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27 April 2015
Fort Collins Businessman Charged with Failing to File Income Tax Returns with the IrsRead the Press Release
DENVER – Donald D. Smith, age 66, of Fort Collins, Colorado, was charged by an Information with three counts of failing to file income tax returns, announced United States Attorney John Walsh and IRS Criminal Investigation Acting Special Agent in Charge Gilbert R. Garza. The Information was filed on April 8, 2015, but remained sealed until his initial appearance which was on April 21, 2015. The case is now pending.
According to the Information, during calendar year 2008, Smith, the owner and operator of a business named Mountain West Children’s Academy LLC, had and received gross income of approximately $183,343. Smith was required by law, following the close of that calendar year, and on or before April 15, 2009, to file an income tax return to the Internal Revenue Service (IRS), stating specifically the items of his gross income and any deductions and credits to which he was entitled. In short, Smith willfully failed to file an income tax return.
During the calendar year 2009 and 2010, Smith followed a similar pattern. During 2009, Smith received gross income of approximately $122,068. During 2010, Smith received gross income of approximately $154,900. For both years Smith was required by law to file income tax returns with the Internal Revenue Service. Smith willfully failed to file income tax returns due with the Internal Revenue Service on April 15, 2010 and April 18, 2011, respectively.
Smith was charged with three counts of failing to file income tax return with the Internal Revenue Service, each of which carries a penalty of not more than 1 year in federal prison, and a fine of up to $100,000.
This case was investigated by the Internal Revenue Service – Criminal Investigation and is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Patricia Davies.
An Information is a formal charging document, where the defendant waives the Constitutional right to be indicted by a federal grand jury.
The charges contained in the Information are allegations, and the defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
Former Lexington County Sheriff James R. Metts SentencedRead the Press Release
Contact Person: Jay Richardson (803) 929-3000
Columbia, South Carolina---- United States Attorney Bill Nettles stated today that James R. Metts, age 68, was sentenced today in federal court in Columbia, South Carolina, for Conspiracy to Harbor Illegal Aliens, a violation of 8 U.S.C. § 1324(a)(1)(A)(v)(I). Chief United States District Judge Terry L. Wooten sentenced Metts to 12 months and one day in prison, 2 years of supervised release, and a $10,000 fine.
Evidence presented throughout the prosecution established that Metts was the forty-two year sheriff of Lexington County. Beginning in September 2011, Metts agreed with a City Councilman, and an owner of local restaurants, to assist restaurant employees to avoid identification and processing by a federal immigration program housed at the Lexington County Detention Center. As one example, on September 16, 2011, a restaurant employee who was an illegal alien was arrested and transported to the detention center. The restaurant owner contacted the City Councilman who in turn called Metts and requested assistance. Metts contacted a member of his command staff about the illegal alien. Based on Metts’ early intervention, this alien was released improperly on a state bond prior to being identified or processed by federal immigration authorities as reflected in the federal immigration logbook with the notation, “Release per Sheriff Metts.”
Bill Nettles stated, “One of the cornerstones of democracy is citizens having faith that law enforcement acts with integrity and not in a self-serving ‘good ole boy’ system. Today’s resolution is a step towards restoring the shine to the badge that Mr. Metts tarnished.”
The case was part of the cooperative efforts of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Homeland Security Investigation, State Law Enforcement Division, the South Carolina Attorney General’s Office, and the United States Attorney’s Office. Assistant United States Attorneys Jay N. Richardson and Jim May prosecuted the case.
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Former Detroit man pleads guilty to federal drug chargeRead the Press Release
HUNTINGTON, W.Va. – A former Detroit man pleaded guilty today to a federal drug charge, announced U.S. Attorney Booth Goodwin. Tony Searcy, 48, pleaded guilty in federal court in Huntington to possessing heroin with the intent to distribute it. Searcy admitted that on September 26, 2014, he traveled from Detroit, Michigan to Huntington, West Virginia, with approximately 100 grams of heroin that he planned to sell in the Huntington area.
Searcy faces up to twenty years of imprisonment when he is sentenced on August 10, 2015.
The investigation was conducted by the Drug Enforcement Administration Task Force. Assistant United States Attorneys Greg McVey and Jennifer Rada Herrald are in charge of the prosecution.
This case is 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 pills and heroin in communities across the Southern District.
Former Controller of Greenwich Hedge Fund Sentenced to 4 Years in Prison for Embezzling More Than $9 MillionRead the Press Release
Deirdre M. Daly, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, today announced that on April 24, 2015, LAWRENCE J. HERZING, 45, of Greenwich, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Jeffrey Alker Meyer in Bridgeport to 48 months of imprisonment, followed by three years of supervised release, for embezzling more than $9 million from the hedge fund where he was employed.
According to court documents and statements made in court, HERZING was employed as the controller of Greenwich-based Contrarian Capital Management, L.L.C. On 32 occasions between 2004 and 2013, HERZING used his position to wire $9,202,417.54 from his employer to accounts that he controlled.
Judge Meyer ordered HERZING to pay full restitution. HERZING has forfeited his residence and funds seized from his accounts, totaling more than $5 million.
HERZING was arrested on October 29, 2014. On January 29, 2015, he pleaded guilty to one count of wire fraud.
This matter was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, with the assistance of the Greenwich Police Department. The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Heather Cherry and Jonathan Francis.
Former Community Health Clinic CFO Pleads Guilty in Scheme to Defraud Millions from GovernmentRead the Press Release
BIRMINGHAM -- The former financial officer of two non-profit health clinics in Alabama for the poor and homeless pleaded guilty today to multiple federal charges related to a scheme to defraud millions of dollars from the clinics and the federal government health agencies that provide most of their funding.
TERRI McGUIRE MOLLICA, 48, of Birmingham entered her plea before U.S. District Judge Karon O. Bowdre. She is scheduled for sentencing Sept. 11. U.S. Attorney Joyce White Vance, FBI Special Agent in Charge Roger C. Stanton, Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigation Special Agent in Charge Veronica Hyman-Pillot, and U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Office of Inspector General, Atlanta Regional Office Special Agent in Charge Derrick L. Jackson, announced Mollica's guilty plea.
As part of the plea, she must voluntarily forfeit $938,211 that the government seized last year from her investment and credit union accounts. Mollica acknowledged those funds are proceeds of illegal activity.
A federal grand jury indicted Mollica late last year on 74 counts related to the scheme to defraud the government through the two health care clinics, Birmingham Health Care and Central Alabama Comprehensive Health Inc., five counts of filing false tax returns, and three counts related to her scheme to defraud a life insurance company.
Mollica pleaded guilty to 19 counts related to the fraud against the government -- six counts of wire fraud affecting a financial institution, eight counts of mail fraud affecting a financial institution and five counts of money laundering. She pleaded guilty to four counts of filing false tax returns and to one count of mail fraud and one count of aggravated identity theft related to the insurance fraud.
Mollica's crimes, as outlined in court records, are as follows:
Mollica was the chief financial officer of the non-profit Birmingham Health Care from April 2005 through November 2008. She also performed fiscal duties for Central Alabama Comprehensive Health Inc. CACH is a non-profit clinic in Tuskegee intended to provide primary and preventative health care to people in east Alabama, regardless of their ability to pay. BHC's chief executive officer served for a time as the chief executive officer of the Tuskegee clinic and, in 2008, BHC took over fiscal responsibility of CACH.
Between January 2008 and March 2012, Mollica aided others in diverting about $11 million in federal grant money, assets and property of BHC and CACH to numerous private entities using "Synergy" in the name. Mollica and others retained authority over the affairs of BHC and CACH as they operated the Synergy entities. Mollica then conducted financial transactions to transfer money from the private entities to herself and others, illegally receiving about $1.7 million through the scheme.
BHC began receiving grants from the Health Resources and Human Services Administration, an arm of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, more than 20 years ago. Federal grants administered by HRSA and HHS constitute the overwhelming majority of BHC and CACH funding.
Mollica and others misrepresented and concealed information from HRSA to ensure the agency would continue to grant money to the Birmingham and Tuskegee community health clinics.
The maximum penalties for the offenses charged are as follows:
- mail fraud related to the health clinics, 30 years in prison and a $1 million fine;
- mail fraud related to insurance fraud, 20 years in prison and a $250,000 fine;
- wire fraud, 30 years in prison and a $1 million fine;
- money laundering (counts 56, 60 & 68), 20 years in prison and a $500,000 fine, or twice the value of the property involved;
- money laundering (counts 70 -73) involving criminally derived property valued at more than $10,000, 10 years in prison and a $250,000 fine;
- aggravated identity theft, mandatory two years in prison added to any sentence imposed for the underlying felony and a $250,000 fine;
- filing a false tax return, three years in prison and a $100,000 fine.
The FBI, IRS and HHS-OIG investigated the case. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Tamarra Matthews Johnson and Melissa Kay Atwood are prosecuting the case.
Former Chief of Staff to House Republican Minority Leader Admits Profiting by Steering Campaign BusinessRead the Press Release
Deirdre M. Daly, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, announced that GEORGE GALLO, 46, of East Hampton, waived his right to indictment and pleaded guilty today before U.S. District Judge Vanessa L. Bryant in Hartford to one count of mail fraud related to his receipt of more than $100,000 from a political campaign direct mail company to which he steered business.
According to court documents and statements made in court, GALLO was an employee of the State of Connecticut as the Chief of Staff to the Minority Leader of the Connecticut House of Representatives. As part of his responsibilities, GALLO was responsible for designing and overseeing the campaign program of the House Republican Campaign Committee (“HRCC”), a state-registered political action committee that provides material and strategic support to Republican candidates for the Connecticut House of Representatives.
In 2008, GALLO and others developed a HRCC campaign program in anticipation of the first general election cycle in which candidates seeking election to the Connecticut General Assembly or statewide office would receive public financing through the state’s Citizens’ Election Program (“CEP”). The purpose of the new program, in part, was to enable the HRCC to centrally coordinate CEP funded campaigns by providing Republican House candidates with access to comprehensive campaign related services, including direct mail services, voter information, polling, messaging advice and campaign management. GALLO selected the campaign service vendors that were permitted to participate in the HRCC program.
In pleading guilty, GALLO admitted that he informed an employee of a Florida-based company that provided direct mail services to political campaigns of a new business opportunity in Connecticut. GALLO indicated to the employee that the CEP would lead to greater numbers of well-funded Republican House candidates in need of direct mail services, and that the Florida company could serve as a HRCC sponsored vendor with access to CEP funded Republican candidates. In exchange, the company would make payments to GALLO equal to 10 percent of the revenue that the company received from candidates participating in the HRCC program. GALLO indicated to the employee that such an arrangement would be “good for [the company] and good for George Gallo.” The employee agreed to GALLO’s proposal.
As part of the scheme, GALLO and the HRCC hosted “campaign schools” for House Republican candidates where HRCC sponsored vendors, including the Florida company, gave presentations marketing their services. GALLO and others arranged for candidates to meet individually with the Florida company to discuss in greater detail the company’s services, prices and a direct mail plan. These meetings occurred at several locations, including the State Capitol.
During the 2008 and 2012 election cycles, GALLO made false representations to the Minority Leader of the Connecticut House of Representatives that he did not have a financial relationship with or receive any compensation from any of the HRCC sponsored vendors. During the 2008, 2010 and 2012 election cycles, GALLO made additional false representations to others, knowing that his statements would be communicated to House Republican candidates participating in the HRCC campaign program, that he did not receive any compensation from any HRCC sponsored vendor.
From 2008 through 2012, the Florida company mailed checks made payable to the Vinco Group, a Cromwell based limited liability company in which GALLO was the sole member, totaling approximately $117,266.63.
In pleading guilty, GALLO further admitted that he made multiple false statements to FBI special agents on October 1, 2013, when he was interviewed about his relationship with HRCC sponsored vendors. In the interview, GALLO denied that either he or the Vinco Group had a business relationship with any vendors utilized by HRCC, and he denied that he had received any income through the Vinco Group since becoming Chief of Staff to the Connecticut House Minority Leader.
Judge Bryant scheduled sentencing for July 29, 2015, at which time GALLO faces a maximum term of imprisonment of 20 years.
Follow his guilty plea, GALLO was released on a $200,000 bond.
This matter is being investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and Internal Revenue Service – Criminal Investigation Division, with the assistance of the Connecticut Public Corruption Task Force and the State Election Enforcement Commission. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Christopher M. Mattei.
Former Chief Information Officer of Foundry Networks Sentenced to 78 Months in Prison for Participating in Insider Trading Scheme That Reaped Tens of Millions in Unlawful GainsRead the Press Release
Preet Bharara, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, announced that DAVID RILEY, former Chief Information Officer of Foundry Networks, Inc. (“Foundry”), a California-based technology company that was acquired by Brocade Communications, Inc. (“Brocade”), in 2008, was sentenced today to 78 months in prison for his participation in an insider trading scheme that yielded approximately $39 million in ill-gotten gains. The sentence was imposed by U.S. District Judge Valerie E. Caproni. RILEY was convicted following a 13-day trial in September 2014 in which the jury unanimously concluded that RILEY passed inside information about Foundry’s acquisition by Brocade and about Foundry’s earnings for the first quarter of 2008 to Matthew Teeple, a former analyst for San Francisco-based hedge fund Artis Capital Management, L.P. (“Artis”). Teeple pled guilty to related charges in May 2014 and was sentenced principally to 60 months in prison by U.S. District Judge Robert P. Patterson on October 16, 2014.
