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4 August 2014
Repeat Marijuana Grower Pleads Guilty to 2013 GrowRead the Press Release
FRESNO, Calif. —Phloch Ouk, 46, of San Jose, pleaded guilty today to growing 50 or more marijuana plants, United States Attorney Benjamin B. Wagner announced.
According to court documents, Ouk was arrested on Aug. 1, 2013, in Fresno County. He was one of about 60 people found on a rural parcel of land on E. Kings Canyon Road where approximately 31,500 marijuana plants were being grown. At that time, Ouk claimed he was growing 99 marijuana plants for personal medicinal purposes. In his guilty plea today, Ouk admitted growing marijuana in 2013 and also admitted that in 2012 law enforcement agents had contacted him at a different Fresno County marijuana cultivation site and advised him that marijuana cultivation was prohibited by federal law.
This case is the product of an investigation by the Drug Enforcement Administration and the Fresno County Sheriff’s Department. Assistant United States Attorney Kevin Rooney is prosecuting the case.
Ouk is scheduled to be sentenced by United States District Judge Anthony W. Ishii on Nov. 10, 2014. Ouk faces a maximum statutory penalty of 20 years in prison and a $1 million fine. The actual sentence, however, will be determined at the discretion of the court after consideration of any applicable statutory factors and the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, which take into account a number of variables.
Notice of HearingRead the Press Release
Contact Person: Nathan Williams (843) 727-4381
Columbia, South Carolina -----Sentencing hearings have been scheduled in connection with United States v. Moore et. al., a case involving Conspiracy, Murder for Hire and Possession of a Firearm in Furtherance of a Crime of Violence. United States District Court Judge Richard M. Gergel will preside over the proceedings, as indicated below.
Defendant Christopher Latham:Tuesday, August 5, 2014, 9:00 a.m.
Defendant Wendy Moore: Wednesday, August 6, 2014, 9:00 a.m.
Hollings Judicial Center
83 Meeting St., Charleston, SC 29401
Courtroom 1
Hollings Judicial Center
83 Meeting St., Charleston, SC 29401
Courtroom 1North Carolina Woman Gets Probation with Home Detention for Counterfeit Currency SchemeRead the Press Release
PITTSBURGH – A North Carolina woman has been sentenced in federal court to 30 months of probation, including six months of home detention with electronic monitoring and payment of restitution, on her conviction of conspiracy, United States Attorney David J. Hickton announced today.
United States District Judge Mark R. Hornak imposed the sentence on Yorleidy Naranjo, 20, of Matthews, North Carolina.
According to information presented to the court, on or about Feb. 20, 2013 and March 5, 2013, Naranjo conspired with others both known and unknown to pass, or attempted to pass counterfeit currency in the Western District of Pennsylvania.
Assistant United States Attorney Shardul S. Desai prosecuted this case on behalf of the government.
U.S. Attorney Hickton commended the United States Secret Service for the investigation leading to the successful prosecution of Naranjo.
North Carolina Man Pleads Guilty to Killing U.S. Marshals Task Force OfficerRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON – Lamont Deshawn Byrd pleaded guilty today in federal court in Raleigh, North Carolina, to one count of first degree murder of an Officer of the United States announced Thomas G. Walker, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of North Carolina. Byrd, 21, was charged by Criminal Information on June 5, 2014, which states that on June 9, 2011, Byrd, with premeditation and malice, killed a Warren Basco “Sneak” Lewis, III, an investigator with the Nash County Sheriff’s Office who was also a sworn special deputy United States marshal assigned to the Eastern North Carolina Regional Fugitive Task Force.
Additionally, according to information provided in open court, on June 2, 2011, Kinston officers responded to an emergency call, in which Thomas Terrell Hinton was fatally shot in the chest by Byrd, Kion Tyearl Dail and two additional juveniles, who then stole his bicycle.
Joining Mr. Walker in today’s announcement are Greg McLeod of the North Carolina State Bureau of Investigation; Wayne L. Dixie, Jr., Special Agent-in-Charge, of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives; and Bill Johnson, Chief, Kinston Department of Public Safety.
According to United States Attorney Walker; “Assaults on federal law enforcement officers in the performance of their duties will not be tolerated. The death of Special Deputy Lewis is a tragedy for his family and all of us in the law enforcement community.”
“The U.S. Marshals Service’s Task Forces play a critical role in protecting our communities across the nation,” said Stacia Hylton, Director of the U.S. Marshals Service. “The partnerships we form with State and Local law enforcement agencies are at the center of reducing violence in our communities, especially in small towns. The men and women in these task forces are dedicated to this effort and Investigator Warren Lewis exemplified that devotion. He was killed serving warrants on five people, including three who were wanted for murder. Each posed a significant threat within the community. We all still miss Warren and we hope that knowing his killer will face justice brings some small level of peace to this situation, which is important for his beloved family. Warren will always be remembered for the hero he was, giving his life in the protection of others.”
“Today’s plea is the result of a tragedy and loss of human life that was not necessary.” said ATF Special Agent in Charge Wayne Dixie, “Anyone that uses a firearm to commit a violent criminal act, especially the murder of a law enforcement officer will be held accountable for their actions. We will continue to use all of our resources to prosecute those that choose to commit this type of heinous act.”
"North Carolina is grateful for the service and sacrifice of officers like Investigator Lewis, and I'm proud of the work State Bureau of Investigation (SBI) agents and all involved have done to bring justice to this tragic case," North Carolina Attorney General Roy Cooper said.
Director of the Kinston Department of Public Safety Bill Johnson added, “The Lewis family and the State of North Carolina lost a true hero. I wish to thank the many individuals and agencies for their assistance in the effort to see justice done.”
On June 9, 2011, Kinston officers, along with U.S. Deputy Marshals attempted to locate the suspects utilizing warrants and executed a search warrant at 602-A West Lenoir Avenue, Kinston, NC. This address is a residence which has been converted into three separate apartments; one upstairs and two downstairs. Although it appeared that 602-A had been inhabited, the apartment was now empty. However, two shotguns were located. Laboratory testing revealed that Byrd had possessed the weapons. Earlier Byrd and several others had moved to Apt B downstairs.
Later that day, after developing additional information, law enforcement officers went back to the Lenoir Avenue apartments. While searching for the suspects, law enforcement officers announced their presence. As Investigator Lewis was coming down the stairs from the upstairs apartment, Byrd shot three times through the closed door, striking the deputy all three times. After realizing he had shot an officer, Byrd was heard to utter, “See what you made me do?” Byrd then handed the weapon to another individual to hide. After a 20-minute stand-off, the individuals came out. The weapon, a Berretta .40 caliber semi-automatic pistol, was found in a banker’s box in a closet, with Byrd’s DNA on it. The weapon had been stolen from a residence three weeks prior.
Investigator Lewis was transported to the hospital where he later died from his injuries.
According to the Plea Agreement, Byrd has also been charged in state court and will plead guilty to murder charges.
At sentencing, scheduled for November 3, 2014, Byrd faces a life-term of imprisonment followed by up to five years of supervised release.
The investigation was conducted by the North Carolina State Bureau of Investigation, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, and the Kinston Department of Public Safety.
The prosecution is being handled by Assistant U.S. Attorney Jane J. Jackson and Imelda J. Pate, Assistant District Attorney for the Eighth District.
New York City to Pay More Than $1 Million to Resolve Medicaid False Claims Act LawsuitRead the Press Release
New York City Human Resources Administration Accepts Responsibility for Causing
Managed Care Organizations to Insure Individuals who were Ineligible for Benefits through New York State’s Medicaid ProgramALBANY, NEW YORK – The City of New York has agreed to pay the United States $1.05 million to settle allegations that the New York City Human Resources Administration (HRA) violated the False Claims Act by causing various insurance companies (known as “managed care organizations” or “MCOs”) to provide health care coverage to individuals that HRA knew, or should have known, were ineligible to receive Medicaid benefits through New York State’s Medicaid program, according to United States Attorney Richard S. Hartunian.
Medicaid is a matching program in which the United States shares with the States the cost of medical services for low income and disabled individuals. Several MCOs have contracted with the State of New York to provide health care coverage to Medicaid beneficiaries who reside in New York City in exchange for fixed monthly payments. Many individuals who qualify for Medicaid also receive assistance under the federal Supplemental Security Income (SSI) program, which provides financial assistance to the elderly, blind, and disabled. In many States, including New York, SSI recipients automatically qualify to receive Medicaid benefits. When a Medicaid beneficiary residing in New York City moves to another State and enrolls for SSI benefits, the federal government provides written or electronic notification to the New York State Department of Health (DOH), which administers the Medicaid program throughout New York. Once DOH receives this information, it must promptly forward it to HRA. HRA, in turn, has an obligation to quickly review the information and, where appropriate, close a beneficiary’s Medicaid case if it determines that the beneficiary has moved out of New York City. If HRA fails to timely close a Medicaid case after learning from DOH or from another source that the beneficiary has relocated to another State, the MCO insuring that person will continue receiving monthly payments to insure an individual who is no longer eligible for Medicaid coverage in New York.
The United States’ investigation revealed that, although MCOs on several occasions notified HRA in writing that certain beneficiaries may have moved out of State, HRA failed to appropriately follow up on that information and work with DOH to ensure that MCOs stopped receiving monthly payments. As part of the settlement, HRA accepted responsibility for failing to timely review and close certain Medicaid cases after being provided information that those beneficiaries may have moved outside of New York City, and it admitted that its inaction caused one or more MCO to receive payments to insure individuals who were ineligible for benefits through New York State’s Medicaid program. HRA also agreed as part of the settlement to establish a process to investigate and close Medicaid cases whenever it receives information suggesting that a Medicaid beneficiary no longer resides within its coverage area.
United States Attorney Hartunian said: “Safeguarding public dollars is one of this office’s top priorities. When the United States entrusts other entities to administer federally funded programs, they must ensure that government funds are put to proper use. With today’s settlement, HRA has accepted responsibility for its past inaction and agreed to implement measures that will help ensure scarce taxpayer dollars are not wasted paying MCOs in New York to insure individuals who have moved to other States. I would like to thank the agents and auditors from the United States Department of Health and Human Services’ Office of Inspector General for their diligent efforts bringing this matter to a successful conclusion.”
“This settlement is yet another example of OIG’s commitment to ensuring that federal health care programs are administered with integrity,” said Thomas O’Donnell, Special Agent in Charge, United States Department of Health and Human Services, Office of Inspector General (HHS-OIG), New York Regional Office.
The government’s investigation was triggered by a whistleblower lawsuit filed under the qui tam provisions of the False Claims Act, which allow private persons, known as “relators,” to file civil actions on behalf of the United States and share in any recovery. The relator in this case will receive $175,000 from the settlement.
The investigation and settlement were the result of a coordinated effort between the United States Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of New York and HHS-OIG. The United States was represented by Assistant United States Attorney Adam J. Katz.
New Hampshire Man Sentenced to More Than Three Years in Federal Prison for Armed Pharmacy Robbery and Criminal ContemptRead the Press Release
Contact: Darcie N. McElwee
Assistant United States Attorney
Tel: (207) 780-3257Portland, Maine: United States Attorney Thomas E. Delahanty II announced today that
U. S. District Court Judge Nancy Torresen sitting in Portland on Friday sentenced Robert
Pecora, 26, to 37 months in federal prison for committing an armed pharmacy robbery and criminal contempt of court.Court records reveal that on about September 21, 2013, Pecora traveled from New
Hampshire to Kittery, Maine on a bicycle. He went to the Rite-Aid pharmacy counter on
Shapleigh Road in Kittery and presented a piece of paper believed to be a prescription. Pecora then displayed a knife and pointed it at a pharmacy employee and demanded Oxycontin. When the medicine safe was opened, Pecora instead demanded Percocet and was given 300 pills.
Pecora then immediately entered the pharmacy bathroom where responding Kittery Police patrol officers located him. He had a light blue powdery residue on his upper lip. Pecora confessed to the robbery, was arrested and taken from the store in handcuffs.Following his arrest, Pecora was released on bail conditions in February 2014 which required him to remain at an addiction recovery center in Dover, New Hampshire. The conditions of release also prohibited him from possessing a firearm.
During the evening of March 20, 2014, Pecora left the addiction recovery center without permission and later that same night committed a burglary of a residence in Greenland, New
Hampshire, during which he stole three firearms, $1,000 in cash and a motor vehicle. Pecora remained at large until arrested by authorities in Keene, New Hampshire on March 25, 2014. The three stolen firearms have yet to be recovered. Following his incarceration, Pecora will be on federal supervised release for three years.The investigation was conducted by the Kittery Police Department, the Greenland and
Keene (New Hampshire) Police Departments and the Federal Bureau of Investigation.Nebraska “Sovereign Citizen” Convicted of Filing False Liens Against Federal Officials and Federal Tax CrimesRead the Press Release
A federal jury in Omaha, Nebraska, found Donna Marie Kozak guilty on Friday of conspiracy to file and filing false liens against two U.S. District Court judges, the U.S. Attorney for the District of Nebraska, two Assistant U.S. Attorneys and an Internal Revenue Service (IRS) special agent, the Justice Department announced.
The federal jury also convicted Kozak of filing a false claim against the United States for $660,000 and for corruptly endeavoring to obstruct the due administration of the internal revenue laws. Kozak was remanded into custody pending sentencing. The maximum prison term for each false lien charge is 10 years, five years for the false claim charge and three years for the obstructing the IRS charge. Many of the offenses have an additional 10 years of potential imprisonment because they were committed while Kozak was on pretrial release.
Based on the evidence introduced at trial and court filings, Kozak, a former member of the so-called sovereign citizen group “Republic for the united States of America,” engaged in a conspiracy to retaliate against federal officials involved in the criminal investigation and prosecution of David and Bernita Kleensang, associates of Kozak who were convicted of federal tax crimes in 2012. Kozak initially retaliated against the federal judge who presided over the Kleensang trial by filing a false lien against her for $19 million with the Boyd County, Nebraska, clerk’s office. After a federal grand jury indicted Kozak for filing the false lien and for federal tax crimes, she filed five $18 million false liens against federal officials at the Washington County, Nebraska, register of deeds office while on pretrial release.
The evidence introduced at trial and court filings also showed that since the late 1990s, Kozak has engaged in a long series of fraudulent schemes to obstruct the internal revenue laws. These included placing her property in sham trusts, establishing a sham charitable foundation, sending harassing correspondence to IRS employees and filing bogus tax returns, trust returns, private-foundation returns and other false documents with the IRS. In 2008, she filed a tax return based on fictitious income and tax withholdings on Form 1099-OID statements that claimed a refund of $660,000.
This case was investigated by special agents of the FBI and IRS-Criminal Investigation. Trial Attorneys Brian Bailey and Matthew Hoffman of the department’s Tax Division prosecuted the case.
Additional information about the Tax Division and its enforcement efforts may be found at the division website .
Nebraska “Sovereign Citizen” Convicted of Filing False Liens Against Federal Officials and Federal Tax CrimesRead the Press Release
A federal jury in Omaha, Nebraska, found Donna Marie Kozak guilty on Friday of conspiracy to file and filing false liens against two U.S. District Court judges, the U.S. Attorney for the District of Nebraska, two Assistant U.S. Attorneys and an Internal Revenue Service (IRS) special agent, the Justice Department announced.
The federal jury also convicted Kozak of filing a false claim against the United States for $660,000 and for corruptly endeavoring to obstruct the due administration of the internal revenue laws. Kozak was remanded into custody pending sentencing. The maximum prison term for each false lien charge is 10 years, five years for the false claim charge and three years for the obstructing the IRS charge. Many of the offenses have an additional 10 years of potential imprisonment because they were committed while Kozak was on pretrial release.
