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11 February 2015
Jersey City, New Jersey, Pediatrician Admits Making Nearly $200,000 Billing Medicaid for Bogus TreatmentsRead the Press Release
TRENTON, N.J. – A licensed pediatrician practicing in Jersey City, New Jersey, today admitted fraudulently billing Medicaid for more than 1,000 wound repair procedures that were never performed, U.S. Attorney Paul J. Fishman announced.
Badawy M. Badawy, 52, of Bayonne, New Jersey, pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Anne E. Thompson in Trenton federal court to Count One of an indictment charging him with health care fraud.
According to documents filed in the case and statements made in court:
Badawy owned and operated Sinai Medical Center of Jersey City LLC, a medical practice focusing on pediatric and family medicine. From January 2004 through December 2008, Badawy submitted thousands of claims to Medicaid for wound repair procedures related to the repair of superficial wounds over 30 centimeters in length on a patient’s face, ears, eyelids, nose or lips as well as the repair of previously closed wounds. Badawy claimed to have performed these treatments on his patients, most of whom were children.
During his plea hearing Badawy admitted that he regularly submitted claims for procedures that were never performed. As a result of his false claims, Badawy received $196,911 in Medicaid payments.
The charge of health care fraud carries a maximum penalty of up to 10 years in prison and a maximum fine of $250,000 or twice the gross gain or loss resulting from the crime. Sentencing is scheduled for May 20, 2015.
U.S. Attorney Fishman credited special agents of the FBI, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Richard M. Frankel in Newark and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Office of Inspector General, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Scott J. Lampert, with the investigation leading to today’s guilty plea.
The government is represented by Danielle Alfonzo Walsman and Michael H. Robertson of the U.S. Attorney’s Health Care and Government Fraud Unit.U.S. Attorney Paul J. Fishman reorganized the health care fraud practice at the New Jersey U.S. Attorney’s Office shortly after taking office, including creating a stand-alone Health Care and Government Fraud Unit to handle both criminal and civil investigations and prosecutions of health care fraud offenses. Since 2010, the office has recovered more than $635 million in health care fraud and government fraud settlements, judgments, fines, restitution and forfeiture under the False Claims Act, the Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act and other statutes.
15-058
Defense counsel: Peter R. Willis Esq., Jersey City
Jersey City, New Jersey, Pediatrician Admits Making Nearly $200,000 Billing Medicaid for Bogus TreatmentsRead the Press Release
TRENTON, N.J. – A licensed pediatrician practicing in Jersey City, New Jersey, today admitted fraudulently billing Medicaid for more than 1,000 wound repair procedures that were never performed, U.S. Attorney Paul J. Fishman announced.
Badawy M. Badawy, 52, of Bayonne, New Jersey, pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Anne E. Thompson in Trenton federal court to Count One of an indictment charging him with health care fraud.
According to documents filed in the case and statements made in court:
Badawy owned and operated Sinai Medical Center of Jersey City LLC, a medical practice focusing on pediatric and family medicine. From January 2004 through December 2008, Badawy submitted thousands of claims to Medicaid for wound repair procedures related to the repair of superficial wounds over 30 centimeters in length on a patient’s face, ears, eyelids, nose or lips as well as the repair of previously closed wounds. Badawy claimed to have performed these treatments on his patients, most of whom were children.
During his plea hearing Badawy admitted that he regularly submitted claims for procedures that were never performed. As a result of his false claims, Badawy received $196,911 in Medicaid payments.
The charge of health care fraud carries a maximum penalty of up to 10 years in prison and a maximum fine of $250,000 or twice the gross gain or loss resulting from the crime. Sentencing is scheduled for May 20, 2015.
U.S. Attorney Fishman credited special agents of the FBI, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Richard M. Frankel in Newark and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Office of Inspector General, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Scott J. Lampert, with the investigation leading to today’s guilty plea.
The government is represented by Danielle Alfonzo Walsman and Michael H. Robertson of the U.S. Attorney’s Health Care and Government Fraud Unit.U.S. Attorney Paul J. Fishman reorganized the health care fraud practice at the New Jersey U.S. Attorney’s Office shortly after taking office, including creating a stand-alone Health Care and Government Fraud Unit to handle both criminal and civil investigations and prosecutions of health care fraud offenses. Since 2010, the office has recovered more than $635 million in health care fraud and government fraud settlements, judgments, fines, restitution and forfeiture under the False Claims Act, the Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act and other statutes.
15-058
Defense counsel: Peter R. Willis Esq., Jersey City
Jefferson County Man Sentenced to 151 Months on Methamphetamine ChargesRead the Press Release
Follow @SDILNewsA Jefferson County man was sentenced on February 6, 2015, to federal prison on methamphetamine charges, Stephen R. Wigginton, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Illinois, announced today.
Kenneth L. Badgett, 52, of Mt. Vernon, Illinois, was sentenced to 151 months in federal prison, to be followed by three years of supervised release, and fined $300. Badgett had previously pleaded guilty to three counts in a federal indictment. Count 1 charged that from February 2014, until on or about March 23, 2014, in Jefferson County, Badgett conspired with others known and unknown to the Grand Jury, to knowingly and intentionally manufacture methamphetamine. Count 2 charged that on March 23, 2014, in Jefferson County, Badgett possessed equipment, chemicals, products, or materials which may be used to manufacture methamphetamine, knowing, intending, and having reasonable cause to believe, that those items would be used to manufacture methamphetamine. Count 3 charged that on January 28, 2013, in Jefferson County, Badgett knowingly and intentionally distributed methamphetamine.
Co-defendant Larry York, 47, of Mt. Vernon, IL, was previously sentenced in this case to 180 months.
The investigation in this case was conducted by the Joint Narcotics Unit of the Mt. Vernon Police Department and the Jefferson County Sheriff’s Department.
The case is being handled by Assistant United States Attorney George Norwood.
Jefferson County Gunman Sentenced to 43 Years for Beaumont CarjackingsRead the Press Release
Department of Justice
Office of Public AffairsBEAUMONT, Texas – A 23-year-old Beaumont man has been sentenced to over 43 years in federal prison for his role in an armed carjacking spree in April 2012 in the Eastern District of Texas, announced U.S. Attorney John M. Bales today.
Timothy Wayne Harris, Jr. a/k/a “J” was found guilty by a jury on Mar. 26, 2014, of conspiracy to commit carjacking, two counts of motor vehicle theft, and two counts of brandishing a firearm during a crime of violence. Harris was sentenced to 522 months in federal prison today by U.S. District Judge Thad Heartfield.
According to information presented in court, on April 17-18, 2012, Harris and Jerry Lee Edwards, 38, went on a crime spree outside a Beaumont restaurant and convenience store, Carl’s Jr. and the Calder Food Mart. On May 2, 2012, a federal grand jury indicted Harris and Edwards and charged them with two counts of carjacking, two counts of brandishing a firearm in furtherance of a crime of violence, and one count of conspiracy to commit carjacking. The case was delayed for 17 months by psychiatric examinations of Harris, who was the gunman and leader of the offenses. In late 2013, Harris was determined to be competent to stand trial
Edwards pleaded guilty before trial to conspiracy to commit carjacking, admitting that he knowingly joined in the crimes, and was sentenced to 60 months in federal prison on Oct. 24, 2014.
This case was prosecuted as part of the Project Safe Neighborhoods Time Machine Initiative. Time Machine is aimed at reducing gun and gang violence, deterring illegal possession of guns, ammunition and body armor, and improving the safety of residents in the Eastern District of Texas. Participants in the initiative include community members and organizations as well as federal, state and local law enforcement agencies.
The case was investigated by the Beaumont Police Department and the Federal Bureau of Investigation and prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney John B. Ross.
Immigration Attorney Faces Additional Charges for Alleged Immigration Fraud and Witness TamperingRead the Press Release
ATLANTA - Bonnie Monique Youn has been arraigned on additional federal charges that she submitted false documentation on behalf of three new clients who were aliens seeking immigration status in the United States. She has been charged with two new counts of visa fraud, two new counts of alien harboring, and two new counts of witness tampering.
“The additional charges against this attorney reflect that her illegal actions on behalf of certain immigration clients are more extensive. Instead of working within the bounds of the law, she filed false immigration documents with the U.S. Government and encouraged several clients to lie to federal agents who were conducting an investigation,” said Acting United States Attorney John Horn.
“The defendant, who swore to uphold the law, instead allegedly sought to enrich herself by undermining the integrity of our immigration system by filing false documents,” said acting Special Agent in Charge Ryan L. Spradlin, ICE Homeland Security Investigations in Atlanta. “To compound these initial crimes, the defendant now stands accused of tampering with witnesses in the investigation in a failed attempt to conceal her illicit activities. Creating vulnerabilities in our immigration system raises serious national security concerns that HSI will vigorously investigate.”
According to Acting United States Attorney Horn, the charges and other information presented in court: From February 9, 2009, to the present, for her personal financial gain, immigration attorney Bonnie Monique Youn encouraged and induced three aliens to reside in the United States in violation of the law. Youn also engaged in visa fraud by filing documents that were false with respect to material facts. Then, once the investigation into Ms. Youn was underway, she engaged in witness tampering by telling two aliens to provide false information to federal agents when they were questioned. Youn also attempted to persuade one of the aliens to provide a false statement to a Federal grand jury.
Bonnie Monique Youn, 45, of Atlanta, Ga., was arraigned today before United States Magistrate Judge Gerrilyn G. Brill. The superseding indictment, which added charges against Youn, was returned by a federal grand jury on January 27, 2015. Youn was previously released on a $25,000 unsecured bond, and ordered to surrender her United States passport.Members of the public are reminded that the indictment only contains charges. The defendant is presumed innocent of the charges and it will be the government’s burden to prove the defendant’s guilt beyond a reasonable doubt at trial.
This case is being investigated by the Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) Document Benefit Fraud Task Force comprised of Special Agents with HSI, the United States Department of Labor-Office of the Inspector General, the United States Department of State, Diplomatic Security Service, as well as Fraud Detection/National Security Officers of the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services.
Assistant United States Attorneys Susan Coppedge and William L. McKinnon, Jr. are prosecuting the case.
For further information please contact the U.S. Attorney’s Public Affairs Office at [email protected] or (404) 581-6016. The Internet address for the home page for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia Atlanta Division is http://www.justice.gov/usao/gan/.
Illegal Alien Arrested on Child Pornography ChargeRead the Press Release
LAREDO, Texas - Fidel Perales-Castillo, 43, has been arrested and charged with possession of child pornography, announced U.S. Attorney Kenneth Magidson along with Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) Special Agent in Charge Janice Ayala in San Antonio and Webb County Sheriff Martin Cuellar. Perales-Castillo is a Mexican Citizen in the United States Illegally.
“Accessing, downloading and sharing child pornography constitutes a very serious crime that HSI will rigorously investigate in order to pinpoint the alleged perpetrator and potential victims,” said Ayala. “Make no mistake, if you use the Internet to download child pornography, you will be identified, arrested and prosecuted.”
Perales-Castillo was arrested today following an investigation by the Laredo Child Exploitation Task Force led by HSI and the Webb County Sheriff's Office Cyber Crime Unit with assistance from the Laredo Police Department, Texas Department of Public Safety and U.S. Marshals Service. He is expected to make his initial appearance before U.S. Magistrate Judge J. Scott Hacker tomorrow morning.
“This is just one of the several cases that our investigators are keeping a close eye on,” said Cuellar. “We will continue to utilize all resources as we track down these suspected child predators.”
The criminal complaint, filed today, alleges Perales-Castillo utilized the Internet to download images depicting a minor engaging in sexually explicit conduct. Such images were allegedly downloaded multiple times over the past four years to a computer that was seized from his possession.
If convicted, Perales-Castillo faces up to 20 years in federal prison and a possible $250,000 fine. Upon conviction, he will also be required to register as a sex offender.
This case, prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Sarah Ellison, 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."
A criminal complaint is a formal accusation of criminal conduct, not evidence.
A defendant is presumed innocent unless convicted through due process of law.Houston Man Pleads Guilty to Making False Statements in Relation to Blowout Preventer Testing on Oil Platform in Gulf of MexicoRead the Press Release
The United States Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Louisiana announced that RACE ADDINGTON, 49, of Houston, pled guilty today to two counts of making false statements to agencies or departments of the United States in relation to the veracity of blowout preventer testing on an offshore oil and gas platform located at Ship Shoal 225 located on a federal mineral lease in the Gulf of Mexico.
According to court documents, on or about November 27, 2012, production and well workover operations were being conducted on the platform and the blowout preventer system had to be tested. A blowout preventer system is designed to ensure well control and prevent potential release of oil and gas and possible loss of well control. The blowout preventer pressure chart that recorded the testing of the blowout preventer testing done on November 27, only recorded 6 of the 7 required components as being tested and was not signed nor dated by any representative on the platform.
On or about November 28, 2012, ADDINGTON, as the well site supervisor for the platform saw the results of the blowout preventer testing and had workers create a false blowout preventer test. The next day when Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement (BSEE) inspectors conducted a routine inspection of the platform, ADDINGTON presented the fabricated blowout preventer pressure test chart to the BSEE inspectors with the expectation that it would be a passing test and the inspectors would not find the platform to be in non-compliance for failing to properly test the blowout preventer system.
On December 6, 2012, during an investigation of the veracity of the blowout preventer test by the Department of Interior’s Investigation and Review Unit, ADDINGTON lied and told investigators the false chart he provided inspectors was a test of the chart recorder and that the inspectors mistakenly retrieved the wrong pressure chart from the files when in truth and in fact he knew that he had the blowout preventer pressure test chart fabricated and personally presented the chart to inspectors as the actual test record for the platform’s blowout preventer system.
U.S. District Judge Helen G. Berrigan set sentencing for May 20, 2015. ADDINGTON faces a maximum term of imprisonment of 5 years per count and/or a maximum fine of $250,000 per count.
The U.S. Attorney’s Office praised the work of the Department of Interior-Office of Inspector General, Energy Investigations Unit, with assistance from the Investigations and Review Unit, and the Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement in investigating this matter. Assistant United States Attorney Emily K. Greenfield of the United States Attorney’s Office’s National Security Unit is in charge of the prosecution.
Former Insurance Company Service Rep Indicted on Embezzlement ChargesRead the Press Release
TOPEKA, KAN. – A former insurance company service representative in Topeka was indicted Wednesday on federal embezzlement charges, U.S. Attorney Barry Grissom said.
Erin Rebecca Thomas, 46, formerly of Topeka, Kan., is charged with five counts of embezzlement. The indictment alleges that the crimes took place while she was an employee of American Home Life Insurance Company.
The indictment alleges:
On July 26, 2010, she embezzled a $5,177 death claim.
On Dec. 27, 2010, she forged a loan request for $9,500.
On May 18, 2011, she forged a loan request of $18,500.
On Oct. 18, 2011, she changed the name of a policy owner and fraudulently caused a check to be issued for $19,000.
On Feb. 16, 2012, she forged a loan request for $25,000.
If convicted, she faces a maximum penalty of 10 years in federal prison and a fine up to $250,000 on each count. The U.S. Secret Service investigated. Assistant U.S. Attorney Christine Kenney is prosecuting.
OTHER INDICTMENTS
Hinds Thomas Jones, 46, Vicksburg, Miss., is charged with one count of unlawful possession of a firearm following a felony conviction. The crime is alleged to have occurred May 9, 2010, in Shawnee County, Kan.
If convicted, he faces a maximum penalty of 10 years in federal prison and a fine up to $250,000. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service investigated. Assistant U.S. Attorney Duston Slinkard and Assistant U.S. Attorney Randy Hendershot are prosecuting.
Collin Graham Bicknell, 22, Topeka, Kan., is charged with one count of unlawful possession of a firearm following a felony conviction. The crime is alleged to have occurred Jan. 11, 2015, in Shawnee County, Kan.
