Latest Records
Newest first across public DOJ and U.S. Attorney press releases.
8 April 2014
Justice Department Files Lawsuit to Stop Pennsylvania Man from Preparing Federal Tax ReturnsRead the Press Release
The United States filed a civil lawsuit today in Pittsburgh federal court to permanently bar Larry E. Snow, of Seward, Pa., from preparing federal tax returns for others, the Department of Justice and Internal Revenue Service (IRS) announced today.
In February 2012, Snow pleaded guilty to one count of aiding and assisting in the preparation of false and fraudulent individual income tax returns and was later sentenced to six months of home detention and three years of probation. The civil complaint filed with the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Pennsylvania today alleges that Snow repeatedly prepared returns with false deductions for medical expenses, personal property taxes, charitable contributions and unreimbursed employee expenses. He allegedly maintained a list he referred to as “IRS Gimmies,” which were items he instructed his employees to report on each return prepared in his accounting practice, regardless of whether the client was entitled to them.
The IRS estimates that Snow’s fraudulent return preparation for one year alone cost the U.S. Treasury over $1.3 million in lost tax revenue.
Return preparer fraud is one of the IRS’ Dirty Dozen Tax Scams for 2013. The IRS has some tips on their website for choosing a tax preparer. In the past decade, the Tax Division has obtained injunctions against hundreds of unscrupulous tax preparers. Information about these cases is available on the Justice Department website. An alphabetical listing of persons enjoined from preparing returns and promoting tax schemes can be found on this page . If you believe that one of the enjoined persons or businesses may be violating an injunction, please contact the Tax Division with details.
Related Materials:
United States v. Larry E. Snow
Complaint for Permanent Injunction and Other ReliefJury Convicts Sierra Leone Man of Repeatedly Resisting DeportationRead the Press Release
ALEXANDRIA, La. –United States Attorney Stephanie A. Finley announced today that a federal jury found Osman Jalloh, 52, of Sierra Leone, guilty of two counts of preventing or hampering his deportation from the United States. United States District Judge Dee D. Drell presided over the trial.
Following the two-day trial, the jury found Osman guilty after deliberating for 35 minutes. Based on witness testimony and documents admitted into evidence, it was shown that Jalloh refused to leave the United States on March 16, 2012 and September 9, 2012. Both times Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents brought Jalloh to the Alexandria International Airport and attempted to put him on a commercial flight. He refused to comply with the agents and was returned to incarceration.
Osman faces four years in prison and a $250,000 fine for each count of preventing or hampering his deportation from the United States. Sentencing was set for July 11, 2014.
Immigration and Customs Enforcement – Enforcement and Removal Operations conducted the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Joseph G. Jarzabek and Brandon B. Brown are prosecuting the case.
Jesse Lewis Detained on Charges of Violently Forcing Women to Engage in Acts of ProstitutionRead the Press Release
Wifredo A. Ferrer, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Florida, Alysa D. Erichs, Special Agent in Charge, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations (ICE-HSI), and Scott Israel, Sheriff, Broward Sheriff’s Office (BSO), announce the arrest and detention of Jesse Lewis, 28, on charges of sex trafficking by force, fraud or coercion, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 1591(a). These charges carry a minimum mandatory sentence of fifteen years and a possible maximum sentence of life in prison.
According to the allegations contained in the criminal complaint, Lewis met a 26 year- old victim in Tampa in June 2013 and offered her a place to live after finding out that she was homeless. After unsuccessfully trying to prostitute her in Tampa, Lewis transported the victim to Broward County where he took sexually provocative pictures of her, posted them on-line and then forced her to engage in prostitution dates with numerous men over the course of several days. Following each “date,” Lewis took all the money. According to the victim, Lewis choked her and slapped her in the face, instructing her to always look him in the eye and call him ‘Daddy.’ The victim said she had about 10 “dates” over several days, collecting between $80 and $150 per date, with all the money going to Lewis, who waited outside the hotel rooms during each sexual encounter. After approximately one week with Lewis, the victim was able to escape after Lewis fell asleep. She contacted the police who located Lewis and arrested him in June 2013 on what were originally state charges of human trafficking, forcing commercial sexual activity, procuring for prostitution another to become a prostitute, and living off the earnings of a prostitute. The federal criminal complaint and arrest warrant were issued shortly thereafter, but before Lewis could be taken into custody on the federal charges, he was transported to Miami-Dade County where he was facing charges of living off the earnings of a prostitute, stemming from a previous arrest in Miami Beach on March 14, 2013. Lewis pled guilty to the Miami charges and after his release from custody on April 2, 2014, he was arrested on the federal complaint.
During Lewis’ April 7, 2014 detention hearing, the government proffered additional testimony that Lewis forced another victim to engage in acts of prostitution in 2010. According to that victim, she met Lewis when she was unemployed and Lewis offered her a place to live. Soon thereafter, Lewis convinced her to work as an “escort” but when the victim told Lewis she did not want to engage in prostitution, Lewis beat her. When the victim tried to escape, Lewis prevented her from leaving by holding a gun to her head and threatening to carve the word “liar” into her forehead with a knife.
At the conclusion of the hearing, United States Magistrate Judge Patrick M. Hunt found that Lewis posed a serious danger to the community and ordered him detained pending trial.
Mr. Ferrer commended the investigative efforts of ICE-HSI and BSO. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Francis Viamontes.
A complaint is merely an accusation, and the defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
A copy of this press release may be found on the website of the United States Attorney's Office for the Southern District of Florida at http://www.usdoj.gov/usao/fls. Related court documents and information may be found on the website of the District Court for the Southern District of Florida at http://www.flsd.uscourts.gov or on http://pacer.flsd.uscourts.gov.
International Business Executive Pleads Guilty to Scamming Investors and Dodging TaxesRead the Press Release
SAN DIEGO - Sven Erik Ulsteen, a former executive and shareholder of a Channel Islands company named Anturion Limited, pled guilty today to fraudulently using counterfeit and forged securities to take over $2 million from investors.
Ulsteen also admitted that he attempted to conceal this income from the Internal Revenue Service, and in so doing defrauded the United States out of more than $200,000 in taxes. The defendant tendered his guilty plea before U.S. Magistrate Judge Mitchell Dembin, who had previously ordered Ulsteen held on $1 million bond because of the substantial risk that Ulsteen would flee to his native Norway during the pendency of this case.
Ulsteen has been in custody since December 16, 2013, when he left his San Diego home and attempted to leave the country for Norway. Agents from the Federal Bureau of Investigation intercepted Ulsteen at the airport and arrested him on a criminal complaint filed by the FBI’s San Francisco Field Office that alleged Ulsteen had used counterfeit and forged Anturion securities on at least six instances to defraud investors.
At today’s hearing the defendant admitted that between November 2012 and December 2013, he solicited investors from the United States to purportedly purchase shares of stock from, or lend money to, Anturion. At the same time, Ulsteen also created counterfeit and forged “subscription agreements” and “loan” documents that purported to be authentic securities of Anturion. The defendant presented these counterfeit securities to investors in order to convince them to part with money, and with the intent to deceive investors into believing that the securities were legitimate and that their funds were going to Anturion.
Ulsteen’s scam defrauded investors throughout California out of more than $2 million, which he then directed to accounts in the name of Anturion and another company that Ulsteen controlled. The defendant admitted that instead of transferring these investments and loans to Anturion, he took the monies for himself and used them to pay for personal expenses and to wire funds to bank accounts overseas.
Multiple investors who attempted to buy Anturion shares from Ulsteen never received them. The only Anturion shares victims received from the defendant came from his own personal holdings, and not from the company as they had been promised. Investors only received these shares long after they had paid Ulsteen for their supposed purchases, and after a lawyer representing multiple investors sent a letter to Ulsteen accusing him of fraud. Individual investors who believed they were loaning funds to Anturion either never received their repayment as promised, or never received the Anturion shares to which their loan repayments were supposedly convertible.
In addition to selling forged securities, Ulsteen admitted to corruptly obstructing the IRS’s attempts to assess his true tax liability. Between 2010 and 2012, Ulsteen earned over $1 million from various activities, including from the sale of his Anturion stock. And several times the IRS notified Ulsteen that he needed to file a federal income tax return and that he owed taxes, penalties and interest. Despite these notifications Ulsteen refused to file a federal income tax return for any of these years, and took several steps to prevent the IRS from learning how much income he had earned. These included depositing investor funds into the nominee company accounts he controlled, payment of his personal expenses out of these company accounts, and providing incomplete and inaccurate information to a tax return preparer in order to create false federal income tax returns.
Ulsteen remains in custody and is scheduled to be sentenced June 30, 2014, at 2 p.m. before U.S. District Judge M. James Lorenz.
The charges were announced by United States Attorney for the Southern District of California Laura E. Duffy, and by United States Attorney for the Eastern District of California Benjamin B. Wagner, whose office is handling the prosecution in San Francisco. The timely arrest of Ulsteen by the FBI before he could leave for Norway – a country which will not extradite its own nationals to the United States – and the prompt resolution of these fraud and tax charges was the result of coordinated investigations by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and Internal Revenue Service, Criminal Investigation.
DEFENDANT Case Number: 14cr923-L and 14cr924-L Sven Erik Ulsteen Age: 50 San Diego, CA CHARGESCounterfeit and Forged Securities, in violation of 18 U.S.C. §513.
Maximum Penalties: 10 years’ imprisonment, $250,000 fine or twice the pecuniary gain or loss resulting from the offense, $100 special assessment, restitution.Obstruction of Internal Revenue Laws, in violation of 26 U.S.C. § 7212(a).
INVESTIGATING AGENCY
Maximum Penalties: 3 years’ imprisonment, $250,000 fine or twice the pecuniary gain or loss resulting from the offense, $100 special assessment, restitution.Federal Bureau of Investigation
Internal Revenue Service, Criminal Investigation*Indictments and complaints are not evidence that the defendant committed the crime charged. All defendants are presumed innocent until the United States meets its burden in court of proving guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.
Hermitage Couple Sentenced for Conspiring to Defraud the IRSRead the Press Release
PITTSBURGH - Two residents of Hermitage, Pa., pleaded guilty and were sentenced in federal court on their conviction of conspiracy, United States Attorney David J. Hickton announced today.
Chief United States District Judge Joy Flowers Conti imposed the sentences yesterday on Eric Graven, 57, and Barbara Graven, 58. Eric Graven was sentenced to three years probation, a $4,000 fine, 150 hours of community service, and was ordered to pay $35,805 in restitution. Barbara Graven was sentenced to two years probation, a $2,000 fine, and ordered to pay $35,805 in restitution.
According to information presented to the court, Eric Graven, the Vice President, co-owner and shareholder of Custom Stone and Tile, Inc., and Barbara Graven, the President of Custom Stone and Tile, Inc., located in Hermitage, Pennsylvania, conspired with each other to defraud the Internal Revenue Service by intentionally failing to report cash earnings of the business in each of the calendar years 2005 through 2008, thereby avoiding the payment of income tax due and owing on such earnings.
Assistant United States Attorney Carolyn J. Bloch prosecuted this case on behalf of the government.
U.S. Attorney Hickton commended the Internal Revenue Service for the investigation leading to the successful prosecution of Eric and Barbara Graven.
Greenville Felon Sentenced in Operation “No Quarter”Read the Press Release
NEW BERN - United States Attorney Thomas G. Walker announced that in federal court today United States District Judge W. Earl Britt sentenced Ernest Joshon Wright, 27, of Greenville, North Carolina, to 78 months of imprisonment and 3 years of supervised release. WRIGHT previously pled guilty to possession of firearm by a felon and conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute quantities of cocaine, oxycodone, methadone, and marijuana.
The Greenville Police Department and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives used a confidential informant to make the following controlled purchases of narcotics from WRIGHT in 2012: cocaine on August 29 and September 27; marijuana on October 9 and October 23; and oxycodone on November 1. During the investigation WRIGHT began negotiating a purchase of four firearms, including a fully automatic assault rifle, from the confidential informant. On November 5, 2012, the confidential informant was provided with four “prop” firearms with firing pins removed. After WRIGHT took possession of the four firearms, agents executed search warrants and recovered two additional firearms and methadone pills. WRIGHT was prohibited from possessing the firearms due to his prior felony convictions of discharging a weapon into occupied property, attempted common law robbery and possession of firearm by a felon.
The Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF) Operation "No Quarter" was designed to attack the infrastructure of the Mexican Drug Trafficking Organizations (DTO), including those of the Los Zetas, La Familia, Gulf and Sinaloa drug cartels, operating not only in the Eastern District of North Carolina, but throughout North Carolina, the United States and Mexico. These DTO's are responsible for the importation of large quantities of cocaine, marijuana, heroin, and methamphetamine into the United States, as well as the related remittance of illegal drug proceeds back into Mexico.
The investigation spanned ten years and five North Carolina counties. As part of the investigation, over 100 individuals have been charged by indictment or criminal information in the Eastern District of North Carolina and state courts. Law enforcement officials seized drugs with a street value $4.6 million, including 127 kilograms of cocaine, 53 pounds of crystal methamphetamine, 160 pounds of marijuana, and 32 grams of heroin. Additionally, $2.2 million in U.S. Currency, 35 firearms and 35 real properties valued at $1.5 million were seized by law enforcement authorities.
