Latest Records
Newest first across public DOJ and U.S. Attorney press releases.
30 July 2015
Hilliard Man Sentenced to 216 Months for Producing Images of Child PornographyRead the Press Release
COLUMBUS, Ohio – Jeremiah R. Malfroid, 34, of Hilliard, Ohio, was sentenced in U.S. District Court to 216 months in prison for production of child pornography.
Carter M. Stewart, U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Ohio, Marlon V. Miller, Special Agent in Charge, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), and members of the Franklin County Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force announced the sentence handed down today by U.S. District Judge Gregory L. Frost.
According to court documents, investigators with the Franklin County Internet Crimes Against Children (ICAC) task force connected files containing child pornography to the defendant’s computer. While executing a search warrant and forensic examination of Malfroid’s computer, investigators discovered 281 files of child pornography, 77 of which depicted children who have been identified by the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC).
Numerous additional images on Malfroid’s computer depicted Malfroid sexually abusing a female child. It was confirmed that Malfroid had access to the juvenile female between approximately 2007 and 2013, when the child was three to nine years old.
Malfroid was charged by criminal complaint in October 2014 and absconded during the investigation. He turned himself in to local authorities in California in December 2014, after being profiled on the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) Operation Predator smartphone app. A user-generated Facebook post indicating Malfroid’s fugitive status had been created the same month and shared nearly 200,000 times.
Malfroid pleaded guilty to production of child pornography on April 2, 2015.
The Franklin County ICAC Task Force is a multi-agency effort dedicated to the fight against computer facilitated crimes against children. The following agencies are members:
Franklin County Sheriff’s Office
Upper Arlington Police Department
Grove City Police Department
Columbus Police Department
Grandview Heights Police Department
Whitehall Police Department
Hilliard Police Department
Westerville Police Department
Homeland Security Investigations
U.S. Secret Service
Ohio ICAC
Franklin County Prosecutor's Office
This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by United States Attorney's Offices and the Criminal Division's Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS), Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state and local resources to better locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who exploit children as well as to identify and rescue victims.
U.S. Attorney Stewart commended the cooperative investigation by HSI and the Franklin County ICAC Task Force, as well as Assistant United States Attorneys Heather A. Hill and Jessica H. Kim, who represented the United States in this case.
Harvey Woman Pleads Guilty to Disaster Fraud and TheftRead the Press Release
U.S. Attorney Kenneth A. Polite announced that JENNIFER WILLIAMS, 33, of Harvey, pled guilty today to a two-count Indictment charging her with one count of disaster fraud and five counts of theft from the United States.
According to court records, WILLIAMS filed an application with the Department of Homeland Security Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) on or about October 15, 2012, following Hurricane Isaac. WILLIAMS claimed that she needed rental assistance due to damage in her home and made false statements to FEMA with regard to where she was temporarily living. After receiving a total of $17,040 in rental assistance, Department of Homeland Security investigators determined that WILLIAMS in fact never rented another property after Hurricane Isaac and that her application and supporting documentation was false.
U.S. District Judge Nanette Jolivette Brown set sentencing on November 5, 2015. WILIAMS faces a possible maximum sentence of thirty years, to be followed by up to five years of supervised release as to the disaster fraud count and/or a fine of $250,000. WILLIAMS is facing up to ten years imprisonment, to be followed by up to three years of supervised release as to each of the theft of government funds counts and/or a fine of $250,000.
U.S. Attorney Polite praised the work of the Department of Homeland Security, Office of Inspector General in investigating this matter. Assistant United States Attorney Edward J. Rivera of the Fraud Unit is in charge of the prosecution.
Harrisburg Man Charged with Illegal Gun PossessionRead the Press Release
HARRISBURG – The United States Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Pennsylvania announced that a Harrisburg man was indicted late yesterday by a federal grand jury in Harrisburg for being a felon in possession of a firearm. Shaun L. Graves, age 32, was charged with unlawful possession and one count of possessing a firearm with an obliterated serial number.
According to United States Attorney Peter Smith, the Indictment stems from an October 16, 2014, incident in which Graves was arrested by Harrisburg police officers in South Harrisburg and found to be in possession of a loaded Bersa .380 caliber semiautomatic pistol bearing an obliterated serial number.
The case is being investigated by the Harrisburg Office of the ATF as part of an ongoing effort by federal and local law enforcement to combat violent crime and is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Kim Douglas Daniel.
Indictments and Criminal Informations are only allegations. All persons charged are presumed to be innocent unless and until found guilty in court.
A sentence following a finding of guilt is imposed by the Judge after consideration of the applicable federal sentencing statutes and the Federal Sentencing Guidelines.
The maximum penalty for the felon in possession charge is life imprisonment. The maximum term of imprisonment for the obliterated serial number charge is 5 years imprisonment. Under the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, the Judge is also required to consider and weigh a number of factors, including the nature, circumstances and seriousness of the offense; the history and characteristics of the defendant; and the need to punish the defendant, protect the public and provide for the defendant's educational, vocational and medical needs. For these reasons, the statutory maximum penalty for the offense is not an accurate indicator of the potential sentence for a specific defendant.
# # #
Hanover Postal Employee Charged with Embezzlement of Government FundsRead the Press Release
HARRISBURG - The United States Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Pennsylvania announced that Janell Williams, age 38, Hanover, Pennsylvania, was indicted late yesterday by a federal grand jury in Harrisburg on a charge of misappropriation of postal funds.
According to United States Attorney Peter Smith, Williams, a United States Postal Service employee allegedly took $5,335.46 in government funds between July 2013 and October 2014 for her own use.
This case was investigated by the United States Postal Service, Office of Inspector General and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Daryl F. Bloom.
Indictments are only allegations. All persons charged are presumed to be innocent unless and until found guilty in court.
A sentence following a finding of guilt is imposed by the Judge after consideration of the applicable federal sentencing statutes and the Federal Sentencing Guidelines.
The maximum penalty under federal law is 10 years of imprisonment, a term of supervised release following imprisonment, and a fine. Under the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, the Judge is also required to consider and weigh a number of factors, including the nature, circumstances and seriousness of the offense; the history and characteristics of the defendant; and the need to punish the defendant, protect the public and provide for the defendant's educational, vocational and medical needs. For these reasons, the statutory maximum penalty for the offense is not an accurate indicator of the potential sentence for a specific defendant.
# # #
Hagerstown Drug Dealer Pleads Guilty and is Sentenced to over 4 Years in PrisonRead the Press Release
Baltimore, Maryland – U.S. District Judge William D. Quarles, Jr. sentenced Rory Slade Jenkins, age 55, of Hagerstown, Maryland today to 51 months in prison, followed by five years of supervised release, after Jenkins pleaded guilty to conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute oxycodone.
The sentence 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; Acting Assistant Special Agent in Charge Shawn Ellerman of the Drug Enforcement Administration, Baltimore District Office; Washington County Narcotics Task Force led by Washington County Sheriff Douglas Mullendore; and Frederick County Sheriff Charles A. “Chuck” Jenkins.
According to his plea agreement, since at least April 2014, Jenkins conspired with others to distribute oxycodone in the Hagerstown area. During the course of the conspiracy, Jenkins would travel to New York with a co-conspirator to obtain new supplies of oxycodone and other drugs. Jenkins generally drove and was compensated for doing so. Jenkins knew that they were traveling to New York to obtain oxycodone and other drugs. Those drugs would then be broken up and redistributed in the Hagerstown area. During the course of the conspiracy, Jenkins made more than 20 trips to Harlem with the co-conspirator, going up and back in the same day. Jenkins also obtained bulk quantities of oxycodone pills from other sources, which he would distribute in the Hagerstown area.
Law enforcement overheard conversations between Jenkins and other conspirators in which Jenkins discussed traveling to New York to obtain new supplies of oxycodone, and other efforts to obtain oxycodone for distribution. Over the course of the conspiracy, Jenkins admitted that he was involved in the distribution of at least 15,000 milligrams of oxycodone.
United States Attorney Rod J. Rosenstein praised the FBI, DEA, Washington County Narcotics Task Force, and Frederick County Sheriff’s Office, for their work in the investigation and thanked the Eastern Panhandle (WV) Safe Streets Task Force for its assistance. Mr. Rosenstein thanked Assistant U.S. Attorneys Kenneth S. Clark and Matthew C. Sullivan, who prosecuted this Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force case.
Founder and Former Owner of Yuca Sentenced for His Role in a Conspiracy to Distribute MethamphetamineRead the Press Release
Miami-Dade County resident sentenced for his role in a conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine.
Wifredo A. Ferrer, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Florida, and A.D. Wright, Special Agent in Charge, Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), Miami Field Division, made the announcement.
Efrain Veiga, 64, of Miami, was sentenced yesterday to twenty-four months imprisonment, to be followed by three years of supervised release, for his role in a conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine. Veiga had previously pled guilty to violating Title 21, United States Code, Section 846.
According to court records, Veiga was the founder and former owner of Yuca, a restaurant in Miami Beach, Florida. In November 2014, the DEA initiated an investigation into Veiga’s drug-trafficking activities, based on information that Veiga was distributing methamphetamine in Miami Beach. On November 21, 2014, the DEA conducted a controlled purchase of methamphetamine from Veiga at his apartment, during which Veiga sold approximately 70 grams of methamphetamine in exchange for $3,600. The drug transaction was captured on video. A subsequent laboratory analysis of the methamphetamine determined the drug was 94.7% pure. On December 4, 2014, the DEA executed a search warrant at Veiga’s apartment. DEA agents found digital scales, a portion of the funds used for the controlled purchase and a bag containing a small portion of methamphetamine. Upon entering the apartment’s bathroom, agents also found a plastic bag containing methamphetamine residue floating in the toilet. Two individuals who occupied the residence at the time of the search had attempted to dispose of the methamphetamine. The bag had contained two ounces of methamphetamine.
This case was the result of the ongoing efforts by the Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF), a partnership between federal, state and local law enforcement agencies. The OCDETF mission is to identify, investigate, and prosecute high level members of drug trafficking enterprises, bringing together the combined expertise and unique abilities of federal, state and local law enforcement.
Mr. Ferrer commended the DEA for their work on this investigation. This case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Robert J. Brady, Jr.
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.
Founder and Managing Partner of R2 Capital Group LLC Pleads Guilty in Connection with Commodities Investment SchemeRead the Press Release
Preet Bharara, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, announced today that RYAN TOMAZIN, the founder and managing partner of R2 Capital Group LLC (“R2 Capital”), pled guilty in Manhattan federal court to a two-count Indictment charging him with defrauding investors and misappropriating investment funds. TOMAZIN and other principals at R2 Capital caused over $850,000 of investors’ funds to be withdrawn from bank accounts associated with the commodity pool and directed to bank accounts held in their own names or that of their respective holding companies. TOMAZIN was arrested on December 11, 2014 and pled guilty today before United States District Judge Paul A. Crotty.
Manhattan U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara said: “As Ryan Tomazin acknowledged today by pleading guilty to securities and commodities fraud, he lied to investors and used his company to line his own pockets with investors’ money.”
According to the Indictment, and other statements made in open court:
In late 2009, R2 Capital created a commodity pool, R2 Capital Partners I L.P. (the “Commercial Pool”) and began to solicit investors, eventually raising approximately $2.2 million. In early 2010, TOMAZIN solicited a potential investor in the Commercial Pool (“Investment Fund-1”) and provided Investment Fund-1 with documentation that stated, among other things, that R2 Capital would receive a management fee limited to 50% of the profits earned by the Commercial Pool. Investment Fund-1 invested over $1 million in the Commercial Pool. From June 2010 up to and including July 2011, the Commercial Pool experienced significant net losses. In July 2011, all trading activity in the Commercial Pool ceased. By August 2011, there was less than $5,000 remaining in bank accounts associated with the Commercial Pool. Nonetheless, between August 2011 and March 2013, TOMAZIN caused false “Trading Statements” to be sent to Investment Fund-1 reflecting false purported monthly trading profits and inaccurate trade balances. Furthermore, contrary to prior representations that R2 Capital’s management fee would be limited to 50% of profits earned, TOMAZIN and other principals at R2 Capital caused approximately $850,000 to be withdrawn from bank accounts associated with the Commercial Pool for their own personal benefit.
* * *
TOMAZIN, 35, of Stamford, Connecticut, pled guilty to one count of securities fraud and one count of commodities fraud. The securities fraud charge carries a maximum term of 20 years in prison and a maximum fine of $5 million, or twice the gross gain or loss from the offense. The commodities fraud charge carries a maximum term of 10 years in prison and a maximum fine of $1 million, or twice the gross gain or loss from the offense. The maximum potential sentence in this case is prescribed by Congress and is provided here for informational purposes only, as any sentencing of the defendant will be determined by the judge. As part of the plea agreement, TOMAZIN agreed to pay forfeiture and restitution to the victims of the offense in the amount of $288,000. TOMAZIN is scheduled to be sentenced by Judge Crotty on December 3, 2015.
The maximum potential sentence in this case is prescribed by Congress and is provided here for informational purposes only, as any sentencing of the defendant will be determined by the judge.
Mr. Bharara thanked U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission for their assistance with the investigation.
This case is being handled by the Office’s Securities and Commodities Fraud Task Force. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Harry Chernoff and Aimee Hector are in charge of the prosecution.
Former Waterville Valley Property Manager Will Serve Time for Defrauding Condominium Associations, Interfering with IRSRead the Press Release
CONCORD, N.H. – Acting United States Attorney Donald A. Feith announced that United States District Judge Landya B. McCafferty sentenced Courtney Stone to a term of 18 months in federal prison based upon her previous pleas of guilty to five counts of Wire Fraud and one count of Corruptly Impeding the Due Administration of the Tax Laws. Stone, age 38, presently resides in Portsmouth, Rhode Island, but lived in Waterville Valley, New Hampshire, and worked for her family’s Waterville Valley property management company, at the time of the offenses for which she was sentenced.