Based on the evidence introduced at trial and court filings, Kozak, a former member of the so-called sovereign citizen group “Republic for the United States of America,” engaged in a conspiracy to retaliate against federal officials involved in the criminal investigation and prosecution of David and Bernita Kleensang, associates of Kozak who were convicted of federal tax crimes in 2012. Kozak initially retaliated against the federal judge who presided over the Kleensang trial by filing a false lien against her for $19 million with the Boyd County, Nebraska, clerk’s office. After a federal grand jury indicted Kozak for filing the false lien and for federal tax crimes, she filed five $18 million false liens against federal officials at the Washington County, Nebraska, register of deeds office while on pretrial release.
The evidence introduced at trial and court filings also showed that since the late 1990s, Kozak has engaged in a long series of fraudulent schemes to obstruct the internal revenue laws. These included placing her property in sham trusts, establishing a sham charitable foundation, sending harassing correspondence to IRS employees and filing bogus tax returns, trust returns, private-foundation returns and other false documents with the IRS. In 2008, she filed a tax return based on fictitious income and tax withholdings on Form 1099-OID statements that claimed a refund of $660,000.
This case was investigated by special agents of the FBI and IRS-Criminal Investigation. Trial Attorneys Brian Bailey and Matthew Hoffman of the department’s Tax Division prosecuted the case.
Additional information about the Tax Division and its enforcement efforts may be found at the division website.Mother and Son Sentenced to Federal Prison for Trying to Sell More Than 50 Pounds of Crystal MethamphetamineRead the Press Release
FRESNO, Calif. — United States District Judge Lawrence J. O’Neill sentenced Patricia Renteria, 40, and her son Steve Renteria, 21, both of Cathedral City, to five years and 10 months in prison, to be followed by three years of supervised release, for conspiring to possess and distribute methamphetamine, United States Attorney Benjamin B. Wagner announced.
According to court documents, Steve Renteria began negotiating to sell 50 pounds of methamphetamine to a source in Fresno. Patricia and Steven along with Patricia’s 17 year old son, came to Fresno in April 2013 to meet with the source, and deliver the methamphetamine. After meeting with the source Patricia and Steve were taken into custody and more than 50 pounds of crystal methamphetamine that testing determined to be 99.3 percent pure was seized from Steve Renteria’s vehicle.
This case was the product of an investigation by the Fresno Methamphetamine Task Force, which is made up of agents from the Drug Enforcement Administration, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), California Highway Patrol, California Department of Justice, Fresno Police Department, and the Fresno County Sheriff’s Office. Assistant United States Attorney Laurel J. Montoya prosecuted the case.
Mizrahi Bank Client Sentenced for Filing False Tax ReturnRead the Press Release
A Beverly Hills, California man was sentenced today in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California to serve six months in prison and one year of home confinement for filing a false federal income tax return for tax year 2007, the Justice Department and Internal Revenue Service (IRS) announced.
According to court documents, Monajem Hakimijoo aka Manny Hakimi, a U.S. citizen, and his brother maintained an undeclared bank account at Mizrahi Bank in Israel in the name of Kalamar Enterprises, a Turks and Caicos entity that was used to conceal their ownership of the account. Hakimijoo and his brother used the funds in the Kalamar account as collateral for back-to-back loans obtained from the Los Angeles branch of Mizrahi Bank. Although Hakimijoo and his brother claimed the interest paid on the back-to-back loans as a business deduction for federal tax purposes, they failed to report the interest income earned in their undeclared account in Israel as income on their tax returns. In total, Hakimijoo failed to report interest income of approximately $282,000. The highest balance in the Kalamar Enterprises account was approximately $4.03 million. Hakimijoo has agreed to pay a civil penalty to the IRS in the amount of 50 percent of the highest balance of his one-half interest in the Kalamar account. Hakimijoo is also ordered to pay a $30,000 fine.
According to court documents, in March 2013, Hakimijoo was scheduled to be interviewed by Justice Department attorneys and IRS special agents. Prior to the interview, Hakimijoo, through counsel, provided the attorneys and special agents with copies of his amended tax returns for 2004 and 2005. When asked if the amended tax returns had been filed with the IRS, Hakimijoo indicated that the returns had been filed. Shortly thereafter, the IRS determined there was no record of the amended returns being filed with the IRS. When Hakimijoo was asked to provide copies of cancelled checks to prove that the taxes reflected on the amended returns had been paid, none were provided.
U.S. citizens and residents who have an interest in, or other authority over, a financial account in a foreign country with assets in excess of $10,000 are required to disclose the existence of such account(s) on Schedule B, Part III, of their individual income tax returns. They must also file a Report of Foreign Bank and Financial Reports with the U.S. Treasury disclosing the aforementioned financial account(s).
Deputy Assistant Attorney General Ronald A. Cimino of the department’s Tax Division and U.S. Attorney André Birotte Jr.for the Central District of California thanked special agents of IRS-Criminal Investigation, who investigated the case, Senior Litigation Counsel John E. Sullivan and Assistant Chief Elizabeth C. Hadden for the Tax Division, who prosecuted the case, and Assistant U.S. Attorney Sandra A. Brown for the Central District of California, who assisted with the prosecution.
Additional information about the Tax Division and its enforcement efforts may be found on the division website .
Mexican Citizen Sentenced to 70 Months in Federal Prison for Reentry After Prior DeportationRead the Press Release
GREENEVILLE, Tenn. – On Aug. 4, 2014, Jorge Gutierrez Ramirez, 39, a Mexican citizen, was sentenced to serve 70 months in federal prison by the Honorable J. Ronnie Greer, U.S. District Judge. Gutierrez pleaded guilty in May 2014, to a federal grand jury indictment charging him with illegal reentry into the United States after being deported.
Gutierrez was previously deported after a conviction for residential burglary in California. In September 2013, he was arrested by the Morristown Police Department and subsequently convicted of sexual battery in state court. In February 2014, he was released to federal custody to face an indictment for reentry after deportation returned by the federal grand jury. In May 2014, he pleaded guilty to the charge in U.S. District Court.
The indictment and subsequent conviction of Gutierrez was the result of an investigation conducted by Homeland Security Investigation and Morristown Police Department. Assistant U.S. Attorney Robert Reeves represented the United States.
Mexican Citizen Enters Plea in Greeneville to Reentry into the United States After Prior DeportationRead the Press Release
GREENEVILLE, Tenn. – On Aug. 4, 2014, Virgen Mendoza Perez, 36, a citizen of Mexico, pleaded guilty in U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Tennessee, to illegal reentry into the United States after being deported. Sentencing has been set for Nov. 17, 2014, in U.S. District Court in Greeneville.
Mendoza faces a term of 20 years in prison, a $250,000 fine, and three years of supervised release.
Mendoza was previously deported from the United States in 2009, after a conviction in Florida for the felony offense of Child Abuse: Intentional Act.
In May 2014, a federal grand jury indicted Mendoza. Details of the charge are outlined in the plea agreement on file with the U.S. District Court, Greeneville.
The investigation was conducted by the Enforcement and Removal Operations unit of the Bureau of Immigration and Customs Enforcement and Morristown Police Department. Assistant U.S. Attorney Robert Reeves represented the United States.
Members of Parkersburg Heroin Ring Enter Federal Guilty PleasRead the Press Release
CHARLESTON, W.Va. – Two members of a heroin distribution ring operating in Washington County, Ohio and Wood County, West Virginia pleaded guilty today to federal drug charges, announced U.S. Attorney Booth Goodwin. Cordaro “Chops” Johnson, 22, and Zinia Wakefield, 27, pleaded guilty to distribution of heroin before United States District Judge Thomas E. Johnston in Charleston. Both Johnson and Wakefield admitted selling heroin to an informant in Parkersburg in October of 2013. They each face up to 20 years in federal prison when they are sentenced on November 18, 2014.
This case is being prosecuted as part of an investigation by the Parkersburg Police Department into a drug trafficking organization with ties to Marion, Ohio and Chicago, Illinois. Daquarri Coats, 21, of Marion, OH, pleaded guilty in March 2014. Keith Irons, 23, of Marion, OH and Marion Felder, 30, of Upper Sandusky, OH pleaded guilty in May of 2014.
Assistant United States Attorney, Joshua C. Hanks 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 prescription pills 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 heroin and pill trafficking, eliminating open air drug markets, and curtailing the spread of opiate painkillers and heroin in communities across the Southern District.
Massage Parlor Manager Sentenced in Federal Sex Trafficking CaseRead the Press Release
WICHITA, KAN. - The former manager of a Wichita massage parlor was sentenced Monday to five years on federal supervised release for transporting a woman from China to work as a prostitute in Wichita, U.S. Attorney Barry Grissom said. She also will be required to register as a sex offender.
Yan Zhang, 50, Wichita, Kan., pleaded guilty to one count of interstate transportation for the purpose of prostitution. In her plea, she admitted that in 2009 she induced a Chinese woman to move to Wichita to work in a massage parlor and engage in prostitution.
In her plea, Zhang said she was married in 2004 to co-defendant Gary Kidgell. During the marriage, she worked at massage parlors in San Francisco and Phoenix, where she became familiar with the operation of massage parlors as fronts for prostitution. In 2009, she and Kidgell moved to Wichita to establish their own massage parlor. She worked giving massages and served as a manager because she was able to communicate with Chinese women who worked at the massage parlor.
Co-defendants are: Gary Kidgell, who is set for sentencing Aug. 22.
Xinqing Tian, 44, who was sentenced to two years supervised release.Grissom commended the Wichita Police Department and Assistant U.S. Attorney Jason Hart for their work on the case.
Maryland Man Pleads Guilty to Stealing over $200,000 in Scam Targeting People Who Thought He Was A Taxicab Driver-Defendant Stole ATM Cards, PIN Numbers from Unsuspecting Passengers-Read the Press Release
WASHINGTON – Nyerere Mitchell, 50, pled guilty today to carrying out a scheme in which he offered rides to people who had been drinking, talked them into letting him withdraw cash with their ATMS and pin numbers, and then secretly held onto their bank cards to generate more than $200,000 for himself, U.S. Attorney Ronald C. Machen Jr. announced.
More than 60 people, mostly young adults, were conned in the scheme, which continued from at least April 2009 through November 2013. Many of them thought that Mitchell was a taxicab driver. Mitchell, who typically drove a silver-colored SUV Range Rover, often wore a woman’s wig and padded breasts so that many of his passengers believed he was a woman.
Mitchell, of Clinton, Md., pled guilty in the Superior Court of the District of Columbia to five counts of first-degree felony fraud. Each charge carries a statutory maximum of 10 years in prison and financial penalties. The plea agreement calls for him to pay $228,036 in restitution. The Honorable Milton C. Lee scheduled sentencing for Oct. 10, 2014. He also ordered that Mitchell be incarcerated pending the sentencing.
According to the government’s evidence, Mitchell frequented areas such as Dupont Circle, Adams Morgan, Foggy Bottom, Chinatown, and other busy neighborhoods in the District of Columbia and Arlington, Va., offering rides to individuals he believed had been drinking. The victims, in general, were intoxicated, and would give Mitchell their bank cards and pin numbers and allow him to obtain cash for the rides that they were getting. Mitchell generally took the passengers to drive-through ATMs on Wisconsin Avenue and Pennsylvania Avenue NW. He created situations in which the passengers would need to provide him with the pin numbers and cards because the ATM machines were located on the driver’s side of the vehicle.
Unbeknownst to the victims, Mitchell often withdrew hundreds of dollars from the ATMs -- as opposed to what they thought would be $10 to $40 fees. Often he would switch the victim’s ATM card with another one that he had earlier stolen from someone else. In fact, Mitchell maintained so many stolen cards that he could easily substitute a similar-looking card so that the victims didn’t notice the switch until much later.
Over the course of the next few days, Mitchell would use the stolen ATM card without authorization or permission to purchase money orders, many of which he deposited into his credit union account or used to make large purchases at various stores in the area.
An investigation by the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD) led to a search last November of Mitchell’s home. Law enforcement recovered 205 stolen credit cards in plastic bags inside a shoe box. They also found a wig that Mitchell can be seen wearing in bank surveillance video. Mitchell was arrested Nov. 27, 2013.
In announcing the plea, U.S. Attorney Machen commended the work of those who investigated the case for the Metropolitan Police Department. He also expressed appreciation for the assistance provided by the Prince George’s County, Md., Police Department, Citibank, BB & T Bank, Sun Trust Bank and Wells Fargo Bank. Finally, he acknowledged the efforts of those who worked on the case for the U.S. Attorney’s Office, including Paralegal Specialist Corinne Kleinman, Legal Assistant Chris Samson, and Assistant U.S. Attorney Stephanie G. Miller, who is investigating and prosecuting the matter.
14-176Manhattan U.S. Attorney Finds Pattern and Practice of Excessive Force and Violence at NYC Jails on Rikers Island That Violates the Constitutional Rights of Adolescent Male InmatesRead the Press Release
Eric Holder, the United States Attorney General, and Preet Bharara, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, announced today the completion of a multi-year civil investigation pursuant to the Civil Rights of Institutionalized Persons Act (“CRIPA”) into the conditions of confinement of adolescent male inmates on Rikers Island. The investigation, which focused on use of force by staff, inmate-on-inmate violence, and use of punitive segregation during the period 2011-2013, concluded that there is a pattern and practice of conduct at Rikers Island that violates the rights of adolescents protected by the Eighth Amendment and the Due Process Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment of the United States Constitution. The investigation found that adolescent inmates are not adequately protected from physical harm due to the rampant use of unnecessary and excessive force by New York City Department of Correction (“DOC”) staff and violence inflicted by other inmates. In addition, the investigation found that DOC relies too heavily on punitive segregation as a disciplinary measure, placing adolescent inmates in what amounts to solitary confinement at an alarming rate and for excessive periods of time. Many of the adolescent inmates are particularly vulnerable because they suffer from mental illness.
Attorney General Eric Holder said: “The extremely high rates of violence and excessive use of solitary confinement for adolescent males uncovered by this investigation are inappropriate and unacceptable. The Department of Justice is dedicated to ensuring the effectiveness, safety and integrity of our criminal justice systems. Going forward, we will work with the City of New York to make good on our commitment to reform practices that are unfair and unjust, and to ensure that - in all circumstances, and particularly when it comes to our young people - incarceration is used to deter, punish, and ultimately rehabilitate, not merely to warehouse and forget.”
Manhattan U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara said: “As our investigation has shown, for adolescents, Rikers Island is a broken institution. It is a place where brute force is the first impulse rather than the last resort; where verbal insults are repaid with physical injuries; where beatings are routine while accountability is rare; and where a culture of violence endures even while a code of silence prevails. The adolescents in Rikers are walled off from the public, but they are not walled off from the Constitution. Indeed most of these young men are pre-trial detainees who are innocent until proven guilty, but whether they are pre-trial or convicted, they are entitled to be detained safely and in accordance with their Constitutional rights – not consigned to a corrections crucible that seems more inspired by Lord of the Flies than any legitimate philosophy of humane detention. These young men, automatically charged as adults despite their age under New York law, may be on an island and out of sight, but they can no longer remain out of mind. Attention must be paid immediately to their rights, their safety and their mental well-being, and in the wake of this report we will make sure that happens one way or another.”
In its report to the City of New York, made public today, the U.S. Attorney’s Office notes that “a deep-seated culture of violence is pervasive throughout the adolescent facilities at Rikers, and DOC staff routinely utilize force not as a last resort, but instead as a means to control the adolescent population and punish disorderly or disrespectful behavior.”
The following statistics are illustrative:
- In FY 2012, there were 517 reported staff use of force incidents in an average daily adolescent population of 791 in the Robert N. Davoren Center and Eric M. Taylor Center, the two facilities that house the most adolescents. These incidents resulted in 1,059 injuries.
