Latest Records
Newest first across public DOJ and U.S. Attorney press releases.
Monday 24 February 2014
Wisconsin Man Sentenced for Possessing Child PornographyRead the Press Release
FARGO - U.S. Attorney Timothy Q. Purdon announced that on Feb. 24, 2014, Robert Carey Evans, 58, of Waukesha, Wis., was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Ralph R. Erickson to 10 years in prison on 14 counts of possession of materials containing child pornography. Judge Erickson ordered Evans to pay a $1400 special assessment to the Crime Victim’s Fund and register as a sex offender for life. Evans was found guilty by a 12 person jury on Oct. 25, 2013.
This case came to the attention of law enforcement after a North Dakota Bureau of Criminal Investigations special agent assigned to the Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force discovered two computers geographically located in North Dakota that were sharing child pornography in a peer-to-peer network. A search warrant was issued for Evan’s Fargo apartment where task force officers seized more than 13 hard drives and 43 DVDs containing child pornography. A subsequent forensic examination of this media revealed more than 22,000 images and nearly 1400 videos of child pornography.
The case was investigated by Homeland Security Investigations, North Dakota Bureau of Criminal Investigation and the Fargo Police Department.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Jennifer Klemetsrud Puhl prosecuted the case.
This case was prosecuted as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative designed to protect children from online exploitation and abuse. Led by the U.S. Attorneys’ Offices, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to better locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the Internet, as well as to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.projectsafechildhood.gov.Wichita Maintenance Technician Sentenced for Stealing Equipment from EmployersRead the Press Release
WICHITA, KAN. – A Wichita maintenance technician was sentenced Monday to 16 months in federal prison for making more than $150,000 by selling equipment he stole from the companies where he worked. After completing his sentence he will serve three years on supervised release.
Mark A. Lankford, 45, Wichita, Kan., pleaded guilty in U.S. District Court in Wichita to two counts of wire fraud. In his plea, he admitted stealing equipment from two Wichita companies where he worked, Spirit Aerosystems and Fiber Glass Systems LP.
Lankford was employed as an equipment maintenance technician for Spirit Aerosystems in Wichita from October 2010 to Sept. 5, 2011. During that time he stole computer parts from Spirit with a total value of more than $466,559. He used email to offer stolen parts for sale mainly to individuals in Owing Mills, Maryland. On April 25, 2011, he offered for sale an Allen Bradley model 1785-LT programmable controller, an Allen Bradley model 1771-DLC, an Allen Bradley model 1772-LXP, an Allen Bradley model 1772-TB2 and a Siemens model 6FC5303-OAB20-1AAO, all stolen from Spirit. Law enforcement officers recovered items worth approximately $454,435, leaving a remaining loss of more than $12,123.
From March 2008 to Oct 2010, Lankford worked as a maintenance mechanic for Fiber Glass Systems in Wichita. He stole computer parts from the company with a total value of more than $41,268. He offered stolen parts for sale on eBay including an Allen Bradley Controllogix Processor 7 slot system stolen from the company.
Lankford obtained a total of more than $154,824 from selling stolen parts.
Grissom commended the FBI and Assistant U.S. Attorney Jason Hart for their work on the case.Wasilla Man Indicted for Sexual Exploitation of ChildrenRead the Press Release
Anchorage, Alaska – U.S. Attorney Karen L. Loeffler announced today that a Wasilla man was arraigned in Federal Court in Anchorage before Magistrate Judge John D. Roberts on two counts of sexual exploitation of children: advertising and distributing child pornography.
Daniel Clinton Piaskowski, a 33-year-old man from Wasilla, Alaska, was indicted by a federal grand jury, and arrested on a warrant on February 21, 2014. The indictment comes after an investigation led by the Federal Bureau of Investigation.
The FBI’s investigation of Piaskowski is ongoing, and the FBI is seeking to determine if Piaskowski had inappropriate contact with children. Anyone with relevant information is asked to contact the FBI's Anchorage Field Office at (907) 276-4441.
An indictment is only a charge and is not evidence of guilt. A defendant is presumed innocent and is entitled to a fair trial at which the government must prove guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.
Washington County Man Pleads Guilty to Receipt of Child PornographyRead the Press Release
ALBANY, NEW YORK – CHRISTOPHER J. WHITE, age 29, of Whitehall, New York, pled guilty today in Albany before United States District Judge Mae A. D’Agostino to receipt of child pornography, announced United States Attorney Richard S. Hartunian, Joseph D’Amico, Superintendent of the New York State Police, and Andrew Vale, Special Agent in Charge, Federal Bureau of Investigation. WHITE, who was detained pending his sentencing, faces at least fifteen years of imprisonment and up to forty years of imprisonment.
As part of his guilty plea, WHITE admitted that, following his 2010 Attempted Sexual Abuse in the 1st Degree conviction in Saratoga County Court, he used the Internet to search for, receive, and view images of child pornography. Sentencing is scheduled for June 9, 2014, in Albany, New York.
This case was investigated by the New York State Police and the Federal Bureau of Investigation and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Jeffrey C. Coffman.
United States Attorney Announces Charges Against Investor Who Defrauded Carmel, Indiana VictimsRead the Press Release
Ohio man operated a fictitious investment company which bilked over $650,000 from investors
INDIANAPOLIS – Joseph H. Hogsett, the United States Attorney, announced today that an Ohio man has been charged with devising a scheme to fraudulently obtain money from investors in order to enrich himself by using his position as an investment advisor broker to solicit investors with promises that money they invested would be used for the purchase of investment and insurance products.
David Bridges, 37, Cincinnati, OH, had his initial appearance in court today in front of a federal magistrate judge where he waived indictment and indicated his desire to enter a plea of guilty. The losses incurred by all victims total over $650,000. Several of the victims of this scheme have been long-time residents of Hamilton County, specifically, Carmel, Indiana.
This matter began in November, 2012, when Carmel Police were notified of alleged irregularities. Carmel Police then contacted representatives of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, who have led the investigation since that time.
“The United States Attorney’s Office will aggressively pursue the prosecution of those individuals who bilk Hoosier out of their hard-earned retirement funds through fraud,” said Hogsett. “Stealing the hard-earned money that Hoosiers plan to retire on is inexcusable.”
It is alleged that Bridges created a bogus company, SD Capital LLC, to convince investors to purchase annuity contracts at SD Capital and/or roll over their IRA accounts maintained elsewhere to a purported IRA account managed by SD Capital. It was further part of the alleged scheme that the investors, in reliance on the advice of Bridges, wrote checks to SD Capital for the investment products. Bridges deposited these checks into his own bank account.
It is further alleged Bridges represented to his investors that he had purchased the investment products with their money. However, Bridges instead used all of the money he received for the Investment Products for his personal benefit, including the payment of personal expenses incurred through gambling and purchases at grocery stores, gas stations, and retail shops, in a manner materially contrary to the representations and promises he had made to the investors.
Assistant Special Agent in Charge of the Indianapolis FBI Office, Kevin P. Lyons said, “The FBI is dedicated to stopping white collar crime and protecting victims of investment fraud."
MaryAnn T Mindrum, who is prosecuting the case for the government said, Bridges could face up to 20 years in prison and a fine of up to 250,000. Bridges remains in the custody of the United States Marshal Service. No future court date has been set.
This case is the result of a collaborative investigation by the FBI and Carmel Police Department.
An Information or Indictment is only a charge and is not evidence of guilt. A defendant is presumed innocent and is entitled to a fair trial at which the government must prove guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.
Two Women Plead Guilty to Structuring Cash TransactionsRead the Press Release
FRESNO, Calif. — Raeb Chou, of Modesto, pleaded guilty today to one count of conspiracy to structure cash transactions and one count of structuring, and co-defendant Chantha A. Chim, of Murietta, pleaded guilty today to one count of structuring, United States Attorney Benjamin B. Wagner announced.
According to court documents, Chou, Chim and co-conspirators obtained prescriptions for oxycodone and hydrocodone from pharmacies in Modesto, and then transported and mailed the pills to Washington and other states for distribution on the black market. In addition, Chou and co-defendant Phally Thach opened bank accounts into which co-conspirators deposited the cash proceeds of the oxycodone and hydrocodone sales in amounts of $10,000 or less.
After receiving the cash deposits from co-conspirators, Chou and Chim withdrew the cash from those accounts in amounts of $10,000 or less to attempt to prevent Currency Transactions Reports from being filed by the banks on her cash deposits. Currency Transactions Reports are reports prepared by financial institutions for any transactions involving more than $10,000 in cash. These reports are filed with the Department of Treasury and are made available to law enforcement. Chou withdrew more than $120,000 cash proceeds of drug distribution from her bank accounts; Chim withdrew more than $70,000 cash proceeds of drug distribution from her bank accounts.
Both defendants are scheduled to be sentenced by Judge Anthony W. Ishii on May 5, 2014. Chou faces a maximum statutory penalty of five years in prison and a $250,000 fine for conspiracy and a maximum statutory penalty of 10 years in prison and a $500,000 fine for aggravated structuring. Chim faces a maximum statutory penalty of five years in prison and a $250,000 fine for structuring. The actual sentences, however, will be determined at the discretion of the court after consideration of any applicable statutory factors and the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, which take into account a number of variables.
This case is being brought as part of Operation Footprint, a nationwide law enforcement initiative led by the U.S. Attorney’s Offices, the Internal Revenue Service – Criminal Investigation, the Drug Enforcement Administration, and the United States Postal Inspection Service. Operation Footprint targets large drug trafficking organizations by identifying the transfer of drug proceeds through financial institutions, bulk cash smuggling and other forms of money transfers. Operation Footprint is focused on bringing criminal charges based on Bank Secrecy Act violations in addition to violations of the Controlled Substances Act and the Money Laundering Control Act. This case is also the product of the Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF), a focused multi-agency, multijurisdictional task force investigating and prosecuting the most significant drug trafficking organizations throughout the United States by leveraging the combined expertise of federal, state and local law enforcement agencies.
This case is also the product of the Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF), a focused multi-agency, multi-jurisdictional task force investigating and prosecuting the most significant drug trafficking organizations throughout the United States by leveraging the combined expertise of federal, state and local law enforcement agencies. Assistant U.S. Attorney Grant B. Rabenn is prosecuting the case.
Two Former Milledgeville Credit Union Employees Plead Guilty to EmbezzlementRead the Press Release
ROCKFORD — Two former employees of Milledgeville Community Credit Union, have pleaded guilty in separate federal cases to embezzling money from Milledgeville Community Credit Union, in Milledgeville, Ill. KIMBERLY KENT, 53, who was also a former Treasurer of Wysox Township, pleaded guilty in federal court today, and KELSEY SELMAN, 37, pleaded guilty on Jan. 28, 2014.
According to Kent’s written plea agreement, from October 2005 through February 2012, Kent embezzled approximately $219,600 from Milledgeville Community Credit Union, where she was the manager and responsible for supervising other employees. Kent was also responsible for her own cash drawer and for handling various transactions on accounts, including the deposit and withdrawal of funds to and from customers’ accounts. As stated in the plea agreement, to conceal her embezzlement, Kent created fictitious loans using the names of family members and fictitious certificates of deposit. In 2009, Kent was elected treasurer of Wysox Township. Kent admitted that in August 2010, in her capacity as treasurer of Wysox Township, she used funds from Wysox Township’s account at Milledgeville Community Credit Union to cover her embezzlement. Kent used the money she embezzled for personal purposes. The deposits of the credit union were insured by the National Credit Union Administration Board.
In Selman’s written plea agreement, Selman admitted that from 2007 through February 2012, she embezzled approximately $100,975.74 from Milledgeville Community Credit Union. Selman worked as a teller for the credit union handling deposits and withdrawals on accounts, including her own credit union account. According to the plea agreement, Selman repeatedly took money over that period of time, using the credit union’s computer system to apply credits to her personal account that did not have a corresponding deposit. As a result, the credit union’s records falsely reflected that Selman’s cash drawer increased by an amount to offset the deposit into her account. After she credited the money into her account, Selman used the money she embezzled for personal purposes.
Kent and Selman each face a maximum sentence of 30 years’ imprisonment, a term of supervised release of up to 5 years following imprisonment, and a fine of up to $1 million. Each defendant has repaid Milledgeville Community Credit Union for the full amount of the loss. Sentencing for Kent is set for June 2, 2014, at 2:30 p.m. Sentencing for Selman is set for May 7, 2014, at 2:30 p.m.
The guilty pleas were announced by Zachary T. Fardon, United States Attorney for the Northern District of Illinois, and Robert J. Holley, Special Agent-in-Charge of the Chicago Office of Federal Bureau of Investigation.
The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorney Scott R. Paccagnini.
Kent Plea Agreement
Selman Plea AgreementTwo Defendants Convicted of Conspiracy to Import HeroinRead the Press Release
Febrary 24, 2014ALEXANDRIA, Va. – Kenia Verges, 27, and Alicia Garcia Rivera, 47, of Providence, Rhode Island, were convicted today by a federal jury of participating in a conspiracy to import heroin into the Unites States.
Dana J. Boente, Acting United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia, and Scot R. Rittenberg, Acting Special Agent in Charge of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), Washington, made the announcement after the verdict was accepted by United States District Judge James. C. Cacheris.Verges and Garcia Rivera each face a maximum penalty of twenty years in prison when they are sentenced on May 29, 2014.
Verges and Garcia Rivera were indicted on Nov. 14, 2013, by a federal grand jury on conspiracy to import heroin into the United States. According to court records and evidence presented at trial, the defendants, who are mother and daughter, were recruited by an international heroin cartel headed by a violent kingpin who recently was apprehended in Guatemala on drug charges. As part of the cartel’s scheme, the defendants each hid approximately two kilograms of heroin in seemingly innocent packaging for foodstuffs, which the defendants smuggled in their luggage onto commercial airline flights from Guatemala into the United States.
Several members of the cartel smuggled or attempted to smuggle multiple kilograms of heroin through Dulles International Airport in the Eastern District of Virginia, as well as through New York’s John F. Kennedy International Airport and Chicago O’Hare International Airport. In addition, the cartel’s managers in the United States wired and transferred millions of dollars in drug proceeds to the kingpin in Guatemala.
This case was investigated by HSI Washington. Assistant United States Attorney Gene Rossi and Special Assistant United States Attorney Edward Reilly are prosecuting the case on behalf of the United States.
A copy of this press release may be found on the website of the United States Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Virginia at http://www.justice.gov/usao/vae. Related court documents and information may be found on the website of the District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia at http://www.vaed.uscourts.gov or on https://pcl.uscourts.gov.Twenty-Eight Members and Associates of Paterson Bloods Street Gang Charged in Manhattan Federal Court with Distributing Heroin, Crack Cocaine, and Powder Cocaine, and with Firearms OffensesRead the Press Release
Preet Bharara, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, Aaron T. Ford, the Special Agent-in-Charge of the Newark Field Office of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (“FBI”), William Fraher, the Acting Chief of Police of the Paterson Police Department, and Gary F. Giardina, the Chief of Police of the Clifton Police Department, today announced the unsealing of a superseding indictment charging 28 members and associates of the Bloods street gang operating in Passaic County, New Jersey, principally in the city of Paterson, with distribution and possession with the intent to distribute heroin, “crack” cocaine, and powder cocaine. The indictment also charges three of the defendants with brandishing firearms in furtherance of drug trafficking activity, and with being felons unlawfully in possession of firearms.
