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Thursday 2 July 2015
Niagara Falls Man Pleads Guilty to Child Pornography Charge and Violating Supervised ReleaseRead the Press Release
CONTACT: Barbara Burns
PHONE: (716) 843-5817
FAX: (716) 551-3051BUFFALO, N.Y.-U.S. Attorney William J. Hochul Jr. announced today that Michael Weaver, 39, of Niagara Falls, NY, pleaded guilty to possession of child pornography before U.S. District Judge Richard J. Arcara. The defendant also pleaded guilty to violating the terms of his supervised release. The charges carry a minimum penalty of 10 years in prison, a maximum of 20, and a $250,000 fine.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Carol G. Bridge, who is handling the case, stated that Weaver was previously convicted in October 2007 of possession of child pornography for being in possession of approximately 16,000 images and 153 videos of child pornography. The defendant was sentenced to 78 months and five years supervised release. Weaver was released and placed on supervised release on August 30, 2013.One condition of his supervised release prevented the defendant from possessing cellular telephones without the authorization of the U.S. Probation Department. On December 16, 2014, during a routine visit, probation officers found Weaver had two unauthorized cellular telephones. The defendant admitted that he got the phones in order to download images of child pornography. A forensic examination found that the phones contained 1500 images and 20 videos of child pornography. Many of the images were of prepubescent children under the age of 12 that depicted violence between adults and the children.
The plea is the result of an investigation by United States Probation Department, under the direction of Anthony SanGiacomo and Immigration and Customs Enforcement, Homeland Security Investigations, under the direction of Acting Special Agent in Charge J. Michael Kennedy.
Sentencing is scheduled for October 14, 2015 at 12:30 p.m. before Judge Arcara.
New York Man Sentenced to 10 Years in Prison for Cross-Country Drug Distribution ConspiracyRead the Press Release
NEWARK, N.J. – A Long Island City, New York, man was sentenced today to 120 months in prison for his role in a scheme to transport more than 20 kilograms of cocaine from California to New Jersey, U.S. Attorney Paul J. Fishman announced.
Robert Crawford, 40, previously pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Kevin McNulty to Count One of an indictment charging him with conspiracy to possess with the intent to distribute five kilograms or more of cocaine. Judge McNulty imposed the sentence today in Newark federal court.
According to the documents filed in this case and statements made in court:
Crawford, Melvin Feliz, 48, of Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey, and Irving Olivero-Pena, 42, of Edgewater, New Jersey admitted that from January 2011 through March 2014, they conspired to purchase narcotics for distribution in New Jersey. On Oct. 22, 2012, they met a courier in Bergen County. They admitted that they gave the courier $549,950 in currency to transport to California via tractor trailer, where it would be used to purchase approximately 20 kilograms of cocaine. Afterwards, the courier would transport the cocaine to New Jersey for distribution. The currency was ultimately seized by law enforcement officers in California.
In addition to the prison term, Judge McNulty sentenced Crawford to serve five of supervised release. Feliz and Olivero-Pena also pleaded guilty to their roles in the scheme and await sentencing.
U.S. Attorney Fishman credited special agents from the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), Newark Division, under direction of Special Agent in Charge Carl J. Kotowski; and special agents of IRS-Criminal Investigation, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Jonathan D. Larsen, New Jersey, with the investigation leading to today’s sentencing.
The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorney Brian L. Urbano of the U.S. Attorney’s Office Criminal Division and Assistant U.S. Attorney David L. Foster of the U.S. Attorney’s Office, Special Prosecution’s Division in Newark.
Defense counsel: Rubin Sinins Esq., Springfield, New Jersey
New Jersey Man Sentenced for Passport FraudRead the Press Release
CONCORD, N.H. – Acting United States Attorney Donald Feith announced that Robert Codjoe, 54, of Piscataway, New Jersey, was sentenced today to one year of probation, six months of home confinement, and a $2,000 fine for committing passport fraud.
In November 1998, Codjoe applied for and was issued a U.S. passport in the name “Robert Codjoe.” In November 2000, he applied for and was issued a U.S. passport in the name “Robert Codjoe Nii.” Consequently, for many years, Codjoe maintained two United States passports each bearing his photograph, but issued under different names, different social security numbers, and different dates of birth. In July 2009, Codjoe renewed the passport issued in the name “Robert Codjoe” by filing a passport renewal application with the National Passport Center located in Portsmouth, N.H. In June 2011, he attempted to renew the passport issued in the name “Robert Codjoe Nii” by filing a passport renewal application with the National Passport Center. That application contained several false statements, including Codjoe’s name and date of birth.
The National Passport Center referred Codjoe’s renewal application for investigation. The investigation uncovered Condjoe’s fraud and resulted in a federal grand jury indicting him for passport fraud in March 2014. Codjoe pleaded guilty on February 25, 2015.
This case was investigated by Diplomatic Security Service of the U.S. State Department. It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Mark S. Zuckerman.
Michael Ray Mangum Sentenced to 120 Months on a-PVP ChargesRead the Press Release
GREENEVILLE, Tenn. – Michael Ray Mangum, 43, of Kingsport, Tenn., was sentenced on July 2, 2015, by the Honorable R. Leon Jordan, U.S. District Court Judge, to serve 120 months in federal prison for his role in an extensive a-PVP (alpha-pyrrolidinopentiophenone) distribution conspiracy centered in and around the Sullivan County area. A-PVP is a synthetic drug which is commonly referred to on the street as “gravel” or “flakka.”
Mangum’s federal prison sentence was ordered to run consecutively to a number of sentences in Sullivan and Greene County General Sessions Court and Washington County Criminal Court.
According to the plea agreement on file with the U.S. District Court Clerk, Mangum admitted that during 2013 and 2014 he conspired to distribute, and was accountable for a conservative estimate of 4,000 grams of a-PVP. He made repeated trips to out of state suppliers in North Carolina to obtain a-PVP and brought it back to the sell in the Sullivan County area, often out of motels. He also agreed that he supplied a-PVP to another individual in exchange for allowing him to sell a-PVP from that person’s residence. Mangum admitted to being a user of a-PVP, but he told law enforcement officers that he was in it for the money.
Others who have been previously sentenced in this a-PVP trafficking investigation include Austin Michael Stallard, Johnny Michael Stallard, Phillip Wayne Mullins, Johnny White and Evelyn Vickers, who were sentenced to 121 months, 180 months, 151 months, 120 months and 110 months in federal prison respectively.
Law enforcement agencies participating in the investigation which led to the indictment and subsequent conviction of Michael Ray Mangum and his co-defendants include the Drug Enforcement Administration; Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives; Homeland Security Investigations; Sullivan County Sheriff’s Office; Kingsport Police Department; Hawkins County Sheriff’s Department; Johnson City Police Department; Greeneville Police Department; Hendersonville, North Carolina Police Department; and, Scott County, Virginia Sheriff’s Office. Assistant U.S. Attorney Wayne Taylor represented the United States.
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Miami-Dade County Man Sentenced to 300 Months for Receiving and Possessing Child PornographyRead the Press Release
A Miami-Dade County resident was sentenced to a term of imprisonment of 300 months for receipt of child pornography.
Wifredo A. Ferrer, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Florida, and Alysa D. Erichs, Special Agent in Charge, United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations (ICE-HSI), Neil Melofchik, Acting Special Agent in Charge, United States Secret Service (USSS), Miami Field Office, J.D. Patterson Jr., Director, Miami Dade Police Department (MDPD), and Daniel J. Oates, Chief, Miami Beach Police Department (MBPD).
Juan Roman, 57, of Miami, was sentenced today by United States District Judge James Lawrence King to 300 months in prison, to be followed by a lifetime of supervised release. Roman was also ordered to register as a sex offender upon his release from prison. Roman previously pled guilty to receiving and possessing visual depictions of minors engaged in sexually explicit conduct, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 2252(a)(2) and (a)(4).
According to court documents and information provided in court, on August 28, 2014, law enforcement officers executed a search warrant at Roman’s home after receiving information that a computer user at the residence was downloading child pornography. While executing the search warrant, agents found Roman’s laptop and hard drives. A forensic examination of the devices revealed that they contained videos and images of child pornography. According to court records, Roman, a retired officer from the City of Miami Police Department, produced some of the videos depicting the sexual exploitation of minors and also downloaded multiple files of child pornography from the internet.
Mr. Ferrer commended the investigative efforts of ICE-HSI, USSS, MDPD, and MBPD. This case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Jonathan Kobrinski.
This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative to combat the growing epidemic of child exploitation and abuse launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice. Led by U.S. Attorney’s Offices and the 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 www.projectsafechildhood.gov.
A copy of this press release may be found on the website of the United States Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Florida at www.usdoj.gov/usao/fls. 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.
Members and Associates of Violent Yonkers Street Gang Charged in White Plains Federal Court with Racketeering Offenses, Including May 2014 Murder in Greenacres, FloridaRead the Press Release
Preet Bharara, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, Diego Rodriguez, Assistant Director-in-Charge of the New York Field Office of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (“FBI”), and Charles Gardner, the Commissioner of the Yonkers Police Department, announced the unsealing yesterday of a Second Superseding Indictment charging 11 members and associates of a Yonkers-based street gang, “Cruddy 650,” with participation in a racketeering conspiracy, murder in aid of racketeering, Hobbs Act robbery conspiracy, bank robbery, firearms offenses, and witness tampering. The original Indictment, filed in November 2014, charged four Cruddy 650 affiliates with Hobbs Act robbery conspiracy, bank robbery, and witness tampering. The First Superseding Indictment, filed in February 2015, charged eight Cruddy 650 affiliates with Hobbs Act robbery conspiracy, bank robbery, firearms offenses, and witness tampering. Yesterday’s Superseding Indictment charges three additional Cruddy 650 members and associates (as well as the eight defendants previously charged) and adds racketeering charges, including charges relating to the murder of Andre Folsom, who was shot through the head in the parking lot of a Walmart store in Greenacres, Florida, on May 26, 2014.
Nine of the eleven defendants charged in the Superseding Indictment unsealed yesterday were previously in state or federal custody. PAUL NEGRIN was arrested yesterday in Hollywood, Florida, and was presented in federal court in Ft. Lauderdale, Florida. JAMES MORRIS was arrested yesterday in Yonkers and was presented in White Plains federal court. The case is assigned to U.S. District Judge Vincent Briccetti.
U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara said: “As alleged, members of the Cruddy 650 gang terrorized the streets and businesses of southwest Yonkers with countless robberies and other acts of violence. Members of the gang also allegedly took their criminal activities on the road, traveling to Florida, leading to tragic consequences for murder victim Andre Folsom and his family. I want to commend and thank the FBI and the Yonkers Police Department on their outstanding investigation.”
FBI Assistant Director-in-Charge Diego Rodriguez stated: “We now have all 11, herein identified, members of the Cruddy 650 enterprise in custody where they can answer for the full extent of their alleged criminal activities. The FBI thanks all its law enforcement partners, with whom we worked tirelessly, not only in the New York area, but up and down the East Coast. We will continue to protect our communities from senseless violence, such as that alleged in the indictments, which serves only to promote illegal operations and terrify anyone who threatens their activities.”
Yonkers Police Commissioner Charles Gardner stated: “This group of individuals recklessly engaged in numerous violent crimes against our residents. These indictments will remove these violent gang members from our community and make our city a safer place. Ongoing investigations with our federal law enforcement partners will continue to target those persons who choose to engage in this type of activity. I would like to thank the US Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York and the FBI Violent Crimes Task force for their tireless efforts in this investigation.”
According to the allegations in the Second Superseding Indictment and other documents in the public record[1]:
Cruddy 650 is a criminal enterprise operating principally in and around the City of Yonkers, New York. Cruddy 650 was founded in 2013 as the result of an alliance between gang members hailing from various parts of Yonkers, including Riverdale Avenue, Woodworth Avenue, Warburton Avenue, and Cottage Place Gardens. Even after the alliance, members of the gang hailing from Cottage Place Gardens continued to identify primarily as “Cruddy,” while members of the gang hailing from Riverdale Avenue identified primarily as “650.”
Cruddy 650 members and associates protected and promoted the gang’s power and territory, and sought to enrich its members, through acts of violence, intimidation, and the sale of illegal drugs. During the time period relevant to the Superseding Indictment, members and associates of Cruddy 650 were responsible for multiple shootings and attempted murders, street robberies, robberies of banks and other businesses, bank fraud, witness tampering, and the distribution of narcotics, including crack cocaine and marijuana. Victims of the shootings and other acts of violence perpetrated by members of Cruddy 650 included both rival gang members and innocent bystanders.
The violence of the Cruddy 650 enterprise and its members spread from Yonkers, New York, to Florida. On or about May 26, 2014, KEVIN WILTSHIRE murdered Andre Folsom in Greenacres, Florida, shooting him in the head during a dispute in the parking lot of a Walmart store. The Second Superseding Indictment alleges that WILTSHIRE committed the murder in order to maintain and increase his position in Cruddy 650.
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Counts One and Two of the Second Superseding Indictment charge DIONDRE CARLISLE, MYKAI DAVIS, RAKEEM FLOWERS, TYRONE SMITH, WILTSHIRE, SAUDY GUERRERO, DARNELL KIDD, JAMES MORRIS, and PAUL NEGRIN with racketeering conspiracy and firearms offenses in connection with that conspiracy. As alleged, various combinations of those defendants committed at least four shootings, and 11 robberies or attempted robberies, six of which were armed, in furtherance of the conspiracy. Counts Three and Four of the Second Superseding Indictment charge WILTSHIRE with murder in aid of racketeering activity and a related firearms offense. Count Five charges CARLISLE, DAVIS, FLOWERS, CESAR MUNGUIA, ISAIAH WASHINGTON, WILTSHIRE, GUERRERO, KIDD, and MORRIS with Hobbs Act robbery conspiracy. Count Six charges CARLISLE, DAVIS, FLOWERS, CESAR MUNGUIA, WILTSHIRE, GUERRERO, KIDD, and MORRIS with a firearms offense related to the Hobbs Act robbery conspiracy. As in the initial Indictment, CARLISLE, WASHINGTON, and WILTSHIRE are charged with bank robbery in connection with the October 27, 2014, robbery of a Citibank branch in Yonkers; CARLISLE is charged with attempted bank robbery in connection with the November 3, 2014, attempted robbery of a Chase Bank branch in Yonkers; and FLOWERS and TYRONE SMITH, are charged with witness tampering in connection with their threats against an individual who provided information to law enforcement relating to the November 3 attempted robbery of the Chase Bank branch.
