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15 September 2015
Pensacola Man Sentenced to 240 Months for Receipt of Child PornographyRead the Press Release
PENSACOLA, FLORIDA – Shawn P. Caldwell, 36, a registered sex offender who resides in Pensacola, Florida, was sentenced to 240 months in prison yesterday for receipt of child pornography. The sentence was announced by Christopher P. Canova, Acting United States Attorney for the Northern District of Florida.
During an undercover operation, law enforcement officers discovered Caldwell was in possession of 76 child pornography files at his Pensacola residence. At his plea hearing on June 24, 2015, Caldwell admitted that, between April 2011 and April 2015, he received child pornography images and videos from the internet, which he downloaded from several peer-to-peer programs. A forensic review of Caldwell’s electronic devices revealed approximately 263 videos and more than 1,000 images of child pornography, including images of children under the age of 12.
The charges were the result of an investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Florida Department of Law Enforcement, and the Pensacola Police Department. The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Jeffrey Tharp.
The United States Attorney's Office for the Northern District of Florida is one of 94 offices that serve as the nation’s principal litigators under the direction of the Attorney General. The office strives to protect and serve the citizens of the Northern District of Florida through the ethical, vigorous, and impartial enforcement of the laws of the United States, to defend the national security, to improve the safety and quality of life in our communities through the protection of civil rights, and to protect the public funds and financial assets of the United States. To access public court documents online, please visit the
U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Florida website. For more information about the United States Attorney’s Office, Northern District of Florida, visit http://www.justice.gov/usao/fln/index.html.
For more information, contact:
Amy Alexander, Public Information Officer
(850) 216-3854,
Peculiar Man Indicted for Tax EvasionRead the Press Release
KANSAS CITY, Mo. – Tammy Dickinson, United States Attorney for the Western District of Missouri, announced today that a Peculiar, Mo., man has been indicted by a federal grand jury for tax evasion.
Harold R. Stanley, 61, of Peculiar, was charged in a two-count indictment returned by a federal grand jury in Kansas City, Mo., on Aug. 25, 2015.
Stanley was an independent contractor who was employed by companies as a consultant. Today’s indictment alleges that Stanley failed to file any tax returns for 2005 and 2006. For tax years 2007 through 2009, Stanley allegedly filed substantially correct returns but left the tax line entry blank and failed to submit any payment.
According to the indictment, the total tax loss for 2005 through 2009 is $264,294.
Stanley is charged with one count of tax evasion and one count of endeavoring to obstruct and impede the due administration of the internal revenue laws. According to the indictment, Stanley submitted fake money orders for payment to the Internal Revenue Service, returned documents to the Internal Revenue Service claiming that the tax assessments were satisfied because they were “Accepted for Value,” filled out payment vouchers with his name in all capital letters but didn’t submitting payment and submitted a false criminal referral to IRS – Criminal Investigation.
Dickinson cautioned that the charges contained in this indictment are simply accusations, and not evidence of guilt. Evidence supporting the charges must be presented to a federal trial jury, whose duty is to determine guilt or innocence.
This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Paul S. Becker. It was investigated by IRS-Criminal Investigation.
Pascua Yaqui Tribe Receives Nearly $260,000 in Federal Grant Funds to Support Sex Offender Registration and Notification EffortsRead the Press Release
PHOENIX – Today, U.S. Attorney John S. Leonardo announced that $257,011 in additional grant funds have been made available to the Pascua Yaqui Tribe to support, maintain, and refine jurisdiction-wide programs and functions under the Sex Offender Registration and Notification Act (“SORNA”). These funds will assist in improving victim notification services, providing educational services, and increasing service capacity. The grant funds were awarded by the Sex Offender Sentencing, Monitoring, Apprehending, Registering, and Tracking (“SMART”) Office, which is a component of the Department of Justice’s Office of Justice Programs (“OJP”).
Information about OJP and its programs can be found at:http://www.ojp.usdoj.gov.
RELEASE NUMBER: 2015-072_PASCUA GRANT (2015-AW-BX-0020)
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For more information on the U.S. Attorney’s Office, District of Arizona, visit http://www.justice.gov/usao/az/
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Pace Man Sentenced to 180 Months for Receipt of Child PornographyRead the Press Release
PENSACOLA, FLORIDA – Timothy S. Faircloth, 44, a registered sex offender who resides in Pace, Florida, was sentenced to 180 months in prison yesterday for receipt of child pornography. The sentence was announced by Christopher P. Canova, Acting United States Attorney for the Northern District of Florida.
During an online investigation, federal agents discovered that, on 40 occasions between March 8, 2014, and January 27, 2015, Faircloth received or attempted to receive child pornography images and videos. At his plea hearing on June 17, 2015, Faircloth admitted that, between March 2014 and January 2015, he received child pornography images and videos from the internet as charged in the Indictment. A forensic review of Faircloth’s desktop and laptop computers revealed approximately 30 child pornography images, including images of children under the age of 12.
The charges were investigated by the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement Homeland Security Investigations. The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Jeffrey Tharp.
The United States Attorney's Office for the Northern District of Florida is one of 94 offices that serve as the nation’s principal litigators under the direction of the Attorney General. The office strives to protect and serve the citizens of the Northern District of Florida through the ethical, vigorous, and impartial enforcement of the laws of the United States, to defend the national security, to improve the safety and quality of life in our communities through the protection of civil rights, and to protect the public funds and financial assets of the United States. To access public court documents online, please visit the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Florida website. For more information about the United States Attorney’s Office, Northern District of Florida, visit http://www.justice.gov/usao/fln/index.html.
For more information, contact: Amy Alexander, Public Information Office: (850) 216-3854, [email protected]
Pace Man Sentenced to 180 Months for Receipt of Child PornographyRead the Press Release
PENSACOLA, FLORIDA – Timothy S. Faircloth, 44, a registered sex offender who resides in Pace, Florida, was sentenced to 180 months in prison yesterday for receipt of child pornography. The sentence was announced by Christopher P. Canova, Acting United States Attorney for the Northern District of Florida.
During an online investigation, federal agents discovered that, on 40 occasions between March 8, 2014, and January 27, 2015, Faircloth received or attempted to receive child pornography images and videos. At his plea hearing on June 17, 2015, Faircloth admitted that, between March 2014 and January 2015, he received child pornography images and videos from the internet as charged in the Indictment. A forensic review of Faircloth’s desktop and laptop computers revealed approximately 30 child pornography images, including images of children under the age of 12.
The charges were investigated by the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement Homeland Security Investigations. The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Jeffrey Tharp.
The United States Attorney's Office for the Northern District of Florida is one of 94 offices that serve as the nation’s principal litigators under the direction of the Attorney General. The office strives to protect and serve the citizens of the Northern District of Florida through the ethical, vigorous, and impartial enforcement of the laws of the United States, to defend the national security, to improve the safety and quality of life in our communities through the protection of civil rights, and to protect the public funds and financial assets of the United States. To access public court documents online, please visit the
U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Florida website. For more information about the United States Attorney’s Office, Northern District of Florida, visit http://www.justice.gov/usao/fln/index.html.
For more information, contact:
Amy Alexander, Public Information Officer
(850) 216-3854,
Pace Doctor Sentenced to 12 Months in Prison for Tax FraudRead the Press Release
PENSACOLA, FLORIDA – Dr. Sheila Mohammed, 55, of Pace, Florida, was sentenced yesterday afternoon to 12 months and one day in prison for seven counts of submitting false tax returns, followed by two years of supervised release, and ordered to pay $255,158 in restitution to the Internal Revenue Service. The sentence was announced by Christopher P. Canova, Acting United States Attorney for the Northern District of Florida.
Mohammed pled guilty on April 22, 2015, to the seven-count Indictment returned earlier this year. During her plea, Dr. Mohammed admitted she signed and caused to be filed, false personal tax returns that grossly underreported her total income for tax years 2010 through 2013. In addition, Dr. Mohammed admitted that, as president and owner of The Industrial Medicine Institute Inc., a medical practice in Pace, Florida, she signed and caused to be filed, false corporate tax returns for The Industrial Medicine Institute Inc., for the years 2010 through 2012.
At Mohammed’s sentencing hearing, the government showed that, between February 2010 and June 2014, Mohammed used the money she failed to disclose to the Internal Revenue Service, totaling approximately $1,166,632, to purchase vehicles and properties located in Pensacola, Pace, and Destin, Florida, and Hawaii and New Mexico.
The charges were the result of an investigation by the Internal Revenue Service – Criminal Investigation, with assistance from the Santa Rosa County Sheriff’s Office. The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Tiffany H. Eggers.
The United States Attorney's Office for the Northern District of Florida is one of 94 offices that serve as the nation’s principal litigators under the direction of the Attorney General. The office strives to protect and serve the citizens of the Northern District of Florida through the ethical, vigorous, and impartial enforcement of the laws of the United States, to defend the national security, to improve the safety and quality of life in our communities through the protection of civil rights, and to protect the public funds and financial assets of the United States. To access public court documents online, please visit the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Florida website. For more information about the United States Attorney’s Office, Northern
District of Florida, visit http://www.justice.gov/usao/fln/index.html.
For more information, contact: Amy Alexander, Public Information Officer
(850) 216-3854, [email protected]Pace Doctor Sentenced to 12 Months in Prison for Tax FraudRead the Press Release
PENSACOLA, FLORIDA – Dr. Sheila Mohammed, 55, of Pace, Florida, was sentenced yesterday afternoon to 12 months and one day in prison for seven counts of submitting false tax returns, followed by two years of supervised release, and ordered to pay $255,158 in restitution to the Internal Revenue Service. The sentence was announced by Christopher P. Canova, Acting United States Attorney for the Northern District of Florida.
Mohammed pled guilty on April 22, 2015, to the seven-count Indictment returned earlier this year. During her plea, Dr. Mohammed admitted she signed and caused to be filed, false personal tax returns that grossly underreported her total income for tax years 2010 through 2013. In addition, Dr. Mohammed admitted that, as president and owner of The Industrial Medicine Institute Inc., a medical practice in Pace, Florida, she signed and caused to be filed, false corporate tax returns for The Industrial Medicine Institute Inc., for the years 2010 through 2012.
At Mohammed’s sentencing hearing, the government showed that, between February 2010 and June 2014, Mohammed used the money she failed to disclose to the Internal Revenue Service, totaling approximately $1,166,632, to purchase vehicles and properties located in Pensacola, Pace, and Destin, Florida, and Hawaii and New Mexico.
The charges were the result of an investigation by the Internal Revenue Service – Criminal Investigation, with assistance from the Santa Rosa County Sheriff’s Office. The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Tiffany H. Eggers.
The United States Attorney's Office for the Northern District of Florida is one of 94 offices that serve as the nation’s principal litigators under the direction of the Attorney General. The office strives to protect and serve the citizens of the Northern District of Florida through the ethical, vigorous, and impartial enforcement of the laws of the United States, to defend the national security, to improve the safety and quality of life in our communities through the protection of civil rights, and to protect the public funds and financial assets of the United States. To access public court documents online, please visit the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Florida website. For more information about the United States Attorney’s Office, Northern
District of Florida, visit http://www.justice.gov/usao/fln/index.html.
For more information, contact:
Amy Alexander, Public Information Officer
(850) 216-3854,
North Carolina Receives $63 Million to Help Crime VictimsRead the Press Release
RALEIGH – United States Attorney Thomas G. Walker announced today that local community agencies that assist crime victims will benefit from $60,012,054 that has been awarded to the State of North Carolina by the U.S. Department of Justice’s Office of Victims of Crime (OVC).
The North Carolina Department of Public Safety’s Governor’s Crime Commission will distribute these funds to domestic violence shelters, rape crisis centers, and other local agencies to provide services to victims, such as crisis intervention, counseling, emergency shelter, and criminal justice advocacy.
U.S. Attorney Walker said, “This program can make a tremendous difference for crime victims and their families, and it is especially satisfying to know that the support they receive is funded not by the taxpayers but by the offenders themselves.”
