faces a minimum sentence of five years and a maximum of 20 years on the receipt of child pornography charge. He faces a maximum sentence of 20 years for each access with intent to view child pornography charge.
Miller faces individual fines of up to $250,000 on each count.
This case is being investigated by the FBI and Selmer Police Department.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Debra Ireland is prosecuting this case on the government’s behalf.
Anyone who has information on the exploitation of minors is asked to contact the Memphis Child Exploitation Task Force at 901.747.4300.
This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood (PSC), 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, PSC marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals, who sexually exploit children, and to identify and rescue victims. For more information about PSC, please visit http://www.justice.gov/psc/. For more information about internet safety education, please visit http://www.justice.gov/psc/resources.html and click on the tab "resources."
The charges and allegations contained in the indictment are merely accusations, and the defendant is considered innocent unless and until proven guilty.
Former Norman Attorney Pleads Guilty to Defrauding Clients and Failing to File a Tax ReturnRead the Press Release
Oklahoma City, Oklahoma – Today, DANE THOMAS WILSON, of Oklahoma City, pled guilty to one count of wire fraud and one count of failing to file a tax return, announced Mark A. Yancey, Acting United States Attorney for the Western District of Oklahoma.
Wilson was charged pursuant to an Information filed by the Government. Wilson admitted today to United States District Judge Timothy D. DeGuisti that from December 2010 through December 31, 2011, while he was a licensed attorney practicing in Norman, Oklahoma, he defrauded his clients by misappropriating funds that he received on their behalf from insurance companies and other payors. Wilson admitted that he deposited the funds he received for the benefit of his clients into a client trust account, and then wrote checks to himself, made cash withdrawals, or transferred money from the client trust account in amounts that exceeded the attorney’s fees that he was contractually entitled to receive from each client. He admitted that, as a result of his actions, some of his clients received no money or less money than they were due from the settlements or judgments he obtained on their behalf. Specifically, Wilson admitted that he caused First American Bank in Oklahoma to use interstate wire communications with the bank’s processor in Texas to withdraw $40,000 from his client trust account. He admitted that this money was fraudulently misappropriated from insurance settlement funds that rightfully belonged to Wilson’s client, R.F.
Wilson also admitted that he knowingly and willfully failed to file a federal income tax return with the Internal Revenue Service for the tax year of 2011.
At sentencing, Wilson faces up to 20 years in prison and a $250,000 fine for the wire fraud charge and up to one year in prison and a $100,000 fine on the tax charge. A sentencing hearing will be set by the court in approximately 90 days.
This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and IRS-Criminal Investigations and was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Amanda Maxfield Green.
Former Junior High School Teacher Indicted for Receiving Child PornRead the Press Release
SPRINGFIELD, Mo. – Tammy Dickinson, United States Attorney for the Western District of Missouri, announced today that a former Lebanon Junior High School teacher has been indicted by a federal grand jury for receiving child pornography over the Internet.
Evert Henry, 41, of Lebanon, Mo., was charged in an indictment returned by a federal grand jury in Springfield, Mo., on Monday, Feb. 23, 2016.
Henry was a teacher in the Lebanon R-3 School District at the junior high school during the time of the alleged offense. The indictment alleges that Henry received child pornography over the Internet from Jan. 1, 2011, to Jan. 13, 2016.
Dickinson cautioned that the charge contained in this indictment is simply an accusation, and not evidence of guilt. Evidence supporting the charge must be presented to a federal trial jury, whose duty is to determine guilt or innocence.
This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney James J. Kelleher. It was investigated by Immigration and Customs Enforcement's (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) and the Lebanon, Mo., Police Department.
Project Safe Childhood
This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by the United States Attorneys' Offices and the Criminal Division's Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who sexually exploit children, and to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.usdoj.gov/psc . For more information about Internet safety education, please visit www.usdoj.gov/psc and click on the tab "resources."
Former Chief Operating Officer and Co-Owner of Schuylkill Products Resentenced in Largest Disadvantaged Business Enterprise Fraud in Nation’s HistoryRead the Press Release
HARRISBURG-Ernest G. Fink, Jr., 70, of Orwigsburg, Pennsylvania, the former Chief Operating Officer and co-owner of Schuylkill Products Inc., was sentenced in federal court in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, today to 41 months’ imprisonment and ordered to pay fines totaling $25,100 for his role in a massive conspiracy to defraud the Disadvantage Enterprise (DBE) program, announced Peter Smith, U.S. Attorney for the Middle District of Pennsylvania.
According to the U.S. Department of Transportation (USDOT), this scheme, which lasted for over 15 years and involved over $136 million in government contracts in Pennsylvania alone, is the largest reported Disadvantaged Business Enterprise (DBE) fraud in the nation’s history.
On July 14, 2014, Fink was sentenced to 51 months’ imprisonment and ordered to pay fines totaling $25,100 for his role in the offense.
That sentence was vacated by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit on September 30, 2015 based on the findings of an incorrect calculation of the loss amount under the Sentencing Guidelines. Today’s sentence was based on a revised loss amount of $1,037, 828.61, which represents the amount of profit diverted from legitimate DBE’s as a result of the scheme. Previously, the loss was calculated based on the total amount of DBE contracts SPI received as a result of the scheme.
The investigation was conducted by the FBI, the U.S. Department of Transportation Inspector General’s Office, the U.S. Department of Labor Inspector General’s Office, and the Criminal Investigation Division of the IRS. Assistant U.S. Attorney Bruce Brandler handled the prosecution.
Fink was Vice-President, Chief Operating Officer and co- owner of Schuylkill Products Inc. (SPI) and its wholly-owned subsidiary CDS Engineers Inc. (CDS), until April 2009 when SPI was sold. SPI, based in Cressona, Pennsylvania, manufactured concrete bridge beams used on highway construction projects in Pennsylvania and surrounding states. CDS was SPI’s erection division and installed SPI’s bridge beams as well as other suppliers’ products on highways in Pennsylvania and surrounding states. The conspiracy defrauded USDOT, the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation (PennDOT) and the Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority (SEPTA) in connection with the federal government’s DBE program.
USDOT provides billions of dollars a year to states and municipalities for the construction and maintenance of highways and mass transit systems on the condition that small businesses, owned and operated by disadvantaged individuals, receive a fair share of these federal funds. In Pennsylvania, PennDOT and SEPTA receive these funds and requires contractors to award a percentage of their subcontracts to eligible DBE’s.
Fink and his co- conspirators executed the scheme by using a small Connecticut highway construction firm known as Marikina Construction Corporation as a front company to obtain these lucrative government contracts.
Marikina was owned by Romeo P. Cruz of West Haven, Connecticut, a naturalized American citizen born in the Philippines. Marikina was certified by PennDOT and SEPTA as a DBE. Although Marikina received the DBE contracts on paper, all the work was performed by SPI and CDS personnel, and SPI and CDS received all the profits. In exchange for letting SPI and CDS use its name, Marikina was paid a small fixed-fee, set by SPI.
SPI and CDS personnel pretended to be Marikina employees by using Marikina business cards, email addresses, stationery, and signature stamps, as well as using magnetic placards and decals bearing the Marikina logo to cover up SPI and CDS logos on SPI and CDS vehicles.
In 2014, four other former executives associated with SPI, CDS and Marikina were sentenced for their roles in the scheme.
Joseph W. Nagle, the former President and co-owner of SPI, was found guilty after a four week trial of 26 charges and was sentenced to 84 months imprisonment and ordered to pay fines totaling $27,600. Nagle’s conviction was affirmed by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit on September 30, 2015, but his sentence was vacated along with Fink’s for the same reasons. Nagle has not been resentenced yet. He has a petition for writ of certiorari pending with the U.S. Supreme Court regarding the Third Circuit’s decision to affirm his conviction.
Romeo P. Cruz, the former owner of Marikina, was sentenced to 33 months’ imprisonment, must pay $119 million in restitution and serve two years’ supervised release.
Timothy G. Hubler, of Ashland, Pennsylvania, CDS’ former Vice-President in charge of field operations, was sentenced to 33 months’ imprisonment, pay $119 million in restitution and serve two years’ supervised release.
Dennis F. Campbell, of Orwigsburg, Pennsylvania, SPI’s former Vice-President in charge of sales and marketing was sentenced to 24 months’ imprisonment, $119 million in restitution and serve two years’ supervised release.
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Former Background Investigator for Federal Government Pleads Guilty to Making a False StatementRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON – Jason A. Razo, 38, a former background investigator who did work under contract for the U.S. Office of Personnel Management (OPM), pled guilty today to a charge stemming from his falsification of work on background investigations of federal employees and contractors, announced U.S. Attorney Channing D. Phillips and Norbert E. Vint, Deputy Inspector General for the Office of Personnel Management.
Razo, of Van Nuys, Calif., pled guilty in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia to making a false statement. The Honorable Senior Judge Gladys Kessler scheduled sentencing for May 10, 2016. The charge carries a statutory penalty of up to five years in prison and a fine of up to $250,000. As part of the plea, Razo has agreed to pay $85,779 in restitution to the federal government.
According to a statement of offense submitted to the Court, Razo was employed by KeyPoint Government Solutions as an investigator under contract to conduct background investigations on behalf of OPM’s Federal Investigative Services.
Between October 2010 and July 2011, in approximately 50 Reports of Investigations on background investigations, Razo represented that he had interviewed a source or reviewed a record regarding the subject of the background investigation. In fact, he had not conducted the interviews or obtained the records of interest. These reports were utilized and relied upon by the agencies requesting the background investigations to determine whether the subjects were suitable for positions having access to classified information, for positions impacting national security, for receiving or retaining security clearances, or for positions of public trust.
Razo’s false representations have required Federal Investigative Services to reopen and rework numerous background investigations that were assigned to him during the time period of his falsifications, at an estimated cost of at least $85,779 to the U.S. government.
Federal Investigative Services has a robust integrity assurance program which utilizes a variety of methods to ensure the accuracy of reported information. The falsification of investigative case work by the defendant was detected through the program.
This is one of numerous cases prosecuted by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia since 2008 involving false representations by background investigators and record checkers working on federal background investigations. In addition to Razo, 21 other background investigators and two record checkers have been convicted of charges.
Federal Investigative Services, through its workforce of approximately 6,000, including 5,200 field investigators, is responsible for conducting background investigations for numerous federal agencies and their contractors, on individuals either employed by or seeking employment with those agencies or contractors. Federal Investigative Services conducted more than 2.4 million investigations during the 2015 fiscal year. More than 600,000 of these investigations involved applicants for access or continued access to classified information.
In performing background investigations, the investigators conduct interviews of individuals who have information about the person who is the subject of the review. In addition, the investigators seek out, obtain, and review documentary evidence, such as employment records, to verify and corroborate information provided by either the subject of the background investigation or by persons interviewed during the investigation. After conducting interviews and obtaining documentary evidence, the investigators prepare a Report of Investigation containing the results of the interviews and document reviews, and electronically submit the material to OPM in Washington, D.C. OPM then provides a copy of the investigative file to the requesting agency, which can use the information to determine an individual’s eligibility for employment or a security clearance.
In announcing the plea, U.S. Attorney Phillips and Deputy Inspector General Vint praised the efforts of Special Agent Christopher Sulhoff, OPM, Office of the Inspector General, and Philip Kroop, Kevin Cassidy, and Jeffrey Addicks, OPM, Federal Investigative Services. They also acknowledged the work of Paralegal Specialists Donna Galindo and Julie Dailey of the U.S. Attorney’s Office, as well as Assistant U.S. Attorney Ellen Chubin Epstein, who investigated and prosecuted this matter.
