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22 October 2014
Mount Airy Man Sentenced to over 13 Years in Prison for Robbing Four Gas Stations and Stealing A CarRead the Press Release
Baltimore, Maryland – U.S. District Judge William D. Quarles, Jr. sentenced Joshua Payne, age 21, of Mount Airy, Maryland, today to 164 months in prison followed by three years of supervised release on four counts of robbery and one count of using a firearm during a robbery.
The sentence was announced by United States Attorney for the District of Maryland Rod J. Rosenstein; Special Agent in Charge Stephen E. Vogt of the Federal Bureau of Investigation; Carroll County Sherriff Ken Tregoning; Frederick County Sheriff Charles A. AChuck@ Jenkins; Chief Gary Gardner of the Howard County Police Department; Carroll County State’s Attorney Jerry Barnes; Frederick County State’s Attorney J. Charles Smith; and Howard County State’s Attorney Dario Broccolino.According to his plea agreement, from November 27 to December 1, 2013, Payne pointed a handgun - which he stole from his brother - at the cashiers of the following gas stations in Maryland: Shell gas station, 649 Lakeview Drive, Mount Airy; High’s gas station, 6700 Sykesville Road, Eldersburg; and BP gas station, 15882 Frederick Road, Lisbon. He stole hundreds of dollars from the cash registers.
On December 6, Payne returned to the Shell gas station on Lakeview Drive in Mount Airy, and threatened the cashier with a long kitchen knife, taking approximately $690 from the register.
Payne also admits that on November 29, 2013, he pointed a gun at a driver of a car and stole the car, along with the owner’s two cell phones.
United States Attorney Rod J. Rosenstein commended the FBI, the Carroll and Frederick County Sheriff’s Offices, Howard County Police Department, and the Carroll, Frederick and Howard County State’s Attorney=s Offices for their work in the investigation. Mr. Rosenstein thanked Assistant United States Attorneys Scott A. Lemmon and Bonnie S. Greenberg, who prosecuted the case.
Morgantown Man Charged with Multiple Drug Trafficking OffensesRead the Press Release
1125 Chapline Street, Federal Building, Suite 3000 ● Wheeling, WV 26003
(304) 234-0100 ● Contact: Tara Tighe, Public Affairs SpecialistELKINS, WEST VIRGINIA – A federal grand jury returned an indictment charging Arthur Sean Warner, 43, of Morgantown, West Virginia, with multiple drug trafficking offenses, United States Attorney William J. Ihlenfeld, II, announced today.
Warner is charged with one count of “Possession with Intent to Distribute Cocaine Hydrochloride,” one count of “Possession with Intent to Distribute Cocaine Base,” and one count of “Possession with Intent to Distribute Marijuana” after an investigation led by the Mon Valley Drug and Violent Crime Task Force.
Warner faces up to 20 years in prison and a fine of up to $1,000,000.00 for each of the cocaine charges and up to five years in prison and a fine of up to $250,000.00 for the marijuana charge. Under the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, the actual sentence imposed will be based upon the seriousness of the offenses and the prior criminal history, if any, of the defendant.
An indictment is an accusation. A defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
Middle District Election Officer AppointedRead the Press Release
United States Attorney Michael J. Moore announced today that Assistant United States Attorney (AUSA) Charles W. “Chuck” Byrd will lead the efforts of his Office in connection with the Justice Department’s nationwide Election Day Program for the upcoming November 4, 2014, general elections. AUSA Byrd has been appointed to serve as the District Election Officer (DEO) for the Middle District of Georgia, and in that capacity is responsible for overseeing the District’s handling of complaints of election fraud and voting rights abuses in consultation with Justice Department Headquarters in Washington.
United States Attorney Moore said, “Every citizen must be able to vote without interference or discrimination and to have that vote counted without it being stolen because of fraud. The Department of Justice will act promptly and aggressively to protect the integrity of the election process.”
The Department of Justice has an important role in deterring election fraud and discrimination at the polls, and combating these violations whenever and wherever they occur. The Department’s long-standing Election Day Program furthers these goals, and also seeks to ensure public confidence in the integrity of the election process by providing local points of contact within the Department for the public to report possible election fraud and voting rights violations while the polls are open on election day.
Federal law protects against such crimes as intimidating or bribing voters, buying and selling votes, impersonating voters, altering vote tallies, stuffing ballot boxes, and marking ballots for voters against their wishes or without their input. It also contains special protections for the rights of voters and provides that they can vote free from acts that intimidate or harass them. For example, actions of persons designed to interrupt or intimidate voters at polling places by questioning or challenging them, or by photographing or videotaping them, under the pretext that these are actions to uncover illegal voting may violate federal voting rights law. Further, federal law protects the right of voters to mark their own ballot or to be assisted by a person of their choice.
The franchise is the cornerstone of American democracy. We all must ensure that those who are entitled to the franchise exercise it if they choose, and that those who seek to corrupt it are brought to justice. In order to respond to complaints of election fraud or voting rights abuses on November 4, 2014, and to ensure that such complaints are directed to the appropriate authorities, United States Attorney Moore stated that AUSA/DEO Byrd will be on duty in this District while the polls are open. He can be reached by the public at the following telephone number: 706-649-7700.
This number is for reports of voting irregularities only. All press inquiries or requests for information should be directed to Pamela Lightsey at 478-621-2603.
In addition, the FBI will have special agents available in each field office and resident agency throughout the country to receive allegations of election fraud and other election abuses on election day. The local FBI field office can be reached by the public at 404-679-9000.
Complaints about possible violations of the federal voting rights laws can be made directly to the Civil Rights Division’s Voting Section in Washington by phone at 1-800-253-3931 or (202) 307-2767, by fax at (202) 307-3961, by email to [email protected] or by complaint form at http://www.justice.gov/crt/complaint/votintake/index.php.
United States Attorney Moore said, “Ensuring free and fair elections depends in large part on the cooperation of the American electorate. It is imperative that those who have specific information about discrimination or election fraud make that information available immediately to my Office, the FBI, or the Civil Rights Division.”
Miami Resident Pleads Guilty to Unauthorized Possession of Stolen IdentitiesRead the Press Release
Wifredo A. Ferrer, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Florida, Alysa D. Erichs, Special Agent in Charge, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations (ICE-HSI), and Kelly R. Jackson, Special Agent in Charge, Internal Revenue Service, Criminal Investigation (IRS-CI), announce that defendant Daniel Ogletree, 25, pled guilty to one count of possession of 15 or more unauthorized access devices, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 1029(a)(3), and one count of aggravated identity theft, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 1028A(a)(1). Sentencing is scheduled for December 19, 2014 at 9:30 a.m. At sentencing, the defendant faces up to 10 years in prison for the access device charge, and a mandatory term of two years in prison, consecutive to any other term in prison, for aggravated identity theft.
According to court documents, law enforcement accompanied state probation officers during a probation check on the defendant’s residence. The defendant gave verbal consent for a search of his bedroom, and law enforcement found a handwritten sheet of paper containing a list of 15 names, dates of birth, and social security numbers. Law enforcement also found a bank statement in another person’s name that had that person’s social security number and date of birth handwritten on the bank statement. Ogletree admitted that it was his handwriting on the sheet of paper and bank statement, and that he did not personally know the people whose personal identifying information he wrote on the sheet.
Mr. Ferrer commended the investigative efforts of ICE-HSI and IRS-CI. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Timothy J. Abraham and John R. Byrne.
A copy of this press release may be found on the website of the United States Attorney's Office for the Southern District of Florida at http://www.usdoj.gov/usao/fls. Related court documents and information may be found on the website of the District Court for the Southern District of Florida at http://www.flsd.uscourts.gov or on http://pacer.flsd.uscourts.gov.
Mexican Citizen Apprehended in Lackawanna County Indicted for Illegal ReentryRead the Press Release
The United States Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Pennsylvania and the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, Immigration and Customs Enforcement, Enforcement and Removal Operations (ERO) announced today that a 26-year-old native and citizen of Mexico has been charged with illegal reentry into the United States.
According to United States Attorney Peter Smith, Bairon Morales-Morales, age 26, was charged in a one-count indictment by a federal grand jury in Harrisburg today.
The indictment alleges that Morales-Morales, an alien who has previously been arrested and deported from the United States on November 21, 2006, reentered the United States illegally and was apprehended in Lackawanna County, Pennsylvania.
If convicted, Morales-Morales faces a maximum sentence of up to 2 years’ imprisonment and a $250,000 fine.
This investigation was conducted by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, Immigration and Customs Enforcement, Enforcement and Removal Operations (ERO). It is being prosecuted by Special Assistant United States Attorney Alice Song Hartye.
Indictments and Criminal Informations are only allegations. All persons charged are presumed to be innocent unless and until found guilty in court.
A sentence following a finding of guilty is imposed by the Judge after consideration of the applicable federal sentencing statutes and the Federal Sentencing Guidelines.
Under the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, the Judge is also required to consider and weigh a number of factors, including the nature, circumstances and seriousness of the offense; the history and characteristics of the defendant; and the need to punish the defendant, protect the public and provide for the defendant’s educational, vocational and medical needs. For these reasons, the statutory maximum penalty for the offense is not an accurate indicator of the potential sentence for a specific defendant.
McKees Rocks Woman Gets Probation with Home Detention for Purchasing Weapon for FelonRead the Press Release
PITTSBURGH – A McKees Rocks resident has been sentenced in federal court to three years’ probation, including six months home detention with electronic monitoring on her conviction of violating federal firearms laws, United States Attorney David J. Hickton announced today.
Senior United States District Judge Gustave Diamond imposed the sentence yesterday on Asia M. Harris, 34.
According to information presented to the court, on Aug. 16, 2011, Harris aided and abetted the possession of a firearm by a convicted felon, Mark Brazil, by acting at his direction in selecting and purchasing, with $800 provided by Brazil, a .40 caliber pistol to which she allowed Brazil access. Harris could lawfully purchase a firearm, while Brazil, a convicted felon whose possession of a firearm is forbidden under federal law, could not.
The firearm was recovered during a search at 96 Stratmore Avenue in Pittsburgh by Allegheny County and Pittsburgh Police on Oct. 16, 2013.
At sentencing, Judge Diamond ordered that the firearm be forfeited to the United States.
Assistant United States Attorney Margaret E. Picking prosecuted this case on behalf of the government.
U.S. Attorney Hickton commended the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Allegheny County Police, and the City of Pittsburgh Police for the investigation leading to the successful prosecution of Harris.
MCC Escapee Joseph Banks Sentenced to 36 Years in Federal Prison for Armed Bank RobberiesRead the Press Release
CHICAGO — A Chicago man who escaped from the Metropolitan Correctional Center in December 2012, just five days after he was convicted of armed robbery of two banks and attempting to rob two others in 2007 and 2008, was sentenced today to 36 years in federal prison. Approximately $547,000 stolen in the two robberies remains missing.
JOSEPH BANKS, also known as “Jose Banks,” 39, “intimidated and terrified” employees and bystanders at each of the four banks and those victims’ fears were renewed when Banks escaped and remained at large for three days before he was recaptured, Assistant U.S. Attorney Renato Mariotti argued in seeking a lengthy sentence.
“The defense claims [Banks’] bank robberies were common, but they inflicted an uncommon level of terror, by his design,” Mr. Mariotti said.
Rejecting Banks’ claims that he is “humble” and “anti-gun,” U.S. District Judge Rebecca Pallmeyer called Banks “narcissistic,” adding that he was and remains “a threat and a menace” to society. Judge Pallmeyer further rejected Banks’ so-called “sovereign citizen” defense, which he maintained at his trial in December 2012 and which he admitted was an act.
Banks was also ordered to pay $589,000 restitution. He has been in federal custody for six years and will receive credit for time served. He must serve 85 percent of his sentence and there is no parole in the federal prison system.
With nearly two dozen prior convictions, Banks was found guilty at a trial in December 2012 of attempting to rob the First Commercial Bank, 6945 North Clark St., on Aug. 30, 2007, and Chase Bank, 5134 North Clark St., on Aug. 26, 2008. He was arrested a week later on Sept. 3, 2008.
On Dec. 28, 2007, Banks was wearing a fake beard, a wig, sunglasses, gloves, a suit, and an overcoat when he entered the Citibank branch located 3128 North Ashland Ave. Armed with a gun, he leaped the counter, pushed bank employees to the ground, and forced them to open the vault for him. An employee suffered a panic attack and clutched his chest, hyperventilated, turned pale, and fell to the floor, thinking all the while that he was having a heart attack and would die. Banks fled the bank with approximately $317,000, which was never recovered.
On July 19, 2008, wearing a black stocking mask that obscured his face, Banks robbed a different Citibank branch located at 3753 North Clark St. Again, Banks brandished a gun and forced his way into the vault before fleeing with approximately $272,000. Of that, approximately $42,000 was recovered from a safe deposit box while the remaining $230,000 has never been found. Evidence at Banks’ trial showed that he spent some of the money on several vehicles.
Banks and his cellmate, Kenneth Conley, another convicted bank robber, escaped through the wall of their cell at the MCC and repelled down the exterior of the high-rise federal detention facility. Conley was captured two weeks later and is serving a sentence of 20 years for bank robbery, consecutive to 41 months for the escape.
The sentence was announced today 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. Also representing the government were Assistant U.S. Attorneys Sheri Mecklenburg and Peter Salib.
Last of the "30 Minutes or Less" Robbers Gets 16 Years in PrisonRead the Press Release
LAS VEGAS, Nev. –The last of four defendants who participated in the high speed robberies of four Las Vegas convenience stores during April 2012, was sentenced to prison this week, announced U.S. Attorney Daniel G. Bogden for the District of Nevada.
Michael Hall, 28, of Las Vegas, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Jennifer A. Dorsey on Monday, Oct. 20, 2014, to 194 months in prison and five years of supervised release. Hall pleaded guilty on Feb. 19, to four counts of interference with commerce by robbery and one count of brandishing a firearm in furtherance of a crime of violence.
“We are working with our local police departments to prosecute federally deserving defendants who use guns to commit store robberies,” said U.S. Attorney Bogden. “Fortunately more victims were spared and this robbery spree was terminated because of excellent police work by the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department and the alert officer who observed the last robbery and chased down the defendants by car and on foot.”
Hall was the getaway driver for each of the robberies that occurred between about 4:00 and 4:30 p.m. on April 6, 2012, causing law enforcement to dub the crimes the “30 minutes or less” series. Hall’s co-defendants, Delon Hunter, 18, William Bonaparte, 24, and Erica Bowden-Payne, 26, all pleaded guilty and were sentenced to prison. In each robbery, Hunter pointed a handgun at Bonaparte, who was posing as a customer. Hunter threatened to shoot Bonaparte if the store employee did not turn over money and other items. A Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Officer observed the last robbery in progress near Cheyenne Road and Buffalo Drive, and confronted the defendants as they were leaving the store. The defendants fled in the getaway vehicle driven by Hall, leading officers on a high speed chase before their vehicle came to a stop near Tenaya Way and Rainbow Boulevard. Three of the defendants fled on foot and were apprehended nearby. The fourth defendant, Bowden-Payne, remained in the vehicle and was apprehended there.
The case was investigated by the FBI Safe Streets Task Force and Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department and prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Cristina D. Silva. The case was screened through the Southern Nevada Project Safe Neighborhoods Task Force, a team of federal and local law enforcement officers and prosecutors who meet on a regular basis to discuss arrests involving guns and explosives. Project Safe Neighborhoods, also known as PSN, is a Department of Justice initiative and a nationwide commitment to reduce gun and gang crime in America.
Large-Scale Birmingham Cocaine Dealer Gets 23-Year Federal Prison SentenceRead the Press Release
BIRMINGHAM -- A federal judge today sentenced a Birmingham man to more than 23 years in prison for his role in a large-scale cocaine trafficking conspiracy, announced U.S. Attorney Joyce White Vance and Drug Enforcement Administration Assistant Special Agent in Charge Clay A. Morris.
U.S. District Judge R. David Proctor sentenced ARTAVIS “Tav” DESMOND MCGOWAN, 41, to 23 years and four months in federal prison for conspiring to possess with the intent to distribute, and distributing cocaine.
A federal jury convicted McGowan on the charges in November 2013, following a six-day trial. The judge found that McGowan had been involved in trafficking at least 15 to 50 kilograms, or 33 to 110 pounds, of cocaine.