If convicted, he faces a maximum penalty of 10 years in federal prison and a fine up to $250,000. The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives investigated. Assistant U.S. Attorney Duston Slinkard is prosecuting.
William D. Gross, 59, who is in custody in the Osage county Jail, is charged with one count of unlawful possession of a firearm following a felony conviction. The crime is alleged to have occurred Oct. 11, 2014, in Osage County, Kan.
If convicted, he faces a maximum penalty of 10 years in federal prison and a fine up to $250,000. The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives investigated. Assistant U.S. Attorney Duston Slinkard is prosecuting.
In all cases, defendants are presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty. The indictments merely contain allegations of criminal conduct.
Former Federal Prison Chaplain Pleads Guilty to Passing Messages for Convicted Killer Frank Calabrese, Sr.Read the Press Release
CHICAGO - A former federal prison chaplain who ministered to convicted killer Frank Calabrese, Sr., pleaded guilty today to passing messages from Calabrese concerning the recovery of a hidden violin from a residence Calabrese once owned in Williams Bay, Wis., federal law enforcement officials announced today. The defendant, Eugene Klein, 66, was charged in June, 2011, and pled guilty today in front of U.S. District Court Judge John W. Darrah to one count of conspiracy to defraud the United States. Judge Darrah set sentencing for June 23, 2015, in Federal Court. Klein faces a maximum sentence of five years in prison and a $250,000 fine.
According to court documents, Klein obstructed enforcement of Special Administrative Measures (“SAMs”), first imposed on Calabrese in November 2008, to prevent him from further participating in illegal activities while incarcerated by restricting Calabrese’s contacts with others. Calabrese told Klein that he had hidden a valuable Stradivarius violin in his Wisconsin residence. In an effort to prevent the government from seizing the instrument and applying the proceeds toward a $4.4 million restitution judgment that Calabrese owed to his victims, Calabrese formulated a plan and enlisted Klein and two individuals to remove the violin from the Wisconsin residence.
Klein, of Springfield, Mo., a Roman Catholic priest, was employed as a chaplain at the U.S. Bureau of Prisons Medical Center for Federal Prisoners in Springfield, Mo., where Calabrese served a life sentence prior to his death in 2013. As chaplain, Klein was permitted to meet with Calabrese on a regular basis to provide religious ministry, such as the sacrament of Holy Communion. Because of the position of trust he occupied, Klein was able to have close and frequent communication with Calabrese.
Klein knew that prison rules prohibited him from taking letters and messages into and out of the prison. He was also informed of the SAMs and understood they prohibited the passing of any information or messages to or from Calabrese. The SAMs, which have been renewed annually and remained in effect in 2011, restricted Calabrese?s privileges in prison, including his access to the mail, media, telephone and visitors. Under the SAMs, Calabrese was prohibited from having contact with anyone outside the prison, except his attorney and certain immediate family members. Except for communications with his attorney, all oral and written communications with immediate family members, including mail and visits, were subject to review and/or observation to ensure that Calabrese did not pass any messages to anyone that could be used to further criminal activity.
The guilty plea was announced by Zachary T. Fardon, United States Attorney for the Northern District of Illinois; Robert J. Holley, Special Agent-in-Charge of the Chicago Office of the Federal Bureau of Investigation; and John F. Oleskowicz, Special Agent-in-Charge of the U.S. Department of Justice Office of the Inspector General, Chicago Field Office.
The government is being represented by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Amarjeet Bhachu and Jennie Levin.
Plea Agreement
Former Defense Contractor on His Way to Prison for Trying to Sell Defective Machine Gun Parts to Department of DefenseRead the Press Release
Colorado Resident Howard Cahn, Who Tried to Save His Michigan Manufacturing Business by Selling Defective Machinegun Components to DoD in 2009, Sentenced to 30 Months in Federal Prison
GRAND RAPIDS, MICHIGAN – U.S. Attorney Patrick A. Miles, Jr. announced today that Colorado resident Howard “Jack” Cahn, was sentenced in federal court in Kalamazoo, Michigan, to 30 months in prison for attempting to sell the Department of Defense (DoD) machinegun replacement parts that were not only technically noncompliant with contract requirements, but that also included materially defective components.
The parts, which had been produced by Cahn’s manufacturing company “Aerospace Manufacturing Services (AMS),” located in Buchanan, Michigan until it closed in early 2010, were critical internal components for the “M-249” 5.56 mm Squad Automatic Weapon (SAW) and the “Mark 19” 40 mm grenade-machinegun. Both weapons systems are in wide use by all branches of the U.S. Armed Forces, and the components in question were essential to the reliable and safe functioning of those weapons systems. Cahn was convicted after a four-day jury trial during October 2014 in U.S. District Court in Kalamazoo, Michigan. The evidence at trial established that, with AMS in deep financial trouble and unable to fulfill its contracts with DoD, Cahn not only attempted to pass off Mark 19 parts that had actually been manufactured in Colorado without DoD oversight as AMS product, but also forced employees to add defective SAW parts that had been designated as scrap to a shipment of parts that was ready to be delivered to DoD. The evidence also established that, if they had made it into the supply chain and into the field, the defective SAW parts could have caused machineguns to become inoperable in combat.
Chief U.S. District Judge Paul L. Maloney sentenced Cahn to serve 30 months in Federal prison, after noting that Cahn’s offenses were “particularly egregious.” Cahn not only forced several young employees to participate in the offense at the fear of losing their jobs, but the offense itself could have endangered U.S. troops in combat if those same AMS employees had not decided to turn Cahn in to DoD quality-assurance inspectors when they realized the potential danger to U.S. troops. Commenting on the seriousness of Cahn’s crimes, Judge Maloney stated, “I don’t know how you could ever explain to the parents of a Marine or a Soldier that their loved one had been killed because their machinegun stopped firing when they needed it most.” The Chief Judge added that sending a strong deterrent message to any other defense contractor who might try to make a profit by evading DoD’s quality-control measures was also “at the top of the court’s list” among the various sentencing factors.
Commenting on the sentence, U.S. Attorney Miles stated, “Defense-procurement fraud is a serious offense that my office will vigorously pursue. When it involves misconduct that also can endanger U.S. troops in the field, it goes beyond serious to outrageous. Mr. Cahn tried to save his company and make a dollar even if it meant sending U.S. troops into battle with defective weapons during the height of combat operations in Iraq and Afghanistan. As a result, instead of being a businessman and defense contractor, he is now a federal felon and inmate.”
The case was investigated by special agents of the U.S. Army Criminal Investigation Division (Army CID) and the Defense Criminal Investigative Service (DCIS). It was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Hagen W. Frank and Russell A. Kavalhuna.
END
Former Corrections Officer Receives 97-Month Prison SentenceRead the Press Release
HONOLULU – Former corrections officer Feso Malufau, age 55, was sentenced today by U.S. District Judge Leslie E. Kobayashi to 97 months imprisonment on charges that he conspired with the USO Family prison gang to obtain and smuggle methamphetamine and other contraband into Halawa Correctional Facility. A federal jury found Malufau guilty of racketeering on October 10, 2014, following a nine-day jury trial.
Florence T. Nakakuni, United States Attorney for the District of Hawaii, said that according to information presented during the trial, other conspirators paid Malufau thousands of dollars to smuggle drugs, including methamphetamine, and cigarettes into prison and deliver them to USO gang members. In rendering the sentence, Judge Kobayashi addressed the dangers of injecting methamphetamine into the “powder keg” of a prison facility. As reasons for the length of the sentence, she pointed to Malufau’s abuse of the public trust (as a sergeant), his endangerment of the lives of his co-workers and vulnerable prison inmates, and his contributions to emboldening the powerful USO Family gang. Judge Kobayashi described the evidence against him at trial as “overwhelming,” and expressed a desire for the sentence to send a message to others considering engaging in similar behavior that it is not worth the risk.
This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Internal Revenue Service, the State of Hawaii Department of Public Safety, and the Honolulu Police Department. Assistant United States Attorneys Thomas J. Brady and Jill Otake prosecuted this case.
Former Contractor Sentenced in Nagin Bribery CaseRead the Press Release
The United States Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Louisiana announced that FRANK FRADELLA, age 57, a resident of Covington, was sentenced today in connection with his role in the C. RAY NAGIN bribery case.
According to documents filed in federal court, FRANK FRADELLA pled guilty to filing a false financial report and bribing former mayor NAGIN. FRADELLA pled guilty in June, 2012 and cooperated extensively with the United States following his guilty plea.
FRADELLA testified against former mayor NAGIN, during a three week jury trial in February 2014, in which NAGIN was found guilty of bribery, money laundering and tax violations.
United States District Judge Susie Morgan sentenced FRADELLA to serve one year plus one day imprisonment, followed by one year of supervised release. In addition to the term of imprisonment, FRADELLA was ordered to pay a $10,000 fine.
The U.S. Attorney’s Office praised the work of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Department of Treasury, Criminal Investigations Division, and the New Orleans Inspector General’s Office in investigating this matter. Assistant United States Attorneys Richard R. Pickens, II and Matthew M. Coman were in charge of the prosecution.
Former Contracting Officer and Contractor Charged with Bribery Scheme in Connection with Awarding of U.S. Postal Service ContractsRead the Press Release
A former U.S. Postal Service contracting officer, along with a mail delivery contractor, were indicted today for engaging in a scheme to defraud the Postal Service through bribery and kickbacks in connection with the awarding of contracts to deliver the mail.
Assistant Attorney General Leslie R. Caldwell of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, U.S. Attorney Rod J. Rosenstein of the District of Maryland and Inspector General David C. Williams of the U.S. Postal Service made the announcement.
Gregory Cooper, 59, of Glenn Dale, Maryland, a former U.S. Postal Service Contracting Officer Representative and Purchasing and Supply Management Specialist, and Barbara Murphy, 51, of Rocky Mount, North Carolina, the owner and operator of MC&G Trucking LLC and ER&R Transportation, were charged today in a ten-count indictment unsealed in the District of Maryland. Both Cooper and Murphy are charged with one count of conspiracy and five counts of honest services wire fraud, and each is separately charged in a single count of bribery. Cooper is also charged with one count of executing a false document and one count of making false statements.
According to the indictment, from January 2011 through July 2012, Cooper allegedly solicited and accepted bribes and kickbacks from Murphy in exchange for helping her win contracts for delivery of the mail. Specifically, the indictment alleges that Cooper accepted, among other things, cash deposits into his checking account, payments against his car loan and cell phone bills and a college tuition payment on behalf of his daughter. In exchange, Cooper allegedly assumed the responsibility for reviewing the contracts on which Murphy bid from his subordinates, recommended that Murphy be awarded nine Postal Service contracts worth $1.5 million, provided Murphy with confidential bid information and assumed direct oversight over Murphy’s contracts from his subordinates. The indictment further alleges that Cooper made false statements to investigators regarding his allegedly corrupt relationship with Murphy and executed a false financial disclosure document failing to disclose the bribes he had accepted from Murphy.
The charges and allegations contained in the indictment are merely accusations and the defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
This case was investigated by the U.S. Postal Service Office of the Inspector General. The case is being prosecuted by Trial Attorneys Maria Lerner and Mark Cipolletti of the Criminal Division’s Public Integrity Section and Assistant U.S. Attorney Arun Rao of the District of Maryland.
Former Altoona City Clerk Pleads Guilty to Bank FraudRead the Press Release
WICHITA, KAN. – A former city clerk of Altoona, Kan., pleaded guilty Wednesday to bank fraud, U.S. Attorney Barry Grissom said.
Chrystal Scherbarth, 30, Altoona, Kan., pleaded guilty to one count of bank fraud. In her plea, she admitted the crime occurred while she was employed as city clerk. She used her access to the city’s accounts at the First Neodesha Bank to commit the crime.
The city of Altoona suffered a total loss of more than $47,800. Scherbarth diverted money from the city by fraudulently increasing her own hourly pay, fraudulently paying herself for overtime, fraudulently crediting herself with unearned paid vacation and fraudulently crediting herself with unearned sick leave.
Sentencing is set for April 29. She faces a maximum penalty of 30 years in federal prison and a fine up to $1 million. Grissom commended the FBI and Assistant U.S. Attorney Aaron Smith for their work on the case.
Federal Jury Convicts Two in Drug Trafficking ConspiracyRead the Press Release
CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas – Two men have been found guilty for their roles in a large-scale drug-trafficking conspiracy, announced U.S. Attorney Kenneth Magidson.
Guillermo Herrera, 55, and Hector Alberto Burton aka Hector Alberto Camacho, 40, were convicted of conspiracy to possess with the intent to distribute more than 100 kilograms of marijuana and aiding and abetting each other to possess with the intent to distribute more than 100 kilograms of marijuana on Jan. 22, 2013. The federal jury returned its verdicts late today following a three-day trial and less than two hours of deliberation.
Herrera, of Edinburg, and Burton, of Commiskey, Ind., were arrested in 2014 on charges relating to their participation in a South Texas drug-trafficking organization. The government presented evidence regarding the seize of more than 500 pounds of marijuana. Evidence presented showed that Burton orchestrated the transportation of the marijuana from another state and Herrera was hired to drive the load.
Senior U.S. Judge Hayden Head, who presided over the trial, has set sentencing for April 29, 2015, at which time Herrera and Burton a minimum of five and up to 40 years in federal prison.
Burton was permitted to remain on bond, while Herrera has been and will remain in custody pending that hearing.
The investigation leading to the criminal charges was conducted in Corpus Christi lead by the Drug Enforcement Administration, Texas Department of Public Safety, Aransas Pass Police Department, U.S. Marshals Service and the Kingsville Specialized Narcotics Task Force. Assistant U.S. Attorney Julie K. Hampton is prosecuting the case.
FBI Investigation Leads to Fraud Charges Against Moon Twp. ManRead the Press Release
PITTSBURGH - A resident of Moon Township has been indicted by a federal grand jury in Pittsburgh on charges of wire and mail fraud, United States Attorney David J. Hickton announced today.
The four-count indictment, returned yesterday, named Ryan T. Blumling, 34.
According to indictment presented to the Court, Blumling engaged in conduct over the period 2005 through 2014 in which he defrauded a series of potential investors and potential borrowers by making false representations and failing to use funds consistent with the promises he made to investors.
The law provides for a maximum total sentence of up to 20 years in prison, and a fine of up to $250,000 or both at each of the four counts (two counts of wire fraud and two counts of mail fraud). Under the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, the actual sentence imposed would be based upon the seriousness of the offenses and the prior criminal history, if any, of the defendant. Blumlling is currently incarcerated in the Allegheny County jail on unrelated state charges.
The Federal Bureau of Investigation conducted the investigation leading to the indictment in this case.
An indictment is an accusation. A defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
Essex County, New Jersey, Man Sentenced to 14 Years in Prison for Brandishing Weapon During CarjackingRead the Press Release
NEWARK, N.J. – A Newark, New Jersey, man was sentenced today to 168 months in prison for brandishing a shotgun during an armed carjacking in Little Falls, New Jersey, U.S. Attorney Paul J. Fishman announced.
Defense counsel: Mark Berman Esq., River Edge, New Jersey
Ivan Lee, 26, was found guilty of the brandishing a firearm charge following a one-week trial before U.S. District Judge Susan D. Wigenton, who imposed the sentence today in Newark federal court. Lee had been charged by indictment with one count of theft of a motor vehicle by force, violence, and intimidation and one count of use of a firearm in furtherance of a crime of violence. Lee pleaded guilty to the carjacking count.
According to documents in this case and the evidence at trial: On Oct. 30, 2011, Lee and Hanza Darby, 25, of Newark, were in the Little Falls area when they spotted a parked 2008 BMW 335 with passengers inside. Darby and Lee – who brandished a shotgun – approached the car and ordered the occupants out of the vehicle at gunpoint. Darby and Lee then took the car and fled the area. Law enforcement officers recovered the car in Newark on Nov. 7, 2011. Darby was standing next to it at the time.
