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Tuesday 29 September 2015
Gang Member to Federal Prison for Drug ConspiracyRead the Press Release
A man who distributed crack cocaine for nearly a decade was sentenced today to more than twenty years in federal prison.
Albert Allen, Jr., 30, from Cedar Rapids, Iowa, received the prison term after a guilty plea to conspiracy to distribute 280 grams or more of cocaine base, a/k/a crack cocaine. At the guilty plea, Allen admitted he and his co-conspirators agreed to distribute over 280 grams of crack cocaine. At sentencing, Allen was found to be a leader of an organization responsible for distributing more than two kilograms of crack cocaine in the Cedar Rapids area since 2002.
Allen was sentenced in Cedar Rapids by United States District Court Chief Judge Linda R. Reade. Allen was sentenced to 262 months’ imprisonment. A special assessment of $100 was imposed. He must also serve a five-year term of supervised release after the prison term. There is no parole in the federal system.
Allen’s sentence was ordered to run consecutive to a previously imposed 60-year sentence, which followed his conviction for First Degree Murder in Cook County, Illinois. As a condition of his supervised release, Allen was ordered to have no association with other gang members.
Allen is being held in the United States Marshal’s custody until he can be transported to a federal prison.
The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Justin Lightfoot and investigated by a joint effort between the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) Task Force and the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) Safe Streets Task Force. The DEA Task Force consists of the DEA; the Linn County Sheriff's Office; the Cedar Rapids Police Department; the Marion Police Department; the Iowa City
Police Department; the Clinton Police Department; the Iowa Division of Narcotics Enforcement; the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives; the Sixth Judicial District Department of Correctional Services, High Risk Unit (HRU); and the Iowa National Guard. The FBI Safe Streets Task Force consists of the FBI; the Cedar Rapids Police Department; and the Sixth Judicial District Department of Correctional Services, High Risk Unit (HRU).
Court file information available https://ecf.iand.uscourts.gov/cgi-bin/login.pl. The case file number is CR 13-66.
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Fort Thompson Man Sentenced for Assaulting, Resisting and Impeding A Federal OfficerRead the Press Release
Acting United States Attorney Randolph J. Seiler announced that a Fort Thompson, South Dakota, man convicted of Assaulting, Resisting and Impeding a Federal Officer was sentenced on September 28, 2015, by U.S. District Judge Roberto A. Lange.
Tony O. St. John, a/k/a Anthony St. John, age 26, was sentenced to 17 months in custody, followed by 2 years of supervised release, and a $100 special assessment to the Federal Crime Victims Fund.
St. John was indicted by a federal grand jury on October 15, 2014. He pled guilty on July 6, 2015.
The conviction stemmed from an incident on September 30, 2014, when a Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) officer was called to the Lodestar Casino in Fort Thompson, due to a report of an unknown male attempting to get the keys of a vehicle from a female patron of the casino. The officer arrived at the casino and spoke with the patron, who advised that as she was walking to her vehicle in the casino parking lot, she unlocked the door with her remote control. As she approached her vehicle, the man walked up to her and demanded that she give him the keys to her vehicle. She locked the doors again and walked quickly back into the casino and notified security.
As the officer was talking with the woman, others in the casino advised him that the man was back in the parking lot. The officer approached the man, identified as St. John, and directed him to walk towards the officer. St. John did not comply and took off running. Another BIA officer came to assist and both officers attempted to stop St. John, who continued to run and not follow commands. The second officer and St. John struggled on the ground, as the first officer attempted to get St. John in handcuffs. At this time, St. John kicked the second officer in the face, while the first officer was still attempting to place a resistant St. John in handcuffs. St. John then reached for the second officer’s gun in his holster, and was maced by the first officer with limited effect. As the first officer was trying to get the handcuffs on St. John, he pulled that officer’s hand, causing his thumb and finger to bend backwards. The officers were finally able to place handcuffs on St. John, who continued to struggle as they walked him to the car. Both officers received medical treatment and were employed as BIA officers and on duty at the time of the assault.
This case was investigated by the BIA, Crow Creek Agency. Assistant U.S. Attorney Meghan N. Dilges prosecuted the case.
St. John was immediately turned over to the custody of the U.S. Marshals Service.
Former Obion County Jailer, Inmate Indicted for Smuggling MarijuanaRead the Press Release
Jackson, TN – A former Obion County Jail correctional officer, a jail inmate, and the inmate’s girlfriend have all been indicted on federal drug charges. Edward L. Stanton III, U.S. Attorney for the Western District of Tennessee, announced the indictment today.
According to the indictment, from February 2015 until June 2015, Markia Patton, 30; Cara Bing, 34; and Shalyndrea Williams, 25, conspired with each other to smuggle and distribute marijuana inside Obion County Jail.
Patton, an inmate at the Obion County Jail, had his girlfriend, Williams, bring marijuana into the jail. From there, Bing, a correctional officer at the time, would retrieve the marijuana, smuggle it inside the jail, and distribute it to Patton.
According to information presented in court, agents with the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation (TBI) were informed that Patton was having marijuana brought into the jail. The investigation also revealed that Bing was aiding Patton in the criminal offense.
Based on the aforementioned information, surveillance was set up on the entrance to the women’s restroom in the lobby of the facility. In June 2015, agents discovered more than 30 grams of marijuana in the trash can of the restroom. Williams was allegedly directed by Patton to bring the drugs into the restroom.
Williams allegedly dropped off drugs and tobacco in the facility’s women’s restroom on at least six occasions for Patton, according to court information. Bing was paid several hundred dollars to retrieve and deliver the smuggled drugs to Patton.
All three defendants have been charged with one count of conspiracy to distribute and possess with the intent to distribute marijuana. They each have also been charged with one count of aiding and abetting, distributing, attempting to distribute, and possessing with the intent to distribute marijuana.
If convicted, the defendants face individual sentences of up to five years imprisonment. They also face individual fines of up to $250,000.
This case’s investigation was led by TBI. The Obion County Sheriff’s Department and 27th Judicial District Drug Task Force assisted with the investigation.
This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Beth Boswell.
The charges and allegations contained in the indictment are merely accusations, and the defendants are considered innocent unless and until proven guilty.
Florida Man Sentenced in Manhattan Federal Court to 77 Months in Prison for Defrauding InvestorsRead the Press Release
Preet Bharara, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, announced today that STEVEN STALTARE was sentenced in Manhattan federal court to 77 months in prison for defrauding investors in connection with two fraudulent investment schemes. STALTARE’s first scheme involved fraud in connection with the transfer of stock in Dematco, Inc. (“Dematco”). STALTARE’s second scheme involved defrauding investors in connection with investments in various stocks, including Dematco, Preventia, Inc. (“Preventia”), First Choice Healthcare Solutions, Inc. (“First Choice”), and Savtira Corporation (“Savtira”). STALTARE admitted to misleading investors in both schemes through numerous false statements and misrepresentations, as well as by misappropriating investment funds for his own personal use. STALTARE pled guilty on December 2, 2014, and was sentenced today by United States District Judge George B. Daniels.
Manhattan U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara said: “Steven Staltare offered investors bogus investment opportunities, knowing that it was a shell game in which he pocketed over $800,000 of investors’ money. Thanks to the efforts of the FBI and the Securities and Exchange Commission, Staltare will now begin to pay the price for his scheme to defraud innocent investors.”
According to the allegations contained in the Indictment, other documents filed in Manhattan federal court, and statements made during court proceedings:
First, from at least in or about 2011 through in or about 2012, STALTARE defrauded two investors (“Victim-1” and “Victim-2”) in connection with the transfer of shares of Dematco stock. In or about late 2011, STALTARE approached Victim-1 and asked Victim-1 to transfer hundreds of thousands of shares of Dematco stock that Victim-1 owned to a “partner” of STALTARE’s in exchange for $70,000 in cash. Victim-1 agreed to turn over his shares in Dematco in exchange for $70,000. At approximately the same time, STALTARE and another individual (“Partner-1”) approached Victim-2 and asked Victim-2 to loan them approximately $150,000 so that STALTARE could purchase shares of Dematco stock. STALTARE and Partner-1 promised Victim-2 that he would be paid $200,000 in three weeks and that Victim-2 would receive approximately one-third of the profits from the eventual sale of Dematco stock. Victim-2 was also promised that he would receive Dematco stock certificates as collateral for this loan. Based upon these representations, Victim-2 agreed to make this $150,000 loan to STALTARE and Partner-1. After Victim-2 made this loan, STALTARE provided Victim-2 with stock certificates that had been provided to STALTARE by Victim-1. Ultimately, STALTARE did not provide Victim-1 with the $70,000 that he had promised to pay in exchange for Victim-1’s shares of Dematco nor did STALTARE provide Victim-2 with any repayment for the $150,000 loan or any profits from any sale of Dematco stock. In reality, STALTARE transferred Victim-1’s shares in Dematco to Victim-2 without compensating Victim-1 and misappropriated the funds provided by Victim-2 for STALTARE’s own personal benefit.
Second, from at least in or about 2012 through in or about 2013, STALTARE defrauded two other investors (“Victim-3” and “Victim-4”) by misappropriating funds intended for investment in the stock of various companies. STALTARE agreed to invest approximately $25,000 for Victim-3 in Preventia stock, promising significant investment returns. STALTARE also agreed to invest approximately $357,000 for Victim-4 in various securities, including stock in Dematco, Preventia, First Choice and Savtira, again promising significant investment returns. However, once Victim-3 and Victim-4 provided STALTARE with the funds to invest in these stocks, rather than investing these funds in stocks on behalf of Victim-3 and Victim-4 as promised, STALTARE misappropriated these funds for his own personal benefit.
In the course of effectuating these fraudulent schemes, STALTARE defrauded victims in excess of $800,000.
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In addition to the prison sentence, STALTARE, 50, of Tampa, Florida, was sentenced to three years of supervised release, ordered to forfeit $846,250, and ordered to pay restitution of $846,250 to victims of his offenses.
Mr. Bharara praised the investigative work of the Federal Bureau of Investigation and thanked the Securities and Exchange Commission, for its assistance.
The charges were brought in connection with the President’s Financial Fraud Enforcement Task Force.The task force was established to wage an aggressive, coordinated and proactive effort to investigate and prosecute financial crimes.With more than 20 federal agencies, 94 U.S. attorneys’ offices, and state and local partners, it is the broadest coalition of law enforcement, investigatory and regulatory agencies ever assembled to combat fraud.Since its formation, the task force has made great strides in facilitating increased investigation and prosecution of financial crimes; enhancing coordination and cooperation among federal, state and local authorities; addressing discrimination in the lending and financial markets; and conducting outreach to the public, victims, financial institutions and other organizations.Since fiscal year 2009, the Justice Department has filed over 18,000 financial fraud cases against more than 25,000 defendants.For more information on the task force, please visit www.StopFraud.gov.
This case is being handled by the Office’s Securities and Commodities Fraud Task Force. Assistant U.S. Attorney Brian R. Blais is in charge of the prosecution.
Federal Jury Finds Doctor Guilty on 20 Counts of Health Care FraudRead the Press Release
Jacksonville, Florida – United States Attorney A. Lee Bentley, III announces that a federal jury today found Dr. David M. Pon (57, Windermere) guilty of 20 counts of health care fraud connected to his scheme to defraud the Medicare program. He faces a maximum penalty of 10 years in federal prison for each count. Following the jury’s verdict, the Court remanded Pon to the custody of the United States Marshals Service. His sentencing hearing is scheduled for March 14, 2016.
Pon was indicted on April 24, 2014.
According to testimony and evidence presented during the past four weeks, Pon intentionally and fraudulently misdiagnosed more than 500 Medicare beneficiaries as suffering from wet macular degeneration, a degenerative and incurable disease. Pon then used his false diagnoses to bill the Medicare program for unnecessary diagnostic testing and unwarranted laser treatments. In connection with the unnecessary testing, Pon injected his victims with various dyes that posed potential serious health risks, including cardiac arrest. Several of the misdiagnosed patients testified and explained the significant emotional impact the false diagnosis had on their lives, including the fear of going blind as a result of the disease. During the scheme to defraud Medicare, Pon operated two medical offices, one in Leesburg and another in Orlando.
“Misdiagnosing patients to provide invasive, potentially harmful services just to falsely bill Medicare is unconscionable” said Special Agent in Charge Shimon Richmond. “HHS-OIG will vehemently investigate those who would harm our seniors and steal from the Medicare program.”
“Protecting seniors from fraud is a top priority of our Office,” said United States Attorney A. Lee Bentley, III. “The fraud committed by Dr. Pon, a well-trained ophthalmologist, was particularly egregious. He abused his position of trust and falsely diagnosed hundreds of Medicare patients with wet macular degeneration, a progressive eye disease that can lead to blindness. He instilled fear in his victims, performed unnecessary and sometimes dangerous medical procedures on their eyes, and asked the taxpayers of this country to pick up the tab.”
This case was investigated by United States Department of Health and Human Services, Office of Inspector General, and the Federal Bureau of Investigation. It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Mark B. Devereaux and Mac D. Heavener.
Federal Inmate Sentenced to Life in Prison for the Murder of a U.S. Correctional OfficerRead the Press Release
SACRAMENTO—Federal inmate Joseph Cabrera Sablan, 47, was sentenced today to life in prison without the possibility of release for the murder of United States Correctional Officer Jose Rivera, U.S. Attorney Benjamin Wagner announced.
On July 22, 2015, Sablan pleaded guilty to murdering Officer Rivera. According to court documents, on June 20, 2008, Officer Rivera was conducting his daily count at the United States Penitentiary in Atwater when Sablan attacked him with an eight‑inch homemade knife. Officer Rivera tried to flee, but was knocked backwards by Sablan and tackled by Sablan’s co-defendant, James Ninete Leon Guerrero. Leon Guerrero held Rivera down as Sablan stabbed him. Sablan and Leon Guerrero were indicted for the murder on August 14, 2008, in Fresno, but the case was transferred to Los Angeles in the Central District of California on December 19, 2014. On May 30, 2014, Leon Guerrero was sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of release for his part in the murder.
“With today’s sentencing, both of the defendants who carried out this reprehensible and senseless act have received life sentences without the possibility of release, and have been held accountable,” U.S. Attorney Wagner stated. “Those who work within our correctional facilities walk in harm’s way every day, and when one of them is attacked, we will respond vigorously.”
The case was investigated by the Bureau of Prisons and the Federal Bureau of Investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney Duce Rice of the Eastern District of California and Trial Attorney Robert Feitel of the Criminal Division’s Capital Case Section prosecuted the case.
False Income Tax Returns from Inmates Part of Tax Preparer’s SchemeRead the Press Release
KANSAS CITY, KAN. – Preparing false income tax returns in the names of prison inmates was one of the schemes a Kansas City tax preparer used to defraud the Internal Revenue Service of more than $400,000, U.S. Attorney Barry Grissom said Tuesday.
Prayshana Washington, 28, Kansas City, Kan., pleaded guilty to one count of preparing false income tax returns and one count of aggravated identity theft. In her plea, she admitted that from 2012 to 2015 she was in the business of preparing individual income tax returns for clients, who generally paid between $500 and $1,000 for her services. She admitted:
- Preparing a 2012 return for a client that included false claims about dependents, false household help income, and false American Opportunity Credits.
- Directing the IRS to deposit fraudulent returns onto prepaid debit cards and mail them to addresses she controlled.
- Obtaining names, dates of birth and Social Security numbers for prison inmates and preparing fraudulent income tax returns in their names.
Sentencing will be set for a later date. The parties have agreed to recommend a sentence of 37 months in federal prison. Grissom commended the Internal Revenue Service, Assistant U.S. Attorney Scott Rask and Matthew Kluge, Trial Attorney with the U.S. Department of Justice, Tax Division, for their work on the case.
Excerpts of Attorney General Lynch at the Launch of the Strong Cities Network to Combat Violent ExtremismRead the Press Release
In her first address at the United Nations General Assembly, Attorney General Loretta E. Lynch will join other leaders from around the world to launch the Strong Cities Network to combat violent extremism.
Copied below are excerpts from her prepared remarks about how these collaborative efforts will improve social cohesion and resilience to violent extremism:
“Some [violent extremists] aspire to travel overseas to train or to fight. Others plot attacks on targets within their homelands. But all are antithetical to the shared vision and common cause that joins us here today in this renowned international forum: commitment to collaboration; dedication to peace; and devotion to the cause of justice within our nations and throughout the world.”
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“It is clear that the challenge of building resilience against violent extremism – a challenge that spans vast oceans and borders while impacting our most tightly-knit cities and towns – requires a response that is both wide-ranging and highly focused.”
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“As residents and experts in their communities, local leaders are often best positioned to pinpoint sources of unrest and discord; best equipped to identify signs of potential danger; and best able to recognize and accommodate community cultures, traditions, sensitivities, and customs. By creating a series of partnerships that draws on the knowledge and expertise of our local officials, we can create a more effective response to this virulent threat.”
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“Through the Strong Cities Network that we have unveiled today, we are making the first systematic effort in history to bring together cities around the world to share experiences, to pool resources, and to forge partnerships in order to build local cohesion and resilience on a global scale. Today we tell every city, every town, and every community that has lost the flower of its youth to a sea of hatred – you are not alone. We stand together, and we stand with you.”