"McGowan and his conspirators were prime movers of dangerous and illegal drugs in our community," Vance said. "They enriched themselves, while tearing apart neighborhoods and lives with the violence, death and addiction that accompany drug-trafficking and drug abuse. Today's sentence takes a major dealer off the streets for 23 years," she said.
"McGowan was a leader in a large-scale drug-trafficking organization that sold dangerous drugs in our community," Morris said. "This sentence should send a clear message to all drug traffickers that their actions will not be tolerated. Our job in law enforcement is to make the community safer by taking dangerous criminals off the streets. Our state and local counterparts joined the DEA and the U.S. Attorney's Office in devoting tireless energy to investigating and bringing McGowan to justice."
On Oct. 5, 2011, DEA agents seized six bricks of cocaine and other drugs, including large amounts of heroin, from a home at 1156 Skyline Drive in Birmingham. Agents also seized $341,679 in cash from the house. McGowan and his confederates used the home as a “stash” house where they removed cocaine from drug “load” vehicles driven from Austin, Texas, to Birmingham. The basement of the home also was used to process drugs and money.
Evidence at trial also showed McGowan’s fingerprints were found on two of the 46 kilogram wrappers found in the trash in the basement of the Skyline Drive home. In May of this year, DEA agents executed a search warrant at 108 Page Ave. in Birmingham and found McGowan with more than $61,000 in cash.
The DEA investigated the case, which Assistant U.S. Attorney Gregory R. Dimler prosecuted.KC Woman Pleads Guilty to $3 Million Fraud Scheme that Forced Employer to CloseRead the Press Release
KANSAS CITY, Mo. – Tammy Dickinson, United States Attorney for the Western District of Missouri, announced today that a Kansas City, Mo., woman pleaded guilty in federal court today to a nearly $3 million fraud scheme that forced her employer out of business.
Irene Marie Brooner, 52, of Kansas City, pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Beth Phillips to bank fraud.
Brooner, a certified public accountant, worked at Galvmet, Inc., a sheet metal fabrication facility and steel service center located in Kansas City, from 2001 until her termination in February 2014. At its peak in 2008, the company had 26 employees and $14 million in annual sales. Galvmet filed for bankruptcy and ceased operations in 2014. At the time of closing, the company had 18 to 20 employees and $10 million in annual sales.
Brooner’s duties as controller included managing payroll, accounts receivable and payable, and maintaining the ledger at Galvmet.
Brooner admitted that, over a period of more than 10 years (January 2004 until February 2014), she created a total of 389 unauthorized Automated Clearing House (ACH) transactions from Galvmet’s bank account to her personal bank accounts. (An ACH is a batch-oriented funds transfer system that includes direct deposits of payroll from companies.) Those unauthorized ACH transactions included 148 payments to her checking account and 133 payments to her savings account. Brooner also defrauded Galvmet by inflating her salary. From March 2004 to December 2011, Brooner manipulated the payroll account to increase her net pay on approximately 108 payroll checks.
Brooner’s fraud scheme resulted in a loss of at least $1,863,914 to Galvmet. As a result, Galvmet ceased operations. While reviewing bank records during the filing of Galvmet’s Chapter 13 bankruptcy in February 2014, the company’s president noticed unauthorized transfers from Galvmet’s payroll account to Brooner’s personal account. He reported the apparent embezzlement to the FBI.
To keep the scheme going, Brooner also falsified documents to support Galvmet’s operating loan with Missouri Bank & Trust, causing an additional loss to the bank of $1.1 million. The total loss from Brooner’s fraud scheme was at least $2,963,914.
Brooner spent the embezzled funds on personal items. According to today’s plea agreement, Brooner spent some of the proceeds to remodel, stock, furnish and decorate the ornately-finished bar in the basement of her new home. The bar, which she called “the Dirty Duck,” includes seating for approximately 15, a granite bar top, four or five tap lines, a refrigeration system, three flat-screen televisions, a smoke machine at the entrance, two couches and stained wainscoting around the room approximately eight feet tall. Mannequins, positioned throughout the bar, are outfitted with authentic U.S. and German uniforms and weaponry from the World War II era, including a Thompson sub-machine gun and multiple M-1 Garands with attached bayonets. Brooner told FBI agents that her husband, a carpenter, remodeled the bar in 2003 and 2004. From 2004 to 2014, Brooner spent $18,383 on alcohol.
Brooner’s spending included paying off her mortgage for $289,290, buying $81,686 in jewelry, and spending at least $400,392 on clothing and other retail, $97,180 on restaurants, $78,439 on vehicles, $169,389 on furniture and home decor, $62,003 on travel, $38,317 on electronics, $21,346 in ATM withdrawals, $59,571 on spa visits and beauty items, $68,745 on tuition for her children, $18,383 on alcohol, $104,060 to her children, $216,377 in assorted checks under $500, $64,557 in donations, $254,168 in other credit cards, and by purchasing other items.
Brooner purchased a 2004 Lexus R33 sport utility vehicle, on which she made 64 payments totaling $51,813. Brooner also bought 69 pieces of jewelry and accessories from Meierotto’s Midwest Jewelers totaling approximately $29,701 and 82 pieces of jewelry and accessories from Tivol Jewelers totaling approximately $51,984.
Under the terms of today’s plea agreement, Brooner must forfeit to the government her personal residence, a 2004 Lexus, numerous assorted jewelry and a money judgment of at least $2,963,914, all of which represent the net proceeds obtained and loss caused by Brooner’s scheme.
Under federal statutes, Brooner is subject to a sentence of up to 30 years in federal prison without parole, plus a fine up to $1 million, and an order of restitution of $2,963,914. A sentencing hearing will be scheduled after the completion of a presentence investigation by the United States Probation Office.
This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Daniel M. Nelson. It was investigated by the FBI.Judge Sends Chester Woman to Prison for 15 Years for the Sex Trafficking of FemalesRead the Press Release
PHILADELPHIA – Rashidah Brice, a/k/a “Camille,” a/k/a “Milly,” 25, of Chester, PA, was sentenced today to 185 months in prison for sex trafficking females for prostitution. Brice pleaded guilty on August 20, 2013, to sex trafficking of a minor by force and two counts of sex trafficking by force. She, along with co-defendant Christian Dior Womack, operated a prostitution venture in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, and elsewhere, that recruited young females, one of whom was a minor, to work as prostitutes for them between May 25, 2012 through February 3, 2013. The defendants engaged in acts of physical violence and threats of physical harm to maintain the participation of females in their prostitution business.
As part of their venture, Womack and Brice also created internet advertisements in which they advertised these females as available for purchase for purposes of prostitution. The advertisements featured pictures of the females scantily clad, and provided a phone number to call to arrange a meeting with the females.
In addition to the prison term, U.S. District Court Judge Mitchell S. Goldberg ordered 10 years of supervised release, $35,700 in restitution, and a $300 special assessment. A sentencing hearing for Womack is scheduled for November 12, 2014.
The case was investigated by the FBI and the Philadelphia Police Department Special Victim’s Unit is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Michelle Morgan.UNITED STATES ATTORNEY'S OFFICE, EASTERN DISTRICTof PENNSYLVANIA
Suite 1250, 615 Chestnut Street, Philadelphia, PA 19106
PATTY HARTMAN, Media Contact, 215-861-8525- Inmate Indicted for Threatening Federal Judge
Hollywood Man Sentenced to over 12 Years for Identity Theft Tax Refund Fraud Case Involving Theft of over 5,000 IdentitiesRead the Press Release
Wifredo A. Ferrer, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Florida, George L. Piro, Special Agent in Charge, Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), Miami Field Office, and Kelly R. Jackson, Special Agent in Charge, Internal Revenue Service, Criminal Investigation (IRS-CI), announced that Richard Anthony Siler, 50, of Hollywood, was sentenced to 154 months in prison, followed by three years of supervised release after being convicted at trial of one count of use of unauthorized access devices, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 1029(a)(2), one count of possession of fifteen or more unauthorized access devices, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 1029(a)(3), and three counts of aggravated identity theft, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 1028A(a)(1).
According to the evidence presented at trial, Siler had previously provided lists of individuals’ personal identity information to an FBI confidential source knowing the identity information would be used for identity theft tax refund fraud. In a subsequent recorded conversation, Siler told the confidential source that Siler could sell approximately “ten thousand” to “thirteen thousand” people’s identity information a week. Siler also told the confidential source that these identities were “never before revealed.” The evidence at trial established that Siler had worked for a company where he had access to lists of people’s personal identity information.
On February 14, 2014, Richard Siler sent an e-mail to the confidential source containing an attachment with the personal identity information of approximately 5,200 elderly Medicare patients. On that same date, the confidential source provided Siler with $6,200 in currency in exchange for those identities and Siler was arrested.
Mr. Ferrer commended the investigative efforts of the FBI and IRS-CI. The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Michael N. Berger and Francisco Maderal.
A copy of this press release may be found on the website of the United States Attorney's Office for the Southern District of Florida at http://www.usdoj.gov/usao/fls. Related court documents and information may be found on the website of the District Court for the Southern District of Florida at http://www.flsd.uscourts.gov or on http://pacer.flsd.uscourts.gov.
Hewitt Mother and Son Sentenced to Federal PrisonRead the Press Release
In Waco today, 26-year-old Conner Phillip Koss and his mother, 60-year-old Le’Ann Koss, both of Hewitt, TX, were sentenced to 121 months and 70 months in federal prison, respectively, for their roles in a marijuana distribution scheme announced United States Attorney Robert Pitman.
In addition to the prison terms, United States District Judge Walter S. Smith, Jr., ordered that Conner and Le’Ann Koss each pay a $2,000 fine and be placed under supervised release for a period of five years after completing their prison terms.
On July 24, 2014, Le’Ann Koss pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute marijuana and one substantive count of possession with intent to distribute marijuana. On June 26, 2014, Conner Koss pleaded guilty to the same charges. By pleading guilty, the defendants admitted that from October 2010 until November 2013, they conspired with family members and others to possess over 50 kilograms of marijuana.
Also sentenced today was Brian Thomas Smith, age 23. Judge Smith sentenced Smith to two years in federal prison followed by three years of supervised release after pleading guilty in July to his role in the marijuana distribution scheme. Judge Smith also ordered Smith to pay a $1,000 fine.
Hewitt
Phillip Larry Koss, age 59, remains in federal custody awaiting sentencing after pleading guilty in March to one count of possession with intent to distribute marijuana. Originally scheduled to be sentenced today, Phillip Larry Koss instead requested new counsel be appointed to represent him--a request which Judge Smith granted today. He faces up to five years in federal prison.On November 29, 2013, authorities executed a search warrant at the Koss’ residence and discovered approximately 12 pounds of tetrahydrocannabinol, commonly known as THC, several firearms and some $27,000 in U.S. Currency. Court records allege that the defendants obtain high grade marijuana from the State of California and arrange for it to be transported to their residence in Hewitt for distribution. Authorities have also recovered approximately 200 pounds of marijuana resulting from related search warrants executed in California as well as traffic stops during this investigation.
The Koss’ other son, Chad, is scheduled for a re-arraignment hearing at 10:00am tomorrow before Judge Smith. He faces the conspiracy charge only.
This investigation is being conducted by the McGregor Police Department, Texas Department of Public Safety and the Yuba County (CA) Narcotics Enforcement Team. Assistant United States Attorney Mary F. Kucera is prosecuting this case on behalf of the Government.
Harrisburg Couple Charged with Counterfeit U.S. Currency OffensesRead the Press Release
The United States Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Pennsylvania announced today that Richard Thomas Kramer, age 23, and Kristina Lynn Gates, age 21, both of Harrisburg were indicted today and charged with counterfeiting offenses. Specifically, Kramer was charging with both manufacturing counterfeit obligations of the United States and passing counterfeit obligations of the United States. Gates was charged with passing counterfeit obligations of the United States.
According to U.S. Attorney Peter Smith, in August of this year, the couple began passing counterfeit $20 bills at businesses throughout Dauphin County in Pennsylvania. It was later determined that Kramer was manufacturing the counterfeit $20 Federal Reserve notes. If convicted, Kramer faces 40 years’ imprisonment and a fine of up to $500,000. Gates faces 20 years’ imprisonment and a fine of up to $250,000.
This case is being investigated by the United States Secret Service, the Pennsylvania State Police and the Susquehanna Township Police Department, and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Daryl F. Bloom.
Indictments and Criminal Informations are only allegations. All persons charged are presumed to be innocent unless and until found guilty in court.
A sentence following a finding of guilty is imposed by the Judge after consideration of the applicable federal sentencing statutes and the Federal Sentencing Guidelines.
Under the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, the Judge is also required to consider and weigh a number of factors, including the nature, circumstances and seriousness of the offense; the history and characteristics of the defendant; and the need to punish the defendant, protect the public and provide for the defendant’s educational, vocational and medical needs. For these reasons, the statutory maximum penalty for the offense is not an accurate indicator of the potential sentence for a specific defendant.
****Four Members of Heroin Distribution Ring Plead GuiltyRead the Press Release
Baltimore, Maryland – Reginald Jones, age 26, of Bronx, New York, pleaded guilty today to conspiring to distribute and possess with intent to distribute heroin. Co-defendant Jeffrey Michael Anderson, age 35, of Upper Marlboro, Maryland, pleaded guilty yesterday to conspiring to distribute and possess with intent to distribute one kilogram or more of heroin. On October 20, 2014, co-defendants William Ulysses Robinson, age 38, of Grasonville, Maryland and Shawn Christopher Malley, age 25, of Crofton, Maryland, pleaded guilty to the conspiracy.
The guilty pleas were announced by United States Attorney for the District of Maryland Rod J. Rosenstein; Special Agent in Charge William Winter of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI); Assistant Special Agent in Charge Gary Tuggle of the Drug Enforcement Administration, Baltimore District Office; Frederick County Sheriff Charles A. “Chuck” Jenkins; Colonel Marcus L. Brown, Superintendent of the Maryland State Police; Washington County Sheriff Douglas W. Mullendore; and Hagerstown Police Chief Mark Holtzman.
According to their plea agreements, beginning as early as September 2013, Anderson and Jones worked with Rahdel Sharbaan to obtain bulk quantities of heroin from sources in New York and transport that heroin to Maryland for further distribution. Anderson would either travel to New York himself, or have Sharbaan and Jones bring the heroin and cutting agent to him in Maryland via commercial bus. With Malley’s assistance, Anderson used stash locations to store and cut the heroin, including a storage unit in Gambrills, Maryland, and Malley’s home. Once diluted, Anderson sold the heroin in bulk to several Maryland-based dealers who in turn sold to other dealers and end users. Robinson obtained drugs from Anderson which he distributed in street-level quantities. Jones used the drug proceeds from Anderson to pay the source in New York.On May 15, 2014, investigators executed search warrants, seizing: 40.1 grams of heroin, cutting agents, packaging materials and paraphernalia from the storage unit; 49 grams of heroin from Anderson’s vehicle; and $2,957, drugs, multiple cell phones and digital scales from Malley’s home.
Anderson admitted that he agreed to distribute at least one kilogram of heroin.
Jones faces a maximum sentence of 40 years in prison for the conspiracy.Anderson and the government have agreed that if the Court accepts his plea agreement, Anderson will be sentenced to 192 months in prison followed by five years of supervised release.
Malley and the government have agreed that if the Court accepts his plea agreement, Malley will be sentenced to either 96 or 60 months in prison, depending on whether he is found to be a career offender, followed by four years of supervised release.
Robinson and the government have agreed that if the Court accepts his plea agreement, Robinson will be sentenced to 72 months in prison followed by four years of supervised release.
U.S. District Judge Richard D. Bennett has scheduled sentencing for Robinson and Malley on January 6 and 7, 2015; Anderson on January 30, 2015; and Jones on January 9, 2015.
Rahdel Sharbaan, age 31, of Bronx, New York, and Gary Barham, age 52, of Easton, Maryland, previously pleaded guilty to the conspiracy. Barham is scheduled to be sentenced on November 17, 2014 at 3:00 p.m. and Sharbaan on January 8, 2015, at 3:00 p.m.
United States Attorney Rod J. Rosenstein praised HSI-Baltimore, DEA, Frederick County Sheriff’s Office, Maryland State Police, Washington County Sheriff’s Office and Hagerstown Police Department for their work in the investigation and recognized the Maryland Natural Resources Police, St. Michael’s Police Department, Easton Police Department, Ocean City Police Department and Talbot County Sheriff’s Office for their assistance. Mr. Rosenstein thanked Assistant U.S. Attorney Kenneth S. Clark, who is prosecuting the case.
