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12 February 2015
North Adams Man Sentenced for Possession of Child PornographyRead the Press Release
BOSTON – A North Adams man was sentenced yesterday in U.S. District Court in Springfield for possession of material involving the sexual exploitation of a minor.
Wade Galli, 49, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Mark G. Mastroianni to 50 months in prison and 10 years of supervised release. He pleaded guilty in September 2014.
On May 29, 2013, law enforcement officers executed a search warrant at Galli’s residence and seized computer media containing numerous image and video files which included images of violent and sadomasochistic sexual assaults of young girls. Galli admitted that he downloaded child pornography from the Internet. He also created some videos by filming nude girls at the beach. Galli said he did so “whenever I had time” and filmed girls as young as 13 at beaches in Pittsfield, Mass. and Vermont.
United States Attorney Carmen M. Ortiz and Bruce M. Foucart, Special Agent in Charge of Homeland Security Investigations in Boston, made the announcement. The case was investigated with the assistance of the Massachusetts State Police and the North Adams Police Department. It is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Steven H. Breslow of Ortiz's Springfield Branch Office.
New Orleans Men Indicted in Conspiracy to Distribute MethamphetamineRead the Press Release
U.S. Attorney Kenneth A. Polite announced that NELSON ROUSSELL, age 31, and ZACHARY DEMERS, age 21, both of New Orleans, were charged today in a four-count Indictment for violations of the Federal Controlled Substances Act. In Count One of the Indictment, ROUSSELL and DEMERS were charged with conspiring to distribute and possess with intent to distribute a quantity of methamphetamine. In Count Two, ROUSSELL was charged with distributing a quantity of methamphetamine. In Count Three, ROUSSELL was charged with possessing with intent to distribute a quantity of methamphetamine. In Count Four, DEMERS was charged with possessing with intent to distribute a quantity of methamphetamine.
Each of the counts carry a maximum term of imprisonment of twenty years, a fine of up to $1,000,000, and a minimum of three years of supervised release following any term of imprisonment.
U.S. Attorney Polite reiterated that the Indictment is merely a charge and that the guilt of the defendant must be proven beyond a reasonable doubt.
U.S. Attorney Polite praised the work of the Drug Enforcement Administration in investigating this matter. Assistant United States Attorney Brandon S. Long is in charge of the prosecution.
New Jersey Oyster Harvesters and Dealers Sentenced for Illegally Trafficking in Oysters, Falsifying Food Safety and Oyster Harvest Records, and Obstructing JusticeRead the Press Release
Three oyster harvesters and dealers, an employee and a related business were sentenced yesterday in federal court in Camden, New Jersey. Todd Reeves, Thomas Reeves, Renee Reeves, of Port Norris, New Jersey, and their oyster dealer company, Shellrock LLC, were sentenced for their roles in creating false oyster records, trafficking in illegally possessed oysters, obstructing the U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA) regulation of public health and safety, and conspiring to commit those crimes. Kenneth Bailey, of Heislerville, New Jersey, was sentenced for creating false oyster records and trafficking in illegal oysters.
Todd Reeves was sentenced to serve 26 months in prison and three years of supervised release, to pay a $7,000 fine, and was ordered to pay New Jersey $140,000 for the restoration of oyster beds in Delaware Bay. Thomas Reeves was sentenced to serve 16 months in prison and three years of supervised release and pay a $7,000 fine, while Renee Reeves was sentenced to serve five years of probation and pay a $2,500 fine. Thomas, Renee and Shellrock were found liable for the restitution amount along with Todd. Todd and Thomas Reeves were additionally ordered to forfeit $144,000 to substitute assets for the vessels that they used to overharvest the oysters. The Reeves’ business, Shellrock, also known as “Reeves Brothers,” was ordered to pay a fine of $70,000 and complete a term of five years of probation.
Kenneth Bailey was sentenced to serve six months incarceration, followed by six months of home confinement and three years of supervised release, as well as to pay a $10,000 fine. Bailey was also ordered to forfeit $75,000 in substitute assets for the vessels that he used to overharvest the oysters.
“The conspiracy to traffic in overharvested, unreported and illegally possessed oysters from the Delaware Bay violated laws that protect public health and ensure the sustainability of resources,” said Assistant Attorney General John C. Cruden of the Department of Justice’s Environment and Natural Resources Division. “The defendants’ actions were harmful to honest fisherman of the Delaware Bay and the long-term viability of a resource that is vital to the local economy and plays an important role in the history of Southern New Jersey. Today’s sentences let the public know that we will not allow protected resources to be exploited, and that those who obstruct law enforcement and deprive honest fisherman of the full measure of their labor will be held accountable.”
In 2012, the defendants were convicted of numerous felony crimes related to their overharvest and sale of over $750,000 worth of oysters from the Delaware Bay. The evidence at trial showed that, for over four years, brothers Todd and Thomas Reeves would overharvest oysters from the Delaware Bay and create false dealer reports and harvester records to hide that overharvest from conservation officers. The Reeves also created false state and FDA health records to ensure that regulators would not detect their overharvest. The Reeves then sold their illegal oysters through their company, Shellrock LLC, to Mark Bryan of Harbor House Seafood, a wholesale and retail seafood operator in Delaware. Bryan and Harbor House are scheduled to be sentenced in Camden on Feb. 27, 2015, for their role in conspiring to create false records to conceal the scheme from authorities.
Kenneth Bailey engaged in similar conduct in 2006 and 2007, overharvesting oysters from the public oyster beds in Delaware Bay. Bailey then created false dealer reports, harvest reports and bills of lading to hide that overharvest from authorities.
“This investigation is a great example of state and federal cooperative enforcement,” said Assistant Director Logan Gregory of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) Fisheries’ Office of Law Enforcement. “The Office of Law Enforcement will continue to support our enforcement partners by providing complex investigation expertise to address wildlife trafficking, seafood fraud and illegal, unregulated and unreported (IUU) fishing. We enjoy a great working relationship with our partners in the state of New Jersey, which is paramount in helping ensure a level playing field and a resilient coastal economy along the Delaware Bay shore.”
The Lacey Act prohibits creating or submitting false records for fish or wildlife moving in interstate commerce and also prohibits trafficking in fish or wildlife known to be illegally taken or possessed. The FDA and state health agencies require that oyster purchasers and sellers maintain accurate records of the amounts and locations of oyster harvest for all oysters they buy and sell in order to protect the public health and minimize the impact of any oyster-borne outbreak of disease.
The case was investigated by the NOAA Office of Law Enforcement and the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection’s Division of Fish and Wildlife. The case was prosecuted by Assistant Chief Wayne D. Hettenbach and Trial Attorney Patrick M. Duggan of the Environment and Natural Resources Division’s Environmental Crimes Section, with assistance from Assistant U.S. Attorney Matthew T. Smith of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of New Jersey.
Navajo Man from Arizona Pleads Guilty to Federal Misdemeanor Assault Charge in New MexicoRead the Press Release
ALBUQUERQUE – Calvin Fuson, 44, an enrolled member of the Navajo Nation who resides in Winslow, Ariz., pleaded guilty this morning in federal court in Albuquerque, N.M., to a misdemeanor assault charge.
Fuson was arrested on April 17, 2014, on a criminal complaint alleging that on Dec. 25, 2013, Fuson assaulted a Navajo man by stabbing the victim with a knife. According to the complaint, officers of the Navajo Nation Division of Public Safety responded to a call reporting a stabbing that occurred in Naschitti, N.M., which is located on the Navajo Indian reservation. The victim was treated for a stab wound approximately five centimeters long. Fuson subsequently was indicted and charged with assault resulting in serious bodily injury and assault with a dangerous weapon.
During today’s proceedings, Fuson pled guilty to a misdemeanor information charging him with assault by striking, beating or wounding. In entering his guilty plea, Fuson admitted that on Dec. 25, 2013, while at his family’s residence in Naschitti, N.M., he stabbed the victim, a 50-year-old Navajo man, with a knife during a fight. Fuson required medical treatment for injuries he sustained during the fight.
At sentencing Fuson faces a statutory maximum penalty of a year in federal prison and a maximum of 12 months of supervised release. Fuson has been in federal custody since his arrest and remains detained pending his sentencing hearing which has yet to be scheduled.
This case was investigated by the Farmington office of the FBI and the Shiprock office of the Navajo Nation Division of Public Safety. Assistant U.S. Attorney Paul H. Spiers is prosecuting this case.
Morgantown woman convicted of stealing government moneyRead the Press Release
CLARKSBURG, WEST VIRGINIA Samantha Christopher, 35, of Morgantown, West Virginia, was convicted in federal court today of misappropriating government money, United States Attorney William J. Ihlenfeld, II, announced.
An investigation by the United States Postal Service Office of Inspector General revealed that throughout late 2013 and 2014, Christopher embezzled nearly $12,500.00 in money order funds while employed as a Postal Contract Station Clerk.
Christopher pled guilty today to a criminal Information charging her with one count of “Embezzlement, Theft & Conversion of Government Monies.” She faces up to 10 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 is prosecuting the case on behalf of the government.
U.S. Magistrate Judge John S. Kaull presided.
Mexican National Indicted for Smuggling Cash, Gun and AmmoRead the Press Release
LAREDO, Texas – A federal grand Jury in Laredo has returned an indictment against Jesus Roldan Rubio for attempting to smuggle more than $100,000, a pistol and ammunition, announced U.S. Attorney Kenneth Magidson.
Rubio was initially charged via criminal complaint Jan. 20, 2015. He was indicted Feb. 3 and is set for an arraignment this morning at 11:00 a.m. before U.S. Magistrate Judge J. Scott Hacker.
Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) arrested Rubio, 46, of Puebla, Mexico, Jan. 16, 2015. Court documents allege he was attempting to exit the U.S. via the Lincoln Juarez International Bridge driving a 2012 Chrysler. At that time, he had advised Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officers that he had no monetary instruments or cash exceeding $10,000, no weapons and no ammunition.However, he was referred to secondary inspection during which time an x-ray inspection resulted in the discovery of anomalies to the vehicle’s battery. A visual inspection confirmed the battery itself had been replaced with a counterfeit battery composed of a small motorcycle battery surrounded by a battery case containing packages containing $109,270, a semi-automatic pistol and 100 rounds of pistol ammunition.
If convicted, Rubio faces up to 10 years in federal prison and a possible $250,000 fine.
The charges are the result of an investigation by CBP, HSI and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Jose Homero Ramirez and Mary Ellen Smyth are prosecuting the case.
An indictment is a formal accusation of criminal conduct, not evidence.
A defendant is presumed innocent unless and until convicted through due process of law.Memphis Resident Sentenced to 15 Years for Sex Trafficking of A MinorRead the Press Release
MEMPHIS, TENN. – Today, U.S. Senior District Judge Jon Phipps McCalla sentenced Laron Matlock, age 33, of Memphis, TN, to 15 years of imprisonment for sex trafficking of a minor, announced Edward L. Stanton III, U.S. Attorney for the Western District of Tennessee; Leslie R. Caldwell, Assistant Attorney General of the Justice Department's Criminal Division; and Todd McCall, Special Agent in Charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI).
Matlock, with the assistance of a co-defendant, facilitated the travel for a sixteen year old minor to travel from Chicago, Illinois to Memphis in July 2012 for the purpose of prostitution. Matlock then transported the minor from Memphis to Nashville, Tennessee, where she engaged in prostitution as a result of her being promoted on www.backpage.com. Matlock facilitated the online advertisement by paying the cost associated with the posting. Matlock thereafter drove the minor back to Memphis and, before he was arrested, transported her to a customer's home in an attempt for her to engage further in prostitution.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Brian K. Coleman and Trial Attorney Mi Yung Park with the Department of Justice's Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS) represented the United States in the case. This case is a result of investigative efforts of the Federal Bureau of Investigation Memphis Division, the Civil Rights Human Trafficking Taskforce and the Shelby County Sheriff’s Department.
Spanish Version
McAllen Man Sentenced to 10 Years for Using A GunRead the Press Release
McALLEN, Texas – Oscar Eduardo Juarez has been ordered to prison in relation for his use of a weapon in relation to a crime of violence, announced U.S. Attorney Kenneth Magidson. He pleaded guilty Nov. 24, 2014.
Today, U.S. District Judge Micaela Alvarez ordered the 19-year-old McAllen man to serve 120 months in federal prison to be immediately followed by five years of supervised release.
The investigation revealed that on May 15, 2014, Juarez used a 9mm handgun to forcibly take a vehicle from an individual at a local nightclub. Later that evening, officers with the McAllen Police Department located the weapon and apprehended Juarez.
