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6 May 2014
Philadelphia Tax Preparer Charged with Filing False Tax ReturnsRead the Press Release
Maria Falu, 37, of Philadelphia, PA, was charged today by Information with preparing and filing materially false tax returns, announced United States Attorney Zane David Memeger. The Information alleges that Falu owned Casa de Taxes and Genesis Tax Services, LLC, at 2934 North 5th Street, in Philadelphia, and prepared tax returns. The Information alleges that from 2011 to 2013, Falu prepared false tax returns for the tax years 2010, 2011, and 2012, for a number of individuals, by reporting false income, false expenses, and false tax credits, resulting in tax losses of approximately $117,171.
If convicted, the defendant faces a maximum possible sentence of 18 years of imprisonment.
The case was investigated by Internal Revenue Service, Criminal Investigation, and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Sarah L. Grieb.
Click here to view the indictment
An Information is an accusation. A defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
UNITED STATES ATTORNEY'S OFFICE, EASTERN DISTRICTof PENNSYLVANIA
Suite 1250, 615 Chestnut Street, Philadelphia, PA 19106
PATTY HARTMAN, Media Contact, 215-861-8525Painesville Man Indicted for Robbing Bank in Warrensville HeightsRead the Press Release
A grand jury returned a one-count indictment charging Edward Robert Hudson, 51, of Painesville, with one count of bank robbery, said Steven M. Dettelbach, United States Attorney for the Northern District of Ohio.
The indictment alleges that Hudson robbed the First Merit Bank, 4834 Richmond Road, Warrensville Heights, Ohio, a federally insured financial institution, on April 21, 2014.
If convicted, the defendant’s sentence will be determined by the Court after review of factors unique to this case, including the defendant’s prior criminal record, if any, the defendant’s role in the offense, and the characteristics of the violation. In all cases, the sentence will not exceed the statutory maximum and in most cases it will be less than the maximum.
The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Matthew B. Kall following an investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Warrensville Heights Police Department, and other local law enforcement agencies.
An indictment is only a charge and is not evidence of guilt. A defendant is entitled to a fair trial in which it will be the government’s burden to prove guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.
Owners of Los Angeles Ambulance Company Sentenced for <br /> Medicare Fraud SchemeRead the Press Release
The owners of Alpha Ambulance Inc. (Alpha), a now-defunct Los Angeles-area ambulance transportation company, have been sentenced in connection with a Medicare fraud scheme.
Acting Assistant Attorney General David A. O’Neil of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, U.S. Attorney André Birotte Jr. of the Central District of California, Special Agent in Charge Glenn R. Ferry of the Los Angeles Region of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General (HHS-OIG) and Assistant Director in Charge Bill L. Lewis of the FBI’s Los Angeles Field Office made the announcement.
Aleksey Muratov, aka Russ Muratov, 32, and Alex Kapri, aka Alex Kapriyelov or Alexander Kapriyelov, 56, were sentenced by U.S. District Court Judge Audrey B. Collins in the Central District of California to serve 108 months and 75 months in prison, respectively. Both Kapri and Muratov pleaded guilty on Oct. 28, 2013, to conspiracy to commit health care fraud.
Muratov and Kapri were owners and operators of Alpha, which specialized in the provision of non-emergency ambulance transportation services to Medicare-eligible beneficiaries, primarily dialysis patients.
According to court documents, Muratov and Kapri knowingly provided non-emergency ambulance transportation to Medicare beneficiaries whose medical condition at that time did not require ambulance transportation. With Kapri’s knowledge, Muratov and others at Alpha instructed certain Alpha employees to conceal the Medicare beneficiaries’ medical conditions by altering required documents for Medicare reimbursement and creating fraudulent justifications for the transportation. The defendants caused Alpha to submit claims to Medicare that were fraudulent because the transportation was not medically necessary.
Additionally, as the defendants were submitting these false claims, Medicare notified Alpha that the company would be subject to a Medicare audit. In response, Muratov instructed Alpha employees – with Kapri’s knowledge – to alter specific documents that would be submitted to Medicare in response to the audit and create false justifications for transportation of the beneficiaries identified.
From at least June 2008 through at least July 2012, Alpha submitted more than $49 million in claims for ambulance transportation. As a result, Medicare paid Alpha more than $13 million for these claims, many of which were fraudulent.
The case was investigated by the FBI and HHS-OIG 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 Central District of California. This case was prosecuted by Trial Attorneys Blanca Quintero and Alexander F. Porter and Assistant Chief O. Benton Curtis III of the Fraud Section.
Since its inception in March 2007, the Medicare Fraud Strike Force, now operating in nine cities across the country, has charged more than 1,700 defendants who have collectively billed the Medicare program for more than $5.5 billion. In addition, HHS’s Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, working in conjunction with HHS-OIG, are taking steps to increase accountability and decrease the presence of fraudulent providers.
To learn more about the Health Care Fraud Prevention and Enforcement Action Team (HEAT), go to: www.stopmedicarefraud.gov .Oshkosh Attorney Sentenced to Prison for Failure to Pay Federal Income TaxesRead the Press Release
United States Attorney James L. Santelle announced that George W. Curtis (77 years old) of Pickett, Wisconsin was sentenced in federal court in Green Bay yesterday for failing to pay federal income taxes he owed for the years 2007 - 2009. Chief United States District Judge William C. Griesbach sentenced Curtis to six months in prison and ordered him to pay the IRS approximately $380,000 in taxes he failed to pay. Judge Griesbach also placed Curtis on supervised release for one year and ordered him to pay the costs of prosecution, in the amount of $3,878.28.
Curtis who is a lawyer practicing in Oshkosh, Wisconsin, was convicted after a jury trial of three counts of willfully failing to pay the taxes he owed for those years. While Curtis filed tax returns for these years reporting his income and taxes, he paid none of the taxes. In addition, Curtis has yet to pay taxes he owed for the years 2003 and 2004.
At trial, the government introduced evidence that during the years 2007 – 2009, Curtis’ law practice generated a profit of approximately $1.1 million and that he used those funds to make personal expenditures totaling more than $1 million. Nonetheless, Curtis paid none of the federal income taxes he owed for those years.
Orthopedic Surgeon Charged with Unlawful Distribution of OxycodoneRead the Press Release
ALBANY, NEW YORK – JEFFREY GUNDEL, M.D., of Gansevoort, New York, was arrested today and charged with unlawful distribution of oxycodone, announced United States Attorney Richard S. Hartunian and James J. Hunt, Acting Special Agent-in-Charge of the Drug Enforcement Administration, New York Division. Following an initial appearance before United States Magistrate Judge Christian F. Hummel, GUNDEL was released on conditions. If convicted, GUNDEL faces up to twenty years in prison, a fine of up to $1,000,000.00, and a term of supervised release.
The investigation is being conducted by the Drug Enforcement Administration.
The charges are merely accusations, and the defendant is presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in court.
O.C. Man Whose Company Provided Military Support Services in Iraq Pleads Guilty to Tax Offenses for Failing to Report Millions in IncomeRead the Press Release
SANTA ANA, California – The owner of a Huntington Beach-based military contractor has pleaded guilty to federal tax charges for failing to report to the Internal Revenue Service millions of dollars his company received for providing services to the military at Baghdad International Airport.
Nadim “Nick” Saifan Jr., 48, who resides in Huntington Beach, pleaded guilty late yesterday to two counts of attempted tax evasion. Saifan pleaded guilty to two of the five counts contained in an indictment returned by a federal grand jury in 2011.
Saifan specifically pleaded guilty to substantially underreporting income on his company’s 2005 corporate tax return and his personal tax return for 2006.
Saifan was the owner and operator of Defense Logistical Support & Services Corporation (DLSS), which provided services to the military and some civilian companies in Iraq. From August 2004 through October 2007, DLSS received nearly $16 million from the United States military alone for services in Iraq, according to court documents that state Saifan reported only a small fraction of this income on DLSS’s corporate tax returns filed with the IRS.
In addition to failing to report millions of dollars of corporate income, Saifan also used DLSS funds to pay for personal expenses without reporting this money as personal income. Federal prosecutors alleged in court papers that defendant used corporate money to make approximately $880,000 in down payments on real estate and approximately $292,000 in payments towards vehicles that included a Ferrari and a Rolls-Royce.
Prosecutors preparing for trial wrote that Saifan owes at least $4.5 million in unpaid corporate and personal taxes for the several years charged in the indictment, and that he caused a total tax loss to the government of at least $7 million.
Saifan pleaded guilty before United States District Judge Cormac J. Carney, who is scheduled to sentence the defendant on August 18. At sentencing, Saifan will face a statutory maximum sentence of 10 years in federal prison.
After Saifan pleaded guilty yesterday, Judge Carney revoked Saifan’s bond and remanded him into federal custody pending his sentencing.
The case against Saifan was investigated by the Defense Criminal Investigative Service and IRS – Criminal Investigation.
Release No. 14-054
New York Man Admits to Participating in Five Armed Robberies of Electronics Stores in New Jersey and New YorkRead the Press Release
NEWARK, N.J. – A Brooklyn, N.Y., man admitted today to participating in five armed robberies of electronics stores, including an armed robbery in Linden, N.J., U.S. Attorney Paul J. Fishman announced.
Kajuan Crawley, 26, pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Joel A. Pisano in Trenton federal court to a superseding indictment charging him with conspiracy to commit Hobbs Act robberies.
Crawley was arrested Oct. 17, 2013, and charged in a superseding indictment — along with Carl Williams, 30, Eric Williams, 33, and Unique Randolph, 27 — in connection with five armed robberies of electronic stores in New Jersey and New York. Crawley has been in custody since his arrest.
According to documents filed in this case and statements made in court: Between June 11, 2012, and Sept. 20, 2012, Crawley conspired with others to commit a series of armed robberies of electronic store in New Jersey and New York, during which he and accomplices robbed merchandise for illegal resale.
Following the June 21, 2012, armed robbery of an electronic store in Rockville Center, N.Y., Crawley was apprehended by the officers with Nassau County Police Department. While released on bail, Crawley participated in the Sept. 20, 2012, armed robbery of an electronics store in Linden.
The charge of conspiracy to commit Hobbs Act robberies carries a maximum potential penalty of 20 years in prison and a maximum fine of $250,000. Sentencing is scheduled for Sept. 18, 2014.U.S. Attorney Fishman credited special agents of the FBI, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Aaron T. Ford, with the investigation leading to today’s plea. He also thanked the Linden and Woodbridge police departments in New Jersey, as well as the New York City and Nassau County police departments and the Kings County District Attorney’s Office in New York for their work in this case.
The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorney Osmar J. Benvenuto of the U.S. Attorney’s Office Criminal Division.The charges and allegations contained in the indictment are merely accusations, and the defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
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Defense counsel:Carl Williams: Mark A. Berman Esq., River Edge, N.J.
Eric Williams: Aaron M. Goldsmith Esq., New York
Kajuan Crawley: Maria D. Noto Esq., Matawan, N.J.
Unique Randolph: Damian P. Conforti, Esq., NewarkCrawley, Kajuan Superseding Indictment
Nevada Woman Pleads Guilty to Transporting an Undocumented Mexican ToddlerRead the Press Release
ALBUQUERQUE – Serafina Madrid, 35, of Las Vegas, Nev., pleaded guilty this morning in federal court in Albuquerque, N.M., to a felony information charging her with transporting an illegal alien. Under the terms of her plea agreement, Madrid will be sentenced to a term of probation to be determined by the court.
Madrid was arrested on Aug. 1, 2013, based on a criminal complaint charging her with unlawfully transporting of an illegal alien. According to the criminal complaint, on that day, law enforcement officers encountered Madrid at the Greyhound bus station in Albuquerque. At the time of the encounter, Madrid was transporting a 16-month old toddler from San Diego, Cal. to Atlanta, Ga. The toddler was a Mexican national unlawfully in the United States.
In entering her guilty plea, Madrid admitted that she was transporting the child, who was an illegal alien from Mexico, when she was arrested on Aug. 1, 2013. Madrid further admitted that she had been paid $1200.00 to transport the 16-month old toddler from San Diego, Calif., to Atlanta, Ga., and that she expected additional payment when she delivered the toddler to her mother in Georgia.
Madrid remains on conditions of release and under pretrial supervision pending her sentencing hearing, which has yet to be scheduled.
This case was investigated by the Albuquerque office of U.S. Customs and Border Protection, with assistance from the Albuquerque office of the DEA and the Pueblo of Laguna Tribal Police Department, and is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Lynn W.Y. Wang and Charles L. Barth.
Montana Man Sentenced for Coercion & Enticement of a MinorRead the Press Release
BISMARCK – U.S. Attorney Timothy Q. Purdon announced that on May 6, 2014, Clayton L. Lakey, 34, Billings, Mont., pleaded guilty and was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Daniel L. Hovland on a charge of coercion and enticement of a minor.
