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15 May 2014
Dallas Man Sentenced to More Than 17 Years in Federal Prison and Ordered to Pay Nearly $16 Million in Restitution for Role in Massive Stolen Identity Refund Fraud SchemeRead the Press Release
DALLAS — A Dallas man who was convicted at trial on multiple felony offenses related to his scheme to use stolen identity information to fraudulently obtain millions of dollars in tax refunds, was sentenced this afternoon in federal court in Dallas, announced U.S. Attorney Sarah R. Saldaña of the Northern District of Texas.
Ogiesoba City Osula, 38, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Barbara M. G. Lynn to 17 years and six months in federal prison and ordered to pay $15.9 in restitution. Osula was convicted, following a nearly weeklong trial in October 2013, on one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud, mail fraud and bank fraud; seven counts of presenting fraudulent claims upon the U.S.; two counts of fraud in connection with access devices and aiding and abetting; and six counts of aggravated identity theft and aiding and abetting.
“The investigation and prosecution of individuals who engage in stolen identity refund fraud (SIRF) is a priority in this district,” said U.S. Attorney Saldaña. “We are committed to working with IRS Criminal Investigation and the FBI, as well as other federal, state and local law enforcement partners, to combat all SIRF-related crimes.”
Last month, co-defendants George Ojonugwa, 32, of Garland, Texas, and Eseos Igiebor, 43, of Richardson, Texas, were sentenced. Ojonugwa was sentenced to 174 months and ordered to pay $15,979,187 in restitution. Igiebor was sentenced to 96 months and ordered to pay $9,660,658 in restitution.
Late last year, Ebenezer Legbedion, 42, of Lagos, Nigeria, was sentenced to 40 months and ordered to pay more than $1 million in restitution, and Evelyn Nyaboke Haley, 34, of Dallas, was sentenced to 60 months and ordered to pay approximately $5.7 million in restitution.
Ojonugwa, Igiebor and Legbedion each pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud. Igiebor also pleaded guilty to one count of aggravated identity theft. Haley pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to defraud the government with respect to claims.
“The defendants who perpetrated this scheme systematically defrauded the government and the American taxpayer,” said Richard Weber, Chief IRS Criminal Investigation. “The successful take down of this cross-country identity theft ring and the lengthy sentences for the perpetrators sends a clear message that the Internal Revenue Service stands steadfast in the fight against identity theft.”
The defendants conspired to defraud the U.S. by using stolen identity information and false information to create and electronically file false tax returns to claim refunds. The defendants had the refunds credited to stored value cards or bank accounts opened with stolen taxpayer identity information. Even while the defendants fraudulently obtained millions of dollars in tax refunds, they filed additional fraudulent returns, attempting to obtain millions more in tax refunds for their own use and benefit.
“The number of stolen identities and fraudulent tax refund monies in this case are staggering,” said Diego Rodriguez, Special Agent in Charge of FBI Dallas. “We will continue to work with our federal, state and local partners to identify those who turn to computer crime and intrusions in order to profit at the public’s expense, and to hold them responsible for the ruinous impact they impose on the individuals they victimize.”
During Osula’s trial, the government presented evidence that Osula and his coconspirators were sending information to and trading information with, a group running a similar scheme in Cincinnati, Ohio. On Nov. 8, 2011, police in a Cincinnati suburb questioned Osula and Ojonugwa, who were in a parked car after midnight with the leader of the Cincinnati ring. A drug detection dog alerted on the vehicle, and when it was searched, police found more than $300,000 in cash and money orders and numerous debit cards. During that incident, while Osula was in a police car and waiting to be questioned, he ate a debit card.
According to documents filed in this case and statements made in court:
SIRF is a common type of fraud committed against the United States government that results in more than $2 billion in losses annually to the United States Treasury. SIRF schemes generally share a number of hallmarks:
- SIRF perpetrators obtain personal identifying information, including Social Security numbers and dates of birth, from unwitting individuals.
- SIRF perpetrators complete Individual Income Tax Return Form using the fraudulently-obtained information and falsifying wages earned, taxes withheld and other data. Perpetrators use data to make it appear that the “taxpayers” listed on the fraudulent 1040 forms are entitled to tax refunds – when in fact, the various tax withholdings indicated on the fraudulent 1040s have not been paid by the listed “taxpayers,” and no refunds are due. Perpetrators direct the U.S. Treasury Department to issue the refunds through checks (Tax Refund Treasury Checks) generated by the fraudulent 1040 forms to locations they control or can access, in various ways.
- With Tax Refund Treasury Checks now in hand, SIRF perpetrators generate cash proceeds. Certain SIRF perpetrators sell Tax Refund Treasury Checks at a discount to face value. In turn, the buyers then cash the Tax Refund Treasury Checks, either themselves or using straw account holders, by cashing checks at banks or check cashing businesses, or by depositing checks into bank accounts. When cashing or depositing Tax Refund Treasury Checks, SIRF perpetrators often present false or fraudulent identification documents in the names of the “taxpayers” to whom the checks are payable.
While this investigation was conducted by IRS Criminal Investigation and the FBI, the U.S. Secret Service Office in Cincinnati, Ohio, and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Ohio, provided substantial assistance.
Assistant U.S. Attorneys Mark Penley, Christopher Stokes and P.J. Meitl prosecuted.
Corpus Christi Doctor Heads to Prison for Fraudulent Health Care Billing SchemeRead the Press Release
CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas - Dr. Roque Joel Ramirez, 48, of Robstown, has been ordered to federal prison following his conviction of mail fraud in connection with his scheme to defraud Medicare and Medicaid through fraudulent billings, announced United States Attorney Kenneth Magidson and Texas Attorney General Greg Abbott. Ramirez pleaded guilty Feb. 18, 2014.
Today, Senior U.S. District Judge Hayden Head, who accepted the guilty plea, handed Ramirez a sentence of 37 months in federal prison. He was further ordered to pay a $10,000 fine and $370,638.28 in restitution to Medicare and Medicaid and will also be required to serve three years of supervised release following completion of the prison term. In handing down the sentence, Judge Head noted how Ramirez had abused his position of trust within the health care community.
Ramirez, a licensed physician in Texas since 1997 and owner of Health Resolutions Inc., was indicted by a federal grand jury on Oct. 9, 2013, for a scheme to defraud Medicare and Medicaid through fraudulent billings. He opted to enter a guilty plea on the day he was set to begin trial to one count of mail fraud for using the United States Postal Service (USPS) for the purpose executing his scheme. His medical office in Corpus Christi is now closed.
Ramirez admitted he knowingly and willfully engaged in a scheme to defraud Medicare and Texas Medicaid and submitted false and fraudulent billings for medical services he did not provide. He also admitted he committed mail fraud by using USPS to receive payment on the fraudulent bills.
Court documents indicated that Ramirez knowingly and willfully engaged in the scheme from May 2008 through December 2011 by submitting fraudulent billings for physician services he did not provide. Thousands of false and fraudulent bills were submitted, according to the charges. Ramirez billed for medical services he claimed he personally provided to patients who had actually died prior to the dates of his claimed services. He also submitted bills claiming he personally provided services to patients at his clinic when he was actually overseas or in another state. Some of the bills also indicated he would have personally worked more than 24 hours in a single day. Court documents also alleged that when he provided medical services to Medicare and Medicaid patients in nursing homes, he would send fraudulent bills claiming he had seen the patients in private residences in order to collect the higher fees paid for house calls.
Ramirez was permitted to remain on bond and voluntarily surrender to a U.S. Bureau of Prisons facility to be determined in the near future.
The investigation was conducted by the FBI, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services-Office of Inspector General and the Texas Attorney General’s Medicaid Fraud Control Unit. Assistant United States Attorney (AUSA) Robert D. Thorpe Jr. and Special AUSA Rex G. Beasley are prosecuting.
Connecticut Man Sentenced to 30 Months in Federal Prison for Role in $3.2 Million Mortgage Fraud SchemeRead the Press Release
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Deirdre M. Daly, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, today announced that DOMINGOS DIAS, 44, of formerly of Trumbull and currently residing in Easton, was sentenced yesterday by U.S. District Judge Stefan R. Underhill in Bridgeport to 30 months of imprisonment, followed by three years of supervised release, for his involvement in a mortgage fraud scheme that caused more than $3 million in losses to lenders.
According to court documents and statements made in court, DIAS participated in a conspiracy to fraudulently obtain real estate loans from banks and mortgage lenders through the use of straw buyers. As part of the scheme, DIAS recruited the straw buyers and then created false verifications of employment, false verifications of rent and other false documentation that was used to qualify the straw buyers for the fraudulent mortgages. Once the mortgage loans were closed, DIAS distributed some of the proceeds of the scheme to the straw buyers, and kept some of the money for himself.
DIAS sometimes used his wholly-owned limited liability company, Peoples Choice General Contractors, to falsely verify the employment of straw buyers, and also to receive mortgage funds for ”services rendered” when, in fact, no general contracting or other services had been provided to the seller or the buyer of the properties.
In 2006 and 2007, DIAS conspired to defraud lenders in relation to the purchase of three residential real estate properties in Bridgeport and one in Stratford. DIAS also admitted that the conspiracy involved the fraudulent purchase of at least 10 other properties in Connecticut and Indiana, causing a total of $3.2 million in losses to lenders.
Judge Underhill ordered DIAS to pay restitution of $3,208,450 to the victim mortgage lenders.
On November 18, 2010, a federal grand jury returned an indictment charging DIAS and his alleged co-conspirator, Hector Natera, formerly of Bridgeport, with conspiracy, wire fraud and bank fraud offenses. On February 9, 2012, DIAS pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud and bank fraud, and seven counts of wire fraud.
Natera is currently being sought by law enforcement. Citizens with information that may be helpful to the investigation of this matter are urged to call the FBI at 203-333-3512.
As to Natera, U.S. Attorney Daly stressed that an indictment is not evidence of guilt. Charges are only allegations, and each defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.
This matter is being investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Ann M. Nevins.
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(203) 821-3722 [email protected]Connecticut Man Pleads Guilty to Distributing CocaineRead the Press Release
Contact: Joel B. Casey
Assistant United States Attorney
Tel: (207) 945-0373Bangor, Maine: United States Attorney Thomas E. Delahanty II announced that Richard
A. Kincaid, III, of Waterbury, Connecticut pleaded guilty today in U.S. District Court in Bangor to distributing cocaine.According to court records, on March 25, 2014, the defendant drove from Connecticut to a residence in Bangor to deliver seven ounces of cocaine and to collect about $3,000 from his customer for a prior drug delivery. He was arrested a week later when he returned to Bangor.
The defendant faces up to 20 years in prison, a $1,000,000 fine, or both. He will be sentenced after the completion of a presentence investigation report by the U.S. Probation Office.
The case was investigated by the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration and the Maine
Drug Enforcement Agency.Clinton County, Kentucky Man Charged with Filing False Tax ReturnsRead the Press Release
– Allegedly failed to report earnings and pay income taxes on $386,183.67 during a six year period and overstated business expenses of $581,519.91
BOWLING GREEN, Ky. – A Clinton County, Kentucky man was charged by a federal grand jury in Bowling Green, Kentucky this week, for failing to report approximately $386,183.67 in income and royalty income during a six year period and for overstating business expenses of $581,519.91 announced David J. Hale, United States Attorney for the Western District of Kentucky.
According to the six count indictment, Steven L. Burchett did willfully make and subscribe U.S. Individual Tax Returns, for the calendar years 2006 through 2011,which were written under the penalty of perjury and filed with the Internal Revenue Service, (IRS) and included information he did not believe to be true and correct.
Specifically, the indictment states that on October 11, 2008, defendant Burchett filed a U.S. Individual Tax Return for calendar year 2006, with the IRS, in which he failed to report approximately $224,735.76 of additional income on Form 1040 line 22.
On October 8, 2008, defendant Burchett filed a U.S. Individual Tax Return, for the calendar year 2007, with the IRS, in which he failed to report approximately $27,003.91 of additional income on Form 1040, Line 22.
On October 15, 2009, defendant Burchett filed a U.S. Individual Tax Return, for the calendar year 2008, with the IRS, and included information he did not believe to be true and correct. Specifically, the return overstated approximately $41,394 in business expenses on Schedule C, Line 28, and failed to report royalty income of approximately $18,236 and understated approximately $56,895 in additional income on Form 1040, Line 22.
On April 15, 2010, defendant Burchett filed a U.S. Individual Tax Return, for the calendar year 2009, which was made under the penalty of perjury and was filed with the IRS, and included information he did not believe to be true and correct. Specifically, the return overstated approximately $90,650 in business expenses on Schedule C, Line 28, and failed to report approximately $38,323 in royalty income and understated approximately $123,225 in additional income on Form 1040, Line 22.
On April 15, 2011, defendant Burchett filed a U.S. Individual Tax Return, for the calendar year 2010, which was made under the penalty of perjury and was filed with the IRS, and included information he did not believe to be true and correct. Specifically, the return overstated approximately $305,564 in business expenses on Schedule C, Line 28, and failed to report approximately $64,490 in royalty income and understated approximately $360,380 in additional income on Form 1040, Line 22.