He will remain in custody pending transfer to a U.S. Bureau of Prisons facility to be determined in the near future.
The investigation leading to the charges was conducted by the McAllen Police Department and the FBI. Assistant U.S. Attorney Juan Villescas and James Sturgis prosecuted the case.
Manhattan U.S. Attorney and FBI Assistant Director Announce Charges Against Doctor for Illegal Distribution of More Than One Thousand Oxycodone PillsRead the Press Release
Preet Bharara, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, and Diego Rodriguez, Assistant Director-in-Charge of the New York Office of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (“FBI”), announced the unsealing of a Complaint against a doctor who participated in a drug distribution conspiracy involving the prescription painkiller oxycodone. As detailed further below, the doctor, NICHOLAS KALOUDIS, operated out of Long Island and engaged in an interstate distribution scheme involving more than one thousand oxycodone tablets obtained through medically unnecessary prescriptions over a two-year period.
KALOUDIS, an endocrinologist, was arrested yesterday morning in connection with the charge in the Complaint and was presented before U.S. Magistrate Judge Michael H. Dolinger yesterday afternoon.
Manhattan U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara said: “As alleged, the defendant violated the law and the oath of his profession when he wrote medically unnecessary prescriptions for pure profit. A physician contributing to the epidemic of pain medication abuse is a prescription for disaster.”
FBI Assistant Director Diego Rodriguez said: “The charges alleged in the complaint describe a growing epidemic that exploits the integrity of the healthcare system. Selling scripts for cash is not a victimless crime, and those who violate the oath of their profession in this way are directly contributing to the illegal distribution of drugs sold on the street. The Health Care Fraud Task Force was formed in part to protect the public from unscrupulous doctors who put profiteering ahead of professional responsibility. Those who employ these schemes will most certainly be brought to justice.”
The following allegations are based on the Complaint unsealed yesterday in Manhattan federal court:
Starting in approximately 2013 and continuing through February 2015, KALOUDIS operated out of medical clinics in Long Island, where KALOUDIS, a Board certified, state licensed doctor, wrote medically unnecessary prescriptions for more than one thousand oxycodone pills in exchange for cash payments. On multiple occasions over the course of this two-year period, KALOUDIS charged hundreds or thousands of dollars in cash for “patient visits” that involved little, if any, actual examination and resulted in the issuance of a prescription for a large quantity of oxycodone, typically 30-milligram tablets. Some of the oxycodone illegally prescribed by KALOUDIS was subsequently resold, including in Virginia, resulting in the unlawful interstate distribution of thousands of oxycodone tablets.
Oxycodone is a prescription-strength Schedule II narcotic used to treat severe and chronic pain conditions. Oxycodone can result in addiction similar to an addiction to codeine or morphine, and there is an illegal market for oxycodone, as a substitute for – or adjunct to – other illegal narcotics, such as heroin.
The defendant is charged with one count of conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute oxycodone, which carries a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison. The statutory maximum sentence is prescribed by Congress and is provided here for informational purposes only, as any sentencing of the defendant would be determined by the judge.
Mr. Bharara thanked the FBI’s Health Care Fraud Task Force for their work in this investigation, which he noted is ongoing. The New York FBI Health Care Fraud Task Force was formed in 2007 in an effort to combat health care fraud in the greater New York City area. The task force comprises agents, officers, and investigators from the FBI, the NYPD, the New York State Insurance Fraud Bureau, the U.S. Department of Labor, the U.S. Office of Personnel Management Inspector General, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, the New York State Attorney General’s Office, the New York State Office of Medicaid Inspector General, the New York State Health and Hospitals Inspector General, the New York City Human Resources Administration’s Bureau of Fraud Investigation, and the National Insurance Crime Bureau.
The case is being prosecuted by the Office’s Narcotics Unit. Assistant U.S. Attorney Alex Rossmiller is in charge of the prosecution.
The charges contained in the Complaint are merely accusations, and the defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
U.S. v. Nicholas Kaloudis complaint
Louisiana Man Sentenced to 21 Years in Prison for Operating International Child Exploitation EnterpriseRead the Press Release
U.S. Attorney Kenneth A. Polite, Jr. announced that JONATHAN JOHNSON, age 28, of Abita Springs was sentenced today for Operating a Child Exploitation Enterprise, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 2252A(g).
JOHNSON was sentenced to 21 years incarceration by U.S. District Judge Nannette Jolivette Brown. Upon release from prison, JOHNSON will be placed on a term of supervised release for 10 years and he will also be required to register as a sex offender pursuant to the Sex Offender Registration and Notification Act. JOHNSON has been in federal custody since his arrest in June 2013.
According to court documents, from 2012 through 2013, JOHNSON administered two child pornography websites identified as Website A and Website B out of his Abita Springs, home in order to distribute images and videos depicting the sexual victimization of children. JOHNSON’s illegal websites had over 27,000 members located throughout the world. As the administrator of these websites, JOHNSON regulated membership in the websites and created two categories of website users: members and uploaders. JOHNSON required members to register with a user name and password before they could download video files, comment on videos, or exchange private messages. Uploaders had the same privileges as members, but were also permitted to upload sexually explicit material directly to JOHNSON’s websites. JOHNSON’s websites also included tutorials that provided guidance to members and uploaders on ways to communicate with minor boys in order to coerce them into creating sexually explicit videos and JOHNSON’s websites also provided instructions so members and uploaders could avoid detection from law enforcement. JOHNSON frequently utilized and encouraged other members and uploaders to access popular social networking sites in order to search for and locate unsuspecting minor boys for the purpose of having them create sexually explicit videos. JOHNSON and other website members and uploaders created fake female Internet personas in order to initiate online communications with young boys.
During the course of the investigation of JOHNSON, special agents with the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, Homeland Security Investigations and the U.S. Postal Inspection Service determined JOHNSON’s websites contained approximately 2,000 videos depicting the sexual exploitation of young boys. Dubbed “Operation Roundtable,” the case against JOHNSON has resulted in ten additional individuals being charged by the U.S. Attorney’s Office in New Orleans. To date, all ten of those defendants have entered pleas of guilty to crimes involving the sexual exploitation of children.
Operation Roundtable has resulted in over twenty-five additional defendants being arrested and charged with various state and federal charges throughout the United States and Canada and approximately 250 child victims have been identified and/or rescued by law enforcement officials.
“Today’s sentencing represents a significant step in our continued efforts to dismantle a criminal enterprise that is responsible for the sexual victimization of our nation’s young people,” stated United States Attorney Polite. “Once again, I commend HSI and the Postal Service for being dedicated partners in Operation Roundtable. Together, we are committed to utilizing our collective resources to bring justice to both the victims and the perpetrators of these crimes.”
“As the ringleader of a pack of sadistic child predators, this defendant is responsible for the sexual exploitation of hundreds of young victims, whose documented abuse was subsequently distributed to thousands of perverted criminals,” said Special Agent in Charge Raymond R. Parmer, Jr., ICE Homeland Security Investigations New Orleans. “There is simply no room in our society for such monsters, and I applaud the HSI special agents who put him in handcuffs and the federal prosecutors who put him behind bars. In this case, justice has been served.”
“Postal Inspectors have fought the scourge of child pornography since the 1900s, and we will never hesitate to pursue those who use the mail to exploit children,” said Acting Inspector in Charge Daniel Brubaker. We investigate a wide variety of crimes in our mission to protect the integrity of the U.S. Mail, but sexual exploitation of children is particularly heinous. When these predators use a combination of mail and the Internet to exploit our children we will ensure no aspect of their crimes escape justice.”
This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice. Led by United States Attorneys’ Offices and the Criminal Division's Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS), Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state and local resources to better locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the Internet, as well as to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.projectsafechildhood.gov.
U.S. Attorney Polite praised the work of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security-Homeland Security Investigations and the U.S. Postal Inspection Service in investigating this matter. Fraud Unit Chief and Project Safe Childhood Coordinator, Assistant U. S. Attorney Brian M. Klebba is in charge of the prosecution.
Long-Time Wilmington Housing Authority Employee Indicted on Drug Distribution ChargesRead the Press Release
WILMINGTON, Del. – Edwin Hernandez, 46, of Wilmington, Del., and Hector Hernandez, 36, of New Castle, Del., were indicted by a federal grand jury today on charges relating to the distribution of a half-kilogram of cocaine in Wilmington, Del., announced Charles M. Oberly, III, United States Attorney for the District of Delaware.
Edwin Hernandez has worked at the Wilmington Housing Authority as Maintenance Superintendent for over twenty years. According to the criminal complaint filed in the case, on February 5, 2015, Edwin Hernandez was arrested in a Wilmington Housing Authority van in the CVS Pharmacy parking lot at 1005 Delaware Avenue in Wilmington, Delaware. At the time of his arrest, he was found to be in possession of more than 500 grams of cocaine, which is valued at over $50,000.
Also charged was Edwin Hernandez’s brother, Hector Hernandez, who was arrested at the same time, in possession of a loaded firearm, near the CVS Pharmacy parking lot.
The defendants face two charges that each carry a maximum penalty of 40 years imprisonment (with a mandatory minimum of five years), up to a lifetime of supervised release (with a mandatory minimum of 4 years), a fine of up to $5,000,000 and a $100 special assessment, if convicted. In addition, Hector Hernandez faces a third charge, for possession of a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime, which carries an additional mandatory minimum term of 5 years imprisonment.
The case is the product of an investigation conducted by the Drug Enforcement Administration (“DEA”) Drug Trafficking Task Force, which is part of the New Castle County HIDTA, a recently established collaborative effort among federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies. The DEA Drug Trafficking Task Force includes members from the following agencies: DEA, Delaware State Police, New Castle County Police Department, Newark Police Department, Department of Homeland Security – Homeland Security Investigations, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, Delaware Probation and Parole, and the Delaware Attorney General’s Office. Assistant United States Attorney Shawn A. Weede and Special Assistant United States Attorney Elizabeth L. Van Pelt are prosecuting the case on behalf of the United States.
Indictments are only charges and are not evidence of guilt. A defendant is presumed to be innocent until and unless proven guilty.Level 3 Sex Offender and Former Member of Aryan Nation Sentenced for Failing to Register with AuthoritiesRead the Press Release
BOSTON – A former Cape Cod man who was residing in Missouri under an alias was sentenced yesterday for failing to register with law enforcement authorities as a sex offender.
David W. Lacouture, 52, was sentenced by U.S. District Court Judge Nathaniel M. Gorton to 78 months in prison and seven years of supervised release. In November 2014, Lacouture pleaded guilty to a one-count Indictment charging him with failing to register as a sex offender.
In September 2010, Lacouture was convicted in Barnstable County of indecent assault and battery on a child. As a result of that conviction, Lacouture was required to register as a Level 3 sex offender. At some point, Lacouture relocated to Florida and then Missouri where he failed to notify law enforcement authorities in Massachusetts, Florida, and Missouri. Notifications to law enforcement authorities are required so that sex offenders can be properly monitored, and so communities can have information about sex offenders living, working, or going to school in their neighborhoods. In April 2013, he was arrested under an alias on new state charges and returned to Massachusetts.
Lacouture’s previous criminal convictions include indecent exposure to an 11-year-old girl and a federal conviction for conspiracy to possess a firearm by a felon involving a Chinese SKS assault rifle. Furthermore, by his own admission, Lacouture was previously a member of the Aryan Nation.
United States Attorney Carmen M. Ortiz and John Gibbons, United States Marshal for District of Massachusetts, made the announcement. The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Suzanne Sullivan Jacobus of Ortiz's Major Crimes Unit.
Law Enforcement Tackles Drug Sales Near Schools in San FranciscoRead the Press Release
SAN FRANCISCO – U.S. Attorney Melinda Haag, Drug Enforcement Agency, Acting Special Agent in Charge Bruce Balzano, and San Francisco Police Chief Greg Suhr announced that 19 people have been indicted by a federal grand jury on charges of drug trafficking near schools and playgrounds in San Francisco. The indictments and arrests resulted from a continued partnership between the U.S. Attorney’s Office, the DEA, and the San Francisco Police Department in a program called Operation Safe Schools.
This iteration of Operation Safe Schools focused on the Tenderloin neighborhood and portions of the South of Market neighborhood, two areas notorious for drug dealing in San Francisco. In announcing the charges, U.S. Attorney Melinda Haag stressed the significance of protecting school zones. “The goal of Operation Safe Schools is to use the law enforcement tools available to us to make neighborhoods like the Tenderloin safe, and to ensure that children who live and go to school in these neighborhoods are not exposed to crime and drug dealing,” said U.S. Attorney Haag. “We intend to continue with this initiative and others like it until the children in our community are no longer exposed to these dangerous situations.”
