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27 June 2014
Columbia Man Admits to Conspiracy to Distribute OxycodoneRead the Press Release
Contact Person: Bill Day (803) 929-3000
Columbia, South Carolina -----United States Attorney Bill Nettles stated today that John Lanier Britt, age 52, of Columbia, South Carolina has entered a guilty plea in federal court in Florence, to conspiracy to distribute oxycodone, a violation of 21 U.S.C. § 846. United States District Judge Terry L. Wooten of Florence accepted the guilty plea and will impose sentence after he has reviewed the presentence report which will be prepared by the U.S. Probation Office.
Evidence presented at the change of plea hearing established that Britt was involved in the illegal distribution of oxycodone, a powerful prescription pain medication, for more than three years. Audio and video recordings of Britt selling oxycodone were made during the investigation. A search of Britt's house was conducted when Britt was arrested resulting in drugs being seized and evidence being found that Britt had sold almost 300 pills in the three days before he was arrested.
Mr. Nettles stated the maximum penalty for conspiracy to distribute oxycodone is imprisonment for 30 years and/or a fine of $2,000,000.
The case was investigated by agents of the Drug Enforcement Administration, Diversion. Assistant United States Attorney William E. Day, II of the Columbia office is prosecuting the case.# # #
Canadian Woman Pleads Guilty to Tax SchemeRead the Press Release
ROCHESTER, N.Y. -- U.S. Attorney William J. Hochul, Jr. and Department of Justice Tax Division Acting Assistant Attorney General Tamara Ashford announced today that Renee Jarvis, 51, of Ontario, Canada, pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Frank P. Geraci, Jr., to conspiring with others to defraud the United States and to steal government funds. The charge carries a maximum penalty of five years in prison, a $250,000 fine, or both.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Marisa J. Miller and Tax Division Trial Attorney Jeffrey A. McLellan, who are handling the case, stated that the defendant was charged, along with six others, with filing false tax returns with the Internal Revenue Service. On April 8, 2009, Jarvis filed a U.S. Nonresident Alien Income Tax Return and claimed that she was entitled to a refund of $404,120.00. Thereafter, the defendant, a Canadian citizen, opened a bank account at a bank in the Rochester area, deposited a U.S. Treasury check and then withdrew the funds, in part, to pay a co-conspirator for preparing the false documents.
Sentencing is scheduled for November 12th, at 3:00 p.m. before Judge Geraci.
The plea is the culmination of an investigation on the part of Special Agents of the Internal Revenue Service – Criminal Investigation, under the direction of Acting Special Agent in Charge Shantelle Kitchen.Canadian Man Pleads Guilty to Drug ChargeRead the Press Release
BUFFALO, N.Y. -- U.S. Attorney William J. Hochul, Jr. announced today that Daniel Hebert, 40, of New Brunswick, Canada, pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Richard J. Arcara, to importation of 100 kilograms or more of marijuana into the U.S. from Canada and failure to appear to attend required court proceedings. The charges carry a mandatory minimum penalty of five years in prison, a maximum of 40 years, a $2,000,000 fine, or both.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Mary Catherine Baumgarten, who is handling the case, stated that on November 5, 2005, the defendant entered the United States at the Peace Bridge Port of Entry driving a tractor trailer. During a secondary inspection, law enforcement officers seized multiple plastic baggies containing marijuana. Hebert told Special Agents of Immigration and Customs Enforcement that the marijuana was to be delivered to a man named "Brian" at Jim's Truck Plaza in Cheektowaga, N.Y. Law enforcement officers surveilled the defendant as he later met with co-defendants Brian Brady and Thomas Goodyer who were arrested along with Hebert.
On November 7, 2005, Hebert appeared before a federal Magistrate Judge who ordered the defendant released with various conditions, including that Hebert attend all court proceedings. The defendant was scheduled to appear on May 26, 2006 but failed to do so. On June 28, 2006, an arrest warrant was issued for the defendant.
Brian Brady was convicted of conspiracy to import 100 kilograms or more of marijuana into the U.S. from Canada and is awaiting sentencing. Charges are pending against Thomas Goodyer. The fact that a defendant has been charged with a crime is merely an accusation and the defendant is presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty.
The plea is the culmination of an investigation on the part of Special Agents of Immigration and Customs Enforcement, Homeland Security investigations, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge James C. Spero.
Sentencing is scheduled for October 7, 2014 at 1:00 p.m. before Judge Arcara.California Woman Pleads Guilty to Conspiracy to Defraud Internal Revenue Service and Wire FraudRead the Press Release
Kathryn Darlene Coryell, a Fresno, California, resident, pleaded guilty yesterday to conspiracy to defraud the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) and wire fraud, announced Deputy Assistant Attorney General Ronald A. Cimino for the Justice Department’s Tax Division and U.S. Attorney Melinda Haag for the Northern District of California.
According to the plea agreement, beginning around Feb. 28, 2008, and continuing through April 16, 2012, Coryell and her co-conspirator Noemi Baez participated in a scheme to obtain and help others to obtain payment of false claims for refunds from the IRS by electronically filing false federal income tax returns in their own names and in the names of others. Using the names and Social Security numbers of multiple individuals, Coryell and Baez created false income information and filed with the IRS materially false tax returns claiming refunds derived from tax credits, including the Earned Income Credit, the Additional Child Tax Credit and the Making Work Pay Credit. Coryell and Baez filed more than 150 false and fraudulent claims, with false claims totaling more than $400,000. Baez pleaded guilty to conspiracy and aggravated identity theft and was sentenced on Feb. 6, 2014, to serve 30 months in prison.
At time of her sentencing on Oct. 23, 2014, before U.S. District Judge D. Lowell Jensen, Coryell faces a maximum sentence of 30 years in prison, three years of supervised release and a fine of $500,000 or twice the gain or loss resulting from her offense, whichever is greater.
Deputy Assistant Attorney General Cimino and U.S. Attorney Haag commended the efforts of the special agents of IRS – Criminal Investigation, who investigated the case, and Trial Attorneys Charles O’Reilly, Erin S. Mellen and Sonia M. Owens of the Tax Division, who are prosecuting the case.
California Man Pleads Guilty to Theft and Embezzlement from the Passamaquoddy TribeRead the Press Release
Contact: F. Todd Lowell
Assistant United States Attorney
Tel: (207) 945-0373Bangor, Maine: United States Attorney Thomas E. Delahanty II announced that Charles
Fourcloud, 59, of San Jose, California, pleaded guilty yesterday in U.S. District Court in
Bangor, to stealing and embezzling funds from the Passamaquoddy Tribe at Pleasant Point.Court records show that in May 2013, the defendant was hired by the tribe to serve as its chief financial officer (CFO). He applied for the CFO position using a fictitious employment history and fake references and he had concealed the fact that he had been convicted of a federal crime and served a prison sentence. From April through August 2013, the defendant fraudulently obtained and stole about $20,000 from the tribe by submitting fraudulent travel expense reports and supporting documentation and by submitting fraudulent documentation related to moving expense reimbursement.
Fourcloud faces up to 25 years in prison and a $250,000 fine. He will also be required to make full restitution. He will be sentenced after the completion of a presentence investigation report by the U.S. Probation Office.
The investigation was conducted jointly by the U.S. Department of Health and Human
Services, Office of Inspector General and the Pleasant Point Police Department.Calcutta Man Indicted for Robbing East Liverpool BankRead the Press Release
A federal grand jury returned a one-count indictment charging Brian Keith Johnston, age 41, of Calcutta, Ohio, with bank robbery, said Steven M. Dettelbach, United States Attorney for the Northern District of Ohio.
The indictment charges that on or about May 29, 2014, Johnston robbed the Home Savings and Loan Company in East Liverpool, Ohio, of approximately $1,756.
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 Federal Bureau of Investigation, the East Liverpool Police Department, and the St. Clair Township Police Department. The matter is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney David M. Toepfer.
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.
Buffalo Woman Pleads Guilty to Theft of Government FundsRead the Press Release
BUFFALO, N.Y. - U.S. Attorney William J. Hochul, Jr. announced today that Candace Walker, 33, of Buffalo, N.Y., pleaded guilty to theft of government funds before U.S. Magistrate Judge Hugh B. Scott. The charge carries a maximum penalty of one year in prison, a fine of $100,000 or both.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Russell T. Ippolito, Jr., who is handling the case, stated that Walker, a Contact Representative for the United States Department of the Treasury, Internal Revenue Service (“IRS”), collected unemployment insurance benefits for which she was not entitled. Between January 10, 2010, and October 2, 2011, the defendant fraudulently certified for unemployment insurance benefits on numerous occasions. Walker failed to report income earned from the IRS and from the Wheelchair Home, Inc., dba, Schofield Residence, in order to receive unemployment insurance benefits. In total, Manning stole $9,530 in unemployment insurance benefits from the IRS and $1,925 from the Wheelchair Home, Inc., dba, Schofield Residence.
The plea is the culmination of an investigation by the Department of the Treasury, Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration (TIGTA), Office of Investigations, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Robert E. O’Malley, the U.S. Department of Labor, Office of Inspector General, Office of Labor Racketeering and Fraud Investigations, under the direction of Special Agent-in-Charge Cheryl Garcia of the New York Regional Office, and the New York State Department of Labor, under the direction of Commissioner Peter Rivera.
Sentencing is scheduled for October 7, 2014, at 10:00 a.m. before Judge Scott.Borger, Texas, Man Sentenced to Five Years in Federal Prison on Child Pornography ConvictionRead the Press Release
AMARILLO, Texas — Aaron Robert Wells, 23, of Borger, Texas, was sentenced today by U.S. District Judge Mary Lou Robinson to five years in federal prison, following his guilty plea in April 2014 to one count of transportation of child pornography. Judge Robinson remanded Wells, who had been on bond, to the custody of the U.S. Marshal. U.S. Attorney Sarah R. Saldaña of the Northern District of Texas made the announcement today.
According to documents filed in the case, in March 2012, Wells was contacted online by an undercover law enforcement officer through file sharing software. Wells had saved numerous images of child pornography on his computer and had made them available for online sharing. Among other images, the undercover officer downloaded two images of minor males engaged in sexually explicit conduct.
The case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative, which was launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice, to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by U.S. Attorney’s Offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state and local resources to better locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals, who sexually exploit children, and identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit http://www.justice.gov/psc/. For more information about internet safety education, please visit http://www.justice.gov/psc/ and click on the tab “resources.”
The FBI investigated the case, and Assistant U.S. Attorney Steven M. Sucsy of the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Lubbock, Texas, prosecuted.
Belleville Sex Offender Pleads Guilty to Failure to RegisterRead the Press Release
Follow @SDILNewsOn June 25, 2014, Willie L. Carroll, a fifty year old Belleville, Illinois, man pled guilty in federal district court, in East St. Louis, to failure to register as a sex offender, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of Illinois, Stephen R. Wigginton, announced today. Carroll is scheduled for sentencing on October 17, 2014, at which time he faces a prison term of up to ten (10) years, a fine up to $250,000, or both, at least five (5) years supervised release after his prison term, and a mandatory special assessment of $100.
In 2013, after signing the Illinois Sex Offender Registration Act Registration Form on January 14, 2013, Davis moved to Missouri without registering in the state. Davis was required to register as a sex offender within three days of his move from Illinois to Missouri. The registration was due to his Aggravated Criminal Sexual Assault conviction on May 1, 1991, in St. Clair County, Illinois.
This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice. Led by United States Attorneys’ Offices and the Criminal Division's Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS), Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state and local resources to better locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals, who 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.”
The case was investigated by the United States Marshals Service and is assigned to Assistant United States Attorney Daniel T. Kapsak for prosecution.