Defendant Lakey is the first defendant to be convicted and sentenced as a result of Operation Vigilant Guardian, a joint anti-Human Trafficking investigation by the North Dakota Bureau of Criminal Investigation and Homeland Security Investigations aimed at “johns” trying to arrange sex with underage human trafficking victims online. The investigation resulted in the arrest on federal charges of 14 defendants in Williston and Dickinson, N.D., in October and November of 2013.
In Bismarck, United States Attorney Timothy Purdon said, “When I learned that 14 people had been arrested in western North Dakota on charges of using the Internet to try and arrange sexual encounters with underage girls, I was deeply troubled. Human trafficking is, sadly, a growing concern in North Dakota. The Operation Vigilant Guardian prosecutions show that the United States Attorney’s
Office, with our state and federal law enforcement partners, will move swiftly and powerfully to attack the demand that fuels this horrible crime.”Judge Hovland sentenced Lakey to serve five years in federal prison, to be followed by 10 years of supervised release. Lakey was ordered to pay a $100 special assessment to the Crime Victim’s Fund. Lakey must register as a sex offender.
Between Nov. 21 and Nov. 23, 2013, Lakey communicated by computer and text with an undercover law enforcement officer. Lakey arranged to meet at a hotel room in Dickinson, N.D., to engage in sexual activity with a person he thought would be a juvenile in exchange for money. When Lakey arrived at the hotel room, he was placed under arrest.
This investigation was conducted by the North Dakota Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force and was a cooperative effort of the North Dakota Bureau of Criminal Investigation and Homeland Security Investigations.
This case was brought as a 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 United States Attorneys’ Offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS), Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to better locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the Internet, as well as to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.projectsafechildhood.gov.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Gary Delorme prosecuted the case.
Missouri Man Pleads GuiltyTo Robbing Bank in Shawnee, Kan.Read the Press Release
KANSAS CITY, KAN. - A Missouri man pleaded guilty Monday to a robbery in December at a bank in Shawnee, Kan., U.S. Attorney Barry Grissom said.
Scott Thario, 22, Lee’s Summit, Mo., pleaded guilty to one count of bank robbery and one count of unlawful possession of a firearm in furtherance of a crime of violence.
A grand jury indictment filed in December 2013 alleged that on Dec. 16, 2013, Thario robbed Intrust Bank at 19501 West 65th Terrace in Shawnee, Kan. The indictment alleged he was carrying a short-barreled shotgun during the robbery.
Sentencing is set for Aug. 5. He faces a penalty of not less than 10 years in federal prison and a fine up to $250,000 on each count. Grissom commended the Shawnee Police Department, the FBI and Assistant U.S. Attorney David Zabel for their work on the case.
Milford Man Charged with Distributing HeroinRead the Press Release
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Deirdre M. Daly, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, today announced that a federal grand jury in New Haven has returned an indictment charging RYAN RUSSOW, 29, of Milford, with heroin distribution offenses.
According to statements made in court, on March 12, 2014, a 26-year-old male died at a residence in Milford. In the decedent’s room, law enforcement officers located two empty bags of heroin stamped “Much Better,” and two full bags bearing the same stamp. Drug Enforcement Administration analysis confirmed that the full bags contained heroin with a purity level of approximately 76 percent, and the Connecticut Office of the Chief Medical Examiner has concluded that the decedent died of heroin toxicity.
It is alleged that, on the morning of March 12, RUSSOW and the decedent exchanged a series of text messages in which the decedent sought to purchase heroin from RUSSOW. Video surveillance confirms that the decedent then arrived at RUSSOW’s residence and departed after approximately 15 minutes.
On March 19, 2014, the DEA executed a search warrant at RUSSOW’s residence and seized more than $19,000 in cash, a digital scale and drug packaging materials.
On April 23, 2014, the grand jury returned an indictment charging RUSSOW with one count of conspiracy to distribute, and to possess with intent to distribute, heroin, and one count of possession with intent to distribute, and distribution of, heroin. RUSSOW was arrested the next day.
RUSSOW has been detained since his arrest. He appeared today before U.S. Magistrate Judge Joan G. Margolis in New Haven and was ordered detained pending trial.
If convicted, RUSSOW faces a maximum term of imprisonment of 20 years on each count.
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 the Drug Enforcement Administration’s High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area (HIDTA) Task Force and the Milford Police Department. The Task Force is composed of members of the Milford, Stamford, Norwalk and Stratford Police Departments and the Connecticut State Police. This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Sarah P. Karwan.
PUBLIC AFFAIRS CONTACT:
U.S. ATTORNEY'S OFFICE
Tom Carson
(203) 821-3722 [email protected]McLaughlin Man Charged with AssaultRead the Press Release
United States Attorney Brendan V. Johnson announced that a McLaughlin, South Dakota, man has been indicted by a federal grand jury for Assault with a Dangerous Weapon and Assault Resulting in Serious Bodily Injury.
Justin Walking Elk, age 31, was indicted on April 15, 2014. He appeared before U.S. Magistrate Judge William D. Gerdes on May 1, 2014, and pled not guilty to the Indictment.
The maximum penalty upon conviction is up to 10 years in custody and/or a $250,000 fine, 3 years of supervised release, and up to $200 to the Federal Crime Victims Fund. Restitution may also be ordered.
The Indictment alleges that on or about October 10, 2013, Walking Elk unlawfully assaulted two victims, with one of the assaults resulting in serious bodily injury.
The charge is merely an accusation and Walking Elk is presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty.
The investigation is being conducted by the Bureau of Indian Affairs, Standing Rock Agency. Assistant U.S. Attorney Troy R. Morley is prosecuting the case.
Walking Elk was released on bond pending trial. A trial date has not been set.
Manhattan U.S. Attorney Announces Federal Workers’ Compensation Benefits Fraud Charges Against 11 Federal EmployeesRead the Press Release
Preet Bharara, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, Rafael A. Medina, the Special Agent-in-Charge of United States Postal Service, Office of Inspector General (“USPS-OIG”), and Cheryl Garcia, Acting Special Agent-in-Charge of the United States Department of Labor, Office of Inspector General (“DOL-OIG”), Office of Labor Racketeering and Fraud Investigations, today announced charges against 11 defendants for defrauding the Department of Labor’s federal workers’ compensation benefits program by claiming to be injured or disabled so that they could claim benefits to which they were not entitled. In addition, certain of the defendants failed to report income that they earned from other businesses they were running while allegedly too disabled to return to their federal employment. The 11 defendants include 10 United States Postal Service employees and one employee of the U.S. Navy, all but one of whom were arrested and presented today in Manhattan federal court before Magistrate Judge James C. Francis IV. One defendant was arrested on April 17, 2014, as part of the same operation.
Manhattan U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara said: “A federal employee is entitled to workers’ compensation benefits if he is in fact disabled by a workplace injury. As alleged, these defendants all showed remarkable strength and vigor for people claiming to have sustained debilitating injuries. They also showed a lack of integrity in exploiting a program meant to provide assistance to the truly disabled, not a source of easy money for the unscrupulous.”
Rafael A. Medina, Special Agent-in-Charge of the USPS-OIG, said: “Today’s arrests should send a clear message to every Postal Service employee that workers’ compensation fraud is a federal crime that carries serious consequences and will not be tolerated. The USPS-OIG, along with our law enforcement partners, will continue to aggressively investigate those who engage in fraudulent activities intended to defraud federal benefit programs and the Postal Service.”
According to the allegations in the Complaints unsealed today in Manhattan federal court:
The Regulatory Scheme
Postal Service and other federal employees are covered by the Federal Employees’ Compensation Act (“FECA”), which provides tax-free benefits to civilian federal employees who sustain injuries or an occupational disease as a result of their employment. Postal employees can receive up to 75 percent of the gross salary to which the employee is entitled if the employee has at least one dependent. The Postal Service is the largest participant in FECA, paying more than $1 billion in benefits and $60 million in administrative fees annually.
Pursuant to the DOL’s Office of Workers’ Compensation Programs (“OWCP”) guidelines, a claimant must prove that he or she is injured by submitting a claim, including medical documentation and other evidence, which attests to the severity of the claimant’s injury or disability. The employee’s claim and supporting medical evidence is evaluated by the OWCP to determine the claimant’s medical impairment and the effect of the impairment on the claimant’s ability to work on a sustained basis. Once approved, in order to receive FECA benefits on an ongoing basis, the claimant is required to update the OWCP periodically on, among other things, the status of his or her physical condition. In addition, the claimant is required to certify periodically whether he or she has had any other sources of income within the past 15 months. Claimants are advised that fraudulent concealment of income or other information which would have an effect on benefits may result in criminal prosecution.
The Defendants
The 11 defendants charged as part of this operation are JUANITA TOLBERT, SAMUEL MUNOZ, SHONTA HOLMES, ALICE BACA, FAITH PINKNEY, ANGEL CORUJO, PEDRO NUNEZ, RONALD WERNER, LASHONNE TUGGLES, CHARLES WALWYN and JEANNIE WIGFALL. The defendants defrauded the DOL’s OWCP in a variety of ways. For example:
SHONTA HOLMES, who had been employed by the Postal Service since 1989, submitted a federal workers’ compensation claim indicating that she sustained an occupational injury, Carpal Tunnel Syndrome, on or about April 17, 2002. Since May 2004, HOLMES has drawn federal benefits and has not reported to work. In January 2012, HOLMES was examined by a doctor to evaluate her capacity to work. The doctor’s report stated that HOLMES could not resume any type of work and that HOLMES was unable to handle even “10 pounds of weight up to one-third at a time even in a sedentary position.” In July 2012, another doctor submitted a report which concluded that HOLMES was “permanently and totally disabled.” In September 2013, HOLMES stated that her condition limits many of her daily activities including bathing, bike riding, doing her hair, driving, laundry, going to the store, and sexual activities. HOLMES indicated that she considered herself “totally disabled” and “unable to perform any assignment for the Postal Service.” Nevertheless, in the course of the investigation from October 2011 through September 2013, HOLMES has been observed in and around public places, such as stores and gyms, engaged in strenuous physical activity. For example, HOLMES has been observed in a gym using dumbbell free weights, each weighing approximately 10 to 20 pounds, and performing repetitive strengthening exercises such as bicep curls and chest presses; using a “Smith Machine,” which is a free standing piece of equipment used in weight training, to perform shoulder press exercises with the machine loaded with approximately 50 to 100 pounds of weights; participating in an “Ultimate Abs” class, which involved the use of weight training exercises with a barbell; exercising on a treadmill and a Stairmaster; and working out with a personal trainer, including punching a punching bag while wearing boxing gloves. In addition, HOLMES has been observed driving, shopping, and running errands. As of May 3, 2014, HOLMES has received FECA compensation totaling approximately $426,114.35.
ANGEL CORUJO, who had been employed by the Postal Service since 1987, submitted a federal workers’ compensation claim indicating he sustained a back injury on or about July 15, 2003. Since he began to draw federal benefits in or about August 2003, CORUJO has not reported for work. In October 2013, CORUJO certified that he had not worked for any employer during the past 15 months. In January 2014, CORUJO submitted a report by a doctor in which CORUJO reported pain as a “7/10 severity all the time” and represented that he used a motorized wheelchair while at home and a cane for ambulatory assistance in the community. Nevertheless, in the course of the investigation, CORUJO was observed in 2013 hanging holiday decorations at his home, including balancing on a stepstool; pushing a loaded shopping cart at a home improvement store without the aid of a wheelchair or cane; and, in 2014, using a snow blower to clear his driveway of snow. In addition, the investigation uncovered that CORUJO was employed periodically in 2013 and 2014 by another employer other than the Postal Service, something he did not report as required. As of April 5, 2014, CORUJO has received FECA compensation totaling $402,651.
RONALD JAMES WERNER, who had been employed as a civilian firefighter by the U.S. Navy prior to September 2005, submitted a federal workers’ compensation claim indicating he sustained a knee injury in September 2005. Since at least April 2008, WERNER has drawn federal benefits and has not reported for work. In January 2013, WERNER certified that he had not worked for any employer during the past 15 months and that he had not earned any income from other employment in that time period. In January 2012, WERNER submitted a report by a doctor which stated that he could not perform his usual job or another type of work even with restrictions. In May 2013, WERNER submitted a report by another doctor which stated that WERNER was “permanently unable to work” due to a “[t]otal knee replacement” and that he would be unable to, among other activities, sit, walk, stand, reach, twist, bend or operate a motor vehicle to work. Nevertheless, in the course of the investigation in 2013, WERNER was observed in the vicinity of a truck bearing the logo “Werner’s Home Improvements” at various worksites where residential construction was taking place; entering and shopping in various home improvement stores, including purchasing 2x4s and other construction supplies; loading and unloading building construction materials into and out of a pickup truck; and arriving at a recycling center and unloading various appliances from his vehicle. WERNER’s credit card records reflect over $180,000 in purchases from a home improvement store from 2010 to 2013. In addition, an employee of a home improvement store where WERNER shopped praised WERNER to law enforcement agents who asked for a recommendation for a contractor, saying that WERNER was highly recommended and had been known at the store for years. Between April 2008 and March 2014, WERNER has received FECA compensation totaling $340,812.