According to Acting Special Agent in Charge Bruce Balzano, the DEA will continue to partner with other law enforcement agencies to protect children and schools from drug trafficking. “These partnerships are important because they allow us to better protect our communities. The Safe Schools program delivers an important message to drug dealers who do business in the Northern District of California: We will not tolerate drug trafficking in school zones or anywhere else,” said Acting SAC Balzano.
"I wish to thank the US Attorney's Office and DEA for their continued partnership with the San Francisco Police Department and their commitment to Operation Safe Schools,” said San Francisco Police Chief Suhr. “Together, we are making a difference in the lives of all residents in the Tenderloin area by preventing drug dealers from preying on young children near the schools they attend on a daily basis. Every child deserves an education and should not ever have to navigate drug dealers to get to school."
Over the past nine days, the following defendants have been arrested and brought before U.S. Magistrate Judges to answer charges:
- Sholanda Adams Case No. CR-15-0070 VC
- Crystal Anthony Case No. CR-15-0005 SI
- William Brown Case No. CR-15-0069 TEH
- Latonya Carey Case No. CR-15-0004 MMC
- Jahnai Carter Case No. CR-14-0642 MMC
- Tiffany Cross Case No. CR-15-0059 CRB
- Holbert Lee Case No. CR-15-0056 EMC
- Aaron Mathews Case No. CR-15-0049 WHA
- Vernon Hill, AKA Kali Muhammed Case No. CR-15-0068 CRB
- Mathew Mumphrey Case No. CR-14-0643 RS
- Andre Patterson Case No. CR-14-0642 MMC
- Ashley Pharr Case No. CR-15-0007 CRB
- Darell Powell Case No. CR-15-0006 WHA
- Tiana Reddic Case No. CR-15-0052 WHA
- Nijah Reed Case No. CR-15-0050 RS
- Darlene Rouse Case No. CR-15-0027 VC
- Irisha Smith Case No. CR-14-0641 WHA
- Ebony Wallace Case No. CR-15-0061 CRB
- Lakeysha White Case No. CR-15-0029 EMC
According to the charging documents, the defendants are each charged with the distribution of prohibited drugs on or within 1,000 feet of a school or playground, in violation of 21 U.S.C. §§ 841(a)(1) and 860. The defendants are charged with distributing various controlled substances, including “crack” cocaine, heroin, methamphetamine, and oxycodone, as specified in the individual indictments.
The maximum statutory penalty for violating the drug-free school zone statute is 40 years in prison, with a mandatory minimum sentence of one year in jail, at least six years and up to life on supervised release, and a maximum fine of up to $2,000,000. However, any sentence following conviction would be imposed by the court after consideration of the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and the federal statute governing the imposition of a sentence, 18 U.S.C. § 3553.
Sarah Hawkins and Lloyd Farnham are the Assistant U.S. Attorneys prosecuting these cases. The prosecutions are the result of multiple investigations by the San Francisco Police Department, the San Francisco Field Division of the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) and the United States Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of California.
Please note, an indictment contains only allegations and, as in all cases, the defendants listed above must be presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
Lavergne Tax Return Preparer Indicted for Tax FraudRead the Press Release
Michelle Theus, 40, of LaVergne, Tenn. was indicted yesterday by a federal grand jury in Nashville on charges related to preparing and filing false federal income tax returns, announced David Rivera, U. S. Attorney for the Middle District of Tennessee and Larry J. Wszalek, Acting Deputy Assistant Attorney General for the Justice Department's Tax Division. Theus was charged with 26 counts of aiding and assisting in the preparation of false tax returns for other individuals and two counts of filing false tax returns for herself.
According to the indictment, Theus aided in the preparation of at least 26 false tax returns for other individuals, from January 2009 through February 2012. The returns reported items such as false dependents and false education and childcare credits. The indictment further alleges that Theus made, signed, and filed false 2009 and 2010 tax returns that substantially underreported her income.
If convicted, Theus faces up to three years in prison and a $250,000 fine for each count.
The case was investigated by the Internal Revenue Service - Criminal Investigation. Assistant United States Attorney Kathryn Ward Booth and United States Department of Justice Tax Division Trial Attorney Alexander R. Effendi are representing the United States.An indictment is merely an accusation and is not evidence of guilt. Defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty in a court of law.
Kewa Pueblo Man Pleads Guilty to Federal Misdemeanor Assault ChargeRead the Press Release
ALBUQUERQUE –Ambrose Atencio, 51, a member and resident of Kewa Pueblo, N.M., pleaded guilty this morning to a misdemeanor information charging him with assaulting an Indian woman.
Atencio was arrested on Sept. 25, 2014, on a criminal complaint charging him with assaulting an intimate partner by strangulation. According to the complaint, on Sept. 12, 2014, BIA officers responded to a report of assault on Kewa Pueblo in Sandoval County, N.M. The complaint alleged that Atencio assaulted the victim, a Kewa woman, by striking her in the face and strangling the victim. Atencio was indicted on Oct. 21, 2014, and charged with assaulting an intimate partner by strangulation.
During today’s proceedings, Atencio entered a guilty plea to a misdemeanor information and admitted assaulting the victim by striking her with his hands on her face. Atencio also admitted grabbing the victim’s throat. As a result of the assault, the victim sustained bruises and contusions on her body, neck and facial area.
At sentencing, Atencio faces a penalty of up to 12 months in federal prison and up to five years of supervised release. Atencio has been in federal custody since his arrest and remains detained pending his sentencing hearing, which has yet to be scheduled.
This case was investigated by the Southern Pueblos Agency of the BIA’s Office of Justice Services. Assistant U.S. Attorney Linda Mott is prosecuting this case.
The case was brought pursuant to the Tribal Special Assistant U.S. Attorney (Tribal SAUSA) Pilot Project in the District of New Mexico which is sponsored by the Justice Department’s Office on Violence Against Women under a grant administered by the Pueblo of Laguna. The Tribal SAUSA Pilot Project seeks to train tribal prosecutors in federal law, procedure and investigative techniques to increase the likelihood that every viable violent offense against Native women is prosecuted in either federal court or tribal court, or both. The Tribal SAUSA Pilot Project was largely driven by input gathered from annual tribal consultations on violence against women, and is another step in the Justice Department's on-going efforts to increase engagement, coordination and action on public safety in tribal communities.
Kentucky Man Charged with Transporting 13-year-old Girl for SexRead the Press Release
Walter Lee Dunn, 31, of Richmond, Kentucky, was charged with transportation of a minor to engage in illegal sexual activity, said Steven M. Dettelbach, United States Attorney for the Northern District of Ohio.
The indictment charges on or about December 31, 2014, Dunn knowingly transported an individual who had not attained the age of 18 years, that is a 13 year-old girl, in interstate commerce from Ohio to Kentucky, with the intent that such 13 year-old girl engage in sexual activity for which Dunn could be charged with a criminal offense.
If convicted, the sentence in this case will be determined by the court after consideration of the Federal Sentencing Guidelines which depend upon a number of factors unique to each case, including the defendant’s prior criminal record, if any, the defendant’s role in the offense and the unique characteristics of the violation. In all cases the sentence will not exceed the statutory maximum and in most cases it will be less than the maximum.
This case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Michael A. Sullivan. The case was investigated by the Canton Office of the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Wayne County Sheriff’s Office.
An indictment is only a charge and is not evidence of guilt. A defendant is entitled to a fair trial in which it will be the government’s burden to prove guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.
Justice Department Settles Sexual Harassment and Retaliation Suit Against the State of Maryland, Queen Anne's County, and the Queen Anne's County SheriffRead the Press Release
The Justice Department announced today that it has entered into a consent decree with the state of Maryland and the Queen Anne’s County Sheriff. If approved by the court, the settlement will resolve Murphy-Taylor v. State of Maryland, et al., a sexual harassment and retaliation lawsuit in which the United States intervened in Feb. 2013. The United States previously entered into a consent decree with Queen Anne’s County in May 2014.
The United States’ complaint in intervention alleged that several supervisors in the Sheriff’s Office, including the Sheriff’s brother, subjected Kristy Murphy-Taylor to severe sexual harassment and that the Sheriff and members of his command staff retaliated against her when she complained in violation of Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. According to the United States’ complaint, over a number of years, Ms. Murphy-Taylor was subjected to numerous acts of unwanted sexual conduct by multiple supervisors including repeated incidents of unwanted sexual touching by the Sheriff’s brother. Despite Ms. Murphy-Taylor’s complaints about the harassment, the complaint alleges that the defendants failed to take prompt and effective corrective action. Instead, they allegedly subjected her to intolerable working conditions intended to make her quit, and ultimately terminated her for complaining about the sexual harassment by the Sheriff’s brother.
Under the terms of the consent decree with the state of Maryland and the Queen Anne’s County Sheriff, the defendants have agreed to revise the relevant sexual harassment policies and the procedures for handling complaints of sexual harassment and retaliation. In particular, the Maryland State Police will provide oversight for the handling of complaints of sexual harassment and retaliation made by employees of the Sheriff’s Office against sworn officers. Ms. Murphy- Taylor will also receive $250,000 in damages. Under the terms of the consent decree entered into with Queen Anne’s County in May 2014, Ms. Murphy-Taylor received $620,000 in damages including backpay, frontpay, and attorney’s fees, and Queen Anne’s County agreed to provide oversight and investigative functions for the handling of complaints of sexual harassment and retaliation made by employees of the Sheriff’s Office.
“No woman should have to face losing her job in order to be free from sexual harassment and retaliation at work,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General Vanita Gupta of the Civil Rights Division. “The Department of Justice is committed to eradicating sex discrimination in the workplace. The resolution of this lawsuit ensures that the Queen Anne’s County Sheriff’s Office will comply with federal law requiring employers to take prompt and effective corrective action to complaints of sexual harassment.”
"Workplace harassment should not be tolerated,” said EEOC Chair Jenny R. Yang. “Complaints of workplace harassment are among the most frequent complaints we receive at EEOC, accounting for 30% of the total charges we received last year. The Commission is working to prevent and address harassment through targeted outreach and enforcement.”
“This is another example of how collaboration between EEOC and the Department of Justice leads to effective enforcement of Title VII and ensures that public employees are protected from workplace discrimination and retaliation prohibited by Title VII,” said Director Spencer H. Lewis Jr. of the EEOC’s Philadelphia District Office. The Philadelphia District Office of the EEOC has offices in Philadelphia, Baltimore, Cleveland, and Pittsburgh, and oversees Pennsylvania, Maryland, Delaware, West Virginia and parts of New Jersey and Ohio.
This lawsuit was brought by the Department of Justice as a result of a joint effort to enhance collaboration between the EEOC and the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division for vigorous enforcement of Title VII.
More information about Title VII and other federal employment laws is available on the website of the Employment Litigation Section of the Civil Rights Division (www.justice.gov/crt/about/emp/).
Jamaican Man First to be Extradited to Face Fraud Charges in International Lottery SchemeRead the Press Release
A 28-year-old man was extradited from Jamaica based on charges that he committed fraud as part of an international lottery scheme against elderly victims in the United States, the Justice Department announced today.
Damion Bryan Barrett is charged in a 38-count indictment in the Southern District of Florida with conspiracy and 37 counts of wire fraud, and with committing these offenses via telemarketing. According to the indictment, Barrett and his co-conspirators fraudulently induced elderly victims in the United States to send them thousands of dollars to pay purported fees for lottery winnings that victims had not in fact won. Barrett is the first Jamaican citizen to be extradited from Jamaica to the United States based on charges of defrauding Americans in connection with a lottery scheme.
Barrett arrived today in Opa-locka, Florida. He will make his initial appearance on Feb. 13 before Magistrate Judge Alicia O. Valle in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. Barrett was indicted by a federal grand jury in Fort Lauderdale on Aug. 9, 2012, and was arrested last month in Jamaica based on the United States’ request that he be extradited. Barrett’s extradition is the latest step in the United States’ ongoing crackdown on fraudulent lottery schemes based in Jamaica.
According to the indictment, beginning in October 2008, Barrett and his co-conspirators contacted victims in the United States announcing that the victims had won cash and prizes and persuaded the victims to send them thousands of dollars in fees to release the money. The victims never received cash or prizes. The defendant and his co-conspirators allegedly made calls from Jamaica using voice over internet protocol technology that allowed them to use a telephone number with a U.S. area code. According to the indictment, Barrett convinced victims to send money to middlemen in South Florida, who then forwarded the money to Jamaica.