Manhattan U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara said: “David Riley took advantage of his insider position at Foundry Networks to funnel sensitive nonpublic financial information to Matthew Teeple. This inside information enabled Teeple’s firm to reap nearly $40 million in illegal profits. This conduct has now earned Riley more than six years in federal prison.”
According to the Superseding Indictment filed February 20, 2014, other court documents, and the evidence presented at trial:
As CIO and a Vice President at Foundry, RILEY had access to monthly and quarterly financial reporting, along with other sensitive, nonpublic information (the “Inside Information”) relating to Foundry, well before such information became public. RILEY provided this Inside Information to Teeple – sometimes by telephone and sometimes during meetings the two arranged in the San Jose, California, area. On several occasions, RILEY spoke with Teeple while logged into the database that Foundry used to maintain sensitive financial information. The Inside Information that RILEY passed to Teeple included quarterly financial performance numbers during the first quarter of 2008 and information regarding Brocade’s intended acquisition of Foundry in July 2008.
Teeple passed the Inside Information he got from RILEY on to others, including others at Artis. From the Inside Information Teeple provided about Foundry, Artis ultimately reaped gains of approximately $39 million.
In addition to the prison sentence he received today, RILEY, 48, of San Jose, California, was ordered to pay a fine of $50,000.
Mr. Bharara praised the investigative work of the Federal Bureau of Investigation and thanked the Securities and Exchange Commission, which has filed civil charges in a separate action.
Today’s announcement is part of efforts underway by President Obama’s Financial Fraud Enforcement Task Force (FFETF) which was created in November 2009 to wage an aggressive, coordinated and proactive effort to investigate and prosecute financial crimes. With more than 20 federal agencies, 94 U.S. Attorneys’ offices and state and local partners, it is the broadest coalition of law enforcement, investigatory and regulatory agencies ever assembled to combat fraud. Since its formation, the task force has made great strides in facilitating increased investigation and prosecution of financial crimes; enhancing coordination and cooperation among federal, state and local authorities; addressing discrimination in the lending and financial markets and conducting outreach to the public, victims, financial institutions and other organizations. Since the inception of FFETF in November 2009, the Justice Department has filed more than 12,841 financial fraud cases against nearly 18,737 defendants including nearly 3,500 mortgage fraud defendants. For more information on the task force, visit www.stopfraud.gov.
This case is being handled by the Office’s Securities and Commodities Fraud Task Force. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Telemachus P. Kasulis and Sarah E. McCallum, and Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Michael P. Holland, are in charge of the prosecution.
Former Chief Information Officer of Foundry Networks Sentenced to 78 Months in Prison for Participating in Insider Trading Scheme That Reaped Tens of Millions in Unlawful GainsRead the Press Release
Preet Bharara, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, announced that DAVID RILEY, former Chief Information Officer of Foundry Networks, Inc. (“Foundry”), a California-based technology company that was acquired by Brocade Communications, Inc. (“Brocade”), in 2008, was sentenced today to 78 months in prison for his participation in an insider trading scheme that yielded approximately $39 million in ill-gotten gains. The sentence was imposed by U.S. District Judge Valerie E. Caproni. RILEY was convicted following a 13-day trial in September 2014 in which the jury unanimously concluded that RILEY passed inside information about Foundry’s acquisition by Brocade and about Foundry’s earnings for the first quarter of 2008 to Matthew Teeple, a former analyst for San Francisco-based hedge fund Artis Capital Management, L.P. (“Artis”). Teeple pled guilty to related charges in May 2014 and was sentenced principally to 60 months in prison by U.S. District Judge Robert P. Patterson on October 16, 2014.
Manhattan U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara said: “David Riley took advantage of his insider position at Foundry Networks to funnel sensitive nonpublic financial information to Matthew Teeple. This inside information enabled Teeple’s firm to reap nearly $40 million in illegal profits. This conduct has now earned Riley more than six years in federal prison.”
According to the Superseding Indictment filed February 20, 2014, other court documents, and the evidence presented at trial:
As CIO and a Vice President at Foundry, RILEY had access to monthly and quarterly financial reporting, along with other sensitive, nonpublic information (the “Inside Information”) relating to Foundry, well before such information became public. RILEY provided this Inside Information to Teeple – sometimes by telephone and sometimes during meetings the two arranged in the San Jose, California, area. On several occasions, RILEY spoke with Teeple while logged into the database that Foundry used to maintain sensitive financial information. The Inside Information that RILEY passed to Teeple included quarterly financial performance numbers during the first quarter of 2008 and information regarding Brocade’s intended acquisition of Foundry in July 2008.
Teeple passed the Inside Information he got from RILEY on to others, including others at Artis. From the Inside Information Teeple provided about Foundry, Artis ultimately reaped gains of approximately $39 million.
In addition to the prison sentence he received today, RILEY, 48, of San Jose, California, was ordered to pay a fine of $50,000.
Mr. Bharara praised the investigative work of the Federal Bureau of Investigation and thanked the Securities and Exchange Commission, which has filed civil charges in a separate action.
Today’s announcement is part of efforts underway by President Obama’s Financial Fraud Enforcement Task Force (FFETF) which was created in November 2009 to wage an aggressive, coordinated and proactive effort to investigate and prosecute financial crimes. With more than 20 federal agencies, 94 U.S. Attorneys’ offices and state and local partners, it is the broadest coalition of law enforcement, investigatory and regulatory agencies ever assembled to combat fraud. Since its formation, the task force has made great strides in facilitating increased investigation and prosecution of financial crimes; enhancing coordination and cooperation among federal, state and local authorities; addressing discrimination in the lending and financial markets and conducting outreach to the public, victims, financial institutions and other organizations. Since the inception of FFETF in November 2009, the Justice Department has filed more than 12,841 financial fraud cases against nearly 18,737 defendants including nearly 3,500 mortgage fraud defendants. For more information on the task force, visit www.stopfraud.gov.
This case is being handled by the Office’s Securities and Commodities Fraud Task Force. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Telemachus P. Kasulis and Sarah E. McCallum, and Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Michael P. Holland, are in charge of the prosecution.
Former Bank Employee Sentenced to Prison for Bank FraudRead the Press Release
Cynthia L. Palmer, 45, of Alton, Illinois, was sentenced to serve twenty-one months in prison as a result of her conviction for bank fraud in a scheme to defraud and embezzle from U.S. Bank, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of Illinois, Stephen R. Wigginton, announced today. Palmer was additionally ordered to serve two years of supervised release following her release from prison and was ordered to pay restitution in the amount of $105,827.62.
The conviction is the result of Palmer's conduct while employed by U.S. Bank at the Bethalto Airport Branch in Bethalto, Illinois as a Universal Banker. Palmer made unauthorized debits on customer’s accounts and in so doing principally targeted older individuals with customers' ages ranging from 65 to 96. Palmer was terminated by U.S. Bank effective December 12, 2013. U.S. Bank promptly made all of the victims whole and thereby sustained the entire loss.
The successful prosecution is the result of an investigation conducted by the U.S. Secret Service with the assistance of U.S. Bank. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Norman R. Smith.
Florida Man and Company Sentenced for Violating the International Emergency Economic Powers Act and US Department of Commerce Denial OrderRead the Press Release
A Palm Beach County, Florida, man and company were sentenced for violating the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA), as well as the terms of a denial order issued by the U.S. Department of Commerce.
The announcement was made by Assistant Attorney General for National Security John P. Carlin, U.S. Attorney Wifredo A. Ferrer of the Southern District of Florida, Special Agent in Charge John F. Khin Department of Defense’s (DoD) Defense Criminal Investigative Service (DCIS), Special Agent in Charge Alysa Erichs of the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations (ICE-HSI) and Acting Special Agent in Charge Gordon Pomeroy of the U.S. Department of Commerce’s Office of Export Enforcement.
Russell Henderson Marshall, 53, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Kenneth A. Marra of the Southern District of Florida to serve 41 months in prison and will be removed from the United States upon the completion of his sentence. In imposing the sentence, Judge Marra found that the order denying export privileges issued by the Department of Commerce constituted a national security control, which subjected Marshall to an enhanced sentence. Universal Industries Limited Inc. was sentenced to a term of one year probation and a special assessment of $400 upon a finding that the corporation is currently listed as inactive by the Florida Division of Corporations as a result of Marshall’s arrest.
Marshall and his company Universal Industries Limited Inc. were previously convicted in a 2011 case in the Southern District of Florida for violating the Arms Export Control Act, after which the Department of Commerce issued a denial order prohibiting Universal Industries Limited Inc. and its owners, agents and employees from participating in any transaction involving the export of any item subject to the Department of Commerce‘s Export Administration Regulations (EAR). Marshall and Universal Industries Limited Inc. violated IEEPA and the U.S. Department of Commerce’s denial order by attempting to send three temperature transmitters used on F-16 fighter jets and a saddle part for the J-69 engine used on 737 military trainer aircraft to Thailand and Pakistan, respectively.
“By repeatedly taking actions that violated export control laws and an order issued by the Department of Commerce, Marshall and Universal Industries Limited Inc. actively engaged in efforts that threatened our national security,” said Assistant Attorney General Carlin. “This sentencing serves as another reminder that we will not tolerate this activity. Protecting our national assets, including highly sensitive technologies, from falling into the hands of those who may wish to do us harm is one of our top national security priorities. The National Security Division commends the law enforcement agents, analysts, and prosecutors who took part ensuring justice was served.”
“National security controls exist to ensure that sensitive U.S. technologies are protected,” said U.S. Attorney Ferrer. “Zero tolerance will be afforded individuals who knowingly continue to violate our export control laws and jeopardize the nation’s security.”
“Today's sentencing demonstrates the continued commitment of the Defense Criminal Investigative Service and partner agencies to protect sensitive U.S. defense technology from being illegally exported,” said Special Agent in Charge Khin. “American military prowess depends on lawful, controlled exports of sensitive technology by U.S. industries, which is why DCIS will continue its present campaign to aggressively investigate and prosecute criminal violations regarding the illegal procurement or export of sensitive technology.”
“One of Homeland Security Investigation's top enforcement priorities is preventing the exportation of U.S. military products and sensitive technology, and preventing those technologies and weaponry from falling into the hands of those who might seek to harm America or its interests,” said Special Agent in Charge Erichs. “Technology used by the United States and its allies give us a strategic military advantage, which is why HSI will continue to work with its law enforcement partners to ensure such technology doesn't fall into the hands of those opposed to U.S. national security interests.”
“The Office of Export Enforcement is committed to working with our law enforcement partners to pursue individuals who violate our nation's export control laws,” said Acting Special Agent in Charge Pomeroy. “As the sentence in this case demonstrates, we will not allow our national security to be compromised by individuals who intentionally violate these laws.”
According to court documents and information presented during the sentencing hearing, the DoD Inspector General received a hotline complaint concerning Marshall and Universal Industries Limited Inc. in November 2012. The subsequent investigation revealed that the defendants brokered the sale of military aircraft parts which were subject to license controls by the Department of Commerce, and which the defendants knew were intended to be illegally exported to Thailand and Pakistan.
On Feb. 6, 2015, Marshall and Universal Industries Limited Inc. entered guilty pleas to an information that charged them with knowingly and willfully engaging in negotiations concerning selling, delivering or otherwise servicing a transaction involving an item to be exported from the United States to Thailand and subject to the EAR.
Assistant Attorney General Carlin joins U.S. Attorney Ferrer in commending the investigative efforts of the DoD, DCIS, ICE-HSI and the U.S. Department of Commerce’s Office of Export Enforcement for their outstanding efforts in investigating this matter. The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Michael Walleisa of the Southern District of Florida.
Florida Man and Company Sentenced for Violating the International Emergency Economic Powers Act and U.S. Department of Commerce Denial OrderRead the Press Release
A Palm Beach County, Florida, man and company were sentenced for violating the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA), as well as the terms of a denial order issued by the U.S. Department of Commerce.
The announcement was made by U.S. Attorney Wifredo A. Ferrer of the Southern District of Florida, Assistant Attorney General for National Security John P. Carlin, Special Agent in Charge John F. Khin Department of Defense’s (DoD) Defense Criminal Investigative Service (DCIS), Special Agent in Charge Alysa Erichs of the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations (ICE-HSI) and Acting Special Agent in Charge Gordon Pomeroy of the U.S. Department of Commerce’s Office of Export Enforcement.
