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19 September 2014
Convicted Felon Who Led Police on A High-Speed Chase Through San Angelo Is Sentenced to 63 Months in Federal PrisonRead the Press Release
LUBBOCK, Texas — A convicted felon who led police on a high-speed chase through San Angelo, Texas, earlier this year, was sentenced this morning, announced U.S. Attorney Sarah R. Saldaña of the Northern District of Texas.
James Allen Baimbridge, 31, of San Angelo, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Sam R. Cummings to 63 months in federal prison. Baimbridge pleaded guilty in June 2014 to one count of being a felon in possession of a firearm.
According to plea documents filed in the case, on March 13, 2014, officers with the San Angelo Police department were in pursuit of the vehicle Baimbridge was driving. During the pursuit, Baimbridge threw his .45 caliber semiautomatic pistol, which was later recovered, from the vehicle. Baimbridge eluded the police and was able to run from his car; he was arrested soon thereafter.
The San Angelo Police Department and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) investigated. Deputy Criminal Chief Assistant U.S. Attorney Denise Williams, of the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Lubbock, Texas, prosecuted.
Colorado Man Convicted for Conspiracy to Possess with Intent to Distribute and to Distributing MethamphetamineRead the Press Release
U.S. Attorney Christopher A. Crofts announced today that Nunn, Colorado resident David PUHL has been convicted in federal court. Puhl was charged in an Indictment on May 21, 2014, for violating 21 U.S.C. §§ 846 and 841(a)(1) and (b)(1)(B), conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute, and to distribute methamphetamine. A jury found Puhl guilty after a five-day jury trial in the U.S. District Court in Cheyenne. Puhl is scheduled to be sentenced by Federal District Court Judge Alan B. Johnson on December 1, 2014.
The investigation in this case was conducted by the Wyoming Division of Criminal Investigation.
Campaign Manager Charged with Buying Votes in a Donna, Texas, School Board ElectionRead the Press Release
A campaign manager was arrested late yesterday and accused of paying voters to vote in the November 2012 school board election in Donna, Texas.
Assistant Attorney General Leslie R. Caldwell of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division and U.S. Attorney Kenneth Magidson of the Southern District of Texas made the announcement.
The four-count indictment charges Francisco “Frankie” Garcia, 47, of Donna, with conspiring to buy votes, paying for votes, and aiding and abetting others to buy votes stemming from the vote-buying scheme. Garcia was arrested the evening of Sept. 18, 2014, in Alton, Illinois, and will make his initial appearance in the Southern District of Illinois this afternoon. The indictment was returned under sea Sept. 16, 2014, and unsealed today following his arrest.
According to the indictment, during the November 2012 general election, Garcia worked as a campaign manager for four candidates to the Donna School Board. During that time, he allegedly bought votes and worked with other campaign workers to pay voters and to offer to pay voters in this election to vote for particular candidates. The indictment alleges that Garcia paid voters by giving the voters either cocaine or cash in exchange for their votes.
An indictment is merely an accusation, and the defendant is presumed innocent unless proven guilty in a court of law.
Three campaign workers – Rebecca Gonzalez, 44, and Diana Balderas Castaneda, 48, both of Donna, Texas, and Guadalupe Escamilla, 72, of Weslaco, Texas – previously pleaded guilty to vote-buying charges stemming from this election.
This case is being investigated by the FBI, and is being prosecuted by Trial Attorneys Monique Abrishami and Jennifer Blackwell of the Criminal Division’s Public Integrity Section and Assistant U.S. Attorney Leo J. Leo of the Southern District of Texas.Alleged Thief ChargedRead the Press Release
Kyle Jones, 25, in federal custody in Philadelphia was charged today by Information with conspiracy, bank fraud, and aggravated identity theft, announced United States Attorney Zane David Memeger. Jones was allegedly part of an illegal check cashing ring which stole identifications and checks from purses and wallets left in parked cars, often outside of gyms, parks, or athletic fields. According to the information, the thieves then impersonated the victims and cashed stolen fraudulent checks at banks using the drive-through teller lane and presented stolen identification. The ring stole more than $120,000.
If convicted, the defendant faces a maximum possible sentence of 37 years of in prison, five years of supervised release, a fine of up to $1.5 million, and a $300 special assessment.
The case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Laurie Magid.
An Indictment, Information or Criminal Complaint is an accusation. A defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
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UNITED STATES ATTORNEY'S OFFICE, EASTERN DISTRICTof PENNSYLVANIA
Suite 1250, 615 Chestnut Street, Philadelphia, PA 19106
PATTY HARTMAN, Media Contact, 215-861-8525Alexandria Man Pleads Guilty to Sex Trafficking 14-Year-Old GirlRead the Press Release
ALEXANDRIA, Va. – Tayron Tyree Weeks, 24, of Alexandria, pleaded guilty yesterday to engaging in the sex trafficking of a child.
Dana J. Boente, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia; Colonel Edwin C. Roessler Jr., Fairfax County Chief of Police; Andrew G. McCabe, Assistant Director in Charge of the FBI’s Washington Field Office; and Earl L. Cook, Alexandria Chief of Police, made the announcement after the plea was accepted by U.S. District Judge T. S. Ellis, III.
In a statement of facts filed with the plea agreement, Weeks admitted that he met a 14-year-old girl at the Braddock Road Metro Station and eventually took the girl to a friend’s apartment in Alexandria, where Weeks engaged in sexual acts with her. Weeks then asked the victim if she was interested in earning money by selling her body, and Weeks encouraged the girl to do so. The victim told Weeks that she was only 14 years old, and Weeks responded “money is money,” and something to the effect of “You might as well get paid for something most girls do for free.”
The victim eventually contacted the police and allowed the police to use her Facebook account. While posing as the victim, police personnel told Weeks about a fictitious girl named “Alisha,” who purportedly wanted to be prostituted. A Fairfax County Police detective posed as “Alisha” and called Weeks on the telephone. Weeks described to “Alisha” how the prostitution would work. Weeks also informed “Alisha” that she and the victim would perform sex acts with the same customer because customers would pay more for this simultaneous service.
On a few occasions, Weeks and “Alisha” discussed the unlawfulness of prostituting underage girls, and Weeks conceded to “Alisha” that his prostitution of the victim and “Alisha” could result in imprisonment for many years. Weeks also informed a friend that he intended to prostitute underage girls, and the friend told Weeks that such conduct would constitute “sex trafficking,” that sex trafficking was unlawful and immoral, and that this conduct would likely result in Weeks being imprisoned. Weeks responded that he did not think the police would catch him.
Weeks faces a maximum penalty of life in prison when he is sentenced on Dec. 12, 2014. The maximum statutory sentence is prescribed by Congress and is provided here for informational purposes, as the sentencing of the defendant will be determined by the court based on the advisory Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
This case was investigated by the Fairfax County Police Department, the FBI’s Washington Field Office, and the Alexandria Police Department. Assistant U.S. Attorney Michael J. Frank is prosecuting the case.
A copy of this press release may be found on the website of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Virginia. Related court documents and information may be found on the website of the District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia or on PACER by searching for Case No. 1:14-cr-313.
Alcala Pleads Guilty to Two Charges in Visa Fraud Case; Sentenced to 56 Months in Federal PrisonRead the Press Release
Conspired With Others To Get Visas For Foreign Nationals Already Living And Working In The United StatesSALT LAKE CITY - James Hector Alcala, age 46, a Salt Lake City attorney, will serve 56 months in federal prison after pleading guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit visa fraud and alien smuggling and one count of visa fraud. U.S. District Judge Dee Benson accepted the guilty plea and imposed the prison sentence at a hearing in U.S. District Court Thursday afternoon.
Alcala was indicted in July 2009 along with a Salt Lake City law firm, a property management company, and seven other individuals. The 17-count indictment alleged that the defendants intended to profit financially by assisting Utah employers in obtaining H-2B visas for their foreign national workers by fraudulently representing to federal agencies that the foreign nationals were eligible for visas when, in fact, they were not.
The H-2B visa program allows United States companies to hire foreign nationals to fill employee vacancies that the company, for one reason or another, cannot fill with U.S. citizens. The visa program is not intended for permanent work. It is designed to help U.S. businesses that have temporary, seasonal, peak load or intermittent needs. Several federal agencies are involved in what is a fairly complicated application process.
As a part of court records filed today, Alcala admitted that he conspired with co-defendants in the case to fraudulently obtain H-2B visas for foreign national workers that were already living and working in the United States, in violation of the law. He admitted that he counseled illegal alien workers seeking visas to make false statements to the Department of State and the Department of Homeland Security regarding whether or not the applicants had ever lived or worked in the United States.
Alcala also admitted that he made false representations to the Department of State, the Department of Labor, and the Department of Homeland Security on behalf of his petitioning corporate clients that were seeking H-2B visas for their businesses. The false representations included inflating the number of visas needed by the businesses; whether or not these positions could not reasonably be filled with qualified applicants that were lawfully able to work in the United States; and false statements regarding the fact that some of these workers were already living and working in the United States for the same businesses that were petitioning for the visas.
“The laws that govern the issuance of visas exist to make the process fair for everyone. When false statements are used in an attempt to get a visa, other workers, including foreign nationals and U.S. workers and employers, who have played by the rules, get hurt,” Acting U.S. Attorney Carlie Christensen said today.
“Alcala’s end run around immigration law, while profitable for a time, has ultimately landed him prison. His scheme unfortunately came at the cost of an untold number of legal job seekers during one of the worst economic downturns in history.” Jonathan Lines, Assistant Special Agent in Charge of Homeland Security Investigations in Utah, said. “Alcala provided an illegal solution for Utah businesses that relied on an illegal workforce.”
David Zebley, Special Agent in Charge of the San Francisco Field Office of the U.S. State Department Diplomatic Security Service, said, “This is a great success in Department of State Diplomatic Security Service’s combined efforts in combatting large scale fraud and human smuggling as well ensuring the integrity of our travel documents. This case is an especially serious abuse of the legal and immigration systems, as it involved a criminal network consisting of eight individuals to include an officer of the court, a former Border Patrol agent and a former consular employee at the U.S. Consulate in Ciudad Juarez, Mexico. Our partnership with the U.S. Attorney’s Office, Homeland Security Investigations and the Department of Labor has thwarted a substantial attempt to compromise the safeguards on which the law-abiding rely.”
Two defendants in the case, Carlos Manuel Vorher and Andrew Lorenzo Acosta Parra, are awaiting sentencing. Federal prosecutors believe one defendant, Carlos Enrique Gomez-Alvarez, fled to Venezuela. Two other co-conspirators, Olga Adriana Garza Muniz and Florentino Jose Ayala Villarreal, are in Mexico and have not been located. Prosecutors earlier dismissed charges against Daniel Trigo Villavicencio and Gustavo Ballesteros-Munoz.
Janet Alcala, president, agent, and legal representative of Westside Property Management, pled guilty to visa fraud. As a part of resolution of the charges against the property management company, Janet Alcala and Westside Property Management agreed to forfeit interest in property that was traceable to, derived from, or a substitute for property that that was purchased with the proceeds of the crime. Real property, structures, homes, or buildings at nine addresses in Salt Lake City were included in the forfeited property totaling about $1 million.
The case was investigated by special agents of the U.S. Department of State’s Diplomatic Security Service, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, and the U.S. Department of Labor. It has been prosecuted by the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Salt Lake City.
Afghanistan Citizen Admits to Immigration FraudRead the Press Release
PHILADELPHIA - Hayatullah Dawari, 62, of Philadelphia, PA, pleaded guilty today to two counts of immigration fraud and was sentenced to two years in prison, which U.S. District Court Judge Stewart Dalzell suspended for immediate deportation.
Dawari is an Afghanistan citizen who became a lawful permanent resident of the United States on or about November 11, 2008, and who applied for U.S. citizenship in November 2013. In his application for U.S. citizenship, Dawari answered “No” to question 8a: “Have you ever been a member of or associated with any organization, association, fund, foundation, party, club, society, or similar group in the United States or in any other place?” Dawari admitted today in court that his answer to question 8a was false, in that it failed to disclose his prior relationship with Hezb-e-Islami Gulbuddin (“HIG”), an anti-western insurgent group active in Afghanistan and Pakistan.
As part of Dawari’s guilty plea, the parties stipulated that he would be sentenced to a two-year sentence of imprisonment, suspended, accompanied by an order requiring the defendant’s transfer without undue delay into immigration custody for uncontested removal from the United States. The defendant also agreed to relinquish his status as a lawful permanent resident, and he is now rendered permanently inadmissible to the United States.
The case was investigated by Federal Bureau of Investigation’s Joint Terrorism Task Force, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), and the Philadelphia Police Department. It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Jennifer Arbittier Williams.
UNITED STATES ATTORNEY'S OFFICE, EASTERN DISTRICTof PENNSYLVANIA
Suite 1250, 615 Chestnut Street, Philadelphia, PA 19106
PATTY HARTMAN, Media Contact, 215-861-8525Aberdeen Man Sentenced to 12 Years in Prison for Sexual Contact with Two Boys at Fort Lee, Virginia and for Possessing Child PornographyRead the Press Release
Baltimore, Maryland – U.S. District Judge William D. Quarles, Jr. sentenced Marcus Smith, age 21, of Aberdeen, Maryland, on September 18, 2014, to 12 years in prison followed by 25 years of supervised release for possessing child pornography and two counts of abusive sexual contact. Judge Quarles ordered that upon his release from prison, Smith must register as a sex offender in the place where he resides, where he is an employee, and where he is a student, under the Sex Offender Registration and Notification Act (SORNA).The sentence was announced by United States Attorney for the District of Maryland Rod J. Rosenstein; United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia Dana J. Boente; Special Agent in Charge Stephen E. Vogt of the Federal Bureau of Investigation; Colonel Marcus L. Brown, Superintendent of the Maryland State Police; and Harford County Sheriff L. Jesse Bane.