Former Accounting Manager Sentenced to Prison for Embezzling Nearly $400,000 from Huntersville-Area EmployerRead the Press Release
CHARLOTTE, N.C. – Amy Hilty, 38, formerly of Stanley, N.C. and now residing in Dalton, Ohio, was sentenced yesterday to 18 months in prison for stealing nearly $400,000 from her former employer and for tax evasion, announced Jill Westmoreland Rose, U.S. Attorney for the Western District of North Carolina. U.S. District Judge Max O. Cogburn, Jr. ordered Hilty to serve three years of supervision following her prison term, and to pay restitution to her former employer and the IRS.
U.S. Attorney Rose is joined in making today’s announcement by Thomas J. Holloman III, Special Agent in Charge of the Internal Revenue Service, Criminal Investigation Division (IRS-CI).
According to filed documents and yesterday’s court proceedings, from 2008 to 2012, Hilty was employed as accounting manager for a company located in Huntersville, N.C. As the company’s accounting manager, Hilty’s responsibilities included preparing the company’s financial statements, maintaining QuickBooks, preparing payroll and making bank deposits. According to court records, Hilty used her access to the company’s accounting system to divert company funds to bank accounts she controlled. According to court records, Hilty covered her fraud by falsely recording the stolen funds in the company’s books and records as supplies, owner withdrawals and travel expenses, among others. In this manner, court records show that Hilty embezzled $390,156.73 from the company during the relevant time period and used the money to purchase a new home and a BMW vehicle. Court records also show that for tax years 2008 through 2011, Hilty did not file federal income tax returns, and failed to report the diverted income and her salary from the victim company, totaling $520,976.17.
Hilty will be ordered to self-report to 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 IRS-CI and the Huntersville Police Department. The prosecution for the government is being handled by Assistant U.S. Attorney Jenny G. Sugar of the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Charlotte.
Forestport Man Sentenced on Firearms and Drug Trafficking ChargesRead the Press Release
CONTACT: Barbara Burns
PHONE: (716) 843-5817
FAX #: (716) 551-3051ROCHESTER, N.Y.-- U.S. Attorney William J. Hochul, Jr. announced today that Mitchell Parrott, 43, of Forestport, NY, who was convicted of manufacturing methamphetamine and possessing a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking activity, was sentenced to 14 years in prison by U.S. District Court Judge Charles J. Siragusa.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Charles E. Moynihan, who handled the case, stated that on March 9, 2012, the New York State Police received a telephone call reporting a suspicious odor and unusual activity at a residence on Stewart Road in Horseheads, NY. The caller also told police that there was an open window with a box fan blowing in the upstairs front window. The temperature was approximately 30 degrees Fahrenheit.
Troopers responded to the address and contacted Parrott who was inside the residence with his girlfriend. Troopers could see a box fan blowing air out of a second floor window and the air smelled like ether. Through the windows of the house, troopers could also see parts of a laboratory, including plastic tubing, cans of starter fluid, used to manufacture methamphetamine.
Troopers obtained a search warrant and seized, among other things, more methamphetamine, parts to a clandestine methamphetamine laboratory and a Squires Bingham .22 caliber rifle from the residence. Troopers also seized a Savage .223 caliber rifle and a safe containing over $9,000.00 in US currency in a truck parked in the driveway.The sentencing is the culmination of an investigation on the part of the Special Agents of the Drug Enforcement Administration, under the direction of James J. Hunt, Special Agent in Charge, New York Field Division, and the New York State Police Community Narcotics Enforcement Team (CNET), under the direction of Major David Krause.
Eddy County Man Sentenced to Five Years in Prison for Violating Federal Narcotics Trafficking LawsRead the Press Release
ALBUQUERQUE – Ernesto Flores, 44, of Hagerman, N.M., was sentenced today in federal court in Las Cruces, N.M., to 60 months in prison for his methamphetamine trafficking conviction. He will be on supervised release for four years after completing his prison sentence.
Flores was arrested on March 12, 2015, on a criminal complaint charging him with possession of methamphetamine with intent to distribute. According to the criminal complaint, on Feb. 4, 2015, officers from the Pecos Valley Drug Task Force, the Chaves County Metro Narcotics Task Force and the Eddy County Sheriff’s Office executed a search warrant on Flores’ residence in Hagerman. From a storage room on Flores’ property, the officers seized approximately 296.52 grams of methamphetamine. They also seized an AK-47, two handguns, a stolen handgun, $4,900 in cash and drug paraphernalia during the search.
On June 10, 2015, Flores pled guilty to a felony information charging him with possession of methamphetamine with intent to distribute. Flores admitted possessing the 296.52 grams of methamphetamine found in his storage room on Feb. 4, 2015. He also admitted that he had been selling methamphetamine.
This case was investigated by the Las Cruces office of the DEA, the Pecos Valley Drug Task Force, the Chaves County Metro Narcotics Task Force and the Eddy County Sheriff’s Office. It was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Randy M. Castellano of the U.S. Attorney’s Las Cruces Branch Office.
The Pecos Valley Drug Task Force is comprised of officers from the Eddy County Sheriff’s Office, Carlsbad Police Department and Artesia Police Department and is part of the HIDTA Region VI Drug Task Force. The HIDTA Chaves County Metro Narcotics Task Force is comprised of investigators from the Roswell Police Department, Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, the FBI and the Chaves County Sherriff’s Office. The High Intensity Drug Trafficking Areas (HIDTA) program was created by Congress with the Anti-Drug Abuse Act of 1988. HIDTA is a program of the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP) which provides assistance to federal, state, local and tribal law enforcement agencies operating in areas determined to be critical drug-trafficking regions of the United States and seeks to reduce drug trafficking and production by facilitating coordinated law enforcement activities and information sharing.
Easton Man Indicted for Scheme to Defraud Distressed Homeowners, Evading TaxesRead the Press Release
Deirdre M. Daly, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, today announced that a federal grand jury in Bridgeport has returned an indictment charging TIMOTHY W. BURKE, also known as “Bill Burke,” “William Burke,” “Kerry Saunders,” “Pat Riley,” “Jim Caldwell,” “Jim Saunders,” “Tom Morrisey,” “Jimmy,” “Phil Burke,” “Phil,” “Burt,” “James Burke,” and “M. Soler,” 64, of Easton, with fraud, tax, money laundering and identity theft offenses stemming from a long-running fraud scheme that targeted distressed homeowners.
The 10-count indictment, which was returned on February 10, was unsealed today. BURKE appeared today before U.S. Magistrate Judge Donna F. Martinez in Hartford and entered a plea of not guilty to the charges.
BURKE has been detained since November 19, 2015, when he was arrested on a criminal complaint.
According to the indictment, since at least April 2008 and continuing to at least November 19, 2015, BURKE engaged in a scheme to defraud individuals, mortgage lenders and the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) by falsely representing to homeowners who were in, or facing, foreclosure on their homes that he would purchase their homes and pay off their mortgages. The distressed homeowners agreed to sign various documents, including quitclaim deeds, indemnification agreements, management agreements and third party authorization letters, which BURKE presented to them on the understanding that, by signing the documents, they would be able to walk away from their homes without the burdens of their mortgage or other costs associated with home ownership. BURKE also told homeowners that the process of negotiating with the lenders can take time and that, in the meantime, to ignore any notices regarding foreclosure. After he gained control of these houses, BURKE rented out the properties to tenants by advertising the properties on craigslist.com and other means and falsely representing to tenants that BURKE owned the property.
The indictment further alleges that BURKE or one of his agents then collected rent from tenants, in person, and BURKE used the funds for his own benefit. BURKE failed to negotiate with the homeowners’ mortgage lender or pay expenses associated with the home, including the homeowner’s mortgages and property taxes, and he failed to pay any rental income he was collecting to the homeowners. Many of the properties BURKE purportedly purchased were ultimately foreclosed upon by the mortgage lender.
It is alleged that BURKE undertook extensive efforts to disguise his true identity from his victims through the use of multiple aliases and business entities, and to conceal the sources of and expenditures from his criminal proceeds. BURKE is associated with multiple entities, including Quality Asset Management Services, LLC; Birmingham Investments, LLC; the Birmingham Group of Companies; Saunders Associates; New Haven Investments; Realty Partners Group; Preston Associates II; Landlord Maintenance Services, LLC; Turnkey Construction Services LLC; The Complete Handyman, LLC; and Woodbridge Associates. He is also alleged to have used the name of another individual in connection with his fraud without that person’s knowledge or consent.
The indictment also alleges that BURKE evaded paying more than $1 million in federal taxes.
The indictment further alleges that in approximately 2002, BURKE was indicted by a federal grand jury in New Jersey on charges of conspiracy, mail fraud, and equity skimming. BURKE subsequently pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit both equity skimming and mail fraud, and he was sentenced to prison. BURKE was released from federal custody in approximately August 2007 and began his federal supervised release at that time. One of the special conditions of BURKE’s supervised release was that he refrain from employment in the real estate business or mortgage industry.
The indictment charges BURKE with four counts of mail fraud, one count of wire fraud, one count of aggravated identity theft, one count of tax evasion, and three counts of money laundering. If convicted, BURKE faces a maximum term of imprisonment of 20 years on each count of mail fraud, wire fraud, and money laundering; a maximum term of imprisonment of five years for tax evasion, and mandatory, consecutive two-year term of imprisonment for aggravated identity theft.
U.S. Attorney Daly stressed that an indictment is only a charge and is not evidence of guilt. Charges are only allegations, and each defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.
Individuals who believe they have been victimized by this alleged scheme and citizens with information that will be helpful to this ongoing investigation are encouraged to call 860-240-9735.
This matter is being investigated by Internal Revenue Service – Criminal Investigation Division, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development – Office of Inspector General, and U.S. Postal Inspection Service, with the critical assistance of the Middletown, Plainville, Easton and Coventry Police Departments, the Connecticut State Police and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney David T. Huang.
Durant Man Sentenced to 24 Months Probation, $49,570 Restitution for Bank TheftRead the Press Release
MUSKOGEE, OKLAHOMA - The United States Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Oklahoma, announced that LONNIE DALE JOHNSON, age 58, of Durant, Oklahoma, was sentenced to 2 years of probation and was ordered to pay $49,570 in restitution for BANK THEFT, EMBEZZLEMENT & MISAPPLICATION, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 656.
The charges arose from an investigation by Federal Bureau of Investigation.
The Information alleged that from in or about 2005, the exact date unknown, until on or about May 28, 2015, in the Eastern District of Oklahoma, the defendant, being an officer, director, agent, or employee of, or connected in a capacity with, First Texoma National Bank of Durant, Oklahoma, a bank whose deposits are insured by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, with intent to injure and defraud the said First Texoma National Bank of Durant, Oklahoma, willfully misapplied, embezzled, abstracted, and purloined more than $1,000.00 of the moneys, funds, assets or securities entrusted to the custody or care of First Texoma National Bank of Durant, Oklahoma, in that the defendant withdrew cash from the vault of the bank and misapplied, embezzled, abstracted and purloined the funds for his own use or benefit.
The Honorable Ronald A. White, District Judge in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Oklahoma, in Muskogee, presided over the hearing.
Assistant United States Attorney Rob Wallace represented the United States.
Defendants Convicted for Racketeering Conspiracy to Commit Violent Robberies, Murder of Off-Duty Reserve Police OfficerRead the Press Release
ROANOKE, VIRGINIA – Following a three-week jury trial in the United States District Court for the Western District of Virginia in Roanoke, six individuals were convicted for their role in a RICO conspiracy that was responsible for the abduction and murder of a Waynesboro Police Department reserve officer, as well as multiple armed robberies and home invasions, United States Attorney John P. Fishwick Jr. announced today.