- In FY 2013, there were 565 reported staff use of force incidents in an average daily population at these same two facilities of 682, resulting in 1,057 injuries.
- In FY 2013, there were 845 reported inmate-on-inmate fights involving adolescents in the RNDC and EMTC. This marked an increase from the 795 reported fights in FY 2012.
- During the period April 2012 through April 2013, adolescents sustained a total of 754 visible injuries, according to DOHMH data.
- Adolescents in RNDC and EMTC sustained a total of 96 suspected fractures from September 2011 through August 2012, according to DOHMH data.
- In FY 2013, adolescents were taken to get emergency medical services 459 times.
- In FY 2013, there were 1,118 emergency alarms in the RNDC and EMTC adolescent housing areas, or on average more than three alarms each day.
The report makes the following specific factual determinations:
- Force is used against adolescents at an alarming rate and violent inmate-on-inmate fights and assaults are commonplace, resulting in a striking number of serious injuries, including broken bones and lacerations requiring stitches;
- Correction officers resort to “headshots,” meaning blows to an inmate’s head or facial area, too frequently;
- Force is used as punishment or retribution;
- Force is used in response to inmates’ verbal altercations with officers;
- Use of force by specialized response teams within the jails is particularly brutal;
- Correction officers attempt to justify use of force by yelling “stop resisting” even when the adolescent has been completely subdued or was never resisting in the first place; and
- Use of force is particularly common in areas without video surveillance cameras.
The report further identifies the following systemic deficiencies that are largely responsible for the excessive and unnecessary use of force by DOC staff. Many of these systemic deficiencies also lead to the high levels of inmate-on-inmate violence. These deficiencies include:
- Inadequate reporting by staff of the use of force, including false reporting;
- Inadequate investigations into the use of force;
- Inadequate staff discipline for inappropriate use of force;
- An inadequate classification system for adolescent inmates;
- An inadequate inmate grievance system;
- Inadequate supervision of inmates by staff;
- Inadequate training both on use of force and on managing adolescents; and
- General failures by management to adequately address the extraordinarily high levels of violence perpetrated against and among the adolescent population.
Finally, DOC’s use of prolonged punitive segregation for adolescent inmates is excessive and inappropriate. Adolescent inmates, many of whom have mental illnesses, are routinely placed in what amounts to solitary confinement for weeks and sometimes months at a time. On any given day in 2013, 15-25% of the adolescent population were in punitive segregation, often for infractions involving non-violent conduct. According to census data for December 16, 2013, well over half the adolescents in punitive segregation on that day were serving sentences for rule infractions of 60 days or more.
The report also sets forth the following 10 categories of remedial measures necessary to address the Constitutional violations identified:
1. House adolescent inmates separately in a DOC jail not physically located on Rikers Island;
2. Increase the number of cameras in adolescent areas;
3. Revise use of force policy to clarify prohibited conduct;
4. Ensure that staff submit complete, accurate, and prompt use of force reports, and institute a zero-tolerance policy for failing to report;
5. Ensure that use of force incidents are investigated thoroughly and promptly, and hold staff accountable for biased or incomplete reports and investigations;
6. Ensure that inmates are adequately supervised, intervene to de-escalate fights, and transfer vulnerable or otherwise at risk inmates to alternative housing units;
7. Improve officer training programs on use of force, conflict resolution, reporting use of force, and handling of the adolescent population;
8. Ensure that staff are held accountable and disciplined for the use of excessive and unnecessary force;
9. Develop alternative disciplinary strategies that do not involve lengthy isolation, and prohibit the placement of adolescents with mental health disorders in solitary confinement;
10. Develop and implement a strategic plan to create an institutional culture that does not tolerate violence and holds staff accountable for excessive or unnecessary use of force.
This Office looks forward to engaging in discussions with the City to make system-wide changes that will safeguard the Constitutional rights of adolescents, and prevent them from continuing to suffer unnecessary harm while in City custody.
Mr. Bharara thanked the Board of Correction for the assistance it provided in connection with the Office’s investigation.
This case is being handled by the Office’s Civil Rights Unit. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Emily E. Daughtry and Jeffrey K. Powell are in charge of the case.
SDNY Rikers Report
Local Teacher Convicted on Federal Child Pornography ChargesRead the Press Release
HOUSTON – Derrick Gossett, 33, of Humble, has entered a guilty plea to two counts of production of child pornography, announced United States Attorney Kenneth Magidson. At the time of the offense, he was a music teacher at Anderson Elementary School in the Spring Independent School District (ISD).
Originally arrested on state charges, Gossett was taken into custody on these allegations on Friday, Sept. 6, 2013. He made his initial appearance shortly thereafter and was ordered into custody where he has remained since that time.
According to court records, Gossett used a Facebook profile he developed based on a former female student to solicit sexually explicit photographs that constituted child pornography from more than 150 young males. Gossett regularly used images he received from victims to extort additional images/videos containing child pornography. Not only did Gossett use the biographical information of a former student to elicit the child pornography images/videos from his victims, he created a fictitious woman “Katya” to communicate with and further manipulate the children. Victims have been identified throughout Texas, across the United States and in several foreign countries.
Authorities obtained a search warrant for Gossett’s residence, at which time authorities seized a laptop computer, several thumb drives, cell phones and digital cameras. One external portable hard drive, found in a lock box inside Gosset’s residence, was forensically analyzed and contained hundreds of files with images depicting different young males, ranging in age from I2 to I7 and in various stages of undress.
The case was investigated by the Harris County Precinct 4 Constables Office, Homeland Security Investigations and the Houston Metro Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force with the assistance of the Spring ISD Police Department. The matter was brought as part of as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by the United States Attorneys' Offices and the Criminal Division's Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state and local resources to locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who sexually exploit children, and to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.usdoj.gov/psc. For more information about internet safety education, please visit www.usdoj.gov/psc and click on the tab "resources."
This case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Sherri L. Zack.
Lavaca County EMS Worker Sentenced for Possessing Child PornographyRead the Press Release
VICTORIA, Texas - David Waldrop, 56, of Luling, has been ordered to prison for more than six years for possessing child pornography, announced United States Attorney Kenneth Magidson.
Senior U.S. District Judge John D. Rainey sentenced Waldrop to 76 months in federal prison to be immediately followed by 10 years of supervised release. During the hearing today, the court considered the lasting harm done to the victim as well as the need to protect the public.
Waldrop had come to the attention of law enforcement when co-workers at the Lavaca County EMS discovered a thumb drive inserted into a work computer and saw an image of child pornography on the screen. The thumb drive was later determined to belong to Waldrop.A second thumb drive was also discovered at the work station.
Forensic analysis led to the discovery of dozens of images of child pornography, hundreds of images of child erotica and dozens of child rape/incest stories, some of which appear to have been written by Waldrop himself. In addition to child exploitation material, the forensic examination revealed numerous personal connections between Waldrop and the devices which clearly identified him as the user and owner of them.
Waldrop was later interviewed by law enforcement, at which time he admitted ownership of the devices and responsibility for the child pornography and other exploitation material found.
The case was investigated by the Lavaca County Sheriff’s Office, Texas Attorney General’s Office and Homeland Security Investigations.
This case, prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Lance Duke, was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by the United States Attorneys' Offices and the Criminal Division's Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state and local resources to locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who sexually exploit children, and to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.usdoj.gov/psc. For more information about internet safety education, please visit www.usdoj.gov/psc and click on the tab "resources."
Laguna Niguel Man Receives Fifteen-Month Prison Term for Defrauding eBayRead the Press Release
SAN JOSE – Brian Andrew Dunning was sentenced today to serve fifteen months in prison for receiving between $200,000 and $400,000 in fraudulent commissions from eBay, announced United States Attorney Melinda Haag and FBI Special Agent in Charge David J. Johnson.
Dunning pleaded guilty on April 15, 2013, to a Superseding Information charging him with wire fraud. In pleading guilty, Dunning admitted that, between approximately May 2006 and June 2007, he engaged in a scheme to defraud eBay through so-called “cookie stuffing.” According to the plea agreement, commissions paid to Dunning’s company, Kessler’s Flying Circus (KFC), which Dunning owned jointly with his brother, totaled approximately $5.2 million during that period from eBay’s domestic Affiliate Program. The parties stipulated for sentence purposes that between $200,000 and $400,000 of those commissions were the result of the fraudulent scheme.
According to the plea agreement, in approximately April 2005, Dunning and his brother formed KFC, through which they participated in the eBay Affiliate Program. The Affiliate Program was a means by which eBay worked with KFC and other affiliates to drive Internet traffic to eBay’s websites. Under the program, an affiliate was supposed to send visitors to eBay’s website by displaying an eBay advertisement, or link, on the affiliate’s website. If a visitor clicked on the eBay link or ad, he or she was redirected to eBay’s website. If that user subsequently conducted a “revenue action” on eBay’s website within a designated period of time, eBay paid the affiliate a commission for the referral.
Dunning admitted that he carried out his scheme by providing free applications at two of his websites that users could download and use on their own websites: ProfileMaps.info, which showed the physical location of visitors to a MySpace profile, and WhoLinked.com, which showed who was linking to the user’s website or blog. Both applications contained code Dunning had written which operated so that, when a user visited a website that had installed the application, the code would cause the user’s browser to receive a cookie with KFC’s ID number, even though the user did not click on an eBay ad or link, did not see any content from eBay’s website, and did not realize that his or her browser had been re directed to eBay’s tracking server. As a result, KFC would be paid if that user subsequently conducted an eBay revenue action within a certain period of time.
Dunning, 48, of Laguna Niguel, Calif., operates Skeptoid Media [skeptoid.org], a charitable organization, and also writes and produces the podcast “Skeptoid: Critical Analysis of Pop Phenomena.” Dunning was originally indicted by a federal Grand Jury on June 24, 2010, and charged with five counts of wire fraud, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 1343. Under the plea agreement, Dunning pleaded guilty to a superseding information, filed on April 15, 2013, that alleged a separate violation of the same statute. In his plea agreement, Dunning admitted that he received payments for revenue actions for which he was not entitled to be compensated, but reserved the right to dispute how much of those payments were attributable to the cookie stuffing scheme. The parties later agreed to a stipulated loss figure.
The sentence was handed down by the Honorable Edward J. Davila, United States District Court Judge. Judge Davila also sentenced the defendant to a three-year period of supervised release following his release from custody. No restitution was imposed based on a separate, undisclosed civil settlement between Dunning and eBay. The defendant was ordered to surrender on or before Sept. 2, 2014.
David R. Callaway and Kyle F. Waldinger are the Assistant U.S. Attorneys who prosecuted the case with the assistance of Elise Etter and Rawaty Yim. The prosecution is the result of an investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation.
(Dunning superseding information )
Kirbyville Man Sentenced for Distributing K2, Illegally Possessing FirearmsRead the Press Release
SPRINGFIELD, Mo. – Tammy Dickinson, United States Attorney for the Western District of Missouri, announced a Kirbyville, Mo., man was sentenced in federal court today for his role in the distribution of synthetic marijuana, commonly referred to as K2, and for illegally possessing several firearms.
Christian L. Turner, 46, of Kirbyville, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Brian C. Wimes to nine years in federal prison without parole.
On Nov. 14, 2013, Turner pleaded guilty to possessing a controlled substance analogue with the intent to distribute and to being a felon in possession of firearms.
Turner admitted that he aided and abetted co-defendants Travis E. Butchee, also known as “Donkey,” 38, of Springfield, and Michael J. Saguto, 44, of Kirbyville, to possess a controlled substance analogue with the intent to distribute. Saguto is scheduled to be sentenced on Aug. 11, 2014. A sentencing date has not been scheduled for Butchee.
Turner, who has been convicted of a felony, also admitted that he was in possession of a Ruger .22-caliber rifle, a Marlin 30-30 caliber rifle, a Rossi .243-caliber rifle with an interchangeable 20-gauge barrel, a Remington 12-gauge shotgun and a Remington .270-caliber rifle. Taney County sheriff’s deputies seized those firearms when they responded to an assault call on March 15, 2013. Turner was arrested and a search warrant was served on his residence. The following items were seized: the seven long guns and associated ammunition, drug paraphernalia, including 242 smoking pipes, and three bags of synthetic cannabinoids.
Butchee and Saguto have each pleaded guilty to participating in a conspiracy to commit mail fraud and to participating in a conspiracy to commit money laundering.
Butchee and Saguto conspired with others between March 1, 2011, and June 24, 2013, to defraud the Food and Drug Administration and to defraud the public by falsely representing that a number of synthetic cannabinoid products were “incense” or “potpourri” and “not for human consumption.” In reality, these substances contained compounds that were intended for human consumption as a drug. Butchee’s wife, Victoria A. Butchee, also known as Victoria A. Wohlin, 29, of Springfield, also has pleaded guilty to her role in the mail fraud conspiracy.
Travis Butchee and Saguto also admitted that they conducted financial transactions that involved the proceeds of the unlawful mail fraud conspiracy. They conspired to wire funds to the People’s Republic of China in order to carry out the money laundering conspiracy.
Based upon the invoices, ledgers, and product seizures by law enforcement, this conspiracy was responsible for the manufacture and/or distribution of at least 188.14038 kilograms of synthetic cannabinoid products.
Travis Butchee opened The Man Cave, a retail business at 1927 S.Glenstone in Springfield, in February 2013. Travis Butchee and Saguto are the owners of Southern Spice, LLC and Saguto is the owner of Blues Away, a head shop and novelty store in Memphis, Tenn. Turner was employed by Saguto at Blues Away.
Materials used to manufacture and distribute synthetic cannabinoids were shipped via UPS or FedEx to members of the conspiracy – including controlled substance analogues (synthetic chemical compounds similar to THC, the psychoactive ingredient in marijuana), green leafy substances which served as carrier media, labels that were affixed to packages of “Donkey Punch,” “Jolly Grape Giant,” “South of the Tracks,” “Baby Face,” “Scarface,” “Hillbilly Hay,” and other synthetic cannabinoid products, and foil and plastic packaging bags.
This case is being prosecuted by Supervisory Assistant U.S. Attorney Michael S. Oliver. It was investigated by the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, IRS-Criminal Investigation, the Missouri State Highway Patrol, COMET (Combined Ozarks Multi-jurisdictional Enforcement Team) and the Springfield, Mo., Police Department.Kern County Man Sentenced for Laser Strike on Sheriff’s HelicopterRead the Press Release
FRESNO, Calif. — Senior United States District Anthony W. Ishii sentenced Brett Lee Scott, 26, of Buttonwillow, to one year and nine months in prison, to be followed by three years of supervised release, for aiming a laser pointer at a law enforcement aircraft, United States Attorney Benjamin B. Wagner announced.
According to court documents, Scott used two different laser pointers to strike Air-1, a Kern County Sheriff’s Office helicopter, over a six-month period. Scott explained his actions by stating that he was bored. The lasers emitted powerful green or purple beams. As a result, the pilots of Air-1 suffered flash blindness that lasted a few minutes, causing disorientation. The pilots were ultimately able to pinpoint the origin of the beams and, with the help of patrol deputies, identified Scott as a suspect. Both laser pointers in this case exceeded the legal power emission limit. One of the lasers was 17 times more powerful than what is legally permissible.
“This is a truly senseless crime, and a very serious one,” said U.S. Attorney Wagner. “Defendants like Mr. Scott, who thoughtlessly point lasers at an aircraft for their short-sighted amusement, put lives at risk and create the very real possibility that a needless tragedy will occur. My office will continue to prosecute these cases vigorously and will work with the FBI and our local law enforcement partners to send the message that this behavior will not be tolerated.”