According to his plea agreement, in the summer of 2011, Smith was suspected of committing sexual assaults at a military installation in Virginia. FBI agents interviewed him and a search warrant was executed at his residence. The investigation revealed that on June 25, 2011 at a home on Fort Lee, Virginia, Smith had sexual contact with a nine year old boy. After Smith followed the victim into a bathroom, Smith called him into a bedroom. Smith restrained the victim, pulled off the victim’s pants and underwear, and touched the victim’s genitalia.
Also, from July 2009 to June 25, 2011 at a home on Fort Lee, Smith had sexual contact on more than one occasion with another child who was eight to 10 years old during this time. Smith made the victim remove his clothes and Smith touched the victim’s genitalia. Smith admits he ejaculated during his contact with the second victim on at least one occasion.
In the summer of 2012, further information was provided to the FBI that Smith may have child pornography in his possession. Law enforcement again executed a search warrant at Smith’s residence on August 24, 2012 and seized a cell phone which contained images of child pornography, including boys engaged in sexually explicit conduct.
This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by the United States Attorneys' Offices and the Criminal Division's Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who sexually exploit children, and to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.justice.gov/psc. For more information about internet safety education, please visit www.justice.gov/psc and click on the "resources" tab on the left of the page.
United States Attorney Rod J. Rosenstein commended the FBI, Maryland State Police, Harford County Sheriff’s Office and U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Virginia for their work in the investigation and prosecution. Mr. Rosenstein thanked Assistant U.S. Attorney P. Michael Cunningham from the District of Maryland and Assistant U.S. Attorney Heather L. Hart from the Eastern District of Virginia, who prosecuted the case.
18 September 2014
Yukon Physician to Serve 36 Months Probation and Pay over $340,000 in Restitution for Failure to File Tax ReturnsRead the Press Release
Oklahoma City, Oklahoma – DWAYNE L. ROUSH, a physician from Yukon, Oklahoma, who is practicing in Purcell, Oklahoma, was sentenced yesterday to serve 36 months of probation and ordered to pay $340,652.53 in restitution to the IRS for to failing to file a federal tax return for 2011, announced Sanford C. Coats, United States Attorney for the Western District of Oklahoma. In addition, Roush was ordered to pay a $1,000 fine and perform 200 hours of community service.
Roush was charged by information on May 22, 2014, with failing to file a federal tax return for 2011. He pled guilty on June 10, 2014. As part of his guilty plea, Roush agreed to pay restitution to the Internal Revenue Service for six tax years, including 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, and 2012.
This case is the result of an investigation by IRS Criminal Investigation and was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Julia E. Barry
Williamson Man Pleads Guilty in International Synthetic Drug Trafficking RingRead the Press Release
ROCHESTER, N.Y. U.S. Attorney William J. Hochul, Jr. announced today that Joshua Buerman, 26, of Williamson, NY, pleaded to conspiracy to import and distribute significant quantities of Methylone, a Schedule I controlled substance, from a source of supply located in China before U.S. District Judge David G. Larimer. The charge carries a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison and a fine of $1,000,000.
“This case demonstrates the global reach of a China-based synthetic drug ring, as well as the Government’s ability to infiltrate and destroy it,” said U.S. Attorney Hochul. “We will continue to utilize all of the tools available to us to ensure that dangerous substances such as these are not imported into this country.”
Assistant U.S. Attorney Douglas E. Gregory, who is handling the case, stated that since June 2012, Joshua Buerman and other members of a drug trafficking organization utilized a source of supply located in China to purchase and obtain significant quantities of Methylone, as well as several other synthetic substances. The Government obtained a court order authorizing the interception of email communications occurring over an email address belonging to the source of supply in China. During the course of the 30 day email interception period, investigators obtained substantial evidence indicating that the China based supplier was shipping an assortment of controlled substances and controlled substance analogs to numerous customers located throughout the United States and abroad, including, but not limited to Austria, Canada, Finland, Spain, Germany, Italy, Belgium, Ireland, the United Kingdom, Sweden and Lithuania.
The interception generated more than 450 leads which were disseminated to various police agencies across the United States, resulting in the nationwide seizure of more than 70 kilograms of Methylone and numerous controlled substance analogs, all of which had been shipped from China. Investigative leads also resulted in at least 54 arrests nationwide, including Maine, Massachusetts, Connecticut, New Jersey, Maryland, Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, Florida, Louisiana, Tennessee, Missouri, Ohio, Michigan, Minnesota, Nevada, Oregon, California and Texas. Agents also seized several kilograms of cocaine, methamphetamine and MDMA, more than $50,000 in cash, several motor vehicles and seven weapons, including several firearms.
In August 2013, investigators learned through the email interception that several shipments of Methylone were being shipped to members of the Rochester organization. The packages were interdicted and found to contain a total of 3.5 kilograms of methylone crystals.
Methylone is a stimulant that has a chemical structure closely related to 3,4 methyelenedioxymethamphetamine, known commonly as "MDMA" or "ecstacy." Its crystalline form is often sold generically on the streets by the street term "Molly" or “bath salts.” Methylone was the subject of an October 2011 DEA Emergency Scheduling Order and was permanently placed into Schedule I of the Controlled Substances Act in April 2013.
Buerman was arrested along with eight others in the Rochester area in September 2013. To date, five defendants have been convicted. Charges are pending against the remaining defendants. The fact that a defendant has been charged with a crime is merely an accusation and the defendant is presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty.
The plea is the culmination of an investigation on the part of the Special Agents of the Drug Enforcement Administration, under the direction of Acting Special Agent in Charge James J. Hunt, New York Field Division, Immigration and Customs Enforcement, Homeland Security Investigations, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge James C. Spero, the United States Postal Inspection Service, under the direction of Shelly Binkowski, Inspector in Charge, Boston Division, the United States Border Patrol, under the direction of Patrol Agent in Charge Chris Buskey, and the New York State Police, under the direction of Major Scott Crosier.West Side Gang Leader Responsible for Killing Off-Duty Detective and Woman Sentenced to 35 Years in Prison for Heroin ConspiracyRead the Press Release
CHICAGO ― A high-ranking leader of the Traveling Vice Lords street gang who directed a violent west side drug-trafficking conspiracy was sentenced today to 35 years in federal prison after a judge ruled that he “very likely” murdered an off-duty Chicago police detective and a woman in August 2008.
“Your drug trafficking activities were a scourge on your community,” Judge Lefkow said.
The judge also ruled that the government met its burden in proving by a preponderance of evidence that it was “very likely” that Austin committed the murders of Det. Robert Soto and Kathryn Romberg on Aug. 13, 2008, and then subsequently attempted to obstruct the murder investigation. The victims were shot as they sat in a parked car in the 3000 block of West Franklin, about three blocks east Kedzie and one block south of Ohio. During a sentencing hearing that began last month, the government presented evidence that Austin shot and killed the pair after mistaking them from for a rival drug dealer and the drug dealer’s companion.
“We are gratified that the Court found Austin responsible for the murders of Detective Soto and Ms. Romberg. Jason Austin is a violent drug dealer, and today’s 35-year sentence provides a modest measure of justice,” said Zachary T. Fardon, United States Attorney for the Northern District of Illinois.
“Jason Austin sold heroin and crack cocaine in the area of Kedzie and Ohio for years. He ran the block, had employees who worked for him, and he sold thousands of dollars of heroin a day. Austin controlled his territory through fear, violence, and threats of violence. He kept guns at the ready to stave off the competition. Austin thought of Kedzie and Ohio as his,” Assistant U.S. Attorneys Maribel Fernandez-Harvath and Matthew Madden argued in seeking a significant sentence.
Austin and 30 other members and associates of the Traveling Vice Lords were arrested in November 2010 as part of Operation Blue Knight, which focused on around-the-clock retail street sales of crack cocaine and heroin in the area of Kedzie and Ohio, known as “KO.” Significant amounts of crack cocaine and heroin were seized during the two-year investigation, which the Chicago Police Department’s Organized Crime Division began in 2008 and the Federal Bureau of Investigation joined several months later. Overall, their efforts resulted in a total of 104 defendants being arrested on state and federal charges in this and related investigations.
The evidence at trial showed that Austin conspired with others to distribute heroin to customers via hand-to-hand transactions in the “KO.” The heroin, named “Blue Magic,” alone accounted for as much as $8,000 a day in sales, between approximately 6 a.m. and 11 p.m., seven days a week. During the investigation, law enforcement officers repeatedly observed the conduct of co-conspirators at KO. Surveillance, often video recorded, documented hand-to-hand drug transactions, controlled purchases of narcotics by undercover Chicago police officers, and controlled purchases of narcotics by confidential sources.
Mr. Fardon announced the sentence with Robert J. Holley, Special Agent-in-Charge of the Chicago Office of the Federal Bureau of Investigation; and Garry McCarthy, Superintendent of the Chicago Police Department. The investigation was conducted by the Chicago Police Department’s Organized Crime Division and the FBI’s Safe Street Task Force, together comprising the FBI-CPD Joint Task Force on Gangs. It was also conducted under the umbrella of U.S. Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF), with assistance from the High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area Task Force (HIDTA).
U.S. Attorney's Office Contributes to Local Food Pantries through Feds Feed Families DriveRead the Press Release
SHREVEPORT/LAFAYETTE, La. –United States Attorney Stephanie A. Finley announced that the U.S. Attorney’s Offices in Shreveport and Lafayette recently collected more than 1,600 pounds of food and non-perishable items that were delivered to two local food pantries.
In all, both offices collected 1,626 pounds of food to be donated to the Food Bank of Northwest Louisiana located in Shreveport and the FoodNet: The Greater Acadiana Food Bank, located in Lafayette. The Shreveport U.S. Attorney’s Office gathered 1,378 pounds of the total and the Lafayette U.S. Attorney’s Office gathered 248 pounds. Donation boxes for the Feds Feed Families food drive campaign were located at the federal courthouses in Shreveport and Lafayette and at the Federal Public Defender’s Office (Midsouth Bank Building in Lafayette). The food drive campaign ended August 29, 2014. Federal employees donated goods such as bags of rice, pasta, canned and boxed goods, bottled water and other non-perishable items.
“The donations and work of federal employees in our district will help feed those in need,” Finley said. “Their efforts are helping to fight hunger and give back to our communities. I want to thank those who donated, but also the volunteers who worked to collect and spread the word about this campaign.”
The Food Bank of Northwest Louisiana began in 1995 when a group of individuals from churches with food pantries and benevolent organizations met to discuss the need to establish a local Food Bank to serve the parishes of Northwest Louisiana. The Food Bank of Northwest Louisiana is the largest distributor of donated food for the seven-parish area and is one of only five food banks in the state. They sort, warehouse and distribute food to more than 120 non-profit organizations in the seven-parish region, which includes: Caddo, Bossier, Bienville, Claiborne, Desoto, Red River, and Webster parishes. For more information about the Food Bank of Northwest Louisiana, visit their website at www.foodbanknla.org or call (318) 675-2400.
FoodNet: The Greater Acadiana Food Bank, a non-profit food bank serving Lafayette Parish, was established in October 1987. FoodNet has distributed tens of thousands of tons of food since opening, and presently serves several agencies including: Faith House of Acadiana women’s shelter, the Children’s Shelter, St. Joseph Shelter for Men, Acadiana Youth Shelter for Girls, St. Joseph Diner, the Red Cross, Alleman Center, Acadiana Cares, St. Francis Foundation for Substance Abuse, and the Arc. For more information, visit www.foodnetacadiana.org or call (337) 232-3663.
Feds Feed Families was started when Rep. Frank Wolf (R-Va.) and former Office of Personnel Management Director John Berry realized that food donations were dropping during the summer months because many families were on vacation. The campaign has run every summer since 2009, and to date, it has collected more than 24.1 million pounds of food, including 9 million pounds last year alone. In the United States, 50 million people are challenged with hunger, including 17 million children.
For more information visit www.usda.gov/fedsfeedfamilies or call the U.S. Attorney’s Office, Western District of Louisiana, at 337-262-6618.
U.S. Attorney Barry Grissom Joins Committee Advising U.S. Attorney GeneralRead the Press Release
KANSAS CITY, KAN. – U.S. Attorney Barry Grissom of Kansas has been appointed to serve a two-year term on the committee that advises U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder.
Holder announced that Grissom and U.S. Attorney Mike Cotter, District of Montana, would be joining the Attorney General’s Advisory Committee.
“It’s a pleasure to welcome Barry Grissom and Mike Cotter as the two newest members of the Attorney General’s Advisory Committee, a group of U.S. Attorneys with whom I regularly consult on some of the most significant law enforcement and public safety issues facing our nation,” said Attorney General Holder. “I’m grateful for their service and leadership. I look forward to working closely with the entire AGAC as we all work together to protect and ensure justice for the American people.”
The AGAC, chaired by Loretta E. Lynch, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of New York, represents the voice of the U.S. Attorneys and provides advice and counsel to the Attorney General on policy, management and operational issues impacting the Offices of U.S. Attorneys. The committee has 20 members representing various federal judicial districts, geographic locations and U.S. Attorney’s offices of various sizes.
Grissom was appointed by President Barack Obama and confirmed by the U.S. Senate in 2010. The U.S. Attorney has three offices in Kansas – Kansas City, Kan., Topeka and Wichita – and a staff of approximately 100 employees, including about 50 Assistant U.S. Attorneys.
Two Arrested and Charged for Penny-Stock FraudRead the Press Release
Stephen D. Anthony, Special Agent in Charge of the Cleveland Division of the Federal Bureau of Investigation for the Northern District of Ohio, and Steven M. Dettelbach, United States Attorney for the Northern District of Ohio announce the federal arrest of Izak Sirk De Maison (aka Izak Zirk Engelbrecht, aka Zirk Engelbrecht), 58 years of age, and Stephen J. Wilshinsky, 59 years of age, in Los Angeles, California.