Austinite Pleads Guilty to Attempting to Provide Material Support to TerroristsRead the Press Release
In Austin this morning, 23-year-old Michael Wolfe (a.k.a. “Faruq”) pleaded guilty to attempting to provide material support and resources to a foreign terrorist organization, announced Robert Pitman, United States Attorney for the Western District of Texas, Christopher Combs, Federal Bureau of Investigation Special Agent in Charge of the San Antonio Division, and John Carlin, Assistant Attorney General for National Security. He faces up to 15 years in federal prison for the offense.
Appearing before United States Magistrate Judge Mark Lane, Wolfe admitted that from August 2013 to June 17, 2014, he planned to travel to the Middle East to provide his services to a foreign terrorist organization, namely, the Islamic State of Iraq and al-Sham/Syria (ISIS) and to engage in violent jihad in Syria.
During the plea hearing Wolfe acknowledged that he applied for and acquired a United States passport, participated in physical fitness training, practiced military maneuvers and made efforts to conceal his communications about his plans to travel overseas to engage in violent jihad. Wolfe also purchased airline tickets so that he could travel to Europe to meet an FBI undercover employee, whom the defendant then believed would facilitate travel to Syria through Turkey. In furtherance of his attempt to provide material support to ISIS, Wolfe travelled to Houston and was apprehended on June 17, 2014, on the jet-way, as he attempted to board flight #8112 to Toronto, Canada. His ticketed itinerary had him traveling through Iceland and arriving in Copenhagen, Denmark on June 18, 2014. He then planned to make his way to Syria to join with ISIS and engage in the armed conflict.
Wolfe remains in federal custody pending sentencing before United States District Judge Sam Sparks in Austin. No sentencing date has been scheduled.
This case resulted from a Central Texas Joint Terrorism Task Force investigation conducted by the Federal Bureau of Investigation together with the Internal Revenue Service-Criminal Investigation, United States Citizenship and Immigration Services, United States Army Intelligence, Austin Police Department, Round Rock Police Department, Killeen Police Department, University of Texas Police Department, Travis County Sheriff's Office, Texas Department of Public Safety, Office of the Texas Attorney General and the Texas Alcoholic Beverage Commission.
Assistant United States Attorneys Gregg N. Sofer and Michael Galdo, together with Department of Justice National Security Division trial attorneys Josh Parecki and Michael Dittoe, are prosecuting this case on behalf of the Government.Arthur Schlecht and Co-defendants Sentenced for Role in Precious Metals Investment SchemeRead 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, Ronald J. Verrochio, Postal Inspector in Charge, United States Postal Inspection Service (USPIS), Drew J. Breakspear, Commissioner, Florida Office of Financial Regulation, and Richard P. Foelber, Chief of Cooperative Enforcement, Commodity Futures Trading Commission announce the results of the sentencing hearing on June 26, 2014, of Arthur John Schlecht, 54, formerly of Miami-Dade County, for conspiracy to commit mail and wire fraud, and for wire fraud. Schlecht was convicted on February 27, 2014, following a five-week jury trial in Miami.
United States Judge Richard W. Goldberg sentenced Schlecht to 120 months in prison. Just before Schlecht’s sentencing hearing, co-defendants Carlos Rodriguez, age 37, and Ricardo Padron, age 54, were both sentenced to 45 months in prison. Co-defendant Robert Roca, age 62, was sentenced to 36 months in prison. Co-defendants are formerly of Miami-Dade County.
The evidence at trial revealed that over 700 investor victims lost in excess of $25 million as a result of the scheme perpetrated by Schlecht and his co-defendants. Co-defendants Rodriguez, Padron and Roca pled guilty prior to trial.
Mr. Ferrer commended the investigative efforts of the FBI, USPIS, the Florida Office of Financial Regulation and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission. This case was prosecuted by Senior Litigation Counsel Caroline Heck Miller and Assistant U.S. Attorney Michael R. Sherwin.
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.
50th Anniversary Observance of the Civil Rights Act of 1964: Wednesday, July 2, 2014 at the Marquette University Law SchoolRead the Press Release
United States Attorney James L. Santelle of the Eastern District of Wisconsin announced today that a special community gathering will be held on Wednesday, July 2, 2014, from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 pm to commemorate the 50th Anniversary of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. This special event will be held at Marquette University Law School, Eckstein Hall, located at 1215 West Wisconsin Avenue in Milwaukee.
The public is invited to attend this special community gathering as we remember the leaders, the challenges, and the achievements of the Civil Rights Movement and affirm our contemporary commitment to promote the purposes and the goals of the Civil Rights Act of 1964.
Welcoming and commissioning remarks will be provided by United States Attorney Santelle, Ralph Hollmon, President and CEO of the Milwaukee Urban League, Luis “Tony” Baez, Executive Director of Centro Hispano, James H. Hall, Jr., President of the Milwaukee Branch of the NAACP, City of Milwaukee Mayor Tom Barrett, and Milwaukee County Executive Chris Abele.
The program will include a video of President Lyndon B. Johnson signing the Civil Rights Act on July 2, 1964, and a special presentation by Professor Andrew W. Kahrl of the Carter G. Woodson Center for African-American and African Studies at the University of Virginia on the “The Significance of the Civil Rights Movement of the 1960s: Remembering the Leaders, the Challenges, and the Achievements.”
The keynote presentation, “Reflections on the Legacy of the Civil Rights Act and on the Civil Rights Challenges in Contemporary America,” will be delivered by the Honorable Jocelyn Samuels, Assistant Attorney General for Civil Rights, United States Department of Justice. Assistant Attorney General Samuels will also participate in an interactive panel discussion with Messrs. Hollmon and Hall and Dr. Baez on the present initiatives and current challenges in the area of civil rights enforcement for the nation, the State of Wisconsin, and the Greater Milwaukee Area.
This event is co-sponsored by the Office of the United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Wisconsin, the Community Relations Service of the United States Department of Justice, the Milwaukee Urban League, Centro Hispano, and the Milwaukee Branch of the NAACP.
Members of the media should call Deputy Public Information Officer Elizabeth Makowski at (414) 297-1700 to confirm their attendance.
22 Indicted in Multi-State Heroin Distribution ConspiracyRead the Press Release
A federal grand jury in Nashville, Tenn. returned a 23-count indictment on June 25, 2014, charging 22 individuals with various offenses relating to a conspiracy to distribute large amounts of heroin and fentanyl in the Middle Tennessee area, Northern Alabama and St. Louis, Missouri, announced David Rivera, U.S. Attorney for the Middle District of Tennessee. Much of the heroin had been adulterated or replaced with fentanyl and caused or contributed to the death of at least two persons in Alabama and was responsible for multiple non-fatal overdoses.
Joining Rivera at a morning news conference were Chief Steve Anderson of the Metropolitan Nashville Police Department, Jack Webb, Assistant Special Agent- in- Charge of the ATF, Nashville Field Division and Michael Stanfill, Asst. Special Agent- in- Charge of the Drug Enforcement Administration for Tennessee.
Local, state and federal agents, yesterday, began arresting those named in the indictment and as of this morning, 21 suspects were in custody.
“The resurgence of heroin as the drug of choice is wreaking havoc in our communities across the nation and causing untold overdoses and deaths,” said U.S. Attorney David Rivera. “I commend our law enforcement partners for their untiring efforts in bringing this case and interrupting the flow of such dangerous substances to our neighborhoods. The U.S. Attorney’s Office will vigorously prosecute this case and seek appropriate sentences for the conduct of those charged.”
According to the indictment, the year-long investigation identified Jamal Cooper of Antioch, Tenn. as one of the leaders and supervisors of the heroin distribution conspiracy and who was responsible for obtaining large quantities of heroin from multiple sources, including Lonald Ector of San Bernardino, Calif. and Robert Gonzales of Fontana, Calif. Various residences and properties in Nashville and Antioch, Tennessee, Florence, Alabama, and Sheffield, Alabama were used by the defendants to store heroin and cash generated from the sale and distribution of heroin, and from which to distribute heroin and fentanyl to the Middle Tennessee area, Northern Alabama and St. Louis Missouri.
The indictment alleges that members of the conspiracy used cutting agents, to dilute the heroin to increase their profits and distributed fentanyl, which they purported to be heroin, which caused or contributed to two deaths in Alabama and numerous non-fatal overdoses in Alabama and Nashville.
According to the facts set forth in the indictment, the defendants remained undeterred after learning of the deaths and overdoses and continued to distribute the heroin and fentanyl.
The indictment also alleges that four of the defendants conspired to use firearms against individuals whom they believed were attempting to rob other members of the conspiracy of money and drugs and one person was in fact shot in Nashville on April 4, 2014.
“These heroin-related overdoses and deaths are absolutely unacceptable,” Metro Police Chief Steve Anderson said. “Arrests like those announced today show that violent criminal activity associated with the illegal drug trade will not be tolerated by law enforcement and our partners in prosecutors’ offices at the state and federal level.”
“This focused investigation will have a lasting impact on reducing firearms related violence and taking drugs off the streets of the Nashville Metro area,” said ATF Special Agent–in–Charge Jeff Fulton. “Additionally, these arrests demonstrate ATF and our partners’ continued dedication to identify, target, and investigate violent criminals who lessen the quality of life in our neighborhoods.”“The prescription pill epidemic in the U.S. continues to produce a rapidly expanding base of new heroin users with no regard to race, gender, age, or economic background,” said Michael Stanfill, Assistant Special Agent-in-Charge of the DEA in Tennessee. “Our federal, state, and local partners will aggressively pursue those drug trafficking organizations that are attempting to capitalize on this new demand for heroin. This investigation is another example of law enforcement agencies working together and utilizing their combined resources to decimate a violent drug organization and improve the quality of life for people in Tennessee and Alabama.”
The indictment charges the following individuals with conspiring to distribute and possession with intent to distribute heroin and/or fentanyl:Jamal Cooper, aka Jamal Jordan, aka J, aka Mal, 37, of Antioch, Tennessee; Lonald Ector, aka J.R., 46, of San Bernardino, California; Robert Gonzales, 29, of Fontana, California; D’Ron Robinson, aka St. Louis, 25, of Jackson, Tennessee; Karon Key Jordan, 34, of Gallatin, Tennessee; Jasmond Foster, aka Jazz, 26, of Sheffield, Alabama; William Earl Foster, Jr., aka Buck, 25, of Florence, Alabama; Donquez Groves, aka Lewis Palmer, aka Little Donnie, 31, of Nashville, Tennessee; Wilton Bailey, aka Willy Will, 38, of Nashville, Tennessee; Clifford Woods, aka Wimpy, 55, of Gallatin, Tennessee; Tommy E. Smith, 37, of Nashville, Tennessee; Sheteeka Bryant, 34, of Nashville, Tennessee; Eric Williams, aka E, 38, of Nashville, Tennessee; Robert Foxx, aka D-Tay, aka Johnny, 28, of Nashville, Tennessee; Darnell Finnels, aka Ski, aka Skeezy, 24, of Nashville, Tennessee; Shawna Caroline Foster, 36, of Florence, Alabama; Jerry Ray Cochran, aka J Ray, 40, of Florence, Alabama; William Kimbrough III, aka Trey, 37, of Tuscumbia, Alabama; Wallace Earl Coffey, aka Nephew, aka Beck, 27, of Sheffield, Alabama; Wallace Beckwith, aka Duke, 47, of Florence, Alabama; and
Thomas Barnett, aka Ham, aka Hambone, 27, of Florence, Alabama.The indictment also charges the following:
Knowingly conspiring to possess and discharge a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime: Robert Noel, aka Kamp Trey, 22, of Nashville, Tennessee; Jamal Cooper, Eric Williams and Darnell Finnels.
Knowingly possessing a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime: Jamal Cooper.Knowingly possessing and discharging a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime: Darnell Finnels.
Knowingly possessing and intentionally distributing fentanyl; Jamal Cooper.