“Boredom is no excuse for pointing a laser at an aircraft. Scott’s sentence reinforces our message to the public: This activity is a violation of federal law and is a serious risk to public safety,” said Special Agent in Charge Monica M. Miller of the Sacramento FBI. “Scott may have been located and arrested, but stopping such reckless activity is the only way to ensure public safety. Everyone is encouraged to discuss the risks of this activity with their families. Please report anyone shining a laser at an aircraft to 911 immediately.”
According to the FAA, there were 3,960 reports of people shining lasers at aircraft in the United States in 2013. In the 34-county Eastern District of California, 94 laser strikes were reported, with the Fresno Yosemite International Airport and Bakersfield Meadows Field Airport reporting the most. Law enforcement and emergency transport helicopters are particularly vulnerable, since they typically fly at lower altitudes. Their convex-shaped windows also cause greater refraction and visual interference when the beam of a laser strikes. Night-vision goggles can also amplify the beam and pose a greater threat of visual interference. Earlier this year, as a result of the increasing threat of laser strikes on aircraft, the FBI in Sacramento, along with several other cities in the United States that have reported a large number of laser incidents, launched a public awareness campaign regarding the issue and offered a $10,000 reward for information that leads to the arrest of a laser offender. Since the launch of the public awareness campaign, the FBI reports a nationwide decrease in the number of laser incidents. However, the number of laser incidents in the Eastern District has increased.
The case against Scott was the result of a joint investigation conducted by the FBI and Kern County Sheriff’s Office. Assistant U.S. Attorney Karen A. Escobar prosecuted the case.
Johnson County Man Pleads Guilty to Defrauding Bank of Blue ValleyRead the Press Release
KANSAS CITY, KAN. – A Johnson County man pleaded guilty in federal court Monday to taking part in a fraud scheme that cost the Bank of Blue Valley more than $877,000, U.S. Attorney Barry Grissom said.
Timothy P. Fitzgerald, 56, Leawood, Kan., pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit bank fraud. In his plea, he admitted the crime took place while he was chief financial officer of KC United, LLC, which was a holding company for five construction services companies located in Kansas City, Kan.
KC United was a loan customer of the Bank of Blue Valley. In 2008, KC United was losing money. Fitzgerald and other conspirators knew that KC United needed to show a profit in order to maintain its bank and bonding relationships. So Fitzgerald and others manipulated KC United’s quarterly financial statements to falsely reflect a profit. Fitzgerald delivered the falsified reports to the Bank of Blue Valley, which relied on the false information to renew the company’s line of credit. Fitzgerald and other conspirators also prepared annual financial statements that contained falsified profits and a cover letter falsely stating that an outside accounting firm had reviewed the statement. They placed the cover letter on the letterhead of an outside accounting firm.
On April 28, 2011, three of the companies owned by KC United filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy. The Bank of Blue valley sold its position in the remaining outstanding loan to KC United, sustaining a loss of more than $877,000.
Blue Valley Ban Corp., the holding company for Bank of Blue Valley received more than $21 million in funding from the U.S. Treasury’s Troubled Asset Relief Program (TARP).
“Bank of Blue Valley did not repay TARP and missed 18 quarterly dividend payments totaling $4.9 million, money owed to taxpayers as a result of the bank holding TARP funds,” said Christy Romero, Special Inspector General for TARP (SIGTARP).
“Treasury sold its TARP investment in the bank at a principal loss of nearly $500,000, a loss in addition to uncollected TARP dividend payments,” Romero added.
Sentencing will be set for a later time. Fitzgerald faces a maximum penalty of 30 years in federal prison and a fine up to $1 million. Grissom commended the U.S. Department of Labor – OIG, the U.S. Department of Labor – EBSA, IRS Criminal Investigations, the FBI, the Special Investigator General for the Troubled Asset Relief Program investigated and Assistant U.S. Attorney Jabari Wamble for their work on the case.Jefferson County, Kentucky, Man Sentenced to 70 Months in Prison and Ordered to Pay Restitution for Multiple Bank RobberiesRead the Press Release
– Tellers feared for their lives as defendant claimed to have a bomb
– Also sentenced today, to serve 6 months in a separate, federal fraud caseLOUISVILLE, Ky. – A Louisville man was sentenced today, by U.S. District Judge Joseph H. McKinley Jr., to serve 70 months in prison for the robbery of four banks located in Jefferson County, Kentucky, during a two week period, and ordered to pay restitution in the amount of $11,960 announced David J. Hale, United States Attorney for the Western District of Kentucky.
Robert Scott Manley, age 51, admitted to using force, violence, and intimidation when he robbed four banks in Jefferson County between December 20, 2012 and December 31, 2012. According to information presented in court, Manley threatened bank employees by stating he had a bomb and threatened to detonate the bomb. On January 14, 2014, Manley pleaded guilty to taking $2,170.00 from the PNC Bank, located at 3910 Taylorsville Road, on December 20, 2012; taking approximately $3,580.00 from the Chase Bank, located at 8120 New LaGrange Road, on December 24, 2012; to taking approximately $1,510.00 from the BB&T Bank, located at 10403 Dixie Highway on December 27, 2012; and to taking approximately $4,750.00 from the River City Bank, located at 2501 Bardstown Road. At the time of the robberies, all deposits were insured by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC).
Further, Manley was sentenced to serve 6 months consecutively to the 70 month sentence for failure to comply with the terms of his supervised release in a separate, federal fraud case.
If convicted at trial, Manley faced a sentence of no more than 80 years in federal prison, a fine of $1,000,000., and a period of no more than five years of supervised release. Manley was arrested by U.S. Marshals on January 2, 2013, in Louisville.
This case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Randy Ream with assistance from Special Attorney Sungtae Kang, and was investigated by Louisville Metro Police and the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI).
Greene County Man Pleads Guilty to Social Security FraudRead the Press Release
ALBANY, NEW YORK – RICHARD J. GODDEAU, age 46, of Athens, New York, pled guilty today in Albany to one count of Social Security fraud and one count of theft of government property before Chief United States District Judge Gary L. Sharpe, announced United States Attorney Richard S. Hartunian, Special Agent in Charge Edward J. Ryan of the Social Security Administration, Office of Inspector General, Office of Investigations, New York Field Division, the United States Secret Service, and Shelly Binkowski, Inspector in Charge, United States Postal Inspection Service, Boston Division.
As part of his guilty plea, GODDEAU admitted that he made false statements to Social Security Administration personnel to obtain Social Security Supplemental Security Income benefits payments to which he was not entitled. For example, he concealed that he was operating a business and living with his wife, and falsely claimed that he was paying rent and living at a different address.
GODDEAU faces up to 5 years of prison on the Social Security fraud count, 10 years of prison on the theft of government property count, and fines of up to $250,000 on both counts. GODDEAU’s plea agreement also requires that he pay $54,285 in restitution to the Commissioner of Social Security. GODDEAU will be sentenced in Albany, New York, on December 2, 2014.
This case was investigated by the Social Security Administration, Office of Inspector General, with the assistance of the United States Secret Service and the United States Postal Inspection Service, and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Jeffrey C. Coffman.
Foxboro Man Pleads Guilty to Mortgage FraudRead the Press Release
BOSTON – Christopher Chasse, formerly of Foxboro, was convicted today in federal court of mortgage fraud in connection with the purchases of residential properties.
From June to September of 2006, Chasse fraudulently caused mortgage financing of more than $4 million for the purchase of residential properties in greater Boston. Chasse submitted false loan applications to lenders containing bogus information about his employment, income, assets, closing costs and related matters. The documentary evidence included phony income tax returns and other IRS forms, all to cause lenders to wire loan proceeds to attorneys closing the loans. Chasse also recruited other buyers for fraudulent mortgage loans.
Chasse, who pleaded guilty to 10 counts of wire fraud, will be sentenced by U.S. District Judge George A. O’Toole on Nov. 20, 2014. The charging statute provides a sentence of no greater than 30 years in prison, five years of supervised release and a fine of $250,000, or twice the gain or loss on each count. Actual sentences for federal crimes are typically less than the maximum penalties. The U.S. Attorney and the defendant will jointly recommend a sentence of 96 months in prison, to be followed by five years of supervised release. Sentences are imposed by a federal district court judge based upon the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.United States Attorney Carmen M. Ortiz; Vincent Lisi, Special Agent in Charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Boston Field Division; Bruce M. Foucart, Special Agent in Charge of Homeland Security Investigations Boston Field Office; and William P. Offord, Special Agent in Charge of the Internal Revenue Service’s Criminal Investigation in Boston, made the announcement. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Victor A. Wild of Ortiz’s Economic Crimes Unit and Assistant U.S. Attorney Carlos Lopez of Ortiz’s Major Crimes Unit.
Former Lyons Police Officer Sentenced to Five Years in Federal Prison for Extorting $48,000 from Targets of InvestigationsRead the Press Release
CHICAGO — A former west suburban Lyons police officer was sentenced today to five years in federal prison for illegally extorting more than $48,000 from targets of criminal investigations he was supposedly conducting during 2013. The defendant, JIMMY J. RODGERS, who was a 14-year veteran of the Lyons Police Department, was sentenced after pleading guilty in May to extortion.
Rodgers, 44, of Chicago, was assigned to a U.S. Food and Drug Administration, Office of Criminal Investigations, task force and his duties included investigating the sale of contraband and counterfeit cigarettes. In the course of his work, he set up six fake transactions with criminals, detained them, hand-cuffed them, stole their goods and funds for his own benefit, threatened them, and then lied and concealed the scam.
Rodgers, 44, of Chicago, was assigned to a U.S. Food and Drug Administration, Office of Criminal Investigations, task force and his duties included investigating the sale of contraband and counterfeit cigarettes. In the course of his work, he set up six fake transactions with criminals, detained them, hand-cuffed them, stole their goods and funds for his own benefit, threatened them, and then lied and concealed the scam.
“The temptation for police officers to extort illegal operations is great. People need to know they will go to jail for this conduct,” U.S. District Judge Thomas M. Durkin said in imposing the 60-month sentence. “The sentence here should serve as a reminder that the penalty for shaking people down is not a slap on the wrist.”
Rodgers was also fined $48,980 and was ordered to begin serving his sentence on Nov. 7. Rodgers was arrested last September and pleaded guilty in May.
According to court records, Rodgers recruited cooperating sources to assist in setting up transactions in which the source would sell contraband cigarettes to potential targets of the investigation. Rodgers agreed to pay the sources a fee for each transaction the sources conducted. Rodgers’ extortion was discovered by the FBI when one of the confidential sources reported the conduct after realizing that none of the targets were arrested, the transactions were not recorded, and Rodgers had begun paying him in cash from proceeds of the transactions instead of with checks from the Lyons Police Department as Rodgers had arranged previously.
The sentence was announced by Zachary T. Fardon, United States Attorney for the Northern District of Illinois, and Robert J. Holley, Special Agent-in-Charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation. The Lyons Police Department and FDA’s Office of Criminal Investigations assisted in the investigation.
The government was represented by Assistant U.S. Attorney Sunil Harjani.
Former Lombard Businessman Sentenced to Eight Years in Federal Prison for Soliciting Murder to Erase an $8 Million DebtRead the Press Release
CHICAGO — A former commercial real estate businessman was sentenced today to eight years in federal prison for soliciting the murder of a Texas businessman whom he owed an $8 million judgment. The defendant, DANIEL DVORKIN, was convicted of solicitation of murder and five counts of using a telephone and a car to commit a murder-for-hire following a week-long jury trial in August 2013 in U.S. District Court.
Dvorkin, 76, formerly of Lombard, was arrested in July 2012 and has been in federal custody since he was convicted last year. U.S. District Judge Edmond Chang imposed the sentence in Federal Court.
Dvorkin “was a calm, cool, collected businessman who negotiated the price of a hit man as though he were closing a real estate deal, who showed only real concern for his bank account over the life of [the victim],” Assistant U.S. Attorneys Heather K. McShain and Jeff Perconte argued in a government sentencing memo.
According to the evidence at trial, the victim obtained an $8 million judgment in February 2012 against Dvorkin and two of his businesses, and the judgment became collectible in May 2012 after the parties failed to settle through mediation. In April 2012, Dvorkin contacted an individual, who reported to local police and later to the FBI that Dvorkin had solicited him to hire a hit man to kill the victim over the $8 million judgment. The individual who Dvorkin solicited began cooperating with law enforcement and recorded a series of conversations and meetings with Dvorkin in furtherance of the murder-for-hire plot. Investigators feared that Dvorkin, after balking at the price being negotiated with the cooperating individual, had found a cheaper hit man who was not identified, and approached Dvorkin, who was later arrested in July 2012.
The sentence was announced by Zachary T. Fardon, United States Attorney for the Northern District of Illinois, and Robert J. Holley, Special Agent-in-Charge of the Chicago Office of the Federal Bureau of Investigation. The Oakbrook Terrace Police Department assisted in the investigation.
Former Insurance Agent Pleads GuiltyTo Stealing from His ClientsRead the Press Release
WICHITA, KAN. A former insurance agent in Wichita pleaded guilty Tuesday to stealing from his clients, U.S. Attorney Barry Grissom said.
Jason Matthew Pennington, 42, Bel Aire, Kan., pleaded guilty to two counts of wire fraud and one count of attempted bank fraud. In his plea, he admitted the crimes occurred while he was an agent working for State Farm Insurance.
WIRE FRAUD (Count Two)
In 2000, Wendell and Marita Hill, who had purchased insurance policies from State Farm, became clients of Pennington after their former State Farm agent retired. In Nov. 2004, the Hills purchased a life insurance policy through Pennington valued at more than $3.4 million. The policy was issued by Phoenix Life Insurance Company, an insurance provider affiliated with State Farm Insurance.
In 2008, Pennington devised a scheme to defraud the Hills and Phoenix. On Feb. 29, 2008, he sent a fax to Phoenix Life Insurance Company requesting a loan of $105,000 on the Hills’ life insurance policy. The loan contained the forged signature of Brent Hill, who was trustee of the Hill Family Trust. Brent Hill did not make the request for the loan.
WIRE FRAUD: (Count Four)
In 2006, Marlene Brown, who had retired following a 37-year career with the Wichita Public Schools as a teacher, coach and school administrator, purchased a State Farm life insurance policy through Pennington. The policy was valued at $1.3 million.
In September 2009, Pennington contacted State Farm and changed the address for Marlene Brown’s insurance policy to his business address. He then sent a fax to State Farm making a withdrawal of $278,250 on the policy. Pennington forged Brown’s signature and requested the withdrawal without her knowledge.
When State Farm called him to ask why the money was to be sent to his office instead of Brown’s home, Pennington lied and told them Brown was his mother-in-law.
Marlene Brown died Oct. 27, 2009.
ATTEMPTED BANK FRAUD: (Count 45)
In February 2010, Pennington applied for a line of credit from State Farm Bank. In order to qualify for the credit, he did not report to the bank that he was required to pay $5,000 a month in child support and alimony to his first wife. He also falsely reported that his second wife was receiving an annual salary as an employee of his insurance office.
Sentencing is set for Nov. 3. Both parties have agreed to recommend a sentence of 42 months in federal prison.
Grissom commended the FBI, IRS - Criminal Investigation Assistant U.S. Attorney Lanny Welch and Assistant U.S. Attorney Aaron Smith for their work on the case.
Former Head of Delaware Lending at Wilmington Trust Pleads Guilty to Conspiracy ChargesRead the Press Release
WILMINGTON, Del. – Charles M. Oberly, III, United States Attorney for the District of Delaware, announced today that Brian Bailey entered a guilty plea before the Honorable Richard G. Andrews to conspiracy to commit an offense against the United States, as charged in a previously-filed Indictment and to a one count felony Information, also charging him with conspiracy to commit an offense against the United States, both in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 371.