Ten of the defendants were taken into custody this morning and are expected to be presented in Manhattan federal court later this afternoon. ANGEL CORUJO was arrested on April 17, 2014, as part of the same operation. All 11 defendants are charged with theft of government funds, which carries a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison, and federal workers’ compensation benefits fraud, which carries a maximum sentence of five years in prison. The maximum potential sentences are prescribed by Congress and are provided here for informational purposes only, as any sentencings of the defendants will be determined by the Court.
Attached is a chart reflecting the age and place of residence for each of the charged defendants.
Manhattan U.S. Attorney Bharara praised the USPS-OIG, the DOL-OIG’s Office of Labor Racketeering and Fraud Investigations, the Social Security Administration – Office of Inspector General, and the Naval Criminal Investigative Service for their outstanding work in the investigation, which he noted is ongoing.
The Office’s General Crimes Unit is handling the case. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Richard Cooper, Andrew DeFilippis, Patrick Egan, Samson Enzer, Margaret Graham, Andrea Griswold, Jared Lenow, and Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Daniel Tracer are in charge of the prosecution.
The charges contained in the Complaints are merely accusations and the defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
Click here to view chart(s)
Man Sentenced for Cedartown CarjackingRead the Press Release
ROME, Ga. - Rodney Scott Blankenship has been sentenced for carjacking a Cedartown woman at gun point on August 31, 2012.
“This Defendant showed no regard for who he might have injured or killed during his crime spree,” said United States Attorney Sally Quillian Yates. “The violent carjacking and police chase started in northwest Georgia, and the significant sentence appropriately reflects the serious danger he caused to both citizens and police.”
“This sentence is another reminder that ATF remains on the frontline of preventing violent crimes along with our law enforcement partners,” said ATF Special Agent in Charge Christopher Shaefer. “We will not allow residents to suffer such criminal behavior, especially that which threatens the safety of innocent civilians and law enforcement officers.”
According to United States Attorney Yates, the charges and other information presented in court: Rodney Scott Blankenship took a Cedartown woman's car at gunpoint on the evening of August 31, 2012. During the course of the carjacking, he twice pointed his gun at the woman's boyfriend and pulled the trigger. Fortunately for all, on both occasions, the gun failed to discharge. The woman's boyfriend called 911, and when law enforcement arrived on the scene Blankenship fled in the woman's car, ramming a Cedartown patrol car in the process. Blankenship then led police on a high speed chase until he crashed the vehicle. After crashing the vehicle he attempted to flee the police on foot, but was apprehended.
Blankenship, 31, of Cedartown, Ga., has been sentenced by United States District Judge Harold L. Murphy, to 17 years, four months in prison to be followed by three years of supervised release. Blankenship was convicted on these charges on December 6, 2013, after he pleaded guilty.
This case was being investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives.
Assistant United States Attorney Matthew S. Carrico prosecuted the case.
For further information please contact the U.S. Attorney’s Public Affairs Office at [email protected] or (404) 581-6016. The Internet address for the home page for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia Rome Division is http://www.justice.gov/usao/gan/.
Long Island Mortgage Banker and Five Others Indicted on $30 Million Bank Fraud ConspiracyRead the Press Release
Earlier today an indictment was unsealed charging six men with carrying out a $30 million bank fraud conspiracy by fraudulently inflating the prices of homes for sale and then obtaining mortgages that far exceeded the true collateral value of properties in Nassau and Suffolk Counties. Through his mortgage banking company, defendant Aaron Wider and his co-conspirators allegedly then re-sold these “toxic” mortgages to banks and other investors in the secondary mortgage market, causing millions in losses when the loans went into foreclosure. Four of the defendants were arrested this morning and will be presented for arraignment later today at the United States Courthouse in Central Islip, New York, before United State Magistrate Judge Gary R. Brown. Of the remaining two defendants, one was taken into custody in Florida, while another is scheduled to surrender to federal agents tomorrow in Central Islip.
The indictment and arrests were announced by Loretta E. Lynch, United States Attorney for the Eastern District of New York, and George Venizelos, Assistant Director-in-Charge, Federal Bureau of Investigation, New York Field Office.
“The conduct charged in the indictment is a prime example of the type of corrupt mortgage-lending practices that preceded the bursting of the real estate bubble, the loss of faith in securitized mortgage obligations, and the financial collapse of 2007 and 2008,” stated United States Attorney Lynch. “Instead of using their skills in banking, the law, and investing to assist individuals pursuing the American Dream, the defendants cooked up a sophisticated scheme that defrauded lenders and then fed toxic debt to the investigating public at large in the secondary mortgage market. I would like to thank the investigators at the Nassau County District Attorney’s Office and New York State Department of Financial Services for their invaluable assistance in this investigation.”
FBI Assistant Director-in-Charge Venizelos said, “As alleged in the indictment, during the height of the real estate boom, these defendants devised a scheme to turn a profit at the expense of unsuspecting lenders, investors and members of the public. Mortgage fraud poses a threat to our financial systems and to our economy. This case should send a clear message to all individuals who try to game our financial market: you will be identified and held accountable for your criminal acts. The FBI, along with our law enforcement partners, will continue to investigate those who orchestrate and participate in various mortgage fraud schemes in order to protect the public against those who seek to damage our economy.”
According to the indictment and other court filings, between 2003 and 2008, defendant Aaron Wider operated a New York State licensed mortgage bank in Garden City, New York, called HTFC Corp., which issued residential mortgages to borrowers. HTFC did not possess assets to fund these loans, but relied on funding from other banks and financial institutions, commonly known as “warehouse lenders.” The warehouse lenders relied on Wider and HTFC to ensure that home buyers were able to pay the mortgages and that the market value of the homes fully collateralized the loans.
Instead, Wider and the co-defendants allegedly engineered a complex series of same-day sham transactions, or “flips,” to artificially-inflate the prices of homes. Then they lied to the warehouse lenders to obtain mortgage funding that was 80-percent more than the actual value of the homes. Wider and co-defendants Manjeet Bawa, John Petiton, and Joseph Ferrara contracted to buy homes in Nassau and Suffolk counties from innocent sellers at market prices. The defendants then submitted fraudulent loan applications to the warehouse lenders that nearly doubled the true sales prices of the homes. The defendants also inflated their personal assets and concealed significant liabilities to get loan approval.
At each closing, Petiton, an attorney admitted to practice in New York State, oversaw the actual sales to innocent sellers, and simultaneously created sham trusts into which title to the properties was transferred for no money. He and the coconspirators then immediately transferred title back to the co-defendants at nearly double the price to create a false paper trail documenting the artificially-inflated prices. Meanwhile, real estate appraiser Joseph Mirando prepared false appraisal reports to justify the inflated prices, while HTFC closing attorney Eric Finger concealed the far lower, true sales price for properties by lying on federal-mandated settlement forms. Finger received wire transfers of funds from the warehouse lenders, and after paying the innocent third-party sellers, disbursed the surplus money fraudulently obtained in the mortgages to his fellow co-conspirators.
HTFC sold each of its mortgages in the secondary market. On paper, the loans appeared to be attractive investments because HTFC’s mortgages carried high rates of return that were supposedly fully collateralized by the market value of homes and the assets and incomes of the borrowers, or mortgagors. Upon buying mortgages from HTFC, the secondary market bank paid off the warehouse lenders, and then either collected the principal and interest, or bundled them into mortgage-backed securities that were sold to pension funds, hedge funds, and other investors seeking relatively secure, high-yield investments. When HTFCs mortgages went into foreclosure beginning in 2007 and 2008, the secondary market investors discovered that the actual value of the collateral was 80-percent less than the amount borrowed for each home.
The charges in the indictment are merely allegations, and the defendants presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty. If convicted, the defendants face up to 30 years’ imprisonment. The indictment unsealed today also seeks to forfeit 19 residential properties traced to the bank fraud or up to $30 million in a money judgment.
The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney James Miskiewicz.
The Defendants:
MANJEET BAWA
Age 46
Dix Hills, New York
JOSEPH FERRARA,
Age 70
Long Beach, New York
ERIC FINGER,
Age 48
Miami, Florida
JOSEPH MIRANDO,
Age 54
Centereach, NY
JOHN PETITON
Age 68
Garden City, New York
AARON WIDER
Age 50
Copiague, New York
Local Owner of Gravois Discount Smokes Pleads Guilty to Food Stamp FraudRead the Press Release
St. Louis, MO – EBRAHEEM MAKI NAIF, St. Louis, Missouri, pled guilty Monday to food stamp fraud.
According to court documents, from January 2008 through May 2012, Naif, doing business as Abes Gravois Discount, also known as Gravois Discount Smokes, redeemed approximately $1,903,402 in food stamp benefits and received the same in federal appropriated money as reimbursement for the food stamp sales. In 2011, Naif redeemed $690,198 in food stamp transactions. During that same time period, Naif reported to the City of St. Louis the cost of the goods he sold in 2011 was $25,750 and that he received $80,800 in gross receipts for the sale of those goods. In his plea, Naif admitted that he conducted illegal food stamp transactions and allowed customers to purchase merchandise such as cigarettes, cologne, calling cards, as well as receiving cash back for food stamp sales. Naif admitted that due to his illegal food stamp sales he caused losses of at least $609,398 in 2011. Naif also agreed to forfeit $30,765 and a vehicle seized from him during the investigation.
Naif pled guilty to one felony count of food stamp fraud before United States District Judge Rodney Sippel. Sentencing has been set for August 11, 2014.Food stamp fraud carries a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison and/or fines up to $250,000. In determining the actual sentences, a judge is required to consider the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines, which provide recommended sentencing ranges.
This case was investigated by the U.S. Department of Agriculture, the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department. Assistant United States Attorney Matthew Drake is handling the case for the U.S. Attorney's Office.
Lisbon Man Sentenced to Ten-Year Maximum on Firearms ChargeRead the Press Release
Contact: Darcie N. McElwee
Assistant United States Attorney
Tel: (207) 780-3257Portland, Maine: United States Attorney Thomas E. Delahanty II announced that Robert
Kelly Carter, 50, of Lisbon, Maine, (formerly of Madison, Indiana) was sentenced today in U.S.
District Court by Judge Nancy Torresen to ten years in prison and three years of supervised release for possession of a firearm by a felon. Carter pleaded guilty to the charge on December
12, 2013.Court records reveal that on September 18, 2013, Carter, who was on probation for a
2007 sexual abuse in the first degree conviction in Kentucky, was found in possession of a loaded .38 special revolver and a pistol when his supervising Maine probation officer searched his Lisbon residence. Carter also had felony convictions in Indiana in 2001 and 2004.Judge Torresen said she imposed the maximum statutory sentence of ten years because she believed Carter was a danger to the community, particularly to the women with whom he shares personal relationships.
The investigation was conducted by the Maine Department of Corrections (Probation and
Parole), the Lewiston and Lisbon Police Departments, the Central Maine Violent Crime Task
Force and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives.Lakewood, N.J., Man Admits Conspiracy to Kidnap Jewish Husband to Force Him to Give Wife A Religious DivorceRead the Press Release
TRENTON, N.J. - A Lakewood, N.J., man today admitted conspiring to kidnap a Jewish man to force him to give his wife a religious divorce, known as a “get,” U.S. Attorney Paul J. Fishman announced.
David Wax, 51, pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Freda L. Wolfson to an information charging him with conspiracy to commit kidnapping.
According to documents filed in this case and statements made in court:
In October 2010, Wax and his conspirators agreed to force a Jewish man (Victim One) to give his wife a “get,” a document which, according to Jewish law, must be presented by a husband to his wife to effect their divorce. Wax then lured Victim One from Brooklyn, N.Y., to Wax’s home in Lakewood on Oct. 17, 2010, under the pretense that Victim One would work on Talmudic books that Wax was publishing. When the victim arrived, he was brought upstairs, blindfolded, handcuffed, and bound. Victim One was then assaulted by Wax and his conspirators until he provided the get.
Victim One’s wife’s family paid Wax approximately $100,000 to obtain the forced get. Wax’s conspirators received approximately $50,000.
The conspiracy to commit kidnapping charge carries a maximum potential penalty of life in prison and a $250,000 fine, or twice the gross gain or loss from the offense. Sentencing is scheduled for Aug. 19, 2014.
U.S. Attorney Fishman credited special agents of the FBI, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Aaron T. Ford in Newark, for the investigation leading to today’s guilty plea.
The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorneys R. Joseph Gribko and Sarah Wolfe of the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Trenton.
The pending charges and allegations against related defendants are merely allegations, and they are considered innocent unless and until proven guilty.
14-154
Defense counsel: Mitchell J. Ansell Esq., Ocean, N.J., and Edward Dauber Esq., Newark
Wax, David Information
Lake City Man Arrested and Charged in Federal Court with Producing Child PornographyRead the Press Release
Jacksonville, Florida – United States Attorney A. Lee Bentley, III announced today that Robert Lamar Starling (29, Lake City) has been charged by a federal criminal complaint with producing child pornography. If convicted, Starling faces a mandatory minimum penalty of 15 years, up to 30 years in federal prison, and a potential life term of supervision. Starling was arrested on May 1, 2014. He was ordered detained pending a hearing on May 8, 2014 at 2:30 p.m., before United States Magistrate Judge James R. Klindt.