Additionally, on July 31, the state’s Victim Compensation section received an annual grant of $3,558,000. OVC provides financial assistance to each state’s crime victim compensation program that equals 60 percent of what the program spends in state money annually. These supplemental funds help crime victims every day by paying for the costs of medical care, mental health counseling, lost time at work, as well as funerals and other expenses that families face in the aftermath of a homicide.
These combined federal awards, totaling $63,570,054, represent the federal government’s efforts to insure that much needed assistance is provided to innocent crime victims, and has resulted in a true federal-state partnership to aid victims.
These awards come from the Crime Victims Fund, which was established by the Victims of Crime Act of 1984 (VOCA), as amended. Criminal fines collected by U.S. Attorneys, the U.S. Courts, and the Bureau of Prisons are deposited into the Crime Victims Fund, which is administered by OVC. The Fund supports these annual victim assistance awards to all 50 states, the District of Columbia, and the territories. Fines collected in one year are available for grant awards the following year.
The federal victim assistance grant program is designed to supplement state victim assistance programs. OVC awards the annual grants to state agencies selected by governors, which sub-grant the federal dollars to local community agencies that assist crime victims.
For more information about North Carolina’s victim assistance program, visit the Governor’s Crime Commission website at https://www.ncdps.gov/index2.cfm?a=000003%2C000011
or by telephone at 919-733-4564. Information about OVC and its programs is available at http://ojp.gov/ovc/ or by calling 202-307-5983.
New York Doctor Charged with Falsely Certifying Physical Examinations for Commercial DriversRead the Press Release
A criminal complaint was unsealed this morning in Brooklyn federal court charging Gerald Surya, M.D., with falsely certifying physical examinations for commercial drivers. Specifically, the complaint charges that Dr. Surya certified that he had examined applicants for commercial driver’s licenses (CDLs) and found them physically fit to drive heavy commercial vehicles when in fact he had not performed those examinations. The defendant’s initial appearance is scheduled later today before United States Magistrate Judge Roanne L. Mann, at the United States Courthouse, 225 Cadman Plaza East, Brooklyn, New York.
The charge was announced by Kelly T. Currie, Acting United States Attorney for the Eastern District of New York, and Douglas Shoemaker, Regional Special Agent-in-Charge, United States Department of Transportation-Office of Inspector General (USDOT-OIG).
As set forth in the complaint, drivers of certain commercial vehicles, such as school buses and heavy transportation trucks, must possess a CDL, issued by the New York State Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV), pursuant to regulations set forth by the United States Department of Transportation (USDOT). Before obtaining a CDL, all applicants must pass written and road tests related to safely driving such large vehicles. In addition, the applicants must be examined and certified fit to drive such vehicles by a physician or other qualified medical personnel authorized by the USDOT to conduct such examinations. Upon receipt of the certification, the applicant must file a copy with the DMV. Further, on a monthly basis, USDOT certified medical examiners are required to electronically transmit to USDOT copies of certifications they have executed for CDL applicants.
As alleged in the complaint, Dr. Surya was authorized to conduct USDOT mandated medical examinations and certifications for CDL applicants and purportedly performed such examinations at his JFK Medport office, located at JFK airport in Queens, New York. In fact, the applicants were not examined by Dr. Surya, but instead by other JFK Medport staff members who had little or no medical training and were not authorized to conduct the mandated medical examinations.
“Dr. Surya’s conduct put at risk pedestrians as well as other drivers. We are committed to aggressively investigating and prosecuting those who would commit crimes that compromise the safety of the public,” stated Acting United States Attorney Currie. Mr. Currie extended his appreciation to the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration for its assistance.
“As evidenced by the arrest of Dr. Gerald Surya on charges related to unlawful medical examinations for applicants of Commercial Driver’s Licenses, ensuring safety on the nation’s roadways remains a high priority for the Office of Inspector General (OIG), the Department of Transportation (DOT) and the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA),” said DOT-OIG regional Special Agent-in-Charge Shoemaker. “Working with our DOT, FMCSA, law enforcement and prosecutorial colleagues, we will continue our vigorous efforts to prevent, detect, and prosecute violations of laws and regulations, CDL and otherwise, designed to ensure the public’s safety.”
The charge in the complaint is merely an allegation, and the defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty. If convicted, the defendant faces a maximum sentence of 15 years of imprisonment.
The government’s case is being prosecuted by the Office’s Public Integrity Section. Assistant United States Attorney Michael H. Warren is in charge of the prosecution.
The Defendant:
GERALD SURYA
Age: 45
Residence: New Hyde Park, New YorkE.D.N.Y. Docket No. 14-M-853
Navajo Man from Thoreau, N.M., Sentenced to 140 Months in Federal Prison for Child Sexual Abuse ConvictionRead the Press Release
ALBUQUERQUE – Bronson Ranger, 36, an enrolled member of the Navajo Nation who resides in Thoreau, N.M., was sentenced this morning in federal court in Santa Fe, N.M., to 140 months in prison followed by 25 years of supervised release for his aggravated child sexual abuse conviction. Ranger will be required to register as a sex offender after completing his prison sentence.
Ranger was arrested on Dec. 12, 2012, on an indictment alleging that he sexually abused an Indian child under the age of 12 years between Aug. 1, 2008 and Oct. 30, 2008. The indictment alleged that Ranger violated the young victim in a location within the Navajo Indian Reservation in McKinley County, N.M.
On April 30, 2015, Ranger entered a guilty plea to a felony information charging him with aggravated sexual abuse. In entering his guilty plea, Ranger admitted sexually molesting the victim in a location within the Navajo Indian Reservation.
This case was investigated by the Gallup office of the FBI and the Crownpoint office of the Navajo Nation Division of Public Safety. The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Kyle T. Nayback as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice (DOJ) to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by United States Attorneys’ Offices and DOJ’s Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state and local resources to better locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the Internet, as well as to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit http://www.justice.gov/psc/.
Morgan City man pleads guilty to stealing from federally funded nonprofitRead the Press Release
LAFAYETTE, La. – United States Attorney Stephanie A. Finley announced today that a Morgan City man pleaded guilty to stealing loan money from a federally funded nonprofit.
Timothy Daigle, 32, of Morgan City, La., pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Richard T. Haik to one count of fraud concerning program receiving federal funds. According to the guilty plea, while working as a loan officer and agent at the nonprofit Southern Mutual Help Association (SMHA) in New Iberia, La., Daigle stole more than $90,000. On four separate occasions from September 2013 until February 2014, Daigle, acting as an agent of SMHA, helped to fraudulently approve loans in the names of friends and associates in New Iberia and Morgan City.
Daigle faces up to 10 years in prison, three years of supervised release, a $250,000 fine and restitution. A sentencing date was not set.
The FBI investigated the case. Assistant U.S. Attorneys David C. Joseph and Kelly P. Uebinger are prosecuting the case.
Mission Man Sentenced for Assault Resulting in Serious Bodily Injury and Child AbuseRead the Press Release
Acting United States Attorney Randolph J. Seiler announced that a Mission, South Dakota, man convicted of Assault Resulting in Serious Bodily Injury and Child Abuse was sentenced on September 14, 2015, by U.S. District Judge Roberto A. Lange.
Frederick Leo Marshall, age 57, was sentenced to 120 months in custody on the assault charge, and 36 months in custody on the child abuse charge, to be served consecutively. Marshall was also sentenced to 3 years of supervised release, and a $200 special assessment to the Federal Crime Victims Fund. He was also ordered to pay restitution to the victim in the amount of $1,677.14, and to South Dakota Medicaid in the amount of $11,581.76.
Marshall was indicted by a federal grand jury on December 9, 2014. He pled guilty on June 29, 2015.
The conviction stems from incidents on October 30, 2014. Marshall was at a home in Sicangu Village with his wife, the victim. There had been recent talks about divorce and Marshall had moved out of the marital home for a period of time. That evening, they were reconciling and he had returned to the house. Marshall drank alcohol, became jealous, and argued with the victim. He later punched her in front of some of their children, and he also forced her into a bathroom and their bedroom and further beat and assaulted her. He threatened and slapped her with a sword. The beating also caused a fractured eye socket and profusely swollen eyes, to the point where she could not see. Marshall used scissors to cut off the victim’s hair and did other things to her. Their children witnessed the abuse.
Marshall also brought the children towards the bedroom to witness some of what was occurring, and how their mother was being beaten, humiliated, and degraded. One of the children went into the room and personally witnessed some of the abuse. The child heard her mom begging to not be killed, and also heard Marshall verbally abusing their mother, telling the child how he was making an example of their mother. The child also saw her mom bloodied and beaten, which tormented the child. The child was frightened and, for a time, thought her mother was going to be killed.
This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Rosebud Sioux Tribe Law Enforcement Services. Assistant U.S. Attorney Timothy M. Maher prosecuted the case.
Marshall was immediately turned over to the custody of the U.S. Marshals Service.
Louisiana Resident Sentenced for Role in Stolen Identity Tax Fraud SchemeRead the Press Release
A resident of Hammond, Louisiana, was sentenced today to serve 33 months in prison to be followed by three years of supervised release for his role in a triple-object conspiracy to defraud the United States, to commit theft of public money, and mail fraud, announced Acting Assistant Attorney General Caroline D. Ciraolo of the Justice Department’s Tax Division and U.S. Attorney Kenneth A. Polite of the Eastern District of Louisiana.
Cedrick Mitchell, aka Skeet, 40, pleaded guilty on June 17 to one count of a triple-object conspiracy to defraud the United States, to commit theft of public money, and mail fraud. U.S. District Judge Jay C. Zainey of the Eastern District of Louisiana imposed today’s sentence and set a later date to determine Mitchell’s the restitution amount that Mitchell will have to pay to the Internal Revenue Service (IRS).
According to court documents, Mitchell and his co-defendants conspired to file false federal income tax returns using stolen identities. The conspirators used stolen names and social security numbers to prepare false tax returns that claimed tax refunds. The refund checks were mailed to addresses in Louisiana, including to post office boxes that were opened and controlled by the conspirators. The conspirators then falsely endorsed and cashed the checks. Mitchell also deposited refund checks from the U.S. Treasury into a bank account under his control.
The indictment also charged Corey Lewis, aka Coco, 37; Angela Chaney, 43; Craig Lewis, 40; Brad Lewis, aka Bird, 32; Thaddeus Richardson, 49; and Martin Jackson Sr., 48, with conspiracy. In addition, Corey Lewis, Chaney, Richardson and Jackson Sr. were charged with various counts of theft of public money. Chaney was also charged with six counts of mail fraud and five counts of aggravated identity theft. Corey Lewis was additionally charged with three counts of aggravated identity theft. All of the defendants in this case have pleaded guilty to various charges and are awaiting sentencing.
Acting Assistant Attorney General Ciraolo and U.S. Attorney Polite commended special agents of IRS-Criminal Investigation and the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, who investigated the case, and Assistant U.S. Attorneys Hayden Brockett and Dall Kammer and Trial Attorney Lauren Castaldi of the Tax Division, who are prosecuting the case.
Louisiana Resident Sentenced for Role in Stolen Identity Tax Fraud SchemeRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON – A resident of Hammond, Louisiana, was sentenced today to serve 33 months in prison to be followed by three years of supervised release for his role in a triple-object conspiracy to defraud the United States, to commit theft of public money, and mail fraud, announced Acting Assistant Attorney General Caroline D. Ciraolo of the Justice Department’s Tax Division and U.S. Attorney Kenneth A. Polite of the Eastern District of Louisiana.
Cedrick Mitchell, aka Skeet, 40, pleaded guilty on June 17 to one count of a triple-object conspiracy to defraud the United States, to commit theft of public money, and mail fraud. U.S. District Judge Jay C. Zainey of the Eastern District of Louisiana imposed today’s sentence and set a later date to determine Mitchell’s the restitution amount that Mitchell will have to pay to the Internal Revenue Service (IRS).
According to court documents, Mitchell and his co-defendants conspired to file false federal income tax returns using stolen identities. The conspirators used stolen names and social security numbers to prepare false tax returns that claimed tax refunds. The refund checks were mailed to addresses in Louisiana, including to post office boxes that were opened and controlled by the conspirators. The conspirators then falsely endorsed and cashed the checks. Mitchell also deposited refund checks from the U.S. Treasury into a bank account under his control.