Investigation of this case was conducted by the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) - Raleigh and Greensboro Resident Offices, the New York Field Division and numerous other DEA offices in the United States and Mexico; the Internal Revenue Service - Criminal Investigations; the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) - Raleigh and Wilmington offices; the United States Marshals Service; the United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) - Raleigh and Tampa, Florida offices; the North Carolina State Bureau of Investigation; the North Carolina National Guard; the North Carolina State Highway Patrol; the Greenville Police Department; the Pitt County Sheriff's Office; the Pamlico County Sheriff's Office; the Lenoir County Sheriff's Office; the Craven County Sheriff's Office; the Carteret County Sheriff's Office; the Beaufort County Sheriff's Office; the New Bern Police Department, the Wayne County Sheriff's Office; the Person County Sheriff's Office; the Farmville Police Department; the Goldsboro Police Department; the Rocky Mount Police Department; the Burlington Police Department, the Alamance County Sheriff's Office, and the Wilson Police Department.
The federal prosecutions were handled by Special Assistant United States Attorneys Glenn Perry and Augustus Willis, IV. Mr. Perry is a prosecutor with the Pitt County District Attorney’s Office. Mr. Willis is a prosecutor with the Carteret, Craven and Pamlico Counties District Attorney’s Office. District Attorneys Kimberly Robb and Scott Thomas have assigned Mr. Perry and Mr. Willis to the United States Attorney’s Office to prosecute federal Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force criminal matters. Their assignments to the United States Attorney’s Office have been made possible by grants funded by the Governor’s Crime Commission.
Grand Prairie Man Sentenced to 96 Months in Federal Prison for Exchanging Sexually Explicit Photos with A MinorRead the Press Release
DALLAS — Aaron Garcia, 21,of Grand Prairie, Texas, was sentenced yesterday by U.S. District Judge David C. Godbey to 96 months in federal prison, following his guilty plea in October 2013 to an Information charging one count of receipt of child pornography. Today’s announcement was made by U.S. Attorney Sarah R. Saldaña of the Northern District of Texas.
According to documents filed in the case, the investigation began as a result of a cyber-tip to law enforcement indicating that in September 2012, a minor girl, “Jane Doe,” began using an app on her cell phone to have sexual conversations with an adult male. The conversations included solicitations from both the adult male and Jane Doe to meet for sex. Jane Doe identified herself as a 14-year-old, although she was actually 13. The male also solicited nude photos of Jane Doe, which she sent. He sent her two sexually explicit images of himself.
An analysis of Garcia’s iPhone by the North Texas Regional Computer Forensic Lab revealed that it contained more than 40 images of child pornography, not including the images sent by Jane Doe.
The case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative, which was launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice, to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by U.S. Attorney’s Offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state and local resources to better locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals, who sexually exploit children, and identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit http://www.justice.gov/psc/. For more information about internet safety education, please visit http://www.justice.gov/psc/ and click on the tab “resources.”
The investigation was conducted by the Grand Prairie Police Department and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI). Assistant U.S. Attorney Camille Sparks prosecuted.
Georgia Woman Sentenced for Bank Fraud and Identity TheftRead the Press Release
BUFFALO, N.Y.B U.S. Attorney William J. Hochul, Jr. announced today that Kristina Thomas, 42, of Columbus, Georgia, formerly of Buffalo, N.Y., who was convicted of bank fraud and aggravated identity theft following a jury trial, was sentenced to 32 months in prison by U.S. District Court Judge Richard J. Arcara. The defendant was also ordered to pay restitution in the amount of $6,473.
The sentencing is the culmination of an investigation on the part of the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, under the direction of Acting Inspector in Charge Shelly Binkowski.
Assistant U.S. Attorneys Edward H. White and Maura K. O'Donnell, who handled the trial of the case, stated that in 2005 and 2006, while the defendant was an employee of HSBC Bank, she and others came into possession of checks and a credit card from HSBC Bank. The checks and credit card were obtained using stolen identifying information of a woman from Illinois. Thomas and others then recruited individuals to cash the checks at various banks in Buffalo. The defendant also caused the credit card to be used at various retailers in Buffalo.Former Caseworker for the Dallas Project Reconnect Pleads Guilty to Witness Tampering, Making A False Statement to HUD and Deprivation Under Color of LawRead the Press Release
DALLAS — Lawrence Hart, 37, appeared today before U.S. Magistrate Judge Renée Harris Toliver and pleaded guilty to a felony and misdemeanor Information charging various offenses stemming from his role as a caseworker for an outreach program that is managed by the City of Dallas’s Housing Department. The announcement was made today by U.S. Attorney Sarah R. Saldaña of the Northern District of Texas.
Specifically, Hart pleaded guilty to one count of witness tampering, one count of making a false statement to the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) and one count of deprivation of rights under color of law. He faces a maximum statutory sentence of 20 years in federal prison and a $250,000 fine for the witness tampering count, and a maximum statutory sentence of one year in federal prison and a $100,000 fine for the false statement count and for the deprivation of rights count. He will remain on bond pending sentencing, set for July 14, 2014, by U.S. District Judge David C. Godbey.
According to documents filed in the case, in 2012 and 2013, Hart was a caseworker for Project Reconnect, a HUD-funded outreach program managed by the City of Dallas’s Housing Department. Project Reconnect provides reentry case management and community referrals to help non-violent offenders on parole settle back into the Dallas community. One of the main components of Project Reconnect is to provide housing to eligible individuals. As the program was being applied at the time, to be eligible for Project Reconnect, an individual must reside in Dallas, have felony conviction, be 18 years or older, be currently on parole or probation and meet HUD low to moderate income guidelines.
Hart admitted that in July 2012, he arranged for “Person A” to sign a lease for an apartment in Carrollton, under the Project Reconnect program, even though Person A did not qualify for the program at that time. The apartment’s rent was $980.00 per month, and Project Reconnect was responsible for $975 of that amount and Person A was responsible for $5.00 per month. Hart admitted that while he worked for the City of Dallas’s Housing Authority, he was in fact the sole occupant of that apartment and Person A never resided there. Hart further admitted that he submitted documentation to HUD reflecting that Person A was the sole occupant.
When HUD, the Dallas Police Department (DPD) and the FBI began investigating fraudulent activity related to Project Reconnect, they interviewed Hart about his involvement in Project Reconnect and his potential criminal activity. After that interview, Hart contacted Person A and instructed Person A to lie to a DPD detective and FBI special agent by telling them that Person A lived in the Carrollton apartment.
In late 2012, according to the factual resume filed in the case, Hart met “Person B” and fast-tracked Person B through the Project Reconnect program. While Person B was qualified for the program, Hart propositioned her for sex and expedited her placement in an apartment because she agreed to have sex with him. In January 2013, Person B ended her intimate relationship with Hart. Acting under color of law, Hart removed her from the HUD-subsidized apartment, wilfully depriving her of the right, to be free from discrimination in the terms, condition and privileges of rental of a dwelling because of her sex.
The DPD, HUD and FBI investigated the case. Assistant U.S. Attorney Errin Martin is prosecuting.
Former Carbon County Man Sentenced to 188 Months in Prision for Receiving and Distributing Child PornographyRead the Press Release
The United States Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Pennsylvania announced that a 32-year-old former Lehighton resident was sentenced today to serve 188 months in prison for receiving and distributing child pornography by Senior U.S. District Court Judge Edwin M. Kosik.
According to United States Attorney Peter Smith, the defendant, Stephen Puza III, previously pleaded guilty to using a computer to download and share numerous images of child pornography during July 2011 through September 2011. Puza was living in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, at the time of his arrest.
Puza was indicted by a federal grand jury on September 10, 2013, as a result of an investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Pennsylvania State Police, and Lehighton Borough Police.
Judge Kosik also ordered Puza to be placed on supervised release for 10 years after serving his prison sentence. Puza was ordered to undergo sex offender treatment and will be subject to sex offender registration requirements and restrictions upon his release from prison.
This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by the United States Attorneys' Offices and the Criminal Division's Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who sexually exploit children, and to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.usdoj.gov/psc . For more information about internet safety education, please visit www.usdoj.gov/psc and click on the tab "resources."
The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Francis P. Sempa.
Former CFO of Nashville Restraunts Pleads Guilty to $1 Million Money Laundering Scheme Against American ExpressRead the Press Release
Guilty Plea Came During Fourth Day of Jury Trial
Michael G. Tangredi, 23, of Nashville, pleaded guilty yesterday to money laundering, announced David Rivera, U.S. Attorney for the Middle District of Tennessee. Tangredi’s plea came after evidence and testimony during the fourth day of a jury trial in U.S. District Court. District Judge Aleta Trauger accepted the guilty plea and then discharged the jury hearing the case.
A superseding indictment in June 2013 charged Tangredi with wire fraud and mail fraud and aiding and abetting others in the execution of a wire fraud and mail fraud scheme against American Express. The superseding indictment also charged Tangredi with engaging in financial transactions using portions of the $1 million that American Express had paid them during the scheme, which occurred between May-September 2008.
“This guilty plea required the dogged determination and detailed analysis by the U.S. Secret Service to unravel a complex case and its convoluted money trail,” said U.S. Attorney David Rivera. “The defendant now stands convicted and faces a significant sentence.”
The testimony at trial was that Tangredi’s father owned three Italian restaurants in Nashville which he operated with Tangredi’s assistance as chief financial officer. Bank records introduced in evidence reflected that the restaurants had experienced significant financial stress in the months just prior to the fraud. The credit card scheme generated large sums of cash. Trial testimony also established that the fraudulently acquired funds were used to purchase a Maserati, a Bentley; and a restaurant in Hawaii.
Federal State, and, Local Teamwork Nets 38 Indictments for Illegal Prescription Drug Sales, Money LaunderingRead the Press Release
Memphis, TN – At least 28 individuals were arrested today as part of an illegal prescription drug distribution ring, announced U.S. Attorney Edward L. Stanton III and Shelby County District Attorney General Amy Weirich.
A federal indictment was unsealed today accusing 15 individuals of money laundering and distribution of Dilaudid and Oxycodone. In addition to those charged federally, General Weirich’s office announced the indictments of 23 individuals on state charges.
The following individuals were charged by a federal grand jury. The potential penalties each one is facing can be found on the chart attached to this release.
Larry Bailey, aka, “Rock”, 30, of Memphis, TN, was charged with one count of distribution of Dilaudid and one count of distribution of Oxycodone.
Michael Gholson, 45, of Memphis, TN, was charged with one count of distribution of Dilaudid, one count of distribution of Oxycodone, and one count of money laundering.
Melody Hurtault, 37, of Corona, CA, was charged with one count of money laundering.
Willie Jamerson, 52, of Los Angeles, CA, was charged with one count of distribution of Dilaudid and one count of distribution of Oxycodone.
Corey Jeffries, 40, of Memphis, TN, was charged with one count of distribution of Dilaudid and one count of distribution of Oxycodone.
Eliado Jimenez, 46, of Los Angeles, CA, was charged with one count of distribution of Dilaudid and one count of distribution of Oxycodone.
Marissa Lewis, 45, of Las Vegas, NV, was charged with one count of money laundering.
Terrence Moore, aka, “Head”, 36, of Memphis, TN, was charged with one count of distribution of Dilaudid and one count of distribution of Oxycodone.
Milton Murray, 67, of Los Angeles, CA, was charged with one count of distribution of Dilaudid, one count of distribution of Oxycodone, and one count of money laundering.
Shira Nickerson, 46, of Terrell, TX, was charged with one count of distribution of Dilaudid and one count of distribution of Oxycodone.
Shelby Robinson, age unknown, of Memphis, TN, was charged with one count of distribution of Dilaudid and one count of distribution of Oxycodone.
Frederick Scott, 40, of Corona, CA, was charged with one count of distribution of Dilaudid, one count of distribution of Oxycodone, and one count of money laundering.
Marlin White, 32, of Memphis, TN, was charged with one count of distribution of Dilaudid and one count of distribution of Oxycodone.
Alton Williams, 41, of Memphis, TN, was charged with one count of distribution of Dilaudid and one count of distribution of Oxycodone.
Victor Wright, 55, of Atlanta, GA, was charged with one count of distribution of Dilaudid and one count of distribution of Oxycodone.
More than 200 individuals from law enforcement agencies assisted in the early morning takedown, including the Drug Enforcement Administration, the Memphis Police Department’s Organized Crime Unit, and the Shelby County Sheriff’s Office.
This investigation was conducted in conjunction with prosecutors in Memphis as part of the Department of Justice’s Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) Program, which seeks to reduce the availability of drugs by disrupting and dismantling major drug trafficking organizations, money laundering organizations and related criminal enterprises.
This case is being investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration, the U.S. Marshal’s Service, and the Memphis Police Department. Assistant United States Attorney Michelle Kimbril-Parks is representing the government.# # # #
The charges and allegations contained in the indictment are merely accusations, and the defendants are considered innocent unless and until proven guilty.Federal Search Warrant Executed at Golden Grove Correctional Facility in St. CroixRead the Press Release
St. Croix, USVI – A federal search warrant authorizing federal agents to search the Golden Grove Adult Correctional and Detention Facility (Golden Grove) in St. Croix for illegal contraband was executed last night, announced Ronald W. Sharpe, United States Attorney for the District of the Virgin Islands, Vito S. Guarino, Special Agent in Charge of the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) Caribbean Division and Carlos Cases Special Agent in Charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) San Juan Field Division. The search warrant authorized federal agents to search inmates’ cells and certain common areas such as the prison yard and workshop areas for illegal contraband, weapons, controlled substances and cellular telephones. Under federal and territorial law, it is illegal for inmates to possess such items. Federal inmates awaiting trial and those already sentenced and pending transfer to a federal correctional facility are held at Golden Grove.