Daniel Lamont Mathis, 20, of Charlottesville, Va., Shantai Monique Shelton, 26, of Charlottesville, Va., Mersadies Lachelle Shelton, 22, of Charlottesville, Va., Anthony Darnell Stokes, 33, of Manassas, Va., Halisi Uhuru, 24, of Danville, Va., and Kweli Uhuru, 25, of Winchester, Va., were found guilty today following more than eight hours of jury deliberation in the United States District Court in Roanoke.
At trial, the evidence established that Halisi Uhuru, Anthony Stokes and Kweli Uhuru formed the 99 Goon Syndikate, a set of the Bloods criminal street gang, while in prison. All three were released from prison in 2013. Kweli Uhuru recruited his brothers and the Shelton/Mathis siblings to join the gang in the summer of 2013 by persuading them of the easy money and respect earned as a gang member. By October 2013, this violent criminal street gang began committing criminal acts throughout Central Virginia.
Over the ensuing months, the gang members robbed convenience stores, burglarized or robbed homeowners, sold narcotics and ultimately abducted and murdered Captain Kevin Quick of the Waynesboro Police Department Reserves. Tragically, Captain Quick was in the wrong place at the wrong time on the evening hours of January 31, 2014. Quick was on his way to visit his sick child at the same time the gang wanted to commit a carjacking. When he arrived in the parking lot and exited his vehicle, the gang members abducted the unarmed Captain Quick at gunpoint and drove him to Fluvanna, where they forced him to disclose his ATM PIN code at gunpoint. After obtaining his code, the gang members took him into the woods and shot and killed him.
Two days later, gang members Daniel Mathis and Mersadies Shelton attempted to rob a Louisa homeowner who fought back after Mathis threatened a toddler and pistol whipped a female at the residence. During the melee, Mathis lost the magazine to his .40 caliber pistol and shot one of the residents while he escaped. The gang members then reached out to their leadership in Northern Virginia in an effort to escape to Montana. Halisi Uhuru sent Anthony Stokes from Manassas to Louisa in the middle of the night to bring the fellow gang members away from the scene of their crimes.
While in Northern Virginia, the leadership provided the gang members with food, shelter and helped them destroy evidence associated with the murder of Captain Quick, including the murder weapon. Law enforcement caught up with them the night they planned to escape to Montana on February 4, 2014. Two days later, Captain Quick’s body was found off a remote logging road in Goochland County, Virginia.
“The investigation and prosecution of this dangerous group of Bloods street gang members is an example of the commitment of my office and the Department of Justice to addressing violent crime and the proliferation of gangs in our community,” United States Attorney John P. Fishwick Jr. said today. “The federal RICO statute allowed us to try thirteen violent crimes from six jurisdictions in one trial. The verdict today is a testament to the type of critically important work that can be done when local, state and federal officials come together to keep our neighborhoods safe. This case sends a message that participating in gang activity leads to nowhere but prison. We will continue to work with our community partners to keep young people away from street gangs and toward more positive pursuits.”
“This case clearly illustrates the threat of national gangs to our nation and defeats the notion that violent street gangs are confined to the inner-city. The senseless murder of Officer Kevin Quick – someone who chose the professional path of keeping people safe – demonstrates the misery and destruction gangs bring to our communities,” said Adam S. Lee, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI’s Richmond Field Division. “I want to thank the United States Attorney’s Office for their expertise in bringing the prosecution to a successful conclusion. I want to thank the Virginia State Police and the Waynesboro Police Department for their partnership. I would also like to thank the FBI special agent who spearheaded this investigation and navigated significant obstacles as part of investigating a vicious and notorious national gang.”
“This investigation, with its breadth and complexities, is a leading example of what can be accomplished by the cooperative, determined efforts of so many at the local, state and federal levels,” said Col. W. Steven Flaherty, Virginia State Police Superintendent. “We thank the jury for their astute attention and dedication to justice for Kevin Quick and the multitude of others impacted by these crimes.”
“This gang terrorized our small rural community for five months and today justice was served on behalf of Kevin Quick and 23 victims across Central Virginia. Nothing can change the scars left by the actions of this group but we hope the families and victims can move on knowing that eight hours of jury deliberation, more than three weeks of trial and over 10,000 hours of investigation delivered justice” said Rusty E. McGuire.
“On Superbowl Sunday, a Louisa resident fought back against a group of thugs who tried to rob his family. Our worst fears came true when we realized the vehicle driven by the robbers turned out to be Captain Quick’s SUV. Since then the most professional team of investigators and prosecutors have worked together to bring justice for the victims and the family of Captain Quick” said Louisa Sheriff Ashland Fortune.
“It is our sincere hope that today’s jury verdict will finally allow the friends and family of Kevin Wayne Quick to begin healing from this tragic loss,” said Waynesboro Police Chief Michael D. Wilhelm. “We would also like express our gratitude to the prosecution and investigative teams as well as the members of the jury for the sacrifices they made to bring this case to justice.”
The investigation of the case was conducted by the Virginia State Police, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Louisa County Sheriff’s Office, the Albemarle County Police Department, the Charlottesville City Police Department, the Waynesboro Police Department, the Henrico County Police Department, the Gordonsville Police Department, the Goochland County Commonwealth’s Attorney’s Office, the Fluvanna County Commonwealth’s Attorney’s Office and the Prince William County Police Department. Assistant United States Attorneys Ronald M. Huber, Christopher Kavanaugh and Louisa County Commonwealth’s Attorney and Special Assistant United States Attorney Rusty E. McGuire prosecuted the case for the United States. Victim and Witness specialists with the United States Attorney’s Office, assisted by Victim and Witness specialists from the FBI, Albemarle County and Louisa County, provided substantial assistance in support of the prosecution.
Crack-Cocaine Wholesaler for the New Jersey Grape Street Crips Gang Pleads Guilty to Drug Trafficking ChargesRead the Press Release
NEWARK, N.J. – A Passaic County, New Jersey, member of the New Jersey set of the Grape Street Crips today admitted his leadership role in a conspiracy to distribute 2.8 kilograms of crack-cocaine, U.S. Attorney Paul J. Fishman announced.
Jamar Hamilton, a/k/a “Gunner,” 27, of Totowa, New Jersey, pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Madeline Cox Arleo in Newark federal court to Count 22 of the fourth superseding indictment charging him with participating in a continuing criminal enterprise, a statute that applies to organizers, supervisors, or managers of drug-trafficking organizations who derive substantial income from their criminal activities.
According to documents filed in this case and statements made in court:
The New Jersey set of the Grape Street Crips controlled drug trafficking and other criminal activities in various areas of Newark. Hamilton and other members of the gang, including Hakeem Vanderhall, a/k/a “Keem,” a/k/a “Sugar Bear,” Eric Concepcion, a/k/a “Eddie Arroyo,” a/k/a “E-Wax,” a/k/a “Wax,” Tyquan Clark a/k/a “Tah,” and Rashan Washington, a/k/a “Shoota,” used and shared a dedicated cell phone to accept orders for, and distribute, thousands of clips of crack-cocaine to other distributors of crack-cocaine, including members of the New Jersey Grape Street Crips.
To protect their gang and drug territory, the New Jersey Grape Street Crips operating in the 6th Avenue and North 5th Street location used “community guns” that were easily accessible to gang members. During the course of the investigation, law enforcement agents seized numerous firearms, including a .410 caliber assault rifle, a.45 caliber Thompson semi-automatic carbine, a 7.62 caliber assault rifle, and numerous semi-automatic handguns.
The charge to which Hamilton pleaded guilty carries a statutory mandatory minimum of 20 years in prison, a maximum of life in prison and a $2 million fine. Sentencing is set for June 9, 2016.
Clark has pleaded guilty to his role in the conspiracy and awaits sentencing. Charges against Vanderhall, Concepcion, and Washington remain pending. The charges and allegations against them are merely accusations, and they are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
U.S. Attorney Fishman credited special agents of the Drug Enforcement Administration, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Carl J. Kotowski, and special agents of the FBI, under the direction of Acting Special Agent in Charge Andrew Campi, with the investigation leading to today’s guilty plea. He also thanked prosecutors and detectives of the Essex County Prosecutor’s Office, under the direction of Acting Prosecutor Carolyn A. Murray; police officers and detectives of the Newark Police Department, under the direction of Director Anthony A. Ambrose; and the Essex County Sheriff’s Office, under the direction of Armando B. Fontoura, for their work on the investigation.
The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Osmar J. Benvenuto and Barry A. Kamar of the Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF)/Narcotics Unit of the Criminal Division in Newark.
This case was conducted under the auspices of OCDETF and the FBI’s Safe Streets Task Force, a partnership between federal, state and local law enforcement agencies. The principal mission of the OCDETF program is to identify, disrupt and dismantle the most serious drug trafficking, weapons trafficking and money laundering organizations and those primarily responsible for the nation’s illegal drug supply.
Defense counsel: Howard P. Lesnik Esq., Newark
Colorado Man Sentenced to Six Years for Federal Sex Trafficking Conviction in New MexicoRead the Press Release
ALBUQUERQUE – A Colorado man was sentenced in federal court in Albuquerque, N.M., yesterday to six years in prison followed by ten years of supervised release for his sex trafficking conviction. The sentence was announced U.S. Attorney Damon P. Martinez, 2nd Judicial District Attorney Kari E. Brandenburg, Special Agent in Charge Terry Wade of the FBI’s Albuquerque Division, and Chief Gorden Eden, Jr., of the Albuquerque Police Department (APD).
David Justin Lynch, 39, of Colorado Springs, Colo., was charged by criminal complaint on March 24, 2011, with coercing a woman to travel in interstate commerce to engage in prostitution. Thereafter, on July 27, 2011, an indictment was filed charging Lynch with coercing the victim to travel in interstate commerce for prostitution and traveling in interstate commerce for the purpose of promoting prostitution. The criminal complaint and indictment remained under seal until Oct. 2014, while state prosecutors proceeded with the prosecution of related-state charges against Lynch. On April 7, 2015, Lynch was arrested on the federal charges after he was transferred from state custody to federal custody.
According to court documents, the FBI and APD initiated a federal human trafficking investigation into Lynch on March 22, 2011, the day after Lynch was arrested by APD on state charges. The investigation revealed that between Dec. 2010 and March 2011, Lynch coerced the victim to travel to Colorado, Idaho, Kansas, Missouri and New Mexico for the purpose of engaging in prostitution. Lynch and the victim remained in each location for a week or two, staying in different hotels, where the victim performed sexual acts with customers who responded to advertisements placed by Lynch on a website commonly used to post ads for prostitution.
Court documents reflect that initially, the victim was required to pay 50% of her earnings to Lynch but beginning in Jan. 2011, Lynch took all of the victim’s earnings, giving her only enough money to pay for the hotel room, food and basic necessities. Also in Jan. 2011, Lynch verbally threatened the victim, who felt that she could not stop working as a prostitute for Lynch. In Feb. 2011, Lynch allegedly held a knife to the victim’s throat and threatened her because she was not making enough money and “wasn’t nice enough” to the customers.
Lynch and the victim were arrested by APD on March 21, 2011, after APD responded to an ad placed by Lynch on a website commonly used to post ads for prostitution. After her arrest, the victim told officers that she wanted to leave Lynch and stop working as a prostitute but was afraid that Lynch would “track her down and kill her” if she left. The victim said she felt coerced to engage in prostitution for Lynch because of his threats against her and his control of her earnings.
On April 9, 2015, Lynch entered guilty pleas to both counts of the indictment charging him with coercing a woman to travel in interstate commerce for prostitution, and traveling in interstate commerce for the purpose of promoting prostitution. In his plea agreement, Lynch admitted that from Nov. 1, 2011 through March 21, 2011, he coerced the victim to travel in interstate commerce from Colorado to New Mexico and other places to engage in prostitution. Lynch also acknowledged that he traveled in interstate commerce to promote and facilitate prostitution.