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“Our experience tells us that partnering with city-level officials and the communities they represent extends the reach and deepens the perspective of national governments and international alliances. And connecting those localities to one another – as the Strong Cities Network is doing – is not only a powerful way to lift up our communities worldwide. It also sends a message about who we are and what we aspire to be – as an alliance of nations and as a global community. When the representatives of the Strong Cities Network join together for their first Annual Summit in Paris in Spring 2016, they will be making a strong and clear statement to their citizens and to the world: we stand united against violence, united against fear, and united in the pursuit of a better and brighter future.”
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"By connecting municipal leaders, facilitating information-sharing and providing training and other assistance where appropriate, the Strong Cities Network will help to fashion a global response to a global issue, without losing sight of its inherently local roots. It will offer city leaders a way to learn from one another about successful initiatives and productive programs. It will provide a platform for discussing community policing and prevention strategies that safeguard the individual rights of citizens. And it will support the practical delivery of community resilience programs in cities that are taking a new look at this evolving issue."
Essex County, New Jersey, Man Sentenced to 53 Months in Prison for Illegally Possessing Firearm, Smuggling Drugs into Federal JailRead the Press Release
NEWARK, N.J. – An Orange, New Jersey, man was sentenced today to 53 months in prison for illegally possessing a firearm and conspiring with others to smuggle contraband, including marijuana and tobacco, into a federal pretrial detention facility, U.S. Attorney Paul J. Fishman announced.
Muhammad Subpunallah, 34, previously pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Katharine S. Hayden to an indictment charging him with illegal possession of a firearm and to an information charging him with one count of conspiring to smuggle contraband into the Essex County Correctional Facility. Judge Hayden imposed the sentence today in Newark federal court.
According to the documents filed in this case and other cases and statements made in court:
On Oct. 11, 2011, Subpunallah had a loaded .38 caliber Cobra firearm in his waistband while standing near Broad and Market streets in Newark. He had previously been convicted of robbery in Essex County Superior Court. After Subpunallah was arrested and detained on the illegal possession of a firearm, he engaged in a conspiracy to smuggle contraband into the Essex County Correctional Facility. From September 2013 to February 2014, Subpunallah directed a relative, Vladimir Sauzereseteo, 41, of East Orange, New Jersey, to deliver contraband, including marijuana and tobacco, to Brian Kapalin, 68, of Maplewood, New Jersey, a lawyer, who then smuggled the contraband into the Essex County Correctional Facility in exchange for a cash fee. Subpunallah sent inmates to the attorney visitor room to meet with Kapalin and retrieve the contraband.
In January 2014, Subpunallah spoke with Kapalin over a recorded correctional facility phone. Subpunallah asked Kapalin to deliver contraband to an inmate at the Essex County Correctional Facility. Sauzereseteo was then paid $1,650 via Western Union money transfers, which he used to purchase marijuana that he delivered to Kapalin, along with a cash payment for Kapalin’s service. A few days later, Kapalin met the inmate from the Essex County Correctional Facility in the attorney visitor room and delivered the marijuana.
In addition to the prison term, Judge Hayden sentenced Subpunallah to serve three years of supervised release.
U.S. Attorney Fishman credited officers with the Newark Police Department, under the direction of Director Eugene Venable and Chief Anthony Campos; special agents with the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge George P. Belsky; special agents of the FBI, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Richard M. Frankel in Newark; and investigators with the Internal Affairs Division of the Essex County Correctional Facility, under the leadership of Warden Roy Hendricks, with the investigation leading to today’s sentencing.
The government is represented by Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Andrew Tyler and Assistant U.S. Attorneys Cari Fais of the Criminal Division, General Crimes Unit; Robert Frazer, of the Organized Crime/Gangs Unit; and Rahul Agarwal of the Special Prosecutions Division, in Newark.
Defense counsel: David Holman Esq., Assistant Federal Public Defender, Newark
East St. Louis Man Sentenced for Firearm OffenseRead the Press Release
Darral C. Morris, 35, of East St. Louis, Illinois, was sentenced in federal district court on September 25, 2015, to 180 months in prison, to be followed by three years supervised release, a $100 special assessment, and a $750 fine, for unlawful possession of a firearm by a previously convicted felon, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of Illinois, Stephen R. Wigginton, announced today.
"Again, I would warn convicted felons – possess a weapon and you will do hard federal time." noted United States Attorney Wigginton.
Court proceedings revealed that on August 8, 2013, the Project Safe Neighborhoods Detail patrolling in the Metro East Area observed two vehicles at a gas station in East St. Louis parked next to one another other, with neither vehicle obtaining fuel. Officers, believing a drug transaction to be occurring, approached the vehicles. Upon seeing law enforcement officers, Morris, the driver of one of the vehicles, placed what appeared to be several pieces of crack in his mouth. After being removed from the car, Morris’ saliva tested positive for cocaine. The officers searched his vehicle and found a loaded .9mm semi-automatic pistol between the driver’s seat and center console.
This investigation was conducted by The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms (ATF) and prosecuted by Special Assistant United States Attorney Jonathan S. Drucker.
Dorchester Man Pleads Guilty to Sex Trafficking of MinorsRead the Press Release
BOSTON – A Dorchester man pleaded guilty today in U.S. District Court in Boston in connection with a long-running, cross-country teen sex trafficking operation.
Corey Norris, a/k/a “Case,” a/k/a “Jacorey Johnson,” 26, of Dorchester, pleaded guilty today to a five count indictment charging him with various sex trafficking crimes including crimes related to sex trafficking of minors. U.S. District Court Judge Denise J. Casper scheduled sentencing for Jan. 11, 2016.
Norris, along with co-defendant Raymond Jeffreys, 27, and others, engaged in a sex trafficking conspiracy from approximately August 2008 to May 2014 in Massachusetts, Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, Rhode Island, Connecticut, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, New York, Maryland, Nevada, Georgia, Florida, and California. Norris was charged for both his involvement in the conspiracy, and for specific counts involving the sex trafficking of two 17-year-old girls. One of the girls was trafficked from approximately Oct. 8, 2011 to Nov. 10, 2011 in Massachusetts, Maine, Nevada, and California. The other girl was trafficked in Massachusetts and Rhode Island in December 2012.
The individual sex trafficking charges carry a range of mandatory minimum terms of 10 to 15 years and up to a lifetime in prison. Each count has a mandatory minimum term of five years of supervised release and a fine of $250,000, or twice the gross gain/loss, whichever is greater. Actual sentences for federal crimes are typically less than the maximum penalties. Sentences are imposed by a federal district court judge based upon the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
United States Attorney Carmen M. Ortiz; Matthew Etre, Special Agent in Charge of Homeland Security Investigations in Boston; and Boston Police Commissioner William Evans, made the announcement today. The case was investigated by Homeland Security Investigations, the Boston Police Department’s Human Trafficking and Homicide Units, and the Federal Bureau of Investigation.
The U.S. Attorney’s Office also wishes to recognize and thank Shawn Meehan, Resident Agent in Charge of the Homeland Security Investigations’ Portland Office; Joseph R. Bonavolonta, Acting Special Agent in Charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Boston Field Division; Aaron Steps, Supervisory Senior Resident Agent in Charge of the FBI Maine Office; the Suffolk County District Attorney’s Office; Cumberland County (Maine) District Attorney’s Office; the United States Attorney’s Office for the District of Maine; the Massachusetts State Police; the Portland (Maine), Old Town (Maine), Braintree, and South Portland (Maine) Police Departments; the Maine Drug Enforcement Agency; and the Cumberland County Sheriff’s Office. This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Amy Harman Burkart and Christopher Pohl of Ortiz’s Civil Rights Enforcement Team and Special Assistant U.S. Attorney from the Suffolk County D.A.’s Office.
District Woman Pleads Guilty to Voluntary ManslaughterRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON – Loretta Hall, also known as Loretta Beckwith, 48, of Washington, D.C., pled guilty today to a charge of voluntary manslaughter for fatally stabbing her longtime boyfriend, Acting U.S. Attorney Vincent H. Cohen, Jr. announced.
Hall pled guilty in the Superior Court of the District of Columbia. She is to be sentenced on Jan. 8, 2016, by the Honorable Rhonda Reid Winston.
According to the government’s evidence, Hall lived with her boyfriend, Kenneth Fogle, 54, and the two had been romantically involved for many years. On June 13, 2015, at approximately 5 p.m., Hall was verbally arguing with Mr. Fogle in the hallway outside the basement apartment that they shared in the 3200 block of 23rd Street SE. During the argument, Hall used a large kitchen knife to stab Mr. Fogle multiple times, including one stab wound to the left chest area that punctured Mr. Fogle’s aorta and caused his death. Hall then entered the shared apartment and hid the knife in a cat litter box.
Within minutes, witnesses discovered Mr. Fogle, slumped unconscious on the steps down to the basement level of the apartment building in a pool of blood. Hall then fled past Mr. Fogle and out of the building. A witness called 911 and an ambulance transported Mr. Fogle to a hospital, where he was pronounced dead that same day.
Hall was arrested on June 19, 2015 and has been in custody ever since. She had been on supervised release for a 2009 conviction for assault with significant bodily injury, and could face additional prison time for violating her release conditions. During her plea today, Hall acknowledged that she was not acting in reasonable self-defense when she stabbed Mr. Fogle.
In announcing the guilty plea, Acting U.S. Attorney Cohen commended the work of the detectives of the Criminal Investigations Division Homicide Branch, crime scene officers, and the Seventh Police District of the Metropolitan Police Department. He also acknowledged the efforts of those who worked on the case from the U.S. Attorney’s Office, including Victim/Witness Advocate Jennifer Clark; Lead Paralegal Specialist Kwasi Fields; Investigative Analyst Zachary McMenamin, and Interns Gillian Tishuk and Rebecca Roher. Finally, he expressed appreciation for the work of Assistant U.S. Attorney Christopher Bruckmann, who investigated and prosecuted the case.
Chiropractor Pleads Guilty to Insurance FraudRead the Press Release
COLUMBUS, Ohio – Jeffrey R. Shope, 44, of Blacklick, Ohio, pleaded guilty in U.S. District Court to one count of insurance fraud.
Carter M. Stewart, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Ohio, Lieutenant Governor Mary Taylor, Director of Ohio Department of Insurance and Angela L. Byers, Special Agent in Charge, Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), Cincinnati Field Division, announced the plea entered into today before U.S. District Judge Gregory L. Frost.
According to court documents, Shope was a licensed chiropractor and owner of True Health Chiropractic in Westerville, Ohio. From January 2009 to December 2012, Shope made false statements to defraud federal health care benefit programs and obtained nearly $700,000 in fraudulent payments. Shope would bill for equipment and services not rendered to maximize insurance payments and would bill two separate programs for identical services provided to the same patients on the same day.
Health care fraud is a crime punishable by up to 10 years in prison and a $250,000 fine.
U.S. Attorney Stewart commended the cooperative investigation by the FBI and Ohio Department of Insurance, as well as Assistant United States Attorney Ken Affeldt, who is representing the United States in this case
Chicago Man Pleads Guilty to Williamson County Drug ConspiracyRead the Press Release
On September 24, 2015, David T. Walls, Jr., a/k/a "Gun," 36, of Chicago, IL, pled guilty to a one-count indictment charging conspiracy to distribute crack cocaine and heroin, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of Illinois, Stephen R. Wigginton, announced today.
Evidence at the plea hearing established that Walls was involved with others in the distribution of heroin and crack cocaine in Williamson County. Walls and others were transporting the drugs from northern Illinois for distribution. The group oftentimes possessed firearms during their involvement in the drug conspiracy. The offense occurred between 2012 and October 2014. Walls is currently being held without bond pending a December 29, 2015, sentencing date.
The crack cocaine and heroin offense carries a minimum penalty of 10 years, to a maximum penalty of life in federal prison, to be followed by 8 years’ supervised release, and a fine of $8,000,000.
The ongoing investigation is being conducted by the Southern Illinois Enforcement. The Drug Enforcement Administration and Williamson County State’s Attorney’s Office assisted in the investigation.
The case is assigned to Assistant United States Attorney Amanda A. Robertson for prosecution.
Carbondale Resident Pleads Guilty to Armed Robbery of Duquoin Shell Gas StationRead the Press Release
On September 23 2015, Stanley L. Cohen, 32, of Carbondale, IL, pled guilty to a two-count indictment charging Interference with Commerce by Robbery, in violation of the Hobbs Act, and Using, Carrying, and Brandishing a Firearm During a Crime of Violence, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of Illinois, Stephen R. Wigginton, announced today.
Evidence at the plea hearing established that, on May 16, 2014, Cohen committed an armed robbery of the Shell Gas Station in DuQuoin, Perry County. Cohen, who was armed with a firearm, struck a clerk in the head with the gun. The clerk required staples for his wound.
The penalties for the Hobbs Act violation are up to 20 years to be followed by 3 years’ supervised release. The firearm offense carries a penalty of 7 years’ to life imprisonment to be followed by 5 years’ supervised release. Federal law requires that any term of imprisonment imposed on the firearm offense must be served consecutive, that is, in addition to any term imposed on the Hobbs Act charge. Both offenses also carry a fine of up to $250,000.
The investigation was conducted by the DuQuoin Police Department, Perry County Sheriff’s Department, and Carbondale Police Department.
The case is assigned to Assistant United States Attorney Amanda A. Robertson for prosecution.
California Man Pleads Guilty to Sexual Exploitation of a Child, Distribution of Material Involving the Sexual Exploitation of Minors, and Failure to AppearRead the Press Release
Acting United States Attorney Randolph J. Seiler announced that Neal LaPointe, age 31, of Sacramento, California, appeared before U.S. District Judge Roberto A. Lange on September 28, 2015, and pled guilty to an Indictment that charged him with Sexual Exploitation of a Child, and Distribution of Material Involving the Sexual Exploitation of Minors. He also pled guilty to a separate Indictment charging him with Failure to Appear.
The maximum penalty upon conviction is up to 60 years in custody and/or a $250,000 fine, life of supervised release, and $300 to the Federal Crime Victims Fund. Restitution may also be ordered.
The charges involving the Sexual Exploitation of a Child and Distribution of Material Involving the Sexual Exploitation of Minors stem from incidents between March 1, 2012, and April 30, 2013. During that timeframe, LaPointe was living in California, and under the guise of various aliases and online identities, would use computers, the internet, and the social networking site Facebook to solicit images of minors engaging in explicit sexual conduct, and would then distribute these images via computer and over the internet. Some of the minor victims lived on the Rosebud Sioux Indian Reservation and elsewhere in South Dakota.
The Failure to Appear charge stems from an incident when the Court allowed LaPointe to be released, ordered him on electronic monitoring, and to reside with a third party on the Rosebud Sioux Indian Reservation. LaPointe failed to appear for his next court appearance on July 14, 2014, and his whereabouts were unknown until February 13, 2015, when he was apprehended in Miami, Florida.
The investigation was conducted by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, South Dakota Division of Criminal Investigation, South Dakota Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force, Rosebud Sioux Tribe Law Enforcement Services, Bureau of Indian Affairs, Pennington County Sheriff’s Office, Rapid City Police Department, Sioux Falls Police Department, and the U.S. Marshals Service. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Tim Maher and Sarah Collins are prosecuting the case.
A presentence investigation was ordered and a sentencing date has been set for December 21, 2015. The defendant was remanded to the custody of the U.S. Marshals Service pending sentencing.
CEO of New Jersey Engineering Consulting Firm Admits Role in $130,000 Unemployment Insurance Fraud ConspiracyRead the Press Release
Also Admits Failure to Collect More Than $100,000 in Payroll Taxes
TRENTON, N.J. – The head of an engineering consulting firm in Wall Township, New Jersey, today admitted that in order to reduce his payroll costs, he launched a scheme in which several of his employees fraudulently collected unemployment benefits while he paid the remaining portion of their salaries, U.S. Attorney Paul J. Fishman announced.
Lino DeAlmeida Jr., 68, of Point Pleasant, New Jersey, pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Freda L. Wolfson in Trenton federal court to an information charging him with one count of conspiracy to defraud the N.J. State Division of Unemployment Insurance (NJUI) and one count of failing to collect Social Security, Medicare, and income payroll taxes.
According to documents filed in this case and statements made in court:
DeAlmeida operated an engineering consulting firm, Consolidated Construction Management Services (CCMS) in Wall Township. In late 2011, DeAlmeida told his four employees that due to financial difficulties, he could not continue paying their salaries. He proposed a scheme in which the employees would claim to have been terminated from CCMS and seek unemployment benefits from the NJUI. In return, he promised to continue to pay them “under the table” for the remaining portion of their salaries that would not be covered by the benefits. Three of the CCMS employees agreed to the scheme and submitted false applications with the NJUI.
DeAlmeida’s employee conspirators received a total of $130,363 in benefits between July 2011 and January 2013 while receiving CCMS checks from DeAlmeida. In addition, DeAlmeida failed to pay payroll taxes of $109,068 on the undisclosed wages of $790,860 he and his conspirators received during the scheme.