The indictment also charged Corey Lewis, aka Coco, 37; Angela Chaney, 43; Craig Lewis, 40; Brad Lewis, aka Bird, 32; Thaddeus Richardson, 49; and Martin Jackson Sr., 48, with conspiracy. In addition, Corey Lewis, Chaney, Richardson and Jackson Sr. were charged with various counts of theft of public money. Chaney was also charged with six counts of mail fraud and five counts of aggravated identity theft. Corey Lewis was additionally charged with three counts of aggravated identity theft. All of the defendants in this case have pleaded guilty to various charges and are awaiting sentencing.
Acting Assistant Attorney General Ciraolo and U.S. Attorney Polite commended special agents of IRS-Criminal Investigation and the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, who investigated the case, and Assistant U.S. Attorneys Hayden Brockett and Dall Kammer and Trial Attorney Lauren Castaldi of the Tax Division, who are prosecuting the case.
Long-Time Drug Trafficker and Money Launderer Sentenced to 15 Years in Prison for Supplying Drugs to Alaska and MissouriRead the Press Release
Anchorage, Alaska - U.S. Attorney Karen L. Loeffler announced that on September 14, 2015, Steven Nicholas Taylor, aka “Nicky”, aka “Louie V”, 44, was sentenced in Alaska U.S. District Court for his convictions in two separate federal cases. In the Alaska case, Taylor was sentenced on his pleas of guilty to conspiracy to distribute controlled substances, primarily cocaine, and conspiracy to commit money laundering. In a separate but related case arising in the Eastern District of Missouri, Taylor was sentenced on his plea of guilty to drug trafficking conspiracy.
Chief Judge Ralph R. Beistline imposed a 15-year composite sentence on Taylor for both cases, to be followed by five years of supervised release. Taylor also agreed in his plea agreement to forfeit and abandon any interest in his Seattle home, which, according to the investigation, he was actively attempting to sell so that he could finance future drug trafficking activities.
According to court documents, Taylor and his accomplices were major sources of supply for cocaine in Alaska going back 20 years. In the late 1990’s, Taylor was charged in Seattle as being part of a continuing criminal enterprise that supplied drugs to Alaska as early as 1991. In that case, Taylor was convicted of drug conspiracy, money laundering, and interstate travel in aid of racketeering, and served 121 months in federal prison. Court documents reflect that in 2009, shortly after court-ordered supervision was terminated in the Seattle case, Taylor resumed drug trafficking operations with several of the same accomplices, and supplied cocaine and other drugs to Alaska and Missouri. In the Alaska case, Judge Beistline found that Taylor directed the activities of Timothy Northcutt, Joseph Irving, Etienne Devoe, Leonard Charles, Joshua Haynes, and others.
At sentencing, Assistant U.S. Attorney Frank Russo, who prosecuted the Alaska case, called Taylor a “drug-trafficking aficionado,” who was caught on court-ordered wiretaps discussing drug trafficking with co-conspirators in hundreds of conversations. According to the government’s sentencing memorandum, Taylor also was caught on the wiretaps discussing Department of Justice press releases on drug traffickers in Alaska, as well as the outcomes of those cases. During the wiretap investigation, Taylor was particularly concerned about the outcome of the case involving Terrance Fleming, and admitted on recorded conversations that he supplied Fleming with 15 kilograms of cocaine that were seized by the U.S. Postal Inspection Service. In his sentencing comments, Judge Beistline noted that Taylor “knew the consequences of drug dealing” but nonetheless “chose to victimize society.”
In total, Taylor admitted to supplying between 15 and 50 kilograms of cocaine to Alaska, as well as an additional 5 to 15 kilograms to Missouri. DEA Special Agent in Charge Keith Weis was very pleased with the sentence, stating that, “The dedicated work of our prosecutors and investigators, have shut down this extremely calculating career criminal for a long time.” Seattle Division Inspector in Charge Anthony Galetti of the U.S. Postal Inspection Service stated, “Postal Inspectors worked closely with the U.S. Attorney’s Office and our partners in law enforcement on this investigation and will continue to vigorously protect the U.S. Mail against all forms of criminal attack and misuse.”
Taylor also directed and instructed his co-conspirators on money laundering. The purpose of the money laundering was the continuation of Taylor’s drug conspiracy operation, from which Taylor was the primary beneficiary. Devoe, Northcutt, Leonard, and Charles participated in the money laundering activities, including exchanging text messages with Taylor on how to launder the money, and what bank accounts to use.
“Narcotics trafficking is a dirty business. Steven Taylor and his crew infested our communities with drugs for years,” said Special Agent in Charge Teri Alexander of IRS Criminal Investigation. “IRS Criminal Investigation is proud to continue our long tradition of working with our law enforcement partners to clean up our streets by sending drug dealers where they belong: prison.”
Taylor’s co-defendants in the case received the following sentences:
- James Brown, Sr., 56 months
- Leonard D. Charles, 60 months
- Etienne Q. Devoe, 126 months
- Shawn Cortez Cloyd, 36 months
- Timothy W. Northcutt, 72 months
- Joshua J. Haynes, 30 months
- Gabrielle P. Haynes, 18 months
- Joseph E. Irving, 21 months
The Alaska case was prosecuted by Deputy Criminal Chief Frank Russo of the U. S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Alaska, and was investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), the Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigation (IRS-CI), and the United States Postal Inspector Service (UPSIS). The Missouri case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney John Davis in St. Louis, and was investigated by the St. Louis divisions of the DEA and USPIS.
Local Man Pleads Guilty to Federal Hate Crime Against Gay African American ManRead the Press Release
CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas - A Texas man has pleaded guilty to hate crime offenses for his role in a Mar. 8, 2012, assault of a gay African American man in Corpus Christi, announced U.S. Attorney Kenneth Magidson and Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Vanita Gupta, head of the Department of Justice’s Civil Rights Division.
Ramiro Serrata Jr., 22, pleaded guilty in federal court in Corpus Christi to one count of conspiracy to commit hate crimes and one count of a hate crime violation based on sexual orientation.
During the plea hearing, Serrata admitted that he and others conspired to assault a gay African American man because of his race, color and sexual orientation. Serrata admitted that during the assault, he and his co-conspirators punched and kicked the man and assaulted him with various dangerous weapons, including a frying pan, a mug, a sock filled with batteries, a broom and a belt.
Serrata admitted that when the victim began to bleed, the conspirators forced him to remove all of his clothing and clean up the blood throughout the apartment. After the victim was completely naked, one of the conspirators pointed a gun at the victim, while Serrata sodomized him with a broom. During the assault, the conspirators poured bleach onto the man’s face and eyes, pistol-whipped him with a handgun and whipped him with a belt.
Serrata acknowledged that throughout the assault, the conspirators repeatedly called the victim racial and homophobic slurs and made other anti-black and anti-gay statements. The conspirators also prevented the man from leaving the apartment by physical force and threats of force. The victim eventually escaped the apartment by jumping out of a window.
Serrata will be sentenced on Dec. 9, 2015, and faces a maximum sentence of 15 years in prison. Serrata is incarcerated pending sentencing.
Jimmy Garza Jr. is also charged with related hate crimes in connection to this offense. His trial is scheduled for Sept. 29, 2015. He has pleaded not guilty, and is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
This case was investigated by the FBI’s Corpus Christi Resident Agency with assistance from the Corpus Christi Police Department and is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Ruben Perez and Trial Attorneys Jared Fishman and Nicholas Durham of the Civil Rights Division.
Local Attorney Pleads Guilty to Operating an Unlicensed Money Transmitting BusinessRead the Press Release
Assistant U.S. Attorneys Luella Caldito and Daniel C. Silva at (619) 546-9713
NEWS RELEASE SUMMARY – September 15, 2015
SAN DIEGO – Attorney Richard Medina, Jr. pleaded guilty today in federal court, admitting that he and others operated an unlicensed money transmitting business that illegally conducted almost $12 million worth of international financial transactions in violation of the Bank Secrecy Act.
Medina entered his plea before U.S. Magistrate Judge Bernard G. Skomal. In his plea agreement, Medina admitted that he and other defendants operated a commercial enterprise that collected cash from clients in the U.S. and transferred it to points around the world without registering the business with the Secretary of the Treasury, as required by law. Medina also pleaded guilty to a conspiracy charge.
Medina and his co-conspirators, Omar Trevino Caro Del Castillo and Francisco Cuevas, obtained commissions for their services, extracting a fee from the millions of dollars transmitted abroad. Caro Del Castillo and Cuevas have already pleaded guilty and are awaiting sentencing.
Medina, in his role in the conspiracy, illegally utilized his law firm’s “Interest on Lawyers’ Trust Accounts” (IOLTA) for receipt, transport, and transmission of cash to international destinations. Civil attorneys routinely receive client funds, known as “Trust money,” to be held in trust for future use – including IOLTA Accounts.
Medina acknowledged in his plea agreement that he “knew or had reason to know that the cash transactions described [therein] were proceeds of unlawful activity, or were intended to promote unlawful activity.”
Medina is scheduled to be sentenced on December 7, 2015 by U.S. District Court Judge Roger T. Benitez. U.S. Magistrate Judge Skomal allowed Medina to remain on pretrial release, pursuant to the terms of a bond posted by Medina.
DEFENDANT Case No. 14cr2936
Richard Medina Age: 39
SUMMARY OF CHARGES
Operating an Unlicensed Money Transmitting Business – Title 18, U.S.C., Section 1960
Maximum penalty: Five years in prison, $250,000 fine, and forfeiture
Conspiracy – Title 18, U.S.C., Section 371
Maximum penalty: Five years in prison
AGENCY
Federal Bureau of Investigation
Drug Enforcement Administration
Internal Revenue Service
Loan Officer Pleads Guilty to Bank FraudRead the Press Release
COEUR D'ALENE - Randy Gard Teall, 67, of Post Falls, Idaho, pleaded guilty today to bank fraud, U.S. Attorney Wendy J. Olson announced. Teall was indicted by a federal grand jury in Coeur d'Alene on June 17, 2014.
According to the plea agreement, Teall admitted he was a loan officer at Global Credit Union, a federally insured financial institution in Coeur d’Alene, Idaho. With the intent to defraud, Teall executed a scheme to procure loans from Global Credit Union using false promises or statements on loans he approved to individuals with whom he had a business relationship. Teall failed to disclose his personal and business relationship and the borrowers’ true financial worth. Some of Global’s loan funds were used to pay rent to Teall.
The charge of bank fraud is punishable by up to 30 years in prison, a maximum fine of $250,000, and up to five years of supervised release.
Sentencing is set for December 15, 2015, before Senior U.S. District Judge Edward J. Lodge at the federal courthouse in Coeur d'Alene.
The case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation.
Lincoln Man Sentenced for Receiving Child PornographyRead the Press Release
United States Attorney Deborah R. Gilg announced that Albert H. Hines, 50, of Lincoln, Nebraska, was sentenced today in Lincoln, Nebraska, to 10 years in prison by United States District Judge John M. Gerrard, for receiving child pornography. Hines will also be required to serve 10 years of supervised release once he is released from prison. Additionally, he will be required to register as a convicted sex offender.
In the summer of 2012, Nebraska law enforcement received information from an internet based media storage company that two email addresses were uploading images of child pornography. Further investigation into the email addresses provided revealed that they were registered to Albert Hines, a native of Louisiana who came to Nebraska after Hurricane Katrina. IP addresses for the dates and times in question determined that the internet was used at either Hines’ residence or at another residence in Lincoln, Nebraska, during a period of time when Hines was living there.
On May 14, 2014, a search warrant was executed at the Hines’ residence in Lincoln. Hines was interviewed and he acknowledged possession of child pornography. Hines also acknowledged that he had traded the child pornography with other individuals. During the forensic investigation of the computer equipment taken from Hines' residence, officers found approximately 400 photos of child pornography, including images involving children under the age of 12.
This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice. Led by United States Attorneys’ Offices and the Criminal Division's Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS), Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state and local resources to better locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the Internet, as well as to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.projectsafechildhood.gov.
This case was investigated by the Lincoln Police Department.