The Wire Fraud offenses for which Stone was sentenced arose from Stone’s theft of funds from the bank accounts of twenty-eight Waterville Valley condominium associations for which her family’s company served as property manager. The tax-related charge related to Stone’s counterfeiting Internal Revenue Service documents in an effort to convince third parties to release to her funds that the third parties were holding on behalf of the property management company. The IRS lawfully had levied the funds to satisfy the company’s federal payroll tax debt.
In addition to the prison term, Judge McCafferty sentenced Stone to a period of three years of supervised release, which Stone must serve after completing her prison term. While on supervised release, Stone will be required to abide by rules established by the court. If she fails to abide by those rules, she can be forced to serve additional time in prison. Finally, Judge McCafferty ordered Stone to pay $956,717.55 in restitution to the victim condominium associations and others who suffered losses.
This case was investigated by the Bedford Field Office of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration and the Waterville Valley (N.H.) Police Department. The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Bill Morse.
Former EPA Agent Sentenced for Making a False Statement in Connection with Pyramid SchemeRead the Press Release
BOSTON – A Waterford, Conn. woman was sentenced in U.S. District Court in Connecticut yesterday in connection with her role in a pyramid scheme.
Annette Campe, 50, was sentenced by U.S. District Court Judge Alvin W. Thompson in the District of Connecticut to one year of probation, a fine of $500, and ordered to pay $7,500 in restitution.
Campe was an 18-year veteran Special Agent with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) in New Haven, Conn. In December 2009, Campe joined the “Gifting Tables,” which was a four-level pyramid scheme. Each level was named according to the courses of a dinner, starting with the “Appetizer” and progressing through the “Soup and Salad,” “Entree,” and “Dessert” levels. A new participant would join the scheme at the bottom “Appetizer” row by paying $5,000 in cash to the participant in the top “Dessert” level. Participants then moved up the pyramid as additional women were recruited to join. Ultimately, after eight new participants had joined and paid a $5,000 “gift” to the woman occupying the “Dessert” level at the top of the pyramid, the so-called “Dessert” then left that Gifting Table, keeping the amassed $40,000. By October 2011, Campe had reached the “Dessert” level when she received about $2,500 in cash from an individual who had recently joined at the bottom level.
As an EPA Special Agent, Campe was required each year to complete a financial disclosure report to disclose any gifts she received that totaled more than $350 from any one source or any income greater than $200 earned during that calendar year. Despite receiving a $2,500 in cash (which she repaid at a later date), Campe intentionally concealed from the EPA the fact that she had received cash from the Gifting Table when she filed her annual financial disclosure report in January 2012.
United States Attorney Carmen M. Ortiz and Christopher Gaffney, Special Agent in Charge of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Office of the Inspector General, made the announcement today. The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Dustin Chao of Ortiz’s Public Corruption Unit.
Former Bank CEO Pleads Guilty to Obstructing an Examination by the Federal Reserve BoardRead the Press Release
United States Attorney Andrew M. Luger today announced the guilty plea of TIMOTHY PAUL OWENS, 55, for obstructing an examination by the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve (Federal Reserve Board). In addition to its role in setting national monetary policy and in conjunction with the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC), the Federal Reserve Board is responsible for supervising and regulating banking institutions to ensure the safety and soundness of the nation’s financial system. OWENS pleaded guilty today to one count of obstruction of an examination of a financial institution. He entered the plea before Judge Ann Montgomery in U.S. District Court in Minneapolis, Minn.
“Financial and banking professionals have a responsibility to respond truthfully to regulatory inquiries,” said U.S. Attorney Luger. “This defendant violated his responsibility and broke the law. Federal regulators and prosecutors are working together closely to uncover and prosecute the kind of obstructive behavior exhibited by Mr. Owens.”
According to the defendant’s guilty plea and documents filed in court, OWENS served as CEO and Chairman of Voyager Bank (Voyager) and the President and CEO of the bank’s holding company, Voyager Financial Services Corporation (VFSC). In June 2009 the Federal Reserve Board conducted an examination of VFSC, focusing specifically on loans made to VFSC insiders, including OWENS. The Federal Reserve Board examiners sought to, among other things, determine the quality of VFSC’s internal controls relating to loans to insiders and the credit risk presented by the loans. According to the information known to the examiners at the time, VFSC had issued three loans to OWENS.
According to the defendant’s guilty plea and documents filed in court, after the examination the Federal Reserve Board on July 7, 2009 demanded in writing that VFSC review OWENS’ loans and submit documentation showing that the loans to OWENS had been reviewed by the VFSC board and were consistent with existing bank policies. The Federal Reserve specifically ordered that its letter be presented to the VFSC Board of Directors and discussed at its next meeting. OWENS received the letter personally, but did not disclose it to the VFSC board. Instead, OWENS alone prepared a response to the Federal Reserve Board.
At the time of the examination, OWENS had four loans with VFSC totaling more than $5 million. According to the defendant’s guilty plea and documents filed in court, however, OWENS’ response to the Federal Reserve was false and misleading, because he only identified the three loans that had been disclosed in the June examination, did not disclose a fourth $1,000,000 loan, and wrote the response as though it had been reviewed and approved by the VFSC Board of Directors and signed by its chairman, when in fact it had not. The purpose of the misrepresentations, according to OWENS’ guilty plea today, was to portray inaccurately his financial circumstances and ability to repay the loans by, among other things, exaggerating his wealth and concealing his liabilities and thereby cause the Federal Reserve Board to end its examination of VFSC and OWENS’ substantial indebtedness.
This case is the result of an investigation conducted by the Office of Inspector General for the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System and the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau; the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, Office of Inspector General; the Federal Housing Finance Agency, Office of Inspector General; and the Federal Bureau of Investigation.
This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Robert Lewis.
Defendant Information:
TIMOTHY PAUL OWENS, 55
Wayzata, MN
Convicted:
- Obstructing Examination of a Financial Institution, 1 count
###
Additional news available on our website.
Follow us on Twitter and Facebook.
United States Attorney’s Office, District of Minnesota: (612) 664-5600
Former Baltimore City Employee Sentenced to 42 Months in Prison for Scheme to Defraud the City of BaltimoreRead the Press Release
Baltimore, Maryland – U.S. District Judge George L. Russell III sentenced Denita Hill, age 27, of Baltimore, Maryland, to 42 months in prison, followed by two years of supervised release, for a scheme to defraud the City of Baltimore through the reissuance of fraudulent checks for pay and benefits. Judge Russell also ordered Hill to perform 200 hours of community service. A federal jury convicted Hill on March 4, 2015 of wire fraud conspiracy and two counts of aggravated identity theft, in connection with the scheme
The sentence was announced by United States Attorney for the District of Maryland Rod J. Rosenstein; Robert H. Pearre, Jr., Inspector General, City of Baltimore Office of Inspector General; Interim Commissioner Kevin Davis of the Baltimore Police Department; and Baltimore City State’s Attorney Marilyn J. Mosby.
According to evidence presented at trial, Hill was an accountant in the Finance Department of the City of Baltimore. Co-defendant Robert Johnson worked in the Consumer Relations Service of the U.S. Department of Veteran’s Affairs.
Baltimore City employees who leave their employment are entitled to a lump sum check of any pay and benefits for which they are qualified. From July 11, 2013 to August 2, 2013, Hill and Johnson conspired to use the financial and identity information of former Baltimore City employees to obtain fraudulent employee benefit payout checks. Hill identified individuals who had received and cashed large lump sum payments and then obtained reissuance of such checks, as if they had not been received. These duplicate checks were printed at the Baltimore City Finance Office, where Hill stole the checks. Hill delivered the checks to Johnson, endorsed to him by Hill with the forged signature of the original payee. Johnson endorsed and cashed the checks, deposited the proceeds into his bank account and used the funds for his benefit.
For example, on July 11, 2013, Johnson deposited a check made out to a victim in the amount of $14,741.09, and fraudulently endorsed by Hill to Johnson with the victim’s forged signature. On July 31, 2013, Johnson deposited a check made out to a second victim in the amount of $58,485.91. Again, the check was endorsed by Hill to Johnson with the second victim’s forged signature. Both victims had previously received and cashed their initial lump sum payment checks and the duplicate checks were issued and endorsed to Johnson without their knowledge or permission.
After Johnson attempted to wire some of the funds to pay off an account at a different financial institution, Johnson’s bank was alerted to the suspicious transactions and referred the matter to the City of Baltimore Office of the Inspector General, who sought the assistance of the Finance Department in determining the authenticity of the endorsements. Hill was tasked with the investigation and notified Johnson of the problem. Hill attempted to derail the investigation and obtain release of the funds by the bank by claiming to have spoken with the check recipients, whom she said confirmed that the endorsements were genuine. In fact, neither statement was true: Hill had not spoken to the victims, and they had not endorsed their checks over to Robert Johnson. Meanwhile, Johnson’s bank had reversed the deposits and returned the funds to the City of Baltimore, leaving a large deficit in Johnson’s account balance. Johnson obtained funds from Hill to repay the amount due.
Over the course of the conspiracy, Hill and Johnson fraudulently obtained approximately $75,000 all of which was ultimately recovered.
Robert Johnson, age 34, of Perry Hall, Maryland, previously pleaded guilty to his role in the conspiracy and was sentenced to a year and a day in prison followed by three years of supervised release, and ordered to serve 75 hours of community service.
United States Attorney Rod J. Rosenstein praised the Baltimore Office of Inspector General, Baltimore City Police Department and Baltimore City State’s Attorney’s Office for their work in the investigation. Mr. Rosenstein thanked Assistant United States Attorney Tamera L. Fine and Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Josh Felsen, a cross-designated Baltimore City Assistant State’s Attorney, who prosecuted the case.
Florida Man Sentenced for Extortion of Carbondale BusinessmanRead the Press Release
Stephen R. Wigginton, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Illinois, announced today that James W. Russell, 36, of Lake Worth, FL, was sentenced in the United States District Court in Benton, Illinois on one count of extortion. Russell was sentenced to 18 months in prison, to be followed by three years of supervised release. Russell was also ordered to pay full restitution to the victim of his crime.
At the time of his guilty plea, Russell admitted that beginning in February 2008, he extorted money from an individual who operated a business in Carbondale, IL, by threatening to expose certain activities of the businessman (due to victim privacy concerns, the name of the businessman is not noted herein). Russell convinced the business owner to provide cash payments and Russell forced the victim to pay various expenses on his behalf, including purchasing a boat for Russell to live on in Florida, providing a car for the Russell to drive, and purchasing a motorcycle for Russell to ride. The investigation revealed that the extortion continued for a period of more than five years. The total amount of cash payments and expenses paid by the victim was $204,484.64.
The investigation was conducted by agents from the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Federal Housing Finance Agency – Office of the Inspector General. The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Scott A. Verseman.
Final Defendant Sentenced for Heroin Transaction at Federal Prison VisitationRead the Press Release
BEAUMONT, Texas – A 31-year-old Houston woman has been sentenced for bringing prohibited drugs into a federal prison in the Eastern District of Texas, announced U.S. Attorney John M. Bales today.
Janet Tapia pleaded guilty on Apr. 28, 2015, to attempting to provide heroin to a federal inmate and was sentenced to 49 months in federal prison on July 29, 2015 by U.S. District Judge Ron Clark.
According to information presented in court, in August 2012, while monitoring inmate telephone calls and emails at the U.S. Penitentiary in the Federal Correctional Complex in Beaumont, officials discovered that a federal prisoner, Sultan Adnan Al-Bizri, arranged for Tapia to be supplied with heroin which she would then deliver to Al-Bizri during a regular prison visitation. On Aug. 6, 2012, federal agents intercepted Tapia arriving at the prison visitation area with two balloons that contained heroin. Tapia, Al-Bizri, and three others were indicted by a federal grand jury on Oct. 1, 2014.
Al-Bizri was sentenced to 55 months in federal prison on June 23, 2015. Federal inmate Pedro Alejandro Ramirez was sentenced to 40 months in federal prison on May 14, 2015. Federal inmate Donald James Bratton, Jr., was sentenced to 37 months in federal prison on June 11, 2015, while his father, Donald James Bratton, Sr., received three years federal probation.
This case was investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration and Bureau of Prisons, Special Investigations and prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Randall L. Fluke and Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Russell James.
Federal Grand Jury Indicts Lauderdale County Man for Distributing and Possessing Child PornographyRead the Press Release
BIRMINGHAM – A federal grand jury today indicted a Lauderdale County man on multiple charges of distributing and possessing child pornography, announced U.S. Attorney Joyce White Vance, FBI Special Agent in Charge Roger C. Stanton, Alabama Law Enforcement Agency Secretary Spencer Collier, and Lauderdale County Sheriff Rick Singleton.
A two-count indictment filed in U.S. District Court charges TRAVIS OLANDERS CHERRY, 42, with distributing and possessing child pornography in 2013 and 2014.
Because the State of Alabama previously convicted Cherry for sexual abuse in the second degree, the maximum penalty for distributing child pornography is 40 years in prison and a $250,000 fine, and the maximum penalty for possessing child pornography is 20 years in prison and a $250,000 fine.
The FBI, ALEA State Bureau of Investigation, and the Lauderdale County Sheriff’s Office investigated the case, which Assistant U.S. Attorney Jacquelyn Hutzell is prosecuting.
An indictment contains charges. A defendant is presumed innocent until proven guilty.
Essex County, New Jersey, Man Admits Role in Two Fraud SchemesRead the Press Release
TRENTON, N.J. – An Essex County, New Jersey, man today admitted his involvement in two fraud schemes – one involving a $148,000 scheme to defraud a payroll company and another involving the transfer of fraudulent New Jersey birth certificates, U.S. Attorney Paul J. Fishman announced.
George Wright, 48, of Newark, pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Michael Shipp in Trenton federal court to an information charging him with mail fraud, aggravated identity theft and transfer of fraudulent documents.