De Maison, a self described “merchant banker”, devised a scheme and artifice to defraud investors by creating public “shell” companies, executing a merger of an emerging business with the shell to create a publicly traded company, and then paying undisclosed kickbacks to brokers, including Wilshinsky, in exchange for using their clients’ funds to purchase shares of the resulting penny stock. The public companies that De Maison created typically conducted minimal actual business activity and had little revenue with no profit. To generate income from the shell companies, De Maison utilized various schemes to sell his company shares to generate personal income. De Maison utilized the same individuals over and over in his schemes.
The complaint alleges that De Maison conspired with brokers, including Wilshinsky, to ensure that any time he wanted to sell free trading shares on the open market, there would be an available buyer. Despite typical low volume trading in the stocks controlled by De Maison, when he wanted to sell on the open market, orders were filled almost instantaneously. This immediate fulfillment was because De Maison conspired with brokers who had some discretion to make trades in their investor/clients’ accounts. De Maison paid brokers an undisclosed “kickback”, typically fifty percent of the total sale price, in exchange for the brokers using the investor/clients’ accounts the brokers controlled to purchase De Maison’s stocks on the open market. It is unlawful to not disclose the kickbacks to the investor/clients and to not disclose to the investor/clients that their accounts were, in fact, trading in such risky penny stocks.
Another necessary aspect to this scheme for it to succeed was for De Maison, at least for some period of time, to cause the stock price in the companies he controlled to rise before plummeting to a price point that reflected the actual business performance. De Maison conspired with others to inflate the price point through false reporting and manipulative business activities, all of which affected the stock price and helped De Maison achieve the maximum value out of the shares he owned, according to the complaint.
De Maison and Wilshinsky are both charged with conspiracy to commit wire fraud and securities fraud. De Maison is also charged with wire fraud, securities fraud, money laundering and use of interstate commerce for purpose of securities fraud. This matter is considered an on-going investigation. Additional charges are expected against these two individuals and additional individuals are expected to be charged for their roles in this multi-million dollar conspiracy. A number of victims are from the Northern Ohio area.
“These two are nothing more than sophisticated thieves,” said Anthony. “Putting a suit on and calling it investing does not make stealing acceptable. The FBI will continue to work with the SEC to make sure these two and their additional conspirators answer for this multi-million dollar fraud.”
”The FBI and SEC continue to work tirelessly to investigate financial fraud,” Dettelbach said. “We will prosecute cases as they are brought to us to ensure faith in the markets and to seek justice for those who have been victimized.”
De Maison and Wilshinsky were taken into custody by FBI agents from the Los Angeles office without incident.
A complaint is only a charge and is not evidence of guilt. A defendant is entitled to a fair trial in which it will be the government’s burden to prove guilt beyond a reasonable doubt. If convicted, the defendants’ sentences will be determined by the court after review of factors unique to this case, including the defendants’ prior criminal records, if any; their role in the offenses; and the characteristics of the violations. In all cases, the sentences will not exceed the statutory maximum and, in most cases, it will be less than the maximum.
Three Patient Recruiters Sentenced in $20 Million Miami Health Care Fraud SchemeRead the Press Release
Three patient recruiters were sentenced to prison today for their participation in a $20 million health care fraud scheme involving defunct home health care company Trust Care Health Services Inc. (Trust Care).
Assistant Attorney General Leslie R. Caldwell of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, U.S. Attorney Wifredo A. Ferrer of the Southern District of Florida, Special Agent in Charge George L. Piro of the FBI’s Miami Field Office and Acting Special Agent in Charge Derrick Jackson of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General’s (HHS-OIG) Miami Regional Office made the announcement. U.S. District Judge Darrin P. Gayles of the Southern District of Florida imposed the sentences.
Estrella Perez, 57, of Coral Gables, Florida, was sentenced to serve 37 months in prison, followed by three years of supervised release, and ordered to pay $1,172,162 in restitution. Solchys Perez, 34, of Miami, was sentenced to serve 30 months in prison, followed by three years of supervised release, and ordered to pay $746,600 in restitution. Abigail Aguila, 40, of Miami, was sentenced to serve 30 months in prison, followed by three years of supervised release, and ordered to pay $491,438 in restitution. On July 10, 2014, Estrella Perez and Solchys Perez pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit health care fraud, and Aguila pleaded guilty to conspiracy to defraud the United States and receive health care kickbacks.
According to court documents, Estrella Perez, Solchys Perez, and Aguila recruited patients for Trust Care, a Miami home health care agency, in exchange for kickbacks paid in cash or by check to the defendants or their shell companies. In turn, Trust Care billed the Medicare program for home health care and therapy services that were not medically necessary or were not provided.
Estrella Perez and Solchys Perez also paid kickbacks and bribes to co-conspirators in doctors’ offices and clinics in exchange for home health and therapy prescriptions, plans of care and medical certifications for their recruited patients. Co-conspirators at Trust Care then used these documents to fraudulently bill the Medicare program for services.
From March 2007 through January 2010, Trust Care submitted approximately $20 million in false claims for home health services. Medicare paid Trust Care approximately $15 million for these fraudulent claims.
On Sept. 16, 2014, another patient recruiter, Monica Macias, was sentenced to serve 24 months in prison for her participation in the same scheme.
The case was investigated by the FBI and HHS-OIG 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 Southern District of Florida. This case is being prosecuted by Trial Attorneys A. Brendan Stewart and Anne P. McNamara 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 and 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.
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Three Patient Recruiters Sentenced in $20 Million Miami Health Care Fraud SchemeRead the Press Release
Three patient recruiters were sentenced to prison today for their participation in a $20 million health care fraud scheme involving defunct home health care company Trust Care Health Services Inc. (Trust Care).
U.S. Attorney Wifredo A. Ferrer of the Southern District of Florida, Assistant Attorney General Leslie R. Caldwell of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, Special Agent in Charge George L. Piro of the FBI’s Miami Field Office and Acting Special Agent in Charge Derrick Jackson of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General’s (HHS-OIG) Miami Regional Office made the announcement. U.S. District Judge Darrin P. Gayles of the Southern District of Florida imposed the sentences.
Estrella Perez, 57, of Coral Gables, Florida, was sentenced to serve 37 months in prison, followed by three years of supervised release, and ordered to pay $1,172,162 in restitution. Solchys Perez, 34, of Miami, was sentenced to serve 30 months in prison, followed by three years of supervised release, and ordered to pay $746,600 in restitution. Abigail Aguila, 40, of Miami, was sentenced to serve 30 months in prison, followed by three years of supervised release, and ordered to pay $491,438 in restitution. On July 10, 2014, Estrella Perez and Solchys Perez pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit health care fraud, and Aguila pleaded guilty to conspiracy to defraud the United States and receive health care kickbacks.
According to court documents, Estrella Perez, Solchys Perez, and Aguila recruited patients for Trust Care, a Miami home health care agency, in exchange for kickbacks paid in cash or by check to the defendants or their shell companies. In turn, Trust Care billed the Medicare program for home health care and therapy services that were not medically necessary or were not provided.
Estrella Perez and Solchys Perez also paid kickbacks and bribes to co-conspirators in doctors’ offices and clinics in exchange for home health and therapy prescriptions, plans of care and medical certifications for their recruited patients. Co-conspirators at Trust Care then used these documents to fraudulently bill the Medicare program for services.
From March 2007 through January 2010, Trust Care submitted approximately $20 million in false claims for home health services. Medicare paid Trust Care approximately $15 million for these fraudulent claims.
On Sept. 16, 2014, another patient recruiter, Monica Macias, was sentenced to serve 24 months in prison for her participation in the same scheme.
The case was investigated by the FBI and HHS-OIG 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 Southern District of Florida. This case is being prosecuted by Trial Attorneys A. Brendan Stewart and Anne P. McNamara 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 and 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.
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.
Software Company Ceo Sentenced in Manhattan Federal Court to 27 Months in Prison for His Role in $2 Million Securities Fraud SchemeRead the Press Release
Preet Bharara, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, announced that ROBERT KELLY, the Chief Executive Officer of Wwebnet, Inc. (“Wwebnet”), a software development company, was sentenced today in Manhattan federal court to 27 months in prison in connection with his role in an offering fraud scheme. Specifically, KELLY diverted for his own personal use over $2 million in investor proceeds that was intended for the development of a software program capable of transmitting music, videos, and movies over the Internet. He used the money to trade options, to pay his personal income taxes, and for other purposes unrelated to software development or other legitimate business expenses. On March 11, 2014, KELLY pled guilty to securities and wire fraud charges before United States District Judge Paul A. Crotty.
According to the charging documents and related court proceedings:
From 2004 through November 2008, KELLY solicited investors to send money to Wwebnet, Inc., and related companies by misrepresenting that the funds would be used to develop software for transmitting music, videos, and movies over the Internet. Instead of using the millions of dollars in investor proceeds that he obtained for legitimate business purposes, KELLY diverted a substantial portion of the money that he raised for his own financial benefit. For example, KELLY transferred at least $2 million in investor funds into his personal trading account in the Cayman Islands, which he used to make a series of unsuccessful options trades. KELLY also used nearly $100,000 that he received from investors to pay his federal and state personal income taxes. At the same time that he was using investors’ money for his own personal benefit, KELLY falsely told his software development team that he was unable to allocate adequate resources for software development and could do so only when he was able to raise money from investors. As a result, Wwebnet lacked the necessary funds to develop its core product and the company ultimately failed.
In addition to his prison term, KELLY, 57, formerly of New York, New York, and now a resident of Raleigh, North Carolina, was sentenced to three years of supervised release, and was ordered to pay $2,111,600 in forfeiture and $2,111,600 in restitution, as well as a $200 special assessment fee.
Mr. Bharara praised the investigative work of the Federal Bureau of Investigation and also thanked the Securities and Exchange Commission for its assistance.
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. Since the inception of FFETF in November 2009, the Justice Department has filed more than 12,841 financial fraud cases against nearly 18,737 defendants including nearly 3,500 mortgage fraud defendants. For more information on the task force, visit www.stopfraud.gov.
The case is being handled by the Office’s Securities and Commodities Fraud Task Force. Assistant U.S. Attorney Benjamin Naftalis is in charge of the prosecution.
Kelly, Robert Indictment
Slidell Man, John Labee, Sentenced for Crimes Involving the Preparation of False Tax Documents and Lying to A Grand JuryRead the Press Release
U.S. Attorney Kenneth Polite announced that JOHN LABEE, 36, a resident of Slidell, Louisiana, was sentenced today by U.S. District Judge Carl J. Barbier to 46 months imprisonment, followed by three years of supervised release. In addition, LABEE was ordered to pay $412,781 in restitution. On December 12, 2013, LABEE plead guilty to aiding and assisting in the preparation of false tax documents, lying on personal income tax returns, and making false declarations before the Grand Jury.
According to court documents, LABEE owned and operated several tax preparation companies, including Millenium Bookkeeping Services (“Millenium” [sic]) and IP Financial Services (“IP”), which prepared the taxes of numerous clients. As a regular part of his business, LABEE prepared tax returns that contained false or fraudulent information for his clients, including false W-2s that fabricated the amount of federal income tax that had been withheld and inflated business expenses and deductions. LABEE’S conduct resulted in an intended loss to the United States of approximately $2,242,121 of federal income tax withholdings. Between 2007 and 2012, LABEE also under-reported his gross receipts from his tax business and over-reported the amount of federal income tax that he withheld from his income, resulting in a failure to pay approximately $163,457 in federal taxes personally.
Additionally, on March 13, 2013, LABEE appeared before a federal grand jury and, after being placed under oath, answered numerous questions. In particular, LABEE stated that in 2013, he had not prepared any tax returns other than his own. In fact, LABEE continued operating his tax return preparation business in 2013, including preparing and filing a tax return for “J.C.” LABEE’S preparation work with J.C. included numerous meetings and correspondence with “J.C.” between January 2013 and February 14, 2013, less than one month before he testified before the federal grand jury.
“The fraud perpetrated by John Labee and the related losses had far-reaching effects on the tax paying citizens of this community. IRS – Criminal Investigation is working very hard to expose the tactics of unscrupulous return preparers that make victims of their clients and the federal government,” stated Samuel Zechenelly, Acting Special Agent in Charge of IRS – Criminal Investigation. “I would also like to thank Mr. Polite and Assistant United States Attorney Jordan Ginsberg for their work toward the prosecution of this case.”
The case was investigated by agents with the Internal Revenue Service and was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Jordan Ginsberg.
Shreveport Fire Department Dispatcher Pleads Guilty to Child Pornography Possession ChargeRead the Press Release
SHREVEPORT, La. – A dispatcher with the Shreveport Fire Department has pleaded guilty to possessing child pornography, U.S. Attorney Stephanie A. Finley announced today.
Shreveport Fire Department Dispatcher Stephen St. John, 46, of Shreveport, pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Elizabeth E. Foote to one count of possession of child pornography. According to evidence presented at the guilty plea, law enforcement agents discovered that St. John was a member of a secret internet file posting board that distributed child pornography. His home was searched on September 5, 2013 and several computers, external hard drives, memory cards, DVDs and diskettes were seized. An examination of the seized items revealed pubescent and prepubescent males engaged in explicit sexual activity including 157 images on diskettes.
St. John, who was taken into custody at the hearing, faces up to 10 years in prison, five years to life of supervised release, and a $250,000 fine. He also faces forfeiture of the devices used in the crime. A sentencing date of January 30, 2015 was set.The U.S. Postal Inspection Service, Homeland Security Investigations, U.S. Marshals Service and the Louisiana State Police investigated the case. Assistant U.S. Attorney Cytheria D. Jernigan is prosecuting the case.
