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Wednesday 21 May 2014
Second of Four Spice Conspirators SentencedRead the Press Release
BOISE – William B. Mabry, 46, of Boise, Idaho, was sentenced today by U.S. District Court Judge Edward J. Lodge to 24 months in prison for conspiring to commit money laundering, U.S. Attorney Wendy J. Olson announced. Judge Lodge also ordered Mabry to pay $80,000 in restitution.
The Indictment alleged that Mabry and three co-conspirators, Mark Ciccarello, Troy Palmer, and Robert Eoff, conspired to purchase and import from China chemicals known as AM2201, UR-144, and XLR11, which they used to treat innocuous plant matter to make spice—a synthetic cannabinoid similar to substances—including JWH018—listed in Schedule I of the Controlled Substances Act. The Indictment alleged that they conspired to launder money illegally obtained through spice manufacturing and distribution.
According to court documents, Mabry admitted that he knowingly entered into a conspiracy with co-conspirators to conduct financial transactions in connection with a “spice” manufacturing and distribution business beginning in March 2011. Mabry also admitted to knowingly participating and assisting in the financial activity of the business by engaging in bank and other financial transactions, through both domestic and foreign financial institutions. The transactions consisted of the proceeds of prior illegal spice sales and other specified unlawful activity and, in many cases, the transactions conducted through financial institutions separately consisted of criminally derived property of a value greater than $10,000; most of the transactions occurred in Idaho, Washington and California.
The three remaining co-conspirators are scheduled to be sentenced in June, August, and September.
The case is the result of a joint investigation of the Organized Crime and Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF), which included the cooperative law enforcement efforts of the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), Internal Revenue Service-Criminal Investigation, Boise Police Department, Meridian Police Department, Ada County Sheriff’s Office, Canyon County Sheriff’s Office, and Nampa Police Department. Other federal agencies participating in the OCEDTF program include the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF), Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), and U.S. Marshals Service.
The OCDETF program is a federal, multi-agency, multi-jurisdictional task force that supplies supplemental federal funding to federal and state agencies involved in the identification, investigation, and prosecution of major drug trafficking organizations.
Sarasota Man Indicted for Investment FraudRead the Press Release
Tampa, FL – United States Attorney A. Lee Bentley, III announces the return by a grand jury of an indictment charging Gaeton Della Penna (61, Sarasota) with eight counts of wire fraud and ten counts of mail fraud in connection with an investment fraud scheme. If convicted, Penna faces a maximum penalty of 10 years in federal prison on each count. The indictment also notifies Penna that the United States intends to seek a forfeiture money judgment in the amount of more than $3 million and intends to forfeit any assets that are alleged to be traceable to proceeds of the offense, including funds in bank accounts in the name of Penna’s business entities and his Sarasota residence.
Penna self-surrendered to authorities today. His initial appearance is scheduled for 2 p.m. today before United States Magistrate Judge Thomas B. McCoun.
According to the indictment, Penna enticed investors to invest in Penna’s “investment funds” by guaranteeing them at least 5% yearly interest on their investment, with the principal to be returned at the end of an 18-month period, minus a nominal management/organizational fee paid to Penna, plus any trading profits. These representations were false. Instead of making profitable trades and protecting investors’ principal, Penna used less than half of the investors’ money for trading, lost money in his trades, and misappropriated the rest of the investors’ money by using it to repay other investors’ principal. He also used the monies for personal expenditures, including mortgage payments on his waterfront residence. Penna directed investors to write checks and wire their investment proceeds to him in the name of these funds and to Gaeton Capital Advisors. Penna also directed that false statements and “quarterly” interest checks be sent to the investors via the U.S. Mail to perpetuate the fraud.
An indictment is merely a formal charge that a defendant has committed a violation of the federal criminal laws, and every defendant is presumed innocent unless, and until, proven guilty.
This case was investigated by the United States Secret Service and the Sarasota County Sheriff's Office. It will be prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Kelley Howard-Allen.
Salem Man Charged with Passing Counterfeit $100 BillsRead the Press Release
A federal grand jury returned a five-count indictment charging Chad M. Collins, age 28, of Salem, Ohio, with counterfeiting, forging and passing U.S. obligations and securities, said Steven M. Dettelbach, United States Attorney for the Northern District of Ohio.
The indictment charges that beginning on or about January 26, 2014, Collins passed several counterfeit securities in the Columbiana and Mahoning County areas. Specifically, he passed at least $1,800 in counterfeit $100 bills, according to the indictment.
If convicted, the defendant’s sentence will be determined by the Court after review of factors unique to this case, including the defendant’s prior criminal record, if any, the defendant’s role in the offense and the characteristics of the violations. In all cases, the sentence will not exceed the statutory maximum and, in most cases, it will be less than the maximum.
The investigation preceding the indictment was conducted by the United States Secret Service, the Perry Township Police Department in Salem, Ohio and the Boardman Police Department. The matter is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Teresa L. Dirksen.
An indictment is only a charge and is not evidence of guilt. A defendant is entitled to a fair trial in which it will be the government’s burden to prove guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.
Remarks as Prepared for Delivery by U.S. Attorney Zachary T. Fardon on Violence in Chicago Before the City Club of ChicagoRead the Press Release
CHICAGO ― Today is important to me. I am honored to be here, and I am going to take this opportunity to talk candidly with you about a topic that is deeply important to me.
My office focusses on some significant areas: terrorism, public corruption, financial crimes, cybercrime. But today I am going to focus on one topic: violence in the city of Chicago.
[Slide presentation.]
I wanted to start with those slides because I think we need to starkly define the problem ― to look at it, to understand what is happening, and where, and why.
This is a gang problem, and a gang faction problem.
This is a disparate impact on certain neighborhoods problem.
It’s a fairness problem. A right-and-wrong problem.
This is an economic problem. It’s a reputational problem.
This is a community problem.
A church problem. A parenting problem.
This is a local, state and federal government problem.
This is a law enforcement problem.
And most of all, it a social justice problem.
It is my problem. It is your problem. It is our problem.
In this room we have business leaders, law leaders, and civic leaders. We have thoughtful people, and powerful people. I appreciate you being here today. I want us to talk about this problem: today, tomorrow, every day, every week, until we come to a better place than where we are now.
Changing what you just saw is going to take sustained investment, involvement and commitment from the government and from you -- the business, legal and civic communities. It will take all of us, doing everything we can, and with a long view; this is a marathon not a sprint. We’re talking about a generational change. But we can do it. And we must do it. So we will.
Let me tell you now about what we’re doing at the United States Attorney’s Office.
Our office here has about 150 Assistant U.S. Attorneys. Of those, 20 work in our Civil Division, and the rest are criminal litigators — federal prosecutors. Among our 130 federal prosecutors, for years, we have had the largest group work on issues related to violent crime. Historically, those prosecutors have worked under the auspices of our Narcotics & Gangs section. And over the past couple of decades, we’ve had major, successful prosecutions out of that section ― racketeering cases, narcotics cases, gun cases, criminal conspiracy cases ― against senior leadership within each of those major gangs: the Gangster Disciples, the Latin Kings, the Black P Stones, and the Black Disciples, and others.
As successful as those cases were in dismantling gang leadership, they of course did not represent an end to the violence. At their time, in their place, they helped. But the violence did not stop.
And unfortunately, over the past decade, the gang problem has grown more complex, rather than less. The factioning that I described makes these issues more challenging for law enforcement to grab hold of and tackle. With many gangs, we no longer have the old-school, clearly delineated gang leadership, with corporate hierarchical structure, where we can readily identify the CEO and top brass of the gang, investigate, indict and lock them up — as we did with Larry Hoover, Jeff Fort, Augustin Zambrano and others.
Instead, more and more often, many gangs are factioned, with little central leadership, and the violence is often between factions within the gangs and no longer about protecting the gang enterprise ― narcotics or otherwise ― but instead, more and more, these shootings and killings are for base, indiscriminate and petty reasons ― revenge, disrespect, perceived disrespect sometimes through social media ― kids pulling the trigger over nothing.
And so as our problems change, so must we.
After I started in October, I put my head down and did my due diligence. I spoke with the lawyers in my office, with judges, with defense lawyers, with law enforcement; I read everything I could read on violence in Chicago; I went to court to observe what we were doing, and I ingrained myself in our major investigations and programmatic efforts.
Through that process, I came to a conclusion that was shared by my senior leadership in the office. We decided that while we are very proud of what we have accomplished in the past, now was and is the right time for us to write the words Violent Crime on a piece of paper, draw a circle around them, assign a cadre of talented federal prosecutors, and say to them: your job, your sole mission, is to help the city and the district tamp down on violent crime. And you are empowered to work together, to think strategically, and to use whatever tools you think best suited to accomplish that mission ― the federal narcotics statutes, the gun statutes, racketeering, fraud, money laundering, the federal robbery and extortion statutes, and prevention and reentry tools ― ways of trying on the front end to prevent these kids from shooting at each other.
So that is exactly what we did. In March, I announced internally a restructuring of our Criminal Division and among the changes that went into effect on March 31 was the creation of a new Violent Crimes section. That section has one mission: to help the city and district tamp down on violent crime.
I believe that the standing up of our Violent Crimes section at the U.S. Attorney’s Office comes at an opportune time. The nature, extent and quality of cooperation and collaboration across local, state and federal law enforcement is at an all-time high.
As someone who served as a prosecutor here in the late 1990s and early 20-oughts, and who has served in another city and district, I believe we have a uniquely strong and committed law enforcement community here in Chicago.
Let me give you a few concrete examples:
We have monthly collaborative law enforcement meetings ― attended by the Chicago Police Department, the FBI, DEA, ATF, IRS, HSI and others ― to talk about investigations and prosecutions of the most violent criminals in Chicago. I often attend these meetings myself, and there are senior prosecutors from my office and the Cook County State’s Attorney’s Office there. We gather in a large room, sit around a table, and talk about specific individuals and investigations. Information flows freely between the city, the state and the feds. We leave that room and work collaboratively to make cases on those violent offenders, and then we get back in that room every month to talk about what more we can do. And my office works with Anita Alvarez’s office to make sure we bring the best cases, against the worst offenders, in the right forums.
Another example: Separate and apart from those meetings, for over two years now, we have had in this district a joint Strike Force, called the OCDEFT Strike Force, comprised of topnotch agents and officers from DEA, CPD, FBI, ATF, HSI, USMS, and various Sheriffs’ offices. And officers and agents assigned to this OCDEFT Strike Force all work together, full time, in integrated units, under one roof, with the focused mission of attacking major drug trafficking organizations and gangs at the “choke point” between cartels and street drug distribution, which usually means gangs. My office has a prosecutor embedded in the Strike Force, and CCSAO has a prosecutor embedded in the Strike Force, and many other state and federal prosecutors work cases stemming from the Strike Force. That is remarkable cross pollination and collaboration by law enforcement. And that is what it’s going to take to help move the needle on violence in this city.
A third example: Project Safe Neighborhoods. About a decade ago, law enforcement in Chicago recognized that a disproportionate number of shootings and homicides were concentrating in these six CPD districts I showed in the slide presentation. So we initiated a program, called Project Safe Neighborhoods or “PSN” and created a joint federal, state and local PSN Task Force (different than the OCDEFT Strike Force), the purpose of which is use federal gun statutes to investigate the most violent criminals in those six afflicted districts.
That task force is more than a decade old and going strong. There are committed officers from CPD and ATF, who work with my office and the CCSAO, to investigate and bring those cases. The task force meets monthly. And separate from those meetings every month or so, a senior prosecutor from my office gets together with a senior prosecutor from the CCSAO to go through pending gun cases and make strategic decisions about which office should charge which defendants with gun crimes.
Those are three concrete examples of my overarching point: this truly is a progressed, progressive and committed law enforcement community we have in the city of Chicago. I believe that the new Violent Crimes section in my office will help us continue and build upon those important programs.
Apropos of that, I want to take a few minutes to tell you about another aspect of who we are and what we do to fight violent crime. This area is something that, in my view, not enough people realize or understand that we do at the U.S. Attorney’s Office. When people think of us, they think we carry a stick, we are prosecutors/enforcers. But we also offer a carrot. We try to help and incentivize people not to commit violent crimes.
Thousands of offenders, people convicted of committing acts of violence, are released from state and federal prisons in Illinois every year. When we started Project Safe Neighborhoods over a decade ago, we had data showing that a large number of those returning offenders were coming home to ― reentering ― the same afflicted neighborhoods you just saw in those six Chicago districts. And we had statistics showing that a significant percentage of exoffenders reentering those neighborhoods would commit another violent offense within three years of getting out of prison.
The PSN Task Force wanted to find a path to stop that pattern of violence.
And so we designed monthly “Parolee Forums” or “offender notification meetings,” and we have been holding those meetings for over a decade. In fact, our meetings ― parolee forums in Chicago ― have become the model for similar forums now held in major cities across the country.
What do these forums look like? They occur monthly and rotate among the neighborhoods I showed you. Typically, 20-30 recently released parolees moving back into the host neighborhood attend each meeting. The goal of the forums is offer those attendees the chance to make an informed choice.
At the outset, they hear from the local CPD commander, a senior federal prosecutor, a senior Cook County prosecutor, and an ATF agent about what will happen to them if they reoffend. The emphasis is on guns. Often, these are young men coming out of their initial stint in prison and they don’t fully appreciate that because they are now a convicted felon, just by picking up a gun, they would be committing a felony that carries a substantial sanction. We explain that to them, not in a heavy-handed way, but in an honest way. We tell them the truth about the tragic stories we see every day when it comes to felons in possession of firearms.
That’s the heavy part. There’s also a more uplifting part. At the forums, we have social services providers, who are terrific and talk to the attendees about how they can help. For example, City Colleges of Chicago often participates and talks about GED classes and even college course opportunities. Other social services organizations offer help and expertise with things that range from getting a haircut, to how to prepare a resume and find a job. And at some point during the forums, a successful ex-offender addresses the attendees, encouraging them that, while difficult, it is possible to make the right choices and put their lives back on track.
I’ve attended these meetings. They are compelling. They are emotional. And they work.
Early on in the PSN program, we recognized the importance of seeking an impartial, arms-length academic examination. And so we partnered with top academic researchers at the University of Chicago, Andrew Papachristos and Tracy Meares, who are now at Yale but still part of our PSN team here. The analytical work done by Professors Papachristos and Meares has fortified the success of this program. They have found that ex-offenders who participate in the forums are 30 percent less like to commit a new offense than those who don’t. Thirty percent: that is moving the needle.
So our reentry and violence prevention efforts are a real success story and one that we are continuing. In fact, right now, we are expanding those efforts into the juvenile offender arena.
It may not surprise you, given what you’ve seen today, to hear me say that research shows when it comes to predicting violent behavior and social problems later in life, an important inflection point is around 13- or 14-years of age. Kids carrying guns or committing acts of violence at that age are much more likely to later repeat those acts of violence and to end up incarcerated.
So last year, the PSN Task Force applied for federal grant money to launch a new initiative, which we have called our “Youth Outreach Forum.” DOJ awarded us that grant, and this month we launched in Chicago. In partnership with the Chicago Police Department, Chicago Public Schools, the Cook County Juvenile Probation Department and other agencies and social service providers, we are taking the success of our parolee forums and applying that model to at-risk youth.