On April 15, 2012, defendant Burchett filed a U.S. Individual Tax Return, for the calendar year 2011, which was made under the penalty of perjury and was filed with the IRS, and included information he did not believe to be true and correct. Specifically, the return overstated approximately $72,050 in business expenses on Schedule C, Line 28, and failed to report approximately$74,778 in royalty income and understated approximately $135,611 in additional income on Form 1040, Line 22.
If convicted at trial, Burchett faces up to three years in prison on each of the six charges for a total of eighteen years, a total fine of $1,500,000., and a period of up to six years of supervised release.
This case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Joshua Judd and is being investigated by the Criminal Investigation division of the Internal Revenue Service.
The indictment of a person by a Grand Jury is an accusation only and that person is presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty.
City of North Miami Resident Sentenced in Stolen Tax Refund 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, José A. Gonzalez, Special Agent in Charge, Internal Revenue Service, Criminal Investigation (IRS-CI), and Tom Weschler, Chief, City of Naples Police Department, announce that Marie Jean Baptiste, 22, of North Miami, was sentenced today to 12 months and one day in prison, to be followed by three years of supervised release. Baptiste was previously convicted by a federal jury of three counts of stealing tax refunds, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Sections 641 and 2.
According to the indictment and evidence presented at trial, Baptiste received four tax refunds that she knew were stolen, and converted them for her own use and gain. Baptiste participated in a scheme in which fraudulent tax returns were filed directing the tax refunds to be directly deposited into her bank account. After the tax refunds were deposited into her bank account, Baptiste would withdraw the tax proceeds from the bank and various ATMs for her own use and gain.
Mr. Ferrer commended the investigative efforts of the FBI, IRS-CI and the City of Naples Police Department. This case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Gera R. Peoples.
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.
Citizen of Israel Charged with Violating U.S. Arms Export LawsRead the Press Release
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Deirdre M. Daly, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, Bruce M. Foucart, Special Agent in Charge of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) in Boston, and Craig Rupert, Special Agent in Charge of the Defense Criminal Investigative Service Northeast Field Office, today announced that ELIYAHU COHEN, also known as ELI COHEN, 63, of Bnei Brak, Israel, has been arrested on federal felony charges of conspiracy to export U.S. defense articles, unlawful export of U.S. defense articles, and conspiracy to commit money laundering. This matter stems from a long-term investigation into a network of military parts purchasers and brokers involved in an alleged conspiracy to export controlled military parts from the U.S. in violation of U.S. federal criminal law.
“The U.S. Attorney’s office in Connecticut is committed to working with our law enforcement partners here and abroad to ensure that sensitive military items built in the United States do not fall into the wrong hands,” said U.S. Attorney Deirdre Daly. “Willful and repeated violations of our export laws will be prosecuted to the full extent of the law.”
“One of Homeland Security Investigations highest priorities is to prevent illicit procurement networks and foreign nations from illegally obtaining U.S. military products and sensitive dual-use technologies,” said Bruce Foucart, special agent in charge of HSI Boston. “The scope and magnitude of this case illustrates just how real that threat is, HSI will continue to aggressively pursue those who violate U.S. export laws, especially when our national security could be jeopardized.”
“The arrest of Eli Cohen represents the culmination of a long-term collaborative effort amongst investigators and prosecutors in bringing an alleged international arms trafficker to justice,” said Craig Rupert, Special Agent in Charge of the DCIS Northeast Field Office. “As long as there are those who seek to illegally acquire sensitive U.S. military technology, DCIS will remain committed to combating their efforts and protecting America’s Warfighters.”
On February 6, 2007, a grand jury in the District of Connecticut returned an indictment charging COHEN, his companies, Q.P.S. Ltd., Wheels, Inc., P. AD. Ltd. and R.S. P. Spare Parts Ltd., and others, with conspiring to violate the Arms Export Control Act (“AECA”), and the International Traffic in Arms Regulations (“ITAR”), violating those laws, and engaging in a conspiracy to commit money laundering, and aiding and abetting. On May 8, 2013, a grand jury returned a nine-count superseding indictment, which includes five counts charged in 2007, two additional AECA violations and two violations of the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (“IEEPA”).
COHEN was arrested in Israel on May 12, 2014, and a redacted superseding indictment was ordered unsealed yesterday by U.S. District Judge Stefan R. Underhill in Bridgeport, Connecticut. COHEN is currently detained in Israel and the U.S. government is seeking his extradition.
According to the indictment, the export from the U.S. of arms, munitions, and related military components, and the technology to build such items, is heavily regulated by federal statutes and corresponding regulations. The indictment alleges that between 2000 and 2004, COHEN, working with brokers in the U.S., arranged for the export of several defense articles, including U.S. origin Hawk Missile System components, from the U.S. The Hawk Missile System is a medium range surface-to-air missile system designed to destroy missiles in flight. It is no longer used by the United States but is used by the Islamic Republic of Iran. At no time did COHEN or any of his co-conspirators apply for or receive a license or other authorization from the U.S. Department of State to export the defense articles.
The indictment further alleges that in 2012 and 2013, COHEN conspired to ship U.S. origin defense articles, specifically F-4C and F-14 aircraft fighter jet replacement parts, from Israel to Iran, via Athens, Greece, without U.S. government authorization.
If convicted of all of the counts of the superseding indictment in which he is charged, COHEN faces a maximum term of imprisonment of 130 years and a fine of up to $7.5 million.
U.S. Attorney Daly stressed that an indictment is not evidence of guilt. Charges are only allegations, and a defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.
This matter is being investigated by HSI New Haven, HSI Attaché Tel Aviv, the Defense Criminal Investigative Service and the Department of Commerce Bureau of Industry and Security’s Office of Export Enforcement, with the cooperation and assistance of the Israeli National Police, the Israeli Ministry of Defense, Directorate of Security for the Defense Establishment, the Israel Tax Authority and the International Department of the Israeli State Attorney’s Office. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Sarala V. Nagala and Paul H. McConnell, and Trial Attorney David Recker of the Justice Department’s National Security Division, Counterespionage Section.
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(203) 821-3722 [email protected]Child Pornography Prosecutions This WeekRead the Press Release
SACRAMENTO, Calif. — United States Attorney Benjamin B. Wagner announced that this week, in the Eastern District of California, two defendants were sentenced, three defendants pleaded guilty and one defendant was indicted for child pornography offenses. These cases were brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative by the Department of Justice to combat the epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse.
Jason Garrett Duran Sentenced to 20 Years in Prison, 2:12-cr-371 TLN
Jason Garrett Duran, 44, formerly of Bishop, was sentenced on Thursday by United States District Judge Troy L. Nunley to 20 years in prison for possession of child pornography. Duran was convicted by the State of California in June 2002 of a felony involving the aggravated sexual abuse, sexual abuse, or abusive sexual contact involving a minor and received a 10-year sentence for that crime. Approximately three months after being paroled, Duran began acquiring a collection of child pornography and engaging in sexually explicit online chats. FBI agents conducted a parole search of his Sacramento apartment on October 10, 2012, and found approximately 375 images and one video of child pornography on his computer and a removable thumb drive.At sentencing, Judge Nunley stated, “Child pornography is not a victimless crime.” He told Duran that he was “a person who committed one of the most horrendous and atrocious crimes a person could commit against the most vulnerable members of our community – our children.”
This case was the product of an investigation by the District of Columbia Metropolitan Police Department, and the FBI’s Washington DC and Sacramento field offices.
Erik David McKinney Sentenced to 5 Years, 2:13-cr-035 JAM
Erik David McKinney, 28, of Oroville, was sentenced on Tuesday, May 13, 2014, by United States District Judge John A. Mendez to five years in prison for receipt and distribution of child pornography, to be followed by a 20-year term of supervised release. McKinney is also required to register under the federal Sex Offender Registration and Notification Act (SORNA). In October 2012, agents identified a computer at McKinney’s residence that was offering files of child pornography over the Internet and obtained a search warrant. On his computers agents found 10 videos and 617 images of child pornography some showing the sadistic and masochistic abuse of prepubescent boys and girls and the abuse of toddlers. This case was the product of an investigation by the FBI and the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI).Larry Steven Occhipinti Jr. Indicted
A federal grand jury indicted Larry Steven Occhipinti, 38, of Red Bluff, on Thursday, charging him with receipt of child pornography. The indictment alleges that between May 31, 2012, and April 29, 2014, Occhipinti downloaded child pornography through the Internet. Occhipinti was arrested on May 1, 2014, and made his initial appearance in Sacramento the next day. On May 9, 2014, he was ordered released into the custody of his parent, and placed on electronic monitoring. He was also ordered to not access the Internet, and to have no contact with children. He is scheduled for arraignment on May 16, 2014. This case was the product of an investigation by HSI.If convicted, Occhipinti faces a sentence of five to 20 years in prison, a fine of up to $250,000, and a term of five years to life of supervised release. The charges are only allegations and the defendant is presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.
Keith Richard Hill Pleads Guilty, 2:12-cr-420 TLN
Keith Richard Hill, 33, of Sacramento, pleaded guilty on Thursday to possession of child pornography. In October 2011, agents identified a computer at Hill’s residence offering child pornography through the Internet. Among the files being offered were videos of prepubescent girls engaged in sexually explicit conduct. During a search of his residence, agents found two computers with approximately 60 videos of child pornography. Hill is scheduled to be sentenced by Judge Troy L. Nunley on July 31, 2014. He faces a maximum statutory penalty of 10 years in prison and a $250,000 fine. This case was the product of an investigation by the Sacramento Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force.John Franklin Bye Pleads Guilty, 2:14-cr-034 JAM
John Franklin Bye, 45, of Marysville, pleaded guilty on Tuesday, May 13, 2014, to distribution of child pornography. In the summer of 2013, the Nevada County Sheriff’s Department received a tip from the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC) that Bye had sent an email that contained child pornography. Law enforcement obtained a state search warrant for the contents of Bye’s emails and found a “Saved” folder and a “Sent” folder that contained emails with multiple attachments showing child pornography, including images of prepubescent children and images of sadistic and masochistic conduct. Bye is scheduled to be sentenced by Judge John A. Mendez on August 26, 2014, and faces a sentence of five to 20 years in prison and a fine up to $250,000. This case was the product of an investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation.Jason Michael Carlsen Pleads Guilty; 2:14-CR-066 JAM
Jason Michael Carlsen, 41, of Citrus Heights, pleaded guilty on Tuesday, May 13, 2014, to distribution of child pornography. A person in Kentucky received a series of text messages with several pictures of child pornography and reported it to Kentucky State Police who determined that the sender of the messages lived in Citrus Heights. Citrus Height Police Department investigated and a forensic examination of Carlsen’s phone located more than 600 images and videos of child pornography. Also located on the phone were email folders titled “Sent”, “Drafts”, “Inbox” and “Uncategorized” that contained numerous emails with child pornography videos attachments that had been sent to various other email accounts. Carlsen is scheduled to be sentenced by Judge John A. Mendez on August 26, 2014, and faces a maximum statutory penalty of 10 years in prison and a $250,000 fine. This case was the product of an investigation by the Citrus Heights Police Department, Kentucky State Police, and the Sacramento Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force.Any sentences will be determined at the discretion of the court after consideration of any applicable statutory factors and the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, which take into account a number of variables.
Assistant United States Attorney Kyle Reardon is the prosecutor for all of the foregoing cases.
The Sacramento Internet Crimes Against Children (ICAC) Task Force is a federally and state-funded task force managed by the Sacramento Sheriff’s Department with agents from federal, state, and local agencies. The Sacramento ICAC investigates online child exploitation crimes, including child pornography, enticement, and sex trafficking.
Project Safe Childhood is led by the United States Attorneys’ Offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section. It marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute those who sexually exploit children, and to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, visit www.usdoj.gov/psc. Click on the “resources” tab for information about Internet safety education.
Central Texas Man Sentenced to Federal Prison for Possessing Child PornographyRead the Press Release
In Waco, 61-year-old Gary Joe Smith of Morgan, TX, was sentenced to six years in federal prison for possession of child pornography announced United States Attorney Robert Pitman and Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) Special Agent in Charge Janice Ayala.
During the sentencing hearing held yesterday afternoon, United States District Judge Walter S. Smith, Jr., also ordered that Smith pay a $2,500 fine and be placed under supervised release for a period of five years after completing his prison term. Smith remains on bond pending Bureau of Prisons facility designation.
According to court records, HSI agents who were conducting an investigation into on-line exploitation of minors executed a search warrant at the defendant’s residence on April 23, 2013, and seized his home computer. A subsequent forensics examination of the defendant’s computer revealed the presence of over 600 images depicting child pornography. On March 6, 2014, Smith pleaded guilty to one count of possession of child pornography.
“This sentence sends a clear message that those who exploit children in any way will face serious consequences,” said Special Agent in Charge Janice Ayala, HSI San Antonio. “Preventing and investigating crimes against children is a high priority for HSI. We will continue to dedicate law enforcement resources to identify and bring to justice child predators that traumatize and victimize children.”