This case was investigated by the Albuquerque office of the FBI and APD, with assistance from the 2nd Judicial District Attorney’s Office, and was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Kimberly A. Brawley and Norman Cairns.
Clinic Owner and Four Medical Professionals Sentenced in A $4 Million Medicare Fraud SchemeRead the Press Release
Earlier today, Jeffrey Suh, Richelle Munoz, Sophia Lin, Kang Young Chung, and Emily Shim were sentenced in federal court in Brooklyn for conspiring to commit health care fraud in a scheme where they fraudulently billed Medicare for more than $4 million. Suh, the scheme’s organizer and leader, was sentenced to 42 months’ imprisonment. Munoz, a licensed occupational therapist, and Lin, a licensed chiropractor, were sentenced to 16 and 13 months’ imprisonment, respectively. Chung, a physical therapist assistant, was sentenced to a year and a day’s imprisonment. Shim, the clinic manager, was sentenced to 8 months’ imprisonment. As part of the sentences imposed, the defendants were ordered to pay $2,685,580 in restitution to Medicare. Additionally, the court ordered the defendants to forfeit their ill-gotten gains as follows: Suh was ordered to forfeit two properties, valued at more than $1,000,000 in total; Munoz was ordered to pay $565,594; Lin was ordered to pay $70,000; Chung was ordered to pay $985,501; and Shim was ordered to pay $115,136. The defendants were charged as part of a nationwide Medicare Fraud takedown in June 2015.
The sentences were announced by Robert L. Capers, United States Attorney for the Eastern District of New York; Scott J. Lampert, Special Agent-in-Charge, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Office of the Inspector General, New York Region (HHS-OIG); and Diego Rodriguez, Assistant Director-in-Charge, Federal Bureau of Investigation, New York Field Office (FBI).
“Clinic owner Jeffrey Suh and his licensed medical professionals manipulated elderly Medicare patients by bribing them with services and induced them to receive medically unnecessary treatments and services. By doing so, they defrauded a taxpayer funded program out of millions of dollars,” stated United States Attorney Capers. “Those who defraud Medicaid and Medicare are on notice that they will be held accountable for their crimes.”
“The actions of these co-conspirators resulted in the diversion of scarce taxpayer funds from the Medicare program just for personal enrichment,” said HHS-OIG Special Agent in Charge Lampert. “The HHS Office of Inspector General, together with our law enforcement partners, will continue to vigorously pursue those who steal from government health programs in such greed-fueled schemes.”
FBI Assistant Director-in-Charge Rodriguez stated, “Today’s sentencing should serve as a warning to those who seek to defraud the government. Public health insurance programs, like Medicare, are not a personal pocketbook for criminals seeking to exploit a program designed to help. The FBI is committed to working with our law enforcement partners to bring to justice those who defraud taxpayer funded programs.”
From approximately December 2010 through June 2013, the defendants submitted more than $4 million in false claims to Medicare for physical therapy, occupational therapy, and chiropractic services that were not medically necessary, were often not provided, and otherwise did not qualify for reimbursement. Instead of evaluating and performing therapy and services on Medicare beneficiaries in the amount claimed, the defendants typically ushered them to unlicensed massage therapists for massages and other free goods and services. On some occasions, the defendants submitted claims to Medicare for services ostensibly performed by a licensed professional when that licensed professional was not even in the United States, or submitted claims to Medicare for services performed on Medicare beneficiaries who were abroad.
The scheme was carried out at a medical clinic located in Flushing, New York, owned by Suh and operated under the names Plaza Medi Group, Inc. and New Plaza Group, Inc.
The sentences were imposed by the Hon. Carol B. Amon, Chief United States District Judge.
The government’s case is being prosecuted by the Office’s Business and Securities Fraud Section. Assistant United States Attorneys Sylvia Shweder and Whitman Knapp are in charge of the prosecution, with assistance provided by Assistant United States Attorney Karin Orenstein of the Office’s Civil Division, which is responsible for the forfeiture of assets.
The Defendants:
JEFFREY SUH
Age: 56
Bayside, New YorkRICHELLE MUNOZ
Age: 39
Brooklyn, New YorkSOPHIA LIN
Age: 34
Rocky Point, New YorkKANG YOUNG CHUNG
Age: 42
Woodside, New YorkEMILY SHIM
Age: 40
Flushing, New YorkE.D.N.Y. Docket No. 15-CR-300 (CBA)
Chicago Real Estate Developer Convicted on Federal Fraud Charges for Swindling Banks and the City out of Millions of Dollars in LoansRead the Press Release
CHICAGO — A federal jury today convicted the president of a Chicago real estate firm on fraud charges relating to a $105 million line of credit for city and suburban properties, including a former Goldblatt’s Department Store on the North Side and the Streets of Woodfield Mall in Schaumburg.
The fraud perpetrated by LAURANCE H. FREED, the president of Joseph Freed & Associates LLC, also involved the theft of millions of dollars from his business partner, Kimco Realty Corp. Freed also fraudulently obtained millions of dollars in publicly funded loans from the city of Chicago.
After a two-week trial, Freed, 53, of Chicago, was convicted on three counts of bank fraud, one count of mail fraud, and four counts of making a false statement to a financial institution. The conviction carries a combined maximum sentence of 230 years in prison.
U.S. District Judge Robert M. Dow did not immediately schedule a sentencing hearing. Judge Dow set a status hearing for March 24, 2016, at 9:30 a.m.
The conviction was announced by Zachary T. Fardon, United States Attorney for the Northern District of Illinois; Michael J. Anderson, Special Agent-in-Charge of the Chicago Office of the Federal Bureau of Investigation; and Joseph M. Ferguson, Inspector General for the City of Chicago.
The investigation previously resulted in the conviction of JFA’s vice president, CAROLINE WALTERS. Walters, of Palatine, pleaded guilty earlier this month to one count of making a false statement to a financial institution. Her conviction carries a maximum sentence of 30 years in prison. Walters is scheduled to be sentenced by Judge Dow on June 10, 2016, at 9:00 a.m.
According to evidence at Freed’s trial, the city of Chicago in 2002 issued two Tax Increment Financing notes to Uptown Goldblatts Venture LLC, a company formed by JFA to redevelop the former Goldblatt’s store in the city’s Uptown neighborhood. The TIF notes had a combined principal of $6.7 million, and Freed pledged one of the notes to Cole Taylor Bank as collateral.
Four years later, JFA-affiliated entities entered into agreements with a bank consortium for a revolving line of credit worth up to $105 million. Uptown Goldblatts became a borrower under the revolving loan agreement through a subsequent deal with LaSalle Bank, which was one of the banks in the consortium and which had recently been acquired by Bank of America. In the LaSalle deal, Uptown Goldblatts pledged the two TIF notes as collateral and also represented that the notes were owned free of other secured interests. The deal did not mention that one of the notes had already been pledged to Cole Taylor.
In 2009, Uptown Goldblatts fraudulently advised Cole Taylor that it would obtain a release and termination of the double pledge. The termination wasn’t possible, since the consortium had already declared JFA in default and had stopped negotiating with Freed.
Evidence at trial also revealed that in 2009 and 2010 Freed signed false affidavits to obtain millions of dollars in TIF payments from the city, knowing that the bank consortium and Cole Taylor were entitled to the payments.
As Freed’s business experienced financial difficulties, he withdrew more than $7 million from the Streets of Woodfield partnership without the knowledge and consent of his business partner Kimco, which owned 45% of the venture. Freed fraudulently recorded the money as “loans.”
The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Renato Mariotti, Matthew F. Madden and Jessica Romero.
Brackenridge Man Admits Defrauding Gatto Cycle ShopRead the Press Release
PITTSBURGH - A resident of Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, has pleaded guilty in federal court in Pittsburgh on a charge of mail fraud, United States Attorney David J. Hickton announced today.
Brandon Bucinski, 36, of Brackenridge, Pa., pleaded guilty to one count before United States District Judge Mark R. Hornak.
In connection with the guilty plea, Bucinski defrauded Gatto Cycle Shop of the proceeds from the sale of certain of its merchandise on eBay. Bucinski was employed by Gatto to sell certain Gatto merchandise on eBay and to have the buyer remit the proceeds of sale to Gatto’s Paypal accounts. Bucinski sold the Gatto merchandise using his personal eBay and Paypal accounts and kept the proceeds from the sales for himself.
Judge Hornak scheduled the sentencing for June 27, 2016, at 2:30 p.m. The law provides for a maximum total sentence of 20 years in prison, a fine of $250,000.00, or both. Under the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, the actual sentence imposed would be based upon the seriousness of the offenses and the prior criminal history, if any, of the defendant.
Assistant United States Attorney Paul E. Hull is prosecuting this case on behalf of the government.
The United States Secret Service along with the Tarentum and Shaler Police Departments and detectives from the Allegheny County District Attorney’s Office conducted the investigation leading to the indictment in this case.
Bergen County Man Admits Producing and Selling Fraudulent Massage Therapy Training Certificates to Facilitate Prostitution at New Jersey Massage ParlorsRead the Press Release
NEWARK, N.J. – A Bergen County man today admitted selling fraudulent massage therapy training certificates to workers at various massage parlors in order to facilitate prostitution activities at those locations, U.S. Attorney Paul J. Fishman announced.
Robert W. Miller, 67, of Westwood, N.J., pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Claire C. Cecchi to an information charging him with using facilities in interstate commerce to promote prostitution, and performing an act to promote, manage, establish, carry on and facilitate that unlawful activity.
According to documents filed in this case and statements made in court:
Miller served as a Westwood councilman for approximately seven years prior to his resignation in 2015, and previously served as a councilman in the Village of Ridgewood, New Jersey, from 1996 to 1998. He owned and operated RWM Associates Inc., which purported to provide personnel department services for small and medium-sized businesses. Miller held himself out as a businessman who, for a fee of $500 to $2,500, could provide a massage therapy training certificate to anyone who wished to obtain a massage license with the State of New Jersey without receiving the required training. He also offered to provide a transcript listing the classes purportedly taken and the grades received by customers willing to pay for the fraudulent massage training certificate.
Between January 1997 and August 2013, Miller provided at least 50 fraudulent massage therapy training certificates to 25 different massage parlors located in Union, Passaic, Hudson and Middlesex counties. He admitted he knew that many of the massage parlors were being operated as fronts for prostitution and that the phony documents allowed the workers to continue to engage in prostitution activities under the guise of providing legitimate massage services. Miller also used A.R.M. Enterprises L.L.C., a separate company which he owned, to place advertisements in newspapers for massage parlors using discrete wording which signaled that the massage parlor was also a prostitution business.
The charge to which Miller pleaded guilty carries a maximum potential penalty of five years in prison and a $250,000 fine. As part of his plea agreement, defendant Miller will forfeit $95,926, consisting of $25,826 seized from his residence in August of 2013 as well as an additional $70,100 which he provided to the FBI in December of 2014, which Miller acknowledged represented property derived from or traceable to his unlawful activity. Sentencing is scheduled for May 19, 2016.
U.S. Attorney Fishman credited special agents of the FBI, under the direction of Acting Special Agent in Charge Andrew Campi in Newark, and investigators with the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Newark, with the investigation leading to today’s guilty plea.
The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorney Mark J. McCarren of the U.S. Attorney’s Office’s Special Prosecutions Division in Newark.
Defense counsel: Linda Foster Esq. Assistant Federal Public Defender, Newark
Auburn Date Rape Drug Distributor is Sentenced to Eight and One-Half YearsRead the Press Release
Montgomery, Alabama - Stephen K. Howard, 64, of Auburn, Alabama, was sentenced today to 8 years and 6 months in prison by Judge Myron H. Thompson for possessing with the intent to distribute a date rape drug, possessing methamphetamine, and for possessing a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime, announced George L. Beck, Jr., United States Attorney for the Middle District of Alabama. On October 19, 2015, Howard pleaded guilty to three counts of possession with intent to distribute a controlled substance analogue (1-4 butanediol) and one count of possession of methamphetamine. When consumed, 1-4 butanediol has the same effect on the body as gamma-hydroxybutric acid (GHB), commonly known as the “date rape” drug. On December 7, 2015, Howard pleaded guilty to one count of possessing a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime.