The conspiracy to defraud the NJUI charge to which DeAlmeida pleaded guilty carries a maximum potential penalty of 20 years in prison and a $250,000 fine, or twice the gross gain or loss from the offense. The failure to collect payroll taxes charge carries a maximum potential penalty of five years in prison and a $250,000 fine, or twice the gross gain or loss from the offense. Sentencing is scheduled for Jan. 5, 2016.
U.S. Attorney Fishman credited special agents of the Department of Labor, Office of Inspector General, Office of Labor Racketeering and Fraud Investigations, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Cheryl Garcia, New York Region; and IRS–Criminal Investigation, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Jonathan D. Larsen, with the investigation leading to today’s plea.
The government is represented by V. Grady O’Malley, Senior Litigation Counsel of the U.S. Attorney’s Office Organized Crime/Gangs Unit in Newark.
Defense counsel: Jeffrey D. Smith Esq., Teaneck, New Jersey
Buffalo Man Sentenced for Unlawful Possession of A Firearm and A Violation of Supervised ReleaseRead 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 Rai Johnson, 36, of Buffalo, N.Y., who was convicted of being a felon in possession of firearms and ammunition and violation of supervised release, was sentenced to 26 months in prison by U.S. Senior District Judge Richard J. Arcara.Assistant U.S. Attorneys Aaron J. Mango and Scott S. Allen, Jr., who handled the case, stated that in August 2014, the defendant was sentenced to time served and two years supervised release for violating the Clean Air Act. On December 23, 2014, Johnson was found to be in possession of a shotgun, a rifle, and hundreds of rounds of ammunition that he kept hidden from his probation officer. The United States Probation Search Team recovered the firearms and ammunition during a search of the defendant’s residence. The search occurred after Johnson negligently discharged a round into his neighbor’s house while attempting to clean his rifle.
The sentencing is the culmination of an investigation on the part of Special Agents of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, under the direction of Special Agent-In-Charge Delano A. Reid, New York Field Division.
Brooklyn Man Pleads Guilty in Connection with Lottery FraudRead 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 Horace Anthony Buddle, 45, of Brooklyn, NY, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit mail fraud and wire fraud before U.S. District Judge Richard J. Arcara. The charges carry a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison and a fine of $250,000.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Scott S. Allen, Jr., who is handling the case, stated that the defendant defrauded elderly individuals residing in the United States by leading the victims to believe they won cash prizes of more than $1,000,000 and, in at least one case, a Mercedes Benz automobile. The victims were told they must pay “taxes” and other administrative expenses in order to collect their “prizes.”
One victim, a man from the Rochester, N.Y. area, was told numerous times, in phone calls, to send packages of money to an address in Brooklyn. As a result, the victim sent 16 packages via UPS and the U.S. Mail to the defendants’ residence in Brooklyn.
Another victim, a resident of Missouri, was directed to deposit money into the accounts of co-defendant Corey Buddle who is the defendant’s son. None of the victims received anything as a result of their “winnings.”
Charges are pending against Corey Buddle. The fact that a defendant has been charged with a crime is merely an accusation, and the defendants are presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty.The plea is the result of an investigation on the part of the United States Postal Inspection Service, under the direction of Acting Inspector in Charge James Buthorn, Boston Division, and Special Agents of Immigration and Customs Enforcement, Homeland Security Investigations, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge James C. Spero.
Sentencing is scheduled for January 19, 2016 at 1:30 p.m. before Judge Arcara.
Boston Police Detective Pleads Guilty to Conspiracy to Obstruct a Federal InvestigationRead the Press Release
BOSTON – A Boston Police detective pleaded guilty today to conspiracy to obstruct a FBI investigation related to the Academy Homes Street Gang (AHSG), a violent narcotics trafficking gang that operated out of the Academy Homes housing development in Roxbury.
Brian Smigielski, 43, of Norton, pleaded guilty before U.S. District Court Judge Denise J. Casper to one count of conspiracy to defraud the United States during the course of a federal investigation. U.S. District Court Judge Denise J. Casper scheduled sentencing for Jan. 28, 2016.
From early 2009 to 2011, the FBI and Boston Police Department (BPD) were conducting a joint investigation into AHSG, during the initial stages of which Smigielski was the lead investigator. In late 2009, Smigielski, became upset after being ordered to turn over the investigation to the FBI and other BPD units, and thereafter, in 2010 and 2011, conspired with a fellow BPD officer and AHSG gang members to impede the FBI in its investigation of AHSG. Smigielski assisted the AHSG gang members by, among other things, informing the gang members of the FBI’s pending investigation and warning them that their arrests were imminent.
The charging statute provides for a sentence of no greater than five years in prison, three years of supervised release, and a fine of $250,000. Actual sentences for federal crimes are typically less than the maximum penalties. Sentences are imposed by a federal district court judge based upon the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
United States Attorney Ortiz; Joseph R. Bonavolonta, Acting Special Agent in Charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Boston Field Division; and Superintendent Frank Mancini of the Boston Police Department’s Anti-Corruption Division, made the announcement today. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Dustin Chao of Ortiz’s Public Corruption and Special Prosecutions Unit.
Baltimore Woman Pleads Guilty to Food Stamp and Medicaid FraudRead the Press Release
Baltimore, Maryland – Tiffany Saunders Carraway, age 34, of Baltimore, pleaded guilty today to theft of government property arising from a scheme to falsify her income and living arrangements to illegally obtain food stamp and Medicaid benefits.
The guilty plea was announced by United States Attorney for the District of Maryland Rod J. Rosenstein; Special Agent in Charge Michael McGill of the Social Security Administration (SSA) - Office of Inspector General, Philadelphia Field Division; and Inspector General William E. Johnson, Jr. of the Maryland Department of Human Resources, Office of Inspector General.
The Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), previously known as the Food Stamp Program, is administered by the Food and Nutrition Service (FNS) of the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), together with state agencies. The program funds low-income individuals to allow them to purchase food. SNAP paid monthly benefits to individuals found to be eligible based in part on the beneficiary’s income and living arrangements.
Medicaid is a federal-state health insurance program for low-income and needy people. Medicaid paid benefits to individuals found to be eligible based in part on the beneficiary’s income and living arrangements.
According to her plea agreement, Carraway worked at SSA. She began receiving Medicaid benefits for her four children in 2006. In 2007, Carraway married and began living together with her spouse who was also employed by SSA. Carraway did not report this change in living arrangements or household income to Medicaid. In 2009, Carraway and her husband bought a $170,000 home in Baltimore.
In 2008, Carraway applied for SNAP benefits, underreporting her own income and failing to disclose her marriage and her husband’s income. She also provided SNAP with documents purporting to show that she was paying rent, rather than living in the home that she and her husband purchased.
Between 2008 and 2011, Carraway received $26,885.31 in SNAP benefits; and between 2008 and 2013, she received approximately $68,482.60 in Medicaid benefits, to which she would not have been entitled if her true income and living arrangements had been disclosed.
Carraway faces a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison for theft of government property and a $250,000 fine. U.S. District Judge James K. Bredar scheduled sentencing for December 2, 2015, at 10:00 a.m.
United States Attorney Rod J. Rosenstein praised the SSA- OIG and DHR-OIG for their work in the investigation. Mr. Rosenstein thanked Special Assistant United States Attorney Lauren E. Perry, on detail from the Social Security Administration, who is prosecuting the case.
Army Sergeant First Class Sentenced for Bribery ChargesRead the Press Release
RALEIGH - United States Attorney Thomas G. Walker announced that in federal court today, United States District Judge Terrence W. Boyle sentenced ROBERT WARREN GREEN, 46, of Wade, North Carolina, to 10 months of imprisonment and 1 year of supervised release. The Court further ordered GREEN to pay $45,000.00 in restitution and the forfeiture of criminal proceeds in the same amount.
On April 27, 2015, GREEN pled guilty to demanding, seeking, and receiving gratuities.
According to the Criminal Information and information in the public record, between January, 2008 and April, 2009, while deployed to Afghanistan, Sergeant First Class GREEN was assigned to a Movement Control Team (MCT) and responsible for logistics and transportation, including the administration of Transportation Movement Requests (TMRs). TMRs are the means by which a military unit in the field submits a request for logistics support and the transport of military items from one location to another across Afghanistan, including food, fuel, equipment, and other supplies.
Beginning sometime in January 2008, Green sought and received $45,000 in cash from an Afghan national who was, at the time, the owner of an Afghan trucking company, and who was seeking contracts through the TMR process. In exchange for the $45,000, Green facilitated the award of TMRs to that Afghan trucking company. In fact, Green caused to be awarded at least 40 TMRs worth approximately $3 million to that company.
“It is especially disappointing when a service member violates the position he is entrusted with by putting his profit above his mission. The FBI and our investigative partners will work tirelessly to bring those to justice who misuse government resources designated to benefit those who sacrifice for our country,” said John Strong, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI in North Carolina.
John F. Sopko, the Special Inspector General for Afghanistan Reconstruction stated, "The vast majority of the men and women of our armed forces possess the integrity and trust that the United States has learned to expect. There is a small percentage that betrays that trust. Sadly, Green represents that small percentage."
“Defense Criminal Investigative Service (DCIS) Special Agent in Charge John F. Khin, Southeast Field Office, commented, "It is disheartening when a military member abandons his code of conduct and violates a position of trust for personal enrichment. The DCIS investigates fraud and corruption that undermines the integrity of the Department of Defense. We continue to aggressively investigate violators to preserve precious American taxpayer dollars and better support our Warfighters serving honorably and selflessly in Southwest Asia."
"We will not tolerate this type of criminal behavior in our ranks - period, " said Frank Robey, the director of the U.S. Army Criminal Investigation Command's Major Procurement Fraud Unit. "We will continue to aggressively pursue those who attempt to steal, commit bribery, or receive kickbacks while employed by the U.S. Army and the U.S. Government."
The case was investigated by the Defense Criminal Investigation Service (DCIS), Army Criminal Investigation Command (CID), the Office of the Special Inspector General for Afghanistan Reconstruction (SIGAR), and the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI). The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Banumathi Rangarajan of the Eastern District of North Carolina and DOJ Criminal Fraud Section Trial Attorney Wade Weems, on detail from SIGAR.
15 Individuals Charged with Drug Trafficking in the Municipality of BayamónRead the Press Release
SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico – On September 23, 2015, a federal grand jury in the District of Puerto Rico returned a six-count indictment against 15 defendants charged with conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute, and distribution of, controlled substances, announced Rosa Emilia Rodríguez-Vélez, United States Attorney for the District of Puerto Rico. The Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) and the Puerto Rico Police Department (PRPD), Bayamón Strike Force, are in charge of the investigation.
The indictment alleges that beginning in 2009, the organization distributed heroin, crack, cocaine, marihuana, Oxycodone (commonly known as Percocet), and Alprazolam (commonly known as Xanax) within 1,000 feet of a real property comprising Los Laureles Public Housing Project and other areas nearby and within the Municipality of Bayamón, Puerto Rico, all for financial gain and profit.
The 15 defendants are: Otoniel Ortiz-Acevedo, aka “Otto;” Roberto Cañon-Guzmán, aka “Claudio;” Luis Iván Vicente-Ocasio, aka “Lento;” Anthony Lee Vicente-Ocasio, aka “Pelú;” Fernando Olivo-Martis, aka “Gordo;” Darwin Pagán-Soto, aka “Darwin;” Michael Ortiz-Maysonet, aka “Bimbo;” Orlanto Rivera-Fernández, aka “Kiki;” Jesús M. Pizarro-Rojas, aka “Chocky;” Christian Oquendo-Álvarez, aka “Fresita;” Enrique Fernández-Riera, aka “Kike;” Geovanni Torres-Santana, aka “Geova;” Elías A. Meléndez-Esquilin, aka “Calvo;” Orlando Rodríguez-Lara; and Marta J. Rivera-Lara.
The 15 co-conspirators had many roles in order to further the goals of the conspiracy. The following are the roles as alleged in the indictment: one leader; five managers/drug owners; one drug processor; two runners; five sellers; one facilitator; enforcers and lookouts. Nine of the defendants are facing one count of possession of firearms of different brands and calibers in furtherance of drug trafficking crimes.
The indictment alleges that, as part of the manner and means of the conspiracy, some of the defendants and their co-conspirators would evict residents from their apartments by force to use those apartments for other co-conspirators. The defendants would conduct drug transactions in the presence of minors and would use and employ them to distribute narcotics at the drug distribution points.
Assistant U.S. Attorney César Rivera-Giraud is in charge of the prosecution of the case. If convicted the defendants face a minimum sentence of 10 years, and up to life in prison. Indictments contain only charges and are not evidence of guilt. Defendants are presumed to be innocent until and unless proven guilty.
Monday 28 September 2015
Worcester Woman Charged in $3.6 Million Food Stamp FraudRead the Press Release
BOSTON – A Worcester woman was charged today in U.S. District Court in Worcester in connection with a $3.6 million food stamp fraud scheme that she operated out of her Worcester convenience store.
Vida Ofori Causey, 45, was charged in an Information with one count of conspiracy to commit SNAP benefits fraud, one count of SNAP fraud, and one count of money laundering in connection with a four year fraud scheme.
The Supplemental Nutritional Assistance Program (SNAP), formerly known as the Food Stamp Program, administered by the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), provides eligible households with government subsidies for certain foodstuffs, and allows holders to exchange their SNAP benefits for food at authorized retail food stores.
Causey was the owner and operator of J&W Aseda Plaza, a convenience store on Main Street in Worcester. From April 2010 to October 2014, Causey conspired with others to commit SNAP fraud by purchasing SNAP benefits from recipients rather than exchanging them for food. Causey purchased the benefits at a discounted value of approximately fifty cents for every SNAP dollar. By so doing, Causey caused the USDA to electronically deposit into a bank account controlled by her the full face value of the SNAP benefits fraudulently obtained.
During the course of the conspiracy, Causey defrauded the USDA of approximately $3,638,900 in SNAP funds.
The charge of conspiracy provides for a sentence of no greater than five years in prison and three years of supervised release. The charge of SNAP fraud provides for a sentence of no greater than 20 years in prison and three years of supervised release. The charge of money laundering provides for a sentence of no greater than 10 years in prison and three years of supervised release. Each charge also provides for a fine of $250,000 or twice the gross gain or loss, whichever is greater, and forfeiture and restitution. Actual sentences for federal crimes are typically less than the maximum penalties. Sentences are imposed by a federal district court judge based upon the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
United States Attorney Carmen M. Ortiz; William G. Squires, Special Agent in Charge of the United States Department of Agriculture, Office of Inspector General, Office of Investigations, Northeast Region; and William P. Offord, Special Agent in Charge of the Internal Revenue Service’s Criminal Investigations in Boston, made the announcement today. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Michelle L. Dineen Jerrett of Ortiz’s Worcester Branch Office.
U.S. Department of Justice's Office of Community Oriented Policing Services Awards Nearly $18 Million to Combat Violence Due to Methamphetamine, Heroin and GangsRead the Press Release
Deputy Attorney General Sally Quillian Yates today announced nearly $18 million in COPS Office grant funding aimed at addressing and reducing violent crime through programs focused on methamphetamine use and production, the distribution of heroin and other opioids and gang activity.
“The funding awarded through these COPS Office initiatives will expand the capacity of the recipients, including some of our local partners, to proactively address contributors to violent crime and increase public safety,” said Deputy Attorney General Yates.
“We look forward to the work of our local and state law enforcement partners,” said COPS Office Director Ronald Davis. “By getting methamphetamine off the streets and shutting down laboratories, investigating illicit activities related to the distribution of heroin or unlawful distribution of prescriptive opioids, and combating gang activity through enforcement, prevention, education and intervention, we can make the country safer for everyone.”
The COPS Office is awarding more than $6.1 million under the COPS Anti-Methamphetamine Program to seven state-level law enforcement agencies dealing with high seizures of precursor chemicals, finished methamphetamine and laboratories. The agencies will use the funds to investigate illicit activities related to the manufacture and distribution of methamphetamine. For more information about the COPS Anti-Methamphetamine Program and a list of grant recipients, visit http://cops.usdoj.gov/Default.asp?Item=2716.
Under the COPS Anti-Heroin Task Force Program, the COPS Office is awarding close to $5.8 million to six state-level law enforcement agencies to investigate illicit activities related to the distribution of heroin or unlawful distribution of prescriptive opioids. The goal of the program is to address the troubling trend of increases in heroin seizures and heroin-related overdose deaths. For more information about the COPS Anti-Heroin Task Force Program and a list of grant recipients, visit http://cops.usdoj.gov/Default.asp?Item=2776.
Under the COPS Anti-Gang Initiative, the COPS Office is awarding close to $5.8 million to nine multijurisdictional task forces to address gang activity. The initiative focuses on combating gang activity through enforcement, prevention, education and intervention. All the award recipients under this initiative are agencies leading multijurisdictional partnerships between federal, state and local law enforcement to address all forms of gang activity. For more information about the COPS Anti-Gang Initiative and a list of grant recipients, visit http://cops.usdoj.gov/Default.asp?Item=2775.