Knowingly possessing and intentionally distributing heroin: Jamal Cooper-3 additional counts; Eric Williams-6 additional counts; Robert Foxx- 6 additional counts; and Donquez Groves-1 additional count.Conspiring to distribute fentanyl resulting in the death of another person: Jamal Cooper, William Earl Foster, Shawna Caroline Foster and Jerry Ray Cochran.
If convicted, all defendants face a mandatory minimum sentence of 10 years to life in prison. Those charged with conspiracy to distribute fentanyl resulting in the death of another person face a mandatory minimum sentence of 20 years to life in prison.This case was investigated by the Metropolitan Nashville Police Department’s Specialized Investigations Division; the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives; the Drug Enforcement Administration; the 20th Judicial District Drug Task Force; the Lauderdale County, Alabama Drug Task Force; the Colbert County, Alabama Drug Task Force and the Florence, Alabama Police Department. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Matthias Onderak.
An indictment is merely an accusation and is not evidence of guilt. All defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty in a court of law.
26 June 2014
York County Man Sentenced to Twenty Years for Receipt of Child PornographyRead the Press Release
The United States Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Pennsylvania announced that a York County man was sentenced today to twenty years in prison for receipt of child pornography.
In November, a federal jury convicted Lawrence B. Blevins, Jr., age 44, West Manchester, Pennsylvania, of downloading child pornography from the internet. At sentencing today in Harrisburg Chief United States District Court Judge Christopher C. Conner noted Blevins’ previous conviction for indecent assault and his false testimony at trial as factors at sentencing.
According to United States Attorney Peter Smith, the case arose from an investigation by West Manchester Township Police into a network of individuals who shared child pornography over the internet. In December 2011, a search warrant was executed at Blevins’ residence and recovered multiple computers and external storage devices from his room. Police found over a half million images of child pornography and hundreds of videos. Blevins was arrested and charged by local officials. On September 26, 2012, a federal grand jury returned a two-count indictment charging Blevins with possession of child pornography.
“Blevins’ 20-year sentence again underscores HSI’s determination to track down child predators and bring them to justice ,” said Philadelphia acting Special Agent in Charge William S. Walker. “The immense amount of images and videos recovered by law enforcement during this investigation underscores the fact that possession and distribution of despicable images of child pornography is not a victimless crime. Our children are re-victimized every time a child predator views and shares these images.”
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."
This investigation was conducted by West Manchester Township Police Department, the Northern York Regional Police Department, and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI). The prosecutor assigned to the case is Assistant Unites States Attorney Michael A. Consiglio.
Warren County, N.J., Man Sentenced to 15 Years in Prison for Distributing Images of Child Sexual Abuse over the InternetRead the Press Release
NEWARK, N.J. – A registered sex offender who was formerly employed at a law office in Paterson, N.J., was sentenced today to 180 months in prison for distributing images of child sexual abuse over the Internet, U.S. Attorney Paul J. Fishman announced.
Kevin Rease, 34, of Hackettstown, N.J., previously pleaded guilty to one count of an indictment charging him with distributing images of child pornography. U.S. District Judge Claire C. Cecchi imposed the sentence today in Newark federal court.
According to documents filed in the case and statements in court:
Rease admitted that on Feb. 12, 2013, he made images and videos of child sexual abuse stored on his work computer available for others to download via an online peer-to-peer file sharing network. On that date, an undercover law enforcement agent successfully downloaded videos of child sexual abuse from Rease through the network.
In addition to the prison term, Judge Cecchi sentenced Rease to a lifetime of supervised release. In sentencing Rease, Judge Cecchi cited the defendant’s previous child exploitation convictions as a reason for the lengthy term.
U.S. Attorney Fishman credited special agents of the FBI’s Child Exploitation Task Force, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Aaron T. Ford in Newark, and the New Jersey Regional Computer Forensics Laboratory with the investigation.
The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorney Danielle Alfonzo Walsman of the U.S. Attorney’s Office Criminal Division in Newark.
14-235
Defense counsel: William B. Ware Esq., Chester, N.J.Two Set to Appear in Federal Court on Charges of Murder on Federal LandRead the Press Release
HOUSTON – Cristian Alexander Zamora, 22, and Ricardo Leonel Campos-Lara, 19, have been indicted on charges of committing murder in the Sam Houston National Forest, a designated federal land, announced United States Attorney Kenneth Magidson.
Zamora, aka Christian Zamora, Alexander, Alex or Pollo; and Campos-Lara, aka La Muerte, are set to make their initial appearances today at 10:00 a.m. before U.S. Magistrate Judge Mary Milloy. At that time, the U.S. expects to request they be ordered into federal custody pending further criminal proceedings.
The indictment, returned June 18, 2014, alleges they committed the murder of a 16-year-old male victim while in the Sam Houston National Forest. On Sept. 22, 2013, Zamora and Campos-Lara, both of El Salvador, allegedly aided and abetted each other in the murder by striking the victim with a bat and a machete.
If convicted of murder within the territorial jurisdiction of the U.S., both will face up to life imprisonment or the death penalty.
The charges are the result of an investigation by the FBI, Houston Police Department, Texas Rangers and the Walker County Sheriff’s Office. The case will be prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Mark E. Donnelly.An indictment is a formal accusation of criminal conduct, not evidence.
A defendant is considered innocent unless and until convicted through due process of law.Two Charged with Conspiring to Smuggle Weapons to Middle EastRead the Press Release
Tampa, Florida – United States Attorney A. Lee Bentley, III announces that Mahmoud Abdel-Ghani Mohammad Assaf (45, Jordan) and Yasser Ahmad Obeid (19, Lebanon) have been charged in a federal criminal complaint with conspiring to smuggle firearms from the United States, and conspiring to deal in firearms without a license, and to ship and receive firearms in interstate and foreign commerce, in violation of federal export control and firearms laws. If convicted as charged in the complaint, Assaf and Obeid face a statutory maximum penalty of ten years’ imprisonment on each firearms and export violation charge, and five years’ imprisonment for the conspiracy offenses.
According to the complaint, Assaf, a Jordanian national in the United States on a visitor’s visa, and Obeid, a citizen of Lebanon and legal permanent resident residing in St. Petersburg, Florida, are part of a network of individuals involved in smuggling firearms from the United States to the Middle East. The complaint alleges that the firearms were concealed in vehicles purchased at used car auctions in the Central Florida area and then exported to countries located in Africa and the Middle East.
After being arrested on June 25, 2014, Assaf and Obeid made their initial appearances before United States Magistrate Judge Thomas B. McCoun III. Assaf was detained pending further proceedings. Obeid’s bond hearing is scheduled for 2:00 p.m. on Friday, June 27, 2014.
A criminal complaint is merely an informal 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 is being investigated by the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations in Tampa. It will be prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Josephine W. Thomas.
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Three Roanoke Residents Indicted on Passport Fraud ChargeRead the Press Release
ROANOKE, VIRGINIA – Three Roanoke residents who were arrested June 10 for conspiring to obtain a fraudulent passport have been indicted by a Federal grand jury sitting in the United States District Court for the Western District of Virginia in Roanoke.
The grand jury has charged George Anyuon, 35, Joseph Albino, 33 and Abuk Kuac, 29, each with one count of conspiring to commit passport fraud by willfully furnishing and attempting to furnish to another a fraudulent passport.
According to the indictment, the purpose of the conspiracy was to obtain a false passport for “Witness One,” which passport would have a false name, and to use that false passport to assist Witness One in fleeing the United States to avoid unrelated criminal charges. It was part of the conspiracy for Witness One to pay between $1,000 and $2,000 for this service. It is also alleged that Witness One would transfer ownership of his small Roanoke business and his car to the conspirators as additional payment.
The indictment alleges that conspirators would use their connections in embassies in Washington D.C. to obtain the false passport for Witness One, who would then travel to a Washington D.C. airport and use the false passport to leave the United States.
If convicted, each defendant faces a maximum possible penalty of up to five years in prison and/or a fine of up to $250,000.
The investigation of the case was conducted by U.S. Immigrations and Customs Enforcement (ICE), Homeland Security Investigations (H.S.I.), the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Virginia State Police, the United States Marshals Service and United States Department of State Diplomatic Security Service. Assistant United States Attorneys Daniel Bubar and Laura Day Rottenborn are prosecuting the case for the United States.
A Grand Jury Indictment is only a charge and not evidence of guilt. The defendants are entitled to a fair trial with the burden on the government to prove guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.
Three McLaughlin Men Charged with Burglary and AssaultRead the Press Release
United States Attorney Brendan V. Johnson announced that three men from McLaughlin, South Dakota, have been indicted by a federal grand jury for First Degree Burglary, Assault with a Dangerous Weapon, and Third Degree Burglary.
Blake Crow Ghost, age 20; Adam Weasel, age 19; and Joshua White Shield, age 19, were indicted on June 10, 2014. They appeared before U.S. Magistrate Judge William D. Gerdes on June 24, 2014, and pled not guilty to the Indictment.
The maximum penalty upon conviction is up to 25 years in custody and/or a $250,000 fine, 3 years of supervised release, and up to $200 to the Federal Crime Victims Fund. Restitution may also be ordered.
The Indictment alleges that on or about June 22, 2013, Crow Ghost, Weasel, and White Shield unlawfully entered and remained in an occupied structure, during night time, and assaulted an adult male with the intent to do bodily harm to the victim.
The charges are merely accusations and Crow Ghost, Weasel, and White Shield are presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty.
The investigation is being conducted by the Federal Bureau of Investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney Troy R. Morley is prosecuting the case.
All three men were released on bond pending trial. A trial date has not been set.
Thomas L. Kimmel Convicted of Conspiracy, Mail Fraud, and Money LaunderingRead the Press Release
RALEIGH – United States Attorney Thomas G. Walker announced that today in federal court, before Chief United States District Judge James C. Dever III, a jury convicted, Thomas L. Kimmel, 68, of Conspiracy, Mail Fraud, and Money Laundering.
KIMMEL was named in an Indictment filed on August 21, 2013. Assistant United States Attorneys David A. Bragdon and Evan Rikhye represented the government. Mr. Bragdon stated: “Kimmel used his professed spirituality and position of trust as a tool to defraud victims at their churches-the very places they felt the most safe.”
At trial, the Government presented evidence that KIMMEL solicited about $20 million for Sure Line Acceptance Corporation from investors. Most of these investors found out about Sure Line through financial conferences that KIMMEL gave at churchesrelating to Biblical principles of finance and getting out of debt. Most of the victims never received any of their principal back. KIMMEL would typically spend a few minutes of each conference telling investors about a 12% collateralized note program. Many of these presentations were recorded, and the Government presented evidence that Kimmel’s statements about Sure Line were false and that the collateralized note program was a Ponzi scheme. The jury heard testimony from three conspirators who had previously pled guilty to Conspiracy and Sale of Unregistered Securities; James Willis Kirk, Jr., Glen E. Smith, Jr., and Carol April Graff. The jury also heard testimony from about fifteen victims.
Investigation of this case was conducted by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Internal Revenue Service, and the Postal Inspection Service. Assistant United States Attorneys David A. Bragdon and Evan Rikhye prosecuted the case.
Thirty-One People Indicted for Role in Conspiracy That Brought Heroin to Northeast OhioRead the Press Release
Thirty-one people were indicted in federal court for their roles in a conspiracy that brought heroin, cocaine and crack cocaine to Northeast Ohio from Chicago and south Texas and then distributed the drugs from homes on the east side of Cleveland, law enforcement officials announced.
Filing of the 107-count indictment was announced by U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of Ohio Steven M. Dettelbach, Federal Bureau of Investigation Special Agent in Charge Stephen D. Anthony, Cleveland Police Chief Calvin Williams, Cuyahoga County Sheriff Frank Bova, Kathy Enstrom, Special Agent in Charge of IRS Criminal Investigation, Cincinnati Field Office, and Ohio Attorney General Mike DeWine.