This case is part of Project Safe Childhood, a U.S. Department of Justice nationwide initiative to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by U.S. Attorneys’ Offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state and local resources to better locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the internet, as well as to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.projectsafechildhood.gov.
The U.S. Attorney’s Office and the U.S. Department of Homeland Security/Homeland Security Investigations/Immigration & Customs Enforcement (ICE) encourage the public to report suspected child predators and any suspicious activity through its toll-free hotline at (866) DHS-2ICE. Investigators are available at all hours to answer hotline calls. Tips or other information can also be submitted to ICE online at www.ice.gov/exec/forms/hsi-tips/tips.asp. Tips may be reported anonymously.
Seven Mitsubishi Electric Corp. and Hitachi Automotive Supply Ltd. Executives Indicted for Role in Conspiracy to Fix PricesRead the Press Release
A federal grand jury in Detroit returned two separate indictments against seven executives from two Japanese manufacturers of automotive parts for their participation in a conspiracy to fix prices of certain automotive parts, the Department of Justice announced today.
A three-count indictment was filed today in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan. Count one charges Atsushi Ueda, Minoru Kurisaki, and Hideyuki Saito of Mitsubishi Electric Corp. (MELCO) with conspiring to fix the prices of certain automotive products, including starter motors, alternators and ignition coils, sold to Ford Motor Company, General Motors LLC, Chrysler Group LLC, Fuji Heavy Industries Ltd., Nissan Motor Company Ltd., and Honda Motor Company Ltd. in the United States and elsewhere.
Count two charges Kurisaki and Saito with knowingly conspiring to obstruct justice by destroying documents and corruptly persuading, and attempting to persuade others, to destroy documents.
Count three charges Saito with knowingly and corruptly persuading, and attempting to persuade, executives to destroy documents and delete electronic data that may contain evidence of antitrust crimes in the United States and elsewhere.
Ueda and Kurisaki served as President and General Manager, respectively, in the Automotive Equipment Group. They are no longer employed by MELCO. Saito currently serves as a high-level manager within the Automotive Equipment Group at MELCO.
A one-count indictment, also filed today in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan, charges Takashi Toyokuni, Ken Funasaki, Kazunobu Tsunekawa and Tomiya Itakura of Hitachi Automotive Systems Ltd. with conspiring to fix the prices of various automotive parts, including starter motors, alternators, air flow meters, valve timing control devices, fuel injection systems, electronic throttle bodies, ignition coils and inverters and/or motor generators sold to various automobile manufacturers such as, Ford Motor Co., General Motors LLC, Nissan Motor Co. Ltd., Toyota Motor Corp., and Honda Motor Co. Ltd., in the United States and elsewhere.
Toyokuni, Funasaki, Tsunekawa, and Itakura all served as high-level managers in the Business Planning Department at Hitachi Automotive during the charged conspiracy and currently serve in various senior management positions at the company.
“Protecting American consumers from anticompetitive practices is our top priority,” said Brent Snyder, Deputy Assistant Attorney General for the Antitrust Division’s criminal enforcement program. “The Antitrust Division will continue to pursue the auto parts makers and executives who engaged in this blatant and harmful criminal scheme.”
Both indictments allege that the executives indicted today participated directly in the conspiratorial conduct, and directed, authorized, and consented to their subordinates’ participation. The executives are charged with participating in a conspiracy that existed from at least as early as January 2000 and continued until about February 2010. Among other things, the executives and their subordinates, according to the indictment, participated in meetings with co-conspirators and reached collusive agreements to rig bids, allocate the supply and fix the prices of certain automotive parts sold to automobile manufacturers.
MELCO is a corporation headquartered in Tokyo, Japan. MELCO pleaded guilty on Nov. 6, 2013, for its involvement in this conspiracy, and was sentenced to pay a criminal fine of $190 million.
Hitachi Automotive is a corporation headquartered in Tokyo, Japan. Hitachi Automotive pleaded guilty on Nov. 6, 2013, for its involvement in this conspiracy, and was sentenced to pay a criminal fine of $195 million.
Including Toyokuni, Funasaki, Tsunekawa, Itakura, Ueda, Kurisaki and Saito, 43 individuals have been charged in the government’s ongoing investigation into price fixing and bid rigging in the auto parts industry. Twenty-six of these individuals have pleaded guilty and have been sentenced to serve prison terms ranging from a year and one day to two years. Additionally, 28 companies have pleaded guilty or agreed to plead guilty and have agreed to pay a total of more than $2.4 billion in fines.
The seven defendants are charged with price fixing in violation of the Sherman Act, which carries a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison and a $1 million criminal fine for individuals. The maximum fine may be increased to twice the gain derived from the crime or twice the loss suffered by the victims of the crime, if either of those amounts is greater than the statutory maximum fine. The maximum penalty for obstruction of justice is 20 years in prison and a $250,000 criminal fine for individuals.
Today’s indictment is the result of an ongoing federal antitrust investigation into price fixing, bid rigging, and other anticompetitive conduct in the automotive parts industry, which is being conducted by the Antitrust Division’s criminal enforcement sections and the FBI. Today’s charge was brought by the Antitrust Division’s Washington Criminal I Section and the FBI’s Detroit Field Office, with the assistance of the FBI headquarters’ International Corruption Unit. Anyone with information on price fixing, bid rigging and other anticompetitive conduct related to other products in the automotive parts industry should contact the Antitrust Division’s Citizen Complaint Center at 888-647-3258, visit www.justice.gov/atr/contact/newcase.html or call the FBI’s Detroit Field Office at 313-965-2323.
Sentencings for September 16-17, 2014Read the Press Release
Julio Ceasar Torres-Torres, 29, of Mexico, was sentenced by Federal District Court Judge Alan B. Johnson on September 17, 2014, for illegal re-entry of a previously deported alien into the United States. Torres-Torres was arrested in Cody, Wyoming. He received time served plus ten days, was ordered to pay a $100.00 special assessment and is subject to deportation upon release from custody. This case was investigated by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
Kendra Iverson, 43, of Phoenix, Arizona, was sentenced by Chief Federal District Court Judge Nancy D. Freudenthal on September 16, 2014, for conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute, and distribution of 3.4 kilograms of methamphetamine. Iverson was arrested in Phoenix, Arizona. She received 87 months imprisonment, to be followed by five years of supervised release, and was ordered to pay a $100.00 special assessment and a $900.00 fine. This case was investigated by the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration, the Internal Revenue Service and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives.
Selim Zherka, Westchester Businessman, Indicted by White Plains Federal Grand Jury for Submitting False Loan Applications, Tax Fraud, Wire Fraud, and Witness TamperingRead the Press Release
Preet Bharara, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, Shantelle P. Kitchen, the Acting Internal Revenue Service Special Agent in Charge of the New York Office – Criminal Investigation (“IRS”), George Venizelos, the Assistant Director-in-Charge of the New York Office of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (“FBI”), and Christy Romero, the Special Inspector General of the Troubled Asset Relief Program (“SIGTARP”), announced today that Westchester businessman SELIM ZHERKA, 46, of Somers, New York, was indicted by a federal grand jury in White Plains for submitting multiple false loan applications to banks, tax fraud, wire fraud, and witness tampering. ZHERKA was arrested today by agents of the FBI and is expected to be arraigned in federal court in White Plains this afternoon.
U.S. Attorney Bharara stated: “Selim Zherka, while running his various businesses, allegedly engaged in a string of crimes. Zherka, the owner of commercial real estate and other businesses, stands accused of filing multiple false bank loan applications, engaging in tax fraud, and witness tampering. He is also charged with defrauding a businessman of his right to collect a court judgment against Zherka for assault and breach of contract.”
Acting IRS Special Agent in Charge Kitchen stated: “The Internal Revenue Service is committed to ensuring that everyone pays their fair share of taxes. The public should not have to pick up the tab for those who willfully choose to not file correct and accurate returns. IRS-Criminal Investigation investigates individuals who allegedly corruptly violate the tax laws to further their business and personal interests, at the expense of other businesses and individual taxpayers who play by the rules.”
Assistant FBI Director Venizelos stated: “As alleged, Zherka’s entrepreneurship got a little too creative when he began fabricating loan applications, among many other things, and Zherka’s web of deception knew few bounds. Today he finds himself under arrest and on the wrong side of the law.”
Special Inspector General of TARP Christy Romero stated: “Following an extensive criminal investigation by SIGTARP and our law enforcement partners, this morning federal agents apprehended Selim Zherka without incident in Westchester County, New York. Zherka is charged with falsifying information on commercial loan applications submitted to North Fork Bank - later purchased by TARP recipient Capital One - to obtain more than $36.5 million in loans from the bank.”
According to the Indictment, from November 2005 through 2008, ZHERKA obtained a total of over $146 million in loans from three banks – North Fork Bank (now Capital One), Sovereign Bank (now Santander), and Signature Bank – for the purchase and/or refinancing of apartment house complexes in New England, Tennessee, New Jersey, and New York by lying about the purchase prices of the real estate he was acquiring, the amount of the down payments he was making toward the purchases in question, his assets, his income, his tax returns, and the nature and circumstances of a 2000 court judgment against him for assault and breach of contract (which, to date, he has not paid).
Additionally, the Indictment charges ZHERKA with engaging in a decade-long tax fraud scheme. The Indictment alleges that ZHERKA repeatedly submitted fraudulent tax returns to the IRS that overstated depreciation expenses and understated his capital gains on tax returns for the real estate holding companies in which he was a partner and which, in turn, owned the above apartment house complexes, thereby reducing their tax liabilities. The Indictment also charges that ZHERKA obstructed the Internal Revenue Service by, among other means, failing to file personal tax returns for over a decade.
The Indictment also charges that ZHERKA schemed to defraud the judgment creditor in connection with the above-referenced 2000 case of that individual’s right to receive payment of the judgment. ZHERKA had been found liable by a New York State Supreme Court jury in Manhattan for assaulting that individual and for breaching a contract with him.
Finally, the Indictment charges ZHERKA with tampering with witnesses in this investigation.
If convicted on the charges in the Indictment, ZHERKA faces the following maximum penalties: for each of the 11 counts of submitting a false loan application with which he is charged, 30 years in prison and a $1 million fine or twice the gross gain or loss resulting from the crime; for the count of wire fraud and the count of witness tampering, 20 years in prison and a $250,000 fine or twice the gross gain or loss resulting from the crime on each count; for the count of conspiracy to obstruct the IRS and violate tax laws, 5 years in prison and a $250,000 fine or twice the gain or loss resulting from the crime; and for each of the 10 counts of making/subscribing to false returns, the 10 counts of aiding/assisting in the preparation of false tax returns, and the count of attempting to interfere with the administration Internal Revenue laws, 3 years in prison and a $250,000 fine or twice the gross gain or loss resulting from the crime. Additionally, he faces potential criminal forfeitures totaling $146 million, restitution, and the costs of prosecution. The statutory maximum sentences are prescribed by Congress and are provided here for informational purposes only, as any sentencing of the defendant and any forfeiture would be determined by the Court.
Mr. Bharara praised the work of the IRS, the FBI, and the Special Inspector General for the Troubled Asset Relief Program in this investigation.
This case is being handled out of the White Plains Division. Assistant United States Attorneys Elliott B. Jacobson and Perry A. Carbone are in charge of the prosecution.
The charges contained in the Indictment are merely accusations, and the defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
US v. Zherka memo of law (9-18-14)
Selim Zherka.S2Saint Lawrence County Man and Woman Indicted on Federal Child Sexual Exploitation and Child Pornography ChargesRead the Press Release
Charges include sexual exploitation of three children
SYRACUSE, NEW YORK – Hermon, NY residents STEPHEN M. HOWELLS, II, age 39, and NICOLE F. VAISEY, age 25, were formally charged today in federal court in Syracuse on multiple counts including conspiracy to sexually exploit children and sexual exploitation of children according to United States Attorney Richard S. Hartunian and Special Agent in Charge, Andrew W. Vale of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Albany Division.
The five count indictment returned by a federal Grand Jury charged Howells and Vaisey with the following crimes: Count 1 - Conspiracy to Sexually Exploit Children involving two minor female victims (V-1 and V-2) and Count 2 - Sexual Exploitation of a Child (V-1). Counts 3 and 4 charge Howells and Vaisey, individually, with Sexual Exploitation of a third female child (V-3). Howells was also charged in Count 5 with Possession of Child Pornography.1
If found guilty on Counts 1 – 4, each defendant faces a statutory minimum of at least fifteen years imprisonment and a maximum term of thirty years imprisonment. On Count 5, Howells faces a maximum term of twenty years imprisonment. Both defendants may be fined up to $250,000 on each count of conviction. Upon release from prison, they would be placed on Supervised Release for a mandatory minimum at least five years and up to life. They would also be required to register as sex offenders.
United States Attorney Hartunian said, “This indictment charges Howells and Vaisey with enticing and coercing children to engage in sexual conduct and making a video recording of it. The Department of Justice is committed to the safety and well-being of every child and has placed a high priority on combating sexual exploitation of minors. We will continue to work closely with our state and local partners to identify and prosecute those who prey on our children.”
Anyone having information regarding this case may contact the Federal Bureau of Investigation at 1-800-CALL-FBI.
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1The charges are merely accusations and the defendants are presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty.
Raymondville Man Sentenced to 15 Years for Illegal FirearmRead the Press Release
SPRINGFIELD, Mo. – Tammy Dickinson, United States Attorney for the Western District of Missouri, announced that a Raymondville, Mo., man was sentenced in federal court today for illegally possessing a firearm.
