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Wednesday 9 July 2014
District Court Enters Permanent Injunction Against Joint King Dietary Supplement Maker to Prevent Distribution of Adulterated SupplementsRead the Press Release
The Justice Department announced today that the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of New York has entered a consent decree of permanent injunction against Triceutical Inc. and its president, Liqun Zhang, of Farmingdale, New York, to prevent the distribution of adulterated dietary supplements.
According to a complaint filed last month, the defendants violated the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act (FDCA) by manufacturing and distributing dietary supplements that were adulterated. Under the FDCA, dietary supplement manufacturers are required to have systems in place to ensure that their products meet specifications for identity, purity, strength and composition. The government’s actions resulted from a series of inspections of Triceutical’s manufacturing facility in Farmingdale, which revealed, among other things, that Triceutical failed to ensure that components, dietary supplements, packaging and labels were not mixed up, contaminated or deteriorated.
In conjunction with the filing of the complaint, the defendants agreed to settle the litigation and be bound by a consent decree of permanent injunction that prohibits them from committing violations of the FDCA. The consent decree requires the dietary supplement manufacturer to cease all operations and requires that if the defendants wish to resume manufacturing dietary supplements in the future, the FDA first must determine that Triceutical’s manufacturing practices have come into compliance with the law. The consent decree was filed with the complaint in June and docketed yesterday.
Triceutical was the manufacturer of Joint King dietary supplement, which was found to contain high levels of Vitamin D. A consumer of Joint King experienced headache, confusion and kidney failure resulting in hospitalization due to Vitamin D toxicity.
The FDA referred this matter to the Department of Justice. The Consumer Protection Branch of the Justice Department’s Civil Division, together with the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of New York, filed this case on behalf of the United States.
Detroit Man Charged with Armed Robbery of Radio Shack StoresRead the Press Release
A federal grand jury in Detroit indicted a Detroit man on charges of robbing two Radio Shack stores at gun point, announced United States Attorney Barbara L. McQuade.
McQuade was joined in the announcement by Special Agent in Charge Paul M. Abbate, Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI).
Walter Smith, 19, was charged in an indictment with two counts of Robbery Affecting Interstate Commerce and two counts of Using or Carrying a Firearm During and in Relation to a Federal Crime of Violence. The charges stem from armed robberies of a Radio Shack store in Royal Oak on June 4 and in Royal Oak Township on June 30.
According to court documents, on June 4, 2014, Smith, while armed, entered the Radio Shack located at 29160 Woodward Avenue in Royal Oak, with two other men with pantyhose pulled over their faces, wearing hats and black hooded sweatshirts. The men duct taped the hands and eyes of two victim clerks and a store customer then departed the store with cell phones and cash from the register. On June 30, 2014, Smith, along with another male, entered the Radio Shack located at 8896 West 8 Mile Road in Royal Oak Township, lured an employee to the back of the store, placed a gun to the back of the employee and tied the employee’s hands while the other male suspects stole cell phones from the backroom.
If convicted of all charges, Smith faces a statutory mandatory minimum of thirty- two years in federal prison.
An indictment is only a charge and is not evidence of guilt. It will be the government’s burden to prove guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.
The case is being worked jointly by members of the FBI Oakland County Gang and Violent Crimes Task Force; the ATF, Michigan State Police and the Roseville, Sterling Heights, Madison Heights, and Royal Oak Police Departments. It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Jeanine Brunson.
Departments of Justice and Education Reach Settlement Agreement with Jefferson Parish Public School System Ensuring Equal Access and Non-Discrimination in SchoolsRead the Press Release
The Departments of Justice and Education announced today that they have reached a comprehensive agreement with the Jefferson Parish Public School System in Louisiana (JPPSS) to ensure that all students can enroll in school regardless of their own national origin or immigration status, or that of their parents or guardians. The agreement also resolves complaints regarding JPPSS’ policies and practices for communicating with parents who have limited English proficiency (LEP) and JPPSS’ response to alleged harassment of Latino students based on their national origin.
“This agreement will ensure that in Jefferson Parish, the doors to school and to opportunity will be open to all children, regardless of background,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General Jocelyn Samuels for the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division. “We commend the school district for working collaboratively to resolve this matter and for its commitment to making sure that its schools are welcoming and accessible to all students and parents.”
“We applaud Jefferson Parish for ensuring that all students will have access to their public schools and that all parents, regardless of the language they speak, are equipped with the information necessary for their children to fully participate in and benefit from their educational programs,” said Assistant Secretary Catherine E. Lhamon for the Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights. “We look forward to working with the Department of Justice and the school district to address these crucial civil rights issues.”
Specifically, under the terms of the three-year voluntary agreement, JPPSS will:
· revise enrollment and registration materials and policies before the beginning of the 2014-2015 school year to ensure they do not exclude or discourage students from enrolling based on citizenship or immigration status;
· ensure that parents and students are not asked to produce a social security number, social security card, state-issued identity document or other document that requires proof of citizenship or immigration status in order to enroll or graduate;
· annually train all employees responsible for student enrollment and registration on the revised policies;
· implement a translation and interpretation policy to ensure that LEP parents receive essential information in a language they understand;
· annually train all JPPSS personnel who interact with the public regarding effective communication with LEP parents and what types of information must be translated or interpreted;
· create a bilingual parent advisory committee to make recommendations to JPPSS regarding the educational program for English language learners, registration and enrollment policies, harassment and bullying and communications with LEP parents;
· revise its current policy and practices to ensure that all complaints of discrimination on the basis of race, color or national origin, including allegations of harassment on these bases, are appropriately investigated and resolved;
· provide anti-harassment, anti-bullying and diversity training for the faculty, staff and students of West Jefferson High School, where the alleged harassment and bullying occurred; and
· annually administer a school climate survey at West Jefferson High School to assess the presence of harassment and bullying on the basis of national origin, race and/or color.
The departments will closely monitor the implementation of the agreement to ensure timely and effective implementation and equal opportunity for all students to participate in JPPSS’ educational programs.
On May 8, 2014, the departments released newly-revised guidance documents reminding all school districts of their obligation under federal law to provide equal educational opportunities to all children residing in their districts, regardless of race, color, national origin, citizenship or immigration status or the status of their parents. A copy of the letter can be found on the Department of Education website.
The enforcement of Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which prohibits discrimination on the basis of race, color or national origin by recipients of federal financial assistance, is a top priority of both departments. The Justice Department also enforces Title IV of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which prohibits discrimination on the basis of race, color, national origin, sex and religion in public schools, and the Equal Educational Opportunities Act of 1974, which requires schools to take appropriate action to overcome language barriers that impede students’ equal participation in instructional programs.
A signed, PDF version of the agreement can be found online in both English and Spanish
The mission of the Office for Civil Rights (OCR) in the Department of Education is to ensure equal access to education and promote educational excellence throughout the nation through the vigorous enforcement of civil rights. OCR is responsible for enforcing federal civil rights laws that prohibit discrimination by educational institutions on the basis of disability, race, color, national origin, sex and age, as well as the Boy Scouts of America Equal Access Act of 2001. Additional information about the office is available at this website
Additional information about the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division, Educational Opportunities Section, is available at the section's website
Department of Justice Announces New Priorities to Address Surge of Migrants Crossing into the U.S.Read the Press Release
Deputy Attorney General James Cole announced today that the Justice Department will implement a series of steps to help address the influx of migrants crossing the southern border of the United States. These include refocusing immigration court resources to adjudicate the cases of recent migrants; providing support and training to help address violence in Central America; and redoubling efforts to work with other federal agencies and the Mexican government to investigate and prosecute those who smuggle migrants to the United States.
“Individuals who embark on the perilous journey from Central America to the United States are subject to violent crime, abuse, and extortion as they rely on dangerous human smuggling networks to transport them through Central America and Mexico,” Deputy Attorney General Cole said. “We have an obligation to provide humanitarian care for children and adults with children who are apprehended on our borders, but we also must do whatever we can to stem the tide of this dangerous migration pattern. The efforts we are announcing today are intended to address the challenges of this influx in a humane, efficient and timely way.”
Cole announced that the department’s Executive Office for Immigration Review (EOIR) will refocus its resources to prioritize cases involving migrants who have recently crossed the southwest border and whom DHS has placed into removal proceedings -- so that these cases are processed both quickly and fairly to enable prompt removal in appropriate cases, while ensuring the protection of asylum seekers and others.
“This refocusing of resources will allow EOIR to prioritize the adjudication of the cases of those individuals involved in the evolving situation at the southwest border,” said EOIR Director Juan P. Osuna. “Although our case management priorities are shifting, our immigration judges will continue to evaluate and rule upon cases consistent with all substantive and procedural rights and safeguards applicable to immigration proceedings.”
To augment its capacity to adjudicate cases as promptly as possible, EOIR is committed to hiring more immigration judges. EOIR this week will also publish a regulation allowing for the appointment of temporary immigration judges. Further, EOIR plans both to expand its existing legal access programs, and enhance access to legal resources and assistance for persons in removal proceedings.
Cole also announced that the Department is seeking new funding, as a part of the President’s emergency supplemental appropriations request, to assist Central American countries in combatting transnational crime and the threat posed by criminal gangs. This regional strategy for law enforcement capacity building would be aimed at addressing the issues that have been a factor in forcing many migrants to flee Central America for the United States.
The department will also redouble its efforts to work with Mexican authorities to identify and apprehend smugglers who are aiding unaccompanied children in crossing the U.S. border. Later this week, the Deputy Attorney General will also be meeting with the five U.S. Attorneys who represent the southwest border districts to strategize on ways to disrupt and dismantle criminal organizations on the border that are facilitating the transportation of unaccompanied minors and others.
Today, Deputy Attorney General Cole will go to the U.S. Customs and Border Protection’s McAllen Station and processing facility to see the urgent situation at the border. EOIR Director Osuna will be testifying before the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee to highlight the Justice Department’s efforts to aid in the administration-wide response to the migrant influx.
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Fact Sheet
Delaware County Business Owner Charged with Fraud Against the United StatesRead the Press Release
PHILADELPHIA – Kenneth Narzikul, 59, of Media, PA was charged today by information with major fraud against the United States, obstruction of audit, and making false claims to the government, in connection with operation of his business, NP Precision, Inc., a machine tool business located in Folcroft PA. .
According to the information, Narzikul was President and 85% owner of NP Precision, responsible for all aspects of NP Precision’s business, which included contracting with federal agencies to produce critical hardware components used in military helicopters and other aircraft. The information charges that as early as 2007, Narzikul began misusing progress payments on contracts with the United States, by failing to pay subcontractors and requesting progress payments under the contracts for costs that NP Precision had not actually incurred, and without the intention of using the progress payments for the costs and contracts at issue, in violation of Federal Acquisition Regulations (FAR). The information charges that Narzikul schemed to fraudulently divert and steal approximately $1.2 million in progress payments that the United States paid NP Precision under two contracts to produce drive shaft couplings for the U.S. Army helicopter Model CH-47, commonly known as a Chinook helicopter. Consequently, it is alleged that the United States received a very belated and many times incomplete product, far later than required under the delivery schedules. According to the information, Narzikul made false statements and caused others at NP Precision to make false statements to government auditors, and made false claims to falsely reflect progress on numerous Army and Air Force contracts and to continue to receive progress payments from the United States. The information charges that, at the direction of Narzikul, NP Precision used the diverted funds to pay outstanding obligations on other contracts and other business and personal expenses of the defendant and his family.
If convicted, the defendant faces a maximum possible sentence of 20 years in prison, three years of supervised release, a fine of up to $1.5 million, and a $300 special assessment. Full restitution of up to approximately $1.2 million also may be ordered.
The case was investigated by the Major Procurement Fraud Unit (MPFU) of the United States Army Criminal Investigative Command (Army CID), the Defense Criminal Investigative
Service (DCIS); and the United States Air Force Office of Special Inspection (Air Force OSI). It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Mary E. Crawley.An Information is an accusation. A defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
UNITED STATES ATTORNEY'S OFFICE, EASTERN DISTRICTof PENNSYLVANIA
Suite 1250, 615 Chestnut Street, Philadelphia, PA 19106
PATTY HARTMAN, Media Contact, 215-861-8525Defendants Plead Guilty to Conspiring to Harbor AliensRead the Press Release
Francisco Weinmann-Cervantes, Delia Wong De Weinmann and Ana Cristina Romero- Weinmann pled guilty today in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Alabama before the Honorable Judge Callie V.S. Granade to conspiring knowingly to harbor aliens.
Specially, the defendants pled to knowingly and recklessly disregarding of the fact that aliens had come to, entered, and remained in the United States, in violation of the law. The defendant then concealed, harbored and shielded them from detection to enable the aliens they harbored to perform construction work for the defendants and their company for the purpose of private financial gain to the defendants.
The guilty pleas were announced by United States Attorney Kenyen R. Brown of the Southern District of Alabama. The sentence is set for December 8, 2014 at 1:00 pm before Judge Granade.