Howard was employed as a lab technician at Auburn University where he illegally used his position as a lab technician to order the butanediol, or date rape drug, from the manufacturer. Howard then sold this date rape drug to an undercover officer on two occasions and stored large amounts of the drug and a small amount of methamphetamine in his Auburn residence. During one of the purchases of the butanediol, Howard displayed and brandished a firearm to the undercover officer.
"Those who take advantage of young girls by doping them unconscious are disgusting and repulsive,” stated U.S. Attorney George L. Beck, Jr.. “Rape by force or mental incapacity is a serious crime that warrants harsh prosecution. Howard used the threat of a firearm to enforce the sale of his illegal date rape drug. That makes him a violent criminal."
“I hope this case serves as an example to anyone who would consider manufacturing and or using any substance to take advantage of someone else,” stated Auburn Police Chief Paul Register. “It is a good example of all levels of law enforcement working together with Auburn University to keep students and citizens safe.”
“The reprehensible actions of the defendant showed a deep disregard towards the health and safety of young women in our community,” stated Robert F. Lasky, FBI Special Agent in Charge. “His conviction and sentence serve to place all on notice that this type criminal activity will not be tolerated.”
“The Drug Enforcement Administration, along with our law enforcement partners, are committed to keeping our most vulnerable members our communities safe from drug traffickers and predators,” stated Clay Morris, DEA Assistant Special Agent in Charge. “We will stand side-by-side to protect our children. With outstanding law enforcement coordination and cooperation we were able to swiftly remove a dangerous person and remove the potential for him to harm others. The sentence handed down today should send a clear and resounding message that drug trafficking will not be tolerated.”
“State Bureau of Investigation Narcotics Agents worked closely with our federal and local partners during the course of this investigation,” said Acting Secretary of Law Enforcement Stan Stabler. “We will continue to work as a team and collaborate with federal, state, county and municipal law enforcement agencies to fight the unlawful production and distribution of illegal drugs in Alabama.”Arkansas Man Sentenced to Prison for Failure to File Tax ReturnsRead the Press Release
A Fayetteville, Arkansas, man was sentenced to 14 months in prison today following his plea of guilty to four counts of willfully failing to file individual income tax returns, announced Acting Assistant Attorney General Caroline D. Ciraolo of the Justice Department’s Tax Division and Acting U.S. Attorney Kenneth Elser of the Western District of Arkansas.
According to court documents, Randall Acton West, a former real estate appraiser, failed to file federal income tax returns with the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) for the years 2007 through 2010 despite earning gross income in excess of the tax return filing threshold. According to court documents, West’s conduct resulted in a tax loss to the government of $95,825.56.
In addition to the prison term, U.S. District Judge Timothy L. Brooks of the Western District of Arkansas ordered West to serve one year of supervised release and pay restitution to the IRS in the amount of $95,825.56.
Acting Assistant Attorney General Ciraolo and Acting U.S. Attorney Elser commended special agents of IRS-Criminal Investigation, who investigated the case and Trial Attorneys Robert Kemins and David Zisserson, of the Tax Division and Assistant U.S. Attorney Kimberly Davis of the Western District of Arkansas, who prosecuted the case.
Additional information about the Tax Division and its enforcement efforts can be found on the division’s website.
Annapolis Business Owner Indicted in Telemarketing and Counterfeit Credit Card SchemesRead the Press Release
Baltimore, Maryland – A federal grand jury returned a superseding indictment late yesterday against Joseph R. Dominici, age 29, of Annapolis, Maryland, on wire fraud charges arising from a telemarketing scheme to defraud real estate professionals around the country who paid to advertise on websites owned by Dominici. The superseding indictment also re-alleges previous charges arising from a counterfeit credit card scheme.
The indictment was announced by United States Attorney for the District of Maryland Rod J. Rosenstein; Special Agent in Charge Brian Murphy of the United States Secret Service - Baltimore Field Office; Anne Arundel County Police Chief Tim Altomare; Anne Arundel County State’s Attorney Wes Adams; Special Agent in Charge Andre Watson of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI); and Chief Henry P. Stawinski of the Prince George’s County Police Department.
Dominici owned and operated JJ&M Enterprises, LLC, an on-line business based in Annapolis, Maryland, operating to provide leads to real estate professionals concerning potential homebuyers. Dominici registered two websites which he and JJ&M used to conduct business: BuyerHomeSite.com and FreeHomeFind.com
According to the 14 count indictment, the websites purported to contain active listings of homes for sale, and allowed potential homebuyers to browse home listings in a selected geographic area. The websites also represented to realtors or loan officers that they could pay to become a “preferred expert” in each of the geographic regions that they chose. If a prospective home buyer (user) searched the websites for properties in an area where a real estate professional had paid to become the “preferred expert,” the websites displayed an ad that included the real estate professional’s photograph and contact information. For a monthly fee of approximately $299, the websites would grant a real estate professional exclusive access to all leads generated on the websites associated with the real estate professional’s assigned geographic area.
The indictment alleges that from on or before March 6, 2014 to October 20, 2015, Dominici represented to real estate professionals that such leads included personal information provided by a potential homebuyer, where in fact, the leads sent to the real estate professionals contained fictitious information created by Dominici and individuals employed by JJ&M. Dominici created fictitious identities, including names, email addresses and cell phone numbers. He provided cell phones to a JJ&M employee which had the name and phone number of a fictitious identity taped to the back. Dominici also posted false and duplicative “testimonials” from “satisfied” customers on the websites.
Dominici allegedly caused employees to make unsolicited telephone sales calls to many thousands of real estate professionals located all over the United States. Dominici provided JJ&M employees with scripts and talking points to use in soliciting real estate professionals to pay to become the “preferred expert” for their area on the websites. As a result of these sales calls, more than 1,000 real estate professionals agreed to pay approximately $299 per month to be advertised as preferred experts.
As a result of this telemarketing fraud scheme, Dominici allegedly obtained and attempted to obtain more than $895,568.31 from real estate professionals. The indictment seeks forfeiture of this amount.
Dominici faces a maximum sentence of 30 years in prison on each of 11 counts of wire fraud in the telemarketing fraud scheme. An initial appearance for Dominici is expected to be scheduled for next week.
The superseding indictment re-alleges a separate counterfeit credit card scheme in which Dominici obtained stolen or otherwise compromised credit card numbers from several sources. Co-conspirator Christina Price, a server at a restaurant in Gambrills, Maryland, used electronic devices known as skimmers to fraudulently obtain the credit card information of restaurant customers who paid by credit card. Price then provided this stolen customer information to Dominici for use in producing fraudulently re-encoded credit cards. Dominici and co-conspirator Carlos Ledbetter, an employee of JJ&M, used special equipment to encode the stolen account information onto stored value cards and then used the fraudulently re-encoded credit and stored value cards to obtain extensions of credit from banks and credit unions.
Dominici faces a maximum sentence of 30 years in prison for conspiring to commit bank fraud; 10 years in prison for access device fraud; and a mandatory minimum sentence of two years in prison consecutive to any other sentence for aggravated identity theft, arising from the credit card fraud scheme.
Carlos M. Ledbetter, age 29, of District Heights, Maryland, and Christina O. Price, age 22, of Bowie, Maryland, previously pleaded guilty to their participation in the credit card fraud scheme. U.S. District Judge J. Frederick Motz sentenced Ledbetter to six months in prison, and scheduled Price’s sentencing for May 2, 2016 at 9:30 a.m. Dominici has pleaded not guilty to charges arising from the credit card fraud scheme.
An indictment is not a finding of guilt. An individual charged by indictment is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty at some later criminal proceedings.
United States Attorney Rod J. Rosenstein commended the U.S. Secret Service, Anne Arundel County Police Department, HSI Baltimore, Prince George’s County Police Department and Anne Arundel County State’s Attorney’s Office for their work in the investigation. Mr. Rosenstein thanked Assistant U.S. Attorney Zachary A. Myers and Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Angela Tang, who are prosecuting the case.
Albuquerque Man Sentenced to Nine Years in Federal Prison for Robbing Businesses Engaged in Interstate CommerceRead the Press Release
ALBUQUERQUE – David Savoy Thomas, 56, of Albuquerque, N.M., was sentenced late yesterday afternoon in federal court to nine years in federal prison for violating the Hobbs Act by robbing and attempting to rob commercial businesses involved in interstate commerce. Thomas will be on supervised release for three years following his term of incarceration.
Thomas was charged with four counts of violating the Hobbs Act by robbing and attempting to rob commercial businesses located in Bernalillo County, N.M., that were involved in interstate commerce, and one count of brandishing a firearm during and in relation to a crime of violence in a five-count indictment filed on Dec. 4, 2013. Thomas was arrested on Dec. 30, 2013, after he was transferred from state custody to federal custody to face the charges in the federal indictment.
Thomas proceeded to trial on March 30, 2015, which concluded on April 2, 2015, when the jury returned a verdict of guilty on the four Hobbs Act charges but was unable to reach a unanimous verdict on the firearms charge. The evidence at trial established that Thomas robbed one business in May 2010 and three businesses in 2013.
During the trial, APD officers testified that they responded to the scene of each of the four incidents and processed all available evidence, including fingerprints and surveillance videotape. After the fourth incident in Oct. 2013, an APD officer learned that a fingerprint expert had identified Thomas’s fingerprints on the glass door of the restaurant that was robbed in May 2010, and started an investigation into Thomas. After obtaining a photograph of Thomas and determining that Thomas matched the description of the man who robbed two Albuquerque businesses, the APD officer included Thomas’s photograph in a photo array of six men. The clerks from the two stores positively identified Thomas as the man who attempted to rob the Family Dollar on Aug. 16, 2013 and the Check and Go on Oct. 19, 2013.
This case was investigated by the Albuquerque office of the FBI and APD with assistance from the 2nd Judicial District Attorney’s Office. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Norman Cairns and Kimberly A. Brawley prosecuted the case.
This case is being prosecuted 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 felony 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 rates, on a per capita basis, are amongst 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, under this initiative.
Alabama Resident and Former U.S. Postal Worker Sentenced to Prison for Involvement in Stolen Identity Tax Refund Fraud RingRead the Press Release
Montgomery, AL– A Seale, Alabama resident and former U.S. Postal Service employee was sentenced today to serve more than five years in prison for her role in a stolen identity refund fraud (SIRF) conspiracy, announced U.S. Attorney George L. Beck, Jr. of the Middle District of Alabama, and Acting Assistant Attorney General Caroline D. Ciraolo of the Justice Department’s Tax Division.
According to court documents and evidence presented at the sentencing hearing, between June 2012 and December 2013, Elizabeth Grant aka Elizabeth Williams Grant and Ann Grant, 52, conspired with others, including Tracy Mitchell of Phenix City, Alabama, and Keshia Lanier of Seale, Alabama, to obtain fraudulent income tax refunds by filing false federal income tax returns using stolen identities. For a fee, Grant provided co-conspirators with addresses along her mail delivery route to use in filing false tax returns. Grant then retrieved the fraudulent tax refund checks from the mail and delivered the checks to her co-conspirators. The scheme resulted in the filing of more than 700 false returns claiming more than $1.5 million in tax refunds.
Grant pleaded guilty in November 2015 to conspiracy to defraud the United States with respect to claims, aggravated identity theft and embezzling mail. Several co-conspirators, including Mitchell and Lanier, have already pleaded guilty and were sentenced for their roles in this scheme. On Aug. 7, 2015, Mitchell was sentenced to 159 months in prison. On Sept. 25, 2015, Lanier was sentenced to 180 months in prison. In addition to the term of imprisonment, Grant was also ordered to serve three years of supervised release and pay restitution in the amount of $978,468.