Russell Henderson Marshall, 53, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Kenneth A. Marra of the Southern District of Florida to serve 41 months in prison and will be removed from the United States upon the completion of his sentence. In imposing the sentence, Judge Marra found that the order denying export privileges issued by the Department of Commerce constituted a national security control, which subjected Marshall to an enhanced sentence. Universal Industries Limited Inc. was sentenced to a term of one year probation and a special assessment of $400 upon a finding that the corporation is currently listed as inactive by the Florida Division of Corporations as a result of Marshall’s arrest.
Marshall and his company Universal Industries Limited Inc. were previously convicted in a 2011 case in the Southern District of Florida for violating the Arms Export Control Act, after which the Department of Commerce issued a denial order prohibiting Universal Industries Limited Inc. and its owners, agents and employees from participating in any transaction involving the export of any item subject to the Department of Commerce‘s Export Administration Regulations (EAR). Marshall and Universal Industries Limited Inc. violated IEEPA and the U.S. Department of Commerce’s denial order by attempting to send three temperature transmitters used on F-16 fighter jets and a saddle part for the J-69 engine used on 737 military trainer aircraft to Thailand and Pakistan, respectively.
“National security controls exist to ensure that sensitive U.S. technologies are protected,” said U.S. Attorney Ferrer. “Zero tolerance will be afforded individuals who knowingly continue to violate our export control laws and jeopardize the nation’s security.”
“By repeatedly taking actions that violated export control laws and an order issued by the Department of Commerce, Marshall and Universal Industries Limited Inc. actively engaged in efforts that threatened our national security,” said Assistant Attorney General Carlin. “This sentencing serves as another reminder that we will not tolerate this activity. Protecting our national assets, including highly sensitive technologies, from falling into the hands of those who may wish to do us harm is one of our top national security priorities. The National Security Division commends the law enforcement agents, analysts, and prosecutors who took part ensuring justice was served.”
“Today's sentencing demonstrates the continued commitment of the Defense Criminal Investigative Service and partner agencies to protect sensitive U.S. defense technology from being illegally exported,” said Special Agent in Charge Khin. “American military prowess depends on lawful, controlled exports of sensitive technology by U.S. industries, which is why DCIS will continue its present campaign to aggressively investigate and prosecute criminal violations regarding the illegal procurement or export of sensitive technology.”
“One of Homeland Security Investigation's top enforcement priorities is preventing the exportation of U.S. military products and sensitive technology, and preventing those technologies and weaponry from falling into the hands of those who might seek to harm America or its interests,” said Special Agent in Charge Erichs. “Technology used by the United States and its allies give us a strategic military advantage, which is why HSI will continue to work with its law enforcement partners to ensure such technology doesn't fall into the hands of those opposed to U.S. national security interests.”
“The Office of Export Enforcement is committed to working with our law enforcement partners to pursue individuals who violate our nation's export control laws,” said Acting Special Agent in Charge Pomeroy. “As the sentence in this case demonstrates, we will not allow our national security to be compromised by individuals who intentionally violate these laws.”
According to court documents and information presented during the sentencing hearing, the DoD Inspector General received a hotline complaint concerning Marshall and Universal Industries Limited Inc. in November 2012. The subsequent investigation revealed that the defendants brokered the sale of military aircraft parts which were subject to license controls by the Department of Commerce, and which the defendants knew were intended to be illegally exported to Thailand and Pakistan.
On Feb. 6, 2015, Marshall and Universal Industries Limited Inc. entered guilty pleas to an information that charged them with knowingly and willfully engaging in negotiations concerning selling, delivering or otherwise servicing a transaction involving an item to be exported from the United States to Thailand and subject to the EAR.
U.S. Attorney Ferrer joins Assistant Attorney General Carlin in commending the investigative efforts of the DoD, DCIS, ICE-HSI and the U.S. Department of Commerce’s Office of Export Enforcement for their outstanding efforts in investigating this matter. The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Michael Walleisa of the Southern District of Florida.
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.justice.gov/usao-sdfl. 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
Federal Judge Permanently Shuts Down Tax Preparer Who Operated Inland Empire Tax ServiceRead the Press Release
LOS ANGELES – A federal court has permanently barred a woman who operated a Moreno Valley tax preparation service from preparing tax returns for others, the United States Attorney’s Office announced today.
Nancy L. Hilton, 69, who also used the name Nancy L. Olson, was ordered to never again prepare tax returns for others in a permanent injunction that was signed by United States District Judge Michael W. Fitzgerald on April 22.
The permanent injunction concludes a lawsuit filed one week ago that alleged Hilton prepared fraudulent tax returns and supervised the preparation of fraudulent tax returns by at least five others who knew they were preparing false income tax returns. The fraudulent tax returns were prepared at Hilton’s business, Nancy Olson & Associates.
The suit alleged that Hilton obtained the names, dates of birth and social security numbers of numerous people, and that Hilton used this information to file fraudulent tax returns in the names of those people. Hilton would keep a portion – typically 50 percent – of the illicit refunds which resulted from the filing of the fraudulent returns. When Hilton learned of the government’s investigation into her tax preparation business, she intentionally deleted data from business computers in an attempt to impede and obstruct the government’s investigation, according to the government’s lawsuit.
Last month, Hilton pleaded guilty to criminal conspiracy and identity theft charges for preparing and overseeing the preparation of bogus tax returns (see: http://www.irs.gov/pub/foia/ig/ci/LAFO-2015-10.pdf). Hilton faces up to 30 years in federal prison when she is sentenced on July 6 by United States District Judge Dean D. Pregerson.
Release No. 15-036
Fairmont, WV man sentenced for role in manufacturing methamphetamineRead the Press Release
CLARKSBURG, WEST VIRGINIA – Timothy, Wayne Ferrell, Jr., 33, of Fairmont, West Virginia, was sentenced today for his role in manufacturing methamphetamine, United States Attorney William J. Ihlenfeld, II, announced.Ferrell was discovered in Marion County, West Virginia in May 2014 in possession of medication containing pseudoephedrine, an ingredient commonly used to manufacture methamphetamine. He was also discovered in September 2014 in unlawful possession of a rifle. He pled guilty in December 2014 to one count of “Possession of Pseudoephedrine to be used in the Manufacture of Methamphetamine,” and one count of “Possession of Firearm by Unlawful User/Drug Addict to Controlled Substance.”
Ferrell was sentenced today to 46 months in prison for the drug possession charge and 21 months in prison for the firearm possession charge. The sentences imposed today will run concurrently with each other for a total of 46 months in prison. Ferrell will receive credit for time served since October 2014.
In another matter, Jason Allen Clayton, 40, of Fairmont, West Virginia, was discovered in Marion County in January 2014 in possession of medication containing pseudoephedrine. He pled guilty today to a criminal Information charging him with one count of “Possession of Pseudoephedrine to be used in the Manufacture of Methamphetamine.” He faces up to 20 years in prison and a fine of up to $250,000.00. Under the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, the actual sentence imposed will be based upon the seriousness of the offenses and the prior criminal history, if any, of the defendant.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Shawn Morgan prosecuted the cases on behalf of the government. The Three Rivers Drug and Violent Crime Task Force investigated both cases.
U.S. District Judge Irene M. Keeley presided over the Ferrell sentencing hearing. U.S. Magistrate Judge John S. Kaull presided over the Clayton plea hearing.
FCI Gilmer inmate convicted, sentenced for assaulting fellow prisonerRead the Press Release
CLARKSBURG, WEST VIRGINIA – Gary Govindass, 36, an inmate at the Federal Correctional Institution, Gilmer, was convicted and sentenced today for assaulting a fellow prisoner, United States Attorney William J. Ihlenfeld, II, announced.
In October 2014, Govindass became engaged in a physical altercation with a fellow FCI Gilmer inmate. The altercation escalated and the victim suffered multiple stab wounds.
Govindass pled guilty today to a criminal Information charging him with one count of “Assault with a Dangerous Weapon with Intent to Do Bodily Harm.” He was sentenced to an additional 12 months in prison.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Sarah Montoro prosecuted the case on behalf of the government. The Federal Bureau of Prisons and the FCI Gilmer Special Investigative Services Unit led the inquiry.
U.S. District Judge Irene M. Keeley presided.
Essex County, New Jersey, Man Sentenced to Three Years’ Probation for Role in ‘Double-Dipping’ SchemeRead the Press Release
NEWARK, N.J. – An Essex County, New Jersey, man was sentenced today to three years’ probation for defrauding Home Depot Inc. out of more than $470,000 through an elaborate “double-dipping” scheme he committed at various Home Depot locations, including in New Jersey, U.S. Attorney Paul J. Fishman announced.
Daniel Chalet, 29, of Bloomfield, previously pleaded guilty before U.S. Magistrate Judge James B. Clark III to an information charging him with one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud. U.S. District Judge Jose L. Linares imposed the sentence today in Newark federal court.
According to documents filed in this case and statements made in court:
From March 2009 through June 2012, Chalet and his conspirators routinely purchased various items from Home Depot locations in New Jersey, New York, Massachusetts, Delaware, Maryland, Connecticut and Pennsylvania. The conspirators would assemble two shopping carts containing identical items. They then purchased the items in one cart (Cart 1) and stashed the other cart in the store (Cart 2). They would typically purchase the items in Cart 1 using cash, fraudulently obtained Home Depot store credit, or some combination thereof. Chalet and his conspirators would then leave the store with the items in Cart 1, as well as the receipt for the purchase, leaving Cart 2 inside the store.
The conspirators would return to the store almost immediately with a receipt corresponding to the items in Cart 1 and retrieve Cart 2, which contained the identical set of items. Under the guise that they had forgotten to purchase an item, usually an inexpensive one, Chalet and his conspirators would return to the register with Cart 2, and purchase only the additional small item. They would present the receipt for the items from Cart 1 and deceive the cashier into believing that the items in Cart 2 had already been purchased.
Chalet and his conspirators would later go back to the same Home Depot store or travel to different Home Depot store locations to return the items. In some instances, they presented a receipt for the return, and in other instances, the defendants obtained a refund for store credit without presenting a receipt.
Chalet and his conspirators carried out the scheme hundreds of times at various Home Depot locations, fraudulently obtaining Home Depot store credit and refunds totaling at least $470,511.66.
In addition to probation, Judge Linares sentenced Chalet to pay restitution of $472,465.49.
U.S. Attorney Fishman credited special agents of the U.S. Secret Service, Newark Field Office, under the direction of Acting Special Agent in Charge Carl Agnelli, for the investigation leading to today’s sentencing.
The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorney Lakshmi Srinivasan Herman of the U.S. Attorney’s Office Economic Crimes Unit in Newark.
Defense counsel: Richard Roberts Esq., Newark
Equity Trader Sentenced to 30 Months in Federal Prison and Ordered to Disgorge More Than $3.5 Million in Illegal Profits on Securities Fraud ConvictionRead the Press Release
DALLAS — Daniel Lutz Bergin, 42, of Dallas, was sentenced Friday afternoon by U.S. District Judge Barbara M. G. Lynn to 30 months in federal prison following his guilty plea in July 2014 to one count of securities fraud, announced Acting U.S. Attorney John Parker of the Northern District of Texas. Bergin was also ordered to pay a money judgment of $1,384,603 and a $500,000 fine with additional disgorgement in a companion case brought by the Securities and Exchange Commission of approximately $1.7 million—resulting in total monetary remedies in the case that exceed $3.5 million. Judge Lynn ordered that Bergin surrender to the Bureau of Prisons on or before June 23, 2015.
According to plea documents filed in the case and the evidence presented at sentencing, Bergin was an equity trader at Cushing MLP Asset Management, LP (Cushing), a registered investment advisor located on Preston Road in Dallas. Cushing had approximately $2.5 billion in discretionary assets under management. Cushing provided advisory and portfolio management services to institutional clients, including high net worth individuals, investment companies, pooled investment vehicles, pension and profit sharing plans, charitable organizations and state/municipal government entities.
Beginning in at least January 2010 and continuing until his termination on May 23, 2013, Bergin devised and executed a “front-running” scheme in which he misused “inside” or “material, non-public” information when placing trades in a personal brokerage account held in the name of his wife. Bergin’s front-running scheme involved (a) obtaining material, non-public information from his employer concerning large orders to purchase or sell securities for its advisory clients; and (b) subsequently executing trades in the same securities, prior to the execution of the larger customer orders, in anticipation of the movement in price that the large trade was likely to cause. The government’s evidence at sentencing identified 696 transactions in which Bergin traded in energy MLP securities at the same time as Cushing traded in the same securities. Over the course of the scheme, Bergin’s profits from the illegal trading exceeded $3 million.
In furtherance of the scheme, Bergin made false statements and material omissions to Cushing, in violation of Cushing’s Code of Ethics in connection with the front-running trades. In particular, although Bergin disclosed certain personal brokerage accounts held in his name at Fidelity and Scottrade, Bergin failed to disclose brokerage accounts maintained at Fidelity in the name of his wife. After Bergin’s and his wife’s Fidelity accounts were closed by Fidelity, Bergin opened E*TRADE accounts in his wife’s name, which were not disclosed to Cushing as required, and which he continued to use to make unlawful front-running trades.
