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7 February 2014
Former City of Miami Police Officer Sentenced in Identity Theft Tax Refund Fraud SchemeRead the Press Release
Wifredo A. Ferrer, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Florida, Michael B. Steinbach, Special Agent in Charge, Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), Miami Field Office, Manuel Orosa, Chief, City of Miami Police Department (MPD), and José A. Gonzalez, Special Agent in Charge, Internal Revenue Service, Criminal Investigation (IRS-CI), announce that Malinsky Bazile, 28, of North Miami Beach, was sentenced today for his participation in a stolen identity tax refund scheme. Bazile was sentenced to 144 months in prison, to be followed by three years of supervised release and ordered to pay restitution in the amount of $140,000.
Bazile was convicted by a jury of one count of fraudulent use of unauthorized devices, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 1029(a)(2), four counts of aggravated identity theft, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 1028A(a)(1), one count of exceeding authorized access to a protected computer, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 1030(a)(4), and one count of possession of fifteen or more unauthorized access devices, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 1029(a)(3).
According to testimony and evidence presented at trial, the defendant operated an identity theft tax refund scheme from January 2012 to October 2012. During that period, the defendant, while employed as a City of Miami Police Officer, used his access to the Florida driver's license database to steal the personal identity information of approximately seven hundred middle-aged women with common last names throughout the State of Florida. Using those identities, the defendant filed false and fraudulent tax returns with the Internal Revenue Service seeking refunds payable to pre-paid debit cards. The defendant was captured on multiple bank ATM videos withdrawing money from pre-paid debit cards loaded with fraudulent tax refund proceeds. FBI and MPD conducted a search at the defendant's residence and found ledgers in a safe filled with hundreds of people’s identities and several pre-paid debit card containers. The defendant admitted to FBI and MPD that he made between $130,000 to $140,000 from the fraud scheme in 2011 and 2012.
Mr. Ferrer commended the FBI, MPD, and IRS-CI for their work on the case. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Michael N. Berger and Peter Forand.
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.
Former Chiropractor Convicted of Tax FraudRead the Press Release
Last night, following a trial that began on Jan. 29, 2014, a federal jury convicted David Moleski, formerly of Neptune, N.J., of 14 counts of mail fraud, one count of wire fraud, one count of corruptly endeavoring to obstruct and impede Internal Revenue laws and three counts of submitting false claims for tax refunds, the Justice Department and Internal Revenue Service (IRS) announced.
According to the evidence introduced at trial, Moleski, a former chiropractor, submitted three false tax returns in 2009 for the tax years 2006 through 2008 that collectively requested over $1.3 million in income tax refunds to which he was not entitled. Prior to filing these returns, Moleski failed to file tax returns from 1999 through 2005, even though he was legally required to file. When the IRS assessed taxes for those years and began collecting, Moleski obstructed the collection efforts and demanded that a third-party financial institution not comply with the IRS levy. In addition, Moleski attempted to pay credit card bills and other debts with fake financial instruments that claimed to draw on an account at the U.S. Treasury that did not actually exist. For instance, Moleski sent a fake financial instrument for $500,000 in alleged payment of a mortgage debt.
U.S. District Judge Freda L. Wolfson of the District of New Jersey scheduled sentencing for May 21, 2014. David Moleski faces more than 30 years in prison and fines of $250,000 per count of conviction.
Assistant Attorney General Kathryn Keneally of the department’s Tax Division commended the special agents of IRS - Criminal Investigation who investigated the case, as well as Trial Attorneys Tino M. Lisella and Yael Epstein for the Tax Division who prosecuted the case. Assistant Attorney General Keneally also thanked U.S. Attorney Paul J. Fishman for the District of New Jersey and his entire office for their assistance.
Fifteen People Arrested and Charged in Drug ConspiracyRead the Press Release
St. Louis, MO – Five local men and ten out-of-state associates have been arrested on charges involving a conspiracy to distribute large amounts of cocaine and methamphetamine in the St. Louis area and New Mexico, along with money laundering of the proceeds of the illegal activity.
According to the indictment, ALPHONSO EDUARDO GONZALES of Albuquerque, New Mexico, is charged with engaging in a Continuing Criminal Enterprise between 2009 and November 2013. The indictment alleges that Gonzales committed a series of violations of federal drug statutes by transporting large quantities of cocaine, methamphetamine and marijuana from Albuquerque to other cities, including St. Louis. Fourteen associates are charged on multiple drug conspiracy and money laundering charges as part of the Gonzales criminal enterprise.
Charged locally are Floyd Huntley, Jr. of St. Ann; Jonathan Arnez Spencer of Ferguson; Orlando James Allen of St. Louis; Dallas Wayne Lane of St. Louis; and David Michael Young of St. Louis. The defendants were arrested Thursday and are expected to appear in federal court on Monday, February 10.If convicted, defendant Alphonso Gonzales is subject to a minimum mandatory term of imprisonment of 20 years for the Continuing Criminal Enterprise. Other charges carry penalties ranging from10 years to life in prison. 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 Drug Enforcement Administration – St. Louis Division, with the cooperation of the St. Ann Police Department.
As is always the case, charges set forth in an indictment are merely accusations and do not constitute proof of guilt. Every defendant is presumed to be innocent unless and until proven guilty.Family Members Who Were Convicted in Mail Fraud Conspiracy Involving A Local Travel Agency Are SentencedRead the Press Release
DALLAS — A Dallas resident and his wife, along with her son, who were arrested by U.S. Postal Inspectors in January 2013 in Amityville, New York, on charges outlined in a federal indictment returned in the Northern District of Texas, have been convicted and sentenced for their respective roles in a mail fraud conspiracy, announced U.S. Attorney Sarah R. Saldaña of the Northern District of Texas.
Roxana Flores, 43, also of Dallas, was sentenced today, by Chief U.S. District Judge Sidney A. Fitzwater, to 24 months in federal prison. Her husband, Jorge Armando Flores, 45, was sentenced in October 2013 to 46 months in federal prison. Her son, Julio C. Funes-Alas, 27, also of Dallas, was sentenced in December 2013 to 24 months in federal prison. Jorge and Roxana Flores were ordered to pay $2,056,162 in restitution, jointly and severally. Julio Fuenes-Alas was ordered to pay $511,865 in restitution.
Jorge and Roxana Flores were employed as sales agents in the Latin Department by U.S.A. Gateway, Inc., an international wholesale travel agent, located on Spring Valley Road in Dallas. Gateway was registered with the Airline Reporting Corporation which enabled it to purchase airline tickets directly from the airlines. Gateway then sold these tickets to retail travel agencies, known as “subagents,” who would in turn sell the tickets to their customers. Among the subagents that purchased airline tickets from Gateway were Ramon Travel & Services, Inc., located in Providence, Rhode Island; Your Travel Agent Con Sabor Latino, located in Carrollton, Texas; and Jeanette Travel, located in Lowell, Massachusetts.
According to documents filed in the case, from at least March 2007 until approximately August 2011, the defendants conspired with each other, and others, to commit mail fraud. Defendants obtained subagents’ checks that had been mailed to Gateway and diverted them to bank accounts they had established for their joint use and financial benefit. These accounts were opened in names similar to Gateway and the defendants would write checks and make ATM withdrawals on these accounts for their personal benefit and use.
The case was investigated by the U.S. Postal Inspection Service. Assistant U.S. Attorney Christopher Stokes prosecuted.
Family Members Who Were Convicted in Mail Fraud Conspiracy Involving A Local Travel Agency Are SentencedRead the Press Release
DALLAS — A Dallas resident and his wife, along with her son, who were arrested by U.S. Postal Inspectors in January 2013 in Amityville, New York, on charges outlined in a federal indictment returned in the Northern District of Texas, have been convicted and sentenced for their respective roles in a mail fraud conspiracy, announced U.S. Attorney Sarah R. Saldaña of the Northern District of Texas.
Roxana Flores, 43, also of Dallas, was sentenced today, by Chief U.S. District Judge Sidney A. Fitzwater, to 24 months in federal prison. Her husband, Jorge Armando Flores, 45, was sentenced in October 2013 to 46 months in federal prison. Her son, Julio C. Funes-Alas, 27, also of Dallas, was sentenced in December 2013 to 24 months in federal prison. Jorge and Roxana Flores were ordered to pay $2,056,162 in restitution, jointly and severally. Julio Fuenes-Alas was ordered to pay $511,865 in restitution.
Jorge and Roxana Flores were employed as sales agents in the Latin Department by U.S.A. Gateway, Inc., an international wholesale travel agent, located on Spring Valley Road in Dallas. Gateway was registered with the Airline Reporting Corporation which enabled it to purchase airline tickets directly from the airlines. Gateway then sold these tickets to retail travel agencies, known as “subagents,” who would in turn sell the tickets to their customers. Among the subagents that purchased airline tickets from Gateway were Ramon Travel & Services, Inc., located in Providence, Rhode Island; Your Travel Agent Con Sabor Latino, located in Carrollton, Texas; and Jeanette Travel, located in Lowell, Massachusetts.
According to documents filed in the case, from at least March 2007 until approximately August 2011, the defendants conspired with each other, and others, to commit mail fraud. Defendants obtained subagents’ checks that had been mailed to Gateway and diverted them to bank accounts they had established for their joint use and financial benefit. These accounts were opened in names similar to Gateway and the defendants would write checks and make ATM withdrawals on these accounts for their personal benefit and use.
The case was investigated by the U.S. Postal Inspection Service. Assistant U.S. Attorney Christopher Stokes prosecuted.
Evansville Man Sentenced to Ten Years in Prison as Part of “operation Community Watch”Read the Press Release
More local results as federal law enforcement cracks down on child exploitation in Indiana
INDIANAPOLIS – Joseph H. Hogsett, the United States Attorney, announced today that Benjamin David Thomas, age 58, of Evansville, has been sentenced to 120 months in prison by U.S. District Judge Richard L. Young after admitting that he accessed and intended to view sexually-explicit material involving. This case was the result of an investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s Child Exploitation Task Force and the Evansville Police Department as part of the U.S. Attorney’s ongoing Operation Community Watch initiative.
“The great tragedy is that every time these horrific images and videos are viewed, the child victims are exploited all over again,” Hogsett said. “That’s why we’ve teamed up with our federal and local partners with Operation Community Watch to impose a zero-tolerance policy on this type of criminal behavior.”
After his arrest, Thomas admitted to law enforcement that he viewed images depicting actual minors engaging in sexually explicit conduct using his home computer. Forensic analysis revealed that the computer had been used to browse various web sites that displayed images of minors engaged in sexually explicit conduct. The defendant is a registered sex offender with a 1997 multi-count conviction for child molestation against a female child.
According to Assistant U.S. Attorney, Todd Shellenbarger, who prosecuted the case for the government, Judge Young also imposed a lifetime term of federally-supervised release, to be served at the end of the defendant’s prison term. During the period of supervised release, the defendant must register as a sex offender, participate in a sex offender treatment program, and cannot have any unsupervised contact with minors. Thomas also consented to the forfeiture of computer equipment used in the offenses he committed.
This arrest comes as Hogsett has announced a comprehensive crackdown on child exploitation in Indiana known as "Operation Community Watch," which allows prosecutors and investigators to use cutting-edge techniques to identify and charge people in Hoosier communities who are engaged in the receipt and trafficking of child pornography materials.
This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a larger nationwide initiative to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice. Hogsett pointed out that in the last Project Safe Childhood reporting year, the Office prosecuted 65 cases, a dramatic increase over prior years. These are all-time records for the Office.
Led nationally by United States Attorneys' Offices and the Criminal Division's Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS), Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state and local resources to better locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the Internet, as well as to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.projectsafechildhood.gov.
Elderly California Man Sentenced for Conspiring to Distribute MethamphetamineRead the Press Release
PITTSBURGH - A California man has been sentenced in federal court to time served (2 ½ months imprisonment), 12 months home detention, and five years of supervised release, on his conviction of violating the federal narcotics laws, United States Attorney David J. Hickton announced today.
Chief United States District Judge Joy Flowers Conti imposed the sentence on Dominick Spickle, 80, of Sacramento, Calif.
According to information presented to the court, Spickle was involved in a conspiracy to distribute more than 50 grams of methamphetamine.
Assistant United States Attorney Stephen R. Kaufman prosecuted this case on behalf of the government.
U.S. Attorney Hickton commended the Drug Enforcement Administration and the Pennsylvania State Police for the investigation leading to the successful prosecution of Spickle.
Eighty-Four, Pa., Man Sentenced to 5 Years in Prison for Structuring Financial TransactionsRead the Press Release
PITTSBURGH – Daniel Young has been sentenced in federal court to 63 months imprisonment, to be followed by three years of supervised release on his conviction of conspiracy and structuring financial transactions, United States Attorney David J. Hickton announced today. Young was also ordered to forfeit $440,000 in money and equipment.
United States District Judge David S. Cercone imposed the sentence on Young, 42, of Eighty- Four, Pa.
According to information presented to the court, Daniel Young and his co-defendants, Kimberly Ostrander and Dennis Young, participated in a conspiracy in which they structured financial transactions with financial institutions and businesses to avoid the filing of Currency Transaction Reports. Currency Transactions Reports are required to be filed when financial institutions and businesses receive in excess of $10,000 in cash. Young, who is serving a 12- to 24-year sentence for drug trafficking, structured approximately $260,000 in cash from his drug trafficking proceeds to purchase his home, heavy equipment, and a vehicle. Young and his co-conspirators used a variety of bank accounts and individuals to structure the cash payments.
Assistant United States Attorney Brendan T. Conway prosecuted this case on behalf of the government.
U.S. Attorney Hickton commended the Internal Revenue Service-Criminal Investigations and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives for the investigation leading to the successful prosecution of Daniel Young.
District Man Sentenced to 20 Years in Prison for Murder of Girlfriend’s Four-Year-Old Son-Defendant Beat Child While Babysitting-Read the Press Release
WASHINGTON – Peter I. Hendy, II, 33, of Washington, D.C., was sentenced today to 20 years in prison on a charge of second-degree murder in the death of his girlfriend’s four-year-old son, U.S. Attorney Ronald C. Machen Jr. announced.
Hendy pled guilty in September 2013 in the Superior Court of the District of Columbia. He was sentenced by the Honorable Ronna L. Beck. Upon completion of his prison term, Hendy will be placed on five years of supervised release.
According to the government’s evidence, on Aug. 5, 2013, Hendy was babysitting his girlfriend’s son, Kamari Zavon Taylor, at an apartment in Northeast Washington while she went to work. Sometime around noon, he called his girlfriend and reported that he had disciplined the boy. He told her that he had given Kamari a “body shot” and that the child’s legs were wobbly.
According to Hendy’s own admissions, he became upset when Kamari disobeyed his restriction about how far he could ride his scooter. According to Hendy, when he admonished the child, Kamari responded that he did not have to listen to him. Hendy admitted to punching Kamari in the mid-section four to five times, including one direct punch to the stomach.
Once back inside, according to Hendy, the child fell to the floor and could not stand. When offered food or water, Kamari declined the food but drank the water. Hendy carried the child to bed and then went outside to sell marijuana.
After an hour, he returned to the apartment. He noted that Kamari had a “blank look” on his face and appeared “spent.” Hendy then went outside again for another hour to sell marijuana. When he returned, Kamari was not breathing. Hendy called 911 at about 2:05 p.m. and reported that his girlfriend’s son was unconscious and not breathing. The 911 operator advised Hendy to give the child cardiopulmonary resuscitation, and he did.