Last Defendant Sentenced in Identity Fraud SchemeRead the Press Release
PHILADELPHIA - Brandon Jones, 34, of Reading, PA, was sentenced today to 33 months in prison for his role in an identity fraud scheme. U.S. District Court Judge Edward G. Smith also ordered five years of supervised release, a $300 special assessment, restitution of $72,554 and forfeiture in the same amount. Jones pleaded guilty on May 15, 2015 to conspiracy, wire fraud and bank fraud. Jones participated in an identity fraud scheme that involved stealing personal information, including from old court records. The ringleader, Damian Gasdaska, was sentenced in May 2015 to 144 months in prison. Jones is the last of the five defendants in the case to be sentenced. Co-conpirator Randall McMahon, of Easton, PA, was sentenced in June of 2015 to 29 months; John Cordero, of Breinigsville, PA, was sentenced in June of 2015 to 18 months; and Johnnie Rhines, of Lindenwold, NJ, was sentenced in March of 2015 to 30 months.
The defendants used stolen information to create false identities which they then used to apply for credit cards and for purchasing or renting vehicles. Gasdaska provided some of the fraudulent credit cards he acquired to his co-conspirators and kept some for himself. He also showed his co-conspirators how to commit the fraud. Gasdaska took steps to create favorable credit profiles for these false identities, and to improve the individuals’ credit profiles. These steps included: obtaining reports on the individuals, requesting the modification of information in the reports, and engaging in transactions in the names of the false identities to improve their credit profiles. The defendants applied for loans in the name of the false identities for which Gasdaska had improved their credit profiles. The defendants secured fraudulent loans exceeding $200,000 to buy cars under false pretenses. They collectively purchased or attempted to purchase at least 15 different vehicles.
Gasdaska used Post Offices boxes in the name of the false identities to receive mail for various purposes, such as in connection with credit card applications. He used computers at public libraries to further the conspiracy. After the defendants made their purchases, they often provided the purchased items to Gasdaska who then sold them and paid the co-conspirators for their illegal services. When Gasdaska and McMahon weres arrested in January 2013, Gasdaska was driving a car he had purchased through his fraud scheme that was filled with fraudulent documentation Gasdaska had generated and received during his scheme. In January of 2000, Jones was arrested while driving the car that he purchased through the scheme.
The case was investigated by United States Secret Service, the United States Postal Inspection Service, Homeland Security Investigations, and the Lehigh County Auto Theft and Insurance Fraud Task Force. It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Patrick J. Murray.
Lapwai Man Pleads Guilty to Sexually Abusing a ChildRead the Press Release
COEUR D'ALENE - Robert William McAllaster, 50, of Lapwai, Idaho, pleaded guilty today to sexual abuse of a child, U.S. Attorney Wendy J. Olson announced. McAllaster was indicted by a federal grand jury in Coeur d'Alene on March 17, 2015.
According to the plea agreement, between June 25, 2012, and September 30, 2014, on the Nez Perce Indian Reservation, McAllaster sexually abused a child who was over the age of twelve, by causing contact between his penis and the child.
The charge is punishable by up to fifteen years in prison, up to lifetime supervised release following any prison sentence, and a maximum fine of $250,000.00.
Sentencing is set for December 15, 2015, before Senior U.S. District Judge Edward J. Lodge at the federal courthouse in Coeur d'Alene.
The case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Nez Perce Tribal Police Department, and the Nez Perce County Sheriff’s Office.
Laguna Pueblo Man Sentenced to Federal Prison for Assaulting Acoma Pueblo WomanRead the Press Release
ALBUQUERQUE – Bradford Day, 41, an enrolled member of the Laguna Pueblo who resides in Laguna, N.M., was sentenced today in federal court in Santa Fe, N.M., to 18 months in federal prison for his assault conviction. Day will be on supervised release for three years after completing his prison sentence.
Day was arrested on May 6, 2014, on a criminal complaint charging him assault with a deadly weapon and assault resulting in serious bodily injury. According to the complaint, Day assaulted an Acoma Pueblo woman on April 26, 2014, in a location within Acoma Pueblo in Cibola County, N.M. The complaint alleged that in the early morning hours of April 26, 2014, Day assaulted the victim by throwing a pint bottle of beer at the victim’s face, which struck the victim’s face causing her to suffer bruises, cuts and the loss of three teeth.
Day pled guilty on Dec. 31, 2014, to a felony information charging him with assault resulting in serious bodily injury. In entering his guilty plea, Day admitted assaulting the victim on April 26, 2014, by throwing an unopened bottle of beer at the victim and knocking out three of the victim’s teeth.
This case was investigated by the Laguna/Acoma Agency of the BIA’s Office of Justice Services and the Acoma Tribal Police Department. Assistant U.S. Attorney David Adams prosecuted this case. The case was brought pursuant to the Tribal Special Assistant U.S. Attorney (Tribal SAUSA) Pilot Project in the District of New Mexico which is sponsored by the Justice Department’s Office on Violence Against Women under a grant administered by the Pueblo of Laguna. The Tribal SAUSA Pilot Project seeks to train tribal prosecutors in federal law, procedure and investigative techniques to increase the likelihood that every viable violent offense against Native women is prosecuted in either federal court or tribal court, or both. The Tribal SAUSA Pilot Project was largely driven by input gathered from annual tribal consultations on violence against women, and is another step in the Justice Department's on-going efforts to increase engagement, coordination and action on public safety in tribal communities.
Lafayette man sentenced to 54 months in prison for possessing 8 stolen firearms in homeRead the Press Release
LAFAYETTE, La. – United States Attorney Stephanie A. Finley announced today that a Lafayette man was sentenced to 54 months in prison for possessing eight stolen firearms.
Rico D. King, 39, of Lafayette, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Richard T. Haik on one count of possession of stolen firearms. He was also sentenced to three years of supervised release. According to evidence presented at the May 7, 2015 guilty plea, during an investigation into Lafayette burglaries and after developing leads as to the location of the stolen firearms, agents executed a search warrant in September of 2014 at a residence in Lafayette where King was an occupant. During the search, agents found King in possession of the stolen firearms including a .26-06 caliber rifle, two .25-06 caliber rifles, a .410 gauge shotgun, two .12 gauge shotguns, a .22 caliber semi-automatic rifle and a .270 caliber rifle. Victims of the burglaries reported all eight firearms as stolen.
Multiple agencies including the ATF, FBI, Lafayette Parish Sheriff’s Office and Lafayette Metro Narcotics Task Force conducted the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney Robert C. Abendroth prosecuted the case as part of Project Safe Neighborhoods. Project Safe Neighborhoods is a nationwide program designed to reduce violence by aggressively enforcing existing federal firearms laws.
Kentucky Man Pleads Guilty to Eleven Robberies in Georgia and FloridaRead the Press Release
Tampa, Florida – United States Attorney A. Lee Bentley, III announces that Chad Michael Merida (23, Heidrick, Kentucky) today pleaded guilty to interference with commerce by robbery. He faces a maximum penalty of 20 years in federal prison. A sentencing date has not yet been set.
According to court documents, between November 15, 2014, and November 24, 2014, Merida robbed two commercial businesses in Georgia and eight commercial businesses and one bank in Florida. After the final robbery, a PNC Bank on Westshore Boulevard in Tampa, Merida was tracked to his home at the Element Luxury Apartments in downtown Tampa. He ultimately confessed to committing all 11 robberies.
This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation. It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Carlton C. Gammons.
Jefferson City Bank Officer Pleads Guilty to Stealing $410,000Read the Press Release
JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. – Tammy Dickinson, United States Attorney for the Western District of Missouri, announced that a Jefferson City, Mo., woman pleaded guilty in federal court today to embezzling $410,000 from the bank where she was employed.
Katherine Nicholle Brown, 29, of Jefferson City, pleaded guilty before U.S. Magistrate Judge Matt J. Whitworth to the misappropriation of funds by a bank officer.
Brown was previously employed as the lead teller at Hawthorn Bank in Jefferson City. By pleading guilty today, Brown admitted that she embezzled $410,000 from December 2012 to Sept. 19, 2014, by taking money from the bank vault for her personal use.
Brown admitted that she began taking money from the vault when her husband had shoulder surgery in 2012 and could not work. She took the money in small amounts, and would place it in her pockets. Brown then plugged in certain amounts in the vault book to cause the vault book total to match the vault balance in the bank’s computer accounting system. Brown also admitted that, when the bank underwent an internal audit in December 2012, she made false entries into the computer system to conceal the fact that the vault did not match the computer system.
On Sept. 19, 2014, just prior to taking maternity leave, Brown prepared and shipped five bags of cash of varying denominations to the Federal Reserve Bank. She prepared and labeled the bags, which were bar-coded and tamper proof. She reported that the total amount of cash shipped to the Federal Reserve Board was $844,000; however, when the Federal Reserve Board received and counted the money, they found it to be only $434,000.
The Federal Reserve Board reported the shortage to the bank, which conducted an audit of the vault. The audit revealed that certain entries made in the vault book reflecting cash amounts sent to Columbia, Mo., and California, Mo., bank branches were $200,000 higher than the branches had actually ordered. As a result, the vault did not contain as much cash as had been reported on the bank’s computer accounting system. Auditors concluded that Brown had to report to the Federal Reserve Board that $844,000 had been shipped so that it would balance to the bank’s accounting system.
Under federal statutes, Brown is subject to a sentence of up to 30 years in federal prison without parole, plus a fine up to $1 million. A sentencing hearing will be scheduled after the completion of a presentence investigation by the United States Probation Office.
This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Jim Lynn. It was investigated by the FBI.
Jamestown Woman Sentenced to 15 Months in Prison on Charge of Making False Bank EntriesRead the Press Release
Debora Huff, 55, of Jamestown, Tennessee, was sentenced yesterday by Chief U.S. District Judge Kevin H. Sharp, to serve 15 months in prison, followed by five years of supervised release, for making false entries in a bank record, announced David Rivera, U.S. Attorney for the Middle District of Tennessee. Chief Judge Sharp also ordered Huff to pay restitution to First Volunteer Bank in the amount of $578,000.
Huff was initially charged in March 2015 and pleaded guilty to the charge on June 1, 2015.
During the plea hearing, Huff admitted to having embezzled $578,000 from her employer, First Volunteer Bank, beginning in approximately 2000, when Huff was elevated to Head Teller and Vault Teller for the bank. Huff admitted that she embezzled money at least twice each month, beginning in 2000 and continuing until November 20, 2014, when First Volunteer Bank conducted an unannounced cash audit that uncovered her embezzlement. Huff also admitted that during the unannounced audit, she entered into the bank’s computer system and created two cash out tickets in the amount of $289,000 each. After the cash count was over, Huff went back into the system and prepared two cash-in tickets, each in the amount of $289,000, in an effort to conceal the fact that she had been embezzling money from First Volunteer Bank for approximately fourteen years.
The case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation. Assistant United States Attorney Sandra G. Moses represented the government.
In a Settlement with the United States, Puerto Rico Aqueduct and Sewer Authority Agrees to Upgrade Water InfrastructureRead the Press Release
Under a settlement with the Department of Justice and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), the Puerto Rico Aqueduct and Sewer Authority (PRASA) has agreed to make major upgrades, improve inspections and cleaning of existing facilities within the Puerto Nuevo system and continue improvements to its systems island-wide. The Puerto Nuevo sewer system serves the municipalities of San Juan, Trujillo Alto, and portions of Bayamón, Guaynabo and Carolina. The settlement updates and expands upon legal settlement agreements reached with PRASA in 2004, 2006 and 2010. The improvements will supplement projects already being implemented under the previous settlements and PRASA’s Capital Improvement Program, which includes construction of necessary infrastructure at wastewater treatment plants and sludge treatment systems, as well as the Puerto Nuevo collection system. Under this agreement, PRASA will prioritize island-wide capital improvement projects and take into consideration the effect of each requirement on population served. In recognition of the financial conditions in Puerto Rico, the U.S. government waived the payment of civil penalties associated with violations alleged in the complaint filed today.