The search is part of a multi-year federal investigation involving the smuggling of illegal contraband into Golden Grove by Correctional Officers (COs), inmates, and others. According to the affidavit in support of the warrant, COs have been directly involved in the smuggling of contraband into the prison and are often paid by inmates to do so. The affidavit also states that numerous inmates regularly possess illegal contraband. The affidavit also details the methods used by COs and inmates to smuggle and hide contraband inside the prison. These methods include the use of cellular phones by inmates to arrange for delivery of contraband to COs, the smuggling of contraband into the prison by COs using their personal belongings, and the concealment of contraband by inmates in their cells and other places in the prison. The affidavit also reveals the following:
• Between February 2012 and February 2014, fifty-one (51) of approximately 350 prison cells at Golden Grove have been searched by the Bureau of Corrections. These searches have resulted in the seizure of marijuana, weapons such as shanks and knives, cellular telephones, telephone chargers, SIM cards (subscriber module), and cable boxes.
• Inmates are often “tipped off” by prison officials prior to searches.
• Since November 2012, there have been 11 stabbing incidents (one resulting in the death of an inmate) with the most recent stabbing incident occurring February 20, 2014.
• A cellular telephone was used by inmates to arrange a murder for hire plot against two COs.
• Cellular telephones were used by inmates to arrange the sale or purchase of contraband in the prison.
• Most inmates (approximately 90%) are in daily possession of some form of prison contraband.
• Despite the recent arrest of two COs for attempting to smuggle contraband into the prison, contraband continues to be smuggled into Golden Grove.
U.S. Attorney Sharpe said a search warrant is an investigative tool used to collect evidence of criminal offenses, and that the execution of the warrant at Golden Grove is part of an ongoing investigation. “The smuggling of contraband into Golden Grove is a serious offense that jeopardizes not just the inmates and corrections officers but the entire community,” said U.S. Attorney Sharpe.
“Shanks, knives, and controlled substances pose an obvious danger to other inmates and correctional personnel,” stated Special Agent in Charge Guarino. “As the search warrant affidavit shows, cellular telephones in the hands of inmates also pose a serious threat to the security of the prison. They can be used to commit further crimes, run criminal organizations from inside prisons, intimidate witnesses, plot escapes, and facilitate drug trafficking inside the prison.”
The investigation leading to today’s search warrant was led by the St. Croix DEA High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area (HIDTA) Task Force, which includes officers from the Virgin Islands Police Department (VIPD), with assistance from the FBI. Assisting HIDTA in today’s search were agents from the FBI, the U.S. Marshals Service, Bureau of Alcohol Tobacco Firearms and Explosives, Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigation Division, U.S. Department of Homeland Security, Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), U.S. Customs and Border Protection, VIPD, and the Virgin Islands National Guard.
There were no arrests in connection with today’s search. The search warrants and a redacted version of the affidavit in support of the search warrants have been unsealed today. The results of the search will be made public at a later date.
Fairview Heights Man Sentenced for Failure to Register as A Sex OffenderRead the Press Release
Follow @SDILNewsOtto W. Jean, a 60-year old, Fairview Heights, Illinois, man was sentenced on April 7, 2014, in federal district court in East St. Louis, Illinois, on one count of failure to register as a sex offender, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of Illinois, Stephen R. Wigginton, announced today. Jean was sentenced to 5 years’ probation, fined $150 and ordered to pay a $100 special assessment.
The violation occurred when Jean moved his residence from Missouri to Fairview Heights, Illinois, in November 2011, without registering as a sex offender as required under both Illinois law and the Sex Offender Registration and Notification Act (SORNA). Jean was convicted of Statutory Sodomy in the 2nd Degree, Statutory Rape, and Endangering the Welfare of a Child on March 1, 2000, in St. Louis County, Missouri.
Jean signed a Missouri Sex Offender Registration Act Form on May 3, 2000, acknowledging he understood the conditions of maintaining his sex offender registration after his release from prison. The victim’s mother in the 2001 conviction reported him residing within the city limits to the Fairview Heights Police Department. Officers interviewed Jean on July 28, 2013, where he admitted living in Illinois, between November 2011 and July, 27, 2013, and not having registered, until police confronted him on July 28, 2013.
This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice. Led by United States Attorneys’ Offices and the Criminal Division's Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS), Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state and local resources to better locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals, who sexually exploit children, and to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.usdoj.gov/psc. For more information about internet safety education, please visit www.usdoj.gov/psc and click on the tab “resources.”
The case was investigated by the United States Marshals Service and the Fairview Heights Police Department. Assistant United States Attorney Daniel T. Kapsak prosecuted the case.
Elma Man Pleads Guilty to Gun ChargesRead the Press Release
BUFFALO, N.Y.—U.S. Attorney William J. Hochul, Jr. announced today that Bernard T. Grucza, 38, of Elma, N.Y., pleaded guilty to possession of a firearm by a person subject to as domestic violence order of protection before Chief U.S. District Court Judge William M. Skretny. The charge carries a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison and a $250,000 fine.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Timothy C. Lynch, who is handling the case, the defendant made false written statements to Big Daddy Guns in order to obtain a Ruger .380 caliber pistol. Between July 13, 2013 and October 16, 2013, the defendant possessed the pistol despite being the subject of a restraining order issued by Elma Town Court. In addition, Grucza made false statements to Special Agents with the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives that he had destroyed the pistol and thrown out the parts when in fact he had not.
As part of his plea, the defendant admitted to stealing over $200,000 worth of merchandise and cash from his employer, Toys R Us. Grucza then sold the merchandise on eBay. The plea agreement require the defendant to pay restitution to Toys R Us in the amount of $223,000.
The plea is the result of an investigation by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Thomas J. Cannon, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Erie County Sheriff’s Department, under the direction of Sheriff Timothy Howard, and the Hamburg Police Department, under the direction of Michael Williams.
Sentencing is scheduled for July 23, 2014 at 11:00 a.m. before Judge Skretny.East Hartford Man Sentenced to 66 Months in Prison for Role in Heroin Trafficking RingRead the Press Release
Follow @USAO_CT
Deirdre M. Daly, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, announced that ANGEL ROSA, also known as “Booby” and “Little Booby, 21, of East Hartford, was sentenced today by U.S. District Judge Michael P. Shea in Hartford to 66 months of imprisonment, followed by five years of supervised release, for his role in a heroin trafficking ring.
According to court documents and statements made in court, this matter stems from “Operation Solid Sweep,” a joint law enforcement investigation headed by the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s Northern Connecticut Violent Crimes Task Force and the Hartford Police Department into gang-related narcotics trafficking in Hartford’s South End. The investigation specifically targeted a drug trafficking organization headed by Angel Rosa, also known as “Little” and “Daddy,” who is a member of the Los Solidos street gang. Rosa’s cousin, Angel Rosa, also known as “Mo Betta” and “Fab,” supervised the daily operations of the organization, which distributed heroin and other narcotics in the Zion Street area.
ROSA, who is Mo Betta’s son, distributed heroin from 584 Zion Street almost every day during the course of the investigation.
As a result of the investigation, 21 individuals were charged with various federal offenses, and law enforcement officers seized narcotics, one firearm, approximately $230,000 in cash, eight vehicles and jewelry.
ROSA was arrested on April 11, 2013. On December 19, 2013, he pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute, and to distribute, 100 grams or more of heroin.
Angel Rosa, aka “Little” and “Daddy,” and Angel Rosa, aka “Mo Betta” and “Fab,” have each pleaded guilty and await sentencing.
This matter is being investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s Northern Connecticut Violent Crimes Task Force, which includes members of the Connecticut State Police, Hartford Police Department, East Hartford Police Department, Connecticut Department of Correction and Connecticut National Guard. The Connecticut State Police’s Emergency Services Unit, Hartford Police Department’s Emergency Response Team, Capital Region Emergency Response Team, Drug Enforcement Administration, Homeland Security Investigations and the New Britain, East Hartford, Wethersfield and Manchester Police Departments have provided valuable assistance to the investigation.
The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Brian Leaming and Patrick Caruso.
PUBLIC AFFAIRS CONTACT:
U.S. ATTORNEY'S OFFICE
Tom Carson
(203) 821-3722 [email protected]Downsville Man Sentenced to 15 Years in Prison for Receiving Child PornographyRead the Press Release
MONROE, La. – United States Attorney Stephanie A. Finley announced today that Randy A. Powell, 34, of Downsville, La., was sentenced Monday by U.S. District Judge Robert G. James to 15 years in prison and five years of supervised release for receiving child pornography.
According to evidence presented at the guilty plea on December 10, 2013, Ouachita Parish Sheriff’s Office deputies learned in February of 2012 that Powell, who is a registered sex offender, was maintaining social media accounts under an alias, which is a violation of his sex offender registration requirements. Authorities arrested Powell February 23, 2013, and his home was searched. They found 1,041 images and 150 videos of prepubescent children. Approximately 50 of the videos/photos depicted children in bondage. Powell admitted to investigators that he used a file-sharing program to download the images. Powell has a previous conviction for attempted possession of child pornography.
The FBI and the Ouachita Parish Sheriff’s Office conducted the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney Seth D. Reeg prosecuted the case. This case is part of Project Safe Childhood, a U.S. Department of Justice nationwide initiative to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by U.S. Attorneys’ Offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state and local resources to better locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who 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.
Those concerned may also leave tips with the FBI at tips.fbi.gov. Tips may be submitted anonymously. The Monroe FBI office number is (318) 387-0773.
Dominican Man Charged with Illegal ReentryRead the Press Release
The United States Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Pennsylvania announced today that criminal proceedings have been initiated against Reynoso Matos, a/k/a Julio Eliezer Minyettis, age 35, a native and citizen of the Dominican Republic.
A Grand Jury in Scranton today returned an Indictment charging Matos with illegal reentry into the United States after having been previously deported and after having been convicted of an aggravated felony involving the trafficking of controlled substances.
If convicted, Matos faces imprisonment of up to 20 years and a fine in the amount of $250,000.
The case was investigated by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) Enforecment and Removal Operations (ERO).
Prosecution is assigned to Assistant United States Attorney Michelle Olshefski.
Indictments and Criminal Informations are only allegations. All persons charged are presumed to be innocent unless and until found guilty in court.
A sentence following a finding of guilty is imposed by the Judge after consideration of the applicable federal sentencing statutes and the Federal Sentencing Guidelines.
In this case, the maximum penalty under the federal statute is 20 years imprisonment, a term of supervised release following imprisonment, and a fine. Under the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, the Judge is also required to consider and weigh a number of factors, including the nature, circumstances and seriousness of the offense; the history and characteristics of the defendant; and the need to punish the defendant, protect the public and provide for the defendant’s educational, vocational and medical needs. For these reasons, the statutory maximum penalty for the offense is not an accurate indicator of the potential sentence for a specific defendant.
District Man Sentenced to 8 ½ Years in Prison for Pair of Bank Robberies in Downtown Washington-Defendant Held up Two Banks on the Same Day-Read the Press Release
WASHINGTON – Clyde Lacy Rattler, 56, of Washington, D.C., was sentenced today to an 8 ½-year prison term on two counts of bank robbery stemming from a pair of hold-ups committed in downtown Washington on the same day, 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).
Rattler was found guilty by a jury in January 2014, following a trial in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia. He was sentenced by the Honorable Ketanji Brown Jackson. Upon completion of his prison term, Rattler will be placed on three years of supervised release. He also will be required to pay $2,791 in restitution to the banks.
In 2005, Rattler was convicted of three bank robberies and one attempted bank robbery.
According to the government’s evidence, on Friday, Aug. 2, 2013, at about 10 a.m., Rattler approached the teller station at United Bank, in the 1600 block of K Street NW, and told the teller that he had a gun and wanted money in large denominations. The teller gave Rattler multiple clips of $100 and $50 bills, and he exited the bank. The loss to the bank was later determined to be $1,650.
Later the same day, at about 5 p.m., Rattler approached the teller station at the TD Bank, in the 1000 block of 15th Street NW. He told the teller he had a gun and a bomb, and he wanted money in large denominations. The teller gave him money, and he exited the bank. The loss to the bank was later determined to be $1,141.
A news report describing the robberies aired on a local television station, including bank surveillance footage. After seeing a news report, several persons, including two law enforcement officers, called the FBI, and Rattler was identified as the perpetrator of the robberies.
In announcing the sentence, U.S. Attorney Machen, Assistant Director in Charge Parlave, and Chief Lanier commended the actions of those who investigated the robberies for the FBI and MPD. They also acknowledged the efforts of those who worked on the case from the U.S. Attorney’s Office, including Paralegal Specialist Candace Battle and Legal Assistant Tammy Scott. Finally, they expressed appreciation for the work of Assistant U.S. Attorney Emory V. Cole, who investigated and prosecuted the case.