Charts containing the names, ages, residences, charges, and maximum penalties for the defendants are set forth below. The maximum potential sentences in this case are prescribed by Congress and are provided here for informational purposes only, as any sentencing of the defendants will be determined by the judge.
Mr. Bharara praised the outstanding investigative work of the FBI’s Westchester Violent Crimes Task Force, which comprises agents and detectives of the FBI, the City of Yonkers Police Department, the Westchester County Police, the Westchester County District Attorney’s Office, and the City of Peekskill Police Department. He also thanked the FBI’s Miami Division and the Greenacres Department of Public Safety for their assistance.
The prosecution is being handled by the Office’s White Plains Division. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Scott Hartman, George Turner, and Jessica Feinstein are in charge of the prosecution.
The charges contained in the Superseding Indictment are merely accusations, and the defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
15-168 ###
United States v. Diondre Carlisle, et al., S2 14 Cr. 768 (VB)
COUNT
CHARGE
DEFENDANTS
MAX. PENALTIES
1
Racketeering conspiracy, 18 U.S.C. § 1962(d)
DIONDRE CARLISLE
MYKAI DAVIS
RAKEEM FLOWERS
TYRONE SMITH
KEVIN WILTSHIRE
SAUDY GUERRERO
DARNELL KIDD
JAMES MORRIS
PAUL NEGRIN
20 years in prison
2
Using or carrying a firearm during and in relation to a crime of violence and drug trafficking crime,
18 U.S.C. § 924(c)
DIONDRE CARLISLE
MYKAI DAVIS
RAKEEM FLOWERS
KEVIN WILTSHIRE
SAUDY GUERRERO
DARNELL KIDD
JAMES MORRIS
PAUL NEGRIN
Life in prison
Mandatory minim of seven years in prison (brandishing), or mandatory minimum 10 years in prison (shooting) consecutive to any other sentence on the first offense; or mandatory 25 years consecutive on the second offense.
3
Murder in aid of racketeering activity, 18 USC 1959(a)(1)
KEVIN WILTSHIRE
Mandatory life in prison or death
4
Carrying and using firearms during and in relation to and possessing firearms in furtherance of a crime of violence resulting in the death of another, 18 U.S.C. § 924(j)
KEVIN WILTSHIRE
Life in prison or death
Mandatory minimum of 25 years
5
Conspiracy to commit Hobbs Act robbery
18 U.S.C. § 1951
DIONDRE CARLISLE
RAKEEM FLOWERS
MYKAI DAVIS
CESAR MUNGUIA
KEVIN WILTSHIRE
DARNELL KIDD
SAUDY GUERRERO
JAMES MORRIS
20 years in prison
6
Brandishing a firearm during and in relation to a crime of violence
18 U.S.C. § 924(c)
DIONDRE CARLISLE
RAKEEM FLOWERS
MYKAI DAVIS
CESAR MUNGUIA
KEVIN WILTSHIRE
DARNELL KIDD
SAUDY GUERRERO
JAMES MORRIS
Life in prison
Mandatory minimum of seven years in prison, consecutive to any other sentence
7
Bank robbery
18 U.S.C. § 2113(a)
DIONDRE CARLISLE
ISAIAH WASHINGTON
KEVIN WILTSHIRE
20 years in prison
8
Attempted bank robbery
18 U.S.C. § 2113(a)
DIONDRE CARLISLE
20 years in prison
9
Witness tampering
18 U.S.C. § 1513(b)
RAKEEM FLOWERS
TYRONE SMITH
20 years in prison
Defendant
Age
Residence
DIONDRE CARLISLE
18
Yonkers, NY
MYKAI DAVIS
19
Yonkers, NY
RAKEEM FLOWERS
19
Yonkers, NY
CESAR MUNGUIA
20
Yonkers, NY
TYRONE SMITH
24
Yonkers, NY
ISAIAH WASHINGTON
19
Yonkers, NY
KEVIN WILTSHIRE
19
Yonkers, NY
SAUDY GUERRERO
20
Yonkers, NY
DARNELL KIDD
23
Yonkers, NY
JAMES MORRIS
24
Yonkers, NY
PAUL NEGRIN
22
Hollywood, FL
[1] As the introductory phrase signifies, the entirety of the text of the Second Superseding Indictment, and the description of the Second Superseding Indictment set forth herein, constitute only allegations, and every fact described should be treated as an allegation.
McAlester Man Sentenced to 188 Months for Methamphetamine DistributionRead the Press Release
MUSKOGEE, OKLAHOMA – The United States Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Oklahoma, announced that EDDIE A. BROWN, age 42, of McAlester, Oklahoma, was sentenced to 188 months imprisonment and 5 years supervised release for Distribution of Methamphetamine, in violation of Title 21, United States Code, Sections 841(a)(1) and 841(b)(1)(A).
The charge is a result of an investigation by the District 18 District Attorney’s Drug Task Force and the Drug Enforcement Administration. The defendant was indicted in September, 2014 and pled guilty in November, 2014.
The Indictment alleged that on or about March 20, 2014, within the Eastern District of Oklahoma, the defendant did knowingly and intentionally distribute 50 grams or more of methamphetamine (actual), a Schedule II Controlled Substance.
The Honorable Ronald A. White, District Judge in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Oklahoma, in Muskogee, presided over the hearing. The defendant will remain in the custody of the United States Marshal Service pending transportation to the designated federal prison at which he will serve his nonparolable sentence.
Assistant United States Attorney Shannon Henson represented the United States.
Mason City Man Sentenced to Federal Prison for Involvement in Meth ConspiracyRead the Press Release
A man who conspired to distribute methamphetamine was sentenced July 1, 2015, to more than 7 years in federal prison.
William Allan Odell II, 43, from Mason City, Iowa, received the prison term after an April 13, 2015, guilty plea to conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine.
At the guilty plea, Odell admitted to his involvement from June 2014 through December 2014 in a conspiracy that distributed more than 50 grams of actual (pure) methamphetamine. On November 26, 2014, Odell was arrested on an outstanding warrant. Odell was searched, and several used syringes as well as a bag of unused ones were located in his coat pockets. Odell was also found in possession of 9.38 grams of methamphetamine, which was located on the passenger side of the car, along with a digital scale and two empty baggies. Odell admitted to selling ½ ounce amounts during the time period of the conspiracy.
Odell was sentenced in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, by United States District Court Chief Judge Linda R. Reade. Odell was sentenced to 90 months’ imprisonment. A special assessment of $100 was imposed. He must also serve a 5-year term of supervised release after the prison term. There is no parole in the federal system. Odell 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 Jack Lammers and investigated by the North Central Iowa Narcotics Task Force, Cerro Gordo County Sheriff’s Office; Mason City Police Department, Iowa Division of Narcotics Enforcement, and Iowa Division of Criminal investigation.
Court file information is available at https://ecf.iand.uscourts.gov/cgi-bin/login.pl. The case file number is 15-3010.
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Maryland Man Pleads Guilty to Assault ChargesRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON – William Nelson, 52, of Morningside, Md., pled guilty today to charges of felony assault and misdemeanor assault for attacking two people after an argument on a Metro train, announced Acting U.S. Attorney Vincent H. Cohen, Jr. and Ron Pavlik, Chief of the Metro Transit Police.
Nelson entered the guilty plea in the Superior Court of the District of Columbia. The Honorable Yvonne M. Williams scheduled sentencing for Sept. 8, 2015. Nelson faces a statutory maximum of three years in prison for felony assault and up to 180 days of incarceration for misdemeanor assault, as well as potential financial penalties.
“This brutal beating was a shocking attack on two innocent people who were simply using Metro to travel throughout the city,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Cohen. “This level of outrageous violence is entirely unacceptable and will not be tolerated.”
“On behalf of all Metro riders, I want to extend our thanks to the U.S. Attorney's Office for their support in this case that led to today's plea,” said Chief Pavlik. “I also want to commend the responding Transit officers and detectives who helped to ensure that justice was served today. Any assault is unsettling, but when it involves juvenile victims and when it occurs within the confined space of a railcar, that makes the crime all the more disturbing.”
According to a factual proffer presented at today’s plea hearing, on June 7, 2015, at about 1 a.m., Nelson was seated in front of two juveniles, 16 and 17, on a Metro train headed toward the Anacostia station of the Green Line. Nelson appeared to be asleep. The juveniles placed their feet on a window partition between their seat and Nelson’s seat, and he woke up. Nelson then stated, “Can you stop kicking the glass before I smack one of y’all?” A verbal argument ensued between Nelson and one of the juveniles, and both juveniles moved away from Nelson to another part of the train. Nelson, however, followed and continued arguing. Then he turned, walked toward the second juvenile, and punched him in the face.
As the juveniles moved through the train to get into a different car, a 46-year-old man approached Nelson and told him that he shouldn’t be acting that way. Nelson then confronted the man and punched him in the face multiple times, causing him to fall into a seat on the train.
As the man was still in the seat, Nelson stood over him and continued to punch him repeatedly in the face, even though the man’s hands were at his sides. After Nelson walked away, the man got up and exchanged words with him. Nelson then walked back over to the man, raised his hands, in a fighting stance, and punched him again. The man was knocked to the floor, and began bleeding from his face.
Both the man and the juvenile identified Nelson as the individual that who assaulted them. As a result of the altercation, the man sustained a fractured jaw and cheekbone and needed several stitches for lacerations to his lips. Additionally, he was informed by doctors that he needed to undergo surgery and have a plate inserted. The felony charge involves his attack.
In announcing the plea, Acting U.S. Attorney Cohen and Chief Pavlik commended the work of those who investigated the case from the Metro Transit Police. Finally, they acknowledged the efforts of those who worked on the case from the U.S. Attorney’s Office, including Assistant U.S. Attorney Lindsey Merikas, who investigated and prosecuted the case.
Marijuana Dealer Convicted in Manhattan Federal Court of Two 1996 MurdersRead the Press Release
Preet Bharara, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, announced that JOSE ISMAEL VENTURA was found guilty yesterday of murder in connection with a marijuana distribution conspiracy, conspiracy to commit murder-for-hire, and murder-for-hire. The verdict came following a 13-day jury trial in Manhattan federal court before U.S. District Judge John G. Koeltl.
According to the Indictment and the evidence at trial:
From the 1980s through the mid-1990s, JOSE ISMAEL VENTURA owned and operated a marijuana distribution business in the vicinity of 207th Street and Sherman Avenue in northern Manhattan. In the fall of 1995, VENTURA placed his nephew, Eugene Garrido, in charge of the day-to-day operations of the marijuana business while VENTURA’s son, Kevin Ventura, who had previously managed the business, was on home detention for a pending murder charge. In the spring of 1996, Kevin Ventura’s murder charge was dismissed by state authorities and VENTURA told his nephew Eugene Garrido that his services were no longer needed. Garrido refused to give up his management role, and instead began efforts to take over the entire marijuana business from VENTURA. Because of this dispute over VENTURA’s marijuana business, in the summer of 1996, VENTURA ordered the murder of Garrido. On VENTURA’s order, his son Kevin Ventura hired two brothers to kill Garrido in exchange for $10,000, derived from the VENTURA marijuana business. On August 19, 1996, one of the two brothers shot and killed Garrido in the lobby of his apartment building in northern Manhattan. A bystander, Carlos Penzo, who attempted to stop the fleeing shooter, was also shot and died a week later of his injuries.
Kevin Ventura was convicted of these murders, as well as one additional murder, following a jury trial in Manhattan federal court in December 2013.
The two brothers who were hired to commit the Garrido murder, Jorge Lafontaine and Jose Lafontaine, have both been charged federally and have entered pleas of guilty to their roles in the Garrido and Penzo murders. They have not yet been sentenced.
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JOSE ISMAEL VENTURA, 62, of Manhattan, faces a mandatory sentence of life in prison. The maximum potential sentence is prescribed by Congress and is provided here for informational purposes only, as any sentencing of the defendant will be determined by the judge. A sentencing hearing has been scheduled for October 2, 2015, at 3:00 p.m. before Judge Koeltl.
Mr. Bharara praised the investigative work of the Homeland Security Investigations Division of Immigration and Customs Enforcement, and the New York City Police Department.
This case is being prosecuted by the Office’s Violent and Organized Crime Unit. Assistant United States Attorneys Margaret Garnett and Micah W.J. Smith are in charge of the prosecution.
Manhattan U.S. Attorney Announces Arrest of Postal Carrier for Theft of over $1 Million in Tax Refund ChecksRead the Press Release
Preet Bharara, United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, Eileen Neff, Special Agent-in-Charge of the Northeast Area Field Office of the U.S. Postal Service, Office of Inspector General (“USPS-OIG”), Philip R. Bartlett, Inspector-in-Charge of the New York Office of the U.S. Postal Inspection Service (“USPIS”), and Shantelle P. Kitchen, Special Agent-in-Charge of the New York Field Office of the Internal Revenue Service’s Criminal Investigation Division (“IRS”), announced today the arrest of OSCAR LOPEZ in connection with a conspiracy to obtain over $1 million in fraudulently-issued tax refund checks from his U.S. Postal Service (“USPS”) delivery route. The defendant, a USPS mail carrier, was arrested this morning and is expected to be presented later today in Manhattan federal court before U.S. Magistrate Judge Sarah Netburn.
Manhattan U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara said: “As alleged, Oscar Lopez used his position as a U.S. Postal Service mail carrier to steal over $1 million in taxpayer funds. The exemplary investigative work of the Postal Service Inspector General’s Office, the Postal Inspection Service, and the IRS put an end to Lopez’s alleged involvement in this scheme.”
USPS-OIG Special Agent in Charge said: “The U.S. Postal Service Office of Inspector General aggressively investigates Postal Service employees who would abuse their position of trust. We value our law enforcement partners who work closely with us in matters like these.”
USPIS Inspector in Charge Philip R. Bartlett said: “As a taxpayer and a United States Postal Service employee, I find the allegations against the defendant disturbing. I have little tolerance for those who would use their position of public trust to facilitate criminal activity, as is alleged in this investigation. Postal Inspectors and their law enforcement partners will put a stop to crime wherever it exists; keeping the mail safe and secure for its employees and customers.”
IRS-CI Special Agent-in-Charge Shantelle P. Kitchen said: “A fraudulent tax refund scheme is, essentially, the use of false pretenses to steal money from the U.S Treasury. Yet, despite this simple description, fraudulent tax refund fraud schemes can involve a web of co-conspirators who obtain taxpayer information, file the tax returns and secure and negotiate the refund checks. IRS-Criminal Investigation is responsible for investigating the abusers of our nation’s tax system, with the goals of safeguarding public funds and maintaining public confidence in the system.”