Lloyd W. Reeves, 51, of Raymondville, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Gary A. Fenner to 15 years in federal prison without parole. Reeves was sentenced as an armed career offender due to his prior felony convictions.
On Feb. 3, 2014, Reeves pleaded guilty to being a felon in possession of a firearm. Reeves admitted that he was in possession of a firearm on Sept. 11, 2012, when he pawned a Remington 12-gauge shotgun. When Reeves attempted to redeem the pawn on the firearm, an NICS check revealed that he had prior felony convictions, and the owner of the pawn shop declined to return the firearm.
Under federal law, it is illegal for anyone who has been convicted of a felony to be in possession of any firearm or ammunition. Reeves has three prior felony convictions for burglary, two prior felony convictions for driving while intoxicated, two prior felony convictions for stealing and prior felony convictions for unlawful use of a weapon, possession of a controlled substance and forgery.
This case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney James J. Kelleher. It was investigated by the Texas County, Mo., Sheriff’s Department, the Missouri State Highway Patrol, the South Central Drug Task Force and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives.Quincy Woman Sentenced for Mailing and Tweeting Bomb, Anthrax and Death ThreatsRead the Press Release
Boston – A Quincy woman was sentenced yesterday for sending multiple bomb, anthrax and other death threats through the U.S. mail, e-mail and Twitter.
Linda Louise Culkin, 55, was sentenced by U.S. District Court Judge George A. O’Toole, Jr. to 51 months in prison, three years of supervised release and ordered to pay over $125,000 in restitution. She was arrested in January 2012 and has been detained since. In November 2013, Culkin pleaded guilty to three counts of sending threats through the U.S. mail, two counts of sending threats over the Internet, five counts of sending threats and false information regarding explosives, and four counts of sending threats about biological agents such as anthrax.
From 2009 through the end of 2011, Culkin sent bomb, anthrax, and other death threats to several people and their workplaces in the United States and abroad. Investigators numbered the threats into the dozens; one victim estimated over a thousand. One of Culkin’s hoax bomb threats caused police in a foreign city, near one of the biggest train stations in the country, to evacuate a building and close off a neighborhood to keep out pedestrian and vehicle traffic for two hours. One of her hoax anthrax threats included a letter that, when opened, had white powder that flew into the air and caused people nearby to be quarantined and fear for their health until the threat was determined to be a hoax. Two victims spent thousands of dollars on added security to protect themselves.
Culkin started sending threats primarily through the mail. After being questioned by law enforcement officers about the mailed threats, Culkin started sending threats primarily through the Internet. Culkin made use of the Internet’s relative anonymity by never sending the e-mail and Twitter threats through a home computer that might be traced back to her. Instead, Culkin used computers at her workplaces, the apartment of a close friend, and at public libraries where she was recorded by surveillance video while on a computer making a threat.
Shortly after Culkin was recorded on video, a search of her apartment turned up numerous articles related to the victims and the threats, some of which items were hidden inside chairs and couches, under rugs, and inside her cat’s play structure.
United States Attorney Carmen M. Ortiz and Shelly Binkowski, Inspector in Charge of the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, made the announcement today. The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Scott L. Garland, who was with Ortiz’s Cybercrime Unit during the investigation and is now with the Anti-Terrorism and National Security Unit.
Owner of Mussari Motors, Inc. Pleads Guilty to Conspiracy to Evade Reporting Requirements After Receiving $719,000 in Cash from Drug TraffickerRead the Press Release
SAN DIEGO – John Frank Mussari Jr, owner of Mussari Motors Inc., a luxury car dealership in San Diego, admitted in federal court today that he conspired with a drug trafficker to evade laws requiring disclosure of cash transactions exceeding $10,000.
According to his plea agreement, Mussari admitted that he failed to report receiving $719,000 in cash from the drug trafficker, who purchased several high-end vehicles including a Ferrari and Porsche during a four-month period.
Under federal law, each person engaged in an automobile dealership, who in the course of that business, receives more than $10,000 in cash in one transaction or in two or more related transactions, must file “Report of Cash Payments Over $10,000 in Trade or Business” with the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FINCEN) within 15 days. Mussari admitted that he and the trafficker, who was identified in the plea agreement only as J.B., intentionally and willfully conspired with each other to avoid filing any of the required forms.
Drug traffickers often use this method to launder drug proceeds.
During his guilty plea today, Mussari admitted that he received $132,000 in cash for a Ferrari, $115,000 in cash for a Lamborghini, $147,000 in cash for a Porsche, and $205,000 for another Lamborghini. Mussari also admitted that he received $80,000, $60,000, and $31,000 in cash from the drug trafficker.
According to court documents, Mussari was initially detained attempting to leave in a Lamborghini at the time federal and state agents searched the residence of the drug trafficker’s home in Fallbrook, California. Agents found about $205,000 cash in Mussari’s Lamborghini. The money was forfeited to the United States.
Mussari is scheduled to be sentenced on December 5, 2014 at 8:30 a.m. before U.S. District Judge Gonzalo P. Curiel.
DEFENDANT Case Number: 13cr4072 John Frank Mussari, Jr. Age: 48 San Diego, California CHARGESConspiracy to Evade Reporting Requirements Received in Business
INVESTIGATING AGENCY
Title 18, U.S.C., Section 371
Maximum penalty: Five years in prison and $250,000 fineInternal Revenue Service
Drug Enforcement Administration*Indictments and complaints are not evidence that the defendant committed the crime charged. All defendants are presumed innocent until the United States meets its burden in court of proving guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.
Orange County Man Guilty of Child Pornography ViolationsRead the Press Release
Department of Justice
Office of Public AffairsBEAUMONT, Texas – A 32-year-old Orange, Texas man has pleaded guilty to child pornography charges in the Eastern District of Texas, announced U.S. Attorney John M. Bales today.
Jason Ryan Bickham pleaded guilty to possession of child pornography on Sep. 17, 2014 before U.S. Magistrate Judge Zack Hawthorn.According to information presented in court, law enforcement authorities were alerted by a citizen that Bickham had images containing child pornography on his cellular phone. Bickham provided officers consent to search the phone. A forensic analysis of Bickham’s phone revealed multiple images and videos of child pornography. Bickham was indicted by a federal grand jury on June 4, 2014.
This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice. Led by United States Attorneys’ Offices and the Criminal Division's Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS), Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state and local resources to better locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the Internet, as well as to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.projectsafechildhood.gov.
Bickham faces up to 20 years in federal prison. A sentencing date has not been set.
This case is being investigated by the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), the Orange Police Department and the Beaumont Police Department and prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Randall LO. Fluke.Northwest Omaha Man Sentenced for Receiving Child PornographyRead the Press Release
United States Attorney Deborah R. Gilg announced that Jeffrey R. Rongish, age 31of Omaha, was sentenced in federal court in Omaha, Nebraska for receiving and distributing child pornography. The Honorable Lyle E. Strom, Senior United States District Court Judge sentenced Rongish to a 78 month term of imprisonment. There is no parole in the federal prison system. After his release from prison Rongish will begin a twelve year term of supervised release and be required to register as a sex offender.
On October 28, 2013, a Douglas County Sheriff’s deputy using an undercover computer detected a computer at Rongish’s northwest Omaha residence offering to share child pornography. A search warrant was executed by members of the FBI Omaha Cyber Crimes Task Force on January 24, 2014.
Rongish admitted downloading child pornography for over 15 years. He provided agents with his encryption password. Agents recovered 4,500 images of child pornography. The images included children ranging from infants to teens engaged in sexually explicit conduct.
This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice. Led by United States Attorneys= Offices and the Criminal Division's Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS), Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state and local resources to better locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the Internet, as well as to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.projectsafechildhood.gov.
This matter was investigated by the Omaha FBI's Cyber Crime Task Force (CCTF), of which the Douglas County Sheriff’s Office is a partner. The Omaha CCTF is a multi-jurisdictional task force consisting of eleven federal, state and local law enforcement agencies from Nebraska and Iowa. The mission of the Omaha CCTF is to investigate and apprehend high technology criminals and to protect our communities by preventing high technology crime and national security threats involving computers and computer networks. The Omaha CCTF was established on the premise that the capabilities of law enforcement agencies to investigate computer and high technology related crimes are enhanced in a task force setting involving the sharing of resources and expertise.North Miami Beach Resident Sentenced in Identity Theft Tax Fraud SchemeRead the Press Release
Wifredo A. Ferrer, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Florida, Donnell Young, Acting Special Agent in Charge, Internal Revenue Service, Criminal Investigation (IRS-CI), Paula Reid, Special Agent in Charge, U.S. Secret Service (USSS), and J. Scott Dennis, Chief, North Miami Beach Police Department, announce that Dines Blanc, 24, of North Miami Beach, was sentenced before U.S. District Judge K. Michael Moore to 42 months in prison, followed by one year of supervised release.
Blanc previously 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).
According to court documents, law enforcement executed a search warrant at the residence where Blanc lived and found handwritten lists of names, dates of birth, and social security numbers of other individuals; applications to a staffing agency, including W-4s, 1-9, and resumes; medical information sheets; and approximately 25 debit cards. In total, Blanc was in possession of 611 unique pieces of personal identifying information (PII) of others. Fraudulent tax returns were filed on behalf of at least 16 individuals whose PII was found in Blanc’s residence. The loss amount is $305,500.
Mr. Ferrer commended the investigative efforts of IRS-CI, the USSS, and the North Miami Beach Police Department. This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Jamie Galvin.
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.
New Orleans Men Sentenced for Drug ConspiracyRead the Press Release
U.S. Attorney Kenneth Politc announced that JERRY SPENCER, JR., 29, MITCHELL LEE, 28, and TERRANCE TIMMONS, 33, all residents of New Orleans, were sentenced today for their roles in a conspiracy to distribute and possess with the intent to distribute a quantity of heroin and a quantity of cocaine base. U.S. District Judge Carl J. Barbier sentenced SPENCER, JR., LEE and TIMMONS to a term of imprisonment of 72 months, 78 months, and 60 months, respectively, followed by three years of supervised release for each. Another defendant, TROY ADAM, 50, also a resident of New Orleans, was sentenced to a three-year term of probation for his role in distributing a quantity of heroin. Defendant DEVIN TIMMONS is scheduled to be sentenced on October 2, 2014.
On May 15, 2014, SPENCER, LEE, TIMMONS, and ADAM pled guilty to various counts contained in the indictment which charged them with distribution and possession with intent to distribute heroin and cocaine base.
According to court documents, after more than a yearlong investigation and numerous controlled purchases of narcotics by various federal and state law enforcement agencies, agents of the Federal Bureau of Investigations (“FBI”) arrested SPENCER, JR., LEE, DEVIN TIMMONS, TERRANCE TIMMONS, and ADAM on charges of conspiring to violate the Federal Controlled Substances Act. The defendants’ drug trafficking activity occurred in an area of New Orleans referred to as the “horseshoe” or the “shoe” that includes McCoy Street, Across Street, and Darby Street, which are roadways situated in the shape of a horseshoe, off of Old Gentilly Road in eastern New Orleans.
This case was investigated by the FBI, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives, the Drug Enforcement Administration, and the New Orleans Police Department. It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Theodore Carter.
Native of Dominican Republic Charged with Illegal ReentryRead the Press Release
Fabio Rondon-Jose, a/k/a “Cesar Rodriguez,” a/k/a “Noel Rodriguez Mendoza,” 46, of Philadelphia, PA, was charged today by indictment with illegal reentry after deportation, announced United States Attorney Zane David Memeger. The indictment alleges that on or about August 21, 2014, Rondon-Jose, an alien, and native and citizen of the Dominican Republic, was found in the United States after having been deported from the United States on or about November 30, 2005.
If convicted the defendant faces a maximum possible sentence of twenty years.
The case was investigated by Immigration and Customs Enforcement, Enforcement and Removal Operations (“ERO”), and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Matthew J.D. Hogan.
An Indictment is an accusation. A defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
Click here to view the indictment.
UNITED STATES ATTORNEY'S OFFICE, EASTERN DISTRICTof PENNSYLVANIA
Suite 1250, 615 Chestnut Street, Philadelphia, PA 19106
PATTY HARTMAN, Media Contact, 215-861-8525Mother and Daughter Plead Guilty in Student Aid Fraud InvestigationRead the Press Release
RICHMOND, Va. – Donnica Crossland, of Washington, D.C., pleaded guilty today to making false statements to federal agents in connection with an investigation of student aid fraud. Her daughter, Jamanda Crossland, pleaded guilty today to making false statements on student financial aid applications.
Dana J. Boente, United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia;and Mark A. Smith, Special Agent in Charge of the Technology Crimes Division of the Department of Education Inspector General’s Office, made the announcement after the pleas were accepted by United States District Judge Henry Hudson.Donnica and Jamanda Crossland each face a maximum penalty of 5 years in prison, a fine of up to $250,000, and full restitution when they are each sentenced on December 12, 2014, by United States District Judge Henry Hudson.
In separate statements of fact filed by each defendant with their written plea agreements, Donnica and Jamanda Crossland admitted that Jamanda Crossland attended Virginia Commonwealth University (VCU), in Richmond, Virginia, as a student from 2009 to 2013. Between 2009 and 2013, Jamanda Crossland was awarded $69,788 in U.S. Federal Education grants or loans, and $43,400 in tuition grants from the D.C. Office of the State Superintendent of Education, Government of the District of Columbia (“OSSE”) that were used to pay costs associated with attending VCU. For each year Jamanda Crossland attended VCU between 2008 and 2013, she filed a Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) with the U.S. Department of Education and reported her mother Donnica Crossland had no income. During that same period, Jamanda Crossland filed applications for education grants with the D.C. OSSE, and in those applications stated her mother Donnica Crossland was not employed and received no income. Jamanda Crossland also submitted a Federal Student Aid Verification worksheet containing false information to VCU and provided additional false documents in support of the worksheet, including: fraudulent copies of Form 1040 for her father, a forged letter from her father regarding his marital status, and a fake utility bill with a false address for her mother.