“Persons who commit crimes against American seniors from outside of the United States will be held accountable,” said U.S. Attorney Wifredo Ferrer of the Southern District of Florida. “This case serves as an example that there are no borders when it comes to obtaining justice for the victims of these lottery schemes.”
“The Department of Justice will find and prosecute those responsible for fraud against American consumers, no matter where the perpetrator resides,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General Joyce R. Branda of the Justice Department’s Civil Division. “Lottery schemes that target elderly victims for fraud cannot, and will not, be tolerated.”
“Today’s extradition signals strong partnership between the Jamaica Constabulary Force and our U.S. law enforcement partners,” said Commissioner of Police Dr. Carl Williams of the Jamaica Constabulary Force. “We use this opportunity to warn other lottery scammers who continue to prey on unsuspecting U.S. citizens, that they too will pay the penalty, whether through conviction in Jamaica or through extradition to the United States. We continue to address this with a high level of attention to contain the scourge.”
If convicted, Barrett faces a statutory maximum sentence of 30 years in prison per count, a possible fine and mandatory restitution. Barrett’s co-defendant, Oneike Barnett, 29, pleaded guilty on Feb. 28, 2014, to conspiracy to commit wire fraud. On April 29, 2014, U.S. District Court Judge William J. Zloch sentenced Barnett to serve 60 months in prison and five years of supervised release, and to pay $94,456 in restitution for his role in this case.
“These criminal telemarking scams heartlessly target the elderly in the United States, at times stealing their life savings,” said Special Agent in Charge Alysa D. Erichs of Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) Miami. “The successful extradition of Damion Bryan Barrett sends a clear message that the cooperation between our countries is focused on bringing these offenders to justice despite borders that separate us. This extradition and hopefully others that may follow suit will have a positive impact on diminishing this crime.”
“Together with our international and domestic law enforcement partners we have proven that justice has no borders,” said U.S. Postal Inspector in Charge Ronald Verrochio of the U.S. Postal Inspection Service’s (USPIS) Miami Division. “We will continue to investigate and prosecute those who defraud American citizens, anywhere in the world.”
“The U.S. Marshals Service, together with our federal partners, will continue to track down and bring to justice those that would pray on our most vulnerable in our country,” said U.S. Marshal Amos Rojas of the Southern District of Florida.
U.S. Attorney Ferrer and Acting Assistant Attorney General Branda commended the investigative efforts of USPIS, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) HSI Miami and the U.S. Marshals Service. The case is being prosecuted by Trial Attorney Kathryn Drenning of the Civil Division’s Consumer Protection Branch and Assistant U.S. Attorney Bertha Mitrani of the Southern District of Florida.
An indictment is merely an allegation, and every defendant is presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.
Attachments: Indictment - Damion Bryan Barrett (PDF)
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 http://www.usdoj.gov/usao/fls. Related court documents and information may be found on the website of the District Court for the Southern District of Florida at http://www.flsd.uscourts.gov or on http://pacer.flsd.uscourts.gov.
Jamaican Man First to Be Extradited to Face Fraud Charges in International Lottery SchemeRead the Press Release
A 28-year-old man was extradited from Jamaica based on charges that he committed fraud as part of an international lottery scheme against elderly victims in the United States, the Justice Department announced today.
Damion Bryan Barrett is charged in a 38-count indictment in the Southern District of Florida with conspiracy and 37 counts of wire fraud, and with committing these offenses via telemarketing. According to the indictment, Barrett and his co-conspirators fraudulently induced elderly victims in the United States to send them thousands of dollars to pay purported fees for lottery winnings that victims had not in fact won. Barrett is the first Jamaican citizen to be extradited from Jamaica to the United States based on charges of defrauding Americans in connection with a lottery scheme.
Barrett arrived today in Opa-locka, Florida. He will make his initial appearance on Feb. 13 before Magistrate Judge Alicia O. Valle in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. Barrett was indicted by a federal grand jury in Fort Lauderdale on Aug. 9, 2012, and was arrested last month in Jamaica based on the United States’ request that he be extradited. Barrett’s extradition is the latest step in the United States’ ongoing crackdown on fraudulent lottery schemes based in Jamaica.
According to the indictment, beginning in October 2008, Barrett and his co-conspirators contacted victims in the United States announcing that the victims had won cash and prizes and persuaded the victims to send them thousands of dollars in fees to release the money. The victims never received cash or prizes. The defendant and his co-conspirators allegedly made calls from Jamaica using voice over internet protocol technology that allowed them to use a telephone number with a U.S. area code. According to the indictment, Barrett convinced victims to send money to middlemen in South Florida, who then forwarded the money to Jamaica.
“The Department of Justice will find and prosecute those responsible for fraud against American consumers, no matter where the perpetrator resides,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General Joyce R. Branda of the Justice Department’s Civil Division. “Lottery schemes that target elderly victims for fraud cannot, and will not, be tolerated.”
“Persons who commit crimes against American seniors from outside of the United States will be held accountable,” said U.S. Attorney Wifredo Ferrer of the Southern District of Florida. “This case serves as an example that there are no borders when it comes to obtaining justice for the victims of these lottery schemes.”
“Today's extradition signals strong partnership between the Jamaica Constabulary Force and our U.S. law enforcement partners,” said Commissioner of Police Dr. Carl Williams of the Jamaica Constabulary Force. “We use this opportunity to warn other lottery scammers who continue to prey on unsuspecting U.S. citizens, that they too will pay the penalty, whether through conviction in Jamaica or through extradition to the United States. We continue to address this with a high level of attention to contain the scourge.”
If convicted, Barrett faces a statutory maximum sentence of 30 years in prison per count, a possible fine and mandatory restitution. Barrett’s co-defendant, Oneike Barnett, 29, pleaded guilty on Feb. 28, 2014, to conspiracy to commit wire fraud. On April 29, 2014, U.S. District Court Judge William J. Zloch sentenced Barnett to serve 60 months in prison and five years of supervised release, and to pay $94,456 in restitution for his role in this case.
“These criminal telemarking scams heartlessly target the elderly in the United States, at times stealing their life savings,” said Special Agent in Charge Alysa D. Erichs of Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) Miami. “The successful extradition of Damion Bryan Barrett sends a clear message that the cooperation between our countries is focused on bringing these offenders to justice despite borders that separate us. This extradition and hopefully others that may follow suit will have a positive impact on diminishing this crime.”
“Together with our international and domestic law enforcement partners we have proven that justice has no borders,” said U.S. Postal Inspector in Charge Ronald Verrochio of the U.S. Postal Inspection Service’s (USPIS) Miami Division. “We will continue to investigate and prosecute those who defraud American citizens, anywhere in the world.”
“The U.S. Marshals Service, together with our federal partners, will continue to track down and bring to justice those that would pray on our most vulnerable in our country,” said U.S. Marshal Amos Rojas of the Southern District of Florida.
Acting Assistant Attorney General Branda and U.S. Attorney Ferrer commended the investigative efforts of USPIS, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) HSI Miami and the U.S. Marshals Service. The case is being prosecuted by Trial Attorney Kathryn Drenning of the Civil Division’s Consumer Protection Branch and Assistant U.S. Attorney Bertha Mitrani of the Southern District of Florida.
An indictment is merely an allegation, and every defendant is presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.
Jacksonville Man Sentenced to 10 Years in Federal Prison for Receiving Child Pornography over the InternetRead the Press Release
Jacksonville, Florida – Senior United States District Judge Harvey E. Schlesinger has sentenced Shaun Andrew Copenhaver (29, Jacksonville) to 10 years in federal prison for knowingly receiving child pornography over the Internet. He was also ordered to serve a 15-year term of supervision following his incarceration, to register as a sex offender, and to forfeit his computer media. Copenhaver has been in custody since his arrest on February 6, 2014.
According to court documents, an agent with the Florida Department of Law Enforcement in Jacksonville began an undercover investigation to identify individuals in the area that had access to and/or were trading images and videos of child pornography over the Internet. The agent determined that a local computer was hosting images of child pornography using a peer-to-peer file sharing program, and was able to download several pornographic videos from this computer. Further investigation traced the Internet subscriber information to Copenhaver’s Jacksonville residence
On February 6, 2014, law enforcement officers executed a federal search warrant at Copenhaver’s residence and seized a computer and an external hard disk drive. Copenhaver was at the residence. During an interview with agents, he admitted that he had been involved in downloading child pornography from the Internet for about five years. Subsequent analyses of Copenhaver’s external hard drive revealed that it contained videos depicting the sexual abuse of children.
This case was investigated by the Florida Department of Law Enforcement, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, and the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office. It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney D. Rodney Brown.
This 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.
Honduran National Charged with Illegal ReentryRead the Press Release
U.S. Attorney Kenneth A. Polite announced that ERIC SAMUEL MOTINO-ALVAREZ, age 27, a citizen of Honduras with a prior felony conviction, was charged today in a one-count Indictment with illegal reentry of a removed alien.
According to the indictment, MOTINO-ALVAREZ reentered the United States on or about January 29, 2015, after having been previously removed on October 2, 2009.
If convicted, MOTINO-ALVAREZ faces an enhanced maximum term of imprisonment of twenty years, a maximum fine of $250,000, a maximum term of supervised release of one year, and a mandatory $100 special assessment.
U. S. Attorney Polite reiterated that an Indictment is merely a charge and that the guilt of the defendant must be proven beyond a reasonable doubt.
U.S. Attorney Polite praised the work of the United States Department of Homeland Security in investigating this matter. Assistant U.S. Attorney Spiro G. Latsis is in charge of the prosecution.
Hobbs Man Sentenced to Ten Years in Federal Prison for Methamphetamine Drug Trafficking ConvictionRead the Press Release
ALBUQUERQUE – Clinton Leroy Skippings, 58, of Hobbs, N.M., was sentenced today in federal court in Las Cruces, N.M., to 120 months in prison followed by five years of supervised release for his methamphetamine trafficking conviction. The sentence was announced by U.S. Attorney Damon P. Martinez, 5th Judicial District Attorney Janetta B. Hicks, Special Agent in Charge Will R. Glaspy of the DEA’s El Paso Field Division and Commander Byron Wester of the Lea County Drug Task Force (LCDTF).
Skippings was arrested on Dec. 18, 2013, on a criminal complaint charging him with possession methamphetamine and cocaine with intent to distribute in Lea County, N.M. According to the complaint, on Oct. 10, 2013, LCDTF officers executed search warrants on Skippings, his residence and his vehicle, and seized quantities of methamphetamine, cocaine and marijuana, more than $6,800.00 in cash, and packaging materials and other drug paraphernalia.
On Mar. 17, 2014, Skippings pled guilty to a felony information charging him with possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine. Skippings admitted that when he was stopped by LCDTF officers on Oct. 10, 2013, he was in possession of methamphetamine and crack cocaine which he intended to sell to another person who unbeknownst to him was cooperating with law enforcement. Skippings also admitted that on that same day, officers executed a search warrant at his residence and seized methamphetamine, cocaine and crack cocaine which he intended to distribute to others.
This case was investigated by the Lea County Drug Task Force, the Las Cruces office of the DEA and was 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.
Greenville, TX Man Sentenced to Life in Federal Prison for Transporting A Minor to Mexico for Sexual PurposesRead the Press Release
In Midland today, U.S. District Judge Robert A. Junell sentenced 35-year-old Joel Aguirre-Lara of Greenville, TX, to life in federal prison for transporting a minor to Mexico for sexual purposes announced Acting United States Attorney Richard L. Durbin, Jr. and Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) Special Agent in Charge Waldemar Rodriguez in El Paso.
On October 15, 2014, a jury convicted Aguirre-Lara of one count of transportation of a minor to engage in sexual activity and one count of aggravated sexual abuse of a child under 12. Evidence presented at trial revealed that on January 10, 2014, Aguirre-Lara, formerly of Del Rio, TX, transported a minor female across the border to Ciudad Acuna, Mexico, where he then proceeded to engage in sexual activity with the minor. Testimony during trial also revealed that Aguirre-Lara had sexual relations with the minor female over a period of approximately three years beginning when she was eight years old.
On April 9, 2014, the Midland County Sheriff’s Office was contacted by the victim’s mother regarding the sexual assault of the victim in this case. The victim was taken to the Midland Rape Crisis and Children’s Advocacy Center for an evaluation and interview. A federal criminal complaint was filed on April 11, 2014, and an arrest warrant was issued for Aguirre-Lara. He was arrested on April 15, 2014, in Greenville, TX, and has remained in federal custody ever since.