This case was investigated by special agents with HSI and prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Greg Gloff.Cedar Rapids Man Sentenced to over Seven Years in Prison for Unlawfully Possessing Five Stolen FirearmsRead the Press Release
A man who unlawfully possessed five stolen firearms as a convicted felon was sentenced today to more than seven years in federal prison.
Chase Mead, 31, from Cedar Rapids, Iowa, received the prison term after a March 18, 2014, guilty plea to one count of being a felon in possession of firearms and ammunition.
In a plea agreement, Mead admitted that, on June 14, 2013, he possessed two rifles and three handguns, all of which had previously been reported stolen. Mead also admitted to possessing ammunition for each of the firearms. Mead had previously been convicted of two felony offenses. In 2003, he was convicted of forgery and, in 2008, he was convicted of manufacturing methamphetamine.
Mead was sentenced in Cedar Rapids by United States District Court Chief Judge Linda R. Reade. Mead was sentenced to ninety-four months’ imprisonment. A special assessment of $100 was imposed. Mead must also serve a three-year term of supervised release after the prison term. There is no parole in the federal system.
Mead is being held in the United States Marshal’s custody until he can be transported to a federal prison.
The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Anthony Morfitt and investigated by the Linn County Sheriff’s Office.
Court file information is available at https://ecf.iand.uscourts.gov. The case file number is 14-CR-00019.
Cedar Rapids Man Pleads Guilty to Robbing Bank in ElyRead the Press Release
A man who robbed the Solon State Bank in Ely, Iowa, pled guilty today in federal court in Cedar Rapids.
Robert Melton, 51, from Cedar Rapids, Iowa, was convicted of one count of bank robbery.
At the plea hearing, Melton admitted he entered the Solon State Bank in Ely on January 17, 2014, and gave a note to a teller demanding money and informing the teller not to do anything and nothing would happen. The teller gave Melton some cash and Melton left the bank, walked to his truck, and drove away. A witness to the robbery followed Melton as he drove away from the bank. The witness called 911 and reported Melton’s location. Law enforcement officers then stopped Melton and took him into custody.
Sentencing before United States District Court Chief Judge Linda R. Reade will be set after a presentence report is prepared. Melton remains in custody of the United States Marshal pending sentencing. Melton faces a possible maximum sentence of twenty years’ imprisonment, a $250,000 fine, a $100 special assessment, and five years of supervised release following any imprisonment.
The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Anthony Morfitt and was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Linn County Sheriff’s Office.
Court file information is available at https://ecf.iand.uscourts.gov. The case file number is 14-CR-00024.
Cambridge Teacher Indicted on Child Pornography ChargesRead the Press Release
BOSTON – A Cambridge elementary school teacher was indicted today on multiple counts of child pornography.
Josh Wairi, 27, of Somerville, was charged with transportation of child pornography and three counts of production of child pornography. He is currently being held without bail. On April 17, 2014, Wairi was initially charged via criminal complaint.
The criminal complaint alleges, among other things, that Wairi, a fifth grade teacher, used his email account to trade and receive images of child pornography and also uploaded images and videos of children being sexually exploited. The complaint further alleges that Wairi transferred the images and videos of child pornography to other users.
If convicted, Wairi faces a mandatory minimum sentence of 15 years and a maximum of 30 years in prison on each count of production of child pornography and a mandatory minimum of five years and maximum of 20 years in prison on the count of transportation of pornography, as well as a mandatory minimum of five years and a maximum of a lifetime of supervised release and a $250,000 fine.United States Attorney Carmen M. Ortiz; Shelly Binkowski, Inspector in Charge of the U.S. Postal Inspection Service; Colonel Timothy P. Alben, Superintendent of the Massachusetts State Police; and Acting Somerville Chief of Police Charles Semino, made the announcement today. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Suzanne Sullivan Jacobus of Ortiz's Major Crimes Unit.
Members of the public who have questions, concerns or information regarding this case should call 617-748-3274.
The details contained in the charging documents are allegations. The defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
The case is brought as part of Project Safe Childhood. In 2006, the Department of Justice created Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative designed to protect children from exploitation and abuse. Led by the U.S. Attorneys’ Offices and the DOJ’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state and local resources to better locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who exploit children, as well as identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.projectsafechildhood.gov/.
Brooklyn Man Sentenced to 3 Years in Prison for Identity Theft SchemeRead the Press Release
PITTSBURGH - A resident of Brooklyn, New York, has been sentenced in federal court to 36 months incarceration, which included a mandatory sentence of 24 months incarceration, on his trial convictions for conspiracy and aggravated identity theft, United States Attorney David J. Hickton announced today.
Senior United States District Judge Maurice B. Cohill, Jr., imposed the sentence on Brent Kevin Hercules Antoine, of Brooklyn, New York.
According to information presented to the court, Antoine, the final member of a credit card fraud conspiracy to be sentenced, obtained and used counterfeit credit cards which he used to purchase merchandise and gift cards at Giant Eagle and Walmart stores in Western Pennsylvania in March 2010. He and his co-defendant, Jean Seraphin, also of Brooklyn, were convicted at trial in September 2012.
Assistant United States Attorney Gregory C. Melucci prosecuted this case on behalf of the government.
U.S. Attorney Hickton commended the United States Secret Service, Homeland Security Investigations, and the Scott Township Police Department for the investigation leading to the successful prosecution of Antoine.
Boise Man Pleads Guilty to Escape from Custody and Violating Sex Offender Registration ActRead the Press Release
Fourth Conviction for Failing to Register
BOISE - Perry Lee Lewis, 36, of Boise, pleaded guilty today to escaping from custody and violating the Sex Offender Registration and Notification Act, U.S. Attorney Wendy J. Olson announced. Lewis was indicted by a federal grand Jury in Boise on March 11, 2014.
According to the plea agreement, on May 13, 2013, Lewis walked away from the Port of Hope residential reentry center in Coeur d’Alene, where he was finishing his sentence for a previous violation of the Sex Offender Registration and Notification Act. Port of Hope is a halfway house that contracts with the Federal Bureau of Prisons to help reintroduce prisoners back into the community during the last few months of their sentence. Lewis was apprehended in Worley, Idaho, on May 19, 2013, by Coeur d’Alene Tribal Police, and returned to a Federal Bureau of Prisons facility in Seattle, where he finished his sentence. Lewis was released on July 10, 2013, and returned to Boise, but once again, he failed to register as a sex offender. Lewis was previously convicted of Rape in the Second Degree in 2006 in the state of Washington and has two previous convictions in Washington State for failing to register as a sex offender.
The charge of escaping from custody is punishable by up to 5 years in prison, a maximum fine of $250,000.00, and up to 3 years of supervised release. The charge of violating the Sex Offender Registration and Notification Act is punishable by up to 10 years in prison, a maximum fine of $250,000, and from 5 years up to lifetime-supervised release.
Sentencing is set for July 29, 2014, before U.S. District Judge Edward J. Lodge at the federal courthouse in Boise.
The United States Marshal’s Service and the Coeur d’Alene Tribal Police investigated the case. Both agencies are members of the Idaho Internet Crimes Against Children (ICAC) Task Force, a statewide coalition of local, state and federal law enforcement and prosecution agencies, focused on apprehending and prosecuting individuals who use the Internet to criminally exploit children. For more information about the Idaho ICAC Task Force and a list of all the participating agencies, visit www.icacidaho.org.
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.”
Ambulance Company Owner and Son Sentenced for Conspiracy to Commit Health Care & Wire FraudRead the Press Release
RALEIGH - United States Attorney Thomas G. Walker announced that today, United States District Judge Terrence W. Boyle sentenced PHYLLIS STALLINGS HARRELL and PAUL LYNN TRUEBLOOD, both of Belvidere, North Carolina. HARRELL was sentenced to 72 months imprisonment followed by 3 years of supervised release and was also ordered to pay restitution in the amount of $1,598,356.91. TRUEBLOOD was sentenced to 53 months imprisonment followed by 3 years of supervised release and ordered to pay restitution in the amount of $1,516,654.21.
Both HARRELL and TRUEBLOOD pled guilty on November 14, 2013 to Count 1 of the Second Superseding Indictment which charged them with Conspiracy to Commit Health Care Fraud and Wire Fraud, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 1349.
“This health care provider and her son abused the trust of taxpayers by billing the government for more than $1.5 million ambulance services that they didn’t perform. This case underscores for health care providers that if you commit Medicare and Medicaid fraud, you should expect a lengthy stay in federal prison,” stated U.S. Attorney Walker.
Count 1 of the Second Superseding Indictment alleges that between January of 2004 and December of 2009, HARRELL and TRUEBLOOD conspired to defraud Medicare, Medicaid, and private insurers in connection with various billings for alleged non-emergency ambulance transportation services in the area of Elizabeth City. The Indictment alleges that HARRELL, the mother of TRUEBLOOD, billed Medicare and Medicaid through Harrell Medical Transport, a company owned by HARRELL and operated by HARRELL and TRUEBLOOD. The indictment further alleges that TRUEBLOOD operated a wheelchair van transportation company that transported Medicare and Medicaid beneficiaries to routine medical appointments on a weekly basis. The Indictment alleges that although patients were transported in wheelchair vans, HARRELL and TRUEBLOOD billed Medicare and Medicaid through Harrell Medical Transport as though the trips had occurred in an ambulance. Medicare and Medicaid do not pay wheelchair van providers for wheelchair van transportation. The Indictment alleges that HARRELL and TRUEBLOOD fabricated and caused to be fabricated information in medical records to make it appear as though the patients had traveled by ambulance. The Indictment also alleges that HARRELL and TRUEBLOOD caused employees of Harrell Medical Transport to omit material information in medical records concerning the ability of patients to walk and ride in wheelchairs, which affects whether Medicare and Medicaid will pay for ambulance transportation.
"Ambulance transportation companies that make fraudulent claims by providing unnecessary services or misrepresenting to Medicare and Medicaid about the services they provide will instead have to answer to the government for their misdeeds," said Derrick L. Jackson, Special Agent in Charge of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Office of Inspector General, Atlanta Region".
During the investigation of the case, the United States Attorney’s Office, with the assistance of the United States Department of Health and Human Services, the North Carolina Attorney General’s Office – Medicaid Investigations Division, and the Federal Bureau of Investigation, seized several hundred thousand dollars in assets held by HARRELL and TRUEBLOOD. Seized assets included various ambulances and other vehicles, as well as the contents of various bank and investment accounts. During court today, United States District Judge Terrence W. Boyle ordered forfeiture with respect to these assets and other assets contained in the superseding indictment.
The investigation of this case was conducted by the United States Department of Health and Human Services Office of the Inspector General, the North Carolina Department of Justice's Medicaid Investigations Division, the North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services Division of Medical Assistance, and the Federal Bureau of Investigation. Assistant United States Attorney William M. Gilmore and Special Assistant United States Attorney John Parris prosecuted the case for the Economic Crimes Division of the United States Attorney's Office.
14 May 2014
Wood County Man Sentenced for False Statement on Mortgage AppRead the Press Release
Department of Justice
Office of Public AffairsTYLER, Texas – A 40-year-old Quitman, Texas man has been sentenced to federal prison for federal violations in the Eastern District of Texas, announced U.S. Attorney John M. Bales today
Daniel Huffman, also known as Steven Ball, pleaded guilty on Feb. 10, 2014 to making a false statement on a loan application and was sentenced to 23 months in federal prison today by U.S. District Judge Michael H. Schneider. Huffman was also ordered to pay restitution in the amount of $196,028.52.
According to information presented in court, on Jan. 23, 2012, Huffman applied for a mortgage loan under the false name of Steven Ball. Huffman was indicted by a federal grand jury on Oct. 23, 2013 and charged with federal violations.
This law enforcement action is part of President Barack Obama’s Financial Fraud Enforcement Task Force.
President Obama established the interagency Financial Fraud Enforcement Task Force to wage an aggressive, coordinated and proactive effort to investigate and prosecute financial crimes. The task force includes representatives from a broad range of federal agencies, regulatory authorities, inspectors general, and state and local law enforcement who, working together, bring to bear a powerful array of criminal and civil enforcement resources. The task force is working to improve efforts across the federal executive branch, and with state and local partners, to investigate and prosecute significant financial crimes, ensure just and effective punishment for those who perpetrate financial crimes, combat discrimination in the lending and financial markets, and recover proceeds for victims of financial crimes.
This case was investigated by the U.S. Secret Service and the U.S. Postal Inspection Service and prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Nathaniel C. Kummerfeld.
West Hartford Man Charged with Using the Internet to Distribute Obscene Materials to A MinorRead the Press Release
BOSTON – A West Hartford man was charged in U.S. District Court in Worcester yesterday with sending obscene images to a 14-year-old boy over the Internet.
Herbert Lawrence Jenkins, 45, was indicted for transferring obscene materials to a minor. An affidavit in support of Jenkins’ arrest, previously unsealed, alleges that in July 2013, after chatting with the victim for several months, Jenkins sent four photographs of his genitals to a 14-year-old boy in Bolton, Mass. while graphically describing sexual acts that he wished to perform with the boy. The affidavit further alleges that approximately one week before this occurred Jenkins had traveled from his home in West Hartford to the boy’s residence in Bolton.