According to the criminal Information and plea agreement, Bailey, who was employed by Wilmington Trust Company (the “Bank”) as the Delaware Market Manager, overseeing all lending in the state, conspired with Joseph Terranova and others to conceal the Bank’s true financial condition. The conspiracy involved, among other things, extending credit to keep existing loan interest payments current, thereby causing the Bank to misrepresent its reporting of past due and non-performing loans. The misrepresentations extended to, among others, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, agents and examiners appointed to examine the Bank, and the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System. The criminal conduct enabled the Bank to file false statements of condition, or “Call Reports,” with federal financial regulators on a quarterly basis throughout 2009. As set forth in the Information, the Bank underreported its past due and nonperforming loans by approximately $186,000,000 in the first quarter of 2009; $234,000,000 in the second quarter of 2009; $463,000,000 in the third quarter of 2009; and $373,000,000 in the fourth quarter of 2009. Terranova previously entered a plea of guilty to the same underlying conduct in a separate case.
According to the Indictment and plea agreement, Bailey participated in a separate conspiracy with James Ladio, the former chief executive officer of MidCoast Community Bank, whereby over a twelve-year period they provided multiple loans to each other, through their respective financial institutions, under terms and conditions that would be unavailable to the general public.
Bailey, age 51, is a resident of Middletown, Delaware. He faces a maximum penalty of 5 years imprisonment and a $250,000 fine for each count.
United States Attorney Oberly said, “With today’s guilty plea we take another step forward in bringing to justice individuals whose criminal conduct contributed to the failure of Wilmington Trust. Mr. Bailey’s participation in both conspiracies demonstrates an abuse of power and betrayal of public trust. Mr. Bailey’s underlying conduct of approving supplemental financing for failing borrowers contributed substantially to the Bank’s demise. His conduct, and that of others, further enabled the Bank to falsely underreport its level of nonperforming loans to federal regulators and the public by hundreds of millions of dollars throughout 2009. We hope that this conviction serves to demonstrate my office’s commitment to protecting the integrity of financial institutions and makes clear the consequences to those contemplating similar conduct.”
“With today’s plea, former Wilmington Trust bank official Brian Bailey admitted that before and during the time the bank held taxpayer bailout funds, he and others at the TARP recipient bank conspired in criminal ‘extend and pretend’ and ‘delay and pray’ schemes to hide hundreds of millions of dollars in non-performing, past-due commercial real estate loans from federal bank examiners in order to conceal the true financial condition of the bank,” said Christy Romero, Special Inspector General for TARP (SIGTARP). “Over a 12-year period, Bailey also authorized bank loans for purported commercial real estate projects to a bank official, James A. Ladio, at another bank in exchange for sweetheart loans from Ladio’s bank. SIGTARP will bring justice for crimes related to the taxpayer-funded TARP bailout.”
“The outstanding efforts put forth by the FBI, IRS, and SIGTARP investigators assigned to this case should send a message to those involved in criminal fraud conspiracies that their actions will not go unpunished. We take these matters very seriously and will continue our efforts to protect the public by relentlessly pursuing white collar criminals,” said Stephen Vogt, Special Agent in Charge of FBI’s Wilmington office.
“High-ranking corporate officials hold positions of trust not only in their companies but also in the eyes of the public. That trust is broken when such officials abuse their power and commit crimes,” stated Akeia Conner, Special Agent in Charge, IRS Criminal Investigation. “Mr. Bailey conspired with others to conceal actions and misrepresentations that undermined the stability of Wilmington Trust. IRS Criminal Investigation is proud to work with our law enforcement partners and the United States Attorney’s Office in protecting and defending the public trust.”
The case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigation Division, the Special Inspector General for the Troubled Asset Relief Program (SIGTARP), and the Office of Inspector General, Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Robert Kravetz and Lesley Wolf.
Plea Agreement
Information
Former Hartford Police Detective Who Stole Gun Permit Fees Is SentencedRead the Press Release
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Deirdre M. Daly, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, announced that former Hartford police detective TISHAY JOHNSON, 40, of Windsor, was sentenced today by U.S. District Judge Robert N. Chatigny in Hartford to three years of probation, the first six months of which JOHNSON must serve in home confinement, for his theft of nearly $30,000 in firearm permit fees. JOHNSON was also ordered to perform 300 hours of community service and make full restitution.
According to court documents and statements made in court, Hartford residents seeking a permit to carry a concealed weapon are required to submit an application to the City of Hartford through the Hartford Police Department. The application includes a municipal application processing fee of $70 to Hartford and a background check fee of $66.50 to the State of Connecticut. JOHNSON administered the Hartford Police Department’s concealed weapons permit program and was responsible for processing citizens’ applications, collecting the application fees and depositing the fees into the appropriate city or state accounts. Between October 2009 and January 2014, JOHNSON embezzled $29,426.75 that had been paid in connection with permit applications by altering checks and money orders to make it appear that the checks and money orders were payable to him. He also forged signatures on checks to make it appear that the intended payee had endorsed the check over to him. JOHNSON then deposited the funds into a personal checking account.
JOHNSON was ordered to make restitution of $17,442.50 to the City of Hartford and $11,984.25 to the State of Connecticut.
JOHNSON resigned from the Hartford Police Department in January 2014. On May 5, 2014, he pleaded guilty to one count of theft from a local government receiving federal funds.
This matter was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Hartford Police Department, and was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Christopher M. Mattei.
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KANSAS CITY, Mo. – Tammy Dickinson, United States Attorney for the Western District of Missouri, announced that the former mayor of Grandview, Mo., was sentenced in federal court today for a wire fraud scheme in which he used a bogus charity to steal $35,000 in contributions from International House of Prayer, a local nonprofit organization.
Stephen S. Dennis, 51, of Grandview, was sentenced by U.S. Senior District Judge Howard F. Sachs to one year and one day in federal prison without parole. The court also ordered Dennis to pay a $5,000 fine; International House of Prayer requested that no restitution should be ordered. Dennis will surrender to begin serving his prison term on Sept. 15, 2014.
On Feb. 11, 2014, Dennis pleaded guilty to the felony offense of wire fraud. Dennis resigned as mayor of Grandview on Jan. 10, 2014.
Dennis admitted that he engaged in a scheme from Dec. 12, 2011, to Nov. 29, 2013, to solicit donations for a corporation called Matters of the Heart. Dennis incorporated Matters of the Heart as a nonprofit corporation and falsely claimed it was a federally tax-exempt 501(c)(3) corporation. Dennis never applied for 501(c)(3) status with the IRS for Matters of the Heart, even though application instructions were given to him in December 2011 by an attorney from whom he sought legal advice.
Dennis received two checks totaling $35,000 from International House of Prayer Forerunner Christian Fellowship, a nonprofit organization in Grandview, in 2012. After obtaining the $35,000, Dennis used these funds for his own personal benefit, including his immediate family’s living expenses, rather than for any charitable purpose.
Matters of the Heart, which is now dissolved, was purportedly organized “to be a local community outreach to the poor and disadvantaged,” according to its articles of incorporation, and to “administer funds and property of any kind for … religious, charitable, cultural, scientific, literary and education purposes.”
In the organization’s articles of incorporation, Dennis listed himself as incorporator, registered agent, and one of the three directors of the board. He listed two persons, identified as “B.S.” and “J.M.” as the other two directors. B.S. and J.M. had no knowledge that they were listed as directors, and at no time gave Dennis permission or authority to claim them as such. B.S. and J.M. have never served as directors on the Matters of the Heart board of directors.
This case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Roseann A. Ketchmark. It was investigated by the FBI.
Public Corruption Hotline
The FBI has established a toll-free public corruption hotline, 1-855-KCPCTIP, and email [email protected]. Details regarding the various types of public corruption investigated by the FBI can be found online: http://www.fbi.gov/about-us/investigate/corruption.Former Fannie Mae Official Sentenced to Federal Prison for Soliciting Kickbacks from Broker Who Sold Foreclosed PropertiesRead the Press Release
SANTA ANA, California – A former sales associate with the Federal National Mortgage Association (Fannie Mae) was sentenced today to 15 months in federal prison for taking kickbacks from a real estate broker who sold properties on behalf of the mortgage agency.
Armando Granillo, 45, of Huntington Beach, who worked in the Fannie Mae’s Irvine office, was sentenced by United States District Judge David O. Carter. In addition to his 15 month sentence in federal prison, Granillo was ordered to spend 6 months in a residential reentry center.
Following a two-day trial in March, Granillo was found guilty of three counts of “honest services” wire fraud for soliciting kickbacks while working for Fannie Mae.
As a “real estate owned foreclosure specialist” for Fannie Mae, Granillo reviewed applications submitted by real estate brokers who wanted to list Fannie Mae foreclosure properties, and he had the authority to approve sale offers presented by the brokers. In late 2012, Granillo asked a real estate broker in Tucson to pay a percentage of the commissions the broker earned for selling Fannie Mae foreclosure properties. The broker brought the matter to the attention of federal law enforcement officials and assisting in the investigation.
During subsequent conversations between Granillo and the broker, Granillo demanded 20 percent of the real estate broker’s commissions in exchange for preferential treatment in the assignment and sales of Fannie Mae properties. In February 2012, Granillo traveled from Orange County to the Phoenix area, where he met with the broker. During the recorded meeting, Granillo stated that the kickback arrangement was a “natural part of business.” Granillo promised to increase the broker’s portfolio and ensure that he always had at least 100 listings, to give the broker the best properties, and to help the broker get offers approved by Fannie Mae. Granillo then arranged to receive the $11,200 payment from the broker.
Granillo was arrested in this case on March 5, 2013 during an undercover operation after accepting an $11,200 payment from the real estate broker.
Granillo “violated Fannie Mae and the public’s trust by engaging in a form of public corruption,” prosecutors wrote in a sentencing brief filed with the court. “This crime is akin to those involving governmental officials who solicit bribes in exchange for favorable treatment. The reputational damage is devastating and potentially permanent.”
Fannie Mae is currently under the conservatorship of the Federal Housing Finance Agency. The investigation into Granillo was conducted by the Federal Housing Finance Agency’s Office of Inspector General.
Release No. 14-103
Florida Man Sentenced to 51 Months in Prison for Illegally Possessing A FirearmRead the Press Release
MONROE, La. –A Florida man was sentenced to 51 months in prison and three years of supervised released for illegally possessing a firearm, U.S. Attorney Stephanie A. Finley announced today.
Richard Dean Stephenson, 28, of Tampa, Fla., was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Robert G. James for one count of possession of a firearm by a person previously convicted of a felony. According to evidence presented at the April 16, 2014 guilty plea, from September 1, 2013 to October 2, 2013, Stephenson possessed a Bryco .380 caliber pistol and ammunition after having previously been convicted of a felony. After learning that Stephenson may have a weapon, law enforcement officers found the gun and ammunition during a search at his Kilbourne, La., residence. Stephenson has numerous previous felony convictions in Florida including aggravated assault with deadly weapons and grand theft in 2006.
This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods, a Department of Justice initiative designed to reduce firearm crimes by removing dangerous and persistent felons from the community and promote firearm safety.
The Oak Grove Police Department, the West Carroll Parish Sheriff’s Office, and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, investigated the case. Assistant U.S. Attorney Robert W. Gillespie Jr. prosecuted the case.
Employee of Gun Frame Manufacturer Who Violated Federal Firearms Laws Is SentencedRead the Press Release
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Deirdre M. Daly, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, announced that ROBERT BRINKERHOFF, 54, of Old Lyme, was sentenced today by U.S. District Judge Stefan R. Underhill in Bridgeport to one year of probation for violating federal firearms laws. BRINKERHOFF worked as the general manager of Tri-Town Plastics, a federally-licensed firearms manufacturer located in Deep River.
According to court documents and statements made in court, Tri-Town Plastics (“Tri-Town”), which has since been bought by Smith and Wesson, had a contract with Smith and Wesson to manufacturer firearm frames at its Deep River facility. In February 2012, after the Plainfield Police Department seized a Smith and Wesson 9 millimeter handgun from a residence, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) learned that Smith and Wesson had no record of the handgun ever having been manufactured. According to Tri-Town’s records, the handgun had been scrapped back in March 2011. At that time, ATF was preparing to conduct a routine inspection of Tri-Town to determine whether to renew their federal license to manufacture firearms. Tri-Town had also been inspected in 2009 and been directed by ATF to address some record-keeping issues discovered during that inspection. When two Tri-Town employees discovered that there were approximately 23 firearms missing from their inventory, rather than report them as missing, the employees falsely listed them as “scrapped” in Tri-Town’s acquisition and disposition records, so that ATF would not learn that they were missing and would renew Tri-Town’s license.
Soon after ATF contacted Tri-Town in February 2012 to ask about the Smith and Wesson handgun seized in Plainfield, one of the Tri-Town employees responsible for the fraudulent scrapping advised BRINKERHOFF of what had been done in March 2011. At that point, BRINKERHOFF, who had not known about the March 2011 conduct, failed to report these missing firearms as lost or stolen. In June 2012, BRINKERHOFF caused a theft/loss report to be filed with ATF that listed all of these firearms, but the report failed to advise ATF that all of the firearms had been falsely listed as scrapped back in March 2011.
On March 10, 2014, BRINKERHOFF pleaded guilty to one count of failing to file a theft/loss report and one count of making false statements in a theft/loss report, which are both misdemeanor offenses.
As part of his sentence, Judge Underhill prohibited BRINKERHOFF from engaging in a firearms-related business for a period of 90 days.
This ongoing investigation is being conducted by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Robert M. Spector and Vanessa Richards.
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KNOXVILLE, Tenn. - A federal grand jury in Knoxville returned two separate indictments on July 16, 2014. In one, 17 individuals were charged in a conspiracy to manufacture 50 grams or more of methamphetamine. Those indicted in that case include:
Timothy Chesser, 34, Harriman, Tenn.; Raymond Racey, 33, Rockwood, Tenn.; Eddie Powers, 40, Harriman, Tenn.; Christopher Ryan Jenkins, 27, Rockwood, Tenn.; Linda Barron, 38, Rockwood, Tenn.; Brie Chandler, 25, Harriman, Tenn.; Jack Chesser, 43, Harriman, Tenn.; Bobbie Jo Forrester, 20, Harriman, Tenn.; Regina Green, 35, Kingston, Tenn.; Jessica Jenkins, 25, Rockwood, Tenn.; Roy Jenkins, 27, Rockwood, Tenn.; Jeff McFalls, 34, Kingston, Tenn.; Amber Murphy, 21, Harriman, Tenn.; Wanda Phillips, 44, Oakdale, Tenn.; Rebecca Sandifer, 35, Harriman, Tenn.; James E. Roberts, 25, Harriman, Tenn.; and David Trentham, 38, Harriman, Tenn.
In addition, Timothy Chesser, Racey, Powers, and Christopher Ryan Jenkins were indicted for conspiring to distribute methamphetamine.
In a separate case, David Neal, 33, of Kingston, Tenn., was indicted for conspiracy to manufacture five grams or more of methamphetamine.
Fifteen of these individuals were arrested and appeared in court between July 29, 2014, and July 31, 2014, before U.S. Magistrate Judge H. Bruce Guyton and pleaded not guilty to the charges in the indictment.
The investigation has shown that the individuals involved were purchasing pseudoephedrine at local pharmacies and using that pseudoephedrine to manufacture methamphetamine at various locations in Roane County.
If convicted, all 17 charged in the first indictment face a minimum mandatory term of 10 years in prison and a maximum of life, a maximum fine of $10 million, and at least five years of supervised release. Neal, if convicted, will face a minimum mandatory prison term of five years and a maximum of 40 years, a $5 million fine, and at least four years of supervised release. All also face mandatory court assessments.