This case was investigated by Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) together with the Texas Department of Public Safety, Midland County Sheriff’s Office and the Midland Rape Crisis and Children’s Advocacy Center. Assistant United States Attorney Austin Berry prosecuted this case on behalf of the Government.
Fugitive for Nearly Three Decades Arrested in Alabama Applying for Social Security NumberRead the Press Release
BIRMINGHAM -- A 28-year fugitive from Arizona soon will be returned to the Grand Canyon State following his arrest this month in Alabama, where he applied for a Social Security card under an assumed identity.
U.S. Attorney Joyce White Vance, Social Security Administration, Office of Inspector General, Special Agent in Charge Thomas J. Caul, U.S. Secret Service Special Agent in Charge Craig Caldwell and U.S. Marshal Chester M. Keely announced the arrest and extradition of STANLEY SHANE SELF, 74. Self has been a fugitive from Arizona since 1986 when a state court jury in La Paz County, Ariz., convicted him on three felony counts of child molestation in 1982.
"This man skirted justice for many years, but he did not escape it," Vance said. "Thanks to an alert Social Security employee in Albertville and swift investigation by Social Security OIG and Secret Service agents, Self will soon face the punishment for his crimes committed more than 30 years ago in Arizona."
"The Office of the Inspector General has no higher priority than to protect the integrity of the Social Security programs, in this case the issuance of a Social Security Number," Caul said. "The Social Security employees who identified the potential fraud, the U.S. Attorney's Office, the Secret Service and the Gulf Coast Regional Fugitive Task Force are to be commended for taking a serious felon off the street."
Self had been living for years under the stolen identity of Terry Harlan Martell, a Utah resident who died in 1987, according to court records. Self presented a Rhode Island birth certificate and an Oklahoma driver's license in Martell's name when he applied for a Social Security number in Albertville on Jan. 5, according to an affidavit supporting the criminal complaint charging him with making a false statement to a federal agency. Special agents with the Social Security Administration's OIG arrested Self on the complaint Feb. 3.
A federal magistrate judge in the Northern District of Alabama on Wednesday granted the government's motion to dismiss the false statement charges against Self so that he can be returned to Arizona. The government's motion said Self is being held on an Arizona warrant resulting from his 1986 convictions and that the La Paz County Sheriff's Office has arranged to transport Self to Arizona.
According to the affidavit filed in federal court in Alabama, a clerk in the Albertville SSA office searched agency databases for Terry Harlan Martell when Self applied for a Social Security number in that name. The data searches showed a Social Security number had been issued to Martell in 1963, and that Martell died in February 1987, according to the affidavit. Further investigation confirmed that the Rhode Island Department of Public Health issued a copy of Martell's birth certificate in March 1987, and that Oklahoma first issued a driver's license to Self, as Martell, in 1995.
Self was living in Hollywood, Ala., in Jackson County, when he was arrested. He previously had lived in the Birmingham area, with addresses listed in Vestavia Hills and Mulga.
SSA-OIG investigated the case, with assistance from the Secret Service and U.S. Marshals.
###Four Arrested for Conspiring to Commit Health Care Fraud and Money LaunderingRead the Press Release
HOUSTON – Aliksandr Beketav, 53, Mikhail Shiforenko, 43, Alexsandr Voronov, 46, and Daniela Gozes-Wagner, 32, have been arrested following the return of a federal indictment alleging a health care fraud conspiracy and conspiracy to commit money laundering, announced U.S. Attorney Kenneth Magidson.
The two-count Indictment was returned Dec. 17, 2014, and unsealed following their initial appearances before U.S. Magistrate Stephen W. Smith this afternoon. They were temporarily ordered into custody pending a hearing set for Tuesday, Feb. 17, 2015, at 2:00 p.m.
Shiforenko, Voronov and Gozes-Wagner are all residents of Houston, while Beketav is from Calabasas, Calif.
The indictment alleges that from approximately 2007 through the present, the defendants conspired to falsely bill Medicare and Medicaid for numerous unnecessary medical tests. According to the indictment, they paid Medicare and Medicaid beneficiaries to visit so-called “testing facilities” run by the defendants in the Houston area. The defendants caused employees of the testing facilities to visit purportedly homebound beneficiaries (to whom the defendants gained access by way of collusive arrangements with home-health care agencies) in order to conduct diagnostic tests on the beneficiaries at their homes, according to the allegations. The defendants then allegedly caused Medicare and Medicaid to be billed for diagnostic tests that were not performed or were not medically necessary.
In order to hide their fraud from authorities, the indictment alleges they would frequently change the names of the testing facilities and medical professionals listed in the bills submitted to Medicare and Medicaid. For example, if bills submitted to Medicare listing a particular doctor drew scrutiny from reviewing officials, defendants would allegedly cause that doctor’s name to be removed from future submissions, and for another doctor’s name to be substituted on the bill.
The defendants allegedly operated, among others, Dashwood Doctors Medical Clinic, Southwest Healthcare & Diagnostics, Harwin Healthcare & Diagnostic, Hilcroft Healthcare & Diagnostic, Gulfton Healthcare Inc., Westpark Healthcare & Diagnostics, Village Diagnostic Clinic Inc., and 7111 Medical Clinic Inc. in the Houston area, where these tests were purported to have been done. According to the indictment, the defendants submitted more than $28 million in fraudulent Medicare and Medicaid claims under the auspices of those eight facilities, of which Medicare and Medicaid paid more than $11 million.
The Indictment also alleges that from 2007 through the present, the defendants conspired to launder money which were proceeds of their health care fraud.
If convicted of conspiring to commit health care fraud, each faces up to 10 years in federal prison. For conspiring to launder money, they also face 20 years in federal prison, upon conviction. The Indictment also seeks forfeiture of at least $11,440,349 alleged to constitute the proceeds of the unlawful scheme.
The charges are the result of the investigative efforts of the FBI, Texas Attorney General’s Office - Medicaid Fraud Control Unit, and Department of Health and Human Services – Office of Inspector General with the assistance of the Office of Personnel Management and the Railroad Retirement Board. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Michael Chu and Jason Smith are prosecuting the case.
An Indictment is a formal accusation of criminal conduct, not evidence.
A defendant is presumed innocent unless convicted through due process of law.Former Tifton Bank President and CEO Indicted for Bank FraudRead the Press Release
A former bank president was charged today for his role in a bank fraud scheme in which he is alleged to have hidden underperforming and at-risk loans from the bank and the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC), among others, announced Assistant Attorney General Leslie R. Caldwell of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division and U.S. Attorney Michael J. Moore of the Middle District of Georgia.
Gary Patton Hall Jr., 49, of Tifton, Georgia, was indicted today by a grand jury in the Middle District of Georgia with six counts of bank fraud and one count of major fraud against the United States.
According to allegations in the indictment, Hall was the president and Chief Executive Officer of Tifton Banking Company (TBC) from August 2005 until June 2010. During that time, Hall was allegedly engaged in a long running scheme to mislead the bank and its loan committee about loans TBC made to local individuals and businesses. As part of the scheme, Hall allegedly hid past due loans from the FDIC and the TBC loan committee, which resulted in the bank continuing to approve and renew delinquent loans and loans for which the collateral was lacking. Several of the borrowers eventually defaulted on the loans, resulting in millions of dollars in losses to TBC and others.
Hall also allegedly hid his personal and business interests in at least two of the transactions over which he exercised approval authority. For example, in one instance, Hall allegedly approved several loans to the buyer of his condominium in Panama City Beach, Florida. In doing so, Hall allegedly made several false representations about the loans to TBC’s loan committee, and failed to disclose his personal interest in the transaction. When the buyer’s loan payments became delinquent, Hall allegedly hid the loans from both the FDIC and state regulators. Hall allegedly received $50,000 from the sale of his condominium in this transaction, which was allegedly funded in full by an unsecured loan to the buyer approved by Hall. The buyer eventually declared bankruptcy resulting in a loss of more than $400,000 to TBC.
TBC was closed by the Georgia Department of Banking and Finance in November 2010 due to its poor financial condition. At that time, TBC had not repaid the $3.8 million it received from the Department of Treasury’s Troubled Asset Relief Program.
The charges contained in an indictment are merely accusations, and a defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
The case is being investigated by the FBI, the Department of Treasury’s Special Inspector General for the Troubled Asset Relief Program, the Small Business Administration’s Office of the Inspector General, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation’s Office of the Inspector General, the Department of Agriculture’s Office of Inspector General and the Tifton County Sheriff’s Office. The case is being prosecuted by Senior Trial Attorney N. Nathan Dimock of the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section and Assistant U.S. Attorney Robert McCullers of the Middle District of Georgia.
Former Tifton Bank President and CEO Indicted for Bank FraudRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON – A former bank president was charged today for his role in a bank fraud scheme in which he is alleged to have hidden underperforming and at-risk loans from the bank and the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC), among others, announced Assistant Attorney General Leslie R. Caldwell of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division and U.S. Attorney Michael J. Moore of the Middle District of Georgia.Gary Patton Hall Jr., 49, of Tifton, Georgia, was indicted today by a grand jury in the Middle District of Georgia with six counts of bank fraud and one count of major fraud against the United States.
According to allegations in the indictment, Hall was the president and Chief Executive Officer of Tifton Banking Company (TBC) from August 2005 until June 2010. During that time, Hall was allegedly engaged in a long running scheme to mislead the bank and its loan committee about loans TBC made to local individuals and businesses. As part of the scheme, Hall allegedly hid past due loans from the FDIC and the TBC loan committee, which resulted in the bank continuing to approve and renew delinquent loans and loans for which the collateral was lacking. Several of the borrowers eventually defaulted on the loans, resulting in millions of dollars in losses to TBC and others.
Hall also allegedly hid his personal and business interests in at least two of the transactions over which he exercised approval authority. For example, in one instance, Hall allegedly approved several loans to the buyer of his condominium in Panama City Beach, Florida. In doing so, Hall allegedly made several false representations about the loans to TBC’s loan committee, and failed to disclose his personal interest in the transaction. When the buyer’s loan payments became delinquent, Hall allegedly hid the loans from both the FDIC and state regulators. Hall allegedly received $50,000 from the sale of his condominium in this transaction, which was allegedly funded in full by an unsecured loan to the buyer approved by Hall. The buyer eventually declared bankruptcy resulting in a loss of more than $400,000 to TBC.
TBC was closed by the Georgia Department of Banking and Finance in November 2010 due to its poor financial condition. At that time, TBC had not repaid the $3.8 million it received from the Department of Treasury’s Troubled Asset Relief Program.
The charges contained in an indictment are merely accusations, and a defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
The case is being investigated by the FBI, the Department of Treasury’s Special Inspector General for the Troubled Asset Relief Program, the Small Business Administration’s Office of the Inspector General, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation’s Office of the Inspector General, the Department of Agriculture’s Office of Inspector General and the Tifton County Sheriff’s Office. The case is being prosecuted by Senior Trial Attorney N. Nathan Dimock of the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section and Assistant U.S. Attorney Robert McCullers of the Middle District of Georgia.
Former Lowell Resident Sentenced for Illegal Firearm PossessionRead the Press Release
BOSTON – A former Lowell man and convicted felon was sentenced yesterday for illegally possessing multiple firearms, including a semi-automatic pistol.
Eric Texeira, 34, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Denise J. Casper to 42 months in prison and three years of supervised release. In November 2014, Texeira pleaded guilty to a one-count Information charging him with being a felon in possession of firearms and ammunition.
On May 16, 2014, Texeira, a convicted felon, possessed a Glock semi-automatic pistol and sold multiple other firearms, including two revolvers and a rifle, to another individual for $1,300. Some of the firearms had obliterated serial numbers.
United States Attorney Carmen M. Ortiz; Daniel J. Kumor, Special Agent in Charge of Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, Boston Field Division; and Lowell Police Superintendent William Taylor, made the announcement. The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Suzanne Sullivan Jacobus of Ortiz's Major Crimes Unit.
Former Houston CPA Convicted of Bankruptcy FraudRead the Press Release
HOUSTON - Stuart Bruce Zidell, 64, of Spring, has entered a plea of guilty to committing bankruptcy fraud, announced U.S. Attorney Kenneth Magidson.
Zidell filed a Chapter 7 bankruptcy petition on Nov. 22, 2011, seeking discharge from debt under the U.S. bankruptcy code. As part of that process, he completed the necessary schedules of his assets and liabilities and a Statement of Financial Affairs.