This case was investigated by Homeland Securities Investigation and prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys, Gregory A. Bordenkircher and Sinan Kalayoglu.
Dallas Man Sentenced to Serve A Total of 24 Years in Federal Prison for Producing and Possessing Child Pornography Involving A Minor Less Than Two Years OldRead the Press Release
DALLAS — James Brian Rivers, 23, of Dallas, was sentenced this afternoon by U.S. District Judge Sam A. Lindsay to serve a total of 288 months (24 years) in federal prison and 15 years supervised release. He pleaded guilty in January 2014 to an indictment charging one count of production of child pornography and one count of possession of prepubescent child pornography. U.S. Attorney Sarah R. Saldaña of the Northern District of Texas made today’s announcement.
Rivers used the camera function on his cell phone to take sexually explicit photos and a video of a 22-month-old child. Rivers left his cell phone at a neighbor’s home in June 2013, and the neighbor looked through the cell phone and observed multiple images of child pornography and called 911. When officers with the Dallas Police Department arrived at the residence, they seized the cell phone and obtained a search warrant for it. A forensic review of the phone revealed multiple images and one video depicting child pornography involving a prepubescent child.
The case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative, which was launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice, to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by U.S. Attorney’s Offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state and local resources to better locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals, who sexually exploit children, and identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit http://www.justice.gov/psc/. For more information about internet safety education, please visit http://www.justice.gov/psc/ and click on the tab “resources.”
The investigation was conducted by the FBI and the Dallas Police Department. Assistant U.S. Attorney Camille Sparks prosecuted.
Columbia Man Sentenced to Life Plus 10 Years in Drug Conspiracy Involving Robbery/MurderRead the Press Release
Contact Person: Nancy Wicker (803) 929-3000
Columbia, South Carolina -----United States Attorney Bill Nettles stated today that Izell D. Grissett, a/k/a ABuddy@, age 27, of Columbia, South Carolina, was sentenced in federal court by United States District Judge Joseph F. Anderson, Jr. of Columbia. Grissett was sentenced to LIFE imprisonment plus 120 months (10 years) consecutive on charges of conspiracy to distribute more than 5 kilograms of cocaine and more than 280 grams of Acrack@ cocaine, robbery affecting interstate commerce (Hobbs Act), brandishing and discharging a firearm in connection with a crime of violence and a drug trafficking offense (924(c)), possession with intent to distribute 500 grams or more of cocaine and a quantity of “crack” cocaine, and being a felon in possession of a firearm.
Evidence presented at the trial and in other hearings connected to the case, established that from 2005 until his arrest in 2013, Grissett sold multi-kilograms of cocaine and crack cocaine in and around the Columbia area. In 2010, Grissett and a co-defendant (who previously pled guilty and was sentenced to 30 years) robbed their drug suppliers of two kilograms of cocaine. In executing the robbery Grissett shot two persons, killing one person. The second victim sustained life-threatening injuries.
The case was investigated by agents of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), Richland County Sheriff=s Department and the City of Columbia Police Department. Assistant United States Attorneys William Witherspoon and Nancy Wicker of the Columbia office handled the case.Chief Executive Officer of Monterey Investment Company Sentenced to Nine Years in Prison for FraudRead the Press Release
SAN JOSE – Barbra Alexander was sentenced today to nine years in prison and ordered to pay $6,306,770.96 in restitution following a trial in which she was convicted for her role in an investment fraud, announced U.S. Attorney Melinda Haag and FBI Special Agent in Charge David J. Johnson.
Alexander was convicted by a jury after a three week trial, on Feb. 26, 2014. She was found guilty for conspiracy to commit mail and wire fraud, mail fraud, wire fraud, and securities fraud. During the trial, evidence showed that Alexander recruited investors into her company, APS Funding, Inc. Alexander promised to invest their money in short-term, high-interest loans, also known as “hard money lending,” for business and real estate development purposes. Instead of investing their money as promised, Alexander used investors’ money to fund her pet projects, such as her syndicated radio show, Moneydots, and to line her own pockets, including paying for her home remodel. In total, during the course of the fraud between 2006 and 2009, Alexander received over $7 million from investors.
Alexander, 66, of Monterey, Calif., along with her two partners at APS Funding, Inc., Michael Swanson, 62, of Seaside, Calif., and Beth Pina, 47, of Fairfield, Idaho, were indicted by a federal grand jury on Oct. 7, 2010. Swanson was convicted after a three week trial on Sept. 3, 2010, for conspiracy to commit mail and wire fraud, mail fraud, wire fraud, and securities fraud by a jury. On May 14, 2014, Swanson was sentenced to 37 months imprisonment, $2,838,100.36 in restitution, a $2,800 Special Assessment, and 3 years of supervised release. Swanson surrendered for service of his sentence on June 27, 2014. Pina pleaded guilty on Dec. 17, 2012 to conspiracy to commit mail and wire fraud. On May 14, 2014, Pina was sentenced to 3 years of Probation, including 12 months of electronic monitoring, and 200 hours of community service. Pina was also ordered to pay a $100 Special Assessment, and restitution in the amount of $625,287.40.
These sentences were handed down by the Honorable Lucy H. Koh, United States District Court Judge, in San Jose. Alexander will begin serving her sentence on Aug. 22, 2014.
Jeff Schenk, Amber Rosen, and Dan Kaleba are the Assistant U.S. Attorneys who prosecuted these cases with the assistance of Nina Burney. The prosecution is the result of an investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Securities and Exchange Commission, and the Monterey County District Attorney’s Office.
(Alexander indictment )
Chicago Businessman Pleads Guilty to Failing to File Tax ReturnsRead the Press Release
Jaime Viteri, a Chicago businessman, pleaded guilty to two counts of willfully failing to file federal individual income tax returns today, announced the Justice Department and the Internal Revenue Service (IRS).
On June 12, a criminal information was filed in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois that alleged Viteri had willfully failed to file individual income tax returns for tax years 2007, 2008 and 2009. According to the plea agreement filed with the district court, Viteri earned and received gross income from his work as the president and chief executive officer of Viteri Inc., doing business as Chicago Latino Network (CLN), a solely owned media company focused on the Latino community in Chicago. Viteri was also an employee and managing director of the Bureau of Entrepreneurship and Small Business at the Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity, an Illinois state government agency.
Viteri’s gross income from his employment exceeded approximately $270,000 for the 2008 tax year and $290,000 for the 2009 tax year. During these years, Viteri was required to file individual income tax returns and report the gross income he earned. Despite earning and receiving gross income from two different sources, Viteri willfully failed to file individual income tax returns with the IRS for tax years 2008 and 2009 as required by law. Under the terms of the plea agreement, Viteri also agrees to pay restitution to the IRS.
Sentencing is scheduled for Nov. 5, 2014. Viteri faces a statutory maximum sentence of one year in prison per count, one year of supervised release per count and a maximum fine of $100,000 per count.
The case was investigated by special agents from IRS-Criminal Investigation and prosecuted by Trial Attorney Christopher Maietta of the Justice Department’s Tax Division.
Additional information about the Tax Division and its enforcement efforts may be found at the division website .
Buffalo Man Pleads Guilty to Drug ChargeRead the Press Release
BUFFALO, N.Y. - U.S. Attorney William J. Hochul, Jr. announced today that Gregory Pendziwiatr, 45, of Buffalo, N.Y., pleaded guilty to conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute and distribute fentanyl, before U.S. District Judge Richard J. Arcara. The charge carries a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison, a fine of $5,000,000 or both.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Mary Catherine Baumgarten, who is handling the case, stated that on January 29, 2013, the defendant drove co-defendant Mary Moran to the RiteAid Store at Harlem and Mineral Springs in West Seneca, N.Y. Pendziwiatr went inside to pick up Moran’s prescription of 10-100 mcg fentanyl patches from the pharmacy. The defendant then drove Mary Moran to 93 Pulaski Street in the City of Buffalo. A second co-defendant, Barbara Moran, came outside to the vehicle and handed Mary Moran cash for her prescription fentanyl patches.
Shortly after Barbara Moran walked back into her residence, it was determined that the RiteAid pharmacy did not fill the prescription with the desired type of fentanyl patches. As a result, Pendziwiatr drove back to 93 Pulaski Street, where Barbara Moran gave the fentanyl patches back to Mary Moran to exchange for patches containing the desired fentanyl gel formulation. The defendant then drove back to RiteAid to exchange the patches. Pendziwiatr then drove Mary Moran back to 93 Pulaski Street to give the replacement patches to Barbara Moran.
Barbara Moran and her sister-in-law, Mary Moran, have also been convicted of conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute and to distribute fentanyl and are awaiting sentencing.
The plea is the culmination of an investigation by the Drug Enforcement Administration, under the direction of James J. Hunt, Acting Special Agent in Charge, New York Field Division, and the Cheektowaga Police Department, under the direction of Chief David Zack.
Sentencing is scheduled for October 14, 2014, at 1:00 p.m. before Judge Arcara.Brazilian Man Pleads Guilty to Firearms Trafficking ChargesRead the Press Release
Wifredo A. Ferrer, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Florida, and Hugo Barrera, Special Agent in Charge, Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF), announce that Sergio Carvalho, 50, formerly of Boca Raton and Brazil, pled guilty today to charges of making false statements in a firearm sales record, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 924(a).
Sentencing is scheduled for September 18, 2014 before Chief U.S. District Judge K. Michael Moore in Fort Pierce. At sentencing, Carvalho faces a possible maximum statutory sentence of up to five years in prison.
According to statements made in open court and documents filed in the case, Carvalho together with his colleague Moizes Maia Nogueira, 44, Pembroke Pines, visited a federally licensed firearms dealer named Vincent Olavarria, Jr., 48, Port St. Lucie, on March 30, 2001, in Port St. Lucie. The two men purchased twelve semiautomatic rifles from Olavarria, requesting that Olavarria conceal their names from the firearms sales records. Olavarria agreed to the request, and falsely placed the rifles in the names of other straw purchasers, when completing the sales paperwork required by federal law. Both Nogueira and Carvalho then resold and delivered rifles to Vicente de Paula Vieira, and his son Marcos Barbosa Vieira, two Brazilians who were exporting firearms illegally from the United States to Brazil. Olavarria recruited other straw purchasers to lend their names to false sales records concealing the actual destination of the rifles.
An ATF investigation into the sales records discrepancies led ATF Special Agents to question Carvalho in April 2011 about his purchase of rifles from Olavarria. Carvalho falsely denied knowledge of the rifles. Carvalho also did not volunteer the existence or involvement of Nogueira or the father and son team of the Vieiras, and their respective exports of firearms to Brazil. Following a federal Grand Jury indictment of the defendants in September 2012, all of the other charged defendants have pled guilty and been sentenced by Chief Judge Moore. In June 2013, Olavarria was sentenced to 34 months in prison, and Nogueira was sentenced to 30 months in prison. Straw buyer Darren Cuff, 26, Port St. Lucie, was sentenced in June 2013, to 21 months in prison, and in September 2013, straw buyer Anthony Olavarria, 49, Juana Diaz, Puerto Rico, was sentenced to five months in prison. Both Vicente de Paula Vieira and Marcos Barbosa Vieira have been arrested in Brazil by the Brazilian Federal Police and charged with crimes of firearms importation under Brazilian law.
Carvalho was found and arrested on April 30, 2014, in New Orleans, Louisiana, on the arrest warrant from his indictment in this case, and the U.S. Marshals Service returned him to Fort Pierce to face the pending charges.
This case is a result of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN). PSN is a Department of Justice nationwide initiative that combines traditional law enforcement activities with community-based support and intervention programs. The two primary goals of the PSN initiative are to reduce and prevent violent crimes and to help past offenders adjust and re-enter the community.
Mr. Ferrer commended the investigative efforts of ATF and the U.S. Marshals Service. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Theodore Cooperstein.
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.
BNP Paribas Pleads Guilty to Conspiring to Violate U.S. Economic Sanctions in Manhattan Federal CourtRead the Press Release
BNP Paribas S.A. (BNPP), a global financial institution headquartered in Paris, pleaded guilty today before U.S. District Judge Lorna G. Schofield in the Southern District of New York to a one-count information charging the bank with conspiring to violate the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) and the Trading with the Enemy Act (TWEA), for its role in processing billions of dollars of U.S. dollar transactions through the U.S. financial system on behalf of Sudanese, Iranian, and Cuban entities subject to U.S. economic sanctions from 2004 through 2012.
Assistant Attorney General Leslie R. Caldwell of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division and U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara for the Southern District of New York made the announcement.
In accepting BNPP’s guilty plea, the court accepted the plea agreement that had been entered into by the government and BNPP on June 30, 2014, under which BNPP agreed to forfeit a total of $8.8336 billion, pay a criminal fine of $140 million, cooperate with U.S. authorities, and be subject to a five-year term of probation, during which BNPP must enhance its compliance policies and procedures in accordance with settlement agreements BNPP has entered into with its principal U.S. regulators, the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System and the New York State Department of Financial Services.
