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13 January 2016
Executive at Now-Defunct Mirae Bank Indicted in Loan Fraud Case that Caused $33 Million in Losses and Contributed to Failure of BankRead the Press Release
LOS ANGELES – The former chief marketing officer at Mirae Bank was arrested this morning on federal bank fraud charges that allege he was responsible for the bank issuing $150 million in fraudulent loans – loans that caused the bank to suffer $33 million in losses and were “a significant factor in Mirae Bank’s failure as a financial institution in 2009.”
Ataollah Aminpour, 57, of Beverly Hills, was arrested without incident pursuant to an eight-count indictment returned by a federal grand jury on January 7.
Aminpour, who is also known as John and Johnny Aminpour, is expected to be arraigned on the indictment this afternoon in United States District Court in downtown Los Angeles.
According to the indictment, Aminpour held himself out as a successful businessman who could help people obtain financing for gas station and car wash businesses with little or no down payment. In some cases, Aminpour personally identified businesses to be purchased and negotiated a sale price, but he allegedly overstated the actual purchase price to buyers. For these buyers and others whom Aminpour introduced to Mirae Bank, the indictment alleges that Aminpour oversaw the loan process and provided loan officers with information and documentation that contained false facts and figures, including the actual purchase price of the business and the source of the down payment. As a result, Mirae Bank funded inflated loans, with excess funds secretly going to Aminpour, borrowers and/or “hard money lenders” who had surreptitiously provided funds used to make down payments.
The indictment alleges that, as part of the scheme, Aminpour arranged for fake down payments – money that came from hard money lenders who made short-term, high-interest loans or, in some cases, from Aminpour himself. Aminpour also allegedly arranged for bogus lender information to be submitted to Mirae Bank in documents that falsely represented borrower assets, their experience in the business being purchased or the income expected from the business. In one instance detailed in the indictment, Aminpour allegedly caused a document to be submitted to Mirae Bank showing that a borrower had more than $1.4 million on deposit at another bank, when Aminpour himself had provided the borrower with $1.3 million – money that was in the borrower’s account for only one day.
“Mr. Aminpour allegedly orchestrated a scheme in which Mirae Bank funded loans based on applications that were rife with misstatements and false information,” said United States Attorney Eileen M. Decker. “Over the course of nearly four years, Mr. Aminpour was able to skim money from many of these loans, which allowed him to profit at the expense of the bank and taxpayers who had to bail out the failed financial institution.”
The indictment alleges that Aminpour concealed information and provided false information that led Mirae Bank to issue approximately 90 loans with principal exceeding $150 million and that these loans generated commissions for Aminpour of more than $1.4 million. As a result of the fraudulent activity, which ran from the fall of 2005 until June 2009 when the bank failed, Mirae suffered losses of approximately $33 million.
“The losses that Mirae Bank suffered and was facing on the fraudulent loans were a significant factor in Mirae Bank’s failure as a financial institution in 2009, and the FDIC’s resulting takeover of Mirae Bank as receiver,” according to the indictment. “The losses incurred on these loans were suffered in part by Mirae Bank, in part by the FDIC, and in part by Wilshire State Bank (now doing business as Wilshire Bank), which acquired Mirae Bank’s assets from the FDIC, after its holding company Wilshire Bancorp Inc. had received $62,158,000 in taxpayer funds from the Troubled Asset Relief Program.”
Aminpour is charged with six counts of bank fraud for causing Mirae Bank to issue fraudulent loans for gas stations and car washes in Vernon, Maywood, Lomita, Whittier, Carson and El Monte.
Aminpour is also charged with two counts of making false statements to a financial institution in relation to loan applications for two gas stations.
An indictment contains allegations that a defendant has committed a crime. Every defendant is presumed to be innocent until and unless proven guilty in court.
If he is convicted, Aminpour would face a statutory maximum sentence of 30 years in federal prison for each of the eight counts.
The case against Aminpour is the result of an investigation by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation’s Office of Inspector General, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Special Inspector General for the Troubled Asset Relief Program (SIGTARP), and the Federal Housing Finance Agency’s Office of Inspector General.
Evansville man sentenced for robbery of two Walgreens pharmaciesRead the Press Release
Evansville – Josh J. Minkler, the United States Attorney, announced today that Jeffrey W. Grimwood, 44, Evansville, was sentenced to 144 months (12 years) in prison by U.S. District Chief Judge Richard L. Young following his guilty plea to obstruction of commerce by robbery. This case was the result of an investigation by the Evansville Violent Crimes Task Force and the Evansville Police Department.
“Prescription drug abuse fuels violence in many areas of Southern Indiana,” said Minkler. “If someone has a prescription drug problem, I encourage them to get help before they resort to violence. If not, they will be sent to federal prison.”
Grimwood admitted to the Court that on May 9, 2015, he entered the Walgreens Pharmacy located at 925 South Green River Road in Evansville, and demanded prescription pain medication. He then displayed what appeared to be a semi-automatic pistol tucked in his waistband before leaving the pharmacy with the medication. Grimwood also admitted that on June 11, 2015, he entered a Walgreens Pharmacy located at 4301 North First Avenue in Evansville and asked for Percocet and Dilaudid, both prescription pain medications. When asked for his prescription by the pharmacy staff, Grimwood displayed what appeared to be a semi-automatic pistol and said “This is my prescription!”
A witness to the June 11th robbery observed the suspect leaving the pharmacy and provided the license plate number to Evansville Police officers. The officers went to the residence associated with the license plate number where Grimwood admitted to both of the robberies.
According to Assistant U.S. Attorney Todd S. Shellenbarger, who prosecuted the case for the government, Judge Young also imposed 3 years supervised release following Grimwood’s release from prison and ordered him to participate in a drug abuse prevention program while on supervision.
Corpus Christi Woman Indicted for Kidnapping ChildrenRead the Press Release
CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas – Jada Gregg Warren, 32, of Corpus Christi, has been indicted by a federal grand jury in Corpus Christi on charges that she kidnapped two minor children from their foster home, announced U.S. Attorney Kenneth Magidson. Warren is the biological mother of the children but had lost her parental rights in November 2014.
The two-count indictment was returned today. She is expected to make an appearance before a U.S. magistrate judge in the near future.
Warren was originally charged in a criminal complaint filed Aug. 20, 2015. She Warren was arrested in Torreon, Coahuila, Mexico, Dec. 16, 2015, and both children were with her. Warren has since been returned to federal custody in Corpus Christi and the children have been returned to the custody of Child Protective Services (CPS).
The criminal complaint alleged that Warren had taken the children from their foster home on Aug. 19-20, 2015. She had allegedly made statements about committing the crime just two days prior.
The children were discovered missing on the morning of Aug. 20, 2015. Several items of clothing had allegedly also been taken. The complaint further alleges that a car she co-owned had a tracking device which indicated it was in Corpus Christi on Aug. 18, but in Mexico two days later. Her Facebook page also indicted she was in Mexico on that date. At the time of the alleged kidnapping, Warren was serving a 36-month-term of supervised release following a federal drug tracking conviction.
On Nov. 6, 2014, a judge in Bexar County had terminated Warren's parental rights and placed the children in the custody of CPS.
If convicted, Warren faces not less than 20 years and up to life imprisonment, a fine of up to $250,000, and up to 5 years of supervised release.
The charges are the result of an investigation conducted by the FBI, U.S. Marshals Service and the Corpus Christi Police Department. Assistant U.S. Attorney Chad W. Cowan is prosecuting the case.
An indictment is a formal accusation of criminal conduct, not evidence.
A defendant is presumed innocent unless convicted through due process of law.Colombian Cartel Leader Sentenced to 11 Years in Prison for Trafficking Narcotics Sold in the United StatesRead the Press Release
NEWARK, N.J. - A Colombian cartel leader expelled from Venezuela to face federal charges in New Jersey for his role in an international cocaine distribution conspiracy was sentenced today to 132 months in prison, U.S. Attorney Paul J. Fishman announced.
Colombian national Salomon Camacho Mora, 71, a/k/a “Papa Grande,” a/k/a “El Viejo,” a/k/a “Hector,” was arrested in Valencia, Venezuela, on Jan. 13, 2010, and subsequently expelled by Venezuelan authorities to the United States. Camacho was originally indicted in September 2002 in U.S. District Court for the District of New Jersey and had been designated a Consolidated Priority Organization Target (CPOT) by the Department of Justice. He was a New Jersey FBI fugitive for more than eight years.
On Oct. 15, 2014, Camacho pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge William H. Walls to Count Seven of a superseding indictment charging him with conspiracy to commit narcotics trafficking. Judge Walls imposed the sentence today in Newark federal court.
According to documents filed in this case and statements made in court:
Camacho admitted that he and members of his drug organization purchased multi-kilogram quantities of cocaine from processing laboratories located in Colombia and arranged for the transportation of the cocaine to various shipping ports in Venezuela. Camacho and members of his drug organization then sold the cocaine shipments to other drug trafficking organizations operating in Puerto Rico, the Dominican Republic and the United States.
He also acknowledged that others in his organization received and stored the drug shipments in Venezuela, and arranged for their maritime transportation to Puerto Rico and the United States.
In addition to the prison term, Judge Walls sentenced Camacho to five years of supervised release. Camacho must also forfeit $1.6 million and eight Colombian properties that were the product of ill-gotten gains.
U.S. Attorney Fishman praised special agents of the FBI, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Richard M. Frankel in Newark; IRS-Criminal Investigation, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Jonathan D. Larsen; the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Carl J. Kotowski in Newark; and the New Jersey National Guard Anti-Narcotics Task Force for the investigation.
U.S. Attorney Fishman also thanked the U.S. Department of Justice Criminal Division's Office of International Affairs for providing assistance in this matter. Additionally, he thanked the Venezuelan agencies Oficina Nacional Anti Drogas (ONA), Servicio Bolivariano de Intelligencia Nacional, (SEBIN), Servicio Administrativo de identificacion migracion y Extranjeria, (SAIME) and the Colombian law enforcement authorities for their assistance in Camacho’s arrest and deportation.
The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorney Adam N. Subervi of the U.S. Attorney’s Office Criminal Division in Newark.
Defense counsel: William Clay Esq., Miami
Cleveland men indicted for armed robberies in Solon, Bath and North OlmstedRead the Press Release
A federal grand jury indicted three Cleveland men for armed robberies in Solon, Bath and North Olmsted, said Steven M. Dettelbach, U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of Ohio.
Stephone D. Tillman, 24, Matthew S. Bowen, Jr., 24, and Christopher R. Jones, 25, were indicted on charges of conspiring to interfere with interstate commerce by means of robbery as well as committing the robberies of convenience stores in Solon and in Bath.
Additionally, Tillman and Bowen were also charged with robbing a drive through convenience store in North Olmsted. Each of the robberies involved the use of a firearm, according to the indictment.
Tillman, Bowen, and Jones robbed the Circle K, located at 29605 Aurora Road, in Solon, on September 15, 2015. On October 3, 2015, Bowen and Tillman robbed the Zip Thru drive-through store located at 30781 Lorain Road, in North Olmsted. On October 8, 2015, all three defendants robbed the Circle K, located at 791 Cleveland-Massillon Road, in Bath, according to the indictment.
Additionally, Tillman was charged with using and carrying a firearm during and in relation to each of the robberies. Bowen and Jones were charged as accomplices to that firearm use for the two Circle K robberies.
Tillman was also charged with being a felon in possession of a firearm.
The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives conducted the investigation in conjunction with the Solon, North Olmsted, and Bath Police Departments. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Kevin R. Filiatraut and Kelly L. Galvin.
If convicted, the defendant’s sentence will be determined by the court after review of factors unique to this case, including the defendant’s prior criminal record, if any, the defendant’s role in the offense, and the characteristics of the violation. In all cases, the sentence will not exceed the statutory maximum and in most cases it will be less than the maximum.
An indictment is only a charge and is not evidence of guilt. A defendant is entitled to a fair trial, in which it will be the government’s burden to prove guilt beyond a reasonable doubt
Cleveland man charged for armed robberies of Family Dollar storesRead the Press Release
A Cleveland man was indicted for four armed robberies of Family Dollar stores that took place in 2015, said Steven M. Dettelbach, U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of Ohio, and Stephen D. Anthony, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI’s Cleveland Office.