When they arrived, members of the District of Columbia Fire and Emergency Medical Services Department found Kamari to be unconscious and unresponsive. The child was taken to Children’s National Medical Center and pronounced dead.
The District of Columbia Office of the Medical Examiner determined that Kamari died from multiple injuries to the torso. The forcefulness of the defendant’s punches caused the child’s liver to lacerate in three places. There was also bruising on his stomach, consistent with multiple fist prints. Finally, Kamari had a couple of broken ribs.
In announcing the sentence, U.S. Attorney Machen commended the work of the detectives, officers, and others who investigated the case from the Metropolitan Police Department. He also expressed appreciation to the D.C. Office of the Medical Examiner for its assistance. Finally, he acknowledged the efforts of those who worked on the case from the U.S. Attorney’s Office, including Paralegal Specialist Kelly Blakeney, Victim/Witness Advocate Marcia Rinker, Intern Brian Edgerton, and Assistant U.S. Attorney Cynthia G. Wright, who prosecuted the case.
14-036Disbarred Somerset Attorney Charged with FraudRead the Press Release
BOSTON – A disbarred Somerset attorney was arrested this morning on fraud charges arising out of his promotion of a variety of investment opportunities.
John Silvia, 64, was charged in a complaint with mail and wire fraud. Silva, purportedly the “Managing Member” of Richardson Consulting, LLC, was charged for his promotion of various investments, including investments in real estate and a “performance bond.” According to the complaint, Silvia represented that the investments were “risk-free” and promised to return the principal, along with substantial interest, within approximately 90 days. Silvia did not invest the funds and did not make the promised payments. Silvia, who was licensed to practice law in Massachusetts in 1975, has been disbarred since 2003.
The statutory maximum penalties for the mail and wire fraud charges are 20 years in prison, three years of supervised release and a fine of $250,000 or twice the gain to the defendant or loss to the victim.
The Massachusetts Securities Division, which filed an administrative complaint today charging Silvia with violation of Massachusetts securities laws, referred this case to the U.S. Attorney’s Office and cooperated with the criminal investigation.
United States Attorney Carmen M. Ortiz and Vincent B. Lisi, Special Agent in Charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Boston Field Division, made the announcement today. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Sarah E. Walters of Ortiz’s Economic Crimes Unit.The details contained in the complaint are allegations. The defendant is presumed to be innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
This case was brought in coordination with President Barack Obama’s Financial Fraud Enforcement Task Force. President Obama established the interagency Financial Fraud Enforcement Task Force to wage an aggressive, coordinated and proactive effort to investigate and prosecute financial crimes. The task force includes representatives from a broad range of federal agencies, regulatory authorities, inspectors general and state and local law enforcement who, working together, bring to bear a powerful array of criminal and civil enforcement resources. The task force is working to improve efforts across the federal executive branch, and with state and local partners, to investigate and prosecute significant financial crimes, ensure just and effective punishment for those who perpetrate financial crimes, combat discrimination in the lending and financial markets, and recover proceeds for victims of financial crimes.
Concord Man Pleads Guilty to Possession of Child PornographyRead the Press Release
OAKLAND – Scott Alan Seidlitz pleaded guilty in federal court in Oakland today to possessing child pornography, announced United States Attorney Melinda Haag and FBI Special Agent in Charge David J. Johnson.
In pleading guilty, Seidlitz admitted that starting in 2010, he copied child pornography images from another person’s email account over the Internet using his laptop computer and stored them on his external hard drive. Seidlitz admitted to possessing more than 4,000 images of child pornography, including images depicting bondage and bestiality.
Seidlitz, 29, of Concord, was arrested on August 30, 2013, by local law enforcement on separate charges. Seidlitz was charged by federal complaint on September 1, 2013. He made his initial appearance in federal custody on September 4, 2013, and has since remained in federal custody. Seidlitz was indicted on September 12, 2013.
Seidlitz’s sentencing hearing is scheduled for April 29, 2014, before the Honorable Jeffrey S. White, United States District Court Judge in Oakland. The maximum statutory penalty for possession of child pornography, in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 2252(a)(4)(B) and (b)(2), is a maximum term of 10 years in prison, a fine of $250,000, a minimum of 5 years of supervised release and a maximum of a life term of supervised release. However, any sentence will be imposed by the court after consideration of the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and the federal statute governing the imposition of a sentence, 18 U.S.C. § 3553.
Brian C. Lewis is the Assistant U.S. Attorney who is prosecuting the case with the assistance of Janice Pagsanjan. The prosecution is the result of an investigation by the FBI and the Concord Police Department.
(Seidlitz indictment )
Chattanooga Resident Pleads Guilty to Preparing Fraudulent Tax ReturnRead the Press Release
CHATTANOGA, Tenn. – On Feb. 6, 2014, Dedric Landrum, 40, of Chattanooga, Tenn., was sentenced by the Honorable Curtis L. Collier, U.S. District Court Judge, to serve 18 months in prison, for preparing a false and fraudulent income tax return. Upon his release from prison, he will be subject to one year of supervised release. He was also ordered to pay $148,678 in restitution to the Internal Revenue Service (IRS).
Landrum pleaded guilty to a one count information charging him with these offenses. According to supporting documentation for the plea agreement, Landrum fraudulently obtained tax refunds by fraudulently inflating deductions and credits on tax returns prepared by him.
The investigation leading to the charges, guilty plea and sentencing was conducted by the IRS. Assistant U.S. Attorneys John P. MacCoon and James Brooks represented the United States.
Car Repair Shop Owner and His Son Admit to Drug Trafficking and Armed Commercial BurglariesRead the Press Release
Sold Drugs from Paschall Auto Body Shop in Baltimore, and Robbed Businesses and Homes in Maryland, Virginia, West Virginia and Pennsylvania
Baltimore, Maryland –Chad Paschall, age 28, of Baltimore, pleaded guilty today to conspiring to distribute oxycodone and two counts of conspiring to commit bank burglary. His father, David Paschall, age 54, of Catonsville, Maryland, pleaded guilty yesterday to the drug and burglary conspiracies.
The guilty pleas were announced by United States Attorney for the District of Maryland Rod J. Rosenstein; Assistant Special Agent in Charge Gary Tuggle of the Drug Enforcement Administration, Baltimore District Office; Howard County Police Chief William McMahon; Chief James W. Johnson of the Baltimore County Police Department; Anne Arundel County Police Chief Kevin Davis; Special Agent in Charge Steven L. Gerido of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives - Baltimore Field Division; Special Agent in Charge Nicholas DiGiulio, Office of Investigations, Office of Inspector General of the Department of Health and Human Services; Otis E. Harris, Jr., Special Agent in Charge, Coast Guard Investigative Service, Chesapeake Region; and Commissioner Anthony W. Batts of the Baltimore Police Department.
“This case dismantled an organization responsible for a wide range of criminal activity,” said U.S. Attorney Rod J. Rosenstein.
David Paschall operated Paschall’s Auto Body Shop, formerly located at 801 Desoto Road in Baltimore. According to their plea agreements, it was widely known that the car shop served as a marketplace for an assortment of illegal narcotics, including oxycodone, cocaine and heroin. David Paschall used more than five drug “brokers” to buy drugs almost every day at his shop which he would then either consume or sell for profit. As a leader in the drug conspiracy, he supervised others in the distribution of the drugs. In order to protect the drug conspiracy, David Paschall maintained many guns at the shop and sometimes carried a gun. It was reasonably foreseeable to David Paschall that this conspiracy distributed more than 59.70 grams of oxycodone, 200 grams of cocaine, and 80 grams of heroin from no later than 2010 to July 2013.
Chad Paschall was at the shop most every day, knew that the shop operated as a hub for drug sales and helped his father in brokering drug sales.
The defendants also admitted to committing commercial burglaries in Maryland, Virginia, West Virginia, and Pennsylvania. The defendants conspired to steal cash, money orders, stamps, silver bars, jewelry, cigarettes, lottery tickets, prescription drugs, food, beverages, safes, laptop computers, cell phones, electronics, vehicles and other valuable items from gas stations, convenience stores, banks, credit unions and other commercial establishments. The conspirators often stole or attempted to steal cash from ATMs.
The conspirators usually cut power lines, telephone lines, cables and other wires before entering a business. They used vise grips, sledgehammers, chopsaws, grinders and blow torches to enter the business, and then often waited – for several minutes or sometimes up to several hours – before ransacking the business of its valuable items. David Paschall admitted that he committed, or attempted to commit, dozens of commercial burglaries with one or more coconspirators. For example, David and Chad Paschall used a forklift at a salvage or junk yard located on Hawkins Point Road in Baltimore to pile several junk cars next to a rear upstairs balcony. They climbed up the cars and broke into the office off the balcony. They used the forklift to transport a safe from the office to the ground, where it was broken open and approximately $48,000 was stolen.
At their sentencing David and Chad Paschall face a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison and a $1 million fine for the drug conspiracy, and five years in prison for the bank larceny conspiracy.
David Paschall has agreed to forfeit $500,000, his ownership interest in Paschall’s Auto Body Shop and his residence, three firearms and his vehicle. Chad Paschall has agreed to forfeit $250,000, his interest in his residence, four firearms and ammunition.
To date, a total of 10 defendants charged in the drug and burglary conspiracies have pleaded guilty to their participation in the criminal activities. Charges remain pending against six other defendants.
United States Attorney Rod J. Rosenstein commended the DEA, Howard County Police Department, Baltimore County Police Department; Anne Arundel County Department, ATF, Department of Health and Human Services - Office of Inspector General; Coast Guard Investigative Service and Baltimore Police Department for their work in the investigation. Mr. Rosenstein also praised the many local and state agencies in Virginia, West Virginia and Pennsylvania for their assistance in the investigation.
Mr. Rosenstein thanked Assistant United States Attorneys David I. Sharfstein and Andrea L. Smith, who are prosecuting this Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force case.
Canadian Man Sentenced for Smuggling More Than $5 Million Worth of “molly” into the United StatesRead the Press Release
Received Fourteen Years in Prison
ALBANY, NEW YORK – JOEL CUNNINGHAM, age 30, of Ottawa, Canada, was sentenced today to fourteen years in prison by United States District Court Judge Glenn T. Suddaby, announced United States Attorney Richard S. Hartunian and Homeland Security Investigations Assistant Special Agent-in-Charge Nick DiNicola. The sentence follows CUNNINGHAM’s September 20, 2013 guilty plea to one count of possession with intent to distribute a controlled substance.
On April 9, 2013, CUNNINGHAM was observed entering the United States from Canada through an unmanned border crossing in the Akwesasne Mohawk Reservation. Members of the Border Enforcement Security Task Force in Massena, New York followed CUNNINGHAM and later stopped him. Law enforcement officers searched the sport utility vehicle driven by CUNNINGHAM and found 58,183 grams of 3,4-Methylenedioxymethamphetamine Hydrochloride (commonly known as “Molly”), as well as over $140K in U.S. currency, in hidden compartments and duffel bags. The street value of the substance is over $5 million. CUNNINGHAM helped load the sport utility vehicle earlier that day.
This case was investigated by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, Homeland Security Investigations. The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Wayne A. Myers.
California Man Sentenced to Prison for Drug ConspiracyRead the Press Release
Jackson, Miss - Salvador Gonzales Elias, 46, of Los Angeles, California, was sentenced in U.S. District Court today to 115 months in federal prison for his role in a conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute methamphetamine. Elias was charged following an extensive investigation, dubbed “Operation Brusha” targeting illegal narcotics distribution in Scott County, Mississippi. He entered a guilty plea before U.S. District Judge Henry T. Wingate on August 29, 2013.
"The U.S. Attorney’s Office is committed to the elimination of criminal enterprises that peddle drugs in our communities,” said U.S. Attorney Gregory K. Davis. “The success of this investigation and prosecution makes clear that law enforcement agencies are united and determined to dismantle the networks that try to profit by selling methamphetamine, an extremely addictive drug that ruins lives.”
“Methamphetamine is a cancer on countless communities that drug traffickers exploit without any regard for the violence and damage they leave in their wake,” said Special Agent in Charge of HSI New Orleans Raymond R. Parmer Jr. “This case highlights the added value that a solid partnership between state and federal law enforcement brings to bear in combating multi-jurisdictional criminal organizations. Working with the Miss. Bureau of Narcotics, ATF, and the other agencies involved with this investigation to identify and bring criminals like these to justice remains among HSI's top priorities.” Parmer oversees a five-state area of responsibility including Mississippi, Alabama, Arkansas, Louisiana and Tennessee.
“Operation Brusha” was conducted by Homeland Security Investigations, Mississippi Bureau of Narcotics and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco Firearms and Explosives. Assisting agencies included the Mississippi Highway Patrol, Mississippi Bureau of Investigation, Forest Police Department, and Scott County Sheriff’s Department. This case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Erin O. Chalk.If you believe you have been a victim of fraud from a person or an organization soliciting relief funds on behalf of storm victims, contact the National Center for Disaster Fraud toll free at:
(866) 720-5721
You can also fax information to:
(225) 334-4707
or e-mail it to:
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Butler Arson Homicide Charge Dismissed Without PrejudiceRead the Press Release
ALBANY, NEW YORK – The federal criminal complaint charging Robert A. Butler with arson resulting in personal injury and death, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 844(i), was dismissed today without prejudice, announced United States Attorney Richard S. Hartunian.
The complaint was filed on June 4, 2013, based on an affidavit alleging that on or about May 2, 2013, Butler used gasoline to start a fire at 438 Hulett Street, Schenectady, New York, resulting in the deaths of four people and the destruction of the building and its contents. The dismissal of the charge results in the release of Butler from federal custody.
The basis for the dismissal was set forth in the filed order as follows:
This case involves unusual and complex facts, with the complaint based upon allegations (in the affidavit in support of the complaint) that the defendant used gasoline to start a fire at a residential rental property in Schenectady, New York that resulted in the destruction of the building and its contents and the deaths of a father and three young children and very serious burn injuries for another child. The gravity of the crime and the potential punishments, the unusual and complex facts, including information regarding the involvement of others, and the circumstances regarding eyewitnesses necessitate further investigation.
U.S. Attorney Hartunian said, “We are completely committed to continuing this investigation until justice is done. We are grateful for the dedication of the New York Field Division of the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, the Schenectady Police Department, and the Schenectady Fire Department to this case, and for the assistance of other federal agencies and police departments in the region. The victims of this horrific crime deserve and will continue to get our best efforts to secure justice.”
Questions may be addressed to First Assistant U.S. Attorney Grant C. Jaquith at 518-431-0247.
Burns, Wyoming Man Convicted for Felon in Possession of A FirearmRead the Press Release
U.S. Attorney Christopher A. Crofts announced today that 47 year old Burns, Wyoming resident James Keith Beierle has been convicted in federal court. On February 6, 2014, a jury found Beierle guilty of being a felon in possession of a firearm after a three-day jury trial in the U.S. District Court in Cheyenne. Beierle is scheduled to be sentenced by Chief Federal District Court Judge Freudenthal on April 17, 2014.
The investigation in this case was conducted by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives.Broward County Resident Sentenced in $2 Million Stolen Identity Tax Refund Fraud SchemeRead the Press Release
Wifredo A. Ferrer, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Florida, and José A. Gonzalez, Special Agent in Charge, Internal Revenue Service, Criminal Investigation (IRS-CI), announce that Lee Ervin Dale, 31, of Fort Lauderdale, was sentenced today for his participation in a tax refund scheme using stolen identities. United States District Judge Kathleen M. Williams sentenced Dale to 120 months in prison, followed by three years of supervised release, and ordered restitution in the amount of $275,740. A jury previously convicted Dale of two counts of converting government funds to his own use, six counts of making and presenting false claims to the IRS, and two counts of aggravated identity theft.