Jenkins’ communications were discovered when a sibling of the victim discovered the chats on the victim’s iPhone and brought them to the attention of the victim’s parents.
If convicted, Jenkins faces a statutory maximum term of 10 years in prison and three years of supervised release.
United States Attorney Carmen M. Ortiz and Vincent B. Lisi, Special Agent in Charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Boston Field Division, made the announcement. The case is being prosecuted by Mark J. Grady of Ortiz’s Worcester Branch Office.
The details contained in the indictment are allegations. The defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
The case is brought as part of Project Safe Childhood. In 2006, the Department of Justice created Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative designed to protect children from exploitation and abuse. Led by the U.S. Attorneys’ Offices and the DOJ’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state and local resources to better locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who exploit children, as well as identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.projectsafechildhood.gov/.
Waveland Man Sentenced for Making and Passing Counterfeit MoneyRead the Press Release
Gulfport, Miss. – Alton Emerson Morgan, 39, of Waveland, Mississippi, was sentenced in U.S. District Court today to 33 months in federal prison followed by three years of supervised release for his involvement in making and passing counterfeit money, announced U.S. Attorney Gregory K. Davis and Special Agent in Charge Craig Caldwell with the U.S. Secret Service. Morgan was also ordered to pay a $2,500 fine and $760 in restitution.
Morgan previously pled guilty to making counterfeit U.S. currency in Hancock County in December, 2013. The currency consisted of counterfeit Federal Reserve Notes in $20 and $100 denominations. Morgan also pled guilty to passing counterfeit Federal Reserve Notes in denominations of $20 and $50 in Rankin County, Mississippi, in December, 2012.
This case was investigated by the United States Secret Service, and was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Ruth Morgan.If you believe you have been a victim of fraud from a person or an organization soliciting relief funds on behalf of storm victims, contact the National Center for Disaster Fraud toll free at:
(866) 720-5721
You can also fax information to:
(225) 334-4707
or e-mail it to:
Making sure that victims of federal crimes are treated with compassion, fairness and respect.
Training and seminars for Federal, State, and Local Law Enforcement Agencies.
Help us combat the proliferation of sexual exploitation crimes against children.
Union County, N.J., Man Sentenced to 63 Months in Prison for Distributing Images of Child Sexual AbuseRead the Press Release
NEWARK, N.J. - A Cranford, N.J., man was sentenced today to 63 months in prison for distributing images of child sexual abuse over the Internet, U.S. Attorney Paul J. Fishman announced.
Andrew Johnson, 30, previously pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Susan D. Wigenton to an information charging him with one count of distribution of child pornography. Judge Wigenton imposed the sentence today in in Newark federal court.
According to documents filed in the case and statements in court:
Johnson admitted that on Dec. 7, 2012, he made available for others to download via an online peer-to-peer, file-sharing network images and videos of child sexual abuse that were stored on his home computer. An undercover law enforcement agent successfully downloaded from Johnson one image and 14 videos of child sexual abuse via the file sharing network.
As part of his guilty plea, Johnson agreed to forfeit the computers and computer accessories he used to commit the offense. He will also be required to register as a sex offender.
In addition to the prison term, Judge Wigenton sentenced Johnson to serve five years of supervised release and pay restitution of $13,500.
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 Cranford Police Department with the investigation leading to today’s guilty plea.
The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorney Danielle Alfonzo Walsman of the U.S. Attorney’s Office Criminal Division in Newark.
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Defense counsel: Lorraine Gauli-Rufo Esq., Assistant Federal Public Defender, Newark
Two Idaho Men Indicted for Hate CrimeRead the Press Release
Jonathan Lynn Henery, 28, and Beau Edward Hansen, 30, both of Boise, Idaho, were indicted May 13, 2014, on federal hate crime charges for their racially motivated assault of an African-American man, the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division and U.S. Attorney Wendy J. Olson for the District of Idaho announced. An initial appearance date has not been set.
The indictment alleges that on or about Oct. 20, 2013, both men willfully caused bodily injury to an African American man based on the victim’s actual and perceived race and color.
The charge of hate crime based on race is a violation of the Matthew Shepard and James Byrd Jr. Hate Crime Prevention Act signed into law by President Barack Obama in 2009. A violation of that statute is punishable by up to 10 years in prison, a maximum fine of $250,000 and up to three years of supervised release.
The case was investigated by the FBI and the Boise City Police Department. The case is being jointly prosecuted by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Idaho and the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division.
An indictment is a means of charging a person with criminal activity. The person is presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
Two Defendants Arrested and Charged in Alleged Mortgage Fraud Scheme Involving Federal Undercover InvestigationRead the Press Release
CHICAGO — A West suburban man and a Chicago woman were arrested on federal charges for allegedly engaging in a bank fraud scheme purporting to involve the fraudulent sale of two two-flat apartment buildings in Chicago, federal law enforcement officials announced today. The charges followed a federal undercover investigation of fraudulent mortgage loan transactions.
GEORGE DRAVILAS, 36, of Medinah, and BRIDGET HUTCHERSON, 40, of Chicago, were each charged with bank fraud in a criminal complaint filed yesterday and unsealed following their arrests yesterday. Hutcherson was released on her own recognizance while Dravilas remains in federal custody pending a detention hearing at 3 p.m. Friday before U.S. Magistrate Judge Maria Valdez in U.S. District Court.
According to the complaint affidavit by an agent with the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development’s Office of Inspector General, a cooperating individual (CI-1) who was arrested in January 2013 identified Dravilas as someone he had worked with to conduct fraudulent mortgage transactions. The FBI initiated an undercover investigation in which CI-1 posed as a mortgage broker who was engaged in fraud and was seeking assistance in structuring fraudulent mortgage loan transactions. Two additional cooperating individuals, including a licensed real estate appraiser, two undercover law enforcement agents who posed as straw buyers of the two properties, and a bank also participated in the investigation.
The complaint alleges that Dravilas agreed to prepare underlying documents to be submitted as part of the fraudulent mortgage loan applications to the bank for the purchase of two residential properties by straw buyers who would receive a share of the seller’s loan proceeds. The two-flats were located in the 6300 block of South Parnell Avenue and the 6600 block of South Sangamon Street in Chicago. Although Dravilas claimed not to own the properties, he allegedly supplied real estate purchase contracts, title commitments, fraudulent and inflated lease rental agreements, money to obtain fraudulently inflated appraisals, and letters extending and renewing the real estate purchase contracts, the charges allege.
Dravilas allegedly schemed to sell both apartment buildings for a fraudulently inflated sales price of $275,000 each, while purporting to kickback $100,000 on each transaction to each of the undercover straw buyers, while keeping a fee for himself and the cooperating individuals.
Hutcherson allegedly received $600 to supply one of the cooperating individuals with fraudulent W-2s, check stubs, and earnings statements in the names of the straw buyers to be used in support of the mortgage loan applications.
The arrests and charges were announced by Zachary T. Fardon, United States Attorney for the Northern District of Illinois; Robert J. Holley, Special Agent-in-Charge of the Chicago Office of the Federal Bureau of Investigation; and Barry McLaughlin, Special Agent-in-Charge of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development Office of Inspector General in Chicago. HUD-OIG and FBI agents conducted the investigation through the South Suburban Financial Crimes Task Force, which includes the Cook County Sheriff’s Police Department, the Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigation Division, the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, and the U.S. Postal Service Office of Inspector General.
The government is being represented by Assistant U.S. Attorney Andrew S. Boutros.
Bank fraud carries a maximum penalty of 30 years in prison and a $1 million fine, and restitution is mandatory. If convicted, the Court must impose a reasonable sentence under federal sentencing statutes and the advisory United States Sentencing Guidelines.
The public is reminded that a complaint contains only charges and is not evidence of guilt. The defendants are presumed innocent and are entitled to a fair trial at which the government has the burden of proving guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.
Complaint
Two Boise Men Indicted for Hate CrimeRead the Press Release
BOISE B Jonathan Lynn Henery, 28, and Beau Edward Hansen, 30, both of Boise, Idaho, were indicted May 13, 2014, on federal hate crime charges for their racially motivated assault of an African-American man, U.S. Attorney Wendy J. Olson announced. An initial appearance date has not been set.
The indictment alleges that on or about October 20, 2013, both men willfully caused bodily injury to a victim, who is African American, because of the victim’s actual and perceived race and color.
The charge of hate crime based on race is a violation of 18 U.S.C. § 249(a)(1), the Matthew Shepard and James Byrd, Jr. Hate Crime Prevention Act signed into law by President Barack Obama in 2009. A violation of that statute is punishable by up to 10 years in prison, a maximum fine of $250,000.00, and up to 3 years of supervised release.
“Hate crimes target entire communities and are designed to send messages of intolerance that are not welcome here,” said Olson. “This office, along with the Civil Rights Division and our federal and local law enforcement partners, will vigorously investigate and prosecute these crimes.” Olson noted that this is the first case charged under the Matthew Shepard and James Byrd, Jr. Hate Crime Prevention Act in the District of Idaho.
“From the first responding patrol officers, to the detectives, officers realized quickly this case was a major crime, a civil rights violation, not just a battery, that demanded the attention of our federal partners,” said Chief Michael Masterson of the Boise Police Department. “Beliefs that fuel crimes based on hate are toxic to our entire community. Boise Police detectives and agents from the FBI put substantial hours into investigating this case. Their work goes to the heart of law enforcement, which is to reduce fear and allow all residents to feel secure as they go about their daily lives. Hate crimes will not be tolerated. Thankfully they are rare in our city, but when they occur, be assured they will be aggressively investigated with all available resources, which are considerable.”
The case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Boise City Police Department. The case is being jointly prosecuted by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Idaho and the Civil Rights Division of the Department of Justice.
An indictment is a means of charging a person with criminal activity. It is not evidence. The person is presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
Three Men Charged with Operating Stolen Check-cashing SchemeRead the Press Release
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Deirdre M. Daly, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, and Shelly Binkowski, Inspector in Charge for the Boston Division of the United States Postal Inspection Service, today announced that a federal grand jury sitting in New Haven has returned an indictment charging LANGSTON XAVIER NEAL, 36, of Charlotte, North Carolina, BENJII CARR, also known as Rodrick Lawon Davis, 39, of New Haven and North Carolina, and BRANDON KEY BENTLEY, 30, of New Haven, with conspiring to commit bank fraud through a stolen check-cashing scheme. The indictment was returned on May 8, 2014, and the three defendants were arrested yesterday.
The indictment alleges that, between July 2010 and May 2011, NEAL, CARR, and BENTLEY obtained stolen checks, recruited “runners” who would cash the checks, and altered the checks to list the runners as the lawful payees. The defendants drove the runners to several Connecticut bank branches and directed them to enter the banks and cash the checks. The runners were paid a small part of the cash proceeds.
The indictment alleges that more than $100,000 in stolen checks were altered and cashed through this scheme.
If convicted of the charge of conspiracy to commit bank fraud, each defendant faces a maximum term of imprisonment of 30 years and a fine of up to $1 million. All three defendants are currently detained.
U.S. Attorney Daly stressed that an indictment is not evidence of guilt. Charges are only allegations, and the defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.
This matter is being investigated by the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, the Connecticut Financial Fraud Task Force, and the Branford, Madison, Middlebury, Milford, New Britain, New Haven, New Milford, North Branford, Southbury, Waterbury and Woodbridge Police Departments. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Henry K. Kopel.
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(203) 821-3722 [email protected]Texas-Based “Notary” Pleads Guilty in Manhattan Federal Court to Multimillion-Dollar Unemployment Benefit FraudRead the Press Release
Preet Bharara, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, Cheryl Garcia, Acting Special Agent-in-Charge of the New York Office of the U.S. Department of Labor, Office of Inspector General, Office of Labor Racketeering and Fraud Investigations (“USDOL-OIG”), and Peter M. Rivera, Commissioner of the New York State Department of Labor (“NYDOL”), announced today that MAGDALENA VILLALOBOS pled guilty today in Manhattan federal court to orchestrating a scheme in which she facilitated the filing of fraudulent claims for millions of dollars in unemployment insurance benefits provided by states across the country. VILLALOBOS was charged in October 2013, and pled guilty today before U.S. Magistrate Judge Debra C. Freeman.
Manhattan U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara said: “Magdalena Villalobos facilitated an unemployment benefit scheme that injected fraud into at least 26 states, inflicted millions of dollars in losses, and did a disservice to the qualified claimants across the country who actually needed the funds. I commend and thank our federal and state law enforcement partners for their work on this case.”
USDOL-OIG Acting Special Agent-in-Charge Cheryl Garcia said: “For several years, Villalobos assisted individuals in obtaining unemployment insurance benefits even though they were ineligible because they resided outside the United States. Villalobos’s submission of fraudulent claims siphoned funds intended for those who are qualified and eligible to receive the benefits. This office will continue to work with United States Attorney’s Office and our state partners to investigate fraud against the Department of Labor’s Unemployment Insurance Program.”