Four Former Blackwater Employees Found Guilty of Charges in Fatal Nisur Square Shooting in IraqRead the Press Release
Four former security guards for Blackwater USA were found guilty today of charges stemming from the Sept. 16, 2007, shooting at Nisur Square in Baghdad, Iraq, that resulted in the killing of 14 unarmed civilians and the wounding of numerous others.
The jury verdicts, in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia, were announced by Ronald C. Machen Jr., U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia, and Andrew G. McCabe, Assistant Director in Charge of the FBI’s Washington Field Office.
The defendants include Nicholas Abram Slatten, 30, of Sparta, Tenn.; Paul Alvin Slough, 35, of Keller, Texas; Evan Shawn Liberty, 32, of Rochester, N.H.; and Dustin Laurent Heard, 33, of Maryville, Tenn. Slatten, who was accused of firing the first shots, was found guilty of one count of first-degree murder. Slough was found guilty of 13 counts of voluntary manslaughter, 17 counts of attempted manslaughter, and one firearms offense. Liberty was found guilty of eight counts of voluntary manslaughter, 12 counts of attempted manslaughter, and one firearms offense. Heard was found guilty of six counts of voluntary manslaughter, 11 counts of attempted manslaughter, and one firearms offense.
“This verdict is a resounding affirmation of the commitment of the American people to the rule of law, even in times of war,” said U.S. Attorney Machen. “Seven years ago, these Blackwater contractors unleashed powerful sniper fire, machine guns, and grenade launchers on innocent men, women, and children. Today they were held accountable for that outrageous attack and its devastating consequences for so many Iraqi families. I pray that this verdict will bring some sense of comfort to the survivors of that massacre. I want to thank the prosecutors and law enforcement agents who have fought for the past seven years to bring justice to the memories of those who were gunned down in Nisur Square.”
“Today’s verdict demonstrates the FBI's dedication to investigating violations of U.S. law no matter where they occur,” said Assistant Director in Charge McCabe. “International investigations such as this one are very complex and frequently dangerous. This case took a tremendous amount of coordination to bring over a large number of foreign witnesses in support of this prosecution. I commend the FBI Special Agents, Task Force Officers, Intelligence Analysts and Language Specialists and our partners at the U.S. Attorney’s Office for working to bring those responsible to justice and conveying some measure of comfort to the victims’ families in Iraq.”
The verdicts came on the 28th day of jury deliberations and followed more than two months of trial. The Honorable Senior Judge Royce C. Lamberth ordered that the four defendants be detained pending sentencing. A sentencing date has not yet been set.
The murder charge against Slatten calls for a mandatory sentence of life in prison. Each of the voluntary manslaughter counts against the other defendants carries a statutory maximum of 15 years in prison. Each of the attempted manslaughter counts carries a statutory maximum of seven years of incarceration. The weapons offense carries a mandatory 30-year prison sentence.
Another Blackwater security guard, Jeremy P. Ridgeway, pled guilty in December 2008 to voluntary manslaughter and attempt to commit manslaughter. Ridgeway, who testified as a government witness in the trial, has not yet been sentenced.
The defendants worked for Blackwater USA, a private security contractor that was paid by the U.S. government to provide protective services to U.S. officials.
The trial began June 17, 2014. Over the next 10 weeks, the government presented testimony from 71 witnesses, including 30 from Iraq. This represented the largest group of foreign witnesses ever to travel to the United States for a criminal trial. The witnesses included 13 people who were wounded in the shootings, as well as relatives of many of those who died. The government’s witnesses also included nine members of “Raven 23,” the Blackwater team that was on the scene on the day of the shootings.
According to the government’s evidence, at approximately noon on Sunday, Sept. 16, 2007, several Blackwater security contractors, including the four defendants, opened fire in and around Nisur Square, a busy traffic circle in the heart of Baghdad. When they stopped shooting, 14 Iraqi civilians were dead. Those killed included 10 men, two women, and two boys, ages 9 and 11. Another 18 victims were injured.
The four defendants and 15 other Blackwater security contractors were assigned to a convoy of four heavily-armed trucks known as a Tactical Support Team, using the call sign “Raven 23.” Shortly before noon, Raven 23 learned that a car bomb had detonated in central Baghdad near a location where a U.S official was being escorted by a Blackwater personal security detail team. Raven 23 team members promptly reported to their convoy vehicles, and the convoy drove to a secured checkpoint between the Green Zone and Red Zone.
Once there, in disregard of an order from Blackwater’s command, the team’s shift leader directed Raven 23 to leave the Green Zone and establish a blockade in Nisur Square, a busy traffic circle that was immediately adjacent to the Green Zone. While occupying the southern part of the traffic circle, seven of the 19 members of Raven 23, including the four defendants and Ridgeway, fired their weapons, resulting in the deaths or injury of the unarmed Iraqi civilians there. While leaving the traffic circle, Slough continued to fire his weapon, resulting in additional deaths and injuries.
Finally, further away, north of the traffic circle, Slough and Ridgeway again fired their weapons, resulting in the injury of three more unarmed Iraqi civilians.
The first to be killed was Ahmed Haithem Ahmed Al Rubia’y, 21, an aspiring doctor, who was driving his mother to an appointment. His mother, Mahassin Mohssen Kadhum Al-Khazali, 44, a medical doctor, also was killed. Others who died included Ali Mohammed Hafedh Abdul Razzaq, 9, who was traveling with his family; Osama Fadhil Abbas, 52, a businessman who sold used cars and who was enroute to a business meeting; Mohamed Abbas Mahmoud, 47, a delivery truck driver, and his 11-year-old son, Qasim Mohamed Abbas Mahmoud; Sa’adi Ali Abbas Alkarkh, 52, a businessman; Mushtaq Karim Abd Al-Razzaq, 18, an Iraqi soldier who was standing at a military checkpoint; Ghaniyah Hassan Ali, 55, who was traveling with her daughter on a public bus, and who was in the area to get documentation for a trip to holy sites; Ibrahim Abid Ayash, 77, a gardener, who was traveling in another bus; Hamoud Sa’eed Abttan, 33, and his cousin, Usday Ismail Ibrahiem, 27, who were out looking for work with the Iraqi Army; Mahdi Sahib Nasir, 26, a taxi driver, and Ali Khalil Abdul Hussein, 54, a motorcyclist who was commuting to work.
The jury considered charges involving injuries to 14 men and three women. Because of travel issues, witnesses to support an 18th charge of attempted manslaughter did not appear at the trial, and the charge related to that victim’s injuries was dismissed by the government.
This case was investigated by the FBI’s Washington Field Office. The Iraqi Ministry of Interior and the Iraqi National Police provided cooperation and assistance in the investigation.
The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Anthony Asuncion, John Crabb, Jr., Christopher R. Kavanaugh, T. Patrick Martin, and David Mudd, of the National Security Section of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia. The case was originally indicted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Jonathan M. Malis and Kenneth Kohl.
Four Former Blackwater Employees Found Guilty of ChargesRead the Press Release
In Fatal 2007 Shootings at Nisur Square in Iraq
Jury Verdicts Follow 2 ½-Month TrialWASHINGTON – Four former security guards for Blackwater USA were found guilty today of charges stemming from the Sept. 16, 2007, shooting at Nisur Square in Baghdad, Iraq, that resulted in the killing of 14 unarmed civilians and the wounding of numerous others.
The jury verdicts, in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia, were announced by Ronald C. Machen Jr., U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia, and Andrew G. McCabe, Assistant Director in Charge of the FBI’s Washington Field Office.
The defendants include Nicholas Abram Slatten, 30, of Sparta, Tenn.; Paul Alvin Slough, 35, of Keller, Texas; Evan Shawn Liberty, 32, of Rochester, N.H.; and Dustin Laurent Heard, 33, of Maryville, Tenn. Slatten, who was accused of firing the first shots, was found guilty of one count of first-degree murder. Slough was found guilty of 13 counts of voluntary manslaughter, 17 counts of attempted manslaughter, and one firearms offense. Liberty was found guilty of eight counts of voluntary manslaughter, 12 counts of attempted manslaughter, and one firearms offense. Heard was found guilty of six counts of voluntary manslaughter, 11 counts of attempted manslaughter, and one firearms offense.
“This verdict is a resounding affirmation of the commitment of the American people to the rule of law, even in times of war,” said U.S. Attorney Machen. “Seven years ago, these Blackwater contractors unleashed powerful sniper fire, machine guns, and grenade launchers on innocent men, women, and children. Today they were held accountable for that outrageous attack and its devastating consequences for so many Iraqi families. I pray that this verdict will bring some sense of comfort to the survivors of that massacre. I want to thank the prosecutors and law enforcement agents who have fought for the past seven years to bring justice to the memories of those who were gunned down in Nisur Square.”
“Today’s verdict demonstrates the FBI's dedication to investigating violations of U.S. law no matter where they occur,” said Assistant Director in Charge McCabe. “International investigations such as this one are very complex and frequently dangerous. This case took a tremendous amount of coordination to bring over a large number of foreign witnesses in support of this prosecution. I commend the FBI Special Agents, Task Force Officers, Intelligence Analysts and Language Specialists and our partners at the U.S. Attorney’s Office for working to bring those responsible to justice and conveying some measure of comfort to the victims’ families in Iraq.”
The verdicts came on the 28th day of jury deliberations and followed more than two months of trial. The Honorable Senior Judge Royce C. Lamberth ordered that the four defendants be detained pending sentencing. A sentencing date has not yet been set.
The murder charge against Slatten calls for a mandatory sentence of life in prison. Each of the voluntary manslaughter counts against the other defendants carries a statutory maximum of 15 years in prison. Each of the attempted manslaughter counts carries a statutory maximum of seven years of incarceration. The weapons offense carries a mandatory 30-year prison sentence.
Another Blackwater security guard, Jeremy P. Ridgeway, pled guilty in December 2008 to voluntary manslaughter and attempt to commit manslaughter. Ridgeway, who testified as a government witness in the trial, has not yet been sentenced.
The defendants worked for Blackwater USA, a private security contractor that was paid by the U.S. government to provide protective services to U.S. officials.
The trial began June 17, 2014. Over the next 10 weeks, the government presented testimony from 71 witnesses, including 30 from Iraq. This represented the largest group of foreign witnesses ever to travel to the United States for a criminal trial. The witnesses included 13 people who were wounded in the shootings, as well as relatives of many of those who died. The government’s witnesses also included nine members of “Raven 23,” the Blackwater team that was on the scene on the day of the shootings.
According to the government’s evidence, at approximately noon on Sunday, Sept. 16, 2007, several Blackwater security contractors, including the four defendants, opened fire in and around Nisur Square, a busy traffic circle in the heart of Baghdad. When they stopped shooting, 14 Iraqi civilians were dead. Those killed included 10 men, two women, and two boys, ages 9 and 11. Another 18 victims were injured.
The four defendants and 15 other Blackwater security contractors were assigned to a convoy of four heavily-armed trucks known as a Tactical Support Team, using the call sign “Raven 23.” Shortly before noon, Raven 23 learned that a car bomb had detonated in central Baghdad near a location where a U.S official was being escorted by a Blackwater personal security detail team. Raven 23 team members promptly reported to their convoy vehicles, and the convoy drove to a secured checkpoint between the Green Zone and Red Zone.
Once there, in disregard of an order from Blackwater’s command, the team’s shift leader directed Raven 23 to leave the Green Zone and establish a blockade in Nisur Square, a busy traffic circle that was immediately adjacent to the Green Zone. While occupying the southern part of the traffic circle, seven of the 19 members of Raven 23, including the four defendants and Ridgeway, fired their weapons, resulting in the deaths or injury of the unarmed Iraqi civilians there. While leaving the traffic circle, Slough continued to fire his weapon, resulting in additional deaths and injuries.
Finally, further away, north of the traffic circle, Slough and Ridgeway again fired their weapons, resulting in the injury of three more unarmed Iraqi civilians.
The first to be killed was Ahmed Haithem Ahmed Al Rubia’y, 21, an aspiring doctor, who was driving his mother to an appointment. His mother, Mahassin Mohssen Kadhum Al-Khazali, 44, a medical doctor, also was killed. Others who died included Ali Mohammed Hafedh Abdul Razzaq, 9, who was traveling with his family; Osama Fadhil Abbas, 52, a businessman who sold used cars and who was enroute to a business meeting; Mohamed Abbas Mahmoud, 47, a delivery truck driver, and his 11-year-old son, Qasim Mohamed Abbas Mahmoud; Sa’adi Ali Abbas Alkarkh, 52, a businessman; Mushtaq Karim Abd Al-Razzaq, 18, an Iraqi soldier who was standing at a military checkpoint; Ghaniyah Hassan Ali, 55, who was traveling with her daughter on a public bus, and who was in the area to get documentation for a trip to holy sites; Ibrahim Abid Ayash, 77, a gardener, who was traveling in another bus; Hamoud Sa’eed Abttan, 33, and his cousin, Usday Ismail Ibrahiem, 27, who were out looking for work with the Iraqi Army; Mahdi Sahib Nasir, 26, a taxi driver, and Ali Khalil Abdul Hussein, 54, a motorcyclist who was commuting to work.
The jury considered charges involving injuries to 14 men and three women. Because of travel issues, witnesses to support an 18th charge of attempted manslaughter did not appear at the trial, and the charge related to that victim’s injuries was dismissed by the government.
This case was investigated by the FBI’s Washington Field Office. The Iraqi Ministry of Interior and the Iraqi National Police provided cooperation and assistance in the investigation.
The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Anthony Asuncion, John Crabb, Jr., Christopher R. Kavanaugh, T. Patrick Martin, and David Mudd, of the National Security Section of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia. The case was originally indicted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Jonathan M. Malis and Kenneth Kohl.
14-235Four Former Blackwater Employees Found Guilty of ChargesRead the Press Release
In Fatal 2007 Shootings at Nisur Square in Iraq
Jury Verdicts Follow 2 ½-Month TrialWASHINGTON – Four former security guards for Blackwater USA were found guilty today of charges stemming from the Sept. 16, 2007, shooting at Nisur Square in Baghdad, Iraq, that resulted in the killing of 14 unarmed civilians and the wounding of numerous others.
The jury verdicts, in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia, were announced by Ronald C. Machen Jr., U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia, and Andrew G. McCabe, Assistant Director in Charge of the FBI’s Washington Field Office.
The defendants include Nicholas Abram Slatten, 30, of Sparta, Tenn.; Paul Alvin Slough, 35, of Keller, Texas; Evan Shawn Liberty, 32, of Rochester, N.H.; and Dustin Laurent Heard, 33, of Maryville, Tenn. Slatten, who was accused of firing the first shots, was found guilty of one count of first-degree murder. Slough was found guilty of 13 counts of voluntary manslaughter, 17 counts of attempted manslaughter, and one firearms offense. Liberty was found guilty of eight counts of voluntary manslaughter, 12 counts of attempted manslaughter, and one firearms offense. Heard was found guilty of six counts of voluntary manslaughter, 11 counts of attempted manslaughter, and one firearms offense.
“This verdict is a resounding affirmation of the commitment of the American people to the rule of law, even in times of war,” said U.S. Attorney Machen. “Seven years ago, these Blackwater contractors unleashed powerful sniper fire, machine guns, and grenade launchers on innocent men, women, and children. Today they were held accountable for that outrageous attack and its devastating consequences for so many Iraqi families. I pray that this verdict will bring some sense of comfort to the survivors of that massacre. I want to thank the prosecutors and law enforcement agents who have fought for the past seven years to bring justice to the memories of those who were gunned down in Nisur Square.”
“Today’s verdict demonstrates the FBI's dedication to investigating violations of U.S. law no matter where they occur,” said Assistant Director in Charge McCabe. “International investigations such as this one are very complex and frequently dangerous. This case took a tremendous amount of coordination to bring over a large number of foreign witnesses in support of this prosecution. I commend the FBI Special Agents, Task Force Officers, Intelligence Analysts and Language Specialists and our partners at the U.S. Attorney’s Office for working to bring those responsible to justice and conveying some measure of comfort to the victims’ families in Iraq.”
The verdicts came on the 28th day of jury deliberations and followed more than two months of trial. The Honorable Senior Judge Royce C. Lamberth ordered that the four defendants be detained pending sentencing. A sentencing date has not yet been set.