According to the plea agreement, statements made during today’s plea proceeding, and the statement of facts containing further admissions by BNPP, BNPP knowingly and willfully moved more than $8.8 billion through the U.S. financial system on behalf of entities subject to U.S. embargo from 2004 through 2012, including more than $4.3 billion in transactions involving entities that were specifically designated by the U.S. government as being cut off from the U.S. financial system.
BNPP admitted that the majority of illegal payments were made on behalf of sanctioned entities in Sudan, which was subject to U.S. embargo based on the Sudanese government’s role in facilitating terrorism and committing human rights abuses. BNPP processed approximately $6.4 billion through the United States on behalf of Sudanese sanctioned entities from July 2006 through June 2007, including approximately $4 billion on behalf of a financial institution owned by the government of Sudan, even as internal emails showed BNPP employees expressing concern about the bank’s assisting the Sudanese government in light of its role in supporting international terrorism and committing human rights abuses during the same time period. Indeed, in March 2007, a senior compliance officer at BNPP wrote to other high-level BNPP compliance and legal employees reminding them that certain Sudanese banks with which BNPP dealt “play a pivotal part in the support of the Sudanese government which . . . has hosted Osama Bin Laden and refuses the United Nations intervention in Darfur.”
One way in which BNPP processed illegal transactions on behalf of Sudanese sanctioned entities was through a sophisticated system of “satellite banks” set up to disguise both BNPP’s and the sanctioned entities’ roles in the payments to and from financial institutions in the United States. As early as August 2005, a senior compliance officer at BNPP warned several legal, business, and compliance personnel at BNPP’s subsidiary in Geneva that the satellite bank system was being used to evade U.S. sanctions: “As I understand it, we have a number of Arab Banks (nine identified) on our books that only carry out clearing transactions for Sudanese banks in dollars. . . . This practice effectively means that we are circumventing the US embargo on transactions in USD by Sudan.”
Similarly, BNPP admitted that it provided Cuban sanctioned entities with access to the U.S. financial system by hiding the Cuban sanctioned entities’ involvement in payment messages. From October 2004 through early 2010, BNPP knowingly and willfully processed approximately $1.747 billion on behalf of Cuban sanctioned entities. In the statement of facts, BNPP admitted that it continued to do U.S. dollar business with Cuba long after it was clear that such business was illegal in order to preserve BNPP’s business relationships with Cuban entities. BNPP further admitted that its conduct with regard to the Cuban embargo was both “cavalier” and “criminal,” as evidenced by the bank’s 2006 decision, after certain Cuban payments were blocked when they reached the United States, to strip the wire messages for those payments of references to Cuban entities and resubmit them as a lump sum in order to conceal from U.S. regulators the bank’s longstanding, and illicit, Cuban business.
BNPP also admitted to engaging in more than $650 million of transactions involving entities tied to Iran, and this conduct continued into 2012 – nearly two years after the bank had commenced an internal investigation into its sanctions compliance and had pledged to cooperate with the government. The illicit Iranian transactions were done on behalf of BNPP clients, including a petroleum company based in Dubai that was effectively a front for an Iranian petroleum company, and an Iranian oil company.
This case was investigated by the Internal Revenue Service-Criminal Investigation’s Washington Field Division and the FBI’s New York Field Office. This case is being prosecuted by the Money Laundering and Bank Integrity Unit of the Criminal Division’s Asset Forfeiture and Money Laundering Section (AFMLS) and the Money Laundering and Asset Forfeiture Unit of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York. Trial Attorneys Craig Timm and Jennifer E. Ambuehl of AFMLS and Assistant United States Attorneys Andrew D. Goldstein, Martin S. Bell, Christine I. Magdo and Micah W.J. Smith of the Southern District of New York are in charge of the prosecution.
The New York County District Attorney’s Office also conducted its own investigation alongside the Department of Justice on this investigation. The Department of Justice expressed its gratitude to the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve, the Federal Reserve Bank of New York, the New York State Department of Financial Services, and the Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control for their assistance with this matter.BNP Paribas Pleads Guilty in Manhattan Federal Court to Conspiring to Violate U.S. Economic SanctionsRead the Press Release
Preet Bharara, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, and Leslie R. Caldwell, Assistant Attorney General for the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, announced that BNP Paribas S.A. (BNPP), a global financial institution headquartered in Paris, pled guilty today before U.S. District Judge Lorna G. Schofield to a one-count Information charging the bank with conspiring to violate the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) and the Trading with the Enemy Act (TWEA), for its role in processing billions of dollars of U.S. dollar transactions through the U.S. financial system on behalf of Sudanese, Iranian, and Cuban entities subject to U.S. economic sanctions from 2004 through 2012.
At today’s proceeding, Judge Schofield accepted the plea agreement that had been entered into by the Government and BNPP on June 30, 2014, under which BNPP agreed to forfeit a total of $8.8336 billion, pay a criminal fine of $140 million, cooperate with U.S. authorities, and be subject to a five-year term of probation, during which BNPP must enhance its compliance policies and procedures in accordance with settlement agreements BNPP has entered into with its principal U.S. regulators, the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System, and the New York State Department of Financial Services. Judge Schofield set a sentencing date of October 3, 2014, at 2:00 p.m.
In accepting the bank’s guilty plea, Judge Schofield said: “The defendant’s actions not only flouted U.S. foreign policy, but also provided support to governments that threaten both our regional and national security. And in the case of Sudan, a government that has committed flagrant human rights abuses and has known links to terrorism. I find that the severity of the defendant’s conduct more than warrants the criminal charge to which it has pleaded. . . . The forfeiture amount will surely have a deterrent effect on others that may be tempted to engage in similar conduct, all of whom should be aware that no financial institution is immune from the rule of law.”
According to the plea agreement, statements made during today’s plea proceeding, and the Statement of Facts containing further admissions by BNPP, BNPP knowingly and willfully moved more than $8.8 billion through the U.S. financial system on behalf of entities subject to U.S. embargo from 2004 through 2012, including more than $4.3 billion in transactions involving entities that were specifically designated by the U.S. Government as being cut off from the U.S. financial system.
BNPP admitted that the majority of illegal payments were made on behalf of sanctioned entities in Sudan, which was subject to U.S. embargo based on the Sudanese government’s role in facilitating terrorism and committing human rights abuses. BNPP processed approximately $6.4 billion through the United States on behalf of Sudanese sanctioned entities from July 2006 through June 2007, including approximately $4 billion on behalf of a financial institution owned by the government of Sudan, even as internal emails showed BNPP employees expressing concern about the bank’s assistance to the Sudanese government in light of its role in supporting international terrorism and committing human rights abuses during the same time period. Indeed, in March 2007, a senior compliance officer at BNPP wrote to other high-level BNPP compliance and legal employees reminding them that certain Sudanese banks with which BNPP dealt “play a pivotal part in the support of the Sudanese government which . . . has hosted Osama Bin Laden and refuses the United Nations intervention in Darfur.”
One way in which BNPP processed illegal transactions on behalf of Sudanese sanctioned entities was through a sophisticated system of “satellite banks” set up to disguise both BNPP’s and the sanctioned entities’ roles in the payments to and from financial institutions in the United States. As early as August 2005, a senior compliance officer at BNPP warned several legal, business, and compliance personnel at BNPP’s subsidiary in Geneva that the satellite bank system was being used to evade U.S. sanctions: “As I understand it, we have a number of Arab Banks (nine identified) on our books that only carry out clearing transactions for Sudanese banks in dollars. . . . This practice effectively means that we are circumventing the US embargo on transactions in USD by Sudan.”
Similarly, BNPP admitted that it provided Cuban sanctioned entities with access to the U.S. financial system by hiding the Cuban sanctioned entities’ involvement in payment messages. From October 2004 through early 2010, BNPP knowingly and willfully processed approximately $1.747 billion on behalf of Cuban sanctioned entities. In the statement of facts, BNPP admitted that it continued to do U.S. dollar business with Cuba long after it was clear that such business was illegal in order to preserve BNPP’s business relationships with Cuban entities. BNPP further admitted that its conduct with regard to the Cuban embargo was both “cavalier” and “criminal,” as evidenced by the bank’s 2006 decision, after certain Cuban payments were blocked when they reached the United States, to strip the wire messages for those payments of references to Cuban entities and resubmit them as a lump sum in order to conceal from U.S. regulators the bank’s longstanding, and illicit, Cuban business.
BNPP also admitted to engaging in more than $650 million of transactions involving entities tied to Iran, and this conduct continued into 2012 – nearly two years after the bank had commenced an internal investigation into its sanctions compliance and had pledged to cooperate with the Government. The illicit Iranian transactions were done on behalf of BNPP clients, including a petroleum company based in Dubai that was effectively a front for an Iranian petroleum company and an Iranian oil company.
This case is being prosecuted by the Money Laundering and Asset Forfeiture Unit of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York, and the Money Laundering and Bank Integrity Unit of the Criminal Division’s Asset Forfeiture and Money Laundering Section (AFMLS). Assistant United States Attorneys Andrew D. Goldstein, Martin S. Bell, Micah W.J. Smith, and Christine I. Magdo of the Southern District of New York, and Trial Attorneys Craig Timm and Jennifer E. Ambuehl of AFMLS, are in charge of the prosecution.
This case was investigated by the Internal Revenue Service-Criminal Investigation’s Washington Field Division and the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s New York Field Office. The New York County District Attorney’s Office also conducted its own investigation alongside the Department of Justice on this investigation. The Department of Justice expressed its gratitude to the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve, the Federal Reserve Bank of New York, the New York State Department of Financial Services, and the Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control for their assistance with this matter.
Aryan Brotherhood Members Plead Guilty to Federal Racketeering ChargesRead the Press Release
Two Aryan Brotherhood of Texas (ABT) gang members have pleaded guilty to racketeering charges related to their membership in the ABT’s criminal enterprise, announced 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.
Steven Worthey, of San Antonio, Texas, pleaded guilty today before U.S. District Judge Sim Lake in the Southern District of Texas to one count of conspiracy to participate in racketeering activity. James Lawrence Burns, aka “Chance,” of Dallas, Texas, pleaded guilty to the same charge on July 3, 2014.
According to court documents, Worthey, Burns and other ABT gang members and associates agreed to commit multiple acts of murder, robbery, arson, kidnapping and narcotics trafficking on behalf of the ABT gang. Worthey, Burns and numerous ABT gang members met on a regular basis at various locations throughout Texas to report on gang-related business, collect dues, commit disciplinary assaults against fellow gang members and discuss acts of violence against rival gang members, among other things.
By pleading guilty to racketeering charges, Worthey and Burns admitted to being members of the ABT criminal enterprise.
According to the superseding indictment, the ABT was established in the early 1980s within the Texas prison system. The gang modeled itself after and adopted many of the precepts and writings of the Aryan Brotherhood, a California-based prison gang that was formed in the California prison system during the 1960s. According to the superseding indictment, the ABT was primarily concerned with the protection of white inmates and white supremacy/separatism. Over time, the ABT expanded its criminal enterprise to include illegal activities for profit.
Court documents allege that the ABT enforced its rules and promoted discipline among its members, prospects and associates through murder, attempted murder, conspiracy to murder, arson, assault, robbery and threats against those who violated the rules or posed a threat to the enterprise. Members, and oftentimes associates, were required to follow the orders of higher-ranking members, often referred to as “direct orders.”
According to the superseding indictment, in order to be considered for ABT membership, a person must be sponsored by another gang member. Once sponsored, a prospective member must serve an unspecified term, during which he is referred to as a prospect, while his conduct is observed by the members of the ABT.
Worthey and Burns are both scheduled to be sentenced on Oct. 8, 2014. Each faces a maximum penalty of life in prison.
Worthey and Burns are two of 36 defendants charged with conducting racketeering activity through the ABT criminal enterprise, among other charges. To date, 32 defendants have pleaded guilty.
This Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force case is being investigated by a multi-agency task force consisting of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives; the Drug Enforcement Administration; FBI; U.S. Marshals Service; Federal Bureau of Prisons; U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement Homeland Security Investigations; Texas Rangers; Texas Department of Public Safety; Montgomery County, Texas, Sheriff’s Office; Houston Police Department-Gang Division; Texas Department of Criminal Justice – Office of Inspector General; Harris County, Texas, Sheriff’s Office; Atascosa County, Texas, Sheriff’s Office; Orange County, Texas, Sheriff’s Office; Waller County, Texas, Sheriff’s Office; Alvin, Texas, Police Department; Carrollton, Texas, Police Department; Mesquite, Texas, Police Department; Montgomery County District Attorney’s Office; and the Atascosa County District Attorney’s Office.