Of the 28 defendants named in the Superseding Indictment, nine were taken into custody in a weekend sweep. Those nine defendants were presented in Manhattan federal court this afternoon before U.S. Magistrate Judge Debra Freeman and detained. Five other defendants are presently detained in state custody on unrelated charges, and will be writted into federal custody. One defendant, HAKIM LOWERY, remains at large. The other 13 defendants were arrested on earlier occasions on the underlying indictments, and all remain detained.
Manhattan U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara said: “Once again we see the convergence of drugs, guns and violence that plagues neighborhoods, threatens their inhabitants, and spreads potentially lethal narcotics from city to city and across state lines. To keep our neighborhoods free of illegal drugs and gang violence, we will continue to work closely with our local law enforcement partners to vigorously enforce federal drug and firearms laws.”
FBI Special Agent-in-Charge Aaron T. Ford said: “Dismantling violent gangs is a continuing priority for the FBI. Our efforts to address gang violence are not new, but we are working with our partners with increased manpower and increased urgency to address current circumstances. Today’s arrests and charges are the result of a successful, long term investigation conducted by the FBI, and the Paterson and Clifton Police Departments.”
Paterson Police Department Acting Chief William Fraher said: “It is critically important for cities like Paterson to leverage their existing collaborative relationships with federal and local law enforcement to reduce not only the actual violence in our communities, but also reducing the perception of fear which can be just as important.”
Clifton Police Department Chief Gary F. Giardina said: “Problems faced by law enforcement do not stop at the city borders. What is one city’s problem most likely is the next city’s and at times overlaps into the next state. It is for these reasons that it is imperative that agencies work in partnership to be successful. In this case Clifton Police worked in partnership with the Paterson Police and FBI in order to bring this investigation to a successful conclusion.”
According to the allegations in the Superseding Indictment unsealed today in Manhattan federal court:
Various “sets” of the Bloods, particularly the Fruit Town Brims and Sex Money Murder, among others, operated in Paterson, often coordinating, collaborating, and working together (defined in the Indictment as the “Paterson Bloods”). Ranking members of the Paterson Bloods would often meet to resolve disputes between their respective “soldier” members of the sets, and could direct punishment against non-members. Among these punishments were that individuals were to be assaulted or killed by members of the Paterson Bloods.
The Paterson Bloods operated the drug markets in certain central locations in Paterson, New Jersey, including, in particular: North Main Street from East Main Street to Jefferson Street (an area known as “The Main”); Graham Avenue/Rosa Parks Boulevard from Lyon Street to Franklin Street (“The Boulevard”); Graham Avenue/Rosa Parks Boulevard from 12th Avenue to Hamilton Avenue; 12th Avenue from East 22nd Street to East 24th Street; 10th Avenue from East 26th Street to East 30th Street; Governor Street from Graham Avenue to Summer Street (“Up the Hill”); and Park Avenue from Madison Avenue to East 16th Street. Members of the Paterson Bloods were permitted to sell heroin and “crack” cocaine in these areas. Generally, non-members, outsiders, and rival narcotics dealers were prohibited or prevented from distributing narcotics in areas controlled by the Paterson Bloods. Certain individuals – such as people who had grown up in areas controlled by the Paterson Bloods, people of neutral gang or neighborhood group affiliation, or marijuana dealers who often sold to members of the Paterson Bloods – were permitted to distribute narcotics in areas controlled by the Paterson Bloods, but did so without the protection of the members of the Paterson Bloods, and at the risk of being robbed by members of the gang. For example, on June 17, 2013, a drug dispute broke out in the area of 12th Avenue and 22nd Street, during which the defendant RACHAUN PARKER, a member of the Fruit Town Brims set of the Bloods, assisted an individual who was considered a “neutral” from his neighborhood. Members of the Fruit Town Brims, including defendants HAKIM LOWERY and JAMAR EDWARDS, violently beat PARKER for violating the rules of the set.
Members of the Paterson Bloods and their associates committed and conspired, attempted, and threatened to commit acts of violence to protect and expand their drug trafficking operations, and to protect fellow members of the gang. These acts included beatings, stabbings, and shootings intended to prevent people not affiliated with the Paterson Bloods from distributing narcotics in areas controlled by the gang, or to dissuade members of rival gangs, such as the Latin Kings, from encroaching on territory controlled by the Paterson Bloods.
Members of the charged narcotics-distribution conspiracy agreed to possess and distribute heroin, “crack” cocaine, and cocaine powder in the Bronx, Manhattan, and New Jersey. On at least two occasions, certain defendants, armed with loaded guns, delivered what they believed to be approximately one kilogram of cocaine to an address in the Bronx in return for delivery fees.
Charts identifying the defendants, the charges, and the maximum penalties they face, as well as their ages and residences, are attached to this release. The case is assigned to U.S. District Judge Laura Taylor Swain. The maximum potential sentences in this case are prescribed by Congress and are provided here for informational purposes only, as any sentencing of the defendants will be determined by the judge.
Mr. Bharara praised the investigative work of the FBI, the Paterson Police Department, and the Clifton Police Department. The investigation is a result of the Department of Justice’s Organized Crime and Drug Enforcement Task Force program, and it combined the resources and expertise of its member federal agencies in cooperation with local law enforcement.
The Office’s Violent Crimes Unit is overseeing the case. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Justina L. Geraci and Michael D. Maimin are in charge of the prosecution. Assistant U.S. Attorney Carolina A. Fornos is in charge of the asset forfeiture components of the case.
The charges contained in the Superseding Indictment are merely accusations, and the defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
Click here to view chart(s)
U.S. v. Brandon, Fields et al. S3 Indictment
Three Plead Guilty to Bank Secrecy Act Violations in Connection with Check Cashing SchemeRead the Press Release
Three men have pleaded guilty in Brooklyn, N.Y., for their roles in a check cashing scheme designed to evade anti-money laundering reporting requirements, announced Acting Assistant Attorney General Mythili Raman of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division and United States Attorney Loretta E. Lynch of the Eastern District of New York.
Robert Petrosyants, 32, and his twin brother Zhan Petrosyants, 32, both of Fort Lee, N.J., pleaded guilty today before United States District Judge Frederic Block at the federal courthouse in Brooklyn to conspiring to violate the Bank Secrecy Act by causing the filing of false Currency Transaction Reports (CTRs) for cash transactions in excess of $10,000. On Feb. 21, 2014, Lasha Goletiani, 34, of Brooklyn, pleaded guilty to the same charge. They each face a maximum penalty of five years in prison at sentencing, which will be determined at a later date.
According to court filings and facts presented during the plea proceedings, the Petrosyants twins operated medical billing companies, including DJR Capital Inc., formerly located at 45 Main Street in the DUMBO section of Brooklyn. Those billing companies filed no-fault accident claims with insurance companies on behalf of medical clinics and equipment providers. Upon receipt of payment from the insurance companies in settlement of the claims, the conspirators drew checks payable to a complex web of shell companies. These shell companies appeared to be health care related but in fact did no legitimate business and were incorporated in the names of students who had received special short-term visas to study in the United States. The checks were then cashed by Goletiani and Zhan Petrosyants at Belair Payroll Services Inc., a Flushing-based check cashing business.
Belair and its owner, Craig Panzera, pleaded guilty in November 2013 to failing to maintain an effective anti-money laundering program and agreed to forfeit over $3.2 million.
According to court documents, Goletiani and Zhan Petrosyants provided false names to Belair when cashing checks and caused Belair to file CTRs stating that the shell companies or their nominee owners received the cash. Goletiani and Zhan Petrosyants received all of the cash from checks in the names of the shell companies. At the time that many of these transactions occurred, the nominee shell company owners were not even in the country when Goletiani and Zhan Petrosyants were cashing checks in their names.
Under the Bank Secrecy Act, financial institutions, including check cashers, are required to file a CTR with the Department of the Treasury for any transaction involving more than $10,000 in currency on a single day. As part of the CTR, the check casher is required to verify and accurately record the name and address of the individual who conducted the currency transaction and the individual on whose behalf the transaction was conducted, as well as the amount and date of the transaction.
Goletiani and Zhan Petrosyants pleaded guilty to a second superseding indictment filed on Nov. 6, 2013, charging them with conspiring to cause Belair to file false CTRs. Robert Petrosyants pleaded guilty to a separate information charging the same conspiracy.
The investigation was conducted by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, Homeland Security Investigations and the Internal Revenue Service, Criminal Investigation Division. The case is being prosecuted by Trial Attorneys Kevin G. Mosley, J. Randall Warden and Claiborne Porter of the Money Laundering and Bank Integrity Unit of the Criminal Division’s Asset Forfeiture and Money Laundering Section, Trial Attorney Darrin McCullough of AFMLS’s Forfeiture Unit and Assistant U.S. Attorney Patricia Notopoulos of the Eastern District of New York.
The Money Laundering and Bank Integrity Unit investigates and prosecutes complex, multi-district and international criminal cases involving financial institutions and individuals who violate the money laundering statutes, the Bank Secrecy Act and other related statutes. The unit’s prosecutions generally focus on three types of violators: financial institutions, including their officers, managers and employees, whose actions threaten the integrity of the individual institution or the wider financial system; professional money launderers and gatekeepers who provide their services to serious criminal organizations; and individuals and entities engaged in using the latest and most sophisticated money laundering techniques and tools.
St. Leonard’s Man Pleads Guilty to Sexually Exploiting A Minor to Produce PornographyRead the Press Release
Took 24 Sexually Explicit Pictures of a Prepubescent Girl While She Slept, or Nude in a Bathtub
Greenbelt, Maryland – David Wayne Sweet, Jr., age 24, of St. Leonard, Maryland pleaded guilty today to sexually exploiting a minor to produce child pornography.
The guilty plea 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); Calvert County Sheriff Mike Evans; and Calvert County State’s Attorney Laura Martin.
According to his plea agreement, on September 19, 2013, the Calvert County Sheriff’s Drug Enforcement Unit executed a search warrant at Sweet’s residence based on alleged drug violations. Sweet’s cell phone was seized. A subsequent review of the phone revealed 24 sexually explicit images of a prepubescent girl taken between June and September 2013, including pictures of the victim nude in a bathtub. Sweet had deleted the pictures, but law enforcement officials recovered all of the images.
Sweet was arrested on September 27, 2013. Sweet admitted that he inappropriately touched the victim while she was sleeping and took the photos.
As part of his plea agreement, Sweet must register as a sex offender in the place where he resides, where he is an employee, and where he is a student, under the Sex Offender Registration and Notification Act (SORNA).
Sweet and the government have agreed that if the Court accepts the plea agreement, Sweet will be sentenced to 20 years in prison. U.S. District Judge Roger W. Titus has scheduled sentencing for June 23, 2014 at 11:00 a.m.
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 the HSI Baltimore, Calvert County Sheriff’s Office and Calvert County State’s Attorney’s Office for their work in the investigation. Mr. Rosenstein thanked Assistant U.S. Attorney Kristi O’Malley, who prosecuted the case.
Southeastern Connecticut Heroin Dealer Sentenced to 46 Months in Federal PrisonRead the Press Release
Follow @USAO_CT
Deirdre M. Daly, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, announced that EFRAIN HERNANDEZ VASQUEZ, known as “Frao,” 38, of Groton, was sentenced today by U.S. District Judge Janet Bond Arterton in New Haven to 46 months of imprisonment, followed by four years of supervised release, for distributing heroin.
In early 2012, Homeland Security Investigations (“HSI”), the U.S. Secret Service and the New London Police Department initiated an investigation to combat the large-scale trafficking of heroin and cocaine from the Dominican Republic and Puerto Rico into and around southeastern Connecticut.
According to court documents and statements made in court, on multiple occasions in early 2013, HERNANDEZ VASQUEZ was intercepted over a court-authorized wiretap ordering five-gram quantities of heroin from his drug supplier, Luis Ariel Capellan Maldonado, for distribution purposes.
HERNANDEZ VASQUEZ has been incarcerated since February 2013. On December 2, 2013, he pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to possess with the intent to distribute heroin.
More than 100 individuals have been charged with federal and state offenses as a result of this investigation.
Capellan Maldonado has pleaded guilty and awaits sentencing.
This matter is being investigated by Homeland Security Investigations; U.S. Secret Service; U.S. Postal Inspection Service; Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives; U.S. Customs and Border Protection, Office of Air and Marine; Connecticut State Police; New London Police Department, Norwich Police Department, Waterford Police Department, Groton Town Police Department, East Lyme Police Department and Putnam Police Department. The United States Marshals Service; ICE Enforcement and Removal Operations; Drug Enforcement Administration; HSI Assistant Attaché, Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic; HSI Arecibo, Puerto Rico Resident Office; Internal Revenue Service – Criminal Investigation; Connecticut Department of Correction, Parole and Community Services; and the Groton City, Willimantic, New Haven and Bristol Police Departments have provided valuable assistance to the investigation.
The federal case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Alina P. Reynolds, Sarah P. Karwan and Henry K. Kopel. The state cases are being prosecuted by the State’s Attorney for the New London Judicial District and Senior Assistant State’s Attorneys Paul Narducci and Stephen Carney.
PUBLIC AFFAIRS CONTACT:
U.S. ATTORNEY'S OFFICE
Tom Carson
(203) 821-3722
[email protected]Sophia Monique Zayas Pleads Guilty to Child Abuse Resulting in Great Bodily Injury and Subsequent Death of InfantRead the Press Release
LAS CRUCES – Sophia Monique Zayas, 32, pleaded guilty late this afternoon in Las Cruces federal court to a felony information charging her with child abuse resulting in great bodily injury, announced Acting U.S. Attorney Steven C. Yarbrough, Special Agent Carol K.O. Lee of the Albuquerque Division of the FBI, and Acting Special Agent in Charge Gregory Harper of the Air Force Office of Special Investigations.
Sophia Zayas, 32, and her husband Peter John Zayas, 29, were arrested in April 2012 by the FBI and the Air Force Office of Special Investigations on charges that between Oct. 21, 2007 and Oct. 22, 2007, they caused the death of their two-month old infant daughter. In Nov. 2012, a 16-count superseding indictment was filed charging Peter and Sophia Zayas with second degree murder, child abuse resulting in death, child abuse resulting in great bodily harm, and other child abuse-related offenses. At the time of the offenses alleged in the superseding indictment, Peter Zayas was a sergeant with the U.S. Air Force and was stationed at Holloman Air Force Base.
During today’s proceedings, Sophia Zayas pleaded guilty to child abuse resulting in great bodily harm and admitted that from Aug. 16, 2007 through Oct. 22, 2007, she placed her daughter in a situation which endangered the infant’s life. In her plea agreement, Sophia Zayas admitted that the infant suffered posterior transverse skull fractures, rib fractures, and radius and ulna fractures as a result of her conduct. The baby died of her injuries on Oct. 22, 2007.
Peter Zayas pleaded guilty to negligent child abuse on Feb. 19, 2014. In his plea agreement, Zayas admitted that from Aug. 16, 2007 through Oc. 22, 2007, he permitted his infant to be in a situation that endangered her life knowing that there was a foreseeable risk that she would be physically harmed or killed by leaving her in Sophia Zayas’ care knowing that Sophia had a history of alcohol abuse. Peter Zayas acknowledged that the infant died on Oct. 22, 2007, as a result of his negligence because it was foreseeable to him that leaving the infant in Sophia Zayas’ care could lead to harm given Sophia’s alcohol consumption and binge drinking during the Oct. 14, 2007 through Oct. 22, 2007.