This indictment is the result of a multi-agency investigation including the Roane County Sheriff’s Office, Federal Bureau of Investigation, Harriman Police Department, Kingston Police Department, Rockwood Police Department, Tennessee Bureau of Investigation, 9th Judicial Drug Task Force, Knox County Sheriff’s Office, Blount County Sheriff’s Office, and Tennessee Methamphetamine and Pharmaceutical Task Force. Assistant U.S. Attorney Brooklyn Sawyers will represent the United States.
Members of the public are reminded that an indictment constitutes only charges and that every person is presumed innocent until their guilt has been proven beyond a reasonable doubt.
Detroit Drug Dealer Sentenced in Federal Court in HuntingtonRead the Press Release
Huntington, W.Va. – United States Attorney Booth Goodwin announced today that Gregory Lindsey, 23, of Detroit, Michigan, was sentenced in federal court in Huntington, West Virginia to four years and nine months in prison for possession with intent to distribute oxymorphone pills. Lindsey previously pled guilty in April of 2014, to possessing more than 50 oxymorphone pills, commonly known as “Opana,” that he intended to distribute at a home on Bailes Drive, in Nitro, West Virginia. At the time of his arrest, Lindsey was in the Bailes Drive home with the oxymorphone pills and a High Point 380 caliber semiautomatic pistol.
The case was investigated by the Metropolitan Drug Enforcement Network Team (MDENT). Assistant United States Attorney Monica D. Coleman handled 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 prescription pills 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 heroin and pill trafficking, eliminating open air drug markets, and curtailing the spread of opiate painkillers and heroin in communities across the Southern District.
Desert Hot Springs Man Who Planted Pipe Bombs Near Ex-Girlfriend’s Residence Sentenced to 72 Months in Prison for Explosives ChargeRead the Press Release
RIVERSIDE, California – A man who left pipe bombs in a residential neighborhood in Palm Springs near the residence of an ex-girlfriend was sentenced today to 72 months in federal prison after pleading guilty to possession of an unregistered destructive device.
Edward Allen Costa, 49, who resided in Desert Hot Springs but was a fugitive for a time last year, was sentenced by United States District Judge Virginia A. Phillips.
Costa pleaded guilty in 2012 to being a felon in possession of a firearm as a result of evidence obtained during an investigation into the pipe bombs. He was sentenced to a year in prison and was finishing his sentence at a halfway house in Rubidoux when he walked away from the facility in August 2013. The fugitive was taken into custody in November 2013 by the Banning Police Department and the FBI.
While a fugitive last year, Costa was indicted for possessing six pipes bombs that were left in Palm Springs from May 8 through May 12 of 2012. “This type of device falls into the general category of “improvised explosive devices,” or more plainly, “homemade” bombs, prosecutors wrote in a sentencing memo that cited the “enormous public safety danger” posed by the devices.
The Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives investigated the case involving the pipe bombs. The Palm Springs Police Department and the Riverside County Sheriff’s Department provided substantial assistance.
Release No. 14-101
Community Health Systems Inc. to Pay $98.15 Million to Resolve False Claims Act AllegationsRead the Press Release
The Justice Department announced today that Community Health Systems Inc. (CHS), the nation’s largest operator of acute care hospitals, has agreed to pay $98.15 million to resolve multiple lawsuits alleging that the company knowingly billed government health care programs for inpatient services that should have been billed as outpatient or observation services. The settlement also resolves allegations that one of the company’s affiliated hospitals, Laredo Medical Center (LMC), improperly billed the Medicare program for certain inpatient procedures and for services rendered to patients referred in violation of the Physician Self-Referral Law, commonly known as the Stark Law. CHS is based in Franklin, Tennessee, and has 206 affiliated hospitals in 29 states.
“Charging the government for higher cost inpatient services that patients do not need wastes the country’s health care resources,” said Assistant Attorney General Stuart F. Delery for the Justice Department’s Civil Division. “In addition, providing physicians with financial incentives to refer patients compromises medical judgment and risks depriving patients of the most appropriate health care available. This department will continue its work to stop this type of abuse of the nation’s health care resources and to ensure patients receive the most appropriate care.”
The United States alleged that from 2005 through 2010, CHS engaged in a deliberate corporate-driven scheme to increase inpatient admissions of Medicare, Medicaid and the Department of Defense’s (DOD) TRICARE program beneficiaries over the age of 65 who originally presented to the emergency departments at 119 CHS hospitals. The government further alleged that the inpatient admission of these beneficiaries was not medically necessary, and that the care needed by, and provided to, these beneficiaries should have been provided in a less costly outpatient or observation setting. CHS agreed to pay $89.15 million to resolve these allegations. The settlement does not include hospitals that CHS acquired from Health Management Associates (HMA) in January 2014.
In addition, the government alleged that from 2005 through 2010, one of CHS’s affiliated hospitals, LMC in Laredo, Texas, presented false claims to the Medicare program for certain cardiac and hemodialysis procedures performed on a higher cost inpatient basis that should have been performed on a lower cost outpatient basis. The government also alleged that from 2007 through 2012, LMC improperly billed Medicare for services referred to LMC by a physician who was offered a medical directorship at LMC, in violation of the Stark Law. The Stark Law prohibits a hospital from submitting claims for patient referrals made by a physician with whom the hospital has an improper financial relationship, and is intended to ensure that a physician’s medical judgment is not compromised by improper financial incentives, and is instead based on the best interests of the patient. CHS agreed to pay $9 million to resolve the allegations involving LMC.
“This is the largest False Claims Act settlement in this district and it reaffirms this office’s commitment to investigate and pursue health care fraud that compromises the integrity of our health care system,” said U.S. Attorney David Rivera for the Middle District of Tennessee. “This office is committed to ensuring that all companies billing government healthcare programs are responsible corporate citizens and that hospital providers do not engage in schemes to increase medically unnecessary in-patient admissions of government healthcare program beneficiaries in order to increase profits.”
“This settlement demonstrates our commitment to working with our law enforcement partners and with the Department of Justice to protect the integrity of our nation’s health care system,” said U.S. Attorney Kenneth Magidson of the Southern District of Texas. “Put simply, these types of fraudulent practices will not be tolerated and the investigation and resolution of such claims will continue to be a high priority of this office.”
“Health care providers should make treatment decisions based on patients’ medical needs, not profit margins,” said U.S. Attorney Anne M. Tompkins for the Western District of North Carolina. “We will not allow this type of misconduct to compromise the integrity of our health care system.”
As part of today’s agreement, CHS entered into a Corporate Integrity Agreement with the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services - Office of Inspector General (HHS-OIG), requiring the company to engage in significant compliance efforts over the next five years. Under the agreement, CHS is required to retain independent review organizations to review the accuracy of the company’s claims for inpatient services furnished to federal health care program beneficiaries.
“In an effort to ensure the company’s fraudulent past is not its future, CHS agreed to a rigorous multi-year Corporate Integrity Agreement requiring that the company commit to compliance with the law,” said Inspector General Daniel R. Levinson, of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. “The dedicated work of OIG’s investigators, auditors, and attorneys, in concert with our law enforcement partners, has again resulted in the recovery of taxpayer dollars and better protection against fraud in the future.”
The settlement resolves lawsuits filed by several whistleblowers under the qui tam provisions of the False Claims Act, which permit private parties to file suit on behalf of the government and obtain a portion of the government’s recovery. Those relators are Kathleen Bryant, former Director of Health Information Management at CHS’s Heritage Medical Center in Shelbyville, Tennessee; Rachel Bryant, former nurse at CHS’s Dyersburg Hospital in Dyersburg, Tennessee; Bryan Carnithan, former Emergency Medical Services Coordinator at CHS’ Heartland Hospital in Marion, Illinois; Amy Cook-Reska, former coder for CHS’ LMC in Laredo; Sheree Cook, former nurse at CHS’s Heritage Medical Center in Shelbyville; James Doghramji, former internal medicine and emergency room physician at CHS’s Chestnut Hill Hospital in Philadelphia; Thomas Mason, former emergency room physician at Lake Norman Regional Medical Center in Mooresville, North Carolina; Scott Plantz, former emergency room physician at CHS’s Longview Regional Medical Center in Longview, Texas; and Nancy Reuille, former nurse and Supervisor of Case Management at CHS’s Lutheran Hospital in Fort Wayne, Indiana. The relators’ share of the settlement has not yet been determined.
This settlement illustrates the government’s emphasis on combating health care fraud and marks another achievement for the Health Care Fraud Prevention and Enforcement Action Team (HEAT) initiative, which was announced in May 2009 by Attorney General Eric Holder and the Secretary of Health and Human Services. The partnership between the two departments has focused efforts to reduce and prevent Medicare and Medicaid financial fraud through enhanced cooperation. One of the most powerful tools in this effort is the False Claims Act. Since January 2009, the Justice Department has recovered a total of more than $20.2 billion through False Claims Act cases, with more than $14 billion of that amount recovered in cases involving fraud against federal health care programs.
This settlement was the result of a coordinated effort by the U.S. Attorney’s Offices for the Middle District of Tennessee, Southern District of Texas, Northern and Southern Districts of Illinois, Northern District of Indiana and Western District of North Carolina; the Civil Division’s Commercial Litigation Branch; HHS-OIG; DOD’s Defense Health Agency - Program Integrity Office and the FBI.
The lawsuits are captioned United States ex rel. Bryant v. Community Health Systems, Inc., et al., Case No. 10-2695 (S.D. Tex.); United States ex rel. Carnithan v. Community Health Systems, Inc., et al., Case No. 11-cv-312 (S.D. Ill.); United States ex rel. Cook-Reska v. Community Health Systems, Inc., et al., Case No. 4:09-cv01565 (S.D. Tex.); United States ex rel. James Doghramji; Sheree Cook; and Rachel Bryant v. Community Health Systems Inc., et al., Case No. 3-11-cv-00442 (M.D. Tenn.); United States ex rel. Mason v. Community Health Systems, Inc., et al., Case No. 3:12-cv-817 (W.D.N.C.); United States ex rel. Plantz v. Community Health Systems, Inc., et al., Case No. 10C-0959 (N.D. Ill.); United States ex rel. Reuille v. Community Health Systems Professional Services Corporation, et al., Case No. 1:09-cv-007RL (N.D. Ind.). The claims resolved by this agreement are allegations only and there has been no determination of liability.
Community Health Systems Inc. to Pay $98.15 Million to Resolve False Claims Act AllegationsRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON B The Justice Department announced today that Community Health Systems Inc. (CHS), the nation’s largest operator of acute care hospitals, has agreed to pay $98.15 million to resolve multiple lawsuits alleging that the company knowingly billed government health care programs for inpatient services that should have been billed as outpatient or observation services. The settlement also resolves allegations that one of the company’s affiliated hospitals, Laredo Medical Center (LMC), improperly billed the Medicare program for certain inpatient procedures and for services rendered to patients referred in violation of the Physician Self-Referral Law, commonly known as the Stark Law. CHS is based in Franklin, Tennessee, and has 206 affiliated hospitals in 29 states.
“Charging the government for higher cost inpatient services that patients do not need wastes the country’s health care resources,” said Assistant Attorney General Stuart Delery for the Justice Department=s Civil Division. “In addition, providing physicians with financial incentives to refer patients compromises medical judgment and risks depriving patients of the most appropriate health care available. This department will continue its work to stop this type of abuse of the nation’s health care resources and to ensure patients receive the most appropriate care.”
The United States alleged that from 2005 through 2010, CHS engaged in a deliberate corporate-driven scheme to increase inpatient admissions of Medicare, Medicaid and the Department of Defense’s (DOD) TRICARE program beneficiaries over the age of 65 who originally presented to the emergency departments at 119 CHS hospitals. The government further alleged that the inpatient admission of these beneficiaries was not medically necessary, and that the care needed by, and provided to, these beneficiaries should have been provided in a less costly outpatient or observation setting. CHS agreed to pay $89.15 million to resolve these allegations. The settlement does not include hospitals that CHS acquired from Health Management Associates (HMA) in January 2014.
In addition, the government alleged that from 2005 through 2010, one of CHS’s affiliated hospitals, LMC in Laredo, Texas, presented false claims to the Medicare program for certain cardiac and hemodialysis procedures performed on a higher cost inpatient basis that should have been performed on a lower cost outpatient basis. The government also alleged that from 2007 through 2012, LMC improperly billed Medicare for services referred to LMC by a physician who was offered a medical directorship at LMC, in violation of the Stark Law. The Stark Law prohibits a hospital from submitting claims for patient referrals made by a physician with whom the hospital has an improper financial relationship, and is intended to ensure that a physician’s medical judgment is not compromised by improper financial incentives, and is instead based on the best interests of the patient. CHS agreed to pay $9 million to resolve the allegations involving LMC.
“Health care providers should make treatment decisions based on patients’ medical needs, not profit margins,” said U.S. Attorney Anne M. Tompkins for the Western District of North Carolina. “We will not allow this type of misconduct to compromise the integrity of our health care system.”
“This significant settlement reaffirms this office's promise to investigate and pursue health care fraud of all kinds,” said U.S. Attorney David Rivera for the Middle District of Tennessee. “CHS is headquartered in this district. It engaged in a scheme to admit more inpatients to increase its profits, not because those beneficiaries needed a higher level of care. Our office is committed to ensuring that all companies billing government healthcare programs are responsible corporate citizens and appropriately bill for care that is medically necessary.”
“This settlement demonstrates our commitment to working with our law enforcement partners and with the Department of Justice to protect the integrity of our nation’s health care system,” said U.S. Attorney Kenneth Magidson of the Southern District of Texas. “Put simply, these types of fraudulent practices will not be tolerated and the investigation and resolution of such claims will continue to be a high priority of this office.”
As part of today’s agreement, CHS entered into a Corporate Integrity Agreement with the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services - Office of Inspector General (HHS-OIG), requiring the company to engage in significant compliance efforts over the next five years. Under the agreement, CHS is required to retain independent review organizations to review the accuracy of the company’s claims for inpatient services furnished to federal health care program beneficiaries.
“In an effort to ensure the company’s fraudulent past is not its future, CHS agreed to a rigorous multi-year Corporate Integrity Agreement requiring that the company commit to compliance with the law,” said Inspector General Daniel R. Levinson, of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. “The dedicated work of OIG’s investigators, auditors, and attorneys, in concert with our law enforcement partners, has again resulted in the recovery of taxpayer dollars and better protection against fraud in the future.”
The settlement resolves lawsuits filed by several whistleblowers under the qui tam provisions of the False Claims Act, which permit private parties to file suit on behalf of the government and obtain a portion of the government’s recovery. Those relators are Kathleen Bryant, former Director of Health Information Management at CHS’s Heritage Medical Center in Shelbyville, Tennessee; Rachel Bryant, former nurse at CHS’s Dyersburg Hospital in Dyersburg, Tennessee; Bryan Carnithan, former Emergency Medical Services Coordinator at CHS’ Heartland Hospital in Marion, Illinois; Amy Cook-Reska, former coder for CHS’ LMC in Laredo; Sheree Cook, former nurse at CHS’s Heritage Medical Center in Shelbyville; James Doghramji, former internal medicine and emergency room physician at CHS’s Chestnut Hill Hospital in Philadelphia; Thomas L. Mason, former emergency room physician at Lake Norman Regional Medical Center in Mooresville, North Carolina; Scott Plantz, former emergency room physician at CHS’s Longview Regional Medical Center in Longview, Texas; and Nancy Reuille, former nurse and Supervisor of Case Management at CHS’s Lutheran Hospital in Fort Wayne, Indiana. The relators’ share of the settlement has not yet been determined.
The allegations against CHS were filed in the Western District of North Carolina by Relator Thomas L. Mason in April 2011. Dr. Mason had previously filed a qui tam lawsuit against another hospital chain, Health Management Associates (HMA). On April 18, 2011, Dr. Mason added allegations and claims against CHS to this previously filed qui tam. Allegations against the two different hospital chains were subsequently severed and the case against HMA was transferred, along with eight other qui tam cases filed against HMA, to the United States District Court in Washington, D.C. for consolidated pre-trial practice.