The evidence at sentencing also established that Bergin made false statements to the SEC in connection with his personal trading, and then continued engaging in illegal front-running trades up until the date of his termination.
Today’s announcement is part of efforts underway by President Obama’s Financial Fraud Enforcement Task Force (FFETF) which was created in November 2009 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. Over the past three fiscal years, the Justice Department has filed more than 10,000 financial fraud cases against nearly 15,000 defendants including more than 2,900 mortgage fraud defendants. For more information on the task force, visit www.stopfraud.gov.
The FBI investigated with assistance from the Fort Worth Regional Office of the Securities and Exchange Commission. Assistant U.S. Attorney J. Nicholas Bunch prosecuted.
East St. Louis Man Sentenced to 52 Months in Prison for Illegal Possession of A FirearmRead the Press Release
Octavius Thomas, 31, of East St. Louis, Illinois was sentenced today in the United States District Court to 52 months in prison for Felon in Possession of a Firearm, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of Illinois, Stephen R. Wigginton, has announced. Thomas was also ordered to pay a fine of $500, a $100 special assessment and to serve a term of 2 years of supervised release following imprisonment. Thomas has been in custody since his arrest on August 28, 2014.
"Getting illegal weapons, and those who traffic in them, off of our streets and out of our communities is, and will remain, one of my top priorities." noted United States Attorney Wigginton.
Court documents establish that on August 5, 2014, Thomas sold a .44 caliber Amadeo Rossi revolver to a confidential informant working with the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives in exchange for a motorcycle and $40 in United States currency. At the time Thomas sold the firearm, Thomas was a previously convicted felon, having been convicted of the offense of Second Degree Murder in 2002.
The investigation was conducted by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms (ATF). The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Ali Summers.
Dutchess County Man Pleads Guilty in White Plains Federal Court to Distributing Heroin and Fentanyl That Caused the Deaths of Three PeopleRead the Press Release
Preet Bharara, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, announced today that DENNIS SICA pled guilty today in White Plains federal court to participating in a conspiracy to distribute heroin and fentanyl, the use of which resulted in the deaths of three individuals: Anthony Delello, Laura Brown, and Thomas Miller. SICA was arrested by state authorities on February 2, 2014, and was transferred to federal custody on June 19, 2014. He pled guilty before United States District Judge Cathy Seibel on the day trial was scheduled to begin on the one-count Indictment to which he pled.
U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara stated: “With today’s guilty plea, Dennis Sica formally acknowledged his role in causing the deaths of three young people. The outcome of this prosecution may do little to console the family members who lost their loved ones to the scourge of heroin and Sica’s willingness to exploit their addictions for personal gain. One can hope, however, that the significant penalties Sica faces for his crimes will deter those who peddle deadly drugs and avoid the tragedy that these young victims and their families have suffered.”
According to the allegations contained in the Indictment, the underlying criminal Complaint unsealed on June 19, 2014, and statements made during court proceedings:
From at least late 2013 to February 2014, SICA and others worked together in Dutchess County to sell a particularly potent form of heroin, bags of which were stamped with the brand name “Breaking Bad.” At least some of the heroin distributed by SICA was laced with fentanyl, a synthetic opioid that is significantly stronger than street heroin.
On the night of December 28, 2013, SICA sold “Breaking Bad” heroin to Anthony Delello, a 20-year-old resident of Beekman, New York. Delello snorted some of SICA’s heroin and was found dead by his girlfriend the following day. The Dutchess County Medical Examiner’s report concluded that he died from “acute heroin intoxication.”
Delello’s death did not stop SICA from selling “Breaking Bad” heroin. Four days after Delello was found dead, SICA exchanged a series of text messages with a co-conspirator in which SICA urged the co-conspirator to delete the text message history in the phone they used to sell heroin and, if asked, to deny knowing anything about Delello or the manner of his death.
Slightly more than a month after Delello’s death, two more individuals died after overdosing on “Breaking Bad” heroin. On February 1, 2014, Thomas Miller, 31, was found dead by his mother at his home in Pawling, New York. A hypodermic needle, as well as several glassine bags stamped with the words “Breaking Bad,” were found near his body. Some of the glassine bags were full, others were empty. A chemical analysis of the contents of the full glassine bags showed that they contained a mixture of quinine, fentanyl, and heroin. The medical examiner’s report indicates that Miller died of “acute intoxication by the combined effects of heroin and fentanyl.”
The same day that Miller was found dead, Laura Brown, 35, was found dead of an apparent heroin overdose in New Milford, Connecticut. Brown was found with needles and glassine bags near her body. Several of the glassine bags were stamped with the words “Breaking Bad.” The autopsy performed on Brown’s body showed that she died of “acute heroin and fentanyl intoxication.” According to Brown’s brother, he and Brown together bought “Breaking Bad” heroin from SICA two days before Brown was found dead.
On February 2, 2014, SICA was arrested by state authorities in East Fishkill, New York, after a car in which he was riding was stopped by law enforcement. During a subsequent search of the car, law enforcement officers recovered several glassine bags stamped with a “Breaking Bad” stamp identical to the one that appears on the envelopes recovered from Thomas Miller’s bedroom.
SICA, 37, of Hopewell Junction, New York, pled guilty to one count of conspiracy to distribute heroin and fentanyl resulting in death. The offense carries a mandatory minimum penalty of 20 years in prison, a maximum penalty of life in prison, and a maximum fine of $1 million or twice the gain or loss resulting from the crime. The maximum potential sentences are prescribed by Congress and are provided here for informational purposes only, as any sentencing of the defendant will be determined by the judge.
Mr. Bharara praised the outstanding investigative work of the Drug Enforcement Administration’s (“DEA”) Tactical Diversion Squad and the Dutchess County Drug Task Force. The DEA Tactical Diversion Squad is composed of agents and officers of the DEA, the New York City Police Department, the Westchester County Police Department, and the Town of Orangetown Police Department. The Dutchess County Drug Task Force is composed of the City of Poughkeepsie Police Department, the Town of Poughkeepsie Police Department, the East Fishkill Police Department, and the Dutchess County Sheriff’s Office. Mr. Bharara also thanked the New York State Police Forensics Unit, the Dutchess County District Attorney’s Office, the Dutchess County Sheriff’s Office, and the police department for the City of New Milford, Connecticut, for their assistance in the investigation.
The prosecution is being handled by the Office’s White Plains Division. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Scott Hartman and Benjamin Allee are in charge of the prosecution.
Delaware man sentenced for heroin traffickingRead the Press Release
CLARKSBURG, WEST VIRGINIA – Clarksburg resident Antonio DeJesus, 28, originally of Delaware, was sentenced today to 46 months in prison for heroin trafficking, United States Attorney William J. Ihlenfeld, II announced.An investigation by the Clarksburg, West Virginia Police Department and the Greater Harrison County Drug and Violent Crime Task Force, a HIDTA-funded initiative, revealed that DeJesus conspired with others to possess and distribute heroin in Harrison County, West Virginia throughout August and September 2014.
DeJesus pled guilty in December 2014 to one count of “Conspiracy to Possess with Intent to Distribute and to Distribute Heroin.”
Assistant U.S. Attorney Shawn Morgan prosecuted the case on behalf of the government.
U.S. District Judge Irene M. Keeley presided
Delaware Doctor Who Illegally Sold Controlled Substances on the Silk Road Drug Marketplace Sentenced to Five Years in PrisonRead the Press Release
Orlando, FL – U.S. District Judge Roy B. Dalton today sentenced Olivia Bolles a/k/a “MDpro” (32, Newark, Delaware) to five years in federal prison for the illegal distribution of controlled substances. She pleaded guilty on January 20, 2015.
According to court documents, between March 2013 and October 2, 2013, Bolles, a licensed medical doctor in Delaware, operated as the vendor “MDPro” on an underground website known as Silk Road. Silk Road operated as an online criminal marketplace designed to enable its users to buy and sell drugs and other illegal goods and services anonymously, outside the reach of law enforcement. The website provided a sales platform for vendors and buyers to conduct transactions online.
Between June 13, 2013, and August 20, 2013, DEA purchased oxycodone, heroin, diazepam, Xanax, Adderall, hash oil, tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), and Vyvanse from “MDPro” on the Silk Road website. The investigation determined that Bolles had shipped the controlled substances, which were purchased from “MDPro,” from Delaware to Florida. The investigation also found that Bolles had used her personal bank accounts to purchase items that were used to further her illegal drug dealing business, including packaging and laboratory materials. More than 600 sales of controlled substances were mailed by Bolles and her girlfriend, Alexandra Gold, to individuals in more than 17 different countries. Gold was previously sentenced to 30 months in prison for her role in this case.
This case was investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration (Orlando and Wilmington, Delaware), with assistance from the United States Postal Inspection Service. It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney David Haas.
Deland Businessman Sentenced to 78 Months for Fraud SchemeRead the Press Release
Orlando, Florida - Senior United States District Judge John Antoon, II has sentenced Stephen B. Deluca (58, Deland) to six years and six months in federal prison for conspiracy to commit wire fraud and bank fraud. The Court also sentenced him to serve three years of supervision after his release, and ordered him to pay $18,701,804 in restitution. A federal jury found Deluca guilty in March 2013.
Evidence presented during the ten-day trial established that Deluca, the president and sole shareholder of Delco Oil, Inc., had engaged in a scheme to defraud several FDIC-insured banks and a private finance company (CapitalSource Financial Services) by falsely inflating the amount and value of Delco=s inventory and accounts receivable, which were then used to secure revolving lines of credit. The scheme resulted in more than $18 million in losses to CapitalSource.
This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation. It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Mac D. Heavener, III.
Convicted felon pleads guilty to unlawfully possessing a firearmRead the Press Release
HUNTINGTON, W.Va. – United States Attorney Booth Goodwin announced that a convicted felon originally from Detroit, Michigan pleaded guilty today in federal court in Huntington to unlawfully possessing a firearm. Joseph Lovell Cook, 22, entered a guilty plea to possessing an SKS semi-automatic assault rifle on July 3, 2014, in Barboursville, West Virginia. Cook was prohibited from possessing the firearm because of a 2010 assault with a dangerous weapon conviction in Michigan and a 2012 drug trafficking conviction in Cabell County, West Virginia.
Cook faces up to ten years in federal prison, and is scheduled to be sentenced on August 10, 2015.
The FBI Drug Task Force and the DEA Task Force conducted the investigation. Assistant United States Attorneys Greg McVey and Jennifer Rada Herrald are in charge of the prosecution.
The case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods. Project Safe Neighborhoods is a nationwide commitment to reduce gun crime in the United States by networking existing local programs targeting gun crime.
Convicted Georgia Sex Offender Sentenced for Failing to Register as A Sex OffenderRead the Press Release
Jacksonville, Florida – United States District Judge Marcia Morales Howard has sentenced Rodney Joel Neal (53, Montezuma, Georgia) to two years in federal prison for failing to register as sex offender after traveling to Jacksonville from Georgia. He was also sentenced to a seven-year term of supervision and ordered to register as a sex offender following his release. Neal has been in custody since his arrest in Jacksonville, on October 10, 2014.
According to court documents, on or about May 24, 1988, Neal was found guilty and sentenced for committing two criminal offenses, aggravated child molestation and child molestation, in Macon County, Georgia. Subsequent to his conviction and release from prison, Neal traveled from Georgia to Jacksonville in July 2014 and failed to register in Florida as a sex offender as required by the Sex Offender Registration and Notification Act.
The Sex Offender Registration and Notification Act is part of the Adam Walsh Child Protection and Safety Act of 2006. The Adam Walsh Act provides for the use of federal law enforcement resources, including the United States Marshals Service, to assist state and local authorities in locating and apprehending non-compliant sex offenders. This case was investigated by the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office, the United States Marshals Service, and the Florida Department of Law Enforcement. It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney D. Rodney Brown.
It is another case 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 United States Attorneys' Offices and the Criminal Division's Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who sexually exploit children, and to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.justice.gov/psc.
Conspirators in Mall Kidnapping Hoax SentencedRead the Press Release
Urbana, Ill. –The woman at the center of a hoax kidnapping from a Champaign, Ill., mall in June 2014, and her alleged kidnapper, were sentenced today, as announced by U.S. Attorney Jim Lewis, Central District of Illinois. Monica Adriana Zacatlan Ramirez, 20, of Urbana, was ordered to serve 18 months in federal prison. Eduardo Guerrero Cortez, 26, of Mexico, was sentenced to 10 months in prison. Both have remained detained in the custody of the U.S. Marshals Service since their arrests in July 2014. In addition, both Ramirez and Cortez were ordered to pay restitution in the amount of $45,374, to the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Champaign Police Department, the Champaign Sheriff’s Office and the Champaign County State’s Attorney for the time, resources and expenses each of these agencies spent in investigating the hoax kidnapping.