Sophia and Peter Zayas have been in federal custody since their arrests and the two remain detained pending their sentencing hearings. At sentencing, each faces a penalty of 18 years in prison.
In announcing the guilty pleas, Acting U.S. Attorney Steven C. Yarbrough said, “The circumstances leading to this case are tragic. In Oct. 2007, a two-month old baby died as a result of physical abuse and neglect. Last week, Peter John Zayas admitted his negligence contributed to the baby’s death at the hands of his wife and the baby’s mother. Today, Sophia Monique Zayas admitted causing great bodily harm to the baby. I commend the investigators and prosecutors for ensuring that this baby’s death did not go unanswered.”
“One of the most difficult and challenging investigations for the FBI involves the death of a child, in this case a baby at the hands of those responsible for her care,” said FBI Special Agent Carol K.O. Lee. “The professionalism and perseverance shown by the FBI Special Agents, the Air Force Office of Special Investigations, and the U.S. Attorney's Office in this case which resulted in two guilty verdicts to include the one today should be commended.”
This case was investigated by the FBI and the Air Force Office of Special Investigations and is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Maria Y. Armijo and Anna R. Wright of the U.S. Attorney’s Las Cruces Branch Office.
Several Colorado Residents Are Prosecuted for over $2 Million in Tax FraudRead the Press Release
DENVER – U.S. Attorney John Walsh and IRS Criminal Investigation Special Agent in Charge Stephen Boyd announce the prosecution of several criminal tax offenders this week in the District of Colorado. With tax filing season in full swing, federal officials remind citizens that it is important to file complete and accurate tax returns. Those who commit tax fraud and related crimes will be criminally prosecuted. Recent tax cases prosecuted in the District of Colorado include the following:
Byron Thomas Warnes, age 60, of Silverthorne, CO, pled guilty on February 13, 2014 to one count of obstructing and impeding the administration of the internal revenue laws. He was charged by an Information on September 25, 2013. Beginning in 2005, and continuing into August 2008, he undertook a series of acts, and structured his financial and business affairs in a way, which made it difficult for the IRS to be able to determine what assets he had available for collection of the back taxes and to be able to determine his taxable income and income tax liabilities for 2005 and subsequent years. Particularly he owed the IRS $140,144 in back taxes which he failed to pay from his 1992 tax return. Over the course of 2005 through 2007, he made at least $233,308 in real estate commissions as well as other income, but failed to report the majority of his income. As part of this pattern of obstructive conduct, Warnes also filed a false income tax return under reporting his real estate commission income by approximately $98,000. The government calculates the tax owed by Warnes for tax years 1992, 2005, 2005 and 2007 to be a total of $335,211. This case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Ken Harmon.
Elizabeth A. Eurioste, age 64, of Aurora, CO, pled guilty on February 14, 2014 to one count of aiding or assisting in the preparation of a false individual federal income tax return. She was indicted by a federal grand jury in Denver on April 9, 2013. Eurioste has been preparing individual and business income tax returns since 1971. For purposes of her plea agreement, the period of relevant conduct covered is tax years 2004 through 2007, and she worked out of her own business, Eurioste Accounting, Inc. She entered false deductions, expenses, business losses, and underreported income and gains on her clients’ tax returns to reduce the amount of tax due and owing. Eurioste repeatedly created the same types of false entries on returns and for the years covered by the indictment, she had approximately 1200 clients. The total amount of tax loss resulting from Eurioste’s actions for tax years 2004 through 2007 is at least $400,000. This case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Anna Edgar and Suneeta Hazra.
Mathew Zuckerman, age 69, of Woody Creek, CO, pled guilty on February 18, 2014 to one count of tax evasion. He was Indicted by a federal grand jury in Denver on April 25, 2012. From 1986 through 2009, Zuckerman either failed to file an income tax return, or filed a return using incorrect amounts. In 1998, Zuckerman and a business partner formed Silicon Valley New Issues, Inc. and began to specialize in taking small companies public through reverse mergers of existing corporate shells. Zuckerman evaded corporate income taxes on several million dollars of taxable income in 1999 from Silicon Valley New Issues, Inc. and concealed his profits by not filing Form 1120 corporate tax returns, filing false Form 1120-S tax returns, filing false Form 1040 individual tax returns, and by acquiring assets such as personal residences and stock investments in corporate/trust nominee names. Over the course of the next 10 years, Zuckerman, continued to conceal his assets and business affairs from the IRS by utilizing additional corporations and trusts. For his efforts to avoid payment and collection of outstanding tax liabilities, he agrees to make restitution to the IRS in the amount of $693,706. Zuckerman is scheduled to be sentenced on July 31, 2014. This case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Tim Neff.
Randall Vannoy Heath, age 52, of Colorado Springs, CO, was sentenced on February 18, 2014 to serve 84 months in federal prison for a false claim against the IRS and aggravated identity theft followed by 3 years on supervised release. He was also ordered to pay $172,756 in restitution to the IRS. In August 2010, Heath stole records consisting of personal information of clients from College Consultant Group, Inc. after the business had ceased operations. Heath used the records to engage in a variety of identity theft-related activities, to include production of counterfeit driver’s licenses and counterfeit government photo identifications. With this information Heath filed false 2010 Form 1040, U.S. Individual Income Tax Returns, in the victims’ names. As part of the scheme, he also created false Form W-2, Wage and Tax Statements. Heath received fraudulent refunds ranging from $7,000 to $23,000 for each of the false claims filed with the IRS, totaling over $275,000 of which resulted in the IRS issuing $172,756 in fraudulent tax refunds to Heath. The United States Postal Inspection Service assisted in the investigation. This case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Richard Hosley.
“All of us have a responsibility to follow the law, which includes filing tax returns when required and paying any taxes due,” said U.S. Attorney John Walsh. “Willfully failing to comply with the law can result in criminal consequences, as these cases show.”
“Every one of these cases falls on the IRS Dirty Dozen Tax Scam list which was released last week,” said Stephen Boyd, Special Agent in Charge, IRS Criminal Investigation, Denver Field Office. “Honest taxpayers should be aware of these scams to help protect themselves. Individuals who perpetrate such scams, beware it is a simple matter of time, we will find you and bring you to justice.”
Salt Lake City Man Charged with Credit Union Robbery in Connection with January Robbery of Transwest Credit UnionRead the Press Release
SALT LAKE CITY - A felony information filed in federal court Tuesday morning charges Daniel Joseph Carlton, age 66, of Salt Lake City, with credit union robbery in connection with a Jan. 10, 2014, robbery of Transwest Credit Union. The credit union is located at 39 West 2100 South, Salt Lake City.
According to an information filed in Third District Court, Carlton handed a note to a teller at the credit union demanding money. The state charges will be dismissed now that federal charges have been filed. Stephen L. Nelson, a Deputy District Attorney and Special Assistant U.S. Attorney, will join federal prosecutors in handling the federal case.
The potential maximum penalty for credit union robbery is 20 years in prison and a fine of $250,000. However, based on two previous convictions for bank robbery, Carlton appears to qualify as a career offender under federal sentencing guidelines and could be subject to an increased term of incarceration. He was on supervised release for two previous bank robberies at the time of the current alleged offense.
"Bank robbery is a federal crime,” U.S. Attorney David B. Barlow said today. “The FBI, through its Safe Streets Task Force, and local law enforcement agencies are aggressively investigating every bank robbery. Anyone who commits a bank robbery is subject to prosecution in federal court, and, if convicted, faces significant federal sentences.”
Barlow expressed appreciation for the investigative work being done by the FBI and members of its Safe Street Task Force, local law enforcement agencies, and county attorneys’ offices in investigating and prosecuting bank robberies in Utah.
FBI Special Agent in Charge Mary F. Rook stated, "The FBI is committed to working with our state and local law enforcement partners to actively investigate and apprehend bank robbery suspects throughout the region. The Safe Streets Task Force is a great example of the positive impact we can achieve through coordination and collaboration with other agencies."
James Pearson Thain
James Pearson Thain is in custody in Wyoming charged with a Jan. 29, 2014, robbery of Bank of the West in Casper, Wyo. According to the complaint, Thain displayed a handgun. A witness saw Thain and a female driver leave the bank and reported the information to law enforcement. Officers tried to initiate a traffic stop by the vehicle fled the area and was later involved in a crash. Officers found a revolver in the car with two rounds in the cylinder of the weapon. According to the complaint, Thain said the gun was for “cops, hero’s and tellers.”
The FBI and U.S. Attorney’s Office in Utah believe Thain, who wore a fake moustache, large glasses, and a beanie hat during the Wyoming robbery, may be responsible for 11 robberies in Utah and are coordinating with the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Wyoming on the Thain case.
Thain, who is 38, has previous bank robbery convictions in Utah.
Dustin Todd Byrd
Dustin Todd Byrd, 36, of Salt Lake City, currently in custody in Ada County, Idaho, after an arrest on heroin trafficking, is suspected of four recent bank robberies in Utah. Federal prosecutors expect to present the case to a grand jury in early March.
David Warren Evens
Sentencing is set for Wednesday at 2 p.m. for David Warren Evans, age 43, of Magna, who pleaded guilty in December to a Sept. 26, 2013, armed robbery of Wells Fargo Bank located at 1255 East Brickyard Road in Salt Lake City. U.S. District Judge Tena Campbell will impose the sentence. In a plea agreement, Evans admitted that he held what appeared to be a black handgun during the robbery that was visible to the teller.
He also admitted that on Sept. 11, 2013, he robbed a Wells Fargo Bank at 4740 South 900 East. He admitted he approached the teller and handed her a note that said, “This is a robbery, don’t make it a murder.”
William and Michelle Parker
William Joseph Parker, age 28, and Michelle Joyce Parker, 28, both of Tooele, are scheduled to be sentenced in April after each pleading guilty to one count of bank robbery.
William Joseph Parker admitted that on Jan. 14, 2013, he robbed the Wells Fargo Bank in Magna. He admitted he walked into the bank with a note in hand that demanded money from both drawers, indicating he had a gun and would use violence.
Michelle Joyce Parker admitted robbing a Wells Fargo Bank in Tooele on March 11, 2013.
In addition to the two robberies included in the plea agreements, the Parkers also were charged with a Feb. 5, 2013, robbery of a Wells Fargo Bank in Murray.
The Parkers were arrested after the March 11, 2013, robbery when an off-duty police officer took note of the car prior to the robbery and saw it fleeing the scene afterwards. He executed a traffic stop and found the defendants, the robbery note, and cash in the car – in addition to the couple’s two young children.
As a part of their plea agreements, the Parkers agreed to pay restitution of $5,032 to Wells Fargo Bank for all charged robberies.
Both face up to 20 years in federal prison when they are sentenced in April.
John Eugene Walker
Sentencing is set for May 13, 2014, for John Eugene Walker, age 53, of South Salt Lake City, who pleaded guilty in December to two bank robberies.
Walker admitted that he committed a May 3, 2013, robbery of U.S. Bank located at 888 East 4500 South in Salt Lake City while dressed as a construction worker and carrying a dark colored messenger style bag. He approached a teller counter and demand money. He put the money in his bag and left the bank.
He also robbed a Zions Bank at 8955 South 700 East in Sandy on May 22, 2013, while dressed in women’s clothing and carrying a light blue purse. He put the money the teller gave him in the purse.
Walker was arrested after bank employees followed him out of the bank and witnessed him getting into a dark green Toyota. The same witness saw a temporary tag on the vehicle. Surveillance photos of the robbery were released to the media and an employee from a car dealership contacted the Sandy Police after seeing news coverage of the robbery and told police officers she had recently sold a Toyota to an individual who matched the description of the suspect who robbed the Zions Bank.
Walker faces up to 20 years in prison for each of the two bank robbery convictions. Prosecutors believe Walker may qualify for an increased sentence as a career offender under federal sentencing guidelines because of his criminal history.
James Carey
James Carey, age 40, of Midvale was sentenced to 125 months in federal prison in June after pleading guilty to a Feb. 4, 2013, robbery of Chase Bank located at 1306 Woodland Avenue in Salt Lake City. Carey admitted he entered the bank and presented a note to a teller demanding $20,000 and stating that he had a gun. He brandished what appeared to be a handgun but was actually a BB gun. Carey admitted that the following day, when police tried to apprehend him, he engaged in a high speed chase. During the high speed chase, Carey threw a duffel bag and money out of the car. The chase ended after his tires were spiked and the police had executed a PIT maneuver. Carey refused to comply with officers’ commands and had to be forcibly restrained.
Mark Scott Bolinder
Mark Scott Bolinder, age 44, of Salt Lake City, is serving a 38-month federal prison sentence after pleading guilty to a Sept. 21, 2013 robbery of Chase Bank located at 6275 South Highland Drive in Salt Lake City and a Sept 23, 2013, robbery of Zions Bank located at 1635 South Redwood Road in Salt Lake City. U.S. District Judge Robert Shelby imposed the sentence in January and ordered Bolinder to pay $2,929 in restitution to the two banks.
The Unified Police Department and FBI investigated the robberies. Video surveillance photos from the robberies were released to the media and tips were received leading to Bolinder’s arrest.
Russell Allen Erxleben Sentenced to 90 Months in Federal Prison for $2 Million Ponzi SchemeRead the Press Release
In Austin this morning, 57–year-old Russell Allen Erxleben of Dripping Springs, TX, was sentenced to 90 months in federal prison followed by three years of supervised release and ordered to pay restitution for implementing a Ponzi scheme involving an estimated $2 million announced the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Western District of Texas.
In December, Erxleben pleaded guilty to federal wire fraud and money laundering charges. According to court records, from 2005 until October 2009, Erxleben devised and implemented a scheme to defraud and to obtain money from investors by the use of fraudulent pretenses, representations and promises. Erxleben used several companies, including WALTEC Consultants, LRE Holdings, and The MDM Group, to promote investments in fraudulent ventures including investments in post-WWI German government gold bearer bonds and in a work of art purportedly by Paul Gauguin, a famous late 19th-early 20th century artist. By pleading guilty, Erxleben admitted that he used investment proceeds for the benefit of himself and his family, to pay purported dividends to previous investors, and to fund other undisclosed endeavors, contrary to promises and representations made by the defendant. In furtherance of the fraudulent scheme, Erxleben made various wire transfers using numerous financial accounts which were opened and maintained by others in an effort to avoid detection by authorities.
This investigation was conducted by the Internal Revenue Service-Criminal Investigation and the Texas State Securities Board along with assistance from Homeland Security Investigations (HSI). Assistant United States Attorneys Matthew Devlin and Alan Buie prosecuted this case on behalf of the Government.
Randy Rivera Sentenced to 12 Years Imprisonment for Conspiracy to Distribute Crack CocaineRead the Press Release
The Office of the United States Attorney for the District of Vermont stated that Randy Ray Rivera, 35, of Springfield, Massachusetts was sentenced to 144 months in prison, having pled guilty to the charge of conspiracy to distribute 280 grams or more of cocaine base. United States District Judge William K. Sessions III, sitting in Burlington, also sentenced Rivera to 5 years of supervised release.