“These upgrades are urgently needed to reduce the public’s exposure to serious health risks posed by untreated sewage,” said Assistant Attorney General John C. Cruden for the Justice Department’s Environment and Natural Resources Division. “The United States has taken Puerto Rico’s financial hardship into account by prioritizing the most critical projects first, and allowing a phased in approach in other areas, but let me be clear that these requirements are necessary for the long-term health and safety of San Juan area residents.”
“This agreement will reduce the massive amount of untreated sewage and other pollutants that harm major waterways in the San Juan area, improving water quality and public health conditions for thousands of people,” said Regional Administrator Judith A. Enck for EPA.
PRASA’s violations include releases of untreated sewage and other pollutants into waterways in the San Juan area including the San Juan Bay, Condado Lagoon, Martín Peña Canal and the Atlantic Ocean. These releases have been in violation of PRASA’s National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) permits and the Clean Water Act. PRASA also violated its NPDES permit by failing to report discharges in the Puerto Nuevo collection system and by failing to meet effluent limitations and operations and maintenance obligations at numerous facilities island-wide.
Under the agreement, PRASA will spend approximately $1.5 billion to make necessary improvements. PRASA will undertake a comprehensive operation and maintenance program in the Puerto Nuevo sanitary sewer system, including conducting a comprehensive analysis of the system to determine whether subsequent investments must be made to ensure the system is brought into legal compliance and to conduct immediate repairs at specific areas of concern.
PRASA has also agreed to invest $120 million to construct sanitary sewers that will serve communities surrounding the Martín Peña Canal, a project that will benefit approximately 20,000 people. For decades, the Martín Peña communities have struggled with poverty and environmental degradation. This project, which will begin after other infrastructure improvements near the canal are completed, will greatly reduce the amount of untreated sewage and other contaminants entering the canal.
The terms and conditions of the settlement announced today will update, replace and supersede the three existing consent decrees between the United States and PRASA. In recognition of PRASA’s financial challenges, many of the provisions of the agreement have been tailored to focus on the most critical problems first, giving more time to address the less critical problems over time. Additionally, certain projects required under the 2006 and 2010 agreements were found to no longer be necessary, as the population has declined and they have been eliminated under this agreement.
The settlement, lodged today in the U.S. District Court of Puerto Rico, is subject to a 30-day public comment period and approval by the federal court. The settlement will be available for viewing at www.justice.gov/enrd/Consent_Decrees.html
Hopi Tribe Receives Nearly $180,000 in Federal Grant Funds to Support Sex Offender Registration and Notification EffortsRead the Press Release
PHOENIX – Today, U.S. Attorney John S. Leonardo announced that $175,270 in additional grant funds have been made available to the Hopi Tribe to support, maintain, and refine jurisdiction-wide programs and functions under the Sex Offender Registration and Notification Act (“SORNA”). These funds will assist in improving victim notification services, providing educational services, and increasing service capacity. The grant funds were awarded by the Sex Offender Sentencing, Monitoring, Apprehending, Registering, and Tracking (“SMART”) Office, which is a component of the Department of Justice’s Office of Justice Programs (“OJP”).
Information about OJP and its programs can be found at: http://www.ojp.usdoj.gov.
RELEASE NUMBER: 2015-073_HOPI TRIBE GRANT (2015-AW-BX-0013)
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For more information on the U.S. Attorney’s Office, District of Arizona, visit http://www.justice.gov/usao/az/
Follow the U.S. Attorney’s Office, District of Arizona, on Twitter @USAO_AZ for the latest news.
Hayward Man Sentenced to over Ten Years Imprisonment for Receipt of Child Pornography and Travel with the Intent to Engage in Illicit Sexual ConductRead the Press Release
SAN FRANCISCO – Craig Patrick Burt was sentenced yesterday to 127 months’ imprisonment for receipt of child pornography and travel with the intent to engage in illicit sexual conduct, announced Acting United States Attorney Brian J. Stretch and FBI Special Agent in Charge David J. Johnson.
In 2007, Burt, 60, of Hayward, helped to create the Children’s Grace learning center, a charity for impoverished children living in the Philippines. On June 15, 2015, Burt pleaded guilty to receiving child pornography and travelling with the intent to engage in illicit sexual conduct. As part of his plea agreement, Burt admitted that starting in July 2013 he received through his email accounts images of girls ages 10-15 years old who were engaged in sexually explicit conduct. Burt asked for and received these images from an individual in the Philippines and he sent money and gifts to the young girls. Burt further admitted that in January of 2015, he flew to the Philippines where he intended to engage in sexual contact with girls between 10 and 15 years of age. He described in great detail in internet chat messages what specific sexual acts he wanted to perform with the young girls. On February 15, 2015, Burt was arrested at San Francisco International Airport, when he was attempting to reenter the United States.
Burt was indicted on March 3, 2015. He was charged in four counts of conspiracy to engage in sex trafficking, in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 1594(c); sex trafficking, in violation of 18 U.S.C. §§ 1591(a)(1) and (b)(1); receipt or distribution of child pornography, in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 2252(a)(2); and travel with the intent to engage in illicit sexual conduct, in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 2423(b). Under the plea agreement, Burt pleaded guilty to violating 18 U.S.C. §§ 2252(a)(2) and 2423(b).
The sentence was handed down by the Honorable Thelton E. Henderson, Senior U.S. District Judge. Judge Henderson also imposed a five year period of supervised release.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Sheila A.G. Armbrust is prosecuting the case with the assistance of Patricia Mahoney. The prosecution is the result of an investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation.
Gang Associate Pleads Guilty to Drug Trafficking and Firearms ChargesRead the Press Release
PROVIDENCE, R.I. – Antonio Fortes, 25, of Cranston, an associate of the YNIC street gang, pleaded guilty in federal court in Providence today to trafficking heroin and cocaine, and to being a felon in possession of a firearm, announced United States Attorney Peter F. Neronha and Daniel J. Kumor, Special Agent in Charge of the Boston Field Division of ATF.
Fortes, who is scheduled to be sentenced on December 3, 2015, is also facing murder and weapons charges in Rhode Island state court for his alleged role in the October 22, 2014, shooting in Providence that resulted in the death of Terry Robinson. Fortes is charged in state court with one count of murder, three counts of discharge of a firearm while in the commission of a crime of violence, two counts of assault with a dangerous weapon, two counts of carrying a firearm without a license, and one count of conspiracy.
According to federal court documents and information presented to the court, an investigation by ATF agents into Fortes drug trafficking activities included controlled purchases of crack cocaine and repeated surveillance by law enforcement. The investigation culminated with the execution of a court authorized federal search warrant on March 24, 2015, at Fortes’ Cranston residence. The search resulted in the seizure of numerous packets of heroin, crack cocaine and a loaded .45 caliber handgun.
The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Milind M. Shah and William J. Ferland.
Law enforcement officers from the Cranston, Pawtucket and Providence Police Departments assisted agents from ATF in the investigation of this matter.
Fredericksburg Man Guilty of Trafficking over $13 Million in CigarettesRead the Press Release
RICHMOND, Va. – Steven (Yinhau) Chen, 33, of Fredericksburg, pleaded guilty today to conspiring to commit money laundering to promote his cigarette trafficking operation.
In a statement of facts filed with the plea agreement, between March 2014 and June 2015, Chen, the owner of several Fredericksburg-area small businesses, purchased at least $13.8 million in cigarettes from area wholesale stores for the express purpose of re-selling those same cigarettes to individuals trafficking the cigarettes for eventual re-sale in, among other northern destinations, Pennsylvania and New Jersey. Chen would subsequently launder the cash proceeds of these cigarettes sales through at least 20 different bank accounts that Chen and others maintained with at least 10 different banks. Chen maintained these bank accounts in the names of both his legitimate businesses and another business entity that existed only to receive and subsequently transfer the cash proceeds of Chen’s cigarette trafficking conspiracy. During the 15 months at issue, at least $12.18 million of cigarette trafficking proceeds flowed into and through Chen’s bank accounts before being repurposed to pay off the credit card bills Chen incurred purchasing bulk cigarettes. The vast majority of Chen’s deposits were made in amounts just under the $10,000 Cash Transaction Report threshold established by Congress. As part of the plea agreement, Chen agreed to forfeit $1.21 million as proceeds of the offense.
Chen was charged by superseding criminal information on Sept. 15, 2015. Chin faces a maximum penalty of five years in prison when sentenced on Dec. 18, 2015. The maximum statutory sentence is prescribed by Congress and is provided here for informational purposes, as the sentencing of the defendant will be determined by the court based on the advisory Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
Dana J. Boente, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia, made the announcement after the plea was accepted by U.S. District Judge Henry E. Hudson. The case was investigated by officers of the Washington – Baltimore HIDTA task force’s Northern Virginia Financial Initiative. Assistant U.S. Attorney Thomas Garnett is 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. 3:15cr153.
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Former Union Treasurer Sentenced to 18 Months for Embezzling Union FundsRead the Press Release
PHOENIX – On Sept. 14, 2015, Richard Wayne Johnson, 49, of Surprise, Ariz., was sentenced by U.S. District Judge David Campbell to 18 months of imprisonment, followed by three years of supervised release, for embezzling nearly $275,000 from a local union for which he served as treasurer. In June, Johnson pleaded guilty to embezzlement, forgery, and false reporting charges stemming from the embezzlement and its attempted concealment.
“The United States Attorney Office will vigorously prosecute those who abuse positions of trust within unions to steal from its members,” said United States Attorney John S. Leonardo. “Johnson’s actions were harmful to the hard-working members of the union and to this community, and they are deserving of a prison sentence.”
Richard Johnson, formerly a bus driver, served as the financial secretary and treasurer for the Amalgamated Transit Union Local 1433 for seven years, ending in January of 2012. The union consists of bus and light rail operators, mechanics, and service workers in Arizona; and the union is funded by dues collected from its members. For several years, Johnson embezzled funds from the union for his personal use. He pleaded guilty to using the union debit card for an abundance of personal purchases, such as a home theater system, and for cash withdrawals. He also admitted to forging union checks written to himself or to family members. To conceal the embezzlement, Johnson doctored the union’s financial records and then provided those false records to the U.S. Office of Labor-Management Standards in periodic reports. As part of his sentence, Johnson was also ordered to pay restitution of $273,489 – the amount of the embezzled funds.
The investigation in this case was conducted by the U.S. Department of Labor Office of Labor-Management Standards and the IRS-Criminal Investigation. The prosecution was handled by Monica Klapper, Assistant U.S. Attorney, District of Arizona, Phoenix.
CASE NUMBER: CR-15-00653-PHX-DGC
RELEASE NUMBER: 2015-075_Johnson
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For more information on the U.S. Attorney’s Office, District of Arizona, visit http://www.justice.gov/usao/az/
Follow the U.S. Attorney’s Office, District of Arizona, on Twitter @USAO_AZ for the latest news.
Former Tribal Chairman Sentenced to ProbationRead the Press Release
Amen Sheridan, 54, of Walthill, Nebraska, was sentenced in federal court in Omaha, Nebraska, for the felony offense of being an accessory to theft from an Indian Tribal Organization. The Honorable Laurie Smith Camp, Chief United States District Court Judge, sentenced Sheridan to a two-year term of probation and a $100 fine.
Sheridan was the Chairman of the Omaha Tribe of Nebraska. During his tenure, the Omaha Tribe offered payment assistance grants to financially eligible first-time home buyers. Sheridan was neither a first-time home buyer or financially eligible for the payment assistance. The payment assistance program was administered by Sheridan’s significant other Julia Whiteskunk.
Whiteskunk and Sheridan purchased a home in Walthill, Nebraska. Whiteskunk prepared a false application for payment assistance to the Omaha Tribal Housing Authority. Both signed the document. The document was approved by a subordinate rather than being submitted to a committee. The Housing Authority provided $4,000 in payment assistance. Sheridan has made restitution in the sum of $4,000.
The case was investigated by the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development and the Federal Bureau of Investigation. United States Attorney Deborah R. Gilg observed that in this prosecution, it was not the amount of the loss deserving federal attention and a felony conviction, but the abuse of authority and trust by a Tribal Chairman at the expense of those who elected him.