The specific target audience is juvenile probation or parolees who committed gun or violent offenses. And the goal is to provide those kids with long-term intensive mentoring and wraparound services to address their needs and prevent recidivism.
We are initially focused on two CPD districts ― the 7th and 11th, which is Englewood, Garfield Park, and lower Humboldt Park. The forums are designed to educate the kids about law enforcement, to humanize law enforcement, and to give the kids options and incentives to reassimilate into school and connect with community organizations and activities. Alternatives to the gang route. We are working also with a not-for-profit organization, Youth Guidance, who will selectively provide intensive mentoring through their program, Becoming a Man (BAM).
I am proud that we in Chicago are once again at the cutting edge, leading these efforts related to violence prevention. I believe these initiatives are deeply important to our long-term success in fighting violent crime, and I am committed to continuing them as long as it takes to help those unfairly afflicted neighborhoods.
I hope that gives you some sense as to who we are and what we are doing at the U.S. Attorney’s Office when it comes to violent crime in Chicago. We are and will be vigorous in investigating and prosecuting the most violent criminals in Chicago. But we cannot arrest our way out of the gang problem. From a law-enforcement perspective, that’s why I think it’s so important that we continue our violence prevention and parolee reentry efforts. We have to attack this problem at its roots. I don’t want to prosecute violent offenders if instead we can stop them from taking that act of violence in the first instance.
I am deeply honored to get to work with the state, CPD leadership, and leadership from the federal agencies. I believe we have a passionate and like-minded group, committed to taking a comprehensive approach to tamp down on violence. We are working hard, we are working thoughtfully, and we are working together. And we are all in this for the long haul.
That said, law enforcement is a piece of the puzzle but only a piece. And so now I’m at the point in my remarks when I turn to you, and I make an ask. I ask each of you to think about this problem, and how you can own it. You, your company, your law firm, your community organization, your church, your neighborhood.
[Resume slide presentation.]
These are not war zones. They are not separate and discrete from our city. They are our city. They are our neighborhoods with wonderful, law-abiding, decent Chicagoans; citizens, colleagues, neighbors who, like you and me, deserve to feel safe and to be safe at in the neighborhood they call home.
That’s my problem, and it’s your problem. It belongs to all of us, as any social justice issue does. The challenges before us are daunting but they are finite. We can work together to make change real. We have to. Kids are dying. Let’s get to work.
I appreciate you being here with me today. I’m happy to take any questions.
Raleigh Real Estate Broker Sentenced to 42 Months in Prison for His Role in Mortgage Fraud SchemeRead the Press Release
RALEIGH - United States Attorney Thomas G. Walker announced that in federal court today before Chief United States District Judge James C. Dever, III, MARK HENRY TKAC, 49, of Raleigh, was sentenced to a 42 month term of imprisonment, followed by 5 years of supervised release, on a charge of Conspiracy to Commit Mail, Wire, and Bank Fraud, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 1349. TKAC was also ordered to pay $1,612,612.94 in restitution.
Assistant United States Attorney William M. Gilmore stated, “This case reaffirms the commitment of this office to hold accountable those who knowingly used their expertise in the real estate industry for their own fraudulent gain in the midst of the mortgage bubble of the 2000’s. I commend the IRS Criminal Investigation for its perseverance to see these offenders brought to justice, despite the passage of time since the height of the mortgage crisis.”
Daniel D. Burget, Acting Special Agent in Charge, IRS Criminal Investigation stated, "Every year, fraudulent schemes victimize individuals and businesses from many walks of life, including struggling low income families lured into loans they cannot afford and legitimate lenders are saddled with over inflated mortgage loans. This investigation shows IRS Criminal Investigation’s commitment to not allowing those responsible to gain financially from their fraud."
Count One of the Criminal Information charged that between August of 2006 and May of 2008, TKAC was a licensed real estate broker who worked in the Wake County area. TKAC had knowledge of the rules and regulations of the mortgage industry. Nevertheless, TKAC participated with others, including developer David Lewis Johnson, developer Arthur Lee Barnes, mortgage broker Mark Thomas Bowe, and attorney Jeffrey Scott Taggart, in a real estate flipping scheme which defrauded various banks and lenders. Johnson, Barnes, Taggart, and Bowe were previously sentenced to prison for their roles in the scheme.
The mortgage fraud conspiracy in which TKAC became a member involved convincing individuals, referred to as “straw buyers,” to allow their name and credit to be used to secure mortgage loans in return for a kickback from the loan proceeds. The straw buyers lacked the financial means to service the debt on the loans acquired in their names. The straw buyers also did not have a long-term interest in the properties that TKAC and others purchased in their names. TKAC and other coconspirators recruited straw buyers under the guise that they were participating in an investment plan.
TKAC participated in the conspiracy first by acting as a straw buyer, and later recruiting others to serve as straw buyers for Johnson and Barnes. TKAC, Johnson, and Barnes arranged for straw buyers to execute a contract to purchase a home for an inflated price. TKAC, Johnson, and Barnes then directed the straw buyers to attorney Taggart to close the transactions. Taggart prepared false HUD-1 settlement statements for execution by the straw buyers as a part of the real estate closing and loan funding process. Taggart then caused the false HUD-1 settlement statements to be transmitted via mail and wire to banks and mortgage lenders, including FDIC regulated financial institutions, under the pretense that they reflected the economic truth of the underlying transaction.
In fact, however, the HUD-1 settlement statements prepared by Taggart as a part of the scheme routinely contained false statements that were material to the lenders' funding decisions including the existence and degree of the buyer's down payment, as well as kickbacks to the buyers and other conspirators. TKAC and other conspirators generally received several thousand dollars in kickbacks from each fraudulent transaction closed by Taggart.
The various banks and mortgage lenders who issued loans related to the mortgage fraud scheme were deceived by the use of straw buyers, in addition to the foregoing false and fraudulent statements made by TKAC, and other co-conspirators in connection with the loan closings.
Ultimately, borrowers defaulted on many of the transactions brokered by TKAC, resulting in substantial losses to various banks and lenders.
On May 24, 2012, TKAC was named in a one-count Criminal Information charging TKAC with Conspiracy to Commit Mail, Wire, and Bank Fraud. TKAC pleaded guilty to the charge on the same date.
Investigation of this case was conducted by the Internal Revenue Service - Criminal Investigation and the Federal Bureau of Investigation. Assistant United States Attorney William M. Gilmore represented the United States.
Philadelphia Man Charged in Health Care Fraud SchemeRead the Press Release
PHILADELPHIA – Jermaine Hairston, 38, of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, was charged by indictment, filed yesterday, with health care fraud and aggravated identity theft, announced United States Attorney Zane David Memeger.
According to the indictment, the defendant obtained the identifying information of a practicing physician, and used it to call in prescriptions to pharmacies in Philadelphia, in the names of various Medical Assistance recipients. Hairston would pick up the prescription medication, generating a claim to the patient’s health insurance, and then sell the medication for cash.
If convicted, Hairston faces a maximum possible sentence of 132 years in prison, with a mandatory minimum of two years, three years of supervised release, a $3.5 million fine and a $1,400 special assessment.
The case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Food and Drug Administration’s Office of Criminal Investigation, and the United States Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General. It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Elizabeth Abrams.
Click here to view the indictment
An Indictment, Information or Criminal Complaint is an accusation. A defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
UNITED STATES ATTORNEY'S OFFICE, EASTERN DISTRICTof PENNSYLVANIA
Suite 1250, 615 Chestnut Street, Philadelphia, PA 19106
PATTY HARTMAN, Media Contact, 215-861-8525Panama City Man Indicted on Child Pornography ChargesRead the Press Release
PANAMA CITY, FLORIDA – Pamela C. Marsh, United States Attorney for the Northern District of Florida, announced that a federal grand jury returned an indictment yesterday charging Robert Leesean Williams (29) with possession and receipt of child pornography. Counts one and two of the indictment allege that between June 15, 2013, and June 16, 2013, Williams knowingly and intentionally distributed and received images and videos of child pornography. Count three alleges that between June 15, 2013, and September 12, 2013, Williams knowingly possessed child pornography that involved a prepubescent minor and a minor that had not attained the age of twelve (12).
If convicted of counts one and two of his indictment, Williams faces a minimum mandatory sentence of five (5) years and up to twenty (20) years in prison. If convicted on count three of this indictment, Williams faces a term of imprisonment of not more than twenty (20) years. Additionally, as to each count, Williams faces the imposition of a fine of up to $250,000, not less than five (5) years and up to a lifetime term of supervised release, and a $100 special monetary assessment.
The indictment results from an investigation by agents of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations, the Pensacola Police Department, and the North Florida Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Kathryn Risinger.
An indictment is merely an allegation by a grand jury that a defendant has committed a violation of federal criminal law and is not evidence of guilt. All defendants are presumed innocent and entitled to a fair trial, during which it will be the government’s burden to prove guilt beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
New London Heroin Dealer Sentenced to 5 Years in Federal PrisonRead the Press Release
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Deirdre M. Daly, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, announced that RAMON GARCIA, 41, of New London, was sentenced today by U.S. District Judge Janet Bond Arterton in New Haven to 60 months of imprisonment, followed by four years of supervised release, for trafficking heroin.
In early 2012, Homeland Security Investigations (“HSI”), the U.S. Secret Service and the New London Police Department initiated an investigation to combat the large-scale trafficking of heroin and cocaine from the Dominican Republic and Puerto Rico into and around southeastern Connecticut. More than 100 individuals were charged with federal and state offenses as a result of this investigation.According to court documents and statements made in court, GARCIA and Xavier Cluff regularly purchased 100 to 150 grams of raw heroin from Luis Ariel Capellan Maldonado and distributed the drug to their own customer base in and around New London. The investigation identified Cluff and Garcia as Capellan Maldonado’s largest and most frequent purchasers of heroin.
GARCIA was arrested on April 3, 2013. On December 17, 2013, he pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to possess with the intent to distribute 100 grams or more of heroin.
Cluff pleaded guilty to the same charge and, on April 1, 2014, he was sentenced to 70 months of imprisonment.
Capellan Maldonado has pleaded guilty and awaits sentencing.
This matter is being investigated by Homeland Security Investigations; U.S. Secret Service; U.S. Postal Inspection Service; Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives; U.S. Customs and Border Protection, Office of Air and Marine; Connecticut State Police; New London Police Department, Norwich Police Department, Waterford Police Department, Groton Town Police Department, East Lyme Police Department and Putnam Police Department. The United States Marshals Service; ICE Enforcement and Removal Operations; Drug Enforcement Administration; HSI Assistant Attaché, Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic; HSI Arecibo, Puerto Rico Resident Office; Internal Revenue Service – Criminal Investigation; Connecticut Department of Correction, Parole and Community Services; and the Groton City, Willimantic, New Haven and Bristol Police Departments have provided valuable assistance to the investigation.
The federal cases are being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Alina P. Reynolds, Sarah P. Karwan and Henry K. Kopel. The state cases are being prosecuted by the State’s Attorney for the New London Judicial District and Senior Assistant State’s Attorneys Paul Narducci and Stephen Carney.
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Tom Carson
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[email protected]Nevada Woman Pleads Guilty to Federal Drug Charges in IdahoRead the Press Release
BOISE – Sadith Chavez-Perez, 23, of Las Vegas, Nevada, pleaded guilty yesterday in United States District Court to distribution of methamphetamine, U.S. Attorney Wendy J. Olson announced. Chavez-Perez was indicted by a federal grand jury in Boise, Idaho, on February 11, 2014.
According to the plea agreement, on March 27, 2013, Chavez-Perez, along with a co-defendant met with an undercover officer at a parking lot in Meridian, Idaho. At the meeting Chavez-Perez discussed future drug transactions with the undercover officer. On April 11, 2013, Chavez-Perez made arrangements with the undercover officer to deliver five ounces of methamphetamine to the undercover officer. The methamphetamine was delivered to the undercover officer by a co-defendant later that day. Chavez-Perez subsequently arranged for another delivery of two pounds of methamphetamine to the undercover officer on or about May 15, 2013. While en route to this meeting, the defendant was stopped by law enforcement in Ely, Nevada. In the vehicle officers found 1321 grams of actual methamphetamine.
The charge is punishable by up to10 years to life in prison, a maximum fine of $10 million, and at least five years of supervised release.
Chavez-Perez is set for sentencing on August 5, 2014, before Chief U.S. District Judge B. Lynn Winmill at the federal courthouse in Boise.
The case was the result of a joint investigation of the Organized Crime and Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF), led by the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), in conjunction with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), Meridian Police Department, and the Ada County Sheriff’s Office. Other federal agencies participating in the OCDETF program include the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF), Internal Revenue Service-Criminal Investigation, Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), and U.S. Marshals Service.
The OCDETF program is a federal multi agency, multi-jurisdictional task force that supplies supplemental federal funding to federal and state agencies involved in the identification, investigation, and prosecution of major drug trafficking organizations.
Moses Lake Man Sentenced to Five Years in Federal Prison for Distribution of Eleven Child Pornography ImagesRead the Press Release
Spokane – Michael C. Ormsby, United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Washington, announced that Benjamin James Brekke, age 23, of Moses Lake, Washington, was sentenced today after having previously pleaded guilty in February of 2014 to Distribution of Child Pornography. United States District Court Judge Thomas O. Rice sentenced Brekke to a five year term of imprisonment, to be followed by a life term of court supervision after he is released from Federal prison. In addition, Brekke will be required to register as a sex offender.
According to court records, on October 17, 2013, Brekke distributed approximately eleven graphic child pornography images of an infant in a car seat being forced to perform oral sex of an adult male to an undercover employee working with the Federal Bureau of Investigation. On October 18, 2013, Brekke was arrested and federal search warrants were obtained for Brekke's cellular telephones. Over 1,500 images of child pornography were located on one of his cell phones.
Michael C. Ormsby said, "Prosecuting offenders who are not only collecting child pornography, but also distributing child pornography images is a priority of the United States Attorney's Office in the Eastern District of Washington. This Office, together with its Federal and state law enforcement partners, is and will continue to be committed to prosecuting aggressively and seeking appropriate punishment for child pornography crimes."
This case was prosecuted as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the United States 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. The Project Safe Childhood Initiative ("PSC") has five major components:
- Integrated federal, state, and local efforts to investigate and prosecute child exploitation cases, and to identify and rescue child victims;
- Participation of PSC partners in coordinated national initiatives;
- Increased federal enforcement in child pornography and enticement cases;
- Training of federal, state, and local law enforcement agents; and
- Community awareness and educational programs.
For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.usdoj.gov/psc . For information about internet safety education, please visit www.usdoj.gov/psc and click on the tab "resources".
This investigation was conducted by the Federal Bureau of Investigation. The case was prosecuted by Stephanie J. Lister, an Assistant United States Attorney and PSC Coordinator for the Eastern District of Washington.
13-CR-00164-TOR
Modesto Man Sentenced to 10 Years in Prison for Conspiracy to Distribute MethamphetamineRead the Press Release
SAN JOSE – Juan Figueroa Garcia was sentenced today to 10 years in prison for conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute and to distribute methamphetamine, announced United States Attorney Melinda Haag and Drug Enforcement Administration Special Agent in Charge Jay Fitzpatrick.