According to the allegations contained in the Complaint filed today in Manhattan federal court[1]:
From at least June 2010 to May 2012, LOPEZ typically delivered mail on an assigned route in ZIP code 10460 in the Bronx. LOPEZ obtained fraudulently-issued tax refund checks that had been mailed by the IRS to addresses along his delivery route. He then provided those checks to his co-conspirators, who returned a portion of the value of the checks to him. In total, over $1 million in fraudulently-issued tax refund checks that were mailed to LOPEZ’s delivery route ended up being negotiated against, or deposited into, a bank account associated with one of LOPEZ’s co-conspirators.
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LOPEZ, 36, of Brooklyn, New York, is charged with one count of conspiring to steal government funds, which carries a maximum term of five years in prison, and one count of theft of government funds, which carries a maximum term of ten years in prison. The maximum potential sentences in this case are prescribed by Congress and are provided here for informational purposes only, as any sentencing of the defendant will be determined by the judge.
Mr. Bharara praised the outstanding work of the USPS-OIG, the USPIS, and the IRS in the investigation.
The case is being handled by the Office’s General Crimes Unit. Assistant U.S. Attorney Drew Johnson-Skinner is in charge of the prosecution.
The charges contained in the Complaint are merely accusations and the defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
[1] As the introductory phrase signifies, the entirety of the text of the Complaint, and the description of the Complaint set forth herein, constitute only allegations, and every fact described should be treated as an allegation.
Local Woman Pleads Guilty to Wire Fraud for Embezzling Church FundsRead the Press Release
Tampa, FL – United States Attorney A. Lee Bentley, III announces that Juliet Ellis (45, Tampa) today pleaded guilty to one count of wire fraud in connection with embezzling funds from a local church. She faces a maximum penalty of 20 years in federal prison. As part of the agreement, Ellis has agreed to pay restitution to the church in the total amount of $82,838.00. Her sentencing date has not yet been set.
According to the plea agreement, Ellis began working as a financial secretary at Palma Ceia United Methodist Church in February 2007. She was later promoted to business manager. In that capacity, Ellis was responsible for preparing the payroll for the church’s employees and administering the employee’s health and short-term disability insurance benefits programs. In performing these duties, Ellis manipulated the church’s payroll by falsely increasing the amount directly deposited to her account for her paycheck, and by failing to deduct her own health and disability insurance co-payments. She also failed to fully pay her child’s tuition at the church’s day school.
This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Tampa Police Department. It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Kelley C. Howard-Allen.
L.A. Man Who Hacked into Email Accounts and Obtained Nude Photos for ‘Revenge Porn’ Website Pleads Guilty in Hacking SchemeRead the Press Release
LOS ANGELES – A San Fernando Valley man who hacked into e-mail accounts to steal nude photos that were later posted on a notorious “revenge porn” website has pleaded guilty to federal computer crime and identity theft charges.
Charles Evens, 26, of Studio City, pleaded guilty late Wednesday afternoon to one count of unauthorized access to a protected computer to obtain information for purposes of private financial gain and one count of aggravated identity theft.
Appearing before United States District Judge Dolly M. Gee, Evens pleaded guilty to the two felony charges and admitted that he obtained nude pictures that were posted on the revenge porn website, http://isanyoneup.com. The operator of that website – Hunter Moore, 29, of Woodland, California – pleaded guilty in February to the same two offenses that Evens admitted to yesterday.
On his website, Moore posted nude and sexually explicit photos that had been submitted without the permission of victims. To obtain more photos for the website, Evens gained unauthorized access – in other words, hacked into – Google e-mail accounts. Moore sent payments to Evens in exchange for nude photos unlawfully obtained from the victims’ accounts. Moore then posted the illegally obtained photos on his website, without the victims’ consent, as both men have now admitted in court.
In late 2011, Moore sent an email to Evens that stated Moore would like as many nude pictures from hacked emails accounts as possible. In response, Evens accessed a victim’s e-mail account without authorization and obtained pictures. Evens provided the pictures to Moore, and Moore paid $145.70. One of the photos – a topless picture of a female victim – was posted on isanyoneup.com on December 29, 2011.
When he pleaded guilty yesterday, Evens admitted that he hacked into email accounts belonging to hundreds of victims.
As a result of the guilty pleas entered yesterday, Evens faces a statutory maximum sentence of seven years in federal prison, which includes a mandatory two-year term for the aggravated identity theft charge.
Evens is scheduled to be sentenced by Judge Gee on November 16.
Judge Gee is scheduled to sentence Moore on August 12, at which time he also faces a maximum possible penalty of seven years in federal prison, and a mandatory minimum sentence of two years.
The investigation in this case was conducted by the Federal Bureau of Investigation.
Justice Department Settles Lawsuit Against Pima Community College for Violating the Employment Rights of Arizona Army National GuardsmanRead the Press Release
The Justice Department announced today it has reached a settlement agreement with Pima Community College (PCC) that, if approved by the U.S. District Court of the District of Arizona, will resolve allegations that PCC violated the Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act (USERRA) by discriminating against Army National Guardsman Timothy Stoner. USERRA prohibits employment discrimination based on a service member’s past, current or future military status, service or obligation. Stoner, a PCC police officer, is a veteran of active duty military deployments in Afghanistan and Iraq with 22 years of total military service. He is currently a Sergeant First Class in the Army National Guard.
The department’s complaint alleges that PCC violated USERRA by failing to promote Stoner to the position of police corporal in 2010 and in 2013. According to the department’s complaint, PCC created the supervisory position of police corporal in 2010. Before that position was created, Stoner was effectively performing comparable duties in his position as a lead police officer. The lead police officer assignment was abolished by PCC when it created the supervisory police corporal job. In 2010 and 2013, Stoner applied for promotion to police corporal, but both times he was not selected. As alleged in the lawsuit, Stoner’s military service was a motivating factor in PCC’s decision to deny him promotion on both occasions. As the complaint alleges, the former police chief, who was one of the selecting officials, demonstrated military animus toward Stoner by making anti-military statements to Stoner before and during the corporal selection process. Under the terms of the settlement, PCC must provide Stoner the back pay that he lost due to its failure to promote him and PCC must place him in a regular police corporal position. In addition, PCC must amend its written personnel policies to advise its employees of their rights and obligations under USERRA.
“The men and women who serve in the National Guard makes a tremendous sacrifice to protect our nation,” said Acting Associate Attorney General Stuart F. Delery. “We are dedicated to enforcing the laws ensuring that guard members do not have to sacrifice even more in their civilian careers.”
“This lawsuit and settlement reinforces the commitment of the Department of Justice to requiring employers to comply with their legal obligations under USERRA so that members of our military who sacrifice to serve this country are considered fairly for promotions and other employment opportunities,” said Vanita Gupta, Head of the Civil Rights Division. “The Department of Justice will continue to vigorously enforce USERRA so that the rights of our uniformed service members are protected from unlawful discrimination in the workplace based on their military service obligations.”
Stoner initially filed a complaint with the U.S. Labor Department’s Veterans’ Employment and Training Service, which investigated this matter and, after resolution failed, referred it to the Justice Department. The department’s Civil Rights Division, through its Employment Litigation Section, then filed suit on Stoner’s behalf. The Civil Rights Division has given a high priority to the enforcement of service members’ rights under USERRA. Additional information about USERRA can be found on the Justice Department’s websites at http://www.usdoj.gov/crt/emp and http://www.servicemembers.gov, as well as on the Labor Department’s website at http://www.dol.gov/vets/programs/userra/main.htm.
Information: Federal Court ArraignmentsRead the Press Release
The United States Attorney’s Office announced that those persons listed below were arraigned before the U.S. Magistrate and the indictments handed down by the Grand Jury unsealed.
Appearing before U.S. Magistrate Ostby in Billings on July 2, 2015, and entering pleas of Not Guilty were:
- KYLE BIGBACK, a 32-year-old resident of Busby, appeared on charges of sexual abuse of a minor. If convicted of the charge contained in the indictment, BIGBACK faces 15 years in prison, $250,000 in fines and lifetime supervised release. The case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Bureau of Indian Affairs. PACER Case Reference. 15-54
Appearing before U.S. Magistrate Lynch in Missoula on June 29, 2015, and entering pleas of Not Guilty were:
- CATHLEEN ROSELYN CANTLON, a 56-year-old resident of Troy, appeared on charges of interstate mailing of a firearm and ammunition and possession of a firearm and ammunition by a person who has been committed to a mental institution. If convicted of the most serious charge contained in the indictment, CANTLON faces 10 years in prison, $250,000 in fines and 3 years supervised release. The case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation. PACER Case Reference. 15-12
If any of the above cases are of interest to your media organization and the community it serves, we encourage you to monitor the progress of the case regularly through the U.S. District Court calendar and the PACER system so that you stay current and not miss any important developments in the case.
To establish a PACER account, which will allow you to review documents filed in the case, please go to, http://www.pacer.gov/register.html. To access the district court’s calendar, please go to https://ecf.mtd.uscourts.gov/cgi-bin/PublicCalendar.pl.
Hunt County Man Sentenced to 60 Years in Federal Prison for Producing Child PornographyRead the Press Release
DALLAS — A 32-year-old Hunt County man, Stephen Walker, was sentenced this afternoon by U.S. District Judge Jane J. Boyle to 60 years in federal prison, following his guilty plea in February 2015 to two counts of production of child pornography, announced John Parker, Acting U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of Texas.
Walker recently resided in Quinlan and Rowlett, Texas.
According to documents filed in the case, in September 2006, Walker enticed Jane Doe #2, a seven-year-old female child, to engage in sexually explicit conduct that he photographed.
Then, in November 2010, Walker enticed Jane Doe #1, a three-year-old female child, to engage in sexually explicit conduct that he video-recorded
The investigation began in November 2014 when a memory card, containing images of child pornography, was turned in to the Marion County Sheriff’s Office. That memory card had been found at a deer lease in a hunting club in Marion County; the deer lease had been used by Walker.
A search warrant of the memory card revealed it contained multiple sexually explicit videos of prepubescent child pornography taken at a Walker’s previous residence in Rowlett.
The case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative, which was launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice, to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by U.S. Attorney’s Offices and the 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 sexually exploit children, and identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit http://www.justice.gov/psc/. For more information about internet safety education, please visit http://www.justice.gov/psc/ and click on the tab “resources.”
The FBI, Rowlett Police Department and Marion County Sheriff’s Office investigated. Assistant U.S. Attorney Camille Sparks prosecuted.
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Honduran National Pleads Guilty to Illegal Re-EntryRead the Press Release
U.S. Attorney Kenneth A. Polite announced that DANIEL FIGUEROA-MUNGUIA, age 30, a citizen of Honduras, pled guilty today to a one-count Bill of Information charging him with illegal re-entry into the United States.
According to the court documents, FIGUEROA-MUNGUIA was found on March 30, 2015, in the United States after having been deported on April 29, 2011.
U.S. District Judge Nannette Jolivette Brown set sentencing for August 13, 2015.
U.S. Attorney Polite praised the work of the Department of Homeland Security in investigating this matter. Assistant United States Attorney Emily K. Greenfield is in charge of the prosecution.
Daniel Figueroa-Munguia Factual Basis.pdf (177.34 KB)
Henryetta Man Sentenced to 188 Months for Methamphetamine DistributionRead the Press Release
MUSKOGEE, OKLAHOMA - The United States Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Oklahoma, announced today that TRAVIS L. SMITH age 32, of Henryetta, Oklahoma, was sentenced to 188 months imprisonment and 4 years supervised release for Distribution of Methamphetamine, in violation of Title 21, United States Code, Sections 841(a)(1) and 841(b)(1)(B).
The charge arose from an investigation by the Oklahoma Bureau of Narcotics.
The Indictment alleged that on or about October 22, 2014, within the Eastern District of Oklahoma, the defendant did knowingly and intentionally distribute 50 grams or more of a mixture or substance containing a detectable amount of methamphetamine, a Schedule II Controlled Substance.
The Honorable Ronald A. White, District Judge in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Oklahoma, in Muskogee, presided over the hearing. The defendant will remain in the custody of the United States Marshal Service pending transportation to the designated federal facility in which he will serve his nonparoleable sentence.
Assistant United States Attorney Shannon Henson represented the United States.
Government Settles False Claims Act Allegations Against American Access Care Holdings, LLCRead the Press Release
American Access Care Holdings, LLC, which operated a vascular access center in Miami, has agreed to pay $1.2 million to resolve allegations that it violated the False Claims Act by billing Medicare for medically unnecessary percutaneous transluminal angioplasties (PTAs) and thrombectomies and by billing for more PTAs per patient encounter than permitted. Former American Access Care (AAC) facilities, including the one in Miami, are now operated by Fresenius Vascular Care, Inc. The conduct addressed by the settlement agreement took place prior to the merger between the two entities.
Wifredo A. Ferrer, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Florida, and Shimon R. Richmond, Special Agent in Charge, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Office of Inspector General (HHS-OIG), Miami Region, made the announcement.
“Health care providers that bill for medically unnecessary procedures put their own financial self-interest over their duty to their patients’ well-being,” said Wifredo A. Ferrer, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Florida. “We will hold providers accountable for this type of fraud and abuse that plagues the Medicare program and increases the cost of health care for all.”
“Jeopardizing patient care in order to steal taxpayer dollars is deeply troubling,” said Shimon R. Richmond, Special Agent in Charge, Office of Inspector General of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. “Actions like these only strengthen our resolve to protect the American public and hold accountable those who would compromise our health care system.”
The United States alleged that a substantial percentage of the PTAs and thrombectomies billed by the AAC facility in Miami were unnecessary, based on a medical review of patient records. Patients at the facility were routinely brought back for follow-up visits that were not justified by the patients’ condition and that simply provided more opportunities to bill for procedures the patients did not need. The United States also alleged that AAC billed for multiple PTAs performed during one patient encounter, even though it knew that such procedures were not reimbursable.
The settlement announced today resolves allegations originally brought by Dennis Souza, a registered nurse who worked at American Access Care of Miami, under the qui tam or whistleblower provisions of the False Claims Act, which permit private parties to sue on behalf of the United States for the submission of false claims and to receive a share of any recovery. The False Claims Act authorizes the United States to intervene in such lawsuits and take over primary responsibility for litigating them, as the United States did here. Souza’s share of the settlement has not yet been determined.