According to the indictment:
The ring operated from at least 2010 through this month. The group obtained multiple-kilogram shipments of drugs from suppliers in Chicago and McAllen, Texas, as well as Cleveland and Toledo.
The ring utilized several homes and locations in Cleveland to store and distribute the heroin, cocaine and crack cocaine, including 3991 Superior Ave., 1481 East 71st Street, 1162 East 58th Street and 7610 Linwood Ave.
Leaders of the conspiracy, including Mark Makupson, Harry R. Hubbard and Harvest White, then used the proceeds of their drug dealing to purchase buildings or residences in Cleveland, including 1687 East 70th Street, 1075 East 74th Street and 3800 Lakeside Ave., Suite 201.
Investigators seized more than seven kilograms of heroin, one kilogram of cocaine and 10 firearms.
“Northeast Ohio, like many parts of the country, has been hit hard by the heroin epidemic,” U.S. Attorney Dettelbach said. “We continue to work together on a comprehensive solution that includes prevention, treatment and enforcement. Today’s indictment demonstrates that law enforcement in this region continues to stand united in going after the organizations that profit from this poison that ruins lives and destroys families.”
Special Agent in Charge Anthony said: “Enforcement is a key strategy in reducing both the supply and demand of heroin in Northeast Ohio. The law enforcement community is committed to working together to prosecute those responsible for fueling Ohio’s heroin epidemic.”
“The Cleveland Division of Police, along with its local and federal law enforcement partners, pledges to continue its ongoing battle against the heroin epidemic and drug trafficking in this area,” Chief Williams said.
“All our law enforcement partners will continue to bring the fight to the heroin epidemic from all angles,” Sheriff Bova said.
“The laundering of illegal drug profits is as important and essential to drug traffickers as the very distribution of their illegal drugs,” said Special Agent in Charge Enstrom. “IRS Criminal Investigation is committed with taking the profit away from drug traffickers and together with our law enforcement partners and the U.S. Attorney’s Office, we will hold those who engage in drug trafficking accountable.”
“Drug dealers peddle death and addiction, and we can’t afford their destruction in Northeast Ohio or anywhere else in our state,” said Ohio Attorney General Mike DeWine. “The heroin epidemic is complex and will take continued law enforcement coordination at every level, as well as community education and treatment efforts.”
Makupson, Hubbard, White, and Reuben Bell pooled their money travelled to Chicago to obtain large amounts of heroin from Gardner Witt. Other times they obtained heroin from Dammarkro Nolan, who got it from Witt. Then Makupson, Hubbard, White and Bell distributed the heroin to nearly 20 other dealers in Cleveland, according to the indictment
Prosecutors are also seeking to forfeit nearly $750,000 in cash and three automobiles seized in this investigation, including a 2003 Hummer H2, a 2007 Mercedes Benz G500 and a 1967 Pontiac Bonneville customized convertible.
The indictment lists scores of narcotics transactions that took place.
Indicted in Count 1, conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute heroin and cocaine, are: Mark A. Makupson, 33, of Cleveland; Darvinna Shaver, 35, of Cleveland; Harry R. Hubbard, 29, of Cleveland; Harvest White, 29, of Euclid; James Terrell McClain, 32, of Cleveland; Jermaine Moorer, 36, of Cleveland; Michael Shephard, 35, of Cleveland; Brian Singleton, 34, of Cleveland; Dammarkro Sherron Nolan, Sr., 39, of Cleveland; Melissa White, 26, of Cleveland Heights; Monique Tisdel, 35, of South Euclid; Anthony Hodges, 31, of Cleveland; Rueben Tyrone Bell, 27, of Cleveland; Tatiana Squair, 25, of Tinley Park, IL; Dionna Smith, 31, of Maple Grove, MN; Lonnie Gwin, 37, of Defiance; Donique Williams, 23, of Cleveland; Gardner Witt, 43, of Chicago, IL; Angel Manuel Fuentes Delgado, 32, of Cleveland; Rudius A. Brown, 30, of Euclid; Gerardo Rodriguez, 27, of Cleveland; Ishmael Wahid, 41, of Akron; James M. Griffin, 34, of Chicago, IL; Ricole Braxton, 32, of Cleveland; Carmelita Seay, 31, of Cleveland; Michelle Williams, 53, of Cleveland; Tony Goodwin, 26, of East Cleveland; Ariyen Flakes, 28, of Cleveland, and Milton Bridges, 26, of Cleveland.
Nicole Lewis, 37, of Cleveland, and Latoya Johnson, 30, of Cleveland, are indicted for conspiracy to launder money, as are Makupson, Shaver, White, Bell, Squair, and Witt. These defendants hid the profits from the drug conspiracy through a series of financial transactions, such as using cash from drug deals to purchase real estate and automobiles, according to the indictment.
This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney’s Vasile Katsaros and Christian M. Stickan and Margaret Tomaro, a Special Assistant U.S. Attorney who works for the Ohio Attorney General’s Office.The case was investigated by the Northern Ohio Law Enforcement Task Force. The task force is a longstanding multi-agency group comprised of investigators from the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Cleveland Division of Police, Cuyahoga County Sheriff’s Department, Cuyahoga Metropolitan Housing Authority Police, Cleveland Heights Police, Drug Enforcement Administration, Euclid Police, Homeland Security Investigations, Internal Revenue Service, Ohio Bureau of Criminal Investigation, Regional Transit Authority Police, Shaker Heights Police and Westlake Police. The Cuyahoga County Prosecutor’s Office also assisted with the case.
The NOLETF is also one of the initial Ohio High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area (HIDTA) initiatives. HIDTA supports and helps coordinate numerous Ohio drug task forces in their efforts to eliminate or reduce drug trafficking in Ohio.
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 violation. In all cases, the sentence will not exceed the statutory maximum and 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.
Tampa Man Arrested for Trading Child PornographyRead the Press Release
Tampa, Florida – United States Attorney A. Lee Bentley, III announces the arrest of Richard Donald Ragsdale (56, Tampa) on a federal complaint charging him with transportation, receipt, and possession of child pornography. Ragsdale made his initial appearance on June 24, 2014, before U.S. Magistrate Judge Thomas B. McCoun, III.
According to the complaint, on May 5, 2014, an undercover agent downloaded child pornography over the Internet from an Internet Protocol (IP) address that was connected to Ragsdale’s residence. Further investigation revealed online chats by Ragsdale, in which he admitted to having prior sexual contact with children and discussed the sexual abuse of children. On June 24, 2014, a federal search warrant was executed at Ragsdale’s Tampa residence. Agents found hundreds of videos and images depicting child pornography on Ragsdale’s laptop.
This case was investigated by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations and the United States Marshals Service. It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Jennifer L. Peresie.
It is another case brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by the United States Attorneys' Offices and the Criminal Division's Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS), Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who sexually exploit children, and to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.projectsafechildhood.gov.
Takini Man Charged with Aggravated Sexual Abuse of A ChildRead the Press Release
United States Attorney Brendan V. Johnson announced that a Takini, South Dakota, man has been indicted by a federal grand jury for Aggravated Sexual Abuse of a Child.
Reginald Between Lodges, a/k/a Reginald Condon, a/k/a Reggie Kills A Hundred, age 61, was indicted on June 10, 2014. He appeared before U.S. Magistrate Judge Mark A. Moreno on June 24, 2014, and pled not guilty to the Indictment.
The maximum penalty upon conviction is at least 30 years up to life in custody and/or a $250,000 fine, at least 5 years up to life of supervised release, and $100 to the Federal Crime Victims Fund. Restitution may also be ordered.
Between Lodges is alleged to have assaulted a child victim in October 2013 in Takini. The charge is merely an accusation and Between Lodges is presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty.The investigation is being conducted by the Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe Law Enforcement Services. Assistant U.S. Attorney Mikal Hanson is prosecuting the case.
Between Lodges was remanded to the custody of the U.S. Marshals Service. Trial has been set for August 12, 2014.
South Carolina Sex Offender Sentenced to Life in Prison Plus 30 Years for Sexual Exploitation of A Child, Possession of Child PornographyRead the Press Release
Springfield, Ill. – A repeat child sex offender, Jerry Lee Hendricks, 66, of Patrick, S.C., today was sentenced to life in prison plus 30 years for sexual exploitation of a minor and one count of possession of child pornography, announced U.S. Attorney Jim Lewis, Central District of Illinois. U.S. District Judge Sue E. Myerscough sentenced Hendricks in federal court in Springfield, Ill.
Hendricks was convicted on July 17, 2013, of four counts of sexual exploitation of a minor and one count of possession of child pornography, following a three-day jury trial in Urbana. During Hendrick’s trial, the government presented evidence that in May 2011, Hendricks coerced and photographed a minor-aged child engaged in sexually explicit conduct. The jury also found that Hendricks was a convicted sex offender at the time he committed the offenses in Kankakee County, Ill.
Hendricks was indicted by a grand jury in April 2012, and was arrested in the District of South Carolina on Aug. 1, 2012. Hendricks has remained in the custody of the U.S. Marshals Service since his arrest.
This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice. Led by 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 individuals who exploit children via the Internet as well as to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.projectsafechildhood.gov.
The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Elly Peirson. The charges were investigated by the Kankakee County Sheriff’s Office.
Sentencing for June 20 - 25, 2014Read the Press Release
Jose Cortez-Miranda, 39, of Mexico, was sentenced by Federal District Court Judge Scott W. Skavdahl on June 25, 2014, for illegal re-entry of a previously deported alien into the United States. Cortez-Miranda was arrested in Casper, Wyoming. He received eight months imprisonment, was ordered to pay a $100.00 special assessment and is subject to deportation upon release from custody. This case was investigated by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
Deborah Kay Person, 56, of Cheyenne, Wyoming, was sentenced by Chief Federal District Court Judge Nancy D. Freudenthal on June 24, 2014, for health care fraud. Person appeared pursuant to a summons. She received one year of unsupervised probation and was ordered to pay a $100.00 special assessment and restitution in the amount of $3,705.72. This case was investigated by the State of Wyoming Medicaid Fraud Control Unit.
Mario Lopez-Garcia, 49, of Mexico, was sentenced by Chief Federal District Court Judge Nancy D. Freudenthal on June 24, 2014, for illegal re-entry of a previously deported alien into the United States. Lopez-Garcia was arrested in Evanston, Wyoming. He received 14 months imprisonment, to be followed by three years of supervised release, was ordered to pay a $100.00 special assessment, and is subject to deportation upon release from custody. This case was investigated by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
Judith A. Shayler, 54, of Gillette, Wyoming, was sentenced by Federal District Court Judge Alan B. Johnson on June 20, 2014, for fraud using access device of another. Shayler appeared pursuant to a summons. She received 24 months imprisonment, to be followed by three years of supervised release, and was ordered to pay a $100.00 special assessment and restitution in the amount of $209,457.50. This case was investigated by the U.S. Secret Service.
James Keith Beierle, 47, of Burns, Wyoming, was sentenced by Chief Federal District Court Judge Nancy D. Freudenthal on June 20, 2014, for being a felon in possession of a firearm. Beierle was arrested in Burns, Wyoming. He received 180 months imprisonment, to be followed by three years of supervised release, and was ordered to pay a $100.00 special assessment and a $900.00 fine. This case was investigated by the Laramie County Sheriff’s Office and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives.
Beverly Kenik, 64, of Buffalo, Wyoming, was sentenced by Federal District Court Judge Scott W. Skavdahl on June 20, 2014, for health care fraud. Kenik appeared pursuant to a summons. She received one year of unsupervised probation and was ordered to pay a $100.00 special assessment and restitution in an amount to be determined later. This case was investigated by the State of Wyoming Medicaid Fraud Control Unit.