Garcia pleaded guilty on Feb. 12, 2014. According to the plea agreement, Garcia admitted that, between May of 2012, and Nov. 30, 2012, he conspired with others to distribute methamphetamine in the Northern District of California. Garcia also admitted that he stored drugs and drug proceeds at his residence in Modesto, Calif. When law enforcement officers executed a search warrant at Garcia’s residence on Nov. 30, 2012, agents found approximately 8.7 kilograms of methamphetamine in his home, and a methamphetamine conversion laboratory in his garage. Laboratory tests of the methamphetamine seized from Garcia’s home revealed that it was 99.8% pure.
Garcia, 36, of Modesto, was indicted by a federal grand jury on Feb. 28, 2013.
The sentence was handed down by the Honorable Lucy H. Koh, United States District Court Judge, following Garcia’s guilty plea to Count One of the Second Superseding Indictment, charging him with conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute and to distribute methamphetamine, in violation of 21 U.S.C. § 841(a)(1). Judge Koh also sentenced the defendant to a 5 year period of supervised release. The defendant has been in federal custody since Jan. 8, 2013.
Richard Cheng and Chinhayi Cadet are the Assistant U.S. Attorneys who are prosecuting the case with the assistance of Yanira Osorio. This case is the product of an extensive investigation by the Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force, a focused multi-agency, multi-jurisdictional task force investigating and prosecuting the most significant drug trafficking organizations throughout the United States by leveraging the combined expertise of federal, state and local law enforcement agencies.
(Figueroa Garcia second superseding indictment )
Mexican National Sentenced to Ten Years for Conviction on Federal Drug Trafficking, Firearms and Immigration Charges and for Violating Supervised ReleaseRead the Press Release
ALBUQUERQUE – Yuren Aranda-Diaz, 38, a Mexican national illegally in the United States, was sentenced this morning to 111 months in federal prison for his conviction on drug trafficking, firearms charges and immigration charges. Aranda-Diaz also was sentenced to 18 months in prison, including 12 to be served consecutive to the 111-month prison term, for violating his supervised release on a prior federal conviction, for an aggregate prison sentence of 123 months. Aranda-Diaz will be deported after completing his prison sentence.
Aranda-Diaz was arrested in Oct. 2012, on a criminal complaint charging him with drug trafficking, firearms and immigration offenses after he sold heroin to an informant of the Albuquerque Police Department. Thereafter, Aranda-Diaz was indicted and charged with (1) being an alien in possession of a firearm; (2) being a felon in possession of a firearm; (3) possession of heroin with intent to distribute; (4) distribution of heroin; (5) using and carrying a firearm in relation to a drug trafficking crime; and (6) unlawful re-entry into the United States after previously having been deported.
According to court filings, in Oct. 2012, Aranda-Diaz was prohibited from possessing firearms because he was an alien illegally in the United States. He also was prohibited from possessing firearms because he previously had been convicted of the felony offenses of re-entry by a deported alien on two occasions, being a felon in possession of a firearm, and being an alien in possession of a firearm in the U.S. District Court for the District of New Mexico. He also previously had been convicted for possession of cocaine in the 2nd Judicial District Court for the State of New Mexico.
On the morning of July 24, 2013, Aranda-Diaz entered guilty pleas to Counts 1, 2 and 6 of the indictment, charging him with being an alien in possession of a firearm, being a felon in possession of a firearm, and unlawfully entering the United States. Immediately after entering his guilty pleas, Aranda-Diaz proceeded to trial on Counts 3, 4 and 5 of the indictment, charging him with possession of heroin with intent to distribute, distribution of heroin, and using a firearm in relation to a drug trafficking crime. On July 26, 2013, the jury returned a verdict finding Aranda-Diaz guilty on all three counts.
This case was investigated by the Albuquerque office of Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) and the Albuquerque Police Department and was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys David M. Walsh and Novaline D. Wilson.
Aranda-Diaz was prosecuted as part of a federal anti-violence initiative that targets “the worst of the worst” offenders for federal prosecution. Under this initiative, the U.S. Attorney’s Office and federal law enforcement agencies work with New Mexico’s District Attorneys and state, local and tribal law enforcement agencies to target violent or repeat offenders for federal prosecution with the goal of removing repeat offenders from communities in New Mexico for as long as possible.
Mexican National Charged in Drug ConspiracyRead the Press Release
PHILADELPHIA - Jorge Bautista-Banda, a/k/a “Cochito,” a/k/a Jorge Batista-Banda, 32, of Mexico, is charged in a two-count indictment with conspiracy to distribute five kilograms or more of cocaine, and money laundering, announced United States Attorney Zane David Memeger.
According to the indictment, from July 2013 to April 23, 2014, Bautista-Banda was a member of a conspiracy that distributed more than 100 kilograms of cocaine, supplied by a Mexican-based cocaine distribution organization, which was sold and distributed in the Philadelphia area. Bautista-Banda was arrested on April 23, 2014, in connection with an alleged attempt to make a structured cash deposit of $8,000 to a corporate bank account at a bank in Philadelphia. The indictment further alleges that on April 23, 2014, following his arrival in Philadelphia from Texas, Bautista-Banda received $100,000 cash which he was directed to launder through the use of structured cash deposits to “pass through” accounts designated by Mexican sources. The indictment charges that after receiving the cash, Bautista-Banda proceeded to the Bank of America branch at 932 Walnut Street where he attempted to make a cash deposit of $8,000. The indictment further alleges that Bautista-Banda was in possession of an additional $68,000 in United States currency that he had in his hotel room in Philadelphia.
On September 24, 2013, Bautista-Banda received a sum of $145,000 in cash representing proceeds of the operations of a Philadelphia-based cocaine trafficking conspiracy. After receiving the cash, Bautista-Banda allegedly made multiple deposits, at various bank branches, in amounts less than $10,000, the purpose of which was to avoid the filing of currency transaction reports.
If convicted, Jorge Bautista-Banda faces a maximum penalty of life in prison, with a mandatory minimum of 10 years, at least five years supervised release, and a fine of $10.5 million.This case was investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Joseph T. Labrum, III.
Click here to view the indictment
UNITED STATES ATTORNEY'S OFFICE, EASTERN DISTRICTof PENNSYLVANIA
Suite 1250, 615 Chestnut Street, Philadelphia, PA 19106
PATTY HARTMAN, Media Contact, 215-861-8525Mescalero Apache Woman Sentenced to Twenty-Four Months in Federal Prison for Assault ConvictionRead the Press Release
ALBUQUERQUE – Tenya Lester-Gonzalez, 38, a member of the Mescalero Apache Nation, was sentenced yesterday in federal court in Las Cruces, N.M., to 24 months in federal prison followed by three years of supervised release for her assault conviction.
Lester-Gonzalez was charged with federal assault offenses in a criminal complaint filed on Sept. 18, 2012, and was arrested on Jan. 30, 2013, after she was transferred from tribal custody to federal custody. The criminal complaint alleged that Lester-Gonzalez assaulted her husband by striking him in the head with a hatchet on March 30, 2012, at their home in Mescalero, N.M., following an argument that escalated into a physical confrontation. The victim sustained a large cut about four inches long and a quarter inch wide on his face as a result of the assault.
On June 6, 2013, Lester-Gonzalez entered a guilty plea to a felony information charging her with assault with a dangerous weapon. In her plea agreement, Lester-Gonzalez admitted assaulting the victim with a hatchet on March 30, 2012, with the intention of causing him bodily harm.
This case was investigated by the Las Cruces office of the FBI and the Mescalero Agency of the BIA’s Office of Justice Services and was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Aaron O. Jordan, of the U.S. Attorney’s Las Cruces Branch Office.
Mescalero Apache Man Sentenced to Thirty-Three Months for Federal Child Sexual Abuse ConvictionRead the Press Release
ALBUQUERQUE – Snyder Geronimo III, 23, a member of the Mescalero Apache Nation, was sentenced today in federal court in Las Cruces, N.M., to 33 months in federal prison followed by five years of supervised release for his child sexual abuse conviction. Geronimo will be required to register as a sex offender after he completes his prison sentence.
Geronimo was arrested in early April 2013, based on a criminal complaint alleging that he knowingly engaged in a sexual act with a child between 12 and 16 years of age. Geronimo subsequently was indicted and charged with sexually abusing of a minor from July 2012 through Oct. 22, 2012, in locations within the Mescalero Apache Reservation.
The BIA’s Office of Justice Services initiated an investigation into Geronimo on Oct. 23, 2012, after a motorist reported seeing an intoxicated 13-year old female (victim) in the company of an adult man. During questioning by officers, the victim admitted having engaged in sexual activity with Geronimo on multiple occasions. On Jan. 30, 2012, Geronimo was arrested on tribal charges arising out of his relationship with the victim. During questioning, Geronimo acknowledged having had a sexual relationship with the victim since July 2012. Geronimo also stated that he had been told that the victim was 13 or 14 years old.
On Jan. 27, 2014, Geronimo pled guilty to the indictment and admitted that he knowingly engaged in sexual acts with the victim, who was 13 years of age, from July 2012 through Oct. 2012. Geronimo also admitted that his criminal conduct occurred on the Mescalero Apache Reservation.
This case was investigated by the Mescalero Agency of the BIA’s Office of Justice Services and was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Aaron O. Jordan of the U .S. Attorney’s Las Cruces Branch Office.
The case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice (DOJ) to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by United States Attorneys’ Offices and DOJ’s Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state and local resources to better locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the Internet, as well as to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit http://www.justice.gov/psc/.
Mescalero Apache Man Sentenced to Federal Prison for Assault ConvictionRead the Press Release
ALBUQUERQUE – Anthony John Shanta, 20, a member of the Mescalero Apache Nation who resides in Mescalero, N.M., was sentenced today to 18 months in federal prison followed by three years of supervised release for his assault conviction.
Shanta was arrested in Sept. 2012, on a criminal complaint alleging that he stabbed another Mescalero Apache man in the neck during an altercation on July 21, 2012, in a location within the Mescalero Apache Reservation. Shanta was indicted on March 5, 2013, and charged with assault with a dangerous weapon.
On Aug. 7, 2013, Shanta entered a guilty plea to the indictment. In his plea agreement, Shanta admitted assaulting the victim by stabbing him in the neck with a small pocket knife. Shanta stated that he assaulted the victim in anger because the victim was verbally taunting him.
Before his arrest on federal charges in this case, Shanta entered a guilty plea to tribal charges of assault and battery of the victim and to public intoxication in the Mescalero Tribal Court.
This case was investigated by the Las Cruces office of the FBI and the Mescalero Agency of the BIA’s Office of Justice Services and was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Aaron O. Jordan, of the U.S. Attorney’s Las Cruces Branch Office.Media AdvisoryRead the Press Release
Montgomery, Alabama - The United States Attorney’s Office and the Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigation (CI) Unit will hold a press conference to announce indictments and arrests connected with what could potentially be the largest tax fraud/identity theft case in the Middle District of Alabama.
The press conference will be held on Thursday, May 22, 2014 at 10:00 a.m., at the U.S. Attorney’s Office, 131 Clayton Street, Montgomery, Alabama, and the media is invited. A press release will be provided at the conference.
PRESS CONTACT: Clark Morris
Email: [email protected]
Telephone: (334) 551-1755
Fax: (334) 223-7617Maryland Man Sentenced to 51 Months in Prison for Traveling to Engage in Illicit Sexual ConductWith A Minor and Possession of Child PornographyRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON – Matthew Scanlon, 31, of Pasadena, Md., was sentenced today to 51 months in prison on charges of traveling interstate to engage in illicit sexual conduct with a minor and possession of child pornography, announced U.S. Attorney Ronald C. Machen Jr., Valerie Parlave, Assistant Director in Charge of the FBI’s Washington Field Office, and Cathy L. Lanier, Chief of the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD).
Scanlon pled guilty to the charges in February 2014 in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia. He was sentenced by the Honorable Rudolph Contreras. Upon completion of his prison term, Scanlon will be placed on 10 years of supervised release.
According to the government's evidence, on July 10, 2013, Scanlon contacted an undercover officer with the FBI's Child Exploitation Task Force, who had posted an ad on a social network site. Over the next few days, Scanlon engaged in e-mail and text message conversations with the undercover officer, whom the defendant believed was the father of an under-aged girl. During this period of time, Scanlon arranged with the undercover officer to meet for the purpose of engaging in sexual acts with the child.
During the course of their communications, Scanlon also sent the undercover officer one still image and two videos of child pornography. On July 16, 2013, Scanlon traveled from Maryland to a pre-arranged meeting place in Washington, D.C. When he arrived at the meeting place, he was arrested. Pursuant to a search of an external hard drive seized from the defendant’s residence, law enforcement recovered approximately 225 additional images of child pornography.
This case was brought as part of the Department of Justice's Project Safe Childhood initiative and investigated by the FBI's Child Exploitation Task Force, which includes members of the FBI's Washington Field Office and MPD. Project Safe Childhood is a nationwide initiative to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice. Led by U.S. Attorneys’ Offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS), Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state and local resources to better locate, apprehend and prosecute those who exploit children, as well as to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.projectsafechildhood.gov
In announcing the sentence, U.S. Attorney Machen, Assistant Director Parlave and
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Chief Lanier praised the work of the MPD Detectives and Special Agents of the FBI Child Exploitation Task Force. They also commended Assistant U.S. Attorney Ari Redbord, who is prosecuting the case.Man Sentenced to Eight Years in Prison for Transporting Teenage Girls from California to Nevada to Work as ProstitutesRead the Press Release
LAS VEGAS, Nev. – A California man has been sentenced to eight years in prison for inducing and enticing two minor girls to travel from Oakland, Calif., to Las Vegas, Nev., to work as prostitutes during April and May 2013, announced Daniel G. Bogden, United States Attorney for the District of Nevada.
Seagram Joshua Miller, 21, of Hayward, Calif., who pleaded guilty in January to one count of coercion and enticement of a minor, was sentenced on Tuesday, May 20, 2014, by U.S. District Judge Kent J. Dawson. Miller was also ordered to serve 10 years of supervised release following his release from prison, and he will have to register as a sex offender. Miller’s co-defendant, Ray Darnell Webb, 20, also pleaded guilty to one count of coercion and enticement, and was sentenced in April to eight years in prison.
“These sentences send a strong message that coercing a minor to work as a prostitute is a deplorable and shameful crime that will land you in prison for a long time,” said U.S. Attorney Bogden. “It is simply unacceptable for adults to take advantage of minors in such a way that forever will impact their lives. We are working with our community and law enforcement partners to arrest and prosecute the persons who commit these crimes.”
According to the court records plea agreements, in early 2013, Webb and Miller met one of the victims, a 12-year-old female, in Oakland, Calif. where she was working as a prostitute. Shortly thereafter, the 12-year-old began working as a prostitute for Webb and Miller, and provided the money she made working as a prostitute to them. In about April 2013, Miller met a 16-year-old female on Facebook, and she also began working as a prostitute for Miller and Webb. In April 2013, Miller, Webb, and the two minor girls, decided to travel to Las Vegas to make money. Before leaving, Webb and the 16-year-old girl posted an advertisement on MyRedbook.com so that they would have dates lined up when they arrived in Las Vegas. The advertisement contained photographs of the 16-year-old. On April 29, 2013, Webb, Miller, and the two minor girls, drove from Oakland to Las Vegas and stayed in a rented hotel room on Las Vegas Boulevard. Both girls worked as prostitutes on April 30 and in early May.