According to the criminal complaint, beginning in September 2013, FBI agents executed a series of search warrants on several email accounts around the country and determined, among other things, that a particular user in Lake City, Florida had uploaded images of child pornography to the Internet, using an account on a photo sharing site. Further investigation traced the account back to a residence in Lake City, where Starling resided.
On May 1, 2014, FBI agents and other law enforcement officers executed a federal search warrant at the residence. Starling was not at the residence, but was located later that morning driving his golf cart at the Suwannee Music Park & Campground in Live Oak, Florida. During an interview at his campsite, Starling stated that he had produced pornographic images of several prepubescent children and that he searches for and downloads child pornography via the Internet. He provided the identities of five prepubescent children with whom he produced child pornography. Starling estimated that he may have around 7,000 videos and 5,000 still images of child pornography. A preview of Starling’s laptop computer revealed that it contained more than 600 videos depicting child pornography.
A criminal complaint is merely a formal charge that a defendant has committed one or more violations of federal criminal law, and every defendant is presumed innocent until, and unless, proven guilty.
This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Columbia County Sheriff’s Office, the Suwannee County Sheriff’s Office, the Florida Department of Law Enforcement, and the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office. It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney D. Rodney Brown.
It is another 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.
Laguna Pueblo Man Sentenced to Federal Prison for Assaulting his Intimate PartnerRead the Press Release
ALBUQUERQUE – Matthew Louis Brown, 32, was sentenced today to 17 months in federal prison followed by three years of supervised release for his conviction for domestic assault by a habitual offender charge. Brown also was ordered to pay $1,250 in restitution to the Indian Health Services to cover the costs of medical care for the victim.
The sentence was announced by Acting U.S. Attorney Damon P. Martinez, DuWayne W. Honahni, Sr., Special Agent in Charge of District IV of BIA’s Office of Justice Services, and Acting Police Chief Brian Carr of the Pueblo of Laguna Tribal Police Department.
Brown, a member of the Pueblo of Laguna who resides in Mesita, N.M., was arrested on Oct. 2, 2013, based on a two-count indictment alleging that (1) he assaulted his intimate partner, a member of the Pueblo of Acoma, and (2) he assaulted the victim causing her serious bodily injury. Brown was charged federally as a habitual domestic violence offender because he has two prior domestic violence convictions in the Pueblo of Laguna Tribal Court.
On Jan. 7, 2014, Brown pled guilty to Count 1 of the indictment and admitted assaulting the victim, his intimate partner and the mother of his child, by striking her in the face multiple times with a closed fist and kicking her head while she was on the ground. Brown also admitted that the victim sustained serious bodily injury as a result of his attack and that he committed this crime on July 25, 2011, in a location within the Pueblo of Laguna.
Court records reflect that Brown previously was convicted on domestic violence charges before the Pueblo of Laguna Tribal Court in 2004 and 2008.
This case was investigated by the Laguna/Acoma Agency of BIA’s Office of Justice Services and the Pueblo of Laguna Tribal Police Department and was prosecuted by Special Assistant U.S. Attorney David Adams. It was brought pursuant to the Tribal Special Assistant U.S. Attorney (Tribal SAUSA) Pilot Project in the District of New Mexico which is sponsored by the Justice Department’s Office on Violence Against Women under a grant administered by the Pueblo of Laguna. The Tribal SAUSA Pilot Project seeks to train tribal prosecutors in federal law, procedure and investigative techniques to increase the likelihood that every viable violent offense against Native women is prosecuted in either federal court or tribal court, or both. The Tribal SAUSA Pilot Project was largely driven by input gathered from annual tribal consultations on violence against women, and is another step in the Justice Department's on-going efforts to increase engagement, coordination and action on public safety in tribal communities.
KC Man, Lee's Summit Woman Indicted for Transporting a Minor to Kansas for ProstitutionRead the Press Release
KANSAS CITY, Mo. – Tammy Dickinson, United States Attorney for the Western District of Missouri, announced today that a Kansas City, Mo., man and a Lee’s Summit, Mo., woman have been indicted by a federal grand jury for transporting a minor across states lines for prostitution.
Milton Charles Wilson, also known as “Barbwire,” 58, of Kansas City, and Kayla Pinkerton, also known as “Foxy,” 18, of Lee’s Summit, were charged in a two-count indictment returned under seal by a federal grand jury in Kansas City, Mo., on Wednesday, April 30, 2014. That indictment was unsealed and made public today upon the arrests and initial court appearances of Wilson and Pinkerton. Wilson and Pinkerton remain in federal custody without bail pending a detention hearing on Thursday, May 8, 2014.
The federal indictment alleges that Wilson and Pinkerton transported a child victim across state lines to engage in prostitution in Kansas in December 2013.
According to court documents, Wilson advertised the child victim for prostitution on Backpage.com and paid for an area hotel room. Wilson transported the child victim from a Missouri residence, the government alleges in a detention motion, to a Kansas City hotel and at least two locations in Overland Park, Kan., where the child victim engaged in prostitution activity for money. Wilson allegedly waited in his car while the child victim engaged in these prostitution acts.
Wilson is also charged with being an unlawful user of a controlled substance in possession of several firearms. Wilson allegedly possessed a Cobra .380-caliber pistol, a Glock .40-caliber pistol, a Remington 12-gauge shotgun and a Ruger .243-caliber rifle on Feb. 13, 2013.
The government filed a motion for Wilson to be detained in federal custody without bail. The government’s detention motion notes that the crime of transporting a minor with intent to engage in criminal sexual activity carries a mandatory minimum sentence of 10 years in federal prison without parole and a maximum penalty of life in federal prison without parole. For that and other reasons cited in the detention motion, the government believes that Wilson poses a flight risk and a danger to the community.
Dickinson cautioned that the charges contained in this indictment are simply accusations, and not evidence of guilt. Evidence supporting the charges must be presented to a federal trial jury, whose duty is to determine guilt or innocence.
This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Patrick D. Daly. It was investigated by the FBI, the Kansas City, Mo., Police Department, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement's (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives.Indictment Unsealed Charging International Methamphetamine Distribution ConspiracyRead the Press Release
U.S. Attorney Kenneth Allen Polite, Jr. announces the recent unsealing of an indictment charging three individuals with conspiring to violate federal drug distribution laws. On April 10, 2014, a federal grand jury returned the indictment charging RYAN ERNST NYBERG, age 33, CHRISTOPHER BYRON FRITCHIE, a/k/a “Byron,” age 42, and NASER YOUSEF GHEITH, a/k/a “Nick,” age 35, with one count of conspiring to distribute and to possess with intent to distribute five hundred grams or more of methamphetamine in the Eastern District of Louisiana and elsewhere.
According to the indictment, NYBERG, FRITCHIE, and GHEITH conspired from 2011 through 2014 to violate federal drug distribution laws. NYBERG is a United States citizen currently residing in Germany. FRITCHIE and GHEITH are also United States citizens and reside in the San Francisco area. If convicted, the charged individuals each face a maximum penalty of life imprisonment, a $10,000,000 fine, and at least five years of supervised release.
U. S. Attorney Polite reiterated that the indictment is merely a charge and that the guilt of the defendants must be proven beyond a reasonable doubt.
On March 20, 2014, German Customs Investigation Bureau (the Zollkriminalamt or ZKA) authorities arrested NYBERG in Duisburg, Germany. The United States intends to formally request his extradition from Germany. On April 29, 2014, DEA Agents arrested FRITCHIE in San Francisco, California. GHEITH remains at large.
The DEA New Orleans Division Office investigated this case with assistance from the DEA Frankfurt, Germany Country Office and the DEA San Francisco Division Office. The prosecution is being handled by Assistant United States Attorney Matthew Payne.
(Download Indictment )
Hualapai Man Sentenced to 165 Months in Prison for Domestic Violence AssaultsRead the Press Release
PHOENIX – On May 5, 2014, Valance Ray Smith, Sr., 46, of Peach Springs, Ariz. was sentenced by U.S. District Judge G. Murray Snow to a total of 165 months in prison on two counts of assault with a dangerous weapon and one count of assault resulting in serious bodily injury. Smith was found guilty by a federal jury on Jan. 9, 2014.
The evidence at trial indicated that Smith assaulted the victim on two separate occasions;onJuly 8, 2011 Smith stabbed the victim in a domestic violence situation causing her to sustain injuries, and on Sept. 29, 2012, Smith beat the victim with a metal pipe causing her to suffer serious bodily injuries.
The investigation in this case was conducted by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Hualapai Nation Police Department. The prosecution was handled by Christina J. Reid-Moore and Dimitra H. Sampson, Assistant U.S. Attorneys, District of Arizona, Phoenix.CASE NUMBER: CR-2013-8043-PCT-GMS
RELEASE NUMBER: 2014-027_SmithFor more information on the U.S. Attorney’s Office, District of Arizona, visit http://www.justice.gov/usao/az/
Howes Man Charged with Unlawful Taking of Bald EagleRead the Press Release
United States Attorney Brendan V. Johnson announced that a Howes, South Dakota, man has been charged with a federal offense of Unlawful Taking of Bald Eagle by an Information filed on April 11, 2014.
Cody M. Weyer, age 42, appeared before U.S. Magistrate Judge Veronica L. Duffy on May 2, 2014, and pled not guilty to the charge.
The maximum penalty upon conviction is one year of imprisonment and/or a $100,000 fine, one year of supervised release and an additional year of supervised release upon revocation, and a $25 special assessment to the Federal Crime Victims Fund. Restitution may also be ordered.
The Information alleges that Weyer, between January 1, 2014, and January 21, 2014, without permission to do so, knowingly killed a bald eagle.
The charge is merely an accusation and Weyer is presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty.
The investigation is being conducted by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Services. Assistant U.S. Attorney Meghan N. Dilges is prosecuting the case.
Weyer was released on bond pending trial which has been set for July 8, 2014.
Houston Man Convicted in Houston Theft and Fraud RingRead the Press Release
HOUSTON – Jason Wade Crawford, 37, has entered a plea of guilty to one count each of bank fraud, access device fraud and aggravated identity theft, announced United States Attorney Kenneth Magidson.
According to information presented in open court, beginning in at least May 2012, Crawford broke into several mail boxes throughout the Houston area to steal mail, much of which included checks, credit cards, gift cards and other mail with personal identifiers. He then created false identifications and used them to deposit or cash the checks.
Bank surveillance photos showed Crawford negotiating stolen checks at Woodforest National Bank and Amegy Bank. Local area law enforcement officers were also able to seize bags full of stolen mail from Crawford’s car.
At the time of his guilty plea, he admitted he participated in the mail theft ring and had used the personal identification information of another person to cash stolen checks.
U.S. District David Hittner, who accepted the plea, has set Crawford’s sentencing for Aug. 1, 2014. At that time, he faces up 30 years in federal prison and a possible $1 million fine for the bank fraud, while access device fraud carries a possible punishment of up to 10 years and a maximum $250,000 fine. In addition, with the conviction of identity theft, Crawford will also be required to serve a mandatory two-year prison term which must be served consecutively to any other sentence imposed.
Crawford will remain in custody pending that hearing.
The case was investigated by the U.S. Postal Inspection Service. Assistant U.S. Attorney Julie Searle is prosecuting.
Hattiesburg Businessman Pleads Guilty to Federal Kickback SchemeRead the Press Release
Hattiesburg, Miss. -- Local businessman and former Hattiesburg Fire Chief T.L. Pittman, Jr., 82, pled guilty today in U.S. District Court to a kickback scheme which defrauded the U.S. Department of Agriculture, announced U.S. Attorney Gregory K. Davis, FBI Special Agent in Charge Daniel McMullen and Special Agent in Charge Mary L. Lewis of USDA Office of Inspector General.
A federal criminal bill of information was filed against Pittman on May 1, 2014, charging him with one count of theft of government funds. Pittman is scheduled to be sentenced by U.S. District Judge Keith Starrett on August 18, 2014, at 1:00 p.m. The fraud charge carries a maximum of 10 years in prison, a $250,000 fine, and up to three years of supervised release.
Pittman owns multiple apartment complexes throughout the State of Mississippi which were financed through USDA. Pittman, through his company, Century Management, Inc., hired a contractor to work for one of his USDA-financed apartment complexes. When the contractor was hired, Pittman agreed to pay the contractor a certain dollar amount per hour but Pittman required the contractor to kickback a portion of his hourly wage to Pittman. The kickbacks continued from 2011 through 2013.
The case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the USDA Office of Inspector General. Assistant U.S. Attorney Mike Hurst is prosecuting the case.
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.