In addition to the prison term, Judge Wigenton sentenced Lee to three years of supervised release. Darby previously pleaded guilty to carjacking and brandishing a weapon in furtherance of a crime of violence. He is awaiting sentencing.
U.S. Attorney Fishman credited special agents with the FBI, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Richard M. Frankel in Newark; officers of the Little Falls Police Department, under the direction of Chief John Dmuchowski; the N.J. State Police, under the direction of Col. Rick Fuentes; the Passaic County Prosecutor’s Office, under the direction of Prosecutor Camelia M. Valdes; and the Wayne Police Department, under the direction of Chief James Clarke, with the investigation leading to today’s sentencing.
The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorney Cari Fais and Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Thomas S. Kearney of the U.S. Attorney’s Office Criminal Division in Newark.
15-057Essex County, New Jersey, Man Admits to Armed Carjacking and Bribing a Corrections Officer to Smuggle Contraband into Essex County JailRead the Press Release
TRENTON, N.J. – A Newark, New Jersey, man today admitted his role in an armed carjacking and subsequent involvement in a scheme to bribe a corrections officer to smuggle contraband, including marijuana and cell phones, into the Essex County Correctional Facility, a federal pretrial detention facility, U.S. Attorney Paul J. Fishman announced.
Quasim Nichols, 30, pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Mary L. Cooper to an information charging him with one count of committing an armed carjacking and one count of conspiring with others, including Essex County Corrections Officer Stephon Solomon, 27, of Irvington, New Jersey, to commit extortion under color of official right. Nichols is being held without bail.
According to the documents filed in this case, other cases, and statements made in court:
On May 28, 2012, Nichols and three men were traveling in a gray Dodge Magnum toward Elizabeth, New Jersey. Nichols was driving the vehicle. Upon arriving in Elizabeth, the three men exited the car and approached a 2005 BMW 645. The men pointed handguns in the direction of the BMW’s passengers and ordered them out of the car. Two of the men then entered the BMW and drove it away. The third man re-entered the Dodge Magnum driven by Nichols. The third man was carrying a black Taurus Millennium semi-automatic handgun and a cell phone that had been stolen from one of the occupants of the BMW. Nichols and the third man drove away and followed the stolen BMW.
While driving away from the scene, multiple police vehicles activated their overhead lights and turned on their sirens in an effort to stop Nichols. Nichols continued to drive the Dodge Magnum at a high rate of speed from Elizabeth into Newark, drove through a red light and struck a vehicle at the intersection of Martin Luther King Boulevard and Market Street. The driver of the other vehicle suffered serious injury. Nichols and the other man then attempted to flee the area on foot.
Subsequently, while detained at the Essex County Correctional Facility on the armed carjacking charge, Nichols conspired with others, including Solomon, Dwayne Harper, 31, of Newark, and Darsell Davis, 29, of Newark, to pay cash bribes to Solomon so that he would smuggle contraband – including cell phones, tobacco, and marijuana – into the Essex County Correctional Facility. After Davis and Harper collected the contraband, Davis delivered the items and cash bribes to Solomon, who then smuggled the contraband to Nichols. Nichols ultimately sold the marijuana and cell phones to other inmates. The inmates purchasing marijuana and cell phones had their friends and family pay for the items by sending Western Union money transfers to Nichols, who enlisted Davis and others to retrieve those payments. Davis obtained at least $4,300 in Western Union payments for Nichols.
Solomon pleaded guilty Oct. 1, 2014, to conspiring to commit extortion under color of official right and is scheduled to be sentenced March 25, 2015. Darsell Davis pleaded guilty Oct. 21, 2014, to conspiring to commit extortion under color of official right and awaits sentencing. Dwayne Harper pleaded guilty Oct. 21, 2014, to conspiring to smuggle marijuana into the Essex County Correctional Facility and awaits sentencing. Davis and Solomon have been released on bail. Harper is being held without bail in New Jersey.
The armed carjacking charge carries a maximum penalty of 25 years in prison. The conspiracy charge carries a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison. Each charge also carries a maximum fine of $250,000. Nichols agreed to forfeit $4,300 consisting of his proceeds from the contraband smuggling conspiracy. His sentencing is scheduled for May 20, 2015.
U.S. Attorney Fishman credited special agents of the FBI, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Richard M. Frankel in Newark; investigators with the Internal Affairs Division of Essex County Correctional Facility, under the leadership of Warden Roy Hendricks; the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey; the Newark Police Department, under the direction of Director Eugene Venable and Chief Anthony Campos; and the Elizabeth Police Department, under the direction of Director James Cosgrove, with the investigation leading to today’s guilty plea.
The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Jim Donnelly and Rob Frazer of the Criminal Division, Organized Crime/Gangs Unit, and Rahul Agarwal of the U.S. Attorney’s Office, Special Prosecutions Division, in Newark.
15-056Defense counsel: Michael J. Pappa Esq., Hazlet, New Jersey
El Salvadoran Sentenced to 46 Months in Prison for Failing to Register as A Sex Offender and for Illegally Re-Entering the U.S.Read the Press Release
Greenbelt, Maryland – U.S. District Judge Paul W. Grimm sentenced Osmin Alfaro, age 39, a native of El Salvador residing in Rockville, Maryland, late yesterday to 46 months in prison, followed by five years of supervised release, for failing to register as a sex offender and for illegally re-entering the U.S. after conviction for a felony. Judge Grimm ordered that upon his release from prison, Alfaro will be subject to deportation, but while he is in the United States, must register as a sex offender in the place where he resides, where he is an employee, and where he is a student, under the Sex Offender Registration and Notification Act (SORNA).
The sentence was announced by United States Attorney for the District of Maryland Rod J. Rosenstein; U.S. Marshal Michael Hughes of Washington, D.C.; and Special Agent in Charge William Winter of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI).
“I commend the Superior Court Sex Offender Investigations Squad for their hard work and tireless hours spent on apprehending Alfaro,” said U.S. Marshal Michael Hughes. "We will continue to use all available assets to combat such crimes and keep our streets safe."
According to his plea agreement, on July 2, 2004, Alfaro was convicted of a sexual offense in the Montgomery County Circuit Court and ordered to register as a sex offender. Alfaro initially registered as a sex offender in Montgomery County in 2005, but subsequently moved and did not update his sex offender registration to reflect his change of residence. Alfaro was deported to El Salvador on August 15, 2008, after pleading guilty to failure to register as a sex offender.
The U.S. Marshals Service learned that Alfaro illegally re-entered the United States sometime before March 2010 and from that time until approximately February 1, 2014, Alfaro resided in Maryland but did not update his registration as a sex offender. During that time, Alfaro was not registered as a sex offender anywhere, and he repeatedly traveled between Maryland and the District of Columbia. After being apprehended by the U.S. Marshals Service and ICE on April 29, 2014, Alfaro was taken into ICE custody.
This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by the United States Attorneys' Offices and the Criminal Division's Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who sexually exploit children, and to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.justice.gov/psc. For more information about internet safety education, please visit www.justice.gov/psc and click on the "resources" tab on the left of the page.
United States Attorney Rod J. Rosenstein commended the U.S. Marshals Service and HSI Baltimore for their work in the investigation. Mr. Rosenstein thanked Special Assistant U.S. Attorney James I. Pearce, of the U.S. Department of Justice, Criminal Division, and Assistant U.S. Attorney Michael T. Packard, who prosecuted the case.
Eight Face Federal Drug ChargesRead the Press Release
Follow @SDILNewsA federal grand jury in Benton, Illinois, has charged eight Franklin County residents with narcotics-related offenses, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of Illinois, Stephen R. Wigginton, announced today.
Those charged with conspiracy to manufacture methamphetamine are: Jonathan Brent Eldridge, 43, of Zeigler, Illinois, and Jessica R. Ghan, 27, of West Frankfort, Illinois. Five individuals were charged with possession of pseudoephedrine with the intent that it be used for the production of methamphetamine: Kristena J. Grant, 30, of West Frankfort, Illinois, Alicia A. Ragan, a/k/a Alicia Geer, 25, of West Frankfort, Illinois, Crystal G. Geer, 26, of West Frankfort, Illinois, Steven A. Myers, 47, of West Frankfort, Illinois, and Ronald J. Furmanski, 45, of Benton, Illinois. Another individual, Joshua L. Parkhill, 35, of West Frankfort, Illinois, was charged with distribution of heroin.
Those charged with conspiracy to manufacture methamphetamine face 10 years to life in prison and a $10 million fine. Those charged with providing pseudoephedrine pills to others face up to 20 years in federal prison and a $250,000 fine. Parkhill faces up to 40 years in federal prison and a $5 million fine on his heroin charges.
An indictment is a formal charge against a defendant. Under the law, a defendant is presumed to be innocent of a charge until proved guilty beyond a reasonable doubt to the satisfaction of a jury.
The investigation in this case was conducted by the Illinois State Police, Southern Illinois Drug Task Force, West City Police Department, Sesser Police Department, Christopher Police Department, Zeigler Police Department, Franklin County Sheriff’s Office and Franklin County State’s Attorney’s Office.
The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Tom Leggans.
Dallas County Man Admits Producing Producing Child PornographyRead the Press Release
DALLAS — A Hutchins, Texas, man, Servando Vega Cervantes, 24, appeared this morning before U.S. Magistrate Judge Paul D. Stickney and pleaded guilty to an indictment charging three counts of production of child pornography, announced John Parker, United States Attorney for the Northern District of Texas.
Cervantes faces a statutory penalty of not less than 15 years and not more than 30 years in federal prison, for each count. Each count also carries up to a $250,000 fine and up to a lifetime of supervised release. Cervantes has been in custody since his arrest in November 2014 on a related federal complaint. He is scheduled to be sentenced on May 28, 2015, by U.S. District Judge Jane J. Boyle.
According to documents filed in the case, the Hutchins Police Department contacted the FBI in May 2014 regarding questionable online communication between an 11-year-old victim, “John Doe #1,” and the Facebook user profile of “Laura Ortiz.” The victim’s mother believed the user of the Ortiz profile was actually an adult male and not a 13-year-old female as described in chat conversations between John Doe #1 and Ortiz. The investigation revealed that the user profile “Laura Ortiz” belonged to Cervantes. The investigation also revealed that John Doe #1 knew Cervantes as “Jordan,” an alias Cervantes used.
In May 2014, Cervantes enticed John Doe #1 to engage in sexually explicit conduct for the purpose of producing visual depictions of that conduct. In December 2013, Cervantes enticed another minor, under the age of 14, John Doe #2, to engage in sexually explicit conduct for the purpose of producing visual depictions of that conduct.
Cervantes admitted he had sexual contact with other minors.
Anyone who may have been victimized in this case is asked to contact the FBI at 972-559-5000.
The matter was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative, which was launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice, to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by U.S. Attorney’s Offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state and local resources to better locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals, who sexually exploit children, and identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit http://www.justice.gov/psc/. For more information about internet safety education, please visit http://www.justice.gov/psc/ and click on the tab “resources.”
The FBI’s Dallas Child Exploitation Task Force and the Hutchins Police Department are conducting the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney Camille Sparks is in charge of the prosecution.
Court of Appeals Affirms Conviction in Human Trafficking CaseRead the Press Release
CONTACT: Barbara Burns
PHONE: (716) 843-5817
FAX: (716) 551-3051BUFFALO, N.Y. — U. S. Attorney William J. Hochul, Jr. announced today that the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit has affirmed the conviction and sentence of Thomas Cramer. The defendant was convicted on four counts of sex trafficking of minors and sentenced to 30 years in prison.
“The decision from the Court of Appeals affirms this Office’s approach towards using federal law to combat a modern day form of slavery,” said U.S. Attorney Hochul. “It also serves as a warning to any who would exploit children and others for their financial gain: we will be relentless in prosecution, and sentences in the event of conviction will be substantial.”
As revealed in Court, from April through December 2011, the defendant enticed, promoted and profited from the commercial sex activities of four young girls knowing, or in reckless disregard of the fact, that the girls were all under 18 years old. Cramer used the internet to identify and recruit victims who typically came from broken homes or who were runaways. The defendant lured young girls into the commercial sex business claiming that they would live a “fancy life style,” living and working in hotels while making money.
In one exchange of text messages, between Cramer and a victim, the defendant enticed the girl by telling her she could make much more money performing commercial sex acts than she could working at a grocery store.
Cramer placed advertisements on adult web sites regarding the availability of the young girls for commercial sex acts. The acts took place at hotels in the Rochester and Buffalo and in the defendant’s residence. Customers were charged between $180 and $200 per hour to engage in sexual activities with the victims and Cramer received a portion of those proceeds.
U.S. Attorney Hochul urged parents and children to be aware of the threat posed by predators, and encouraged any interested in learning more about how to avoid becoming a victim to visit the Office’s website, www.justice.gov/usao-wdny.
On appeal the government was represented by Assistant U.S. Attorney Monica J. Richards. The trial was handled by Assistant U.S. Attorney John E. Rogowski.
Copperas Cove Women Sentenced for Lone Star Card FraudRead the Press Release
In Waco today, 33-year-old Jennifer Hailes of Copperas Cove, TX, was sentenced to six months in federal prison followed by three years of supervised release and ordered to pay $6,918.42 restitution for fraudulently using her Lone Star Card benefits announced Acting United States Attorney Richard L. Durbin, Jr.
In addition to Hailes, United States District Judge Walter S. Smith, Jr. sentenced 34-year-old LaToya Lewis to five years probation including six months electronic monitoring and ordered the Copperas Cove resident to pay $10,429.24 restitution for fraudulently using her Lone Star Card benefits.
The Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), formerly known as the USDA Food Stamp Program, is the nation’s principal food assistance program which enables low income households to purchase food. The Lone Star Card is a USDA electronic benefits transfer card used in the State of Texas.
In December 2014, both defendants pleaded guilty to one count of benefits fraud. By pleading guilty, both admitted to illegally exchanging USDA SNAP benefits for cash on numerous occasions between 2010 and 2014 at Fong’s Seafood Market in Copperas Cove. Lone Star Cards and other personal identification information belonging to the defendants, as well as ledgers reflecting cash amounts paid to the defendants, were seized during the execution of a search warrant at the business in September 2013.
On October 29, 2014, Judge Smith sentenced store owner Fong Ing McCaffrey to three years probation and ordered her to pay $153,542.35 restitution for her role in the benefits fraud scheme.
This case was investigated by agents with the USDA-Office of Inspector General, Texas Department of Public Safety and Texas Health and Human Services Commission. Assistant United States Attorney Greg Gloff prosecuted this case on behalf of the Government.
Condado De Shelby, Tennessee El Grupo De Misiones Especiales Del Programa De Alta Intensidad De Trafico De Drogas Recibe Reconocimiento NacionalRead the Press Release
Memphis, Tenn. – El Director de la Casa Blanca de Política de Control de Drogas Michael Botticelli ha otorgado al Condado de Shelby, TN al Grupo de Misiones Especiales del Programa de Alta Intensidad de Tràfico de Drogas (HIDTA) el premio nacional de 2014 por el Extraordinario Esfuerzo Investigativo en Medicamentos Recetados, anunció Edward L. Stanton III, Fiscal Federal para el Distrito Oeste de Tennessee; y Brian Chambers, Agente Residente a Cargo, la Administración de Control de Drogas - Oficina Residente Memphis.