Former Richmond County Coroner Sentenced to Three Years in Prison for Credit Card FraudRead the Press Release
Augusta, GA: Grover F. Tuten, Jr., 72, the former Coroner for Richmond County, Georgia, was sentenced today to 36 months in prison by United States District Court Judge J. Randal Hall after pleading guilty to his repeated use of a deceased person’s debit card without authorization.
According to evidence presented at the guilty plea and sentencing hearings, the victim passed away on August 24, 2012. Afterwards, and while he was the Richmond County Coroner, Tuten obtained the victim’s bank card from the victim’s caretaker. Tuten proceeded to unlawfully make 33 ATM withdrawals in the Augusta area. Many of these withdrawals were captured on bank surveillance video. Tuten unlawfully received $9,800 in cash as a result of his theft.
United States Attorney Edward Tarver stated, “The crimes admitted here are troubling. Our elected officials are sworn to serve the community, not themselves. This activity erodes the public’s trust in its government and their elected officials. This United States Attorney’s Office will continue to work with our local, state and federal law enforcement partners to uncover public corruption and to prosecute public officials who have violated the public’s trust.”
J. Britt Johnson, Special Agent in Charge, FBI Atlanta Field Office, stated: “Today’s sentencing in federal court holds former Richmond County Coroner Tuten accountable for his greed-driven criminal conduct. This conduct was made all the more reprehensible in that the victim was a deceased person under the charge of his office. The FBI will continue to provide significant investigative resources toward identifying and presenting for prosecution those officials engaged in public corruption.”
Tuten still faces state charges of theft by taking and violation of oath by a public officer and is being prosecuted by District Attorney Ashley Wright of the Augusta Judicial Circuit.
Tuten’s state and federal cases were investigated by Special Agent Charles E. McKee of the FBI. Assistant United States Attorney Lamont A. Belk prosecuted the case on behalf of the United States. For additional information, please contact First Assistant United States Attorney James D. Durham at (912) 201-2547.
Former Police Department Employee Indicted for Tax Fraud, Computer Intrusion, and Identity TheftRead the Press Release
Tampa, FL – United States Attorney A. Lee Bentley, III announces the unsealing of an indictment charging Tonia Bright with one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud, four counts of obtaining information from a protected computer, and four counts of aggravated identity theft related to her involvement in a stolen identity refund fraud (SIRF) scheme. If convicted, she faces a maximum penalty of 20 years in federal prison on the conspiracy charge, 5 years in federal prison on each of the computer intrusion offenses, and a 2-year term of imprisonment for each aggravated identity theft count that would be served consecutively to the sentence imposed on the other counts. The indictment also notifies Bright that the United States intends to seek a forfeiture money judgment equal to the proceeds of the offenses.
According to the indictment, Bright was a civilian employee of the Tampa Police Department (TPD) working as a community service officer in the District 3 station. As part of her duties, Bright took reports from citizens related to incidents not requiring the response of a sworn police officer. In this capacity, she had access to local, state, and federal law enforcement databases, including the National Crime Information Center (NCIC) computerized index. Her use of these databases was restricted to the performance of her authorized duties.
As part of the conspiracy, Bright allegedly accessed the personally identifiable information (PII) of individuals using a variety of sources, including NCIC, despite having no legitimate law enforcement purpose for doing so. She then provided the stolen PII to others, including Tampa resident Rita Girven, knowing that the information would be used to commit crimes. Girven and others used the stolen PII to electronically file, and cause others to file, fraudulent federal income tax returns claiming tax refunds that they were not entitled to. The fraudulently obtained tax refunds were deposited onto reloadable debit cards, issued in the conspirators’ names and the names of others, including the identity theft victims’ names. Girven and others then used the debit cards at retail establishments and ATMs to withdraw the funds and shared in the proceeds.
Girven previously pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit wire fraud and aggravated identity theft. Her sentencing hearing is scheduled for November 20, 2015.
An indictment is merely a formal charge that a defendant has committed one or more violations of federal criminal law, and every defendant is presumed innocent unless, and until, proven guilty.
This case was investigated by the Internal Revenue Service – Criminal Investigation Division, the Tampa Police Department, and the Federal Bureau of Investigation. It will be prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Mandy Riedel.
Former New Haven Resident Pleads Guilty to Armed Bank RobberyRead the Press Release
Deirdre M. Daly, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, today announced that DANIEL HAMLETT, SR., 53, formerly of New Haven, pleaded guilty yesterday before U.S. District Judge Alvin W. Thompson in Hartford to committing an armed robbery of a Seymour bank in 2013.
On April 9, 2013, HAMLETT drove a stolen vehicle to the Webster Bank on New Haven Road in Seymour. Wearing a mask, he exited the vehicle, approached an individual who was seated in his parked car, took out a handgun, smashed the driver’s side front window and demanded money from the victim. When the victim responded that he didn’t have any money, HAMLETT took the victim’s car keys and cell phone and told him not to move.
HAMLETT then entered the bank, ordered everyone to get on the floor, jumped over the teller counter and forcibly took $5,594 in cash from two teller drawers. He then jumped back over the teller counter, exited the bank and fled in the stolen vehicle. HAMLETT then met his son, Daniel Hamlett, Jr., who picked up his father and eluded law enforcement.
HAMLETT was arrested in Georgia on November 13, 2014, and has been detained since his arrest. Judge Thompson scheduled sentencing for December 7, 2015, at which time HAMLETT faces a maximum term of imprisonment of 25 years.
Daniel Hamlett Jr. was arrested on March 14, 2014. On October 31, 2014, he pleaded guilty to one count of aiding and abetting bank robbery. He awaits sentencing.
This matter was investigated by the FBI and the Seymour Police Department. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Douglas P. Morabito and Sarala V. Nagala.
Former Maintenance Director of Bristol Township School District Charged with Conspiracy and FraudRead the Press Release
FORMER MAINTENANCE DIRECTOR OF BRISTOL TOWNSHIP SCHOOL DISTRICT CHARGED WITH CONSPIRACY AND FRAUD
PHILADELPHIA - James N. Anders, Jr, 59, Willow Grove, PA, Patrick Squires, 58, of Voorhees, NJ, and Ernest Neff, 58, of Newtown, PA, were charged today by indictment with one count of conspiracy and five counts of wire fraud in connection with a scheme to defraud the Bristol Township School District (“BTSD”), announced United States Attorney Zane David Memeger. Anders is the former maintenance director at the school district.
The indictment charges that from September 2006 to September 2011, the defendants abused Anders’ position as maintenance director to enrich themselves and to advance their personal business interests, causing a loss to BTSD of approximately $373,453.43. It is alleged that on a dozen transactions between September 2006 and July 1, 2010, Anders, Squires and Neff manipulated the required “quote” process to ensure that a company controlled by defendant Squires would be selected for the transaction. It is also alleged that defendants Anders and Squires split BTSD maintenance department purchases into smaller transactions which could be purchased on the sole authority of defendant Anders, where he could direct those purchases to companies controlled by Squires. It is further alleged that Anders engaged in prohibited self-dealing by using his personal company for BTSD business and disguised the work by billing the work through a Squires-controlled company.
If convicted of all charges, the defendants each face a maximum possible statutory sentence of 105 years in prison, with an advisory guidelines range of 46-57 months, three years supervised release, a $1.5 million fine, a $600 special assessment, restitution of approximately $373,453.43 and forfeiture.
The case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the United States Department of Education Office of Inspector General. It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Joan E. Burnes.
An Indictment is an accusation. A defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
Former Georgia National Guard Employee and Two Vendors Sentenced in Corruption SchemeRead the Press Release
ATLANTA - Raytosha Elliott, a former contracting official with the Georgia National Guard, and the owners of two vendor companies have been sentenced to federal prison for a corruption scheme wherein Elliott awarded contracts to the vendors in exchange for illegal kickbacks.
“Elliott took advantage of her position with the Georgia National Guard, and awarded no-bid contracts to her friends in exchange for illegal kickbacks,” said U.S. Attorney John Horn. “She and two of her friends stole over $150,000 in funds that were intended to maintain defense facilities and instead spent the money on themselves.”
“The sentencing of these individuals to federal prison will not only hold them accountable for their greed based criminal conduct, but will also send a clear message to others that might consider a similar scheme. The FBI will continue to work with its various law enforcement partners to ensure that those individuals engaged in these types of activities are identified, investigated and presented for federal prosecution,” said J. Britt Johnson, Special Agent in Charge, FBI Atlanta Field Office.
“Corruption at any level diminishes the hard work and dedication of the thousands of government employees who are dedicated to providing honest services to the American public,” stated Veronica F. Hyman-Pillot, Acting Special Agent in Charge. “IRS Criminal Investigation stands committed to weed out individuals who misuse their job as a path to financial success by using greed and corruption.”
“This is a prime example of our determination, along with our fellow law enforcement agencies, to investigate allegations of criminal activity and corruption involving the National Guard and other DOD entities,” said Frank Robey, Director of the U.S. Army Criminal Investigation Command’s Major Procurement Fraud Unit. “Regardless of the 'scope and size' of the allegations, our CID Special Agents are committed to working side-by-side with other agencies to help eradicate this type of activity.”
“The Defense Criminal Investigative Service is committed to protecting the integrity of the DOD contracting process, including the GA National Guard,” said John F. Khin, Special Agent in Charge, Southeast Field Office, Defense Criminal Investigative Service. “This sentencing sends a message to individuals who fail to follow the rules that along with our other law enforcement partners, violators will be brought to justice.”
“Accountability of violators is paramount when dealing with public corruption. GBI’s partnership with the FBI in the Public Corruption Task Force is essential for continued public trust in Georgia. When those who violate the law and violate public trust are held accountable, and go to jail – if this occurs, it sends a clear message that public corruption is not acceptable in this state,” said Vernon Keenan, Director, Georgia Bureau of Investigation.
“We hope these sentences serve as a deterrent to those who desire to pilfer the state and federal governments' coffers. We also believe this case exemplifies how multiple agencies can work together to achieve a common goal: to serve the public who depends on us to defend the integrity of government programs. As in this case, our office will remain dedicated to protecting taxpayers' money by continuously pursuing fraud, waste, abuse and corruption within the executive branch of state government,” said Deb Wallace, State Inspector General, Georgia Office of the Inspector General.
According to U.S. Attorney Horn, the charges and other information presented in court: From May 2007 through April 2012, Elliott worked for the Georgia Department of Defense, the state agency charged with coordinating and supervising all agencies and functions of the Georgia National Guard. Elliott worked as an Engineering Operations Manager at the Clay National Guard Center, located at Dobbins Air Reserve Base, in Marietta, Georgia.
In that position, Elliott worked with engineering firms to develop bid-ready construction projects, prepared bid documents, and oversaw no-bid purchase orders. Under the rules governing the contracting process that Elliott oversaw, projects that cost less than $5,000 did not need to go through a competitive bidding process, allowing Elliott to award the contracts. She certified that the work had been completed for those projects, and facilitated payment to the vendors who allegedly completed such projects.
Elliott awarded numerous contracts under $5,000 to vendor companies created by her friends and associates, including co-defendants Lakeysha Ellis and Angela Thicklin (f/k/a Angela Stanback Kinlaw). In return, Ellis and Thicklin paid Elliott kickbacks, equal to 50% of the value of the contracts, for steering contracts to Ellis’ vendor company, Total Source Solution, LLC, and to Thicklin’s vendor company, 3M Construction LLC.
Elliott awarded Total Source Solution 17 contracts with a total value of approximately $75,000. Elliott awarded 3M Construction 18 contracts with a total value of approximately $78,000. The contracts were for a variety of services supposedly to be performed by the two companies, including electrical work, landscaping, and HVAC work. But the work was never done. Instead, the defendants split the money awarded under the contracts and spent it on personal items, including travel, meals, and merchandise. As part of the scheme, Elliott owned a company named Tech Group Investments, LLC. Ellis and Thicklin took money they received from the Georgia National Guard contracts, and paid kickbacks to Elliott through that company. Elliott falsely certified that the work had been completed to facilitate payment by the Georgia National Guard.
Elliott and Ellis engaged in a similar fraud scheme from January 2009, through May 2011, when Ellis was an accountant at Baumueller-Nuermont Corporation, an industrial equipment company with offices in Atlanta. Her job responsibilities included payroll and paying vendors.