U.S. Attorney Beck and Acting Assistant Attorney General Ciraolo commended special agents of IRS-Criminal Investigation, who investigated the case and Trial Attorneys Michael C. Boteler, Gregory P. Bailey and Robert J. Boudreau of the Tax Division and Assistant U.S. Attorney Jonathan Ross of the Middle District of Alabama, who prosecuted the case.
Alabama Resident and Former U.S. Postal Worker Sentenced to Prison for Involvement in Stolen Identity Tax Fraud RingRead the Press Release
Stole Identities of Individuals on Her Mail Route for Use in Filing False Tax Returns
A Seale, Alabama, resident and former U.S. Postal Service employee was sentenced today to serve more than five years in prison for her role in a stolen identity refund fraud (SIRF) conspiracy, Acting Assistant Attorney General Caroline D. Ciraolo of the Justice Department’s Tax Division and U.S. Attorney George L. Beck, Jr. of the Middle District of Alabama announced.
According to court documents and evidence presented at the sentencing hearing, between June 2012 and December 2013, Elizabeth Grant aka Elizabeth Williams Grant and Ann Grant, 52, conspired with others, including Tracy Mitchell of Phenix City, Alabama, and Keshia Lanier of Seale to obtain fraudulent income tax refunds by filing false federal income tax returns using stolen identities. For a fee, Grant provided co-conspirators with addresses along her mail delivery route to use in filing false tax returns. Grant then retrieved the fraudulent tax refund checks from the mail and delivered the checks to her co-conspirators. The scheme resulted in the filing of more than 700 false returns claiming more than $1.5 million in tax refunds.
Grant pleaded guilty in November 2015 to conspiracy to defraud the United States with respect to claims, aggravated identity theft and embezzling mail. Several co-conspirators, including Mitchell and Lanier, have already pleaded guilty and were sentenced for their roles in this scheme. On Aug. 7, 2015, Mitchell was sentenced to 159 months in prison. On Sept. 25, 2015, Lanier was sentenced to 180 months in prison. In addition to the term of imprisonment, Grant was also ordered to serve three years of supervised release and pay restitution in the amount of $978,468.
Acting Assistant Attorney General Ciraolo and U.S. Attorney Beck commended special agents of IRS-Criminal Investigation, who investigated the case and Trial Attorneys Michael C. Boteler, Gregory P. Bailey and Robert J. Boudreau of the Tax Division and Assistant U.S. Attorney Jonathan Ross of the Middle District of Alabama, who prosecuted the case.
Additional information about the Tax Division and its enforcement efforts may be found on the division’s website.
Alabama Resident Sentenced to Prison for Involvement in Stolen Identity Tax Refund Fraud SchemeRead the Press Release
Conspired with Others, Including Her Son, to Claim Fraudulent Tax Returns Claiming More Than $4 Million in Tax Refunds Using Stolen Names and Social Security Numbers
An Alabama woman was sentenced today to serve 51 months in prison for her role in a stolen identity refund fraud (SIRF) conspiracy, Acting Assistant Attorney General Caroline D. Ciraolo of the Justice Department’s Tax Division and U.S. Attorney George L. Beck, Jr. of the Middle District of Alabama announced.
According to court documents and evidence presented at the sentencing hearing, between 2007 and 2012, Pamela Ann Smith, 56, of Lanett, Alabama, led a large-scale SIRF scheme from her tax preparation business, Jaycal Tax Service, in Phenix City, Alabama. Smith recruited her son, Calvin Perry and his friend, Ernest Simmons Jr., to participate in the scheme. As part of the conspiracy, Smith, Perry and Simmons opened multiple bank accounts and post office boxes. They filed more than 1,200 federal income tax returns using the stolen personal identification information of actual individuals, which included their names and social security numbers. The tax returns filed by Smith and her co-conspirators sought more than $4 million in fraudulent refunds from the Internal Revenue Service (IRS). U.S. Treasury checks were mailed to physical addresses and post office boxes under Smith’s control and subsequently deposited into multiple bank accounts controlled by Smith, Perry and Simmons. Smith personally received more than $300,000 from this scheme.
Smith pleaded guilty in November 2015 to one count of conspiracy to defraud the government with respect to filing false income tax refund claims and one count of aggravated identity theft. Perry and Simmons also pleaded guilty in December 2015 for their involvement in this SIRF scheme and are scheduled to be sentenced in April.
In addition to the prison term, U.S. District Judge John Antoon, II ordered Smith to serve three years of supervised release and pay restitution in the amount of $340,057.
Acting Assistant Attorney General Ciraolo and U.S. Attorney Beck commended special agents of IRS-Criminal Investigation, who investigated the case and Trial Attorneys Gregory P. Bailey, Michael C. Boteler and Robert J. Boudreau of the Tax Division and Assistant U.S. Attorney Jonathan Ross of the Middle District of Alabama, who prosecuted the case.
Additional information about the Tax Division and its enforcement efforts may be found on the division’s website.
Alabama Resident Sentenced to Prison for Involvement in Stolen Identity Tax Refund Fraud SchemeRead the Press Release
Montgomery, AL – An Alabama woman was sentenced today to serve 51 months in prison for her role in a stolen identity refund fraud (SIRF) conspiracy, announced U.S. Attorney George L. Beck, Jr. of the Middle District of Alabama, and acting Assistant Attorney General Caroline D. Ciraolo of the Justice Department’s Tax Division.
According to court documents and evidence presented at the sentencing hearing, between 2007 and 2012, Pamela Ann Smith, 56, of Lanett, Alabama, led a large-scale SIRF scheme from her tax preparation business, Jaycal Tax Service, in Phenix City, Alabama. Smith recruited her son, Calvin Perry and his friend, Ernest Simmons, Jr., to participate in the scheme. As part of the conspiracy, Smith, Perry and Simmons opened multiple bank accounts and rented post office boxes. They filed more than 1,200 federal income tax returns using the stolen personal identification information of actual individuals, which included the victims’ names and social security numbers. The tax returns filed by Smith and her co-conspirators sought more than $4 million in fraudulent refunds from the Internal Revenue Service (IRS). U.S. Treasury checks were mailed to physical addresses and post office boxes under Smith’s control and subsequently deposited into multiple bank accounts controlled by Smith, Perry and Simmons. Smith personally received more than $300,000 from this scheme.
Smith pleaded guilty in November 2015 to one count of conspiracy to defraud the government with respect to filing false income tax refund claims and one count of aggravated identity theft. Perry and Simmons also pleaded guilty in December 2015 for their involvement in this SIRF scheme and are scheduled to be sentenced in April.
In addition to the prison term, U.S. District Judge John Antoon, II ordered Smith to serve three years of supervised release and pay restitution in the amount of $340,057.
U.S. Attorney Beck and acting Assistant Attorney General Ciraolo commended special agents of IRS-Criminal Investigation, who investigated the case and Trial Attorneys Gregory P. Bailey, Michael C. Boteler and Robert J. Boudreau of the Tax Division and Assistant U.S. Attorney Jonathan S. Ross of the Middle District of Alabama, who prosecuted the case.
Alabama Man Indicted on Child Pornography and Sex Tourism ChargesRead the Press Release
An Alabama native was indicted today and charged with multiple crimes involving travel with intent to engage in illicit sexual conduct with minors and child pornography, announced Assistant Attorney General Leslie R. Caldwell of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division and U.S. Attorney Kenyen R. Brown of the Southern District of Alabama.
Clarence Edward Evers Jr., aka Bud, a technology teacher employed by the Conecuh County, Alabama, Board of Education, was arrested on Feb. 11, 2016, and was charged today with five counts of travel with intent to engage in illicit sexual conduct with a minor, one count of attempted travel with intent to engage in illicit sexual conduct with a minor, one count of production and attempted production of child pornography, one count of transportation of child pornography, one count of receipt of child pornography, one count of access with intent to view child pornography and one count of possession of child pornography.
According to the indictment, Evers allegedly traveled to Thailand in the summers of 2010 through 2014 for the purpose of engaging in illicit sexual conduct with a minor and allegedly attempted to make a similar trip in the spring of 2015. During the 2014 trip, Evers also allegedly photographed his victims’ abuse and then transported the images back to the United States. In addition, Evers allegedly had other images of child sexual exploitation on his computers and other electronic devices.
The charges contained in the indictment are only allegations. Evers is presumed innocent unless and until he is proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
ICE-HSI is investigating this case. Trial Attorney James E. Burke IV of the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS) and Assistant U.S. Attorneys Sean P. Costello and Maria E. Murphy of the Southern District of Alabama are prosecuting the case.
This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice. Led by U.S. Attorneys’ Offices and CEOS, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state and local resources to better locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the Internet, as well as to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.justice.gov/psc.
15 Arrested on Federal Drug Trafficking and Money Laundering Indictment in the Western District of Texas as Part of Operation Dream CatcherRead the Press Release
Fifteen individuals are in custody today charged federally with participating in a methamphetamine distribution and money laundering scheme announced United States Attorney Richard L. Durbin, Jr., and Drug Enforcement Administration Special Agent in Charge Joseph M. Arabit, Houston Division.
A federal grand jury indictment, returned in Austin and unsealed today, charges the defendants with one count of conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute methamphetamine. Arrested today include:
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Osiel Bautista, age 29, of Austin, TX, 500 grams or more;
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Luis Loza, age 24, of Austin, 500 grams or more;
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Alberto Munoz, age 29, an undocumented alien arrested in Austin, 500 grams or more;
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Alex Perez, age 25, an undocumented alien arrested in Austin, 500 grams or more;
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Adan Martinez, age 30, of Austin, 50 grams or more;
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Marty Lopez, age 26, of Alice, TX, 50 grams or more;
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Rickey Lincoln, age 30, of Austin, 50 grams or more;
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Jesus Vallejo, age 30, undocumented alien arrested in Austin, 50 grams or more;
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Eric Manning, age 34, of Waco, 50 grams or more;
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Aaron Bravo, age 39, of Granite Shoals, TX, 50 grams or more; and,
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Samuel Chavez, age 25, undocumented alien arrested in Austin, 50 grams or more.
Four defendants charged in the indictment were already in custody prior to today. They are:
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Raul Vallejo, age 34, an undocumented alien residing in Austin, 500 grams or more;
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Pedro Gomez, age 21, of Austin, 50 grams or more;
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Eden Gonzalez, age 25, an undocumented alien residing Austin, 50 grams or more; and,
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Antonio Tavera Vera, age 31, an undocumented alien, 50 grams or more.
The indictment also charges Bautista, Loza, Munoz, Raul Vallejo, and Perez with one count of money laundering. According to the indictment, since September 2014, the defendants have conspired to distribute methamphetamine across the Austin area.
During today’s arrests, authorities seized approximately ten kilograms of methamphetamine; approximately $5,000 U.S. Currency; and, eight firearms including an SKS rifle with four magazines and ammunition. Previously, authorities have seized approximately ten kilograms of methamphetamine and an estimated $155,000 in criminally derived assets attributed to these defendants.
“Methamphetamine is a vicious poison that has caused horrific and long-term damage to the quality of life in too many of our communities,” said DEA Special Agent in Charge Joseph M. Arabit. “These arrests, as part of Operation Dream Catcher, conclude an 18-month investigation and underscore DEA’s continued commitment to working with our Federal and local law enforcement partners to disrupt and dismantle drug trafficking organizations that negatively impact our neighborhoods and families.”