Court records show that Rivera, who goes by the alias "Melvin,: sold large quantities of crack cocaine to Vermonters from about late 2009 through his arrest in early 2013. Rivera sold the crack in Springfield to three different individuals from the Burlington area, who then transported it to Vermont and redistributed it here to dozens of customers. Rivera=s drug runners made regular trips to Springfield to purchase crack, sometimes picking up narcotics from him multiple times per week. The amounts they transported ranged from about 3-25 ounces per trip. Law enforcement arrested Rivera in Springfield on January 4, 2013, on his way to sell 20 ounces of crack cocaine for $22,500 to a customer who had begun working as a confidential informant. Court records also show that Rivera carried a loaded semiautomatic handgun during the conspiracy period. Rivera came to sentencing with a series of prior narcotics trafficking convictions from Massachusetts, as well a prior felony firearms offense.
For his crime, Rivera faced a maximum penalty of life in prison. In sentencing Rivera, Judge Sessions noted the seriousness of the of the offense and the large quantities of crack cocaine it involved.
The investigation was a collaborative effort of the Vermont State Police, the Drug Enforcement Administration in Vermont and Massachusetts, and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms.
Assistant United States Attorney Christina Nolan prosecuted the case. Rivera is represented by Steve Barth of the Federal Public Defender=s Office in Burlington.
Project Safe Neighborhood Program Secures Lengthy Sentences for CarjackersRead the Press Release
Memphis, TN – Joseph Banks, 31, and Lareginald Strong, 31, both of Memphis, TN, were sentenced recently to more than 30 years each in federal prison for their roles in an October 2012 carjacking, announced U.S. Attorney Edward L. Stanton III.
According to facts revealed during their trials and at sentencing, on October 23, 2012, Banks and Strong approached a man at the carport door to his residence. Banks pointed a firearm at the victim’s head as he walked towards him. After Banks attempted to use an electroshock weapon on the victim while Strong served as a lookout, Banks chased the victim and shot at him. Banks grabbed the keys to the victim’s Lexus GS300, and he and his accomplice Strong fled the scene in the car.
Approximately ten minutes after the carjacking was reported, officers with the Memphis Police Department observed the Lexus GS300 driving on Summer Avenue occupied by Banks and Strong. The defendants refused to stop when ordered to do so and a high speed chase began. After wrecking the vehicle, Banks and Strong were taken into custody. Officers removed clothing matching the description of the robbers and two guns from the car.
Both men were convicted by a federal jury on August 1, 2013 and sentenced by Senior U.S. District Judge Jon P. McCalla. Banks was sentenced to 420 months in federal prison for one count of carjacking, one count of discharging a firearm during a crime of violence, and two counts of being a felon in possession of a firearm. Strong was sentenced to 372 months in federal prison for one count of carjacking, one count of discharging a firearm during a crime of violence, and one count of being a felon in possession of a firearm. There is no parole in the federal system.
This case was investigated by the Memphis Police Department and the Project Safe Neighborhood (PSN) Task Force. PSN is composed of representatives from the Shelby County District Attorney’s Office, Memphis Police Department, the Shelby County Sheriff ’s Office and the Bureau of Alcohol Tobacco and Firearms and Explosives. The PSN task force meets weekly to examine every gun crime committed in Shelby County as well as gun crimes from other counties submitted by the ATF.Pimp Who Was Using 16-Year-Old Girl as Prostitute in Reno, Nev., Sentenced to 10 Years in PrisonRead the Press Release
RENO, Nev. – A California man who recruited and used a 16-year-old girl to work as a prostitute, was sentenced today to a mandatory minimum of 10 years in federal prison, announced Daniel G. Bogden, United States Attorney for the District of Nevada.
Carlos Rodriguez Navarrette, aka Carlos Alberto Navarrette, aka DJ Junior, 23, of Los Angeles, Calif., who pleaded guilty in November 2013 to one count of sex trafficking of a minor, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Miranda M. Du. Following his release from prison, Navarrette will also be placed on lifetime supervised release and must register as a sex offender.
“According to the defendant’s own admissions, he knew the victim was a minor, but he recruited and enticed her to work for him anyway,” said U.S. Attorney Bogden. “The U.S. Department of Justice will use tough federal laws to prosecute you if you knowingly disregard the fact that you are using a minor to engage in commercial sex acts.”
According to the plea agreement, on June 11, 2013, Navarrette met the 16-year-old girl at a casino in Reno and recruited her to work as a prostitute. Navarrette posted a prostitution advertisement on the website “myredbook.com,” which included photos of the 16-year-old. From about June 11 to June 13, 2013, Navarrette paid for hotel rooms and food for the girl, and arranged for her to engage in approximately four to five commercial sex acts. After the 16-year-old engaged in the sex acts, she was required to provide the money she earned to Navarrette.
Investigators with the FBI’s Innocence Lost Task Force came across the website advertisement while they were attempting to locate a woman who had been reported missing in California, as the telephone number in the advertisement was the same as the missing woman’s. An undercover investigator made arrangements to meet the girl at a Reno motel for sex. When the investigator arrived at the motel, Navarrette and an adult female directed the investigator to the 16-year-old girl, who was lying on the bed partially undressed.
The investigation was conducted by the Innocence Lost Task Force, which is made up of the FBI and the Regional Street Enforcement Team, which includes the Reno Police Department, Sparks Police Department, FBI, and UNR Police Department. The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Carla Higginbotham.
The case has been 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."
Physical Therapist Arrested on Health Care Fraud ChargesRead the Press Release
Follow @USAO_CT
Deirdre M. Daly, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, announced that DANIELLE FAUX, 46, of Weston, was arrested today on federal health care fraud charges. On February 19, 2014, a federal grand jury sitting in Bridgeport returned an indictment charging FAUX with 46 counts of health care fraud and one count of obstruction of a federal audit.
According to the indictment, FAUX owned and operated Danielle Faux PT, LLC, a physical therapy clinic located at 27 Lois Street in Norwalk, and was a part owner of Achieve Rehab and Fitness, a gym located at the same address in Norwalk. The indictment alleges that FAUX engaged in a scheme to defraud Medicare and Anthem Blue Cross Blue Shield by referring some of her patients for personal training sessions at Achieve Rehab and Fitness and then billing the sessions as if they were physical therapy procedures. The indictment also alleges that FAUX created and altered patient records when Medicare audited her practice in August 2009.
FAUX appeared before U.S. Magistrate Judge William I. Garfinkel in Bridgeport and entered a plea of not guilty. She was released on a $50,000 bond.
If convicted, FAUX faces a maximum term of imprisonment of 10 years and a fine of up to $250,000 on each of the health care fraud counts, and a maximum term of imprisonment of five years and a fine of $250,000 on the obstruction count.
The case has been assigned to Senior U.S. District Judge Warren W. Eginton in Bridgeport.
U.S. Attorney Daly stressed that an indictment is not evidence of guilt. Charges are only allegations, and the defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.
This matter is being investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Office of the Inspector General of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, and the Internal Revenue Service – Criminal Investigation. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney David J. Sheldon and health care auditor Kevin Saunders.
PUBLIC AFFAIRS CONTACT:
U.S. ATTORNEY'S OFFICE
Tom Carson
(203) 821-3722
[email protected]Owner of Bulk Mailing Company Sentenced to Two Years in Prison for Multimillion-Dollar FraudRead the Press Release
NEWARK, N.J. – The owner of Clevett Worldwide Mailers LLC, a Succasunna, N.J., bulk mailing house, was sentenced today to 24 months in prison for defrauding clients of more than $1 million through a fraudulent bulk-mailing scheme in which he shredded millions of pieces of mail rather than delivering them, U.S. Attorney Paul J. Fishman announced.
Mark Clevett, 37, of Randolph, N.J., previously pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Kevin McNulty to an indictment charging him with one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud. Judge McNulty imposed the sentence today in Newark federal court. Clevett’s father, Harold Clevett, 68, of Middlesex, N.J., who also previously pleaded guilty to the same charge, will be sentenced March 27, 2014.
According to documents filed in this case and statements made in court:
Mark Clevett owned, and both Clevetts operated, Clevett Worldwide Mailers, which contracted with international and domestic customers to handle large mailings. Customers sent their mail jobs to Clevett Worldwide Mailers for sorting, addressing and delivery to the post office. The company received fees for each piece of mail and for the total weight of the mail that it handled.
Both father and son admitted that rather than sending their clients’ mail as contracted, they directed their employees to throw away all or part of it, and even called in a shredding company to destroy unsent mail.
Mark and Harold Clevett also acknowledged they charged their customers for the full amount of the mailings, even sending some of their customers fraudulent postal forms to make it appear as though the mailings were delivered. The pair admitted that between 2007 and June 2011, they discarded and shredded nearly 3 million pieces of customer mail and reaped nearly $1 million in illicit profits.
In addition to the prison term, Judge McNulty sentenced Mark Clevett to serve three years of supervised release and ordered him to pay restitution of restitution and forefeiture of $999,461.
U.S. Attorney Fishman credited postal inspectors of the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, under the direction of Inspector in Charge Maria L. Kelokates, with the investigation leading to today’s sentencing.The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Rahul Agarwal and Michael Robertson of the U.S Attorney’s Office in Newark.
14-059
Defense counsel:
Harold Clevett: Brian J. Neary Esq., Hackensack, N.J.
Mark Clevett: Don Larsen Esq., Montville, N.J.Ohio Resident Sentenced for Environmental ViolationsRead the Press Release
1125 Chapline Street, Federal Building, Suite 3000 ● Wheeling, WV 26003
(304) 234-0100 ● Contact: Chris Zumpetta-Parr, Public Affairs SpecialistELKINS, WEST VIRGINIA – A 49-year old Ohio resident was sentenced to prison for violations of environmental laws by Chief Judge John Preston Bailey.
United States Attorney William J. Ihlenfeld, II, announced that BRIAN LEE COBB was sentenced to 24 months in prison and three years of supervised release for “Transportation of Hazardous Waste without a Manifest” and “Concealment of a Material Fact.” COBB was remanded to the custody of the United States Marshal pending designation to a Federal institution.
“COBB allowed the illegal transportation of hazardous waste with no regard for the dangers it posed," said David G. McLeod, Jr., Special Agent in Charge of EPA's criminal enforcement program for the Mid Atlantic. "False statements seriously weaken the integrity of the entire system. Today's sentencing demonstrates that those who refuse to comply with the law, putting the public and the environment at risk, will be vigorously prosecuted."
This case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney David J. Perri and Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Perry McDaniel and investigated by the Environmental Protection Agency.
North Carolina Man Charged with Failure to Register as A Sex OffenderRead the Press Release
United States Attorney Brendan V. Johnson announced that a Roanoke Rapids, North Carolina, man has been indicted by a federal grand jury for Failure to Register as a Sex Offender.
Shawn George, a/k/a Shaun George, age 38, was indicted on February 19, 2014. He appeared before U.S. Magistrate Judge Mark A. Moreno on February 21, 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, life of supervised release, and $100 to the Federal Crime Victims Fund.
On or about February 2, 2014, until February 7, 2014, George, a person required to register under the Sex Offender Registration and Notification Act, and a sex offender by reason of a conviction under state law, and having moved in interstate commerce, did knowingly fail to register and update his registration.
The charge is merely an accusation and George is presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty.
The investigation is being conducted by the U.S. Marshals Service. Assistant U.S. Attorney Meghan N. Dilges is prosecuting the case.
George was remanded to the custody of the U.S. Marshals Service pending trial. A trial date has not been set.
Michigan Woman Gets 4 Years in Prison for Participating in Oxycodone Trafficking SchemeRead the Press Release
PITTSBURGH - A resident of West Bloomfield, Michigan, has been sentenced in federal court to 48 months in prison for her conviction of conspiracy to distribute and possess with the intent to distribute oxycodone, a Schedule II controlled substance, United States Attorney David J. Hickton announced today.
United States District Judge Nora B. Fischer imposed the sentence on Jill Eisenshtadt, 36.
According to information presented to the court, Eisenshtadt served as a “runner” for Jason Weitzner, the leader of a large oxycodone distribution ring. Weitzner procured fraudulent prescriptions from doctors in Florida, and then used runners to fly to Pittsburgh and fill these oxycodone prescriptions at various pharmacies in the metro Pittsburgh area. Weitzner then sold the obtained oxycodone pills to local Pittsburgh drug dealers. Eisenshtadt, a one-time paramour of Weitzner, repeatedly obtained fraudulent prescriptions in Florida, filled these prescriptions in Florida, and then, when Weitzner realized that he could maximize profits by filling the prescriptions in Pittsburgh, flew to Pittsburgh on multiple occasions to further the drug conspiracy. In exchange for obtaining the oxycodone, Weitzner paid for all of Eisenshtadt’s personal expenses. Weitzner has pled guilty to the charges against him, and is due to be sentenced in April, 2014.
Assistant United States Attorney Eric S. Rosen prosecuted this case on behalf of the government.
U.S. Attorney Hickton commended the Drug Enforcement Agency, the Internal Revenue Service, and the Allegheny County Police for the investigation leading to the successful prosecution of Lawrence Weitzner.
Mexican National Sentenced for Firearms and Illegal Pesticides in Connection with Forest Marijuana Cultivation OperationRead the Press Release
FRESNO, Calif. — Julio Cesar Villanueva Cornejo, 33, of Michoacàn, Mexico was sentenced today to six years in prison for possessing a firearm and distributing illegal rat poison and insecticides in connection with a large marijuana cultivation operation in the Lilly Canyon area of the Sequoia National Forest, U.S. Attorney Benjamin B. Wagner announced. Villanueva was also ordered to pay $4,294 in restitution to the U.S. Forest Service for the damage to public land and natural resources caused by the cultivation operation. He is subject to deportation after he serves his prison sentence.
“Increasingly, dangerous, unregistered pesticides are being encountered by law enforcement officers who investigate illegal marijuana grows,” said Jay M. Green, Special Agent-in-Charge of EPA’s criminal enforcement program in California. “Through their indiscriminate application, these unregistered pesticides pollute our lands and waters, create a significant safety risk to humans and animals, and present a mounting cleanup expense for taxpayers. Today’s sentence demonstrates the government’s commitment to hold accountable those individuals who traffic unregistered pesticides onto our public lands.”
Villanueva’s sentence follows his guilty plea last December. According to court documents, Villanueva delivered chemicals and supplies to a marijuana cultivation operation in the Lilly Canyon area of the Sequoia National Forest. The cultivation operation caused extensive environmental damage. Native oak trees and other vegetation were killed or cut down to make room for the 9,746 marijuana plants planted there. The soil was tilled, and fertilizers, and illegal pesticides, and rodenticides containing zinc phosphide and carbofuran were spread throughout the site. In addition to the illegal pesticides, two firearms, marijuana seeds, and other items associated with the cultivation operation were found.
The EPA has designated zinc phosphide as a restricted use pesticide that may only be purchased and used by, or under the supervision of, a certified applicator. In 2011, the EPA announced that it would ban zinc phosphide for residential sale due to its acute toxicity. Zinc phosphide is highly toxic to humans and wildlife. A single swallow can be fatal to a small child. Carbofuran is highly toxic to vertebrates and particularly toxic to birds. In granular form, a single grain will kill a bird; for humans, one quarter of a teaspoon is a sufficient dose to be fatal. Effective December 31, 2009, EPA cancelled all food tolerances for carbofuran and determined carbofuran is no longer eligible for re-registration.
This case is the product of an investigation by the U.S. Forest Service, U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI); U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Criminal Investigation Division (EPA-CID), and the Kern County Sheriff’s Department. Assistant United States Attorney Karen Escobar handled the prosecution.