The COPS Office, headed by Director Ronald Davis, is a federal agency responsible for advancing community policing nationwide. Since 1995, COPS has invested more than $14 billion to advance community policing, including grants awarded to more than 13,000 state, local, and tribal law enforcement agencies to fund the hiring and redeployment of more than 127,000 officers and provide a variety of knowledge resource products including publications, training, and technical assistance. For additional information about COPS, please visit www.cops.usdoj.gov.
U.S. Attorney Sanford C. Coats Named to Co-Chair Key CommitteesRead the Press Release
Oklahoma City —United States Attorney Sanford C. Coats has been recently named to serve as Co-Chair of several key advisory and policy committees within the Department of Justice.
U.S. Attorney Coats was named as Co-Chair of the Domestic Terrorism Executive Committee (DTEC) with Assistant Attorney General John Carlin and the FBI domestic terrorism section. The DTEC was created by Attorney General Reno after the Oklahoma City Bombing and was reconstituted in 2014 by Attorney General Holder. The DTEC is intended to bring together all government agencies that investigate and prosecute domestic terrorism. Participants include the United States Attorneys’ Offices, FBI, DOJ National Security Division, DOJ Civil Rights Division, DOJ Tax Division, IRS, Secret Service, ATF, DEA, and the Bureau of Land Management.
In addition, Mr. Coats was named to Co-Chair the Terrorism and National Security Subcommittee of the Attorney General’s Advisory Committee along with U.S. Attorney Barb McQuade from the Eastern District of Michigan in Detroit. Twenty-seven other United States Attorneys from across the country serve as members of the Terrorism and National Security Subcommittee.
"Protecting our country from terrorist attacks remains the top priority for the Department of Justice," said U.S. Attorney Coats. "I am honored to serve as co-chair of these committees which will work diligently to address issues and policy impacting the investigation, prevention, and prosecution of terrorism."
U.S. Attorney Paul J. Fishman Announces over $2.1 Million in Federal Law Enforcement Grants to Help Address Gang Activity, Heroin Distribution in New JerseyRead the Press Release
NEWARK, N.J. – U.S. Attorney Paul J. Fishman, in conjunction with the U.S. Office of Community Oriented Policing Services (COPS), today announced federal funding awards to four state and city law enforcement agencies in the District of New Jersey that investigate gang activity and heroin distribution through statewide collaboration.
COPS will award over $18 million nationally through the COPS Anti-Gang Initiative (CAGI), the COPS Anti-Heroin Task Force Program (AHTF), and the COPS Anti-Methamphetamine Program, including $2,107,166 for New Jersey law enforcement agencies. The list of this year’s grantees includes:
CAGI Grants:
Agency Name
Award Amount
Essex County Prosecutor’s Office
$594,023
Jersey City
$750,000
New Jersey Department of Law and Public Safety
$659,916
AHTF Grants:
Agency Name
Award Amount
New Jersey Department of Law and Public Safety
$103,227
“These grants provide much-needed funding to several important law enforcement initiatives to battle the ongoing problems of gang violence and illegal drug trafficking. Providing our local law enforcement partners with more than $2 million in federal funding specifically targeted to these areas will give them additional tools to push back against the relentless threat of drugs and gangs. These awards are especially important, as they are being used to target gangs that have a nationwide footprint.”
The CAGI provides funds directly to law enforcement agencies with a multijurisdictional partnership composed of federal, state, and local partners. Primary consideration was given to agencies that target gangs of national significance. The AHTF provides funds to agencies that use statewide collaboration to investigate heroin or unlawful prescriptive opioid distribution.
For the entire list of grantees and additional information about the CAGI, the AHTF, and the COPS Anti-Methamphetamine Program, visit the COPS website at www.cops.usdoj.gov.
Travel Agent, Sandra M. White, Booked for Nearly Eight Years in Prison for FraudRead the Press Release
GRAND RAPIDS, MICHIGAN — U.S. Attorney Patrick A. Miles, Jr. announced today the sentencing of Sandra M. White, 53, of Coloma, Michigan, for wire fraud and aggravated identity theft. White, who was convicted in June after an eight-day jury trial that was held in U.S. District Court in Kalamazoo, was sentenced to serve 7 years and 10 months for a long-running scheme that not only caused over $600,000 in loss, but that also caused severe harm to other travel agencies through which she booked airline tickets.
Doing business as "Corporate Travel Consultants/Travel by Design (CTC/TBD)," White defrauded airlines that included United, American, Delta and Lufthansa of hundreds of thousands of dollars in airfares by falsely claiming that CTC clients were entitled to substantially discounted "military fares," by claiming that they possessed discount and/or upgrade certificates, and by manipulating online ticketing programs to sell fares that were no longer available. By consistently obtaining significantly lower fares for CTC’s clients than they could obtain anywhere else, White developed and maintained a large and loyal client base which – unaware that their fares were being obtained by fraud – used CTC exclusively. By maintaining an extremely high volume of sales, White was able to collect booking fees, agent commissions, and bonuses that constituted a large percentage of CTC’s overall income.
CTC functioned independently as an industry-accredited travel agency until 2003, when its license to directly sell air carrier inventories was revoked after airline audits discovered six-figure-fraud. From 2003 on, however, CTC continued its fraudulent practices, with White obtaining sub-contractor positions with accredited travel agencies in Indiana, Colorado, Texas, Florida, and elsewhere, working online from CTC’s location in Berrien County.
By exploiting the access to airline inventory of accredited travel agencies, White was able to continue her fraudulent ticketing as a subcontractor without the airlines realizing who they were dealing with. In each instance, however, airline audits did eventually identify the fraud, and the agencies through whom White had done the ticketing were left with liability for six-figure losses. In some cases, the debts caused by White’s misconduct endangered the survival of the host-agencies. Further, when airline audits would expose what appeared to be fraud, White would manufacture and present fake birth certificates, passports, discount and upgrade certificates, and U.S. military identification cards in attempts to prove that the fares were properly obtained. In other instances, she would use credit accounts of wealthy clients to pay for the costs of other clients’ fares.
In imposing the sentence, U.S. District Court Judge Paul L. Maloney commented on the seriousness and pervasiveness of White’s fraud, and on the fact that she had continued to commit fraud even after airlines revoked her license to sell directly.
White was allowed to remain on bond pending assignment by the Federal Bureau of Prisons to a specific facility, and she will be allowed to self-surrender to commence serving her sentence. White was also ordered to pay close to $600,000 in restitution to the host travel-agencies she victimized, and also to several airlines.
The case was investigated by the U.S. Secret Service and by the U.S. Postal Inspection Service. It was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Hagen W. Frank.
END
Transcript of Assistant Attorney General John P. Carlin’s Briefing at the Foreign Press Center on the Foreign Terrorist Threat and Other National Security IssuesRead the Press Release
MODERATOR: Good afternoon. Welcome to the New York Foreign Press Center. This is an on-the-record briefing on Department of Justice measures to combat violent extremism with Assistant Attorney General for National Security John P. Carlin. We’re very pleased to host him today. I would like to ask, after his initial remarks we’ll go to Q&A, and please wait for the microphone and please identify yourself.
Thank you. Mr. Carlin.
CARLIN: Thank you. Good afternoon. At the Department of Justice, the National Security Division was the first new litigating division created in about 50 years. And we were created in 2006 as one of the post-9/11 reforms. And our number one mission, simply, is to prevent terrorist attacks here inside the United States. And our mission, first and foremost, when it comes to ISIL is to prevent attacks against U.S. citizens here in the United States and abroad. And we work in coordination with our law enforcement intelligence community partners and with countries around the world to ensure that we can disrupt terrorist actors before they commit those acts.
This is a good week with United Nations General Assembly in town and the Global Counterterrorist Forum to take a step back and talk a little bit less about our efforts to protect U.S. citizens and more about our responsibilities as global partners to prevent terrorist attacks elsewhere in the world. We have a fundamental responsibility to prevent ISIL from having U.S. citizens join ISIL in its campaign to rape, to commit sexual slavery and to murder innocent civilians, including children, as tactics. And so together last year, when I was here in New York for these same events, we worked on the UN Security Council Resolution 2178, which was an unprecedented mandatory resolution for every country around the world to work to put laws on the books to prevent foreign terrorist fighters from their country from going to join the fight and also to take steps to keep them from returning to commit terrorist attacks once they left the battleground in Iraq or Syria.
Since that resolution last year, we commend the over 20 nations that since last year have put new laws on the books that are specifically designed to combat the support for these foreign terrorist organizations either through actual citizens from their countries or from providing material or financial support. And among those since last year, over three dozen nations have taken law enforcement actions – have arrested individuals before they could go join these foreign terrorist organizations.
At the Justice Department we’ve provided assistance both in the legislation and as some countries try using these statutes for the first time. And we’ve sent our prosecutors over the last year on countless trips to work hand-in-hand with foreign partners all over the world as they draft these new laws.
We also house and support Interpol. And since last year, when there was a commitment by countries at this very event – and in conjunction with 2178 and also with the Global Counterterrorism Forum that consists of over 30 countries, there was a new commitment to provide information to Interpol, which we house and support. And since last year, that has resulted in six times the amount of information being shared, approximately 4,000 new profiles on foreign terrorist fighters, from over 45 countries.
And we recognize, to talk a little bit about what we face in the United States versus other countries as they face this foreign terrorist fighter threat, although the overall number some put at 25,000 or 30,000 individuals – and that’s higher than what we saw even at the height of the conflict in Afghanistan and the FATA – that when it comes to the numbers that are from the United States, our numbers are lower, particularly even compared to our Western partners. And we have about – we estimate around 250 U.S. citizens who have either attempted to or gone over to fight, or who have gone over and returned. That number also includes those we’ve arrested.
Since about last year, we’ve brought criminal cases against 70 individuals. Sixty of those individuals, it was for conduct related to either supporting foreign terrorist fighters or attempting to join the group. The other 10 is a trend that we’ve started to see here in the United States since ISIL changed its tactics and called on individuals to commit terrorist attacks where they live, particularly in Western countries. We have over 10 criminal cases brought to date of individuals inspired by ISIL or other terrorist groups to commit attacks here in the United States. So between the 60 who wanted to join the foreign terrorist fighter groups and the 10 who wanted to commit attacks here in the United States, that’s how we have over 70 cases.
In terms of trends inside the United States, in almost every case social media is involved. Unlike some other countries, we’re not seeing it in any particular geographic part of the United States nor confined to any ethnic group. The FBI currently has open investigations in all 50 states, and we have brought criminal cases in 25 different jurisdictions to date across the United States, so places that have not traditionally confronted a foreign terrorist threat.
Consistent with the fact that this is a social media-driven threat here, in over 50 percent of the cases the defendants are 25 years or younger, and in over a third of the cases they are 21 years or younger. And for us in confronting the terrorist threat, that is different than the demographic we saw who went to support core al-Qaida in the Afghanistan FATA (Federally Administrated Tribal Areas) region.
I think what you’ll hear tomorrow under the President of the United States, leadership is the summit that he’s convening of countries throughout the world – over 60 countries – dedicated to combating this terrorist threat. And what you’ll see is a focus – in addition to the efforts that I’ve talked about to date, the law enforcement criminal justice efforts – is a focus on efforts to prevent it from ever reaching the law enforcement system in the first place. And that means working on countering the message and propaganda that ISIL uses to draw recruits from our communities, and it means exposing ISIL for what it really is and not what it pretends to be.
They put out images of child soldiers handing out candy to children, but in reality they’re a group that beheads and kills Muslims and non-Muslims alike with equal impunity, that rapes and sells women and children into sexual slavery, and that deliberately looks to destroy the cultural heritage of the countries in which it resides. So a law enforcement response is essential, and we need to continue the progress that we’ve made since last year’s resolution. But it also can only be part of the answer, and others need to dissuade would-be foreign fighters from joining ISIL in the first place.
You’ll see the Attorney General of the United States convene a first-of-its-kind Safe Cities Forum tomorrow as well that will consist of mayors across the United States but also from other countries across the world, because fundamentally dissuading individuals in the first instance from joining these types of groups is going to require local-level, community-driven engagement. And so I think tomorrow’s forum, the Safe Cities Forum, is going to work and introduce mayors to each other so they can talk about best practices at keeping these individuals from ever going down the path of radicalization.
I will stop there and open it up for questions.
QUESTION: Hajime Matsuura, Japan, Sankei's columnist here based in New York. A question about the most – the breakdown of the social media ISIL is using. Do you have the breakdown of which social media is popular and how you’re working with the host of or owners of the social media?
CARLIN: So when it comes to social media, I think you see ISIL use pretty much every available service that they can find, and they target people according to who uses the service. So – and it’s different depending on which country that you’re in, although it is a global problem. So here in the United States, we’re seeing it with those who are using sites that are frequented by English-language speakers or are popular in the United States. And that really ranges through the most familiar names, be it Twitter to Facebook to YouTube videos.
And what they do is they blast out these often slickly-produced, propagandistic messages using the same type of techniques that Madison Avenue advertisers use to put out images like handing out candy to children, or they’ll have an ISIL soldier in the caliphate with a kitten in one hand and a gun in the other and they’ll say, “Come join the caliphate.” They bombard the internet with thousands and thousands of these messages a day, and the number of people who respond to them is a tiny, tiny percentage of those who they reach with that message, but it only takes a very small number from each country to either prevent or present a terrorist threat our home country, but also to reach the numbers that they’re reaching of getting people to join the fight when you’re talking about having that message reach 100 different countries.
So to the extent they’re able to get people who are language or cultural experts, then they will use those individuals who have joined ISIL already to target a particular country or audience.
QUESTION: Hi, thank you. Diego Senior from Caracol Radio in Colombia. I know you’re focusing on ISIL, but this is a question that I have to ask, and it’s about a terrorist organization – deemed terrorist organization by the U.S. government in Colombia. And they just reached this peace accord – not a complete peace accord, but one regarding transitional justice in our country. I’m wondering what the strategy from your department or from wherever within the Justice Department is capable of doing. What are you guys doing or thinking to do facing terrorism – that terrorism threat which it might stop be or at some point – when will you stop calling them terrorists since they’re going to give in their weapons?
CARLIN: So I’ll describe generally. In the American legal system, the model that we’ve used to confront the international terrorist threat is using a statute called the material support to terrorism statute. As we’ve discussed, as countries around the world are putting new statutes on their books, this is one model that they’ve – that some countries have elected to follow. And what it hinges upon is there’s a formal process for the designation of a group or an individual as an international terrorist organization, and then the criminal consequences of that designation follow. So to the extent that there is an armistice, what would be the key for those of us in the prosecution and law enforcement community would be whether or not they remove the FARC (Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia) as a designated terrorist organization as part of the reconciliation process, and so we’ll wait and see what occurs in that regard.
And obviously, long-term, and this includes ISIL, the endgame – we need to use law enforcement and prosecution as a tool to prevent these terrorist attacks from occurring, but we recognize that the long-term solution is one that requires the participation of states and local governments to prevent these groups from existing in the first place, and that’s what success looks like. And that’s why I think you’ll see the President tomorrow emphasize the need to combat violent extremism and the Attorney General at the Safe Cities event talk to mayors about getting rid of those root causes to that these groups don’t exist in the first instance.
MODERATOR: We have a question from Washington. Washington, please go ahead.
QUESTION: Thank you. My name is Anatoly Bochinin, TASS News Agency, Russia. Sir, as you said today, this ISIL problem affects many countries – also Russia. So my question is: do you cooperate with Russian security services? And are you going to work with this new informational center in Baghdad which will be established these days? Thank you.
CARLIN: So I’ll say that generally, that the FBI has partnerships with law enforcement agencies throughout the world, and some countries have made a real dedicated push to share intelligence or law enforcement information regarding the terrorist threat. Some countries have work to do in that regard, but it’s going to take a partnership when it comes to combating these foreign terrorist organizations. And we’ve seen improvements, like I discussed in terms of Interpol and sharing information about terrorist identities, or since last year, with a dedicated focus on this, the number of terrorist identities has increased six times. We have 4,000 identities into that system.
It needs to improve further, and we hope it will.
QUESTION: Thank you. Harriet Alexander from The Telegraph. You spoke about the 250 estimated citizens who’ve gone or attempted to go, and those against which you’ve got criminal cases. I wondered if you’d talk a little bit more about the backgrounds of those people, just generally. I ask because in Europe, we find that an awful lot of people who are going to join these organizations have already got criminal records and have previously spent time specifically in prison. That was very much the case in France with the Paris attacks and with the Toulouse attacks. And I just wondered if you could talk a little bit about any de-radicalization programs that you may have in prisons.
CARLIN: That’s a good question, Harriet. So I’d say in terms of the trends that what we’ve seen is there isn’t a particular profile other than the common factors that I discussed, which is, one, in almost every case there’s some connection to social media; and two, the general demographic trending young. And as you can imagine, as it trends younger and younger, these are not people with long criminal histories inside the United States. And although we remain very much vigilant and concerned about the issue of prison radicalization and what occurs to individuals when they are released, that has not comprised currently the majority of the cases that we’ve seen.