14-082District Man Sentenced to 8 ½ Years in Prison for Pair of Bank Robberies in Downtown Washington-Defendant Held up Two Banks on the Same Day-Read the Press Release
WASHINGTON – Clyde Lacy Rattler, 56, of Washington, D.C., was sentenced today to an 8 ½-year prison term on two counts of bank robbery stemming from a pair of hold-ups committed in downtown Washington on the same day, 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).
Rattler was found guilty by a jury in January 2014, following a trial in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia. He was sentenced by the Honorable Ketanji Brown Jackson. Upon completion of his prison term, Rattler will be placed on three years of supervised release. He also will be required to pay $2,791 in restitution to the banks.
In 2005, Rattler was convicted of three bank robberies and one attempted bank robbery.
According to the government’s evidence, on Friday, Aug. 2, 2013, at about 10 a.m., Rattler approached the teller station at United Bank, in the 1600 block of K Street NW, and told the teller that he had a gun and wanted money in large denominations. The teller gave Rattler multiple clips of $100 and $50 bills, and he exited the bank. The loss to the bank was later determined to be $1,650.
Later the same day, at about 5 p.m., Rattler approached the teller station at the TD Bank, in the 1000 block of 15th Street NW. He told the teller he had a gun and a bomb, and he wanted money in large denominations. The teller gave him money, and he exited the bank. The loss to the bank was later determined to be $1,141.
A news report describing the robberies aired on a local television station, including bank surveillance footage. After seeing a news report, several persons, including two law enforcement officers, called the FBI, and Rattler was identified as the perpetrator of the robberies.
In announcing the sentence, U.S. Attorney Machen, Assistant Director in Charge Parlave, and Chief Lanier commended the actions of those who investigated the robberies for the FBI and MPD. They also acknowledged the efforts of those who worked on the case from the U.S. Attorney’s Office, including Paralegal Specialist Candace Battle and Legal Assistant Tammy Scott. Finally, they expressed appreciation for the work of Assistant U.S. Attorney Emory V. Cole, who investigated and prosecuted the case.
14-082Detroit Home Health Agency Office Manager Sentencedfor Her Role in $5.8 Million Medicare Fraud SchemeRead the Press Release
The office manager of a Detroit-area home health agency was sentenced today to serve 46 months in prison for her role in a $5.8 million Medicare fraud scheme.
Acting Assistant Attorney General David A. O’Neil of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, U.S. Attorney Barbara L. McQuade of the Eastern District of Michigan, Special Agent in Charge Paul M. Abbate of the FBI’s Detroit Field Office and Special Agent in Charge Lamont Pugh III of the Detroit Office of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General’s (HHS-OIG) Office of Investigations made the announcement.
Nabila Mahbub, 28, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Denise Page Hood in the Eastern District of Michigan. In addition to her prison term, Mahbub was sentenced to serve two years of supervised release and was ordered to pay more than $3 million in restitution, jointly and severally with her co-defendants.
A jury convicted Mahbub of one count of health care fraud conspiracy in April 2013. According to evidence presented at trial, the defendant and her co-conspirators caused the submission of false and fraudulent claims to Medicare through All American Home Care Inc., a home health care company located in Oak Park, Mich., that purported to provide skilled nursing and physical therapy services to Medicare beneficiaries in the greater Detroit area.
The evidence at trial showed that Mahbub and her co-conspirators used patient recruiters, who paid Medicare beneficiaries to sign blank documents for physical therapy services that were never provided and/or medically unnecessary. The owners of All American paid physicians to sign referrals and other therapy documents necessary to bill Medicare. Physical therapists and physical therapist assistants then created fake medical records using blank, pre-signed forms obtained by the patient recruiters to make it appear as if physical therapy services were actually rendered, when, in fact, they were not.
According to evidence presented at trial, Mahbub doctored and directed the doctoring of fake patient files to facilitate the commencement and billing of home health services purportedly provided by physical therapists and physical therapist assistants working for All American. Mahbub also directed the physical therapists and physical therapist assistants who created fake therapy visit notes using blank, pre-signed forms, to make it appear that physical therapy services billed to Medicare were actually provided.
All American was paid more than $5.8 million from Medicare between September 2008 and November 2009.
The investigation was led by the FBI and HHS-OIG and was brought by the Medicare Fraud Strike Force, under the supervision of the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Michigan. This case is being prosecuted by Deputy Chief Gejaa T. Gobena and Trial Attorney Matthew C. Thuesen of the Fraud Section.
Since its inception in March 2007, the Medicare Fraud Strike Force, now operating in nine cities across the country, has charged more than 1,700 defendants who have collectively billed the Medicare program for more than $5.5 billion. In addition, HHS’s Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, working in conjunction with HHS-OIG, is taking steps to increase accountability and decrease the presence of fraudulent providers.
To learn more about the Health Care Fraud Prevention and Enforcement Action Team (HEAT), go to www.stopmedicarefraud.gov .Department of Justice Reaches Landmark Americans with Disabilities Act Settlement Agreement with Rhode IslandRead the Press Release
The Justice Department announced today that it has entered into a statewide settlement agreement that will resolve violations of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) for approximately 3,250 Rhode Islanders with intellectual and developmental disabilities (I/DD). The landmark ten year agreement is the nation’s first statewide settlement to address the rights of people with disabilities to receive state funded employment and daytime services in the broader community, rather than in segregated sheltered workshops and facility-based day programs. Approximately 450,000 people with I/DD across the country spend their days in segregated sheltered workshops or in segregated day programs. The agreement significantly advances the department's work to enforce the Supreme Court's decision in Olmstead v. L.C, which requires persons with I/DD be served in the most integrated setting appropriate .
As a result of the settlement, 2,000 Rhode Islanders with I/DD who are currently being served by segregated programs will have opportunities to work in real jobs at competitive wages. Additionally, over the next ten years, 1,250 students with I/DD will receive services to help transition into the workforce.
“Today’s agreement will make Rhode Island a national leader in the movement to bring people with disabilities out of segregated work settings and into typical jobs in the community at competitive pay,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General Jocelyn Samuels for the Civil Rights Division. “As Rhode Island implements the agreement over the next ten years, it will make a dramatic difference in the lives of people with disabilities, businesses and communities across the state. We congratulate Governor Chafee and state officials for signing this agreement, as we believe that Rhode Island will be a model for the nation with respect to integrated employment for people with disabilities.”
“The filing of today’s consent decree is a critically important event in Rhode Island history,” said U.S. Attorney Peter F. Neronha for the District of Rhode Island. “It ushers in a new day of opportunity – opportunity for Rhode Island residents with intellectual or developmental disabilities to live, work and spend their recreational time alongside their fellow Rhode Islanders. It is an opportunity for this State to move forward; to recognize, finally, that we are better, stronger, when all of us – all of us –are interwoven in the fabric that is Rhode Island.”
Under the agreement, Rhode Island has agreed to provide:
· Supported employment placements that are individual, typical jobs in the community, that pay at least minimum wage, and that offer employment for the maximum number of hours consistent with the person’s abilities and preferences, amounting to an average of at least 20 hours per week across the target population;
· Supports for integrated non-work activities for times when people are not at work including mainstream educational, leisure or volunteer activities that use the same community centers, libraries, recreational, sports and educational facilities that are available to everyone;
· Transition services for students with I/DD, to start at age 14, and to include internships, job site visits and mentoring, enabling students to leave school prepared for jobs in the community at competitive wages;
· Significant funding sustained over a ten year period that redirects funds currently used to support services in segregated settings to those that incentivize services in integrated settings.
The ten year agreement will allow the state to ensure that the services necessary to support individuals with I/DD in competitive, integrated jobs will not disappear with a change in administration or legislative leadership. As a result of this commitment, the business community has already stepped up to partner with the state. The U.S. Business Leadership Network (USBLN), a network of Fortune 500 companies, and Walgreens will co-host a regional business summit in Rhode Island in June 2014 to explore how to improve those partnerships.
The agreement is the result of an ADA investigation that began in January 2013 into Rhode Island’s day activity service system for people with I/DD. The department, the state, and the City of Providence entered into an interim settlement agreement in June 2013. The interim settlement agreement focused on a single provider, which was one of the largest facility-based employment service providers in the state’s system, and a school-based sheltered workshop at a Providence, R.I., high school, which was a point of origin for many people entering the provider’s workshop.
The department continued its investigation of the statewide system, and in January 2014 issued findings determining that the statewide system over-relied on segregated services, to the exclusion of integrated alternatives, in violation of the ADA. The department found workers with I/DD in settings where they had little or no contact with persons without disabilities, and where they earned an average wage of $2.21 per hour. The investigation found that workers typically remain in such settings for many years, and sometimes decades. The department also found that students in Rhode Island schools were often not presented with meaningful choices to participate in integrated alternatives, such as integrated transition work placements and work-based learning experiences, which put students at serious risk of unnecessary postsecondary placement in segregated sheltered workshops and facility-based day programs.
Since June 2013, the state and city have provided supported employment services to people with I/DD transitioning from the original two facilities covered by the interim settlement agreement. Many of these individuals have now accessed jobs in typical work settings where they can interact with non-disabled coworkers and customers, and enjoy the same employment benefits as their non-disabled peers. Individuals have secured jobs at both locally owned and national companies. Because of the interim settlement agreement, Pedro , an individual who transitioned from the in-school sheltered workshop to the adult workshop, where he earned just 48 cents an hour, is now making minimum wage working at a restaurant. Peter , another former sheltered workshop employee who was earning approximately $1.50 per hour, now has a job earning more than minimum wage working for the state as a custodian at a hospital. Louis has gone from earning sub-minimum wages performing rote tasks at the sheltered workshop to a full-time position at a state hospital, where he uses his strong computer skills and passion for mathematics to generate Excel reports, record time sheets, and complete other office tasks. For more information on these individuals and others, please visit the Department’s Faces of Olmstead website .
Please visit www.ada.gov/olmstead to learn more about the Division’s ADA Olmstead enforcement efforts, and www.justice.gov/crt to learn more about the laws enforced by the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division
Department of Justice Reaches Landmark Americans with Disabilities Act Settlement Agreement with Rhode IslandRead the Press Release
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE CRT
TUESDAY, APRIL 8, 2014 (202) 514-2007
WWW.JUSTICE.GOV TTY (866) 544-5309WASHINGTON – The Justice Department announced today that it has entered into a statewide settlement agreement that will resolve violations of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) for approximately 3,250 Rhode Islanders with intellectual and developmental disabilities (I/DD). The landmark ten year agreement is the nation’s first statewide settlement to address the rights of people with disabilities to receive state funded employment and daytime services in the broader community, rather than in segregated sheltered workshops and facility-based day programs. Approximately 450,000 people with I/DD across the country spend their days in segregated sheltered workshops or in segregated day programs. The agreement significantly advances the department's work to enforce the Supreme Court's decision in Olmstead v. L.C, which requires persons with I/DD be served in the most integrated setting appropriate.
As a result of the settlement, 2,000 Rhode Islanders with I/DD who are currently being served by segregated programs will have opportunities to work in real jobs at competitive wages. Additionally, over the next ten years, 1,250 students with I/DD will receive services to help transition into the workforce.
“Today’s agreement will make Rhode Island a national leader in the movement to bring people with disabilities out of segregated work settings and into typical jobs in the community at competitive pay,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General Jocelyn Samuels for the Civil Rights Division. “As Rhode Island implements the agreement over the next ten years, it will make a dramatic difference in the lives of people with disabilities, businesses and communities across the state. We congratulate Governor Chafee and state officials for signing this agreement, as we believe that Rhode Island will be a model for the nation with respect to integrated employment for people with disabilities.”
“The filing of today’s consent decree is a critically important event in Rhode Island history,” said U.S. Attorney Peter F. Neronha for the District of Rhode Island. “It ushers in a new day of opportunity – opportunity for Rhode Island residents with intellectual or developmental disabilities to live, work and spend their recreational time alongside their fellow Rhode Islanders. It is an opportunity for this State to move forward; to recognize, finally, that we are better, stronger, when all of us – all of us –are interwoven in the fabric that is Rhode Island.”
Under the agreement, Rhode Island has agreed to provide:
- Supported employment placements that are individual, typical jobs in the community, that pay at least minimum wage, and that offer employment for the maximum number of hours consistent with the person’s abilities and preferences, amounting to an average of at least 20 hours per week across the target population;
- Supports for integrated non-work activities for times when people are not at work including mainstream educational, leisure or volunteer activities that use the same community centers, libraries, recreational, sports and educational facilities that are available to everyone;
- Transition services for students with I/DD, to start at age 14, and to include internships, job site visits and mentoring, enabling students to leave school prepared for jobs in the community at competitive wages;
- Significant funding sustained over a ten year period that redirects funds currently used to support services in segregated settings to those that incentivize services in integrated settings.
The ten year agreement will allow the state to ensure that the services necessary to support individuals with I/DD in competitive, integrated jobs will not disappear with a change in administration or legislative leadership. As a result of this commitment, the business community has already stepped up to partner with the state. The U.S. Business Leadership Network (USBLN), a network of Fortune 500 companies, and Walgreens will co-host a regional business summit in Rhode Island in June 2014 to explore how to improve those partnerships.