According to documents filed in this case and statements made in court:
From January 2010 through March 2011, Wright purchased stolen identity information, which he used to create fictitious employees of three different companies. Wright contacted a payroll company, falsely purported to represent these three companies, and created several fraudulent business payroll accounts. Payroll checks totaling over $148,000 were then issued in the names of these fictitious employees and sent to addresses he controlled.
On at least three occasions in August 2013 and September 2013, Wright acquired fraudulent New Jersey birth certificates and sold them for cash.
The mail fraud charge carries a maximum sentence of up to 20 years in prison and a fine of up to $250,000 or twice the gross gain or loss from the offense. The aggravated identity theft charge carries a minimum sentence of two years in prison which must run consecutive to the sentence imposed on the mail fraud and a fine of up to $250,000 or twice the gross gain or loss from the offense. The transfer of fraudulent documents charge carries a maximum sentence of up to 15 years in prison and a fine of up to $250,000 or twice the gross gain or loss from the offense. Sentencing is scheduled for Nov. 5, 2015.
U.S. Attorney Fishman praised special agents of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), under the direction of Acting Special Agent in Charge Kevin Kelly, and special agents of the U.S. Secret Service, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Carl Agnelli, with the investigation leading to the arrest and charges.
The government is represented by Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Thomas S. Kearney of the U.S. Attorney’s Office General Crimes Unit in Newark and Assistant U.S. Attorney J. Jamari Buxton of the U.S. Attorney’s Office Criminal Division in Newark.
Defense counsel: Stacy Biancamano Esq., Chatham, New Jersey
Employee of Cleveland nonprofit charged for bribe conspiracyRead the Press Release
An employee of a nonprofit that served Cleveland’s Lee-Harvard neighborhood was charged with conspiring with a businessman to bribe a city employee in order to receive payment from a $25,000 city grant despite the project’s failure to achieve the equal opportunity employment goals required by the grant agreement, said Steven M. Dettelbach, U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of Ohio, and Stephen D. Anthony, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI’s Cleveland office.
Lawrence Payten, 57, of Cleveland, was charged via criminal information with one count of conspiracy to commit honest services mail fraud.
Payten worked at a nonprofit community organization that promoted commercial development in Cleveland’s Lee-Harvard neighborhood. Lejon C. Woods worked as a contract compliance officer in the City of Cleveland’s Office of Equal Opportunity. Woods previously pleaded guilty to receiving bribes from three other businesses.
Between November 2009 and August 2010, Payten and Woods accepted cash bribes from a businessman identified in the charges as “Co-Conspirator 1”. This person was a businessman who worked with Payten to locate land in the Lee-Harvard neighborhood to build a retail food and beverage business, according to the information.
The businessman and the City of Cleveland entered into Neighborhood Capital Funds Grant Agreement. The city awards funds for certain construction or rehabilitation projects and the recipients are subject to certain hiring goals. In this project, the Office of Equal Opportunity set a subcontractor participation goal of 15 percent for minority business enterprises, 7 percent for female business enterprises and 8 percent for Cleveland Area Small Businesses, according to the information.
Payten, Woods and the businessman met at City Hall in November 2009. Payten and the businessman told Woods that the businessman was not going to meet the OEO subcontractor guidelines and asked Woods to help them cover up the lack of compliance so the businessman could still receive the $25,000 Neighborhood Capital Funds disbursement, according to the information.
About two weeks later, Woods met with Payten and the businessman, in which the businessman paid Woods $1,500, promised Woods an additional $1,500 and promised Payten $2,500 for facilitating the arrangement between Woods and the businessman, according to the information.
Woods then falsified the OEO compliance documents relating to the construction project. On August 20 2010, the businessman received a NCF grant check for $25,000. Four days later, the businessman gave Woods the additional $1,500, according to the information.
“These rules were put in place to extend opportunity to other businesses, but Payten and his co-conspirators put their own financial gain above the rules,” Dettelbach said.
“Bribing a public official to fabricate numbers in order to avoid minority mandate requirements is never acceptable,” Anthony said. “The FBI will continue efforts to root out those that attempt to skirt the law by paying off an official.”
This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Adam Hollingsworth and Henry F. DeBaggis following an investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation.
If convicted, the defendants’ sentences will be determined by the court after a review of the federal sentencing guidelines and factors unique to the case, including the defendant’s prior criminal record (if any), the defendant’s role in the offense and the characteristics of the violation.
A charge 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.
Des Allemands Woman Charged with Mail Fraud in Aftermath of BP Oil SpillRead the Press Release
U.S. Attorney Kenneth A. Polite announced that MELISSA ANN DURAN, age 42, Des Allemands, was charged today in a one-count Indictment with mail fraud.
According to court documents, the Gulf Coast Claims Facility (GCCF) made disaster assistance money available to individuals and businesses affected by the oil spill resulting from the Deepwater Horizon explosion that occurred on April 20, 2010. The GCCF required individuals to verify loss of income. On August 23, 2010, DURAN applied for disaster assistance funds, representing that she worked as seafood process for a commercial fisherman during for two years before the oil spill. However, DURAN had never worked as a seafood processor for the stated commercial fisherman, and she submitted or caused to be submitted false documentation to establish her false earnings. Based on DURAN’s fraudulent application, DURAN received approximately $33,800 to which she was not entitled.
If convicted, DURAN faces a maximum penalty of twenty years, a $250,000 fine, three years of supervised release following imprisonment, and a $100 special assessment.
U.S. Attorney Polite reiterated that the Indictment is merely a charge and that the guilt of the defendant must be proven beyond a reasonable doubt.
U.S. Attorney Polite praised the work of the Federal Bureau of Investigation in investigating this matter. Assistant U.S. Attorney Spiro G. Latsis is in charge of the prosecution.
Decatur Woman Indicted for Fraudulently Using Credit Cards Stolen from MailRead the Press Release
BIRMINGHAM -- A federal grand jury today indicted a Decatur woman in connection to using a fraudulent credit card stolen from the mail, announced U.S. Attorney Joyce White Vance and U.S. Postal Inspector Frank Dyer.
A four-count indictment filed in U.S. District Court charges CASEY MICHELLE HARDIMAN, 31, with two counts of wire fraud, one count of aggravated identity theft and one count of possessing stolen mail.
According to the indictment, Hardiman committed wire fraud when she used a stolen credit card on April 7 and April 8 at two Huntsville stores. Hardiman also committed aggravated identity theft by using the stolen card, according to the indictment.
Between April 7 and April 10, Hardiman possessed more than 200 letters and items of mail that had been stolen from numerous mailboxes in Madison County, the indictment charges.
The maximum penalty for wire fraud is 30 years in prison and a $1 million fine. Aggravated identity theft carries a mandatory two-year prison sentence, which must be served consecutively to any other sentenced imposed for the crime. Theft of U.S. mail carries a maximum penalty of five years in prison and a $250,000 fine.
The U.S. Postal Inspection Service and the Huntsville, Madison and Decatur police departments investigated the case, which Assistant U.S. Attorney Davis Barlow is prosecuting.
An indictment contains charges. A defendant is presumed innocent until proven guilty.
Cuban Citizen Pleads Guilty to Credit Card FraudRead the Press Release
CONTACT: Barbara Burns
PHONE: (716) 843-5817
FAX: (716) 551-3051
BUFFALO, N.Y.—U.S. Attorney William J. Hochul, Jr. announced today that Eduardo Hernandez Quinones, 46, a native of Cuba, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit bank fraud before U.S. District Judge Richard J. Arcara. The charge carries a maximum penalty of 30 years in prison and a $1,000,000 fine.Assistant U.S. Attorney Russell T. Ippolito, Jr., who is handling the case, stated that Hernandez fraudulently obtained the actual credit/debit card numbers of people and then encoded counterfeit cards with the information illegally obtained. The defendant and his co-conspirators then used the counterfeit cards to purchase merchandise at retail stores throughout Western New York. In addition, some of the defendants used the counterfeit cards to purchase gasoline from area gas stations and then re-sold the gasoline for cash.
Quinones was charged along with five others Yasser Carrillo Chartrand, 23, Claudia Diaz Diaz, 21, Yaily Santurio Millian, 31, Jose Valdivia Quinones, 40 and Misael Toledo Rios, 39, all citizens of Cuba legally present in the United States. The fact that a defendant has been charged in an indictment is merely an accusation and the defendant is presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty.The plea is the result of an investigation by Immigration and Customs Enforcement, Homeland Security Investigations, under the direction of Acting Special Agent in Charge J. Michael Kennedy, the U.S. Secret Service, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge C. Todd Laster, and the New York State Police, under the direction of Major Michael Cerretto.
Sentencing is scheduled for November 2, 2015 at 12:30 p.m. before Judge Arcara.Concord Man Pleads Guilty to Failure to Register as A Sex OffenderRead the Press Release
CONCORD, NEW HAMPSHIRE: Daniel King, 53, of Concord, New Hampshire, appeared in United States District Court on July 29, 2015 and entered a guilty plea to one count of failure to register as a sex offender in violation of federal law, announced Acting United States Attorney Donald Feith.
King was convicted of felonious sexual assault and aggravated felonious sexual assault and is required to register for life under the Sex Offender Registration and Notification Act. In September, 2014, King left New Hampshire and traveled to Arkansas and other states. He remained in Arkansas from October 25, 2014 until his arrest on December 10, 2014. During that time, Mr. King knowingly failed to register as a sex offender in Arkansas or any other state and knowingly failed to update his registration in New Hampshire. King faces a maximum sentence of ten years in prison and criminal fines of up to $250,000. Sentencing is presently scheduled for November 2, 2015.
This case was investigated by the Laconia Police Department, the Concord Police Department, and the United States Marshals Service. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Georgiana Konesky.
Columbia County Man Sentenced to 200 Months in Federal Prison for Producing Child PornographyRead the Press Release
SCRANTON- The United States Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Pennsylvania announced that a 58-year-old Berwick man was sentenced today to 200 months in prison by Senior U.S. District Court Judge A. Richard Caputo in Wilkes-Barre, for producing child pornography.
According to United States Attorney Peter Smith, the defendant, Rickie Sitler, previously pleaded guilty to using a four-year-old child to engage in sexually explicit conduct for the purpose of producing images of such conduct. Sitler committed the crime between late November to early December 2014.
Sitler was indicted by a federal grand jury in March 2015, as a result of an investigation by agents of Homeland Security Investigations, the Berwick Police Department, and the Columbia County District Attorney’s Office.
Judge Caputo also ordered Sitler to serve 10 years on supervised release following his prison sentence and to pay a special assessment of $100.
This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by the United States Attorneys' Offices and the Criminal Division's Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who sexually exploit children, and to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.usdoj.gov/psc For more information about internet safety education, please visit www.usdoj.gov/psc and click on the tab "resources."
Assistant U.S. Attorney Francis P. Sempa prosecuted the case.
# # #
Charleston man pleads guilty to federal drug chargeRead the Press Release
CHARLESTON MAN PLEADS GUILTY TO FEDERAL DRUG CHARGE
CHARLESTON, W.Va. –A Charleston man pleaded guilty today to a federal drug charge, announced U.S. Attorney Booth Goodwin. Matthew Julius Watts, II, 30, pleaded guilty in federal court in Charleston to distributing heroin. Watts admitted that on September 17, 2014, he sold heroin to a confidential informant working with law enforcement authorities. The drug deal took place at the 7-Eleven Store parking lot located on Washington Street, West, Charleston, West Virginia.
Watts faces up to twenty years of imprisonment and a $1,000,000.00 fine when he is sentenced on October 29, 2015, by United States District Judge John T. Copenhaver, Jr. .
The investigation was conducted by the Kanawha County Sheriff’s Department. Assistant United States Attorney Timothy D. Boggess is in charge of the prosecution.
This case was prosecuted as part of an ongoing effort led by the United States Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of West Virginia to combat the illicit sale and misuse of prescription drugs and heroin. The U.S. Attorney’s Office, joined by federal, state and local law enforcement agencies, is committed to aggressively pursuing and shutting down illegal pill trafficking, eliminating open air drug markets, and curtailing the spread of opiate painkillers and heroin in communities across the Southern District.
- Follow us on Twitter: SDWVNews
Campton Man Convicted by Jury of Manufacturing MarijuanaRead the Press Release
Concord, N.H. - Donald Feith, Acting United States Attorney for the District of New Hampshire, today announced that a federal jury in Concord has found PETER APICELLI, 31, of Campton, N.H., guilty of federal marijuana manufacturing charges.
According to the evidence at trial, in September 2013, APICELLI was renting a property in Campton, N.H. Following a tip, law enforcement investigated and found an outdoor marijuana grow on the property about 200 yards from the residence. A law enforcement temporary surveillance camera then captured video of a male individual wearing a red back-pack and tan shorts tending to the plants on September 14. After obtaining a search warrant for the house, police located an indoor marijuana grow in the basement, drying marijuana, packaged marijuana, scales and other packaging materials, as well as evidence indicating that APICELLI lived there, including a red back-pack and tan shorts. All told, over 120 marijuana plants were seized from the house and grounds.
APICELLI was found guilty today of one count of manufacturing marijuana, in violation of 21 U.S.C. § 841(a)(1), which carries a maximum term of imprisonment of 5 years. He is scheduled to be sentenced by Senior U.S. District Judge Joseph DiClerico on November 12, 2015, at 10:00 a.m.
This matter was jointly investigated by the Campton Police Department, the Grafton County Sheriff’s Office, and the New Hampshire State Drug Task Force, with assistance from the New Hampshire State Police Forensic Laboratory. The case is being prosecuted by Acting U.S. Attorney Donald Feith and Assistant U.S. Attorney Charles L. Rombeau.
Boise Man Pleads Guilty to Transfer of Obscene Material to a MinorRead the Press Release
BOISE – Kenton Lloyd Flook, 45, of Boise pleaded guilty today in United States District Court to two counts of transfer of obscene material to a minor, U.S. Attorney Wendy J. Olson announced.