Government Settles False Claims Act Allegations Against Florida-Based Baptist Health System for $2.5 MillionRead the Press Release
Baptist Health System Inc. (Baptist Health), the parent company for a network of affiliated hospitals and medical providers in the Jacksonville, Florida, area, has agreed to pay $2.5 million to settle allegations that its subsidiaries violated the False Claims Act by submitting claims to federal health care programs for medically unnecessary services and drugs, the Department of Justice announced today. The alleged misconduct involved Medicare, Medicaid, TRICARE and the Federal Employee Health Benefits Program.
“Providers that bill for unnecessary services and drugs contribute to the soaring cost of health care,” said Assistant Attorney General for the Justice Department’s Civil Division Stuart F. Delery. “Providers must deal fairly and honestly with federal health care programs, and the Justice Department will investigate aggressively and hold accountable those who do not.”
This settlement resolves allegations that, from September 2009 to October 2011, two neurologists in the Baptist Health network misdiagnosed patients with various neurological disorders, such as multiple sclerosis, which caused Baptist Health to bill for medically unnecessary services. Although Baptist Health placed one of the physicians at issue on administrative leave in October 2011, it did not disclose any misdiagnoses to the government until September 2012.
“This settlement sends a clear message that health care fraud will not be tolerated in our district, particularly when there is the potential for harm to patients,” said U.S. Attorney A. Lee Bentley III for the Middle District of Florida.
The improper conduct at issue in this case included Medicaid patients. Medicaid is funded jointly by the states and the federal government. The state of Florida, which paid for some of the Medicaid claims at issue, will receive $19,024 of the settlement amount.
“ Health care providers will not be permitted to provide patients unnecessary medical services and drugs and then pocket the improper payments they receive as a result,” said Acting Special Agent in Charge Brian Martens, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General. “Our agency is dedicated to investigating health care fraud schemes that divert scarce taxpayer funds meant to provide for legitimate patient care.”
The government’s investigation was initiated by a qui tam, or whistleblower, lawsuit filed under the False Claims Act by Verchetta Wells, a former Baptist Health employee. The act allows private citizens to file suit for false claims on behalf of the government and to share in the government’s recovery. Wells will receive $424,155.
“These health care providers did not only violate the laws of the United States - they violated the trust placed in them by their patients,” said Inspector General of the U.S. Office of Personnel Management Patrick E. McFarland. “Federal employees deserve health care providers, including hospitals, that meet the highest standards of ethical and professional behavior. Today's settlement reminds all providers that they must observe those standards and reflects the commitment of federal law enforcement organizations to pursue improper and illegal conduct that may put the health and well-being of their patients at risk.”
This settlement illustrates the government’s emphasis on combating health care fraud and marks another achievement for the Health Care Fraud Prevention and Enforcement Action Team (HEAT) initiative, which was announced in May 2009 by Attorney General Eric Holder and Secretary of Health and Human Services Kathleen Sebelius. The partnership between the two departments has focused efforts to reduce and prevent Medicare and Medicaid financial fraud through enhanced cooperation. One of the most powerful tools in this effort is the False Claims Act. Since January 2009, the Justice Department has recovered a total of more than $19.1 billion through False Claims Act cases, with more than $13.6 billion of that amount recovered in cases involving fraud against federal health care programs.
This settlement is the result of a coordinated effort among the Justice Department’s Civil Division, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Florida, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General, the Defense Health Agency Program Integrity Office and the Office of Personnel Management Office of Inspector General.
The claims resolved by this settlement are allegations only, and there has been no determination of liability. The lawsuit against Baptist Health was filed in the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Florida and is captioned United States ex rel. Wells v. Baptist Health System Inc. et al.
Four Indicted for Drug Trafficking Crimes Involving A Violent Kidnapping in St. PaulRead the Press Release
MINNEAPOLIS— United States Attorney Andrew Luger announced today that a United States Grand Jury indicted four men for their roles in a large-scale, methamphetamine-trafficking organization and a violent kidnapping in St. Paul. The indictment, returned on May 5, 2014 and unsealed today, charges Jesus Ramirez, 31, of Los Angeles, CA; Jonatan Delgado Alvarez, 22, of Los Angeles, CA; Juan Ricardo Elenes Villalvazo, a.k.a. Chapo, 32, of St. Paul, MN; and Antonio Navarro a.k.a. Tony Sanchez, 19, of St. Paul, MN.
The indictment alleges that Ramirez, Alvarez, Villalvazo, and Navarro participated in a conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine. According to the indictment, Navarro and Villalvazo maintained a stash house in St. Paul for storing large amounts of methamphetamine for distribution as part of the conspiracy.
On April 14, 2014, defendants Ramirez and Alvarez flew from Los Angeles, California to Minnesota in response to a report that approximately 30 pounds of methamphetamine had been stolen from the stash house two days earlier. On the evening of April 14, the four defendants kidnapped two victims at gunpoint and held them captive against their will at the stash house. The defendants bound and beat the victims and made violent threats against their lives and the lives of their family members, while demanding information about the missing methamphetamine. According to the indictment, Villalvazo cut one of the victim’s fingers, nearly severing it, while Ramirez held the victim down. After determining that the victims had no information about the missing drugs, the defendants released them.
Upon leaving the stash house at approximately 7:30 p.m. on April 15, Navarro was arrested by law enforcement officers, who had surrounded the premises. At approximately 7:40 p.m. that night, Alvarez attempted to leave the stash house and was also arrested by law enforcement officers. In the early morning hours of April 16, Ramirez flew back to Los Angeles from the Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport. He was arrested the following day at a hotel in a Los Angeles suburb after leading police officers on a high speed car chase.
All four defendants were charged with one count of Conspiracy to Distribute Methamphetamine. In addition, the indictment alleges that Ramirez carried a firearm and used it to kidnap and threaten the victims.
If convicted, all four defendants could face a potential maximum penalty of life in prison for the drug conspiracy charge. Ramirez faces a potential minimum penalty of seven years in prison for the firearm charge. All sentences are ultimately determined by a federal district court judge.
This case is the result of an investigation by the Safe Streets Task Force. Safe Streets is a FBI-sponsored task force that focuses on combating violent street crime as well as gang and drug-trafficking offenses. Officers from the Minneapolis Police Department and the St. Paul Police Department, who are members of the Safe Streets Task Force, were instrumental in the investigation of this case. This case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Jeffrey S. Paulsen. The defendants will make their first appearance today at 2:00 p.m. in federal court in St. Paul before Magistrate Judge Tony N. Leung.
United States Attorney Andrew Luger commended the work of the Safe Streets Task Force. “The allegations in the indictment are a frightening reminder of the violent capabilities of drug traffickers. Safe Streets and our Office are dedicated to protecting our citizens from this type of outrageous and violent conduct.”An indictment is a determination by a grand jury that there is probable cause to believe that offenses have been committed by a defendant. A defendant, of course, is presumed innocent until he or she pleads guilty or is proven guilty at trial.
Former Lowndes County, Georgia, Sheriff’s Deputy Pleads Guilty to Civil Rights Conspiracy ChargeRead the Press Release
Today, the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Georgia announced that Jason Stacks, a former Lowndes County Sheriff’s Office (LCSO) Deputy, pleaded guilty to conspiring to use his law enforcement authority to unlawfully detain and take money from motorists.
In connection with his plea, Stacks admitted that he conspired with two civilians to subject Hispanic motorists to unlawful traffic stops so that the conspirators could demand the motorists pay money in order to avoid arrest and/or deportation. On Aug. 16, 2013, Stacks, while acting as a LCSO Deputy, unlawfully detained at least four motorists. One of the motorists, identified in the plea documents by the initials T.C., was unlawfully detained by Stacks and then approached by Stacks’s two Spanish-speaking co-conspirators, who explained to T.C. that he would be sent to jail or deported if he did not pay $500. When T.C. responded that he did not have $500 in his car, the co-conspirators drove T.C. to his residence and took $300 in cash from him. Stacks and the two co-conspirators divided the $300 among them.
“Mr. Stacks admitted that he conspired to use his badge to unlawfully detain and take money from motorists,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General Jocelyn Samuels for the Civil Rights Division. “The Justice Department will continue to vigorously prosecute officers who seek to profit from the violation of civil rights.”
“Today’s guilty plea is another example of the zero tolerance the Department of Justice has for law enforcement officers who violate individuals’ civil rights,” said U.S. Attorney Michael J. Moore for the Middle District of Georgia.
This case has been investigated by the FBI, with assistance from the Lowndes County Sheriff’s Office. The matter is being prosecuted by Special Litigation Counsel Forrest Christian and Trial Attorney Risa Berkower of the Civil Rights Division, with the assistance of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Georgia.
Former Lowndes County, Georgia Sheriff's Deputy Pleads Guilty to Civil Rights Conspiracy ChargeRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON – Today, the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Georgia announced that Jason Stacks, a former Lowndes County Sheriff’s Office (LCSO) Deputy, pleaded guilty to conspiring to use his law enforcement authority to unlawfully detain and take money from motorists.
In connection with his plea, Stacks admitted that he conspired with two civilians to subject Hispanic motorists to unlawful traffic stops so that the conspirators could demand the motorists pay money in order to avoid arrest and/or deportation. On Aug. 16, 2013, Stacks, while acting as a LCSO Deputy, unlawfully detained at least four motorists. One of the motorists, identified in the plea documents by the initials T.C., was unlawfully detained by Stacks and then approached by Stacks’s two Spanish-speaking co-conspirators, who explained to T.C. that he would be sent to jail or deported if he did not pay $500. When T.C. responded that he did not have $500 in his car, the co-conspirators drove T.C. to his residence and took $300 in cash from him. Stacks and the two co-conspirators divided the $300 among them.“Mr. Stacks admitted that he conspired to use his badge to unlawfully detain and take money from motorists,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General Jocelyn Samuels for the Civil Rights Division. “The Justice Department will continue to vigorously prosecute officers who seek to profit from the violation of civil rights.”
“Today’s guilty plea is another example of the zero tolerance the Department of Justice has for law enforcement officers who violate individuals’ civil rights,” said U.S. Attorney Michael J. Moore for the Middle District of Georgia.
This case has been investigated by the FBI, with assistance from the Lowndes County Sheriff’s Office. The matter is being prosecuted by Special Litigation Counsel Forrest Christian and Trial Attorney Risa Berkower of the Civil Rights Division, with the assistance of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Georgia.Inquiries regarding the case should be directed to Pamela Lightsey, United States Attorney's Office at (478) 621-2603.
Former Fulton County Deputy Pleads Guilty to Soliciting KickbacksRead the Press Release
ATLANTA – Former Fulton County Deputy Sheriff Reginald Warren pleaded guilty in federal court to charges that he demanded bribe payments from security officers assigned to work at the City of Atlanta's public swimming pools.
“Those who work within the law enforcement community must maintain the public’s trust and respect,” said United States Attorney Sally Quillian Yates. “By entering his guilty plea, he acknowledges he violated his oath of office and betrayed those he promised to protect.”
J. Britt Johnson, Special Agent in Charge, FBI Atlanta Field Office, stated: “The integrity of those working within our law enforcement community is paramount in maintaining a criminal justice system that the public can trust. The FBI will continue to dedicate significant investigative resources toward such public corruption matters that have the potential to do so much harm.”
According to United States Attorney Yates, the charges and other information presented in court: During the summer of 2011, while Warren was employed as a deputy with the Fulton County Sheriff’s Office, he contracted with the City of Atlanta to coordinate and supervise security at the City’s public swimming pools. In that capacity, Warren hired a number of security officers and, scheduled them to work various shifts at pools located throughout the city. Soon after the officers were hired, Warren demanded payments from at least three officers in exchange for continuing to schedule them for more work. Over a three-month period, Warren, 50, of Covington, Ga., accepted thousands of dollars in kickbacks.
This case is being investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation.
Assistant United States Attorney Brent Alan Gray is prosecuting the case.
For further information please contact the U.S. Attorney’s Public Affairs Office at [email protected] or (404) 581-6016. The Internet address for the home page for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia Atlanta Division is http://www.justice.gov/usao/gan/.
Former Detroit Public School TeacherSentenced on Fraud and Money Laundering ChargesRead the Press Release
A former Detroit Public Schools teacher was sentenced to three years in prison today for her conviction for defrauding DPS, U.S. Attorney Barbara L. McQuade announced today.
McQuade was joined in the announcement by Paul M. Abbate, Special Agent in Charge of the Detroit Division of the Federal Bureau of investigation, Carolyn Weber, Acting Special Agent in Charge, Internal Revenue Service, Criminal Investigation.U.S. District Judge Julian Abele Cook imposed sentence on Domonique Campbell, 39. A jury found Campbell guilty of program fraud conspiracy, money laundering conspiracy and tax charges, following a five-week trial in August 2013.
Campbell's mother, Sandra Campbell, 60, a former DPS contract accountant and School Board candidate was sentenced in December, 2013 to 70 months in federal prison for her role in the scheme.
The evidence presented at trial established that between 2004 and 2008, the defendants obtained more than $530,000 from DPS through a fraudulent scheme in which orders were placed with the Campbells’ sham company for books and educational materials that were never provided to the schools. Sandra Campbell and Domonique Campbell conspired to launder the fraud proceeds and to defraud the Internal Revenue Service by failing to report on their income tax returns the money they fraudulently obtained.McQuade said, "Anyone who considers defrauding our schools should take note that we are scrutinizing records and conduct, and will prosecute those who steal funds intended to educate our children."