To facilitate her daughter Jamanda Crossland obtaining the OSSE grants for use at VCU, and another daughter obtaining the OSSE grants for use at a North Carolina college, on five separate occasions Donnica Crossland affirmed and signed these OSSE applications falsely stating that she was not employed and received no income, which were then submitted to the OSSE. In fact, for each year during the period from December 2006 through December 2012, Donnica Crossland had a substantial income from employment at the U.S. Department of Transportation (“USDOT”), earning a total of $521,819 from her employment at the USDOT for that time period.
In 2013, the U.S. Department of Education’s Office of the Inspector General commenced an investigation of the Crossland aid applications and supporting documents. On July 30, 2013, Department of Education Inspector General agents interviewed Donnica Crossland. During the interview, attempting to conceal her involvement, Donnica Crossland knowingly and falsely stated that she had filled out some of Jamanda Crossland’s paperwork during the summer prior to her first year of college, but she had nothing to do with their financial aid applications thereafter.
On November 7, 2013, Department of Education Inspector General agents again interviewed Donnica Crossland. During the interview, attempting to conceal her involvement, Donnica Crossland knowingly and falsely stated that she had no knowledge of any of the financial assistance applications submitted by Jasmine Crossland and Jamanda Crossland after 2007.For restitution and sentencing purposes, Donnica and Jamanda Crossland stipulated that the loss amount resulting from their false statements and filings is $78,688.00.
This case was investigated by the U.S. Department of Education’s Office of the Inspector General. Assistant U.S. Attorney S. David Schiller is prosecuting the case on behalf of the United States.
A copy of this press release may be found on the website of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Virginia. Related court documents and information may be found on the website of the District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia or on PACER by searching for Case Nos. 3:14-cr-115 and 116.Montana U.S. Attorney Tapped to Advise Attorney GeneralRead the Press Release
Attorney General Eric Holder has selected Mike Cotter, Montana's United States Attorney, to serve on the Attorney General's Advisory Committee (AGAC). The Committee consists of 20 of the 93 United States Attorneys selected by the Attorney General to represent the interests of their judicial district. The Advisory Committee gives United States Attorneys a voice in Department policies and advises the Attorney General of the United States.
In advising the Attorney General, the Committee conducts studies and makes recommendations to improve management of United States Attorney operations and the relationship between the Department and its federal prosecutors and civil lawyers. It also helps formulate new programs for improvement of the criminal justice system and the delivery of legal services at all levels.
The Attorney General selected Cotter and U.S. Attorney Barry Grissom of Kansas to fill openings on the AGAC. "It's a pleasure to welcome Mike Cotter and Barry Grissom as the two newest members of the Attorney General's Advisory Committee, a group of U.S. Attorneys with whom I regularly consult on some of the most significant law enforcement and public safety issues facing our nation," said Attorney General Holder. "I'm grateful for their service and leadership. I look forward to working closely with the entire AGAC as we all work together to protect and ensure justice for the American people."
It is a privilege and an honor to serve on the AGAC, but more than that it is a great opportunity for Montana and her law enforcement community," said Montana U.S. Attorney Mike Cotter, "The issues we confront in the Rocky Mountain West-such as federal land and resource management, service to Indian communities, and addressing public safety concerns related to the oil boom in Northeast Montana-are unique. I am thankful for the opportunity to bring Montana's concerns to the AGAC."
Middlesex County, N.J., Couple Charged with Running Prostitution Business Which Employed Undocumented AliensRead the Press Release
NEWARK, N.J. - A New Brunswick, New Jersey, couple was arrested today and charged with harboring undocumented aliens to serve as prostitutes in a string of at least eight brothels scattered across the state, U.S. Attorney Paul J. Fishman announced.
Juan Fredy Hernandez-Zozaya, 36, and his wife, Elizabeth Rojas Rojas, 33, are charged by complaint with one count of harboring aliens for the purpose of prostitution, one count of harboring aliens for the purpose of financial gain and conspiracy to commit those offenses. The defendants are scheduled to make their initial court appearances this afternoon before U.S. Magistrate Judge Mark Falk in Newark federal Court.
According to the documents filed in this case and statements made in court: Since at least 2012, law enforcement has been investigating Hernandez-Zozaya and Rojas in connection with a chain of brothels in towns including New Brunswick, Trenton, Orange, Lakewood, Asbury Park and Bridgeton, New Jersey. The brothels were typically located in private residences, and undocumented aliens were employed as prostitutes.
Hernandez-Zozaya and Rojas were allegedly the leaders of the organization. Hernandez-Zozaya hired, fired and oversaw individuals who managed the daily activities at the brothels. Rojas organized, directed and scheduled prostitutes. The couple also employed and relied on a string of conspirators to help manage the brothels. The investigation revealed that the prostitutes sometimes traveled across state lines to work and that Hernandez-Zozaya and Rojas both collected the proceeds from the prostitution activities.
Both of the harboring counts with which the defendants are charged carry a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison. The conspiracy count carries a maximum penalty of five years in prison.
U.S. Attorney Fishman credited special agents of Immigration and Customs Enforcement, Homeland Security Investigations, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Andrew M. McLees, with the investigation leading to the charges.
The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorney Sharon Ashe of the office’s Narcotics Unit in Newark.
The charges and allegations contained in the complaint are merely accusations and the defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
14-330Hernandez-Zozaya, Juan Fredy and Rojas, Elizabeth Rojas Complaint
Mexican National Sentenced for Drug Trafficking and Possession of A Firearm in Furtherance of A Drug Trafficking CrimeRead the Press Release
BOISE –Jose Luis Rodriguez-Nava, 26, a Mexican National, was sentenced to 84 months in prison for possession of methamphetamine with intent to distribute, and possession of a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime, U.S. Attorney Wendy J. Olson announced. Chief U.S. District Judge B. Lynn Winmill also ordered Rodriguez-Nava to serve three years of supervised release following his release from prison. It is anticipated that he will be deported following his release from prison.
According to court documents, a vehicle in which Rodriguez-Nava was a passenger was stopped for a traffic violation in Twin Falls, Idaho. He was found to be in possession of approximately 48 grams of methamphetamine and a loaded handgun. Rodriquez-Nava admitted ownership of the firearm and admitted to selling methamphetamine. He was determined to be an illegal alien living unlawfully in the Magic Valley.
The case was investigated by Twin Falls County Sheriff’s Office, as well as federal agents of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms and Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
Memphis Truck Driver Sentenced for Stealing Cargo in West PlainsRead the Press Release
SPRINGFIELD, Mo. – Tammy Dickinson, United States Attorney for the Western District of Missouri, announced that a Memphis, Tenn., truck driver was sentenced in federal court today for his role in a cargo theft scheme that included a theft in West Plains, Mo.
Michael Lee Sherley, 49, of Memphis, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Gary A. Fenner to four years and six months in federal prison without parole. The sentence includes a 33-month term for his conviction for theft of an interstate shipment, plus a 21-month term for the revocation of his supervised release in a prior unrelated federal conviction in the Western District of Tennessee.
Sherley, who pleaded guilty on March 19, 2014, was employed by Nu World Trucking, LLC, a Memphis company in the business of transporting goods in interstate commerce, from July 2012 until his arrest on May 12, 2013. Sherley’s uncle and co-defendant Earl Stanley Nunn, 59, also of Memphis, was the owner of Nu World Trucking.
Nunn and Sherley were part of a cargo theft ring that used the resources of Nu World Trucking to steal cargo in various states. They did so by “bob-tailing” (meaning they traveled in a road tractor truck, without a semi-trailer attached) through truck stops and service stations located on or near interstate highways, looking for semi-trailers that had been left parked and unattended, and were not coupled to road tractors. When they located a semi-trailer that appeared to be unattended, they would steal the semi-trailer and the goods it contained by coupling their road tractor truck to it and driving off. After having stolen a semi-trailer and its contents, they usually transported the stolen goods to the Chicago, Ill., and Detroit, Mich., areas to be “fenced” or sold.
Nunn, the leader of the conspiracy, pleaded guilty on July 14, 2014, and awaits sentencing.
The government believes that co-conspirators committed thefts in various states, including Arkansas, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Maryland, Michigan, Missouri, Nebraska, Ohio, Tennessee, Texas, and Virginia. Conspirators also included Nunn’s son, Roderick Nunn (who pleaded guilty in a related case in the Western District of Michigan), and others.
The specific charge to which both Nunn and Sherley pleaded guilty involves a theft that occurred on May 11, 2013, at the Snappy Mart Truck Stop in West Plains. Nunn and Sherley stole a 2000 Wabash trailer (valued at $7,500), which contained a load of Green Giant canned corn (valued at $73,008). The trailer, owned by Bryant Freight, LLC, was in transit from Minnesota to the Arkansas Food Bank in Little Rock, Ark. Nunn and Sherley admitted that they traveled through Missouri and Indiana with the stolen cargo before being apprehended in Michigan.
This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Steven M. Mohlhenrich. It was investigated by the FBI’s Memphis Cargo Theft Task Force, the U.S. Marshal’s Service, the West Plains, Mo., Police Department and the Michigan State Highway Patrol.Manhattan U.S. Attorney Settles Civil Fraud Claims Against Exporter for Fraudulently Obtaining A Loan Guaranteed by the Export-Import BankRead the Press Release
Preet Bharara, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, Michael McCarthy, the Acting Inspector General for the Export-Import Bank of the United States (“EX-IM”), and Fred Hochberg, the Chairman for EX-IM, announced today that the United States filed a civil fraud lawsuit in Manhattan federal court against HASAN BESNELI, a Turkish business agent, and SABA, INC. (“SABA”), an exporter based in Memphis, for fraudulently obtaining a loan for a construction project in Turkey from Deutsche Bank that was guaranteed by EX-IM. The United States’ complaint alleges that, in applying for the loan and the loan guarantee, BESNELI and SABA misrepresented key aspects of the transaction, including how much of the loan proceeds would be spent on “local costs” in Turkey rather than on U.S.-made goods, and whether the borrower, a Turkish non-profit organization, would furnish a 15% down payment. The lawsuit seeks civil penalties under the Financial Institutions Reform, Recovery, and Enforcement Act (“FIRREA”) and damages and penalties under the False Claims Act.
Simultaneous with the filing of the lawsuit, the United States settled the claims against SABA pursuant to a settlement stipulation approved today by U.S. District Judge John F. Keenan. In the settlement, SABA admitted and accepted responsibility for submitting information to EX-IM in connection with applying for the loan guarantee without verifying the truth or accuracy of such information and for marking up the costs of certain goods – by as much as 300% – for purposes of generating “cash money.” SABA also agreed to pay $3.5 million and to abstain from participating in any EX-IM loan or loan guarantee programs for seven years. The lawsuit is going forward against BESNELI.
Manhattan U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara said: “The Export-Import Bank is charged with promoting export of U.S.-made goods. It is absolutely unacceptable for exporters and business agents to undermine that mission by misrepresenting how proceeds from loans guaranteed by EX-IM will be used.”
EX-IM Acting Inspector General Michael McCarthy said: “This case shows our commitment to vigorously pursue persons and businesses who scheme to defraud the EX-IM Bank. The OIG appreciates the tenacity of the Southern District of New York in this lengthy and complex investigation.”
EX-IM Chairman Fred Hochberg said: “We take very seriously our commitment to taxpayers and our mission to support U.S. jobs. This should serve notice to any outside entity that tries to defraud the Export-Import Bank, we have zero tolerance for waste, fraud and abuse, and we are constantly analyzing transactions for such activity and will work with our Inspector General to take immediate action in response to any evidence of fraud in EX-IM Bank transactions.”
According to the allegations in the complaint filed in Manhattan federal court:
In 2002, BESNELI and SABA began working together to bid on contracts involving export of U.S. goods to be used in construction projects in Turkey. One of those projects involved TC Basbakani Baskanliginda Darussafaka Cemiyeti (“Darussafaka”), a Turkish non-profit organization, which planned to develop a retirement home complex in Urla. To ensure that they would be picked as the exporter for the Urla project, BESNELI and SABA promised Darussafaka that they would obtain an EX-IM-guaranteed loan to finance that project.
BESNELI and SABA made that promise even though they knew that Darussafaka did not plan to comply with EX-IM’s loan guarantee requirements, including a 15% down payment by the borrower, i.e., Darussafaka, and capping “local costs” at 15%. To circumvent those requirements, BESNELI and SABA made misrepresentations to EX-IM and to Deutsche Bank, the lender, regarding how much of the loan funds would be spent on local costs and whether Darussafaka would furnish a down payment. Further, after BESNELI and SABA fraudulently obtained the loan from Deutsche Bank under an EX-IM loan guarantee, they orchestrated a scheme whereby SABA marked up the costs of the U.S.-made goods being exported to Turkey – sometimes by as much as 300% – in order to generate “cash money” that they funneled back to Darussafaka to fund local costs.
Finally, in 2007, Darussafaka defaulted on the loan from Deutsche Bank that was guaranteed by EX-IM. Pursuant to its loan guarantee, EX-IM reimbursed Deutsche Bank and, as a result, was exposed to millions of dollars in potential losses.
The claims against BESNELI were not resolved by the SABA settlement and will go forward. The Government seeks civil penalties against BESNELI for fraudulently obtaining the loan extended by Deutsche Bank, a federally insured financial institution.
Mr. Bharara thanked the EX-IM’s Office of the Inspector General for its investigative efforts and ongoing support and assistance with the case.
The case is being handled by the Office’s Civil Frauds Unit. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Cristine Irvin Phillips, Li Yu, and Ellen M. London are in charge of the case. This case was investigated by the EX-IM OIG in Washington, D.C.