All of the defendants remain in federal custody. Upon conviction, Bautista, Loza, Munoz, Raul Vallejo and Perez face between ten years and life in federal prison on the drug trafficking conspiracy charge. The other defendants face between five and 40 years in federal prison upon conviction of the drug trafficking conspiracy charge. Bautista, Loza, Munoz, Raul Vallejo and Perez face up to 20 years in federal prison upon conviction of the money laundering conspiracy charge.
It is important to note that a criminal complaint is merely a charge and should not be considered as evidence of guilt. The defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.
This case resulted from an investigation conducted by the Drug Enforcement Administration High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area (HIDTA) Task Force. Agencies participating in the HIDTA Task Force include: Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), United States Marshals Service, Austin Police Department, Cedar Park Police Department, Georgetown Police Department, Round Rock Police Department, Granite Shoals Police Department, Bastrop County Sheriff’s Office, Hays County Sheriff’s Office, Travis County Sheriff’s Office, Williamson County Sheriff’s Office, Texas Department of Public Safety, Texas National Guard and the Travis County District Attorney’s Office. Assistant United States Attorneys Dan Guess and Matt Harding are prosecuting this case on behalf of the Government.
Other arrests and federal charges related to Operation Dream Catcher have taken place today in the Southern District of Texas and the Eastern District of Texas.
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Tuesday 23 February 2016
York City Man Sentenced to 10 Years in Prison on Drug Trafficking ChargesRead the Press Release
HARRISBURG- The United States Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Pennsylvania announces that a York man was sentenced to 10 years in prison today by Chief U.S. District Court Judge Christopher C. Conner in Harrisburg, for drug trafficking.
According to United States Attorney Peter Smith, the defendant, Charlie Rivera, age 26, previously pleaded guilty to possessing cocaine, crack cocaine, heroin, and oxycodone when arrested by the Pennsylvania State Police and York City Police on December 12, 2012. When arrested, he was also found in possession of a firearm. Rivera was wanted at the time of his arrest for failing to report to prison to serve a seven year sentence in another drug trafficking case.
Rivera was indicted by a federal grand jury in Harrisburg in January 2013, as a result of an investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Pennsylvania State Police, and the York City Police Department.
Chief Judge Conner also ordered Rivera to be placed on three years of supervised release following his prison sentence. The court also directed that his sentence be served consecutively to the 7-14 years sentence he is currently serving.
Assistant United States Attorney Michael A. Consiglio prosecuted the case.
This case was brought as part of a district wide initiative to combat the nationwide epidemic regarding the use and distribution of heroin. Led by the United States Attorney’s Office, the heroin initiative targets heroin traffickers operating in the Middle District of Pennsylvania and is part of a coordinated effort among federal, state and local law enforcement agencies.
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Woman Who Obtained Mortgages, Lying about Homes Being Her Primary Residences, Convicted of Making False Statements to BanksRead the Press Release
LOS ANGELES – A Lakewood woman has been found guilty of five felony charges for lying to banks that funded mortgages for three properties that later went into default, causing about $660,000 in losses to the lenders.
Felicia Muhammad, 45, who at the time of the criminal conduct was a licensed real estate broker living in Long Beach, was convicted Friday afternoon of five counts of making false statements to federally-insured financial institutions, specifically U.S. Bank, Countrywide Bank, and First Horizon Home Loans (a subsidiary of First Tennessee Bank).
United States Michael W. Fitzgerald, who presided over a four-day trial, is scheduled to sentence Muhammad on June 6, at which time she will face a statutory maximum sentence of 10 years in federal prison.
“This defendant lied to three different financial institutions, causing significant losses to all of them,” said United States Attorney Eileen M. Decker. “The Department of Justice will continue to hold accountable those who would commit mortgage fraud and place U.S. financial institutions at risk.”
According to the evidence at trial, in the summer of 2008, Muhammad applied for three loans so she could purchase condominium units in North Hollywood and Canoga Park. The total value of the loans was more than $1.1 million.
In each loan application and in two occupancy certifications, Muhammad falsely stated that each condo would be her primary residence, even though she never intended to live in any of the condos.
Once the loans were funded and the purchased were completed, the titles to the properties were transferred to a trust administered by Muhammad’s former landlord, who had asked her to purchase the properties with her good credit. In exchange for purchasing the properties, Muhammad received $18,000.
After the properties were transferred to the trust, all three loans defaulted, all three condos went into foreclosure, and the three lenders lost a total of $662,000.
The case against Muhammad is the result of an investigation by the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development – Office of the Inspector General and the Federal Bureau of Investigation.
Whitehorse Man Indicted for AssaultRead the Press Release
United States Attorney Randolph J. Seiler announced that a Whitehorse, South Dakota, man has been indicted by a federal grand jury for Assault with a Dangerous Weapon and Assault Resulting in Substantial Bodily Injury to an Intimate Partner
Shawn Traversie, age 31, was indicted on February 17, 2016. He appeared before U.S. Magistrate Judge Mark Moreno on February 19, 2016, and pled not guilty to the Indictment.
The maximum penalty upon conviction is up to 10 years in custody and/or a $250,000 fine, 3 years of supervised release, and $100 to the Federal Crime Victims Fund. Restitution may also be ordered.
The Indictment alleges that on November 30, 2015, Traversie unlawfully assaulted the victim with a belt and buckle. The Indictment also alleges that on December 10, 2015, Traversie unlawfully committed a domestic assault upon the victim, his spouse, that resulted in substantial bodily injury.
The charges are merely an accusation and Traversie is presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty.
The investigation is being conducted by the Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe Law Enforcement Services. Assistant U.S. Attorney Jay Miller is prosecuting the case.
Traversie was remanded to the custody of the U.S. Marshals Service pending trial. A trial date has not been set.
Wheeling man sentenced to 151 months for cocaine traffickingRead the Press Release
WHEELING, WEST VIRGINIA – Dondie Williams, 36, of Wheeling, was sentenced today to 151 months in prison for cocaine trafficking, United States Attorney William J. Ihlenfeld, II, announced.
Williams was discovered in possession of cocaine base in late 2014 in Ohio County, West Virginia. He was charged with one count of “Possession with Intent to Distribute Cocaine Base.” He pled guilty in January 2016 to a lesser included offense of the aforementioned charge.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Stephen Vogrin prosecuted the case on behalf of the government. The Ohio Valley Drug and Violent Crime Task Force, a HIDTA-funded initiative, investigated.
Senior U.S. District Judge Frederick P. Stamp, Jr. presided.
Virginia Man Pleads Guilty to Employment Tax FraudRead the Press Release
An Ashland, Virginia, man who operated two masonry contractor construction companies pleaded guilty today in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia to one count of failing to collect, account for and pay over employment taxes to the Internal Revenue Service (IRS), announced Acting Assistant Attorney General Caroline D. Ciraolo of the Justice Department’s Tax Division and U.S. Attorney Dana J. Boente of the Eastern District of Virginia.
According to court documents, Michael Manning, 52, was the President of Manning Construction and Manning-Carhen Construction. Manning controlled the businesses’ finances and was responsible for filing the Employer’s Quarterly Federal Tax Returns, Forms 941 and paying over to the IRS the federal income, social security and Medicare taxes withheld from the wages of the businesses’ employees. For the third and fourth quarters of 2014, Manning willfully failed to comply with these legal obligations by failing to pay over more than $800,000 in withheld taxes to the IRS. Additionally, as part of his plea, Manning admitted that Manning Construction, regularly and deliberately created false financial statements for submission to financial institutions in order to comply with that business’s existing loan covenants, to encourage banks to lend new funds to the company, or to enable the renewal of existing loans.
Manning faces a statutory maximum sentence of five years in prison and a fine of $250,000. As part of his plea agreement, Manning also agreed to pay restitution to the IRS. The sentencing hearing is set for May 31.
Acting Assistant Attorney General Ciraolo and U.S. Attorney Boente commended special agents of IRS-Criminal Investigation, who investigated the case and Trial Attorney Melanie Smith of the Tax Division and Assistant U.S. Attorneys Jasmine Yoon and Thomas Garnett of the Eastern District of Virginia, who are prosecuting the case.
Additional information about the Tax Division and its enforcement efforts may be found on the division’s website
United States Attorney Examines Financial FraudRead the Press Release
CEDAR RAPIDS, IA – United States Attorney Kevin W. Techau convened a second financial fraud training session today in Dubuque developed to examine various fraudulent schemes in an effort to strengthen prevention and detection efforts. The training brought together area financial institutions together with local, state and federal law enforcement partners. The first meeting was convened last week in Cedar Rapids with a future meeting scheduled in Waterloo on March 2nd. The Dubuque Financial Liaison Group assisted with organizing the training.
United States Attorney Kevin W. Techau stated, “Financial frauds are a serious crime that can result in federal prison time. Federal, state and local law enforcement agencies treat financial crimes very seriously.” Techau also noted, “The financial crimes training session will serve to strengthen communication between law enforcement, local banks and credit unions to protect the public and businesses in the greater Dubuque area. We caution anyone considering this type of criminal activity to reconsider.”
Bringing the partners together to discuss the types of fraud impacting banks, credit unions, local businesses and citizens strengthens the connections necessary to effectively respond. Without a coordinated approach, those who engage in fraudulent practices may go undetected. With a coordinated approach, prevention efforts are strengthened.
Representatives from the Federal Bureau of Investigation, U.S. Secret Service and Postal Service, and the Internal Revenue Service discussed their areas of expertise and current trends. The Dubuque County Attorney’s Office focused on responding to signs of fraud to include elder abuse, counterfeit financial instruments and other common schemes seen locally. A bank insider crime case study was examined by an Assistant United States Attorney.
With all of the parties detailing their role and responsibilities to combat these crimes, they developed a better understanding of how to work more effectively together to prevent and detect fraudulent practices and engage prosecutors to hold those who commit the crime accountable.
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Two St. Croix Men Sentenced for Conspiracy to Possess with Intent to Distribute MarijuanaRead the Press Release
St. Croix, USVI – Senior District Court Judge Raymond L. Finch sentenced today Lamont Sweeney, 41, and Shawn Webster, 42, each to three years of probation, a fine of $500 and a $100 special monetary assessment, United States Attorney Ronald W. Sharpe announced.
Sweeney and Webster pleaded guilty on September 28, 2015. According to the plea agreement filed with the court, on March 17, 2014, an individual asked Sweeney to have Webster pick up a package from the Richmond Post Office, St. Croix. Sweeney called Webster, who agreed to pick up the package. Both Sweeney and Webster knew the package contained 4,980 grams of marijuana.
This case was investigated by the Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations with the assistance of the U.S. Postal Inspection Service and U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration. It was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Rhonda Williams-Henry.
Two Men Sentenced in White Plains Federal Court in Connection with Sullivan County ArsonRead the Press Release
Preet Bharara, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, announced today that NICHOLAS MOTTA and DOMINIC MOTTA were sentenced today in White Plains federal court to prison terms of 15 months, and 12 months and one day, respectively, for their roles in a scheme to obtain insurance proceeds by committing arson. NICHOLAS MOTTA and DOMINIC MOTTA pled guilty on November 6, 2015, to attempted mail fraud in connection with the arson and insurance fraud scheme. The third defendant in the case, Anthony Perso, pled guilty to attempted mail fraud on October 23, 2015. All three defendants pled guilty before the U.S. District Judge Nelson S. Román, who imposed today’s sentences.
According to the allegations contained in the indictment and information adduced during the Court proceedings:
In the early morning hours of February 10, 2010, during a blizzard, a shuttered bar in Swan Lake, New York, formerly known as Kilcoin’s, was set ablaze and destroyed. Perso was among the individuals who set the fire. NICHOLAS and DOMINIC MOTTA owned the bar, and arranged the arson by having others, including Perso, travel to Sullivan County to set the bar afire, in order to make a claim to recover proceeds from the insurance company. In pursuing the insurance claim, DOMINIC MOTTA deceived the insurance company about the fire in order to attempt to obtain more than $100,000 in insurance proceeds. The insurance company, however, detected the arson, and ultimately denied DOMINIC MOTTA’s claim when MOTTA repeatedly failed to respond to requests by the insurance company that he answer questions about the fire under oath.