Massachusetts Man Sentenced for Tax Fraud and Mail FraudRead the Press Release
Michael Edwards was sentenced today to serve two concurrent sentences of 36 months in prison followed by three years of supervised release, and ordered to pay restitution of $573,518 to the Internal Revenue Service (IRS), the Justice Department and IRS announced. On Dec. 3, 2013, Edwards pleaded guilty to one count of corruptly endeavoring to obstruct the IRS and one count of wire fraud. Both charges arise from Edwards’ operation of his tax return preparation business, Boston Financial Associates (BFA) and Edwards’ misappropriation of income tax refunds from two of his clients in 2009.
According to court documents, Edwards admitted that he misled an IRS auditor reviewing one of his client’s 2007 and 2008 income tax returns by giving her false documentation that claimed to support the false entries on the returns. Edwards misappropriated federal income tax refunds of $573,518 from one client and $202,143 from another client. As of the sentencing date, Edwards has made restitution to one of his clients and was also ordered to pay restitution to the second client.
This case was investigated by IRS – Criminal Investigation and prosecuted by Senior Litigation Counsel Corey J. Smith of the Tax Division.
Additional information about the Tax Division and its enforcement efforts may be found at the division website
Maryland Man Sentenced to 57 Months in Prison for Traveling to Engage in Illicit Sexual Conduct with A Minor and Possession of Child PornographyRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON – Thomas DeGrange, 28, formerly of Frederick, Md., was sentenced today to 57 months in prison on federal charges of traveling interstate to engage in illicit sexual conduct with a minor and possession of child pornography, announced U.S. Attorney Ronald C. Machen Jr., Valerie Parlave, Assistant Director in Charge of the FBI’s Washington Field Office, and Cathy L. Lanier, Chief of the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD).
DeGrange pled guilty in November 2013 in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia. He was sentenced by the Honorable Beryl A. Howell. Upon completion of his prison term, DeGrange will be placed on 10 years of supervised release.
According to the government's evidence, on May 3, 2013, DeGrange began a series of online communications with a man who he believed had a sexual interest in children. The man was actually an undercover officer with the FBI's Child Exploitation Task Force, posing as the father of an under-aged girl. Over the next several days, DeGrange expressed interest in engaging in sexual acts with the undercover officer’s purported daughter. DeGrange also sent the undercover officer several images depicting child pornography. On May 7, 2013, DeGrange traveled from Maryland to a pre-arranged meeting place in Washington, D.C., for the purpose of engaging in sexual activity with the girl. When he arrived, he was arrested.
A search by law enforcement of the defendant’s home led to the discovery of a computer containing two videos depicting child pornography, 23 images depicting child pornography and other evidence of child pornography.
The defendant’s plea agreement resolved other potential federal charges in the District of Columbia and the District of Maryland.
This case was brought as part of the Department of Justice's Project Safe Childhood initiative and investigated by the FBI's Child Exploitation Task Force, which includes members of the FBI's Washington Field Office and MPD. In February 2006, the Attorney General created Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative designed to protect children from online exploitation and abuse. Led by the U.S. Attorney's Offices, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to better locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the Internet, as well as identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.projectsafechildhood.gov.
In announcing the sentence, U.S. Attorney Machen, Assistant Director Parlave and Chief Lanier praised the work of the MPD Detectives and Special Agent of the FBI Child Exploitation Task Force. They also expressed appreciation for the assistance provided by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Maryland. Finally, they commended the efforts of Assistant U.S. Attorney Cassidy Kesler Pinegar, who prosecuted the case.
14-047Kenneth Conley Given 41-month Sentence for MCC Escape, to Be Served Consecutively to 20-Year Term for Bank RobberyRead the Press Release
CHICAGO — A Tinley Park man who escaped from the Metropolitan Correctional Center in the city’s Loop in December 2012 while he was awaiting sentencing for bank robbery, today was sentenced to 41 months in prison for the escape, which he was ordered to serve consecutively to the 20-year sentence he received last year for the bank robbery. The defendant, KENNETH CONLEY, 39, remained at large for approximately two weeks after the escape before he was apprehended in south suburban Palos Hills.
Noting Conley’s extensive criminal history, U.S. District Judge Gary Feinerman called him “incorrigible,” and said Conley “needs to be incapacitated for a lengthy time to protect the public.” The judge ordered the 41-month term to be served consecutively to the maximum 20- years sentence Conley received from a different judge for the bank robbery. Conley faced a maximum sentence of five years in prison for the escape.
Conley was also ordered to pay $1,324 in restitution to the U.S. Bureau of Prisons for damage to the MCC. Conley and another convicted bank robber, Joseph Banks, escaped through the wall of their cell and repelled down the exterior of the high-rise federal detention facility. Banks was apprehended a few days later and is still awaiting sentencing for his earlier trial conviction on four counts of bank robbery.
The sentence was announced today by Zachary T. Fardon, United States Attorney for the Northern District of Illinois; Robert J. Holley, Special Agent-in-Charge of the Chicago Office of the Federal Bureau of Investigation; and U.S. Marshal Darryl McPherson.
Justice Department Resolves Lawsuit Alleging Disability-Based Discrimination at Nine Multifamily Housing Complexes in Mississippi, Louisiana and TennesseeRead the Press Release
The Justice Department announced today that a federal district court judge in Jackson, Miss., approved a settlement of the department’s lawsuit against the original owners and developers of nine multifamily housing complexes located in Mississippi, Louisiana and Tennessee. The complexes contain more than 800 ground-floor units that are required by the Fair Housing Act (FHA) to contain accessible features, and eight of the complexes contain leasing offices that are required by the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) to contain accessible features. The lawsuit alleged that the defendants failed to include important accessible features at these properties.
Under the settlement, defendants The Bryan Company, Bryan Construction Company Inc., Steve Bryan, Mid-South Houston Partners, Mid-South Development LLC aka MSD LLC, The Vineyards Apartments LLC, Windsor Lake Apartment LP and Cypress Lake Development LLC must make extensive retrofits to meet FHA requirements. These include reducing door threshold heights, replacing excessively sloped portions of sidewalks, installing new and properly sloped curb ramps, installing cane detection at stairwells, installing accessible door hardware and ensuring that there are a sufficient number of accessible parking spaces at the properties.
“The Justice Department is deeply committed to ensuring equal access to housing for persons with disabilities,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General Jocelyn Samuels for the Civil Rights Division. “This comprehensive settlement will ensure that individuals with disabilities will have an equal opportunity to live in and visit these nine apartment complexes.”
“ The U.S. Attorney’s Office is committed to working with the Civil Rights Division to ensure that those who design and construct multi-family apartment complexes comply with the Fair Housing laws and the Americans with Disabilities Act ,” said U.S. Attorney Gregory K. Davis for the Southern District of Mississippi. “This office remains vigilant in its efforts to eradicate discrimination and ensure that persons with disabilities have accessible accommodations in which to live.”
In May 2013, as part of the same lawsuit, the court approved a settlement resolving the department’s claims against nine architects and civil engineers who were involved with the properties. Those defendants paid a total of $865,000 toward accessibility retrofits and $60,000 to compensate aggrieved persons harmed by the inaccessible conditions alleged in the lawsuit. The following complexes will be retrofitted: Houston Levee Apartments in Cordova, Tenn.; The Vineyard at Castlewoods Apartments in Brandon, Miss.; Windsor Lake Apartments in Brandon, Miss.; Sutton Place Apartments in Horn Lake, Miss.; Twin Oaks Apartments in Hattiesburg, Miss.; Oak Hollow Apartments in Southaven, Miss.; Spring Lake Apartments in Jackson, Miss.; Cypress Lake Apartments in Baton Rouge, La.; and Pelican Pointe Apartments in Slidell, La.
The FHA prohibits discrimination in housing on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, familial status, national origin, and disability. Title III of the ADA requires, among other things, that public accommodations comply with specific requirements related to architectural standards to ensure accessible public and common use areas. More information about the Civil Rights Division and the laws it enforces is available at the website. Individuals who believe that they have been victims of housing discrimination can call the Housing Discrimination Tip Line at 1-800-896-7743, email the department or contact the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development at 1-800-669-9777.
Justice Department Highlights Efforts to Combat Stolen Identity Tax Refund FraudRead the Press Release
Today, the Justice Department announced the results of its ongoing efforts to combat tax refund fraud that involves identity theft. The Tax Division, in conjunction with the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) and U.S. Attorneys’ Offices (USAOs) nationwide, has prioritized the investigation and prosecution of individuals who engage in stolen identity refund fraud (SIRF). According to the IRS, from 2008 through May 2012, the IRS identified more than 550,000 taxpayers who have had their identities stolen for the purpose of claiming false refunds in their names. In fiscal year 2013, the department filed more than 580 indictments or informations charging more than 880 defendants with SIRF-related crimes.
SIRF is the use of stolen or otherwise wrongfully acquired personal identification information to file a fraudulent claim with the IRS for a tax refund. These crimes occur when a social security number, or list of numbers, is stolen or bought; a false tax return showing a refund due is filed electronically, usually at the beginning of filing season before the legitimate taxpayer has filed for the year; and the refund is loaded to a prepaid card, sent to a bank account or mailed to an address accessible by those involved in the scheme.
The actual implementation of SIRF schemes is often complex to carry out. In an increasing number of cases, the identities are stolen or bought in one place; the returns are electronically filed from another location, often through difficult to trace Wi-Fi connections; refunds are directed to a distant location; checks are cashed in yet another location; and the currency then moves again.
“The Department of Justice is committed to constant vigilance in investigating and prosecuting SIRF crimes,” said Assistant Attorney General Kathryn Keneally for the Justice Department’s Tax Division. “Too often the victims of identity theft are the most vulnerable in our communities – those whose identities are stolen from medical services or nursing homes, or grieving families who learn that the identities of deceased loved ones have been fraudulently used – and all honest taxpayers are victims when wrongful refund claims are paid out. We are determined to work with the IRS to stop this crime at the door, and to seek the conviction and punishment of these criminals.”
Some of the prosecutions from 2013 that resulted in significant prison sentences for SIRF crimes include:
• Vernon Harrison a corrupt U.S. Postal Service mail carrier, was sentenced to serve 111 months in prison in October 2013. According to court documents, tax refunds were placed on debit cards and mailed to addresses on Harrison’s postal route in Montgomery, Ala., which he then stole from the mail and provided to a co-conspirator in exchange for cash.
• Lea’Tice Phillips worked for an Alabama state agency and had access to databases that contained personal identifying information. As alleged in court documents, Phillips conspired with Antoinette Djonret and others to file false tax returns using identities stolen from the database. In total, Djonret filed over 1,000 false tax returns that claimed over $1.7 million in fraudulent tax refunds. Djonret was sentenced in February 2013 to serve 12 years in prison, and Phillips was sentenced in September 2013 to serve 94 months in prison.
• Angela Myers operated “Angie’s Tax Service,” a tax preparation business located in Baton Rouge, La. According to court documents, Myers electronically filed false claims for refunds using the names and social security numbers of identity theft victims, many of whom were nursing home patients. Myers was sentenced to serve 132 months in prison in July 2013.
• Leslie Brewster a tax return preparer from Durham, N.C., was sentenced to serve 70 months in prison. According to court documents, Brewster was the manager of a branch office of a tax preparation franchise called Nothing But Taxes, and purchased personal identifying information to claim false dependents on tax returns she prepared for clients.
• Quentin Collick and Deatrice Williams were sentenced in November 2013 to serve 85 and 51 months in prison, respectively. Corey Thompson, a co-conspirator, was sentenced to serve 30 months in jail. Williams worked for a debt collection company and stole the identities of a number of individuals, then provided the stolen information to Collick, her son-in-law. Thompson worked as an independent contractor for a cable company installing cable and internet access for customers. To conceal the filing of the false tax returns, Thompson used his specialized knowledge and equipment to shut down and hijack his customers' internet service, and, along with Collick, filed false tax returns using the customers' internet access. Thompson and Collick then directed the fraudulent tax refunds to be placed on pre-paid debit cards.
In 2014, the department has continued to pursue numerous prosecutions against SIRF criminals. On Jan. 24, 2014, a jury convicted current and former corrections officers of identity theft and tax fraud; according to court documents and evidence presented at trial, the pair accessed a state prison database and used the stolen identity information to file false tax returns. A check casher was sentenced to 37 months in prison on Jan. 16, 2014, for cashing refund checks in the names of individuals who did not authorize him to cash the checks, according to court documents. A nursing home employee was convicted by a jury on Jan. 14, 2014, of conspiracy, aggravated identity theft and other SIRF-related crimes; according to court documents and the evidence presented at trial, she stole the identity information of nursing home patients and used that information to create false tax returns. An Alabama man pleaded guilty on Jan. 13, 2014, for his role in a SIRF fraud. According to court documents, he obtained stolen identities from an Alabama state employee, used those identities to file false tax returns, and recruited a bank employee to assist him in having the false tax refunds deposited into various bank accounts. A social worker pleaded guilty on Jan. 10, 2014, to identity theft and tax fraud charges. According to court documents, she illegally obtained the identifying information of her clients – minors and disabled adults who may have been abused or neglected – and sold that information to others who used the stolen identities to claim as false dependents on fraudulent tax returns they prepared.
"We're fighting identity theft head-on at the IRS and making substantial progress with the help of the Justice Department and local law enforcement," said Commissioner John Koskinen for the IRS. "We're stopping more identity theft before these fraudulent refunds go out the door. The IRS initiated nearly 1,500 identity theft related criminal investigations last year, an increase of 66 percent over 2012. Fighting fraud is an ongoing battle as identity thieves continue to create new ways of stealing personal information. The IRS is continually reviewing our policies to strengthen our systems, minimize the incidence of identity theft and help victims.
The sentences imposed against those committing SIRF crimes are significant and reflect the seriousness of these crimes. The Justice Department is committed to investigating and prosecuting tax refund fraud that involves identity theft, and will continue to work with the IRS, FBI, U.S. Secret Service, U.S. Postal Inspection Service, other federal law enforcement agencies as well as state and local law enforcement agencies to combat SIRF-related crimes. Each U.S. Attorney’s Office has a point of contact to coordinate SIRF matters for its district.
The IRS has taken steps to detect and prevent the fraud before it occurs. For example, the IRS has designed new software filters to spot false returns before they are processed and before a refund is issued. The IRS has also expanded efforts to place identity-theft indicators on taxpayer accounts to track and manage identity-theft incidents. For information from the IRS on how to protect your identity and what to do if you are a victim of identity theft, please visit the IRS’s Identity Protection webpage.
More information on the department’s enforcement efforts is available on the Tax Division’s website, as are links to identity theft information and resources.
Justice Department Highlights Efforts to Combat Stolen Identity Tax Refund FraudRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON – Today, the Justice Department announced the results of its ongoing efforts to combat tax refund fraud that involves identity theft. The Tax Division, in conjunction with the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) and U.S. Attorneys’ Offices (USAOs) nationwide, has prioritized the investigation and prosecution of individuals who engage in stolen identity refund fraud (SIRF). According to the IRS, from 2008 through May 2012, the IRS identified more than 550,000 taxpayers who have had their identities stolen for the purpose of claiming false refunds in their names. In fiscal year 2013, the department filed more than 580 indictments or informations charging more than 880 defendants with SIRF-related crimes.