According to testimony and evidence presented at trial and sentencing, Dale filed approximately 291 handwritten tax returns claiming more than $2 million in refunds between 2006 and 2009 using stolen identities and listing his P.O. Box address. Although the IRS was able to prevent refund checks from being issued on most of these claims, approximately $275,000 in refund checks were mailed to his P.O. Box. Several of these checks were deposited directly into bank accounts bearing both Dale’s name and the identity theft victim’s name. Other checks were cashed at a check cashing store in Oakland Park, Florida, in exchange for cash and money orders that Dale then deposited into his own accounts.
Mr. Ferrer commended the investigative efforts of IRS-CI. The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Jared M. Strauss and now-former Assistant U.S. Attorney Laurie E. Rucoba.
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.
Brothers Sentenced to Life in Prison for Murder in Aid of Racketeering Involving False Identification Document RingRead the Press Release
CHICAGO — Two brothers were sentenced today to life in federal prison for murder in aid of racketeering and related crimes they were convicted of after a seven-week trial in U.S. District Court last year. JULIO and MANUEL LEIJA-SANCHEZ, who operated a lucrative, black-market counterfeit identification document business in Chicago’s Little Village community for at least 15 years, each received the mandatory life sentence from U.S. District Judge Rebecca Pallmeyer. There is no federal parole.
The Leija-Sanchez brothers were convicted together with GERARDO SALAZARRODRIGUEZ, whom they directed to commit an execution-style murder in Mexico of a fledgling competitor. The murder plot was intended to prevent two former employees from starting a competing business and to maintain control over employees of their enterprise, which generated annual revenues of at least $3 million. Salazar-Rodriguez also faces life imprisonment and is scheduled to be sentenced on Feb. 14.
“Julio and Manuel Leija-Sanchez were the kingpins of a decades-long, multimilliondollar international criminal organization and they killed to protect their own pocketbook and the empire they built,” Assistant U.S. Attorney Michelle Nasser said at today’s sentencing hearing.
Evidence at trial showed that Salazar-Rodriguez, at the direction of Julio and Manuel Leija-Sanchez, fired more than a dozen shots in killing one of the victims in his taxi cab near Mexico City in April 2007, and the jury heard transcripts of intercepted telephone conversations in which he boasted to the brothers after the murder. He and Manuel Leija-Sanchez also hunted for a second victim whom they believed was in Mexico at the time but who was actually in federal custody in Chicago. That intended victim, who pleaded guilty to fraudulent identification document charges, cooperated and testified as a government witness at trial.
The case was part of Operation Paper Tiger, an investigation conducted by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) agents, along with other federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies. In April 2007, the investigation resulted in charges against 24 defendants and the dismantling of the Leija-Sanchez fraudulent document organization that operated in and around the Little Village Discount Mall at West 26th and Albany in Chicago. All but three defendants who remain fugitives were convicted.
Manuel Leija-Sanchez, 46, and Salazar-Rodriguez, 41, were arrested later in Mexico and were extradited to the United States in 2010 and 2011 to stand trial, together with Julio Leija- Sanchez, 38, who was arrested in Chicago in 2007. A third Leija-Sanchez brother, Pedro, 41, was also arrested in Mexico and extradited to the U.S in 2011. He pleaded guilty in 2012 to racketeering conspiracy for operating the fraudulent ID ring with his brothers and was sentenced last March to 20 years in prison.
Evidence at trial showed that the three Leija-Sanchez brothers operated the bustling illegal business between 1993 and 2007. The organization was supervised by an overall leader living in Chicago, and the leadership position rotated among the Leija-Sanchez brothers. The organization sold as many as 100 sets of fraudulent identification documents each day, charging customers approximately $200 per “set,” consisting of a Social Security card and either an immigration “green card” or a state driver’s license.
Manuel and Julio Leija-Sanchez and Salazar-Rodriguez conspired to murder Guillermo Jimenez-Flores, also known as “Montes,” a former member of their organization who became a rival and was shot to death by Salazar-Rodriguez in Mexico. The three trial defendants were also convicted of conspiracy to kill a second victim, Bruno Freddy Ramirez-Camela, who they believed was in Mexico but was actually incarcerated in Chicago.
The sentences were announced by Zachary T. Fardon, United States Attorney for the Northern District of Illinois, and Gary Hartwig, Special Agent-in-Charge of HSI in Chicago. Also participating in the investigation were the Chicago Police Department and the Galveston, Tex., Police Department, and the Chicago offices of the U.S. Secret Service, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. The Government of Mexico and Mexican law enforcement partners also provided significant assistance.
The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Michelle Nasser, Andrew Porter and William Ridgway.
Attorney General Will Not Seek the Death Penalty Against Pedersen or GrigsbyRead the Press Release
PORTLAND, Ore. - U. S. Attorney Amanda Marshall announced today that Attorney General Eric Holder has decided not to seek the death penalty against defendants David Joseph “Joey” Pedersen or Holly Ann Grigsby for the 2011 murders of David Jones “Red” Pedersen of Everett, Washington, Leslie Mae “Dee Dee” Pedersen of Everett, Washington, Cody Faye Myers of Lafayette, Oregon, and Reginald Alan Clark of Eureka, California.
U.S. Attorney Marshall stated, “While I understand the public interest in this matter, we have rules that limit the release of information and the scope of public statements. The process by which this decision was made is confidential, and I cannot comment further about it except to say that it entailed a careful and detailed consideration of all the circumstances of this case.”
A federal grand jury indicted the pair in August 2012 on racketeering and other charges, including five potential capital offenses. Trial is set for July 7, 2014 before U. S. District Judge Ancer L. Haggerty. An indictment is only an accusation of a crime, and a defendant should be presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
The official notice is attached Here.
Anne Arundel County Drug Dealer Sentenced to over 17 Years in PrisonRead the Press Release
Baltimore, Maryland – U.S. District Judge Ellen L. Hollander sentenced Donwand Cuppatino Harmon, age 37, of Annapolis, Maryland, today to 210 months in prison followed by five years of supervised release for conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute heroin. Judge Hollander also ordered Harmon to forfeit $27,895 in cash, a 2010 Porsche Panamera, a 2008 Mercedes Benz CL550, and jewelry, including a Breitling wrist watch with a diamond face and band.
The sentence was announced by United States Attorney for the District of Maryland Rod J. Rosenstein; Special Agent in Charge Steven L. Gerido of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives - Baltimore Field Division; Annapolis Police Chief Michael A. Pristoop; Anne Arundel County Police Chief Kevin Davis; Commissioner Anthony W. Batts of the Baltimore Police Department; U.S. Marshal Johnny Hughes; and Anne Arundel County State’s Attorney Anne Colt Leitess.“Heroin is a powerful drug that is affecting communities, destroying lives and tearing apart families,” said Anne Arundel County Police Chief Kevin Davis. “I am committed to collaborating with our law enforcement partners on a local, state and federal level in an effort to rid our neighborhoods of this drug and to take distributors off the streets and this case is an example of that.”
According to Harmon’s plea agreement, from at least August 2012 until August 2013, Donwand Harmon conspired with Damian Brown and others to distribute heroin in the Baltimore and Anne Arundel County, Maryland areas.
As part of the conspiracy, Harmon obtained and distributed bulk quantities of heroin to a number of individuals in the area. On five occasions from August 30, 2012 through October 18, 2012, investigators purchased a total of 49.8 grams of heroin directly from Harmon. On November 17, 2012, a confidential source contacted Harmon about another purchase of heroin. Harmon was not available but agreed to send an associate to complete the sale. At that meeting, the confidential source purchased approximately 10.2 grams of heroin from Damian Brown. On three occasions from December 12, 2012 through April 9, 2013, Harmon arranged for the confidential source to purchase an additional 42.1 grams of heroin directly from Damian Brown.
On June 13, 2013, agents tracked Mr. Harmon to a motel in Baltimore. There, agents saw a female previously associated with Mr. Harmon leaving the hotel. She drove slowly around the parking lot, looking at all the cars parked there, then pulled into a parking spot. Agents saw Harmon leaving the motel and ran after him, but Harmon got away. The woman got out of her car in a crouched position, and Agents saw her remove a black duffel bag from the rear driver’s side of the car and place the bag under the car next to hers. Agents retrieved the bag, which contained a black nylon holster, a box of ammunition, a black loaded magazine for a Glock handgun, and several digital scales that appeared to have residue on them.
Agents obtained a search warrant for Harmon’s room at the motel and recovered: a black men’s wallet with a Maryland identification for Donwand Harmon; a set of car keys for a Porsche driven by Harmon; $16,000 in cash; and three large bags containing approximately 1.7 kilograms of heroin.
On August 23, 2013, Deputy U.S. Marshals tracked Mr. Harmon to a residence in Suitland, Maryland, an arrested him as he left the home. A search incident to arrest revealed keys to the residence, $845 in cash, and a Washington, D.C. driver’s license in the name of Paul Simmons with Mr. Harmon’s picture. Members of the U.S. Marshals Service and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives then obtained and executed a search warrant at the residence. From the first floor of the home law enforcement recovered, among other things: $10,050 in cash, wrapped in foil, and approximately 205.5 grams of crack cocaine found in the freezer; one 20-ton shop press with kilogram and half-kilogram sized molds with cocaine and heroin residue, approximately 516 grams of heroin in the mold on the press, and two bags containing approximately 625.1 grams of heroin that was found in the dining room closet. On the second floor law enforcement recovered a loaded .45 caliber handgun, a .loaded .357 caliber handgun, and a loaded 5.56 caliber firearm, as well as additional ammunition for all three guns; over six kilograms of cocaine; seven cell phones; $1,000 in cash; men’s jewelry and watches; and tally sheets for suspected narcotics transactions.
Harmon admitted that during the conspiracy he was responsible for distributing at least 1 kilogram of heroin.
Damian Brown pleaded guilty to the same charge on February 3, 2014, and is scheduled to be sentenced on June 17, 2014 at 11:00 a.m.
United States Attorney Rod J. Rosenstein praised the ATF, Annapolis Police Department, Anne Arundel County Police Department, Baltimore Police Department, U.S. Marshals Service and Anne Arundel County State’s Attorney’s Office for their work in the investigation. Mr. Rosenstein thanked Assistant U.S. Attorneys Kenneth S. Clark and Scott Lemmon who are prosecuting this Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force case.
6 February 2014
Watertown Man Sentenced for Unlawful Taking of Migratory Birds and Lacey Act ViolationsRead the Press Release
United States Attorney Brendan V. Johnson announced that a Watertown, South Dakota, man charged with Unlawful Taking of Migratory Birds and Lacey Act Violations pled guilty and was sentenced on February 4, 2014, by U.S. Magistrate Judge William D. Gerdes.
Roger Meyer, age 53, was sentenced to 2 years of unsupervised probation, no hunting or guiding for 2 years, $550 in restitution to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Services, a $3,000 fine, and $35 to the Federal Crime Victims Fund.
The conviction stems from incidents that took place in 2008 and 2009 when Meyer, doing business as Meyer Guide Service, guided paying clients on duck hunts on two separate occasions. During these duck hunts, Meyer allowed and encouraged the hunters to exceed their daily limit of ducks. Following the hunts, the ducks were not tagged properly and transported in violation of federal law.
The investigation was conducted by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Services. The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Meghan N. Dilges.
Warren County Man Pleads Guilty to Receiving and Possessing Child PornograhpyRead the Press Release
Defendant Used his Computer and the Internet to Download and Save Approximately 600 Child Pornography Files
ALBANY, NEW YORK — GARY MINER, age 45, of Glens Falls, New York, pled guilty today in Albany before United States District Court Judge Mae A. D’Agostino to one count of receiving child pornography and one count of possessing child pornography, announced United States Attorney Richard S. Hartunian and Andrew W. Vale, Special Agent-in-Charge, Federal Bureau of Investigation, Albany Division. On the child pornography receipt count, MINER faces at least five years of imprisonment and up to a maximum sentence of twenty years of imprisonment. On the child pornography possession count, MINER faces a maximum sentence of ten years of imprisonment. MINER was detained pending his sentencing.
During the plea hearing, MINER admitted that between January 2010 and November 29, 2011, he accessed the Internet and downloaded and possessed, from a website and other individuals who were distributing child pornography, approximately 600 files that contained child pornography.
Sentencing is scheduled for June 9, 2014, at 11:00 a.m. in Albany, New York. This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation. This case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Rick Belliss.
U.S. Attorney’s Office Distributes $263,500 in Forfeited Proceeds of Interstate Marijuana Trafficking to El Dorado County Sheriff’s Department and District Attorney’s OfficeRead the Press Release
SACRAMENTO, Calif. — The U.S. Attorney’s Office has distributed a portion of forfeited narcotics proceeds to the El Dorado County Sheriff’s Department and District Attorney’s Office, United States Attorney Benjamin B. Wagner announced. The final payment was made in January 2014. In total, the Sheriff’s Department received $230,600, and the District Attorney’s Office received $32,900. Both agencies assisted in the investigation of an interstate marijuana-trafficking ring that resulted in a federal prosecution.
Cash, bank accounts, and a house on 10 acres of land in Placerville were forfeited from two El Dorado County defendants. Robert Edward Mulready, 50, of Placerville, and Duane Patrick Petersen, 40, of Shingle Springs, were charged in U.S. District Court with conspiring to cultivate marijuana and distribute it out-of-state. Last year, Mulready was sentenced to three and a half years in prison, and Petersen was sentenced to 22 months in prison.
These funds were made available through the U.S. DOJ equitable sharing program. The program is designed to enhance cooperation among federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies through the sharing of proceeds resulting from federal forfeitures. State and local law enforcement agencies generally receive equitable sharing revenues by participating directly with DOJ agencies in joint investigations leading to the seizure or forfeiture of property. The amount shared with state and local law enforcement agencies is based on the degree of the agencies' direct participation in the case.
U.S. Attorney Wagner stated: “I particularly want to thank the El Dorado County Sheriff’s Department and the El Dorado County District Attorney’s Office for their outstanding cooperation and investigative work. Asset forfeiture is a powerful tool that deprives criminals of the proceeds of their illegal activities; the equitable sharing program equips law enforcement to better protect their communities.”
Sheriff D’Agostini said, “We are grateful for the investigation and prosecution efforts by the United States Attorney Benjamin B. Wagner and his staff. The arrest, prosecution and asset forfeiture of proceeds from this criminal operation should send a strong message that federal and local law enforcement will not allow such operations to continue.”
El Dorado County District Attorney Vern Pierson commented: “This case is a prime example of county, state, and federal law enforcement agencies working together to make El Dorado County a safer place to live.”
This case was the product of an investigation by the Drug Enforcement Administration and the Western El Dorado County Narcotics Enforcement Team (WENET). Assistant U.S. Attorney Todd A. Pickles prosecuted the case, and Assistant U.S. Attorney Kevin C. Khasigian handled the forfeiture.
Two Women Ordered to Prison in Stolen Identity Tax Refund Fraud SchemeRead the Press Release
HOUSTON – Yevette Lauren Walton and Lakisha Lashell Rogers have been handed prison sentences for conspiring to submit fraudulent tax refund claims in the names of 53 stolen identities during the 2013 tax season, United States Attorney Kenneth Magidson announced today along with Lucy Cruz, special agent in charge of Internal Revenue Service - Criminal Investigation (IRS-CI). Walton and Rogers were prosecuted as part of IRS-CI’s Stolen Identity Refund Fraud (SIRF) initiative that has resulted in arrests throughout the United States. They entered pleas of guilty May 10, 2013.