The case is being prosecuted by the Criminal Division’s Organized Crime and Gang Section and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Texas.Aryan Brotherhood Members Plead Guilty to Federal Racketeering ChargesRead the Press Release
HOUSTON – Two more Aryan Brotherhood of Texas (ABT) gang members have pleaded guilty to racketeering charges related to their membership in the ABT’s criminal enterprise, announced U.S. Attorney Kenneth Magidson and Assistant Attorney General Leslie R. Caldwell of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division.
Steven Worthey, of San Antonio, pleaded guilty today before U.S. District Judge Sim Lake in the Southern District of Texas to one count of conspiracy to participate in racketeering activity. James Lawrence Burns, aka “Chance,” of Dallas, pleaded guilty to the same charge on July 3, 2014.
According to court documents, Worthey, Burns and other ABT gang members and associates agreed to commit multiple acts of murder, robbery, arson, kidnapping and narcotics trafficking on behalf of the ABT gang. Worthey, Burns and numerous ABT gang members met on a regular basis at various locations throughout Texas to report on gang-related business, collect dues, commit disciplinary assaults against fellow gang members and discuss acts of violence against rival gang members, among other things.
By pleading guilty to racketeering charges, Worthey and Burns admitted to being members of the ABT criminal enterprise.
According to the superseding indictment, the ABT was established in the early 1980s within the Texas prison system. The gang modeled itself after and adopted many of the precepts and writings of the Aryan Brotherhood, a California-based prison gang that was formed in the California prison system during the 1960s. According to the superseding indictment, the ABT was primarily concerned with the protection of white inmates and white supremacy/separatism. Over time, the ABT expanded its criminal enterprise to include illegal activities for profit.
Court documents allege that the ABT enforced its rules and promoted discipline among its members, prospects and associates through murder, attempted murder, conspiracy to murder, arson, assault, robbery and threats against those who violated the rules or posed a threat to the enterprise. Members, and oftentimes associates, were required to follow the orders of higher-ranking members, often referred to as “direct orders.”
According to the superseding indictment, in order to be considered for ABT membership, a person must be sponsored by another gang member. Once sponsored, a prospective member must serve an unspecified term, during which he is referred to as a prospect, while his conduct is observed by the members of the ABT.Worthey and Burns are both scheduled to be sentenced on Oct. 8, 2014. Each faces a maximum penalty of life in prison.
Worthey and Burns are two of 36 defendants charged with conducting racketeering activity through the ABT criminal enterprise, among other charges. To date, 32 defendants have pleaded guilty.
This case is being investigated by a multi-agency task force consisting of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives; the Drug Enforcement Administration; FBI; U.S. Marshals Service; Federal Bureau of Prisons; Homeland Security Investigations; Texas Rangers; Texas Department of Public Safety; Montgomery County Sheriff’s Office; Houston Police Department-Gang Division; Texas Department of Criminal Justice – Office of Inspector General; sheriff’s offices in Harris, Tarrant, Atascosa, Orange and Waller Counties; police departments in Alvin, Carrollton and Mesquite Texas; as well as the Montgomery and Atascosa County District Attorney’s Offices.The case is being prosecuted by the U.S. Attorney’s Office of the Southern District of Texas and the Criminal Division’s Organized Crime and Gang Section.
Adair County Man Sentenced to 96 Months for Assault with Intent to Commit MurderRead the Press Release
Muskogee, Oklahoma - The United States Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Oklahoma, announced today WILLIE JAMES HALLMARK, 37, of Adair County, Oklahoma, was sentenced to 96 months imprisonment, followed by 3 years of supervised release for Assault with Intent to Commit Murder in Indian Country.
The charges arose from an investigation by the Cherokee Nation Marshal Service and the FBI. HALLMARK was indicted in June 2013 and pled guilty in December 2013.
The indictment alleged that on or about June 6, 2013, within the Eastern District of Oklahoma, WILLIE JAMES HALLMARK, an Indian, did knowingly and intentionally assault two individuals causing injury by stabbing with a knife with the intent to commit a murder, while on land held in Trust, for an individual member of the Cherokee Nation, by the United States of America.
The Honorable Ronald A. White, District Judge in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Oklahoma, in Muskogee, presided over the hearing. The defendant will remain in the custody of the United States Marshal Service pending transportation to the designated federal prison at which he will serve his nonparolable sentence.
Assistant United States Attorney Dean Burris represented the United States.
Tuesday 8 July 2014
Wilkes-barre Man Charged with Drug Trafficking OffenseRead the Press Release
The United States Attorney's Office for the Middle District of Pennsylvania announced today that Senior United States District Court Judge A. Richard Caputo has sentenced Alfred Oglesby, age 42, of Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania, to three years’ imprisonment for distributing cocaine on numerous occasions between 2010 and April 2, 2013.
According to United States Attorney Peter Smith, Oglesby obtained cocaine from another cocaine distributor in Wilkes-Barre for distribution to others in the Luzerne County area. On February 24, 2014, Oglesby appeared in federal court and pleaded guilty to cocaine distribution. In doing so, he admitted to distributing more than 500 grams of cocaine during the scheme.
In addition to the three-year term of imprisonment, Judge Caputo ordered that Oglesby be placed under the supervision of the United States Probation Office for a period of three years following the service of his prison sentence.
The case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation; the Pennsylvania Attorney General’s Office; and the Luzerne County District Attorney’s Office. Assistant United States Attorney John Gurganus prosecuted the case.
Wilkes-Barre Man Sentenced to Prison on Drug ChargesRead the Press Release
The United States Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Pennsylvania announced that a Wilkes-Barre man was sentenced today, in federal court in Wilkes-Barre, by United States District Judge A. Richard Caputo, to serve 18 months in prison on a charge of using a communication device to facilitate heroin trafficking.
According to United States Attorney Peter Smith, Corey Arnott, age 22, a resident of Wilkes-Barre pleaded guilty to the charge in Marchof this year.
Arnott was charged after an investigation conducted by the United States Drug Enforcement Administration, the Pennsylvania State Police and the Wilkes-Barre Police Department. An Indictment was filed against Arnott and twelve other persons on June 4, 2014. The charges against Arnott arose from his involvement in heroin trafficking.
The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney William S. Houser.
West Haven Men Involved in Cocaine Distribution Ring Are SentencedRead the Press Release
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Deirdre M. Daly, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, today announced that two West Haven residents involved in a cocaine distribution conspiracy were sentenced yesterday in Hartford federal court. U.S. District Judge Alvin W. Thompson sentenced HERNAN VARON-RAMIREZ, also known as “Carlos,” 44, to 60 months of imprisonment and four years of supervised release, and RODRIGO ROMAN, also known as “Bobby,” 41, to approximately 25 months of imprisonment, time already served, and four years of supervised release.
This matter stems from a Drug Enforcement Administration New Haven Task Force investigation that targeted a cocaine distribution organization that was headed by VARON-RAMIIREZ and his associates. The investigation employed several law-enforcement techniques, including the use of confidential informants, controlled purchases of cocaine, physical surveillance and the use of court-authorized wiretaps on cellular telephones utilized by members of the conspiracy.
The investigation revealed that VARON-RAMIREZ, ROMAN and others obtained large quantities of cocaine from sources of supply in the New Haven area and distributed it to drug sellers in and around New Haven. Michael Smith, also known as “Smitty” and “Fingers,” of Hamden, was one of VARON-RAMIREZ’s cocaine customers. Smith converted the cocaine to crack cocaine, which he sold to his own customer base.
VARON-RAMIREZ and ROMAN, who have been detained since May 22, 2012, each previously pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to distribute, and to possess with intent to distribute, cocaine.
Following service of his sentence, VARON-RAMIREZ faces deportation to Colombia.
On January 13, 2014, a federal jury in Hartford found Smith guilty of one count of conspiracy to distribute, and to possess with intent to distribute, cocaine and cocaine base (“crack cocaine”), and one count of possession with intent to distribute, and distribution of, cocaine base. He awaits sentencing.
This matter was investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration’s New Haven Task Force, including the U.S. Marshals Service and the New Haven, Hamden, West Haven, Branford, Ansonia and Meriden Police Departments. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney H. Gordon Hall.
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[email protected]Watertown Man Enters Guilty Plea to Firearms and Armed Robbery ChargesRead the Press Release
RICHARD S. HARTUNIAN, United States Attorney, Northern District of New York announces that ROBERT A. WILLIAMS (22, of Watertown, NY) entered a guilty plea to the felony offenses of being a convicted felon in possession of firearms and ammunition, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 922(g)(1), and using and carrying a firearm during and in relation to a crime of violence, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 924(c)(1)(A). The defendant is facing a statutory maximum of life, a mandatory minimum of 25 years imprisonment and a maximum fine of $250,000.00 per count of conviction. WILLIAMS is scheduled to be sentenced on November 14, 2014, before the Honorable Glenn T. Suddaby in Syracuse, NY.
During the plea hearing on July 8, 2014, WILLIAMS admitted the following. On July 31, 2013 at approximately 12:41 am, WILLIAMS and another male entered Sunoco located at 1222 Washington Street, Watertown, New York intending to commit a robbery. After entering Sunoco, WILLIAMS pointed a sawed-off 12 gauge shotgun at the store clerk and stated “give me your money.” The clerk then opened the cash register drawer and placed approximately $513.00 in United States currency in a store bag. At the same time, the other male removed approximately $395.00 in tobacco products from behind the counter and instructed the clerk to get on the floor.
WILLIAMS further admitted that he had also possessed a Remington rifle and a Savage shotgun at his Watertown residence. In 2012, WILLIAMS was convicted in Jefferson County Court of four counts of Third Degree Burglary.
This prosecution resulted from an investigation conducted by the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, Syracuse, New York, the Watertown Police Department and the Metro-Jefferson Drug Task Force. The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Ransom P. Reynolds. Further questions may be directed to Executive Assistant U.S. Attorney John Duncan at (315-448-0672).
Virginia-Based Move Management Company Pays More Than $500,000 to Settle Overbilling Claims in Connection with Transportation of Personal Property in Relocating Federal EmployeesRead the Press Release
RE/MAX Allegiance Relocation Services, a Virginia-based move management company, has agreed to pay the government $509,807 to resolve allegations that it violated the False Claims Act by overbilling for transportation services, the Department of Justice announced today.
“Today’s settlement demonstrates our continuing vigilance to ensure that those doing business with the government do so legally and honestly and that taxpayer funds are not misused,” said Assistant Attorney General for the Civil Division Stuart F. Delery. “Government contractors who seek to profit at the expense of taxpayers will be held accountable.”
The settlement relates to allegations involving contracts to transport personal property of federal employees relocating duty stations within the United States and between the United States and Canada. The government alleged that the defendant charged for move management services that were not provided and overbilled agencies on other moves by charging inapplicable tariff rates.
“We encourage whistleblowers to provide us with useful information to help us combat all manners of fraud on the U.S. Government,” said U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia Dana J. Boente.
“We will continue to investigate allegations of federal contractors fraudulently maximizing their profits at the expense of American taxpayers,” said U.S. General Services Administration Acting Inspector General Robert C. Erickson.
The settlement resolves allegations filed in a lawsuit by Michael Angel, a former employee of RE/MAX Allegiance Relocation Services, in federal court in Alexandria, Virginia. The lawsuit was filed under the qui tam, or whistleblower, provisions of the False Claims Act, which permit private individuals to sue on behalf of the government for false claims and to share in any recovery. The act also allows the government to intervene and take over the action, as it did in this case. Angel will receive $86,667.
The settlement was the result of a coordinated effort by the Civil Division of the Department of Justice, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Virginia, the General Services Administration Office of Inspector General, U.S. Department of Homeland Security Office of Inspector General, Department of Agriculture Office of Inspector General and NASA Office of Inspector General.
The case is captioned United States ex rel. Michael Angel v. Franconia Real Estate Services, Inc., d/b/a RE/MAX Allegiance Relocation Services; No. 1:12cv764 (E.D.Va.). The claims resolved by the settlement are allegations only; there has been no determination of liability.
Two Detroit Men Plead Guilty in Huntington Heroin BustRead the Press Release
HUNTINGTON, W.Va. – Two Detroit men who participated in a conspiracy to distribute heroin in Huntington in 2013 and 2014 pleaded guilty today to federal drug charges, announced U.S. Attorney Booth Goodwin. Denzell Lamar Bunkley, also known as “Chotty” and “King,” 21, pleaded guilty to possession with intent to distribute 100 grams or more of heroin, and Jakaiser Wesley Jackson, also known as “J” and “Jigga,” 21, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to distribute 100 grams or more of heroin. Both pleas were entered before Chief United States District Judge Robert C. Chambers.
On December 31, 2013, officers with the Huntington Police Department’s Special Investigations Unit executed a search warrant at an apartment located at 1416 Jefferson Avenue, in West Huntington. Officers seized approximately 413 grams of heroin and $12,349 in cash during the search. Officers also arrested Bunkley, Christopher Lamarr-Shawn Harris and another individual. Bunkley admitted to possessing the heroin seized for distribution and further admitted that the apartment was utilized by Harris and others as a location to prepare and distribute heroin.