SIRF is the use of stolen or otherwise wrongfully acquired personal identification information to file a fraudulent claim with the IRS for a tax refund. These crimes occur when a social security number, or list of numbers, is stolen or bought; a false tax return showing a refund due is filed electronically, usually at the beginning of filing season before the legitimate taxpayer has filed for the year; and the refund is loaded to a prepaid card, sent to a bank account or mailed to an address accessible by those involved in the scheme.
The actual implementation of SIRF schemes is often complex to carry out. In an increasing number of cases, the identities are stolen or bought in one place; the returns are electronically filed from another location, often through difficult to trace Wi-Fi connections; refunds are directed to a distant location; checks are cashed in yet another location; and the currency then moves again.
“The Department of Justice is committed to constant vigilance in investigating and prosecuting SIRF crimes,” said Assistant Attorney General Kathryn Keneally for the Justice Department’s Tax Division. “Too often the victims of identity theft are the most vulnerable in our communities – those whose identities are stolen from medical services or nursing homes, or grieving families who learn that the identities of deceased loved ones have been fraudulently used – and all honest taxpayers are victims when wrongful refund claims are paid out. We are determined to work with the IRS to stop this crime at the door, and to seek the conviction and punishment of these criminals.”
Some of the prosecutions from 2013 that resulted in significant prison sentences for SIRF crimes include:
- Vernon Harrison, a corrupt U.S. Postal Service mail carrier, was sentenced to serve 111 months in prison in October 2013. According to court documents, tax refunds were placed on debit cards and mailed to addresses on Harrison’s postal route in Montgomery, Ala., which he then stole from the mail and provided to a co-conspirator in exchange for cash.
- Lea’Tice Phillips worked for an Alabama state agency and had access to databases that contained personal identifying information. As alleged in court documents, Phillips conspired with Antoinette Djonret and others to file false tax returns using identities stolen from the database. In total, Djonret filed over 1,000 false tax returns that claimed over $1.7 million in fraudulent tax refunds. Djonret was sentenced in February 2013 to serve 12 years in prison, and Phillips was sentenced in September 2013 to serve 94 months in prison.
- Angela Myers operated “Angie’s Tax Service,” a tax preparation business located in Baton Rouge, La. According to court documents, Myers electronically filed false claims for refunds using the names and social security numbers of identity theft victims, many of whom were nursing home patients. Myers was sentenced to serve 132 months in prison in July 2013.
- Leslie Brewster, a tax return preparer from Durham, N.C., was sentenced to serve 70 months in prison. According to court documents, Brewster was the manager of a branch office of a tax preparation franchise called Nothing But Taxes, and purchased personal identifying information to claim false dependents on tax returns she prepared for clients.
- Quentin Collick and Deatrice Williams were sentenced in November 2013 to serve 85 and 51 months in prison, respectively. Corey Thompson, a co-conspirator, was sentenced to serve 30 months in jail. Williams worked for a debt collection company and stole the identities of a number of individuals, then provided the stolen information to Collick, her son-in-law. Thompson worked as an independent contractor for a cable company installing cable and internet access for customers. To conceal the filing of the false tax returns, Thompson used his specialized knowledge and equipment to shut down and hijack his customers' internet service, and, along with Collick, filed false tax returns using the customers' internet access. Thompson and Collick then directed the fraudulent tax refunds to be placed on pre-paid debit cards.
In 2014, the department has continued to pursue numerous prosecutions against SIRF criminals. On Jan. 24, 2014, a jury convicted current and former corrections officers of identity theft and tax fraud; according to court documents and evidence presented at trial, the pair accessed a state prison database and used the stolen identity information to file false tax returns. A check casher was sentenced to 37 months in prison on Jan. 16, 2014, for cashing refund checks in the names of individuals who did not authorize him to cash the checks, according to court documents. A nursing home employee was convicted by a jury on Jan. 14, 2014, of conspiracy, aggravated identity theft and other SIRF-related crimes; according to court documents and the evidence presented at trial, she stole the identity information of nursing home patients and used that information to create false tax returns. An Alabama man pleaded guilty on Jan. 13, 2014, for his role in a SIRF fraud. According to court documents, he obtained stolen identities from an Alabama state employee, used those identities to file false tax returns, and recruited a bank employee to assist him in having the false tax refunds deposited into various bank accounts. A social worker pleaded guilty on Jan. 10, 2014, to identity theft and tax fraud charges. According to court documents, she illegally obtained the identifying information of her clients – minors and disabled adults who may have been abused or neglected – and sold that information to others who used the stolen identities to claim as false dependents on fraudulent tax returns they prepared.
"We're fighting identity theft head-on at the IRS and making substantial progress with the help of the Justice Department and local law enforcement," said Commissioner John Koskinen for the IRS. "We're stopping more identity theft before these fraudulent refunds go out the door. The IRS initiated nearly 1,500 identity theft related criminal investigations last year, an increase of 66 percent over 2012. Fighting fraud is an ongoing battle as identity thieves continue to create new ways of stealing personal information. The IRS is continually reviewing our policies to strengthen our systems, minimize the incidence of identity theft and help victims." The sentences imposed against those committing SIRF crimes are significant and reflect the seriousness of these crimes. The Justice Department is committed to investigating and prosecuting tax refund fraud that involves identity theft, and will continue to work with the IRS, FBI, U.S. Secret Service, U.S. Postal Inspection Service, other federal law enforcement agencies as well as state and local law enforcement agencies to combat SIRF-related crimes. Each U.S. Attorney’s Office has a point of contact to coordinate SIRF matters for its district.
The IRS has taken steps to detect and prevent the fraud before it occurs. For example, the IRS has designed new software filters to spot false returns before they are processed and before a refund is issued. The IRS has also expanded efforts to place identity-theft indicators on taxpayer accounts to track and manage identity-theft incidents. For information from the IRS on how to protect your identity and what to do if you are a victim of identity theft, please visit the IRS’s Identity Protection webpage.
More information on the department’s enforcement efforts is available on the Tax Division’s website, as are links to identity theft information and resources.
Justice Department Files Lawsuit Against Missouri National Guard to Enforce Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights ActRead the Press Release
The Department of Justice announced today the filing of a lawsuit against the Missouri National Guard (MNG) alleging that the MNG violated the Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act (USERRA) by requiring its dual technician employees to resign from their civilian positions prior to active duty service in the U.S. Army Guard and Reserve.
According to the complaint, filed in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Missouri, the MNG violated the USERRA rights of dual technician Kinata Holt by requiring her resignation, as a civilian dual technician, prior to her being called to active duty with the U.S. Army Guard and Reserve. According to the complaint, by refusing to place Holt on furlough or leave of absence, the MNG’s resignation requirement denied her the benefit of 15 days of annual, paid military leave to which she would have been entitled as a dual technician. USERRA not only prohibits employers from placing additional prerequisites on civilian employees before allowing them to serve in the military, but also mandates that employers place employees who depart for military leave on “furlough” or leave of absence status and not require them to quit their civilian jobs.
This lawsuit seeks, among other injunctive relief, a court order enjoining the MNG from requiring the resignation of civilian dual technicians from their civilian positions prior to service in the U.S. Army Guard and Reserve. The suit also seeks monetary relief for those who were improperly denied military leave benefits as compensation for the damages that were incurred as a result of the USERRA violation.
“Employers have a legal obligation under USERRA to provide promised benefits to individuals who choose to serve in the military,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General Jocelyn Samuels for the Civil Rights Division. “The Civil Rights Division is committed to protecting the rights of those who choose to serve their country through military service.”
This case stems from a referral by the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) following an investigation by the DOL’s Veterans’ Employment and Training Service. The case is being handled by the Employment Litigation Section of the Civil Rights Division.
Additional information about USERRA can be found on the Justice Department website’s Servicemember page and Employment Litigation Section page, as well as on the DOL website.
Jury Convicts Santa Rosa Man of Armed Robbery of the Garda Armored Car WarehouseRead the Press Release
SAN FRANCISCO – Today, a federal jury convicted Monico Dominguez of one count of robbery, one count of attempted robbery, two counts of conspiring to commit robbery, two counts of possession of a firearm in furtherance of a crime of violence, three counts of money laundering, and one count of structuring, announced United States Attorney Melinda Haag and FBI Special Agent in Charge David J. Johnson.
The jury found that on August 11, 2011, Dominguez committed an armed robbery of the Garda Cash Logistics warehouse in Santa Rosa, Calif., that he laundered and structured the substantial cash proceeds from that robbery, and that he attempted to commit a second robbery at that same facility on August 6, 2012. The guilty verdict followed a two week jury trial before the Honorable Edward M. Chen, United States District Court Judge.
Evidence at trial showed that on August 11, 2011, Dominguez and an accomplice dove under the closing garage door of the Garda warehouse as an armored car was returning from the night shift, that Dominguez held up the guards with an AK-47 assault rifle before tying them up and entering the vault. Dominguez stuffed just over $909,000 in cash into a duffel bag before fleeing the scene. Dominguez got away with this heist for approximately one year, during which he opened new bank accounts, made substantial cash deposits, and purchased multiple Harley Davidson motorcycles, cars, and expensive construction equipment. The evidence at trial showed that on August 6, 2012, Dominguez set in motion a plan to steal an armored car from the Garda warehouse, but the robbery was foiled before it could happen with the assistance of a confidential informant who had reported Dominguez’s plan to the Federal Bureau of Investigation and Santa Rosa Police Department.
Dominguez, of Santa Rosa, was indicted by a federal grand jury on November 29, 2012. Dominguez will remain in custody pending sentencing. Dominguez’s sentencing hearing is scheduled for May 14, 2014, before Judge Chen, in San Francisco.
The maximum statutory penalties for robbery, attempted robbery, and conspiring to commit a robbery, in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 1951(a), are a prison term of 20 years, a fine of $250,000, and 3 years of supervised release.
The maximum statutory penalties for possessing a firearm in furtherance of a robbery, in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 924(c), are a prison term of life, a fine of $250,000, and 5 years of supervised release.
The maximum statutory penalties for money laundering, in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 1957, are a prison term of 10 years, a fine of $250,000, and 3 years of supervised release.
The maximum statutory penalties for structuring, in violation of 31 U.S.C. § 5324, are a prison term of five years, a fine of $500,000, and 3 years of supervised release.
However, any sentence will be imposed by the court only after consideration of the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and the federal statute governing the imposition of a sentence, 18 U.S.C. § 3553.
Assistant U.S. Attorneys Randy Luskey and Ben Tolkoff prosecuted this case with the assistance of Daniel Charlier-Smith and Christine Tian. This prosecution is the result of a joint investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Santa Rosa Police Department.
(Dominguez superseding indictment )
Jacksonville Man Pleads Guilty to Distribution of Child PornographyRead the Press Release
Jacksonville, Florida – United States Attorney A. Lee Bentley, III announces that Sean-Michael Smith (25, Jacksonville) today pleaded guilty to distribution of child pornography. Smith faces a mandatory minimum penalty of 5 years, up to 20 years in federal prison. A sentencing date has not yet been set. Smith was indicted on August 8, 2013.
According to court records, on July 3, 2013, a St. Johns County detective was actively investigating computer users who were distributing child pornography via a peer-to-peer file sharing network over the Internet. On that same date, the detective was able to successfully download three videos depicting minors engaging in sexually explicit conduct from an Internet Protocol (IP) address registered to Sean-Michael Smith. Based on this information, the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) obtained a search warrant for Smith’s residence. When the warrant was executed, on August 2, 2013, Smith admitted to previously downloading and viewing child pornography, including one of the videos downloaded by the detective on July 3, 2013. Smith also stated that he had been viewing child pornography for 10 years, and admitted that whenever the file sharing program on his computer was active, any content in the shared folder would be available for downloading by other users on the file sharing network.
This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Florida Department of Law Enforcement and St. Johns County Sheriff’s Office. It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Diidri W. Robinson.
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 (CEOS), Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who sexually exploit children, and to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.projectsafechildhood.gov.
Huntington Woman Sentenced to Federal Prison for Stealing from Homeless-aid ProgramRead the Press Release
HUNTINGTON, W.Va. – A Huntington woman was sentenced today to a year and a day in federal prison for stealing more than $20,000 from a program that assists the homeless, United States Attorney Booth Goodwin announced. Patricia Howard, 54, embezzled the money from the Huntington Housing Authority’s Shelter Care Plus program in 2011 and 2012, while she was an employee of the Authority.
The Shelter Care Plus program receives federal funds to provide housing assistance for homeless people suffering from mental illness, chronic addiction and AIDS. As an employee of the Huntington Housing Authority, Howard helped handle the Shelter Care Plus program’s finances. Her position enabled her to secretly make transfers of program funds to her personal bank account by disguising them as payments to obtain housing for the homeless. Howard’s scheme netted a total of $23,731, which she was ordered to repay as part of her sentence. Howard admitted her crime to federal law enforcement authorities after being caught.
In an unrelated case, Howard was recently convicted in state court for fraudulently using an access device. She is serving a one- to three-year state sentence for that conviction. Howard will begin serving the federal sentence imposed today after she finishes her time in state custody.
The federal Department of Housing and Urban Development’s Office of Inspector General and the Federal Bureau of Investigation conducted the investigation, assisted by the Huntington Police Department. Assistant United States Attorney Erik S. Goes handled the prosecution. Chief United States District Judge Robert C. Chambers presided over the case and imposed today’s sentence.
Government Files Enforcement Action Against Four California Companies and SixIndividuals to Stop the Importation of Dangerous Children’s ProductsRead the Press Release
The government has asked a federal court in California to issue an injunction shutting down the importation and sales activities of four California companies and six individuals in connection with their imports of illegal children’s products containing, among other things, lead, phthalates and small parts inappropriate for children under age three. Phthalates are a chemical plasticizer that make certain products flexible, and certain types of phthalates are banned from use in children’s toys and other child care products. The Justice Department filed the injunction action in the Central District of California at the request of the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC).The defendant companies in the case are Toys Distribution Inc. dba TDI International, S&J Merchandise Inc., BLJ Apparel Inc. and All Season Sales Inc. The defendant individuals are Loan Tuyet Thai, Lan My Lam, Paul Phuong, Cuc T. Thai, Tom Liu and Luan Luu.
“Companies cannot be allowed to import hazardous toys into the United States,” said Assistant Attorney General for the Justice Department’s Civil Division Stuart F. Delery. “Parents have a right to feel confident that the toys their children play with are safe.”
The CPSC determined through an investigation that the defendants imported various items into the United States in violation of the Consumer Product Safety Act (CPSA) and the Federal Hazardous Substances Act (FHSA). The violative products that Toys Distribution Inc. imported included: motorized and “pull-back” toy cars with impermissible lead content and small parts hazards, numerous toy musical instruments with small parts hazards, dolls containing impermissible levels of lead and phthalates and rattles that failed to meet the infant rattle standards. S & J Merchandise’s imports of violative products included numerous models of toy cars with impermissible lead content or small parts hazards, a toy telephone with small parts hazards and numerous different plastic dolls with impermissible phthalate levels. The violative products imported by BLJ Apparel included children’s products and toys with illegal levels of total lead content, toys intended for children under three years of age that contained small parts and infant rattles that may cause choking or suffocation. All Season Sales’ violative imports included a children’s kitchen set and police set that both exceeded the lead content limit.
The government also alleged that the defendants’ operations were associated with each other and that the companies share various personal or professional ties that make joining all the conduct into one lawsuit appropriate.