Second Green Cove Springs Convenience Store Owner Pleads Guilty to Tax Refund TheftRead the Press Release
Jacksonville, Florida – United States Attorney A. Lee Bentley, III announces that Abass Issa (47, Flemming Island) today pleaded guilty to stealing government property described as fraudulently-obtained tax refunds. Issa faces a maximum penalty of 10 years in federal prison, as well as an obligation to pay back restitution to the United States in the amount of $1,909,403.66. A sentencing date has not yet been set.
According to the plea agreement, Issa owned and operated a convenience store in Green Cove Springs known as V&J Stores, Inc. Antoun Arbaji, who previously pleaded guilty on May 27, 2014, owned and operated another convenience store, Fina Express, a few blocks away.
In 2011, Issa began obtaining fraudulent tax refund checks and fraudulently-obtained refund anticipation loan checks from a source in Tampa, Florida. Issa, in turn, located individuals like Arbaji who, for a percentage fee, would cash the checks through their business accounts. After cashing the checks, Arbaji would remit the cash proceeds to Issa. Issa, in turn, would keep a fee and remit the remainder of the proceeds to the source of the checks in Tampa. During 2011, Arbaji cashed more than $1.5 million in fraudulently-obtained tax refund checks and more than $400,000 in fraudulently-obtained refund anticipation loan checks using his Fina Express business account. After cashing the checks, he delivered the proceeds to Issa, who, after collecting his fee, delivered the remaining proceeds to a source in Tampa. The last individual was prosecuted in the Northern District of Florida.
Many of the fraudulent tax refund checks and refund anticipation loan checks were obtained in the names of individuals who were dead at the time when the tax returns were filed.
According to court records, the Internal Revenue Service-Criminal Investigations and the United States Secret Service seized more than $352,000 from Arbaji’s bank account prior to the return of an indictment in this case.This case was investigated by the Internal Revenue Service - Criminal Investigation, the United States Secret Service, and the Florida Department of Law Enforcement. It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Mac D. Heavener, III.
Rupert Man Pleads Guilty to Federal Drug ChargesRead the Press Release
POCATELLO – Jose Fabien Felix-Burgos, 41, of Rupert, Idaho, pleaded guilty yesterday in United States District Court to distribution of methamphetamine, U.S. Attorney Wendy J. Olson announced.
According to the plea agreement, on August 1, 2013, Felix-Burgos delivered methamphetamine to an undercover officer in Heyburn, Idaho. Felix-Burgos met with the undercover officer and another man at a restaurant in Heyburn, Idaho. The purpose of the meeting was to provide methamphetamine to the undercover officer. During the meeting, Felix-Burgos retrieved a box containing over a pound of methamphetamine from a vehicle and gave it to the undercover officer.
Felix-Burgos’ charge is punishable by up to twenty years in prison, a maximum fine of one million dollars, and at least three years of supervised release.
Sentencing is set for October 7, 2014, before Chief U.S. District Judge B. Lynn Winmill at the federal courthouse in Pocatello.
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, in conjunction with, U. S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), Canyon County Narcotics Unit, Meridian Police Department, Ada County Sheriff’s Office, Idaho State Police, and the Mini-Cassia Drug Task Force.
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.
Riviera Beach Man Sentenced to 24 Months in Prison in Juno Beach Endangered Sea Turtle Egg Taking CaseRead the Press Release
Wifredo A. Ferrer, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Florida, and William H. Calvert, Law Enforcement Officer, United States Fish & Wildlife Service, West Palm Beach, announce that Kenneth Cornelius Coleman, 52, of Riviera Beach, was sentenced today to 24 months in prison by U.S. District Judge William Zloch after pleading guilty to one count of unlawfully transporting endangered sea turtle eggs in violation of the Lacey Act, Title 16 United States Code, Section 3372. The government requested the maximum penalty of five years in prison for Coleman. The judge ordered that this sentence run consecutively to the 12-month prison sentence Coleman was given after violating his supervised release on a prior turtle egg poaching case, Case No. 10-80124-CR-RYSKAMP. Coleman was also sentenced to three years of supervised release, the maximum under the statute.
According to the Information and other court documents, on July 3, 2013, sea turtle surveyors discovered disturbed sea turtle nests in the area of the beach crossover at 840 Ocean Drive in Juno Beach, Palm Beach County, Florida. Nearby, a trail of six sea turtle eggs were found in the sand. Probing marks were visible in the disturbed nests.
Juno Beach Police officers responded. At the beach crossover near 840 Ocean Drive, officers found a wooden stick that appeared to have been used to probe the turtle nests, as well as three canvas bags. A blue bag was discovered and found to contain 213 sea turtle eggs. DNA analysis of this bag later concluded that the DNA profile previously obtained from Kenneth C. Coleman matched the DNA on the bag.
A biologist and sea turtle expert found that one of the nests disturbed on July 3, 2013, was a Green Sea Turtle nest (endangered species), and the other three were Loggerhead Sea Turtle nests (threatened species), both species of which are protected under Federal Law. The 216 sea turtle eggs were reburied in an attempt to allow them to continue to mature and to hatch.
On July 4, 2013, additional sea turtle nests were found to have been disturbed and to be missing turtle eggs, including Loggerhead and Green Sea Turtle eggs. These were in the area of the beach crossover near 70 Celestial Way in Juno Beach, not far from the disturbed nests from the day before. Also near that location, Juno Beach police officers discovered a backpack which contained 97 sea turtle eggs. These eggs were reburied as well. Defendant Coleman was later contacted on the beach near where these nests were disturbed. Officers detained him on suspicion of sea turtle egg poaching but did not advise him about the charges at that point. Coleman spontaneously stated, “I don’t know nothing about no turtle eggs.”
The eggs were examined by a biologist and confirmed that all of the eggs found were in fact sea turtle eggs. Because sea turtle eggs are illegal contraband, it is very difficult to establish a precise market value for the eggs, but the retail black market value is estimated by the U. S. Fish and Wildlife Service to be between $3.00 and $5.00 per egg, for a total value between $948 and $1,580.
Coleman was previously charged and pled guilty to violating the Lacey Act by transporting endangered sea turtle eggs in 2010 in Case No. 10-80124-CR-RYSKAMP. He was sentenced to 30 months in prison by Judge Kenneth Ryskamp in that case.
The U. S. Attorney commended the U. S. Fish & Wildlife Service, the Juno Beach Police Department and the Florida Fish & Wildlife Conservation Commission for their work in the case. This case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Lauren Jorgensen in the West Palm Beach U. S. Attorney?s Office.
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.
Reading Consultant SentencedRead the Press Release
FOR PAYING BRIBES TO FORMER GREENVILLE SUPERINTENDENTOXFORD, Miss. - Felicia C. Adams, United States Attorney for the Northern District of Mississippi, Mississippi State Auditor Stacey Pickering, and Yessyka Santana, Special Agent in Charge of the U.S. Department of Education Office of Inspector General's Southeastern Regional Office announced that:
Edna Goble, 67, of Asheville, North Carolina, pled guilty to one count of conspiracy to pay bribes in connection with federal program funds in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 371 and was sentenced on June 19 by United States District Judge Michael Mills in Oxford, Mississippi, to 30 months imprisonment. Goble admitted to paying bribes and kickbacks to Harvey Franklin, the former superintendent of the Greenville Public School District, in connection with a contract for reading services between the Greenville Public Schools and Edna Goble’s company, Teach Them to Read, Inc. d/b/a Early Detection Necessary Action. In addition, Goble was ordered to pay $1,041,432, joint and severally with Franklin, in restitution to the Department of Education, sentenced to 3 years supervised release following her term of imprisonment, and required to pay a $100 special assessment.
"Today’s action shows that Ms. Goble not only knowingly and willfully abused her position of trust for personal gain, but did so at the expense of the educational development of children. That is unacceptable," said Yessyka Santana, Special Agent in Charge of the U.S. Department of Education Office of Inspector General Southeastern Regional Office. “Deservedly, like her cohort-in-crime former superintendent Franklin, she will be held accountable for cheating Greenville's students."
“This is one of the more appalling cases that my Office has been involved in since I became State Auditor,” Auditor Pickering said. “Ms. Goble and Mr. Franklin worked together to cheat and steal from the students of Greenville, and I am glad both parties are being held accountable for their actions.
Felicia C. Adams, United States Attorney said, “The actions of Ms. Goble and Mr. Franklin harmed the integrity of our public school system and adversely impacted some of our more vulnerable citizens, the children of the Greenville Public School District. When individuals abuse the public trust, our office will remain steadfast in prosecuting those individuals and ultimately ensuring that justice is served.”
This case was investigated by Special Agents of the Department of Education, Office of Inspector General and the Office of the State Auditor for the State of Mississippi and was prosecuted by the United States Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Mississippi.
Providence Felon Sentenced to 5 Years in Federal Prison on Drug Trafficking, Firearm ChargesRead the Press Release
wPROVIDENCE, R.I. – Edgar Pagan, 22, formerly of Providence, was sentenced today to 60 months in federal prison for possession of crack cocaine with the intent to distribute and being a felon in possession of a firearm. Pagan was serving a state sentence of home confinement in July 2013 on a previous conviction for drug possession when he was found to be in possession of nearly 2.5 grams of crack cocaine and two firearms, one of them loaded. He was arrested by members of the Rhode Island State Police High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area (HIDTA) Task Force.
At sentencing, U.S. District Court Chief Judge William E. Smith also sentenced Pagan to serve 3 years supervised release upon completion of his prison term. Pagan pleaded guilty on February 14, 2014.
Pagan’s sentence is announced by United States Attorney Peter F. Neronha and Colonel Steven G. O’DonnellSuperintendent of the Rhode Island State Police.
According to information presented to the court at the time of Pagan’s guilty plea, on July 17, 2013, members of the HIDTA Task Force developed information that Pagan was in possession of two firearms at his Providence residence. Task Force officers learned that Pagan was scheduled to report to the Home Confinement Program office at the Adult Correctional Institution (ACI) for a routine appointment the next day. During the scheduled appointment, Task Force officers informed Pagan of their ongoing investigation. Pagan responded, “Let’s do this. Go there and check. I have nothing there.” Pagan agreed to allow officers to search his apartment.
According to information presented to the court, after entering the apartment with Pagan the defendant admitted to having concealed cocaine inside a pillow case on his bed. Officers located eight individually wrapped packages of crack cocaine, and Vicodin and Oxycodone pills inside the pillow case. When asked about guns, Pagan denied he had any, instead directing Task Force officers to a back bedroom and a safe containing $1,150 in cash. While in the bedroom, Task Force officers located a white padded envelope from the ACI. Inside the envelope they discovered a loaded .45 caliber Glock semi-automatic pistol and an unloaded .380 caliber semi-automatic pistol. Officers also seized items used in the packaging and distribution of crack cocaine.
The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Gerard B. Sullivan, with the assistance of Assistant U.S. Attorney Richard W. Rose.
The Rhode Island State Police High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area Task Force is comprised of members of law enforcement from the Rhode Island State Police, ATF, DEA, ICE-HSI, R.I. National Guard, and the Johnston, Pawtucket, Providence, and Smithfield Police Departments.
This case was brought as part of the Rhode Island Urban Violent Crime Initiative. The Rhode Island Urban Violent Crime Initiative is a local, state and federal law enforcement collaboration to proactively identify, investigate and prosecute individuals responsible for crimes of violence in urban neighborhoods.###
To assist the media and the public, a glossary of federal judicial terms and procedures is available at http://www.justice.gov/usao/justice101/
Contact: 401-709-5357
[email protected]Postal Clerk Indicted for Stealing Prescription Painkillers from Mail and Burglarizing Post OfficeRead the Press Release
BIRMINGHAM -- A federal grand jury today indicted a former U.S. Postal Service clerk in Tuscaloosa on charges including stealing prescription painkillers from the mail, announced U.S. Attorney Joyce White Vance, Postal Service Office of Inspector General Special Agent in Charge Max Eamiguel, of the Southern Area Field Office, and Postal Inspection Service Team Leader Frank Dyer.