On Dec. 15, 2014, Ramirez pled guilty to conspiracy to provide law enforcement with false statements, making false statements to law enforcement and making false statements to a federal grand jury. On Dec. 19, 2014, Cortez pled guilty to the conspiracy. The third defendant, Jarbey Emerson Reyes Villalobos, 19, of Champaign, pled guilty on Feb. 15, 2015. Villalobos is scheduled for sentencing on May 29, before U.S. District Judge Colin S. Bruce. Villalobos has been in the custody of the U.S. Marshals Service since his arrest on July 25, 2014.
Ramirez, Cortez and Villalobos admitted that they conspired to provide law enforcement with false statements regarding the nature of Ramirez’s kidnapping from Market Place Mall in Champaign on June 11, 2014. In fact, there was no force, threat or coercion involved in the kidnapping of Ramirez and she voluntarily consented, agreed, and participated in the planning of the hoax so that her willingness to be with Cortez would be concealed from her family members who did not approve of him.To advance the scheme, prior to the hoax kidnapping, Ramirez petitioned the circuit court in Champaign for an emergency order of protection against Cortez. After the court granted the order of protection, Ramirez called Cortez and told him to pick her up from the Market Place Mall and make it appear that she was taken by force. Cortez recruited Villalobos, armed with a knife, and another individual, to go to the mall, collect Ramirez and put her into their vehicle. Villalobos threatened Ramirez’s companion and the defendants fled the area. From June 11 to June 14, Ramirez, Cortez and Villalobos traveled from Illinois to Texas.
The charges were investigated by the Champaign Police Department; the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Springfield and Houston Divisions; the Champaign County State’s Attorney’s Office; and, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement Homeland Security Investigations. The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Elly M. Peirson.Colorado Man Pleads Guilty in Tax Fraud SchemeRead the Press Release
Received in excess of $2.6 million in fraudulent income tax refunds
NORFOLK, Va. – Mark J. Jones, Sr., 51, of Aurora, Colorado, pleaded guilty today to mail fraud and aggravated identity theft in connection with a scheme to defraud the Internal Revenue Service.
Dana J. Boente, United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia; and Thomas J. Kelly, Special Agent in Charge, Washington, D.C. Field Office, Internal Revenue Service-Criminal Investigations; made the announcement after the plea was accepted by United States Senior District Judge Robert G. Doumar.
Jones waived indictment and was charged in a criminal information on April 13, 2015. Jones faces a maximum penalty of 42 years when he is sentenced on September 21, 2015.
In a statement of facts filed with the plea agreement, Jones’ scheme was discovered in 2013 after a local check cashing business noticed one of its employees had cashed over $2 million in U.S. Treasury checks. The employee of the check cashing business identified another co-conspirator as the individual who cashed the treasury checks and indicated he paid her $200 per check to cash the treasury checks in violation of the company’s policies. A subsequent IRS investigation determined that Jones, along with unidentified co-conspirators stole the personal identifying information of numerous people and filed at least 810 fraudulent income tax returns. As a result of these false returns, Jones and his co-conspirators received in excess of $2.6 million in fraudulent income tax refunds.
This case was investigated by the Criminal Investigations division of the Internal Revenue Service. Assistant United States Attorney Joseph L. Kosky is prosecuting the case on behalf of the United States.
A copy of this press release may be found on the website of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Virginia. Related court documents and information may be found on the website of the District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia or on PACER by searching for Case No. 2:14-cr-132.
Cedar Rapids Man Sentenced to 31 Years for Four Bank Robberies and Firearm OffenseRead the Press Release
A man who committed four bank robberies in Cedar Rapids was sentenced today to 31 years in federal prison.
Javon Dockery, age 29, of Cedar Rapids, Iowa, received the sentence after an October 2, 2014 guilty plea to four counts of bank robbery and one count of possession of a firearm in furtherance of a crime of violence. At the guilty plea hearing, Dockery admitted that he robbed a Cedar Rapids branch of the US Bank on April 30 and June 26, 2014. He also admitted that he robbed a Cedar Rapids branch of the Guaranty Bank on May 16 and May 29, 2014. Further, Dockery admitted that, during the commission of the June 26 robbery, he brandished a firearm.
Dockery was sentenced in Cedar Rapids by United States District Court Chief Judge Linda R. Reade. Dockery was sentenced to 372 months’ imprisonment. A special assessment of $500 was imposed, and he was ordered to make $25,935 in restitution to the two banks. He must serve a five-year term of supervised release after the prison term.
This case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Mark Tremmel and was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Cedar Rapids Police Department.
Court file information is available at https://ecf.iand.uscourts.gov/cgi-bin/login.pl. The case file number is CR 14-68.
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California Woman Sentenced for Wire Fraud and Aggravated Identity Theft for Retail Fraud SchemeRead the Press Release
BOISE – Rocio Contreras-Loya, 40, of Sante Fe Springs, California, was sentenced to 24 months in federal prison for wire fraud and aggravated identity theft, U.S. Attorney Wendy J. Olson announced. Chief U.S. District Judge B. Lynn Winmill also ordered Contreras-Loya to serve three years of supervised release, to pay $15,443.80 in restitution, and to forfeit $26,777.13 in cash proceeds of the charged offenses. Contreras-Loya pleaded guilty on January 30, 2015.
According to the plea agreement, Contreras-Loya engaged in a retail scheme between July 2013 and July 2014, whereby she defrauded retail stores by applying for, and obtaining, credit accounts in the identities of unknowing third party victims. Contreras-Loya then used the credit accounts to fraudulently purchase merchandise and gift cards. Contreras-Loya admitted she received, from her co-defendant Arleen Cifuentes, victim identification information and false California driver's licenses in the victims' names, containing Contreras-Loya's photo. Contreras-Loya admitted that she and her co-defendants executed the scheme on at least fifteen occasions in the District of Idaho. Cifuentes and Contreras-Loya were arrested shortly after executing the scheme at the Boise Town Square Mall.
Co-defendant Arleen Cifuentes pleaded guilty to one count of wire fraud and one count of aggravated identity theft on January 27, 2015. Her sentencing is scheduled for May 27th before Chief U.S. District Judge B. Lynn Winmill. Co-defendant Ivan Fonseca remains a fugitive.
The case was investigated by the United States Secret Service and the Boise Police Department.
Auburn Man Sentenced to More Than 7 Years in Prison for Human TraffickingRead the Press Release
A 33-year-old Auburn, Washington man was sentenced today in U.S. District Court in Seattle to 92 months in prison for two counts of human trafficking, announced Acting U.S. Attorney Annette L. Hayes. JOHN HENRY CYPRIAN, JR., aka “Lucky,” was arrested in June 2014 following a Bellevue Police Department investigation into CYPRIAN’s sex trafficking of two women in Western Washington and Portland, Oregon. CYPRIAN pleaded guilty to two counts of human trafficking on December 15, 2014. At the sentencing hearing U.S. District Judge Robert S. Lasnik imposed three years of supervised release and required CYPRIAN to register as a sex offender.
“This defendant used fear, false promises, and addictive drugs to exploit young, troubled women,” said Acting United States Attorney Annette L. Hayes. “He viewed his victims as nothing more than objects that existed to satisfy his sexual and material needs. This kind of conduct in our communities will not be tolerated and will continue to be the target of our coordinated law enforcement response.”
According to records in the case, between April 2013 and his arrest in June 2014, CYPRIAN rented hotel rooms throughout the greater Seattle area as part of his prostitution scheme. CYPRIAN forced the two women to work as prostitutes at hotels in SeaTac, Bellevue, Everett, Mountlake Terrace, and Portland. CYPRIAN posted ads on Backpage.com and other adult sexual services websites. CYPRIAN controlled the women with beatings and threats, and forced them to give him all the money they earned. At sentencing CYPRIAN was ordered to pay the women a total of $161,700 representing the ill-gotten gains he acquired by exploiting them.
“I’m very proud of the hard work of the detectives assigned to the Bellevue Police Department’s VICE unit. Their dedication to duty and commitment to this victim ensured that this violent predator will remain behind bars for many years,” said Bellevue Police Chief Steve Mylett. “This case highlights the fact that human trafficking is a reprehensible crime and that law enforcement will combine all of its resources to identify and protect victims of human trafficking as we bring those who prey on the vulnerable to justice. I want to thank the FBI, the U.S. Attorney’s Office, the King County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office, and the Mountlake Terrace Police Department for their partnership and support.”
The case was investigated by the Bellevue Police Department with assistance from the King County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office, the Mountlake Terrace Police Department and the FBI. The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Kate Crisham and Trial Attorney Victor Boutros with the Civil Rights Division of the U.S. Department of Justice.
Atlanta man pleads guilty to federal drug chargeRead the Press Release
HUNTINGTON, W.Va. – An Atlanta man who possessed cocaine base, also known as crack cocaine, and a loaded gun in 2014 pleaded guilty today to a federal drug charge, announced U.S. Attorney Booth Goodwin. Reginald Wendell Weems, 33, entered a guilty plea to possession with intent to distribute cocaine base before Chief United States District Judge Robert C. Chambers.
On September 15, 2014, agents with the Drug Enforcement Administration Task Force were notified that Weems was in the 1400 block of 15th Street in Huntington with crack. Agents subsequently conducted a traffic stop of a vehicle in which Weems was a passenger. Agents searched the vehicle and recovered over 35 grams of crack and a loaded 9mm pistol. Weems admitted to possessing the crack and the pistol. Weems also admitted to selling crack in the Huntington area.
Weems faces up to 20 years in federal prison, and is scheduled to be sentenced on August 3, 2015.
The DEA Task Force conducted the investigation. Assistant United States Attorney Joseph F. Adams is in charge of the prosecution.
This case was brought as part of Project Safe Neighborhoods. Project Safe Neighborhoods is a nationwide commitment to reduce gun crime in the United States by working with existing local programs that target gun crime.
Applied Materials Inc. and Tokyo Electron Ltd. Abandon Merger Plans After Justice Department Rejected Their Proposed RemedyRead the Press Release
Applied Materials Inc. and Tokyo Electron Ltd. abandoned their plans to merge after the Department of Justice informed the companies that their remedy proposal failed to resolve the department’s competitive concerns.
“The companies’ decision to abandon this merger preserves competition for semiconductor manufacturing equipment,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General Renata B. Hesse of the Justice Department’s Antitrust Division. “The semiconductor industry is critically important to the American economy, and the proposed remedy would not have replaced the competition eliminated by the merger, particularly with respect to the development of equipment for next-generation semiconductors.”
The proposed merger of Applied Materials and Tokyo Electron would have combined the two largest competitors with the necessary know-how, resources and ability to develop and supply high-volume non-lithography semiconductor manufacturing equipment.
During the investigation, the division cooperated with the Korean Fair Trade Commission, China’s Ministry of Commerce, Germany’s Federal Cartel Office and competition agencies from several other jurisdictions.
Applied Materials, based in Santa Clara, California, is the largest provider of non-lithography semiconductor manufacturing equipment with approximately $9 billion in 2014 revenue.
Tokyo Electron, based in Tokyo, is the second-largest provider of non-lithography semiconductor manufacturing equipment with approximately $6 billion in 2014 revenue.
Albuquerque Man Sentenced to Two Years for Federal Identity Theft ConvictionRead the Press Release
ALBUQUERQUE – David William Welbig, 66, of Albuquerque, N.M., was sentenced today in federal court to two years in prison followed by two years of supervised release for his aggravated identity theft conviction. The conviction arose out of his efforts to evade arrest on interstate transportation of stolen securities charges filed in April 1991 in the U.S. District Court for the District of Colorado.
Welbig was indicted on Nov. 4, 2014, and charged with using a fraudulently obtained passport and aggravated identity theft. The indictment alleged that in July 2014, Welbig concealed his identity and sought to evade arrest by using a passport issued to a person who was deceased. It also alleged that Welbig committed an aggravated identity theft offense by using a passport issued in the name of another person. Welbig was charged with committing these offenses in Bernalillo County, N.M.
On Feb. 19, 2015, Welbig pled guilty to Count 2 of the indictment, charging him with aggravated identity theft. In entering his guilty plea, Welbig admitted using the identification information of a deceased person to obtain a U.S. passport to evade arrest on an outstanding indictment and arrest warrant issued in the District of Colorado in 1991.
The indictment filed against Welbig in the District of Colorado was transferred to the District of New Mexico in Sept. 2014. In Oct. 2014, Welbig entered guilty pleas to all three counts of interstate transportation of stolen securities in the indictment.
This case was investigated U.S. Department of State’s Diplomatic Security Service and was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Norman Cairns.
Albuquerque Man Pleads Guilty to Trafficking Methamphetamine in Lea CountyRead the Press Release
ALBUQUERQUE – Michael Boyd, 40, of Albuquerque, N.M., pleaded guilty today in federal court in Las Cruces, N.M., to trafficking methamphetamine in Lea County, N.M.
Boyd was arrested in Hobbs, N.M., on Feb. 20, 2015, after law enforcement officers seized 174 grams of methamphetamine, 110 grams of marijuana, 70 grams of heroin, drug paraphernalia and a handgun from the vehicle Boyd was driving.