While employed as Baumueller-Nuermont’s accountant, Ellis fraudulently funneled money to the defendants’ two sham companies, Total Source Solution and Tech Group Investments. Ellis wrote corporate checks to Total Source Solution, signed her name on the checks, and forged the signature of the Vice President on the checks, to ensure that the checks could be negotiated. Ellis recorded these payments in the check registry to reflect falsely that the checks had been issued to true vendors (such as American Express) when in fact they went to Ellis’ company.
As part of the scheme, Ellis also falsified employee records in the corporation’s payroll system to disguise payments to the defendants’ two companies. Ellis created phantom employees by altering the names of real employees (by switching their first and last names) and slightly changing their Social Security numbers. She then caused the payroll system to make fraudulent salary payments to Total Source Solution and Tech Group Investments for these new, non-existent employees.
Baumueller-Nuermont lost about $85,000 from this scheme.
Raytosha Elliott, 35, of Atlanta, Georgia, was sentenced yesterday to two years, ten months in prison and three years of supervised release, and ordered to pay $115,902 in restitution to the Georgia National Guard and $26,500 in restitution to Baumueller-Nuermont Corporation by U.S. District Judge Amy Totenberg. Elliott was also ordered to pay $20,000 in restitution to WebBank based on a fraudulent loan application she submitted to the bank in September 2013. In that application, Elliott falsely inflated Tech Group Investments’ sales and gross receipts, and provided a fraudulent federal tax return in support of those figures, to obtain the loan. She was also ordered to perform 60 hours community service.
Lakeysha Ellis, 37, of Decatur, Georgia, was sentenced to nine months in prison and three years of supervised release, and three months of home confinement. She was also ordered to pay $74,902 in restitution to the Georgia National Guard and $81,487.88 in restitution to Baumueller-Nuermont Corporation. Both defendants previously pleaded guilty to two counts of conspiracy.
Today, Angela Thicklin, 45, of Atlanta, Georgia, was sentenced to one year, nine months in prison and three years of supervised release including ordered to pay $78,640 in restitution to the Georgia National Guard by Judge Totenberg. Thicklin previously pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy.
This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation; the Georgia Bureau of Investigation; the U.S. Department of Defense, Office of Inspector General, Defense Criminal Investigative Service; Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigation; the U.S. Army Criminal Investigation Command; and Deputy Inspectors General of the State of Georgia Office of the Inspector General.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Stephen H. McClain prosecuted the case.
For further information please contact the U.S. Attorney’s Public Affairs Office at [email protected] or (404) 581-6016. The Internet address for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia is http://www.justice.gov/usao/gan/.
Former Carter County Paramedic Sentenced to 18 Months for Tampering with FentanylRead the Press Release
COVINGTON, Ky. — A former paramedic, with the Carter County Emergency Medical Service (EMS), has been sentenced to 18 months in federal prison, for tampering with a consumer product.
On Monday, U.S. District Judge David L. Bunning sentenced 35 year-old Amanda Sturgill Jones and also ordered that she serve three years of supervised release following her prison term.
Jones admitted that on multiple occasions, between 2012 and June 2013, she stole fentanyl from the EMS storage center for her own personal use. To conceal her theft from the EMS and law enforcement, she replaced the empty vials of fentanyl with saline and then glued the caps back on the vials. Fentanyl is used to treat patients in severe pain.
Jones pleaded guilty in May of this year.
Kerry B. Harvey, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Kentucky; Antoinette V. Henry, Special Agent in Charge, U.S. Food and Drug Administration; and Rodney Brewer, Commissioner of the Kentucky State Police, jointly made the announcement.
The investigation was conducted by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, Office of Criminal Investigations, the Kentucky State Police, and the Kentucky Board of Emergency Medical Services. Assistant U.S. Attorney Robert McBride prosecuted this case on behalf of the federal government.
Former COO Sentenced to Prison for Selling Confidential InformationRead the Press Release
BOSTON – A Connecticut executive was sentenced today in U.S. District Court in Boston on charges that he sold confidential business information regarding the wireless industry to an analyst at a Boston-based financial services firm.
James Dunham, 60, of Glastonbury, Conn., was sentenced by U.S. District Court Judge Douglas P. Woodlock to five months in prison and five months of home confinement, three years of supervised release, a fine of $15,000, and forfeiture of $61,000. In June 2015, Dunham pleaded guilty to wire fraud after being arrested and charged in February.
Dunham, formerly the Chief Operating Officer of a retailer for a major provider of wireless services, had access to confidential information regarding sales, compensation, and product launches at the retailer’s 400 locations. For more than two years, and unbeknownst to his employer, Dunham had a secret consulting agreement with a financial services firm to provide confidential information in return for which he was paid $2,000 per month.
The charging document to which Dunham pleaded guilty identifies seven research notes prepared and distributed by the financial services firm that include information supplied by Dunham, including information regarding the status of certain product launches, the number of new subscribers to a specific wireless provider, and sales and return information for specific smartphones. In particular, Dunham was the source for an April 11, 2013, research note in which the firm reported that sales for a specific smartphone were running below customers’ returns of the same smartphone.
United States Attorney Carmen M. Ortiz and Joseph R. Bonavolonta, Acting Special Agent in Charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Boston Field Division, made the announcement today. The United States Attorney’s Office also received valuable assistance from the Securities and Exchange Commission. The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Sarah E. Walters, Chief of Ortiz’s Economic Crimes Unit.
Former CEO of Local University Sentenced to 12 Months Imprisonment for Submitting False Documents to Department of Homeland SecurityRead the Press Release
SAN JOSE- Jerry Wang, the Chief Executive Officer of Herguan University in Sunnyvale, California, was sentenced yesterday to 12 months’ imprisonment for submitting false documents to the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), announced Acting United States Attorney Brian Stretch and Special Agent in Charge, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) Ryan L. Spradlin.
On July 24, 2012, Jerry Wang, 34, of Santa Clara, was indicted on fifteen charges arising out of a visa fraud scheme in connection with Herguan University. The superseding indictment filed October 30, 2014, alleges that, starting in July 2007, Wang and others caused Herguan to submit fraudulent documents to DHS’s Student and Visitor Exchange Program (SEVP) in support of a petition to admit foreign students. Wang was charged with conspiracy to commit visa fraud, in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 371; aiding and abetting visa fraud, in violation of 18 U.S.C. §§ 1546; aiding and abetting unauthorized access of a government computer, in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 1030(a); use of false documents, in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 1001(a)(3); and aggravated identity theft, in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 1028A.
“Jerry Wang has admitted submitting over one hundred fraudulent documents to the government in an effort to circumvent the rules applying to international students,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Brian J. Stretch. “In doing so, he has imperiled the programs that allow international students to visit the United States in order to engage in valuable educational exchanges.”
“International students represent an invaluable asset to our nation. We’re committed to working with our government partners and with educators to enable legitimate students to pursue their studies here,” said Ryan L. Spradlin, Special Agent in Charge of HSI San Francisco. “However, HSI will aggressively target those who commit student visa fraud out of greed and self-interest. Their actions undermine the integrity of this country’s immigration laws and it will not be tolerated.”
Wang pleaded guilty on April 9, 2015, to one false document count, specifically submitting a fraudulent Academic Warning Letter to DHS, in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 1001(a)(3). As part of his plea, he also admitted participating in the scheme to commit visa fraud, involving more than one hundred immigration-related documents known as “Forms I-20,” as well as aiding and abetting the unauthorized access of a DHS computer database.
The Honorable Edward J. Davila, U.S. District Judge, sentenced Wang on September 14, 2015. The sentence included the criminal forfeiture of $700,000 and three years of supervised release. Wang has been ordered to self-surrender and begin serving his prison term by November 3, 2015.
Assistant U.S. Attorneys Hartley M. K. West and Maia T. Perez are prosecuting the case with the assistance of Helen Yee, Natachiana Williams, Rosario Calderon, and Trina Khadoo. This prosecution is the result of an investigation by Document and Benefit Fraud Task Force (DBFTF) overseen by HSI. The DBFTF is a multi-agency task force that coordinates investigations related to fraud schemes involving immigration documents and benefits.
Florida Hospital District Agrees to Pay United States $69.5 Million to Settle False Claims Act AllegationsRead the Press Release
North Broward Hospital District, a special taxing district of the state of Florida that operates hospitals and other health care facilities in the Broward County, Florida, area, has agreed to pay the United States $69.5 million to settle allegations that it violated the False Claims Act by engaging in improper financial relationships with referring physicians, the Justice Department announced today.
“The Department of Justice has long-standing concerns about improper financial relationships between health care providers and their referral sources, because those relationships can alter a physician’s judgment about the patient’s true health care needs and drive up health care costs for everybody,” said Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Benjamin C. Mizer, head of the Justice Department’s Civil Division. “In addition to yielding a recovery for taxpayers, this settlement should deter similar conduct in the future and help make health care more affordable.”
“Our citizens deserve medical treatment uncorrupted by excessive salaries paid to physicians as a reward for the referral of business rather than the provision of the highest quality healthcare,” said U.S. Attorney Wifredo A. Ferrer of the Southern District of Florida. “This office will be steadfast in continuing to devote all necessary resources to ensure that anyone rendering medical care does so for the sole benefit of the patient and in compliance with the law.”
“Improper financial rewards given to physicians in exchange for patient referrals corrupts medical decision making and inflates health care costs,” said Special Agent in Charge Shimon R. Richmond of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services-Office of Inspector General (HHS-OIG). “Our agency will continue to root out such behavior from our health care system.”
The settlement announced today resolved allegations that the hospital district provided compensation to nine employed physicians that exceeded the fair market value of their services. The United States contended that these agreements violated the Stark Statute and the False Claims Act. The Stark Statute restricts the financial relationships that hospitals may have with doctors who refer patients to them.
The allegations settled today arose from a lawsuit filed by a whistleblower, Dr. Michael Reilly, under the qui tam provisions of the False Claims Act. Under the act, private citizens can bring suit on behalf of the government for false claims and share in any recovery. Dr. Reilly will receive $12,045,655.51 from the recovery announced today.
This settlement illustrates the government’s emphasis on combating health care fraud and marks another achievement for the Health Care Fraud Prevention and Enforcement Action Team (HEAT) initiative, which was announced in May 2009 by the Attorney General and the Secretary of Health and Human Services. The partnership between the two departments has focused efforts to reduce and prevent Medicare and Medicaid financial fraud through enhanced cooperation. One of the most powerful tools in this effort is the False Claims Act. Since January 2009, the Justice Department has recovered a total of more than $25 billion through False Claims Act cases, with more than $16 billion of that amount recovered in cases involving fraud against federal health care programs.
The case, United States ex rel. Reilly v. North Broward Hospital District, et al., Case No. 10-60590 (S.D. Fla.), was handled by the Civil Division’s Commercial Litigation Branch, the U.S. Attorney’s Office of the Southern District of Florida and the HHS-OIG. The claims settled by this agreement are allegations only, and there has been no determination of liability.
Florida Hospital District Agrees to Pay United States $69.5 Million to Settle False Claims Act AllegationsRead the Press Release
North Broward Hospital District, a special taxing district of the state of Florida that operates hospitals and other health care facilities in the Broward County, Florida, area, has agreed to pay the United States $69.5 million to settle allegations that it violated the False Claims Act by engaging in improper financial relationships with referring physicians, the Justice Department announced today.
“The Department of Justice has long-standing concerns about improper financial relationships between health care providers and their referral sources, because those relationships can alter a physician’s judgment about the patient’s true health care needs and drive up health care costs for everybody,” said Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Benjamin C. Mizer, head of the Justice Department’s Civil Division. “In addition to yielding a recovery for taxpayers, this settlement should deter similar conduct in the future and help make health care more affordable.”
“Our citizens deserve medical treatment uncorrupted by excessive salaries paid to physicians as a reward for the referral of business rather than the provision of the highest quality healthcare,” said U.S. Attorney Wifredo A. Ferrer of the Southern District of Florida. “This office will be steadfast in continuing to devote all necessary resources to ensure that anyone rendering medical care does so for the sole benefit of the patient and in compliance with the law.”