FBI Special Agent in Charge Abbate stated, “In this case, the defendants’ criminal actions amounted to stealing the opportunity for a quality education from our children. Such conduct cannot, and will not, be tolerated. The FBI Detroit Field Office, together with our local, state, and federal partners will continue to battle public corruption and hold those responsible accountable for their actions."
The case was investigated by special agents of the FBI, IRS and Department of Education, Office of Inspector General, with the assistance of Detroit Public Schools, Office of Inspector General. The case was investigated and prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys J. Michael Buckley and Bruce Judge of the Public Corruption Unit.
IRS Acting Special Agent in Charge Weber stated, “"Those who profit at the expense of our children and steal from our community will be held accountable for their greedy actions".Former Coeur D’Alene Tribal Employee Admits to TheftRead the Press Release
COEUR D'ALENE - Angeline Morago George, 37, of Plummer, Idaho, was sentenced yesterday to seven months in prison followed by three years of supervised release for theft from a tribal organization, U.S. Attorney Wendy J. Olson announced. Chief U.S. District Judge B. Lynn Winmill also ordered George to pay $4,176 in restitution, pay a $100 special assessment, and perform 100 hours of community service.
George pleaded guilty on August 30, 2013, to unlawfully using her tribal credit card to get $4,175.26 for her own personal benefit. George’s co-defendant, Billy Moffitt, was previously sentenced to five months incarceration and three years of supervised release.
The case was investigated by the Coeur d’Alene Tribal Police, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, and Office of Inspector General.
Former Burnham Village Clerk Charged with Stealing at Least $650,000 from Revenue Payments and Filing False Tax ReturnRead the Press Release
CHICAGO — The former longtime elected clerk for the Village of Burnham was charged today with stealing more than $650,862 from her office at the south suburb’s village hall and using most of the cash to gamble at casinos. The defendant, NANCY DOBROWSKI, was charged with one count each of wire fraud and filing a false federal income tax return in a criminal information filed in U.S. District Court.
Dobrowski, 70, of Burnham, served as Burnham’s elected clerk from 1980 until she resigned on May 29, 2013, when FBI agents executed a federal search warrant at the clerk’s village hall office. Through her attorney, Dobrowski authorized the government to disclose that she will plead guilty to the charges. No date has been set yet for Dobrowski to be arraigned in Federal Court.
As clerk, Dobrowski was responsible for managing Burnham’s finances and depositing cash and checks collected by the clerk’s office into the village’s bank accounts.
Between at least 2004 and May 2013, Dobrowski allegedly took cash the village received as payment for fees and fines from the public. She then used most of the cash to gamble at casinos in Indiana and elsewhere either by taking cash to casinos or by depositing the money into her personal bank account and then withdrawing it from automated teller machines at casinos. She falsely represented the village’s finances to auditors and covered up her fraud scheme by causing false entries in village books, according to the charges.
As part of the fraud scheme, Dobrowski allegedly took cash from both the village cash register and the collection of money received as tow bonds. She recorded false amounts of tow bond money that had been received to make it appear that the village collected less cash than it had actually received, and sometimes she used tow bond money to balance the cash register, the charges allege.
To conceal her misappropriation of cash from the village cash register, Dobrowski waited a week to deposit cash into the village’s bank accounts instead of making daily deposits. By delaying deposits, Dobrowski could use funds received by the village in the later week to make up for funds she had taken during the prior week, making the deposit appear to match the revenues despite having taken cash from the register, the information alleges.
Dobrowski allegedly further concealed the scheme by failing to record checks received from the public as payment for village fees and services. She would place the unrecorded checks into the register to compensate for an equal amount of cash she had taken, making the register appear balanced. She provided false information to the village’s outside audit firm regarding the village’s revenues and regularly disposed of the cash register tape to conceal that the village’s revenues often did not match the deposits into village bank accounts.
Dobrowski was also charged with filing a false federal income tax return for 2012, when she reported total income of $309,181, knowing that her total income was substantially greater than that because she failed to report the cash she misappropriated from the village in 2012 as income.
Wire fraud carries a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison and a $250,000 fine or an alternate fine totaling twice the gross loss or gain, whichever is greater. Filing a false federal income tax return carries a maximum penalty of three years in prison, a $250,000 fine, and mandatory costs of prosecution. Restitution is mandatory and defendants convicted of tax offenses remain liable for back taxes, interest, and a civil penalty of up to 75 percent of the amount owed.
The indictment was 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 James C. Lee, Special Agent-in-Charge of the Chicago Office of the Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigation Division.
The government is being represented by Assistant U.S. Attorney Steven Block.
The public is reminded that an information 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.
Indictment
Felon Charged with Violating Federal Gun and Drug LawsRead the Press Release
PITTSBURGH – A Pittsburgh resident has been indicted by a federal grand jury on charges of violating federal firearms and narcotics laws, United States Attorney David J. Hickton announced today.
The three-count indictment named Omar Smith, 25, as the sole defendant.
According to the indictment, Smith was previously convicted of felony drug charges in Allegheny County on four separate dates between 2008 and 2011, and he again violated drug laws on June 21, 2012. Although federal law precludes a person convicted of a crime punishable by in excess of one year from possessing a firearm or ammunition, Smith allegedly possessed a .357 Taurus pistol and ammunition at the time of the new drug crimes.
The law provides for a minimum sentence of 15 years and a maximum of life in prison, a fine of up to $4,250,000, or both. Under the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, the actual sentence imposed would be based upon the seriousness of the offenses and the prior criminal history of the defendant.
Assistant United States Attorney Ross E. Lenhardt is prosecuting this case on behalf of the government.
The Drug Enforcement Administration, the Coraopolis Police Department and the Pittsburgh Bureau of Police conducted the investigation leading to the indictment in this case with the valuable assistance of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives.
An indictment is an accusation. A defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
Federal Court Jury Convicts North Providence Resident of Threatening to Assault and Murder Internal Revenue Service AgentsRead the Press Release
PROVIDENCE, R.I. – Kenneth M. Delashmutt, 70, of North Providence, R.I., faces up to 10 years in federal prison when he is sentenced in July, having being convicted today by a federal court jury in Providence of threatening to assault and murder two Internal Revenue Service agents, announced United States Attorney Peter F. Neronha and Robert E. O’Malley, Special Agent in Charge, Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration, New York Field Division.
According to the government’s evidence presented at trial, an IRS agent from the agency’s Warwick, R.I., office had several telephone conversations with Delashmutt in April 2013 in an effort to resolve the defendant’s status as a “non-filer,” someone who had failed to file federal tax returns from at least 2005 through 2010. Delashmutt insisted that he believed he was not subject to the jurisdiction of the IRS.
According to the government’s evidence, on April 11, 2013, an agent interviewed Delashmutt at the IRS Warwick office, the first time the agent met face-to-face with the defendant. A supervisor sat in on the interview because of concerns for the safety of her office. During the meeting, Delashmutt stated that he intended to go to the agents’ homes to take their photographs and he threatened to file lawsuits against both agents after he was prohibited from taking their photographs while in the IRS office.
The next day, based on a report of the incident at the IRS office, agents from the Treasury Inspector General’s office attempted to interview Delashmutt at his North Providence residence. Delashmutt slammed the door closed, refusing to be interviewed.
According to the government’s evidence, on May 2, 2013, the supervising agent at the Warwick office of the IRS received a certified letter from Delashmutt. Included in the letter was a statement from Delashmutt that he did not believe that IRS agents had the authority to act upon anyone, or deprive anyone of liberty or property, and if they were to attempt to act outside their specific authority and make an arrest or take property, they would be committing a felony. He further stated that a citizen has the duty, “to prevent the commission of a felony if he can, by whatever means which may be required, including the use of deadly force.”
According to information presented to the court, at the time of Delashmutt’s arrest in September 2013, agents seized a loaded pistol-grip shotgun located immediately inside of the front door of Delashmutt’s residence.
Delashmutt, who remains free on $3,000 bond, is scheduled to be sentenced by U.S. District Court Judge Mary M. Lisi on July 31, 2014. Delashmutt has been ordered by the court to have no contact with the IRS agents from the Warwick office whom he threatened.
The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Gerard B. Sullivan.
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To assist the media and the public, a glossary of federal judicial terms and procedures is available at http://www.justice.gov/usao/justice101/
Contact: 401-709-5357
[email protected]Father and Daughter Bank Robbers SentencedRead the Press Release
DALLAS — Convicted bank robbers, John Charles Applewhite and his daughter, Shelby Dawn Applewhite, have been sentenced for their roles in robbing three banks in Dallas in May 2013, announced U.S. Attorney Sarah R. Saldaña of the Northern District of Texas.
John Applewhite, 50, who pleaded guilty in October 2013 to three counts of bank robbery, was sentenced yesterday by U.S. District Judge David C. Godbey to serve a total of 184 months in federal prison. He was on supervised release for another bank robbery conviction at the time he reoffended.
Shelby Applewhite, 23, was sentenced in March 2014 to serve 60 months in federal prison. She pleaded guilty in November 2013 to one count of conspiracy to commit those three bank robberies.
The defendants admitted that they committed the following bank robberies in Dallas:
5-01-2013 Citibank
14909 Coit Road5-10-2103 Veritex Community Bank
14885 Preston Road5-15-2013 ViewPoint Bank
5941 Forest LaneAccording to documents filed in the case, for each of these robberies, John and Shelby Applewhite drove in separate vehicles to the vicinity of the respective banks with the specific intent to commit bank robbery. They switched vehicles with each other and altered a license plate prior to each bank robbery to facilitate the bank robbery and avoid detection by law enforcement. Prior to each robbery, Shelby Applewhite entered the bank to learn the layout of the bank’s interior and obtain information about bank personnel, to include whether or not there was a security guard on duty. She reported all the information to John Applewhite who used it to commit the bank robbery.
In each bank robbery, John Applewhite disguised his identity by wearing a hoodie, scarf or mask, sunglasses and gloves. He also used a dangerous weapon that he pointed at tellers, causing them to fear for their lives.
The FBI and the Dallas Police Department conducted the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney Keith Robinson prosecuted.
Eagle Butte Woman Sentenced for Two Counts of Simple Assault of A MinorRead the Press Release
United States Attorney Brendan V. Johnson announced that an Eagle Butte, South Dakota, woman convicted of two counts of Simple Assault of a Minor was sentenced on May 2, 2014, by U.S. Magistrate Judge Mark A. Moreno.
Terri Kills Crow, a/k/a Terri Village Center, age 28, was sentenced to 24 months of probation and a $50 special assessment to the Federal Crime Victims Fund.
Kills Crow was indicted by a federal grand jury on May 15, 2013, and pled guilty to two counts of Simple Assault of a Minor on February 21, 2014.
The conviction arose from two incidents in November 2012 when Kills Crow assaulted two minor victims in Eagle Butte who had not attained the age of 16. In the first incident, Kills Crow grabbed the victim’s arm and pulled in an inappropriate, excessive, and offensive manner that caused the victim great pain and exacerbated an existing arm injury. In the second incident, in an attempt to punish the victim, Kills Crow hit the victim with a fly swatter in an excessive and offensive manner that went beyond any normal or reasonable means of punishment or correction for a young child.
The investigation was conducted by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe Law Enforcement Division. The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Mikal Hanson.
Department of Justice and Federal Trade Commission to Hold Workshop on Conditional Pricing PracticesRead the Press Release
The Department of Justice and the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) will hold a joint public workshop on June 23, 2014, to explore the economic and legal analysis of conditional pricing practices among firms in a supply chain. The workshop will focus on conditional pricing arrangements – practices in which prices are explicitly or effectively contingent on commitments to purchase or sell a specified share or volume of a single product or a mix of multiple products – such as loyalty or bundled pricing.
A principal goal of the workshop will be to advance the economic understanding of the potential harms and benefits of conditional pricing practices and to reexamine their treatment under the antitrust laws.
Conditional pricing practices, similar to other distribution strategies, may have anticompetitive effects and efficiency benefits. For example, if a loyalty or share discount induces buyers to make most or all of their purchases from the seller, under some circumstances it might deprive the seller’s rivals of sufficient access to efficient distribution or production and facilitate the seller’s exercise of market power. Similarly, bundled pricing can deny rivals that do not produce all of the products in the bundle efficiencies of scale or scope. Supporters of such arrangements contend, however, that as long as these practices involve prices that are above some measure of cost, they are likely to reflect beneficial price competition, and that restraining their use will inhibit robust competition.
The legal treatment of conditional pricing practices has traditionally fallen into two categories. The first focuses on pricing and applies various forms of a price-cost test. The second examines whether a particular pricing practice reduces competition by raising the costs of rival firms or otherwise impeding their ability or incentives to expand or achieve efficiencies. These effects on competition could be comparable to those resulting from other distribution practices, such as exclusive dealing or tying.