According to the plea agreement, Flook admitted that he communicated with a 14 year old minor from Erie, Pennsylvania, using the online messaging services Omegle, KiK, and Skype between January and March, 2014. During the course of the communications, Flook sent the victim sexually explicit images of himself, and engaged in live sexual acts, using the online messaging services. As part of his plea, Flook admitted that he had knowledge that the victim was under the age of 16, and that the victim resided in Erie, Pennsylvania. Sentencing is set for November 3, 2015, before U.S. District Judge Edward J. Lodge.
Transfer of obscene images to a minor is punishable by up to10 years imprisonment, a $250,000 fine, a term of supervised release of not more than three years, and a $100 special assessment. As part of his plea, Flook also agreed to forfeit an Iphone and an Ipad used in the commission of the charged offenses.
The case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Erie, Pennsylvania Resident Agency and Salt Lake City Resident Agency, as well as the Erie, Pennsylvania Police Department. The case was initiated by the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Western District of Pennsylvania, and transferred to the District of Idaho for purposes of sentencing pursuant to Federal Rule of Criminal Procedure 20.
Birmingham Man Indicted for Three Armed CarjackingsRead the Press Release
BIRMINGHAM -- A federal grand jury today indicted a Birmingham man for three armed carjackings in April and for being a convicted felon in possession of 9mm pistol, announced U.S. Attorney Joyce White Vance and FBI Special Agent in Charge Roger C. Stanton.
A six-count indictment filed in U.S. District Court charges JERMAINE DANIEL PARKS, 31, with two separate carjackings on April 9 and a third on April 18. The indictment also charges him with brandishing a firearm during each of the carjackings, and with possessing a Glock 9mm pistol on April 22, after being convicted last year in Jefferson County Circuit Court for the felony offense of robbery, third degree.
"Violent criminals who repeatedly arm themselves to prey on unsuspecting victims must be taken off the streets," Vance said.
On April 9, according to the indictment, Parks brandished a firearm and forcefully took a 2005 Nissan Altima from an individual identified by the initials, L.M. On the same day, he also brandished a firearm and forcefully took a 2008 Saturn Vue from an individual identified in the indictment by the initials, G.C. On April 18, Parks brandished a gun and forcefully took a 2010 Nissan Rogue from an individual identified by the initials, K.H., according to the charges.
The maximum penalty for carjacking is 20 years in prison and a $250,000 fine. Brandishing a firearm during a crime of violence carries a mandatory minimum sentence of seven years in prison, which must be served consecutively to any other sentence imposed for the crime, and a maximum $250,000 fine. The maximum penalty for being a convicted felon in possession of a firearm is 10 years in prison and a $250,000 fine.
The FBI investigated the case, which Assistant U.S. Attorney John B. Felton is prosecuting.
An indictment contains charges. A defendant is presumed innocent until proven guilty.
After Arrest in Visalia Motel, Pismo Beach Man Indicted for Manufacturing Counterfeit CurrencyRead the Press Release
FRESNO, Calif. — A federal grand jury returned a one-count indictment today against Kenneth Dwayne Choate, 51, of Pismo Beach, charging him with manufacturing counterfeit U.S. currency, United States Attorney Benjamin B. Wagner announced. Choate was ordered detained by Judge Stanley A. Boone on July 23, 2015, after being arrested on a federal criminal complaint.
According to court documents, on May 31, 2015, a vendor at the Visalia Swap Meet reported to law enforcement that someone was passing counterfeit money. The investigation led to Choate, who had a motel room in Visalia. Officers obtained a search warrant for the room, and contacted Choate and a co-conspirator at the front door of the room. A search was conducted and officers found more than $30,000 in counterfeit bills, multiple printers, numerous boxes of drafting paper, and printing and cutting supplies.
This case is the product of an investigation by the U.S. Secret Service, with assistance from the Tulare County Sheriff’s Office. Assistant U.S. Attorney Grant B. Rabenn and Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Katherine A. Plante are prosecuting the case.
If convicted, Choate faces a maximum statutory penalty of 20 years in prison and a $250,000 fine. Any sentence, however, would be determined at the discretion of the court after consideration of any applicable statutory factors and the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, which take into account a number of variables. The charges are only allegations; the defendant is presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.
25 Arrested This Week in Round up Centered on Alien Smuggling OperationRead the Press Release
This week, federal, state and local authorities arrested 23 individuals indicted for their role in an undocumented alien smuggling scheme operating in Eagle Pass, Crystal City, Carrizo Springs, Uvalde, San Antonio, Laredo, Dallas and surrounding areas in Texas. Authorities also arrested two other individuals on related federal drug charges. That announcement was made today by United States Attorney Richard L. Durbin, Jr., Western District of Texas, and Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) Special Agent in Charge James C. Spero, San Antonio Division.
Those individuals arrested as part of Operation Project 83 include:
NAME AGE ARRESTED
JAIME JARAMILLO-HERNANDEZ aka: “Jaime” 49 San Antonio
NOE VEGA-NORABUENA aka: “Negro” / “El Negro” 32 Dallas
ANTONIO R. ALAMILLA-RIVERA aka: “Padrino” / “Don Tono” 59 Eagle Pass
VERONICA MIRANDA-ACOSTA aka: “Veronica Miranda Quiroz” / “Vero” 39 San Antonio
SERGIO VEGA-TORRES 22 Dallas
JUAN JOSE MATA GONZALEZ 45 San Antonio
JOSE EDUARDO HERNANDEZ aka: “Eddie” 30 San Antonio
FERNANDO VEGA-JARAMILLO aka: “Saul Jaramillo-Vega” / “Cachas” 31 San Antonio
GILBERTO FLORES aka: “Cadete” 42 Laredo
DIANA ISABEL BUSTOS 31 Laredo
MARIO URRABAZO 30 Crystal City
HERIBERTO MACIAS DIAZ aka: “Pitonga” 36 Crystal City
SANDRA PAULINA ALMAGUER Torres aka: “Nicole Vega” 31 Dallas
ADELA MATA-GONZALEZ aka: “Adela Mata-Hernandez” / “La Guera” 49 San Antonio
AMADEO TORRES-VILLANUEVA 37 Dallas
CYNTHIA LILIANA HERNANDEZ 25 San Antonio
** JOSE ALFREDO GARCIA-VEGA aka: “Gordo” 21 Hillsboro, TX
CLAUDIO VEGA-JARAMILLO 23 San Antonio
JORGE SOLIS 26 Laredo
RICKY LOPEZ 27 Crystal City
ROBERTO AVILA aka: “Chana” 49 Crystal City
FERNANDO SANCHEZ 69 Crystal City
JOSE ARMANDO RODRIGUEZ aka: “Mando” 57 Crystal City
OMAR CARRILLO 35 San Antonio
EDWARD MELLO 39 San Antonio(** Authorities arrested Garcia-Vega while in the Hillsboro County Jail on unrelated state charges)
Two federal grand jury indictments returned last week in Del Rio, charge all but two of the defendants with conspiracy to commit alien smuggling. The indictments allege that from January 2014 to October 2014, ringleader Jaime Jaramillo-Hernandez and others were involved in related conspiracies to smuggle, transport and harbor hundreds of undocumented aliens from Laredo to San Antonio and Dallas.
Defendants Omar Carrillo and Edward Mello are charged with one count of conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute cocaine and one substantive count of possession with intent to distribute cocaine. According to the indictment, Carrillo and Mello conspired between January 2014 and September 2014 to possess with intent to distribute more than 500 grams of cocaine.
Upon conviction of conspiracy to commit alien smuggling, defendants face up to ten years in federal prison and a maximum $250,000 fine. Carrillo and Mello face between five and 40 years in federal prison upon conviction.
During this two-year-long investigation, authorities have arrested over 400 individuals and seized approximately $187,000 in U.S. Currency, three firearms, and 19 vehicles.
“HSI is dedicated to working closely with its law enforcement partners in all arenas in pursuit of identifying, arresting and prosecuting individuals involved in human smuggling, regardless of their position,” said James Spero, Special Agent in Charge, HSI San Antonio. “Today’s arrests exemplify the high level of collaboration between HSI and its partners in investigating these cases.”
This investigation was conducted by agents with HSI in Eagle Pass, United States Border Patrol Del Rio and Laredo Sectors and the Drug Enforcement Administration. Agencies participating in this week’s arrests include HSI in San Antonio, Laredo, and Dallas; United States Marshals Service; Customs and Border Protection Office of Field Operations -- Air and Marine Operations; Bexar County Sheriff’s Office; Maverick County Sheriff’s Office; Dimmit County Sheriff’s Office; Zavala County Sheriff’s Office; Dallas Police Department; and, Irving Police Department. This case was supported by the Joint Taskforce West, South Texas Corridor. Assistant United States Attorney Ralph Paradiso, Lewis Thomas and Katie Griffin in Del Rio are prosecuting this case on behalf of the Government.
It is important to note that an indictment is merely a charge and should not be considered as evidence of guilt. The defendants are considered innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.
11 Indicted on Federal Drug Charges in Meth Ring RoundupRead the Press Release
Memphis, TN – Eleven people were indicted this week on conspiracy charges for their alleged roles in a methamphetamine distribution ring.
On Wednesday, July 29th, Johnnie Wilborn, Travis Huston, Fred Wilson, Dexter White, Patrice Lee, Brittany Huston, Deontoe Huston, Larry Cassidy Jr., Robert Earl Williams Jr., Phillip Sean Mosley, and Janice White were all indicted by a federal grand jury for conspiracy to possess with the intent to distribute methamphetamine. Wilborn, Travis Huston, Dexter White, Brittany Huston, and Janice White were also indicted for conspiracy to launder drug proceeds.
The Memphis Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA); Shelby County Sheriff’s Office Narcotics Division; Memphis Police Department Organized Crime Unit (OCU); West Memphis Narcotics Division; and the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) conducted the investigation of the defendants.
Agencies who assisted the investigating agencies with arresting the defendants on Wednesday were the 25th Judicial District Drug Task Force; Germantown Police Department; Bartlett Police Department; and the United States Marshals Service.
Search warrants were executed on multiple residences identified during this investigation. During the roundup, officers seized:
• 4 assault rifles
• 1 shotgun
• 4 handguns
Those charged with conspiracy to possess with the intent to distribute more than 500 grams of methamphetamine include: Johnnie Wilborn, Travis Huston, Fred Wilson, Dexter White, and Patrice Lee. If convicted, they each face up to life in prison and up to a $10 million fine.
Those charged with conspiracy to possess with the intent to distribute more than 50 grams of methamphetamine include: Brittany Huston, Carlos Lewis, Deontoe Huston, Larry Cassidy Jr., Robert Earl Williams Jr., and Phillip Sean Mosley. If convicted, they each face up to 40 years imprisonment and up to a $5 million fine.
Wilborn, Travis Huston, Dexter White, Brittany Huston, and Janice White have also been charged with conspiracy to launder drug proceeds. If convicted for the offense, they each face up to 20 years imprisonment and up to a $500,000 fine.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Daniel French is representing the government in these cases.
The charges and allegations contained in the indictment are merely accusations, and the defendants are considered innocent unless and until proven guilty.
29 July 2015
York Woman Sentenced to 30 Months Imprisonment for Fraud SchemeRead the Press Release
HARRISBURG - The United States Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Pennsylvania announced that a York County woman was sentenced late yesterday to 30 months’ imprisonment by U.S. District Court Judge Yvette Kane in Harrisburg, for wire fraud. She was also ordered to pay $83,467.78 in restitution to the victim of the fraud.
According to United States Attorney Peter Smith, Nancy Sipe, age 47, pleaded guilty on October 28, 2014 to one count of wire fraud. Sipe was indicted by a Grand Jury in Harrisburg in January of 2014.
The charge was based on conduct occurring between August 2008 and February 2012, while Sipe was acting as power-of-attorney for her brother-in-law. During this time Sipe used the victim’s bank and retirement accounts, without authorization, to fund personal vacations, daily expenses and shopping sprees for herself and her family. Sipe also wrote out thousands of dollars in checks to herself. Although Sipe pled guilty, she claimed at the sentencing hearing that she was only responsible for $33,742.43 of loss to the victim, claiming that she provided over $26,000 in cash to the victim’s mother. Judge Kane found Sipe’s testimony to be not credible and sentenced Sipe to a term of imprisonment at the top of the appropriate Sentencing Guidelines range.
This case was investigated by the United States Secret Service and was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Daryl F. Bloom.
# # #
Westmoreland County Man Sentenced to 10 Years in Prison for Possessing Child PornographyRead the Press Release
PITTSBURGH, PA - A Westmoreland County resident has been sentenced in federal court to 10 years imprisonment to be followed by a lifetime of supervised release on his conviction of possession of material depicting the sexual exploitation of a minor, United States Attorney David J. Hickton announced today.
Senior United States District Judge Maurice B. Cohill imposed the sentence on John Mallory, 61, of Greensburg, Pa.
According to information presented to the court, Mallory, who had been a Quality Assurance Engineer for over 30 years, was found to be in possession of a large collection of child pornography, including child pornography with prepubescent children and child pornography involving sadistic and masochistic conduct.
In imposing sentence, Judge Cohill noted that Mallory had a prior conviction for the possession of child pornography, and that the law required a minimum sentence of at least 10 years of imprisonment.
Assistant United States Attorney Lee J. Karl prosecuted this case on behalf of the government.
U.S. Attorney Hickton commended the United States Postal Inspection Service and Homeland Security Investigations for the investigation leading to the successful prosecution of Mallory.
Washington, DC Man Convicted of Carjacking of a Pregnant Annapolis WomanRead the Press Release
Baltimore, Maryland – A federal jury today convicted Cornell Louis Robinson, age 44, of Washington, D.C., on charges related to the armed carjacking of a couple who were about to enter their vehicle to go to the hospital because the woman was in labor.