The agreement is the result of an ADA investigation that began in January 2013 into Rhode Island’s day activity service system for people with I/DD. The department, the state, and the City of Providence entered into an interim settlement agreement in June 2013. The interim settlement agreement focused on a single provider, which was one of the largest facility-based employment service providers in the state’s system, and a school-based sheltered workshop at a Providence, R.I., high school, which was a point of origin for many people entering the provider’s workshop.
The department continued its investigation of the statewide system, and in January 2014 issued findings determining that the statewide system over-relied on segregated services, to the exclusion of integrated alternatives, in violation of the ADA. The department found workers with I/DD in settings where they had little or no contact with persons without disabilities, and where they earned an average wage of $2.21 per hour. The investigation found that workers typically remain in such settings for many years, and sometimes decades. The department also found that students in Rhode Island schools were often not presented with meaningful choices to participate in integrated alternatives, such as integrated transition work placements and work-based learning experiences, which put students at serious risk of unnecessary postsecondary placement in segregated sheltered workshops and facility-based day programs.
Since June 2013, the state and city have provided supported employment services to people with I/DD transitioning from the original two facilities covered by the interim settlement agreement. Many of these individuals have now accessed jobs in typical work settings where they can interact with non-disabled coworkers and customers, and enjoy the same employment benefits as their non-disabled peers. Individuals have secured jobs at both locally owned and national companies. Because of the interim settlement agreement, Pedro, an individual who transitioned from the in-school sheltered workshop to the adult workshop, where he earned just 48 cents an hour, is now making minimum wage working at a restaurant. Peter, another former sheltered workshop employee who was earning approximately $1.50 per hour, now has a job earning more than minimum wage working for the state as a custodian at a hospital. Louis has gone from earning sub-minimum wages performing rote tasks at the sheltered workshop to a full-time position at a state hospital, where he uses his strong computer skills and passion for mathematics to generate Excel reports, record time sheets, and complete other office tasks.
For more information on these individuals and others, please visit the Department’s Faces of Olmstead website.
Please visit www.ada.gov/olmstead to learn more about the Division’s ADA Olmstead enforcement efforts, and www.justice.gov/crt to learn more about the laws enforced by the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division.
Contact: 401-709-5357
[email protected]Debt Relief Company and Its Owner Plead Guilty in Manhattan Federal Court to Multimillion-Dollar Scheme That Victimized over 1,200 Financially Struggling ConsumersRead the Press Release
Preet Bharara, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, announced today that MISSION SETTLEMENT AGENCY (“MISSION”) and its owner, MICHAEL LEVITIS, pled guilty in Manhattan federal court to fraud charges in connection with a multimillion-dollar scheme that victimized more than 1,200 financially struggling people across the country. LEVITIS and MISSION were charged in May 2013, and both pled guilty today before U.S. District Judge Paul G. Gardephe. Four other defendants previously pled guilty for their roles in the scheme.
Manhattan U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara said: “Michael Levitis and his company, Mission Settlement Agency, preyed on the desperation of financially struggling people across the country. Today’s guilty pleas ensure that the defendants who falsely offer debt relief, telling their victims a pack of lies in order to line their own pockets, will be held to account.”
According to the allegations contained in the Indictment and Superseding Information, other documents filed in Manhattan federal court, and statements made at today’s plea proceeding:
Beginning in 2009, MISSION offered “debt settlement” services to financially disadvantaged people who were struggling or unable to pay their credit card debts. Like other purported debt settlement providers, MISSION held itself out as a company that could successfully negotiate to lower the overall debt its customers owed to credit card companies and banks. MISSION solicited prospective customers through telemarketing and mail solicitations. Thereafter, MISSION’s sales representatives typically spoke to the prospective customers on the phone, describing MISSION’s work and its supposed ability to renegotiate debt.
LEVITIS was MISSION’s beneficial owner, and was responsible for managing MISSION’s day-to-day operations, its finances, its hiring and termination of employees, and its advertising and solicitation of customers.
From 2009 through May 2013, at LEVITIS’s direction, the defendants systematically exploited and defrauded over 1,200 customers, who were financially disadvantaged people across the country struggling to pay their credit card debts. They tricked people into paying MISSION for purported debt settlement services by lying to prospective customers about MISSION’s ability to help settle their debts, the fees that MISSION charged, and MISSION’s purported affiliation with the federal government. Among other things, the defendants: (1) lied about and/or concealed MISSION’s fees, falsely assuring customers that MISSION would charge a mere $49 per month when, in truth, MISSION took thousands of dollars in fees from funds that its customers believed would be used to pay creditors, (2) deceived customers by fraudulently and falsely promising that MISSION could slash their debts – typically, by 45% -- when, in fact, for the majority of its customers, MISSION did little or no work and failed to achieve any reduction in debt, and (3) sent prospective customers solicitation letters that falsely suggested that the agency was acting on behalf of or in connection with a federal governmental program, which letters included an image of the Great Seal of the United States and indicated that they were coming from the “Reduction Plan Administrator” of the purported “Office of Disbursement.” As a result of the defendants’ scheme, in addition to losing money, most of MISSION’s customers failed to achieve the reduction in debt that the defendants had promised them, and some of them suffered further declines in their credit ratings, were sued by their creditors, and/or fell into bankruptcy.
In connection with the scheme, MISSION received over $6.6 million in fees. For more than 1,200 of its customers, MISSION took fees totaling nearly $2.2 million but never paid a penny to the customers’ creditors. LEVITIS used the money that MISSION took from its customers to pay for, among other things, the operating expenses of a restaurant/nightclub he controlled, lease payments for two different luxury Mercedes cars, and credit card bills for his mother.
LEVITIS, 37, of Brooklyn, New York, pled guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit mail and wire fraud, and one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud, and faces a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison. MISSION pled guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit mail and wire fraud, and faces a fine of up to twice the gross pecuniary gain derived from the offense, and up to five years' probation. The defendants are scheduled to be sentenced by Judge Gardephe on August 21, 2014. 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.
In addition to entering their guilty pleas, LEVITIS and MISSION entered into a stipulation of settlement of the civil forfeiture action filed by the United States Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York entitled United States v. All Right, Title, and Interest in Rasputin Restaurant, 13 Civ. 3069 (GHW). As part of that stipulation of settlement, LEVITIS and MISSION consented to the entry of a permanent injunction barring them from providing, directly or indirectly, any debt relief or mortgage relief services in the future.
Four other defendants, Denis Kurlyand, Boris Shulman, Felix Lemberskiy, and Zakhir Shirinov, previously pled guilty for their roles in the fraudulent scheme. The charges against Manuel Cruz remain pending and he is presumed innocent unless and until he is proven guilty.
Mr. Bharara praised the investigative work of the United State Postal Inspection Service. He also thanked the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau for referring this case to this Office and for their assistance in this matter.
The prosecution of this case is being handled by the Office’s Complex Frauds Unit. Assistant United States Attorneys Nicole W. Friedlander and Edward A. Imperatore are in charge of the prosecution. Assistant United States Attorney Carolina A. Fornos of the Office’s Asset Forfeiture Unit is responsible for the forfeiture aspects of the case.
U.S. v. Michael Levitis Superseding Information
Crime Victims’ Rights Week “30 Years: Restoring the Balance of Justice”Read the Press Release
ATLANTA – April 6, 2014, marks the beginning of “National Crime Victim’s Rights Week,” a time to honor crime victims, celebrate our nation’s progress in advancing their rights, and work toward future goals. This year the Northern District of Georgia celebrates the 30th Anniversary of the Victims of Crime Act.
“It is appropriate for us to pause every year to remember the suffering of crime victims and their loved ones and to recommit ourselves to support them and to facilitate their healing and restoration,” said United States Attorney Sally Quillian Yates. “This year’s theme for Crime Victims’ Rights Week, ‘30 Years: Restoring the Balance of Justice,’ not only marks the tremendous growth and advancement of victims’ rights and services, but looks forward to continuing to expand the reach of victim service programs. Crime impacts not only the victim but also the victim’s family and community, and we must be mindful of this in every case we investigate and prosecute.”
Crime Victims’ Rights Week is marked nationwide not only by the Department of Justice and all of its United States Attorney's Offices, but by other federal, state and local participating agencies. Many of the agencies and community programs receive financial, volunteer, and other support to maintain their services for crime victims.
Every year, the United States Department of Justice’s Office for Victims of Crime (OVC) awards millions of dollars to supplement Georgia’s crime victim compensation program, which allows crime victims to receive financial help with their medical bills and other crime-associated expenses.
Here in the Northern District of Georgia, the number of federal cases alone demands an extraordinary effort to support and notify victims. Last year, our office, through our Victim-Witness Unit, notified 17,425 federal crime victims about matters including their rights as crime victims, the times of court hearings, and outcomes of court proceedings.
In addition, fines and penalties collected each year by U.S. Attorneys, the U.S. Courts and the Bureau of Prisons are deposited into the Crime Victims Fund and are available for grant awards the following year. This fund was established by the Victims of Crime Act of 1984 (VOCA) and is administered by OVC. In 2013, approximately $730 million was allocated into this fund for crime victim assistance and compensation.
This year, as we celebrate three decades of defending victims’ rights, we are reminded of how far we have come—and how much work is yet to be done. Only 30 years ago, crime victims had virtually no rights and no assistance. The criminal justice system often seemed indifferent to their needs. Victims were commonly excluded from courtrooms and denied the chance to speak at sentencing. They had no access to victim compensation or services to help rebuild their lives. There were few avenues to deal with their emotional and physical wounds. Victims were on their own to recover their health, security, and dignity.
Our nation has made dramatic progress in securing rights, protections, and services for victims. Every state has enacted victims’ rights laws and all have victim compensation programs. More than 10,000 victim service agencies now help people throughout the country. In 1984, Congress passed the bipartisan Victims of Crime Act (VOCA), which created a national fund to ease victims’ suffering. Financed not by taxpayers but by fines and penalties paid by offenders, the Crime Victims Fund supports victim services, such as rape crisis and domestic violence programs and victim compensation programs that pay many of victims’ out of-pocket expenses from the crime, such as counseling, funeral expenses, and lost wages.
Victims’ rights advocates have scored remarkable victories over the last 30 years. But there is still a lot of work to be done. As we move forward, we are increasingly expanding our reach to previously underserved victim populations, including victims of color, American Indians and Alaska Natives, adults molested as children, victims of elder abuse, and LGBTQ victims. Over three decades, VOCA pioneered support efforts for victims of once-hidden crimes, like domestic and sexual violence. Today, we are shining a spotlight on other abuses that have long been unreported and often not prosecuted—hate and bias crimes, bullying, and sex and labor trafficking, among others.
“Our commitment to reaching every victim of crime is stronger than ever,” said Joye E. Frost, Director, Office for Victims of Crime (OVC), U.S. Department of Justice. “For 30 years, VOCA has represented hope, healing, and justice. Our message to all victims of crime is this: You are not alone.”
Information about Georgia's victim assistance and crime victim compensation programs can be found through the Criminal Justice Coordinating Council. Barbara Lynn Howell, the Agency's Executive Director, can be reached at 104 Marietta Street, Suite 440, Atlanta, Georgia, 30303, or by telephone at 404-657-1956
For more ideas on how to volunteer to help crime victims, visit the Office for Victims of Crime website, www.ovc.gov , or by calling the Office for Victims of Crime at 202-307-5983.
For further information please contact the U.S. Attorney’s Public Affairs Office at [email protected] or (404) 581-6016. The Internet address for the home page for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia Atlanta Division is http://www.justice.gov/usao/gan/.
Coral Gables Physician Sentenced for Tax FraudRead the Press Release
Wifredo A. Ferrer, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Florida, and Jose A. Gonzalez, Special Agent in Charge, Internal Revenue Service, Criminal Investigation (IRS-CI), announce that Lourdes Margarita Garcia, 62, of Pinecrest, a Medical Doctor, was sentenced today by U.S. District Judge K. Michael Moore to 51 months in prison, followed by three years of supervised release. Garcia was previously convicted by a federal jury in Miami in January 2014, of conspiracy to defraud and to file false returns with the IRS, and of three counts of filing false returns with IRS.
According to documents filed in court, Garcia was the owner and operator of Global Medical Group, LLC, a Sub-S Corporation, or “flow-through” entity for income tax purposes, which operated a clinic in Coral Gables, and previously in Miami. The evidence presented at trial showed that Garcia, a physician assistant at the time the false returns were filed in 2007 and 2008, had originally been the subject of an IRS collection action for multiple years of back-taxes owed. During the collection case, the IRS learned that Garcia and her now deceased spouse were delinquent in filing income tax returns for the years 1997-2005. When those returns were filed in 2007, under penalties of perjury, the 1997 and 2001 through 2005 returns reported $0.00 adjusted gross income, and a 2006 amended return also filed in August 2007, reported less than $20,000 of adjusted gross income.