Patrick Young, 19, was indicted on one count of conspiring to interfere with commerce by means of robbery, four counts of interference with commerce by means of robbery and two counts of brandishing a firearm during and in relation to a crime of violence.
The indictment alleges that Young and others known to the grand jury conspired to rob Family Dollar stores at 7300 St. Clair Ave., 3470 East 93rd Street, 7415 Superior Ave., and 12107 St. Clair Ave between August 24 and September 16, 2015.
The indictment also alleges Young carried and brandished a firearm during the incidents.
If convicted, the defendant’s sentence will be determined by the court after review of factors unique to this case, including the defendant’s prior criminal record, if any, the defendant’s role in the offense, and the characteristics of the violation. In all cases, the sentence will not exceed the statutory maximum and in most cases the sentence will be less than the maximum.
The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Carmen E. Henderson following an investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Cleveland Division, and the Cleveland Division of Police, and with the assistance of the Cuyahoga County Prosecutor’s Office.
An indictment is only a charge and is not evidence of guilt. A defendant is entitled to a fair trial in which it will be the government’s burden to prove guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.
Child Predator Sentenced to 25 Years in Federal PrisonRead the Press Release
BATON ROUGE, LA - United States Attorney Walt Green announced today that District Judge James J. Brady sentenced PIERRE A. MOOSEBROKER, JR., age 47, of Baton Rouge, Louisiana, to 25 years imprisonment, to be followed by a lifetime term of supervised release, for child pornography and false statement offenses related, in part, to his plan to obtain and sexually abuse a child.
On June 18, 2015, MOOSEBROKER was convicted of possessing child pornography, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 2252A(a)(5)(B), and making false statements to Special Agents with the Federal Bureau of Investigation, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 1001(a)(2).
MOOSEBROKER’s sentence arose primarily from events in early March 2015. After the FBI received information that MOOSEBROKER had discussed a plan to abduct and sexually abuse a child, the FBI quickly eliminated the threat by arresting MOOSEBROKER and seizing his various electronic devices pursuant to a search warrant. Subsequent FBI investigation revealed that the defendant had downloaded numerous images of child pornography to his computer and confirmed his plans to obtain a young female child to sexually abuse. During the course of his interviews with the FBI, MOOSEBROKER made several false statements related to his possession of child pornography and his plan to obtain and sexually abuse a child.
U.S. Attorney Walt Green stated, “Today’s severe sentence is a just and appropriate outcome for this child predator. There is no doubt that both our district and our children have been made safer as a result. I greatly appreciate the FBI for their dedicated and quick response to a situation that could easily have resulted in tragedy.”
This matter was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, with assistance from the East Baton Rouge Parish Sheriff’s Office and cooperation from the District Attorney’s Office for the Nineteenth Judicial District. The matter was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Chris Dippel, who serves as a Deputy Chief in the Criminal Division.
Chicago Man Sentenced to More Than 16 Years in Prison for Selling Shotguns and Rifles Imported to Chicago from IndianaRead the Press Release
CHICAGO — A Chicago man was sentenced today to more than 16 years in federal prison for selling nearly a dozen firearms that had been transported from Indiana to the streets of Chicago.
TERRENCE GRIGGS, 36, sold eleven firearms and a bulletproof vest to an individual he believed was a high-ranking member of a Chicago street gang. The weapons included two shotguns, four pistols, three revolvers and two rifles. Unbeknownst to Griggs, the buyer was an informant who was cooperating with law enforcement officers from the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives.
A federal jury last year convicted Griggs on all four counts of being a felon in possession of a firearm. U.S. District Judge Elaine E. Bucklo imposed a 200-month sentence today in federal court in Chicago.
“The city of Chicago is plagued with gun violence, and many of the guns in that violence are purchased through illegal sales like the ones Griggs orchestrated,” Assistant U.S. Attorney Angel M. Krull argued in the government’s sentencing memorandum. “The nature and circumstances of the offense – not only possessing, but trafficking in firearms – are incredibly serious.”
Evidence at trial revealed that in eight separate meetings in the summer of 2011, Griggs personally sold ten firearms and one bulletproof vest to the cooperating informant. Griggs also arranged and facilitated the sale of the eleventh weapon, although he wasn’t present for the sale.
The sentence was announced by Zachary T. Fardon, United States Attorney for the Northern District of Illinois; and Jeffery Magee, Special Agent in Charge of the Chicago Field Division of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. The government is represented by Ms. Krull and Assistant U.S. Attorney Kartik K. Raman.
Caseyville Man Sentenced for Firearm OffenseRead the Press Release
James L. Porter, Acting United States Attorney for the Southern District of Illinois, announced today that on January 12, 2016, Anthony M. Allen, 35, of Caseyville, Illinois, was sentenced for Unlawful Possession of a Firearm by a Previously Convicted Felon. Allen was sentenced to 6 months in federal prison and 6 months of home detention, to be followed by 3 years of supervised release, along with a $150 fine and a $100 special assessment. Allen, who has been detained since November 16, 2015, also agreed to forfeit the illegal firearm that he possessed.
Court proceedings revealed that Allen, a previously convicted felon, was pulled over by Collinsville police officers for erratic driving on January 7, 2015. After Allen was arrested on suspicion of driving under the influence, police found a firearm and ammunition in his vehicle. The investigation was conducted by the Collinsville Police Department and prosecuted by Special Assistant United States Attorney Shane B. Kelbley.
Carl Junction Man Pleads Guilty to Child PornRead the Press Release
SPRINGFIELD, Mo. – Tammy Dickinson, United States Attorney for the Western District of Missouri, announced that a Carl Junction, Mo., man pleaded guilty in federal court today to receiving and distributing child pornography over the Internet.
Steven Ray Cottle, Jr., 35, of Carl Junction, pleaded guilty before U.S. Magistrate Judge David P. Rush to receiving and distributing child pornography over the Internet.
Law enforcement agents were conducting an undercover investigation in December 2013 and identified Cottle’s computer as receiving and distributing child pornography over the Internet through a peer-to-peer file-sharing program. When agents executed a search warrant at his residence on Feb. 13, 2014, Cottle attempted to hide his laptop computer and two thumb drives by placing them above the ceiling tiles in his bedroom before he came downstairs to talk to law enforcement officers. Investigators discovered images and videos of child pornography on the laptop and thumb drives.
Under federal statutes, Cottle is subject to a mandatory minimum sentence of five years in federal prison without parole, up to a sentence of 20 years in federal prison without parole, plus a fine up to $250,000. A sentencing hearing will be scheduled after the completion of a presentence investigation by the United States Probation Office.
This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Patrick Carney. It was investigated by the Southwest Missouri Cybercrimes Task Force and Immigration and Customs Enforcement's (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI).
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."
Canton man charged with robbing three banksRead the Press Release
A federal grand jury returned a three-count indictment charging Cortez K.D. Williams, 24, of Canton, with bank robbery, said Steven M. Dettelbach, U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of Ohio.
Williams is charged robbing the Huntington National Bank at 230 West Cedar Street in Ravenna, on March 27, 2015. Williams is charged with robbign the same Huntington National Bank branch on September 23. He is also charged with robbintg the Huntington National Bank at 1045 Trump Road in Carrollton.
If convicted, the defendant’s sentence will be determined by the court after review of factors unique to this case, including the defendant’s prior criminal records, if any, the defendant’s role in the offense and the characteristics of the violation. In all cases, the sentence will not exceed the statutory maximum and in most cases it will be less than the maximum.
The investigation preceding the indictment was conducted by the Federal Bureau of Investigation. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Linda H. Barr.
An indictment is only a charge and is not evidence of guilt. A defendant is entitled to a fair trial in which it will be the government’s burden to prove guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.
Canadian Resident Pleads Guilty to Coercing Minor Girls Using the Internet and Producing Child PornographyRead the Press Release
An Ontario man pleaded guilty today to multiple counts related to the sexual exploitation of two minor girls, including the unlawful coercion and enticement of the two girls, the production of child pornography, and the extortion of the girls using the Internet, announced United States Attorney Barbara L. McQuade. McQuade was joined in the announcement by Special Agent in Charge David P. Gelios, Federal Bureau of Investigation, Detroit Field Office, and Chief Michael Patton of the West Bloomfield Police Department. Antonio P. Fontana, 58, of Pickering, Ontario, Canada, pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge David M. Lawson. As part of the plea, Fontana admitted that, in October 2013, he began coercing and enticing a 15-year-old girl (“Victim 1”) into performing various sexual acts for him in front of an Internet webcam. Fontana first began communicating with the victim on the Internet website Omegle.com, where he was posing as a 16-year-old boy. Fontana recorded many, if not all, of the sexual acts that he forced Victim 1 to perform on an almost daily basis. Fontana threatened to post the recordings of Victim 1 on the Internet and to send them to her friends and family if she did not continue to perform sexual acts for him. When Victim 1 ultimately attempted to stop speaking to Fontana in late December 2013, Fontana continued to communicate with Victim 1 and her mother in an attempt to coerce Victim 1 into continuing to communicate. At various times in January and February, 2014, Fontana followed through with his threats, sending sexually explicit images of Victim 1 to Victim 1’s mother, her school and her church, including her friends, peers and church administrators. Fontana also engaged in a similar course of conduct, beginning in November, 2013, with a second minor victim (“Victim 2”), a 14 year-old girl. Both victims were located, at all relevant times, in the Eastern District of Michigan. As part of the plea, Fontana admitted that, in total, he victimized more than five girls. “The phenomenon of ‘sextortion,’ where child predators use the internet to extort children to pose for pictures and engage in sex acts online, is a growing problem,” McQuade said. “Predators entice young people to pose for compromising pictures, and then use shame to silence the victims from seeking help. Parents should warn their children that you never know who is on the other end of an internet conversation, and to never let shame prevent them from seeking help when they are in trouble.” "I am particularly pleased with the swift action from our agents, and from our Canadian law enforcement partners, that brought a quick resolution to this case," said David P. Gelios, Special Agent in Charge, FBI Detroit Division. "We were notified on a Friday of the complaint against Mr. Fontana, and by the following Sunday he had been arrested. That speaks to the phenomenal teamwork that exists between the FBI and our partner organizations, even across international borders." Fontana has been detained since his arrest, and arrived in the United States following a lengthy extradition from Canada. According to the plea agreement, Fontana faces a prison sentence of at least fifteen years and up to life in prison. McQuade praised the work of the Special Agents of the FBI, the officers from the West Bloomfield Police Department and the detectives from the major crime unit of the Durham Regional Police Service, Ontario, Canada. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Douglas Salzenstein and Matthew Roth.California Man Sentenced to 15 Years in Prison for Drug and Money Laundering ConspiracyRead the Press Release
Anchorage, Alaska – U.S. Attorney Karen L. Loeffler announced that, on Monday, Phillip Dixon, Jr., a/k/a “Cheddar,” 28, of Manteca, CA, was sentenced to 180 months in prison, followed by five years of supervised release. Dixon pleaded guilty on April 16, 2015, to conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine and heroin and conspiracy to launder money. As part of his plea, he further agreed to forfeit a 2009 Impala, a 2003 Land Rover, $3,400 in currency seized from a Wells Fargo account used to launder money, and $25,000 seized from a safe deposit box.
Dixon was the leader of a drug trafficking organization that sold drugs in Alaska, but whose members were for the most part from the Stockton, California area. The members of the conspiracy would take turns traveling between California and Alaska to sell their drugs and then would send their drug proceeds back to California via bank deposits and wire transfers.
The investigation revealed that the organization used firearms to enforce their drug trade and to protect their drug trafficking proceeds. During this investigation firearms were seized from members of this violent organization.
According to court documents, Dixon served a previous prison term for felony drug trafficking and related firearm offenses. Upon his release, he organized the current group, most of whom were from California. Many of the co-defendants Dixon recruited had no previous criminal history, but entered this conspiracy willingly. Between April 2012 and April 2013, Dixon’s criminal enterprise distributed methamphetamine and heroin throughout Alaska. The conspirators used some of the proceeds of the sale of the drugs to fund their transportation and other operating expenses of the organization.