New York State Labor Commissioner Peter M. Rivera said: “When individuals defraud the system, they steal from all of us. They steal from law-abiding employers, from workers and their families, and from all of the taxpayers across New York State. I commend our staff members who work hard every day to prevent and detect fraud and catch the criminals who try to get away with it.”
According to the Complaint, the Indictment, and other public documents filed in Manhattan federal court:
From at least July 2006 through her arrest in 2013, VILLALOBOS, a resident of Texas and owner of a purported notary business, accepted payments from fraudulent unemployment benefit claimants in return for placing telephone calls to at least 26 different States in order to certify falsely that those fraudulent claimants were entitled to such benefits. Certain of these claimants would reside outside of the United States while receiving unemployment benefits. Through this scheme, VILLALOBOS made thousands of calls on behalf of fraudulent claimants and inflicted millions of dollars in losses to unemployment benefit funds across the United States.
VILLALOBOS, 59, of San Juan, Texas, pled guilty to one count of conspiracy to steal unemployment insurance benefits. She faces a maximum sentence of five years in prison. The maximum potential sentence in this case is prescribed by Congress and is provided here for informational purposes only, as any sentencing of the defendant will be determined by the judge.
Mr. Bharara praised the outstanding investigative work of both USDOL-OIG and NYDOL. He also thanked the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the United States Postal Service for their assistance in the Texas investigation. He added that the investigation is continuing.
The prosecution of this case is being overseen by the Office’s General Crimes Unit. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Andrew C. Adams and Rebecca G. Mermelstein are in charge of the prosecution.
U.S. v. Magdalena Villalobos Indictment
Texas Man Indicted for Federal Hate Crime and Kidnapping Charges for Assault Based on Victim’s Sexual OrientationRead the Press Release
A federal grand jury returned a two count indictment against Brice Johnson, 19, of Springtown, Texas, charging him with willfully causing bodily injury to a person because of the actual or perceived sexual orientation of that person and with kidnapping, the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division, the U.S. Attorney’s Office of the Northern District of Texas and the FBI Dallas Division announced today.
On Feb. 19, 2014, a federal criminal complaint was unsealed charging Johnson with a hate crime. The indictment charges Johnson with the same hate crime offense and further charges that Johnson’s actions included kidnapping.
According to the affidavit filed with the criminal complaint, in the early morning hours of Sept. 2, 2013, the adult male victim, identified as A.K., connected with Johnson through the cell phone application for MeetMe.com. A.K.’s MeetMe.com page indicated he was a gay man, while Johnson’s page indicated he was not gay. During their chat communications, Johnson said that he was interested in engaging in sexual activity with A.K. and he invited A.K. to his home. Johnson gave A.K. his cell phone number and address and they exchanged text messages planning their sexual activity.
After A.K. showed up at the house, Johnson severely beat him, then put him into the trunk of A.K.’s car and drove him to a friend’s house. Based on ligature marks on A.K.’s wrists, it appears that he was bound while he was in the trunk of the car. Individuals at the home told Johnson to take A.K. to the hospital or they would call the police, and Johnson eventually drove A.K. to an Emergency Medical Services station in Springtown.
A.K. was hospitalized for 10 days in Fort Worth, and he was diagnosed and treated for multiple skull and facial fractures. The investigation revealed that on the night of the incident, Johnson saved A.K.’s cell phone number using a gay slur as a contact name and Johnson later stated that he was playing a prank on A.K. because of A.K.’s sexual orientation, again using a gay slur when referring to A.K. According to the affidavit, A.K. said that he had no physical contact with Johnson prior to the attack.
An indictment merely establishes probable cause and Johnson is presumed innocent unless proven guilty. Each count carries a maximum statutory sentence of life in prison and a $250,000 fine.
The investigation is being conducted by the FBI, the Springtown Police Department and the Parker County Sheriff’s Office. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Cara Foos Pierce and Trial Attorney Saeed Mody of the Civil Rights Division.
Tennessee Salvage Company Owner and Operator Pleads Guilty to Conspiring to Violate the Clean Air ActRead the Press Release
The owner and operator of a Tennessee salvage and demolition company, A&E Salvage Inc., pleaded guilty today in federal court in Greeneville, Tennessee, for conspiring to violate the Clean Air Act.
Mark Sawyer pleaded guilty before U.S. District Court Judge Greer for the Eastern District of Tennessee to one criminal felony count for conspiring to violate the Clean Air Act’s “work practice standards” salient to the proper wetting, stripping, bagging and disposal of asbestos. According to the charges, Sawyer, along with other co-conspirators, engaged in a multi-year scheme in which substantial amounts of regulated asbestos containing materials were improperly removed from components of the former Liberty Fibers Plant or were illegally left in place during demolition.
Sawyer faces up to five years in prison and a fine of up to $250,000 or twice the gross gain or loss to the victims. Sawyer is the last of five charged co-defendants to plead guilty. Sawyer, Eric Gruenberg, Nick Smith, Armida DiSanti and Milto DiSanti are due to be sentenced on Nov. 19, 2014.
Asbestos has been determined to cause lung cancer, asbestosis and mesothelioma, an invariably fatal disease. The Environmental Protection Agency has determined that there is no safe level of exposure to asbestos.
This case was investigated by Special Agents of the Environmental Protection Agency’s Criminal Investigation Division. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Matthew T. Morris of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Tennessee and Senior Trial Attorney Todd W. Gleason of the Environmental Crimes Section of the Justice Department’s Environment and Natural Resources Division.Tennessee Salvage Company Owner and Operator Pleads Guilty to Conspiring to Violate the Clean Air ActRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON – The owner and operator of a Tennessee salvage and demolition company, A&E Salvage Inc., pleaded guilty today in federal court in Greeneville, Tennessee, for conspiring to violate the Clean Air Act.
Mark Sawyer pleaded guilty before U.S. District Court Judge Greer for the Eastern District of Tennessee to one criminal felony count for conspiring to violate the Clean Air Act’s “work practice standards” salient to the proper wetting, stripping, bagging and disposal of asbestos. According to the charges, Sawyer, along with other co-conspirators, engaged in a multi-year scheme in which substantial amounts of regulated asbestos containing materials were improperly removed from components of the former Liberty Fibers Plant or were illegally left in place during demolition.
Sawyer faces up to five years in prison and a fine of up to $250,000 or twice the gross gain or loss to the victims. Sawyer is the last of five charged co-defendants to plead guilty. Sawyer, Eric Gruenberg, Nick Smith, Armida DiSanti and Milto DiSanti are due to be sentenced on Nov. 19, 2014.
Asbestos has been determined to cause lung cancer, asbestosis and mesothelioma, an invariably fatal disease. The Environmental Protection Agency has determined that there is no safe level of exposure to asbestos.
This case was investigated by Special Agents of the Environmental Protection Agency’s Criminal Investigation Division. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Matthew T. Morris of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Tennessee and Senior Trial Attorney Todd W. Gleason of the Environmental Crimes Section of the Justice Department’s Environment and Natural Resources Division.
Tampa Woman Sentenced to 12 Years in Prison as Leader of Credit Card Fraud RingRead the Press Release
Tampa, FL – U.S. District Judge James S. Moody, Jr. today sentenced Viviana Reyes (40, Tampa) to 12 years’ imprisonment for conspiracy to commit credit card fraud, conspiracy to commit bank fraud, credit card fraud, bank fraud, aggravated identity theft, and identity theft. The Court also ordered Reyes to pay $599,744.11 in restitution to the victims of her crimes and entered a forfeiture money judgment in the amount of $725,267.44, which represents the proceeds of the crimes.
A federal jury found Reyes guilty of all counts on December 12, 2013, after a four-day trial. Four of her co-conspirators previously pleaded guilty. Three have been sentenced and one remains a fugitive.
According to testimony and evidence presented at trial, Michel Lermos-Hernandez, Danay Crespo-Rodriguez, Norma Cabezas-Hernandez, and Viviana Reyes ran a credit card fraud ring. Lermos and Reyes were the leaders. Lermos, aided by others, obtained credit card numbers by placing key loggers on credit card terminals at the International Mall in Tampa, one in particular at the Haagen-Dazs ice cream store, that intercepted and stored swiped credit and debit card account information. Lermos and others then created counterfeit credit cards using the stolen credit and debit card account numbers. Lermos obtained blank credit card stock, embossing machines and magnetic stripe re-encoders from Reyes. He also sold stolen credit and debit card numbers taken from the key loggers to her.
After making the credit cards, Lermos provided the counterfeit credit cards to his co-conspirators, including his sister, Norma Cabezas-Hernandez, his girlfriend, Danay Crespo-Rodriguez, and at least two other separately-charged individuals (Lazaro Rodriguez and Abel Osorio-Cuok). Using the counterfeit cards, they bought electronics and gift cards at Tampa area retailers. The conspirators then took these items to Reyes= house, where she paid them in cash for the fraudulently obtained merchandise. Reyes directed the co-conspirators on what to buy – such as Target gift cards, Wal-Mart gift cards, and Apple electronics, based upon what she could most easily sell on the street. When Reyes purchased the items from her conspirators, she paid them approximately 50% of the retail value of the items before reselling them for approximately 60% of the retail value. Reyes advertised the items via text message and email.
A search of Reyes’ house in February 2013 revealed a credit card skimming device and two thumb drives filled with hundreds of stolen credit and debit card numbers, many of which were compromised at Haagen Dazs. Agents also recovered three counterfeit Florida drivers’ licenses indicative of those that Reyes sold to others in order to open lines of credit at area stores. A search of Reyes’ phone revealed pictures of merchandise such as Apple computers and tablets for sale, along with numerous text messages advertising electronics and gift cards for sale, at greatly reduced prices. Agents estimate that the loss, to date, to the affected financial institutions exceeds $700,000 and that the conspirators stole thousands of account numbers from affected credit and debit card account holders.
On March 13, 2014, Norma Cabezas-Hernandez was sentenced to five years in federal prison. Danay Crespo-Rodriguez’s sentencing hearing is scheduled for June 2014. Michel Lermos-Hernandez remains a fugitive. Lazaro Rodriguez was sentenced in January 2014 to three years and one month in federal prison. On February 21, 2014, Abel Osorio-Cuok was sentenced to five years’ probation for his role in this case.
This case was investigated by the Tampa Police Department, Florida Department of Law Enforcement and the United States Secret Service, all of whom are members of the USSS’s credit card fraud and identity theft task force. It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Mandy Riedel and Suzanne Nebesky.
Tahlequah Woman Sentenced to 60 Months Probation and Restitution for Assault with A Dangerous Weapon in Indian CountryRead the Press Release
Muskogee, Oklahoma - The United States Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Oklahoma, announced today that MARSHA RENEE WRIGHT, age 29, of Tahlequah, Oklahoma, was sentenced to 5 years of probation for Assault with a Dangerous Weapon with Intent to do Bodily Harm in Indian Country, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Sections 113(a)(3), 1151 and 1153. The defendant was also ordered to pay $5,100.00 in restitution.
Charges arose from an investigation by the Cherokee Nation Marshal Service and the Federal Bureau of Investigation.. The defendant was indicted in September, 2013 and pled guilty in November, 2013.
The Indictment alleged that on or about August 29, 2013, within the Eastern District of Oklahoma, within Indian country, on land held in Trust by the United States of America on behalf of the Cherokee Nation, the defendant herein, an Indian, did knowingly and intentionally assault an individual with intent to cause bodily harm, by ramming the vehicle Defendant was driving into a vehicle occupied by the other individual.
The Honorable Ronald A. White, District Judge in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Oklahoma, in Muskogee, presided over the hearing.
Assistant United States Attorney Dean Burris represented the United States.
Sunnyside Man Sentenced to 174 Months in Federal Prison for Methamphetamine TraffickingRead the Press Release
Spokane – Michael C. Ormsby, United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Washington, announced that Trinidad Jesus Suarez, age 26, of Sunnyside, Washington, was sentenced for possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine. Senior United States District Court Judge Edward F. Shea sentenced Suarez to a 174 month term of imprisonment, to be followed by a 60 month term of court supervision upon release from Federal prison.
According to information disclosed during the court proceedings, in October, 2012, the Yakima County Law Enforcement Against Drugs Task Force (LEAD) made multiple purchases of narcotics from Suarez. On November 2, 2012, officers executed state search warrants for Suarez' vehicles and known residences. Suarez was arrested at his girlfriend's residence in Sunnyside, where officers found over 250 grams of actual methamphetamine. Suarez was arrested that day and was been in custody since the arrest. Suarez has multiple prior felony drug offense convictions and admitted to possessing the methamphetamine with intent to distribute. Suarez pleaded guilty to the charge on February 6, 2014.
Michael C. Ormsby said, "I commend the officers of the Yakima County LEAD Task Force, Yakima County Sheriff's Office, Grandview Police Department, Sunnyside Police Department, and U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives for their efforts in investigating this methamphetamine case. Their strong working partnership is reflected by the successful prosecution of this case. Federal and local law enforcement officers in the Eastern District of Washington continue to work together to root out the scourge of drug trafficking in this District. With their assistance, the United States Attorney's Office for the Eastern District of Washington is committed to prosecuting aggressively and seeking appropriate punishment for traffickers distributing controlled substances in our communities."