“Improper financial rewards given to physicians in exchange for patient referrals corrupts medical decision making and inflates health care costs,” said Special Agent in Charge Shimon R. Richmond of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services-Office of Inspector General (HHS-OIG). “Our agency will continue to root out such behavior from our health care system.”
The settlement announced today resolved allegations that the hospital district provided compensation to nine employed physicians that exceeded the fair market value of their services. The United States contended that these agreements violated the Stark Statute and the False Claims Act. The Stark Statute restricts the financial relationships that hospitals may have with doctors who refer patients to them.
The allegations settled today arose from a lawsuit filed by a whistleblower, Dr. Michael Reilly, under the qui tam provisions of the False Claims Act. Under the act, private citizens can bring suit on behalf of the government for false claims and share in any recovery. Dr. Reilly will receive $12,045,655.51 from the recovery announced today.
This settlement illustrates the government’s emphasis on combating health care fraud and marks another achievement for the Health Care Fraud Prevention and Enforcement Action Team (HEAT) initiative, which was announced in May 2009 by the Attorney General and the Secretary of Health and Human Services. The partnership between the two departments has focused efforts to reduce and prevent Medicare and Medicaid financial fraud through enhanced cooperation. One of the most powerful tools in this effort is the False Claims Act. Since January 2009, the Justice Department has recovered a total of more than $25 billion through False Claims Act cases, with more than $16 billion of that amount recovered in cases involving fraud against federal health care programs.
The case, United States ex rel. Reilly v. North Broward Hospital District, et al., Case No. 10-60590 (S.D. Fla.), was handled by the Civil Division’s Commercial Litigation Branch, the U.S. Attorney’s Office of the Southern District of Florida and the HHS-OIG. The claims settled by this agreement are allegations only, and there has been no determination of liability.
Related court documents and information may be found on the website of the District Court for the Southern District of Florida at www.flsd.uscourts.gov or on http://pacer.flsd.uscourts.gov.
Felon Who Sold Stolen Weapons Sentenced to Ten YearsRead the Press Release
A six-time felon who stole weapons and sold them after burglarizing homes was sentenced yesterday to ten years in federal prison.
Dustin Wilson, age 37, from rural Center Junction, received the prison term after a May 15, 2015, guilty plea to a one-count Indictment charging him with being a felon in possession of a firearm.
At the guilty plea hearing, Wilson admitted that, on January 1, 2013, he possessed two stolen firearms. Prior to this possession he had been convicted of six felony offenses, five of which involved drug related crimes. During sentencing, it was revealed that Wilson had obtained these weapons after burglarizing a home. He later sold them. Evidence also showed that Wilson had burglarized another home several months earlier and sold a weapon he had taken during that burglary.
Wilson was sentenced in Cedar Rapids by United States District Court Chief Judge Linda R. Reade. He was sentenced to 120 months’ imprisonment. A special assessment of $100 was imposed. He must also serve a three-year term of supervised release after the prison term. There is no parole in the federal system.
Wilson 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 Steve Young and investigated by the Jones County Sheriff’s Office.
Court file information at https://ecf.iand.uscourts.gov/cgi-bin/login.pl. The case file number is 15-CR-00035.
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Federal Court Sentences Davenport Man on Charge of Felon in Possession of A FirearmRead the Press Release
DAVENPORT, IA - On September 14, 2015, Adam Lamar Ammons, age 42, formerly of Davenport, Iowa, was sentenced by United States District Court Judge James E. Gritzner to 88 months in prison, after pleading guilty to the charge of felon in possession of a firearm, announced United States Attorney Nicholas A. Klinefeldt. Ammons was also ordered to serve three years of supervised release following the period of imprisonment, and to pay $100 towards the Crime Victims Fund.
On or about August 14, 2014, as part of a narcotics investigation, Davenport Police Department (DPD) officers obtained a search warrant to seize and search a safe from a bedroom at a residence on 15th Street in Davenport, Iowa. A Ruger SR22 handgun and associated handgun magazines were seized out of this safe. A witness knew Ammons had placed this safe at the residence, and knew that only Ammons had a key. Ammons admitted that he knew the Ruger SR22 handgun was in the safe, and that he knowingly possessed this handgun. Ammons has a prior 2012 state felony conviction for possession with intent to deliver marijuana.
This matter was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, and the Davenport Police Department, and this case was prosecuted by the United States Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Iowa as part of the Project Safe Neighborhoods initiative.
Federal Court Sentences Burlington Man for Production of Child PronographyRead the Press Release
DAVENPORT, IA - On September 14, 2015, Jeffrey David Rogers, age 49, of Burlington, Iowa, was sentenced by Senior United States District Court Judge James E. Gritzner to 210 months in prison on the charge of production of child pornography, announced United States Attorney Nicholas A. Klinefeldt. Rogers was also ordered to serve ten years of supervised release following the period of imprisonment, to comply with sex offender registry requirements, and to pay $100 towards the Crime Victims Fund.
Burlington, Iowa, police officers seized Rogers’ cell phone in August of 2014 after receiving information that it contained child pornography. Rogers’ cell phone was forensically examined, and the forensic examiner concluded that the phone contained several pornographic photographs of a child, later determined to be a 4 year-old female. Rogers admitted taking these pictures while he was babysitting the victim.
Rogers pleaded guilty to the charge of production of child pornography on May 26, 2015.
This matter was investigated by the Burlington, Iowa, Police Department and the Federal Bureau of Investigation, and the case was prosecuted by the United States Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Iowa as part of the Project Safe Childhood initiative.
Federal Charges Brought in Tallahassee Cyberstalking CaseRead the Press Release
TALLAHASSEE, FLORIDA – A federal grand jury returned an indictment charging Michael Daniel Rubens, 30, formerly of Tallahassee, with seven counts of cyberstalking, five counts of unauthorized access to a protected computer, and one count of aggravated identity theft. Rubens was arraigned yesterday in the U.S. District Court in Tallahassee. The indictment was announced by Christopher P. Canova, Acting United States Attorney for the Northern District of Florida.
The 13-count indictment alleges that, between January 2012 and January 2015, in the Northern District of Florida, Rubens used interactive computer services, such as social media accounts, to engage in conduct causing emotional distress to multiple women. Rubens is also charged with hacking into various online accounts of multiple women to obtain information about them. The trial is scheduled for November 16, 2015.
This case resulted from investigations by the United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement Homeland Security Investigations, the Florida State University Police Department, and the Leon County Sheriff’s Office. It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Jason S. Beaton.
An indictment is merely an allegation by a grand jury that a defendant has committed a violation of federal criminal law and is not evidence of guilt. All defendants are presumed innocent and entitled to a fair trial, during which it will be the government’s burden to prove guilt beyond a reasonable doubt at trial.
The United States Attorney's Office for the Northern District of Florida is one of 94 offices that serve as the nation’s principal litigators under the direction of the Attorney General. The office strives to protect and serve the citizens of the Northern District of Florida through the ethical, vigorous, and impartial enforcement of the laws of the United States, to defend the national security, to improve the safety and quality of life in our communities through the protection of civil rights, and to protect the public funds and financial assets of the United States. To access public court documents online, please visit the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Florida website. For more information about the United States Attorney’s Office, Northern District of Florida, visit http://www.justice.gov/usao/fln/index.html.
For more information, contact: Amy Alexander, Public Information Officer
(850) 216-3854, [email protected]Federal Charges Brought in Tallahassee Cyberstalking CaseRead the Press Release
TALLAHASSEE, FLORIDA – A federal grand jury returned an indictment charging Michael Daniel Rubens, 30, formerly of Tallahassee, with seven counts of cyberstalking, five counts of unauthorized access to a protected computer, and one count of aggravated identity theft. Rubens was arraigned yesterday in the U.S. District Court in Tallahassee. The indictment was announced by Christopher P. Canova, Acting United States Attorney for the Northern District of Florida.
The 13-count indictment alleges that, between January 2012 and January 2015, in the Northern District of Florida, Rubens used interactive computer services, such as social media accounts, to engage in conduct causing emotional distress to multiple women. Rubens is also charged with hacking into various online accounts of multiple women to obtain information about them. The trial is scheduled for November 16, 2015.
This case resulted from investigations by the United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement Homeland Security Investigations, the Florida State University Police Department, and the Leon County Sheriff’s Office. It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Jason S. Beaton.
An indictment is merely an allegation by a grand jury that a defendant has committed a violation of federal criminal law and is not evidence of guilt. All defendants are presumed innocent and entitled to a fair trial, during which it will be the government’s burden to prove guilt beyond a reasonable doubt at trial.
The United States Attorney's Office for the Northern District of Florida is one of 94 offices that serve as the nation’s principal litigators under the direction of the Attorney General. The office strives to protect and serve the citizens of the Northern District of Florida through the ethical, vigorous, and impartial enforcement of the laws of the United States, to defend the national security, to improve the safety and quality of life in our communities through the protection of civil rights, and to protect the public funds and financial assets of the United States. To access public court documents online, please visit the
U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Florida website. For more information about the United States Attorney’s Office, Northern District of Florida, visit http://www.justice.gov/usao/fln/index.html.
For more information, contact:
Amy Alexander, Public Information Officer
(850) 216-3854,
Drug User Sentenced to Prison for Possessing a FirearmRead the Press Release
An admitted drug user who possessed a weapon was sentenced yesterday to over four years in federal prison.
Elijah Devonn Oshay Morse, age 20, from Cedar Rapids, received the prison term after a June 8, 2015, guilty plea to a one-count Indictment charging him with being an unlawful user of a controlled substance while in possession of a firearm.
At the guilty plea hearing, Morse admitted that, on December 4, 2014, he possessed a loaded .357 handgun. He also admitted that he was a frequent user of marijuana. During sentencing it was revealed that Morse was arrested on December 4 on an outstanding warrant alleging that he fired several shots from the .357 at two individuals standing outside on a porch in Cedar Rapids. He was 19 at the time of this shooting. No one was injured but there were also people inside the residence including children. At the time of his arrest, in addition to possessing the loaded handgun Morse possessed a large sum of money and 13 grams of cocaine.
Morse was sentenced in Cedar Rapids by United States District Court Chief Judge Linda R. Reade. He was sentenced to 57 months’ imprisonment. A special assessment of $100 was imposed. He must also serve a three-year term of supervised release after the prison term. There is no parole in the federal system.
Morse 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 Steve Young and investigated by the FBI Safe Streets Task Force.
Court file information at https://ecf.iand.uscourts.gov/cgi-bin/login.pl. The case file number is 15-CR-00032.
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Davenport Man Sentenced to 20 Years for Bank RobberyRead the Press Release
DAVENPORT, IA – On September 14, 2015, Adrian Romal Lomas (Lomas), 43, of Davenport, Iowa, was sentenced by Senior United States District Judge James E. Gritzner to 240 months in prison on the charge of bank robbery, announced United States Attorney Nicholas A. Klinefeldt. Lomas was also ordered to serve three years supervised release following the imprisonment, to pay $3,375 in restitution, and to pay $100 to the Crime Victims Fund.
On Friday, June 6, 2014, Adrian Romal Lomas and a 15-year-old boy entered the federally insured Family Credit Union on Jersey Ridge Road in Davenport at about 2:45 p.m. and robbed it. Lomas was a wearing a dark T-shirt, gloves, sunglasses, a baseball-type cap, and a bandana over his face. He had placed an authentic-looking, imitation firearm in his waistband which he showed the teller before demanding all of the money she had. Lomas made contact with the teller as he reached across the teller’s counter to withdraw some of the money. Lomas placed the money in a backpack that was carried, at first, by the juvenile and then by Lomas. Lomas and the juvenile fled the bank and ran to an awaiting vehicle driven by a third person. Lomas got away with $4,075.00.
Lomas was arrested on June 11, 2014, at a motel in Moline, Illinois.
Trial of the matter commenced on May 19, 2015 in the United States Courthouse in Davenport, Iowa, and the jury returned a guilty verdict on May 22, 2015.
This matter was investigated by the Davenport Police Department and the Federal Bureau of Investigation, and the case was prosecuted by the United States Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Iowa.