According to the evidence presented at trial, during a 1997 Chapter 11 bankruptcy case, Garcia filed sworn monthly reports with the Bankruptcy Court reporting $81,000 of salaries and commissions for the months of May 1997 through October 1997. Additionally, during 2001 through 2007, the clinic, Global, had steadily increased its revenues from insurance payments and patient fees, from approximately $81,000 in 2001, to approximately $1.9 million in 2006 and $1.7 in 2007, but no flow-through income from Global was reported on the 2001 through 2005 individual returns of Garcia and her spouse. Their 2006 and 2007 returns omitted approximately $400,000 of insurance payments and patient fees from Global. The evidence at trial also showed that in 2007, Garcia and her spouse purchased an approximately $2 million residence in Pinecrest, despite the $0.00 adjusted gross income reported in the 1997, and 2001 through 2005 returns, and the less than $20,000 and $30,000 of adjusted gross income reported in the 2006 and 2007 returns, respectively. Further, the evidence presented at trial showed that Garcia and her spouse conspired to defraud the IRS, by impairing, obstructing and defeating its lawful functions in the ascertainment, computation and collection of federal income taxes, including by withdrawing approximately $900,000 from bank accounts, only days before an IRS Notice of Levy attached to the accounts.
Mr. Ferrer commended the investigative efforts of IRS-CI. The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Jose A. Bonau and Andy R. Camacho.
A copy of this press release may be found on the website of the United States Attorney's Office for the Southern District of Florida at http://www.usdoj.gov/usao/fls. Related court documents and information may be found on the website of the District Court for the Southern District of Florida at http://www.flsd.uscourts.gov or on http://pacer.flsd.uscourts.gov.
Colombian Associate of “El Chapo” Guzman Pleads Guilty to International Cocaine TraffickingRead the Press Release
Defendant engaged in decade-long scheme to export hundreds of kilos of cocaine into U.S.
ALEXANDRIA, Va. – Jairo Cardona, 55, of Medellín, Colombia, pleaded guilty today to conspiracy to distribute five kilograms or more of cocaine for unlawful importation into the United States.
Dana J. Boente, Acting United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia, and Derek S. Maltz, Special Agent in Charge of the Drug Enforcement Administration’s (DEA) Special Operations Division, made the announcement after the plea was accepted by U.S. District Judge Leonie M. Brinkema.
Cardona was indicted on Dec. 8, 2011 by a federal grand jury for conspiracy to distribute five kilograms or more of cocaine for unlawful importation into the United States. Cardona faces a maximum penalty of life in prison when he is sentenced on June 20, 2014.
In a statement of facts filed with the plea agreement, Cardona admitted to being involved in a decade-long scheme to export multi-hundred kilogram shipments of cocaine from Colombia to the United States, by way of Central America and Mexico. Cardona and his conspirators used aircraft, speedboats and maritime shipments to export the cocaine from Colombia. Among Cardona’s conspirators was Mexican drug kingpin Joaquin Guzman Loera, also known as “Chapo Guzman.”
This case was investigated by the DEA’s Special Operations Division. Assistant U.S. Attorney Michael P. Ben’Ary is prosecuting the case on behalf of the United States.
A copy of this press release may be found on the website of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Virginia 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.Colchester Man, Derek Thomas, Sentenced to Fifteen Years in Prison for Producing Child Pornography Using A Real Vermont ChildRead the Press Release
Tristram J. Coffin, the United States Attorney for the District of Vermont, stated that Derek Thomas, 46, of 77 Granite Creek Road, Colchester, Vermont, was sentenced on March 31, 2014 by Chief U.S. District Court Judge Christina Reiss to 15 years in prison for producing child pornography with a real Vermont child. The Court also sentenced Thomas to 8 years of supervised release after he completes his prison term.
According to Court records, in December of 2011, a South Burlington Police Department (“SBPD”) detective assigned to the Vermont Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force (“ICAC”) discovered that an individual using Internet Protocol (“IP”) address 71.192.148.4 was offering to share child pornography on the Internet using peer-to-peer file sharing software. After the location of the IP address was traced to 77 Granite Creek Road in Colchester, Vermont, Special Agents from Homeland Security Investigations (“HSI”) obtained a search warrant for that residence. During the search, two computer forensic examiners assigned to the search team conducted an on-site forensic preview of Derek Thomas’s laptop computer and, on that device, located hundreds of images and videos of child pornography. Thomas was arrested that day, March 2, 2012.
Subsequently, a forensic examiner with the Vermont ICAC discovered thousands of images and videos of child pornography on Thomas’s iPod, iPhone, laptop computer and computer hard drive. The forensic examination of these devices also revealed that Thomas, posing as a teenage boy, had coerced a twelve-year old victim to take sexually explicit videos using a cell phone and to send them to Thomas. Thomas offered the victim gifts in exchange for the videos. He also threatened the victim when the victim failed to comply. The forensic examination of these devices also revealed that Thomas had placed a hidden video camera in the victim’s bathroom. Unwittingly, he videoed himself while he was setting up the camera. The video was located on Thomas’s computer where it had been downloaded by Thomas.
As mentioned above, Thomas was arrested on March 2, 2012. A federal grand jury initially indicted Thomas on March 8, 2013 for possession of child pornography. After the ICAC forensic examiner confirmed that Thomas was producing child pornography, a federal grand jury handed down a superseding indictment on October 25, 2012 which charged two counts of production of child pornography and one count of possessing child pornography. Thomas pled guilty to producing child pornography on December 16, 2013. He has been detained in jail throughout all phases of this prosecution.
Bruce Foucart, Special Agent In Charge of HSI Boston, states, “Sadly, no community is immune to this scourge. HSI remains dedicated to being a leader in the pursuit of these criminals wherever they reside. We will continue to work with our federal, state, and local law enforcement partners, such as the Vermont ICAC, in order to maximize our collective efforts, and to target these individuals.”This case was ably investigated by the SBPD, the Vermont ICAC, and HSI. The United States Attorney, Tristram J. Coffin, commends those agencies for their work. The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Nancy J. Creswell. Thomas was represented by Attorney Elizabeth Mann.
Chinatown Civic Leader Pleads Guilty to Theft from Charity and Filing A False Federal Income Tax ReturnRead the Press Release
CHICAGO ― A leader of two Chinatown charitable organizations, GENE LEE, pleaded guilty today to federal charges of theft and filing a false federal income tax return for misappropriating as much as $92,800 from one of the charities, which received federal funds as well as donations, and failing to report and pay taxes on the stolen funds.
Lee, 65, of Chicago, served as chairman of the Chicago Chinatown Summer Fair, which was sponsored and overseen by the Chinese Consolidated Benevolent Association, a charity that received federal funds. He was also president of the Chicago Dragons Athletic Association, which sponsored youth and adult basketball teams, traditional dancing and music, and in 2009 began overseeing the Summer Fair, a single-day event held in July in Chinatown. Between 2007 and 2010, Lee was responsible for soliciting and obtaining donations to the Summer Fair and the Chicago Dragons.
Lee, also a former deputy chief of staff to former Chicago Mayor Richard M. Daley during that time, pleaded guilty to one count each of theft of federal funds and filing a false federal income tax return. He remains free on his own recognizance pending sentencing on Aug. 28 by U.S. District Judge John W. Darrah. Lee faces a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison on the theft count and three years in prison on the tax count, and a maximum fine of $250,000 on each count. His plea agreement provides for an advisory sentencing guidelines range of 18 to 24 months in prison, according to the government’s calculation.
In pleading guilty, Lee admitted that between 2007 and 2010 he took a portion of the donations he solicited for the Summer Fair and used the money for personal expenses. He did so by creating and sending two invoices to donors and sponsors of the Summer Fair, with the second version requesting that all donation checks be made payable to the Chicago Dragons, which facilitated his ability to misappropriate donations to the Summer Fair to his personal use.
Lee admitted that he cashed approximately 161 donation checks, totaling approximately $132,000, at a restaurant and used a portion of these checks for his own use instead of for the benefit of the Summer Fair or the Chicago Dragons. He also used a portion of the cashed checks for legitimate expenses, according to the plea agreement.
In order to hide his theft, Lee admitted that he provided the charity’s accountant with a false expense summary about donations made to the 2008 Summer Fair, including false information that Home Depot and Western Union had donated 3,000 when each company had actually donated $5,000. The false summary also omitted additional donations, including $10,000 from McDonald’s, $5,000 from ComEd, and $3,000 from Nielsen Media. At the same time, Lee maintained a separate spreadsheet of donations that included these contributions to the 2008 Summer Fair.
By the government’s calculations, Lee misappropriated approximately $92,841 and failed to report that amount as income on his federal income tax returns for 2007 through 2010, resulting in a tax loss of approximately $21,177. Lee disagrees with the government’s figures, the plea agreement states.
The guilty plea was announced by Zachary T. Fardon, United States Attorney for the Northern District of Illinois; Robert J. Holley, Special Agent-in-Charge of the Chicago Office of the Federal Bureau of Investigation; and James C. Lee, Special Agent-in-Charge of the Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigation Division in Chicago. The City of Chicago Office of Inspector General assisted in the investigation.
The government is being represented by Assistant U.S. Attorney Margaret J. Schneider.
Plea Agreement
Chief of Bull Shoals, Ark., Police Department Arrested for Use of Excessive ForceRead the Press Release
The Department of Justice’s Civil Rights Division, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Arkansas and the FBI announced today that Daniel Sutterfield, 35, Chief of the Bull Shoals Police Department, was arrested yesterday on charges related to his use of excessive force in the arrest of a Bull Shoals resident and a related false report. The complaint and complaint affidavit were unsealed today after Sutterfield’s initial appearance in court this morning before Magistrate Judge James R. Marshewski at the U.S. District Court in Harrison, Ark.
In the two-count complaint, Sutterfield was charged with one count of deprivation of rights and one count of falsifying a report. The complaint charges that on July 9, 2013, Sutterfield used excessive force in the arrest of a Bull Shoals resident and then directed an officer to write a false and misleading report regarding the incident in order to cover up and justify the use of excessive force.
If convicted, Sutterfield faces a statutory maximum punishment of 10 years in prison for the civil rights charge involving excessive force and a statutory maximum punishment of 20 years in prison for the falsification charge. If convicted, the defendant’s sentence will be determined by the court after review of factors unique to this case, including the defendant’s prior criminal record (if any), the defedant’s role in the offense and the characteristics of the violations. The sentence will not exceed the statutory maximum and in most cases will be less than the maximum.
This case is being investigated by the FBI. It is being prosecuted by Trial Attorney Cindy Chung from the Civil Rights Division and Assistant U.S. Attorney Kyra Jenner from the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Western District of Arkansas.
A federal complaint is a written statement of the essential facts of the offenses charged and must be made under oath before a magistrate judge. The charges set forth in a complaint are merely accusations and the defendant is presumed innocent until proven guilty.
Charles County Oncologist Pleads Guilty to Filing False Tax ReturnsRead the Press Release
Owes Over $750,000 in Additional Taxes to the IRS
Greenbelt, Maryland –Krishan M. Mathur, M.D., age 64, of LaPlata, Maryland, pleaded guilty today to filing false tax returns.
The guilty plea was announced by United States Attorney for the District of Maryland Rod J. Rosenstein and Special Agent in Charge Thomas J. Kelly of the Internal Revenue Service - Criminal Investigation, Washington, D.C. Field Office.
According to Dr. Mathur’s plea agreement, he is an oncologist and has been the owner and operator of the Cambridge Cancer and Infusion Center in Maryland since 1984. Dr. Mathur also served as the Medical Director for Hospice of Charles County and was paid for his services.Dr. Mathur admitted that he filed false tax returns for tax years 2006, 2007 and 2008, falsely overstating his expenses and underreporting his income. For example, Dr. Mathur received rebate payments from certain companies from which he had purchased pharmaceuticals. Those rebates were deposited directly to his personal bank account. Dr. Mathur failed to disclose the payments or provide his bank records to his accountant. As a result, the accountant claimed the pharmaceutical purchases as expenses, but the failed to properly report the income received from the rebate payments. In addition, Dr. Mathur wrote checks and withdrew funds for personal use from his medical practice’s bank account, which he then falsely indicated on business records were payments made to medical suppliers. Finally, Dr. Mathur failed to report income he received from the Hospice of Charles County for serving as its Medical Director. The income was deposited into his personal bank account and not disclosed to his accountant.
As a result of the scheme, Dr. Mathur owed additional taxes for those years totaling $750,249. As part of his plea agreement, Dr. Mathur will be required to pay restitution to the IRS in that amount.
Krishan Mathur faces a maximum penalty of three years in prison. U.S. District Judge Paul W. Grimm has scheduled his sentencing for July 17, 2014.
United States Attorney Rod J. Rosenstein praised the IRS – Criminal Investigation for their work in the investigation. Mr. Rosenstein thanked Assistant U.S. Attorneys Nicolas Mitchell and Bryan E. Foreman, who prosecuted the case.
Buffalo Man Pleads Guilty to Drug Charges Involving Perry Housing ProjectsRead the Press Release
BUFFALO, N.Y. -- U.S. Attorney William J. Hochul, Jr. announced today that Eric Ross, 24, of Buffalo, N.Y., pleaded guilty to conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute 280 grams or more of cocaine base within the Perry Housing Projects before Chief U.S. District Judge William M. Skretny. The charge carries a mandatory minimum penalty of 10 years in prison, a maximum of life and a $10,000,000 fine.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Timothy C. Lynch, who is handling the Perry Projects case, stated that the investigation focused on the drug trafficking activities of Tyshawn Bradley, Darnell Brown, Dallas McLamore and their associates. According to the indictment, Bradley, Brown, McLamore and Eric Ross operated a cocaine base and cocaine distribution organization on a daily basis out of several apartments within the Perry Housing Projects, including apartments within the high-rise towers located at 124 Fulton Street and 305 Perry Street. Law enforcement utilized court ordered wire interceptions, undercover drug purchases, covert cameras and traditional police investigative techniques to infiltrate and dismantle this organization.On April 3, 2013, law enforcement officers executed search warrants at 124 Fulton Street and 305 Perry Street during which they recovered over 300 grams of cocaine base and 700 grams of powered cocaine as well as a firearm.