The cases were investigated the FBI and Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department, as part of the Innocence Lost Task Force. The cases were prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Nicholas D. Dickinson and Phillip N. Smith, Jr.The cases were brought as part of Project Safe Childhood (PSC), a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by the United States Attorneys' Offices and the Criminal
Division's Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, PSC 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 PSC, please visit www.usdoj.gov/psc.Man Charged with Fraudulent Use of Credit Cards and DocumentsRead the Press Release
A federal Grand Jury returned a two-count indictment charging Sergei Davidoff, aka Sergiu Davidov, aka Sammy Davidoff, aka Sergio Da Vido, 53, with fraudulent use of credit cards and identification documents, said Steven M. Dettelbach, United States Attorney for the Northern District of Ohio.
The indictment alleges that Davidoff fraudulently used credit cards to purchase merchandise and services valued over $1,000. It further alleges that the defendant acquired and produced counterfeit identification cards as part of his scheme.
Assistant United States Attorney Matthew J. Cronin is prosecuting the case following an investigation by the United States Secret Service and the Medina Police Department.
If convicted, the Court will determine the defendant’s sentence after a review of factors unique to this case, including the defendant’s prior criminal record, if any, the defendant’s role in the offense, and the characteristics of the violation. In all cases, the sentence will not exceed the statutory maximum. In most cases, it will be less than the maximum.
An indictment is only a charge and is not evidence of guilt. A defendant is entitled to a fair trial in which it will be the government's burden to prove guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.
Long Island Doctor Arrested for Illegal Distribution of Controlled SubstancesRead the Press Release
A criminal complaint was unsealed today in federal court in the Eastern District of New York charging Dr. Michael Randall with illegal distribution of thousands of prescription pain pills, including oxycodone, oxymorphone, methadone, and carisoprodol. Randall surrendered earlier today, and his initial appearance is scheduled for this afternoon before United States Magistrate Judge A. Kathleen Tomlinson at the United States Courthouse, 100 Federal Plaza, Central Islip, New York.
The charges were announced by Loretta E. Lynch, United States Attorney for the Eastern District of New York, James J. Hunt, Acting Special Agent-in-Charge, Drug Enforcement Administration, New York (DEA), and Tom F. O’Donnell, Special Agent-in-Charge, U.S. Department of Human Services, Office of Inspector General, New York Region (HHS-OIG).
This morning, as part of a continuing federal and state prescription drug abuse initiative within the Eastern District of New York, Randall was arrested upon his surrender to members of a DEA Tactical Diversion Squad1 on charges of illegally distributing prescription pain pills between January 2009 and September 2013. According to the complaint, Randall, whose family medical practice, Middle Country Family Medical, P.C., is located in Centereach, New York, wrote hundreds of prescriptions for oxycodone, oxymorphone, methadone, and carisoprodol to patients on a continuing basis outside the usual course of professional practice and not for any legitimate medical purpose.
“By prescribing thousands of highly addictive pain pills without a legitimate medical purpose, Dr. Randall ignored the law and his own patients’ well-being,” stated United States Attorney Lynch. “We are committed to vigorous prosecution of doctors who abdicate their Hippocratic Oath, participate in the illegal distribution of prescription drugs, and contribute to the rise of drug abuse and addiction in our communities.” Ms. Lynch expressed her grateful appreciation to each of the agencies that participated in the government’s investigation.
DEA Acting Special Agent-in-Charge Hunt stated, “The adverse consequences of prescription drug abuse like theft, threats of violence, opiate addiction, and overdose deaths throughout America are growing in numbers. And today’s arrest of Dr. Randall shows law enforcement’s commitment to fighting the spread of opiate use and abuse by identifying and arresting those who, as alleged in the complaint, are responsible for supplying and distributing illegally prescribed medication.”
“The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Office of Inspector General, will continue to investigate physicians that illegally distribute narcotics like common drug dealers,” said HHS-OIG Special Agent-in-Charge O’Donnell. “Along with our law enforcement partners, today’s arrest reaffirms our commitment to protecting public safety, as well as the federally funded health care programs intended for the nation’s most vulnerable Americans.”
The charges in the complaint are merely allegations, and the defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty. If convicted, the defendant faces a maximum sentence of 20 years’ imprisonment and a $1 million fine.
In January 2012, the United States Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of New York and the DEA, in conjunction with the five District Attorneys in this jurisdiction, the Nassau and Suffolk County Police Departments, the New York City Police Department and New York State Police, along with other key federal, state, and local government partners, launched the Prescription Drug Initiative to mount a comprehensive response to what the United States Department of Health and Human Services’ Center for Disease Control and Prevention has called an epidemic increase in the abuse of so-called opioid analgesics. So far, the Prescription Drug Initiative has brought over 160 federal and local criminal prosecutions, including the prosecution of 15 health care professionals, taken civil enforcement actions against a hospital, a pharmacy and a pharmacy chain, removed prescription authority from numerous rogue doctors, and expanded information-sharing among enforcement agencies to better target and pursue drug traffickers. The Initiative also is involved in an extensive community outreach program to address the abuse of pharmaceuticals.
The government’s case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Charles N. Rose.
The Defendant:
MICHAEL RANDALL
Age: 47
South Setauket, New York
E.D.N.Y. Docket No. 14-MJ-464
_____________________________________________________________________________
1 The Tactical Diversion Squad comprises DEA agents and law enforcement officers with the Nassau County Police Department, the New York State Police, the Port Washington Police Department, and the Rockville Centre Police Department
Lee's Summit Soccer Coach Indicted on Eight Additional Charges of Producing Child PornRead the Press Release
Project Safe Childhood
KANSAS CITY, Mo. - Tammy Dickinson, United States Attorney for the Western District of Missouri, announced that a Lee’s Summit, Mo., youth soccer coach was indicted by a federal grand jury today on eight additional charges related to producing child pornography by secretly videotaping members of his soccer team.
Joel D. White, 41, of Lee’s Summit, was charged in an 11-count superseding indictment returned by a federal grand jury in Kansas City, Mo. Today’s indictment replaces a three-count indictment that was returned on April 30, 2013, and adds the counts regarding eight additional victims. White has remained in federal custody since his arrest on the original indictment.
White formerly coached a girls under-12 soccer team and a girls under-15 soccer team through the Lee’s Summit Soccer Association. He has been in federal custody since his arrest in April 2013. The Lee’s Summit Soccer Association has cooperated fully with law enforcement officers during this investigation.
Today’s indictment charges White with 11 separate counts of attempting to produce child pornography. White allegedly attempted to use 11 child victims – identified in the indictment as Jane Doe #1 through Jane Doe #11 – to produce child pornography between May 1, 2012 and March 20, 2013.
Under Department of Justice guidelines, the attempted production of child pornography is ordinarily charged in cases that involve surreptitious recordings. The statutory penalties for producing child pornography are the same as the penalties for attempting to produce child pornography. Each of the 11 counts contained in the indictment carries a mandatory minimum sentence upon conviction of 15 years in federal prison without parole.
According to an affidavit filed in support of the original criminal complaint, law enforcement officers in Commerce City, Colo., discovered videos of nude minors on White’s camera. White was at a soccer stadium in Colorado for a World Cup qualifying game when his cameras were seized by law enforcement officers as part of a criminal investigation.
Several videos allegedly depict White positioning a video camera in a bedroom of his residence in such a way that the camera is hidden. Shortly after White leaves the room, the affidavit says, the videos depict several minors, approximately 11 or 12 years old, entering the room and changing their clothes. Minors are fully nude in the videos and do not appear to know they are being videotaped.
Dickinson cautioned that the charges contained in this indictment are simply accusations, and not evidence of guilt. Evidence supporting the charges must be presented to a federal trial jury, whose duty is to determine guilt or innocence.
This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Teresa A. Moore. It was investigated by the Lee’s Summit, Mo., Police Department and the Commerce City, Colo., Police Department.
Project Safe Childhood
This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by the United States Attorneys' Offices and the Criminal Division's Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who sexually exploit children, and to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.usdoj.gov/psc . For more information about Internet safety education, please visit www.usdoj.gov/psc and click on the tab "resources."Kanawha Residents Charged with Illegal Firearms Possession, Conspiracy to Conceal EvidenceRead the Press Release
CHARLESTON, W. Va. – A federal grand jury has charged a six-time felon from Cedar Grove with illegally possessing firearms, United States Attorney Booth Goodwin announced today. Reginald Bennett, 40, of Cedar Grove, was indicted for possessing firearms as a convicted felon. According to an indictment returned yesterday, Bennett has been convicted of six robbery and firearms felonies in Baltimore, Maryland.
The grand jury also charged Bennett and an associate, Jennifer Allen, 52, of South Charleston, with conspiring to conceal a BMW 328i with firearms inside, with the intent to impair the availability of that evidence for use in an official proceeding.
Note: An indictment is only an accusation, and the defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.
KC Man Pleads Guilty to $2.6 Million Health Care FraudRead the Press Release
KANSAS CITY, Mo. – Tammy Dickinson, United States Attorney for the Western District of Missouri, announced that a Kansas City, Mo., man pleaded guilty in federal court today to submitting more than $2.6 million in health care claims, although he was excluded from participating in any federal health care programs after being convicted of a felony drug charge.
Paul Schleicher, 40, of Kansas City, Mo., waived his right to a grand jury and pleaded guilty before U.S. Magistrate Judge Robert E. Larsen to a federal information that charges him with nine counts of making false statements relating to health care matters.
Schleicher formed Health Care at Home to provide health care services and submitted 14,807 claims to Medicare, Missouri Medicaid, Federal Employees Health Benefits Program and TRICARE (the health care program serving uniformed service members, retirees and their families) from June 19, 2008, to Oct. 5, 2012. All claims were for health care services that were provided after Schleicher was excluded from participating in any federal health care programs.
On May 30, 2008, Schleicher was excluded for a period of five years from all federal health care programs due to his felony conviction for conspiracy to manufacture and distribute a controlled substance (gamma hydroxybutyric acid, or GHB). Because of his interest and involvement in Health Care at Home and his failure to disclose this interest, Schleicher made false and fraudulent statements.
The total billed amount was $2,643,693 and the total amount actually paid was $974,762. Under the terms of today’s plea agreement, Schleicher must pay $974,762 in restitution.
Under federal statutes, Schleicher is subject to a sentence of up to five years in federal prison without parole, plus a fine up to $250,000 on each of the nine counts. A sentencing hearing will be scheduled after the completion of a presentence investigation by the United States Probation Office.
This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Jane Pansing Brown. It was investigated by Health and Human Services – Office of Inspector General, Office of Investigations; the Centers for Medicaid and Medicare Services; the U.S. Department of Defense – Office of Inspector General, Defense Criminal Investigative Service; and the U.S. Office of Personnel Management – Office of Inspector General.KC Man Indicted for Illegally Transporting, Dumping Hazardous WasteRead the Press Release
KANSAS CITY, Mo. – Tammy Dickinson, United States Attorney for the Western District of Missouri, announced that a Kansas City, Mo., man was indicted by a federal grand jury today for illegally transporting and dumping hazardous waste.
John Schaller, 50, of Kansas City, was charged in a two-count indictment returned by a federal grand jury in Kansas City, Mo. Schaller owned and operated R.E.I.T., a computer recycling company at 1534 Burlington St., North Kansas City, Mo.
According to the federal indictment, Schaller was hired by an employee and agent of Z-International, which used large quantities of ink and ink-related products in its business of making labels, to liquidate the property in its building at 110 E. 16th Ave., Kansas City, Mo, when the business was closed in July 2010. As part of the liquidation job, Schaller was required to dispose of several barrels of ink or other liquids.
Schaller allegedly dumped approximately 23 containers of hazardous materials at Studer Container Service, 520 Madison Ave., Kansas City, Mo., in December 2011 without knowing if Studer had sufficient authorization to accept hazardous waste. Schaller did not hold a permit authorizing the transportation, storage or disposal of hazardous waste, the indictment says, and Studer did not have a permit to receive hazardous waste.
Studer is located in a high traffic area frequented by passers-by, including pedestrians, vehicles and bicycles. Schaller made no attempt or inquiry to determine whether Studer had sufficient authorization to accept the containers, the indictment says. Schaller allegedly did not employ the transportation of hazardous waste via manifest as required by law.
EPA began a sampling and clean-up operation at Studer on June 28, 2012. The EPA Superfund Program cleaned up the hazardous waste at Studer to eliminate possible adverse effects on human health and environment. The total EPA Superfund cost was $36,871. Of the 38 samples collected from the containers dumped at Studer, five tested positive for ignitability and two tested positive for toxicity.
Today’s indictment charges Schaller with one count of unlawfully transporting hazardous waste and one count of unlawfully disposing of hazardous waste.
Dickinson cautioned that the charges contained in this indictment are simply accusations, and not evidence of guilt. Evidence supporting the charges must be presented to a federal trial jury, whose duty is to determine guilt or innocence.
This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Jane Pansing Brown. It was investigated by the Environmental Protection Agency, Criminal Investigation Division.Justice Department Settles Lawsuit Against State of Ohio to End Unlawful Seclusion of Youth in Juvenile Correctional FacilitiesRead the Press Release
The United States and private plaintiffs announced today that it has reached an agreement with the state of Ohio, under which the State Department of Youth Services (DYS) will dramatically reduce, and eventually eliminate, its use of seclusion on young people in its custody. DYS will also ensure that young people in its juvenile facilities receive individualized mental health treatment to prevent and address the conditions and behaviors that led to seclusion. The order resolves allegations that the state subjects young people with mental health needs in its custody to harmful seclusion and withholds treatment and programming, in violation of their constitutional rights.
“Overreliance on solitary confinement for young people, particularly those with disabilities, is unsafe and counterproductive,” said Attorney General Eric Holder. “This agreement will help ensure that incarceration in Ohio's state facilities is humane and that appropriate treatment is provided for young people with mental illness. The Justice Department will continue to evaluate the use of solitary confinement so that it does not become a new normal for incarcerated juveniles.”
The department first investigated conditions at Ohio juvenile correctional facilities in 2007 and found constitutional deficiencies in the state’s use of physical force, mental health care, grievance investigation and processing and use of seclusion. The department entered into a consent decree with the state in June 2008 to remedy these violations at the Scioto Juvenile Correctional Facility and the since-closed Marion Juvenile Correctional Facility. Simultaneously, private plaintiffs in the case S.H. v. Reed entered into a consent decree with the state regarding similar deficiencies at all of the state’s juvenile correctional facilities. However, between November 2013 and January 2014, data from the monitoring of both consent decrees revealed that Ohio had continued to use unlawful seclusion on youth at Scioto and in the other facilities.
On March 12, 2014, the department moved to supplement its original complaint by including the state’s use of unlawful seclusion at all of its juvenile correctional facilities. The court granted the motion on March 28, 2014, and the department filed the supplemental complaint on March 31, 2014. The department also sought a temporary restraining order requiring immediate measures to curb the state’s excessive seclusion of youth with mental health disorders. The agreed order resolves the United States’ claims in its motion for a temporary restraining order, as well as a motion for specific performance filed by the S.H. plaintiffs.