“CPSC and our federal law enforcement partners are committed to keeping dangerous toys out of the marketplace all year long,” said CPSC Acting Chairman Robert Adler. “Manufacturers, importers and retailers need to know that CPSC and the Justice Department are actively enforcing the Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act, a law that has strengthened the nation’s product safety net.”
Defendant companies S&J Merchandise Inc., BLJ Apparel Inc. and All Season Sales Inc., as well as defendant individuals Tom Liu and Luan Luu have agreed to settle the litigation and be bound by a Consent Decree of Permanent Injunction that enjoins them from committing violations of the CPSA and FHSA. The proposed consent decree will be filed shortly with the court for judicial approval. The lawsuit continues against the remaining defendants.The case is being handled by Patrick Runkle, trial attorney with the Department of Justice’s Consumer Protection Branch, and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Central District of California on behalf of the Consumer Product Safety Commission.
A complaint is merely a set of allegations that, if the case were to proceed to trial, the government would need to prove by a preponderance of the evidence.
Four Montgomery Residents Sentenced for Conspiracy to Defraud the United States Department of EducationRead the Press Release
Montgomery, Alabama - On February 21, 2014, Bobbie Jean Chilsom, Shawn A. Johnson, Sharon Johnson, and Sara Chilsom, all from Montgomery, were sentenced by United States District Judge Myron S. Thompson for their involvement in a conspiracy to defraud the United States Department of Education, and various colleges and universities of financial aid money, announced George L. Beck Jr., U.S. Attorney for the Middle District of Alabama.
Bobbie Chilsom was sentenced to 24 months of imprisonment followed by three years supervised release for mail fraud and was ordered to pay $276,734.27 in restitution. Shawn A. Johnson was sentenced to five years of probation, 12 months home confinement, and 10 weekends in jail for mail fraud, and was ordered to pay $222,068.41 in restitution. For her role in the conspiracy, Sharon Johnson was sentenced to five years of probation, 12 months home confinement, and 3 weekends in jail for conspiracy to commit to defraud the United States. She was also ordered to pay $397,963.22 in restitution. Finally, Sara Chilsom was sentenced to three years of probation for mail fraud and was also ordered to pay $10,845 in restitution.
As a part of this conspiracy, from September 2008, to September 2012, the defendants defrauded the United States Department of Education and colleges and universities of approximately $1,152,994 in Federal Student Assistance (FSA) money. FSA must be used by a student for tuition, fees charged by the institution, books, supplies, transportation, or other educational and living expenses.
The defendants, as well as other individuals they recruited for the scheme, applied for financial aid despite not having a high school diploma or a general education development (GED) certificate. To enable admission to the schools, a false diploma or GED certificate was provided during the enrollment process. As a result of the fraudulent applications for financial aid, the Department of Education paid tuition, enrollment fees, and living expenses for the defendants and other individuals that were not lawful.
Afterwards, the recruited individuals would pay the leaders of the conspiracy a percentage of the funds reserved for living expenses by mailing them debit refund cards or debit refund checks. Evidence further showed that the defendants or the recruited individuals would either not attend or would minimally attend their courses, and would minimally participate in completing or would not complete their course work. Ultimately, the financial aid funds they received were used for non-educational purposes such as the purchase of personal items or to pay for personal expenses.
Including the four defendants sentenced on February 21, 2014, a total of thirteen defendants were involved in this conspiracy. Previously sentenced were, Telvin Brown, Sunquesha Gaston, Philanthia Roberts, Printice Johnson, Shirley Johnson, Samuella McMillian, Edmond Lewis Harris, Jr., and Richard Jamar Pinkston, Jr. for mail fraud. Dennis Coleman was sentenced for conspiring to defraud the United States. All defendants are from Montgomery.
The case was investigated by the Department of Education-Office of Inspector General, the United States Secret Service, and the FBI. The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Denise O. Simpson.
PRESS CONTACT: Clark Morris
Email: [email protected]
Telephone: (334) 551-1755
Fax: (334) 223-7617Former Victoria Housing Authority Commissioner Charged with HUD and SSA FraudRead the Press Release
VICTORIA, Texas – Raquel Garcia, 37, has been charged in an three-count indictment alleging theft from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) and fraud against the Social Security Administration (SSA), announced United States Attorney Kenneth Magidson.
The sealed indictment, returned Feb. 20, 2014, was unsealed this morning upon her arrest by federal authorities. She is expected to make her initial appearance before U.S. Magistrate Judge Janice B. Ellington at 2:00 p.m. today.
The indictment alleges that beginning in 1998 and continuing until July 2013, Garcia concealed her husband’s cohabitation and income. As a result, she allegedly received nearly $175,000 in HUD rent reductions to which she was not entitled. Further, through her alleged fraud and concealment, Garcia also received approximately $113,000 in SSA Supplemental Security Income (SSI) for herself and as representative payee for her minor son, according to the charges. The total loss to the government allegedly totals more than $287,000.
Garcia served as a mayorally-appointed commissioner of the Victoria County Housing Authority for two consecutive two-year terms from 2006-2010.
If convicted, she faces up to 10 years in federal prison for each of the one count of theft of HUD government funds and up to five years on each of the two SSA fraud charges. All charges also carry a possible $250,000 fine, upon conviction.
The investigation leading to the charges was conducted by the SSA – Office of Inspector General and HUD – Office of Inspector General. Assistant United States Attorneys Jeffrey D. Preston and Hugo R. Martinez are prosecuting the case.
A defendant is presumed innocent unless and until convicted through due process of law.Former Police Officer Admits Guilt in Robbery PlanRead the Press Release
PHILADELPHIA – Former Philadelphia Police Officer Jeffrey Walker pleaded guilty today to a scheme in which he planned to rob a drug dealer while on official duty. Walker pleaded to attempted robbery which interferes with interstate commerce and carrying a firearm during and in relation to a crime of violence.
Walker told a cooperating witness (CW) that he wanted the CW to help him identify a drug dealer so that Walker could conduct a car stop for suspected drug violations or plant drugs in the car. On May 21, 2013, the CW informed Walker of a car parked outside of a bar on West Girard Avenue. Walker drove up to the car, placed drugs inside the car, and then followed the driver when that person left the bar. When the car was pulled over, Philadelphia police, including Walker, took the key to the driver’s home. Walker and the CW went to the driver’s home. When they exited the home, Walker was arrested and was in possession of $15,000 that he had taken from the house.
U.S. District Court Judge Eduardo C. Robreno scheduled a sentencing hearing for May 21, 2014. Walker faces an advisory sentencing guideline range of up to 10 years in prison.
The case was investigated by the FBI and Philadelphia Police Department. It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Anthony Wzorek.
UNITED STATES ATTORNEY'S OFFICE, EASTERN DISTRICTof PENNSYLVANIA
Suite 1250, 615 Chestnut Street, Philadelphia, PA 19106
PATTY HARTMAN, Media Contact, 215-861-8525Former Non-Indian Employee of the Jicarilla Apache Nation Pleads Guilty to Embezzling Money from the TribeRead the Press Release
ALBUQUERQUE – Robert G. Wells, 63, of Albuquerque, N.M., pleaded guilty this morning to embezzlement and theft from an Indian tribal organization, announced Acting U.S. Attorney Steven C. Yarbrough, Special Agent in Charge Carol K.O. Lee of the FBI’s Albuquerque Division and Chief Kendall Vicenti of the Jicarilla Apache Tribal Police Department.
Wells was arrested in Nov. 2013, on a three-count indictment charging him with embezzling an aggregate of $214,594.13 from the Jicarilla Apache Nation’s Utility Authority between July 2011 and Oct. 2011. Wells, a non-Indian, previously had been employed by the Jicarilla Apache Nation as the comptroller for the tribe’s Utility Authority.
During this morning’s proceedings, Wells pled guilty to all three counts of the indictment and admitted embezzling money from a Wells Fargo Bank account belonging to the Jicarilla Apache Nation’s Utility Authority through an unauthorized withdrawal and two unauthorized transfers. In his plea agreement, Wells admitted stealing money from the tribe’s bank account on the following three occasions: $500.00 in July 2011, $92,331 in August 2011, and $121,763 in Oct. 2011.
Wells remains on conditions of release pending his sentencing hearing, which has yet to be scheduled. Under the terms of his plea agreement, Wells will be sentenced to a term of probation. Wells also will be required to pay $214,594.13 in restitution to the Jicarilla Apache Nation.
This case was investigated by the Albuquerque office of the FBI and the Jicarilla Apache Tribal Police Department and is being prosecuted by Supervisory Assistant U.S. Attorney Glynette R. Carson McNabb.
Former High School Football Player Sentenced for Making Racially Motivated Threats to African-American CoachRead the Press Release
Jonathan Caine, 20, of Nashville, Tenn., was sentenced today in U.S. District Court in Nashville to 36 months’ probation for a federal hate crime of making racially motivated threats to an African-American football coach at a local high school, announced David Rivera, U.S. Attorney for the Middle District of Tennessee.
Caine, formerly a student and football player at the Nashville area high school where the victim works as a coach, was charged with a misdemeanor federal hate crime in November 2013 and pleaded guilty to interfering with a federally protected right.
“Threatening someone because of their race is a cowardly and despicable act,” said U.S. Attorney David Rivera.” “The U.S. Attorney’s Office and the Department of Justice are committed to ensuring that the rights of all persons are protected and to holding those accountable who would abridge those rights based simply on a person’s race.”
In August 2012 Caine made repeated anonymous threats to the victim and to other school officials by leaving phone messages which were laced with racial slurs and derogatory and violent threats based solely on the victim’s race and employment. A subsequent investigation by the FBI identified Caine as the caller.
In addition to the period of probation, the plea agreement requires, among other things, that Caine be placed on home confinement for 2 months; complete a comprehensive substance abuse and treatment program; and complete 520 hours of community service directed at needy minority communities.This case was investigated by the FBI and is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Blanche Cook of the Middle District of Tennessee and Trial Attorney Nicholas Murphy of the Civil Rights Division.
Former Government Analyst Charged with BriberyRead the Press Release
HOUSTON – Augustine Ihenacho Nnadi, aka Austin, 60, of Houston, has been arrested for accepting a bribe in exchange for assistance in an ongoing health care fraud case, announced United States Attorney Kenneth Magidson.
The FBI arrested Nnadi this morning shortly after officers with the Texas Attorney General’s office confiscated his credentials and terminated his employment. Nnadi is expected to make his initial appearance before U.S. Magistrate Judge Nancy Johnson at 2:00 p.m. today.
The criminal complaint, filed today, alleges Nnadi accepted more than $5000 on Feb. 16, 2014, from a criminal defendant in exchange for assistance on a pending health care fraud case.
He is charged with bribery concerning programs receiving federal funds.
If convicted, he faces up to 10 years imprisonment and a possible $250,000 fine.
The operation was a combined, cooperative effort conducted by the FBI, the Texas Rangers and the Medicaid Fraud Control Unit of the Texas Attorney General’s Office. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney James McAlister.
Former Employee of Florida Airline Fuel Supply Company Pleads Guilty to Obstructing Federal InvestigationRead the Press Release
A former employee of a Florida-based airline fuel supply service company pleaded guilty today to obstructing an investigation into fraud and anticompetitive conduct in the airline charter services industry, the Department of Justice announced.Craig Perez, a former employee of Aviation Fuel International Inc. (AFI), pleaded guilty to a felony charge filed today in U.S. District Court for the Western District of Missouri in Kansas City. The charge against Perez stems from the U.S. Department of Defense’s Office of the Inspector General’s Defense Criminal Investigative Service (DCIS)’s investigation into kickback payments made by AFI and its employees to Wayne Kepple, the former vice president of ground operations for Ryan International Airlines.
Ryan provided air passenger and cargo services for corporations, private individuals and the U.S. government, including the U.S. Department of Defense, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security and the U.S. Marshals Service.
According to court documents, Perez worked for AFI from June 2007 until March 2008 and was vice president of services. During that time, Kepple received kickback payments from AFI on aviation fuel, services and equipment sold by AFI to Ryan. In November 2011, a federal agent with DCIS contacted Perez to interview him in relation to its investigation of AFI. After speaking with the federal agent, and with full knowledge of the purpose of the interview, Perez knowingly destroyed relevant files from his laptop computer relating to his employment at AFI with the intent to impede, obstruct and influence the investigation of AFI and his involvement in that conduct.
“The Antitrust Division will hold accountable those who attempt to conceal their illegal actions and obstruct a government investigation ,” said Bill Baer, Assistant Attorney General in charge of the Department of Justice’s Antitrust Division. “Destroying evidence in an attempt to undermine a federal investigation is a crime the division takes very seriously.”
Perez is charged with obstruction of justice, which carries a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison and a $250,000 criminal fine for individuals. He has agreed to cooperate in the ongoing investigation.Today’s plea is the fifth to arise out of the Antitrust Division’s ongoing investigation into fraud and anticompetitive conduct in the airline charter services industry. The other four individuals have been ordered to serve sentences ranging from 16 to 87 months in prison and to pay more than $580,000 in restitution. A sixth individual, Sean Wagner, the owner and operator of AFI, and AFI itself were indicted on Aug. 13, 2013.
The investigation is being conducted by the Antitrust Division’s National Criminal Enforcement Section and the U.S. Department of Defense’s Office of Inspector General’s Defense Criminal Investigative Service, headed by Special Agent in Charge John F. Khin. Anyone with information concerning anticompetitive conduct in the airline charter services industry is urged to call the Antitrust Division’s National Criminal Enforcement Section at 202-307-6694 or visit www.justice.gov/atr/contact/newcase.htm.
Federal Sentences Handed Down for Drugs Inside Prison, Illegal Prescription PainkillersRead the Press Release
BLUEFIELD, W.Va. – United States Attorney Booth Goodwin today announced federal sentences for an inmate caught with drugs in federal prison and a Bluefield woman who illegally possessed a powerful prescription painkiller. Boris Bynum, 34, an inmate at the Federal Correctional Institution at McDowell, was sentenced to six months in prison for possession of marijuana by an inmate. Bynum pleaded guilty in September, admitting that on June 15, 2013, he possessed several balloons which contained marijuana while he was serving a sentence at the prison, which is located near Welch. The investigation was conducted by the Federal Bureau of Prisons.
In an unrelated case, Lakeisha Danell Howze, 28, of Bluefield, was sentenced to three years’ probation for possession of hydromorphone, a prescription painkiller commonly prescribed under the brand-name Dilaudid. Howze pleaded guilty in September, admitting that on January 28, 2013, she possessed hydromorphone without a valid prescription. The offense took place at or near Princeton. The investigation was conducted by the West Virginia State Police Bureau of Criminal Investigations and the Southern Regional Drug and Violent Crime Task Force under the Bluefield Pill Initiative. The prosecution is part of an ongoing effort by the United States Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of West Virginia to combat the illicit sale and misuse of prescription drugs. The U.S. Attorney’s Office, joined by federal, state and local law enforcement agencies, is committed to aggressively pursuing and shutting down illegal pill trafficking, eliminating open air drug markets, and curtailing the spread of opiate painkillers in communities across the Southern District.
Senior United States District Judge David A. Faber imposed today’s sentences.
Fayette Co. Man Currently Serving 10 Years for Child Pornography Gets More Prison TimeRead the Press Release
BLUEFIELD, W.Va. – A Fayette County man currently serving a statutory maximum ten-year federal prison sentence on a federal child pornography offense received an additional year in prison for failing to appear for a sentencing hearing originally scheduled in May 2012, U.S. Attorney Booth Goodwin announced today. Brett David Bowyer, 34, of Scarbro, Fayette County, W.Va., previously pleaded guilty in September 2013 to failing to appear for sentencing as required. Bowyer’s sentence was handed down today by Senior United States District Judge David A. Faber in Bluefield federal court.