Los que recibieron el premio en la ceremonia de la semana pasada en Washington, DC eran miembros de la Administración de Control de Drogas - Oficina Residente de Memphis; Oficina del Sheriff del Condado de Shelby; Departamento de Policía de Memphis; y la Oficina del Fiscal de los Estados Unidos para el Distrito Oeste de Tennessee. Estos agentes del orden fueron reconocidos por su trabajo conjunto en una investigación multi-estatal de medicamentos recetados que condujo a la detención de 56 personas en Los Ángeles, California; Little Rock, Arkansas; y Memphis, Tennessee
El Fiscal Federal Stanton, quien ha sido miembro del Consejo Ejecutivo de Administración de la Costa del Golfo HIDTA desde 2010, felicitó al Grupo de Misiones Especiales HIDTA del Condado de Shelby en recibir este reconocimiento nacional y prestigioso premio. "La colaboración con nuestros asociados de las fuerzas federales, estatales y locales es fundamental para desmantelar redes de tràfico de drogas en los màs altos niveles y librar a nuestras comunidades de las drogas y la violencia asociados a estas organizaciones peligrosas. Este merecido premio es un verdadero testimonio de la extraordinaria labor de un equipo de profesionales comprometidos con la lucha contra el tràfico de drogas en todo el oeste de Tennessee y màs allà ", dijo el Fiscal Federal Stanton.
Desarticular y desmantelar las organizaciones de tràfico de drogas es fundamental para la misión de la Costa del Golfo HIDTA. En cumplimiento de este objetivo, los miembros del Grupo de Misiones Especiales del Condado de Shelby HIDTA iniciaron una investigación de dos años en dos organizaciones de narcotraficantes independientes que operan en el àrea de la Costa del Golfo HIDTA. Estas organizaciones de tràfico de drogas fueron responsables de la distribución de grandes cantidades de pastillas dilaudid y oxicodona, que son narcóticos para aliviar el dolor. Durante esta investigación, inteligencia obtenía información de llamadas interceptadas y entrevistas de demandados demostrando que estas organizaciones narcotraficantes estaban distribuyendo 250,000 píldoras de oxicodona y dilaudid anualmente. La investigación dio como resultado el desmantelamiento de estas organizaciones de tràfico de drogas y la detención de 56 personas por cargos federales y estatales. Catorce personas fueron acusadas por el gobierno federal, y 27 fueron acusados en una corte estatal en Tennessee. Ademàs, basàndose en la información adicional proporcionada a la Administración de Control de Drogas en Little Rock, 15 personas fueron acusadas por cargos federales.
En total, 56 personas fueron detenidas en esta investigación multijurisdiccional. Los agentes en Tennessee incautaron 1,282 pastillas de oxicodona, 990 pastillas Dilaudid, 1,704 pastillas de hidrocodona, 476 pastillas de alprazolam, 313 píldoras adderall, y 375 pastillas dexedrine. Los agentes también incautaron $46,281 dólares en moneda estadounidense, $231,269.82 en instrumentos financieros, y tres residencias (valoradas en $300,000) en Terrell, Texas.
La Oficina del programa HIDTA de Política Nacional de Control de Drogas ofrece recursos federales a àreas designadas para ayudar a reducir el tràfico de drogas y sus consecuencias nocivas. Las organizaciones que hacen cumplir el orden dentro de HIDTA evalúan los problemas del tràfico de drogas y las iniciativas de diseño específicas para disminuir la producción, fabricación, transporte, distribución y uso crónico de drogas y lavado de dinero. El programa HIDTA juega un papel vital en hacer de la nación una màs segura y saludable al reducir el consumo de drogas y sus consecuencias. Actualmente hay 28 HIDTA, que incluyen aproximadamente el 16 por ciento de todos los condados en los Estados Unidos y el 60 por ciento de la población estadounidense. Condados HIDTA-señalado se encuentran en 46 estados, Puerto Rico, las Islas Vírgenes de Estados Unidos, y el Distrito de Columbia.
El Fiscal Federal Stanton también elogió a los organismos que componen el condado de Shelby, TN Grupo de Misiones Especiales HIDTA por sus esfuerzos en la obtención de la adjudicación y por el éxito general del programa HIDTA. Estas agencias incluyen la Administración de Control de Drogas - Oficina Residente de Memphis; Departamento de Policía de Memphis; Oficina del Sheriff del Condado de Shelby; Departamento de Policía de Millington; Departamento de Policía de Bartlett; Departamento de Policía de Germantown; Departamento de Policía de Collierville; Departamento del Sheriff del Condado de Tipton; Oficina del Procurador General para el 25to Distrito Judicial; y la Oficina del Procurador General por el 30mo Distrito Judicial.
En la foto de abajo estàn los siguientes individuos del condado de Shelby, TN Grupo de Misiones Especiales HIDTA que asistieron al banquete de los Premios Nacionales HIDTA en Washington, DC, el 5 de febrero de 2015. Son de izquierda a derecha:
Primera fila (de izquierda a derecha): a Tony Soto, Director - Costa del Golfo HIDTA; Michael Botticelli, Director - Oficina de Política Nacional de Control de Drogas; Brian Chambers, Agente Residente a cargo - DEA; Mary Lou Leary, Director Adjunto - Oficina de Política Nacional de Control de Drogas; Edward L. Stanton III, Fiscal Federal - Oficina del Fiscal Federal.
Segunda fila (de izquierda a derecha): el Teniente Robert McIntyre – Departamento de la Policía de Memphis; Garrison Taylor, Oficial del Grupo de Misiones Especiales - DEA; Marcos Dunbar, Asistente del Jefe - Oficina de Shelby Co. Sheriff; Ian James, Detective - Departamento de la Policía de Memphis; El Coronel Ralph Gary - Departamento de la Policía de Memphis; William Cash, Jefe Adjunto - Oficina de Shelby Co. Sheriff; Michael Jackson, Detective - Departamento de la Policía de Memphis; William J. Renton, Jr., Director Adjunto - Costa del Golfo HIDTA; Tyler Gustafson, Agente Especial - DEA; Michelle Parks, AUSA - Oficina del Fiscal Federal.
Version en Inglés
Clay County Man Indicted on Methamphetamine Related ChargesRead the Press Release
Follow @SDILNewsHenry J. Dietz, 54, of Edgewood, IL, was indicted on February 3, 2015, on methamphetamine related charges in a two count Indictment returned by a Federal Grand Jury sitting in Benton, Illinois, Stephen R. Wigginton, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Illinois, announced today.
Count 1 charges that from January 2010, until on or about August 25, 2014, in Clay County, and elsewhere within the Southern District of Illinois, Dietz conspired with others known and unknown to the Grand Jury, to manufacture 50 or more grams of a mixture and substance containing methamphetamine. Count 2 charges that on August 25, 2014, in Clay County, Dietz possessed equipment, chemicals, products, or materials which can be used to manufacture methamphetamine, knowing, intending, and having reasonable cause to believe, that those items would be used to manufacture methamphetamine.
With respect to Count 1, Dietz faces 5-40 years in prison, up to $2,000,000 fine, supervised release of at least 4 years, and a $100 special assessment.
With respect to Count 2, Dietz faces up to 10 years in prison, up to $250,000 fine, supervised release of up to 3 years, and a $100 special assessment.
An Indictment is a formal charge against a defendant. Under the law, a defendant is presumed to be innocent of a charge until proved guilty beyond a reasonable doubt to the satisfaction of a jury.
The investigation in this case was conducted by the Flora Police Department, the Clay County Sheriff’s Office, and the Southeastern Illinois Drug Task Force.
The case is being handled by Assistant United States Attorney George Norwood.
Clay County Man Indicted on Methamphetamine Related ChargesRead the Press Release
Follow @SDILNewsRichard H. Barber, 49, of Louisville, IL, was indicted on February 3, 2015, on methamphetamine related charges in a two count Indictment returned by a Federal Grand Jury sitting in Benton, Illinois, Stephen R. Wigginton, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Illinois, announced today.
Count 1 charges that from June 2014, until on or about October 28, 2014, in Clay County, and elsewhere within the Southern District of Illinois, Barber conspired with others known and unknown to the Grand Jury, to manufacture a mixture and substance containing methamphetamine. Count 2 charges that on October 28, 2014, in Clay County, Barber possessed equipment, chemicals, products, or materials which can be used to manufacture methamphetamine, knowing, intending, and having reasonable cause to believe, that those items would be used to manufacture methamphetamine.
With respect to Count 1, Barber faces up to 20 years in prison, up to a $1,000,000 fine, supervised release of not less than 3 years, and a $100 special assessment.
With respect to Count 2, Barber faces up to 10 years in prison, up to $250,000 fine, supervised release of up to 3 years, and a $100 special assessment.
An Indictment is a formal charge against a defendant. Under the law, a defendant is presumed to be innocent of a charge until proved guilty beyond a reasonable doubt to the satisfaction of a jury.
The investigation in this case was conducted by the Flora Police Department, the Clay County Sheriff’s Office, and the Southeastern Illinois Drug Task Force.
The case is being handled by Assistant United States Attorney George Norwood.
Cincinnati man gets nearly six years for role in robbing drug dealersRead the Press Release
CHARLESTON, W.Va. – United States Attorney Booth Goodwin announced today that David Himes, 29, of Cincinnati, was sentenced to 70 months in federal prison.
In March 2013, Himes pleaded guilty to aiding and abetting robbery affecting interstate commerce. He admitted that on May 21, 2012, he, Robert Barcliff and Joe Croft carried out an armed home-invasion robbery of a drug dealer believed to have high-quality marijuana or drug proceeds in South Charleston. Himes stated he entered the apartment with a firearm to conduct the robbery.
Croft has pleaded guilty to charges related to this investigation and awaits sentencing in February. Barcliff was recently sentenced to 16 years in federal prison.
Beginning in the fall of 2011, Himes was part of a group that conspired and agreed to commit armed home-invasion robberies of drug dealers in West Virginia, Virginia, Pennsylvania and Tennessee. The objective of the conspiracy and robberies was to steal drugs, drug proceeds and firearms. The group targeted drug dealers because they believed the dealers were not likely to call the police.
United States District Judge Thomas E. Johnston imposed the sentence.
The case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, South Charleston Police Department and Charleston Police Department. Assistant United States Attorney Monica D. Coleman handled the prosecution.
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Carencro Officer Indicted on Extortion, Illegal Use of Government Database, and Lying to Federal Agents in Desperado's CaseRead the Press Release
LAFAYETTE, La. – United States Attorney Stephanie A. Finley announced today that a federal grand jury has indicted a former Carencro Police Officer for receiving cash payments from Desperado’s Gentlemen’s Cabaret.
Timothy “Timmy” Prejean, 42, of Carencro, was indicted on one count of interference with commerce by extortion under color of official right, one count of obtaining information by computer from government or protected computer, and two counts of false statements or representations made to a department or agency of the United States.
The indictment alleges that Prejean, in addition to his other law enforcement duties as a Carencro Police Officer, was designated to manage the issuance of exotic dancer permits for the Carencro Police Department and enforced related ordinances. According to the indictment, from January 1, 2007, until December 5, 2012, Prejean received regular cash payments and extra money for a vacation and personal expenses from Desperado’s owners James and Jennifer Panos. The indictment further alleges that Prejean ran a criminal history for James Panos on March 16, 2012, using government agency computers in excess of his authorization. The indictment also alleges that Prejean later lied to FBI and DEA agents on May 20, 2013, about the payments from James and Jennifer Panos, and Prejean also lied to FBI agents on August 16, 2013, about accessing the government database.
Desperado’s operated as an illegal enterprise for many years, and owners James and Jennifer Panos and eight other defendants were charged in a 10-count indictment on May 15, 2013, alleging racketeering conspiracy, drug conspiracy, and firearms charges for activity that took place inside the club from 2006 until December 5, 2012. All pleaded guilty and were sentenced last year as result of an investigation of drug trafficking, drug distribution, prostitution, and other illegal activity that took place at Desperado’s located on Northeast Evangeline Thruway. As part of the plea agreement, the owners agreed to forfeit illegal proceeds already seized and to forfeit the Desperado’s property.
Prejean faces up to 20 years in prison for the extortion count, 10 years in prison for the obtaining computer information count, and five years in prison for both false statement counts. He also faces up to three years of supervised release and a $250,000 fine for each count.
The FBI, DEA, U.S. Department of Homeland Security Investigations, Louisiana State Police, and Lafayette Metro Narcotics investigated the case. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Myers P. Namie and Daniel J. McCoy prosecuted the case.
An indictment is merely an accusation and a defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.
California Man Sentenced for Trafficking Marijuana, Laundering MoneyRead the Press Release
COLUMBUS, OHIO – Samuel A. Flek, 25, of Orangevale, Calif. was sentenced to 36 months in prison, three years of supervised release, and was ordered to forfeit $339,045 in currency on one count of conspiracy to possess with the intent to distribute more than 100 kilograms of marijuana and one count of conspiracy to commit money laundering. Flek pleaded guilty to the aforementioned charges on November 5, 2014.
Carter M. Stewart, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Ohio, Marlon V. Miller, Special Agent in Charge, U.S. Homeland Security Investigations, Kathy A. Enstrom, Special Agent in Charge, Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigation, Cincinnati Field Office, Columbus Police Chief Kim Jacobs and Franklin County Sheriff Zach Scott announced the sentence handed down today by U.S. District Judge Michael H. Watson.
According to court documents, beginning in April 2012, Flek was paid by a drug organization to make regular trips to Columbus, Ohio for the purpose of transporting narcotics proceeds from Ohio to California on behalf of co-conspirators. Flek often stored the money in his luggage and also began shipping the cash in FedEx boxes under an alias.
Investigators established that Flek used a fraudulent Ohio driver’s license to rent a storage unit in Hilliard, Ohio to count, package, and prepare the drug proceeds for shipping, and that Flek transported and/or shipped more than $1.5 million in drug trafficking proceeds.
The investigation established that Flek transported between 100 and 400 kilograms of marijuana from Columbus to Dayton, Ohio.
“The laundering of illegal drug profits is as important and essential to drug traffickers as the very distribution of their illegal drugs. Without these ill-gotten gains, the traffickers could not finance their organizations,” said Kathy A. Enstrom, Special Agent in Charge, IRS Criminal Investigation, Cincinnati Field Office. “IRS Criminal Investigation is committed to taking the profit away from the drug traffickers and putting those individuals in jail.”
U.S. Attorney Stewart commended the cooperative investigation by the Bulk Cash Smuggling Task Force, as well as Assistant United States Attorney Mike Hunter and Special Assistant United States Attorney Brian Martinez, who prosecuted the case.
Branford Woman Who Failed to Pay Taxes on Gifting Tables Pyramid Scheme Profits Is SentencedRead the Press Release
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Deirdre M. Daly, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, announced that NANCY DILLON, 70, of Branford, was sentenced today by U.S. District Judge Alvin W. Thompson in Hartford to one year of probation, the first six months of which DILLON must serve in home confinement, for failing to pay taxes on income she received while participating in an illegal pyramid scheme known as “Gifting Tables.” Judge Thompson also ordered DILLON to perform 100 hours of community service, pay a $2,000 fine and back taxes, penalties and interest.
According to court documents and statements made in court, a Gifting Table is configured as a four-level pyramid, with eight participants assigned to the bottom row, four participants assigned to the third row, two participants assigned to the second row, and one participant assigned to the top row. The top row participant is referred to as the “Dessert,” the two participants on the second row as “Entrees,” the four participants on the third row as “Soup and Salads,” and the eight participants on the bottom row as “Appetizers.” To join a Gifting Table, new participants were required to pay $5,000, typically cash, to the Dessert, that is, the participant occupying the top position on the pyramid. The $5,000 payment, which was fraudulently characterized as a gift, secured the new participant a position as an Appetizer on the bottom row. Participants progressed from the bottom row of the pyramid by recruiting additional people to join the Gifting Table. When eight new participants joined a Gifting Table, each having made a $5,000 “gift” to the person occupying the Dessert position at the top of the pyramid, the Dessert left the Gifting Table and kept the $40,000 paid by the eight new participants. That particular Gifting Table was then split, with the two participants occupying the Entree position on the second row moving to the top position (Dessert) of two new pyramids. The other incumbent members of the Gifting Table moved up a row on one of the two newly-formed pyramids, and the search for 16 new participants began. The success of the Gifting Tables depended on new participants joining and making the $5,000 “gift.”