On April 2, 2014, officers executed a search warrant for two rooms at the Red Roof Inn Hotel located on Route 60 in Huntington. Officers seized approximately 192 grams of heroin along with $3,000 in cash during the search. Jackson was present at the hotel just prior to the search. Jackson admitted that he was recruited by Harris in January 2014 to assist with heroin distributions in Huntington. Jackson also admitted that he, along with Harris, arranged to transport the heroin from Detroit in the days prior to the search.
Harris, also of Detroit, also pleaded guilty today to his role in the conspiracy.
Bunkley and Jackson each face five to 40 years in federal prison when they are sentenced on October 6, 2014.
The Huntington Police Department Special Investigations Unit, the West Virginia State Police, the United States Drug Enforcement Administration, and the United States Marshals Service all participated in the investigation. Assistant United States Attorney Joseph F. Adams is in charge of the prosecution.
This case is being prosecuted as part of an ongoing effort led by the United States Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of West Virginia to combat the illicit sale and misuse of heroin and prescription drugs. The U.S. Attorney’s Office, joined by federal, state and local law enforcement agencies, is committed to aggressively pursuing and shutting down illegal pill trafficking, eliminating open air drug markets, and curtailing the spread of opiates, including heroin, in communities across the Southern District.
Two Alabama Men Sentenced for Stolen Identity Refund Fraud Crimes in Separate CasesRead the Press Release
Deundra Milhouse and Fredrick Hill, both residents of Alabama, were sentenced today in separate stolen identity refund fraud (SIRF) cases, announced Acting Assistant Attorney General Tamara Ashford of the Justice Department’s Tax Division and U.S. Attorney George L. Beck Jr. for the Middle District of Alabama. Milhouse was sentenced to serve 81 months in prison and Hill was sentenced to serve 74 months in prison.
Deundra Milhouse Case
Milhouse previously pleaded guilty to one count of access device fraud, one count of aggravated identity theft and one count of being a felon in possession of a firearm. He was indicted in December 2013 and has been detained since his arrest in late January. According to his plea agreement, Milhouse was involved in SIRF crimes—using stolen identities to steal money from the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) by filing fraudulent tax returns claiming refunds in the victims’ names—from spring 2011 through late 2013. In 2011 and 2012, Milhouse received more than $80,000 in fraudulently obtained tax refunds into a bank account he controlled. By 2013, he switched to using prepaid debit cards to receive the refunds.
Milhouse admitted in his plea agreement that he was driving a car that was stopped on Oct. 8, 2013, in Elmore County, Alabama. He managed to flee on foot and threw away a handgun that he had been carrying. At that time, Milhouse was a convicted felon prohibited from having a firearm. Numerous prepaid debit cards and documents with personal identifying information were found in the car he was driving. Milhouse also admitted that a later search of his house uncovered many more documents with the personal identifying information of victims, as well as more than 200 prepaid debit cards, a computer used to file tax returns and a magazine and ammunition for the discarded handgun. As part of his plea, Milhouse stipulated that his conduct involved an attempted fraud loss of more than $400,000 to more than 250 victims and that he had a least one felony conviction for a crime of violence prior to his possession of the handgun.
Fredrick Hill Case
Hill previously pleaded guilty to access device fraud and aggravated identity theft. According to his plea agreement, Hill sold stolen identities to others to be used in SIRF crimes. Hill admitted that at one point he possessed dozens of prepaid debit cards and more than 300 stolen identities in connection with his involvement in SIRF crime.
Both cases were investigated by special agents of IRS - Criminal Investigation. The Elmore County Sheriff’s Office also provided assistance in the Milhouse case. Trial Attorneys Jason Poole and Michael Boteler of the department's Tax Division prosecuted the Milhouse case and Trial Attorneys Jason Poole and Gregory Bailey prosecuted the Hill case. Assistant U.S. Attorney Todd Brown and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Alabama assisted with both cases.
Additional information about the Tax Division and its enforcement efforts may be found at the division website .
Two Alabama Men Sentenced for Stolen Identity Refund Fraud Crimes in Separate CasesRead the Press Release
Montgomery, Alabama - Deundra Milhouse and Fredrick Hill, both residents of Alabama, were sentenced today in separate stolen identity refund fraud (SIRF) cases, announced Acting Assistant Attorney General Tamara Ashford of the Justice Department’s Tax Division and U.S. Attorney George L. Beck, Jr. for the Middle District of Alabama. Milhouse was sentenced to 81 months in prison and Hill was sentenced to 74 months in prison.
Milhouse had previously pleaded guilty to one count of access device fraud, one count of aggravated identity theft, and one count of being a felon in possession of a firearm. He was indicted in December 2013 and has been detained since his arrest in late January 2014. According to his plea agreement, Milhouse was involved in SIRF crimes—the use of stolen identities to steal money from the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) by filing fraudulent tax returns claiming refunds in the victims’ names—since the spring of 2011 and up through late 2013. In 2011 and 2012, he received over $80,000 in fraudulently obtained tax refunds into a bank account he controlled. By 2013, he had switched to using prepaid debit cards to receive the refunds.
Milhouse also admitted in his plea agreement that he was driving a car that had been stopped on October 8, 2013, in Elmore County, Alabama. He managed to flee on foot and threw away a handgun that he had been carrying. Milhouse was a convicted felon at that time and prohibited from having a firearm. Numerous prepaid debit cards and documents with personal identifying information were found in the car he had been driving. Milhouse also admitted that a later search of his house uncovered many more documents with the personal identifying information of victims, as well as over 200 prepaid debit cards, a computer used to file tax returns, and a magazine and ammunition for the discarded handgun. As part of his plea, Milhouse had stipulated that his conduct involved an attempted fraud loss of over $400,000, more than 250 victims, and that he had a least one felony conviction for a crime of violence prior to his possession of the handgun.
Hill had previously pleaded guilty to access device fraud and aggravated identity theft. According to his plea agreement, Hill sold stolen identities to others to be used in SIRF crimes. Hill admitted that at one point he possessed dozens of prepaid debit cards and over 300 stolen identities in connection with his involvement in SIRF crime.
Both cases were investigated by special agents of the Internal Revenue Service - Criminal Investigation. The Elmore County Sheriff’s Office also provided assistance in the Milhouse case. Trial Attorneys Jason Poole and Michael Boteler of the Department's Tax Division prosecuted the Milhouse case and Trial Attorneys Jason Poole and Gregory Bailey prosecuted the Hill case. Assistant United States Attorney Todd Brown and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Alabama assisted with both cases.
Additional information about the Tax Division and its enforcement efforts may be found at www.justice.gov/tax
PRESS CONTACT: Clark Morris
Email: [email protected]
Telephone: (334) 551-1755
Fax: (334) 223-7617Three Men Arrested and Charged with Conspiracy to Possess and Distribute over 3,300 Pounds of MarijuanaRead the Press Release
Oklahoma City, Oklahoma – Federal agents with the Drug Enforcement Administration, Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms & Explosives, and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement Homeland Security Investigations have arrested MANUEL BARRON-HERNANDEZ, 40, a Mexican national, JUAN CARLOS SALINAS, 19, a U.S. citizen whose address is unknown, and ROBERTO OLIVAS-CHAVEZ, 31, a Mexican national, and charged them with conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute over 3,300 pounds of marijuana, announced Sanford C. Coats, United States Attorney for the Western District of Oklahoma. A fourth defendant JESUS ISAAC RODRIGUEZ-CONTRERAS, 40, a Mexican national, was also charged in a separate related criminal complaint with being an illegal alien unlawfully in possession of these firearms and ammunition.
According to court records, on June 25th, 2014, members of the DEA Oklahoma City Task Force conducted an investigation involving surveillance of a storage building located at 4140 SW 149th Street in Oklahoma City and residences located at 1050 Whispering Lane, in Newcastle, and 2648 SW 38th Street, in Oklahoma City. Agents executed a search warrant at the storage unit where the three defendants were detained during the execution of the warrant. According to the complaint affidavit, agents observed 42 large blue garbage dumpsters stacked in the building and, after a drug certified dog was alerted to the odor of illegal drugs, a second search warrant was obtained. Upon execution of the second warrant, the affidavit states that agents located and seized 3,319 packages of marijuana weighing approximately one pound each secreted in the bottom portion (false floor) of the 42 dumpsters.
As part of this investigation, court records indicate that agents also conducted a search of a residence at 3705 S. Villa Avenue, in Oklahoma City, where they located six assault style rifles, a .22 caliber rifle, and over 800 rounds of ammunition. Agents arrested Rodriguez-Contreras for being an illegal alien unlawfully in possession of these firearms. He is charged in a separate criminal complaint.
All four defendants have appeared before a United States Magistrate. Barron-Hernandez, Olivas-Chavez, and Rodriguez-Contreras remain in custody. Salinas was released on bond.
This case is the result of an investigation by the Drug Enforcement Administration, Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement Homeland Security Investigations, and was assisted by the District-21 Drug Task Force, McClain County Sheriff’s Office, and the Oklahoma City Fire Department which was instrumental in providing manpower and equipment necessary to the discovery and seizure of the 3319 bundles of marijuana. These cases are being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys David P. Petermann and Ashley L. Altshuler.
The public is reminded that these charges are merely accusations and that the defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt. Reference is made to the criminal complaints and other public filings for further information.
Three Lincoln County Men Sentenced for Oxycodone TraffickingRead the Press Release
CHARLESTON, W.Va. – United States Attorney Booth Goodwin announced today that Joseph James Salmons was sentenced to two years in federal prison and two other men, Richard A. Mullins and John Freddie Joe Johnson, were sentenced to three years’ probation on charges relating to the distribution of oxycodone in Lincoln County. United States District Judge John T. Copenhaver, Jr., imposed the sentences.
Salmons, 24, of Hamlin, previously pleaded guilty to aiding and abetting the distribution of oxycodone, admitting that on February 13, 2013, he and Mullins sold a confidential information five 30 mg oxycodone pills. Salmons also admitted to other drug sales in Lincoln County.
Mullins, 49, of West Hamlin, previously pleaded guilty to distributing oxycodone. Mullins admitted that on January 13, 2013, he sold 5 30 mg oxycodone pills to a confidential informant working with law enforcement. Mullins met the informant in the parking lot of the Blossom Junction flower shop in West Hamlin and conducted the drug deal from his car. Mullins also admitted during his plea hearing to other drug sales in Lincoln County.
Johnson, 37, also of West Hamlin, previously pleaded guilty to assisting Mullins and Salmons in selling oxycodone to a confidential informant outside of Johnson’s residence in West Hamlin, Lincoln County, in February 2013.
The Huntington Violent Crime and Drug Task Force investigated the case. Assistant United States Attorney Monica D. Coleman was in charge of the prosecution.
This case was prosecuted as part of an ongoing effort led by the United States Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of West Virginia to combat the illicit sale and misuse of prescription drugs and heroin. The U.S. Attorney’s Office, joined by federal, state and local law enforcement agencies, is committed to aggressively pursuing and shutting down illegal pill trafficking, eliminating open air drug markets, and curtailing the spread of opiate painkillers and heroin in communities across the Southern District.
Tennessee Woman Pleads Guilty to Defrauding Pittsburgh CompanyRead the Press Release
PITTSBURGH – A Tennessee woman has pleaded guilty in federal court to a charge of mail fraud, United States Attorney David J. Hickton announced today.
Elizabeth “Betsy” Pope, 49, of Loudon, TN, pleaded guilty to one count before United States District Judge Donetta W. Ambrose.
According to the information presented to the court, Pope was in business to assist trucking companies with compliance and testing of their commercial truck drivers pursuant to the Drug and Alcohol Testing Program of the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) of the U.S. Department of Transportation. The program includes pre-employment and random testing, testing for cause and post-accident testing. The Pittsburgh-based victim is InTransit, LLC, an administrative and service company for several national transport companies. InTransit used Pope d/b/a Eastgate Laboratory Testing as a third party administrator to handle the DOT drug and alcohol testing for them. DOT regulations require that a percentage of negative tests and all positive drug or alcohol tests must be reviewed by a licensed doctor, known under the DOT regulations as a Medical Review Officer (MRO), to oversee the program and determine if there were any innocent reasons why a test was positive. On all FMCSA and DOT required paperwork Pope, without authority or permission, used a computer generated signature of a doctor who had previously worked for her as an MRO for a short time predating the charges in the indictment to create the impression that he had done the necessary oversight and reviews when he had not. The fraud came to light when a commercial truck driver with 18 years of experience tried to contact the MRO after his pre-employment drug test reported as “diluted” for three consecutive tests. When he was unable to get the contact information from Pope for the MRO, he searched for the MRO on the internet. The MRO in turn contacted InTransit to report the unauthorized use of his name. InTransit conducted an internal investigation and referred the matter to the Inspector General for the Department of Transportation. Pope billed InTransit as though her company had actually performed the all required services, causing InTransit to send her checks totaling approximately $109,000.