As an interim measure prior to the elimination of disciplinary seclusion for youth, the state will dramatically reduce the conditions under which seclusion is allowed and the duration of seclusion. The state will also reduce the potential harms caused by seclusion by increasing access to therapeutic, educational and recreational services while a young person is in seclusion.
The order requires the state to implement quality assurance measures to verify mental health treatment integrity, develop comprehensive assessments of youth, eliminate the use of disciplinary seclusion on youth with mental health needs, except for the most serious offenses, limit the amount and duration of disciplinary seclusion in the limited circumstances when it is permissible, conduct regular checks on youth who are secluded for safety concerns in order to release youth as soon as possible and perform individualized treatment plan reviews and modifications to address violent behaviors. The order includes performance standards to measure compliance with these requirements, which will be jointly overseen by the monitors in the existing United States and S.H. consent decrees.
Because the order also reflects the state’s commitment to eliminate all disciplinary seclusion, the department agreed to withdraw its remaining claims regarding the state’s seclusion of youth who do not have an identified mental health disorder. The department can renew those claims later if the state makes insufficient progress in eliminating all forms of disciplinary seclusion.
“The state of Ohio, the administrators of the Department of Youth Services and their counsel are to be commended for their commitment to reforming Ohio’s juvenile correctional facilities,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General Jocelyn Samuels for the Civil Rights Division. “Ohio’s commitments in this agreement will go a long way toward reducing the harm young people are experiencing in the state’s juvenile correctional facilities, especially young people with mental health needs.”
“This agreement will provide significant relief to youth in DYS custody by ensuring they receive appropriate mental health treatment and are not subject to excessive seclusion,” said U.S. Attorney Carter Stewart for the Southern District of Ohio. “Today, the state has taken an important step in rectifying the unconstitutional conditions in its juvenile correctional facilities.”
“We applaud the state for its commitment to rectifying the overuse of seclusion on youth in its custody,” stated U.S. Attorney Steven M. Dettelbach for the Northern District of Ohio. “The agreement we are announcing today – which is the result of the collective efforts of the Justice Department, the private plaintiffs and the state of Ohio – will put in place reforms that will drastically improve outcomes for these youth.”
The Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act of 1994 authorizes the department to seek a remedy for a pattern or practice of conduct that violates the constitutional or federal statutory rights of youth in juvenile justice institutions. Please visit the division website to learn more about this act and other laws enforced by the Civil Rights Division.
This agreement is due to the efforts of the Special Litigation Section of the Civil Rights Division, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Ohio, and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Ohio. This agreement is also due to the work of plaintiffs’ counsel in S.H., Alphonse Gerhardstein of Gerhardstein & Branch Co. LPA, and Kim Tandy of the Children’s Law Center Inc., and to the leadership of the Ohio DYS.
Justice Department Settles Lawsuit Against State of Ohio to End Unlawful Seclusion of Youth in Juvenile Correctional FacilitiesRead the Press Release
The United States and private plaintiffs announced today that it has reached an agreement with the state of Ohio, under which the State Department of Youth Services (DYS) will dramatically reduce, and eventually eliminate, its use of seclusion on young people in its custody. DYS will also ensure that young people in its juvenile facilities receive individualized mental health treatment to prevent and address the conditions and behaviors that led to seclusion. The order resolves allegations that the state subjects young people with mental health needs in its custody to harmful seclusion and withholds treatment and programming, in violation of their constitutional rights.
“Overreliance on solitary confinement for young people, particularly those with disabilities, is unsafe and counterproductive,” said Attorney General Eric Holder. “This agreement will help ensure that incarceration in Ohio's state facilities is humane and that appropriate treatment is provided for young people with mental illness. The Justice Department will continue to evaluate the use of solitary confinement so that it does not become a new normal for incarcerated juveniles.”
The department first investigated conditions at Ohio juvenile correctional facilities in 2007 and found constitutional deficiencies in the state’s use of physical force, mental health care, grievance investigation and processing and use of seclusion. The department entered into a consent decree with the state in June 2008 to remedy these violations at the Scioto Juvenile Correctional Facility and the since-closed Marion Juvenile Correctional Facility. Simultaneously, private plaintiffs in the case S.H. v. Reed entered into a consent decree with the state regarding similar deficiencies at all of the state’s juvenile correctional facilities. However, between November 2013 and January 2014, data from the monitoring of both consent decrees revealed that Ohio had continued to use unlawful seclusion on youth at Scioto and in the other facilities.On March 12, 2014, the department moved to supplement its original complaint by including the state’s use of unlawful seclusion at all of its juvenile correctional facilities. The court granted the motion on March 28, 2014, and the department filed the supplemental complaint on March 31, 2014. The department also sought a temporary restraining order requiring immediate measures to curb the state’s excessive seclusion of youth with mental health disorders. The agreed order resolves the United States’ claims in its motion for a temporary restraining order, as well as a motion for specific performance filed by the S.H. plaintiffs.
As an interim measure prior to the elimination of disciplinary seclusion for youth, the state will dramatically reduce the conditions under which seclusion is allowed and the duration of seclusion. The state will also reduce the potential harms caused by seclusion by increasing access to therapeutic, educational and recreational services while a young person is in seclusion.
The order requires the state to implement quality assurance measures to verify mental health treatment integrity, develop comprehensive assessments of youth, eliminate the use of disciplinary seclusion on youth with mental health needs, except for the most serious offenses, limit the amount and duration of disciplinary seclusion in the limited circumstances when it is permissible, conduct regular checks on youth who are secluded for safety concerns in order to release youth as soon as possible and perform individualized treatment plan reviews and modifications to address violent behaviors. The order includes performance standards to measure compliance with these requirements, which will be jointly overseen by the monitors in the existing United States and S.H. consent decrees.
Because the order also reflects the state’s commitment to eliminate all disciplinary seclusion, the department agreed to withdraw its remaining claims regarding the state’s seclusion of youth who do not have an identified mental health disorder. The department can renew those claims later if the state makes insufficient progress in eliminating all forms of disciplinary seclusion.
“The state of Ohio, the administrators of the Department of Youth Services and their counsel are to be commended for their commitment to reforming Ohio’s juvenile correctional facilities,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General Jocelyn Samuels for the Civil Rights Division. “Ohio’s commitments in this agreement will go a long way toward reducing the harm young people are experiencing in the state’s juvenile correctional facilities, especially young people with mental health needs.”
“This agreement will provide significant relief to youth in DYS custody by ensuring they receive appropriate mental health treatment and are not subject to excessive seclusion,” said U.S. Attorney Carter Stewart for the Southern District of Ohio. “Today, the state has taken an important step in rectifying the unconstitutional conditions in its juvenile correctional facilities.”
“We applaud the state for its commitment to rectifying the overuse of seclusion on youth in its custody,” stated U.S. Attorney Steven M. Dettelbach for the Northern District of Ohio. “The agreement we are announcing today – which is the result of the collective efforts of the Justice Department, the private plaintiffs and the state of Ohio – will put in place reforms that will drastically improve outcomes for these youth.”
The Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act of 1994 authorizes the department to seek a remedy for a pattern or practice of conduct that violates the constitutional or federal statutory rights of youth in juvenile justice institutions. Please visit the division website to learn more about this act and other laws enforced by the Civil Rights Division.
This agreement is due to the efforts of the Special Litigation Section of the Civil Rights Division, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Ohio, and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Ohio. This agreement is also due to the work of plaintiffs’ counsel in S.H., Alphonse Gerhardstein of Gerhardstein & Branch Co. LPA, and Kim Tandy of the Children’s Law Center Inc., and to the leadership of the Ohio DYS.
Jefferson City Man Indicted for Distributing HeroinRead the Press Release
JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. – Tammy Dickinson, United States Attorney for the Western District of Missouri, announced that a Jefferson City, Mo., man was indicted by a federal grand jury today for distributing heroin.
Brian Boykin, also known as “Denormus Okain” and “B,” 36, of Jefferson City, was charged in a three-count indictment returned by a federal grand jury in Jefferson City.
Today's indictment alleges that Boykin distributed heroin on two separate occasions in Cole County, Mo., on Nov. 20 and Nov. 21, 2013. Boykin is also charged with one count of possessing heroin with the intent to distribute on Feb. 13, 2014.
Dickinson cautioned that the charges contained in this indictment are simply accusations, and not evidence of guilt. Evidence supporting the charges must be presented to a federal trial jury, whose duty is to determine guilt or innocence.
This case is being prosecuted by Supervisory Assistant U.S. Attorney Lawrence E. Miller. It was investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration and the Jefferson City, Mo., Police Department.
James Nathaniel Watts Denied Bond on Federal Firearm ChargeRead the Press Release
Follow @SDILNewsJames Nathaniel Watts, 29, of Cairo, Illinois, appeared in United States District Court in Benton and was ordered held without bond on charges that he illegally possessed a firearm, Stephen R. Wigginton, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Illinois, announced.
Watts was charged in federal court on Friday, May 16th in a Criminal Complaint with being a felon in possession of a firearm. The complaint alleged that Watts illegally possessed a .380 caliber semi-automatic pistol on May 15th and that the firearm was found in his possession following a high-speed chase in Cairo during which Watts was driving the stolen car of an employee of the First National Bank in Cairo, which had been the scene of an attempted robbery earlier that day. During the attempted robbery, two employees were killed and one was critically wounded. Those events remain under investigation.
At the proceeding, Watts waived his preliminary and detention hearings and was again remanded to the custody of the United States Marshal where he will be held without bond or the possibility of release. Under federal law, prosecutors have 30 days from the filing of the complaint within which to seek an indictment from a Federal Grand Jury. Watts will remain in the Marshal’s custody pending action by a Grand Jury. No court proceedings are scheduled until that time.
Under the law, a defendant is presumed to be innocent of a charge until proved guilty beyond a reasonable doubt to the satisfaction of a jury.
If convicted of the firearm offense, Watts faces up to 10 years in prison, a $250,000 fine, and 3 years of supervised release to follow any term of incarceration imposed.
The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney James M. Cutchin.
Hector Alcenio Sentenced to 30 Months in Prison for Conspiracy to Possess with Intent to Distribute CocaineRead the Press Release
St. Thomas, USVI - District Court Judge Curtis V. Gomez today sentenced Hector Alcenio, 43, to 30 months in prison for conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute cocaine, United States Attorney Ronald W. Sharpe announced.
On December 19, 2013, Alcenio pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute cocaine after he was arrested on July 11, 2013, and charged with conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute cocaine. Alcenio was arrested as part of the investigation of Roberto Tapia, Director of the Virgin Islands Department of Planning and Natural Resources (DPNR) Division of Environmental Enforcement. On November 7, 2013, he was charged in a 69-count third superseding indictment, along with seven other defendants, including Angelo Hill, Raymond Brown, Edwin Monsanto, Stephen Torres, and Eddie Lopez-Lopez, Walter Hill, and Angel Negron-Beltran.
The case was investigated by the Public Corruption Task Force, which comprises the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI); U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA); Virgin Islands Police Department; U.S. Marshals Service; Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigation Division (IRS-CI); U.S. Department of Homeland Security, Homeland Security Investigations (HSI); U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP); United States Coast Guard; Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF), and Office of the Virgin Islands Inspector General. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Kelly B. Lake and Kim Lindquist prosecuted the case.
Hampton Woman Sentenced on Bank Robbery ChargesRead the Press Release
CONCORD, NEW HAMPSHIRE – Danielle Reader, 31, of Hampton, was sentenced in United States District Court for the District of New Hampshire to 46 months in prison for two counts of aiding and abetting bank robbery, announced United States Attorney John P. Kacavas.
On April 3, and April 20, 2013, an individual walked into the victim banks in Hampton, New Hampshire, where he presented a handwritten note demanding money. After departing with the stolen funds, the individual escaped the scene in a getaway vehicle driven by Reader. In total, Reader and her accomplice stole more than $9,000. The Court also imposed three years of supervised release and full restitution to the victims.
Special Agents Laura Hanlon and John Ennis led the investigation for the Federal Bureau of Investigation, in collaboration with the Police Departments of Hampton and Seabrook, New Hampshire. This case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Nick Abramson.
Fort Hall Man Sentenced to 27 Months for Involuntary ManslaughterRead the Press Release
POCATELLO - Ian Jack Crooked Arm, a/k/a Ian Sittre, 27, of Fort Hall, Idaho, was sentenced today in United States District Court to 27 months in prison, U.S. Attorney Wendy J. Olson announced. Chief U.S. District Judge B. Lynn Winmill also ordered Sittre to serve three years of supervised release, following his release from prison. Sittre pleaded guilty to the charge on February 26, 2014. In imposing sentence, Judge Winmill noted that Sittre already had served nine months in tribal jail in connection with the offense. Thus, Sittre will serve a total of 36 months.
According to the plea agreement, a 10-month-old girl was left in Sittre’s care when the child’s mother went to work on February 20, 2013. Sittre was living with the infant’s mother and other family members at a residence on the Fort Hall Indian Reservation. Less than ten minutes after leaving, Sittre called the child’s mother and told her something was wrong with the baby. Upon arriving at the residence, Sittre told the mother that the baby was “breathing funny.” She called 911 and attempted CPR. Sittre left the residence before paramedics or police arrived. Paramedics transported the child by ambulance to Portneuf Medical Center, unconscious and non-responsive. She was then airlifted to Primary Children’s Medical Center in Salt Lake City, in critical condition. Despite the efforts of medical personnel, the infant died on February 22, 2013.
Also according to the plea agreement, an autopsy conducted on February 23 concluded that the immediate cause of death was abusive head trauma inflicted by a caregiver. A review of the child’s medical history found nothing to indicate any pre-existing conditions that may have contributed to the child’s death. While in jail on April 4, 2013, Sittre told his mother during a recorded telephone call that he shook the baby “too hard.”
The case was investigated by the Fort Hall Police Department and the Federal Bureau of Investigation.
Former Teacher at Denton High School, Who Was Arrested Last Week on A Federal Child Pornography Charge, to Remain in Federal CustodyRead the Press Release
FORT WORTH, Texas — Following a hearing today in federal court in Fort Worth, Texas, a U.S. Magistrate Judge has ordered that Gregory Bogomol, 38, of Fort Worth, Texas, must remain in federal custody during the pendency of his case. Bogomol was arrested last week by special agents with U.S. Immigration and Customs and Enforcement’s (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) on a federal criminal complaint charging possession of child pornography. U.S. Attorney Sarah R. Saldaña of the Northern District of Texas made the announcement this afternoon.
According to the complaint, Bogomol was employed by the Denton Independent School District as a teacher at Denton High School. He resigned from that position the week prior to his arrest.
The investigation began when HSI was contacted by the parents of a 15-year-old male victim (MV) regarding an individual who solicited a nude photograph of the MV through a smartphone application. The investigation revealed that an individual, later identified as Bogomol, posing as a young female, “Crystal Williams,” had contacted MV. Their communication quickly turned sexual in nature. Bogomol sent nude images of a young female to MV, and he requested nude images of MV in return. MV sent one sexually explicit photograph of himself, but Bogomol requested another picture of MV’s nude body, including his face. MV declined to send any additional photos. Bogomol threatened to send the one photo that MV had sent to him to MV’s friends if he did not comply. MV still refused to send another photo, and he ended all communication with Bogomol. MV advised his parents, which led to the investigation.