An indictment filed in U.S. District Court charges that NICHOLAS STEVEN DAVIS, 42, of Tuscaloosa, stole a medical parcel containing about 180 tablets of hydrocodone from the mail on July 6, 2012, while he worked as a distribution clerk at the Skyland Post Office. The parcel was addressed to someone on Lake Lurleen in Coker, Ala. The indictment also charges Davis with delaying or detaining packages intended for delivery by mail on July 6, 2012.
The two other counts of the indictment charge that, after Davis was fired from the Postal Service, he broke into the Skyland Post Office on June 7, 2014, and June 15, 2014, intending to commit theft.
The maximum penalty for each of the charges is five years in prison and a $250,000 fine.
The Postal Service OIG and the Postal Inspection Service investigated the case, which Assistant U.S. Attorney Frank Salter is prosecuting.
The public is reminded that an indictment contains only charges. A defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
Postal Clerk Indicted for Stealing Prescription Painkillers from Mail and Burglarizing Post OfficeRead the Press Release
BIRMINGHAM -- A federal grand jury today indicted a former U.S. Postal Service clerk in Tuscaloosa on charges including stealing prescription painkillers from the mail, announced U.S. Attorney Joyce White Vance, Postal Service Office of Inspector General Special Agent in Charge Max Eamiguel, of the Southern Area Field Office, and Postal Inspection Service Team Leader Frank Dyer.
An indictment filed in U.S. District Court charges that NICHOLAS STEVEN DAVIS, 42, of Tuscaloosa, stole a medical parcel containing about 180 tablets of hydrocodone from the mail on July 6, 2012, while he worked as a distribution clerk at the Skyland Post Office. The parcel was addressed to someone on Lake Lurleen in Coker, Ala. The indictment also charges Davis with delaying or detaining packages intended for delivery by mail on July 6, 2012.
The two other counts of the indictment charge that, after Davis was fired from the Postal Service, he broke into the Skyland Post Office on June 7, 2014, and June 15, 2014, intending to commit theft.
The maximum penalty for each of the charges is five years in prison and a $250,000 fine.
The Postal Service OIG and the Postal Inspection Service investigated the case, which Assistant U.S. Attorney Frank Salter is prosecuting.
The public is reminded that an indictment contains only charges. A defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
Philadelphia Man Charged with False Statement Related to Federal Assistance for Storm DamageRead the Press Release
PHILADELPHIA –Kevin Thomas, 51, of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, was charged by information, filed yesterday, with making a material false statement, in connection with his false certifications relating to rental assistance from the Federal Emergency Management Agency in the wake of Tropical Storm Lee announced United States Attorney Zane David Memeger.
If convicted, Kevin Thomas faces a maximum possible sentence of 5 years in prison, 3 years of supervised release, a $250,000 fine and a $100 special assessment.
The case was investigated by the United States Department of Homeland Security OIG and United States Postal Inspection Service and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Joan E. Burnes.
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, 215-861-8525Owner of Trucking Company Pleads Guilty to Federal Tax ChargesRead the Press Release
Charleston, W.Va. – The owner of a trucking company in southern West Virginia pleaded guilty today for failing to collect and pay federal employment taxes announced United States Attorney Booth Goodwin. Richard L. Bailey, Jr., of Fayetteville, West Virginia, pleaded guilty to two federal tax charges.
Bailey owned and operated Duster Trucking Company, LLC, a coal hauling business in the Fayetteville area. Bailey was required to deduct income taxes, social security taxes, and Medicare taxes from his employees’ wages, and to pay these taxes to the federal government. In 2009, Bailey failed to collect and pay employment taxes in the amount of $16,170.23. In 2010, Bailey again failed to collect and pay employment taxes of $9,155.99.
Bailey is scheduled for sentencing on October 1, 2014. For each offense, Bailey faces a maximum sentence of five years in federal prison.
Orlando Man Pleads Guilty to Credit Card FraudRead the Press Release
Orlando, Florida – United States Attorney A. Lee Bentley, III announces that Tony Frith (35, Orlando) today pleaded guilty to access device fraud. Frith is facing up to 10 years in federal prison and a 3-year term of supervised release. The sentencing hearing has been set for September 15, 2014.
According to court documents, officers from the Orlando Police Department conducted a traffic stop of Frith’s vehicle on September 15, 2013. During the stop, a drug detection dog alerted to the presence of an illegal drug from inside Frith’s vehicle. Officers then conducted a search of the vehicle. During the search, one of the officers found a backpack in the vehicle’s trunk that contained a computer, an attached encoding device, and more than 200 counterfeit credit cards. Further investigation determined that the credit cards were counterfeit and that they had been re-encoded with stolen credit card numbers. A subsequent examination of Frith’s computer revealed that it contained more than 3,000 credit card numbers, as well as text files with names, dates of birth, and Social Security Numbers. The total amount of actual loss associated with the counterfeit credit cards and stolen credit card numbers found in Frith’s possession is over $470,000.
This case was investigated by the Orlando Police Department and the United States Secret Service. It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Roger B. Handberg.
Operators of Brian Center Health and Rehabilitation Center IndictedRead the Press Release
ROANOKE, VIRGINIA – A Federal Grand Jury in the Western District of Virginia in Roanoke has charged four individuals with a variety of Federal crimes, including racketeering [RICO], relating to the operation of a Weber City, Va., skilled nursing facility.
In an indictment returned Tuesday, June 24, 2014, the Grand Jury has charged Avi Klein, 45, of Miami Beach, Fla., Alicia Dietrich, 52, of Lancaster, Ohio, Charles R. Menten, 62, of Wilton Manors, Fla., and Vicki Cox, 46, of Kingsport, Tenn. with various crimes relating to the operation of the nursing facility formerly known as the Brian Center Health and Rehabilitation Center in Weber City, Va.
Klein has been charged with one count of racketeering conspiracy, one count of conspiracy to commit wire, mail and healthcare fraud, ten counts of wire fraud, one count of healthcare fraud, fifty-five counts of mail fraud, one count of obstruction of justice and one count of conspiracy to commit money laundering.
Dietrich has been charged with one count of racketeering conspiracy, one count of conspiracy to commit wire, mail and healthcare fraud, eight counts of wire fraud, one count of healthcare fraud, fifty-four counts of mail fraud, one count of obstruction of justice and one count of conspiracy to make false statements.
Menten has been charged with one count of racketeering conspiracy, one count of conspiracy to commit wire, mail and healthcare fraud, two counts of wire fraud, fifty-five counts of mail fraud and one count of conspiracy to commit money laundering.
Cox has been charged with one count of racketeering conspiracy, one count of conspiracy to commit wire, mail and healthcare fraud, eight counts of wire fraud, one count of healthcare fraud and one count of conspiracy to make false statements.
According to the indictment, the defendants, and their associates, operated the Brian Center, a 90 bed skilled nursing facility in Weber City, Va., to commit a multi-component fraud scheme that included defrauding Medicare and Virginia Medicaid by, among things, causing the facility to operate without sufficient certified nursing assistants and supplies, and in violation of Federal nursing facility requirements. The other components of the fraud scheme included defrauding vendors who supplied goods and services to the facility and defrauding the facility’s employees of money withheld from their paychecks for benefits that were not provided.
The indictment alleges that the defendants caused residents to live in unsanitary and unclean conditions, to be without good nutrition and personal and oral hygiene, including but not limited to a lack of bathing, toileting, grooming, cleaning, turning, feeding and meaningful restorative services, and to have neglected and untreated pressure sores.
In convicted the defendants face up to 20 years in federal prison and/or fines of up to $250,000 for each of the racketeering and fraud counts. The money laundering conspiracy charge carries a maximum of 10 years in prison and/or fines of up to $250,000, and the conspiracy to make false statements charge has a maximum penalty of 5 years in prison and/or fines of up to $250,000. Each defendant also faces significant forfeitures for the racketeering, fraud, and money laundering charges.
This case is the result of a cooperative investigation by the Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General, Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigation, the Virginia Attorney General’s Medicaid Fraud Control Unit, and the Department of Labor’s Employee Benefits Security Administration. Assistant United States Attorney’s Rick Mountcastle and Daniel Bubar and Virginia Assistant Attorney General and Special Assistant United States Attorney Eric Atkinson are prosecuting the case for the United States.
A Grand Jury Indictment is only a charge and not evidence of guilt. These defendants are entitled to a fair trial with the burden on the government to prove guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.
Operation Road Block Members of Drug Organization IndictedRead the Press Release
BATON ROUGE, LA - United States Attorney Walt Green announced today the unsealing of a federal grand jury indictment in Operation Road Block, an extensive investigation into a drug trafficking network operating in the Baton Rouge region.
The investigation is another effort by the Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF) Program which was established in 1982 to mount a comprehensive attack against organized drug traffickers. Today, the OCDETF Program is the centerpiece of the United States Attorney General’s drug strategy to reduce the availability of drugs by disrupting and dismantling major drug trafficking organizations and money laundering organizations and related criminal enterprises. The OCDETF Program operates nationwide and combines the resources and unique expertise of numerous federal, state, and local agencies in a coordinated attack against major drug trafficking and money laundering organizations.
The following eight individuals have been charged:
• Wilbert Mathes, age 38, of Zachary, Louisiana, is charged with conspiracy to distribute and possess with the intent to distribute cocaine and cocaine base; distribution of cocaine; possession of firearms by a convicted felon; unlawful use of a communications facility; and forfeiture. If convicted, Mathes faces a mandatory minimum of 5 years and up to 86 years imprisonment, 4 years of supervised release following imprisonment, forfeiture of criminal proceeds and property used to facilitate his crimes, and a $7,250,000 fine. He has been arrested and is detained pending trial.
• Joell Leggins, age 39, of Baton Rouge, Louisiana, is charged with conspiracy to distribute and possess with the intent to distribute cocaine and cocaine base; distribution of cocaine; possession with the intent to distribute cocaine; unlawful use of a communications facility; and forfeiture. If convicted, Leggins faces a mandatory minimum of 10 years and up to 156 years imprisonment, 4 years of supervised release following imprisonment, forfeiture of criminal proceeds and property used to facilitate his crimes, and a $14,250,000 fine. He is currently a fugitive.
• Marcus Thornton, age 38, of Baton Rouge, Louisiana, is charged with conspiracy to distribute and possess with the intent to distribute cocaine and cocaine base; distribution of cocaine; unlawful use of a communications facility; and forfeiture. If convicted, Thornton faces a mandatory minimum of 5 years and up to 64 years imprisonment, 4 years of supervised release following imprisonment, forfeiture of criminal proceeds and property used to facilitate his crimes, and a $7,250,000 fine. He is currently incarcerated on unrelated state charges and will be transported to federal court for his initial appearance at a later date.
• Damond Reynard Lockett, age 40, of Port Allen, Louisiana, is charged with conspiracy to distribute and possess with the intent to distribute cocaine and cocaine base; possession with the intent to distribute cocaine; unlawful use of a communications facility; and forfeiture. If convicted, Lockett faces a mandatory minimum of 5 years and up to 68 years imprisonment, 4 years of supervised release following imprisonment, forfeiture of criminal proceeds and property used to facilitate his crimes, and a $6,500,000 fine. He has been arrested and is detained pending trial.