“Investigating identity theft and refund fraud is a priority for IRS-CI,” said Cruz. “Stealing identities and filing false tax returns is a serious crime that hurts innocent taxpayers. We, along with our law enforcement partners and the United States Attorney's Office, continue to do our part in protecting the sanctity and integrity of the tax system and those individuals whose identities were stolen, as well as recovering any monetary loss against the U.S. Treasury.”
Today, U.S. District Judge Lee H. Rosenthal, who accepted the guilty pleas, handed Walton and Rogers each a sentence of 24 months in federal prison. Both were further ordered to pay $60,000 in restitution to the IRS and to serve a term of three years of supervised release following completion of their prison terms. Judge Rosenthal previously sentenced co-defendant Antoinne Quinay Jackson to six months in federal custody. He has completed that term of imprisonment and is presently serving a three-year-term of supervised release.
Walton and Rogers acknowledged that between Feb. 15, 2013, and Feb. 27, 2013, they met with tax return preparer, Marlin Beckett, interviewed him and concluded he could prepare and electronically file false tax refund claims for them. Walton and Rogers provided this person with approximately 37 names, Social Security numbers and other means of identification. Walton and/or Rogers told the tax return preparer the names were “good” because they had previously been used to get refunds.
The women also provided automated teller machine debit card routing numbers. This way, the refunds, which were expected to total approximately $220,000, could be credited to the cards and easily used to withdraw funds in an untraceable manner. Walton and Rogers then engaged in a number of telephone conversations with the tax return preparer to check on the status of the refund claims.
Upon their arrests on March 8, 2013, Walton and Rogers had another 16 names and other means of identification on them intended to be used to file a second set of false and fraudulent refund claims approximately totaling an additional $200,000. Despite Walton’s and Rogers’ efforts, prompt action by federal law enforcement prevented any actual loss to the National Treasury from the use of the 53 stolen identities during 2013. However, actual losses of about $60,000 and attempted losses of approximately $120,000 have been traced to fraudulent tax refunds in 2012.
Both women will remain in custody pending transfer to a U.S. Bureau of Prisons facility to be determined in the near future.
The tax return preparer, Marlin Beckett, was also sentenced today by Judge Nancy F. Atlas in a separate case. Judge Atlas sentenced Beckett to 36 months in prison and ordered him to make full restitution for preparing false tax returns that generated $196,923 in excessive client refunds. Beckett has been in custody since violating his bond conditions by continuing to prepare client tax returns after his guilty plea on April 10, 2013.
The investigation leading to these charges was conducted by IRS-CI and the United States Postal Inspection Service. Assistant U.S. Attorney Jimmy Sledge Jr. is prosecuting the case.
Two Women Ordered to Prison in Stolen Identity Tax Refund Fraud SchemeRead the Press Release
HOUSTON – Yevette Lauren Walton and Lakisha Lashell Rogers have been handed prison sentences for conspiring to submit fraudulent tax refund claims in the names of 53 stolen identities during the 2013 tax season, United States Attorney Kenneth Magidson announced today along with Lucy Cruz, special agent in charge of Internal Revenue Service - Criminal Investigation (IRS-CI). Walton and Rogers were prosecuted as part of IRS-CI’s Stolen Identity Refund Fraud (SIRF) initiative that has resulted in arrests throughout the United States. They entered pleas of guilty May 10, 2013.
“Investigating identity theft and refund fraud is a priority for IRS-CI,” said Cruz. “Stealing identities and filing false tax returns is a serious crime that hurts innocent taxpayers. We, along with our law enforcement partners and the United States Attorney's Office, continue to do our part in protecting the sanctity and integrity of the tax system and those individuals whose identities were stolen, as well as recovering any monetary loss against the U.S. Treasury.”
Today, U.S. District Judge Lee H. Rosenthal, who accepted the guilty pleas, handed Walton and Rogers each a sentence of 24 months in federal prison. Both were further ordered to pay $60,000 in restitution to the IRS and to serve a term of three years of supervised release following completion of their prison terms. Judge Rosenthal previously sentenced co-defendant Antoinne Quinay Jackson to six months in federal custody. He has completed that term of imprisonment and is presently serving a three-year-term of supervised release.
Walton and Rogers acknowledged that between Feb. 15, 2013, and Feb. 27, 2013, they met with tax return preparer, Marlin Beckett, interviewed him and concluded he could prepare and electronically file false tax refund claims for them. Walton and Rogers provided this person with approximately 37 names, Social Security numbers and other means of identification. Walton and/or Rogers told the tax return preparer the names were “good” because they had previously been used to get refunds.
The women also provided automated teller machine debit card routing numbers. This way, the refunds, which were expected to total approximately $220,000, could be credited to the cards and easily used to withdraw funds in an untraceable manner. Walton and Rogers then engaged in a number of telephone conversations with the tax return preparer to check on the status of the refund claims.
Upon their arrests on March 8, 2013, Walton and Rogers had another 16 names and other means of identification on them intended to be used to file a second set of false and fraudulent refund claims approximately totaling an additional $200,000. Despite Walton’s and Rogers’ efforts, prompt action by federal law enforcement prevented any actual loss to the National Treasury from the use of the 53 stolen identities during 2013. However, actual losses of about $60,000 and attempted losses of approximately $120,000 have been traced to fraudulent tax refunds in 2012.
Both women will remain in custody pending transfer to a U.S. Bureau of Prisons facility to be determined in the near future.
The tax return preparer, Marlin Beckett, was also sentenced today by Judge Nancy F. Atlas in a separate case. Judge Atlas sentenced Beckett to 36 months in prison and ordered him to make full restitution for preparing false tax returns that generated $196,923 in excessive client refunds. Beckett has been in custody since violating his bond conditions by continuing to prepare client tax returns after his guilty plea on April 10, 2013.
The investigation leading to these charges was conducted by IRS-CI and the United States Postal Inspection Service. Assistant U.S. Attorney Jimmy Sledge Jr. is prosecuting the case.
Two Sentenced to Prison for Student Loan Fraud SchemesRead the Press Release
SACRAMENTO, Calif. — United States District Judge Troy L. Nunley sentenced Brent W. Wilder, 44, of Antelope, today to two years and nine months in prison, and on Tuesday, U.S. District Judge Lawrence K. Karlton sentenced Michelle Wright, 32, of Stockton, to three years in prison and one year of home confinement, United States Attorney Benjamin B. Wagner announced. The defendants were charged in separate cases with conspiracy to commit student loan fraud. Wright was also convicted of aggravated identity theft.
In the first case, according to court documents, between February 2009 and April 2012, Wilder and Michael J. Huddleston, 44, of Sacramento, obtained Federal Student Assistant (FSA) funds by recruiting more than 50 straw students to apply for aid and caused the fraudulent disbursement of more than $200,000. The straw students applied for FSA at American River College, Sacramento City College and Consumnes River College. These applications contained false statements regarding the eligibility of the applicant. For the most part, all of the students signed up by Wilder and Huddleston withdrew from classes shortly after receiving the funds or received failing grades. While some of those students may have used the funds for legitimate educational expenses, Wilder and Huddleston demanded approximately half of those funds for their own purposes. Wilder has been ordered to pay $19,411 in restitution.
In the second case, Michelle Wright was part of a similar conspiracy to commit student loan fraud. She and her co-defendants recruited straw students to sign up for college classes for the purpose of receiving financial aid funds. Some of the individuals agreed to have their identities used to commit fraud; other individuals had their personal information used to commit fraud without their consent.
“I’m proud of the work of OIG special agents and our law enforcement colleagues for holding Michelle Wright and Brent Wilder accountable for their criminal actions and for shutting down two more student aid fraud rings in California,” said Natalie Forbort, Special Agent in Charge of the U.S. Department of Education Office of Inspector General’s Western Regional Office. “As these two fraud ringleaders and their co-conspirators who have been sentenced for participating in these fraud rings know, stealing student aid is a crime. Tracking down those who prey on this program and the innocent students who rely on it to make their dreams of a higher education a reality is a priority of our office.”
Huddleston is scheduled to be sentenced by United States District Judge Troy Nunley on March 6, 2013. He remains out of custody on a $100,000 bond.
Five others have been convicted and sentenced in Wright’s case. Janeigh Mendoza, 32, of Tracy, was sentenced to four years and three months in prison. The others, including Michelle Wright’s husband Kenneth Wright, were sentenced to terms of probation. Michelle Wright was ordered to pay $129,171 in restitution.
These cases are the product of investigations by the United States Department of Education, Office of Inspector General. Assistant United States Attorney Jared C. Dolan is prosecuting the cases.
Two Retailers Plead Guilty to Food Stamp FraudRead the Press Release
Six Retailers Have Pleaded Guilty to Date
Baltimore, Maryland –Abdullah Aljaradi, age 52, and Ahmed Ayedh Al-Jabrati, age 58, both citizens of Yemen residing in Baltimore, have each pleaded guilty to wire fraud in connection with a scheme to illegally redeem food stamp benefits in exchange for cash. Aljaradi’s guilty plea was entered on February 5th and Al-Jabrati entered his plea today.
The guilty pleas were announced by United States Attorney for the District of Maryland Rod J. Rosenstein; Special Agent in Charge William G. Squires, Jr. of the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Office of Inspector General, Northeast Region; and Special Agent in Charge Stephen E. Vogt of the Federal Bureau of Investigation.
Aljaradi and Al-Jabrati operated two convenience stores, Second Obama Express and D&M Deli and Grocery, located next door to each other at 901 Harlem Avenue in Baltimore. According to their plea agreements and court documents, the stores participated in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), previously known as the Food Stamp Program. In Maryland, the program provides eligible individuals with an electronic benefit transfer (EBT) card called the Independence Card, which operates like a debit card. Recipients obtain EBT cards through the state Department of Human Resources, then use the EBT card to purchase approved food items from participating retailers.
Aljaradi and Al-Jabrati knew that it was a violation of SNAP regulations to trade cash for SNAP benefits. Nevertheless, from October 2010 to July 2013, Aljaradi and Al-Jabrati exchanged SNAP benefits for cash at less than face value of the EBT benefits, in violation of the food stamp program rules, and kept up to 50 percent of the benefits for themselves.
The indictment alleges that as a result of these unlawful cash transactions, Aljaradi and Al-Jabrati obtained more than $2 million in payments for food sales that never occurred. While the Court will determine the actual amount of the financial loss for the purpose of calculating the sentencing guidelines, restitution, and forfeiture, any money judgment ordered by the Court will not be less than $259,344.15, the funds seized from the stores and from two bank accounts associated with the stores.
Aljaradi and Al-Jabrati each face a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison. U.S. District Judge William D. Quarles, Jr. scheduled sentencing for Aljaradi on April 30, 2014, at 2:00 p.m. and for Al-Jabrati for March 25, 2014 at 1:00 p.m.Nine retail store owners or operators, including Aljaradi and Al-Jabrati, were indicted in September 2013 on federal charges of food stamp fraud and wire fraud in connection with schemes to illegally redeem food stamp benefits in exchange for cash. Dae Cho, age 67, and her son Hyung Cho, age 40, both of Catonsville, Maryland, pleaded guilty to food stamp and wire fraud arising out of the operation of K&S Food Market located at 3910 W. Belvedere Avenue and are scheduled to be sentenced on February 21, 2014. Amara Cisse, age 50, who owned Simbo Food Mart, located at 2103 West Pratt Street in Baltimore, and his wife Fanta Keita, age 45, who worked at the store, both of Windsor Mill, Maryland, have also pleaded guilty to food stamp fraud and are scheduled to be sentenced on March 6, 2014, at 3:00 p.m.
United States Attorney Rod J. Rosenstein praised USDA’s Office of Inspector General and FBI for their work in the investigation. U.S. Attorney Rosenstein expressed appreciation to Secretary Ted Dallas and the Maryland Department of Human Resources, as well as U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services - Office of Fraud Detection and National Security for their assistance in the investigation. Mr. Rosenstein thanked Assistant United States Attorney Kathleen O. Gavin, who is prosecuting the case.
Two More Adult Day Care Center Operators Sentenced in Manhattan Federal Court for Conspiring to Bribe Former New York State Assemblyman Eric StevensonRead the Press Release
Preet Bharara, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, announced that IGOR BELYANSKY and DAVID BINMAN were sentenced today in Manhattan federal court to 20 and nine months in prison, respectively, for conspiring to pay approximately $20,000 in bribes to former New York State Assemblyman Eric Stevenson in exchange for Stevenson’s official acts, including drafting, proposing, and agreeing to enact legislation that favored the bribers’ business interests. BELYANSKY was also sentenced for conspiring to bribe former New York State Assemblyman Nelson Castro. BELYANSKY and BINMAN both pled guilty in September 2013 before U.S. District Judge William H. Pauley III, who also imposed today’s sentence.
Manhattan U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara said: “Igor Belyansky and David Binman were more than willing to break the law by paying tens of thousands of dollars in bribes to Eric Stevenson to advance their own business interests and to buy favorable legislation. Today, they learned that their corruption of the legislative process comes at a cost, time behind bars in a federal prison.”
According to the Complaint and the Indictment filed in Manhattan federal court, and statements made in Court:
Stevenson began serving as a member of the New York State Assembly in 2011 representing District 79, which includes various neighborhoods in the Bronx. The four businessmen – BELYANSKY, BINMAN, Rostislav Belyansky (“Slava”), and Igor Tsimerman – are individuals who, during 2012 and 2013, were seeking to open and manage adult day care centers in the Bronx, New York, including a center on Westchester Avenue (the “Westchester Avenue Center”), within Stevenson’s Assembly District, and a second center on Jerome Avenue (the “Jerome Avenue Center”), within then-Assemblyman Castro’s Assembly District. During that time period, they paid multiple bribes to Stevenson in connection with efforts to open and operate both centers.
For example, at a meeting on July 23, 2012, Stevenson, BELYANSKY, and Tsimerman discussed the opening of the Westchester Avenue Center. During this meeting, Stevenson said that on July 26, 2012, he was “having a night [event]” for “my reelection” and that he needed “support and help like everyone else.” Subsequently, on July 25, 2012, Slava provided a cooperating witness (the “CW”) with a check for $2,000 made out to Stevenson’s political action committee, which the CW provided to Stevenson. Stevenson did not disclose this check as a campaign contribution as required by New York State Law.
At a September 7, 2012 meeting at a steakhouse in the Bronx, Slava and BELYANSKY offered to pay Stevenson $10,000 in exchange for calling Con Edison to expedite the installation of a gas line and assisting with obtaining a Certificate of Occupancy from the New York City Buildings Department at the Jerome Avenue Center, and for assistance recruiting senior citizens to attend the Westchester Avenue Center. Stevenson agreed, but when BELYANSKY attempted to hand him the $10,000 in an envelope, Stevenson indicated that he was concerned that there might be surveillance cameras in the restaurant, so waited until he was outside of the restaurant to take the cash bribe. On September 18, 2012, Stevenson gave the CW a $1,500 cut of the $10,000 bribe in exchange for the CW’s assistance, and promised to pay the CW an additional $500.