As part of his plea today, Zidell has admitted he sent an email to a creditor of his estate in which he offered the creditor a sum of money if they agreed not to contest is Chapter 7 bankruptcy case.
In order for the bankruptcy system to work for all parties it is imperative for the debtor to be truthful and forthright in all aspects of the bankruptcy process. The bankruptcy system is based on an honor system; the debtor agrees to provide all of the necessary information requested by the trustee and to assist the trustee in collecting all assets of debtors and comply with the court’s orders to obtain the relief desired under the chapter the case was filed.
U.S. District Judge Keith P. Ellison, who accepted the plea today, has set sentencing for Feb. 19, 2015, at which time Zidell faces up to five years in federal prison and a possible $250,000 fine. He was permitted to remain on bond pending that hearing.
The charges are the result of an investigation conducted by the FBI with assistance from the United States Trustee’s Office. Assistant U.S. Attorney Quincy L. Ollison is prosecuting the case.
Former Hancock County Judge SentencedRead the Press Release
Michael J. Moore, United States Attorney for the Middle District of Georgia, announced that Marva Rice, former Probate Judge for Hancock County,was sentenced today by the Honorable Judge Marc T. Treadwell, United States District Judge, in Macon, Georgia for two counts of theft of federal funds from Hancock County. Ms. Rice was sentenced to serve 21 months in federal prison and pay restitution in the amount of $63,864.70 to Hancock County.Ms. Rice entered a guilty plea to the charges on October 23, 2014. Facts stipulated in the plea agreement showed that as Hancock County Probate Judge, Ms. Rice was responsible for collecting fines and fees and for depositing those funds into the Probate Court bank account. An investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation revealed that in 2012, Ms. Rice failed to deposit funds in the amount of $43,864.70. Then in 2013, after the FBI was conducting its investigation, Ms. Rice used Hancock County funds to pay for her own personal legal fees in the amount of $20,000.
“We count on the people who are sworn to uphold the law and administer justice to do just that. When Ms. Rice stole these funds, she not only took money she had no right to take, but she also violated the public trust. It is a sad day to see a judge go from wearing a black robe to wearing a federal prison uniform,” said United States Attorney Michael Moore.
The case was investigated by Special Agent Gregory McClendon of the Federal Bureau of Investigation. The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Graham Thorpe.
Inquiries regarding the case should be directed to Pamela Lightsey at the United States Attorney’s Office at 478-621-2603.Former Etna Resident Gets 10-Year Prison Sentence for Distributing Child PornographyRead the Press Release
PITTSBURGH- A former resident of Etna, Pennsylvania, has been sentenced in federal court to 10 years imprisonment followed by 25 years supervised release on his conviction of distribution of material depicting the sexual exploitation of a minor, United States Attorney David J. Hickton announced today.
Chief United States District Judge Joy Flowers Conti imposed the sentence on David L. Roethlein, 26, formerly of Etna, Pennsylvania.
According to information presented to the court, Roethlein, on June 1, 2012, distributed over a peer-to-peer network to an agent of the Federal Bureau of Investigation in New Haven, Connecticut, working in an undercover capacity, videos and photographs in computer graphics files which depicted the sexual exploitation of prepubescent minor females.
Assistant United States Attorney Carolyn J. Bloch prosecuted this case on behalf of the government.
U.S. Attorney Hickton commended the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Allegheny County District Attorney’s Office for the investigation leading to the successful prosecution of Roethlein.
This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by the United States Attorneys' Offices and the Criminal Division's Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who sexually exploit children, and to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.justice.gov/psc.
Florida Man Sentenced to Prison for Role in Multimillion Dollar Drug TheftRead the Press Release
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The United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut announced that ALEXANDER MARQUEZ, 41, of Hialeah, Fla., was sentenced today by U.S. District Judge Janet Bond Arterton in New Haven to 12 months of imprisonment, followed by three years of supervised release, for his role in the theft of pharmaceuticals from an Eli Lilly Company warehouse and storage facility in Enfield, Conn.
According to court documents and statements made in court, in early 2010, Amaury Villa, Amed Villa, Yosmany Nunez and MARQUEZ planned to steal pharmaceuticals from the Eli Lilly Company warehouse and storage facility in Enfield. The investigation revealed that, prior to the theft, Amaury Villa and Nunez traveled from the Miami area to Connecticut to gather information about the warehouse facility and the surrounding area. Shortly before the theft, Amed Villa and Rafael Lopez traveled to Flushing, N.Y., where they purchased tools needed to break into the warehouse facility, and then traveled to Connecticut.
In the evening of March 13, 2010, individuals involved in the theft dropped off a ladder in the rear parking lot of the warehouse facility and left. That same night, MARQUEZ drove a tractor trailer to the facility. Thereafter, Amed Villa and Amaury Villa carried the ladder to the building, checked for security in the front area, climbed onto the roof, used the tools Amed Villa and Lopez had purchased to cut a hole in the facility roof, dropped down into the facility and disabled the alarm system. Amaury Villa, Amed Villa and Nunez then loaded more than 40 pallets of pharmaceuticals into the tractor trailer, which had been backed up to the loading dock of the warehouse.
The pallets of pharmaceuticals included thousands of boxes Zyprexa, Cymbalta, Prozac, Gemzar and other medicines, valued between $50 and $100 million.
The individuals who participated in the theft split up in Connecticut. MARQUEZ then drove the tractor trailer to Florida, where he subsequently reunited with Amaury Villa, Amed Villa and Nunez so the pharmaceuticals could be transferred from the tractor trailer into self-storage units in the Miami area.
On October 14, 2011, law enforcement authorities searched a storage facility in Florida and recovered pharmaceuticals that had been stolen from the Enfield warehouse.
Judge Arterton ordered MARQUEZ to pay restitution in the approximate amount of $60 million. The exact amount of restitution to be ordered will be determined after further submissions by the parties.
MARQUEZ, a citizen of Cuba, was arrested on April 17, 2014. On November 5, 2014, he pleaded guilty to one count of transportation of stolen property.
Amaury Villa, Amed Villa, Nunez and Lopez also have pleaded guilty. On February 4, 2015, Nunez was sentenced to 75 months of imprisonment. Amaury Villa, Amed Villa and Lopez await sentencing.
This matter is being investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Enfield Police Department, with the assistance of several other U.S. Attorney’s Offices and federal, state and local law enforcement agencies that have been investigating large-scale thefts of pharmaceuticals and other products.
The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Anastasia E. King and Douglas P. Morabito.
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(203) 821-3722 [email protected]Elyria Man Indicted for Child Pornography CrimesRead the Press Release
Douglas Kushen, 44, of Elyria, was charged with receiving, distributing and possessing visual depictions of minors engaged in sexually explicit conduct, said Steven M. Dettelbach, United States Attorney for the Northern District of Ohio.
The indictment charges that from on or about June 29, 2003, through on or about August 14, 2011, Kushen knowingly received and distributed in interstate and foreign commerce, by computer, numerous computer files, which files contained visual depictions of real minors engaged in sexually explicit conduct. The indictment also charges that on or about August 12, 2014, Kushen possessed computer disks that contained child pornography.
If convicted, the sentence in this case will be determined by the court after consideration of the Federal Sentencing Guidelines which depend upon a number of factors unique to each case, including the defendant’s prior criminal record, if any, the defendant’s role in the offense and the unique characteristics of the violation. In all cases the sentence will not exceed the statutory maximum and in most cases it will be less than the maximum.
This case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Michael A. Sullivan. The case was investigated by the Elyria Office of the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Elyria Police Department.
An indictment is only a charge and is not evidence of guilt. A defendant is entitled to a fair trial in which it will be the government’s burden to prove guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.
District Man Pleads Guilty to Manslaughter in Death of His Infant SonBaby Had Fractures of Skull and RibsRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON – Tyrik Lamont Brown, 20, of Washington, D.C., pled guilty today to a charge of voluntary manslaughter stemming from the death last fall of his one-month-old son, U.S. Attorney Ronald C. Machen Jr. announced.
Brown pled guilty in the Superior Court of the District of Columbia. The plea, which is contingent upon the Court’s approval, calls for a sentence within the District of Columbia’s voluntary sentencing guidelines; in this case, the range is from four to 10 years in prison. The Honorable Rhonda Reid Winston scheduled sentencing for April 24, 2015.
According to the government’s evidence, on Oct. 29, 2014, Brown was caring for his one-month-old son, Raj’saun Tyrik Brown, at the family’s residence in Southeast Washington. The child’s mother woke the baby at 8 a.m., fed him, and then left him in the care of Brown when she went to work at about 8:30 a.m. At the time she left, she placed the child on top of a pillow in the bed with the defendant.
At 8:57 a.m., Brown sent a text message to the mother stating that he had just cut the baby’s leg with his fingernails while rushing to change him and that the baby was bleeding. At 9:32 a.m., he called her to report that the boy had a white “foamy milk-like” substance coming from his nose. Then at 9:41 a.m., he called to say that the child was unresponsive. The mother instructed Brown to call 911 and she herself called 911. Law enforcement met the mother, and provided her transportation to the hospital, where Raj’saun was pronounced dead.
The Office of the Chief Medical Examiner determined that the cause of death was multiple blunt force injuries, including a skull fracture and rib fractures.
In announcing the plea, U.S. Attorney Machen commended the work of the detectives, officers, and others who investigated the case from the Metropolitan Police Department. He also expressed appreciation to the District of Columbia Office of the Medical Examiner and the District of Columbia Department of Forensic Sciences for assistance in the investigation. Finally, he acknowledged the efforts of those who worked on the case from the U.S. Attorney’s Office, including Paralegal Specialists Kelly Blakeney and Mia Beamon, Victim/Witness Advocate Marcia Rinker, Intern Nicholas Molayem, and Assistant U.S. Attorney Cynthia G. Wright, who is prosecuting the case.
15-018Cooperating Witness in North Providence Town Council Corruption Probe Recognized for “Acts of Political Courage”Read the Press Release
PROVIDENCE, R.I. – Former North Providence town councilman and former Rhode Island Deputy Secretary of State Paul Caranci has been awarded the prestigious 2014 Margaret Chase Smith American Democracy Award, presented by the National Association of Secretaries of State (NASS) for “acts of political courage.”
Mr. Caranci was honored in Washington on Wednesday for his role in assisting the FBI and the United States Attorney’s Office during an investigation into political corruption within the North Providence town council in 2010. Mr. Caranci, who first alerted law enforcement to a kickback scheme to ensure enough votes for the approval of a zoning variance which was before the council, was instrumental in the investigation and the successful prosecution of three town councilmen and an attorney who masterminded and participated in the bribery scheme.
It is the first time in the 22-year history of the award that a Secretary of State Office representative has received the honor. Former recipients include former U.S. Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O’Connor, Civil Rights heroine Rosa Parks, former U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and former President Jimmy Carter.According to a NASS press release announcing the award in July 2014, “Mr. Caranci was nominated for the award by Indiana Secretary of State Connie Lawson for his courage in working with the FBI and other law enforcement entities to expose public corruption and bribery schemes that were masterminded by three of his fellow town councilmen in North Providence, R.I., placing his own political career and personal and family safety at great risk.”
“Being selected to receive the Margaret Chase Smith Award by the nation's Secretaries of State and all of the officials who comprise the organization is an extraordinary honor,” remarked Paul Caranci. “More than that, it is an amazing opportunity for me to reunite with so many wonderful friends. I am grateful for their considerations and their many friendships.”
“The fight against public corruption, so critical in Rhode Island, cannot be waged effectively unless residents who are aware of it come forward and report it,” said United States Attorney Peter F. Neronha. “In the North Providence case, Mr. Caranci, unlike some others, saw corruption and decided to do something about it. He had no obligation to do so. He wasn’t directly impacted by it. He could have done nothing. And yet, to the consternation of some, he decided to do the right thing.”
Mr. Neronha added, “When every Rhode Islander reacts to corruption like Mr. Caranci did, we will eliminate this blight on our state. Mr. Caranci has my enormous gratitude, and he deserves the gratitude of all Rhode Islanders.”
Vincent B. Lisi, Special Agent in Charge of the Boston Field Office of the FBI noted, “Mr. Caranci’s cooperation was critical to uncovering the depth of this conspiracy. Concerned citizens like him are the FBI’s biggest asset in rooting out public corruption and exposing those who have abused the public’s trust. We thank him for his selfless donation of time in support of this case.”