The conviction 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; Annapolis Police Chief Michael A. Pristoop; and Anne Arundel County State’s Attorney Wes Adams.
According to evidence presented during Robinson’s three-day trial, on March 2, 2014, at approximately 4:30 a.m. Robinson, co-defendant Devery Kelley, and others approached two individuals on Copeland Street in Annapolis, Maryland, as they were getting into their car. The victims were planning to go to the hospital because the woman was in labor. The male victim fled from the car and called the police. Witnesses testified that Robinson and Kelley were both armed and forced the woman at gunpoint to accompany them to an apartment building nearby, demanding money. The woman repeatedly told them that she was in labor and did not have the key to the apartment, only the car key. Robinson and other robbers took her, continuing to hold her at gun point, and tried to get her to open an apartment. The victim again told the robbers that she did not have a key to the apartment. When it became clear that she could not get into the apartment, Robinson took the key to the car and left in the victim’s car.
The robbers, driving the stolen car, were followed by officers from the Annapolis Police Department. Witnesses testified that at the corner of Tyler Avenue and Hilltop Lane a handgun was thrown out of the window of the car, but was recovered by police. On Tyler Avenue Robinson and Kelly both got of the car and ran away, but were arrested nearby.
Robinson faces a maximum sentence of 15 years in prison for carjacking; a maximum of life in prison for possession and brandishing a firearm in furtherance of a crime of violence; and a maximum of 10 years in prison for possession of a firearm and ammunition by a felon. No sentencing date has been set for Robinson, who remains detained
Deverey Hasani-Jarod Kelley, age 25, of Glen Burnie, Maryland, previously pleaded guilty to his role in the crime and is scheduled to be sentenced on August 12, 2015 at 11:00 a.m. Kelley also remains detained.
United States Attorney Rod J. Rosenstein commended the FBI, Annapolis Police Department, and Anne Arundel County State’s Attorney’s Office for their work in the investigation and prosecution. Mr. Rosenstein thanked Assistant U.S. Attorneys Bonnie S. Greenberg and Patricia C. McLane, who are prosecuting the case.
United States Seeks Criminal Penalties for Man Selling Dietary Supplements Online in Violation of Court OrdersRead the Press Release
The Department of Justice announced today that it is pursuing criminal contempt sanctions against a Livingston, Montana, man for selling dietary supplements and drugs in violation of two court orders.
Toby McAdam, 57, is alleged to have violated a 2010 court order and an order of civil contempt issued in 2013, both of which prohibit him from selling dietary supplements and drugs. The government alleges that McAdam has continued to sell both supplements and drugs, and failed to close down his business and online sites.
According to documents filed today, McAdam violated the order of civil contempt by failing to shutter Internet businesses on Amazon.com, websites and a promotional Facebook page McAdam uses to promote his products.
“Court orders must be taken seriously,” said Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Benjamin C. Mizer, head of the Justice Department’s Civil Division. “The Civil Division’s Consumer Protection Branch will aggressively pursue those who violate court orders imposed to protect public health and prevent false product claims.”
The criminal contempt action arises out of a prior civil action the department filed in 2010 against McAdam, who was the owner and operator of Risingsun Health, based in Livingston. According to court documents, McAdam sold misbranded and adulterated dietary supplements and drugs that made unsupported claims to cure cancer, ADD/ADHD, epilepsy and intestinal parasites, among other things. McAdam agreed to close his business until the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) authorized him to return to business. No such authorization was given and McAdam was later held in civil contempt for violation of the consent decree. The Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals later upheld the order of civil contempt against McAdam.
Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Mizer commended the investigative efforts of the U.S. Postal Inspection Service and the FDA’s Seattle District Office. This matter is filed in the District of Montana and is being handled by Trial Attorney David Sullivan of the Consumer Protection Branch.
U.S. Attorney Polite Announces Multi-Agency Initiative to Remove Illegal Guns from School ZonesRead the Press Release
U.S. Attorney Kenneth A. Polite announced that his Office – in partnership with the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, the New Orleans Police Department, Orleans Parish Sheriff’s Office, and Crimestoppers – will increase efforts to investigate and prosecute federal laws prohibiting the possession of firearms in school zones throughout Southeast Louisiana. In particular, the federal gun free school zone statute makes it a crime to unlawfully possess a firearm within 1000 feet of every elementary and secondary school. The statute is narrowly tailored, and does not forbid otherwise lawful possession: on private property, by law enforcement officers acting in their official capacity, or by individuals licensed to carry firearms by the state of Louisiana.
U.S. Attorney Polite stated, “This is an underutilized federal statute that will assist us in removing illegal firearms from our streets, particularly as we are seeing spikes in violent crime. It carries a maximum punishment of 5 years in prison, which must be served consecutively to any other term of imprisonment. We need the public’s help in two ways: report illegal firearms to ATF or Crimestoppers and spread the message that unlawful possession of firearms near our children’s schools will lead to federal prison.”
To increase public awareness of this initiative, U.S. Attorney Polite also announced that the all of the agencies will host a roll-out event on Thursday, July 30, 2015, at Mildred Osborne Charter School, 6701 Curran Boulevard in New Orleans East. All are invited. Members of the law enforcement agencies will also canvas the school zone surrounding Osborne, to inform the community about the initiative’s work. Food and refreshments will be served.
Two Memphis Men Indicted for Kidnaping, Robbery and FirearmsRead the Press Release
ATLANTA - Mario Deandre Jackson and Leon Scott have been indicted by a federal grand jury for robbery, kidnaping and firearms crimes relating to a home invasion in the Buckhead community on May 25, 2015.
During the home invasion, a family was held at gunpoint and one victim was forcibly removed from the home and made to withdraw money from his bank account.
“These men are charged with terrorizing an Atlanta family, including their three minor children during a violent home invasion,” said Acting U.S. Attorney John Horn. “They allegedly traveled to Georgia from outside the state for the purpose of robbing the family, and forcing them at gunpoint to remove money from an ATM and to turn over other valuables, including a wedding band. The arrests in this case occurred through the collaborative efforts of federal, state, and local law enforcement officers determined to solve this particularly heinous crime.”
“The identification, apprehension, and resulting federal grand jury indictments of Jackson and Scott regarding their alleged involvement in a violent Atlanta area home invasion was brought about by a collaborate law enforcement effort covering numerous jurisdictions and demonstrates the true value of such a combined investigative approach. The FBI will continue to dedicate significant investigative assets and resources as we partner with area law enforcement in addressing violent crime in the region,” said J. Britt Johnson, Special Agent in Charge, FBI Atlanta Field Office.
“After many long hours of exhaustive work by Investigators of the Atlanta Police Department, who worked jointly with our federal partners, I am pleased that these individuals who targeted our neighborhoods are behind bars and no longer a threat. The Atlanta Police Department will continue to work closely with the US Attorney’s Office and the FBI on these cases to ensure any other involved parties are identified and similarly charged,” said Atlanta Police Chief George N. Turner.
According to Acting U.S. Attorney Horn, the indictment, and other information presented in court: On May 25, 2015, a home invasion robbery was committed in the Atlanta, Georgia, Buckhead community by two armed assailants who entered a family’s home. At the time of the robbery, the house was occupied by a husband and wife and their three minor children. One of the robbers forced the husband at gunpoint to go with one of them to a Wells Fargo ATM machine and withdraw money, while the other robber held the remaining family members at gunpoint to ensure the husband’s cooperation. Through a Crime Stoppers tip, police learned that the robbers traveled from Memphis, Tennessee, and returned there with the stolen goods. Police then recovered one of the items taken during the robbery – a wedding band – at a Memphis pawn shop.
On July 9th, 2015, Georgia State Patrol officers stopped a car in which Jackson was a passenger and found him with two firearms, both of which had been stolen during other robberies in Atlanta and Memphis. Scott was arrested separately in a motel in Birmingham, Alabama on July 24th, 2015.
Mario Deandre Jackson, 28, of Memphis, Tennessee, and Leon Scott, 25, of Memphis, Tennessee, will be arraigned at a later date.
Members of the public are reminded that the indictment only contains charges. The defendant is presumed innocent of the charges and it will be the government’s burden to prove the defendant’s guilt beyond a reasonable doubt at trial.
This case is being investigated by the Atlanta Police Department and the Federal Bureau of Investigation.
Assistant United States Attorneys Ryan K. Buchanan and Kim S. Dammers are prosecuting the case.
For further information please contact the U.S. Attorney’s Public Affairs Office at [email protected] or (404) 581-6016. The Internet address for the home page for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia Atlanta Division is http://www.justice.gov/usao-ndga.
Two Individuals Plead Guilty to Transporting an Individual with the Intent that She Engage in ProstitutionRead the Press Release
Contact: Julia M. Lipez
Assistant United States Attorney
Tel: (207) 780-3257Portland, Maine: United States Attorney Thomas E. Delahanty II announced that Shawna Calhoun, 24, of Lewiston, Maine and Alvin Houston, Jr., 27, of Auburn, Maine pleaded guilty today in U.S. District Court in Portland to transporting an individual in interstate commerce with the intent that she engage in prostitution.
Court records reveal that on December 23, 2014, Calhoun and Houston arranged to rent a car in Maine. On the same day, Houston drove Calhoun, another individual, and a 13-year old girl from Maine to Boston, Massachusetts, where they stayed with Calhoun’s family. While in Boston, Calhoun and Houston drove the 13-year old girl to various hotels in the Boston area to engage in prostitution. On December 30, 2014, Calhoun and Houston learned that the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) was looking for the 13-year old. They drove her in the rental car back to Maine and ultimately to Bangor, where the 13-year old again engaged in prostitution. Early in the morning on December 31, 2014, Calhoun and Houston drove the 13-year old to a hotel in the Bangor area so that she could meet with a client for the purposes of prostitution. The purported client turned out to be a member of law enforcement. Calhoun and Houston were arrested outside in the parking lot, where they were waiting in the rental car.
Both defendants face up to 10 years in prison and a $250,000 fine, and will be sentenced after the completion of a presentence investigation report by the U.S. Probation Office.
This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Homeland Security Investigations Human Trafficking Task Force, the Lisbon and Bangor Police Departments, and the Maine Drug Enforcement Agency.
Two Columbia Men Sentenced for Cocaine ConspiracyRead the Press Release
JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. – Tammy Dickinson, United States Attorney for the Western District of Missouri, announced today that two Columbia, Mo., men have been sentenced in federal court for their roles in a conspiracy to distribute cocaine in Boone County, Mo., and elsewhere.
Levi McLean Franklin Coolley, 36, and Jonathan Richard Gray, 36, both of Columbia, were sentenced on Tuesday, July 28, 2015, by U.S. District Judge Brian C. Wimes. Both men were sentenced to 10 years in federal prison without parole. The court also ordered Coolley to forfeit to the government $54,399, which constitutes the profits of illegal drug trafficking and which was seized from investment accounts.
Coolley and Gray both pleaded guilty to participating in a conspiracy to distribute five kilograms or more of cocaine. Coolley also pleaded guilty to participating in a conspiracy to distribute less than 50 kilograms of marijuana and a conspiracy to commit money laundering by utilizing his business, Midwest Audio Visions.
Coolley’s role in the drug-trafficking conspiracies included supervising the distribution efforts of several people in Columbia. He sometimes weighed out and assisted in packaging cocaine and/or marijuana, distributed cocaine and/or marijuana and collected money from the sale of the cocaine and/or marijuana, but Coolley also had other persons do this for him.
Coolley arranged for the purchase and transportation of cocaine and marijuana from various locations, both inside and outside the state, to Columbia. In one incident, Coolley purchased cocaine and arranged to have it transported from Texas. Co-conspirators were stopped in Kansas with approximately four kilograms of cocaine. After this incident, Coolley arranged for his suppliers to bring the cocaine to him, rather than him providing the driver. Two or three earlier trips from Texas were successful in delivering more than three kilograms of cocaine to Columbia.
Coolley purchased some of the cocaine and marijuana from co-defendant Samuel Raphael Johnson, 37, of Kansas City. Coolley purchased at least 40 kilograms of cocaine from Johnson, which was redistributed by Coolley and others. The last known transaction between Coolley and Johnson occurred on Nov. 7, 2011, when co-defendant Eric Paxton Pyle, 36, of Columbia, traveled to Kansas City, Mo., to pay Johnson for an earlier cocaine sale and to pick up more cocaine for Coolley. (Pyle has pleaded guilty to his role in the drug-trafficking conspiracy and awaits sentencing.)
The next day, at approximately 2:40 a.m. on Nov. 8, 2011, officers of the Kansas City, Mo., Police Department were dispatched on an alarm call to Johnson’s residence, where they discovered evidence of a break-in. When they searched Johnson’s residence, they found 72.42 grams of cocaine, 75.47 grams of crack cocaine and 18.66 kilograms of marijuana. Johnson, who pleaded guilty to his role in the drug-trafficking conspiracy, admitted that he sold cocaine to Coolley for $20,000 per kilogram. Johnson was sentenced on April 7, 2015, to 15 years in federal prison without parole.
In order to conceal the money generated by his unlawful conduct, Coolley established a business, Midwest Audio Visions, to launder the proceeds of his drug distribution. Coolley invested some of the profits from the sale of controlled substances into his stereo and window-tinting business in order to mask and conceal the funds, and to give the illusion that the money was from a legitimate source rather than drug-trafficking. Mixing drug-trafficking proceeds with legitimate funds allowed Coolley to inflate his business’s success, and allowed him to withdraw money and invest it in real estate and investment accounts.
Gray’s role in the drug-trafficking conspiracy included ordering cocaine from larger distributors so he could redistribute the cocaine to others, weighing out cocaine and cutting it, packaging it, distributing it to others and collecting money from the sale of the cocaine. Gray sold cocaine, not only in the Columbia and Boone County area, but would also send a person to the Lake of the Ozarks to sell cocaine to his customers and to pick up money. Gray admitted that he is responsible for the distribution of more than five kilograms of cocaine.