• Lamont Jackson, age 39, of Baton Rouge, Louisiana, is charged with conspiracy to distribute and possess with the intent to distribute cocaine and cocaine base; unlawful use of a communications facility; and forfeiture. If convicted, Jackson faces a possible sentence of 32 years imprisonment, 4 years of supervised release following imprisonment, forfeiture of criminal proceeds and property used to facilitate his crimes, and a $1,750,000 fine. He has been arrested and is under pretrial supervision pending trial.
• Broderick D. Mathes, age 37, of Baton Rouge, Louisiana, is charged with conspiracy to distribute and possess with the intent to distribute cocaine and cocaine base; possession with the intent to distribute cocaine; possession of firearms by a convicted felon; unlawful use of a communications facility; and forfeiture. If convicted, Mathes faces a mandatory minimum of 5 years and up to 80 years imprisonment, 4 years of supervised release following imprisonment, forfeiture of criminal proceeds and property used to facilitate his crimes, and a $7,000,000 fine. He has been arrested and is detained pending trial.
• Robert Williams, age 37, of Baton Rouge, Louisiana, is charged with conspiracy to distribute and possess with the intent to distribute cocaine and cocaine base; and forfeiture. If convicted, Williams faces a possible sentence of 20 years imprisonment, 3 years of supervised release following imprisonment, forfeiture of criminal proceeds and property used to facilitate his crimes, and a $1,000,000 fine. He has been arrested and is under pretrial supervision pending trial.
• Caprice Morgan, age 28, of Baton Rouge, Louisiana, is charged with misprision of a felony. If convicted, Morgan faces a possible sentence of 3 years imprisonment, 1 year of supervised release following imprisonment, and a $250,000 fine. She has been arrested and is under pretrial supervision pending trial.
U.S. Attorney Green stated: “This indictment continues our battle against the drug trafficking organizations that plague our community. We will continue to work closely with our federal, state, and local partners to take drug dealers off the streets of Baton Rouge. I greatly appreciate the hardworking team of agents and prosecutors who contributed to this important operation.”
Joseph Shepard, the Assistant Special Agent-in-Charge of the New Orleans Division of the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration, stated: “This operation is the result of a successful collaborative effort by federal, state, and local law enforcement to pursue justice. This indictment should serve as a reminder that DEA, along with its partners, remains deeply committed to aggressively and swiftly pursuing those who violate the federal drug laws.”
This operation is being handled by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Louisiana, the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration, the Baton Rouge City Police Department, the East Baton Rouge Sheriff’s Office, the West Baton Rouge Parish Sheriff’s Office, the Louisiana State Police, and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF). This matter is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Jennifer Kleinpeter who serves as a Deputy Chief in the Criminal Division.
NOTE: An indictment is an accusation by the Grand Jury. The defendants are presumed innocent until and unless adjudicated guilty at trial or through a guilty plea.
Newport News Gang Member Sentenced to Life in Prison for MurderRead the Press Release
NEWPORT NEWS, Va. – Kevin L. Ashby, 25, of Newport News, Virginia, was sentenced today to life in prison for participating in a May 2009 murder, along with a concurrent sentence of 40 years for participating in the Thug Relations gang, which engaged in narcotics distribution, weapons violations and multiple acts of violence, including several murders, in the Newport News area.
Dana J. Boente, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia; Assistant Attorney General Leslie R. Caldwell of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division; Royce E. Curtin, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI’s Norfolk Field Office; and Richard W. Myers, Chief of Newport News Police, made the announcement after sentencing by U.S. District Judge Raymond A. Jackson.According to court documents, Ashby, and his co-defendant Antonio Fuller, were part of a criminal organization known locally as “Thug Relations.” Ashby pleaded guilty on March 12, 2014, and admitted to participating in a criminal enterprise that engaged in murders, attempted murder, witness intimidation, robberies and narcotics distribution. Specifically, Ashby admitted to participating in the murders of Andre Horton and Andre Julius Johnson on May 17, 2009, the murder and robbery of Lafayette Bailey on Dec. 15, 2009, and the murder and robbery of Lloyd Robinson on Jan. 8, 2010.
The Thug Relations gang is alternatively known as “the Duct,” “Warwick Lawnz,” “TR,” and “from the Duct to the Lawnz,” and it operates as a neighborhood gang in the Aqueduct Apartments, St. Michael’s Apartments, Mariner’s Landing Apartments and Heritage Trace Apartments, as well as the Warwick Lawns, Warwick Town Home, Sharon Drive and Savage Drive areas of Newport News.
Ashby’s co-defendant, Antonio Fuller, is set to begin trial on July 1, 2014. Ashby’s conviction raises to 44 the total number of Thug Relations gang members convicted in the Eastern District of Virginia for gang-related murder, narcotics distribution and other violence.
This investigation was led by FBI and the Safe Streets Task Force, with assistance from the Newport News Police and the Virginia State Police. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Howard J. Zlotnick and Lisa R. McKeel, and Trial Attorney Jonathan A. Ophardt of the Organized Crime and Gang Section in the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, are prosecuting the case.
A copy of this press release may be found on the website of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Virginia. Related court documents and information may be found on the website of the District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia or on PACER by searching for Case No. 4:13-cr-72.
New York City Woman Pleads Guilty in Manhattan Federal Court to Fraud in Connection with Federal Financial Aid to Attend Online State CollegeRead the Press Release
Preet Bharara, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, announced that STEPHANIE BROWN pled guilty today to engaging in fraud in connection with federal financial aid to attend an online state college. BROWN pled guilty in Manhattan federal court before U.S. Magistrate Judge James C. Francis IV and is scheduled to be sentenced on October 8, 2014, at 10:00 a.m.
According to Information, documents filed in the case, and statements made today in court:
In 2011, BROWN forged documents, made false statements, and submitted false and fraudulent documents to the United States Department of Education (“Department of Education”) in order to obtain federal financial aid for prospective students of a State of New York online college. As a result of BROWN’s fraud, the Department of Education provided federal financial aid to individuals who otherwise would not have qualified for such aid. As part of her plea agreement with the Government, BROWN agreed to make restitution in the amount of $117,840.
BROWN, 53, of Bronx, New York, is charged with one count of federal financial aid fraud. She faces a maximum of one year in prison; one year of supervised release; and a $25 special assessment. The statutory maximum sentence is prescribed by Congress and is provided here for informational purposes only, as any sentencing of the defendant would be determined by the judge. In addition to the prison sentence, BROWN has agreed to restitution in the amount of $117,840.
Mr. Bharara praised the investigative work of the Department of Education’s Office of the Inspector General.
This case is being prosecuted by the Office’s Public Corruption Unit. Assistant United States Attorney Carrie H. Cohen is in charge of the prosecution.
U.S. v. Stephanie Brown Information
New Haven Man Sentenced to 12 Years in Federal Prison for Distributing NarcoticsRead the Press Release
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Deirdre M. Daly, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, announced that TYLON VAUGHN, also known as “Bucky B,” 36, of New Haven, was sentenced today by Senior U.S. District Judge Ellen Bree Burns in New Haven to 144 months of imprisonment, followed by five years of supervised release, for distributing crack cocaine and marijuana.
VAUGHN is one of more than 100 individuals charged as a result of “Operation Bloodline,” a joint law enforcement investigation targeting narcotics trafficking and gang violence in the Dwight-Kensington and Fair Haven sections of New Haven. Led by the DEA New Haven Task Force and the New Haven and Hamden Police Departments, the year-long investigation included the use of court-authorized wiretaps on numerous telephones, extensive physical surveillance, controlled purchases of narcotics, execution of search warrants, and seizures of narcotics and firearms.
On December 6, 2013, a jury found VAUGHN guilty of one count of conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute, and to distribute, 280 grams or more of cocaine base (“crack cocaine”) and a quantity of marijuana, and two counts of distributing cocaine base. According to the evidence at trial, VAUGHN received distribution quantities of crack from co-defendant Britt Martin, also known as “Big Baby,” and distributed crack and marijuana, as well as other controlled substances, to customers in Fair Haven. In May and June 2011, investigators made two controlled purchases of crack from VAUGHN.
VAUGHN’s criminal history includes 11 prior convictions, six of which were for drug offenses.
Martin pleaded guilty to his role in this conspiracy and is currently serving a 120-month prison term.
This matter has been investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration’s New Haven Task Force, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, and the New Haven, Hamden, West Haven, North Haven, Branford, Ansonia and Meriden Police Departments. The United States Marshals Service, the Connecticut State Police, the Connecticut Department of Correction, Parole and Community Services and the Milford, Hartford, New Britain, North Branford and Stratford Police Departments have provided valuable assistance to the investigation.
This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys S. Dave Vatti and Marc Silverman, with assistance from Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Charles Rombeau.
PUBLIC AFFAIRS CONTACT:
U.S. ATTORNEY'S OFFICE
Tom Carson
(203) 821-3722 [email protected]Monmouth County, N.J., Doctor Indicted on Oxycodone Distribution Conspiracy, Money Laundering and Tax ChargesRead the Press Release
TRENTON, N.J. – A Monmouth County, N.J., doctor who allegedly wrote illegal prescriptions for oxycodone was indicted on charges that he participated in a conspiracy to illegally distribute the medication, laundered money and failed to pay taxes, U.S. Attorney Paul J. Fishman announced.
Dr. Paul DiLorenzo, 60, of Ocean Township, N.J., is charged in a superseding indictment, returned today by a federal grand jury, with one count of conspiracy to distribute oxycodone, one count of structuring financial transactions, one count of conspiracy to launder money and eight counts of failing to collect and pay payroll taxes.
According to documents filed in this case:
Oxycodone, the active ingredient in brand name pills such as Oxycontin, Roxicodone and Percocet, is a Schedule II controlled substance, meaning that it has a high potential for abuse, is only currently accepted in medical use applications with severe restrictions, and abuse of the drug may lead to severe psychological or physical dependence.
Between 2009 and June 27, 2012, DiLorenzo allegedly issued prescriptions to conspirators for drugs containing oxycodone outside the usual course of medical practice and not for any legitimate medical purpose. DiLorenzo charged purported patients $500 in cash for the first visit, $300 in cash for each successive visit and an additional $150 in cash for urine tests.
DiLorenzo employed three conspirators to act as “staff” at his office despite the fact that none of them had any medical training. DiLorenzo provided one of his conspirators with blank prescription pads and stamps in order to generate oxycodone prescriptions for purported patients. DiLorenzo would allegedly sign the prescriptions, often without any medical examination or only a cursory examination. DiLorenzo’s conspirators would obtain oxycodone pills at pharmacies and then distribute the pills.
DiLorenzo allegedly agreed to split the proceeds with some of his conspirators, but never reported or paid any employment taxes.DiLorenzo structured his share of the proceeds, depositing $1,090,939 in cash into various accounts via more than 150 separate transactions. All but one of the deposits was for an amount less than $10,000, which is the amount that requires the filing of a Currency Transaction Report (CTR). The one deposit for more than $10,000 – a $10,044 cash deposit – was accompanied by a deposit slip in the amount of $9,544. After being told by the teller that the amount was in excess of $10,000, DiLorenzo attempted to cancel the deposit rather than have the bank prepare and file a CTR. DiLorenzo also accumulated $521,212.25 in cash that was found at his house and the house of his parents.
The count of conspiracy to distribute oxycodone carries a maximum potential penalty of 20 years in prison and a $1 million fine. The structuring count carries a maximum potential penalty of 10 years in prison and a $500,000 fine. The conspiracy to launder money count carries a maximum potential penalty of 20 years in prison and a $500,000 fine. The tax counts each carry a maximum potential penalty of five years in prison and a $250, 000 fine.
U.S. Attorney Fishman credited special agents of the FBI, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Aaron T. Ford; special agents of IRS-Criminal Investigation, under the direction of Acting Special Agent in Charge Jonathan D. Larsen; and special agents of the Drug Enforcement Administration, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Carl Kotowski, with the investigation leading to today’s indictment.