The investigation of this matter reflects a coordinated effort between the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Florida and HHS-OIG. The case was handled by Assistant U.S. Attorney Susan Torres.
The case is captioned United States ex rel. Souza v. American Access Care of Miami, LLC, No. 11-22686-Civ-Lenard (S.D. Fla.). The claims settled by the lawsuit are allegations only, and there has been no determination of liability.
A copy of this press release may be found on the website of the United States Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Florida at www.usdoj.gov/usao/fls. 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.
Franklin County Resident Sentenced for Heroin OffenseRead the Press Release
On July 1, 2015, George A. Mayo, 34, of West Frankfort, Illinois, was sentenced for his involvement in a heroin conspiracy, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of Illinois, Stephen R. Wigginton, announced today.
Mayo, who had previously pled guilty to an indictment charging conspiracy to distribute heroin, was sentenced to 90 months in federal prison, to be followed by 3 years’ supervised release. Johnson was fined $300.00. Evidence at the plea and sentencing hearings established that Mayo and co-defendant Frank Johnson, a/k/a "Moe," were involved together in the distribution of heroin in the Elkville and West Frankfort areas between 2012 and January 2014. At sentencing, the district court determined that Mayo was responsible for the distribution of approximately 309 grams of heroin. Johnson was previously sentenced to 108 months in prison for his role in the heroin conspiracy.
The investigation was conducted by the Southern Illinois Enforcement and Drug Enforcement Administration. The Jackson County Sheriff’s Office, West Frankfort Police Department, and Jackson County State’s Attorney’s Office assisted in the investigation.
The case was assigned to Assistant United States Attorney Amanda A. Robertson for prosecution.
Four Miami Area Residents Sentenced for Mann Act and Money Laundering OffensesRead the Press Release
Wifredo A. Ferrer, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Florida, and Alysa D. Erichs, Special Agent in Charge, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations (ICE-HSI), announce that on July 1, 2015, United States District Judge Cecilia M. Altonaga sentenced Istvan Kaszab, 38, and Andrea Avram, 25, of Aventura, Florida, to 27 months’ and 11 months’ imprisonment, respectively, for Mann Act and money laundering offenses, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Sections 2421 and 1956. Judge Altonaga sentenced defendant Szabina Balazs, 21, of Hallandale, Florida to time served (approximately five months’ imprisonment) for violating the Mann Act. As part of the same case, on July 2, 2015, Judge Altonaga sentenced Christian Fiorenza, 51, of Ft. Lauderdale, Florida, to 37 months’ imprisonment for Mann Act and money laundering violations. Judge Altonaga said that the sentence imposed was necessary to promote respect for the law and deter the defendant and others from engaging in this type of criminal activity. All defendants pled guilty to the charges at issue.
Between May 2012 and September 2014, the defendants participated in the operation of an escort agency, that is, the Fort Lauderdale Escort Services (“FLES”). FLES recruited adult women from Eastern Europe, predominantly Hungary, to engage in prostitution in the United States. The women were recruited through various advertisements and other means. FLES would assist the women in petitioning for travel to the United States through the Electronic System for Travel Authorization (“ESTA”) program. ESTA is an automated system that determines the eligibility of visitors to travel to the United States under the Visa Waiver Program (“VWP”).
Once the women were admitted into in the United States, they would immediately begin working as prostitutes for FLES, both locally in South Florida, as well as nationally.FLES would advertise each prostitute’s “services” on FLES’ website.
FLES would arrange the prostitutes’ travel and housing needs in the United States.Each prostitute stayed in the United States, on average, between three months to a year.However, many overstayed their visas.
Each of the defendants played a different role in the conspiracy.Fiorenza was listed as the President of FLES, according to publicly available information on the Florida Division of Corporation’s website sunbiz.org.He also maintained FLES’ website.Kaszab recruited most of the prostitutes from Hungary.
Avram and Balazs began their affiliation with FLES as prostitutes.Avram then began assisting Kaszab in recruiting women from Hungary, arranging client meetings and travel, and facilitating money transfers from her bank account to Hungary, knowing the money came from prostitution earnings.Balazs began assisting Fiorenza with FLES’ operations.Specifically, she would assist in the maintenance of the website, book client meetings and travel, and facilitate money transfers to and from her bank accounts, knowing that the money came from prostitution earnings.
The defendants received a portion, or “cut,” of the monies earned by the prostitutes.Fiorenza received the largest cut, followed by KaszabAvram and Balazs would receive their cut from their male codefendants’ share.
Kaszab and Avram wired funds from the United States to Hungary on a regular basis and purchased several luxurious items from proceeds earned from prostitution, such as Mercedes Benz vehicles and a Breitling timepiece.
Mr. Ferrer commends the investigative efforts of ICE-HSI for their work on this case. The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Vanessa S. Johannes and Elina A. Rubin-Smith.
A copy of this press release may be found on the website of the United States Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Florida at www.usdoj.gov/usao/fls. 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.
Former MPD Detective Sentenced to Prison on Money Laundering Charge Involving Purchases Made with Proceeds of Drug ConspiracyRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON – Stephanie Ellison, 51, a former Metropolitan Police Department (MPD) detective, was sentenced today to 15 months in prison on a money laundering charge stemming from the purchase and financing of two cars and a motorcycle with money that came from a drug conspiracy. In a related matter, Raymond Proctor, 47, was sentenced April 29, 2015, to a prison term of 63 months on drug conspiracy and money laundering charges.
The sentences were announced by Acting U.S. Attorney Vincent H. Cohen, Jr.; Charles E. Smith, Special Agent in Charge of the Washington Field Division of the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives; Cathy L. Lanier, Chief of the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD), and Troy D. Berry, Sheriff of Charles County, Md.
Ellison and Proctor pled guilty on March 31, 2015, in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia. Ellison pled guilty to one count of conspiracy to launder monetary instruments. Proctor, of Washington, D.C., pled guilty to one count of conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute 100 grams or more of heroin and one count of conspiracy to launder monetary instruments. Both were sentenced by the Honorable James E. Boasberg.
In addition to the prison term, Proctor was ordered to pay a money judgment of $47,835 as forfeiture for the money laundering conspiracy and $41,800 for the narcotics conspiracy. As part of her plea agreement, Ellison agreed to the forfeiture of her interest in various items of jewelry; $5,000 in cash found on Dec. 11, 2012, inside a safe at her residence; a 2006 Maserati automobile; a 2007 Harley Davidson Night Rod motorcycle; and a 2009 750LI BMW automobile, and entry of the forfeiture money judgment in the amount of $47,835.
According to the proffers of evidence filed with the Court, in 2010 the ATF, the MPD and the Charles County Sheriff’s Department began this joint investigation. During that investigation, Proctor sold a total of approximately 418 grams of heroin during several controlled purchases to multiple undercover agents in exchange for cash and export-only cigarettes.
During the course of this narcotics conspiracy, Proctor and Ellison conspired to launder monetary instruments. As part of this conspiracy, Proctor and Ellison purchased a 2006 Maserati, a 2007 Harley Davidson Night Rod, and a 2009 750LI BMW. Proctor and Ellison purchased these vehicles by commingling Proctor’s illegal proceeds with funds obtained from Ellison. Proctor and Ellison titled these vehicles in Ellison’s name; however, the vehicles were purchased for Proctor’s use. These vehicles were purchased to conceal and disguise the nature, source, and ownership of the narcotics proceeds, and hide the true ownership of the vehicles. According to the government’s evidence, Ellison knew that the property involved in these financial transactions represented the proceeds of some unlawful activity.
Ellison joined the MPD in 1986. The guilty pleas include consent orders of forfeiture for a money judgment which represent the proceeds of the crimes.
In announcing the sentences, Acting U.S. Attorney Cohen, Special Agent in Charge Smith, Chief Lanier, and Sheriff Berry commended the actions of the ATF Special Agents, Metropolitan Police Department officers, and members of the Charles County Sheriff’s Office who worked on the investigation and prosecution of this case. They also commended the work of those who handled the case for the U.S. Attorney’s Office, including Paralegal Specialists Catherine O’Neal, Kim Hall, Teesha Tobias, and Rosalind Pressley; Legal Assistant LaToya Wade, and former Legal Assistant Priscilla Hutson.
Finally, they expressed appreciation for the efforts of Assistant U.S. Attorneys Karla-Dee Clark and Zia Faruqui, who investigated and prosecuted these cases.
Former Chelsea Housing Authority Executive and Former Public Housing Inspector Sentenced for Rigging Inspection ProcessRead the Press Release
BOSTON – A former executive of the Chelsea Housing Authority (CHA) and a former public housing inspector were sentenced today for their roles in rigging the inspection process of federally funded housing units.
James Fitzpatrick, 63, of Acton, Mass., and Bernard Morosco, 50, of Utica, NY, were sentenced by U.S. District Court Judge Douglas P. Woodlock to three months and six months in prison, respectively, and one year of supervised release. The two were convicted in April 2015 of conspiring to defraud the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) by impairing, impeding, and defeating the proper operation of HUD’s inspection process.
Pursuant to federal regulations, to determine whether a public housing authority is meeting the standard for its residents of conditions that are “decent, safe, sanitary, and in good repair,” HUD’s Real Estate Assessment Center (REAC) is required to “provide for an independent physical inspection of a public housing authority’s property or properties that includes, at a minimum, a statistically valid sample of the units in the CHA’s public housing portfolio to determine the extent of compliance with the standard.” REAC inspections are conducted by independent contractors who have received training from REAC on the inspection protocol and applicable regulations, and have been certified by HUD. Once certified, an inspector is given an inspector number, and with a password, can access the secure REAC server, which contains data on all public housing authorities and also later enable the inspector to generate a random sample of units to inspect on the scheduled date of the inspection.
Before the REAC inspections of the CHA in 2007, 2009, and 2011, Morosco gave Fitzpatrick, the Assistant Director of the CHA, an advance list that revealed which units at the CHA would be inspected. During those years, Morosco, who was a REAC-certified inspector, worked for the CHA as a consultant, advising the CHA about how to get better scores on its REAC inspections.
One or two months before each REAC inspection, using information provided by Fitzpatrick, Morosco accessed HUD’s secure database and downloaded information to which he was not entitled. That information enabled him to use his REAC software to generate, in advance, the random sample that would later be generated by the assigned REAC inspector. Morosco then gave the samples to Fitzpatrick who, in turn, provided it to the CHA’s Executive Director, Michael McLaughlin.
McLaughlin divided CHA employees into pairs, calling each pair a “SWAT team,” and sent them to inspect the units identified by Morosco. For the month before each inspection, the “SWAT teams” visited several apartments a day, inspecting and re-inspecting them as maintenance crews visited the units to make repairs, fumigate, and exterminate. When the REAC inspectors conducted the inspections, the units that were selected were the same as the ones provided in advance by Morosco.
McLaughlin, the former Executive Director of the CHA, was previously sentenced to serve an additional 12 months in prison for this offense after having already been sentenced to 36 months for other illegal conduct involving the CHA.
United States Attorney Carmen M. Ortiz and Christina Scaringi, Special Agent in Charge of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, Office of Inspector General, Northeast Regional Office, made the announcement today. The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys S. Theodore Merritt of Ortiz’s Public Corruption and Special Prosecutions Unit and Brian Pérez-Daple of Ortiz’s Economic Crimes Unit.
Federal jury finds Ethiopian national guilty of resisting deportation ordersRead the Press Release
ALEXANDRIA, La. – United States Attorney Stephanie A. Finley announced that a federal jury found an Ethiopian national guilty Wednesday of refusing to leave the country twice after being ordered to depart.
Henok Dejene Retta, 30, of Ethiopia, was found guilty of two counts of failure to depart. United States District Judge Dee D. Drell presided over the trial. The defendant’s trial started Tuesday and ended Wednesday with the jury returning the guilty verdict after deliberating for 45 minutes. Evidence admitted at trial revealed that on two occasions U.S. Immigration Enforcement Agents attempted to remove Retta from the country via the Alexandria International Airport by putting him on a commercial flight. The defendant hampered agents’ ability to remove him by verbally and physically resisting agents on November 19, 2013. The defendant also hampered attempts to put him on a commercial flight at the airport on January 7, 2014, when he told those present that he had terrorist ties in Africa and would have the plane attacked should he be put on the plane. These incidents prevented him from boarding the flights because of airline and Transportation Security Administration safety policies.
Retta faces four years in prison, three years of supervised release and a $250,000 fine for each count. Sentencing has been set for October 13, 2015.
The Immigration and Customs Enforcement - Enforcement and Removal Operations conducted the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Robert F. Moore and Howard C. Parker are prosecuting the case.
Federal Jury Convicts Portsmouth Man on Drug Conspiracy and Gun ChargesRead the Press Release
NORFOLK, Va. – Jason Marvin Saunders, 33, of Portsmouth, Virginia, was convicted today on narcotics conspiracy and gun charges, including conspiracy to distribute heroin, cocaine, and cocaine base, and possession of a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime. Saunders’ twin brother and co-conspirator, Jeremy Lynn Saunders, previously pleaded guilty to drug conspiracy and firearms charges, and was sentenced to 25 years in prison on June 25, 2015.
Saunders was indicted on January 7, 2015. According to court records and evidence at trial, from January 2012 to about August 2014, the Saunders brothers jointly distributed over 1,000 grams of heroin, over 5,000 grams of cocaine, and over 280 grams of cocaine base through an organization that they managed and used firearms to protect. On August 23, 2014, Saunders and his brother were involved in an exchange of gunfire with a rival drug organization at another location they operated at Appomattox Avenue in Portsmouth. In response to that incident, Saunders possessed a Taurus PT 145 Millennium Pro .45 Caliber pistol with 8 cartridges and a Ruger P85 9MM pistol. During the execution of a search warrant on February 6, 2014, at a different location, Saunders was found in possession of approximately 125 grams of cocaine powder, 50 grams of heroin, 16 grams of crack cocaine, scales, packaging materials, cutting agents, a Makarov Special Edition .380 Caliber semi-automatic pistol with 8 cartridges, a Rohm RG10 .22 Caliber revolver, and approximately $10,274 in U.S. currency.
Saunders faces a maximum penalty of life in prison when sentenced on October 14, 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; and Karl C. Colder, Special Agent in Charge for DEA’s Washington Office, made the announcement after the verdicts were taken by U.S. District Judge Raymond A. Jackson. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Joseph DePadilla and Andrew Bosse prosecuted the case.