“We thank relator Dr. Mason for his insight and assistance in this case,” said U.S. Attorney Tompkins. “He and his lawyers have been available to assist the United States multiple times in this case.” Tompkins added that “information from citizens like Dr. Mason and the work of their legal representatives is essential to detecting and stopping fraud against government health care programs and recovering public funds.”
This settlement illustrates the government’s emphasis on combating health care fraud and marks another achievement for the Health Care Fraud Prevention and Enforcement Action Team (HEAT) initiative, which was announced in May 2009 by Attorney General Eric Holder and the Secretary of Health and Human Services. The partnership between the two departments has focused efforts to reduce and prevent Medicare and Medicaid financial fraud through enhanced cooperation. One of the most powerful tools in this effort is the False Claims Act. Since January 2009, the Justice Department has recovered a total of more than $20.2 billion through False Claims Act cases, with more than $14 billion of that amount recovered in cases involving fraud against federal health care programs.
This settlement was the result of a coordinated effort by the U.S. Attorney=s Offices for the Middle District of Tennessee, Southern District of Texas, Northern and Southern Districts of Illinois, Northern District of Indiana and Western District of North Carolina; the Civil Division’s Commercial Litigation Branch; HHS-OIG; DOD’s Defense Health Agency - Program Integrity Office and the FBI.
The lawsuits are captioned United States ex rel. Bryant v. Community Health Systems, Inc., et al., Case No. 10-2695 (S.D. Tex.); United States ex rel. Carnithan v. Community Health Systems, Inc., et al., Case No. 11-cv-312 (S.D. Ill.); United States ex rel. Cook-Reska v. Community Health Systems, Inc., et al., Case No. 4:09-cv01565 (S.D. Tex.); United States ex rel. James Doghramji; Sheree Cook; and Rachel Bryant v. Community Health Systems Inc., et al., Case No. 3-11-cv-00442 (M.D. Tenn.); United States ex rel. Mason v. Community Health Systems, Inc., et al., Case No. 3:12-cv-817 (W.D.N.C.); United States ex rel. Plantz v. Community Health Systems, Inc., et al., Case No. 10C-0959 (N.D. Ill.); United States ex rel. Reuille v. Community Health Systems Professional Services Corporation, et al., Case No. 1:09-cv-007RL (N.D. Ind.). The claims resolved by this agreement are allegations only and there has been no determination of liability.
Columbia Felon Sentenced to 15 Years on Federal Firearms and Ammunition ChargeRead the Press Release
Contact Person: Stacey Haynes (803) 929-3000
Columbia, South Carolina -----United States Attorney Bill Nettles stated today that RICHARD A. WILLIAMS, age 42, of Columbia, South Carolina was sentenced today in federal court to 180 months (15 years) imprisonment, to be followed by five (5) years of supervised release. WILLIAMS plead guilty this past May to being a felon in possession of firearms and ammunition, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Sections 922(g)(1) and 924(e). Senior United States District Judge Margaret B. Seymour imposed the sentence after finding that WILLIAMS was an armed career criminal subject to enhanced penalties based upon his extensive prior record in state court.
Evidence presented at the earlier change of plea hearing established that at approximately 7:18 pm on July 30, 2013, officers with the Columbia Police Department responded to the Fast Point Convenience Store on Fairfield Road, in reference to an alarm call. Upon arriving at the scene, officers observed WILLIAMS on the side of the building with his hand tucked into his waistline underneath his shirt. WILLIAMS, after making eye contact with officers, abruptly turned and ran. Despite officers yelling for him to stop, WILLIAMS continued running and dropped two firearms to the ground before ultimately being stopped by officers. Officers recovered the two firearms dropped by WILLIAMS, a Smith & Wesson .32 caliber revolver and a Glock 9mm pistol loaded with 17 rounds of 9mm ammunition, and also recovered a small amount of marijuana in two plastic baggies in WILLIAMS’ right pocket, along with two box cutter knives.
The investigation revealed that WILLIAMS is prohibited under federal law from possessing firearms and/or ammunition based upon his prior state convictions. WILLIAMS was deemed an armed career criminal based upon his prior record, which includes convictions for assault and battery with intent to kill (stemming from shooting in November 1990), assault & battery, voluntary manslaughter (stemming from a shooting in June 1990), and possession with intent to distribute cocaine.
The case was investigated by the Columbia Police Department and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF), and was prosecuted as part of the joint federal, state and local Project CeaseFire initiative, which aggressively prosecutes firearm cases. Assistant United States Attorney Stacey D. Haynes of the Columbia office handled the case.Chiropractor Sentenced to 27 Months in Federal Prison for Role in Insurance Fraud SchemeRead the Press Release
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Deirdre M. Daly, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, and Patricia M. Ferrick, Special Agent in Charge of the New Haven Division of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, announced that MARC KIRSHNER, 49, of Stamford, was sentenced today by U.S. District Judge Stefan R. Underhill in Bridgeport to 27 months of imprisonment, followed by three years of supervised release, for his role in an extensive insurance fraud scheme.
This matter stems from “Operation Running Man,” a 14-month undercover fraud investigation headed by the Federal Bureau of Investigation.
According to court documents and statements made in court, KIRSHNER owned and operated Health First Medical PC (“Health First”), a now-defunct chiropractic practice that had two offices in Bridgeport and one in Stamford. From approximately December 2006 to February 2010, KIRSHNER conspired with attorney Joseph Haddad and others to defraud several insurance companies by exaggerating the auto accident injuries of Haddad’s clients to justify a larger monetary settlement with the insurance companies. As part of this scheme, the co-conspirators fabricated medical records, prescribed unnecessary pain medication, performed unnecessary chiropractic treatment, ordered and billed for diagnostic tests of questionable medical value, and overstated injuries or permanent partial disabilities that were allegedly caused by the accidents.
KIRSHNER met with Haddad numerous times to provide him with cash in exchange for checks made out to KIRSHNER, knowing that Haddad could use the cash for, among other things, paying individuals to find potential victims of auto accidents for Haddad to represent. During the course of the conspiracy, these cash payments totaled as much as $100,000. KIRSHNER also allowed Haddad to establish what Health First would be paid for services rendered, which allowed Haddad to misrepresent and inflate the size of medical bills tendered to the victim insurance carriers for payment.
KIRSHNER and Health First established a protocol to treat patients in Haddad’s cases for six months, regardless of medical need, and would not resolve treatment of patients unless instructed to do so by Haddad. After the six-month period, each patient would receive a permanent partial disability rating, regardless of the permanence of the medical condition. If a patient had received a permanency rating for a prior accident, the protocol was to give a higher or different disability rating for the present accident.
KIRSHNER also knew that Haddad was using Francisco Carbone as a treating physician for clients even though Carbone had lost his medical license. KIRSHNER never challenged Haddad’s continued use of Carbone, or questioned Carbone’s role in the obtaining for clients prescriptions for unduly strong pain medication, including hydrocodone, Vicodin, and Percocet.
KIRSHNER also owned a diagnostic testing company, Midas Medical LLC, and instructed his employees to conduct Nerve Conduction Velocity (NCV) Tests whenever a patient’s symptoms could potentially implicate testing, even though he knew the test results would not change the course of treatment. KIRSHNER arranged for Carbone to order the tests, believing that, if ordered by a doctor, the tests would be given greater weight by the victim insurance companies and increase the likelihood of higher settlement payments. KIRSHNER’s office would submit a bill to Haddad in the amount of approximately $2000 for each NCV test that was performed, which would eventually be paid out of settlement proceeds.
In addition, KIRSHNER, Haddad and Carbone engaged in a scheme to defraud the State of Connecticut. By law, the state is entitled to 50 percent of the proceeds of a personal injury case if the individual who receives a settlement has been on public assistance, or has outstanding child support obligations. Haddad provided fraudulent settlement statements to the state that inflated the payments to him, KIRSHNER and Carbone, and reduced the net payout to the client.
KIRSHNER and Carbone, at Haddad’s request, regularly kicked back a portion of their medical fees to Haddad’s clients.
More than 10 insurance carriers lost a total of approximately $1.7 million as a result of this fraud scheme.
Today, KIRSHNER was ordered to pay $1,692,798 in restitution to the victim insurance carriers.
KIRSHNER was sentenced below the recommended sentencing guidelines range for cooperating during the investigation.
On December 7, 2011, KIRSHNER pleaded guilty to one count of conspiring to commit mail fraud to defraud insurance carriers. He was ordered to report to prison on October 8, 2014.
Haddad, Carbone, three other chiropractors, and a licensed doctor of osteopathic medicine pleaded guilty to charges stemming from this scheme. On July 10, 2014, Haddad was sentenced to 51 months of imprisonment and, on July 18, 2014, Carbone was sentenced to 24 months of imprisonment.
This matter was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, with the assistance of the National Insurance Crime Bureau, the Metropolitan Property and Casualty Insurance’s Special Investigation Unit and the Travelers Insurance Company.
The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Christopher W. Schmeisser and David J. Sheldon.
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(203) 821-3722 [email protected]Brothers Sentenced for Possession of Firearms Found at A Fresno County Marijuana CultivationRead the Press Release
FRESNO, Calif. — Rudy Alberto Gonzalez Rocha, 29, and his brother, Eloy Damian Gonzalez Rocha, 33, both of Jalisco, Mexico, were sentenced today in federal court for being aliens in possession of firearms seized from a marijuana cultivation site, U.S. Attorney Benjamin B. Wagner announced.
Rudy Gonzalez was sentenced to three years and one month in prison and Eloy Gonzalez was sentenced to two and a half years in prison. They are subject to deportation to Mexico upon completion of their sentence. Earlier this year, the Gonzalez brothers entered guilty pleas to being illegal aliens in possession of three firearms, one of which was reported stolen from Arkansas and another having an obliterated serial number. The guns were found during the execution of a narcotics search warrant at the men’s leased residence in Dunlap.
According to court documents, at the beginning of this year, Fresno County Sheriff deputies had been dispatched to the property to investigate several calls about people coming and going to and from the property, which had a strong odor of marijuana. Deputies seized 260 marijuana plants, more than 200 pounds of processed marijuana, and $17,120 in cash, along with the firearms. The defendants have agreed to the forfeiture of the money and guns. In addition to imposing sentence, Senior U.S. District Judge Anthony W. Ishii also ordered the forfeiture of the cash and firearms.
“The firearms seized from these defendants are a further testament to the fact that the criminal organizations involved in illegal marijuana cultivation operations have no qualms about using violence against those who get in their way,” said Mike Prado, resident agent in charge of HSI Fresno. “This case is also an important reminder about the important role federal and local collaboration plays in combatting this public safety threat and ensuring that those responsible are brought to justice.”
This case was the product of an investigation by the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) and Fresno County Sheriff’s Office, with assistance from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Karen A. Escobar prosecuted the case.
Bond Claim Attorney Pleads Guilty to Embezzling over $3 Million in Mail Fraud SchemeRead the Press Release
Used the Stolen Funds to Purchase Luxury Vehicles, a Yacht, and to Fund a NASCAR Team
Baltimore, Maryland – Saleh Stevens, age 41, of Owings Mills, Maryland, pleaded guilty today to mail fraud, in connection with a scheme to embezzle over $3 million from the insurance company where he worked.The guilty plea was announced by United States Attorney for the District of Maryland Rod J. Rosenstein and Special Agent in Charge Stephen E. Vogt of the Federal Bureau of Investigation.
According to Stevens’ plea agreement, from September 2011 through November 2013, Stevens, a licensed attorney, was employed as a senior claims adjuster and bond claim attorney for an insurance company with offices in Towson, Maryland. In this position, Stevens was responsible for reviewing and managing claims related to surety bonds, generally for construction projects. The insurance company also hired outside certified public accounting (CPA) firms to assist with claims processing.
Stevens admits that beginning in December 2011, he embezzled funds from the insurance company’s surety accounts. Stevens used his position as a bond claim attorney to direct the outside CPA firms to issue checks from the insurance company’s surety accounts to third-party bank accounts of entities controlled by Stevens, his friends, or family members. For example, Stevens paid a high school friend $40,000 in exchange for opening a nominee company with a bank account, and attempted to have a former law school classmate also open a bank account for a fictional company. In some instances, Stevens directed the owners of these accounts to issue checks to Stevens for his personal benefit or to send funds to other payees, such as credit card companies on Stevens’ behalf. In other instances, Stevens directed the CPA firms to issue checks to entities he controlled. Stevens also used his daughter and his former law school classmate to launder money, without explaining to them the source of the funds.
Stevens used the embezzled funds to purchase luxury automobiles, including a Maserati and a Mercedes; to fund a NASCAR racing team; to pay cash gifts to friends; to purchase a yacht, and to pay college tuition for his daughter.
Stevens also admits that he filed false individual tax returns for 2011, 2012 and 2013, failing to report a total of $3,119,129.22, the amount embezzled from the insurance company.
As part of his plea agreement, and as a condition of his supervised release, Stevens must pay the IRS all additional taxes, interest and penalties that he owes for tax years 2011 – 2013. In addition, Stevens has agreed to the entry of a restitution order for $3,119,129, the full amount of the insurance company’s loss, less any amount returned to the company prior to sentencing.
Saleh Stevens faces a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison for mail fraud and a fine of $250,000 or twice the gross gain or loss caused by the offense. U.S. District Judge J. Frederick Motz has scheduled Stevens’ sentencing for November 12, 2014 at 9:15 a.m.
Today’s announcement is part of efforts underway by President Obama’s Financial Fraud Enforcement Task Force (FFETF) which was created in November 2009 to wage an aggressive, coordinated and proactive effort to investigate and prosecute financial crimes. With more than 20 federal agencies, 94 U.S. attorneys’ offices and state and local partners, it’s the broadest coalition of law enforcement, investigatory and regulatory agencies ever assembled to combat fraud. Since its formation, the task force has made great strides in facilitating increased investigation and prosecution of financial crimes; enhancing coordination and cooperation among federal, state and local authorities; addressing discrimination in the lending and financial markets and conducting outreach to the public, victims, financial institutions and other organizations. Since the inception of FFETF in November 2009, the Justice Department has filed more than 12,841 financial fraud cases against nearly 18,737 defendants including nearly 3,500 mortgage fraud defendants. For more information on the task force, visit www.stopfraud.gov.
United States Attorney Rod J. Rosenstein praised the FBI for its work in the investigation and thanked Assistant United States Attorney Gregory R. Bockin, who is prosecuting the case.Belen Man Sentenced to Prison for Conviction on Federal Bank Fraud and Conspiracy ChargesRead the Press Release
ALBUQUERQUE –Raymundo Silva, 35, of Belen, N.M., was sentenced on Friday to 30 months in federal prison followed by five years of supervised release for his conviction on bank fraud and conspiracy charges.
Silva and his co-defendants, Christina Knight, 29, of Albuquerque, N.M., and Patricia Diaz, 35, of Los Lunas, N.M., were indicted in Aug. 2013, on conspiracy, bank fraud and aggravated identity theft charges. The trio subsequently was charged in a 31-count superseding indictment alleging conspiracy to commit bank fraud; 24 counts of bank fraud, including eight counts against Silva, three counts against Diaz, and 13 counts against Knight; and six counts of aggravated identity theft against Knight.
The superseding indictment generally charged Silva, Knight and Diaz with engaging in a scheme to commit bank fraud between Dec. 2011 and April 2013. According to the superseding indictment, Silva, Knight and Diaz perpetuated the scheme by stealing checks from residential mailboxes, altering the names of payees and the amounts on the checks, and cashing the checks using either their own identities or, in the case of Knight, the identities of others.