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Contact: 401-709-5357
[email protected]Columbia Man Sentenced for Conspiracy to Distribute OxycodoneRead the Press Release
Contact Person: Bill Day (803) 929-3000
Columbia, South Carolina ---- United States Attorney Bill Nettles stated that John Lanier Britt, age 52, of Columbia, South Carolina was sentenced Tuesday to one hundred months imprisonment to be followed by six years Supervised Release for conspiracy to distribute oxycodone, a violation of 21 U.S.C. § 846, by Chief United States District Judge Terry L. Wooten.
Evidence presented at the change of plea hearing established that Britt was involved in the illegal distribution of oxycodone, a powerful prescription pain medication, for more than three years. Audio and video recordings of Britt selling oxycodone were made during the investigation. A search of Britt's house was conducted when Britt was arrested resulting in drugs being seized and evidence being found that Britt had sold almost 300 pills in the three days before he was arrested.
The case was investigated by agents of the Drug Enforcement Administration, Diversion and the Richland County Sherriff’s office. Assistant United States Attorney William E. Day, II of the Columbia office prosecuted the case. #####Chico Man Indicted for Sexual Exploitation of MinorsRead the Press Release
SACRAMENTO, Calif. — A federal grand jury returned a six-count indictment today against Mark McLeod Wygant, 44, resident of Chico, charging him with Sexual Exploitation and Attempted Sexual Exploitation of Minors, United States Attorney Benjamin B. Wagner announced.
According to court documents, from early 2011 to early 2012, Wygant surreptitiously filmed a child on numerous occasions using a hidden cellular telephone and hidden “spy cameras” that he had purchased for that purpose.
This case was the product of an investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the South Lake Tahoe Police Department. Assistant United States Attorney Matthew G. Morris is prosecuting the case.
Wygant has been in custody since his arrest on January 29, 2015, by agents of the Federal Bureau of Investigation. He is scheduled to be arraigned on February 13, 2015, before Judge Carolyn K. Delaney.
If convicted, Wygant faces a maximum statutory penalty of 30 years in prison and a $250,000 fine per count. Any count of conviction would carry a mandatory minimum sentence of 15 years in prison. Any sentence, however, would be determined at the discretion of the court after consideration of any applicable statutory factors and the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, which take into account a number of variables. The charges are only allegations; the defendant is presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.
This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by the United States Attorneys’ Offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute those who sexually exploit children, and to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.usdoj.gov/psc. Click on the “resources” tab for information about Internet safety education.
Carbon County Man Sentenced to 15 Years in Prison for Producing Child PornographyRead the Press Release
The United States Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Pennsylvania announced that a 47-year-old Kidder Township man was sentenced to 15 years in federal prison today by Senior U.S. District Court Judge Edwin M. Kosik in Scranton, for producing child pornography.
According to United States Attorney Peter Smith, the defendant, Todd Kowar, previously pleaded guilty to persuading and inducing a minor to engage in sexually explicit conduct for the purpose of producing images of such conduct. Kowar committed the crime between 2008 and December 2012.
The case against Kowar resulted from an investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Pennsylvania State Police, and Kidder Township Police. Kowar was indicted by a federal grand jury in July 2014.
Judge Kosik ordered that Kowar’s federal sentence run consecutive to a sentence he is currently serving in Carbon County for other charges. Kowar must also serve 10 years on supervised release following his prison sentence, and pay a $100 special assessment. Kowar must also undergo sex offender treatment and comply with sex offender restrictions and registration requirements when he is released from prison.
This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by the United States Attorneys' Offices and the Criminal Division's Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who sexually exploit children, and to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.usdoj.gov/psc For more information about internet safety education, please visit www.usdoj.gov/psc and click on the tab "resources."
Assistant U.S. Attorney Francis P. Sempa prosecuted the case.
Campaign Manager Pleads Guilty to Coordinated Campaign Contributions and False StatementsRead the Press Release
First Criminal Prosecution in the United States For
Campaign Finance Coordination between Political Committees
A campaign finance manager and political consultant pleaded guilty today in the Eastern District of Virginia for coordinating $325,000 in federal election campaign contributions by a political action committee (PAC) to a Congressional campaign committee. This is the first criminal prosecution in the United States based upon the coordination of campaign contributions between political committees.
Assistant Attorney General Leslie R. Caldwell of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, U.S. Attorney Dana J. Boente of the Eastern District of Virginia and Assistant Director in Charge Andrew G. McCabe of the FBI’s Washington Field Office made the announcement.
“The Department of Justice is fully committed to addressing the threat posed to the integrity of federal primary and general elections by coordinated campaign contributions, and will aggressively pursue coordination offenses at every appropriate opportunity,” said Assistant Attorney General Caldwell.
“Campaign finance laws exist to guard against illegal activity such as coordinated campaign contributions,” U.S. Attorney Boente said. “The citizens of the Commonwealth of Virginia can rely this office enforce federal campaign finance law.”
“Today, Mr. Harber took responsibility for violating federal election campaign laws by illegally coordinating payments between a super pac and a candidate’s campaign committee,” said Assistant Director in Charge McCabe. “The FBI will continue to investigate allegations of campaign finance abuse which are in place to ensure openness and fairness in our elections so the people’s interests are protected.”
Tyler Eugene Harber, 34, of Alexandria, Virginia, pleaded guilty to one count of coordinated federal election contributions and one count of making false statements to the FBI before U.S. District Judge Liam O’Grady of the Eastern District of Virginia. A sentencing hearing is scheduled for June 5, 2015.
According to the plea documents, Harber was the Campaign Manager and General Political Consultant for a candidate for Congress in the November 2012 general election. At the same time, Harber participated in the creation and operation of a PAC, which was legally allowed to raise and spend money in unlimited amounts from otherwise prohibited sources to influence federal elections so long as it did not coordinate expenditures with a federal campaign.
Harber admitted, among other things, that he made and directed coordinated expenditures by the PAC to influence the election with $325,000 of political advertising opposing a rival candidate. The coordination of expenditures made them illegal campaign contributions to the authorized committee of Harber’s candidate, and Harber admitted that he knew this coordination of expenditures was an unlawful means of contributing money to a campaign committee. He further admitted that he used an alias and other means to conceal his action from inquiries by an official of the same political party as Harber’s candidate.
Harber further admitted that he told multiple lies when interviewed by the FBI concerning his activities.
This case was investigated by the FBI’s Washington Field Office, Northern Virginia Resident Agency. The case is being prosecuted by Richard C. Pilger, Director of the Election Crimes Branch of the Criminal Division’s Public Integrity Section, and Chief Mark D. Lytle of the Financial Crimes and Public Corruption Unit of the Eastern District of Virginia.
California Man Sentenced to Ten Years for Heroin Trafficking Conviction in New MexicoRead the Press Release
ALBUQUERQUE – Paul Anthony Diaz, 48, of Desert Hot Springs, Calif., was sentenced this morning in federal court in Albuquerque, N.M., to 120 months in prison followed by five years of supervised release for his heroin trafficking conviction.
Diaz was arrested on Feb. 11, 2014, at the Amtrak train station in Albuquerque after a consensual search of Diaz by DEA agents revealed that Diaz had concealed bundles containing more than one kilogram of heroin underneath his clothing. Diaz subsequently was indicted on Feb. 26, 2014, and charged with possession of heroin with intent to distribute.
Diaz entered a guilty plea to the indictment on Aug. 18, 2014. The guilty plea was entered without the benefit of a plea agreement.
This case was investigated by the Interdiction Unit of the DEA’s Albuquerque office, which focuses on disrupting the flow of narcotics, weapons, and the proceeds of illegal activities as they are smuggled into or through New Mexico in passenger buses, passenger trains, commercial vehicles and automobiles. Assistant U.S. Attorney Paul Mysliwiec prosecuted the case.
This case is being prosecuted pursuant to the New Mexico Heroin and Opioid Prevention and Education (HOPE) Initiative. The HOPE Initiative is a collaboration between the U.S. Attorney’s Office and the University of New Mexico Health Sciences Center that is partnering with the Bernalillo County Opioid Accountability Initiative with the overriding goal of reducing the number of opioid-related deaths in the District of New Mexico. The HOPE Initiative comprised of five components: (1) prevention and education; (2) treatment; (3) law enforcement; (4) reentry; and (5) strategic planning. The law enforcement component of the HOPE Initiative is led by the Organized Crime Section of the U.S. Attorney’s Office and the DEA in conjunction with their federal, state, local and tribal law enforcement partners. Targeting members of major heroin trafficking organizations for investigation and prosecution is a priority of the HOPE Initiative.
California Man Sentenced to 180 Months in Prison and 25 Years Supervised Release for Traveling to South Carolina to have Sex with 15 Year-OldRead the Press Release
Contact: Jim May (803) 929-3000
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Columbia, South Carolina ---- United States Attorney Bill Nettles stated that on Tuesday Charles Henry Ross, age 29, of San Diego, California was sentenced to 180 months and 25 years of supervised release for a violation of 18 U.S.C. § 2423(b), traveling in interstate commerce with the intent to have illicit sexual contact with a minor. United States District Judge Terry L. Wooten of Columbia imposed the sentenced.
Evidence presented at the change of plea hearing established that the defendant, Charles Henry Ross, traveled from California to South Carolina for the purpose of having a sexual relationship with a 15 year old in Lexington County. Ross had been communicating with the 15 year old for several months before he purchased a ticket and flew to South Carolina. The 15 year-old boy’s parents found Ross at their home, then notified Lexington County Sheriff’s Department. In imposing the sentence Judge Wooten agreed with the Government and the defense that the crime was very serious and warranted an upward departure of 3 levels of the sentencing guideline, arriving at the agreed upon 180 month sentence.
Mr. Nettles stated the case showed the cooperation between the United States Attorney’s Office, Lexington County Sheriff’s Department, the FBI and the South Carolina Attorney General’s Office in the identification and prosecution of sexual predators.
The United States Attorney’s Office prosecuted the case in conjunction with the South Carolina Attorney General’s Office. The case was investigated by agents of the FBI and the Lexington County Sheriff's Department. Assistant United States Attorney James (Jim) Hunter May of the Columbia prosecuted the case.
Bonita Springs Man Indicted on Federal Child Pornography ChargesRead the Press Release
Ft. Myers, Florida - United States Attorney A. Lee Bentley, III announces the return of an indictment charging Christopher Hall (44, Bonita Springs) with one count of distributing child pornography and one count of possessing child pornography.
According to the indictment, on May 9, 2014, Hall distributed images and videos depicting child pornography to an undercover FBI Task Force Agent using an Internet peer-to-peer network. A federal search warrant was subsequently executed at Hall’s residence and all of his computer-related media was seized. Forensic analyses of the evidence revealed approximately 2,500 images and videos of child pornography.
An indictment is merely a formal charge that a defendant has committed one or more violations of federal criminal law, and every defendant is presumed innocent unless, and until, proven guilty.
This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation - Ft. Myers Office and the Collier County Sherriff’s Office FBI Task Force. It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Tama Koss Caldarone.
This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by United States Attorneys' Offices and the Criminal Division's Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS), Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to 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.
Belle Fourche Man Sentenced for Commercial Sex TraffickingRead the Press Release
United States Attorney Brendan V. Johnson announced that a Belle Fourche, South Dakota, man convicted of Commercial Sex Trafficking was sentenced on February 3, 2015, by Chief Judge Jeffrey L. Viken, U.S. District Court.
Jerry Lane Golliher, age 32, who was convicted following a federal jury trial in Rapid City in September 2014, was sentenced to 15 years in custody, 5 years of supervised release, and ordered to pay a $100 special assessment to the Federal Crime Victims Fund.
Golliher was one of nine men who were arrested and federally indicted as a result of an undercover sex trafficking operation conducted during the 2013 Sturgis Motorcycle Rally, targeting persons willing to pay to have sex with underage girls obtained through the Internet. All nine men were indicted for Commercial Sex Trafficking.
The conviction stemmed from Golliher responding to a Craigslist.com advertisement posted by Division of Criminal Investigation undercover agents, which purported to offer young girls for sex. Following several emails with a person Golliher believed to be associated with a 13-year old girl, but who was in fact an undercover agent, he proceeded to negotiate the time and place they would meet, as well as the price he would pay, which was $150. Golliher then showed up at the negotiated time and place with sufficient currency and confirmed he was there to have sex with the minor in exchange for money.
The undercover operation and arrests were a joint effort between the South Dakota Division of Criminal Investigation, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Rapid City Police Department, and the Pennington County Sheriff’s office. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Sarah Collins and Ben Patterson prosecuted the case.