The case was investigated by the DEA’s Washington Office with the assistance of the Portsmouth Police Department as part of the Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF). The OCDETF program is a federal, multi-agency, multi-jurisdictional task force that supplies supplemental federal funding to federal and state agencies involved in the identification, investigation, and prosecution of major drug trafficking organizations. The principal mission of the OCDETF program is to identify, disrupt and dismantle the most serious drug trafficking, weapons trafficking and money laundering organizations, and those primarily responsible for the nation’s illegal drug supply.
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. 2:15cr2.
Federal Grand Jury Indicts Church Staff Member for Producing, Receiving and Possessing Child PornographyRead the Press Release
BIRMINGHAM – A federal grand jury last week indicted a Shelby County man on multiple charges of producing, receiving and possessing child pornography, announced U.S. Attorney Joyce White Vance and FBI Special Agent in Charge Roger C. Stanton.
A four-count indictment filed in U.S. District Court charges JASON MICHAEL HANKINS, 34, with the production, receipt and possession of child pornography in 2013. Hankins found at least one of his victims by seeking out a single mother on a Christian dating website. Hankins worked at Shades Crest Baptist Church as part of the Family Life Center staff, assisting in the planning and coordinating of recreational activities.
The maximum penalty for producing child pornography is 30 years in prison and a $250,000 fine, per count. The maximum penalty for each count of receiving and possessing child pornography is 20 years in prison and a $250,000 fine.
The FBI investigated the case, which Assistant U.S. Attorney Jacquelyn Hutzell is prosecuting.
Members of the public are reminded that an indictment contains only charges. A defendant is presumed innocent of the charges and it will be the government’s burden to prove a defendant’s guilt beyond a reasonable doubt at trial.
East St. Louis Man Sentenced to 77 Months in Prison for Possession of A Firearm by A Convicted FelonRead the Press Release
Stephen R. Wigginton, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Illinois, announced today that Reginald L. Beck, 39, of East St. Louis, Illinois, was sentenced in federal district court in East St. Louis for the crime of Possession of a Firearm by a Convicted Felon.
Beck was sentenced to 77 months in federal prison, to be followed by 3 years of supervised release, a $100 special assessment, and a fine of $300, following his plea of guilty on March 12, 2015. The charges relate to an incident that occurred on January 1, 2015, in Centreville, Illinois, where police officers attempted to stop Beck for speeding. Beck sped off, abandoned his car, and fled on foot. The officers saw Beck throw something into some nearby weeds as he ran. After apprehending Beck, officers found two loaded firearms in the weeds – a Bryco .38 caliber semi-automatic pistol and a Taurus .357 magnum revolver; Beck admitted to the officers that he possessed the guns and threw them into the weeds.
Beck was previously convicted of possession of firearm by a felon in the Southern District of Illinois, on June 27, 2002. Beck is currently serving a sentence in the Illinois Department of Corrections for Aggravated Criminal Sexual Assault. The sentence imposed today in federal court runs consecutive (in addition) to Beck’s state conviction. The sentencing judge also ordered forfeiture of the firearm and the ammunition contained therein.
The case was investigated by members of the Centreville Police Department and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives, and was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Donald Boyce.
Chicago Investment Fund Manager Sentenced to 72 Months in Federal Prison for Defrauding Investors of over $9 MillionRead the Press Release
CHICAGO — A Chicago investment manager who fraudulently obtained millions of dollars from investors in a sophisticated Ponzi scheme to fund his extravagant lifestyle was sentenced today to 72 months in federal prison.
The defendant, NEAL GOYAL, 34, of Chicago, who was the sole managing member and founder of Blue Horizon Asset Management, LLC, and Caldera Advisors, LLC, was also ordered to pay more than $9.2 million in restitution by U.S. District Judge Matthew F. Kennelly. Goyal, who pleaded guilty in February to one count of wire fraud, was ordered to surrender to begin serving his sentence on September 17, 2015.
“Goyal was running a Ponzi scheme and he stole much of his investors’ money to prop up his extravagant lifestyle,” Assistant U.S. Attorney Kenneth Yeadon argued in a government sentencing memorandum. “There is no justification for the crimes that Goyal committed other than his own desire to place his own self-interests in front of the interests of his investors.”
From 2006 to 2014, Goyal perpetrated the scheme by setting up a fake trading shop on Michigan Avenue in Chicago in order to fool his investors into believing that his trading strategy generated market-beating returns. Goyal concealed his scheme by using existing investor money to repay investors, and by creating and distributing false account statements. Many of the duped investors were Goyal’s friends and family members.
The sentence was announced by Zachary T. Fardon, United States Attorney for the Northern District of Illinois, and Robert J. Holley, Special Agent-in-Charge of the Chicago Office of the Federal Bureau of Investigation. They commended the assistance of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.
Central Coast Real Estate Developer Sentenced to 14 Years in Federal Prison for Scam that Cost Victims Millions in Lost InvestmentsRead the Press Release
LOS ANGELES – A former Central Coast real estate developer was sentenced this morning to 168 months in federal prison for his conviction on fraud and money laundering charges after bilking investors who put millions of dollars into Central Coast real estate projects.
Kelly Gearhart, 54, who previously lived in Atascadero and currently resides in Wadsworth, Ohio, was sentenced today by United States District Judge Otis D. Wright II. Gearhart was remanded into custody at the close of the sentencing hearing.
Gearhart, who was named Atascadero’s “Citizen of the Year” in 2006, pleaded guilty last year to two counts of wire fraud and one count of money laundering. When he pleaded guilty, Gearhart admitted that he knowingly and intentionally made misrepresentations and omissions relating to his Vista Del Hombre real estate development project to induce victims to part with their money. Gearhart admitted that he sold lots that were part of the Vista Del Hombre project in Paso Robles, even though those lots were being used to secure others’ loans. Gearhart admitted that he then used those same lots to obtain bank loans.
At sentencing, prosecutors introduced evidence that Gearhart also told investors that their investments – which he called “loans,” promising repayment with interest – would be used to develop the Vista Del Hombre project.
Judge Wright is scheduled to hold a restitution hearing on October 20. The plea agreement permits prosecutors to seek restitution for victims of the Vista Del Hombre real estate development project, as well as any other fraudulent conduct in which Gearhart may have been involved – a figure that may be as high as $20 million. However, it is unclear if there is any money available to repay victims.
The case against Gearhart is related to a case against James Hurst Miller Jr., the former president of the Atascadero-based Hurst Financial Corporation. Miller, who previously pleaded guilty to fraud and money laundering charges, is scheduled to be sentenced by Judge Wright on October 19.
The cases against Gearhart and Miller are the result of an investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and IRS - Criminal Investigation. The San Luis County District Attorney’s Office provided assistance in the investigation.
Catherine McKinney Pleads Not Guilty to Large Law Firm EmbezzlementRead the Press Release
The United States Attorney for the District of Vermont announced that Catherine McKinney, 61, of Hartland, pleaded not guilty today in United States District Court in Burlington to federal fraud charges. U.S. Magistrate Judge John M. Conroy released McKinney on conditions pending trial, which has not been scheduled. According to court records, on June 17, 2015, a federal grand jury in Rutland returned a three-count indictment charging McKinney with mail and wire fraud and interstate transportation of stolen money. The indictment alleges that, beginning no later than 2008 and continuing until early 2015, McKinney embezzled at least $690,000 from her employer, Myers Associates PLLC, a law firm in Lebanon which represents clients in both Vermont and New Hampshire. According to the indictment, McKinney wrote law firm checks to herself and to her creditors on which she forged the signature of her attorney employer. She deposited more than $90,000 in forged checks into her Vermont bank account. McKinney allegedly also caused electronic transfers of firm funds to pay her obligations, including large credit card bills. The United States Attorney emphasizes that the charges in the indictment are merely accusations and that the defendant is presumed innocent unless and until she is proven guilty. If convicted, McKinney faces up to 20 years of imprisonment and a fine of more than $1,000,000. The actual sentence would be determined with reference to federal sentencing guidelines. This case was investigated by the United States Secret Service.
Bronson Man Pleads Guilty to Firearm ChargesRead the Press Release
GAINESVILLE, FLORIDA – Jamie Vincent Ward, 38, of Bronson, Florida, pled guilty today to two charges of possession of a firearm by a convicted felon. The plea was announced by Pamela C. Marsh, United States Attorney for the Northern District of Florida.
According to documents filed in the case, Ward was convicted in Georgia for the felony offenses of Escape, Theft by Taking, First Degree Arson, and Possession of Methamphetamine. Ward is the leader or “Grand Dragon” of the Florida-Georgia chapter (“Klavern”) of the Traditionalist American Knights of the Ku Klux Klan (TAKKKK). In 2014 and 2015, Ward discussed his possession of firearms with another member of the TAKKKK. On March 2, 2015, Ward transferred a German Sports Gun .22 caliber rifle to that person, asking that it be converted to a fully automatic weapon.
Law enforcement agents served search and arrest warrants at Ward’s Bronson residence on April 2, 2015. Ward was arrested as he attempted to flee. A loaded Hi-Point nine-millimeter pistol and an assortment of ammunition were found within his residence.
Ward is scheduled for sentencing on September 23, 2015, at 12:30 p.m. in Gainesville. He faces a maximum of 10 years’ imprisonment on each count.
The case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement Homeland Security Investigations, and the Office of Statewide Prosecution, whose joint investigation led to the convictions in this case. This case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Michael T. Simpson.
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 available 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]Broken Arrow Woman Sentenced to 60 Months Probation, 8 Months Home Arrest, $45,000 Restitution for Bank EmbezzlementRead the Press Release
MUSKOGEE, OKLAHOMA - The United States Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Oklahoma, announced today that CAROL ANNE DYE, age 55, of Broken Arrow, Oklahoma, was sentenced to 5 years probation with 8 months of house arrest for Bank Theft, Embezzlement and Misapplication, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 656. The Defendant was also ordered to pay $45,464.60 in restitution.
The charge arose from an investigation by the Broken Arrow Police Department and the United States Secret Service. The defendant was indicted in January, 2015 and pled guilty in February, 2015.
The Indictment alleged that from in or about 2011, until on or about August 22, 2014, in the Eastern District of Oklahoma, defendant, CAROL ANNE DYE, being an officer, director, agent, or employee of, or connected in a capacity with, The First National Bank of Broken Arrow, Oklahoma, a bank whose deposits are insured by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, with intent to injure and defraud the said The First National Bank of Broken Arrow, Oklahoma, willfully misapplied, embezzled, abstracted, and purloined more than $1,000.00 of the moneys, funds, assets or securities entrusted to the custody or care of The First National Bank of Broken Arrow, Oklahoma, in that the defendant withdrew cash from the vault and teller drawers of the said bank and misapplied, embezzled, abstracted and purloined the funds for her own use or benefit.
The Honorable Ronald A. White, District Judge in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Oklahoma, in Muskogee, presided over the hearing.
Assistant United States Attorney Rob Wallace represented the United States.
Baltimore Man Charged with Arson of CVS PharmacyRead the Press Release
Baltimore, Maryland – A criminal complaint has been filed charging Raymon Carter, age 24, of Baltimore, Maryland, with the arson of the CVS Pharmacy located at 2509 Pennsylvania Avenue in Baltimore, on April 27, 2015.
The criminal complaint was announced by United States Attorney for the District of Maryland Rod J. Rosenstein; Special Agent in Charge William P. McMullan of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives - Baltimore Field Division; Commissioner Anthony W. Batts of the Baltimore Police Department; and Maryland State Fire Marshal Brian Geraci.
“To paraphrase Winston Churchill, civilized people cannot remain impartial between the firefighter and the arsonist,” said U.S. Attorney Rod J. Rosenstein. “There is no excuse for callously destroying property, endangering peoples’ lives and damaging their livelihood. We must never confuse peaceful protests with riots. Many honorable Baltimore residents are stepping up to hold vandals accountable and protect the city.”
“Those committing arson took advantage of our city when we were most vulnerable. Carter’s alleged actions caused over $1 million of damage to this community,” said Commissioner Anthony Batts of the Baltimore Police Department. “Thanks to the hard work of the ATF and our detectives our hope is that we will never have to do this again. We owe a tremendous debt to the community that helped us to identify him. Thank you to our residents.”
On April 27, 2015, the CVS Pharmacy located at 2509 Pennsylvania Avenue in Baltimore was looted and burned. On May 22, 2015, ATF released two still photographs of a suspect in the arson to the media and announced a $10,000 reward for information leading to the suspect’s identification, arrest and conviction. According to the affidavit filed in support of the criminal complaint, tips to the ATF Arson Hotline revealed that the suspect was Raymon Carter.
The criminal complaint was filed on June 25, 2015, and on June 29, 2015, the ATF released a “wanted” poster asking the community for information leading to the location and apprehension of Carter. Carter was arrested yesterday and the complaint was unsealed today.
According to the affidavit, surveillance video from inside the store shows the looters running around the store in a frenzy to steal merchandise. Unlike the looters, Carter is seen on surveillance video going to and from the southeast corner of the sales floor – which is the area of the origin of the fire - three separate times between 6:15 p.m. and 6:19 p.m. The third time Carter is seen going to that corner of the store, he moves out of camera view, behind the shelves. The time on the video is 6:19:34 p.m. At 6:19:57 p.m. a flash of light can be seen on the video, which is believed to be the ignition of the fire. After the flash of light, Carter reappears on the surveillance video from behind the shelves and at 6:20:06 p.m. is seen running away from the area toward the CVS exit. No other individual is seen on the surveillance video in the area of the fire from the time of the flash of light until Carter exits the store. At 6:22:05 Carter is seen back in the store. Flames in the southeast corner of the store become visible on the surveillance video at 6:22:19 p.m. Fourteen seconds later Carter is seen walking towards the exit while looking back at the fire, and the looters are seen running toward the exit. The Baltimore Fire Department was dispatched to the scene at 6:28 p.m. According to the affidavit, two still photographs of Carter were extracted from video taken outside the CVS and were used in the reward flyer.
According to the affidavit, the CVS sustained approximately $1.3 million in damages.
The investigation into this and other arsons that occurred on April 27, 2015, is continuing. Anyone with information is urged to call the ATF hotline, 1-888-ATF-FIRE (1-888-283-3473). ATF continues to offer a reward of up to $10,000 for information leading to the arrest and conviction of any individual responsible for these incidents.
Carter faces a mandatory minimum sentence of five years in prison, and a maximum of 20 years in prison for arson. An initial appearance was held today in U.S. District Court in Baltimore. Carter was detained pending a detention hearing before U.S. Magistrate Judge Stephanie A. Gallagher on Tuesday, July 7, 2015 at 2:00 p.m.