On December 27, 2012, the CW met with Stevenson and showed Stevenson a copy of an email dated December 26, 2012, sent from the contractor for the Jerome Avenue Center to Slava and Tsimerman. In the email, the contractor stated that “[i]t is urgent . . . that we call the State Senator Eric Stevenson so that he can call the building department at once and ask them to have this application reviewed” in connection with getting “a permit to install the gas lines into the building.” After reviewing this email, Stevenson stated, “he’s not a smart guy . . . he’s not too bright, this guy” because “he put this in writing . . . why he got to put my name in it? . . . He shouldn’t have said that.” Stevenson said they needed to avoid creating a “paper trail.” During that meeting, the CW and Stevenson also discussed the possibility of Stevenson introducing legislation that would establish a temporary moratorium on the construction and/or opening of new adult day care centers (the “Moratorium Legislation”), which would have the effect of eliminating competition with the Jerome Avenue Center and the Westchester Avenue Center, thereby substantially increasing the profits earned by those two centers. Stevenson told the CW: “All you gotta do is tell me what you want in the bill, and the bill drafter will put it together…I just need you to tell me what they [the co-defendants] want; we prepare the bill. . . . You can write down the language, basically what you want.” Stevenson then asked: “Are Igor [BELYANSKY] and them putting together a nice little package [of money] for me, huh?” He said: “I got my inauguration I gotta take care of, I got a lot of sh*t man.” Stevenson then said to the CW, in reference to the legislation, “I’m telling you, it’s done. It’s no problem.” Subsequently, the CW met with Tsimerman and BELYANSKY. Tsimerman said that as a result of the Moratorium Legislation, the value of their adult day care centers was “gonna
skyrocket. . . . As long as [there’s a] moratorium, I can guarantee you at least a triple [in profits].”
On January 1, 2013, the CW and Stevenson spoke on the telephone and Stevenson referred to “Igor” [BELYANSKY] as “Santa,” in reference to the money he expected to receive. In a subsequent meeting on the same day in the CW’s car, Stevenson sought assurances that “Igor” [BELYANSKY] was going to “bless everything,” meaning pay Stevenson. He added that: “I got the inauguration, I want a blessing [payment] in place, man.” Two days later, the CW gave BELYANSKY and Slava a copy of a document titled “Proposed Adult Day Care Center Bill,” which contained a proposal for the Moratorium Legislation. On January 7, 2013, the CW provided the same proposal to Stevenson. Later that day, Tsimerman provided STEVENSON with another copy of the proposal containing Tsimerman’s notes. On January 9, 2013, the CW told BELYANSKY that Stevenson wanted $10,000 for the Moratorium Legislation, with $5,000 paid up front. Two days later, on January 11, 2013, at the Westchester Avenue Center, BELYANSKY, BINMAN, Slava, and Tsimerman gave the CW $5,000 cash. The CW then left the Westchester Avenue Center with the envelope of money and got in his car where Stevenson joined him, at which time the CW gave the envelope of money to Stevenson, after taking out his $500 cut.
On January 27, 2013, Stevenson met with the CW and told the CW that he was concerned that Tsimerman might be cooperating with law enforcement officials and recording their conversations. Stevenson expressed a concern that if “they bring me down … somebody’s going to the cemetery.”
Stevenson had a draft of the Moratorium Legislation prepared by January 31, 2013, which he showed the CW at a meeting in his office and which was consistent with the bullet points prepared by the CW and BELYANSKY, BINMAN, Slava, and Tsimerman. On February 11, 2013, Stevenson told the CW: “We got the bill [the Moratorium Legislation] back today . . . [t]he bill is done now, it’s going out to the members . . . to the committee and . . . we’re
gonna . . . try to push it to get it to the floor.” On February 16, in a hotel room in Albany, Slava gave $5,000 in cash to the CW, which the CW gave to Stevenson after taking a $500 cut. While the CW took out his $500 cut, Stevenson walked into the bathroom of the CW’s room and left the door open so that he could receive the $4,500 cash in the bathroom.
On February 20, 2013, Stevenson introduced and sponsored Bill Number A05139, which places a temporary moratorium on the construction and/or opening of new adult day care centers within New York City.
Two days later, in a meeting between the CW and BELYANKY, BINMAN, and Tsimerman, BELYANSKY said that the legislation would double the value of his share in the Jerome Avenue and Westchester Avenue Centers from approximately $350,000 to $700,000.
In addition to prison, BELYANSKY, 42, of Bronx, New York, was sentenced to three years of supervised release, and ordered to pay a $2,000 fine and a $200 special assessment fee. BINMAN, 52, of Glendale, New York, was also sentenced to three years of supervised release, and ordered to pay a $7,500 fine and a $100 special assessment fee.
Stevenson was convicted on January 13, 2014, of conspiring to commit honest services wire fraud, conspiring to commit federal programs bribery and to violate the Travel Act, committing federal programs bribery, and extortion under color of official right following a six-day jury trial before U.S. District Judge Loretta A. Preska. Stevenson is scheduled to be sentenced by Judge Preska on May 20, 2014.
Tsimerman and Slava pled guilty in September 2013 to conspiring to commit honest services wire fraud in connection with their payment of bribes to Stevenson before Judge Pauley. On January 24, 2014, Judge Pauley sentenced Tsimerman principally to 24 months in prison, and sentenced Slava principally to 18 months in prison.
Mr. Bharara praised the work of the investigators from the United States Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York and the District Attorney’s Office for Bronx County.
This prosecution is being handled by the Office’s Public Corruption Unit. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Paul M. Krieger and Brian A. Jacobs and Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Pishoy Yacoub of the Bronx County District Attorney’s Office are in charge of the prosecution.
Two Found Guilty of Tax Fraud, Wire Fraud, and Identity TheftRead the Press Release
PANAMA CITY, FLORIDA – Following a six-day trial, a jury found Versiah M. Taylor, 33, and Tracy L. Collier, 48, guilty yesterday evening on multiple counts of tax fraud, wire fraud, and identity theft. Taylor and Collier are both from Panama City.
Evidence presented at trial proved that between September 9, 2011, and August 15, 2012, the defendants prepared and filed fraudulent tax returns seeking more than $500,000 in refunds. The defendants used the personally identifiable information (PII) of inmates of the Florida Department of Corrections, Bay County residents, and others to file fraudulent income tax returns. Collier, who was incarcerated during the conspiracy, provided the personal information of inmates by disguising the social security numbers and dates of birth as legal case citations and mailed them to Taylor. Taylor, operating out of a small office that he rented in the Steele Boys Bail Bond’s Plaza in Panama City, orchestrated the filing of multiple tax returns creating false employment information and using the PII of other individuals. These returns each claimed fraudulent refunds between $3,000 and $9,530 and were to be deposited onto prepaid debit cards, which were then mailed to various locations throughout Bay County, Florida.
Taylor and Collier each face up to 20 years in prison, a fine of up to $250,000, up to three years of supervised release, restitution, criminal forfeiture, and a $100 special monetary assessment. Additionally, for each count of aggravated identity theft, Taylor and Collier face a minimum mandatory sentence of two years in prison that is to be served consecutive to any other sentence imposed.
Sentencing for both defendants is scheduled for May 7, 2014, before United States District Judge Richard Smoak.
This case was investigated by the Internal Revenue Service – Criminal Investigation Division.
The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Katy Risinger.
Two Defendants Convicted at Trial in Multi-Million Dollar Bank Fraud Scheme Involving Investment Properties in Miami-Dade, Broward, and Palm Beach CountiesRead the Press Release
Wifredo Ferrer, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Florida, and Paula Reid, Special Agent in Charge, U.S. Secret Service, Miami Field Office, announce that Darryl Burke, 50, and Vicki Garland, 50, both of Delray Beach, Florida, were convicted yesterday by a federal jury in Ft. Lauderdale of bank fraud and wire fraud conspiracy, after a two and half week trial before U.S. District Judge James I. Cohn. Burke was also convicted of four substantive counts of bank fraud, and Garland was convicted of three substantive counts of bank fraud.
Evidence at trial established that Burke and Garland created fictitious companies, including Next Level Development, and used an abandoned coin laundry in Delray Beach, to create an empire of fraudulently obtained investment properties. The abandoned coin laundry had a mailbox that served as the official address for the defendants, various fake companies, and other conspirators and fictitious individuals. Trial evidence established that Burke and Garland used fake documents, including false wage and tax documents, and false claims of employment and income, to obtain bank loans for investment properties in low-income neighborhoods. Garland was held out as the “President” of Next Level, and would sell properties to Burke, using his alias, “David Middleton.” The defendants would then enroll the properties in the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), Section 8 voucher program, and obtain proceeds from HUD and from low-income tenants. The defendants then used false claims of status for Burke and also for the fake name, “David Middleton,” as total and permanent disabled veterans to avoid property taxes on various fraudulently obtained properties. Burke and his fake alias were neither veterans nor disabled. Trial evidence established that the loans and rental proceeds totaled millions of dollars.
Defendants used the proceeds of the fraud to acquire a multi-residence waterfront compound in Delray Beach, as well as Bentley, Mercedes and Range Rover automobiles, luxury goods, and courtside season tickets for the Miami Heat, and to obtain large amounts of cash. Evidence further showed that Burke was convicted in 1997 in the Southern District of Florida of federal bank fraud charges, in relation to conduct that spanned the late 1980s and early 1990s.
Sentencing of Burke and Garland is set for April 18, 2014 before Judge Cohn.
Previously, four defendants were convicted in connection with the scheme to defraud multiple lenders. Three title agents, Osvaldo Sanchez, 38, Rafael Amador, 32, both of Miami, Florida, and Devon Fraser, 31, of Sunrise, Florida, and real estate investor Chiquita Alexis, 46, of Boca Raton, Florida, all pled guilty before to the same conspiracy involving Burke and Garland. Sanchez and Amador were each sentenced to 24 months in prison on November 5, 2013. Fraser and Alexis are scheduled for sentencing before U.S. District Judge Ursula Ungaro on February 19, 2014
Mr. Ferrer commended the investigative efforts of the U.S. Secret Service. This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Jerrob Duffy.
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.
Three South Floridians Sentenced in $2.2 Million Identity Theft Tax Refund Fraud SchemeRead the Press Release
Wifredo A. Ferrer, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Florida, José A. Gonzalez, Special Agent in Charge, Internal Revenue Service, Criminal Investigation (IRS-CI), Paula Reid, Special Agent in Charge, U.S. Secret Service, Miami Field Office, and J. Dennis Scott, Chief, North Miami Beach Police Department, announce that Frantz Pierre, 34, of Parkland, Terry Pierre, 29, and Christmanie Bissainthe, 33, both of Miami, were sentenced today by U.S. District Court Judge Marcia G. Cooke after having been found guilty by a federal jury of charges relating to their participation in a stolen identity tax refund scheme that resulted in the submission of approximately $2.2 million in fraudulent refund claims to the Internal Revenue Service. Specifically, Frantz Pierre was sentenced to 208 months in prison, followed by three years of supervised release; Terry Pierre was sentenced to 121 months in prison, followed by three years of supervised; and Christmanie Bissainthe was sentenced to 84 months in prison, followed by three years of supervised. A restitution hearing is scheduled for April 30, 2014 at 9:30 a.m.
On October 24, 2013, a federal jury in Miami convicted Frantz Pierre, Terry Pierre and Christmanie Bissainthe on 12 counts, including conspiracy to submit fraudulent claims to the government, access device fraud, and aggravated identity theft. According to trial evidence and testimony, 1,000 pre-paid debit cards were sent to Frantz Pierre’s business in the name of Tax Professors in May 2010. Co-conspirators subsequently caused approximately 338 fraudulent and unauthorized tax returns using stolen prisoners’ identities to be submitted to the IRS seeking $2.2 million in refunds for payment onto the Tax Professors’ debit cards. The IRS paid approximately $1.9 million in refunds in connection with these fraudulent returns to these debit cards. Evidence at trial included, among other things, video evidence of all three defendants withdrawing funds from these debit cards.
According to trial evidence and testimony, law enforcement executed a search warrant at defendant Frantz Pierre’s seven-bedroom residence in Parkland, Florida in July 2012. The evidence showed that this residence had been purchased primarily with fraudulent tax refund proceeds. After law enforcement announced their presence, an individual was observed tossing laptops from the second floor of Pierre’s residence towards the pool. Law enforcement found over 70 pre-paid debit cards and a thumb drive with over 2,000 people’s names, dates of birth, Social Security numbers, and IRS pin numbers in Frantz Pierre’s bedside dresser.
Mr. Ferrer commended the investigative efforts of the Identity Theft Tax Refund Strike Force, with special commendation to IRS-CI (Miami and St. Paul), the U.S. Secret Service, and the North Miami Beach Police Department. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Michael N. Berger and Cristina Moreno.
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.
Three Men, Including San Diego Father and Son, Indicted in Multi-million Dollar Conspiracy to Evade U.S. Sanctions on IranRead the Press Release
United States Attorney Laura E. Duffy announced that Hassan Rafiee and his son, Idin Rafiee, were arraigned today before United States Magistrate Judge Barbara L. Major in federal court in San Diego on an indictment charging them and a third man, Majid Nouri, with conspiracy to evade U.S. economic sanctions against Iran.
Under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act ("IEEPA"), and a series of Presidential Executive Orders, the United States has imposed economic sanctions against Iran. With limited exceptions, the sanctions generally prohibit U.S. persons from exporting, selling, and supplying goods, technology or services to Iran, or even facilitating such transactions.
According to the indictment, the Rafiees and Majid Nouri are U.S. citizens originally from Iran. The indictment alleges that the Rafiees – with Nouri’s assistance – operated two companies, Pasha International aka Surnyx, based in San Diego, and Pasha Tak, based in Iran. The defendants used these companies to carry out a multi-year conspiracy to evade the trade sanctions against Iran. Specifically, the indictment alleges that the defendants unlawfully procured more than $8 million in goods – primarily cooling equipment – for customers in Iran, without obtaining any approval from the United States Department of Treasury, Office of Foreign Assets Control.
In January 2014, Department of Homeland Security, Homeland Security Investigation (HSI) agents arrested Hassan and Idin Rafiee in San Diego and arrested Majid Nouri in Katy, Texas. The Rafiees have each been released on a $100,000 bond secured by property, home detention and GPS monitoring, and are scheduled to make their next appearance on March 7, 2014 before the Hon. Janis L. Sammartino for a motion hearing. Nouri is expected to make his initial appearance in federal court in San Diego on February 11, 2014.
DEFENDANT Case Number: 14CR0240-JLSHassan Rafiee
San Diego, California
Majid Nouri
Idin Rafiee
Katy, Texas
San Diego, California
Age 58
Age 41
Age 24 SUMMARY OF CHARGESTitle 50, U.S.C., Sections 1702 and 1705, and Title 31, C.F.R., Part 560 – Conspiracy to Export to Embargoed Country
INVESTIGATING AGENCY
Maximum penalties: 20 years in prison and a $1,000,000 fine.Department of Homeland Security, Homeland Security Investigations
An indictment itself is not evidence that the defendants committed the crimes charged. The defendants are presumed innocent until the Government meets its burden in court of proving guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.
Stone Child Theft Brings 18 Month SentenceRead the Press Release
The United States Attorney's Office announced that during a federal court session in Great Falls, on February 5, 2014, before U.S. District Judge Brian M. Morris, JOHN OWEN HOBBS, JR., 31, of the Box Elder, was sentenced to a term of 18 months probation, $8,657 restitution, and a special assessment of $100.