This case was investigated by the cooperative efforts of the Yakima County LEAD Task Force, Yakima County Sheriff's Office, Grandview Police Department, Sunnyside Police Department, U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, and U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration. The case was prosecuted by Ian L. Garriques, an Assistant United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Washington.
13-CR-2044-EFS
Statement from the Department of Justice and Office of Director of National Intelligence on the Declassification of Additional Documents Regarding the Collection of Bulk Telephony Metadata Under Section 215 of the USA Patriot ActRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON—Today, the Department of Justice and Office of the Director of National Intelligence released, in redacted form, a previously classified series of Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court filings and orders from 2009-2010 concerning the collection of bulk telephony metadata under Section 215 of the USA Patriot Act. These documents relate to a robust interaction that occurred between the Department of Justice and a telecommunications service provider that included the provider’s review of prior FISC applications, orders and opinions, regarding lawful compliance with those orders.
Motion to Unseal Records (Jan. 7, 2010) including prior FISC applications, orders and opinions, for the purpose of disclosing and discussing with the recipient the Section 215 order.
Joint Motion for Enlargement of Time (Jan. 8, 2010) allowed under FISC rules for the recipient if the Section 215 secondary order to file a petition challenging that order pursuant to 50 U.S.C. § 1861(f), filed by the government and the recipient of the secondary order.
FISC Order Granting Enlargement of Time (Jan. 8. 2010).
FISC Order Granting Motion to Unseal Records (Jan. 8, 2010).
Motion for Amended Secondary Order (Jan. 11, 2010) requesting that the FISC amend a secondary order to the recipient to expressly incorporate the findings of the FISC in three specific respects as described in the motion. This motion was granted Jan. 12, 2010, when the court issued an amended secondary order in the form proposed by the government.
Statement by Attorney General Holder on the Planned <br /> Departure of Deputy Director of Public Affairs Gina TalamonaRead the Press Release
Attorney General Eric Holder issued the following statement today on the planned departure of Deputy Director of Public Affairs Gina Talamona, who will begin work as the Communications Director of the Securities and Exchange Commission next month:
“For 27 years, Gina Talamona has been a tremendous asset to the Department of Justice and an exceptionally dedicated public servant. She’s been the backbone of our dedicated Office of Public Affairs team, providing leadership and sound guidance to Attorneys General and other leaders from administrations of both parties. Although I join my colleagues in congratulating Gina on her important new role at the Securities and Exchange Commission – and wish her nothing but the best – I will miss her wise counsel, her sense of humor, and her considerable contributions on behalf of the American people. She is a dear friend upon whom I have relied during all my time at the Department.”Springtown, Texas, Man Indicted on Federal Hate Crime and Kidnapping Charges for Assault Based on Victim’s Sexual OrientationRead the Press Release
FORT WORTH, Texas — A federal grand jury returned a two-count indictment against Brice Johnson, 19, of Springtown, Texas, charging him with willfully causing bodily injury to a person because of the actual or perceived sexual orientation of that person and with kidnapping, the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division, the U.S. Attorney’s Office of the Northern District of Texas and the FBI Dallas Division announced today.
On Feb. 19, 2014, a federal criminal complaint was unsealed charging Johnson with a hate crime. The indictment charges Johnson with the same hate crime offense and further charges that Johnson’s actions included kidnapping.
According to the affidavit filed with the criminal complaint, in the early morning hours of Sept. 2, 2013, the adult male victim, identified as A.K., connected with Johnson through the cell phone application for MeetMe.com. A.K.’s MeetMe.com page indicated he was a gay man, while Johnson’s page indicated he was not gay. During their chat communications, Johnson said that he was interested in engaging in sexual activity with A.K., and he invited A.K. to his home. Johnson gave A.K. his cell phone number and address, and they exchanged text messages planning their sexual activity.
After A.K. showed up at the house, Johnson severely beat him, then put him into the trunk of A.K.’s car and drove him to a friend’s house. Based on ligature marks on A.K.’s wrists, it appears that he was bound while he was in the trunk of the car. Individuals at the home told Johnson to take A.K. to the hospital or they would call the police, and Johnson eventually drove A.K. to an Emergency Medical Services station in Springtown.
A.K. was hospitalized for 10 days in Fort Worth, and he was diagnosed and treated for multiple skull and facial fractures. The investigation revealed that on the night of the incident, Johnson saved A.K.’s cell phone number using a gay slur as a contact name, and Johnson later stated that he was playing a prank on A.K. because of A.K.’s sexual orientation, again using a gay slur when referring to A.K. According to the affidavit, A.K. said that he had no physical contact with Johnson prior to the attack.
An indictment merely establishes probable cause and Johnson is presumed innocent unless proven guilty. Each count carries a maximum statutory sentence of life in prison and a $250,000 fine.
The investigation is being conducted by the FBI, the Springtown Police Department and the Parker County Sheriff’s Office. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Cara Foos Pierce and Trial Attorney Saeed Mody of the Civil Rights Division.
(Download Factual Basis)
Springdale Pharmacy Technician Sentenced to Five Years in Prison for Stealing Drugs from Walter Reed HospitalRead the Press Release
Greenbelt, Maryland – U.S. District Judge Paul W. Grimm sentenced Issa Wasco Koroma, age 62, of Springdale, Maryland to five years in prison followed by three years of supervised release for conspiring to steal prescription drugs from two federal military hospitals.
The sentence was announced by United States Attorney for the District of Maryland Rod J. Rosenstein; Special Agent in Charge Robert Craig of the Defense Criminal Investigative Service - Mid Atlantic Field Office; and Special Agent in Charge Antoinette V. Henry of the U.S. Food & Drug Administration, Office of Criminal Investigations.Koroma admitted that from January 2008 to July 11, 2013, he conspired with others to steal Norditropon, Humatrope, Somatotropin, Botox and other branded varieties of human growth hormone from pharmacies located at Fort Belvoir Community Hospital in Fort Belvoir, Virginia; Walter Reed National Military Medical Center (Walter Reed) in Bethesda, Maryland; and the former Walter Reed Medical Center (Old Walter Reed). They re-sold the stolen pharmaceuticals for profit.
Koroma was a pharmacy technician at Walter Reed. No later than the middle of 2011, Koroma began to steal brands of human growth hormones and Botox from the pharmacy at Walter Reed. From August 2011 to June 2013, Koroma and his co-conspirators stole over $1.3 million worth of pharmaceuticals from the pharmacy at Walter Reed.
Koroma and a co-conspirator also stole other prescription medications from the pharmacies at Fort Belvoir, Walter Reed and Old Walter Reed, which Koroma gave or sold to friends and acquaintances. These included Viagra, Cialis, Diovan, Humulin, Levitra and Lipitor.
On June 11, 2013, law enforcement officers executed a search warrant at Koroma’s residence and seized over 1,500 bottles and packages of prescription medications, including over 100,000 individual pills. A number of stolen prescriptions had been filled but not delivered to individual patients. Those thefts compromised the names, medical history and other personal identifying information of at least 10 patients treated at Walter Reed.
Koroma also stored stolen medications at a private storage unit he abandoned in 2009 or 2010. At the time that the storage unit was abandoned, it contained approximately 600 individual bottles and packages of prescription medication stolen from the pharmacies at Walter Reed and Old Walter Reed.
The total loss to the United States caused by Koroma and his co-conspirators was at least $4,467,000.
Two co-conspirators have been charged federally for their participation in the conspiracy. Their charges are pending.
United States Attorney Rod J. Rosenstein praised the DCIS and FDA-OCI for their work in the investigation. Mr. Rosenstein thanked Special Assistant United States Attorney Paul Nitze and Assistant United States Attorney Mara Zusman Greenberg, who are prosecuting the case.
Sioux Falls Man Sentenced for Health Care FraudRead the Press Release
United States Attorney Brendan V. Johnson announced that a Sioux Falls, South Dakota, man convicted of Making False Statements Relating to Health Care Matters was sentenced on May 12, 2014, by U.S. District Judge Karen E. Schreier.
Ricky Dean Johnson, age 59, was sentenced to 2 years of probation and fined $250.
Johnson was indicted by a federal grand jury on July 9, 2013, for False Statements Relating to Health Care Matters and Obtaining Controlled Substances By Fraud. He pled guilty to the false statements charge on February 19, 2014.
Johnson, a Medicare beneficiary, presented himself to multiple physicians at multiple health care facilities, complaining of pain and seeking prescription pain medications, including Hydrocodone and Oxycodone. To obtain the prescriptions from the different doctors, he falsely represented to each treating physician that he was not taking any other prescription pain medications.
This case was investigated by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Office of Inspector General, Office of Investigations. Assistant U.S. Attorney Ann M. Hoffman prosecuted the case.
Shippensburg Man Federally Charged with Unlawful Distribution of CocaineRead the Press Release
The United States Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Pennsylvania announced that Dante Kaleek Darby, 32, of Shippensburg, Pennsylvania, was indicted today by a federal grand jury in Harrisburg charging him with four counts of distribution of a controlled substance, cocaine, between September 2012 and October 2013 in Franklin County.
If convicted, Darby faces a statutory maximum of 20 years imprisonment and a $1 million fine.
This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Pennsylvania State Police and the Franklin County Drug Task Force. This case is being prosecuted by Special Assistant United States Attorney Laura J. Kerstetter, of the Franklin County District Attorney’s Office.
Indictments and Criminal Informations are only allegations. All persons charged are presumed to be innocent unless and until found guilty in court.
A sentence following a finding of guilty is imposed by the Judge after consideration of the applicable federal sentencing statutes and the Federal Sentencing Guidelines.
In these particular cases, the maximum penalty under the federal statute is 20 years imprisonment and a term of supervised release following imprisonment and a fine. Under the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, the Judge is also required to consider and weigh a number of factors, including the nature, circumstances and seriousness of the offense; the history and characteristics of the defendant; and the need to punish the defendant, protect the public and provide for the defendant’s educational, vocational and medical needs. For these reasons, the statutory maximum penalty for the offense is not an accurate indicator of the potential sentence for a specific defendant.
****Rochester Woman Sentenced for Threatening to Kill the PresidentRead the Press Release
ROCHESTER, N.Y.--U.S. Attorney William J. Hochul, Jr. announced today that Christine Wright-Darrisaw, 38, of Rochester, N.Y., who was convicted following a jury trial of making a direct threat to kill the President of the United States and then lying to United States Secret Service Agents investigating the case, was sentenced to 33 months in prison today by U. S. District Court Judge Frank P Geraci.
Assistant U.S. Attorneys Craig R. Gestring and Grace M. Carducci, who handled the prosecution of the case, stated that the defendant threatened to kill President Barack Obama during a telephone call to the White House on February 24, 2012. At trial, the Government called the White House Operator who took the call from the defendant and she graphically described the “brutality” and the “violence” of Darrisaw’s words. The Operator stated that she has answered thousands of calls while serving as an operator with the White House Comments Line, but that this call stood out in her memory, almost two years later.
Secret Service Agents from Washington and Rochester also testified at trial about their investigation and how they were able to identify the defendant as a suspect. Agents in Rochester linked Wright-Darrisaw to the cellular telephone used to make the threat, and conducted an interview with her. During that interview, the defendant made several false statements to the Secret Service which were material to and impacted their investigation.
The sentencing is the culmination of an investigation on the part of Special Agents of the United States Secret Service, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge, Tracy Gast.Retired Chicago Official Arrested on Federal Bribery Charge for Taking Cash and Personal Benefits to Steer $124 Million in City Contracts to Redflex for Red Light Camera ProgramRead the Press Release
CHICAGO — A retired City of Chicago official who managed the city’s red light camera program for nearly a decade was arrested today for allegedly accepting cash and personal benefits totaling hundreds of thousands of dollars to steer $124 million in city contracts to Redflex Traffic Systems, Inc., to establish, operate and expand the program. The defendant, JOHN BILLS, allegedly received cash bribes, other forms of payment, and an Arizona condominium, all funneled from Redflex through unnamed Individual A, Bills’ one-time friend who received $2 million in salary, bonuses, and commissions as a consultant to Redflex.
Bills, 52, of Chicago, was charged with one count of federal program bribery in a criminal complaint that was filed yesterday and unsealed today. Bills was scheduled to appear at 3 p.m. before U.S. Magistrate Judge Maria Valdez in Federal Court.
Between 2003, when the city awarded Phoenix-based Redflex its initial contract, and 2011, Bills allegedly received from Individual A cash and checks directly and indirectly for his benefit, including to repay loans, for his retirement party, and catering for another party. Individual A also purchased for Bills a Glendale, Ariz., condominium for $177,000, which Bills, often with friends and family, visited 22 times between May 2008 and 2012.
Bills, who retired in 2011 as managing deputy commissioner of the city’s transportation department after 32 years with the city, managed the city’s red light program and served as a member of the city’s contract evaluation committee.