“A year ago, we stated that we would not permit anyone to threaten the safety and security of people living in public housing,” said U.S. Attorney Hochul. “Thanks to this prosecution, children are now safe to play both inside and outside the Perry apartments, while residents can live in peace knowing that Eric Ross and others who sold drugs in these units have been convicted.”
Ross was arrested in April 2013 along with 12 others including Tyshawn Bradley, 28, and Nannette Brown, 45, both of Cheektowaga, N.Y., Darnell Brown, a/k/a D, 29, Dallas McLamore, a/k/a Ice, a/k/a Dal, 29, Brandon Atkins, a/k/a YB, 27, Tashawn Gay, 23, Melvin Tucker, a/k/a Hoff, 24, David Varner, 55, Latifah Donaldson, a/k/a LaLa, 22, Tara Robinson, a/k/a Coek, 24, and Phayon Redmond, a/k/a Booper, 28, all of Buffalo. Ross is the second defendant to be convicted. The fact that a defendant has been charged with a crime is merely an accusation and the defendant is presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty.
The plea is the culmination of an investigation on the part of the Federal Bureau of Investigation Safe Streets Task Force, the New York State Police, under the direction of Major Matthew Renneman, and the Buffalo Police Department, under the direction of Commissioner Daniel Derenda.
Sentencing is scheduled for August 13, 2014 at 9:00 a.m.Berlin Man Sentenced to 15 Years in Prison for Robbing Guardian Angel Credit Union in Berlin, New HampshireRead the Press Release
CONCORD, N.H. –Daniel Hufstetler, 34, formerly of 36 High Street in Berlin, New Hampshire was sentenced to 15 years in prison for robbing the Guardian Angel Credit Union, announced United States Attorney John P. Kacavas.
Hufstetler was convicted of robbing the Credit Union following a three-day trial in December of 2013. Evidence presented at trial showed that on November 14, 2011, Hufstetler robbed the Guardian Angel Credit Union, which is located at 200 Coos Street in Berlin, New Hampshire.
Upon his release from custody, Hufstetler will be on supervised release for three years. He was also ordered to pay restitution.
This investigation involved the cooperative efforts of federal and local law enforcement entities, including the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Berlin Police Department, the Coos County Sheriff’s Office, and the New Hampshire Drug Task Force. The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney John J. Farley.Arizona Doctor Sued for Prescribing Controlled Substances without DEA Registration in Washington StateRead the Press Release
The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Western District of Washington filed a civil Complaint today against an Arizona physician who violated the Controlled Substances Act by prescribing narcotic painkillers in Washington State without having a DEA registration number in Washington, announced U.S. Attorney Jenny A. Durkan. Dr. Barton Butterbaugh was the Chief Medical Officer for EClinicMD LLC. EClinicMD is an internet-based company based in Florida. The Complaint alleges that between 2009 and 2012 Dr. Barton Butterbaugh traveled to Washington State an average of once a month and authorized thousands of prescriptions for controlled substances for Washington residents. Dr. Butterbaugh did not have a DEA registration number in Washington and, therefore, it was illegal for him to prescribe medications in Washington.
According to the allegations in the Complaint, EClinicMD states on its website that it is a “third party administrator” for a network of physicians. It operates by partnering with doctors whom it then pairs with patients seeking appointments. The doctors purportedly obtain patient medical records and forms from EClinicMD before seeing the patients for an initial in-person examination. The company did not accept insurance, instead charging $285 for an initial appointment and $165 for the “telemedicine consultations” through which patients got their prescriptions refilled. On the one day a month he was in town, Dr. Butterbaugh rented space from local businesses and met with dozens of patients (many of whom traveled considerable distances from other parts of the state for the appointment). Through these visits, and subsequent follow-up phone calls for refills, Dr. Butterbaugh authorized thousands of prescriptions for controlled substances for Washington residents.
Under the Controlled Substances Act, the penalties for violating the Act are as much as $25,000 per violation. The government alleges that Dr. Butterbaugh’s business practices in Washington are unlawful, have served to allow him to evade DEA monitoring, and have harmed the citizens of this State, while enriching himself.
The filing of the civil Complaint is just the beginning of the litigation process. The charges must be proven in court by a preponderance of the evidence. The case is being handled by Assistant United States Attorney Christina Dimock. The investigation of Dr. Butterbaugh’s prescribing practices was conducted by the Drug Enforcement Administration –Drug Diversion Unit.
7 April 2014
Zeta Leader “Talivan” Pleads GuiltyRead the Press Release
McALLEN, Texas - Ivan Velasquez-Caballero, aka Talivan or 50, has entered guilty pleas to conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute controlled substances and conspiracy to launder monetary instruments, announced United States Attorney Kenneth Magidson.
Velasquez-Caballero, 44, of Nuevo Laredo, Tamaulipas, Mexico, has been in custody in the United States since he was extradited to Laredo on Nov. 21, 2013.
The charges stem from a Feb. 17, 2010, indictment charging Velasquez-Caballero and 33 others with 47 counts alleging drug conspiracy, kidnapping conspiracy, firearms conspiracy, money laundering conspiracy, conspiracy to kidnap and murder U. S. citizens in a foreign country, use of juveniles to commit a violent crime, accessory after the fact, solicitation, as well as substantive money laundering, drug trafficking and interstate travel in aid of racketeering charges. To date, 15 others have been convicted by plea or trial.
Velasquez-Caballero was a plaza boss for Nuevo Laredo in 2004 under the Gulf Cartel and one of the leaders of the Zetas drug cartel from 2005 until his arrest by Mexican authorities in August 2012. The drug conspiracy involved the importation and distribution of 150 kilograms or more of cocaine and 1000 kilograms or more of marijuana from Mexico into the United States. Millions of dollars in drug proceeds were also exported from the United States to Velasquez-Caballero and others in Mexico.
U.S. District Judge Micaela Alvarez, accepted the pleas today and set sentencing for July 18, 2014, at 10:30 a.m. At that time, he faces a minimum of 10 years and up to life as well as a $4 million fine for the drug conspiracy charge plus a maximum sentence of 20 years and a $500,000 fine for the money laundering conspiracy.
The Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force investigation is being conducted by the Drug Enforcement Administration, and the Laredo Police Department with the assistance of Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s BEST task force, FBI, Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, Texas Department of Public Safety, U.S. Marshals Service and the Webb County Sheriff’s Office. Assistant U.S. Attorney José Angel Moreno is prosecuting.
York Woman Charged with Social Security FraudRead the Press Release
The United States Attorney's Office for the Middle District of Pennsylvania and the Social Security Administration, Office of Inspector General announced today that a criminal information was filed April 4, 2014 in U.S. District Court in Harrisburg charging 38 year-old Julie Smith of York with Social Security Fraud.
According to United States Attorney Peter Smith, Smith allegedly concealed and failed to disclose income earned from May 2009 through June 2011 from employers and failed to disclose that full custody of her children was granted to the children’s father in August 2003. This resulted in Smith allegedly receiving benefit payments of approximately $69,243 to which she knew she was not entitled.
The government also filed a plea agreement in the case which is subject to approval by the Court.
If convicted, Smith faces a term of imprisonment of up to five years and fines up to $250,000.
This investigation was conducted by the Social Security Administration, Office of Inspector General and is being prosecuted by Special Assistant United States Attorney Brian G. McDonnell.
Indictments and Criminal Informations are only allegations. All persons charged are presumed to be innocent unless and until found guilty in court.
A sentence following a finding of guilty is imposed by the Judge after consideration of the applicable federal sentencing statutes and the Federal Sentencing Guidelines.
In this case, the maximum penalty under the federal statute is five years imprisonment, a term of supervised release following imprisonment, and a fine. Under the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, the Judge is also required to consider and weigh a number of factors, including the nature, circumstances and seriousness of the offense; the history and characteristics of the defendant; and the need to punish the defendant, protect the public and provide for the defendant’s educational, vocational and medical needs. For these reasons, the statutory maximum penalty for the offense is not an accurate indicator of the potential sentence for a specific defendant.
Yakima Couple Sentenced for Methamphetamine DistributionRead the Press Release
Spokane – Michael C. Ormsby, United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Washington, announced that Jose Trevino Gallegos, aka Joe T. Gallegos, age 48, and Erin Kathleen Honeycutt, aka Erin Kathleen Scott, age 34, both of Yakima, Washington, were sentenced for possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine. Senior United States District Court Judge Fred Van Sickle sentenced Gallegos to a 210 month term of imprisonment, to be followed by a 60 month term of court supervision upon release from Federal prison. Honeycutt was sentenced to a 90 month term of imprisonment and a 48 month term of court supervision following release from Federal prison.
According to information disclosed during the court proceedings, in March and April of 2013, Yakima DEA Drug Task Force officers made multiple purchases of methamphetamine from Gallegos. On April 12, 2013, officers executed search warrants for Gallegos' vehicles and his residence in Yakima. Gallegos was arrested in one of the vehicle with a loaded pistol and Honeycutt was arrested at the residence, where officers discovered illegal narcotics and multiple firearms. Both Gallegos and Honeycutt have multiple prior felony convictions and admitted to possessing methamphetamine with intent to distribute it.
Michael C. Ormsby said, "This prosecution was made possible by the hard work of members of the Yakima DEA Drug Task Force, the Yakima Police Department, the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration, and the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. The citizens of Yakima are fortunate not only to have the support of their local law enforcement agencies for the continued operation of the Task Force, but also for those agencies' support of the cross-designation of the Task Force detectives to work within the Drug Enforcement Administration. Having state officers that are also commissioned to enforce Federal narcotics laws enhances the prosecution of methamphetamine dealers. It makes Yakima a safer place."
This case was investigated by the cooperative efforts of the Yakima DEA Drug Task Force, the Yakima Police Department, the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration, and the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. The case was prosecuted by Ian L. Garriques, an Assistant United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Washington.
13-CR-2068-FVS
Windsor, Vermont Man Sentenced to 20 Months in Prison for Possession of Child PornographyRead the Press Release
Tristram J. Coffin, United States Attorney for the District of Vermont, stated that Gerard Mascola, 26, of Windsor, Vermont, was sentenced on April 1, 2014, by Chief U.S. District Court Judge Christina Reiss, to 20 months in prison for possession of child pornography. He was also sentenced to serve 5 years of supervised release at the conclusion of his prison term.
According to Court records, Mascola was detected sharing child pornography over the Internet by special agents from the Office of Homeland Security Investigations (“HSI”). HSI special agents were able to identify and locate Mascola using his internet protocol address.
Mascola was indicted by a federal grand jury on July 18, 2013. On December 16, 2013, Mascola pled guilty to possession of child pornography. He was released on his own recognizance pending his sentencing.
This case was investigated by Homeland Security Investigations. The United States Attorney, Tristram J. Coffin, commends that agency for its work. He was prosecuted by Assistant U. S. Attorney, Nancy J. Creswell. Mascola was represented by Douglas G. Kallen of Bergeron, Paradis & Fitzpatrick, LLP.Williamson Woman Sentenced for Obtaining Prescription Drugs by FraudRead the Press Release
Huntington, W.Va. – A Williamson woman was sentenced today to three years and six months of federal probation for obtaining prescription drugs by fraud, announced U.S. Attorney Booth Goodwin. Amy Shantel Hatfield, 37, pleaded guilty in April of 2013 before Chief United States District Judge Robert C. Chambers in Huntington federal court. Hatfield admitted that between June of 2012 and August of 2012, she obtained lisdexamfetamine and amphetamine, dangerous and addictive prescription drugs, by filling fraudulent prescriptions written for someone else.
The case was investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration Diversion Task Force. Assistant United States Attorney Joseph F. Adams handled the prosecution.
This case was prosecuted as part of an ongoing effort led by the United States Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of West Virginia to combat the illicit sale and misuse of prescription drugs and heroin. 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 and heroin in communities across the Southern District.
Wilkes-Barre Woman Charged with Cocaine and Heroin TraffickingRead the Press Release
The United States Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Pennsylvania announced today the filing of a criminal information against Amy Rogen, age 39, of Wilkes-Barre, charging her with conspiring to distribute cocaine base (crack), cocaine hydrochloride, and heroin.
According to United States Attorney Peter Smith stated the Criminal Information filed today in U.S. District Court in Scranton alleges that the defendant and unnamed coconspirators obtained the controlled substances in New York City for distribution in rooms rented at motels in Luzerne and Lackawanna Counties between 2011 and 2013.
The government also filed a plea agreement which is subject to approval by the Court.
Prosecution is assigned to Assistant United States Attorney John Gurganus.
Indictments and Criminal Informations are only allegations. All persons charged are presumed to be innocent unless and until found guilty in court.