In 2009, DILLON received $40,000 while participating in the Gifting Tables scheme. Even though she had been advised by an attorney that the money was taxable income and not a gift, she failed to pay federal income taxes on the money she received.
On June 30, 2014, DILLON pleaded guilty to one count of willful failure to file a return, supply information or pay tax.
This matter is being investigated by the Internal Revenue Service – Criminal Investigation Division and prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Douglas P. Morabito and Peter S. Jongbloed.
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(203) 821-3722 [email protected]AstraZeneca to Pay $7.9 Million to Resolve Kickback AllegationsRead the Press Release
AstraZeneca LP, a pharmaceutical manufacturer based in Delaware, has agreed to pay the government $7.9 million to settle allegations that it engaged in a kickback scheme in violation of the False Claims Act, the Justice Department announced today. AstraZeneca markets and sells pharmaceutical products in the United States, including a drug sold under the trade name Nexium.
“We will continue to pursue pharmaceutical companies that pay kickbacks to pharmacy benefit managers,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General Joyce R. Branda of the Justice Department’s Civil Division. “Hidden financial agreements between drug manufacturers and pharmacy benefit managers can improperly influence which drugs are available to patients and the price paid for drugs.”
The settlement resolves allegations that AstraZeneca agreed to provide remuneration to Medco Health Solutions, a pharmacy benefit manager, in exchange for Medco maintaining Nexium’s “sole and exclusive” status on certain Medco formularies and through other marketing activities related to those Medco formularies. The United States alleged that AstraZeneca provided some or all of the remuneration to Medco through price concessions on drugs other than Nexium, namely on Prilosec, Toprol XL and Plendil. The United States contended that this kickback arrangement between AstraZeneca and Medco violated the Federal Anti-Kickback statute, and thereby caused the submission of false or fraudulent claims for Nexium to the Retiree Drug Subsidy Program.
“By this agreement we are making important strides in holding drug manufacturers accountable not only in Delaware but nationwide,” said U.S. Attorney Charles M. Oberly III of the District of Delaware. “I am proud of the tireless work by this office to investigate this case.”
“Pharmaceutical companies that pay kickbacks in order to boost profits will be held accountable for their improper conduct,” said Special Agent in Charge Nick DiGiulio of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General (HHS-OIG). “We will continue to crack down on kickback arrangements, which can undermine drug choices for patients and corrode the public’s trust in the health care system.”
This civil settlement resolves a lawsuit filed under the qui tam, or whistleblower, provision of the False Claims Act, which allows private citizens with knowledge of false claims to bring civil actions on behalf of the government and to share in any recovery. The lawsuit was filed by former AstraZeneca employees Paul DiMattia and F. Folger Tuggle, who will collectively receive $1,422,000.
The settlement with AstraZeneca was the result of a coordinated effort among the Civil Division, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Delaware, the HHS-OIG, the U.S. Postal Service’s Office of Inspector General and the FBI Wilmington, Delaware, Resident Agency Office and the FBI’s Major Provider Response Team.
This settlement illustrates the government’s emphasis on combating health care fraud and marks another achievement for the Health Care Fraud Prevention and Enforcement Action Team (HEAT) initiative, which was announced in May 2009 by the Attorney General and the Secretary of Health and Human Services. The partnership between the two departments has focused efforts to reduce and prevent Medicare and Medicaid financial fraud through enhanced cooperation. One of the most powerful tools in this effort is the False Claims Act. Since January 2009, the Justice Department has recovered a total of more than $23.6 billion through False Claims Act cases, with more than $15.1 billion of that amount recovered in cases involving fraud against federal health care programs.
The False Claims Act lawsuit was filed in the U.S. District Court for the District of Delaware and is captioned United States ex rel. DiMattia et al. v. AstraZeneca LP et al. No. 10-910 (D. Del.). The claims settled by this agreement are allegations only; there has been no determination of liability.
AstraZeneca to Pay $7.9 Million to Resolve Kickback AllegationsRead the Press Release
WILMINGTON, Del. – AstraZeneca LP, a pharmaceutical manufacturer based in Delaware, has agreed to pay the government $7.9 million to settle allegations that it engaged in a kickback scheme in violation of the False Claims Act, the Justice Department announced today. AstraZeneca markets and sells pharmaceutical products in the United States, including a drug sold under the trade name Nexium.
“We will continue to pursue pharmaceutical companies that pay kickbacks to pharmacy benefit managers,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General Joyce R. Branda of the Justice Department’s Civil Division. “Hidden financial agreements between drug manufacturers and pharmacy benefit managers can improperly influence which drugs are available to patients and the price paid for drugs.”
The settlement resolves allegations that AstraZeneca agreed to provide remuneration to Medco Health Solutions, a pharmacy benefit manager, in exchange for Medco maintaining Nexium’s “sole and exclusive” status on certain Medco formularies and through other marketing activities related to those Medco formularies. The United States alleged that AstraZeneca provided some or all of the remuneration to Medco through price concessions on drugs other than Nexium, namely on Prilosec, Toprol XL and Plendil. The United States contended that this kickback arrangement between AstraZeneca and Medco violated the Federal Anti-Kickback statute, and thereby caused the submission of false or fraudulent claims for Nexium to the Retiree Drug Subsidy Program.
“By this agreement we are making important strides in holding drug manufacturers accountable not only in Delaware but nationwide,” said U.S. Attorney Charles M. Oberly III of the District of Delaware. “I am proud of the tireless work by this office to investigate this case.”
This civil settlement resolves a lawsuit filed under the qui tam, or whistleblower, provision of the False Claims Act, which allows private citizens with knowledge of false claims to bring civil actions on behalf of the government and to share in any recovery. The lawsuit was filed by former AstraZeneca employees Paul DiMattia and F. Folger Tuggle, who will collectively receive $1,422,000.
The settlement with AstraZeneca was the result of a coordinated effort among the Civil Division, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Delaware and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ Office of Inspector General.
This settlement illustrates the government’s emphasis on combating health care fraud and marks another achievement for the Health Care Fraud Prevention and Enforcement Action Team (HEAT) initiative, which was announced in May 2009 by the Attorney General and the Secretary of Health and Human Services. The partnership between the two departments has focused efforts to reduce and prevent Medicare and Medicaid financial fraud through enhanced cooperation. One of the most powerful tools in this effort is the False Claims Act. Since January 2009, the Justice Department has recovered a total of more than $23.5 billion through False Claims Act cases, with more than $15 billion of that amount recovered in cases involving fraud against federal health care programs.The False Claims Act lawsuit was filed in the U.S. District Court for the District of Delaware and is captioned United States ex rel. DiMattia et al. v. AstraZeneca LP et al. No. 10-910 (D. Del.). The claims settled by this agreement are allegations only; there has been no determination of liability.
Anthony, N.M., Man Sentenced to Almost Eleven Years for Violating Federal Firearms and Narcotics LawsRead the Press Release
ALBUQUERQUE – Abel Romero, 31, of Anthony, N.M., was sentenced today in federal court in Las Cruces, N.M., to 131 months in prison followed by three years of supervised release for violating the federal firearms and narcotics laws. Romero was sentenced based on a guilty plea entered on Dec. 5, 2013.
Romero and co-defendants, Jaime Cano, 31, of El Paso, Texas, and Victor Cano, 31, of Anthony, N.M., were arrested in May 2013, on a criminal complaint charging them with drug trafficking and firearms offenses. The three co-defendants subsequently were indicted on Aug. 14, 2013, in a ten-count indictment. Counts 1, 2 and 3 charged Romero, Victor Cano and Jaime Cano with conspiracy to distribute cocaine and distribution of cocaine in Doña Ana County, N.M., between Feb. 5, 2013 and Feb. 19, 2013.
The remaining seven counts of the indictment charged Romero with violating the federal narcotics and firearms laws. Counts 5, 7 and 9 charged Romero with distributing cocaine on three occasions between Feb. 11, 2013 and Feb. 19, 2013. Counts 6, 8 and 10 charged Romero with being a felon in possession of firearms and ammunition on four dates in Feb. 2013. At the time, Romero was prohibited from possessing firearms or ammunition because he previously had been convicted of aggravated assault, distribution of marijuana, and aggravated assault with a deadly weapon.
According to court filings, Romero sold ounce quantities of cocaine and firearms and ammunition to an individual working with law enforcement on four separate dates in Feb. 2013. Romero obtained the cocaine with the help of Victor Cano and Jaime Cano.
Romero pled guilty to all ten counts of the indictment on Dec. 5, 2013. In entering the guilty plea, Romero admitted that from Feb. 5, 2013 through Feb. 19, 2013, he obtained quantities of cocaine from a source of supply and sold the cocaine to another person. Romero admitted receiving and selling an aggregate of 154.5 grams of cocaine to the buyer during this time period. Romero also admitted that during this time he unlawfully possessed a number of firearms and ammunition knowing that as a result of his prior felony conviction of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon he could not lawfully possess firearms.
On Nov. 7, 2013, Jaime Cano and Victor Cano each pled guilty to Counts 2 and 3 of the indictment. Each admitted to conspiring with the other to distribute quantities of cocaine to Romero. Victor Cano was sentenced on Mar. 6, 2014, to 37 months in federal prison followed by three years of supervised release. Jaime Cano was sentenced on June 4, 2014, to 40 months in federal prison followed by three years of supervised release.
This case was investigated by the Las Cruces office of the FBI and was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Sarah M. Davenport and Shaheen P. Torgoley of the U.S. Attorney’s Las Cruces Branch Office.
Alleged Head of Atlanta-Based Investment Fraud Scheme ArraignedRead the Press Release
ATLANTA - Andrew Avery has been arraigned on federal charges of wire fraud and mail fraud stemming from an alleged investment fraud scheme. He was indicted by a federal grand jury on October 7, 2014. Avery fled the country, but was extradited from Thailand and arrested on January 26, 2015. He is currently in federal custody.
“This defendant is charged with taking advantage of unknowing investors, stealing millions of dollars with false promises and misrepresentations about the profitability of purported Real Estate Investment Notes sold by New Day Atlanta Financial,” said Acting United States Attorney John Horn.
J. Britt Johnson, Special Agent in Charge, FBI Atlanta Field Office, stated: “The FBI fully understands that investment fraud in not a victimless crime and it is hoped that the indictment, apprehension and return to the U.S. of Mr. Avery will illustrate that to the many victims in this case.”
According to Acting United States Attorney Horn, the charges, and other information presented in court: From April 2007 through May 2010, the defendant allegedly operated a company called New Day Atlanta Financial (NDA). Avery represented to potential investors that NDA sold “Real Estate Investment Notes,” or REINs, in a fund of “premium real estate investments” called “the Magnolia Fund.”
According to NDA’s website and prospectus, the REINs were promissory notes that would mature after a one- to five-year period, earning the investors up to 13% interest. The term “REIN” was invented by Avery, and a REIN is not an investment vehicle actually used by financial institutions. The Magnolia Fund was a purported $6 million dollar portfolio of Atlanta, Ga., properties that would be profitable through rental income, lease purchase income, or future sales.
Avery allegedly concealed the fact that NDA’s properties were worth far less than $6 million dollars. In addition, Avery used investor funds to purchase businesses in his own name, and for his own personal expenses. Over the course of NDA’s operation, over 70 investors lost over $3 million as a result of Avery’s misrepresentations.
In May 2010, the United States Securities and Exchange Commission filed a civil lawsuit in the Northern District of Georgia to shut down NDA. Shortly after being deposed by the SEC in connection with the lawsuit, Avery left the United States for Thailand. He was extradited from Thailand and arrested on January 26, 2015, and is currently in federal custody. Andrew Avery, 39, was arraigned before United States Magistrate Judge Gerrilyn G. Brill.
Members of the public are reminded that the indictment only contains charges. The defendant is presumed innocent of the charges and it will be the government’s burden to prove the defendant’s guilt beyond a reasonable doubt at trial.
This case is being investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation.
Assistant United States Attorney Shanya J. Dingle is prosecuting the case.
This announcement is part of efforts underway by President Obama’s Financial Fraud Enforcement Task Force (FFETF) which was created in November 2009 to wage an aggressive, coordinated and proactive effort to investigate and prosecute financial crimes. With more than 20 federal agencies, 94 U.S. Attorneys’ offices and state and local partners, it’s the broadest coalition of law enforcement, investigatory and regulatory agencies ever assembled to combat fraud. Since its formation, the task force has made great strides in facilitating increased investigation and prosecution of financial crimes; enhancing coordination and cooperation among federal, state and local authorities; addressing discrimination in the lending and financial markets and conducting outreach to the public, victims, financial institutions and other organizations. Over the past three fiscal years, the Justice Department has filed more than 10,000 financial fraud cases against nearly 15,000 defendants including more than 2,700 mortgage fraud defendants. For more information on the task force, visit www.stopfraud.gov.
For further information please contact the U.S. Attorney’s Public Affairs Office at [email protected] or (404) 581-6016. The Internet address for the home page for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia Atlanta Division is http://www.justice.gov/usao/gan/.
Adams Man Pleads Guilty to Tobacco TraffickingRead the Press Release
BOSTON – An Adams man pleaded guilty in U.S. District Court in Springfield yesterday in a conspiracy to traffic in contraband tobacco.
Hasmit Kharbanda, 34, pleaded guilty to conspiracy and three counts of trafficking in contraband smokeless tobacco. In October 2014, Kharbanda and two others were charged in an Information. Kharbanda’s sentencing is scheduled for July 21, 2015 before U.S. District Judge Mark G. Mastroianni.
Kharbanda, two co-defendants, and others, worked together to avoid paying “thousands of dollars in” large sums of excise taxes on smokeless tobacco and cigars they sold from warehouses in Springfield, Mass. and Danbury, Conn. Co-defendants Jugjeev Kharbanda and Jaspal Singh pleaded guilty in January 2015 and October 2014 and are scheduled to be sentenced on June 25, 2015 and April 21, 2015, respectively.
United States Attorney Carmen M. Ortiz; Daniel J. Kumor, Special Agent in Charge of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms & Explosives, Boston Field Division; William P. Offord, Special Agent in Charge of the Internal Revenue Service’s Criminal Investigation in Boston; and Bruce M. Foucart, Special Agent in Charge of Homeland Security Investigations in Boston, made the announcement today. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Alex J. Grant of Ortiz’s Springfield Branch Unit and Veronica M. Lei of Ortiz’s Asset Forfeiture Unit.
10 February 2015
Woman Sentenced to Twenty-One Months Imprisonment for International Parental Kidnapping and Passport FraudRead the Press Release
Contact Person: Nathan Williams (843) 727-4381
Columbia, South Carolina ----United States Attorney Bill Nettles stated today that Dorothy Lee Barnett, a/k/a Alexandria Maria Canton, a/k/a Alexandria Maria Geldenhuys, age 53, of Queensland, Australia, formerly of Isle of Palms, South Carolina, pled guilty to one count of International Parental Kidnapping and two counts of False Statement in a Passport Application. Sentencing occurred immediately after the guilty plea, where Barnett was sentenced to twenty-one months imprisonment, to be followed by two years supervised release.
Facts at the plea hearing established that Barnett removed her infant child from the United States in 1994, obstructing the parental rights of the child’s father. Prior to fleeing the United States, Barnett assumed a false identity, which she maintained until the time of her arrest. Barnett was able to obtain a false passport, using the false identity, which she utilized to flee the United States. The false statements she made in order to obtain and renew the passport were the basis for her two passport fraud convictions. Barnett was located by FBI agents in early 2012, and extradited to the United States in September, 2014.