Economic Learning. Workshop participants will examine both theoretical and empirical economic learning regarding these arrangements and consider many questions, including:
- What are the economic theories of harm and benefit?
- What do the economic and business-strategy literatures tell us about how and with what frequency firms employ conditional pricing practices?
- Under what circumstances are the various conditional pricing strategies likely to lead to competitive harm?
- In what settings might conditional pricing practices allow firms to realize efficiencies?
- To what degree might less-restrictive alternatives enable firms to achieve those same efficiencies?
Law and Policy Issues. Participants also will consider how to integrate the economic learning with the relevant legal standards. To that end, the workshop will explore the current legal standards in the United States and abroad and will consider a number of questions, including:
- How has the treatment of various conditional pricing practices evolved in the courts?
- To what extent do the standards articulated in judicial decisions align—or fail to align—with the relevant theories of competitive harm and benefit?
- What are the practical challenges of proof that the courts and litigants have confronted when attempting to apply the different legal standards?
- Do price-cost tests provide certainty and predictability to firms?
- How do price-cost tests compare to other alternative tests?
- Under the various standards, how might misalignment with theory and challenges of proof threaten to under-deter harmful practices or over-deter beneficial conduct?
- How do the various legal standards, if at all, affect primary conduct?
- What legal standards should the courts and antitrust agencies apply to the various conditional pricing strategies and theories of competitive harm?
The Department of Justice and the FTC are interested in receiving comments on conditional pricing practices and will accept written submissions from now through Aug. 22, 2014, 60 days after the event. Interested parties may submit public comments to https://ftcpublic.commentworks.com/ftc/conditionalpricingworkshop. Submitted comments will be made publicly available on the Department of Justice and FTC websites.
The all-day workshop is free and open to the public. Individuals are encouraged, but not required, to register in advance for the workshop by sending an email to [email protected]. Please include “RSVP” in the subject line. Seating will be on a first-come, first-serve basis.
Reasonable accommodations for people with disabilities are available upon request. Requests should be submitted by e-mail to [email protected] or by calling Lara Kittelson at 202-326-3388. Requests should be made in advance. Please include a detailed description of the accommodation needed and provide contact information.
The workshop will take place at the FTC’s new satellite conference center, Constitution Center, 400 Seventh Street, S.W., Washington, D.C. 20024. A workshop agenda and list of speakers will be published in advance of the workshop.
Press contacts:
Department of Justice
Office of Public Affairs
Gina Talamona
202-514-2007
Federal Trade Commission
Office of Public Affairs
Mitch Katz
202-326-2161
Staff contacts:
Department of Justice
Antitrust Division, Office of Legal Policy
Robert Potter
202-514-2512
Federal Trade Commission
Douglas Hilleboe, Office of Planning Policy
202-326-2155
Andrea Zach, Bureau of Competition
202-326-2184
Dallas Psychologist, Who Treated Disabled Federal Workers, Is Sentenced to 36 Months in Federal Prison on Health Care Fraud ConvictionRead the Press Release
DALLAS — Psychologist Michael Ellis Wolf, 62, of Dallas, was sentenced today by U.S. District Judge Jorge A. Solis to 36 months in federal prison and ordered to pay approximately $1.8 million in restitution. In January 2014, Wolf pleaded guilty to one count of health care fraud stemming from his treatment of disabled federal workers and was remanded into custody at that time. U.S. Attorney Sarah R. Saldaña of the Northern District of Texas made today’s announcement.
According to documents filed in the case, Wolf provided psychotherapy to individuals, including civilian employees of the federal government who sustained on-the-job injuries or employment-related occupational illness. The Federal Employees Compensation Act (FECA) provides disability compensation benefits and payment for medical and rehabilitation care for federal civilian employees who sustain on-the-job injuries or employment-related occupational illness. The FECA is a health care benefit program administered by the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL), Office of Workers Compensation Program.
As part of his scheme to defraud a health care benefit program, Wolf filed claims for payment of services that were never rendered and for services that were rendered in far less quantities than billed.
For example, through his billings, Wolf claimed he provided therapy for one particular injured federal employee, from January 2008 through mid-2013, seven days a week, when he in truth and fact he would only provide it once or twice a week, for 60 minutes. He also falsely claimed through billings that he provided therapy to this individual on holidays and on Sundays, and that on multiple days, he provided eight hours of therapy, per day, for this patient. Wolf also falsely claimed, through billings, that he provided four-eight hours of explanations to this patient’s family and employers multiple times a week, when in fact, he only offered occasional phone or in-office consultation with the family.
During this time period, the total amount billed by Wolf, on behalf of this patient, was more than $1.9 million. Of the amount billed, Wolf was paid more than $1 million.
The DOL Office of Inspector General and the U.S. Postal Service Office of Inspector General conducted the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney P. J. Meitl prosecuted.
Corpus Christi Man Sentenced for Possession of Child PornographyRead the Press Release
CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas - Jason Thomas Dreyer, 31, has been ordered to federal prison following his conviction for possession of child pornography, announced United States Attorney Kenneth Magidson. Dreyer pleaded guilty to the charge Dec. 5, 2013.
Today, U.S. District Judge Nelva Gonzales Ramos handed Dreyer a sentence of 60 months in prison to be followed by 10 years of supervised release. He will also have to obtain sex offender treatment and will not be permitted contact with minor children without adult supervision, cannot seek employment where minors congregate and is to have no Internet access without permission. Dreyer will also be required to register as a sex offender.
In December 2012, Dreyer was identified through an undercover investigation as an online user who was offering child pornography for distribution. That month and next, detectives successfully downloaded child pornography from Dreyer.
Dreyer later admitted to downloading and viewing child pornography on the Internet through file sharing software. A forensic evaluation of Dreyer’s computer led to the discovery of numerous images and more than 100 videos of child pornography. The majority of the images and videos were of prepubescent females engaged in sexually explicit conduct, primarily oral and vaginal sex with adult males.
Dreyer was permitted to remain on bond and voluntarily surrender to a U.S. Bureau of Prisons facility to be determined in the near future.
Homeland Security Investigations and the Corpus Christi Police Department – Internet Crimes Against Children Task Froce investigated.
This case, prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Lance Duke, was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by the United States Attorneys' Offices and the Criminal Division's Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state and local resources to locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who sexually exploit children, and to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.usdoj.gov/psc. For more information about internet safety education, please visit www.usdoj.gov/psc and click on the tab "resources."
Convicted Sex Offender Residing in Logan County, Kentucky, Sentenced to 15 Years in Prison for Possession of Child PornographyRead the Press Release
BOWLING GREEN, Ky. – A previously convicted sex offender, living in Logan County, Kentucky, was sentenced to 15 years in prison followed by a life term of Supervised Release, on Thursday, May 1, 2014, by Senior District Judge Thomas B. Russell, for violating federal child pornography laws, announced David J. Hale, United States Attorney for the Western District of Kentucky. There is no parole in the federal system.
Jeffrey Lynn Hines, age 40, of Russellville, Kentucky, had previously pleaded guilty to a three-count Superseding Indictment that charged him with receiving child pornography, by way of the United States Postal Service and the Internet between August 2010 and April 2011. The Indictment also charged him with possession of child pornography and of being a convicted felon in possession of firearms. Hines admitted to ordering the child pornography, through a website, from a company located outside the United States and to downloading images of child pornography from the Internet.
Law enforcement officials executed a federal Search Warrant on Hines home in Russellville. Among the items located and seized pursuant to the Warrant were several computers containing numerous still images and video files depicting child pornography, a binder with printed images of child pornography, numerous VHS tapes, and more than 30 DVDs (including the ones Hines had ordered from the international company containing child pornography). Law enforcement officials also found and seized a Remington, Wingmaster model 870, 12-gauge semi-automatic pump shotgun; a Maverick model 88, 12-gauge semi-automatic pump shotgun; a Westpoint model 948E, 20-gauge single shot shotgun; and a Bauer Firearms Corp., model Bauer Automatic .25 caliber semi-automatic pistol.
Information from the Kentucky State Police Sex Offender Registry website showed that Hines was a sex offender registrant. The underlying conviction arose in Logan County, Kentucky Circuit Court. On June 5, 1995, Hines was convicted of first degree sexual abuse of a six-year-old little boy (a crime punishable by imprisonment for more than one year). In 2004, Hines was again charged with first degree sexual abuse of a child (a four-year-old boy). He received diversion for a period of five years. During that time period, in 2010, Hines failed to comply with sex offender registration requirements. At the time of his arrest in this case, he was compliant with the registration.
Assistant United States Attorney Jo E. Lawless prosecuted the case. The United States Postal Inspection Service led the investigation. The Kentucky State Police and Logan County Sheriff’s Department assisted with execution of the Search Warrant and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms & Explosives aided with the firearms charge.
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."
Convicted Sex Offender Residing in Allen County, Kentucky, Sentenced to 15 Years in Prison for Possession of Child PornographyRead the Press Release
BOWLING GREEN, Ky. – A previously convicted sex offender, living in Allen County, Kentucky was sentenced to 15 years in prison followed by a life term of Supervised Release, on Thursday, May 1, 2014, by Senior District Judge Thomas B. Russell, for violating federal child pornography laws, announced David J. Hale, United States Attorney for the Western District of Kentucky. There is no parole in the federal system.
Gerald Burnham, age 73, of Adolphus, Kentucky, had previously pleaded guilty to a two-count Indictment that charged him with receiving child pornography, by way of the United States Postal Service and the Internet. The Indictment also charged him with possession of child pornography. Burnham admitted to ordering the child pornography, through a website, from a company located outside the United States and to downloading images of child pornography from the Internet.
Burnham admitted to placing orders and making purchases of DVDs from the International Company on 12 occasions between November 3, 2010, and March 4, 2011. Those orders included 20 separate video titles from the company’s website. Burnham spent at total of $510.50 in United States currency for the DVDs. Burnham was identified as a customer through an investigation by the United States Postal Inspection Service (USPIS) and a foreign law enforcement agency.
Law enforcement officials executed a federal Search Warrant on Burnham’s home in Kentucky on May 2, 2013. Among the items located and seized pursuant to the Warrant were a desktop computer, DVDs (the ones ordered from the international company), framed photographs of nude boys, photo albums and a binder containing sexually explicit photos of male and female children, miscellaneous nudist books and erotic writings belonging to Burnham.
Information from the Kentucky State Police Sex Offender Registry website showed that Burnham was a lifetime sex offender registrant. At the time of his arrest on the federal charges, Burnham was compliant with his sex offender registration requirement. The underlying conviction arose in Maine for unlawful sexual contact with a minor, possession of sexually explicit material, and sexual abuse of a minor. Burnham sexually abused a child in Maine for eight years, beginning when the child was only eight years old.
Assistant United States Attorney Jo E. Lawless prosecuted the case. The United States Postal Inspection Service led the investigation. The Allen County Sheriff’s Department assisted with execution of the Search Warrant.
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."
Colombian Man Pleads Guilty to Drug Importation Conspiracy ChargeRead the Press Release
Tampa, Florida – United States Attorney A. Lee Bentley, III announces that Vinston Boxton-Moises (48, San Andres Island, Colombia, South America) today pleaded guilty to conspiring with others to distribute five kilograms or more of cocaine, knowing that the cocaine would be unlawfully imported into the United States. Boxton faces a mandatory minimum penalty of ten years in federal prison, up to a maximum term of life imprisonment.
According to the plea agreement, between 2010 and 2013, Boxton was a knowing and willing participant in an ongoing plan to smuggle cocaine by sea. The cocaine was ultimately destined for unlawful importation into the United States. Boxton’s roles in the conspiracy included recruiting and paying mariners and mechanics, contracting for the use of smuggling and lookout/logistics vessels, and dispatching cocaine-laden go-fast vessels (GFVs).
Boxton is accountable for the GFV TAUPLY that was interdicted by the United States in the Caribbean Sea on May 31, 2012, approximately eighty-five nautical miles southeast of Nicaragua. The TAUPLY interdiction resulted in the seizure of approximately 1,000 kilograms of cocaine. Boxton arranged for the recruitment and payment of the mariners who ultimately operated TAUPLY and attempted to smuggle the cocaine. The government of Colombia consented to the enforcement of United States law over the TAUPLY, its illicit cargo (cocaine), and crew. The five mariners embarked in TAUPLY were successfully prosecuted in the United States for violations of the Maritime Drug Law Enforcement Act, first arriving at a place in the Middle District of Florida.
Boxton was arrested on San Andres Island, Colombia in August 2013, and subsequently extradited to the United States for prosecution. As a direct result of his participation in the conspiracy, Boxton obtained at least $1 million in proceeds.
The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Christopher F. Murray.
It was investigated by the Panama Express North Strike Force, a standing Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) investigation, comprised of agents and analysts from U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations, the Drug Enforcement Administration, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the U.S. Coast Guard Investigative Service, the Naval Criminal Investigative Service, and U.S. Southern Command's Joint Interagency Task Force South. The Justice Department’s Office of International Affairs provided assistance with the extradition. The principal mission of the OCDETF program is to identify, disrupt, and dismantle the most serious drug trafficking and money laundering organizations and those primarily responsible for the nation’s drug supply.