The murder charge against Slatten calls for a mandatory sentence of life in prison. Each of the voluntary manslaughter counts against the other defendants carries a statutory maximum of 15 years in prison. Each of the attempted manslaughter counts carries a statutory maximum of seven years of incarceration. The weapons offense carries a mandatory 30-year prison sentence.
Another Blackwater security guard, Jeremy P. Ridgeway, pled guilty in December 2008 to voluntary manslaughter and attempt to commit manslaughter. Ridgeway, who testified as a government witness in the trial, has not yet been sentenced.
The defendants worked for Blackwater USA, a private security contractor that was paid by the U.S. government to provide protective services to U.S. officials.
The trial began June 17, 2014. Over the next 10 weeks, the government presented testimony from 71 witnesses, including 30 from Iraq. This represented the largest group of foreign witnesses ever to travel to the United States for a criminal trial. The witnesses included 13 people who were wounded in the shootings, as well as relatives of many of those who died. The government’s witnesses also included nine members of “Raven 23,” the Blackwater team that was on the scene on the day of the shootings.
According to the government’s evidence, at approximately noon on Sunday, Sept. 16, 2007, several Blackwater security contractors, including the four defendants, opened fire in and around Nisur Square, a busy traffic circle in the heart of Baghdad. When they stopped shooting, 14 Iraqi civilians were dead. Those killed included 10 men, two women, and two boys, ages 9 and 11. Another 18 victims were injured.
The four defendants and 15 other Blackwater security contractors were assigned to a convoy of four heavily-armed trucks known as a Tactical Support Team, using the call sign “Raven 23.” Shortly before noon, Raven 23 learned that a car bomb had detonated in central Baghdad near a location where a U.S official was being escorted by a Blackwater personal security detail team. Raven 23 team members promptly reported to their convoy vehicles, and the convoy drove to a secured checkpoint between the Green Zone and Red Zone.
Once there, in disregard of an order from Blackwater’s command, the team’s shift leader directed Raven 23 to leave the Green Zone and establish a blockade in Nisur Square, a busy traffic circle that was immediately adjacent to the Green Zone. While occupying the southern part of the traffic circle, seven of the 19 members of Raven 23, including the four defendants and Ridgeway, fired their weapons, resulting in the deaths or injury of the unarmed Iraqi civilians there. While leaving the traffic circle, Slough continued to fire his weapon, resulting in additional deaths and injuries.
Finally, further away, north of the traffic circle, Slough and Ridgeway again fired their weapons, resulting in the injury of three more unarmed Iraqi civilians.
The first to be killed was Ahmed Haithem Ahmed Al Rubia’y, 21, an aspiring doctor, who was driving his mother to an appointment. His mother, Mahassin Mohssen Kadhum Al-Khazali, 44, a medical doctor, also was killed. Others who died included Ali Mohammed Hafedh Abdul Razzaq, 9, who was traveling with his family; Osama Fadhil Abbas, 52, a businessman who sold used cars and who was enroute to a business meeting; Mohamed Abbas Mahmoud, 47, a delivery truck driver, and his 11-year-old son, Qasim Mohamed Abbas Mahmoud; Sa’adi Ali Abbas Alkarkh, 52, a businessman; Mushtaq Karim Abd Al-Razzaq, 18, an Iraqi soldier who was standing at a military checkpoint; Ghaniyah Hassan Ali, 55, who was traveling with her daughter on a public bus, and who was in the area to get documentation for a trip to holy sites; Ibrahim Abid Ayash, 77, a gardener, who was traveling in another bus; Hamoud Sa’eed Abttan, 33, and his cousin, Usday Ismail Ibrahiem, 27, who were out looking for work with the Iraqi Army; Mahdi Sahib Nasir, 26, a taxi driver, and Ali Khalil Abdul Hussein, 54, a motorcyclist who was commuting to work.
The jury considered charges involving injuries to 14 men and three women. Because of travel issues, witnesses to support an 18th charge of attempted manslaughter did not appear at the trial, and the charge related to that victim’s injuries was dismissed by the government.
This case was investigated by the FBI’s Washington Field Office. The Iraqi Ministry of Interior and the Iraqi National Police provided cooperation and assistance in the investigation.
The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Anthony Asuncion, John Crabb, Jr., Christopher R. Kavanaugh, T. Patrick Martin, and David Mudd, of the National Security Section of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia. The case was originally indicted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Jonathan M. Malis and Kenneth Kohl.
14-235Founder of Detroit-Area Home Health Agencies Pleads Guilty to Health Care Fraud ConspiracyRead the Press Release
The founder of three Detroit-area home health agencies pleaded guilty today in federal court for his role in a $22 million home health care fraud scheme.
Assistant Attorney General Leslie R. Caldwell of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, U.S. Attorney Barbara L. McQuade of the Eastern District of Michigan, Special Agent in Charge Paul M. Abbate of the FBI’s Detroit Field Office, Special Agent in Charge Lamont Pugh III of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General (HHS-OIG) Chicago Regional Office and Special Agent in Charge Jarod Koopman of the Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigation (IRS-CI) Detroit Field Office made the announcement.
Tayyab Aziz, 45, of Homer Glen, Illinois, pleaded guilty today before U.S. District Judge Bernard A. Friedman in the Eastern District of Michigan to one count of conspiracy to commit health care fraud. His sentencing is scheduled for March 3, 2015.
According to admissions in his plea agreement, Aziz founded three Detroit-area home health care agencies, Prestige Home Health Services Inc. (Prestige), Royal Home Health Care Inc., and Platinum Home Health Services Inc. (Platinum). Using these companies, Aziz admitted that he orchestrated a conspiracy to defraud Medicare through fraudulent billings for home health care services.
Specifically, Aziz admitted that he and his co-conspirators submitted fraudulent claims to Medicare for services that were medically unnecessary or never performed. They also submitted claims for services purportedly provided to Medicare beneficiaries who were recruited through illegal kickbacks paid to the patients and recruiters. To conceal the fraud, Aziz admitted that he and his co-conspirators created fictitious physical therapy files to document physical therapy and other services that had not actually been provided and were not medically necessary. Aziz also created and submitted falsified records to the Michigan Community Health Accreditation Program (CHAP) in order for Prestige and Platinum to remain accredited Medicare providers.
As a result of Aziz’s fraudulent conduct, Medicare paid approximately $1,915,513. Five of six other defendants in this case have also previously pleaded guilty.
This case was investigated by the FBI, HHS-OIG and IRS-CI and was brought as part of the Medicare Fraud Strike Force, under the supervision of the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Michigan. This case is being prosecuted by Trial Attorneys Niall M. O’Donnell and James P. McDonald of the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section.
Since its inception in March 2007, the Medicare Fraud Strike Force, now operating in nine cities across the country, has charged nearly 2,000 defendants who have collectively billed the Medicare program for more than $6 billion. In addition, the HHS Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, working in conjunction with the HHS-OIG, are taking steps to increase accountability and decrease the presence of fraudulent providers.
To learn more about the Health Care Fraud Prevention and Enforcement Action Team (HEAT), go to: www.stopmedicarefraud.gov.
Fort Mill Woman Pleads Guilty to Lying to Federal AgentsRead the Press Release
Contact Person: Stacey Haynes (803) 929-3000
Columbia, South Carolina ---- United States Attorney Bill Nettles stated today that Kirstie Elaine Philome Barratt, age 22, of Fort Mill, South Carolina pled guilty as charged today in federal court. Barratt plead guilty to making a false statement to a federal agent, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 1001. Barratt plead straight up to the charge without a plea agreement. United States District Judge Joseph F. Anderson, Jr. accepted the plea and will impose a sentence after he has reviewed the presentence report, which will be prepared by the U.S. Probation Office.
Evidence presented at the change of plea hearing established that during the early morning hours of January 7, 2014, deputized task force agents with the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s (FBI) Charlotte Safe Streets Task Force/Violent Crime Apprehension Team were in Fort Mill, South Carolina searching for a subject (hereinafter “Subject”) who was wanted for an armed robbery of a restaurant in North Carolina. Agents, in police attire and accompanied by York County Sheriff’s Department officers in marked units, approached the residence of the Subject’s girlfriend, Barratt, in an attempt to determine if the Subject was in the residence. After approximately 15 minutes of the agents knocking on the door and announcing their presence with a loud speaker, Barratt came to the door. Barratt, who was advised by agents that it was a crime to make a false statement to federal agents, told the agents that her boyfriend was not in the home, that she had not seen him for two (2) months because they had broken up, and that the only other persons in the residence were her parents. Barratt gave the agents consent to search the residence. Upon completing a sweep of the residence, agents located Barratt’s parents asleep in one upstairs bedroom and noticed the door shut to another upstairs bedroom. Agents could hear a dog barking in that other upstairs bedroom, so they asked Barratt to secure the dog so they could search the bedroom. Barratt went into the bedroom and came out with the dog. Agents then went into the bedroom and found the Subject crouched in the corner with his weapon drawn. Gunfire ensued and an FBI task force agent, as well as the Subject, were shot. Both Barratt and the Subject were taken into custody. Barratt later advised agents that she knew her boyfriend was in the residence, that she thought he was going to hide, and that when she entered the bedroom to retrieve the dog, she saw him with the gun, but did not tell the agents before allowing them to enter the bedroom.
Mr. Nettles stated that Barratt faces a statutory maximum sentence of five (5) years, a fine of $250,000, and a term of supervised release of up to three (3) years following the term of imprisonment. Barratt also may face deportation as a result of her guilty plea.
The case was investigated by the FBI, the York County Sheriff’s Department, and the South Carolina Law Enforcement Division (SLED), and was prosecuted as part of the joint federal, state and local Project CeaseFire initiative, which aggressively prosecutes firearm cases. Assistant United States Attorney Stacey D. Haynes of the Columbia office handled the case.Former Pierce County Hard Money Lender Sentenced to Prison for Mortgage Fraud SchemeRead the Press Release
A former hard money lender who resides in University Place, Washington was sentenced today in U.S. District Court in Tacoma to five years in prison, three years of supervised release and $831,607 in restitution for his mortgage fraud scheme announced Acting U.S. Attorney Annette L. Hayes. EMIEL A. KANDI, 37, pleaded guilty in April 2014 to Conspiracy to Submit False Statements in Loan Applications and to Make False Statements to the Department of Housing and Urban Development, and Submitting False Statements in Loan Applications. The mortgage fraud scheme caused a loss of more than $800,000 to the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development and defrauded mortgage applicants as well. At sentencing U.S. District Judge Ronald B. Leighton said KANDI “was a predator. He took advantage of situations. He found a method to secure funds… He was aggressive, he was pushing the envelope, he was a risk-taker without humility and without empathy – those characteristics are ruinous.”
“This defendant lined his pockets at the expense of taxpayers and his own clients,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Annette L. Hayes. “His scheme diverted funds that had been set aside to help people achieve the dream of homeownership. Kandi also hid as much as $35,000 in fraudulent charges in loan documents – money he siphoned directly into his bank accounts. As the recent housing crisis demonstrated, mortgage fraud can have a devastating impact on homeowners and on the economy.”
“Whether fueled by greed or hubris, Emiel Kandi thought he could get away with exploiting members of our community and the federal government,” said Assistant Special Agent in Charge Carlos L. Mojica of the FBI’s Seattle field office. “He boasted about being a wolf that preyed on the weak, but today he learned that criminal activity is not a badge of honor but a disgrace. The FBI and its partners in the Puget Sound Mortgage Fraud Working Group are committed to holding people like Kandi accountable for their fraudulent schemes.”
According to records in the case, between 2008 and 2009, KANDI submitted false information to obtain home mortgage loans. Some of these fraudulent home mortgage loans were designed to let KANDI cash out of properties that KANDI owned through his hard money lending. KANDI’s lending activities were typically secured by a borrower’s home and charged a high rate of interest. The hard money loans were structured, in some instances, to allow KANDI to seize control of a home if the borrower missed a single payment. Other fraudulent home mortgage loans included an inflated and often disguised commission payment to KANDI. In at least 19 loans, KANDI and his co-schemers submitted false information regarding the borrowers’ employment, salary, and intention to live in the home. Some of the loan paperwork included inflated appraisals so that KANDI could maximize the money he obtained in the scheme. The false statements were designed to make the loans appear legitimate and ensure that they would meet federal lending standards. Many of the loans were processed by Pierce Commercial Bank and were insured by the Federal Housing Administration (FHA), a unit within the federal Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD).
“As a result of his conduct the legislature changed the law to protect consumers who secure loans with their primary residence, even when they are characterized as a business loan,” Deborah Bortner, Director of Consumer Services at the Washington State Department of Financial Institutions (DFI) said. “Emiel Kandi was particularly predatory to some of our most vulnerable citizens.”
“In the last number of years, we have seen enormous and damaging developments in the mortgage and housing markets. Convictions such as this set an important precedent that submitting false statements and fraudulent behavior will not be tolerated and will be aggressively pursued. The United States Department of Housing and Urban Development, Office of Inspector General is deeply committed to working in partnership with other federal, state and local authorities to ensure that corrupt individuals do not use their positions to enrich themselves at the expense of the HUD and its federally-insured mortgage loan program,” said David R. Barnes, Special Agent in Charge.
False statements were made in loan applications for various properties in Western Washington, including properties in Pierce, King, and Clark County. Under the terms of the plea agreement, KANDI agreed to make restitution of $831,607 due to HUD.
Today’s announcement is part of efforts underway by President Obama’s Financial Fraud Enforcement Task Force (FFETF) which was created in November 2009 to wage an aggressive, coordinated and proactive effort to investigate and prosecute financial crimes. With more than 20 federal agencies, 94 U.S. attorneys’ offices and state and local partners, it’s the broadest coalition of law enforcement, investigatory and regulatory agencies ever assembled to combat fraud. Since its formation, the task force has made great strides in facilitating increased investigation and prosecution of financial crimes; enhancing coordination and cooperation among federal, state and local authorities; addressing discrimination in the lending and financial markets and conducting outreach to the public, victims, financial institutions and other organizations. Over the past three fiscal years, the Justice Department has filed more than 10,000 financial fraud cases against nearly 15,000 defendants including more than 2,700 mortgage fraud defendants. For more information on the task force, visit www.stopfraud.gov.
This case is being investigated by the Puget Sound Mortgage Fraud Working Group, whose members include the FBI, the Department of Housing and Urban Development – Office of Inspector General, the Washington Department of Financial Institutions (DFI), and the Washington State Department of Licensing. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Brian Werner and Special Assistant United States Attorney Hugo Torres. Mr. Torres is a King County Deputy Prosecutor specially funded by the Washington Department of Financial Institutions (DFI) to handle mortgage fraud cases in state and federal court.
Former Oklahoma State University Professor Sentenced to Five Years in PrisonRead the Press Release
GREAT FALLS: The United States Attorney's Office today announced that Gary Joseph Conti, 68, of Three Forks, a former Oklahoma State University professor who was part of a multi-million dollar tribal corruption and fraud case on the Blackfeet Indian Reservation, was sentenced to five years in federal prison, $1.7 million in restitution, and three years on supervised release by U.S. District Brian Morris of Great Falls. He was also sentenced to three years of supervised release and $2700 in special assessments.
Conti was convicted of bankruptcy fraud by a federal jury in March and of 26 other felony crimes by a second federal jury in May. Conti was convicted of assisting Blackfeet Tribal officials Frances Onstad and Delyle "Shanny" Augare, and others, obtain millions of dollars in federal monies for a program for troubled and at risk Blackfeet youth called the Po'Ka Project. The federal money was provided based on fraudulent claims as to matching or "in-kind" contributions of third parties which made it appear that the project was becoming self-sufficient. Once the federal money was provided to the Po'Ka program, Onstad and Augare paid Conti $475,000 over a three year period-from August 2008 to August 2011-of which Conti kicked-back $225,000 through a children's charity bank account over which Augare and Onstad had control. Conti was a professor at Oklahoma State University - Tulsa Campus until May of 2011. An audit by the Department of Health and Human Services' Office of Inspector General found the projected loss due to fraud and mismanagement at $4.6 million out of the $9 million provided to the Po'Ka Project from 2005 to 2011.
Conti was allowed to voluntarily surrender to prison when a facility is designated.
The investigation was conducted by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Internal Revenue Service, and the Office of Inspector General for the Department of Health and Human Services.