Bowyer failed to appear for a sentencing hearing that was originally scheduled for May 30, 2012, in federal court in Bluefield.
On June 12, 2013, Bowyer was arrested in Florida by a Brevard County sheriff’s deputy after being stopped for failing to change lanes.
The Court ordered Bowyer’s sentence to run consecutive to his current prison term.
The United States Marshals Service and the West Virginia Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force conducted the investigation. Assistant United States Attorney Lisa Johnston handled the prosecution.
This case was being prosecuted as part of U.S. Attorney Goodwin’s ongoing initiative to combat child sexual exploitation and abuse in the Southern District of West Virginia.
Father and Son Sentenced for $30 Million Bakersfield Mortgage Fraud SchemeRead the Press Release
FRESNO, Calif. — United States District Judge Lawrence J. O’Neill sentenced Bakersfield residents Carlyle “Carl” Lee Cole, 66, to 17 years and seven months in prison and Caleb Lee Cole, 37, to six months in prison for charges stemming from their involvement in an extensive mortgage fraud scheme that ran from January 2004 to September 2007, United States Attorney Benjamin B. Wagner announced.
Carl Cole was ordered to pay $28,516,887 in restitution to lenders. He was taken into custody after today’s hearing. Caleb Cole was ordered to pay $663,950 in restitution and was ordered to self-surrender to begin serving his sentence on April 21, 2014. His six months in custody will be followed by 21 months of electronic monitoring.
U.S. Attorney Wagner stated: “Carl Cole is the second defendant to be sentenced for the illegal activities of the Crisp, Cole & Associates real estate firm. During the fraud scheme, Cole enlisted the help of office workers to falsify documents and asked others, even his own son, to lend their names as straw buyers. Today’s sentence is fitting for someone who embodies the recklessness in the mortgage industry in the mid-2000s.”
“While today’s sentences cannot reverse damage that has been done to the real estate industry, mortgage industry, and consumer confidence in the Central Valley, they ensure that the Coles will be punished for their egregious crimes. As a licensed real estate broker, Carl Cole was well aware that this scheme was illegal and callously disregarded the damage he was causing to his own community,” said Special Agent in Charge Monica M. Miller of the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s Sacramento division.
According to court documents, Carl Cole, a licensed real estate broker, and David Crisp owned and operated Crisp & Cole Real Estate (CCRE), a real estate brokerage, and Tower Lending, an affiliated mortgage brokerage. Between January 2004 and September 2007, these defendants and others at CCRE and Tower Lending carried out a conspiracy to defraud mortgage companies and federally insured financial institutions. They used straw purchasers to acquire properties at inflated prices with funds borrowed from lenders, often using 100 percent financing and based on false and fraudulent loan applications. The conspirators frequently resold the properties from one straw buyer to another, each time at an inflated, higher price in order to extract the purported increased “equity” from the property for their benefit. Ultimately, most of the properties were foreclosed upon after the defendants failed to make the mortgage payments when due. Carl Cole admitted in his plea agreement that he and the co-conspirators caused losses of at least $29,884,498 to the defrauded lenders due to the conspiracy.
According to his plea agreement, Caleb Cole acted as a straw buyer for CCRE and knowingly made material misstatements and omitted material information in loan applications he submitted to lenders to obtain funds to purchase several properties.
Sentencing dates for the remaining defendants are as follows: Jennifer Anne Crisp on March 3, 2014; Michael Angelo Munoz on March 17, 2014; Jayson Peter Costa on March 24, 2014; David Marshall Crisp on March 31, 2014; Jeriel Salinas on May 12, 2014; and Sneha Mohammadi on June 9, 2014. Robinson Nguyen has completed his 27-month sentence. A trial for co-defendant Julie Dianne Farmer is set for April 8, 2014. The charges are only allegations; she is presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.
Before Carl Cole and the other defendants were indicted, five separate cases were brought, in 2009 and 2010, against five defendants who pleaded guilty to charges relating to this scheme. Three are scheduled to be sentenced on March 24, 2104: Jerald Allen Teixeira
(1:09-cr-375 – one count of wire fraud for false statements on loan documents), Megan Balod (1:10-cr-016 – four counts of wire fraud for acting as a straw buyer), and Christopher Lance Stovall (1:10-cr-271 – four counts of mail fraud for making false statements on loan documents). Two are scheduled to be sentenced on March 31, 2014: Kevin Patrick Sluga (1:10-cr-001 – four counts of wire fraud for false verification of employment letters), and Leslie Sluga (1:10-cr-002 – two counts of wire fraud for acting as a straw buyer).The maximum statutory penalty for mail fraud is 30 years in prison and a $1 million fine. The maximum statutory penalty for wire fraud is 20 years in prison and a $250,000 fine. The actual sentences, however, will be determined at the discretion of the court after consideration of any applicable statutory factors and the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, which take into account a number of variables.
This case is the product of an investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Kirk Sherriff, Henry Carbajal III, and Christopher Baker are prosecuting the case.
This case was done in coordination with the President’s Financial Fraud Enforcement Task Force. The task force was established 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. Over the past three fiscal years, the Justice Department has filed nearly 10,000 financial fraud cases against nearly 15,000 defendants including more than 2,900 mortgage fraud defendants. For more information on the task force, please visit www.StopFraud.gov.
Dunn Man Sentenced to 235 Months for Federal Firearm OffensesRead the Press Release
RALEIGH - United States Attorney Thomas G. Walker announced that in federal court today, Chief United States District Judge James C. Dever, III sentenced DAVID ELLIS, 53, of Dunn, North Carolina, to 235 months imprisonment followed by 3 years of supervised release.
On August 26, 2013, ELLIS pled guilty to two federal charges: Possession of a Stolen Firearm on February 11, 2012, in violation of Title 18, United States Code 922(j) and Possession of an Unregistered Firearm on February 11, 2012, in violation of Title 26, United States Code, Sections 5841, 5861(d), and 5871.
According to the investigation, on February 11, 2012, ELLIS’ girlfriend and her mother were attempting to flee their house after DAVID ELLIS assaulted his girlfriend by hitting her in the face. When her mother attempted to intervene, ELLIS assaulted her by hitting her in the face, knocking her to the ground, and kicking her in the chest. The mother was able to flee the house and call emergency services and the Harnett County Sheriff’s Office who responded to the scene. ELLIS pointed a stolen loaded sawed-off shotgun at his girlfriend, making her come back into the residence before the girlfriend could get to safety. During a standoff with police, ELLIS terrorized his girlfriend; he threatened to shoot her and gave her a bullet to further intimidate her. The stand-off ended when ELLIS and his girlfriend emerged from the home after the Harnett County SRT team was called out.
Prior to the February incident, assault and related charges were taken out against Ellis in October, 2011, in Harnett County.
This case was part of the Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN) initiative which encourages federal, state, and local agencies to cooperate in a unified “team effort” against gun crime, targeting repeat offenders who continually plague their communities.
Investigation of this case was conducted by the Harnett County Sheriff’s Office and the Bureau of Alcohol Tobacco Firearms and Explosives. Assistant United States Attorney, S. Katherine Burnette prosecuted the case.
Doctor, Clinic Owner, and Law Enforcement Officer Indicted in Drug Trafficking and Bribery ConspiracyRead the Press Release
JOSEPH J. MOGAN, III, M.D., TIFFANY MILLER, and DONALD NIDES were indicted by a federal grand jury on Friday, February 21, 2014, for conspiring to dispense prescription drugs illegally through “pill mill” clinics operated as Omni Pain Management in Metairie, Louisiana, and Omni Pain Management Plus in Slidell, Louisiana, announced U. S. Attorney Kenneth Allen Polite, Jr.
According to the indictment, MOGAN and MILLER owned and operated the two clinics and conspired to sell prescriptions for narcotics and other controlled substances without a legitimate medical purpose and outside the bounds of professional medical practice to drug seekers and drug abusers. The indictment further charges DONALD NIDES, a former Drug Enforcement Administration (“DEA”) Task Force Officer and former New Orleans Police Department (“NOPD”) Officer, with participating in the drug trafficking conspiracy by advising MOGAN and MILLER as to how to avoid DEA “red flags”; by leaking confidential information to MILLER regarding ongoing investigations; and by lying to federal agents. NIDES is also charged with obstruction of justice and with conspiring to receive bribes, in the form of sex acts and money, in return for using his official position to assist MILLER and MOGAN in operating the Omni clinics as “pill mills.”
“Prescription drug abuse has reached epidemic proportions in our community,” stated U.S. Attorney Polite. “We must halt this plague at its source, by bringing to justice any medical provider who violates our safety by illegally distributing these medications to the public.”
“Prescription drug trafficking and abuse are an epidemic in this country that destroys countless lives, and threatens important trusts in our society, such as our reliance on medical practitioners and, in this case, our faith in our law enforcement community,” stated Keith Brown, Special Agent in Charge, Drug Enforcement Administration-New Orleans Field Division. “DEA is fully committed to the pursuit and arrest of any individual who abandons their oaths as medical practitioners and law enforcement officers to the patients they treat and the public they promise to protect. Prescription drug abuse is a fast growing, widespread problem in Louisiana and can only be countered by an effective collaboration among law enforcement, the medical community, and the public to identify and stop those responsible for the illegal distribution of prescription drugs in our communities.”
U. S. Attorney Polite reiterated that, at this time, the charges in the indictment are only allegations, and that the guilt of the defendants must be proven beyond a reasonable doubt.
This case has been investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration, case agents George Cazenavette III and Brian Bradshaw, and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Harry “Bill” McSherry and Special Assistant United States Attorney Michael Redmann, who is assigned from the Orleans Parish District Attorney’s Office.
(Download Indictment )
Dallas-Area Lawyer Sentenced for Covering up Bank FraudRead the Press Release
DALLAS — An Allen, Texas, man, who pleaded guilty in April 2013 to one count of a misprision of a felony stemming from his involvement in a loan fraud scheme, was sentenced this morning by U.S. District Judge David C. Godbey, announced U.S. Attorney Sarah R. Saldaña of the Northern District of Texas.
Jerry Goh, 51, a lawyer with offices in the Dallas-Fort Worth metroplex, was sentenced to serve seven months in federal prison and surrender to the Bureau of Prisons on May 26, 2014, to begin serving that sentence. Judge Godbey also ordered that Goh serve the first seven months of a one-year term of supervised release on home confinement. Goh will also be ordered to pay more than $2.1 million in restitution.
Two defendants also charged in the case, Plano, Texas, residents Vathany Teng and Lina Ma, have pleaded guilty to their roles in the fraud and are scheduled to be sentenced next month. According to documents filed in the case, Goh, acting in his capacity as the escrow officer on the loan, and thus with control of the loan proceeds, concealed from the lender, Prosper Bank, the fraudulent release of $498,720 of loan proceeds to provide funds for a $431,000 down payment. Goh wired $498,720 of lender Prosper Bank’s funds from an escrow account, knowing that these seller proceeds funds would later be used as the source of borrower Lina Ma’s down payment on her loan from Prosper Bank.
This case was prosecuted in connection with the President’s Financial Fraud Enforcement Task Force. The task force was established to wage an aggressive, coordinated and proactive effort to investigate and prosecute financial crimes. With more than 20 federal agencies, 94 U.S. Attorney’s 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. Over the past three fiscal years, the Justice Department has filed nearly 10,000 financial fraud cases against nearly 15,000 defendants, including more than 2,900 mortgage fraud defendants. For more information on the task force, please visit www.stopfraud.gov.
The case was investigated by the U.S. Small Business Administration – Office of Inspector General and the FBI. Assistant U.S. Attorney David L. Jarvis prosecuted.
Conspirator in Scheme to Steal Waste Vegetable Oil Pleads Guilty to Laundering More Than $1.5 MillionRead the Press Release
Baltimore, Maryland – Anthony Jean-Claude, age 40, of Odenton, Maryland pleaded guilty today to laundering over $1.5 million, in connecting with a scheme to steal waste vegetable oil.
The guilty plea was announced by United States Attorney for the District of Maryland Rod J. Rosenstein; Special Agent in Charge Thomas J. Kelly of the Internal Revenue Service - Criminal Investigation, Washington, D.C. Field Office; and Chief James W. Johnson of the Baltimore County Police Department.
According to the plea agreement, waste collection businesses contract with local restaurants to collect waste vegetable oil (WVO), which is used to make bio-diesel fuel or processed as an additive for animal feed. Waste collection businesses place recycling containers behind the restaurants with which they have contracts. When the containers are full, the businesses collect the WVO using a vacuum truck.Jean-Claude admits that from May through October 2010, he and a friend stole WVO from restaurants in Maryland and Virginia using a flatbed tow truck owned by his friend, a tank and a mechanical pump. Jean-Claude and his friend stored the stolen oil at a warehouse near Waterview Avenue in Baltimore County, then sold the oil to out-of-state oil companies.
At the end of October, Jean-Claude’s friend developed a legitimate WVO collection company - Waste Not Incorporated - purchased a vacuum truck, hired salesmen to assist him, and eventually obtained 650 contracts to collect WVO from restaurants and other eateries. From June through October, 2011, Jean-Claude’s friend collected the WVO pursuant to the contracts and sold the WVO to Jean-Claude.
According to his plea agreement, in May 2011, Jean-Claude used a straw purchaser to buy a truck, which was titled the name of Waste Not and used to steal WVO from restaurants for which Waste Not did not have a collection contract. The driver of that truck was caught stealing WVO in July 2011. In late 2011, Jean-Claude met R.F. during a home renovation project at Jean-Claude’s home. Jean-Claude requested that R.F. lease a large warehouse facility to collect, process and sell WVO. The owner of Waste Not took both his legitimate WVO and the stolen WVO to the facility, located at 1701 Leland Avenue in Middle River. Jean-Claude then sold the WVO to fuel companies in Pennsylvania and elsewhere. The proceeds of these transactions were directed back to Jean-Claude through an account in in the name of Rafxcel Services, to which both R.F. and Jean-Claude had signature authority.
Jean-Claude subsequently used the straw purchaser to buy another truck in October 2011, which a conspirator used to steal WVO from 20 locations in Baltimore City and Baltimore County. The conspirator then took the stolen WVO to the Leland Avenue facility. From January 5, 2012 through October 1, 2012, Rafxcel received approximately $1,586,747, for selling WVO to oil companies in Maryland, Pennsylvania and elsewhere.
R.M. was the operations manager at the Leland Avenue facility. R.M. received checks from Jean-Claude in the name of R.M.’s wife, which were drawn on the Rafxcel business account. Jean-Claude directed R.M. to cash the checks, use a portion of the cash for the operations of the Leland Avenue facility, and give the remainder of the cash back to Jean-Claude. Jean-Claude knew that this money was the proceeds of the illegal scheme to sell stolen WVO.
Jean-Claude faces a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison for money laundering. U.S. District Judge J. Frederick Motz has scheduled sentencing for June 10, 2014 at 9:30 a.m.
United States Attorney Rod J. Rosenstein praised the IRS-Criminal Investigation and Baltimore County Police Department for their work in the investigation. Mr. Rosenstein thanked Assistant U.S. Attorney Gregory R. Bockin, who is prosecuting the case.