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In addition to their prison terms, DOMINIC MOTTA, 59, and NICHOLAS MOTTA, 43, both of Islandia, New York, were each sentenced to one year of supervised release and ordered to pay a $100 special assessment. NICHOLAS MOTTA was ordered to pay a fine of $7,500 and DOMINIC MOTTA was ordered to pay a fine of $5,000.
Anthony Perso, 32, of Medford, New York, is scheduled to be sentenced by Judge Román on March 11, 2106, at 10:30 a.m.
Mr. Bharara praised the outstanding investigative work of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Suffolk County District Attorney’s Office, the Suffolk County Police Department, and the Sullivan County Sheriff’s Office.
The prosecution is being handled by the Office’s White Plains Division. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Benjamin Allee and George Turner are in charge of the prosecution.
Texas Man Pleads Guilty in New Mexico to Scheme to Defraud Social Security AdministrationRead the Press Release
ALBUQUERQUE – Dannelly Labogin, 68, of Amarillo, Texas, pleaded guilty today in federal court in Las Cruces, N.M., to defrauding the Social Security Administration (SSA) of Social Security Child’s Insurance Benefits. Under the terms of his plea agreement, Labogin will be required to pay $82,483.00 in restitution to the SSA.
Labogin was charged in a two-count indictment on Sept.22, 2015. Count 1 of the indictment alleged that between June 2007 and Nov. 2013, Labogin executed a scheme to defraud the SSA by continuing to receive benefits on his daughter’s behalf even though the child had been adopted by others and was no longer in his care. As a result of this scheme, Labogin fraudulently received an aggregate of $82,483.00. Counts 2 through 36 of the indictment alleged that Labogin knowingly stole and embezzled an aggregate of $26,633.00 in Social Security Child’s Insurance Benefit payments from the SSA between Oct. 1, 2010 and Dec. 3, 2013. Labogin was arrested in Amarillo on Dec. 4, 2015, and was transferred to the District of New Mexico on Jan. 5, 2016, to face the charges against him.
During today’s plea hearing, Labogin pled guilty to Count 1 of the indictment. In entering the guilty plea, Labogin admitted that from June 2007 through Nov. 2013, he received Child’s Insurance Benefits from the SSA on behalf of his biological daughter even though he did not have custody of his biological daughter at the time he applied for and received the benefits.
At sentencing, Labogin faces a statutory maximum penalty of five years in prison. The sentencing hearing has yet to be scheduled.
This case was investigated by the SSA, Office of the Inspector General, and is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Mark A. Saltman of the U.S. Attorney’s Las Cruces Branch Office.
Spiro Man Sentenced to 168 Months for Methamphetamine DistributionRead the Press Release
MUSKOGEE, OKLAHOMA - The United States Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Oklahoma, announced today that WILLIAM LYNN BURROUGH, age 45, of Spiro, Oklahoma, was sentenced to 168 months imprisonment, followed by 5 years of supervised release for POSSESSION WITH INTENT TO DISTRIBUTE METHAMPHETAMINE, in violation of Title 21, United States Code, Sections 841(a)(1) and (b)(1)(A).
The charge arose from an investigation by the Sequoyah County Sheriff’s Department and the Drug Enforcement Administration.
The Indictment alleges that on or about June 9, 2015, in the Eastern District of Oklahoma, the defendant, WILLIAM LYNN BURROUGH, did knowingly and intentionally possess with the intent to distribute 50 grams or more of methamphetamine (actual), a Schedule II controlled substance.
The Honorable James H. Payne, District Judge in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Oklahoma, in Muskogee, presided over the hearing. The defendant will remain in the custody of the United States Marshals Service pending transportation to the designated federal facility at which he will serve his nonparoleable sentence.
Assistant United States Attorney Dean Burris represented the United States.
Southwest Harbor Man Pleads Guilty to Operating Under the InfluenceRead the Press Release
Contact: Jim Moore
Assistant United States Attorney
Tel: (207) 945-0373Bangor, Maine: United States Attorney Thomas E. Delahanty II announced that Justin Bent, 28, of Southwest Harbor, Maine, pleaded guilty yesterday in U.S. District Court to operating under the influence of alcohol (OUI) and causing serious bodily injury, operating a vehicle without due care and destroying trees and other natural resources.
Court records reveal that Bent, while under the influence of intoxicants, drove off of a roadway and crashed a van in Acadia National Park, causing serious bodily injury to a passenger and destroying trees. Bent’s blood alcohol content measured .14%. The passenger was transported by life flight to Eastern Maine Medical Center in Bangor where he underwent emergency surgery for a severe leg fracture.
Bent faces up to six years in prison and a $250,000 fine for OUI and up to six-months in prison for operating the vehicle without due care and destruction of park property. He will be sentenced after the completion of a presentence investigation report by the U.S. Probation Office.
The investigation was conducted by National Park Service Rangers as well as the Southwest Harbor and Mount Desert Island Police Departments.
Southport Man Pleads Guilty to Failing to Pay Taxes on Money He Stole from BenefactorRead the Press Release
Deirdre M. Daly, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, today announced that ORVAL FURLONG, 72, of Southport, waived his right to indictment and pleaded guilty yesterday in New Haven federal court to one count of tax evasion.
According to court documents and statements made in court, FURLONG was a life-long friend of a wealthy benefactor. Over the years, the benefactor paid some of FURLONG’s debts and financed tuition for FURLONG’s children’s schools. During the last years of the benefactor’s life, FURLONG hired home health aides to care for the benefactor. During this time, the benefactor provided FURLONG with a stipend of approximately $8,000 to $10,000 per month. The benefactor also employed the services of an attorney who acted as the benefactor’s power of attorney and oversaw the Benefactor’s finances. FURLONG provided the attorney with a detailed itemization of the hours worked by the home health aides, the hourly rates for their services, and the total funds needed to pay them for the services provided. The attorney then issued FURLONG checks from one of the benefactor’s bank accounts to pay the health aides.
From at least 2009 to 2011, FURLONG routinely inflated the true hours worked by the home health aides, and/or the applicable hourly rate. FURLONG then paid the home health aides in cash or by check in an amount significantly lower than FURLONG had represented to the attorney. FURLONG kept the difference and used the funds for his personal expenditures. Through this scheme, FURLONG failed to report more than $500,000 in income on his 2009 through 2011 federal tax returns.
FURLONG is scheduled to be sentenced by U.S. District Judge Jeffrey A. Meyer on June 1, 2016, at which time he faces a maximum term of imprisonment of five years and a fine of up to $250,000. FURLONG also has agreed to pay $105,693 in back taxes, plus applicable interest and penalties.
This case was investigated by the Internal Revenue Service – Criminal Investigation Division and is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Christopher W. Schmeisser.
Seven Defendants Plead Guilty to Roles in Violent South Minneapolis GangRead the Press Release
United States Attorney Andrew M. Luger today announced the guilty pleas of the remaining two defendants from an August 2015 indictment charging seven members of the 10z and 20z street gangs with crimes related to a multi-year gang war with their rivals, which included a shooting attack in August 2014 outside of the Hennepin County Medical Center in which the hospital was peppered with gunfire. The defendants include both leaders and other members of the 10z and 20z. Four defendants pleaded guilty to conspiracy to possess firearms in the furtherance of a drug trafficking conspiracy, including the guilty pleas today of DANIEL ALFRED ADAMS, a/k/a “Funk,” and PERCY MINIFER LACEY, JR., a/k/a “P3.” Two defendants earlier this month pleaded guilty to illegally possessing ammunition and one pleaded guilty to distribution of cocaine base. Each defendant pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Patrick Schiltz in U.S. District Court in Minneapolis, Minn.
“Seven gang members are now behind bars,” said U.S. Attorney Luger. “Today’s guilty pleas are an important step forward for public safety, but our work is not done. Already this year, there have been dozens of shots-fired incidents across Minneapolis. Working together with all our law enforcement partners, including the ATF and Minneapolis Police Department, we are committed to ending the gun violence that disrupts the peacefulness of neighborhoods across Minneapolis.”
According to the defendants’ guilty pleas and documents filed in court, between at least January 2013 and August 2015, the 10z and the 20z gangs operated in South Minneapolis, primarily between Franklin Avenue, and Lake Street, and I-35W and Minnehaha Avenue. Their primary purpose was to make money for the gang members through the sale of illegal drugs, including crack cocaine, heroin, and marijuana. As part of their drug trafficking operation, members of the gangs routinely engaged in gun violence with rival gangs. The purpose of this violence was to protect drug dealing territory controlled by the 10z and 20z, to protect individual drug distributors from rival gang violence, to attack and seize drug dealing territory controlled by rival gangs, and to attack and rob drug distributors associated with rival gangs.
According to the defendants’ guilty pleas and documents filed in court, the 10z and 20z were involved in a gang war with their primary rival gangs, the Bloods and the Bogus Boys. The gang war was very violent and resulted in shootings of gang members on both sides, some of which caused the death of gang members. Virtually all of these shootings were the product of disputes over territory, robberies of rival drug dealers, or retaliatory violence.
This case is the result of an investigation conducted by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives and the Minneapolis Police Department.
This case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Thomas Calhoun-Lopez.
Defendant Information:
DANIEL ALFRED ADAMS, a/k/a “Funk,” 29
Minneapolis, Minn.
Convicted:
Conspiracy to possess firearms in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime, 1 count
CLARENCE JAMES DICKENS, JR., a/k/a “Claro,” a/k/a, “Sneaky,” 24
Roseville, Minn.
Convicted:
Conspiracy to possess firearms in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime, 1 count
ANTHONY PIERRE DOSS, a/k/a “Two Tone,” a/k/a “Tony,” 25
Brooklyn Park, Minn.
Convicted:
Conspiracy to possess firearms in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime, 1 count
PERCY MINIFER LACEY, JR., a/k/a “P3,” 22
Richfield, Minn.
Convicted:
Conspiracy to possess firearms in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime, 1 count
THOMAS DUPREE BENNETT, a/k/a “Deandre Clay,” a/k/a “Trigga,” 28
Minneapolis, Minn.
Convicted:
Felon in possession of ammunition, 1 count
ANDREW INDELICATO PETERSON, a/k/a “Boo Boo,” 25
St. Louis Park, Minn.
Convicted:
Felon in possession of ammunition, 1 count
PAUL ANTONIO EARLY, a/k/a “Stamps,” a/k/a, “Man Man,” 23
Minneapolis, Minn.
Convicted:
Distribution of cocaine base, 1 count
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United States Attorney’s Office, District of Minnesota: (612) 664-5600
Sebago Man Pleads Guilty to Possessing Child PornographyRead the Press Release
Contact: Michael J. Conley
Assistant United States Attorney
Tel: (207) 780-3257Portland, Maine: United States Attorney Thomas E. Delahanty II announced that William Duffy, 58, of Sebago, Maine pled guilty today in U.S. District Court to possessing child pornography.
According to court records, in May 2015, deputies with the Cumberland County Sheriff’s Office executed a search warrant for Duffy’s laptop computer at his Sebago residence. A forensic analysis revealed numerous still images and video files depicting minors engaged in sexually explicit conduct, many of whom were younger than 12 years of age.
Duffy faces up to 20 years in prison, a $250,000 fine, and supervised release for between five years and life. He will be sentenced after the completion of a presentence investigation report by the U.S. Probation Office.
The investigation was conducted by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Cumberland County Sheriff’s Office and the Maine State Police Computer Crimes Unit.