Coolley and Gray are among 18 defendants who have pleaded guilty in this case. Pyle is the only defendant who remains to be sentenced.
This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Anthony P. Gonzalez. It was investigated by the FBI, the Drug Enforcement Administration, IRS-Criminal Investigation, the Columbia, Mo., Police Department, the Boone County, Mo., Sheriff’s Department and the Kansas City, Mo., Police Department.
Two California Men Sentenced to Combined Total of over 13 Years in Prison for Drug Trafficking ChargesRead the Press Release
Fort Smith - Conner Eldridge, United States Attorney for the Western District of Arkansas, announced that Elijah Buckhalter and Alberto Gonzalez were sentenced today to a combined total of over 13 years in federal prison for drug trafficking charges. Buckhalter, age 23, of Compton, California was sentenced to 24 months in prison followed by two years of supervised release for Conspiracy to Distribute Methamphetamine. Gonzalez, age 33, of Lynwood, California was sentenced to 140 months in prison followed by three years of supervised release on one count of Conspiracy to Distribute Methamphetamine and 140 months in prison followed by five years of supervised release on one count of Possession with Intent to Distribute more than 500 grams of Methamphetamine. The sentences are to run concurrent with each other. The Honorable P. K. Holmes, III presided over each of the sentencing hearings in the United States District Court in Fort Smith.
U.S. Attorney Eldridge commented, “The dream that these drug traffickers envisioned of bringing large quantities of methamphetamine into our state and setting up shop came to an end today. Arkansas children and families deserve a safe place to live without the threat of crime and violence that this type of criminal activity brings. Today’s sentence should send a message loud and clear to others that commit these crimes that our office will continue to work with our law enforcement partners to identify and aggressively prosecute them.”
“We will continue to attack the scourge of methamphetamine distribution in Arkansas and beyond,” said DEA Assistant Special Agent in Charge David Downing. “The lengthy sentencing of these defendants should be taken as a message to those who want to sell drugs. We are going to catch you and put you in prison for a long time if you distribute this poison in our communities. ”
According to court records, the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) and 4th Judicial District Drug Task Force had been conducting an investigation involving the transportation of methamphetamine from the Compton, California area to Springdale, Arkansas. During the investigation, they were made aware of a source of supply, later positively identified as Alberto Gonzalez. Several recorded phone calls were made to Gonzalez in October, 2014 to arrange for 4 (four) pounds of meth to be transported from California to Northwest Arkansas on October 30, 2014. Gonzalez advised he would be bringing an associate, Elijah Buckhalter, from California with him and that the meth would be arriving about the same time he arrived. He said Elijah’s cousin, Jacob Buckhalter, was a truck driver and that he would pay him to transport the meth to Arkansas. On October 30 as investigators watched by surveillance, Gonzalez and a man later identified as Jonathan Madrigal got off the bus and into the car of a confidential informant who drove them to a rented hotel in Springdale. In the car they discussed the shipment of meth that was to arrive later that day and Gonzalez indicated that he planned to set up a drug trafficking business in the northwest Arkansas area that would involve receiving large quantities from California for distribution in Arkansas. He stated Madrigal and Elijah Buckhalter would be staying in Arkansas to help with the distribution of the meth. The confidential informant left the hotel and advised that Gonzalez and Madrigal were going to wait for Elijah and Jacob to arrive. Gonzalez wanted the informant to come back to the hotel once Elijah arrived to pick up money to pay Jacob and to transport Elijah and the meth back to the hotel. The informant went back to the hotel and picked up Gonzalez and traveled to a truck stop in Springdale where they met with Elijah and took bags out of the truck and placed in the informant’s vehicle. The informant and Gonzalez got back in the vehicle and traveled to the Dollar General Store where they were going to purchase bags to break down the meth into smaller quantities. Once in the store, the informant called officers who arrived and arrested both of them while other officers arrested Elijah and Jacob Buckhalter and Madrigal who were near the hotel. The officers located a red and black bag containing the suspected meth inside the vehicle. The substance field tested positive for meth and weighed approximately 4 (four) pounds. The suspected meth was sent to the DEA lab where it tested to be 97% pure meth. Both Gonzalez and Elijah Buckhalter were indicted by a federal grand jury on November 19, 2014, and both pleaded guilty on March 12, 2015.
The third defendant, Jonathan Madrigal, age 26, of Compton, California was also indicted by a federal grand jury on November 19, 2014 and pleaded guilty on April 20, 2015. Madrigal was charged with Conspiracy to Distribute Methamphetamine and will be sentenced at a later date.
These cases were investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration, and the 4th Judicial Drug Task Force. Assistant United States Attorney Kim Davis prosecuted the cases for the United States.
* * * E N D * * *
Related court documents may be found on the Public Access to Electronic Records website @ www.pacer.gov
Two Brothers from Des Plaines Among 24 Defendants Charged with Trafficking Large Quantities of Cocaine and HeroinRead the Press Release
CHICAGO — Two dozen defendants are facing federal drug charges after a two-and-a-half-year investigation uncovered their roles in trafficking wholesale amounts of cocaine and heroin and distributing it in the Chicago area and Wisconsin.
Agents from the Federal Bureau of Investigation and Drug Enforcement Administration assigned to the Chicago Strike Force, seized 77 kilograms of cocaine and 138 grams of heroin during the course of the investigation, which was dubbed “Operation Alley Cat.” Authorities exposed the trafficking rings through the use of wiretapped cellular phones and extensive surveillance.
Several of the defendants were arrested Wednesday morning. Two kilograms of cocaine, a half kilogram of heroin and two guns were seized during the arrests.
The defendants were charged in two separate criminal complaints filed Monday in U.S. District Court and unsealed following the arrests. They will begin making initial court appearances this afternoon before U.S. Magistrate Judge Sidney I. Schenkier in Chicago.
According to affidavits filed in support of the arrests, the investigation revealed that two separate networks of drug traffickers were operating in the Chicago area and Wisconsin.
The Cruz Organization
The affidavits allege that LUIS ANTONIO CRUZ, 48, of Des Plaines, and JULIO SANTIAGO, 41, of Chicago, worked with narcotics brokers who had obtained wholesale quantities of cocaine and heroin from suppliers. The pair then distributed smaller quantities of the narcotics to customers on consignment, a practice known as “fronting,” and collected proceeds from the customers following the sales, according to the affidavits. Once the drugs were sold, Cruz and Santiago made arrangements to pay the suppliers and the brokers, the affidavits state.
Cruz and Santiago used various city and suburban locations to store, process and package the cocaine and heroin, according to the affidavits. These locations included two residences in Des Plaines, one of which belonged to Cruz and the other to a co-defendant, ANTONIO GRIMALDO, 56; and the Chicago homes of Santiago and a co-defendant, CRISTINO MERCED, 51, both of which were located in the Belmont Cragin neighborhood on the Northwest Side, the affidavits state.
The charges allege that Cruz’s brother, CARLOS ALBERTO CRUZ-CARRERA, 42, helped Cruz with pickups and deliveries of heroin and by counting the proceeds from the sales. Cruz-Carrera is a resident of Puerto Rico but lived with his brother in Des Plaines during his involvement in the scheme, authorities said.
The affidavits describe a wide-ranging network of alleged suppliers, brokers and sellers within the Cruz Organization.
JOEL CHAVEZ, 53, and EMMANUEL FERNANDEZ, 34, obtained wholesale quantities of cocaine from a supplier and delivered it to Cruz on credit, the charges allege. After Cruz and Santiago diluted, re-packaged and re-sold the cocaine to others, Cruz delivered proceeds from the sales to Chavez and Fernandez, both of whom reside in Chicago, according to the affidavits.
JOSE NUNEZ, 31, of Chicago, obtained cocaine and heroin from suppliers and delivered it to Cruz and Santiago on credit, the charges allege. Cruz regularly arranged for partial payments and re-payments to Nunez and to Nunez’s suppliers after Cruz and Santiago had re-sold the drugs to others, according to the affidavits.
The affidavits state that Nunez later introduced to Cruz an alleged supplier, JOSE RAMOS-GARNICA, 23, of Chicago. The introduction allowed Cruz to place orders for cocaine and heroin directly with Ramos-Garnica, the affidavits state. On April 17, 2014, authorities seized a half kilogram of cocaine from Ramos-Garnica, according to the affidavits.
DELVI COMPRES, 33, of Cicero, supplied Santiago with kilogram quantities of cocaine, which Santiago processed and re-sold to others before paying Compres, according to the affidavits.
ARCILIO LAUREANO-NAVARRO, 30, of Chicago, purchased heroin from Cruz and then re-sold it in Wisconsin, according to the affidavits. After agents seized heroin from Laureano-Navarro in 2013, Cruz began selling it directly to a Wisconsin resident, DAVID LOZADO-OTERO, 35, of Milwaukee, the affidavits state. On some occasions Cruz would deliver the heroin to Lozado-Otero in Wisconsin, and other times Lozado-Otero would pick it up from Cruz in the Chicago area, according to the affidavits.
The affidavits state that several other narcotics distributers obtained drugs from Cruz’s organization, including GILBERTO DANIELS, 31, of Chicago; ERIC COBARRUBIA, 39, of Chicago; FRANCISCO QUINTANA, 46, of Chicago; JUAN VAZQUEZ-DELGADO, 35, of Chicago; and SANTIAGO DIAZ-GALLEGOS, 41, of Chicago.
Cruz, Santiago, Cruz-Carrera, Chavez, Fernandez, Ramos-Garnica, Compres, Cobarrubia, Grimaldo, Nunez, Merced, Daniels, Laureano-Navarro and Lozado-Otero were charged with conspiring with each other to knowingly and intentionally possess with intent to distribute cocaine and heroin. If convicted, they each face a maximum of life in prison and a $10 million fine.
Quintana, Vazquez-Delgado and Diaz-Gallegos were each charged with knowingly and intentionally possessing a controlled substance with the intent to distribute. If convicted, Quintana faces a maximum of 20 years in prison and a $1 million fine; Vazquez-Delgado faces a maximum of 40 years in prison and a $1 million fine; and Diaz-Gallegos faces a maximum of life in prison and a $10 million fine.
The Acosta Network
The affidavits state that ALFREDO ACOSTA, 52, also known as “Mecha” and “Jose Esteban Resendiz Ayvar”, conspired with a Mexican supplier and others to distribute cocaine and heroin in the early part of 2014. Acosta stashed the drugs in a home he referred to as “the office,” located in the 4000 block of West Irving Park Road in Chicago, the affidavits state. Acosta used the stash house to accept deliveries of narcotics from his supplier’s couriers, and to store drugs and cash, according to the affidavits.
In January 2014, Acosta arranged a deal with a Mexican supplier to receive 10 kilograms of cocaine, the affidavits state. Unbeknownst to Acosta, his telephone conversation with the supplier’s courier, EDWIN AMAYA, had been surreptitiously recorded by federal authorities, according to the affidavits. The wiretapped conversation revealed the location of the deal, allowing agents to track Amaya, 37, of Chicago, as he attempted to deliver the cocaine, the affidavits state. On Jan. 16, 2014, agents seized ten bricks of wrapped cocaine from Amaya’s car in an alley on the Northwest Side of Chicago, the affidavits state.
The affidavits describe another cocaine deal Acosta arranged with his Mexican supplier a few months later. Acosta’s telephone conversation with the supplier had been covertly recorded by federal authorities, allowing agents to observe and record the encounter, the affidavits state. On April 29, 2014, agents observed Acosta and the Mexican supplier’s courier, JUAN DAVILA, 20, of Cicero, conduct the transaction in the parking lot of a coffee shop in the 3900 block of West Irving Park Road in Chicago, the affidavits state. Agents later followed Davila to a residence in the 2300 block of North McVicker Avenue in Chicago, where they seized 65 kilograms of cocaine from two duffel bags stashed in a cargo van in the garage, according to the affidavits.
The affidavits describe Acosta’s extensive network of suppliers, couriers and sellers. LEONARDO HERNANDEZ, 33, of Chicago, worked as a courier for Acosta’s network and delivered drugs to its customers, according to the affidavits. Those customers included CARLOS NAVA, 42, of Chicago; RAMON MENDOZA-RAMOS, 47, of Chicago; and DANIEL RIVERA, 32, of Berwyn; each of whom received wholesale amounts of drugs from Acosta on consignment, the affidavits state. Acosta collected the money after the drugs were sold, according to the affidavits.
Acosta, Nava, Mendoza-Ramos and Hernandez were charged with conspiring with each other to knowingly and intentionally possess with intent to distribute cocaine and heroin. If convicted, they each face a maximum of life in prison and a $10 million fine.
Amaya, Rivera and Davila were each charged with knowingly and intentionally possessing a controlled substance with the intent to distribute. If convicted, they each face a maximum of life in prison and a $10 million fine.
The charges were announced by Zachary T. Fardon, United States Attorney for the Northern District of Illinois; Robert J. Holley, Special Agent-in-Charge of the Chicago Office of the Federal Bureau of Investigation; and Dennis A. Wichern, Special Agent in Charge of the Chicago Field Division of the Drug Enforcement Administration.
“The charges announced today reflect the determined work of our law enforcement partners on the Chicago Strike Force,” Mr. Fardon said. “Aggressively pursuing this type of investigation is critical to preventing the stream of narcotics into our communities.”
“The Chicago FBI office has a long and successful history of working side by side with our law enforcement partners and dedicated prosecutors to address the flow of drugs through our communities, but we know our work is far from over,” said Special Agent Holley. “Today’s charges and arrests demonstrate our commitment to continue unceasingly in those collaborative efforts.”
"Our promise is the never-ending commitment of the DEA and the Chicago Strike Force to attack and bring to justice these drug-trafficking organizations that inflict damage upon our neighborhoods and families,” Special Agent Wichern said. “I applaud all the members of the Strike Force and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for their exemplary work.”