Caldwell Woman Sentenced to 120 Months in Federal Prison for Meth TraffickingRead the Press Release
Defendant One of Eleven in Gun and Drug Trafficking Case
BOISE – Michelle Christina Ritch, 36, of Caldwell, Idaho, was sentenced yesterday in United States District Court to 120 months in prison for conspiring to distribute methamphetamine, U.S. Attorney Wendy J. Olson announced. U.S. District Judge Edward J. Lodge also ordered Ritch to serve five years of supervised release. She pleaded guilty to the charge on December 17, 2013.
According to information presented in court, Ritch admitted to conspiring with co-defendants to distribute methamphetamine beginning in January 2013. Ritch continued to participate in the distribution of methamphetamine until she was arrested on March 22, 2013. When Ritch was arrested by officers with the Caldwell Police Department, they located approximately two ounces of methamphetamine and a drug ledger. Ritch has prior felony convictions for burglary and possession of a controlled substance.
Ritch and ten other individuals were indicted on July 9, 2013, in a case including charges of conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine, distribution of methamphetamine, distribution of cocaine, and unlawful possession of firearms. The defendants are responsible for distributing pounds of methamphetamine within the community. During the investigation, law enforcement agents seized twelve firearms, including a stolen firearm, and an illegal fully-automatic machine gun. All eleven defendants have pleaded guilty, including defendant Jeramie Mahler, who pleaded guilty to conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine and discharging a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime. Ritch is the sixth defendant to be sentenced; co-defendants Wendy Harrison and Bobbi Eileen Woolsey 2 were both sentenced previously to 84 months in prison and Nearia Pinnell was sentenced to 33 months in prison; Daniel Vaughan was sentenced to 80 months in prison; and Darrell Zirschky was sentenced to 168 months in prison.
The case was investigated by the Treasure Valley Metro Violent Crimes Task Force, which is comprised of federal, state and local agencies, including the Federal Bureau of Investigation; Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives; Boise Police Department; Ada County Sheriff’s Office; Caldwell Police Department; Nampa Police Department; Meridian Police Department; Canyon County Sheriff’s Office; and Idaho Department of Probation and Parole. Other agencies that contributed to this investigation include the Drug Enforcement Administration, Nampa Police Department, Caldwell Police Department, Canyon County Sheriff’s Office, and Ada County Sheriff’s Office.
The case is being prosecuted by the Special Assistant U.S. Attorney hired by the Treasure Valley Partnership and the State of Idaho to address gang crimes. The Treasure Valley Partnership is comprised of a group of elected officials in southwest Idaho dedicated to regional coordination, cooperation, and collaboration on creating coherent regional growth. For more information, visit treasurevalleypartners.org.
Arizona Man Sentenced for 1997 EscapeRead the Press Release
United States Attorney Brendan V. Johnson announced that an Arizona man convicted of Escape was sentenced on May 5, 2014, by Chief Judge Jeffrey L. Viken, U.S. District Court.
Steven C. Durant, age 55, was sentenced to 18 months in custody, 3 years of supervised release, and ordered to pay a $100 special assessment to the Federal Crime Victims Fund.
In 1992, Durant was sentenced to 78 months in custody on a firearms violation. Upon completion of his sentence, he was placed on supervised release. After one month of supervised release at the Community Alternatives of the Black Hills, Durant absconded on March 21, 1997. Durant was then indicted for Escape by a federal grand jury on April 9, 1997. Following that Indictment, Durant evaded authorities for over 16 years until his capture by the U.S. Marshals Service in Arizona on September 10, 2013. He pled guilty to the Escape charge on December 12, 2013.
This case was investigated by the U.S. Marshals Service. Assistant U.S. Attorney Kathryn N. Rich prosecuted the case.
Durant was immediately returned to the custody of the U.S. Marshals Service.
Apollo Nida Pleads Guilty to Conspiracy to Commit Mail, Wire and Bank FraudRead the Press Release
ATLANTA - Apollo E. Nida has pleaded guilty to conspiring to commit mail, wire and bank fraud in a complex scheme spanning over four years, harming over 50 victims, and causing over $2.3 million in losses.
“This defendant participated in a sweeping fraud scheme that exploited many segments of the financial system, including phony claims submitted to federal and state agencies, loans secured by vehicles, and even basic identity theft associated with stolen checks,” said United States Attorney Sally Quillian Yates. “The extensive nature of the fraud is unfortunate and breathtaking. Prosecutions like this case help to highlight the vulnerabilities in the financial system, so that we can prevent future schemes and protect our citizens and government agencies from theft like this.”
“Nida and his conspirators were conniving and creative in their scheme to steal victims’ identities and defraud them. The United States Secret Service will continue to adapt its investigative methodologies to arrest criminals who use their technological savvy to violate unsuspecting victims such as those in this case,” said Reginald G. Moore, Special Agent in Charge of the United States Secret Service, Atlanta Field Office.
“Many everyday citizens, legitimate businesses and taxpayers have been victimized by this complicated and long running fraudulent scheme. After an intensive investigation with the cooperation of federal, state and local law enforcement, we are very pleased to at long last see this criminal brought to justice,” said John D. Sours, Administrator, Governor’s Office of Consumer Protection.
According to United States Attorney Yates, the charges and other information presented in court: Beginning in August 2009, Nida, 35, of Atlanta, Ga., and others conspired to commit mail, wire, and bank fraud. The conspirators obtained stolen checks by stealing them or buying them from other criminal associates. The stolen checks involved in the scheme included United States Treasury Checks, as well as checks stolen from the pension fund of Delta Airlines. Additionally, the conspirators obtained funds by filing fraudulent tax returns with the Internal Revenue Service and making fraudulent claims against the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, and at least eleven states, all in the names of victims whose identities had been stolen.
Many of these checks were mailed to a large network of mailboxes rented by the conspirators at UPS Stores in the Northern District of Georgia and throughout the nation, for eventual forwarding to the conspirators. The conspirators also obtained fraudulent auto loans secured by vehicles that they had no ownership interest in whatsoever. To convince banks to issue these loans, Nida and his conspirators created fake documents and websites appearing to belong to legitimate auto dealerships.
Once the conspirators obtained the stolen checks, they laundered them through numerous victim financial institutions. Often, the conspirators laundered the checks by opening bank accounts in the names of the payees listed on the face of the checks. This involved impersonating each payee and stealing his or her identity. The conspirators prepared for these impersonations by researching their victims using databases like LexisNexis and Equifax, to which they obtained access through fake collection agencies they had opened as part of the scheme. Sometimes, the conspirators negotiated checks by laundering them in bulk through accounts which appeared to belong to legitimate businesses, such as one in the name “Signature Tax Collections.”
The illegal conduct ended only when agents of the U.S. Secret Service confronted Nida and seized his laptop computer, pursuant to a search warrant, on September 13, 2013.
Assistant United States Attorney Alana R. Black is prosecuting the case.
This case is being investigated by the United States Secret Service and the Georgia Governor’s Office of Consumer Protection.
For further information please contact the U.S. Attorney’s Public Affairs Office at [email protected] or (404) 581-6016. The Internet address for the home page for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia Atlanta Division is http://www.justice.gov/usao/gan/.
Akron Woman Indicted for Failing to Register as Sex OffenderRead the Press Release
Nikki Ann Nazarian, 40, of Akron, Ohio, was indicted today by a federal grand jury for failure to register and update registration as required under the Sex Offender Registration and Notification Act, said Steven M. Dettelbach, United States Attorney for the Northern District of Ohio.
The United States Marshals Service in Akron, Ohio, conducted the investigation. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Justin Seabury Gould.
If convicted, the defendant’s sentence will be determined by the court after review of factors unique to this case, including the defendant’s prior criminal record, if any, the defendant’s role in the offense, and the characteristics of the violation. In all cases, the sentence will not exceed the statutory maximum and in most cases it will be less than the maximum.
An indictment is only a charge and is not evidence of guilt. A defendant is entitled to a fair trial, in which it will be the government’s burden to prove guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.
Accountant Convicted in Mortgage Fraud SchemeRead the Press Release
LAS VEGAS, Nev. – Following a five-day jury trial, a licensed accountant was convicted today of conspiracy and fraud charges for participating in a mortgage fraud scheme in southern Nevada and causing approximately $1.6 million in losses to federally insured financial institutions, announced Daniel G. Bogden, United States Attorney for the District of Nevada.
Carmen Denise Mosley, 43, of Granada Hills, Calif., was convicted of one count of conspiracy to commit bank fraud and wire fraud, and two counts of bank fraud. Mosley is scheduled to be sentenced on Aug. 5, 2014, and faces up to 30 years in prison and a $1 million fine on each count.
“Over the last six years, hundreds of persons who worked in the housing and mortgage industry in southern Nevada have been prosecuted and convicted of mortgage fraud crimes,” said U.S. Attorney Bogden. “This type of fraud has a long-lasting effect on the state economy and the perpetrators deserve to be convicted and punished.”
According to the court records and evidence introduced at trial, from about November 2006 to November 2007, Mosley, a certified public accountant, and co-defendant Zulfiya Karimova, 33, of, Cupertino, California, a loan officer, conspired to obtain mortgage loans from financial institutions by causing materially false information to be placed in the buyers’ mortgage loan applications and supporting documentation. Using this scheme, Mosley and Karimova obtained money and property from the financial institutions by causing money from the loans to be disbursed to them at closing for their own use and benefit. Karimova caused buyers to apply for mortgage loans and caused their applications to contain false information about their income and assets. Mosley provided fraudulent tax documents to support the fraudulent representations in the applications concerning the buyers’ income. Mosley and Karimova caused the financial institutions to loan money to fund the purchase of three homes in the Las Vegas area during 2006 and 2007. The buyers defaulted on the loans, causing approximately $1.6 million in losses to the lenders.
Karimova pleaded guilty prior to trial to conspiracy to commit bank fraud and wire fraud, and bank fraud, and is scheduled to be sentenced on May 27, 2014.
The case was investigated by the FBI and prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Sarah E. Griswold and Kathryn C. Newman.
Today’s announcement is part of efforts underway by President Obama’s Financial Fraud Enforcement Task Force (FFETF) which was created in November 2009 to wage an aggressive, coordinated and proactive effort to investigate and prosecute financial crimes. With more than 20 federal agencies, 94 U.S. attorneys’ offices and state and local partners, it’s the broadest coalition of law enforcement, investigatory and regulatory agencies ever assembled to combat fraud. Since its formation, the task force has made great strides in facilitating increased investigation and prosecution of financial crimes; enhancing coordination and cooperation among federal, state and local authorities; addressing discrimination in the lending and financial markets and conducting outreach to the public, victims, financial institutions and other organizations. Since the inception of FFETF in November 2009, the Justice Department has filed more than 12,841 financial fraud cases against nearly 18,737 defendants including nearly 3,500 mortgage fraud defendants. For more information on the task force, visit www.stopfraud.gov.
5 May 2014
Worcester County Man Indicted on Charges of Producing, Distributing and Possessing Child PornographyRead the Press Release
Baltimore, Maryland – A federal grand jury has indicted Laiton Blake Witkowski, age 41, of Stockton, Maryland, on charges of production, distribution and possession of child pornography. The indictment was returned on May 1, 2014. Witkowski is scheduled to have his initial appearance today at 1:00 p.m. in U.S. District Court in Baltimore.
The indictment was announced by United States Attorney for the District of Maryland Rod J. Rosenstein; Special Agent in Charge William Winter of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI); Worcester County Sheriff Reggie T. Mason, Sr.; Colonel Marcus L. Brown, Superintendent of the Maryland State Police; and Worcester County State’s Attorney Beau Oglesby.
The seven count indictment alleges that Witkowski produced images of two minor females engaged in sexually explicit conduct. These images appear to have been taken without the knowledge of the victims, including images of one victim who appears to be sleeping and images of the second victim as she is using the restroom. The indictment further alleges that Witkowski distributed and possessed other images of child pornography, including images of prepubescent children being sexually abused.
Witkowski faces a mandatory minimum of 15 years and a maximum of 30 years in prison for each of the two counts of production of child pornography; a minimum of five years and a maximum of 20 years in prison for distribution of child pornography; and a maximum of 20 years in prison for each of the four counts of possession of child pornography.
An indictment is not a finding of guilt. An individual charged by indictment is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty at some later criminal proceedings.
This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by the United States Attorneys' Offices and the Criminal Division's Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who sexually exploit children, and to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.justice.gov/psc. For more information about internet safety education, please visit www.justice.gov/psc and click on the "resources" tab on the left of the page.
United States Attorney Rod J. Rosenstein commended HSI Ocean City, Worcester County Sheriff’s Office, Maryland State Police Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force (ICAC) and the Worcester County State’s Attorney’s Office for their work in the investigation. Mr. Rosenstein thanked Assistant U.S. Attorney Judson T. Mihok and Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Julie Podlesni, who are prosecuting the case.