A sentence following a finding of guilty is imposed by the Judge after consideration of the applicable federal sentencing statutes and the Federal Sentencing Guidelines.
In this particular case, the maximum penalty under the federal statute is twenty years’ imprisonment, a term of supervised release following imprisonment, and a fine. Under the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, the Judge is also required to consider and weigh a number of factors, including the nature, circumstances and seriousness of the offense; the history and characteristics of the defendant; and the need to punish the defendant, protect the public and provide for the defendant’s educational, vocational and medical needs. For these reasons, the statutory maximum penalty for the offense is not an accurate indicator of the potential sentence for a specific defendant.
Weirton Sex Offender Charged with Failure to RegisterRead the Press Release
1125 Chapline Street, Federal Building, Suite 3000 ● Wheeling, WV 26003
(304) 234-0100 ● Contact: Chris Zumpetta-Parr, Public Affairs SpecialistWHEELING, WEST VIRGINIA — A sex offender who moved from Pennsylvania to West Virginia has been indicted in federal court for failing to register.
United States Attorney William J. Ihlenfeld, II, announced that Charles R. LUNDIS, age 64, of Weirton, West Virginia, was charged with “Failure to Register as a Sex Offender.” LUNDIS faces up to 10 years in prison. LUNDIS has a prior conviction for “Rape” in Pennsylvania and is alleged to have failed to register as a sex offender after he moved to West Virginia in 2013.
This case was investigated by the United States Marshals Service and the West Virginia State Police. The case will be prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Stephen L. Vogrin.
An indictment is merely an accusation and the defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
U.S. Attorney Barry Grissom to SpeakTo Students at Arkansas City High SchoolRead the Press Release
ARKANSAS CITY, KAN. U.S. Attorney Barry Grissom will speak to students at Arkansas City High School on Thursday.
Grissom will be speaking to instructor Scott Snavely’s Law, Public Safety and Security CTE classes at 10 a.m. Thursday, April 10, in the school auditorium. He will talk about his career as a lawyer and his work as U.S. Attorney for the District of Kansas.
Grissom was appointed by President Barack Obama and confirmed by the U.S. Senate in 2010. The U.S. Attorney has three offices in Kansas – Kansas City, Kan., Topeka and Wichita – and a staff of approximately 100 employees, including about 50 Assistant U.S. Attorneys.
Two Charged in $6 Million Fraud SchemeRead the Press Release
Orlando, Florida – United States Attorney A. Lee Bentley, III announces the unsealing of an indictment charging Brian Newton (56, Port Orange) and Victoria Snow (54, Clearwater) with conspiracy, mail fraud and wire fraud. Newton and Snow were arrested today and will make their initial appearances in federal court, in Orlando, this afternoon. If convicted, each faces a maximum penalty of 20 years in federal prison.
According to court documents, Newton and Snow worked on behalf of Dataforce International, Inc. Dataforce had a contract to “factor” its invoices at Amerifactors Financial Group. “Factoring” is a financial transaction by which a business sells its accounts receivables, such as invoices, to a third party (called a factor) at a discount. The accounts receivable is created when a business performs services or sells goods to a client. The factor provides financing to the seller of the invoice in the form of an advance. Once an invoice has been factored by a business, the business will typically arrange to have the client pay the third party factor directly.
From 2003 until August 2009, Newton and Snow allegedly submitted a series of invoices for factoring, to Amerifactors, that were inflated and that did not reflect work that had been performed by Dataforce. In addition, Newton and Snow engaged in “double factoring,” which involved submitting the same Dataforce invoice for factoring to both Amerifactors and Prestige Funding. To deceive Amerifactors and Prestige Funding into funding those invoices, Newton and Snow allegedly submitted altered work orders to Amerifactors and falsely represented that Dataforce had an arrangement to factor its invoices with Prestige Funding. By executing this scheme, Newton and Snow were able to defraud Amerifactors, Prestige Funding, and the investors of Prestige Funding out of more than $6 million.
An indictment is merely a formal charge that a defendant has committed a violation of the federal criminal laws, and every defendant is presumed innocent unless, and until, proven guilty.
This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation. It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Roger B. Handberg.
Two Area Businessmen Plead Guilty to Federal Fraud ChargesRead the Press Release
St. Louis, MO – Two area businessmen admitted to committing bank fraud against Excel Bank, which failed in 2012, after receiving $4,000,000 in capital from the Treasury Department through the Troubled Asset Relief Program (TARP).
According to the plea agreements, James Crews and Michael Hilbert admitted to making false statements to Excel Bank with respect to escrow funds or "fix funds" set aside for repairs to rental homes financed through the bank. In reliance on Crews and Hilberts’ claims that work had purportedly been done on the rental properties, the bank disbursed the "fix funds" which Crews and Hilbert used for other purposes. Soon after the funds were disbursed in 2010, the loan went into default.
JAMES CREWS, Wentzville; and MICHAEL HILBERT, St. Charles; appeared before U.S. District Court Judge Carol E. Jackson today and were released on their bonds until sentencing, which is scheduled for July 10, 2014.
Bank fraud carries a maximum penalty of 30 years in prison and/or fines up to $1 million. In determining the actual sentences, a Judge is required to consider the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines, which provide recommended sentencing ranges.
This case was investigated by the Office of the Special Inspector General for the Troubled Asset Relief Program and the Federal Bureau of Investigation. Assistant United States Attorney Tom Albus is handling the case for the U.S. Attorney's Office.
Twin Falls Man Sentenced to Prison for Possession with Intent to Distribute MethamphetamineRead the Press Release
BOISE – Robert Lyman Kundert, 33, of Twin Falls, Idaho, was sentenced today to serve 160 months in federal prison, U.S. Attorney Wendy J. Olson announced. United States District Judge Edward J. Lodge also ordered Kundert to serve five years of supervised release following his release from prison. Kundert pleaded guilty to the charge on January 14, 2014.
According to court documents, on October 4, 2012, Kundert fled the scene of an automobile accident. He was located by police at a residence in Twin Falls, Idaho. During the search of the house, law enforcement located approximately 863 grams of pure methamphetamine hidden in the attic. Kundert admitted to possessing the methamphetamine with the intent to distribute it to others.
Kundert has previously been convicted three times for possession of methamphetamine.
The case was investigated by Twin Falls Police Department, the Twin Falls Sheriff’s Department, and the Drug Enforcement Administration.
Three Lincoln County Men Plead Guilty to Oxycodone TraffickingRead the Press Release
Charleston, W.Va. – United States Attorney Booth Goodwin announced today that Richard A. Mullins, John Freddie Joe Johnson, and Joseph James Salmons entered guilty pleas today in federal court to charges relating to the distribution of oxycodone in Lincoln County.
Beginning in January of 2013, the Huntington Violent Crime and Drug Task Force made a series of controlled oxycodone buys from Richard Mullins and his associates. Today, Richard Mullins, 49, of West Hamlin, admitted that on January 13, 2013, he sold 5 oxycodone 30 mg pills to a confidential informant working with the law enforcement. Mullins met the informant on the parking lot of the Blossom Junction flower shop in West Hamlin and conducted the drug deal from his car. Mullins also admitted to other drug sales in Lincoln County.
John Freddie Joe Johnson, 37, also of West Hamlin admitted that on February 8, 2013, he assisted Mullins and Joseph James Salmons with the sale of oxycodone to a confidential informant outside of Johnson’s residence in West Hamlin, Lincoln County.
Joseph James Salmons, 24, of Hamlin admitted that on February 13, 2013, he and Mullins sold a confidential information five oxycodone 30 mg pills. The informant entered Mullins’ home in West Hamlin, Lincoln County and met with Mullins. The informant handed Mullins $200.00 for the oxycodone. Mullins handed the $200.00 to Salmons and Salmons handed the informant the oxycodone pills. Salmons also admitted to other drug sales in Lincoln County.
All three men face up to 20 years imprisonment when they are sentenced on July 8, 2014 by United States District Judge John T. Copenhaver, Jr.
The Huntington Violent Crime and Drug Task Force investigated the case. Assistant United States Attorney Monica D. Coleman is in charge of the prosecution.
This case is being prosecuted as part of an ongoing effort led by the United States Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of West Virginia to combat the illicit sale and misuse of prescription drugs and heroin. 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 and heroin in communities across the Southern District.
Three Individuals Convicted on Drug ChargesRead 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 – Three individuals entered pleas of guilty before Magistrate Judge John S. Kaull on drug-related charges.
United States Attorney William J. Ihlenfeld, II, announced that:
Chad PRESTON, age 34, of Elkins, entered a plea of guilty to “Possession with Intent to Distribute Oxycodone.” Preston, who is free on bond pending sentencing, faces up to 20 years in prison.
Jonathan HEALEY, age 30, of Elkins, entered a plea of guilty to “Use of a Communication Device to Facilitate a Drug Felony.” HEALEY, who is free on bond pending sentencing, faces up to 4 years in prison.
Charles Jacob FREEMAN, age 26, of Beverly, West Virginia, entered a plea of guilty to “Distribution of Alprazolam within 1,000 feet of the Beverly Manor.” FREEMAN, who is free on bond pending sentencing, faces up to 20 years in prison.
These cases were prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Shawn A. Morgan and Stephen D. Warner and were the result of the work of the Mountain Region Drug and Violent Crime Task Force, consisting of officers from the West Virginia State Police-Bureau of Criminal Investigations, U.S. Forest Service, Randolph County Sheriff’s Department, Tucker County Sheriff’s Department and the DEA, assisted by the DEA Tactical Diversion Squad.
Thomas Jefferson University to Pay $77,486 to Resolve Overbilling AllegationsRead the Press Release
PHILADELPHIA - Thomas Jefferson University and Jefferson University Physicians, Department of Emergency Medicine have agreed to a $77,486 settlement to resolve allegations arising from overbilling for services, announced United States Attorney Zane David Memeger. The settlement arose as a result of a voluntary self-disclosure after Thomas Jefferson University’s Counsel for Compliance identified certain Medicare Part B professional fee billing anomalies during a routine internal compliance review. Based upon this review, it appeared that certain professional fee services in the emergency room were billed under a physician’s National Provider Identification number when those services should have been billed under either the National Provider Identification number of the Physicians Assistants or Certified Registered Nurse Practitioners.
Prior to the settlement, Thomas Jefferson University engaged a third-party firm to conduct a comprehensive billing audit and provided the results to the United States. Thomas Jefferson University agreed that the billing was not accurate and thus, that the government paid more than it should have for the services provided. Under the parties’ settlement agreement, signed today, Thomas Jefferson University and Jefferson University Physicians, Department of Emergency Medicine will pay $77,486.00 to the United States. Thomas Jefferson University also conducted education in an effort to prevent any subsequent billing anomalies.
This resolution was handled by Assistant U.S. Attorneys John T. Crutchlow and Veronica J. Finkelstein.
Click here to view the indictment
UNITED STATES ATTORNEY'S OFFICE, EASTERN DISTRICTof PENNSYLVANIA
Suite 1250, 615 Chestnut Street, Philadelphia, PA 19106
PATTY HARTMAN, Media Contact, 215-861-8525St. Louis Man Sentenced for Bank RobberyRead the Press Release
Was Wearing Polka Dot Dress and Wig During Robbery
Follow @SDILNewsArnell L. Edwards, 50, of St. Louis, Missouri, was sentenced in federal district court, in East St. Louis today, for bank robbery, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of Illinois, Stephen R. Wigginton, announced today.
Edwards was sentenced to 52 months in prison, three years supervised release, ordered to pay $1,547 restitution, and a $100 special assessment. Edwards pled guilty on November 19, 2013, to charges stemming from a September 6, 2013, bank robbery at US Bank in New Athens, Illinois. Edwards entered the bank wearing a polka dot dress, wig and sunglasses. He then placed a rag over his mouth and approached a bank teller, showing her hand written instructions on a small piece of red paper, reading “STICK UP ALL MONEY” and stated, “Give me all the money.” Edwards grabbed the cash, exited the bank and discarded the clothing before returning to a nearby apartment. A search of the apartment resulted in the discovery of a pad of red Post-It-Notes matching the size, shape and color of the note given to the bank teller.
This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Daniel T. Kapsak.
St. Charles County Man Sentenced on Investment Fraud SchemeRead the Press Release
St. Louis, MO - MICHAEL KITCHEN, St. Peters, MO, was sentenced to 24 months on federal fraud charges for conducting an investment fraud scheme during 2008 and 2009.
According to court documents, Kitchen marketed a "verification of funds" financial opportunity to a number of investors and took in approximately $500,000. Kitchen told investors' their money was safe and, if placed in a verification of funds transaction, would earn more than 1000% annualized return. However, Kitchen failed to protect or place investors' funds. To the contrary, Kitchen simply spent investors' money on business and personal expenses over several years.
Kitchen pled guilty in October to one felony count of wire fraud for devising this fraud scheme and two counts of money laundering for using its proceeds to purchase two automobiles. He appeared today for sentencing before United States District Judge Carol E. Jackson.
This case was investigated by the U.S. Postal Inspection Service and the FBI in cooperation for the Office of Securities Enforcement - Missouri Secretary of State's Office which is currently prosecuting a civil enforcement action against Kitchen. Assistant United States Attorney Tom Albus handled the case for the U.S. Attorney’s Office.