The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorney R. Joseph Gribko of the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Trenton and Tino Lisella, trial attorney with the U.S. Department of Justice, Tax Division.
The charge and allegations contained in the superseding indictment are merely accusations, and the defendant is considered innocent unless and until proven guilty.
14-233
Defense counsel: Robert DeGroot Esq., Newark
DiLorenzo, Paul Superceding Indictment
Moline Man Sentenced for Sexually Exploiting A MinorRead the Press Release
Rock Island, Ill. — A Moline, Ill., man, Daniel C. McLeod, 26, was sentenced yesterday for the unlawful transportation of a minor with the intent to engage in criminal sexual activity, as announced by Central District of Illinois U.S. Attorney Jim Lewis. U.S. District Judge Sara Darrow ordered McLeod to serve 200 months (16 years, 8 months) in federal prison followed by 10 years of supervised release following his release from prison.
On Jan. 24, 2014, McLeod pled guilty to the offense. According to court documents and evidence presented by the government during court hearings, McLeod traveled to Iowa in December 2012 and picked up a 13-year-old female and brought her to Moline to have sex with her. The female stayed with McLeod for approximately two weeks until the victim notified family members who notified local authorities. During the two week period, McLeod admitted he had sex with the minor multiple times, and occasionally filmed the activity using his cell phone.
McLeod has remained in the custody of the U.S. Marshals Service since his arrest in January 2013.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Kirk W. Schuler prosecuted the case. The charges were investigated by the U.S. Secret Service’s Quad Cities Cyber-Crime Unit and the Moline Police Department.
This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice. Led by 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 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.
Milwaukee Man Sentenced to 4 Years in Prison for Wire Fraud and Money Laundering in Mortgage Fraud SchemeRead the Press Release
United States Attorney James L. Santelle announced that on June 25, 2014, Billy Cannon, Sr. (49) of Milwaukee, WI, was sentenced to 48 months in prison for wire fraud and money laundering. His incarceration will be concurrent to a 16 year sentence he received earlier this year in state court for drug and firearm offenses.
From at least June 2006 through July 2007, Cannon worked as a mortgage broker and used straw buyers to fraudulently obtain mortgages for numerous properties on the north and northwest side of the city of Milwaukee. Loan applications submitted to lenders by Cannon contained material misrepresentations which made the straw buyers more appealing candidates for a mortgage. The straw buyers almost uniformly defaulted on the loans. In all, nearly a million dollars was lost by lenders as a result of the scheme. Cannon has been ordered to pay restitution to the lenders for the losses incurred.
This case was investigated by the Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigation and was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Lisa Wesley.
Mescalero Apache Man Sentenced to Three Years in Federal Prison for Assaulting ToddlerRead the Press Release
ALBUQUERQUE – Alcario Emilio Provencio, 24, a member and resident of the Mescalero Apache Nation, was sentenced this afternoon to 36 months in federal prison followed by three years of supervised release for assaulting a minor in Indian Country.
Provencio was arrested on April 15, 2013, on a criminal complaint charging him with assault resulting in serious bodily injury. According to the complaint, Provencio assaulted a 16-month-old child who was in his care on Oct. 10, 2012, in a residence located on the Mescalero Apache Reservation. As a result of the assault, the victim sustained serious injuries including compression fractures of two vertebrae, retinal hemorrhaging, a fractured rib and numerous bruises on the head, face, neck and torso.
Provencio was in tribal custody on tribal charges related to the assault until his arrest on federal charges. He has been in federal custody since his federal arrest.
On Oct. 28, 2013, Provencio entered a guilty plea to a felony information charging him with assault of a person under the age of 16 years resulting in substantial bodily injury. Provencio admitted assaulting the victim by intentionally striking the child, and acknowledged that the victim sustained substantial bodily injury as a result of the assault.
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 Federal Prison for Domestic Assault by A Habitual Offender ConvictionRead the Press Release
ALBUQUERQUE – Lonnie Ray Youngman, 45, was sentenced this afternoon in federal court in Las Cruces, N.M., to 38 months if federal prison to be followed by three years of supervised release for his conviction on assault with a dangerous weapon and domestic assault by a habitual offender charges. The sentence was announced by U.S. Attorney Damon P. Martinez and DuWayne W. Honahni, Sr., Special Agent in Charge of District IV of BIA’s Office of Justice Services.
Youngman, a member of the Mescalero Apache Nation who resides in Mescalero, N.M., was arrested on July 8, 2013, on a criminal complaint alleging that he assaulted his domestic partner, a Mescalero Apache woman. Youngman subsequently was indicted and charged with assaulting the victim with a dangerous weapon on Jan. 6, 2012, and assaulting the victim on Jan. 5, 2012. Youngman was charged as a habitual domestic offender because he previously had been convicted on domestic assault charges in May 1996 and April 2010.
On March 5, 2014, Youngman entered a guilty plea to the indictment and admitted assaulting the victim on Jan. 5, 2012, by striking her with a wooden table leg. He also admitted assaulting the victim on Jan. 6, 2012, by punching, kicking and biting her. The victim sustained serious bodily injuries, including contusions on the face, scalp, neck and arm, a deviated septum, and bite marks, as a result of the assaults. Both assaults occurred within the Mescalero Apache Reservation.
This case was investigated by the Mescalero Agency of 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 pursuant to the Tribal Special Assistant U.S. Attorney (Tribal SAUSA) Pilot Project in the District of New Mexico which is sponsored by the Justice Department’s Office on Violence Against Women under a grant administered by the Pueblo of Laguna. The Tribal SAUSA Pilot Project seeks to train tribal prosecutors in federal law, procedure and investigative techniques to increase the likelihood that every viable violent offense against Native women is prosecuted in either federal court or tribal court, or both. The Tribal SAUSA Pilot Project was largely driven by input gathered from annual tribal consultations on violence against women, and is another step in the Justice Department's on-going efforts to increase engagement, coordination and action on public safety in tribal communities.
Mescalero Apache Man Sentenced for Federal Assault ConvictionRead the Press Release
ALBUQUERQUE – Vincent Magoosh, 23, a member of the Mescalero Apache Nation who resides in Mescalero, N.M., was sentenced this afternoon to eight months of incarceration for his assault conviction. Magoosh then will be on supervised release for two years, six months of which will be served at a half-way house.
Magoosh was arrested on Aug. 2, 2013, on a criminal complaint alleging that he assaulted another Mescalero Apache man on April 28, 2013 with a dangerous weapon. Magoosh has been in federal custody since that time.
On Jan. 21, 2014, Magoosh pled guilty to a criminal information charging him with assault with a dangerous weapon, and admitted assaulting the victim on April 28, 2013. In his plea agreement, Magoosh said that an argument with the victim escalated to a physical confrontation during which he armed himself with a broken table leg with nails in it. Magoosh swung the table leg at the victim and struck him in the head causing a cut to the left side of the victim’s head.
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 E. Garreth Winstead, III of the U.S. Attorney’s Las Cruces Branch Office.
McLaughlin Man Charged with AssaultRead the Press Release
United States Attorney Brendan V. Johnson announced that a McLaughlin, South Dakota, man has been indicted by a federal grand jury for Aggravated Assault Against a Law Enforcement Officer, and Assault Resulting in Serious Bodily Injury.
Brett Claymore, age 21, was indicted on June 17, 2014. He appeared before U.S. Magistrate Judge William D. Gerdes on June 24, 2014, and pled not guilty to the Indictment.
The maximum penalty upon conviction is up to 10 years in custody and/or a $250,000 fine, 3 years of supervised release, and up to $200 to the Federal Crime Victims Fund. Restitution may also be ordered.
The Indictment alleges that on June 15, 2014, Claymore unlawfully assaulted a Corson County Deputy Sheriff, which resulted in serious bodily injury.
The charges are merely accusations and Claymore is presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty.
The investigation is being conducted by the Bureau of Indian Affairs, Standing Rock Law Enforcement Agency. Assistant U.S. Attorney Troy R. Morley is prosecuting the case.
Claymore was released on bond pending trial. A trial date has not been set.
Marcel Henderson Sentenced to 71 Months in Prison for Receipt of A Firearm by A FelonRead the Press Release
St. Thomas, USVI –United States Attorney Ronald W. Sharpe stated that Marcel Henderson, 25, of St. Thomas was sentenced today in United States District Court to 71 months in prison for the illegal possession of firearms. Henderson, who is a convicted felon, is prohibited under federal law from possessing firearms. After serving his prison sentence, Henderson will be on Federal supervised release for 3 years. Henderson, who has been incarcerated since his arrest last December, was remanded to the custody of the United States Marshals Service.
According to court records, on December 12, 2013, officers of Customs and Border Protection intercepted a package containing four firearms and 230 rounds of ammunition which hand been mailed to St. Thomas. Two of the firearms had obliterated serial numbers. Court records also show that the intended recipient of this package was Henderson. Further investigation revealed that Henderson was convicted in the Virgin Islands Superior Court on August 5, 2010 for attempted armed robbery for which he received a sentence of three years’ incarceration, with all suspended except four months. The defendant pled guilty on February 24, 2014.
The case was investigated by the United States Postal Inspection Service (USPIS); Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco Firearms and Explosives (ATF); U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) and the Virgin Islands Police Department (VIPD ). The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Ishmael A. Meyers, Jr.
Man Who Allegedly Escaped from Prison in 1973 Charged with Identity Theft and Unlawful Possession of A FirearmRead the Press Release
Ronald Dwaine Carnes, age 69, from Waterloo, Iowa, has been charged with misuse of Social Security numbers, aggravated identity theft and possession of a firearm by a felon and fugitive from justice. The charges are contained in a Complaint filed on June 23, 2014, in United States District Court in Cedar Rapids.
The Complaint alleges that Carnes was convicted of Robbery with Firearms in North Carolina in November 1970. He allegedly escaped from prison on or about August 4, 1973. Following his alleged escape, Carnes allegedly lived under the identities of two different persons to avoid detection by law enforcement. Carnes also allegedly used the two identities to collect Social Security benefits and to apply for Iowa drivers’ licenses. During an April 14, 2014, search of Carnes’ residence in Waterloo, Iowa, law enforcement agents allegedly found certified copies of birth certificates for both identities as well as a handgun and ammunition.Carnes appeared today in federal court in Cedar Rapids and was held without bond. Carnes’ next appearance for a preliminary hearing is set for July 9, 2014, at 4:00 p.m.
As with any criminal case, a charge is merely an accusation and a defendant is presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty.
The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Anthony Morfitt and was investigated by Social Security Administration, Office of the Inspector General, Office of Investigations.
Court file information is available at https://ecf.iand.uscourts.gov/cgi-bin/login.pl. The case file number is 14-mj-157.
Man Sentenced on Marriage Fraud ChargeRead the Press Release
BUFFALO, N.Y. - U.S. Attorney William J. Hochul, Jr. announced today that Adil Alakbarov, a citizen of Azerbaijian who had been residing in Cheektowaga, N.Y., and who was convicted of making a false statement on an immigration document, was sentenced to time served (5 ½ months) by Chief U.S. District Court Judge William M. Skretny.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Marie P. Grisanti, who handled the case, stated that Alakbarov attempted to become a U.S. citizen through marriage, and went to great lengths to convince an immigration officer that he was in a valid marriage. The defendant also claimed that he and his wife were residing at the same address. In reality, the marriage was a sham, and the defendant and his purported wife did not live at the same address.
When the Alakbarov learned that he was going to be charged in federal court, he fled to Mexico. The defendant was later arrested as he attempted to board a plane destined to Turkey.
The sentencing is the culmination of an investigation on the part of Special Agents of Immigration and Custom Enforcement, Homeland Security Investigations, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge James C. Spero and Customs and Border Patrol in California.