HOBBS, was sentenced in connection with his November 14, 2013 guilty plea to theft from an Indian tribal organization. In an Offer of Proof filed by Assistant U.S. Attorney Danna Jackson, the government stated that on or around January 10, 2013, JOHN OWEN HOBBS, JR., along with two other individuals, broke into the bookstore at Stone Child College and knowingly stole $8,544.69 worth of merchandise and cash. The Defendant, and others, took seven iPod Touches, an iPod Nano, headphones, and several jackets.
Statement of Manhattan U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara on the Conviction of Mathew MartomaRead the Press Release
“As the jury unanimously found, Mathew Martoma cultivated and purchased the confidence of doctors with secret knowledge of an experimental Alzheimer's drug, and used it to engage in illegal insider trading. Martoma bought the answer sheet before the exam – more than once – netting a quarter billion dollars in profits and losses avoided for SAC, as well as a $9 million bonus for him. In the short run, cheating may have been profitable for Martoma, but in the end, it made him a convicted felon, and likely will result in the forfeiture of his illegal windfall and the loss of his liberty. Mathew Martoma becomes the 79th person convicted of insider trading after trial or by guilty plea in this District in the last four years.”
Shiprock Man Pleads Guilty to Statutory Rape ChargeRead the Press Release
ALBUQUERQUE – Lancelot Lapahie, 26, an enrolled member of the Navajo Nation who resides in Shiprock, N.M., pleaded guilty this morning to a statutory rape charge under a plea agreement with the U.S. Attorney’s Office.
Lapahie was arrested in Nov. 2013 on an indictment charging him with statutory rape. According to the indictment, between Aug. 2010 and Dec. 2011, Lapahie engaged in a sexual act with a minor under the age of 16 years. During today’s hearing, Lapahie pleaded guilty to the indictment.
Under the terms of his plea agreement, Lapahie will be sentenced to 24 months in prison followed by a term of supervised release to be determined by the court. He also will be required to register as a sex offender. The 24-month prison sentence will be served concurrently with a 50-month prison sentence Lapahie is serving for his conviction on assault and firearms charges.
The 50-month prison sentence was imposed on Lapahie in May 2013, following Lapahie’s guilty plea to two assault charges and a possession of an unregistered firearm charge. In entering his guilty plea to those charges, Lapahie admitted that in March 2012, he stuck a man with a baseball bat and repeatedly struck another man about the head, arms and body with a machete. The victim of the machete attack suffered multiple stab wounds and cuts to his head, face, forearm, leg and back.
This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Novaline D. Wilson, and was investigated by the Albuquerque and Farmington offices of the FBI and the Shiprock office of the Navajo Nation Division of Public Safety with assistance from the Navajo Nation Division of Social Services.
Sentencing for January 31, 2014Read the Press Release
Nadel and Gussman Rockies, L.L.C., doing business in Tulsa, Oklahoma, was sentenced by Federal District Court Judge Alan B. Johnson on January 31, 2014, for negligent discharge of oil into waters of the United States. The company was ordered to pay a fine in the amount of $357,500.00; restitution in the amount of $430,500.00; $212,000.00 for community services; and a $125.00 special assessment. The company has also been placed on three years of probation. This case was investigated by the U.S. Bureau of Land Management and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.
Ory J. Johnson, 36, of Laramie, Wyoming, was sentenced by Chief Federal District Court Judge Nancy D. Freudenthal on January 31, 2014, for conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute at least 894 grams of methamphetamine. Johnson was arrested in Laramie, Wyoming. He received 60 months imprisonment, to be followed by five years supervised release, and was ordered to pay a $250.00 fine and a $100.00 special assessment. This case was investigated by the Albany County Sheriff’s Office and the Wyoming Division of Criminal Investigation.Salem Pharmacist Sentenced to Two Years in Prison for Health Care FraudRead the Press Release
A Salem, Ohio, pharmacist was sentenced to two years in prison and ordered to pay more than $300,000 in restitution after previously pleading guilty to health care fraud, said Steven M. Dettelbach, United States Attorney for the Northern District of Ohio and Ohio Attorney General Mike DeWine.
Bruce E. Franken, 53, will also be on supervised release for three years upon his release from federal prison.
“This sentence sends an important message that there will be consequences for those that try to game programs such as Medicaid,” Dettelbach said. “Our office will continue to stamp out waste, fraud and abuse of all federal programs, particularly those that affect our health care system.”
“This defendant filled these prescriptions with complete disregard for the law because he knew that he was legally prohibited from doing so,” said Attorney General DeWine. “Because of his previous crimes, he was not allowed to work with Medicaid recipients, and he had no right to completely ignore this restriction.”
Franken was excluded from filling prescriptions for patients enrolled in federally funded health care programs, such as Medicaid, following convictions on multiple criminal charges, including theft of drugs, in 2001.
From May 14, 2009, through July 14, 2011, Franken worked as a pharmacist at J.H. Lease Pharmacy, 229 North Ellsworth Avenue, Salem, Ohio. He filled prescriptions for Medicaid recipients even though he knew he was excluded from participation in all federal health care programs.
As a result of Franken’s unauthorized and fraudulent claims, Medicaid was billed and subsequently paid these prescriptions that Franken was prohibited from providing in the amount of $301,550, according to court documents.
This case is being handled by Assistant U.S. Attorney Chelsea Rice and Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Constance Nearhood following an investigation by the Ohio Attorney General's Health Care Fraud Section and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Office of Inspector General.
Sabrena Karim Indicted for Preparing Bankruptcy Documents in Contempt of Court OrderRead the Press Release
Baltimore, Maryland - A federal grand jury has indicted Sabrena Karim, age 63, of Baltimore, Maryland, on charges that she is in contempt of a court order permanently enjoining Karim from preparing or assisting anyone in preparing any document for filing in any bankruptcy court.
The indictment was announced by United States Attorney for the District of Maryland Rod J. Rosenstein; U.S. Trustee Judy Robbins and the Baltimore Office of the United States Trustee Program, the Department of Justice component that supervises the administration of bankruptcy cases; and Special Agent in Charge Stephen E. Vogt of the Federal Bureau of Investigation.
The four count indictment alleges that on March 21, 2011, at a hearing attended by Karim, a United States Bankruptcy Judge for the District of Maryland issued a verbal Order permanently enjoining Karim from acting as a bankruptcy return preparer and from accepting any money for preparing or assisting in the preparation of any document to be filed in any bankruptcy court. The Judge followed up with a written Order, which repeated the findings and prohibitions. The written Order was mailed to Karim’s address on March 31, 2011.
Despite that Order, a subsequent Civil Contempt Order, and two visits from a Special Agent with the Federal Bureau of Investigation advising Karim that she was prohibited by the Bankruptcy Court’s Order from acting as a bankruptcy return preparer or otherwise assisting or advising anyone in connection with their bankruptcy matters, the indictment alleges that Karim continued to prepare bankruptcy petitions and other documents for filing in the Bankruptcy Court.
No court appearance is currently scheduled for Karim, who is released under the supervision of U.S. Pretrial Services.An indictment is not a finding of guilt. An individual charged by indictment is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty at some later criminal proceedings.
United States Attorney Rod J. Rosenstein praised the U.S. Trustee’s Office and the FBI for their work in the investigation. Mr. Rosenstein thanked Assistant United States Attorney Kathleen O. Gavin, who is prosecuting the case.
SAC Capital Portfolio Manager Mathew Martoma Found Guilty in Manhattan Federal Court of Insider Trading ChargesRead the Press Release
Preet Bharara, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, announced that MATHEW MARTOMA, a former portfolio manager of CR Intrinsic Investors, LLC, a division of S.A.C. Capital, was found guilty today in Manhattan federal court in connection with his participation in the most lucrative insider trading scheme ever charged, involving approximately $275 million in illegal profits and avoided losses. MARTOMA was convicted after a four-week jury trial presided over by U.S. District Judge Paul G. Gardephe.
Manhattan U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara said: “As the jury unanimously found, Mathew Martoma cultivated and purchased the confidence of doctors with secret knowledge of an experimental Alzheimer's drug, and used it to engage in illegal insider trading. Martoma bought the answer sheet before the exam – more than once – netting a quarter billion dollars in profits and losses avoided for SAC, as well as a $9 million bonus for him. In the short run, cheating may have been profitable for Martoma, but in the end, it made him a convicted felon, and likely will result in the forfeiture of his illegal windfall and the loss of his liberty. Mathew Martoma becomes the 79th person convicted of insider trading after trial or by guilty plea in this District in the last four years.”
According to the allegations in the Superseding Indictment filed in Manhattan federal court, other court documents, and the evidence presented at trial:
During the period of the insider trading scheme, MARTOMA was an S.A.C. Capital portfolio manager responsible for investment decisions in public companies in the health care sector, including pharmaceutical companies Elan and Wyeth, that were involved in the development of experimental drugs to combat Alzheimer’s Disease. At the time, scientists and investors alike were awaiting the results of a clinical trial being conducted by Elan and Wyeth for a drug called bapineuzumab, which offered a novel but untested approach to the treatment of Alzheimer’s Disease (the “Drug Trial”).
In order to obtain material nonpublic information (the “Inside Information”) about the Drug Trial, MARTOMA, shortly after starting his employment at S.A.C. Capital in the summer of 2006, began using expert networking firms to try to speak to doctors involved in the Drug Trial with access to confidential information. Through these efforts, MARTOMA arranged dozens of paid consultations with one of the Drug Trial’s principal investigators, Dr. Joel Ross, and the chairman of the Drug Trial’s Safety Monitoring Committee (“SMC”), Dr. Sidney Gilman. Through an exploitation of MARTOMA’s personal and financial relationships with these doctors, MARTOMA was able to obtain Inside Information about the Drug Trial.
The Inside Information that MARTOMA initially received from Dr. Ross included anecdotal reports concerning patients under Dr. Ross’s care. The Inside Information MARTOMA initially received from Dr. Gilman included generally positive safety data about which Dr. Gilman was aware through his chairmanship of the SMC. In fact, MARTOMA arranged a paid consultation shortly after each and every SMC meeting, in part to ensure that he would be among the first to learn if any substantial safety issues were emerging from the Drug Trial that could lead to the cancellation of the Drug Trial and decreases in the price of Elan and Wyeth stock. Based in part on the positive safety information, MARTOMA purchased and held shares of Elan and Wyeth, and further recommended that the owner of S.A.C. Capital (the “S.A.C. Capital Owner”) purchase and hold Elan and Wyeth securities, which the S.A.C Capital Owner did. By the spring of 2008, S.A.C. Capital held approximately $700 million worth of Elan and Wyeth equity securities.
Elan and Wyeth planned to release the full results of the Drug Trial to the investing public at the International Conference on Alzheimer Disease (the “ICAD Presentation”) on July 29, 2008. Dr. Gilman was selected to present the results on behalf companies and was “unblinded” to the full safety and efficacy results of the drug trial on July 15, 2008. Until that time, Dr. Gilman had only been privy to the safety results of the Drug Trial. On July 17, 2008, Dr. Gilman received a draft PowerPoint presentation that had been created for the ICAD meeting and that was marked “Confidential, Do Not Distribute.” The draft PowerPoint presentation showed that the Drug Trial results were negative, particularly in comparison with market expectations. The results raised serious questions about how well the drug worked and, in fact, whether it worked at all.
Later on July 17, 2008, MARTOMA called Dr. Gilman from his home and spoke to Dr. Gilman in detail about the draft PowerPoint presentation during a phone call that lasted one hour and forty-five minutes. Then, on Saturday, July 19, 20008, MARTOMA flew roundtrip from New York City to Detroit, Michigan, to meet Dr. Gilman in his University of Michigan office and review the draft PowerPoint presentation further.
The next day, Sunday, July 20, 2008, MARTOMA sent the owner of S.A.C. Capital (the “S.A.C. Capital Owner”) an email in which he wrote that “…It’s important [that we speak,]” which they did, for approximately 20 minutes. The S.A.C. Capital Owner then directed S.A.C Capital to sell Elan and Wyeth securities prior to the ICAD Presentation. Over the next seven days, S.A.C. Capital liquidated its entire equity position in Elan and almost all of its equity position in Wyeth – a total of 17.7 million shares worth approximately $700 million. S.A.C. Capital also shorted Elan and Wyeth by approximately 7.75 million shares. This trading represented over 20% of the reported U.S. trading volume in Elan and 11% of the volume in Wyeth.
MARTOMA also received information about the ICAD presentation from Dr. Joel Ross. In particular, on the evening of July 28, 2008, after Dr. Ross had been un-blinded to the Drug Trial results at a dinner for Principal Investigators, Dr. Ross met with MARTOMA in a hotel lobby to discuss the negative results. To Dr. Ross’s surprise, MARTOMA already seemed to have seen the Drug Trial results.
The day after the ICAD presentation, Elan stock closed approximately 42% lower, and Wyeth shares fell approximately 11%. Through this trading activity S.A.C. Capital earned profits and avoided losses of approximately $275 million.
MARTOMA, 39, was convicted of one count of conspiracy to commit securities fraud and two counts of securities fraud. He faces a maximum penalty of five years in prison for the conspiracy charge and 20 years in prison on each of the two securities fraud charges. With respect to the conspiracy charges, he faces a maximum fine of $250,000, or twice the gross gain or loss derived from the crimes, and for the securities fraud charges, he faces a maximum fine of $5 million, or twice the gross gain or loss derived from the crime on each charge.
Mr. Bharara praised the efforts of the FBI and also thanked the SEC for its assistance in the investigation. He added that the investigation is continuing.
This case was brought in coordination with President Barack Obama’s Financial Fraud Enforcement Task Force, on which Mr. Bharara serves as a Co-Chair of the Securities and Commodities Fraud Working Group. The task force was established to wage an aggressive, coordinated and proactive effort to investigate and prosecute financial crimes. With more than 20 federal agencies, 94 U.S. attorneys’ offices and state and local partners, it’s the broadest coalition of law enforcement, investigatory and regulatory agencies ever assembled to combat fraud. Since its formation, the task force has made great strides in facilitating increased investigation and prosecution of financial crimes; enhancing coordination and cooperation among federal, state and local authorities; addressing discrimination in the lending and financial markets and conducting outreach to the public, victims, financial institutions and other organizations. Over the past three fiscal years, the Justice Department has filed nearly 10,000 financial fraud cases against nearly 15,000 defendants including more than 2,900 mortgage fraud defendants. For more information on the task force, please visit www.stopfraud.gov.
This case is being handled by the Office’s Securities and Commodities Fraud Task Force. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Arlo Devlin-Brown, Eugene Ingoglia, Megan Gaffney, and Andrea Griswold are in charge of the prosecution.
U.S. v. Mathew Martoma S1 Indictment.pdf
Repeat Felon Sentenced to Federal Prison for Gun with Obliterated Serial NumberRead the Press Release
BECKLEY, W.Va. – A convicted felon who possessed a gun with an obliterated serial number in July of 2013 was sentenced today to two years and six months in federal prison, United States Attorney Booth Goodwin announced. Benjamin Payne, 47, of Clear Creek, West Virginia, previously pleaded guilty in September of 2013 and admitted to possessing and storing a loaded revolver with an obliterated serial number in his car. Payne admitted he had acquired the firearm several weeks prior to his arrest. Payne had multiple prior convictions for burglary.
Homeland Security Investigations handled the investigation. Assistant United States Attorney Blaire L. Malkin handled the prosecution. The sentence was imposed by United States District Judge Irene C. Berger.