@USAO_MT
Former Longshoreman Sentenced to Prison for Extortion Conspiracy Involving Christmastime Tribute PaymentsRead the Press Release
NEWARK, N.J. - A former longshoreman was sentenced today to a year and a day in prison for conspiring to extort others in Local 1235 of the International Longshoremen’s Association (ILA) for Christmastime tribute payments, New Jersey U.S. Attorney Paul J. Fishman and Eastern District of New York U.S. Attorney Loretta E. Lynch announced.
Julio Porrao, 72, of Palm Coast, Florida, previously pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Claire C. Cecchi to conspiring to extort Christmastime tributes from the union members – count three of the second superseding indictment against him. Judge Cecchi imposed the sentence today in Newark federal court.
According to documents filed in this case and statements made in court: During his guilty plea proceeding, Porrao admitted that he conspired with others to compel tribute payments from ILA union members, who made the payments based on actual and threatened force, violence and fear. The timing of the extortions typically coincided with the receipt by certain ILA members of “Container Royalty Fund” checks, a form of year-end compensation. Porrao had already retired from his employment on the New Jersey piers at the time of his arrest.
Charges are still pending against three defendants in the superseding indictment, including a racketeering conspiracy charge against Stephen Depiro, 59, of Kenilworth, New Jersey – a soldier in the Genovese organized crime family of La Cosa Nostra. Since at least 2005, Depiro has managed the Genovese family’s control over the New Jersey waterfront – including the nearly three-decades-long extortion of port workers in ILA Local 1, ILA Local 1235, and ILA Local 1478. Members of the Genovese family, including Depiro, are charged with conspiring to collect tribute payments from New Jersey port workers at Christmastime each year through their corrupt influence over union officials, including the last three presidents of Local 1235.
Two other Genovese family associates charged in the case are former union officials: Albert Cernadas, 79, of Union, New Jersey, the president of ILA Local 1235 from approximately 1981 to 2006 and former ILA executive vice president; and Nunzio LaGrasso, 63, of Florham Park, New Jersey, the former vice president of ILA Local 1478 and former ILA representative.
In addition to the prison term, Judge Cecchi sentenced Porrao to serve two years of supervised release and pay a fine of $5,000. LaGrasso and Nicolosi still await sentencing.
U.S. Attorneys Fishman and Lynch credited the FBI in New Jersey, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Aaron T. Ford, and in New York, under the direction of Assistant Director in Charge George Venizelos, as well as the U.S. Department of Labor, Office of Inspector General, Office of Labor Racketeering and Fraud Investigations, under the direction of Acting Special Agent in Charge Cheryl Garcia, with the investigation. They also thanked the Waterfront Commission of New York Harbor for its cooperation and assistance in the investigation.
The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorney Jacquelyn M. Kasulis of the U.S. Attorney’s Office, Eastern District of New York, and Assistant U.S. Attorney Anthony Mahajan, of the U.S. Attorney’s Office, District of New Jersey.
The charges and allegations against the remaining defendants are merely accusations and they are considered innocent unless and until proven guilty.14-383
Defense counsel: Julio Porrao: Erik Hassing Esq., Flanders, New Jersey
Florence Couple Sentenced to Hundreds of Years in Prison for Producing Child PornographyRead the Press Release
BIRMINGHAM -- A federal judge today sentenced a Florence couple to hundreds of years in prison for exploiting and sexually abusing a minor child in their custody to produce images of child pornography, announced U.S. Attorney Joyce White Vance and FBI Special Agent in Charge Richard D. Schwein Jr.U.S. District Judge L. Scott Coogler sentenced PATRICIA ALLANA AYERS, 34, to 1,590 years in prison and her husband, MATTHEW DAVID AYERS, 42, to 750 years in prison. The government had requested those sentences, the maximums possible.
The couple pleaded guilty in June to multiple charges related to 53 pornographic images of the child produced between the summer of 2010 and January 2013, when the child was six to nine years old. The images included photographs of the adults engaged in sex acts with the child. Patricia Ayers pleaded guilty to 53 counts of producing child pornography, and Matthew Ayers pleaded guilty to 25 counts of production.
"I have been on the bench since 1998, and this is the worst case I have personally dealt with, including murders," Judge Coogler told the defendants. "You robbed this child of her childhood and her soul, and a maximum sentence is the only sentence appropriate."
"The stern sentences imposed on this couple today reflect the abhorrent nature of their abuse and exploitation of a young child in their care," Vance said. "Children must be protected from sexual exploitation, and we remain committed to prosecuting child pornography cases. I thank the FBI for its diligent work on this disturbing case," she said.
"The crimes the Ayers have admitted to are disturbing, inexcusable and sickening," Schwein said. "The Internet has a depraved and dark side which the Ayers lived in, bringing a child for whom they were responsible with them. I am proud of the work of the FBI on this case, and I applaud the sentences handed down today, as the Ayers will spend the rest of their natural lives behind prison bars," he said.
In their plea agreements with the government, both Ayers acknowledged that they took photographs of the child engaged in lewd and lascivious poses and that they each engaged in sexual acts with the child that the other adult photographed. Patricia Ayers sent pornographic images of the child by e-mail to a man in Texas and told him in e-mail messages that she would bring the child to Texas so that he could have sexual relations with the child, according to the plea agreements.
Following today's hearing, the couple was returned to custody in Lauderdale County where they face state child pornography, rape and sexual abuse charges.
Anyone with information about the potential sexual exploitation of children should report it to law enforcement immediately. The National Center for Missing and Exploited Children operates the Cyber Tip Line in partnership with the FBI and other federal authorities. If you have information, call the tip line at 1-800-THE-LOST.
The FBI investigated this case, which Assistant U.S. Attorney Mary Stuart Burrell prosecuted.
Federal Law Enforcement Officials Seek Information Regarding Two Federal FugitivesRead the Press Release
Federal law enforcement officials are seeking information regarding the location of two persons who have been charged with federal drug, money laundering, and gambling offenses.
The public’s assistance is being sought in the apprehension of Melissa Al Sharairei (also known as Melissa Schermerhorn), age 35, and her husband, Mohammad Al Sharairei, age 33, both of whom were last known to live in Pueblo, Colorado. Federal warrants have been issued for their arrests due to their failures to appear for court proceedings in the United States District Court for the Northern District of Iowa on October 20, 2014. According to court records, the two have been charged with maintaining a premises for the distribution of controlled substance analogues, money laundering, and conducting an illegal gambling business.
Anyone with information as to the whereabouts of the Al Sharaireis should call the United States Marshals Service at (319) 362-4411.
As with any criminal case, a charge is merely an accusation and a defendant is presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty.
Federal Inmate Charged with Witness TamperingRead the Press Release
1125 Chapline Street, Federal Building, Suite 3000 ● Wheeling, WV 26003
(304) 234-0100 ● Contact: Tara Tighe, Public Affairs SpecialistELKINS, WEST VIRGINIA – A federal grand jury returned an indictment charging Tobias Lynn Bennett, 41, of Buckhannon, West Virginia, with witness tampering, United States Attorney William J. Ihlenfeld, II, announced today.
Bennett is charged with two counts of “Witness Tampering – Aiding and Abetting.” A West Virginia State Police investigation revealed that, while incarcerated at the Tygart Valley Regional Jail in Belington, West Virginia, Bennett discouraged two potential witnesses from testifying at a fellow inmate’s sentencing hearing.
Bennett faces up to 20 years in prison and a fine of up to $250,000 for each charge. Under the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, the actual sentence imposed will be based upon the seriousness of the offenses and the prior criminal history, if any, of the defendant.
An indictment is an accusation. A defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
Federal Indictment: Topeka Man Robbed Convenience StoreRead the Press Release
TOPEKA, KAN. – A Topeka man was indicted Wednesday in federal court here on a charge of robbing a convenience store, U.S. Attorney Barry Grissom said.
Wesley Lavern Harris, 25, Topeka, Kan., was charged with one count of robbery. The indictment alleges that on Sept. 25, 2014, he robbed the Kwik Shop at 102 S.W. 37th Street in Topeka. He is alleged to have stolen cash and Kansas Lottery tickets.
If convicted, he faces a maximum penalty of 20 years in federal prison and a fine up to $250,000. The Topeka Police Department and the FBI investigated. Assistant U.S. Attorney Jared Maag is prosecuting.
OTHER INDICTMENTS
Ramiro Madrigal, 19, Kansas City, Kan., and Armando Rodriguez, Jr., 19, Kansas City, Kan., are charged with one count of conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute methamphetamine, one count of possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine, and one count each of traveling from Nevada to Kansas in furtherance of drug trafficking. The crimes are alleged to have occurred Oct. 15, 2014, in Thomas County, Kan.
If convicted, they face a penalty of not less than 10 years and a fine up to $4 million on each of the first two counts and a maximum penalty of five years and a fine up to $250,000 on the third count. The Kansas Highway Patrol investigated. Assistant U.S. Attorney Mona Furst is prosecuting.
In all cases, defendants are presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty. The indictments merely contain allegations of criminal conduct.
Federal Court Enters Order and $25 Million Judgment Against Los Angeles Area Work-at-Home SchemeRead the Press Release
An order of permanent injunction against The Zaken Corp. of Thousand Oaks, California, and company president Tiran Zaken, of Calabasas, California, was entered today by U.S. District Court Judge Dean D. Pregerson, finding that they made false and misleading statements in marketing work-at-home business opportunities and promising commissions to consumers, the Justice Department announced. In a written opinion entered Sept. 18, the court found that 110,000 consumers had bought the defendants’ program and “more than 99.8 percent never earned any commission whatsoever.” The court ordered the defendants to pay $25,406,781 as redress for consumer injury.
“This order reflects the Department of Justice’s commitment to protecting consumers from fraud schemes,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General Joyce R. Branda of the Justice Department’s Civil Division. “Those who take advantage of Americans searching for an honest day’s work, depriving them of their savings, will be held accountable.”
The Zaken Corp. sold consumers a “Wealth Building Home Business Plan” called QuikSell. For an initial investment of $148, consumers became Associates of QuikSell Liquidations and received a manual including instructions on how to locate excess inventory. The defendants represented that once purchasers of the opportunity identified businesses interested in selling excess inventory, The Zaken Corp. would find a buyer for the inventory. If The Zaken Corp. succeeded in negotiating a sale of the inventory, it promised to give the associate a “commission” equal to half the profit on the sale.
The Zaken Corp. and Tiran Zaken lured customers with claims that purchasers of their program could expect that “two to four hours a week working this business will earn participants an average of $3,000 to $6,000.” They further claimed that “the average commission checks associates get … will be approximately $4,280!” In the court’s written decision, Judge Pregerson of the Central District of California found that “fewer than one percent of consumers ever earned any income at all.”
Once consumers purchased the QuikSell program, they were inundated with advertisements to purchase additional business “tools” costing hundreds or thousands of dollars. The court found that consumers were encouraged to spend an additional $2,300 if they were “serious about this business and … really wanted to make the kind of money others have made.” However, after making this additional investment, consumers received only a directory consisting of “largely outdated telephone numbers of companies who were out of business.”
The court found that The Zaken Corp. and Tiran Zaken violated the Federal Trade Commission Act by making false claims regarding the earnings potential of QuikSell. The court also found that The Zaken Corp. and Tiran Zaken violated the Federal Trade Commission (FTC)’s Business Opportunity Rule, which requires sellers of business opportunities to provide specific, truthful information to help consumers evaluate a business opportunity prior to purchase. The FTC promulgated an updated Business Opportunity Rule in 2012, in order to protect consumers from exactly this sort of work-at-home scheme, in which sellers lure victims with false representations of substantial earnings.
Pursuant to the injunction issued by the court, The Zaken Corp. and Tiran Zaken are permanently banned from advertising or selling any work-at-home opportunity or business opportunity.
This case was brought by the Department of Justice as part of “Operation Lost Opportunity,” a sweep of business opportunity fraud cases coordinated by the FTC. Trial Attorneys Ann Entwistle and Lisa Hsiao of the Justice Department’s Consumer Protection Branch litigated this case with support from Dana Barragate of the FTC’s East Central Region, the FTC’s Division of Marketing Practices and Assistant U.S. Attorney Anoiel Korshid in the Central District of California.
Employee of Memphis City Court Clerk’S Office Indicted for Theft of Monetary Payments for Traffic CitationsRead the Press Release
Memphis, TN – Tammy Brooks Carpenter, age 41, of Memphis, TN, was indicted yesterday by a federal grand jury on the charge of embezzling monetary payments from customers who had been issued motor vehicle citations by the City of Memphis, announced Edward L. Stanton III, United States Attorney for the Western District of Tennessee.
“As the indictment alleges, Tammy Brooks Carpenter orchestrated a scheme to enrich herself by embezzling and converting thousands of dollars of traffic ticket payments intended for City of Memphis coffers,” stated United States Attorney Stanton. “She then allegedly took her brazen scheme one step further by targeting and preying upon vulnerable members of the Hispanic community. As today’s arrest makes clear, we will not tolerate corrupt public officials, and will do everything in our power to hold them accountable.”
The one-count indictment alleges that beginning in December 2012 and continuing until December 2013, Carpenter, an employee of the Memphis City Court Clerk’s office whose duties included accepting payments from customers who had been issued motor vehicle citations, would accept payment and enter the transactions into the Electronic Ticket Information System (ETIMS) which created a record of the payment. Carpenter would then void the original payment and enter a smaller amount into the ETIMS system, converting the remaining funds for her personal use.
During the course of one year, Carpenter allegedly voided approximately 188 citations and embezzled approximately $24,000. Of the 188 citations voided by Carpenter, approximately 183 of the victims had a Hispanic surname.
The federal statute, Title 18 United States Code, Section 666(a)(1)(A), Carpenter has been charged with violating makes it a crime to embezzle money from a local government entity that receives federal assistance in excess of $10,000 during a 12 month period. If convicted she faces up to 10 years in prison and a fine of up to $250,000.
This investigation was conducted by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Memphis Police Department and the Tarnished Badge Task Force. This case is being prosecuted for the government by Assistant United States Attorney Brian K. Coleman.
The charges and allegations contained in the indictment are merely accusations, and the defendant is considered innocent unless and until proven guilty.
El Paso Couple Plead Guilty to Inducing Foreign or Interstate Travel for ProstitutionRead the Press Release
In El Paso, 45-year-old Maria Blake (aka “Jessica”, “Yvonne”) and her 45–year-old husband, Ronald, face up to 20 years in federal prison after pleading guilty to federal charges involving foreign or interstate travel for prostitution announced United States Attorney Robert Pitman, Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) Special Agent in Charge Dennis Ulrich and Federal Bureau of Investigation Special Agent in Charge Douglas E. Lindquist.
Appearing before United States Magistrate Judge Norbert Garney this morning, Ronald Blake pleaded guilty to one count of aiding and abetting coercion and enticement. Maria Blake pleaded guilty to the same charge yesterday. By pleading guilty, the Blakes admitted that from July 2011 until January 2013, they ran a prostitution service whereby they knowingly persuaded, or attempted to persuade, approximately five females to travel from Juarez to El Paso to engage in sexual activity for financial gain.
The Blakes are on bond pending sentencing. No sentencing date has been scheduled. The Government is also seeking the criminal forfeiture of their residence located in the 2400 block of Tierra Nueva in El Paso. Authorities allege that the residence was used to facilitate their prostitution scheme.
The Blakes were arrested based on an investigation initiated by the El Paso Anti-trafficking Coordination Team (ACT Team). The ACT Team is a human trafficking task force composed of members from the Department of Justice, Federal Bureau of Investigation, Homeland Security Investigation, and the Department of Labor.Assistant United States Attorney Rifian Newaz is prosecuting this case on behalf of the Government.
- Edcouch Woman Sentenced for Embezzling More Than $90K from Halfway House
EOIR’s Office of Legal Access ProgramsRead the Press Release
The Executive Office for Immigration Review’s (EOIR) Office of Legal Access Programs (OLAP), formerly known as the Legal Orientation and Pro Bono Program, was established in April 2000 to improve access to legal information and counseling and to increase representation rates for foreign-born individuals appearing before the immigration courts and Board of Immigration Appeals (BIA). OLAP is responsible for administering the Legal Orientation Program, the Legal Orientation Program for Custodians of Unaccompanied Alien Children, and the BIA Pro Bono Project. OLAP also coordinates EOIR’s Committee on Pro Bono, the Model Hearing Program, and other initiatives which improve access to legal services for individuals appearing before EOIR’s tribunals.