Barnett’s plea was heard, and sentence was imposed, by United States District Court Judge Richard M. Gergel. The International Parental Kidnapping count carried up to three years imprisonment under 18 U.S.C. § 1204 and each of the False Statement charges carried up to ten years imprisonment under 18 U.S.C. § 1542.
The convictions are the result of an investigation conducted by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, United States Department of State and the Australian Federal Police. Assistant United States Attorney Nathan Williams of the Charleston office prosecuted the case. The Department of Justice’s Office of International Affairs provided significant assistance.Winnebago Resident Sentenced for Social Security Fraud and Theft from A Tribal CasinoRead the Press Release
United States Attorney Deborah R. Gilg announced that Susan Marr, age 39, of Winnebago, Nebraska, was sentenced for her convictions in two separate cases. In the first case, Marr was convicted of knowingly stealing funds from the Social Security Administration. In the second case, Marr was convicted of stealing funds from an Indian tribal organization. On February 9, 2015, Chief United States District Court Judge Laurie Smith Camp sentenced Marr to 5 years’ probation. While on probation, Marr will have to perform 200 hours of community service and pay $38,171.64 in restitution to the Social Security Administration.. No restitution was ordered in the second case as Marr had made restitution prior to sentencing.
Marr is the mother of a disabled child and served as his representative payee. In July of 2007, she applied for Supplemental Security Income benefits for her son. SSI benefits were awarded based upon information provided by Marr in the application, and benefits were paid through October 19, 2012. However, the Social Security Administration discovered that Marr had failed to list all of her household income and resources and that she subsequently failed to advise the Social Security Administration of her marriage and the related income and resources of her husband. The Social Security Administration determined that Marr’s household resources always exceeded the allowable amount such that her son would not have been entitled to any of the $38,171.64 in SSI benefits that were paid.
Marr had been employed as the Manager of the Lucky 77 Casino in Walthill, Nebraska, on the Omaha Indian Reservation. That casino is owned by the Omaha Tribe of Nebraska. She was terminated from her position when the first Indictment was returned. The casino paid Marr all of her wages and vacation pay at the time of her termination. However, Marr subsequently gained access to the payroll system under the guise of showing a new employee how to process payroll and caused three additional checks to be issued to herself to which she was not entitled. The checks were in the amounts of $2,078.86 , $931.54 and $1,639.80. Marr was able to cash the first two of those unauthorized checks before the Omaha Tribe learned that they had been improperly issued.
These cases were investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Social Security Administration Office of Inspector General.
Waterbury Man Admits Role in Massive Stolen Identity Tax Refund SchemeRead the Press Release
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Deirdre M. Daly, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, announced that JULIO LARA TRINIDAD, 28, of Waterbury, pleaded guilty today in New Haven federal court to federal offenses stemming from a stolen identity tax refund fraud scheme that the government believes resulted in a loss of more than $7.5 million from the U.S. Treasury.
According to court documents and statements made in court, this matter stems from an investigation into individuals who, through various means, obtained fraudulent U.S. Treasury tax refund checks using stolen identities. After obtaining the checks, individuals sold them for less than face value of the checks, or deposited them into bank accounts that had been opened using fraudulent identifying documents. The funds were then quickly withdrawn from the bank accounts.
In 2011, TRINIDAD was arrested in New Jersey for stealing U.S. Treasury tax refund checks from mailboxes. He pleaded guilty to a related charge in the District of New Jersey in January 2012. An arrest warrant was issued for TRINIDAD after he failed to appear for his sentencing in May 2012. TRINIDAD was arrested on November 23, 2013, and subsequently was charged by indictment in the District of Connecticut.
The government alleges that in June 2012, while he was a fugitive from justice, TRINIDAD opened a checking account in the name of an identity theft victim. Between December 2012 and February 2013, the checking account was used to purchase six licenses for a brand of tax preparation software. According to the government, these licenses were used to file more than 60,000 federal income tax returns, seeking more than $234 million in federal tax refunds intended to be issued to TRINIDAD and his co-conspirators. Nearly $6.8 million in fraudulent refunds were issued before the scheme was identified.
The government further alleges that TRINIDAD and individuals he recruited used additional stolen identities to open other bank accounts into which hundreds of thousands of dollars in fraudulently-obtained tax refunds were deposited. TRINIDAD’s co-defendant, Jerry De Los Santos Rodriguez, has admitted that he and TRINIDAD opened bank accounts using fraudulent identities. In addition, between July and October 2013, TRINIDAD and Ramon Mena sold more than $60,000 in fraudulently-obtained U.S. Treasury checks to an individual working with law enforcement. TRINIDAD and Mena received some of these checks from Pricilla Brito and Yowandy DeLeon.
TRINIDAD pleaded guilty to one count of theft of public money, which carries a maximum term of imprisonment of 10 years, and one count of aggravated identity theft, which carries a mandatory consecutive sentence of two years of imprisonment. He is scheduled to be sentenced by Senior U.S. District Judge Ellen Bree Burns on May 5, 2015.
TRINIDAD has been detained since his arrest.
De Los Santos Rodriguez, Mena, Brito and DeLeon previously pleaded guilty.
This matter is being investigated by the United States Postal Inspection Service, the Internal Revenue Service – Criminal Investigation Division, the United States Secret Service and Homeland Security Investigations, with the assistance of the Danbury and Darien Police Departments. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Sarala V. Nagala.
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(203) 821-3722 [email protected]Warren Businessman Pleads Guilty to FraudRead the Press Release
A Macomb County business owner pleaded guilty yesterday to intentionally setting a fire at his commercial laundry facility to collect on an insurance policy, U.S. Attorney Barbara L. McQuade announced today.
McQuade was joined in the announcement by Steven Bogdalek, Special Agent in Charge of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearm, and Explosives (ATF).
Alexandros Yfantidis, 74, of Clinton Township, admitted in court that on May 4, 2011, he intentionally burned down the building housing his commercial laundry service, which he operated as Best Textile Services. In pleading guilty to one count of mail fraud, Yfantidis admitted making a fraudulent claim to his insurance company in relation to fire. His agreement with the government calls for restitution to reimburse victims whose homes and/or personal properties were damaged by the fire explosion.
U.S. District Judge Stephen J. Murphy, III, set Yfantidis’s sentencing for June 5.
“Committing any fraud scheme harms victims, but intentionally setting a fire creates a danger to public safety that far exceeds the financial loss,” McQuade said. McQuade thanked the agents of ATF for their investigation of the case. She also thanked the Warren Fire Department for assisting in the investigation. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Abed Hammoud.
“As we know arson for profit crimes have many victims. Mr. Yfantidis chose to break the law for his personal gain by putting community and fire fighters at significant risk”, said ATF Special Agent in Charge Steven Bogdalek. “I would like to thank the ATF Special Agents, the Warren Fire Department and the United States Attorney’s office for their hard work and dedication in this investigation.”
For information concerning restitution potential victims are encouraged to contact the U.S. Attorney’s Office Victim Witness Coordinator at (313) 226-9633 or Tiesha Johnson of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives at (313) 202-3400.Victor Verdin-Reyes Sentenced to 216 Months on Cocaine Conspiracy ChargesRead the Press Release
GREENEVILLE, Tenn. – Victor Verdin-Reyes, 49, of Johnson City, Tenn., was sentenced on Feb. 10, 2015, by the Honorable R. Leon Jordan, U.S. District Court Judge, to a federal prison term of 216 months, for his leadership role in a cocaine conspiracy centered in and around the Johnson City area.
According to the plea agreement signed and filed with the U.S. District Court Clerk’s Office, Verdin-Reyes stipulated that he conspired to distribute between 5 to 15 kilograms of cocaine in the Eastern District of Tennessee and elsewhere. Verdin-Reyes admitted that he had been selling cocaine since approximately the year 2000. He sold cocaine at his residence in Johnson City, Tenn., and also maintained a “stash house” located in Johnson City. Verdin and/or his wife, Ericka Jean Verdin, 45, of Johnson City, Tenn., sold various quantities of cocaine to an individual working on behalf of law enforcement on approximately 10 separate occasions during the period of the investigation. Ericka Jean Verdin is currently scheduled to be sentenced in the same case on Mar. 12, 2015.
On Feb. 9, 2014, law enforcement officers arrested Verdin-Reyes and his cocaine source of supply, Esteban Delgado Camacho, 48, of Weaverville, N.C., as they were conducting a drug deal involving a quarter kilogram of cocaine at the stash house maintained by Verdin-Reyes in Johnson City, Tenn.
A subsequent search warrant executed at the primary residence of Verdin-Reyes resulted in the seizure of an additional ounce of cocaine, digital scales, cutting agents, money order and Western Union receipts, $37,500.00 in U.S. currency and a .9mm handgun with a loaded magazine.
Another search warrant executed at Camacho’s residence in North Carolina resulted in the seizure of another approximate quarter kilogram of cocaine, an approximate ounce of crack cocaine, multiple firearms, digital scales, and over $41,000 in U.S. currency. Camacho was previously sentenced to serve 121 months for his role as the source of supply for Verdin-Reyes and for possessing firearms in furtherance of his cocaine trafficking.
Law enforcement agencies participating in the investigation which led to the indictment and subsequent conviction of Verdin-Reyes include the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation, Johnson City Police Department, First District Drug Task Force, Department of Homeland Security Investigations, Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, Washington County Sheriff’s Office, and Drug Enforcement Administration (in Tennessee and North Carolina). Assistant U.S. Attorney Wayne Taylor represented the United States.
Van Zandt County Convicted Felon Sentenced for Federal Firearms ViolationRead the Press Release
Department of Justice
Office of Public AffairsTYLER, Texas - A 44-year-old Wills Point, Texas, man has been sentenced to federal prison for federal firearms violations in the Eastern District of Texas, announced U.S. Attorney John M. Bales today.
Terry Dewayne Monk pleaded guilty on Sep. 16, 2014, to being a felon in possession of a firearm and was sentenced to 71 months in federal prison today by U.S. District Judge Leonard Davis.
According to information presented in court, on Mar. 14, 2014, Monk was stopped by a on a rural county road in Van Zandt County by sheriff’s deputy for an outstanding warrant. During the traffic stop, officers discovered the vehicle did not belong to Monk, but to a nearby resident. Officers went to the home and talked to the vehicle’s owner who advised them that Monk had been staying at her home for the about a week and that she had seen him with a sawed-off shotgun. The home-owner gave permission to search the residence. During the search, officers located the sawed-off shotgun which had an obliterated serial number. Further investigation revealed Monk was a convicted felon having been found guilty of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon in 1990 in Tarrant County, Texas. Convicted felons are prohibited by federal law from owning or possessing firearms or ammunition. Monk was indicted by a federal grand jury on May 28, 2014.
This case was prosecuted as part of Project Safe Neighborhoods, aimed at reducing gun and gang violence, deterring illegal possession of guns, ammunition and body armor, and improving the safety of residents in the Eastern District of Texas. Participants in the initiative include community members and organizations as well as federal, state and local law enforcement agencies.
This case was investigated by the Van Zandt County Sheriff’s Office and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives and prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Jim Noble.
U.S. Justice Department and North Carolina Attorney General Reach Settlement to Resolve Allegations of Auto Lending Discrimination by "Buy Here, Pay Here" Used-Car DealershipsRead the Press Release
Settlement Requires Substantial Improvements to Dealerships’ Policies and Provides $225,000 in Relief to Affected Customers
The U.S. Department of Justice Civil Rights Division, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Western District of North Carolina and the North Carolina Department of Justice today announced a settlement of the federal government’s first-ever discrimination lawsuit involving “buy here, pay here” auto lending. The settlement, which is subject to court approval, was filed today in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of North Carolina.
The settlement resolves a lawsuit, filed in January 2014 by the Department of Justice and the State of North Carolina, alleging that Auto Fare Inc. and Southeastern Auto Corp., two “buy here, pay here” used-car dealerships in Charlotte, North Carolina, and their owner – violated the federal Equal Credit Opportunity Act by engaging in a pattern or practice of “reverse redlining” by intentionally targeting African-American customers for unfair and predatory credit practices in the financing of used car purchases. The state of North Carolina also alleged that the dealerships’ actions violated the state’s Unfair and Deceptive Trade Practices Act. The settlement came after the court denied the dealerships’ motion to dismiss the case and agreed that reverse redlining by an auto lender is illegal discrimination.
“It is not only illegal, but also fundamentally wrong, to target borrowers of color for predatory loans and exploit their need for a car to do essential tasks such as getting to work,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General Vanita Gupta of the Civil Rights Division. “Combating discrimination in all segments of the auto lending market is, and will remain, a top priority for the Civil Rights Division. I am pleased that these dealerships have agreed to reform problematic lending and servicing practices and adopt policies that promote responsible lending. I hope that other buy here, pay here dealerships will evaluate their practices in light of this settlement.”
The settlement requires the dealerships to implement a number of specific practices to ensure that the terms of their loans and repossession practices are no longer unfair and predatory. The required changes include: limiting projected monthly payments to no more than 25% of a borrower’s income; requiring interest rates to be at least five percentage points below the state’s rate cap; mandating a lower interest rate for borrowers who have specified evidence of lower credit risk; requiring competitive sales prices; prohibiting hidden fees on top of the required down payment; prohibiting repossessions until at least two consecutive missed payments; providing down payment refunds to borrowers who quickly go into default; requiring strict compliance with provisions of state repossession law enacted to protected consumers; providing borrowers improved disclosures at the time of sale (including disclosing the presence of any GPS, or automatic shut off, device); allowing borrowers to obtain an independent inspection of the car before completing the purchase; and providing borrowers improved notices before repossession.
“All consumers deserve to be treated fairly when they buy a car,” said North Carolina Attorney General Roy Cooper. “We hope this case sends a strong message that car dealers cannot use race when targeting buyers with overpriced cars and oppressive loans.”
The settlement also requires defendants to establish a $225,000 settlement fund to compensate victims of their past discriminatory and predatory lending.
“Predatory lending practices that lock consumers into contracts they cannot afford are illegal and can spell financial disaster for borrowers of lower income or challenged credit history,” said U.S. Attorney Anne M. Tompkins of the Western District of North Carolina. “Today’s settlement ensures that all customers of Auto Fare Inc. and Southeastern Auto Corp. will have equal access to credit regardless of their race.”
The lawsuit alleged that the two dealerships’ sales prices, down payments, and interest rates were disproportionately high compared to other subprime used-car dealers. Because the dealerships did not meaningfully assess the customers’ creditworthiness or ability to repay, their rates of default and repossession were disproportionately high. Additionally, the dealerships engaged in repossessions when customers were not in default.
The U.S. Department of Justice’s enforcement of fair lending laws is conducted by the Fair Lending Unit of the Housing and Civil Enforcement Section in the Civil Right Division. Since the Fair Lending Unit was established in February 2010, it has filed or resolved 36 lending matters under the Fair Housing Act, Housing Equal Credit Opportunity Act (ECOA) and the Servicemembers Civil Relief Act. The settlements in these matters provide for over $1.2 billion in monetary relief for impacted communities and individual borrowers. The Attorney General’s annual reports to Congress on ECOA highlight the department’s accomplishments in fair lending and are available at www.justice.gov/crt/publications.
The Civil Rights Division and other agencies involved in this matter are members of the Financial Fraud Enforcement Task Force. President Obama established this task force to wage an aggressive, coordinated and proactive effort to investigate and prosecute financial crimes. The task force includes representatives from a broad range of federal agencies, regulatory authorities, inspectors general and state and local law enforcement who, working together, bring to bear a powerful array of criminal and civil enforcement resources. The task force is working to improve efforts across the federal executive branch, and with state and local partners, to investigate and prosecute significant financial crimes, ensure just and effective punishment for those who perpetrate financial crimes, combat discrimination in the lending and financial markets, and recover proceeds for victims of financial crimes. For more information on the task force, visit www.StopFraud.gov.