Furthermore, Dixon conspired with the others to launder the proceeds of the drug sales in an attempt to conceal and disguise the nature, source, ownership, and control of the funds, and that they in fact laundered money in connection with transfers of money from Alaska to the Eastern District of California, knowing that the money represented the proceeds of drug sales. Dixon arranged for his co-defendants to use a series of bank accounts to move money made from the sale of heroin and methamphetamine. Proceeds were deposited in Alaska and withdrawn in California. In other instances, Dixon instructed members of the group to send drug sale proceeds via money orders.
Those others indicted and sentenced include:
- George Little, a/k/a “Nino,” 23, of Stockton, CA; 108 months in prison;
- Gloria Sarinana, 27, of Stockton, CA; five years of probation;
- Fausto Hernandez, a/k/a “Jimmy,” 31; of Stockton, CA; 18 months in prison;
- Shaquille Marquis Anderson, a/k/a “Calvin,” 23; of Stockton, CA; 18 months in prison;
- Justin Fisher, 28, of Stockton, CA; 12 months in prison;
- Kyle Wilson, 24, of Chugiak, Alaska; 11 months in prison;
- Marcos Diaz, 25, of Stockton, CA; 30 months in prison;
- Norris Drummond, Jr., 21, of Stockton, CA; 30 months in prison;
- Cesar Serna, 23, of Stockton, CA; 44 months in prison;
- Anthony Mixon, a/k/a “Ray,” 19, of Stockton, CA; 24 months in prison; and
- Harry Hawkins, III, a/k/a “Paulie,” 33, of Stockton, CA; 33 months in prison.
“Drug trafficking is a nasty business that erodes the safety of our community and destroys families and lives,” stated Special Agent in Charge Teri Alexander of IRS Criminal Investigation. “But we know the dealers responsible for this trail of tears don’t care about those repercussions; they’re only in it for the money, and that’s where we come in. IRS-CI is uniquely positioned to track down the money trail criminals like Dixon leave behind, and we are pleased to add our expertise to that of our law enforcement partners to bring this career offender to justice.”
This case was investigated and prosecuted under the purview of the Organized Crime and Drug Enforcement Task Force, which is made up of personnel from the U.S. Attorney=s Office, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, Internal Revenue ServiceBCriminal Investigations, and Department of Homeland Security.
Buffalo Man Sentenced for Heroin DistributionRead the Press Release
CONTACT: Barbara Burns
PHONE: (716) 843-5817
FAX: (716) 551-3051
BUFFALO, N.Y.-U.S. Attorney William J. Hochul Jr. announced today that Raul Matos, 49, of Buffalo, NY, who was convicted of distributing heroin, was sentenced to six months home detention and five years probation by U.S. District Judge Elizabeth A. Wolford.Assistant U.S. Attorney Frank T. Pimentel, who handled the case, stated that on three occasions in June and July 2014, the defendant sold heroin to an individual in Buffalo.
The sentencing is the result of an investigation on the part of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, under the direction of Adam S. Cohen, Special Agent in Charge, Buffalo Division.
Brighton Man Sentenced for Firearm OffenseRead the Press Release
James L. Porter, Acting United States Attorney for the Southern District of Illinois, announced today that on January 12, 2016, Ryan Richard Duckett, 30, of Brighton, Illinois, was sentenced on the charge of Unlawful Possession of a Firearm by an Unlawful User of a Controlled Substance. The U.S. District Court in Benton sentenced Duckett to 37 months in federal prison, to be followed by three years of supervised release. The district court also ordered Duckett to pay a fine of $600.00 and a special assessment of $100.00.
Court records indicate that Duckett admitted on February 6, 2013, in Brighton, Illinois, Jersey County, that he possessed a GP WASR-10/63, 7.62 x 39 mm. caliber semi-automatic rifle, during a time that he was an unlawful user of controlled substances, namely cocaine and marijuana.
The case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Drug Enforcement Administration. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney William E. Coonan.
Belleville Woman Sentenced for Heroin and Cocaine ConspiracyRead the Press Release
Acting United States Attorney, James L. Porter, announced today that Fetara D. McCarter, 31, of Belleville, Illinois, was sentenced to 87 months imprisonment in United States District Court in East St. Louis on January 12, 2016, for Conspiracy to Distribute Heroin and Cocaine.
McCarter pled guilty to the federal charge on September 2, 2015, and has been confined in federal custody since that date. At her change of plea hearing in September, McCarter admitted that she had distributed heroin in the Belleville, Illinois, are from February 2014 until her arrest on April 18, 2014.
The investigation which resulted in McCarter’s arrest and conviction was conducted by the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) and the St. Clair County Sheriff’s Drug Tactical Unit (DTU).
This case was prosecuted by Robert L. Garrison.
Beulaville Man Sentenced to 20 Years for Receiving Child PornographyRead the Press Release
Raleigh – The United States Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of North Carolina announces that in federal court today Chief United States District Judge James C. Dever sentenced JOHN EDWARD RYAN, JR. 60, of Beulaville to 240 months imprisonment followed by a lifetime of supervised release.
On October 5, 2015, RYAN pled guilty to receipt of child pornography, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 2252(a)(2).
According to public information, in July, 2014, an investigation was initiated relating to the distribution and receipt of child pornography through a peer-to-peer file sharing network. An Internet Protocol (IP) address was identified and as the investigation continued the subscriber assigned to the IP address was captured and identified as RYAN.
On September 3, 2014, a search warrant was executed at RYAN’S residence. An initial onsite preview revealed the presence of child pornography on RYAN’S computer. RYAN who was present at the time of the search, acknowledged receiving and possessing child pornography. Forensic examination of the defendant’s computer and media storage devices revealed approximately 2,415 images and 1,072 videos depicting child pornography. In December 2014, family members informed investigators that RYAN previously molested his adopted daughter and step-granddaughter and these facts were considered by the court during sentencing.
The criminal investigation of this case was conducted by the North Carolina State Bureau of Investigation and the Onslow County Sheriff’s Office. Assistant United States Attorney Ethan A. Ontjes is handling the prosecution on behalf of the Eastern District of North Carolina.
This case was part of the Project Safe Childhood initiative, a national program aimed at ensuring that criminals exploiting children are effectively prosecuted by making full use of all available law enforcement resources at every level. For more information about this important national project, Project Safe Childhood, go to www.projectsafechildhood.gov.
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News releases are available on the U. S. Attorney’s web page at www.usdoj.gov/usao/nce within 48 hours of release.
Attorney Who Stole $1.8 Million from Oxford Woman's Estate Sentenced to 45 Months in Federal PrisonRead the Press Release
Deirdre M. Daly, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, announced that PETER M. CLARK, 58, of Woodbury, was sentenced today by U.S. District Judge Janet Bond Arterton in New Haven to 45 months of imprisonment, followed by three years of supervised release, for stealing more than $1.8 million from the estate of an Oxford woman who died in 2010.
According to court documents and statements made in court, Miriam S. Strong of Oxford died on July 2, 2010. At the time of her death, Strong had a will, which left money, property and other items to a list of individuals, the Town of Oxford, the State of Connecticut and several religious and other charitable entities. The will also called for the creation of a scholarship fund for college-bound students from Oxford. CLARK drafted the will as Strong’s attorney and served as a witness to Strong’s execution of the will. The will named CLARK and another individual as co-executors. The investigation revealed that, during the course of the administration of the will, CLARK took more than $1.8 million from Strong’s estate for his own use.
CLARK will be ordered to make restitution to the Connecticut Client Security Fund, which has reimbursed Miriam Strong’s estate.
CLARK was arrested on a federal criminal complaint on May 21, 2015. On October 19, 2015, he pleaded guilty to one count of mail fraud.
CLARK, who is released on a $500,000 bond, was ordered to report to prison on February 24, 2016.
This matter was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Connecticut State Police – Western District Major Crime Squad. The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Sarah P. Karwan.
Amherst Man Sentenced for Possession of Child PornographyRead the Press Release
CONTACT: Barbara Burns
PHONE: (716) 843-5817
FAX: (716) 551-3051
BUFFALO, N.Y.-U.S. Attorney William J. Hochul, Jr. announced today that Timothy Murphy, 50, of Amherst, NY, who was convicted of possession of child pornography, was sentenced to 36 months in prison by U.S. District Judge Elizabeth A. Wolford.Assistant U.S. Attorney Scott S. Allen, Jr., who handled the case, stated that on October 15, 2014, law enforcement officers executed a search warrant at the Kings Highway residence of the defendant who worked as a technician for the Kenmore Tonawanda School District at the time. The officers recovered a computer being used by Murphy. A subsequent forensic examination determined that the computer contained approximately 123 images and one video of child pornography. Some of the images depicted children under the age of 12 years old. Some of the images also contain depictions of violence.
The sentencing is the culmination of an investigation by Immigration and Customs Enforcement, Homeland Security investigations, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge James C. Spero.
Allentown City Controller Charged in ConspiracyRead the Press Release
PHILADELPHIA – Mary Ellen Koval, 64, of Allentown, PA, was charged today by Information with conspiracy to commit honest services fraud, announced United States Attorney Zane David Memeger.
According to the information, between January 7, 2014 and at least December 8, 2015, Koval, in her position as Allentown City Controller, conspired with Public Official #3 and others to knowingly devise a scheme to defraud the City of Allentown and its citizens of the honest services of Public Official #3 and of Koval through bribery and kickbacks. Public Official #3 and Koval requested and received campaign contributions as incentives and rewards for past, continued, and future official actions that Public Official #3, Koval, and others took, attempted to take, agreed to take, and caused, attempted to cause, and agreed to cause the City of Allentown to take.
If convicted the defendant faces a statutory maximum sentence of 20 years in prison, a fine, three years of supervised release, and a $100 special assessment.
This case is being investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigations, and the Pennsylvania State Police. It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Joe Khan and Nancy Beam Winter.
An Information is an accusation. A defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
Akron man faces federal charges for firearms and FentanylRead the Press Release
A federal grand jury returned a two-count indictment charging Stuart J. Boykin, 39, of Akron, with possession with the intent to distribute fentanyl and heroin, and being a felon in possession of firearms and ammunition, said Steven M. Dettelbach, U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of Ohio.
Count 1 charges Boykin of possession with the intent to distribute fentanyl/heroin on November 19, 2015. Count 2 charges Boykin with possessing firearms and ammunition on that same date, after having been convicted in Summit County Court of Common Pleas Case No. CR-1995-06-1635A on November 20, 1995, of felonious assault.
If convicted, the defendant’s sentence will be determined by the court after review of factors unique to this case, including the defendant’s prior criminal records, if any, the defendant’s role in the offense and the characteristics of the violation. In all cases, the sentence will not exceed the statutory maximum and in most cases it will be less than the maximum.
The investigation preceding the indictment was conducted by the Federal Bureau of Investigation. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Linda H. Barr.
An indictment is only a charge and is not evidence of guilt. A defendant is entitled to a fair trial in which it will be the government’s burden to prove guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.
12 Arrested in Marijuana Trafficking RingRead the Press Release
LAREDO, Texas – A total of 12 people have been arrested in multiple cities on charges alleging their participation in a marijuana conspiracy, announced U.S. Attorney Kenneth Magidson along with Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) Special Agent in Charge Joseph M. Arabit and Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) Special Agent in Charge Shane Folden.
The indictment, returned under seal Nov. 24, 2015, and unsealed as to each defendant upon their arrest, charges one count of conspiracy to possess with the intent to distribute marijuana and five counts of possession with intent to distribute marijuana, all dating back to July 2013.
Among those taken into custody today were Rene Armenta, 33, Yolanda Armenta, 43, and Pedro Vazquez, 33, of Laredo, Texas; Jose Luis Carvajal, 46, Juan Carlos Carvajal, 26, of San Antonio; Juan Ramon Castillo, 41, of Dallas; Isidro Cruz-Sanchez, 40, Hector Garcia-Rios, 30, Eduardo Hurtado de Anda, 39, and Ruben Rodriguez-Rodriguez, 38, of Nuevo Laredo, Mexico.
Those arrested in Laredo are expected to appear before U.S. Magistrate Judge J. Scott Hacker tomorrow morning. Those arrested in other locations will make their appearance there and later appear in Laredo federal court.