Legal Orientation Program
Since 2003, EOIR has carried out the LOP to improve judicial efficiency in the immigration courts, and to assist detained individuals and others involved in detained removal proceedings to make timely and informed decisions. Under the LOP, EOIR contracts with non-profit organizations to provide group and individual orientations, self-help workshops, and pro bono referral services for detained individuals in removal proceedings. LOP is operational mainly at detention sites, but it also serves certain sites with non-detained individuals and certain family detention centers.
Independent analysis has shown that the LOP has positive effects on the immigration court process: detained individuals make better informed and more timely decisions and are more likely to obtain representation; and cases are completed faster, resulting in fewer court hearings, less time spent in detention and cost savings.
Legal Orientation Program for Custodians of Unaccompanied Alien Children
The Trafficking Victims Protection Reauthorization Act of 2009 tasked EOIR and the Department of Health and Human Services' Office of Refugee Resettlement to offer legal orientation presentations to the adult custodians of unaccompanied alien children in EOIR removal proceedings. The goals of the legal orientations include seeking to protect children from mistreatment, exploitation and trafficking, as well as increasing the appearance rates of these children in immigration court. In 2010, EOIR launched the LOPC to meet these goals and to help increase pro bono representation rates of unaccompanied alien children in immigration proceedings.
EOIR has contracted with non-profit partners to carry out the LOPC at 14 sites nationwide. The LOPC providers offer services similar to those provided under the LOP: general group orientations, individual orientations, self-help workshops, and assistance with pro bono referrals. Additionally, LOPC providers are able to assist with school enrollment and make referrals to social services to help ensure the well-being of the child. OLAP issues guidance to LOPC providers designed to assist them in identifying victims of mistreatment, exploitation, and trafficking; protecting the victims from further harm; and connecting the victims to needed social services.
In addition, since 2013, the LOPC has operated the LOPC National Call Center to assist in making appointments for custodians at one of the LOPC provider locations, and to provide telephonic assistance to custodians who live outside the geographic areas in which LOPC is currently available. This telephonic assistance includes legal orientations on the immigration court process, as well as guidance in filing basic court forms, such as the change of address and motion to change venue.
BIA Pro Bono Project
In 2001, EOIR and non-profit agencies developed the BIA Pro Bono Project (the "Project"). Individuals in removal proceedings are generally not entitled to publicly-funded legal assistance and, as a result, many appear before the immigration courts and BIA without counsel. Agencies that provide legal services to immigrants can face many obstacles in identifying, locating and communicating with unrepresented individuals in time to write and file an appeal brief. The Project helps overcome such obstacles. Through the Project, OLAP assists in identifying certain cases based upon pre-determined criteria. Once cases are identified and reviewed, their summaries are then distributed by a non-profit agency to pro bono representatives throughout the United States. Volunteers who accept a case under the Project receive a copy of the file, as well as additional time to file the appeal brief.
A ten-year review of the BIA Pro Bono Project, completed in February 2014, demonstrated that the Project found counsel willing to accept the case for 87% of cases screened between 2002 and 2011. Additionally, those who were represented through the Project were more likely to have briefs filed with their appeals than pro se respondents. Most significantly, an analysis of the appeals before the Board between 2002 and 2011 showed those who were represented through the Project were more likely to obtain a favorable outcome in their cases than those who do not receive representation. This was particularly the case for individuals who were detained. Since the beginning of the Project, over 1,000 individuals have been represented by pro bono counsel.
Model Hearing Program
The Model Hearing Program is an educational program developed to improve the quality of advocacy before the court, as well as to increase levels of pro bono representation. Model hearings consist of small-scale "mock" trial training sessions held in immigration court and presented by immigration judges. The training sessions, carried out in cooperation with partnering bar associations and/or pro bono agencies, provide practical and relevant "hands-on" immigration court training to small groups of attorneys/law students with an emphasis on practice, procedure and advocacy skills. Participants receive training materials, may obtain Continuing Legal Education credit from the partnering organization, and commit to a minimal level of pro bono representation. Since June 2001, more than 60 model hearing training sessions have been held in immigration courts nationwide. The Model Hearing Program Training Manual contains detailed information on the content and structure of this program, as well as samples of past training sessions.
Other Initiatives
Drawing on informational pamphlets developed by non-profit partners, throughout the nation's detention facilities, OLAP makes available 11 self-help guides. These guides, posted in English and Spanish, cover the most common forms of relief, as well as information about bond and an overview of immigration proceedings. The guides are generally accessible to detainees in the facility libraries and are available on the OLAP website as well.
Additional resources:
- American Bar Association Know Your Rights video
- LOP Cost Saving Analysis report
- EOIR -
The Executive Office for Immigration Review (EOIR) is an agency within the Department of Justice. Under delegated authority from the Attorney General, immigration judges and the Board of Immigration Appeals interpret and adjudicate immigration cases according to United States immigration laws. EOIR’s immigration judges conduct administrative court proceedings in immigration courts located throughout the nation. They determine whether foreign-born individuals—whom the Department of Homeland Security charges with violating immigration law—should be ordered removed from the United States or should be granted relief from removal and be permitted to remain in this country. The Board of Immigration Appeals primarily reviews appeals of decisions by immigration judges. EOIR’s Office of the Chief Administrative Hearing Officer adjudicates immigration-related employment cases. EOIR is committed to ensuring fairness in all of the cases it adjudicates.
EOIR Expands Legal Orientation Program SitesRead the Press Release
FALLS CHURCH, VA – The Executive Office for Immigration Review (EOIR) today announced that, beginning Nov. 1, 2014, it will provide assistance to families detained at the Karnes Family Residential Center, in Karnes City, Texas, through the Legal Orientation Program (LOP). The LOP is a program in which representatives from non-profit organizations provide explanations about immigration court procedures along with other basic legal information to groups of detained individuals. This expansion is possible due to additional funds Congress provided to EOIR for the LOP. The expansion of the program to the Karnes facility marks EOIR's 32nd LOP site, and the third LOP location within a family detention center.
"The Legal Orientation Program is critical to the efficiency of our immigration court proceedings," said EOIR Director Juan P. Osuna. "By attending an LOP, individuals are better able to make timely and informed decisions in their removal proceedings and, with more information about available resources, are more likely to obtain representation."
Since the start of fiscal year 2014, the LOP has expanded to seven additional sites. In addition to the Karnes facility, LOP recently began serving the Artesia Family Residential Center, in Artesia, N.M., and will soon begin to serve the expanded Berks County Family Shelter, in Leesport, Pa. The LOP expansion also includes new detention sites in Woodstock, Ill. and Kenosha, Wis.
Since 2003, EOIR has carried out the LOP to improve judicial efficiency in the immigration courts, and to assist detained individuals and others involved in removal proceedings to make timely and informed decisions. Under the LOP, EOIR contracts with nonprofit organizations to provide group and individual orientations, self-help workshops, and pro bono referral services for individuals in removal proceedings.
Please see EOIR's fact sheet, EOIR's Office of Legal Access Programs, for more information on the LOP and EOIR's additional legal access programs.
- EOIR -
The Executive Office for Immigration Review (EOIR) is an agency within the Department of Justice. Under delegated authority from the Attorney General, immigration judges and the Board of Immigration Appeals interpret and adjudicate immigration cases according to United States immigration laws. EOIR’s immigration judges conduct administrative court proceedings in immigration courts located throughout the nation. They determine whether foreign-born individuals—whom the Department of Homeland Security charges with violating immigration law—should be ordered removed from the United States or should be granted relief from removal and be permitted to remain in this country. The Board of Immigration Appeals primarily reviews appeals of decisions by immigration judges. EOIR’s Office of the Chief Administrative Hearing Officer adjudicates immigration-related employment cases. EOIR is committed to ensuring fairness in all of the cases it adjudicates.
Dutchess County Woman Sentenced in White Plains Federal Court to 51 Months in Prison for Wire Fraud, Filing False Claims, Bank Fraud, and Corruptly Interfering with the IRSRead the Press Release
Preet Bharara, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, announced that MELANIE FERREIRA was sentenced yesterday afternoon in White Plains federal court to 51 months in prison following her conviction for engaging in a series of frauds, which included cheating the Internal Revenue Service (“IRS”) out of nearly half a million dollars, and perpetrating a bank fraud scheme. U.S. District Judge Cathy Seibel, who presided over FERREIRA’s seven-day jury trial in February 2014, imposed the sentence.
U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara said: “Melanie Ferreira thought she could enjoy the fruits of law-abiding taxpayers’ money while evading the tax laws and defrauding the government. Through yesterday’s sentence, she learned how wrong she was.”
According to the Indictment and the evidence presented at trial:
On October 15, 2009, FERREIRA filed a U.S. Individual Income Tax Return, Form 1040, for the year 2008 (“2008 Return”). In her 2008 Return, she falsely reported interest income of $661,600 from three different banks. She then falsely claimed that she had paid taxes in the amount of $661,536 to the IRS for 2008. On that basis, she claimed a refund of $440,924. In reality, in 2008 she actually earned only $17 in interest income. Further, contrary to her claim on her 2008 Return that she had already paid $661,536 in federal taxes, she actually paid only $236.
On October 23, 2009, the IRS wired $440,924 to FERREIRA’s bank account. That same day, FERREIRA wired $44,100 to the individual listed on her tax return as her “tax preparer” and $88,172 to the individual who introduced her to the “tax preparer.”
The following spring, on April 15, 2010, FERREIRA tried to carry out the same type of scheme – requesting a refund of more than $332,033 – when she filed her Form 1040 for the year 2009, but this time, the IRS rejected her refund request. Thereafter, when the IRS notified FERREIRA that she was required to pay back the $440,924 plus interest and penalties, FERREIRA sent the IRS a worthless check for $759,033.05 written on a closed account.
FERREIRA also perpetrated a bank fraud scheme against the Bank of America (“BOA”), the bank that held the mortgage for her house in Dutchess County, New York (“House 1”). In May 2010, she caused a forged cashier’s check for $316,966.05, purporting to be drawn on the Federal Reserve Bank of Cleveland, Ohio (“Check 1”), to be sent to BOA in satisfaction of the mortgage on House 1. Believing that Check 1 was legitimate, BOA filed a satisfaction of mortgage. BOA subsequently determined that Check 1 was fraudulent and filed suit in New York State Supreme Court in order to have the mortgage reinstated. On June 2, 2012, FERREIRA sent a personal check in the amount of $305,000 (“Check 2”) to BOA, purporting, again, to pay off the balance of her mortgage. On the memo line of Check 2, FERREIRA wrote, in red ink, “FOR DISCHARGE OF DEBT EFT ONLY.” Check 2 was written on a bank account that had been closed two years before.
FERREIRA’s schemes – sometimes known as a 1099-OID scheme and an electronic funds transfer or “EFT” scheme – are often used by adherents to the Sovereign Citizens Movement, a group of individuals who, although they reside in the United States, assert the position that they do not have to answer to any government authority, including courts, taxing entities, motor vehicle departments or law enforcement.
In addition to the prison term, Judge Seibel sentenced FERREIRA, 62, of Lagrangeville, New York, to three years of supervised release. FERREIRA was also ordered to make restitution and to forfeit $440,924 that she had wrongfully obtained from the IRS. FERREIRA was ordered to forfeit approximately $96,000 worth of gold Krugerrands and silver coins that she had purchased with the proceeds of her crimes.
In sentencing FERREIRA, Judge Seibel noted that the defendant’s offenses involved “blatant, shameless lies” and that the defendant had “thumbed her nose” at the Government and the Court. The Judge added that FERREIRA showed “no respect for the system” and acted like she was “above the law.”
Mr. Bharara praised the outstanding investigative work of the law enforcement partners involved in the investigation, including the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s Joint Terrorism Task Force and the IRS.
This prosecution is being handled jointly by the Office’s Terrorism and International Narcotics Unit and the White Plains Division. Assistant United States Attorneys Jason P.W. Halperin and Marcia S. Cohen are in charge of the prosecution.
Dorchester Woman Sentenced for Theft of Government BenefitsRead the Press Release
BOSTON – A Dorchester woman was sentenced today for stealing more than a quarter million dollars in government benefits to which she was not entitled.
Mary Murphy, 63, was sentenced by U.S. District Court Chief Judge Patti B. Saris to 18 months of home confinement, 10 hours per week of community service, and was ordered to pay $331,630 in restitution and a fine of $40,000. In July 2014, Murphy pleaded guilty to stealing public money in the form of Social Security and Civil Service Retirement annuity payments paid out for the benefit of her mother.
Following the death of Murphy’s mother in 1977, Murphy, who was not herself entitled to the money, continued to receive and spend the benefits for over 30 years. Murphy stole over $200,000 in Social Security benefits and $140,000 in Civil Service Retirement System annuity payments intended for her mother. Upon discovering the theft, the government reclaimed a portion of the funds from Murphy’s bank account and Murphy repaid the balance, $331,630, at her sentencing today.
This case was brought as part of an ongoing effort by the U.S. Attorney’s Office in partnership with the Social Security Administration to investigate and prosecute the posthumous fraud of Social Security benefits. In many of these cases, family members, knowing they are not entitled to government benefits, continue to withdraw and spend the funds after a relative has died.
In October 2014, Richard Oldham of Old Orchard Beach, Maine, was sentenced to four months in prison, six months of home confinement, and ordered to pay $195,862 in restitution for endorsing Social Security checks in his deceased mother’s name following her death in 1993.
In September 2014, Frances Kenney Moseley of Boston, pleaded guilty to stealing over $220,000 in Social Security benefits, which were directly deposited into her father’s bank account after his death in 2003. Moseley is scheduled to be sentenced on Dec. 22, 2014.
In August 2014, George Bergstrom of Shrewsbury, was sentenced to one year of probation and was ordered to pay $57,948 in restitution – which he paid in full in August – for taking his deceased mother’s Social Security benefits, which were directly deposited into a joint bank account after her death in 2009.
In October 2013, John Flaherty of Newburyport, was sentenced to 10 months in prison and was ordered to pay $168,830 in restitution for taking his deceased mother’s Social Security benefits, which were directly deposited into a joint bank account after her death in 1993.
United States Attorney Carmen M. Ortiz, Scott Antolik, Special Agent in Charge of the Social Security Administration, Office of Inspector General, Office of Investigations, Boston Field Division, and Scott Rezendes, Special Agent in Charge of the Office of Personnel Management, Office of Inspector General, Field Operations, made the announcement today. The Murphy case was prosecuted by Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Timothy Landry of Ortiz’s Major Crimes Unit.
Doctor Sentenced to Prison for Tax EvasionRead the Press Release
A doctor was sentenced today to serve 18 months in prison by U.S. District Court Judge Rudolph T. Randa in the Eastern District of Wisconsin for committing tax evasion and making false statements, announced the Justice Department and Internal Revenue Service (IRS).
On May 22, Dr. Michael N. Mangold pleaded guilty to one count of tax evasion and one count of making false statements. According to court documents, Mangold was a medical doctor specializing in emergency medicine and urgent care who, since about 1993, had worked as a physician for various hospitals, emergency rooms and urgent care facilities. At times, he also worked as a physician in state and county correctional facilities. Mangold primarily earned income through a combination of employee wages and independent contractor payments.
In his plea agreement, Mangold admitted that from 1997 through 2007, he willfully concealed his income from the IRS. Mangold further admitted that he made false statements to the IRS. In total, Mangold owed approximately $191,577 in taxes based on his income and wages during the relevant calendar years plus interest.
Mangold also admitted that he made materially false statements during the course of a civil lawsuit concerning his failure to repay federal student loan obligations. Mangold admitted that he submitted a false financial affidavit to government officials which contained false statements about the amount of income he earned as a doctor.
This case was investigated by special agents of IRS - Criminal Investigation. Trial Attorneys Charles M. Edgar Jr. and Rebecca Perlmutter of the Justice Department’s Tax Division are prosecuting the case.
District Man Found Guilty of First-Degree Murder While Armed in 2012 Shooting on Crowded Southeast Washington BlockRead the Press Release
-Defendant Shot Victim Repeatedly-WASHINGTON - Demonta Chappell, 23, of Washington, D.C., was found guilty by a jury today of first-degree murder while armed and other charges stemming from a slaying that took place in 2012 in Southeast Washington, U.S. Attorney Ronald C. Machen Jr. announced.
Chappell was found guilty of the murder charge, related weapons offenses, and three counts of obstruction of justice. The verdict followed a trial in the Superior Court of the District of Columbia. The Honorable Rhonda Reid Winston scheduled sentencing for Jan. 27, 2015.