Raceland Man, Johnny Smith, Pleads Guilty to Sexual Exploitation of Children and Possession of Child PornographyRead the Press Release
JOHNNY SMITH, age 43, a resident of Raceland, Louisiana, pleaded guilty as charged yesterday before U.S. District Judge Sarah S. Vance to the sexual exploitation of children and possessing images depicting the sexual victimization of children under the age of twelve-years-old, announced U.S. Attorney Kenneth Allen Polite, Jr.
According to the court documents, after a lengthy investigation FBI special agents executed a search warrant on SMITH’S home on July 23, 2013, during which they seized several items of electronic evidence. During a review of the evidence, agents found videos SMITH recorded in which he engaged in sexually explicit conduct with a three-year-old girl. SMITH recorded the videos between about May 12, 2013, and June 23, 2013. Agents also found approximately seven videos of seventeen images depicting children under the age of twelve engaged in sexually explicit conduct that SMITH had downloaded and saved to his computer.
SMITH faces a mandatory minimum term of imprisonment of fifteen (15) years and a maximum of thirty (30) years as to Count 1, and a maximum of twenty (20) years as to Count 2 followed by up to a life term of supervised release, and a $250,000 fine. He can also be required to register as a sex offender. Sentencing has been scheduled for May 14, 2004.
This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by the United States Attorneys' Offices and the Criminal Division's Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who sexually exploit children, and to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.usdoj.gov/psc. For more information about internet safety education, please visit www.usdoj.gov/psc and click on the tab “resources.”
This case is being investigated by agents from the Federal Bureau of Investigation. The prosecution of this case is being handled by Assistant United States Attorney Jordan Ginsberg.
(Download Factual Basis )
Plum Attorney Sentenced to 11 Years in Prison for Million Dollar Mortgage Fraud SchemeRead the Press Release
PITTSBURGH - A Plum Borough resident has been sentenced in federal court to 135 months in prison on her convictions of filing false tax returns, failing to file tax returns, and mail fraud, United States Attorney David J. Hickton announced today.
United States District Judge Cathy Bissoon imposed the sentence on Lisa Gerideau-Williams, 47, of Kensington, Pa.
According to information presented to the court, Gerideau-Williams was an attorney who operated a mortgage broker business called Genesis Home Solutions, and two companies specializing in closing real estate transactions - Millennium Settlement Services and Professional Settlement Solutions. Through these companies Gerideau-Williams operated a complex and multi-faceted fraud scheme.
One aspect of the scheme involved the submission of loan applications to lenders. The loan applications were fraudulent because Gerideau-Williams submitted them without the authority of the borrowers and they contained false information related to the borrowers' financial condition. For example, Gerideau-Williams submitted loan applications on behalf of her brother and her elderly aunt that were not authorized by either. In addition, Gerideau-Williams represented to lenders that her elderly aunt owned and operated a lucrative cleaning business when, in fact, her aunt was a retired state worker. Gerideau-Williams also furthered the fraud by submitted fake documents supporting the misrepresentations in the loan applications and by forging the signature of her brother and her aunt.
Gerideau-Williams' fraud also related to her operation of businesses that closed real estate transactions. Gerideau-Williams received money from lenders into her trust account that was required to be disbursed to pay liabilities associated with the collateral. In that way the lender would stand in the first lien position related to the collateral. Gerideau-Williams, rather than paying those liabilities, would simply take the money and use it to support her lavish lifestyle.
Gerideau-Williams also defrauded borrowers. Borrowers paid for title insurance and for other services such as recording deeds and mortgages. Rather than providing these services, however, Gerideau-Williams simply took the fees for those services, but failed to actually provide those services.
Title insurance companies were also victimized by Gerideau-Williams' fraud. At closings, Gerideau-Williams collected fees from borrowers for title insurance. Gerideau-Williams, however, failed to remit those payments to the title insurance companies. In addition, some of the title insurance companies terminated Gerideau-Williams authority to issue title insurance under their names. Despite the termination, however, Gerideau-Williams continued to issue title insurance on fraudulent transactions as if she was authorized to do so.
Gerideau-Williams' fraud was particularly egregious related to property located in Pittsburgh, Pa. Prior to 2005, Gerideau-Williams rented that property and it was her residence. On Sept. 6, 2005, through her fraudulent businesses, she sold the property from the rightful owner to her elderly aunt without the knowledge of either the owner or her aunt. A lender financed the purchase, and Gerideau-Williams simply took all of the proceeds from the transaction for her personal benefit. Gerideau-Williams, however, did not record the deed or the mortgage related to the property and therefore the property still appeared on the public record to be owned by the rightful owner of the property free of any mortgages.
On March 13, 2006, Gerideau-Williams arranged to purchase the property in her own name financed through a fraudulently obtained loan. While she recorded the deed transferring ownership of the property to her own name, she did not record the mortgage and therefore, according to the public record, it appeared that she owned the property free of any liens.
On Aug. 7, 2006, Gerideau-Williams sold the property to her brother, and her brother financed the purchase through a fraudulently obtained loan secured by Gerideau-Williams. Gerideau-Williams received the proceeds from the sale, but she did not record the deed or the mortgage and therefore the public record still showed that she owned the property free of any liens.
On Jan. 19, 2007, Gerideau-Williams sold the property to her brother again, and her brother again financed the purchase through a fraudulently obtained loan secured by Gerideau-Williams. Gerideau- Williams again received the proceeds from the sale, but she again did not record the deed or the mortgage and therefore the public record still showed that she owned the property free of any liens.
Finally, on Feb. 20, 2007, Gerideau-Williams sold the property to her brother again, and her brother again financed the purchase through a fraudulently obtained loan secured by Gerideau-Williams. Gerideau-Williams again received the proceeds from the sale, but she again did not record the deed or the mortgage and therefore the public record still showed that she owned the property free of any liens.
Equally egregious are the various loans Gerideau-Williams secured in the name of her elderly aunt. As mentioned above, Gerideau-Williams arranged for her aunt to purchase property from the rightful owner. That purchase was financed through a loan fraudulently obtained by Gerideau-Williams.
Gerideau-Williams' aunt owned a home in Harrisburg, Pa. On Nov. 2, 2005, Gerideau-Williams arranged for a fraudulent refinance loan collateralized by her aunt's Harrisburg property. On Jan. 30, 2007, Gerideau-Williams arranged for a second fraudulent refinance transaction collateralized by that same property.
On March 12, 2007 and March 21, 2007, Gerideau-Williams, without the authority of her elderly aunt, secured two other refinance transactions collateralized by that same property. For each transaction, Gerideau-Williams took the proceeds from the loans and used those proceeds to support her lavish lifestyle. In neither of those transactions, however, did she record the mortgages. In connection with those transactions she issued title insurance without the authority of the title insurance companies, forged her aunt's signature on various documents, and failed to pay the liabilities associated with the collateral as required by the lenders.
For the 2004, tax year Gerideau-Williams, who took taxation classes at Georgetown University School of Law toward an advanced degree in tax law, filed tax returns that drastically understated her income because she failed to include the more than a million dollars earned in the course of her fraud schemes. For that 2005 and 2006 tax years, she did not file her income tax returns.
Assistant United States Attorney Brendan T. Conway prosecuted this case on behalf of the government.
U.S. Attorney Hickton commended the Mortgage Fraud Task Force for the investigation leading to the successful prosecution of Gerideau-Williams.
Placer County Woman Charged for an Investment Fraud Scheme That Targeted Investors in Failed Folsom Ponzi SchemeRead the Press Release
SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Kari Sonovich, 42, was arrested today at her home in Meadow Vista, United States Attorney Benjamin B. Wagner announced. On January 31, 2014, a federal grand jury returned a three-count indictment, charging Sonovich with mail fraud. The indictment was unsealed today after her arrest. Sonovich is scheduled to be arraigned today in federal court in Sacramento at 2:00 p.m.
According to court documents, between July 2008 and April 2009, Sonovich recruited investors to invest with her Las Vegas company, B&B Consulting Group LLC, by telling them she could place their funds with an international trader who operated at an extremely high level, promising returns of up to 500 percent every 90 days. When investors deposited funds with her, Sonovich kept some or all of the funds for herself. The indictment alleges that Sonovich received more than $3 million from investors. To date, no investor has received the promised returns, and in most or all instances, no investor has received any of their initial investment back.
Some investors in Sonovich’s scheme became involved at the same time that an earlier investment fraud scheme in which they had invested was collapsing. Anthony Vassallo and Kenneth Kenitzer ran that Folsom-based Ponzi scheme through their company Equity Investment Management & Trading (EIMT). Both were convicted for that scheme, Vassallo is serving a 16-year prison sentence and Kenitzer is scheduled to be sentenced on February 14, 2014.
This case is the product of an investigation by the Internal Revenue Service, Criminal Investigation. Assistant United States Attorney Jean M. Hobler is prosecuting the case.
If convicted, Sonovich faces a maximum statutory penalty of 20 years in prison and a fine of up to twice the losses resulting from the scheme. Any sentence, however, would be determined at the discretion of the court after consideration of any applicable statutory factors and the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, which take into account a number of variables. The charges are only allegations; the defendant is presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.
Pilot Projects Allow Tribal Prosecution of Non-Indian AbusersRead the Press Release
PASCUA YAQUI TRIBE OF ARIZONA TO BE ONE OF THREE TRIBES TO
IMPLEMENT SPECIAL DOMESTIC VIOLENCE CRIMINAL JURISDICTION UNDER VAWA 2013
For the First Time in More Than Three DecadesWASHINGTON – The Pascua Yaqui Tribe of Arizona will be one of three American Indian tribes, joining the Umatilla Tribe of Oregon, and the Tulalip Tribe of Washington, to be the first in the nation to exercise special criminal jurisdiction over certain crimes of domestic and dating violence, regardless of the defendant’s Indian or non-Indian status, under a pilot project authorized by the Violence Against Women Reauthorization Act of 2013 (VAWA 2013).
“This is just the latest step forward in this administration’s historic efforts to address the public safety crisis in Indian country. Every day, we’re working hard to strengthen partnerships with tribal leaders and confront shared challenges – particularly when it comes to protecting Indian women and girls from the shocking and unacceptably high rates of violence they too often face,” said Attorney General Eric Holder. “With the important new tools provided by the Violence Against Women Reauthorization Act of 2013, these critical pilot projects will facilitate the first tribal prosecutions of non-Indian perpetrators in recent times. This represents a significant victory for public safety and the rule of law, and a momentous step forward for tribal sovereignty and self-determination.”
“The VAWA Pilot Project provides the Pascua Yaqui Tribe the latitude to exercise a wider jurisdictional range to prosecute those who commit domestic violence crimes on the Pascua Yaqui Reservation,” stated U.S. Attorney John S. Leonardo. “The Pascua Yaqui now have the legal ability to prosecute such cases in tribal court without recourse to the federal courts thus affording the tribe more local control in its efforts to protect victims of domestic violence on its reservation. The Pascua Yaqui Tribe was one of only three tribes in the country chosen for this national pilot project, and I congratulate the Tribe on its implementation of this historic legislation.”
“Making the Pascua Yaqui Reservation safe and secure has been very important to the Pascua Yaqui Tribal Council. The Tribal Council has made stopping violence against Native American women a top priority issue. Our judicial system, like all other judicial systems, will now have the opportunity to address offenders for wrongs committed against our most vulnerable community members,” says Peter Yucupicio, Tribal Chairman. “We no longer have to simply stand by and watch our Native women be victimized with no recourse. I’m here to put the community on notice, perpetrators will be held accountable in the tribe’s own justice system,” adds Raymond Buelna, Councilmember and Chairman of the tribe’s Public Safety Committee.
Although the provisions authorizing the special jurisdiction take effect generally in March 2015, the law also gives the Attorney General discretion to grant a tribe’s request to exercise the jurisdiction earlier, through a voluntary pilot project. The authority to approve such requests has been delegated to Associate Attorney General Tony West. Associate Attorney General West today congratulated tribal leaders of the Pascua Yaqui Tribe of Arizona, the Umatilla Tribe of Oregon, and the Tulalip Tribe of Washington on this historic achievement in letters to the three tribes.
“The old jurisdictional scheme failed to adequately protect the public – particularly native women – with too many crimes going unprosecuted and unpunished amidst escalating violence in Indian Country,” stated Associate Attorney General West. “Our actions today mark an historic turning point. We believe that by certifying certain tribes to exercise jurisdiction over these crimes, we will help decrease domestic and dating violence in Indian Country, strengthen tribal capacity to administer justice and control crime, and ensure that perpetrators of sexual violence are held accountable for their criminal behavior.”
Since the Supreme Court’s 1978 opinion in Oliphant v. Suquamish Indian Tribe, tribes have been prohibited from exercising criminal jurisdiction over non-Indian defendants. This included domestic violence and dating violence committed by non-Indian abusers against their Indian spouses, intimate partners and dating partners. Even a violent crime committed by a non-Indian husband against his Indian wife, in the presence of her Indian children, in their home on the Indian reservation, could not be prosecuted by the tribe. In granting the pilot-project requests of the Pascua Yaqui, Umatilla, and Tulalip tribes today, the United States is recognizing and affirming the tribes’ inherent power to exercise “special domestic violence criminal jurisdiction” (SDVCJ) over all persons, regardless of their Indian or non-Indian status.
As described in the Department of Justice’s Final Notice on the pilot project, today’s decisions are based on a diligent, detailed review of application questionnaires submitted by the tribes in December 2013, along with excerpts of tribal laws, rules, and policies, and other relevant information. That review, conducted in close coordination with the Department of the Interior and after formal consultation with affected Indian tribes, led the Justice Department to determine that the criminal justice system in the Pascua Yaqui, Umatilla, and Tulalip tribes have adequate safeguards in place to fully protect defendants’ rights under the Indian Civil Rights Act of 1968, as amended by VAWA 2013.
The Department of Justice is posting notices of the pilot-project designation on the Tribal Justice and Safety Web site (www.justice.gov/tribal/) and in the Federal Register. In addition, each tribe’s application questionnaire and related tribal laws, rules, and policies will be posted on the Web site. These materials will serve as a resource for those tribes that may also wish to participate in the pilot project or to commence exercising SDVCJ in March 2015 or later, after the pilot project has concluded.
For more information on VAWA 2013, please visit www.justice.gov/tribal/vawa-tribal.html.
2014-009_VAWA
Parkersburg Drug Felon Pleads Guilty to Illegally Possessing 26 FirearmsRead the Press Release
CHARLESTON, W.Va. – A Parkersburg man, previously convicted of manufacturing a controlled substance pleaded guilty today to a federal gun crime, announced U.S. Attorney Booth Goodwin. Alan Keith Philpott, 46, pleaded guilty to possessing 26 firearms in spite of his status as a convicted felon. Philpott offered his guilty plea before United States District Judge Thomas E. Johnston.
On November 1, 2012 and March 21, 2003 police executed search warrants at Philpott’s residence on Elm Tree Drive near Parkersburg. During the first search, police seized approximately 22 firearms. During the second search warrant, police seized an additional four firearms. Philpott had been previously convicted in December of 2006 in the Circuit Court of Wood County of the felony offense of manufacturing a controlled substance.
Philpott faces up to 10 years in federal prison when he is sentenced on May 15, 2014, at 10:00 a.m.
The West Virginia State Police, Parkersburg Police Department, and the Federal Bureau of Investigation conducted the investigation. Assistant United States Attorney Joshua Hanks is in charge of the prosecution.