On May 6, 2014, HSI special agents conducted a consensual interview with Bogomol at his residence. Two days later, a search warrant was obtained to search Bogomol’s cell phone and several files containing images of minors engaged in sexually explicit conduct were located.
A federal complaint is a written statement of the essential facts of the offenses charged and must be made under oath before a magistrate judge. A defendant is entitled to the presumption of innocence until proven guilty. The maximum statutory penalty for the offense as charged is 10 years in federal prison, a $250,000 fine and a lifetime of supervised release. The government has 30 days to present the case to a federal grand jury for indictment.
The case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative, which was launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice, to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by U.S. Attorney’s Offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state and local resources to better locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals, who sexually exploit children, and identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit http://www.justice.gov/psc/. For more information about internet safety education, please visit http://www.justice.gov/psc/ and click on the tab “resources.”
Anyone who may have been victimized in this case is asked to contact HSI at its toll-free number: 1-866-347-2423.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Aisha Saleem is in charge of the prosecution.
Former Senior Vice President of Operations at White Rose Food Sentenced to 20 Months in Prison for Tax EvasionRead the Press Release
TRENTON, N.J. – The former senior vice president of operations of an independent wholesale food distributor was sentenced today to 20 months in prison for evading taxes on income he received from third parties, U.S. Attorney Paul J. Fishman announced.
John Annetta, 61, of Marlboro, N.J., previously pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Peter G. Sheridan to an information charging him with one count of tax evasion.
According to documents filed in this case and statements made in court:
Between 2006 and 2011, Annetta worked at White Rose Food, an independent wholesale food distributor in the New York City and New Jersey metropolitan areas. During that time he was given $1,648,085 from two people he met in the course of his employment. He failed to report this money as taxable income for the calendar years 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, and 2011 in the amounts of $106,500, $234,000, $317,406, $398,542, $292,700 and $298,936, respectively. He admitted that for 2006 through 2011 he would have owed the government $536,530 if he had reported the additional cash on his income tax returns.
In addition to the prison term, Judge Sheridan sentenced Annetta to two years of supervised release.
U.S. Attorney Fishman credited inspectors of the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, under the direction of Acting Postal Inspector in Charge Marie Kelokates, and special agents of IRS-Criminal Investigation, under the direction of Acting Special Agent in Charge Jonathan D. Larsen, for the investigation leading to today’s sentencing.
The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorney Lakshmi Srinivasan Herman of the U.S. Attorney’s Office Economic Crimes Unit in Newark.
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Defense counsel: Matt D. Mandel Esq. of Millburn, N.J.
Former Rothstein, Rosenfeldt and Adler, P.A. Attorney Sentenced in Connection with Rothstein Ponzi SchemeRead the Press Release
Wifredo A. Ferrer, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Florida, Jose A. Gonzalez, Special Agent in Charge, Internal Revenue Service, Criminal Investigation (IRS-CI), and George L. Piro, Special Agent in Charge, Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), Miami Field Office, announce that Christina M. Kitterman, 38, of Deerfield Beach, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Daniel T. K. Hurley to five years in prison, followed by three years of supervised release. Kitterman was previously convicted on three counts of wire fraud.
Kitterman was charged with three counts of wire fraud, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 1343. The acts set forth in the charging document were all in furtherance of a “Ponzi” scheme involving the sale of purported confidential settlement agreements in sexual harassment and/or whistle blower cases which were purportedly handled by attorneys at the former Ft. Lauderdale law firm of Rothstein, Rosenfeldt and Adler, P.A. (RRA).
Evidence introduced at trial established that, during the course of the Ponzi scheme, and while she was employed as an attorney at RRA, Kitterman falsely posed as the head of the Ft. Lauderdale office of the Florida Bar Association during a meeting with certain investors in order to explain to the investors the reason why certain payments due to them had not been made.
Mr. Ferrer commended the investigative efforts of IRS-CI and the FBI. This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Lawrence D. LaVecchio, Paul F. Schwartz, Jeffrey N. Kaplan and Evelyn B. Sheehan.
A copy of this press release may be found on the website of the United States Attorney's Office for the Southern District of Florida at http://www.usdoj.gov/usao/fls. Related court documents and information may be found on the website of the District Court for the Southern District of Florida at http://www.flsd.uscourts.gov or on http://pacer.flsd.uscourts.gov.
Former Owner of Commercial Mortgage and Finance Company SentencedRead the Press Release
ROCKFORD — ANTHONY F. D’AGOSTINO, 79, the former owner, CEO and President of Commercial Mortgage and Finance Co., in Rockford, was sentenced today by U.S. District Judge Frederick J. Kapala for seventeen counts of mail fraud, one count of wire fraud, and one count of securities fraud. Judge Kapala sentenced D’Agostino to 90 months in federal prison for each count of wire and mail fraud and 60 months in prison for securities fraud, to run concurrent, followed by 3 years of supervised release. Judge Kapala also ordered D’Agostino to pay $49,350,615.95 in restitution. D’Agostino was ordered to surrender on July 14, 2014.
After a six-day bench trial in September 2013, Judge Kapala found D’Agostino guilty on January 17, 2014, of mail fraud, wire fraud, and securities fraud. According to the decision, D’Agostino raised capital for his business by selling instruments known as Promissory Notes and Certificates of Participation to investors. The evidence showed that D’Agostino concealed from the investors the fact that Commercial Mortgage had a negative net worth that steadily increased during the years that D’Agostino owned the company. Specifically, by year-end 2003, when Commercial Mortgage’s net worth had fallen to -$12,860,653 and it had been six years since Commercial Mortgage had made a profit, it became clear to D’Agostino that Commercial might not recover and D’Agostino engaged in a scheme to defraud investors by utilizing Commercial Mortgage’s long-standing good will and reputation in order to obtain and retain money from investors. From the end of 2003 through October 8, 2008, D’Agostino’s fraud scheme exposed the investors to losses of more than $20 million.
Judge Kapala found that D’Agostino made specific false statements to several of the investors. Specifically, defendant told Commercial Mortgage customers that Commercial Mortgage was “doing well,” “doing great,” “very fine,” or “wonderful.” According to the decision, D’Agostino made these statements about Commercial Mortgage’s financial circumstances and the statements were false.
The sentence was announced today by Zachary T. Fardon, United States Attorney for the Northern District of Illinois; Robert J. Holley, Special Agent-in-Charge of the Chicago Office of the Federal Bureau of investigation; and Illinois Secretary of State Jesse White.
The government is being represented by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Scott A. Verseman and Scott R. Paccagnini.
Former Longshoremen Plead Guilty to Extortion Conspiracy Involving Christmastime Tribute PaymentsRead the Press Release
NEWARK, N.J. - Three former longshoremen admitted today that they conspired to extort others in Local 1235 of the International Longshoremen’s Association (ILA) for Christmastime tribute payments, New Jersey U.S. Attorney Paul J. Fishman and Eastern District of New York U.S. Attorney Loretta E. Lynch announced.
Salvatore LaGrasso, 58, of Edison, N.J.; Michael Nicolosi, 45, of Staten Island, N.Y.; and Julio Porrao, 71, of Palm Coast, Fla. – all former supervisors on the New Jersey piers – pleaded guilty today to conspiring to extort Christmastime tributes from the union members – count three of the second superseding indictment against them. LaGrasso, Nicolosi and Porrao entered their guilty pleas before U.S. District Judge Claire C. Cecchi in Newark federal court.
According to documents filed in this case and statements made in court:
During their guilty plea proceedings, LaGrasso, Nicolosi and Porrao admitted that they conspired with each other and others to compel tribute payments from ILA union members, who made the payments based on actual and threatened force, violence and fear. The timing of the extortions typically coincided with the receipt by certain ILA members of “Container Royalty Fund” checks, a form of year-end compensation. LaGrasso and Nicolosi were suspended from their positions following their arrests in this case. Porrao had already retired from his employment on the New Jersey piers at the time of his arrest.
Charges are still pending against five defendants in the superseding indictment, including a racketeering conspiracy charge against Stephen Depiro, 58, of Kenilworth, N.J. – a soldier in the Genovese organized crime family of La Cosa Nostra (Genovese family). Since at least 2005, Depiro has managed the Genovese family’s control over the New Jersey waterfront – including the nearly three-decades-long extortion of port workers in ILA Local 1, ILA Local 1235 and ILA Local 1478. Members of the Genovese family, including Depiro, are charged with conspiring to collect tribute payments from New Jersey port workers at Christmastime each year through their corrupt influence over union officials, including the last three presidents of Local 1235.
The charge to which LaGrasso, Nicolosi, and Porrao pleaded guilty carries a maximum potential penalty of 20 years in prison and a $250,000 fine. Sentencing is currently scheduled for Sept. 17, 2014, for LaGrasso and Nicolosi and for Sept. 24, 2014, for Porrao.
U.S. Attorneys Fishman and Lynch credited the FBI in New Jersey, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Aaron T. Ford, and in New York, under the direction of Assistant Director in Charge George Venizelos, as well as the U.S. Department of Labor, Office of Inspector General, Office of Labor Racketeering and Fraud Investigations, under the direction of Acting Special Agent in Charge Cheryl Garcia, with the investigation leading to today’s guilty pleas. They also thanked the Waterfront Commission of New York Harbor for its cooperation and assistance in the investigation.
The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorney Jacquelyn M. Kasulis of the U.S. Attorney’s Office, Eastern District of New York, and Assistant U.S. Attorney Anthony Mahajan, of the U.S. Attorney’s Office, District of New Jersey.
The charges and allegations against the remaining defendants are merely accusations and they are considered innocent unless and until proven guilty.14-184
Defense counsel: Salvatore LaGrasso: Peter Till Esq., Springfield, N.J.
Michael Nicolosi: Arthur L. Aidala Esq., Brooklyn, N.Y.
Julio Porrao: Erik Hassing Esq., Flanders, N.J.Former Longshoremen Plead Guilty to Extortion Conspiracy Involving Christmastime Tribute PaymentsRead the Press Release
NEWARK, N.J. B Three former longshoremen admitted today that they conspired to extort others in Local 1235 of the International Longshoremen’s Association (ILA) for Christmastime tribute payments, New Jersey U.S. Attorney Paul J. Fishman and Eastern District of New York U.S. Attorney Loretta E. Lynch announced.
Salvatore LaGrasso, 58, of Edison, N.J.; Michael Nicolosi, 45, of Staten Island, N.Y.; and Julio Porrao, 71, of Palm Coast, Fla. – all former supervisors on the New Jersey piers – pleaded guilty today to conspiring to extort Christmastime tributes from the union members – count three of the second superseding indictment against them. LaGrasso, Nicolosi and Porrao entered their guilty pleas before U.S. District Judge Claire C. Cecchi in Newark federal court.
According to documents filed in this case and statements made in court:
During their guilty plea proceedings, LaGrasso, Nicolosi and Porrao admitted that they conspired with each other and others to compel tribute payments from ILA union members, who made the payments based on actual and threatened force, violence and fear. The timing of the extortions typically coincided with the receipt by certain ILA members of “Container Royalty Fund” checks, a form of year-end compensation. LaGrasso and Nicolosi were suspended from their positions following their arrests in this case. Porrao had already retired from his employment on the New Jersey piers at the time of his arrest.
Charges are still pending against five defendants in the superseding indictment, including a racketeering conspiracy charge against Stephen Depiro, 58, of Kenilworth, N.J. – a soldier in the Genovese organized crime family of La Cosa Nostra (Genovese family). Since at least 2005, Depiro has managed the Genovese family’s control over the New Jersey waterfront – including the nearly three-decades-long extortion of port workers in ILA Local 1, ILA Local 1235 and ILA Local 1478. Members of the Genovese family, including Depiro, are charged with conspiring to collect tribute payments from New Jersey port workers at Christmastime each year through their corrupt influence over union officials, including the last three presidents of Local 1235.
The charge to which LaGrasso, Nicolosi, and Porrao pleaded guilty carries a maximum potential penalty of 20 years in prison and a $250,000 fine. Sentencing is currently scheduled for Sept. 17, 2014, for LaGrasso and Nicolosi and for Sept. 24, 2014, for Porrao.
U.S. Attorneys Fishman and Lynch credited the FBI in New Jersey, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Aaron T. Ford, and in New York, under the direction of Assistant Director in Charge George Venizelos, as well as the U.S. Department of Labor, Office of Inspector General, Office of Labor Racketeering and Fraud Investigations, under the direction of Acting Special Agent in Charge Cheryl Garcia, with the investigation leading to today’s guilty pleas.
The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorney Jacquelyn M. Kasulis of the U.S. Attorney’s Office, Eastern District of New York, and Assistant U.S. Attorney Anthony Mahajan, of the U.S. Attorney’s Office, District of New Jersey.
The charges and allegations against the remaining defendants are merely accusations and they are considered innocent unless and until proven guilty.
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Defense counsel: Peter Till Esq., Springfield, N.J.
Arthur L. Aidala Esq., Brooklyn, N.Y.
Erik Hassing Esq., Flanders, N.J.
Former Executive at Collin Street Bakery Pleads Guilty to Federal OffensesRead the Press Release
Defendant Sandy Jenkins Faces Up to 60 Years in Federal Prison
DALLAS — A former executive at the Collin Street Bakery (Bakery) in Corsicana, Texas, Sandy Jenkins, appeared yesterday before U.S. Magistrate Judge Renée Harris Toliver and pleaded guilty to several felony offenses stemming from his embezzlement of approximately $16 million from the Bakery. U.S. Attorney Sarah R. Saldaña of the Northern District of Texas made the announcement today.
Jenkins served as the Corporate Controller for the Bakery from February 1998 to June 21, 2013. He was terminated on June 21, 2013, after the Bakery discovered the fraud.
Specifically, Jenkins, 65, who remains in federal custody, pleaded guilty to one count of mail fraud, one count of conspiracy to commit money laundering and one count of making a false statement to a financial institution. He faces the following maximum statutory penalties: 20 years in federal prison and a $250,000 fine on the mail fraud conviction; 10 years in federal prison and a $1 million fine on the conspiracy conviction; and 30 years in federal prison and $1.5 million fine on the false statements conviction. Jenkins agreed to enter a forfeiture money judgment against him of at least $16,649,786, and he agreed to pay full restitution to the Bakery for the entire scope of his criminal conduct. Sentencing is set for September 10, 2014, before U.S. District Judge Ed Kinkeade.
Jenkins’ wife, Kay Jenkins, 64, also of Corsicana, is charged in the same superseding indictment with one count of conspiracy to commit money laundering, six counts of money laundering and aiding and abetting, and two counts of making a false statement to a financial institution. She remains on bond pending trial, which is set for August 25, 2014.
According to plea documents filed in the case, beginning at least as early as December 2004, and continuing until his termination from the Bakery, Sandy Jenkins engaged in a massive scheme to defraud the Bakery. During that time, he embezzled more than $16 million from the Bakery, and he and his wife, Kay Jenkins, used that money to bank-roll a lavish lifestyle that included a vacation home in Santa Fe, New Mexico (purchased for approximately $658,000); hundreds of watches and pieces of jewelry worth millions of dollars; numerous luxury automobiles; and more than 200 trips on a private jet. While this scheme was ongoing, both Sandy and Kay Jenkins were well aware that Sandy Jenkins earned approximately $50,000 per year at the Bakery, as reflected on their joint tax returns, and Kay Jenkins did not work outside the home.