According to the government’s evidence, on Saturday, Oct. 27, 2012, shortly after 9 p.m., Chappell approached the victim, Stevann Moorer, 26, who was standing in the 500 block of Parkland Place SE. The block was crowded that evening with people celebrating a local horseshoes team championship in a nearby park. When Chappell reached Mr. Moorer, he pulled out a semi-automatic pistol and shot him. Chappell then stood over Mr. Moorer and shot him several more times. Following the shooting, Chappell fled through a nearby alley.
After his arrest in the case, Chappell made several attempts to contact witnesses from the jail in an effort to persuade them to testify falsely on his behalf.
In announcing the verdict, U.S. Attorney Machen commended the work performed by those who investigated the case from the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD) and the FBI. He also acknowledged the efforts of those who handled the case for the U.S. Attorney’s Office, including Victim/Witness Advocate Marcia Rinker; Criminal Investigators Mark Crawford, Durand Odom, and John Marsh; Paralegal Specialists Mia Beamon and Benjamin Kagan-Guthrie; David Foster, M. Laverne Forrest, Debra Cannon, and Michael Hailey of the Victim/Witness Assistance Unit; and Information Technology Specialist Leif Hickling. He also expressed appreciation for the assistance provided by Michael Ambrosino, Special Counsel for DNA and Forensic Evidence Litigation, and former Assistant U.S. Attorney Mary Chris Dobbie.
Finally, he praised the work of Assistant U.S. Attorneys Jonathan Kravis and Veronica Sanchez, who investigated and prosecuted the matter.
14-236Davenport Man Sentenced on Federal Drug Trafficking OffenseRead the Press Release
DAVENPORT, IA – On October 22, 2014, Joshua Jonas Edward Miller, age 33, of Davenport, Iowa, was sentenced to 96 months in prison by United States District Judge John A. Jarvey for conspiracy to distribute at least 280 grams of cocaine base announced United States Attorney Nicholas A. Klinefeldt. He was also ordered to serve five years of supervised release following the imprisonment, and to pay $100 towards the Crime Victims Fund.
Beginning about November 2011, and continuing until about October 30, 2012, Miller distributed more than 280 grams of cocaine base (“crack cocaine”) in the Davenport, Iowa, area. During October 2012, law enforcement utilized a confidential informant to complete a series of controlled purchases of crack cocaine from Miller while under law enforcement surveillance. On October 30, 2012, law enforcement executed a search warrant for Miller’s residence in Davenport and located, among other things, approximately 51 grams of crack cocaine and a digital scale that both belonged to Miller.
This case was investigated by the Davenport, Iowa, Police Department, the Iowa Department of Narcotics Enforcement, and the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration. The case was prosecuted by the United States Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Iowa.
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DaVita to Pay $350 Million to Resolve Allegations of Illegal KickbacksRead the Press Release
DaVita Healthcare Partners, Inc., one of the leading providers of dialysis services in the United States, has agreed to pay $350 million to resolve claims that it violated the False Claims Act by paying kickbacks to induce the referral of patients to its dialysis clinics, the Justice Department announced today. DaVita is headquartered in Denver, Colorado and has dialysis clinics in 46 states and the District of Columbia.
The settlement today resolves allegations that, between March 1, 2005 and February 1, 2014, DaVita identified physicians or physician groups that had significant patient populations suffering renal disease and offered them lucrative opportunities to partner with DaVita by acquiring and/or selling an interest in dialysis clinics to which their patients would be referred for dialysis treatment. DaVita further ensured referrals of these patients to the clinics through a series of secondary agreements with the physicians, including entering into agreements in which the physician agreed not to compete with the DaVita clinic and non-disparagement agreements that would have prevented the physicians from referring their patients to other dialysis providers.
“Health care providers should generate business by offering their patients superior quality services or more convenient options, not by entering into contractual agreements designed to induce physicians to provide referrals,” said Deputy Assistant Attorney General for the Justice Department’s Civil Division Jonathan F. Olin. “The Justice Department is committed to protecting the integrity of our healthcare system and ensuring that financial arrangements in the healthcare marketplace comply with the law.”
The government alleged that DaVita used a three part joint venture business model to induce patient referrals. First, using information gathered from numerous sources, DaVita identified physicians or physician groups that had significant patient populations suffering renal disease within a specific geographic area. DaVita would then gather specific information about the physicians or physician group to determine if they would be a “winning practice.” In one transaction, a physician’s group was considered a “winning practice” because the physicians were “young and in debt.” Based on this careful vetting process, DaVita knew and expected that many, if not most, of the physicians’ patients would be referred to the joint venture dialysis clinics.
Next, DaVita would offer the targeted physician or physician group a lucrative opportunity to enter into a joint venture involving DaVita’s acquisition of an interest in dialysis clinics owned by the physicians, and/or DaVita’s sale of an interest in its dialysis clinics to the physicians. To make the transaction financially attractive to potential physician partners, DaVita would manipulate the financial models used to value the transaction. For example, to decrease the apparent value of clinics it was selling, DaVita would employ an assumption it referred to as the “HIPPER compression,” which was based on a speculative and arbitrary projection that future payments for dialysis treatments by commercial insurance companies would be cut by as much as half in future years. These manipulations resulted in physicians paying less for their interest in the joint ventures and realizing returns on investment which were extraordinarily high, with pre-tax annual returns exceeding 100 percent in some instances.
Last, DaVita ensured future patient referrals through a series of secondary agreements with their physician partners. These included paying the physicians to serve as medical directors of the joint venture clinics, and entering into agreements in which the physicians agreed not to compete with the clinic. The non-compete agreements were structured so that they bound all physicians in a practice group, even if some of the physicians were not part of the joint venture arrangements. These agreements also included provisions prohibiting the physician partners from inducing or advising a patient to seek treatment at a competing dialysis clinic. These agreements were of such importance to DaVita that it would not conclude a joint venture transaction without them.
The Government’s complaint identifies a joint venture with a physicians’ group in central Florida as one of several examples illustrating DaVita’s scheme to improperly induce patient referrals. The group had previously been in a joint venture arrangement involving dialysis clinics with Gambro, Inc., a dialysis company acquired by DaVita in 2005. Prior to the acquisition, Gambro had entered into a settlement with the United States to resolve alleged kickback allegations that, among other things, required Gambro to unwind its joint venture agreements. As a consequence, Gambro purchased the group’s interest in the joint venture clinics and agreed to a “carve-out” of the associated non-competition agreement which allowed the group to open its own dialysis clinic nearby, which it did. After acquiring Gambro, DaVita bought a majority position in the group’s newly established dialysis clinic, and sold a minority position in three DaVita-owned clinics. Despite the fact that each of the clinics involved were roughly comparable in terms of size and profits, DaVita agreed to pay $5,975,000 to acquire a 60 percent interest in the group’s clinic, while selling a 40 percent interest in the three clinics it owned for a total of $3,075,000. As part of this joint venture, the group agreed to enter into new non-compete agreements.
“This case involved a sophisticated scheme to compensate doctors illegally for referring patients to DaVita’s dialysis centers. Federal law protects patients by making buying and selling patient referrals illegal, so as to ensure that the interest of the patient is the exclusive factor in the referral decision,” said U.S. Attorney John Walsh. “When a company pays doctors and/or their practice groups for patient referrals, the company’s focus is not on the patient, but on the profit to be extracted from providing services to the patient.”
In conjunction with today’s announcement, the U.S. Attorney’s Office noted that after extensive review, it is closing its criminal investigation of two specific joint ventures.
As part of the settlement announced today, DaVita has also agreed to a Civil Forfeiture in the amount of $39 million based upon conduct related to two specific joint venture transactions entered into in Denver, Colorado. Additionally, DaVita has entered into a Corporate Integrity Agreement with the Office of Counsel to the Inspector General of the Department of Health and Human Services which requires it to unwind some of its business arrangements and restructure others, and includes the appointment of an Independent Monitor to prospectively review DaVita’s arrangements with nephrologists and other health care providers for compliance with the Anti-Kickback Statute.
“Companies seeking to boost profits by paying physician kickbacks for patient referrals – as the government contended in this case – undermine impartial medical judgment at the expense of patients and taxpayers,” said Daniel R. Levinson, Inspector General for the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. “Expect significant settlements and our continued investigation of such wasteful business arrangements.”
The settlement resolves allegations originally brought in a lawsuit filed under the qui tam or whistleblower provisions of the False Claims Act, which allow private parties to bring suit on behalf of the government and to share in any recovery. The suit was filed by David Barbetta, who was previously employed by DaVita as a Senior Financial Analyst in DaVita’s Mergers and Acquisitions Department. Mr. Barbetta’s share of the recovery has yet to be determined.
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 $22.4 billion through False Claims Act cases, with more than $14.2 billion of that amount recovered in cases involving fraud against federal health care programs.
The case was handled by the United States Attorney’s Office for the District of Colorado, the Civil Division of the United States Department of Justice, and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Office of Inspector General.
The lawsuit is captioned United States ex rel. David Barbetta v. DaVita, Inc. et al., No. 09-cv-02175-WJM-KMT (D. Colo.). The claims settled by this agreement are allegations only; there has been no determination of liability.
DaVita to Pay $350 Million to Resolve Allegations of Illegal KickbacksRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON –DaVita Healthcare Partners, Inc., one of the leading providers of dialysis services in the United States, has agreed to pay $350 million to resolve claims that it violated the False Claims Act by paying kickbacks to induce the referral of patients to its dialysis clinics, the Justice Department announced today. DaVita is headquartered in Denver, Colorado and has dialysis clinics in 46 states and the District of Columbia.
The settlement today resolves allegations that, between March 1, 2005 and February 1, 2014, DaVita identified physicians or physician groups that had significant patient populations suffering renal disease and offered them lucrative opportunities to partner with DaVita by acquiring and/or selling an interest in dialysis clinics to which their patients would be referred for dialysis treatment. DaVita further ensured referrals of these patients to the clinics through a series of secondary agreements with the physicians, including entering into agreements in which the physician agreed not to compete with the DaVita clinic and non-disparagement agreements that would have prevented the physicians from referring their patients to other dialysis providers.
“Health care providers should generate business by offering their patients superior quality services or more convenient options, not by entering into contractual agreements designed to induce physicians to provide referrals,” said Deputy Assistant Attorney General for the Justice Department’s Civil Division Jonathan F. Olin. “The Justice Department is committed to protecting the integrity of our healthcare system and ensuring that financial arrangements in the healthcare marketplace comply with the law.”
The government alleged that DaVita used a three part joint venture business model to induce patient referrals. First, using information gathered from numerous sources, DaVita identified physicians or physician groups that had significant patient populations suffering renal disease within a specific geographic area. DaVita would then gather specific information about the physicians or physician group to determine if they would be a “winning practice.” In one transaction, a physician’s group was considered a “winning practice” because the physicians were “young and in debt.” Based on this careful vetting process, DaVita knew and expected that many, if not most, of the physicians’ patients would be referred to the joint venture dialysis clinics.
Next, DaVita would offer the targeted physician or physician group a lucrative opportunity to enter into a joint venture involving DaVita’s acquisition of an interest in dialysis clinics owned by the physicians, and/or DaVita’s sale of an interest in its dialysis clinics to the physicians. To make the transaction financially attractive to potential physician partners, DaVita would manipulate the financial models used to value the transaction. For example, to decrease the apparent value of clinics it was selling, DaVita would employ an assumption it referred to as the “HIPPER compression,” which was based on a speculative and arbitrary projection that future payments for dialysis treatments by commercial insurance companies would be cut by as much as half in future years. These manipulations resulted in physicians paying less for their interest in the joint ventures and realizing returns on investment which were extraordinarily high, with pre-tax annual returns exceeding 100 percent in some instances.
Last, DaVita ensured future patient referrals through a series of secondary agreements with their physician partners. These included paying the physicians to serve as medical directors of the joint venture clinics, and entering into agreements in which the physicians agreed not to compete with the clinic. The non-compete agreements were structured so that they bound all physicians in a practice group, even if some of the physicians were not part of the joint venture arrangements. These agreements also included provisions prohibiting the physician partners from inducing or advising a patient to seek treatment at a competing dialysis clinic. These agreements were of such importance to DaVita that it would not conclude a joint venture transaction without them.The Government’s complaint identifies a joint venture with a physicians’ group in central Florida as one of several examples illustrating DaVita’s scheme to improperly induce patient referrals. The group had previously been in a joint venture arrangement involving dialysis clinics with Gambro, Inc., a dialysis company acquired by DaVita in 2005. Prior to the acquisition, Gambro had entered into a settlement with the United States to resolve alleged kickback allegations that, among other things, required Gambro to unwind its joint venture agreements. As a consequence, Gambro purchased the group’s interest in the joint venture clinics and agreed to a “carve-out” of the associated non-competition agreement which allowed the group to open its own dialysis clinic nearby, which it did. After acquiring Gambro, DaVita bought a majority position in the group’s newly established dialysis clinic, and sold a minority position in three DaVita-owned clinics. Despite the fact that each of the clinics involved were roughly comparable in terms of size and profits, DaVita agreed to pay $5,975,000 to acquire a 60 percent interest in the group’s clinic, while selling a 40 percent interest in the three clinics it owned for a total of $3,075,000. As part of this joint venture, the group agreed to enter into new non-compete agreements.
“This case involved a sophisticated scheme to compensate doctors illegally for referring patients to DaVita’s dialysis centers. Federal law protects patients by making buying and selling patient referrals illegal, so as to ensure that the interest of the patient is the exclusive factor in the referral decision,” said U.S. Attorney John Walsh. “When a company pays doctors and/or their practice groups for patient referrals, the company’s focus is not on the patient, but on the profit to be extracted from providing services to the patient.”
In conjunction with today’s announcement, the U.S. Attorney’s Office noted that after extensive review, it is closing its criminal investigation of two specific joint ventures.
As part of the settlement announced today, DaVita has also agreed to a Civil Forfeiture in the amount of $39 million based upon conduct related to two specific joint venture transactions entered into in Denver, Colorado. Additionally, DaVita has entered into a Corporate Integrity Agreement with the Office of Counsel to the Inspector General of the Department of Health and Human Services which requires it to unwind some of its business arrangements and restructure others, and includes the appointment of an Independent Monitor to prospectively review DaVita’s arrangements with nephrologists and other health care providers for compliance with the Anti-Kickback Statute.
“Companies seeking to boost profits by paying physician kickbacks for patient referrals – as the government contended in this case – undermine impartial medical judgment at the expense of patients and taxpayers,” said Daniel R. Levinson, Inspector General for the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. “Expect significant settlements and our continued investigation of such wasteful business arrangements.”
The settlement resolves allegations originally brought in a lawsuit filed under the qui tam or whistleblower provisions of the False Claims Act, which allow private parties to bring suit on behalf of the government and to share in any recovery. The suit was filed by David Barbetta, who was previously employed by DaVita as a Senior Financial Analyst in DaVita’s Mergers and Acquisitions Department. Mr. Barbetta’s share of the recovery has yet to be determined.
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 $22.4 billion through False Claims Act cases, with more than $14.2 billion of that amount recovered in cases involving fraud against federal health care programs.
The case was handled by the United States Attorney’s Office for the District of Colorado, the Civil Division of the United States Department of Justice, and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Office of Inspector General.
The lawsuit is captioned United States ex rel. David Barbetta v. DaVita, Inc. et al., No. 09-cv-02175-WJM-KMT (D. Colo.). The claims settled by this agreement are allegations only; there has been no determination of liability.
Cybercriminal Sentenced to Two Years for Hacking the U.S. Navy and Geospatial-Intelligence Agency Computer SystemsRead the Press Release
TULSA, Okla. — Daniel Trenton Krueger, one of two leaders of the computer hacking group known as Team Digi7al, was sentenced today to serve twenty-four months in federal prison for hacking the U.S. Navy, National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency, and over 50 public and private computer systems, U.S. Attorney Danny C. Williams Sr. announced.
Krueger, 20, of Dix, Illinois, previously pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge James H. Payne on May 20, and was initially charged in a single-count information on May 5, 2014. At the time of the hacking Krueger was a student. The co-defendant, Nicholas Paul Knight, 27, of Chantilly, Virginia, will be sentenced on November 21, 2014. Knight was an active-duty enlisted member of the Navy aboard the USS Harry S. Truman at the time of the hacking.