Judge Ambrose scheduled the sentencing for Nov. 4, 2014. The law provides for a maximum total sentence of 20 years in prison, a fine of $250,000 or both. Under the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, the actual sentence imposed would be based upon the seriousness of the offenses and the prior criminal history, if any, of the defendant.
Assistant United States Attorney Nelson P. Cohen is prosecuting this case on behalf of the government. The U.S. Department of Transportation-OIG conducted the investigation that led to the prosecution of Elizabeth Pope.
Tax Return Preparer, Jacqueline J. Arias, Pleads Guilty as Part of Tax Fraud, Money Laundering ConspiraciesRead the Press Release
United States Attorney Kenneth Allen Polite, Jr. and Deputy Assistant Attorney General Ronald A. Cimino of the Justice Department's Tax Division announced that JACQUELINE J. ARIAS, 39, a tax return preparer from Spruce Pine, Alabama, pleaded guilty today before U.S. District Judge Helen Ginger Berrigan to one count of conspiracy to defraud the United States, five counts of mail fraud, and one count of money laundering conspiracy. As part of her plea, ARIAS admitted to her role in a years-long scheme to defraud the United States by filing false income tax returns that fraudulently claimed large tax refunds. ARIAS, her husband, her tax preparation business, and nineteen other individuals, all of them foreign nationals, have been charged as part of the case. To date, sixteen defendants have entered guilty pleas to various charges.
According to court documents, ARIAS and her co-conspirators filed false returns listing Individual Taxpayer Identification Numbers (ITINs). An ITIN is a tax processing number issued by the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) to individuals who do not have, and are not eligible to obtain, a social security number. As alleged in the second superseding indictment, ARIAS was a Certified Acceptance Agent, entrusted by the IRS with the responsibility of reviewing the documentation of an ITIN applicant’s identity and alien status for authenticity, completeness and accuracy before submitting an application to the IRS. The indictment charged that ARIAS filed false applications for ITINs, in addition to false income tax returns, and collected preparation fees from the fraudulently-obtained tax refunds. The indictment also charged ARIAS with filing false tax returns for her corporation, JB Tax Professional Services, and for herself individually.
For each of the mail fraud and money laundering conspiracy charges, ARIAS faces a maximum term of twenty years’ imprisonment. ARIAS also faces a maximum term of imprisonment of five years for conspiring to defraud the United States. All of the charges to which ARIAS pleaded guilty carry the possibility for fines, restitution, and forfeiture. As part of her plea agreement, ARIAS admitted that her actions caused at least $1 million in loss to the government, although she acknowledged that the government would present evidence of a larger loss at her sentencing. ARIAS further agreed to forfeit nearly $400,000 in United States currency seized as part of the case.
“Defrauding the government in the fashion this defendant pleaded guilty to has a direct, negative impact on law-abiding taxpayers,” said Special Agent in Charge Raymond R. Parmer Jr., ICE Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) in New Orleans. “The money stolen from the government in this case might have been used to feed hungry children, pay our soldiers or make needed repairs on a local highway. HSI stands ready with our partners at the IRS and other agencies to hold those who seek to enrich themselves at the expense of others through tax fraud and other criminal schemes accountable for their actions.”
The case was investigated by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, which oversees Homeland Security Investigations; IRS-Criminal Investigation; the U.S. Secret Service; the U.S. Postal Inspection Service; and the Social Security Administration, Office of the Inspector General, in partnership with the St. Tammany Parish, La. and Jefferson Parish, La. Sheriffs’ Departments. The case was prosecuted by Department of Justice, Tax Division Trial Attorneys Hayden Brockett and Kevin Lombardi and AUSA David Haller.
Statement of Manhattan U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara on the Acquittal of Rengan RajaratnamRead the Press Release
“While we are disappointed with the verdict on the sole count that the jury was permitted to consider, we respect the jury trial system whatever the outcome, and we thank the jury for their service. This Office maintains its faith in the criminal justice system, a system that has resulted in the convictions by trial or guilty plea of 85 other defendants on insider trading charges. We will continue to seek justice in the investigation and prosecution of those who violate the securities laws of the United States.”
Slippery Rock Man Pleads Guilty to Child Pornography ChargesRead the Press Release
PITTSBURGH - A Butler County resident pleaded guilty in federal court to charges of receipt and possession of materials depicting the sexual exploitation of a minor, United States Attorney David J. Hickton announced today.
Mark Beres, 54, formerly of Slippery Rock, Pa., pleaded guilty to two counts before Chief United States District Judge Joy Flowers Conti.
In connection with the guilty plea, the court was advised that on July 1, 2008, Beres knowingly received visual depictions of minors engaged in sexually explicit conduct by computer and the United States Mail. In addition, the indictment charges that on or about April 23, 2013, Beres knowingly possessed videos and images in computer graphic files, the production of which involved the use of minors engaging in sexually explicit conduct.
Judge Conti scheduled sentencing for Oct. 31, 2014, at 10 a.m. The law provides for a total sentence of 30 years in prison, a fine of $500,000, or both. Under the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, the actual sentence imposed is based upon the seriousness of the offenses and the prior criminal history, if any, of the defendant.
Assistant United States Attorney Jessica Lieber Smolar is prosecuting this case on behalf of the government.
The United States Postal Inspection Service conducted the investigation that led to the prosecution of Beres.
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.
Sex Offender Living in Willimantic Sentenced to Prison for Illegally Reentering U.S. After DeportationRead the Press Release
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Deirdre M. Daly, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, announced that JOSE DE LA CRUZ AJQUI, 27, a citizen of Guatemala last residing in Willimantic, was sentenced today by U.S. District Judge Alvin W. Thompson in Hartford to 12 months of imprisonment for illegally reentering the U.S. after he was deported.
According to court documents and statements made in court, DE LA CRUZ AJQUI entered the U.S. illegally in 2005 and settled in Willimantic. In September 2007, he was charged and subsequently convicted in Connecticut state court of sexual assault of a minor in the second degree. DE LA CRUZ AJQUI received a sentence of five years of incarceration execution, suspended after nine months, and 10 years of probation. He was also required to register as a sex offender for a period of 10 years.
DE LA CRUZ AJQUI was deported to Guatemala in May 2009. By his own admission, he illegally reentered the U.S. less than two months later and returned to Willimantic.
On October 7, 2011, DE LA CRUZ AJQUI was arrested by the Connecticut State Police in Woodstock for evading responsibility, operating a motor vehicle while under the influence of alcohol, and illegally operating a motor vehicle. He also was found in possession of marijuana. However, DE LA CRUZ AJQUI provided a false identity at the time of this arrest. His illegal presence in the country was not detected in until May 7, 2013, when he was arrested by the Willimantic Police Department for failing to appear on the charges and his true identity was determined. On December 6, 2013, he was sentenced in state court to five years of incarceration, execution suspended after one year, with 10 years of probation for violating his probation.
On March 25, 2014, DE LA CRUZ AJQUI pleaded guilty in federal court to one count of illegal reentry of a removed alien.
This matter was investigated by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, Enforcement and Removal Operations. The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Deborah R. Slater.
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[email protected]Sex Offender Enters Guilty Plea for Failing to Register in OrangeburgRead the Press Release
Contact Person: Bill Day (803) 929-3000
Columbia, South Carolina -----United States Attorney Bill Nettles stated today that Tyrone King, a/k/a “Tyrone Leonard,” age 39, of Orangeburg, South Carolina, has entered a guilty plea in federal court in Columbia, to Failure to Register as a Sex Offender, a violation of 18 U.S.C. § 2250(a). United States District Judge J. Michelle Childs of Columbia accepted the guilty plea and will impose sentence after she has reviewed the presentence report which will be prepared by the U.S. Probation Office.
Evidence presented at the change of plea hearing established that King was convicted in September 2008 for Committing a Lewd Act on a child Under 16 Years Old in South Carolina. After serving his sentence, King resided in North Carolina but failed to register as a sex offender and committed Common Law Robbery so was sentenced again in June 2012. When King was paroled in September 2013, he absconded his supervision and moved to Orangeburg without registering as a sex offender in either North or South Carolina. King was arrested in Orangeburg on April 4, 2014.
Mr. Nettles stated the maximum penalty for Failure to Register as a Sex Offender is imprisonment for 10 years and/or a fine of $250,000.
The case was investigated by agents of the U.S. Marshal. Assistant United States Attorney William E Day, II of the Columbia is prosecuting the case.Sex Offender Attempting to Use Alleged “Loophole” in Law Sentenced for Failing to RegisterRead the Press Release
Pocatello - Jeramie McGuire, 36, of Big Piney, Wyoming, was sentenced to 12 months and one day in prison for failing to register as a sex offender, U.S. Attorney Wendy J. Olson announced. United States District Judge Edward J. Lodge also ordered McGuire to serve ten years of supervised release. McGuire pleaded guilty to the charge on April 14, 2014.
According to court records, McGuire is required to register as a sex offender due to a third degree felony rape conviction in Oregon in 1998. In May 2013, McGuire travelled from Big Piney, Wyoming, to Pocatello, Idaho, and began working and residing there until arrested on October 23, 2013. At no time while living and working in Idaho did McGuire register with the state of Idaho. McGuire admitted to law enforcement when arrested that he was attempting to avoid registration through “loopholes” in the law by travelling between Idaho, Utah, and Wyoming.
The case was investigated by the Pocatello Police Department and the U.S. Marshals Service (USMS). McGuire was prosecuted for a violation of the Sex Offender Registration and Notification Act (SORNA) passed by Congress in 2006. The Act requires sex offenders to register and keep their registration current in each jurisdiction where they reside. Violations of SORNA can be prosecuted in federal court.
Russian Hacker Wanted in Seattle, Washington Arrested in GuamRead the Press Release
ROMAN SELEZNEV, a Russian national indicted in the Western District of Washington for a computer hacking scheme that compromised the financial accounts of credit card customers, was arrested in Guam on July 6, 2014 by law enforcement agents from the U.S. Secret Service.
SELEZNEV was indicted in March 2011 for multiple counts of Bank Fraud, Intentional Damage to a Protected Computer, Obtaining Information from a Protected Computer, Possession of Fifteen or More Unauthorized Access Devices, Trafficking in Unauthorized Access Devices, and Aggravated Identity Theft related to a computer hacking scheme that occurred between October 2009 to February 2011 within the Western District of Washington and elsewhere. The superseding indictment from the Western District of Washington details, among other things, a bank fraud scheme in which SELEZNEV is charged with hacking into retail point of sale systems and installing malicious software on the systems to steal credit card numbers. The indictment further alleges that SELEZNEV created and used infrastructure to further the theft and sales of credit card data, and used servers worldwide to facilitate the operation.
SELEZNEV appeared before the Honorable Joaquin V.E. Manibusan, Magistrate Judge of the U.S. District Court of Guam, on July 7, 2014 for his initial appearance, and was remanded to the custody of the U.S. Marshals Service pending a further hearing set for July 22, 2014.Alicia A.G. Limtiaco stated, “The United States Attorney’s Office for the Districts of Guam and the Northern Mariana Islands is committed to working with our law enforcement partners and community of United States Attorney’s Offices, to combat against cybercrime, data theft and financial crimes, and to hold offenders accountable and ensure that they are brought to justice.”
The charges contained in the indictment are only allegations. A person is presumed innocent unless and until he or she is proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
Reneelinette P. Mesa and Ok Ja Cho Sentenced Today in the District Court of GuamRead the Press Release
ALICIA A.G. LIMTIACO, United States Attorney for the Districts of Guam and the Northern Mariana Islands, announced that Defendants RENEELINETTE P. MESA, age 33, and OK JA CHO, age 47, were sentenced today in the District Court of Guam by Judge Ramona Manglona, for their roles in making and passing counterfeit currency on Guam.
Defendant MESA was sentenced for the offense of Making Photographs in the Likeness of U.S. Currency. Defendant CHO was sentenced for Dealing in Counterfeit U.S. Obligations and Securities. Defendant MESA and co-defendant Michael Badar (who will be sentenced later) made counterfeit currency and passed them at various businesses throughout Guam. They were discovered when a vendor at Micronesian Mall called Mall Security when Defendant CHO attempted to pass one of the counterfeit notes. The vendor led the Mall Security Officers to CHO. Mall Security detained CHO until the Guam Police Department (GPD) and the U.S. Secret Service (USSS) responded. Defendant CHO confessed that day and led United States Secret Service to Badar and Defendant MESA. Agents recovered the materials they used to produce the counterfeit currency in garbage bags to be thrown out.
Defendant MESA was sentenced to 14 months imprisonment, five years supervised release, and 125 hours community service. Defendant MESA was also ordered to pay restitution to the victims who filed claims. Defendant CHO was sentenced to time served, with credit for seven months and eight days, three years supervised release, 200 hours community service and was ordered to report her conviction to the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, U.S. Citizenship & Immigration Services.