What we are seeing is with this new focus on targeting the young or the unstable, that they’ll attract individuals who you would not necessarily think of as being ISIL adherents but end up going down the process of radicalization after being exposed through one of these general social media sites. And then what they do often is once they have someone on the hook, if you will, they end up in direct communication in some of these cases – so the terrorist overseas is in direct communication with the young person or troubled person here, personally walking them down the path towards radicalization using social media. And this is new, I know, for the United Kingdom, having talked to counterparts there, and for the United States. In terms of a trend, I think both our countries together are struggling on new approaches to combat what is a new strategy or tactic by the terrorist group.
It is different than – although we still remain concerned, and al-Qaida still has the intent to commit the large-scale spectacular attack against a Western target, as does al-Qaida in the Arabian Peninsula and al-Nusrah, the al-Qaida franchise in the Syria region. So we remain concerned and need to disrupt that large-scale spectacular attack, but this new tactic of urging people to commit the attack, even small-scale, immediately – we use the expression sometimes “the short flash to bang,” which is social media-driven, which means if you think about a fuse of dynamite, the time between when you light the fuse and when the dynamite explodes is very, very short. That’s a hard problem for the intelligence community and law enforcement to crack and really is going to rely on partnerships.
QUESTION: Hi there. Justin Fishel with ABC. I have two quick questions. The first is about the migration issue and the refugee crisis. As you know, the U.S. wants to bring in 85,000 refugees from Syria next year, and there are some sort of opposing views about whether this – there’s risks associated with this and risks of ISIL infiltration. So what’s your assessment of that risk and plan to combat it? Then I have one more other question.
CARLIN: Look, our job in the law enforcement/intelligence community is to see what the decision is by policymakers to try to accommodate those who are in a terrible situation and who are facing unbelievable brutality, both by the regime and by ISIL. And whatever decision is made, then we need to work and apply the resources to make sure that the terrorist groups don’t try to take advantage of a humanitarian gesture to get individuals predisposed to commit terrorist attacks either in Europe or the United States. And we’ve faced that sort of challenge before and we’ll apply the resources necessary to combat it.
QUESTION: Okay. My last question, more a domestic politics issue. Your division of the Justice Department is overseeing the email review, and the one piece of clarification I think – and one of the things that got really confused throughout this whole thing was why this is not a criminal probe but the – there are federal – there are people like yourselves involved in it, so how is it that it is not criminal? That’s something that I think a lot of people are confused about, and I apologize to my colleagues for the domestic nature of this question.
CARLIN: Well, I’m going to stick to the foreign press questions for this event.
QUESTION: I’m Sajidu Haque from Bangladeshi television channel. Do you think Bangladesh fall in high risk in near future? Because some existing terrorist group, like ISIL and al-Qaida, they are all in Pakistan, and Bangladesh, Pakistan, India fall in high risk.
CARLIN: I’m sorry, I didn’t fully catch the question.
QUESTION: Do you think near future, Bangladesh fall in high risk for terrorism – in terrorism?
CARLIN: Oh, do I think that there’s a high risk of terrorism occurring in Bangladesh?
QUESTION: Yeah.
CARLIN: I confess to not being an expert in terms of what the risks are of terrorist attacks occurring inside Bangladesh. I’d say more generally, as we’ve seen, this is a phenomenon that has already crossed in an unprecedented way. It has foreign terrorist fighters from over 100 countries. I believe Bangladesh is one of those 100 countries. And there is a concern, certainly, if any citizen goes over to fight with one of those foreign terrorist groups, what happens when they return armed, trained on how to commit attacks, and spending a long time being steeped in this ideology? So in that sense there’s a concern that cuts across all of these countries.
And the other issue would be the same social media phenomenon of individuals who stay at home and are contacted by this terrorist group and are encouraged to commit, if they can’t travel, terrorist acts where they live.
QUESTION: Vasco Jesus, VascoPress Communications, Brazil. (Inaudible.) Is there any sharing of information, collaboration, between the government of Brazil and United States, your department, concerning the threat of international terrorism? I ask you this because next year – well, Brazil doesn’t have a history of international terrorism on its borders, but next year Brazil is hosting the Summer Games, and our neighbor Argentina in the ‘90s had two huge cases – the AMIA (Argentine Israelite Mutual Association) case and the bombing of the Israeli consulate. I would like you to comment on those, thank you.
CARLIN: I’d say prior to each of the last Olympics – and this is the world in which we live now – I know that we have offered assistance, including the sharing of information, primarily through the channel of the FBI and law-enforcement-to-law-enforcement channels, but also in others, to help protect not only our own citizens participating in the games but to help protect the games themselves. And I know we have extended and will extend similar outreach to Brazil and look forward to working as appropriate with their authorities to help protect the games.
QUESTION: So far?
CARLIN: I’d have to refer you probably over to FBI or other avenues to talk about current efforts to date.
QUESTION: Sorry, me again. Can I just ask for a bit more information about this Safe Cities Forum? So what actually do you think will come out of that? I mean, is that just a talking shop where people are going to be exchanging ideas, or do you think that there’ll be concrete policies and agreements resulting from that?
CARLIN: I think it is both. It is, one, to make sure to focus individuals’ attention on this issue and to make sure that there’s a channel for community-to-community engagement. But I also think they hope to, if not at that forum, to kick it off into smaller sessions to develop best practices, similar to the type of best practices we’ve developed through the Global Combating Terrorist Forum that led to resolutions like encouraging certain changes in the criminal code, like protecting classified information and figuring out a way to do that while preserving due process or undercover operations. That’s been the type of best practice produced in my space, in the space of a group focused on criminal prosecutions. I think for the mayors, they’re hoping when it comes to combating violent extremism that similarly there may be some community-based, local-oriented best practices for cities to take into account when they’re developing their own programs as to how to keep people from going down this path in the first instance.
QUESTION: Alexey Osipov from Israeli Novosti. Most of the international media and of course politicians are politically correct; they call terrorism as at least international, but for sure 99 percent of terrorism has specific religion or specific nationality. In your department, in your office, do you use words like “Islamic terrorist,” “anti-Israel terrorism,” “Palestinian terrorism,” et cetera?
CARLIN: So for us as lawyers under our statutes, we have the full remit for the prosecution of terrorist cases. When it comes to international terrorism, the statute that we use, as I was describing earlier, is based on whether or not the particular group is designated as an international terrorist group. So it keys off identifying that group and then if you provide any support – financial, even yourself to support to the group – you fall within our criminal laws. So I wouldn’t – I don’t indict a religion or a nationality, but the name of the designated terrorist group will be in the indictment.
For our domestic terrorism groups, those without an international connection, there is not a similar statute in U.S. law. There’s a definition of terrorism that works as a sentencing enhancement and for certain evidentiary purposes, but usually what we’re charging will be the actual criminal conduct, because many times under our system – and this is different than most countries throughout the world – because of the First Amendment and our dedication to free speech and free expression and the way it plays out in our legal system, in many instances talking the talk, if you will, in support of these groups is not sufficient for a criminal charge. You have to show some type of overt act in furtherance of a violation of a criminal statute.
QUESTION: Me again. For domestic enforcement, sort of ethnic or racial profiling has been an issue under scrutiny. How about your stance with this regard? And is there any possibility that you’re using that kind of screening?
CARLIN: So you cannot profile an individual based on their – or target an individual and use legal tools against an individual based solely upon their First Amendment-protected rights under our guidelines. And as I said, when it comes to who that profile would be, at least with our current version of the ISIL terrorist threat, what we’re seeing is a threat that cuts across all 50 states, where we’ve currently brought criminal cases in over 25 different jurisdictions and where there’s little in common between the 70 individuals who are currently charged other than some connection to social media and being connected to one of these groups.
And so I think we do need to look for – this is a lesson even in the criminal realm – but is to make parents, community members aware of what could be going on with their friend or neighbor when they’re on social media, because it’s new for a lot of parents that they’re facing this type of threat, and look for those signs which both law enforcement but also community organizations are putting out of someone who’s started down this path of radicalization.
According to one study of cases that did end up in the criminal justice system, in 80 percent of those cases there was someone who saw that process of radicalization occurring, and in over half of those cases they did not take a step to intervene. So if we can improve those numbers and have people in the community take steps to intervene, hopefully we can reduce the number of people that ever enter the criminal system.
MODERATOR: We are out of time. I’m afraid we’ll have to leave it there. Thank you very much.
CARLIN: Thank you.
Topeka Woman Pleads Guilty in Federal Court to $400,000 EmbezzlementRead the Press Release
TOPEKA, KAN. - A Topeka woman pleaded guilty Monday to embezzling more than $400,000 from her employer, U.S. Attorney Barry Grissom said.
Lisa M. Davenport, 42, Topeka, Kan., pleaded guilty to one count of interstate transportation of embezzled funds. In her plea, she admitted the crime occurred while she was an officer manager for Kansas Associates, Inc., which was the Prudential Real Estate franchise in Topeka. The company is now known as Berkshire Hathaway Home Services. She embezzled money from KAI by taking proceeds from the company’s commissions and depositing them into her personal account. A forensic audit determined she embezzled approximately $416,000 from the company.
Sentencing is set for Jan. 4. She faces a maximum penalty of 10 years and fine up to $250,000. Grissom commended the FBI and Assistant U.S. Attorney Rich Hathaway for their work on the case.
Three Decatur Men Sentenced to More Than 10 Years in Federal Prison for Trafficking Crack CocaineRead the Press Release
Urbana, Ill. - On Friday, Kameron L. Farrington, 26, became the third Decatur, Ill., man in two weeks to be sentenced to more than 10 years in federal prison for trafficking crack cocaine as a repeat drug offender. On Sept. 25, U.S. District Judge Colin S. Bruce sentenced Farrington, of the 4700 block of North Martin Luther King Jr. St., to 130 months (10 years, 10 months) in federal prison for distributing crack cocaine in January 2012. Following release from prison, Farrington was ordered to remain on supervised release for a period of six years. Farrington entered a plea of guilty to the offense on Apr. 24, 2015.
One week ago, on Sept. 21, Judge Bruce ordered Chonice L. Burtley, 34, of the 1000 block of North Pine, to serve 14 years in federal prison for possessing approximately an ounce of crack cocaine with the intent to distribute it on July 25, 2014. Burtley was also ordered to remain on supervised release for six years following his release from prison. Burtley pled guilty to the charge on May 7, 2015.
Two weeks ago, on Sept. 14, Judge Bruce sentenced Wallace N. Pugh, 38, of the 1500 block of North College, to 17 years in federal prison for possessing over 2 ½ ounces of crack cocaine with the intent to distribute it. Pugh was ordered to remain on supervised release for eight years following his release from prison. Pugh pled guilty on April 29, 2015, to possession with intent to distribute on Nov. 21, 2014.
Each of the men was classified as a Career Offender under the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines, and was eligible for enhanced sentences, because each of them had at least two prior convictions for either a crime of violence or a controlled substance offense. According to court documents, each of the men has prior drug convictions in Macon County Circuit Court.
The three men have remained detained in the custody of the U.S. Marshals Service since their respective arrests: Farrington on July 8, 2014; Burtley on Nov. 5, 2014; and Pugh, arrested on Dec. 9, 2014.
The cases are the result of ongoing investigations related to drug and gun violence in the Decatur area by the Decatur Police Department. Assistant U.S. Attorney Eugene L. Miller represented the government at sentencing for each of the defendants.
Three Clarksburg residents convicted of heroin traffickingRead the Press Release
CLARKSBURG, WEST VIRGINIA – Three individuals were convicted of heroin trafficking today in federal court, United States Attorney William J. Ihlenfeld, II, announced.
Billy Cunningham, Sr., 62, of Clarksburg, sold heroin in January 2015 near an elementary school and a playground in Harrison County, West Virginia. He pled guilty today to one count of “Distribution of Heroin within 1,000 feet of a Protected Location – Aiding and Abetting.” He faces between one and forty years in prison and a fine of up to $2,000,000.
Robert Goy Emerson, 40, and Waneta K. Cunningham, 35, both of Clarksburg, sold heroin in Harrison County, West Virginia throughout 2014. Emerson pled guilty today to one count of “Distribution of Heroin.” Cunningham pled guilty today to one count of “Aiding and Abetting Distribution of Heroin.” They each face up to 20 years in prison and a fine of up to $1,000,000.
Under the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, the actual sentence imposed will be based upon the seriousness of the offenses and the prior criminal history, if any, of the defendants.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Sarah Montoro prosecuted Billy Cunningham and Assistant U.S. Attorney Zelda Wesley prosecuted Emerson and Waneta Cunningham on behalf of the government. The Greater Harrison County Drug and Violent Crime Task Force, a HIDTA-funded initiative, investigated each of the defendants.
U.S. District Judge Irene M. Keeley presided.
The United States Files Civil Suit Against Long Island-Based Mortgage Lenders and “Counseling Fund”Read the Press Release
Kelly T. Currie, Acting United States Attorney for the Eastern District of New York, David A. Montoya, Inspector General for the Department of Housing and Urban Development, and Frederick W. Gibson, Acting Inspector General for the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, announced the filing of a civil suit against the Rainy Day Foundation, Inc., a purported charitable “counseling fund,” together with its associated business entities and principals. The case was filed today in federal court in Central Islip and has been assigned to United States District Judge Joseph F. Bianco.
The complaint alleges that in at least 865 instances, the Rainy Day Foundation, together with five Eastern District of New York-based mortgage lenders and their principals, defrauded the United States and various banks insured by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (“FDIC”), resulting in millions of dollars of mortgage losses, and requiring the United States to pay over $5,605,237 in false claims.
The defendant mortgage lenders participated in a federal program sponsored by the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development (“HUD”) that allowed the lenders to make mortgage loans that are insured by the Federal Housing Administration (“FHA”) in the event of default. The defendant mortgage lenders then sold those loans to federally-insured banks.
The complaint alleges that the mortgage lenders’ loans went into “early payment default” at more than twice the average default rate of other lenders, and that the lenders conspired with the Rainy Day Foundation to conceal their high default rates from HUD to avoid removal from HUD’s program. Specifically, the defendant mortgage lenders funneled their own money through the Rainy Day Foundation to make defaulting borrowers' monthly payments to the banks in order to conceal the defaults from HUD and the banks. When the loans had aged beyond the bank’s contractual right to force repurchase, or past the period that HUD monitored for early payment defaults, the lenders would stop making payments, leaving the borrowers without any further support.
When the Rainy Day Foundation attracted scrutiny from the United States, it quickly reorganized as a new business, Default Mitigation Services (“DMS”), to continue the Rainy Day Foundation’s money funneling activities under a new name. The United States alleges that defendants sought to further conceal their activities by claiming that the illicit payments were charitable “grants” made by a small American Indian tribe, located in Ely Nevada – the Ely Shoshone tribe. In reality, DMS was again funneling money from the defendant mortgage lenders, through Ely Shoshone tribal bank accounts, to the banks holding the loans.
The complaint seeks treble damages and penalties under the False Claims Act, 31 U.S.C. § 3729 et seq.; fines under the Financial Institutions Recovery, Reform and Enforcement Act ("FIRREA"), 12 U.S.C. § 1833a; and damages and indemnification under the common law theories of gross negligence, breach of fiduciary duty and unjust enrichment.
“Fraudulent practices, such as those alleged here, compromise the integrity of the FHA mortgage insurance program, and harm both the housing market and homeowners by contributing to loan defaults and housing foreclosures,” stated Acting United States Attorney Currie. “We will continue to vigorously use all means at our disposal to stop those who engage in such activity.”
HUD Inspector General Montoya stated, “When HUD's Office of the Inspector General uncovers fraud, we devote all of the available necessary investigatory resources to make certain that those individuals and entities are brought to justice and that the FHA Insurance Fund is reimbursed for the losses sustained. The Rainy Day Foundation and its multiple subsidiary companies solicited the business of FHA Direct Endorsement Lenders by promising to manipulate HUD databases to hide the existence of delinquent loans from the FHA. Such behavior will not be tolerated.”
FDIC Acting Inspector General Gibson said “The FDIC-OIG was pleased to support the Department of Justice and the Department of Housing and Urban Development in investigating this matter and in helping to ready this civil suit. Together we can broaden the government's efforts to pursue damages resulting from misconduct that has harmed the nation's financial institutions and its mortgage markets.”
United States Resolves Claims Against New York-Based Lender
In a related action, the United States filed a separate civil suit against, and simultaneous settlement with, the Intercontinental Capital Group, Inc. (“ICG”), a New York mortgage lender with offices in Bohemia, New York, its President, Dustin DiMisa, and its former Chief Executive Officer, Richard Steinberg. The complaint alleges that, on eleven occasions, ICG and its principals also transferred funds to the Rainy Day Foundation in order to make payments for borrowers on the lender’s behalf. The indirect payments artificially suppressed ICG’s comparative delinquency and default rates, as compiled and computed by the FHA. In the settlement, ICG, DiMisa and Steinberg admitted to making the payments and that the payments altered the company’s delinquency and default rates. ICG, DiMisa and Steinberg agreed to pay four hundred twenty-four thousand, eight hundred and fifty-nine dollars ($424,859) in settlement of the United States’ claims.