“Cybercrime is one of the most serious national security challenges we face as a nation, and it is one of the Department of Justice’s highest priorities,” said U.S. Attorney Williams. “We will vigorously investigate and prosecute cybercrimes. I commend the Naval Criminal Investigative Service and the Defense Criminal Investigative Service for their quick actions to identify and investigate the computer intrusions.”
According to court documents, in June 2012, the Naval Criminal Investigative Service (NCIS) detected a breach of the U.S. Navy’s Smart Web Move (SWM) database, which stored personal records, including Social Security numbers, names, and dates of birth, for approximately 222,000 service members. The servers that stored these records were located in Tulsa. At the time of the hacking attacks, Knight, Krueger, and other Team Digi7al conspirators posted links to the stolen information on a Team Digi7al Twitter account.
Investigators with the NCIS and the Defense Criminal Investigative Service (DCIS) identified Knight and Krueger as the hackers after a sting operation aboard the USS Harry S. Truman.
Victims of the conspiracy included the following organizations:
- U.S. Navy
- U.S. National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency
- U.S. Department of Homeland Security
- MobiTv
- Autotrader.com
- Harvard University
- Johns Hopkins University
- Kawasaki
- Library of Congress
- Los Alamos National Laboratory
- Louisville University
- MeTV Network
- Montgomery Police Department (Alabama)
- Peruvian Ambassador’s email (in Bolivia)
- San Jose State University
- Stanford University
- Toronto Police Service (Canada)
- Ultimate Car Page
- University of Alabama
- University of British Columbia (Canada)
- University of Nebraska-Lincoln
- World Health Organization
The case was investigated by the NCIS Atlantic Cyber Operations office in Norfolk, Virginia, with the cooperation and assistance of the DCIS Cyber Field Office, and other federal, state, and local agencies. The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Joel-lyn A. McCormick on behalf of the United States.
- Corpus Christi Man Sentenced on Child Pornography Charges
Convicted Tampa Sex Offender Pleads Guilty to Second Federal Charge of Failure to Register as A Sex OffenderRead the Press Release
Jacksonville, Florida – United States Attorney A. Lee Bentley, III announced today that Kevin Robert Leblanc (52, Tampa) has pleaded guilty to failing to register as sex offender after traveling from Florida to the State of Arizona. He faces up to ten years in federal prison. A sentencing date has not yet been set. Leblanc has been in custody for violating the conditions of his federal supervised release since his arrest on August 15, 2014.
According to court documents, on July 29, 1999, Leblanc was convicted of committing two child sex offenses in Massachusetts. Subsequently, he traveled to Florida, failed to register as a sex offender, and was prosecuted for failure to register. Leblanc pleaded guilty to this charge and, on August 25, 2011, was sentenced to three years in federal prison, and a 15-year term of supervision.
On April 4, 2014, Leblanc was released from federal prison, established a residence in Tampa, Florida, and commenced his term of supervised release. On July 25, 2014, he absconded from federal supervision. In doing so, he failed to update his sex offender registration status with Florida authorities, as required by law. Leblanc was arrested near Flagstaff, Arizona, on August 15, 2014, by the U.S. Marshals Service. When interviewed, he acknowledged knowing that he was required to register as a sex offender, that he did not notify Florida authorities that he was leaving the state, and that he failed to notify authorities because he “got fed up” with being supervised.
The Sex Offender Registration and Notification Act is part of the Adam Walsh Child Protection and Safety Act of 2006. The Adam Walsh Act also provides for the use of federal law enforcement resources, including the United States Marshals Service, to assist state and local authorities in locating and apprehending non-compliant sex offenders. This case was investigated by the United States Marshals Service. It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney D. Rodney Brown.
It is another case brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by 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.
Clermont Woman Sentenced for Tax Fraud and Aggravated Identity TheftRead the Press Release
Orlando, Florida – United States District Judge Roy B. Dalton, Jr. has sentenced Tanya Fox to 20 years in federal prison for conspiracy to defraud the federal government, wire fraud, theft of government property, and aggravated identity theft. Fox was immediately taken into custody. The Court also entered a money judgment in the amount of $4,055,735, which relates to the amount of fraudulent tax refunds that Fox and her co-conspirators had received.
On July 24, 2014, following a four-day trial, a federal jury found her guilty of one count of conspiracy, five counts of wire fraud, ten counts of theft of government property, and ten counts of aggravated identity theft.
During the trial, evidence was introduced to show that Fox had orchestrated a scheme to file fraudulent tax returns using identities that had been stolen from a variety of sources. Fox directed other individuals to open business bank accounts in the name of a fraudulent tax preparation business and to have the tax refunds deposited into those accounts. She then worked with those individuals to withdraw the funds and spend the money. Fox attempted to receive approximately $5.8 million in fraudulent tax returns and was successful in receiving more than $4 million during the course of the scheme.
According to the testimony at trial, Fox spent the money received from the fraudulent tax returns to purchase several luxury and other vehicles. The United States has seized each of these vehicles. She also used proceeds from these offenses to have cosmetic surgery on two occasions and to open a restaurant in the Orlando area.
Previously, Shanterica Smith, Gerald Williams, and Delray Duncan pleaded guilty and were sentenced for providing approximately 2,400 names from the Orange County Health Department to Fox so that she and her co-conspirators could file the fraudulent tax returns. Smith was sentenced to five years in prison, Williams was sentenced to four years and six months in prison, and Duncan was sentenced to three years and six in prison. A fifth co-defendant, April Cuyler, also pleaded guilty for her role in this scheme; she was sentenced to two years and six months in prison.
This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Internal Revenue Service-Criminal Investigation, the United States Postal Inspection Service, and the Orange County Sheriff’s Office. It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Shawn P. Napier.
Citrus County Man Arrested on Federal Firearms, Ammunition, and Explosives ChargesRead the Press Release
Ocala, Florida – United States Attorney A. Lee Bentley, III announces the arrest yesterday of Michael Paul Watkins (41, Citrus Springs) on a criminal complaint alleging the possession of firearms and ammunition by a previously convicted felon, and the possession and manufacturing of unregistered destructive devices. Each offense carries a maximum penalty of ten years in federal prison.
According to court documents, Watkins was previously convicted, in state court, of felony offenses involving the handling and fondling of a child under the age of 16, and two escapes from custody. As a convicted, felon he is prohibited from possessing firearms and ammunition under federal law. In early October 2014, law enforcement officers received information that Watkins was using a third party to illegally acquire firearms and ammunition. Federal agents subsequently obtained search warrants for Watkins’s home, business, and a nearby property.
Yesterday, law enforcement agents executed the search warrants and recovered approximately 134 firearms (including AK-47 rifles) from Watkins’s home, along with numerous rounds of ammunition. They also discovered several fully assembled pipe bombs and the components to manufacture more.
A criminal complaint is an allegation by the United States that a defendant has violated one or more federal criminal laws, and every defendant is presumed innocent unless, and until, proven guilty.
This case is being investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and the Citrus County Sheriff’s Office, with assistance from the Tampa Police Department Bomb Squad. It will be prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Robert E. Bodnar, Jr.
This is another case prosecuted as a part of the Department of Justice’s “Project Safe Neighborhoods” Program - a nationwide, gun-violence reduction strategy. United States Attorney A. Lee Bentley, III, along with Trevor Velinor, Acting Special Agent in Charge, ATF, is coordinating the Project Safe Neighborhoods effort here in the Middle District of Florida in cooperation with federal, state, and local law enforcement officials. It is also a part of ATF’s Frontline Strategy to reduce violent crime in communities.
California Man Pleads Guilty to Possessing Methamphetamine and Firearm in Wayne CountyRead the Press Release
Follow @SDILNewsThomas Gregory Lilley, 36, of Fontana, California, pled guilty today in United States District Court in Benton to charges that he possessed methamphetamine with intent to distribute it and that he possessed a loaded semi-automatic pistol during and in relation to that crime, announced Stephen R. Wigginton, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Illinois. The offenses occurred on April 24, 2014, in Fairfield, Illinois.
Sentencing was set for February 18, 2015, at 10:00 a.m. at the United States Courthouse in Benton. At that time, Lilley faces up to 20 years in federal prison, a $1 million fine, and 3 years to life on supervised release following his incarceration on the methamphetamine charge and a consecutive 5 years to life, a $250,000 fine, and 5 years supervised release on the firearm charge.
Lilley has been held in the custody of the United States Marshal since his arrest on federal charges in May. He was returned to the custody of the Marshal to await sentencing.
The case was investigated by the Carmi office of the Southern Illinois Drug Task Force and the Wayne County Sheriff’s Department with the assistance of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms.
The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney James M. Cutchin.
Brooklyn Fish Dealer Sentenced to Four Months for Wire FraudRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON – Alan Dresner, a federally-licensed fish dealer from Brooklyn, New York, was sentenced today in federal court in Central Islip, New York, for violations stemming from his role in systematically underreporting fluke (summer flounder) that was being harvested as part of the federal Research Set-Aside (RSA) Program, the Justice Department’s Environment and Natural Resources Division announced.
On April 23, 2014, Alan Dresner pleaded guilty to one count of wire fraud. The scheme involved his personal falsification and internet submission of at least 120 fisheries dealer reports from July 2009 to December 2011, as part of a scheme to defraud the United States of 246,376 pounds of overharvested and underreported fluke valued at $510,000.
As part of his sentence, Dresner will serve four months in prison followed by three years of supervised release. The defendant was fined $6000 and ordered to make a $15,000 community service payment to the Cornell Cooperative Extension of Suffolk County in order to pay for the enhancement of fluke habitat in the waters of Long Island through the C.C.E.’s Marine Meadows Program. Dresner was ordered to pay $510,000 in restitution to the Marine Resources Account of the New York State Conservation Fund. Dresner was also ordered to surrender his federal dealer license and was banned from accessing the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s (NOAA) SAFIS computer system.
“Today, Dresner was held accountable for his role in defrauding a federal research program, a program whose purpose is to help ensure the long-term sustainability of Long Island’s fisheries,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General Sam Hirsch for the Justice Department’s Environment and Natural Resources Division. “We are committed to protecting the natural resources that the American people depend on today and for future generations as well.”
“This scheme to land tremendous amounts of overages for profit was not only detrimental to the RSA program, but also to the law abiding fishermen who will not be able to participate in this program in 2015,” said NOAA Special Agent Logan Gregory. “The Office of Law Enforcement will continue to focus on ensuring a level playing field by investigating these types of environmental crimes.”
Alan Dresner is “Fish Dealer X” as that person is identified in the related case of U.S. v. Anthony Joseph. As a federal fish dealer, Dresner had a NOAA permit to purchase fish directly from commercial fishing vessels without having to go through an intermediary. In July 2009, Dresner learned that Anthony Joseph, captain of the F/V Stirs One, was consistently overharvesting fluke through Joseph’s abuse of the RSA Program. By July 2009, Dresner was making regular purchases of illegal fluke from Joseph at the Point Lookout, New York, waterfront.
In order to cover-up his illegal fishing, Joseph would mail falsified fishing logs, known as FVTRs, to NOAA. However, falsified FVTRs were just one side of the coin. This is because fish dealers are required to report their purchases to NOAA on an electronic form known as a dealer report. The dealer reports include information such as date of landing, port of landing, catch vessel, corresponding FVTR numbers, commercial grade, species, price, and weight. NOAA utilizes the data in the dealer reports to set quotas and implement other management measures designed to ensure a sustainable fisheries. The dealer reports also serve as a check on the information that is submitted in FVTRs. In other words, for their scheme to work, the false data on the FVTRs had to match the false data on the dealer reports. A mismatch would have indicated a serious error or fraud, and would have been a red flag for fisheries managers. Accordingly, during July 2009 to December 2011, the defendant schemed with Anthony Joseph to file at least 120 false dealer reports with NOAA, representing a loss of 246,376 pounds of fluke valued at $510,000.
Theft of domestic marine resources has far-reaching consequences beyond illicit financial gain. Fisheries managers operate on the basic assumption that fishers and dealers make accurate and honest reports to NOAA. When harvested fish is misreported or unreported, the integrity of fisheries statistics and associated mathematical models are jeopardized. Recently, based in large part on the recently quantified illegal fluke harvesting revealed by the guilty pleas in the Jones Inlet Seafood, Charles Wertz Jr., Anthony Joseph, and Dresner cases, on Aug. 12, 2014, the Mid-Atlantic Fisheries Management Council voted to suspend the RSA Program for 2015 in order analyze the effect illegal fishing has had on the soundness of the RSA Program.
Anthony Joseph pleaded guilty to wire fraud, mail fraud, and falsification of federal records on April 11, 2014, for his fisheries fraud crimes related to Alan Dresner and Jones Inlet Seafood. He is scheduled to be sentenced on May 20, 2015.
The case was investigated by agents of NOAA’s National Marine Fisheries Service, with assistance from the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation Police. The case is being prosecuted by Christopher L. Hale of the Justice Department’s Environmental Crimes Section, Environment and Natural Resources Division.
Bank Employee Charged with Stealing More Than $100k from Customer AccountsRead the Press Release
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Deirdre M. Daly, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, announced that ALEXANDER ALVAREZ, 32, of East Lyme, was arrested today on federal charges related to his alleged theft of more than $100,000 from customers of the bank where he was employed.
On October 21, 2014, a grand jury in New Haven returned an indictment charging ALVAREZ with two counts of bank fraud. ALVAREZ appeared this afternoon before U.S. Magistrate Judge William I. Garfinkel in Bridgeport and is currently detained. A detention hearing is scheduled for October 24.
As alleged in the indictment, from January 2012 to February 2013, ALVAREZ was employed as a Financial Service Representative for a bank in Newington. While employed at the bank, ALVAREZ identified accounts that had little banking activity. He then caused the mailing address for the accounts he targeted to be changed from the owner’s address to a fraudulent address so that transactions in the accounts would not be immediately discovered by the account owner. ALVAREZ then created fraudulent transfer slips causing the funds to be transferred to another account that he believed was dormant, or to an account that he directly controlled, or to be issued in a bank check. Once the funds were transferred from the owner’s account, ALVAREZ withdrew the funds from the bank in cash or via an ATM card, or transferred them to his personal banking account.
The indictment alleges that ALVAREZ stole $100,806.85 from one bank customer and $11,137.01 from a second bank customer.
The charge of bank fraud carries a maximum term of imprisonment of 30 years and a fine of up to $1,000,000.
U.S. Attorney Daly stressed that an indictment is only a charge and is not evidence of guilt. Charges are only allegations, and a defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.
The case has been assigned to U.S. District Judge Michael P. Shea in Hartford.
This matter is being investigated by the Connecticut Financial Crimes Task Force, the Stratford Police Department and the Greenwich Police Department. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Ray Miller.
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(203) 821-3722 [email protected]Air Force Staff Sergeant Sentenced to 11 Years for Child EnticementRead the Press Release
Tampa, FL – U.S. District Judge Susan C. Bucklew yesterday sentenced Steven Richard Romel (32, Kissimmee) to 11 years in federal prison for enticement of a child for sex. The Court also ordered Romel to forfeit a phone and an iPad, that he had used to commit the offense. Romel pleaded guilty on July 8, 2014.
According to court documents, between November 21, 2013, and January 18, 2014, a special agent with the Air Force Office of Special Investigations in Tampa conducted an online investigation into adults using computers to communicate with, and arrange for sex with, minors. Specifically, the agent posed as the 15-year-old daughter of a deployed military soldier. On November 21, 2013, the “child” posted an online personal advertisement to which Romel responded. During subsequent conversations, Romel discussed meeting the “child” and inquired when she could sneak away to meet with him. The “child” repeatedly mentioned that she was 15 years old.
Romel, who was stationed at Barksdale Air Force base in Shreveport, Louisiana at the time, offered to buy the “child” a roundtrip ticket from Tampa so that she could meet with him. On several occasions, he also requested that photos be sent to him online. When the “child” mentioned that she would be off from school on January 20, 2014, Romel purchased a plane ticket for the “child” to visit him in Shreveport.
On January 18, 2014, the agent flew from Tampa to Shreveport, on the same flight as the supposed “child.” Romel was at the airport waiting and was arrested. A search of Romel’s residence later showed that he had purchased numerous items discussed with the “child” during their chats, including the “Plan B” pill.
This case was investigated by the Air Force Office of Special Investigations. It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Amanda C. Kaiser.
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 (CEOS), Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who sexually exploit children, and to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.projectsafechildhood.gov.