The settlement provides for an independent party to contact victims and distribute payments of compensation at no cost to borrowers whom the United States Department of Justice and the North Carolina Department of Justice identify as victims of defendants’ conduct. Former customers who are eligible for compensation from the settlement will be contacted by mail later this year. Individuals who believe that they may have been victims of illegal conduct by Auto Fare or Southeast Auto and have questions about the settlement may contact the United States Department of Justice and the North Carolina Department of Justice by calling 1-800-896-7743, mailbox 92, or emailing [email protected].
A copy of the proposed order and other documents related to this lawsuit, as well as additional information about fair lending enforcement by the United States Department of Justice, can be obtained from the United States Department of Justice website at www.justice.gov/fairhousing.
U. S. Attorney Timothy Q. Purdon to Step downRead the Press Release
Purdon’s term as U.S. Attorney highlighted by commitment to improving public safety in Indian country
Bismarck, North Dakota – Timothy Q. Purdon announced today that he will step down as the United States Attorney for the District of North Dakota on March 12, 2015, after serving more than four and a half years in office. Mr. Purdon has informed President Obama and Attorney General Eric Holder of his decision. First Assistant United States Attorney Chris Myers will become Acting United States Attorney for the District of North Dakota on March 13, 2015.
"Serving as United States Attorney for the District of North Dakota is the greatest honor and privilege a lawyer could ever have," United States Attorney Purdon said today. "In reflecting on all we have accomplished over the past four and half years, I am deeply grateful to President Obama and Attorney General Holder for the opportunity they have given me to serve the people of North Dakota. I leave with a deep respect for the skill and dedication of the career prosecutors, attorneys, and staff at the North Dakota United States Attorney’s Office and at the Department to Justice. I am proud of our successes over the past few years, and I am confident they will continue under the skilled leadership of Acting United States Attorney Chris Myers."
"Tim Purdon has been an outstanding United States Attorney, a fierce advocate for the people of North Dakota, and a strong national leader whose efforts to improve public safety in Indian Country have made a profound difference – and touched countless lives," said United States Attorney General Eric Holder. "Throughout his tenure, Tim has distinguished himself as a skilled attorney and a consummate public servant, rising to challenges as diverse as human trafficking, violent crime, drug trafficking, and fraud. His work to forge close partnerships with tribal leaders – and to develop and implement an Anti-Violence Strategy for Indian Country – have provided a model for success, increased federal prosecutions on North Dakota’s reservations, and laid a strong foundation on which future efforts can be built. His exceptional leadership and wise counsel at the national level – advising me and other Justice Department officials as Chair of the Native American Issues Subcommittee – have had an important and enduring impact. And although we are all sorry to see him go, I am proud to join Tim’s dedicated colleagues in thanking him for his exemplary service as United States Attorney, and wishing him all the best as he begins a new chapter in his career."
Mr. Purdon’s signature initiative as U.S. Attorney was the 2011 implementation of the Office’s Anti-Violence Strategy for Indian Country in North Dakota. The Anti-Violence Strategy dedicated much-needed additional resources to the fight to improve public safety on North Dakota’s Indian reservations. The core of the Anti-Violence Strategy involved a creative effort to put Assistant United States Attorneys on the reservations on a regular basis to forge ties with the tribal communities they serve. The Strategy also included new support for crime prevention and reentry programs to complement the U.S. Attorney’s Office’s renewed commitment to the vigorous enforcement of federal laws in reservation communities. Under the Anti-Violence Strategy, prosecutions of federal crimes committed on the reservations in North Dakota have increased markedly since 2009. On June 27, 2011, the editorial page of the Fargo Forum awarded "Prairie Roses" to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the creation of the Anti-Violence Strategy. The editorial noted that Mr. Purdon was "delivering on [his] pledge" to "increase attention to reservation crime." The Forum wrote that Mr. Purdon "understands that solving entrenched problems must include building trust and relationships in addition to enforcement" and hailed the Anti-Violence Strategy as "a good start." Forum Editorial: Sheriff’s Otters Win Roses, The Forum, June, 27 2011.
U.S. Attorney Purdon also established an annual Tribal Consultation Conference between the Office and the Tribes in North Dakota. On March 16, 2011, the U.S. Attorney’s Office hosted the first such Conference. The editorial page of the Bismarck Tribune wrote that the event "confirmed Purdon’s passion and seriousness about trying to make a difference for those less fortunate, for the voices of so many that have been muted for years" and praised the Conference as "eclips[ing] other outreach efforts" in the recent past.State’s Largest Minority has Huge Impact, Bismarck Tribune, March 20, 2011. To date, four such Conferences have been held, and each has dramatically improved communication between the Office and the Tribes.
"My four and a half years as U.S. Attorney have been in the pursuit of one unbending belief: we can make the reservations in North Dakota safer," United States Attorney Purdon said today. "I have had many, many partners in this effort, but none have been more important to me than the Assistant U.S. Attorney’s and staff in my Office who come to work every day and fight to reach the goal of reducing violent crime on the reservations. These men and women are remarkable public servants, and the reservations are safer today because of their work."
Mr. Purdon’s efforts to improve public safety on American Indian reservations have made him a national leader within the Department of Justice on this issue. In 2013, Mr. Purdon was appointed by Attorney General Eric Holder to serve as the Chair of the Department Of Justice’s Native America Issues Subcommittee ("NAIS"). The NAIS is made up of 30 U.S. Attorneys from across the United States whose Districts contain Indian Country and it is responsible for making policy recommendations to the Attorney General regarding public safety and legal issues that impact tribal communities. In February of 2014, in his capacity as Chair of NAIS, Tim testified before the United States Senate Committee on Indian Affairs on behalf of the Department.
Mr. Purdon’s creative approach to improving public safety in Indian County brought the top leadership of the Department of Justice to North Dakota during his tenure to observe first-hand the steps being taken to improve public safety in Indian Country. Attorney General Eric Holder spoke at the Tribal Consultation Conference in Bismarck in June of 2014. The Justice Department’s second-in-command, Deputy Attorney General James Cole, spoke at the April 2012 Tribal Consultation Conference and visited the Standing Rock Sioux Reservation. Associate Attorney General Tony West, the number three official at Justice, visited North Dakota and spoke with tribal members in both December 2013 and April 2014. In addition, Mr. Purdon hosted a meeting of the NAIS in Bismarck in September 2012, which drew 20 U.S. Attorneys from around the country to North Dakota. In addition to a daylong consultation with tribal leaders form North Dakota and South Dakota, the group attended and was recognized at the United Tribes Technical College Pow Wow.
Mr. Purdon has also led the charge by federal, state, local, and tribal law enforcement to counter the new and violent threat from drug trafficking organizations that have targeted western North Dakota’s Bakken Oil Patch in recent years. "Our hometowns in the Bakken are developing some big city crime problems." U.S. Attorney Purdon said today. "The U.S. Attorney’s Office has led the way in fighting back to preserve our North Dakota way of life and to ensure that our hometowns remain places where people cannot only work, but also raise a family." In a series of meetings and strategy sessions in the spring of 2012, Mr. Purdon and his law enforcement partners planned a robust federal law enforcement response to the growing threats in the Bakken. The execution of this response over the last three years has included securing assignment of a record number of federal agents and prosecutors working in the Bakken region. Mr. Purdon’s leadership and commitment to protecting the citizens of western North Dakota resulted in specific investigation successes such as: Operation Winter’s End on the Fort Berthold Reservation, a joint operation between federal, state, and tribal partners that dismantled a large-scale heroin trafficking ring in the Oil Patch; the dismantling of "The Family," a violent drug trafficking cell in Williston; Operation Pipe Cleaner in Dickinson, a joint operation that took down a large drug trafficking ring in Dickinson, North Dakota; and a more than 150% increase in the number of defendants charged by the U.S. Attorney’s Office in western North Dakota.
Finally, Mr. Purdon has led North Dakota’s response to the growing threat of human trafficking in the state. In late 2013, the U.S. Attorney’s Office—working with state and federal law enforcement partners—executed Operation Vigilant Guardian stings in Williston and Dickinson, North Dakota. The arrests of 14 defendants who had sought to arrange commercial sex with underage girls revealed a previously unknown level of demand for underage commercial sex in western North Dakota. In response, Mr. Purdon has led the Office’s ongoing efforts to address this issue by raising the profile of the human trafficking issue in the law enforcement community, pursuing federal prosecutions of traffickers themselves, arranging training for law enforcement and prosecutors, and assisting in the creation of a state-wide network of victim service providers to support the growing number of victims of human trafficking. "The U.S. Attorney’s Office’s efforts to combat the growing threat of human trafficking in North Dakota are one of my proudest achievements," said Purdon. "The progress we have made since the Operation Vigilant Guardian stings were conducted in November of 2013 is real and substantial. There is always more to do, but we are moving toward a sustainable strategy to fight this horrible crime."
In 2014, Tim was appointed by Attorney General Eric Holder to a seat on the Attorney General’s Advisory Committee ("AGAC"). The AGAC advises the Attorney General on criminal justice matters and serves as the voice of the United States Attorney community in setting Department of Justice policies. The members of the AGAC meet regularly with the Attorney General and other top Department of Justice officials in Washington, DC. "My time on AGAC gave me an opportunity to provide important input into national policy issues faced by Attorney General Holder and the Department of Justice and to highlight North Dakota issues like Indian Country and the increasing organized crime threat in the Bakken Oil Patch at the highest levels of the Department," United States Attorney Purdon observed.
While serving as United States Attorney, Mr. Purdon supervised the office’s most impactful litigation. Notable case during Mr. Purdon’s tenure, in addition to those discussed above, include the prosecution of Valentino Bagola for the murders of two children on the Spirit Lake Reservation; the Operation Stolen Youth investigation into drug trafficking organization that distributed the synthetic drug that lead to two overdose deaths in the Grand Forks, North Dakota area – an investigation which won the Office’s first Department of Justice Organized Crime and Drug Enforcement Task Force National Award; the million dollar international mail fraud prosecution of Adekunle Adetiloye; the first-in-the-nation civil case under Jenna (North)’s Act against Extradition Transport of America, LLC to recoup costs incurred by local governments in the search for an escaped prisoner near Valley City, North Dakota; Operation Prairie Thunder, a coordinated law enforcement response to drug trafficking on the Standing Rock Reservation; the investigation and prosecution of Safe Drinking Water Act violations that occurred at the Halek 5-22 produced water disposal well near Dickinson, North Dakota; the Project Safe Childhood prosecution of Darrien Anderson who had used Facebook to target underage girls in the Red River Valley for sex; and the J-LOT prosecutions of dozens of individuals, from both the Unites States and Jamaica, for their involvement in a Jamaican Lottery Scam that targeted North Dakotans.
In addition to his leadership of the Office and management duties, Purdon also participated directly in numerous criminal cases, including personally briefing and arguing several criminal appeals before the United States Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit.
Mr. Purdon was unanimously confirmed by the United States Senate as the 18th United States Attorney for the District of North Dakota on August 5, 2010. He is a graduate of the North Dakota State College of Science, Minnesota State University – Moorhead, and the Hamline University School of Law and has practiced law in North Dakota since 1995.
Following his resignation, Mr. Purdon will return to private practice in Bismarck, North Dakota where he will establish a new North Dakota office for a national law firm.
Two Plead Guilty in Bank Fraud Scheme at Zapata National BankRead the Press Release
LAREDO, Texas - Petra Del Bosque, 54, and Anita Arredondo, 53, both of Zapata, have both been convicted of embezzling money in a long-running bank fraud scheme targeting Zapata National Bank (ZNB), announced United States Attorney Kenneth Magidson. Arredondo entered her plea this morning, while Del Bosque previously pleaded last month.
Del Bosque is a former employee of Zapata National Bank (ZNB), while Arredondo worked for a Zapata-based construction company as a clerk in the accounts payable department and had responsibility for issuing company checks.
For two years, Arredondo issued numerous false company checks made payable to contractors who had not performed the work that was the alleged basis for the checks.
Arredondo admitted to endorsing the false checks by forging the signatures of the contractors and then delivering the checks to Del Bosque at ZNB. Del Bosque led ZNB bank tellers to believe she was cashing the checks on behalf of the contractors who were unable to come to the bank themselves and that she would deliver the funds from the cashed checks. However, she actually pocketed the money and split the proceeds of the fraud with Arredondo.
Both have admitted that the loss as a result of the scheme totals more than $800,000.
U.S. District Judge Marina Garcia Marmolejo accepted the pleas and has set sentencing for April 28, 2015. At that time, each faces up to 30 years in federal prison and a possible $1 million fine.
The FBI investigated. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Robert S. Johnson and Sanjeev Bhasker are prosecuting the case.
Two Pensacola Men Sentenced to Federal Prison for Tax Refund Fraud and Identity Theft SchemeRead the Press Release
PENSACOLA, FLORIDA – Andrey C. Cook, 34, and Richard J. Beverly II, 25, both of Pensacola, were sentenced to federal prison today by United States Senior District Court Judge Lacey Collier on charges of mail fraud and aggravated identity theft. The sentence was announced today by Pamela C. Marsh, United States Attorney for the Northern District of Florida.
Cook, who worked in a group home for disabled patients, stole the personal identification information of the patients and gave it to Beverly in August 2013 for use in filing fraudulent tax returns. In exchange, Beverly agreed to give Cook a percentage of the refunds that were issued as a result of the fraudulent tax returns. Between 2012 and 2014, Beverly used the stolen identities of deceased persons, severely disabled people, and others, in an attempt to steal more than $265,000 from the United States Treasury, through the filing of at least 40 fraudulent tax returns.
Cook was sentenced to 12 months in prison and Beverly was sentenced to 102 months in prison. Beverly was also ordered to pay $87,783.00 in restitution to the Internal Revenue Service. Cook was ordered to pay $10,682.00 in restitution.
This case resulted from an investigation by the Internal Revenue Service-Criminal Investigation and was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Alicia Kim.
The United States Attorney's Office for the Northern District of Florida is one of 94 offices that serve as the nation’s principal litigators under the direction of the Attorney General. The office strives to protect and serve the citizens of the Northern District of Florida through the ethical, vigorous, and impartial enforcement of the laws of the United States, to defend the national security, to improve the safety and quality of life in our communities through the protection of civil rights, and to protect the public funds and financial assets of the United States. To access available public court documents online, please visit the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Florida website. For more information about the United States Attorney’s Office, Northern District of Florida, visit http://www.justice.gov/usao/fln/index.html.
Two Individuals Indicted in February Federal Grand JuryRead the Press Release
Muskogee, Oklahoma - The United States Attorney’s Office announced today the results of the February 2015 Federal Grand Jury.
“The following named individuals have been charged with a federal crime or crimes by the return of an indictment by the Grand Jury. A grand jury Indictment does not constitute evidence of guilt. A grand jury Indictment is a method of bringing formal charges against the defendant. A defendant is presumed innocent of the charges and may not be found guilty unless evidence establishes guilt beyond a reasonable doubt. Statutory maximum punishments are in parentheses. United States Sentencing Guidelines may be considered, upon conviction, by the sentencing court. Federal prison sentences are non-parolable.”
TORY DERREL LARKINS, age 30, of Lithia, GA
Possession Of Counterfeit SecuritiesPossession And Utterance Of A Counterfeit Security
The Indictment alleges that on or about October 8, 2014, and October 9, 2014, within the Eastern District of Oklahoma, defendant herein, knowingly possessed, uttered and caused to be uttered counterfeit checks purported to be genuine checks of MTW Creations, LLC, drawn on an account at Bank of America, an organization which operates in interstate commerce, with intent to deceive another.