The United States’ cases are being litigated by Assistant United States Attorneys Edward Newman, John Vagelatos and Robert Schumacher.
The Defendants:
RAINY DAY HOLDINGS, LLC, an Idaho-incorporated limited liability corporation, with its principal place of business in Baltimore, Maryland.
THE RAINY DAY FOUNDATION, INC., a Maryland-incorporated 501(c)(3) corporation, domiciled in the District of Columbia.
DEFAULT MITIGATION SERVICES, LLC, an Idaho-incorporated limited liability corporation, with its principal place of business in Boise, Idaho.
RICK DEL SONTRO, the Chief Executive Officer of the Rainy Day Foundation.
TODD LUDLOW, a Senior Vice-President of the Rainy Day Foundation and founder and managing partner of Default Mitigation Services.
ROBERT CLUTE, a Senior Vice-President of the Rainy Day Foundation and Managing Partner of Rainy Day Holdings.
CHRIS HAUVER, Lender Relations Representative and Administrator for the Rainy Day Foundation.
KELLY SCHWEDLAND, marketer for Default Mitigation Services.
MICHAEL SHRUM, Delinquency Reduction Services Manager for the Rainy Day Foundation.
CHRISTOPHER NAILLON, Account Executive at the Rainy Day Foundation and an employee of Default Mitigation Services.
FRANKLIN FIRST FINANCIAL, LTD., a New York-incorporated limited company and mortgage lender, with its principal place of business in Melville, New York.
FREDERICK ASSINI, the Chief Executive Officer of Franklin First Financial.
ANTONIO BAINES, Senior Vice-President of Operations for Franklin First Financial.
ANDREW DAURO, a Manager at Franklin First Financial.
CHRIS BERTMAN, Chief Operating Officer at Franklin First Financial.
MAX KANE, Chief Financial Officer of Mortgage Source, a now defunct mortgage lender, with its principal place of business in Garden City, New York.
JOANN MEDEIROS, Chief Operating Officer of Mortgage Source.
CONTINENTAL MORTGAGE BANKERS, INC. d/b/a FINANCIAL EQUITIES, a New York corporation and mortgage lender, with its principal place of business in Westbury, New York.
WALTER STASHIN, President of Continental Mortgage Bankers.
GREGG MARCUS, Managing Director of Somerset Investors Corp, d/b/a Somerset Mortgage Bankers, a now defunct mortgage lender located in Melville, New York.
INTERCONTINENTAL CAPITAL GROUP, INC., a New York corporation and mortgage lender with offices in Bohemia, New York.
DUSTIN DIMISA, President and Managing Director of Intercontinental Capital Group.
RICHARD STEINBERG, former Chief Executive Officer of Intercontinental Capital Group.
The Executive Office for Immigration Review to Host Stakeholder Meeting on New Rule on the List of Pro Bono Legal Service ProvidersRead the Press Release
SUMMARY: The Executive Office for Immigration Review (EOIR) invites interested parties to participate in person or via webinar/teleconference in a meeting to discuss a recently announced final rule titled, “List of Pro Bono Legal Service Providers for Individuals in Immigration Proceedings.” More information on this rule is available at http://www.justice.gov/eoir/notice-eoir-publishes-rules.
DATE: Thursday, October 8, 2015, from 1:30 p.m. – 3:30 p.m. (Eastern Daylight Time)
LOCATION: 5107 Leesburg Pike, Suite 2500, Falls Church, VA.
RSVP: To RSVP for the meeting, please contact Nathan Berkeley, EOIR Outreach Director, at
[email protected] by noon on Tuesday, October 6, 2015. In person attendance will be limited to the first fifteen (15) individuals to RSVP.
In your email, please indicate whether you intend to participate in person or by webinar/teleconference and provide the name(s) of the attendee(s), your organization, and an email address.
EOIR will send Web access and call-in information on Wednesday, October 7, 2015, to those who RSVP and indicate they will participate remotely. For those who plan to attend in person, please see the attachments for instructions on accessing EOIR headquarters and for parking and public transportation options.
- EOIR -
The Executive Office for Immigration Review (EOIR) is an agency within the Department of Justice. Under delegated authority from the Attorney General, immigration judges and the Board of Immigration Appeals interpret and adjudicate immigration cases according to United States immigration laws. EOIR's immigration judges conduct administrative court proceedings in immigration courts located throughout the nation. They determine whether foreign-born individuals—whom the Department of Homeland Security charges with violating immigration law—should be ordered removed from the United States or should be granted relief from removal and be permitted to remain in this country. The Board of Immigration Appeals primarily reviews appeals of decisions by immigration judges. EOIR's Office of the Chief Administrative Hearing Officer adjudicates immigration-related employment cases. EOIR is committed to ensuring fairness in all of the cases it adjudicates.
Texas Man Pleads Guilty to Federal Charge Stemming from Disturbance at U.S. Supreme CourtRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON – Rives M. Grogan, 50, of Mansfield, Texas, has pled guilty to a federal charge stemming from a disturbance that he caused on April 28, 2015, at the United States Supreme Court, Acting U.S. Attorney Vincent H. Cohen, Jr. announced today.
Grogan pled guilty on Sept. 25, 2015, in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia to a charge of picketing or parading in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 1507, which covers illegal demonstrations within federal court buildings. The Honorable Randolph D. Moss scheduled sentencing for Dec. 10, 2015. The charge carries a statutory maximum of 12 months in prison and potential financial penalties.
Grogan has a history of convictions for disorderly conduct and similar offenses, including cases involving other disturbances over the years at the U.S. Capitol and the Supreme Court and on Capitol grounds during the 2013 Presidential inauguration. The guilty plea in this case stems from his actions on the morning of April 28, 2015, as the Supreme Court was in session, with all nine Justices present and presiding.
According to a statement of offense submitted as part of the guilty plea, on the date of the disturbance, the Justices were considering whether a state’s constitutional and statutory bans on recognition of marriages of same-sex couples validly entered in other jurisdictions violate the Due Process and Equal Protection clauses of the U.S. Constitution and whether a state’s refusal to recognize a judgment of adoption of a child issued to a same-sex couple by the courts of a sister state violates the Full Faith and Credit Clause of the U.S. Constitution.
Due to the historical significance of the issues before the Supreme Court that day, the courtroom was full with civilians, members of the Supreme Court bar, and other professional attendees.
Grogan entered the courtroom at about 10:30 a.m., as arguments were under way. A short time later, he stood and began yelling statements in a very loud, forceful voice toward the front of the courtroom, where the Justices were seated at the court bench. Among other things, he stated that “the Bible teaches if you support gay marriage, you could burn in hell for eternity.” Police officers attempted to detain him, but Grogan refused to leave his bench. Then, as officers attempted to grab him and take him out of the courtroom, he continued to shout statements. This continued as he was escorted through the building and to a holding area. He could still be heard by attendees in the courtroom.
In announcing the plea, Acting U.S. Attorney Cohen expressed appreciation for the work of the Police Department of the U.S. Supreme Court, which investigated the case. He also acknowledged the efforts of those who worked on the case from the U.S. Attorney’s Office, including Criminal Investigator Derek Starliper; Paralegal Specialist Carolyn Carter-McKinley, and Legal Assistant Holly Crouse. Finally, he commended the work of Assistant U.S. Attorney Angela S. George, who is prosecuting the case.
Strickland Youth Center to Become Accessible for People with DisabilitiesRead the Press Release
United States Attorney Kenyen R. Brown announced that his office has reached a settlement agreement with the Mobile County Commission to retrofit the Strickland Youth Center (SYC) so that it can be used by individuals with disabilities. The agreement resolves charges by the United States Attorney’s Office that the County violates Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) by failing to make the SYC facilities, programs and services available to persons with disabilities. Title II provides that no qualified person with a disability may be excluded from participating in, or denied the benefits of, the programs, services and activities provided by state and local governments because of a disability.
The SYC campus, located at 2315 Costarides Street, Mobile, Alabama, is home to the Juvenile Court Division of the 13th Judicial Circuit, State of Alabama, and the Mobile County Juvenile Detention Facility. Constructed in 1972, the main building houses four court rooms, a ninety-five (95) bed youth detention center, juvenile probation services, a twelve (12) bed youth crisis center, health clinic, cafeteria, classrooms, and other court-sponsored programs held weekly for juveniles, their parents and guardians. Although the main facility at SYC was built prior to passage of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) in 1991, SYC was required by the ADA to make structural changes no later than January 26, 1995. 28 CFR § 35.150(c)(d). This was never done.
Since that time, SYC has added a newly constructed court records office, two separate juvenile dormitories, connecting breezeways, attorney conference rooms and more courtrooms. None of these alterations addressed the original barriers to entry, nor were the altered portions of the buildings made readily accessible to the maximum extent feasible. See 28 C.F.R. § 35.151(b).
Acting on a complaint from a wheelchair user, in 2014 the United States conducted an ADA compliance survey of SYC. The County cooperated fully in the survey process, which revealed significant violations of the ADA. Twenty-four years after passage of the ADA, there is not a single bathroom in the entire facility that is accessible to persons using wheelchairs. The designated accessible entrance to the main building is located at the opposite end of the building from the main entrance, through a locked door which can only be opened by court security personnel summoned by telephone. Courtrooms, offices, dormitories, administration buildings and parking lots: all present structural barriers to use by persons with disabilities.
County officials and employees cooperated with the compliance review and site visits, and demonstrated their commitment to ensuring that SYC services and programs become accessible to all persons, regardless of disability. The parties now have decided to resolve this matter as set forth below without adjudication of factual and legal disputes, by entering into the attached Settlement Agreement.
In order to ensure that people with disabilities be able to use SYC facilities, services and programs to the fullest extent possible, the County has agreed to make the following changes:
- Main Exterior Entrance to the Courthouse – The County will provide an ADA compliant ramp to the main entrance of the courthouse, and will locate six (6) accessible parking spaces with adjoining access aisles and curb cuts at this entrance.
- Exterior Intake Entrance – An ADA compliant ramp with appropriate signage will be provided at this entrance, which is used during evening hours and weekends as a public entrance.
- Courthouse Interior – A unisex accessible bathroom will be added near the main lobby for use by persons with disabilities. Both the receptionist area and the clerk’s office will be moved and will be provided with accessible information and payment windows. ADA compliant signage and accessible drinking fountains will be provided, as well as access to courtrooms, offices and attorney conference rooms.
- Juvenile Detention Facility – Accessible bathing and toilet facilities will be located inside each of three juvenile detention areas (girls, boys, and youth crisis center). The existing toilet room in the intake area will be altered so as to become accessible.
- Administration Building – Two accessible restrooms, male and female, will be created by modifying existing restrooms, and accessible drinking fountains will be provided. Two (2) accessible parking spaces with adjoining access aisles will be located at the entrance to this building, together with an accessible approach from the parking area.
- Leadership Building – Two new accessible unisex toilet rooms will be constructed, along with appropriate signage and interior entrances as well as the front entrance doors will be altered to provide access for persons with disabilities.
- Access to Public Street - An ADA compliant sidewalk will be constructed from the right-of-way on Costarides Street to the Administration building and thence to the parking lot in front of the main facility. Crosswalks and curb cuts will be located so that persons with disabilities may cross the parking lot to the main entrance and the Leadership building.
“Ensuring that the Strickland Youth Center, its facilities, programs and services can be used by everyone fulfills a core tenet of the ADA: that the courts must be open to all people, including those with disabilities,” said United States Attorney for the Southern District of Alabama Kenyen R. Brown. “We commend the Mobile County Commission’s commitment to make significant changes to bring the SYC into compliance with the ADA.”
The claims settled by this agreement are allegations only, and there has been no determination of liability. The investigation and litigation were conducted by the United States Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Alabama. The attorney handling the matter is Assistant United States Attorney Holly L. Wiseman.
The Settlement Agreement was reached under Title II of the ADA, which provides that no qualified person with a disability may be excluded from participating in, or denied the benefits of, the programs, services and activities provided by state and local governments because of a disability. Those interested in finding out more about the ADA may call the Justice Department’s toll-free information line at 800-514-0301 (TDD 800-514-0383) or visit www.ada.gov.
St. Louis Man Indicted for Illegal FirearmRead the Press Release
JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. – Tammy Dickinson, United States Attorney for the Western District of Missouri, announced that a St. Louis, Mo., man was indicted by a federal grand jury today for illegally possessing a firearm.
Charles Allen Roark, 36, of St. Louis, was charged with being a felon in possession of a firearm in an indictment returned by a federal grand jury in Jefferson City, Mo.
Today’s indictment alleges that Roark was in possession of a Smith and Wesson .40-caliber pistol on July 18, 2015.
Under federal law, it is illegal for anyone who has been convicted of a felony to be in possession of any firearm or ammunition. Roark has prior federal felony convictions for being a felon in possession of a firearm and for distributing controlled substances, as well as two prior state felony convictions for possession of a controlled substance and prior state felony convictions for assault and unlawful use of a weapon.
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 Jim Lynn. It was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and the Jefferson City, Mo., Police Department.
Solimar Federal Credit Union Employee Pleads Guilty to Embezzlement of Credit Union FundsRead the Press Release
SAN JUAN, P.R. – Today, defendant Tania Maldonado-Suárez pled guilty before United States Magistrate Judge Marcos E. López to a one-count Information that charged, from on or about October 26, 2005, continuing through on or about May 31, 2007, in the District of Puerto Rico, the defendant being an employee of Solimar Federal Credit Union, an institution whose deposits were insured by the National Credit Union Administration Board, with intent to defraud Solimar Federal Credit Union, willfully misapplied, embezzled, abstracted, and purloined the sum of approximately $474,894.69, announced Rosa Emilia Rodríguez-Vélez, United States Attorney for the District of Puerto Rico.
Tania Maldonado-Suárez worked at Solimar Federal Credit Union and was responsible for posting transactions in the financial institutions’ records. During her employment with Solimar Federal Credit Union, Tania Maldonado-Suárez, with the intent to defraud, did willfully misapply, embezzle, and purloin funds that belonged to Solimar Federal Credit Union. Specifically, Maldonado-Suárez withdrew funds from Solimar Federal Credit Union accounts without authorization, failed to deposit checks into accounts, failed to post payments on accounts, and granted unauthorized loans on accounts in order to divert funds from these accounts to herself for her own pecuniary gain.
The case was investigated by the United States Secret Service with the collaboration of the Puerto Rico Police Department, and prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Luke Cass. The defendant faces a potential maximum sentence of up to 30 years of imprisonment.
Self Proclaimed “Gingerbread Man” Caught; Pleads Guilty to Escape from Federal Halfway HouseRead the Press Release
CONTACT: Barbara Burns
PHONE: (716) 843-5817
FAX: (716) 551-3051
ROCHESTER, N.Y. U.S. Attorney William J. Hochul, Jr. announced today that Lamar Nelson, 27, of Rochester, NY, pleaded guilty to escape before U.S. District Court Judge David G. Larimer. The charge carries a maximum sentence of five years in prison, a fine of up to $250,000, or both.Assistant U.S. Attorney Craig R. Gestring, who is handling the case, stated that the defendant was convicted in 2010 for possession with intent to distribute crack cocaine. As part of that sentence, the Bureau of Prisons assigned Nelson to the Volunteers of America Residential Reentry Center in Rochester in September of 2014. However, at that time, Nelson left the center without authorization and failed to return. In addition to his conviction for narcotics possession, the defendant was also a convicted sex offender.
The United States Marshal’s Service, along with members of the New York and New Jersey Regional Fugitive Task force began to search for the defendant in and around Rochester. During this time, Nelson exchanged phone calls and emails with the Deputy Marshal in charge of the investigation in which Nelson acknowledged that he was a fugitive, and at one point claimed that he was the “gingerbread man.”
Nelson was taken into custody without incident by the United States Marshal’s Service on April 30, 2015.
The plea is the culmination of an investigation by the United States Marshal’s Service, under the direction of Charles Salina.
Sentencing is scheduled for November 19, 2015, at 10:00 a.m. before Judge Larimer.
Sebago Man Pleads Guilty to Theft from Interstate ShipmentsRead the Press Release
Contact: Julia M. Lipez
Assistant United States Attorney
Tel: (207) 780-3257Portland, Maine: United States Attorney Thomas E. Delahanty II announced that Jeffrey P. Wheeler, Jr., 31, of Sebago, Maine, pleaded guilty today in U.S. District Court to theft from interstate shipments of goods.
Court records reveal that between December 2013 and February 2014, Wheeler was employed as a delivery truck driver for United Parcel Service (UPS). During this period, Wheeler stole several shipments of prescription narcotic medications that had been shipped via UPS from the Veterans Administration medical facility in Togus, Maine to outpatient veteran clients.
Wheeler faces up to three years in prison and a fine of up to $250,000. He will be sentenced after the completion of a presentence investigation report by the U.S. Probation Office.
This case was investigated by the Criminal Investigations Division of the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, Office of Inspector General.