Ontario Man Sentenced on Drug Smuggling ChargeRead the Press Release
BUFFALO, N.Y.--U.S. Attorney William J. Hochul, Jr. announced today that Edman Ho, 28, of Timmins, Ontario, who was convicted of conspiracy to import 3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA) into the United States from Canada, was sentenced to 24 months in prison, by Chief U.S. District Judge William M. Skretny.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Mary Catherine Baumgarten, who handled the case, stated that case began with an investigation into narcotics smuggling by Ho from Canada. The drugs were primarily distributed in the City of Niagara Falls and other locations in Niagara County.
The sentencing is the culmination of an investigation by Immigration and Customs Enforcement, Homeland Security Investigations, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge James C. Spero.
Omaha Man Sentenced to Ten Years in Federal Prison for Child PornographyRead the Press Release
United States Attorney Deborah R. Gilg announced that Joshua M. Meyer, 33, was sentenced in federal court in Omaha for distributing and possessing child pornography. The Honorable Lyle E. Strom, Senior United States District Court Judge, sentenced Meyer to a ten year term in federal prison. There is no parole in the federal system. After his release from prison Meyer will begin a ten year term of supervised release and will be required to register as a sex offender.
On January 27, 2013, Meyer displayed an image of child pornography involving a two year old victim during a webcam session. The incident was reported to law enforcement.
A search warrant was served on Meyer’s residence in Omaha on May 24, 2013. More than 300 videos of child pornography were recovered from computers seized from his home. The average age of the child victims was between five and ten years. Meyer admitted to collecting child pornography over eight years and deleting his collection six months earlier.
This matter was investigated by the Omaha FBIs Cyber Crime Task Force (CCTF), of which the Nebraska State Patrol is a partner. The Omaha CCTF is a multi-jurisdictional task force consisting of eleven federal, state and local law enforcement agencies from Nebraska and Iowa. The mission of the Omaha CCTF is to investigate and apprehend high technology criminals and to protect our communities by preventing high technology crime and national security threats involving computers and computer networks. The Omaha CCTF was established on the premise that the capabilities of law enforcement agencies to investigate computer and high technology related crimes are enhanced in a task force setting involving the sharing of resources and expertise.
The 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 Attorney’s Offices and the Criminal Division's Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS), Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state and local resources to better locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the Internet, as well as to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.projectsafechildhood.gov.
Officials Take Down Gang-affiliated Drug Traffickers; Take Dozens of Guns Off the StreetRead the Press Release
San Diego – Forty-five people with links to six criminal street gangs have been charged with gun and methamphetamine-trafficking crimes in indictments unsealed this week.
Following a yearlong investigation and a three-day gang sweep that concluded this morning, 40 defendants were in custody and 52 weapons were taken off the streets. A coalition of local, state and federal agents also conducted searches at eight locations – including sites in Linda Vista, Midtown, City Heights, Mid City, Clairemont Mesa and Oak Park.
Many of these locations are homes where drugs and guns were stored or sold – including an apartment across the street from Hoover High School. Agents and detectives seized $47,600 in cash at a house in Oak Park this morning, bringing the total of cash seized to almost $60,000.
Among the guns found during the investigation, dubbed Crystal Palace II: Numerous assault rifles; AR-15 magazine-fed, semi-automatic rifles; high-powered rifles, an SWD M11 9mm (Tec 9) with high capacity magazine and a couple Norinco Mak 90 7.62mm (AK-47) with high capacity magazines.
The 10 indictments describe five different conspiracies with overlapping players, including individuals with ties to the Oriental Killer Boys, the Oriental Mob Crips, the Viet Boys, the Tiny Oriental Crips, the Logan Heights Calle Treinta (KIE-yay TRAIN-tuh) and Linda Vista Crips.
According to indictments and search warrant affidavits, most defendants were drug traffickers selling methamphetamine. Some were felons in possession of firearms.
“We are absolutely committed to making our neighborhoods safe from violent gang activity and drug trafficking,” said U.S. Attorney Laura Duffy. “We will not allow our neighborhoods to become headquarters for drug-pushing, gun-toting gangsters.”
“HSI and our law enforcement partners have struck a serious blow to violent gang organizations in San Diego,” said Derek Benner, special agent in charge for HSI in San Diego. “The focus of Crystal Palace Part ll was on disrupting criminal gang activity in Southern California based on previously gathered intelligence. Today’s arrests, which included a number of high-level gang members who were taken off the streets, will immediately improve community safety.”
“This is exactly the type of criminal activity that DEA and its law enforcement partners want to ensure is not afflicting the streets of San Diego,” said Special Agent in Charge William R. Sherman of the San Diego Drug Enforcement Administration.
"Combating violent crime to make our communities safer is our first goal,” said John D'Angelo, Acting Special Agent in Charge of the ATF Los Angeles Field Division. “We best achieve that through effective partnerships and innovative enforcement. In this investigation, our agencies worked together, but uniquely applied our respective resources and enforcement jurisdictions to the overall effort. As a result, we made a far greater impact together than any of us could have alone.”
According to court documents, some of the defendants were distributing methamphetamine far beyond the borders of California – from Hawaii to Guam, and from central California to Minnesota.
This case is the latest in a series of federally-charged, large-scale multi-agency crackdowns on street gang activity in San Diego County neighborhoods. Including today’s indictments, almost 300 people have been charged in a number of major federal gang prosecutions since January 2012, with scores of guilty pleas entered.
What most of these cases have in common is methamphetamine. It’s the perfect commodity for gangs because there is no shortage of customers. It’s cheap, pure and so addictive you can get hooked after just one use. It’s prevalent among the young and old, rich and poor.
Federal prosecutions of methamphetamine drug crimes in the Southern District of California, which includes San Diego and Imperial counties, have increased more than 500 percent in the last five years, from 144 cases in FY 2008 to 910 cases in FY 2013.
While San Diego County was once known for its proliferation of meth labs, the supply of meth has shifted to “superlabs” operated by drug cartels in Mexico. As a result, meth seizures at U.S. ports of entry along the California-Mexico border have almost doubled. In fiscal 2013, nearly 12,000 pounds of meth were seized at the ports, compared to almost 6,700 pounds two years earlier, according to U.S. Customs and Border Protection stats.
“Meth abuse and trafficking are tremendous problems in our country and our county – and they urgently require more resources and attention,” U.S. Attorney Duffy said. “For all of these reasons, in 2014-2015, my office will be taking a harder look at our role in attacking these problems.”
Many of the defendants are scheduled to make their initial appearances in federal court at 2 p.m. today before U.S. Magistrate Judge Karen S. Crawford.
DEFENDANTS Criminal Case No: 14-CR-0216-MMAName
Age HometownChien Van Nguyen, aka “Chino”
32 San Diego, CAIsrael Soto, aka “Izzy/EZ”
30 El Cajon, CAChristian Lomeli, aka “Chente”
23 Chula Vista, CALori Ann Rodriguez
43 San Diego, CAEric Allan Guffin, aka “White Boy”
50 San Diego, CAHa Thi Ngoc Nguyen, aka “Holly”
38 San Diego, CALorenzo Orozco, aka “Tony Baloney”
33 San Diego, CAAnthony Adam Cruz, aka “Tony”
37 San Diego, CAEric Hanesana, aka “Slim/Sleepy”
30 San Diego, CAJohn Van Trinh, aka “Ngo / Little John”
23 San Diego, CASomxay Souphalak, aka “Hay”
38 San Diego, CAThalina Perry,
32 San Diego, CAThomas Ai Sommay, aka “T-Black”
33 San Diego, CALeo Paschal,
32 El Cajon, CATheng Sonepaseuth Theimthath, aka “Theng / Baby Blue
36 San Diego, CA SUMMARY OF CHARGESConspiracy to Distribute Methamphetamine in violation of Title 21, U.S.C., Secs. 841(a)(1) and 846; Possession of Methamphetamine with Intent to Distribute in violation of Title 21, U.S.C., Sec. 841(a)(1); Felon in Possession of a Firearm in in violation of Title 18, U.S.C., Secs. 922(g)(1) and 924(a)(2) Maximum Penalties: Life in prison with a mandatory minimum sentence of 10 years and a 10 million dollar fine.
DEFENDANTS Criminal Case No: 14-CR-0224-MMAName
Age Hometown Israel Soto, aka “Izzy/EZ” 30 El Cajon, CA *Aziel Viveros-Navarro, aka “Pariente” 56 Tijuana, Mexico Jessica Quezada, 23 El Cajon, CA *Nathan Derek Gardner, aka “Nick” 34 Chula Vista, CA Gale Mason, 42 San Diego, CA SUMMARY OF CHARGESConspiracy to Distribute Methamphetamine in violation of Title 21, U.S.C., Secs. 841(a)(1) and 846; Possession of Methamphetamine with Intent to Distribute in violation of Title 21, U.S.C., Sec. 841(a)(1); Felon in Possession of a Firearm in in violation of Title 18, U.S.C., Secs. 922(g)(1) and 924(a)(2)
Maximum Penalties: Life in prison with a mandatory minimum sentence of 10 years and a 10 million dollar fine.
DEFENDANTS Criminal Case No: 14-CR-0219-MMAName
Age HometownMario Alberto Miranda-Verdugo
32 San Diego, CAIsrael Soto, aka “Izzy/EZ”
30 El Cajon, CA*Chad Namoc
29 Pahoa, HI SUMMARY OF CHARGESConspiracy to Distribute Methamphetamine in violation of Title 21, U.S.C., Secs. 841(a)(1) and 846; Maximum Penalties: Life in prison with a mandatory minimum sentence of 10 years and a 10 million dollar fine.
DEFENDANTS Criminal Case No: 14-CR-0225-MMAName
Age Hometown Tam Minh Ta, aka “Tom” 30 San Diego, CA Trinh Bang Le, aka “Tyson” 42 San Diego, CA Jesus Efren Guzman, 33 San Diego, CA Giang Van Doan, aka “Shorty” 37 San Diego, CA *Christopher Sutphin Ibanez, 49 San Diego, CA Bounpheng Soryadvongsa, aka “Bulldog” 41 San Diego, CA Rick Minh Ta, aka “Ricky” 27 San Diego, CA Billy Minh Ta, 29 San Diego, CA Vong Vongdara, aka “Thigh” 33 San Diego, CA Jasmine Marie Cross, aka “Kitty” 19 San Diego, CA SUMMARY OF CHARGESConspiracy to Distribute Methamphetamine in violation of Title 21, U.S.C., Secs. 841(a)(1) and 846; Possession of Methamphetamine with Intent to Distribute in violation of Title 21, U.S.C., Sec. 841(a)(1); Felon in Possession of a Firearm in in violation of Title 18, U.S.C., Secs. 922(g)(1) and 924(a)(2) Maximum Penalties: Life in prison with a mandatory minimum sentence of 10 years and a 10 million dollar fine.
DEFENDANTS Criminal Case No: 14-CR-0221-MMAName
Age Hometown Dung Van NGUYEN aka “Du” 36 San Diego, CA Israel Soto, aka “Izzy/EZ” 30 El Cajon, CA Javier Chavez 48 Riverside, CA Veovanh Insixengmay aka “Baby” 32 San Diego, CA Eric Allan Guffin, aka “White Boy” 50 San Diego, CA Dien Phong Vo 36 San Diego, CA Louie James Roberts 26 San Diego, CA Thuy Thu Tu 45 San Diego, CA *Sengnguen Koulavongsa aka “Nguen” 40 San Diego, CA Erin Lindsay Connelly 32 El Cajon, CA *Suzana Vera 39 San Diego, CA SUMMARY OF CHARGESConspiracy to Distribute Methamphetamine in violation of Title 21, U.S.C., Secs. 841(a)(1) and 846; Conspiracy to Import Methamphetamine in violation of Title 21, U.S.C. Secs. 952, 960 and 963; Importation of Methamphetamine in violation of Title 21, U.S.C., Secs. 952 and 960; Possession of Methamphetamine with Intent to Distribute in violation of Title 21, U.S.C., Sec. 841(a)(1); Felon in Possession of a Firearm in in violation of Title 18, U.S.C., Secs. 922(g)(1) and 924(a)(2)
Maximum Penalties: Life in prison with a mandatory minimum sentence of 10 years and a 10 million dollar fine.
DEFENDANT Criminal Case No: 14-CR-0223-MMAName
Age Hometown Vincent Rubio 36 San Diego, CA SUMMARY OF CHARGESPossession of Methamphetamine with Intent to Distribute in violation of Title 21, U.S.C., Sec. 841(a)(1); Maximum Penalties: 40 years in prison with a mandatory minimum sentence of 5 years and a 5 million dollar fine.
DEFENDANT Criminal Case No: 14-CR-0220-MMAName
Age Hometown Dat Minh To aka “Tony” 33 San Diego, CA SUMMARY OF CHARGESPossession of Methamphetamine with Intent to Distribute in violation of Title 21, U.S.C., Sec. 841(a)(1); Felon in Possession of a Firearm in in violation of Title 18, U.S.C., Secs. 922(g)(1) and 924(a)(2) Maximum Penalties: 40 years in prison with a mandatory minimum sentence of 5 years and a 5 million dollar fine.
DEFENDANT Criminal Case No: 14-CR-0218-MMAName
Age Hometown Vinh Van Phan aka “Crack Baby” 33 San Diego, CA SUMMARY OF CHARGESFelon in Possession of a Firearm in in violation of Title 18, U.S.C., Secs. 922(g)(1) and 924(a)(2) Maximum Penalties: 10 years in prison and a $ 250,000 dollar fine.
DEFENDANT Criminal Case No: 14-CR-0217-MMAName
Age Hometown Khamsouk Inthavong aka “Speedy”” 35 San Diego, CA SUMMARY OF CHARGESFelon in Possession of Ammunition in in violation of Title 18, U.S.C., Secs. 922(g)(1) and 924(a)(2) Maximum Penalties: 10 years in prison and a $ 250,000 dollar fine.
DEFENDANT Criminal Case No: 14-CR-0222-MMAName
Age Hometown Cu Van Huynh aka “Ku Van Huynh/ Van Cu Huynh” 31 San Diego, CA SUMMARY OF CHARGESFelon in Possession of Ammunition in in violation of Title 18, U.S.C., Secs. 922(g)(1) and 924(a)(2) Maximum Penalties: 10 years in prison and a $ 250,000 dollar fine.
*Fugitives
AGENCIESImmigration and Customs Enforcement, Homeland Security Investigations
San Diego Police Department
San Diego County Sheriff’s Department
Drug Enforcement Agency
Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and ExplosivesAn indictment or complaint itself is not evidence that the defendants committed the crimes charged. The defendants are presumed innocent until the Government meets its burden in court of proving guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.
Northern Arapaho Man Sentenced for Escape from CustodyRead the Press Release
United States Attorney Christopher A. Crofts announced today that on February 5, 2014, Garrett Blackburn, a 21-year-old enrolled Northern Arapaho man from Arapahoe, Wyoming, appeared in Federal District Court in Casper, Wyoming for sentencing before United States District Judge Scott W. Skavdahl on the charge of escape from custody. Blackburn had previously been sentenced to 16 months incarceration following his conviction for a charge of assault resulting in serious bodily injury. Blackburn was transferred from FCI Englewood to the Volunteers of America Community Corrections Center (VOACCC) in Gillette, Wyoming to complete his period of imprisonment. At the time of his escape from VOACCC, Blackburn had approximately nine weeks left to serve on his original sentence.
For this offense, Blackburn was sentenced to 13 months imprisonment, to be followed by two years of supervised release, and was ordered to pay a $100.00 special assessment. The case was investigated by the United States Marshals Service.