Sandy and Kay Jenkins knowingly conspired to engage in monetary transactions over $10,000 with property derived from Sandy Jenkins’ embezzlement from the Bakery. Sandy Jenkins admitted that between 2005 and 2013, he caused approximately 888 fraudulent checks to be drawn on the Bakery’s account and mailed to his personal creditors, resulting in approximately $16,649,786 in losses to the Bakery.
Sandy Jenkins further admitted that prior to this check-writing embezzlement scheme, he stole at least $114,342 from the Bakery’s petty-cash fund. He also admitted that as he was embezzling from the Bakery, he and his wife Kay used the money to fund an incredibly lavish and opulent lifestyle.
Sandy Jenkins also admitted that on December 29, 2009, he made a false statement in connection with the application for a mortgage loan to purchase a residence in Santa Fe. Sandy and Kay Jenkins listed a total monthly income of $25,000 when, in fact, as they well knew, their monthly income was far less than that.
The FBI has conducted the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney J. Nicholas Bunch is in charge of the prosecution and Assistant U.S. Attorney Melissa Childs is handling the forfeiture.
Former Correctional Officer Sentenced to Two Years in Federal PrisonRead the Press Release
Ocala, Florida – Chief U.S. District Judge Anne C. Conway today sentenced Michael J. Garland (42, Lecanto) to two years in federal prison for bribery of a public official. The court also ordered Garland to forfeit $4,200, which are traceable proceeds of the offense. Garland pleaded guilty to the offense on February 28, 2014.
According to court documents, Garland worked as a correctional officer at the Federal Correctional Institution Medium in Sumter County, Florida. On May 24, 2013, federal agents observed Garland on a video surveillance system as he met with an inmate at the federal prison. When agents subsequently searched the inmate, they discovered contraband in the inmate’s waistband in the form of a cellular phone with accessories, a prepaid phone card, ten packs of cigarettes and snuff tobacco. Agents immediately confronted Garland, who admitted that he had smuggled the items into the prison for the inmate. In return for smuggling the contraband into the prison, the inmate had made cash payments to Garland through a third party in the amount of $4,200.
This case was investigated by the Department of Justice Office of the Inspector General and the Federal Bureau of Prisons Special Investigations Unit. It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Robert E. Bodnar, Jr.
Former CFO of Rothstein, Rosenfeldt and Adler, P.A. Pleads Guilty to Conspiracy to Launder Money and to Defraud A Financial InstitutionRead the Press Release
Wifredo A. Ferrer, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Florida, George L. Piro, Special Agent in Charge, Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), Miami Field Office, and José A. Gonzalez, Special Agent in Charge, Internal Revenue Service, Criminal Investigations (IRS-CI), announce that Irene Shannon, formerly known as Irene Stay, 50, of Miami, pled guilty to conspiring to commit crimes through the operation of the former Fort Lauderdale law firm of Rothstein, Rosenfeldt and Adler, P.A. (RRA). The defendant was the Chief Financial Officer of RRA. In 2009, it was discovered that RRA was being utilized by its Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, Scott W. Rothstein, to commit a massive Ponzi scheme stemming from the sale of fictitious confidential settlements.
The defendant pled guilty before U.S. District Judge Robin S. Rosenbaum to conspiracy to commit money laundering and to defraud a financial institution, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 371. At her sentencing, which is scheduled for August 8, 2014, the defendant faces a maximum statutory sentence of up to five years in prison.
According to the factual statement executed by Shannon in support of her guilty plea, Shannon oversaw the accounting functions of RRA, including the deposits and withdrawals made by RRA and Rothstein at TD Bank and other financial institutions. In furtherance of the Ponzi scheme, Shannon transferred hundreds of millions of dollars obtained from investors to pay prior investors in the scheme and to supplement and support the operation and activities of RRA, among other purposes. The factual statement further explains that Shannon was well aware that hundreds of millions of dollars were not being held in trust accounts for investors, contrary to what those investors had been told, and that the funds were instead being disbursed to further Rothstein’s fraudulent scheme. Irene Shannon also admitted that she utilized her position to float checks between and among certain bank accounts maintained by RRA in a form of bank fraud commonly known as “check kiting.”
Mr. Ferrer commended the investigative efforts of the FBI and IRS-CI. This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Lawrence D. LaVecchio, Paul F. Schwartz, and Jeffrey N. Kaplan.
A copy of this press release may be found on the website of the United States Attorney's Office for the Southern District of Florida at http://www.usdoj.gov/usao/fls. Related court documents and information may be found on the website of the District Court for the Southern District of Florida at http://www.flsd.uscourts.gov or on http://pacer.flsd.uscourts.gov.
Former Bank Officer Sentenced to 18 Months in Prison for Accepting Bribes, Bank FraudRead the Press Release
CAMDEN, N.J. – A former bank officer was sentenced today to 18 months in prison for accepting bribes of more than $50,000 in return for his assistance in corrupt financial transactions as well as bank fraud, U.S. Attorney Paul J. Fishman announced.
Jose Dominguez, 47, of Newark, N.J., previously pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Noel L. Hillman to an information charging him with soliciting and accepting bribes in excess of $1,000 as a bank officer. He had also pleaded guilty to a separate indictment charging him with bank fraud and conspiracy to commit bank fraud. Judge Hillman imposed the sentence today in Camden federal court.
According to documents filed in this case and statements made in court:
From January 1988 to February 2007, Dominguez was employed as a loan officer at Spencer Savings Bank in Elmwood Park, N.J. From September 2004 to November 2004, Dominguez and Victor Patela, 38, a former Newark Police officer, conspired to fraudulently obtain a $1.92 million commercial loan from Spencer Savings Bank so that they could purchase apartment buildings in Elizabeth, N.J. In connection with this scheme, Dominguez and Patela made false representations to Spencer Savings Bank relating to Patela’s assets in order to obtain the commercial loan. Dominguez also accepted bribe payments from Patela in exchange for using his influence as a loan officer to obtain the $1.92 million loan. In June 2012 Patela was convicted at trial of bank fraud, conspiracy to commit bank fraud, two counts of loan application fraud and bank bribery and sentenced in April 2013 to 48 months in prison.
In 2003, Dominguez was contacted by a bank customer who wanted to refinance some loans with Spencer Savings Bank and wanted to do so without paying significant prepayment penalty fees. Dominguez advised the customer that if the customer made corrupt payments to Dominguez, the customer could obtain a lower interest rate without paying a prepayment penalty to Spencer Savings Bank.
Between August 2003 and December 2003, Dominguez accepted $55,529.57 in corrupt payments from the customer to influence the requested loan modification. Dominguez also admitted to accepting additional bribes from other bank customers in the amounts of $4,500 and $5,000, respectively.
In addition to the prison term, Judge Hillman sentenced Dominguez to three years of supervised release and fined him $4,000.
U.S. Attorney Fishman credited special agents of the FBI, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Aaron T. Ford in Newark, with the investigation leading to today’s sentencing.
The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorney Vikas Khanna of the U.S. Attorney’s Office Special Prosecutions Division in Newark.
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Defense counsel: Thomas Young Esq., Assistant Federal Public Defender, CamdenFormer Assemblyman Eric Stevenson Sentenced in Manhattan Federal Court for Taking More Than $20,000 in Bribes in Exchange for Proposing Legislation and Performing Other Official ActsRead the Press Release
Preet Bharara, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, and Robert T. Johnson, the District Attorney for Bronx County, announced that former Assemblyman ERIC STEVENSON was sentenced today in Manhattan federal court to three years in prison, for taking more than $20,000 in bribes from four businessmen in exchange for STEVENSON’s official acts, including drafting, proposing, and agreeing to enact legislation that favored the bribers’ business interests. Specifically, the four businessmen, who sought to operate and construct adult day care centers in the Bronx, paid STEVENSON to sponsor and introduce legislation that would declare a three-year moratorium on the construction of adult day care centers in New York City, but from which their current centers would be exempted, in effect giving the businessmen a monopoly in adult day care centers in the area. In connection with one of the defendants’ adult day care centers on Jerome Avenue in the Bronx (the “Jerome Avenue Center”), in exchange for bribes by the businessmen, STEVENSON, in his official capacity as an Assemblyman, contacted Con Edison and the New York City Department of Buildings at their request. In addition, in exchange for bribes, STEVENSON held public events paid for by the businessmen to recruit senior citizens to attend a second center on Westchester Avenue in the Bronx (the “Westchester Avenue Center”). STEVENSON was convicted in January 2014 after a six-day jury trial before U.S. District Judge Loretta A. Preska, who imposed today’s sentence.
Manhattan U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara said: “In shameless pursuit of profit, Eric Stevenson took bribes and put his own personal interests before those of his constituents. Now instead of serving the public he will be serving time behind prison walls. I’d like to thank our partners at the Bronx County District Attorney’s Office for their collaborative efforts in exposing this corruption and successfully prosecuting this case.”
Bronx County District Attorney Robert T. Johnson said: “The betrayal of public trust is one of the most serious matters this office must confront. Stevenson’s crimes were not only that, but he also sought to deny services to a vulnerable population, the elderly. We thank the U.S. Attorney’s office for its diligent work in bringing a measure of justice. Together we will continue to trumpet the message that there is no place in New York for dishonest public officials.”
According to the Complaint and the Indictment filed in Manhattan federal court, the evidence at trial and sentencing:
STEVENSON has served as a member of the New York State Assembly since 2011 representing District 79, which includes various neighborhoods in the Bronx. The four businessmen – Igor Belyansky, Rostislav Belyansky, a/k/a “Slava,” Igor Tsimerman, and David Binman – are individuals who, during 2012 and 2013, were seeking to open and manage adult day care centers in the Bronx, New York, including the Westchester Avenue Center, within STEVENSON’s Assembly District, and the Jerome Avenue Center, within another Assemblyman’s District. During that time period, they paid multiple bribes to STEVENSON in connection with efforts to open and operate both centers.
For example, at a meeting on July 23, 2012, STEVENSON, Belyansky, and Tsimerman discussed the opening of the Westchester Avenue Center. During this meeting, STEVENSON said that on the following Thursday, July 26, 2012, he was “having a night [event]” for “my reelection” and that he needed “support and help like everyone else.” Subsequently, on July 25, 2012, Rostislav Belyansky provided a cooperating witness (the “CW”) with a check for $2,000 made out to STEVENSON’s political action committee, which the CW provided to STEVENSON. STEVENSON did not disclose this check as a campaign contribution as required by New York State Law.
At a September 7, 2012, meeting at a steakhouse in the Bronx, Igor and Rotislav Belyansky offered to pay STEVENSON $10,000 in exchange for calling Con Edison to expedite the installation of a gas line and assisting with obtaining a Certificate of Occupancy from the New York City Buildings Department at the Jerome Avenue Center, and for assistance recruiting senior citizens to attend the Westchester Avenue Center. STEVENSON agreed, but when Igor Belyansky attempted to hand him the $10,000 in an envelope, STEVENSON indicated that he was concerned that there might be surveillance cameras in the restaurant, so he waited until he was outside of the restaurant to take the cash bribe. On September 18, 2012, STEVENSON gave the CW a $1,500 cut of the $10,000 bribe in exchange for the CW’s assistance, and promised to pay the CW an additional $500.
On December 27, 2012, the CW met with STEVENSON and showed STEVENSON a copy of an email dated December 26, 2012, sent from the contractor for the Jerome Avenue Center to Rostislav Belyansky and Tsimerman. In the email, the contractor stated that “[i]t is urgent . . . that we call the State Senator Eric Stevenson so that he can call the building department at once and ask them to have this application reviewed” in connection with getting “a permit to install the gas lines into the building.” After reviewing this email, STEVENSON stated, “he’s not a smart guy . . . he’s not too bright, this guy” because “he put this in writing . . . why he got to put my name in it? . . . He shouldn’t have said that.” STEVENSON said they needed to avoid creating a “paper trail.”
During that meeting, the CW and STEVENSON also discussed the possibility of STEVENSON introducing legislation that would establish a temporary moratorium on the construction and/or opening of new adult day care centers (the “Moratorium Legislation”), which would have the effect of eliminating competition with the Jerome Avenue Center and the Westchester Avenue Center, thereby substantially increasing the profits earned by those two centers. Subsequently, the CW met with Tsimerman and Igor Belyansky. Tsimerman said that as a result of the Moratorium Legislation, the value of their adult day care centers was “gonna skyrocket. . . . As long as [there’s a] moratorium, I can guarantee you at least a triple [in profits].”
On January 1, 2013, the CW and STEVENSON spoke on the telephone and STEVENSON referred to “Igor” [Belyansky] as “Santa,” in reference to the money he expected to receive. In a subsequent meeting on the same day in the CW’s car, STEVENSON sought assurances that “Igor” [Belyansky] was going to “bless everything,” meaning pay STEVENSON. He added that: “I got the inauguration, I want a blessing [payment] in place, man.” Two days later, the CW gave Belyansky and Rostislav Belyansky a copy of a document titled “Proposed Adult Day Care Center Bill,” which contained a proposal for the Moratorium Legislation. On January 7, 2013, the CW provided the same proposal to STEVENSON. Later that day, Tsimerman provided STEVENSON with another copy of the proposal containing Tsimerman’s notes. On January 9, 2013, the CW told Igor Belyansky that STEVENSON wanted $10,000 for the Moratorium Legislation, with $5,000 paid up front. Two days later, on January 11, 2013, at the Westchester Avenue Center, Igor Belyansky, Rostislav Belyansky, Tsimerman, and Binman gave the CW $5,000 cash. The CW then left the Westchester Avenue Center with the envelope of money and got in his car where STEVENSON joined him, at which time the CW gave the envelope of money to STEVENSON, after taking out his $500 cut.
On January 27, 2013, STEVENSON met with the CW and told the CW that he was concerned that Tsimerman might be cooperating with law enforcement officials and recording their conversations. STEVENSON said a concern that if “they bring me down… somebody’s going to the cemetery.”
STEVENSON had a draft of the Moratorium Legislation prepared by January 31, 2013, which he showed the CW at a meeting in his office and which was consistent with the bullet points prepared by the CW and Igor Belyansky, Rostislav Belyansky, Tsimerman, and Binman. On February 11, 2013, STEVENSON told the CW: “We got the bill [the Moratorium Legislation] back today . . . [t]he bill is done now, it’s going out to the members . . . to the committee and . . . we’re gonna . . . try to push it to get it to the floor.” On February 16, in a hotel room in Albany, Rostislav Belyansky gave $5,000 in cash to the CW, which the CW gave to STEVENSON after taking a $500 cut. While the CW took out his $500 cut, STEVENSON walked into the bathroom of the CW’s room and left the door open so that he could receive the $4,500 cash in the bathroom.
STEVENSON introduced and sponsored Bill Number A05139, which places a temporary moratorium on the construction and/or opening of new adult day care centers within New York City on February 20, 2013. The bill was not enacted.
Two days later, in a meeting between the CW and Igor Belyansky, Tsimerman, and Binman, Belyansky said that the legislation would double the value of his share in the Jerome Avenue and Westchester Avenue Centers from approximately $350,000 to $700,000.