A criminal complaint is not a finding of guilt. An individual charged by criminal complaint is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty at some later criminal proceedings.
United States Attorney Rod J. Rosenstein praised the ATF, Baltimore Police Department, and Maryland State Fire Marshal’s Office for their work in the investigation. Mr. Rosenstein thanked Assistant United States Attorney Sandra Wilkinson, who is prosecuting the case.
Baltimore City Landfill Employee Admits to Accepting Bribes from Trash HaulersRead the Press Release
Baltimore, Maryland – Former Baltimore City Department of Public Works (DPW) employee Tamara Oliver Washington, age 55, of Baltimore, pleaded guilty today to conspiracy and to solicitation of bribes in connection with a 14 year scheme in which DPW employees sought and accepted cash payments from commercial haulers in return for allowing the commercial haulers to deposit trash at the Quarantine Road Landfill (Landfill) without paying the required disposal fees.
The plea agreement was announced by United States Attorney for the District of Maryland Rod J. Rosenstein; Special Agent in Charge Stephen E. Vogt of the Federal Bureau of Investigation; Robert H. Pearre, Jr., Inspector General, City of Baltimore Office of Inspector General; Special Agent in Charge Thomas Jankowski of the Internal Revenue Service - Criminal Investigation, Washington, D.C. Field Office; and Colonel William M. Pallozzi, Superintendent of the Maryland State Police.
“Corrupt public employees rip off the taxpayers and undermine everyone’s faith in government,” said U.S. Attorney Rod J. Rosenstein.
The DPW’s Bureau of Solid Waste is responsible for managing Baltimore City’s waste management services, including overseeing citizen drop-off centers, such as the Northwest Transfer Station (NWTS) and the Landfill. Baltimore City’s waste management system generates revenue for the City by collecting and selling recyclable scrap metal dumped at the City’s trash collection facilities. The City contracts with private salvage companies to purchase and remove scrap metal from its trash collection facilities. DPW employees at the Landfill and NWTS are required to place the recyclable scrap metal in separate bins provided by the salvage companies. The salvage companies regularly pick up the scrap metal and, based on predetermined prices per ton, the salvage companies pay the City for the value of the scrap metal.
Baltimore City residents can deposit small amounts of trash and/or recyclables in dumpsters located near the main entrance of the Landfill, free of charge. Individuals or companies commercially hauling trash that have registered their vehicles with the City and obtained Landfill permits, as well as Baltimore City residents with larger loads, must deposit their trash in an open area located further within the Landfill. Commercial haulers of trash that meet certain vehicle weight limitations must, in addition to purchasing a Landfill permit, pay a waste disposal fee of $67.50 per ton of trash deposited at the Landfill.
According to Washington’s plea agreement, Washington was a DPW employee assigned to the scale house at the Landfill. DPW employees assigned as scale house operators weigh each truck as it enters the Landfill, which is recorded on a computerized point-of-sale system. To activate the system and record a particular transaction, DPW employees must enter the tag number of the truck and a corresponding billing code. The scale house operators reweigh each truck as it leaves the Landfill. The net weight of the deposited trash and the required disposal fee is then calculated and printed on a receipt that is handed to the driver.
Beginning in 2001, about three months after getting hired as a scale house operator at the Landfill, Washington started accepting bribe payments from small haulers in lieu of charging them the full disposal fee for using the Landfill. Beginning in 2002, about one year after being hired, Washington started accepting bribe payments from large haulers of trash in lieu of charging them the full disposal fee for using the Landfill. Washington and other scale house employees accepted $100 bribe payments from some haulers for each truckload of trash dumped at the Landfill. Washington participated in the bribery scheme for more than fourteen years, up until her arrest in May 2015.
Washington and others concealed the bribery scheme by not entering a truck’s registration number into the computerized scale system, which meant the transaction was not recorded. Consequently, the transaction would not appear on the scale house’s daily logs and the commercial hauler would not be billed for using the Landfill on that particular occasion. To maintain the pretense that the trucks had been weighed and the disposal fee paid, Washington and others would hand the truck drivers fake or blank receipts when they crossed the outbound scale. In return, the commercial haulers either paid the $100 bribe through the outbound window at the scale house or met with the Defendant or another scale house operator at an off-site location to pay a week’s worth of bribes or more. The commercial haulers always paid the $100 bribes in cash.
By paying the $100 bribes in lieu of the disposal fees, these haulers saved their businesses thousands of dollars each month, which, in turn, cost the City of Baltimore more than $6 million in revenue. From July 1, 2014 through May 1, 2015 alone, Washington accepted on her own behalf, and on behalf of other DPW employees, more than $40,000 in bribe payments from one individual in return for not charging the individual or his company the required waste disposal fees, which totaled approximately $120,000 during that period of time.
Washington has agreed to pay restitution of $6 million.
Washington faces a maximum sentence of five years in prison for the conspiracy and 10 years in prison for bribery. U.S. District Judge Marvin J. Garbis has scheduled sentencing for October 20, 2015, at 10:00 a.m.
United States Attorney Rod J. Rosenstein praised the FBI, IRS-CI, Baltimore Office of Inspector General, and Maryland State Police for their work in the investigation. Mr. Rosenstein thanked Assistant United States Attorneys Martin J. Clarke and Gregory R. Bockin, who are prosecuting the case.
Army Sergeant Pleads Guilty to Conspiracy in Afghanistan Bribery SchemeRead the Press Release
A Fort Campbell Army Sergeant pleaded guilty today to conspiracy to commit bribery in connection with contracting for supplies while serving in Afghanistan.
Assistant Attorney General Leslie R. Caldwell of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, Acting U.S. Attorney John E. Kuhn Jr. of the Western District of Kentucky, Assistant Director in Charge Andrew G. McCabe of the FBI’s Washington Field Office, Special Inspector General for Afghanistan Reconstruction John F. Sopko, Director Frank Robey of the U.S. Army Criminal Investigation Command’s (CID) Major Procurement Fraud Unit, Acting Special Agent in Charge Paul Sternal of the Defense Criminal Investigative Service’s (DCIS) Mid-Atlantic Field Office and Brigadier General Keith M. Givens, Commander of the Air Force Office of Special Investigations (OSI) made the announcement.
Ramiro Pena Jr., 43, of Fort Campbell, Kentucky, pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Thomas B. Russell of the Western District of Kentucky to a one-count information charging him with conspiracy to commit bribery. Pena’s sentencing hearing is scheduled for Oct. 15, 2015.
From January 2008 through September 2009, Pena worked as a U.S. Army Sergeant First Class at the Humanitarian Assistance (HA) Yard at Bagram Airfield in Afghanistan. Pena and his supervisor, Army Master Sergeant Jimmy W. Dennis, were responsible for contracting with local vendors to purchase supplies necessary to support humanitarian relief in Afghanistan. On behalf of the Army, between June 2008 and March 2009, Pena and Dennis entered into approximately 217 such contracts for approximately $30,760,255.
In connection with his guilty plea, Pena admitted that he received money and jewelry from the vendors – primarily through Dennis – in return for Pena and Dennis taking action favorable to the vendors in connection with the HA Yard contracts. Specifically, Pena admitted that he received from the vendors, through Dennis, a Rolex watch in addition to $100,000 in bribe payments, which he received in approximately six installments.
Pena admitted that he sent some of the cash to his family in Kentucky, which he dispersed throughout numerous greeting cards to avoid drawing attention to the thickness of any particular envelope. Pena also used the bribe money to pay his family’s personal expenses both in Afghanistan and in the U.S., and to purchase a Harley Davidson motorcycle.
In May 2014, Dennis pleaded guilty in the Western District of Tennessee to conspiracy to launder bribe payments. In January 2015, Dennis was sentenced to serve 41 months in prison and was ordered to forfeit $115,000.
This case was investigated by the Special Inspector General for Afghanistan Reconstruction, the FBI, CID, DCIS and OSI. This case is being prosecuted by Trial Attorney Daniel P. Butler of the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section and Assistant U.S. Attorney Nute A. Bonner of the Western District of Kentucky.
Army Sergeant Pleads Guilty to Conspiracy in Afghanistan Bribery SchemeRead the Press Release
PADUCAH, KY – A Fort Campbell Army Sergeant pleaded guilty today to conspiracy to commit bribery in connection with contracting for supplies while serving in Afghanistan.
Acting U.S. Attorney John E. Kuhn Jr. of the Western District of Kentucky, Assistant Attorney General Leslie R. Caldwell of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, Assistant Director in Charge Andrew G. McCabe of the FBI’s Washington Field Office, Special Inspector General for Afghanistan Reconstruction John F. Sopko, Director Frank Robey of the U.S. Army Criminal Investigation Command’s (CID) Major Procurement Fraud Unit, Acting Special Agent in Charge Paul Sternal of the Defense Criminal Investigative Service’s (DCIS) Mid-Atlantic Field Office and Brigadier General Keith M. Givens, Commander of the Air Force Office of Special Investigations (OSI) made the announcement.
Ramiro Pena Jr., 43, of Fort Campbell, Kentucky, pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Thomas B. Russell of the Western District of Kentucky to a one-count information charging him with conspiracy to commit bribery. Sentencing has been scheduled for October 15, 2015.
From January 2008 through September 2009, Pena worked as a U.S. Army Sergeant First Class at the Humanitarian Assistance (HA) Yard at Bagram Airfield in Afghanistan. Pena and his supervisor, Army Master Sergeant Jimmy W. Dennis, were responsible for contracting with local vendors to purchase supplies necessary to support humanitarian relief in Afghanistan. On behalf of the Army, between June 2008 and March 2009, Pena and Dennis entered into approximately 217 such contracts for approximately $30,760,255.
In connection with his guilty plea, Pena admitted that they received money and jewelry from the vendors in return for Pena and Dennis taking action favorable to the vendors in connection with the HA Yard contracts. Specifically, Pena admitted that he received from the vendors, through Dennis, a Rolex watch in addition to $100,000 in bribe payments.
Pena admitted that he sent some of the cash to his family in Kentucky, which he dispersed throughout numerous greeting cards to avoid drawing attention to the thickness of any particular envelope. Pena also used the bribe money to pay his family’s personal expenses both in Afghanistan and in the U.S., and to purchase a Harley Davidson motorcycle.
In May 2014, Dennis pleaded guilty in the Western District of Tennessee to conspiracy to launder bribe payments. In January 2015, Dennis was sentenced to serve 41 months in prison and was ordered to forfeit $115,000.
This case was investigated by the Special Inspector General for Afghanistan Reconstruction, the FBI, CID, DCIS and OSI. This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Nute A. Bonner of the Western District of Kentucky and Trial Attorney Daniel P. Butler of the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section.
Arizona man sentenced to life without parole following drug conspiracy trialRead the Press Release
Over 50 pounds of methamphetamine couriered to Evansville from Arizona
EVANSVILLE - United States Attorney Josh J. Minkler announced today that Matthew Elder, 44, of Litchfield Park, Arizona, was sentenced to life without parole in federal prison by U.S. District Court Chief Judge Richard L. Young following a three-day jury trial in Evansville. The case resulted from a 2013-2014 investigation by the Drug Enforcement Administration, Federal Bureau of Investigation, Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, Evansville Vanderburgh County Joint Task Force, Posey County Sheriff's Department, Texas Drug Enforcement Administration, and Texas Department of Public Safety into the distribution of methamphetamine from Arizona into southwestern Indiana.
“Mr. Elder made a living peddling drugs to individuals in the Evansville area, “said Minkler. “He will spend the rest of his life in a federal prison and my hope is, others like him get the message that we will not tolerate this type of criminal behavior in Indiana.”
On April 1, 2015, a federal jury found Matthew Elder guilty of conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine along with co-defendant, William Elder. During court testimony, it was learned that Matthew Elder was the source of methamphetamine in Arizona, which brought over 50 pounds of meth to the Evansville-area in a six month period. Elder arranged for the methamphetamine to be couriered to Evansville by various individuals for redistribution near Evansville. Matthew Elder faced mandatory life without parole based on having two prior drug convictions in Arizona and one in Evansville.
Matthew Elder’s co-defendant, William Elder (his father), was also convicted in April and faces sentencing later this month.
According to Assistant U.S. Attorney Lauren Wheatley, who prosecuted the case for the government, Judge Young imposed 10 years of supervised release on Elder if he is ever released from prison. During that time, Elder must submit to regular drug testing and treatment.
Allegany County Man Convicted for Production and Possession of Child PornographyRead the Press Release
Baltimore, Maryland – A federal jury convicted Richard Alan Blank, Jr., age 44, of LaVale, Maryland, today for two counts of sexually abusing a minor to produce child pornography, and for possession of child pornography.
The guilty verdict was announced by United States Attorney for the District of Maryland Rod J. Rosenstein; Acting Special Agent in Charge Ivan Arvelo of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI); and Allegany County State’s Attorney Michael O. Twigg; Colonel William M. Pallozzi, Superintendent of the Maryland State Police, Allegany County Sheriff Craig Robertson, Cumberland Police Chief Charles H. Hinnant, Frostburg Police Chief Royce C. Douty, Frostburg University Chief of Police Cindy R. Smith, as part of the Allegany County Combined Criminal Investigations Task Force (C3I).
According to evidence presented at Blank’s four-day trial, on May 30, 2014, Blank used a minor to engage in sexually explicit conduct in order to produce images documenting the sexual abuse of the minor. A search conducted by law enforcement on June 2, 2014 revealed that Blank possessed images documenting the sexual abuse of the minor female on his cellular phone.
As a result of his conviction, Blank will be required to register as a sex offender in the place where he resides, where he is an employee, and where he is a student, under the Sex Offender Registration and Notification Act (SORNA).
Blank faces a minimum mandatory sentence of 15 years in prison and a maximum of 30 years in prison, followed by up to lifetime of supervised release, for each of the two counts of production of child pornography, and a maximum of 10 years in prison for possession of child pornography. U.S. District Judge William D. Quarles has scheduled sentencing for October 1, 2015, at 1:00 p.m. Blank remains detained.
This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by the United States Attorneys' Offices and the Criminal Division's Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who sexually exploit children, and to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.justice.gov/psc. For more information about internet safety education, please visit www.justice.gov/psc and click on the "resources" tab on the left of the page.
United States Attorney Rod J. Rosenstein commended the HSI Baltimore and the Allegany County Combined Criminal Investigations Task Force (C3I), comprised of the Maryland State Police, Cumberland Police Department, Allegany County Sheriff’s Office, Frostburg Police Department, Frostburg University Police Department and Allegany County State’s Attorney’s Office, for their work in the investigation and prosecution. Mr. Rosenstein thanked Assistant U.S. Attorneys Judson T. Mihok and Aaron S. J. Zelinsky, who are prosecuting the case.