According to an FBI affidavit supporting the charges, in October 2003, the city awarded a contract to Redflex for the installation, maintenance and operation of the city’s first Digital Automated Red Light Enforcement Program (DARLEP), which used cameras to automatically record and ticket drivers who ran red lights. Between 2004 and 2008, the city paid Redflex approximately $25 million under this contract, and Redflex installed and maintained 136 camera systems in Chicago intersections, and assisted in reviewing and processing violations. Bills, then assistant transportation commissioner, was a voting member of the city’s request for proposal (RFP) evaluation committee that recommended awarding the contract to Redflex after a one-month trial run of competing systems by Redflex and another finalist. In February 2008, the city awarded a new, non-competitive contract to Redflex to operate and maintain the previously installed 136 camera systems, and paid Redflex approximately $33 million under that contract.
Also in February 2008, following the competitive RFP process, the city awarded a new DARLEP contract to Redflex that was similar to the first. Bills was an advisory member of this RFP evaluation committee. The city paid Redflex approximately $66 million under this contract, which resulted in approximately 248 red light cameras being installed, bringing the total number of Redflex cameras to 384 and the total amount the city has paid Redflex to approximately $124 million.
By 2010, Chicago had the largest red light camera program in the United States, representing 20 percent of the total camera systems that Redflex operated nationwide. For Redflex, a subsidiary of Australian-based Redflex Holdings Ltd., the Chicago contract was its most important because of the revenue it generated and the name recognition it gave the company, according to the affidavit.
The complaint affidavit is supported by information from Confidential Source 1 (CS1), a former Redflex employee who initially provided Bills in 2002 with an unsolicited proposal to install red light cameras in Chicago. Frequent communications between CS1 and Bills led CS1 to understand that Bills was trying to determine if he could get money from Redflex in return for the company getting the red light camera contract. Shortly after a Jan. 3, 2003, pre-bid meeting that CS1 attended with other vendors, Bills asked CS1 to get him and his friends a hotel room in Los Angeles. CS1 paid for Bills’ hotel room with the approval of CS1’s superiors, believing that it would influence Bills to help Redflex get the Chicago contract. As CS1 anticipated, Bills did not offer and did not reimburse CS1 for the hotel room and instead thanked CS1, who submitted a voucher and was reimbursed by Redflex.
Between February and May 2003, during a pilot phase with Redflex and a competing vendor, Redflex paid for drinks and meals for Bills. Upon Bills’ recommendation, Redflex hired Company A as a subcontractor. In May 2003, before the city contract was awarded, Bills made comments to remind CS1 that Bills was being courted by the competing vendor. After Bills and CS1 strategized to ensure a favorable result, on May 27, 2003, the evaluation committee and city transportation commissioner recommended that Redflex be awarded the DARLEP contract, which went into effect in October 2003.
At a celebratory dinner in June 2003, Bills allegedly told CS1 words to the effect of, “It’s time to make good,” which CS1 understood to mean that Bills wanted and expected to be paid for helping Redflex win the Chicago contract. Bills allegedly floated alternative suggestions for funneling benefits to him, including suggesting that Redflex could pay him through the newly created Chicago customer liaison position. During the summer and fall of 2003 Redflex hired Individual A to fill that position and negotiated his compensation structure. In addition to salary and bonuses, Redflex payments to Individual A included commissions totaling more than $1.34 million between 2008 and 2011.
Before Bills retired, he allegedly made it known to CS1 and other Redflex employees that he wanted a job with Redflex. After it was decided that Redflex could not hire him directly, Redflex arranged for Bills to get a job with Company B, which was funded by Redflex. That job lasted through the early spring of 2012.
The affidavit alleges that between late 2003 and November 2012, Individual A and Bills used several different methods to transfer funds to Bills. In 2008, Individual A purchased the Glendale, Ariz., condominium for Bills’ use. In addition, checks written on Individual A’s bank account were used to repay debts Bills had accumulated and also to pay for personal expenses of Bills and his family. Individual A also withdrew large amounts of cash, totaling more than $643,000 between 2006 and 2011, which temporally correspond to Bills’ repayment of loans as well as Bills’ payment of numerous personal expenditures, including purchasing a $12,500 used Mercedes-Benz, with cash. Although some of Bills’ cash expenditures do not correspond to specific withdrawals by Individual A, Bills’ financial records reflect no withdrawals of cash by him to support the personal expenditures. In fact, records reflect very little cash on-hand by Bills during this time period.
The charges were announced by Zachary T. Fardon, United States Attorney for the Northern District of Illinois; Robert J. Holley, Special Agent-in-Charge of the Chicago Office of the Federal Bureau of Investigation; James C. Lee, Special Agent-in-Charge of the Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigation Division in Chicago; and Joseph Ferguson, Inspector General for the City of Chicago. The investigation is continuing, they said.
The government is being represented by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Carrie Hamilton and Laurie Barsella.
Federal program bribery carries a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison and a $250,000 fine. If convicted, the court must impose a reasonable sentence under federal sentencing statutes and the advisory United States Sentencing Guidelines.
The public is reminded that a complaint contains only charges and is not evidence of guilt. The defendant is presumed innocent and is entitled to a fair trial at which the government has the burden of proving guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.
Complaint
Readout of the Attorney General’s Meeting with D.C.-area College Campus Leadership on Addressing Campus Sexual AssaultRead the Press Release
Today, Attorney General Eric Holder met with campus leadership from eight Washington, D.C.-area colleges and universities: American University; Catholic University of America; Gallaudet University; Georgetown University; George Washington University; Howard University; Trinity University; and University of the District of Columbia, to discuss how administrations are addressing sexual assault on campus.
In recognition of the 20th anniversary of the Violence Against Women Act, the department’s Office of Violence Against Women (OVW) launched a campus tour from April 23-May 1 for Sexual Assault Awareness Month. Senior officials from the Departments of Justice and Education visited 11 campuses across the country, including public and private universities, community colleges, historically black colleges, and faith-based and tribal-affiliated institutions.
During today’s discussion, convened at the Department of Justice, officials shared lessons learned and feedback from the campus tour. Campus leaders shared their achievements and challenges in implementing effective prevention and intervention strategies and responses to address sexual assault, including student engagement, public education efforts, strong collaborations and a focus on campus culture. Justice officials also encouraged school leaders to take advantage of the assistance being provided by the government. Department of Justice campus assistance includes specialized training for school officials and guidance on how to improve their investigative and adjudicative protocols.
President Obama and Vice President Biden took an unprecedented step this year in the Administration’s effort to address campus sexual assault by establishing the “White House Task Force to Protect Students from Sexual Assault.” The Task Force was charged with sharing best practices, and increasing transparency, enforcement, public awareness and interagency coordination to prevent violence and support survivors. At the end of April, the Task Force issued their first report, reflecting what they had heard in the many listening sessions that were held this year, and what the government can do in the short-term to better partner with academic institutions.
Since 1999, OVW has funded approximately 400 campus-based projects, totaling more than $139 million, to address domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault and stalking on campuses.
Associate Attorney General Tony West, Acting Assistant Attorney General for Civil Rights Jocelyn Samuels, and OVW Principal Deputy Director Bea Hanson, as well as the Department of Education’s Jamienne Studley, Deputy Under Secretary of Education, and Seth Galanter, Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary, Office for Civil Rights, also participated in today’s meeting. The roundtable discussion was organized in partnership with the DC Coalition Against Domestic Violence (DCCADV) University Leadership Initiative.
Rangeley Man Sentenced to Almost Four Years on Firearms ChargeRead 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 Frank
J. McConnell, III, a/k/a “Frank Thompson,” 23, of Rangeley, Maine, was sentenced today in
U.S. District Court in Bangor to almost four years (46 months) of imprisonment, three years of supervised release and a $500 fine for being a felon in possession of a firearm. The defendant pleaded guilty on November 13, 2013.Court records reveal that on July 13, 2013, law enforcement officers responded to a complaint that an intoxicated man was at a home in Dallas Plantation shooting a gun. When the officers arrived, the defendant was standing outside the home firing a handgun toward the woods. The defendant was intoxicated and prohibited from possessing firearms because of prior felony convictions for domestic violence assault and a bail violation.
The investigation was conducted by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and
Explosives, the Rangeley Police Department, the Franklin County Sheriff’s Office, the Maine
State Police, and the U.S. Border Patrol.Raleigh Man Sentenced for Receipt of Child PornographyRead the Press Release
GREENVILLE – United States Attorney Thomas G. Walker announced that in federal court today Senior United States District Judge Malcolm J. Howard sentenced WALLACE EDWIN PERRY, JR., 28, of Raleigh, North Carolina, to 188 months imprisonment followed by 15 years of supervised release.
A Criminal Information was filed on December 9, 2013, charging receipt of child pornography, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 2252(a)(2). On February 10, 2014, PERRY pled guilty to the charge.
According to the investigation, in February, 2012, Cary Police Department initiated an investigation related to the peer-to-peer sharing of child pornography. From February, 2012, to August, 2012, an undercover agent identified a computer offering to share files containing child pornography. A search warrant was obtained and executed in September, 2012. Computer forensics revealed over 20,000 images of child pornography.
The criminal investigation of this case was conducted by the Cary Police, the Raleigh Police Department and the Federal Bureau of Investigation. Assistant United States Attorney Ethan A. Ontjes is handling the prosecution on behalf of the Eastern District of North Carolina.
This case was part of the Project Safe Childhood initiative, a national program aimed at ensuring that criminals exploiting children are effectively prosecuted by making full use of all available law enforcement resources at every level. For more information about this important national project, Project Safe Childhood, go to www.projectsafechildhood.gov.
Portland Man Pleads Guilty to Pharmacy RobberyRead the Press Release
Contact: Michael J. Conley
Assistant United States Attorney
Tel: (207) 780-3257Portland, Maine: United States Attorney Thomas E. Delahanty II announced that Jason
Campbell, 39, of Portland, pled guilty today in U.S. District Court before Judge Jon D. Levy to pharmacy robbery.According to court records and evidence introduced at the plea hearing, on April 11, 2014, Campbell entered the CVS pharmacy, located on Congress Street in Portland, carrying a backpack. As he approached the pharmacy counter, he opened the backpack, said he had a
“bomb,” displayed what appeared to be a soda bottle with wires attached to it, and told the pharmacist to evacuate the CVS and to close the gate in front of the store. He demanded the opioid pain medications Duragesic (fentanyl), demerol and dilaudid and absconded after being given the narcotics. He disposed of his outer clothing and the backpack in a nearby trash can. He was located a short time later in the vicinity of his Portland residence and some of the stolen narcotics were recovered. The investigation revealed that the bomb was not an explosive device.
Campbell faces up to 20 years in prison and a $250,000 fine, or both. He will be sentenced after the completion of a presentence investigation report by the U.S. Probation Office.The investigation was conducted by the Portland Police Department and the Federal
Bureau of Investigation.Pittsburgh Jeweler Sentenced to Probation for Failing to File IRS FormsRead the Press Release
PITTSBURGH - A Pittsburgh jeweler has been sentenced in federal court to three years of probation, a $12,000 fine, and 100 hours of community service on his conviction of failing to file Internal Revenue Service forms for the purpose of evading federal reporting requirements, United States Attorney David J. Hickton announced today. The first six months of probation will be served in home detention with electronic monitoring.
Senior United States District Judge Gustave Diamond imposed the sentence on Alan Kashi, 32.
According to information presented to the court during the earlier guilty plea proceeding, on March 13, 2012, Kashi, who was engaged in the jewelry business known as Kashi Jewelers located on Fifth Avenue in downtown Pittsburgh, for the purpose of evading federal reporting requirements, failed to file an Internal Revenue Service Form 8300, Report of Cash Payments Over $10,000 Received in a Trade or Business, following his receipt of approximately $12,500 in currency as a payment for a Breitling watch.
The charges against Kashi arose as a result of an undercover IRS investigation of Kashi's sale of high-end jewelry to known drug traffickers for cash. The investigation established that transactions exceeding $10,000 were not, as required by law, reported to the IRS on Forms 8300.
During the execution of a federal search warrant at Kashi Jewelers, $933,025 was discovered in two safes and seized by federal agents. Prior to the sentencing proceeding, Kashi agreed to the Court entering an order forfeiting the money to the United States.
Assistant United States Attorney Carolyn J. Bloch prosecuted this case on behalf of the government.
U.S. Attorney Hickton commended the Internal Revenue Service, Criminal Investigation, for the investigation leading to the successful prosecution of Kashi.
Philadelphia Woman Admits Conspiracy to Traffic Firearms from Philadelphia to CamdenRead the Press Release
CAMDEN, N.J. – A Philadelphia woman today admitted conspiring to sell guns without a license, U.S. Attorney Paul J. Fishman announced.
Rosselyn M. DeJesus, 26, pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Renée Marie Bumb in Camden federal court to an information charging her with conspiracy to deal firearms without a license.