U.S. v. Besneli and SABA Stip of Settlement
U.S. v. Besneli and SABA Civil ComplaintLockport Husband and Wife Plead Guilty to Conspiracy to Manufacture MethamphetamineRead the Press Release
ROCHESTER, N.Y. U.S. Attorney William J. Hochul, Jr. announced today that Thomas W. McCabe, 37, and Leah McCabe, 35, of Lockport NY, pleaded guilty before U.S. District Court Chief Judge William M. Skretny today to conspiracy to manufacture methamphetamine. The charge carries a mandatory minimum penalty of five years in prison, a maximum of 40 years, a $5,000,000 fine, or both.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Mary Catherine Baumgarten, who is handling the case, stated that between December 2013 and May 22, 2014, Thomas McCabe conspired with others, including Leah McCabe, to manufacture methamphetamine, a Schedule I controlled substance. On December 6, 2013, law enforcement officers responded to 4890 Saunders Settlement Road in Lockport after receiving a report that there was a clandestine methamphetamine lab in the basement of the residence. Leah McCabe gave consent to search the premises, and in the basement, officers observed a clear, plastic bag containing a clear liquid clamped to the outside of a dresser drawer, a can of drain cleaner, a can of Coleman fuel, and a gas generator, which are used in manufacturing methamphetamine. Officers seized a plate containing a credit card, a razor blade and a white, powdery substance. A field-test of the white powder was positive for methamphetamine. State charges were filed at that time against Thomas McCabe and subsequently against Leah McCabe.
On May 22, 2014, law enforcement officers went to the McCabe residence at 51 Ritchie Avenue Tonawanda, NY, to execute arrest warrants for the couple who failed to appear in court with on the state charges. On that date, officers observed a plastic bag containing what appeared to be methamphetamine oil. During a security sweep of the residence, they observed a plate and credit card which contained a white powdery substance. Thomas McCabe and Leah McCabe were removed from the residence due to safety concerns, and were taken into custody.
During another search, officers discovered materials and equipment used to manufacture methamphetamine, including Coleman fuel, empty pseudoephedrine blister packs, table salt, a plastic funnel, ammonium nitrate, several empty cold packs, sodium hydroxide, a hydrochloric acid gas generator, and a one-pot methamphetamine bottle. A field test of the residue on the plate and credit card was positive for methamphetamine. The substances seized were submitted to the Niagara County Sheriff’s Department Laboratory for analysis, which determined that there was more than two ounces of a mixture and substance containing methamphetamine seized from the McCabe residence.
The pleas are the culmination of an investigation by the Drug Enforcement Administration, under the direction of Acting Special Agent in Charge James J. hunt, the Niagara County Drug Task Force and the Niagara County Sheriff’s Department, both under the direction of Sheriff James Votour.
Sentencing is scheduled for January 14, 2015 at 2:00 before Judge Skretny.Local Paralegal Sentenced for Federal Fraud and False Statement ChargesRead the Press Release
St. Louis, MO – JILLIAN NICHOLS, a local paralegal, was sentenced to 15 months in prison on charges involving her attempt to defraud a law firm client by falsely representing that the prosecutor on the client’s criminal case had solicited a bribe. Nichols also lied to the FBI during their investigation of her illegal conduct.
According to court documents and statements made in court at the time of her guilty plea hearing, Nichols worked for a local law firm, assisting one of the firm’s attorneys on his legal cases. She had no formal legal training and was paid hourly. While she was working at the firm, she worked on the defense of a state felony criminal case pending in St. Louis County Circuit Court against a firm client. As part of her duties, she worked closely with the client in investigating and helping prepare his defense, often meeting with him, as well as speaking with him on the telephone and texting, outside the presence of the defense attorney. Nichols left the defense attorney’s firm in September 2013. After Nichols left the law firm she continued to meet with the client and discuss his criminal case with him. Between June and December 2013, Nichols engaged in a scheme to defraud the client by falsely telling him that the St. Louis County assistant prosecutor assigned to his case had solicited a bribe of $10,000 in order to give favorable consideration in his pending criminal case. Further, she falsely represented that she had favorable evidence “planted” on the client’s cell phone in order to support his defense. She also falsely represented that she had paid the forensic expert hired by the defense attorney to analyze his cell phone so that the expert would validate and verify the “planted” evidence. On November 15, 2013, in response to Nichols’ false statements about the $10,000, the client agreed to give her an initial $5,000 in cash for her to pay the bribe to the prosecutor, and then an additional $5,000 after the prosecutor gave him favorable consideration in his pending criminal case. In order to conceal the scheme, she told the client not to tell his defense attorney of their discussions about bribing the prosecutor or planting evidence on his cellular phone.During the FBI’s investigation of her fraud scheme, Nichols lied repeatedly to Special Agents about her involvement in the scheme when they interviewed her during December 2013.
Nichols, St. Louis, pled guilty July 1st to one count of wire fraud and one count of making false statements. She appeared today for sentencing before United States District Judge Rodney W. Sippel.
This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation-Public Corruption Task Force, including officers of the St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department. Assistant United States Attorney Hal Goldsmith handled the case for the U.S. Attorney's Office.
Local Doctor Indicted on Child Porn, Drug ChargesRead the Press Release
ROANOKE, VIRGINIA – A Federal grand jury sitting in the United States District Court for the Western District of Virginia in Roanoke has charged a local doctor with federal drug and child pornography charges.
In an indictment returned today, the grand jury has charged Steven Joseph Collins, age 51, of Roanoke County, Virginia, with one count of receipt of child pornography and two counts of distributing oxycodone by authorizing controlled substance prescription orders outside the usual course of professional practice.
According to the indictment, between July 2010 and July 2013, Collins received digital video and image files of a minor who had not obtained 12-years-of-age, engaged in sexual activity. In addition, the indictment alleges that on separate occasions, January 7, 2014 and April 2, 2014, Collins, in his role as a medical doctor, authorized controlled substance prescription orders for oxycodone outside the usual course of professional practice.
The investigation of the case was conducted by the Tactical Diversion Squad (TDS) of the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) and the Department of Homeland Security. The local TDS is comprised of law enforcement officers from the Virginia State Police (VSP), Roanoke City Police Department, Montgomery County Sheriff’s Office, Bedford County Sheriff’s Office, Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General and DEA. Assistant United States Attorney Jennie Waering will prosecute the case for the United States.
Lincoln Man Receives 135 Months for Distributing Child PornographyRead the Press Release
United States Attorney Deborah R. Gilg announced that Ian B. Wait, 24, of Lincoln, Nebraska was sentenced for distributing child pornography. The Honorable Richard G. Kopf, Senior United States District Court Judge sentenced Wait to prison for 135 months. There is no parole in the federal prison system. After his release from prison Wait will begin a 15 year term of supervised release and be required to register as a sex offender.
Wait was brought to the attention of law enforcement based on a tip from the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children. An Internet Service Provider reported a user was observed displaying an image of child pornography during a webcam session. The Internet Protocol address of that user was provided to the Nebraska State Patrol. The address was traced to Wait’s residence in Lincoln, Nebraska.
On September 11, 2013, Wait admitted to an Investigator with the Nebraska State Patrol that he had used an internet service to distribute and receive child pornography. He admitted to exchanging texts with an individual representing himself as a ten year old girl. The communications resulted in Wait’s receipt of a sexually explicit photo of a ten year old girl. Wait consented to a search of his computer. A total of 867 images of child pornography were found on the computer.
United States Attorney Deborah R. Gilg expressed her appreciation to the Nebraska State Patrol for their investigation of this case. The case was prosecuted under the Department of Justice’s Project Safe Childhood initiative. Project Safe Childhood is a nationwide initiative to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice. Led by United States Attorneys' Offices and the Criminal Division's Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS), Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state and local resources to better locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the Internet, as well as to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.projectsafechildhood.gov.
Levy County Man Sentenced for Burglary and Theft of FirearmsRead the Press Release
Follow @NDFLNewsGAINESVILLE, FLORIDA –Senior U.S. District Court Judge Roger Vinson sentenced Joshua Sipe, 30, of Newberry, Florida, to a mandatory minimum term of 15 years as an Armed Career Criminal in federal court in Gainesville yesterday. The sentence imposed by the court was announced by Pamela C. Marsh, United States Attorney for the Northern District of Florida.
On June 23, 2013, Sipe burglarized Cash Munny Pawn, in Chiefland, Florida, by breaking through the roof of the business and stealing 17 firearms. Through an investigation conducted by agents with the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, Gilchrist County Sheriff’s Office, and the Chiefland Police Department, Sipe and others were arrested. Sipe entered a guilty plea to the theft of the firearms and possession of the firearms by a felon. On the possession count, Sipe qualified as an Armed Career Criminal due to his criminal history and received the mandatory 15 year minimum. Sipe also received a concurrent sentence of five years for the theft.
U.S. Attorney Marsh praised the work of the law enforcement agencies whose investigation led to the convictions in this case.
Law Enforcement Team Receives ADL SHIELD Award for Prosecuting Leaders of Jihadist WebsitesRead the Press Release
ALEXANDRIA, Va. – Federal prosecutors and members of law enforcement were honored yesterday with the Anti-Defamation League’s SHIELD Award for their role in the investigation and prosecution of three men who conspired to use the “Revolution Muslim” websites as a platform to solicit murder and promote violent extremism.
Dana J. Boente, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia, accepted the award on behalf of the U.S. Attorney’s Office, and he was joined at the ceremony by Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Mary McCord of the Justice Department’s National Security Division; Andrew G. McCabe, Assistant Director in Charge of the FBI’s Washington Field Office; and Sergeant Kevin Branzetti of the New York City Police Department’s (NYPD) Intelligence Bureau.
According to court records, Jesse C. Morton and Yousef Mohamid Al-Khattab founded the Revolution Muslim websites in 2007 to encourage followers to terrorize perceived enemies of Islam. Zachary A. Chesser, formerly of Fairfax, Virginia, joined Revolution Muslim in 2010 as a site administrator.
Morton, Chesser, al-Khattab and their associates used the organization’s Internet platforms to encourage adherents to support Usama bin Laden, Anwar Awlaki, al-Qaeda, the Taliban and others engaged in or espousing jihad. In spring 2010, Morton and Chesser used Revolution Muslim’s online forums to solicit the murder of the South Park television show’s writers and a Seattle, Washington cartoonist for an alleged insult to Islam. Chesser also used Revolution Muslim to promote what he called “Open Source Jihad” by posting information on the manufacture and use of explosives against civilians, law enforcement authorities and U.S. military forces at home and abroad.
In 2011, Chesser pleaded guilty to soliciting murder and attempting to support Al-Shabaab, a designated foreign terrorist group based in Somalia, and he was sentenced to 25 years in prison on Feb. 24, 2011. In 2012, Morton pleaded guilty to soliciting murder, and he was sentenced to nearly 12 years (138 months) in prison on June 22, 2012. In 2013, Al-Khattab pleaded guilty to using the Internet to place others in fear of serious bodily injury or death, and he was sentenced to 30 months in prison on April 25, 2014.
The cases were prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Gordon D. Kromberg, Thomas H. McQuillan, Tracy McCormick, Karen L. Dunn, and Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Allison Ickovic, with the assistance of Management Analyst Loraine McNeill of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Virginia; and Trial Attorneys John T. Gibbs and Mazen Basrawi from the Justice Department’s National Security Division and Civil Rights Division, respectively.
According to a media advisory issued by the Anti-Defamation League, the SHIELD Awards were created to honor law enforcement for “major achievements in the fight against hate crimes, domestic and international terrorism, and for protecting civil rights. . . . The award’s name reflects law enforcement’s role as protectors, and is also an acronym for the core values of the profession: Service, Honor, Integrity, Excellence, Leadership, and Dedication.”
A copy of this press release may be found on the website of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Virginia. Related court documents and information may be found on the website of the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia or on PACER by searching for Case No. 1:10-cr-395 (Chesser), 1:12-cr-35 (Morton), and 1:13-cr-418 (Al-Khattab).
Justice Department Announces National Effort to Build Trust Between Law Enforcement and the Communities They ServeRead the Press Release
Attorney General Eric Holder announced today the launch of the Justice Department’s National Initiative for Building Community Trust and Justice. Funded through a $4.75 million grant, the initiative will create a substantial investment in training, evidence-based strategies, policy development and research to combat distrust and hostility between law enforcement and the communities they serve. Recent protests in Ferguson, Missouri, following an officer-involved shooting have brought national attention to the importance of strong police-community relationships, which has been a priority for the Justice Department under Attorney General Holder.
“The events in Ferguson reminded us that we cannot allow tensions, which are present in so many neighborhoods across America, to go unresolved,” said Attorney General Holder. “As law enforcement leaders, each of us has an essential obligation – and a unique opportunity – to ensure fairness, eliminate bias, and build community engagement. The National Initiative for Building Community Trust and Justice represents a major step forward in resolving long standing tensions in many of America’s communities and it will allow us to build on the pioneering work that the Justice Department and our law enforcement partners across the country are already doing to strengthen some of our nation’s most challenged areas.”
The initiative, which will be an ongoing partnership with the Justice Department, will provide training to law enforcement and communities on bias reduction and procedural fairness and will apply evidence-based strategies in five pilot sites around the country. It will also establish a clearinghouse where information, research, and technical assistance are readily accessible for law enforcement, criminal justice practitioners and community leaders.
The three year grant has been awarded to a consortium of national law enforcement experts led by John Jay College of Criminal Justice. Yale Law School, the Center for Policing Equity at UCLA and the Urban institute make up the rest of the consortium. The initiative will be guided by a board of advisors which will include national leaders from law enforcement, academia and faith-based groups, as well as community stakeholders and civil rights advocates.