The investigation was conducted through the U.S. Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF) Chicago Strike Force, which consists of DEA, FBI, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, Chicago Police Department, Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigations Division, U.S. Marshals Service, and task force officers from various state and local law enforcement agencies, including the Cook County Sheriff’s Police Department and the Illinois State Police.
The government is being represented by Assistant United States Attorneys Lindsay Jenkins, Yasmin N. Best and Jordan Palmore.
The public is reminded that complaints contain only charges and are not evidence of guilt. The defendants are presumed innocent and are entitled to a fair trial at which the government has the burden of proving guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.
Cruz Complaint
Acosta Complaint
Twelve Individuals Charged in Taunton Heroin RingRead the Press Release
BOSTON – A dozen individuals were charged yesterday following a lengthy law enforcement investigation into a Taunton-based heroin distribution ring.
Four Taunton residents were arrested and charged with conspiracy to distribute heroin in connection with the heroin distribution ring: Eddyberto Mejia Ramos, 22, aka “Chi Chi”; Luis Iraola, 21; Maria Ramos, 43; and Edwin Montalvo, 26, aka “Poncho.” Also arrested and charged with conspiracy to distribute heroin were Saul Sanchez Rolon, aka “Fino,” and Kerem Mendez Luz, 35, of Providence, R.I.; Antwuun Jones, 23, of Fall River; Shakur Russell, 22, of Bridgewater; Darius Jones, 23, of Taunton; and Anthony Burt, 23, and Kayla Wentworth, 24, both of Wareham, Fall River and Taunton. The twelfth defendant, Jean Wharf, 40, of Carver, was arrested and charged in a related complaint with using a telephone to facilitate a drug transaction. Yesterday’s arrests follow the July 6-7, 2015, arrests of Luis Guzman, 22; Mercedes Cabral, 24; and Oristel Soto-Peguero, 22, all of Norwood; and the March 16, 2015, arrest of Manuel Luis Sanquintin, 33, aka Alex, of Boston, all in connection with the same heroin distribution ring.
The charges came as a result of a lengthy investigation, during which law enforcement officers observed Mejia Ramos sell heroin to a cooperating witness on several occasions in fall 2014, and uncovered the organizational makeup of Mejia Ramos’ organization through court authorized wiretaps from January through July of this year.
The charging documents allege that Mejia Ramos operated a retail heroin trafficking organization out of his mother’s house at 187 Winthrop Street in Taunton. The charging documents further allege that Mejia Ramos’ mother, Maria Ramos, periodically assisted her son in distributing heroin. According to court documents, Mejia Ramos purchased large quantities of heroin from several wholesale suppliers, including Soto-Peguero and Sanquintin, along with Sanchez Rolon and Mendez Luz. After receiving these large heroin packages, Mejia Ramos and his mid-level associates, including Jones, Iraola, and Montalvo, then allegedly distributed the heroin to lower level distributors and customers, including Burt, Wentworth, Russell, and Wharf.
The charge of conspiracy to distribute heroin provides for a sentence of no greater than 20 years in prison, supervised release of three years and up to a lifetime, and a fine of $1 million. The charge against Wharf, of using a telephone to facilitate a drug transaction, provides for a sentence of no greater than four years in prison, two years of supervised release, and a fine of $250,000. Actual sentences for federal crimes are typically less than the maximum penalties. Sentences are imposed by a federal district court judge based on the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
United States Attorney Carmen M. Ortiz; Michael J. Ferguson, Special Agent in Charge of the Drug Enforcement Administration, New England Field Division; Taunton Police Chief Edward J. Walsh; and Bristol County District Attorney Thomas M. Quinn, made the announcement. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Ted Heinrich of Ortiz’s Narcotics and Money Laundering Unit.
The details contained in the charging documents are allegations. The defendants are presumed to be innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in the court of law.
Topeka Man Sentenced to 14 Years for Sex Trafficking of 15-Year-Old GirlRead the Press Release
TOPEKA, KAN. - A Topeka man was sentenced Tuesday to 14 years in federal prison on a federal charge of offering a 15-year-old girl for commercial sex, U.S. Attorney Barry Grissom said.
Dominique Emanuel Tyson, 25, Topeka, Kan., pleaded guilty to one count of sex trafficking of a child. In his plea, he admitted he took a 15-year-old girl to a motel to meet a man who had seen her picture in an advertisement on Backpage.com. Tyson did not know that the customer was working undercover for the Topeka Police Department and the FBI.
The investigation began when Topeka police received a call from a community corrections officer saying the girl had run away from her placement. The officer spotted a photo of her on Backpage.com listing her as an escort. On June 11, 2013, an undercover investigator called the number on the advertisement and arranged to meet the girl at a motel in Topeka. Tyson dropped her off and drove away. Officers stopped his car, where they found a tablet computer with files containing the same photos of the girl that appeared in the ad.
Grissom commended the Topeka Police Department, the FBI and Assistant U.S. Attorney Christine Kenney for their work on the case.
Sutter County Brothers Sentenced to Prison for Marijuana CultivationRead the Press Release
SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Thomas Jopson, 66, and David Jopson, 64, of Rio Oso, were sentenced today by United States District Judge John A. Mendez to one year in prison for conspiring to cultivate marijuana, United States Attorney Benjamin B. Wagner announced.
The Jopsons were ordered to surrender to the United States Marshals Service to begin serving their sentences on September 24, 2015.
According to court documents, on June 21, 2011, federal and state agents executed seven federal search warrants in Sacramento, Sutter, and Tehama Counties. Two of these warrants were executed at the sites of large, commercial greenhouses at the Jopson Ranch in Rio Oso and at Cal-Nevada Wholesale Florist in Sacramento. Law enforcement officers seized over 5,000 marijuana plants including approximately 2,168 marijuana plants at the Jopson Ranch. Two leaders arrested at the grow sites, Yan Ebyam and Aimee Sisco, admitted their involvement in the marijuana cultivation business. While in clear violation of federal law, the Jopson Ranch Grow attempted to use California medical marijuana law to cloak their business activities. A total of 12 defendants were later indicted for crimes relating to their marijuana cultivation in this, and a related case currently pending in the Eastern District of California.
The enforcement action taken against these commercial marijuana manufacturing operations was consistent with U.S. Department of Justice policy to prosecute persons who are in the commercial business of cultivating, selling, or distributing marijuana, and those who knowingly facilitate such activities.
Last week, Judge Mendez sentenced Aimee Sisco, 34, of Redding, to 38 months in prison after she pleaded guilty to conspiring to cultivate marijuana with the Jopsons and others.
On July 1, 2014, Ebyam pleaded guilty to conspiring to cultivate marijuana in this case, and the related case of United States v. Ebyam, et al. (2:11-CR-276 JAM). His sentencing is set for October 27, 2015.
This case was the product of an investigation by the Drug Enforcement Administration, the Internal Revenue Service-Criminal Investigation, the Sutter County Sheriff’s Department, and the California Bureau of Narcotic Enforcement. It was part of an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF). The OCDETF Program was established in 1982 to conduct comprehensive, multi-level attacks on major drug trafficking and money laundering organizations. The principal mission of the OCDETF program is to identify, disrupt, and dismantle the most serious drug trafficking and money laundering organizations and those primarily responsible for the nation’s drug supply.
Suspended Pelican Rapids Doctor Pleads Guilty to Stealing Prescription DrugsRead the Press Release
United States Attorney Andrew M. Luger today announced the guilty plea of BLAIR A. NELSON, 43, who obtained Hydrocodone, Oxycodone, and other prescription drugs by writing and filling fraudulent prescriptions. NELSON pleaded guilty to obtaining a controlled substance by fraud today before Judge Susan R. Nelson in United States District Court in St. Paul, Minn.
“Prescription drug diversion is an ongoing threat to both public safety and public health,” said U.S. Attorney Luger. “Working closely with colleagues at the Drug Enforcement Administration and in local law enforcement, we are clamping down on prescription drug fraud and abuse.”
According to the defendant’s guilty plea and documents filed in court, beginning in May 2013, NELSON, who was a doctor practicing medicine in Pelican Rapids, Minn., and Fargo, N.D., began writing prescriptions to various pharmacies in Minnesota for opioids including oxycodone, hydrocodone, and amphetamines. NELSON wrote the prescriptions so that they could be filled in the names of members of his family and friends. However, after issuing the prescriptions, NELSON picked up the drugs for his own use.
According to his guilty plea and documents filed in court, between May 2013 and September 2014, NELSON attempted to obtain from Target, Walgreens, and Wal-Mart, at least 1,730 prescription pills for his own use by writing prescriptions in the names of his family members. He continued to write prescriptions even after the State of Minnesota suspended his medical license on October 8, 2013.
This case is the result of an investigation conducted by the Drug Enforcement Administration.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Thomas Calhoun-Lopez is prosecuting the case.
On Tuesday, August 25, 2015, a conference entitled, “Pain.Pill.Problem.” will be held at the University of Minnesota’s Twin Cities Campus, to bring together experts in the fields of public health and law enforcement to define the scope of the opioid abuse problem and develop solutions to move Minnesota forward together. The one-day conference is co-sponsored by the United States Attorney’s Office for the District of Minnesota, the Minnesota Department of Human Services, U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration, Hazelden Betty Ford Institute for Recovery Advocacy, Mayo Clinic, Hennepin County Sheriff’s Office, University of Minnesota, and others. Please visit www.PainPillProblem.com for more information about the event.
Defendant Information:
BLAIR A. NELSON, 43
Pelican Rapids, Minn.
Convicted:
- Obtaining a controlled substance by fraud, 1 count
###
Additional news available on our website.
Follow us on Twitter and Facebook.
United States Attorney’s Office, District of Minnesota: (612) 664-5600
St. Louis Man Charged with Distribution of HeroinRead the Press Release
The United States Attorney for the Southern District of Illinois, Stephen R. Wigginton, announced today that Ronald Terry, 32, of St. Louis, MO, was indicted last week by a federal grand jury for three counts of distribution of heroin. Each charge carries maximum penalties of 20 years in prison, a $1,000,000 fine, and three years of supervised release.
The indictment alleges the offenses occurred between July 2, 2015, and July 8, 2015, in St. Clair County. Terry was arrested by a criminal complaint and made his initial appearance in federal court on July 17, 2015. Terry is detained in federal custody pending trial.
An indictment is a formal charge against a defendant. Under the law, a defendant is presumed to be innocent of a charge and is entitled to a fair trial at which the United States must prove guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.
The case was investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration, the Illinois State Police, and the Southern Illinois Drug Task Force Agency. This case is being prosecuted by Special Assistant United States Attorney Vanessa T. Lu.
St. Johnsbury Woman Sentenced for Social Security FraudRead the Press Release
The Office of the United States Attorney for the District of Vermont stated that Bobbie Jo Austin, 35, of St. Johnsbury, Vermont, was sentenced on July 27, 2015, in United States District Court in Burlington, Vermont, to serve a two-year period of probation following her conviction on one count of converting Supplemental Security Income Benefits from the intended beneficiary, in violation of 42 U.S.C. § 1383a(a)(4). Judge William K. Sessions III also ordered Austin to pay $1,500 in restitution and a $100 special assessment.
According to court records and proceedings, in approximately 2008, BOBBIE JO AUSTIN applied to be the Representative Payee for Supplemental Security Income benefits for her child, who had been determined to be disabled. In agreeing to be the Representative Payee, BOBBIE JO AUSTIN agreed, among other things, to use the funds for the benefit of her minor child, and to notify the Social Security Administration (SSA) if her minor child stopped living with her. The benefit payments started in June 2009. In May 2010, BOBBIE JO AUSTIN declared under penalty of perjury when she completed a Representative Payee Report that her minor child lived with her and of the $9,052.00 she had received for the child's care and support, she spent $4,800.00 on the child and $4,252.00 on living expenses and bills related to the child. In April 2011, BOBBIE JO AUSTIN declared under penalty of perjury when she completed a Representative Payee Report that her minor child lived with her and of the $8,712.00 she had received for the child's care and support, she spent the entire amount on the child. BOBBIE JO AUSTIN did not notify the SSA that the minor child was removed from her custody by the Vermont Department of Children and Families on May 29, 2009, and was ultimately adopted by another family on March 9, 2011.
“Making false statements to Social Security to fraudulently misuse Supplemental Security Income—a government payment intended to assist those truly in need—is an intolerable offense,” said Scott Antolik, Special Agent-in-Charge, SSA Office of Inspector General, Boston Field Division. “We will continue to partner with the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Vermont to pursue all forms of fraud against Social Security and its beneficiaries, especially instances of representative payee fraud that affect our most vulnerable citizens.”
United States Attorney Eric S. Miller commended the efforts of the SSA Office of Inspector General, Boston Field Division, in the investigation and prosecution of Austin. The prosecution of Austin was handled by Assistant U.S. Attorney Barbara A. Masterson. Austin was represented by Assistant Federal Public Defender Elizabeth K. Quinn.
Sparks, Nevada Man Sentenced to 17½ Years in Federal Prison for Child Pornography CrimeRead the Press Release
RENO, Nev. – A convicted sex offender who had failed to register with the State of Nevada and was caught with hundreds of images and videos of child pornography on his computers, has been sentenced to 17½ years in prison for his guilty plea to receipt of child pornography, announced U.S. Attorney Daniel G. Bogden, for the District of Nevada.
Jeffrey Scott Varnum, 48, of Sparks, Nev., who pleaded guilty in April to one count of receipt of child pornography, was sentenced on July 28, by Senior U.S. District Judge Howard D. McKibben. Varnum was also placed on lifetime supervised release and must register as a convicted sex offender.
“The sharing of child pornography over the internet results in repeated re-victimization and can negatively affect a victim for the rest of his or her life,” said U.S. Attorney Bogden. “The persons who produce these images and trade them with other persons deserve significant sentences of imprisonment.”