Rochester Man Charged with Possession of Stolen GunsRead the Press Release
CONTACT: Barbara Burns
PHONE: (716) 843-5817
FAX: (716) 551-3051
ROCHESTER, N.Y.-U.S. Attorney William J. Hochul Jr. announced today that Joseph Lowry, 21, of Rochester, NY, was charged by criminal complaint in connection with his possession of a firearm stolen from a residence at 1070 Lake Avenue in Rochester. The charges carry a maximum penalty of 10 years, a fine of $250,000, or both.Assistant U.S. Attorney Douglas E. Gregory, who is handling the case, stated that according to complaint, on July 29, 2015, officers with the Rochester Police Department responded to 1070 Lake Avenue in Rochester for a report of a burglary occurring at the residence. The resident of the premises informed officers that intruders entered the house and stole a gun safe that contained three firearms including a 39mm rifle, a .40 caliber rifle and a 12 gauge shotgun.
Three days later, on August 1, 2015, officers responded to Lowry’s residence at 33 Phelps Avenue in Rochester on an unrelated call for service. While there, officers observed a New England Arms Pardner shotgun on the front porch of the residence, loaded with one round of ammunition. After tracing the firearm's serial number, investigators determined the gun was one of the three stolen from 1070 Lake Avenue on July 29, 2015.
Lowry will make an initial appearance on September 29, 2015, at 9:30 a.m. before U.S. Magistrate Judge Jonathan W. Feldman. This arrest is a result of our increased response to the recent spike in violence on the west side of Rochester, including the murder of three individuals at the Boys and Girls Club.
The criminal complaint is the result of an investigation by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Delano A. Reid, New York Field Division, by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, and the Rochester Police Department, under the direction of Chief Michael Ciminelli.
The fact that a defendant has been charged with a crime is merely an accusation and the defendant is presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty.
Remarks by U.S. Attorney Zachary T. Fardon at City Club of ChicagoRead the Press Release
The following are remarks by Zachary T. Fardon, United States Attorney for the Northern District of Illinois, delivered at the City Club of Chicago on September 28, 2015:
In April of last year, I had the chance to come here for the first time. I was about 6 months into my job, and I had the option of talking about whatever I wanted. I chose to talk about violent crime in Chicago. Well, it’s been 17 months. I’m honored to be back. And I again have something I want to say about violent crime in Chicago.
Our murder rate so far this year is up about 20% from last year. And 20% is a troubling number. But let me give you two points of context that lend perspective: First, last year - 2014 - was our lowest homicide rate in Chicago since 1965. That’s 5 decades. So the watermark against which we’re measuring our 20% increase this year is a historically low one.
And second, we are not alone. Major cities across the country are seeing even more significant surges in homicide rates this year: in Milwaukee, they’ve seen a 76% increase; in St Louis, a 60% increase; in Baltimore, 56%; in Washington, DC, a 44% increase. So viewed in that light, our 20% increase in Chicago is not as alarming as many.
So I could leave it at that. I could make those contextual points in response to the inevitable audience question about violence, and I could choose to focus my opening remarks instead on ISIL, or public corruption, or cybercrime, or any of the other mission-critical areas we serve at the U.S. Attorney’s Office.
I’m not going to do that. Why not?
[Refer to PowerPoint]
Every face you see here is a child shot and killed this year in the city of Chicago. Let’s focus in on a few:
- In February, 13-year-old Anthony Diaz was observing an altercation between his 17-year-old sister and another girl in Belmont Cragin - a fight, by the way, arranged through social media. As Anthony was walking away from the fight, he was shot 4 times and died.
- In May, Raheem Dameron, a 15-year-old, was standing with a friend on a Bronzeville street when shots were fired from a passing car. Raheem’s friend was hit in the ankle and survived. Raheem was hit in the back and died on the scene.
- On a June afternoon, 15-year-old Martese Gentry came upon an altercation on Millard Avenue in Lawndale. A person in the fight opened fire and bullets struck Martese in the abdomen and chest, killing him.
- Amari Brown was 7 years old and spending the Fourth of July this year at his grandmother’s house in Humboldt Park, when somebody sprayed gunshots onto the porch of grandma’s house, injuring a woman and killing Amari.
- 17-year-old Kimythe Hubbard was one of 6 siblings in his Woodlawn family, 3 boys and 3 girls. On July 9, Kimythe was walking behind the Mount Pleasant Missionary Baptist Church when he was shot in the back and died.
Those are five. Every face you see here has a story; every one a child shot and killed this year in Chicago.
No place in Chicago is completely safe but there are neighborhoods on the West and South sides that are unfairly, disproportionately impacted by the gun violence. By police district, so far this year the most violent parts of Chicago include the 4th, 6th, 7th, and 11th districts. Those districts are home to some of Chicago’s beautiful neighborhoods and public places.
So what do these neighborhoods otherwise have in common?
[Refer to PowerPoint]
Gangs and gang factions. Gangster Disciple factions, Latin King factions. Dozens of gang factions across these neighborhoods. Gang factions that are constantly recruiting new members, and recruiting them young. In our most violence-afflicted neighborhoods, we now see kids affiliating with gang factions as early as the 1st or 2d grade.
And we are seeing not only more homicides in these neighborhoods but more shootings, and particularly more indiscriminate shootings – shootings over petty things – disrespect, trash talk, just walking across gang turf lines.
Let’s look at a random weekend this year.
[Refer to PowerPoint]
This July 4th weekend, over 50 people were shot in Chicago. This slide shows just a few examples of the shootings. A bullet in the armpit, a bullet in the finger, a bullet in the butt, a bullet in the foot. Random shots, drive-by shots, sprayed shots.
And more and more often, shots fueled by social media. Twitter, Instagram, Facebook. Petty disputes and trash talk that escalate over social media with sometimes fatal consequences.
Let me give you a quick case example.
[Refer to PowerPoint]
In February 2014 there was a gang-related shooting of a 19-year-old named Shaquon Thomas, also known as Young Pappy. Young Pappy was hit but not killed in the shooting. A 17-year-old boy named Markeyo Carr was caught by a stray bullet and killed. The next day Young Pappy tweeted “I’m Still Here.” A few months later, in July of 2014, there was another attempt to shoot and kill Young Pappy. This time a stray bullet struck a 28-year-old photographer named Wil Lewis who was waiting for a bus in Rogers Park. Wrong place, wrong time.
In April 2015, Young Pappy posted a video called “Homicide” on YouTube in which he taunted his rival gang members. Then in May he posted another video, this one called “Shooters”, in which he pretended to be holding a gun and taunted “you don’t even know how to shoot.” One week later he was gunned down and killed about a block from where he recorded that video in Uptown.
A 22-year-old named Clifton Frye posted comments about Young Pappy’s shooting on his Facebook. 3 days after Young Pappy was killed, Frye was shot and killed by a 17 year old boy.
That’s 4 dead – a 17-year-old, a 19-year-old, a 22-year-old, a 28-year-old, and at least one 17-year-old trigger puller. Why? No real reason; taunting, disrespect, loathing fueled by social media.
Here’s the point: our violent crime problem in Chicago has become more unwieldy; we’re seeing more and more indiscriminant shootings, social media spats leading to spraying bullets. And often with kids on either or both sides of the gun.
Whatever the statistics, this year versus last, and regardless that our surge this year reflects a national trend, here’s my bottom line: in Chicago, our violent crime problem is a social justice problem. For too long, gun crime has been tearing at the fabric of our social contract in this city. These are our kids. These are our neighborhoods. This problem hits the heart of who we are, and who we want to be, as a city. We cannot abide our Chicago being one where it’s okay for kids to die and entire neighborhoods to cocoon in fear.
Let me be honest if obvious: these issues are tough. Our violence problems are rooted in social injustices like poverty, and joblessness, and educational and economic inequality. Kids need parents, and mentors, and education, and work opportunities. And when instead what they see, in some parts of our city, starting in the first or second grade, is gangs and gang factions as a social network and ostensible path to self-identity and success, then we have lost the war before the battle has begun.
I’m not here to offer sound-bite solutions. I am here to speak honestly and to address some of the important moving parts I see from the perspective of the U.S. Attorney’s Office.
And I’m here to ask you to think about what you can do from your perspective, and to carry forward this discussion into your community, your work place, your church, your family.
We have to keep a long view. These are generational challenges. But to borrow a phrase from Dr. King we also have to feel the fierce urgency of now. I want us to wake up every day and recommit to ending this cycle of kids dying and neighborhoods set apart.
For the remainder of my remarks, I’m going to touch upon three things that are important from my perspective: first, prosecutions; second, juvenile justice; and third, the issue of community trust.
Prosecutions
At the United States Attorney’s Office our primary job is enforcement. We prosecute criminals. And federally, with our limited resources here, we have to be especially careful to focus on the worst of the worst – to pick the right individuals, and then to use the appropriate federal tools to help take those individuals off the street.
We are doing just that. Our prosecutors at the U.S. Attorney’s Office are right now bringing big cases against violent gangs and offenders. A few quick examples:
[Refer to PowerPoint]
- United States v. Levaughn Collins et al. James Triplett controlled the heroin market in a North Lawndale neighborhood west of Douglas Park. This year, we charged Triplett, his supplier Levaughn Collins, and a number of other defendants with a variety of federal crimes. This is a photograph showing the line of people waiting to purchase heroin as part of this market before we took it down. And this shows the weapons that we recovered when we executed that takedown.
- United States v. Nate Hoskins (“Operation Double Is”). “Double Is” stands for Imperial Insane Vice Lords. We recently charged 24 Double Is with RICO and other offenses related to drug trafficking and violence on Chicago’s West Side. Among other things, the indictment alleged the gang-related murder of a man named Marcus Hurley. This photo shows Hurley’s killer running from the crime scene after he shot Hurley at defendant Nate Hoskins’ direction. The shooter himself was also later shot and killed.
- United States v. Andrew Shelton et al.; United States v. Dimitri Woods et al.; United States v. Terrance Griggs. These are all gun cases. In the Shelton case we charged 11 defendants with the theft and distribution of 111 handguns. In the Woods case, 2 ATF informants were robbed at gunpoint while purchasing guns and a bulletproof vest from the defendants. And in Griggs, the defendant was convicted this year of selling 11 guns and a bulletproof vest to an informant. This photo shows an SKS automatic weapon and bulletproof vest seized as part of that case.
Those are a few examples. We’ve got many others, and our investigations pipeline is robust. On nearly all of the cases, we continue to work closely and collaboratively with our local and state partners, including especially the Chicago Police Department and the Cook County State’s Attorney’s Office. We are a likeminded group. Our collective noses are down on the enforcement front, and we don’t plan to let up.
Now, at the tail end of any prosecution is the question of sentencing - who gets locked up, and for how long. Over the past couple years, there has been a lot of focus on the issue of over-imprisonment in our country. And that’s for good reason; the issue is real.
Since 1980, our national prison population has exploded. The total detention population in this country has more than tripled, to where as of last year, the United States had 5 percent of the world’s total population, yet 25 percent of its prisoners.
Guess what? That costs money. Taxpayer money. Lots of it. Last year, over 26% of the Justice Department’s 20-plus-billion-dollar budget went toward housing prisoners. To give you a reference point, about 7.6% went toward funding all U.S. Attorney’s offices. We now spend way more money housing prisoners than hiring prosecutors to go after the bad guys in the first instance.
In light of that stark truth, about 2 years ago, the Justice Department launched an initiative called Smart on Crime under which the Department drew a circle around lower-level non-violent drug defendants and said as to those defendants, let’s stop the historic practice of seeking the highest mandatory prison terms, and instead let’s return sentencing discretion to the courts.
Smart on Crime is basically a policy decision–in light of fiscal realities–to return sentencing discretion to the bench for certain non-violent offenders.
Here is what Smart on Crime is not. Smart on Crime is not “Soft on Violent Crime.” It is not, in any way, an abandonment of the Justice Department’s commitment to fight violent crime. In fact, our U.S. Attorney’s office here remains as aggressive as ever in using our most powerful tools to take violent offenders off the street.
As I’ve said before, prosecutions alone will not fix our problem; we can’t arrest our way out of the realities reflected in those slides.
But I want to be clear about this: we have to be aggressive and prosecute the trigger pullers; we have do everything we can to take murderers off the streets, including asking our judges to impose significant prison terms for violent offenders—locally and federally. That is being Smart on Crime, and that’s a critical piece of long-term success.
Juvenile Justice
Our federal court system, at least for now, is an adult system. It’s not suited to address juvenile violence issues. And yet, you know that a significant part of our problem in Chicago is a youth violence problem. We have child shooters; we have child victims. And not surprisingly, in predicting adult violent behavior, a key inflection point is 14, 15, 16 years of age. Kids carrying guns or committing acts of violence at that age are much more likely to later repeat those acts of violence and to end up incarcerated as adults.
Last year, my Office launched a new initiative – our “Youth Outreach Forums”. In partnership with the Chicago Police Department, Chicago Public Schools, and the Cook County Juvenile Probation Department, we designed forums to talk to at-risk kids 13-17 years old. We began hosting the forums in Englewood, and Garfield Park, and Humboldt Park, and we’ve now moved inside the Cook County Juvenile Detention Center and are conducting forums there.
Our forums are structured to educate these kids about the dangers of gang affiliation and recidivism, including especially picking up a gun. The forums are also designed to encourage education and help introduce these kids to community services and organizations that give them alternatives to the gang route -- a pathway, a network that is good instead of bad.
We’ve made the forums evidence-based. The University of Chicago Crime Lab is tracking the kids who complete the forums against placebo groups to assess results. That will take time, but if we can move the needle on even some of these kids’ fates, we will have done something important.
Just a few weeks ago, I was at one of our Youth Forums in the Cook County Juvenile Detention Center. The kids I met that day may have done something wrong to land them in detention, but it could not have been more clear to me that these kids were not hardened criminals; they were kids; they were curious; they were hopeful, they were struggling and looking for help.
I’m proud that our office is leading the way forward and holding these forums. I don’t believe these forums are a panacea. What they are is a start, a catalyst, a way for us to shine our flashlight on a place that dearly needs attention for us to succeed, as a city, long term in the fight against violence.
So that’s another piece of our puzzle at the U.S. Attorney’s Office. We have the hammer of prosecution and prison for truly violent people. And we’re working to extend the rope, the lifeline for kids who’ve wandered down the wrong path and need our help before it’s too late.
Community Trust
Another critical piece of our puzzle, and the last broad topic I’ll hit on during my limited time today -- community trust. The issues that became front-and-center after Ferguson, and then Staten Island, and Ohio, and Baltimore, and on down that list – those issues are directly relevant to our fight against violent crime here in Chicago.
Distrust between communities and cops breeds violence. Distrust causes kids to make bad decisions, it causes cops to make bad decisions, and it makes it harder to solve violent crimes when they occur. So this issue of trust between cops and communities is huge.
Last December, shortly after the “no prosecution” announcement in Ferguson, my office hosted a Community Round Table, and we had there Attorney General Eric Holder, Mayor Emanuel, Anita Alvarez, Garry McCarthy, other law enforcement leaders, community and religious leaders, and a select group of kids from some of these most violence-afflicted neighborhoods in Chicago.
To be frank, I wasn’t sure what to expect going into the roundtable. This is another thing that is not exactly in the traditional wheelhouse of a U.S. Attorney’s Office. That said, I found it valuable. It brought together some passionate leaders from across different parts of the city, and we had a candid and thought-provoking discussion about policing and trust issues.
So we did it again in March of this year. We had another roundtable. And we’re doing another one in November. As long as there’s work to be done, my Office will keep making the time and sending the invitations.
The most remarkable aspect of these roundtable discussions, to me, has been the kids. We’ve had a great group of young men and women who came to us from the most violence-afflicted neighborhoods. And we also had CPD commanders from those same neighborhoods. And the back-and-forth during the roundtables between the kids and the commanders has been enlightening. Here’s the nub of what I’ve taken away from it:
From the kids’ perspective, what they want from the police is respect. They don’t want to feel judged by the color of their skin, or by whether they’re wearing sagging pants, or because they’re hanging on the block with gang members. What they want is to be judged on their own merits, and when officers don’t know them personally and lump them in with other kids in the neighborhood who dress the same way, or look or talk the same way they do, that breeds resentment and distrust.
From the officers’ perspective, they want to succeed. They want to make the neighborhood safer and be good at their jobs. But what also became clear through the dialogue is that they too want to feel judged on their own merits. They don’t want to feel embattled or vilified just because they wear the badge; they want to feel respected by the people they are risking their lives to protect.
And from both sides, the common ground for improvement? Connectivity. Knowing each other. Making an investment of time and good will outside the context of bad things happening. Whether it’s law enforcement hosting a neighborhood barbeque, or a park clean up, or participating in a local basketball tournament -- whatever the vehicle, whatever the context, finding ways for officers to get to know the kids, and kids to get to know the officers, so that when the officers come across the kids at a crime scene or in an investigation, that prior relationship, however deep, exists. When you have that, things won’t always go perfect but they tend to go a whole lot better.
I’m grateful that we are seeing more and more of that these days from our city and community leaders and the great women and men of our Chicago Police Department.
I want to ask you to think for a minute about what it means to serve as a Chicago Police Officer. Police officers by and large are the most noble of our public servants; they are citizens who’ve decided to take a job, with modest pay, where every day they wake up not knowing if they may get hurt or even killed. And why do they do that and wear that risk every day? I will tell you my view, based on many years of first-hand experience working with cops -- most do it because they care. They want the same things nearly all of us want: to be happy, to love, to have a family, to enjoy a safe community, and live an impactful life.