Two others - Rogelio Herrera, 20, of Laredo; and Juan Carlos Duran, 31, of Nuevo Laredo, were arrested yesterday. They made their initial appearances before Judge Hacker, at which time they were ordered temporarily into custody pending a detention hearing.
If convicted of the cocaine conspiracy charge, all defendants face a minimum of 10 years up to life imprisonment and a $10 million fine. The substantive counts carry up to 40 years in prison and a $5 million fine.
The case was result of a multi-year Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force investigation conducted by the DEA, HSI and the U.S. Marshals Service Gulf Coast Fugitive Task Force. Assistant United States Attorneys Mark E. Donnelly and Arthur Jones are prosecuting the case.
An indictment is a formal accusation of criminal conduct, not evidence.
A defendant is presumed innocent unless convicted through due process of law.
12 January 2016
Zuni Pueblo Man Pleads Guilty to Federal Murder ChargeRead the Press Release
ALBUQUERQUE – Dusty Lee Chavez, 23, a member and resident of Zuni Pueblo, N.M., pled guilty today in federal court in Albuquerque, N.M., to a second degree murder charge. Under the terms of his plea agreement, Chavez will be sentenced within the range of 228 to 276 months in federal prison followed by a term of supervised release to be determined by the court.
Chavez and his co-defendant Douglas Burt, 19, also a member and resident of Zuni Pueblo, were arrested in Nov. 2014, on a criminal complaint charging them with murdering a man on Oct. 28, 2014, in the Zuni Indian Reservation in McKinley County, N.M. Burt and Chavez were subsequently indicted on murder charges on Nov. 19, 2014.
During today’s change of plea hearing, Chavez pled guilty to a felony information charging him with second degree murder. In entering the guilty plea, Chavez admitted that he and Burt instigated a fight with the victim during which Chavez and Burt took the victim to the ground and punched and kicked the victim. Chavez further admitted that he hit the victim in the head with a rock and Burt stabbed the victim in the torso. An autopsy revealed that the victim died of blunt head trauma and stab wounds to the chest.
On Jan. 7, 2016, Burt pled guilty to a felony information and admitted that he and Chavez murdered the victim. Under the terms of his plea agreement, Burt will be sentenced within the range of 204 to 264 months in federal prison followed by a term of supervised release to be determined by the court.
Chavez and Burt have been in federal custody since their arrests. They remain detained pending sentencing hearings which have yet to be scheduled.
This case was investigated by the Gallup office of the FBI and the Zuni Pueblo Tribal Police Department. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Elaine Y. Ramirez and Kyle T. Nayback are prosecuting the case.
York City Man Sentenced to Fifteen Years for Possession of A Gun as an Armed Career CriminalRead the Press Release
HARRISBURG - The United States Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Pennsylvania announced that a York, Pennsylvania man was sentenced to 15 years in prison today by U.S. District Court Senior Judge Sylvia H. Rambo, for possessing a firearm.
According to United States Attorney Peter Smith, Charles Swan, age 35, was indicted by a federal grand jury in Harrisburg in April of 2013 and pleaded guilty to possession of a firearm by a felon in May 2014. Swan was arrested on July 12, 2012, by York City Police officers after a brief foot pursuit. During the chase, Swan threw a .40 caliber pistol onto a nearby building, which police ultimately recovered.
At the time that he possessed the gun, Swan had previously been convicted three times by local authorities for drug trafficking. Federal law requires that a convicted felon who possesses a firearm -- with three or more prior convictions for drug trafficking or crimes of violence -- receive a sentence of at least 15 years in prison.
Judge Rambo also ordered that Swan pay a fine of $1,600, and that upon his release from prison, he serve three years of supervised release under the supervision of the United States Office of Probation.
The prosecution was the result of an investigation by agents of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) and the York City Police. The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Michael A. Consiglio.
This case is part of the Violent Crime Reduction Partnership (“VCRP”), a districtwide initiative to combat the spread of violent crime in the Middle District of Pennsylvania. Led by the United States Attorney’s Office, the VCRP consists of federal, state and local law enforcement agencies whose mission is to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who commit violent crimes.
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Wyoming Man Sentenced for Conspiracy to Distribute MethamphetamineRead the Press Release
Cheyenne – U.S. Attorney Christopher A. Crofts announced today that thirty-nine year old Casper, Wyoming resident Harold Creighton has been sentenced to life imprisonment in federal court.
Creighton was convicted on November 2, 2015 after a jury of 12 persons found him guilty of conspiracy to distribute over 500 grams of methamphetamine. During trial, the United States presented witnesses who established that Creighton purchased methamphetamine from various sources of supply outside the state of Wyoming in quantities ranging from ¼ pound to in excess of 1 pound. Creighton distributed the methamphetamine in communities throughout Wyoming (including Casper, Wyoming) between early 2014 through May of 2015. Prior to the start of trial on October 26, 2015 and during trial, Creighton made efforts to tamper with witness testimony and intimidate witnesses testifying against him.
Creighton has an extensive criminal history including four separate drug related felony offenses; one felon in possession of firearm conviction for which he served 110 months in federal custody; a variety of assault convictions, as well as a history of parole and probation violations.
The United States sought a mandatory life sentence based on Creighton’s prior drug felony convictions, his role in the offense, gun carrying and violence, as well as other aggravating factors.
This case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Stephanie Sprecher and results from an ongoing Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) joint investigation conducted by the Wyoming Division of Criminal Investigation and the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration. 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.
Woman Gets 10 Years After Trying to Flush CashRead the Press Release
WICHITA, KAN. - A woman who tried to flush thousands of dollars in drug funds down a cellblock toilet was sentenced Monday to 10 years in federal prison, U.S. Attorney Barry Grissom said.
Marisela Ramirez, 26, pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine. In her plea, she admitted she helped arrange for 16 pounds of methamphetamine to be transported by car from California to Kansas. She had $3,880 in drug funds on her person when she was arrested. It was seized in the U.S. Marshals’ cellblock after she attempted to flush it down a toilet.
Co-defendants include:
Jorge Rodriguez-Maciel, who was sentenced to 12 years.
Victor Diaz, who is set for sentencing Jan. 15.
Manuel Torres Arevalo, who is awaiting trial.
Grissom commended the Drug Enforcement Administration and Assistant U.S. Attorney Debra Barnett for their work on the case.
Wichita Man Indicted on Federal Sex Trafficking ChargesRead the Press Release
WICHITA, KAN. - A federal grand jury in Wichita returned an indictment Tuesday charging a Wichita man with sex trafficking, U.S. Attorney Barry Grissom said.
Gerald L. Brown, Jr., 25, Wichita, Kan., is charged with one count of sex trafficking of a minor. In a second count, he is charged with sex trafficking of an adult by force, fraud or coercion.
In count one, the indictment alleges that in June and July 2015 Brown recruited a 17-year-old girl to travel from Kansas to Oklahoma and Texas to engage in prostitution. He advertised the girl’s sexual services on an adult Web site.
In count two, the indictment alleges that from August to Oct 2015 Brown used force, fraud or coercion to cause an adult victim to engage in prostitution. He advertised the woman’s sexual services on an adult Web site.
At the time of the alleged crimes, Brown was a registered sex offender as a result of a 2006 conviction in Sedgwick County District Court for indecent liberties with a child.
If convicted, Brown faces a penalty of not less than 10 years in federal prison and a fine up to $250,000 on the charge of sex trafficking of a minor, and a penalty of not less than 15 years and a fine up to $250,000 on the charge of sex trafficking by force, fraud or coercion. The Wichita Police Department investigated. Assistant U.S. Attorney Jason Hart is prosecuting.
OTHER GRAND JURY INDICTMENTS
Crystal Bayliff, 28, Wichita, Kan.; Leslie Elam, 30, Wichita, Kan.; Michael Eubanks, 32, Wichita, Kan.; and Joshua Scott, 38, Wichita, Kan., are charged with drug trafficking. The crimes are alleged to have occurred Aug. 5, 2015, in Trego County, Kan.
In count one, Bayliff, Elam and Eubanks are charged with conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine. In count two, Bayliff and Elam are charged with possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine. In count three, Scott is charged with using a phone in furtherance of drug trafficking.
Upon conviction, the crimes carry the following penalties:
Counts one and two: Not less than 10 years and a fine up to $4 million.
Count three: A maximum penalty of four years and a fine up to $250,000.
The Drug Enforcement Administration, the Kansas Highway Patrol and the WaKeeny Police Department investigated. Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Michelle Jacobs is prosecuting.
Tarah Nietfeld, 24, Wichita, Kan., and Joshua Scott, 38, Wichita, Kan., are charged in count one with conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine, in count nine with possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine, in count 10 with possession with intent to distribute cocaine, in count eleven with possession with intent to distribute heroin, and in counts 12, 13 and 14 with unlawful possession of firearms in furtherance of drug trafficking. In addition, Scott is charged in counts 4, 6, 7, 15, 16 and 17 with unlawful possession of a firearm following a felony conviction; and Nietfeld is charged in counts 2, 3, 5, 8, 18, 19 and 20 with unlawful possession of a firearm following a felony conviction. The crimes are alleged to have occurred at various times during 2015 in Sedgwick County, Kan.
The indictment seeks to forfeit $26,703 in cash, representing proceeds of the crimes.
Upon conviction, the crimes carry the following penalties:
Count one: Not less than 10 years in federal prison and a fine up to $4 million.
Counts two through eight and 15 through 20: A maximum penalty of 10 years and a fine up to $250,000.
Counts nine through 11: A maximum penalty of 20 years and a fine up to $1 million.
Counts 12 through 14: Not less than five years, consecutive to other penalties, and a fine up to $250,000.
The Wichita Police Department, the Sedgwick County Sheriff’s Department, and the Kansas Highway Patrol investigated. Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Michelle Jacobs is prosecuting.
Azucena Garcia-Ferniza, 21, a citizen of Mexico, is charged with one count of possession of a firearm while unlawfully in the United States, one count of accessory to a crime after the fact, and one count of having knowledge of a felony that she did not report to law enforcement. The crimes are alleged to have occurred May 7, 2015, in Saline County, Kan.
If convicted, she faces a maximum penalty of 10 years in federal prison and a fine up to $250,000 on the firearm charge, and a maximum penalty of three years and a fine up to $250,000 on the misprision charge. On the charge of giving to knowingly giving aid to a person who committed a crime she faces a maximum sentence of half of the sentence for the person who committed the crime.
Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Enforcement and Removal Operations investigated. Assistant U.S. Attorney Brent Anderson is prosecuting.
Jose Alvarez-Galvan, 32, a citizen of Mexico, is charged with one count of unlawful possession of a firearm while unlawfully in the United States, one count of unlawful possession of ammunition while unlawfully in the United States, and one count of unlawfully re-entering the United States after being deported. He was found Dec. 18, 2015, in Sedgwick County, Kan.
If convicted, he faces a maximum penalty 10 years in federal prison and a fine up to $250,000 on each of the firearm charges and a maximum penalty of two years and a fine up to $250,000 on the re-entry charge. Homeland Security Investigations investigated. Assistant U.S. Attorney Brent Anderson is prosecuting.
Luis Antonio Mendez-Perez, 38, a citizen of Mexico, is charged with unlawfully re-entering the United States after being deported. He was found Dec. 30, 2015, in Sedgwick County, Kan.
If convicted, he faces a maximum penalty of two years and a fine up to $250,000. Immigrations and Customs Enforcement’s Enforcement and Removal Operations investigated. Assistant U.S. Attorney Brent Anderson is prosecuting.
Octavio Martinez-Rabelo, 32, a citizen of Mexico, is charged with unlawfully re-entering the United States after being deported. He was found Nov. 3, 2015, in Sedgwick County.
If convicted, he faces a maximum penalty of two years and a fine up to $250,000. Immigrations and Customs Enforcement’s Enforcement and Removal Operations investigated. Assistant U.S. Attorney Brent Anderson is prosecuting.
In all cases, defendants are presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty. The indictments merely contain allegations of criminal conduct.
United States to Accept Concurrent Jurisdiction over Mille Lacs Band of Ojibwe Reservation in MinnesotaRead the Press Release
Second Assumption of Federal Jurisdiction under Historic Tribal Law and Order Act
The Department of Justice has granted a request by the Mille Lacs Band of Ojibwe for the United States to assume concurrent criminal jurisdiction on the tribe’s reservation in central Minnesota, Deputy Attorney General Sally Quillian Yates announced today.