In the course of recorded conversations between STEVENSON and the CW, STEVENSON repeatedly referenced the convictions and sentences of other New York officials for crimes of public corruption, even as STEVENSON himself requested bribes. For example, during one meeting between STEVENSON and the CW on December 27, 2012, STEVENSON observed, “if half of the people up here in Albany was ever caught for what they do . . . they . . . would probably be in [jail] . . . so who are they bullsh**ing?” During another meeting, on January 1, 2013, after discussing the convictions of former New York State Senator Carl Kruger, former New York State Senator Pedro Espada, Jr., and former New York State Comptroller Alan Hevesi, STEVENSON commented on being “careful” about “the recorders and all those things” that informants wear in order to be careful not to “put yourself in jail.”
In addition to the prison term, STEVENSON, 47, of the Bronx, New York, was sentenced to two years of supervised release. He was also ordered to pay $22,000 in forfeiture and a $400 special assessment fee.
During the sentencing proceeding, Judge Preska said that STEVENSON’s conduct amounted to a “betrayal of the responsibility bestowed on a public official by his constituents” because he engaged in “selling the core function of a legislator for his own self-aggrandizement.”
Igor Belyansky, Rostislav Belyansky, Tsimerman, and Binman all pled guilty in September 2013 to conspiring to commit honest services wire fraud in connection with their payment of bribes to Stevenson before the Honorable William H. Pauley III. On January 24, 2014, Judge Pauley sentenced Tsimerman to two years in prison and Rostislav Belyansky to 18 months in prison. On February 6, 2014, Judge Pauley sentenced Igor Belyansky to 20 months in prison and Binman to nine months in prison.
Mr. Bharara praised the work of the investigators from the United States Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York and the District Attorney’s Office for Bronx County.
This prosecution is being handled by the Office’s Public Corruption Unit. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Paul M. Krieger and Brian A. Jacobs and Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Pishoy Yacoub of the Bronx County District Attorney’s Office are in charge of the prosecution.
Father and Son Arrested for Sex TraffickingRead the Press Release
CONTACT: Fred Alverson
Public Affairs Officer
COLUMBUS, Ohio – A federal grand jury has indicted Keith A. Arrick Sr., 46, of Ft. Mitchell, Kentucky and his son, Keith A. Arrick Jr., 21, of Columbus, Ohio charging them with conspiracy to commit sex trafficking, sex trafficking of a minor and sex trafficking by force, fraud or coercion.
Carter M. Stewart, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Ohio, Ohio Attorney General Mike DeWine and members of the Central Ohio Human Trafficking Task Force, including Marlon V. Miller, Special Agent in Charge, U.S. Homeland Security Investigations, Colonel Paul Pride of the Ohio State Highway Patrol and Columbus Police Chief Kim Jacobs announced the indictment today.
Task Force agents and Columbus Police patrol officers arrested Keith A. Arrick Jr. yesterday in Columbus. U.S. Magistrate Judge Elizabeth Preston Deavers scheduled a detention hearing for Arrick Jr. for 11 a.m. Friday, May 23, 2014. Keith A. Arrick Sr. is currently in custody in Kenton County, Kentucky on unrelated state charges.
The indictment alleges that between September 2013 and February 2014, the men used various hotels in the Columbus area to harbor women, including a minor female, to engage in commercial sex acts for the financial benefit of the defendants. The indictment accuses the men of recruiting customers through internet websites by posting photos of the women or others who resembled the women, instructing the women how much to charge for the various acts then keeping a portion of the money for themselves, and providing the women with illegal narcotics, including heroin. The investigation found that one victim was brought to Columbus from Kentucky. The indictment alleges that Keith A. Arrick Sr. used physical violence and threats of physical violence if the victims indicated they wished to stop performing commercial sex acts.
The indictment charges both men with conspiracy to commit sex trafficking, a crime punishable by a sentence ranging from zero years to life in prison. They are also charged with sex trafficking of a minor, which is punishable by at least ten years and up to life in prison, and two counts of sex trafficking by force fraud or coercion, which is punishable by at least 15 years and up to life in prison.
In addition, the indictment charges Keith Arrick Sr. with two counts of violating the Mann Act which prohibits interstate transportation for prostitution. It is punishable by up to ten years in prison.
“These arrests highlight HSI's commitment to identify and investigate human trafficking threats, as well as protect victims' rights and bring traffickers to justice,” said Marlon Miller, special agent in charge of HSI Detroit, which covers Michigan and Ohio. “We will continue to work tirelessly with our law enforcement partners to dismantle human trafficking networks in our community.”
“The investigation found that these defendants forced the victims to commit sex acts for money. They were held against their will and were fearful for their lives,” said Attorney General DeWine. “Members of this task force helped get these victims away from this situation, and now the defendants are facing the consequences of their actions.”
“The cooperation between agencies in the Central Ohio Human Trafficking Task Force shows the level of commitment we all have to making Ohio a safer place to live,” said Col. Paul Pride, Ohio State Highway Patrol Superintendent. “Multi-agency task forces enhance the efforts to remove individuals like this from our communities.”
U.S. Attorney Stewart commended the cooperative investigation by the Central Ohio Human Trafficking Task Force, which was formed in 2012 and is part of the Ohio Attorney General’s Ohio Organized Crime Investigations Commission, also includes authorities from the Attorney General's Bureau of Criminal Investigation (BCI), Powell Police Department, Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Delaware County Prosecutor's Office. Assistant U.S. Attorney Heather Hill is representing the government in this case.
Authorities with the Columbus Police Department's gang and vice units, as well as the Grove City Police Department assisted in the investigation.
An indictment merely contains allegations, and the defendants are presumed innocent unless proven guilty in a court of law.
# # #Fargo Man Sentenced to 9 ½ Years for Possession of Sexually Explicit Materials Involving MinorsRead the Press Release
FARGO - U.S. Attorney Timothy Q. Purdon announced that on May 21, 2014, Jared Tyler Allen, 28, Fargo, N.D., was sentenced before U.S. District Judge Ralph R. Erickson to 9 ½ years for receipt and possession of material involving the sexual exploitation of minors. Allen was also sentenced to 10 years of supervised release, ordered to pay $1000 in restitution and a $200 special assessment to the Crime Victims Fund.
This case came to the attention of law enforcement after an agent with the North Dakota Bureau of Investigations, assigned to the Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force, discovered a computer geographically located in North Dakota that was sharing child pornography in a peer-to-peer (P2P) network.
Homeland Security Investigators eventually traced the computer to Allen’s apartment located in South Fargo where task force officers seized two computers, including the computer that was previously seen with child pornography on the P2P network. A subsequent forensic examination of the two computers revealed more than 3,400 images and 175 videos depicting child pornography.
The case was investigated by Homeland Security Investigations, North Dakota Bureau of Criminal Investigation, and the Fargo Police Department.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Jennifer Klemetsrud Puhl prosecuted the case.
This case was prosecuted as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative designed to protect children from online exploitation and abuse. Led by the U.S. Attorneys’ Offices, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to better locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the Internet, as well as to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.projectsafechildhood.gov.Eufaula Man Pleads Guilty to ConspiracyRead the Press Release
Muskogee, Oklahoma - The United States Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Oklahoma, announced that JOHN PAUL SHROPSHIRE, age 54, of Eufaula, Oklahoma, pled guilty to Conspiracy, in Violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 371.
The charge is a result of an investigation by the Oklahoma Bureau of Narcotics. The defendant was indicted in April, 2013. An Information was filed in May, 2014.
The Information alleged that from in or about September, 2011, until on or about September 26, 2012, within the Eastern District of Oklahoma and elsewhere, the defendant, did knowingly and intentionally conspire, confederate and agree with others both known and unknown to commit offenses against the United States.
The Honorable Steven P. Shreder, Magistrate Judge in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Oklahoma, in Muskogee, presided over the hearing and ordered the completion of a presentence and investigation report. The defendant will remain in the custody of the United States Marshal Service pending sentencing.
The statutory range of punishment is not more than 5 years imprisonment, and/or up to a $250,000 fine and a discretionary term of supervised release of not more than 3 years.
Assistant United States Attorney Shannon Henson represented the United States.
Erie Felon Pleads Guilty to Drug and Gun ChargesRead the Press Release
ERIE, Pa. - A former resident of Erie, Pennsylvania, pleaded guilty in federal court to charges of violating federal firearms laws and drug laws, United States Attorney David J. Hickton announced today.
Shawn I. McCrorey, 45, pleaded guilty to three counts before Senior United States District Judge Maurice B. Cohill, Jr.
In connection with the guilty plea, the court was advised that on January 5, 2013 McCrorey was found in possession of cocaine and a handgun, and a second handgun was found in his residence in Erie, Pennsylvania. Also, McCrorey obtained one of the handguns in December 2012, after lying to a local gun store about his identity and lying that he had no prior felony conviction. McCrorey, known by several aliases, was convicted in 1994 for the crime of delivery of cocaine under the name William Dean, and is therefore prohibited from firearm possession.
Judge Cohill scheduled sentencing for August 26, 2014 at 11:00 a.m. The law provides for a total sentence of life in prison, a fine of $1,000,000, or both. Under the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, the actual sentence imposed is based upon the seriousness of the offenses and the prior criminal history, if any, of the defendant.
Assistant United States Attorney Marshall J. Piccinini is prosecuting this case on behalf of the government.
The EAGLE task force, which is comprised of members of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Pennsylvania Attorney General’s Office Bureau of Narcotics Investigation, and the Erie Bureau of Police conducted the investigation that led to the prosecution of McCrorey.
Disturbance of Peregrine Falcon Nest Leads to Charges Against Bridge Repair CrewRead the Press Release
PHILADELPHIA - Nikolaos Frangos, 38, George Capuzello, 42, both of Campbell, Ohio, and Mikhail Zubialevich, a/k/a “Russian Mike,” 41, of Princeton, New Jersey were charged by indictment, unsealed today, in a conspiracy related to the disturbance of protected Peregrine Falcons, announced United States Attorney Zane David Memeger. The indictment charged the three defendants with conspiring to falsify, conceal and cover up a material fact in a matter within the jurisdiction of the Fish and Wildlife Service and the US Department of Transportation, witness tampering, and harboring an alien. Capuzello was also charged with perjury and Zubialevich was also charged with making a false statement. The defendants were arrested today.
According to the indictment, the defendants were involved, to varying degrees, in the refurbishment of the Girard Point Bridge in Philadelphia, which, for many years, had been a nesting site for peregrine falcons. As a condition of the work contract, the company, The Liberty-Alpha Joint Venture, agreed to refrain from working in the areas of the falcons’ nests during nesting season. On June 4, 2011, Capuzello allegedly directed Zubialevich and another worker to perform grinding or sanding in the “restricted zone” which frightened and disturbed the falcons and caused them to abandon their nest. During a subsequent investigation into the disturbance of the falcons, the three defendants allegedly conspired to cover up the identity of one of the workers, who was an illegal alien and was partly responsible for disturbing the Peregrine Falcons. It is further alleged that Frangos and Capuzello intimidated another person, J.W., in order to prevent or delay communication with a Special Agent relating to the possible commission of a federal offense.
If convicted Frangos faces a maximum possible sentence of 35 years in prison, Capuzello faces a maximum possible sentence of 40 years in prison, and Zubialevich faces a maximum possible sentence of 20 years in prison.
The case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Office of Inspector General of the Department of Labor, the Office of Inspector General of the Department of Transportation, the Environmental Protection Agency Criminal Investigation Division, the Office of Inspector General of the Social Security Administration, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement Homeland Security Investigations,and Amtrak Office of Inspector General. The case has been assigned to Assistant United States Attorney Paul G. Shapiro.
Click here to view the indictment
An Indictment, Information or Criminal Complaint is an accusation. A defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.UNITED STATES ATTORNEY'S OFFICE, EASTERN DISTRICTof PENNSYLVANIA
Suite 1250, 615 Chestnut Street, Philadelphia, PA 19106
PATTY HARTMAN, Media Contact, 215-861-8525Diane Schmaler Pleads Guilty to Dorset Field Club EmbezzlementRead the Press Release
The Office of the United States Attorney for the District of Vermont announced that Diane Schmaler, 61, of Cossayuna, NY, pleaded guilty on May 15, 2014, in United States District Court in Burlington to a charge of interstate transportation of stolen money. U.S. Magistrate Judge John M. Conroy released Schmaler on conditions pending sentencing, which is set for September 2.
According to the charging information and other court records, Schmaler had been employed for many years by the Dorset Field Club of Dorset, VT as a bookkeeper and manager of finance and administration. Schmaler paid the club's bills, handled payroll and maintained the general ledger.
Beginning no later than 2007 and continuing until June 2013, Schmaler embezzled tens of thousands of dollars from the club. She did this primarily by issuing checks to herself without authorization. She also inflated payroll checks which the club issued to her. Schmaler attempted to conceal the embezzlement by falsifying entries in the club's general ledger. Schmaler quit her employment with the club in September 2013. At that time, an audit of the club's books was about to start. The audit uncovered the embezzlement.
The exact amount of the loss is still being determined. Schmaler has already repaid $60,000 to the club.
Schmaler faces up to ten years of imprisonment and a fine of up to $250,000. The actual sentence will be determined with reference to federal sentencing guidelines.
This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation.
Schmaler is represented by Robert O'Neill. The prosecutor is Assistant U.S. Attorney Gregory Waples.
Deputy Jailer Pamela Beard Pleads to Providing Information to Felon to Assist Him in Avoiding Law EnforcementRead the Press Release
Memphis, TN – Pamela Beard, a/k/a “Princess,” 43, of Memphis, TN, pleaded guilty today in a one count information to providing information regarding the detention and arrest of individuals in order to assist her husband, John L. Thomas III, in his effort to avoid law enforcement, announced U.S. Attorney Edward L. Stanton III and Shelby County Sheriff Bill Oldham.
According to the facts of the information and details provided during her plea hearing, on or about March 8, 2013 while working as a Shelby County Deputy Jailer One, Beard was asked by Thomas to access law enforcement databases to determine if his co-conspirator Andre Adams, a/k/a Andre Wrister, had been detained by law enforcement officials. At that time, Thomas and Adams were actively involved in the possession and distribution of as much as 500 grams of heroin into the Memphis area on a bi-weekly basis.
“When members of law enforcement violate the laws they have sworn to uphold, it undermines the public’s trust in the rule of law,” said U.S. Attorney Stanton. “Our office will continue to work at all levels to vigorously root out and pursue anyone who abuses their position of trust.”
“The actions of Ms. Beard are indefensible by any standard and will not be tolerated by this office,” said Shelby County Sheriff Bill Oldham. “I believe the public will look at this case as an example of one misguided individual and will in no way assume that her behavior is indicative of the responsible, hard-working professionals who make up the Shelby County Sheriff’s Office.”
Beard is scheduled to appear before U.S. District Judge S. Thomas Anderson on August 21, 2014 for sentencing. She could receive up to three years in federal prison and a fine of up to $250,000. There is no parole in the federal prison system.
This case was investigated by the Memphis Police Department’s Organized Crime Unit and the Drug Enforcement Administration. Assistant U.S. Attorney Daniel French is representing the government.