Golliher was immediately turned over to the custody of the U.S. Marshal's Service.Baltimore Man Convicted of Attempted Home Invasion Robbery in Cherry Hill and Related Gun CountsRead the Press Release
Baltimore, Maryland – A federal jury convicted Kenneth Ray Graham, age 38, of Baltimore, today for attempting to commit an armed robbery, possessing and discharging a weapon in furtherance of a crime of violence, and possession of a firearm by a convicted felon.
The guilty verdict was announced by United States Attorney for the District of Maryland Rod J. Rosenstein; Special Agent in Charge William P. McMullan of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives - Baltimore Field Division; Commissioner Anthony W. Batts of the Baltimore Police Department; and Baltimore City State’s Attorney Marilyn J. Mosby.
“ATF is committed to working with our state and local law enforcement partners to bring violent criminals to justice,” said ATF Special Agent in Charge William P. McMullan. “Today’s guilty verdict demonstrates our unwavering dedication to the investigation and prosecution of those individuals who choose to commit violent robberies of the citizens of Maryland.”
According to evidence presented at Graham’s three day trial, on September 17, 2013, Graham attempted to force his way into a home in the Cherry Hill neighborhood of Baltimore and demanded money. Witnesses testified that Graham fired three shots into the living room during the attempted robbery. One of those bullets struck a nine year old boy. Graham was previously convicted of a felony and as a result was prohibited from possessing a firearm.
Trial evidence included a shoe containing Graham’s DNA left at the robbery location and a matching shoe also containing his DNA along the escape route. At the time of his arrest, Graham also had gunshot residue on his hand.
Graham faces a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison for the attempted robbery; a mandatory minimum of 10 years, and up to life in prison for possessing and discharging a weapon in furtherance of a crime of violence; and 10 years in prison for being a felon in possession of a firearm. U.S. District Judge William D. Quarles, Jr. scheduled sentencing for May 13, 2015, at 1:00 p.m. Graham remains in federal custody.
United States Attorney Rod J. Rosenstein commended the ATF, Baltimore Police Department and Baltimore City State’s Attorney’s Office for their work in the investigation. Mr. Rosenstein thanked Assistant United States Attorneys Seema Mittal and Kenneth S. Clark, who prosecuted the case.
Bail Bondsman Sentenced to Prison for Social Security Disability Benefit FraudRead the Press Release
BATON ROUGE, LA - United States Attorney Walt Green announced today that Chief U.S. District Judge Brian A. Jackson sentenced MACK CHARLES WELLS, JR., age 49, of Zachary, Louisiana, to a year of incarceration, with six months to be served in prison and six months to be served in a half-way house facility. The defendant must also serve a two year term of supervised release following his incarceration and pay $136, 215 in restitution to the Social Security Administration (SSA).
Today’s sentence results from the defendant’s conviction for stealing $136,215 in disability benefits from SSA from February 2007 through December 2011. During that period, while collecting such benefits, the defendant was working as a bail bondsman with “All Day Bail Bonding, LLC” in Zachary, Louisiana. To continue receiving disability benefits, the defendant fraudulently concealed from SSA that he was working and earning an income as a bail bondsman.
U.S. Attorney Green stated: “Theft from government programs designed to help those less fortunate will continue to be a priority of the U.S. Attorney’s Office. Today’s sentence addresses the seriousness of the defendant’s conduct and should act as a deterrent to others who might consider stealing from our nation’s safety net programs.”
This investigation was handled by the U.S. Attorney’s Office and the Office of Investigations, Office of the Inspector General, U.S. Social Security Administration. This matter is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Lyman E. Thornton III.
Attorney Sentenced to 30 Months in Prison for Laundering Drug MoneyRead the Press Release
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Deirdre M. Daly, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, announced that RALPH CROZIER, 63, was sentenced today by Chief U.S. District Judge Janet C. Hall in New Haven to 30 months of imprisonment, followed by three years of supervised release, for laundering drug money. He also was ordered to pay a $25,000 fine.
On September 25, 2014, a jury found CROZIER guilty of one count of conspiracy to launder monetary instruments and one count of attempt to launder monetary instruments. According to the evidence at trial, law enforcement began investigating CROZIER, an attorney based in Seymour, after receiving information from a convicted narcotics trafficker who was in federal custody. The narcotics trafficker stated that he was a former client of CROZIER and that CROZIER had convinced him to invest $30,000 in cash into CROZIER’s law partner’s solar energy company. CROZIER knew that the cash was derived from his client’s narcotics trafficking activities.
In 2013, the narcotics trafficker’s mother agreed to wear a recording device while meeting with CROZIER to discuss her son’s prior investment. On April 11, 2013, the woman brought $11,000 in DEA funds to a meeting with CROZIER, representing that her son had hidden the cash and wanted her to bring it to CROZIER. The conversation during the meeting made it clear that the money had been illegally derived from drug dealing. CROZIER accepted the cash and told the woman that he was going to make out the receipt in her son’s name, stating “I don’t want to put your name on anything because I don’t want you involved with hiding things from the Feds.” CROZIER was arrested shortly after the woman left his office.
“Attorney Crozier readily agreed to launder drug money for a narcotics dealer,” stated U.S. Attorney. “Money laundering is always a serious offense, but it is all the more serious when committed by an officer of the court. As attorneys are appropriately held to a higher standard, Crozier’s crimes are particularly troubling. This sentence reflects the seriousness of his offense and proper punishment for a lawyer who used his law license for criminal purposes.”
CROZIER, who is released on a $200,000 bond, was ordered to report to prison on April 17, 2015.
This matter was investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration’s Bridgeport High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area Task Force and the Federal Bureau of Investigation. The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Rahul Kale and Robert Spector, and Assistant U.S. Attorney Charles Rombeau of the District of New Hampshire.
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(203) 821-3722 [email protected]Artesia Man Sentenced to Prison for Trafficking Methamphetamine in Lea and Eddy CountiesRead the Press Release
ALBUQUERQUE – Mario Flores, 28, of Artesia, N.M., was sentenced today in federal court in Las Cruces, N.M., to 63 months in prison followed by four years of supervised release for his methamphetamine trafficking conviction.
Flores was one of five defendants indicted in June 2014, as result of a multi-agency investigation primarily targeting drug traffickers in Lea and Eddy Counties, N.M. The seven-count indictment charged Flores, Leroy Castillo, 33, Joe Padilla, 33, and Rolando Cantu, 39, all residents of Hobbs, N.M., and Anthony Pisana, 29, of Roswell, N.M., with methamphetamine trafficking and conspiracy charges.
Count 1 of the indictment charged all five defendants with conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine from Feb. 2014 through May 2014. Counts 2 charged Castillo, Flores and Pisana with possession of methamphetamine and Count 3 charged Cantu with the same crime. Counts 4 through 7 charged the defendants with using communication devices, phones, to facilitate drug trafficking crimes.
Flores was arrested on Aug. 30, 2014, in Carlsbad, N.M. On Oct. 17, 2014, Flores pled guilty to Counts 1 and 2 of the indictment. In entering his guilty plea, Flores admitted that on Mar. 4, 2014, officers found 83 grams of pure methamphetamine hidden in his vehicle during a routine traffic stop in Eddy County. Flores admitted that he was delivering the methamphetamine to another individual when he was stopped.
Pisana was arrested on June 23, 2014, and pled guilty on Sept. 16, 2014, to Count 1 of the indictment. Pisana admitted facilitating a methamphetamine purchase on behalf of a codefendant in Feb. 2014. He further admitted that in June 2014, agents executing a federal search warrant found 967 grams of methamphetamine in his Roswell residence. At sentencing Pisana faces a statutory minimum of five years and a maximum of 40 years in federal prison and at least four years of supervised release. His sentencing hearing has not been scheduled.
Cantu, who was arrested on July 7, 2014, has entered a not guilty plea to the indictment. He remains in federal custody pending trial which [is currently scheduled for June 2015]. Castillo and Padilla have yet to be arrested and are considered fugitives. Individuals with information regarding the whereabouts of Castillo or Padilla are asked to call the FBI at 505-622-6001. The charges in the indictment against Cantu, Castillo and Padilla are merely accusations and these defendants are presumed innocent unless proven guilty. If convicted on the charges in the indictment, each defendant faces a mandatory minimum of five years to a maximum of 40 years in prison.
This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Terri J. Abernathy of the U.S. Attorney’s Las Cruces Branch Office. The investigation of this case was led by the Las Cruces and Roswell offices of the FBI and Lea County Drug Task Force with assistance from the Las Cruces office of the DEA and New Mexico State Police. 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.
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 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.
Armed Robbers SentencedRead the Press Release
United States Attorney Deborah R. Gilg announced that Senior United States District Judge Lyle E. Strom sentenced Anthony Aranda to 10 years, 10 months’ imprisonment and Jamie Speelman to 12 years, 3 months’ imprisonment for their involvement in robberies that occurred in November of 2013. Both defendants pled guilty to the crimes that occurred in the Omaha, Nebraska area. While they listed no permanent address, they are from the Sioux City area.
On November 22, 2013, at approximately 3:30 a.m. the defendants stole a GMC Sierra pickup at gunpoint near 17th and N streets. The owner was outside brushing snow off her car as she prepared to go to work. At about 10:25 pm the same day, Aranda and Speelman robbed the Midtown Gas and Grocery located at 1222 S. 24th street. They each entered the store with a gun, demanded money, and left with approximately $435.00. Aranda pled guilty to carjacking and brandishing a firearm. He received a sentence of 3 years and 10 months on the carjacking and an additional 7 years for brandishing a firearm. Speelman pled guilty to the Midtown robbery for which she received a sentence of 5 years and 3 months and an additional 7 years for brandishing a firearm. By statute the sentences on the firearms charges have to be served after they have served their time on the carjacking and robbery charges.
The case was investigated by the Omaha Police Department and Federal Bureau of Investigation.
Ardmore Man Sentenced to 15 Months for Bank Theft, Embezzlement and MisapplicationRead the Press Release
Muskogee, Oklahoma - The United States Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Oklahoma, announced that RICHARD PAUL GEURIN, 48, of Ardmore, Oklahoma, was sentenced to 15 months imprisonment, followed by 24 months of supervised release for Bank Theft, Embezzlement and Misapplication, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 656.
The charge arose from an investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation. The defendant was indicted in August 2014 and pled guilty in September 2014.
The Indictment alleged that from on or about February 3, 2011, until on or about February 24, 2014, in the Eastern District of Oklahoma, defendant RICHARD PAUL GEURIN, being an officer, director, agent, or employee of, or connected in a capacity with, First Bank & Trust of Duncan, Oklahoma, a bank whose deposits are insured by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, with intent to injure and defraud the said First Bank & Trust of Duncan, Oklahoma, willfully misapplied, embezzled, abstracted, and purloined more than $1,000.00 of the moneys, funds, assets or securities entrusted to the custody or care of First Bank & Trust of Duncan, Oklahoma, in that the defendant withdrew cash from the accounts of certain bank customers and misapplied, embezzled, abstracted and purloined the funds for his own use or benefit.
The Honorable James H. Payne, District Judge in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Oklahoma, in Muskogee, presided over the hearing.
Assistant United States Attorney Rob Wallace represented the United States.
Albuquerque Man Pleads Guilty to May 2014 Robbery of Bank of America BranchRead the Press Release
ALBUQUERQUE – Randy Lee Gallahan, 55, of Albuquerque, N.M., pleaded guilty this morning to robbing the Bank of America branch located on 4th Street NW in Los Ranchos de Albuquerque, N.M., in May 2014.
Gallahan was arrested on May 3, 2014, on a criminal complaint alleging that he robbed the Bank of America branch that day. On May 21, 2014, Gallahan was indicted and charged with armed bank robbery.
During today’s change of plea hearing, Gallahan pled guilty to an information, and admitted robbing the bank by approaching a bank teller and suggesting to the teller that he had a gun or weapon. Gallahan further admitted confessing to the robbery several hours later when police tracked him down at an apartment complex. At the time, Gallahan was wearing the same clothes he wore when he committed the bank robbery, had proceeds from the robbery in pants pocket, and a replica handgun in his jacket.
Gallahan has been in federal custody since his arrest and remains detained pending a sentencing hearing which has yet to be scheduled. At sentencing, Gallahan faces a statutory maximum penalty of 20 years in prison.
This case was investigated by the Albuquerque office of the FBI and the Bernalillo County Sheriff’s Office, and is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Kimberly A. Brawley.