The decision was the second assumption of jurisdiction granted by the Department of Justice under the landmark Tribal Law and Order Act of 2010 (TLOA), which gave the department discretion to accept concurrent federal jurisdiction to prosecute violations of the General Crimes Act and the Major Crimes Act within areas of Indian country that are also subject to state criminal jurisdiction under Public Law 280. Public Law 280 is the 1953 law that mandated the transfer of federal law enforcement jurisdiction for certain tribes to six states, including Minnesota. The first assumption of federal jurisdiction took place on Minnesota’s White Earth Reservation in March 2013.
The decision will take effect on Jan. 1, 2017. Tribal, state and county prosecutors and law enforcement agencies will also continue to have criminal jurisdiction on the reservation.
“We believe this decision – made after a careful review of the tribe’s application and the facts on the ground – will strengthen public safety and the criminal justice system serving the Mille Lacs Band of Ojibwe,” said Deputy Attorney General Yates. “This is another step forward in the Justice Department’s commitment to serve and protect American Indian and Alaska Native communities, to deal with them on a government-to-government basis and to fulfill the historic promise of the Tribal Law and Order Act. Strong law enforcement partnerships with the Tribe, as well as state and local counterparts, will be essential to the success of this effort.”
“We want to make certain that the outcome of this decision will benefit the residents of the Mille Lacs Band and improve the safety of the community,” said U.S. Attorney Andrew M. Luger of the District of Minnesota. “As we work towards full implementation, we will work to strengthen the bonds between our tribal and local partners in pursuit of our common goal of providing a safe environment where this community can thrive.”
The Department of Justice already has jurisdiction to prosecute certain crimes, such as drug trafficking, wherever they occur in the United States – including on the Mille Lacs Reservation. The change announced today will expand this existing jurisdiction to allow federal prosecution of major crimes such as murder, rape, felony assault and felony child abuse.
The decision followed careful consideration of the request and information provided by the Mille Lacs Band Tribal government, as well as by the Justice Department’s Office of Tribal Justice, the Executive Office for U.S. Attorneys, the U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of Minnesota, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the U.S. District Court, state and local law enforcement partners and other sources.
United States to Accept Concurrent Jurisdiction over Mille Lacs Band of Ojibwe Reservation in MinnesotaRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON – The Department of Justice has granted a request by the Mille Lacs Band of Ojibwe for the United States to assume concurrent criminal jurisdiction on the tribe’s reservation in central Minnesota, Deputy Attorney General Sally Quillian Yates announced today.
The decision was the second assumption of jurisdiction granted by the Department of Justice under the landmark Tribal Law and Order Act of 2010 (TLOA), which gave the department discretion to accept concurrent federal jurisdiction to prosecute violations of the General Crimes Act and the Major Crimes Act within areas of Indian country that are also subject to state criminal jurisdiction under Public Law 280. Public Law 280 is the 1953 law that mandated the transfer of federal law enforcement jurisdiction for certain tribes to six states, including Minnesota. The first assumption of federal jurisdiction took place on Minnesota’s White Earth Reservation in March 2013.
The decision will take effect on Jan. 1, 2017. Tribal, state and county prosecutors and law enforcement agencies will also continue to have criminal jurisdiction on the reservation.
“We believe this decision – made after a careful review of the tribe’s application and the facts on the ground – will strengthen public safety and the criminal justice system serving the Mille Lacs Band of Ojibwe,” said Deputy Attorney General Yates. “This is another step forward in the Justice Department’s commitment to serve and protect American Indian and Alaska Native communities, to deal with them on a government-to-government basis and to fulfill the historic promise of the Tribal Law and Order Act. Strong law enforcement partnerships with the Tribe, as well as state and local counterparts, will be essential to the success of this effort.”
“We want to make certain that the outcome of this decision will benefit the residents of the Mille Lacs Band and improve the safety of the community,” said U.S. Attorney Andrew M. Luger of the District of Minnesota. “As we work towards full implementation, we will work to strengthen the bonds between our tribal and local partners in pursuit of our common goal of providing a safe environment where this community can thrive.”
The Department of Justice already has jurisdiction to prosecute certain crimes, such as drug trafficking, wherever they occur in the United States – including on the Mille Lacs Reservation. The change announced today will expand this existing jurisdiction to allow federal prosecution of major crimes such as murder, rape, felony assault and felony child abuse.
The decision followed careful consideration of the request and information provided by the Mille Lacs Band Tribal government, as well as by the Justice Department’s Office of Tribal Justice, the Executive Office for U.S. Attorneys, the U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of Minnesota, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the U.S. District Court, state and local law enforcement partners and other sources.
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United States Recovers over $133 Million for Fraudulent Nursing Home Therapy ClaimsRead the Press Release
BOSTON – United States Attorney Carmen M. Ortiz announced today settlement agreements totaling over $133 million with the nation’s largest nursing home rehabilitation therapy provider, RehabCare, now a part of Kindred Healthcare, of Louisville, Ky., and with four skilled nursing facility operators, Wingate Healthcare, Essex Group Management, Fundamental Administrative Services, and Frederick County (Maryland). The settlements resolve allegations that RehabCare and these nursing facility operators falsely inflated therapy reimbursement claims to Medicare. The false claims were based on unreasonable, unnecessary, or unskilled therapy, or on therapy that never occurred.
In conjunction with the finalization of the settlement, the government’s complaint and exhibits against RehabCare were unsealed.
“These False Claims Act settlements address allegations that RehabCare and its nursing facility customers engaged in a systematic and broad-ranging scheme to increase profits by delivering, or purporting to deliver, therapy in a manner that was focused on increasing Medicare reimbursement rather than on the clinical needs of patients,” said U.S. Attorney Ortiz. “The complaint outlines the extent and sophistication of this fraud, and the government’s continuing work to ensure that the provision of care in skilled nursing facilities is based on patients’ clinical needs.”
The complaint alleges that RehabCare’s schemes included the following:
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Presumptively placing patients in the highest therapy category, rather than relying on individualized evaluations to determine the level of care most suitable for each patient’s clinical needs;
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“Ramping,” i.e., during the period prior to October 1, 2011, boosting the amount of reported therapy during so-called “assessment reference periods,” thereby causing and enabling nursing facilities to bill for the care of their Medicare patients at the highest therapy reimbursement level, while providing materially less therapy to those same patients outside the assessment reference periods when the nursing facilities were not required to report to Medicare the amount of provided therapy;
Scheduling and reporting the provision of therapy to patients even after the patients’ treating therapists had recommended that they be discharged from therapy;
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Arbitrarily shifting the number of minutes of planned therapy between different therapy disciplines to ensure targeted therapy reimbursement levels were achieved, regardless of the clinical need for the therapy;
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Providing significantly higher amounts of therapy at the end of a therapy measurement period not due to medical necessity but to reach the minimum time threshold for the highest therapy reimbursement level and thus to cause and enable nursing facilities to bill for the care of their Medicare patients accordingly, even though the patients were receiving materially less therapy on preceding days;
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Inflating initial reimbursement levels by reporting time spent on initial evaluations as therapy time in violation of the Medicare prohibition on counting initial evaluation time as therapy time;
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Reporting that skilled therapy had been provided to patients when in fact the patients were asleep or otherwise unable to undergo or benefit from skilled therapy, e.g., when a patient had been transitioned to palliative end-of-life care; and
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Reporting estimated or rounded minutes instead of reporting the actual minutes of therapy provided.
“Medicare beneficiaries are entitled to receive care that is dictated by their clinical needs rather than the fiscal interests of healthcare providers,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General Benjamin C. Mizer for the Justice Department’s Civil Division. “All providers, whether contractors or direct billers of taxpayer-funded federal healthcare programs, must be held accountable when their actions knowingly cause bills for unnecessary services.”
“Patients and taxpayers rightly expect nothing less than suitable, high-quality health care,” said Phillip M. Coyne, Special Agent in Charge, Office of Inspector General of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Service’s Boston Regional Office. “Providers more concerned with increasing Medicare profits, though, can expect an aggressive investigation and prosecution.”
"Whether it’s false billing or unnecessary medical treatments, the FBI will continue to aggressively investigate healthcare providers that fraudulently bill Medicare,” said Harold H. Shaw, Special Agent in Charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Boston Field Division. “Together, with our law enforcement partners, we’ll pursue those individuals and institutions that look to abuse the healthcare system in favor of their bottom line."
The settlements announced today include: a $125 million settlement with RehabCare; a $3.9 million settlement with Wingate Healthcare and 16 of its nursing facilities in Massachusetts and New York; a $1.375 million settlement with Essex Group Management and two of its Massachusetts nursing facilities, Brandon Woods of Dartmouth and Blaire House of Milford; a $2.2 million settlement with Fundamental and two of its nursing facilities, Broomall (Pennsylvania) Rehabilitation and Nursing Center and The Courtyards at Fort Worth (Texas); and a $750,000 settlement with Frederick County, Maryland, which formerly operated the Citizens Care nursing facility in Frederick, Md.
Several other nursing facility operators previously settled with the United States for their role in submitting to Medicare claims that were false because of RehabCare’s alleged misconduct:
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Life Care Services LLC and CoreCare V LLP
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Episcopal Ministries to the Aging Inc.
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Catholic Health Care System
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Ross Manor
HHS Hotline. The government encourages anyone with information about the practices described in the government’s complaint, or similar practices involving rehabilitation therapy in nursing facilities, to contact the Department of Health and Human Services, Office of Inspector General hotline via telephone, 1-800-HHS-TIPS (1-800-447-8477), or in writing via https://oig.hhs.gov/fraud/report-fraud/.
The settlements with RehabCare and Wingate Healthcare arise from a lawsuit filed under the qui tam, or whistleblower, provisions of the False Claims Act. See United States ex rel. Halpin and Fahey v. Kindred Healthcare, Inc., No. 11-12139-RGS (D. Mass.). The False Claims Act permits private parties to sue on behalf of the government for false claims for government funds and to receive a share of any recovery.
This matter was investigated by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Office of the Inspector General and the Federal Bureau of Investigation. It was handled by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Gregg Shapiro, Patrick Callahan, and Kriss Basil of Ortiz’s Civil Division and Department of Justice Trial Attorneys Christelle Klovers and Rohith Srinivas.
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Two Women Indicted in $254,000 Tax Refund SchemeRead the Press Release
KANSAS CITY, Mo. – Tammy Dickinson, United States Attorney for the Western District of Missouri, announced that a Texas woman and an Alabama woman were indicted in federal court today for their roles in a conspiracy to claim more than $254,000 in fraudulent tax refunds.
Kalena LaToya Winston, 39, of Killeen, Texas, and Shree C. Furby, 39, of Talladega, Ala., were charged in a 22-count indictment returned by a federal grand jury in Kansas City, Mo.
Today’s indictment alleges that Winston and Furby participated in a conspiracy to file false claims for federal income tax refunds from January 2011 to April 12, 2012. According to the indictment, the tax refund scheme resulted in a criminal tax loss of at least $254,893.
Winston allegedly prepared fraudulent 2010 and 2011 tax returns that included false information in order to increase the taxpayers’ earned income credit. Furby allegedly assisted Winston by filing two false tax returns and allowing Winston to use her address on 11 tax returns in order to receive the refunds.
In addition to the conspiracy, Winston and Furby are charged together in two counts of making fraudulent claims to the IRS in order to receive a tax refund to which the individual was not entitled. Winston is charged in an additional 19 counts of making false claims.
All of the federal tax returns were filed at the Internal Revenue Service Center located in Kansas City, Mo.
Dickinson cautioned that the charges contained in this indictment are simply accusations, and not evidence of guilt. Evidence supporting the charges must be presented to a federal trial jury, whose duty is to determine guilt or innocence.
This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Paul S. Becker. It was investigated by IRS-Criminal Investigation.
Two Sussex County Men Sentenced for Home InvasionRead the Press Release
WILMINGTON, Del. – Dalton R. Truitt, 32, of Bridgeville, Del., and Kentae D. Watts, 29, of Bridgeville, Del., were each sentenced to seven (7) years of imprisonment for their roles in in a Seaford, Del. home invasion committed on May 1, 2014, announced Charles M. Oberly, III, United States Attorney for the District of Delaware. Truitt and Watts were also sentenced to five (5) years of supervised release following their prison sentences.