During today’s change of plea hearing, Boyd pled guilty to a felony information charging him with possession of methamphetamine with intent to distribute. In entering his guilty pleas, Boyd admitted that on Feb. 20, 2015, officers found 174 grams of methamphetamine, 70 grams of heroin and a firearm in the rental car he was driving. Boyd also admitted that he intended to distribute the methamphetamine and heroin in Hobbs.
At sentencing, Boyd faces a mandatory minimum of five years and a maximum of 40 years in federal prison followed by a minimum of four years of supervised release. He remains in federal custody pending a sentencing hearing which has yet to be scheduled.
This case was investigated by the Las Cruces office of the DEA, the Lea County Drug Task Force and is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Terri J. Abernathy of the U.S. Attorney’s Las Cruces Branch Office.
The Lea County Drug Task Force is comprised of officers from the Lea County Sheriff’s Office, Hobbs Police Department, Lovington Police Department, Eunice Police Department the Tatum Police Department and the Jal Police Department, and is part of the NM HIDTA Region VI Drug Task Force. The High Intensity Drug Trafficking Areas (HIDTA) program was created by Congress with the Anti-Drug Abuse Act of 1988. HIDTA is a program of the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP) which provides assistance to federal, state, local and tribal law enforcement agencies operating in areas determined to be critical drug-trafficking regions of the United States and seeks to reduce drug trafficking and production by facilitating coordinated law enforcement activities and information sharing.
7-Eleven Franchisee Sentenced to 87 Months in Prison for Wire Fraud, Alien Harboring, and Identity Theft SchemeRead the Press Release
Earlier today at the federal courthouse in Central Islip, New York, Farrukh Baig was sentenced to 87 months in prison following his September 22, 2014, guilty plea to committing wire fraud and concealing and harboring illegal aliens employed at 7-Eleven, Inc. (7-Eleven) franchise stores located throughout Long Island and Virginia.
The sentence was announced by Kelly T. Currie, Acting United States Attorney for the Eastern District of New York; Raymond R. Parmer Jr., Special Agent-in-Charge, Homeland Security Investigations, New York Field Office (HSI); Joseph A. D’Amico, Superintendent, New York State Police; Edward Webber, Commissioner, Suffolk County Police; and Irv Miljoner, District Director, United States Department of Labor.
“Using the 7-Eleven brand in our neighborhoods, the defendant exploited his alien employees, stealing their wages and requiring them to live in unregulated boarding houses. He now faces time in prison for not only systematically employing illegal aliens, but also for concealing their employment by stealing the identities of children and even the dead,” stated Acting United States Attorney Currie. “We are committed to preserving the rule of law and protecting our communities from the abuses of corrupt businesses seeking to gain illegal advantage. I would like to thank our partners at HSI, New York State Police, Suffolk County Police, and the United States Department of Labor for their hard work on this important and ongoing investigation.”
“Today’s sentencing holds Farrukh Baig accountable for knowingly stealing identities to hire and employ an illegal workforce. He also stole more than $2.6 million from his overworked and underpaid employees,” said Raymond R. Parmer Jr., special agent in charge HSI New York. “This case serves as a stern reminder about the consequences facing employers who exploit illegal alien labor and violate our nation’s laws.” According to court filings and facts presented in court, the defendant, who owned, managed, and controlled fourteen 7-Eleven franchise stores during the course of the conspiracy, hired dozens of illegal aliens, equipped them with more than 20 identities stolen from United States citizens, housed them at residences he and his coconspirators owned, and stole substantial portions of his workers’ wages. During the scheme, the defendant generated over $182 million in proceeds from the 7-Eleven franchise stores.
This sentence marks an important milestone in the government’s ongoing investigation, which is already one of the largest criminal alien employment investigations ever conducted by the Department of Justice and the Department of Homeland Security. In addition to the sentence of imprisonment, the court entered an order forfeiting the defendant’s rights to ten 7-Eleven stores in New York and four 7-Eleven stores in Virginia, as well as five houses in New York worth over $1.3 million. In addition, the court ordered the defendant to pay $2.5 million in restitution for the back wages that he stole from his workers.
The government’s case is being prosecuted by the Office’s Business and Security Fraud Unit. Assistant United States Attorney Christopher A. Ott is in charge of the prosecution, with assistance provided by Assistant United States Attorneys Brian Morris and Elliot M. Schachner of the Office’s Civil Division, which is responsible for the forfeiture of assets.
This prosecution was the result of efforts by President Obama's Financial Fraud Enforcement Task Force (FFETF) which was created in November 2009 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. Over the past three fiscal years, the Justice Department has filed more than 10,000 financial fraud cases against nearly 15,000 defendants including more than 2,700 mortgage fraud defendants. For more information on the task force, visit http://www.StopFraud.gov.
Tips and Information
For questions or concerns about immigrant workers and job seekers, contact the New York State Department of Labor Division Policies and Affairs (DIPA) at its toll-free worker hotline (1-877-466-9757).
E.D.N.Y. Docket No. 14-CR-351(SJF)
The Defendant:
FARRUKH BAIG
Citizenship: Naturalized United States Citizen
Age: 58
Head of Harbor, New York
24 April 2015
Woodbury Police Chief Indicted by Federal Grand Jury for Stealing Federal Grant FundsRead the Press Release
Kevin Mooneyham, 47, of Woodbury, Tennessee, was indicted Wednesday by a federal grand jury, and charged with stealing federal program funds and wire fraud, announced David Rivera, United States Attorney for the Middle District of Tennessee. Mooneyham, who is the Chief of the Woodbury Police Department, was arrested this morning by TBI agents and will appear before a United States Magistrate Judge later today.
“Funds designated for alcohol enforcement programs are made available to local law enforcement agencies with the underlying purpose of deterring drunk driving and ultimately saving lives,” said U.S. Attorney David Rivera. “Mooneyham’s scheme to steal these grant moneys prevented the officers of his department from conducting these enforcement programs and placed the community at a greater risk.”
According to the indictment, from 2013 until March 2015, Mooneyham, in his role as Chief of the Woodbury Police Department, was responsible for administering and overseeing the overtime grants provided by the Governors Highway Safety Office to the Town of Woodbury, Tenn. These funds were awarded exclusively for the purpose of alcohol enforcement, the majority of which were used to pay overtime for officers engaged in DUI enforcement such as saturations and checkpoints.
During this time, Mooneyham fraudulently prepared and submitted false timesheets for overtime hours, misrepresenting the fact that he had worked DUI enforcement, when he in fact had not worked. The submission of these false timesheets resulted in Mooneyham being paid more than $25,000 to which he was not entitled. These stolen funds were derived from federal grants provided by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration to the Tennessee Governor’s Highway Safety Office, to be used exclusively for DUI and alcohol enforcement programs.
The indictment also alleges that numerous officers of the Woodbury Police Department expressed an interest in working GHSO overtime patrols but were informed by Mooneyham that no funds were available. When city officials inquired about other officers working overtime patrols, Mooneyham informed them that no officers were interested.
The indictment further alleges that Mooneyham received approximately 91% of the overtime that was paid pursuant to these federal grants to employees of the Woodbury Police Department in 2014, and that he received 100% of such overtime paid during the first quarter of 2015.
“Though the arrest of a law enforcement leader is very disappointing, the public rightfully expects that grant money like this will benefit the community, not its police chief,” said Mark Gwyn, Director of the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation.
“The citizens of this community and our law enforcement officers are greatly disappointed to find that a public servant, held to such a position of trust, has instead violated that trust and his oath of office,” said Jennings Jones, District Attorney General for the 16th Judicial District.
If convicted, Mooneyham faces up to 10 years in prison and a fine of up to $250,000 for theft of federal program funds and up to 20 years in prison and a fine of up to $250,000, for wire fraud. He also faces forfeiture of the proceeds of his offenses.
An indictment is merely an accusation and is not evidence of guilt. This defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty in a court of law.
The case was investigated by the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation and is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Bill Abely.
Willard Maldonado Pleads Guilty to Five Violations of the Bald Eagle Protection Act and the Lacey ActRead the Press Release
Spokane – Michael C. Ormsby, United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Washington, announced that Willard Phillip Maldonado entered guilty pleas to six criminal charges relating to the commercialization of eagles. Five of the charges are violations of the Bald and Golden Eagle Protection Act (16 U.S.C. § 668(a)) and one charge is a violation of the Lacey Act (16 U.S.C. §§ 3372(a)(1) and 3373(d)(1)(B). According to information disclosed during the proceeding, the crimes occurred over a period of more than two years -- from December 6, 2010 through January 27, 2014. The crimes involved the unlawful killing of bald and golden eagles and the offering for sale and the actual selling of their feathers.
As a member of the Yakama Indian Tribe, Maldonado can lawfully possess eagle feathers for non-commercial purposes. All members of federally recognized Indian tribes can obtain eagle feathers from a national repository maintained by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service for that purpose. However, it is unlawful for anyone to offer eagle feathers for sale or to sell eagle feathers. As part of his Plea Agreement, Maldonado admitted that he unlawfully killed eagles and offered eagle feathers for sale through the use of social media.
Maldonado’s guilty pleas are the culmination of a lengthy investigation by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Washington State Department of Fish and Wildlife, and the Yakama Nation tribal authorities. The investigation identified people around the United States and in Canada who responded to solicitations made by Maldonado. The investigation followed other similar investigations in recent years that have led to similar convictions, including
United States v. Hawk, 09-CR-2034-EFS-1 and United States v. Wahchumwah, 09-CR-2035-EFS-1.
The sentencing hearing for Maldonado has been set for July 29, 2015 at 11:30 a.m. in Yakima, Washington before District Court Judge Salvador Mendoza, Jr.
Virginia Beach Man Indicted for Prostituting a 15 Year OldRead the Press Release
Indictment Alleges Moore Used Internet to Sell the Girl’s Sexual Services in Tidewater
NORFOLK, Va. – Alvin Norlee Moore III, of Virginia Beach, Virginia, was indicted by a federal grand jury today on charges of sex trafficking of a minor and use of the Internet to promote prostitution.
According to the indictment and other public documents, the government alleges that Moore met a 15 year old girl in November 2015 and immediately started using her as a prostitute at various hotels at the ocean front and other places in Virginia Beach. He advertised her services on www.backpage.com. After about three weeks, the victim was able to return home to her family, who then notified the authorities. Moore also had other women working for him as prostitutes for the past several years in the Tidewater area.
Moore faces a maximum penalty of life in prison if convicted. The maximum statutory sentence is prescribed by Congress and is provided here for informational purposes, as the sentencing of the defendant will be determined by the court based on the advisory Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
Dana J. Boente, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia; John S. Adams, Special Agent in Charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigations’ Norfolk Field Office; and James A. (Jim) Cervera, Chief of Police, Virginia Beach Police Department, made the announcement after the grand jury returned the indictment.
This case was investigated by the FBI and Virginia Beach Police Department. Assistant U.S. Attorney Elizabeth M. Yusi is prosecuting the case.
A copy of this press release may be found on the website of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Virginia. Related court documents and information may be found on the website of the District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia or on PACER by searching for Case No. 2:15-cr-52.
An indictment contains allegations that a defendant has committed a crime. Every defendant is presumed to be innocent until and unless proven guilty in court.
Two Former Police Officers to be Sentenced for Using Unreasonable ForceRead the Press Release
Contact Person: John Potterfield (803) 929-3000
COLUMBIA, SOUTH CAROLINA – United States Attorney Bill Nettles stated that United States District Court Judge Bryan Harwell has set sentencing in the case of United States v. Eric Walters and Franklin Brown, Case No.:14-258.
WHEN: Monday, April 27, 2015, at 2:30 p.m. and 3:00 p.m. WHERE: McMillan Federal Building
401 West Evans Street, Courtroom 1
Florence, South Carolina####
Two Dallas Roommates Each Sentenced to 21 Months in Federal Prison for Conspiring to Obstruct Justice and Lying to Exonerate Another Roommate Facing A Federal Firearm OffenseRead the Press Release
DALLAS — Two women who pleaded guilty in November 2014 to federal felony offenses stemming from their conspiracy to obstruct justice to exonerate a fellow roommate, have been sentenced, announced John Parker, Acting U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of Texas.
Daisy Emerson, 24, and Ofelia Nunez, 19, were each sentenced on Wednesday by U.S. District Judge Barbara M. G. Lynn to 21 months in federal prison. Each pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to obstruct an official proceeding and one count of making a false declaration before a court.
According to documents filed in the case, Emerson and Nunez’s roommate, convicted felon Chaddrick Darrion Ashley, 25, was arrested on March 26, 2014, for possession of a firearm by a felon. Shortly after his arrest, Emerson conspired with Ashley and Nunez to come up with a strategy to exonerate Ashley. They agreed that Nunez would execute a false affidavit claiming she, not Ashley, owned the gun, and that Nunez had mistakenly left her gun in the car.