Between March and October 2014, a law enforcement officer assigned to the Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force in Reno was conducting online child pornography investigations and determined that an internet address connected to Varnum’s residence was involved in the sharing of child pornography files. On Nov. 17, members of the Task Force executed a search warrant at the residence, and seized two computers and other electronic storage devices from Varnum’s bedroom. A forensic investigation of the items revealed that Varnum had installed and utilized software on the computers which allowed him to locate and receive child pornography. The investigation further revealed that Varnum possessed and received over 300 images and 10 videos of child pornography. The images and videos depicted prepubescent children engaged in sexually explicit conduct, as well as sadistic and masochistic conduct. Varnum also possessed and received over 11,000 images of child erotica. At the time of the search, Varnum was on probation for failing to register as a sex offender. He had been convicted in 1994 and 1998 in Reno of lewdness, and in 2012, he was convicted in Reno of failing to register as a sex offender.
The case was investigated by the FBI and the Northern Nevada Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force, and prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Shannon M. Bryant.
The case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by the United States Attorneys' Offices and the Criminal
Division's Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who sexually exploit children, and to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.usdoj.gov/psc. For more information about internet safety education, please visit www.usdoj.gov/psc and click on the tab "resources."
San Angelo Man Faces up to 20 Years in Federal Prison for Possessing Prepubescent Child PornographyRead the Press Release
LUBBOCK, Texas — Michael Patrick Redente, 40, of San Angelo, Texas, appeared today before U.S. Magistrate Judge Nancy M. Koenig and pleaded guilty to an indictment charging one count of possessing prepubescent child pornography, announced John Parker, U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of Texas.
Redente, who remains on bond, faces a maximum statutory penalty of 20 years in federal prison and a $250,000 fine. A sentencing date was not set.
According to plea documents filed in the case, Redente used the computer at his residence to search the Internet for images and videos depicting minors engaging in sexually explicit conduct. In the course of these searches, Redente located, downloaded, and viewed numerous images and videos constituting child pornography. Some of those images involved prepubescent minors.
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.”
U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) and the U.S. Air Force Office of Special Investigations investigated. Assistant U.S. Attorney Steven M. Sucsy is prosecuting the case.
# # #
Sales Representative Pleads Guilty in Connection with Multi-Million Dollar Mortgage Modification SchemeRead the Press Release
Preet Bharara, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, announced that JONATHAN LYONS, a former sales representative at a company purporting to provide mortgage modification services, pled guilty yesterday in Manhattan federal court for his role in a multimillion-dollar scheme that victimized more than 500 financially struggling homeowners across the country. LYONS, who was arrested in October 2013, pled guilty before U.S. District Judge George B. Daniels.
Manhattan U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara said: “Through his plea, Jonathan Lyons acknowledged his role in a multimillion dollar scheme that targeted and victimized hundreds of desperate, financially vulnerable homeowners weighed down by debt. We thank our partners, including the Special Inspector General for the Troubled Asset Relief Program, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, and the New York State Office of the Attorney General for their role in bringing Lyons to justice.”
According to the allegations contained in the Indictment and related Informations, the plea agreements, and statements made in court proceedings:
From approximately January 2009 to June 2011, LYONS and his co-conspirators perpetrated a scheme to defraud homeowners who were in danger of losing their homes because they could not afford to pay their residential mortgages. Through a company located in Long Island, New York (“Company-1”), and its successor companies (the “Mortgage Modification Companies”), LYONS, his co-conspirators, and other employees falsely promised to help financially struggling residential mortgage holders refinance their mortgages for lower interest rates and monthly payments. Despite the defendants’ claims, however, the Mortgage Modification Companies delivered little or no service to their customers, diverting most, if not all, of the customers’ payments to the Mortgage Modification Companies’ owners and employees rather than using those funds to assist customers in procuring mortgage modifications. Through their scheme, the Mortgage Modification Companies obtained at least $2.3 million from more than 500 homeowners throughout the United States.
The Mortgage Modification Companies charged customers thousands of dollars in up-front fees—in violation of New York State law—and made fraudulent claims about the companies’ services, including that the Mortgage Modification Companies guaranteed that they would either: (i) secure a mortgage modification that would result in a significant reduction in the customer’s interest rate and/or monthly payments; or (ii) provide the customer’s money back. Through the Mortgage Modification Companies, the defendants and other employees also falsely claimed to be affiliated with the federal government’s Home Affordable Modification Program (“HAMP”), a federally-funded mortgage assistance program that is part of the Troubled Asset Relief Program and is available to homeowners free of charge.
The Mortgage Modification Companies targeted homeowners who had fallen behind, or were in danger of falling behind, in making mortgage payments on their homes. LYONS and two other company sales representatives, AREN GOLDFADEN and DARRELL KEYS, spoke to hundreds of struggling homeowners on behalf of the Mortgage Modification Companies, repeatedly making materially false or misleading representations to convince these prospective clients to pay upfront fees to the companies. The false or misleading representations included that the Mortgage Modification Companies were associated with HAMP; that a mortgage modification was guaranteed and would take only approximately thirty to sixty days; and that the Mortgage Modification Companies would issue a full refund of the upfront fee to any client whose mortgage was not successfully modified in the stated time period. ANTHONY BLACKWELL, who held himself out as an attorney for the Mortgage Modification Companies, despite not having a valid law license for most of the relevant period, and ANGEL GONZALEZ, a sales manager who was involved in training sales representatives, instructed the companies’ sales representatives on how to lie to customers and routinely refused to provide refunds to customers despite the fact that those customers did not obtain mortgage modifications as promised.
BLACKWELL and GONZALEZ also personally met with and spoke directly to customers and told similar lies. They sought to cover up their fraudulent scheme by, among other things, directing sales representatives to assuage customers by falsely claiming that work was being done on the customer’s behalf and that the company just needed more time to obtain a mortgage modification, when, in fact, little or no work was being done to provide a mortgage modification to the customers.
* * *
LYONS, 53, of Rockville Center, New York, pled guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud, and faces a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison. The maximum potential sentence in this case is prescribed by Congress and is provided here for informational purposes only, as any sentencing of the defendant will be determined by the judge. LYONS is scheduled to be sentenced on by Judge Daniels on January 7, 2016.
BLACKWELL, GOLDFADEN, GONZALEZ, and KEYS also each pled guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud. BLACKWELL, 49, of Manhattan, New York, pled guilty before Judge Daniels on July 8, 2015, and is scheduled to be sentenced on November 5, 2015. GOLDFADEN, 38, of East Rockaway, pled guilty before Judge Daniels on June 1, 2015, and is scheduled to be sentenced on October 15, 2015. GONZALEZ, 33, of Rosedale, New York, pled guilty before Judge Daniels on March 5, 2015. KEYS, 52, of Uniondale, New York, pled guilty before U.S. District Judge Robert W. Sweet on September 19, 2013.
In addition, a founder and co-owner of Company-1, SCOTT SCHREIBER, 32, of Brooklyn, New York, pled guilty for his role in the offense to one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud and one count of wire fraud, before the late U.S. District Judge Robert P. Patterson on October 16, 2013. SCHREIBER’s case is now before U.S. District Judge Loretta A. Preska. Sentencing dates have not yet been set for GONZALEZ, KEYS or SCHREIBER.
Mr. Bharara praised the Special Inspector General for the Troubled Asset Relief Program and the Federal Bureau of Investigation for their outstanding work in the investigation. Mr. Bharara also thanked the New York State Office of the Attorney General for its assistance.
The charges were brought in connection with the President’s Financial Fraud Enforcement Task Force. The task force was established to wage an aggressive, coordinated and proactive effort to investigate and prosecute financial crimes. With more than 20 federal agencies, 94 U.S. attorneys’ offices, and state and local partners, it’s the broadest coalition of law enforcement, investigatory and regulatory agencies ever assembled to combat fraud. Since its formation, the task force has made great strides in facilitating increased investigation and prosecution of financial crimes; enhancing coordination and cooperation among federal, state and local authorities; addressing discrimination in the lending and financial markets; and conducting outreach to the public, victims, financial institutions and other organizations. Since fiscal year 2009, the Justice Department has filed over 18,000 financial fraud cases against more than 25,000 defendants. For more information on the task force, please visit www.StopFraud.gov.
This matter is being handled by the Office’s Complex Frauds and Cybercrime Unit. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Janis Echenberg and Daniel Tehrani are in charge of the case.
Sacramento Man Pleads Guilty to Tax Preparation FraudRead the Press Release
SACRAMENTO, Calif. —William Glenn Green, 48, of Sacramento, pleaded guilty today to assisting in the preparation of false tax returns, United States Attorney Benjamin B. Wagner announced.
According to court documents, while Green prepared tax returns at a Sacramento business called “Will the Tax Man” from 2007 to at least April 2011, he knowingly placed false information on his clients’ returns to increase their refunds or reduce their taxes owed. The false information that Green added included false charitable contributions in large round numbers to charities like Amvets and United Cerebral Palsy, and other deductions and credits related to education and business expenses. The false deductions and credits were not based on information provided by Green’s clients, and Green typically did not inform his clients that these false deductions and credits had been added. Green’s conduct resulted in a total tax loss of approximately $492,000.
This case is the product of an investigation by the Internal Revenue Service, Criminal Investigation. Assistant United States Attorney Christopher S. Hales is prosecuting the case.
Green is scheduled to be sentenced by United States District Judge Kimberly J. Mueller on October 14, 2015. Green faces a maximum statutory penalty of three years in prison and a $100,000 fine, and can also be ordered to pay restitution to the Internal Revenue Service. The actual sentence, however, will be determined at the discretion of the court after consideration of any applicable statutory factors and the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, which take into account a number of variables.
Rogers Man Found Guilty on Four Counts of Drug TraffickingRead the Press Release
Fayetteville, Arkansas - Conner Eldridge, United States Attorney for the Western District of Arkansas, announced that Juan Valenzuela, age 40, of Rogers, was found guilty on one count of Conspiracy to Distribute Methamphetamine, one count of Delivery of a Mixture or Substance Containing Methamphetamine, and two counts of Delivery of more than fifty (50) grams of Methamphetamine following a two day jury trial. The Honorable Timothy L. Brooks presided over the trial in the United States District Court in Fayetteville.
U.S. Attorney Eldridge commented, “I want to thank the investigators that worked so hard on this case and the jurors that took time out of their busy lives to see that justice was served. Children in Benton County and across the Western District of Arkansas deserve to grow up in communities free from illegal drug trafficking and the violence and other crime that comes with it. With the defendant’s conviction, another positive step forward has been taken for the citizens of the Western District of Arkansas.”
“Methamphetamine is a destructive poison that can cause terrible harm to the quality of life in our communities,” said DEA Assistant Special Agent in Charge David Downing. “Side by side with our local law enforcement partners, DEA is holding meth dealers accountable. Together, we are putting dealers where they belong – behind bars. Let this guilty verdict be a loud and clear message to any and all remaining drug dealers: you will be identified, you will be investigated and you will be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law,” said Downing.
According to evidence presented to the jury, during the course of an ongoing investigation, it was learned that Valenzuela was selling large quantities of suspected methamphetamine out of his Rogers residence. On January 15, 2015, May 18, 2015 and May 22, 2015, Valenzuela sold over a quarter of a pound of methamphetamine collectively to an informant working for the DEA. A federal search warrant was obtained and executed on May 27, 2015, at the home where Valenzuela had previously sold methamphetamine to the informant. Additional evidence indicative of methamphetamine trafficking was located at the residence. Valenzuela was arrested at the scene and booked into jail. Valenzuela was indicted by a federal grand jury June 3, 2015. .
Sentencing will be announced at a later date. The defendant faces a maximum sentence on counts one and two of 20 years imprisonment, $1,000,000 fine, or both. He faces a maximum sentence on counts three and four of 10 years to life imprisonment, $10,000,000 fine or both. The sentence will be determined by the court after review of factors unique to this case, including the defendant’s prior criminal record (if any), the defendant’s role in the offense, and the characteristics of the violations.
This case was investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration and the Benton County Sheriff’s Office. Assistant United States Attorneys Brice White and Brandon Carter prosecuted the case for the United States.
* * * E N D * * *
Related court documents may be found on the Public Access to Electronic Records website @ www.pacer.gov
Rochester Police Department Reaches Settlement to Ensure Effective Communication for Deaf and Hard of Hearing IndividualsRead the Press Release
The U.S. Attorney's Office for the Eastern District of Michigan has reached an agreement with the Rochester Police Department under the Americans with Disabilities Act (“ADA”), requiring the department to provide sign language interpreters and other aids and services to citizens who are deaf or hard of hearing, U.S. Attorney Barbara L. McQuade announced today. The settlement resolves a complaint alleging that the police department failed to provide an individual in detention with a text or video capable telephone while he was in custody and failed to timely provide him with a sign language interpreter. The ADA requires that public entities, such as police departments, provide sign language interpreters and/or other appropriate auxiliary aids and services to deaf and hard of hearing individuals. Under the settlement, the police department agreed to update its policies and train its staff to ensure that citizens who are deaf are able to effectively communicate with police department personnel in the future. It will also ensure that it has a text or video capable telephone available for detainees who are deaf or hard of hearing. “Police departments need policies and training to ensure that they can communicate with anyone that they encounter, regardless of disability," McQuade said. “We applaud the Rochester Police Department for its willingness to update its policies and train its staff to enable effective communication with individuals who are deaf or hard of hearing. We hope that this case will improve awareness about the responsibility police departments have to ensure effective communication with all individuals." Those interested in finding out more about this settlement or the obligations of public entities under the ADA may call the U.S. Attorney’s Office Civil Rights Hotline at 313-226-9151, or send an email to [email protected]. Information is also available at the Justice Department’s toll-free ADA information line at 800-514-0301 or 800-514-0383 (TDD), or at www.ada.gov.