According to statements made at the sentencing hearings and other documents filed in court, shortly after midnight on May 1, 2014, Truitt, Watts, and two other men went to the Seaford, Delaware residence of Kevin Barnes and his girlfriend Laura Taylor with the intent to steal Barnes’ heroin stash and money at gunpoint.
Through a window, Barnes caught a glimpse of one of the robbers outside his house, carrying an assault-type rifle. He told his girlfriend to call 911 (which she did, from the bedroom closet), and he armed himself with a handgun. Watts then kicked down the door, at which point Barnes opened fire. All four robbers fled. At least one of them returned fire towards the house.
Police arrived shortly thereafter and pulled over Watts and Truitt in a car nearby. The other two robbers got away. Inside the car that Watts and Truitt were in, officers found two 9mm magazines and black clothing. Inside Barnes’ residence, officers found three handguns, as well as over 100 grams of heroin and $5,000 in cash – all of which Barnes admitted belonged to him. An assault-type rifle, handgun, and machete were discarded by the fleeing robbers and later recovered in the area.
Barnes pleaded guilty to drug and gun charges related to the incident, for which he was sentenced on October 15, 2015, to 80 months of imprisonment, to be followed by four (4) years of supervised release.
The case is the product of an investigation conducted by the Wilmington Office of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, the Delaware State Police, and the Dover Police Department. Assistant United States Attorney Elizabeth L. Van Pelt and former Assistant United States Attorney Mark M. Lee prosecuted the case on behalf of the United States.
Two South Texas School Board Members and Middleman Plead Guilty to Attempted ExtortionRead the Press Release
Two elected members of the School Board of Donna, Texas, pleaded guilty today in the Southern District of Texas for accepting bribes in connection with a services contract held by the Donna Independent School District (DISD). A private citizen who served as a middleman in the scheme also pleaded guilty, announced Assistant Attorney General Leslie R. Caldwell of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division and U.S. Attorney Kenneth Magidson of the Southern District of Texas.
Eloy Infante, 54; Elpidio Yanez Jr., 45; and Adrian Guerrero, 50, all from Donna, pleaded guilty today to attempted interference with commerce by extortion. Infante and Yanez are both members of the Donna School Board and Guerrero is a private citizen. Sentencing is set for March 22, 2016.
In connection with their pleas, the defendants admitted that from February to May 2015, they attempted to extort, and solicited and accepted bribes from, an individual whose company provided services to the DISD. Specifically, the defendants informed the individual that in order for his company to keep its services contract with the DISD, he needed to pay Infante and Yanez $10,000 each. Both Infante and Yanez admitted that they accepted partial payment of the bribes, and Guerrero admitted that he served as the middleman for one of the payments.
The FBI investigated this case. Trial Attorney Monique Abrishami of the Criminal Division’s Public Integrity Section and Assistant U.S. Attorney Leo J. Leo III of the Southern District of Texas are prosecuting the case.
Two Shenandoah Men Plead Guilty to Heroin Trafficking ConspiracyRead the Press Release
SCRANTON—The United States Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Pennsylvania announced that two Shenandoah residents connected to a large-scale heroin trafficking ring that operated in Schuylkill County during 2012 through September 2015, pleaded guilty today before Senior U.S. District Court Judge James M. Munley in Scranton.
According to United States Attorney Peter Smith, Rhashean Strange, age 30, who used the street name “Chicago,” pleaded guilty to conspiracy to distribute more than one kilogram of heroin. Strange admitted to being a leader and manager of the drug conspiracy, and to possessing a firearm in connection with the conspiracy.
In a separate proceeding, Carlos Correa, age 27, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to distribute more than 100 grams of heroin. Correa also admitted to possessing a firearm in connection with the drug conspiracy.
Strange and Correa were indicted by a federal grand jury in Scranton in September 2015, as a result of an investigation by agents of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, investigators from the Pennsylvania State Police, and local police in Schuylkill County.
Judge Munley in each case ordered a presentence investigation to be completed, and scheduled sentencing for Strange on April 15, 2016, and for Correa on April 14, 2016. Strange faces a mandatory minimum sentence of 10 years in prison and a potential maximum sentence of life in prison. Correa faces a mandatory minimum sentence of five years in prison and a potential maximum sentence of 40 years in prison.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Francis P. Sempa is prosecuting the cases.
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.
Indictments and Criminal Informations are only allegations. All persons charged are presumed to be innocent unless and until found guilty in court.
A sentence following a finding of guilt is imposed by the Judge after consideration of the applicable federal sentencing statutes and the Federal Sentencing Guidelines.
Under the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, the Judge is also required to consider and weigh a number of factors, including the nature, circumstances and seriousness of the offense; the history and characteristics of the defendant; and the need to punish the defendant, protect the public and provide for the defendant's educational, vocational and medical needs. For these reasons, the statutory maximum penalty for the offense is not an accurate indicator of the potential sentence for a specific defendant.
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Two Donna School Board Members and Middleman Plead Guilty to Attempted ExtortionRead the Press Release
McALLEN, Texas - Two elected members of the School Board of Donna pleaded guilty today for accepting bribes in connection with a services contract held by the Donna Independent School District (DISD). A private citizen who served as a middleman in the scheme also pleaded guilty, announced U.S. Attorney Kenneth Magidson and Assistant Attorney General Leslie R. Caldwell of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division.
Eloy Infante, 54, Elpidio Yanez Jr., 45, and Adrian Guerrero, 50, all from Donna, pleaded guilty today to attempted interference with commerce by extortion. Infante and Yanez are both members of the Donna School Board and Guerrero is a private citizen. Sentencing is set for March 22, 2016.
In connection with their pleas, the defendants admitted that from February to May 2015, they attempted to extort, and solicited and accepted bribes from, an individual whose company provided services to the DISD. Specifically, the defendants informed the individual that in order for his company to keep its services contract with the DISD, he needed to pay Infante and Yanez $10,000 each. Both Infante and Yanez admitted that they accepted partial payment of the bribes, and Guerrero admitted that he served as the middleman for one of the payments.
The charges are the result of an investigation by the FBI. Assistant U.S. Attorney Leo J. Leo III and Trial Attorney Monique Abrishami of the Criminal Division’s Public Integrity Section are prosecuting the case.
Tulsa Physician Pleads Guilty to Producing Child PornRead the Press Release
SPRINGFIELD, Mo. – Tammy Dickinson, United States Attorney for the Western District of Missouri, announced that a Tulsa, Okla., physician pleaded guilty in federal court today to using a minor to produce child pornography.
Shelby J. Coleman, 38, of Tulsa, pleaded guilty before U.S. Magistrate Judge David P. Rush to the sexual exploitation of a child. Coleman, a medical doctor and partner of Tulsa Women’s Health Center, has been in federal custody since his arrest in September 2013.
By pleading guilty today, Coleman admitted that he communicated with a 16-year-old minor in Laclede County, Mo., identified as John Doe, via cell phone texts. At Coleman’s request, John Doe sent him multiple sexually explicit images of himself.
When John Doe’s father discovered the text messages, he contacted the Missouri State Highway Patrol. A state trooper assumed the identity of John Doe for the purpose of the investigation.
On Sept. 28, 2013, Coleman was apprehended by investigators after he traveled to Springfield, Mo., in order to meet John Doe for a sexual liaison.
Under federal statutes, Coleman is subject to a mandatory minimum sentence of 15 years in federal prison without parole, up to a sentence of 30 years in federal prison without parole, plus a fine up to $250,000. A sentencing hearing will be scheduled after the completion of a presentence investigation by the United States Probation Office.
This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney James J. Kelleher. It was investigated by the FBI, the Joplin, Mo., Police Department, the Southwest Missouri Cyber Crimes Task Force and the Missouri State Highway Patrol.
Tonawanda Man Sentenced for Methylone ConspiracyRead the Press Release
CONTACT: Barbara Burns
PHONE: (716) 843-5817
FAX: (716) 551-3051
BUFFALO, N.Y.-U.S. Attorney William J. Hochul Jr. announced today that Alexander R. Filippone, 24, of Tonawanda, NY, who was convicted of conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute, and to distribute, methylone, was sentenced to 30 months in prison by U.S. District Judge Richard J. Arcara.Assistant U.S. Attorney Frank T. Pimentel, who handled the case, stated that on three dates in February, March, and April 2013 the defendant sold methylone, which is sometimes sold on the street as “molly,” to an undercover police officer in commercial parking lots in Tonawanda and Amherst, NY. Methylone can cause violent and self-destructive behavior, seizure, paranoia, hallucinations, and death in some cases.
The sentencing is the result of an investigation on the part of Immigration and Customs Enforcement, Homeland Security Investigations, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge James C. Spero, and the New York State Police, under the direction of Major Steven Nigrelli.Three Self-Admitted Denver Gang Members Arrested by ATF for Firearms TraffickingRead the Press Release
DENVER – Three Denver self-admitted gang members were arrested late last night in an operation led by the ATF, U.S. Attorney John Walsh and ATF Denver Division Special Agent in Charge Ken Croke announced. Two of the three men appeared in U.S. District Court in Denver this afternoon, where they were advised of their rights, as well as the charges pending against them. The third will appear tomorrow afternoon. A detention hearing has been scheduled for Friday, January 15, 2016 at 2:00 p.m. All three defendants will remain in custody, held without bond, prior to that hearing.
Arrested were Mychael Eitwan Thomas, age 29, Deondrey Brandon, age 21, and Jasirii Quadami Thomas, age 20, all of Denver. The three face Conspiracy charges. Mychael Thomas also faces five counts of being a felon in possession of firearms, and one count of sale of a stolen firearm. Brandon also faces two counts of sale of a stolen firearm. Finally, Jasirii Thomas also faces one count of sale of a stolen firearm. .
According to the indictment, defendants Brandon and Jasirii Thomas acquired and delivered firearms, including stolen firearms, to Mychael Thomas, who was prohibited from possessing firearms as a result of a prior conviction for a crime punishable by imprisonment for a term exceeding one year. The defendants, Mychael Thomas, Brandon, and Jasirii Thomas, concealed firearms in containers when transporting them. The defendants would then sell the firearms for cash. Firearms included a Glock 26, a Smith & Wesson .38 caliber revolver, an AR-15, a Jimenez Arms .380 caliber handgun, and a Mac 11, among others. The defendants alleged one was a machine gun.
“Many of the firearm sold by the defendants were stolen during residential burglaries throughout Metro Denver,” said U.S. Attorney John Walsh. “Thanks to the ATF, working closely with state and local partners, we were able to identify the three culprits, which resulted in their indictment and arrest.”
“The 17 firearms recovered in this investigation are 17 fewer guns in the hands of gangs; the three suspects in jail are three less criminals preying on our communities,” said ATF Special Agent in Charge Ken Croke. “Disrupting gang activities prevents further crimes and puts all criminals on notice. Their lawless acts do not go undetected or uninvestigated.”
If convicted of Conspiracy, each defendant faces not more than 5 years in federal prison, and up to a $250,000 fine. If convicted of being a felon in possession of a firearm, each count carries a penalty of not more than 10 years in federal prison, and up to a $250,000 fine. Finally, if convicted of sale of a stolen firearm, each count carries a penalty of not more than 10 years in federal prison, and up to a $250,000 fine.
This case was investigated by the ATF, Denver Police Department, Aurora Police Department, the Lakewood Police Department, and the Department of Corrections Division of Adult Parole.
The defendants are being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Beth Gibson.
The charges contained in the indictment are allegations, and the defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
Three Individuals Indicted for Laundering Fraudulent Tax Refunds Using Stolen IdentitiesRead the Press Release
ATLANTA – Anthony Alika, Sonia Alika, and Rapheal Atebefia, all residents of Austell, Georgia, have been indicted for laundering fraudulent tax refunds using stolen identities. The charges include money laundering, conspiracy to money launder, structuring monetary transactions, access device fraud, and aggravated identity theft.
“These defendants allegedly received hundreds of thousands of dollars in fraudulent tax refunds using stolen identities,” said U.S. Attorney John A. Horn. “Stolen-identity tax return fraud unfortunately is a growing problem, and the perpetrators are becoming more sophisticated at concealing the proceeds of their crimes.”