Credit for the investigation is given to the Micronesian Mall Security, officers of the Guam Police Department, and special agents of the U.S. Secret Service. The case was handled by Assistant U.S. Attorney Clyde Lemons.Operation "megabusted" Defendant, Andre Addison, Pleads GuiltyRead the Press Release
U.S. Attorney Kenneth Allen Polite, Jr. announced that ANDRE ADDISON, a resident of New Orleans, pled guilty today to possession with intent to distribute heroin. On August 2, 2013, ADDISON was one of fifteen defendants charged in a seventeen-count superseding indictment for Violations of the Controlled Substances Act. All fourteen defendants in custody have now pled guilty including: BYRON M. EVANS, a/k/a “B-Boy”; YULIAN GABRIEL VERA-OLIVEROS, a/k/a “Luis Angel Jimenez,” a/k/a “Paco”; ALVARO HERNEY CORTES, a/k/a “Ezequiel Padilla Romero,” a/k/a “Cookie”; JOVAN PATTERSON, a/k/a “Moon”; WILLIAM ROBERTSON III, a/k/a “Lil Will”; BRADLEY S. WILLIAMS, a/k/a “B”; KEYING EVANS, a/k/a “Mingo”; THEODIS HUDSON, a/k/a “Chicken”; DOMINIQUE BROWN, a/k/a “D”; ROBERT LEON JOHNSON a/k/a “Rob”; DAVON CHRISTOPHER MOSLEY, a/k/a “Lob”; ANDRE COSTIMINA ADDISON, a/k/a “Dooda”; KERRY B. MOLIERE, a/k/a “Duke”; SHEILA JENKINS, and FRANKLYN F. PHILLIP, a/k/a “Dre,” a/k/a “Jr.”. ALVARO HERNEY CORTES, one of two Columbian Foreign Nationals indicted, remains an active fugitive.
According to court documents, the investigation – entitled “Operation Megabusted” -- revealed that a heroin trafficking organization, led by EVANS, was responsible for distributing kilogram quantities of heroin and cocaine between Houston, Texas, and New Orleans, Louisiana. This organization was supplied by two Columbian Foreign Nationals illegally present in the United States. Various couriers for this drug trafficking organization transported kilogram quantities of heroin and cocaine from Houston to New Orleans via the Megabus and other methods of transportation. Upon arrival in New Orleans, the heroin and cocaine were distributed throughout New Orleans, Avondale, St. Charles Parish, and Hattiesburg, Mississippi. In total, this organization is responsible for the distribution of approximately 30 kilograms of heroin and cocaine over the span of a two year period.
This case was investigated by the New Orleans Gang Task Force (NOGTF) which includes members of the New Orleans Police Department (NOPD), Jefferson Parish Sheriff’s Office (JPSO), and the St. Tammany Police Sheriff’s Office (STPSO). Also assisting in the investigation were members of the Houston Police Department (HPD)/HIDTA Task Force; Hattiesburg 12-NET Task Force; St. Charles Sheriff’s Office; and the Hattiesburg District Attorney’s Office. The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney J. Collin Sims.
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Northfield Man Pleads Guilty to Distributing Child PornographyRead the Press Release
MINNEAPOLIS — Last week in federal court, a 42-year-old Northfield man pleaded guilty to one count of Distribution of Child Pornography. Charles Edward Bracken, who was indicted on October 8, 2013, entered his guilty plea before United States District Judge Richard H. Kyle on July 2, 2014.
In his plea agreement, Bracken admitted that on September 16, 2010, he distributed a computer image depicting two minor boys engaged in sexually explicit conduct. The defendant also admitted that he possessed on his laptop computer approximately 21,541 images and more than 574 videos of child pornography, some of which portrayed sadistic or masochistic conduct or other depictions of violence. The defendant distributed these images through an Internet file- sharing program.
For his crime, Bracken faces a possible maximum sentence of 20 years in federal prison. Judge Kyle will determine his sentence at a future hearing, yet to be scheduled.
This case is the result of an investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation. It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Karen B. Schommer.
This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood (“PSC”), 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 U.S. Attorney offices and the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, PSC marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who sexually exploit children and identify and rescue victims. For more information about PSC, please visit http://www.justice.gov/psc/. For more information about internet safety education, please visit http://www.justice.gov/psc/resources.html and click on the tab “resources.”North Carolina Drug Supplier to Henrico Drug Dealers Sentenced to 24 Years in PrisonRead the Press Release
RICHMOND, Va. – Carlos A. Cooke, age 38, of High Point, North Carolina, Virginia, was sentenced to 24 years in prison on his guilty plea to conspiring to distribute more than 5 kilograms of cocaine.
Dana J. Boente, United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia, Shannon L. Taylor, Commonwealth Attorney for Henrico County; Special Agent in Charge Karl C. Colder of the Drug Enforcement Administration, Washington Field Division and Douglas A. Middleton, Chief of Henrico Police Division, made the announcement after the sentencing before United States District Judge Henry E. Hudson.In the Statement of Facts signed as part of his guilty plea, Cooke admitted that from 2007 to 2013 he distributed between 5 and 15 kilograms of cocaine from North Carolina to dealers in Henrico and Urbanna, Virginia. He would negotiate on the telephone to supply those dealers with distribution quantities of cocaine, typically as high as 375 grams at a time. Tomeka Wimbush, age 36, of Martinsville, Virginia, would transport the drugs to the Virginia dealers, and then return with the proceeds, which she gave to Cooke. Wimbush was sentenced on August 5, 2014 to 51 months in prison.
This case is part of an 18-month OCDETF investigation, Operation Carolina and Back, that targeted Cooke and his Virginia customers. In addition to Cooke and Wimbush, 8 Henrico dealers and 1 Urbanna dealer have pled guilty to drug trafficking charges. Darryl Delaney, a Henrico dealer, was sentenced to 156 months’ imprisonment; Gordon Shelton, also a Henrico dealer, was sentenced to 120 months’ imprisonment. The other Henrico dealers, Stevenson Silencieux, Charles Kates, Kevin Lee, Kelley Brown, Eric Wingate and Donte Beard, are awaiting sentencing. Charles Epps, the Urbanna dealer, is also awaiting sentencing.
This case was investigated by the Henrico County Commonwealth Attorney’s Office, the Drug Enforcement Administration, and the Henrico Police Division. David T. Maguire, Assistant United States Attorney and Matthew C. Ackley, Special Assistant United States Attorney and Henrico County Regional Drug Prosecutor, are prosecuting the case on behalf of the United States.
A copy of this press release may be found on the website of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Virginia. Related court documents and information may be found on the website of the District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia or on PACER by searching for Case No. 3:14-cr-030.Tweet
Norridgewock Man Pleads Guilty to Child Exploitation and Pornography ChargesRead the Press Release
Contact: Andrew McCormack
Assistant United States Attorney
Tel: (207) 945-0373Bangor, Maine: United States Attorney Thomas E. Delahanty II announced that Patrik
Arsenault, 27, most recently of Norridgewock, Maine, pleaded guilty today in U.S. District Court
in Bangor to sexual exploitation of a minor and transportation, receipt and possession of child
pornography. He was indicted on the charges on October 16, 2013.
According to court records, in June and July of 2013, the defendant, a former special
education teacher, sexually abused three minors and recorded images and videos of the
abuse. The defendant then sent recordings of the abuse of two of the minors, as well as other
images of child pornography, to several e-mail trading partners. The defendant also received
images of child pornography from his trading partners. On August 21, 2013, law enforcement
agents seized a hard drive during the execution of a search warrant at the defendant’s
residence. A forensic examination revealed videos of the defendant’s abuse of the two minors
and over 7,500 images and 250 videos depicting child pornography.
“I would like to thank my agents for their tireless efforts, in pursuing those individuals
who would use their position of trust to carry out these unthinkable acts”, said Bruce Foucart,
special agent in charge of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security
Investigations (HSI) in Boston. “I would also like to thank our partners in the Maine State Police
Internet Crimes Against Children (ICAC) unit for their constant support and dedication in
tackling these disturbing types of crimes.”
Arsenault faces a mandatory minimum of 15 years and up to 30 years in prison on the
sexual exploitation charges, a minimum of 5 years and up to 20 years in prison on the
transportation and receipt of child pornography charges, and up to 20 years in prison on the child
pornography possession charge. He also faces a fine of up to a $250,000 on each count. He will
be sentenced after the completion of a presentence investigation report by the U.S. Probation
Office.
The investigation was conducted jointly by HSI, the Maine State Police, and the Maine
State Police Computer Crimes Unit. 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 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.Morris County, N.J., Man Admits Defrauding Investers of $500,000 Through Phony Investment SchemeRead the Press Release
NEWARK, N.J. – A Morris County, N.J., man today admitted he fraudulently obtained $500,000 by promising investors favorable returns and that funds would be used to finance educational television programming for teenage audiences, U.S. Attorney Paul Fishman announced.
Peter Lareau, 77, of Mountain Lakes, N.J., pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Esther Salas in Newark federal court to an information charging him with one count of wire fraud.
According to documents filed in this case and statements made in court:
From June 2008 through January 2010, Lareau created numerous entities, including T4Teens LLC and Concordia Mediaworks LLC, for the purpose of soliciting investors. Lareau recruited investors through civic, religious and charitable organizations, as well as through alumni events at prestigious education institutions.
In addition to promising greater-than-market returns, Lareau falsely represented that investors’ funds would be used for educational television programming for teenage audiences.
He sent investors prospectuses and other information related to investment opportunities by email and then directed them to wire funds from brokerage accounts in New York to his business accounts in New Jersey.Instead of using the funds for educational programming or other business-related purposes, Lareau used those funds for personal expenses, including groceries, tuition payments for his child, rent payments, and club memberships.
The wire fraud charge carries a maximum potential penalty of 20 years in prison and a maximum fine of $250,000. Sentencing is scheduled for Oct. 14, 2014.
U.S. Attorney Fishman credited special agents from the FBI, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Aaron T. Ford in Newark, for the investigation leading to today’s plea.
The government is represented by U.S. Attorney Lorraine S. Gerson of the Economic Crimes Unit in Newark.
14-242
Defense counsel: K. Anthony Thomas Esq., Assistant Federal Public Defender, Newark
Lareau, Peter Information
Milwaukee Man Sentenced to Prison for Filing False Federal Income Tax ReturnsRead the Press Release
United States Attorney James L. Santelle announced that on July 2, 2014, Prince Rashada (45) of Milwaukee, WI, was sentenced to 24 months imprisonment for filing false federal tax returns based on an indictment issued in 2008.
Rashada fled the United States after the indictment was returned. In 2013, he was located by the United States Marshals Service. Rashada devised and executed a scheme to obtain payment of false claims for refunds from the Internal Revenue Service. The scheme encompassed the 2004, 2005 and 2006 tax years and involved Rashada electronically filing 72 fraudulent claims for federal refunds totaling approximately $277,000.
Rashada recruited unemployed individuals to file the returns. He portrayed himself as a legitimate tax preparer and told individuals who thought they could not file due to their unemployment that they could. Rashada then made up a wage amount and occupation to list on the tax returns. After receiving the refund, he paid the recruited individuals a portion of the funds and kept the remainder, typically a fee of $1,000, for himself. Rashada was also ordered to pay restitution to the IRS totaling approximately $160,000 for the losses incurred.
This case was investigated by the Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigation and the United States Marshal’s Service. The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Lisa A. Wesley.
Mexican Pair Pleads Guilty to Debit/Credit Card Conspiracy in $35K McAllen Shopping SpreeRead the Press Release
McALLEN, Texas – Mary Carmen Vaquera-Garcia, 27, and Daniel Dominguez-Guardiola, 28, both of Mexico, have entered guilty pleas to conspiring to use debit/credit cards with the intent to defraud, announced U.S. Attorney Kenneth Magidson.
Vaquera and Dominguez admitted today that on Jan. 12, 2014, they went on a $35K+ shopping spree in McAllen using unauthorized Lone Star National Bank Visa card accounts. The pair intended to sell the fraudulently-purchased merchandise in Mexico for a profit. Vaquera further admitted to wiring money overseas to obtain stolen account information for the cards and to hiring Dominuez to help her use the cards.
The magnetic strips on the fake cards had been encoded with stolen, real account information for other people’s accounts that the defendants were not authorized to use. The names on the front of the fake cards were associated with false male and female identities that the defendants were using. Therefore, a retailer simply checking the name on an ID against the front of the card might not have been able to detect the fraud.
Vaquera-Garcia and Dominguez-Guardiola were arrested on Jan. 19, 2014, on several outstanding warrants as they attempted to re-enter the U.S. through the Anzalduas Port of Entry. A total of 96 counterfeit cards were found hidden in Dominguez’s waistband.