The charges arose from an investigation by the Oklahoma Highway Patrol and the United States Secret Service. The charges are in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 513(a), punishable not more than 10 years imprisonment; up to a $250,000.00 fine or both.
Assistant United States Attorney Rob Wallace
MARNITA CAROL PARKER, age 48, of Ravia, OKa/k/a MARNITA CAROL FOSTER
Theft Of Government FundsMaking A False Statement
The Indictment alleges that on or about October 16, 2009, and continuing until on or about May 1, 2014, within the Eastern District of Oklahoma, the defendant did knowingly and willfully embezzle, steal, and purloin money of the Department of Veterans Affairs, a department or agency of the United States, namely, Department of Veterans Affairs Dependency and Indemnity Compensation payments to which she knew she was not entitled, in the excess of $1000.00.
It is further alleged that on or about September 20, 2013, in the Eastern District of Oklahoma, the Defendant did knowingly and willfully make and cause to be made a materially false, fictitious, and fraudulent statement and representation in a matter within the jurisdiction of the Department of Veterans Affairs, an agency of the United States, in that on a Department of Veterans Affairs form known as “Marital Status Questionnaire” MARNITA CAROL FOSTER a/k/a Marnita Carol Parker completed the form and signed the form with her mother’s name, when in truth and fact, as defendant well knew, her mother was deceased.
The charges arose from an investigation by the Department of Veterans Affairs, Office of Inspector General. The charges are in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 641, punishable by not more than 10 years imprisonment; up to a $250,000.00 fine and Title 18, United States Code, Section 1001(a)(2), punishable by not more than 5 years imprisonment; up to a $250,000.00 fine or both.
Assistant United States Attorney Rob Wallace
Three Colorado Springs Residents Sentenced to Federal Prison for Conspiracy to Defraud the Irs and Related Tax Charges Following Jury TrialRead the Press Release
DENVER – George Brokaw, age 68, John Pawelski, age 66, and Mimi Vigil, age 63, all from Colorado Springs, Colorado, were sentenced today by U.S. District Court Judge Christine M. Arguello for conspiracy to defraud the IRS and related tax charges, federal law enforcement authorities announced. The three defendants failed to appear at their original sentencing hearing. Judge Arguello then issued a bench warrant for all three defendants, which resulted in Deputy U.S. Marshals locating and arresting the defendants. Today, Brokaw was sentenced to serve 78 months in federal prison, followed by 3 years on supervised release. Pawelski was sentenced to serve 78 months in federal prison, followed by 3 years on supervised release. Both defendants were also ordered to pay a $15,000 fine. Vigil was sentenced to serve 72 months in federal prison, followed by 3 years on supervised release. She was also ordered to serve 200 hours of community service. At the conclusion of the hearing, Judge Arguello ordered all three defendants to remain in federal custody.
All three defendants were indicted by a federal grand jury in Denver on May 22, 2013, which was followed by a superseding indictment on October 21, 2013. They were convicted, following a 5-day jury trial on November 7, 2014. The jury deliberated for an hour and a half before reaching their verdicts. They were sentenced on February 10, 2015.According to the superseding indictment, and evidence presented at trial, beginning in October 2008, and continuing through May 2009, Brokaw, Pawelski, Vigil, and others conspired with each other to defraud the United States by submitting false claims for income tax refunds to the Internal Revenue Service.
The three filed or caused to be filed false, fictitious and fraudulent Form 1040 tax returns containing false claims for refunds in their names. A total of twelve fraudulent returns were filed attempting to receive over twenty-four million dollars in fraudulent refunds. In connection with these false tax returns they submitted or caused to be submitted false Forms 1099-OID. The 1099-OID forms falsely reported that financial institutions, lenders, or other entities had withheld and paid over to the IRS interest income from accounts which did not generate such interest income and from which no such withholdings were made. The Form 1040 tax returns claimed false refunds based on these false claims of withholdings.
Furthermore, from March 2008 and continuing through April 2012, the defendants willfully conspired with each other to obstruct and impede the due administration of the Internal Revenue laws by attempting to thwart the legitimate collection of taxes owed to the IRS by them and others. They caused to be filed or submitted to the IRS a variety of false, fraudulent, or illegitimate documents which purported to constitute payments of taxes owed to the IRS as well as purported electronic funds transfer (EFT) drawn on closed bank accounts. In addition, the defendants filed a variety of false and fraudulent liens or other documents which falsely claimed that IRS employees, who were engaged in legitimate tax collection efforts against one or more of the defendants, owed one or more of the defendants amounts of money ranging from tens of millions of dollars to billions of dollars.
All three defendants face statutory maximum sentences ranging from not more than 3 years to not more than 10 years, plus up to a $250,000 fine, per count of conviction.
“It is everyone’s responsibility, their obligation, to cooperate with the IRS and their collection of taxes,” said U.S. Attorney John Walsh. “In this case, the defendants not only refused to pay their taxes, they also impeded the IRS and ignored a court order by failing to appear at the originally scheduled sentencing. Today’s prison sentence demonstrates the serious penalties one faces when interfering with the lawful collection of taxes.”
“IRS – Criminal Investigations is working vigorously to stop abusive tax schemes that unfairly shift the tax burden to honest American taxpayers,” said Stephen Boyd, Special Agent in Charge for IRS Criminal Investigation, Denver Field Office. “As our tax season gears up, this sentencing reinforces our commitment to every taxpayer that we will identify and prosecute those who try to defraud the tax system and evade paying their fair share of taxes.”
“The prison sentences handed down today reflect the serious nature of interfering with the lawful collection of taxes,” said Preston C. Lamb, Special Agent in Charge of the Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration (TIGTA). “Hopefully this prosecution will deter those who think they can avoid or work around our tax system.”
This case was investigated by Internal Revenue Service – Criminal Investigation (IRS CI), and Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration (TIGTA). The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Mathew Kirsch and Martha Paluch.Three Brandon, Mississippi, Men Sentenced for Their Roles in the Racially Motivated Assault and Murder of an African-American ManRead the Press Release
Victim Died After Being Run Over by Truck
The Justice Department announced today that Deryl Paul Dedmon, 22, John Aaron Rice, 21, and Dylan Wade Butler, 23, all of Brandon, Mississippi, were sentenced today in U.S. District Court in Jackson for their roles in federal hate crime charges in connection with an assault culminating in the death of James Craig Anderson, an African-American man, in the summer of 2011. Dedmon, Rice and Butler each previously pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy and one count of violating the Matthew Shepard and James Byrd Jr. Hate Crimes Prevention Act for their roles in the death-resulting assault of Anderson, 47, of Jackson, Mississippi. Dedmon was sentenced to 600 months; Rice was sentenced to 220 months; and Butler was sentenced to 84 months.
“The defendants targeted African-American people they perceived as vulnerable for heinous and violent assaults – hate crimes, motivated solely by race, that shook an entire community and claimed the life of an innocent man,” said Attorney General Eric Holder. “These sentences bring a fitting end to the case against these three men. Although nothing can erase the grievous harms inflicted, or ease the grief of the victim’s friends and loved ones, this outcome holds those responsible for these horrific crimes fully to account. And it illustrates the Justice Department’s steadfast commitment to combating hate crimes, supporting victims, and seeing that justice is done – in every case and circumstance.”
“This case demonstrates that the Department of Justice will vigorously pursue those who commit racially motivated assaults and will cast a broad net to ensure that all who commit such acts are brought to justice,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General Vanita Gupta of the Civil Rights Division. “These sentences are just the first three of ten in what we hope will help provide some closure to the victim’s family and to the larger community affected by Mr. Anderson’s death.”
“Hate crimes not only injure the victims and their families, but intimidate entire communities,” said U.S. Attorney Gregory K. Davis of the Southern District of Mississippi. “The sentences imposed today send a clear message to the community that this office, in partnership with department’s Civil Rights Division, will prioritize and aggressively prosecute hate crimes and other civil rights violations in Southern Mississippi.”
“The guilty pleas and resulting sentences handed down today are the result of the tremendous efforts by men and women in law enforcement who worked on this case,” said Special Agent in Charge Donald Alway of the FBI in Mississippi. “The FBI takes very seriously its responsibility to protect the civil rights of all Americans, and remains committed to its pursuit of justice for anyone who is deprived of those rights."
In prior court hearings, the defendants had admitted that beginning in the spring of 2011, they and others conspired with one another to harass and assault African Americans in and around Jackson. On numerous occasions, the co-conspirators used dangerous weapons, including beer bottles, sling shots and motor vehicles, to cause, and attempt to cause, bodily injury to African Americans. They would specifically target African Americans they believed to be homeless or under the influence of alcohol because they believed that such individuals would be less likely to report an assault. The co-conspirators would often boast about these racially motivated assaults. The defendants further admitted that on June 25, 2011, they and others attended a birthday party in Puckett, Mississippi, for a mutual friend. During the party, the defendants and others talked about going to Jackson to harass and assault African Americans.
By the early morning hours of June 26, 2011, the defendants and four other co-conspirators agreed to carry out their plan to find, harass and assault African Americans. At around 4:15 a.m., Rice, Butler and two co-conspirators drove to west Jackson in a white Jeep with the understanding that Dedmon and two other co-conspirators would join them a short time later. Rice, Butler and the other two occupants of the Jeep then drove around west Jackson and threw beer bottles from the moving vehicle at African American pedestrians they encountered.
At approximately 5:00 a.m., Rice, Butler and the other two occupants of the Jeep spotted Anderson in a motel parking lot off Ellis Avenue. The occupants of the Jeep decided that Anderson would be a good target for an assault because he was African-American and appeared to be intoxicated. Rice and another co-conspirator decided to get out of the Jeep to distract Anderson while they waited for Dedmon and the other co-conspirators to arrive. After Dedmon and the other two co-conspirators arrived in Dedmon’s Ford F250 truck, Dedmon and Rice physically assaulted Anderson. Rice first punched Anderson in the face with sufficient force to knock Anderson to the ground, and then Dedmon punched Anderson in the face multiple times while he was on the ground. After the assault, Rice, Butler and two co-conspirators left the motel parking lot in the Jeep. As they left, one of the occupants of the Jeep yelled, “White Power!” Prior to getting back into his truck, Dedmon responded by also yelling “White Power!”
Once back in his truck, Dedmon deliberately used his truck to run over Anderson, causing injuries which resulted in Anderson’s death. After Anderson’s death, a number of the co-conspirators including Rice and Butler agreed to, and did, give false statements to law enforcement officials about the nature of their interactions with Anderson.
Seven other defendants involved in related cases, William Kirk Montgomery, 25, of Puckett, Mississippi, Sarah Adelia Graves, 21, of Crystal Springs, Mississippi, Shelby Brooke Richards, 21, of Pearl, Mississippi, John Louis Blalack, 20, Jonathan Kyle Gaskamp, 22, Robert Henry Rice, 24, and Joseph Paul Dominick, 23, all of Brandon, Mississippi, are awaiting sentencing.
This case was the result of a cooperative effort among the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Mississippi and the Hinds County, Mississippi, District Attorney’s Office. This case was investigated by the Jackson Division of the FBI and the Jackson Police Department. It is being prosecuted by Trial Attorney Sheldon L. Beer and Deputy Chief Paige M. Fitzgerald of the Civil Rights Division of the Department of Justice, and Glenda R. Haynes of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Mississippi.
Suburban Attorney Sentenced to 70 Months for Stealing $2.34 Million in Clients’ FundsRead the Press Release
Chicago --- A suburban real estate attorney and radio talk show host was sentenced today to 70 months imprisonment for stealing approximately $2.34 million from her clients. The defendant, KATHLEEN NIEW, 59, of Burr Ridge, was also ordered to pay restitution of $2.34 million to the victims of her fraud and forfeit assets related to the crime. “The sentence must promote respect for the law . . . something has to be done when a case like this comes up.” U.S. District Court Judge Harry Leinenweber said in imposing the sentence. Judge Leinenweber also ordered three years of supervised release, and Niew is to report to the Federal Bureau of Prisons on April 14, 2015.
Niew operated Niew Legal Partners, LLC, in Oak Brook. She was charged with 10 counts of wire fraud by a federal grand jury in August 2013 and pled in June 2014 to all counts of the indictment. She was disbarred in 2013.
According to court records, the victims, a husband and wife, who were Niew’s clients, transferred approximately $2.34 million into Niew’s attorney escrow account to be used for closings on commercial real estate transactions. Niew used the funds for her own benefit, contrary to the false representations she made to the couple. Without the victims’ knowledge, Niew used their funds to finance the purchases of various gold mining operations and not to purchase any commercial property for the victims as originally intended. Further, as part of the fraud scheme, Niew arranged to receive a 20 percent finder’s fee for herself from mining operation investments in exchange for providing approximately $1.5 million in funds that belonged to her clients.
At the sentencing hearing today, Judge Leinenweber also found Niew responsible for defrauding another client out of $500,000. Niew falsely told that victim that she needed to borrow $500,000 to help buy assets in her upcoming divorce proceeding. Niew, however, was not divorcing her husband, and she sent the victim’s funds to one of the same investment operations where she had sent previous victims’ money.
“Niew blatantly stole $2.8 million of her clients’ money, and then lied to cover up the scam. When confronted and caught, Niew undertook acts that can only be described as shocking for an attorney licensed by the bar – creating false cover-up documents, lying to her clients, and lying under oath (once again) to the ARDC,” argued Assistant United States Attorney Sunil Harjani in the government’s sentencing memorandum.
The sentence was announced by Zachary T. Fardon, United States Attorney for the Northern District of Illinois, and Robert J. Holley, Special Agent-in-Charge of the Chicago office of the Federal Bureau of Investigation. The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Sunil Harjani and Andrew Boutros.
Stuttgart Man Charged with Arson in Courthouse Annex FireRead the Press Release
LITTLE ROCK – Christopher R. Thyer, United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Arkansas and Grover Crossland, Resident Agent in Charge for the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms & Explosives (ATF) announced the unsealing of a two-count Indictment on Monday, February 9, 2015, charging Donald Aaron, age 45 of Stuttgart, with arson in the destruction of the Stuttgart Courthouse Annex, which housed the Arkansas County Sheriff’s office, among numerous other government agencies.
The ATF took a lead role in investigating a fire on September 23, 2014, that took place in the Stuttgart Courthouse Annex Building on 312 South College. This building housed the Arkansas County Sheriff’s Office, offices of the Arkansas State Police, the 911 coordinator, the Office of Emergency Management, the Arkansas County Tax Assessor and County Tax Collector, the County Judge and the Emergency Operations Center. The ATF investigation determined the fire to be incendiary, or intentionally set.
“This fire essentially destroyed millions of tax-payer dollars and put the lives of people in the area at risk when the 911 operations were not operational,” stated Thyer. “Thankfully, 911 operations were able to be rerouted and the services were able to relocate and continue serving the citizens of the Stuttgart area. I’m grateful for the diligent work of the ATF investigators who were able to determine, not only the cause, but also the alleged perpetrator of this crime.”
For a period of time 911 operations were interrupted. Ultimately, the building had to be demolished with estimated damage of $2.5-$3 million. During suppression and clean-up efforts following the fire, a Stuttgart city employee was injured in a construction equipment accident.
Aaron was arrested Monday morning in Stuttgart and appeared before United States Magistrate Judge J. Thomas Ray Monday afternoon. He was remanded to the custody of the U.S. Marshals pending trial. If convicted, Aaron will face a statutory minimum sentence of seven years’ imprisonment on each count.
The investigation was conducted by the ATF, with assistance from several law enforcement agencies including the Stuttgart Police Department, Stuttgart Fire Department, Arkansas County Sheriff’s Office, Arkansas County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office, Arkansas County Office of Emergency Management, and Arkansas Community Correction. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Chris Givens.
An indictment contains only allegations. A defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.