In a holistic approach, the initiative will simultaneously address the tenets of procedural justice, reducing implicit bias and facilitating racial reconciliation. The initiative will compliment and be advised by other Justice Department components such as the Office of Justice Programs, the Office of Community Oriented Policing Services, the Civil Rights Division and the Community Relations Service.
This Initiative addresses a recommendation in the My Brother’s Keeper Task Force report released in May. The Task Force recommended the Department of Justice establish a vehicle to build capacity in communities and build the evidence base around enhancing procedural justice, reducing bias and supporting reconciliation in communities where trust has been harmed.
Jefferson County Man Sentenced for Drug Trafficking ViolationsRead the Press Release
Department of Justice
Office of Public AffairsBEAUMONT, Texas – A 26-year-old Port Arthur, Texas man has been sentenced to federal prison for drug trafficking violations in the Eastern District of Texas, announced U.S. Attorney John M. Bales today.
Michael Joseph Barrett IV pleaded guilty on Feb. 11, 2014, to possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine and was sentenced to 51 months in federal prison today by U.S. District Judge Marcia Crone.
According to information presented in court, on Feb. 19, 2013, law enforcement officers responded to a residence on 32nd Street in Port Arthur after receiving information regarding suspected manufacture of methamphetamine at the location. Consent to search was obtained and a search of the premises revealed a small amount of cocaine, a semi-automatic pistol, and various items associated with methamphetamine manufacture, including a three liter bottle containing a methamphetamine mixture. A federal grand jury returned an indictment on Dec. 4, 2013, charging Barrett with drug trafficking violations.
This case was investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration, the Port Arthur Police Department and the Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office Crime Lab and prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Randall L. Fluke.
Jacksonville Tax Return Preparer Pleads Guilty to Wire FraudRead the Press Release
Jacksonville, Florida – United States Attorney A. Lee Bentley, III announces that Thomas Bandzul (71, Jacksonville) has pleaded guilty to wire fraud. He faces a maximum penalty of 20 years in federal prison. His sentencing hearing has been scheduled for January 13, 2015, before Senior United States District Judge Henry Lee Adams, Jr. Bandzul was indicted on January 30, 2014.
According to court documents, from January 2008 through May 2011, Bandzul was a tax return preparer in Duval and St. Johns counties. He knowingly and willfully made false claims for deductions and credits on 32 tax returns on behalf of his clients, which resulted in additional tax refunds from the IRS. As part of the scheme to defraud, Bandzul would prepare and furnish to his taxpayer client one version of a tax return. He would then make false and fraudulent claims on a separate tax return and electronically file it with the IRS. Bandzul prearranged with his clients to be paid a specified fee out of their anticipated tax refunds. In many cases, Bandzul caused the additional higher tax refunds to be paid to him without his clients’ knowledge or consent. Additionally, Bandzul committed tax fraud on his individual federal tax returns for 2008 and 2009.
The case was investigated by the Internal Revenue Service - Criminal Investigation. It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Dale R. Campion.
Investigative Team from WDVA Receive ADL SHIELD Award for Local ProsecutionRead the Press Release
ABINGDON, VIRGINIA – United States Attorney Timothy J. Heaphy announced today that the Anti-Defamation League [ADL] has awarded a local team of prosecutors and investigators with the group’s 2014 SHIELD Award. SHIELD stands for Service, Honor, Integrity, Excellence, Leadership and Dedication.
Assistant United States Attorney Zachary Lee of the United States Attorney’s Office for the Western District of Virginia, FBI Special Agent Timothy Burke of the Richmond Division and FBI Special Agent Stanley Slater of the Atlanta Division were presented with their awards during a September 17 ceremony in Washington D.C. The three were presented the award for the investigation and prosecution of Michael Lee Fullmore.
“The Fullmore prosecution was yet another example of the strong level of interagency cooperation we enjoy in Southwest Virginia,” United States Attorney Heaphy said today. “We are pleased and grateful that the Anti-Defamation League recognized that coordination and the extraordinary efforts of AUSA Lee and the agents who pursued this case.”
Fullmore, a member of the Georgia Knights of the Ku Klux Klan, was sentenced to 52 months of federal incarceration following pleading guilty to two counts of providing firearms to a convicted felon. According to information presented in court by AUSA Lee, Fullmore began taking steps to establish a more violent and radical sub-group of the KKK, which he intended would commit violent crimes against minorities. Fullmore believed the new KKK sub-group could be supported by selling firearms to convicted felons and militia groups.
On numerous occasions, Fullmore sold firearms, including an AR-15 assault rifle and an AK-47 assault rifle with an obliterated serial number, to a convicted felon in Georgia and Virginia who was working with the FBI as a confidential informant.
At the ceremony the ADL honored law enforcement heroes who have protected the nation and communities from hate crimes and terrorist threats. The SHIELD award was created in 2010 to annually honor law enforcement for major successes in the fight against hate crimes and domestic and international terrorism. The Award’s name reflects law enforcement’s role as protectors, and is also an acronym for the core values of the profession: Service, Honor, Integrity, Excellence, Leadership, and Dedication.
AUSA Zachary Lee, along with FBI SAs Tim Burke (far left) and Stan Slater, were recently awarded the Anti-Defamation League's 2014 SHIELD Award.
Indiana Manufacturer Pleads Guilty to Clean Air Act False Statement ViolationsRead the Press Release
Calumite Company LLC (Calumite), a manufacturer of an additive used in the production of glass, entered a plea of guilty today in U.S. District Court in Hammond, Indiana, to two Clean Air Act false statement violations. The company has agreed to pay a $325,000 fine, serve a two-year term of probation, and implement an environmental compliance plan that includes an annual environmental compliance training program. Sentencing will be scheduled for a later date.
Calumite, located near the shores of Lake Michigan in Portage, Indiana, manufactures and sells a powdery substance of the same name to various glass manufacturers. The company collects slag, a waste product of the steel industry, dries it in a hot gas oven, crushes it into a fine powder, and then ships it off-site to glass manufacturers, who use it as an additive to lower the temperature at which glass can be produced.
Calumite's Portage facility was subject to a Title V Clean Air Act Operating Permit issued by the Indiana Department of Environmental Management (IDEM). Among other things, the permit required that Calumite operate, maintain, and monitor several “baghouses” on-site that are used to control and minimize emissions of a fine particulate. One of the baghouses, known as the loadout baghouse, was used to collect emissions of particulate that occurred during the loading of product onto tractor trailers and rail cars for shipment to customers.
A differential pressure gauge (DP gauge) attached to each baghouse continuously monitored and measured the efficiency and effectiveness of the baghouses and helped to determine whether they were operating properly. Calumite’s permit required that DP gauges on the baghouses be read daily, while the baghouses were operating, and that the results be recorded on daily maintenance log sheets. The company also was required to submit quarterly reports to IDEM that stated whether the company was in compliance with permit requirements.
From Dec. 5, 2008, through late July 2009, the company did not maintain the loadout baghouse in operating condition and the DP gauge was broken. Nevertheless, during this same time period, employees continued to load tractor trailers and rail cars with product for shipment off-site. Calumite employees knowingly continued to routinely fill out daily logs that falsely reflected DP gauge monitoring readings that were within the range allowed by the permit, and caused false information to be submitted to IDEM in the company’s quarterly reports.
The Clean Air Act makes it a crime to knowing make a material false statement or omit material information from a document that is required to be filed or maintained under the statute. Both the daily maintenance logs and the quarterly reports were required by Calumite’s permit and the Clean Air Act.
The case was investigated by the Northern District of Indiana Environmental Crimes Task Force, including agents from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s Criminal Investigation Division. The case was prosecuted by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Indiana and the Environmental Crimes Section of the Justice Department’s Environment and Natural Resources Division.
Four Defendants in Custody for Allegedly Making Credit Cards with ‘Skimmed’ Information in Schemes That Cost Banks at Least $2 MillionRead the Press Release
LOS ANGELES – Four men were taken into custody this morning on federal charges related to alleged schemes involving the use of “skimming devices” to steal credit card data and using that data to manufacture and sell fraudulent credit cards.
The four were arrested pursuant to federal indictments returned late last month by a federal grand jury in Los Angeles. The two schemes involve stolen information from more than 10,000 accounts and more than $2 million in losses. Two federal indictments charge a total of five defendants.
Among those arrested this morning are three named in a 13-count indictment:
Armen Bislamian, 32, of Van Nuys;
Khachatur Bislamyan, 31, of Pasadena; and
Sisak Saribekyan, 28, of West Covina.
The second indictment, which alleges four counts, names:
Karlen Khatchatryan, 30, of Sherman Oaks, who self-surrendered this morning; and
Hartunyun Grigoryan, 34, of North Hollywood, who has agreed to surrender to authorities tomorrow.
Both indictments allege conspiracies to commit bank fraud, possession of counterfeit and unauthorized access devices, illegal possession of device-making equipment, and aggravated identity theft.The first indictment outlines how Bislamian, Bislamyan and Saribekyan allegedly conspired to steal account information from unsuspecting customers and created fake credit cards with the stolen account information. According to the indictment, Bislamian manufactured and obtained “skimming devices” designed to intercept data from credit and debit cards that were swiped by unsuspecting customers at point-of-sale terminals. Law enforcement authorities found the skimming devices installed at gas pumps in Irvine, Encinitas and San Diego. The indictment further alleges that Bislamian and Bislamyan stored stolen account information at their homes and at a facility dedicated to manufacturing fraudulent credit cards. The bogus cards were made through a process called “re-encoding” – in which stolen account information is placed on the magnetic strip on the back of a plastic card. As alleged in the indictment, Bislamyan and Saribekyan sold and used fraudulent cards re-encoded with stolen account information.
The second indictment alleges that Khatchatryan and Grigoryan operated a re-encoding facility in Los Angeles where they used stolen account information to make fraudulent credit cards. Law enforcement found this re-encoding facility at a liquor distributor in Los Angeles.
Bislamian, Bislamyan and Saribekyan are expected to be arraigned on the indictment this afternoon at 2:00 in United States District Court in downtown Los Angeles.
Khatchatryan and Grigoryan are expected to be arraigned tomorrow afternoon.
The conspiracy charges alleged in the indictments each carry a statutory maximum penalty of 30 years in federal prison. The charge of aggravated identity theft carries a mandatory consecutive two-year prison term.
An indictment contains allegations that a defendant has committed a crime. Every defendant is presumed to be innocent until proven guilty in court.
This case is the result of an investigation by the United States Postal Inspection Service, the Glendale Police Department, San Diego County District Attorney’s Office Investigators, the San Diego Police Department, the San Diego Sheriff’s Department, the Irvine Police Department, the Westminster Police Department, the United States Secret Service, the United States Postal Service – Office of Inspector General; the General Services Administration, the United States Marshals Service, the Los Angeles Joint Regional Intelligence Center, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigation, and the Los Angeles Police Department.
Release No. 14-121
Founder of Burnsville-based Company Indicted for Multi-year Investment Fraud SchemeRead the Press Release
United States Attorney Andrew M. Luger today announced the indictment of BRYAN REICHEL, 59, founder and former principal shareholder of PureChoice, Inc. (PureChoice), on seven counts of Wire Fraud. REICHEL is charged with stealing more than $2.5 million in investment funds and loans from a variety of investors by lying about the intended use of the funds and failing to disclose the true status of the company’s products.
“Protecting the citizens of Minnesota from financial predators is one of my top priorities,” said U.S. Attorney Luger. “This office will continue working diligently to ensure that criminals who engage in investment fraud are held responsible for their actions.”
According to documents filed in court, from April 2007 until November 2009, REICHEL solicited investments and loans to PureChoice, a Burnsville-based company that sold air quality monitors. During the indicted period, REICHEL stole money from investors, primarily Victim A, by lying about the success of the company and not telling investors that PureChoice’s main product did not comply with federal regulations.
According to the indictment, in 2007, REICHEL sold Victim A $600,000 worth of PureChoice stock, falsely representing that the funds would be used for manufacturing and operational expenses. Instead, REICHEL used the funds to purchase stock in other companies and pay personal credit card debt.
According to the indictment, in May 2008 and July 2008, REICHEL asked Victim A to provide PureChoice with loans in the amount of $800,000 and $200,000, respectively, stating that the funds were needed to “bridge the gap” until the next round of funding was complete. Again, REICHEL used the majority of the funds for personal use, including the purchase of stock in other companies and paying off thousands of dollars in credit card debt.
As part of the scheme, REICHEL sent a sales and marketing update to PureChoice investors and prospective investors in which he allegedly lied about the company’s corporate agreement with 3M. In the update, REICHEL stated that PureChoice was “currently working to expand [its] existing relationship” with 3M, when, in reality, REICHEL had received notice from 3M of its intent to allow its agreements with PureChoice to expire. REICHEL also sent investors a company update that included a Government Services Administration publication that had been altered to appear as if it specifically referred to PureChoice and its products.
According to the indictment, in September 2009, REICHEL asked two victims to provide a $1.5 million loan to PureChoice to purchase manufacturing materials so the company could meet projected sales and hire additional staff. In order to secure the loan, REICHEL again misrepresented the company’s relationship with 3M and expressly stated that the funds would be used to purchase products from suppliers. Over the course of four transactions, REICHEL obtained a $1.5 million loan from Victim A, of which a significant portion was used to pay off earlier investors in PureChoice.
This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Joseph H. Thompson and David J. MacLaughlin.
U.S. Attorney Luger thanked the United States Postal Inspection Service, Internal Revenue Service-Criminal Investigations, and Federal Bureau of Investigation for conducting the investigation.
Defendant Information: BRYAN REICHEL
Prior Lake, MN
Charges: • Wire Fraud, 7 countsThe charges contained in the indictment are merely accusations, and the defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.