According to documents filed in this case and statements made in court: Between June 30, 2012, and July 19, 2012, DeJesus bought five pistols from Philadelphia-area gun shops, which she then transferred for resale to her conspirator, Michael Wayne Lee, also of Philadelphia. Lee, a previously convicted felon, resold them. Two of the five weapons were sold by a third individual, Ammie Steward, to a witness cooperating with the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF). These two weapons are now in the custody of law enforcement.
On Feb. 19, 2014, Lee pleaded guilty before Judge Bumb to one count of conspiring with DeJesus, Steward, and others to deal firearms without a license and one count of possession of a firearm by a previously convicted felon. He is scheduled to be sentenced Sept. 29, 2014.
On Dec. 19, 2012, Steward, pleaded guilty before Judge Bumb to dealing firearms without a license and one count of possession of a firearm by a previously convicted felon. He is scheduled to be sentenced Sept. 19, 2014.
Also in connection with this investigation, on May 5, 2014, ATF agents arrested Wendelle L. Ford, 40, of Camden. Ford was charged with conspiracy to deal firearms without a license.
From January 2012 through July 2012, Ford obtained firearms from different sources, who purchased them in gun shops in Philadelphia and pawn shops in North Carolina. Ford then resold the firearms, including at least two firearms to Steward, who in turn sold the weapons to an ATF informant. In total, Ford dealt 15 firearms without a license.
Ford made his initial appearance in court on May 5, 2014, before U.S. Magistrate Judge Karen M. Williams and was released on bond.
The count of conspiracy to illegally deal firearms to which DeJesus pleaded guilty, and with which Ford is charged, carries a maximum potential penalty of five years in prison and a $250,000 fine. DeJesus is scheduled to be sentenced Sept. 5, 2014.
U.S. Attorney Fishman credited special agents of the ATF, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Robin Shoemaker, with the investigation leading to today’s guilty plea.
The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorney Matthew T. Smith of the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Camden.
The charges and allegations contained in the complaint against Ford are merely accusations, and the defendant is considered innocent unless and until proven guilty.
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Defense counsel: DeJesus: Frederick Klepp Esq., Cherry Hill, N.J.
Lee: Stanley King Esq., Woodbury, N.J.
Ford: Mark Catanzaro Esq., Moorestown, N.J.DeJesus, Resselyn Information
Lee, Michael Wayne Information
Steward, Ammie Information
Ford, Wendelle ComplaintPatient Recruiter Sentenced in Detroit for Role in $14.5 Million Medicare Fraud SchemeRead the Press Release
A patient recruiter who participated in a Medicare fraud scheme that totaled almost $14.5 million was sentenced in Detroit yesterday to serve 86 months in prison.
Acting Assistant Attorney General David A. O’Neil of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Michigan Barbara L. McQuade, Special Agent in Charge Paul M. Abbate of the FBI’s Detroit Field Office and Special Agent in Charge Lamont Pugh III of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General (HHS-OIG) Chicago Regional Office made the announcement.
Richard Shannon, 41, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Denise Page Hood in the Eastern District of Michigan. In addition to his prison term, Shannon was sentenced to serve three years of supervised release and was ordered to pay more than $1.6 million in restitution, jointly and severally with his co-defendants.
On Oct. 26, 2012, Shannon, a patient recruiter for a network of fraudulent home health care companies, was found guilty at trial of one count of conspiracy to commit health care fraud.
According to evidence presented at trial, Shannon and his co-conspirators caused the submission of false and fraudulent claims to Medicare through All American and Patient Choice, two Oak Park-based home health care companies, which purported to provide skilled nursing and physical therapy services to Medicare beneficiaries in the greater Detroit area.
The evidence showed that Shannon acted as a patient recruiter, paying Medicare beneficiaries to sign blank documents for physical therapy services that were never provided and/or medically unnecessary. The owners of Patient Choice and All American then paid physicians to sign referrals and other therapy documents necessary to bill Medicare. Physical therapists and physical therapist assistants would then create fake medical records using the blank, pre-signed forms obtained by Shannon and other patient recruiters to make it appear as if physical therapy services had actually been rendered.
Shannon recruited destitute beneficiaries from housing projects and soup kitchens in the Detroit area, obtaining their patient information in exchange for cash and promises of prescription narcotics prescribed by co-conspirator physicians.
This case was investigated by the FBI, HHS-OIG and the Internal Revenue Service and was brought as part of the Medicare Fraud Strike Force, under the supervision of the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Michigan. This case was prosecuted by Deputy Chief Gejaa Gobena, Assistant Chief Catherine Dick and Trial Attorney Niall O’Donnell of the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section.
Since its inception in March 2007, the Medicare Fraud Strike Force, now operating in nine cities across the country, has charged almost 1,900 defendants who have collectively billed the Medicare program for more than $6 billion. In addition, HHS’s Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, working in conjunction with HHS-OIG, has removed over 17,000 providers from the Medicare program since 2011.
To learn more about the Health Care Fraud Prevention and Enforcement Action Team (HEAT), go to: www.stopmedicarefraud.gov .Parmelee Man Sentenced for Abusive Sexual Contact by ForceRead the Press Release
United States Attorney Brendan V. Johnson announced that a Parmelee, South Dakota, man convicted of Abusive Sexual Contact by Force was sentenced on May 12, 2014, by U.S. District Judge Roberto A. Lange.
Daryl Plumman, age 21, was sentenced to 5 years in custody, 5 years of supervised release, a $100 special assessment to the Federal Crime Victims Fund, and $44.46 in restitution.
Plumman was indicted for Abusive Sexual Contact by Force by a federal grand jury on May 15, 2013. He pled guilty on February 20, 2014.
The conviction stems from an incident that took place in July 2011 at Parmelee, when Plumman began to kiss the victim and she attempted to end the encounter. Plumman held her down while he removed her pants and touched her inappropriately.
This case was investigated by the Rosebud Sioux Tribe Law Enforcement Services. Assistant U.S. Attorney Marie H. Ruettgers prosecuted the case.
Plumman was immediately turned over to the custody of the U.S. Marshals Service.
Owner and Operator of New Jersey-Based Real Benefits Association LLC Admits Selling Bogus Health InsuranceRead the Press Release
TRENTON, N.J. - An insurance broker who allegedly stole nearly $1 million while continuing to sell health care coverage he knew was fake pleaded guilty today in connection with the scheme, U.S. Attorney Paul J. Fishman announced.
David Clark, 70, of Morristown, N.J., entered his guilty plea to an information, charging him with conspiracy to commit wire fraud, before U.S. District Judge Michael Shipp in Trenton federal court.
According to documents filed in this case and statements made in court: Clark owned and operated Real Benefits Association, LLC (RBA), a New Jersey limited liability company he incorporated on Dec. 17, 2003, under a similar name. Clark established RBA as a purported labor organization and as a way to market and sell health insurance to the general public through the RBA Welfare Plan. Initially, the Welfare Plan was fully insured through Perfect Health, a licensed New York insurance company. Participants paid insurance premiums to bank accounts of RBA and/or the Welfare Plan, which Clark then remitted to Perfect Health.
Perfect Health was purchased by Health Insurance Programs (HIP) in 2008, and HIP discontinued its insurance policy with the RBA Welfare Plan. The federal government notified Clark that RBA did not qualify as a labor organization and was required to cease operating.
Nonetheless, Clark continued to market and sell the health insurance plans to unsuspecting participants. Eventually participants began to complain to their respective state insurance departments when their medical claims were not being paid, which prompted various departments throughout the United States to issue cease and desist orders.
Clark and conspirators continued to market and sell bogus health insurance, and from December 2008 to July 2011, they collected approximately $1,789,596 in premiums for RBA health insurance coverage. Clark diverted approximately $962,027 from the premiums paid by RBA participants for his personal use, including by using victims’ premiums to fund personal debit and credit card purchases, college tuition payments and deposits to a relative’s bank account.
The conspiracy charge carries a maximum potential penalty of 20 years in prison and a $250,000 fine, or twice the gain or loss caused by the offense. Sentencing is currently scheduled for Aug. 20, 2014.
U.S. Attorney Fishman credited special agents of the U. S. Department of Labor, Office of Inspector General, Office of Labor Racketeering and Fraud Investigations, under the direction of Acting Special Agent in Charge Cheryl Garcia; and the U.S. Department of Labor Employee Benefits Security Administration (EBSA), under Jonathan Kay, Regional Director; as well as postal inspectors of the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, under the direction of Inspector in Charge Maria Kelokates, with the investigation leading to the plea.
The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorney Michael H. Robertson of the U.S. Attorney’s Office’s Health Care and Government Fraud Unit in Newark.
If you have information or think you might be a victim of this scheme, please contact (866) 444-3272 to speak to an EBSA benefits advisor.14-170
Defense counsel: John P. McDonald Esq.; Somerville, N.J.
Clark, David Information
Omak Mental Health Counselor Sentenced to Five Years Probation for Filing False Income Tax ReturnRead the Press Release
Spokane – Michael C. Ormsby, United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Washington, announced that Debra Van Brunt-Oreiro, age 59, of Omak, Washington, was sentenced today for filing a false income tax return. United States District Court Chief Judge Rosanna M. Peterson sentenced Van Brunt-Oreiro to a five-year term of probation. The Court ordered Van Brunt-Oreiro to pay $250,172 to the IRS in unpaid taxes, to perform 10 hours of community service on a weekly basis during her entire term of probation, and to pay a $100 penalty assessment. The Court also ordered that any proceeds Van Brunt Oreiro may receive from the sale of property she owns, which is held in trust by the Colville Confederated Tribe, will be garnished and distributed to the IRS.
According to information disclosed during court proceedings, Van Brunt-Oreiro was the owner-operator of ADJR Counseling Services in Omak, Washington, and provided mental health counseling and therapy services to Colville Confederated Tribal (CCT) members and non-members. Van Brunt-Oreiro was an independent contractor and not a tribal employee. According to court documents, Van Brunt-Oreiro filed false Federal income tax returns with the IRS for the years 2006, 2007 and 2008 which underreported income she received from the CCT by approximately $575,616. She also failed to file a 2009 Federal income tax return, even though she earned approximately $233,737 in income that year.
Michael C. Ormsby, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Washington, said, "The privilege of living well in the United States carries certain burdens, one of which is the voluntary payment of taxes. The system only works when everyone truthfully reports their income and pays their fair share of taxes."
"When someone gives in to greed and cheats on their taxes, they cheat and steal from all of us," said Kenneth Hines, Special Agent in Charge of IRS Criminal Investigation's Seattle Field Office. "This sentencing demonstrates the committed efforts of the IRS and the United States Attorney's Office to bring to justice to those who shirk their duties as American citizens."
The investigation was conducted by the Internal Revenue Service, Criminal Investigation. The case was prosecuted by George J.C. Jacobs, III, an Assistant United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Washington.
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Olympia Man who Preyed on 16-Year-Old Convicted of Production and Possession of Child PornographyRead the Press Release
A 47-year old Olympia, Washington man was found guilty late yesterday of production and possession of child pornography following a two day bench trial in U.S. District Court in Tacoma, announced U.S. Attorney Jenny A. Durkan. MICHAEL T. LAURSEN, supplied a 16-year-old with drugs and photographed her in sexually explicit conduct. U.S. District Judge Robert J. Bryan found LAURSEN guilty and set sentencing for August 8, 2014. LAURSEN faces a mandatory minimum 15 years to 30 years in prison.
According to records filed in the case, the victim was known to LAURSEN through her relatives. She first met LAURSEN when she was 12-years-old. After she turned 16 years old in 2012, LAURSEN initiated a sexual relationship with her, supplied her with drugs, and encouraged her to miss school. In June 2012 and October 2012, LAURSEN took photographs of the victim, including photographs of his sexual conduct with her. LAURSEN encouraged the victim to run away from home, and then had her stay with him in motel rooms, apartments, and other person’s homes, while also directing her to engage in sexually explicit acts and taking photographs of her.
The case was investigated by the Washington State Patrol-Missing and Exploited Children’s Task Force, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations (HSI)-South Sound Investigative Task Force, Bureau of Alcohol Tobacco and Firearms, and the Federal Bureau of Investigation.
The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Ye-Ting Woo and Special Assistant United States Attorney Seth Wilkinson.
Odessan Pleads Guilty to Federal Drug ChargeRead the Press Release
Kelly Jay Duarte, the 22-year-old former proprietor of Urban City, a retail business in Odessa, faces up to 20 years in federal prison after pleading guilty earlier today to one count of possession of a synthetic cannabinoid with intent to distribute announced United States Attorney Robert Pitman and Federal Bureau of Investigation Special Agent in Charge Douglas E. Lindquist, El Paso Division.
By pleading guilty, Duarte admitted that in May 2013, synthetic cannabinoids packaged under the names of “Diablo,” “KMA,” “Mad Hatter,” and “Hypnotic Haze” were knowingly sold to customers at his business in violation of federal law.
Duarte remains on bond pending sentencing. A sentencing date has yet to be scheduled.
This investigation was conducted by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Odessa Police Department with lab assistance provided by the Drug Enforcement Administration. Assistant United States Attorney John Klassen is prosecuting this case on behalf of the Government.