On Oct. 28, 2013, Diaz entered a guilty plea to the bank fraud conspiracy and three substantive bank fraud charges, and Knight entered a guilty plea on Feb. 20, 2014, to the bank fraud conspiracy, 13 substantive bank fraud charges, and one count of aggravated identity theft. Silva was convicted on Feb. 27, 2014, on the bank fraud conspiracy and five substantive bank fraud charges after a four-day jury trial.
According to court records and trial evidence, in Dec. 2011, a Los Lunas police officer investigating a check washing and identity theft ring targeted a sedan seen leaving a Los Lunas bank following a failed attempt to cash a fraudulent check. In Feb. 2012, after surveillance established that the sedan frequently visited a residence in Belen, Los Lunas police officers executed a search warrant at the residence and seized chemicals and other products commonly used to wash and alter checks, several driver’s licenses, college IDs and Social Security cards, bank receipts and other evidence.
Investigation by Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) and the Los Lunas Police Department identified Silva, Knight and Diaz as the members of the bank fraud scheme in late 2012, following the theft of five checks from the mailbox of a Los Lunas residence. Silva cashed one of the checks on Dec. 26, 2012, and between Dec. 20, 2012 and Jan. 4, 2013, Knight cashed three of the checks by using the identification of another person. Each of these four checks had been altered by changing the name of the payee and amount. Laboratory analysis by HSI revealed that the chemicals seized from Silva’s residence were used to wash the checks.
Diaz was sentenced on March 18, 2014, to 62 days of time-served followed by five years of supervised release and was ordered to pay $400.00 in restitution. On June 5, 2014, Diaz was arrested for violating the conditions of her supervised release. She was sentenced on July 10, 2014, to three months in custody followed by four years of supervised release.
Knight has been in federal custody since her arrest and remains detained pending her sentencing hearing which is scheduled for Sept. 9, 2014.
This case was investigated by the Albuquerque office of HSI and the Los Lunas Police Department and is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Norman Cairns and Paul Mysliwiec.
Barker Man Pleads Guilty to Drug ChargeRead the Press Release
BUFFALO, N.Y.—U.S. Attorney William J. Hochul, Jr. announced today that Richard Dwyer, 28, of Barker, N.Y., pleaded guilty to conspiracy to import alpha-PVP, a synthetic narcotic, before U.S. District Judge Richard J. Arcara. The charge carries a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison, a fine of $1,000,000 or both.
According to Assistant U.S Attorney Mary Catherine Baumgarten, who is handling the case, the defendant, along with his wife Erin Dwyer and David Jackson, conspired to import the synthetic narcotics from China using the Internet. The packages were then delivered to the defendant via the United States Postal Service.
Charges against Erin Dwyer and David Jackson are pending. The fact that a defendant has been charged with a crime is merely an accusation and the defendant is presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty.
The plea is the result of an investigation by Immigration and Customs Enforcement, Homeland Security Investigations, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge James C. Spero, and the United States Postal Inspection Service, under the direction of Acting Special Agent in Charge Shelly Binkowski,
Sentencing is scheduled for November 13, 2014 at 1:00 p.m. before Judge Arcara.Atlantic Beach Resident Sentenced for Making False Distress Calls to the U.S. Coast GuardRead the Press Release
RALEIGH – United States Attorney Thomas G. Walker announced that today in federal court, before United States District Judge Terrence W. Boyle, HOMER LEWIS BLACKBURN , 27, of Atlantic Beach, North Carolina, was sentenced to 18 months of imprisonment and 3 years supervised release and was ordered to pay $288,390.80 in restitution. On May 2, 2014 BLACKBURN entered a guilty plea to making false distress calls to the United States Coast Guard.
According to information in the public record, on October 8, 2013, Coast Guard Sector North Carolina received a “MayDay” call in which the caller claimed he was sinking and abandoning his boat in the vicinity of Cape Lookout and Shackleford Banks, North Carolina. Upon receipt of the distress call, the U.S. Coast Guard, assisted by the U.S. Marine Corps, the National Park Service and a local salvage company commenced search and rescue operations using helicopters and boats to search the area. Ultimately, the Coast Guard determined that the call was a hoax, but not until after $288,390.80 worth of resources were expended.
Shortly thereafter, Coast Guard Investigative Service (“CGIS”) began an investigation and received information from a witness who identified the caller as HOMER LEWIS BLACKBURN and confirmed it was a hoax. The witness stated that BLACKBURN used a CB radio he mounted to the balcony of his apartment in Atlantic Beach, North Carolina to make the call. She heard him saying,“Mayday, Mayday” and that he was sinking in the vicinity of Cape Lookout, NC. She then told officers that BLACKBURN went out to the balcony to watch the helicopters search Cape Lookout. When the press reported that the call was a hoax, BLACKBURN sent the witness a text message on her phone asking her not to tell anyone about the call.
During the investigation, another witness came forward and claimed that BLACKBURN bragged about making the hoax calls, BLACKBURN admitted he reported that he was sinking off Cape Lookout, and that he, BLACKBURN, thought the calls were funny.
BLACKBURN subsequently confessed to making the hoax calls.
"False distress calls limit the Coast Guard's ability to respond to actual emergencies," said Captain Sean Murtagh, commander of Sector North Carolina. "Ultimately, they penalize the local communities and mariners the Coast Guard is charged to protect by unnecessarily endangering the lives of responders and wasting hundreds of thousands of tax payer dollars. Through the vigilance of the public, our strong partnerships with the Department of Justice, the U.S. Attorney's Office, and our Coast Guard Investigative Service, this case affirms our collective commitment to holding accountable those individuals who make hoax calls."
The search and rescue efforts were led by United States Coast Guard – 5th District and Coast Guard Sector North Carolina. The criminal investigation of this case was conducted by the United States Coast Guard Investigative Service. Assistant United States Attorney Banumathi Rangarajan prosecuted the case with assistance from Assistant United States Attorney Evan Rikhye.
23 Year Old Charleston Man Pleads Guilty to Selling HeroinRead the Press Release
Charleston, W.Va. – United States Attorney Booth Goodwin announced that Ricky Williams, 23, of Charleston, West Virginia plead guilty today in federal court in Charleston, to distribution of heroin. During his guilty plea, Williams admitted that in September of 2013, he sold heroin in Charleston to an individual who was working as a confidential informant (CI) for the Metropolitan Drug Enforcement Network Team (MDENT). In return for the heroin, Williams received $100. Williams also admitted that he had sold heroin to the CI in Charleston on two other occasions.
Williams faces up to 20 years imprisonment when he is sentenced on October 23, 2014.
This case was investigated by MDENT. Assistant United States Attorney Monica D. Coleman 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 prescription pills 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 heroin and pill trafficking, eliminating open air drug markets, and curtailing the spread of opiate painkillers and heroin in communities across the Southern District.
"Aiken Safe Communities": Two Men Indicted on Federal Gun ChargesRead the Press Release
Contact Person: Lance Crick (864) 282-2100
Columbia, South Carolina -----United States Attorney William N. Nettles, stated today that two Aiken men, Jesse James Quarles, 33, and Kenneth Islar, 27, have been indicted by a federal grand jury in separate indictments, charging each with felon in possession of a firearm, a violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 922(g)(1). During arraignment hearings this last Tuesday morning in federal court in Columbia, the government requested that both men be detained. Quarles and Islar entered not guilty pleas, waived their right to a detention hearing, and remain in custody.
Mr. Nettles stated the penalty for felon in possession is a fine of $250,000 and/or imprisonment for 10 years, plus a special assessment of $100. However, should either Quarles or Islar be classified based on prior criminal history as an Armed Career Criminal, they would be subject to enhanced penalties--a mandatory minimum term of imprisonment of 15 years and a maximum term of life in prison, a fine of $250,000, a five-year term of supervised release, and a special assessment fee of $100. Both cases have been assigned to United States District Court Judge J. Michelle Childs in Columbia, South Carolina.
Launched in early 2013, the Aiken Safe Communities Initiative is a unified, proactive community approach to engage, educate, and encourage recurring offenders to change their behavior and make healthy life choices. The initiative also bands together local, state, and federal law enforcement to expedite the investigation and prosecution of individuals who reoffend, despite opportunities and assistance offered by the community during public notification meetings held at Aiken City Hall to support a law abiding path. From 2012-2013, the city of Aiken experienced an 86% reduction in murders. Earlier this year, the South Carolina Community Development Association presented the city of Aiken with its 2014 Award of Excellence, recognizing community development efforts that have significantly improved the quality of life in the community. Nettles said, “I drove to Aiken and sat in the room with both of these individuals looked them in the eye and promised them that if they were ever found to have a gun I was going to prosecute them. This office is following through on the promise I made to them and to the people of South Carolina.”
Both cases were investigated by the Aiken Department of Public Safety, the 2nd Circuit Solicitor’s Office (Aiken, Bamberg, and Barnwell counties), and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF). These prosecutions as well as the United States Attorney’s Office ongoing commitment to the Aiken Safe Communities Initiative are part of Operation CeaseFire. CeaseFire is a joint local, state, and federal initiative which seeks to prosecute aggressively individuals who unlawfully use, possess, or transfer firearms. Both cases are assigned to Assistant United States Attorney Lance Crick of the Greenville office.
2 August 2014
Jury Convicts Ville Platte Man of Armed Robbery of St. Landry Parish Convenience StoreRead the Press Release
LAFAYETTE, La. –A trial of two Ville Platte men ended with a jury finding one man guilty and a verdict deadlocked for the second man on charges stemming from a robbery of more than $11,000 from a truck stop and a casino in St. Landry Parish, U.S. Attorney Stephanie A. Finley announced.
The trial started on Monday for Ronald James Doomes, 25, and Arinkis Tryvon Orlandeze Jones, 24, both of Ville Platte, La. Both were charged with one count of interference with commerce by robbery and one count of use and carrying of a firearm during and in relation to a crime of violence. After a four-day trial, on Thursday, the jury delivered guilty verdicts on both counts against Doomes. The jury deliberated for over five hours. Deliberations on the charges against Jones continued until late Friday morning when they sent a note to the judge declaring they could not reach a unanimous verdict on either count. U.S. District Judge Elizabeth E. Foote declared a mistrial on Friday as to defendant Jones. Defendant Jones is scheduled for re-trial on August 25, 2014.
Doomes, Jones and Steven Dudley Nelson, 25, also of Ville Platte, were indicted in a superceding indictment on October 24, 2012, on charges that they took part in an armed robbery on April 8, 2011, at the Tiger Trax Truckstop #7 and Video Joker II Casino located in St. Landry Parish. Nelson pleaded guilty on October 28, 2013, to interference with commerce by robbery and use and carrying of a firearm during and in relation to a crime of violence. The sentencing date for Nelson is currently for August 7, 2014.
Doomes faces 20 years in prison for interference with commerce by robbery and seven years to life in prison for use and carrying of a firearm during and in relation to a crime of violence. He also faces up to five years of supervised release, restitution, forfeiture of the guns used and a $250,000 fine for each count. A sentencing date of November 15, 2014 was set for Doomes.
“This robbery was an act of brutality that placed innocent employees’ and customers’ lives at risk,” Finley stated. “I hope this case serves to dispel the notion that robbery is a quick and easy way to make money. If you commit this crime, you will be punished to the fullest extent of the law.”
This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods. Project Safe Neighborhoods is a Department of Justice initiative designed to reduce firearm crimes by removing dangerous and persistent felons from the community and promote firearm safety. The PSN attorneys prosecute a variety of federal firearms violations listed in Titles 18 and 26 of the U.S. Code, including illegal possession of firearms and commission of crimes with firearms.
The FBI, ATF and the St. Landry Parish Sheriff’s Office conducted the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney Joseph T. Mickel prosecuted the case.
1 August 2014
“In Celebration of Seva: Our Community Gathers to Recognize Devoted Service to Humanity”Read the Press Release
United States Attorney Announces Commemorative Program as the Nation Observes the Second Anniversary of the Hate Crimes Violence at the Sikh Gurdwara in Oak Creek
United States Attorney James L. Santelle of the Eastern District of Wisconsin announced today that a special commemoration and awards ceremony will be held on Wednesday, August 6, 2014, from 2:00 p.m. to 3:30 p.m. at the Oak Creek Community Center, located at 8580 South Howell Avenue in Oak Creek, Wisconsin. This community gathering, “In Celebration of Seva,” (the Sikh principle of “service”) is among many programs and events locally and nationwide in observance of the second anniversary of the hate crimes violence at the Sikh Gurdwara in Oak Creek in August of 2012.
Among other significant components of the program, members of Wisconsin’s Congressional Delegation will be conferring the United States Attorney General’s State and Local Law Enforcement Congressional Badges of Bravery on Lieutenant Brian Murphy and Officer Savan “Sam” Lenda, both of the Oak Creek Police Department, whose courageous and selfless law enforcement actions ended the violence at the Sikh Gurdwara and saved the lives of congregation members. United States Attorney Santelle anticipates that Senator Ron Johnson, Senator Tammy Baldwin, Congressman Paul Ryan, and Congresswoman Gwen Moore, or their representatives will present the Badges of Bravery and make remarks on the significance of the local, statewide, and national law enforcement actions of two years ago.
The Congressional Badge of Bravery is awarded to a public safety officer who has sustained a physical injury in the line of duty while performing an act of bravery, or if not injured, performed an act of bravery that placed the officer at risk of serious physical injury or death. Attorney General Eric H. Holder, Jr. selected Lieutenant Murphy and Officer Lenda for their “extraordinary bravery above and beyond the call of duty,” while also commending the service of numerous other agents, officers, and employees of federal, state, and local law enforcement for their critically important responsive actions.
In addition, United States Attorney Santelle will be conferring Distinguished Public Service Awards on some ten area attorneys who, over the period of the past two years, have provided critically important pro bono legal service and counsel to the family members of the victims of the violence. The attorneys who will be recognized specially for their service to the community are Sklkime Abduli, Priya Moti Bhatia, Kelley A. Chenhalls, Laura J. Fernandez, Thomas C. Hochstatter, Gail K. McCarthy, Jennifer L. Nissen, Davorin J. Odrcic, Maria T. Ryan, and Jessie Schreier.
The program will also include an encore presentation of “Waking in Oak Creek”—a reflective and inspiring documentary about the responsive care, abiding support, and transcendent spirit of a faith congregation and a harmonious community that rejected hate in favor of humanity. This film was produced by the professional staff of the Working Group/Not in Our Town Initiative, led by Executive Officer and Director Patrice O’Neill, in partnership and association with the United States Department of Justice’s Office of Community Policing Services (COPS).
The Honorable Stephen Scaffidi, Mayor of the City of Oak Creek, Police Chief John Edwards, City of Oak Creek Police Department, and other state and local officials will be speaking about the events of early August of 2012 and about the response of the Oak Creek Community, the State of Wisconsin, and the nation in promoting healing, safety, security, understanding, and growth. Finally, Dr. Kulwant S. Dhaliwal, President of the Sikh Temple of Wisconsin, and Dr. Gurcharan S. Grewal, President of the Sikh Religious Society of Wisconsin, will convey remarks about “seva”—that is, the humanitarian commitment to service to all women and men—and similarly speak about the experiences of the Skih congregations that they lead.
This ceremony is presented and sponsored by the Office of the United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Wisconsin, the Bureau of Justice Assistance of the Office of Justice Programs of the United States Department of Justice, in partnership with the Delegation to the United States Congress from the State of Wisconsin, the City of Oak Creek, the Sikh Community of the State of Wisconsin, and the Working Group/Not in Our Town Initiative. United States Attorney Santelle acknowledges and expresses appreciation to the leadership and the community of the City of Oak Creek for their support and assistance in organizing and presenting this program.
Members of the media should call Public Information Officer Dean Puschnig at (414) 297-1774 to confirm their attendance.