Police officers are not separate and apart from our communities; they are our communities, no different than you and me. And they fundamentally deserve a presumption of our respect and trust.
For our system of justice to work, people need to believe in that system. With no trust, there is no belief.
These trust issues, of course, are not unique to Chicago. There is a national discussion happening now, and an important watermark in that national discussion, in my opinion, occurred earlier this year when FBI Director Jim Comey gave a speech at Georgetown University. If you haven’t read it, I’d encourage you to jump on line and find it. Comey talked about the relationship between law enforcement and the diverse communities law enforcement serves. And in reflecting upon that relationship, he identified what he called his “own hard truths.”
I share Jim Comey’s hard truths. Here they are:
First, we in law enforcement have to be honest and acknowledge that much of our history is ugly when it comes to issues of race. At many points in history, law enforcement has enforced a status quo that was brutally unfair to disfavored groups. That is an ugly part of our national inheritance, and we need to accept that.
Second, we all – inside and outside of law enforcement - have to be honest about the widespread existence of unconscious bias. By understanding latent bias, and talking about it, even if we can’t completely eliminate those reactive instincts, we can help our behavior in response to them.
And third, there is a cynicism that can happen to people in law enforcement over time based on experience and observation. And that cynicism can lead to mental short-cuts that result in unfair treatment. And in addressing that problem, we have to be honest and recognize that it’s not as simple as just changing who we hire and how we train law enforcement. The truth is significantly harder than that.
We have to address the tragic reality that because of our nation’s past sins, young men of color, particularly in urban neighborhoods, too often inherit a legacy of crime and prison. So yes, we have to talk about cops, but we also have to talk about how we change that legacy and create a better world and better options for those young men.
Those are Jim Comey’s “hard truths”. And mine. And really, they belong to us all. Those hard truths go to the heart of everything that I have been talking about today.
Our violent crime issues in Chicago are hard. Our history with regard to race is hard. Poverty is hard. Inequality is hard. Childhood is hard. Policing is hard. Trust is hard.
One thing about hard things in life, it seems to me, is that usually they require balance, and measured circumspection, and patience and bravery to figure them out and to fix them. Hard things don’t come with easy or quick solutions.
[Refer to PowerPoint]
This is Tyjuan Poindexter, a 14-year-old. Eight days ago Tyjuan was walking with some friends to play basketball in his North Kenwood neighborhood on the South Side. As a car drove by, someone yelled “is that them?” and started shooting. One of Tyjuan’s friends he was going to play ball with, a 15-year-old boy, was hit in the ankle and the shin. He survived. Tyjuan was hit once, in the head. He died that night, in a driveway on the corner of 44th and South Greenwood.
The things I’ve talked about today -- prosecutions, youth outreach, community trust -- these are all important ingredients, from the perspective of my office, for helping to get us to a better place. But there’s a lot work to be done. Work in our courts. Work in our government. Work in our schools. Work in our churches. Work in our homes. Work on our streets.
Each of us has to stop waiting for someone else to solve this problem and realize that the problem belongs to us all.
Let me close with a point of pride. The events of Ferguson were about a year ago. And in the wake of those events, and then again following the many other national crises over the last year, we have seen dozens and dozens of protests and rallies across Chicago. Unlike many other places, our protests have been almost entirely peaceful, thoughtful and impactful. A number of civic and religious leaders in Chicago have played - and continue to play - an important part in that process. And at the same time, our law enforcement, and particularly the Chicago Police Department, have respected the protest process, and have repeatedly allowed our communities to be heard while ensuring the public safety.
That is called democracy. And I’ve come to believe that we’re pretty damn good at it here in Chicago. And that’s a reflection of the goodness of this place -- the strength and love citizens here hold for our city and each other.
That same strength and love is the key to our long-term success in fighting violent crime. We as a community have to muster and leverage our best: our best leadership, our best philanthropy, our best resources, our best creativity, our best good will, and our best intentions.
We have to recognize that this fight is a law enforcement fight. And it is an economic fight. And it is an educational fight. And it is fundamentally a fight to overcome tragic aspects of our national inheritance.
The stakes are high. The place we love hangs in the balance. I believe we can succeed, and we will succeed because of who we are in Chicago.
Every one of us has to see the long horizon, while every day waking up with the fierce urgency of now.
Remarks by U.S. Attorney Zachary T. Fardon
Ray M. Mubarak Sentenced to 57 Months in Prison for Defrauding Multiple BanksRead the Press Release
KNOXVILLE, Tenn.- On Sept. 28, 2015, Ray M. Mubarak, 56, of Knoxville, Tenn., was sentenced by the Honorable Pamela L. Reeves, U.S. District Judge, to serve 57 months in prison for conducting a scheme to defraud financial institutions and engaging in an unlawful monetary transaction with fraudulently-obtained loan proceeds. He was also ordered to pay $1,993,938.44 in restitution to three banks and a title insurance company that lost money as a result of the scheme.
Mubarak pleaded guilty in May 2015 to federal charges stemming from his scheme to defraud multiple banks into loaning him over $6 million. He submitted false tax returns and personal financial statements which grossly inflated his income and net worth in order to qualify for the loans. Mubarak also admitted to defrauding the banks by causing them to rely on a fraudulent title opinion letter and forged loan closing documents and deeds.
The trial for Mubarak’s co-defendants, Dianna Mubarak and Blythe Bond Sanders, III, is scheduled for March 1, 2016.
This investigation was conducted by the Internal Revenue Service - Criminal Investigation and Federal Bureau of Investigation. The investigation and prosecution of Mubarak was coordinated with the Office of the District Attorney General, 6th Judicial District. Matthew T. Morris, Assistant U.S. Attorney, represented the United States.
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Pittsburgh Man Pleads Guilty to Violating Federal Drug LawsRead the Press Release
PITTSBURGH -A Pittsburgh resident pleaded guilty in federal court to charges of conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute and distribute five kilograms grams or more of cocaine and 100 grams or more of heroin, United States Attorney David J. Hickton announced today.
Cecil Pinnix, 46, pleaded guilty to two counts 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. The government had wiretaps on two of Cecil Pinnix’s phones, and Pinnix 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, and to possess with intent to distribute and distribute heroin, which he obtained in Ohio and transported to the Western District of Pennsylvania for further distribution.
Judge Hornak scheduled sentencing for Feb. 10, 2016. The law provides for a minimum sentence of 10 years in prison up to a maximum sentence of life imprisonment, a fine of not more than $10,000,000, 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 Cecil Pinnix.
Pennsylvania man sentenced for heroin traffickingRead the Press Release
CLARKSBURG, WEST VIRGINIA – Timothy Lamon Cavender, Jr., 26, of Duquesne, Pennsylvania, was sentenced today to 46 months in prison for heroin trafficking, United States Attorney William J. Ihlenfeld, II, announced.
Cavender was discovered in possession of heroin in December 2014 in Harrison County, West Virginia. He pled guilty in June 2015 to one count of “Possession with Intent to Distribute Heroin.”
Assistant U.S. Attorney Zelda Wesley and former Assistant U.S. Attorney Shawn Morgan prosecuted the case on behalf of the government. The Greater Harrison County Drug and Violent Crime Task Force, a HIDTA-funded initiative, investigated.
U.S. District Judge Irene M. Keeley presided.
Palmyra Man Pleads Guilty to Possession of Child PornographyRead the Press Release
CONTACT: Barbara Burns
PHONE: (716) 843-5817
FAX: (716) 551-3051
ROCHESTER, N.Y. U.S. Attorney William J. Hochul, Jr. announced today that Noah R. Scribner, 23, of Palmyra, NY, pleaded guilty to possessing child pornography involving pre-pubescent minors before U.S. District Court Judge David G. Larimer. The charge carries a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison, a fine of up to $250,000, or both.Assistant U.S. Attorney Craig R. Gestring, who is handling the case, stated that the New York State Police and Federal Bureau of Investigation conducted an online child pornography investigation in December 2013. During that case, they learned that child pornography had been uploaded to a Google cloud drive account. Investigators linked that activity to the defendant, and traced his physical location to a residence in Palmyra. A search warrant was executed and numerous digital items were seized.
During the investigation, Scribner told officers that he found the child pornography images and videos online by using certain search terms. The defendant also admitted that he would ask other online users to send him online "links" to other child pornography sites and images. Scribner acknowledged that in return, he would send those users other links with child pornography as well. The defendant estimated that he traded child pornography with others 100 times or more and said that the people he communicated with online (about child pornography) could be from anywhere in the world. At the time he downloaded the images, Scribner believed what he was downloading constituted child pornography.
A forensic review of the digital material seized from Scribner located images of children being sexually abused on several items, including a laptop and Apple iPod. Some of the images depicted prepubescent minors or minors under 12 years old, as well as images which portrayed depictions of violence.
The plea is the culmination of an investigation by the New York State Police, under the direction of Major Craig Hanesworth and the Federal Bureau of Investigations Child Exploitation Task Force consisting of the Monroe County Sheriff’s Office, the Rochester Police Department, the Greece Police Department and Homeland Security Investigations.
Sentencing is scheduled for December 8, 2015, at 11:30 a.m. before Judge Larimer.
Oxon Hill Felon Exiled to 7 Years in Prison for a Heroin Distribution Conspiracy and Being a Felon in Possession of a GunRead the Press Release
Greenbelt, Maryland – U.S. District Judge George J. Hazel, sentenced Steven Patrick Bruce, age 32, of Oxon Hill, Maryland, today to seven years in prison, followed by four years of supervised release, for conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute heroin, being a felon in possession of a firearm and conspiracy to obstruct justice.
The sentence was announced by United States Attorney for the District of Maryland Rod J. Rosenstein; Special Agent in Charge Karl C. Colder of the Drug Enforcement Administration - Washington Field Division; and St. Mary’s County Sheriff Tim Cameron.
According to Bruce’s plea agreement, from July 2013 until approximately July 2014, Bruce conspired with others to distribute heroin to drug customers in and around Prince George’s and Saint Mary’s Counties, Maryland. Bruce obtained heroin from one or more suppliers, and used his residence on Lindsay Road in Oxon Hill, as a base of operations for storing and distributing narcotics.
In late July of 2014, the DEA conducted a controlled purchase of heroin from Bruce utilizing a confidential source. During a recorded meeting at Bruce’s residence, Bruce distributed a quantity of heroin to the confidential source for $100. Based on his involved in the conspiracy, Bruce admitted that he distributed between 100 grams and 400 grams of heroin.
On July 31, 2014, DEA and other law enforcement officers and agents executed a search warrant at Bruce’s residence. During the execution of that search warrant, law enforcement officers recovered the following items, among others: an Israeli Military Industry Uzi 9 millimeter submachine gun; 346 rounds of 9 millimeter ammunition; 32 rounds of .45 caliber ammunition; and three high-capacity magazines. Law enforcement also recovered drug paraphernalia and packaging, a bottle of Inositol powder (used by narcotics distributors as a cutting agent), and a small zip-lock bag containing heroin.
On July 31, 2014, Bruce was charged with being a felon in possession of a firearm, and possession of controlled substances with intent to distribute, and was subsequently detained by order of the court.
On August 2, 2014, while Bruce was incarcerated, he called a friend and asked a relative of that person to falsely tell Bruce’s attorney and law enforcement that the firearms, ammunition and narcotics found during the search warrant executed at Bruce’s residence belonged to the friend’s relative, not Bruce, in an attempt to obstruct the government’s investigation.
United States Attorney Rod J. Rosenstein commended the DEA and St. Mary’s County Sheriff’s Office for their work in the investigation. Mr. Rosenstein thanked Assistant United States Attorneys Thomas M. Sullivan and Daniel C. Gardner, who prosecuted the case.
Owner of San Gabriel Valley Surrogacy Agency Sentenced to Federal Prison for Ripping Off Would-Be Parents who Paid for Egg DonationsRead the Press Release
LOS ANGELES – The owner of a Glendora egg donation and surrogacy company who admitted defrauding would-be parents, egg donors and surrogate mothers over the course of more than three years was sentenced this morning to 18 months in federal prison.
Allison Layton, a 38-year-old resident of Star, Idaho, was sentenced by United States District Court Judge George H. Wu, who ordered that the defendant serve three years of supervised released after completing the prison term.
Layton, who owned and operated Miracles Egg Donation and sometimes used the name Allison Jarvie, lived in Glendora during the course of the scheme.
Between August 2008 and January 2012, would-be parents – who in the surrogacy and egg donation world are known as intended parents – paid tens of thousands of dollars for egg donation and surrogacy services that Miracles promised to coordinate. Layton took money from the intended parents, but, instead of putting the funds into escrow accounts to be withdrawn only for certain costs related to the surrogacy or egg donation, Layton used the money for her own personal expenses (including a wedding that cost $60,000 and other costs that supported a lavish lifestyle) or to cover unpaid costs related to other clients. When confronted by victims, Layton lied about why payments had not been made and refunds not issued and strung victims along, leading them to believe they might soon be paid, when, in fact, many were not.
As a result of Layton’s misappropriation of client funds, egg donors, surrogates, attorneys and others often were not paid for all the services they provided and intended parents often did not receive all the services for which they had paid. At least one investor in Miracles also lost money.
When the donors, surrogates and intended parents sought to recover their money and costs, Layton would lull them into believing they would be repaid through false assurances that payments had already been made or would be made soon.
As a result of the fraud scheme, more than 40 victims lost more than $270,000. Judge Wu scheduled a restitution hearing for October 22.
Layton “took advantage of dozens of individuals at a time when they were particularly vulnerable: when they were working to conceive,” prosecutors wrote in a sentencing memo filed with the court. “In light of the significant harm she caused – in some cases, effectively preventing victims from ever having children – and the risk she still poses to the community, a significant custodial sentence is warranted.”
Three victims spoke at this morning’s hearing, including a couple who said that Layton’s fraud denied them the chance of ever having children.
The investigation into Layton was conducted by the Federal Bureau of Investigation.
Ohio man pleads guilty to Federal health care fraudRead the Press Release
HUNTINGTON, W.Va. – Joshua Petrie, 36, of Proctorville, Ohio, pleaded guilty today in federal court in Huntington to federal health care fraud, announced U.S. Attorney Booth Goodwin. Petrie admitted that he worked as a sales representative and fitter for several out of state companies that sold and distributed back and knee braces from a medical practice in West Virginia. Petrie created false documents showing that he provided braces to patients when, in fact, he had not. The false documents included a certification from a physician indicating that the physician had ordered the braces for individual Medicare patients, but Petrie used copies of a pre-signed physician’s order that was not specific to these patients. The false documents also included a delivery ticket with a signature line for patients to acknowledge receipt of the braces. Petrie forged patients’ signatures to the delivery tickets to make it appear that patients had received the braces when they had not. The false paperwork was used by others to bill Medicare for approximately $38,000.
Petrie faces up to 10 years imprisonment and a $250,000 fine when he is sentenced on January 11, 2016.
The investigation was conducted by Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General and the West Virginia Medicaid Fraud Control Unit. Assistant United States Attorneys Eric Bacaj and Meredith George Thomas are handling the prosecution.
Newport News Men Guilty of Fraud and ID Theft in Card Cracking SchemeRead the Press Release
NEWPORT NEWS, Va. – Preston Frazier, 22, and Keandre Williams, 24, both of Newport News, pleaded guilty today to charges of conspiracy to commit bank fraud and aggravated identity theft.
In statements of facts filed with their respective plea agreements, Frazier and Williams admitted to conspiring to obtain United States currency from several financial institutions by depositing worthless financial instruments into accounts belonging to other individuals and then conducting debit card transactions at ATM and retail locations throughout Hampton Roads. Frazier and Williams each admitted to recruiting account holders of several financial institutions via social media to provide access to their debit cards and personal identification numbers for a period of time in exchange for monetary payment. Frazier, Williams, and other co-conspirators were recorded by video surveillance equipment at ATM and retail locations while engaging in what they termed the “card cracking” scheme.
Frazier, Williams, and two others were indicted by a federal grand jury on June 10, 2015. Frazier and Williams each faces a mandatory minimum penalty of two years in prison to run consecutive to a maximum possible penalty of 30 years in prison. Both will be sentenced on Jan. 11, 2015. Charges remain pending against the remaining two co-conspirators. The minimum and maximum statutory sentence is prescribed by Congress and is provided here for informational purposes, as the sentencing of the defendants will be determined by the court based on the advisory Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
Dana J. Boente, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia; Doug Mease, Special Agent in Charge of the U.S. Secret Service’s Richmond Field Office; David G. Bowers, Inspector in Charge of the Washington Division of the U.S. Postal Inspection Service; and Richard W. Myers, Chief of Newport News Police, made the announcement after the pleas were accepted by U.S. District Judge Mark S. Davis. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Kaitlin C. Gratton and Brian J. Samuels are prosecuting the case.
A copy of this press release may be found on the website of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Virginia. Related court documents and information may be found on the website of the District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia or on PACER by searching for Case No. 4:15cr43.
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