“A vital element in this investigation was following the flow of money being received by the defendants in order to determine the true source of the funds,” stated Veronica F. Hyman-Pillot, Special Agent in Charge. “These defendants conduct cost the U.S. Treasury thousands of dollars, and IRS Criminal Investigation will continue to utilize every tool necessary to unravel financial transactions related to fraudulently obtained tax refunds and the theft of innocent individual’s identities.”
“This investigation was an excellent example of a partnership between federal law enforcement agencies working together to dismantle a fraud conspiracy,” said Thomas Noyes II, U.S. Postal Inspector in Charge of the Charlotte Division. “I fully commend the hard work and countless hours put forth by all agencies involved including the U.S. Attorney’s Office, which resulted in bringing the individuals in this case to justice.”
According to U.S. Attorney Horn, the charges, and other information presented in court: The indictment charges that these defendants conspired together to launder the proceeds from a stolen identity refund fraud scheme, according to allegations in the indictment. It is alleged that the defendants and others obtained means of identification of actual individuals, including their names and social security numbers and used this information to access the Internal Revenue Service’s (IRS) “Get Transcript” database.
Anthony Alika, Atebefia and others are also alleged to have obtained prepaid debit cards from stores located in multiple states, registered the cards in the names of the stolen identities and then filed false income tax returns using the stolen identities and directed the IRS to deposit the tax refunds onto these cards. To conceal their fraud, Anthony Alika, Atebefia and others allegedly used the prepaid debit cards to purchase money orders, which Anthony Alika, Sonia Alika and Atebefia deposited into bank accounts and then structured cash withdrawals of the proceeds in order to prevent the bank from filing Currency Transaction Reports.
Anthony Alika, 42, Sonia Alika, 27, and Rapheal Atebefia, 33, all of Austell, Georgia, were indicted by a federal grand jury on January 5, 2016. Atebefia was arraigned before U.S. Magistrate Judge Linda T. Walker.
Members of the public are reminded that the indictment only contains charges. The defendant is presumed innocent of the charges and it will be the government’s burden to prove the defendant’s guilt beyond a reasonable doubt at trial.
This case is being investigated by the Internal Revenue Service – Criminal Investigation and the United States Postal Inspection Service.
DOJ Criminal Tax Division Trial Attorneys Michael Boteler and Charles Edgar, Jr., and Assistant United States Attorney Shanya J. Dingle are prosecuting the case.
For further information please contact the U.S. Attorney’s Public Affairs Office at [email protected] or (404) 581-6016. The Internet address for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia is http://www.justice.gov/usao-ndga.
Three Georgia Residents Indicted for Laundering Proceeds from a Stolen Identity Refund Fraud SchemeRead the Press Release
A federal grand jury sitting in Atlanta, Georgia, returned an indictment, which was unsealed today, against three residents of an Atlanta suburb for conspiracy to commit money laundering, money laundering, access device fraud, aggravated identity theft and structuring, announced Acting Assistant Attorney General Caroline D. Ciraolo of the Justice Department’s Tax Division and U.S. Attorney John A. Horn of the Northern District of Georgia.
Anthony Alika, his wife, Sonia Alika and Rapheal Atebefia, residents of Austell, Georgia, conspired together to launder the proceeds from a stolen identity refund fraud scheme, according to allegations in the indictment. It is alleged that the defendants and others obtained means of identification of actual individuals, including their names and social security numbers and used this information to access the Internal Revenue Service’s (IRS) “Get Transcript” database. Anthony Alika, Atebefia and others are also alleged to have obtained prepaid debit cards from stores located in multiple states, registered the cards in the names of the stolen identities and then filed false income tax returns using the stolen identities and directed the IRS to deposit the tax refunds onto these cards. To conceal their fraud, Anthony Alika, Atebefia and others allegedly used the prepaid debit cards to purchase money orders, which Anthony Alika, Sonia Alika and Atebefia deposited into bank accounts and then structured cash withdrawals of the proceeds in order to prevent the bank from filing Currency Transaction Reports.
If convicted, the defendants face a statutory maximum sentence of 20 years in prison for each count of money laundering, 10 years in prison for each count of access device fraud, 10 years in prison for structuring more than $100,000 or five years in prison for structuring less than $100,000 and a mandatory sentence of two years in prison for aggravated identity theft, which will run consecutive to any other prison term they receive. They also face substantial monetary penalties, restitution and forfeiture.
Acting Assistant Attorney General Ciraolo and U.S. Attorney Horn commended special agents of IRS-Criminal Investigation and the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, who investigated the case and Trial Attorneys Michael C. Boteler and Charles M. Edgar Jr. of the Tax Division and Assistant U.S. Attorney Shanya Dingle, who are prosecuting this case.
An indictment merely alleges that crimes have been committed. The defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.
Additional information about the Tax Division and its enforcement efforts may be found on the division’s website.
Tennessee Man Pleads Guilty for Ebay SchemeRead the Press Release
CONTACT: Barbara Burns
PHONE: (716) 843-5817
FAX: (716) 551-3051
BUFFALO, N.Y. – U.S. Attorney William J. Hochul, Jr. announced today that Joshua B. Abernathy, 30, of Pulaski, Tennessee, pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Richard J. Arcara, to wire fraud. The charge carries a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison, a fine of $250,000 or both.Assistant U.S. Attorney Russell T. Ippolito, Jr., who is handling the case, stated that Abernathy advertised electrical devices for sale on eBay to convince prospective purchasers to wire transfer funds to bank accounts he controlled. The prospective buyers thought they purchased “vibration analyzers” which are designed to detect defects in manufacturing equipment but the defendant had no such devices to sell. Two victims, one of whom lived in Erie County, lost a total of more than $48,000 as a result of the scheme.
The plea is the culmination of an investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Adam S. Cohen.
Sentencing is scheduled on April 20, 2016, before Judge Arcara.Spring Hill Man Pleads Guilty to Making A False StatementRead the Press Release
Tampa, Florida – United States Attorney A. Lee Bentley, III announces that Jason Pond (38, Spring Hill) today pleaded guilty to making a false statement in an application to obtain a United States Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) loan. He faces a maximum penalty of five years in federal prison. A sentencing date has not yet been scheduled.
According to the plea agreement, on September 28, 2010, Pond purchased his home in Spring Hill for $110,000. Along with his wife, they received a loan of $49,650 from HUD’s Neighborhood Stabilization Program (NSP), as a second mortgage on the home. The NSP was established by HUD to provide emergency assistance to stabilize communities with high rates of abandoned and foreclosed homes. The NSP was designed to assist households whose annual incomes are up to 120 percent of the area median. This loan program would not have required Pond to repay the loan if he lived in the home for 15 years.
In an application to participate in the program, Pond provided false and incomplete information related to his debts, assets, employment, income, and tax returns. One example of a debt that he failed to disclose was a loan that he had received from another government program to obtain a different home. He also did not disclose income he earned from his DJ business, or that he owned certain assets, including two cars and a boat.
This case was investigated by the HUD Office of Inspector General and the Hernando County Sheriff’s Office. It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Adam M. Saltzman.
Resident of Barrington, New Hamsphire Sentenced for Stealing Labor Union FundsRead the Press Release
CONCORD, N.H. – After pleading guilty to a federal offense that involved the theft of money from a labor union, Gregory Paradis, a 37-year-old resident of Barrington, New Hampshire, was sentenced to two years of probation, announced United States Attorney Emily Gray Rice.
Paradis was elected president and senior steward of the Seabrook Nuclear Security Officers Association in May 2011. As president and senior steward, Paradis had control of the union’s checking account. In January 2013, the union’s vice president notified the Seabrook, New Hampshire Police Department that he suspected that Paradis was stealing money from the account.
An investigation of the allegations by the police department and the U.S. Department of Labor, Office of Management Standards, revealed that between May 2011 and December 2012, Paradis stole $13, 493.90 from the union. Paradis accomplished the thefts by using a debit card assigned to the account to make cash withdrawals at ATM machines and to purchase items for his personal benefit.
Paradis resigned from the union and voluntary terminated his employment as a security guard at the nuclear power plant in December 2012. When confronted by the union’s vice-president about the discrepancy in the union’s account, Paradis initially denied committing the thefts and blamed the account deficiency on an error by the bank maintaining the account. After an extensive investigation by law enforcement, Paradis eventually admitted he stole the funds and helped the law enforcement agencies determine the amount of money he stole.
Paradis was also ordered to repay $13,493.90 to the union.
The sentence was imposed by United States District Court Judge Landya B. McCafferty.
The case was investigated by the Seabrook Police Department and the U.S. Department of Labor, Office of Management Standards. It was prosecuted by AUSA Robert Kinsella.
Readout of Attorney General Lynch's Meeting with State of the Union GuestsRead the Press Release
Earlier today, Attorney General Loretta Lynch hosted Sue Ellen Allen, Mayor of Shelby County, Tennessee, Mark Luttrell, and Seattle Police Chief Kathy O’Toole for a conversation about criminal justice reform. They were joined by Deputy Attorney General Sally Yates. Ms. Allen, Mayor Luttrell and Chief O’Toole will be seated in the box with First Lady Michelle Obama, Dr. Jill Biden and Valerie Jarrett during the State of the Union Address tonight. Their conversation focused on the importance of investing in rehabilitation and reentry programs that can reduce the likelihood of recidivism, supporting vulnerable communities to prevent them from being caught up in the criminal justice system and the collaborative work that can be done on criminal justice reform when officials from the federal, state, and local level work with community leaders.
Sue Ellen Allen
Sue Ellen Allen knows the difficulties that formerly incarcerated individuals face after prison – both as the co-founder of a nonprofit helping inmates reenter society and as a former inmate starting over after her release in 2009. Her organization, Gina’s Team, supports women in Arizona prisons and upon release, gives them the resources they need and teaches them how give back to the community. Named for her cellmate in prison who died in incarceration, Sue Ellen started Gina’s Team with Gina’s parents in an effort to provide women a path out of prison, back into the community and out of additional trouble with the law. She wrote the President to thank him for the launch of a new pilot program that enables incarcerated Americans to receive Pell Grants and to encourage a national dialog that includes women in prison reform. Sue Ellen is proud to be accompanied to Washington by Gina’s mother, Diane, whose daughter gave her a renewed purpose in life.
Mayor Mark Luttrell
Throughout his career in public service, Republican Mayor Mark Luttrell has built partnerships with local, state and federal agencies, and his unique background has focused him on criminal justice reform. As mayor of Shelby County, Tennessee, he helped create specialty courts for drug, mental health, and veterans’ cases to provide resources for effective rehabilitation instead of ineffectual incarceration. The county also put in place measures to reduce recidivism by streamlining and pooling resources to better provide formerly incarcerated individuals with the tools they need to re-enter society. Afterward, he was appointed as Director of Corrections for Shelby County, Tennessee and served there until he was elected Sheriff in 2002 and subsequently as Mayor in 2010. Mayor Lutrell and his wife, Pat, have three children and six grandchildren.
Chief Kathleen O’Toole
Since 2014, Chief Kathleen O’Toole has led the Seattle Police Department in developing its approach to community policing, and her focus on improving officer morale, implementing new policies and optimizing department resources has received national attention. Under her leadership, the department tested a six-month pilot program for body-worn police cameras focused on public transparency, and the Department of Justice awarded the department a $600,000 grant to expand the program. Last year, the Seattle Police Department presented its policies at the White House Police Data Initiative as part of its renewed emphasis on accountability and transparency. Prior to Kathleen’s role as Chief, she served as Chief Inspector of the Gardia Síochána Inspectorate in Ireland, responsible for developing best practices of the Irish police service and rose the ranks of Massachusetts law enforcement, finishing as the first female Boston police commissioner in 2004. Chief O’Toole is married to a retired police detective, Dan O’Toole, and they have a daughter, Meghan.
Raytown Man Indicted for Child PornRead the Press Release
KANSAS CITY, Mo. – Tammy Dickinson, United States Attorney for the Western District of Missouri, announced that a Raytown, Mo., man was indicted by a federal grand jury today for possessing and distributing child pornography over the Internet.