Nunez executed that false affidavit, and just days before Ashley’s trial on that offense in federal court, she executed a second affidavit affirming those facts. Both she and Emerson falsely testified in Ashley’s federal trial on the firearm offense in September 2014 to corruptly obstruct and influence those official proceedings. Nunez falsely testified as to several facts about events on the day of Ashley’s arrest, and Emerson falsely testified, denying any involvement in producing the false affidavit. The goal of their conspiracy was, through false affidavits and false testimony at trial, to have the jury acquit Ashley.
Ashley’s trial ended in a mistrial. Approximately one month later, however, a federal grand jury returned a superseding indictment charging Ashley with one count of conspiracy to obstruct justice and one count of possession of a firearm by a convicted felon. He pleaded guilty to the conspiracy count, admitting he helped Emerson and Nunez execute a false affidavit and encouraged them to testify falsely at his trial. He faces a maximum statutory penalty of 20 years in federal prison and a $250,000 fine. He is scheduled to be sentenced on July 1, 2015.
The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives investigated the case.
Three More Defendants from Georgia Plead Guilty in Credit Card Fraud SchemeRead the Press Release
BOISE – Charles Moore, 25, of Stone Mountain, Georgia, Jonathan Penn, 20, of Suwanee, Georgia, and Terrance Barimah, 26, of Floranceville, Georgia, each pleaded guilty yesterday in United States District Court for their roles in a credit card fraud scheme that targeted local retailers in October of 2014, U.S. Attorney Wendy J. Olson announced. The defendants were indicted on November 13, 2014.
Moore pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud and one count of aggravated identity theft. According to the plea agreement, Moore traveled to the District of Idaho, along with his co-defendants, for the purpose of making fraudulent purchases of gift cards and prepaid debit cards from retail stores, using stolen credit card numbers encoded onto stock debit cards. Moore admitted to obtaining the stock debit cards encoded with unauthorized credit card numbers, and making purchases at retail stores on October 5, 2014. In all, Moore admitted to traveling to five separate retail stores, and making 29 total purchases, using nine different credit card numbers that he was not authorized to use. Upon his arrest, Moore was found in possession of $2,740 in cash and 43 gift cards and pre-paid debit cards. Sentencing is set for July 7, 2015, before Chief U.S. District Judge B. Lynn Winmill.
Penn pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud. According to the plea agreement, Penn traveled to the District of Idaho, along with his co-defendants, for the purpose of making fraudulent purchases of gift cards and prepaid debit cards from retail stores, using stolen credit card numbers encoded onto stock debit cards. Penn admitted to obtaining the stock debit cards encoded with unauthorized credit card numbers, and making purchases at retail stores on October 5, 2014. In all, Penn admitted to traveling to five separate retail stores, and making 24 total purchases, using six different credit cards numbers that he was not authorized to use. Upon his arrest, Penn was found in possession of three debit cards encoded with unauthorized credit card numbers, and 30 gift cards. Sentencing is set for July 8, 2015, before Chief U.S. District Judge B. Lynn Winmill.
Barimah pleaded guilty to one count of illegal possession of device-making equipment. According to the plea agreement, Barimah traveled to the District of Idaho, along with his co-defendants, for the purpose of making fraudulent purchases of gift cards and prepaid debit cards from retail stores, using stolen credit card numbers encoded onto stock debit cards. Barimah admitted obtaining blank stock pre-paid debit cards from his co-defendants, and encoding them with credit card numbers belonging to real individuals who had not authorized the defendant or his co-defendants to make purchases on the accounts. Barimah provided the debit cards encoded with unauthorized credit card numbers to his co-defendants, and expected to receive cash payment and/or a portion of the proceeds of the fraud. Upon his arrest, Barimah was found in possession of 41 gift cards representing the proceeds of the fraud, a laptop computer, and a "mini magnetic strip card reader/writer" that was used to encode the cards. Sentencing is set for July 8, 2015, before Chief U.S. District Judge B. Lynn Winmill.
Conspiracy to commit wire fraud is punishable by up to 20 years in prison, a $250,000 fine, a term of supervised release of not more than three years, and a $100 special assessment. Aggravated identity theft is punishable by a mandatory minimum term of imprisonment of two years, a term of supervised release of not more than one year, a maximum fine of $250,000, and a special assessment of $100. Illegal possession of device-making equipment is punishable by up to 15 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 their pleas, the defendants also agreed to forfeit $49,953.41 in cash proceeds of the charged offenses.
Moore, Penn, and Barimah were indicted, along with Rakeen Anderson, 31, of Atlanta, Georgia, Kyandre Banks, 34, of Lilburn, Georgia, Jean Estinville, 26, of Lawrenceville, Georgia, Rashine Kale, 38, of Lawrenceville, Georgia, Clarence Collins, 34, of Douglasville, Georgia,
Mikki Williams, 24, of Atlanta, Georgia, and Brian Treadwell, 25, of Buford, Georgia, on charges relating to a wire fraud and identity theft scheme. Collins, Banks, Estinville, Kale, Moore, Penn, Williams and Treadwell were each charged with conspiracy to commit wire fraud, wire fraud, and aggravated identity theft. Anderson was charged with conspiracy to commit wire fraud and wire fraud. Barimah was charged with conspiracy to commit wire fraud and illegal possession of device-making equipment.
Co-defendant Brian Treadwell is scheduled for sentencing before Chief U.S. District Judge B. Lynn Winmill on June 16, 2015. Co-defendant Clarence Collins is scheduled for sentencing before Chief U.S. District Judge B. Lynn Winmill on June 17, 2015. Co-defendant Mikki Williams is scheduled for sentencing before Chief U.S. District Judge B. Lynn Winmill on June 16, 2015. Co-defendant Rashine Kale is scheduled for a change of plea hearing before Chief U.S. Magistrate Candy W. Dale on May 12, 2015. Co-Defendant Rakeen Anderson is scheduled for a change of plea hearing before Chief U.S. Magistrate Candy W. Dale on May 26, 2015. Co-Defendant Jean Estinville is set for a change of plea hearing on a date to be scheduled. Co-defendant Kyandre Banks remains a fugitive.
The case was investigated by the United States Secret Service and the Boise Police Department.
Tensed Man Sentenced for AssaultRead the Press Release
COEUR D'ALENE - Mark Allen Daves, 51, of Tensed, Idaho, was sentenced today in United States Magistrate Court for assault, U.S. Attorney Wendy J. Olson announced. Daves was placed on two years of supervised probation. During his probation term, Daves will report to jail for four consecutive weekends, he is not allowed to possess any firearms, and he is prohibited from drinking alcohol or going to bars, among other restrictions. United States Magistrate Judge Candy W. Dale also ordered Daves to pay a $1,250 fine. He pleaded guilty to the charge on January 21, 2015.
According to court documents, Daves admitted to hearing shots fired while he was in his home in Tensed, Idaho. He took his shotgun to investigate. Daves fired his shotgun and then confronted a hunter. Daves indicated an argument ensued and he was fearful the shotgun would be used against him. Likewise, the victim reported that he was afraid Daves was going to use the shotgun to shoot him. Daves shot off all rounds in the shotgun and hit the hunter in the chest with his gun. The victim and defendant differed in their versions of how those shots were fired. Daves is a former San Diego jail deputy. During the sentencing U.S. Chief Magistrate Candy W. Dale told Daves she considered it a serious offense and jail time needed to be imposed in order to have specific and general deterrence. All parties noted how tragic the situation could have turned out. “If anything, we hope the lesson learned is to call law enforcement if you have a concern,” said Olson. “Do not simply take matters into your own hands.”
The case was investigated by CDA Tribal Police and Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI).
Telemarketer Sentenced for Role in Multi-Million Dollar ScamRead the Press Release
Stephen R. Wigginton, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Illinois, announced today that Christopher Garten, 24, of Orlando, FL, was sentenced in federal court this morning on one count of conspiracy to commit mail and wire fraud in connection with telemarketing. Garten was sentenced to 1 year and 1 day in prison, to be followed by two years of supervised release. Garten was also ordered to pay $32,508 in restitution and a $100 special assessment.
The investigation determined that Garten was a telemarketer for National Solutions and related companies located in Orlando, Florida. National Solutions defrauded consumers across the continent using the fictitious names, Bluescape Timeshares International, Country Wide Timeshares, Countrywide Timeshares MA, Landmark Timeshares, Propertys Direct, Quicksale Propertys, Sun Property Networks, Sun Property’s, Universal Propertys, VIM Timeshares, Propertys DRK, Quick Sale Advisers, Quick Sale International, City Resorts, Resort Advisers, American Timeshares, Exit Week, and Resort Advisors International. These companies targeted owners of timeshares throughout the United States and Canada. In various court filings related to the National Solutions scam, the government has alleged that the overall scam bilked over 2,500 consumers out of at least $6 million, including eight victims within the Southern District of Illinois.
This prosecution is one of nearly one-hundred timeshare resale fraud prosecutions brought in the Southern District of Illinois over the past four years. The case is part of an ongoing investigation by the Midwest Region Office of the Federal Trade Commission and the St. Louis Field Office of the Chicago Division of the United States Postal Service. The prosecution of this case is being handled by Assistant United States AttorneysWilliam Coonan and Michael Hallock.
Tax Preparer Heads to Prison for Stealing More Than $228,000; Barred from Tax PreparationRead the Press Release
LAREDO, Texas – Michelle A. Morin has been ordered to prison for aiding and assisting in the preparation of false and fraudulent income tax returns, announced U.S. Attorney Kenneth Magidson along with Lucy Cruz, special agent in charge of IRS-Criminal Investigation (IRS-CI). Morin owned and operated Discount Tax Service, a Laredo-based tax preparation business, and admitted to causing more than $228,000 in tax loss to the government. She pleaded guilty June 10, 2014.
Today, U.S. Senior District Judge George P. Kazen handed Morin a sentence of 30 months in federal prison to be immediately followed by one year of supervised release. She was further ordered to pay $20,146 in restitution. Morin is also barred from ever engaging in a tax preparations business.
At the hearing, an IRS agent testified regarding Morin’s fraudulent tax preparation business. Morin continued to prepare fraudulent taxes while on bond and has agreed never to engage in a tax preparation business. Upon sentencing Morin, Judge Kazen commented that she has robbed U.S. tax payers of hard-earned money. He added that Morin probably stole more money and that the IRS will eventually find it.
Between tax years 2007 - 2010, Morin aided and assisted in the preparation of fraudulent returns by willfully placing false items on tax returns she prepared for clients knowing they were not entitled to claim them. Such claims included false Schedule A itemized deductions, false Schedule C business losses and false Form 5695 residential energy credits in addition to gifts to charity, job expenses and miscellaneous deductions. Morin also, in certain instances, improperly directed portions of taxpayer tax refunds into her personal bank account.
As part of her plea, Morin admitted fraudulently claiming a false Schedule C loss in the amount of $83,184.00 for a non-existent online business on a on a taxpayer’s 2009 tax return. Morin also fraudulently reported $2,000 in residential energy credits that she knew the taxpayer was not entitled to claim. Subsequently, Morin improperly directed $2,000 of the false refund to her personal account.
Morin was permitted to remain on bond, with the condition she does not prepare taxes, and voluntarily surrender to a U.S. Bureau of Prisons facility to be determined in the near future.
This case was investigated by IRS-CI and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Sanjeev Bhasker.
St. Louis County Man Pleads Guilty to Attempted Arson in Ferguson, MissouriRead the Press Release
St. Louis, MO – ANTONIO WHITESIDE of St. Louis County pled guilty this morning and admitted to starting a fire inside the Ferguson Supermarket, Inc. on November 24, 2014, the date St. Louis County Prosecuting Attorney Robert McCulloch announced the grand jury decision not to indict police officer Darren Wilson.
Whiteside pled guilty to one count of attempted arson before United States District Judge John A. Ross. Sentencing has been set for July 23, 2015.
Whiteside faces a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison and/or fines up to $250,000. In determining the actual sentences, a judge is required to consider the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines, which provide recommended sentencing ranges.
United States Attorney Richard Callahan noted that it was the close cooperation between the county and federal law enforcement officers that enabled law enforcement to solve the case. The charge was the result of a joint investigation by the St. Louis County Police Department’s Bomb and Arson Unit and the United States Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. The St. Louis County Prosecutor’s Office also provided significant assistance.
South Jersey Convicted Felon Sentenced to 70 Months in Prison for Role in Conspiracy to Traffic Guns from South Carolina to New JerseyRead the Press Release
CAMDEN, N.J. – A Lawnside, New Jersey, man was sentenced today to 70 months in prison for illegally possessing firearms and selling 22 guns without a license, U.S. Attorney Paul J. Fishman announced.
Anthony Gilmore, a/k/a “Tone,” 25, previously pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Renée Marie Bumb to an information charging him with one count of conspiring to deal firearms without a license and one count of possession of a firearm by a previously convicted felon. Judge Bumb imposed the sentence today in Camden federal court.