15 Sentenced in Investigation Initially Targeting Street GangRead the Press Release
HOUSTON – With the sentencing of two more defendants today, 15 criminals have now been brought to justice for their respective roles in either a cocaine trafficking conspiracy or an alien smuggling/marijuana trafficking conspiracy, announced U.S. Attorney Kenneth Magidson along with Special Agent in Charge Brian M. Moskowitz of Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) in Houston.
Aldo Teyes-Sanchez, a 32-year-old from El Salvador, and Antonio Rivas-Vargas, a 31-year-old Mexican national, pleaded guilty Aug. 30, 2013, and Sept. 5, 2014, respectively. They were charged in a conspiracy to traffic cocaine.
Today, U.S. District Judge Melinda Harmon ordered Teyes-Sanchez to serve a total of 70 months in federal prison, while Rivas-Vargas will serve a 41-month-term. Not U.S. citizens, both are expected to face deportation proceedings following their release from prison. During sentencing, Judge Harmon noted that each defendant was part of a group of individuals who sold multi-ounce quantities of cocaine over a period of several years and that they distributed drugs for the Southwest Cholos gang, Glenmont clique. The group was also involved in the sale and use of firearms as a part of their drug trade.
“Those who come to this country and choose the lifestyle of a criminal street gang member should understand that they will be investigated, prosecuted, and as in this case, convicted and sentenced to federal prison,” said Moskowitz. “ICE is committed to working with our partners to disrupt the myriad of illicit activities that criminal street gangs thrive on as a way to make our communities safer for all.”
With the exception of one defendant - Eulogio Alanis - who has not yet been sentenced, today’s proceedings bring a conclusion to an operation conducted by HSI which initially targeted the Southwest Cholo street gang. Although not all were involved in gang activity, the resulting investigation led to indictments against 16 defendants. Four were charged with a cocaine conspiracy, while the other 12 faced marijuana and alien smuggling charges.
Those involved in alien smuggling would smuggle undocumented aliens across the United States-Mexico border. The illegal aliens were required to pay a fee or transport narcotics into the country to satisfy their smuggling debt. To date, all 16 defendants have been convicted and 15 are now headed to or are in federal prison.
HSI investigated along with the Houston Police Department. Assistant United States Attorney Mark E. Donnelly prosecuted the cases.
Wednesday 1 July 2015
Williamsville Man Sentenced on Tax Fraud ChargesRead the Press Release
CONTACT: Barbara Burns
PHONE: (716) 843-5817
FAX: (716) 551-3051
BUFFALO, N.Y. -- U.S. Attorney William J. Hochul, Jr. announced today that Carlo J. Marinello, Jr., 69, of Williamsville, NY, who was convicted after a jury trial of one count of obstructing and impeding the due administration of the Internal Revenue Code, four counts of failing to file personal income tax returns, and four counts of failing to file corporate tax returns with the Internal Revenue Service, was sentenced to 36 months in prison by Senior U.S. District Court Judge William M. Skretny. The defendant was also ordered to pay $351,763.08 in unpaid taxes.Assistant U.S. Attorney Russell T. Ippolito, Jr., who handled the case, stated that Marinello was the manager and owner of Express Courier Group/Buffalo Inc. (“Express Courier”), a corporation formed to commercially transport letters and documentation between businesses in New York and businesses in Canada. The business earned hundreds of thousands of dollars in revenues but the defendant failed to file tax returns for the company or personal tax returns for earned income.
According to the Government’s evidence, Marinello hid the income and obstructed and impeded the due administration of the Internal Revenue Code by: (1) failing to maintain corporate books and records for Express Courier; (2) failing to provide his accountant with complete and accurate information related to the defendant’s personal income and the income of Express Courier; (3) destroying, shredding and discarding business records of Express Courier; (4) cashing business checks received by Express Courier for services rendered; (5) hiding income earned by Express Courier in personal and other non-business bank accounts; (6) transferring assets to a nominee; (7) paying employees of Express Courier with cash; and (8) using business receipts and money from business accounts to pay personal expenses, including the mortgage for the residence in which the defendant resided and expenses related to care for Marinello’s mother care at a senior living center.Although required to do so, Marinello failed to file personal income tax and corporate tax returns for tax years 2005, 2006, 2007 and 2008.
The sentencing is the culmination of an investigation by the Internal Revenue Service, Criminal Investigation, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Shantelle P. Kitchen, New York Field Office.
Virginia Resident Sentenced to Prison in Connection with Lottery Scheme Based in JamaicaRead the Press Release
A Jamaican citizen residing in Virginia was sentenced to prison today for his role in an international lottery scam, the Justice Department and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations (ICE-HSI) announced.
Carlos O’Brien Ricketts, 32, was sentenced by U.S. District Court Judge Michael F. Urbanski of the Western District of Virginia to serve 10 months in prison to be followed by three years of supervised release, and ordered him to pay $74,450 in restitution to his victims.
Ricketts was indicted on Nov. 6, 2014, by a federal grand jury in Harrisonburg, Virginia, in connection with a fraudulent lottery scheme based in Jamaica that induced elderly victims to send thousands of dollars to cover fees for lottery winnings that the victims had not in fact won. On March 24, Ricketts pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit mail fraud and wire fraud.
“The masterminds of lottery fraud from Jamaica use co-conspirators in the United States not only to help collect money from innocent victims, but also to make their scheme appear less suspicious,” said Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Benjamin C. Mizer, head of the Justice Department’s Civil Division. “The Department of Justice will continue to prosecute those who direct or facilitate these international lottery schemes.”
As part of his guilty plea, Ricketts acknowledged that, had the case gone to trial, the government would have proved beyond a reasonable doubt that from May 2010 through April 2011, he was a middleman in the United States for a fictitious sweepstakes operating from Jamaica. According to the indictment, a co-conspirator induced elderly victims in the United States to send thousands of dollars to Ricketts to cover fees for purported lottery winnings that, in fact, the victims had not won.
This case is part of the government’s crackdown on international fraudulent lottery schemes that target elderly individuals in the United States. The indictment alleged that the co-conspirator instructed the victims to send their payments to Ricketts in the form of cash and checks via mail and as wire transfers.
As part of his guilty plea, Ricketts acknowledged that, had the case gone to trial, the government would have proved beyond a reasonable doubt that he received payments at his home address in Stephens City, Virginia, and at another address in Winchester, Virginia, sometimes using his own name and at other times used the name “Kevin Brown” to receive the money. Ricketts further acknowledged that had the case gone to trial, the government would have proved that he kept part of the money for himself and then sent the remainder of the money in wire transfers to Jamaica, sometimes using the “Kevin Brown” name and addresses other than his own in order to evade detection.
“Fraud schemes like this one that prey on senior citizens will not be tolerated,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Anthony P. Giorno of the Western District of Virginia. “Our office will provide whatever resources and assistance may be required in order to identify and bring these criminals to justice.”
“Homeland Security Investigations is committed to disrupting and combatting these international lottery schemes,” said Special Agent in Charge Clark E. Settles of HSI Washington, D.C., which oversees the agency’s Harrisonburg office. “While fraudulent schemes of any kind are despicable, targeting vulnerable populations is especially depraved and will not be tolerated.”
Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Mizer and Acting U.S. Attorney Giorno commended HSI’s investigative efforts. The case was prosecuted by Trial Attorney Kathryn Drenning of the Civil Division’s Consumer Protection Branch and Assistant U.S. Attorney Grayson Hoffman of the Western District of Virginia.
Virgin Islands Man Sentenced on Fraud ChargeRead the Press Release
CONTACT: Barbara Burns
PHONE: (716) 843-5817
FAX: (716) 551-3051
BUFFALO, N.Y. -- U.S. Attorney William J. Hochul, Jr., announced today that Kevin Liburd, 41, of St. Thomas, Virgin Islands, who was convicted of conspiracy to defraud the United States, was sentenced to time served (eight months) by Senior U.S. District Judge William M. Skretny.Assistant U.S. Attorney George C. Burgasser, who handled the case, stated that on January 27, 2011, the defendant, along with co-defendants Mica Donadelle and James Phillips, conspired to avoid the detection of $162,300 at the Buffalo Niagara International Airport. Phillips, an airport employee at the time, bypassed screening procedures and stored the money in an airport bathroom which was later picked up by Liburd.
Phillips has been convicted and is awaiting sentencing. Charges are still pending against Donadelle. The fact that a defendant has been charged with a crime is merely an accusation and the defendant is presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty.The sentencing is the culmination of an investigation on the part of the Safe Streets Task Force of the Federal Bureau of Investigation.
Violent “Goon Squad” and Others Sentenced on Drug Trafficking and Robbery Conspiracy ConvictionsRead the Press Release
DALLAS — Ten defendants who were convicted on federal felony offenses stemming from their roles in a drug distribution and robbery conspiracy have been sentenced, announced John Parker, Acting U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of Texas.
On Thursday, June 25, 2015, Elva Sofia Ibarra, 37, of Dallas, was sentenced to 135 months in federal prison, and the following day, June 26, 2015, Quinton Walker was sentenced to 87 months. Others were sentenced as follows:
Cesar Ibarra, aka “Bling,” 40, of Mansfield, Texas — 235 months
Hilberto Ibarra, aka “Gilberto,” 30, of Mansfield, Texas — 235 months
Cesar Ibarra, Jr., aka “Chicho,” 22, of Dallas, Texas — 8 months
Lauro Reyes-Serrano, aka “Wicho” and “Gordo,” 30, of Dallas — 57 months
Nicholas Manriquez, 29, of Dallas, Texas — 87 months
Andres Garcia, aka “Mentiras,” 31, of Dallas, Texas — 12 months and 1 day
Victor Anderson, aka “Old School,” 52, of Dallas, Texas — 21 months
Mark Anthony Nolasco, 23 of Dallas, Texas and Mansfield, Texas — 57 months
Most were arrested in June 2014 following a law enforcement operation conducted by special agents with the Federal Bureau of Investigation and officers with the Dallas Police Department.
According to documents filed in the case, Cesar Ibarra and his brother, Hilberto Ibarra, and their sister, Elva Sofia Ibarra (the Ibarra siblings) conspired with each other and others to commit illegal narcotics-trafficking offenses and criminal offenses in furtherance of their drug-trafficking activities, including the commission or planned commission of burglaries, robberies and other acts of violence. The Ibarra siblings and certain other co-conspirators called themselves the “Goon Squad,” and while Cesar and Hilberto Ibarra led the Goon Squad, the Ibarra siblings involved other family members, including Cesar Ibarra, Jr., in their cocaine, methamphetamine and marijuana trafficking activities.
The Goon Squad targeted individuals known, or believed, to be drug dealers for burglary, robbery or other acts of violence, because those individuals were likely to possess large quantities of illegal narcotics, U.S. currency or firearms, and would not be likely to report any offenses by the Goon Squad. They performed surveillance and reconnaissance on their potential victims. They also attempted to perform similar surveillance on members of law enforcement they believed were investigating their illicit activities by taking photographs and recording vehicle-specific information.
Assistant U.S. Attorney P. J. Meitl prosecuted.
Veterans’ Cemetery Worker to Plead Guilty to Stealing GravestonesRead the Press Release
PROVIDENCE, R.I. – Kevin Maynard, 59, of Charlestown, R.I., an employee at the Rhode Island Veteran’s Memorial Cemetery in Exeter, R.I., has agreed to plead guilty in federal court to stealing granite gravestones and other items from the Veterans’ Memorial Cemetery for use at his home as garage and shed flooring, announced United States Attorney Peter F. Neronha; Jeffrey Hughes, Special Agent in Charge, Department of Veterans Affairs, Office of Inspector General (VA OIG), Northeast Field Office; and Colonel Steven G. O’Donnell, Superintendent of the Rhode Island State Police.
According to court documents, it is alleged that over a lengthy period of time Maynard removed worn or broken grave markers from the cemetery and brought them to his Charlestown residence. On April 23, 2015, a VA-OIG agent and Rhode Island State Police detective accompanied Maynard to his home where investigators discovered at least 150 veterans’ grave markers being used as flooring for a shed and two make-shift garages. Investigators also located additional markers on the property and a box of American flags allegedly stolen from the Veterans' Cemetery.
According to Government regulations, all Government-furnished headstones/markers/ medallions remain the property of the United States Government in perpetuity and that the “destruction, mutilation, defacement, injury, or removal of any monument, gravestone, or other structure within the limits of any national cemetery is prohibited.”
According to court documents, Maynard will plead guilty as charged by way of an information with theft of government property. Maynard is scheduled to be arraigned before U.S. District Court Magistrate Judge Patricia A. Sullivan on July 13, 2015.
An information is merely an allegation and is not evidence of guilt. A defendant is entitled to a fair trial in which it will be the government’s burden to prove guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.
The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney John P. McAdams.
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Contact:
Jim Martin (401) 709-5357
email: [email protected]
on Twitter @USAO_RI
Two Rochester Men Arrested on Child Exploitation ChargesRead the Press Release
CONTACT: Barbara Burns
PHONE: (716) 843-5817
FAX: (716) 551-3051
ROCHESTER, N.Y.-U.S. Attorney William J. Hochul Jr. announced today that Matthew DiFlorio, 28, and Faycal Taouzinet, 26, both of Rochester, N.Y., were arrested and charged by criminal complaint with enticement of a minor using a means and facility of interstate commerce. The charge carries a minimum penalty of 10 years in prison, a maximum of life and a $250,000 fine. Taouzinet is also charged with production of child pornography which carries a minimum penalty of 15 years in prison, a maximum of 30, and a $250,000 fine.Assistant U.S. Attorney Tiffany H. Lee, who is handling the case, stated that according to the complaint, in June 2015, the mother of a 13 year-old minor advised the Rochester Police Department that her child had been communicating with two men. According to the mother, DiFlorio was working as a Lifetouch school photographer and the mother had, at one point, attempted to communicate with DiFlorio to tell him to stay away from her child. According to the minor, the minor had communicated with the defendant using the application “Kik” and ended up meeting him in February 2015.
After taking over the minor’s phone, law enforcement officers received a text message from DiFlorio on June 22, 2015. Assuming the minor’s identity, an officer engaged in texts with the defendant and arranged for a meeting to occur on June 23, 2015, at a local fast food restaurant. DiFlorio arrived at the meeting and was confronted by law enforcement officers.