As part of their plea agreements, the defendants agreed to pay restitution and forfeiture in the amount of $35,422.21 and to forfeit several items that were seized from them on the day of their arrest, including hundreds of dollars in currency and gift cards.
Chief U.S. District Judge Ricardo H. Hinojosa, who accepted the guilty pleas, has set sentencing for Sept. 24, 2014. At that time, each defendant faces up to 10 years in federal prison and a possible $250,000 maximum fine. They will remain in custody pending that hearing.
This case was investigated by the Secret Service with the assistance of the McAllen Police Department. Assistant U.S. Attorney Christopher Sully is prosecuting.
Mexican National Sentenced for Growing Marijuana on Public LandsRead the Press Release
BOISE - Gilberto Duran-Contreras, 51, of Mexico, was sentenced today to 30 months in prison for unlawfully manufacturing more than 1,000 marijuana plants, and damage to government land, U.S. Attorney Wendy J. Olson announced. United States District Judge Edward J. Lodge also ordered the defendant to pay $33,265 in restitution for cleanup of the site, forfeit $68,000 in cash and firearms, and pay a $200 special assessment. Duran-Contreras pleaded guilty on April 22, 2014.
According to the plea agreement, Duran-Contreras admitted he had worked in the growing operation on Little Beaver Creek where law enforcement officers had removed 5,463 marijuana plants. Duran-Contreras, a citizen of Mexico, was arrested on September 15, 2013, on Hwy 21 near Lowman, a few miles from an outdoor marijuana growing operation on Little Beaver Creek in the Boise National Forest. Four days earlier, his co-defendants Marcos Solano-Farias, Jose Misael Ayala-Talavera, and Carlos Cerda-Carpio, who have all pleaded guilty, were arrested in a related outdoor marijuana growing operation with 1,411 live plants on Rabbit Creek. Investigators found and seized two semi-automatic handguns, and an AK-47 type rifle at the Rabbit Creek camp. Firearms had also been present at the Little Beaver Creek camp. At both locations, investigators found several hundred marijuana plants that had already been harvested from the 2013 growing operation. Law enforcement officers have located and eradicated all live marijuana plants from these growing operations. At the time Duran-Contreras was arrested, he was illegally present in the United States. He will be deported to Mexico after serving his prison sentence.
Co-defendant Mariah Villasenor-Rodriguez recently pleaded guilty to possession of more than 100 kilos of processed marijuana at her premises in Caldwell. She will be sentenced 2 on August 7, 2014. Villasenor-Rodriguez is the wife of lead co-defendant, Juan Pablo Villasenor-Villa, who is set for trial on September 29, 2014.
All defendants were indicted by a federal grand jury on October 9, 2013, on charges of conspiracy to manufacture and distribute marijuana, possession of firearms in furtherance of drug trafficking, and injury to federal public lands. The other three co-defendants who have pleaded guilty are set for sentencing on October 15, 2014.
The charge of manufacturing more than 1,000 marijuana plants carries a penalty of not less than ten years and up to life in prison, a maximum fine of $10 million, and five years of supervised release. The charge of injury to government property is punishable by up to ten years in prison, a maximum fine of $250,000, and up to three years of supervised release. Possession of more than 100 kg is punishable by not less than five years and up to 25 years in prison, a maximum fine of $5 million and up to three years of supervised release.
“Vigorous prosecution of those who grow illegal drugs on federal land is a high priority of this office,” said Olson. “Those who operate marijuana grows not only traffic in illegal drugs, but they also damage wildlife and the environment and, through their possession and possible use of firearms, pose a significant danger to all Idahoans who seek to use our national forests for hiking, hunting and recreation purposes.”
The case is the result of a joint investigation result of the Organized Crime and Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF), which included the cooperative law enforcement efforts of the Drug Enforcement Administration, Bureau of Land Management, and United States Forest Service, with assistance from the Ada County Sheriff’s Office, Boise County Sheriff’s Office, Boise Police Department, City County Narcotics Unit (Canyon County Sheriff’s Office and Caldwell Police Department), the Idaho National Guard, Meridian Police Department, Nampa Police Department, Spokane Police Department, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), and Washington State Police.
The OCDETF program is a federal, multi-agency, multi-jurisdictional task force that supplies supplemental federal funding to federal and state agencies involved in the identification, investigation, and prosecution of major drug trafficking organizations.
Mescalero Apache Woman Pleads Guilty to Federal Assault Charges Arising out of Drive-By ShootingRead the Press Release
ALBUQUERQUE – Julianna Rosynelle Venego, 28, a member and resident of the Mescalero Apache Nation, pleaded guilty this afternoon to two federal assault charges under a plea agreement with the U.S. Attorney’s Office.
Venego and her brother Rufus Juan Lester, 22, were arrested in July 2013, based on a criminal complaint alleging assault with dangerous weapons charges. In Oct. 2013, Venego was indicted on two counts of aiding and abetting assaults with dangerous weapons. Lester was indicted in a separate case in Nov. 2013 and charged with eight counts of assault with a dangerous weapon and one count of discharging a firearm during and in relation to a crime of violence. According to court filings, Venego and Lester committed the offenses charged in the two cases on Nov. 24, 2012, when Venego drove a vehicle in which Lester was a passenger while Lester used two firearms to fire eight shots at a residence located within the Mescalero Apache Reservation.
During today’s proceedings, Venego entered a guilty plea to both counts in the indictment and admitted driving Lester past a residence while he used two firearms to shoot at the residence. She acknowledged that the residence was occupied by two adults and six children during the drive-by shooting.
Venego was remanded into federal custody after entering her guilty plea and will remain detained pending her sentencing hearing, which has yet to be scheduled. At sentencing, Venego faces a statutory maximum penalty of ten years in prison.
Lester entered a guilty plea on May 16, 2014, to all eight of the assault charges in the indictment against him, and admitted assaulting the eight individuals who were in the residence when he fired shots at the residence. Lester has been in federal custody since his arrest and remains detained pending his sentencing hearing, which has yet to be scheduled. Under the terms of his plea agreement, Lester will be sentenced to 66 months in federal prison followed by a term of supervised release to be determined by the court.
This case was investigated by the Mescalero Agency of the BIA’s Office of Justice Services and is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Aaron O. Jordan of the U.S. Attorney’s Las Cruces Branch Office.Mercer County Man Gets 8+ Years in Prison for Federal Child Pornography OffenseRead the Press Release
CHARLESTON, W.Va. – Johnny Richard Rowe, of Bluewell, Mercer County, West Virginia, was sentenced today to eight years and a month in prison for a federal child pornography offense, announced U.S. Attorney Booth Goodwin. Rowe, 61, previously pleaded guilty in January to possessing child pornography. Rowe’s sentence was handed down by Senior United States District Judge David A. Faber.
An investigation conducted by the West Virginia Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force revealed that Rowe possessed 728 images and 14 videos of child pornography. The images depict prepubescent minors and minors engaged in sexual acts. The child pornography was discovered on Rowe’s computer and on a flash drive located at his residence in Bluewell. The investigation also revealed that Rowe received and shared child pornography by using a file sharing network that allows users to download files from other people’s computers around the world.
U.S. Attorney Goodwin stated, “The exploitation of innocent children is a heinous crime. Child pornography has a highly destructive impact on the most vulnerable segment of society and my office will work diligently to ensure that criminals like Mr. Rowe are prosecuted to the fullest extent.”
The West Virginia Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force, the Mercer County Sheriff’s Department, and the West Virginia State Police conducted the investigation. Assistant United States Attorney Lisa Johnston handled the prosecution.
This case was prosecuted as part of U.S. Attorney Goodwin’s ongoing initiative to combat sexual exploitation and abuse in the Southern District of West Virginia.
Medical Device Inventor Sentenced to Prison for Tax FraudRead the Press Release
Ashvin Desai, of San Jose, California, was sentenced yesterday to serve six months in prison and six months and one day of home confinement for concealing more than $8 million in foreign bank accounts, the Justice Department and Internal Revenue Service (IRS) announced. Prior to yesterday’s sentencing hearing, Desai filed with the court a document indicating that the IRS has assessed and demanded payment of a Reports of Foreign Bank and Financial Accounts (FBAR) penalty against him for $14,229,744.
In October 2013, a jury convicted Desai, a medical device manufacturer, of failing to report his family’s foreign bank accounts to the government on tax returns and FBARs. The jury also found that Desai failed to disclose more than $1.2 million in interest income generated by these accounts between 2007 and 2009. Desai was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Edward J. Davila.
According to the evidence presented in court, Desai controlled several foreign bank accounts at HSBC in India and Dubai, including accounts held in the name of his wife and adult children. Desai invested the funds in these accounts in certificates of deposit, which earned interest at rates as high as nine percent. Desai funded these accounts by mailing checks from the United States and by transferring money from other undeclared bank accounts in Singapore and the United Kingdom to his family’s accounts in India. Desai also sold medical devices abroad, and, on at least one occasion, directed that his customer wire funds directly to his undeclared HSBC India account.
Between 2007 and 2009, Desai paid approximately $17,000 in taxes. However, Desai owed an additional $357,783 in taxes to the IRS on his unreported interest income. Desai’s deposits into his foreign accounts also far exceeded the income he disclosed on his tax returns each year. In 2008, for example, he deposited nearly $1.1 million into foreign accounts while only reporting income of $115,810.91 on his tax return.
The evidence at trial demonstrated the steps Desai took to conceal his family’s foreign accounts from the government. In addition to failing to report his accounts on tax returns and FBARs, Desai also directed the bank not to mail bank statements to his house. On one occasion, Desai wrote an email in which he asked an HSBC banker: “Why are all the statements coming to Home address? I thought we had a different arrangement.”
This case was investigated by IRS-Criminal Investigation and prosecuted by Trial Attorney Melissa Siskind of the Tax Division.
Marinette Business Owner Pleads Guilty to Tax Evasion in Federal CourtRead the Press Release
United States Attorney James L. Santelle announced that a Marinette business man pleaded guilty to tax evasion in federal court in Green Bay yesterday. Pursuant to a plea agreement, Joseph Wilke (age 56) pleaded guilty to evading taxes he owed in 2007. As part of his plea agreement, Wilke, who operates a heating and air conditioning business in Marinette, acknowledged that during the years 2007 - 2009 he failed to report more than $130,000 of income he earned from a side-business and, thereby, under reporting his federal taxes by more than $50,000.
Based on his plea, Wilke faces up to 5 years in prison and a fine of up to $250,000. As part of his plea, Wilke also agreed to make full restitution to the IRS for his unpaid taxes, interest, and penalties, which total more than $108,000. Wilke is scheduled to be sentenced on September 29, 2014. He was released on bond pending his sentencing.
The case was investigated by the Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigation. The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Matthew L. Jacobs.
Man Pleads Guilty to Filing False ClaimsRead the Press Release
MINNEAPOLIS— Last week in federal court, a man pleaded guilty to submitting false tax returns to the Internal Revenue Service. On July 1, 2014, Dusten Lee Barth pleaded guilty to one count of False Claims and one count of Aggravated Identity Theft. Barth, who was indicted on March 3, 2014, entered his guilty plea before United States District Court Judge Paul A. Magnuson.
According to the plea agreement, Barth admitted to preparing and submitting approximately 10 fraudulent tax returns to the Internal Revenue Service (“IRS”), claiming over $43,000 in false tax refunds. The defendant also admitted to using the identities of several other individuals to submit a false tax return in their names.
For his crimes, Barth faces a potential maximum penalty of five years in federal prison and a fine of up to $250,000 for the False Claims count and a two year mandatory, consecutive prison sentence for the Aggravated Identity Theft count Judge Magnuson will determine his sentence at a future hearing, which is yet to be scheduled.
This case is the result of an investigation by the IRS Criminal Investigation Division. It is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Surya Saxena.Per U.S. Department of Justice policy, the U.S. Attorney’s Office is not allowed to provide the age and city of residence for defendants charged in criminal tax cases.
Lummi Tribal Member Sentenced to Five Years in Prison for use of a Firearm During a Crime of ViolenceRead the Press Release
A member of the Lummi Tribe was sentenced today in U.S. District Court in Seattle to five years in prison and three years of supervised release for use of a firearm during a crime of violence, announced U.S. Attorney Jenny A. Durkan. WESLEY JOHN GIBBS, 53, of Bellingham, Washington was arrested in September 2013, following a fight with another tribal member. At sentencing Chief U.S. District Judge Marsha J. Pechman said that GIBBS’ use of guns and his threatening others within the community has got to stop.
According to records filed in the case, on September 3, 2013, GIBBS and the victim were socializing at a home on the Lummi Reservation. The men got into an argument. GIBBS went into a bedroom of the home, grabbed an assault rifle and returned, pointing the loaded, but inoperable rifle at the victim and threatening to shoot him. GIBBS cocked the weapon so that it appeared he was ready to fire. The victim was able to flee the house without injury.
The case was investigated by the Lummi Tribal Police and the FBI. The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney J. Tate London.