According to documents filed in this case and statements made in court:
Between April 8, 2013, and July 8, 2014, Gilmore conspired with four others to sell 22 firearms on several occasions, for profit and without a license. The 22 firearms included handguns, shotguns and an assault rifle. Gilmore personally sold or participated in the sale of at least seven firearms, including handguns and shotguns, as well as a bullet-proof vest, to a witness cooperating with the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF). Gilmore’s conspirators obtained the firearms in South Carolina and brought them to New Jersey on a weekly basis, at times using Amtrak to transport the guns. On two occasions, Gilmore sold a firearm to the cooperating witness along with ammunition. All 22 weapons are now in the custody of law enforcement.
In addition to the prison term, Judge Bumb sentenced Gilmore to serve three years of supervised release.
U.S. Attorney Fishman credited special agents of the ATF, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge George P. Belsky Jr. in Newark, New Jersey, with the investigation leading to today’s sentencing. He also thanked special agents from the Drug Enforcement Administration, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Carl J. Kotowski, as well as officers from the Winslow Township and Clementon police departments, for their work in the case.
The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorney Matthew T. Smith of the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Camden.
Defense counsel: Assistant Federal Public Defender Christopher O’Malley Esq., CamdenSix Milwaukee Men Sentenced for Multiple Armed Robberies Including Shooting of Store ClerkRead the Press Release
United States Attorney James L. Santelle announced today that six Milwaukee men who were identified as being members of the “Open Door” robbery crew have been sentenced in federal court. Daunte Nichols (age: 21) was convicted of two counts of armed robbery affecting interstate commerce pursuant to the Hobbs Act, two counts of robbery of a financial institution, and one count of armed robbery of a financial institution. Nichols was also convicted of discharge of a firearm during a crime of violence in connection with his shooting of the store clerk during the armed robbery of a Citgo gas station on December 16, 2013. Nichols was sentenced to the ten-year mandatory term of imprisonment for discharge of a firearm during a crime of violence and 100 months’ imprisonment for the remaining armed robbery and robbery counts to be served consecutively to the ten-year mandatory term, for a total term of imprisonment of 220 months or 18 years and four months.
Marques Davis (age: 19), Montiez Vaughn (age: 19), and Joey James-Roby (age: 18) were convicted of one count of armed robbery affecting interstate commerce pursuant to the Hobbs Act, one count of armed robbery of a financial institution, and one count of brandishing a firearm during a crime of violence. James-Roby was sentenced to a term of imprisonment of 84 months and Davis and Vaughn were sentenced to a term of imprisonment of 70 months. Naquan Moore (age: 20) was convicted of two counts of armed robbery of a financial institution and one count of brandishing of a firearm during a crime of violence and was sentenced to a term of imprisonment of 108 months. Christopher Jones (age: 18) was convicted of two counts of robbery of a financial institution and one count of armed robbery of a financial institution and was sentenced to a term of imprisonment of 72 months.
This matter was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the West Allis Police Department, the Milwaukee Police Department, the Milwaukee Area Violent Crimes Task Force, the Brown Deer Police Department, the Bayside Police Department and the Cudahy Police Department. The investigation revealed that members of the “Open Door” robbery crew committed at least 20 robberies, including multiple armed robberies, in the Milwaukee metropolitan area from December of 2013 until May of 2014. In addition to those members of the robbery crew prosecuted federally, four individuals are being prosecuted by the Milwaukee County District Attorney’s Office and their cases are currently pending.
The Hobbs Act, passed by Congress in 1946, provides federal jurisdiction for cases involving violent, habitual criminals who commit armed robbery of businesses involved in interstate commerce. The U.S. Attorney’s Office and the District Attorney’s Office collaborate together to ensure that violent offenders are effectively prosecuted, making our communities safer for all.
These cases were prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Margaret B. Honrath and Laura S. Kwaterski.
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Rochester Man Sentenced on Drug ChargesRead the Press Release
CONTACT: Barbara Burns
PHONE: (716) 843-5817
FAX #: (716) 551-3051ROCHESTER, N.Y. -- U.S. Attorney William J. Hochul, Jr. announced today that Elijah McKnight, 43, of Rochester, NY, who was convicted of conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute five kilograms or more of cocaine, was sentenced to 120 months in prison by U.S. District Judge Charles J. Siragusa.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Robert A. Marangola, who handled the case, stated that between 2008 and November 7, 2013, McKnight conspired with others to distribute kilograms of cocaine in the Northeast side of Rochester.
The defendant was arrested November 7, 2013 after selling cocaine to confidential informant. That same day, a search warrant was executed at 497 Carter Street in Rochester, the residence of McKnight’s cocaine supplier. Law enforcement officers recovered 387 grams of cocaine, scales, packaging material, and a loaded handgun.
The sentencing is the culmination of an investigation on the part of on the part of Special Agents of the Drug Enforcement Administration, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge James J. Hunt, and the Greater Rochester Area Narcotics Enforcement Team (GRANET).Rochester Man Arrested, Charged with Defrauding Three Elderly Individuals in A Jamaican Lottery ScamRead the Press Release
CONTACT: Barbara Burns
PHONE: (716) 843-5817
FAX #: (716) 551-3051BUFFALO, N.Y.-U.S. Attorney William J. Hochul Jr. announced today that Roydel Nicholson, 62, of Rochester, NY, was arrested and charged by criminal complaint with mail fraud, wire fraud, and money laundering. The charges carry a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison, and a fine of $250,000.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Tiffany H. Lee, who is handling the case, stated that according to the complaint, the defendant defrauded three individuals out of a total $138,393.00 in a Jamaican lottery scheme. The victims include a 94 year old man from California, a 74 year old man, also from California, and a 77 year old woman from Detroit.
The complaint states that the victims were led to believe in telephone conversations that they had won various prizes such as $1,000,000. But in order to receive their prizes, the victims had to pay taxes, transportation fees and other various fees. Of the $138,393.00 Nicholson allegedly received from the victims, the complaint states that the defendant wired $114, 520.97 to individuals in Jamaica.
The criminal complaint is the culmination of an investigation by Immigration and Customs Enforcement, Homeland Security Investigations, under the direction of Acting Special Agent in Charge J. Michael Kennedy and the United States Postal Inspection Service, under the direction of Shelly Binkowski, Inspector in Charge, Boston Division.
The fact that a defendant has been charged with a crime is merely an accusation and the defendant is presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty.
Ring Leader of Methamphetamine Trafficking Ring in San Juan County Sentenced to 114 Months in Federal PrisonRead the Press Release
ALBUQUERQUE – Isaac Anaya, 31, of Farmington, N.M., was sentenced yesterday afternoon in federal court in Albuquerque, N.M., for trafficking methamphetamine in San Juan County, N.M. Anaya will serve a 114 month prison sentence followed by three years of supervised release.
Anaya is one of 29 individuals charged in Feb. 2014, with drug trafficking offenses as the result of a multi-agency investigation targeting drug trafficking in northwestern New Mexico. The investigation culminated on Feb. 26, 2014, when 26 of the defendants were arrested during a law enforcement operation led by Homeland Security Investigation (HSI) and the HIDTA Region II Narcotics Task Force. Two other defendants were arrested during the course of the investigation and the final defendant was arrested on March 3, 2014.
The 29 defendants were charged as a result of Operation “Brown Ice,” a year-long investigation that initially targeted a methamphetamine trafficking organization led by Anaya that distributed quantities of methamphetamine throughout San Juan County and expanded to include other drug trafficking activity in the area. The investigation was designated as part of the Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF) program, a nationwide Department of Justice program that combines the resources and unique expertise of federal agencies, along with their local counterparts, in a coordinated effort to disrupt and dismantle major drug trafficking organizations.
Thirteen of the defendants, including Anaya were charged in a 15-count federal indictment alleging a conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine in San Juan County from May 2013 through Sept. 2013. The remaining 16 defendants were charged with state drug trafficking and firearms offenses based on criminal complaints. During the course of the investigation, officers seized approximately five pounds of methamphetamine and five firearms. The law enforcement operation on Feb. 24, 2014, included the execution of eleven federal search warrants at two Bloomfield residences, four Farmington residences, two residences in San Juan County, two Bloomfield businesses, two Farmington businesses and a storage unit in Bloomfield. It also included the execution of three state search warrants at two residences in San Juan County and one Farmington residence. Officers seized numerous firearms, including a fully automatic Glock 19, a short-barreled rifle and a carbine with an obliterated serial number, four blasting caps, four small binary explosives and approximately 31.7 grams of methamphetamine during the execution of the search warrants and the law enforcement operation.
Anaya was sentenced today based on his guilty plea to Count 1 of the indictment, which charged him and his co-defendants with conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine in San Juan County from May 28, 2013 through Sept 25, 2013.
U.S. Attorney Damon P. Martinez commended HSI and the local law enforcement agencies that comprise the HIDTA Region II Narcotics Task Force Metro Narcotics Task Force on the outstanding results of their investigation and said, “The convictions obtained as a result of this investigation illustrate the success of our District’s federal, state and local law enforcement collaboration in rooting out drug traffickers whether they operate in large communities or in rural counties.”
“Trafficking methamphetamine, as indicative of this sentence, is a serious crime,” said Waldemar Rodriguez, HSI Special Agent in Charge, El Paso, Texas. “HSI and its law enforcement partners will continue to work diligently to get this hideous, addictive drug and the callous criminals who distribute it out of our communities.”
The federal and state cases filed as a result of Operation “Brown Ice” were investigated by the HSI office in Albuquerque, San Juan County Sheriff’s Office, the HIDTA Region II Narcotics Task Force, the Bloomfield Police Department, the Farmington Police Department and the Aztec Police Department. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Reeve L. Swainston and Shana B. Long are prosecuting the federal case, and Assistant District Attorney David Cowen of the 11th Judicial District Attorney’s Office is prosecuting the state cases.
The HIDTA Region II Task Force is comprised of officers and investigators from the Farmington Police Department, San Juan County Sheriff’s Office, Bloomfield Police Department and Aztec Police Department, and is part of the High Intensity Drug Trafficking Areas (HIDTA) program was created by Congress with the Anti-Drug Abuse Act of 1988. HIDTA is a program of the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP) which provides assistance to federal, state, local and tribal law enforcement agencies operating in areas determined to be critical drug-trafficking regions of the United States and seeks to reduce drug trafficking and production by facilitating coordinated law enforcement activities and information sharing.
Portland Man Convicted on Federal Tax ChargeRead the Press Release
Contact: Richard W. Murphy
Assistant United States Attorney
Tel: (207) 780-3257Portland, Maine: United States Attorney Thomas E. Delahanty II announced that Senthil Prabakaran, 42, of Portland, Maine, was sentenced today in U.S. District Court by Judge Nancy Torresen to two months in prison for failure to file his 2010 federal income tax return. Prabakaran also was ordered to pay restitution to the Internal Revenue Service in the amount of $115,529. He will be under the supervision of the Federal Probation Office for a year after his release, during which time he will be subject to home confinement for up to four months and required to perform up to 160 hours of community service.
Prabakaran was indicted in June of 2014 on three counts of failing to file federal tax returns for the years 2008, 2009 and 2010. Court records reveal that Prabakaran agreed to plead guilty to one count of the indictment and to pay restitution relating to the tax due for all three years. “As filing season comes to an end, it is important for citizens to have confidence that when they pay their taxes, their neighbors and co-workers are doing the same,” stated William Offord, IRS Criminal Investigation Special Agent in Charge. “The sentencing of Mr. Prabakaran sends a clear message that IRS Criminal Investigation, together with the Department of Justice, will investigate and prosecute those who violate our tax system.”
Perry Man Sentenced for Distributing MethamphetamineRead the Press Release
Arthur Brock, age 32, of Perry, Georgia, was sentenced on April 22, 2015, to serve 100 months (eight years and four months) in federal prison for Distribution of Methamphetamine. The sentence was handed down by the Honorable C. Ashley Royal, United States District Court Judge, in Macon, Georgia.
Mr. Brock entered a guilty plea to the charge on December 4, 2014. As part of his plea agreement, Mr. Brock admitted that on October 23, 2013, he met with a confidential informant and an undercover Georgia Bureau of Investigation (GBI) agent at the WalMart parking lot on Watson Boulevard in Warner Robins, Georgia. Prior to the meeting, Mr. Brock had arranged to sell the undercover GBI agent two ounces of methamphetamine. After a brief conversation in the parking lot, Mr. Brock handed the undercover agent 52.2 grams of methamphetamine that was packaged inside of a tube sock, in exchange for $3,000.00.
“The long prison sentence in this case will guarantee that Mr. Brock will not pollute the streets of Houston County with methamphetamine for the better part of the next decade. I want to acknowledge the collaboration and good work of the GBI and the DEA. Drug dealers need to take notice; we will use every resource to make sure that if you distribute drugs, you will wind up in federal prison facing a long sentence with no possibility of parole,” said United States Attorney Michael Moore.
The case was investigated by the Georgia Bureau of Investigation and the Drug Enforcement Administration. Assistant United States Attorney Beth Howard prosecuted the case for the Government.