As to defendant Taouzinet, the mother told law enforcement officers that Taouzinet worked as a clerk at a local store. Officers reviewed the minor’s phone and uncovered texts between the minor and the defendant to include sexually explicit chats. Some chats involved the minor sending sexually explicit pictures to Taouzinet.
An officer, assuming the minor’s identity once again, engaged in texts with Taouzinet and arranged for a meeting on June 22, 2015. The defendant did not show up at the arranged time but texted later and asked to meet. Taouzinet was observed by law enforcement officers later on that date and was arrested.
DiFlorio and Taouzinet made an initial appearance today before U.S. Magistrate Judge Marian W. Payson. They are being held pending a detention hearing on July 2, 2015 at 11:00 a.m. and 2:00 p.m. respectively.
The criminal complaint is the result of an investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s Child Exploitation Task Force which includes the Monroe County Sheriff’s Office, the Rochester Police Department, and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, Homeland Security Investigations with additional assistance provided by the Greece Police Department and the Monroe County District Attorney’s Office.
The fact that a defendant has been charged with a crime is merely an accusation and the defendant is presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty.
Two Men Sentenced for Burglarizing San Point Post OfficeRead the Press Release
Anchorage, Alaska-U.S. Attorney Karen Loeffler announced today that two men were each sentenced by U.S. District Court Judge Timothy M. Burgess to serve 21 months in federal prison for burglarizing the post office in Sand Point, Alaska.
Sheldon Wilson Shuravloff, 21, and Keith Lee Wilson, Jr., 19, both of Sand Point, Alaska, previously pled guilty to burglarizing the Sand Point post office in the early morning hours of December 28, 2014. The burglary caused more than $15,000 in damage to the post office and shut down the facility for a week while the investigation and repairs were completed.
In shutting down the post office, Shuravloff and Wilson forced Sand Point residents to go without certain essentials for that time, including medicines, baby formula, and household items. A statement sent to the court by the Sand Point postmaster also noted that Shuravloff and Wilson’s actions caused delay in the delivery of fishing permits and fishing gear essential to the operation of the Sand Point fishing fleet – the main source of income in the small community.
Upon release from prison, both Shuravloff and Wilson will remain under court supervision for three years. During that time, both men will be required to complete 250 hours of community service and pay restitution to the United States Postal Service in the amount of $15,779.92.
In sentencing the men, Judge Burgess called the burglary an extremely serious crime that had a tremendous impact on the Sand Point community as a whole. Judge Burgess specifically noted the intangible harms suffered by the community as a result of the Shuravloff and Wilson’s actions. Finally, Judge Burgess cited the need to protect the public from future crimes of both defendants, noting that both men had amassed lengthy criminal records that stretched back to their early teens.
In announcing the sentence, U.S. Attorney Loeffler praised the United States Postal Inspection Service, the Sand Point Police Department, and the Alaska State Troopers for their investigation of the case.
Two Labor Union Officers and One Former Labor Union Officer Indicted in Manhattan Federal Court for Accepting More Than One Million Dollars in Kickbacks and Embezzling Union FundsRead the Press Release
Preet Bharara, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, Diego Rodriguez, the Assistant Director-in-Charge of the New York Field Office of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (“FBI”), Cheryl Garcia, the Special Agent-in-Charge of the New York Regional Office of the United States Department of Labor, Office of Inspector General, Office of Labor Racketeering and Fraud Investigations (“DOL-OIG”), and William J. Bratton, Commissioner of the New York City Police Department (“NYPD”), announced the unsealing of charges against ROCCO MIRANTI, the business manager of the International Union of Allied Novelty and Production Workers, Local 223 (“Local 223”), JOHNNIE MIRANTI, the recording secretary-treasurer of Local 223, and LOUIS SMITH, the former president of the International Brotherhood of Teamsters, Local 810 (“Local 810”), for allegedly accepting more than one million dollars in kickback payments and embezzling money from Local 223 and Local 810. ROCCO MIRANTI, JOHNNIE MIRANTI, and SMITH were arrested today and arraigned in Manhattan federal court before U.S. Magistrate Judge Sarah Netburn.
Manhattan U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara said: “Rocco Miranti, Johnnie Miranti, and Louis Smith, by allegedly accepting more than a million dollars in bribes and embezzling union funds, put their self-interest above the interests of the union members they were supposed to represent. Rank-and-file union members are entitled to leadership that is supportive, not criminally exploitive, as alleged here.”
FBI Assistant Director Diego Rodriguez said: “Union leaders are supposed to represent workers for fair wages, benefits, and working conditions, not take kickback payments. As alleged, the defendants received more than $1 million in payments over 10 years. The FBI will continue to investigate those who seek to use their organization and their position as a way to personally profit illegally.”
DOL-OIG SAC Cheryl Garcia said: “The Office of Inspector General will continue to work cooperatively with our law enforcement partners to investigate these types of allegations.”
NYPD Commissioner William J. Bratton said: “As alleged, the defendants betrayed their union colleagues by using their influence within the health care plan to gain more than a million dollars in kickbacks. The NYPD has no tolerance for corruption at any level. I want to thank all of the investigators, agents and prosecutors involved in this case for weeding out this criminal behavior.”
According to the allegations in the Indictment filed in Manhattan federal court on Monday, June 29, 2015[1]:
Local 223 is headquartered in Manhattan and represents factory workers. Local 810 is headquartered in Long Island City and represents workers in many industries, including freight drivers and warehouse workers.
From at least 2004 up to and including the present, ROCCO MIRANTI and JOHNNIE MIRANTI were both officers of Local 223. From at least 2000 through 2013, SMITH was the president of Local 810; from 2013 through December 2014, SMITH was a trustee of Local 810. While they were officers of their respective unions, ROCCO MIRANTI, JOHNNIE MIRANTI, and SMITH were trustees of the unions’ health care benefit programs. In that capacity, they owed fiduciary duties to Local 223 and Local 810, respectively.
Claims for the Local 223 and Local 810 health care benefit programs were processed by Business-1, a third-party administrator. The president of Business-1, who is cooperating with the Government (the “CW”), told the Government that ROCCO MIRANTI, JOHNNIE MIRANTI, and SMITH demanded monthly kickback payments in exchange for Local 223 and Local 810 doing business with Business-1. At first, the CW made kickback payments solely to ROCCO MIRANTI; in or about 2005, ROCCO MIRANTI arranged for Business-1 to become the third-party administrator for Local 810, in exchange for kickback payments to SMITH. Initially, the kickback payments to ROCCO MIRANTI and SMITH were approximately five percent of the fees paid by Local 223 and Local 810, respectively, to Business-1; in or about 2006, ROCCO MIRANTI and SMITH increased the kickback payments that they required from the CW to approximately 10 percent of the fees paid by Local 223 and Local 810, respectively, to Business-1.
Beginning in or about October 2014, ROCCO MIRANTI, JOHNNIE MIRANTI, and SMITH each had conversations and meetings, which were recorded by the FBI, with the CW about the monthly kickback payments. During some of these meetings, the CW made kickback payments to ROCCO MIRANTI, JOHNNIE MIRANTI, and SMITH, including, in December 2014, a $10,000 cash payment to ROCCO MIRANTI and JOHNNIE MIRANTI and a $12,000 cash payment to SMITH.
In total, the kickback payments for the Local 223 account have exceeded $500,000, as have the kickback payments for the Local 810 account.
* * *
ROCCO MIRANTI, 70, of Howard Beach, New York, JOHNNIE MIRANTI, 39, of Rockville Centre, New York, and SMITH, 73, of Pearl River, New York, are each charged with one count of conspiring to solicit and receive kickbacks to influence the operation of an employee benefit plan, one count of conspiring to embezzle from an employee benefit plan, and one count of conspiring to commit theft or embezzlement in connection with a health care benefit program, each of which carries a maximum term of five years in prison. The Indictment also seeks forfeiture of crime proceeds. U.S. v. Rocco Miranti et al. Indictment (562.41 KB)
The maximum potential sentences in this case are prescribed by Congress and are provided here for informational purposes only, as any sentencing of the defendants will be determined by the judge.
Mr. Bharara praised the investigative work of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the United States Department of Labor, Office of Inspector General, Office of Labor Racketeering and Fraud Investigations, the U.S. Department of Labor’s Office of Labor-Management Standards, and the New York City Police Department’s Organized Crime Investigation Division.
The case is being prosecuted by the Office’s Violent and Organized Crime Unit. Assistant U.S. Attorney Jessica Lonergan is in charge of the prosecution.
The charges contained in the Indictment are merely accusations and the defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
[1] As the introductory phrase signifies, the entirety of the text of the Indictment, and the description of the Indictment set forth herein, constitute only allegations, and every fact described should be treated as an allegation.
Two Indianapolis men sentenced for string of armed business robberiesRead the Press Release
Serial robbers responsible for at least thirteen armed robberies in Central Indiana, receive 25 year sentence from U.S. District Judge Jane Magnus-Stinson
INDIANAPOLIS – United States Attorney Josh J. Minkler announced today the convictions of Armand R. Fuller, 22, and Darian T. Dowdell, 23, both of Indianapolis, for their role in a string of armed robberies in Indianapolis and neighboring counties. Following their pleas of guilty today, U.S. District Judge Jane Magnus–Stinson sentenced Fuller and Dowdell to 25 years each in federal prison.
“These two men are violent offenders who deserve to spend the next 25 years of their lives in federal prison,” said Minkler. “They made a living robbing local businesses and now are being held accountable.”
During today’s proceedings, Judge Stinson heard evidence that between November of 2013 and February of 2014, Fuller, Dowdell, and a third Indianapolis man, Fletcher A. Greer, 22, robbed some thirteen commercial establishments in the Indianapolis area at gunpoint. Those robberies included four Speedway gas stations, five McDonald's restaurants, a Jack in the Box, a Starbucks, and a Little Caesar’s pizza business. In at least one robbery, members of the trio pointed a gun at the head of a pregnant business employee and demanded cash and the employee’s personal cell phone. In another robbery, the trio pointed guns at customers of the business and demanded the customers turn over personal items, including cell phones and a laptop computer.
Based on surveillance footage from security cameras at the various businesses, the FBI and IMPD linked common elements among all the robberies, to include distinctive clothing worn by the perpetrators, and distinctive weapons the perpetrators carried, and determined that the robberies were all connected.
On February 18, 2014, Fuller, Dowdell, and Greer Greer, robbed a Steak ‘n Shake restaurant in Brownsburg, and then led responding units from the Brownsburg Police Department, IMPD, and the FBI Safe Streets Task Force on a high-speed chase over snow-covered roads in Hendricks County. The trio was apprehended after the vehicle they were driving failed to negotiate a turn and crashed into a drainage ditch. At the time of their arrest, Fuller, Dowdell, and Greer were found in possession of the distinctive clothing and firearms which linked them to the earlier robberies. All totaled, law enforcement officials recovered five firearms, two Tech 22, .22 caliber handguns, a .38 caliber revolver, a .357 caliber revolver, and a stolen .40 caliber semi-automatic handgun, that had been used in the robbery spree.
Special Agent in Charge W. Jay Abbott of the Indianapolis Office of the FBI stated, “violent crime remains a significant priority for the FBI and our Safe Streets Task Force is committed to investigating those most dangerous to our communities.”
According to Assistant United States Attorney Mathew J. Rinka, who prosecuted the case for the government, Judge Magnus-Stinson ordered Fuller and Dowdell to serve five years of supervised release following completion of their federal prison sentence, and ordered them to pay more than $18,000 in restitution to the various business and individuals they robbed.
Judge Magnus-Stinson sentenced Fletcher A. Greer in April of this year to 15 years in prison, followed by three years of supervised release, for his role in the robberies.
Two Associated with Dallas County Commissioner’s Public Corruption Investigation Plead Guilty to Federal OffensesRead the Press Release
DALLAS — Two individuals associated with the public corruption investigation of Dallas County Commissioner John Wiley Price, one of whom was indicted last July with Commissioner Price, pleaded guilty before U.S. Magistrate Judge Paul D. Stickney this morning, through plea agreements and factual resumes, to federal offenses, announced John Parker, Acting U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of Texas
Christian Lloyd Campbell, 45, of Oklahoma, a consultant who, through his company, Christian Consulting Group, provided consulting services for businesses pursuing public and private sector contracts, pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit bribery concerning a local government receiving federal benefits, as was charged in the indictment. Campbell faces a maximum statutory penalty of five years in federal prison and a $250,000 fine. However, according to the plea agreement filed, if the Court accepts the plea, the parties agree that the maximum term of imprisonment shall be no more than 36 months.
Karen Manning, who owned the Millennium 2000 art gallery in Dallas, which among other things, according to the factual resume filed, sold African art for Commissioner Price, pleaded guilty to an Information filed today charging one count of subscribing to a false and fraudulent U.S. individual income tax return. She faces a maximum statutory penalty of three years in federal prison and a $250,000 fine.
A factual resume is a statement of facts that support a defendant’s guilty plea. All persons named in Campbell and Manning’s factual resumes are entitled to the presumption of innocence until proven guilty.
Sentencing dates were not set.
The Federal Bureau of Investigation and Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigation are conducting the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Walt M. Junker and J. Nicholas Bunch and Deputy Criminal Chief Assistant U.S. Attorney Katherine Miller are prosecuting.
Tonawanda Woman Sentenced for Defrauding Elderly VeteranRead the Press Release
CONTACT: Barbara Burns
PHONE: (716) 843-5817
FAX: (716) 551-3051
BUFFALO, N.Y. -- U.S. Attorney William J. Hochul, Jr. announced today that Kathy Oertelt, 32, of Tonawanda, NY, who was convicted of mail fraud, was sentenced to 18 months in prison by Senior U.S. District Judge William M. Skretny, to mail fraud.Assistant U.S. Attorney MaryEllen Kresse, who handled the case, stated that between April and October 2013, Oertelt, who was employed as a health care provider for an 87-year old legally blind veteran, used the veteran’s signature stamp without his knowledge or permission to issue checks to herself totaling approximately $20,000. The defendant also obtained blank checks from an account the veteran had at the Navy Federal Credit Union in Vienna, Virginia. Oertelt wrote checks to herself on that account totaling approximately $54,000, and used the funds to purchase a 2008 Ford Expedition and a 2001 Suzuki SSXR motorcycle and to fund her gambling habit.
The sentencing is the culmination of an investigation on the part of Special Agents of the United States Veterans Administration, Office of Inspector General, Criminal Investigations Division, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Jeffrey G. Hughes, and the United States Secret Service, under the direction Special Agent in Charge C. Todd Laster.