James Anthony Bee, 48, of Raytown, was charged in a two-count indictment returned by a federal grand jury in Kansas City, Mo. Today’s indictment replaces a federal criminal complaint that was filed against Bee on Monday, Jan. 11, 2016.
Today’s indictment alleges that Bee distributed child pornography over the Internet on Oct. 31, 2015. The indictment also charges Bee with possessing child pornography on Aug. 5, 2015.
According to an affidavit filed in support of the original criminal complaint, a search warrant was executed at Bee’s residence on Aug. 3, 2015, in response to evidence that Bee was part of a large network of individuals accessing, distributing, receiving and possessing child pornography. Law enforcement officers seized numerous computers, computer hard drives and computer peripherals from Bee’s residence.
Due to the volume of items seized from Bee’s residence, the affidavit says, these computers and computer peripherals are still being analyzed by the FBI’s Regional Computer Forensics Laboratory. Preliminary examination results have identified in excess of 1,000 videos and image files of child pornography, including 437 video files and 722 image files.
In November 2015, the affidavit says, law enforcement officers learned that Bee was continuing to access, receive, and distribute child pornography over the Internet with a number of new computer and computing devices he obtained after the search warrant was executed. A detective with the Independence, Mo., Police Department had identified Bee’s new computer as requesting video files of child pornography via a peer-to-peer file-sharing network. Another search warrant was executed at Bee’s residence on Monday, Jan. 11, 2016.
When officers entered Bee’s residence, according to the affidavit, he was immediately combative and refused to respond to any commands issued by the FBI or the Raytown, Mo., police officers. Bee was advised that he would be placed under arrest, and he continued to resist the FBI and police officers. Bee continued to pull his arms away from the officers, the affidavit says, attempted to kick these officers, and screamed and threatened physical harm to the officers. Bee kicked a police officer as he attempted to gain control over Bee and place him under arrest. According to the affidavit, Bee was transported to the Raytown Police Department’s detention facility, and, while there, continued his resistance to officers’ commands and damaged the cell where he was being kept.
Dickinson cautioned that the charges contained in this indictment are simply accusations, and not evidence of guilt. Evidence supporting the charges must be presented to a federal trial jury, whose duty is to determine guilt or innocence.
This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Patrick D. Daly. It was investigated by the Kansas City, Mo., Police Department, the FBI, the Independence, Mo., Police Department and the Raytown, Mo., Police Department.
Randolph County Residents Sentenced for Methamphetamine OffensesRead the Press Release
On January 5, 2016, and January 7, 2016, Michael A. Boyt, Jr., 20, and Russell A. Stokes, 24, both of Sparta, were sentenced for methamphetamine offenses, Acting United States Attorney for the Southern District of Illinois James L. Porter announced today.
Boyt, Jr., who had previously pled guilty to conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine, was sentenced to 60 months in federal prison, 3 years’ supervised release, and fined $725.00. Stokes, who had previously pled guilty to conspiracy to manufacture methamphetamine and possessing pseudoephedrine knowing that it was going to be used to manufacture methamphetamine, was sentenced to 100 months in prison, 3 years’ supervised release, and fined $825.00. Evidence at the plea and sentencing hearings established that Boyt, Jr., and Stokes were involved with co-defendant Jonathan Haslett and others in the manufacture of methamphetamine. Stokes provided pseudoephedrine to multiple other persons, including Boyt, Jr., to use to manufacture methamphetamine. Boyt, Jr. manufactured and distributed methamphetamine. At the sentencing hearings, the district court found that Boyt, Jr. was responsible for the possession of 125.28 grams of pseudoephedrine, while Stokes was responsible for the possession of 222.48 grams of pseudoephedrine. The offenses occurred from 2013 to January 2015, in Perry, Randolph, Williamson, Jackson, and Franklin Counties. Co-defendant Haslett has pled guilty and is currently being held without bond pending a February 2, 2016, sentencing hearing.
The ongoing investigation is being conducted by the Randolph County Sheriff’s Office, Jackson County Sheriff’s Office, Steeleville Police Department, Coulterville Police Department, Sparta Police Department, Perry County Drug Task Force, and Illinois State Police Methamphetamine Response Team. The Randolph County State’s Attorney’s Office also assisted in the investigation.
The case is assigned to Assistant United States Attorney Amanda A. Robertson for prosecution.
Raleigh Attorney Pleads Guilty to Federal Fraud ChargesRead the Press Release
GREENSBORO, N.C. – Raleigh attorney Joseph Lee Levinson pleaded guilty to conspiracy to make false statements to federally insured financial institutions, announced Ripley Rand, United States Attorney for the Middle District of North Carolina. He will be sentenced by United States District Judge James A. Beaty, Jr., in Winston-Salem on May 19, 2016.
Joseph Lee Levinson pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to make false statements to federally insured financial institutions in violation of Section 1014 of Title 18 of the United States Code. This charge carries a maximum sentence of five years in prison and a $250,000 fine. Levinson remains out of custody on pretrial release pending sentencing.
From 2005 until 2010, Jotham Walker Pruitt and other individuals operated a marijuana “grow” operation in Orange County, North Carolina. The operation involved the production of marijuana inside houses in the vicinity of the Town of Hillsborough, Orange County, North Carolina. Levinson is a licensed attorney practicing in Raleigh and is a college friend of Jotham Pruitt. Levinson conspired with Jotham Pruitt to obtain mortgage funding for properties to be used as “grow houses,” knowing full well that banks would not loan money to Jotham Pruitt if they knew that the houses were to be used for illegal purposes. Levinson and Jotham Pruitt prepared loan applications to Long Beach Mortgage Corporation and SunTrust Bank falsely representing that the properties would be used for legal purposes, such as a residence or as rental property, when in fact both knew that the houses would be used to grow marijuana. Levinson acted as closing attorney for purchase of the first two grow houses used in the operation.
Levinson also conspired with Jotham Pruitt to present false leases to Countrywide Bank, N.A., to support Pruitt’s application for mortgage funding to purchase a third grow house. Levinson provided Jotham Pruitt with a sample lease to use as a template in creating false leases to present to Countrywide Bank, N.A., showing that previous properties purchased by Jotham Pruitt were rental properties occupied by tenants. In fact, these properties were being used to grow marijuana.
The grow operation ceased in December 2010. Upon completion of the business, Jotham Pruitt ceased making payments on the mortgages on the grow houses, including those he had purchased with the aid of Levinson. The houses were foreclosed on by the lending banks at a total loss of over $250,000.
Jotham Pruitt has pleaded guilty in the United States District Court for the Middle District of North Carolina to related charges. Charges remain pending against other individuals indicted in connection with the scheme.
The case was investigated by the Orange County Sheriff’s Office and Internal Revenue Service - Criminal Investigations in conjunction with the United States Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of North Carolina.
Case Number 1:15CR413-1
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Prattville Man Pleads Guilty to Copyright InfringementRead the Press Release
Montgomery, Alabama– Ivory Vernell Nevels, 53, entered a plea of guilty to criminal copyright infringement and possession of counterfeit currency, announced George L. Beck, Jr., United States Attorney for the Middle District of Alabama. Nevels entered the plea of guilty before United States District Judge Carlos Eduardo Mendoza visiting from the Middle District of Florida.
Nevels, who referred to himself as “Mr. Everything,” had a store in Prattville, Alabama, known as Stack A Dollar. At Stack A Dollar, Nevels sold counterfeit handbags, purses, wallets, watches, and other goods which bore counterfeit marks registered with the United States Patent and Trademark Office. During the investigation, federal agents executed a search warrant at Stack A Dollar and seized approximately $160,000 in counterfeit goods.
Nevels also illegally copied copyrighted music and movies, in violation of federal copyright laws. Theses counterfeit recordings were sold at his store.
As to the Criminal Copyright Infringement charge, Nevels now faces up to five years imprisonment and a fine of $250,000. He faces up to twenty years imprisonment and a $250,000 fine for possession of the counterfeit currency.
A date has not yet been set for his sentencing.
This case was investigated by the United States Secret Service, Department of Homeland Security, Millbrook Police Department, and Prattville Police Department. It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Curtis Ivy and Bradley Bodiford.
Physician Assistant, Kyle D. Gandy, Sentenced to Fourteen Months in Prison for Accepting Illegal KickbacksRead the Press Release
GRAND RAPIDS, MICHIGAN — U.S. Attorney Patrick Miles announced today that Kyle D. Gandy, age 37, a physician assistant who formerly resided in Mt. Pleasant, Michigan, was sentenced to 14 months in prison and two years of supervised release for accepting $1,000.00 in illegal kickbacks for referring patients to medical clinics, physical therapy clinics, and a home health care agency. Gandy is the tenth person, and the fourth physician assistant, convicted of felony charges in connection with a joint federal-state investigation into a kickback scheme initiated by Babubhai Rathod. As part of this felony conviction, Gandy was ordered to pay $18,030.17 in restitution, representing the amount of the referred services paid by Medicare and Medicaid. Gandy will be excluded from participating with the Medicare and Medicaid programs for at least five years.
In sentencing Gandy, U.S. District Judge Janet T. Neff stated that accepting kickbacks is "a very serious crime" that "take[s] advantage of government programs that help so many people." Judge Neff emphasized that receiving illegal kickbacks in any amount is a "strike at the whole [health care] system." Judge Neff further noted the need to punish and deter those who have "the education and opportunity to work in a dignified profession," but use such opportunities "to commit fraud and theft."
In its sentencing memorandum, the Government cited Gandy’s acknowledgements that the subject kickback payments influenced his referral patterns and resulted in services that were not medically necessary. U.S. Attorney Miles reiterated that, "Paying kickbacks for patient referrals distorts the motives of health care professionals. The U.S. Attorney’s Office will continue to aggressively investigate and prosecute all kickback schemes using the available criminal and civil remedies, including felony prosecutions, treble civil damages, monetary penalties, and program exclusions."
"Paying kickbacks for the referral of Medicare or Medicaid patients is a serious crime," said Lamont Pugh III, Special Agent in Charge, U.S. Department of Health & Human Services, Office of Inspector General – Chicago Region. "Kickbacks inappropriately influence health care practitioners’ medical decision making process, lead to overutilization and/or up-coding of services, and further increase program costs. The OIG will continue to aggressively pursue kickback allegations to ensure the integrity of the Medicare and Medicaid programs and protect vital taxpayer dollars."2
This case was the result of a coordinated effort by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Western District of Michigan, the Michigan Attorney General’s Office, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Office of Inspector General, and Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Raymond E. Beckering III and Adam B. Townshend prosecuted this matter.
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Penn Hills Man Conspired to Distribute Cocaine Shipped from CaliforniaRead the Press Release
PITTSBURGH – An Allegheny County resident pleaded guilty in federal court to a charge of conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute and distribute 500 grams or more of cocaine, United States Attorney David J. Hickton announced today.
Aaron Atkins, 34, Penn Hills, Pa., pleaded guilty to one count before United States District Judge Mark R. Hornak.
In connection with the guilty plea, the court was advised that in 2013, the Federal Bureau of Investigation and other agencies joined forces in a multi-agency wiretap investigation of drug trafficking and violence in the Homewood section of Pittsburgh. The interception of wire and electronic communications began in December 2013 and continued through the end of August 2014. During that timeframe, Aaron Atkins was intercepted over the wire conspiring with others to possess with intent to distribute and distribute cocaine, which was shipped from California to the Western District of Pennsylvania through the United States Postal Service or commercial carrier.
Judge Hornak scheduled sentencing for May 16, 2016. The law provides for a minimum sentence of five years in prison, a maximum sentence of 40 years in prison, a fine of not more than $5,000,000, or both. Under the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, the actual sentence imposed is based upon the seriousness of the offense and the prior criminal history of the defendant.
Pending sentencing, the court continued the defendant’s detention.
Assistant United States Attorney Tonya Sulia Goodman is prosecuting this case on behalf of the government.
The Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Greater Pittsburgh Safe Streets Task Force, Wilkinsburg Police Department, Allegheny County Sheriff’s Office, Pennsylvania Office of the Attorney General, Munhall Police Department, Duquesne Police Department, Monroeville Police Department, Allegheny County Police Department, West Mifflin Police Department, Bellevue Police Department, and the Pittsburgh Bureau of Police conducted the investigation that led to the prosecution of Aaron Atkins.